a couple of friday thoughts

A Rowdy Summit
Gosh, it appears people in Argentina aren't wild about de facto President George W. Bush. Can't imagine why not.

Spy-Novel Men
Eugene Robinson coins a good phrase -- spy-novel men. You know, the ones who hide enemies in secret gulags in eastern Europe, away from prying eyes and the rule of law? Unfortunately, this time it's the CIA doing it, not the KGB. I guess by keeping our illegal prisons away from our shores, we can still claim to be the Land of the Free. Except for all the guys in prison for smoking crack, I mean.

Tom DeLay on Taxes
The Washington Post gave the odious Tom DeLay some prime space today to write about taxes. Predictably, the Indicted Bugman didn't like the report from the tax commission because it didn't go far enough. DeLay wants to get rid of all income taxes and replace them with sale taxes, which he claims will let people decide how much they want to pay in taxes by deciding how much to buy.

I see. I could argue that people already can decide how much they want to pay in taxes by deciding how much they want to earn -- but I won't because that would be an equally stupid argument. Fact is, tax system based solely on consumption would be incredibly regressive because non-rich people spend a much higher percentage of their income than the wealthy. DeLay and his ilk use tax reform as a smokescreen for their true agenda, reducing the government to a point where it can be drowned in a bath-tub. Naturally, they don't want to cut subsidies for important things, like wealthy farmers and Hummer ownership, but want to get rid of the unnecessary things, like food stamps. If Tom DeLay dislikes it, it's good with me.