This is a letter I sent to Senator Al Franken on 12 January 2012. I live in Minnesota, the state for which Franken is a senator. In 2008, I was a campaign activist for Al Franken’s senate campaign, operating volunteer call operations on behalf of his campaign and canvassing door-to-door to solicit votes on his … Continue reading »
Filed under terrible idea …
Sandusky lawyer inadvertently touts gay sex line
A lawyer for a former Penn State assistant football coach accused of molesting boys said Tuesday he didn’t mean to refer to a gay sex phone line when he said anyone who believes university officials thought his client raped a 10-year-old boy and did little about it should call 1-800-REALITY. The phrase is one attorney … Continue reading »
T-Mobile Customer ‘Shaken’ by $200,000 Bill (in single month!)
A T-Mobile customer in Florida was “shaking and crying” when she received a phone bill of more than $200,000 last month, largely because her younger brother didn’t turn off data roaming during a vacation in Canada. Celina Aarons has a T-Mobile family plan she shares with her five younger siblings, and usually pays around $175 … Continue reading »
Consumers now paying ‘per-swipe’ fee on debit card purchases
First they charge up to $5.00 per transaction at the ATM machine… Now we can look forward to both monthly charges AND per swipe fees for the privilege of using a bank debit card while shopping. It’s time to start carrying cash again, consumers. Read the infuriating article in the New York Times… Related articles … Continue reading »
Poverty and America: The Four Lost Decades (from The New Yorker Magazine)
From an article by the New Yorker’s John Cassidy The latest poverty and income figures came out this week, and boy are they disturbing. It’s not so much the headline figures, which have been well covered in the Times and elsewhere: 46 million Americans living under the poverty line in 2010, the highest number since the Commerce Department started … Continue reading »
Marcus Bachmann’s clinic invaded by ‘gay, barbarian horde’
While British protesters may still find pies their weapons of choice, glitter is fast becoming the American protest pick. The latest victim? The counseling center of presidential candidate Michele Bachmann’s husband Marcus. The clinic, which receives federal and state funding, has come under fire for reportedly using “pray-away-the-gay” techniques. Marcus Bachmann has come under fire for … Continue reading »
Really Lame: CIA Fake Vaccination and Bin Laden
JAMES FALLOWS – James Fallows is a national correspondent for The Atlantic and has written for the magazine since the late 1970s. A few days ago I mentioned the CIA’s effective but (in my view) long-range foolish tactic of setting up a fake-vaccination program as part of the hunt for Osama bin Laden. According to reports in the Guardian, the … Continue reading »
Paul Ryan’s $350 Bottle of Wine?
Remember John Edwards‘s $400 haircut? That turned out to be quite a problem for him. It looks like Paul Ryan is about have a similar problem on his hands. According to this astounding article (with pictures) at Talking Points Memo, Ryan — the leader of the tighten-your-belt, fiscal-austerity crowd — is in the habit of drinking $350-a-bottle wine, … Continue reading »
14 Propaganda Techniques Fox “News” Uses to Brainwash Americans
There is nothing more sacred to the maintenance of democracy than a free press. Access to comprehensive, accurate and quality information is essential to the manifestation of Socratic citizenship – the society characterized by a civically engaged, well-informed and socially invested populace. Thus, to the degree that access to quality information is willfully or unintentionally … Continue reading »
Michele Bachmann says kindred spirit is… John Wayne Gacy?
You can see the resemblance to John Wayne Gacy right around the eyes. This morning, while in Iowa to announce her candidacy for president, Michele Bachmann made a play for local brownie points by comparing herself to one of the town’s native sons, John Wayne. But John Wayne was from Winterset, Iowa. And the John Wayne from Waterloo … Continue reading »
