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Anyone who has been paying attention to the Republicans attempt to find the “ideal candidate” has felt as if standing on a curb watching a parade pass by. Or maybe it is that the parade is standing on the curb and we as observers have been passing by.

If there is a lesson to be garnered out of the Republican experience I would suggest that it relates to the unreliability of images presented by politicians. At least some part of the Republican electorate seems to have approached the process as some sort of ‘reality show’. They have begun with the premise that what is presented to them is reality and have routinely accepted it as such uncritically. Of course, in each case they have ended up realizing that what they were sold was misrepresentation and misdirection. One idol after another proved to have feet of clay. It is easy to see what that says about the candidates but more importantly I suggest a need to focus on what that says about the voters. Continue reading “The trouble with idolatry” »

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Rick Perry’s ‘Oops’ in Republican debate could have long-lasting implications for his campaign (Video) – The Washington Post

 

 

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In important ways, the theories of Hegel predate those of Locke. Even though he was born a century and a half after Locke, Hegel is a throwback to a more primitive vision of human beings and their place in society. In fact, as I will argue, Hegel advocated a return to the feudal  system that dominated Europe during the dark ages. Continue reading “The Rise of American Tribalism in an Increasingly Pluralistic World” »

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Stand down, Zuccotti protesters, the banks have heard your calls for reform and are yielding to your demands. The majority of the country has been enveloped in financial turmoil, and one of the big banks is finally taking steps to institute change: Wells Fargo is creating a boutique bank for the super rich. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the wealth management unit will be named “Abbot Downing” and will only service families with more than $50 million in their coffers. Rumor has it, when you open an account you get free Looney Tunes checks. Continue reading “Wells Fargo to Open Bank for Super Rich; Need to Take Finger Off Nation’s Pulse First” »

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By David A. Fahrenthold and

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Certain Internet forces with apparent magical powers have synced Rick Perry’s lip movements during a speech to strange, alternate words that nevertheless are probably more coherent than what he was really saying. Does that make sense? It is hard to describe this sort of witchcraft. Continue reading “Lip-Readers Transcribe Rick Perry’s Disturbing Psychobabble” »

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From The Vandal by Derek Hairlines

If ever there was a better time to highlight the evil that is corporate greed, it is right now. As the world, by which I mean us inconsequential plebeians, suffer the erosion of our salaries, the loss of employment, diminishing savings and for some, just damn hard to feed and clothe your kids, corporate pigs continue to wallow in a vile swill of inconceivable amounts of money. Continue reading “Corporate Greed – The Filthy Pigs” »

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Voter Rage Has Members of Congress Worried About Job Security: Their Own

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WASHINGTON — One of the immutable laws of American politics has been that while voters typically loathe Congress, they tend to tolerate their own lawmaker. Now, with ratings for the institution in the root cellar and approval of individual lawmakers heading there, members of Congress and analysts are beginning to wonder if that law could be repealed next year. Continue reading “The Rising Tide threatens to Sweep Them All Away” »

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Federal regulators have discovered that hundreds of millions of dollars in customer money has gone missing from MF Global in recent days, prompting an investigation into the brokerage firm, which is run by Jon S. Corzine, the former New Jersey governor, several people briefed on the matter said on Monday. Continue reading “Regulators Investigating MF Global for Missing Money” »

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1. No Tenure / No Pension.  A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office. Continue reading “*Congressional Reform Act of 2011*” »

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