Oops--Rick Perry drops out

Before I could pick a drink in honor of Rick Perry for Paul Wartenberg's GOP Debate Drinking Game for 2016 But For the September 2015 Foofaraw In Particular to join the list in Drinks and drinking games for Donald Trump and the GOP debates, Proof of drinking game concept on Kasich, Drinks for the candidates in tonight's debate, and Debate drinking game rules for Carly Fiorina, Governor Goodhair dropped out of the contest.  Wochit has the report in Rick Perry to End 2016 Bid.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry announced Friday he is suspending his presidential campaign, making him the first Republican candidate to end his 2016 White House bid.

"I am suspending my campaign for the presidency of the United States," Perry is expected to say, according to prepared remarks announcing the end of his campaign. He said in a statement: "We have a tremendous field - the best in a generation - so I step aside knowing our party is in good hands, and as long as we listen to the grassroots, the cause of conservatism will be too."

"I share this news with no regrets. It has been a privilege and an honor to travel this country, to speak with the American people about their hopes and dreams, to see a sense of optimism prevalent despite a season of cynical politics."

That wasn't all.  Follow over the jump for Perry's parting shots at Trump, who stands to benefit from Perry's exit, and the effects on the debate.

Silly Sustainability Saturday for 9-10-11

Time for another tour through the lighter side of sustainability this week, with sustainability news that is funny, silly (including just plain stupid), fun, or simply positive. This week's news features Next Media Animation, the Rachel Maddow Show, Think Progress Green, and Girst; it begins over the jump.

Next Media Animation on Canada leaving the Kyoto Protocol, plus a Rick Perry joke

Over at Daily Kos, I posted the following on December 10th as the headline and top story for my diary that night.

Overnight News Digest: Science Saturday (Climate deal reached in Durban! edition)

This week's featured story, which is breaking news, comes from Reuters.

U.N. climate talks seal legal pact on global warming
...

U.N. climate change talks agreed on a pact on Sunday that for the first time would force all the biggest polluters to take action to slow the pace of global changing.

The deal follows years of failed attempts to impose legally-binding, international cuts on emerging giants, such as China and India.

The developed world had already accepted formal targets under a first phase of the Kyoto Protocol, which runs out at the end of next year, although the United States had never ratified its commitment.

After days of emotional debate, the chairwoman of the United Nations climate talks urged delegates to approve four packages, which have legal force.

Now, that's a great Holiday present for the environment!

Looks like my celebration was premature, as a couple days later, Canada pulled out of the Kyoto Protocol. I'll let Next Media Animation tell the story.

Canada is withdrawing from the Kyoto Protoco on climate change, Environment Minister Peter Kent said Monday, abandoning its 1997 commitment to cut emissions 6% below 1990 levels by 2102 and cementing the transformation of the country's image as a global leader in the fight against climate change into what critics are calling a "climate renegade."

By 2009 Canada's emissions were 17 percent above 1990 levels. Canada faced nearly $14 billion in penalties for failing to reduce greenhouse emissions if it had remained a signatory to the Kyoto accord.

The Kyoto Protocol was signed by the Liberal Party, and Canada's current Conservative government has made it clear since 2006 that it had no intention of honoring the Kyoto pact, in part because it does not cover major emitters of greenhouse gases such as the US and China.

Remember what I wrote in Next Media Animation on the Keystone XL pipeline?

I've decided that protesting the concept of the Keystone XL pipeline is futile to the point of being less than useless, as the Canadians would just sell the oil to the Chinese, something the video points out. Therefore, opposing the pipeline as a way of slowing down the exploitation of one of the most carbon dioxide emitting ways of getting oil out of the ground is a waste of time. It's going to be extracted one way or another and opposing the pipeline means that China will benefit from it instead of the U.S. Meanwhile, the global commons will still suffer.

I wrote that before the Canadian decision to abandon Kyoto, which means I shouldn't have been surprised with the decision. What Canada did was perfectly consistent with what I wrote back in November. They're bound and determined to extract the oil out of the Alberta tar sands and to Hell with the rest of the planet.

