StupidiNews!

• The death toll at Nairobi's Westgate Mall has risen to 62 as the hostage standoff between Kenyan military troops and Al-Shabaab militants continues into day four.
• The airline industry is calling for global standards on carbon emissions, saying that widely differing laws from country to country are a problem.
• Lois Lerner, the IRS official at the center of the Tea Party's scandal crusade, has resigned reportedly ahead of being removed by an internal review board over mismanagement.
• Sony film marketing head Marc Weinstock is out after Sony Pictures slid from first to fifth in ticket sales from last year amid a number of high-profile duds.
• Struggling smartphone maker Blackberry is considering a $4.7 billion deal to go private as a division of a Canadian financial holding firm.

Last Call, Now Watch This Drive!

When the going gets tough, Dubya reminds us, the tough go golfing.

Former President George W. Bush said President Obama should not be criticized over his frequent golf outings.

Bush, who himself was criticized for his golfing as president, called the rounds "important for the president." 

"I see our president criticized for playing golf. I don't. I think he ought to play golf," Bush told "In Play with Jimmy Roberts." 

Bush said he knew what it was like "to be in the bubble" and saw getting off the White House grounds as an important way for the president to clear his head. 

"I know the pressures of the job," Bush said. "And to be able to get outside and play golf with some of your pals is important for the president. It does give you an outlet." 

"I think it's good for the president to be out playing golf," he added.

The difference between Presidents Obama and Bush are that the latter never required much to clear his head to begin with, it was mostly empty.

Still, a nice reminder next time you see the Village or the Breitbrats waste bandwidth on This week's Lazy Black President Golfs While You Suffer story.

Please Proceed, GOP

Oh look, Americans think shutting down the government and/or defaulting on the debt, either of which would wreck the economy again, are terrible, terrible ideas.

A solid majority of Americans oppose defunding the new health care law if it means shutting down the government and defaulting on debt.

The CNBC All-America Economic Survey of 800 people across the country conducted by Hart-McInturff, finds that, in general, Americans oppose defunding Obamacare by a plurality of 44 percent to 38 percent.

Opposition to defunding increases sharply when the issue of shutting down the government and defaulting is included. In that case, Americans oppose defunding 59 percent to 19 percent, with 18 percent of respondents unsure. The final 4 percent is a group of people who want to defund Obamacare, but become unsure when asked if they still hold that view if it means shutting down the government. 

Keep it up, guys.  The Democrats actually gaining seats in 2014?  Won't that be awesome?

Citizens United, The Sequel

In the first major case of the 2013-2014 term, the US Supreme Court could all but eliminate individual limits on personal campaign donations, meaning the wealthiest Americans could then give millions of dollars directly to candidates, effectively buying elections.

Three years ago, the current court under Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said in the Citizens United case that "independent" spending on election races was protected free speech and struck down long-standing bans on such spending by corporations and unions. 

But until now, the court's conservatives have not joined together to strike down the Watergate-era limits on how much donors can give directly to candidates or party committees. 

That has left the law in an odd posture. Wealthy people who want to influence campaign races can give millions of dollars to "super PACs" and other groups that pay for "independent" election ads, but they are barred by law from giving more than $48,600 total to all members of Congress or more than $74,600 to various party committees. 

That may be about to change. On Oct. 8, the Supreme Court will take up an appeal from the Republican National Committee, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Alabama businessman Shaun McCutcheon, who say contributions should be treated as "core political speech." If they win, wealthy Republicans or Democrats could each give as much as $3.6 million total by giving the maximum amount to all of their party committees and candidates. This money could be funneled by party leaders into a close race or races, tipping the balance of power in Congress. 

Defenders of the election laws have been sounding the alarm. "It would be terrible for our democracy … if one politician could directly solicit $3.6 million from a single donor," said Lawrence Norden, an election law expert with the Brennan Center, a liberal legal advocacy group in New York. "That is 70 times the median income for an American family. It would mean a tiny, tiny group of donors would wield unprecedented power and influence."

I'm not surprised to find Mitch the Turtle in the thick of this.  He has long been the most corrupt Senator in Washington, enriching himself by millions of dollars since coming into office.  And here's the best part:  If Mitch gets his way 100%, not only could the super-rich buy candidates and races, but they could do so anonymously.

This case could pretty much finish off our democracy heading into 2014 and especially 2016.  Being able to plunk down millions to give directly to a candidate would change the face of politics in America forever, ensuring the Golden Rule:  whoever has the most gold, makes the rules.

If you thought Congress was massively corrupt now, wait until the 0.01% can say "I'll give you millions to vote against the poor and middle class, and once you get in I'll keep you there for life."  Oh...and remember, far more of these super donors lean towards the right, not the left.

