Sen. Vitter (R-Diaperville)

With apologies to the Bad River Band. Apparently Sonia Sotomayor is too tough on the johns & goes easy on the sex workers. Vitter deserves the dust bin of history with no toilet paper.

Aw, Too Bad

I was hoping Brett Favre would return as a Viking.  & I hate the suckwad Vikings. I hoped he would come back so that he could show up the stupid, evil upper management for the Green Bay Packers. Brett Favre was the ultimate Packer (notwithstanding that he apparently is a ReThug) & deserved way better treatment from McCarty & Thompson.

Leonard Peltier

Mr. Peltier has another parole hearing coming up. Read about it here. For those of you interested in a great book that was initially banned in the good, ol' US of A, read Peter Matthiessen's great book, In the Spirit of Crazy Horse.  While this is no revelation, Mr. Matthiessen questions the matter of justice on the reservation.

Purchased Justice

Well, it looks like the Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce is getting the justice is paid for. Many of the decisions being handed down by the Ziegler/Gableman led dipshits have the effect of giving huge victories to the powerful at the expense of the normal person. The purchased elections of Ziegler/Gableman is having the effect the WMC wanted - profits are way more important than people. It will take Wisconsin a long time to recover its dignity & fairness.

Celebration & Lamentation

We are finding more new mammal species while we continue to cause mass extinctions.

Since the last summary of the world’s mammals was published in 2005, tallying the roughly 5,400 mammalian species then known, Dr. Helgen said, an astounding 400 or so new species have been added to the list. “Most people don’t realize this,” he said, “but we are smack-dab in the middle of the age of discovery for mammals.”

Yet as he and other biologists are all too aware, we are also smack-dab in the middle of a great species smack down, an age of mass extinctions for which we humans are largely to blame. Estimates of annual species loss vary widely and are merely crude guesstimates anyway, but most researchers agree that, as a result of habitat destruction, climate volatility, pesticide runoff, ocean dumping, jet-setting invasive species and other “anthropogenic” effects on the environment, the extinction rate is many times above nature’s chronic winnowing. “Our best guess is that it’s hugely above baseline, a hundred times above baseline,” said John Robinson, an executive vice president at the Wildlife Conservation Society. “The problem is, we’ve only described an estimated 15 percent of all species on Earth, so most of what’s going extinct are things we didn’t even know existed.”

NEW

Scientists recently announced the discovery of a small monkey in the Amazon.   It's a small saddleback tamarin monkey.

Completely Dead, Except For Those Living In Zoos

China’s Père David’s Deer (Elaphurus davidianus), is listed as extinct in the wild.

My emphases.

Oh-Oh

This is a little too much oink for me. Let's hope there is a vaccine by the fall. I know I'll need it. & fall is only a month away.

In a disturbing new projection, health officials say up to 40 percent of Americans could get swine flu this year and next and several hundred thousand could die without a successful vaccine campaign and other measures.

My emphasis.

Our Far Flung Correspondent Continues His Corresponding Although I'm A Bit Concerned That Wonderdog Blackie Will Not Be Attending The Picnic

I mean, what's the poor dog going to eat? Maybe Sarah will shoot a moose or something for Blackie. From the comments:

July 23 - received word that Sarah Palin will preside at some sort of picnic as Governor at the Alaska State Fairgrounds in Palmer about five miles down the road tomorrow afternoon.

Yours truly and SO will attend - Wonderdog Blackie will not be attending. We plan to assess Sarah's political situation and get some free stuff (this is a very socialist state).

Will add more tomorrow if Sarah does something interesting.

John Dawson, R.I.P.

Obit here.

Pragmatism

I have listened to this argument my entire life & I have come to despise it. It sure doesn't jibe with what we are supposed to stand for. I am also sick to death of being told how naive I am.

“This regime clearly understand that for the United States, democracy is not a priority, freedom of speech is not a priority,” Mr. Beshimov said.

So much for change we can believe in.  My emphasis.

Human Hobbies

Back yard Jupiter watching. I like the last paragraph of this story, it quotes the amateur astronomer who found the impact site.

In another interview, Mr. Wesley told the Sydney Morning Herald that spotting the impact mark on Jupiter made him glad the huge planet is in Earth’s neighborhood: “If anything like that had hit the Earth it would have been curtains for us, so we can feel very happy that Jupiter is doing its vacuum-cleaner job and hoovering up all these large pieces before they come for us.”

