Comments rescued from Michigan Liberal
Sep. 3rd, 2017 01:17 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
neonvincentI was a frequent commenter on the first or second iteration of Michigan Liberal, which ran on Soapblox, a now defunct blogging platform. When Soapblox went out of business, Michigan Liberal told everyone the old site would go away and a new site based on Wordpress would replace it. Unfortunately, all the old posts and their comments would disappear. I went through the site and collected all my comments that I thought worth preserving. That was almost two years ago. I'm posting them here so they survive beyond my current desktop.
Conyers rumor
Daily Kos Elections Live Digest: 7/24 11:19 AM PT
MST3K on Michigan
Eric B.:
The nominees in this category are all scenes in which things occur that are clearly not intended to be in the script. Continuity errors, bad editing, and boom shots are all examples which would fall under this category. The prize goes to the most glaring of these. Common symptoms: looking at your friends and saying "Did you see that?"; rewinding and paying closer attention.
Cap'n Bones gets his left hand bitten off by the Killer Barracuda in Scene 4, and is shown with a hook replacing his right hand in Scene 7.
Unfortunately, what is going on in Lansing probably deserves an award in the other category, "WHAT?!"
This is for the sequence of events requiring the biggest jump in logic or suspension of disbelief. It is distinguished from the "Whoops!" category by the fact that the movie-makers obviously meant for this stuff to be in the film, but, well, it just doesn't work. This may overlap with a number of other categories and may in fact be an extreme example of one or more of them. Common symptoms: getting up and pounding your head into a wall while screaming "No f***ing WAY!"
The medieval swords-and-sorcery heroine abruptly produces a sawed-off shotgun from somewhere inside her skimpy bodice and mows down the cultists who've surrounded her. She later explains it was a gift from a wizard. Sorry. Uh-uh. No way.
Attack of the The Eye Creatures was nominated for both of these and more. It won for "Whoops!"
"Whoops!"
Must Be a Female -- It Has Different Markings
When the "Eye Creatures" attack, you can plainly see one of them has just a head on and a black leotard.
"WHAT?!"
A Rather Major Design Flaw
The flying saucer has a convenient fuse with which to blow it up!
The Long Con
Happy Camper: Finley is like many right wingers, hopelessly gullible. Any explanation that meshes with his world view and political beliefs is accepted uncritically, no matter how contorted and unlikely it might be. Once accepted, such explanations are immune to logic, reason, and objective facts. Convince them once, and they're true believers forever.
This brings up a question... are conservatives easier marks for con men?
Me:Short answer, probably yes. For the long answer, read The Long Con, which details the intertwined history of modern conservatism and direct-mail and multi-level marketing.
Happy Camper: Nice. They're all grifters, and this piece lays it out in detail. I was surprised to find no mention of Amway.
Stories I tell my students about shipping water
Eric B.: [D]on't worry about pipelines from the Great Lakes. The energy to build them and to lift water uphill to even Phoenix would require more energy than I can describe.
Markrich:We already ship water from bottling operations out of the basin via truck and train. (Water containers less than 5.7 gallons are exempt from the restrictions of the GLBWRC.) In fact, a proposal by NOVA Corp. to ship Lake Superior waters to China via ocean-going tanker triggered the development of the compact.
Me:"Water containers less than 5.7 gallons are exempt from the restrictions of the GLBWR." I call that the "Absopure exception" as they're the main company I know of in Michigan that sells bottles for water coolers. It also works for Aquafina, Daisani, and Ice Mountain, which sell bottled water for the retail market. Still, the bottle water market is not the same market for bulk water, and it doesn't have nearly the effect that piping water out would have.
Eric B.: It's not a feasible, long-term solution for the Southwest. They are better off towing icebergs from the Arctic Ocean than they are in getting Great Lakes water in bladder ships. There's just not enough water in the ships to do anything but blip the supply and demand relationship.
Me: "better off towing icebergs from the Arctic Ocean"--That's an example of a cool but impractical solution I tell my students. I also add in nuclear-powered tugboats and dry-docks where the sun melts the icebergs, which I have coming from Antarctica instead. Oh, and the scheme was originally proposed for Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf States instead of California. They quickly realize[d] how ridiculous the whole scheme is.
GenCon is making noises about leaving Indiana
Gen Con threatens to move convention if Gov. Mike Pence signs religious freedom bill
The organizers of Gen Con, the city's largest convention in attendance and economic impact, are threatening to move the event elsewhere if Gov. Mike Pence signs controversial religious freedom legislation that could allow business owners to refuse services to same-sex couples.
"Legislation that could allow for refusal of service or discrimination against our attendees will have a direct negative impact on the state's economy, and will factor into our decision-making on hosting the convention in the state of Indiana in future years," said Adrian Swartout, owner and CEO of Gen Con LLC, in a letter sent to Pence just hours after lawmakers sent the measure to his desk.
Gen Con's website describes the convention as "the original, longest-running, best-attended gaming convention in the world!" The conference attracted 56,000 people last year to the Indiana Convention Center and has an annual economic impact of more than $50 million, Swartout said in the letter.
Of course, it won't happen right away.
Gen Con is under contract to hold the conference in Indianapolis through 2020. Conference spokeswoman Stacia Kirby said there are no plans to break the contract. But the state's adoption of the measure would factor into future decisions, she said.
With any luck, the measure will be overturned or repealed by then.
Voteview on Michigan's conservatives and liberals
Eric B.: A headline in today's Freep.
Is U.S. Rep. Justin Amash a centrist? National Journal ranking says yes
The answer is no.
