Twinkies and abortion: Two from the ‘I hope you’re happy’ files
One from each side of the ideological spectrum. I’ll start with a smack upside the religious right’s collective head:
According to Rasmussen Reports, in a survey conducted after a presidential election in which abortion rights and the stupid statements of two GOP Senate candidates featured far too heavily, 54 percent of Americans describe themselves as “pro-choice” versus 38 percent who say they’re “pro-life.” This is in sharp contrast with Gallup’s finding back in May, in which half of respondents said they were “pro-life” versus 41 percent who were “pro-choice.” In fact, Gallup’s annual survey on the topic hasn’t found such a sharp pro-choice majority since 1995.
It will be interesting to see what Gallup finds on the question next May, after election-related passions have cooled. But to the degree the Rasmussen survey shows the consequences of changing what it means to be “pro-life,” I blame those right-to-life groups that have pushed politicians to oppose exceptions for rape and incest.
Senate candidates Todd Akin of Missouri and Richard Mourdock of Indiana probably wouldn’t have even been talking about abortion and rape together if not for this anti-exceptions push, a.k.a. the “personhood” movement. I’ve explained my thoughts on personhood a few times before, and this was yet another election that bore out my point. In fact, my point about personhood being a political loser will, unfortunately, be truer than ever if one of the conservative Supreme Court justices or court swing vote Anthony Kennedy ends up leaving the bench during the next four years and President Obama gets to nominate his replacement. The question will truly be settled for another generation, in large part because the RTL groups tried to move the goal posts before they ever made much of a kick.
So, to the degree Akin and Mourdock hurt Mitt Romney’s candidacy — and I think Romney’s showing with women, particularly single women, and younger voters suggests they probably did — the hard-line right-to-lifers have really bitten themselves. Way to go.
Now for the stubborn boneheadedness from the other side, via the AP:
The maker of the iconic U.S. snack Twinkies said Friday it is going out of business and laying off all of its 18,500 workers after a national strike crippled its operations. …
Hostess Brands had warned employees that it would file a motion in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to unwind its business and sell assets if plant operations didn’t return to normal levels by Thursday evening.
Talk about killing the goose that laid the golden, er, snacks.
Insisting on your position as a union is tricky enough in normal times. When unemployment is around 8 percent and a bankruptcy judge has authorized the company to rework some of its labor deals, you’d think the union would be wise enough to realize things could end this way.
Apparently not. Well, they sure taught those capitalists a lesson, huh?
– By Kyle Wingfield
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236 comments Add your comment
Aquagirl
November 16th, 2012
4:38 pm
Yes Linda, because reading the Bible would help figure out this confusing corporate bankruptcy stuff!
Post of the day!
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
4:38 pm
Sorry you don’t like GM Chuck. You can always get one of those hi-kwalitie Japanese kars.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
4:41 pm
Here’s a question for you, why is it that they only manufacture toy-otas. They need to build full grown otas.
mike
November 16th, 2012
4:41 pm
“Why do our premiums go up because these unemployed workers lose their coverage?”
Because those who don’t have insurance present themselves at the Emergency Room for care which they cannot pay for. The hospital then spreads those costs over those who have insurance which results in higher premiums for those who have insurance. Get it?
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
4:41 pm
Ah yes, the old emergency room sore throat. Thanks.
Chuck
November 16th, 2012
4:44 pm
Great post, Nunna Yobinnes
A great many of the “Japanese” kars, as you put it, are built right here in American by Americans, and there also happens to be a American car company that did not go begging in Washington D.C. and get handouts, you may have heard of them, small little company called FORD I think.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
4:45 pm
Yeah, if only they could go a few weeks without another recall.
cc
November 16th, 2012
4:47 pm
“That’s the problem with liberals. They only know what they read. Applies to Mother Goose but not the Bible.”
LOL! So very true . . .
Chuck
November 16th, 2012
4:52 pm
I am not defending the quality of Ford, I am just stating that they did not have to go begging for tax money, because they had run their company into the ground. I have a German car, I would never buy a new American car, I love the old ones though.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
4:52 pm
Let’s put it this way. My lovely wife’s “Japanese kar” had the timing chain break on it after only 141,000 miles (that really does a number on your valves, etc. Only $4,000 to fix.) I’ve had quite a few GM cars go well over that mileage with no such problems at all. Of course, a lot of people have media driven opinions. The websites tell them that GM cars are no good, and that they should drive imported cars only.
Linda
November 16th, 2012
4:59 pm
SBinF@4:32, Sorry you are confused by both corporate bankruptcy & my post.
Corporate bankruptcy is one of the rights of free enterprise, the right to fail.
My post refers to an on-going debate as to liberals’ reliance on limited resources & conservatives’ reliance on expanded resources, as well as the cynicism that seem to be more inherent of conservatives. In other words, liberals will believe anything & conservatives believe nothing without proof.
