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Roasting Nuts by an Open Fire

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shoe.jpgIn the beloved Rotwang Xmas/Yule tradition, a medley of thoughts in the holiday spirit, with a big musical finish . . .

All I want for Christmas is New York's Senate seat. And I don't mind telling you my father was a very distinguished person, though nobody ever heard of him. His main failure was to be the son of a man who declined to enter the bootlegging business. More's the pity, who knows where I might be today.

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I would like the eulogy at my funeral to be delivered by a national socialist, as a commitment to dialog and a symbol of reconciliation. Because Nazis are part of America too.

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Steve Waldman of belief.net applauds the famous bigoted minister Rick Warren for his commitment to the poor. This commitment consists of support for tithing. In other words, there is nothing wrong with the fundamental rules of Capitalism, it is merely suggested that those who prevail in this execrable, crooked contest dispense a modest portion of their ill-gotten gains on a purely voluntary basis. In this respect, the Minister Warren's posture on economic issues is inferior to that on gay rights, abortion, and so on.

* * *

Lose a hundred grand and it's tough sh#t for you. Lose a hundred billion, you're a new government program.

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Another bad thing about the financial crisis: Tom Friedman's book output may increase.

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In light of Bill Clinton's economic honchos, not to mention the mainstream of the economics profession, supporting financial deregulation, can we really blame George Bush for failing to position himself to their left on this issue?

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I'm sure there's nothing untoward about this.

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One good thing about the financial crisis: nobody can ever start blathering about Social Security as a Ponzi scheme without exposing themselves to ridicule.



34 Comments

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You rock Rotwang

=D

Lose a hundred grand and it's tough sh#t for you. Lose a hundred billion, you're a new government program.

Hum, reminds me of a Film....

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The news about Friedman is truly frightful.

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Yeah you know with all due respect to Krugman’s finger pointing at culprits I think at this point economists are shooting blanks. Their obsession with secular growth and consumption in advanced markets and other unwise doctrines is taking its toll. Their lack of acknowledgement that all these woes we are in are an inevitable consequence of unfettered capitalism as Marx predicted it would happen, is a sign that their models are dismal and non functional. And no I'm not hinting at some Marxist utopia but neither am I going to sit here and pretend that everything is hunky dory in the dystopia that is evolving before our very eyes.

Not saying we can make any radical change in the near future, but this present way of thinking is bankrupt and economist need to get busy constructing new paradigms. We are in (economic) revolutionary times not by choice or chance but by the necessary progression of unfettered capitalistic amoral (if not immoral) markets. The theory is not working! Shot down by human factors, scarcity and the toxic primacy of the “self-interested individual"; allcardinal assumptions in their models of homo economicus . Economists trapped in that mode can't help but shoot blanks at this time.

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Thank you, thank you, thank you, Rotwang!

I was starting to suspect, given the tone of the conversation around here, that it was no longer liberal to not want the president to have a bigot perform the convocation at his in inauguration and New York's (and my) Senate seat should go to a qualified caretaker rather than a famous nobody.

Sadly, a well meaning attempt to not criticize the incoming administration over every little thing has turned into an "Obama is a Genius" movement that seems willing to accept everything, including atrocities like anti-gay bigots being given national forums at taxpayer expense and socialites being named senator by unelected governors.

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"willing to accept everything"??????

The following is the latest craze among the Obama chorus. The followers acknowledge that "on the surface" that move, or policy, or appointment is bad. But then they explain how it is a part of Obama's deliberate, ingenious plan to move America forward and make everyone happy at the same time (ignoring unfortunately all those people made unhappy by the bad move, policy, or appointment). We are past 1984 right?

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I believe we actually have had "up is down" politics before, haven't we?

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Public criticism of Obama is seriously frowned upon.

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Rotwang, nice work, not only on Reverend Warren, because the ridiculous attempts to justify it boggle my mind, but also on reminding this Clinton defender that there was and is a helluva lot of current bases for criticism of him too.

I haven't had the strength to get into the fray on Warren around here, except I did make a tepid comment in destor's post thread earlier in the week. But it was a silly move, even if for the moment it makes certain evangelicals feel a little warm and fuzzy about Obama. And, assuming Obama had no other way of trying to convey to evangelical christians that he would be their president as well as everyone else's under the stars and stripes, unlike other fundamentalist evangelical ministers who could have been selected to participate in his inaguration, Obama has chosen a guy who actively campaigned for Proposition 8 and who has publicly analogized homosexuality to pedophilia. This is why for one of my New Year's resolutions I will continue to use "faux" progressive around here where appropriate. What patent nonsense it is to defend the Warren invitation.

As to Clinton, my guy. you're right. His triangulation helped to set the stage for much of the aversion in Washington to doing what needs to be done immediately to help working people. Yea, Clinton sounded really groovy and 90s-like when he announced that the "era of big government is over". Well, methinks that we need a little bit of that big government now, and we need it quickly. Thanks Bill.

And, what of the current reality? I like what PE Obama has done for the most part so far. This week I was elated by his choice of Labor Secretary, and I really like the way that he met with all factions in the American Jewish community this week, signaling that he is prepared to continue and move beynod direction that President Clinton was going, albeit too lately in his Administration. But dang it, politics weren't born yesterday, and the notion that Obama is going to make us all come together and please everyone is nonsense. I like that he's trying to unify, but people forget that Clinton did too, and ultimately he got us and his legacy little for it. At the threshold, there are lines to be drawn.

Finally, beyond the merits of Obama's approach, this notion that we can't criticize PE Obama for pulling boners like inviting a bigot to participate in his inaguration is preposterous and fundamentally dangerous. Not only that, it's stupid.

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Right, inclusiveness is stupid. We should cherry pick everything Warren ever said, after all, the RW did that to Rev. Wright.

