Thank you, Lamar Smith.

For assisting Google in getting 4.5 million signatures on their anti-SOPA petition, which in turn chased fellow Congress critters -- even John Cornyn -- away from the legislation in droves; and for instigating a populist uprising against your corporate-owned ass.

Some reactions:

-- From "SOPA Will Take Us Back to the Dark Ages":

I had an epiphany today. The Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, was not written by people who fundamentally misunderstand how the web works. They understand all too well, and want to change it forever.

Behind the almost unreadable (yet truly scary) text of SOPA (and its Senate doppelganger, PIPA, or the Protect Intellectual Property Act) is a desire, likely fueled by powerful media conglomerate backers, to take us all back to the thin-pipe, content-distribution days of 1994

-- And from the douchebag himself...

“It is ironic that a Web site dedicated to providing information is spreading misinformation about the Stop Online Piracy Act,” said SOPA sponsor and chairman of the House Judiciary committee Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Tex.) “The bill will not harm Wikipedia, domestic blogs or social networking sites. This publicity stunt does a disservice to its users by promoting fear instead of facts. Perhaps during the blackout, Internet users can look elsewhere for an accurate definition of online piracy,” he quipped.

-- Who supports this legislation?

The biggest backers of the antipiracy bills are the industries hardest hit by online piracy: the makers of music and movies. The Internet, and the explosion of illegal copying and sharing of music and movie files that came with it, has been economically devastating for Hollywood and recording studios, and they’ve been pushing lawmakers for years to hold Internet platforms more accountable for the illegal content that flows through their servers. The bills are also backed by makers of pharmaceuticals and luxury goods that want to strangle the market for knockoff goods. All told, hundreds of businesses led by (the US Chamber of Commerce) are pushing hard for the bills.

My general rule if that if Rupert Murdoch is in favor of it, it's probably bad for everybody else in the world.

-- The Guardian live-blogged the day.

-- Here's a list of some of the major sites who participated in the blackout.

This site spent the past 12 hours dark in solidarity. Regular posting resumes in a moment.

Debate audience boos Romney's Mexican heritage

I realize it's the usual hypocrisy -- and that it's also South Carolina, where boorishness is home-schooled -- but if SC Republicans actually don't hate legal immigration, why the booing?

During a Fox News debate at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center on Monday, the Republican audience booed loudly after being told that Romney’s father was born in Mexico.

In a report last week, NBC revealed that Romney’s great grandfather, Miles Park Romney, had fled to Mexico with other Mormons to escape persecution for polygamy. Romney’s father, George, was later born in the northern Mexico colony of Colonia Dublan.

At the age of five, George Romney returned to the United States illegally after the Mexican Revolution broke out.

Were they booing Romney being an anchor baby? I doubt they were sophisticated enough to figure that out quickly enough to launch a catcall.

The audience also booed when Gingrich was asked about his "food stamps" remarks recently to a black audience, and then cheered his retort wildly. So obviously nobody reminded them that it was MLK Day. Or something.

South Carolina is breaking strongly for Mitt so this behavior is even more puzzling.

How do these Republicans behave -- what do they say -- when they're at their homes, with each other at their meetings which aren't televised? Worse than this?

I think these debates where they boo gay soldiers, boo the mention of Mexico, cheer for the death penalty and the repeal of child labor laws are something akin to picking one's nose while in traffic: I'm all alone here in the car, no one can see me, I can quickgetthis booger.

I hate to tell you this buddy, but people are watching, and they're disgusted.

MLK Day linkage

Here is a good listing of quotations by Martin Luther King Jr.

Here are five stories about relatively obscure people who stood near King as he gave the speech now called "I Have a Dream", in Washington DC on August 28, 1963, at the culmination of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

Here's a link to the details of the ceremony honoring Dr. King this morning at the recently-opened MLK memorial in the nation's capital. The monument itself has a truncated quotation inscribed on it which misinterprets King's words, and will be replaced with another.

This error may -- or may not -- have a thing to do with the fact that the giant stone was partly carved using imported Chinese slave laborers. I doubt King would have approved.

