iPotato

Ken AshfordPopular Culture1 Comment

One of the few times I was ahead of the culture curve was about two years ago when I bought my 40G iPod.  This was waaaaay before the latest Apple advertising scheme, with silohuettes and U2 and wild dancing.  That’s right — I (for once) was a trendsetter (and I still love my iPod). But apparently, I was outdone by … Read More

The Jury Is Still Out . . .

Ken AshfordGodstuffLeave a Comment

even though it has been eighty years since it came back. Look, folks.  The Earth revolves around the sun.  The Bible is wrong when it says otherwise.  And evolution is real.  The Bible is wrong if it says otherwise.  It is time to face facts.  If your belief in God is so shaky that you have to belief everything in … Read More

Worthless IOUs

Ken AshfordSocial SecurityLeave a Comment

From The American Street: Next time you hear some trained Bush monkey echo Bush talking points and claim that the Social Security trustfund is stocked with nothing but a bunch of worthless “IOU’s,” pull out a $20 bill like this one: A worthless IOU. Explain to them that if the United States Bonds and Treasury Bills that make up the … Read More

The Rise of the Religious Left?

Ken AshfordGodstuffLeave a Comment

Let’s hope so.  From the Northeast Mississippt Daily Journal: This past week, leaders of five mainstream Protestant denominations came together to speak in one voice. Standing shoulder to shoulder, leaders of the Episcopal Church USA, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Presbyterian Church (USA), United Church of Christ, and United Methodist Church together condemned the 2006 Federal budget proposed by President … Read More

Old Folks

Ken AshfordSocial SecurityLeave a Comment

Yglesius gives George Will the heel of his boot on social security: George Will, like many other conservatives, is positively irate that old people won’t get behind the president’s plan even though the president has promised not to cut their benefits. In response, it’s worth noting first and foremost that senior citizens may have concerns about this subject other than … Read More

Fake News

Ken AshfordBush & Co.Leave a Comment

From the NYT: "Under the Bush administration, the federal government has aggressively used a well-established tool of public relations: the prepackaged, ready-to-serve news report that major corporations have long distributed to TV stations to pitch everything from headache remedies to auto insurance. In all, at least 20 federal agencies, including the Defense Department and the Census Bureau, have made and … Read More

Where Am I?

Ken AshfordRandom MusingsLeave a Comment

Via Yglesius, bold the places you’ve been, underline the places you’ve lived in, and italicize the place you live now: Alabama / Alaska / Arizona / Arkansas / California / Colorado / Connecticut / Delaware / Florida / Georgia / Hawaii / Idaho / Illinois / Indiana / Iowa / Kansas / Kentucky / Louisiana / Maine / Maryland / … Read More

I’m a Racist

Ken AshfordSocial SecurityLeave a Comment

… because I oppose Bush’s privatization of social security idea.  Well, that’s what the President says.  Pretty amazing.  Here’s what he said yesterday: And so there are guidelines as to what you can invest in. I was being somewhat facetious on the lottery — but really not. There’s a proper risk reward, a portfolio that will allow you as a … Read More

“I Don’t Know”

Ken AshfordIranLeave a Comment

That’s what I was once told to say when I didn’t know.  I re-learned that lesson as a young lawyer: if a judge asks you a question, and you don’t know the answer, admit that you don’t know the answer.  That is how you maintain your credibility. Sadly, the Bush Administration didn’t do that with respect to WMDs in Iraq.  … Read More

Great Ad

Ken AshfordForeign AffairsLeave a Comment

This is a great advertisement that you will probably never see on American television because it concerns an issue that does not affect Americans.  Which is too bad, because the ad itself is specifically designed to speak to Americans.

The Bankruptcy Bill

Ken AshfordCongress, Corporate GreedLeave a Comment

Let’s start with a story ripped from today’s headlines: In Cleveland, for example, a municipal court judge tossed out a case that Discover Bank brought against one of its cardholders after closely examining the woman’s credit card bill. According to court papers, Ruth M. Owens, a 53-year-old disabled woman, paid the company $3,492 over six years on a $1,963 debt … Read More

My Country’s Representatives Embarrass Me Again

Ken AshfordSex/Morality/Family ValuesLeave a Comment

US Draws Jeers for Abortion Comments at UNFri Mar 4, 2005 08:35 PM ET By Deborah Zabarenko UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Jeers and catcalls greeted the top U.S. delegate to a global women’s conference on Friday as she stressed Washington’s opposition to abortion and support for sexual abstinence and fidelity. After withdrawing an unpopular anti-abortion amendment from a key U.N. … Read More

Winger Blogs Get It Wrong

Ken AshfordRight Wing Punditry/IdiocyLeave a Comment

Typical right-winger blog analysis: The brutal murder of a family of Coptic Christians in Jersey City, New Jersey may have been carried out by Muslim fanatics in retaliation for the expression of "anti-Muslim" views on the internet…. As we’ve said many times before, these fanatics cannot be reasoned with or deterred. They can only be hunted down and killed, and … Read More