Coming in 2nd

Third place winners are often happier than 2nd place winners -- a little factoid taught in intro psych courses. Now there's a whole coffee table book devoted to it.

Pictures of the Year

The first one is amazing.

Conflicted Thoughts on Torture

Ross Douthat on the complex emotions and thoughts people have about US "enhanced interrogation techniques." It is a piece that verbalizes the "inarticulate mix of anger, uncertainty, and guilt about the Bush administration's interrogation policy."

Gross

Sam Esquibel was delivered early after an ultrasound revealed a brain tumor. The tumor turned out to be a small developed foot. Gross. And weird. (The baby survived the surgery, and is recovering.)

Public Christmas Decorations

A Southern Baptist writer argues that keeping Christmas decorations out of public buildings (malls, courthouses, etc) and in private churches & homes will improve the true spiritual meaning of Christmas.

Evangelical Lobbyist Resigns Over Civil Union Remark

Rev. Richard Cizik, VP for Governmental Affairs for the National Association of Evangelicals has resigned over a remark that he would support civil unions for homosexuals.

Road Use Tax

NC may start taxing people 1/4 cent for every mile they drive.

Ideology of Pragmatism?

Some dissenting views on the value of pragmatism.

Obama Logos

The logos that weren't chosen.

P is for Pragmatism

Andrew Sullivan posted a comment that was posted on Daniel Larison's blog, which I am now posting. Amazing. The reader emphasizes Obama's pragmatism.

Nice Reflexes, Mr. President

Priceless: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8GOrc0-Ygg&eurl=http://wonkette.com/&feature=player_embedded

Gay Marriage

Newsweek has an article this week by Lisa Miller arguing that opponents of gay marriage are misguided in their interpretation of scripture, and that the teachings of the Bible "argue for the other side." The OnFaith blog has a number of responses from pastors and theologians. In my opinion, everyone misses the boat, from little missteps to being on the wrong dock all together. Andrew Sullivan also responds here.

Movement on Auto Bailout

It looks like an auto bailout bill of some sort is going to come to the floor. It may include an oversight board (or one person), government equity stake in the companies (the UAW is also angling for equity stake in GM), approval for business transactions over $25 million, and limits on executive pay.

Here's my question on executive pay. They are obviously making way too much, and the "golden parachute" is just ridiculous. Screw up and get millions of dollars -- not a good plan. But shouldn't there be some sort of incentive, in order to attract the very best? A limit on pay, but if the company is able to meet government demands for restructuring, and significantly improve their share of the market (without over-producing) in some given amount of time, couldn't they qualify for a really amazing bonus? Maybe that doesn't make good business sense either, but it makes sense to me.

Cutbacks

Everyone has to make cuts to their teams.

Nigerian Religion Clash

The Atlantic has a good piece on the clash of Muslims & Christians in Nigeria, and the attempts to rise above it.

So Gay

The 12 Gays of Christmas

SCOTUS

The US Supreme Court will decide on Friday whether to take up one of the suits alleging that Obama is not a US citizen, therefore, ineligible to become President of the United States. The Chicago Tribune states that the fact Justice Thomas has distributed the case to other Justices for conference is not evidence that it will actually be heard. Of the cases distributed to the whole court in the last 8 years, 782 were denied & 60 were heard. (AFRO News is reporting that Thomas' actions are "once in a decade.")

Not a Prank

Florida Representative Ros-Lehiten hung up on Obama twice. (Well, the second time was actually Rahm Emanuel.) She thought it was a joke. Whoopsies.

Face Twitch Music

This cannot be healthy.

Posthumous Baptism

The Mormon Church is getting in trouble for the posthumous baptisms of Jews, including those who died in concentration camps. Jewish groups (and others) are understandably irritated at learning the souls of their deceased relatives are theoretically being tinkered with by the Mormons. The Mormons claim that the souls of the deceased have the option to decline baptism, so they aren't violating anyone's rights (dead or alive). Despite this, they agreed in 1995 to stop baptizing Jewish Holocaust victims, unless they are the direct ancestor of an LDS member.

It seems, though, they've never really stopped the practice. In 2004, Hillary Clinton got involved. In the course of discussions with Orin Hatch, she found out that her father had also been posthumously baptized.

One Nation, Under God

Rev. George Docherty, the minister who persuaded Congress to add "Under God" to the pledge of allegiance, died on Thanksgiving day at the age of 97. Does the death of Rev. Docherty represent the end of an era? Is it time to take out "Under God"?

