Tamarat's Blog

Tamarat Commented on Coleman Camp To Online Donors: Cancel Your Credit Cards After "Strong Likelihood" Of Breach by Eric Kleefeld

2009-03-11T20:29:13Z

That's my understanding from reading a diary on Daily Kos by a guy who received notification from Wikileaks. He said they had redacted the rest of the number but left the last 4 digits so people could see if it was true that their credit card number was out there.

Tamarat Commented on Brilliant Israeli Animation on Gaza Horrors by M.J. Rosenberg

2009-03-05T19:46:52Z

I'm happy, as usual, to read one of MJ's columns. I routinely email them to various people, especially my daughter, and also to good friends who are Jordanian-American. I like them to see that there are plenty of Jews and Israelis who do not support what Israel is doing to Gaza. (My daughter has been completely turned off to Zionism because of the treatment of the Palestinians.)
My family's loyalties as Jews are not compromised by opposing Israeli policies toward the Palestinians. Instead, I think it is part of the essence of being Jewish to oppose tyranny and injustice.

Tamarat Commented on Vitter Fights Family Planning Money In Omnibus by Eric Kleefeld

2009-03-04T21:42:13Z

With you on this!

Tamarat Commented on Vitter Fights Family Planning Money In Omnibus by Eric Kleefeld

2009-03-04T21:40:38Z

Actually, I thought it was quite ironically appropriate.
Can't wait to show it to my husband.

Tamarat Commented on Vitter Fights Family Planning Money In Omnibus by Eric Kleefeld

2009-03-04T21:38:52Z

Very funny Eric!

But it all still leaves a nagging question -- was "family planning" employed during Vitter's play dates with prostitutes?

Tamarat Commented on Dem Election Worker: Coleman Camp's Story About Duplicated Ballots Happened -- I Was There by Eric Kleefeld

2009-02-27T23:50:23Z

Problems remind me of the Sauerbrey craziness here in MD a number of years ago when she disputed the results of the gubernatorial election (she is a conservative Republican with the first part of her name fitting her personality). She found various instances of improper voting (people voting who shouldn't have) but she used a very wide brush (her list of improper votes was based on names of voters with the same name as people who died even though those names were very common and so there were plenty of legitimate voters on her list of "fraudulent voters"), and mainly -- there were errors but no pattern. That is, in any human enterprise, even with the best will, there are errors. The real issue is whether the errors bias the results (this is the basis of much of statistics). In the Franken/Coleman battle over these supposed double-counted ballots, it looks like there were errors but that they were neither purposeful nor biased.

Tamarat Commented on Report: Bunning Threatens Revenge Against GOP, To Resign And Hand Seat To Dems by Eric Kleefeld

2009-02-27T23:17:35Z

Thanks for this link. Fascinating piece -- the way I understand it -- it's as if you owned a car that you knew had faulty brakes. You offered it to someone who bought cars like this, no questions asked, who spruced up the exteriors and sold them for a big profit. He bought it, knowing there were things wrong with it but pretending he didn't, gave it a quick paint job and sold it as a "bargain" to someone desperate for an affordable car. The final buyer found out what a bargain it was when he hit the brakes but the car wouldn't stop and plowed into lots of people killing them and the driver.

Tamarat Commented on Is Coleman Litigating For Franken Votes? by Eric Kleefeld

2009-02-06T21:27:53Z

Oh,well said!

Tamarat Commented on Is Coleman Litigating For Franken Votes? by Eric Kleefeld

2009-02-06T21:25:53Z

Interesting you say you've "heard of" his books. I've read 2 and they're great fun in addition to being extremely well fact-checked (and I'm a researcher and very very picky about such things). I don't think there's any doubt about his writing them -- if you've ever listened to him on radio or on the Letterman show, he talks the way he writes.
And he's a bright guy. And a decent human being.
The point is not whether Franken's as qualified as Ted Kennedy who's been a superb Senator for decades, but whether he's more qualified and represents progressive issues better than Coleman. And about that, there is no doubt.
In addition, Coleman's legal problems are just an fraction of an inch below the surface. He did some pretty scummy and unethical things as part of his campaigns.