Speaking of "to Hell with the rest of the planet," Rick Perry chimed in on Keystone XL.

He was at it again Wednesday, talking about the need to build the Keystone Xl pipeline that would link Canada’s oil sands development in Alberta with the U.S. Gulf Coast.

“Every barrel of oil that comes out of those sands in Canada is a barrel of oil we don’t have to buy from a foreign source,” Perry told a campaign stop in Clarinda, Iowa.

Does he not know that Canada is a sovereign country?

A friend of mine posted that quote on his Facebook wall as evidence that Rick Perry is that stupid. I agreed.

Not only is Perry dumb, but he's trying to use "foreign" as a dog whistle. Canada may be another country, but it's not "foreign" in the same way that Venezuela, Russia, Nigeria, Indonesia, or Saudi Arabia are.

My friend thought that I was giving Perry too much credit. I decided to agree, and left the conversation with a joke, which I later tweeted.

Yeah, Perry really is Bush without the brains.
...
A zombie is walking along the street in Austin, moaning "Brains." It sees Rick Perry and turns around.

It turns out that's not a completely original joke.




However, it is the first time it's been applied to Rick Perry, or the other GOP candidates, as far as Google and I can tell. Hey, I'm an environmentalist, I recycle.

Rick Perry nominated to lead department he wanted to eliminate but couldn't name

Five years ago, this happened.


As I wrote at the time, "Sorry, Governor, the correct answer was 'What is the Department of Energy?'"

Yesterday, this happened: Rick Perry once wanted to abolish the Energy Department. Trump picked him to run it.

That brain fart ended Perry’s presidential aspirations in 2012. But it wasn’t the end of the story: Donald Trump has reportedly picked Rick Perry to lead the Energy Department, the very agency he once kinda sorta wanted to get rid of. And while it’s not clear that Perry still wants to abolish the DOE, the climate-denying, fossil fuel–loving former governor from Texas is likely to usher in major changes to this key agency.
...
Donald Trump’s transition team, for its part, has generally signaled that it wants to tilt the Energy Department’s focus away from renewables and back toward programs that support oil and gas drilling (and possibly nuclear power). And Rick Perry — an inveterate climate denier who was governor for 15 years of one of America’s most important oil and gas states — is a natural fit to do just that.

I should be more appalled at what Perry's policies are likely to do to the environment, but I can't help but laugh at the sheer irony of Perry as Energy Secretary.  Given what the rest of Trump's Cabinet of Deplorables looks like, Perry looks relatively reasonable, if in a conventionally awful way.  Besides, Ex-Governor Goodhair is a good stuck clock, so he's right twice a day.  After all, he said this about his boss-to-be.


And this:


He's still right about both things he said about Trump.  I just hope he remembers them.  I will.

Seth Meyers and John Oliver on coal and hawks for Cut Your Energy Costs Day and Save the Eagles Day

Happy National Cut Your Energy Costs Day and Save the Eagles Day!  These are the two national days I promised to celebrate at the end of both 'Wonder Woman' joins 'The Shape of Water' and 'Get Out' among PGA film and TV nominees and 'The Shape of Water' and 'Coco' -- fantasy and diversity both winners at the Golden Globes.  Instead of celebrating energy conservation, I'm celebrating something that will reduce the cost of energy.  Newsy reports Commission Shuts Down Rick Perry's Proposal To Prop Up Coal, Nuclear.

The Federal Energy Regulation Commission rejected Perry's proposal to subsidize coal and nuclear plants.

Yes, that was a dumb idea that was going to add carbon dioxide, soot, mercury, and radiation to the atmosphere and cost Americans more money, too.  It was such a dumb idea that Seth Meyers made fun of it and Perry in The Check In: Rick Perry and the Department of Energy.

Seth checks in on Rick Perry, the man President Trump chose to lead the Department of Energy, an agency that Perry once wanted to abolish.

