January 25, 2009
— DrewM Okay, so that's not exactly how he'll put it but that's pretty much the net effect of his administrations plan to allow California and other states to set emission and mileage standards.
President Obama plans to instruct key federal agencies today to reexamine two policies that could force automakers to produce more fuel-efficient cars that yield fewer greenhouse gas emissions, according to sources who have been briefed on the announcement.The move, which the White House has privately trumpeted to supporters as "the first environment and energy actions taken by the president, helping our country move toward greater energy independence," could reverse two Bush-era decisions that have helped shape the nation's climate policy and its auto market.
Obama will instruct the Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider whether to grant California a waiver to regulate automobile tailpipe emissions linked to global warming, sources said, and he will order the Transportation Department to issue guidelines that will ensure that the nation's auto fleet reaches an average fuel efficiency of 35 miles per gallon by 2020, if not earlier.
Yeah, they are going to study it. Sure. This was part of Obama's campaign and his new team at EPA is almost certain to grant the waiver.
And what might the cost of this waiver be?
Carmakers also contend that the law could increase manufacturing costs, which then would be passed along to consumers. Environmentalists counter by saying consumers would save money in the long run because higher purchase costs would be offset by lower fuel costs.The Association of International Automobile Manufacturers, a trade group that represents Honda, Toyota and 12 other international manufacturers, objects to the law on the grounds that it would lead to "a patchwork of state laws" instead of one federal standard. Allies note that the auto industry is already under tremendous financial pressure, with car sales lagging, and can't afford to comply with new regulations
..."The net effect of his request would add between $1,000 and $5,000 to the price of every car sold in California," (CA Congressman Tom) McClintock said. "Automobile sales normally account for one-fifth of sales taxes paid in the once Golden State and total sales tax receipts are already down $1.5 billion over the last 12 months. Meanwhile, the governor is also asking the president to bail out California from its growing budget deficit. Just another day in 'reality-challenged' Sacramento."
No problem, we'll just add some extra money to the bailout.
Thanks Barack!
Posted by: DrewM at
07:33 PM
| Comments (91)
Post contains 435 words, total size 3 kb.
— Open Blog A new website has been launched with the express mission of stopping the cruel practice of using kittens as shark fishing bait. It is claimed that Venezuelan and Mexican charter boat captains employ the barbaric technique because a securely hooked kitten will struggle fiercely in the water and thus attract hungry sharks. The site also claims that as a result of global warming, longer breeding cycles for cats have occurred and thus there is a growing surplus of felines to dispose of.
Horrific? Yes. Real? Not so much. The video seems to be a slickly edited attempt to drum up outrage and most importantly: tee shirt sales. Take a look at the video below and come to your own conclusion. Sea Kittens indeed...
Posted by: Open Blog at
02:01 PM
| Comments (191)
Post contains 135 words, total size 1 kb.
— Dave in Texas Pelosi doesn't want to mess up the national park though.
Perhaps he's not visited Alcatraz," Pelosi said of Young while displaying little sense of humor. "Alcatraz is a tourist attraction. It's a prison that is now sort of like a -- it's a national park."That explanation didn't stop House Minority Leader John Boehner from repeating the suggestion on Sunday, making that point that closing down Guantanamo by year's end may not be the best plan considering the recidivism rate of terrorist detainees is about 12 percent.
"If liberals believe they ought to go, maybe we ought to open Alcatraz," Boehner, R-Ohio, told NBC "Meet the Press." Being reminded that Alcatraz is a national park, Boehner responded, "It's very secure."
Anybody think she's ever visited there?
It's gonna suck, being in the minority for a while (hell, it's starting to suck being what feels like a minority in the Republican party these days), but this is the kind of needling and prodding from the opposition that I enjoy. Perhaps I'm just being naive (and don't you find my naiveté refreshing?), but you take what you can. We can't beat em for a while, but surely we can dick with them some.
And if the detainees riot there, can we shell them again?
I hope so!
Posted by: Dave in Texas at
11:14 AM
| Comments (175)
Post contains 231 words, total size 2 kb.
— DrewM I think it's safe to say NY Gov. David Patterson won't be getting any invitations to the Kennedy Compound in Hyannis Port anytime soon. If he does manage to wrangle one, he shouldn't accept any rides from Teddy to get there.
An "apoplectic" Kennedy family is seething over the rough treatment that heiress apparent Caroline got from Gov. Paterson's office and is spoiling for revenge, several sources close to the clan have told The Post."The governor's going to pay for this," said a well-placed Democrat. "Ted is furious. The family is furious. The Kennedys are now against the governor."
And it's not just the Kennedy's who are pissed that Paterson selected Kirsten Gillibrand for Hillary Clinton's seat in the Senate. Plenty of downstate Democrats are mad and gun grabbing Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy has already vowed to primary Gillibrand in 2010.
But that rift in the party may not be Paterson's biggest worry. Some analysts are saying that the snub of Andrew Cuomo guarantees that Mario's son will run against Paterson himself in 2010.
