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Archive for March, 2009

One Step Closer To Directive 10-289

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Credit Crisis, Economics, Politics

Barney Frank wants to regulate everyone’s salary:
[I]n a little-noticed move, the House Financial Services Committee, led by chairman Barney Frank, has approved a measure that would, in some key ways, go beyond the most draconian features of the original AIG bill. The new legislation, the “Pay for Performance Act of 2009,” would impose government controls [...]

New G.M. CEO: Bankruptcy Is Back On The Table

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Auto Industry, Business, Economics, Politics

The new CEO of General Motors made it clear in his first public remarks that the company very well could find itself in Bankruptcy Court
DETROIT — The new chief executive of General Motors, Frederick A. Henderson, said Tuesday that bankruptcy was “more probable” than ever for the automaker but that he still hoped to [...]

Another Dead Tree Media Bankruptcy

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Internet, Media, Technology

The owner of the Chicago Sun-Times has filed Chapter 11:
Sun-Times Media, the parent company of The Chicago Sun-Times newspaper, said Tuesday that it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and hired an investment bank to explore possible asset sales.
The company said it would continue to operate its 59 newspapers and various Web sites as [...]

Joe The Plumber Meets Joe Six-Pack

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Dumbasses, Politics

Samuel Wurzelbacher is touring Pennsylvania and appearing at rally’s against the so-called Employee Free Choice Act a/k/a “card check.”
So far at least, he doesn’t seem to be getting a great reception from his fellow blue collar workers:
Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher — better known as Joe the Plumber — headlined a raucous rally against pro-union legislation Monday [...]

Ron Paul On The General Motors Bailout

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Auto Industry, Business, Credit Crisis, Economics, Politics, Ron Paul

Ron Paul was on Fox Business Network earlier today talking about the new auto bailout and Obama’s decision to force General Motors’ CEO Rick Wagoner out as the price for further aid.
As Paul says, this was all entirely predictable the moment that we, or more specifically George W. Bush, decided to go down the bailout [...]

Microsoft’s Bridge To Nowhere

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Economics, Politics

Part of the stimulus package that passed Congress last month includes money for a bridge that will primarily benefit one of the richest companies in the world:
REDMOND, Washington (CNN) — Should a bridge that would connect two campuses at Microsoft’s headquarters be funded with $11 million from the federal stimulus package?
Critics of using stimulus money [...]

Miss Universe Goes To Gitmo

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Celebrities, In The News

Dayana Mendoza, Miss Universe 2008, visited the prison at Guantanamo Bay and came back with this rather bizarre blog post:
This week, Guantanamo!!! It was an incredible experience.
We arrived in Gitmo on Friday and stared going around the town, everybody knew Crystle and I were coming so the first thing we did was attend a big [...]

Daniel Hannan, MEP On Morning Joe

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Politics

Daniel Hannan, the European Parliament Member who became famous last week for his devastating dressing down of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, was on Morning Joe yesterday:

John McCain Proclaims The Death Of Public Campaign Financing

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under John McCain, Politics

The former Republican nominee says that 2008 was a watershed year in more ways than one:
Sen. John McCain, an architect of sweeping campaign-finance reform who got walloped by a presidential candidate armed with more than $750 million, predicts that no one will ever again accept federal matching funds to run for the nation’s highest office.
“No [...]

Federal Judge Bars Charges In “Sexting” Case

by Doug Mataconis @ Tuesday, March 31st, 2009. Filed under Legal, Technology

A Federal Judge in Pennsylvania has barred a state prosecutor from charging three teenage girls with distribution of child pornography for sending provocative photos of themselves via cell phone:
PHILADELPHIA, March 30 (Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Monday barred a Pennsylvania prosecutor from filing child pornography charges against three teenage girls caught with sexually suggestive [...]

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