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Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill

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NefariousNewt
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
And what should appear in my daily quotes today:

What luck for rulers that men do not think.

- Adolf Hitler

That about sums it up.
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pyrrhic
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
Gillibrand Gillibrand Gillibrand!
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Majrhoulihan
01/06/09

@pyrrhic: I went to college in Gillibrand's district. Though my feminist organization backed her, it was because she was head and shoulders above the person holding the seat. However, I'd much rather see a more liberal Rep. like Maloney take the seat. Gillibrand is still a little conservative for my taste.
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PilgrimSoul
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
Nobody's talking about "postpartisan" tax cuts? other than Megan, that is?
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J.D.Regent
01/06/09

@PilgrimSoul: "the fastest way out of a recession is to put the money back in people's pockets!" ummmm NOT. at least they are in the form of refunds so that even non tax payers get them, but i think handing everyone 500 dollar checks is about the stupidest possible way of spending this money. Besides bailing out General Motors, that is.
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PilgrimSoul
01/06/09

@J.D.Regent: Bbbbbut big tent! Republicans! Post-partisan! Change!
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kelsium
01/06/09

@J.D.Regent: It occurs to me that there has to be some way to give people money with the same budgeting system that a lot of companies and especially nfp's use: use it or lose it. Like hand everyone five hundred dollars and tell them that if they spend it on consumer goods they'll get another five hundred next year. I guess that would be complicated, but there's gotta be some way to pump up consumer confidence.
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J.D.Regent
01/06/09

@kelsium: i think it's all about the J.O.B.

@PilgrimSoul: on the other hand politics are always and forever about compromise and they have to get the gddamn thing passed and I'd rather have the concessions come at the top and be integrated than be stupid and smuggled in some floor session to please one holdout or whatevs. I guess I was hoping our majorities would be enough but maybe it's not.
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PilgrimSoul
01/06/09

@J.D.Regent: Paul Krugman and a few other bloggers have been remarking, however, that any infrastructure portion of the stimulus is going to be offensive to the Repubs. So they're going to keep asking for it to be whittled down to nothing, and the problem is, even in the short term, probably best to get some money out there to give to planners so we can at least get some of these projects up and running in the next two years.

@kelsium: But $500 doesn't buy very much in consumer goods these days anyway, so we are back to square one. That's not even close to what most people are paying on their mortgage in one month, either, so no dice there.
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J.D.Regent
01/06/09

@PilgrimSoul: dude, how can INFRASTRUCTURE investment be offensive to anyone????? surely job creation and making sure we don't all fall to our deaths on 70 year old bridges is beyond ideology???
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PilgrimSoul
01/06/09

@J.D.Regent: we are talking about republicans, my dear.
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eatsshootsleaves
01/06/09

@PilgrimSoul: I have been talking about it on other blogs. I don't know what to make of it, obviously. I do think there is something to this:

[blogs.tnr.com]

Now, tax cuts to people who are worse off are actually an effective form of stimulus (because they tend to spend the money); the business cuts are obviously useless. The real problem, it seems to me, is that the dollar amount of the stimulus package was too low to begin with. Which may end up being a very big problem. The Obama team leaked that they were hoping that the bill would end up costing more as it moved through the legislative process (that's what usually happens), but the bill in question here is so large that I'm not sure that will happen.

Maybe the Obama team has a savvy plan for all of this, but count me as increasingly skeptical.

However, Republicans don't actually have a problem with infrastructure. They never have. It's essentially pork. I'm not worrying about the infrastructure spending. I'm worrying about the aid that the package is giving to the states, which for my money is the best, most important part of the plan.
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NefariousNewt
01/06/09

@eatsshootsleaves: The fact is, any economic stimulus is bound to not have the intended effect, since so many people are in debt and would take any windfall and apply it to reducing their debt. Economic stimulus has to revolve around getting people to spend cash (not credit), and I'm not sure how that can be accomplished.
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eatsshootsleaves
01/06/09

@eatsshootsleaves: Also, I assume the reason that people aren't talking about it is because it simply isn't as entertaining as Princess Caroline's pony ride to the Senate, or how Harry Reid is lynching poor Roland Burris, or arguing over how it's okay to kill lots of innocent children if you are Israel or how Hamas really isn't so bad when it does the same thing, or how it would be better to get someone to head the CIA who maybe didn't do anything about the war crimes the agency has carried out but who "knows how to run it" where "knows how to run it" means "not doing anything about the war crimes the agency has carried out."

All the stimulus package is about is whether or not we're all going to have a LOT more time to argue about this stuff. ;)
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eatsshootsleaves
01/06/09

@NefariousNewt: Actually, I believe people spending money on debt is completely fine for stimulus purposes -- they just can't SAVE the money, which does nothing. I'm only 80 percent sure about that, though.
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mepo - Robert Cornhole invented it
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
"No wonder Israel launched its attack before the Inauguration".

I've been saying that since it started, despite Obama's stated commitment to the Israelis I think they were afraid he would push for a stricter peace agreement once in office (which I still hold out hope for).