The only question being asked in state Democratic circles was not if - but when - Cuomo, who did not attend yesterday's press conference, will announce his candidacy to challenge Paterson in next year's primary."I see Gov. Cuomo in our future," quipped a prominent Democratic activist and lobbyist.
The Dem characterized Paterson's performance over the past three days "as nothing short of outrageous" - particularly in handling Caroline Kennedy.
Party insiders close to Cuomo say they expect the attorney general to announce he'll run for governor toward the end of this year. He's the most popular politician in the state, according to polls, and has a wealth of experience, including a stint as US secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
Now Fred Dicker, who wrote the Cuomo story, is far more plugged in than I ever will be but I'm not as sure about this as he and his sources are. Cuomo ran an embarrassing primary for Governor in 2002 against H. Carl McCall who was the first black elected to statewide office (he was the Comptroller). That campaign went so badly that Cuomo had to drop out before the vote. I'm not sure Andrew Cuomo is set to make his mark as the guy who runs against every black Democrat running for Governor in NY. That said, Cuomo is an ambitious guy and he's blocked from moving up for the next 4-6 years unless he runs in a primary, so we'll see. more...
Posted by: DrewM at
08:17 AM
| Comments (138)
Post contains 659 words, total size 4 kb.
— LauraW No One Was Bitten And Everybody Kept Their Helmets On
Quote from a member on our Yahoo message board this morning:
"That was an absolute blast."
We had about twentyyyy-flavin people this go-around, we estimate.
If you Morons out there are not making an effort to find each other and have regional get-togethers with like-minded folks from all walks of life, you do not know what you are missing.
Highly recommend setting up a message board for this purpose. Much easier way to communicate and to establish precisely whose job it is to forget to bring the camera.
Our venue this last time was ideal. We had the whole top floor to ourselves, and the food was very good. Was great to get out and do something social to break up the Winter doldrums, too.
If you had a Moron Meetup this weekend, we hope yours was just as much fun.
If you didn't have one and would like to, use your dog whistle in these comments and see if anything comes running.
[OK, COMMENTS ARE DOWN UPDATE: I put the distress call out to Pixy. Sorry for the inconvenience.]
[Look, it's the Pixysignal! Time to rewind the mainspring and - SPROING!!! Damn. They don't make these things like they used to. I'll just replace it with this eggbeater and fourteen feet of rubber hose, and... There we are! Good as new!]
MORE THOUGHTS: Blankminde's map (just put it under the fold again for you) is a great tool for finding other Morons, but there has to be a more streamlined way of making it easy for people to form groups than to chance finding the map when it's posted or hoping someone from your area will be on a particular comments thread.
Any suggestions? more...
Posted by: LauraW at
05:58 AM
| Comments (68)
Post contains 249 words, total size 2 kb.
— Open Blog Which is worse for our limey cousins, having embarrassing town and street names or using a French word to describe the dilemma? Local Crapstone resident Michael Hunt could not be reached for comment:
In the scale of embarrassing place names, Crapstone ranks pretty high. But Britain is full of them. Some are mostly amusing, like Ugley, Essex; East Breast, in western Scotland; North Piddle, in Worcestershire; and Spanker Lane, in Derbyshire.Others evoke images that may conflict with residentsÂ’ efforts to appear dignified when, for example, applying for jobs.
These include Crotch Crescent, Oxford; Titty Ho, Northamptonshire; Wetwang, East Yorkshire; Slutshole Lane, Norfolk; and Thong, Kent. And, in a country that delights in lavatory humor, particularly if the word “bottom” is involved, there is Pratts Bottom, in Kent, doubly cursed because “prat” is slang for buffoon.
As for Penistone, a thriving South Yorkshire town, just stop that sophomoric snickering.
Below the fold is a map, which may have had a few towns added: more...
Posted by: Open Blog at
02:25 AM
| Comments (55)
Post contains 179 words, total size 1 kb.
January 24, 2009
— Open Blog Sub-headline: “Apple fans mark 25 years of Mac devotion.”
Mac users have always been a dedicated and close-knit community. Some would say obsessive, and perhaps even cult-like. ThereÂ’s also a strong undercurrent of politics involved, in that Mac users tend to come from a particular side of the political spectrum. ItÂ’s been noted before and is quite evident once again in this article at CNN.com.
”The Apple Inc. watershed product entered American consciousness amid fanfare, with a $1.5 million commercial, made by Ridley Scott, wowing audiences during Super Bowl XVIII. The piece's title, "1984," invoked author George Orwell's message and stood as a warning against conformity.”
