US braces for record lows in big freeze (via AFP) Authorities urged Americans to stay indoors and stock up on food after a fierce winter storm killed 11 people and forecasters said the Arctic blast could bring record low temperatures. There was no sign of respite Saturday from the brutal chill that… … [Read more...] about The Big Freeze strikes
More than 1,000 chosen for one-way Mars reality-TV mission
More than 1,000 chosen for one-way Mars reality-TV mission (via AFP) More than 1,000 candidates -- from 200,000 hopefuls -- have been chosen to train for a private Mars colonisation mission to be partly funded by a reality-TV show following their training and subsequent steps, organisers said Thursday. They are to be… … [Read more...] about More than 1,000 chosen for one-way Mars reality-TV mission
Is the GOP’s growing confidence about taking the Senate justified?
The term "the grown ups" can be infuriating depending on whether it's your side being dismissed as immature. But there's little question that "the grown ups" in the Republican Party are the ones who seek to win elections first and then bring about change (as Michael Reagan argues here). Now we're seeing an example of the grown ups running to shussh the kids who may say … [Read more...] about Is the GOP’s growing confidence about taking the Senate justified?
Detroit Police Chief James Craig: Good Gun Owners Can Deter Crime, Sounds Like NRA’s Wayne LaPierre
Detroit Police Chief James Craig believes that if more citizens were armed, criminals would think twice before attacking them. He said responsible gun owners would likely deter crime, the Detroit News reports. During a press conference Thursday at police headquarters, Craig siad, “When we look at the good community members who have concealed weapons permits, the likelihood … [Read more...] about Detroit Police Chief James Craig: Good Gun Owners Can Deter Crime, Sounds Like NRA’s Wayne LaPierre
Denver marijuana bakery could make big dough
Here's a baker that'll make a lot of dough. Love's Oven bakery in Denver will be selling baked goods with a special ingredient: marijuana, which is now legal in Colorado. … [Read more...] about Denver marijuana bakery could make big dough
Chris Christie’s bridge over troubled political waters (Guest Cartoon)
Chris Christie's bridge over troubled political waters by Mike Peters OF RELATED INTEREST: --Did New Jersey governor Christie go a bridge too far? --Documents raise new questions in Christie bridge controversy --The New, Not Necessarily Improved, Chris Christie --Chris Christie actually had a bad year. Here’s why. Mike Peters is recognized as one of our nation's … [Read more...] about Chris Christie’s bridge over troubled political waters (Guest Cartoon)
India’s elusive Manmohan Singh to step down as Prime Minister
As Americans remain fixated with their own partisan politics, in the world's largest democracy -- India -- a major political transformation is taking place: India's long-serving and elusive Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has announced he'll step down, opening the door for a new era that could one day end in a political dynasty's restoration. India's veteran prime minister, … [Read more...] about India’s elusive Manmohan Singh to step down as Prime Minister
NYC Mayor de Blasio revels in role as ‘man of the people’
NYC Mayor de Blasio revels in role as 'man of the people' (via AFP) His feet deep in snow and a shovel in hand as a snowstorm hit New York, new Mayor Bill de Blasio immediately displayed a leadership style contrasting sharply with his predecessor. Barely a day after he was sworn in, the liberal Democrat with little… … [Read more...] about NYC Mayor de Blasio revels in role as ‘man of the people’
Will Raising the Minimum Wage Become a “Wedge Issue” in the 2014 Midterms?
Will Raising the Minimum Wage Become a “Wedge Issue” in the 2014 Midterms? (via Moyers & Company) In 2004, the campaign to re-elect George W. Bush encouraged socially conservative activists to put constitutional amendments barring same-sex marriage on state ballots across the country. At the time, opposition to same-sex marriage was the majority… … [Read more...] about Will Raising the Minimum Wage Become a “Wedge Issue” in the 2014 Midterms?