Based on his obituary, he seems like a pretty interesting guy.

Hilarious. Prop 8 the Musical.

Migrant Mother

CNN has a brief story about the younger child in this photo, who is now 77, living in California. She cleans houses in Modesto, and has always been steadily employed. She said that this picture brought determination to her family. Her mother died at the age of 80 in 1983.

Step Away from the Mic, Fool

Gov. Rendell (PA-D) yapped on about Janet Napolitano being "perfect" for the Homeland Security job, because she doesn't "have a family." He did this RIGHT IN FRONT of the lectern mic. Are you dumb? If you're going to say offensive things like that, STEP AWAY FROM THE MIC! Is it so hard, people? You're like Brittney flashing her goods when she gets out of a car, you just never learn.

Auto Bailout

Not everyone in Michigan supports the bailout.

Obama Approval

Americans still really like Obama. I've decided the only people who are "concerned" about Obama's appointment of Clinton-era officials are pundits. As usual, no one else cares, and most people think it's a good idea. By a 4-to-1 margin, Americans think his Clinton veteran appointments will improve, not detract from, his administration. So there.

Piano with Condi

Weird. Condoleezza Rice is, apparently, an accomplished pianist, and she put on a semi-private recital for the Queen of England. Now, if I liked our current administration, I might find this endearing. I don't, though, so it's just very odd. Maybe our Secretaries of State should not literally put on shows for foreign heads of state? (via Wonkette)

Big 3 Plans

The automakers have crafted plans to make it through the credit crunch with government help. Ford -- the best off of the three -- plans to create an "opportunity" out of this mess in order to build a "global, green, high-tech company" for the future. The plans sound nice in theory. Will they carry them out if given the money? Can they? Does Congress have them competency to evaluate the viability of a business plan?

NC Sales Tax

A new (or not new, depending on your perspective) sales tax is being proposed so the NC residents will have to pay taxes for goods purchased via the internet from other states. Whenever I buy something on the internet, I feel sorry for the unfortunate inhabitants of the states that are flagged to pay more. Looks like I might end up being one those people.

Reminiscing with George

Here is the full transcript of the Charlie Gibson interview with Bush (and wife). Whereas Sarah Palin seems even more ridiculous and out of her league in print (a fairly spectacular feat), President Bush sounds more coherent when you read his words in your own voice instead of listening to his smarmy hehe voice. Reading the transcript, he comes across sounding kind of sad and tired--I don't know if that's what he sounded like in person.

A few snippets:

***
GIBSON: What were you most unprepared for?

BUSH: Well, I think I was unprepared for war. In other words, I didn't campaign and say, "Please vote for me, I'll be able to handle an attack." In other words, I didn't anticipate war. Presidents -- one of the things about the modern presidency is that the unexpected will happen.

****

Rachael: OK, I know anticipating the exact specifics of the war on terror would be hard to do, but almost every president has presided over armed conflict ranging from the relatively small to devastingly massive. Is it so hard to expect that our President might have anticipated some sort of conflict situation?

****

GIBSON: Was the election in any way a repudiation of the Bush administration?

BUSH: I think it was a repudiation of Republicans. And I'm sure some people voted for Barack Obama because of me. I think most people voted for Barack Obama because they decided they wanted him to be in their living room for the next four years explaining policy. In other words, they made a conscious choice to put him in as President.

****

Rachael: His answer is remarkably coherent.

****

GIBSON: But both candidates wound up criticizing you a lot.

BUSH: Yes, well, that's what happens when you're the incumbent during a tough economic time, but --

GIBSON: Hurt?

BUSH: No, not really. You know, I've been around politics a long time. Remember, I was the guy in 2000 who campaigned for change. I campaigned for change when I ran for governor of Texas. The only time I really didn't campaign for change is when I was running for reelection.

****

Rachael: Well, things certainly did change with you at the helm. Changed right into the crapper.

****

GIBSON: If the intelligence had been right, would there have been an Iraq war?

BUSH: Yes, because Saddam Hussein was unwilling to let the inspectors go in to determine whether or not the U.N. resolutions were being upheld. In other words, if he had had weapons of mass destruction, would there have been a war? Absolutely.

GIBSON: No, if you had known he didn't.

BUSH: Oh, I see what you're saying. You know, that's an interesting question. That is a do-over that I can't do. It's hard for me to speculate.

