Archive for the 'History' Category

GOP White Voter Ratio Actually At 30 Year Lows

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Democrats, History, Republicans

I talked about a Gallup poll yesterday that showed only 11% of GOP voters were non-whites. But after reading some of the comments on that post, I felt the need to amend those thoughts.
Basically, the GOP has been VERY white for a while and are getting less so. But not enough to really make a [...]

June 2nd, 2009 | Permalink| No Comments »

Bush’s Own Anti-Torture Memo To Be Released

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Bush, Cheney, History, Torture

We all knew this had to happen sooner or later, and it looks like the White House wants to put this issue to bed once and for all.
From Wash Post:
Government officials familiar with the CIA’s early interrogations say the most powerful evidence of apparent excesses is contained in the “top secret” May 7, 2004, inspector [...]

May 11th, 2009 | Permalink| 2 Comments »

RIP Jack Kemp

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in History, Republicans

He was known for his dedication to supply-side economics and ushering in an entirely new era for the GOP.
Here’s more from TIME:
It is hard now to imagine the intramural fights that rent the Republicans in the late 1970s and early 1980s over tax policy. Following the economic troubles of the mid and late 1970s, a [...]

May 3rd, 2009 | Permalink| 2 Comments »

Swine Flu Commercial Circa 1976

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Health Care, History, Video

I guess this little baddie has been around a while…

For more on the recent outbreak, check out our Swine Flu Roundup.

April 28th, 2009 | Permalink| 1 Comment »

Quote Of The Day – Shrinking GOP

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in 2008 Election, History, Quotes, Republicans

“It is near-extinct in many ways in the Northeast, it is extinct in many ways on the West Coast, and it is endangered in the Mountain West, increasingly endangered in the Southwest… and if you look at the state of the party, it is a shrinking entity.”
- Former McCain campaign manager Steve Schmidt on Repubs
This [...]

April 24th, 2009 | Permalink| 56 Comments »

Torture Works? Not So Fast…

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in History, Law, Torture, Transparency

When I read the following I have to ask, “Who’s lying here?”
Because haven’t we heard from some pretty high profile folks that these techniques worked, most notably former VP Cheney?
I guess maybe Hillary was right.
First, from NY Times, what traditional interrogation tactics gave us:
Along with another F.B.I. agent, and with several C.I.A. officers present, I [...]

April 24th, 2009 | Permalink| 8 Comments »

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Was Waterboarded 183 Times In One Month

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in History, Torture, Transparency

That means he was made to feel as if he were drowning an average of 6 times and day for 30 straight days.
Kind of puts that whole ticking clock scenario to rest.
From Emptywheel:
I’ve put this detail in a series of posts, but it really deserves a full post. According to the May 30, 2005 Bradbury [...]

April 18th, 2009 | Permalink| 34 Comments »

Quote Of The Day – Torture

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in History, Law, Torture

“The United States is a nation of laws. My Administration will always act in accordance with those laws, and with an unshakeable commitment to our ideals. That is why we have released these memos, and that is why we have taken steps to ensure that the actions described within them never take place again.”
- President [...]

April 16th, 2009 | Permalink| 38 Comments »

Keynes Or Friedman? Bernanke Chooses Keynes…For Now

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Economy, History

A new article from Bloomberg spells out the possible scenarios we face. Obviously I side much more with the Keynes approach because of the reasons laid out here, but obviously inflation fears aren’t unfounded.
Here’s more…
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke is siding with John Maynard Keynes against Milton Friedman by flooding the financial system with [...]

April 13th, 2009 | Permalink| 2 Comments »

Obama Derangement Syndrome Redux

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Barack, Bush, Democrats, History, Republicans

Personally, I just don’t care at this point. People will think what they want. It was dumb when the left did it to Bush and it’s just as dumb now.
From David Horowitze agrees:
Conservatives, please. Let’s not duplicate the manias of the Left as we figure out how to deal with Mr. Obama. He is not [...]