If your ranking system says that a guy who voted against the Ryan budget because he didn't think it went far enough and who introduced a bill that would have outlawed most abortions is a centrist, it's probably a sign that your ranking system is hosed ... not that the guy is actually a centrist. Then again, the DC Beltway crowd has been trying to claim for two years now that Lil' Fella has some kind of bipartisan appeal, mostly because the DC Beltway crowd has no idea what life outside the DC Beltway bubble looks like.
Me: This is why I prefer Voteview's DW-NOMINATE score. According to their rankings for the 112th Congress, most recent I can find, Amash is listed with a first dimension (conservative-liberal) score of 0.867, which makes him the 7th most conservative member of the House that session. A perfect conservative score would have been 1.000. I can only imagine where he'll land in the 113th, as one of the two people listed as more conservative, Ron Paul, has retired, and another, Jeff Flake, is now in the Senate.
For comparison, a perfect centrist score would have been 0.000 and a perfect liberal score would have been negative 1.000. There are no Representatives as liberal as Amash is conservative. The most liberal is Barbara Lee of California with negative 0.746. The next is John Conyers with a negative 0.707. LOL, Michigan, with two of the most extreme House members in our delegation.
As for what's throwing off National Journal, it's probably Amash's record in Voteview's second dimension, which Daily Kos analysis of the Amash Amendment consider to be a measure of elite-establishment/populist-outsider differences, particularly over national security. A negative score such as Amash's -0.498 indicates an outsider, while a positive score such as Dingell's 0.273 indicates an insider. Compress those votes into a single dimension and score outsider as liberal, and it's possible to move Amash to the center. Just the same, that's wrong.
A weird perspective on how conservative Amash is. Voteview listed 435 Representatives more liberal than Amash. There are only 435 Representatives seated in the House at any one time. That means that seven Representatives died or resigned and were replaced in special elections. Still, it shows how very far right he is.
The conservatives in Congress are more conservative than liberals are liberal. As I pointed out when I debunked the idea of Amash being a centrist, the most conservative Representatives are more conservative than the most liberal person in the House. Voteview's DW-Nominate for the House in the 112th Congress lists Barbara Lee as the most liberal member of the House with a score of negative 0.746. Meanwhile, 14 Republicans in the House were more conservative than she was liberal with scores of 0.749 to 0.988. A perfect conservative score would be 1.000.
It's the same in the Senate. The most liberal Senator was Bernie Sanders (no surprise) with a DW-Nomiante score of negative 0.541. On the other hand, ten Senators were more conservative with scores ranging from 0.545 to 0.989.
Burnishing those centrist credentials, I see. Four years ago, Yvette called Peters the ultimate purple candidate. This is the kind of vote (to delay the implementation of Obamacare) that earned him that nickname. According to DW-NOMINATE, it works, too. On a scale of positive 1.00 for a perfect conservative record to negative 1.00 for a perfect liberal record, Peters had a score for the 112th Congress of negative 0.259, making him the least liberal Democrat in Michigan's delegation and the 177th least liberal representative overall. In contrast, Conyers had a score of negative 0.707, Clarke negative 0.532, Dingell negative 0.460, Curson negative 0.407, and Levin and Kildee tied at -0.399. Too bad such a moderate record does not insulate Peters from being called a leftist by the GOP. Then again, evidence doesn't seem to matter to them.
What the GOP means by fiscal responsibility
"Fiscal soundness" and "fiscal responsibility" are GOP code words. They mean "we're not going to spend any money on people or causes we or our voters disapprove of." In this case, this is a perfect example of what conservatives mean when they invoke those phrases. It also fits the GOP's promise to its working class voters--"we promise to hurt the people you don't like worse than we'll hurt you."
"LaRouchies are a curse and a pox on our Party"
LaRouchies are a curse and a pox on our Party, and have been for more than 30 years. Even their one halfway-good idea -- a restoration of the Glass-Steagall regulations separating banks from investment brokerages -- collapses into magical thinking and fairy dust when one asks for details.
You can say that again. Whenever we complain that the GOP won't do anything about the crazies in their party, it means that we also have to be a good example and do something about the comparable movements in our own. I'd be very happy to keep the LaRouchies out of power in the Democratic Party.
"We don't have wackos trying to take over the formal structure of the State Party."
We could, except that there aren't enough LaRouchies, they aren't in enough precincts, and they aren't either savvy enough or in touch with reality. Good thing, too.
AFP in Ohio opposed the millage increase for the Columbus Zoo
After defeating it, they warned the zoo not to try that again.
WBNS-TV10: Koch Brothers Group Warns Columbus Zoo Not To Seek Tax Increase
A conservative anti-tax group funded by the Koch brothers is warning Columbus Zoo officials not to seek any tax increase in their next levy attempt or again face well financed opposition.
"We will oppose any tax increase of any kind," said Eli Miller, Ohio director of Americans For Prosperity. "Don't ask for a tax increase at any level. We are a community based organization here in Ohio and if you're going to raise taxes you're going to hear from us."
Miller, appearing on 10TVs Capitol Square, would not disclose how much AFP spent in its efforts to defeat the zoo levy.
He did acknowledge AFP utilized new tactics in an aggressive ground and data field operation, including a system that automatically updated information for volunteers who were canvassing Columbus neighborhoods in the weeks leading up to the election.
AFP hates the Columbus Zoo! Who, other than PETA, hates zoos?
Climate denial derp
I think we're hitting stage three, with a few people transitioning to stage four. So, how long before we get to stage five?
Detroit News and White Flight
Here's a key passage about the Detroit News and Nolan Finley from an article last year: The real story of Detroit's economy.
