(Updated Below)
The day after the second Presidential Debate, one of CNN’s top online headlines was:
Ticker: Obama actions called ‘not presidential’
Naturally, readers might think this refers to something Barack Obama did or said during last night’s debate. That it’s possibly a response from a cross-section of undecided voters in a new poll. Or readers might think, having nothing to do with the debate, the headline refers to something Obama has done in the past, or something he may have even done today.
Whatever readers might think, they would have no idea — unless or until they clicked on it — that this egregiously misleading headline was actually referring to a new John McCain attack ad. Full story »
AN ESSAY ON MURDER, MEDIA MAYHEM AND
THE CONDITION OF THE CULTURE
by
Michael Tracey
FOR PATSY RAMSEY, SHERRY KEENE-OSBORNE, and BARB SMITH
Courageous and Good Ladies All
Oft in the stilly night,
Ere Slumbers’ chain has bound me,
Fond memory brings the light
Of other days around me;
The smiles, the tears,
Of boyhood’s years,
The words of love then spoken;
The eyes that shone,
Now dimmed and gone,
The cheerful hearts now broken!
- (Thomas Moore: 1779 – 1852)
* * *
This long essay was originally intended to be a short memoir. It did not work out that way. It has evolved, for good or ill, into a work of parts, and can be read as such.
* * *
Full story »
Appearing Monday on Race for the White House, T. Boone Pickens repeated the lie that Obama doesn’t have an energy plan. He also made the hilarious claim that he is “the only guy on the street” with an energy plan. I don’t know what he means by only guy on the street, but it is a baseless lie either way.
Here is the relevant section of the interview:
GREGORY: But who do you have most confidence in, do you think, to execute a strategy that gets us to where you think we ought to go on the environment?
PICKENS: Well, Senator McCain and Obama, you know, they are not energy people. When you talk to Governor Palin, there’s no question she has had more experience with energy than either one of the senators have had. I wouldn’t grade Senator Obama or McCain. They neither one have a plan. I’m actually-I’m the actually the only guy on the street with a plan.
I’ll take these two lies individually.
Full story »
The choices that U.S. consumers make are directly responsible for 37% of all U.S. carbon emissions. Direct emissions include those from residences and personal travel. Additionally, consumers’ choices are indirectly responsible for another 28% of emissions via landfill emissions, agriculture, and commerce. As such, U.S. consumers have some amount of control over 63% of all U.S. carbon emissions, at least according to a McKinsey & Co. study that was reported in the Wall Street Journal this past week. Full story »
