More Than I Can Say

I have a lot I'd like to blog about. I haven't finished the OWS writeup. The presidential primary is turning out to be far more entertaining than I had thought it would be. There's a bunch of political theory bumping around in my head waiting to be turned into words. There's more good stuff for online security and Teh Dumb that surrounds the glorification of hacktivists. But there's just more out there to talk about than I have the energy to cover.

My company has entered its death spiral and the daily up and down from that is consuming most of my mental energy. I come home drained. My off-hours are now filled with preparing for the job hunt. That gets launched in March. Until that gets sorted out, there won't be too much on the blog. I may get bursts of inspiration, but a post or two per month is probably all that's going to happen.

Anglachel

Help Lambert on a Sudden Shortfall

Lambert, the indefatigable person who keeps the wheels in motion at Corrente, is asking for some short term financial assistance due to an unexpected interruption of income.  What has been happening lately at Corrente? Some good stuff:

1. Corrente was the only political blog to cover the Egyptian revolution live, 24/7, from its beginning to the fall of Mubarak. Correntians LostClown and DanPS attended post-Egyptian events in WI and OH, and tweeted them to the Corrente sidebar.
2. Corrente is the only political blog to integrate the 198 techniques of non-violent protext and persuasion with its postings on political events, whether in Egypt or this country.
3. Correntians produce consistently excellent serial content, like Vast Left's American Extremists, the Plantidotians' Plantidote of the Day, the Corrente Review of Games, Hugh's reports on unemployment statistics, PA_lady's reports on fracking, Annals of Career "Progressive" Idiocy, or It's All About The Rents.
4. Corrente excels at calling bullshit, whether on Obama, our famously free press, the legacy parties, or career "progressives." In fact, Corrente is consistently ahead of the curve in recognizing bullshit as bullshit. We knew Obama was a fraud before it was cool.
5. Corrente has assembled an excellent list of long-form guest posters of whom I would single out Stirling Newberry, danps, letsgetitdone and Tony Wikrent (both now Fellows), as well as David Swanson. And I'm sure I'm missing somebody!
6. Corrente has been consistently ahead of the curve on Depression Era/Peak Oil topics like gardening, growing your own food, and home maintenance, as well as the overall theoretical construct of "rent."
7. At Corrente, two candidates for emergent parties continue to be active commenters and posters -- Julia Williams and Warren Mosler -- putting Corrente firmly in the mainstream of American public opinion, where 58% support a third party (although some would say a second).

To which -- appropriating the Versailles subjunctive -- I would add that the 2012 campaign began today. Independent platforms like Corrente will, I hope, be important for those who wish to avoid drowning in the oncoming tsunami of mis- and dis-information from the legacy parties.

Read the whole post, and then fish around in the sofa cushions for some goodness to throw his way.  There are very, very few political thinkers and bloggers in the Left Blogosphere who have contributed as much to keeping critical thinking alive as Lambert has done. 

Anglachel

Leave of Absence

I'm dealing with a family medical crisis at present. It may end tomorrow, it may be months. It will be a while before I do any serious blogging.

My thanks to those who know what's up and have sent their good wishes.

Anglachel

Good Thoughts

Thanks to everyone for all of the warm wishes and helpful advice.

I've been to the doctor and there don't appear to be any complications like a growth or bone damage (I was in a minor car accident not so long ago), so rest and physical therapy will be the course of action.

Anglachel

The New Year

I've been unable to post recently due a severely pinched nerve in my neck that has rendered any motion in my left arm and hand excruciatingly painful.

