The Whole Foods Conundrum

So now I can't shop at Whole Foods?

John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods, spouts off in the WSJ.

The recent ("activist") Heller decision to apply the 2nd amendment to individuals,shows how the definition of "rights" evolves - even for supposed strict constructionists. The majority's reasoning is based on "historical background" and not on a strict reading of the Constitution itself.

So when Mackey writes that

Health care is a service that we all need, but just like food and shelter it is best provided through voluntary and mutually beneficial market exchanges. A careful reading of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution will not reveal any intrinsic right to health care, food or shelter. That's because there isn't any. This "right" has never existed in America

- it just makes me want to scream.

Based on the "historical background" surrounding the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, would Mackey support repeal of every amendment that granted "new" rights... to Blacks? to women? etc.? Because by "historical background" the majority concluded

What Congress did in drafting the Amendment, the Court said, was “to codify a pre-existing right, rather than to fashion a new one.”

By that standard, all but a sliver of American society - white male landowners - have any legitimate Constitutional rights to be ascertained by Mackey's "careful reading" technique.

The mind reels. Back to law school assignments...

#iranelection

For those interested in the latest events in Iran, check out persiankiwi's Twitter feed.

May the Iranian people's voices be heard.
May the powers-that-be exercise restraint.
May peace return to the streets.
May democracy and justice prevail.

The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas

Late-night, couchified thought: some people like Omelas just the way it is, thank you very much.

Dr. King swats away 40-year prediction

We're ready now: BBC archive

It's been a long time...

An interesting article by Jay Rosen I stumbled upon while scrolling through Huff Post takes a look at journalism's soft underbelly.

Audience Atomization Overcome

It's helpful to see an alternate model to journalistic "objectivity" used to analyze the inherent politics of news-making.

(...I shouldn't have kept you)

Alec on the Internets

Marta's former colleague, our friend, and a father of 3... I present: Mr. Ross.


(Today's word - agita - makes an appearance at about 1:50).

The Takeover!

(h/t to Ta-Nehisi Coates)

In Our Lifetime!!

President. Barack. Hussein. Obama.

No, no, I'm gonna vote!!

Easily the best form message I've ever received:

Dear Jomo,

You're in this video. Check it out!



Remember Florida in 2000--the election was decided by just over 500 votes. Imagine what it would feel like if you didn't vote, the election went the wrong way, and, well--it was actually your fault?

With the help of our friends at MoveOn.org, we've prepared a video that paints that picture, with you, Jomo, in it. It's a funny and scary reminder of how important voting is. After you watch, it's easy to send to your friends and family with their names in it, along with a simple email from you saying "hey, looks like you're in this video." They'll be surprised; they'll think it's funny, and most of all, it'll make them think twice about the importance of their vote.

Thanks and Peace,

-- James, Gabriel, Clarissa, Andre, Kai, and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org PAC team
October 27th, 2008

The Obama Effect?

As a subscriber to Modern Jackass, I'm glad to see the Bradley Effect explained and examined in this post by Daniel Okrent.

His five points seem reasonable enough to me. But racism confounds reason, so I guess we'll have to wait and see how this all plays out.

One more thing, Mr. Nutjob... about your paper's candidate

Setting aside for the moment who's to blame for this mess, what about getting us out of it? Your paper endorses the senior citizenSenator from Arizona. What's he doing these days to resolve the fiscal crisis? Let's check in on that real quick:

And so, a bailout proposal that once seemed likely to pass now is back to negotiations. In the process, Secretary Paulson was reduced to getting on his knees to beg House Speaker Nancy Pelosi not to have her party members bail on the proposal; President Bush was forced to ponder a market meltdown on his watch; and Democrats were left fuming that in a bid for the leadership spotlight, John McCain may have simply gone and fouled things up.

"Bush is no diplomat," said a Democratic staffer, "but he's Cardinal freaking Richelieu compared to McCain. McCain couldn't negotiate an agreement on dinner among a family of four without making a big drama with himself at the heroic center of it. And then they'd all just leave to make themselves a sandwich."

Smooth move.

A wee bit of wonkery

On WTOP this morning, some nutjob from the Washington Times said the current fiscal crisis is the fault of overregulation, specifically the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977.

