metapunditedgy's Journal - Democratic Underground http://www.democraticunderground.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:34:08 Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:34:08 "You can build a mosque at ground zero when we can build a synagogue in Mecca." Protest sign shown on the front page of CNN. So much stupidity compressed into one little space.

Who is "we"? Americans? Christians? Jews?

Is the WTC cite really the equivalent of "Mecca" for "us?" Does our religion center around the financial center of New York City?

Is our religion o... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/40 Sun, 22 Aug 2010 17:05:32 Ok, Obama. Main Street or Wall Street, which will it be? According to this article, Obama's "pay czar" Feinberg, who was also tapped to manage the BP fund, has decided not to press the issue on recouping executive bonuses at bailed-out institutions.

http://www.ohio.com/news/nation/99160424.html

The article is a bucket full of WTF, with choice bits l... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/39 Sun, 25 Jul 2010 01:41:53 Do you agree with this statement from the SEC, about the Goldman settlement? From the SEC PR:

Robert Khuzami, Director of the SEC's Division of Enforcement [said,] "This settlement is a stark lesson to Wall Street firms that no product is too complex, and no investor too sophisticated, to avoid a heavy price if a firm violates the fundamental principles of honest treatmen... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/38 Thu, 15 Jul 2010 23:50:23 Toward a "realistic" approach to British Petroleum... In light of the publicity surrounding recent unpleasant events, the titans of industry who drive the economic dynamo that is British Petroleum should take a long, introspective look at how they could better serve the interests of the public and their shareholders.

While the bully pulpit simply *c... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/37 Tue, 13 Jul 2010 00:26:10 Fighting the professional sports monopolists: Hot Dog Eating Champ Arrested Takeru Kobayashi was arrested at Coney Island after his rival, Joey Chestnut, won the annual Nathan's International Hot Dog Eating Contest.

The six-time champion of the contest was trying to make his way on stage after this year's event, according to a representative for Kobayashi and a New York ... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/35 Sun, 04 Jul 2010 18:19:54 Let's put this "temper tantrum" talking point to bed. Very few people actually want Obama to scream and fuss about BP. (At least very few of his serious supporters do.)

On the other hand, I (and I think many others) *would* like to see Obama using this unprecedented disaster to push home:

1) Corporate accountability. Corporate negligence will r... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/34 Sat, 05 Jun 2010 02:10:13 When will Obama use the bully pulpit to call for just treatment of the BP execs who caused the massive environmental disaster through their greed and negligence?

When will he use this golden opportunity to set America firmly and permanently on the path to energy independence? (The drilling moratorium is a nice, small, temporary start, IMO.)... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/33 Fri, 28 May 2010 22:53:31 Is health care a privilege, a right, or a responsibility? McCain:
I think it’s a responsibility, in this respect, in that we should have available and affordable health care to every American citizen, to every family member. … But government mandates I — I’m always a little nervous about. But it is certainly my responsibility.


Obama:
I think it shou... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/32 Sat, 13 Mar 2010 01:35:41 We are wasting political time, energy, and resources. We're playing football, but the wealthy and powerful are playing chess. We focus on stopping Sarah Palin or Mitt Romney (who are stylishly-shaped and empty, like footballs) from getting to the end zone while the rest of the opposition runs right by us.

During the HCR debacle, we found out who *r... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/31 Sat, 09 Jan 2010 13:30:27 Here's a bite of reality for Ayn Rand-ites and trolls Look, we agree that talented, productive people are important to a society. They should be encouraged, and hopefully they're human enough to work for society's good.

Beyond that, many of you are insane. Who are your heroes? The "titans of industry?" You think that CEOs are really so much more... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/30 Sat, 12 Sep 2009 11:07:22 Losers say it's "unfair" to place the well-being of people over corporations! From a CNN article today:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/09/11/health.care/index.html
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"Some more conservative-leaning Democrats also express concerns that it could be too much government involvement and could put private insurers out of business through unfair competition."
-----... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/29 Fri, 11 Sep 2009 16:53:21 Cerberus Capital Management: no bark, no bite Remember Cerberus Capital, the investment firm heavy with GOP insiders (e.g., Snow, Quayle) at the top?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerberus_Capital_Management

Apparently GOP political influence wasn't enough to make big money. I wonder who the big investors were?