Just what we need, more Tea Party goons bought and paid for by the ultra-rich with the sole intent of destroying what's left of the 99%'s wealth.  America, America, God shed His grace on thee... 

StupidiNews!

• The siege at Nairobi's Westgate Mall continues into the third day with reports of fewer than 10 hostages remaining, 69 dead, and several Al-Shabaab gunman holed up in the complex.
• It took German hackers all of 2 days to break the encryption on Apple's iPhone 5S fingerprint reader, with video evidence of replacing the actual fingerprint with a fake one to access the phone.
• German Chancellor Angela Merkel easily won her third term Sunday, with her party taking 42% of the vote and plans to form a major coalition government with her chief opposition. 
• India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is waning political parties not to stoke any more political violence in the wake of that country's worst political riots in a decade leaving 50 dead.
• Under heavy pressure from the US, Spain has passed new anti-piracy laws with penalties up to six years in prison for major copyright offenders.

Standoff In Nairobi

Nearly 60 are dead and 175 injured as the deadly standoff between Al-Shabaab terrorists and Kenyan military at Nairobi's Westgate Mall continues, the dead apparently including the nephew of Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and his nephew's fiancee'.

"We will punish the masterminds (of the attack) swiftly, and indeed very painfully," Kenyatta said. 

Kenyan government and Western diplomatic sources said Al-Shabaab militants were holding about 30 hostages inside the shopping center. 

By noon Sunday, as grim-faced Kenyan soldiers warily searched the five-story building -- and as Al-Shabaab maintained its defiant stance -- the siege was no closer to a resolution. 

Officials believe 10 to 15 gunmen are involved, State House spokesman Manoah Esipisu said Sunday. 

"We know that they were across the building," Esipisu told CNN's Zain Verjee. "We know that they are now isolated somewhere within the building." 

More than 175 were injured in the attack, Kenyatta said. 

It was the deadliest terror attack in the nation since al Qaeda blew up the U.S. Embassy in 1998, killing more than 200 people.

Africa's growing modernity, especially in large cities like Nairobi, make tempting targets for AQ and its affiliates.  Still, going into a mall, executing non-Muslims, and taking dozens of hostages is brazen even for those willing to die to further their aims.  Here's hoping that no more hostages or Kenyan military are killed.

Last Call For Coming Clean On Chemical Weapons

It looks like Syria is taking the first steps at following through on turning over control of their chemical weapons to the UN.

Syria has handed over information about its chemical arsenal to a U.N.-backed weapons watchdog, meeting the first deadline of an ambitious disarmament operation that averted the threat of Western air strikes. 

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said on Saturday it had "received the expected disclosure" from Damascus, 24 hours after saying it had been given a partial document from Syrian authorities. 

It said it was reviewing the information, handed over after President Bashar al-Assad agreed to destroy Syria's chemical weapons in the wake of a sarin gas strike in Damascus's suburbs last month - the world's deadliest chemical attack in 25 years. 

Washington blamed Assad's forces for the attack, which it said killed more than 1,400 people. Assad blamed rebels battling to overthrow him, saying it made no sense for his forces to use chemical weapons when they were gaining the upper hand and while U.N. chemical inspectors were staying in central Damascus. 

The timetable for disarmament was laid down by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov a week ago in Geneva when they set aside sharp differences over Syria to address the chemical weapons issue. 

Their plan set a Saturday deadline for Syria to give a full account of the weapons it possesses. Security experts say it has about 1,000 metric tons of mustard gas, VX and sarin - the nerve gas U.N. inspectors found had been used in the August 21 attack. 

The U.S. State Department said on Friday, after the OPCW announced Syria's initial declaration, that it was studying the material. "An accurate list is vital to ensure the effective implementation," spokeswoman Marie Harf said.

It's a first step only, and there's lots to go.  But it looks more and more like there's the real possibility of a breakthrough here, and again, we haven't had to fire a single cruise missile so far.

Here's hoping Assad's regime continues to meet these deadlines.

Well Shut(down) The Front Door

As Steve M. points out, the government shutdown fight on the GOP side has gone so far off the rails that in order for GOP senators like Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and Mitch The Turtle to keep from being destroyed by the Tea Party, they are now forced to filibuster the House GOP bill defunding Obamacare:

What's going on in the GOP reminds me of the way a lot of people talk about gang violence. It's often said that in recent years it's been more common for kids in gangs to shoot other kids in gangs (and shoot innocent bystanders) because they just can't walk away from a dispute; if they've been disrespected, the fight inevitably escalates, until somebody gets shot.