The last time I posted Seth Meyers making fun of Perry, I told my readers to expect Aggie jokes whenever I blogged about him again.  I think the clips Meyers used satisfy that promise.

Meyers mentioned Bob Murray and Murray Energy, which reminded me that I mused about "following up on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver's 'Coal,'" which won Television Episodic Comedy at the 2017 Environmental Media Association Awards for film and television.  Murray and his company play a major role in that segment, so I think now is the opportune time to post it.  Follow over the jump.

Seth Meyers takes a closer look at Trump and climate change

In the middle of Rick Perry nominated to lead department he wanted to eliminate but couldn't name, I noted that I should have been more upset.

I should be more appalled at what Perry's policies are likely to do to the environment, but I can't help but laugh at the sheer irony of Perry as Energy Secretary.  Given what the rest of Trump's Cabinet of Deplorables looks like, Perry looks relatively reasonable, if in a conventionally awful way.

Last night, Seth Meyers examined more of Trump's Cabinet of Deplorables and their effect on the enviroment in What Trump's Presidency Means for Climate Change: A Closer Look.

Seth takes a closer look at the affect [effect] Donald Trump's cabinet picks might have on climate change.

Of course Meyers made fun of Rick Perry, as quoted by The Huffington Post.

Citing a Daily Beast story, Meyers noted that while in college Perry apparently got two C grades, a D and an F in chemistry, a C in physics, and a D in “Meat.”

“How do you get a D in Meat?” Meyers asked. “Are you a Chipotle?”

No, he's an Aggie, one who lives down to the stereotype lampooned in Aggie jokes.*

Salon's story featured more serious quotes.

“Trump confirmed everyone’s fears by scouring the country to find the worst possible choice to head the Environment Protection Energy: Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt,” Meyers said.

As I wrote, a Cabinet of Deplorables.  As for Trump himself...

“Trump’s past statements on climate change have not been promising, like his infamous claim that the concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese, as opposed to Trump, who was created by and for the Russians,” Meyers noted.

I might have more on Trump and Putin's Bad Bromance in tomorrow's celebration of Festivus.  It's perfect for an airing of grievances.  Stay tuned.

*I first became acquainted with my ex-wife by telling Aggie jokes.  She went to the University of Texas, so she had lots of them.  The odd thing is that, other than Perry, all of the Texas A&M alums I've met were nice, intelligent people who didn't deserve the jokes told about them.  Perry does, though, so expect me to tell Aggie jokes from now on when I write about him.

The first year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News: Part 7 of several

It's been three months since the previous installment of this series, The first year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News: Part 6 of several.

As for what I'll write about next, there are the two other posts I wrote especially for Kunstler's readers that were built around New York Times articles. Both of them discuss Detroit as a tourist destination, a topic I return to occasionally. There's also a post about Dominionism and what they really believe. Finally, there are posts that were in the top ten between January 1st and March 21st, but which fell out by the time I compiled the list. That should take care of the series.

That post about Dominionism was really about the behavior of the audience at the GOP debates, as I mentioned in Ron Paul rides off into the sunset.

The most popular of them was Tell me now, which deity do the Dominionists really worship?, which ended up being the seventh most popular post of the first year of this blog, with 310 page views and two comments as of March 31st.** That was the one in which I quoted AmericaBlog's description of a Think Progress video of a GOP debate, which read:

The largest audience cheers in the Republican presidential debate came when Wolf Blitzer asked Ron Paul whether he wanted an uninsured 30 year old with a treatable disease to die because he didn't have health insurance. You can hear the crowd shout, "let him die."

... **It now has 315 page views and four comments. That reminds me, it's time to do that article's retrospective, but not in this post.

It's time to continue, especially since it turns out it's on topic for today, the day of the last debate between major party candidates.

Ron Paul rides off into the sunset

Ron Paul suspended his campaign the day before yesterday. WOOD-TV used that piece of news to begin And then there were two.






This makes for the fourth GOP candidate for whom I've bothered to make a label on this blog to leave the race. In honor of this occasion, I will bid him adieu, just as I did when Gingrich, Santorum, and Cain exited the contest. Join me over the fold for Ron Paul's greatest hits on Crazy Eddie's Motie News.

