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Of A Revolution (O.A.R.) — Crazy Game of Poker.

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Finally, a Character Witness
Surely the best kind of defender for Rupert Murdoch comes forth.

“Ha Ha!” pic by 38degrees at flickr.com

After days of being pilloried, just because he oversaw a corporate culture that thought it was just fine to listen in on private voice mails of murdered children, Rupert Murdoch is finally defended by a person of appropriate character.

It is unlikely that Mr Murdoch, his son James, or Les Hinton committed crimes (Mr Hinton is a very decent man). Discerning people should not be impressed by the process familiar to me and other victims of it, of hostile media solemnly citing law professors and retired prosecutors and sources who spoke on condition of anonymity (usually tendentious fantasies of the journalists themselves), to comment on the Murdochs’ legal problems.

Signed,

Conrad Black, aka, soon to again be inmate number 18330-424.

Maybe someday soon Conrad and Rupert can commiserate in adjoining minimum security cells?

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Secession Proposal Would Create a Republican California
By the Los Angeles Times’ count, there have been more than 220 attempts to divide California, and all have failed. A new proposal by a Temecula politician would split off the conservative counties south and east of Los Angeles to form a Republican-dominated South California that would be home to 13 million people (minus those who flee after secession). A spokesman for Gov. Jerry Brown had this retort to the proposal: “If you want to live in a Republican state with very conservative right-wing laws, then there’s a place called Arizona.” Unlike previous schemes that would divide San Francisco and Los Angeles from each other, the Democratic strongholds would remain in the same state. This would come as a relief to many of us in Los Angeles, although our northerly cousins find us annoying for our lack of knowledge about chard.  —PZS Los Angeles Times: Supervisor Jeff Stone, a Republican pharmacist from Temecula, called California an “ungovernable’’ financial catastrophe from which businesses are fleeing and where taxpayers are being crushed by the burden of caring for welfare recipients and illegal immigrants. On Tuesday, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors will consider Stone’s proposal to host a statewide summit for city and county leaders to sketch out a framework for secession. Read more

By the Los Angeles Times’ count, there have been more than 220 attempts to divide California, and all have failed. A new proposal by a Temecula politician would split off the conservative counties south and east of Los Angeles to form a Republican-dominated South California that would be home to 13 million people (minus those who flee after secession).

A spokesman for Gov. Jerry Brown had this retort to the proposal: “If you want to live in a Republican state with very conservative right-wing laws, then there’s a place called Arizona.”

Unlike previous schemes that would divide San Francisco and Los Angeles from each other, the Democratic strongholds would remain in the same state. This would come as a relief to many of us in Los Angeles, although our northerly cousins find us annoying for our lack of knowledge about chard.? —PZS

Los Angeles Times:

Supervisor Jeff Stone, a Republican pharmacist from Temecula, called California an “ungovernable’’ financial catastrophe from which businesses are fleeing and where taxpayers are being crushed by the burden of caring for welfare recipients and illegal immigrants.

On Tuesday, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors will consider Stone’s proposal to host a statewide summit for city and county leaders to sketch out a framework for secession.

Read more

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The Christian Conspiracy to Take Over the Military
This week on Truthdig Radio in collaboration with KPFK: The man who brought down Warren Jeffs’ Mormon fundamentalist sect, the Christian conspiracy to take over the military, and the hot new children’s book “Go the Fuck to Sleep.” Plus: a progressive analysis of the debt ceiling drama.

This week on Truthdig Radio in collaboration with KPFK: The man who brought down Warren Jeffs’ Mormon fundamentalist sect, the Christian conspiracy to take over the military, and the hot new children’s book “Go the Fuck to Sleep.” Plus: a progressive analysis of the debt ceiling drama.

Related Entries

• July 12, 2011 Robin Hood in Reverse
• July 11, 2011 How the Globalization of English Could Make Us Dumber

Tea Party Worries About Government’s Secret Manatee Conspiracy
After propelling Republican Rick Scott into the governor’s office last fall, Florida tea partiers have found a new target: manatees….

Sarah Palin Says She Could Beat Obama In 2012
WASHINGTON — Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin says she’ll announce her intentions for the White House in late August or early September. Palin told Fox…

Ellen R. Shaffer: We Won’t Be Fooled Again: Yes, an Independent Panel to Control Health Care Costs!
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) includes a brilliant solution for controlling health care costs while protecting Medicare. The Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) is just…

Hannity Cites Myth That The Stimulus Failed To Bash Obama Over Debt Negotiations

Criticizing President Obama over debt negotiations, Sean Hannity invoked the discredited myth that the stimulus failed and worsened the recession. In fact, independent experts agree that the stimulus bill significantly raised employment and increased GDP by several percentage points.

Hannity Myth: Obama Worsened Recession With Stimulus

Hannity: The “Failed Stimulus” Made Recession “Worse.” Discussing debt negotiations, Hannity responded to former New Jersey Gov. Richard Codey asking “who got us into this recession” by saying, “Who made it worse with a failed stimulus?” [Fox News, Hannity, 7/13/11]

FACT: Independent Analyses Agree That The Stimulus Raised Employment And Boosted GDP

CBO: Economic Stimulus Added Millions Of Jobs To The Economy In First Quarter Of 2011. A May 2011 report by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act lowered the unemployment rate “by between 0.6 percentage points and 1.8 percentage points,” and “[i]ncreased the number of people employed by between 1.2 million and 3.3 million” in the first quarter of 2011. [Congressional Budget Office, 5/25/11]

CBO: Economic Stimulus Raised GDP In The First Quarter Of 2011. The same CBO report estimated that the recovery act “raised real (inflation-adjusted) gross domestic product (GDP) by between 1.1 percent and 3.1 percent” in the first quarter of 2011. [Congressional Budget Office, 5/25/11]

Independent And Private Analysts: Stimulus Significantly Raised Employment And GDP. In its sixth quarterly report on the recovery act, the White House Council of Economic Advisers cited several economic estimates that concluded the stimulus increased GDP and lowered unemployment.

