Dear Bruins,

Posted on June 5, 2011 by Michael

Come on.

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Thought of the day

Posted on June 4, 2011 by Michael

When I want to communicate poorly, I use emoticons.

<:-)

I think that one is a klan member, but I'm not sure.

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Brian Sabean is an ignorant dick

Posted on June 4, 2011 by Michael

Marlins outfielder Scott Cousins has been receiving death threats from Giants fans ever since this:

That is Giants catcher Buster Posey you see getting rolled over and then writhing in pain. The collision caused a broken leg and strained ankle ligaments. Posey will be out for the rest of the season, dealing a significant blow to the Giants.

Notice what Cousins does after the play. He immediately goes to Posey, putting his arm around him in clear dismay over the result. Cousins made a clean and legal baseball play (much like Pete Rose in that one All-Star game – except this game matters), but he obviously didn’t want to cause harm to another player. Unfortunately, Giants General Manager Brian Sabean is too much of an ignorant dick to recognize all that:

He told KNBR:

“If I never hear from Cousins again, or he doesn’t play another day in the big leagues, I think we’ll all be happy.”

“He chose to be a hero, in my mind. If that’s his flash of fame, that’s as good as it’s going to get, pal.”

And, “We’ll have a long memory.”

The play was clean. Cousins was immediately regretful. He has been hugely regretful in the days since. There is zero reason for there to be bad blood between anyone on the Giants and anyone on the Marlins over this. What’s more, the man has been receiving death threats. Sabean was moronic to make the comments he did. Cousins’ teammates recognize that:

Marlins outfielder Logan Morrison came to Cousins’ defense during an interview Friday on Sirius/XM radio, calling Sabean “wildly unprofessional” for calling out his teammate.

“When has he played in the big leagues? When has he played in the minor leagues?” Morrison said. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but he’s never been in a situation like that. It’s terrible.

“Why would you wish anything like that on anybody?” Morrison continued. “He’s getting death threats from people. This is his hometown, San Francisco. He’s worried about his family and his friends that are there. And now (Sabean) is going to make comments like that? It’s ignorant, it’s inappropriate and he has no idea what the hell he’s talking about.”

Sabean has attempted to contact Cousins, but has done nothing to issue a public apology. He needs to do that if he ever wants any player anywhere in the league to ever respect him again.

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US warns Tanzania over impact of Serengeti road

Posted on June 4, 2011 by Michael

Continuing the conversation on the proposed road through the Serengeti, the US has cautioned Tanzania over its plan:

The Obama administration said Wednesday it has raised concerns with Tanzania’s government about the impact of its plan to build a road through the Serengeti wildlife reserve, which environmentalists say could affect the famed wildebeest migration and threaten endangered species.

The top U.S. diplomat for Africa, Johnnie Carson, said he brought the matter up in meetings with top Tanzanian officials in late April and that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton could revisit the topic when she visits the country this month. Clinton is expected in Tanzania next week as part of a three-nation African tour focused on trade and development that will also include Zambia and Ethiopia.

“We are fully aware of the concerns that have been raised in this country and in other countries about the environmental impact that the trans-Serengeti road will have on the very large, spectacular and almost unique migration of animals from the Serengeti up to the game parks in Kenya,” said Carson, the assistant secretary of state for African affairs.

I’ve never been one to disagree with Johnnie Carson.

When I first heard about this highway, I was under the impression that it would be a paved road through the Serengeti. It turns out it will be dirt, but that is only a small relief. The road still appears unnecessary. For instance, they say it it to connect the west of the country with the economic activity of the Kilimanjaro region, but take a look at this map. It’s actually a relatively small area that will be connected – an area that largely depends upon the fishing on Lake Victoria anyway.

Of course, I’m not expert in the economic layout of Tanzania. But I do know that nothing is worth losing the Serengeti.

Update: A study published in February shows the huge impact this road can have.

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Jack Kevorkian is dead

Posted on June 3, 2011 by Michael

It’s the end of a tremendously ethical man:

Jack Kevorkian built his suicide machine using parts gathered from flea markets and stashed it in a rusty Volkswagen van.

But it was Kevorkian’s audacious attitude that set him apart in the debate over whether gravely ill people could seek help ending their lives. The retired pathologist who said he oversaw the deaths of 130 people burned state orders against him, showed up at court in costume and dared authorities to stop him or make his actions legal. He didn’t give up until he was sent to prison.

Kevorkian, who died Friday at a Michigan hospital at 83, insisted suicide with the help of a medical professional was a civil right.

The justifications for assisted suicide hold up – and they’re consistent. The justification for harvesting the organs of the brain dead, or for allowing those in comas to die with dignity, or even for administering morphine, is fundamentally the same across the board. It is not quantity of life that matters, but rather quality. Kevorkian recognized that where so many were so stubbornly blind and ignorant. He will be missed.

“You’ll hear people say, `Well, [physician assisted suicide] in the news again, it’s time for discussing this further.’ No, it isn’t. It’s been discussed to death,” he told The Associated Press. “There’s nothing new to say about it. It’s a legitimate, ethical medical practice as it was in ancient Rome and Greece.”

