No one with a brain in his head or an honest bone in his body could call Obama “lazy.” That word only could come to the mind of a pure racist. Will the good people of Massachusetts vote for a stupid racist? Stay tuned.

Think Progress » Will Scott Brown Stick By Birther Candidate Who Compared Obama To Osama Bin Laden? 

With Scott Brown’s victory in the special Senate election in Massachusetts on Tuesday energizing conservatives in the state, the Boston Globe reports that “several Tea Party activists are now considering candidacies.” Yesterday, Brown endorsed Boxford Republican Bill Hudak’s campaign against Rep. John Tierney (D-MA).

But Brown’s first endorsement might backfire. As Northeastern University journalism professor Dan Kennedy notes, Hudak is a birther who once compared President Obama to Osama bin Laden:

Down the road at 165 Herrick Road, William and Angela Hudak have more of the same anti-Obama signs lined along the front of their property. One large, roughly 6-foot-by-4-foot sign stands back from the road, up against their house, with words – such as socialist, Marxist, and lazy – surrounding the same picture of Obama dressed as Osama Bin Laden. […]

Hudak asserts that Obama was not born in the United States but in Kenya, according to affidavits that he made available to the Tri-Town Transcript. He said that Obama has ties to the Muslim faith through an extremist cousin that is from Kenya.

“There is a lot more going on here than anyone knows,” Hudak said.

Brown has already been criticized for inching towards the birther fringe for speculating in 2008 that then-candidate Obama was born out of wedlock. Brown refused to apologize for his speculation when asked about it by ThinkProgress last week.

In an interview with the Gloucester Daily Times, Hudak said that he and Brown were “very like-minded.” With Hudak’s extreme views exposed, will Brown stand by his endorsement of this birther, whom he claims will help “bring the voice of the people [to] Washington?”

– DJ Carella

Think Progress » Will Scott Brown Stick By Birther Candidate Who Compared Obama To Osama Bin Laden?

Update 1/22/10: This isn’t the worst example of Republican revisionism (or lying, if you prefer). That would be Rudy Giuliani claiming there were no terrorist attacks under Duh-duh-duhbya’s reign of terror. Yeah, right.

Think Progress » Brown-endorsee Hudak now claims that he’s not a birther.

Yesterday, ThinkProgress noted that Senator-elect Scott Brown (R-MA) had endorsed a Republican congressional candidate, Bill Hudak, who told a newspaper in 2008 that President Obama “was not born in the United States but in Kenya.” Brown’s staff tried to distance him from Hudak yesterday by saying that Brown didn’t approve the endorsement “press release before its release or the quote that was attributed to Scott.” But in an interview with the Gloucester Daily Times today, Hudak said that he and Brown “are really close” and that “there’s no question” that Brown gave him “his endorsement.” Hudak also denied that he was ever a birther:

Regarding the November 2008 article, Hudak said he does believe the president is a U.S. citizen.

“There’s no basis that I’ve been able to find” that calls Obama’s citizenship into question, he said. “No matter what people think, he is the president of the United States. You don’t get to that level without being fully vetted.”

Think Progress » Brown-endorsee Hudak now claims that he’s not a birther.

We watched JJ Abrams’ StarTrek on DVD. The fact that I avoided the horde of “true” fans packing theaters may cast doubt on the validity of my views, but I have been watching StarTrek, in all its iterations, for over 40 years.

Certainly, there is a lot to like in this variant, as in each of the others. The actors are all great ‘fits’ to the established characters. I even find this Chekov and McCoy better than the originals. (I hated the first McCoy.) As SciFi, the movie is fine, although I’d prefer fewer explosions and more alien culture.

If you haven’t seen the movie but intend to: Where have you been? — and stop readying now.

I think the story stumbles a bit in explaining important details. Why was Ambassador Spock the best candidate to snuff a nova? (Is it ethical – or logical – to stop natural stellar processes?) If a drop of Red Matter can create a black hole, why load a ship with a sphere 6 feet across? That’s a hell of a lot of destructive power. If a drop of Red Matter can create a black hole, what is the advantage of delivering it to the core of a planet? That may be answered by the fact that the full load of Red Matter exploding near Earth apparently had no effect on the planet. Yeah, yeah, these are technical quibbles.

My real discomfort with the movie is that it is a prequel for an alternate universe. A universe in which an Admiral Pike lives on Earth and there are no planets Vulcan or Romulus. A universe in which Spock and a less voluptuous Uhuru are lovers. (Another ethical lapse on Spock’s part.) Say what? If those things don’t matter at all to you, how about the fact that Kirk becomes a cocky womanizer whether his father raises him or dies at his birth? (Solving the nature verse nurture dilemma.)

