Classless

Some commenters on Braves Journal have called the booing of WPE last night “classless”. I agree. And I’m all for it.

Look at the word itself, rather than its connotation. It means “lack of class”. And what is “class”? The meaning of “politeness, breeding” is secondary, but telling. Fundamentally, class is an organizing principle of society that sorts people by birth, upon their birth, into their designated place in society. You’re an aristocrat, or you’re a peasant. The Bush Administration is built, basically, on hereditary privilege.

The creeping royalism that has come to pervade the office of the president over the past decades is disturbing. The President of the United States is not a king; he is not entitled to sovereign treatment. He is an elected official subject to the laws of the United States and answerable to the people of the United States.

I am a Democrat. And I am a democrat. What the latter means, and the former should mean, is that nobody is better than anyone else because of who their parents are, and nobody is better than anyone else because of their office. I respect people for what they do, not for what their name is or what their job description is. George Bush is a bad man and is terrible at his job. He has failed at literally every job he has ever held. If he wasn’t the son of the American aristocracy, he would be working at Wal-Mart, if he was lucky.

But that, too, is secondary. What is primary is the unbelievable amount of harm that he has done the United States of America and the world. He’s the greatest catastrophe the world has seen since the end of World War II. If you can’t boo that, what can you boo?

Bush’s plan for the inner cities

As part of its plan to ruin everything good and decent, ESPN let George W. Bush into the booth during the Braves-Nationals game tonight, where he proceeded to inform us of the great opportunities playing professional baseball offers inner-city youth. Who says that he doesn’t care about black people? He just doesn’t care about black people who can’t turn the double play or hit a curveball.

This is wonderful

China Law Could Impede Microsoft Deal for Yahoo | TuscaloosaNews.com

We have reached the stage where a corrupt pseudo-Communist plutocracy has more consumer-friendly laws than the United States of America.

Bonds now essentially IOUs written on used napkins

Moody’s downgrades Jefferson County’s sewer credit rating for the second time this month- al.com

They cut the hell out of the bond rating, all the way to Caa3, six notches below where it was and only two above the lowest junk rating. They also cut the rating for other county debt, though none of that is down to junk status yet.

At long last, and by force

WBHM radio station reduces airing of classical music- al.com

I, in fact, happen to know why it took the shutdown of their provider to get UAB’s public radio station to start playing NPR during the workday rather than classical music. Almost everyone has, for years, wanted WBHM to play more NPR. However, they refused to do so, because of a tiny clique of doctors at the medical center. Seriously. When I was an undergrad at UAB, the station director up and told a whole class, including me, that this was the reason. This was in 1990.

St. Roy lives!

‘Ten Commandments Judge’ defends Texas jury’s use of Bible (OneNewsNow.com)

It’s been awhile, I know, but what’s Roy Moore up to? Oh, right, generally acting like an idiot without even cursory knowledge of the history of Anglo-American jurisprudence or the United States Constitution.

Oliver’s attorney claims the death sentence should be overturned because several jury members brought Bibles and consulted scripture in the deliberation room. But attorneys with the Foundation for Moral Law — headed by Judge Moore — have argued in a brief that the jury’s consultation of Bible passages did not taint the jury in violation of the Sixth Amendment.

So, normal. I wonder what he would have thought if the jurors had consulted, say, John 8:1-11. Or Matthew 5:38-40.

Matthew 22:15-22 is, of course, right out.

A radical plan

Investment bankers, creditors tell Jefferson County to raise sewer rates- al.com

Yes, they say that if the county is having trouble paying off its sewer bonds, they might consider raising sewer rates. Of course, sewer rates have already gone up a whole lot, so the commission says it won’t do that. Bankruptcy, here they come!

“I think it would be cool to own a movie theater chain!”

Exclusive theater chain targets rich moviegoers | Entertainment | Film | Reuters

The Retirement Systems of Alabama — last seen around here owning US Airways, and you can imagine how that turned out — is investing in a theater chain startup that would ask people to pay $35 to go to the movies. I don’t know if it’s worse if this succeeds or if it doesn’t.

There’s always plenty of money

Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford says court-ordered pay raises for police and fire departments to begin this summer- al.com

It’s $11 million or so. What’s $11 million to BMLL? Birmingham is made of money.

I’m in favor of pay raises for cops and firemen. I’m just saying that Langford seems to find money everywhere, and I can’t imagine everyone else just missed it.

$75 K and he gets a clean resume

Board, Mims settle dispute- al.com

Stan Mims gets seven months pay, is allowed to resign, and will get a neutral reference for future employers. Not too bad for someone fired for fraud and gross incompetence.