Friday Evening

enjoy

Chris, Call Your Office

Funny.

Let's Try That Again

This is what I meant to link to in the post below.

Timelines of Denial

The denial cycle of this type of program went something like:

1) No they aren't doing that!
2) They're only doing that for bad people!
3) They're only doing that for foreigners!
4) OK, they're doing that, but they aren't really looking at it.
5) Of course they're doing that, you idiot! But now you let the "enemy" know it!


etc

Cadillacs and T-Bones

Never changes.

Jeb Bush told a crowd in South Carolina on Thursday that Republicans could attract more African-Americans with a message of “hope and aspiration,” and not with promises of “free stuff” — a phrase that echoed comments made by Mitt Romney during and after his 2012 bid for president.

We do give so much free stuff to all the blah people. GOP has set up permanent camp on Bullshit Mountain.

The Pope, Brought To You By Aramark

Great monopoly concessions contract.

At least the city is empty, so Aramark might go broke, too.

Nice Work

As I wrote, individual and firm incentives are not very well aligned. Cheat your way to riches, and leave the shareholders with the bill when you get caught.

Martin Winterkorn, faced with the company's widening crisis over its rigging of emissions tests, announced his resignation as CEO of Volkswagen Group Wednesday. He is likely to leave with a pension valued around $32 million, and possibly with many millions more, depending on what the board decides regarding his severance payment.

If only there was some way to punish the individuals responsible within our legal system. Any ideas?

Bye Boehner

Leaving congress to spend more time with his Merlot.

Freedom Bombing Our Way To Freedom

Once we figure out who the moderate rebels are, everything will be fine.

Some people get confused by events in Syria, but they’re not that complicated. Quite simply, we need to bomb somewhere or other out there, like we should have done two years ago. Back then we should have dropped bombs to support the Isis rebels fighting against the evil Assad. But as we didn’t bother, we now need to put that right by bombing the Isis rebels, and protecting Assad.

Late Night Thread

Enjoy

Happy Hour Thread

Enjoy

Pod People

Trying to take the mass out of mass transit for decades.

The problems with even the fantasy version of these things are so obvious, and of course any implementation would be far from the fantasy version.

Freedom Bombing Our Way to Freedom

Keep the good news coming.

Over this past year, analysts felt pressure to keep their assessments positive. In order to report bad news, current and former officials said, the analysts were required to cite multiple sources. Reporting positive news required fewer hurdles. Senior officials sent emails cautioning against using pessimistic phrases that they said were more likely to get attention, according to one former official. In some instances, officials said, conclusions were completely changed.

The tool is a hammer, and that hammer had better be working well.

Stopping The Canadian Menace

Fair enough.

Failed Republican presidential candidate Scott Walker may feel some vindication in this number: 41 percent of Americans say that if a wall is built along the Mexican border, one should also be erected on the Canadian one. And yes, the same percentage favors a wall erected along the nation's southern border.

The Pope, Brought To You By Aramark

The city is doing everything wrong.

Khan, a halal food cart owner who works 52 weekends a year, estimates that he’s going to be out at least $2,000 in a few days.

He is one of the dozens of perennial, license-holding street vendors in Center City to recently receive this notice from the city, which bans vendors from operating at their usual locations Friday through Monday for the Pope’s visit.

The prevailing message since August has been that vendors with valid licenses could operate inside the traffic box, according to the Department of Commerce. They just couldn’t drive their vehicles in and out. But things have changed. Now only the Aramark-approved vendors will be allowed to operate within the security zone.

Local businesses of all kinds are just going to be revenue free this weekend.

ZOMG THE STATIONS WILL BE CROWDED

Yes if you close almost every regional rail station, the remaining ones will be more crowded.

What a disaster.

Morning Thread

Late Night

Rock on.