SlithyTove

Oh, boo-hoo. I'll have a grande of the schadenfreude.

I never liked their over-roasted coffee or their ludicrous prices. I did not care for the impact of their trading practices on third world farmers and the environment, and the way they deliberately forced small local coffee shops out of business by "clustering" their stores in a target neighborhood. I really disliked their rubber-stamped characterless corporate ubiquity and their union-busting.

And the tipping point for me when I completely swore off spending another dime with them was when they made a corporate policy of not allowing anyone with political pamphlets in their stores during the 2004 election...is it possible to be any less true to the ethos of a coffee shop?

http://www.nosweat.org.uk/node/413 posted 07/22/2008 at 11:08:54

Who's WE, descendent of Cengiz?
(Just a 'satirical riff' on your theme -- honest Injun! ;)

For the record...I agree. Sadly. posted 07/17/2008 at 14:36:28

What part of "Let them eat cake" don't you understand?

A la lanterne! posted 07/14/2008 at 20:46:05

I am only saying that Obama will do better by staying on message and maintaining the brand that differentiated him in the first place.

I do not believe it is a coincidence that both enthusiasm and fundraising appear to have flagged soon after his action on FISA. posted 07/14/2008 at 12:32:14

Time to step away from the middle, stop the triangulation, and do what worked from the beginning -- drive for real change and re-energize the millions of NEW voters who could revolutionize the electoral map.

To blazes with pandering to the congenitally "undecided" -- that way ruin lies. You won't get (or lose) enough of them to make a difference no matter what you do. posted 07/14/2008 at 11:18:22

It is amazing what these criminals continue to get away with. Does anyone even remember Bunny Greenhouse, who was similarly demoted and punished for having the temerity to question no-bid contracts and shady practices to steer taxpayer dollars to Cheney's friends at Halliburton?

Here's the earlier reporting by the Washington Post that also went nowhere:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/18/AR2005101801796_pf.html posted 07/14/2008 at 10:59:56

I think Obama's triangulation on FISA, guns, faith-based initiatives and the like is the reason fundraising is a "bit slow" as you so quaintly put it. And it's only going to get worse. posted 07/10/2008 at 07:27:44

For crying out loud...

How many more examples like this do we need before we realize it is IMPERATIVE that we adopt Instant Runoff Voting (www.fairvote.org) to totally eliminate the effect of spoilers, and avoid the wasted time and high costs that revotes entail?

Added bonus -- Ralph Nader can run all he wants without upsetting the apple cart. posted 07/09/2008 at 10:52:42

Plenty of precedent...vide James Carville and Mary Matalin. posted 07/09/2008 at 11:05:27

Would the Secret Service take a joke about killing him just as blithely? posted 07/08/2008 at 22:37:06

It's no surprise that Bush and McCain both chose to laud a Chinese-made petroleum-derivative product of (literally) pedestrian design as a Republican ideal.

And could we please put a stop to the ludicrous overuse of the term "meme" on this site? Richard Dawkins's coinage has suffered quite enough at the hands of blogger Malaprops. posted 07/07/2008 at 23:13:56

This is so sad. My condolences to his family.

What is even sadder is that the circumstance of Dwyer's death, far from being an unfortunate but isolated incident, fits an escalating and statistically significant pattern of self-destructive behavior in Iraq war veterans, particularly when denied adequate mental health support.

We must recognize and make clear what the total cost of this war is, in both human and economic terms -- materiel, logistics, combat pay and nation-building bills are merely the tip of the iceberg.

I'd like to see a special gas tax create a fund to cover the costs of supporting physically and mentally disabled soldiers and their families, to keep the true cost of this absurd war in the public eye rather than continuing this shell-game charade of 'emergency funding' outside the budget. THAT'S how we could put our money where the magnetic ribbons on our Hummers are, and really "support our troops". posted 07/07/2008 at 18:21:49

it's NOT okay.

It is very important that phone companies receive condign punishment NOW, so that the right precedent is set and institutions and individuals do not blithely do similar things in the future figuring there will always be a get-out-of-jail-free card.

