Monthly Archives: April 2011

A Python-esque rite in South Philly

Posted on April 28, 2011 by

Ah, the rites of spring in the `hood! You know — palm weaving, the Easter Parade on South Street, race riots in Grays Ferry. Here’s one that was new to me — the Good Friday re-enactment of the crucifixion of … Continue reading →

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Brooks, the Earnest Weasel, nips at Obama

Posted on April 18, 2011 by

This because it’s been a long while since my last installment of the Weasel Watch: President Obama and Paul Ryan are two of the smartest, most admirable and most genial men in Washington. It is sad, although not strange, that … Continue reading →

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In the neighborhood, in spring

Posted on April 15, 2011 by

What’s he building in there?/What the hell is he building/In there?/He has subscriptions to those/Magazines… He never/Waves when he goes by/He’s hiding something from/The rest of us… He’s all/To himself… I think I know/Why… — Tom Waits Overheard while running … Continue reading →

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A plague on Republicrats!

Posted on April 13, 2011 by

Will Barack Obama keep the promise he made today and oppose extending the Bush tax cuts next time? Will it even matter when the Republicans are finished screwing around with the tax code? The ugly truth is that Obama and … Continue reading →

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Lumet’s gone, but ‘Network’ is forever

Posted on April 10, 2011 by

Reading of Sidney Lumet’s death, I thought of Al Pacino chanting “Attica! Attica!” to rouse the rabble in Dog Day Afternoon; of Henry Fonda, with Obama-like cool, shrugging off Lee J. Cobb’s bully tactics in Twelve Angry Men; of Jerry … Continue reading →

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How to negotiate like Neville Chamberlain

Posted on April 9, 2011 by

John Boehner’s target was $40 million in budget cuts. He got $38.5 million. And yet talking heads on MSNBC will almost surely try to spin the budget deal as some sort of victory for Democrats and working people, just as … Continue reading →

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How do Paul Ryan do that voodoo he do?

Posted on April 8, 2011 by

I vote “yes” on Robert Reich’s call for higher taxes on the rich: …Remarkably, taxes on the top have plummeted. From the 1940s until 1980, the top tax income tax rate on the highest earners in America was at least … Continue reading →

Posted in economic collapse, Great Recession, mainstream media, New York Times, Obama, Politics, taxes, unemployment, world-wide economy | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

The Obama trap is closing on progressives

Posted on April 6, 2011 by

From the Animals: My little girl you’re so young and pretty/And one thing I know is true/You’ll be dead before your time is due/Yes you will. From Michael Gerson in The Washington Post: Obama now has Republicans cornered in budget … Continue reading →

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On the road to Johnny Brenda’s w/ Nicos Gun

Posted on April 5, 2011 by

You’re achy and pissed when you pull into Roadkill, AL, or wherever, and sick of looking at each other, of the smell of each other in that RV you’re rattling around in. But South by Southwest in Austin was sweet … Continue reading →

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To NY Times, economic rut is recovery

Posted on April 4, 2011 by

The lead paragraphs and headline — “Job Growth Suggests Resilience of U.S. Recovery” — of a recent New York Times article suggests, Herbert Hoover-style, that prosperity is just around the corner. The real story is buried deep in the text: … Continue reading →

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