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Romney fact check

Posted on June 3, 2011 by Michael

It’s sad that this is probably the best the Republicans can actually do:

ROMNEY: “Instead of encouraging entrepreneurs and employers, [Obama] raises their taxes, piles on record-breaking mounds of regulation and bureaucracy and gives more power to union bosses.”

THE FACTS: Romney ignores ambitious tax-cutting pushed by Obama. The stimulus plan early in his presidency cut taxes broadly for the middle class and business. He more recently won a one-year tax cut for 2011 that reduced most workers’ Social Security payroll taxes by nearly a third. He also campaigned in support of extending the Bush-era tax cuts for all except the wealthy, whose taxes he wanted to raise. In office, he accepted a deal from Republicans extending the tax cuts for all. As for tax increases, Obama won congressional approval to raise them on tobacco and tanning salons. The penalty for those who don’t buy health insurance, once coverage is mandatory, is a form of taxation. Several large tax increases in the health care law have not yet taken effect.

Romney, of all people, ought to recognize that the only form of tax anyone has seen from President Obama is in the form of health insurance penalties in the years to come. And that’s even going to save money across the board. The fact is, taxes under President Obama are lower than they ever were under that average president Ronald Reagan. I know this upsets Republicans, but the facts are the facts.

ROMNEY: “The expectation was that we’d have to raise taxes but I refused. I ordered a review of all state spending, made tough choices and balanced the budget without raising taxes.”

THE FACTS: Romney largely held the line on tax increases when he was Massachusetts governor but that’s only part of the revenue story. The state raised business taxes by $140 million in one year with measures branded “loophole closings,” the vast majority recommended by Romney. Moreover, the Republican governor and Democratic lawmakers raised hundreds of millions of dollars from higher fees and fines, taxation by another name. Romney himself proposed creating 33 new fees and increasing 57 others — enough to raise $59 million. Anti-tax groups were split on his performance. The Club for Growth called the fee increases and business taxes troubling. Citizens for Limited Taxation praised him for being steadfast in supporting an income tax rollback.

I know Romney will never get the Republican nomination if he sticks by his record, but he would be more likely to get my vote.

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Thought of the day

Posted on June 3, 2011 by Michael

The great corporations which we have grown to speak of rather loosely as trusts are the creatures of the State, and the State not only has the right to control them wherever need of such control is shown but it is in duty bound to control them.

~Teddy Roosevelt

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Rand Paul used to understand libertarianism

Posted on June 2, 2011 by Michael

Last year Rand Paul made some politically stupid, but perfectly libertarian comments:

INTERVIEWER: Would you have voted for the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

PAUL: I like the Civil Rights Act in the sense that it ended discrimination in all public domains, and I’m all in favor of that.

INTERVIEWER: But?

PAUL: You had to ask me the “but.” I don’t like the idea of telling private business owners—I abhor racism. I think it’s a bad business decision to exclude anybody from your restaurant—but, at the same time, I do believe in private ownership. But I absolutely think there should be no discrimination in anything that gets any public funding, and that’s most of what I think the Civil Rights Act was about in my mind.

Shortly after that comment, however, Teabaggers and other like-minded individuals (i.e., the Republican party…because, come on, they’re the same thing) distanced themselves from Paul. Unbeknownst to all the pseudo-libertarians out there, Paul was perfectly in line with their (espoused) ideology. He didn’t say he favored racism. He said he favored allowing it. One can maintain a position within the ethics of libertarianism whilst at the same time believing the follow-through to that position to be immoral. Not that I think allowing for racism in that context is acceptable, but I want to present a pretty straight-forward analysis of what libertarianism entails; Paul was being consistent.

Unfortunately, that consistency appears to have worn off:

I’m not for profiling people on the color of their skin, or on their religion, but I would take into account where they’ve been traveling and perhaps, you might have to indirectly take into account whether or not they’ve been going to radical political speeches by religious leaders. It wouldn’t be that they are Islamic. But if someone is attending speeches from someone who is promoting the violent overthrow of our government, that’s really an offense that we should be going after — they should be deported or put in prison.

This has zero connection with libertarianism. Free speech composes a cornerstone of not only the U.S. constitution, but also much of libertarianism (especially as the ethical theory pertains to politics). That Paul would go and say something so stupidly inconsistent makes it quite clear that he really could only ever be elected in the South.

Now just wait and see how many of his pseudo-libertarian brethren don’t distance themselves from him.

Filed under: Politics and Social | Tagged: , | 6 Comments »

Weiner’s picture

Posted on June 2, 2011 by Michael

Making a pun on his name is too easy.

Unless Rep. Anthony Weiner starts preaching about so-called “family values” or how we need to curb the use of making bad decisions with cameras, I do not care that he sent a picture of his junk to some girl. I also didn’t care that Clinton got a blowjob from some intern. Nor did I care when Tiger Woods slutted things up. Or when Brett Favre, misspelled last name and all, sent his limp noodle to that TV host? Nope, didn’t care about that either.

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Thought of the day

Posted on June 1, 2011 by Michael

Value is born of action.

Filed under: Misc | Tagged: , | 1 Comment »

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