I appreciate the image of Jupiter as a really big vacuum cleaner. My emphasis.

Gordon Waller, R.I.P.

I'm late to this, sorry. More can be read here. The original post that I saw is here.

Peter and Gordon

This Is What Happens When You Eat Overly Processed Food & Drive

Via The Journal/Sentinel of Milwaukee, WI.

Don't Want To Be Demented? Eat Fish, But Sadly, Leave The Porterhouse Behind

Well, I just bought two pounds of tribal caught whitefish filets the other day, so it looks like I won't be demented any time soon. Hey, shut up you guys.

Oily fish are rich in omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, which some studies suggest are positively related to cognitive function in later life.

Conversely, there is a suggestion from some studies that increased meat consumption may be related to cognitive decline.

Walter Cronkite, R.I.P.

Obit here. I remember him best, of course, for his JFK assassination reporting & his finally turning on the Viet Nam war.

Bailout? How Are You Doing?

A couple of big banks are doing well, thank you taxpayers very much. Lending money to home buyers, car buyers, parents wanting to send their kids to college? Not so much. This show just what is so wrong about the American economy. All of our money spent to "save" the economy only serves to save the very people who fucked it up to begin with. This also shows what a sham our justice system has become.

Both companies continue to rely on a range of federal rescue programs to raise money from investors, a key factor in their strong results.

Yeah, right.

From The Email

It's good to have smart people putting me on their email lists. First, the chart come from RLK, late of the city council. The commentary comes from da Mayor, &, IMO, our community's greatest loss since they knocked down the Knight Hotel.

The graph you sent out hits the nail on the head and explains in clear terms why the stimulus pack age has not worked and will not work (in terms of stimulating economic growth). The real issue is not unemployment, but unemployment and lost of wages. This current economic crises has its roots in the economic shifts that took place during the last thirty years. Let me explain:

It is clear that if one were to "run the numbers", by adding the officially unemployed persons to those who had unsuccessfully attempted to get a job in the last 12 months to those that only have part-time employment status (below 40 hours per week) , the true measure of unemployment is closer to 17%, not 9.10% as reported by the BLS in June. But there is an over-emphasis, in my opinion, by this current administration on unemployment.

The unemployment figures (whether you use BLS numbers or Real Unemployment as calculated above) only show a small picture in terms how we as a nation need to address the economic crisis That is because I do not think the problem is unemployment, but rather underemployment. Consider for moment the possibility that the real unemployment rate is close to 20%. What that means then is the real employment rate is 80%. So, while life is tough for the 20%, we still have a significant number of people working and doing well financially. Therefore, as a nation we should be doing o.k. economically. If that were the case, why isn't the economy, in terms of GDP, growing? Because the 80% are NOT doing well financially. In fact, a significant number of them are underemployed - working in menial jobs, for lousy wages and even worse benefits. The underemployed coupled with the unemployed means that a significant number of Americans (about 45% to 60% in my opinion) do not have enough money to keep the economy growing. This is a critical point to understand as the underemployment problem has been vexing America for over 30 years and it has been consistently swept under the carpet. The problem is not just lack of jobs, the bigger problem, in my opinion, is the 30 year loss in real income compared to cost of living for a majority of Americans. Your graph clearly show this.

Consider, for a moment that real wages, when figured for inflation, have not risen since 1979 for the bottom 60% of Americans. That is an astounding statistic. Simultaneously, wages for America's top 1% of have increased by a whopping 23% since 1979! Working class America addressed this loss of wages in three ways:

First, in the 1970's and 1980's we, as a nation, threw all of our working age women into the economy. That bumped-up household earnings, but did not increase individual earnings. Today, as compared to the early 1970's, most working age women MUST work.

Two, we went back to school and got trained for the service economy. The mass lay-offs in the early 1980's forced a whole slug of workers back to school to get an AA or BS degree. These degrees were a base-line requirement to work in America's burgeoning service-based economy. So, we increased our education, but this strategy provided only nominal increases for the great majority of Americans. Most American got better educated only to maintain their wages, not significantly increase them over past earnings. Put another way, I made $16.34 per hour at A.O. Smith assembling automobile sub-components in 1984 as a high school graduate. My son, 25 years later makes $17.00, with an AA degree in HVAC. So, in real dollars, not figured for inflation, my son makes 0.66 cents more an hour than I did 25 years ago and he is college educated!

