The Ledes

Monday, September 30, 2024

New York Times: “Kris Kristofferson, the singer and songwriter whose literary yet plain-spoken compositions infused country music with rarely heard candor and depth, and who later had a successful second career in movies, died at his home on Maui, Hawaii, on Saturday. He was 88.”

~~~ The New York Times highlights “twelve essential Kristofferson songs.”

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Thank you to everyone who has been contributing links to articles & other content in the Comments section of each day's "Conversation." If you're missing the comments, you're missing some vital links.

Public Service Announcement

Washington Post: "Americans can again order free rapid coronavirus tests by mail, the Biden administration announced Thursday. People can request four free at-home tests per household through covidtests.gov. They will begin shipping Monday. The move comes ahead of an expected winter wave of coronavirus cases. The September revival of the free testing program is in line with the Biden administration’s strategy to respond to the coronavirus as part of a broader public health campaign to protect Americans from respiratory viruses, including influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), that surge every fall and winter. But free tests were not mailed during the summer wave, which wastewater surveillance data shows is now receding."

Washington Post: “Comedy news outlet the Onion — reinvigorated by new ownership over this year — is bringing back its once-popular video parodies of cable news. But this time, there’s someone with real news anchor experience in the chair. When the first episodes appear online Monday, former WAMU and MSNBC host Joshua Johnson will be the face of the resurrected 'Onion News Network.' Playing an ONN anchor character named Dwight Richmond, Johnson says he’s bringing a real anchor’s sense of clarity — and self-importance — to the job. 'If ONN is anything, it’s a news organization that is so unaware of its own ridiculousness that it has the confidence of a serial killer,' says Johnson, 44.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I'll be darned if I can figured out how to watch ONN. If anybody knows, do tell. Thanks.

Washington Post: “First came the surprising discovery that Earth’s atmosphere is leaking. But for roughly 60 years, the reason remained a mystery. Since the late 1960s, satellites over the poles detected an extremely fast flow of particles escaping into space — at speeds of 20 kilometers per second. Scientists suspected that gravity and the magnetic field alone could not fully explain the stream. There had to be another source creating this leaky faucet. It turns out the mysterious force is a previously undiscovered global electric field, a recent study found. The field is only about the strength of a watch battery — but it’s enough to thrust lighter ions from our atmosphere into space. It’s also generated unlike other electric fields on Earth. This newly discovered aspect of our planet provides clues about the evolution of our atmosphere, perhaps explaining why Earth is habitable. The electric field is 'an agent of chaos,' said Glyn Collinson, a NASA rocket scientist and lead author of the study. 'It undoes gravity.... Without it, Earth would be very different.'”

The New York Times lists Emmy winners. The AP has an overview story here.

New York Times: “Hvaldimir, a beluga whale who had captured the public’s imagination since 2019 after he was spotted wearing a harness seemingly designed for a camera, was found dead on Saturday in Norway, according to a nonprofit that worked to protect the whale.... [Hvaldimir] was wearing a harness that identified it as “equipment” from St. Petersburg. There also appeared to be a camera mount. Some wondered if the whale was on a Russian reconnaissance mission. Russia has never claimed ownership of the whale. If Hvaldimir was a spy, he was an exceptionally friendly one. The whale showed signs of domestication, and was comfortable around people. He remained in busier waters than are typical for belugas....” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, Lord, do not let Bobby Kennedy, Jr., near that carcass. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: “There’s no evidence that a well-known beluga whale that lived off Norway’s coast and whose harness ignited speculation it was a Russian spy was shot to death last month as claimed by animal rights groups, Norwegian police said Monday.... Police said that the Norwegian Veterinary Institute conducted a preliminary autopsy on the animal, which was become known as 'Hvaldimir,' combining the Norwegian word for whale — hval — and the first name of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'There are no findings from the autopsy that indicate that Hvaldimir has been shot,' police said in a statement.”

New York Times: Botswana's “President Mokgweetsi Masisi grinned as he lifted the diamond, a 2,492-carat stone that is the biggest diamond unearthed in more than a century and the second-largest ever found, according to the Vancouver-based mining operator Lucara, which owns the mine where it was found. This exceptional discovery could bring back the luster of the natural diamond mining industry, mining companies and experts say. The diamond was discovered in the same relatively small mine in northeastern Botswana that has produced several of the largest such stones in living memory. Such gemstones typically surface as a result of volcanic activity.... The diamond will likely sell in the range of tens of millions of dollars....”

Click on photo to enlarge.

~~~ Guardian: "On a distant reef 16,000km from Paris, surfer Gabriel Medina has given Olympic viewers one of the most memorable images of the Games yet, with an airborne celebration so well poised it looked too good to be true. The Brazilian took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti on Monday, emerging from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard. The shot was taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet, who said “the conditions were perfect, the waves were taller than we expected”. He took the photo while aboard a boat nearby, capturing the surreal image with such accuracy that at first some suspected Photoshop or AI." 