@@
November 16th, 2012
4:59 pm
mike:
Just know that I disagree with Greenwald’s views on assassinations. I also disagree with him on entitlement spending. Can’t go on as it has been…
growing…growing and… growing s’more.
No amount of tax increases will be able to sustain it.
Just so you know…I voted Ryan/Romney, not Romney/Ryan.
It’s time to accept the harsh realities.
Chuck
November 16th, 2012
5:00 pm
Yes you are right Nunna, I let the media decide that I should drive a German car. There is no proof that they are better quality cars, except that maybe out of the top 10 highest mileage on the original engine cars 8 are Mercedes Benz. I am sure that the Chevy Cobalt is better than E550.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
5:01 pm
It’s easy to last a long time when the car’s in the shop all the time.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
5:02 pm
Just kidding Chuck.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
5:02 pm
Some of us can’t afford to put $70,000 in a car.
mike
November 16th, 2012
5:04 pm
Oh I almost forgot my free gift came in the mail today for voting for Obama. A $100 gift certificate for crab legs at Whole Foods! Man, I can hardly wait!
mike
November 16th, 2012
5:05 pm
I wonder how they knew I voted for Obama?
Chuck
November 16th, 2012
5:05 pm
You lose all credibility when you try to argue that G.M. is better than Mercedes in quality. This just proves that you are a troll just looking for an fight and I am not interested. I thought that you had real ideas, my bad. Out.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
5:05 pm
Quick Mike – git on yer Obamaphone and let everyone know!
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
5:07 pm
Never said it was better. Just said it wasn’t as bad as you made it out to be. Like I said, some of us can’t afford to spend $70,000 on a car. I put 33,000 miles a year on a car. Paying $70,000 over a four year period is pretty tough.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
5:12 pm
Calling me a troll after comparing a Chevy Cobalt to an E-550? If that ain’t trolling, I don’t know what is.
Jack ®
November 16th, 2012
5:25 pm
Those 18,500 folks without a job should start their own Twinkie business. Or maybe the union folks will start a Twinkie business. That’ll show those old rich capitalists a thing or two.
JDW
November 16th, 2012
5:26 pm
@Tiberius…”And it applies to Hostess – how – JDW?”
Ol’ thinking cap not working today I see…as always.
It applies to Hostess and anyone else that adopts your stated management philosophy of:
“Management has ZERO obligation to give them what they ask for”
Because those are the companies that don’t get it and will be either less successful or more probably dead in the long run. No matter how you, Kyle and the other Conservative wannabes on this blog would like to lay the blame at the unions feet the fault is with the management. More specifically in the way they chose to treat their employees over a very long time.
As a result they lost their ability to innovate and the market ate them. Didn’t have a damn thing to do with the union.
Nunna Yobinnes
November 16th, 2012
5:33 pm
Oh come on JDW. You can’t be profitable when union regulations require you to hire three employees to do the job of one employee.
@@
November 16th, 2012
5:43 pm
We owned a Mercedes once. It sucked.
Roomy but…
it sucked.
cc
November 16th, 2012
5:47 pm
I’d just like to have either my ‘59 Impala Sport Coupe or my ‘67 Mustang back!
All things considered, I believe I’d rather have the ‘59, though . . .
mike
November 16th, 2012
5:52 pm
cc: I think I see what you mean about the ‘59.
http://www.continentalclassiccars.com/store/images/vehicles/1959-Chevy-Impala-Sport-Coupe.jpg
cc
November 16th, 2012
6:00 pm
Thanks, mike!
It was a beautiful car . . . and brings back such memories!
cc
November 16th, 2012
6:02 pm
mike:
If you changed the color, the picture is identical to the one I owned, fenderskirts and all.
mike
November 16th, 2012
6:05 pm
cc: any of those memories happen in the back seat? HAHAHAHAHA! That’s when the back seat was actually big enough to have memories in!
cc
November 16th, 2012
6:30 pm
mike:
I respectfully refuse to answer based on my rights against self-incrimination granted under the Constitution of the United States.
JDW
November 16th, 2012
6:31 pm
@Nunna…”Oh come on JDW. You can’t be profitable when union regulations require you to hire three employees to do the job of one employee.”
Not exactly…you can’t be profitable if your relationship with your workforce is so bad their union makes such demands.
Lil' Barry Bailout - OBAMAPHONE!!!
November 17th, 2012
7:48 am
Interesting factoid…blue state California has 12% of the nation’s population and receives 33% of federal welfare spending.
Michael Cabrera
November 17th, 2012
2:36 pm
A company in trouble? Romney must have smelled the blood in the water by now, and is on his way to save it and create jobs.
Jeff and the Camaros
November 20th, 2012
11:39 am
Do your homework on the Hostess/Twinkies thing, the union has given in several times, while venture capitalist (vulture capitalists?) have made millions. To strictly blame this on a union is incorrect, self serving, and sounds like a Fox News sound bite.