romney is making his concession speech, and he is actually being quite gracious. while karl rove is probably still being talked down from the ledge of bullshit mountain. i can sort of understand, because this was nowhere the nailbiter the republican echo chamber and the media aching for a horse race predicted. over so soon. sweeping nearly all the swing states. and republicans are getting hammered in their senate races as well (please, may michele bachmann lose too; that would put the icing on my schadenfreude cake).
what REALLY has me excited is that it was a fine day for my people. in maine and maryland, gay marriage ballot measures have passed, prop 74 is leading in washington, and minnesota struck down a state constitutional amendment to enshrine the "one man one woman" concept of marriage. openly gay, progressive tammy baldwin was elected to the senate.
nate silver's statistical model, vindicated. karl rove's "statistical" model, shown for the piece of shite he is. uh, it is. ahhhh.
will the republican party wake up now and become less extreme? not holding my breath, but it would be nice. maybe necessary. though i am wondering now whether they're not making themselves increasingly irrelevant in a changing electorate.
al jazeera wasn't quick with any projections, but i really enjoyed their coverage; it had no high drama from attention-whoring pundits, just relatively courteous discussion. glenn greenwald was very much... nicer in person than he is in writing. it was interesting.
what REALLY has me excited is that it was a fine day for my people. in maine and maryland, gay marriage ballot measures have passed, prop 74 is leading in washington, and minnesota struck down a state constitutional amendment to enshrine the "one man one woman" concept of marriage. openly gay, progressive tammy baldwin was elected to the senate.
nate silver's statistical model, vindicated. karl rove's "statistical" model, shown for the piece of shite he is. uh, it is. ahhhh.
will the republican party wake up now and become less extreme? not holding my breath, but it would be nice. maybe necessary. though i am wondering now whether they're not making themselves increasingly irrelevant in a changing electorate.
al jazeera wasn't quick with any projections, but i really enjoyed their coverage; it had no high drama from attention-whoring pundits, just relatively courteous discussion. glenn greenwald was very much... nicer in person than he is in writing. it was interesting.
since i am not sleeping
Nov. 6th, 2012 13:06i'm watching al jazeera's US election coverage.
because it has glenn greenwald. OMG. can you imagine a US mainstream news network having glenn greenwald commenting on the elections?
but it's more interesting anyway. fewer blowhards, more reportage. and so many cool accents.
because it has glenn greenwald. OMG. can you imagine a US mainstream news network having glenn greenwald commenting on the elections?
but it's more interesting anyway. fewer blowhards, more reportage. and so many cool accents.
the end is nigh
Nov. 5th, 2012 19:11and the way republicans deal with the fact that even polls generally friendly to their candidate now trend obama is to blame -- not themselves, never themselves -- hurricane sandy! (i am so NOT linking to any of the douchebags saying so.)
but wait -- nature doesn't just happen, does it? something is driving it, and the something isn't global climate change, because that doesn't exist.
and since nature doesn't just happen, sandy must be an act of ghod. and ghod usually punishes good people for the transgressions of... gays. are gays to blame for obama's reelection? those few gays outdo all that hard republicanvoter suppression work? you can see why gays need to be feared.
aging infrastructure can't keep up with this level of storm -- alas they "didn't build that", because government shouldn't be so spendy domestically. that money should go to destroying infrastructure in the middle east.
real americans don't need government help, only losers do -- republicans in storm-stricken areas surely won't sacrifice their principles to make nice with the president now. or will they? damned RINOs.
private enterprise is better and faster at dealing with... well, anythingsocialists liberals might consider the job of government. that's why there are power problems, gasoline shortages, and price gouging evident in the stricken areas.
yup, republicans are right, hurricane sandy is to blame. it might've been ripping the blinders off the eyes of more people to allow them to finally see that so much republican propaganda is pure narrow-minded, egotistical bullshit.
p.s. it is almost over. in a couple of weeks i might actually be able to open a newspaper again without being bombarded by the circus and its clown posse that bangs through town every 4 years. then the question shall be whether i want to subscribe to the NYT to reward them for nate silver or Rolling Stone to rewards them for matt taibbi. oh, i can feel another post coming on about paywalls.
