Dear Colorado-based Amazon Associate:

We are writing from the Amazon Associates Program to inform you that the Colorado government recently enacted a law to impose sales tax regulations on online retailers. The regulations are burdensome and no other state has similar rules. The new regulations do not require online retailers to collect sales tax. Instead, they are clearly intended to increase the compliance burden to a point where online retailers will be induced to "voluntarily" collect Colorado sales tax -- a course we won't take.

We and many others strongly opposed this legislation, known as HB 10-1193, but it was enacted anyway. Regrettably, as a result of the new law, we have decided to stop advertising through Associates based in Colorado. We plan to continue to sell to Colorado residents, however, and will advertise through other channels, including through Associates based in other states.

There is a right way for Colorado to pursue its revenue goals, but this new law is a wrong way. As we repeatedly communicated to Colorado legislators, including those who sponsored and supported the new law, we are not opposed to collecting sales tax within a constitutionally-permissible system applied even-handedly. The US Supreme Court has defined what would be constitutional, and if Colorado would repeal the current law or follow the constitutional approach to collection, we would welcome the opportunity to reinstate Colorado-based Associates.

You may express your views of Colorado's new law to members of the General Assembly [ http://www.leg.state.co.us/Clics/CLICS2010A/csl.nsf/directory?openframeset= ] and to Governor Ritter [ http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/GovRitter/GOVR/1177024890452 ], who signed the bill.

Your Associates account has been closed as of March 8, 2010, and we will no longer pay advertising fees for customers you refer to Amazon.com after that date. Please be assured that all qualifying advertising fees earned prior to March 8, 2010, will be processed and paid in accordance with our regular payment schedule. Based on your account closure date of March 8, any final payments will be paid by May 31, 2010.

We have enjoyed working with you and other Colorado-based participants in the Amazon Associates Program, and wish you all the best in your future.

Best Regards,

The Amazon Associates Team

The choice for Dems: Either you get a thousand news articles about the new law, or a thousand news articles about how hapless and ineffective you are.

One guy is talking, perhaps inelegantly, about why he's wholeheartedly supporting our first black president; the other is wishing the country had elected a racist. That's exactly the same thing!

And a succinct statement from Josh Marshall at TPM:

Talking about racism does not make you racist; advocating racism does.

Cable news today, after the publication of Halperin's new book, is totally pukeworthy.

]]> http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2010/01/on_harry_reid.html http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2010/01/on_harry_reid.html Corruption Mon, 11 Jan 2010 13:10:37 -0700 I like Rachel Maddow's take:

The rallying cry now from Republicans is that we shouldn‘t try the Christmas bomber in civilian court—that, instead, he should be tried in a military tribunal, declared an enemy combatant. I mean, what‘s the value of a military tribunal here, other than trying to make political hay out of this case? Really, what‘s the justice, anti-terrorist, counterterrorist value on this?

You really think this kid can‘t be convicted? You really think we don‘t have enough evidence beyond the—beyond the, I don‘t know, 300 or so eyewitnesses who were on the plane? The fact that we have the weapon that he tried to use? The fact that he confessed? You think that‘s not enough to get this kid convicted?

You have that little faith in our criminal justice system? That little faith in the rule of law? You don‘t believe that a supermax federal American prison is capable of holding this kid? You think it might be cool, instead, to martyr this kid as some impressive soldier, instead of some idiot confused rich kid who couldn‘t even handle blowing up his own junk with a bomb that was secreted in his own underpants?

We‘re supposed to take national security advice from you guys?

Really?

Have a good solstice, everyone.

]]> http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2009/12/sunreturn.html http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2009/12/sunreturn.html Culture Mon, 21 Dec 2009 09:42:39 -0700 From Countdown. This says it all.

Update: And as for the Administration, let me quote Tbogg:

I hope they enjoy their Pyrrhic victory because they just burned the base.

The Senate, however, is clearly and irretrievably broken. For months now I've been telling the DSCC that I wouldn't donate another penny until they passed a health care bill with a public option, or a decent equivalent. Looks like I'll be giving to individual candidates only in the next election round.

]]> http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2009/12/traitor_joe.html http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2009/12/traitor_joe.html Corruption Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:47:07 -0700 In Iran, the people still fight for their civil rights against an oppressive government. Kermit chimes in.

Andrew Sullivan at the Daily Dish has pretty comprehensive coverage.

]]> http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2009/12/its_not_easy_be.html http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2009/12/its_not_easy_be.html Iran Fri, 11 Dec 2009 10:54:45 -0700 From John Cole at Balloon Juice:

Why is it always helmet-haired old white guys who are such busybodies when it comes to a piece of anatomy they don’t have?

And when as in this case, a candidate is chosen without a primary or any input except from party officials, you're much more likely to get a candidate who is out-of-step with your party base. I believe in the primary process as a way of ensuring that the voters, the little people of the process, have some power in that decision.

But out-of-step with the base doesn't necessarily mean out-of-step with the district. Whether liberal or conservative, if you choose a candidate who fits your ideology but who is too far outside the mainstream of the district, you're going to lose elections. This is a balancing act that everyone interested in politics has to learn. Whether conservatives can walk that line is something that will only be shown over the next several election cycles.

I am surprised at the weight everyone is giving to this one small, sparsely populated district. I heard that in an off-year election only a few thousand people in this district are likely to come out and vote. I love upstate New York myself, but it's hardly an area I would pick as a national bellwether. The proof of concept for the conservatives, I think, will come in 2010 when they're painting on a much broader canvas. I can't take this one election too seriously as predictor of future success or failure for Tea Party-style conservative philosophy.

]]> http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2009/11/ny23.html http://fierce.jnfr.com/archives/2009/11/ny23.html Politics Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:55:30 -0700 Oh yeah, it snowed.