"I've never seen anything like it"
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Ken Paxton, Texas AG, just settled a defamation suit brought by his former deputies and Texas taxpayers will foot the bill. And why did he defame his former deputies? Because they blew the whistle on Paxton’s criminal conduct, a case which is still in limbo. Attorney General Ken Paxton and four of his former top deputies who said he improperly fired them after they accused him of crimes have reached a tentative agreement to end a whistleblower lawsuit that would pay those employees $3.3 million. In a filing Friday, attorneys for Paxton and the whistleblowers asked the Texas Supreme Court to further defer consideration of the whistleblower case until the two sides can finalize the tentative agreement. Once the deal is finalized and payment by the attorney general’s office is approved, the two sides will move to end the case, the filing said. The agreement would bring an end to the lawsuit over the firing of the staffers, but would not end Paxton’s legal troubles. The allegations by the former aides of bribery and abuse of office prompted an FBI investigation, though no charges have been filed and Paxton has denied wrongdoing.
We know some of the companies and individuals who paid big money to political parties, but we don’t know them all, reports Alan Austin. read now...The post Son Down appeared first on scheerpost.com.
“To defend civilization, defeat Russia.” Writing in the unfailingly bellicose Atlantic, an American academic of my acquaintance recently issued that dramatic call to arms. And lest there be any confusion about the stakes involved, the image accompanying his essay depicted Russian President Vladimir Putin with a Hitler mustache and haircut. Cast Putin as the latest manifestation of the Führer and the resurrection of Winston Churchill can’t be far behind. And, lo, more than a few observers have already begun depicting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as the latest reincarnation of America’s favorite British prime minister. These days, it may be Western-supplied missiles downing “kamikaze drones” rather than Spitfires tangling with Messerschmitts over southern England, but the basic scenario remains intact. In... Read more
You hear a lot about how police officers have to be allowed to shoot first and ask questions later because it’s so dangerous for them on the streets. But many of them are against gun safety laws which seem counter-intuitive. Some are going so far as to refuse to enforce them: Law enforcement’s reaction to the recent assault weapons law approved by Gov. JB Pritzker has been largely negative, with many sheriffs saying they believe the law is illegal. More than 80 sheriffs, including those in Peoria, Woodford and Tazewell counties, have said they will not ask those with a valid Firearm Owners Identification card to register their weapons as required by the law. Others have gone further, saying they will not arrest people “solely for noncompliance with the act.” But can a sheriff refuse to enforce a law? Is it legal for a sheriff to decide what laws are legal, or is that the purview of the courts?
Tourism Australia has received millions of hits to its web page after airing a mock trailer for a sequel to the classic Australian movie Alvin Purple during yesterday’s Superbowl. “We’ve specifically targeted the randy young bloke with a cheeky sparkle... Read More ›
I certainly hope Norfolk Southern's owners are happy!
What’s a little more suffering? This is depressing. But it’s best that people over 60 understand that it’s every man for himself, accept the fact that their lives are considered expendable and assess the risks accordingly: In early December, Aldo Caretti developed a cough and, despite all his precautions, came up positive for Covid on a home test. It took his family a couple of days to persuade Mr. Caretti, never fond of doctors, to go to the emergency room. There, he was sent directly to the intensive care unit. Mr. Caretti and his wife, Consiglia, both 85, lived quietly in a condo in Plano, Texas. “He liked to read and learn, in English and Italian,” said his son Vic Caretti, 49. “He absolutely adored his three grandchildren.” Aldo Caretti had encountered some health setbacks last year, including a mild stroke and a serious bout of shingles, but “he recuperated from all that.” Covid was different. Even on a ventilator, Mr. Caretti struggled to breathe. After 10 days, “he wasn’t getting better,” said Vic Caretti, who flew in from Salt Lake City. “His organs were starting to break down.
Ambitious social security and health care reforms aim to coax the masses into saving less and consuming more
This could be big. Saving preference is inversely proportional to consumption preference. Saving reduces consumption spending, that is, demand. Low consumption to investment and low domestic to external are a major factors holding the Chinese economy back from expansion.
Even the IMF is recommending a version of this — from the neoliberal perspective, of course. But China has its own plan in the works. Hopefully, it will be more welfare-oriented than stimulative-directed.
Well targeted, that is, welfare-oriented, this kind of program would also be a factor in stabilizing China's population and reversing the present decline that will adversely affect growth over time absent offsetting increases in productivity — which is one factor in China's emphasis on innovation.
This would also make China more self-sufficient, and it is likely that China is observing Russia's demonstrated success in achieving this.