I also wonder will Clinton's invoke her experience of the Irish peace treaty which she and her husband were so much a part of
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hortense
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
Last night on the CBS Evening News, they showed footage of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, but led in with pictures of injured Palestinians with a Hamas flag, not a Palestinian flag, in the background, as if all Palestinians are Hamas. I found that strange and a bit unfair.
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Where The Mild Things Are
01/06/09

@hortense: The Daily Show last night did a pretty great job of pointing out the media bias in the whole thing. Which was really refreshing.
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J.D.Regent
01/06/09

@hortense: knowing CBS, they probably just used a clip pre-edited by the White House Press Office.
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ohgoodness
01/06/09

@Anthem_: What I wouldn't do to have seen that.
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miss_so_unknown
01/06/09

@ohgoodness: Comedy Central re-airs The Daily Show's previous episodes at 8PM nightly. You can also watch the clip on their website.
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so5minutesago
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
It's so infuriating to me when people dismiss the Palestinians as terrorists or what have you. Both sides have history and religious significance in that land, and every time something like this happens, Bush, et al. is all, "Hamas sucks! Israel is 100% in the right!" We're not in second grade, fucker. There's grey area here.
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rosasparks
01/06/09

@so5minutesago: I'm right there with you.

I just want it to stop, though. How can we get them to stop blowing each other to smithereens? Maybe we can't....
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Grim Reaper of the Forest
01/06/09

@so5minutesago: I think you are expecting too much nuance out of President "Axis of Evil" Bush.
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Ipomoea
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
Rumor in Seattle circles is that Gov. Christine Gregoire is up for Commerce-- she was supposed to be doing some AP pre-legislative forum this morning, but abruptly cancelled. Someone said they caught a flight to DC yesterday and she was on it, and all her office will say is "there will be an announcement Tuesday morning." For all our state Republicans try to talk shit, we are a pretty business-friendly state, and she's worked with trade a lot. I think it's a long shot, but it would be interesting if she was the announcement.

And I really like this format, too. While unfortunately there are less dick jokes, it's a pretty fun read.
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Ipomoea
01/06/09

@Ipomoea:: Uh, nevermind. The Seattle P-I is saying she's in Iraq. Dammit.
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nycdj
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
Megan, I take offense to your claim that the ground offensive is in "supposed security" of Israel. God knows I want a multi-lateral cease fire. Both sides need to get back to the table and stop killing each other. Where was Jezebel's condemnation when Hamas was firing rockets into Israel? This seems very one-sided of you.
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Megan
01/06/09

@nycdj: What I said was "killing more people in the name of supposed security which decades of killing more people hasn't apparently brought." Which it hasn't, since people keep firing rockets and settings off bombs in Israel. I could also have said the last time Hamas fired a rocket before Israel starting bombing Gaza "firing rockets at Israeli settlements in a misguided and as-ever-futile attempt to destroy the established state of Israel and reclaim their ancestors supposed olive groves" but, of course, this feature started yesterday.
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SomeAuthorGirl
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
All of this is good information to be taking into tonight's (am pretty sure it's tonight) premier of Homeland Security USA. Which I thought was fake when I first saw the commercial for it. What I am wondering now is, will they be showing TSA employees squirming and scratching each other because of their itchy rashes? And it begs the question: how concerned about security can you really be if you have a wicked rash on your mind (and your butt?)
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Mama Penguino
01/06/09

@SomeAuthorGirl: I have no idea, but I'd like to pay the jerk who designed those uniforms. TSA workers and Homeland Security, itself, is nothing more than a cross between Big Brother and the Third Reich in my opinion. Now pardon me, I must go. Someone in a dark sedan with tinted windows is waving me over to his car.
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NefariousNewt
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
I knew Gov. Paterson was not a fool -- he's going to be careful with this pick, not just rely on name recognition.
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Majrhoulihan
01/06/09

@NefariousNewt: Yeah, he will. He's running for his first full term and the money Kennedy would bring to the New York Democratic party would be very helpful. You're right - he's no fool.
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NefariousNewt
01/06/09

@Majrhoulihan: If, of course, she turns out to be good at it. If she flubbed it, I don't think he could count on a windfall from NY Democrats.
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morninggloria
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
Whenever I read about Bill "Grabbyhands" Richardson, I picture him with lobster claws. But that's not accurate, because lobster claws don't really "grab" so much as "pinch," so his nickname would have to be "Pinchyhands" if he actually had lobster claws.
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sarah.of.a.lesser.god (aka Mrs. BrutallyHonestHobbit)
01/06/09

@morninggloria: Maybe Grabbyhands is a misappropriation of Crabbyhands?
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MsKatherineSpeaks
01/06/09

@morninggloria: Homer Simpson named his lobster "Pinchy."
And if B. Rich had foam lobster claws, he could probably grab pretty well with them.
Then, there's Watley from Frisky Dingo:
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morninggloria
01/06/09

@MsKatherineSpeaks: And then he accidentally cooked Pinchy in a tragic bathtub incident.
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Grim Reaper of the Forest
01/06/09

