Cheese it, the cops! We'd better lie low for a while -- Robert Reich has us figured out. After recalling his boyhood trials with bullies who took his cupcakes and half his sandwiches -- until he bravely stood up to them! -- he counsels President Obama:
Want to know what a colossal disaster Obamacare is going to be? Just consider what a colossal disaster Romneycare already is:
As governor, Mitt Romney accomplished a feat that most Republicans would have thought impossible. With the single stroke of a pen he convinced the liberal population of Massachusetts that they, too, hate government-run health care.
South Bend City Council members order themselves to pay attention:
The controversial bill prohibiting the use of cell phones and other electronic devices by Common Council members, all city boards and commissions while a meeting is in progress passed 8-1.
[. . .]
Cuts? Exactly what cuts would those be?
The federal debt increased $54.1 billion in the eight days preceding the deal made by President Barack Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D.-Nev.) and House Speaker John Boehner (R.-Ohio) to cut $38.5 billion in federal spending for the remainder of fiscal year 2011, which runs through September.
At Little Village Academty public elementary school on Chicago's West Side, students must eat the food served in the cafeteria unless they have a medical excuse; they are not allowed to bring packed lunches fom home:
Principal Elsa Carmona said her intention is to protect students from their own unhealthful food choices.
Looks like Texas isn't satisfied with bigger -- it wants faster, too:
As lead singer of Van Halen, Sammy Hagar once crooned, "I can't drive 55." To show how far things have come, now some Texans aren't happy about only driving 80 miles per hour. The Legislature is considering raising the maximum speed limit to 85 mph, highest in the country.
It's a fact of life -- people congregate, and the sparse few who don't join the crowd are at a disadvantage politically:
Here's a good thumb-sucker on how to know when to stop using a word's original definition when its meaning is changing through common usage:
Suppose a friend said to you, "I know you're disinterested, so I want to ask you a question presently." Then he didn't say anything. Would you be momentarily nonplussed?
Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels and President Obama were set to meet Friday in Indianapolis. But with the ongoing budget deadlock, the president's trip was canceled.
Separating the kids from their computers and smartphones is like separating addicts from their drugs:
Researchers found that 79 per cent of students subjected to a complete media blackout for just one day reported adverse reactions ranging from distress to confusion and isolation.
Finally, some good revenue news for the state:
Indiana revenues grew last month compared to a year ago and came in higher than projected in December.
According to a report by the Indiana State Budget Agency, the state took in $977.2 million in March, up $69 million, or 8 percent, from the same month a year ago and $32 million more than the forecast.
And you just know there are some legislators who can't wait to spend it.
The remake of "Arthur" sucks:
The original Arthur isn't a perfectly constructed comedy; it lurches a bit in the romantic scenes, and shifts tone too often—but when it's funny, it's really funny.
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Clueless Washington-shutdown reporting of the day:
The White House Office of Management and Budget directed the heads of federal agencies on late Monday to share contingency plans with senior managers. On Capitol Hill, the chairman of the Committee on House Administration warned “nonessential employees” on Tuesday to turn off their BlackBerrys during a shutdown, or risk punishment for working while on furlough.
[. . .]
If one of your laws has been widely ridiculed, it's probably not a good idea to respond by making it even dumber:
Indiana legislators are disagreeing about how old someone should look before they have to provide identification when buying alcohol.
Both the House and Senate have approved bills revising a much-ridiculed state law that took effect last summer requiring store clerks to card all carry-out alcohol customers regardless of their age.
"Gaming events" generate more than $500 million a year for Indiana non-profits, and an Indiana House Committee wants to explore how to modify rules put in place a few years ago "to curb the illegal gambling schemes that have been operating under the guise of charities":
This would count as a breakthrough in the president's thinking if anybody believed he actually meant it. Speaking of the lack of a budget compromise due to the mean people "playing politics," President Obama warned that there will be repercussions on Main Street:
Even if a school system has a "leading contender" for superintendent among its own personnel, its still a good idea to, A) conduct a nationwide search (just in case "leading" turns out not to be "best" and, B) do everything in public. But apparently they don't feel that way in Muncie:
The Muncie Community School Board's decision to forgo community outreach and a public search for its new superintendent is legal, but there are differing opinions on whether it's the best approach.
Mindful of the political risks, Republican presidential hopefuls treaded gingerly - or ducked - as House Republicans unveiled a budget plan that would slash federal spending by about $5 trillion over 10 years while revamping health programs for the elderly and poor.
If they care more about getting elected than being honest about the fiscal mess we're in, screw 'em.
So long to Katie Couric, not that it's that big a deal:
The explosion of news choices on cable and the Web have made the evening news an anachronism enjoyed mostly by an audience of older and less highly educated viewers, according to the Project for Excellence in Journalism. If there is little prestige, honor, and future being the anchor of the No. 1 show chasing an audience that is becoming smaller, older, and is less-educated, imagine how the No. 3 anchor must have felt....
