Today's edition of quick hits:
* Under intense pressure, House Republican leaders today scheduled a vote on Hurricane Sandy relief for this Friday. Because it will be the new Congress, however, the measure will still need to start over in the Senate.
* The United Nations has estimated that the violence in Syria in 2012 left as many as 60,000 people dead.
* An encouraging prognosis: "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton remained at New York City's Presbyterian Hospital for a fourth day with a rare blood clot in her head. But staffers said she has been communicating by phone and doctors said she is expected to make a full recovery."
* Sandy Hook Elementary moves to an unused middle school, seven miles away: "Students from Sandy Hook Elementary School will go back to class Thursday in a borrowed building that one police official described as 'the safest school in America.'"
* The fiscal deal impressed apparently impressed investors: "Financial markets rode a wave of relief over the 'fiscal cliff' Wednesday, as stocks surged on news that Washington had avoided policies that could have caused a recession." The Dow closed up over 300 points.
* Murderous stupidity: "A 31-year-old woman was arrested on Saturday and charged with second-degree murder as a hate crime in connection with the death of a man who was pushed onto the tracks of an elevated subway station in Queens and crushed by an oncoming train." Erika Menendez allegedly believed she was killing a Hindu man as punishment for 9/11.
* New Delhi: "Indian police have charged six men with murder, adding to accusations that they beat and gang-raped a woman on a New Delhi bus two weeks ago in a case that shocked the country."
* Drone information under wraps: "A federal judge on Wednesday rejected The New York Times' bid to force the U.S. government to disclose more information about its targeted killing of people it believes have ties to terrorism, including American citizens."
* And best of luck to Andrew Sullivan as he launches his new independent web venture.
Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
Leave a Comment:
There is something totally sickening about all this that is going on with these Republican types, rich bastards, and religious extremists of hatred. But still it does go even further, especially when asked is a far share of all that infinite wealth they seem to like to dish out to what is simply some rich bastards and in the meantime you yourself get crushed to poverty even more. Those of us who will depend on our Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid with myself included, because we felt more of doing the right things than to be concerned with making huge amounts of money just keep getting crushed down. And what happens, they want to take that little you have left too and have to be crushed further for things they have caused and are so much responsible for. Plus on top of it cover it up with the news media so they can just keep doing what will bring slavery, abuse, misery, despair and death to people. They think selling guns, destroying the environment, crushing the average person to absolute poverty, and to do any other things at the very cost of others is a great thing just to make huge profits. No wonder Jesus made that comment about that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of needle than for a rich man to get into heaven, because it is so much right that you rich bastards do go to hell. And the comments about the Pharisees, plenty of them are probably in hell now. In reality, it is you Republican types, rich bastards, and religious extremists of hatred that have caused all this in America and throughout the world, because of your power craving, corruption, greed, being hypocrites, arrogance, lies and deceiving. And if you could actually come up with the right answers and solutions for America and the world that would be shock, since you are really totally evil and would lead us to extinction as a species. And whoever called me greedy is full of crap and just another troll for the cover-up news media, you had better wake up to reality.
The pictures from Syria are heart wrenching. A toddler crying with blood on his hands is something no child should have to experience. Can we make 2013 the Year of the Child? My God, what a bunch of screwed up adults in this world.
Clap and cheer all you who think what Andrew Sullivan thinks is worth $239.40 a year.
(S/FX) Crickets CHIRP, an owl HOOTS, a coyote HOWLS IN THE DISTANCE.
Thought so.
He's asking for $19.99 a YEAR, not a MONTH.
Sully is asking for $19.99 per year, not per month. Even at the lower tariff, your point may still be valid.
Actually, it's 19.99 a year. But still.
Next Round and Congress
1. Why should those over 65 with $250,000 income or unearned income get paid Social Security?
2. Pay the Sandy Victims with new Taxes on those from $450,000 to $250,00! -It is ridiculous not to increase those over $250,000 when many many are earning only $25,000! This really is unfair, and is not a win for the President or the Democrats!!!!
2. What can be done to close the Romney Loopholes and other loopholes?
3. Congress's Health Care and Security programs should be rolled into everyone else's!!
4. Warren Buffet Ideas - See below)
5. Congress only paid for hours worked on the hill, not for days off or campaigning.
5. Parity or better in cuts:: Any cuts to Social Security or Medicare can only be done after at least 1/3 - 1/2 of Defense budget is cut.