If you want to see how this dynamic plays out today, just read the abusive and sickening comments following any news story local, or national, about Detroit's troubles. For that matter just read the Detroit News-the "official" newspaper of white flight. Back in the day it was editorial policy of the News to publish a front page story every day about a crime committed by an African-American.
Recently Detroit News Editor Nolan Finley, who has built his career on being the most steadfast and flamboyant carrier of the "white man's burden," published a much hyped editorial titled "Can Detroit Govern itself?" You can guess how he answered his own question.
And his coded speech is unmistakable. Everyone knows that what Finley really means is can African Americans govern themselves? To which my answer is absolutely, if you and your one-percent pals were capable of allowing such a thing. A step in the right direction would be for the News to publish a reflective piece on how its coverage of the city and its hate filled comments section helps perpetuate racism and segregation.
Fewer lawyers as elected officials
I feel like the number of elected officials with law degrees has fallen off on the Democratic side in recent cycles.
...
fewer lawyers in elected office is a national trend too...http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/23/first-thing-we-do-lets-elect-all-the-lawyers/
Lawyers being replaced by business and financial people
From the article at your link:
Banking and business have gradually been absorbing a larger share of the Senate, going from a low of 11.46 percent of senators in the 79th Congress (1945-46) to 20 percent in today's Senate.
...
Lawyers account for 23.91 percent of today's House, down from a high of 42.56 percent in the 87th Congress (1961-62). Today there are also about as many representatives who previously worked in banking and business as there are lawyers, with bankers and businessmen making up 21.38 percent of the House.
After seeing the results of the first MBA president, I'm not sure this is a good trend.
Lawyers
I might be a little biased, but I do think it is a bad trend.
While there are skeezy lawyers and a lot are just in it for the money, I think a background in law is only a positive. A lot of these lawmakers go into office never having to deal with the law or understand the reasons behind them. They run mostly on policy issues that are supported by the party.
While I know lawmakers have staffers and caucus lawyers and counsel, I think a law degree is always going to be the best thing to have for a lawmaker. If there's one career I think that is more centered on making money and exerting power, it is banking and business.
At least the Dems aren't the Greens. I've been covering elections since 2010 for Examiner.com and one of the ways I distinguish myself is that I cover minor parties more closely than other reporters on the same beat. During the past two statewide elections, I noticed that the Greens nominated no candidates for offices that required a legal background--no Attorneys General or Supreme Court nominees. That suggests that they have no lawyers willing to run for office in their ranks. Even the U.S. Taxpayers Party nominates candidates for Attorney General regularly, and two years ago nominated Mindy Barry for Supreme Court, who earned more votes than any other candidate nominated by one of the minor parties.
You mean, former Republican House staffer Mindy Barry?
This one?
With election fraud and fake candidate shenanigans making plenty of news in Michigan, some Democrats believe they've identified a bogus candidacy for the Michigan Supreme Court.
Grosse Pointe Park attorney Mindy Barry has filed to run for the high court as a Taxpayer Party candidate, but she's a former Republican House staffer who clerked for Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Young Jr., a GOP nominee.
Democrats have nominated an all-female slate to try to unseat the two Republican nominees, Justices Stephen Markman and Brian Zahra, who face voters Nov. 6. Party Chairman Mark Brewer says the more candidates there are, the more it helps the GOP, and a female candidate is more likely to draw votes away from the Democratic nominees.
Yes, her. BTW, I disagreed with Brewer then and I disagree with him now. Not on his contention that she's a ringer--Barry was by far the best qualified candidate that the U.S. Taxpayers Party ran in 2012. My opinion of their slates is that they're mostly "amateur hour," even more so than the Greens and just as bad as Natural Law. No, I think Brewer was wrong on her impact. She was a conservative candidate nominated by a conservative party that runs to the right of the GOP. If she did anything, it would been to pull more votes from Zahra than Johnson and collect the votes that would have otherwise gone to the Libertarians, since the latter didn't nominate a candidate for that slot. In other words, she would have helped, not hurt us.
As for her being "illegitimate," that's for the U.S. Taxpayers Party to decide. According to what the U.S. Taxpayers Party Chair Bill Mohr told me when I was wearing my journalist hat, they vet their candidates for ideology very closely and try to avoid opportunists. For example, the national party (the Constitution Party) refused to let Alan Keyes run on their ticket, smelling a fake and a takeover by the GOP. The national party actually split over this issue, with the California and Florida affiliates supporting Keyes and the rest of the state affiliates, including Todd Palin's party, the Alaska Independence Party, supporting Chuck Baldwin. Mohr was quite proud of securing Barry. If the GOP was trolling anyone, it was Mohr and the USTP, not the Democrats.
Naughty and nice list for charities
I'm a long-time member of Sierra....
and regularly get hounded by every environmental organization in existence, all of whom just can't quite BELIEVE that I won't give them my last dime.
Clean Water Action, EDF, MEC, MLCV, Defenders of Wildlife, National Parks Foundation, Greenpeace, NWF, NRDC, something called Ocean Conservancy, 350, Climate Reality, Citizen's Climate Lobby... on and on. All sending me mail and "free" calendars.
A few of these I am a member of, a few others I (foolishly) sent one contribution to, which they have spent many times over trying to convert me into a monthly (!!) donor.
I going to do some research to see if there is a 'naughty and nice' list for these groups -- how many are spending most of their receipts on fundraising and salaries?
I don't know if there's a "naughty and nice list" for 501c(4) organizations, but there is one for 501c(3)'s
It's called Charity Navigator. It rates charities from 0 stars (it's happened) to 4 stars based on financial solvency, ratio of services to overhead and fundraising, transparency, and accountability. It arranges charities by primary area of interest, including environmental protection. Some of them are actually advocacy organizations doing "business" as charities.
