IT’S NICE TO BE QUOTED, but that was actually Elizabeth Price Foley, not me.
Archive for 2012
October 1, 2012
AFTER MANY YEARS: My friend Rebecca Lickiss has a sequel to her popular fantasy novel Never After (which incidentally is free on Amazon just now.) I haven’t read Never Say Never After Again yet, but it’s on my to-be-read pile.
OVER-REGULATION KEEPS THEIR POCKETS FILLED: Lawyers representing whistleblowers donate heavily to Obama.
In other news, water still wet.
NEWS YOU CAN USE: How to Avoid getting sued if you Blog – Where I went wrong.
The advice to be polite is good, but I would probably take a more aggressive approach myself.
WHERE ARE THE GREAT WAR NOVELS FROM TODAY’S WARS?
WHEN YOU’VE LOST THE WASHINGTON POST FACT CHECKERS: it might be time to drop it.
HAVE THEY NO DECENCY? Reminder: Obama Campaign Site Still Accuses Romney of Killing Woman.
The President and his allies at Priorities USA were roundly criticized in the media for making this claim, but it’s still standing online. Perhaps a good question for Wednesday night would be: “Mr. President, you said your campaign had nothing to do with allegations about a man’s wife dying from cancer after losing health insurance at GST Steel. Why is an official arm of your campaign still making that claim?” I highly doubt that question will be asked, but we should hold Obama accountable for it.
I’m sure one of Obama’s media panelists will run interference for him if it comes up.
SCIENCE: Couples who share the housework are more likely to divorce, study finds. “In what appears to be a slap in the face for gender equality, the report found the divorce rate among couples who shared housework equally was around 50 per cent higher than among those where the woman did most of the work.”
FROM THE “FRENEMIES” DEPARTMENT: A former Pakistani legislator is offering a cash reward to anyone who murders the American man who made the now-notorious anti-Mohammed video, The Innocence of Muslims. Earlier, Pakistan’s railways minister offered a bounty of 100,000 dollars out of his own pocket.
21ST CENTURY RELATIONSHIPS: Coffee Meets Bagel Is Online Dating Meets Groupon. “Online dating has come a long way from simple text-based Yahoo Personals, but we still can’t seem to get away from the vaguely creepy strangers who lurk around most online dating sites. So rather than filling out lengthy online applications and trusting to the algorithm, Coffee Meets Bagel figures, why not just leverage your Facebook friends to find you a non-threatening mate? And since you need a place to have that awkward first meeting, here’s a deal at local restaurants and cafes. It’s Groupon meets Match.com, complete with the daily e-mails.”
“EXCUSE ME, I’m not a student in your classroom.” Scott Brown’s Kennedy-seat line of tonight’s debate? Warren’s Lugar error wasn’t very impressive, either. . . .
TOOLS AND MORE: At Amazon, Up to 40% Off on DIY Essentials.
IF YOU MISSED IT EARLIER: My USA Today column on why everyone should pay income tax.
REYNOLDS/FOLEY 2016 PLATFORM: If chosen as Glenn’s 2016 running mate (a selection I strongly advise against), I would add to his thoughtful 2016 platform the following:
9. Unabashedly defend the original meaning of the Constitution. Boldly proclaim that it isn’t a “living” document subject to infinitely capacious “re-interpretation.” Confess that it can only be legitimately amended in one way: via the amendment procedures of Article V (2/3 of both houses of Congress; 3/4 of states’ ratification). Tell the American people that this respects their authorship and control over their social charter, taking it back from an unelected-for-life, elitist federal judiciary.
REPORT FROM OHIO: Reader Jim Coutinho writes:
It’s anecdotal, I know, but I wanted to report to you what I saw driving around this past weekend. I live in Hilliard, Ohio, which is a suburb on the western side of the Columbus Ohio outerbelt. My wife and I drove around for about three hours on Saturday doing some garage sale shopping and saw more Mitt Romney signs than I ever expected to see. Romney signs were present over Obama signs by a factor of 10 to 1.
I have lived in this area and around Ohio State Campus for twelve years. Hilliard is more conservative than central Columbus, but I have NEVER seen this many pro-republican signs. In fact, I think I saw more Romney signs on Saturday than I ever saw of McCain/Palin signs in all of 2008.
I was incredibly encouraged. I don’t think they are lying about the GOP ground game.
Keep up the good fight. I am glad for all that you do (and will be shopping for Christmas gifts through your Amazon link).
Thanks for that! And I hope you’re right.
