CapitolFax.com - Latest Comments in Question of the day

Re: Question of the day

Bridget Dooley — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 09:23:17 -0000

I regularly read:

So-called Austin Mayor
ILLINOIZE
Archpundit
Prairie State Blue
Wurfwhile

and I have to admit that I read Perez Hilton religiously.

I think my blog is pretty good when I update it regularly!

Re: Question of the day

Rich Miller — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 07:39:52 -0000

Augur... Good choice.

Re: Question of the day

respectful — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 23:46:27 -0000

Fritchey's blog is refreshing because it's rare for politicos to criticize their own party's leader. I also enjoy Dan Johnson-Weinberger's blog www.djwinfo.blogspot.com

Re: Question of the day

Disgusted — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 23:30:44 -0000

Cap. Fax for Illinois issues and Crooks and Liars for the Bush/Cheney corruption. Makes me grind my teeth, but it also confirms what we're all thinking. There are no surprises in politics anymore for us skeptics. We're proven right every day.

Re: Question of the day

Augur — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 23:15:56 -0000

Not a huge deal, I'm pretty sure the 10K was in 05-06. I use the sunshine database from the reform project b/c it's much easier to use. Significantly larger sums than the 10K come into play when you consider the donations to President Jones and ISDF (donations to the caucus she's leading).

Anyway, thanks for the history lesson. I appreciate your advice on handling this post. I took it. I hope you'll continue to check our progress at http://www.urbanagora.com/ - I do think that generally you'll like what you see.

Re: Question of the day

Augur — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 22:50:59 -0000

Mr. Miller:

I thought it was a reasonable assumption that if the prior rate freeze could withstand efforts at injunctive relief, that future rate freezes could be crafted that would also withstand injunctive relief.

ComEd wields considerable authority in the Illinois General Assembly. Last year's windfall profits are evidence that some regulation is called for. I have never been impressed with Senator Halvorson's intellect or her sense of public duty, and still think her "how could I sleep at night" opining was insincere.

You are correct that I posted without enough research or data, I saw her comments and I let my previous dealings with Sen. Halvorson and a bad assumption carry me too far. I hope you'll continue to check out http://www.urbanagora.com I think you'll find that most of our posts aren't this hastily researched or negatively charged.

I'm going to take your advice and remove the post. I hope you'll check back on our progress. We have some great writers.

Keep up the great work.

Re: Question of the day

Skeeter — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 21:17:01 -0000

I left out one of the best. This should be required reading. How often do you get to see two of the sharpest minds of our generation going head to head?

http://www.becker-posner-bl...

Re: Question of the day

kimsch — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 21:06:55 -0000

back on topic, I have a list at my blog Musing Minds. I'm in Lake County.

Re: Question of the day

UIUC Student — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:29:13 -0000

mr. miller, you might want to respond to this augur character on the urbanagora blog itself, he has a minor retort for you.

Re: Question of the day

UI Alum — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:27:51 -0000

Again, I feel that you are breaking your own "no insult" policy with this little tirade, but do as you please. I'm not quite sure why you are so defensive of Ms. Halvorson, does this merry band of corrupt legislators really deserve to be called anything aside from "dumbasses"? I hope that any friendship you have with her is not compromising your ability to impartially report on her more suspicious activities...That would seem to violate the duty and responsibility you have to your loyal readers.

By the way, it appears that you are also not holding yourself to your profanity policy, which reads, "Profanity is absolutely not acceptable in any form." Yet you wrote of the Urbanagora author, "u really ought to make sure that you're not the dumbass." Wow Richy, that doesn't sound like hypocrisy at all. But just so that we're all clear, the word "dumbass" is now acceptable on your esteemed blog?

Re: Question of the day

Rich Miller — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:07:04 -0000

I stand by my post. Your entire premise was false and anyone who would use such a flimsy "reason" as an excuse to engage in such extreme pettiness - partisan or not - should withdraw the post. If you don't like it or can't accept the heat, then don't try to pimp yourself here.

She took a total of about ten grand in 14 long years from ALL utilities by your own reckoning. I found 2K from ComEd. Hardly a queen's ransom, as was suggested by the piece.

And the stuff about the freeze was just plain false. There is no defense for that post. give it up.

Re: Question of the day

Rich Miller — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:00:03 -0000

Posting from my Treo. Please excuse typos.

Re: Question of the day

Rich Miller — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 19:58:08 -0000

Also I should add that when u call the Majority Leader a "dumbass" then u really ought to make sure that you're not the dumbass.

