Reagan Advisor: U.S. Taxes Are at Historic Lows

I had to blink when I saw the byline. Bruce Bartlett, an adviser in the Reagan and Bush41 White Houses, writes in the Economix blog that Federal taxes are at the lowest point in 60 years. 

Heresy! 

Dumb Question of the 21st Century: Is It Legal? | Engelhardt

Sadly. Nothing I can add.

Obama Appoints Millionaire Utility Exec for Commerce Secretary

Remember when President Obama was railing against Wall Street banks' "excessive compensation"?

That's so yesterday.

If at First You Don’t Succeed Skydiving is Not for You…

Couldn't resist sharing that headline from an NYT blog, Schott's Vocab. A series of punny jokes follows. 

 

Fabio Fognini's Fabulous French Five Setter

Some people simply attract weird. 

You might remember Italian Fabio Fognini for his French Open match last year, that was played well into the dark of night for reasons only the French Tennis Federation will know. 

Update: Fognini had to default from today's quarterfinal due to his leg injury, putting to rest the media controversy about whether he was injured or not. 

Today, Fognini won 11-9 in the fifth set despite:

Federer's Quiet Grand Slam Streak

While attention focuses on Novak Djokovic's 40-and-counting ATP tennis winning streak, Roger Federer quietly added to a streak of his own with his victory this morning. 

Soulmates

2011                                                                  1984

Atul Gawande Commencement Speech at Harvard Medical School

Excerpts from the commencement address by Atul Gawande, whose writings on the U.S. medical system have catalyzed much of the current debate, as published in the New Yorker. 

Healthcare Cost Pseudo-Debate

If you really want a detailed discussion about the GOP plan to gut Medicare and the GOP's justifications, WaPo's Ezra Klein does a good job, even though the architect of the GOP plan refuses to sit for any face-to-face questioning in the media (never a great sign of confidence). 

But, if like most people with real lives you don't want to slog through that, I'll summarize it for you:

Marine Survives Two Tours in Iraq, SWAT Kills Him - Hit & Run : Reason Magazine

Shocking story from Arizona, where a SWAT team busted into a familiy's home, shot a Marine veteran of two tours in the Iraq war, with no criminal record, then prevented paramedics from treating him for a hour as he lay bleeding to death. 

Police have repeatedly changed their story, saying at first that the Marine shot at them, only to find that the safety on his rifle was still on.

Police complained of misleading information in media reports, but have now had the search warrants and other evidence in the case sealed -- except for items they selectively release to the media.