Citizen Bob.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Christian Scientist To Take Over at Treasury
Bizzare Christian Scientist Henry Paulson to take top job in Bush Administration. Let's hope he doesn't step on any rusty nails at Camp David.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Friday, May 26, 2006
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Lay and Skilling Both Guilty
If you had listened to coverage on NPR the case was closed and these two Bush family crony privateers were heading on vacation. Let's hope it's Club Fed for these criminals. The verdict is in.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Horatio Alger Lives!
From Madison's Capital Times.
High-wire developer: T. Wall makes major mark in commercial property
First off, Terrence Wall wants to make a couple of things perfectly clear.
No, he didn't become the largest commercial real estate developer in Dane County off the family money - although those connections certainly didn't hurt. His father, John, is retired owner of DEMCO, the successful local library supply company.
"Dad was an early investor and the way it turned out now he got a pretty good deal," Wall says. "But the idea that he bankrolled me just isn't true."
And yes, Wall is leveraged to the hilt.
I'm going to the bank today to borrow $50 million!
Monday, May 22, 2006
Middleton Welfare King Goes for the Bucks
Tribeca moves to Middleton, WI. A local developer wants $65 million from the local government to build a profit making enterprise. No shame for the plutocracy. Yes, I did say $65 million!
Sunday, May 21, 2006
And the Winner Is
In the creepiest advert contest goes to this ad by ---------'s for a new restaurant in India.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
Latin America's Left Turn
Populism, what is it? Where has it been. It's a shame this kind of well done historical analysis has to come from the Economist, el voce de reaccion!
Christian America is Once Again Being Overrun By......Uh, Christians
Speaking of immigration from Latin America Bill O'Reilly recently spewed the following commentary:
Summary: Bill O'Reilly claimed that The New York Times and "many far-left thinkers believe the white power structure that controls America is bad, so a drastic change is needed." O'Reilly continued: "According to the lefty zealots, the white Christians who hold power must be swept out by a new multicultural tide, a rainbow coalition, if you will."
O'Reilly and many others like to argue that their arguments are not xenophobic or racist. I have recently been smeared with the label so I will be precise here. This commentary is racist because he claims that a "muticultural tide, a rainbow coalition" should be feared because "lefty zealots" want them to infiltrate the country to displace White Christians who hold power. He is raising the banner, how high can it get?, of Mexican hoards invading the country and displacing the dominant Anglo-Saxon majority culturally and politically. His basis for analysis is ethnicity. He fears this "race." He wants his followers to fear them and to take action so that white supremacy can be maintained.
I find this analysis quite wired, particularly the religious part, given the pattern of Latino immigration, and particularly Mexican immigration which has followed traditional twentieth century patterns of other immigrants-urbanination, suburbanization and a rightward political drift with future generations.
It reminds me of a quote from William McKinley when talking of his invasion of the Philippines:
"And one night late it came to me this way - I don't know how it was, but it came: (1) That we could not give them back to Spain - that would be cowardly and dishonorable; (2) that we could not turn them over to France or Germany - our commercial rivals in the Orient - that would be bad business and discreditable; (3) that we could not leave them to themselves - they were unfit for self-government - and they would soon have anarchy and misrule over there worse than Spain's was; and (4) that there was nothing left for us to do but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize and Christianize them, and by God's grace do the very best we could by them, as our fellow men for whom Christ also died. And then I went to bed and went to sleep and slept soundly."
It's a shame he was so worried about Christianizing them given that the overwhelming majority had been bludgeoned by Catholicism for the previous 400 years. I know they are "Papists" and idolotures, not followers of the TRUE faith.
Summary: Bill O'Reilly claimed that The New York Times and "many far-left thinkers believe the white power structure that controls America is bad, so a drastic change is needed." O'Reilly continued: "According to the lefty zealots, the white Christians who hold power must be swept out by a new multicultural tide, a rainbow coalition, if you will."
O'Reilly and many others like to argue that their arguments are not xenophobic or racist. I have recently been smeared with the label so I will be precise here. This commentary is racist because he claims that a "muticultural tide, a rainbow coalition" should be feared because "lefty zealots" want them to infiltrate the country to displace White Christians who hold power. He is raising the banner, how high can it get?, of Mexican hoards invading the country and displacing the dominant Anglo-Saxon majority culturally and politically. His basis for analysis is ethnicity. He fears this "race." He wants his followers to fear them and to take action so that white supremacy can be maintained.
