Daily Topics - Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & Monday April 7th-12th 2010 - Thom is traveling to Germany
By louisehartmann
Wednesday - Carl & Christine from KPOJ are filling in as Thom flies to Germany. Lamar Waldron will drop by to talk about how the division of the 60s is back.
Thursday - Thom is live from Germany with Matt Taibbi on the show - Looting Main Street.
On Friday - It's Anything Goes! Peter B. Collins is hosting & Senator Bernie Sanders is here.
On Monday Carl & Christine host once more as Thom flies home. Thom is back on Tuesday.
Comments
#2
Can anyone explain to me way Alan “I was Right 70% of the time” Greenspan is not in prison . . . instead of testifying before Congress?
#3
And yet:
"Palin-Bachmann 2012!!!! The GOP Dream Team!"
#4
Carl & Christine,
Are you saying that our great, grand and divine DLC-driven President finally getting Congress to pass Richard Nixon's health insurance regulation plan this year is NOT reform . . . Scandalous!!!
#5
rladlof, I think Palin-Bachmann is the GOP's version of a wet-dream (as disgusting as that sounds), perhaps the young eagles were scouting Voyeur for an ideal setting for them to launch a campaign that Republicans could get real excited about.
Republicans don't want intelligent canidates, they just want someone whose image can be used as a substitute for their own negative self-hating image. Poor repressed bastards are really screwing up this country.
#6
I don't know what disappoints me more on days that Thom isn't on the air.
1 The fact the Thom is not on the air
2 The near ghost town like atmosphere of this blog
Oh well, 'tis a pity. I guess not many of Thom's bloggers like Carl & Christine or something. Don't know why, they're reasonable fill-ins in my opinion.
#7
@Maxrot - just for the record I LOVE Carl and Christine! I miss Thom, of course, but always enjoy Carl and Christine.
Any lurkers out there want to give a shout out to Carl and Christine?
#8
I agree Wendy, as I said they seem to be fine fill-ins for Thom. Makes me wonder why the blog goes so dead on days like these.
#9
That last caller was a real tool. Does he think we live in communist china with no worker protections? Sheesh.
#10
Letter I sent to the White House Sunday Morning:
I listened to Dr. Christina Romer discuss the latest economic trends on "Meet the Press" this morning. David Gregory pointed out that MOST people in this country do not feel better about the economy and showed a video clip of Rep. Marcy Kaptur correctly describing many citizens' opinions that there does not seem to be a sense of urgency within the administration to address average peoples' needs. Is the problem the next election? Is money (from the corporate world) more important than votes? Why aren't the job-killing trade agreements being called into question? (Bush had no problem blowing up treaties he didn't like. Why can't YOU?) Why aren't the deep reforms that are needed for the financial sector being pushed by the White House? For the U.S. to succeed, it needs a fundamental RESTRUCTURING that puts its citizens and their welfare at the center --- not the corporate wealthy --- the leeches on the system! Until the average citizen's economic position improves, this economy will not recover in any meaningful way.
#11
@Maxrot
I agree that Carl and Christine do a nice job filling in for Thom. In fact, I appreciate a change every now and then. I do wish there was more balance between them when they do their show. It seems that Carl is the host and Christine is his sidekick, but I guess that's the dynamics from their regular show. I'm actually looking forward to hearing Peter B. Collins on Friday.
I've noticed the same thing for a long time. It's like Thom is a Pied Piper and when the children don't hear his flute they don't come. It seems there's a cult of the personality, and it's not just around Thom, but with almost all "progressive" talk show hosts I've heard. Ron Reagan Jr. might be an exception.
This has inspired me to name these codependent followers of some of the most prominent hosts:
Thom has his... Thomatons
Randi has her... Rhodeskill
Steph has her... Stephylococcus
Bill Press has his... Unimpressives
Ed Schultz has his... Ednoramuses
and my personal favorite...
Mike Malloy has his... Hoi Malloy
#12
Nice letter Quark. I'd like to read the response if you get one that's other than: "Thank you for writing to us, we appreciate all your input." I'm not holding my breath though.
#13
@John Doh!: whadday call Limbaugh and Beck devotees?
#14
Limbergers and Becksliders?
