israel-gaza tension

a great op-ed piece in the new york times reminds us of the constant threat forcing the hand of the Israeli government in launching what would be more accurately called a counter-offensive:

To the south, Israel faces the Islamist Hamas movement, which controls the Gaza Strip and whose charter promises to destroy Israel and bring every inch of Palestine under Islamic rule and law. Hamas today has an army of thousands. It also has a large arsenal of rockets — home-made Qassams and Russian-made, Iranian-financed Katyushas and Grads smuggled, with the Egyptians largely turning a blind eye, through tunnels from Sinai. Last June, Israel and Hamas agreed to a six-month truce. This unsteady calm was periodically violated by armed factions in Gaza that lobbed rockets into Israel’s border settlements. Israel responded by periodically suspending shipments of supplies into Gaza. In November and early December, Hamas stepped up the rocket attacks and then, unilaterally, formally announced the end of the truce.

There's nothing nice about civilian casualties, but Israeli sovereignty is infringed upon from all sides, and even within (the portion of the article about the growing Arab minority within Israel is telling). There are plenty of instances in which Zionism seems overwrought, overblown, or unnecessary, but this is absolutely not one of them.

Ameri-car, the Beautiful

At this eleventh hour of Chapter 11,
I remembered this bit of something
I had written in December of 2005.

Not intimating any kind of untoward prescience.
Just thought I'd share:

"So let's say the country were a car;
democracy would be the chassis or, what do you call it, the body?
Anyway, the exterior.
And capitalism is the engine -- what runs it.
So -- I'm afraid we're getting to the point
(and some would say, I'm sure, we're there already)
where we've got this very powerful, even souped up, engine
running a car which clearly shows signs of some reckless driving --
dinged up, dented and a little wrecked; certainly seen better days.
What concerns me, what with all the effort and attention spent
maintaining and improving the power under the hood,
is that one day comes time to find a less road-weary vehicle
for that snappy engine to run and transport,
leaving behind what will be an empty shell --
obsolete, discarded and going nowhere..."

Clearly I've only taken this metaphor for a test drive.

And so much for that "snappy" engine.
I'm afraid a few chipmunks may have been
hoarding their nuts under the hood as well.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081211/ap_on_fe_st/odd_nut_repository

What would Liz Lemon say?

"Blerg."
http://medicine.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.0050217&ct=1&SESSID=c825ba2bb9eed2dbcf3811de5c185297

Like a reality show -- except real

Blog-OY-evich?
Bernard MADE-OFF?
BUY-YOU Scheme?

Who's making this stuff up?

Okay.

Next!

honestly, tonight:

the remainder of my top 50.

jon stewart kills it

suck it, huckabee.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Mike Huckabee Pt. 2

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

kudos, but also a kick in the knees

to the new york times.

kudos for today's editorial in which they justifiably rail against the current administration's vendetta against civil liberties under pretenses that are at best spurious and at worst megalomaniacal. here's hoping that the Supreme Court sends a strong message: that the rule of law still has meaning.

kick in the knees to neocon douchebag bill kristol for today's op-ed. I can't believe i have to read his swill instead of getting a glorious dose of paul krugman. in today's swill, he calls small market conservatives naive, and encourages republicans to rally to large-government neoconservatism of which he is an ardent supporter. Don't oppose bailouts - relieve large companies of "burdensome regulations" that will somehow this time not lead to short-term profit maximizing choices by CEOs leading to the necessity for....a bailout. Don't put money into silly public works like building roads and bridges - spend more money on defense! And good god, don't waste any money on "fanciful green investments."

loser.

top 50: post-election special!!

without further ado, part 1!

The Financial Crisis
1. The End - Unquestionably, the best article I've read in the last month, and no surprise that it comes from the amazing Michael Lewis. Captures the sordid spirit of Wall Street and its collapse perfectly.
2. Why Wall Street Always Blows It - But this piece by the Atlantic is a close second. Are speculative bubbles part of human nature?
3. Pop Psychology - This next piece by the Atlantic investigates the aforementioned premise even further, and throws in a killer economics experime
4. Anatomy of a Meltdown - My favorite New Yorker piece since the Chuck Hagel profile is this killer profile of Ben Bernanke and a pretty serious critique on his, and consequently the government's, failure of foresight.
5. Deficits and the Future - Why shouldn't we be afraid of running a deficit to rescue the economy? Because Paul Krugman is an economic Batman, and he says so.
6. Too Big Not to Fail - On the other hand, Eliot Spitzer disagrees, and he used government money to sleep with prostitutes. So.
7. A Bankruptcy to Save GM - I'll be honest. I'm not that economically savvy. And apparently the Booth School of Business is renowned for its conservatism. And yet, with this elegant study, they convince me that a controlled bankruptcy is far superior to an auto bailout. Sorry, Democrats. Call me a turncoat.
8. Medicine for the Job Market - But I'll redeem myself! Jonathan Gruber tells us why expanding federal spending on health care is not only fiscally sound, but beneficial for the greater economy! Holla!