Quinto makes a wonderful Spock. (He was also a great sociopath on Heroes.) However, having been taunted his whole life, Spock announces to Kirk that he won’t be goaded into losing command of the ship by acting emotionally and then does so oh so easily. Illogical. Granted, his mommy died (why, Chekov, why) – well, in this story’s universe, not the original’s. (Jane Wyman – Mrs Raygun – was a better mom than Winona Ryder (how far has her career fallen?).)

Understand, I look forward to seeing the next 5 installments before another generation reinvents one of the greatest stories ever told. Maybe someday, we’ll discover the universe is full of peace, love, and understanding. Kidding.

Updated 12/26/09: I fast-forwarded through the movie, watching a few scenes again. I forgot that Spock jumps to warp before the big explosion, moving away from Earth. I also now think they showed more destructive force from all the Red Matter. But I’ll add a quibble about riding an explosive shockwave out of a black hole. Finally, as of the end of the movie, the Romulus of that universe is not yet destroyed. In another 129 years, is Spock obligated to go through all the same steps as Spock prime? If he doesn’t, then he doesn’t create this new time line. Which then leads me to wonder: Nero was thrown back into a universe/time that still had a Romulus. Why sit in space for 25 years plotting revenge instead of returning to Romulus to figure out how to prevent the destruction of his home world.

I sure hope Utah Senator Buttars wasn’t watching the American Music Awards on Sunday. We would have heard about his aneurism by now.

It’s sad that Adam wants to be a male Lady Gag-gag, particularly since she seems like nothing so much as a drag queen’s spoof of disco-porn. No doubt, someday the pendulum will swing away from public eroticism back to romance. When you’re young and at the front of the stage on top of the world, it’s easy to find someone to suck anything; it’s much harder to find people who really care about you. Turns out, Adam blew it.

From week to week, you never know which conservative is going to say the most outlandish or stupid thing – even as their numbers dwindle, the competition seems to expand. But, we have quite a WTF?! with Virginia Foxx.

Think Progress » Foxx: Republicans ‘Passed Civil Rights Bills Back In The 60s Without Very Much Help’ From Democrats

During a debate on the House floor today over designating 21 miles of the Molalla River as “wild and scenic,” Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC), who opposes the legislation, tried to claim a progressive environmental record for her party. “Actually, the GOP has been the leader in starting good environmental programs in this country,” said Foxx.

Foxx then extended her claims of the GOP’s progressive history to the issue of civil rights. “Just as we were the people who passed the civil rights bills back in the ’60s without very much help from our colleagues across the aisle,” said Fox. “They love to engage in revisionist history.”

Think Progress » Foxx: Republicans ‘Passed Civil Rights Bills Back In The 60s Without Very Much Help’ From Democrats

It is especially important to remember that the major opposition to civil rights came from southern Democrats  – the same people who now constitute the hard core of the Republican Party.

[updated 11/20/09]

Think Progress » New Missouri billboard tells Americans to ‘prepare for war’ against the government. 

This billboard replaces one that warned that the socialist “Obama-Nation” is “coming for you.” It’s unclear who the owner of the billboard is, but the first one was the work of a “Missouri businessman.” (HT: Oliver Willis)

Think Progress » New Missouri billboard tells Americans to ‘prepare for war’ against the government.

From week to week, you never know which conservative is going to say the most outlandish or stupid thing – even as their numbers dwindle, the competition seems to expand. But, we have quite a WTF?! with Virginia Foxx.

Think Progress » Foxx: Republicans ‘Passed Civil Rights Bills Back In The 60s Without Very Much Help’ From Democrats

During a debate on the House floor today over designating 21 miles of the Molalla River as “wild and scenic,” Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC), who opposes the legislation, tried to claim a progressive environmental record for her party. “Actually, the GOP has been the leader in starting good environmental programs in this country,” said Foxx.

Foxx then extended her claims of the GOP’s progressive history to the issue of civil rights. “Just as we were the people who passed the civil rights bills back in the ’60s without very much help from our colleagues across the aisle,” said Fox. “They love to engage in revisionist history.”

Think Progress » Foxx: Republicans ‘Passed Civil Rights Bills Back In The 60s Without Very Much Help’ From Democrats

It is especially important to remember that the major opposition to civil rights came from southern Democrats  – the same people who now constitute the hard core of the Republican Party.

[updated 11/20/09]

Think Progress » New Missouri billboard tells Americans to ‘prepare for war’ against the government. 

This billboard replaces one that warned that the socialist “Obama-Nation” is “coming for you.” It’s unclear who the owner of the billboard is, but the first one was the work of a “Missouri businessman.” (HT: Oliver Willis)

Think Progress » New Missouri billboard tells Americans to ‘prepare for war’ against the government.

Think Progress » New Birther Billboard In Colorado Features Picture Of Obama And Asks ‘President Or Jihad?’ 

