russell

by russell hey, what the hell, i'll go there. i'm not, remotely, surprised by the verdict.  i'm also not particularly sure it should have gone any other way.  murder, of whatever degree, is a heavy charge, and really deserves ironclad proof.   when the evidence is one person's word against another's, and the other guy … Read more

by russell From the dreaded public media organ of the socialist nanny state: a modest proposal here is what I like about it: it's simple it allocates social costs to the folks who generate them it raises revenue (yes, it is of course a tax) it employs a power (the power to tax) that is … Read more

by russell Human genes cannot be patented say the Supremes. Unanimously. OK, so maybe we're not totally screwed. That is all.

by russell Today is Veterans Day, when we remember everyone who has served in the US armed forces.  It's distinct from Memorial Day, when we remember everyone killed while in service; on Veterans Day we remember the living, as well as the dead. Veterans Day began, way back when, as an observance of the end … Read more

by russell This is a short and sweet post, mostly just in the interest of putting something out there for discussion.  My personal stance on the topic will most likely be obvious, and so likely requires little elaboration. So, here ya go. The "ownership society" was a common slogan during the Bush years.  But, somehow, … Read more

via russell, but by ugh ObWi regular and good buddy ugh posted this over on TiO.  I thought it was quite good – thoughtful, relevant, important topic.  I asked him if it was OK if I cross-posted it for him here.  He was cool with that, so here ya go.  NB: the "I" from here … Read more

by russell I was interested in finding out about student loan debt in the US.  It's huge now, larger than credit card debt.  Lots of young folks are starting out their professional lives tens (or more) of thousands of dollars in the hole. Yikes. While looking around on that topic, I ran across this bit … Read more

Pennsylvania Act 13 rewrites much of the PA Oil and Gas Act of 1984.  It is almost entirely addressed to natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale areas found within PA.  Among its provisions: Establish and/or strengthen environmental protections around well sites Require natural gas drilling companies to register the chemicals they use in their … Read more

by russell Today, we celebrate the birthday of Martin Luther King.  Some folks do so enthusiastically, some less so.  Some not at all. It's been almost 45 years since the man was shot dead in Memphis.  How far have we come? about 40% of the US prison population are black men two-thirds of black kids … Read more

by russell This is a post with two motivations.  The first is to ask a question that has been baffling me since the start of the Republican debates and primaries: why can't Jon Huntsman get any traction? The second motivation is to lay out some bait for OC to jump in and give us his … Read more

by russell This had me in stitches.  Then, I was profoundly depressed for a couple of minutes.  Then, I scratched my head for about a half hour.  Then, I laughed some more. My favorite bit: Cooperman, 68, said in an interview that he can’t walk through the dining room of St. Andrews Country Club in Boca Raton, … Read more

by russell OK, so the Iraq War is now officially over.  They've lowered the flag, the last combat troops crossed the border today at 4:27 UTC.  I think the big — bigger than Vatican City — embassy is still there and open for business, so I'm sure there are still some Americans there with guns, … Read more

by russell So, this proposal has been making the rounds on Facebook.  It consists of three parts: Firmly establish that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights. Guarantee the right to vote and to participate, and to have our vote and participation count. Protect local communities, … Read more

by russell let me live it as a blonde! Or, at least, as a Swede. Worth a read, it’s quite short.  If you don’t have time, I’ll boil it down: Americans have no clue about the level of wealth inequality in the US To the degree that they have druthers on the topic, what they’d … Read more

by russell OK, here is some food for thought. My personal take on this: folks who are, say, younger than forty should not plan on living as well as their folks did. Sorry about that kids. Likewise, folks who are, say, fifty and over, and who got hit with big losses over the last couple … Read more

by russell OK, so not enough politics here lately.  Allow me to jump in. As of close of business today we are, as a nation, what, seven days away from default?  And no deal.  No significant movement toward a deal.  Nada.  I'd say the odds are something like even that we'll get to August 2 … Read more

by russell As we all know, the debt load carried by the federal government is a topic of great concern.  It's currently in the historically nosebleed territory of 100% of GDP. I thought I was kinda concerned about that until I ran across this, and in particular this graph: Federal debt is that green series.  … Read more

by russell From today's Globe, more doctors gravitate toward boutique practice.  The nitty gritty at a glance: six doctors in MA will be converting to a concierge practice this year "concierge practice" means unlimited access to the doctor for an $1,800 rider above your insurance coverage two of the doctors profile will be reducing their … Read more

by russell It is, by now, a familiar story.  Successful company in a developed country, making money and with a strong brand, wants to improve the bottom line, so it outsources labor overseas where costs of production – notably labor costs – are lower. Lower labor costs come along with crappy conditions and generally poor … Read more

by russell OK, short and sweet for Friday.  What do you think?  Will they shut it down? My money says they won't actually want to shut it down, but they'll fail to make a deal happen due to sheer spleen and inertia. What a mess.

by russell Congressional Republicans released their budget proposal today.  Called the "Roadmap for America's Future", the proposal builds on ideas proposed by Paul Ryan, and seeks to reduce or eliminate deficit spending by making large cuts in the federal budget. Among the changes proposed are replacing the current single-payer model for Medicaid with one where … Read more

by russell I offer this without much comment, because I'm not sure there's all that much to say. The top executives of Transocean Ltd. were awarded bonuses this year.  The bonuses included safety bonuses for, as the company put it in it's regulatory filing, "significantly improving the company's safety record". You will, of course, remember … Read more

by russell Folks with a federalist bent often refer to the various states as the "laboratories of democracy".  Let policy initiatives begin at a local or state level, where the issues are often more tangible to folks, and where the costs and risks are lower.  As thing get sorted out there, the best of breed … Read more

by russell Tomorrow, March 25, marks the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire. In brief: Triangle Shirtwaist was a garment shop that occupied the 8th, 9th, and 10th floors of a building just off Washington Square in NYC’s Greenwich Village. It employed primarily immigrant women in their late teens and early twenties. On … Read more

by russell So said Tip O'Neill lo these many years ago, and it still is so.  Politics is about public life, which is lived by specific, concrete people, in specific, concrete places, at specific, concrete times. So, a quick note from the town where I live, a few miles up the coast from Boston.  The topic … Read more

by russell So, I listened to the State Of The Union speech last Tuesday on my way home from an early gig.  It was a good speech, full of grand 30,000 foot ideas for Moving The Nation Forward, delivered in the optimistic, avuncular style that Obama is so good at. Here are a number of … Read more

by russell I have two political heroes:  Lincoln is one, the other is Martin Luther King. Through pure persuasion, without acrimony or hate, and by appealing to the best nature of his adversaries, he made the lives of millions of people better.  By placing his own life and body, and the lives and bodies of … Read more

by russell On November 30, 2010, bill S-510 passed the Senate on a sort-of bipartisan vote, by which I mean "some Republicans voted for it".  The bill actually resulted in revenue being raised, and so could not Constitutionally actually originate in the Senate (oops!), so after passage S-510 morphed into the previously-passed H.R. 2751, with the changes to the House … Read more

by russell "E pluribus unum", of course, being the motto on the obverse side of the Great Seal of the United States.  It's written on the swirly banner flying over the eagle's head.  The reverse side, of course, has that weird spooky pyramid with the radiant eyeball on top and those other cryptic Latin mottoes. … Read more

by russell OK, looks like this is how it's going to play out: Bush-era cuts extended across the board for two years Unemployment benefits extended for 13 months Swapping 2% off of FICA for the "making work pay" tax rebate Reinstating inheritance tax as planned, but hold to 35% on estates over $5M Extending the Bush-era cuts on … Read more

Gary mentioned there had been no open thread for over a week.  That's just wrong. We got your open thread right here. News in my world includes the amazing fecundity of my nieces (yay babies!), I still have a job (yay software!), and I'm almost done raking the yard (no yay). Spent last evening in … Read more