Matthew Yglesias had an interesting exchange with Kevin Glass over whether the public option, a government-run health insurance plan, can be “financially independent.” That’s related to Chuck Schumer’s proposal that public and private plans compete on a level playing field, with no “unfair subsidies” for the public plan.

Robert D. Auerbach began his career as a cab driver. A chance ride with Abram Lincoln Harris, a leading professor in the economics department at the University of Chicago — and its only African-American member — catapulted him into graduate school. (When he went in to register, he still had his changer on his belt.) There he became a student of Milton Friedman, completing a dissertation in 1969. Then it was on to the staff of the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank – the beginning of a lifelong no-love-lost affair with the central bank.

Newsweek enables South Carolina’s Gov. Mark Sanford’s need for attention, spotting him as Sanford attempts to pull a double-pretzel of logic. But will Sanford stick the landing as he performs this gymnastic feat, making credible Ayn Rand’s dull and fictional lectures on morality and immorality? Oh sure – and Argentina is at the end of the Appalachian Trail…

The latest Village meme on health care and the public option is an expression of surprise that it’s still alive. Clearly they all believed – reporters, operatives and politicians alike – that they could punch the hippies in the teeth without consequences and congratulate each other for doing so in the name of “winning the health care battle”. This under-estimation of the intensity of the progressive coalition on this issue is a permanent condition.

Bad telecom McCain is back, and just as smarmy about protecting telecom as ever.

The TheoCons are collecting signatures to put two anti-abortion state constitution amendments on the ballot in MO next year, including one that will define personhood “to be from the beginning of biological development.” If this passes, will the pre-birth police be knocking on the door of every woman who miscarries?

Why is the Brazilian embassy in Honduras under siege? Because it’s sheltering Honduras’ rightful president, Manuel “Mel” Zelaya, and his family.

The truth hurts, and facts are stubborn things.

This all started in August when Health and Human Services said that the public option was “not the essential element of health care reform.” Within hours anonymous administration officials were walking back Secretary Sebelius’ quote by claiming that “she misspoke.”

There’s A Rainbow In the Sky….

Featuring new videos from Cloud Control and Mission of Burma.