Washington Post: “'Mary Cassatt at Work' is a large and mostly satisfying exhibition devoted to the career of the great American artist beloved for her sensitive and often sentimental views of family life. The 'at work' in the title of the Philadelphia Museum of Art show references the curators’ interest in Cassatt’s pioneering effort to establish herself as a professional artist within a male-dominated field. Throughout the show, which includes some 130 paintings, pastels, prints and drawings, the wall text and the art on view stresses Cassatt’s fixation on art as a career rather than a pastime.... Mary Cassatt at Work is on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art through Sept. 8. philamuseum.org”

New York Times: “Bob Newhart, who died on Thursday at the age of 94, has been such a beloved giant of popular culture for so long that it’s easy to forget how unlikely it was that he became one of the founding fathers of stand-up comedy. Before basically inventing the hit stand-up special, with the 1960 Grammy-winning album 'The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart' — that doesn’t even count his pay-per-view event broadcast on Canadian television that some cite as the first filmed special — he was a soft-spoken accountant who had never done a set in a nightclub. That he made a classic with so little preparation is one of the great miracles in the history of comedy.... Bob Newhart holds up. In fact, it’s hard to think of a stand-up from that era who is a better argument against the commonplace idea that comedy does not age well.”

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Monday
Aug062012

I Know Mitt Cheated on His Taxes

My Two Cents.

The general assumption is that Mitt did nothing illegal in his tax filings, but used every legal trick in the IRS code to limit his liability. One basis for that assumption is that Mitt has been running for president since 1994 so he wouldn't be so stupid as to illegally evade taxes. Another basis is that John McCain claims his staff reviewed 23 years of Mitt's returns and found "There's nothing in Romney's tax returns that would disqualify him as a candidate, and McCain will 'personally vouch' for that."

(1) Ask Tim TurboTax Geithner & a couple of Bill Clinton's attorney general nominees about that. It is not that hard to cheat on your taxes & get it past the IRS. Thousands -- probably tens of thousands -- of ordinary people do it every year without the IRS even noticing. Mitt admitted a few days ago that he'd "been audited a few times." But remember, even when the IRS did audit Mitt's returns, it would have been Mitt's $400/hour tax attorneys countering a couple of G-9s who don't get overtime. Not a fair fight. Besides, when the object is to exploit every loophole & tax haven ($100 million IRA???), there are bound to be dicey calls.

(2) John McCain considered Mitt as a running mate for about 15 minutes, the obligatory period required to garner a photo op & an endorsement from a former opponent. My own annual tax returns on a miniscule income -- compared to Mitt's -- are as thick as The Great Gatsby. Mitt's have to be of War & Peace proportions. Do you think McCain's staff really combed through War & Peace x 23 in 15 minutes? Remember, this was the same gang who vetted Sarah Palin.

Not only that, McCain's wording was pretty cagey. He said there was nothing in the returns that was "disqualifying." That isn't the same thing as saying there was nothing that was illegal. If you get audited & the IRS fines you -- assuming the IRS is right -- you've done something "illegal." Unless it was egregious, you'll just have to pay back taxes, interest & (maybe) a fine. That isn't disqualifying. Plenty of decent people have lost audits & been hit with penalties. I wouldn't vote against somebody just because she made a mistake on her taxes.

But now. Instead of McCain's feeble vetters, nominee Romney faces a couple of hundred expert green eye shades anxious to dig in for the sheer fun of it. They are bound to come up with something, from "innocent" mistakes (See TurboTax Tim) to possible prosecutable evasions (perhaps past the statute of limitations). With such complex returns, & with the paramount goal of reducing liability (rather than giving the government its due), it is a virtual certainty that "mistakes were made."

Here's something else. Mitt himself doesn't know WTF is in those returns. Yeah, he's a Harvard MBA, but there's a reason he didn't do his own returns (see TurboTax Tim). He doesn't know how. He doesn't have time to learn. He's running for president, for Pete's sake. Inevitably, interviewers would ask him about some of those "mistakes that were made." A man running for office almost wholly on the basis of his business acumen can't afford to admit, "I have no idea," much less, "I can't add & subtract. I pay somebody to do that." Voter interpretation (fair or not): "You think you can run the whole country & you can't even read your own tax returns?"

Mitt should have been satisfied to live out his days in luxury, basking in the friendship of NASCAR & pro football team owners, the horsey set & whoever, maybe riding his car elevator up & down for fun (it might rotate!). Instead, he thought because it was his turn to be president, he could bluff his way into the job without having to show his cards. Don't tell me Mormons don't gamble. Mitt has gambled and won plenty of times. It's how he became a multi-millionaire. But Harry Reid -- another Mormon gambler -- just called Mitt's Big Bluff. Whether or not Mitt folds or shows his cards, he's lost the game.

