The Count! Now with heat!

Our heat has finally been turned on! So much for trying to make it through the winter w/o having to get it turned on.

Anyway, Stephen Colbert's Christmas Special was awesome. Toby Keith's song, I must sadly admit, was pretty loltastic... and Willie. Well, Willie was Willie, and Willie is as Willie does, that's what my mama always said. John Legend's nutmeg song was also chuckletastic on lollerskates.

Anyway (2), Geithner for SecTreas is interesting; that the choice "inspires" the market is a little off-putting, though. I mean seriously, I could bottle farts and sell them for ripe profit in order to inspire the market. I want the man to inspire us to change, to get us off the free-market-free-for-all that got us here.

Doesn't seem like that will happen, judging investor response.

It has been

14

days since Paul Broun proved himself unworthy to serve in Congress.

LaFountain for Congress 2010.

Not really. :-/

-rl

Okay - the fix-up

I think Ohio Senator George Voinovich (R) is on the right track with pursuing an auto bailout deal, if only for the people of Ohio...

Why?

Ohio Jobless Rate hits 7.3% in October, which is a climb from 5.7% in October 2007.

So here are the meat and potatoes:

A potential compromise emerged this week, with Republican Sens. George Voinovich of Ohio and Kit Bond of Missouri working with Democratic Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan. They proposed allowing automakers to borrow $25 billion for short-term needs from the retooling fund, but they would require repayment fairly quickly. And automakers would have to prove to the Commerce Department that they had viable plans.

Then, with proceeds from the companies' repayment, along with possible gains from automakers' stock the government owned, the fund could be replenished -- and its original intent of pushing the industry toward greater fuel-efficiency could be honored.

It's a start. And it's not carte blanche. Union reform needs to be added.

It has been

11

days since Paul Broun proved himself unworthy of a spot in Congress.

LaFountain for Congress 2010.

Not really. :-/

-rl

Creativity:

Woot.

The *BRR* Count!

It's crazy weather today... cold this AM and now looking at a shade temp of 66 degrees. Nuts.

I know some people down here are looking left and right for the final horseman of the apocalypse following the election of Barack Obama, so when the Dow inches below 8000 and then plows further down the day after, my ears go up.

That said, still no signs of a Barackalypse. Do you hear that, Congressman Broun?

NONE.

It has been

10

days since Paul Broun proved himself unworthy of a spot in Congress.

Phtooey.

-rl

Big problems in little Athens

I've been keeping my eyes peeled on the Banner-Herald's count of crime incidence in Athens, thanks to their nifty crime tracker on OnlineAthens.com. Maybe I'm paranoid because of the particular part of town we live in or maybe it's something where I hear bad news and thus feel bad news. In any case, the feeling isn't good.

Oh, and the crime map? I Can Haz Bite Out of Crymez?

It has been

9

days since Paul Broun proved himself unworthy of a spot in Congress.

LaFountain for Congress 2010.

Not really. :-/

-rl

The Count

It has been

8

days since Paul Broun proved himself unworthy of a spot in Congress.

LaFountain for Congress 2010.

Not really. :-/

True Dreams of Wichita

A church in Wichita, Kansas, is asserting that America has a Muslim president and it is sin.

Shouting Match Over Church's Obama Sign

Exodus 20 is the 1st statement of the decalogue in the 5 Books of Moses (using Christian terminology for this bit, y'all.) Exodus 20:3, for those who don't know, is: You shall have no other gods before(besides) me.*

I mean, I get it, but no. Fact of the matter is, Barack Obama is a Christian. Remember the Rev. Wright pot that was stirred in the primaries? Christian. I'm sure everyone who read my blog knows that Obama is Christian, so I don't know why I'm going on about it, but Barack Obama is a Christian. Not a Muslim.

Oh yeah, and Moses was addressing the Israelites. Christians are not Israelites. Y'all don't want to bother keeping the other laws of the Torah, why bother with those ten?

Even if Obama were a Muslim, bear in mind that per tradition, they also worship the G-d of Abraham. Wait, you're telling me they don't teach that in the creationist schools of Kansas? NO WAI! Yes, Virginia, Isaac and Ishmael were half brothers. Ishmael and Hagar... yeah. Remember that in Genesis? I'm sure you do.

Same G-d.

-rl

*Translation from New Revised Standard Version of the Holy Bible, 2004, Hendrickson Publishers

Jumping across the partisan divide

Ayn Rand may have feared it, but John McCain is working with Barack Obama and President-elect Obama's transition office has a statement:

“At this defining moment in history, we believe that Americans of all parties want and need their leaders to come together and change the bad habits of Washington so that we can solve the common and urgent challenges of our time. It is in this spirit that we had a productive conversation today about the need to launch a new era of reform where we take on government waste and bitter partisanship in Washington in order to restore trust in government, and bring back prosperity and opportunity for every hardworking American family. We hope to work together in the days and months ahead on critical challenges like solving our financial crisis, creating a new energy economy, and protecting our nation’s security.”

I am truly happy to see that John McCain and Barack Obama are working together. It need to be done - the brightest minds in Washington and from all over the nation and world to help solve the problems that we dug ourselves into. This will be about compromise and not unilateral action. And we may have to slow ourselves down so that the compromises that need to be made are made.

Throwing money at the problem does not solve the problem. Sitting down and reviewing all of our options, taking appropriate action, and being generally thoughtful will help mitigate damage. Both McCain and Obama know that. GM, Ford, Chrysler, don't deserve to be saved, at least not in their current forms.

Why?

They've run their business models into the ground. It's truly their fault. Writing a blank check to them won't solve squat. Unions, companies, and the government need to sit down and have a painful talk about the realities of the American automobile. We need to be able to produce quality in quantity in order to be competitive. All the big three have put out recently are quantities of shit. Believe me, I own one. As such, I bear responsibility in this mess, for further enabling the poor business practices of GM. There needs to be a major shakeup in how they do things. Efficiency, business growth, and environmental stewardship, are among the top for both manufacturers and unions.

We made our mess. Let's get about to cleaning it up.

In your face, Ayn Rand.

Rain...

I love the sound of rain just pattering on the windows and roof. It's been awhile since we've had a solid day (maybe two) or rain. Last night there were several thunderstorms that rolled through, including one that arrived when my car decided it was a good idea to break down on Inglewood Ave.

Well, that's not entirely accurate... but that's when the car's rolling came to a halt.

As a reminder of why I've been upset the last couple of days, the Daily Show lands a fairly good commentary:



Congressman Broun, for the good of the 10th Congressional District, step aside.

ABH Editorial Board opines on Broun's perceptions of a nascent American reich

Editorial: 'Hitler' remark makes Broun irrelevant in D.C.:

Congressman Paul Broun, who represents Northeast Georgia in the U.S. House of Representatives, is a man so bereft of original ideas and so incapable of reasoned thought that, less than a week after being returned to Washington by the electorate, he's been reduced to comparing this nation's incoming Democratic president to Adolf Hitler.

And what is it, exactly, that newly chosen President-elect Barack Obama has done that places him - in Broun's mind, at least - in a league with the most vilified figure in modern history, a man responsible for the deaths of millions of human beings?

Well, it's the fact that Obama has proposed an expansion of this country's national service effort, a call to community service aimed at boosting this country's security by working to improve its infrastructure, do a better job educating its citizens, and help those citizens stay healthy. An Obama campaign document readily available on the Web, "The Blueprint for Change: Barack Obama's Plan for America," offers up additional details on the president-elect's community service proposal.

For Broun, that plan somehow translates into, as he noted in a Tuesday story from the Associated Press, "exactly what Hitler did in Nazi Germany, and ... exactly what the Soviet Union did. When he's (Obama) proposing to have a national security force that's answering to him, that's as strong as the U.S. military, he's showing me signs of being Marxist."

Our congressman went on to say, "We can't be lulled into complacency. You have to remember that Adolf Hitler was elected in a democratic Germany. I'm not comparing him (Obama) to Adolf Hitler. What I'm saying is there is the potential of going down that road."

Congressman Broun was of course comparing Obama to Hitler, a comparison that his denial only served to reinforce. And then, Broun compounded his non-denial denial by subsequently offering a non-apology apology on an Augusta radio station, using the smarmy and ultimately meaningless line, "I apologize to anyone who has taken offense at that."

Broun's high dudgeon at Obama's call for a broadened commitment to public service in this country was apparently motivated by a misunderstanding - willful or not - of a speech the president-elect delivered during the campaign. Speaking in Colorado on July 2, Obama said, "We cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set. We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded."

In Broun's mind - and, in fairness, across much of the blogosphere - those lines presaged some intent on Obama's part to establish a jackbooted security force to impose a Marxist dictatorship on the United States. However, Broun - and a legion of others, judging from Internet postings on the July speech - conveniently ignore, or are unaware of, other segments of the speech in which Obama outlines his plans for the "national security force."

"People of all ages, stations and skills will be asked to serve," note transcripts of the speech, which deviated from Obama's prepared text. "Just as we must value and encourage military service across our society, we must honor and expand other opportunities to serve, because the future of our nation depends on the soldier at Fort Carson, but it also depends on the teacher in East L.A. or the nurse in Appalachia, the after-school worker in New Orleans, the Peace Corps volunteer in Africa, the foreign service officer in Indonesia."

That's hardly a Hitlerian plan for subjugating the people of the United States under totalitarian rule. Unless, of course, you're Congressman Paul Broun.