Melissa Harris-Perry’s tearful apology for mocking Romney grandchild (Video)
MSNBC's Melissa Harris-Perry is the latest person who was respected in a profession, then got a cable political show, let her guard down and during a segment to morphed into yet one more ideological talker. Left, right? It makes no difference. Ideological talk show hosts now almost have the same tone. Whether it's a former newsman named Bill O'Reilly, or a former newspaper … [Read more...] about Melissa Harris-Perry’s tearful apology for mocking Romney grandchild (Video)
Iraq’s Fallujah falls to ‘Qaeda-linked’ militants
Iraq's Fallujah falls to 'Qaeda-linked' militants (via AFP) Iraq has lost Fallujah to Al-Qaeda-linked fighters, a senior security official said Saturday, putting militants back in control of a city where American forces repeatedly battled insurgents. Parts of Fallujah and Ramadi, west of Baghdad, have been held… … [Read more...] about Iraq’s Fallujah falls to ‘Qaeda-linked’ militants
OK, GOP, Defend Speech You Don’t Agree With (Guest Voice)
OK, GOP, Defend Speech You Don't Agree With By Tina Dupuy As the dust settles over A&E's "Duck Dynasty" patriarch Phil Robertson's interview in GQ, I'd like to offer a challenge to all who defended his right to wax nostalgic about how happy black people were before the civil rights era (also stating that Shintoism is basically Nazism and homosexuality is basically … [Read more...] about OK, GOP, Defend Speech You Don’t Agree With (Guest Voice)
Snow (Cartoon)
See great cartoons by all the top political cartoonists at http://cagle.com. To license this cartoon for your own site, visit http://politicalcartoons.com … [Read more...] about Snow (Cartoon)
Focus on winning (Guest Voice)
Focus on Winning by Michael Reagan Will Republicans ever learn? Will they get their own house in order in time to take control of the Senate in 2014 and the White House in 2016? Will they stop fighting with one another in public over internal family matters and focus the GOP's collective eye on those crucial political prizes before it's too late to save the … [Read more...] about Focus on winning (Guest Voice)
Book Review: Getting Away with Murder
Getting Away with Murder (via The Christian Science Monitor) Getting Away with Murder: Benazir Bhutto's Assassination and the Politics of Pakistan, by Heraldo Muñoz, W.W. Norton & Co., 272 pages Reviewed by Brooke Allen for The Barnes & Noble Review The 2007 murder of Benazir Bhutto is one of the great unsolved… … [Read more...] about Book Review: Getting Away with Murder
Predictions of the future from the past
Predictions of the future from the past (via Pando Daily) By Adam L. Penenberg On January 3, 2014 What will the world be like in a 100 years? Will fully electric driverless cars populate our nation’s roadways while Elon Musk toils away on Mars? Will swarms of delivery drones drop off everything to our doors… … [Read more...] about Predictions of the future from the past
Gallup Poll: Obama’s Dismal 2013
I've often noted that one poll does not a trend make. You need to see a progression. And Gallup's last poll, actually a graph showing the progress of his approval rating, shows a President steadily, inexorably, almost without cessation losing support. It's not just the numbers; the graph says it all: President Barack Obama wrapped up 2013 with an average 41% approval … [Read more...] about Gallup Poll: Obama’s Dismal 2013
Is Snowden Really a Whistleblower?
Fred Kaplan presents a cogent argument at Slate that he went far beyond blowing the whistle on NSA domestic intelligence with all of the data he's revealed. I agree with him. Snowden's actions seem more like he doubts the legitimacy of any intelligence gathering or at least in the United States engaging in it. But Snowden did much more than that. The documents that he … [Read more...] about Is Snowden Really a Whistleblower?
(Updated) National Security and Liberties in a Changing World (Continued)
Update: President Obama has expressed “an openness” to the recommendation made by the President’s Review Group that private companies, not the government collect and store telephone meta-data and would provide a “pretty definitive statement” once he returns from his Hawaiian holiday break, according to The Hill. Also according to The Hill, on Friday, the Office of the … [Read more...] about (Updated) National Security and Liberties in a Changing World (Continued)
Sort of in defence of David Brooks on marijuana *(Guest Voice)
Sort of in defence of David Brooks (via The Economist) I FIND today's collective meltdown over David Brooks's bland column on marijuana slightly baffling. My colleague (along with most of the rest of the internet today) is absolutely right to note that Mr Brooks fails to account for the great harms of… … [Read more...] about Sort of in defence of David Brooks on marijuana *(Guest Voice)