Vampire Weekend:
Month: September 2010
Stray Cat Strut
Stray Cats:
Sheriff Joe
Silly! Laws are for the little people — and Mexicans!
PHOENIX (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department sued Sheriff Joe Arpaio on Thursday, saying the Arizona lawman refused for more than a year to turn over records in an investigation into allegations his department discriminates against Hispanics.
The lawsuit calls Arpaio and his office’s defiance “unprecedented,” and said the federal government has been trying since March 2009 to get officials to comply with its probe of alleged discrimination, unconstitutional searches and seizures, and having English-only policies in his jails that discriminate against people with limited English skills.
Arpaio had been given until Aug. 17 to hand over documents it first asked for 15 months ago.
Arpaio’s attorney, Robert Driscoll, declined immediate comment on the lawsuit, saying he had just received it and hadn’t yet conferred with his client.
Arpaio’s office had said it has fully cooperated in the jail inquiry but won’t hand over additional documents into the examination of the alleged unconstitutional searches because federal authorities haven’t said exactly what they were investigating.
It’s the latest action against Arizona by the federal government, which earlier sued the state to stop its strict new immigration law that requires police officers to question people about their immigration status.
Breaking News
Another oil rig explosion in the Gulf, link here.
‘There Was A Party Going On’
Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz on the economic crash:
Oh Boy
Philadelphia drew the wrath of local bloggers last week due to rumors of a blogger tax. The label is somewhat misleading, as the city is not taxing bloggers. Philly is applying an existing law forcing bloggers (the ones generating revenue, anyway) to register for a business license. The community’s anger stems from the lack of a revenue minimum—meaning if you live in Philadelphia and make $5 from your blog this year, you have to pay $50 per year, or $300 for a lifetime business privilege license.
The city’s Office of Arts, Culture, and the Creative Economy and the Department of Revenue are joining together to answer bloggers’ questions. They will be hosting a happy hour next Wednesday at National Mechanics. If you are a blogger based in the city or just generally interested in Philadelphia business laws, the event is open to the public.
“Bloggergate” Happy Hour presented by the City of Philadelphia
National Mechanics (22 S. 3rd St.)
Wed, 9/08/10
5:00 p.m. &ndash 7:00 p.m.
FREE!
Romer
She sounds pretty frustrated, huh:
WASHINGTON — Departing White House economist Christina Romer says the government has the tools for bringing down unemployment, but policymakers need to find the will and wisdom to use them.
Romer called on officials Wednesday to move forward on policies that will increase government spending and cut taxes. She also called for investments in infrastructure and new trade agreements.
Romer said that while some new policies should be viewed as emergency measures, most should be paid for with future spending cuts or revenue returns. She said concerns about the mounting deficit should not be used as an excuse “for leaving unemployed workers to suffer.”
Romer is leaving her post as head of the Council of Economic Advisers to return to the University of California, Berkeley, as an economics professor
Why, that’s just crazy talk! After all, who does the administration represent? Certainly not the unemployed!
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On The Bright Side
It looks like the hurricane will only sideswipe the Jersey shore (although that’s no small thing) but the real news is, it’s going to move all this heat and humidity out of here by the weekend and temperatures will drop 15 degrees or so.
ConservaDems To Save Tax Cuts For The Rich?
Must. Hit. Head. On. Wall. Boy, they’re nothing if not predictable, huh? This is the sort of thing that happens when the Democrats don’t have a coherent value system.
Now, I can actually understand the instinct to punt, because allowing the tax cuts for the wealthiest to lapse would bring down the focused wrath of the Republicans before the mid-term elections. And yes, it makes it more difficult for Democrats from wealthier districts. But honestly, are they so incapable of explaining to the public how this adds $700 billion to the deficit that’s badly needed elsewhere?
Must Democrats fall into the fetal position every time the GOP makes a feint?
WASHINGTON — Democrats in Congress are poised to play a leading role this month in thwarting their party’s effort to raise income tax rates on the wealthy.
Tax cuts enacted in 2001 and 2003 expire at the end of this year. President Barack Obama and Democratic congressional leaders have been eager to extend the breaks for individuals who earn less than $200,000 annually and joint filers who make less than $250,000. Those who earn more would pay higher, pre-2001 rates starting next year.
However, a small but growing number of moderate Democrats are balking at boosting taxes on the rich. Many face electorates that recoil at the mention of any tax increase. Some represent areas that are loaded with wealthier taxpayers. Further, some incumbent senators who don’t face voters this fall are reluctant to increase taxes on anyone while the economy remains sluggish.
Without their support, the push to raise rates on the rich probably will fail.
“The economy is very weak right now. Raising taxes will lower consumer demand at a time when we want people putting more money into the economy,” said Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., who isn’t seeking re-election.
Democratic leaders still vow a big effort this month to boost the top tax brackets, now 33 and 35 percent, back to 36 and 39.6 percent, the rates that were in effect in the 1990s. Both House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., who faces a tough re-election fight, want a vote before the election Nov. 2.
“We still expect to have a bill on the (Senate) floor at some point in September,” Reid spokesman Jim Manley said. “Whether Republicans will allow us to pass anything is a whole other story.”
Restoring Truthiness
I found this post by Mrs. Ammerica on Reddit the other day and I thought it was sheer genius — and if nothing else, it made me smile. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if Stephen Colbert led the nation to the Lincoln Memorial, in a rally called Restoring Truthiness?
“I was woken in the middle of the night by this (along with the sound of my cat getting ready to pee on the rug).
Think about it. It’ll be just like Colbert’s mockery of GW Bush at the 2006 White House Correspondent’s Dinner, but 500,000 people will be able to participate with him. We’ll all stay totally in character as teabaggers. The kid with the microphone that interviews all the idiots at these things can come by and we’ll ramble into his microphone.
This would be the high water mark of American satire. Half a million people pretending to suspend all rational thought in unison. Perfect harmony. It’ll feel like San Francisco in the late 60s, only we won’t be able to get any acid.
I know you’re out there somewhere, Stephen, watching LOLcat gifs along side us. We need you. There’s no way to have a logical public discussion with the teabaggers. The best we can do is to mimic them. Show them a mirror and hopefully some will realize how ridiculous they actually are... Or maybe they won’t even realize that they’re being mocked, which could be even more awesome.
Note: The response to this post has blown my mind. I really did jump out of bed at like 5AM and type this thing up. Then I checked from work and it’s front page and there’s a Facebook page and people are emailing one of the Executive Producers. I was just hoping some people would get a laugh out of it, and now it has over 6,800 upvotes? It’s like I cracked the best joke of my life in a public place.
But to be fair, both pugsworth and hobbit6 posted the general idea before me in that Jon Stewart thread. I just fleshed it out a little bit. Anyway, I don’t really know what to do or say about actually trying to make a Colbert Rally happen. I’d sure as hell be there, and I think I’d opt for the “Go back to the rug store with the rest of the Afghans” sign.
I just wanted to say that I’m really happy that so many people got a kick out of it. And the thought of Colbert himself actually maybe seeing this is probably the coolest thing that’s ever happened to me so far in life.
EDIT 2: vinhboy has created a wikia page… http://www.colbertrally.com/ Nothing up on it yet, though. Please feel free to change that!
Here’s the Facebook page. You know you want to! And from colbertrally.com:
Restoring Truthiness is a true grassroots movement propelled by YOU, the citizens of the internetz. Our goal is simple: Petition Stephen Colbert to hold a Restoring Truthiness Rally for the American people.
We are looking for volunteers to help us write content and build communities. If you are interested, email support@colbertrally.com
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