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: 61 0 60 4272

Articles from The Liberal Doomsayer

Friday Videos 2007-08-10 22:51:00 ...On Sunday, Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits hits number 58 ("Industrial Disease," recorded live in Sydney in 1986)......and Happy Birthday to Todd Nichols of Toad The Wet Sprocket (named from a line in a Monty Python bit - "Something's Always Wrong") ...

Another Reason To Love The Bosox 2007-08-10 17:29:00 The photo captures that magical moment in 2004 when they disposed of “The Curse of the Bambino.”Based on this HuffPo story, it appears that the ownership of the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team (including Managing General Partner Ken Kendrick and CEO Jeff Moorad) are the biggest contributors to Republican Party presidential candidates among all of Major League Baseball’s owners thus far in the 2008 election.How appropriate given the fact that the team is named in honor of a snake.Meanwhile, on the Democratic side, Chairman Thomas C. Werner of the Boston Red Sox has donated $2,300 to John Edwards, $2,500 to Sen. Chris Dodd, and $2,300 to Sen. Barack Obama (sounds like a smart man with his money – asset allocation is truly important in this stuff).The article notes the other contributors to campaigns among MLB’s owners, though many appear to be hedging their bets at this point (including Chairman Bill Giles of the Phillies, who donated to Dubya in ’04; he’s a Repug capita ...

Return Of The Knuckle Draggers 2007-08-10 16:59:00 I don’t have much to add to this Inquirer online article, except to say that Diane Gramley and her fellow fascists at the American Family Association should crawl back to western PA and keep their noses out of our business…Schools drop recognition monthsObjections to Gay and Lesbian History Month led the district to remove other tribute months as well.By Susan SnyderInquirer Staff WriterDogged by public controversy and "phone calls that bordered on terroristic threats," the Philadelphia School District has removed recognition of Gay and Lesbian History Month from its 2007-08 school calendar, and - in an effort to be fair - similar months, including African American, Hispanic Heritage, and Asian Pacific American.Other designations, such as the International Day of Disabled Persons, also are gone from the calendar mailed to about 200,000 parents and other affiliates, district officials said last night.The only days that get recognized now are the ones that mean a day off from school, ...

Where The Rubber Meets The Road (8/10/07) 2007-08-10 15:36:00 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.HouseSoldiers' rest. The House passed, 229-194, and sent to the Senate a bill to set minimum periods between soldiers' tours in Iraq and their time at home. The bill would require at least as much time back home as at war.A yes vote was to pass HR 3159.Voting yes: Robert E. Andrews (D., N.J.), Robert A. Brady (D., Pa.), Michael N. Castle (R., Del.), Chaka Fattah (D., Pa.), Tim Holden (D., Pa.), Patrick Murphy (D., Pa.), Allyson Schwartz (D., Pa.) and Joe Sestak (D., Pa.).Voting no: Charles W. Dent (R., Pa.), Jim Gerlach (R., Pa.), Frank A. LoBiondo (R., N.J.), Joseph R. Pitts (R., Pa.), H. James Saxton (R., N.J.) and Christopher H. Smith (R., N.J.).To every Repug who opposed this (with the notable exception of Mike Castle), I dedicate this post from Digby, particularly this excerpt…I hear so much from the right about how they love t ...

Patrick Follows OUR Money 2007-08-10 13:36:00 (And sends a good bit of it back to us…)As noted in this Page One headline story in the Bucks County Courier Times today, Patrick Murphy secured more earmarked funding than any other U.S. House representative from this area.And as is the usual case, Taxpayers for Common Sense immediately decried what Patrick did, and another group, Citizens Against Government Waste, said the earmarks were an example of “wasteful spending.”I’ll tell you what; here is a list of the various businesses and non-profits that stand to benefit form the funding Patrick secured, including funding for Lower Makefield and Bristol, PA police, at-risk youth assistance, defense against bioterror, flood plain management, sewer infrastructure in Yardley, medical equipment for St. Luke and St. Mary's hospitals, the I-95/Turnpike connector in Bensalem, PA, and the James A. Michener museum in Doylestown, PA (borrowing from my posted comment, I know). If you consider that to be “wasteful spending,” then so be ...

Trying To Control The Optics 2007-08-10 11:04:00 So Dubya received a “boost” in his approval rating from 32 to 36 percent? And his disapproval rating went down from 66 to 61 percent, huh?I have news for CNN; those numbers still stink (dear God, am I sick of hearing variations on the "Bush bounce" narrative).And those represent a sampling among Republicans only, by the way; the numbers from last time are unchanged among Democrats and independents.And speaking of fluffing the war (when talking about Dubya, it’s Iraq first, last and in-between, though the fact that he is an utter cipher shapes people’s perceptions also of course), here is an annotated version of the latest commercial for Iraq 4 Evah! from Kevin Ferris of the Inquirer today (boy, would I love to find out whether or not Ferris actually served)…“The surge is working it needs more time slow and steady progress the Iraqis need to stand up freedom is on the march sorry General Petraeus you’re dictating too fast for me Harry Reid makes me sick for saying the war ...

My Tribute To Stu Bykofsky 2007-08-09 23:23:00 The columnist for the Daily News said here that "I'm thinking another 9/11 would help America."stubyko@phillynews.comUpdate 8/13: And you knew this was inevitable, right? ...

