Many Democrats think that the chance of a Democrat winning a special election for the Senate in Alabama is about as big as the chance of a Republican winning one in Massachusetts. Except that in 2010, Republican Scott Brown did exactly that. An Opinion Savvy poll just out shows Roy Moore (R) ahead of Doug Jones (D) by just 5 points, 50% to 45%. With more than 2 months to go and Moore a constant source of outrageous comments, Jones could possibly win this one, at least if the DNC decides to put some real money into the race. Of course, Republicans who supported primary loser Sen. Luther Strange may be angry now and say they will vote for Jones, but come December they may come and support Moore while holding their noses. On the other hand, it's not impossible that a Moore was a "lesser of two evils" vote, given the shady way in which Strange acquired his office (an apparent quid pro quo for helping quash the prosecution of then-governor Robert Bentley). There could be a segment of voters who were just waiting for the chance to vote for someone who is not Moore or Strange.
Using Technology to Deepen Democracy, Using Democracy to Ensure Technology Benefits Us All
Saturday, September 30, 2017
Whatever The Odds, Democrats Should Be Fired Up, Ready To Go This December in Alabama
Friday, September 29, 2017
Uneven Democratic Recruitment for 2018 Bears Watching:
The enthusiasm on the Democratic side for congressional races is enormous, but it is not uniform across the map. For example, eight Democrats are already running against Rep. John Faso (R-NY) in NY-19, which is in the Hudson Valley, mostly south of Albany. Another district in which eight Democrats have already announced is VA-10, currently represented in the House by Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-VA). Her district includes all of Clarke, Frederick, and Loudoun Counties, plus parts of Fairfax and Prince William Counties. It is a highly educated district and could easily flip, hence all the interest from Democrats. However, there are also holes in the map. For example, Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) in NJ-02 doesn't have a credible Democratic opponent yet. NY-24 looks like a dream pick-up opportunity for the Democrats. Hillary Clinton won it by 4 points and Barack Obama won it twice by double digits. But so far, no serious Democrat has stepped up to take on Rep. John Katko (R-NY). Likewise, FL-18 is devoid of a strong Democrat despite its being a district that Trump carried by less than 2 points and the incumbent, Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), having a 100% voting record in support of Donald Trump. Part of the reason is clear, though. FL-27, just south of FL-18, is going to be an open seat because Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) is retiring, so local Democrats see that as an easier race than going after an eight-term congressman. The Democrats' problem is that candidates who might run for Congress, such as state senators and representatives, often look at a district and say it is too tough, so they decide to stay put. What they don't realize is that if 2018 is a wave election -- and it might be given what has happened in the special elections already this year -- a plausible but unknown state senator could be swept in on the tide. But that can happen only if the potential candidate becomes an actual candidate. It is an old saying, but it is still true: "You can't beat somebody with nobody." (V)
Wednesday, September 27, 2017
People Laugh As Trump Deletes Tweets Supporting Losing Candidate in Alabama
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Teaching Days This Week
Sunday, September 24, 2017
Sunday Walk
Friday, September 22, 2017
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
Jason Isaacs Is Ready To Sit In The Captain's Seat
Everybody is already talking about Star Trek Discovery's upcoming captain Jason Isaac's righteous repudiation of the normalizing of Trump spokesliar Spicer at last night's Emmy awards...
Hoping to forget politics for one night and bask in other people’s glory at the #Netflix#Emmys party and who do I spot at the bar late at night but the poisonous purveyor of lies #SeanSpicer. What were the Emmys thinking celebrating this modern day Goebbels, who was the thuggish face of Orwellian doublespeak just moments ago?
Monday, September 18, 2017
Sunday, September 17, 2017
Sunday's Walk
Saturday, September 16, 2017
Ending Trump's Tax Evasions
California lawmakers on Friday sent Gov. Jerry Brown a bill setting a new requirement for people wanting to run for president in California: Hand over five years of tax returns.
Inspired by President Donald Trump’s refusal to provide tax returns before the 2016 election, Democratic Sens. Mike McGuire of Healdsburg and Scott Wiener of San Francisco drafted Senate Bill 149, which declares that tax returns provide “voters with essential information regarding the candidate’s potential conflicts of interest, business dealings, financial status, and charitable donations.
It prohibits the secretary of state from putting a candidate’s name on the ballot in California if he or she has not complied with the tax return requirement. The Legislature’s own lawyers have said the bill is legally questionable, issuing an opinion suggesting it would likely violate the qualifications clause of the U.S. Constitution. According the Assembly analysis of the bill, nearly half the states are considering similar legislation....
