Limbaugh: "We shouldn't remind people on welfare when the election is"

This is the most powerful man in the Republican party. Read the rest of this post...

The EPA was right, meat'll murder you

Not that I don't eat meat.  I love meat.  But with all the recent (and not so recent) news about how red meat can help lead you to an earlier death, I've been trying to cut back on it myself.  I like the idea of living longer.  Not so sold on the idea of dying earlier.

So, the Republicans flipped out at the USDA for urging its employees to celebrate Meatless Mondays.

I'm not surprised.  The GOP "is" all about special interests, and farming in America is one of the biggest special interests around.  So naturally, the Republican party would yet again find a way to help kill more Americans sooner.  Too bad we don't have a national system to guarantee good health insurance. Read the rest of this post...

Romney gets Palestinian GDP per capita wrong

Sure, most Americans don't know what the GDP per capita is in the Palestinian territories. But then again, most Americans are visiting the region as a presidential hopeful who just got scores of briefings on the matter.

Let me put it this way: IF you didn't know what the GDP figures were in the region, you wouldn't be stupid enough to mention them in a speech without double-checking.

Romney's just not very ready for prime time, is he. And for all of his foibles, Obama now is. Read the rest of this post...

Harry Reid: Bain Investor Told Me That Mitt Romney 'Didn't Pay Any Taxes For 10 Years'

Ryan Grim and Sam Stein have the story over at HuffPo:

A month or so ago, he said, a person who had invested with Bain Capital called his office.

"Harry, he didn't pay any taxes for 10 years," Reid recounted the person as saying.

"He didn't pay taxes for 10 years! Now, do I know that that's true? Well, I'm not certain," said Reid. "But obviously he can't release those tax returns. How would it look?

"You guys have said his wealth is $250 million," Reid went on. "Not a chance in the world. It's a lot more than that. I mean, you do pretty well if you don't pay taxes for 10 years when you're making millions and millions of dollars."

Read the rest of this post...

Islamists in Mali stone couple to death for having kids out of wedlock

It's not about Islam. It's about any religion, including Mormons, Catholics, and Evangelicals who not only think they own the copyright on God, but who vigorously shove their faith down the throats of non-believers.

I suspect things like this don't happen in America not because the far-right is more humane than the Islamists in Mali, but rather because we have laws against such things and they'd never get away with it here.  Then again, it's not particularly safe in American movie theaters either.

From NYT:

Islamists in control of a town in northern Mali stoned a couple to death after accusing them of having children outside of marriage, a local official who was one of several hundred witnesses to the killings said Monday.

The official said the bearded Islamists, armed with Kalashnikov rifles, brought the couple into the center of the town of Aguelhok from about 12 miles away in the countryside. The young man and woman were forced into holes about four feet deep, with their heads protruding, and then stoned to death at about 5 a.m. Sunday, the official said.

“They put them into the holes, and then they started throwing big rocks, until they were dead,” the official said, speaking by satellite phone from the remote desert town near the Algerian border.

Read the rest of this post...

Is Twitter censoring Tweets on behalf of corporate partners?

Kind of looks that way. From Dan Gillmor in the Guardian:

This time, Twitter has suspended the account of a British journalist who tweeted the corporate email address of an NBC executive. The reporter, Guy Adams of the Independent, has been acerbic in his criticisms of NBC's (awful) performance during the Olympics in London.

Adams has posted his correspondence with Twitter, which claims he published a private email address. It was nothing of the kind, as many, including the Deadspin sports blog, have pointed out. (Here's the policy, which Adams plainly did not violate, since the NBC executive's email address was already easily discernible on the web — NBC has a firstname.lastname@ system for its email, and it's a corporate address, not a personal one — and was published online over a year ago.)

What makes this a serious issue is that Twitter has partnered with NBC during the Olympics. And it was NBC's complaint about Adams that led to the suspension. That alone raises reasonable suspicions about Twitter's motives.

In essence Twitter is banning traditional advocacy where you post the email address of corporate execs and ask people to contact them. It's hard to understand why such behavior is okay on Web sites, but not okay on Twitter? After all this was a corporate email, and of a top guy. He's got computer people to filter out the emails, if not a secretary. Any in any case, people have been publishing actions with corporate emails for years. Why did Twitter do this, if not for its corporate benefactor?

And why did NBC? Read the rest of this post...

Romney aide swears at site holy to Polish people

And here we all thought today's gaffe would be Romney telling a Polish joke.  And there's video too, via Jonathan Martin at Politco:

As Romney was walking away from Pilsudski Square toward his vehicle, reporters asked him about his string of gaffes and whether he had any comment for Palestinians, some of whom took offense at the Republican’s suggestion Monday in Jerusalem that Israel’s economy is superior because of cultural advantages Israelis enjoy. Romney ignored the questions and got in his car.

