From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE…
Monday Morning Meta
Howdy. I got nothing particularly pithy above the fold today, so I'm using my little chunk of real estate to shine a spotlight on a few things goin' on around here:
The DKos group Social Security Defenders has organized a blogathon that kicks off today to…
…promote the truth about the financial condition of the Social Security trust fund, and the impacts of various so called reforms and fixes. Understanding how benefits are calculated, the History of Social Security, where the Wisconsin Idea came from, and how over the years changes have been made to Social Security.
Guest posters include economist Dean Baker, Joan McCarter, Jim Dean, Kitsap River, One Pissed Off Liberal, Joanneleon, DFA's Arshad Hasan and other very smart people. In addition to information and awareness, they're also looking for sigs on
this White House petition.
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Then, starting Wednesday, the Daily Kos Quilt Guild is sponsoring a very cool auction:
This quilt auction is to benefit the Food Pantry of the Isabel Community in the Cheyenne River Reservation in north central South Dakota. The Isabel community is a reservation town of about 250 people. The name of the project, Okiciyap, comes from the Lakota language meaning “We Help.” The Lakota are one of the seven Sioux tribes that make up the Plains Indians.
More on the quilt, including bidding rules and up-close pics, via
beadlady's post. I don’t know about you, but my eyes will never cease to pop at the works of art the DKos quilters produce on such a regular basis. Bid early, bid often.
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And last but hardly least…Kossack meetups are breaking out all across the country, thanks in large part to Navajo and her editors who keep track of 'em
in the New Day posts (mornings at 7:30PT). They're a lot of fun, and usually involve good eats and good drinks. If you don't see a meetup near you, it's pretty easy to organize one. The ultimate goal, of course, is one gargantuan future meetup on a single day during which Kossacks form a human chain starting at the home office in Berkeley, California and winding through all the lower 48 states to end up at, um, let's see…Portland, Maine sounds good. It's a dream. We can make it happen.
Meanwhile, Cheers and Jeers starts below the fold... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
Note: Ralph Reed is going to straight hell for being a crook, a hypocrite and a bald-faced liar in the guise of being a role model for Christians. C&J will provide live coverage of the event as it happens, complete with special theme music by Philip Glass. Cheers and Jeers: Your Place On The Web For Watching Assholes Go Straight To Hell. In color!
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By the Numbers:
Days 'til Tax Day: 21
Days 'til the Blossom Kite Festival in D.C.: 5
Percent of the world's energy consumed by China and the U.S., respectively: 20%, 19%
Percent of the world's energy consumed by Russia, India and Japan, respectively: 6%, 4%, 4%
(Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration via USA Today)
Age of the universe based on new calculations: 13.8 billion years
Percent increase in the universe's girth, based on the new calculations (and possibly its Big Mac addiction): 3%
(Source: Kavli Institute of Cosmology at the University of Cambridge, via AP)
Number of people still receiving veterans benefits tied to the Spanish-American War: 10
(Source: AP)
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NEW! California Dreamin'
Brought to you by the 2013 Netroots Nation Convention in San Jose, June 20-23. If you feel like wandering off for a bit, you might want to check out Lick Observatory, "the world's first permanently occupied mountain-top observatory":
Lick Observatory is a leading astronomical research observatory with a long and distinguished history. Since its founding in 1888 Lick has been part of the University of California, an institution which, since Lick's early days, has grown from a single campus with a handful of students to ten campuses, three national laboratories, and more than 180,000 students. The Observatory has grown along with the university, keeping pace with---and contributing to---the enormous advances in astronomy over the last century. Today, Lick continues as a world-class research institution, a leader in the development of new instruments and observing techniques, and an active center for teaching.
When they say they see London, they see France and they see someone's underpants, they ain't kiddin'.
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Puppy Pic of the Day: Blind dog and his guide dog.
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CHEERS to seeing double. Well, here's something we haven't seen in, like, ever. The new Pope visited the old Pope over the weekend, and it didn’t involve the former visiting the latter's crypt. Instead, they enjoyed eggs Benedict and bloody Marys over a few games of mahjong and a good time was had by all. Although it briefly got a little awkward when God called and Francis said, "Sorry, Ben, I gotta take this."
JEERS to quadruple-dipping. Maine Senator Susan Collins (R) says that with terms one, two and three behind her, she's itchin' to go the full FDR and tackle a fourth. But just for the record, when she was running for her first term, Collins made this unambiguous pledge:
Excellent judgment, Senator Collins.
"I have pledged that, if elected, I will only serve two terms, regardless of whether or not a term-limits constitutional amendment passes or not.
Twelve years is long enough to be in public service, make a contribitioon, and then come home and let someone else take your place."
That makes Susan Collins quite the liar, not to mention a disastrous exerciser of judgment, thanks to her vote for the Iraq war, Bush's deficit-digging tax cuts, Supreme Court deadweight Sam Alito, and palling around with her turncoat BFF Joe Lieberman…just for starters. Collins says the only thing that would prevent her from running again is a "catastrophic illness." Just my opinion, but I'd say being a member of the Republican party in 2013 comes pretty close.
JEERS to conspiracy nuts. Bill O'Reilly says he knows that liberals are secretly preparing to declare war on Easter. He's crazy! He's a fool! Nothing to see here! (Okay, which one of you #!$#^!!& liberals blabbed?!!)
CHEERS to walkin' the walk. On March 25, 1965---a few weeks after "Bloody Sunday" in which police set upon peaceful civil rights marchers with fire hoses, clubs and dogs---Martin Luther King, Jr. led thousands of marchers to the State Capitol in Montgomery for a rally. Looked something like this:
The marchers got three things out of it: Lyndon Johnson's signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, a permanent place in civil rights history, and aching bunions.
CHEERS to Matzoh Fever! Passover (aka "Bad people tried to kill us, we survived, let's eat") begins today at sundown. The holiday commemorates Moses's exodus from Egypt three thousand years ago, including his Oscar-nominated parting of the Red Sea. (For conservatives, Passover is a celebration of what modern-day Republicans do to competent people.) I'm not Jewish---my roulette wheel stopped on "Wild 'n Crazy Episcopalian"---but I still like to commemorate it with an abbreviated seder during which I go straight to the four glasses of wine. Now you know why in our house the holiday is known as Passout.
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Five years ago in C&J: March 26, 2008
CHEERS to seeing a silver lining in a pile of crap. On first glance, I bristled when I read that David Petraeus was going to kick the soccer ball known as the Iraq war to the next president. But given that all President Bush does is make things worse, maybe the noble general is tacitly admitting that the fewer things Chimpy touches, the better. If so, welcome to the Eighty Percent of Americans Club, sir. We do Bingo on Thursday night and serve fish & chips on Saturday (stay away from the slaw...Mrs. Higginbotham goes nuts with the vinegar.)
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And just one more…
CHEERS to more March Madness! The NCAA thingamahoochie continues. Here are some random scores from the weekend, which will reinforce your wise decision to rely on C&J for information:
Best basketball game game ever.
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74-57
82-56
70-48
78-64
78-53
81-71
So this morning the current bracket
looks like this. I kinda feel bad for the NCAA on account of they'll only making something like $11 billion over the next dozen years. But whatever---we're all feeling the pinch. For those of you who don’t know, here's how the tournament works: it starts with 68 teams that get whittled down to one. Or as it's better known: Congress's approval rating.
Have a nice Monday. Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?
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Today's Shameless C&J Testimonial:
Pope Francis to Bill in Portland Maine: "We're brothers"
---TPM
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