but wait -- nature doesn't just happen, does it? something is driving it, and the something isn't global climate change, because that doesn't exist.
and since nature doesn't just happen, sandy must be an act of ghod. and ghod usually punishes good people for the transgressions of... gays. are gays to blame for obama's reelection? those few gays outdo all that hard republican
aging infrastructure can't keep up with this level of storm -- alas they "didn't build that", because government shouldn't be so spendy domestically. that money should go to destroying infrastructure in the middle east.
real americans don't need government help, only losers do -- republicans in storm-stricken areas surely won't sacrifice their principles to make nice with the president now. or will they? damned RINOs.
private enterprise is better and faster at dealing with... well, anything
yup, republicans are right, hurricane sandy is to blame. it might've been ripping the blinders off the eyes of more people to allow them to finally see that so much republican propaganda is pure narrow-minded, egotistical bullshit.
p.s. it is almost over. in a couple of weeks i might actually be able to open a newspaper again without being bombarded by the circus and its clown posse that bangs through town every 4 years. then the question shall be whether i want to subscribe to the NYT to reward them for nate silver or Rolling Stone to rewards them for matt taibbi. oh, i can feel another post coming on about paywalls.
warning, US politics
Sep. 19th, 2012 08:19i'm mostly staying away from it, but if the alternative is kate middleton's bared breasts...
so the mass media is in an uproar over romney's "47%" bit. (if you live under the same comfy rock where i am normally curled up, he was secretly taped at a closed, wealthy donor fundraiser, where he spouted a lot of really lovely crap, see [*] for verbatim quote about this particular bit).
and i gotta say, i see why the uproar is handy, of course (and a nice present for the obama campaign), but it's not like this is news. isn't this what the right wing has been flogging for more than a year already? hasn't there been some anti-"occupy" reference like "we're the 53%" from them? ok, so it's news that the candidate for the presidency said it, with the addendum that he doesn't worry about these people (which will be taken out of context, but he clearly meant it in regards to his election strategy)(well, "out of context" -- i think romney does in actuality not care about most people, but he wouldn't ever say that out loud as president, or act overtly as if he believes it. heck, maybe he doesn't even realize it.).
so some people say "stick a fork in him, he's done". and i say "alas, no".
because his base will gobble it up. seriously. they think it's poor people driving the US to the brink (nothing could be further from the truth, but truth was a victim of republican talking points long ago). they're dead set against helping poor people, because they think they're lazy freeloaders. they have become a lot less compassionate than they were even under reagan (who started the whole "welfare queen" malarkey). they don't recognize who these 47% are. since i know how to, uh, quack (using duckduckgo as my search engine), i looked it up, to be sure i had actual data instead of gut feelings: most of the 47% pay other taxes, just not federal income tax -- they simply don't make enough for the latter. but they pay sales taxes, payroll taxes, state income taxes, etc. most of them are not lazy, shiftless bums lying on their couches eating government bonbons, they're working in menial jobs where they barely make ends meet because they also have children. or they are retired, after a working life of, well, not being a corporate raider; the 47% includes many seniors. the idea that they're not taking responsibility for their lives is preposterous.
and a huge part of his base don't even realize that they are quite possibly part of these 47%. they just don't think of themselves as lazy victims, dependent on government handouts, unlike those obama voters.
so no, romney's not gonna lose those voters. not a chance. in fact he might fire them up some, which he badly needs, since they're not that excited about him. well, maybe a few seniors will stay at home, the ones who're already worried about medicare and medicaid.
he's just not gonna win any undecideds. but i doubt there are many of those left. how can anyone still be undecided? it's not like the republicans are actually fiscally conservative; they just prefer to direct their welfare at the corporate sector. of all the people to rail about debt, romney is their champion? romney, who made his fortune off pushing companies into debt? romney, who has never created anything, and who got his own personal bailout for bain? why paul ryan isn't throwing up every time he looks at him, is a mystery. or hell, not so much. he's a republican; hypocrisy comes with the territory these days.
i mean, for me obama has been a crushing disappointment, but if i could vote, i'd vote for him 10 times over romney. people are supposed to become more conservative as they grow older, but so far it looks like the opposite is true for me. i used to have respect for some republicans, but that group is tiny now, and most of them have already left the party.
last but not least, romney saying anything at all about people not paying taxes? the irony, it slays me.
