Month: August 2012

Maybe taxes aren’t so bad for business after all

by David Atkins

Business leaders are starting to wake up and smell the coffee in California thanks to deft politicking by Governor Brown and the obviousness of the damage that declining revenues are doing to California’s business environment:

Some of the largest corporate interests in California have poured millions of dollars into an initiative campaign this year, as they have many times before. But this time, they’re not asking voters to ease industry regulations or limit government power. Instead, they want approval of an $8-billion-a-year tax hike pushed by Gov. Jerry Brown.

Since taking office more than 18 months ago, the Democratic governor has held dozens of meetings with such unnatural allies as oil companies, insurers and telecommunications interests that typically stand with Republicans, taking stock of their concerns and pitching them on the need for higher taxes. Some paid for polling that helped guide the governor as he put his initiative together.

To rally them to his cause, he cast aside several ideas — new levies on oil extraction, soft drinks or alcohol, for example — that have proved more popular with voters than his blend of temporary sales and income taxes.

He opted for a quarter-cent hike in sales taxes and an increase of 1 to 3 percentage points on individual incomes of more than $250,000 after assurances from business leaders that even if they did not wholeheartedly embrace Proposition 30, they would not reach into their deep pockets to wage war against it. So far, it seems to be working.

“I think mostly we see the governor wanting to do the right things for the state’s economy,” said Jim Wunderman, president of the Bay Area Council business group. He has met several times with Brown, and the group will decide its position on Proposition 30 next month.

Labor unions and Democratic lawmakers spent almost $7 million qualifying Proposition 30 for the ballot. And Democratic interests contributed about 40% of the more than $10.3 million Brown has raised for the campaign ahead. But most of the governor’s campaign fund — upward of $6 million — has so far come from a broad coalition of entrepreneurs, Indian tribes that own casinos and other business interests.

It is possible for major business groups to see the light of day sometimes. It’s hard but not impossible. It remains to be seen whether the coalition can be held together to do the right thing in the end. But local activists on the ground will play a big role in helping make sure the progressive, pro-business choice is one the voters make in the end.

If it works, Jerry Brown’s actions might be able to serve as a model for other states as well.

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YouTube breaks the etch-a-sketch

Via @BuzzFeedAndrew

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Today is Women’s Equality Day and it’s as good a time as any to remind everyone of just how difficult it was for women to get the right to vote. This fun guest post by Amy Simon of She’s History over atNicole Sandler’s place is a nice overview of the fight for women’s rights through the ages.

Although the amendment had passed comfortably through Congress with the requisite two-thirds majority in 1919 (the vote was 304–89 in the House of Representatives on May 21, 1919, and 56–25 in the Senate on June 4, 1919), there was considerable doubt as to whether or not it would be able to garner the 36 states necessary to secure ratification. Legislators in many Southern states were opposed to the amendment (it was rejected in Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Mississippi, and Louisiana), and its fate appeared to hinge on Tennessee. As Cheryl Hiers writes in “War of the Roses,” when suffragists counted its supporters in Nashville when the Tennessee legislature was to cast its votes on August 18, 1919, they …

knew they were in trouble. By the roses [suffragists wore yellow roses while anti-suffragists donned red ones], it appeared the amendment would be defeated 47 for and 49 against. In the first roll call, however, Rep. Banks Turner came over to the Suffragist’s side and the vote was deadlocked at 48 for and 48 against. The second roll was taken and the vote remained 48 to 48.

With wilted collars and frayed nerves, the legislators squared off for the third roll call. A blatant red rose on his breast, Harry Burn–the youngest member of the legislature–suddenly broke the deadlock. Despite his red rose, he voted in favor of the bill and the house erupted into pandemonium. With his “yea,” Burn had delivered universal suffrage to all American women. The outraged opponents to the bill began chasing Representative Burn around the room. In order to escape the angry mob, Burn climbed out one of the third-floor windows of the Capitol. Making his way along a ledge, he was able to save himself by hiding in the Capitol attic.

When tempers had cooled, Burn was asked to explain the red rose on his lapel and his “yellow-rose” vote. He responded that while it was true he was wearing a red rose, what people couldn’t see was that his breast pocket contained a telegram from his mother in East Tennessee. She urged him to do the right thing and vote in favor of the amendment.

Every man has a mother …

In case you were wondering, they used the states’ rights argument then too.

Update: Not that this issue is settled, mind you:

If the beyotches couldn’t vote, we wouldn’t have had to put up with Ike or Hoover much less Johnson, Carter, Clinton and Obama. Think how much better things would be!

Good luck and Godspeed

by digby

I won’t try to compete with David Atkins’ lovely tribute to Neil Armstrong, but I will share Diana Krall’s:

The jazz singer-pianist tenderly played “Fly Me to the Moon” during a Saturday night concert at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

Krall said she once was lucky enough to share a glass of wine with the first man to walk on the moon. The astronaut died Saturday at 82.

Armstrong probably was wishing he didn’t have to listen to the pop standard again, Krall said lightly, after gazing toward the night sky.

I saw the moon landing on a small black and white TV hoisted in the trees of the Oaxaca Mexico town square with a bunch of Mixtec indians. It was memorable.

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We Already Knew That, Y’Know

by tristero

Gail Collins:

We had a shooting near the Empire State Building…

Nine passers-by were also wounded, and it seems almost certain that some or all were accidentally hit by the police. This isn’t surprising; it’s only in movies that people are good shots during a violent encounter. In 2008, Al Baker reported in The Times that the accuracy rate for New York City officers firing in the line of duty was 34 percent.

And these are people trained for this kind of crisis. The moral is that if a lunatic starts shooting, you will not be made safer if your fellow average citizens are carrying concealed weapons.

Yep. But really, no one sane ever doubted that. Just as no one sane believes that two men marrying will have any negative effects on the institution of marriage. Or doubts that evolution is a fact. Or doubts global warming is real. Or believes that lower taxes will mean more government revenue. Or believes that rape victims can’t get pregnant. Or…Or… Or…

So why does anyone listen to these people? And how best can we move these and many other ridiculous claims back to the margins of the discourse, where they so obviously belong?

Among the answers:

1. One reason there are so many crazy ideas in the mainstream discourse is that the media treat them as serious ideas, or at least as serious enough to deserve a sober, careful debunking. Taking the NRA’s ludicrous claim as worthy of pointing to a counterfactual like the Empire State shootings risks elevating its status, making it worthy of debate and careful thought.

2. We can refuse to dignify idiocy with solemnity. Instead, we should laugh, we should mock, we should denounce. I’m not suggesting we ignore the rightwing. I’m suggesting we sneer a lot more than we are, and only engage when the ideas rise to a level of seriousness where they actually deserve a debunking.

The right has precious few notions that do. Certainly, the claim that a Manhattan street corner is safer when it’s teeming with half-trained citizens armed with semi-automatics is not among them. The idea is not worth going to the trouble of discussing. It’s too bonkers and life is short.

Instead of glossing over Mr. Romney’s career as a private equity executive, they will highlight it in convention videos and speeches as the kind of experience that has prepared him to be the economic steward the country needs.

And rather than shy away from Mr. Romney’s faith, as some campaign aides have argued he should, they have decided to embrace it. On the night Mr. Romney will address the convention, a member of the Mormon Church will deliver the invocation. On Sunday, this new approach was apparent as Mr. Romney invited reporters to join him at church services.

The campaign aides are determined to overcome perceptions that Mr. Romney is stiff, aloof and distant. So they have built one of the most intricate set pieces ever designed for a convention — a $2.5 million Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired theatrical stage. From its dark-wood finish to the brightly glowing high-resolution screens in the rafters that look like skylights, every aspect of the stage has been designed to convey warmth, approachability and openness.

Brown nosing your way to the top — the Paul Ryan story

by digby

I keep hearing Republicans say they are going to win the election because they “embrace success.” And I can’t help but think that’s just another word for brown-nosing. And they do know something about that …

According to the yearbook, Paul was even voted Prom King his junior year.

And if all that wasn’t enough to predict a bright future in politics — Paul was also voted the “biggest brown-noser” in his class. He graduated in 1988.

As Howie pointed out in this post, this explains the Paul Ryan phenomenon better than anything:

Most people who have followed Ryan’s career in Washington have noticed the same patterns– always kissing up and endearing himself to the rich and powerful. One of his Wisconsin colleagues told us that he “sold himself out to K Street and Wall Street faster than any Member had ever done in the history of Congress.” Even when David Obey– who was in Congress when Ryan was still brown-nosing in high school– was Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, Ryan had sailed past him in terms of contributions from Wall Street. The Financial/Insurance/Real Estate sector has given more in legalistic bribes to Ryan than to any other politician– including senators– in the history of Wisconsin. And that happened even before Boehner appointed him Budget Chairman! Politico took a deep look into how Ryan clawed his way to the top of the House foodchain, vaulting over a whole generation of ambitious Republican politicians. Ever wonder how Ryan got the word “serious” attached to his name? It sure made serious economists like Paul Krugman scratch their heads in absolute wonder.

You know the type. They are in every school and office:

In Ryan’s case, say people who have worked closely with him, they are the result of a years-long effort to cultivate relationships with a small but influential corps of commentators, policy intellectuals, and impresarios of the conservative movement.

Ryan invites these people to off-the-record dinner briefings to talk about ideas and his policy proposals. He calls them to say how much he liked their articles. He attends their going-away parties and hires young people from their staffs. Above all, he has made clear that he takes these people seriously and wants to be taken seriously by them.

And these Washington and New York influentials– including writers Bill Kristol and Stephen Hayes of the Weekly Standard, and Rich Lowry of National Review, and policy provocateurs like Bill Bennett and Pete Wehner– have repaid the favor. In the process they have helped Ryan illuminate a path to power much different than the traditional strategy of bill-passing, logrolling, and above all loyal time-serving that historically was the way to win influence on Capitol Hill.

Recall this notorious off-the-record dinner:

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), a leading advocate of shrinking entitlement spending and the architect of the plan to privatize Medicare, spent Wednesday evening sipping $350 wine with two like-minded conservative economists at the swanky Capitol Hill eatery Bistro Bis.

It was the same night reports started trickling out about President Obama pressing Congressional leaders to consider changes to Social Security and Medicare in exchange for GOP support for targeted tax increases…

Ryan said his two “friends” are economists, not lobbyists, but would not give their names to TPM. He said one of the men is an economist “he reads a lot” and the two have conversed before so he invited him to Washington so they could meet.

“I read a lot about this economist. I’ve enjoyed what he’s written. I wanted to pick his brain … so that’s what we did,” Ryan explained.

That’s the brown-noser MO to a tee.

Ryan: “You are so brilliant, I’d just like to pick your brain a little bit.”

Flattered important person thinks to himself, “this guy’s really sharp.”

Being a brown-noser isn’t a requirement to be a successful politician but they all have some element of it. Ryan, seems to be of those who truly profit from their brown-nosing skills, which means he’s a real pro.

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Catapult the propaganda

by digby

Wingnuts go to Hollywood:

Big news at the box office: The film pegged as the anti-Obama documentary has outsold all other movies opening this weekend, according to early reports. “2016: Obama’s America” raked in $2.2 million on Friday, outperforming other openers “Premium Rush” and the indie comedy “Hit and Run.” The earnings also make it the top-grossing documentary of the year.
[…]
“2016: Obama’s America” is based on Indian-American conservative author Dinesh D’Souza’s book, “The Roots of Obama’s Rage.” (D’Souza also co-directed with John Sullivan, and narrates the majority of the film). A poster for the movie shows a profile of President Obama cast against a hazy gray fog with the tag line, “Love Him, Hate Him, You Don’t Know Him.”

I can hardly wait to see it. After all, D’Souza is a literary genius. I still go back to this masterful satiric essay just to marvel at his talent:

… the Democrats could become the party of moral degeneracy. In recent years the Democrats have not embraced moral degeneracy outright. They have contented themselves with hiding behind the slogan of “liberty.” If accused of encouraging pornography, the Democrats have said, “No, we are for liberty of expression.” Charged with supporting abortion-on-demand, the Democrats insist, “No, we are the party that gives women freedom over their own bodies.” Caught distributing sex kits and homosexual instruction manuals to young people, the Democrats protest, “We are merely attempting to give people autonomy and freedom of choice.”

But what is the need for this coyness? The Democrats should stop hiding behind “freedom of choice” and become blatant advocates for divorce, illegitimacy, adultery, homosexuality, bestiality, and pornography. Indeed the Democrats could become the Party of the Seven Deadly Sins. The political advantage of this approach is that the Seven Deadly Sins are immensely popular. Imagine the political opportunities if all vices were associated with the Democratic party!

Yes, right now President Bush and the Republicans are riding high. But just wait until 2004, when the party of fighting terrorism, promoting economic growth, and fostering traditional moral values, meets its match in a party that stands for anti-Americanism, economic plunder, and moral degeneracy.

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A memorial to the possibility of great things

by David Atkins

Neil Armstrong passed away yesterday.

I’m twelve years too young to have been on Earth at the time that Neil took those fateful footsteps on our Moon. And long after I’m little more than dust and my name is long forgotten, Neil’s name and accomplishment will be long remembered. And even if humanity self-immolates in nuclear catastrophe next year, his footprint will remain almost indelible for centuries, a reminder of the great things of which our species was capable despite our flaws and shortcomings.

Long after our wars are forgotten and their causes quaint, long after economic booms and busts have pushed our current economic troubles into the haze of distant memory, Neil’s achievement will be remembered with the same urgency as it is today. His achievement is timeless.

But it was not his achievement alone. His walk on the moon was the result of thousands of individuals working tirelessly to bring the impossible to fruition, and the result of hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars (in today’s money) to make one of humanity’s oldest dreams come true. For that reason, we can all share in Neil’s accomplishment even if only by proxy. Or at least, those of us who were alive at the time can do so. Of my generation I’m not so certain, though I would state emphatically the blame does not lie with us.

Neil’s was an accomplishment undertaken at a time when we still believed we were capable of great things. A time when the common good and furtherance of the human spirit were more important than personal greed. A time when a President could utter the phrase “Ask not what your Country can do for you, but what you can do for your Country” and not be mocked for his optimism.

It was a time before Reagan. Before “Greed is Good.” It was a time when a President could truly declare a “War on Poverty” without ridicule. Before the drabness of “Welfare Reform” became the sort of meager and churlish thing the press would hail as forward-thinking and bold.

It was a time when the health and wealth of the nation was seen as bound up in the heights to which our science, learning, and social justice could aspire. It was a time before we allowed our collective health and wealth to be measured by as meaningless, lackluster and empty a symbol as the the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

It was a time when the word “Grand” would almost never be followed by the word “Bargain”, and when the nation would gasp in horror at the very thought of that Devil’s deal be the trading away of Medicare and Social Security to further enrich those whose stores were already more than ample.

And while much progress has indeed been made in many areas of social justice to include all our nation’s citizens regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation, there can be no doubt that it was ideologically a far more morally advanced time collectively than we have inherited today.

I was born at the beginning of Ronald Reagan’s unfortunate presidency. I was six years old when Gordon Gekko first graced the silver screen. Thirteen when the ugliness of Newt Gingrich’s small-minded and shriveled Contract beat down on the body public. When the protections of Glass Steagall were repealed with wild applause I had barely come of age to enter college, and September 11th was the prelude to my second decade on the planet–a decade almost entirely consumed by the darkest and least honorable Presidency in history of this country.

My generational cohorts and I know nothing but this. This all too petty, all too drab, all too villainous smallness of being. It is time for moral and spiritual rebirth.

So rest in peace, Neil Armstrong. And may my generation begin the process of rebuilding the greatness that took you to such exalted heights, and repairing the damage wrought by the Reagan Devolution.

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Saturday Night at the Movies

Deep in the black heart of Texas


By Dennis Hartley