Thom Hartmann at AlterNet offers "Two Simple Laws" that "Could Solve America's Epidemic of Violence." These would a) treat semi-automatic weapons exactly the same under the law as automatic weapons and b) regulate gun ownership the way we regulate car ownership. Remember, cars may be killing machines, but they also get us places; guns are just killing machines. Even if you don't want to ban guns outright, it's hard to argue against getting proper training and licensing before buying killing machines -- unless you're a snowflake, that is. Seriously, no whining about ALL TEH RED TAPEZ!!!! It makes you look stupid and lazy.
Jonathan Chait at New York magazine says our current Administration has fomented "a Golden Age for Corporate Crime." The SEC, whose job is to protect shareholders from malevolent executives, is of course bringing far fewer cases and hauling in far less money in penalties than Mr. Obama's 2016 SEC did over a comparable period of time -- please recall that Mr. Obama spent eight years bending over backward to please banksters after they destroyed our economy -- and the EPA, whose job is to protect our air and water from polluters, has of course collected less than half the money in fines that Tha Bush Mobb did in its first year in office (though, to be fair, Tha Bush Mobb was still trying to look like reasonable moderates back then). And that's before we get to the CFPB dropping a major case against a loanshark outfit, then lying that CFPB employees -- the same ones who'd spend years building the case -- made the call! It's enough to make a man wish these CFPB employees could sue their boss for libel.
Idaho Republicans announce plan to defy the Affordable Care Act, by letting insurers sell plans that don't meet the ACA's standards in re lifetime caps, covered conditions, and pre-existing conditions. The Otter Administration is placing one good bet in assuming that the current Administration won't bother enforcing the Affordable Care Act, but they're placing one very bad bet in assuming that the good citizens of Idaho will simply take it lying down, pre-existing conditions bans being, as you know, very popular. I'd like to remind Idaho populists hemming and hawing about running for office that this is the state that sent Frank Church to the Senate four times.
Ho hum, Blue Cross is pressuring its employees to donate to the Michigan Democratic gubernatorial candidate who doesn't support single-payer health insurance. And Gretchen Whitmer (whose dad use to run Blue Cross, no less!) is just like other weakling Democrats, refusing to answer direct questions about corporate contributions to her campaign while touting her willingness to "work with everyone," as if everyone's worth working with. What do you suppose the chances are that Blue Cross demands its employees donate to the Republican candidate once Ms. Whitmer wins her primary? It's a question worth asking!
When confronted with this lengthy report on how our government wants you to think environmental activists are "terrorists," you might well be compelled to ask: why aren't laws protecting vandalism on private property enough? After all, any activist who (for example) shuts off an oil pipeline valve knows they're breaking the law. I can only conclude that law and order simply isn't good enough for corporations who have lost the argument and won't change with the times. Bonus: ALEC can only come up with anecdotal evidence about "environmental terrorism" to make its argument -- and most of its anecdotes are rubbish!
Finally, Sen. Ted Cruz, talking with another right-wing hack, discusses that Simpsons episode where Homer goes all 2nd-Amendment and Lisa opposes him and utters this priceless flatugasm: "The Democrats are the party of Lisa Simpson and Republicans are happily the party of Homer, Bart, Maggie and Marge." If you want to say Democrats are so-smart-they're-dumb, you don't liken them to the Simpsons character who actually knows science, thinks hard about things, and plays a mean saxophone. Is it too much to ask that, after this, nerds never vote Republican in significant numbers again?
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