6. Establish ways to save TSA Transportation Security so that it becomes effective and streamlined, currently blotted and not as effective as it could be.
------ Forwarded Message
Date: Mon, 31 Dec 2012 07:31:11 -0500
Subject: Fwd: Thank you Warren Buffet
Warren Buffet is asking everyone to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise.
In three days, most people in the U.S. will have the message.
This is one idea that really should be passed around.
We're ALL in this mess together ... it's up to us to fix it ... for our kids!
Read and pass on to 20 of your friends...
Warren Buffett, in a recent interview with CNBC,offers one of the best quotes about the debt ceiling ...
This is one idea that really should be passed around.
Congressional Reform Act of 2012
The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen/women.
Congress made all these contracts for themselves.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career.
The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.
If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days
for most people (in the U.S.) to receive the message.
Don't you think it's time ?
THIS IS HOW YOU FIXCONGRESS!
If you agree, pass it on.
If not, delete.
------ End of Forwarded Message
Boo hoo. Take some personal responsibility, get over yourself, and do what you need to do for your country and stop complaining. That's what it means to be an adult.
This doesn't happen, but even if it did that would be because she paid into the system and now expects to see a return. Why does it matter when it effects you but not when it effects other people?
No, not even remotely. A US soldier- if paid what he was worth- would be worth more than 300,000$ per year. A stay-at-home mother who doesn't make a salary would make well over $100,000 per year. That's simply what the person gets paid at that particular job. Companies don't pay based on what someone is "worth" or what a job is worth. If you actually owned a business you'd know this. You pay what you can given the amount of money that you make, the benefits you want to provide, and the taxes and costs your business is going to consume. That's it.
So you aren't willing to exercise personal responsibility and do what you need to do. So, in otherwords, you are the swine you're upset with. I keep telling you to see a psychiatrist: it's not healthy to hate yourself this much.
Your hatred of women is a little astonishing. Stay at home mothers, for example, work as IT professionals, maids, cooks/chefs, nannies, teachers, secretaries, etc. If you combined up their worth they would be worth more than 100,000$ per year at current salary rates. The point being that stay at home moms aren't paid what they're worth because people aren't paid their worth. They are paid what companies can afford to pay. Your assertion was that people are paid their worth and I'm poking a hole in the logic.
So now you've openly admitted that you were incorrect when you stated that people are paid what they're worth. So that means that you now admit to being wrong. See? It gets better as you start to admit that you're not as smart as you thinking you are.
Interesting theory. Being an unwed mother doesn't classify you for a paycheck in and of itself. I wonder where you came up with this. Heh
Cliff
You're the sickest puppie I have seen here in a long time. Please get some help.
Can't help but ask. Doesn't changing the tax increase threshold from $250K to $450K change the percentage getting an increase? I would think that there are 10s if not 100s of thousands making between $250K and $450K, which may bring the percentage down to 1% getting an increase. Where can I look to find out?
Then you are thinking wrong as instead of protecting 98% this tax bill is protecting 99%. The higher you go up the ladder the less people you will find. Which is why if you are not born into the top 2% or marry into it then you will never be a member of their club. They just get politicians to dangle the club key in front of dumb people and tell them if they work hard enough they too will be in the club, its a lie because as you are busy climbing the ladder they are below cutting the ladder from under you. But there are amongst us people who are to stupid to know that are being scammed to get them to vote against their own interests by the club key dangling, Reagan that great saint of the GOP told them wealth trickled down.
cliff that key that you believe you have to the 2% club is in reality a plastic key that was made to amuse babies, but then cliff you wouldn't know the difference in your delusional world.
1. Pay Sandy relief by adding taxes to those earning from $450,00 - $250,000. Christie is totally justified in his anger at all the "Rep-tiles".
2. The $450,000 cutoff is not a win for the Democrats or those making 25K-35K, it is a total insult.
3. Put the Warren Buffet email in place (see below)
4. Cut $4 of defense spending for every $1 of SS and Medicare (or some reasonable ratio - I don't know enough about it). The two wars were never accounted for under Bush. now we have to pay our bills, and bring our accounting and accounts back to reasonable levels. It is not those who have been paying into SS who should get shafted because a bunch of irresponsible Rep. Pols got use into a whopping expensive war on false pretense.
5. Put congress into session and throw away the key until they come up with something acceptable to the majority of citizens! If any congressmen leaves, he is not allowed back into the room to vote on that bill. Change the requirements for filibuster, so that the person doing the fillibuster must speak and is not allowed to leave the room.
