Palin thinks Obama 'tone deaf'

CNN reports that Palin thinks Obama is 'tone deaf' for going on holiday.

CBS's Mark Knoller demonstrates a technique CNN might care to learn called 'journalism'. Knoller has been keeping records of Presidential vacations for many years now:

So far, President Obama has taken 61 vacation days after 31 months in office. At this point in their presidencies, George W. Bush had spent 180 days at his ranch where his staff often joined him for meetings. And Ronald Reagan had taken 112 vacation days at his ranch.

Among recent presidents, Bill Clinton took the least time off -- 28 days.

If a statement made by a politician is important enough to make it into a headline it is important enough to fact check and compare against previous presidents. Read the rest of this post...

Tunnel to link US and Russia?

It's an interesting idea for engineers to consider but does this really make sense when it links two of the most remote parts of Russia and the US? Bad winter weather would likely make transport very difficult for part of the year.

The Times newspaper in the U.K. said that idea to construct a $60 billion tunnel under the Bering Strait was this week backed by some of President Dmitry Medvedev’s top officials.

The paper described the idea as "the greatest railway project of all time."

The tunnel would mean Russian territory would meet U.S. jurisdiction underneath the islands of Big Diomede, which is Russian, and Little Diomede, which is American. One problem might be that there is no rail line to Alaska's west coast.

The Times named one of the officials supporting the plan as Aleksandr Levinthal, the deputy federal representative for the Russian Far East.

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UPDATED: Sound of shelling in Tripoli

UPDATE from Myrddin @4:04 AM Monday: Reports of fighting coming in across Tripoli now. Gaddafi tanks reported on streets. Appears to be coordinated.

UPDATE from Myrddin @7:06: Al Jazeera reports rebels claiming that all Tripoli is under their control apart from Bab Aziziyah, Gaddafi's stronghold. Two Gaddafi sons, Saif and Mohammed reported to be in custody. SkyTV live feed showing Green Square completely filled with opposition forces.

UPDATE from Myrddin @6:41: SkyTV has live news from the rebel forces. CNN and most of the other international journalists are holed up in the Rixos hotel and are reporting via Twitter that they are unable to get out due to their area being under government control. At this point the frontlines are indistinct. There is the main force making its way into the capital methodically from the East, South and West and there are groups within the capital.

State TV is still broadcasting, though it has reportedly been knocked out for brief periods during the evening.

UPDATE from Joe @ 6:18 PM: Al Jazeera English is livestreaming its Libya coverage. Things are happening fast. This will probably Qaddafi's last night as ruler of Libya. His son, and chosen successor Seif, has been captured. (or you could watch "Caught on Camera" on MSNBC.) And, as soon as I posted this, learned taht, Qaddafi's other two sons, Saadi and Muhammed, have been captured.
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Twitter user @2011feb17 claims to be posting from Tripoli itself. He just updated his feed with this audio clip taken from the capital.

Gaddafi shelling civilians in Tripoli Aug 21 2011 by ismailsalemfeb17

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If corporations are people, is Marriott Mormon?

Either he's worrying about fallout from his previous "companies are people" comment, or he actually thinks this is an argument that will resonate with folks.

Strictly speaking, yes, companies are made up of individuals. But... it's a bit of a stretch to suggest that somehow you're taxing the janitor who cleans Microsoft's offices when you tax Microsoft. I seriously doubt he sees a significantly larger paycheck when Microsoft makes more money any particular year. It's a corporation, not a commune. More from Digby.

Not to mention, as far as being people, corporations are pretty nasty people, generally speaking. It's not like many of them have much of a metaphorical soul, which anyone who has ever tangled with one (either as a consumer or a political advocate) knows. If corporations are people, they're rather selfish, self-centered people who would cut your throat if it served their financial interests, so let's not get carried away here.

One other point. Mormons keep telling us that even though Marriott is a Mormon business, it has nothing to do with the Mormon church or the church's nasty tendency to try to ram it's far-right, and often bigoted, beliefs down America's throat via legislative fiat. But if Romney is right, and corporations really ARE the people that work there, then Marriott really is Mormon, and by extension, Marriott is the Mormon faith (I mean, if corps are people, then corps must also share the faith of the people who run them).

So those of us who have a problem with Mormons trying to force the rest of us to live according to their intolerant heavy-handed beliefs should therefore have a problem with Marriott and other Mormon-run corporations? Corps are people, right. Read the rest of this post...

Day 2 of protests to stop Obama from approving the tar sands oil pipeline

Yesterday, I wrote a post about the first XL pipeline protest in front of the White House. 70 protesters were arrested, including Jane Hamsher, Dan Choi and Bill McKibben. Dan, Bill and several others will be in jail until Monday. That's not normal procedure. It's an intimidation tactic by the Park Police. Won't work. Day 2 saw another large group of anti-pipeline protesters. I went down to the White House to watch the events unfold.

I also talked to Jane Kleeb, a Nebraskan, who explained the reasons for the protest. Bottom line: The decision over whether to proceed with this environmental disaster rests solely with President Obama.

The Canadians are trying to bully us into accepting the pipeline across the United States. They need our harbors. We really don't need their tar sands.

Jane mentioned the mess in Michigan. Read about it here:

It’s known as heavy crude oil, tar sands oil or diluted bitumen.

And some of the heavier parts of the oil are on the bottom of the Kalamazoo River.

This is the first time the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has had a diluted bitumen spill of this size, and responders are “writing the book” on how to respond, said Ralph Dollhopf, EPA incident commander for the spill.

“At minimum, we’re writing a chapter in the oil spill cleanup book on how to identify submerged oil,” Dollhopf said. “We’re writing chapters on how it behaves once it does spill (and) how to recover it.”

These protests will continue for the next two weeks. The Park Police really don't want any civil disobedience next weekend during the dedication of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. Actually, there's probably no greater tribute to King than to participate in civil disobedience.

Hopefully, the President will get the message. This is all him. He decides. Big Oil, which pretty much owns DC, is applying a lot of pressure. But, Bill McKibben (who is in jail until tomorrow) explained in his Washington Post op-ed, this one is critical:

But those tar sands are also the second-largest pool of carbon in the atmosphere, behind only the oil fields of Saudi Arabia. If we tap into them in a big way, NASA climatologist James Hansen explained in a paper issued this summer, the emissions would mean it’s “essentially game over” for the climate.

So, Obama's choice is Big Oil or "game over." Should be a no-brainer. But, nothing ever is with this White House. Read the rest of this post...

Koch responds to Warren Buffet - say their non-profits better for society

Explain again how right wing political contributions are better? ThinkProgress:

Koch’s “non-profit investments” include the group founded by his brother David, “Americans for Prosperity” (formerly known as Citizens for a Sound Economy). As ThinkProgress first reported, AFP was one the first and most well-resourced drivers of the anti-Obama so-called “Tea Party” movement. Koch-funded Tea Party events have featured speakers comparing health reform to the Holocaust, and in some cases have sponsored rallies with leaders of the “birther” conspiracy theory.

Among the Koch brothers’ other non-profit investments include far-right conservative think tanks dedicated to cheerleading the war in Iraq, spreading anti-science propaganda, and smears claiming that the poor do not really suffer. Koch has given money to educational initiatives, but in exchange for control over academic freedom that simply furthered Koch’s political beliefs. These “investments” at best advance Koch’s political ideology and at worst misinform American voters. Either way, they are hardly a replacement for “government spend[ing]” on things like food assistance and basic medical service.

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The Go-Go's - Vacation

In theory, our vacation ended yesterday as we set out for the long drive from the coast back up to Paris. Our twenty year old (and borrowed) Fiat had been acting up a bit in the last week but we were hoping it was just another little nothing that always seems to happen with the car. Unfortunately, one hour into our eleven hour drive she folded and gave up on the side of the autoroute on what felt like the hottest day of our vacation.

The highway assistance was on us within two minutes and called a local tow truck to take us away. Besides the cost (€171!!) the service was friendly and they took us back to a lot with other broken down cars waiting for a local garage to open on Monday. As luck would have it, the lot was in a mosquito infested area and they ate us alive. The car insurance company provides transportation back to Paris but it doesn't include luggage and my bike and everything that we carry with us for three weeks. No problem, our second option was to phone a car rental agency and hire a car for the day. Easy, except there wasn't a single car available within 100 miles that was available for a one way drive.

Fortunately one of our Belgian neighbors who we got to known years ago in the village drove an hour to pick us up and brought us back to the village until Monday when a rental car is finally available. There's nothing quite like a restful vacation. Read the rest of this post...

Strict sentencing for UK rioters adds to financial stress

The Tory government wants to throw the book at rioters but they better be prepared for the costs. For some reason the Tories find it much easier to justify costs for prison rather than costs for the poor that might actually help people. The Independent:

The tough sentencing in the aftermath of the riots has led to outbreaks of unrest in prisons across the country, as new research for The Independent on Sunday reveals that the courts' approach to riot-related offences has piled millions of pounds on to the bill for running overcrowded prisons.

Figures show that some two-thirds of the 1,300 arrested following the disturbances were remanded in custody, at a total cost of almost £2m, according to figures provided by the Institute for Public Policy Research. The IPPR calculates the average cost of an under three-month sentence is £2,245 per offender.

On top of this, research for The Guardian showed riot sentences were on average 25 per cent longer than for the same offences last year, meaning the 30 people so far given custodial sentences for theft or handling stolen goods were sent to prison for 5.1 rather than 4.1 months.

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