Week-end Wrap – Political Economy – February 12, 2023
by Tony Wikrent
War
Seymour Hersh: Navy Divers + Spooks + Norway Took Out Nord Stream 2 on Biden’s Orders, Using Timer
[Naked Capitalism, 2-8-2023]
Human resources (qualified people). This is a failure of education.
He never stops being embarrassing: Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) kicked off the first meeting of the House Judiciary Committee last week by cordially inviting an accused murderer to lead the Pledge of Allegiance. Under its new Republican leadership, the 118th Congress’ judiciary committee may choose to start each hearing with the pledge ― an amendment to the rules put forth by Gaetz, who said it allowed members to invite “inspirational constituents” to lead it. The first honor went to Corey Beekman, a retired National Guard member accused of killing a man in 2019 whose case has not gone to trial. Gaetz did not mention this aspect of his guest’s backstory. Beekman led the pledge in his military dress uniform on Feb. 1. “It is my pleasure and distinct honor to introduce to the committee Staff Sgt. Corey Ryan Beekman, an American hero and a constituent of mine residing in Pensacola, Florida,” Gaetz said in the video still available on C-SPAN. He rolled through Beekman’s life story.
It is time Australia made a big, if bold, shift in its foreign policy and put up its hand to be a part of the Non-aligned movement. It was refreshing to read ‘Now is the time for non-alignment and peace’ by Prashad and McKenzie in Pearls and Irritations. The Non-aligned Movement has attracted 120 nations Continue reading »
It goes without saying, and even better with saying, that America’s destiny is now tied up with China, which means so too is Australia’s. There has, of course, been a lot of commentary on this and on the diplomatic role that middle powers play in an evolving relationship. What has been absent, to some degree, Continue reading »
Recent debate on this site about economic growth and environmental protection highlights the very narrow and limiting framing of mainstream economics, and points to the far more positive prospect that is available to us if we can broaden our vision. Mark Diesendorf (and here) has strongly countered arguments by Roger Beale and Michael Keating that Continue reading »
The latest NAPLAN results show shocking inequalities in school outcomes between highly advantaged and disadvantaged students in NSW. Very high proportions of low socio-economic status (SES), Indigenous and remote area students do not achieve national literacy and numeracy standards compared to very small proportions of high SES students. By Year 9, low SES, Indigenous and Continue reading »
Indonesia is chair of ASEAN this year and using its position to try and end the two-year crisis in Myanmar that’s already cost more than 3,000 lives. President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo has told Reuters he wants to send an envoy to Myanmar ‘in the hope of demonstrating to military rulers how Indonesia successfully transitioned to Continue reading »
My sources corroborate Seymour Hersh’s report that the US was behind the Nord Stream pipeline sabotage. (My sources are logic, common sense, and public statements by US government officials.) If Putin and senior Russian officials had said what Biden and senior US officials have been saying about how much they hate the Nord Stream pipelines Continue reading »
I have finally moved my blog and integrated in within my long-standing home page. The new blog address is – http://www.billmitchell.org/blog – although the old address will work forever. However, I do urge you to update your bookmarks to the new address....
Bill Mitchell – billy blog (in the future: William Mitchell - Modern Monetary Theory)
Administrative update: My blog has a new homeBill Mitchell | Professor in Economics and Director of the Centre of Full Employment and Equity (CofFEE), at University of Newcastle, NSW, Australia
Right’s claim purge of left is to ensure ‘quality’ candidates who can’t embarrass party is a sham Momentum staffer Angus Satow has posted a thread of what he claims is ‘all’ the right-wing candidates that have been allowed to stand for selection by the Labour party despite being ‘scandal-hit’ – which he points out makes […]
Tomorrow morning, I’ll join CNBC’s Squawk Box to talk about a new effort to tax the rich. The segment will air at 7:50 ET. I’m not referring to the so-called billionaire tax that President Biden called for in his State of the Union address last week. That almost certainly isn’t going anywhere. I’m talking about a
Every Sunday, I blog about the geek-friendly radio shows the BBC are putting out in the forthcoming week! All of the following can be either listened to live or downloaded afterwards for free on the BBC Sounds app, no matter where you are in the world. Please note: I don’t include later episodes of most ... Read More
THE much-loved Ocean Film Festival World Tour returns to Coffs Harbour next month for its tenth anniversary. This year the one-off special event screening takes place at the Jetty Memorial Theatre on Thursday 9 March 2023 from 7.00pm to 10.00pm. Advertise with News of The Area today. It’s worth it for your business. Message us....
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Something to savor with your morning coffee: