Musings from Outer Littleton

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Jewish Speaker of Texas State House

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Finally Used the Oven

2010-11-17T20:29:00.002-07:00

Well it was mostly a friend who put it together. Thanks mom for being tech support on this endeavor. It was a hit.

In Defense of the Tea Party. Really.

2010-11-02T11:48:00.001-06:00

What I wrote to Eugene Robinson, the Washington Post columnist, about his column this morning: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/01/AR2010110105086.html We'll see if he gets back to me. Doubtful.

Eugene,
I occasionally read your columns and see you on MSNBC and want to give my two cents on something. I'm really tired of this narrative that racism is at the heart of the anti-Obama crowd. As some background, I am a white moderate (often leaning Republican) who voted for Obama two years ago mainly due to the fiscal profligacy of Republicans over the prior eight years. I am no fan of the Tea Party, Sarah Palin, Bachmann, Beck, Limbaugh, etc. (In fairness I'm quite repulsed by their mirror opposites: Shultz, Olbermann, etc.)

So it's a bit odd that I find myself defending the Tea Party against this racism charge you put forward today, on election day. But here goes:

You wrote:

"First, I'll state the obvious: It's not racist to criticize President Obama, it's not racist to have conservative views, and it's not racist to join the tea party. But there's something about the nature and tone of the most vitriolic attacks on the president that I believe is distinctive -- and difficult to explain without asking whether race is playing a role."

It seems to me this paragraph is a preemptive defense to pushback from people like me. You can thus truthfully say: 'I didn't say everybody who opposed Obama is racist". But then you hint at just that throughout the article. Just 'asking' a question about the role of race, you say. Come on. That reminds me of the Tea Partiers who just want to 'ask questions' about the motives/funding the Ground Zero mosque. It's an intellectually lazy way of throwing stones when there's not enough evidence to support your claim. You also wonder about a perceived 'coincidence':

"The first African-American president takes office, and almost immediately we see the birth of a big, passionate national movement -- overwhelmingly white and lavishly funded -- that tries its best to delegitimize that president, seeks to thwart his every initiative, and manages to bring the discredited and moribund opposition party roaring back to life. Coincidence?"

Both of your quotes I've cited remind me of the following piece from Jon Stewart:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-september-13-2006/the-question-mark

There are undoubtedly a few despicable racists who may show up at Tea Party events. But you're painting a narrative of an entire movement based off of a few random crazies out of literally millions of supporters. This is terribly unfair and does our nation no service, even if it may help delegitimize a movement you are not fond of. In reality there are plenty of ways to oppose the Tea Party without having to resort to the racism charge.

And then on this theme: "One thing that struck me from the beginning about the tea party rhetoric is the idea of reclaiming something that has been taken away." It seems you are using this statement to support your argument (or question) about racism in the Tea Party. I'm only 33 but I can say with confidence that I hear this 'take America back' rhetoric dozens of times every two years from politicians of both strips when they're campaigning. How in the world is it racist this time around? It's probably the single most common platitude I hear from campaigning politicians. That you could infer this same comment to be racist in this election cycle is puzzling.

Eugene, I just want to emphasize how toxic and poisonous the charge of racism is. To be so cavalier with this accusation doesn't do us any favors. And you're denying real racists out there a term they really deserve. And back to your 'coincidence' question: there are couple things to keep in mind. First, we live in a hyper-partisan world at the moment. There was widespread vitriol towards Clinton and Bush before Obama. And there will be to whoever follows Obama, whatever the race/gender of that person. This is a fact. The vitriol is a result of the political era in which we live, not race. Additionally, I want to remind you that the deficits under Bush were bad but exploded in 2009 and 2010. Take a look at a chart of the deficit/GDP and this is clear. And then take a look at the projections. In this context, I take the Tea Party at their word that this is the main reason why they sprung up and are so energized.

It's not race, it's deficits.

Cheers,
David

What Does it Mean?