Science and society for the week ending July 16, 2011

Here are the leftovers from my linkspam source--two stories about anti-science decisions by politicians where they are using austerity as a weapon against sustainability, two articles about how one particular anti-science politician responds to a sustainability issue instead of science, then two stories about the science behind the mentality of people who would make such decisions. As you can probably figure out, I'm not in a mood to be nice today.

First, the anti-science decisions, which tie into The end of an era: last space shuttle mission.

LOL, Robert Morrow

Here is another post in the vein of Christine O'Donnell's "Troublemaker" living down to its name, which isn't about sustainability in Detroit, but does fit the Nablopomo theme of Fiction and the listing of this blog under politics on the Nablopomo blogroll. Also, it's about an intra-Tea-Party spat. Since I see the Tea Partiers as obstacles to achieving sustainability, it's not as off-topic as one might first think.

Go over the jump to see why I labeled this one "Fiction." Believe me, it deserves it.

Both Chris Matthews and one of his guests talk about Dominionism

Both of these clips are mostly about something else, but Dominionism as an important strain in contemporary right-wing U.S. politics make cameo appearances near their ends.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Defining Obama's relationship to Israel.

Although this segment is primarily about the issues President Obama has with Jewish voters and donors and attempts by Republicans such as Rick Perry to exploit any potential rift between the President and a significant portion of the Democratic voter base, it turns into something else near the end. Starting about 7:30, Chris Matthews starts talking about Perry, Bachmann, and Palin as being part of a movement to establish a "Christian theocracy." He then mentions Dominionism about 8:00. He returns to the idea of Christians "taking dominion" just before 9:00.

I was stunned.  While I might expect to hear something like this out of Rachel Maddow or Keith Olbermann, I never expected to hear words like these pass the lips of someone who is as much a media insider as Chris Matthews. Apparently, when Matthews read "The Rogue" by his next guest, he encountered these concepts. You can tell that had an effect on him.

Speaking of his next guest, here's the clip featuring Joe McGinnis.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Latest Palin book sparks controversy.

Matthews again brings up "Christians having dominion" and "theocracy" about the 4:50 mark. In response, Joe McGinnis talks about the importance of religion in Sarah Palin's political views, which is Dominionist Christianity and how neither she nor the religious movement she belongs to believe in separation of Church and State.

I'm glad someone in the mainstream media is paying attention to Dominionism.

For earlier posts of mine on Dominionism, read the following.

Found the perfect cartoon for "Which deity do Dominionists worship?"

Tell me now, which deity do the Dominionists really worship?

Meta on Rick Perry's Dominionism

Kunstler thinks the Left is ignoring Dominionism; I tell him we're not

Looks it's time to add a Dominionism label.

Kunstler thinks the Left is ignoring Dominionism; I tell him we're not

Full-sized original by Nonnie9999 at Hysterical Raisins as Theocrazy

Yesterday, James Howard Kunstler dropped the following paragraph in the middle of his weekly missive of impending doom.

Given the situation, it's not unthinkable that self-styled Texas secessionist Rick Perry could be the next president. On top of that, the guy is a Christian Dominionist nut. This outfit wants to capture all politics, culture, and media in what is now the USA and turn them into a sci-fi nightmare of correct thinking. You have no idea how dangerous and determined this group is. The Left ignores them at the peril of everyone. They are the corn-pone Nazis I've been warning you about.

I couldn't resist responding to him, by telling him he was wrong--not about Perry, but about what passes for the Left in the United States--in the most encouraging way possible.

I'm glad to see Jim call out Perry and the Dominionists for what they are--corn-pone fascists who have appeared in America exactly as Upton Sinclair predicted, carrying a cross and wrapped in the flag. In fact, I'm glad that he used the word Dominionist at all. It turns out that it's only the second time he has in this blog, the first being more than four years ago. [You can find that first time here; scroll down to The Big Chill, the entry for February 19, 2007] I bet a lot of you weren't reading him back then. I know I wasn't...

