I can't believe I missed such a ripe opportunity.
Included in the Healthcare Reform Bill is a new tax on indoor tanning salons. Do you think that's an attempt by evil Democrats to make John Boehner pay for the whole thing himself?
Mar 28, 2010
Mar 27, 2010
Mar 26, 2010
False Equivalence
After several incidents of vandalism, and some spitting and verbal attacks, etc (all of which I think were intended as open threats of real violence even if the actions weren't intentionally incited by Repub rhetoric), our own Eric Cantor went to the press with 'news' that his office had also been 'attacked', so of course, it's all even and nobody should blame the Repubs for fomenting violent actions against their political opponents.
Let's take a little gander at what the Richmond Police Dept posted on their website about this 'attack':
The Richmond Police Department is investigating an act of vandalism at the Reagan Building, 25 E. Main St., Richmond, Virginia. A first floor window was struck by a bullet at approximately 1 a.m. on Tuesday, March 23. The building, which has several tenants including an office used by Congressman Eric Cantor, was unoccupied at the time.
A Richmond Police detective was assigned to the case. A preliminary investigation shows that a bullet was fired into the air and struck the window in a downward direction, landing on the floor about a foot from the window. The round struck with enough force to break the windowpane but did not penetrate the window blinds. There was no other damage to the room, which is used occasionally for meetings by the congressman.
The Richmond Police Department is sharing information about the incident with appropriate law enforcement agencies.
At this time there are no suspects.
Posted by RPD at 12:21 PM
According to James (804-646-0607), a Media Relations guy at The Richmond Police Dept, investigators now believe the damage to the building was due to "random gunfire".
There was no attack.
I've had a lot of difficulty tracking down the building's management, who owns it, etc. It does appear to be a very modest place in the general vicinity of downtown Richmond. The building's tenants include a political consulting firm (Marcus & Allen), and a direct mail operation (Creative Direct, LLC, owned by Marcus & Allen). It's probable that Cantor maintains some kind of 'presence' in that space (most likely as a client), but it's certainly not where Mr Cantor hangs out, since his Richmond office is actually several miles to the northwest of where the incident took place.
A couple of guesses:
1) The Marcus & Allen bunch is part of the Old Boy Network; providing operatives and support services to the Repub machinery, while getting some nice paychecks courtesy of the rubes out there sending in their nickels and dimes.
2) They saw a decent opportunity to offset some of the PR damage the Repubs were taking because of their wingnuts by portraying a mere coincidence as an equivalency.
Just sayin'
Awakening
I guess the pendulum swings. I bailed on the Dems in the late 70's because they were veering too sharply left. I split from the Repubs in the late 80's because they were lurching badly to the right.
Here's a look at the continuing erosion in the numbers of Likely Voters who are willing to self-describe as Repub.
I suspect there are many reasons, but I think it has an awful lot to do with the Drama Queen rhetoric that Repubs seem totally enthralled with. People are starting to get hip to their tricks.
One small point: the upturn for the Dems doesn't equal the downturn for the Repubs; and since there's also a bit of a dip in Independent totals, I think it means some people are just walking away from the Repubs. Short-term, it should mean Repubs get spanked on Election Day, but longer-term, if the Dems can't attract significant numbers of disaffected Repubs, then Repubs can regroup and come back once they get their shit together (aka: getting your wingnuts under control).
Here's a look at the continuing erosion in the numbers of Likely Voters who are willing to self-describe as Repub.
I suspect there are many reasons, but I think it has an awful lot to do with the Drama Queen rhetoric that Repubs seem totally enthralled with. People are starting to get hip to their tricks.
One small point: the upturn for the Dems doesn't equal the downturn for the Repubs; and since there's also a bit of a dip in Independent totals, I think it means some people are just walking away from the Repubs. Short-term, it should mean Repubs get spanked on Election Day, but longer-term, if the Dems can't attract significant numbers of disaffected Repubs, then Repubs can regroup and come back once they get their shit together (aka: getting your wingnuts under control).
Mar 25, 2010
From Society of HR Mgmt
It's a mixed bag - lots of gloom and doom from the usual Repub suspects, and lots of wait-n-see from the analysts, and lots of No-Really-It's-Gonna-Work-We'll-Fix-It-Later from the Dems.
Employer Mandate?
Go Sit In The Corner
Repubs like to declare loudly and often that they're the party with all the respect for the US Military. They're the ones who "listen to the commanders on the ground". They have a respect for the uniform that Dems just don't get.
With a few simple words — "I would have to object" — Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina derailed a Senate Armed Services hearing today in which generals had traveled from Korea and Hawaii to testify about the Pentagon's needs for the next year.
Repubs also have a tendency to claim they have a better understanding of (and a greater aversion to) "government waste". Does it just not occur to these knuckleheads that scheduling a meeting that requires 3 FLAG OFFICERS to come in from Nebraska and Hawaii and Korea, and then canceling it without hearing from the Brass Hats - that this is practically the definition of government waste!?!
What's more troubling is that this is a continuing pattern, so I've suspected for a while that they do some of these things on purpose. They thwart certain efforts that should make things work a little more smoothly, and then down the road somewhere, they point back to the mess they helped to create, and they say, "See? I told ya - it's all fucked up." And, "I guess I'd better stay on a while and try to protect ya'll from that bad ol' gummint."
These people have no soul and no honor.
With a few simple words — "I would have to object" — Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina derailed a Senate Armed Services hearing today in which generals had traveled from Korea and Hawaii to testify about the Pentagon's needs for the next year.
Repubs also have a tendency to claim they have a better understanding of (and a greater aversion to) "government waste". Does it just not occur to these knuckleheads that scheduling a meeting that requires 3 FLAG OFFICERS to come in from Nebraska and Hawaii and Korea, and then canceling it without hearing from the Brass Hats - that this is practically the definition of government waste!?!
What's more troubling is that this is a continuing pattern, so I've suspected for a while that they do some of these things on purpose. They thwart certain efforts that should make things work a little more smoothly, and then down the road somewhere, they point back to the mess they helped to create, and they say, "See? I told ya - it's all fucked up." And, "I guess I'd better stay on a while and try to protect ya'll from that bad ol' gummint."
These people have no soul and no honor.
Today's Quote
"Some of my libertarian friends balk at what looks like an individual mandate. But remember, someone has to pay for the health care that must, by law, be provided: Either the individual pays or the taxpayers pay. A free ride on government is not libertarian," - Mitt Romney, April 11, 2006. (hat tip to Sully)
Mar 24, 2010
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)