[White House Council of Economic Advisers, 3/18/11]

Peter King Calls For News Corp. Probe Over Allegations About 9/11 Victims
New York Rep. Peter King (R) has called on the FBI to investigate allegations that journalists working for Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. hacked into the phones of victims of the September 11th attacks….

Report: Obama Administration Will ‘Likely’ Appeal Block Of DADT
The Obama Administration will reportedly “likely” appeal the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision to block the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, according to a Washington Blade source.

Presented By:

The Tea Party Christian Patriot Gazette Cover

Quote of the Day
“Don’t call my bluff. You know I’m going to take this to the American people.”

— President Obama, quoted by the Washington Post, to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) as he left the debt ceiling negotiations last night.

Voters Still Blame Bush for the Economy
A new Quinnipiac poll finds American voters disapprove of the way President Obama is handling the economy, 56% to 38%, but they trust the president more than congressional Republicans by 45% to 38%.

Most interesting: 71% say the country is in a recession, but by 54% to 27% they blame former President George W. Bush more than President Obama.

The president also has a 47% to 46% job approval rating — significantly better than the 64% to 28% disapproval for congressional Democrats and 65% to 26% disapproval for congressional Republicans.

Slim Majority Don’t Want Wisconsin Lawmakers Recalled
A new University of Wisconsin Badger Poll sets the backdrop for the contentious recall elections in Wisconsin.

Key findings: 78% said it’s positive that the state constitution allows for the recall of elected officials, though the majority did not want to see senators recalled. In the Senate recalls, 59% of state residents said they wanted the three Democratic state senators to remain in office, while 36% wanted to see them removed. For the six Republican senators, 49% of state residents wanted them to stay in office and 45% wanted to see them removed.

5 Disastrous Consequences Of A Debt Ceiling Meltdown
If we had an honest debate over the real-world effects of not raising the limit, it’s hard to imagine anyone being in favor of letting the U.S. go into default.

Senators Call for Murdoch Investigations Amid Allegations of 9/11 Victim Phone-Hacking
In Britain, Murdoch was the biggest cheese of all, until his readers turned on him. Amid allegations of phone=hacking of 9/11 victims, with the American people do the same?

The Deal No One Thought Possible
\”The deal no one thought possible is signed in the Rose Garden in the October sunshine, markets react positively, business steps up hiring and economic growth accelerates.\” This is a quote from Alice Rivlin; I’ve lost my source; a number…

Connecticut’s Green Bank: A Bi-Partisan Model for the Nation
On July 1, 2011, Governor Daniel P. Malloy signed legislation that made Connecticut the first state in the nation to create a Green Bank. Connecticut’s bi-partisan legislature passed a bill that lays the groundwork for a comprehensive reorganization of the…

What The UN Vote Means–And Does Not
My friend Alvaro de Soto, the former Special Ambassador of the United Nations’s Secretary-General to the Middle East peace process, is a legend in the UN, from which he is now retired. Peruvian by birth, an aide to Secretary-General Javier…

Jared Polis: Debt Ceiling Negotiations Should Include Immigration Reform
As deficit reduction discussions continue this week to raise the debt ceiling, Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) wrote to President Obama and Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) calling on them to consider immigration reform as a way of raising revenues without raising taxes. Polis wrote: “Studies from groups across the political spectrum have proven the economic and […]

As deficit reduction discussions continue this week to raise the debt ceiling, Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) wrote to President Obama and Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) calling on them to consider immigration reform as a way of raising revenues without raising taxes. Polis wrote:

“Studies from groups across the political spectrum have proven the economic and fiscal benefits of comprehensive immigration reform. By requiring illegal immigrants to register with the government, pay fees and back taxes, and correct their status, we can drastically expand our tax base. A report by the Center for American Progress found that passing comprehensive immigration reform would generate $4.5 to $5.4 billion in additional net tax revenue over three years. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office scored the bi-partisan 2007 comprehensive immigration reform bill that was proposed in the Senate as increasing federal revenues by $15 billion over the 2008-2012 period and by $48 billion over the 2008-2017 period. […]

Just like our budget deficit, immigration reform is an issue that we cannot afford to ignore. Bipartisan proposals that are tough, fair, and practical have garnered support from across the ideological spectrum in Congress, as well as from President Bush and the current administration. Comprehensive immigration reform would clearly help us reduce our deficit and debt, and would do so without raising tax rates. Therefore I strongly encourage you to include an immigration reform package as part of the larger compromise.”

While forwarding a comprehensive bipartisan immigration reform bill in time to raise the debt ceiling is not feasible, Polis highlighted an important issue. As Congress pursues austerity cuts despite a struggling economy, many immigration bills have been proposed that would lower the deficit and boost our GDP.

Alternatively, if no immigration reform bills pass and enforcement proposals are advanced, it could significantly impact our deficit and depress our economy. A Center for American Progress analysis found the average cost of deportation per person is $23,148, and tracking, detaining, and deporting every undocumented immigrant could total up to $285 billion. This figure does not take into account lost revenue and economic production, a cost of up to $2.5 trillion, while immigration reform could raise the GDP by an additional $1.6 trillion.

Under the status quo, Obama has deported nearly 1 million people since taking office.

–Sean Savett