– Sorry this is so late. I was out probably too late on Sunday and had to get up early to head down to Olympia on Monday (for this, no report on it since I went as an activist not as a writer). And then I overslept and forgot my computer this morning. Basically, what I’m saying is boo, Carl.
– One thing that I did pick up is that Rodney Tom is a coward. Also, yay there’s someone running against him (Seattle Times link).
– Apparently the Superbowl transit was a mess, and quite avoidable.
– Always nice when a local place gets recognition in a national magazine. Well done Central Cinema (they also had some other NW theaters for food lovers, but CC was the only one I’ve been to).
– I’m not sure exactly what a city needs to buy to have Amazon classify it as romantic, but I’m pretty sure this list is flawed.
More proof that businesses are dishonest: A hotel management firm didn’t disclose that customers’ credit card numbers were stolen. A blogger made it public. Now people are talking about laws to FORCE businesses to reveal that they have allowed thieves to get customers’ personal and financial information — because dishonest businessmen who care more about not losing business than the welfare of their customers won’t do it unless they’re FORCED to do it.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/101388340
There’s no ethics in American business anymore, and hasn’t been for many years. The only thing they care about is profits, the customers be damned.
Hmmm, I checked out that SNAP link, and there’s 30 corporate logos on that flag, representing America’s worst corporate “welfare queens.” I own the stocks of only 8 of them, so I’d better get busy. I invest in the fattest corporate pigs I can find, because they make the most money.
In South Carolina, a 94-year-old retired teacher who had worked with special needs kids, lived in a modest home, and drove a 1980s-vintage Cadillac, left $8.4 million to charity, half of which will go to a no-kill animal shelter. Nobody knew she was rich.
Her hobby was investing in stocks.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....d=webmail1
Bill Nye the Science Guy Debates Ken Ham (the Creationist Guy)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6kgvhG3AkI
1-800-FUCK-YOU Is No Joke
The latest rightwing “joke” making the rounds is that the Obamacare hotline help number spells “1-800-FUCK-YOU.” In fact, it doesn’t; according to Snopes, that number belongs to a phone sex service. The righties can’t even make up a joke without lying about it.
Roger are there any ethics in government? How about in religion? What about in the press?
@7 Yes, there are many ethical people working in government, ministries, and media, and I’ve been privileged to know some of them.
On the other hand, I brought a frozen pizza home from the supermarket a couple nights ago, and when I opened it, the pizza was much smaller than the box it came in. The packaging was deliberately designed to make the pizza look bigger than it is, and conceal how small it actually is. That’s typical of how business is done today.
@5 Thanks for the link! It takes almost 3 hours to watch the debate, but it’s worth the time. About 36 minutes in, Ken Ham, the creationist, runs into what I consider to be a serious logical problem.
Basically, he tries to bifurcate “science” into two categories: Observational and historical. He says “observational” science is what we can directly observe, for example a laboratory experiment, or looking at bacteria with a microscope. “Historical” science is things that happened in the past which we can’t verify from direct observation because we weren’t there to observe them.
His argument, as I understand it, is that we can only know for sure those things we can directly observe ourselves. This sounds awfully like a restatement of the old freshman philosophy question: “If a tree falls in the forest, and there is no one there to see it fall, does it exist?”
Of course it does; the existence of something doesn’t depend on whether any of you stupid humans are aware of its existence or are there to observe it. The notion that something that happened before you stupid humans existed (e.g., the Big Bang) is open to question because there were no humans to observe it is absurd logic. The Big Bang may be open to questions for other reasons, but not for that reason. This is so self-evident it shouldn’t need any discussion.
It sounds awfully like Ham is advocating the same kind of human-centric worldview that used to lead people to believe the sun and planets and everything else in the cosmos orbited around the earth; that earth is the center of the universe because it’s where humans are. Of course, many of you stupid humans’ ancestors actually did believe this nonsense, but that doesn’t mean you stupid humans were even dumber then; this belief system was a product and phenomenon of the culture that existed at the time.
Seems like the 787 is having production issues again. The machinists having to fix issues on fuselage sections that had arrived in Everett.
http://seattletimes.com/html/b.....onxml.html
@10 Yep, build it in South Carolina with cheap non-union labor; fix it in Everett with skilled union labor.
You get what you pay for.
Responding to criticism that his Super Bowl interview was a re-hashing of Partisan ‘scandal’, Bill “The Clown” O’Reilly:
Bill, I don’ think you know what media bias is? I’ll deal with the IRS ‘Scandal.” Because most non-Republicans understand that after Darryl Issa’s biased investigation we still know that the IRS was scrutinizing groups who’s names suggested they were engaging in politics and thus ineligible for the tax status to which they applied AND that scrutinized groups consisted of both left and right groups and ONLY far right partisans are unable to accept the quite obvious evidence of such, Americans should be interested in this question.
In other words, because I Bill O’Reilly and Fox News are still claiming this is a scandal, this is a scandal. In other words, I Bill O’Reilly have come to a conclusion and so you must listen to my conclusion. In other words, I, Bill O’Reilly have inserted my biased views into my news gathering.
beeTeeDub, If you didn’t see the Daily Show Opening last night, it’s well worth your time….Squirrel!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....31846.html
Double shared Toilets. Vicious Anti Gay Bigotry. Hotels not finished. And now the reality that every single visitor will be hacked by criminals within 24 hours. The Russians are putting on a terrible Olympics.
P.S. Yes, I know the NSA is spying on us, but the NSA is not using my credit cards.
RR @9,
You’re welcome.
I haven’t had a chance to get all the way through the debate, but what I haven’t heard yet was the Evolutionary Biology argument which I think is the strongest argument Nye could use.
Current biological research uses the theory of evolution to make predictions and to direct their research. Why? Because it is a tool that speeds up their research. Or stated another way, IT WORKS.
These same biologists when asked about “Creationism” respond with “show us how it can be used as a tool to speed our research and we will use it”.
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
@15 Nye did make the evolutionary biology argument, and he also said creationism can’t predict anything whereas science can.
Ham’s position on evolutionary biology basically was that while all different types of dogs evolved from a single type of dog, different “kinds” of animals were created, so dogs and cats don’t have a common biological ancestors; dogs were always dogs and cats were always cats. He also said all animals originally were vegetarians before original sin was committed, and that original sin turned some animals into flesh-eaters. Also, if Nye asked Ham what his evidence was for an assertion, Ham’s answer basically was “the Bible says so.”
Republicans steal from everyone else, so why not steal from Democratic campaign donors, too?
http://www.dailykos.com/story/.....tail=email
Where’s my Bible…flip, flip, flip…
Nothing on creationism.
But what is this???!!! GOATBOY must be sacrificed or there won’t be a second coming of Christ or the Rapture. Anybody want to challenge my interpretation of the Bible?
RR @18,
We could borrow from the RETHUGS on that theme. Get the RETHUGS to donate to our secret PAC and we will work diligently to convert good Dems to the cause.
What we don’t say is that we are the good Dems and the cause is us getting rich on their dime. Works for me.
Heh I didn’t say it, they are saying what I’ve been telling you! Read it and weep
AMERICA’S DEBT
Interest on debt to nearly quadruple over decade – CBO
By Jeanne Sahadi @CNNMoney February 4, 2014
NEW YORK (CNNMoney)
For the next few years, deficits are looking pretty good. But the interest owed on the country’s cumulative debt is set to nearly quadruple over the next decade.
The Congressional Budget Office projects that interest will be $233 billion this year, or 1.3% as a share of the economy.
By 2024, it will reach $880 billion, or 3.3% of GDP. That means interest will account for the lion’s share of the $1.1 trillion deficit projected for that year and will come close to what will be spent on Medicare.
Interest costs will jump for two reasons. The first is the improving economy, which is expected to push what have been historically low interest rates to higher, more typical levels.
The second reason is that the underlying debt will remain very large and continue to grow.
Related: Deficit continues to drop sharply
The CBO projects that under current policies, public debt will reach $21 trillion — or 79% of GDP — by 2024. That would be its highest level in more than 75 years and would leave debt at nearly double its long-term average of 40% of GDP.
The thing about large and growing interest payments is that they consume tax revenue that could otherwise be spent on the country’s priorities.
In contrast to the rapid growth of interest spending, outlays for defense programs and domestic programs — such as education, infrastructure, disaster relief and law enforcement — are on track to fall to their lowest levels since 1962.
Barring policy changes that better align spending with incoming revenue, the debt — and the interest owed on it — will continue to grow faster than the economy in subsequent decades. That’s a trajectory the CBO describes as “unsustainable”
Jumped under the bus @21,
What do you expect after 34 years of Voodoo Reaganomics? We use to be #1 in the world. Since then it has been a long slow slide toward last place. On the other hand the 1% have been doing better than ever.
If you set the minimum wage today to the equivalent buying power it had in 1980 it would be around $22/hour.
China has a growing middle class.
We have a shrinking middle class.
And 1%ers like RMoney are getting richer.
From Rasmussen Reports of all places…
Obamacare Bad-News Report Not So Bad
All I can say is I loves Owebammaaaaaaaa
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6TcpfBHlbs
Now that I can believe.