July 2013 archive

“Punting the Pundits” is an Open Thread. It is a selection of editorials and opinions from around the news medium and the internet blogs. The intent is to provide a forum for your reactions and opinions, not just to the opinions presented, but to what ever you find important.

Thanks to ek hornbeck, click on the link and you can access all the past “Punting the Pundits”.

Follow us on Twitter @StarsHollowGzt

The Sunday Talking Heads:

Up with Steve Kornacki: This Sunday;s guests were not listed.

This Week with George Stephanopolis: Guests are; Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX); and Detroit Mayor David Bing.

Guests at the roundtable are : Former Obama White House Green Jobs Adviser Van Jones; former Bush White House Press Secretary Dana Perino; ABC News’ Cokie Roberts; ABC News Political Analyst and Special Correspondent Matthew Dowd;  ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl; and ABC News Senior Justice Correspondent Pierre Thomas.

Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer: Mr Schieffer’s guest is Speaker of the House John Boehner.

Sitting at the roundtable are: The Washington Post‘s David Ignatius, USA Today‘s Susan Page, TIME‘s Michael Scherer and The Wall Street Journal‘s Gerald Seib.

The Chris Matthews Show: On the panel this Sunday are Chuck Todd, NBC News Chief White House Correspondent; Katty Kay, BBC Washington Correspondent; Kelly O’Donnell, NBC News Capitol Hill Correspondent; and David Ignatius, The Washington Post Columnist.

Meet the Press with David Gregory: On MTP this Sunday is Governor Rick Snyder (R-MI).

On a special panel discussing the aftermath of the Zimmerman verdict are Marc Morial, President of the National Urban League and former Mayor of New Orleans; Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH), Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus; Tavis Smiley, Host of the “Tavis Smiley Show” on PBS; Charles Ogletree, Professor at Harvard Law School; and Michael Steele, MSNBC Political Analyst and former Chairman of the Republican National Committee.

At the political roundtable are : Marc Morial; along with former Democratic Governor of Michigan Jennifer Granholm; NBC’s Political Director and Chief White House Correspondent, Chuck Todd; and columnist for the New York Times David Brooks.

State of the Union with Candy Crowley: Ms. Crowley’s guests are; Congressional Hispanic Caucus member Xavier Beccerra and Congressional Black Caucus member Cedric Richmond.

On a special panel discussing race and justice are  New York Times columnist Charles Blow; former House Speaker Newt Gingrich; NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund president Sherrilyn Ifill; and conservative commentator Crystal Wright.

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) offers his take on sexual assaults in the military, U.S. involvement in Syria, and the path to immigration reform in an exclusive interview.

Japan election: Abe set to win key upper house vote

21 July 2013 Last updated at 06:47 GMT

The BBC

Voters in Japan are casting ballots in upper house elections expected to deliver a win for PM Shinzo Abe.

Half of the 242 seats in the chamber are being contested.

Polls show Mr Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its allies could secure a majority, meaning a ruling party would control both houses of parliament for the first time in six years.

The deadlock in parliament has been seen as a key factor in Japan’s recent “revolving door” of prime ministers.

Polling stations opened at 07:00 (22:00 GMT Saturday) and will close at 20:00 (11:00 GMT).

On this week’s segment of “What We Know Now,” Steve, along woth his panel guests Molly Ball, The Atlantic; Bob Herbert, Demos.org; Perry Bacon, Jr., TheGrio.com; and Carries Sheffield, The Daily Caller, discus what they have learned this week.

David Young Says Chuck Schumer Should Convert To Christianity, The Iowa Republican Reports

by Chris Gentilviso, The Huffington Post

Amid a crowded field of candidates to replace retiring Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), one Republican appears to have separated himself from the pack with a wacky proposal involving Jesus and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).

David Young, the longtime chief of staff for Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), appeared at Monday’s Faith and Freedom Coalition event in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Iowa Republican reports that when asked about the Christian “brotherhood,” Young vowed that if elected to the U.S. Senate, he’d invite Schumer to share the good news of Jesus Christ.

Marjorie Margolies, Chelsea Clinton’s Mother-In-Law, Fundraises Without Help From The Clintons

by Paul Blumental, The Huffington Post

Marjorie Margolies reported on Monday that she had raised $185,345 in her bid to reclaim the Pennsylvania congressional seat she lost in 1994, but she did so without contributions from her in-laws: Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton.

Chelsea Clinton married Margolies’ son, Marc Mezvinsky, in 2010. Mezvinsky, who works for a hedge fund, did not donate to his mother’s campaign either.

Citing an inability to communicate with members of the international community, a government panel recommended that Japanese officials “use more English.”

Authorities at the education ministry are set to introduce a program “in which non-native Japanese speaking students can learn the Japanese language during regular class hours.”

Speaking at a symposium in San Diego, former Prime Minister Naoto Kan said that “the Fukushima disaster changed [my] view of nuclear power.”

After receiving complaints from the public, officials at the environment ministry withdrew their recommendation that female office workers use “antiperspirants, scented laundry softeners, cold sprays and wet tissues” to keep cool during summer.