But his traveling press secretary was furious.

“Kiss my *ss; this is a holy site for the Polish people,” said aide Rick Gorka. “Show some respect.”

Gorka then told a reporter to “shove it.”

Guess the pressure has gotten to be a bit too much for Team Romney. Perhaps they should stay at home next time and stick with kindergartens. I understand "My Pet Goat" is a good read.

Read the rest of this post...

Alan Grayson on Darcy Burner—Help her win her primary next week

Darcy Burner is in a very tight primary race in Washington state against a very wealthy, self-funded "centrist" Democrat — one who may be a felony violator of Federal election law, by the way.

It's the classic race between a real progressive and one of those "Democrats" loved by DCCC-style Washington.

Darcy Burner's primary is next week. She needs your help to win. Here's Alan Grayson to say why (via email and Facebook; my emphasis):

Dear Friend:

When Darcy Burner was running for Congress in 2008, her house burned down. No one was hurt, but she and her husband and son had to leave had to leave, quickly.

So everyone got to see what Darcy wears, or doesn't wear, at 7 a.m. in her own home.

Darcy was wearing an anti-war t-shirt. See for yourself - it says "Stop the War" in computer code.

That's Darcy, in a nutshell. Anti-war - even in private, where no one but her family could see it.

Darcy also supports full employment, universal healthcare, taking corporate money out of politics, ending discrimination, making higher education affordable for everyone, improving pay and benefits, and reducing inequality. Both publicly, and at 7 a.m. in her home, with no one around but her family.

That's important. We've had a lot of supposedly "progressive" candidates who can carry a tune during their campaigns, but then forget the lyrics after they are elected. Darcy won't be that way. She is who she is who she is.

I have often said that we don't just need more Democrats, we need better ones. If Darcy is elected to Congress, she will be a very good one.

Darcy lost by a narrow margin in 2008. She is running again, her primary is a week from tomorrow, and the latest poll shows one point between her and her key rival.

It's a horserace. And it's time to place our bets. Please click here to support Darcy Burner, because we can count on her to be what she says that she is.

Courage,

Alan Grayson

Darcy Burner looks like an Alan Grayson–progressive; aggressive, results-oriented, and committed to principle. For more on Darcy Burner, go here. I think you'll be very pleased by what you see. I sure was.

As Alan says, it's time. The primary is next week. Are you ready to help a sister? Are you ready to win a few? If so, Alan and Darcy are asking for your support.

As am I.

GP

To follow or send links: @Gaius_Publius Read the rest of this post...

Romney praises socialized medicine in Israel that includes govt mandate

It's socialized medicine that covers everyone in the country. And Romney just praised its amazing ability to keep health care costs down.

"When our health care costs are completely out of control. Do you realize what health care spending is as a percentage of the GDP in Israel? 8 percent. You spend 8 percent of GDP on health care. And you’re a pretty healthy nation," Romney told donors at a fundraiser at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, speaking of a health care system that is compulsory for Israelis and funded by the government. "We spend 18 percent of our GDP on health care. 10 percentage points more. That gap, that 10 percent cost, let me compare that with the size of our military. Our military budget is 4 percent. Our gap with Israel is 10 points of GDP. We have to find ways, not just to provide health care to more people, but to find ways to finally manage our health care costs."

Well, Mr. Romney, here's how Israel does it - with nationwide government mandated health care.

From The Jewish Daily Forward:

Health care provision in Israel is made through not-for-profit health maintenance organizations. Six months after the Jewish state was established, in 1948, just 53% of the population had HMO insurance. Israel steadily increased its financial contribution to HMOs, making membership more affordable, and in 1973 it obliged employers to pay contributions toward employees’ policies.

But HMOs were still free to turn away people who they regarded as too high-risk, so in 1995, when 4% of the population was uninsured, the government made coverage universal by passing the National Health Insurance Law. It meant that everybody had the right — and obligation — to be covered by one of the country’s four not-for-profit HMOs. Residents of the country pay from income-related contributions collected through the tax system, which cover around 40% of HMOs’ costs. The state pays the remaining 60%.

People are allowed to choose which HMO to join and are allowed to change once a year, but the differences are mostly superficial: By law they are obliged to provide a standardized “basket” of services and medicines, from emergency to preventative. Except for some consultations and tests for which the patient makes a contribution to the cost — usually less than $10 — HMOs transfer funds to clinics, health centers and hospitals to cover all services. There are only a handful of completely private hospitals.

To some degree he can't help himself. His entire campaign is based on a lie - that he's a Republican, let alone a conservative - so now he keeps speaking the truth, like about health care in Israel, and then finds himself up against his earlier lies. Read the rest of this post...