A few of the organizations you mentioned, such as the National Wildlife Federations, are in the site's database. It has two stars out of four. I'd say that counts as naughty.
Tea Party is crazy, not conservative
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-48ege2y2Pms/ViQ76jr1o7I/AAAAAAABVlw/mIFQNfJIwoo/s1600/sack.jpg
In response to me saying "Weiser is moving to the Right to get the nomination," Grebner wrote: The Tea Party isn't primarily right-wing. Nobody can pick up their support by making simple moves to the right; in order to make them comfortable with you, it's necessary to demonstrate craziness.
Suggesting that Denise Illich is a communist is just the ticket. It shows a lack of judgment, a lack of concern that people will think you're unstable, and a willingness to mouth the current right-wing shibboleths regardless of their inanity.
It also demonstrates well-founded contempt for the intelligence of the people being addressed, but that isn't a problem because they'll never know about it.
Me: "it's necessary to demonstrate craziness"
So that's Calley's problem. He's not sufficiently unhinged.
MiddleGrandGuy: Yep
Yep, it's definitely a tone thing rather than an ideological thing. I don't agree with Jase Bolger often, but when Tim asked him about this, and rightly stated that Calley is a conservative Republican, he just refuses to be a conservative Republican foaming at the mouth if even his policies match up with the tea party's nearly exactly.
This is really a personal beef for them. People seem to forget that the same year he was picked as Lt Gov candidate, they ran a competitive tea party candidate against him in his legislative race for the state senate during the primary. He still pretty easily won, but he had to fight for it.
Grebner: Exactly right
When the wackos say that in Russia the government owns all the bridges, I think Calley is apt to point out that 99.9% of Michigan bridges are also publicly owned - as if that were an excuse.
"Communist", they mutter, maybe never finding out that Calley is perfectly happy to discuss privatizing them. It's the rejection of personal craziness, and the suggestion he looks down on crazy people that alienates them.
Avoiding the Ambassador Bridge
I'm glad I avoided the Ambassador Bridge for a decade
After going across the bridge and taking the 401 to see my (now ex) girlfriend in Kitchener, I vowed no more. I drove up to Port Huron and drove across the Blue Water Bridge instead. It was cheaper and faster. Now I'm even more glad that money never got into Maroun's coffers.
Greetings from Detroit, Ground Zero of the post-industrial future!
by: Neon Vincent @ Sat Nov 16, 2013 at 09:53:18 AM EST
[ Reply ]
Tunnel
Kitchener must not be that far out of the way, then, to take the Blue Water (maybe even closer?), becuase you could have always simply used the tunnel. I mean, the tunnel doesn't have as direct a connection to the freeway as a bridge, but it's a hevulla lot closer than driving up to Port Huron. lol
by: MiddleGrandGuy @ Sat Nov 16, 2013 at 20:29:40 PM EST
[ Parent | | Reply ]
Actually, the longer path to the border was a feature, not a bug
It meant I could fill up in the U.S. both before I entered Canada and after I left. It saved me money because I avoided more expensive Canadian gas. Also, it was freeway all the way on both sides of the border. Finally, Kitchener was on the other side of London, an hour before Toronto. Both the 401 and the 402 were equally direct.
Greetings from Detroit, Ground Zero of the post-industrial future!
by: Neon Vincent @ Sun Nov 17, 2013 at 02:43:00 AM EST
[ Parent | | Reply ]
Gas
There is a gas station at the large Ambassador Bridge plaza. Was this not the case? I see that you're right, though, about the distance. Did a little google mapping and see that taking the 401 is physically a more direct route at 177 miles (191 miles for the Port Huron-402 route), but the difference in actual time was only like three minutes, so I guess a trip would come down to personal preference.
by: MiddleGrandGuy @ Sun Nov 17, 2013 at 21:02:49 PM EST
[ Parent | | Reply ]
There is, but it wouldn't have helped
My car could not make a round trip from the Ambassador Bridge to Kitchener and back on one tank. It could from the Blue Water Bridge. Also, the time you got probably didn't include the wait, which was usually much less over the Blue Water Bridge. So, it was at least as fast and still cheaper.
Link jokes
You forgot the link.
Let's see, which link did you have in mind? Link Hogthrob?
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KW3S0od5s5U/TD3ndpCj1ZI/AAAAAAAAEzQ/ySZxLlZKqUQ/s1600/link13.jpg
Lancelot Link?
http://sharetv.org/images/lancelot_link_secret_chimp-show.jpg
Nintendo's Link?
http://thegeekkeepers.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/the_Legend_of_zelda_Twilight_Princess_Link_costume_ver_01-1-01.jpg
Tea Party Spelling
You need to misspell at least one word
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-nUqlpcP8xU/Secgr4tuUSI/AAAAAAAAAwo/DJ19iCa6tds/s320/americanMorans3.jpg
Conyers rumor
Daily Kos Elections Live Digest: 7/24 11:19 AM PT
MI-13: Democratic Rep. John Conyers has represented a version of this safely blue seat since 1965, but his last few primaries have been a bit more interesting than he'd have liked. Conyers only took 55 percent of the vote in 2012 after redistricting left him with a very different district.Source not cited at DKos, but it looks like it could be Detroit city clerk may run for 13th U.S. House District from the Detroit News.
And while Conyers easily beat his little-known foe last year, he was briefly thrown off the ballot for not having enough valid signatures. Conyers' team had allowed people to gather signatures who weren't registered voters or were registered to vote at the wrong address, which was against Michigan law: While a judge struck down this law and put Conyers back on the primary ballot, this was still an amateurish mistake and a sign that Conyers may not be prepared for a real campaign.
