One of my most prized possessions comes from the days when I did limited autograph collecting and wrote to famous movie stars, tv stars and performers who I loved all my life. One was the famous voice of cartoons and radio comedy genius Mel Blanc, who did the voice of Bugs Bunny and others. He wrote on the photo: "Ehh, what's up, Joe?" There are host of actors who are seldom … [Read more...] about 10 Voice Actors Who Shaped Your Childhood and You Didn’t Even Know It
The Straight-Face Sweepstakes
A tipping point in the Obama-bashing competition has now cost Mitt Romney endorsement by the only paper that counts in New Hampshire. “Newt Gingrich is by no means the perfect candidate,” says the Union Leader, adding “We would rather back someone with whom we may sometimes disagree than one who tells us what he thinks we want to hear.” This follows last week’s debate, … [Read more...] about The Straight-Face Sweepstakes
Syracuse University Assistant Basketball Coach Fired Due to Allegations He Molested Boys
No matter what the final outcome about the veracity of these allegations, if you add the news that Syracuse University has fired its respected Assistant Basketball Coach Bernie Fine amid allegations that he molested several boys, college coaches will now be looked at with a bit of suspicion and paranoia. Coming on the heels of the Penn State scandal involving Jerry Sandusky you … [Read more...] about Syracuse University Assistant Basketball Coach Fired Due to Allegations He Molested Boys
Howard Stern’s Fans Penetrate the Mainstream Media Again
This time CNN gets it... … [Read more...] about Howard Stern’s Fans Penetrate the Mainstream Media Again
Will Moderates Defeat Moderation?
WASHINGTON -- The deficit that should most worry us is a deficit of reasonableness. The problems the United States confronts are large but not insoluble. Yet sensible solutions that are broadly popular can't be enacted. Why? Because an ideological bloc that sees every crisis as an opportunity to reduce the size of government holds enough power in Congress to stop us … [Read more...] about Will Moderates Defeat Moderation?
Egypt Decides
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Egypt Decides
Uh Oh! There Are Only 36 Shopping Days Until The Iowa Republican Caucuses
xThe Vampire Elite Runs Our Lives. The corporatocracy has become more powerful than government. Congress is bought by special interests. The Supreme Court has ruled that Dow Chemical and Exxon Mobil have the same rights as people. It is for these reasons that it is time for a national referendum on what I call Proposition 29. Proposition 29 is simple in the extreme: "It … [Read more...] about Uh Oh! There Are Only 36 Shopping Days Until The Iowa Republican Caucuses
My Kind of Mom
Julie Sullivan isn’t angry with her daughter, Emma, for tweeting disparaging remarks about Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback during a Youth in Government program last week in Topeka: “She was talking to 65 friends. And also it’s the speech they use today. It’s more attention grabbing. I raised my kids to be independent, to be strong, to be free thinkers. If she wants to tweet her … [Read more...] about My Kind of Mom
Syria: Progress on the Arab Front
The New York Times reports that the Arab League has just approved “tough economic sanctions against Syria … to press it to end its violent crackdown against antigovernment protesters, an unprecedented step against an Arab country.” The sanctions which include a travel ban against Syrian officials and politicians, a halt to dealings with the Syrian Central Bank and the end … [Read more...] about Syria: Progress on the Arab Front
Kristof on President Obama as Piñata
After reviewing what's happened to other Western leaders confronting voters in this economic vortex (eight governments toppled in Europe in two years), and observing that President Obama's "cautious centrism soured the left without reassuring the right," Nick Kristof gives the president some due credit: Obama has done better than many critics on the left or the right give him … [Read more...] about Kristof on President Obama as Piñata
Kimberly Webb Joyner, 1970 to 2011
Send some kind thoughts to James Joyner and his two young daughters as their wife and mother passed away last night in her sleep at the age of 41. My wife, Kimberly Webb Joyner, died this morning in her sleep from unknown causes. She was 41. She leaves behind two little girls she loved more than anything, Katie, who turns 3 on New Year’s Eve, and Ellie, who was born June … [Read more...] about Kimberly Webb Joyner, 1970 to 2011
Really Bad Idea of the Year
If you enjoyed how Ralph Nader put George W. Bush into the White House in 2000, you may love what a group called Americans Elect is trying to do in 2012. The well-financed effort wants a “wide-scale draft movement for presidential candidates,” but it looks more like hammering a “broken” political system and smashing it to smithereens. Americans Elect aims, not to create a … [Read more...] about Really Bad Idea of the Year
Tom Wicker (1926-2011)
As self-unaware as this may seem, I didn't realized until hearing of his death that the journalist that I had modeled myself most closely after was the legendary New York Times op-ed columnist, who died on Friday of an apparent heart attack at his Vermont home. During the 25-year run of his column, "In the Nation," Wicker never courted controversy but he never shied away … [Read more...] about Tom Wicker (1926-2011)
Another Milestone for American Print Newspapers?
Another milestone for American print newspapers? A Kentucky newspaper runs a Huffington Post story. … [Read more...] about Another Milestone for American Print Newspapers?
Is Time Magazine “Dumbing Down” for the U.S. Market?
I was a working journalist for many years doing both freelance reporting and analysis and working as a staff reporter on two major chain newspapers. The most journalistically instructive part came when I wrote paid-by-the piece stories and op-eds overseas from India, Spain and Bangladesh in the 70s for a variety of newspapers and magazines (including for the Newsweek bureau in … [Read more...] about Is Time Magazine “Dumbing Down” for the U.S. Market?
The “Increasingly Intolerable’ Glut of GOP debates: 4 Consequences
Everything has consequences -- including a large number of political debates. … [Read more...] about The “Increasingly Intolerable’ Glut of GOP debates: 4 Consequences
If They Both Lose the Battle, the Better for All of Us
The Hill describes Republican fury with media attacks on presidential candidates --Michele v Jimmy, for example. Media coverage of conservatives is again in the spotlight, with the furor over the treatment of presidential candidate Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) on the “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” TV show. ... ... A number of GOP hopefuls — Bachmann, Cain and … [Read more...] about If They Both Lose the Battle, the Better for All of Us
Who’s In Charge Here? (Guest Voice)
Martha’s Big Adventure — Who’s in Charge Here? by Martha Randolph Carr The Congressional Super Committee of Twelve has failed to put together a plan to save the country’s fiscal butt before the January 2013 deadline. Despite having specially mandated super powers to be able to speed through red tape and deliver a plan, they were unable to agree on much of anything. They … [Read more...] about Who’s In Charge Here? (Guest Voice)
Apparent Crackdown on the CIA in Iran: Linked to Iranian Missile Testing?
Is Iran cracking down on the CIA? Is there an operation underway to arrest those who might be connected with the American intelligence agency -- an above-the-water revelation of the big under-the-water iceberg covert war going on between the two countries? The Christian Science Monitor's Howard LaFranchi suggests a crackdown is occurring -- and an Israeli newspaper suggests … [Read more...] about Apparent Crackdown on the CIA in Iran: Linked to Iranian Missile Testing?
Tahrir Square is Rebelling Again
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Tahrir Square is Rebelling Again