It is 3 am do you know where your president is? Hillary Clintons latest ad(you can see it here)
Plays the fear card, the problem is the Republicans locked up the irrational fear crowd a long time ago. In fact for a many of us one of the big problems with republican politics is the idea that everyone should be afraid all the time. Running around scared leads to bad decisions like invading a a country that is no threat to anyone while at the same time ignoring real problems. The politics of fear is something that the republicans own and I say let them keep it.
Posted by John Rove as Words at 3:27 PM MST
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The USDA is refusing to ban “downer” cows from the food supply:
Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer told Congress yesterday that he would not endorse an outright ban on “downer” cows entering the food supply or back stiffer penalties for regulatory violations by meat-processing plants in the wake of the largest beef recall in the nation’s history.
Appearing at a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing, Schafer said the department is investigating why it missed the inhumane treatment of cattle at the Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. in Chino, Calif., including workers administering electric shocks and high-intensity water sprays to downer cows — those too sick or weak to stand without assistance.
This seems kind of strange, unless the numbers of downer cows are much larger than people in the business are willing to admit, why would it matter if a few cows are kept out of the food supply. Given the risk to the food supply it seems like a no-brainer to ban downer cows. Either the industry is incredibly petty and is willing to risk the nations health for a few extra dollars, or the problem is far more pervasive than the industry is willing to admit. In which case they know that if downer cows are taken out of the food supply they will lose a substantial sum of money.  In either case it seems like the USDA needs to crack down on the meat packing industry before they cause a national health crisis.
The entire article can be seen here
Posted by John Rove as Words at 1:22 PM MST
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Kevin Drum sumarizes last night democratic debate as follows
Seriously, though, can someone please put a sock in Tim Russert? I didn’t even see the entire exchange, but his badgering of Obama on the Louis Farrakhan issue was pretty wretched. It was maybe legitimate to bring it up in the first place, but to keep at it well after Obama had made his position crystal clear was beyond the pale.
Nor did Hillary cover herself with glory on this question, with her inane “denounce” vs. “reject” comeback. Obama’s response — Fine, if it will make you happy, then I denounce and reject Farrakhan — was dexterous and smooth.
It seems like Hillary was trying to pile on, this is the same Hillary who has been complaining that the media treats her poorly. But when she has an opportunity to bully someone she is happy to do it, and happy to use the media when they benefit her. This attempt to have it both ways blunts her message or maybe even makes her look like a hypocrite. The sooner the Clinton campaign packs it in the better it will be for Democrats.
Posted by John Rove as Words at 1:27 PM MST
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As the desperation of the the Clinton campaign intensifies the rhetoric gets more off the wall. Last night on Countdown with Kieth Olberman they had several sound bites from Hillary Clinton. In one of them she was being somewhat sarcastic and condescending towards Obama supporters, basically saying that Obama expects the skys to open up with goodwill and of course Hillary beiing old and wise knows better. In another soundbite she was chastising the Obama campaign for critiisizing her “mandated” health care plan and trying to claim that she was a victim of the “mean” Obama” crowd. All this against a backdrop of a photo that most people believe was distributed by the Clinton campaign showing Obama in tribal clothes. The photo seems to be an attempt to argue Obama is a Muslim.  Â
For me these sound bites and actions show much of the problem with the Clinton campaign. First, she is trying to argue that she is the exerpienced and properly cynical candidate, next she is trying to argue that she is the victim, which seems to contradict the idea that she is an experienced leader. Finally, she seems to be the one who is practicing the “dirty tricks”. Not once did she try to defend her health care plan and its use of mandates(which is defensible) and she seems to be on the wrong side of most other big issues. It is hard for her to argue that she is the person to get the US out of Iraq when she voted for the war and still seems to support it. It is hard for her to claim good judgement on foreign policy when she voted for the Kyl-lieberman amendment, so instead she keeps trying to get votes based on the idea that she is somehow more deserving that her opponent.
Hopefully if Hillary Clinton loses in Texas she will realize it is time to give up and let the Democratic party move foreward with a candidate that has a vision for America and not just a victim complex.
Posted by John Rove as Words at 1:53 PM MST
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Looks like the millions or possibly billions of dollars spent on anti-depressants are probably wasted:
Prozac, the bestselling antidepressant taken by 40 million people worldwide, does not work and nor do similar drugs in the same class, according to a major review released today.
The study examined all available data on the drugs, including results from clinical trials that the manufacturers chose not to publish at the time. The trials compared the effect on patients taking the drugs with those given a placebo or sugar pill.
When all the data was pulled together, it appeared that patients had improved - but those on placebo improved just as much as those on the drugs.
The only exception is in the most severely depressed patients, according to the authors - Prof Irving Kirsch from the department of psychology at Hull University and colleagues in the US and Canada. But that is probably because the placebo stopped working so well, they say, rather than the drugs having worked better.
Seems like the US health care system fails to focus on results and instead focuses on the best way to spend money and not solve the problem.