That's how the GOP seems right now. Look at the Obamacare fight. John Boehner was disrespected when he was accused of offering a fake vote on defunding of the health care law, and so he gave in to Senator Ted Cruz's demand for a House vote on a provision that would really defund Obamacare, after which Boehner and other House Republicans attacked Cruz for saying that he and his allies couldn't really block Obamacare in the Senate.

People who looked at the likely course of the Obamacare-defunding proposal in the Senate agreed that, for complicated reasons, Cruz was correct and there was no real opportunity to stage a true filibuster of a bill with full funding of Obamacare. The only filibuster opportunity requires Cruz and his allies to block a bill that includes the defunding proposal they favor.

And if they don't take that opportunity, the Tea Party will eliminate them.  Only total opposition to President Obama and the Democrats counts now for those who opted to ride on the back of the Tea Party tiger.  Unless they do everything in their power to destroy our country's economy and turn President Obama's second term into ashes (along with the rest of 90% of the country) then the Tea Party will replace them with someone who will.

So this is where we are, weeks away from what could be the start of another economic disaster that will almost certainly put us into economic recession is not a full-blown depression (should the Tea Party cause the loss of America's credit rating) and the vast majority of Republicans are okay with that, because they think you will blame President Obama.

Give in to their political demands or face guaranteed financial ruin.  That sounds like terrorism to me.  Why don't we call it what it is, folks?

StupidiNews, Weekend Edition!

• Health officials in New Hampshire confirm a neurosurgery patient suffered from Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease and as many as 13 may have been exposed to prions on the surgery equipment used.
• The EPA has proposed limiting carbon emissions from all new power plants, not just coal-fired ones, to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
• All but one Republican has left the House's "Gang of 8" bipartisan immigration group, signaling all but the end of House GOP efforts to deal with immigration this year.
• House Republicans will next week vote on a plan to suspend the debt ceiling until the end of 2014 in exchange for $250 billion in Medicare and Medicaid cuts and an Obamacare suspension.
• Grand Theft Auto V reached $1 billion in sales in just 3 days, making it the most lucrative video game launch in history.

Last Call For Messing With The Man

President Obama's analysis of the GOP is not wrong here.

With one vote on Friday, the Republican-led House launched the latest spending battle in Congress -- one that could bring a government shutdown in less than two weeks.

By a 230-189 tally almost strictly on party lines, the House passed a short-term government spending plan that would eliminate all funding for Obamacare.

The measure now goes to the Democratic-led Senate, which is certain to reject the provision that defunds President Barack Obama's signature legislative achievement of his first term.

The best part is that Republicans think they are perfectly reasonable burning the country's economy down.

"The American people don't want the government shut down, and they don't want Obamacare," the Ohio Republican said to applause and cheers. "The House has listened to the American people. Now it's time for the United States Senate to listen to them as well."

In a display of the raw politics of the battle, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia called out Senate Democrats facing re-election next year by name, asking how Sens. Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Mark Begich of Alaska and Kay Hagan of North Carolina will vote on the House proposal. 

"It's up to Senate Democrats to follow House Republicans and show some responsibility," Cantor said.

The President laughed that nonsense off.

Later Friday, Obama accused conservative Republicans of holding the nation hostage by trying to make passing a federal budget and increasing the debt ceiling contingent on defunding health care reforms. 

"You don't have to threaten to blow the whole thing up if you don't get your way," Obama said in a campaign-style speech at a Ford plant in the Kansas City, Missouri area, adding that legislators in Washington were focused on politics and "trying to mess with me," rather than helping the middle class.

Ding ding ding!  It does have to be said, folks:  this is about attacking the President.  That's all that the GOP cares about.  If they can't get rid of the President, they will make America so awful that they think we'll do it for them.  It's better to get rid of the Republicans, of course.  And even Republicans are starting to think this is a really bad idea.

But please proceed, gentlemen.

Un-Hammered And De-Slammered

Former GOP House majority leader Tom "The Hammer" DeLay has apparently won his appeal on his conviction in 2010 because Texas.

A Texas appellate court has overturned the 2010 conviction of former House Majority Leader Tom Delay’s (R-Texas) for money laundering.

The court said it was acquitting Delay due to insufficient evidence.

Since his conviction three years ago, Delay has remained a free man as an appellate court considered the case. 

He was sentenced to three years in prison for his alleged role in a scheme to influence elections in Texas. 

Delay was accused of laundering more than $100,000 and conspiring to commit money laundering for that amount or more during the 2002 election cycle. Those offenses would violate election laws. 

The court, however, concluded there was insufficient evidence to support the conviction. 

It also concluded that he was a Republican and that since the state of Texas elects appellate court judges, laws don't really apply to him.  Nice work if you can get it, and as the story mentions, he never actually spent a day in prison either.

