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Peter Swanson

Golden Valley, MN
Commenter for
5 years 4 weeks

Recent Comments

Posted on 10/27/09 at 11:21 am in response to 'Non-flying imam' might upend your stereotypes

Where did they pray? At the gate? Wouldn't he need a ticket to get inside the gate?

Where does your colleague Max Sparber stand (kneel) on the whole praying-at-the-gate issue? He linked to someone who supported Goldy's mocking of a football player who prayed before a game (linking is not necessarily endorsement, I know):

>Semi-professional atheist P.Z. Myers takes issue >with this on his blog, saying, "I call >shenanigans. He was too trying to trivialize a >...

Posted on 10/26/09 at 11:24 am in response to Flying imams in the rear-view mirror: What was the evidence against them?

A couple of things are missing from this analysis. 1) The initial inclusion of "John Does" in the suit, and 2) the involvement of the insurer.

It's too bad there wasn't a trial. I would want to know just how big these men were. Based on the slack when I buckle up, wouldn't you have to have a 45+ inch waist to need an extender? I would also want to know whether they prayed prior to their inbound flight, without incident.

Cops get things wrong, airlines get things wrong. But...

Posted on 10/15/09 at 09:52 am in response to Is the cross a Christian symbol?

Eric Black,

We can agree that I am intellectually honest and all that. But the issue is whether it is right to accuse Justice Scalia of a lack of empathy (which psychologists would tell you is a symptom of any number of mental disorders). Either the law finds the cross to be an endorsement of religion or it does not. Scalia may be wrong and it is perfectly OK to call him wrong. But don't evaluate his character based on if he "feels your pain" or is sensitive to some subjective...

Posted on 10/14/09 at 09:03 am in response to Is the cross a Christian symbol?

Jonathan Foster, you need a source other than wikipedia. Go ahead and Google "Bernard Shaw Wolf Blitzer Reagan Funeral."

I know there is dispute over Pauline Kael's exact quote. That's why I said "attributed to." But the point about the media not understanding those outside their own group stands. If you are interested in empathy, look inward for starters.

I stand corrected that the LA County cross was above the Hollywood Bowl, not the mission that the cross symbolized....

Posted on 10/13/09 at 05:22 pm in response to Is the cross a Christian symbol?

Susan, Don't forget the seal's depiction of Pomona, the Roman goddess.

I don't seek to maintain majority status for any religion. I seek to maintain sanity in the law.

The ACLU goes after jurisdictions much smaller than LA County. So when you talk about a "great leveler," be careful what you wish for.

Posted on 10/13/09 at 03:46 pm in response to Is the cross a Christian symbol?

"...certain kind of inability to think about how things look to someone who is not a member of one's own group, and especially when one's own group is the majority."

Funny. That's the way I see the mainstream media, as well as those who recently left its employ. There was CNN's Bernard Shaw acting surprised at the outpouring of grief at Ronald Reagan's passing. And there was the quote attributed to Pauline Kael in 1972 that she didn't know anyone who had voted for Nixon.

So...

Posted on 09/30/09 at 10:34 am in response to WCCO tells DFLers 'no' to Pawlenty Radio Hour changes

I said, "I am not saying those entities give an hour per week of airtime to a political figure, but even a little slant is problematic when it is paid for by tax dollars."

My position is not that MPR is slanted, or does anything approaching GMM or Lunch with the Governor (Jesse). Just that a commercial radio station can do what it wants, so long as it is not giving an official candidate fee airtime during the campaign (Jesse left KFAN in 1998, Rybak and Coleman took over GMM during...

Posted on 09/29/09 at 02:30 pm in response to WCCO tells DFLers 'no' to Pawlenty Radio Hour changes

As long as the rules are enforced consistently (so far for an IP governor and a GOP governor), then it's fine. I think all would agree that it would be wrong to change the rules after the 2010 election. So if you can elect a DFL governor, then you get the same perks.

For me, the problem with "scattershot, unguaranteed response time" happens when it is a taxpayer funded medium like MPR or TPT. I am not saying those entities give an hour per week of airtime to a political figure, but...

Posted on 09/24/09 at 10:39 am in response to A classic semi-sliming? GOP's Seifert sort of goes after three DFL governor candidates

How much do they make when you include per diem?

Posted on 09/16/09 at 11:37 am in response to 5% vote in St. Paul primary, but Sooch did his duty

I will forgive you for the shot at TV news if you forgive me for the following:

Joe Soucheray has a radio show and a column in a daily newspaper. You?