In lieu of posts from me, and probably a far better exchange, I recommend reading the articles of the most recent New York Review of Books. The edition is solid from top to bottom. Among my favorites:

• Where do we go from here? Paul Krugman and Robin Wells repeat the call for a primary opponent to Obama, providing the political and economic rationale for it to happen. Their theme of delinking is one I have tried to work with recently, but have been held back by the nerve problem.
• Why Wikileaks Changes Everything - Christian Caryl delves into many of the same themes I raised early on, particularly the political implications of the indiscriminate release of government data. I particularly like the evaluation of Assange as an incoherent twit, which has been my estimation all along.
• The Concealed Battle to Run Russia - Amy Knight makes excellent use of some leaked diplomatic cables in her review of a book on Russian politics. You want a picture of a truly criminal state? Cheney could only dream of this level of power.
• The Beleaguered Cambodians - Margo Picken provides a look at another criminal state. This one goes into the ways in which imperial & colonial powers have abetted a local elite to rob the nation blind. 
• China: From Famine to Oslo - Perry Link discusses two new novels by Chinese writers in the context of the Nobel Peace Prize being awarded to Liu Xiaobo. As with the articles on Russia and Cambodia, the author goes into life in a repressive, authoritarian state, discussing the reality of life for people who truly are oppressed, spied upon, imprisoned, tortured and murdered by their governments, and how they respond to this condition. These articles individually and together serve as a useful corrective to the denizens of the Left blogosphere wringing their hands and bemoaning the horrible, horrible behavior of the US Gubmint against Our Hero Julian and who might just be coming after poor little ME next! Get a grip, people.
• Curveballs - Joseph Lelyveld's review of Bush's account of his administration. Cool, almost cold, it eviscerates W's self-exculpation. The final paragraphs on exchanges between W and Bush 41 are particularly good.
• No Thanks for the Memories (access for NYRB subscribers only, but first few paragraphs are available) - Gordon Wood provides a much needed counterpoint to professional liberal pundits' mocking dismissal of the Tea Party by talking about the difference between fact and meaning in cultural memory.

Anyway, I hurt and don't know when that will change. I hope your new year is starting out better than mine.

Anglachel

Comments not getting delivered

Just a note that I've found a bunch of comments in a junk mail folder, some of which are months old. Blogger is also sending almost all comments to the Spam bin when they do arrive. If you haven't seen your comment, it's probably gone into this parallel universe.

Technology, so much fun. Not.

Anglachel

Commenting Rules on this Blog

I've posted this before, but it's been over a year and there are some new names showing up in the comments:

• Comments on this blog are moderated. If you do not see your comment right away, it is in moderation. Please do not post the same comment more than once.
• I have a life. Sometimes I can read comments in moderation very soon after they have been posted. Sometimes they will sit for most of the day or even a few days. Adjust your expectations accordingly.
• If you don't see your comment, it means A) I haven't moderated it yet or B) I moderated it and rejected it.
• I sometimes get way behind in moderating comments and I reject the entire batch to clear things out. Nothing personal. 
• If you have put a hyperlink into your comment, I will hold that comment until I can take my time reading what is at the link.
• If you state in the comment that it is not for publication, I will not publish it. In those cases, I recommend you use the contact link at the foot of the page instead of leaving a comment.
• If you have said something that appears to be humorous, satirical, ironic, etc., and which could easily be misunderstood, I'm probably going to hold the comment until I can add a follow up or else not publish it. I may get the joke but I hate cleaning up after people who didn't.
• Anyone who reads my comments can see that I'll approve and release stuff that I strongly disagree with as long as it is civil and thoughtful. Conversely, lack of civility or thoughtfulness, even when the commenter agrees with me, will earn a rejection.
• If you are rude, TYPE IN ALL CAPS, look like you're getting into a pointless pissing match with another commenter, spam, or generally annoy me, you will be rejected.
• I sometimes release comments that demonstrate the commenter is a moron. If you posted that comment and get ridiculed because you said something moronic, too bad. Think before you post.
• Comments of the "I agree!" and "Me too!" variety probably won't be released.
• I run this blog for my own purposes. I'm not here to promote your blog, support your cause, or otherwise make you happy. If I don't release your comment or add you to my blogroll or mention you in a post, that's life.
• Comments that have nothing to do with the post will probably get deleted.
• Sometimes I reply to you with a comment of my own, but I prefer to leave that area for you to voice your thoughts and respond to other commenters. After all, I have the blog itself for my own commentary.

In short, be civil, stay on topic, say something interesting or insightful or provocative without being antagonistic, and I'll release the comment.

Anglachel

New Kid on the Block

A little blog business.

