Getting to Crazy – NYTimes.com by Paul Krugman

There aren’t many positive aspects to the looming possibility of a U.S. debt default. But there has been, I have to admit, an element of comic relief — of the black-humor variety — in the spectacle of so many people who have been in denial suddenly waking up and smelling the crazy.

A number of commentators seem shocked at how unreasonable Republicans are being. “Has the G.O.P. gone insane?” they ask.

Why, yes, it has. But this isn’t something that just happened, it’s the culmination of a process that has been going on for decades. Anyone surprised by the extremism and irresponsibility now on display either hasn’t been paying attention, or has been deliberately turning a blind eye.

And may I say to those suddenly agonizing over the mental health of one of our two major parties: People like you bear some responsibility for that party’s current state. …

Recently, however, all restraint has vanished — indeed, it has been driven out of the party. …

So there has been no pressure on the G.O.P. to show any kind of responsibility, or even rationality — and sure enough, it has gone off the deep end. If you’re surprised, that means that you were part of the problem.

Getting to Crazy – NYTimes.com

[hat tip to Pat Lyford]

Move The New Hampshire Primary To Massachusetts | ThinkProgress

Massachusetts is substantially bigger than New Hampshire, but it’s only a bit larger than Iowa or South Carolina. What’s more, campaigning effectively in New Hampshire already required buying TV ads in the Boston media market in order to reach people in Nashua.

If Massachusetts replaced New Hampshire as New England’s entrant into the primary campaign sweepstakes, then we’d probably see candidates saying something about traffic jams, mass transit, regional planning, etc. instead of all farms all the time.

Move The New Hampshire Primary To Massachusetts | ThinkProgress

Planet Earth Doesn’t Know How To Make It Any Clearer It Wants Everyone To Leave | The Onion – America’s Finest News Source

"I know your species has developed the technology to leave me, I’ve seen you use it before, so I’m asking you now, please, just take the hint already," read another excerpt from the Earth’s statement, which added that it would really be best for all concerned if humanity were to "trundle off to some other biosphere for a while.” …

“Honestly, what more is it going to take for you people to get the message?” …

"Do I have to spell it out for you?" the statement continued. "Get the fuck out of here. I want you to leave now." …

Planet Earth Doesn’t Know How To Make It Any Clearer It Wants Everyone To Leave | The Onion – America’s Finest News Source

At the start of health care reform, MR suggested Medicare availability for 50+. Now, a big-wig calls for Medicare at any age.

The Republican death wish – War Room – Salon.com

Democrats should be proposing that anyone be allowed to sign up for Medicare. Medicare is cheaper than private insurance because its administrative costs are so much lower, and it has vast economies of scale.

If Medicare were allowed to use its potential bargaining leverage over America’s hospitals, doctors, drug companies, and medical providers, it could drive down costs even further.

And it could force the nation’s broken health-care system to do something it must do but has resisted with a vengeance: Focus on healthy outcomes rather on costly inputs. If Medicare paid for results — not tests, procedures, drugs, and hospital stays, but results — it could give Americans better health at lower cost.

Let the GOP go after Medicare. That will do more to elect Democrats in 2012 than anything else. But it would be wise and politically astute for Democrats to go beyond just defending Medicare. Strengthen and build upon it. Use it to reform American health care and, not incidentally, rescue the federal budget.

Robert Reich, a professor of public policy at the University of California at Berkeley, was secretary of labor during the Clinton administration. He is also a blogger and the author of "Aftershock: The Next Economy and America’s Future." More: Robert Reich

The Republican death wish – War Room – Salon.com

[hat tip to dangerousmeta]

ThinkProgress » Boehner Shares Stage With David Koch At Wall Street Club

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) went to the heart of Wall Street last night to deliver a major speech on the deficit at the Economic Club of New York. The stage on which Boehner spoke featured a who’s who of financial moguls, including conservative billionaire David Koch, co-owner — along with his brother Charles –of the oil conglomerate Koch Industries, and a major funder of right-wing advocacy and tea party groups. This AP photo captured Boehner shaking hands with deficit advocate Pete Peterson, as Koch looked on:

Koch was also one of the few people with whom Boehner shook hands as he exited the stage after his speech

ThinkProgress » Boehner Shares Stage With David Koch At Wall Street Club

ThinkProgress » Texas GOP Rams Koch-Backed ‘Loser Pays’ Bill Through House, Making It Harder To Sue Corporations

As ThinkProgress has reported, brothers Charles and David Koch and their corporate giant, Koch Industries, have played an extensive role in the corporate takeover of government, both at the state and federal level. This weekend, another of the Kochs’ projects surfaced in Texas, as the state’s Republican lawmakers rammed through a Koch-backed bill that would make it harder for consumers, workers, and small business owners to bring civil suits against corporations.

ThinkProgress » Texas GOP Rams Koch-Backed ‘Loser Pays’ Bill Through House, Making It Harder To Sue Corporations

ThinkProgress » Florida GOP Passes Radical Overhaul Of Election Law, Jeopardizing Voting Rights Of Elderly, Military, Students

A growing number of GOP-led states are launching a concerted effort to severely impede and disenfranchise voters across the country. Last Thursday, the Florida legislature did its part by passing a 128-page “sweeping rewrite” of the state’s elections laws with “head-spinning speed” that now heads to Gov. Rick Scott (R) for signature. Passed along a party-line vote, the bill — HB 1355 — contains several provisions that drastically alter election laws to disadvantage and disenfranchise voters across the state …

ThinkProgress » Florida GOP Passes Radical Overhaul Of Election Law, Jeopardizing Voting Rights Of Elderly, Military, Students

ThinkProgress » GRAPH: An Average CEO At America’s Big Corporations Earns 200 Times The Salary Of A Navy SEAL

In the wake of their successful assault on Osama Bin Laden’s hideout, ABC News did a short feature on the Navy Seals. The report tells us that the people who hold this highly demanding and dangerous get paid about $54,000 a year. It then adds that:

“The base salary level [of Navy Seals] is comparable to the average annual salary for teachers in the U.S., which was $55,350 for the 2009-2010 school year, according to the Digest of Education Statistics.’ That is one possible comparison. There are other possible reference points. For example, the CEOs of Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan both pocket around $20 million a year.

ThinkProgress » GRAPH: An Average CEO At America’s Big Corporations Earns 200 Times The Salary Of A Navy SEAL