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40th Anniversary of the Nixon Pardon: Congressional Testimony

President Ford’s sudden announcement of his decision to pardon Richard Nixon raised many questions. People felt that the pardon circumvented justice, continuing the Watergate coverup by preventing the possible indictment of the former President that could have provided answers to lingering questions. Among the overwhelming negative responses from the public was the idea that the pardon was part of a “secret deal” between Ford and Nixon.

Several Representatives requested answers to specific questions regarding the pardon and the circumstances surrounding it. On October 17, 1974, President Ford appeared on Capitol Hill before the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, becoming the first sitting President to give sworn congressional testimony. He delivered an opening statement and answered questions posed by the committee members regarding when and with whom he had discussed the pardon, and why he decided to grant it.

"I hope…that I have at least cleared the air so that most Americans will understand what was done and why it was done," he said at the end of the two hour session. "And again I trust that all of us can get back to the job of trying to solve our problems both at home and abroad."

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Humans like to think of themselves as special. But science has a way of puncturing their illusions.

The potential impacts of intelligent machines on human life in The Economist. (via oupacademic)

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“Hell is the absence of the people you long for.”

Emily St. John Mandel, Station Eleven (via dustyhalo)

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I remained too much inside my head and ended up losing my mind.

Edgar Allan Poe, Complete Writings (via heavydrug)

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Barefoot

Feel the earth beneath your feet. For it is where present and past moments meet. The dirt and the sand and rocks and the peat have been trodden by hooves of a history fleet. A trail often trekked and a path sorely beat. From cold northern wastes to the island of Crete. Ancient happ’nings folded and woven to pleat. Barefoot you walk on the Old World’s seat.

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TODAY’S education reformers believe that schools are broken and that business can supply the remedy. Some place their faith in the idea of competition. Others embrace disruptive innovation, mainly through online learning. Both camps share the belief that the solution resides in the impersonal, whether it’s the invisible hand of the market or the transformative power of technology.

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North Carolina Exceptionalism

It seems the Democratic narrative about the GOP take over of North Carolina is getting under John Hood’s skin. In an op-ed piece in the News & Observer, he wrote that liberals have a fairy tale view of North Carolina that he calls North Carolina Exceptionalism. He says that liberals mistakenly believe that North Carolina became an economic powerhouse that outperformed our neighbors because of…

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When Obamacare becomes a liability for Republicans

When Obamacare becomes a liability for Republicans

Republicans’ rational for refusing to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act just keeps getting thinner. Originally, they thought they could hamstring the new law and force its repeal or restructuring. If a few million people missed out on health care, so be it. It was the principle of the thing. Besides, most of the GOP base has health insurance or Medicare. 

Now, it’s looking like…

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In my twenties I realized that the muse is a bum. The muse only shows up when you bait her by putting your ass in the chair. She can only be lured to your side by the sound of pounding keys, the smell of paper and ink. At some point (I imagine it was when the telephone company cut off our service) I realized it was time for me to start taking my life and my writing seriously. People who are serious about their work show up to work, day or night. So I started setting myself little goals and deadlines. That helped. When I had a project I was excited about, I was manic. I worked mornings, afternoons, nights—whenever I could steal the time. I became infatuated with my writing, obsessed, in love. Perfection was writing all day in bed until I was spent. When it was going exceptionally well, any time I wasn’t writing I was thinking about writing. It was bliss. Until, of course, it burned out, or blew up sometimes with the same degree of passion with which it had begun. All it took was time and distance, some sleep and a few square meals, and suddenly I couldn’t stand it.

An Interview with Elissa Schappell, by Maria Gagliano

(via fiftykorbust)

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GAO: Management failures by federal health officials led to cost increases and delays.

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Interesting.  We need a study to find how many of those resistant to obtaining health insurance have the capital resources to be legitimately self-insured and how many are simply free-riders. 

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Republicans are willing to produce policy they hate to kill the law they hate more.

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Obama's temporary delay to part of the health law doesn't seem much different from President George W. Bush's action in 2006 to extend the deadline and waive penalties for certain seniors.

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Time to move on

Time to move on

The battle for marriage equality is over. The social conservatives lost and humanity won. Most people in this country have come to accept that two people loving and committing to each other is a good thing, not a bad one–or at least they acknowledge that it’s really none of their business. And with the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals agreeing with that sentiment, the fight in North Carolina is done. 

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Americans' wealth reached an inflation-adjusted record last year—$80.7 trillion—thanks to a surging stock market and rising home values, laying the groundwork for stronger economic growth. But benefits have unfolded unevenly.

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Sad facts...