Re: textile recycling: I've read that Goodwill and other thrift shops send clothes that are too tattered for selling in the shops to "rag sorters" that re-use and recycle them in various ways. So I'd say, go ahead and take the ratty clothes to Goodwill if your community doesn't have textile recycling.
When did the "I voted" stickers come into common use? I don't remember always getting one (I first voted in 1992). It certainly seems that the pride in having one, and the sort of camaraderie that has sprung up around it, has increased in recent years.
Rikibeth, Xopher, JESR: I'm very sorry for your losses.
And, on a more personal note, speaking as someone who's left of the Democratic party (who has never voted for Nader,) I usually am either hated or ignored.
Lots of people here are left of the Democratc Party. It's unfortunate that you chose to pigeonhole them as moderate, self-deceiving Dems who just can't handle Nader's truth-telling.
I had a friend the other day who got called racist when he told a Democrat he was voting Green.
Your friend was called racist for voting for a black woman?
Later in the interview, Nader said that Obama could choose between being a good president or being a toady for corporate interests. If he had said that the first time instead of using a racially charged insult, nobody would be calling him on using a racially charged insult. He chose the ugly but more attention-grabbing approach. That was his choice, not the choice of people on this thread.
Yeah, what does the term "Uncle Tom" have to do with race, anyway? You people* are so sensitive!
* ahem.
Rob Hansen@43: This question came up on the Dianne Rehm show on Monday, and a listener said that while 501(c)(3) groups are forbidden from participating in electoral politics (such as endorsing candidates), ballot initiatives are considered legislation. 501(c)(3)'s can lobby for legislation, within certain limits.
Since we are all voting simultaneously, it just doesn't matter how Obama does in any one state when it comes to predicting another state (unless you're predicting off of past data).
I disagree with that. The only way for Obama to win, say, Idaho would be for something nutty to happen like McCain flipping out and shooting someone on live TV; that's going to have an impact on the rest of the states.
When I did the survey, I think I put the chance of Obama winning WV at about 30%. But supposing Obama won Idaho, I'd say it's virtually 100% that he would win WV as well, because something drastic would have happened.
I never thought about it, but I think it may be a reference to six degrees of separation.
Nope, I was wrong. From the Google cache:
"As you might know, LiveJournal still runs on the Six Apart servers. 6A is taking a little downtime for maintenance, which means so are we. You won't be able to access the site on October 29th from 9:00 p.m. to midnight PST Edit: 8:30PM to 12:30AM (October 30) PST."
Serge, I think there was a news post mentioning something about upcoming downtime. I only glanced at it, and of course can't go back and check now, but that might be what's going on.
I live in a blue town in a red region of a blue state. Lots of Obama signs -- the town's not blanketed with them or anything, but they're common (plus, they've not been the easiest things to get hold of). I've seen exactly three McCain signs in my town, and two are in the same yard.
Jim, you might want to submit that story to Talking Points Memo. They track push-polls.
Suddenly, I see why the Obama campaign is exhorting every voter in states that allow early voting to get out there and do it now. When Obama says “things could happen on that day,†his examples are things like your car breaking down. Which is a good argument for voting early. But you know, things really could happen on that day.
People always talk about how smart Karl Rove is, and I don't deny that he has a certain cunning, but his ability to win elections is predicated less on intelligence and more on the fact that he's willing to be more evil than his opponent is ready for.
The Obama campaign? They're smart.
May I have a "you kids get off my lawn" moment?
Everything's a damn YouTube video these days. Some right winger wanted me to watch an *eleven-minute* video that purported to explain the economic crisis. All it was, was text flashing up on the screen much more slowly than I can read. (I gave up about a minute in when they started blaming the Community Reinvestment Act.)
Yes, it's great that everyone can make a video now, but that doesn't mean everyone *should*. It's a poor way to convey some types of information.
Nature has specifically arranged for him to find women attractive once they turn 15 and until they turn 21
Oh, now that's just gross.
John McCain is now having to calm his supporters down before someone gets hurt.
Well, I wonder why you have to do that, Senator McCain. Maybe it's because your campaign is now running 100% negative ads -- literally, that's now all they're running -- trying to associate Obama with terrorism and anti-Americanism. Maybe it's because people introducing you and your running mate at rallies have taken to emphasizing his middle name in a way formerly reserved for Fox News flacks and the more spittle-flecked right-wing bloggers. Maybe it's because the crowds at your rallies have gotten angrier and angrier, shouting out things like "Kill him" and "Terrorist" and "Traitor", and you've tacitly supported this trend by not speaking a word against it until today.* Maybe it's because your sole strategy at this point, since you've acknowledged that you'll lose if you talk about the issues, is to try to cast Obama as a Scary Other.
Let's just assume for a moment that McCain's had a sincere change of heart. If this were a movie, the next scene would be of the third debate, with both candidates conducting a cordial, respectful, high-minded exchange of ideas -- a triumph of American democracy over cynicism and hatred.
And then somebody shoots Obama as he leaves the hall. Because YOU CAN'T JUST UN-SAY THIS STUFF AND MAKE IT GO AWAY.
I noticed that McCain was looking down at the floor a lot as he was saying that Obama is a good man, and that people don't need to be afraid of him. I can't tell if it's because he doesn't really believe it, or if he's finally woken up and is appalled at what his campaign has unleashed, or what. Sadly, I no longer really care, except to the extent that it's fascinating to try to figure out what makes people tick.
Lastly, note the way that McCain negated the complaint that "He's an Arab" by saying "No ma'am, he's a decent family man, a citizen ... " As if the two are mutually exclusive.
* I don't necessarily give a lot of credence to the idea that McCain and Palin must have heard these shouts at the rallies themselves, and should have immediately condemned them from the podium. There's a lot going on, a lot of noise, and they don't know ahead of time that they're about to hear something outrageous (the way we do when we watch the clips on YouTube later). It's not at all clear to me that they're hearing this stuff at the time. That said, surely they've heard the same media reports we all have, so they know it's been happening and it's been escalating.
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|---|---|
| 2009 | 1 |
| 2008 | 133 |
| 2007 | 118 |
| 2006 | 57 |
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