Re: Question of the day

Rich Miller — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 19:55:38 -0000

Why would they wanted to have enjoined the ban they put in place? They were making good bucks and knew that if they laid low their parent corp profits would slow when deregulated. Legal action to lift the freeze then would have invited legislative retaliation and regulatory nightmares. The premise is all wrong and so is that post. No excuses allowed.

Re: Question of the day

UI Alum — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 19:53:38 -0000

Actually, Mr. Miller, it appears that you are the one who is wrong about Urbanagora proposing a false premise. You, by your own admission, took a quick glance at the data while the author looks to have studied Halvorson's finances extensively through the Sunshine database.

Also, the "transcending petty partisan politics" trait does still apply because the author of that post is in fact a Democrat criticizing his own party, which is by definition transcending partisan politics.

You've now made a few baseless accusations against the author of that post, which ironically seems to violate your own policy of deleting "insults and 'rumors.'"

Re: Question of the day

McLean County — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 19:04:32 -0000

New blogsite up for McLean County news; political and otherwise; www.mcleancountypundit.com

Re: Question of the day

UIprawf — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 18:58:37 -0000

Like anywhere, urbanagora has it's share of partisan hackery, but it was probably the most partisan Democrat on the blog who attacked Halvorson, which somewhat redeems UofI student's argument that it isn't petty partisan politics. The democrat was attacking a democrat - albeit hastily.

Augur was a little sloppy on this, which isn't usually the case with him, but around year 7 or 8 of the ban, I think if the public utilities thought they could enjoin the ban, they would have. I agree with him that a law could be fashioned that freezes rates that ComEd would not succeed in enjoining.

Re: Question of the day

Rich Miller — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 18:44:46 -0000

That Halvorson post was based on a false premise. Namely, that if the utilities couldn't stop the previous ten-year rate freeze they couldn't stop a new one.

The utilities supported the previous rate freeze legislation. They didn't sue to stop it. This time, they oppose the freeze idea because they've already signed contracts for much higher energy costs.

Based on that post, I'm not impressed with the claims that they "transcend petty partisan politics.": They referred to Halvorson as a "dumbass," while relying on a completely false premise, which is not exactly transcending pettiness. But to each his own I suppose.

Re: Question of the day

Univ. of Illinois Grad — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 18:37:47 -0000

I agree entirely with the previous author regarding the Urbanagora (www.urbanagora.com) blog. They are a group of the University of Illinois' best political minds and their posts are broad in scope. They seem to get regular comments on every post, and sometimes as many as 50.

Most blogs that I read tend to debate along partisan lines, but these guys try to get at the heart of what it means to be a conservative or a liberal or an independent. They transcend petty partisan politics and enter the realm of the philosophy behind the big issues they weigh on our society. They are worth a read.

Re: Question of the day

Blagojevich's Nightmare — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 18:21:36 -0000

One of my favorite Illinois blogs is URBANAGORA http://www.urbanagora.com/

It is a collection of bloggers who have some connection with Urbana or the University of Illinois.

Today they lit up Majority Leader Debbie Halvorson, and deservedly so:
http://www.urbanagora.com/2...

Sometimes Urbanagora has big picture and high science coverage, and it also features solid federal, state, and local commentary. Some of the posts give you a sense of college life in Champaign-Urbana.

The bloggers span the political spectrum. tet is a rabid libertarian, billy joe mills is a moderate/conservative republican, augur is a moderate democrat, and ruiz and pierce are liberals.

Re: Question of the day

Just a Citizen — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 17:44:08 -0000

Cap Fax has it all.

Re: Question of the day

randomguy — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 16:25:36 -0000

if you want to keep up on the political happenings in iowa i suggest www.iowapolitics.com it has a roundup of all the important blogs.

Re: Question of the day

Ferdy — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 16:08:57 -0000

I'm very partial to my own site, of course, but I love Pressthink , which has the most indepth look at new media I can find. For film reference, obviously, the Internet Movie Database in invaluable, and for film commentary, Senses of Cinema

Re: Question of the day

Democrat — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 15:18:05 -0000

Peoria pundit

Re: Question of the day

Papa Legba — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 15:14:13 -0000

thespoof.com has some pretty creative and funny stuff. A few others that I don't discuss in a public forum.

Rich, I was wondering if you could put a time stamp on new threads? Sometimes I wonder how long they may have been up for comment. Especially when I leave and come back a few hours later.