And he may be getting a real campaign. Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey said on Thursday that she may run, though she declined to say much about her plans. Winfrey easily won re-election back in 2013, so she may start out with some good name recognition. While it's going to take a lot for Conyers to lose, he may need to run a much better race than we've seen these last few years.
MST3K on Michigan
Eric B.:
Back in the day, Mystery Science Theater 3000 was part of the daily ritual. We'd watch it as part of what the kids these days call pregaming ... have a couple of beers and maybe smoke a little weed and watch it over takeout. And then we'd go out.Me:The Smithee Awards have two categories for this. For what's going on in the movies, it's "Whoops!"
One of my favorite going themes in the end segments was "The producers of this film just didn't care." Or something along those lines. They had one at the end of Attack of The Eye Creatures (or, as people in the know, know it, "Attack of the The Eye Creatures") and one at the end of Cave Dwellers. The idea was that the filmmakers just didn't care enough to avoid simple film making errors, like people living in the Stone Age who wore sunglasses.
We've entered a period where we can say basically the same about our elected leaders. It's not that they just don't care about the state. It's that they've simply stopped trying to justify the stupid things they do.
The nominees in this category are all scenes in which things occur that are clearly not intended to be in the script. Continuity errors, bad editing, and boom shots are all examples which would fall under this category. The prize goes to the most glaring of these. Common symptoms: looking at your friends and saying "Did you see that?"; rewinding and paying closer attention.
Cap'n Bones gets his left hand bitten off by the Killer Barracuda in Scene 4, and is shown with a hook replacing his right hand in Scene 7.
Unfortunately, what is going on in Lansing probably deserves an award in the other category, "WHAT?!"
This is for the sequence of events requiring the biggest jump in logic or suspension of disbelief. It is distinguished from the "Whoops!" category by the fact that the movie-makers obviously meant for this stuff to be in the film, but, well, it just doesn't work. This may overlap with a number of other categories and may in fact be an extreme example of one or more of them. Common symptoms: getting up and pounding your head into a wall while screaming "No f***ing WAY!"
The medieval swords-and-sorcery heroine abruptly produces a sawed-off shotgun from somewhere inside her skimpy bodice and mows down the cultists who've surrounded her. She later explains it was a gift from a wizard. Sorry. Uh-uh. No way.
Attack of the The Eye Creatures was nominated for both of these and more. It won for "Whoops!"
"Whoops!"
Must Be a Female -- It Has Different Markings
When the "Eye Creatures" attack, you can plainly see one of them has just a head on and a black leotard.
"WHAT?!"
A Rather Major Design Flaw
The flying saucer has a convenient fuse with which to blow it up!
The Long Con
Happy Camper: Finley is like many right wingers, hopelessly gullible. Any explanation that meshes with his world view and political beliefs is accepted uncritically, no matter how contorted and unlikely it might be. Once accepted, such explanations are immune to logic, reason, and objective facts. Convince them once, and they're true believers forever.
This brings up a question... are conservatives easier marks for con men?
Me:Short answer, probably yes. For the long answer, read The Long Con, which details the intertwined history of modern conservatism and direct-mail and multi-level marketing.
Happy Camper: Nice. They're all grifters, and this piece lays it out in detail. I was surprised to find no mention of Amway.
Stories I tell my students about shipping water
Eric B.: [D]on't worry about pipelines from the Great Lakes. The energy to build them and to lift water uphill to even Phoenix would require more energy than I can describe.
Markrich:We already ship water from bottling operations out of the basin via truck and train. (Water containers less than 5.7 gallons are exempt from the restrictions of the GLBWRC.) In fact, a proposal by NOVA Corp. to ship Lake Superior waters to China via ocean-going tanker triggered the development of the compact.
Me:"Water containers less than 5.7 gallons are exempt from the restrictions of the GLBWR." I call that the "Absopure exception" as they're the main company I know of in Michigan that sells bottles for water coolers. It also works for Aquafina, Daisani, and Ice Mountain, which sell bottled water for the retail market. Still, the bottle water market is not the same market for bulk water, and it doesn't have nearly the effect that piping water out would have.
Eric B.: It's not a feasible, long-term solution for the Southwest. They are better off towing icebergs from the Arctic Ocean than they are in getting Great Lakes water in bladder ships. There's just not enough water in the ships to do anything but blip the supply and demand relationship.
Me: "better off towing icebergs from the Arctic Ocean"--That's an example of a cool but impractical solution I tell my students. I also add in nuclear-powered tugboats and dry-docks where the sun melts the icebergs, which I have coming from Antarctica instead. Oh, and the scheme was originally proposed for Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf States instead of California. They quickly realize[d] how ridiculous the whole scheme is.
GenCon is making noises about leaving Indiana
Gen Con threatens to move convention if Gov. Mike Pence signs religious freedom bill
The organizers of Gen Con, the city's largest convention in attendance and economic impact, are threatening to move the event elsewhere if Gov. Mike Pence signs controversial religious freedom legislation that could allow business owners to refuse services to same-sex couples.
"Legislation that could allow for refusal of service or discrimination against our attendees will have a direct negative impact on the state's economy, and will factor into our decision-making on hosting the convention in the state of Indiana in future years," said Adrian Swartout, owner and CEO of Gen Con LLC, in a letter sent to Pence just hours after lawmakers sent the measure to his desk.
