Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

Comments

  1. I just rewatched it the other day, and if you haven’t seen it since it came out, I highly recommend it. It’s hard not to think of Rumsfeld in certain parts, but McNamara seems more human, more thoughtful. It’s riveting whenever he’s talking.

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    But beyond that, the history! “We came this close to nuclear war.” It makes you wonder what we’re not hearing about now, or even the larger implications of what we are hearing about.

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    • If you want a film to show you what a completely bizarre world we live in, try that one. Just saw it last week.

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      So, Gray Davis is governor of CA. Enron does brownouts and bilks the living @#$%$ out of CA. Gray Davis goes to Feds for law enforcement help. BushCo (pals of Enron) tells him to pound sand. CA fiscal situation crumbles. Davis gets recalled. Schwarzenegger — who had met with Lay and Skilling as crisis went on — becomes Governor.

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      Wow.

      • The book is even better. It explains all the complications, and for me made the question of guilt or innocence of the Enron guys pretty clear.

      • First of all, his candidacy is taking so long to be actually official, that I’m starting to wonder if he’s ever going to formally enter the race.  Plus, I find myself siding with Ron Paul of a lot of issues.  While he is pro-life, he doesn’t make himself a hypocrite by being pro-war and pro-death penalty.  He’s been louder about his objection to the war than most democrats have, and he’s always been anti-death-penalty (in Texas, too!).  I’m not sure how I feel about nixing umpteen government agencies, but if he can provide a plan for streamlining government in an effective manner and those red tape machines can go away, all power to him.  Also, he’s an OB/GYN Doctor who’s delivered thousands of babies and never encountered a situation where he needed an abortion to save the life of the mother, so he can make a case for the pro-lifers that other candidates can’t. 

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        I just think the more I look at him, the less he seems like a crazy person and more like the type of Republican I see myself growing into.

          • In my opinion, Newt is good OUT of the race.  He can ask tougher questions and be a figure to beef up whoever gets the nomination.  The way that Gore will be out stumping for whoever the nominee is, I see Newt doing it too, and that’s an invaluable resource. 

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            As far as running, I think his ridiculous personal life is prohibitive.  I mean, Rudy has had a few wives, but he didn’t cheat on one of them while she was dying of cancer.  Newt’s really gonna have to answer to the big guy for that one. 

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            Long Story short:  Newt Gingrich = Great Cheerleader.

  4. Republicans January 19, Democrats January 29, according to Elwood at Blue Hampshire.

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    Why is this allowed?

  5. Who is likely going to pass a bill that gives electoral votes by district instead of winner takes all.  Yup, it’s a red state and yes, it will likely give Dems additional votes, but I’m not sure how I’m liking the idea in general.  There has been some recent talk about California going this route, which will never happen, but just the idea of going by districts and the gerrymandering that goes on when drawing lines within a state has me worried about long term ramifications.

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    Hey, Mitt how many districts does Mass have again?

    • It’s going on a referendum….they recalled Davis…anything is possible for California Republicans if you have lots of money and no scruples.

    • Why split by district?  I am still waiting for a state to refuse to participate in the electoral college and split its votes by the percentage of the popular vote.  Then we’d be a little closer to democracy.

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      Yeah, yeah, I know, the people who decide these things don’t want to lose their or their buddies’ security in office…

  6. would have been enough to fix every bridge in this country.  We would have some dough left over after the repairs and we could have thrown a huge party.  Open bar, dates with bacon wrapped around them, crab puffs, party mix . . . the whole works.

    • Sox-Yankies – Theeeeey’re baaaaaaaack…

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    p>  – Sympathy for Mitt – Don’t take this the wrong way, but I know what he was getting at the other day with his statment about his kids.  What was he supposed to say? “I don’t want my kids to fight over there because they might die”? (Actually, that’s not half bad…)But I dont think he meant to equal the “sacrafice” of campaigning with the sacrafice of service in Iraq or Afghanastan.  I don’t think anyone else really thinks so either…

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    p>  – Local politics – How are people going about recruiting for local ward committees?  I’m thinking of flyers in local stores.  Going door-to-door for committee recruitment seems a bit much, no?

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    p>  – Don’t look now but… I think I’m leaning toward Hillary.

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    p>  – I don’t disagree with Bush when he says Congress needs to appropriate highway money better.  My problem is that he wasn’t more concerned about it last week.  Or appropriation of Homeland Security money, for that matter…

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    p>  – I’m disgusted by the portrayal of young women on realtiy TV these days.  Item 1:  the collection of bimbets assembled on this season’s Real World.  A new low.  If that’s possible.  Where are the feminists on this?

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    p>  – On the plus side, home prices are inching toward a place I can afford.  On the downside, now its suddenly more difficult to get approved for a mortgage.

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    p>  – Two years after Katrina, and still no levee repair?  WTF?

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    p>  – That Anthony Galluccio has any shot at that seat is indicative of a real sickness in local Massachusetts politics.

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    p>  – Barry Bonds:  How awesome would it have been if that fan threw the ball back onto the field?

    • I don’t disagree with Bush when he says Congress needs to appropriate highway money better.  My problem is that he wasn’t more concerned about it last week.

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      The number of earmarks in 2006 were more than 10 times the number in 1994 when the GOP took over.  Now, I don’t know the dollar value of the earmarks [probably more relevant than the number], but this sudden tone that Congress is irresponsible was absent 2000-2006.  Kudos to the GOP for [yet again] successfully portraying the myth that the Democrats are the fiscally irresponsible party.

  8. -Galvin’s office replied to my concerns on the Middleborough town meeting by saying that non-voters present must be challenged challenged either in the meeting or in court, but his office can offer no relief.

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    -The Yankees are going to win the division.

