So Long to Ya, 2010!

CW: I had intended to save this for next week, but since it made the New York Times today, here ya go:

The Commentariat -- December 20

Here's the page NASA sent me to for the lunar eclipse tonight & tomorrow a.m. AND here's an informative AP story.

Richard Cohen, in a New York Times op-ed, provides a primer on the winter solstice.

Check out the Neighborhood. The New York Times posts interactive maps that allow you to "browse local data from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, based on samples from 2005 to 2009," that map four topics: (1) race & ethnicity, (2) income, (3) housing & families & (4) education. The Times warns, "Because these figures are based on samples, they are subject to a margin of error, particularly in places with a low population, and are best regarded as estimates."

** "Top Secret America." Dana Priest & William Arkin of the Washington Post: "... The United States is assembling a vast domestic intelligence apparatus to collect information about Americans, using the FBI, local police, state homeland security offices and military criminal investigators.... The government's goal is to have every state and local law enforcement agency in the country feed information to Washington to buttress the work of the FBI, which is in charge of terrorism investigations in the United States." This page links to other "Top Secret America" stories, published in July 2010. Here's a brief video, which ends with an interactive map locating intelligence agency sites.

John Harwood of the New York Times posts a brief interview of Harry Reid. ...

... Hateful Anti-American Schmucks. Ryan Grim: Two Amigos John McCain & Lindsey Graham take revenge on DADT repeal by rounding up votes against the New START treaty.

Ben Evans of the AP: "For a guy who insists that federal bureaucrats make too much money, incoming House Majority Leader Eric Cantor sure doesn't mind handing out handsome government raises of his own. Cantor, the Virginia Republican who has led the GOP charge this year to freeze federal salaries, has boosted his congressional office's payroll by 81 percent since coming to Congress in 2001.... Cantor and other GOP leaders are now pledging to cut their budgets by 5 percent when they take over the House in January.... Overall, congressional payroll expenses have climbed much faster than the civilian federal work force costs that lawmakers are now clamoring to freeze. Many of the most vocal federal critics have overseen growth that rivals or outstrips the executive branch's...."

Elisabeth Bumiller of the New York Times: "In the wake of the Senate vote to end the 17-year-old [DADT] policy..., military officials said they did not yet have a timetable for putting the change into effect. President Obama is expected to sign the bill early this week.... Under the terms of the legislation that passed the Senate on Saturday and the House earlier last week, the Defense Department will not carry out the repeal until [Defense Secretary] Gates, Mr. Obama and Adm. Mike Mullen ... 'certify' that the military is ready to make the change. After that, the legislation requires a 60-day period before the change takes place." ...

... Robert Burns of the AP: "Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos, who had argued against the policy change, said in a statement Sunday the Corps 'will step out smartly to faithfully implement this new policy' and that he would 'personally lead this effort, thus ensuring the respect and dignity due all Marines.'" ...

... Matthew Cooper of the National Journal: "Like African Americans and women, gays will likely find military service a springboard to other rights.... It's probably instructive that the Dream Act failed the same day the 'don't ask, don't tell' repeal passed. The Dream Act would have, among other things, given illegal immigrants who served in the military a path to citizenship.... Were it to pass it wouldn't be at all surprising if it turned out to be the opening of a much larger path to legalization. Such is the power of being able to serve in the armed forces." ...

... Mark Thompson of Time on the integration of women & gays into the military. "In another 11 years, we'll wonder just how 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' ever became the law of the land, and why it was allowed to stand for 17 years and ruin the careers of nearly 14,000 people." ...

... CW: I don't find Walter Shapiro's hypothoses too convincing, but his question wants answering: "Why are liberals winning the culture wars and losing the tax battle? Shapiro blames Hollywood &/or suggests, more plausibly, that "the American people are, at their core, libertarians -- suspicious of both the taxman and the government's attempts to regulate social behavior." ...

... AND Now for the View from the Right on DADT Repeal. Kyle of People for the American Way's "Right Wing Watch" posts extended excerpts from some of the usual suspects: the Family Research Council, the American Family Association, etc. Kyle notes that "judging by the early statements ..., this vote is literally going to mean the end of America."

Peter Walsten of the Washington Post: "In the wake of President Obama's tax-cut deal with Republicans, the White House is moving quickly to mend its strained relationship with the Democratic base, reassuring liberal groups, black leaders and labor union officials who opposed the tax compromise that Obama has not abandoned them."

Paul Krugman: "Free-market fundamentalists have been wrong about everything — yet they now dominate the political scene more thoroughly than ever."

Don Lee of the Los Angeles Times: "Perhaps the most sacred of all the sacred cows in the tax code, the home mortgage deduction has long been seen as crucial to a major element of the American dream — owning your own home.... But nearly a century after coming into existence, the mortgage deduction may face a day of reckoning. Although out of the spotlight while the lame-duck Congress thrashes to an end, the mortgage deduction issue is likely to resurface next year when the new Congress — including a lot more deficit-hawk Republicans — takes over."

There Are No Violins Tiny Enough. Nelson Schwartz & Susanne Craig of the New York Times: "Bonus season is fast approaching on Wall Street, but this year the talk ... is about a new club that no one wants to join: the Zeros... [who] are facing ... an annual bonus of ... nothing.... As a result of the 2008 financial crisis, Wall Street firms like Goldman Sachs and banks like Citigroup raised base pay substantially in 2009 and 2010.... Even though employees will receive roughly the same amount of money, the psychological blow of not getting a bonus is substantial, especially in a Wall Street culture that has long equated success and prestige with bonus size."

Justices Sandra Day O'Connor & John Paul Stevens. Newsweek photo.** Justice Sandra Day O'Connor interviews Justice John Paul Stevens in Newsweek. Neither thinks highly of the Citizens United ruling. (Stevens dissented; O'Connor had left the Court before the case came before it.) ...

... Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: the Supreme Court faces the death penalty. CW: okay, maybe that's poorly-worded, but Barnes' article about how the Court decides on whether to grant or deny certiorari in death-penalty cases is interesting.

Republican Takeover of the South, Cont'd. AP: "Another prominent Louisiana Democrat has officially switched his party affiliation to the GOP, giving Republicans a majority control of the state House for the first time since Reconstruction." Via Ben Smith.

A History Lesson. David Fahrenthold of the Washington Post on the 20th Amendment, which was supposed to end lame-duck Congressional sessions. (CW: the history lesson really begins on page 2 -- the Post no longer lets me link to a single page. You can click on "print" to read the whole article on one page.) Here's an interactive timeline of lame-duck sessions, beginning in 1920.

The Commentariat -- December 19

This guy looks happy anyway. A Regent Street, London store greeter revels in the snowstorm that has snarled traffic throughout Europe. BTW, it appears they have a happier class of greeter in Regent Street than we do in American Wal-Marts. Guardian photo.Historian Eric Foner compares & contrasts Presidents Lincoln & Obama. While he finds one valid comparison -- "both made their national reputations through oratory rather than long careers of public service" -- Foner contrasts the two Presidents' relationships with liberal critics:

Obama’s rather petulant response to liberal critics of his tax deal, however, reveals a fundamental difference between the two men. Obama accuses liberals of being sanctimonious purists.... Lincoln, however, was open-minded, intellectual curious, and willing to listen to critics in his own party – qualities Obama appears to lack. Lincoln met frequently in the White House with abolitionists and Radicals and befriended Radicals.... Obama has surrounded himself with yes men. 

John Schwartz of the New York Times on the Supreme Court & the Affordable Health Act: "Predicting how justices will vote, and especially the reasoning they will use to get there, becomes especially dicey when questions concerning the extent of government power come up." ...

... Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "A new study ... showed that the percentage of business cases on the Supreme Court docket has grown in the Roberts years, as has the percentage of cases won by business interests."

David Gregory interviews Vice President Joe Biden:

Charles Babington of the AP: "The 2010 census report coming out Tuesday will include a boatload of good political news for Republicans and grim data for Democrats hoping to re-elect President Barack Obama and rebound from last month's devastating elections. The population continues to shift from Democratic-leaning Rust Belt states to Republican-leaning Sun Belt states, a trend the Census Bureau will detail in its once-a-decade report to the president. Political clout shifts, too, because the nation must reapportion the 435 House districts to make them roughly equal in population, based on the latest census figures."

Assange Gets Wikied. John Burns & Ravi Somaiya of the New York Times get hold of parts of the Swedish police reports on Julian Assange. This is as close as the Times gets to engaging your prurient interests. Nick Davies of the Guardian has a bit more, all along the same lines.

On a more uplifting note, Nicholas Kristof of the Times has his usual thoughtful, constructive gift suggestions.

In our relief over repeal of DADT, we should not forget that the Senate, in a 55-41 vote, failed to reach cloture on The DREAM bill, a bill that would have allowed innocent, undocumented young people who served in the military or furthered their education to obtain U.S. citizenship. Five of the Senators voting against the bill were so-called Democrats: Max Baucus (Mont.), Kay Hagan (NC), Ben Nelson (Neb.), Mark Pryor (Ark.) & John Tester (Mont.). Joe Manchin (WV), who opposed the bill, didn't bother to show up because he had to go to a party. If five of those six Democrats had voted for cloture, the DREAM bill -- which had passed the House -- would have become law. BTW, three Republicans: Dick Lugar, Lisa Murkowski & Bob Bennett voted for it. -- Constant Weader ...

... Julia Preston of the New York Times: "The vote by the Senate on Saturday to block a bill to grant legal status to hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrant students was a painful setback to an emerging movement of immigrants and also appeared to leave the immigration policy of the Obama administration, which has supported the bill and the movement, in disarray."

