“These are the times that try men’s souls.” Thomas Paine said that, and I wish I could ask him, “What times aren’t?” Still, whatever else they are these are our times. And, however obviously true that is, it is painful to confess.

The various lists of things Obama could and should do won’t get very far until the President acknowledges the views he’s accepted and listened to fall woefully short of what the country’s problems need.

With the Democratic Party now awakening to the horrifying reality of unlimited secret corporate spending on elections, I have but one simple request, and that is for them to change their mascot from the donkey to a deer caught in a car’s headlights.

Raiding medical marijuana dispensaries now is like kicking a field goal with two minutes left and you’re down by 30.

Sheila Bair is on Newsmakers talking foreclosure – iirc the Pelosi interview was taped months ago for To The Contrary – and may the FSM have mercy, Megan McCain is on Amanpour’s roundtable, sigh, that is quite the panel assembled.

Ondelette posted a diary in honor of Benoît Mandelbrot who passed away. Fractals rule. Thanks to ondelette for the video.

Witch Witch Is Witch starring Winsome Witch. This Hanna-Barbera cartoon first aired on January 29, 1966.

So this afternoon I’m out for a run. It’s a crisp October day, the sun is out, finally, and it’s shining through the last of the fall foliage. I live in rural upstate New York, and on a day like this, the country roads turn into tunnels of leafy gold-orange light. I have my iPod [...]

The Hill has just become the most recent news outlet to find in their polling that a majority of voters want a viable third party as an alternative to the Republicans and Democrats. Their poll found that 54 percent of likely voters in 10 swing districts think there should be a third party. Their results mirror national polling from CNN (PDF) and Gallup, both of which also show majority support for a third party.

At the youth town hall this week, young voters came to ask President Obama questions about his past policies and future intentions. These young voters understand that this time of year, the mid-term elections, is when we interview candidates for the job of representing us in Congress. The president, though, called it “silly season” — an insult to them and to all American voters trying to decide whether to re-hire incumbents or look to another candidate for the job.

John Carney, head mouthpiece at CNBC, sure sounds confident that the banks will not have to face any consequences for systematically defrauding the mortgage market for the past decade.