"What I reject is when some folks say we should go back to the past policies when it was those very same policies that got us into this mess in the first place. Another way of putting it is when, you know, I'm busy and Nancy is busy with our mop cleaning up somebody else's mess - we don't want somebody sitting back saying, you're not holding the mop the right way. Why don't you grab a mop, why don't you help clean up. (Applause.) You're not mopping fast enough. (Laughter.) That's a socialist mop. (Laughter and applause.) Grab a mop - let's get to work," - Barack Obama.
It's an inspired three-word challenge to the GOP. Devastating, actually - because it both reminds people of the damage the GOP did while not seeming to dwell on the past or to score partisan points (while actually doing both).
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Wow: Explored by an Anglo-Greek team of archaeologists and marine geologists and known as Pavlopetri, the sunken settlement dates back some 5,000 years to the time of Homer's heroes and in terms of size and wealth of detail is unprecedented, experts say.
"There is now no doubt that this is the oldest submerged town in the world," said Dr Jon Henderson, associate professor of underwater archaeology at the University of Nottingham. "It has remains dating from 2800 to 1200 BC, long before the glory days of classical Greece. There are older sunken sites in the world but none can be considered to be planned towns such as this, which is why it is unique."
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PZ Meyers: Chimpanzee farewell
Lying in the wheelbarrow is the body of Dorothy, a chimpanzee who died suddenly of natural causes; the people in the scene are preparing to bury her. Behind the fence is a quiet gathering of her friends.
It makes me wish I could have a conversation with a chimpanzee. I wonder what they are thinking, and how close their feelings would be to those of a human family…
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Can any teabaggers spell?
Keep reading: http://griperblade.blogspot.com/2009/10/industrialized-extortion.html
Breaking news: At a White House press briefing, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius announced that a deal was being cut with congress to include a special program in the upcoming health care reform, commonly known as ObamaCare. "In recognition of the traumatic stress syndrome that uniquely afflicts many Republicans, we are adding a program to provide psychological counseling for those Republicans who want it. We hope that the bipartisan nature of this gesture will help to ensure speedy passage of the legislation."
Kathleen Sebelius went on to explain the thinking behind the new program. "We are aware of the serious mental problems being faced by many Republicans in the current situation. It's not easy going from 'This is my country, suck it up!' to 'You are an undesirable, and a rather hysterical one too'. We Democrats were in a similar position eight years ago, so we know what it's like and we can feel their pain,"
More here.
It's a bit of a dry speech, by the usual Blumenthal standards, but well worth watching. "The modern radical right, the most homophobic political movement in American history, has become a sanctuary for repressed gay men."
No More Mister Nice Guy blog outlines what may well be the worst article ever to appear in the New York Times, an extended whine by Paul Sullivan about all the angry email he got for his piece "A Thousand Violins, Playing Just For the Rich People". Here's a sample:
"That's so stupid that you ought to be slapped for it," one woman wrote. My favorite began: "Bowties and Reaganomics are for losers. You can cry for the rich all you want, the rest of us will be happy to see them get taxed."
The vehemence in these e-mail messages made me wonder why so many people were furious at those who had more than they did. And why are the rich shouldering the blame for a collective run of bad decision-making? After all, many of the rich got there through hard work. And plenty of not-so-rich people bought homes, cars and electronics they could not afford and then defaulted on the debt, contributing to the crash last year.
Sullivan goes on to suggest mass psychotherapy for everyone who didn't like the piece, because, you see, if you don't like reading about the travails of the ultra-wealthy, that means you have an unhealthy level of anger towards rich people.
Personally, I don't resent rich people at all. Maybe I should, but I don't. What I do resent is the New York Times wasting space discussing the economic "problems" of the rich when there are people out there who have real economic problems. I am not one of those people, by the grace of God, but you know the drill: 45 million without health insurance, 10% unemployment, wave after wave of foreclosures. Those are real economic problems. A 30% dip in your hundred million dollar trust fund is not.
If there were some terrible disease that was only affecting rich people and Paul Sullivan asked us to feel sorry for them, I would do so. In fact, I'm willing to admit right now that there may be all kinds of psychological problems that afflict the rich disproportionately and, if so, I have sympathy for those afflicted.
But Sullivan is not asking us to feel sorry for the rich because of any of those things, he's asking us to feel sorry for the rich because they aren't quite as rich as they used to be. And, that my friends, is total bullshit.
It's one thing for Sullivan to write some sob piece about the rich because one of his editors told him to do so. That's understandable. But when you write an entire column whining about the email you got and accusing your readers of psychological problems, you're an asshole. It's that simple.
There are days when I wish the New York Times would hurry up and go bankrupt.
I don't normally like to make things this personal, but this picture of the reporter is worth at least a thousand words.
Basically, the Bush administration (and then the Obama administration) threatened to withhold intelligence of any pending terror attacks if the Brits released details of a Gitmo detainee's torture.
Meet the new boss…
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U.S. firms withdraw from huge Iraq oil deal. "Iraq's cabinet has ratified a deal with two foreign energy companies to develop the giant southern oilfield in Rumaila. The contract with Britain's BP and CNPC of China is the first major deal with foreign firms to be signed since an international auction in June. Thirty two companies - including Shell, Exxon, BP and Total - bid for contracts to develop six oil fields and two gas fields in June's televised auction, Iraq's first big oil tender since the invasion of 2003. But most of the bidders withdrew at the last moment, saying the terms on offer were unfavourable."
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