The entire article can be seen here
Posted by John Rove as Words at 2:36 AM MST
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This is from a book written by Tucker Carlson Via Ezra Klien
During his first run for office, McCain learned that one of his opponents had tracked down his first wife, looking for dirt. According to a political consultant who worked for him at the time, McCain cornered the man at the next candidate’s forum. “I want you to know,” McCain said, “that campaign aside, politics aside, if you ever do something like that again — anything against a member of my family — I will personally beat the shit out of you.”
McCain is not a good guy or a straight talker, he seems like a lieing thug wannabe. The sad thing, he was the best of the republican field. Â
Posted by John Rove as Words at 2:38 AM MST
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Mr McCain seems to be making the situation worse. I have always thought that if Bill Clinton had just admitted the Lewinski affair the entire thing would have been over in a matter of days. Maybe John McCain needs to admit whatever happened and move on.
Just hours after the Times’s story was posted, the McCain campaign issued a point-by-point response that depicted the letters as routine correspondence handled by his staff—and insisted that McCain had never even spoken with anybody from Paxson or Alcalde & Fay about the matter. “No representative of Paxson or Alcalde & Fay personally asked Senator McCain to send a letter to the FCC,” the campaign said in a statement e-mailed to reporters.
But that flat claim seems to be contradicted by an impeccable source: McCain himself. “I was contacted by Mr. Paxson on this issue,” McCain said in the Sept. 25, 2002, deposition obtained by NEWSWEEK. “He wanted their approval very bad for purposes of his business. I believe that Mr. Paxson had a legitimate complaint.”
The more time McCain spends trying to parse words, the worse this is going to get.
The entire story can be found here
Posted by John Rove as Words at 2:59 PM MST
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I got this via mathew yglesias. Without the sex angle this story may not have got the play it deserves. In fact the enire thing is somewhat hard to follow. As near as I can tell John McCain went to bat for Paxson communcations after they threw a little money and perhaps a couple of other things his way.
After a brief period of Democratic dominance, McCain returned to become chairman of the committee in 2003 and 2004. During that period, he took crucial legislative action that saved Paxson Communications from a bill that would have, in the words of CEO Lowell “Bud” Paxson, finally ruined his company.
Even more ironically, McCain took this action for Paxson in spite of his long-standing position that television broadcasters had inappropriately used the transition to digital television (DTV) to benefit themselves financially at the expense of the American public.
McCain initially supported legislation that would have forced Paxson and handful of broadcasters – but not the great bulk of television stations – off the air by December 31, 2006. Bud Paxson himself personally testified about this bill with “fear and trepidation” at a hearing on September 8, 2004.
Two weeks later, McCain had reversed himself. He now supported legislation that would grant two-year reprieve for Paxson – and instead force all broadcasters to stop transmitting analog television by December 31, 2008. Paxson and his lobbyists, including Iseman, were working at this time for just such a change.
This seems like influence peddling on the part of John McCain, whether he was recieving payments in the form of cash or maybe little “special time” with a certain lobbiest. He changed his position after these people were “nice” to him. In fact Mr McCain was apparetely is very popular with certain groups:
According to information compiled by the Center for Public Integrity’s “Well Connected” Project on Telecommunications and Media, John McCain is the single largest recipient of campaign contribution by Ion Media Networks and its predecessor, Paxson Communications. McCain received $36,000 from the company and employees from 1997 to mid-year 20006. McCain’s donations edged out former Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., who received $27,000, and former Rep. W.J. “Billy” Tauzin, R-La., who received $22,500.
McCain old out for $36,000 and maybe tryst? Without the tryst part people probably would not have cared. Â Now, I have a feeling people are going to start caring about everything McCain has done over his 25+ years in Washington, and it seems like at least some of it may be offensive to the average voter.
Posted by John Rove as Words at 1:37 PM MST
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Posted by Al Swearengen as Al Swearengen at 12:14 AM MST
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Could Clinton have run a worse campaign?
While the Hillary Clinton campaign has made the Ohio and Texas contests on March 4 into their new firewall, they have only recently discovered the arcane rules of delegate selection in Texas, which could potentially mean that even a substantial popular win translates into only a slight edge in delegates.
The Washington Post reports that Hillary strategists learned in a closed-door meeting this month about the Texas contest, which splits delegates among the state Senate districts and also between the primary and a caucus held that night. It’s ultimately a commentary on their lack of planning for a race lasting after Super Tuesday — when they thought they’d have the race locked up — that they have only just now learned of delegate rules that were of long-standing public knowledge.
At this point you have to wonder how someone who has presided over one of the worst presidential campaigns in history, a campaign that did not even seem to understand voting rules in Texas, can still believe that she is ready to be president. Hillary Clinton should consider getting out of the race before she does further damage to her reputation.
see the entire article here
Posted by John Rove as Words at 2:14 AM MST
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How much of an asshole is this guy? Bernanke and Paulson are testifying before Congress, the former having just slashed 125 basis points off the Fed rate faster than any central banker in history…every week brings out the discovery of another body (UBS being the latest). As if they didn’t have enough to worry about:
Greenspan says U.S. on the edge of recession
And who are the nitwits who handling money for a living while traveling or paying to hear his take on anything? They should all be fired first thing tomorrow!
