From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE…
Ladies and Germs,
Your attention, please:
One of Malden's own will take his oath of office to become the commonwealth's newest U.S. Senator Tuesday morning.
Senator-elect Edward Markey will be sworn in by Vice Pres. Joe Biden during the 10 a.m. Capitol Hill ceremony, where Markey will replace outgoing interim Sen. William Cowan.
At 10:01, you may call him...
SENATOR Ed Markey (D-MA)
I'm feeling a little verklempt. Talk amongst yourselves. I'll give you a topic: New England is neither new nor England. Discuss.....
Cheers and Jeers starts below the fold... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
Cheers and Jeers for Tuesday, July 16, 2013
… [Beep! Beep! Beep!] Note: Caution! Our note is backing up.
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By the Numbers:
Days 'til the British Open at Muirfield: 2
Days 'til the Lumberjack World Championships in Hayward, Wisconsin: 9
Number of deep-disposal wells in the U.S. that hold wastewater from fracking: 30,000
Number of earthquakes that have occurred per year between 2010 and 2012 in the U.S., versus the previous average of 21 per year, and many of which are believed to be related to the effect of wastewater injection on fault lines: 100
(Source: U.S. Geological Survey)
Number of abortions that are performed per year in Texas: 72,500
Number of abortions that will have to be performed per day at each of the remaining five out of 42 clinics that will stay open if Texas's new abortion law goes into effect: 43
(Source: USA Today)
Percent of American cats who are overweight: 58%
(Source: Harper's Index)
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Tuesday Words of Wisdom from the Right-wing Blogosphere:
Cantor and Boner don't seem to be the solution. I wish they would get off their butts.
---MarkRbold at Powerline
All together now: 1…2…3…
Boner Butt Ha Ha Ha!
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Puppy Pic of the Day: Pics from Broadway Barks to benefit NYC adoption shelters.
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CHEERS to bringing back the good old days. Remember that li'l old economic crash we had round abut five years ago on George W. Bush's watch? Part of the severity of that calamity was the fact that a bunch of idiots repealed the Glass-Steagall Act. Now there's a movement to bring it back, co-sponsored by Senator Elizabeth Warren:
Pass Glass-Steagall 2013 or these 1933 guys
will come back as zombies and eat us.
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Congress passed the Glass Steagall Act in 1933 to separate risky investment banking from ordinary commercial banking. And for half a century, the banking system was stable and our middle class grew stronger.
But in the 1980s, the federal regulators started reinterpreting the laws to break down the divide between regular banking and Wall Street risk-taking, and in 1999, Congress repealed Glass Steagall altogether. Wall Street had spent 66 years and millions of dollars lobbying for repeal, and, eventually, the big banks won.
Our new 21st Century Glass Steagall Act once again separates traditional banks from riskier financial services. And since banking has become much more complicated since the first bill was written in 1933, we’ve updated the law to include new activities and leave no room for regulatory interpretations that water down the rules. The bill will [take] an important step toward ending “Too Big to Fail” once and for all, and minimize the risk of future bailouts.
This kind of watchdog legislation should stand as a reminder to us all that this---precisely
this---is why we fought hard to get Elizabeth elected to the Senate. So even if you're not a big fan of petitions, I hope you'll
consider signing this one. If Glass-Steagall II passes into law, we'll all sleep better at night. Even better: the banksters won't.
Robinson
JEERS to our "prejudices as old as American history." There are going to be some strong voices offering their perspective on the tense and justifiably outraged mood of the black community in the wake of "the trial." I'm with Teacherken when he points to Eugene Robinson's eloquence in
The Washington Post and says,
read this now. It's a remarkable stick-on-the-fridge-for-future-reference essay on how the Zimmerman trial is just the latest in a centuries-old pattern of racial, judicial, educational and economic injustice. He says we should be "appalled and outraged, but perhaps not surprised" by the way justice failed Trayvon Martin. That would be a good goal to set: changing society so that one day such verdicts
do surprise us. Memo to the arc of the moral universe: bend faster.
