Posts by Alex Coleman
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What exactly is the justification for making it harder for technology businesses to stay in NZ?
Tax cuts are the healing crystals economies need to calm their troubled chakras. They don't pay for themselves you know.
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New Link : Now with extra sense.
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Re: The US, the Palin and the crazy.
Two posts from the very reasonable Hilzoy.
Firstly , the Corner, in-as-much as it is representative of movement conservatism, shows that Obama is driving them crazy. And not really in the metaphor sense. They is gettin their Birch on. woot. etc.
Secondly, Obama sure is a new kind of Democrat, campaigning wise. Remember how Democrats used to all get a feared when the big bad Republicans questioned their patriotism, and either ignored it (and looked weak), or rolled over (and signed up for whatever GOP programme was on offer, like Iraq AUMF etc). Obama is mocking them, and calling them cowards without looking like anything less than pure class. Goading them into unleashing the full screaming wingnut id on primetime.I don't have any great anticipation that Obama will be President Awesome, but I sure am liking the change.
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On the POW bidness, McCain clearly deserves respect for his service. Using that claim on our respect as a political shield however is simply disgusting.
Anyone else remember all those purple band aids at the last GOP convention?
If McCain was a Democrat using his POW status as a campaign prop, the GOP would be shooting back hard. There'd be Gary Glitter 'jokes' on talkback and FOX. And the Candidate would distance himself from them, respectful of McCains service.
I'm glad the Dem's don't play that nasty, and I hope they win.
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I'd love to learn what guides these virtual flash mobs.
In Russia, the internet browses you.
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WfF, ETS, Kyoto, not joining War on Terror etc.
WfF: Tax credit aimed at working families. conservative.
ETS, Kyoto: Arguably conservative. Depending on how big you see the threat to our current way of life, arguably no where near conservative enough
not joining War on Terror: Not strictly true, but I'd say that GWB's approach to fighting terrorism has been pretty radical. The fact that we didn't sign on to some of the more radical and adventurous aspects would make our approach, conservative.
It's funny how words change but conservative has done some crazy evolvin'.
I blame the Americans, because they are the biggest.
A partial list of things that are now considered conservative policies, but wouldn't be if you thought about what the word means:
1) Throwing out long established rights in the face of an historically insignificant terrorist threat.
2) Making a pledge to never raise taxes.
3) Following through on such a pledge in the face of a war, massive deficits, crumbling infrastructure, etc.
4) Turning down cups of tea, and opting instead for more reform.
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On the 'screw up vs conspiracy thing', I just reject the framing. It's both and more.
But it's mostly a big 'known unknown'. We're not going to find out much either so speculation is all we got. Irresponsible not to.
The already mentioned Feith ('stupidest fncking guy on the face of the planet' according to the senior uniforms that had to work with him) running his little 'B team' intelligence op in the DOD. Same game plan that came up with the whack estimates of Soviet strength. That's the neocon angle. Rock Iraq, roll Iran. Real men go to Tehran and Egypt is the prize. Yadda yadda.
It's a test case, could'a been anything. The point was to do it. Break lot's of laws and tell the congress to Feck off.
It's Cheney. Guy was real pissed at Nixon. Not for what he did. Not even for getting caught. For resigning.
Cheney reckons the President should just tell congress to go pound sand, and that Nixon's resignation was the beginning of the end of the American Republic. His goal since has been to restore that republic. That's why they no longer even to show up to talk to congress.
That's why he just laughs at them. "Wanna talk to the President? I'll be holding his hand, no recording, no oaths and no transcripts. Whaddaya gonna do about it? Thought so. Go fick yourself."
(The lame-o congress critters are holding some hearings at the moment about whether or not all the torture and illegal detention of who knows how many people, and the lying about everything, is more or less impeachable than lying about a blow job. But they've already decided, before beginning, that they won't impeach or press charges no matter what they find. What a whimper.)
Read the church committee hearings sometime, the watergate break in gets shown up as the barely relevant clown show that it was. COINTELPRO baby. That's what Nixon got away with. Spying and more on US citizens. Wiretaps, the works.
Cheney felt that it was a damn shame that Nixon didn't stand up for that sh1t. When he said back in 2000 that he hoped to leave the Office of the President in a better condition that what they found it in; That's what he was talking about. Nothing to do with interns. FFS.
Out of the church committee hearings came FISA, so that was the top of the target list.
They had they telecom companies giving them access before 9/11. That's a known known. (Though now they've got immunity, we'll never know what went on, just like with the energy hearings.)
All this zombie stuff that just keeps coming back when the GOP gets in charge. If they're not selling guns to the Iranians to fund death squads in central, they're fantasising about little pebbles of death that will fall from the sky. Every time it's the same, put some rakish chump in the hot seat and surround him with the undead. Cheney is at the heart, but Rummy and wolfie, feith and bunches of others that avoided jail for the Iran contra business are all still there, or bloviating about honor on the radio. They never go away, they always get forgiven.
Now they've stacked Justice to the railings with nutjobs and clones. They've near broken the military, blackwater's building an air force. They're running two wars on the credit card, same time as cutting taxes and is there oversight on war profiteering? Is there fuck. They're torturing people and saying it's probably legal, as long as the main intent is not to cause pain. But Clinton was a parser, and that was bad. Bastard.
Unfortunately Shakespeare is dead.
Just kidding James ;)
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Isn't it Perigo's (and his fellow libertarians) intention to convert others to their point of view?
Well it's impossible to tell, but I'd guess 'not'.
It looks like the point is to sit around laughing at how stupid every other philosophy is, because A, like totally equals A', an' shit, therefore Kant's just a poo and Rawls is even dumber than his very stupid son. heh. snigger.
Only the very very clever can see the profound wisdom of this A=A' business without allowing themselves to become distracted by, on the one hand, it's tautological meaninglessness or, in the hand where it does mean something, it's utter failure to account for most of the things we see about us. Like differences of opinion, humour that doesn't involve poo, and the fact that objectivists have more schisms per-capita than any other group (including 60's and 70's marxists).
The fewer people that they can convince, the cleverer you need to be to understand it. Ipso bloody facto mate, objectivism must be true 'cause only the very cleverest people can believe it and they wouldn't be wrong, objectively speaking. Which means that they are entitled to talk poo about everyone else.
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For all your US polling needs.
Here and here are the most interesting bits for predicting November.
Obama is going to have lot's of money compared to McCain, and is going to be spending it in more States than GWB did vs Kerry. The GOP will be playing defence all over with limited funds.
Is anyone impresssed with McCains campaign so far? Am Too Not Bush!! Change you can believe in (from an old white guy who has been in Washington since the Savings and Loan debacle)!!
And he's borrowed Obama's colour scheme. Sheesh.
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<i>I don't know what's more offensive, the speech itself or that nobody even felt the need to make the coded slam for domestic consumption more subtle than a kick in the nuts.</i>
Indeed Craig. Maybe he's writing his own speeches now.The idea that negotiation equals appeasement is interesting. In order to avoid being Chamberlain a leader must simply make loud demands via the media, if those demands are not met in full, then it's time for the silent treatment. During which Hitler invades Poland or something.