Posted by Al Swearengen as Al Swearengen, Economics at 12:30 AM MST
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If someone just made this story up…
(Reuters) - Brazil’s state oil company Petrobras (PETR4.SA: Quote, Profile, Research)(PBR.N: Quote, Profile, Research), said Thursday that computers containing “important information” of oil and gas field research off the Brazilian coast were stolen. “There was a theft of equipment that contained important information for the company,” Petrobras confirmed by phone. “The event is under investigation.” The company said it has copies of the stolen data but did not specify the nature of the data.
…The subsalt cluster has aroused strong interest from the oil industry after Petrobras said, in late 2007, it had recoverable reserves at between 5 billion and 8 billion barrels of light crude in the Tupi field and in-place reserves of up to 20 billion barrels. [ID:nN23604539]
(CNN) The objects were being transported by U.S. oilfield service company Halliburton Co. (HAL), the Web site said. The hardware contained confidential information on research that led to recent discoveries of massive new oil and gas fields in ultra-deep waters off the Brazilian coast, Terra said, without giving sources.
Posted by Al Swearengen as Justice, Economics at 12:21 AM MST
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This seems like a classic he said, he said sort of thing, but police are usually pretty good about getting ID’s:
On a 911 call early Jan. 1, Seth Harris told Columbus police that Quinn was with a group at La Fogata Grill and that they were insulting gays outside the restaurant.
“There’s a group of football players, Brady Quinn from the Browns … and he’s trying to cause a fight,” Harris told the operator. “His friends are yelling at all of the gay people that are around here.”
Harris said he had a verbal exchange with Quinn.
In a statement released Wednesday through the Browns, Quinn said he had dinner on New Year’s Eve with his girlfriend and other couples but that nothing else happened.
“At no time that night was I involved in a verbal or physical altercation, nor did I have any interaction with the police,” Quinn said in the statement. “I want to be clear that I did not engage in any of the alleged conduct, nor did I make inappropriate comments to anyone.
“Any allegations to the contrary are either untrue or the result of misidentification.”
However, Columbus police said when they arrived Quinn was arguing with 32-year-old Jason Thompson.
It is too bad that football is not a year round sport, both because it would keep the players out of trouble and give us something to watch on TV
The entrire article can be found here.
Posted by John Rove as Words at 1:57 AM MST
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I wanted to link to this as it seems like a very smart comment about health care:
Health insurance is not like automobile insurance. You can mandate automobile insurance, and if people can’t afford it, they can take the bus. You can’t just “mandate’ health insurance. Either health care is a right that society provides, or it is not. It’s interesting how the system now works. As the system stands, drug addicts, diabetics who don’t comply with their regimens, and smokers who give themselves COPD can get care, as long as they either can afford to pay for insurance (pay for their sins by buying insurance and shifting the cost of their care to the rest of us) or are dirt poor. In fact, the poorer they are, the better the care. And the worse people take care of themselves, the better the care they get. You can get a heart transplant more easily than you can get a colonoscopy.
The entire post can be found here
Posted by John Rove as Words at 2:03 AM MST
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I just wanted to put this up as it is a great explanantion of the problems with the US health care system:
Relentless medical inflation has been attributed to many factors — the aging population, the proliferation of new technologies, poor diet and lack of exercise, the tendency of supply (physicians, hospitals, tests, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and novel treatments) to generate its own demand, excessive litigation and defensive medicine, and tax-favored insurance coverage.
Here is a second opinion. Changing demographics and medical technology pose a cost challenge for every nation’s system, but ours is the outlier. The extreme failure of the United States to contain medical costs results primarily from our unique, pervasive commercialization. The dominance of for-profit insurance and pharmaceutical companies, a new wave of investor-owned specialty hospitals, and profit-maximizing behavior even by nonprofit players raise costs and distort resource allocation. Profits, billing, marketing, and the gratuitous costs of private bureaucracies siphon off $400 billion to $500 billion of the $2.1 trillion spent, but the more serious and less appreciated syndrome is the set of perverse incentives produced by commercial dominance of the system.
Markets are said to optimize efficiencies. But despite widespread belief that competition is the key to cost containment, medicine — with its third-party payers and its partly social mission — does not lend itself to market discipline. Why not?
The private insurance system’s main techniques for holding down costs are practicing risk selection, limiting the services covered, constraining payments to providers, and shifting costs to patients. But given the system’s fragmentation and perverse incentives, much cost-effective care is squeezed out, resources are increasingly allocated in response to profit opportunities rather than medical need, many attainable efficiencies are not achieved, unnecessary medical care is provided for profit, administrative expenses are high, and enormous sums are squandered in efforts to game the system. The result is a blend of overtreatment and undertreatment — and escalating costs. Researchers calculate that between one fifth and one third of medical outlays do nothing to improve health.
The entire article can be seen here
Posted by John Rove as Words at 12:54 PM MST
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