I’ll start with a couple of pictures that capture aspects of my life here in Dali, Yunnan Province. I’m leaving for good in seven weeks, so I really ought to do more of this. Yesterday evening, there was a bit of rain and then around 6:45 p.m. we were treated to a rainbow stretching across theContinue reading “Weekend Links”
Author Archives: dsfjr
Indiana Aftermath: Democratic Party Edition
Donald Trump has officially secured the Republican Party’s nomination now that John Kasich, last man standing by a day, has suspended his campaign. Weirdly, that means it’s the Democratic Party’s nomination that is still up in the air, with Bernie Sanders claiming he will contest the nomination if Hillary Clinton needs superdelegates to get herContinue reading “Indiana Aftermath: Democratic Party Edition”
The Trumptanic Sails at Dawn
https://youtu.be/6zR-uVcvAXY Fortunately, we have a rich cultural vocabulary we can use to discuss the 2016 Republican nomination contest. Back in January, I wondered if the Republican “establishment” – whatever that means anymore – would be able to chase down their Frankenstein’s monster. With Ted Cruz dropping out after getting clobbered in Indiana yesterday and Donald Trump’sContinue reading “The Trumptanic Sails at Dawn”
Weekend Links
Some of the articles I read this week: Hillary Clinton has adopted more liberal policies during her campaign for the Democratic Party’s nomination in response to a strong Bernie Sanders challenge and a liberal shift among Democrats. Pressure from the grassroots is how change happens. Some people may call this flip-flopping, but we can also callContinue reading “Weekend Links”
Please Sign My White House Petition
If you agree with the argument below, please sign my petition. You don’t have to sign up for anything – name and email address are enough to log your signature. After 150 signatures, the petition will get a public spot on the website for all visitors to see. If somehow it gets to 100,000 signatures byContinue reading “Please Sign My White House Petition”
Super Tuesday III: What’s At Stake in the Mid-Atlantic
This coming Tuesday, April 26th, is the third time during this presidential nomination cycle that a bunch of states rich in delegates will vote on the same Tuesday. There will be one more “super” Tuesday on June 7th, when the big prizes of California and New Jersey (don’t snicker) are up for grabs for bothContinue reading “Super Tuesday III: What’s At Stake in the Mid-Atlantic”
Weekend Links
Here are some articles I read this week (update below): One of the many myths that Americans believe about our politics is that politicians don’t keep their promises. Professor of political science Timothy Hill explains at FiveThirtyEight that elected officials tend to keep most of their promises. In a response to a comment about “An Open Letter to Sanders Supporters” IContinue reading “Weekend Links”
The Federal Debt Doesn’t Matter
The Democratic Party’s chances at keeping the White House this November are looking good at the moment, so that means it’s time for deficit scolds to jump out of hiding and scare us all into thinking the federal debt is coming to eat our children. The first real “boo!” of the election season is last week’s Time cover storyContinue reading “The Federal Debt Doesn’t Matter”
Ted Cruz is Running for Theocrat-in-Chief
In 2007, Ted Cruz’s Texas solicitor general office argued that the use of sex toys was tantamount to “hiring a willing prostitute or engaging in consensual bigamy” in an effort to maintain the state’s ban of “marital aids.” Cruz and Texas lost the case but not before exposing conservative Christian views on sex for all the worldContinue reading “Ted Cruz is Running for Theocrat-in-Chief”
Weekend Links
Some links for the weekend: New York Magazine’s Jonathan Chait wrote a few good pieces recently. Here he is on the stakes of the 2016 election for the environment, the pragmatic tradition of African American voters given that the American system almost always requires compromise and gradual, incremental change, and the questions New York Democrats –Continue reading “Weekend Links”
Nonsense Consensus 