Yes. I’m a flip-flopper. Of the first degree. Item #225 on the very long list of reasons I could never run for public office. The latest example: The proposed (and languishing, but not yet dead) expansion of the S-CHIP program. First, I was generally in favor of it. Then, I was soundly against it. And then … the factors that prompted me to change my position were challenged by certain astute TMV readers in the back-and-forth comments attached to the October 12 “Center of...

A round up of recent commentary by assorted voices who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– To kick things off today … two posts that represent two notes in the same chord, sizing up today’s generation through the eyes of Boomers. (Warning: You may detect...

During Bill Clinton’s Presidency, Rush Limbaugh was a guest on David Letterman’s late-night show. Letterman asked Limbaugh if he could say just one nice thing, one good thing, about the President. Limbaugh couldn’t, or more accurately, wouldn’t — and that was pretty much the end of any interest I had in Limbaugh. Last month, Letterman presented Clinton with a similar opportunity. Asked what he thought of Sen. McCain, Clinton not only did what any decent person would...

A round up of recent commentary by assorted voices who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– The ed board of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, my hometown daily and one of the leftest of left-leaning papers in the country, questions AG-to-be Mukasey’s stance on civil...

He tried to be someone he wasn’t, accomplishing nothing. He struggled to raise adequate campaign funds. He made a scoff-able statement about security in Iraq with soldiers and armory surrounding him. He edged back into favor with strong statements against torture, only to slip up with an insensitive remark about Christians in the White House. And yet, for all that, he’s still in the mix, still fighting, still viable, and still (in many ways) respected. What’s more, I have a...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– Steve Benen thinks Republicans have perfected “the art of the hissy fit.” Over the course of time, I suspect both parties would be found equally guilty — but just...

Earlier this month, at Divided We Stand, MW again made his case for divided government. By-and-large, I agree with him; the evidence of the effectiveness of divided government is clear and compelling. But while I agree with the objective of divided government, I’m not yet convinced that systematic, universal efforts to vote for this objective, exclusive of other considerations, is the most-productive approach to healing our ailing national morale. Here’s why. I will likely vote for the...

Earlier, Joe Gandelman joined the cast of those predicting Mukasey was “in” for U.S. Attorney General. Elsewhere, the NYT ed board encouraged Senators to give Mukasey the third degree, regardless of the pre-hearing buzz, noting the extensiveness of the prior-inflicted wounds at (and via) the DOJ. Apparently, the Senators on the panel listened to the NYT, threw their best split-fingered fastballs at the prospective AG … and Mukasey knocked ‘em out of the park, especially on...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– If, like me, you were thinking hoping the Religious Right and its skewed, divisive tactics were on their way to the garbage bin of political history, think again. With the dust settling...

Steve Benen comments on the recent Republican movement toward health care reform. His primary point, paraphrased: Whatever the plan is, it will stink; but hey, it’s still progress when Republicans get serious about a foundational issue long championed by Democrats. Obviously, I disagree with Steve on the prejudice: We should not assume an R plan will stink. In fact, to date, a handful of R governors have been relatively astute on this challenge: Mitt, Arnold, and Missouri’s own Matt Blunt....

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– Michael Linn Jones wants “a voter’s refund.” Reaching back to the middle of last week, the Miami Herald‘s Leonard Pitts Jr. finally chimed in on the subject...

If I had a time machine and could wind back the clock to the point when I was compiling today’s CoA installment, I’d add just one more post to the list, for our readers’ collective consideration, namely, this one by Jim Wallis, “Dinner with the Antichrist.” An obviously great title (if your goal is to hook readers) … plus an extremely encouraging prediction: This dramatic shift in the public agenda of the evangelical community is affecting American politics in...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– Libby Spencer revisits the potential value of tossing everyone out of Washington and starting over. Money quote from her concluding paragraph: “We can fix it but not until we...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– Starting off, two two-fers for your consideration. First, two from Dave Schuler: one in which he rues an encountered lack of “vocabulary or context for discussing moral action”...

What do a 20-something college student, a 30-something software engineer, and a 40-something mother of a special needs teenager have in common? For one thing, they all agreed to be interviewed by John Baird at CS for a new series, “By the People.” As John explains in the series’ first installment: Polls dominate our lives: Right track. Wrong track. The economy is great or calamitous. No one is getting married, but everyone is getting divorced. They tell us how we think, even when...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– Dan Radmacher, ed-page editor of The Roanoke Times, asks “What about the Middle?” [H/t Shay @ Booker Rising.] Linking back to Shaun Mullen‘s column earlier today...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– Many people today are leaving the Republican party, but there was a time when the migration flowed the other way. The Anchoress [h/t Patrick J. Conlon] explains why (and when) she...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– With a little help from others, Andrew Sullivan plays Solomon on the subject of legalizing illegal drugs. Amba writes about her brother’s experience with the “language-education...

Paul Marks argues that what’s needed in Burma (Myanmar) is some good-old fashioned armed revolt. Andrew Sullivan excerpts the money quote. As someone who has studied (with awe and respect) America’s birthing revolution, I’m hard-pressed to disagree with Marks, though his argument makes me wonder, more than ever, exactly what it was that made Gandhi’s unarmed resistance so remarkably powerful and effective. Why is it so difficult to replicate Gandhi’s example elsewhere? Cross-posted...

One of my all-time favorite voter education groups, Project Vote Smart, has completed its 2008 Presidential Political Courage Test and mailed it to all candidates vying for the White House. (This new test is the updated and re-named successor to PVS’ Political Awareness Test.) If you have a moment, shoot your favorite presidential candidate a note and encourage him or her to complete this test by the deadline of 10/31/07. It’s an excellent exercise, moving well beyond the typical, yes-no,...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– NOTE: Going forward, we will try to publish a “Center of Attention” post at least three times a week, likely on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, rather than Tuesdays and...

Dennis Sanders has a few questions for Candidate McCain.

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– McQ examines the possible resurgence of Stalinism in Russia. Sameer Lalwani looks at developments in the always fascinating world of micro-finance. (These stories never cease to amaze...

A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view. ————————– Andrew Sullivan highlights the voice of a pragmatic reader who thinks, for all the hoopla about voters being disgusted with divisive politics, perhaps voters are (after all) not only...

This weekend, I noticed and posted at Central Sanity what I found to be an intriguing dichotomy: Two attempts to limit the free expression of opinions, one from the left (taking issue with planned protests of Ahmadinejad’s Columbia U. appearance) and one from the right (labeling war protestors as treasonous). Yesterday, an anonymous commenter made several points on that post, concluding: Does anyone truly believe freedom of speech should be unfettered? Are you willing to allow racists to use...