Won't U B My 100th Follower? Pls?
[ Posted Tuesday, September 14th, 2010 – 16:03 UTC ]
OK, that was an annoying headline, I fully admit. It was annoying to type out, and I can only imagine how annoying it must be to read.
Archive of Articles in the "Name-dropping" Category
Will Obama Nominate Elizabeth Warren Tomorrow?
[ Posted Thursday, September 9th, 2010 – 17:24 UTC ]
President Obama may be on the verge of a significant announcement -- the nomination of Elizabeth Warren to head the newly-formed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This is pure conjecture on my part, I have to admit right up front. But politically, it would indeed give the president a boost right when he needs it most, heading into the midterm election season.
Friday Talking Points [137] -- Listen To Westen And Lakoff, Democrats!
[ Posted Friday, September 3rd, 2010 – 16:24 UTC ]
Jollification aside, though, we're still one week away from Congress returning to briefly do their job (or at least give the appearance of doing so), before they award themselves another month or so off, in order to campaign. Labor Day is right around the corner (or perhaps blowing past the corner at 75 miles per hour, if you live in the hurricane zone -- which contains, my television assures me, everything east of about Denver).
Friday Talking Points [136] -- Girding For Battle
[ Posted Friday, August 27th, 2010 – 16:36 UTC ]
The big fight this election season hasn't really dawned yet. And all the issues in the past will likely pale in comparison to the big fight that's just ahead of us. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (to his credit) set up this fight, right before the midterm election's homestretch. The big fight this year is going to be over extending the Bush tax cuts to the wealthiest two percent of American workers, and to the top three percent of American small businesses. On the other side are, respectively, ninety-eight percent of American workers, and ninety-seven percent of American small businesses. Not bad odds, even for Democrats.
Friday Talking Points [134] -- Some Reality For Gibbs
[ Posted Friday, August 13th, 2010 – 17:36 UTC ]
Because before we get to that, we simply must begin our column the way we do every week here, which is to call for the abolition of the Pentagon. Yes, as we've done consistently for the past 133 weeks, we demand that the Defense Department's budget be zeroed out entirely. Oh, and also that we immediately adopt a Canadian-style health care system. Can't forget that, as we've been railing about it for ever since Friday Talking Points, Volume One. And lest we forget, President Obama is nothing more than George W. Bush's third term. As I said, none of this will come as any surprise to faithful readers, since we've been saying this sort of thing all along, ever since we were massively disappointed that Dennis Kucinich didn't win the presidency.
Netroots Nation Musings
[ Posted Thursday, July 29th, 2010 – 18:20 UTC ]
So I have arrived back home from the big Netroots Nation conference in Las Vegas. Since it was the first one I've been to, I thought I'd share some random impressions. Now, I know this sort of thing doesn't appeal to everyone (which is why I didn't even attempt to "liveblog" the conference), because quite frankly if you weren't there then you probably don't want to hear about it. For those readers, I apologize, and swear we'll be right back to normal columns here starting tomorrow. This is also why I posted a column very late yesterday as well, to give you something else to read, just in case this sort of thing bores you.
Sunday Bloody Sunday
[ Posted Wednesday, June 16th, 2010 – 17:20 UTC ]
Most Americans know U2's song "Sunday Bloody Sunday." It's a highly recognizable piece of music, and the song's been popular ever since they wrote it. But most people in this country who at least can sing along with the chorus simply have no idea what the song's about. If they've seen a live performance of the anthem, they may be dimly aware that frontman Bono is adamant that "this is not a rebel song," without truly grasping what he's talking about. Not a rebel song? Um, OK, Bono, sure, just sing it for us, OK?
Friday Talking Points [122] -- Bikini Bottom Update
[ Posted Friday, May 7th, 2010 – 18:00 UTC ]
Since it's the Friday after month's-end, the new monthly unemployment numbers were released today. Which adds another bar to the "bikini bottom" chart. Now, the measure of how many people know exactly what this means is exactly the measure of how well Democrats are getting the "jobs" message out. Because, as I've said previously, this chart should be front and center in the Democrats' campaigns this year.
Friday Talking Points [113] -- Republican Reconciliation Hypocrisy
[ Posted Friday, February 26th, 2010 – 17:47 UTC ]
Once again, here is an enormous present, handed to Democrats on a silver platter. Let's hope that Democrats don't (once again) ignore the present itself, and wind up on the floor playing with the shiny wrapping paper and the empty box.
The Heisenberg Effect Of Televising Political Negotiations
[ Posted Wednesday, February 17th, 2010 – 17:25 UTC ]
I'm going to start off today's column with a chart. I'm doing this for several reasons, not least of which is the fact that it's a really good chart. It is simple, easy to read, and involves very little mathematics (meaning it is accessible to a very wide spectrum of the American public). And it is a very effective way of presenting the facts, free of media spin. The chart comes from the White House, and shows the monthly number of jobs lost for approximately the past two years. It also uses color very well, to separate George W. Bush's term in office from Barack Obama's. Without further introduction, here is the chart: