Blacknell.net

The New NRA

same as the old.

Friday Notes: Cold & Rainy Edition

The bitingly cold part of DC winter came a lot earlier this year.  I blame that, in advance, for my increasingly bitter mood over the next three months.

Majel Barrett, Gene Roddenberry’s wife - and voice of Star Trek ship computers - died yesterday.  I had no idea.  She just finished up the voice work for the upcoming movie a few weeks ago.

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Here’s another illustration of why South Carolina is one seriously screwed up place that no person should have to live in, voluntarily.  Short version of the story at the link: batshit insane South Carolina state politician thinks he’s entitled to his seat, despite losing the election, and the South Carolina legislature appears to be considering giving it to him.  I am not even half joking when I say we should set up an Underground Railroad system to help kids escape from that whackjob state.
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Speaking of batshit insane and kids who don’t deserve it, here’s a story about three undercover cops who bumrushed a 12 year old girl on her front lawn, calling her a prostitute and generally manhandling her.  She fought back, of course, and her parents finally got the police to release her.  You know what comes next, right?  The girl is arrested for assaulting a police officer.   Full story and court case (against the police officers) here.   Great job, guys.

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BoingBoing DDOS’d itself.  Amusing.  (And if that isn’t reason enough to follow the link: more Iraqi Shoe Tosser Animations!)

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It’s not the most technical of explanations, but this is still a neat walkthrough of how Google Earth images are constructed.

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We’re coming up on the ten year anniversary of the adoption of the Euro.  Nice summary history of it here, along with a look at the impact of the adoption of the Euro on Ireland.  A few of you will have noticed (quite painfully, in some cases) that the Pound and Euro have been dancing around parity, lately.  I wonder if Brown’s brave enough to change course and move Britain onto the Euro in such a chaotic economic time.

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James Fallows has a meandering - but quite informative - interview with one of China’s top bankers.  The take away?  “Be nice to the countries that lend you money.”

Keep It Cool

Well

that didn’t take long.

(Completely earned, though.  Good to have such a clear example that Obama’s okay with some kinds of bigotry.)

Cult of Personality

Lyrics.

“A Farewell Kiss, You Dog”

Illinois Trainwreck

Looks like Illinois is certainly living up to its rep:

Gov. Rod Blagojevich was taken into federal custody at his North Side home this morning.

[ . . . ]

A three-year federal corruption investigation of pay-to-play politics in Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s administration has expanded to include his impending selection of a new U.S. senator to succeed President-elect Barack Obama, the Tribune has learned.

This quote - apparently caught on tape - would be funny, if it weren’t so, you know, utterly appalling:

“I’ve got this thing and it’s [expletive] golden, and, uh, uh, I’m just not giving it up for [expletive] nothing. I’m not gonna do it. And, and I can always use it. I can parachute me there.”

Okay, Illinois, let’s set a record for how quickly an incumbent has been ejected from the governor’s mansion.

Update: If it seems that I’m being a bit hasty (and truly, given the demonstrated willingness of the DOJ to do the Republicans’ political dirty work, that would be a fair concern), I urge you to check out the DOJ release itself, or read TPM’s evolving summary coverage of it.  Convincingly damning.

Friday Notes: Monday Edition

You’ve almost certainly heard the news already if you’re interested in Virginia online politics, but I’ll repeat it here - the New Dominion Project is open for business.  It’s a collaborative effort by three  . . . hmm, I can’t exactly call them “fresh” voices, considering that each of them has been at this for a while.  Let’s go with “refreshingly youthful” voices.  I expect good things from them.

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Ah, the holiday season, where we all get to reflect upon and celebrate our priorities and values.

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I had forgotten that Italy will be taking the EU G8 Presidency [ed. note - d'oh] in short order, making the corrupt disaster that is Silvio Berlusconi [slightly] more relevant to our lives

Italian president and media baron Silvio Berlusconi said today that he would use his country’s imminent presidency of the G8 group to push for an international agreement to “regulate the internet”.

Speaking to Italian postal workers, Reuters reports Berlusconi said: “The G8 has as its task the regulation of financial markets… I think the next G8 can bring to the table a proposal for a regulation of the internet.”

Thanks, Italy.

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Vivian Paige laments the loss of her weekly milk & eggs delivery from Yoder Dairies.  I’m with her, if only in spirit.  The last place I had milk delivery was in Nottingham in the mid-80s.

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I am shamed to say that I didn’t lift a glass in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the repeal of Prohibition last Friday (to be clear, I was lifting several glasses in celebration of other things - the anniversary just got lost in the shuffle).  Amit Singh had a brief note about it up at Bearing Drift.  That post kicked off a discussion that turned into an amusing reminder that the (remaining) Republican rank and file are more concerned with the fact that someone somewhere may be enjoying themselves than actually living up to that small government and personal freedom gloss they love to claim.

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Oh, and a begrudging congratulations to the dolts in Louisiana’s 2nd Congressional District, who finally ousted that crook, Rep. William Jefferson (D).  It’s begrudging because that district’s voters apparently weren’t smart enough to do it the last time they had the opportunity.  Anyway, it’s good to see him gone, and terribly amusing to see Minority Leader Rep. John Boehner hold up the Republican winner of that race as “the future” of the Republican Party.   If relying on the Democratic incumbent to get found with a freezer full of cash and indicted is the Republican plan to win, well, I can live with that.  Note also that the winner - Ahn Cao - will be gone in two years.  He may be an entirely competent and decent fellow, but there’s no way a Republican wins reelection in a D+28 district.

Liveblogging the RPV Advance

It’s something of a horror show, but Shaun Kenney’s doing a good job (from my perspective, anyway) of capturing the goings on at the Republican Party of Virginia’s annual “Advance” meeting at the Homestead.  Waldo points out that Shaun’s blog has been blocked at the Homestead.  That, in itself, is a great illustration of the RPV.  Backward, ignorant, and working hard to keep it that way.

He’s Got a Point

TPM catches this Barney Frank quote:

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA): “[Obama's] going to have to be more assertive than he’s been. At a time of great crisis with mortgage foreclosures and autos, he says we only have one president at a time. I’m afraid that overstates the number of presidents we have. He’s got to remedy that situation.”