The Obama Cabinet
9. What's So Special About a Team of Rivals?: James Oakes wonders just how helpful it is to surround yourself with smart people who don't share your opinions.
10. Calm Before and During a Storm: Jenny Anderson's illuminating profile Tim Geithner last February, as he tackled the emerging credit derivative crisis highlights his pragmatism.
11. Inside Obama's Idea Factory in Washington - Michael Scherer with a phenomenal piece on the birth of the Center for American Progress, the most powerful liberal think tank in Washington.
12. The Return of Larry Summers - David Leonhardt describes the value of Larry Summers to the new Obamanomics team, with particular emphasis on his shift away from his Clinton-era beliefs.
13. Economists Infiltrate the White House; Now What? - My main man Stephen Dubner tries to figure out what all these economists are actually going to do in the new administration.
14. Staying On - Fred Kaplan tells us why Robert Gates staying on at defense is such a good idea.
15. Preliminary Facts and Thoughts About Eric Holder - Well, um, basically what the title says, but good if you don't know anything about Eric Holder.
16. Conflict Zone - Eli Lake wonders whether Jim Jones and Hillary Clinton can just get along when it comes to foreign policy.

Congress Shmongress
17. Bailout - Kick-ASS piece by Michelle Cottle that got me so stoked about Barney Frank that I became his friend on Facebook.
18. Ron Paul Answers Your Questions, Part 1 and Part 2 - Oh Ron Paul. You're so silly and almost an anarchist. Do you pull out another fistful of hair every time someone says "nationalize"?
19. The Last Recount - As if I'd let a top 50 happen without Matt Taibbi on it. Here he tackles the last outstanding Congressional election in Minnesota.

Edumacation
20. The Lightning Rod - Michelle Rhee is fascinating. I think I like her, but she might also be an unsympathetic social darwinist. It's a fine line. (Between what and what? I don't know. But the article is great.)
21. Public School Parents, Unite! - An impassioned piece by Sandra Tsing Loh encouraging community activism among public school parents. See? Community organizers get shit done.
22. Change Our Public Schools Need - Terry Moe of the WSJ on education policy. Unsurprisingly he is not a big fan of teachers' unions (calling it a "faustian bargain" between unions and democrats) and favors accountability, etc.

and finally...

Science!!!!
23. Now, the Rest of the Genome - Carl Zimmer takes us beyond genes, to epigenetics, viral genes, and beeeyyooooonnnndddd. (It's getting late.)
24. The Promise and Power of RNA - RNA interference is so many cool things. It's a legitimately paradigm shifting technology, its something that will make you sound savvy at parties, and ... well, I do it. I interfere, RNA-ly.

Aaand, I'm tired. Part 2, tomorrow.

Obama on MTP

I was somewhat disappointed by Obama's performance. In particular, his out-of-hand dismissal of Tom Brokaw's question regarding raising the gasoline tax. Certainly this is a complex issue, especially with the country facing a recession and rising unemployment, but it took $4 gasoline to get the country focused on energy reform. With oil prices dropping, consumers will revert to their old behaviors unless serious steps are taken to address this issue. Let's not underestimate the ability of Americans to adjust to differing economic realities. Why not demonstrate our commitment to reforming our domestic energy policy at the same time that we're holding the Big Three's collective feet to the fire? That would require the kind of bold leadership that Obama promised to bring to his administration. Watch below during the 8th minute:



Perhaps a gasoline tax would be included among the "long term incentives" that Obama alluded to in his answer, but I doubt it. Indications suggest that Obama will propose a restructuring of our energy grid to accommodate a wind and solar works project but that money will have to come from somewhere. Why not kill two birds with one stone and raise the gasoline tax now while American consumers have the stomach for it? Additionally, the revenue from a gasoline tax would put a dent in the rapidly expanding proposed budget deficit for next year while only minimally deflating consumer demand in the overall economy.

perspective

courtesy of sarah garment!
http://www.voltagecreative.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/bailout-pie.png

the top 50 articles of the past month!!!!

i've picked out 45 of my top 50!! and only 2 authors made the list twice! (the awesome nicholas kristof and stephen dubner). wait for it...