On Super Tuesday, the GOP delivers another chapter in its update of “Anna Karenina,” a serialized Tolstoy tale of the clash between love and duty, the search for passion in high places. Ann Romney recently named it as one of her two favorite books, raising literary eyebrows like those of Virginia Heffernan: “Shouldn't, for one, a political wife...be naming American … [Read more...] about Romney Love, Right out of a Russian Novel
Time To Stop The #StopKony Bandwagon
It was the buzz in my class tonight: "Have you seen the #StopKony campaign? It came out of nowhere!" I, unfortunately, knew only that it was trending on Twitter. I'd not had time to poke around. And then danah boyd (@zephoria) came to my rescue: A critique of the Kony 2012 film & the Invisible Children #stopkony campaign: http://bit.ly/wXyDAy (oversimplified msgs can … [Read more...] about Time To Stop The #StopKony Bandwagon
Quote of the Day: Super Tuesday Was Super for Democrats
Longtime Democratic strategist Bob Shrum, writing in The Week, says Tuesday was Super Tuesday for the Democrats and makes some predictions about what night happen next. He sees good news for the Dems in 2012 and perhaps even 2016. His key conclusion: The agony of the GOP, confirmed and extended on Super Tuesday, is good news for Democrats. And so is the longer term impact … [Read more...] about Quote of the Day: Super Tuesday Was Super for Democrats
Rush Limbaugh Blockhead
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GOP Stuck in a Conservative Wonderland
GOP Stuck in a Conservative Wonderland by Michael Stafford The Republican presidential primary field has been reduced to four candidates- Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul. Together, they are a veritable four horsemen of the political apocalypse- a quadrilateral of doom, despair, division, and diminished horizons. These candidates offer nothing … [Read more...] about GOP Stuck in a Conservative Wonderland
Romney: Winning Votes, Not Love
WASHINGTON -- Mitt Romney is grinding his way to the Republican presidential nomination not by winning hearts but by imposing his will on a party that keeps resisting him. He is assembling the peripheral elements of the GOP as his rivals divide the votes of the passionate believers. His campaign is part John McCain, part Michael Dukakis, and part Richard Nixon. In its … [Read more...] about Romney: Winning Votes, Not Love
Fox News On Why Presidents Can’t Control Gas Prices
In 2008... Media Matters: Following GOP strategy, Fox News is again blaming the Obama Administration for rising gas prices -- a claim that has been repeatedly debunked by energy analysts. But back in the summer of 2008 when the average U.S. gasoline price hit a record high of $4.11, Fox said that "no President has the power to increase or to lower gas prices" and the only … [Read more...] about Fox News On Why Presidents Can’t Control Gas Prices
Unfree Unspeech
The depths of hatred and rage within the former Party of Lincoln (now the Party of Strom) never cease to amaze. Just think of it: in defense of "free speech" they go on a jihad against everyone else's free speech. I thought I'd tune in to Limbaugh to see how he's dealing with things, and I was richly rewarded. Between 9:24 and 9:42 PST, he bounced between thoughts like a … [Read more...] about Unfree Unspeech
Apocalypse Report: Bat Plague, Nicolas Cage, and Dancing with the Stars
Looks like the Apocalypse will most likely begin in Australia. The BBC reports that over a quarter million fruit bats have invaded the town of Katherine, Australia. Health authorities are warning Katherine residents to avoid interacting with their new nocturnal neighbors as there is a high probability some of the fruit bats are carrying a rabies-like disease. All Carmen … [Read more...] about Apocalypse Report: Bat Plague, Nicolas Cage, and Dancing with the Stars
Kucinich Goes Down to Defeat
In all the hoopla generated over the Super Tuesday Republican presidential primaries, not much attention has been paid to the defeat of the long time liberal gadfly, Dennis Kucinich, in a Democratic primary in Ohio. Kucinich had two previous unsuccessful runs for president and vigorously opposed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He was a strong critic of military spending and a … [Read more...] about Kucinich Goes Down to Defeat