As long as he was pulling stunts such as trying to get girlie magazines off PX shelves, or using taxpayer dollars to send out campaign literature, Broun was a mildly amusing political sideshow. But this latest episode in Broun's tenure, which has already earned him rebukes from Georgia's two U.S. senators - who, like Broun, are Republicans - will reduce him to irrelevance in Washington. That will, in turn, leave the people of Northeast Georgia with no representation in the House of Representatives. Thanks a lot, "Congressman" Broun.

I gotta say, the ABH's Ed board has it right on the money with this:

As long as he was pulling stunts such as trying to get girlie magazines off PX shelves, or using taxpayer dollars to send out campaign literature, Broun was a mildly amusing political sideshow. But this latest episode in Broun's tenure, which has already earned him rebukes from Georgia's two U.S. senators - who, like Broun, are Republicans - will reduce him to irrelevance in Washington. That will, in turn, leave the people of Northeast Georgia with no representation in the House of Representatives. Thanks a lot, "Congressman" Broun.

He might cry and whine about being marginalized, but it's his own fault that he's been reduced to a position where the best he can do is grandstand more frequently and more annoyingly than Dennis Kucinich. And he will do nothing for NE Georgia. Who will want to work with him? I'd applaud President-elect Obama if he tried to work with Congressman Broun, because working with someone who more or less explicitly called you a Marxist, communist, and a Nazi in the same breath makes you a bigger person than I. Congressman Broun, you are an embarassment to the Congress, an embarassment to Georgia, and an inept diplomat of any kind. Do us all a favor and step aside for someone who can actually be diplomatic, work to solve problems and not create more, and best serve the people of northeast GA.

LaFountain for Congress 2010

Again, not really. :-/

-rl

Paul Broun has supported Blackwater

And another reason to prove to you that Paul Broun is a spineless punk:

Broun supported letting Blackwater employees be above the law

So to recap, to Paul Broun private military forces are bad except when they are Blackwater. Then they are good. And above the law.

I wonder if he's on the take...

LaFountain for Congress 2010. Woot.

Not really. :-/

-rl

Why do I live in GA?

The original story: Broun ties Obama to Marxism

The followup: Broun's back on Obama

Nazism? SERIOUSLY? Do you know what you're comparing to? SERIOUSLY?

As a Jew, I demand an immediate apology. As a decent human being, I demand Broun's immediate resignation.

Seriously?

Obama operatives leaking details of the Bushbama meeting? Seriously? Can you not come up with a storyline more creative than that, Matt Drudge?

Questionable timing

Florida High School Keeps KKK Founder's Name

Fox News and the fine people of Jacksonville, FLAHDAH, remind us that the fight ain't over.

By the way, for once this isn't a criticism of Fox News. Shocking, no?

O_o

I live in the South. I hear racial tension. It's mostly crap like this.

Srsly. Wtf.

Twitter + other

I've added a Twitter to my sidebar...

hmm. I had to clean up the code a bit. Twitter.com is also registering a spectacular fail right now. Hmm. Web 2.0, I'm not impressed. O_o

I'm thoroughly flummoxed by some of the letters to the editor in today's Banner-Herald. I imagine the Journal-Constitution may be little better. As I said to my asst manager today: I love Athens, but that does nothing to take away that this is Georgia.

She agreed.

"From each according to his ability, to each according to his need"

Since the right bourgeosie is apparently messing itself, believing that the election of Obama will bring about Marxism, communism, socialism, and the decline and decay of American society (if 8 years of Bush wasn't enough for their satisfaction), I've set myself to reading:



Perhaps my greatest failure as a student of political science was to never read the Communist Manifesto in full. I actually made myself read most of Adam Smith's "Wealth of Nations" (amongst other equally dry and dull things) when I was a freshman and actually understood some of it. I will also consider Smith's vision of early capitalist society and perhaps some old ideas will give us new answers to consider. All options need to be presented in order to make the best decisions. No single-minded person will properly address the issues of our day.

That being said, I am garnering some uncomfortable looks from people with my Marx...

... maybe it's those people who are suggesting that Obama should be shot (because he doesn't want to pay higher taxes on his $800k annual income... my friend's boss in LA.) Ahem, anyway.

Yeah, a supposedly "educated" person did suggest that.

We've got a way to go yet.