Some reasonable Warren Buffet ideas below. Happy New Year.
------ Forwarded Message
Date: Mon, 31 Dec 2012 07:31:11 -0500
Subject: Fwd: Thank you Warren Buffet
Warren Buffet is asking everyone to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise.
In three days, most people in the U.S. will have the message.
This is one idea that really should be passed around.
We're ALL in this mess together ... it's up to us to fix it ... for our kids!
Read and pass on to 20 of your friends...
Warren Buffett, in a recent interview with CNBC,offers one of the best quotes about the debt ceiling ...
This is one idea that really should be passed around.
Congressional Reform Act of 2012
The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen/women.
Congress made all these contracts for themselves.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career.
The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.
If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days
for most people (in the U.S.) to receive the message.
Don't you think it's time ?
THIS IS HOW YOU FIXCONGRESS!
If you agree, pass it on.
If not, delete.
------ End of Forwarded Message
Sorry folks, those ideas do not come from Buffet. People need to source stuff like this before sharing it in emails or websites. At the very least check it at Snopes.com.
And thus you see how easy it is to fool some people into voting against themselves.
I expect to see you out in the cold, holding your signs up in front of the White House and Congress, if you truly believe this. Get out of your warm, comfy, home and do something besides blog. It's what the country was founded upon.
The New York Times reports that Al Jazeera will take over Current TV.
The biggest mistake Current TV ever did was to fire Keith Olberman. I have not watched it since that happened.
Former Rep. Tom Allen (D-ME)
".. The problem is that Democrats, who want to work with Republicans — (And there still are people, on both sides who want to work, together.) — get frustrated by the fact that, for Republicans, it's no longer about the details. ... It's about, having smaller government, having lower taxes ([even] ever-smaller government, ever-lower taxes.). And when you put someone, with that goal, across the table from someone who wants to figure out how to, improve education, by targeted investment in federal spending (?), there's no compromise. …. There's no, even common language, to work through those problems."
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/49263362#50346273
— Sandy, is .. just another "detail". .. where looked at in this light, apparently, even evidently.
I hope there will be some coverage of what is going on with filibuster reform. This was supposed to be brought to the floor Jan 3 (tomorrow) and was covered in the past on this show. I was hoping to see an update on this issue with, of course, Rachel's take on the current status.
I call Bull*&%^ when I see it. "Under intense pressure, House Republican leaders today scheduled a vote on Hurricane Sandy relief for this Friday."
SHAME on you, NBC, and all of your station affiliates, that continue to carry your tattered, haggard flag!! What "intense pressure"?? Why would Republicans, especially a Republican governor from hard-hit New Jersey, have ANY problem with relief, whatsoever?? You obviously assume that all readers of the Maddow blog are idiots....and maybe you're right. Ask yourself why the man you re-elected to 4 more years hasn't made more funds available by decree.
MSNBC, NBC, etc.....what a sorry#*& excuse for a news organization, and you very well know it!
Wow overreaction much?
Republicans in the House were blocking the Sandy relief bill from coming to a vote because they believed it had too much pork in it. Gee whiz Mike. Maybe you could've looked this one up instead of blasting a bunch of mean statements. This blog has only been covering the refusal to vote on the bill and only gave an entire blog thread dedicated to it yesterday, but ya know.
Wow, Ms. Menendez hates Hindus because of 9-11-01?
Hello? Were there ANY Hindus involved with the act of aggression against America?
For anyone that is wondering, the answer is NO.
http://triblive.com/usworld/nation/3215207-74/menendez-police-queens#axzz2GsGNwjbG
There are moves in the Illinois legislature to legalize gay marriage. It has been endorsed by Sheila Simon, daughter of the late Senator Paul Simon and Lt. Gov. of Illinois. It is unclear if there are enough votes yet to get the bill passed in both Houses but it is being sponsored by two gay legislators. The Catholic Archbishop of Chicago, Cardinal George has spoken out against the bill because it creates a legal fiction that is "unnatural" and so on.
I agree with Rachel. In the past, Republicans have always felt tax cuts "cost nothing". But...now that those fat cats are the only ones paying higher rates....wellll.....they have seen the light!!!! But I think Rachel is wrong about them finally doing the math....they always had the math...they just have to pay for it now....
They've always known the goal was to get at FDR, they just wouldn't say it. Limpy said it and maybe a few others. But candidates adorn the rhetoric in palatable sounding "spin" or "swill" and some people eat it up.