GIBSON: Greatest accomplishment? The one thing you're proudest of?

BUSH: I keep recognizing we're in a war against ideological thugs and keeping America safe.

****

Rachael: Charlie! How did you let that one go? "It's hard for me to speculate," and you just move on to the greatest accomplishment? (An accomplishment that really leaves something to be desired.) He should have asked another follow-up.

Political Celebrities

Hank Williams Jr. plans on running for the Tennessee Senate. Charles Barkley contemplates (again) a run for Alabama Governor. I guess politics is what you do when you get bored of your real life.

Raw Foods

Raw food "purists" are horrified by a new move to take the raw food movement commercial. The linked article (via Chow) deals with the consumption of raw fruits and vegetables. The thinking goes that by cooking them, we strip them of their essential minerals. Some particularly zealous raw dieters include raw meat in their diet. Gross. I'm pretty sure the cuisine in hell involves an all raw diet.

Looking Back

W. is delusional. He hopes to be remembered as a "liberator of the Iraqi people," among other things. He also maintains that he came into the White House with a certain set of "values" and that he didn't abandon those values. That's probably true. Some of his values are just kind of despicable, so being proud of having stayed true to them is not really that impressive. Don't let the door hit your hiney on the way out, Mr. President.

Politics are weird

Samantha "Hillary Clinton Is a Monster" Power is now on the Obama transition team prepping the State Department for its new administration... you know, for Hillary Clinton. That should be fun.

Black Friday Gone Wrong

A Wal-Mart deal is not worth it. An employee was trampled to death when shoppers broke down the doors to get inside. Disgusting.

Somali Failure

This article is frightening. Apparently the war on terror is going even worse in Somalia than in other places, which is really saying something. The watchful eye of no one is on them, and it means bad things for us and bad things for Obama. It makes me ill.

Some More Pragmatism

Yeah, I don't get it either. I don't understand why people continue to be surprised that Obama isn't making wild liberal proclamations and appointing "fresh faces" to his cabinet. He ran on a campaign of change. As in, a change from the "last eight years of failed Bush policies," as in a change from ideological incompetence to thoughtful, practical leadership. He's done that already, and will continue to do that. Not only is this NOT a sell out of his campaign ideals -- it's directly in line with his campaign and political message. If you don't know that, you weren't paying attention. (via Daily Dish)

Economic Prophet

Here's a video of Peter Schiff (via Daily Dish) predicting the current economic crisis for the past two years. Watch how they laugh.

Presidents Use Complete Sentences?

Humor from Borowitz.

Gitmo

Judge has ordered the release of five detainees. (via Daily Dish)

Bonds?

What are bonds? Here's a little animated ditty to help explain them.

Abortion Debate

Some anti-abortion activists are starting to embrace a reduction stance, due to their failure to overturn Roe v Wade. They are interested in working with Democrats to establish programs that will help pregnant women provide for their children, and encourage them to continue with their pregnancies.

Some hardliners are appalled at this new effort, stating that "you don't work to limit the murder of innocent victims--you work to stop it." Well, ok, but isn't it morally questionable to NOT try and protect the blastocytes and embryos and fetuses (the unborn, if you will) while you fight for the rights of the non-existent? I'm all for middle ground, and I understand anti-abortion stances, but that just doesn't make sense to me. Can't activists, like presidents, do two things at once? Advocate for policies that would reduce the currently legal abortions while also advocating for policies that would make abortion illegal?

I hope that this new middle ground will eventually include more effort to prevent pregnancies (birth control!) in addition to preventing abortions.

Write-ins

Some funny write-ins for president from Florida. That is, they would be funny if it didn't mean that people in a swing state are so cynical about the political process that they are willing to vote for Donald Duck for president.

Oil Drilling

The NC legislature may pay for a study on oil drilling off the coast of North Carolina. The republicans are all in a snit, because they think the democrats are just going to pay some ivory tower egg heads to say what they want. On the one hand, if the legislature can't say no to the federal government, then maybe it's a waste of money. On the other hand, if something interesting comes up, it seems like the governor's office could use that negotiate -- either way -- for the North Carolina residents.

Maybe the legislature will want to fund some investigations about bullying. I'm here for that! And I can do it for less than $100,000!!

Timewaster!

Minnesota Public Radio has an interactive feature where you get to decide the real intent of a voter in the Senate race. Some are obvious, some are questionable, and some people just shouldn't vote.