First, Daily Howler added an RSS feed and is now in my "Just Click Already, OK?" sidebar. And the Incomparable One is on fire this week, so be sure to click.

Second, I'd like to direct your attention to a new blog that just started up yesterday, Democrat Without Apology. It's a promising start.

Anglachel

Backed Up

Hey kids,

I'm glad people are enjoying the recent posts, but keep expectations in line.

You'll be seeing some occasional posts here, probably in bursts as something in the news catches my attention, but I'm not returning to the almost daily blogging I was doing last year. My life is pretty full right now and I'm doing my best to keep any one thing from dominating. And, given the pathetic performance of the current administration, it's going to be a long four years. I gotta pace myself.

On the non-political front, we're finally getting the trim painted on Casa Anglachel week after next, so I should have some photos to share, and we're entering Apocalypse Season here in Southern California. Recently I saw a fire map for the City of San Diego, marking areas within the city limits that are considered high risk zones for wild fires. Yup, we're in one of those zones.

Anglachel

RL Intrudes

New posts will be light the next week as I'm working on a major project that is taking up most of my evening hours.

Anglachel

PS - Someone asked what I was working on. I'm under a confidentiality agreement, but the broad outline is I'm part of a review panel looking at a large scale data integration and delivery project for a regional public-benefit agency in southern California. The project itself is worth several million dollars and will be quite an engineering feat. While reading systems integration proposals can be a mind-numbing task, I'm fascinated by the different approaches. The finalist group was selected today and we move on to more detailed reviews over the rest of the month.

What I Did on My Winter Vacation

Yes, I'm back. Not that I ever left, mind you, but I am back to do some blogging.

After the intense blogging of last year, I needed a break. My life was out of balance, so I did a lot of other things, very non-blogging, non-political kinds of things like watch a bunch of movies and TV shows I'd missed the first time around, collect a whole new set of recipies, put in herbs, walk all over the neighborhood, and build a few web sites.

I've also had my raise from last year rescinded in a company wide pay cut and am waiting to see what other measures may be needed to keep the company afloat. We have a good CEO and an excellent senior team who are working their butts off to keep everyone employed with benefits that are more than just window dressing.

I had a round with the flu a few weeks back, maybe even swine flu (I do live in San Diego), but have finally shaken that. The whole famn damily is doing well. Last week, we put geraniums into pots and put them on the front porch. The bright red blooms are neon against the yellow stucco.

So now I'm back to put blogging into the mix once more. Fewer posts, without a doubt. My goal is to keep up the political theorizing I began last year about the shifting cultural and political alignment of the nation, and how the netroots, even with Facebook and iPods thrown in, will not rescue the Republic.

Anglachel

DC Blogger is a Vital Voice - Keep it Strong

Hey kids,

I'm doing just fine but am very, very busy with work and waiting for the inauguration madness to go by before picking up the virtual pen again. Thanks for all the good wishes for me and my family.

If you have some spare change to hand out to bloggers, I know someone who is a vital and under-recognized voice in Left Blogistan, DC Blogger of Corrente, health care maven extraordinaire. First, go and read her great posts. Do you want to know what is going on with health care politics and policy? Bookmark her blog and read it. All of it. Every day.

Next, go and send her some kibble so she can keep doing these great posts. Blogging is hard work. The kind of blogging DC does is doubly hard because she's not just out there bloviating like yours truly, she's researching, getting the facts, following the money and the operatives, keeping us informed on just what the bastards are up to.

So show her some money love and some linky goodness, too, which raises her search engine ratings and brings her to greater prominance.

It's the right things to do.

Anglachel

The Wisdom of Tanta

CR of Calculated Risk has composed a post that is a chronological list of Tanta's writings on the blog:

Compendium of Tanta's Posts

I'm linking that here to bring it to my readers' attention. I have also linked to that post under the Econoblog heading in the right-hand sidebar. For anyone who wants to understand the ins and outs of the mortgage industry from someone who can explain the arcana with intelligence, wit and no bullshit, you will not find a better teacher. If Paul Krugman can learn from Tanta, so can you.

