Author: Gatemouth

The Gateway (Kagan and Israel and Sometimes Both at Once Edition)

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As usual, Ruben Diaz is acting like a posturing jerk, but just for the record–double income, no kids upper middle class? FILE “SINGLE” while you still can and pay for a great honeymoon. Diaz Sr., Defender Of Gay Rights? capitaltonight.com

　

As predicted.

Query: in their efforts to constantly oppose Vito Lopes, will Diana Reyna and Nydia Velazquez now switch sides too? If instead of acting reflexively, they'd have watched what Vito did, instead of what he said, they'd be far less confused and wouldn't have ticked off so many of their Yuppie fans.Brooklyn Domino Plan Advances A Step www.nydailynews.com

 

A Compact Model

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I’m undecided about Michael Uhlmann’s article in today’s New York Post, RX for National Vote Count Chaos.

I can’t decided whether it is a product of blissful ignorance or willful stupidity.

Uhlmann is upset that the NY State Senate passed the “National Popular Vote Plan,” an idea created by a group of academics that has lately caught fire.

The Plan would implement a de facto direct election of the President of the United States. Under the plan, the Electoral College would still exist, but be rendered into a meaningless formality. The President would be directly elected indirectly.

The Gateway (Warning: Includes Actual Breaking Political News)

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WOW! You Heard It Here First Department:

Supposedly Purer Than Thou anti-development, anti-establishment, Doug Biviano is circulating joint nominating petitions with Mark Pollard, the pro-development shill Bruce Ratner is running against State Senator Velmanette Montgomery.

Does this make Biviano Ratner's means of punishing Joan Millman?

 

If Friedman is right, then the question becomes whether the Israelis have displaced the Palestinians as the ones who, in Abba Eban's damning phrase, never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.

Money quote: "Which brings me to the surprise. Israeli defense officials were clear with me: The Palestinian security forces built by Abbas and Fayyad in the West Bank are the real deal, and their effectiveness is a vital stabilizer of the current timeout. But Abbas and Fayyad will not be able to sustain this timeout if Netanyahu resumes settlement-building in September, when the partial freeze expires, and if Israel doesn’t soon start gradually transferring control of major West Bank Palestinian towns to the Palestinian Authority." Op-Ed Columnist – War, Timeout, War, Time … – NYTimes.com www.nytimes.com

　

The Gateway (Unhappy Signs of Aging Edition) [Revised]

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In my junk folder was mail I thought said "Make Your Pension Grow," and I eagerly opened it, but it turned out I'd misread.

You know you are getting old when your pension excites you more than your penis.

　

No, I don't buy most of it, but it is worth considering, especially given the conservative source.

Money quote: "The oil spill isn’t Katrina: The Bush administration’s terrible handling of Hurricane Katrina convinced many people—including many otherwise supportive of the administration’s stated policies—that it simply could not govern. Whatever the Obama administration’s errors in handling the oil spill, it isn’t Hurricane Katrina. The only deaths to have resulted from the spill were clearly the fault of BP and its subcontractors. Whatever additional human suffering results from the spill will accrue mostly to people who lose their jobs as a result and, since they’ll likely collect at least something from BP, most will probably be better off than those who lose their jobs for other reasons. The key images from the spill are oil-stained birds, not suffering people." Why the Dems May Be Celebrating in November | FrumForum www.frumforum.com

　

The Gateway (Tolerant Intolerance and Every Other Kind Edition)

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Odds on favorite for SC's Governor and 1st Congressional District are Republicans–one of South Asian origin; the other Black. A triumph of what I call The New Tolerant Intolerance”," Michael Steele's effort to wean the GOP off race hatred and direct its hatred elsewhere and thereby reach social conservatives across racial lines where they exist aplenty. Now this strategy appears on the way to victory in a State where some if its uglier antecedents were first brought to fruition by the likes of Lee Atwater.

One potential Achilles heal elsewhere: the most fertile area of potential growth for this strategy is among Latino immigrants, but asking adherents of the New Tolerant Intolerance on all sides of the racial divide to give up immigrant bashing may be asking them for more tolerance than they are ready to muster. FiveThirtyEight: Politics Done Right: SC Runoff Results www.fivethirtyeight.com

　

MacArthur Park (McChrystal Blew Persuasion)

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RICHARD HARRIS (or DONNA SUMMER): I will take my life into my hands and I will use it
I will win the worship in their eyes and I will lose it
I will have the things that I desire
And my passion flow like rivers through the sky…
…I'll be thinking of you
And wondering why.

MacArthur Park is melting in the dark
All the sweet, green icing flowing down…
Someone left the cake out in the rain
I don't think that I can take it
'cause it took so long to bake it
And I'll never have that recipe again
Oh, no!
Oh, no
No, no
Oh NO!!

The Gateway (Guaranteed: Less Than 50% of the Items Mention Israel)

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This is clearly a troubled marriage Visiting the family of the Hamas terrorist who tried to kill my wife | JTA – Jewish & Israel News www.jta.org

This is an actual quote from a candidate's Facebook posting: "Morning rush and evening rush at subways stops. Then onto a…Parks Committee meeting. Voter Engagement Summer rolls on!" Query: does such ponderous self-absorbed wanking really work? I mean, couldn't he at least wink?

The Gateway (Grounds are for Coffee, Not Divorce Edition)

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Can there be anything more emblematic than the fact that when confronted with a market-based system of regulating carbon emissions, Republicans would instead prefer the heavy hand of government regulation, so the costs would be less apparent? (Actually, that may be unfair to McCain and Graham–most Republicans would prefer we just keep on polluting) Economic Scene – In Cap and Trade, a Risk of Acknowledging Costs – NYTimes.com www.nytimes.com

　

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