[*] “There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right? There are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name it. That that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. …. These are people who pay no income tax. Forty-seven percent of Americans pay no income tax. So our message of lower taxes doesn’t connect. So he’ll be out there talking about tax cuts for the rich. I mean, that’s what they sell every four years.
And so my job is not to worry about those people. I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.”
so the mass media is in an uproar over romney's "47%" bit. (if you live under the same comfy rock where i am normally curled up, he was secretly taped at a closed, wealthy donor fundraiser, where he spouted a lot of really lovely crap, see [*] for verbatim quote about this particular bit).
and i gotta say, i see why the uproar is handy, of course (and a nice present for the obama campaign), but it's not like this is news. isn't this what the right wing has been flogging for more than a year already? hasn't there been some anti-"occupy" reference like "we're the 53%" from them? ok, so it's news that the candidate for the presidency said it, with the addendum that he doesn't worry about these people (which will be taken out of context, but he clearly meant it in regards to his election strategy)(well, "out of context" -- i think romney does in actuality not care about most people, but he wouldn't ever say that out loud as president, or act overtly as if he believes it. heck, maybe he doesn't even realize it.).
so some people say "stick a fork in him, he's done". and i say "alas, no".
because his base will gobble it up. seriously. they think it's poor people driving the US to the brink (nothing could be further from the truth, but truth was a victim of republican talking points long ago). they're dead set against helping poor people, because they think they're lazy freeloaders. they have become a lot less compassionate than they were even under reagan (who started the whole "welfare queen" malarkey). they don't recognize who these 47% are. since i know how to, uh, quack (using duckduckgo as my search engine), i looked it up, to be sure i had actual data instead of gut feelings: most of the 47% pay other taxes, just not federal income tax -- they simply don't make enough for the latter. but they pay sales taxes, payroll taxes, state income taxes, etc. most of them are not lazy, shiftless bums lying on their couches eating government bonbons, they're working in menial jobs where they barely make ends meet because they also have children. or they are retired, after a working life of, well, not being a corporate raider; the 47% includes many seniors. the idea that they're not taking responsibility for their lives is preposterous.
and a huge part of his base don't even realize that they are quite possibly part of these 47%. they just don't think of themselves as lazy victims, dependent on government handouts, unlike those obama voters.
so no, romney's not gonna lose those voters. not a chance. in fact he might fire them up some, which he badly needs, since they're not that excited about him. well, maybe a few seniors will stay at home, the ones who're already worried about medicare and medicaid.
he's just not gonna win any undecideds. but i doubt there are many of those left. how can anyone still be undecided? it's not like the republicans are actually fiscally conservative; they just prefer to direct their welfare at the corporate sector. of all the people to rail about debt, romney is their champion? romney, who made his fortune off pushing companies into debt? romney, who has never created anything, and who got his own personal bailout for bain? why paul ryan isn't throwing up every time he looks at him, is a mystery. or hell, not so much. he's a republican; hypocrisy comes with the territory these days.
i mean, for me obama has been a crushing disappointment, but if i could vote, i'd vote for him 10 times over romney. people are supposed to become more conservative as they grow older, but so far it looks like the opposite is true for me. i used to have respect for some republicans, but that group is tiny now, and most of them have already left the party.
last but not least, romney saying anything at all about people not paying taxes? the irony, it slays me.
[*] “There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right? There are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name it. That that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. …. These are people who pay no income tax. Forty-seven percent of Americans pay no income tax. So our message of lower taxes doesn’t connect. So he’ll be out there talking about tax cuts for the rich. I mean, that’s what they sell every four years.
And so my job is not to worry about those people. I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.”
ok, i'm pretty sure the senate is going to the dems as well -- been watching MT vote counts and only one county remains outstanding, which cannot possibly deliver enough votes to allow burns to catch up to tester. though man, that's a real squeaker. dunno whether close enough for recount; people on dkos are debating MT election law.