As for the lack of my own posts lately, I've had various problems (family, head cold, basement) to attend to and that means less time to read up on events and compose posts. I anticipate slow posting through December. My one observation that I'm going to try to write up soon is on Kevin Drum's "hat eating" stunt. It says a great deal about the myopia of the blogospheric pundits and points to the self-defeating division of the left that these pundits reproduce day in and day out.

Anglachel

Infrastructure Repairs

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I'm having difficulty getting my braining to run in a single direction the last few days and I think I'm coming down with something.

As someone who has had sewer line problems at my last three abodes and know just how wretched they are to deal with, I'd like to direct your attention to a sewer infrastructure problem plaguing Lambert of Corrente fame. If you have spare change rattling around in your PayPal account, please consider donating some of it. Do your part to stimulate the local economy and keep Lambert out of deep doo-doo!

Anglachel

Reminder to Commenters

• Comments on this blog are moderated. If you do not see your comment right away, it is in moderation. Please do not post the same comment more than once.
  
• I have a life. Sometimes I can read comments in moderation very soon after they have been posted. Sometimes, they will sit for most of the day. Adjust your expectations accordingly.
• If you don't see your comment after several hours, it means A) I haven't moderated it yet or B) I moderated it and rejected it.
  
• If you have put a hyperlink into your comment, I will hold that comment until I am at at a computer where I can visit any site and take my time reading what is at the link. Expect that you will remain in moderation for several hours if you add a hyperlink.
  
• If you have said something that appears to be humorous, satirical, ironic, etc., and which could easily be misunderstood, I'm probably going to hold the comment until I can add a follow up or else not publish it. I may get the joke but I hate cleaning up after people who didn't.
  
• If you are rude, TYPE IN ALL CAPS, look like you're getting into a pointless pissing match with another commenter, spam, or generally annoy me, you will be rejected.
  
• Anyone who reads my comments can see that I'll approve and release stuff that I strongly disagree with as long as it is civil and thoughtful. Conversely, lack of civility or thoughtfulness, even when the commenter agrees with me, will earn a rejection.
• I sometimes get way behind in moderating comments and I just reject the entire batch to clear things out.
  

Anglachel

Commenters, Chill Out

Seriously, some of you need to get back on your meds.

Threatening me will not make your candidate win or the other side lose. Trust me on that one. Neither will writing up 2,000 word essays on why so-and-so is the salvation of the nation. Nor trying to convince me of the righteousness of your cause. Efforts to shame me by invoking Hillary (whether to support Obama or to support McCain) only piss me off. In short, trying to affect the outcome of the race by applying pressure to a cranky political theorist is a losing proposition.

If you try to do anything like that, you are not paying attention to what I write.

I'm not discussing who to vote for, or even if anyone should vote. I don't give a hoot in hell what you do in the voting booth. Follow your bliss, but don't lie to yourself about why you're doing it.

The only thing that matters to me is describing what I see and trying to analyze why it is happening. Such as the continued success of the Republicans at the polls despite being the party of Abu Ghraib. The continued failure of the Democrats to achieve sustained electoral success. The violent misogyny that has a stranglehold on the Left. Abandonment of the working class by all sides. The Democrats' embrace of the rhetoric of the Right. The "Progressive Blogosphere" and its willing capitulation to the MSM. The problem of collective action in a modern political system. And so forth.

So anyone who wants to rail at me for supporting the bad guy can save their breath and go hang out at the sites still invested in the horserace.

Anglachel

Glossary

I've been using acronyms that are befuddling people. Here's a glossary. If there are others (or references you just can't figure out) let me know.

MSM - Main Stream Media. Not sure of the origin. Hit my consciousness sometime in the first Bush II term.

PB 0.5/1.0/2.0 - Progressive Blogosphere [version number]. The first upsurge of progressive blogs is the 1.0, now downgraded to 0.5, version. Their capitulation to the MSM has led to the question WKJM? And also to attempts to found PB 2.0. See Corrente for discussions on getting 2.0 up and running.

SCLM - So Called Liberal Media. Origin is from Eric Alterman of Altercation. See his books on the topic.