Gen Con's website describes the convention as "the original, longest-running, best-attended gaming convention in the world!" The conference attracted 56,000 people last year to the Indiana Convention Center and has an annual economic impact of more than $50 million, Swartout said in the letter.
Of course, it won't happen right away.
Gen Con is under contract to hold the conference in Indianapolis through 2020. Conference spokeswoman Stacia Kirby said there are no plans to break the contract. But the state's adoption of the measure would factor into future decisions, she said.
With any luck, the measure will be overturned or repealed by then.
Voteview on Michigan's conservatives and liberals
Eric B.: A headline in today's Freep.
Is U.S. Rep. Justin Amash a centrist? National Journal ranking says yes
The answer is no.
If your ranking system says that a guy who voted against the Ryan budget because he didn't think it went far enough and who introduced a bill that would have outlawed most abortions is a centrist, it's probably a sign that your ranking system is hosed ... not that the guy is actually a centrist. Then again, the DC Beltway crowd has been trying to claim for two years now that Lil' Fella has some kind of bipartisan appeal, mostly because the DC Beltway crowd has no idea what life outside the DC Beltway bubble looks like.
Me: This is why I prefer Voteview's DW-NOMINATE score. According to their rankings for the 112th Congress, most recent I can find, Amash is listed with a first dimension (conservative-liberal) score of 0.867, which makes him the 7th most conservative member of the House that session. A perfect conservative score would have been 1.000. I can only imagine where he'll land in the 113th, as one of the two people listed as more conservative, Ron Paul, has retired, and another, Jeff Flake, is now in the Senate.
For comparison, a perfect centrist score would have been 0.000 and a perfect liberal score would have been negative 1.000. There are no Representatives as liberal as Amash is conservative. The most liberal is Barbara Lee of California with negative 0.746. The next is John Conyers with a negative 0.707. LOL, Michigan, with two of the most extreme House members in our delegation.
As for what's throwing off National Journal, it's probably Amash's record in Voteview's second dimension, which Daily Kos analysis of the Amash Amendment consider to be a measure of elite-establishment/populist-outsider differences, particularly over national security. A negative score such as Amash's -0.498 indicates an outsider, while a positive score such as Dingell's 0.273 indicates an insider. Compress those votes into a single dimension and score outsider as liberal, and it's possible to move Amash to the center. Just the same, that's wrong.
A weird perspective on how conservative Amash is. Voteview listed 435 Representatives more liberal than Amash. There are only 435 Representatives seated in the House at any one time. That means that seven Representatives died or resigned and were replaced in special elections. Still, it shows how very far right he is.
The conservatives in Congress are more conservative than liberals are liberal. As I pointed out when I debunked the idea of Amash being a centrist, the most conservative Representatives are more conservative than the most liberal person in the House. Voteview's DW-Nominate for the House in the 112th Congress lists Barbara Lee as the most liberal member of the House with a score of negative 0.746. Meanwhile, 14 Republicans in the House were more conservative than she was liberal with scores of 0.749 to 0.988. A perfect conservative score would be 1.000.
It's the same in the Senate. The most liberal Senator was Bernie Sanders (no surprise) with a DW-Nomiante score of negative 0.541. On the other hand, ten Senators were more conservative with scores ranging from 0.545 to 0.989.
Burnishing those centrist credentials, I see. Four years ago, Yvette called Peters the ultimate purple candidate. This is the kind of vote (to delay the implementation of Obamacare) that earned him that nickname. According to DW-NOMINATE, it works, too. On a scale of positive 1.00 for a perfect conservative record to negative 1.00 for a perfect liberal record, Peters had a score for the 112th Congress of negative 0.259, making him the least liberal Democrat in Michigan's delegation and the 177th least liberal representative overall. In contrast, Conyers had a score of negative 0.707, Clarke negative 0.532, Dingell negative 0.460, Curson negative 0.407, and Levin and Kildee tied at -0.399. Too bad such a moderate record does not insulate Peters from being called a leftist by the GOP. Then again, evidence doesn't seem to matter to them.
What the GOP means by fiscal responsibility
"Fiscal soundness" and "fiscal responsibility" are GOP code words. They mean "we're not going to spend any money on people or causes we or our voters disapprove of." In this case, this is a perfect example of what conservatives mean when they invoke those phrases. It also fits the GOP's promise to its working class voters--"we promise to hurt the people you don't like worse than we'll hurt you."
"LaRouchies are a curse and a pox on our Party"
LaRouchies are a curse and a pox on our Party, and have been for more than 30 years. Even their one halfway-good idea -- a restoration of the Glass-Steagall regulations separating banks from investment brokerages -- collapses into magical thinking and fairy dust when one asks for details.
You can say that again. Whenever we complain that the GOP won't do anything about the crazies in their party, it means that we also have to be a good example and do something about the comparable movements in our own. I'd be very happy to keep the LaRouchies out of power in the Democratic Party.
"We don't have wackos trying to take over the formal structure of the State Party."
We could, except that there aren't enough LaRouchies, they aren't in enough precincts, and they aren't either savvy enough or in touch with reality. Good thing, too.
AFP in Ohio opposed the millage increase for the Columbus Zoo
After defeating it, they warned the zoo not to try that again.
WBNS-TV10: Koch Brothers Group Warns Columbus Zoo Not To Seek Tax Increase
A conservative anti-tax group funded by the Koch brothers is warning Columbus Zoo officials not to seek any tax increase in their next levy attempt or again face well financed opposition.
"We will oppose any tax increase of any kind," said Eli Miller, Ohio director of Americans For Prosperity. "Don't ask for a tax increase at any level. We are a community based organization here in Ohio and if you're going to raise taxes you're going to hear from us."
