We have all seen the chilling video of the 27-year-old Iranian woman, Neda Agha-Soltani, dying in the streets of Tehran. In his press conference a few minutes ago, President Obama mentioned the “searing image of a woman bleeding to death on the streets [in Tehran]” He also mentioned how “powerful images and pointed words have made their way to us through cell phones and computers…” We...

First, my usual disclosures. I voted for Obama. I like Salon’s Joan Walsh. I especially liked the cool, calm, collected, and informed way she recently debated—whenever she wasn’t rudely interrupted—a boorish, fuming, huffing and puffing, uninformed O’Reilly on Dr. Tiller’s murder and on O’Reilly’s previous ranting on this subject—prior to the murder. I also...

My two friends (surely they can’t be described as “socialists” by any stretch of imagination) have come out in full support of the US government’s SINGLE PAYER HEALTH INSURANCE scheme. However, they are amazed at the misinformation that is being spread regarding the scheme in the US media and the ads. Shyamal Bagchee, PhD, FRSA, Professor of English and Film Studies, University of Alberta,...

If this is not an example of the explanation being even weirder than the thing being explained, I’m stumped for what would be (emphasis mine):

Women assail government-funded militia as they beat a protester on the streets of Tehran, Saturday, June 20. While there is widespread global support for those battling for reform in Iran, it should surprise no one that even in the Arab/Sunni world, there is support for Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his young apprentice, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. For Saudi Arabia’s Dar al-Hayat, in a particularly visceral...

Monte Wolverton, Cagle Cartoons This cartoon is copyrighted and licensed to run on TMV. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

It sounds like a routine alarm, but the things are getting serious. The question being asked in this part of the world is: Who would grab Pakistan’s nuclear weapons first…the Al Qaeda or the USA? To this speculation one may add an Aesop’s fable: Would it be the “monkey” India/Israel combo snatching the nukes away from the Al Qaeda/USA “cat” ? Here is a categorical...

How draconian is the Iran regime’s crackdown and the pointed messages it’s now sending out (demonstrators mowed down in the streets, family members of foes arrested, communications sliced off)? The latest sign that Iranians and the world are now seeing a government that has lost its shaky figleaf of democracy is the news that Newsweek’s Maziar Bahari was arrested in the early in the morning...

Olle Johansson, Sweden This cartoon is copyrighted and licensed to run on TMV. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

I don’t tweet, nor do I know much about Twitting. At my age, when I can’t even “Blackberry,” or “iPhone”, or “iPod,” or even “iPod-Touch,” (or whatever the name is of the latest gadget that my 9-year-old grandson so masterfully “operates”), why should I venture into even more iNcomprehensible technological territory. So, a couple of weeks ago, when Time Magazine’s cover story was...

From the Department of Credit Where Credit Is Due:

Our linkfest taking you to sites of varying viewpoints all over the Internet. No Matter What Happens In Iran, Will The Uprising Have An Impact Throughout The World? Simon Rosenberg believes so: Much has been written about the how events unfolding in Iran are crossing some kind of internal Iranian Rubicon. Fareed Zakaria has a new essay to this effect. But there is a strong argument to be made that the world...

I never miss an opportunity to treat others, and myself, to mouth-watering ice creams and frozen custards. I was delighted that dad Barack Obama gave a yummy frozen custard treat to daughters Sasha and Malia on The Father’s Day. ABC News tells us that Sasha, his youngest daughter, went for the big chocolate brownie sundae with frozen yogurt, hot fudge, a cherry, sprinkles, and whipped cream. “But,...

Continuing with our coverage of the just-concluded trial against Scientology in France, this news item from Le Monde is in part made up of quotes from Scientology’s lead attorney, Patrick Maisonneuve, who sees the case as a cop-out on the part of prosecutors. While the charges against Scientology are for organized group fraud and the illegal use of pharmaceuticals, Maisonneuve says the real defendent...

We have all heard by now of the allegations of massive fraud in the counting and reporting of the recent election results in Iran. There is telltale “suggestive evidence” that tends to confirm such allegations: * The unrealistically high votes for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in urban areas, including Tehran and Tabriz where he is not very popular. * The surprisingly poor performance by opposition...

Centrist writer John Avlon has awarded his highly coveted Wingnuts of the Week award on CNN to two examples of dehumanizing humor by people on the left and right (video below). The author and former Chief Speechwriter for New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani begins his entry on the awards this way on his blog: If you debase or dehumanize people who disagree with you politically, you’re deep into wingnut territory....

Here’s the full video of President Barack Obama’s address to the Radio and Television Correspondents’ Association’ dinner. Can you spot any lines that will spark a new (what else?) firestorm of written and verbal chest beating and outrage? We embed, you decide: Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

This morning I wrote on the latest so-called “ruling” by a Brazilian judge on the five-year long battle by New Jersey dad David Goldman for custody of his son, Sean, who is being held in Brazil against every international rule and convention. In the “ruling,” the Brazilian judge said that David Goldman should have custody of his son. However, there are some big, ridiculous “ropes”...

Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has spoken. Last Friday’s national election results were not rigged because “the Islamic state would not cheat,” he declared. He warned the opposition would be “responsible for bloodshed and chaos” if the protests continued. At least eight citizens have been killed in the demonstrations so far. The ayatollah is the hammer, the lead mullah,...

The Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad has snatched an unprecedented interview with Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s right-hand man and head of Ahmadinejad’s reelection committee, Mojataba Samareh Hashemi. According to the Handelsblad, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Samareh Hashemi have been friends since childhood, and analysts say Samareh Hashemi has great influence on the president. In the interview,...