I've often said and written that the views of former Secretary of State Colin Powell are dismissed at the political dismissers' peril because he does represent the views of many moderates -- polls show it, and when you talk to people who are moderates, centrists or independents his name frequently comes up. In fact, I've often said that Powell winds up saying what I've written … [Read more...] about Colin Powell: GOP Needs to do Political Soul Searching on “Deep Strain of Intolerance” (With Video)
NRA President: US Gun Lobby will ‘Defeat’ Assault Weapons Ban
US gun lobby will 'defeat' assault weapons ban (via AFP) The president of the top US firearms lobby said on Sunday that his organization has enough backing from lawmakers to defeat a plan to outlaw assault weapons and sales of high-capacity ammunition clips. David Keene, president of the National Rifle Association, told CNN's "State of the Union," such … [Read more...] about NRA President: US Gun Lobby will ‘Defeat’ Assault Weapons Ban
The Same Story With A New Twist
In his book, Hegemony Or Survival, Noam Chomsky argued that George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq was merely the next step in an imperial grand strategy which was drawn up in Washington at the end of World War II: The imperial grand strategy asserts the right of the United States to undertake "preventative war" at will: Preventative not preemptive. Preemptive war might … [Read more...] about The Same Story With A New Twist
JSTOR, the Biz Aaron Swartz Allegedly Hacked
Firstly, may Aaron rest in peace and may his family and friends be comforted regarding his passing from this world --he was such a young man [age 26] who had such strong ideas for this new world of digital everything everywhere. He had struggled with depression for many years. And as I was reading about his life at the New York Times, I saw that he was accused of "stealing … [Read more...] about JSTOR, the Biz Aaron Swartz Allegedly Hacked
Seeking Justice In A World That Has Lost Its Way
I spent much of Saturday trying to reconcile two very different approaches to justice meted out by the Obama Administration. The first is old (mid-December) news: British bank HSBC launders money for at least a decade and is fined four weeks earnings. I learned about it Friday from The Daily Show. Too big to indict: ... for years, HSBC had also moved tainted money … [Read more...] about Seeking Justice In A World That Has Lost Its Way
Suicide: Falling After A Valiant Struggle to Live
TEMPORARY GENERAL DEPRESSION NOT THE SAME AS DEEP DEPRESSION WHICH TAKES UP LONG TERM RESIDENCE Sometimes people feel depressed because their team did not win. Or because they gained weight. Or because they're going through a divorce. Or because they lost a promotion. Sometime we might feel melancholy to varying degrees, and in a way, it is a mist carried by many a modern … [Read more...] about Suicide: Falling After A Valiant Struggle to Live
Official Statement of Aaron Swartz’s Family and Partner
Here's the official statement of Aaron Swartz' family and partner: Official Statement from the family and partner of Aaron Swartz: Our beloved brother, son, friend, and partner Aaron Swartz hanged himself on Friday in his Brooklyn apartment. We are in shock, and have not yet come to terms with his passing. Aaron’s insatiable curiosity, creativity, and brilliance; … [Read more...] about Official Statement of Aaron Swartz’s Family and Partner
Aaron Swartz Video Shows What We Lost: “F2C2012: Aaron Swartz Keynote – “How we stopped SOPA”
Talk about loss -- a loss of someone who was beloved as a human being, a generation loss (exactly how many changes could he have nudged along if he had lived?), and a cyberspace loss. Websites are filled with remembrances of Aaron Swartz, who we learned committed suicide weeks before going on trial in what is considered a highly controversial case that Swartz's friends and … [Read more...] about Aaron Swartz Video Shows What We Lost: “F2C2012: Aaron Swartz Keynote – “How we stopped SOPA”
Gallup Poll: Congress’ 2012 Rating the Lowest in History
In looking at the latest Gallup Poll, you might say the 2012 Congress was flush with victory -- if you mean flush as in a flushing toilet. It got the lowest ranking. Ever. In history. Americans give Congress a 14% job approval rating as the new year begins, the lowest since September of last year and down from 18% in November and December. The disapproval rating for … [Read more...] about Gallup Poll: Congress’ 2012 Rating the Lowest in History
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Says Evidence Strong JFK Killed By More than Lone Gunman
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., has now said what many Americans have suspected and some historians have at times hinted: his father Robert F. Kennedy had serious doubts about whether President John F. Kennedy was killed by a lone gunman -- and suspected the possible involvement of organized crime. The Daily Mail reports: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is convinced that a lone gunman … [Read more...] about Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Says Evidence Strong JFK Killed By More than Lone Gunman
