The Atlantic - Latest Comments in Open Thread At Noon

Re: Open Thread At Noon

adin — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 23:23:09 -0000

Richard Pryor, a genius, all around. Everyone here should watch the movie "Blue Collar." It still saddens me that he's gone. I really miss him.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

Jennifer D. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:51:18 -0000

Hey, I'm a sentimental schmuck, but I had that same feeling last night, too. It's weird to actually like my president. And my teenage daughter was thrilled to watch him throw out the first pitch.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

Deborah — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:18:29 -0000

No, no, it's the other one, the guy from Nevada. I thought it was Boehner? (googles) No, Ensign! The other sex scandal, which lacks the Appalachian Trail aspect but keeps picking up further shades of extortion and pay offs.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

kid bitzer — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:29:54 -0000

yup. and they're going to be refining the crude using crackers.

cracker-ass crackers!

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C...

Re: Open Thread At Noon

peep — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:53:09 -0000

Obituary for Kenneth Stampp -- a man whose passing should be noted on this blog

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/15/arts/15stampp.html?hpw

Re: Open Thread At Noon

dave in texas — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:32:16 -0000

I testified at the social studies textbook hearings several years back and was astounded at the level of ignorance and, well, meanness from the people arrayed against actual history. One of them actually said, "Come on now, slavery wasn't really all that bad" during the course of his testimony! Another common thread was that being tolerant of other people's ideas and beliefs wasn't a desirable quality. Bear in mind that these were prepared remarks (you have to give the board members copies of your testimony beforehand), so it's not as if these were off the cuff or improvised.

I'm glad to report that the anti-intellectual forces were in the minority then, and I'm certain that they'll be an even smaller minority now. We're slowly but surely making progress here, albeit not nearly fast enough.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

433E83 — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:30:49 -0000

I checked South Carolina's after reading your post (http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19t....

After an introduction about how the colonies entered a compact based on opposition to certain behaviors exhibited by GB you can guess what Specific Complaint Number 1 from the First State to Secede is (hint: it's not states' rights):

The Constitution of the United States, in its fourth Article, provides as follows: "No person held to service or labor in one State, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up, on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due."...

...This stipulation was so material to the compact, that without it that compact would not have been made....

...The same article of the Constitution stipulates also for rendition by the several States of fugitives from justice from the other States....

...The General Government, as the common agent, passed laws to carry into effect these stipulations of the States. For many years these laws were executed. But an increasing hostility on the part of the non-slaveholding States to the institution of slavery, has led to a disregard of their obligations, and the laws of the General Government have ceased to effect the objects of the Constitution. Thus the constituted compact has been deliberately broken and disregarded by the non-slaveholding States, and the consequence follows that South Carolina is released from her obligation...

Re: Open Thread At Noon

dmf — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:44:46 -0000

sorry should read "national issues or if we are now"

Re: Open Thread At Noon

dmf — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:42:58 -0000

peter singer is not a great philosopher but this NYT mag article(http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07... on rationing healthcare raises one of the most important issues of our times here in the states. serious healthcare reform may be the real test of whether our govt is still capable of working through truly national issues of if we are now so divided that the feds are effectively crippled. time will tell but we should all weigh in as we can.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

433E83 — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:29:20 -0000

Is that really going to happen? Dunlevy is a disaster who only has a job because Sterling is too cheap to buy him out. I think he's the only coach/ GM in the league.

So you have Baron Davis, AI and Gordon at guard. Al Thornton and Blake Griffin at forward and Kaman at center? That's a good team if you can sort out the guard situation. Or you just run Davis, AI, Gordon, Griffin and Thornton.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

CitizenE — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:03:53 -0000

AI to the Clips? And Dunlevy coaching? Everytime I ponder the Warriors and their woes, I am comforted by the Clippers. Still Baron and AI in the backcourt--hmmn. And in Los Angeles.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

Carrington — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:43:18 -0000

See the Texan pastors and raise them one Reinhold Niebuhr.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

LCrawfty — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:39:11 -0000

Rain Wilson (Dwight from "The Office") is of the Baha'i Faith

Re: Open Thread At Noon

dragnet — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:54:49 -0000

Wait Boehner had an affair too?

Re: Open Thread At Noon

jason — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:52:09 -0000

Ta-Nehisi,

I am wondering if you have heard of the Baha'i Faith. What is your take on its socio-political principles?

Here is the offical website if you are interested.

http://www.bahai.org/

And a collection of current Baha'is conceptual exploration

http://bahaicoherence.blogspot.com/

Re: Open Thread At Noon

Deborah — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:37:49 -0000

I just returned from almost 2 weeks vacation, and EVERY time I went by CNN in a hotel room (maybe every other day) they were reporting on Michael Jackson still being dead. Literally, they would go to the reporter on the scene, who would report that security guards were refusing to tell them anything whatsoever, and they would spend 10 minutes on the fact that absolutely nothing new had happened regarding Jackson, Michael, dead. On the last night my husband watched CNN and they were reporting on something else, but within 15 minutes they were back to Jackson, Michael, dead.

On the plus side I watched Rachel Maddow all the way through for the first time (no tv at home) and damn, that woman is smart. Her only Jackson, Michael, dead reference was to the fact that J,M,d was supposed to take the heat off the TMI Republicans, but then Boehner's mistress's husband released something new to liven things up.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

Craig — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:30:04 -0000

I never said it did, it just seems like a weird thing to praise him for, considering that his predecessor, who may very well have been a functional illiterate, did that one particular thing (and probably no other things in the entire universe) better than him.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

David Litvak — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:28:40 -0000

Of course not, just like there's nothing curious about the appointment of pastors to a history curriculum review board, and just like there's no violation of the First Amendment prohibition against respecting the establishment of religion in the recommendation that the state emphasize the Christian history of the United States (presumably, there have been no major non-Christian contributors to our politics, policy, or jurisprudence).

Re: Open Thread At Noon

dragnet — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:18:00 -0000

"It is unclear why nobody alerted Medevedev to the blunder. But one possible explanation is that the offending word is still widely used in Russia..."

Looks like we've found a new home for Pat Buchanan & Co...

Re: Open Thread At Noon

sans-culottes — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:17:48 -0000

I wonder why they want this change:

Replace references to America's "democratic" values with "republican" valuesReviewer David Barton suggests swapping out "republican" for "democratic" in teaching materials. As he explains: "We don't pledge allegiance to the flag and the democracy for which it stands."

There's nothing partisan about that at all.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

brucds — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:02:23 -0000

I have a nasty feeling they consulted Michael Steele to come up with a cool name.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

Persia — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:01:13 -0000

I dunno, but all my friends in Texas are rallying on this one. I really, really wish one state didn't have such a big impact nationwide on textbooks too.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

Quizfan — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:56:10 -0000

Nigeria and Gazprom have a joint venture. What did they decide to call it? NIGAZ!

Re: Open Thread At Noon

LCrawfty — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:55:07 -0000

Dude, clearly Josh was not saying Obama being cool at the ballpark makes him a good president. It's an Open Thread, you can discuss BS topics here.

Re: Open Thread At Noon

David Litvak — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:48:35 -0000

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124753078523935615.html

Anyone think that if I yell loud enough from my cubicle in downtown LA, Texas might hear how stupid it's being?