A good chunk of the Left is taking the Dominionists seriously. People on Daily Kos have been writing about them for at least five years. In fact, two of the most read diaries yesterday were about Dominionists and the long-term threat they pose to democracy. That fear is one of the reasons that a lot of people on the Left are scared out of their wits by Perry (and Bachmann and Palin). Now, if only the Democratic Party leadership would listen to the DFHs. The hippies have been right before.

It ended up being three of the most read diaries on Daily Kos for the past two days.

Meta on Rick Perry's Dominionism

I reposted Kunstler thinks the Left is ignoring Dominionism; I tell him we're not to all the forums I thought it might be appropriate, including the anti-Dominionist communities on both LiveJournal and Dreamwidth and Daily Kos. The Daily Kos version, which I retitled as Rick Perry's Dominionism is getting noticed was the number one diary on Daily Kos that day, with 362 recommendations, 156 comments, 1926 views by registered users, and an impact of 3.88 as of 6 AM EDT yesterday. Currently, it has 389 recommendations and 178 comments. All this for something I wrote to do something useful during a bout of insomnia after only two hours sleep. It all goes to show one never knows what will be well-received.

Silly Sustainability Saturday: Boobs and Haboobs

I had the following idea last Saturday.

I've collected a handful of really goofy stories with sustainability and food angles this week that deserve their own post instead of being buried in part three of a sustainability news linkspam, so I'm introducing what might become a regular feature here. Besides, I like the alliteration of the title.

After a week of generally downbeat sustainability stories with few upbeat ones, I decided to keep this going. We all could use a laugh, especially at the expense of the enemies of sustainability.

This week, the subject is the irrational response of climate change deniers to obvious signs of climate change.

For starters, here's a humorous take on a pair of climate change denying governors, Rick Perry of Texas and Mary Fallin of Oklahoma praying for rain, courtesy of Nonnie 9999 at Hysterical Raisins.

To the tune of Who’ll Stop the Rain, written by John Fogerty, as performed by Creedence Clearwater Revival:

A natural disaster, drives a lot of folks insane,
They drop to their knees faster, yeah, that old trick again,
The rainman down in Georgia, ex-Governor Perdue,
In aught 7, he looked to heaven, not one drop of dew.

Down in Oklahoma, the land is mighty dry,
You don’t need a diploma, to try and figure why,
It hasn’t rained in ages, at least last time I checked,
So Mary’s sayin’, please start prayin’, let’s genuflect.

Meanwhile, down in Texas, the drought is everywhere,
So the governor is prayin’, (when not grooming his hair,)
It’s a good thing Little Ricky, has a hotline to the Lord,
Don’t knuckle under, pray for thunder, rain’s our reward.

G-d may be telling Rick Perry to run for president but He is not setting him straight on climate change.

Speaking of G-d, here is the latest from someone who doesn't claim that G-d speaks to him, but does advertises himself as having "talent on loan from G-d," courtesy of Think Progress.

Second day of WXYZ on the Michigan Republican Primary

Here are some videos that didn't make it into The GOP Circus returns to town, one because it was posted to WXYZ's YouTube account after the I posted yesterday's entry, one because it wasn't relevant then, and three simply because I missed them the first time. Here they are.

First, some old news, the state of the race three days ago.






Dead heat in GOP race

That was three days ago. The polling situation changed rapidly enough in two days that WXYZ posted a follow-up clip yesterday.






Rick Santorum has a lead in Michigan over Mitt Romney

Someone actually gave this video a dislike rating, which is rare for WXYZ videos on YouTube. Based on the one comment so far, it probably was a Democrat, although one might have expected that it was a Romney supporter.

Santorum may be the front-runner in the polls, but Romney is still being targeted by Democrats for his positions, as expressed in a TV ad and op-ed piece in the Detroit News about the auto bailout.






Speaking of the auto bailout, here's the most recent piece of news to come out about its aftermath.

