Translated LA Times: Today LA Sheriffs seized $234,000 worth of harmless products from small businesses in a move certain to harm their businesses, increase unemployment and withdraw money and trade from a lagging economy.

Several pollsters, such as CNN/Time (PDF), Marist, and Gallup, have been releasing their poll results showing totals for both all registered voters and “likely voters.” The difference between how Democrats are performing this year with all registered voters and how they are doing with the group these pollsters believe is most likely to vote is striking. Democrats are often polling 10 points worse–or more–with likely voters.

The smaller servicers have begun to follow the big boys, by closing up some of their foreclosure operations. Litton Loan Servicing LP, a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs, halted “some” foreclosure operations. But this vagueness is why public officials like Richard Cordray doesn’t want to leave this to internal reviews and the discretion of the lenders. We need to either put this in the hands of the courts, or put together a permanent moratorium on foreclosure operations.

Bryan Fischer, the director of Issue Analysis and Public Policy at the American Family Association, proudly smites Gene Cranick (the man whose house burned down while firefighters stood by watching, because he had not paid $75 for fire protection), and then is astonished that even conservatives would challenge his twisted religious justifications. Maybe Fischer ought to read some more of his Bible, because right now, he sounds less like Jesus and more like the Pharisees with whom Jesus often clashed. Them, and Ayn Rand.

A new investigation from the Senate Armed Services Committee shows that private security contractors in Afghanistan “rely on warlords and strongmen” to provide security guards that watch US bases. These guards often have ties to the Taliban.

Oh, lookiee here: The Republicans and their conservative allies are apparently planning to serve up a heaping helping of Jim-Crow-style voter intimidation and suppression in Minnesota. Minnesota Majority, a conservative group aligned with the Republican Party of Minnesota, is launching “Election Integrity Watch” to “monitor” voting and try to “prevent voter fraud.” Why do have [...]

We still have a few weeks to go before the hour-long time change arrives, but I thought I’d bring it up now, so we could explore our relationships with time… Do you reset your clocks before going to bed on Saturday nights in the Fall? Or, like me, would you prefer to save that re-gifted hour until you absolutely need it on Sunday afternoon? And, how do you cope in the Spring?

The Swedish Chef — Carven Der Pumpkin, from Muppet Studios.

Grab your popcorn, put your feet up on the seatback in front of ya, and aim your spitballs at the ushers please. This is Late Late Night FireDogLake, where off topic is the topic … so dive in. What’s on your mind?

When our political leaders find it entirely acceptable to invoke homophobia and old stereotypes about predation to protect our children and our military from LGBT people, and those are the messages American children hear every single day — you’ve got to give them hope.

Kids are dying. It’s got to stop. We’ve all got to give them hope.

In order to clear up any confusion about whether Tea Partiers or Republicans are racist, I have compiled a helpful list of possible signs of racism. If none of them apply to you, then congratulations, you’re just as not-racist as you think you are. If they do, please stop complaining about what a bum rap you’re getting.