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Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Daily Kos: For once Dana Milbank nails it

Daily Kos: For once Dana Milbank nails it:


For once Dana Milbank nails it

Aficionados of the Etch a Sketch will recall a certain flaw in the toy: If you use it often, some of the lines drawn no longer disappear when you shake the device, instead leaving an indelible trace of where you have been.This is the problem Mitt Romney is encountering: He is shaking the device, trying to erase impressions left during this year’s primary contest. But he just can’t shake away the image of Russell Pearce.
So begin Milbank's column in this morning's Washington PostRomney won’t be able to shake immigration debate, "inspired" by yesterday's testimony by recalled former Arizona State Senator Russell Pearce, the person most responsible for his state's passage of the infamous SB1070.  
Pierce, who lost his seat last fall in a recall election, labeled the Obama administration and the 


Wendell Berry, American Hero

is the title of this NY Times piece by Mark Bittman,.
The sole purpose of my posting this for me exceedingly brief diary is to draw your attention to the Bittman piece.
If you care about food ....
if you care about the land ...
whether or not you already know about Wendell Berry ....
this is MUST READ.
I am going to push fair use with probably a bit more than I should quote, from the middle of one paragraph on:
We eat. It’s all local, food they or their neighbors or friends or family have grown or raised, food that Tanya has cooked. There’s little fuss about any of that, only enjoyment and good eating. I note that I can’t stop devouring the corn bread, and that the potatoes have the kind of taste of the earth that floors you.And we chat, and then Wendell takes me for a drive around the countryside he was born in and where he’s lived for most of his life. As he waves to just about every driver on the road, he explains that the land was once home to scores of tobacco farmers, and now has patches of forest, acres 


Walmart: we don't like the law, we want to break the law, so we'll change the law!

If that seems harsh, then you need to read the just post story at The Washington PostWal-Mart took part in lobbying campaign to amend anti-bribery law.
The opening paragraph lays it out:
Wal-Mart, the giant retailer now under fire over allegations of foreign bribery in Mexico, has participated in an aggressive and high-priced lobbying campaign to amend the long-standing U.S. anti-bribery law that the company might have violated.
The issue at hand is the 1977 Corrupt Practices Act, which "prohibits U.S. companies from offering fees or gifts to foreign officials to advance corporate interests."The US Chamber of Commerce is actively involved in attempting to change the law, which if you think of it,