Comments Off

Reader Comments (12)

I wonder if the major problem return is for 2009? 2010 is out there. After learning among the 23 years of returns are some real dogs, the year prior to tax year 2009 would have been the time Mittster instructed his accountants to make things more presentable for his next run.

He'll never release the returns in any case.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterStephen Calhoun

Re: we'll divvy up the loot when we get back to the hideout. While reading CW on Mitt's tax returns I had a thought. Is it possible Mitt screwed his own gang on some of the really big heists that Bain pulled? I just read about the Italian Job. Mitt made off with millions but nobody know how many millions. If he had to show his taxes would his share surprise some of his cohorts? Just asking.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterJJG

Whether Romney cheated on his taxes in the conventional sense is, for me, beside the point. I'm just not comfortable with a candidate who proudly and defiantly proclaims: "I paid what was owed and not a penny more," and proves it by releasing a return that shows multiple complex tax shelters throughout the world. Not to mention that $100 million in the IRA.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterVictoria D.

Mitt's tax returns will be proof that the rich can screw the poor legally. Yes I am sure he paid a few bucks in taxes every year. But his returns will not only expose how the rich really get rich, but will also show that their robbery is actually legal. It might be a little more difficult for Mitt to claim his grand leadership in business development when it turns out that you and I actually paid the bill.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterMarvin Schwalb

Apparently Mitt doesn't confine his tax avoidance to income tax. According to the local San Diego paper:
"Mitt Romney has saved nearly $109,000 in taxes by appealing his property assessment from San Diego County over four years for his oceanfront home in La Jolla.
Romney, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, purchased the Mediterranean-style house on Dunemere Drive in 2008 for $12 million. Within months, he set out to decrease his annual property tax bill. "
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/aug/06/romney-gets-property-tax-relief-la-jolla/

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterVictoria D.

It is a practice to over charge the US divisions of a company and take the profit overseas. Taking profits overseas and causing a loss here gives a company a loss to be carried over to reduce a profitable year's taxes. Mitt may not have paid taxes some years because of a contrived loss. An amnesty will bring the profits home or they can be used for an overseas aquisition.
Romney is correct in not releasing his tax returns. He cannot be elected if they are examined. He may be elected if he stands fast and does not let the facts destroy him.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterCarlyle

Where is WikiLeaks when we need them ??????

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterCasey

Great thoughts everyone. To Casey: how about an IRS agent that wouldn't mind spending a few thousand years in jail!

I'm with Victoria D. in her discomfort at supporting such an arrogant individual. Be they Democrat or Republican, how can someone stand before the citizens of America touting their pride in American exceptionalism while paying high fees to keep his/her money in off-shore accounts safely hidden from the U.S. taxman? Or disregarding the taxman, putting the money to work providing jobs for Americans to build American products.

Mr. Romney needs to put his money where his mouth is.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterJacquelyn

First, Marie, very nice summation of the story thus far. I'd give you a lot more than two cents for this one but then you might have to declare it on your 2012 returns. Maybe you can declare it as a charitable donation to your readers. I'm sure Willard has attempted far more specious declarations.

Part of the discomfort with Romney should be, especially for his supporters, his obvious hypocrisy in demanding that Ted Kennedy and later John Kerry, open their books to the voters and provide full and unfettered access to their tax records (he even went so far as to instruct voters that anyone who did not should be considered unfit for public office) but when it comes time for him to do the same, he insists upon his privacy along with his wife who haughtily sniffs that the Romneys have already given "you people" enough.

But since when has hypocrisy been a problem for Republicans? It's mother's milk for them.

In any event, it's clear, as Marie and many others have pointed out, that whatever he's got to hide (and more and more I'm liking JJG's idea that Willard the Rat is just as concerned about being outed to his former partners concerning some kind of side deal he kept off the Bain books for even more personal profit) he's more comfortable with public approbation for stonewalling than he is with transparency and the kind of openness he has demanded of others.

Another example of sterling Republican character.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

I was hoping this tax issue might be the silver bullet but I am beginning to have the nagging suspicion it may fade away before bearing fruit due to the short attention span of too many Americans. Does anyone have an opinion on this? I need some encourament.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterTommy Bones

Don't much care what his tax returns show or not. Love that he won't release them. And the longer this anal retentive behavior goes on, the better, methinks.

August 7, 2012 | Unregistered CommenterJames Singer

"A clause in Academi’s settlement with prosecutors bars the company from making any public statements 'contradicting any aspect' of the agreement. Any such statement could allow the government to nullify the settlement...." CW: and nobody goes to jail."
You know I just found out yesterday that attorney client privilege is protected forever. So whether it's Erik Prince and his merry band of fascist mercenaries or Mitt and his legal henchmen deleting the hard drives as governor or Olympic guy, we can never, ever access the information that may remain if they put on the attorney client label.
So, the robber barons of hundred years ago, their papers are all protected by attorney client "privilege" in perpetuity. One can assume they were even worse than we realize. Just like Mitt.

August 8, 2012 | Unregistered Commentercitizen625
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