He goes on hoping the President will channel FDR, but I would settle for Harry Truman, and wish President Obama will just keep speaking the truth.If Obama can speak lucidly about a subject as thorny as race, he can surely do a far more specific job of telling the story of how we got to this economic impasse. He must join the many who are talking about why the top 1 percent of American earners now take home nearly a quarter of Americans' total income -- perhaps the single most revealing indicator of how three decades of greed and free-market absolutism have eviscerated America's fundamental ideals of fairness. It can't all be reduced to the shorthand of "George W. Bush."
Obama might be so rude as to point out how these top earners are whining all the way to the bank even as the G.O.P. opposes extending more benefits to the unemployed and new tax cuts to small business. In June, the Business Roundtable chairman and Verizon chief executive Ivan Seidenberg gave a speech so rank with self-victimization -- he claimed that government was "reaching into virtually every sector of economic life" -- that the normally polite Washington Post business columnist Steven Pearlstein reviled him as "a corporate hack" peddling "much-discredited country-club nonsense."
Seidenberg was soon topped by a multibillionaire Republican contributor, Stephen Schwarzman, who likened Obama's modest financial regulatory package to "when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939." Among the clients of Schwarzman's private equity company, Blackstone, is Goodyear, which signed on in 2004 to get advice on "optimal business configuration" and announced it was shipping more jobs to Asia the following year.
Frank Rich, New York Times
News:
A well-known Blogger cafe-owner disappeared
early this morning.
Last seen in a mouse-brown overcoat,
suitably camouflaged,
they saw him catch a train.
Man-in-the-street:
"TPM its disgusting"
"Such a horrible thing to do"
Josh the blogger cut off his readers and served them all
for tea
"Can't go far", "He can't go far".
"Hasn't got a leg to stand on"
"He can't go far".
Al Shaw (via disqus):
I'm standing in a doorway on the main square
tension is mounting
There's a restless crowd of angry people
Versha Sharma:
"More than we've ever seen.
- had to tighten up security"
(right, right, right, quite right!)
Over to the scene at the town hall
Mayor Bloomberg's ready to speak
Mayor Bloomberg:
"Man of suspicion, you can't last long, the Cafe Public
is on our side"
Cafe Public:
"Can't last long", "You can't last long".
"Said you couldn't trust him, Yglesias was just the same"
"You can't last long".
Josh:
If I was many miles from here,
I'd be sailing in an open boat on the sea
Instead I'm on this window ledge,
With the whole world below
Up at the window
Look at the window...
Cafe blogger:
"We can help you"
Cafe blogger chorus:
"We can help you"
Cafe blogger:
"We're all your friends, if you come on down
and talk to us Josh"
Josh:
You must be joking
Take a running jump
The crowd was getting stronger and our Josh M
was getting weaker;
Forwards, backwards, swaying side to side
Fearing the very worst
They called Millet to the sight
Upon the ledge beside him
Millet made a last request.
Millet:
"Come off the ledge if Andrew Golis was here he'd be very,
very, very upset.
"Just can't jump, you just can't jump"
"Your shirt's all dirty, there's a man here from
the New York Times"
"You just can't jump"
Cafe Blogger:
"We can help you"
Cafe Blgger's Chorus:
"We can help you"
Cafe Blgger:
"We're all your friends, if you come on down
and talk to us Josh"
Josh:
You must be joking.
Take a running jump......
'pologies to Peter, Mike, Steve, Phil et al and Genesis.
| The Mayor of Gary |
In the beginning, there was Josh, a laptop computer, and plenty of Starbucks manufactured caffeine.
Josh in 2004
In time, there were readers, which begat more readers, and even, yay verily, even MORE readers. Which spawned an idea...As many of you know, I spend a good bit of time working at a Starbucksnear my home in Dupont Circle in Washington, DC....Josh Marshall
| April 8, 2004, 2:14PM
04.20.05 -- 3:45AM // link | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND
(0)Okay, enough threatening to hold a fundraiser, here we
go.As I've mentioned several times now, we're launching a new site,
TPMCafe.com, a companion site to Talking Points Memo. It will include a
new group blog with an exciting list of contributors, a handful of
topic-specific blogs like our Special Edition Bankruptcy Blog and
discussion areas where we're going to try to facilitate more of what
readers allowed us to do in tracking the Social Security debate in the
first months of this year.We're hoping to launch next month.
It will be a work-in-progress and, with your feedback, we'll make
changes and let the site evolve as we go.But we need your help to get started. Simple as that. Even small
contributions go a long way. Click here to contribute.And please accept our sincere thanks and appreciation in advance.