Reddit Co-founder Aaron Swartz Dies at 26
Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz dies at 26 (via AFP) Aaron Swartz, an Internet genius who helped deliver new Web content to users by co-developing Reddit and RSS before becoming a digital activist, has committed suicide. He was 26. Ellen Borakove, spokeswoman for New York's chief medical examiner, told AFP that Swartz had hanged himself and was pronounced… … [Read more...] about Reddit Co-founder Aaron Swartz Dies at 26
How Hot is it Going to Get? A Devastating 9 to 15 Degrees Hotter
How hot is it going to get? A devastating 9 to 15 degrees hotter (via Red Green & Blue) It would be very hard to adjust to a world that is 3 degrees hotter on average than today (despite deniers’ glib assertions that we’ll just deal with it somehow – ask the folks on the Jersey Shore how easy they’re adjusting to having their homes trashed by superstorm Sandy). … [Read more...] about How Hot is it Going to Get? A Devastating 9 to 15 Degrees Hotter
Hagel And The Republicans
In the early 70s the Scoop Jackson Foreign Policy interventionalist wing of the Democrat party was purged from the Democratic Party after the debacle in Vietnam. They found a new home in the Republican Party and became neoconservatives. Over time they took over the military/foreign policy ideology of the Republican Party pushing aside the pragmatic realists. James Joyner … [Read more...] about Hagel And The Republicans
Comic Pat Cooper: Paul Ryan is garbage, Kim Kardashian’s getting fat, today’s comics don’t earn fame
Comic Pat Cooper: Paul Ryan is garbage, Kim Kardashian's getting fat, today's comics don't earn fame (via NJ.com) MORRISTOWN — It's hard to predict in what direction a conversation with comic Pat Cooper will go. The safe bet: all of them. It's been 50 years since Cooper got his big break with an appearance on the "Jackie Gleason Show." In that time, … [Read more...] about Comic Pat Cooper: Paul Ryan is garbage, Kim Kardashian’s getting fat, today’s comics don’t earn fame
Farewell to Aaron Swartz, an Extraordinary Hacker and Activist (Guest Voice)
Farewell to Aaron Swartz, an extraordinary hacker and activist (via EFF) Yesterday Aaron Swartz, a close friend and collaborator of ours, committed suicide. This is a tragic end to a brief and extraordinary life. Aaron did more than almost anyone to make the Internet a thriving ecosystem for open knowledge, and to keep it that way. His contributions were numerous, … [Read more...] about Farewell to Aaron Swartz, an Extraordinary Hacker and Activist (Guest Voice)
Report: Online Activist Aaron Swartz Commits Suicide, Relative Says
Very sad. In 2005 I was on a panel on "eDemocracy: The Role of Blogs and Online Activitists in 2004" at Stanford University. The youngest member was a dynamic, highly eloquent, teen named Aaron Swartz, who became an online activist and a kind of Internet pioneer. Now the news comes that Swartz has committed suicide, at 26: Aaron Swartz, an Internet savant who at a young … [Read more...] about Report: Online Activist Aaron Swartz Commits Suicide, Relative Says
Seinfeld Was Wrong; I Was Interested in This
Despite his prediction at the beginning, I was interested in this interview Jerry Seinfeld gave to The New York Times. I've always found his bits funny, but confession time: I've never watched a single episode of the Seinfeld sitcom. [Read the whole post here.] … [Read more...] about Seinfeld Was Wrong; I Was Interested in This
Meme-Busting: Do 85% of the children who die from gun violence live in the US?
If you haven't seen or heard this yet, just wait -- it's making its way around Facebook. The quick answer is "no." Read on to see how the meme got started. In an interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer, former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and former astronaut Mark Kelly, her husband, spoke out on gun violence. Kelly said, according to the ABC transcript at midnight … [Read more...] about Meme-Busting: Do 85% of the children who die from gun violence live in the US?
“Can You Limit Your Sitting and Sleeping to Just 23-1/2 Hours a Day?”
That's the question Dr. Mike Evans asks at the end of this 9-1/2 minute video which, in a compelling, fun, and content-rich format, gives us all plenty of "food" for thought and may incite us to get off our duffs to walk for a half-hour a day. Watching the video is required for members of the insurance plan to which clergy who wish to get some health discounts. (Good idea, … [Read more...] about “Can You Limit Your Sitting and Sleeping to Just 23-1/2 Hours a Day?”
Since When Is Sanity News? Since When Is News Sane?
“Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and it annoys the pig.” ~ Robert Heinlein What's all this then? I will stipulate that the closest they come to sanity in our Modern World is Sean Hannity, and that connection is only by rhyme. But, in a week that has been astonishingly snarky, I suppose that this qualifies as "news": Gingrey speaks out on the issue of … [Read more...] about Since When Is Sanity News? Since When Is News Sane?