oh thank g-d.

beyonce + jay-z are turning their "on the run" tour into an HBO special so all the poors can enjoy it. i'll host the viewing party.

does this sound familiar?

the new york times has finally gotten around to a story that 2pz has been writing about for months and months. it seems that some well educated white people are moving to memphis to teach the poor black kids, and some people aren't sure it is a good idea! go figure.

should you feel bad about trying to get into the Met for free?

No. They are rich, you are not.

grizzly bears are just like you and me

they live in williamsburg, think about their bills all the time, and are secretly jealous of middle class peers that don't have to rent for the rest of their lives and can afford things like children. one thing is different though, they play concerts at radio city music hall, and we pay to see them play concerts at rcmh. still, i'd bone ed droste. read all about it here.

richard lawson says what i've been thinking about the RNC

"You realize, watching this seething mass of people, that the secret, the economics stage show, is for us, on the outside. All the fiscal talk is for our benefit. Everyone in that room really knows what's being spoken about: Getting lazy poor people off their teat, sticking it to those gays, making sure we don't have to pay for some slut's sinful abortion. For all the cheer and cowboy hats and smiles and Christian blessings, this is an angry, aggressive group. And they are, or at least have been chosen to represent, nominally half of us. Half of us here in this country."

read the whole article here
.

you're welcome.

An interesting tidbit from the Atlantic shows why poor states in the US don't drag down the entire US economy the way that poor countries in the European Union do. Basically, states like New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Illinois, and California get back about $0.75 per dollar they pay to the federal government in taxes, whereas states like Kansas, Tennessee and Missouri (probably Alabama, Mississippi and Georiga as well) get back anywhere from $1.10-1.30 for every dollar they pay in federal taxes. Basically, Tennessee is the Greece of the United States.

 

















[The Atlantic]

bad news

bank of america helped me figure out how much I'll need to save for retirement. 

1 lotto ticket please...

calculate yours, if you want to die of sadness.

"girls" on hbo

premieres april 15. totes gonna watch that.

good thinking, dummies.

The Susan G. Komen foundation has reversed its position on Planned Parenthood, and will continue funding the organization after all, issuing a statement that apologizes "for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives." The move comes after a week of online protest over the news that Komen would end a grant to Planned Parenthood to provide mammograms. It was not a move that Komen took lightly. The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg unearthed memos from December that show how the Komen foundation instructed its employees to "obfuscate the issues when confronted with questions about why Komen cut off funding to Planned Parenthood." The letters outline "updated eligibility requirements" that include changes in tax-exemption status and loss of federal funding, among other things. (via)

UT needs one of these.

Medellin, Colombia was once known as one of the world's most violent cities. It was the center of a major drug cartel, which actually took its name from the city. Now Medellin is enjoying the spotlight for a new socially-conscious public transportation system.

To understand this story you need to know that Medellin is in a valley surrounded by incredibly beautiful green mountains, which have also become the location of many neighborhoods on the steep mountainsides.

And yesterday, Medellin's mayor inaugurated a giant outdoor escalator. It was built for residents of one of the city's poorest districts, with the aim of better integrating them into the city and the broader economy.

The slum is located on one of those hillsides, and its residents have long had to climb hundreds of steps - the equivalent of a 28-story building - to get home from work. Now they can stand and be transported on their new 1,200-foot moving walkway that turns a 35-minute haul into a six-minute commute. The project cost about $7 million. (via)

happy thanksgiving eve.

this ran in harper's weekly 150 years ago. from the DISUNION blog. click2enlarge.

Winslow Homer’s editors asked him for an illustration to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday that week. They may have gotten more than they’d bargained for. (via)

i'm thankful that i don't live in a mid-nineteenth century tenement. what are you thankful for?