2010-08-10T21:40:00.001-06:00

Biblical Armageddon vs. Global Warming

2010-07-30T09:20:00.000-06:00

Christian Groups: Biblical Armageddon Must Be Taught Alongside Global Warming

The Amazing Racists

2010-07-30T09:17:00.000-06:00

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Oliver - World Cup 2010: Into Africa - The Amazing Racists

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Al-Qaeda Calls Off Attack On Nation's Capitol To Spare Life Of 'Twilight' Author

Tea Party

Maybe the rapture will save us. Congress certainly won't

2010-07-29T14:56:00.004-06:00

"The multitudes remained plunged in ignorance of the simplest economic facts, and their leaders, seeking their votes, did not dare to undeceive them."
— Winston Churchill

On a related note:
http://cboblog.cbo.gov/?p=1249

Federal Debt and the Risk of a Financial Crisis
In fiscal crises in a number of countries around the world, investors have lost confidence in governments’ abilities to manage their budgets, and those governments have lost their ability to borrow at affordable rates. With U.S. government debt already at a level that is high by historical standards, and the prospect that, under current policies, federal debt would continue to grow, it is possible that interest rates might rise gradually as investors’ confidence in the U.S. government’s finances declined, giving legislators sufficient time to make policy choices that could avert a crisis. It is also possible, however, that investors would lose confidence abruptly and interest rates on government debt would rise sharply, as evidenced by the experiences of other countries.

Garrison Keillor: BP and Bach

2010-07-29T08:42:00.004-06:00

As published in the NY Times:

I flew home from Washington Monday night, looking at live pictures on the BP Web site taken by an underwater robot of the greasy waters of the Gulf, and how’s that for a Metaphor of Our Times?

Aboard a Delta Airbus at 37,000 feet maneuvering around giant thunderheads, connected to the Internet via satellite, looking at dark gloop a mile below the sea, contemplating the death of a beautiful body of water, unable to think of a single sensible thing to do or say about this that would make a milligram of difference, and yet here I sit with a clear view of the situation, like a passenger in a car skidding slowly into the median....

We are self-centered, short-sighted people, intent on comfort, averse to sacrifice. We know this. Knowing it does not empower us to change....

If man is pushing the planet toward extinction, then we should stop doing what we’re doing, and if we cannot stop ourselves or tolerate government making us stop or slow down, then I suppose we should enjoy the ride. The condemned man ate a hearty breakfast.

I can’t think of anything better to do right now than to sit in my backyard and look at the Mississippi and listen to Bach cello suites and enjoy a dish of ice cream with fresh raspberries.

As the Gulf turns dark and the polar ice cap melts, I intend to listen to Bach more and listen to the news less. It’s good to know that, in the midst of vast indifference and mediocrity and narcissism, mankind did manage to produce the St. Matthew Passion and the Mass in B minor.

Bin Laden on Team Jacob

2010-07-27T10:34:00.002-06:00

Vail Half

2010-07-20T21:11:00.001-06:00

Leadville Half

2010-07-05T21:37:00.001-06:00

Hilarious

2010-06-27T22:02:00.002-06:00

Mt Evans Ascent 2010

2010-06-25T17:52:00.000-06:00

Mayhem: Gotta Love It

2010-06-25T17:47:00.001-06:00

My reaction was similar, though I was home alone.

Pond Skimming 2010

2010-06-06T16:54:00.001-06:00

More GB

2010-06-04T11:26:00.000-06:00

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Glenn Beck Airs Israeli Raid Footage

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Tea Party

"the classic adventure racer"

2010-05-25T09:54:00.004-06:00

I'm not going to protest CNN's description of me. They are, after all, the most trusted name in news:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/05/25/panama.adventure.race/index.html

Here He Goes Again

2010-05-14T08:12:00.002-06:00

Krugman continues to assert that America isn't Greece and thus we should keep spending like drunken American sailors. And lo and behold, deficits are coming down:

"The U.S. economy has been growing since last summer, thanks to fiscal stimulus and expansionary policies by the Federal Reserve. I wish that growth were faster; still, it’s finally producing job gains — and it’s also showing up in revenues. Right now we’re on track to match Congressional Budget Office projections of a substantial rise in tax receipts. Put those projections together with the Obama administration’s policies, and they imply a sharp fall in the budget deficit over the next few years."

So thanks to Obama, deficits are falling sharply. That's what the reader will take away. However, a quick view of the charts from the CBO (see above) shows deficits falling to a de minimus $800 billion. So what's there to worry about? And the fact that deficits are then going to head up again? That's really not important- all you need to know is that thanks to Obama, deficits are going down.

