Samantha Pierce

So the lifting of the ban on creating new embryonic stem cell lines wasn't really a lifting of the ban at all. This new new speak is hard to keep track of. Everybody is all up in arms over how AIG has spent the money that the government has been throwing at it. It's a bit late now to try putting the toothpaste back in the tube. The millions that have already been paid out are gone and we ain't gettin' it back. Coulda, woulda, shoulda. Hopefully somebody is paying attention and will stop giving them money. So is the economy totally in the tank or are things starting to look up? I've lost track of what the message is supposed to be this week. There is an unsavory whiff of protectionist xenophobia about this: Amazing how Americans managed to get jobs with the glut of foreigners (we're talking legal workers here) taking all the good jobs before we started throwing money at failing companies. Mexico is disintegrating from within, has been for years. The border area...

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . My sister emailed me this little gem to the left yesterday. I couldn't resist sharing it. Spitzer Resists Calls to Resign New York governor Eliot Spitzer resisted mounting calls for his resignation Tuesday, as he first tried to work out an agreement with prosecutors not to file criminal charges against him. [snip] Mr. Spitzer won't resign until he reaches an agreement with the government not to pursue charges, say those familiar with his legal team's thinking. A poll released late Tuesday found that 70% of New Yorkers think Mr. Spitzer should resign, while 66% believe he should be impeached and removed from office if he doesn't. "It's a big thumbs down," said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, which conducted the poll. "It points to just how politically untenable his position is right now." Even if Mr. Spitzer resigns, 49% of New Yorkers said he should face cri...

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . So how long is it going to take before Governor Spitzer's imminent resignation becomes an actual resignation? The longer he waits the slimier he looks. It's one thing to be caught in hypocritical and morally reprehensible behaviour. It is several magnitudes worse to try (apparently) to weasel out of the consequences of such behaviour. For the sake of the state and the government that he once promised to clean up Eliot Spitzer needs to depart the governor's mansion, now. State Republicans are already planning to start impeachment proceedings if Spitzer doesn't depart soon. As more details come to light I can't really blame them.

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . Now that the initial shock over Elliot Spitzer's involvement in a prostitution ring is starting to wear off, and as Spitzer has yet to resign, I'm feeling less sorry for him. Spitzer is now being caught on a bed of nails that he made for himself ( Spitzer Gets Spitzered ). Spitzer earned his place on my people-I-will-never-vote-for list with his pursuit of crisis pregnancy centers in New York city some years ago. In fact I created that list just for him. I find it ironic that Spitzer had to cancel his morning meeting with an abortion rights group that was advocating for a particularly repugnant abortion rights law because of the prostitution scandal. A note to New York state Republicans, y'all might want to stop talking now. Really.

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . Updated Uh... NY Governor Linked to Prostitution Ring NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Times is reporting that Gov. Eliot Spitzer has told senior advisers that he had been involved in a prostitution ring. Spitzer is scheduled to make an announcement Monday afternoon. Spitzer officials wouldn't immediately comment on the story. Spitzer, 48, is married and has three daughters. Details about the prostitution ring were not immediately clear. UPDATE 1-NY Gov. Spitzer tied to prostitution ring - NYT Spitzer was due to make an announcement at 2:15 p.m. EDT (1815 GMT), the Times said. As state attorney general before being elected governor in November 2006, Spitzer was sometimes called the Sheriff of Wall Street for his prominent role in investigating financial cases. A Democrat, he entered the governor's office promising reform but soon entered into a conflict with Republican leaders in the state Senate, slowing his agenda. He has been married ...