Just a typical day in Australia.
53 things digitalbirdy likes Explore more popular stuff on Tumblr →
-
-
-
-
Source: iwantcupcakes
At a French press conference for Iron Man 3, Gwenyth Paltrow responds in French and Robert Downey Jr. responds to her.
I love this guy so much.
-
-
These are my user’s awards for campaign coverage in 2012.
Well, the 2012 campaign is officially over.
These awards reflect my personal opinion upon attempt to use the enormous stream of election journalism that came my way. As you will see, these selections also show my biases. So be it!
My top reporter for 2012 was McKay Coppins, Buzzfeed. An intelligent filter of campaign news and an originator of it. “Tell me something I don’t know” journalism.
My top interpreter: Jonathan Chait, New York Magazine. Consistently put order to the campaign data for me.
News Scoop of the Cycle: David Corn and Mother Jones (Monika Bauerlein, Clara Jeffery, Editors) Romney Tells Millionaire Donors What He REALLY Thinks of Obama Voters.
Best in my “analysis” category: Ron Fournier, National Journal, Why (and How) Romney is Playing the Race Card. Predictive in its way.
Thought scoop of the cycle: Ron Brownstein, National Journal, “This is the last time anyone will try to do this.” (For an explanation: click.)
The “aggregator with comment” (also called blogging) site I found more valuable in 2012: Andrew Sullivan’s Daily Dish. A person’s voice, plus aggregation machine, plus user-submitted stuff… very effective.
Editor of the year, 2012 election: Josh Tyrangiel, Businessweek.
Blog post of the cycle: Why I Refuse to Vote for Barack Obama, Conor Friedersdorf on atlantic.com.
Political journalist whose instincts and assessments seemed consistently the sharpest to me: Josh Marshall.
Signal to noise winner, daily coverage: Greg Sargent’s Plum Line, Washington Post.
Person whose prose I most looked forward to reading in campaign 2012: Mark Leibovich, New York Times magazine.
Pundit I most enjoyed listening to on television: Peggy Noonan, Wall Street Journal.
Best television interviewer, 2012 campaign: Soledad O’Brien of CNN.
Special award for going rogue on his colleagues in the press pack: Alex MacGillis of the New Republic.
(Photo credit: bankbryan. Creative commons license.)
-
REASON 23
by Michael Stipe & Tom Gilroy
Republicans seek to have America run by and for a permanent aristocracy.
America is a democracy founded on the ideal of all men being created equal, with equal opportunity, equal access to resources, equal power in a government of the people, for the people, and by the people. Fulfilling this ideal means that transgender men get to work alongside fratboys at an investment bank. It means janitors who can’t speak English should have access to the same health care as the CEO of an arms manufacturer. That the children of Atheists and Muslims should have access to the same quality education that Christians and Jews have. That women have the same freedoms that men have, and that the poor in a ghetto can drink clean water as easily as the rich on a golf course. Simple.
Fundamentally, democracy is a vision of a society where there is no permanent class structure, where all citizens enjoy the rights of equal opportunity, access, and a social mobility that is synonymous with “the American Dream.”
The current Republican platform seeks the opposite of democracy. It seeks to create a permanent aristocracy—an entitled gentry that has greater access to this dream than most of the rest of America.
Literally every policy position of the Republican party can be explained in this light:
Obstructing or denying equal access to healthcare, public education, equitable taxation, legal protection; obstructing or denying marriage equality, workplace safety, voting rights, a living wage; obstructing or denying a woman’s right to choose, and a fair-minded Supreme Court that would value the freedom of the individual over the power of corporations—this is how you create a permanent aristocracy, where only the rich can afford “equality.”
If you’re ok with America being changed like this, then do nothing, let it happen. If you’re nauseated by it, vote. It’s that simple.—Michael Stipe & Tom Gilroy
New York, New YorkTom Gilroy is a writer/director/frequent HuffPo contributor from NYC. His new film, The Cold Lands, is due in theatres early 2013. Michael Stipe is a performer/artist living in NYC.
