For being the world’s only Superpower and global empire, we certainly are a pathetic, fearful, demented, wimpy, and easily frightened group. Our shores are filled with Chicken Little’s screaming about Al Qaida and airport security at the drop of a terrorist’s underwear. Now let’s get a grip on our emotions running amok and start thinking as rational human beings. I’m ashamed of many Americans in politics...

That is the question Matthew Yglesias poses, now that advocates for torture are promoting its use for routine intelligence-gathering as opposed to the original rationale that torture should be limited to the mythical “ticking time bomb” scenario (emphasis is mine):

Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to appear on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved.

Dealing with climate change may be the most important issue for human progress but 2010 is likely to see it move to the backburner because creating jobs is better politics in the US, Europe and elsewhere. President Barack Obama’s presence surrounded by 5 cabinet members, many senators and tens of top journalists at the recent Copenhagen conference failed to persuade major players like the European Union, China...

NBC News reports that the suicide bomber responsible for killing seven C.I.A. agents in Afghanistan was a double agent working for Al Qaeda:

In his column today Adam Liptak looks at the American Law Institute, which created the intellectual framework for the modern capital justice system almost 50 years ago. And then pronounced its project a failure and walked away from it: A study commissioned by the institute said that decades of experience have proved that the system cannot reconcile the twin goals of individualized decisions about who should...

In the history of pointless ideas in politics, this one should not come as any surprise, except in terms of how pointless it seems. MSNBC is reporting that Congressional Democrats will seek to skip the normal conference committee process to combine the House and Senate versions of the health care bill and try to get one identical bill passed in each chamber which both can agree on. Bill pong: All the attention...

Monte Wolverton, Cagle Cartoons This cartoon is copyrighted and licensed to appear on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved.

Rep. Parker Griffith (Ala.) announced last month his intention to switch parties, from Democrat to Republican. Now we learn that his “staff has resigned en masse.” Details at The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room. UPDATE: Rep. Griffith’s departed staff might want to be a little more robust in their fact-checking when they list examples of “great Democratic conservative leadership”...

WASHINGTON — As they enter this difficult election year, Democrats seem ready to engage yet again in a debate they never seem to tire of: whether winning demands “moving to the center” or “mobilizing the base.” If they get stuck on this one, they’re in for a very bad time. The simple truth is that in midterm elections, no party can win without its base because turnout...

‘THE TRAVELS OF THE MAGI’ A little over a week after the alleged terrorist attack aboard an American aircraft, a pattern is emerging. While European writers tend to think new U.S. rules for passengers are ineffective if not absurd, many Arab columnists believe that the suspicious aspects of the case suggest that some kind of plot to demonize Muslims and extend the war on terror is involved. For...

Digby flags a post over at Daily Kos written by Devilstower.  It’s about the decade that just ended, why everybody wants to keep their eyes averted from the rear view mirror, and why we shouldn’t. Digby quotes a passage toward the end of the piece; I will quote the section that comes just before that (emphasis is in original):

Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

I hadn’t listened to this song in years, and it’s just as electrifying as it was the first time I heard it. When I hear the anger and utter frustration in her voice, at the impossibility of reaching hearts that have been deadened and stripped of all humanity, it just feels so good to know I’m not the only one.

For West Asia, 2010 has not begun well. The mess in Iran is increasing by the day and holds peril unprecedented for the entire region. If the government, however reprehensible, falls into disarray the real possibility arises of a huge arc of violent political and civil instability stretching through Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Palestine to Israel. The possibility of a new American war is small but...

Fox News’ Brit Hume has a solution for how Tiger Woods can be forgiven for his sins: become a Christian: FOOTNOTE: I know rabbi who is having problems. I’ll be sure to pass it on to him. How nice it is to know that we now have someone we watch who can give us the news, impart to viewers how he really feels about issues and politicians he covers, and give us the answer to eternal questions —...

It may be a new year, but it’s the same old birthers. Truth schmooth… The latest news about the latest foray into Rod Serlingland comes via Mediaite which reports that a new birther chain letter contains information from a fake AP story claiming that the Supreme Court is taking up the “issue” of Obama’s “real’ citizenship: If you thought 2010 was the future, think again....

A 2010 New Year’s Resolution for My Fellow Republicans by Michael Reagan Well, it is that time of year when most of us have unwrapped all of our gifts, eaten too much ham and pumpkin pie, and started to think about making a New Year’s Resolution. We’ve been spending time reflecting and pondering on what aspects of our lives, personal or professional, we would most like to improve. But today I have a recommended...

More change in the air from Rasmussen. Total number of Democrats in the country falls. Republicans gain a tiny amount, but stay essentially flat. In December, the number of Americans identifying themselves as Democrats fell to the lowest level recorded in more than seven years of monthly tracking by Rasmussen Reports. Currently, 35.5% of American adults view themselves as Democrats. That’s down from 36.0 a...

Sen. Orrin Hatch and two lawyer friends of his take to the op-ed page of the Wall Street Journal to tell us that the requirement to purchase insurance in the health care bill is unconstitutional: