Bill Jouris

by wj The anti-Trump forces have failed in their attempt to force a roll call vote on the convention rules. Featured during the attempt: the person chairing the convention up and walked off the stage for 10 minutes. Didn’t bother to try to gavel things back into order. Just left. Just caught on the radio, … Read more

by wj Bobby made a request yesterday that I think deserves a thread all to itself: Please take just one pressing social, political, or cultural issue we debate here all the time and spell out the so-called moderate position. OK, folks. The banner at the top of the page says “This is the Voice of … Read more

by wj I read something recently which noted that one of the great (and mostly unanswerable) questions for historians is: “What were they thinking?” We can make a reasonable stab at “What happened?” But “Why?” is harder. There have been a number of exchanges here lately, where one or another of us has suggested (not … Read more

by wj Just in case someone has something to say that does NOT involve the Brexit vote or the US Presidential campaign.

by wj A couple of weeks ago, there was a primary election here in California. Per California law, most of the races were what we call “top two”. That is, everybody can vote for all of the candidates, from all parties, for each office. The top two vote winners go on to the general election. … Read more

by wj And surely we need one today, even if we were managing without yesterday. Apologies that my day job distracted me from setting this up sooner.

by wj I have stumbled across a document, Report on the Economic Well-Being of US Households, which was put out by the US Federal Reserve earlier this month. A couple of things seem worth noting. First, it reports that 60% of adults report that they are either “living comfortably” or “doing okay,” compared to 65 … Read more

by wj** Today, the Supreme Court handed out three decisions. Two were unanimous — including one which upheld the way Arizona drew its current electoral districts. But the third was more interesting. Bank Markazi v. Peterson involves the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 (Bank Markazi is otherwise known as the … Read more

by wj As everybody here (at least those who live in the US) is aware, taxes are normally due on April 15. That is extended, naturally, when the 15th is not on a week day, i.e. it is on a Saturday or Sunday. But this year, April 15th is a Friday. And yet taxes are … Read more

by wj In a press conference this morning, Donald Trump announced that, upon receiving te Republican party nomination, he will be joined on the ticket by Senator Bernie Sanders. Trump cited their common views on a variety of issues. Trump declined to specify just what those common views might be, his response being “Anyone who … Read more

by wj Time for another weekend open thread. But the best I can offer is this take on the poor state of our infrastructure: From a traffic report on KCBS yesterday: “Traffic on I-880, where fuel efficiency goes to die.” It’s a highway that hasn’t expanded at all in decades. Dispite the huge growth of … Read more

by wj I have to do something to fend off my irritation (akin to the Count’s irritation with the Republicans) at seeing nothing but basketball all over my TV. So I’m looking at baseball . . . even though the season hasn’t started yet. As ever, 538 is the place to start: http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/bored-with-balance-in-baseball-2016-could-be-your-year/ Perhaps I’m … Read more

by wj A little while ago, Leonard Pitts had a column entitled If Hollywood Does Not See You — And Reflect You — Are You Really There? It was his take on the much-commented lack of minority, specifically black, actors nominated for the Oscars this year. Now certainly there is reason to wonder why Hollywood … Read more

by wj Yes, it is still way early, and the Republican convention a long time away. However, the question that is arising is whether it is still possible to stop Trump — and if so, for how much longer will this be true? Let us suppose, for the sake of discussion, that nobody actually “stops” … Read more

by wj The Iowa caucuses being past, we are now being treated to a flood of stories on What It All Means. As usual, not much really. Certainly just winning in Iowa means very little — except in cases where the winner seemed enormously unlikely. That’s why winners like Huckabee get little from it; they … Read more

by wj There has been a lot of concern expressed by (and even more attributed to) the Republican “establishment” about the impact that a Trump candidacy might have on other Republican candidates on the ballot. And, increasingly, concerns of the same kind about a Cruz candidacy. But now, the down-ballot impact concern is apparently spreading. … Read more

by wj But so soon? It appears that Senator Cruz’ campaign is gaining enough ground to worry Mr Trump. How do we tell? Because Trump has come out saying that “the party might face a legal headache if it nominates Cruz.” Specifically, ““Republicans are going to have to ask themselves the question: ‘Do we want … Read more

