TV News LIES

As of 11 p.m. Tuesday, the ban — Ballot Question 300 — was leading 16,798 votes to 11,544 and had widened its margin of victory with every report, according to the Boulder and Weld county clerk's offices. That gave ban supporters about 59 percent of the vote.

“Are you kidding?” screamed ban supporter Teresa Foster as results came in to a watch party held by Our Health, Our Future, Our Longmont. “Awesome! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!”

Late on election night, there are plenty of things everyone would really rather not think about -- not after such a long, grinding, 4-year campaign.  And that's probably a good indication that we should think of them.  Now.  Even if we get queasy.

I dunno about you, but my own private version of Nightmare on Pennsylvania Avenue managed to leak out and stain my innermost thoughts, even now, fully tired, and my guard down.

After brushing aside all the shouts of Peanuts! Popcorn! Hot Dogs! Cold Drinks! and ducking around vendors and crowds, I found myself standing alone, under a huge banner, overhead:  Step Right Up and Make a Prediction for the Big Day (TM).

Australia's Federal Court has ruled that credit ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) misled investors before the global financial crisis.
S&P gave its safest credit rating, AAA, to complex and risky securities, which later lost most of their value.

In what is regarded as a landmark ruling, the court ordered S&P and the bank which arranged the product, ABN Amro, to pay damages to investors.

S&P said it planned to appeal against the decision.

On one side, a hope-and-change machine started up, despite signs of sputtering, stuttering, and stalling out from time to time.  But, it always responded well to CPR, then would get right back on track, going down the center of the road.

On the other side, a blockade machine was built.  It swerved hard right all the time, otherwise working flawlessly, halting all forward progress with random exclamations of "NO!" and "One term only or else!" and "Over our dead body!"

That was four years ago.  Feels more like forty.

While politicians play for votes and ignore the evidence of a rapidly changing climate, Mother Nature has made the consequences heartbreakingly clear.

Four days after 24-year old Jake Vogelman was killed by a hurricane-toppled tree, NYPD detectives came to his house with his personal effects: a black leather wallet still wet from the rain and a watch that was still working

U.S. Army prosecutors offered the first details of a rare criminal case against a general, alleging in a military hearing Monday that he committed sex-related crimes involving four female officers and a civilian.

A hearing on evidence in the case against Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair opened Monday at Fort Bragg, home to the 82nd Airborne Division. Officials said the Article 32 hearing, similar to a grand jury proceeding in civilian court, was expected to last at least two days.

Israel's prime minister and defence minister ordered the country's military to prepare for a strike against Iran's nuclear installations two years ago, according to a television documentary.

But the order was not carried out after it met with strong opposition from two key security figures, the military chief of staff and head of the Mossad, claimed Uvda (Fact), broadcast yesterday.

There's really nothing for it, not at this stage.  Propaganda, marketing, and psychological operations have done all they can.

Voters who remain undecided should seek professional assistance as soon as possible to prevent injury from overwrought hand-wringing, or other long-term damage. The rest of us will struggle on and try to do what we think best.

* * * * *

Many will see today as the last full-spectrum day of candidate drum-beating, tambourine-shaking, and stump-smoldering speechifying.  There may be a regretful tear at this realization and news.