Comments Posted By Surabaya Stew
Displaying 51 To 60 Of 255 Comments
SHOULD NEWSPAPERS GO NON-PROFIT?
You're forgetting the cost issue here. Using "the increasing cost of newsprint" as an excuse, the average daily read is twice the price than just 10 years ago. (Of course this is a lie, because when newsprint prices collapsed last year, not a single newspaper reduced their prices!) In addition, many broadsheets have reduced their physical size down to the "berliner" format, which gives the strong impression that the consumer is getting less product for his money. Finally, the Sunday edition is usually the one unique product that newspapers offer that the internet cannot replace, yet most newspaper owners insist on not offering subscriptions that only include the Sunday paper.
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 22.09.2009 @ 00:45
STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS SATURDAY
And those who cannot see what this kind of rigid, uncritical, self-defeating thinking is doing to our country - both right and left - may live to see the day where useful dialogue and reasoned debate become an impossibility and our country dissolves into weak, divided, quarreling bunch of ideologues who prevent us from facing vital challenges both at home and abroad.
The history buff inside me is reminded of the public and political vitriol of the 1850's when thinking of all the madness that is currently occupying our lawmakers and media outlets. (Abraham Lincoln's "House Divided" speech has never sounded more relevant, today's lack of moral clarity on either side notwithstanding.) All democracies face touchy and divisive issues that spilt citizens opinions and votes, yet history tells us that only a very few specific topics are capable of tearing nations apart.
Therefore, is it too much to ask that the Stimulus/Deficit and Obamacare struggles return to a respectful tone and not further inflame our worst passions? Otherwise, I fear it will take generations for our country to heal from all this...
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 20.09.2009 @ 02:36
RUSH AND RACE: THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY
Welcome back Michael Renyolds, long time no see!
Heh - don't encourage him.
ed.
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 16.09.2009 @ 15:19
DEBATE OVER TEA PARTY PROTEST NUMBERS MASKS THE REAL HISTORY MADE
Surabaya Stew, to equate this to the Code Pink protesters during the Bush administration is wrong. This is a movement in numbers that can only be equated to the late 60’s-early 70’s anti-war protesters and to think that they should be dismissed is to not understand that protests CAN change the policies of the government, for had not young university students, backed by the CPA, taken to the streets with speakers like Jane Fonda and John Kerry, we would not have withdrawn from Vietnam when we did.
retire05: You and I must have different sets of facts when it comes to the Iraq War protests, as I seem to recall a large number of hundred thousand plus demonstrations and barely seem to recall Code Pink at all. At any rate, comparing the Tea Party movement to the Anti-Iraq War movement seems pretty relevant when comparing Obama with Bush Jr.
To be sure, I was born after the Vietnam war so I can't personally compare Saturdays protest to the John and Jane show...but didn't those demonstrations take YEARS to have an effect on national policy? (And haven't a number of historians concluded that the protests actually caused more deaths by encouraging Johnson and Nixon to intensify the bombing campaign?) Every president gets a number of opportunities to impose his platform upon the nation and Obama is just carrying out what he promised to do, protests be damned. I understand the anger behind much of this, because once Obamacare passes it won't ever be repealed...but the Iraq War can't be undone either!
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 14.09.2009 @ 00:40
Oh, this will have an impact allright. I predict the Tea Party Protesters will have the same impact on Obama's decision making as the Anti-War protesters in 2003 had on Bush Jr.'s decision making.
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 13.09.2009 @ 11:15
THE LEFT IS ABSOLUTELY RIGHT ABOUT JOE WILSON
This incident will be forgotten long before there’s a vote in the senate on health care and it will be ancient history when a vote comes after conference committee in both houses.
In the larger public sphere, this may turn out to be true. In the incestuous world of Capital Hill, the MSN, and political activists...not so much! My point was that Wilson's actions have only hurt the GOP's changes of containing Obamacare. By making 300 Democrat lawmakers upset and eager for payback, Wilson has turned a political uncertainty into a strong likelihood of passing by Thanksgiving.
