Julian Assange is a weirdo. On the other hand, WikiLeaks is a valuable tool against too much power and too many government secrets. We know from the Pentagon itself that though America was embarrassed by WikiLeaks, it has not been further harmed. The US, not Sweden (which has legitimate charges against Assange), seems to be pulling the strings here and that is troubling. … [Read more...] about Could Obama Stop This?
Islamists vs. Islamists: A Positive for Egypt? (Part 2)
Guest post by Ali Ezzatyar (For Part I, from a few days ago, see here.) The idea that the Muslim Brotherhood's ascent to power spelled the beginning of a dangerous era underestimated the complexities of the Egyptian landcape and overlooked a number of important nuances. It is now clear that the Egyptian military establishment had no intention of letting the … [Read more...] about Islamists vs. Islamists: A Positive for Egypt? (Part 2)
Following Romney Down A Tea Party Rabbit Hole
So there I was, chasing this Romney rabbit, trying to figure out what it was, exactly, and what it really had in mind for my future. When it suddenly ducked down a rabbit hole. And when I approached that hole I fell in. Now I'm looking around here and can't seem to figure the place out. I mean, it's a very, very strange place. Not at all like the world outside. Like with … [Read more...] about Following Romney Down A Tea Party Rabbit Hole
The Military Suicide ‘Epidemic’ and an NRA-backed Law
As discussed here, in trying to find reasons or causes for the alarming upward trend in military suicides, TIME Magazine reporters Mark Thompson and Nancy Gibbs suggest that combat trauma alone can’t account for the trend and offer the following data: Nearly a third of the suicides from 2005 to 2010 were among troops who had never deployed; 43% had deployed only once. … [Read more...] about The Military Suicide ‘Epidemic’ and an NRA-backed Law
Progressive Insurance Plays Word Games In PR Disaster
More than two years ago, a young woman in Baltimore was killed when her car was struck by another car. The guy's insurance paid up immediately; he had run a red light. He was underinsured, but the woman carried underinsured motorist insurance. Here comes the big but: her insurance company refused to pay. Flash forward to this week, when her frustrated brother, Matt … [Read more...] about Progressive Insurance Plays Word Games In PR Disaster
Stockman’s Broadside
Pundits were buzzing this week, after David Stockman released an op-ed in The New York Times. Ronald Reagan's former budget director had little good to say about the party he once represented as a congressman and the plan the party's candidate for vice president is selling: Thirty years of Republican apostasy — a once grand party’s embrace of the welfare state, the … [Read more...] about Stockman’s Broadside
Stop Comparing Paul Ryan to Sarah Palin (Guest Voice)
Stop Comparing Paul Ryan to Sarah Palin by Tina Dupuy The charm of Sarah Palin as a vice presidential pick is she set the bar incredibly low for her successors. As long as a nominee can name a newspaper and their foreign policy experience isn't living next to a foreign country, the press can dub them better than Sarah Palin. More qualified. More gravitas. More ready to lead … [Read more...] about Stop Comparing Paul Ryan to Sarah Palin (Guest Voice)
Joe Biden in the Corner (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 Joe Biden in the Corner (Cartoon)
Swiftboating Obama, Giving Romney Cancer
Like pork factories that use every part of a pig but the squeal, Romney and Obama supporters are scraping the bottom of the political trough. A smear group headed by a former Bushie and Tea Party compatriots is running “educational” ads denouncing the President for “recklessly leaking information” about the raids that killed Osama bin Laden. Swiftboat, anyone? The tactic … [Read more...] about Swiftboating Obama, Giving Romney Cancer
My thoughts on Scandalous: The Life and Trials of Aimee Semple McPherson
In the last two years I've been carefully following the development of a new musical based on the life of Aimee Semple McPherson, the Founder of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel. I originally became aware of this musical while preparing to interview Kathie Lee Gifford on my daily radio talk show "Live from Seattle." Kathie Lee was in town promoting her new … [Read more...] about My thoughts on Scandalous: The Life and Trials of Aimee Semple McPherson
Facts Get in the Way
WASHINGTON -- Republicans and Democrats are being equally nasty in their campaign rhetoric, but they're not being equally truthful. To cite one example, much of what the GOP is saying about Medicare simply isn't supported by the facts. Former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu, one of Mitt Romney's more pugnacious surrogates, almost had a conniption fit Tuesday when CNN's … [Read more...] about Facts Get in the Way
Ryan and Women’s Issues: They Don’t Mix
On Saturday, I looked at the record of Paul Ryan, the House Budget Chair. I'd call that picture mixed; others might call it flip-floppy. Ryan's record on two women's issues -- abortion and contraception -- suggests he's more closely aligned with failed Presidential candidate Rick Santorum than with mainstream America. 1. Abortion Americans overwhelmingly support the … [Read more...] about Ryan and Women’s Issues: They Don’t Mix
A Tragic Reminder
A heartbreaking story out of Yosemite this week as two boys, aged 10 and 6, were relaxing in what they thought was a quiet pool along the Merced River. The current was stronger than they thought and they were both swept away. One body has been recovered and while they are still officially searching for the 6 year old the general assumption is that he has died too. I post … [Read more...] about A Tragic Reminder
MITT ROMNEY: Show Us The Money YOU saved back, squirelled away, loopholed , AND other advantages you took
COME ON MITT: You want to 'stimulate the economy'? Let's see your last ten years of tax returns so we TOO can pay only 13% in taxes on far far less income than you have. We pay 20-24-32-36% and far more. Double what you pay, in some cases TRIPLE what you pay... and on far far less income man. Tell us your tricks, your ins and outs. Let us have the SAME chance you have to … [Read more...] about MITT ROMNEY: Show Us The Money YOU saved back, squirelled away, loopholed , AND other advantages you took
Women Who Had It All But Children
Helen Gurley Brown was the only person I ever knew who batted her eyes at me over the phone. For the first meal we ever shared, Julia Child burned my breakfast toast. The only time I was ever threatened with rejection for laughing out loud during a serious movie was while watching Ayn Rand’s “The Fountainhead.” A confluence of events—-the death of the 90-year-old Cosmo … [Read more...] about Women Who Had It All But Children
The National Tragedy of Military and Veterans Suicides (Update)
UPDATE: Today, the Army released suicide data for the month of July and the numbers are not getting better. The specific numbers of potential and confirmed suicides for both active-duty military and among reserve components can be viewed here. As of the end of July the total number of confirmed suicides for Army active-duty and reserve component soldiers for 2012 … [Read more...] about The National Tragedy of Military and Veterans Suicides (Update)
Tea Party and Renegade Special Ops Officers Attempt to “Swiftboat” President
...A group of former special operations and C.I.A. officers started a campaign on Tuesday night accusing Mr. Obama of recklessly leaking information about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden and other security matters to gain political advantage. The new group, called the Special Operations Opsec Education Fund, using shorthand for “operational security,” describes itself … [Read more...] about Tea Party and Renegade Special Ops Officers Attempt to “Swiftboat” President
Obama and Romney Scrawling (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 Obama and Romney Scrawling (Cartoon)
My Personal Trip to Medicare Supplemental Insurance Hell (Guest Voice)
My Personal Trip to Medicare Supplemental Insurance Hell by John Crane I turned 65 in October of 2011. Several months before that date I began the long, frustrating and convoluted voyage of choosing my Medicare Supplemental Insurance company and policy. This task was made more difficult and tedious by the lack of facts, ratings and availability of data on the insurance … [Read more...] about My Personal Trip to Medicare Supplemental Insurance Hell (Guest Voice)
Chains (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 Chains (Cartoon)