Around The Sphere May 25, 2007
May 25th, 2007
By JOE GANDELMAN, Editor-In-Chief
Our linkfest offering readers a guide to provocative and informative posts on weblogs representing many different viewpoints. Links to not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Moderate Voice or its writers.
Is Barack Obama “The Reagan Of The Left?” Andrew Sullivan went to see him and thinks he can do for liberalism what Ronald Reagan did for conservatives (which Sullivan notes has been undone by George Bush). Sullivan was highly impressed as you will read here.
Another MUST READ Original Talking Dog Interview Related To The War On Terror is up — this time with Robert D. Rachlin, a senior partner at Downs, Rachlin, Martin PLLC in Burlington, Vermont. TTD notes that Rachline “is on the faculty of Vermont Law School. [He] is counsel to two Guantánamo detainees, Saudi national Ghassan Abdullah Al-Sharbi, who was one of only ten detainees charged by the military commissions until that commission process was found unlawful by the Supreme Court’s Hamdan decision, and Algerian national Djamel Amezine, who has not been charged.” TTD inteviews are carefully prepared and are of interest to everyone — no matter what their position is on terrorism and civil liberties related issues. LOTS of info.
IRAN IS CRACKING DOWN ON “”Children of Allah Influenced by International Imperialism”: Details at Pajamas Media.
He Didn’t Tear Them A New One, He Teared: Rep. Boehner waterworks high drama as he cried while making his case for Iraq funding. Video here. PS: Wasn’t there a time when conservative talk show hosts made fun of Bill Clinton for seemingly tearing up, biting his lip etc? Will Rush, Sean et. all lampoon this speech today? Or, Sean and Rush, is sincerity only limited to one party? (Don’t answer that!)
TEXAS RESIDENTS DON’T WANT NO STINKIN’ “BODY FARMS”: And, no, body farms are NOT where chubby people go to lose weight. They are where….Wait: It’s easier if you just READ THIS for the best explanation.
Iraq War Wiki: Dean Esmay continues to work on an Iraqi War Wiki that makes the case for supporting the war. He explains the latest here…and here is the site so far. (If it takes off expect to see an anti-Iraq War Wiki since this is polarized 21st-century America.)
Prosecuting Pregnant Drug-Addicted Mothers is a big issue. Details at Feministe.
Charges of Racism…The Department Of Justice…The New York Fire Department…And Minimal Reading And Comprehension Skills: LaShawn Barber explains the brou-ha-ha and the serious issues involved.
Is The 9 To 5 Office Worker Work Day Going To Be A Thing Of The Past? Visit the always-enlightening James Joyner here and consider…
What Would Ronald Reagan’s Thoughts Be On The Current Immigration Situation? Some thoughts on his potential thoughts HERE and HERE.
FOOTNOTE: I covered Reagan’s immigration reform bill as staff reporter at the San Diego Union, specializing in immigration issues and the Reagan amnesty plan.The amnesty component worked well but the plan fell apart when it came to prosecuting businesses for violating the law. The scuttlebutt (which was never confirmed) was that pressure from businesses scuttled genuine enforcement with teeth. There were a few showy instances….but very few. Reagan’s INS appointees were diligent and sincere in their desire to legalize those who wanted amnesty. One of the most enjoyable people to cover was the then-INS regional bigwig the late Harold Ezell, who gave great quotes, did not shrink from controversy, always returned phone calls and loved to discuss anything connected with the immigration plan. He was often at odds with Latino activists. (Here’s a story on Ezell, which is strangely dated 2005 but it was run in the 1980s. His comments remain highly controversial. See this Huffington Post piece.)
Reagan (and the Republican Party) won a lot of respect among Hispanics. But, in the end, the plan as a package was never fully-implemented and critics of it rightfully note that the amnesty was implemented but strict enforcement of the law was deficient. What has changed is the depth and anger of opponents of the law — partly because some folks feel they were snookered by the Reagan plan.
This entry was posted on Friday, May 25th, 2007 at 6:35 am and is filed under Around The Sphere, Immigration, Blogging. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
