The act for which Pope Benedict XVI may be remembered most is his resignation, since it is the most potent gesture towards liberalizing Vatican traditions in over six centuries. He is the first Pope to leave voluntarily since Celestine V in 1294. His decision to resign may be the shock needed to pull the Vatican out of its traditional ways and complacency. The modern Roman … [Read more...] about A Non-European Pope
Bad GOP Imagery: Democrats Invite Gun Victims to State of Union and Republican Invites Ted Nugent
It sounds like the Republican Party has an awful lot of image reconstuction work to do. When President Barack Obama delivers his State of the Union address tomorrow, look for the media to note a contrast: many Democrats are inviting gun shooting victims, while a GOP Congressman will be inviting former rock star Ted Nugent, whose verbal hate was a big story during the campaign … [Read more...] about Bad GOP Imagery: Democrats Invite Gun Victims to State of Union and Republican Invites Ted Nugent
Bring On The Sequester
Over at TPM Brian Beutler thinks the House Republicans won't pass any legislation to stop the sequester because they can't. The libertarians and conservative "foreign policy realists" don't see this as a bad thing. Last week in the post Real Conservative Foreign Policy I quoted Andrew Bacevich: When it comes to foreign policy, the conservative position should promote … [Read more...] about Bring On The Sequester
America’s ‘Pulse’ Is Having a Bad Day
Memeorandum is a neat site that gathers news and opinion pieces written by “experts and pundits, insiders and outsiders, media professionals and amateur bloggers” and arranges their links “in a single, easy-to-scan page” that gives one a quick impression of what’s in the news, what’s being gossiped about and what is really bugging these experts and pundits, insiders and... -- … [Read more...] about America’s ‘Pulse’ Is Having a Bad Day
The Paradoxes of Pope Benedict
WASHINGTON -- Pope Benedict's resignation shouldn't have surprised us as much as it did. As an institutionalist who believes in the Roman Catholic Church as the carrier of truth in a sinful world, he would worry a great deal about the impact of his own infirmities on the institution's capacity to thrive. He is a traditionalist who was nonetheless much affected by … [Read more...] about The Paradoxes of Pope Benedict
Obama Will Throw Down Political Gauntlet in State of the Union Address
Don't look for President Barack Obama to do a State of the Union speech tomorrow night that'll sound like he's paling around with Congressional leaders and going to do whatever it takes to accommodate or placate them. According to The Politico, Obama intends to throw down the political gauntlet and go for it -- go for his second term agenda: President Barack Obama’s State … [Read more...] about Obama Will Throw Down Political Gauntlet in State of the Union Address
Senate Landscape Portends GOP Gains,But Control A Stretch
The November 2014 elections are 21 months away but clues are already emerging with regard to the Senate landscape. Republicans would like to complete what they had envisioned starting at this time two years ago; depriving the Democrats of their majority. But a combination of bad candidates, misstatements, and climate actually set the GOP back two seats, so that Democrats now … [Read more...] about Senate Landscape Portends GOP Gains,But Control A Stretch
Committee to Hold Hagel Confirmation Vote Tuesday: Aide
Committee to hold Hagel confirmation vote Tuesday: aide (via AFP) The Senate Armed Services Committee will meet Tuesday to consider the nomination of Chuck Hagel to be the new US defense secretary, an aide to the committee chairman said. Ex-senator Hagel has encountered stiff opposition from fellow Republicans who expressed concern about his positions on Iran, … [Read more...] about Committee to Hold Hagel Confirmation Vote Tuesday: Aide
Plight of the Shooter Who Killed Osama bin Laden
You can expect a lot of attention due to this Esquire piece titled "The Man Who Killed Osama bin Laden... Is Screwed. Even though it's right now being overshadowed by the Pope's resignation, this is a story with "legs," drama -- and one that arouses outrage. Newser's Kate Seasons gives the best summary and here's part of it: Phil Bronstein, the executive chair of CIR … [Read more...] about Plight of the Shooter Who Killed Osama bin Laden
Breaking: Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta Extends Benefits to Same-Sex Partners (Updated)
