Rock on.
Friday, May 24, 2013
Don't Drink And Drive
This is obviously not a very controversial position to take, but the consequences of it can be tragic, both for the victims and the driver. It's an easy way for a potentially otherwise decent person to destroy his/her life, and someone else's of course.
And if you are a regular drinker, try to move somewhere you don't have to drink and drive if you want to drink outside your house. Even outside of the urban hellhole there are places where that's possible.
And if you are a regular drinker, try to move somewhere you don't have to drink and drive if you want to drink outside your house. Even outside of the urban hellhole there are places where that's possible.
Shovel Ready
Yes it's probably hard to spend, say, $300 billion overnight on quality infrastructure projects, but it's nuts to think that there aren't numerous projects that could get going fairly quickly. You can start with my favorite, which is grants to municipalities to double the pace of their water pipe replacement. That requires no studies, no environmental impact report, no complicated engineering design, just digging up streets, replacing pipes, and repairing streets. And of course there are tons of projects that got through the study/EIR stage without ever receiving funding.
It's good stimulus, but also, you know, good policy. Repair the damn bridges.
It's good stimulus, but also, you know, good policy. Repair the damn bridges.
4%
I'm glad Krugman's making the case here. A 2% inflation target right now is obviously absurd, but we also should have learned that a 2% inflation target is always absurd. It doesn't give the Fed enough wiggle room.
Looters Gonna Loot
Our Galtian Overlords are going to steal everything that isn't nailed down, then everything that is.
Detroit emergency manager Kevyn Orr is considering whether the multibillion-dollar collection at the Detroit Institute of Arts should be considered city assets that potentially could be sold to cover about $15 billion in debt.
Friday Crass Commercialism
Greetings. Dday here. (Trying to be Atrios-style brusque)
So I contributed an essay to this book, Hacking Politics, about the fight against SOPA (the Internet censorship bill) last year. Features writing from Aaron Swartz, Cory Doctorow, Lawrence Lessig, more.
It's available in paperback or as an e-book. With the e-book, you can pay what you want.
Link.
You Were Supposed To Cut Money For Other People
Whoops.
One reason: Republicans are 14 points more apt than Democrats to say they’ve been harmed by the sequester. And among Republicans who’ve been hurt by the cuts, 68 percent disapprove of them. Among those unhurt, disapproval drops to 42 percent.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Fridays, Fridays
One place not to go for booze. Or anything.
State officials provided those new details Thursday on raids they conducted a day earlier as part of a yearlong investigation dubbed Operation Swill.
Twenty-nine New Jersey bars and restaurants, including 13 TGI Fridays, were accused of substituting cheap booze — or worse — for the good stuff while charging premium prices.
Make, Announce, Type
Innovations in local journalism.
Governor Corbett’s participation in “The New Voices” platform of Philly.com’s notable contributors will be available in the form of photo essays, videos and columns, highlighting the Governor’s perspective in addressing state issues of importance to Philadelphians.
"Philadelphians will be excited to receive the latest policy news from Harrisburg, directly from their Governor,” said Robert J. Hall, Chief Executive Officer and Publisher, Interstate General Media, parent company of Philly.com. “Governor Corbett’s contributions to Philly.com will not only deliver answers and insight to the latest political news in the Keystone State, but our readers will also become acquainted with the Governor through interesting essays and photos, providing a unique perspective of governing at the State Capitol.”
Time To Rethink Statutory Rape (And Related) Laws
It's a difficult issue, but cases like this highlight why they're problematic. I think there's a valid role for the state in some way to place a barrier between these relationships, but not necessarily with a life-destroying sex offender charge.
Ages of consent have been ratcheted up in recent decades, as has hysteria about all teen sex generally. Maybe 18-year-olds shouldn't be having sex with 14 and 15 year olds, but they sure were when I was in high school. It's one thing to try to prevent these relationships, quite another to destroy lives over it. Put people in this range of ages together in a building 5 days a week and these types of relationships are to be expected.
It's a complicated issue. I don't know what the perfect answer is.
Ages of consent have been ratcheted up in recent decades, as has hysteria about all teen sex generally. Maybe 18-year-olds shouldn't be having sex with 14 and 15 year olds, but they sure were when I was in high school. It's one thing to try to prevent these relationships, quite another to destroy lives over it. Put people in this range of ages together in a building 5 days a week and these types of relationships are to be expected.
It's a complicated issue. I don't know what the perfect answer is.
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