The Liberal Elitist

And they call Scalia a genius? Give me a break.

Scalia Would Have Voted to Keep School Segregation

In an appearance at the University of Arizona, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia "said he likely would have dissented from the historic 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision that declared school segregation illegal and struck down the system of 'separate but equal'; public schools," the East Valley Tribune reports.

"He said that decision, which overturned earlier precedent, was designed to provide an approach the majority liked better."

"I will stipulate that it will,'' Scalia said. But he said that doesn't make it right.

via politicalwire.com

Why should this surprise anyone?

If there is one thing I find annoying, it's the glorification of the intellect of Anton Scalia. Folks, intellect ain't all it's cracked up to be--when you use it to arrive at an indefensible position.

This man would have voted to preserve a poisonous, destructive form of American Apartheid. We shouldn't glorify him, we should denounce him.

Greenspan finally says something smart

“If they’re too big to fail, they’re too big,” Greenspan said today. “In 1911 we broke up Standard Oil — so what happened? The individual parts became more valuable than the whole. Maybe that’s what we need to do.”

via baselinescenario.com

After years of speaking in riddles--and adhering to a world view with negligible connection to reality--Greenspan finally says something that makes sense.

And if he's arrived at this point of view....what about those in power now? Will you guys please wake up.

Let's hope Krugman is right

Last weekend, the lobbying organization America’s Health Insurance Plans, or AHIP, released a report attacking the reform plan just passed by the Senate Finance Committee. Some news organizations gave the report prominent, uncritical coverage. But health-care experts quickly, and correctly, dismissed it as a hatchet job. And the end result of AHIP’s blunder may be a better bill than we would otherwise have had.

via www.nytimes.com

I just hope he's right. The most revealing thing he says here, however, is, "Some news organizations gave the report prominent, uncritical coverage." No kidding, and not just Fox News. NPR put it up at the top of their news much of the day it came out like it was a matter-of-fact report.

Even though liberals did a lousy job of "branding" the public option, it's funny how it may not necessarily die. Reality is starting to creep in: we have to cut costs, and we can't do that without creating competition, and the insurance companies don't want competition.

So let's make sure they have some.

It was 40 years ago today...remembering the "Vietnam Moratorium"

October 15, 1969 was a watershed moment in the movement to end the Vietnam War. A group of well organized activists--amazingly working without Facebook or Twitter--called for a "moratorium" day to protest the war. They asked students and workers to go on strike for one day and, instead of going to work or to class, participate in a series of national anti-war demonstrations and activities.

I was a sophomore at Washington University in St. Louis, and my recollection of the day is that the moratorium, in my corner of the world, was a rousing success. None of my classes were even scheduled to meet, and we just went to meetings and demonstrations all day long.

Here's some common sense talk on Afghanistan

Every now and then, Thomas Friedman knows how to bring it:

So, please, spare me the lectures about how important Afghanistan and Pakistan are today. I get the stakes. But we can’t want a more decent Afghanistan than the country’s own president. If we do, we have no real local partner who will be able to hold the allegiance of the people, and we will not succeed — whether with more troops, more drones or more money.

via www.nytimes.com

Friedman describes the Karzai government as if it were a Mafia family--with tax collections from the countryside effectively operating as protection money so they don't fire you or otherwise cast you out into the dead of night.

The call for more troops makes utterly no sense if this is what this all boils down to. Now, let's see how the administration and the apologists for greater intervention respond to an analysis like this. Look for them to parse it to pieces--if they don't outright ignore it.