Who's Their Inspiration, I Wonder? 2007-08-09 23:01:00 Gee, let me think; a children's book about a boy who doesn't want to read, huh?(Oh, right, it's based on "their experiences as teachers" - suuuure.)Well, if Laura and Jenna Bush want to write it based on what they know (or should know about our country's recent history, anyway), it could go something like this...Once upon a time, there was a little boy who was very incurious about the world. He lived a sheltered life of prosperity and only knew a few people like those in his own family. They all had similar beliefs and were equally incurious about the lives of people other than themselves.The boy's father had served our country in the military and government service for years, and the son served in a peacetime national guard position, though there are records missing that would probably answer questions about what exactly he did when he was supposed to be defending our country (oh, and he managed to avoid fighting in a war, like many other sons of privilege at that time).After tha ...

Not The Comic Relief I Had In Mind 2007-08-09 11:52:00 The New York Times reports today that 600 Washingtonians (not “Washington- ites” – reminds me of that episode of “Taxi” with Jim and the T.V.s…never mind) were asked who they would want to see immortalized in wax at Madame Tussauds from a list of area notables.So many people to choose from, as noted in they story; they could have picked Steroid Man also, since he just hit Number 757 to widen his lead over Hank Aaron last night.So who did they choose?None other than former mayor and prison inmate Marion “Bitch, Light Me Up” Barry.Actually, I think the survey should have been clarified for those polled. Apparently, they believed the figure of the person selected would be made not from wax, but crack cocaine.Maybe they don’t deserve the vote after all (snark). ...

Another Reason To Boot Him Out? 2007-08-09 11:29:00 It turns out that (according to Atrios here), President Clouded Vision was checked by a physician for symptoms of Lyme disease a year ago (apparently, he might have picked it up while he was bicycling in the Maryland woods – I mean, he might as well engage in physical activity since anything mental would probably be too challenging for him).Aside from the fact that, as Atrios says, we should have known about this long before now, Dubya should be monitored for this frequently. Lyme disease is not something that you can get rid of by applying an analgesic cream or regular doses of Robitussin or something like that. It can turn into a serious neurological disorder.All you have to do is read about the sad case of Fraserburg university professor Alasdair Crockett (here) to know what’s at stake. And if I wonder whether symptoms may have progressed affecting what precious little good judgment he actually has, I promise I’m being serious. ...

Wednesday Videos 2007-08-08 23:22:00 Joe Tex would have been 74 today ("Skinny Legs And All" - smooth moves)......Happy Birthday to Dave Evans, otherwise known as "The Edge" of U-2 ("Gloria")......Happy 70th Birthday to Dustin Hoffman, here selling a Volkswagen prior to becoming a big shot; just remember one word, Dustin? Are you listening; plastics......and for now, I'll leave you with The Get Up Kids ("I'll Catch You"). ...

A Request Of My Brethren 2007-08-08 17:22:00 I have to admit that I saw this poll on The Daily Kos this morning and I was taken aback somewhat.I know we all here do what we can to communicate to people in a forum that, don’t forget, is maturing each day along with other means of promoting ideas, causes and points of view, but I think it’s a mistake for us to forget about trying to communicate to people who still read ink output on dead trees.I think we should embrace whatever opportunity we can to get people on board with us. And my guess is that there are people still reading the traditional corporate media who may or may not know of bloggers, the netroots, the progressive movement, etc. and could be truly enlightened if we took the time to reach out to them via some kind of a Letter to the Editor or a Guest Column of some type (one of the reasons why I think it’s so important to publicize David Sirota, among others).So please consider scribbling something along the lines of what we post about here and sending it off to a ...

What A Difference... 2007-08-08 16:02:00 As kos notes here…One year ago, Ned Lamont booted Joe Lieberman from the Democratic Party and ushered in a new Democratic Party aggressive in its efforts to end the war in Iraq. More here. And now, the good folks over at My Left Nutmeg want polling operations to ask the voters of Connecticut if they regret their votes today.(By the way, I’m going to try and break my “no Sunday political viewing” rule to watch Markos go at it with Harold Ford on “Bleat The Press,” though I’ll be on the road…I’ll give it my best shot).Update 8/9: David Sirota has more. ...

Gathering The Political Roadkill 2007-08-08 14:49:00 Out of a truly perverse sense of curiosity, I visited the White House web site to find out how President Don’t Call It A Vacation (h/t HuffPo) spun the evisceration of FISA by the congressional Repugs and chicken dems (lower case intentional) a few days ago…I commend members of Congress who supported these important reforms, and also for acting before adjourning for recess. In particular, I want to thank Mitch McConnell and John Boehner for their strong leadership on this issue, and Senators Kit Bond and Dianne Feinstein for coming together in the Senate on an effective bipartisan solution. In the House of Representatives, Pete Hoekstra and Heather Wilson were instrumental in securing enactment of this vital piece of legislation before the August recess, and I thank them for their leadership.As far as I’m concerned, Dubya manages to do something here that is almost artful in its utter repugnance (almost). By congratulating Dianne Feinstein (the only Dem, of course), he draws atte ...

Following Patrick's Money 2007-08-08 13:47:00 In today’s Bucks County Courier Times, reporter Brian Scheid takes a look at the composition of the nearly $1.2 million in funding that Patrick Murphy has raised to date for the 2008 campaign (which, despite Mikey’s absence at the moment – no doubt trying to ratchet up whatever drama he can generate for his return on behalf of the knuckle-dragging faithful – is very much underway).Yes, it is symptomatic of the crassness of our politics that this is a legitimate issue. But until the vast majority of this country gets serious about campaign finance reform, this is the status quo.What Scheid found out (here) was that about $670,000 of the money came from individuals. Nearly $280,000 came from PA residents, meaning that slightly over half of the individual donations came from outside of PA, in a fairly diverse spread across the east coast and California (and in diverse amounts as well).The rest of the money came from political action committees, which included labor and defense int ...