Palin Hates Turkeys

Ooooooh my. Sarah Palin pardoned a turkey and proceeded to have a news conference as the un-pardoned turkeys were slaughtered. Right in front of the cameras. Pay special attention to the MSNBC captions. Those are funny. PETA is going to be so pissed. (via Wonkette)

Are you as smart as an American?

Goodness, I sure hope you are. Take National Geographic's survey to see how you stack up against the citizens of several countries.

Prop 8 Back to the Courts

The California Supreme Court has taken up the suits filed against Prop 8, which argue that a 2/3 majority in the legislature was required to place the measure on the ballot.

Toll booths

North Carolina may have toll booths some time in the future.

Baucus Healthcare Plan

Max Baucus releases his new healthcare plan, which inclues a mandate & taxing benefits--2 things Obama opposed during the campaign.

Yipes

Time to rethink those Christmas decorations.

Cabinet Dream Team

You can make your own Dream Team Administration at the New York Times.

NC Death Penalty

Executions are on hold in North Carolina because of a rule requiring the presence of a doctor. The NC Medical Board has filed suit, saying the requirement violates the physician's oath. The NC Supreme Court has taken up the case.

Iraqi interpreters

So, we fire our own Arabic translators because they are gay. Now we jeopardize Iraqi interpreters by making them reveal their identities, because "professional units don't hide their identities." Here's what those interpreters face. Are we trying to lose?

Lieberman keeps chair

Yuck & gross. Lieberman keeps his chair. He loses some subcommittee chairmanship, which is so unimportant Reuters can't even be bothered to tell me which one.

Edit: (Looks like it's the subcommittee on global warming. Shouldn't that be kind of important?)

Fireside Chat 2.0

Obama promises global leadership on climate change. (But remember, the US has only one president at a time!) (via Politico)

Worse than Prop 8

Dan Savage highlights Arkansas's Prop 1, a worse counterpart to California's Prop 8. Written to prevent gay couples from fostering children, it excludes any co-habitating, non-married couple from fostering children. This includes, according to Dan, relative foster parents--usually a first stop in order to prevent children from being sucked into the broader foster care system.

Women in the Military

Did you know we know have a female 4-star general? Well, we do.

Hate costs jobs

Focus on the Family lays off a lot of people after donating half a million dollars into Yes on Prop 8.

More on Detroit

New York Times covers the Auto Bailout and outlines some reasons no one is interested in helping Detroit.

More arguments against and against.

Shockingly, Detroit News is for, except that they have a strong distaste for the democrats, who want "to saddle carmakers with even more costly mandates." As my mama always says, beggars can't be choosers, kiddo.

Mitchell Bard at Huffington Post argues for...or against? I think for...some sort of change-y type thing.


Hey Nate Silver! I need help with this. What do the polls really say??

Obama's faith

Here is the full 2004 interview with Obama about his faith. He's my kind of Christian.

Obama Debate Prep

This is an outdated YouTube clip, but a kind of amusing take on Obama's debate prep.

State Bailouts

So many bailouts!!

Governor Sanford (R-SC) argues against government bailouts for states with deficits in the Wall Street Journal. His solution? To release states from unfunded federal mandates (Homeland Security ID requirements, NCLB). If these unfunded mandates are costing so much money, why doesn't the federal government spend money on funding them, instead of a bailout?

Auto Bailout

Megan McCardle continues to argue against an auto bailout.

I'm swaying even more toward the against side. Let them fail.

Weather the Economic Storm in Huntsville!

Forbes names Madison Co, Ala. as the number one place in the country to make it through the recession.

Transgender Conundrum

Tough decisions face families whose children may (or may not) be transgendered. A thoughtful essay.

Kay Hagan

Kay Hagan seeks Sen. Dole's former banking and military committee appointments. I hope Liddy is enjoying her retirement.

Beau Biden

Beau Biden to deploy to Iraq.

Obama's Lincoln

Lee Siegel at the Wall Street Journal takes an alternate view of the Obama - Lincoln parallel. The main argument is that such a parallel should be taken as less than "soothing" by the public. Lincoln was, after all, consumed by war and oversaw the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans. Siegel also mentions Lincoln's view of himself as an agent of historical destiny and a "towering genius," and suggests Obama sees his own path and intellect in a similar light.

