Krugman on the Texas Budget

Dr Krugman on the state that was supposed to be managing its money, unlike California. So much for that.

For Texas is where the modern conservative theory of budgeting — the belief that you should never raise taxes under any circumstances, that you can always balance the budget by cutting wasteful spending — has been implemented most completely. If the theory can’t make it there, it can’t make it anywhere.

What Digby Said About What Cynthia Freeland Said

This is actually a link to a link, which may seem unnecessary, but I want to be sure that Digby gets credit. It's an article about how our rulers (the rich, not the government) are becoming even more unhinged from the reality that most of us know. Please read it.

Gerry Rafferty - Baker Street

Seventies power ballads are not my usual thing, but what can I say? It's a great song. And the lines:

He’s got this dream about buyin’ some land
He’s gonna give up the booze and the one night stands
And then he’ll settle down, in some quiet little town
And forget about everything.

But you know he’ll always keep movin’
You know he’s never gonna stop movin’...

keep it from mawkishness. It's a song about life's losers, and the triumphant saxophone lick is somehow the sound of someone being buried alive. RIP GR.

Howlin' Wolf - Back Door Man

Feeling like some Wolf.

Joan Baez - One Too Many Mornings

A Bob Dylan song interpreted by one of his old colleagues, backed by Nashville's finest, circa 1968.

The Meters - Look-Ka Py Py, Jungle Man

From the same 1974 Dr. John special as the post I did a couple of years ago. In memory of David Mills.

The Band - The Rumor

Don't know why I've got this song on my mind on New Year's Day -- maybe because one key line is "It's a-coming, a brand new day." But the song is about some of the worst human behavior: destructive behind-the-back talk. However, the "brand-new day" line is in there. So maybe it's like a Cormac McCarthy novel, in that we see the evil that humans can do, but see a flicker of hope. In any event, it sounds great, with some wonderful multi-part singing.