Category: political rhetoric

  • Why I support Elizabeth Warren for President

    I first heard about Elizabeth Warren when she was being interviewed on PBS by Bill Moyers in the early 2004. She was bright and insightful about consumer finances. She had just written a book about the “Two Income Trap” and had all sorts of insights into real estate, jobs and family and consumer debt. I…

  • RE: the solar energy "threat" (Letter to Editor)

    Dear Houston Chronicle: I need to quibble with some of the wording in the otherwise excellent report on the emerging solar industry by L.M. Sixel on Monday Dec 2. According to the article, “Solar, however, may pose an even greater threat because unlike wind, it produces the most power when demand is highest — hot,…

  • Books by Politicians (and the people who read them)

    Books by Politicians (and the people who read them)

    A few weeks ago I was watching a great interview on Colbert with Bernie Sanders. I love Sanders and find all his ideas to be interesting. Yet when Colbert revealed that Sanders had a new book out, I remember thinking, there is zero chance I’ll be reading this book. Even though I’m a book reader,…

  • Cornyn: “We will not be bullied by the screams of paid protesters and name-calling by the mob.”

    Cornyn: “We will not be bullied by the screams of paid protesters and name-calling by the mob.”

    Dear Senator Cornyn, Friday, you said on the floor of the US Senate: “We will not be bullied by the screams of paid protesters and name-calling by the mob.” To my knowledge, it is not illegal for people to be paid to protest. I know that lobbyists are paid to make their opinion known to you.…

  • Let’s Not Demonize Hilary

    I am proud to say that I voted for Hillary Clinton — a principled woman who had to put up with a lot for over 25 years of her public life. I know people are going to nitpick about what a flawed candidate she was — that’s only natural. But she is what she is.…

  • Only Chumps with a Rump vote for Trump (Poem)

    Only Chumps with a Rump vote for Trump. He will pump this country into a slump. Don’t make me a grump. Don’t be a lump. If you thump for Trump, You might as well jump into a dump! Let’s get over this mad callithump and dump this Trump. He’s no Forrest Gump. He’s just a…

  • The flaw of libertarian economics

    The flaw of libertarian economics is that it overlooks or discounts the predatory aspects of power. You can say that we should get government off our backs or that taxation is an unjust burden or that the free market provides an optimal creation of wealth. But without oversight or interference, more powerful businesses can easily …

  • Two nastygrams about climate change

    I often get irate about climate change, and here are 2 emails I have sent about climate change.  They are not so much analytical but contemptuous in tone. Why? Frankly, because I think shaming is the only acceptable response. Certainly it would be possible to give a point-by-point response to Mr. Morano’s jabberings, but that…

  • Logical Mistakes

    While I try to get my life back to normal, here are two links to eliminate mental defects (or at least to help you to laugh at them): Wikipedia’s list of cognitive biases. Paul Cox’s Glossary of Mathematical Mistakes. (Don’t forget The NonSequitur for real-life examples of all kinds of fallacies). Speaking of flawed statements,…

  • David Edwards: 5 Things Everyone Ought to Know

    This came from a great 2000 interview with David Edwards on Medialens. It is a long quotation, and I’m highlighting the 5 points because they get a little obscured in the discussion. Between the fourth and the fifth point there is a fascinating discussion about distraction, self-delusion and how journalists are influenced by corporations as…

  • Political Cartoons of Barry Deutsch

    Barry Deutsch has some great political cartoons. Deutsch is a Portland based cartoonist who studied under Will Eisner and is based at leftycartoons and other places. He’s done some bona fide comic projects (including Hereville, a comic book about an 11 year old troll-fighting Orthodox Jewish girl). Ok. that’s a little off the beaten track….…

  • Inane Logic of Teabaggers

    An odd fact: I was once mistaken for a Teabagger.  It’s true. I was a proto-teabagger. I was outraged at the bank bailouts especially because it meant shortchanging public services like education. The protest was sparsely attended but focused. I met teachers, investment bankers (!) and a token LaRouche groupie. All in all a positive…

  • Metaphors and rhetorical points for global warming

    From Joe Romm’s open thread about what metaphors to use when describing climate change: (the first one is entirely mine). If your child were sick, and 97% of the world’s doctors said the child would die unless he take a certain medicine, should you give him this medicine or do nothing until the autopsy confirms…

  • My opinion is right – I’ve actually read the bill!

    I am growing weary of the twaddle from Republicans or conservatives who claim that the health care law is corrupt/wrong-headed/dangerous because they actually took the time to read the bill. Big whoop.  The issue about “not reading the bill” is one that is always raised by right-wingers opponents, as though this were supposed to mean…

  • Shallowness of Sunday talk shows

    I noticed that mediamatters is now  factchecking the statements made on  the Sunday talk shows. I don’t know how hard this is, but it’s extremely convenient to have this as a reference.  Up until recently, TV commentary was provided only on Sunday talk shows. Now with 24 hour cable, we have news commentary shows that…

  • You do not have the right to waste my time: Ignorance Removal Service

    Introducing the Robert Nagle Ignorance Removal Services. Only $300 per hour to demonstrate why a common climate denialist argument is wrong