Events

In a major victory for the slippery-slope theory of jurisprudence, the Supreme Court today removed all barriers to corporate dominance in politics: In a 5-4 decision, the court's conservative bloc said corporations have the same First Amendment rights as individuals and, for that reason, the government may not stop corporations from spending freely to influence the outcome of federal elections. Until now, corporations and unions have been barred from spending their own treasury funds on broadcast ads or...

As the Massachusetts Democratic Party limps around with a self-inflicted bullet wound in its foot, we should keep in mind that Americans have always thought the country's going to hell, and yet hasn't actually gotten there, as James Fallows reminds us: Through the entirety of my conscious life, America has been on the brink of ruination, or so we have heard, from the launch of Sputnik through whatever is the latest indication of national falling apart or falling behind. Pick a year over the past half...

One year into the Obama administration, it seems that a sizable portion of the country believe that because he hasn't cleaned up the unprecedented mess left by the former occupant, he somehow caused it. That, anyway, comes through in the reports of GOP focus groups of independent voters in Massachusetts. That, and crashing ignorance: "I like what Scott Brown stands for and I feel that the Democrats cannot run the country anymore. That too many people that don’t have jobs are going hungry. They’re not...

Jon Stewart, of course: The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c Mass Backwards www.thedailyshow.com Daily Show Full EpisodesPolitical HumorHealth Care Crisis It's all right. Throughout history the right usually has more internal discipline than the left, and somehow, things progress anyway. I just hope that today, nihilism loses. (Think about that for a moment and then, if you live in Mass, hold your nose and vote for Coakley anyway.)

States can't declare bankruptcy. If they could, Illinois would probably have done already: While it appears unlikely or even impossible for a state to hide out from creditors in Bankruptcy Court, Illinois appears to meet classic definitions of insolvency: Its liabilities far exceed its assets, and it's not generating enough cash to pay its bills. Private companies in similar circumstances often shut down or file for bankruptcy protection. ...Despite a budget shortfall estimated to be as high as $5.7...

Having the second-oldest ball park may give Chicago its largest outdoor party 88 days every summer, but I can't deny that other parks have better amenities. The steel troughs in the men's rooms, for example: ew. Now that Wrigley has a new owner, there's talk of expansion and renovation ahead of its centennial in 2014: The project will be called "Wrigley 20-14" and include construction projects during the season so the Cubs can use it "for another 100 years," according to President Crane Kenney. The...

Randomness: Parker and I did, in fact, walk today (8 km), and it is, in fact, sunny and 16°C. Roger Ebert responds to Rush Limbaugh Via Greening Your Library, a quick and informative explanation of single-stream recycling. My books for next term only weigh 4 kg this time. I appreciate that. The 6 kg I carried to London was not fun. (This is a joke. Ha, ha.) Speaking of: "The cause of the floor's collapse remains under investigation." (I believe this is the source link.) Really. January.

We haven't heard anything yet from the newly-hired Fox "News" analyst, but I'm sure we won't have to wait too long before she adds to Limbaugh's and Robertson's inane comments about Haiti. I think we need to look to Jon Stewart for clarity: The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c Haiti Earthquake Reactions www.thedailyshow.com Daily Show Full EpisodesPolitical HumorHealth Care Crisis

As "Chicagoans gaze out at a cover of snow for the 21st consecutive day" today, I'm once again in Raleigh, where snow fell once a few weeks ago but decided not to stay the night. It's already 9°C, going up to a predicted 16°C this afternoon. I plan to walk as far as my legs will take me (or Parker's will take him) later on. That's the problem, of course: in Chicago, we get maybe three days like this between November and March, so I'm a little giddy about it. On the other hand, Chicagoans do get a lot of...

Thousands dead, a country devastated, and this clown blames the devil? Seriously: "Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it," [Televangelist Pat Robertson] said on Christian Broadcasting Network's "The 700 Club." "They were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III, or whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, we will serve you if you'll get us free from the French. True story. And so, the devil said, okay it's a...