Mushrooming from lower Manhattan, the inchoate backlash brings expectable reactions in Washington from Democratic cheerleading to GOP hypocrisy. As Eric Cantor calls protesters “a mob...pitting Americans against Americans,” Nancy Pelosi reminds the Tea Party toad, “I didn’t hear him say anything when the Tea Party was out demonstrating, actually spitting on members of … [Read more...] about Wall Street Protest: Back to the Future?
BOOK ANNOUNCEMENT: THE HILLARY EFFECT – Politics, Sexism and the Destiny of Loss
COMING IN NOVEMBER The e-book that tells the definitive story. WASHINGTON - Back in January 2010, I told readers I was working on a large project, so my presence would diminish from what it was during 2009. Well, this is it. Hillary's presidential run is the foundation for this political tale, as is what she experienced during the primaries, including the media's role in … [Read more...] about BOOK ANNOUNCEMENT: THE HILLARY EFFECT – Politics, Sexism and the Destiny of Loss
The Rise of the Reverse Houdinis
WASHINGTON -- So let’s see: The solution to large-scale abuses of the financial system, a breakdown of the private sector, extreme economic inequality and the failure of companies and individuals to invest and create jobs is -- well, to give even more money and power to very wealthy people, to disable government and to trust those who got us into the mess to get us out of … [Read more...] about The Rise of the Reverse Houdinis
The Answers Are All Behind Them
Ezra Klein, in his analysis of last night's Republican Candidates debate, writes: "The candidates vying for the GOP’s 2012 presidential nomination want to force history backward." If there is one thing all of them want to do, it is to repeal everything the Obama Administration has done -- and then go much further than that: Their proposals to roll back the growth and … [Read more...] about The Answers Are All Behind Them
Does Barack Obama Have a Looming Hispanic Voter Problem?
Amid almost daily bad political news from polling, President Barack Obama may have a new preoccupation: he's not doing well with Latino voters: President Obama’s numbers are cratering with nearly every demographic, but the latest Gallup weekly tracking poll shows his approval dropping most steeply among Latinos. It portends poorly not only for the president, but for a … [Read more...] about Does Barack Obama Have a Looming Hispanic Voter Problem?
Anwar Al-Awlaki’s Carnival Of Ironies
These are boom times if you are a collector of ironies, and none may larger than despite the fact that President Obama has been repeatedly accused of being weak on fighting terrorism by the Republican national security choir, he has been more successful in three short years than the bombastic and serially reckless Bush administration was in eight. The aggressive Obama … [Read more...] about Anwar Al-Awlaki’s Carnival Of Ironies
“Nothing off the table” in U.S. Response to Iranian Plot, Biden Says
Vice President Joe Biden says that "nothing is off the table" in the U.S. response to the Iranian plot: video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player Here's some of the ABC News website report on the interview: Vice President Joe Biden said today that "nothing has been taken off the table" when it comes to the U.S. response to an alleged plot by Iran to … [Read more...] about “Nothing off the table” in U.S. Response to Iranian Plot, Biden Says
Frank Kameny Dead At 86
Of natural causes, yesterday, at his home in Washington, DC. I was lucky enough to have interviewed Kameny nearly thirty years ago, and to have visited him in his home, while working on the film Before Stonewall. Together we dug through his collection of memorabilia. He showed me the State Department letter confirming that it “does not hire homosexuals and does not … [Read more...] about Frank Kameny Dead At 86
Not Excited About Romney
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Not Excited About Romney
Book Review: Norwich’s Absolute Monarchs: A History Of The Papacy’
Anti-Semitic Pope Pius XII leaves a meeting with Adolph Hitler There have been 265 Roman Catholic popes, 266 if you count Pope Joan, who existed only in the popular imagination in the Middle Ages, and these don't count various usurpers, interlopers and antipopes. To paraphrase Longfellow, some of the real popes were good, some were bad and some were horrid. Regular … [Read more...] about Book Review: Norwich’s Absolute Monarchs: A History Of The Papacy’
Fame as Disease; Celebrity as Illness (conclusion)