And here's some great demagoguery for you:

"It’s an ill wind that blows nobody good, and the crisis in Greece is making some people — people who opposed health care reform and are itching for an excuse to dismantle Social Security — very, very happy."

So apparently Greece is making people "very, very happy" as they can further their Dr. Evil plans to dismantle Social Security. What a joke. Name a politician who has suggested such a thing. Think hard. In fact, the opposite is true, which is why Social Security is called the 3rd rail in American politics. A tiny handful suggest cutting benefits minimally, and of course it never gets close to getting done, which is why it's headed towards insolvency. Krugman's delusion is breathtaking. Why do people take this guy seriously?

A Few Good Bankers

2010-04-28T20:24:00.000-06:00

"You want the truth? You can't handle the truth. Son, we live in a country with an investment gap. And that gap needs to be filled by men with money. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Middle Class Consumer? Goldman Sachs has a greater responsibility than you can possibly fathom. You weep for Lehman and you curse derivatives. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what we know: that Lehman's death, while tragic, probably saved the financial system. And that Goldman's existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves pension funds. You don't want the truth. Because deep down, in places you don't talk about at parties, you want us to fill that investment gap. You need us to fill that gap. We use words like credit default swaps, collateralized debt obligation, and securitization? We use these words as the backbone of a life spent investing in something. You use 'em as a punchline. We have neither the time nor the inclination to explain ourselves to a commoner who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very credit we provide, and then questions the manner in which we provide it! We'd rather you just said thank you and paid your taxes on time. Otherwise, we suggest you get an account and start trading. Either way, we don't give a damn what you think you're entitled to!"

Panama Day #3

2010-04-26T08:48:00.000-06:00

Panama Day #2

2010-04-22T22:09:00.001-06:00

Day #1 in Panama: 18k

2010-04-21T08:07:00.001-06:00

Skinner Hut Trip

2010-04-11T21:13:00.001-06:00

Tuesdays with Ferris

2010-04-06T22:32:00.001-06:00

Through the Trees. And sometimes into them.

2010-03-30T20:53:00.000-06:00

Here We Go

2010-03-22T08:11:00.001-06:00

From Bloomberg:

Obama Pays More Than Buffett as U.S. Risks AAA Rating

March 22 (Bloomberg) -- The bond market is saying that it’s safer to lend to Warren Buffett than Barack Obama.

Two-year notes sold by the billionaire’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. in February yield 3.5 basis points less than Treasuries of similar maturity, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Procter & Gamble Co., Johnson & Johnson and Lowe’s Cos. debt also traded at lower yields in recent weeks, a situation former Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. chief fixed-income strategist Jack Malvey calls an “exceedingly rare” event in the history of the bond market.

The $2.59 trillion of Treasury Department sales since the start of 2009 have created a glut as the budget deficit swelled to a post-World War II-record 10 percent of the economy and raised concerns whether the U.S. deserves its AAA credit rating. The increased borrowing may also undermine the first-quarter rally in Treasuries as the economy improves.

“It’s a slap upside the head of the government,” said Mitchell Stapley, the chief fixed-income officer in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at Fifth Third Asset Management, which oversees $22 billion. “It could be the moment where hopefully you realize that risk is beginning to creep into your credit profile and the costs associated with that can be pretty scary.”

Moody’s Warning

While Treasuries backed by the full faith and credit of the government typically yield less than corporate debt, the relationship has flipped as Moody’s Investors Service predicts the U.S. will spend more on debt service as a percentage of revenue this year than any other top-rated country except the U.K. America will use about 7 percent of taxes for debt payments in 2010 and almost 11 percent in 2013, moving “substantially” closer to losing its AAA rating, Moody’s said last week.

Moab Half Marathon

2010-03-22T08:09:00.000-06:00

Pelosi is no Zoolander

2010-03-08T20:35:00.001-07:00

Cheerleading our way to Ruin

2010-02-16T10:44:00.003-07:00

Krugman is at it again. See if you can follow this reasoning from his latest column:

"Lately, financial news has been dominated by reports from Greece and other nations on the European periphery. And rightly so.

But I’ve been troubled by reporting that focuses almost exclusively on European debts and deficits, conveying the impression that it’s all about government profligacy — and feeding into the narrative of our own deficit hawks, who want to slash spending even in the face of mass unemployment, and hold Greece up as an object lesson of what will happen if we don’t.

