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Dutch ‘Zwarte Pieten’: Innocent Tradition or Inadvertent Racism?

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When I was a little kid (“little” being ages 10 through 17), I lived in the Netherlands Antilles and in the Netherlands. That was back in the 50s. I remember Zwarte Piet, or “Black Pete,” well. I remember them (sometimes there were dozens of them) running and clowning around with their burlap sacks -- scaring the daylights out of some little kids, might be a better term … [Read more...] about Dutch ‘Zwarte Pieten’: Innocent Tradition or Inadvertent Racism?

American Teenager Caught Up in Israel Violence

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WTSP.com reports that an American boy, Tampa teenager Tariq Khdeir, a 15-year-old student at the Universal Academy of Florida high school in Tampa, is being detained in Jerusalem following an attack carried out by Israeli defense forces, as claimed by the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Young Khdeir was attending a demonstration following the death of his 16-year old … [Read more...] about American Teenager Caught Up in Israel Violence

Aided by America and Europe, ISIS Poses Mortal Threat to Iran (De Morgan, Belgium)

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How much of a threat does ISIS pose to Iran - and is that part of the agenda of Washington and its Western allies? In another twist on the theory that the United States has not only fostered ISIS, but is using it as a foreign policy tool to alter the map of the Middle East, columnist Kader Abdolah of Belgium's De Morgen starts with a visceral history of why Shiites hate Sunnis: … [Read more...] about Aided by America and Europe, ISIS Poses Mortal Threat to Iran (De Morgan, Belgium)

A New American Dream?

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I'm a baby boomer at 68.  When I got divorced 18 years ago I downsized buying a very small condo.  It had many advantages including less cost and there was a lot less to clean.  I was still making good money so I was able to salt money away which came in handy when I lost my job because of outsourcing in my late 50s with little hope of getting another job.  A recent survey … [Read more...] about A New American Dream?

Happy Canada Day: “We’re 147 Years Old”

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TMV Editor's Note: While Americans celebrated the 4th of July, three days earlier was an important and cherished holiday to our friends and neighbors up north: Canada Day. Here's TMV Assistant Editor Michael Sticking's homage that ran on his blog The Reaction: Born in 1867... To all my Canadian friends and family, have a safe and happy day. And to everyone else, to all of … [Read more...] about Happy Canada Day: “We’re 147 Years Old”

Conservatives’ Women Troubles

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[ Conservatives' Women Troubles By Tina Dupuy Grab your smelling salts and brace yourself—I'm going to talk about sex. Not graphically, the children don't need to leave the room or anything. But I'm going to talk about the idea of sex as an underlying basis for policy. In the wake of the truly misguided Hobby Lobby decision, which endowed a legal entity with the right … [Read more...] about Conservatives’ Women Troubles

Mid East Crisis Worsens: Autopsy shows Palestinian Teen Burned Alive

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The crisis in the Middle East has now gotten even worse: the kidnapped Palestinian teen believed killed in retaliation for the kidnapped and killed three Israeli teens was burned alive, an autopsy now shows. This all is apparentely part of the Bibical and now cliched "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth," but the barbareity of kidnapping and murdering kids to make political … [Read more...] about Mid East Crisis Worsens: Autopsy shows Palestinian Teen Burned Alive

Mitt Romney

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James Joyner protests the comparison of Richard Nixon and Mitt Romney by Emil Henry in Politico.  For the most part I agree with James but I think he gives Romney too much credit.  He admits that Romney is a flip flopper but then claims he thinks Romney has a record of of being a good manager.  I have seen no evidence of that.  Mitt Romney's father was a good manager and a … [Read more...] about Mitt Romney

Russian President Putin Congratulates President Obama on Independence Day

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Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated President Obama on Independence Day and called for the ties between both countries to continue to develop on a "pragmatic and equal basis." Seems to me Putin stuck his finger in America's eye by granting NSA leaker Edward Snowden temporary asylum and thumbing his nose when he invaded the Crimean region. In his message of … [Read more...] about Russian President Putin Congratulates President Obama on Independence Day

Fourth of July Fast Facts

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Fourth of July Fast Facts By Tom Purcell "I'm confused. I thought July 4 was the day our country declared independence from King George III of Great Britain." "Actually, according to ConstitutionFacts.com, that's not so. The Continental Congress declared independence from Great Britain on July 2, 1776." "Then why do we celebrate our independence on the Fourth every … [Read more...] about Fourth of July Fast Facts

A Generational Slap In The Face

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[icopyright one button toolbar] Better Than The Twinkie Defense The Cobb County Crucible on HLN The View From The Virgin Islands By John McCarthy TMV Columnist If the O.J. Simpson trial was the crime of the last century, then the “hot car death” of Cooper Harris is the “alleged” murder of the new century. H.L. Mencken called the kidnapping and murder trial of the … [Read more...] about A Generational Slap In The Face

The Tea Party and the GOP

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Theda Skocpol thinks the Tea Party's influence on the GOP is bigger than election results suggest on Talking Points Memo. An obsession with toting up wins and losses in primaries completely misreads how Tea Party forces work, how they have moved the governing agendas of the Republican Party ever further right and maintained a stranglehold on federal government action. As … [Read more...] about The Tea Party and the GOP

Veterans of Foreign Wars ‘Doing Good Things’

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On previous Independence Days I have expressed my thoughts and feelings about the day's significance and meaning in different ways. The thoughts and feelings that are most consistently expressed on this celebration of our nation's independence are freedom, justice, love of country -- in short, patriotism. Mark Twain in his unique, perhaps somewhat satirical style, … [Read more...] about Veterans of Foreign Wars ‘Doing Good Things’