February 12, 2012

Tony Bennett Calls for Drug Legalization in Wake of Whitney Houston's Death

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/whitney-houston-death-tony-bennett-drug-legalization-grammys-289618

The crooner took the stage at Clive Davis' pre-Grammy bash to make a political statement before performing "How Do You Keep the Music Playing" in Houston's honor.

When Tony Bennett took the stage at Clive Davis' pre-Grammy gala on Saturday, he offered more than just happy memories of the late Whitney Houston.

Bennett used the opportunity to ask that the U.S. government re-evaluate its stance on drugs, using Amsterdam as an example of a successful policy.

"First it was Michael Jackson, then Amy Winehouse, now the magnificent Whitney Houston," he began. "I'd like every person in this room to campaign to legalize drugs."

February 9, 2012

fact check needed on Yahoo article about $26B Mortgage Settlement

http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-ticker/26b-mortgage-settlement-good-banks-not-good-homeowners-154031911.html

The article link is at top. This caught my eye, in particular: " The deal may, in fact, hurt housing by sending a message to people who've stayed current on their mortgages that irresponsible behavior is what gets rewarded in America. That, presumably, is not the intention of policymakers but the "moral hazard" fallout from the settlement. More Americans may "walk away" from uneconomic loans, which will put additional pressure on local housing markets. "

Thanks for your time.

February 6, 2012

Swampg8r's thread about Alaska needs more love....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/101211

It's in the Alaska state forum. Enjoy !

January 28, 2012

Who is Saul Alinsky, and why is Newt Gingrich so obsessed with him?

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2012/0128/Who-is-Saul-Alinsky-and-why-is-Newt-Gingrich-so-obsessed-with-him

Wherever Newt Gingrich goes these days – stumping in Florida, arguing on televised debates with fellow Republican presidential hopefuls, jotting down notes for his umpteenth book – he carries with him a scary but useful ghost: Saul Alinsky.

The radical community organizer (gone now these 40 years) is the specter on which Barack Obama has modeled his life, Gingrich warns. It’s no coincidence, he says, that both Alinsky and Obama were from Chicago or that the President passed up far more lucrative possibilities to become … a community organizer.

“The centerpiece of this campaign, I believe, is American exceptionalism versus the radicalism of Saul Alinsky,” Gingrich said in his South Carolina primary victory speech, a charge he finds constant ways to repeat. "Saul Alinsky radicalism is at the heart of Obama,” he said on CNN.

So who was Saul Alinsky?

January 28, 2012

Question about RAID1 array degraded status

In my computer I have two very small SSD's in RAID1 array. It usually works perfectly and well for my purposes. However, once a week or so I get a "degraded" status message from my LSI hardware raid controller. I don't lose any data but I'm just curious. Is once a week "degraded" status pretty typical for a heavily-used RAID1 array or should I be concerned whatsoever ? Thanks in advance for your time, once again.

Steve

January 2, 2012

Of course Dennis Rodman is going to coach a topless women’s basketball team

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Of-course-Dennis-Rodman-is-going-to-coach-a-topl?urn=nba-wp12692

We're not sure what's going to feel ickier, the fact that Dennis Rodman is going to be holding tryouts for a topless women's basketball team in New York City, or you after you finish reading the post. But the Basketball Hall of Famer will be trying out and coaching a team fielding exotic dancers from Headquarters Gentleman Club, in hopes of cobbling together a charity game against what appears to be another topless women's basketball from a rival club.

Duty calls, apparently, for Rodman. As it does here at Ball Don't Lie. Gross.

Here's the lowdown:

The NBA bad boy dreamed up the team after hearing that rival strip joint Rick's Cabaret launched a league with former Atlanta Hawk Spud Webb, who runs the Texas Legends, an NBA Development League team.

December 31, 2011

Happiest of Happy New Years to all my fellow Lounge denizens !

December 31, 2011

Perry supports English as official language in US

MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry said Friday he would like English to be made the national language of the United States, agreeing with a frustrated voter who railed over the presence of multiple languages in everyday American life.

Perry, whose campaign needs a boost before Tuesday's lead-off Iowa caucuses, spoke at a Cerro Gordo County GOP fundraiser and took questions from the audience at the Mason County Country Club.

The voter who told the Texas governor he was tired of multilingual directions for products drew applause when he said he'd like to see English become the official language of the U.S. government.

"I don't know how the rest of the conservatives in the room feel, but personally, I'm fed up with seeing the directions on every single product on every single shelf of every single store written in four languages," said the man, who didn't give his name.

http://news.yahoo.com/perry-supports-english-official-language-us-015528582.html

December 31, 2011

question about internet political forums

I almost never stray from DU. Hence, my question: are there any good, well-moderated American political forums for all political allegiances on the internet, or is that "impossible" ? I know even here, things can get very heated. Thanks in advance for your time.


Steve

December 30, 2011

My broadband got disconnected accidentally the other day

Asking all service people and former service people: Is this an easy thing to do with a building with 8 apartments ? It was for less than 24 hours so it wasn't a big deal. The tenant below me moved out and, I assume, disconnected his cable service.