Welcome to the Health and Fitness NewsWelcome to the Stars Hollow Health and Fitness News weekly diary. It will publish on Saturday afternoon and be open for discussion about health related issues including diet, exercise, health and health care issues, as well as, tips on what you can do when there is a medical emergency. Also an opportunity to share and exchange your favorite healthy recipes.

Questions are encouraged and I will answer to the best of my ability. If I can’t, I will try to steer you in the right direction. Naturally, I cannot give individual medical advice for personal health issues. I can give you information about medical conditions and the current treatments available.

You can now find past Health and Fitness News diaries here and on the right hand side of the Front Page.

Follow us on Twitter @StarsHollowGzt

If you are trying to put dinner together in a hot apartment this summer you will appreciate the fact that stir-frying in a wok requires little more than a five-minute blast of heat. Some time is needed to prepare the ingredients while the stove is off, but once you begin cooking, be ready to eat. Yes, you have to cook the rice or noodles you will be eating with your stir-fries, but those can be cooked ahead, in the morning for example, before it gets too hot, or in a rice cooker, and then reheated in the wok.

!Martha Rose Shulman~

“Punting the Pundits” is an Open Thread. It is a selection of editorials and opinions from around the news medium and the internet blogs. The intent is to provide a forum for your reactions and opinions, not just to the opinions presented, but to what ever you find important.

Thanks to ek hornbeck, click on the link and you can access all the past “Punting the Pundits”.

Follow us on Twitter @StarsHollowGzt

Jon Walker: How Can Obama Deliver This Speech on Racial Profiling While Considering Ray Kelly for DHS?

In response to the George Zimmerman verdict, today President Obama delivered remarks on race and racial profiling. In the speech he called on police forces to address the problem of racial profiling. [..]

It is shocking that the same man who delivered this speech just days earlier called New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly one of the best law enforcement professionals there is and is considering appointing him to head the Department of Homeland Security.

Yochai Benkler: Bradley Manning ‘aiding the enemy’ charge is a threat to journalism

Without an informed and free press, there cannot be an enlightened people. That’s what this trial is really about

Thursday, Colonel Denise Lind, the judge in the Bradley Manning court martial, refused to dismiss the “aiding the enemy” charge. The decision is preliminary, and the judge could still moderate its effect if she finds Manning not guilty. But even if she ultimately acquits Manning, the decision will cast a long shadow on national security journalists and their sources. [..]

Thursday’s decision was preliminary and made under a standard that favors the prosecution’s interpretation of the facts. The judge must still make that ultimate decision on guilt based on all the evidence, including the defense, under the strict “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard.

Why is it that D.C. is six weeks behind the rest of the country?  Is it something in the water?

What I expect is a great flurry of inaction and word salad hoping that the issue will just quietly slink away with any actual change simply making things worse.

People need to be FIRED!  They need to be LOCKED UP!  They need to be so shamed and punished that they never again hold a position of responsibility in the government!

Mood shifting, Congress may move to limit NSA spying

By David Lightman, Kate Irby and Ben Kamisar, McClatchy

Friday, July 19, 2013

Skepticism has been slowly building since last month’s disclosures that the super-secret NSA conducted programs that collected Americans’ telephone data. Dozens of lawmakers are introducing measures to make those programs less secret, and there’s talk of denying funding and refusing to continue authority for the snooping.

…

Late Friday, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court reauthorized collection of telephone and online data by the federal government, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper revealed. He said the administration was “undertaking a careful and thorough review of whether and to what extent additional information or documents pertaining to this program may be declassified, consistent with the protection of national security.”

“It is incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to have a full and frank discussion about this balance when the public is unable to review and analyze what the executive branch and the courts believe the law means,” said Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., who has asked the administration to make the opinions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court public.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is leading an effort along with Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, to have the court’s judges nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Currently, the Supreme Court’s chief justice selects judges from those holding other federal district court judgeships.

Schiff also is pushing a measure, along with Rep. Todd Rokita, R-Ind., to require the attorney general to declassify significant Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act opinions, and got a boost Friday from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

…

The concerns fall into two general categories: What exactly is the NSA doing, and how can its work be more open?

“They need to provide as much clarity as they possibly can so people know and have a familiarity with what’s happening, why that happens,” said James Lankford, R-Okla., chairman of the House Republican Policy Committee. He wanted “another round of information again and to be able to process that.”

The desire to know more sparked a sometimes fiery House Judiciary Committee hearing earlier this week with top administration officials.

Conyers, the committee’s top Democrat, noted that the Fourth Amendment protects Americans from unreasonable search and seizure. “You’ve already violated the law as far as I am concerned,” Conyers said.

The ire came from both parties. “The Star Chamber . . . in England started out . . . as very popular with the people. It allowed people to get justice that otherwise would not,” said Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., referring to a court that was abolished by Parliament in 1641 over its abuses of power. “But it evolved over time into a powerful weapon for political retribution by the king.”