Obama’s Super Tuesday Coup
WASHINGTON - Post Super Tuesday, one thing we know. Pres. Obama won the day. And the reason I called Ms. Fluke is because I thought about Malia and Sasha, and one of the things I want them to do as they get older is to engage in issues they care about, even ones I may not agree with them on. I want them to be able to speak their mind in a civil and thoughtful way. And I … [Read more...] about Obama’s Super Tuesday Coup
Ho Hum
Not much to be said about Super -- wait a minute, "super"? -- Tuesday. The outcome for Mitt Romney is described nicely in this report in the Times: ... The outcome of the contests on Tuesday, while allowing him to amass more delegates than any of his rivals, did little to resolve the questions about his ability to connect with voters, especially conservatives. … [Read more...] about Ho Hum
Rush’s Fluke Controversy Was No Fluke
The controversy over talk show king Rush Limbaugh’s sexually-insulting and innuendo-filled three day rant against Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke for her advocacy of health plan coverage for contraceptives was….no fluke. Limbaugh is the 21st century’s most powerful talk show host. He spawned Rush wannabes on local talk radio stations who can’t duplicate … [Read more...] about Rush’s Fluke Controversy Was No Fluke
The Laurens County Purity Pledge
Before anyone gets too self righteous, partisan or seriously philosophical about this, please understand that I am laughing with every word I write. Of course, it’s only funny because it’s true. The scene is Laurens County, South Carolina. Why does it always have to be South Carolina? The subject is the sex life of a potential political candidate. The pledge: A county … [Read more...] about The Laurens County Purity Pledge
A Collection of Putin Cartoons
Not everyone is focused on American politics. Daryl Cagle notes: American cartoonists (and news media, for that matter) seem more focused on Mitt Romney and birth control then they do in worldwide events. Fortunately, we have some of the worlds best cartoonists, and here are what a handful think of Putin’s victory… CLICK HERE for a gallery of Putin cartoons. … [Read more...] about A Collection of Putin Cartoons
The Drums Are Getting Louder
The beat goes on. And it gets louder. Mitt Romney claims that President Obama is a weakling: “If Barack Obama is re-elected,” Romney robotically swaggered in Georgia, “Iran will have a nuclear weapon and the world will change if that’s the case.” Maureen Dowd doubts that Romney understands international affairs -- and Israel in particular. But he blusters … [Read more...] about The Drums Are Getting Louder
Limbaugh and Hall of Famous Missourians
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Iran: Lessons of JFK’s Missile Crisis
Fifty years after the world teetered on the brink of war in 1962 when the Soviet Union put missiles into Cuba 90 miles from the U.S., we have a more slowly unfolding nuclear crisis with Israel and Iran as our partners in the diplomatic death dance. In Washington this week, the President tries both to reassure the Israeli prime minister of our firm backing to prevent Iran … [Read more...] about Iran: Lessons of JFK’s Missile Crisis
The Verdicts Are In On Super Thursday (UPDATED)
Super Tuesday is now political history -- and pundits are now doing their instant history. The main take from it is this: former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney had the big win: Ohio. And a win is a win. But it was not the night that the Republican establishment hoped it would be or that Mitt Romney had wished it was. Pundits agree that Romney remains a flawed front-runner. … [Read more...] about The Verdicts Are In On Super Thursday (UPDATED)
Quote of the Day: On the Rush Limbaugh Boycotts
Our political Quote of the Day comes from Bloomberg News columnist Michael Kinsley, who looks at the move to get conservative talk show titan Rush Limbaugh to apologize over remarks he made about Georgetown Law student Sandra Fluke and calls to boycott Limbaugh sponsors. These umbrage episodes that have become the principal narrative line of our politics are orgies of … [Read more...] about Quote of the Day: On the Rush Limbaugh Boycotts