It's a train wreck. We all have heard this by n0w. Will Boehner's speakership survive until Plan C? Ezra Klein / Wonkblog Has there been a House speaker in modern American history with less control over his members than John Boehner? — Sad trombone... Uh, no. The 112th Congress is, arguably, the worst in American history, and in large part that's Speaker Boehner and his … [Read more...] about Giving The Speaker His Due
Rebutting NRO: Intellectual Dishonesty Taken To A New Level
A friend sent this NRO article as an "interesting explanation of what happened at Sandy Hook." It's a great example of lies, damn lies and statistics. It also contains a textbook example of dishonesty via anecdote. Combined, the article becomes a testament to intellectual dishonesty. First, lying with statistics. Incidents of mass murder in the U.S. declined from 42 … [Read more...] about Rebutting NRO: Intellectual Dishonesty Taken To A New Level
Fighting on many fronts at once
President Barack Obama is edging towards a shootout with the powerful national gun lobby next year but his bravery though long overdue could be counterproductive for him. In 2013-2014, his political capital will take severe beatings from other equally vital confrontations arising from foreign policy. He will need all the non-partisan support he can muster from the American … [Read more...] about Fighting on many fronts at once
End of the World and End of Empire
So the vast majority of us are still here – at least just after 4 PM (Mountain Time) in Phoenix, Arizona on Friday, December 21, 2012. Now I no longer have an excuse not to get out there and "Get a job - dammit" or go back to finishing my "magnum opus." The “world” has been predicted to end many times in the past (and it didn’t) and we’ll have many people predicting its … [Read more...] about End of the World and End of Empire
Full Video of Widely Condemned NRA Press Conference Reacting to Sandy Hook School Shootings
The NRA today may have shot itself in the foot with a press conference that may prove to be a godsend to its foes -- new and old. And it could lose the group some membership. Read the background HERE. The full version at this writing cannot be embedded so GO HERE. We'll add the full video when we can get it. You can also follow stories on this presser by going to THIS … [Read more...] about Full Video of Widely Condemned NRA Press Conference Reacting to Sandy Hook School Shootings
The Solution to Gun Violence is Clear (Guest Voice)
The solution to gun violence is clear By FAREED ZAKARIA NEW YORK -- Announcing Wednesday that he would send proposals on reducing gun violence in America to Congress, President Obama mentioned a number of sensible gun-control measures. But he also paid homage to the Washington conventional wisdom about the many and varied causes of this calamity -- from mental health … [Read more...] about The Solution to Gun Violence is Clear (Guest Voice)
World Ends Today, Details After This Message
The Mayan Calendar’s forecast will come and go, but there is another sense of finality in the air. After today, Americans take a brief break from conflict and chaos to try evoking the spirit of the season. In Washington, politicians scamper home for the holidays away from the fiscal cliff and debates about gun control as normal people finish gift-buying and travel back to … [Read more...] about World Ends Today, Details After This Message
Obama Picks John Kerry as Secretary of State
Obama picks John Kerry as secretary of state (via AFP) US President Barack Obama on Friday nominated Senator John Kerry as his new secretary of state, as he began to reshape his national security team for a second term clouded by increased global turmoil. Kerry, 69, a decorated Vietnam War veteran, defeated former presidential candidate and foreign policy… … [Read more...] about Obama Picks John Kerry as Secretary of State
Global Reaction to Newtown Massacre Continues (China, Sweden, Guatemala and Brazil)
Continuing with our global coverage of the reaction to Newtown, we have four fresh translations on the subject from China's 022 China, Sweden's Svenska Dagbladet, Guatemala's Prensa Libre, and Brazil’s Estadao. On the same day Alan Lanza went on a rampage with an assault rifle in Newtown, Connecticut, killing 20 children and six adults, half a world away, in China's Henan … [Read more...] about Global Reaction to Newtown Massacre Continues (China, Sweden, Guatemala and Brazil)
First Lady Michelle Obama Writes Heartfelt Letter About Newtown Shooting
Full disclosure, I am a big fan of First Lady Michelle Obama, as I was of Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush. Mrs. Obama wrote a touching and heartfelt letter to the people of Newtown, Conn., in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting massacre that left 20 children dead and six adults. Here's the letter in its entirety: Over the past week, we as Americans have … [Read more...] about First Lady Michelle Obama Writes Heartfelt Letter About Newtown Shooting