Friday, September 15, 2017
The Lie of the Tech Sector
The lie of the tech sector is that it is up to much of anything new at all.
— Dale Carrico (@dalecarrico) September 14, 2017
"Technology" discourse has always mostly been the repackaging stale products and reactionary politics.
— Dale Carrico (@dalecarrico) September 14, 2017
The truth of the tech sector is the same old story of assholes wanting all the money and power but no responsibility or accountability.
— Dale Carrico (@dalecarrico) September 14, 2017
Tech disruption is mostly deregulation.
— Dale Carrico (@dalecarrico) September 14, 2017
Tech "sharing" is mostly wealth concentration.
— Dale Carrico (@dalecarrico) September 14, 2017
Tech innovation is mostly PR for the rich.
— Dale Carrico (@dalecarrico) September 14, 2017
Digitization is mostly precarization.
— Dale Carrico (@dalecarrico) September 14, 2017
Thursday, September 14, 2017
Relief
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Reading Today (Redux)
Monday, September 11, 2017
The Lot of the Adjunct Is Precarious
Saturday, September 09, 2017
Friday, September 08, 2017
Happy Star Trek Day!
Happy #StarTrekDay from the cast of #StarTrekDiscovery! Live long and prosper. 🖖 pic.twitter.com/SwvfvahvgJ— Star Trek: Discovery (@startrekcbs) September 8, 2017
51 years ago today, the first Star Trek episode aired. Happy #StarTrekDay, everyone! May we all live long and prosper.🖖 pic.twitter.com/CSy2rgWLS6
— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) September 8, 2017
Thursday, September 07, 2017
What Has Changed Here
Robot Gods, genetic enhancement and longevity, artificial meat, immersive virtuality, techno-abundance nano robo digi bio blah blah blah blah, the terms never changing, the greedhead promises and skeery sfnal threats never happening, but always oh so very important to talk about, year after year after year after year, as privileged mediocrities game the economy and political system in the most boring serially failed utterly predictably idiotic ways (the very real threats being the social ones mediated by and distracted from via tech, natch). You know, I could re-run the first ten years of this blog, just changing the names of the latest tech soopergeniuses as they make exactly identically stupid claims I railed against before and I would presumably resume my place as go-to incendiary tech critic. I definitely hear you when you say you'll choke the latest Very Serious AI-qua-existential-threat drivel down. My righteous rage, and the pleasure I once took in ridiculing tech hucksters, has long since been eclipsed by demoralization. Trump's America is the futurological future we've been waiting for, a shriveled white dick with a megaphone peddling late-nite infomercials promising easy cash and sexy youth to ignorant rubes over a stinking landfill under a gray snowfall of cremated ashes.
Reading for Myself
Wednesday, September 06, 2017
Touched By An Angel
Pro-tip: Don't let the toxic mixture of fear and laziness fuck with your goals, ambition and productivity
— Katya (@katya_zamo) July 14, 2015
@katya_zamo What if your goals, ambition, and productivity depend on a toxic mixture of fear and laziness?
— Dale Carrico (@dalecarrico) July 14, 2015
Then YOU GO GIRL! You got this girl!
— Katya (@katya_zamo) September 6, 2017
Tuesday, September 05, 2017
There Is No AI
Monday, September 04, 2017
Good To Remember Today (And Every Day)
40 hour work week.
— Matt McGorry (@MattMcGorry) September 4, 2017
8 hour day.
Weekends.
Paid sick leave.
Paid vacation.
All the product of sacrifices of labor organizers/activists.
Sunday, September 03, 2017
No Walk This Sunday
Deadline?
“In a potential death knell for efforts to repeal Obamacare -- at least this year -- the Senate parliamentarian has ruled that Republicans face a Sept. 30 deadline to kill or overhaul the law with only 50 votes... In search of a badly needed legislative victory, McConnell and other Senate Republicans have shifted their focus instead to tax reform. Yet President Donald Trump -- who has repeatedly predicted Obamacare is about to implode -- has called for another repeal vote in the Senate, as have GOP conservative hard-liners in both the House and Senate.”There is no respect for norms to keep McConnell from replacing this parliamentarian with a more congenial one (sure, it would be "shocking" and scarcely precedented, but McConnell is a flagrant serial disruptor of such norms -- Gorsuch, anyone?), so I cannot draw much comfort from this deadline, though we must all take our minor and provisional victories where we can in the face of Trump/Republican bigot idiot greedhead authoritarianism. If McConnell abides by this recommendation I can only assume it is because he wants an excuse to take the healthcare repeal debacle off the board for now.