I find this analysis quite wired, particularly the religious part, given the pattern of Latino immigration, and particularly Mexican immigration which has followed traditional twentieth century patterns of other immigrants-urbanination, suburbanization and a rightward political drift with future generations.
It reminds me of a quote from William McKinley when talking of his invasion of the Philippines:
"And one night late it came to me this way - I don't know how it was, but it came: (1) That we could not give them back to Spain - that would be cowardly and dishonorable; (2) that we could not turn them over to France or Germany - our commercial rivals in the Orient - that would be bad business and discreditable; (3) that we could not leave them to themselves - they were unfit for self-government - and they would soon have anarchy and misrule over there worse than Spain's was; and (4) that there was nothing left for us to do but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize and Christianize them, and by God's grace do the very best we could by them, as our fellow men for whom Christ also died. And then I went to bed and went to sleep and slept soundly."
It's a shame he was so worried about Christianizing them given that the overwhelming majority had been bludgeoned by Catholicism for the previous 400 years. I know they are "Papists" and idolotures, not followers of the TRUE faith.
Thom Friedman's Time Problem
For those who know me know that I have an infinity problem/phobia, which my students have informed me is called apeirophobia. In a constant effort to get me off track my students have become very ingenious in freaking me out with new ways to conceptualize endlessness. For instance this year they uncovered for me the idea that fractions go on for infinity as well as negative numbers and the past. So now my phobia has expanded three fold! Unfortunately FAIR has now pointed out to me a fourth dimension to infinity, the Thomas Friedman Iraqi crucial, no critical, next six months. No wonder he wins all of those Pulitzer's.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Wedge Issues Or Good Organizing?
Republicans in Wisconsin have been making major gains politically and socially since the 1980's. The party came back to power with the rise of the Reagan Democrats-white ethnic working class that began leaveing the Democrats in droves with the decline of the industrial bases (unions) and most importantly gender and race-and the religious right. They organized with issues, abortion, tax cuts-Tommy Thompson cleverly hitched the issue to schools and lazy unionized teachers-and crime/race-the state passed truth in sentencing laws and went on a prison building binge which hooked in lots of trades and prison workers (mostly white). This has brought them political power that looks to be long lasting.
The Democratic strategy in the state has been to either depend on the New Deal coalition-union members, blacks, jews, liberal women and a smattering of gays and environmentalists or to become more like Republicans with a conservative pitch to the suburban voter who is a larger and larger percentage of the electorate. These voters tend to be more conservative fiscally but socially liberal so they are able to capture a few of these folk.
But one of the favorite past times from these liberal shores on the coast is to blame the media, think tanks and nasty politics and not look to the base reasons why the Democratic Party is in decline.
Yesterday's announcement that the State Senate had voted to put the death penalty on the ballot along with the November vote on banning civil unions and marriages was met with howls from the Democratic amen corner on public radio and in the written press.
Here's a proposal, out organize them on these issues. Put forward left issues like health care, living wages, progressive taxation and equal funding for schools. Stop complaining and put forward a vision of how the state can be not just how it shouldn't.
The Democratic strategy in the state has been to either depend on the New Deal coalition-union members, blacks, jews, liberal women and a smattering of gays and environmentalists or to become more like Republicans with a conservative pitch to the suburban voter who is a larger and larger percentage of the electorate. These voters tend to be more conservative fiscally but socially liberal so they are able to capture a few of these folk.
But one of the favorite past times from these liberal shores on the coast is to blame the media, think tanks and nasty politics and not look to the base reasons why the Democratic Party is in decline.
Yesterday's announcement that the State Senate had voted to put the death penalty on the ballot along with the November vote on banning civil unions and marriages was met with howls from the Democratic amen corner on public radio and in the written press.
Here's a proposal, out organize them on these issues. Put forward left issues like health care, living wages, progressive taxation and equal funding for schools. Stop complaining and put forward a vision of how the state can be not just how it shouldn't.
Live in Wisconsin?
You are needed this Saturday to go door to door. Fair Wisconsin, the state-wide organization to vote no on the ban on civil unions and marriages, is organizing a canvas this Saturday. You are needed. Sign up!
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
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