Er…caucuses… have yielded victories to the leaders of the three Republican parties: The youth-oriented Libertarians, the evangelical conservatives, and the party that only wants to beat Obama.

It is a piece of traditional wisdom that if they can’t fall in love with a candidate Republicans will, in the end, simply fall in line. The primary goal of the Republican party is to defeat Obama and the view of the Republican establishment is that Romney is most likely to be able to do that....

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The Motorcycle Scene

The Scene hasn’t been around for some time and has disappeared as a separate TC.com blog. But gone is not forgotten and the Data Port still throws a leg over the scoot so It will appear here from time to time.

Sunday morning saw the traditional first ride of the year up Mount Lemmon. This is pretty much an undertaking by the SEAT (Southeast Arizona Touring) Riders. SEAT is a chartered BMWMOA club, but has a “ride what you got” policy so this year saw Honda, Ducati, Tri...

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Americans have learned the hard way that when rich organizations and wealthy individuals shower Washington with millions in campaign contributions, they get what they want.

Moyers gave the keynote speech at the 40th Anniversary celebration of    Public Citizen, the legendary nonprofit consumer advocacy organization founded in 1971 to represent consumer interests in government. The entire speech is too long to repost as a blog entry, but in sum he argues that although most of us pay li...

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Cold weather and clean-up sweeps by armored riot police are shifting the Occupy Wall Street movement from literal occupation of public spaces to other forms of political action.

On balance the literal occupation of public space has been successful. The focus of public attention has been shifted from the single issue of national debt to the fact that our financial and political systems have become so dysfunctional  that they are resistant to reform or problem solving.

A commenter to an earlier p...

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I’m not keen on the word ‘vision.’ It’s a word  frequently used by  politicians who don’t have one. I’m embarrassed to be using it here, but I can’t think of a better one. The word ‘plan’ is a good workmanlike alternative, but perhaps too workmanlike. It suggests a specific project in hand, an end agreed upon for which we need only specify the means; something like building a bookcase or providing for the orderly repair of  a system of streets.

If  I say I have a plan for ...

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Critics of OWS seem to be obsessed with the notion that the movement needs to move on. “Okay,” they say, “You’ve made your point. It’s time to fold your tents and get organized politically.”

What these critics seem to want is traditional politics. Support candidates, run for office, vote. Something along these lines is certainly one way of being “political,” and the progressive movement is already ramping up to support candidates like Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.

But one ...

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Read more carefully, that’s  Other People’s Money, not OPiuM. This addiction is common to many business enterprises, whether business start-ups, real estate development, or plant expansions. It’s a normal part of doing business. Start-ups won’t start up without lines of credit from banks.  Bigger operations go to the public money markets with stock offerings or bond issues. It’s all perfectly legit

In these cases the lenders study the aspiring entrepreneur’s pro-formas, weigh the r...

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Here’s a great way to participate in Occupy Wall Street that doesn’t involve sleeping in a tent. Sleeping in a tent gives OWS great public exposure so do it if you can. Next time a march is planned, join in. But, hey, some of you might not be into tenting; or perhaps you live in the boonies, where a “march” is a stroll in the woods with the wild life. This doesn’t mean you don’t have a voice.

Corporate America, particularly the financial wing, hasn’t bee...

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Remember the old saying, “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice shame on me ?” Well, the corporations want to fool us again. Don’t let them do it.

There is a move afoot to “repatriate” huge sums of money currently held overseas by US-based multi-national corporations. Under US tax law those funds are not taxed until they’re brought back to the United States.

Congressional leaders and our wealthiest corporations want some help in bringing home the bacon. They are aggressively lobb...

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Financial markets are booming. The Dow is up 11% this month.  Financial institutions are delighted. (The jobless are, well, still jobless.) Who is responsible? Well, indirectly, or maybe directly, it is German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who dragged the Euro-Zone banks into agreeing to take a fifty percent haircut on their Greek bonds. The markets cheered.

In this morning’s NY Times  column Paul Krugman puts it all in perspective. (Italics are mine.

 It’s worth stepping back to look at ...

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