…

“There’s no legitimate reason to keep this legal analysis from public interest any longer,” said Conyers. Judiciary Chairman Robert Goodlatte, R-Va., was sympathetic, saying, “I share his concern about some classified information that does not need to be classified.”

Well it’s pretty much over except deciding the places between 2nd and 5th.  Chris Froome would have to fall off his bicycle for anyone else to have a chance.

Not even a greasy day yesterday ending in a fairly heavy steady rain made anyone take a flyer on forcing Froome to act as both he and Contador (and everyone else at the top of the General Classification) simply played it safe and let the next to last day of racing tick by without many changes.

Particularly galling, at least to Pierre Rolland, is that he still is a point behind in the King of the Mountains.  If the leaders duke it out on the final climb today up the Beyond Category Annecy – Semnoz to the summit finish, it’s highly likely that Chris Froome will be the only Yellow/Polka Dot dual winner since 1970.

General Classification

I suppose it’s possible that André Greipel could beat out Mark Cavendish for 2nd, but other than that I don’t see much possibility for change.  Chris Froome is 9th with 92 points in a group of 6 riders including Christphe Riblon with 83.

Points

King of the Mountains is pretty much up for grabs (except for tha caveat above about Chris Froome).  It finishes today as no points will be awarded tomorrow.

King of the Moutains

Radioshack made a comeback yesterday and is once again comfortably in 2nd.  There is a certain amount of speculation Team Saxo-Tinkoff is thinking ahead and playing for next year’s sponsorship money which would account for their extraordinary passivity in support of their lead rider, Alberto Contador, yesterday.  Katusha is the only other team under an hour in arrears but just barely.

Team

Nairo Alexander Quitana Rojas could easily finish 2nd in the General Classification and win the King of the Mountains title.  In any event it’s a pretty impressive performance for a young rider and he’ll finish on the Champs-Élysées as one of the top contenders for next year’s Le Tour.

Young Rider

Today’s final racing stage is relatively easy as far as Alpine stages go with 3 Category 3s, a Category 2, a Category 1, and a Beyond Category.  The one descent of note is from Mont Revard to Montcel.

Sites of Interest-

• Wikipedia
• Annecy / Annecy – Semnoz (75 miles, Le Tour)
• Annecy / Annecy – Semnoz (Guardian)
• The Guardian
• Guardian Interactive Route Guide
• Le Tour

The Stars Hollow Gazette Tags-

• Le Tour
• 2010 Le Tour
• 2011 Le Tour
• 2012 Le Tour

This is your morning Open Thread. Pour your favorite beverage and review the past and comment on the future.

Find the past “On This Day in History” here.

July 20 is the 201st day of the year (202nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 164 days remaining until the end of the year.

On this day in 1881, Sitting Bull surrenders.

Five years after General George A. Custer’s infamous defeat at the Battle of Little Bighorn, Hunkpapa Teton Sioux leader Sitting Bull surrenders to the U.S. Army, which promises amnesty for him and his followers. Sitting Bull had been a major leader in the 1876 Sioux uprising that resulted in the death of Custer and 264 of his men at Little Bighorn. Pursued by the U.S. Army after the Indian victory, he escaped to Canada with his followers.

Surrender

Hunger and cold eventually forced Sitting Bull, his family, and nearly 200 other Sioux in his band to return to the United States and surrender on July 19, 1881. Sitting Bull had his young son Crow Foot surrender his rifle to the commanding officer of Fort Buford. He told the soldiers that he wished to regard them and the white race as friends. Two weeks later, Sitting Bull and his band were transferred to Fort Yates, the military post located adjacent to the Standing Rock Agency.

Arriving with 185 people, Sitting Bull and his band were kept separate from the other Hunkpapa gathered at the agency. Army officials were concerned that the famed chief would stir up trouble among the recently surrendered northern bands. On August 26, 1881, he was visited by census taker William T. Selwyn who counted twelve people in the Hunkpapa leader’s immediate family. Forty-one families, totaling 195 people, were recorded in Sitting Bull’s band. The military decided to transfer him and his band to Fort Randall, to be held as prisoners of war. Loaded onto a steamboat, Sitting Bull’s band, now totaling 172 people, were sent down the Missouri River to Fort Randall. There they spent the next 20 months. They were allowed to return to the Standing Rock Agency in May 1883.

The people who harvest our fruits and vegetables are, today, among the country’s most marginalized. They earn well below the poverty line and spend a substantial portion of the year unemployed. They do not have the right to overtime pay or to collective bargaining with their employers. In some cases, workers have faced abuses that fall under modern-day slavery statutes. “The extreme is slavery,” observed Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), while visiting farm workers in Florida. “The norm is disaster.” [..]

In 1960, legendary broadcaster Edward R. Murrow and his producers Fred Friendly and David Lowe attempted to draw public attention to this state of affairs with the documentary Harvest of Shame. The film – an hour-long portrait of the “humans who harvest the food for the best-fed people in the world” – aired on CBS the day after Thanksgiving, 1960.