A primer:

The Community Reinvestment Act (or CRA, Pub.L. 95-128, title VIII, 91 Stat. 1147, 12 U.S.C. § 2901 et seq.) is a United States federal law that requires banks and thrifts to offer credit throughout their entire market area and prohibits them from targeting only wealthier neighborhoods with their services, a practice known as "redlining." The purpose of the CRA is to provide credit, including home ownership opportunities to underserved populations and commercial loans to small businesses. It has been subjected to important regulatory revisions.

Now, explain to me, Mr. Nutjob, how did a law to prohibit financial institutions from "redlining" force Wall Street whiz kids to create sophisticated credit default swaps and leverage themselves out of business? That's (CRA is, according to Mr. Nutjob) a magic bullet with an incredibly slow velocity, taking fully 31 years to pierce the heart of global finance. No less a personage than the estimable Warren Buffet criticizes these pieces of hokum as "financial weapons of mass destruction". But, again, Mr. Nutjob says it's not the whiz kids and their FWMDs, it's the poor folks who used CRA to get a house, that are to blame for this mess.

But that's not the point of this post. The point is when I pointed all this out to my wife, who was driving me to work, she asked why I don't do political work instead of political armchair quarterbacking.

Good question.

I holler at the TV a lot. Maybe one day I'll be on TV hollering instead. I dig this wonkery stuff.

Post-euphoria, still can't beieve it

It's Saturday morning. Luz is asleep and Marta's off to Babies R Us. I, for the first time since the historic acceptance speech Thursday night, am taking a moment alone to let it all sink in:

I am about to celebrate my 5th wedding anniversary
Luz turned 8 months yesterday
On the 45th anniversary of the March on Washington, Barack Obama spoke to more than 38 million viewers - plus the rest of the world not gauged by Nielsen - and brought the ruckus!

Mo' Houses, Mo' Problems

I smell a new theme song in the air!

Milestone? An apology from Congress for U.S. slavery

As told by the Washington Post:

The House yesterday apologized to black Americans, more than 140 years after slavery was abolished, for the "fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality and inhumanity of slavery and Jim Crow" segregation.

The resolution, which passed on a voice vote late in the day, was sponsored by Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), a white Jew who represents a majority-black district in Memphis. Cohen tried unsuccessfully to join the Congressional Black Caucus this year.

"I hope that this is part of the beginning of a dialogue that this country needs to engage in, concerning what the effects of slavery and Jim Crow have been," Cohen said. "I think we started it and we're going to continue."

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) is considering introducing a companion measure in the Senate, he said.

Now for those 40 acres and that mule...

Participants said that the while the issue isn’t exactly capturing attention from Congressional leaders, it is getting attention in scholarship and in classrooms. “Most white Americans view the idea of reparations as a new or strange idea, but in fact it isn’t new or strange,” said Ray Finkenbine, a professor of history and director of the Black Abolitionist Archives at the University of Detroit Mercy

It's proven in fact/ it takes a nation of millions to hold us back (Public Enemy)

Solidarity

That's what I'm talkin' 'bout! The media need to stick together. Big up to Vanity Fair!

Alright, break's over. Back to work.

Go, Elissa!

Elissa (and some other reporter) wrote a great piece on DC's illustrious mayor. Seems he has a penchant for forging ahead, imperial-style like that other DC-based executive branch guy. You know the one.

Gotta love those Stanford Zen Buddhists

Trey Ellis on Obama 'moving to the center'.

I've had some head-scratching moments the past few weeks watching the Obama camp switch up the game for the general election - most recently with the swift dis of Wes Clark and the faith-based initiative pledge.

All this makes me want to dig out that old Harper's article about how Obama isn't some new-style politician. Hope we didn't toss it out with the rest of the spring cleaning!

Jeff Chang on Obama, Muslims, and identity politics

Another thought-provoker, Jeff Chang, writes today:

The most frustrated surrogate of all is Minnesota Democrat Keith Ellison, the nation's first Muslim congressman, who has seen efforts to bring the Muslim communities in greater contact with Obama stopped dead by the campaign.

It's hard not to notice that this is where the "change" message gets run over by the still largely white mainstream Democratic party operatives who control Obama's campaign. Again, to all those who want to complain about allegedly coalition-fragmenting "identity politics", here are the real identity politics at work.

Obama - "Yes We Can" video

Props to Americablog. Props to the producers of this video.