25 Years of Live Senate Action

Happy anniversary to C-SPAN2, which began live TV coverage of the U.S. Senate 25 years ago today.  

Honoring Darwin

Statement of Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) honoring Charles Darwin and recognizing the importance of science:  

"Mr. Speaker, I rise to introduce a resolution in support of designating February 12th as “Darwin Day.”  Charles Darwin was born on February 12, 1809 and his life has had a profound impact on the course of human history.  Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection has not only provided a compelling explanation for the diversity of life, it is also the foundation of modern biology and genetics.  Darwin exemplified the scientific curiosity that has led to new scientific breakthroughs that have helped humanity solve numerous problems and improve our quality of life.

"Charles Darwin is worthy of recognition and honor.  His birthday should be a time for us to celebrate the advancement of human knowledge and the achievements of reason and science.  It should also be a time for Congress and other elected officials to ensure that children are being taught scientific facts and not religious dogma in our public schools.  It is also an opportunity to push back against those that seek to undermine the science of climate change for political ends." 

Rep. Stark is the first openly atheist member of Congress.

Lowering the Voting Age in Africa

Calestous Juma in the Guardian:

"One of the most pressing issues in African politics is to realign the continent's voting systems with its age structure. One way to do this is to lower the voting age to 16 so as to expand opportunities for more young people help shape their own future."

"Africa has the youngest and fastest growing population in the world. Over 40% of the population are under the age of 15. More than 20% are between the ages of 15 and 24. Three out of five of Africa's employed are young people, according to the International Labour Office. Young people account for 36% of the overall working age population."

 "There are two key steps Africa can take now that can help to convert the "youth bulge" from a threat into a development opportunity. The first is political inclusion, by lowering the voting age, and the second is expanding opportunities for technical training and associated job creation."

Hip Hop, Hypocrisy

Davey D at Hip Hop Corner:

"...some of the same people defending this violent rhetoric from political pundits and politicians weren’t too kind when it came to rap artists who invoked violent imagery to make a political point.

"The most famous among these is Public Enemy who 20 years ago did the song ‘By the Time I Get to Arizona‘.  Here, they wanted to bring attention to the fact that there were certain politicians who were refusing to allow the state to recognize the Dr Martin Luther King holiday, so they did a song that spoke to it."

"In the accompanying video, the group  showed black and white re-enactments of Civil Rights demonstrations which were juxtaposed with images of Chuck D and his armed crew the heading to the office of one of the Senators opposed to the holiday where they handed him a box of poisoned chocolates. As the video ends we see Chuck D blowing up the car of an unnamed elected official."

"Needless to say folks went nuts over the video. Chuck D and Public Enemy were accused of fostering violence with some critics stating that there would be blood on their hands if anyone resorted to violence as a result of this video."

"Chuck pointed out it was basically political theater, but very few in the halls of power were trying to hear that. As far as they were concerned Public Enemy had crossed the line."

It's All Black Now

Ai Weiwei: Map of China, 2004.

Yesterday, by order of the Chinese government, bulldozers destroyed the newly constructed Shanghai art studio of outspoken artist Ai Weiwei.

The Daily Beast: “Ai has angered Chinese officials for criticizing endemic corruption in the Communist state, as well as speaking out publicly in support of imprisoned Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo, democratic movements, and other human-rights causes. The studio was a draw to leading artists from around the world. "Everything is gone,” Ai said. “It’s all black now.”

The Censoring of Huckleberry Finn

Francine Prose in the New York Times:

"...what puzzles me most about the debate — I’m not trying to sound willfully naïve — is why the word “nigger” should be more freighted, more troubling, the cause of more (to paraphrase the edition's introduction) “resentment” than the word “slave.” Racial epithets are inarguably disgusting, but not nearly so disgusting as an institution that treats human beings as property to be beaten, bought and sold. “Nigger” and “slave” are not synonyms by any stretch of the imagination. Jim’s problem is not that he is called a “nigger” but that he is chattel who can be freed or returned to his master."

Plutocrats and the Limts of Western Populist Rage

Ryan Avent at The Economist:

"It's striking how little inchoate public rage has actually boiled to the surface in the rich world. Rising inequality, especially at the top end, combined with stagnating middle class incomes, has been a feature of the world for at least the past ten years. It's been two years since the biggest bail-outs and the rise toward double-digit unemployment. And the anger is...where? Europeans are demonstrating against budget cuts, but these are rarely explicitly directed at national plutocrats. In America, the language of the angriest is very similar to that of the plutocrats themselves. Indeed, the complaint that today's elite lack the noblesse oblige of the aristocrats of old, and are therefore risking public anger, seems to badly misread American public opinion. The middle class doesn't want hand-outs from condescending rich people. They want moralistic language and complaints about deficits."

 Kevin Drum at Mother Jones scoffs: 

"Amazing, isn't it? After nearly destroying the world, the plutocrats just dipped into their petty cash accounts, funded a tea party movement dedicated to promoting their interests, and won the next election. Problem solved!"

Rhymefest for Alderman

A Milestone in the Senate

Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) has become the longest serving woman in the United States Senate, exceeding the 24 year term of Senator Margaret Chase Smith (R-ME).

Comeback Kid at 72

Yesterday, 30 years after his first term, Jerry Brown took the reins as California's governor.

Official gubernatorial portrait of Jerry Brown painted by Don Bachardy