President Obama this weekend at Camp David is studying a classified report submitted by Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan, that some say could be a game changer by putting a larger emphasis on “protecting the Afghan people.” You can bet he will not take my advise and that of a growing number of both liberals and conservatives that the U.S. should pull its forces...

I have a developing story for you all, courtesy of libertarian blogger Radley Balko: Jonathan Ayers, a 29 year old pastor of Lavonia, Georgia was shot and killed last Tuesday by undercover narcotics officers during a botched drug bust. The shooting occurred around 2:30 in the afternoon just outside a Shell station in Toccoa, Georgia, where he had just returned to his car after getting money from the ATM. ...

Olympia Snowe. [Crossposted at my personal blog.]

While many Americans were accused of not supporting our troops, of being unpatriotic, and worse, for criticizing our involvement in Iraq and the way that war was being managed, I will not accuse Conservative George Will of anything. In ‘Why are we still in Afghanistan?”, (replace “Afghanistan with “Iraq” and see how familiar that sounds), George Will is having second thoughts about...

Lost in the debate over whether or not the government can run anything right is the glaringly obvious: our National Park System is absolutely fantastic. My family and I had the chance to explore many parks in the West last summer, including Grand Canyon, Bandelier, Yellowstone, Zion, Bryce, Devil’s Tower and Mount Rushmore. The natural beauty, cultural and historical preservation, and customer service...

In a low turnout election last night to fill the seat left vacant by former Rep. Ellen Tauscher (and current Obama administration official) California Lt. Governor John Garamendi was the top finisher with 26% of the vote. Given the heavy Democratic tilt of the district (about 2-1) it is likely he will win the November runoff. This would leave a vacancy in the office of Lt. Governor and bring about some interesting,...

For the first time in my life, professional pollsters tracked me down and actually asked my opinion on what they considered vital questions on the state of the union. Naturally, I was flattered. But the conversation went downhill in a hurry. It was a legitimate poll conducted by Pew Research Center of Princeton, New Jersey, and I suspect the woman conducting the poll was a college student. I am also guessing...

I’ve been an economics and financial writer for 30 years. I used to enjoy my work. I used to take pride in it. The markets were kinky, sure, but that made the writing more fun. And even though a slew of picaresque and flagrantly self-serving characters might for a time generate oddball quirks in markets and even the overall economy, even in the midst of the most extreme bouts of irrationality there were...

So I’m reading through the results of today’s local German elections and I’m marveling at the political analysis. Three states – Thuringia, Saarland and Saxony – held local elections and the result was a mixed bag where near-majority Christian Democrats lost to a plethora of minor parties on the left and right including the Free Democrats (economic conservatives), the Left Party...

Today the voters in Japan are headed to the polls and if the pre-election polling is correct the long dominant Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is going to experience a defeat, quite possibly by landslide margins. The LDP has ruled Japan for almost all of the 54 years since the end of World War Two but they have suffered major losses recently, including the loss of control of the less powerful upper house. This...

As the nation pays its final respect for the life and times of Sen. Edward Kennedy it has become clear to me we will never again see a politician of his stature grace the halls of Congress. That is sad. What struck me was the litany of friends and foes alike who all agreed on one basic principle: Ted Kennedy was a man of his word. He was passionate in his beliefs even though many disagreed. He was an engaging...

Siena Research recently concluded their sweeping August poll of New Yorkers’ political leanings and the results contain some shocks and some yawns, as usual. Two things are obvious, though. First, having given total control executive and legislative power to the party of the Donkey, Empire State denizens are absolutely sick of the Democrats they elected. Second, they are still in no mood to replace most...