by wj Just in case someone wants to comment. Beyond my personal astonishment that Mr Trump’s staff didn’t try to get him at least minimally informed about how the Internet works. (Although I suppose those could have been totally off-the-cuff remarks.) Not that total ignorance appears to have slowed any of them down when proposing … Read more

by wj As we keep hearing, drone aircraft are supposed to become an Amazon delivery option. And already they are spreading to hobbyists. Unfortunately, effective controls over who flies a drone, where, and with what kinds of skill are still notable mostly by their absense. Will we have to wait for a serious accident to … Read more

by wj At the moment, there is some (OK, substantial, and rising) doubt as to whether Congress will get its act together and raise the Federal debt ceiling by the end of the month. The obvious question would be: So what? Skip over, for the moment, the obvious impact on the “full faith and credit” … Read more

wj It’s been too long since we kicked off a new Open Thread, so here we go. Since 1984, turnout in presidential elections has ranged from 49 to 57 percent of eligible adults; since 1986, turnout in midterms has ranged from 36 to 39 percent. What does that mean for US politics and policy? Basically this: … Read more

by wj Might a government shutdown be a good thing? At least relatively speaking. In the comments about Speaker Boehner’s plan to step down next month, one consistent theme has been that at least this will allow him to avert a government shutdown this week. The reason being that he won’t have to worry about … Read more

by wj “It ain’t over ’til it’s over.” And now, alas, it is. 🙁

by wj Our discussions of politics tend (perhaps understandably) to be rather US-focused. So here’s something a little different. With the election of Jeremy Corbyn as party leader, Britain’s Labour Party seems to be emulating the US’ Republican Party in stepping away from the center. How much difference will it make in the results that … Read more

by wj “‘Tis better to have lived and loafed, than never to have loafed at all.” Discuss

by wj OK, we need a new open thread. I get that. So here ya go. Once upon a time, I read a science fiction story which featured a group called “Control Normals”. (No, I don’t recall who the author was or what the title was. Perhaps one of the SF fans here will remember.) … Read more

by wj Last night we had the traditional annual family gathering to celebrate the birthdays of all of us born in late July and early August. (Which amounts to nearly half of us.) As always, the conversation ranged far and wide. But at one point, someone mentioned a colleague who is a conspiracy theory enthusiast. … Read more

by wj What do these two “countries” have in common? Officially, they don’t exist. In reality, of course, both control substantial swaths of territory (which used to be part of another country, which is collapsed or collapsing), are relatively well governed democracies, and have economies in far better shape than that of the country that … Read more

by wj This was just too good not to share: “We wouldn’t get on a plane if there was a 5% chance of the plane crashing, but we’re treating the climate with that same level of risk in a very offhand, complacent way.” — Nick Robins Also: “Investors currently face a stark choice. Either they … Read more

by wj The Economist Intelligence Unit offers a running series of papers on various industries. Recently, they produced one on Technology’s impact on emerging-market supply chains. An entire section was devoted to looking at how 3-D printing would transform manufacturing. Much of it was mildly insightful — nothing radical, but sensible. And then there was … Read more

by wj I neglected to set up an open thread for the weekend — lulled by the fact that everybody stopped posting comments on July 3rd. Oops. Anyway, here’s something that Thompson posted to the old thread, which seems worth a thread of its own. thompson: www.csmonitor.com/USA/USA-Update/2015/0706/Can-Bernie-Sanders-find-middle-ground-on-guns-video I disagree with Sanders on a lot of … Read more

by wj This week, for the first time, a Melissa Mayeux registered for Major League Baseball’s international registration list — which makes her the first woman to be eligible to play major league baseball in the United States. Or course, the young lady is French, not American. Why not? Because, in the US, women play … Read more

by wj In his column yesterday (Why Saudi Arabia Can’t get a Nuclear Weapon), Fareed Zakaria makes the case why a nuclear arms race in the Middle East is unlikely. His main arguments: a) Nobody, even Pakistan, would be willing to sell them one. The price of becoming an international pariah is just too steep. … Read more