Third, we took out home equity loans to supplement the loss in wages and increases in cost of living that we were facing. These loans should have been used solely for home improvement purposes, but were used instead to off-set day-to-day living expenses. A significant problem is that the housing bubble has burst and left a whole lot of people with loans that are now greater than the values of their homes, couple that will declining wages, increasing health care costs, and job insecurity and we have a problem that is not directly related to unemployment.

Please do not misunderstand me here Richard, unemployment is certainly a problem. I do not want to give the impression that it is unimportant. But, unemployment exasperates the underemployment problem, in my opinion, not the other way around. My concern is an over-focus on the unemployed while we continue to ignore the bigger problem which is underemployment, loss of wages and increased cost of living. If we really want to stimulate the economy, (growth in GDP) we need to get more dollars into the hands of working people. We can do that by reversing the trend of having only the top 30% of Americans realizing wage increases. There is plenty of money. It is just currently distributed in a fashion will not stimulate economic growth. Giving more money to the rich and hoping it will stimulate economic growth (the trickle down theory) has proven false. The rich have enough and they tie-up their money in investments that will not promote the same GDP growth as putting these dollars into the hands of working people.

I do not want to sound like a conservative here, but the republicans are on to something with providing tax breaks to stimulate the economy. Unfortunately, they have the wrong execution of the right idea, as they do often. Average working class Americans need more money. period. However, providing them with a measly $600 dollar tax rebate is nowhere near enough. Remember that the average American Household is carrying over $14,000 in credit card debt alone!

That is why the $600 dollar tax rebate we got last summer did not work, people used it to pay-down debt. So, Americans will need to have at least a $14,001 dollar tax rebate to begin spending. Well, the government can’t afford that kind of rebate. Furthermore, rebates are a one-shot deal, like a bonus, they do not build enough confidence in consumers to go out and make big, long-term purchases that require a long pay-back. Working people need to make a hell of a lot more money, they need to be a hell of a lot more secure in their jobs, and they need to be a hell of a lot more secure in their health care if we are to stimulate this economy.

Sorry about the length of this e-mail but the point here is people like me, who got hung-up in the lay-offs of the early 1980’s put our wives to work, we went back to school and took out home equity loans to improve our economic condition. Now that the housing bubble has popped, the economy is feeling the effects of a 30 year down-turn in workers wages all at once. Working people have no way currently to substantially improve their income. So, you are absolutely right; the current economic crisis does have historical roots.

Hope it didn't bore you.

Bobby Jindal, NRA Tool & GOP Rising Star

Here's the first paragraph of a story about another of Jindal's veto. It's unusual in that it actually states how the Governor of LA decides what to veto. Pretty pathetic & it ought to be criminal. My emphases.

At the request of the National Rifle Association, Gov. Bobby Jindal has vetoed a bill that would have made it a crime to illegally carry firearms within 1,000 feet of a sanctioned parade or demonstration.

Impeach John Roberts

There are a host of reasons why the Chief Justice of the U.S. Court should be impeached, but his constant deference to the powerful at the expense of the weak seems enough to me. The Bu$hCo Assministration did untold damage to this country & it will take decades to rectify it. With people like Roberts in powerful positions, however, it may take even longer. Roberts' condescending attitude towards those who are not powerful is sickening.

The question of sonar’s catastrophic effects on whales even reached the Supreme Court last November, in a case pitting the United States Navy against the Natural Resources Defense Council. The council, along with other environmental groups, had secured two landmark victories in the district and appellate courts of California, which ruled to heavily restrict the Navy’s use of sonar devices in its training exercises. The Supreme Court, however, in a 6-to-3 decision widely viewed as a setback for the environmental movement, overturned parts of the lower-court rulings, faulting them for, in the words of Chief Justice John Roberts’s majority opinion, failing “properly to defer to senior Navy officers’ specific, predictive judgments,” thereby jeopardizing the safety of the fleet and sacrificing the public’s interest in military preparedness by “forcing the Navy to deploy an inadequately trained antisubmarine force.” In his decision, Roberts went on to minimize, in a fairly dismissive tone, the issue of harm to marine life: “For the plaintiffs, the most serious possible injury would be harm to an unknown number of the marine animals that they study and observe.”