@morninggloria: Now I can't stop picturing him as Mr. Crab from Spongebob Squarepants.
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stacyinbean
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
What's the fucking deal with Israel? They pull this crap once every two years or so and it's kind of frustrating. I understand it SUCKS that Hamas is blowing rockets onto your land, but going into Gaza for a week or two isn't going to help. I feel like they just need to seriously have it out, because this crap can't continue like this, but that will be awful too. Also, William Kristol wrote likely the most obnoxious piece of writing I've never seen in the Times yesterday about how Israel can really win it this time. It was unreal.
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NefariousNewt
01/06/09

@stacyinbean: This is how it goes. Israel, and Jerusalem in particular, are the Holy Land. The Jewish people have been fighting over this land since time immemorial. They will keep doing so until everyone stops attacking them, sometime in the 100th Century.
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J.D.Regent
01/06/09

@stacyinbean: I get really scared by this whole "win" language. What would winning even mean in this scenario, if it's not accompanied by a political solution, either one or two states? I'm not even gonna say what I fear it means.
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kelsium
01/06/09

@J.D.Regent: This is the same thing I don't understand about the "win" language that people employ for Iraq. Like, who is going to surrender to us? There is no central threat here, it is just a huge fucking mess of people who hate us. There's no way that a situation like that can result in a "win" for anyone, and pretending like that's an option is incredibly dangerous.
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J.D.Regent
01/06/09

@kelsium: the funny thing about Kristol's article is that he compares a "win" in Gaza to our win in Iraq!
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stacyinbean
01/06/09

@J.D.Regent: I don't even think it's at all possible for either side to 'win'. If the main goal of each side is crushing the other, a win sucks all around. But this can't go on forever, can it? It already feels like it HAS gone on forever, and I don't really think a political solution is possible.
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rosasparks
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
TSA uniform rashes? Yikes! Well, maybe because they are so itchy and annoyed, they may work quicker?

Or it could make them MORE irritable and inhospitable?

I can't wager a guess, really.
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denna
01/06/09

@rosasparks: Well, it couldn't make them more irritable and inhospitable than finding a slimy dildo in luggage while they weren't wearing gloves. My best friend's mom works for TSA...the horror stories she has, I swear.
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rosasparks
01/06/09

@denna: Yesh. That's not OK.

I'm actually not annoyed with TSA workers. They have the most thankless jobs. I hate we just have to go through such nonsense to travel. I feel like it's all a ploy to make me buy small versions of my toiletries. As if I need to spend more money on shit.
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denna
01/06/09

@rosasparks: I was going to type something meaningful about security theater and how much of a crock it is, but I'm going to go make PB&J instead.
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rosasparks
01/06/09

@denna: Word. Taking off my shoes or the TSA workers absconding my hand lotion because it's an ounce too large doesn't keep the population safe.

But I'm not going there. I'm going to drink my coffee and do a budget report! Weee!

(ps minisparks is at work with me today. She's drinking red zinger tea and watching the Sound of Music. I'm in heaven.)
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kelsium
01/06/09

@rosasparks: Dude. I would give just about anything to be sitting at your feet drinking tea and watching sound of music with minisparks. That sounds like the best thing ever.
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rosasparks
01/06/09

@kelsium: Aw! We're both having a great time, I love her so. The Sound of Music should be background accompaniment for any and all drudgery at work.

Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Tee...
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AthertonMerriweather
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
I'm praying that they'll have Obama's economic package ready, on his desk the day he takes office. I need money damn it!!!
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MsKatherineSpeaks
01/06/09

In reply to Obama's Stimulation Package, CIA Pick Titillate The Hill
I might get beat up for saying this, but I like this format much better than "Crappy Hour."
I know it's beloved and missed 'round these parts, but I could never really get into CH.
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rosasparks
01/06/09

@MsKatherineSpeaks: Depended on my moods. I was into CH for the information. Sometimes, I couldn't follow the volley between the writers, but I really enjoyed the discourse.

This is great, too. I'm just thankful I can get my politics from Megan.
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J.D.Regent
01/06/09

@MsKatherineSpeaks: I like it better too. We all know Megan's the one we kept coming back for.
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sarah.of.a.lesser.god (aka Mrs. BrutallyHonestHobbit)
01/06/09

@MsKatherineSpeaks: I will take Megan's news posts any way I can get them, including in Aramaic or Pig Latin. Obama-ay icked-pay Eon-lay Anetta-pay.
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AnnoyingFemaleLeadVoiceover
01/06/09

@sarah.of.a.lesser.god (2009: a space ovumlord): Same here, although it just doesn't feel like the news if someone isn't using rant induced CAPS.

Related: I was "working" hard this morning thinking I wouldn't get the news until 11 (10 my time), but temptation won me over and sure enough it was already posted.
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PilgrimSoul
01/06/09

@MsKatherineSpeaks: (I think most of us lamenting the loss of Crappy Hour were really lamenting the loss of Megan's political coverage, which was booming during the election and now we have to make do with dribs and drabs. Fuck you, Nick Denton, you asswipe who thinks "women" are not interested in this stuff.)
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