About Freakin' Time

Representative Charles B. Rangel stepped down on Wednesday as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee after losing support within his party because of ethics violations, shaking up the Democratic power structure in the House and costing New York a powerful seat of influence in Congress

Rangel is one of the old-style pols who doesn't see anything wrong with accepting a few favors, such as three additional rent-controlled apartments for Rangel's use as his primary residences. Rangel is of the type of politicians that permitted lobbyists and goons like Abramoff to operate in the shadows.

Right to Carry - the Changes

In 1986, there were eight states that had "shall issue" concealed carry laws. "Shall issue" means that, absent good cause, an application for a carry permit shall be granted and a permit issued. 15 states prohibited concealed carry. Most of the rest left it to the whim of the local police chief, sheriff or judge.



22 years later, things had changed. By 2008, only two states outright prohibited carrying concealed weapons. 12 of the 1986 "no issue" states flipped to "shall issue" and one went all the way to "Permit? You don't got to have no stinkin' permit".

Loss

Jon Swift, whose real name was Al Weisel, died last Saturday. Yesterday, his mother put a comment into his last post.

Skippy has a lot more.

I did not know Jon. I never corresponded with him. But one day, back when having fifty hits a day was a lot, I got a big uptick in traffic. It was from Jon's blog, which I had not eve read. I must have written somethings he liked, for he linked to me.

I wondered what happened, since he went dark on his blog a year ago. It happens, life gets in the way, other projects require attention, food has to be put on the table (damn few bloggers make any money at it). It's a sad thing that Jon never returned to his blog in the last year and now, of course, he's gone west.

Fair winds and following seas forever, Jon.

Paterson Political Deathwatch; Part II

The blows just keep on coming!

Gov. David A. Paterson violated state ethics laws when he secured free tickets to the opening game of the World Series from the Yankees last fall for himself and others, the New York State Commission on Public Integrity charged on Wednesday. The accusation came as the governor, already mired in scandal, met with his cabinet and insisted he would stay in office.

In addition to violating the state’s ban on gifts to public officials, Mr. Paterson falsely testified under oath that he had intended to pay for the tickets for his son and his son’s friend, according to the commission. Mr. Paterson had never intended to pay for the tickets, the commission determined, and did so only after inquiries from the news media, after which he submitted a backdated check as payment.

Violating the state ethics laws and committing perjury. That's a nice cap to the more nebulous possible charges of witness tampering and obstruction of justice.

Better get used to this idea: Governor Richard Ravitz. Can anyone name another time when it took three governors to serve one term?

There Are Times That I Just Hate People

This is why.

When Satire is the Truth

John Boehner's op-ed in the Onion:

The fact is, if I ever worked across the aisle to help thousands of uninsured Ohioans receive health care, I wouldn't be able to look them in the eye. How could I explain to them that I abandoned the idiotic yet politically fruitful claim that Barack Obama is a socialist bent on destroying the American way of life? How could I admit to them that deficit spending is the only way to get us out of an economic crisis perpetuated by my party's disastrous fiscal ideology? How could I tell them I stopped obsessing over scoring petty political points right before the midterm election?

How could I stop being the greedy, myopic scumbag they elected me to be?

Yep, pretty damn accurate.

Grow Up, America; Part III

(I and II)

More voices about the irrational fears that have been stoked by the Right Wing Noise Machine.

(H/T)

Why the Recession is so Severe

BadTux has an answer: Income inequality. You simply cannot have a consumption-based economy if the money is in the hands of people who are not consuming goods and services.

Big Dicks and Bigger Dicks

Republicans spent the last few days running from Sen. Jim Bunning (KY), who was earning a ton of notoriety for doing what he could to screw over people who are unemployed.

“This is one senator,” said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, a chief political strategist for Senate Republicans. “This does not represent the position of the caucus.”

That's just bullshit, the only reason that Cornyn threw Bunning under the bus was because the grumpy old bastard was becoming an embarrassment to the party of Hoover.

Bunning, of course, was not the only douchebag who was against trying to help those who are down on their luck in this recession. There were 19 of them. And one of them, of course, was Cornyn.

Bunning isn't done with his dickishness. He is now pulling a Shelby: Bunning has put a hold on every presidential nominee.

Does the party of Hoover have any point at all, other than to demonstrate that they are a collection of jerks?

UPDATE: Cornyn was supporting Bunning's filibuster until it became a political embarrassment.

The Stupidity of Legislatures

You cannot outlaw a scientific theory or a fact.

But that does not stop those idiots from trying.

Four hundred and ten years ago, the Holy Inquisition burned Friar Bruno at the stake for, in part, positing the existence of other worlds outside of the solar system. We now know that extrasolar planets exist, over 400 extrasolar planets have been found.

When legislators try to outlaw a scientific theory, or mandate the teaching of stuff that is nothing more than religious witchcraft masquerading as science, they only succeed in making their states appear to be cesspits of ignorance and stupidity.

Determining the validity of any scientific hypothesis or theory is not the job of lawmakers.