Via Zero Hedge and WSJ:
... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/28 Sat, 29 Aug 2009 14:00:56 Pequot Capital -- 44 referrals to SEC from watchdogs. Aug. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Pequot Capital Management Inc., once the world’s biggest hedge-fund manager, was cited in at least 44 private reports from exchange watchdogs in the past four years alerting U.S. regulators to potential insider trading, market manipulation or other misconduct, government docum... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/27 Tue, 11 Aug 2009 22:22:18 Pied Piper of the Clown Troupe Years ago, during the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal, Rush Limbaugh was in the forefront of those criticizing Clinton because -- he said then -- honesty and integrity, even in small matters, were essential for the effective functioning of such a high political office.

This week, while the press was exp... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/26 Sat, 27 Jun 2009 12:19:06 Rebranding effort needed The more I think about the corporatist suggestion to "save $2 Trillion" by cutting health care costs (read: cutting benefits), the more outraged I become. Enough of this insanity. I think we've reached a critical mass where enough people see through this bullshit to make some changes.

From here... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/25 Sun, 10 May 2009 20:57:29 Why all the rage against Colin Powell? Yet more attacks on Colin Powell from the Cheney/Limbaugh wing of the GOP (via CNN: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/05/10/cheney-powell-no-longer-a-republican/).

[i]"My take on it was Colin had already left the party," Cheney said. "I didn't know he was still a Republican."

The form... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/24 Sun, 10 May 2009 14:10:42 Sometimes irony is _not_ delicious. Now that Rush Limbaugh and Michael Steele are having a public feud (they'll kiss and make up before the next election, of course), one wonders...

Remember when Rush said that Colin Powell's endorsement of Obama was [link:metapunditedgytheanticlown.blogspot.com/2008/10/racism-tinged-debate-over-co... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/23 Mon, 02 Mar 2009 23:41:54 The "Old Testament" on the foundation of human rights In <http://metapunditedgytheanticlown.blogspot.com/2009/02/are-foreigners-less-human-than-i-am.html>, I rattled on about a disturbing political trend of valuing the lives (or well-being) of foreigners as less important than our own.

Now let's talk about religion. It's not surprising that religiou... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/22 Fri, 20 Feb 2009 00:32:58 A new wrinkle in money market fund implosions. Did you know that your fund managers may withhold your own invested money to pay for their legal bills if you try to sue them for mis-managing your money?

The Bent family, which runs The Reserve, is being sued by investors and is also being investigated by the SEC. In response, The Reserve has said that they... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/21 Thu, 25 Dec 2008 01:16:49 Good Riddance to the Machiavellian "Bush Doctrine" Thinking lately (prompted by recent news) about what's at stake in this election...

The "Bush Doctrine" essentially asserts (in its various forms) that America has the right to attack another country if it thinks that country is harboring a threat to the USA. Recently, troubling news stories (bar... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/20 Sun, 02 Nov 2008 17:20:00 Was "Country First" intended for a McCain/Lieberman campaign? From Politico's Playbook for October 26th: [i]Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), top McCain adviser, on why he would have preferred Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) for V.P.: "I was pushing Joe because it would transcend politics as we know it -- two people who put country ahead of party."[/i]

Hmm, int... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/19 Sun, 26 Oct 2008 10:56:55 Better questions to ask evanglicals (& Palin) running for office Frankly, I think the recent NYT article questioning Palin's religious views has a lot of speculation and not much detail. I think there are much better questions to ask about her religious background/views, and even if she is a regular ol' evangelical, I think her answers would raise eyebrows. (I ... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/18 Sat, 25 Oct 2008 22:29:34 Shocking realization: "Country First" is a lousy slogan... (I haven't told anyone until now because I didn't want them to change it.)

When they start up the McCain campaign machinery for another run in 2016, they may want to reconsider it though. Here's a few reasons why.

1) Your campaign slogan should not evoke nationalism. Lots of people associate i... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/17 Wed, 22 Oct 2008 22:10:43 Dissecting Comments Attributed to Rush Limbaugh Drudge kicked off the "race-based endorsement" meme this morning with the bold headline "Powell for Obama: It's Not About Race." Drudge is obviously asking, "Was it about race?" And according to a story posted on Politico today, Rush Limbaugh has directly dismissed Colin Powell's endorsement of Obam... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/15 Sun, 19 Oct 2008 15:28:25 What Warren Buffett Didn't Say In the New York Times, Warren Buffett says he's buying American stocks, and he urges others to do the same. His argument for this recommendation is rather vague, saying that over time, stocks will go up, and the time to buy is when everyone is afraid. (Frankly, I think everyone has been afraid for s... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/metapunditedgy/14 Sat, 18 Oct 2008 15:42:20