Can I haz this meme, pleez?
(Taken from this story.)
Sunday, October 23, 2011
If Obama does it, it must be bad
The GOP is clearly running on the "not-him" platform heading into 2012. It's great for its base, but it's really not necessary. The base clearly wants to vote against "him" (Obama, for those of you confused).
This story caught my attention as a great example of the "not-him" strategy. I would rhetorically ask who could possibly complain about removing a hated dictator from power and paving the way for a democracy with no loss of American lives and at a fraction of the cost of similar operations in Iraq and Afghanistan -- all in around six months' time. But the answer, of course, is Lindsay Graham:
This story caught my attention as a great example of the "not-him" strategy. I would rhetorically ask who could possibly complain about removing a hated dictator from power and paving the way for a democracy with no loss of American lives and at a fraction of the cost of similar operations in Iraq and Afghanistan -- all in around six months' time. But the answer, of course, is Lindsay Graham:
A problem for the GOP
It's tough to know just what to make of the Tea Party -- is it the last political gasp of a dying minority? (Anyone who has lived in a red state will doubt this.) Is it just the rantings of a vocal minority? (More likely; they are a majority in some areas, but nationally are a minority.)
Whatever it is, it's clearly a thorn in the side of Democrats, but it's going to increasingly become a thorn in the side of Republicans when it comes time to actually win elections.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Was the Associated Press transcription of Obama’s CBC speech ‘racist’?
Was the Associated Press transcription of Obama’s CBC speech ‘racist’?
To answer this headline succinctly, no. I'm a bit of a journalist myself, or used to be, and I know well that you clean up things like people leaving off their "g's." But in this case, I think it was the point of the speech.
You'll notice in the rest of the quote from the AP, he didn't leave off the "g's," he only did it on the three specific words.
Just like I felt it was unfair to clean up George W. Bush's grammatical mistakes -- which are different than saying "gonna" rather than "going to" -- I feel like this tells part of the story.
From a journalistic standpoint, I think it is much ado about nothing. And this comes from someone who thinks latent racism is very dangerous.
To answer this headline succinctly, no. I'm a bit of a journalist myself, or used to be, and I know well that you clean up things like people leaving off their "g's." But in this case, I think it was the point of the speech.
You'll notice in the rest of the quote from the AP, he didn't leave off the "g's," he only did it on the three specific words.
Just like I felt it was unfair to clean up George W. Bush's grammatical mistakes -- which are different than saying "gonna" rather than "going to" -- I feel like this tells part of the story.
From a journalistic standpoint, I think it is much ado about nothing. And this comes from someone who thinks latent racism is very dangerous.
Friday, September 2, 2011
I like people in the abstract
This blog entry by Paul Krugman is, as usual, spot on. But the key for me was seeing him put voice to a conservative "value" that I've only come recently to appreciate.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Easing your guilt doesn't always make you feel better
On Monday of this week I got gas at the Speedway on New Circle on the north side of town, near where my office used to be before we moved this spring, and I had a guy come up to me and give me a similar story to one someone had given me near there a few years ago -- the key element being that he started a job at the car wash tomorrow and just needed a little money ($7 in this case).
The first time I had heard the story was when Jennifer and I were leaving the City Buffet two or three years ago (about one or two miles from this Speedway). The guy came up to the car as we were pulling out, and told me this very solid story that sounded atypical and believable. I didn't give him money (I just never do), but felt bad because I thought he might actually be on the up-and-up. I clearly remember the part about starting at the car wash tomorrow, because there is a car wash in the direction he motioned during the story.
I don't know if it was the same guy or they're just sharing story ideas -- at any rate, it made me glad I hadn't given money before. But it doesn't really make me feel any better overall.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
There's a lesson here
HP's decision to ax its tablet and subsequent fire sale caused lots of pontificating among the techie crowd, including the assertion that the fire sale would further strengthen Apple's iPad.
But this is exactly what I was thinking the lesson from this should be:
I've had a similar thought; I'm not an Apple guy, but I must admit that if I'm going to pay $300-plus for a tablet, I'm just going to go ahead and buy an iPad. Heck, the same might be said about Macs; there's no doubting their quality, and if it were based on that alone (it's not), then I'd recommend them for any computer purchase. However, quality PCs can be bought for one-fourth the price of a comparable Mac.
The tablet makers haven't figured out that the same logic might apply to their products.
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