YEAH, IT’S LIKE THAT…
0825 by Jeff Hess
27 March 2010
27 March 2010
27 March 2010
27 March 2010
WHO THE HELL IS EUGENE KRAMER…?
0800 by Jeff HessIf an effort like Issue 6 were launched to reform the US Constitution, there would be 24/7 cable news coverage of all these questions from start to finish, with a parking lot full of satellite trucks reporting every single comma, who walked into the building, who walked out, what they had for lunch, with a swarm of constitutional lawyers earning their retirements out of analyzing the work product on live TV.
Can you imagine a re-drafting of the US Constitution that did not even address an entire branch of the government, the judicial branch, and left the top law enforcement office, the guys with the guns, the jails, the grand juries, the judges, the courts, the actual enforcement power of the state, untouched? Cable news that day would explode in a giant supernova of disbelief.
In Cuyahoga County, we deserve more than a finished product handed to us from the dark corner of Bill Mason”s “Out” tray. As County Councilor for District 7, I will work with all members of the Council to get the 8 votes necessary to compel testimony, under oath and threat of being held in contempt, to hold public hearings to investigate the drafting of the charter itself, the transition process, and any charter revisions.
Now if the Tea Baggers were to show some outrage over the hijacking of Cuyahoga County government, they might earns some cred.
27 March 2010
FROM MY DAD…
0630 by Jeff Hess
I could never bring myself to forward all the email jokes, cartoons and other Internet comedy that land in my inbox. But then I started posting the ones my dad sends me. Judging from my comments and emails, my dad has become one of my greatest blogging assets. So for your morning blog video excursion I present: From My Dad.
27 March 2010
FROM MY CHAPBOOK…
0030 by Jeff HessFound in my electronic chapbook.
We can muse that the language itself affords precedent for what Wodehouse has done here. When on lubricates a slice of toast with butter, for example, the verb to butter is in widespread use. If one can butter a slice of bread, why shouldn”t one be permitted to marmalade it? One oils various articles-an engine, a watch, whatever. Could one oil a bowl of salad, preparatory to vinegaring it? p. 202
From Telling Lies for Fun and Profit: A Manual for Fiction Writers by Lawrence Block.
26 March 2010
GOOD MORNING MYANMAR…
2130 by Jeff Hess
Frankly, I’ve not held out any great hope that the United Nations could actually take action against the State Peace and Development Council (aka, Myanmar’s military dictators) and bring them to justice as war criminals. In 2010, the concept just seems to Wonderlandish. Yet, Great Britain has added its voice.
From The Guardian:
Britain is backing moves to refer Burma’s military leaders to the international criminal court for investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity. The move is part of a heightened campaign to force the junta to embrace genuine democratic reforms, diplomatic and government sources told the Guardian today.
In a tough démarche that will increase pressure on the isolated regime ahead of planned elections this autumn, Britain’s ambassador to the UN said the UK supported a recommendation by the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Burma that The Hague-based international court opens a war crimes investigation.
Speaking after a security council meeting, Sir Mark Lyall Grant said the council’s five permanent members were “not sufficiently unanimous” in their views to allow an ICC referral to happen immediately. But if such a proposal were tabled, he said, Britain would support it. Nearly 200 MPs have backed the referral campaign.
Whether this is a hopeful sign or just so much noise, I can’t tell. Great Britain does have colonial ties to the country and may be feeling a bit of Pottery Barn guilt.
26 March 2010
26 March 2010
26 March 2010
WHAT THEY SAY…
1136 by Jeff HessI hear GOP folks and Tea Partiers bemoaning the fact that media and Democrats are using the extremes of their movement for ratings and to score points. This is like Drew Brees complaining that Dwight Freeney keeps trying to sack him. If that were Martin Luther King’s response to media coverage, the South might still be segregated. I exagerate, but my point is that the whining reflects a basic misunderstanding of the rules of protest. When you lead a protest you lead it, you own it, and your opponents, and the media, will hold you responsible for whatever happens in the course of that protest. This isn’t left-wing bias, it’s the nature of the threat.
26 March 2010
MY COMMENTS…
1129 by Jeff Hess26 March 2010
26 March 2010
26 March 2010
26 March 2010
T’ BAGGERS WANT SMALLER BIGGER GOVERNMENT…
0657 by Jeff Hess
Except when they don’t. That tea baggers want smaller government for everyone else makes perfect sense to me. They are, after all, a bunch of government-loving loonies who are really mad because they don’t think they’re getting enough help from the government.
From Bloomberg:
Tea Party activists, who are becoming a force in U.S. politics, want the federal government out of their lives except when it comes to creating jobs.
More than 90 percent of Tea Party backers interviewed in a new Bloomberg National Poll say the U.S. is verging more toward socialism than capitalism, the federal government is trying to control too many aspects of private life and more decisions should be made at the state level.
At the same time, 70 percent of those who sympathize with the Tea Party, which organized protests this week against President Barack Obama”s health-care overhaul, want a federal government that fosters job creation.
They also look to the government to rein in Wall Street, with almost half saying the government should do something about executive bonuses. Supporters are also conflicted over whether private-enterprise elements should be introduced into government programs like Social Security and Medicare.
Tea Baggers are the lonely uncle who gets pissed when he discovers someone got a better deal than he did at the local car dealership. Tea Baggers are the reclusive aunt who rages when they discover that their neice’s baby shower was nicer than the one thrown for her daughter.
These people don’t want smaller government, they want more government for themselves. They’re not revolutionary, they’re just jealous and bitter.
26 March 2010
FROM MY DAD…
0630 by Jeff HessI could never bring myself to forward all the email jokes, cartoons and other Internet comedy that land in my inbox. But then I started posting the ones my dad sends me. Judging from my comments and emails, my dad has become one of my greatest blogging assets. So for your morning blog video excursion I present: From My Dad.
26 March 2010
FROM MY CHAPBOOK…
0030 by Jeff HessFound in my electronic chapbook.
Dean Koontz told me once that he makes it an absolute rule never to use any verb but said in dialogue. p. 199
From Telling Lies for Fun and Profit: A Manual for Fiction Writers by Lawrence Block.
25 March 2010
GOOD MORNING MYANMAR…
2130 by Jeff HessOur stick in not nearly as big as it once was. As a consequence, it might be said that the United States cannont afford to walk as quietly as it did in the 20th century. When India, China and Russia are able and eager to economically replace the U.S., how can the nation hope to shape world affairs? Maybe it can’t.
One of the problems is that while US politicians, particularly in Congress, still assume that American goodwill and economic clout is critical for most nations, this is decreasingly true. As the FT points out today, trade between Turkey and Russia is worth more than treble the amount of the US-Turkish trade relationship. And Turkey also has burgeoning economic ties with its Asian and Middle Eastern neighbours.
I got a faint echo of this problem, when discussing developments in Burma yesterday, with a friend who was passing through London. Of course, US-Burmese relations have long been very cold – and are therefore very different from the longstanding US-Turkish partnership. But the parallel is that, once again, America is finding that its economic importance is in relative decline -and this is reducing its diplomatic leverage. In the US and Europe, the Burma debate is still very much couched as “sanctions or engagement”. But, as my Burmese friend pointed out, the threat of western sanctions is less and less alarming to the Burmese generals, now that their trade relationship with China is booming.
Is triage the solution? Do we only engage nations where our economic clout still makes a difference? Can that make any difference?