There's a difference between Flo Ziegfeld's shameless 1896 scandal publicity and the corporate machine that was MGM's 1949 publicity, which brings us to the present day. You see, Ziegfeld was selling sex to a society that didn't allow women's ankles to be exposed in public, while MGM was pouring an endless glop of corny wholesomeness on the pancakes of sentimental hogwash to … [Read more...] about Fame as Disease; Celebrity as Illness (conclusion)
Republican Debate Aftermath Conventional Wisdom: Rick Perry Fails Again (UPDATED)
The conventional wisdom on last night's GOP Presidential debate in New Hampshire is coming in. It's three pronged. And not good news for Rick Perry. Three strands are emerging: 1. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney put in another good performance. It's increasingly becoming easier for many conservative Republicans to envision him as a nominee who could not just hold the … [Read more...] about Republican Debate Aftermath Conventional Wisdom: Rick Perry Fails Again (UPDATED)
The Alleged Iranian Plot Could Drag the US Into Hate-filled Quicksand
The fallouts of the alleged Iranian attempt to kill the Saudi ambassador in Washington will heighten Middle East tensions, even as pressure grows on Israelis and Palestinians to sit again at the peace table. If the allegations turn out to be true, the Saudi’s will put intense pressure on the Obama administration for exemplary and swift action. The risk is that the White … [Read more...] about The Alleged Iranian Plot Could Drag the US Into Hate-filled Quicksand
Senate Republicans Block Obama’s Jobs Bill
With their vote on a motion to proceed, the Senate avoids even a real debate on the jobs bill. The BBC: Forty-six Republican senators joined with two Democrats to filibuster the $447bn (£287bn) bill. Democratic support for the bill wavered this week, as several Democrats said they would vote for moving the bill forward, but against the bill itself. Republicans opposed … [Read more...] about Senate Republicans Block Obama’s Jobs Bill
Will 2012 Be the Republican Party’s ‘Oh No You Don’t’ Year?
HOLDERNESS, N.H — Reports suggest New Hampshire voters haven’t focused on the national politics invading their state yet, and it’s hard to understand why. Republican Presidential nomination hopefuls are visiting here as dutifully, hungrily and reverentially as Republican politicos at a private Koch Brothers seminar. Rep. Michele Bachmann, ex-conservative-flavor-of-the-week … [Read more...] about Will 2012 Be the Republican Party’s ‘Oh No You Don’t’ Year?
Chris Christie Endorses Mitt Romney
UPDATE... Fox News: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, just one week after definitively announcing he will not run for president in 2012, endorsed Mitt Romney for the job Tuesday afternoon. Christie, at a news conference in Hanover, N.H., described the endorsement as an "easy decision." He cited Romney's experience in the private and public sectors, saying he "brings the best … [Read more...] about Chris Christie Endorses Mitt Romney
Live Longer: Come Out of The Closet
Happy Coming Out Day. Come Out. It's good for you... "The more you’re in the closet, the worse for you," says Robert Trivers, a Professor of Anthropology and Biological Sciences at Rutgers University. "There is an immunological dimension to self-deception." In his new book (out in the UK, Deceit and Self-Deception: Fooling Yourself the Better to Fool Others, and coming … [Read more...] about Live Longer: Come Out of The Closet
Will Jon Huntsman’s Sanity Sell?
The clearest voice for sanity in the GOP race has gone all in for tonight’s New Hampshire debate with a foreign-policy speech that actually makes sense. But will sanity sell? “We still have remnants of a top-heavy, post-cold war infrastructure,” Jon Huntsman says. “It needs to be transformed to reflect the 21st Century world and the growing asymmetric threats we … [Read more...] about Will Jon Huntsman’s Sanity Sell?
Mitt Romney and the “Mormon Question”
The latest dust-up on the already tedious 2012 presidential campaign trail was triggered several days ago when a pastor and Rick Perry supporter told interviewers that Christians should refrain from voting for Mormon candidates like Mitt Romney (and presumably, Jon Huntsman too) for president because, he asserted, Mormonism is a cult. As a Christian pastor myself … [Read more...] about Mitt Romney and the “Mormon Question”
Al-Awlaki and John Yoo: An Endorsement We Can Do Without
As has been apparent from previous posts (here and here), I support the Obama administration’s decision to take out American-born, terrorist-turned, traitor Anwar al-Awlaki before he could do any more harm to America and Americans. My opinion was reinforced when I read that al-Qaeda---the same gang of terrorists that massacred more than 3,000 innocent American men, women … [Read more...] about Al-Awlaki and John Yoo: An Endorsement We Can Do Without