When it comes to the national media, there are no shortage of things to complain about. They routinely blend staggering arrogance with breathtaking ignorance to create the perfect storm of inanity.

They are dominated by fire-breathing, partisan Republicans meekly "balanced" by nonpartisan journalists.

They studiously avoid any discussion of policy, leaving them plenty of time to obsess on the petty, pointless, and personal.

But one of the most troubling aspects of the modern celebrity press corp is their self-appointed role as gatekeepers of national elections. The media have taken it upon themselves to decide, based on an arbitrary and ever-changing set of rules, who can run for office, who is cool, and who gets excluded.

Based on the current delegate counts on Daily Kos, I calculated what it would take for Hillary to win the nomination. When I did the calculations, the totals for Obama were 1589.5 pledged delegates and 255 superdelegates for a total of 1844.5. Hillary had 1427.5 pledged delegates and 269.5 superdelegates for a total of 1697. There were a total of 217 pledged delegates and 270.5 superdelegates remaining.

In order for Hillary to win the pledged delegates, she would need to win 87.4% of the remaining pledged delegates. That is clearly not going to happen, so she will need the superdelegates to overturn the will of the Democratic electorate. But, even with superdelegates, her window of opportunity is closing. She needs most of the remaining superdelegates to vote for her.

Update: Most people reading Daily Kos have known for a long time that Clinton could not win the pledged delegates and with last nights results, this is all but wrapped up. But Clinton is vowing to stay in the race, so the numbers below will hopefully be useful to show Clinton supporters just how difficult it will be for her to win.

I guess I just don’t understand economics. Economists point to things like the unemployment rate, the inflation rate, and consumer spending and tell me not to worry, "everything is great", and "the fundamentals are sound." Well, I have a biology background, and in biology we assess a population’s health using things like food availability, habitat health and carrying capacity. Economic indicators may tell me how the stock market is going to do next week but it doesn’t tell me much about what kind of world my children will live in.

Congressman Rangel had the right idea when he introduced legislation to reinstitute the draft. By reinstating the draft he was trying to spread the costs of the war among all Americans so that our soldiers aren't the only ones sacrificing for the continuing occupation of Iraq. Well, if we can't make those who supported this war fight in it, we should at least make them pay for it.

We shouldn't allow the Bush Administration to continue to hide the true economic costs of the war from the American people while they pile on more debt for our children. Democrats should institute a new Iraq War Tax. This is not only good policy but good politics.

It's time that this Republican 'experiment' came to an end

After decades of complaining about Democratic policies, Republicans finally gained control of all branches of government in 2000. With the help of a compliant media, and unopposed by timid Democrats, they have had an almost unlimited ability to enact their legislative priorities since then. They have passed massive deficit-financed tax cuts, lobbyist written bankruptcy, tort reform, and energy bills, and even tested their radical foreign policy theories in Iraq. After six years, it is time we looked back at this experiment in Republican rule to see if they have fulfilled their promises.

Diane is the mother of one son who served in the Iraq war until he was severely wounded by a road-side bomb. The time she spent watching her son's recovery and visiting with other injured veterans at the Army hospital in Germany and at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. played a large part in her decision to run for Congressional office and has shaped many of her ideas surrounding the Iraq war, terrorism, homeland security, and Veterans' benefits.

She is an accomplished writer, small business owner, and was even a truck driver during construction of the Alaska Pipeline. She has made supporting our troops, good wages, and defending personal freedoms the basis of her campaign. She has vowed to fight Don Young but she is being badly outspent and given little coverage by the media. Don Young has predictably refused to debate her.

The rest of us are constantly bombarded with large numbers on a daily basis, but we all still reach a point at which we just think "many." Most people have little idea how much a billion is much less a trillion.

I get the feeling that every time a politician says 'we have a $8.4 trillion dollar debt' or 'we spent $100 billion', all most people really hear is, 'we have "a large" deficit' and 'we spent "a jillion" dollars.' Without the proper knowledge to put these large numbers into a context we can understand, the numbers are utterly meaningless and productive debate is impossible. Of course, republican politicians have learned how to use this to their advantage.
(more below)

I wrote the following oped on peak oil for my local paper. They printed it but did not post it on their website (I shortened and edited it slightly for Daily Kos).

(Continued below)

Who's being naïve now?

-Michael Corleone

Republicans are constantly claiming that liberals are just starry eyed idealists who don't understand how the world really works. I for one am tired of hearing this. Many of the Republican claims would make Peter Pan choke. Here are some of the things you have to believe to be a Republican these days:

(more below)

These resolutions can be introduced and voted on in local conventions, they then get sent to the state and national convention where they are also voted on.

This could be a potent way to directly influence the Democratic Platform. A lot of us complain about the Democratic Party but in my experience it still is pretty democratic. We can change it for the better by becoming active in the party.

I would suggest that we select 2 or 3 resolutions and try to get them introduced in all 50 states. My vote would be for the following three resolutions.

1. energy independence and a recognition that oil production  will peak in the near future. It could be modeled on the resolution introduced into the House of Representatives .

2. public financing of campaigns.

3. single-payer health care.

I think the Democrats should propose repealing the Bush tax cuts and earmark the revenue to fully funding the Social Security trust fund.

While the Social Securty is not in crisis, it does require the government to pay back the Social Security trust fund starting in 2018. This will exacerbate the crisis in the general fund. in addition, The Social Security trust fund has allowed Bush to hide the true costs of the deficits. By making this a political issue we can shift the debate from privatization to the unsustainable budget deficit.
(more after the jump)

Iraq a Setback in the War on Terrorism

Republicans claim Iraq is central to the war against terrorism, but the fight against global terrorism needs to be fought on at least three different levels: militarily; economically; and diplomatically. When viewed in these terms, the war in Iraq can only be seen as a setback in our fight against Al-Qaeda.
(more below the fold)

A Tale of Two Taxes

It was the best of times for the investor class, it was the worst of times for the middle class. Not content with a war on terrorism, a war in Iraq, a war in Afghanistan, and a war on drugs, the President has opened a new front in the war between the classes. After running a campaign based on the threat of terrorism, and an obsessive avoidance of issues, George Bush now claims a mandate to privatize Social Security. In reality, this is nothing more than a stealth effort to shift the tax burden from wealth to work. (more below the fold)

I am writing to share my opinions and observations on the upcoming election for the Chair of the Democratic National Committee. As a voting member you have a real opportunity to shape the future of the party and the nation. I would like to encourage you to be an advocate for real reform of the Democratic Party and the country.
(more below the fold)

1. All transition costs (~$2 trillion) have to be paid for through budget cuts or revenue increases, not added to the national debt;

2. Administrative costs must be kept below current levels (or some reasonable cap);

3. There is a guaranteed minimum level of return for each individual;