Regressives want to blame the CDC on ebola but...

they won't fund the NIH to fight it. Once again proving they're all about creating fear and blaming anyone but themselves. But when asked to fund such programs there is no money. The NIH director noted if not for the funding slide in the last 10 years they would have had an ebola vaccine by now. So the Dems called for a hearing on this issue and the regressives said no thanks, we're in recess. And yet they came out of recess to hold a hearing on the ebola crises itself in order to blame the CDC director.

The power of love

All this talk of agape brought this old classic to mind. Love survived the Mullet.

Enlightenment and agape

Continuing from this post, at IPS andrew posted a link to a John Cobb piece comparing Christianity and Buddhism on agape. It's a good one. A couple of excerpts emphasizing how a Buddhist-inflected AQALingus might display some of the traits we've noticed in the previous links.

"I find in Pure Land rhetoric, as in Buddhism generally, a strong focus on enlightenment as the one goal worthy of pursuit. [...] At this point in history I am much more concerned for the salvation of the planet, and especially of the human species, from the misery and destruction we are now bringing upon it than for personal salvation. [...] But I find preoccupation with our inner states an inappropriate response to our global historical situation.

How regressives woo women

Colbert nails it. Regressives think they need not address equal pay or access to contraception. Women just need to get married and let the guy think about that stuff. In the ad the bride whores herself for several regressive candidates so Colbert thinks that disqualifies her for something (see video below). And Colbert's parody ad is hilarious.

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Chuck Todd, partisan hack

Todd does it again. He's supposed to be a neutral journalist but proved once again to be a hack for the regressive party. This time, in response to candidate for Senate Alison Lundergan Grimes refusing to answer if she voted for Obama, Todd noted that her answer "borders on disqualification." By exercising her right to privacy at the ballot box, and by correctly distancing herself from a highly unpopular President in a deeply red state, she made a smart move with a good justification. And yet Todd thinks it almost disqualifies her with nary a work on how McConnel's many misstatements and lies on Obamacare and its state-run exchange in KY. It seems Todd would be better suited as a partisan hack for Fox News than NBC.

Stiglitz on inequality

See this article. According to the US Census Bureau's annual income and poverty report, median household income, when adjusted for inflation, is lower than it was 25 years ago. And the 2014 UN Human Development report adjusted the US score for inequality and it dropped 23 spots, the largest decline for any developed country. This is what we get with regressives in Congress: regression in human development.

An 'integral' response to Sam Harris on Islam

Balder posted Dustin DiPerna's response to the recent dust up. Too pie in the sky. Michael asks the right question-- "Is there a proven path towards integrally interaction with fundamentalists that is effective?"-- and the answer is no. (See qualification at the end.)

I commented earlier on Fareed Zakaria's response.  His stats, along with Maher's accurate stats, should amply demonstrate to AQALinguists that the majority of Muslims are caught in mythical ethnocentrism. Granted there are more rational Muslims, but they are the exception and do not have a voice in these governments. And Harris said he most certainly supports those voices in building the exact kinds of bridges (aka conveyor belts) needed.

Thom Hartmann decodes the regressive jobs plan

In this video he examines the 5-point regressive jobs plan by first stating their spin and then reframing what they actually mean. This is accomplished in the first two minutes. The rest of the video is Hartmann interviewing a regressive mouthpiece that just churns out more empty spin.

Fareed Zakaria on Maher and Harris

Recall the recent Real Time episode that caused such a stir. Zakaria agrees in part and disagrees in part with Maher and Harris. He disagrees in that he thinks they blame all of Islam for the behavior of a few. Yet that stats he cites belie that it is just a few. For example, 7 of the top 10 terrorist groups are Muslim. Of the 24 most restrictive countries on freedom of religion, 19 are Muslim majority. Of the 21 countries that have laws against apostasy, all are Muslim majority. This is not a 'minority' of Muslims by any stretch. In trying to counter Maher and Harris he ends up proving them accurate.

If Republicans take the Senate

Robert Reich lays out the facts on what you'll get if this happens. It's not hyperbole but easily demonstrated by what the regressives have already done, and more specifically, what they haven't done. Is this what you really want?