Let's not start down this 'politics as usual' road of triangulation, pandering and appeasement, with guns, FISA, faith-based programs and their ilk. You are losing people and lowering the energy of your supporters to more than offset any gains such moves bring you politically.

I can feel a marked deterioration in the Force. posted 07/04/2008 at 13:30:44

Oh, for crying out loud, Obama!

This is the latest in an emerging pattern of the same spineless, manipulating triangulation that Hillary justifiably caught so much flak for. This is not change. This is about as usual as politics can get.

DON'T...DO...THIS. You are beginning to lose me, and a boatload of committed, energized people. posted 07/01/2008 at 16:06:32

The US State Department ghost-writes no-bid contracts on behalf of major oil companies. The oil companies ghost-write a top-secret energy policy on behalf of the US government and its people. Sounds like free trade at work.

Withdraw the military. Let Halliburton and the oil companies pay Blackwater for muscle at Erik's Prince-ly rates. Let the former in turn charge Blackwater at inflated Pentagon-approved rates for materiel and logistics support, and without all those inefficient and pesky detailed invoices.

Stop making the taxpayer the patsy -- won't this resonate with the libertarian and the no-tax crowds? posted 06/30/2008 at 11:11:02

And will they show that empathy by putting their money -- literally -- where their mouths are, and (gasp) diverting taxpayer money away from corporate welfare and towards 'empathy-worthy' causes like health care, education, transportation, housing, worker skills training, child care and the environment? posted 06/27/2008 at 10:12:38

And will show that empathy by putting their money -- literally -- where their mouths are, and (gasp) divert taxpayer money away from corporate welfare and toward empathy-worthy causes like health care, education, housing, transportation, worker skills training, childcare and the environment? posted 06/27/2008 at 10:05:49

Boehner sets a fine example for empathy as the right wingnut so deeply in touch with his feminine side that he bursts into tears at the plight of the Iraqi people when anyone suggests we need to pull our troops out of harms way and bring them home. posted 06/27/2008 at 09:54:35

This first-hand essay by Martin Amis (talented conservative novelist, son of the brilliant uber-Tory novelist Kingsley Amis, and best friend to Christopher Hitchens) should be required reading for any debate on gun culture. Go on and read it: I would be astonished if it does not make you stop and think. Really hard.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/article507251.ece posted 06/26/2008 at 13:14:24

Why does anyone print, reprint, link to or reference anything written by Bob Novak? Why isn't he in jail? Can we have him rendered to Darfur or Chechnya? posted 06/26/2008 at 12:43:47

No, we're saying bring on the draft NOW, instead of exhorting us to go shopping as if nothing's happening. Get off your couch, chinaskee, it's time for you to go kill for Halliburton. posted 06/25/2008 at 11:47:59

The solution may be as simple as imposing a fifty cent a gallon war tax on gasoline (to "support the troops" by putting your money where your SUV ribbon is) as long as we are engaged in one. Twenty-five cents per war front, with an Iran penalty of an additional fifty cents.

Why do you think all funding for this abomination is pushed outside the formal budget process and finagled on an "emergency funding" basis? posted 06/25/2008 at 11:40:00

Does anyone know if Page Six has EVER run an unflattering story on Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh, or indeed any friend or political blood-brother of Murdoch's? posted 06/25/2008 at 11:17:47

Oops...hit the wrong button...meant it as a reply to the person who posted the following:
-----------
"No. The media, and all the enablers around him, reassure him all the time that these kind of "jokes" are all just part of his "charm".

If the Filipina president had taken such a joking tone after a ferry with 800 AMERICANS had capsized, would Bush still laugh?" posted 06/24/2008 at 23:11:01

Did he not, in essence, in the aftermath of Katrina? posted 06/24/2008 at 22:43:55

I wonder if the wingnut Filipina -- Michelle Malkin -- is going to have anything to say about this, or if she will studiously ignore it? posted 06/24/2008 at 17:52:07

Crist does look decidedly, incontrovertibly gay...he'd make a better 'Mango' than Chris Kattan. posted 06/24/2008 at 22:29:09

...better yet, ask "Dr." Laura, that pillar of family values. posted 06/24/2008 at 22:19:36

Bernstein uses ten times too many words, and uses up far more print space than he has any right to, with this interminable analysis of a nonentity like Noonan.