There are several events in Houston marking King's life today, including two parades this morning. Competing factions of supporters can't agree to march together, it seems.

As Dr. King noted...

All progress is precarious, and the solution of one problem brings us face to face with another problem.

MLK Day Wrangle

The Texas Progressive Alliance honors the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King as it brings you this week's roundup.

Off the Kuff takes a look at Democratic primary races as they now stand in Harris County and elsewhere in Texas.

Refinish69 at Doing My Part for the Left thinks sometimes you just have to say "What the Hell?"

Bay Area Houston says it is time for a Joe Driver law.

CouldBeTrue at South Texas Chisme wants you to know that Vermin Supreme almost beat Rick Perry in Vermont.

The Texas Tea Party had a rally and a straw poll in Houston, a few rich white bigots showed up, and Rick Perry got his ass whipped again. In other words, as PDiddie at Brains and Eggs observes, nothing has really changed for the TeaBaggers.

At TexasKaos, Libby Shaw gets us up to date on who is calling who a vulture capitialist, (or Mr. Pot, meet Mr. Kettle. See her piece: Vulture Capitalist Supporters Perry, Gingrich Demonize Vulture Capitalism.

It's been a little quiet on the issue of transportation funding lately, but that's changed. WCNews at Eye On Williamson posts on the latest polling nonsense about how to pay for new roads, in Here we go again.

Neil at Texas Liberal offered the 5th annual posting of his Martin Luther King reading & reference list. There are 3 new additions for 2012. This list is the best starting point to learn about M.L.K. to be found on the web.

Sunday Funnies

Ron Paul, Ted Cruz win Texas TP straw poll

Ron Paul won a very listless Texas Tea Party straw poll, with 27.9% of 707 in-person votes cast, conducted today at Houston's Minute Maid Park.

Newt Gingrich was second with 23.8%. Rick Santorum, the choice of the College of Protestant Cardinals meeting today in the Sistine Chapel at a cattle ranch in Brenham, was third at 21.2%. Rick Perry finished just out of the money in 4th place with 19.4%. Presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney was well back of the pack at 6.6% and Jon Huntsman finished next-to-last at 1.1%, ahead of my selection, Buddy Roemer, who had 0.0.

Paul was even more popular with the 3,332 text voters at 54.4%. The rest of the field changed positions somewhat...

Rick Santorum 15.6%
Rick Perry 13.3%
Newt Gingrich 11.9%
Mitt Romney 4.2%
Jon Huntsman 0.5%
“Buddy” Roemer 0.0%

In the US Senate $75-a-head poll, Ted Cruz walloped David Dewhurst 47.8% to 10.3%. Glenn Addison, the crowd favorite from Thursday night's debate, came in second with 19.9% and Craig James fourth with 9.9%. Cruz also did a little better with the texters, getting 49.1% while Dewhurst slipped to fourth with 7.1% behind James and Addison, who received 12.9 and 12.0 respectively.

Lots of good seats remained available throughout the day.

Attendees and phone voters also got to pick their favorite Congress critters and statehouse senators and representatives. Those results are even less interesting than the ones above and can be found here and here (scroll down).

A riveting lineup of speakers kept the hundred or so Aricept-addled TPers transfixed throughout the day. Breitbart warmed 'em up with a little of his usual crap. "Rock Me Like A" Herman Cain brought some books to sell. Dick Armey pimped his PAC. Update: Both men pimped Mitt Romney, to little avail.

The rest of the talkers were there shilling for 2012 votes; even dipwad Jerry Patterson, not listed on the program, was spotted via stream speaking from the dais at one point.

The conservative local media tried as hard as they could to give the event relevance; alas, they failed. Michael Berry and Matt Patrick of KTRH, Sam Malone and Chris Baker of KSEV, Joe Pags of KPRC, Jon-David Wells of KSKY in Dallas, and Natalie Arceneaux of KNTH made a day of it, to the everlasting chagrin of their program directors. Thank goodness they'll all get a comp day for working on the weekend, giving the market a break from their hate.

All in all, a waste of a beautiful day by our local Tea Party contingent. Just what we've come to expect.