-rl

Georgia results

Maps from CNN

Georgia, Senate Race:



Georgia, Presidential Race:




-rl

Neiman Marxist indeed

HuffPo gots da juicy scoop from Newsweek

Highlights:

NEWSWEEK has also learned that Palin's shopping spree at high-end department stores was more extensive than previously reported. While publicly supporting Palin, McCain's top advisers privately fumed at what they regarded as her outrageous profligacy. One senior aide said that Nicolle Wallace had told Palin to buy three suits for the convention and hire a stylist. But instead, the vice presidential nominee began buying for herself and her family--clothes and accessories from top stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. According to two knowledgeable sources, a vast majority of the clothes were bought by a wealthy donor, who was shocked when he got the bill. Palin also used low-level staffers to buy some of the clothes on their credit cards. The McCain campaign found out last week when the aides sought reimbursement. One aide estimated that she spent "tens of thousands" more than the reported $150,000, and that $20,000 to $40,000 went to buy clothes for her husband. Some articles of clothing have apparently been lost. An angry aide characterized the shopping spree as "Wasilla hillbillies looting Neiman Marcus from coast to coast," and said the truth will eventually come out when the Republican Party audits its books.

Giggity goo. Mavericky Jane Six Pack right there goin' rogue on ya.

A Call to Power! or "Yes, we can" becomes "Yes, we must"

I suppose saying "Congratulations" to Senator Obama would be a little egotistical of me, expecting him and Senator Biden to thank me personally would be even moreso... anyway, congrats Senators Obama and Biden. What was unimaginable in the minds of most over a year ago is now a reality for America. We should rightly be proud of this, I know I am.

However what has gotten us to this point, the collapse of Wall Street banks, the collapse of the housing market, the global crisis of credit, and overall economic malaise afflicting the nation and the global still stands very real. Over the next two months, you will be able to construct a battle plan to go into your first 100 days so that at the very least we will have the leadership our nation has been lacking for the last eight years.

Yes, we can.

You have been ordained by the American people to lead.

Yes, we must.

We have problems. But as it goes, "There is nothing wrong with America that can't be fixed by what is right with America." Use the government to perform the good of the public, and not the good of your selves like the current administration.

Yes, we will.

I have faith in you, Senators Obama and Biden. You are two brilliant minds who are articulate and strong, who know the great force of good that a properly working government can do for its people. A government needn't be the nanny state that George Bush would rail against yet (inadvertently?) create in order for good to come from it. Nor must it necessarily impose excessive taxes in order to meet those goals. A government that works efficiently, that is a government with limited spoils, can accomplish much, even if working in Congressional deadlock.

Yes.

Our time is now. Let us seize it.

-rl

Dear Senator McCain,

After seeing the campaign side of you since last winter, last night I felt a little skeptical about what your speech in Phoenix was to be composed. However, what America saw last night was the John McCain I had grown to respect in 2000.

~~

The speech was graceful and grateful... and his supporters were a**holes who booed and yelled very inappropriate things anytime he mentioned President-Elect Obama.

I missed this John McCain. Almost began thinking that he no longer existed... alas, it was hidden behind Schmidt and Palin.

-rl

Liveblog!

Well, it's 6:00pm... parts of Kentucky and Indiana are now officially done polling. Results should be coming in.

6:02pm: CNN is chattering on about exit polls... apparently everyone believes thinks their taxes will be raised by McCain and Obama.

6:07: Per CNN, McCain camp "optimistic but realistic."

6:12: Remember! Jon Stewart! Stephen Colbert! 10PM! Comedy Central!

6:19: I figured it would be in good taste to get Yuengling to break out when PA is called for Obama. Woot.

6:21: CNN reporting that turnout is very high in PA, in excess of 80%, but not a record. Reports out of VA indicate smooth polling with isolated issues of balloting.

6:28: Early results with McCain leading in KY, Obama leading in IN... if Obama is able to clear IN, the game is over for McCain for early tonight.

6:35: I don't know if its me or what, but Bill Bennett looks bloated as hell!

6:45: Bill Schneider seems to be saying "whitey vangelical"...

6:57: CNN's polls have KY Senate and President tightening. 3 mins til the next polls close.

7:00: CNN calls KY for McCain, VT for Obama.

I gotta bail. Crap.

11:15: Say hello to President-elect Barack Obama, America.

In and for the consideration of the American public...

... I do submit before the voting public these words from President Andrew Jackson:

Never for a moment believe that the great body of the citizens of any State or States can deliberately intend to do wrong. They may, under the influence of temporary excitement or misguided opinions, commit mistakes; they may be misled for a time by the suggestions of self-interest; but in a community so enlightened and patriotic as the people of the United States argument will soon make them sensible of their errors, and when convinced they will be ready to repair them.

I apologize for my rash anger with you for these last eight years, and so may you live up to the ideals of President Jackson; faith in you is not what I lack.

-rl

BlogginRyan Livebloggin TONIGHT!

I don't know what that means and what it may entail... but I'll try it.

Of course I can't do it now, being at work and all.

FINAL PREDICTION FOR TODAY:



Yeah, it's the same map as the first one. I'd like to see Indiana won... and Georgia... and well the whole damn map blue... but I'm hopeful.

-rl

VOTE!

Go ahead, you know you can do it.