So she hates the Clintons and wrote a two hundred page polemic pointing out every flaw and wrongdoing of theirs...has she written two paragraphs about the truly evil vice president we've been saddled with going on eight years? Unless she does that, she is just about as much of a maverick as McCain. posted 06/21/2008 at 14:52:36

Ignore the polls. Refuse to participate in them.

The media is making a circus out of minute-by-minute horse race results, framing the run up to November like a sports event and distracting us from what really matters -- it's about the biggest issues of our time, people, not these two individuals. No one man is going to make the difference alone. Let's stay focused on the issues: senseless war, degradation of individual freedoms, education and development of the young, caring for our weakest and most needy, the growing gulf between haves and have-nots, and the subversion of the interests of our people by well-heeled special interests.

It's all about the message we send, and they way we shape the future administration -- with Congress, with the Senate, with judges at every rung of the judicial system through the Supreme Court, and with altering the makeup of institutions at the city, county, and state levels at the grassroots level. posted 06/18/2008 at 11:34:25

If there ever was a candidate for "snatching and rendering" and "enhanced interrogation", based on a calculation of what he knows that could help us in this era of terror, it would be AQ Khan. posted 06/15/2008 at 11:59:13

Very sad to hear the news. So difficult for his family, being out of the country. No man should have to bury his son, in war or in peace. posted 06/13/2008 at 16:49:21

Of course you would always invite your supporters as a courtesy; the problem is with inviting ONLY your supporters and then pretending that this is an open forum. posted 06/13/2008 at 11:49:56

Even if she did, that is no excuse for Fox's distasteful chyron. Would it be okay for a white reporter on the Murdoch channel to use the n-word in referring to Snoop Dogg because the performer referred to himself that way at a concert? posted 06/12/2008 at 15:12:14

Disrespectful. Uncalled for. Racist. As dyed-in-the-wool Fox as the premeditated "terrorist fist jab" comment by ED Hill was. Mind-boggling for a Filipina-come-lately to take on such airs.

Malkin's turn. Definition of 'malkin': "a slattern, woman of the lower classes," c.1275, from fem. proper name Malkyn, a dim. of Mault "Maud" (see Matilda). Also attested from c.1207 as the proper name of a female specter. Sense of "untidy woman" led to meaning "mop, bundle of rags on a stick" (used to clean ovens, artillery pieces, etc.), c.1400. Attested as the name of a cat since 1673; used in Scotland and northern England as the name of a hare (1724).

Are Murdoch and Ailes going to make a public apology to the Obamas? posted 06/12/2008 at 00:24:12

There is one and only one reason China and Pakistan are allied -- their mutual regional rivalry with India. There is not otherwise a great deal of love lost between the two.

India and Pakistan have gone at each other full tilt several times (and India and China have once) in open war without the third nation intervening on the battlefield. China has an Islamic separatist problem of its own in Xinjiang Uyghur, and does not have any great self-interest at stake in overextending itself for Pakistan.

Let's not confuse this alliance forged by realpolitik with the kind of relationship, say, that the US and Israel have with each other. posted 06/11/2008 at 18:38:04

It is the exceptions that prove the rule. posted 06/11/2008 at 11:24:38

I am not a card-carrying member of the NRA, but will nevertheless use the "slippery slope" argument against picking a military officer, be it Jones, Clark, Powell or a reanimated Alexander the Great.

I am for an extension rather than an erosion of the Church-State principle. We need to keep soldiers and mullahs out of the business of running our country.

How much more evidence do you need than an hour with the history books? posted 06/10/2008 at 19:23:07

Here is Exhibit A for a controlled and compliant corporate media in America whose priorities are suspiciously warped: the fact that Jeremiah Wright got scads and scads of air time on every channel (not just Fox) and in every newspaper (not just the Post); ditto for a single sentence stripped of context from BO (discussing his white grandmother's prejudices in general terms) or MO (about being proud of this nation on seeing her husband do well). Even a 'fist bump' becomes a 'terrorist jab' in Roger Ailes's hands.