Texas.  It's like a whole other country.  A third world one with really lousy legal systems and easily influenced judges.  Also, Shiner Bock.

Pope On A Hope

Pope Francis certainly talks a big game about social justice Catholicism, but actions speak louder than words.  Sad part is that still puts him miles ahead of the last batch of pontiffs.

In one of the first lengthy interviews he has given since ascending to the papacy in March, Pope Francis said he believes the Catholic Church has grown too “obsessed” with social issues like abortion, birth control, and gay marriage. The pope’s statement is a sharp departure from many of the other leaders in the Church, who have recently been pressuring him to take a stronger stance on those issues.

“It is not necessary to talk about these issues all the time,” Pope Francis told an Italian outlet. “The dogmatic and moral teachings of the church are not all equivalent.”

U.S. Catholic Bishops have been criticized for focusing almost exclusively on social issues — like advocating against marriage equality and fighting against Obamacare’s birth control benefit — at the expense of the Church’s other teachings on social justice issues.

But the leader of the Catholic Church said that the religion needs to “find a new balance” on the moral teachings that it prioritizes. “Otherwise, even the moral edifice of the church is likely to fall like a house of cards, losing the freshness and fragrance of the Gospel,” the pope explained.

On the other hand, this line of thought has basically got to be driving the rest of the hardliners insane, so I'm okay with this guy keeping up the pressure.  You do have to start somewhere to reform a church whose values long ago left a guy like me.  Or, well, anyone in the 20th century or after, for that matter.

Good luck with that, Frank.

StupidiNews!

• Colorado officials say it will be a race against time in order to repair flood-damaged roads before winter as the death toll from last week's record rain reaches 7 dead....
• ...While Colorado House Republicans all join efforts to secure federal disaster aid for the state after all voted against federal disaster aid for Hurricane Sandy last year.
• The US is preparing to begin the major phase of drawing down troops and equipment in Afghanistan, but many challenges remain.
• The future of SNAP remains in doubt as House Republicans narrowly passed a plan to cut $40 billion in food stamps and kick nearly 4 million people off the rolls.
• TV ratings company Nielsen will finally begin counting smartphone and tablet viewers in 2014 as more Americans more their TV watching away from the TV.

Last Call For Cruz Control

GOP Sen. Ted Cruz tried to weasel out of responsibility for his role in taunting House Republicans over not being Tea Party enough to shut down the government over Obamacare.  The House GOP promptly called Cruz out, and now he's thumping his chest again in his dog and pony show.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) suggested Thursday that he would stage a talking filibuster to block a Senate government spending bill that funds Obamacare.

"I will do everything necessary and anything possible to defund Obamacare," Cruz told reporters. When asked about a talking filibuster specifically, a la Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) and drones, he said: "Yes, and anything else, any procedural means necessary."

The House will vote Friday on a spending bill that would defund the health care reform law. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday that such a bill would be "dead" in that chamber.

Meanwhile, Karl Rove is trying to be the voice of reason, screaming "What are you morons doing?" over a shutdown playing into the President's hands.

But won't voters be swayed by the arguments for defunding? The GPS poll tested the key arguments put forward by advocates of defunding and Mr. Obama's response. Independents went with Mr. Obama's counterpunch 57% to 35%. Voters in Senate battleground states sided with him 59% to 33%. In lean-Republican congressional districts and in swing congressional districts, Mr. Obama won by 56% to 39% and 58% to 33%, respectively. On the other hand, independents support by 51% to 42% delaying ObamaCare's mandate that individuals buy coverage or pay a fine.

The desire to strike at ObamaCare is praiseworthy. But any strategy to repeal, delay or replace the law must have a credible chance of succeeding or affecting broad public opinion positively.

The defunding strategy doesn't. Going down that road would strengthen the president while alienating independents. It is an ill-conceived tactic, and Republicans should reject it.

It may not matter.  The beast is slouching towards Washington, waiting to be born, and the now completely fractured GOP may not be able to do anything to stop it.

Dear America

"Rich people are better than the rest of you worthless slobs.  It's time for America and Americans to recognize this fact and move forward with policies that celebrate the rich and keep them that way -- at the expense of the useless poor -- instead of rich people having to pretend they give a damn about 'community' and stuff."

--Harry Binswanger, Forbes

Bonus Verbatim Stupid:

Here’s a modest proposal. Anyone who earns a million dollars or more should be exempt from all income taxes. Yes, it’s too little. And the real issue is not financial, but moral. So to augment the tax-exemption, in an annual public ceremony, the year’s top earner should be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.

God bless America, land of the Randian troll douchebag.