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    -Musharraf pulled out of a tribal leaders’ meeting with Harmid Karzai.  He blames Bush among others, but not any of the Dem candidates directly.  I’m really starting to wonder if he’s gonna make it out of this year alive.  He’s been lucky so far.

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    -Funny how the new school funding formula basically gives a lot more money to rich districts.

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    -Deval’s right about the compensation of Trav’s brother.  The guy doesn’t even manage the fund; he manages the managers.  Get real, buddy.

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    -When I checked the weather forecast a few days ago, the launch day forecast in Cape Canaveral was ugly.  After watching the shuttle not go up for three days last year, I didn’t want to race down again for no reason.  So what happens?  It goes up last night per schedule. Some day I will be there for a launch.

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    -I like open threads.  And pie.

    • and banana cream pie
      and chocolate pudding pie
      and lemon marangue pie
      and pumpkin pie
      apple, of course
      never forget pecan

      • Swiss Chocolate Almond
        Boston Creme

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        but they all tremble before the mighty cheesecake.

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        (MCRD, avert your eyes from this thread.  I’m talking about creme pies.)

        • [in no particular order, except the order they’re in]

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          apple
          strawberry rhubarb
          key lime

          • And I make all three!

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            If you’d added lemon meringue….I would have accused you of psychic abilities (and I’m too lazy to put in the work to make a good meringue, and am content to ordr it out).

            • We’re two peas of different pods.  Go figger.

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              I’ll bet my strawberry rhubarb pie is better than yours.  To prove it, please mail me one pie and I’ll let you know the test results, complete with analysis, graphs, numbers, and a snappy executive summary.

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              Better make it two pies, just to be sure.

    • a few years ago.  Absolutely thrilling.  Well worth the trip to FL, getting up at 3 am, the whole thing.  And I got lucky: it went up when it was supposed to — no weather delays.

    • It was pretty cool.  We sometimes have a hospital with a good facility host a seminar, I was doing one in Cocoa a while back, someone in the business office at the hospital told me that a shuttle launch was going to start.  Of course I wanted to see it, so I asked everyone to vote to break to watch the launch and stay late to finish the seminar.  Now ever been to a seminar where people wanted to stay late?  I think I got a 100% vote to watch the launch, plus good evals.

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      Don’t see how the Yanks will do anything in the division, maybe if the play KC and Tampa for the rest of the year.  They got Cleveland, two with Detroit and Boston, only Baltimore in the middle for relief.  Then it’s September.  It’s going to get ugly early for them.  Don’t let the fool you.

    • Man, do I miss Fafblog. Wednesday, August 11, 2004:

      It is fearsome. It is foul. It is the creation of a madman made in defiance of all the laws of nature and pies. Women and children run screamin from it in terror. Men spit at it in hatred. Can we come to understand it? Can we move past our horror an revulsion to truly know the okra tofu pie?

      It did not ask for this strange unnatural life, okra an tofu spliced together in the kitchen of mad science an brought to a bake in a freak lightnin storm. It still has the simple urgings of any pie – to love an to be loved, to be sliced an eaten with as much enjoyment an as little indigestion as possible. But the simple life is not so simple for a monster pie.

      It wanders the lonely backroads away from civilization ashamed to show itself for fear of the townspeople who chase it with pitchforks an torches. Why can’t they just accept it for what it is? Yes it tastes horrible an smells like radishes dipped in shoe wax. But can’t we judge a pie on the content of its heart not on the taste of its filling?

      A little girl will come across the pie – a kind an innocent little girl who will love the pie unconditionally. Perhaps she has never seen a pie before. Perhaps she has a chemically-damaged sense of taste. Whatever the reason she accepts this pie and welcomes it and takes a bites an the pie cries a little pie tear of happiness an the little girl has a terrible allergic reaction to soy an falls into the river an is swept away to be eaten by giant bugs an the pie is sad an angry an the townspeople come with pitchforks an torches just like they always do. In a better world there is a place for you, okra tofu pie. In a better world.

    • Which is a confession of political addiction, since I don’t live in the 5th.

      • …and I’m TIVOing it!  But that’s ok, I am volunteeriung for Eldridge, and he just nailed the difference between himself and every other candidate on the stage when he spoke about accepting the political reality in DC vs creating it.  I’m going to get that onto YouTube, I’ll link it here when I do.

  10. From Boston Biz Journal:

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    The clean energy sector is poised to become the 10th largest industry in the Bay State, according to a report released Wednesday by the Patrick Administration and the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative.

    The report, which was prepared by Global Insight of Lexington, Mass., identified 556 entities engaged in renewable energy; energy efficiency and demand response; consulting and support; and university research related to clean energy. Employment in these firms, most of which are young and small, was estimated at 14,400.

    “With an annual job growth rate of 20 percent projected by industry executives, clean energy will soon pass the textile industry, which now employs 15,400 people, as the 10th largest cluster tracked by the Index of the Massachusetts Innovation Economy,” MTC said in a release on the findings.

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    Nice! How symbolic that clean energy will soon pass textiles. We’re watching history … slowly …

  11. what happens when you have particularly corrupt & and inept leaders, coupled with a financial crisis

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    There are other, more exotic things the Fed and, more important, the executive branch of the U.S. government could do to contain the crisis if the standard policies don?t work. But for a variety of reasons, not least the current administration?s record of incompetence, we?d really rather not go there.

    Let?s hope, then, that this crisis blows over as quickly as that of 1998. But I wouldn?t count on it.

  13. I’m officially declaring the “open thread” experiment a success.  We’ll keep posting these periodically.  đŸ™‚

  14. Just when I bought a Prius, a new place in the mountains, enough ammo to keep the lowlanders away, 20 years of MREs, and a set of swimmies this has to happen.  Doh!

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    Shh!  Don’t tell anybody.

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