** How Our Politicians Kill Us. Kate Pickett, an epidemiologist who is co-author with Richard Wilkinson of The Spirit Level, explains that income & social inequality in rich countries like the U.S., leads to illness & earlier deaths among the "least equal":

     ... The Equality Trust Website includes some of Wilkinson & Pickett's data as well as answers to criticisms of their work. As for how the states rate in income inequality, you can check your state (2007 data) on this PBS-Now interactive map. Utah has the least income inequality, followed by New Hampshire; New York state has the largest gap, followed by Alabama & Mississippi.

Frank Rich writes a terrific column deriding the clueless No Labels pseudo-movement (what? you've forgotten it already or never heard of it?) & explains to its insider promoters why they're so ridiculous:

WHAT America needs is not another political organization with a toothless agenda and less-than-transparent finances. The country will not rest easy until there are brave leaders in both parties willing to reform the system that let perpetrators of the Great Recession escape while the rest of us got stuck with the wreckage.

The only thing in the middle of the road is a thick yellow line of cowardice. And a lot of skunks. -- Karen Garcia, commenting on Rich's column (#7)

      ... Update: Karen tells me this was her inspiration, so thanks to Loudon Wainwright III:

     ... SO David Gregory gets the instigators of the No Labels group together to refudiate Rich. Naturally, Gregory helps them out:

AND Maureen Dowd polls opinionators on whether or not the U.S. is ready for a gay president.

If John McCain gets any more hostile toward his Senate colleagues, they might consider having him go through the metal detector before he enters the Capitol. -- Dana Milbank ...

... Milbank recounts McCain's latest antics & reports, "McCainologists in the Capitol speculate that on this and other issues he's driven less by policy consideration than by personal animosity. A decade ago, his antipathy toward President George W. Bush led him to seek common cause with Democrats.... Now his antipathy toward President Obama has made him a leading Republican hardliner." Luckily, we have the modest, self-effacing Joe Lieberman to put it all in perspective: "I just think we leave this fight knowing that I was right and he was wrong. I mean, it's as simple as that." ...

... Dennis G. of Balloon Juice has a few more thoughts on "crazy bitter John McCain" & the media's waning love affair with him. ...

... As does Ta-Nehisi Coates, who includes a class clip of McCain predicting gays will be responsible for a lot of military deaths.

Joe Manchin -- Fake Democrat. Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post: "When the Senate took two of its most highly anticipated votes of the lame-duck session on Saturday, West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin was nowhere to be found.... A Manchin spokesperson told the Charleston Gazette that the senator and his wife had 'planned a holiday gathering....' Manchin's absence stood in contrast to the presence of another Democrat, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who despite a recent diagnosis of prostate cancer, made it in for Saturday's votes. (Wyden is slated to undergo surgery on Monday.)... The Democrat ... has voted no on a host of Democratic-sponsored bills in recent weeks." He opposed both the DREAM bill & repeal of DADT.

CW: Shep Smith & Chris Wallace of Fox "News" go after legislators (no mention of "Senators") who blocked the 9/11 Responders bill, but notice they NEVER identify those blocking the vote as Republicans -- which is what they are. Fox must have a hard-&-fast "Never speak ill of Republicans" rule:

Attention, Wal-Mart Shoppers, This Is Store Manager Ebenezer Scrooge Speaking. Matthew Boyle of the Washington Post: "Wal-Mart Stores Inc. ... raised prices on hundreds of toys this month, squeezing more out of sales during the biggest shopping period of the year. Wal-Mart managers in the U.S. received instructions to mark up an average of 1,800 types of toys per store, according to a company e-mail dated Nov. 30...."

Richard Lardner of the AP: the AP has obtained U.S. documents which "... describe previously undisclosed offenses committed by more than 200 contract employees in Afghanistan, Iraq and other countries between 2004 and 2008. They were working under a broad State Department security services contract shared by DynCorp of Falls Church, Va.; Triple Canopy of Reston, Va.; and the company formerly known as Blackwater Worldwide — Xe Services of Moyock, N.C. Most of the infractions, which include excessive drinking, drug use, sexual misconduct and mishandling weapons, were violations of corporate and U.S. policies that probably went unnoticed by ordinary Afghans and Iraqis. But other offenses played out in public, undermining U.S. efforts in both countries and raising questions about how carefully job candidates are screened."

Steven Lee Myers, et al., of the New York Times: "Even as contingency planning for any lasting American mission [in Iraq] has quietly continued in Baghdad and at the Pentagon..., the shifting political landscape in both countries has made it increasingly possible that the 2011 withdrawal could truly be total...."

Gretchen Morgenson of the New York Times describes mortgage loan servicing -- the operations who "act as intermediaries between borrowers and their lenders" -- as "a perfect setup for administrators who want to take advantage of both borrowers and lenders." And they do.