cynicalidealist

Toohey,
Great taste you have, reading Daily Heil, a paper that did more than "appease" Hitler, it embraced him and his policies. Shocked that they'd do a hit job on Michelle Obama.
No story here. Move along.
-CI posted 05/15/2008 at 23:58:56

In addition to my post below, I see that I called to respond to you "cct1984."
First of all, the "law of intended consequences" is an expression, not a "law" in either micro of macro. It has no bearing.
Secondly, there is NO consensus that rent controls reduce availability of housing. The reverse is true in a hyper-capitalist marketplace (see Robert Reich's new book) where luxury, not affordable housing, is the focus.
Third, in my years living under rent control in MA and rent stabilization in NYC I have never seen any connection between RC/RS and discrimination - remember from your ECO 101 - correlation does not mean caustion.
You got studies, show them to us.
I've LIVED it and rent control is an necessary cap against greed.
-CI posted 05/13/2008 at 21:41:11

Stephen,
I hear you. I lived through the referendum to end rent control in Massachusetts. A campaign funded 50-1 by NYState property owners eager to do the same in their own bailiwick. My Cambridge neighbors were unaware that it was a state-wide measure and rent control went down to defeat by 50-49. In NYC I am currently in a State Supreme Court case against my landlord who has defrauded the City, not properly registering his building - this while NYState is still recovering from the aggregate damage that the Pataki years did to housing. All of our rental construction in the past 7 years has been luxury housing. Supposedly we have an 80/20 plan, but that's a sham, with brokerage firms circumventing the program and still getting the tax breaks.
Please learn from my experiences in MA and NY. DO educate voters - especially renters - they often are unaware of upcoming measures even though they generally constitute a working majority.
Send your piece to The Nation. It's time for them to focus on this - they had a poor record when the above was happened. And in a recession, the removal of such protections would have a devastating effect.
Good Luck!
-CI posted 05/13/2008 at 21:36:42

WORDS INSPIRE ACTION. posted 05/12/2008 at 13:45:12

A far more nuanced analysis holds that race, gender, sexuality, and class are inextricably linked. See Patricia Williams' recent columns in The Nation on this point. Stop dividing - we need allies -
CI posted 05/12/2008 at 15:28:15

Gloria,
Your argument would have carried weight six months ago. But it is now obsolete. Hillary Clinton is NOT a stronger political candidate. By failing to lead her campaign, and do so with class and discipline, and respect for the party -- not to mention ALL its constituencies - she has damaged her reputation, and Bill his. Look at today's actions from HRC HQ: "demanding" FLA and MI delegations be seat and that she's been _consistent_ in asking for this? But the comments about her having white America are, pardon the pun, beyond the pale. We've all grown slack jawed from Penn/Wolfson's Roger Stone-like campaign - complete with 3am calls, Osama bin Ladin, and now this.
I want a women as President. If I had been only enough to pull the lever, you can bet I would have voted for Shirley Chisholm. The race is not only numerical. From where I sit, processing the pandering around the gas tax, the efforts to BE Joe Six Pack, HRC has demonstrated a profound lack of depth and character.
Her one chance is to leave with grace. And since MI/NC, that's not what I'm seeing. I am sad. But we must move on, and forward.
-CI. posted 05/08/2008 at 21:34:33

Senator,

This must be a two-pronged investigation. You police your own in Congress (via the GAO) and media needs to take stock of itself. "Psyoping" to CNN and NPR occurred close to a decade ago and was reported. Why didn't these two news organizations take steps, and lead for that matter, in preventing this encore?

This is a criminal administration. History demands full accountability, sir, for BushWorld's shredding of the Constitution. This could be your legacy.

And as long as I'm here: What has happened to HRC? Since when was she in favor of "obliterating" countries and running a campaign that Roger Stone would approve of?

-CI posted 05/06/2008 at 14:41:52

Linda,
As much as it might piss you off, the three branches of government are supposed to run according to the rules of COMITY. Yes, BushWorld has ignored checks, balances, and respect for the legislative branch, but I don't think it would serve Pelosi to take his leave. And... I agree with you re: impeachment. You can smile, shake hands, and still submit Articles of Impeachment.

-CI. posted 05/05/2008 at 19:29:52

I must agree with the consensus. I support Howard Dean for the hard work he did to redirect us back to a 50 state focus. And if you propose an action, you must pursue your course of logic: Who would you have replace him, essentially in the middle of the election cycle. No. This one be an additional impediment to the success of the party. - CI posted 04/28/2008 at 23:20:28

This is informative, but I MUST ASK: Where is there any discussion of an Urban Policy? I'm sorry - cities dominate this nation on every metric, yet there is no debate about affordable housing, mass transit, public education, and our penal system. - CI. posted 04/24/2008 at 12:12:13

Please bump this article above the fold. It's a serious indictment of all MSM - Fox, CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS, NYT, WSJ, and yes, even NPR were either complicit or duped. posted 04/20/2008 at 14:30:01

I for one am able to entertain the possibility of supporting Barack Obama even as I continue to admire Tavis Smiley. Thank you for your contribution. Let's move forward. - CI posted 04/15/2008 at 23:08:04

No, the line was:

It was almost AS IF...

PLEASE GET A BETTER HEADLINE WRITER FOR YOUR ENTERTAINMENT SECTION.

-CI. posted 04/14/2008 at 19:20:27

Jon,

Refreshing post. I find this analysis to be midpoint between Lee Siegel's neo-Ludditism and Chris Anderson's "Free" thesis. I will reference your post in my weekly column tomorrow. Some initial thoughts: We're in a flux moment. I argue that the past half-century has been a retreat - that, in effect, mass culture killed culture. Now that barriers are down for publishing and a range of artistic expression, "prosumers" do want to get in the act. Motives? Some - as in the case of Wikipedia - see a greater good. But where compensation is concerned - some will bristle at doing work for free when they discover that the host (see: Jimmy Wales) has an a business model that will ultimately realize profit. You can bet revenue shares will grow more desired as they become more transparent. I disagree with you about the heterogenity of content. Netflix is not the exception, it is the vanguard. More frequently I look to content from BBC; this was not possible even 3 yrs ago. And as a former book publisher, I fervently believe in the backlist. As far as copyright - there was a time when publishers and studios served a need. They protected and defended content creators and exacted their price. Now they are less necessary and they have overreached where financials are concerned. Yes, twentysomethings don't have the same relationship with copyright - and content has been devalued - but that speaks to the need for a new (c) law - posted 04/13/2008 at 13:01:27

Am supporting Obama, but hat's off to Senator Clinton for taking this position. I do hope that Barack sorts it out and joins HRC to create solidarity from the Democratic side. This is an opportunity to make Human Rights a central issue. Let's not put "profits before people."

CI posted 04/07/2008 at 14:46:47

I agree with the nugget in this piece. Hillary is overcompensating. She's had some fine accomplishments, but as a Senator, not as a co-president. I'm supporting Obama, but that doesn't mean that I'll join in the pile on... posted 03/26/2008 at 00:10:29

AT&T at Union Square HAS inventory. Perhaps the Apple stores ARE out, controlling inventory, but in NYC it's not as though there are any shortage of AT&T stores... posted 03/26/2008 at 13:47:03