#15
Mark K: Rogue Republican senators are not the only people the unemployed have to worry about. It might surprise some people, but many unemployment insurance claims are not directly processed by states but through private companies. Perhaps some of you have heard about a company called the Talx Corporation that has been in the news recently. A New York Times story suggested that the company, which handles 30 percent of all unemployment claims of mostly large corporations, has been actively delaying, contesting or denying unemployment insurance applications, which aids businesses who lay-off workers by saving them money on insurance. Advocates for the unemployed and state officials have long complained of Talx’s frivolous appeals, baseless delays, and even outright fraud. Talx claims that it is merely being “vigilant” in investigating illegitimate claims, but others assert that the company, because it promises to save their clients money, deliberately contests legitimate claims in the hopes that that unemployed persons will eventually tire of fighting them. Of course, this is what all outside “human resource” companies do--promise to reduced their client’s employee expenses; in order to justify what they charge for this service, such companies find ever more insidious ways to suck blood out of workers.
The FTC has in addition fined Talx--which also supplies credit reports to employers and lenders--for failing to insure that these reports are based on accurate information, and failing to notify individuals of adverse results because of the use of these reports.
#16
@Quark, re: Is money more important than votes?
Given that -
1) More Money = More Advertizing, and
2) More Advertizing = More Votes
We can conclude that -
3) More Money = More Votes
Q.E.D.
#17
@mstaggerlee:
money = time
money = speech
money = power
money = more rights
money is the end all be all
#18
Re: Is money more important than votes? I know I have said a billion times that I worked on all 3 of Paul Wellstone's senate campaigns, but one of the important lessons I learned was that Paul won because people always knew where he stood and he told the truth (besides the fact that he was a fearless liberal.)
Paul Wellstone won his elections even tho his opponent always had more MONEY!
#19
@Nels -
It has always been my opinion that the statement -
time = money (or vice versa)
Seriously undervalues time.
#20
Maxrot,
I know I will never get a direct response to my letter. I know it just goes into the "ether", along with all our other hopes and dreams. Sometimes I just have to say something in OUR defense.
BTW, I wistfully miss "Nels." I grew up in a VERY Norwegian area in Wisconsin. Nels was a wonderful, Norwegian name there. ;-)
#21
@Quark -
But Wellstone ran for office before the Citizen's United decision. His opponents may have had more cash-on-hand, but the warchests were at least in the same approximate order of magnitude.
How would Paul Wellstone have fared if his opponent's campaignscould outspend his by a factor of 100? Howzabout by 1000? If they could literally flood the airwaves (and the internet) with lies about him?
Wellstone lived in a VERY different world from the one we've been thrust into. We remember that world fondly, and we hope to bring some semblance of it back, but for now, it's GONE!
#22
Time is BARELY money! With my double-major in journalism and apparel/textile design, I have been trying to bring in a little extra money doing alterations. Three months ago, the prevailing price to hem jeans was $20. Now all my "competition" are charging $8-$10 for the same job. I am extremely underemployed (with my available skills) and more and more undervalued. It's easy to track the (lack of) health of the economy by these measures.
#23
@Quark, you never know, you may actually get a reply that's more than a rubber stamp. I'm certainly not trying to discourage your writing to any politician, its good to let them know there are still voters out there with more than half a brain. Besides its real value is when you share the letters with bloggers on sites like this, makes it more of an open letter to the president.
You can still call me Nels, it is my name afterall (it hasn't changed). The new website defaulted to my original user login name, and oh well, that's the way it is. I'll answer to either Nels or Maxrot.
#24
Yes, I will have to forget about any hint of justice in our system...
#25
money = time is relative
#26
@Maxrot: if money is realtive, how come you cant borrow some from your relatives?
#27
@Maxrot: and if time is relative, why does it stop when you're with your relatives?
#28
It seems that my point was obtuse about what money equals though. I was trying to sarcastically point out that money isn't everything, execept to those who have a severly limited view of what's important.
#29
Does "living on borrowed time" have any relevance here? LOL!
#30
Yeah, I guess that's silly...realtively.
#31
You can live on borrowed time, but can you afford the interest rate?
#32
#33
#34
I sense an emoticon coming...
#35
@harry, you can't borrow money from relatives, because their busy borrowing it from you.
#36
@harry ashburn
your wrrote:
@John Doh!: whadday call Limbaugh and Beck devotees?
I hadn't thought about it but lets give it a try.
Limbaugh has his... Limbaughtomized
Beck has his... Becks Dreck
#37
I'm always good at predicting things that have already happened.
#38
@HarryAshburn: RE: @John Doh!: whadday call Limbaugh and Beck devotees?
Please forgive the bluntness but "A$$Hats" comes to mind . . . And yes, this includes the woman who birthed me.
Hmmm . . . My anger issues are showing. Sigh.
BTW: Rush's last name is spelled: L I M P - B O U G H . . . Ask his physician if Viagra is purely recreational . . .
