I’ve been real, real busy, so here’s a digest of highlights from some other worthy local blogs (in alphabetical order):
blatherWatch
Hear any lies today? blatherWatch needs your help:
If you hear a dubious fact, a sleazy assumption, an outrageous non-sequitur, a wild conclusive leap, or an out-and-out whopper by host or caller; a lefty or righty on Seattle talk stations–drop us an e-mail.
Here’s a lie, Michael… Sharkansky called me “sweet.”
Speaking of which, why not take a gander at blatherWatch’s account of my non-showdown with the toothless Shark on the John Carlson Show. Michael sucks up to me a little, but that’s okay, I enjoy being sucked up to once in a while.
Evergreen Politics
Jon Stahl and Jeff Reifman dig into Bill Gates’ recent education speech and are shocked to find hypocrisy coming from the richest man in the world, when it comes to funding for education.
Microsoft takes advantage of huge corporate tax loopholes to dodge paying its fair share of the taxes that fund our public education system.
So, whatever Bill’s ideas for fixing our high schools might be (and they could no doubt use some fixing), I suggest he start by looking at the behaviors of his own corporation that have contributed to the problem.
That said, I just want to point out that his father, Bill Gates Sr., is one of WA’s most passionate and eloquent proponents of a state income tax, a change that would largely correct our obscenely regressive state and local tax structure, while costing him and his son butt-loads of money.
NW Progressive Inst. Blog
While I’m digesting the other blogs, NPI is digesting a bunch of interesting articles and columns in Monday’s Seattle P-I.
Only 18 percent of proposed legislation actually becomes law, I read in a report last year. Whew! Thank goodness.
As always, OlyScoop is one the best places to learn about the other 82 percent.
On The Road To 2008
Daniel Kirkdorfer considers a recent Harris poll, and wonders if we’re a nation of idiots:
– 47% of adolts believe that Saddam Hussein helped plan and support the hijackers who attacked the U.S. on September 11, 2001.
– 44% of adolts believe that several of the hijackers who attacked the U.S. on September 11 were Iraqis.
– 36% of adolts believe that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction when the U.S. invaded.
Progressive Majority for WA
I apologize for calling Stefan a “prick.” I clearly should have included the BIAW as well. Stefan called Rep. Jeannie Darneille (D-Tacoma) an “imbecile” for mentioning the recent death of her father in an email explaining her opposition to a “re-vote.” But the BIAW stoops even lower, by trying to squeeze partisan advantage out of her personal tragedy.
Darneille Sr. had a 60-year history of voting and in recent years had done so absentee. The BIAW found a Charles Darneille had signed the poll voter sheet, however, and suspecting a scandal ripe for exploitation, fired off a public records request to the Pierce County auditor, demanding to know how an absentee voter who died the day after the election could have signed the poll voter sheet. I’m sure the PR hacks in the Republican party were slavering with glee over this apparent example of democratic cronyism and ballot-stuffing.
Turns out, there were two Charles Darneilles. What a bunch of pricks.
“Turns out, there were two Charles Darneilles. What a bunch of pricks.”
My, my, isn’t this interesting — I bet this’ll happen when someone takes a close look at their list of “illegal felons,” too. If they ever give it to us, that is. I’m beginning to wonder if that “list” is, like Joe McCarthy’s “list,” a blank sheet of paper.
Hey Goldy, it looks like JCH cut and ran from that other thread after I beat him up.
Like the voters on the cull list in florida 2000 i suppose……
A convicted felon named “clayton brown” would remove 20 other legal voters named, “clay brown, clyde brown, cliff brown, C. brown, chris brown, carl brown, carl browning, etc………….
Its ok, we weren’t bloggin then i guess.
Goldy @ 46 on previous thread
Okay — it’s against my instincts, but I’ll do it for you, Goldy. I’ll try to be good! But it’s soooo hard!! ;)
Rossi wnats that mansion. Acting like a friendly undertaker, he keeps digging up dirt. He might also consider holding graveside seances to see who voted for who. The grim reaper takes over three thousand lives in Washington every month. It is possibe some felons may have passed away since they voted for Rossi last election. Bad to the bone.
Goldy, You ARE sweet, just like any other puny weak kneed insecure liberal male with issues. Get over it.
Goldy, Conservatives eat red meat ….. for breakfast. Sniff, sniff. What’s that? A big case of conservative envy?
Goldy–
I can see it now….
Goldy spent his entire elementary school career being bitch-slapped for his lunch money by a younger girl!!
Hey Goldy–somebody posted a comment using Mr. Cynical @ #39 on the last post and it wasn’t me. Please check the thread coming in. I’ll bet it was Don or someone of his ilk.
Goldy–when you stuff a bunch of LEFTY blogs in our face, you should expect to be picked on. Those were valid observations of your ilk and you know it! Nice try in acting “offended” but no sale. I’ll bet you got a few chuckles.
Did you notice that you proved my point about Lefty’s have no sense of humor (and no sense period for that matter).
I really giggle when I read about you lecturing us on BLOG MORALITY while calling people PRICKS! It’s cute. At least Don is willing to slug it out a bit…although he has many times shown us his fragile, feminine side.
Anyway, God Bless all you Left WingNut Whacko’s.
I gotta work and pay taxes for a$$holes like to you piss away on BS and other fecal, feel-good stuff.
I’m such a jerk all the time now. I can’t post without being obnoxious and insulting.
My whole is existence is dedicated to insulting people I disagree with.
I’m neglecting my clients. My family.
I can’t stop! I can’t stop!
Cynical @7,
You know full well it is not word choice I object to. I object to threads being intentional taken off-topic so that you and JCH (you two are the worst offenders) can just spew your garbage with incessant, repeated non-sequitor insults. And as to somebody spoofing your name… I’ll look into it, but there’s little I can do in the current unregistered environment unless they are a regular using a static IP. And I must say, it is ironic having you complain about a breech of blog etiquette.
Cynical’s Conscience @8,
We all know that is a spoof post. Cynical has no conscience.
Bias alert: I work for Microsoft and am a stockholder.
With that caveat, I have to say that I think the “tax dodge” criticism of Microsoft is misplaced. Microsoft has an ethical obligation to maximize the company’s value to stockholders–indeed it’s not only an ethical duty, it’s a legal, fiduciary duty. By law, corporations are required to try to find exactly the kind of tax loopholes that Microsoft uses to legally avoid paying taxes.
It’s more than a little disingenuous to slam a corporation’s ethics for behavior that’s required by law. If you don’t like that behavior, then close the loopholes and/or change the law.
For the record, I’m in favor of a Washington State income tax provided there is a concommitant reduction in sales tax rates.
Since comments are closed on the Pacific Northwest Portal post, I’ll have to use this space to say that the
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dan spews:
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Aaron spews:
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Don spews:
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BULLSH spews:
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Don spews:
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Rick Schaut spews:
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zapporo spews:
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zip spews:
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torridjoe spews:
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zip spews:
Goldy looks like the is another mac user after all.
Is duty to stock holders why MS continues to both move work formerly done in the community here offshore, and bring in a truly extraordinary number of temporary workers from offshore to compete with established members of the community, and generally drive down wages?
Frankly, there’s a lot of lattitude in how a corporation behaves within a community while still meeting its obligation to its stock holders. MS isn’t the worst, but it sure isn’t the best either. MS stock holders shouldn’t be (and probably aren’t) suprised by any of the well deserved licks the corporation receives.
zap @ 6
Does your mother know you’re doing this? Keep it up and you’ll soon be one of those dead Rossi voters. I can hear your arteries hardening all the way over here.
Cyn @ 7
Goldy, do I still have to be good?? I don’t wanna be. :(
WHATS YOUR BITCH YOU DEMOCRATS HAVE NOT EVEN TAPED INTO THE NATIONAL CEMETERY YET. YOU STILL HAVE LOTS OF VOTES LEFT
Bullsh @ 15
The national cemetery voted for Rossi, at least according to you guys it did.
Aaron @13
I’m not going to defend Microsoft here, as I don’t think this is the forum for it. I’m only saying that corporations ought not be blamed for taking advantage of tax loopholes. If you don’t like the loopholes, then close them. In fact, you won’t even get an argument from me against closing the loopholes.
don @14 — Day by day, we’re going to win you over. Just wait. One day while you’re sitting in the lazy-boy you’re gonna get that sudden urge to watch a Ronald Reagan movie, salute a member of our military and thank them for their service to our country and then start belting out the star-spangled banner (in tune no less). That’s when you’ll know for sure that you have left liberal crapdom behind and have moved onward and upward to do the right thing. I can’t wait. See ya there.
Say Goldy, your Blatherwatch friend just seems to be another anti-religion bigot based on his March 1 post. Pass this along to your lefty strategists: slamming religious people is a bad strategy, it alienates more people than you think. No Don, I have no proof of that, opinion only this time Don.
zip @ 19
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anti-religion bigot? Talk about distortion! Here are some of the hateful things he has to say about religion:
Hutcherson helped found Kirkland’s mega Antioch Bible Church and attracts 3000 souls every Sunday with his fiery, funny preaching.
It’s hard to hate “Hutch,” as he likes to be called, and Antioch is a mostly benign world unto itself, providing services like child care, free adoption; ministries for every spiritual pickle you might find yourself in; social groups for every age or ethnic flavor.
I don’t care about someone’s religious peccadilloes, but when they use their wonder-working power hands-on in the political process, I get nervous
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Shockingly abusive, he is!
How you translate a perfectly valid view of politically evangelical Christians, into anti-religious bigotry, is beyond me. This is more of the faux victimhood that many members of the right use as a cudgel in one hand, while decrying the victimhood culture of, say, minorities.
tj:
Many members of any church would find the following quotes offensive:
it’s the same hard-pan, you’re-going-to-hell-if-you-don’t-love-Jesus Christianity that made Jerry Falwell one of the most hated men in America.
The Republicans took over the reins of the Legislature in 1994, but ran roughshod over practicality with a lot of right-wing Christian ideological indulgence and they blew it. Most of the goofballs were defeated by ’96.
Most grass roots Christian fundamentalists don’t really give a damn about politics or government, except in the narrow focus of their parochial moral concerns. Most, like many other Americans, don’t pay attention between Presidential years and only do politically as they’re told by preachers like Hutcherson.
I’d wager that if you polled evangelicals, and could get down to their philosophical short hairs, many–like the kids in the recent poll–would be agreeable to suspending some of those naughty bits in the Constitution. I’ll bet if you framed the question right, they’d find something to love about a little theocracy.
But the time is past when progressive elites can afford to underestimate the wicked combination of anger, ignorance, and god-driven self-righteousness.