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Reason Morning Links: State Secrets Rejected, Economy Shrinks, More Flyover Flap
Hit & Run —
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit rejects Obama administration's state secrets claims, reinstates detainee lawsuit. • GDP shrinks an unexpectedly high 6.1 percent in first quarter of 2009. • FAA memo indicates feds knew the NYC flyover could set off panic and residual 9/11 jitters, but White House Military Office ordered it anyway, and threatened NYC police and political officials if they informed the public about the photo-op. Washington Post reports Military Office director Louis Caldera may be fired. • Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Penn.), once thought to be in trouble, ...
Spring Shoots?
The Agonist - thoughtful, global, timely —
... quarter. Of course, it didn't, but that never stops the media cheerleaders and the think-tank prostitutes from lying to everyone about what's really happening in with the economy and believing a bear market rally represents a new bull? Why, even today I read an article about how the Chinese consumer is going to rescue us all! Nevermind the question of what they will buy from us, you know? Don't they already own enough of the only thing we really manufacture these days: debt?
From the Times:
The gross domestic product shrank at an annual rate of 6.1 ...
Wednesday Afternoon Update
Fired Up! Missouri —
Barack Obama was in Arnold to mark his 100th day in office. (Riverfront Times, Post-Dispatch, The Beacon, Twitter updates from Jake Wagman, Bryan Wahby)
The House gave preliminary approval to two additional budget bills spending federal stimulus dollars on projects and programs throughout the state. Taken together, the bills earmark about $417 million for projects like university renovations and law-enforcement communication systems. They must be approved once more, likely tomorrow, before moving on to the Senate.
The House ...
Wednesday's Mini-Report
Political Animal —
... censuring North Korea earlier this month. * The House passed a hate-crimes measure this afternoon, but not before some far-right Republicans made some pretty nauseating comments . * The New Hampshire Senate approved a gay-marriage law today. The measure now heads for the state House. (There's also been progress in Maine .) * The regular ol' flu kills about 36,000 Americans a year . I didn't realize the number was that high. * First quarter GDP numbers were really ugly . * The Federal Reserve believes the recession may be ...
The Pecora Committee in Context: The Myth of the Banking Culture
Firedoglake —
Bill Moyers posed the exact right question last week: “Is it time for a commission to investigate today’s Wall Street crash?” He also invited his listeners to respond to the question: “What would you ask new Pecora hearings to investigate?”
A mere glance at today’s New York Times offers plenty of reasons for a modern “Pecora Committee” to investigate the causes of the Crash. As I write, the lead story at the Times Website informs us that, “U.S. Economy in 2nd Straight Quarter of Steep Decline,” with GNP shrinking at a 6.1 percent annual rate, “worse ...