Potential Defense Secretary Pick Chuck Hagel Retracts Gay Slur, Says it was “Insensitive”
Former senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE) retracts his 1998 comment about gays, now says those comments were insensitive. I guess he has "evolved" because that Defense Secretary position is being dangled like a carrot in his face. He shouldn't have said it in the 1st place. Those comments turned some top Democratic activists against Chuck Hagel as a potential Secretary of … [Read more...] about Potential Defense Secretary Pick Chuck Hagel Retracts Gay Slur, Says it was “Insensitive”
Pew Poll: Most Gun Owners Think Assault Weapons Make Us Less Safe
Updated: There may be issues with defining what an "assault weapon" is, but according to todays news from Pew: Half of those with a gun in the household (50%) say allowing citizens to own assault weapons makes the country more dangerous for citizens, fewer (34%) say this makes this country safer. That is huge, given that most people in the country don't own guns. Of the … [Read more...] about Pew Poll: Most Gun Owners Think Assault Weapons Make Us Less Safe
Police State Is NRA’s Answer (With News, Twitter, Blog Roundup)
It was probably foolish to think something useful would come from watching the NRA “news conference”. This “news conference” allowed for no questions from the press. Following a transparent expression of grief for the families who lost loved ones in Newtown, the “news conference” proceeded into a blame game that held everyone responsible for the tragedy. Everyone, that is, … [Read more...] about Police State Is NRA’s Answer (With News, Twitter, Blog Roundup)
Speaker Boehner Lends His Name To Our Language
A few days ago Robert Bork died. He was someone up for a Supreme Court appointment who didn't get the job because in Senate hearings Democrats trashed his nomination using his previous outspoken writings on issues that would come before the court. To get "borked" then became a term denoting someone who gets an unwelcome payback for past words or deeds from long-time opponents. … [Read more...] about Speaker Boehner Lends His Name To Our Language
Political Quote of the Day: House Republicans Marginalize Themselves — and Their Party?
Democratic strategist Bob Shrum gives us our political Quote of the Day in a post on The Daily Beast discussing the total political humiliation of House Speaker John Boehner whose Plan B solution to the fiscal cliff flopped utterly by not getting enough Republican support -- even though it was a plan that would have flopped utterly even if it did. The set up: John … [Read more...] about Political Quote of the Day: House Republicans Marginalize Themselves — and Their Party?
And Elsewhere, Also. NO!! NO!! NO MAS!!!
fathers carrying their dead... I want to say, this cannot be, cannot continue would a mother's cry, a grandmother's scream a father's anguished kiss goodbye... make anyone stop shooting or just some or none? So many more across the world. Innocents. I hope that moment of silence today can be for all the children caught in the crossfire and the … [Read more...] about And Elsewhere, Also. NO!! NO!! NO MAS!!!
Blasts From My Past: A Former Shooter’s Manifesto
During my teens and early twenties, I fired bullets at people who were shooting at me. It was not pleasant but, after V-E Day in Germany, when our food was being sold in British and French black markets, I was persuaded to go deer-hunting not for sport but out of hunger. In early morning, sighting a brown hide and preparing to fire, I realized I was about to bag a … [Read more...] about Blasts From My Past: A Former Shooter’s Manifesto
And the nation goes silent for a moment …
... in memory of Sandy Hook Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy has asked residents for a moment of silence in honor of the Sandy Hook victims on Friday. Malloy's fellow governors in Maine, Illinois, Michigan and several other states called on residents to follow suit with a moment of silence and to ring bells to remember the dead. The National Cathedral in Washington plans to … [Read more...] about And the nation goes silent for a moment …
Laughter Really Is the Best Medicine
from the Latino uva-vine [grapevine] this came to me tonight. I laughed out loud. I hope you laugh with me. … [Read more...] about Laughter Really Is the Best Medicine
12-21-2012 It’s Here. Did the World End? Thought So.
In opposition to the nuts roasting on the open fire... e.g., some across the blogosphere who are still harping about their guns, their politics, their very very everything about themselves into this silent night, holy night... there are, on the mountains far away, prayers being said for us all... literal prayers being said for you and me... souls who have trekked far up … [Read more...] about 12-21-2012 It’s Here. Did the World End? Thought So.