VA looks quite safe, with 99.84% reporting:
J H Webb Jr Democratic 1,171,813 49.55%
G F Allen Republican 1,164,667 49.25%
the republicans did not pick up a single seat. this solid overall democratic win is a goodness. and today is for celebrating.
i am not totally thrilled, mind. under the circumstances, considering the things the republicans have done, i am disappointed so many people still voted for the crapweasels. and the US has a whole has shifted so much to the right that i remain deeply uncomfortable and uneasy. but it could have been worse, and maybe it can henceforth get a little better overall.
and now for a parting moment of schadenfreude: 'k(no)tnxbye santorum, blackwell, harris, ney, sweeney, foley, delay, sherwood, weldon. welcome to the first muslim in the house and first socialist in the senate (oh, the freepers must just BURN today).
VA looks quite safe, with 99.84% reporting:
J H Webb Jr Democratic 1,171,813 49.55%
G F Allen Republican 1,164,667 49.25%
the republicans did not pick up a single seat. this solid overall democratic win is a goodness. and today is for celebrating.
i am not totally thrilled, mind. under the circumstances, considering the things the republicans have done, i am disappointed so many people still voted for the crapweasels. and the US has a whole has shifted so much to the right that i remain deeply uncomfortable and uneasy. but it could have been worse, and maybe it can henceforth get a little better overall.
and now for a parting moment of schadenfreude: 'k(no)tnxbye santorum, blackwell, harris, ney, sweeney, foley, delay, sherwood, weldon. welcome to the first muslim in the house and first socialist in the senate (oh, the freepers must just BURN today).
still hanging in
Nov. 8th, 2006 00:39the house has been won decisively. MO senate seat has been won and conceded. VA senate seat looks pretty darn safe for the dems now.
just watching MT. *ungh*. getting tight there after early leads. but i am starting to hope the dems will take the senate as well.
and this is weird. i've been watching the numbers on MT's elections website, and so that i could keep track, wrote the rough ones down. this is what my list looks like (these are thousands, democrat tester on the left, republican burns on the right):
98 / 83
104 / 90
113 / 100
125 / 115
140 / 132
134 / 127
say what? how did that happen?
[edit] ah, maybe the fact that apparently yellowstone county is doing a recount, according to dkos (not sure why, whether it's the senate race or a local race that's caused it). before they pulled those votes, tester was leading by about 600 votes there. and they're not gonna do the recount now, but in the morning. ok. g'night then.
[edit 2] or not. i can't let this go. :) it's so close! 2500 votes now, with 90% reporting. and indeed, yellowstone county is recounting, because of operator error. i really like the forthrightness of the county elections administrator who said "it was my fault". i also like that the polls stayed open until the last person in line voted just before midnight. overall, montana seems to have its voting procedures under control, and deals with glitches responsibly, instead of disenfranchising voters. go, montana.
just watching MT. *ungh*. getting tight there after early leads. but i am starting to hope the dems will take the senate as well.
and this is weird. i've been watching the numbers on MT's elections website, and so that i could keep track, wrote the rough ones down. this is what my list looks like (these are thousands, democrat tester on the left, republican burns on the right):
98 / 83
104 / 90
113 / 100
125 / 115
140 / 132
134 / 127
say what? how did that happen?
[edit] ah, maybe the fact that apparently yellowstone county is doing a recount, according to dkos (not sure why, whether it's the senate race or a local race that's caused it). before they pulled those votes, tester was leading by about 600 votes there. and they're not gonna do the recount now, but in the morning. ok. g'night then.
[edit 2] or not. i can't let this go. :) it's so close! 2500 votes now, with 90% reporting. and indeed, yellowstone county is recounting, because of operator error. i really like the forthrightness of the county elections administrator who said "it was my fault". i also like that the polls stayed open until the last person in line voted just before midnight. overall, montana seems to have its voting procedures under control, and deals with glitches responsibly, instead of disenfranchising voters. go, montana.