Obviously this is a compilation of hand-picked interviews, but this video certainly shows a refreshing amount of “a-ha” moments after asking a different (better?) question. I was surprised to learn this was conducted in Colorado Springs given the composure of the community (very large population but not very diverse demographically, very Evangelical Christian and politically…
Politics Archives
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The NRA press conference must be some sort of “Mayan apocalypse” version of an April Fool’s Day joke, right?
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The NRA has become the Tea Party of gun ownership.
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David Cohen has a good observation about shaking hands:
The handshake is thought to have developed as a gesture of peace, to show that neither side was carrying a weapon in their right hand. Since I’m not really afraid that anyone I meet at a conference will be carrying a spear, you’d think we could just move past this tradition.
I’ve tried pre-empting friends and folks I’ve met before with a fist-bump to avoid the germy, awkward palm-to-plam interaction. It’s less-often received as ‘inappropriate’ or a cultural “faux pas” and I can’t help but think President Obama is mostly to thank for that. But new encounters don’t feel right with a bump… for now.
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It seems pretty convenient that these scandals finally surfaced mere days after the election…
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DecodeDC is my favorite new podcast and, appropriately enough, its all about politics. Self described as “deciphering Washington’s language and procedure so you can focus on what matters”, Andrea Seabrook has done a great job with the first four episodes diving in and pulling back the curtain on a lot of the status quo in Washington that the mainstream may not address (and fringe groups wouldn’t have access to, Seabrook was previously with NPR). If the last few months (or last night) sparked your interest in politics, I’d recommend checking out DecodeDC.
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I never consider a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend.
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I voted for Nate Silver. I heard he has a really good chance of winning the election this year…
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Squashed takes a quick look at the math around paying income taxes:
Because one spouse isn’t working, there is no child care tax credit. There could be up to $2,500 in education credits per child—but let’s say the kids are younger and go with the lower $1,000 child tax credit for both of them. So that’s a $2,000 credit. To owe taxes at this point, you’d need $19,000 in taxable income—or $45,400 in total income.
It looks like its not too hard to not have to pay federal income (note: different from payroll) tax. I won’t ruin the ending where he answers how many hours, at minimum wage, one would need to work to have to pay in.
This isn’t a partisan issue. This is a tax code (largely dictated by interest groups, corporations) so why don’t we all agree we should fix this? Lets stop letting politicians turn us against each other and create a sideshow…
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From Roger Ebert at NYTimes.com: The United States is one of few developed nations that accepts the notion of firearms in public hands. In theory, the citizenry needs to defend itself. Not a single person at the Aurora, Colo., theater shot back, but the theory will still be defended. First: I’m moved and saddened by…