What an evil blowhard.  My emphases.

Sad Story

I just learned about this today. I hope that this man & his story will be taught in the high schools of America. Everywhere but Texas, I suppose.

Lloyd Gaines was moody that winter of 1939, acting not at all like a man who had just triumphed in one of the biggest Supreme Court cases in decades. And oddly, even though it was raining and the sidewalks of Chicago were clogged with slush, he felt a need to buy postage stamps one night.

The Dirty Fucking Hippies Knew This

& we said it over & over again. We were told by the serious journalists at the serious newspapers that we were just foolish hippies who needed a bath, oh, & those among us who blogged, well, we weren't professional, therefore we weren't to be taken seriously. Dick "Dick" Cheney is an evil son-of-a-bitch who ought to be in jail for a slew of criminal acts, including this one.

The Central Intelligence Agency withheld information about a secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years on direct orders from former Vice President Dick Cheney, the agency’s director, Leon E. Panetta, has told the Senate and House intelligence committees, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said Saturday.

My emphases.

Family Values From ReThug Bobby Jindal?

I think not. I'm sure there was a lot of high-fiving going on when Jindal did this.

Gov. Bobby Jindal has rejected tax breaks for employers who hire convicted felons, for low income housing projects and for employers who let their parents take paid leave to participate in their children's school activities.

Jindal, a ReThug rising star, did approve tax breaks for -

... ports, moviemakers**, sportsmen, gun owners...-- tax breaks that will grow to $30 million in lost state revenue a year later.

You've got to take care of the yahoos who elected you, I suppose. It's a sickness with these morans. My emphases.

**In terms of Louisiana movie makers, see this from today's Picayune. If he would only have had the tax breaks last year he would be doing really well according to the screw the working class attitude of the right-wingers.

Our Far Flung Correspondent 2

From the comments:

Arrived in Alaska after a trip through Yukon Territory where we spotted a person who looked a lot like Snidley Whiplash, can't be sure though.

Wonderdog Blackie made his claim to a wide swath of the Canadian Rockies, We expect to hear from the Queen soon since she seems to think she is the owner.

Sarah does not fare well in four Alaskan papers. The Anchorage Daily News lists four other paper's editorials on Palins resignation, three are negative and one is slightly positive for a total of four including Anchorage Daily News out of five negative.

Snidely Whiplash, huh? I'd watch out around train tracks. Thanks for the update.

Sweet

My friend SENATOR Al is $96,000 better off now that the ReThug Party sent my friend SENATOR Al a check to cover legal costs. Notice how Coleman, asshat that he is, had the party pay for his tantrum. Typical.

Black Bears

No wonder I've had a bear walking up the driveway. I yelled at him, yes, I believe it was a boar. That probably led to the destruction of a few bird feeders, most were empty & a bent steel rod. Bears are smart, as evidenced by the fact that as soon as they figure out that the three barking dogs can't scale the fence, it's midnight snack time.

As I Predicted

I hate to say "I told you so." Well, actually I don't hate it, but people like Pickens don't really give a crap about the future of this country, they are only interested in the money. &, as usual, he blames the market economy, & sadly, he got that right. As long as market forces control the lives of Americans, we will continue tho experience ther decline in the quality of life, as individuals & as a country.

My Friend Senator Al

Finally.

Our Far-Flung Correspondent

From the comments:

nonheroicvet his SO and wonderdog Blackie are presently in Fort St John BC and talked to a number of Canadian people about it and the most common response was who is Sarah Palin? We will proceed to Alaska where we will try to find someone who gives a s--- about Sarah. If we do, we will relay the info.

Cool, huh, we have a far-flung correspondent. I'm not sure if this means we've hit the big time?

What Were We Fighting For?

There is no way to atone & no way to forgive. Obit here.

Dumb, Dumber, Dumbest

All wrapped up in herself, again. I wonder if John McCain has, as Ronald Reagan did, Alzheimer's disease? How else to explain his extreme blunder in picking Palin as his running mate? In their defense they did share, however, a complete lack of judgment & of course, they were completely out of step, out of touch, with the American people. Can you imagine if they had been elected?

The 4th of July

It's a good morning here, sun, not too warm. Here's a video of a song I love, although the better video has disappeared from YouTube.