Today, a new birther billboard went up above Wolf Automotive off I-70 in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. The sign has a picture of President Obama wearing a turban, asking, “President or Jihad?” and exhorting, “Wake up America! Remember Fort Hood”:

ThinkProgress spoke with Phil Wolf, the owner of the car dealership. He said that the billboard is his personal project because he believes the American people have a right to know the facts about the president …

Think Progress » New Birther Billboard In Colorado Features Picture Of Obama And Asks ‘President Or Jihad?’

Warren Buffett recognized that wealth doesn’t just happen due to hard work or luck, that society – our commonwealth – provides the basis of any individual’s wealth. “Share the prosperity.” Constant bleating about unfair taxes is a fool’s game that destroys the commonwealth. TAX THE RICH! They can afford it.

http://www.charlierose.com/download/transcript/10711

WARREN BUFFETT: I think that if we’re looking for more money, we ought to look to guys like me. I mean, I am still paying a lower rate on dividends and capital gains than my cleaning lady. It’s, you know, in terms of her payroll tax, just to start with. And so, I just think that we’ve gotten so far out of whack in terms of who’s been prosperous in recent years, and most of the economy — most people have been left behind, you know. So we learn that a rising tide lifts all yachts. (LAUGHTER) …

CHARLIE ROSE: Does that mean that the American system is in a sense a bit unfair and geared to the rich?

WARREN BUFFETT: Well, I think it has become more geared to the rich as time has gone by, and I think that the rich have, you know, obviously a disproportionate impact, you know, on how Congress behaves, and… if you have a very rich country with a great number of superrich, you have to fight against a plutocracy.

WARREN BUFFETT: And you want a prosperous country so you want a whole bunch of rich people, but you also want everybody to do reasonably well in something as prosperous as we have. … but we’ve got — we’ve got almost 60 million people living in households where 20 — the top income is $21,000 or less. That’s the top of the 60 million people. So we can do better. Now, we have done better over time. I mean, we put in Social Security and we’ve done things in the country that have worked in the direction …

WARREN BUFFETT: But a prosperous country should not just be prosperous for the people like me who are wired in a particular way at birth — no credit to me ….

WARREN BUFFETT: And you don’t want to mess up the market system that works to bring out of people what their best talents are, but the market system is not perfect in any kind of distribution of wealth. And taxation is a way where you get to the excesses of what the market system produces and where you take care of the people that get the short straws. In a country as prosperous as we are, nobody should get a really short straw.

CHARLIE ROSE: You know, some people are going to hear you say that and they’ll say, "Warren is talking about sharing the wealth. There he goes .."

WARREN BUFFETT: Well, I’m talking about sharing the prosperity. I’m prosperous because of the society around me.

WARREN BUFFETT: So they benefit from society. We all do. And some like me benefit enormously from society, you know. I can’t do it by myself. Stick me on a desert island, you know, you do not want to be on the same island.

CHARLIE ROSE: So, all these people who think that somehow there’s some new idea about — they use the word "socialism," but something else in terms of …

WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah, Barack Obama …

CHARLIE ROSE: You don’t buy that.

WARREN BUFFETT: Barack Obama wants a much more prosperous economy, embodying the principles that have made it prosperous, but I think he does want to make sure that the bottom 20 or 30 percent does better than it has done in the last 20 years while the top has prospered so much.

http://www.charlierose.com/download/transcript/10711

BBC NEWS | Europe | Rich Germans demand higher taxes [hattip to Jas.]

A group of rich Germans has launched a petition calling for the government to make wealthy people pay higher taxes.

The group say they have more money than they need, and the extra revenue could fund economic and social programmes to aid Germany’s economic recovery.

BBC NEWS | Europe | Rich Germans demand higher taxes

The Associated Press: AP POLL: How to pay for health overhaul? Tax rich 

WASHINGTON — Americans don’t want to shoulder the cost of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul themselves. They think the rich should pay for it.

The Associated Press: AP POLL: How to pay for health overhaul? Tax rich

I would watch this interview if only I could stand to listen to Charlie Rose for more than a minute. Rose asks his guest convoluted questions that almost always make clear how “smart” Rose is and the answer he’s expecting from them. I wish he’d just shut up.

Excerpts: Warren Buffett on Charlie Rose – The Page by Mark Halperin – TIME.com 

"I basically don’t like it (value-added tax) because it’s somewhat akin — it’s isn’t the same — but it’s somewhat akin to a sales tax . we don’t need more regressive taxes in the United States . I think that if we’re looking for more money, we ought to look to guys like me. I mean, I am still paying a lower rate on dividends and capital gains than my cleaning lady is, in terms of her payroll tax just to start with. And so, I just think that we’ve gotten so far out of whack in terms of who’s been prosperous in recent years. And most of the economy — most people have been left behind, you know. So, we learned that a rising tide lifts all yachts."

Excerpts: Warren Buffett on Charlie Rose – The Page by Mark Halperin – TIME.com