General Motors Company announced Thursday a net income for the 2011 calendar-year attributable to common stockholders of $7.6 billion.

That came out two days after Romney doubled down on his opposition to the bailout. As Rick Perry would say, oops.

Finally, Rick Santorum gets his time in the spotlight, just like Romney did.

7 Action News reporter Julie Banovic speaks one-on-one with Republican Presidential candidate Rick Santorum.

If you get bored listening to Frothy, concentrate on his nose and notice that, like the person it belongs to, it turns to the right.

Jim Gilmore gone after losing to Vermin Supreme

What do all of the people in the above photograph have in common?  All of them were in the first undercard debate and all of them have now dropped out of the contest to be the Republican nominee for President.  Carly Fiorina left this week along with Chris Christie.  Rick Santorum split last week along with Rand Paul and Mike Huckabee. George Pataki packed it in and Lindsey Graham left in December.  Bobby Jindal said good-bye in November.  The candidate most ahead of the curve was Rick Perry, who said 'Oops' in September.  The last candidate to leave was the man farthest away from the camera.  Wochit News has the story in Jim Gilmore Withdraws From Presidential Race.

Former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore on Friday suspended his presidential campaign, shrinking the Republican field to six. Gilmore barely registered in polls and received zero percent of votes in the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. Gilmore, governor from 1998 to 2002, said he will support the Republican presidential nominee. Gilmore's campaign said in a statement that "the difficulty of the debate structure combined with the national media coverage of the candidates made it impossible for him to continue his campaign for the presidency."

I was wondering when he'd quit.  Maybe it was getting fewer votes than Vermin Supreme, who got 256 votes in the Democratic Primary, good enough for fourth, while Gilmore got 131 in the Republican Primary, placing him last among active candidates and even behind Rand Paul and Rick Santorum, who had already dropped out.


Here's Vermin Supreme's platform.

1) Mandatory tooth-brushing laws ("Gingivitis has been eroding the gumline of this great nation of ours for long enough and must be stopped.");

2) Time travel research ("I'm the only candidate who is willing to fully fund time travel, go back in time and kill baby Hitler with my bare hands before he's even born.");

3) Zombie preparedness ("I am the only candidate who has a plan to protect America from the imminent zombie invasion and I will be harnessing the awesome power of zombies to create electric energy utilizing the latest in giant hamster wheel technology."); and

4. Free ponies for all Americans ("A federal pony identification system and you must have your pony with you at all times.").

Yeah, if I lost to this guy, I'd be embarrassed enough to quit the race, too.

Speaking of zombie preparedness, "The Walking Dead" returns tomorrow.  Zombies on Valentines Day!

The first year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News: last of nine parts

Here's where I left off yesterday.

There should be one final installment of this project.

Finally, there are posts that were in the top ten between January 1st and March 21st, but which fell out by the time I compiled the list. That should take care of the series.

I've found one and mentioned another, so I already have the next entry half composed.

The first of those articles is Shrinking Detroit in the New York Times by way of the Columbus Dispatch, posted on April 11, 2011, which was in the top 10 during the time frame in question, but was knocked out before the first full year was over.

Here's what I had to say about this entry over at Kunstler's blog.

I suspect the largest political unit that is aware that it is managing contraction is the City of Detroit, where they can't avoid the realization. I blogged about it in THE LATEST INSTALLMENT OF CRAZY EDDIE'S MOTIE NEWS. Of course, Detroit and its collapse and renewal are the subject of more than half the posts on my blog. The topic is, as Spock would say, "fascinating."

That's not very informative. I like my justification for using it better.

[I]t's not every day that the New York Times covers exactly those aspects of Detroit that I cover in this blog. Better yet, it was picked up by the Columbus Dispatch, which doesn't have the 20 article limit before hitting a paywall that the New York Times has. Also, a friend of mine in Columbus posted the link on my Facebook wall. Who am I to refuse a good story when it's dumped in my lap?