Tamarat Commented on Is Coleman Litigating For Franken Votes? by Eric Kleefeld

2009-02-06T21:17:59Z

Very good point. Thanks for getting this info out.
And I agree that you can't get a much more direct stimulus than food stamps -- money goes out from Gov't and is immediately spent in stores. And it helps feed people who are barely making it. Win-win.

Tamarat Commented on The Larry Summers Fan Club is Losing Members Fast by Elana Schor

2009-02-01T03:58:47Z

Inside info from someone at Harvard -- he has been described as lacking the basic ability to read social signals.
I think it extends to understanding the human condition. He just doesn't get it so his priorities will never be on making things better for the majority of people in the U.S.
But at least he has no charm. There are plenty of people with no more empathy or understanding of the human condition who completely get away with it because they seem like such nice guys.
No one would confuse Summers with a "nice guy."

Tamarat Commented on The Larry Summers Fan Club is Losing Members Fast by Elana Schor

2009-02-01T03:50:41Z

I'll sign on too. Summers may be brilliant but he isn't intelligent. That is -- he's far too taken with his own brain to accept input from others that would enrich his understanding.
Reich would have been great.
My biggest and pretty much only gripe with Obama right now is his economic team.
I'm wildly happy about his reversals of various Bush policies. And his choices for the DOJ are terrific (not to mention the EPA!).
I can't help but wonder if he's done so well with the DOJ because he really is an expert on constitutional law and chose poorly on the treasury end of things because of his relative inexpertise in economics (and I say that with great humility since I am expert in neither of those areas).

Tamarat Commented on Buying Obama Time, Congress Delays Rove Subpoena Deadline by Zachary Roth

2009-01-31T01:52:21Z

or maybe connected to an alternate reality...

Tamarat Commented on Coleman's Supposedly Friendly Witnesses Backfire by Eric Kleefeld

2009-01-27T21:18:02Z

with Al Franken as Al Franken.
His books helped me survive the last 8 years.

Tamarat Commented on Report: Lawyer in CA Emissions Case to Join EPA by Elana Schor

2009-01-27T21:13:37Z

a correction to Ms. Schor's wording -- on the subject of EPA having a legal obligation to address greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, the article should say:
"EPA has been struggling for the past several years on how not to fulfill that obligation."

Tamarat recommended Report: Lawyer in CA Emissions Case to Join EPA by Elana Schor

2009-01-26T18:13:10Z

Tamarat recommended Pro-Business Group Sinks Over A Million Dollars Into Ad Linking Blago To Senate Dems And "Union Bosses" by Greg Sargent

2008-12-16T16:35:25Z

Tamarat Commented on Pro-Business Group Sinks Over A Million Dollars Into Ad Linking Blago To Senate Dems And "Union Bosses" by Greg Sargent

2008-12-16T17:24:12Z

Another anti-union group ("American's for job security" I think it was called) ran an almost full-page ad in the Washington Post over the weekend devoted to fighting the Employee Free Choice Act.
My understanding is that McDonald's is pouring money into fighting the EFCA. I am going to inform my 8-year-old this evening that we'll be boycotting McDonalds.

Tamarat Commented on Why Rachel Maddow Was Wrong by Tamarat

2008-11-27T18:50:57Z

While philosophically I agree with you that civil liberties are far more important than a job, I think that the vast majority of people in this country don't feel that way. They are much more likely to be worried about whether they'll have a paycheck the next month, especially if they haven't been personally affected by the violations of rights perpetrated by Bush et al. And I have a certain amount of sympathy for that position -- when you have children and are suddenly confronted with the prospect of losing your job, losing your home and losing your future, civil liberties seem like a very distant issue.
That's why I think the economy has to come first and foremost. People who feel secure can afford to think about the more abstract issues. If we can get to the point where people feel more secure about their future, we can harness much more support for going after Bush, Cheney and their minions.