This was in the Dark Ages of the Reagan dictatorship, which we shall never speak of again. Never mind the complete misreading of Orwell, but I think most of us who survived that shameful period in American history remember the death camps that “non-conformists” had to endure or die in. Let’s soldier on though:
”The extremes to which people have gone in their love and loyalty for Apple (and specifically Macs) knows no bounds. Perhaps no one knows this better than Leander Kahney, news editor at Wired.com and author of Cult of Mac,as well as the more recently published Inside Steve's Brain. That would be Apple co-founder Steve Jobs' brain, of course.”“From his phone in a San Francisco coffee shop, Kahney told tales of people allotting their limited vacation time to Macworld conferences, a man who has traveled to 40 Apple store openings and those who shaved Apple logos into their heads. As for the Apple tattoos, those, at first, really bothered him.”
“"I'm a bit of a leftie," he said. The idea of "corporate worship" didn't initially sit well with him -- although he's not afraid to admit his own obsession. "It's a very deep relationship people have with their computers. ... If the computer's not working, it's more important than the car breaking down."”
I rest my case. No grudge against the MacÂ…itÂ’s a fine system and much easier to use in many ways than a Windows-based box, but the users of Mac tend to have, as mentioned above (and in the article) a near cult-like devotion to their infernal thinking machines. Just sayin.Â’ Feel free to have a steel-cage style death match in the comments below regarding operating systems. IÂ’m sure no one has an opinion about them. Or whatever else rises to the top of your addled brains. IÂ’ve added a tip-line to the ever-present disclaimer below in case you want to contribute.
Also, Skittle privileges are restored since you behaved yourself in last nightÂ’s open thread.
Notice: Posted by permission of AceCorp LLC, now a partially pwnd subsidiary of AllahPundit Global Industries which itself is a partially pwnd subsidiary of BloggyMac, incorporated and enacted by action of the U.S. Congress on or about January 22nd, 2009. All rights reserved. Please e-mail overnight open thread tips to xgenghisx@gmail.com. Otherwise send tips to Ace.
Posted by: Open Blog at
07:33 PM
| Comments (211)
Post contains 533 words, total size 4 kb.
— Gabriel Malor Ugh. Clearly I fell victim to one of the classic blunders. The most famous is never get involved in a land war in Asia, but only slightly less well-known is this: never mention religion on the internet.
Instead, how about a music post. Here's what I'm listening to:
Enjoy.
Posted by: Gabriel Malor at
07:28 PM
| Comments (87)
Post contains 63 words, total size 1 kb.
— DrewM Oh my. IÂ’m not even going to try and fisk the whole thing because I feel pretty dirty just reading it but itÂ’s really amazing.
Barack Obama opened his presidency by breaking sharply from George W. Bush's unpopular administration, but he mostly avoided divisive partisan and ideological stands. He focused instead on fixing the economy, repairing a battered world image and cleaning up government.
Repealing a ban on aid for abortions abroad isn’t divisive or partisan? How about announcing to Republicans that “I won” and “I will trump you on that” when it comes to making decisions on the so-called “stimulus plan”? Did waiving his vaunted ban on lobbyists all of one day into his administration constitute “cleaning up government”? Was it the use of "Hope And Change" missiles instead of "Hellfires" that reparied our image abroad?
He decreed that interrogators must follow techniques outlined in the Army Field Manual when questioning terrorism suspects, even as he ordered a review that could allow CIA interrogators to use other methods for high-value targets.
Ah, that must be more of that vaunted sharp break from the Bush administration weÂ’ve heard so much about.
Posted by: DrewM at
02:45 PM
| Comments (111)
Post contains 560 words, total size 4 kb.
— DrewM And on the 3rd Day He picked a fight with the country's most visible conservative.
President Obama warned Republicans on Capitol Hill today that they need to quit listening to radio king Rush Limbaugh if they want to get along with Democrats and the new administration."You can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done," he told top GOP leaders, whom he had invited to the White House to discuss his nearly $1 trillion stimulus package.
One White House official confirmed the comment but said he was simply trying to make a larger point about bipartisan efforts.
Ah yes, the great cry of bipartisanship. Allow me to translate that bit of revelation for you..give up your principles and do what the Democrats want and you will be hailed as a great exemplar of bipartisanship (Hello? Senator McCain, is that you?). Stick to your guns and fight for what you believe in? Well, you are just a divisive loud mouth like Limbaugh.
Of course Rush isn't going to let this gift go by with comment.
There are two things going on here. One prong of the Great Unifier's plan is to isolate elected Republicans from their voters and supporters by making the argument about me and not about his plan. He is hoping that these Republicans will also publicly denounce me and thus marginalize me. And who knows? Are ideological and philosophical ties enough to keep the GOP loyal to their voters? Meanwhile, the effort to foist all blame for this mess on the private sector continues unabated when most of the blame for this current debacle can be laid at the feet of the Congress and a couple of former presidents. And there is a strategic reason for this.
There's more from Limbaugh at the link, including a shout out to Obama's cribbing from the Alinksy playbook. more...
Posted by: DrewM at
12:28 PM
| Comments (213)
Post contains 331 words, total size 2 kb.
44 queries taking 0.3122 seconds, 151 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.
