Stories to Watch: 4/1/11

Hey, your shoe's untied. Quick, look behind you! Do you have Prince Albert in a can? Now here's the news...


Remember Terry Jones, the asshole who threatened to burn a Quran? Yeah, he finally got around to it and at least 12 people died because of it. There are no good guys in this story -- one book isn't worth 12 lives, so the Afghans who did the killing are assholes too. But when everyone's telling you that you're going to get people killed, you probably shouldn't burn the goddam book. What a useless, useless pile of crap Terry Jones is.


Shelly Bachmann has raised over $2 million for a presidential run so far. For the record, that money is what it's all about. When outside interests "draft" losers like Bachmann, those interests are usually professional fundraisers -- who get a cut of the take. They don't care whether or not she can win, they just know the 'baggers love her and will give her lots of money. Michele Bachmann isn't a candidate, she's a goldmine.


One Wisconsin recall is all but officially underway, as canvassers turn in "more than enough signatures to launch a recall of Republican state Sen. Dan Kapanke." Bad news for Spanky Kapanke -- they had 60 days to gather enough signatures, but they needed less than half that time. Let's hope they have that kind of success in Ohio.


In related news: Judge Sumi's temporary restraining order on the union-buster may hold the law up for weeks. Now seems like an excellent time to remind everyone that all the GOP has to do to get this passed is schedule another vote with proper notice. That they aren't tells you all you need to know about how many votes it would get on a do-over. If this thing can't survive the courts, it looks like Scott Walker's dream of crushing unions to make the ghost of Reagan smile is over.


Libyan rebels are now hoping for what sounds like is essentially a draw. Juan Cole has the latest.


Joseph Stiglitz has a must-read in which he spells out how the top 1% pretty much own America, how it warps our politics, and how it won't work out well for anyone -- even that top 1% -- in the end. It ain't pretty.


Finally, intrusive, burdensome commie gummint regulations are responsible for the lowest traffic fatality rate since 1949.

Stories to Watch: 3/27/11

It's Sunday, so that means sourdough. I've got starter bubbling in the kitchen and I'll make dough later. Then I put it in the fridge overnight and raise and bake it the next day. This seems to work the best so far. Tomorrow, fresh bread. I'm also thinking of making this puffed pancake for dinner, because I'm a big fan of the brinner. Now here's the news...


Juan Cole continues to make the humanitarian case for military action in Libya.


Also on Libya, I continue to be amazed that no one in the media is asking how it's going. Turns out, it's still going pretty well.


As protesters riot in England over budget and spending cuts, John Hinderaker -- in true, panicky, histrionic neocon fashion -- sees the end of British civilization. His suggestion for saving the UK from dissolution? Fire cannons at the protesters. No, really. Scroll down to the end of the piece.


It probably should be pointed out that Newt Gingrich is a serious candidate for the GOP nomination. He's also a ridiculous boob.


Speaking of which, Michele Bachmann was a big hit at a rightwing shindig in Iowa. Steve Benen asks a crucial question here; "Are those right-wing activists enamored with Bachmann thinking, 'I can't wait to support her campaign' or are they thinking, 'She's terrific, but there's no chance I'll ever vote for her'?"


UW historian William Cronon, under fire from the GOP for pointing out who's behind the Republican heist in Wisconsin, is proven right with a single headline: "State GOP health bills mirror model ALEC legislation."


In addition to the horrible abuse of oregano, another reason to skip Godfather's Pizza.


Finally, Libya has jack to do with the price of oil.

Stories to Watch: 3/24/11

I'm stuck on how to open here. It's 32 degrees outside. Thirty-freakin'-two degrees Fahren-freakin'-heit. I'm speechless. Now here's the news...


The Obama administration is studiously avoiding calling military action in Libya "war." While most are painting this a political stance, others see it as a legal one.


One thing that no one is asking -- surprisingly, I think -- is how this whole "non-war" is going. If Juan Cole is to be believed -- and I think he is -- it's going gangbusters.


Just reminder: John Stossel is a lunatic.


Is Trump's possible presidential run a PR bluff to grab headlines (and ratings)?


The GOP's ongoing war on workers goes federal, with a bill that would cut off food stamps for families where a worker goes on strike. Want to fight for a fairer wage, better working conditions, or better benefits? Fine. Then the baby starves.


I'm tired of following every stupid, hate-filled, un-American thing the American Family Association's Bryan Fischer says on a nearly daily basis. Seriously, the guy is just an awful, awful human being. We have all the proof of that we'll ever need.


Florida Gov. Rick Scott wants to drug-test state employees. The problem is, it's already been ruled unconstitutional and drug-addled state employees haven't actually been a problem. So why would he want this? Did I mention Scott owns a string of clinics that do employee drug screenings? I probably should have.


Finally, remember when Gov. Scott Walker told a guy he thought was David Koch that he'd thought about hiring some "troublemakers" to make pro-worker protesters look bad? An Indiana prosecutor took that idea a step farther and emailed Walker to suggest he get some stooge to take a potshot at him. Seriously, stage an assassination attempt. Not surprisingly, Carlos Lam is not an Indiana prosecutor any longer, although he probably has a great career ahead of him as the next Karl Rove.

Stories to Watch: 2/6/11

I guess there's some big bowl game today, which doesn't have anything to do with bowling. Anyway, the Green Bay is in on it, so all the people around here are dusting off our cheese hats. Also, it's snowing again. If we get much more, we'll have to start tunneling through it. The Super Bowl seems to be sucking up all the news time, so this is going to be short. Now here's the news...


What's going on in Egypt? Well, a lot of stuff, but mostly nothing new. Al Jazeera reports that the nation "remains at an impasse."


ThinkProgress has a really good post up on how the Ronald Reagan that Republicans worship as a god never actually existed.


In related news, a lefty caller schools Rush Limbaugh on Reagan -- beautifully.


Finally, Juan Cole gets Socratic on Egypt, asking a boatload of questions that are instructive in themselves.

Stories to Watch: 1/25/11

Hey, you want a Google Chrome theme? I was goofing around today and I came up with this. Pretty nifty and patriotic, huh? I think the white marble frame was a nice touch. Now here's the news...


Cutting right to the chase: what everyone thought of the SOTU.


While most of the stories about Michele Bachmann's response feature her staring blankly into space, Media Matters takes the time to look at what she said -- and finds it (not surprisingly) all wrong.


On the same subject, Steve Benen compares Shelly's unofficial response to Paul Ryan's official one and finds them pretty much the same, substance-wise. "Paul and Bachmann struck different tones, but they were making the same argument, and both were equally ridiculous," he writes. Joan Walsh has a nice critique of Ryan's rebuttal, while Krugman tears him up.


And yes, Michele Bachmann is a "balloon-head."


Egypt's seeing some unrest. Is Tunisia contagious? Juan Cole has the skinny.


Finally, AP explains to GOPers nationwide why their efforts at "nullification" of the healthcare law aren't as constitutional as they might think. Republicans and 'baggers love the Constitution a lot less when they know what's actually in it.