One of the greatest gifts you can give to anyone is the gift of attention.
Jim Rohn
Hubris Quote of the Day
And always remember, Abraham Lincoln only served one term in Congress, too. - Allen West, NPR interview after losing close reelectionIt is true that Abraham Lincoln, as a Whig (GOP precursor) ran for and won his only race for ( the 30th) Congress. I'll point out hundreds of people have served in the House, but West is no Lincoln. Whatever you think of Lincoln's policies, he was also a brilliant political strategist whom managed to achieve his objectives despite numerous enemies. I know West for primarily 2 things: a speech on video he gave before winning his first race, and a public kerfuffle with Wasserman-Schultz, the DNC chair and fellow south Florida Congressman. Don't sweat the small stuff.
More Election 2012 Reflections
I have some comments to make here because they are discussing Question 6 in Maryland and I voted in the election. The interviewee attempts to argue that Question 6 carried because several Romney supporters had to have supported it, at one point terns Question 6 opponents as "anti-gay" and attempts to darkly suggest the GOP is losing touch with its base.
First, I opposed Question 6 not because I'm "anti-gay" but because I worry about unintended consequences to social engineering of the traditional institutions of marriage and family. (I'm also opposed to the recognition of multiple-partner marriage.) This is different from banning nontraditional relations.
Second, the pro-6 commercials vastly outspent con-6 ones, and spoke of gay marriages not directly but in fact indirectly suggested they were protecting religious liberty (which is unnecessary given the first and fourteenth amendments) or the gays have a right to have a relationship. It's not the relationship but the conferred status
Third, if the GOP voters made the difference, then the Dems had to oppose it (particularly African Americans). But in fact the majority Dems pushed the bill through. What about the Dems voting out of sync with their supporters? Less than 5% of the population is gay; the issue isn't related to more salient (say, economics) issues.
Finally it's odd for a libertarian to point to popularity of rights.
Austerity vs. Growth in Europe
The idea that making government more efficient is bad for the economy is patently absurd. Businesses need to be efficient to compete while government has no competitor,
Musical Interlude: Christmas Retrospective
Christmas carol instrumentals