UPDATE: A reader emails: “I live in Venice, California, and I havent seen an obama yard sign yet.”
And reader Gary Herring emails from Gloucester County, Virginia:
The local Republican Committee had a booth at a local fair last Friday and Saturday. We were directly across a pathway from the Democrat booth. I manned the Republican booth for most of Saturday and heard from someone she was there Friday. In terms of numbers of visitors, bumper stickers and lawn signs given away (we ran out of Romney-Ryan signs), and just thumbs-up from passersby, the GOP blew the Dems’ doors off. Their VA-01 congressional candidate supposedly put in an appearance but I’m not sure I saw him – he certainly didn’t draw a crowd near the booths.
Meanwhile, reader R.J. Thomas writes: “I just saw the ‘Report from Ohio’ and it reminded me that just a few days ago my wife and I both noted, independent of each other, that there are a heck of a lot more Romney bumper stickers out here (we live in Los Angeles County) than we ever saw McCain stickers. And not just on fancy cars. We both noticed a lot on pick-up trucks, especially those driven by tradesmen. Again, not a scientific survey, but it was certainly enough to grab our attention.”
Well, we’ll know soon enough.
#REYNOLDS2016: So in response to this tagline, people want to know what a Reynolds 2016 platform would look like, beyond the flamethrower-equipped-embassies part.
I dunno. It’s not like I’ve given this ever-so-serious candidacy extensive thought. But here are some ideas:
1. Taxation: Everybody pays income tax. Enough to feel, regardless of income. (Say, 2-5% of gross income?) And the amount goes up and down each year in tandem with federal spending. Also, Hollywood fatcats will be expected to pay their fair share. And there will be sharper limits on charitable donations, and on universities’ ability to hoard their endowments while raising tuitions.
2. In foreign policy, a strategy of rewarding our friends and punishing our enemies, instead of the reverse. An idea so crazy it just might work!
3. Education: Abolish the Department of Education. Take half the current budget and turn it into education vouchers. Put the rest toward deficit reduction.
4. Budget: A 5% across-the-board cut in spending, repeated each year of my first term, said cuts to be actual reductions from prior-year spending. Also, federal budgeting to be done according to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, not the current hocus-pocus. Anyone calling something a “spending cut” when it’s really just a decline in the rate of growth shall be mocked publicly and pitilessly by the Official White House Mocker, Iowahawk.
5. Intellectual property: A single copyright term of 14 years; after some point, you’ve made enough money. Repeal the DMCA and related protectionist legislation.
6. Civil rights: Justice Department to enforce all civil rights laws without regard to race, class, or gender. Another idea so crazy it just might work!
7. Space: NASA abolished. All space activity except perhaps for some Defense-related stuff (e.g., spy satellites, ICBMs) to be contracted out to private firms.
8. Welfare: Return to, and strengthen, the Clinton-era work requirements.
Well, those are some thoughts. Perhaps my co-bloggers will have some other suggestions.
ON THE OFFENSIVE: Romney slams Obama over Middle East chaos, calls for new course. And Obama is certainly vulnerable here.
WHO SAYS CRIME DOESN’T PAY: Gov. Cuomo’s administration is launching an aggressive plan to sign up thousands of ex-cons for taxpayer-financed Medicaid . This nonsense will go on until it can’t — are we there yet?
WHY WOULD ANYONE THINK THAT NBC DOCTORS TAPES? An Insta-reader emails:
“And don’t accuse our staff of doctoring tape….they’re not doctoring tapes.”
— Mika berates the Cheetoh Eating, Basement Dwelling, Conservative Blogosphere on Morning Joe (4 minute mark).Now, where in the world would anyone get the idea that NBC/MSNBC would ever doctor a tape and mislead viewers???
MSNBC is Exposed for Doctoring Video & Inciting Race Baiting
NBC News Fires Producer Responsible for Doctoring Tape of Zimmerman 911 Call
MSNBC & Andrea Mitchell Busted for Doctoring Romney Tape
NBC Dateline Doctors Crash, Burn & Explosion of GM Truck
Hmm..I havn’t a clue.
Heh, indeed.™
I QUESTION THE PREMISE OF THIS HEADLINE: “Looming public pension crisis undercuts optimism on economy.”
What optimism?
OBAMA’S AMERICA: Man Ticketed for Having Romney Bumpersticker on His Vehicle.
“THEY CAME FOR IT STRAIGHT UP:” 3D printer company seizes its leased unit from the home of a man planning to print out a pistol.