Yesterday in 100 Seconds

Senator Graham elevates the status of bloggers

I didn't feel all that important or respected until I read this. The bloggers are some (many) of 'we the people'.

We are not all young people either, and although there may be a few who are living in their parent's basements as the stereotype/myth goes, this is not true for all bloggers. Take me for example.

I do not count myself as being of the calibre of the best of the bloggers. The majority of my posts are gleaned from the stories that are posted by some of the best blogs.

It seems to me that in Senator Graham's rush to slam blogs and bloggers, he has inadvertantly elevated the status of bloggers. Thanks Senator.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Republicans would fight back hard if Democrats or liberal groups try to make the Supreme Court confirmation process about Sessions’ record, rather than about Obama’s nominee to replace Justice David Souter.

“If people try to go down that road, it’ll blow up in their face, because Jeff is a good guy,” Graham said. “My hope is that our Democratic colleagues — if you start listening to the bloggers — if we’re going to let the bloggers run the country, then the country’s best days are behind us.” source: Think Progress

Senator Chuck Schumer on This Week - GOP didn't object to spending for Iraq war

Must SEE TeeVee: RNC Chair talks 'long-term jobs' v 'work'

The Peon has some thoughts on this segment below if you are interested.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Revisionist Historians Are They

Exhibit A) If you have not already heard the news, jobs created through government stimulus, i.e. spending, are not jobs, they are work. They are not permanent jobs the example which is jobs created in the private sector, which apparently are permanent.

Sounds like an argument that can also be made to the work that construction workers do. Not permanent, not jobs, just work and therefore not good and it doesn't matter who pays for the construction work, those jobs just don't last. I don't think construction workers would agree with this argument that Michael Steele is making.

Then Michael Steele's remarks about creating 'sustainable, long-term jobs' is laughable to people whose jobs have been shipped overseas. No job is permanent anymore, so to many folks a short-term job fueled by government spending sounds pretty good about now. No job ever was permanent. That fact has been being reinforced many times over in recent years.

Exhibit B) Then there's Mitch McConnell who said,'We know for sure that the big spending programs of The New Deal did not work'.

My parents lived through the depression years. They experienced the painful difficulties of life growing up with little much of anything, including food. They saw how FDR helped bring progress to the country.

Most people agree that further government spending which took place as a result of the United States entry into WWII, accelerated recovery. In both cases it was government spending that brought the economy back, so I don't understand the point of the argument at all, except that it's false.

Exhibit C) No bipartisanship per Lindsey Graham, et al. When the bill has been cut of many things that Democrats want, and many things that Republicans want are added to the bill, which has been the case, that sounds like bipartisanship to me.

If those Senators were not involved in the process, it certainly was not because they were somehow completely shut out of the process, because at least three Republican Senators did sit down the majority and change the bill to find some compromises.

Theatrics on the Senate Floor: Senator Boxer and Senator Graham

It seems to me that Senator Graham was 'theatrical' and Senator Boxer was 'counter-theatrical' and that there has been a lot of 'theatrics' going on on the Senate floor of late.

Senator Graham would probably win the Tony Award I must say.

The question as to whether the Senate bill in question will help to jump start the economy and see us through this economic crisis by providing jobs and rebuilding roads, bridges, schools, is an entirely different matter apparently. Or in order to argue the measure down, theatrics are the only weapon of choice for influencing public opinion against it.

I keep hearing Republicans saying that it won't work, but I'm not getting any rationale for why it won't work.

When FDR initiated The New Deal, with spending on government works projects, unemployment went from 25% to 10%. Republicans say The New Deal didn't work. They say it was WWII that brought us out of those dark times. The truth is that both things are true.

The New Deal made progress, then Conservatives convinced FDR to pull back from the deal and move towards fiscal conservatism, at which time the economy began to go South again. Then the war straightened everything out as real life events sometimes do.

While we are going through these not so good times, somebody should be doing something constructive with time, perhaps making some money to take care of their families and inevitably paying some taxes back to the Treasury.

Since they don't know what is going to happen if they don't do anything, and they do know that simply cutting taxes for the very wealthy does not create the 'trickle down' effect as the theory goes but actually shifts more of the wealth to those who are already extremely wealthy, then why not work on the infrastructure that has needed tending to for a long overdue amount of time?

Makes sense to me, a Peon.

Update: January 06, 2009 at 10:31 AM CST

A blogger on DU stated the Boxer/Graham exchange in this way:

Barbara Boxer just showed the whole Democratic Party how to kick GOP ass

I will buy that description of the theatrical event as well.

Catching Up; Rough Day in Hoosierville and Peon Headlines

It was a rough day in Hoosierville today. I was running a bowling shuttle in My Big Yellow School Bus and had fortunately dropped off the class, heading out for a short layover, when I was broadsided by a car who apparently thought that 'To Yield' meant close your eyes and proceed without caution.

The point of impact was at the rear of the front wheel well, which was crushed in pretty fiercely. The transportation mechanics hammered it back out for now, so Bus 55 is still road ready and able.

The driver of the car, well, let's say, not so good. Complete front end messed up bad. Older model car too that he purchased for 300 bucks. He said he had insurance, but I think that car was a goner.

Meanwhile, back at the transportation hub, filling out the accident paperwork, I got a last minute trip. So they sent me out again in another bus. I did that short trip with some elementary students which was a make-up trip that they had missed because of school closing the Friday before holiday break.


I drove them to the animal shelter where they sang some Christmas Carols to the volunteers who work there and take such good care of our homeless pets. What a bunch of cutie pies they were. Great trip.

I had to take a nap after that and then go back out this afternoon. Just when I had finished up my route, there was a call out on the radio for a driver who would be able to help out with an elementary route. The bus for that route had slid off a cul-de-sac and gotten pretty well stuck.

Two of us split the route out and finished it up, snip snap.

I'm proud to be a school bus driver. I really, really am.

Anyway, back to bloggin'. I'm catching up here so bare with me.

Here's some headlines that jumped out at me today.

• Jobless rate spikes to 7.2% as Dec. payrolls plunge by 524,000

  source: USA Today
  

• Illinois Impeaches Gov. Blagojevich

  source: NPR
  

• Biden holds talks with Pakistani leaders

  source: MSNBC

• Obama to star in Spider-Man comic

  source: BBC News
  

• Commentary: Obama should keep that BlackBerry

  source: CNN

• Gaza War's New Front: Facebook

  source: Wired

• Public tickets available for inaugural parade

  source: ABC 7 News Chicago

• A to Z of Motown Records

  source: BBC News

Vice President-elect Joe Biden travels to Southeast Asia

According to this report, for security reasons, the aides are not disclosing the itinerary. I bet if we were good guessers, we could probably figure it out though.

I'm not going to. I'm just going to behave myself. I don't know how long it will last, and I'm not making any promises either.

A Biden spokeswoman says Biden and South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham arrived in the Middle East emirate on Thursday. The senators met with Kuwait's prime minister and foreign minister to discuss Iraq, Iran and international relations.

Biden is traveling in his role as a U.S. senator from Delaware. He takes office as vice president on Jan. 20 but has not yet resigned his Senate seat. source: MSNBC