Take A Look...

It's still in a book, but Reading Rainbow isn't on tv anymore.

This video seems to be everywhere so I'll just go ahead and pile on...

Read This Now - Daily Rations

Ezra Klein neatly shoots down the myth that health care reform will lead to rationing. Why was his post so easy to write and this popular canard so quickly dismissed? Because we already ration health care...

We ration. We ration without discussion, remorse or concern. We ration health care the way we ration other goods: We make it too expensive for everyone to afford.

(quick addendum, I had stopped reading EK when he moved to the WaPo and my reader was swamped, but everyone with any interest in healthcare reform should make sure to get their daily dose.)

the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.

photo from 538

Ted Kennedy passed away last night.

One can only hope that his death, tragically yet fittingly, will serve as a rallying point for the passage of health care reform for which Kennedy had been fighting for more than 30 years.

Greg Sargent offers a nice run down of the coverage at the Plum Line.

NPR has terrific content up, with an array of old photos, interviews and stories.

The New Yorker has pulled together some of their many profiles of Kennedy.

The NY Times offers comprehensive coverage and an often touching personal portrait...

He was a Rabelaisian figure in the Senate and in life, instantly recognizable by his shock of white hair, his florid, oversize face, his booming Boston brogue, his powerful but pained stride. He was a celebrity, sometimes a self-parody, a hearty friend, an implacable foe, a man of large faith and large flaws, a melancholy character who persevered, drank deeply and sang loudly. He was a Kennedy.

Quote Of The Day - Fear Itself

Paul Krugman on why politicians say the things they do...

We talk a lot about ideology, we talk a lot about the influence of moneyed interests, and all that is relevant. But we should not ignore the sheer personal cowardice of many politicians. Here we have Grassley saying, in effect, that he was afraid to tell a constituent that she was wrong — then trying to blame President Obama for his failure to tell the truth.

Follow the link for the background.

Who Cares About Climate Change?

Apparently not Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who's claiming that the mild hurricane seasons of the past few years are the result of prayer notes that he left or had left at the Western Wall in Jerusalem asking God to protect Florida from storms.

Take that global warming.

You have got to be kidding me.

Keeping It Local

So I once again have a neighborhood bookstore, and The Regulator would like to remind us all of the importance of keeping it local...



(via the neighborhood listserv)

Best Thing I've Seen All Summer

In who's reality do we reside?

Orwell and Huxley and which imagined future is more truly our present...

Titled Amusing Ourselves to Death by Stuart McMillen, sorry it won't fit in the Blogger layout.

(via kottke)

Read This Now - The Future Of Data

No, not the guy from Star Trek the Next Generation. The stuff we send over computers and phones and TV's etc etc.

Andy Kessler lays out whats wrong with the current system (in addition to consumers getting ripped off) and gives four suggestions on which to base a new national data plan...

(via TS on FB and probably his twitter feed but I haven't ventured into those waters yet)

That Can't Be Good For Business

More bad / scary news for the dead tree media, Newspaper ad revenues are at a 1965 level according to a new story in the Columbia Journalism Review. Turns out Newspapers might be in much worse shape than most folks are willing to admit.

News delivery may be moving in different directions, but daily newspapers still do an important job with local stories and offering readers exposure to a variety of stories that they wouldn't otherwise be exposed to.

(via Romenesko)

You'd Think They'd Know Better

What did this lady expect to happen when she stepped up to the mike at Barney Frank's townhall? It's a bit reminiscent of folks going on The Daily Show and having Jon Stewart hand them their ass.

If only a few more Congressmen were as quick on their feet...



Borrowing completely from a friend's Facebook because it made me laugh out loud...

Have you no shame, Barney Frank? How dare you compare that woman to a dining room table? It's offensive. Dining room tables have provided us centuries of utility and beauty, asking so little in return. Think of all the happy nights spent with your family, enjoying a delicious meal around that table. Please be more like the Republicans and stick to less hurtful and controversial points of comparison.

Avatar-a-licious!

The Guild will be back with Season 3 soon, until then well you better see for yourself...

Read This Now - Why We Need Health Care

If you haven't heard of Remote Area Medical maybe you just truly don't understand the scope of the issue and crisis we're facing as a nation.

While the news is covering so called town hall revolts and ill-informed partisans get hot under the collar, RAM has been busy providing medical care to the uninsured in LA.

(see other stories on RAM here)

Bubba Is In The House

Well that went well.

The administration should consider asking Clinton to go back to North Korea to lead the next round of negotiations on bringing them back from the brink and into the global community.

Should I Leave Room For Cream? - The Coffee Cup Mona Lisa

Eat Me Daily has this photo of the Mona Lisa created from 3604 cups of coffee...

(original from flickr user Gilles Gravier)

Head over to EMD for the details and a stop motion video of the creation of this masterpiece.