Who am I to refuse, indeed? It had plenty of readers. I can't say how many it had when it dropped out of the top ten, but it currently has 580 page views according to the alternative counter on my site, which overcounts the number of readers relative to the one I use for my official top ten. That's 234 more than Detroit as a travel destination? The New York Times, BBC, and Financial Times think so, which has 346 page views using the alternative method and which made the end of year top ten.

The second runner-up is Video clips from last night's Republican debate, which I posted on November 10, 2011. It currently has 433 page views according to the alternative counter. I already mentioned it in The first year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News: Part 7 of several. Here's what I said about it then.

One of the many entries I posted about the GOP debate here in Michigan also cracked the top ten, although briefly, during the primary season, as people Googled it after every debate: Video clips from last night's Republican debate. Unfortunately, the clip of Perry being unable to name a third federal department to eliminate got pulled down, but there is a funnier version still up in Rick Perry blowing his answer to the Jeopardy theme.

That clip is still up.


As I wrote back then, "Sorry, Governor, the correct answer was 'What is the Department of Energy?'"

The listing of the dozen most viewed entries at the end of the first year is now complete, but I'm not done yet. Follow over the jump for the ten most viewed posts from the first year that didn't make the official top ten after January 1, 2012, along with their dates of posting, current page views according to the alternative counter, and the image or video I think best represents each one.

Examiner.com article on tax policy forum

A free public event featuring former presidential economic advisers will be held at U of M's Ross School of Business from 4:00 to 5:30 P.M. on Tuesday, September 18th.
Credit: Andrew Horne on Wikipedia

Former presidential economic advisers discuss Obama, Romney tax policies Tuesday at U of M

If anyone in Washtenaw County wants to hear what the experts think about the tax policies of President Barack Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney, they'll have their opportunity this Tuesday afternoon. That's when three former economic advisers to both Republican and Democratic presidents along with an adviser to John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign will discuss the candidates' tax policies at a free event open to the public on the University of Michigan campus.

"Presidential Election Forums: What's at Stake in the Tax Policy Debate?" will be held from 4:00-5:30 P.M. on Tuesday, September 18th, at the Blau Auditorium of the Ross School of Business, which is at 701 Tappan Street in Ann Arbor. The event is sponsored by the U of M's Office of Tax Policy Research.

The featured speakers include two former Assistant Secretaries of the Treasury, one each from the Reagan and Clinton administrations, a former member of the Council for Economic Advisers under Reagan, and the senior economic adviser to the 2008 McCain campaign.

There may be two former Republican officials at this event, but don't expect either of them to be very sympathetic to Romney's or Ryan's tax plans. One of them is Bruce Bartlett, who has turned against the current GOP tax policies. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about his current views.

In August 2009, Bartlett wrote a piece for the Daily Beast in which he attributed the recession of 2009 to George Bush and Republicans, whose policies he claimed resulted in an inferior record of economic performance to those of President Clinton. In the same editorial, Bartlett wrote that instead of enacting meaningful healthcare reform, President Bush pushed through a costly Medicare drug plan by personally exerting pressure on reluctant conservatives to vote for the program. Bartlett claimed that because reforming Medicare is an important part of getting health costs under control generally, Bush could have used the opportunity to develop a comprehensive health-reform plan and that "[b]y not doing so, he left his party with nothing to offer as an alternative to the Obama plan." Bartlett concluded:

Until conservatives once again hold Republicans to the same standard they hold Democrats, they will have no credibility and deserve no respect. They can start building some by admitting to themselves that Bush caused many of the problems they are protesting.

In his book, The New American Economy: The Failure of Reaganomics and a New Way Forward, Bartlett defends Keynesian economic policies, stating that while supply-side economics was appropriate for the 1970s and 1980s, supply side arguments do not fit contemporary conditions.

During an interview on CNN on August 19, 2011, Bartlett stated that presidential candidate Rick Perry "is an idiot, and I don't think anybody would disagree with that." The comment was in reference to Perry's earlier assertion that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's actions would be "almost treasonous" if the Federal Reserve were to engage in expansionary monetary policy before the 2012 election in order to stimulate the economy.

"Almost treasonous?" Tell that to Wall Street after Bernanke did exactly that.

First Ebola case diagnosed in the U.S.

I lot has happened since I wrote Predictions about Ebola coming true, among them that Ebola has arrived in the U.S.  I was greeted at the start of my evening class with that news, which I confirmed once I finished my lecture.  Here's the story from Reuters from last night: Traveler from Liberia is first Ebola patient diagnosed in U.S. By Julie Steenhuysen and Sharon Begley on Tue Sep 30, 2014 11:11pm EDT.

A man who flew from Liberia to Texas has become the first patient infected with the deadly Ebola virus to be diagnosed in the United States, health officials said on Tuesday, a sign the outbreak ravaging West Africa may spread globally.

The patient sought treatment six days after arriving in Texas on Sept. 20, Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told reporters. He was admitted two days later to an isolation room at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas.

U.S. health officials and lawmakers have been bracing for the eventuality that a patient would arrive on U.S. shores undetected, testing the preparedness of the nation's healthcare system. On Tuesday, Frieden and other health authorities said they were taking every step possible to ensure the virus did not spread widely.

"It is certainly possible someone who had contact with this individual could develop Ebola in the coming weeks," Frieden told a news conference. "I have no doubt we will stop this in its tracks in the United States."

I told my students that not only would the patient be isolated, but those he came in contact with would likely be quarantined.  ABC News shows that to be the case, beginning with EMTs and the ambulance in which they all drove in Health Officials on High Alert After First US Ebola Case.

CDC dispatches a team of disease detectives to Dallas after patient is diagnosed with deadly virus.

The CDC is not playing.

This case has prompted a flurry of follow up stories.  Follow over the jump for the videos that have passed through my YouTube feed during the past eight hours.

John Oliver and Keith Olbermann examine minor party candidates

Earlier this month, I shared how Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers mocked Gary Johnson and Bill Maher warned against voting for him even as newspapers endorsed him.  I pointed out this was exactly what should be happenning in a good year for minor party candidates.

Now, John Oliver spreads the attention and the mirth not only at Johnson, but also Jill Stein and some other minor party candidates for President in Third Parties.

Third party candidates want to be serious contenders, so John Oliver considers them seriously as potential presidents.

What I saw actually made me think better of Gary Johnson.  First, he proved he was smarter and better prepared than Rick Perry.  Asking Perry what three departments he'd eliminate led to his infamous "Oops" moment.  At least Johnson could name them off the top of his head.  Second, I didn't know he climbed Mt. Everest.  Regardless of his politics, that's impressive.  Third, he actually has the right attitude of humility about his accomplishment; one does not conquer the mountain, one merely survives the experience of visiting.  Just the same, his metaphor for expressing himself is downright strange--but that's Johnson.

As for Stein, Oliver shows she can do more musically than play the bongos; she sings better than I expected, although AutoTune may have done wonders for her.  However, Oliver exposes how she is even more tolerant of bad weird ideas than Johnson.  I found that disappointing.

While Oliver came to the conclusion that all of the candidates are flawed, so voting for Johnson, Stein, "Joe Exotic," or any of the candidates in last night's Free and Equal debate will not be any better than voting for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, Keith Olbermann actively warned his viewers against voting for any minor party candidate in This Election is Too Important Not to Vote for Hillary.

Don't like Hillary Clinton? Desperate to change the system? That's fine. But those impulses must wait.

I'm not quite that adamant.  If any of my readers live in a safely Red or Blue state, voting for Johnson, Stein, Darrell Castle, or Evan McMullin will not matter; go right ahead, you're throwing away your vote harmlessly and in the case of Johnson will likely end up qualifying the Libertarians for public election funding.  On the other hand, those who live in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, or Ohio have votes too valuable to waste.  Think hard about your vote this time, and then work to change the system between elections.  That's more likely to get the results minor party voters say they want.

As for Keith, he may be scared, but at least he remembered his tag line--"watch this space."