Tamarat Commented on Just saw a program on "ID" called God's Next Army... I am CONCERNED by O¿O in the crowd

2008-11-27T01:43:36Z

Not being Christian, I have no idea what

Anabaptist, Pietist and Wesleyan traditions

means.

However, the mission statement doesn't sound particularly objectionable or over the top.

Tamarat Commented on Why Rachel Maddow Was Wrong by Tamarat

2008-11-27T01:29:24Z

Thank you! My younger daughter for Halloween. According to her, she was "a spy dressed up as Hermione Granger."

Tamarat Commented on Why Rachel Maddow Was Wrong by Tamarat

2008-11-26T23:25:32Z

I like your list and agree that one of the main things is to get it all out there for everyone to see. It's one of the best preventative measures we can take.
However, what you suggest is a massive job and one that would take tremendous attention and energy. I don't think that prior even to taking office, and in the middle of a massive economic collapse is the time for Obama to start this type of investigation.
However, I also don't want it put off for too long.
This should be a major objective for Obama's first term. I do hope he will invest in returning America to a constitutional democracy.

Tamarat Commented on Why Rachel Maddow Was Wrong by Tamarat

2008-11-26T23:16:32Z

I agree that the "now isn't the time to look back" argument is fallacious and foolish. It's not a serious reason for opposing going after the law-breakers in the Bush administration.
I would dearly love to see a serious investigation and, hopefully, prosecution of Bush, Cheney and their minions.
My only point is that the economy collapse has to be the driving force right now.
While on its face it seems true that we can do more than one thing at a time, I believe it's not that simple. Obama needs the cooperation of both Dems and Republicans in Congress right now to pass a massive jobs and infrastructure program and that has to be the priority.

Tamarat Commented on On Trial For Espionage, Steve Rosen Attacks Gen. Jones as NSC Adviser While Martin Peretz Attacks Obama for Talking To Shimon Peres by M.J. Rosenberg

2008-11-26T23:07:38Z

While I agree with your position on Israel, the Palestinians and what is needed to bring peace to the region, I don't agree with some of your statements about Rosen (even though I strongly disagree with his position vis-a-vis Israel and the Palestinians)
There's real concern among people who care about the need for a watchdog press (which fell down on the job during the Bush administration) that a conviction of Rosen would create a precedent for going after reporters who get information from inside sources. Think about Watergate and all the inside information Deep Throat gave to Bernstein and Woodward. Do we really want investigative reporters to be at risk of arrest and conviction because they are given information that people in power are hiding? Reporters like Sy Hersh depend on that sort of information.
While it's true that in recent years, leaks have been used for purely political purposes -- e.g., the Valerie Plame leak, and that leakers who break the law should not be immune from prosecution, it is also true that leaks can keep the government from getting away with murder.
Being given information and publicizing it (which is what Rosen did) should not be labeled and prosecuted as espionage.

Tamarat Commented on Just saw a program on "ID" called God's Next Army... I am CONCERNED by O¿O in the crowd

2008-11-26T22:40:01Z

I'm surprised she went to Messiah -- my limited knowledge of that school is that it's Mennonite and not at all associated with the super-charged fundamentalism found in Falwell's or Robertson's college.
A friend of my oldest daughter went there and was looking for internships in Washington, D.C. He was offered one with the so-called Family Research Council and his advisor at Messiah recommended strongly against it.

Goodling must have a spectacularly narrow mind to have gone both there and American U. and still believe the things she belives.

Tamarat recommended Why Rachel Maddow Was Wrong by Tamarat

2008-11-26T21:30:04Z

Tamarat Commented on Keeping Gates Signals Change by FlyOnTneWall

2008-11-26T22:33:03Z

I don't know a lot about Gates, but I remember being surprised at his somewhat honest answers to Congress about the Iraq war. The way he answered the questions indicated his lack of interest in continuing this foolish war, and signaled his independence from the Bush administration. I was surprised they chose him (look what they did to Fallon when he dared to disagree with them).
It seems to me that there is one more argument in favor of keeping him as Sec of Defense -- Obama's attention, rightly, is currently focused on the economy. Having some continuity in the Defense Dept gives Obama maneuvering time during the transition.