Encouraging, indeed

"Looking back at the past year, I think I can say that it has been eventful, energizing and to a certain extent encouraging."

-- AUNG SAN SUU KYI, Myanmar democracy leader Monday on the anniversary of her release from house arrest.
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This DOES seem to be some people's attitude:

Quote of the day

Well, this is refreshing:

The man is the most un-Berlusconiesque person you can think of...He's like clean water after you've been drinking too much.

-- Beppe Severgnini, Italian author, on his country's new prime minister, Mario Monti.
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Sunday art blogging

Artist: Seitei (Shotei) Watanabe 1851-1918

Image from Wikimedia Commons

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Clever --- very:

Quote of the evening (so to speak...)

By Michele Bachmann:

If you look at China, they don't have food stamps.

So, China is now the standard we're trying to live up to????

Simply pathetic.

You can read more about it right here.

Oh, here's a little something extra for you. One reader made this snarky comment:

Chinese don't need food stamps, they are supporting themselves on all those jobs we offshore to them.

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Truly excellent:

The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive

Oh, this one's really funny:

Sojourners quote of the week

Right here:

When extreme weather hits, we hear about the property damage and insurance costs. The healthcare costs never end up on the tab.

- Kim Knowlton, a senior scientist at Natural Resources Defense Council, co-author of study estimating that deaths and health problems from floods, drought, and other U.S. disasters related to climate change cost an estimated $14 billion over the last decade

That's a huge amount.
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Hell, yeah:

Good for Ohio

Take a look:

Ohio voters repeal law limiting union rights

And here's a comment to the article that I really appreciate:

Unions are largely responsible for the middle class, even if you aren't in one. Unions historically represented workers who individually had no bargaining power, typically people who are easily replaced. Without the power of collective bargaining those workers would never have achieved reasonable wages and benefits.

Even nonunion workers benefit from unions in a couple of ways. First, in industries where workers are known to unionize, employers have an incentive to keep them happy so they won't unionize. Second, higher wages and benefits for one segment of the workforce bleed over into other segments. You and union workers are both part of a larger workforce and what affects one finds ways to affect the other.

This was by someone known online as "skytag".
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Something to think about VERY seriously:

A CNN quickvote

I have to say, I agree with the majority here. Mind you, the "spring forward" bit is considerably worse than the "fall back" that we've just had. Still, each time my biological clock is messed up for a good week.

Do we still need Daylight Saving Time?

No

65%

Yes

35%

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This is such an important point:

When there is little to no regulation

Listen up all you libertarians out there:

They just consider production, not safety. If someone dies, he can be replaced tomorrow.

-- A Zambian Copper Miner as quoted in a new Human Rights Watch report that says Chinese-run copper mines in Zambia are dangerously unsafe and owners routinely flout the rights of workers
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One answer at least...

I found this over at Democratic Underground:


Click to enlarge.

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