CHEERS or JEERS to Harry Reid. Today is the day, I'm told, that he will either stand up to the filibuster-crazy Republicans in the chamber that he controls, or he'll turn tail and let several of President Obama's nominees get whomped, chomped and stomped. That would make Obama mad. I've seen Obama when he's mad. You don't want to see Obama when he's mad. He raises a mean eyebrow.
CHEERS to BiPM: Master Translator. Today's lesson in translating idiocy to English is fun! When an organization still clinging to the notion that they can "cure" gays of their wicked ways posts this…
I'll believe gays
can turn straight
when straights
start turning gay.
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"Due to some anti-ex-gay extremism that has occurred since we first announced Ex-Gay Pride 2013, the July 31 Lobbying Day on Capitol Hill and Evening Dinner/Reception at the Family Research Council has had to be moved and postponed to an undisclosed location in September. …
On the bright side, this harassment and anti-ex-gay extremism has reminded us just how intolerant some individuals and organizations are about the existence of ex-gays and former homosexuals. So much so, that we believe it is necessary not only to hold events in July for Ex-Gay Pride, but also to declare September as the First Annual Ex-Gay Awareness Month. Ex-Gay Awareness Month in September will be a time to reflect on the discrimination and marginalization that former homosexuals and ex-gays experience in the public at large."
…it means, "We couldn't sell any tickets." Remember that. It'll be on tomorrow's pop quiz.
CHEERS to lighting one helluva candle. Today is the 44th anniversary of the liftoff of Apollo 11. Cronkite's understatement: "Oh, boy …What a moment." The mission would fulfill a vision set forth by President John F. Kennedy eight years earlier to put a man on the moon before decade's end, and would climax with Neil Armstrong's immortal words four days later (SPOILER ALERT): "That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for... Mmmm! Cheddar!"
CHEERS to a trip or two around the bases. The The Major League All-Star Game is tonight, and the lineup is here. A bit of history:
83 All-Star Games have been played (including two games per year from 1959-1962), with the National League winning 43, the American League 38, and 2 ties.
The longest All-Star Game---in terms of innings---lasted 15 innings, which has occurred twice: 1967 and 2008. The longest game---in terms of time---was 2008, with a total time of 4 hours and 50 minutes.
The Mets will host the Midsummer Classic for the first time since 1964 and for the first time at Citi Field in 2013.
This year it's the Red Sox playing blindfolded and drunk against the combined American and National Leagues, plus the NHL, the NBA, the PGA, the NSA, and the Royal British Cricket Club. Y'know...just to keep it fair.
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Five years ago in C&J: July 16, 2008
JEERS to an adult child's worst nightmare: [Rrrring...!!] "Hey kids! It's yer ma and pa...we've run out of retirement money so we're movin' in!"
Nearly three out of five middle-class retirees will probably run out of money if they maintain their pre-retirement lifestyles, a new study from Ernst & Young has concluded. The study...finds that Americans will have to drastically reduce their standard of living before retirement to live comfortably, or even avoid destitution, later in life.
Don’t forget that Pop wants his supper on the table by six. And don't skimp on the brown sugar when you serve his spotted dick.
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And just one more…
CHEERS to echoes of the sweet sound of defeat. I imagine that the moment Mitt Romney decided it would be a good idea to warble through "America the Beautiful" at a campaign stop over a year ago was the same moment the Obama team knew they'd be using it to create a killer TV ad. When they released it a year ago this week, it was guaranteed to be talked about for decades. In fact, it's the only campaign ad of 2012 that generated a rare public display of affection for its technical merits, especially the audio mix. For old time's sake, crank up your speakers and annoy your neighbors:
Also for old time's sake: Obama 332, Romney 206. Oh, beautiful.
Have a nice Tuesday. Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?
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Today's Shameless C&J Testimonial:
"One child, one teacher, one book and one Cheers and Jeers can change the world. "
---Malala Yousafzia
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