--Josh Marshall
Thus began TPMCafe. The idea of reader blogs was never a given, but an idea born of the Cafe's evolution, as Josh's respect for his readers and their respect for him was mutual.
That was then. As for now, we no longer have mutual respect. We no longer have a group of like minded people looking for truth. We no longer have a place where people focus on the journalistic aspirations of this place.Let me sign off with a note to contributors. Again, thank you. More than 1500 of you contributed over the previous ten days. You all gave generously. And many of you wrote notes that meant a great deal to me. To say that I was and am humbled would be an understatement. But I must confess that that was not my only or perhaps even my most potent feeling. As I looked over the notes yesterday and the names of various contributors, I had this moment when I imagined all of the various contributors in a crowd or all together in one place. And the thought suddenly came to me: #$@!, I really better make sure this thing doesn't suck!
So, let's hope. But I think you're going to like what we've come up with. We've got a great stable of contributors lined up. Journalists, pols, essayists, political operatives, novelists, policy hands, academics and various people I'm not precisely sure how to categorize. We're also working on new ways for the community of people who read this site to communicate with each other and contribute to the site with their own ideas, insights and observations.
And one other thing. And this again to contributors. In many of your notes you write "to Josh and staff" or something like that. Well, there is no staff. There are various folks without whom I couldn't put this site together -- the guy who helps me with the tech side of the operation, my research assistant and others. But the site has never had a staff -- as in people beside me who have regular paid job working on this site. That, in fact, was the main reason, for the fundraiser, because with the new site in addition to TPM I need to hire a staff of at least one to help me run the whole thing. As of now, though, no staff.
04.30.05 -- 8:05PM // link | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)
This is a funny trick I picked up in TPMDC, and I am afraid I don't remember from whom (sorry), but more importantly, notice the top "hit."
Is it a Report from The CDC? Which states unequivocally that cancer screenings need to increase?
Why no, no it isn't. It is actually a link from right here at the Cafe, which I find highly interesting. I mean, you'd think a lot more folks would be better served with the CDC report, rather than an opinionated, as opposed to fact based, TPMCafe blog that went up 24 hours or so ago. Kinda weird, I think, but, heck, I don't know anything about gaming Google to make things "sticky" let alone any actual interest in doing so. I also think it's bad form to bash one's critics in ones last comment in ones own blog, then turn off comments completely. In all the years I have been reading the Cafe, I've never seen anything quite that lame.
If you bother to slog through that "top hit," you may well find the author making a rather popular but peculiar "argument du jour," regarding an outrageous, (IMHO,) argument that breast cancer screening is actually HARMFUL under age 50. I have noticed recently that these types of nonsensical (to me) arguments regarding baseline healthcare have been picking up steam ever since Obama passed healthcare legislation. Maybe you have, too. Interesting? Possibly.
I figure it's always good to know who is sincere and who is not around here. Actions always speak louder than words.
Just sayin.' Go get that screening.
If you had a lick of sense, you wouldn't see this as "us against them" but as an opportunity for all of us to engage the right to help us fight the good fight. Then again, the most predictable thing about Theda Skocpol is her tiresome predictability.
Theda, good grief, the wheels within wheels within wheels of political intrigue in your complex and sheltered mind missed this rather obvious nugget:
It isn't so much that Obama Should take over BP, it is merely that the Threat of it should be sufficient for BP to stop playing games and plug the leak. In a 3D chess tournament, you wouldn't even qualify.
A growing number of the people whose homes are in foreclosure are refusing to slink away in shame. They are fashioning a sort of homemade mortgage modification, one that brings their payments all the way down to zero. They use the money they save to get back on their feet or just get by.
This type of modification does not beg for a lender's permission but is delivered as an ultimatum: Force me out if you can. Any moral qualms are overshadowed by a conviction that the banks created the crisis by snookering homeowners with loans that got them in over their heads.
Dear Friend:
Thank you for visiting my Contact Center and sharing with me your comments on the important issues I am addressing in Congress. Your message has been received; you will be receiving a response to your concerns as soon as our review and research have been completed.
I hope you will continue to visit my web site at http://lieberman.senate.gov/ for updated news about my work on behalf of Connecticut and the nation. Please contact me if you have any additional questions or comments about our work in Congress.
Sincerely,
Joseph I. Lieberman
UNITED STATES SENATOR
Dear Bwakfat:
Thank you for contacting me regarding Internet neutrality rules for broadband providers. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.