And another point, what GOP lawmaker is going to ever say anything at a joint address of congress again, as long as Obama is in charge? What if Obama tells a really big lie someday? Anybody calling him out like Wilson did will be dismissed as a crank! (Of all the things to be upset at Obama about, alleged attempts at providing health coverage to illegals should be pretty far down on the list for a principled opponent.) There could be a time for making an outburst at a presidential address to congress; this occasion did not merit it.
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 12.09.2009 @ 13:24
This outburst certainly has given the Democratic party and Liberals a target on which to focus their anger, regardless if it helps or hurts Joe Wilson get re-elected. And aside from the far-right nutters, how many conservatives and Republicans are going to be fired up over an insult aimed at Obama? (Cringing in embarrassment is more likely a response!) Probably Joe Wilson increased the chances of a health-care reform bill passing more than the rest of the speech did.
Heh - good theory. Except the ball buster is still the public option. This incident will be forgotten long before there's a vote in the senate on health care and it will be ancient history when a vote comes after conference committee in both houses.
And Wilson will win reelection by a comfortable margin. It may be a close race today but by the fall of 2010, the natural equilibrium of the race will reassert itself and Wilson will coast to victory.
ed.
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 12.09.2009 @ 00:30
MY PROBLEM WITH 'FALSE' EQUIVALENCE
Bullshit - Cole has always been a lefty - he never believed in anything that can be called conservative and no,he has not been “betrayed”!
He has been on anti-GOP for the last 7 years and will always be - he does have a lot of chutzpah to call Rick partisan, when he is a hyper partisan himself.
Really? 4 years ago, Cole was as Right Wing as they come! You can't have read the man and not seen his gradual evolution since the Terry Schiavo disaster. Admittedly, me calling him "betrayed" by the GOP is my interpretation, but I think its a reasonable interpretation that explains his frustration and snark that pours out every day. (He's a little like Sullivan in that he supports Obama while at the same time being aloof towards 90% of Democrats.)
And for the record, I don't see him being very partisan towards the Democrats either. (In fact, the week after he changed sides, the Democrats caved into bush on the wiretap bill, and he was talking about how "I hate my new party already!") Even if Cole is not being honest about his own partisanship, he's not wrong for calling Rick "partisan". After all, who comes to Right Wing Nut House for un-partisan opinions?
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 9.09.2009 @ 14:41
Rather a shame about you and John Cole; the 2 of you are both on my top 10 daily blog reads. (There's something about his snark and your rage that just gets me going every day!) Ok, so there sure is a lot that John Cole blames the GOP for, but he's largely on target with his criticism. The man clearly feels betrayed by all that he had been led to believe, and now its payback as far as he's concerned. He may eventually find equivalence with the Democrats, but seeing the damage the GOP has inflicted on its core principals, I doubt that day will come soon. (As to why Mr. Cole is upset at you, that's harder to say. Perhaps he needs to go on a month long sabbatical like Andrew Sullivan just did.)
BTW, Charles over at Little Green Footballs is gradually turning away from the GOP not because of a change in his philosophy, but because their lack of rationality is growing impossible to ignore. I find the day-by-day change at LGF irresistible to watch!
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 8.09.2009 @ 18:49
THE FORMERLY CONSERVATIVE BLOG KNOWN AS REDSTATE
Sadly, RedState reminds me of the Chinese Cultural Revolution where those who think are a danger to the orthodoxy.
Well said, Rich.
As an aside, I noticed that most of RedState's articles descended into nonsensical hysteria and mindless rhetoric just before the 2006 midterm election blowout, and have remained stuck there ever since. (It would seem that electoral success is crucial to the sanity of RedState staffers.) They just can't seem to handle having their party lose.
Comment Posted By Surabaya Stew On 2.09.2009 @ 18:49