#39
Interesting website:
#40
@John Doh! Limbaughtomized = :D
Beck Dreck = needs work; course we don't have much to work with, there.
#41
sociopaths = economists ;-)
#42
"Beckerwoods"?
#43
Emoticon Malfunction
Maybe emoticons won't work on this site and we need emotiprogs, although you'd think that Thom would have a special page for emoticons and they'd go to the head of the blog. (If they feel lucky!)
#44
@harry ashburn
Beckerwoods is good if a little racially divisive. But it is good.
#45
@John, well, isn't Beck more than a little racially divisive?
#46
The above all brings to my mind the "lost verse" of the Grateful Dead's song "Friend of the Devil" -
"You can borrow from the Devil,
You can borrow from a friend.
Devil gives you 20,
When your friend's got only 10."
Robert Hunter wrote this verse after the tune was pretty much cemented in Jerry Garcia's mind, and Jerry NEVER sang it - only those who've caught one of Hunter's rare solo gigs are even vaguely aware of it.
#47
Beckensteins
#48
Speaking of Media. I just heard on my XM Radio that MSNBC is coming back to XM. Living in Middle Tennessee XM and the internet have been my life line to the other side of the story. There is no progressive talk anywhere within radio distance of my home and indeed most of Tennessee. When I first got an XM radio MSNBC was in the channel line up. It was removed several years ago. I just heard it will be back. I think they said next Monday, channel 120.
And Thom, paaaleezzz. Quietus?????????????????????????????????
Did you read the disclaimer on their website? The fine print at the bottom of the ad. It basically says "This product doesn't work and you shouldn't expect it too." I understand that you need advertisers and they pay to have you read their ad but I thought your standards were higher. I'd be willing to pitch in a few bucks a month to help the cause if we could dispense with these bogus product ads.
#49
Murdoch Says Fox Not Republican
This jaw-dropping story was on "Countdown" last night. Does Rupert Murdoch suffer from Alzheimer's?
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/ns/msnbc_tv-countdown_with_keith_olbermann#36242352
#50
@harumann -
Speaking (writing?) as one whose tinnitus gets worse by the day, I have INDEED looked at the Quietus website.
Seems to me that, like pretty much ANY advertisment for a medication, it's all one long disclaimer.
Thom's Blog Is On the Move
By webmaster
Hello All
Thom's blog in this space and moving to a new home.
Please follow us across to hartmannreport.com - this will be the only place going forward to read Thom's blog posts and articles.
Images of Thom
From Screwed:
"If we are going to live in a Democracy, we need to have a healthy middle class. Thom Hartmann shows us how the ‘cons’ have wronged this country, and tells us what needs to be done to reclaim what it is to be American."
From Screwed:
"Once again, Thom Hartmann hits the bull’s eye with a much needed exposé of the so-called ‘free market.’ Anyone concerned about the future of our nation needs to read Screwed now."
From Cracking the Code:
"In Cracking the Code, Thom Hartmann, America’s most popular, informed, and articulate progressive talk show host and political analyst, tells us what makes humans vulnerable to unscrupulous propagandists and what we can do about it. It is essential reading for all Americans who are fed up with right-wing extremists manipulating our minds and politics to promote agendas contrary to our core values and interests."
Mark K: I wonder how Michele Bachmann will explain away the obscenity-laden phone messages to Rep. John Lewis, and the open threats to hang or shoot Sen. Patty Murray. She certainly can’t claim lack of evidence this time; maybe she’ll say that the liberals temporarily altered the time/space continuum during which this world was in a parallel universe, and the words of the right-wing hate-mongers were retranslated to the opposite of what they meant to say.
Meanwhile, Jerry Brown, currently attorney general of California, has (kind of) exonerated ACORN of any wrongdoing stemming from the infamous James O’Keefe charade. The most damning “evidence,” that of a taped conversation with a Latino ACORN staffer allegedly offering assistance in the traffic of under-age girls from Mexico, omitted the part where he continued to ply the “pimp” O’Keefe and his “prostitute” helper for more specific information about what they were up to—and after they left, he immediately called his brother, a police detective, about this conversation. Fox News, of course, is accusing Brown of being “partisan,” although much is being made of the fact that Brown isn’t recommending charging O’Keefe and his helper with a crime. Why? Because in order to get the “cutting room” tapes from O’Keefe, he had to grant him immunity from prosecution. What does remain patently clear, however, is that the “mainstream” media willing became an accessory to O’Keefe’s politically-motivated travesty not for truth, but for ratings.