While Siegel makes a valid point about the complexities of Lincoln, I fail to see the problem. Obama is a politician, a strange breed of citizen. People who seek the presidency have to have some measure of arrogance and confidence in their own intellectual and leadership abilities. That Obama possesses these beliefs is not surprising, nor does it detract from his potential. Obama will prove that he is more than capable of leading our nation. The change he brings is a change from ideology to pragmatism, a change from a team of yes-men to a team of rivals.

Presidential Debate of 3rd Graders

Some 3rd graders do a pretty good debate on Iraq. (YouTube via The Daily Dish)

Huckabee

Oh, Mike Huckabee. Governor Huckabee says Barack Obama is his president. The overall sentiment is nice. Apparently, though, until Election Day, little black children thought their only way to success was through sports and entertainment. Thank god for Barack Obama. Now little black children know that their pathway to success includes sports, entertainment, and Harvard Law.

Let's take a little trip down memory lane.

Huckabee on evolution. (Notice McCain trying to control his reaction.)
Huckabee on lipstick on a pig.
Huckabee on the fair tax.
Huckabee on gays, gay marriage, and traditional marriage.

Huckabee

In addition to his Fox News show, Mike Huckabee will also have a twice-daily, five-minute radio broadcast on ABC Radio starting in January. He says it won't be a partisan show, because "Republicans are just as funny as Democrats." He'll probably keep his word on that, if his good-natured Colbert appearances are an indication.

Too Big to Fail; Too Big to Save

Oh crap. (via The Daily Dish)

That lady who ran for VP

Andrew Sullivan has an obsession with Sarah Palin that is unhealthy. I would like her just to crawl away and never be heard from again. In the end, I think that's what will happen. She's a darling to some base of Republicans who could never elect anyone without the help of moderates. Her worldview is similar to Mike Huckabee, who unlike Sarah Palin, is genuinely likeable and intelligent. I find it difficult to believe that given a choice between two otherwise similar candidates, people would pick the ignorance and arrogance of Sarah Palin over the obvious appeal of Mike Huckabee. The best way to deal with Sarah Palin is to ignore her until she fades into oblivion.

That said, Sullivan had a funny post about her today that has nothing to do with her as a politician or national figure. It's just kind of funny. Apparently she was SUPER excited about getting to see Ivana Trump one time, because she brought a "semblance of glamour and culture" to Alaska. That's funny, right?

Pragmatism!

See? Pragmatism!

Secretary of State Clinton?

I'm dubious that Hillary Clinton is at the top of the Secretary of State job applicant pile. But I will be ecstatic if Obama chooses her. I think she would be excellent in the position. It is no surprise that Team of Rivals is one of Obama's favorite books. Doris Kearns Goodwin argues that the genius of the Lincoln was in his pragmatism and his appointment of powerful and intelligent cabinet members, rather than the yes-men that contribute to groupthink. Although Obama's "Hope" and "Change" message often gets played as though it's a hippy dippy philosophy that the world just needs more love, Obama's driving philosophy is clearly pragmatism. With a Clinton appointment, the parallels between Obama's leadership style and Lincoln's would become even more apparent.

I Love Robert Gibbs

OK, these videos are old, but I love Robert Gibbs. I love that he's from Alabama, and I love that he is so bemused by the nonsense thrown his way.


Robert Gibbs vs. Brian Kilmeade

Robert Gibbs vs. Sean Hannity

Robert Gibbs vs. John Roberts

Pelosi Power!

I was so disgusted with Nancy Pelosi during the bailout vote. I'm all for partisanship -- I think it's healthy -- but her pre-vote speech was just gross. (Although Barney Frank's response to Republicans was right on target.) That bad decision aside, I'm excited to learn she's apparently mighty powerful. And lady-like at the same time! Good for her. Here's hoping that she gets some strong legislation through!

Prop 8

I can't speak very rationally about this Proposition 8 nonsense yet. Dan Savage does it for me.

The Auto Bailout

I need some smart people to tell me how to think on this one. On the one hand, American car companies kind of suck. On the other hand, reasonable hard-working people work for said American car companies, and they shouldn't be out on the street. Let's go to the arguments:

Arguments for: James Suroweicki of the New Yorker & Thomas Friedman of the New York Times

Arguments against: Megan McCardle of The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, and Paul Ingrassia (also of WSJ)


I think the arguments against have swayed me more, but there are many bad outcomes either way you go. This is what swing voters must feel like.