The same Republican presidential wannabe who would send U.S. troops back into Iraq and thus would most likely again need the use of Turkish land and air space to provide logistics support to our troops there, now labels that nation a country that is being ruled by Islamic terrorists -- and worse. During Monday's GOP presidential candidates debate in South Carolina, Texas … [Read more...] about Perry’s Regrettable — and Uninformed — Comments about a Staunch NATO Ally (UPDATES)
Can’t Rick Perry Take a Hint?
Can't Rick Perry take a hint? I mean, REALLY... … [Read more...] about Can’t Rick Perry Take a Hint?
The CEO President
Does being a CEO of an organization mean you are better qualified to be President of the United States? While I was studying for a masters degree in Political Communications, this was the most interesting question that I came across. It is a question I asked myself when I was studying George W Bush’s candidacy in 2000 and it is a question I have been asking myself as I have … [Read more...] about The CEO President
The Futile Integrity of Jon Huntsman
As you've surely heard by now, Jon Huntsman -- Huntsman the Formidable, I once called him -- has pulled out of the race for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination. His withdrawal at this stage was hardly a surprise. Though he finished a fairly strong third in New Hampshire, where he campaigned relentlessly and into which basket he put pretty much every egg he had, he has … [Read more...] about The Futile Integrity of Jon Huntsman
Happy Birthday, Michelle Obama, From the President and Me
The First Lady turns 48 today. I know because an e-mail from the President last week reminded me with two links to a fund-raising site: “The decision to become part of this campaign was deeply personal for a lot of people, and Michelle and I are no exception... “This fall, Michelle and I will have been married 20 years. The next 10 months will be harder than any we've … [Read more...] about Happy Birthday, Michelle Obama, From the President and Me
SOPA & PIPA Protests
Wikipedia is shutting down its English language site tomorrow to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales tweeted the announcement yesterday, "Student warning! Do your homework early. Wikipedia protesting bad law on Wednesday!" "The whole thing is just a poorly designed mess," Wales said in an email to The Associated Press. "I am … [Read more...] about SOPA & PIPA Protests
Recognizing America
Mitt Romney at the debate last night: My care by getting in this race is about my belief in America and my concern that what we’re seeing with this president is a change in course for America to be become something we wouldn’t recognize. I think he is drawing us into becoming more like a European social welfare state. I think he wants us to become an entitlement society where … [Read more...] about Recognizing America
Simple Math
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Simple Math
A Fair Share of Scrutiny
WASHINGTON -- From all evidence, the issue of economic justice isn't going away. Break the news gently to Mitt Romney, who seems apoplectic that the whole "rich get richer, poor get poorer" thing is being discussed out loud. In front of the children, for goodness sake. "You know I think it's fine to talk about those things in quiet rooms," he told the "Today" show's … [Read more...] about A Fair Share of Scrutiny
Balance The Budget
Another of the many 'balance the budget' programs, this time from the NYT I'll be curious to see how folks tackle this. I presume some will do nothing but spending cuts while others will focus mostly on tax hikes and cutting the military. But it's a fun exercise … [Read more...] about Balance The Budget
An Unhappy Result When Free Speech Meets The Roberts Court Meat Grinder
There was a time not long ago when free speech was guaranteed in America, and if someone had a problem with that the Supreme Court would weigh in with a reminder that the concept is a foundation on which our democracy is built. But a funny thing happened on the way to the second decade of the new millennium. According to a new study, the court led by Chief Justice John … [Read more...] about An Unhappy Result When Free Speech Meets The Roberts Court Meat Grinder
The Sad Irony of this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
First, an observation which I seldom see in print: King remembered going to a lecture on the principles of Gandhi, and how it changed his thinking. And Gandhi remembered reading Henry David Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" while in jail in South Africa. Now, of course, we know that another South African prisoner, Nelson Mandela, was, in turn, inspired by King in South Africa, … [Read more...] about The Sad Irony of this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Live Blogging and Roundup: the Fox News Wall Street Journal South Carolina Republican Presidential Hopefuls’ Debate (FINAL)
Due to travel, I got online late. The following are some live blogging entries on the debate in South Carolina between GOPers seeking the 2012 Republican nomination. These are the reactions of an independent voter who has been in both parties -- reactions not to political stands as much as to how they answered, came across and how what they say will help or hurt them with their … [Read more...] about Live Blogging and Roundup: the Fox News Wall Street Journal South Carolina Republican Presidential Hopefuls’ Debate (FINAL)
New Polls Bring Good News for Romney: Mixed News for Obama
Polls are coming out faster now than McDonald's hamburgers -- and new ones keep delivering good news for former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and mixed news for President Barack Obama. How much in disarray is Romney's opposition? So much so that evangelicals are now enmeshed in an accusation war about whether the vote of 150 social conservative activists this weekend was … [Read more...] about New Polls Bring Good News for Romney: Mixed News for Obama
Mississippi Pardons
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Mississippi Pardons
Hugo Chavez and the Anomaly of Latin American Islamization (La Vanguardia, Spain)
Is there any historical basis for the alliance between certain Latin American nations and Islamic fundamentalist Iran? For Spain's La Vanguardia, apparently exasperated columnist Pilar Rahola says that, "If Simon Bolívar were raise his head and see Ahmadinejad and Chávez in his noble land, he would die a second time of pure shame." For La Vanguardia, Pilar Rahola writes in … [Read more...] about Hugo Chavez and the Anomaly of Latin American Islamization (La Vanguardia, Spain)
My Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
"If you can't fly then run, if you can't run then walk, if you can't walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward." - Martin Luther King Jr. Doug Bursch blogs and tweets Fairlyspiritual. … [Read more...] about My Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
The MASC (The Marketing-Security Complex)
No. It's not your imagination. You're not a conspiracy hysteric. There is a force out there that is controlling our economic, political and social lives to an extraordinary extent, reducing one of the most sacred traditional rights of a free society, privacy, to increasing irrelevance. To give it a name, call it the MASC — the Marketing-Security Complex. In a 1961 speech, … [Read more...] about The MASC (The Marketing-Security Complex)
Incarceration & Unemployment, Europe & the U.S.
Steve Roth wonders, how do incarceration rates affect unemployment numbers? Europe has consistently higher unemployment than the U.S., but the U.S. has far and away the highest incarceration rate in the world — .75% of the population. (World Prison Population List [PDF], compiled since 1992 by Roy Walmsley of the International Centre for Prison Studies.)Only Russia comes … [Read more...] about Incarceration & Unemployment, Europe & the U.S.
Barring a Huge Event: the GOP Nominee Will Be Romney
A quick post. I am in Alamogordo, New Mexico right now about to leave my hotel here for another city on my national tour, but it needs to be said: Barring some huge political event, the GOP nominee WILL be former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Why? 1. A series of new polls show Romney is way ahead of the others nationally. 2. A new poll shows that if Romney runs against … [Read more...] about Barring a Huge Event: the GOP Nominee Will Be Romney