This 200-page report and its findings on the other hand are destined for page six treatment at best, and will effectively be ignored by talking heads from Russert and Stephanopoulos to Krauthammer, Gerson and Will. posted 06/09/2008 at 23:13:00

ISI, Pakistan's 'intelligence' service, has had decades of practice instigating, aiding, training, funding and abetting Islamic fundamentalist insurgents, and their acts of terror across the border in India.

Over the years, the highest levels of the military and the intelligence services have become riddled with senior officers either beholden to, bribed by, or sympathetic to the goals and values of extremist Islamic groups like Jamaat-e-Islami and Lakshar-e-Taiba.

The leaders of Pakistan have for years explicitly touted the need for WMD in Muslim hands, and actively pursued help from China and North Korea to develop their own nuclear arsenal.

Benazir Bhutto's father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who was also the Prime Minister of Pakistan until he was hanged by yet another military dictator, Zia-ul-Haq, actually wrote the following while he still held the highest office in the land, ""There's a Hindu bomb, a Jewish bomb and a Christian bomb. There must be an Islamic bomb."

Connect the dots, Sherlock. We don' t need RAND Corporation or a declassified NIE to tell us that Pakistan is the weakest link in the misguided neocon strategy to contain Al Qaida. posted 06/09/2008 at 20:27:16

The Net is mightier than WMD posted 06/09/2008 at 13:49:10

"Big Brother, we're watching you!" posted 06/09/2008 at 13:42:18

One of the pithiest recorded exchanges occurred between Jules Verne and his publisher, via an ancient medium known as the "telegram". The author was out of town, and wanted to know how his new book "Les Miserables" was debuting.

JV: ?
Pub: ! posted 06/09/2008 at 13:38:57

Not your father's Fourth Estate! posted 06/09/2008 at 13:25:44

She paused dramatically before mouthing the words. "...a TERRORIST fist bump?" It did not sound off-the-cuff to me at all.

This "slip-up" fits the classic Fox pattern of things like juxtaposing "Osama" for Obama on the chyron, or of identifying sex predators like Foley (R-FL) as a Democrat.

Funny how such "errors" always target Democrats (Lieberman excepted), and never once embarrass a rightist.

P.S. Picture a Fox News male anchor with the same initials (E.D.), and who insists on being called by them. posted 06/09/2008 at 14:27:43

I agree that it is silly to go from disgusted to fawning at the drop of a speech.

But then again, as Clinton herself implied not too long ago ("I bring a lifetime of experience, Senator McCain brings a lifetime of experience, Senator Obama brings a speech he gave in 2002"), a speech by itself does not mean much, particularly when juxtaposed against a litany of contradictory actions.

No matter. Thanks for the gesture, however forced it may have been. It's time to get on with the job of running the genuine sexists and crypto-fascists out of town on a rail in November. posted 06/08/2008 at 22:51:37

We know YOU. And you are a convicted felon. posted 06/06/2008 at 12:57:43

I think the time for looking at the world the way you do has come and gone; and no, that does not mean we do not have further to go in addressing sexism.

The ethos you project has more in common with Japanese soldiers still fighting for Tenno's honor through decades of isolation on a Pacific Island, or a grizzled survivor of the Politburo, the Black Panthers or the Symbionese Liberation Army who still clings for comfort to the old dialectic. It is a mentality of us versus them, an Andrea Dworkin or Catherine MacKinnon view of the world rather than that of a Donna Haraway or even a Camille Paglia.

