Keeping up with the Loughners: A few weeks ago, they never would have expected a call from the Kaczynskis.
Remember when the Supreme Court removed restrictions on corporate campaign contributions? It’s a reality now, and guess who’s benefiting. Hint: It’s not the socialists.
Meanwhile Obama wants friendlier relations with business: He asked GE’s Jeffrey Immelt to lead a business advisory board to kick-start the economy.
Dutch psychiatric hospital scandal: Whatever happened to good old-fashioned electroshock therapy? Less effective than tethering teenage patients to the wall, perhaps.
Insert irreverent headline here: Seattle company Jones Soda teams up with the Onion.
Can someone please lend the money to make the Oh Boy! Oberto Arena happen? KeyArena to change names.
The first one was just a test drive: Alleged car jacker in Kent must have discriminating taste. He’s suspected of committing two car jackings in less than 45 minutes.
A victory for civil liberties: Local activist, Phil Mocek, acquitted of charges for refusing to show i.d. at New Mexico airport.
OMG cancel your plans: Twilight Convention this weekend at the Westin. Don’t get too excited—there won’t be any Bella or Edward sightings just boat loads of teens, some of them delusional, and the occasional creepy adult fan.
More bad news for Four Loko drinkers: Blamed for fueling assault in West Seattle.
If Four Loko is the crystal meth of malt beverages, then Nestle Alpine White must be the heroin of chocolate bars. As evidenced in this 1989 commercial.
“Heroin” is the drug. “Heroine” is a female hero. You’re welcome!
That neo-fascist GE shit-for-brains already runs our media and our military, now he’s gonna run the eCONomy, too? This should work out just swell.
Why don’t they just go back to calling the Key Arena the Colliseum? If it has to have a sponsor, how about Amazon? Just think: The Amazon Colliseum, home of the Seattle Storm!
Nice video reference, Unpaid Intern! Am impressed you know about both heroin and 1989, but, if I may so humbly suggest, as a member of a slightly older generation, that you might have been thinking about LSD? Given the stream of consciousness video montage, and all.
No mention of Roe v. Wade’s birthday?
Unpaid intern: Please configure your news story links to open in a new window. Bless you.
@1 Ooops. Thanks for the heads up.
I’ve always like the Faith No More version of the Nestle White theme:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfIuST1f6…
@ It’s true. Corporations have screwed this country time and time again, and, as usual, we never learn.
Yay! I know someone IN the news (Phil Mocek, congrats on beating those bogus charges) AND the person who wrote the news. (the fabulous Ryan T.)
I feel like a winner, now…
Welcome to America. Please note the new rules.”One person, one vote” is out. It’s now “one dollar, one vote.”
Re: Citizens United.
I don’t want to sound fanatical, but I believe there’s more pressure than ever to have a resounding victory for Democrats in 2012. There’s going to be no new restriction on corporate campaign spending coming from Congress with Republicans in office (and, indeed, possibly and unfortunately from Democrats as well). With my limited understanding of the Supreme Court’s decision, it may be that a new legal ruling would have to remove the status of “personhood” from corporations to now legally remove their right to contribute without restriction, as it is now a form of “speech”.
But beat back against the money-flood this coming election, and do it again when it (perhaps? To me, cynically, it seems almost certain) redoubles the following election cycle, and again the next presidential election after that, and perhaps we’ll have set a societal precedent that convinces politicians to make some changes.
Three victories seems like asking a lot. Especially the work it may entail. Donations from people likely won’t eclipse corporate spending, so it will take time and activity (knocking on doors, writing editorials, etc) from a substantial amount of people. It will also take the Democratic leadership getting their act together, selling what they’re doing and what they’ve done (I heard many times that the previous congress was one of the most productive, though I wonder if your so-called “average Joe” had heard the same thing, or instead inundated with images of fumbling politicians failing at reaching any consensus).
I’m cutting this off now. Sorry for ranting.
m!
Canuck @4: I thought of cocaine, actually. All the white, the 80s-style opulence, and the white chick(s?) (I’ve heard coke is called “white lady”) all pointed toward coke instead of heroin. But what do I know?
Virginia state Senator Virginia Lyons has presented a resolution pushing for a constitutional amendment to state that corporations are not persons.
Mike @13, good point, I keep hearing sloggers talk about all the snow in Seattle even when the weather’s nice, so that would probably be more apt. And I haven’t been offered acid since a Jerry Garcia concert in 1982, which just shows you how up date I am re: recreational drugs, sadly…
Yay for Phil Mocek!
@Unpaid Intern, it’s “then”, not “than”.
@8- thank you for making me giggle with glee.
@17 Dcal–Corrected, thank you!
Figures he’d pick Immelt. It continues his retrograde view of technology and promotion of “battery cars” over the Hydrogen Economy.
@8, bless you – the flannel shirt around the waist, the combat boots, the self-conscious ironic distance -lordy, all my friends and I tried that at the time…
@20: If you think that “the Hydrogen Economy” is a good idea, you clearly need to learn2thermodynamics.
(Long story short: unless we find/engineer a microbe that generates hydrogen gas using the power of sunlight, we’d be wasting massive amounts of energy by converting electricity into hydrogen and then burning it, as opposed to simply using the electricity.)
@22 One day cars will be completely solar.
This new Ryan T. Hicks intern guy sure does a damn fine job with Slog’s “Morning News.” which I read every morning, between checking the weather forecast, letting the cat in/out several times, and trying to convince my sleepy girlfriend to make some coffee. He seems to be adept at combining the wacky, the truly important, and the weird/funny stories into one entertaining, informative read. Keep this guy around, Savage!
For more about my trial (photos, audio, analysis of its broader implications, etc.) see the State of New Mexico v. Phillip Mocek FAQ maintained by the Identity Project. I added subtitles and posted video of my arrest that the state presented as evidence. In my defense, I called no witnesses and presented no evidence. The jury found me not guilty of each of the four crimes with which I was charged.