WKJM - Who (whoever) Kidnapped Josh Marshall. Origin is the Incomparable Bob Somerby of The Daily Howler who was trying to figure out why the previous thoughtful and rational Josh Marshall, founder of Talking Points Memo, had turned into a pewling, lying shill.

Update - Corrente has an extensive glossary here. Reading it over, I realize that my vocabulary is in need of expansion.

Anglachel

More Blog Updates and Business

Yes, I'm still tinkering.

I've modified my links on the side to create an Election 2008 section. The first set of links there are to my local SD Democrats Site to keep track of local races, the ActBlue California page for donations, Wes Clark's Securing America PAC site, and The Democratic Daily for Democratic News.

The next clump are polling and election sites. 270 to Win leads off, and then the Gallup Key Indicators page. This is far more interesting than their plain daily tracking poll because these offer longitudinal reports of key indicators allowing trends to be tracked. They have an interesting mix of reports. SUSA is next because of the range and depth of their surveying and then Quinnipiac, which does some of the best polls out there, but tend to be limited in the number they do. Rasmussen is in there since many people follow it, but their data isn't that useful. The NYT page has an engaging mix of maps. Pollster is there as a poll aggregation site. They pick up polls from less well known operations.

The Hillary sites are in their own section now. I moved my Contact link into the About area. Warning to people who email me directly - I ignore almost everything sent in. Sorry, I have a life. If you want to advance your latest conspiracy theory, tell me how much I suck, tell me how much Palin/Obama/McCain/Biden/Hillary sucks, pass on unfounded rumors, ask me for links/posts/money, or otherwise be a self-centered git, don't waste the effort.

Comments - The comments are getting pretty repetitive now, so most get deleted. Don't forward links from sites linked in my sidebar. Don't tell me how awful [insert candidate name here] is unless you can tie this in a relevant way to Democratic Party policies and goals. Ditto on telling me how wonderful [insert candidate name here] is. Comments that try to bully me for whatever reason are deleted. Comments that try to play "gotcha" by taking a point out of context suffer the same fate. Comments that even hint of sexism, racism, classism, ageism, etc., get deleted. Comments in ALL CAPS WITH LOTS OF !!!! go bye-bye. Comments demanding I take sides in the perpetual tit-for-tat blogger bitchfests get deleted. Sometimes I just delete comments because a bunch have backed up and I'm too tired to go through them all. Comments that have something in them that make me go, "Hmm, OK, I can see your point," even if I don't agree with them have a pretty good chance of getting published. Comments that say nice things about other commenters I try to pass on. Anything marked not for publication will be respected. Regular commenters get a little more leeway than new posters, but not much.

Why do I have links in my blogroll of sites I disagree with or who refuse to link to me? Because I think they say things that need to be heard, even if I find the message disagreeable or at odds with my opinions. Why don't I have links in my blogroll of sites that are in accord with me? Because they don't say things in a way that engages me. Or maybe I'm just too lazy to clean up the link list one way or the other. Or I like messing with people's minds. Or I don't really have a reason, the links are just there. Click, read and make up your own mind.

Anglachel

Change to the Blog

I finally gave in to Blogger's nagging and upgraded the blog to the new widgetized version.

Unfortunately, it won't allow me to put a list of links to recent posts near the top, but insists on populating the archive list with them. Look for links to off-page posts at the bottom with the archived items.

I'm curious to see how and if the feed mechanisms in the About (pale green) section work. Let me know. The biggest new item is at the foot of the right hand column where Blogger has come up with something called "Followers" where I guess it shows people who sign up to "follow" this blog. I stuck it in to see how it works. It may or may not stay.

Anglachel

Not Affiliated with PUMA

Just a short note to inform readers that I am not a member of PUMA, PUMAPac, or any PUMA related site, operation or organization. In the last few days, I have been referred to as a PUMA, have seen my name and blog URL posted in a way that implies membership, and have received emails (pro and con) addressing me as a PUMA member.

I share many concerns and issues with PUMA members and agree with most of what they are attempting, but I also have points of sharp disagreement.

As I said in a comment on Corrente to correct a misidentification, I am a Clinton Democrat. Period.

With appreciation for PUMA,

Anglachel