For the truth is that lack of fiscal discipline isn’t the whole, or even the main, source of Europe’s troubles — not even in Greece, whose government was indeed irresponsible (and hid its irresponsibility with creative accounting).

No, the real story behind the euromess lies not in the profligacy of politicians but in the arrogance of elites — specifically, the policy elites who pushed Europe into adopting a single currency well before the continent was ready for such an experiment.....

......But Spain isn’t an American state, and as a result it’s in deep trouble. Greece, of course, is in even deeper trouble, because the Greeks, unlike the Spaniards, actually were fiscally irresponsible. Greece, however, has a small economy, whose troubles matter mainly because they’re spilling over to much bigger economies, like Spain’s. So the inflexibility of the euro, not deficit spending, lies at the heart of the crisis.

None of this should come as a big surprise. Long before the euro came into being, economists warned that Europe wasn’t ready for a single currency. But these warnings were ignored, and the crisis came."

He's basically saying that we shouldn't worry about our massive deficits because the problem we see in Greece is the adoption of the Euro, not their ruinous deficit spending. Am I taking crazy pills here? Greece has a massive problem because of its ruinous deficits, as it would with or without the Euro. Yes, they can't devalue their currency like a country with its own currency can- but who cares? It's bad news when a country has to devalue. So the Greeks have one less option when they find themselves in an economic crisis. But the root of the crisis is the deficit spending (not the currency), which absolutely should be an object lesson for other countries, even if there are differences among individual countries (investors will likely allow the US Treasury to get into more debt relative to GDP than Greece). Krugman is so disingenuous it's sickening, cheerleading our journey to fiscal ruin.

Mt Taylor Quad

2010-02-14T20:39:00.001-07:00

Colbert on Palin

2010-02-11T14:41:00.001-07:00

The Colbert Report

Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Sarah Palin Uses a Hand-O-Prompter

www.colbertnation.com

Skate Expectations

So, so good

2010-02-06T08:13:00.001-07:00

The Gifts that Keep on Giving

2010-01-28T21:59:00.001-07:00

Glenn Beck reads his journal entry on Sarah Palin to Sarah Palin. Can't make this stuff up.

A Pact with the Devil

2010-01-13T21:31:00.003-07:00

This is so outrageous there are almost no words.

Food for thought: was it any less outrageous when men said similar things thousands of years ago and these stories made it into the Bible?

An Incredibly Over-Simplistic Nostalgia

2010-01-06T20:05:00.001-07:00

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Even Better Than the Real Thing

Jon Stewart in Fine Form

2010-01-06T20:04:00.000-07:00

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

The Temple of Hume

More Crying

2009-12-30T19:24:00.003-07:00

This is really unbelievable. I saw this on the plane going back to Seattle. Glenn Beck started to cry about.......John Huntsman. Really? Really. 1:17-1:30

Snowshoeing to Eiseman Hut

2009-12-21T07:58:00.001-07:00

Gaga. So Hot Right Now. Gaga.

2009-12-17T15:56:00.003-07:00

I was telling KT about the "future of fashion", to steal a phrase from Zoolander. It's Lady Gaga. And she comes straight from the mold of Derek Z, Hansel, and Mugatu (who presides over this blog) and all those ridiculously good looking people. Except she's for real. Check out the above pic, when she met the queen. People, that's for real. Her latest music video is hilarious. I can't decide what's better: all the women in white leotards, high boots, and crowns doing their ridiculous dance- or the dude with the golden jaw. Enjoy.

Conan Recognizes Greatness

2009-12-15T13:42:00.002-07:00

I just saw the documentary about it at the Denver Starz Film Festival. Here's the trailer:

It's Just a Joke. Until it Isn't.

2009-12-14T20:47:00.004-07:00

It seems I receive a lot of emails forwarded from well meaning parties. Usually they are silly religious anecdotes of dubious origin meant to inspire. Tonight I received an email that clearly was meant in that same spirit. I read it once, then read it again. And once more. The more I read it, the more crazy it got. The narrative consisted of a heroic, God-fearing veteran who assaults a professor, who is an atheist (and for good measure, a member of the ACLU). Naturally, I forwarded this on to a colleague, who was entertained but more interested in why the ACLU bit was thrown in to the story. Here's the email I received, my colleague's response, and my response to her:

GOD Is Busy

If you don't know GOD, don't make stupid remarks!!!!!!