We should piss and moan and wring our hands and second guess everything Obama does and look at it in the worst possible light

Just like the RW wingnuts do.

(not)

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That's not my position, though in casting it as such it makes for easy retort. Let me be clear; I have nothing against PE Obama reaching out to evangelicals in general or meeting with Reverend Warren in particular. But PE Obama has invited Reverend Warren to have the unique honor of representing this Nation, the entire nation at the inaguration. And Reverend Warren is particularly the wrong choice because he has entered the political realm, and most recently with respect to Proposition 8 in California. He is appearing at the request of our new president. It is a mistake and a big one. And, for those who cannot recognize the distinction I draw between reaching out and inviting a political preacher to address the nation, well then heck, so be it.

This notion that the only way you can reach out to evangelicals and other people of faith is to do something like inviting Reverend Warren to represent the Nation at the inagural betrays the absolute ignorance on the part of so much of the secular among us with respect to the rich diversity of our American brothers and sisters who do take faith seriously. Not every person of deep, deep faith in this country campaigns for Proposition 8.

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Ignorance? LOL

Fine, I'll be ignorant, and hopeful. Like Juan Cole.

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Well we already know the first part, we can only take your word on the second. Cheers.

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I don't think you're ignorant chicken; I think it is ignorant to think that inviting Pastor Warren to represent the nation at the inaguration is what is an appropriate way to reach out to people of faith. I also think that there is widespread ignorance about what it means to be a person of faith. I consider myself a person of faith, and I've expressed my personal views publicly to my rabbi and even in public addresses to my former congregation, and I expect to continue to do it in the future.

I actually think you're a pretty smart chicken, and I would think the same thing even if you were a person. As to Juan Cole, he, like you, is a very smart chicken/person. I often disagree with smart people. Some say it's my M.O. But if you read my intitial comment, I expressly stated that I admire PE Obama's goal of unifying this country; I reserve the right to express myself when I believe he's erred, even if it pits me against one of my favorite birds. Sorry.

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Bruce,

Reverend Warren represents a group of people who actively fight against extending Constitutional protections/rights they themselves enjoy to those they disagree with, and mainly on religious grounds.

Interestingly, from what I understand, Obama taught Constitutional Law courses at the University of Chicago.

Here's an anology;

The Democratic leadership, like Clinton, Dodd, Schumer, etc. who went along with Gramm and other Republicans that brought us this fiscal tsunami weren't dealing with old time reputable Republican businessmen in the Corporate Board rooms and on Wall Street, they were dealing with sharks and that's where the Democrats failed us.

To me, Warren is a shark. Obama should have put Rev. Lowery, a Civil Rights Activist, in front of Rev. Warren, who fights against Civil Rights for certain people, barring that, Obama should have found a Pastor not so strenuous in his negative feelings toward 'different' American citizens.

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I forgot a line;

Warren is a shark because he's like Bush, he talks a good game, but his actions often betray his words.

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Bruce and John, It seems to me that this invitation by PE Obama is neither unexpected, not stupid. He is doing precisely what he said he would do.

FWIW I find Warren to be ignorant of the Bible he's hawking, and that he is what Carl Sandburg called a 'bunkshooter.' That it is a pity this country has once again, let Warren and his ilk convince them that they possess anything approaching wisdom or piety, but those feelings, along with yours are beside the point.

PE Obama said repeatedly that there was no red and blue states, but only a United States. He picked Warren BECAUSE he is a popular minister, and already Warren is backpeddling now that his nonsense is seeing the light of day, as the link I provided earlier shows.

You call it a mistake? You might be right, but I just wouldn't be too sure of it, nor would I feign outrage at a gesture that was entirely forseeable on the part of PE Obama.

YMMV and likely does.

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This is a curious bit of reasoning. Now one cannot criticize Obama because he said he would do something; I wish all the antiwar people had just shut up and stopped criticizing Bush who said he'd continue the war in Iraq; or how fair was stinking Josh Marshall criticizing Bush for wanting to privatize social security when Bush said that was his intention. How dare he.

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Also, Bruce is feigning outrage? Heh. He never struck me as someone who feigns anything.

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I didn't say that, dingus. I said don't be so sure about the criticism.

Knee-jerk much?

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It might have been what you meant but here is what you said that gave a different impression:

"He is doing precisely what he said he would do."

"those feelings, along with yours are beside the point."

"nor would I feign outrage at a gesture that was entirely forseeable on the part of PE Obama."

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Rev. Warren will not be representing the rest of America when he gives the invocation at the inaugeration of Obama. If you are a true believer, you will see him as addressing God herself, asking Her blessings for Obama and the nation. If you are not a true believer, you will see him talking to himself about something you know little about and have even less curiosity about. Five minutes after he finishes no one will be able to recall who that tubby guy up there was, let alone why he never gets a good shave.

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Rotwang makes a good point. Obama ought to publicly disassociate himself from anyone who believes that any sex between consenting adults is ever anything less than wonderful.

Anyone who thinks that any sex can everbe considered immoral is obviously an intolerant bigot who is as bad as the Nazis and must be treated as such.

Every and all bariers to completely unrestricetd sex can and must be broken.

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I meant to say "barriers."

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Surprise! I thought you meant "barristers".

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Glaivester,

many who rant and rave about gays are people who try, and often succeed, in getting their wives to
engage in the same kind of sex they demonize gays for.

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I agree. Homophobes are often as gay as the day is long, or at least are worried that they might be...

Can't we all just get along? Let's have a big game of strip poker and then we can really roast those nuts by the fire..

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The two-party system is a misnomer anyway, we need a benevolent dictatorship...so I'm all for Senator Caroline!

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No, I don't think so. We just tried that, and are still suffering the consequences. Oops, my bad, I didn't catch the "benevolent" part.

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