You may think you’ve got it bad, but at least you’re not part of the next generation of punk rock. Think about the low points of your life, then watch this video and just be glad you are who and where you are. (Warning: Some inappropriate language, so avoid if that would offend.) I’m Fat and Nobody Likes Me

Remember those kid sandlot games we played where the oak tree was the goal line on one side of the field and the public restroom the goal line on the other. The sidelines were marked by Fatso’s dad’s Chevy on one side and Jimmy’s mom’s lawn chair on the other. Any disputes over the mock gridiron’s imaginary chalk lines were settled with a do over. Folks, welcome to the National...

We’ve all heard the same argument in different contexts—the argument that the public has no right or need to know important information because some officials think it would hurt the public’s interests if the information got out. We’ve heard it when the issue is police brutality. Oh, no, we’re told, if that’s examined too closely, it would hurt the morale of police officers who...

by Walter Brasch PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 28–The crowd at Lincoln Field gave superstar quarterback/convicted felon Michael Vick a standing ovation when he entered the game on the second play against the Jacksonville Jaguars. On his first play for the Philadelphia Eagles, Vick tossed an easy shovel pass for a four yard gain. “It was unbelievable the way I was embraced and the warm welcome I received,”...

When bringing to the attention of our readers articles written by others, I normally try to add some of my views, my own perspective—my two cents’ worth. In the wake of Senator Kennedy’s death, three giants at the Washington Post have written opinion pieces on the Senator’s passing. Yesterday, David S. Broder and George F. Will wrote “A Man Unbowed and Unchanged,” and “The...

Believe mewhen I tell you I am writing a column about a review by Jessica Bennett of Newsweek about psychologist Robert Feldman, the author of a new book, The Liar in Your Life, the inspiration for a new film, The Invention of Lying, as well as a Fox TV series Lie To Me. We are a nation of liars, Feldman is quoted. Writes Bennett: Time and time again, public-opinion polls show that honesty is among the top five...

Professional journalists in America, those who record the first chapter in the books of history, are challenged writing obituaries of our fallen leaders when the person’s life is filled with complexities, contradictions and accomplishments such as that of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy. Citizen journalists, those who write blogs, are not constrained by such niceties. They call it as they see it. They come straight...

Only a few hours after the passing of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, there is a flood of stories on the life and the accomplishments of the Lion of the Senate. The vast majority of the stories are complimentary of the Senator. There are some exceptions. As all humans, Ted Kennedy had his flaws and made his share of mistakes. I understand that the Senator will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Perhaps,...

As I write this, Chula Vista, Calif., is about to play San Antonio in a preliminary round of undefeated teams in the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Penn. The Chula Vista all-star team is the equivalent of the 1927 Yankees. They slugged 46 home runs in their last eight games and shutout their first two World Series opponents 29-0. Sally Jenkins, the renowned sports columnist for The Washington...

Whenever health care reform is talked about, Republicans respond in an almost Pavlov-style manner. Immediately we start talking about the evils of the Canadian and British healthcare systems and about the loss of American freedoms. Some even go a step further and claim as blogger John Vecchione writes in a recent post, that there is no health care crisis and when nations make universal health care a goal it...

Many have compared the Iraq war to the Vietnam War, especially as in “quagmire.” Recently, some are beginning to compare the war in Afghanistan to the Vietnam War. Some are even beginning to refer to the Afghanistan war as “Obama’s Vietnam.” I don’t have a problem with the Iraq-Vietnam comparison. There are indeed some similarities and historical analogies, both in how and why the two wars were...

At least one California legislator has retaliated with a popgun attack against Nevada’s million dollar ad campaign to lure Golden State businesses to the Silver State. What started as a tongue-in-cheek snarky campaign by Nevada which has inundated the major California markets via cable television advertising the past two weeks is now being greeted by Assemblyman Jose Solorio (D-Santa Ana) who told The...

I live across the street from Chaparral High School in Temecula, Calif., and every school morning and afternoon dozens of yellow school buses roll in and out of the campus’s sprawling parking lot. Temecula is a semi-rural area 60 miles southeast of Los Angeles and its boundaries extend miles in all directions. As most school districts, Temecula offers bus transportation to students living outside a determined...