Perhaps we should study the Scandinavian evolution from Viking machismo to the most gender-equitable societies on earth. But I digress...this appears to be more about you than Hillary or feminism. posted 06/04/2008 at 17:25:51

Let's hope she doesn't take her next cue from Joe Lieberman. posted 06/04/2008 at 10:37:20

Seems to me that that Obama is not the one throwing brickbats, or the kitchen sink, for that matter. posted 03/30/2008 at 00:07:24

No. The "votes" as they stand are deeply flawed, when a major contender was not even on the ballot. It's either a new election or play by the rules everyone agreed to before this mess happened. posted 03/30/2008 at 00:05:48

And what would she tell her supporters (Bill) to do if either one of them had class? posted 03/30/2008 at 00:01:37

Glad to see the money bags have so much power and influence that such a small number of them can influence DNC deliberations and command media coverage. Where does a regular voter apply for an audience?

To paraphrase a line from the movie Boys in the Band, "Who do you have to f*ck to get [your voice heard]/[a drink] around here?" posted 03/27/2008 at 12:17:34

Way to go, Chelsea! posted 03/25/2008 at 23:32:56

Don't you see the inverse of what you say is also likely true? What's the point of this bickering? Who gains by it? Don't you see by your very argument, If Hillary wins the nomination a good chunk of Obama supporters might choose to vote against Hillary or drop out of the political process altogether? Look up "internecine" and "pyrrhic".

Neocons, fascists and McCain are happy for us to keep this Mexican firing squad going within the Democratic party, and salivating at the prospect of creating the first 9-0 Supreme court. posted 03/26/2008 at 10:50:02

STOP!!!! For f*ck's sake!!!

Can we bring this crap to an end NOW, and stop tearing each other apart while McCain, O'Reilly and Limbaugh cheer us on? Is there a sudden death rule we can invoke? DNC, where the hell are you??

Can each candidate please focus on substantive issues (these are not that hard to find, especially this time around, Sherlocks), and not scavenge in the gutter for these horrendous ways to scratch each other's eyes out? posted 03/25/2008 at 23:17:49

Thoughtful, nuanced, counterintuitive ideas...what a great dinner companion you'd make! posted 03/24/2008 at 16:52:45

You have done sterling work in advancing the cause of women. I agree with your thesis and its supporting rationale. Your argument is also much better nuanced than say Erica Jong's was in this forum recently.

However, let's be clear not to conflate the very real need for better representation of women in government with securing Hillary Clinton's nomination for this November's election.

As long as we are making literary references, Aristophanes in his 'Lysistrata' was probably the earliest Western writer to advance the sentiment that Abigail Adams echoes in her exhortation to send women to Congress to 'knock sense into the men'. posted 03/24/2008 at 13:13:07

Do you have to use all-caps in every single one of your posts? Does that add to your credibility, or make people more receptive to what you have to say? posted 03/24/2008 at 10:36:07

Your mistake, and that of many other diehard Clinton fans, is to assume that disgust with these campaign tactics is driven by nothing more than irrational pre-existing hatred for Hillary, coupled with blind devotion to Obama. Nothing could be further from the truth.

I supported the platform and ideals of Kucinich, and was neutral between HRC and Obama (other than some discomfort at electing another family member of a recent president). I am not all fired up about Obama while remaining blind to his shortcomings to the challenges he will face in the general election.

I have been pushed away from the Clinton campaign by its actions, not drawn to the Obama campaign by its rhetoric. The Clinton campaign needs to take a hard look at the way their tactics have alienated otherwise neutral or friendly voters outside the hard-core of supporters each camp has. It really is sad that this nonsense is tearing the party apart. posted 03/24/2008 at 10:17:02

The lack of any hint of graciousness, indeed the nastiness and petty drama-queen outbursts are telling, indeed. It has over time dramatically changed the way I view the Clinton candidacy...I hate the divisiveness this type of rhetoric and mudslinging is bringing to the party.

What is most important in public life in a democracy is that you remain loyal to the will of the people you purport to represent, and true to your principles and ideals. Intemperate and immature statements such as Carville's, Wolfson's and Penn's make the Clinton camp appear to hold personal loyalty above all, like greasy Mafiosi, and all the unsavory quid pro quos that go hand in hand with such a world view. What would Mr. Smith do?

Carville looks more and more alien every time I see him over the years...this picture bears an uncanny resemblance to Smeagol from Lord of the Rings...which makes sense, as "My Pre-cious!" (a senior administration appointment) seems to be slipping from his grasp. posted 03/23/2008 at 22:38:05

I voted for this man twice. I liked and respected him. I am deeply disappointed by his statement.