March 31st, 2009 | Permalink| 9 Comments »

McCain Says Public Financing Is Dead

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in 2008 Election, Barack, History, McCain, Money, Technology

I do feel bad for the guy, but with the internet providing the means for anybody to easily donate to a campaign, the game changed and McCain’s public finance laws couldn’t change with it.
From Wash Times:
“No Republican in his or her right mind is going to agree to public financing. I mean, that’s dead. That [...]

March 29th, 2009 | Permalink| 5 Comments »

Obama’s Promises: A Scorecard

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in 2008 Election, Barack, History, Legislation

Politifact tracked 513 promises Obama made during the primaries, and yesterday took a look at his top 10.
Of the 10 promises, 1 has been fully kept, 1 has been kept via compromise, 5 are in the works and 3 have had no action taken on them.
I’ll have more on those last 3 later, but first [...]

March 21st, 2009 | Permalink| 13 Comments »

Charlie Rose Talks To Former AIG CEO

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Economy, History, Video

Looks like the London branch is mostly responsible for the mismanagement, and Hank Greenberg explains in detail what happened that led to this disaster.

Here’s the thing…if most of these bonuses are going to Londoners who we can’t afford to lose because they’re the only people who can wind down all of these accounts, then [...]

March 19th, 2009 | Permalink| No Comments »

Colbert On “Going Galt” Meme

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in History, Republicans

From the moment I heard Republican hacks like Michelle Malkin start referring to the themes in Rand’s ‘Atlas Shrugged’, I knew it was destined to fail. After all, to think that they don’t understand that the selfishness of the few led us to where we are today conveys a particularly acute brand of ignorance.
Still, who [...]

March 18th, 2009 | Permalink| 14 Comments »

Sears Tower Renamed Willis Tower After London Firm

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Crazy, History, Illinois

WTF?
Obviously I don’t take part in jingoistic, populism often, but this just strikes me as just plain unamerican.
From NY Times:
In a sentimental gesture from a no-nonsense kind of guy, Jory Spears lifted his camera phone on Friday in a somber salute to this city’s beloved Sears Tower.
“The Sears Tower has some really big shoulders, it [...]

March 15th, 2009 | Permalink| 5 Comments »

Saddam Was Responsible For Oklahoma City Bombing?

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in History, Iraq, Partisan Hacks, Terrorism

More fun from the neo-conservatives.
Here’s the transcript…
MATTHEWS: The polling that took place before we attacked, conducted by “Time” and CNN, showed that 72 percent of the American people, nearly three quarters, believed it was likely that Saddam Hussein was involved in the attack on us 9/11. How do you think they got that idea, that [...]

March 15th, 2009 | Permalink| 6 Comments »

Jon Stewart Destroys Jim Cramer, With Video!

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Comedy, Economy, History, Media, Money, Video

If you didn’t see it last night, well, here ya go…
Part One

Part Two

Part Three

That very last part about Stewart’s mother…wow. I think we all know somebody like that and it’s why we’re so furious when we consider how jokers like Cramer were asleep at the wheel at best or, at worst, were complicit in all [...]

March 13th, 2009 | Permalink| 48 Comments »

Most Technologically Progressive Decade Of The 20th Century?

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in History, Technology

Do you know which one?
Tyler Cowen does.

March 12th, 2009 | Permalink| 1 Comment »

Will This Video Turn Jim Cramer Into A Toxic Asset?

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Economy, History, Law, Money, Video

We all know Cramer has a big mouth, but back in 2006 he gets dangerously close to admitting that he has engaged in “fomenting” the market, which he calls “blatantly illegal.”
First, most of the quote:
You can’t foment. That’s a violation. [...]
You can’t create an impression yourself that a stock’s down, but you do it [...]

March 12th, 2009 | Permalink| 7 Comments »

Jon Stewart Takes Jim Cramer Apart

By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Comedy, Economy, History, Video

Cramer should have just shut up and taken his lumps. Instead he tried to make it Stewart the boogeyman and here’s how that turned out.

Yes, Cramer actually fired back and then tried to use the excuse of, “Well, but, but, but Warren Buffett and stuff!”
I’m sure we’ll have more tomorrow.

March 11th, 2009 | Permalink| 10 Comments »