The Liberal Doomsayer My blog deals primarily with national politics in the U.S. as well as, on occasion, local politics in Pennsylvania. From time to time, I may have something to say about sports and entertainment as well. I try to interpret information that shapes the news and provide context to current events. I am definitely left of center politically, but as far as I'm concerned, neither major party is perfect. Statistics Unique Visitors: Total Unique Visitors: Outgoing: Total Outgoing: 28 0 2 4214

Articles from The Liberal Doomsayer

More Repug SCHIP Whining 2007-11-05 15:56:00 Today’s New York Times contains a story by reporter Robert Pear alleging in its headline that “missteps on both sides” led to the latest SCHIP veto by President Brainless last week.This made me wonder what the Dems could have done wrong on SCHIP, as opposed to Dubya and his obstructionist Repug sycophants (as you read the story, it becomes crystal clear that they and no one else are responsible for the impasse).However, Pear does tell us the following…Democrats say that Mr. Bush described the bill in wildly inaccurate terms, got bad advice from his staff and missed many opportunities to find common ground. Republicans say that Democrats misjudged the president; excluded House Republicans, who in the end were crucial, from negotiations; and aimed negative advertisements at the very members whose votes they needed to override a veto.As for "misjudging the president"…Representative Michael R. Turner, an Ohio Republican who voted for the bill, said, “The administration did not ...

How Dare Edwards Delay Hillary’s Coronation! 2007-11-05 12:43:00 I guess that’s the thinking, such as it is, behind the following quote from former U.S. Dem House Rep and former Vice Presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro (concerning the performance of John Edwards in the Democratic debate last week along with Hillary Clinton, as noted here)…“John Edwards, specifically, as well as the press, would never attack Barack Obama for two hours they way they attacked her,” said (Ferraro), the 1984 vice presidential candidate who supports Mrs. Clinton. “It’s O.K. in this country to be sexist,” Ms. Ferraro said.“It’s certainly not O.K. to be racist. I think if Barack Obama had been attacked for two hours — well, I don’t think Barack Obama would have been attacked for two hours.”You’ve got to be kidding me.I had - had - a measure of respect for Ferraro because she once gave it back in a debate to Poppy Bush when he was running as the incumbent V.P. under Ronnie Baby in ‘84, after G.H.W.B. said something along the lines of “here, ...

Will Those Pigs Ever Fly Again? 2007-11-05 11:37:00 (The title is a reference to this post by D-Mac at Philadelphia Will Do.)I know, like me, you’ve all been waiting breathlessly for the latest circulation numbers from Philadelphia’s conservative newspaper of record, and that of course would be the Inquirer. I’m sure you’ve been curious to find out whether or not their efforts to appeal so slavishly to its freeper faithful has managed to pay off, while quite likely leaving numerous current and former subscribers (including your humble narrator) wondering why on earth we pay or ever did pay for the “privilege” of reading their misinformation (which, truth be told, isn’t so much even controversial anymore as it is boring and uninteresting).Well, this story tells us that the paper’s daily circulation is up 2.3 percent (not earth shattering, but progress all the same).However, the paper’s Sunday circulation is down 3 percent.This is a problem because the Sunday editions are where the newspapers make their money, what with ...

Don't Mythologize "The Surge" 2007-11-05 10:35:00 Brandon Friedman at The Daily Kos has a great post today reconstructing the timeline for the supposed success of “the surge” dating back to last August 31st, at which time Muqtada al-Sadr announced that he had ordered his Madhi Army to suspend offensive operations after 50 Muslim pilgrims were slaughtered in Karbala. Friedman explains that that is the real reason for the decrease in casualties as opposed to anything Bushco has done.And even if the preznit and the neocons were responsible, merely decreasing the slaughter is no reason to consider the surge a success. My understanding has always been that the point of the surge was to stabilize Iraq to the point where it could eventually start governing itself without our help, and that is plainly not taking place (and how is that compatible anyway with the claim of Gen. David H. Petraeus that a successful counterinsurgency strategy could take 9-10 years, as noted here)?And then of course, we have the testimony of the Iraqis themselve ...