UPDATE: Karen Parrish at the American Forces Press Service provides an excellent update. Here are parts. For the full article please click here. Military members and retirees with same-sex partners will qualify for up to 24 new benefits under policy changes Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta announced today. Two of the new benefits are available at the service … [Read more...] about Breaking: Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta Extends Benefits to Same-Sex Partners (Updated)
Papal Frontrunners Include Two Africans And One Canadian
With the surprise resignation of Pope Benedict the speculation has already turned to who will be chosen to replace him. According to the latest reports the frontrunner is 80 year old Francis Arizne of Nigeria. He would make history as the first non white Pope and the first from outside Europe. However his age would mean a relatively short tenure in office. The … [Read more...] about Papal Frontrunners Include Two Africans And One Canadian
Pope’s Brother Knew of Planned Resignation
Pope's brother knew of planned resignation (via AFP) The pope's brother said on Monday he has known "for a few months" that Benedict XVI was planning to resign and confirmed that the 85-year-old pontiff was "feeling the burden of his age". Georg Ratzinger told AFP: "The reason for his resignation is indeed that he is feeling the burden of his age...… … [Read more...] about Pope’s Brother Knew of Planned Resignation
Pope Resigns (Cartoon)
LEGAL NOTICE ON CARTOON: This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Reproduction elsewhere without licensing is strictly prohibited. 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 Pope Resigns (Cartoon)
Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation: Live Report
Pope Benedict XVI's resignation: Live Report (via AFP) 1600 GMT: Celebrities have also taken to Twitter to respond to the pope's resignation. CNN talk show host Piers Morgan compares Benedict XVI's tenure unfavourably with that of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II: "The Queen's a year older than The Pope. Can't see her ever resigning because she's tired. … [Read more...] about Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation: Live Report
Pope Benedict Resigns (Cartoon)
LEGAL NOTICE ON CARTOON: This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Reproduction elsewhere without licensing is strictly prohibited. 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 Pope Benedict Resigns (Cartoon)
Tales of the Blackberry’s Demise
...appear to be greatly exaggerated. And as Ewan Spence of Forbes notes, all this talk of "market share" is misplaced. If Blackberry kept only 5% of the total market share (and it's got more than that right now), that would be 35 million phones. Just as Apple never needed more than a small percentage of the PC market to be profitable, so too with Blackberry: they don't need … [Read more...] about Tales of the Blackberry’s Demise
Marching To Oblivion
Republicans must be furious with David Frum. The man who wrote George W. Bush's "axis of evil" speech is increasingly at odds with his party. On Saturday he wrote that the economy of the United States is far from full recovery: A new survey by Rutgers University finds that 23% of Americans have lost a job (whether full-time or part-time) at some point in the past … [Read more...] about Marching To Oblivion
Pope Benedict XVI Resigns (UDATE 2 with ROUNDUP)
Sources including the Wall Street Journal report that the Pope is resigning, which has observers around the world all atwitter. The news is fascinating on multiple levels. While I'm not looking forward to the inevitable avalanche of Catholic-bashing (which is in vogue today now more than ever in my life it seems), other interesting things to observe will be: This is not … [Read more...] about Pope Benedict XVI Resigns (UDATE 2 with ROUNDUP)
Dead Eye Barack (Cartoon)
LEGAL NOTICE ON CARTOON: This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Reproduction elsewhere without licensing is strictly prohibited. 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 Dead Eye Barack (Cartoon)
Nothing Self-Made About Me
WASHINGTON -- I disagreed with former President George W. Bush on many things. But on one issue, I admired him greatly: He was wise enough to marry a teacher and a librarian. I'm unabashedly biased about this, since my late mom was also a teacher and a librarian. I have been thinking a good deal about her because she would have turned 100 on Friday. She died in 1995, … [Read more...] about Nothing Self-Made About Me