He is totally consistent with Hillary's view that she and McCain are qualified to be commander-in-chief, and fellow Democrat Obama is not.

What conclusion can reasonable people draw from this other than both Clintons are happy to do anything, kick, bite and scratch to secure their own ends and care not a whit if the Democratic party is trashed in the process? posted 03/22/2008 at 14:12:40

Is Bill Clinton's assertion qualitatively different from the one Trent Lott made at Strom Thurmond's birthday party, for which he was forced to give up his leadership role?

''I want to say this about my state: When Strom Thurmond ran for president, we voted for him. We're proud of it. And if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn't have had all these problems over all these years, either.''

posted 03/21/2008 at 18:03:01

Powerful, indeed...can't think of a more effective comeback to the '3am' ad. And Casey is an exemplar of what young people, whatever their political ideology, should be -- thoughtful, caring, and actively engaged in the future of this country. posted 03/22/2008 at 13:55:02

This was a brave action on the part of Richardson. He appears to have followed his heart rather than his head in taking the stance that he did rather than the far easier path of appeasing the Clintons to whom he is beholden politically, or simply waiting it out like Edwards. posted 03/21/2008 at 11:23:20

When noncombatants are deliberately targeted and killed with the argument that the end justifies the means, whether by the order of a five-star general or by a fanatic in a cave, the result is the same but each will attempt to rationalize the moral dliemma differently. If you have an interest in exploring this further, see:

http://www.friesian.com/valley/dilemmas.htm

Nattering on endlessly about the degree of equivalence of Hiroshima and 9/11 is silly; we might instead focus on how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. Arguments of the form "look at Iwo Jima and extrapolate to what might have happened on mainland Honshu if we hadn't nuked their asses", or "THEIR tactics were dishonorable but ours were not", "they attacked us because they hate happy and free people", or "they summarily execute adulterous women the way Southerners used to lynch uppity slaves" are moot and add not a whit to serious examination of the underlying issues.

I could go off on a similar tangent arguing that Nazi commandants of concentration camps were treated more decently by the US army as prisoners than were black American soldiers who fought and died alongside their white counterparts on the beaches of Dunkirk, but couldn't eat in the same mess with their colleagues or vote when they got home after bleeding to protect democracy in the USA or the freedoms you tout so heartily that they had never experienced. Or a long list of similar grievances from Native Americans whose spirit was broken, treaty by false treaty, herded into reservations, ethnically cleansed, deliberately supplied with cholera infested blankets, their language and culture nearly erased from memory. This is not helpful, either.

Again, there is a simmering anger in the black community which is understandable, whether or not it is justified. If you are surprised that some of the rhetoric resonated with people in the congregation -- what planet are you living on? Deal with it. Figure out how to move forward. Obama made a start with his speech. Your move. posted 03/21/2008 at 13:39:11

Your argument is specious, an exercise in rationalization, and peppered with non sequiturs.

The point is there is a simmering anger in the black community in America, and that anger is understandable if not justified: deal with it.

If caucasians had been treated the way blacks were in this country, I can guarantee you that the Black Panthers would look like boy scouts, and Rev Wright would sound like the Dalai Lama in comparison to the white community's hypothetical reaction and posture.

Your reactions are more characteristic of the Taliban preserving their status quo through pre-emptive violence, than say of the Swedes or the Swiss. It is patently nonsensical to parrot a Fox News talking point that "they hate our life and our freedom". They mostly hate our meddling in their turf, and we do have quite a history of that.

Besides, Europeans, Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders and several others now have better privacy protection for individuals, more representative government , and take care of their weakest and neediest better than we do, making them more in line with the philosophy of that swarthy, bearded middle-easterner from Nazareth than we are.

I wonder in passing if we would have nuked Berlin and Munich and their entire civilian populations, rather than those slant-eyed yellow nonpersons, if Fat Man and Little Boy were ready to go a year earlier than they were. posted 03/21/2008 at 11:07:24