Miller, appearing on 10TVs Capitol Square, would not disclose how much AFP spent in its efforts to defeat the zoo levy.
He did acknowledge AFP utilized new tactics in an aggressive ground and data field operation, including a system that automatically updated information for volunteers who were canvassing Columbus neighborhoods in the weeks leading up to the election.
AFP hates the Columbus Zoo! Who, other than PETA, hates zoos?
Climate denial derp
I think we're hitting stage three, with a few people transitioning to stage four. So, how long before we get to stage five?
Detroit News and White Flight
Here's a key passage about the Detroit News and Nolan Finley from an article last year: The real story of Detroit's economy.
If you want to see how this dynamic plays out today, just read the abusive and sickening comments following any news story local, or national, about Detroit's troubles. For that matter just read the Detroit News-the "official" newspaper of white flight. Back in the day it was editorial policy of the News to publish a front page story every day about a crime committed by an African-American.
Recently Detroit News Editor Nolan Finley, who has built his career on being the most steadfast and flamboyant carrier of the "white man's burden," published a much hyped editorial titled "Can Detroit Govern itself?" You can guess how he answered his own question.
And his coded speech is unmistakable. Everyone knows that what Finley really means is can African Americans govern themselves? To which my answer is absolutely, if you and your one-percent pals were capable of allowing such a thing. A step in the right direction would be for the News to publish a reflective piece on how its coverage of the city and its hate filled comments section helps perpetuate racism and segregation.
Fewer lawyers as elected officials
I feel like the number of elected officials with law degrees has fallen off on the Democratic side in recent cycles.
...
fewer lawyers in elected office is a national trend too...http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/23/first-thing-we-do-lets-elect-all-the-lawyers/
Lawyers being replaced by business and financial people
From the article at your link:
Banking and business have gradually been absorbing a larger share of the Senate, going from a low of 11.46 percent of senators in the 79th Congress (1945-46) to 20 percent in today's Senate.
...
Lawyers account for 23.91 percent of today's House, down from a high of 42.56 percent in the 87th Congress (1961-62). Today there are also about as many representatives who previously worked in banking and business as there are lawyers, with bankers and businessmen making up 21.38 percent of the House.
After seeing the results of the first MBA president, I'm not sure this is a good trend.
Lawyers
I might be a little biased, but I do think it is a bad trend.
While there are skeezy lawyers and a lot are just in it for the money, I think a background in law is only a positive. A lot of these lawmakers go into office never having to deal with the law or understand the reasons behind them. They run mostly on policy issues that are supported by the party.
While I know lawmakers have staffers and caucus lawyers and counsel, I think a law degree is always going to be the best thing to have for a lawmaker. If there's one career I think that is more centered on making money and exerting power, it is banking and business.
At least the Dems aren't the Greens. I've been covering elections since 2010 for Examiner.com and one of the ways I distinguish myself is that I cover minor parties more closely than other reporters on the same beat. During the past two statewide elections, I noticed that the Greens nominated no candidates for offices that required a legal background--no Attorneys General or Supreme Court nominees. That suggests that they have no lawyers willing to run for office in their ranks. Even the U.S. Taxpayers Party nominates candidates for Attorney General regularly, and two years ago nominated Mindy Barry for Supreme Court, who earned more votes than any other candidate nominated by one of the minor parties.
You mean, former Republican House staffer Mindy Barry?
This one?
With election fraud and fake candidate shenanigans making plenty of news in Michigan, some Democrats believe they've identified a bogus candidacy for the Michigan Supreme Court.
Grosse Pointe Park attorney Mindy Barry has filed to run for the high court as a Taxpayer Party candidate, but she's a former Republican House staffer who clerked for Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Young Jr., a GOP nominee.
Democrats have nominated an all-female slate to try to unseat the two Republican nominees, Justices Stephen Markman and Brian Zahra, who face voters Nov. 6. Party Chairman Mark Brewer says the more candidates there are, the more it helps the GOP, and a female candidate is more likely to draw votes away from the Democratic nominees.
Yes, her. BTW, I disagreed with Brewer then and I disagree with him now. Not on his contention that she's a ringer--Barry was by far the best qualified candidate that the U.S. Taxpayers Party ran in 2012. My opinion of their slates is that they're mostly "amateur hour," even more so than the Greens and just as bad as Natural Law. No, I think Brewer was wrong on her impact. She was a conservative candidate nominated by a conservative party that runs to the right of the GOP. If she did anything, it would been to pull more votes from Zahra than Johnson and collect the votes that would have otherwise gone to the Libertarians, since the latter didn't nominate a candidate for that slot. In other words, she would have helped, not hurt us.
As for her being "illegitimate," that's for the U.S. Taxpayers Party to decide. According to what the U.S. Taxpayers Party Chair Bill Mohr told me when I was wearing my journalist hat, they vet their candidates for ideology very closely and try to avoid opportunists. For example, the national party (the Constitution Party) refused to let Alan Keyes run on their ticket, smelling a fake and a takeover by the GOP. The national party actually split over this issue, with the California and Florida affiliates supporting Keyes and the rest of the state affiliates, including Todd Palin's party, the Alaska Independence Party, supporting Chuck Baldwin. Mohr was quite proud of securing Barry. If the GOP was trolling anyone, it was Mohr and the USTP, not the Democrats.
Naughty and nice list for charities
I'm a long-time member of Sierra....
and regularly get hounded by every environmental organization in existence, all of whom just can't quite BELIEVE that I won't give them my last dime.
Clean Water Action, EDF, MEC, MLCV, Defenders of Wildlife, National Parks Foundation, Greenpeace, NWF, NRDC, something called Ocean Conservancy, 350, Climate Reality, Citizen's Climate Lobby... on and on. All sending me mail and "free" calendars.