Saturday Videos 2007-11-03 23:25:00 Devendra Banhart ("I Feel Just Like A Child," a song I'd like to dedicate to anyone in this country who continues to remain grossly ignorant of the swindle perpetrated by our government against us primarily by Bushco but with the help of too many lapdog Dems - by the way, nice to write a "bridge")......Happy Birthday to Adam Ant ("Friend Or Foe"; have to do my '80s thing after being out of action last night)......Happy Birthday also to '60s icon Lulu ("To Sir, With Love," with pics from the 1967 movie)......and we haven't had a birthday by a member of the '80s band a-ha for a little while, but sure enough, Mags Furuholmen hit the mark recently ("Dark Is The Night For All," not a bad song despite too much man titty and some bad improvisational geometric theater or whatever the hell that is - I was waiting for Leonard Pinth-Garnell to show up at any moment). ...

Fun With Hil And Bill 2007-11-03 22:39:00 Back after some brief downtime that was resolved after a sojourn or two to Yardley Personal Computing's corporate headquarters (also disgusted over the issue Bill Maher addresses below to a panel including Markos of The Daily Kos, so a break was probably called for).First, here is the great "Politics of Parsing" video from the Edwards campaign......and Maher asks a timely question about five minutes or so into this clip. ...

Chuck And Di Spit In Our Eye 2007-11-02 16:30:00 What would the week be without yet another cave-in by Democratic politicians?As noted here...WASHINGTON - Sens. Charles Schumer and Dianne Feinstein say they will vote for Attorney General-nominee Michael Mukasey, which likely gives him enough support to pass the Senate Judiciary Committee.Their decision came shortly after the chairman of the committee, Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., announced he would vote against Mukasey, a former federal judge."This is an extremely difficult decision," Schumer said in a statement, adding that Mukasey "is not my ideal choice."In announcing her support for Mukasey, Feinstein, D-Calif., said "first and foremost, Michael Mukasey is not Alberto Gonzales," referring to the former attorney general who resigned in September after months of questions about his honesty.“He’s not Alberto Gonzales,” huh Senator Feinstein? That’s your rationale?You’re a disgrace.Both of you read these letters…To the Editor:Re “Nominee’s Stand May Avoid Tangle of Torture C ...

Dubya The Bakery Boy Screws Workers Again 2007-11-02 14:53:00 Here’s a bit of a history lesson.Remember last July, when our preznit went to Nashville to visit the Bun Company run by a lady named Cordelia Harrington, serving as yet another photo-op where he could lambaste Democrats for supposed fiscal mismanagement, a typically delusional accusation (here, throwing in some of his patented stupid “humor” that would play well with the “Hee Haw” crowd but probably just about with no one else)?Well, it turns out that Harrington’s Bun Company had signed outsourcing agreements with O’Charley’s the week before (O’Charley’s states here on its Form 10-Q quarterly report that it is “a leading casual dining restaurant company headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee”).I’d like to comment on the typical gall of President Stupid Head to try and score political points at the expense of employees of the Bun Company who may lose their jobs unfortunately, but that’s not really my point here (though it could be).The reason why I’m mention ...

Where The Rubber Meets The Road (11/02/07) 2007-11-02 14:27:00 As reported in last Sunday's Philadelphia Inquirer, here is how Philadelphia-area members of Congress were recorded on major roll-call votes last week.HouseChildren's health insurance: In a 265-142 vote, the House passed a revised version of the State Children's Health Insurance Program bill that President Bush vetoed Oct. 3. The new measure would limit enrollment to children from families earning up to three times the poverty level, or nearly $62,000 for a family of four.A yes vote was to send the bill (H.R. 3963) to the Senate.Voting yes: Robert E. Andrews (D., N.J.), Robert A. Brady (D., Pa.), Michael N. Castle (R., Del.), Charles W. Dent (R., Pa.), Chaka Fattah (D., Pa.), Jim Gerlach (R., Pa.), Tim Holden (D., Pa.), Frank A. LoBiondo (R., N.J.), Patrick Murphy (D., Pa.), Allyson Y. Schwartz (D., Pa.), Joe Sestak (D., Pa.), and Christopher H. Smith (R., N.J.).Voting no: Joseph R. Pitts (R., Pa.), H. James Saxton (R., N.J.).And once again, Pitts and Saxton, this young man has a me ...