A United States Marine was attending some college
courses between assignments. He had completed missions
in Iraq and Afghanistan. One of the courses had a professor
who was an avowed atheist, and a member of the ACLU.

One day the professor shocked the class when he came in.
He looked to the ceiling and flatly stated, "GOD!! if you are real
then I want you to knock me off this platform. I'll give you exactly
15 min." The lecture room fell silent. You could hear a pin drop.
Ten minutes went by and the professor proclaimed, "Here I am
GOD, I'm still waiting."

It got down to the last couple of minutes when the Marine got
out of his chair, went up to the professor, and cold-cocked him;
knocking him off the platform. The professor was out cold.
The Marine went back to his seat and sat there, silently.

The other students were shocked and stunned, and sat there
looking on in silence. The professor eventually came to,
noticeably shaken, looked at the Marine and asked, 'What
in the world is the matter with you? 'Why did you do that?'
The Marine calmly replied, "GOD was too busy today protecting
American soldiers who are protecting your right to say stupid
stuff and act like an idiot. So He sent me."

The classroom erupted in cheers!

THIS IS GOOD, KEEP IT GOING
AMEN!!

My colleague's response:
"what does being a member of the ACLU have to do with anything?!"

My response to her:
"Nothing. Of course. It just makes the act of violence committed against him more justified in the eyes of the religious right. We wouldn't want this to be the parable of an unjustified assault. But an atheist and an ACLU member clearly deserves harm. And so, forget all that Jesus non-violence stuff. Go clobber him."

In the eyes of some in the religious right, members of the ACLU and atheists are villains who presumably deserve this kind of treatment from God's people. Obviously this is a fictional anecdote and none of the recipients of the email would actually openly advocate assaulting an atheist. But deep down, there's a kernel of sympathy for anyone who wants to slug an atheist or ACLU member, who are recurring villains in these types of emails. That's why the emails keep getting forwarded.

Isn't it un-American to assault others based on who they are and what they believe? Taken to it's logical and fanatical end, this mentality is a powerful rationalization that leads good people to do bad things. It's not hard to think of examples.

The Latest OGH Sensation

2009-12-09T23:10:00.002-07:00

Eight Days of Hanukkah from Tablet Magazine on Vimeo.

You can't make this stuff up. From the NYT:

A Senator’s Gift to the Jews, Nonreturnable

The canon of Hanukkah songs written by Mormon senators from Utah just got a little bigger.

Senator Orrin G. Hatch, a solemn-faced Republican with a soft spot for Jews and a love of Barbra Streisand, has penned a catchy holiday tune, “Eight Days of Hanukkah.”

In short, he loves the Jews. And based on an early sampling of listeners, the feeling could be mutual.

“Watching Orrin Hatch in the studio, I said to myself that nothing this great will ever happen to me again,” said Alana Newhouse, the editor-in-chief of Tablet.

At one point, Mr. Hatch unbuttons his white dress shirt to expose the golden mezuzah necklace he wears every day. Mezuzahs also adorn the doorways of his homes in Washington and Utah. Mr. Hatch keeps a Torah in his Senate office.

“Not a real Torah, but sort of a mock Torah,” he said. “I feel sorry I’m not Jewish sometimes.”

Refi Madness

2009-12-03T21:06:00.004-07:00

This afternoon I spontaneously refinanced my mortgage. 4.375%. Really. That's not a typo. Only $1,200 in closing costs. You can be sure I'll never make another prepayment. BofA offered it to me under this government program: http://makinghomeaffordable.gov/

For the life of me I can't understand investors and institutions that will to lend (or invest) for the long term at these low rates. The long bond (30 yrs) is yielding under 5%! That's completely insane given higher inflation and interest rates that are surely coming in future years as we fulfill Paul Krugman's dreams of fiscal recklessness.

Daily Show Goes Rogue

2009-11-19T11:49:00.001-07:00

Excitement Over Sarah Palin's Book Release

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

The New Palin

2009-11-16T14:29:00.003-07:00

This beauty queen is the new hero of social conservatives. Watch the train wreck. Oh by the way, Palin is "brilliant".

Oh Hannity

2009-11-16T14:28:00.001-07:00

Sean Hannity Uses Glenn Beck's Protest Footage

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c