A few of these I am a member of, a few others I (foolishly) sent one contribution to, which they have spent many times over trying to convert me into a monthly (!!) donor.
I going to do some research to see if there is a 'naughty and nice' list for these groups -- how many are spending most of their receipts on fundraising and salaries?
I don't know if there's a "naughty and nice list" for 501c(4) organizations, but there is one for 501c(3)'s
It's called Charity Navigator. It rates charities from 0 stars (it's happened) to 4 stars based on financial solvency, ratio of services to overhead and fundraising, transparency, and accountability. It arranges charities by primary area of interest, including environmental protection. Some of them are actually advocacy organizations doing "business" as charities.
A few of the organizations you mentioned, such as the National Wildlife Federations, are in the site's database. It has two stars out of four. I'd say that counts as naughty.
Tea Party is crazy, not conservative
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-48ege2y2Pms/ViQ76jr1o7I/AAAAAAABVlw/mIFQNfJIwoo/s1600/sack.jpg
In response to me saying "Weiser is moving to the Right to get the nomination," Grebner wrote: The Tea Party isn't primarily right-wing. Nobody can pick up their support by making simple moves to the right; in order to make them comfortable with you, it's necessary to demonstrate craziness.
Suggesting that Denise Illich is a communist is just the ticket. It shows a lack of judgment, a lack of concern that people will think you're unstable, and a willingness to mouth the current right-wing shibboleths regardless of their inanity.
It also demonstrates well-founded contempt for the intelligence of the people being addressed, but that isn't a problem because they'll never know about it.
Me: "it's necessary to demonstrate craziness"
So that's Calley's problem. He's not sufficiently unhinged.
MiddleGrandGuy: Yep
Yep, it's definitely a tone thing rather than an ideological thing. I don't agree with Jase Bolger often, but when Tim asked him about this, and rightly stated that Calley is a conservative Republican, he just refuses to be a conservative Republican foaming at the mouth if even his policies match up with the tea party's nearly exactly.
This is really a personal beef for them. People seem to forget that the same year he was picked as Lt Gov candidate, they ran a competitive tea party candidate against him in his legislative race for the state senate during the primary. He still pretty easily won, but he had to fight for it.
Grebner: Exactly right
When the wackos say that in Russia the government owns all the bridges, I think Calley is apt to point out that 99.9% of Michigan bridges are also publicly owned - as if that were an excuse.
"Communist", they mutter, maybe never finding out that Calley is perfectly happy to discuss privatizing them. It's the rejection of personal craziness, and the suggestion he looks down on crazy people that alienates them.
Avoiding the Ambassador Bridge
I'm glad I avoided the Ambassador Bridge for a decade
After going across the bridge and taking the 401 to see my (now ex) girlfriend in Kitchener, I vowed no more. I drove up to Port Huron and drove across the Blue Water Bridge instead. It was cheaper and faster. Now I'm even more glad that money never got into Maroun's coffers.
Greetings from Detroit, Ground Zero of the post-industrial future!
by: Neon Vincent @ Sat Nov 16, 2013 at 09:53:18 AM EST
[ Reply ]
Tunnel
Kitchener must not be that far out of the way, then, to take the Blue Water (maybe even closer?), becuase you could have always simply used the tunnel. I mean, the tunnel doesn't have as direct a connection to the freeway as a bridge, but it's a hevulla lot closer than driving up to Port Huron. lol
by: MiddleGrandGuy @ Sat Nov 16, 2013 at 20:29:40 PM EST
[ Parent | | Reply ]
Actually, the longer path to the border was a feature, not a bug
It meant I could fill up in the U.S. both before I entered Canada and after I left. It saved me money because I avoided more expensive Canadian gas. Also, it was freeway all the way on both sides of the border. Finally, Kitchener was on the other side of London, an hour before Toronto. Both the 401 and the 402 were equally direct.
Greetings from Detroit, Ground Zero of the post-industrial future!
by: Neon Vincent @ Sun Nov 17, 2013 at 02:43:00 AM EST
[ Parent | | Reply ]
Gas
There is a gas station at the large Ambassador Bridge plaza. Was this not the case? I see that you're right, though, about the distance. Did a little google mapping and see that taking the 401 is physically a more direct route at 177 miles (191 miles for the Port Huron-402 route), but the difference in actual time was only like three minutes, so I guess a trip would come down to personal preference.
by: MiddleGrandGuy @ Sun Nov 17, 2013 at 21:02:49 PM EST
[ Parent | | Reply ]
There is, but it wouldn't have helped
My car could not make a round trip from the Ambassador Bridge to Kitchener and back on one tank. It could from the Blue Water Bridge. Also, the time you got probably didn't include the wait, which was usually much less over the Blue Water Bridge. So, it was at least as fast and still cheaper.
Link jokes
You forgot the link.
Let's see, which link did you have in mind? Link Hogthrob?
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KW3S0od5s5U/TD3ndpCj1ZI/AAAAAAAAEzQ/ySZxLlZKqUQ/s1600/link13.jpg
Lancelot Link?
http://sharetv.org/images/lancelot_link_secret_chimp-show.jpg
Nintendo's Link?
http://thegeekkeepers.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/the_Legend_of_zelda_Twilight_Princess_Link_costume_ver_01-1-01.jpg
Tea Party Spelling
You need to misspell at least one word
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-nUqlpcP8xU/Secgr4tuUSI/AAAAAAAAAwo/DJ19iCa6tds/s320/americanMorans3.jpg