Leavitt Tilts At Health Care Windmills 2007-11-02 10:59:00 (The post title refers to the Netherlands, of course.)As reported here in last Tuesday’s New York Times, Health And Human Services director Mike Leavitt will travel to Switzerland on Nov. 7 and then fly to The Hague in The Netherlands for two days to look at how those two countries provide health care for their citizens.As noted in the story…In Switzerland and the Netherlands, all people have to obtain health insurance or pay a penalty. Employers are exempt from the mandates, and private insurers and hospitals provide care.“We have been hearing a lot of people in the health policy community talk about how those two countries had been doing new things in health access, and the secretary wanted to get a closer look at what they’re doing,” a department official said.The trip is not a sign, however, that the Bush administration is considering major health initiatives, officials said.“We don’t have anything cooking that we haven’t announced,” the department official said. ... Health

Thursday Videos 2007-11-01 22:39:00 Serj Tankian of System Of A Down ("The Unthinking Majority")......and Happy Birthday to Dan Peek, formerly of America, though now he's apparently doing something apart from Dewey Bunnell and Gerry Beckley, the other members of the group (a terrific cover of "California Revisited"; I have no idea who this guy is). ...

Iraqi Conscript Training Film 2007-11-01 22:24:00 Sometimes there are no words (via John Cole and The Daily Kos here)... ... Film

Hoping The "Snowflake King" Melts Away 2007-11-01 17:06:00 This WaPo story tells us that more musings from Don (“The Defense Secretary We No Longer Have”) Rumsfeld have come to light from his time doing the work of going to war with barely a plan in Iraq that has a lot to do with our current catastrophe (a stretch to call that “work,” I’ll admit).Rummy would inflict “snowflakes” upon his staff and others in the Bush Administration, which were often simple musings or demands of one type or another.……(they) shed light on Rumsfeld's brusque management style and on his efforts to address key challenges during his tenure as Pentagon chief. Spanning from 2002 to shortly after his resignation following the 2006 congressional elections, a sampling of his trademark missives obtained yesterday reveals a defense secretary disdainful of media criticism and driven to reshape public opinion of the Iraq war.…(In one he)…lamented that oil wealth has at times detached Muslims "from the reality of the work, effort and investment that lead ...

A Fein Time For Consideration 2007-11-01 14:52:00 This AP story tells us that Sen. Edward Kennedy has decided to vote against confirming Judge Michael Mukasey as the next Attorney General, prompting the latest hissy fit in front of a bunch of sympathetic conservatives from Incurious George (here).If it turns out that Mukasey isn’t confirmed (and I don’t know why the hell any Democrat or politician of any party really who professes a love for this country would do so, given the fact that Mukasey thinks presidential power should supersede the Constitution in some cases, as well as his refusal to call water boarding torture), then I have an idea for another candidate.And that would be Bruce Fein.Yes, I know he’s a conservative (would we get anyone of any other stripe under this regime?), but as noted here by John Nichols…Fein is qualified. A much-published Harvard Law School graduate who served as an associate deputy attorney general from 1981 to 1982 and as general counsel to the Federal Communications Commission, he has frequen ...

Pay A Real Price For Spreading Phony News 2007-11-01 14:12:00 It turns out that “Pat” Philbin, the one-time public affairs director of FEMA who was responsible for staging the recent phony “news conference” regarding that agency’s involvement in the fires of Southern California, was just let go.Awwww….As noted here, his boss communicated the following…"I think it was one of the dumbest and most inappropriate things I've seen since I've been in government," Homeland Security Secretary, Michael Chertoff, said.And when it comes to “dumbest and most inappropriate things,” who would know better than Mike Chertoff?Well, a lot of individuals immediately drew a parallel to the case of Jeff Gannon (pictured, acting in a decidedly non-news gathering capacity), the “reporter” for Talon News who was allowed to ask bogus questions at White House press conferences, and as thought of this, I remembered the following issue noted here by Salon’s Eric Boehlert…The question about credentials remains key. The vast majority of reporters co ...