I understand your concerns. There is no denying that the internet has revolutionized the way that Americans work, communicate, and access information. With more Americans accessing broadband and other high speed technology, the internet will certainly continue to serve as an important tool for technological innovation. For example, high-speed networks are beginning to allow Americans to access interactive applications such as online classrooms or health clinics.It is important for the Congress to take the appropriate steps to encourage the development of this technology so that all Americans have free and open access to take advantage of it.
While many online applications have the potential to further revolutionize our daily lives, some have suggested that the broadband networks currently in operation may soon become overloaded, resulting in congested networks that would subject American internet users to unreliable connections. To confront this situation, some have called for a new system of "cyber highways" with the capacity to transfer large amounts of information at even higher speeds.
Unfortunately, some telecommunications companies have proposed charging individual websites, and ultimately consumers, an "access fee" for permission to use these newer and higher speed networks. I oppose this "access-tiering" system and in contrast support the principle of "net neutrality." Since its inception, the internet has been an open system and this openness has proved to be an effective facilitator of market innovations and economic growth. I fear that limiting or restricting access may sacrifice future opportunities for additional innovation.
I believe that the Internet belongs to all who use it to work, communicate, learn, and explore, and telecommunications companies should not have the authority to grant privileged access to certain users or content. That is why I am pleased that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has initiated the formal process for rulemaking that will consider how best to keep the internet free and accessible. The rulemaking process will allow the Commission to determine how best to affirm the current principles which guide broadband policy, and to seek to officially adopt the important principles of non-discrimination and transparency. Further information on the FCC's new rulemaking, and how to submit your own comments on the proposal, is available at http://www.openinternet.gov.
On October 21, 2009, I joined several of my Senate colleagues in writing to the FCC in support of the announcement of this rulemaking, and to affirm our support for a free and open internet. In particular, the letter applauded the Commission's decision to have an extended comment period. This is significant because it provides the public the opportunity to be heard as part of the FCC's rulemaking process. By extending this period from the beginning, the FCC will allow more voices to be heard on these issues, which have significant implications for the future of our nation's internet policy, an issue of great importance to all citizens.
You may also be interested to know that I co-sponsored Senate bill 215, the Internet Freedom Preservation Act, which was introduced by Senator Byron Dorgan (D-SD), in the 110th Congress. This legislation would establish certain Internet neutrality rules for broadband service providers that would prevent them from interfering with, discriminating against, or otherwise hindering the ability of any person to lawfully use broadband services. It would also prohibit a provider from requiring the purchase of cable, other telecommunications service, or IP-enabled voice service as a condition for acquiring broadband internet service. Ultimately, this legislation was not enacted prior to the adjournment of the 110th Congress and, per Congressional rules, must be reintroduced in order to be considered during the 111th. Please be assured that I will work to support similar legislation in the 111th Congress.
Thank you again for contacting me. If you would like to stay in touch with me on this and other issues of importance, please visit my website at http://dodd.senate.gov and subscribe to receive my regular e-mail issue alerts. Please do not hesitate to contact me again if I may be of any additional assistance.
Sincerely,
CHRISTOPHER J. DODD
United States Senator
Heh, Links and everything. Great response. Except, dang it, Senator Dodd. The issue is pretty simple. What good is all this lovely legislation going to do if the FCC does not have the AUTHORITY to enforce all these nice rules and regulations?
I'm a chicken and there seems to my simple brain to be an utter disconnect here. I would suggest you get the FCC the authority it needs now, quick, before some other fool judge makes it EVEN WORSE!
Thanks,
Your friend,
Bwakfat
UNITED STATES CITIZEN
P.S. Stay strong on the banking regs, we're all counting on you, and IMHO that slime from WAMU needs to spend a bit of time in an orange jumpsuit with a cellmate name "tiny," if you know what I mean.
Just sayin'
When the Senate returns next week after a two week recess--they'll take up financial reform. Stuck in committee for months, Senator Chris Dodd finally unveiled a bill that, among other things, calls for the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency within the Federal Reserve. Some worry that the legislation won't do enough to put an end to "too big to fail" and the culture of bank bailouts. Bankers, on the other hand, say financial reform will jeopardize the soundness of banks. Today, we'll talk with Elizabeth Warren. She's a professor of Law at Harvard University and is the chairwoman of the TARP Oversight Panel. She says the Senate basically faces a choice between banks and families.
Former presidential speech writer David Frum says the GOP made a mistake by not working on the health care bill. The position cost him his job last week at a conservative think tank, but he says the think tank was well within its rights.
Frumpy Frum
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