Update: For any of our readers on the East Coast, please feel free to comment and offer us feedback on your experience. ***************************************************************************** Update: CNN interviewed the vice mayor of Mineral who reported that the town hall has considerable damage to the roof (crumbling bricks) and she has felt 5 … [Read more...] about Earthquake Strikes East Coast (Updated)
The Political Minefield Facing Rick Perry
Texas Governor Rick Perry has been formally running for the 2012 Presidential nomination for less than a month and he has already made a huge splash. But will he also soon spark a big explosion – like one going off in a political minefield, or the sound of a mob of screaming, torch-wielding GOP establishment types seeking to end the threat of what they consider a political … [Read more...] about The Political Minefield Facing Rick Perry
Libya & Iraq: A Tale Of Two Wars
There is a compulsion among analysts to compare present day wars with the wars of yore, and more often than not they get more wrong than right. That was the case with comparisons between Vietnam and Iraq and it yet again is the case with the comparisons between Iraq and Libya. The compulsion this time around is especially strong because the aim of both wars was to take out … [Read more...] about Libya & Iraq: A Tale Of Two Wars
Gallup Poll: Obama Re-Election Now Far From A Shoo In
The latest Gallup Poll finds that if the election was held today President Barack Obama would lose to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and be tied with Texas Governor Rick Perry -- a sign of Obama's increasing vulnerability and the GOP's increasing opportunity. So the big drama that will unfold quickly will be whether Obama can decrease his vulnerability and whether … [Read more...] about Gallup Poll: Obama Re-Election Now Far From A Shoo In
Mission Accomplished—No Really
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Mission Accomplished—No Really
The Burden of “Sentimentality”
This article is irritating on a number of fronts. In this book excerpt, the author condemns much of the world outside his religious sphere, consigning faithlessness, insufficient faith, and departure from Church doctrine to the realm of "Sentimentalists." But he is noncredible, his thesis built on multiple fallacies. First: the author confuses atheism with hedonism and … [Read more...] about The Burden of “Sentimentality”
Do the London Riots Presage America’s Economic Collapse? (Al-Hayat Al-Jadidah, Palestinian Territories)
Were the London riots just a hint of what is to come in the United States? Hafez al-Barghouty of the Al-Hayat Al-Jadidah in the Palestinian Territories writes that in the West, democracy is a thin veneer 'without soul' that cannot endure in the presence of scarcity, and that as prosperity diminishes, so will a way of life Americans take such pride in. For the Al-Hayat … [Read more...] about Do the London Riots Presage America’s Economic Collapse? (Al-Hayat Al-Jadidah, Palestinian Territories)
Rick Perry, Manchurian Candidate?
A hard-boiled campaign is being run for the GOP’s most soft-headed aspirant by a group of political scientists. We learn this from a reporter’s electronic book about them, “Rick Perry and his Eggheads: Inside the Brainiest Political Operation in America.” For his 2006 Texas campaign, they ran experiments testing the effectiveness of campaign tools: candidate appearances, … [Read more...] about Rick Perry, Manchurian Candidate?
Book Review: A Narrative History Of The Real Tibet, Not The Tibet Of Our Imaginations
Where is Tibet? That depends upon which Tibet you are talking about. Is it the Tibet that the Chinese occupiers refer to as the Tibet Autonomous Region? Is it the larger ethnographic Tibet that share the same language? Or is it the larger still Tibet of yore that overlaps with four Chinese provinces and four other Himalayan kingdoms? And while we're at it, was … [Read more...] about Book Review: A Narrative History Of The Real Tibet, Not The Tibet Of Our Imaginations
Gaddafi Kicked Out
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Gaddafi Kicked Out
Quote of the Day: On Vacations Give the President a Break
Our poliitical Quote of the Day comes from GOPer David Frum who again illustrates why he is a must-read for independent voters, moderates or Republicans who are not enamored with 21st century conservatism or the country's talk radio political culture. He cuts away all the partisan silliness, posturing and outright hypocrisy to say this about the bro-ha-ha over Barack Obama's … [Read more...] about Quote of the Day: On Vacations Give the President a Break
Virginia Earthquake Interrupts Filming of Commercial
Of all the bits on the East Coast earthquake so far, this tape is the most fascinating. An auto dealer is filming a commercial when the earthquake strikes: For years those of us in California have talked to worried relatives on the East Coast about living out here, or heard jokes about the unstable ground in the West. Now it's both coasts.. … [Read more...] about Virginia Earthquake Interrupts Filming of Commercial
Jack Layton Dies
Only months after making history by leading his New Democratic Party from fourth place to second, Canadian politician Jack Layton has died. His death comes a month after he announced his cancer had returned, and is a major shock to the Canadian political system Our deepest sympathies to his family and to all of our Canadian friends. … [Read more...] about Jack Layton Dies
Full Text of President Barack Obama’s Statement on Libya
Here's the full text of President Barack Obama's statement on Libya from Martha's Vineyard. We're giving it to you in full text (White House issued) so you can read it and analyze it yourself: 2:20 P.M. EDT THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon, everybody. I just completed a call with my National Security Council on the situation in Libya. And earlier today I spoke … [Read more...] about Full Text of President Barack Obama’s Statement on Libya
Paul Ryan Nixes Run for 2012 Republican Presidential Nomination
He's thinking of running (the headline last week). He's not anymore (the headline today). So much for baited-breath speculation -- and probably prayers -- in some GOP quarters that Rep. Paul Ryan would jump into the 2012 Republican nomination race and enter into a field that some GOPers feel is week and even alarming. Rule Ryan out: After much speculation and some … [Read more...] about Paul Ryan Nixes Run for 2012 Republican Presidential Nomination
More Foreign Policy Hypocrisy From Partisan Democrats
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote an article at TMV noting that the size and fervor of the anti-war movement has been significantly smaller since Obama entered the White House despite the fact that Obama has stepped up our presence in Afghanistan and intervened in Libya without a congressional declaration of war. I pointed out that while the libertarian wing of the anti-war … [Read more...] about More Foreign Policy Hypocrisy From Partisan Democrats
Justice, New York Style (A Perp’s View)
Ze women zey simply luv me, Zey can’t get enough of my stuff, Though I’m fat and I’m old and I’m ugly, And ze sex that I like, it is ruff. Ze ones zat I most like to favor, Ze ones for me most preferential, Are ze poor ones I peg as defenseless, Who can’t prove our sex ain’t consensual. And if zez ingrates still complain, Understand not ze honor bestowed, I got … [Read more...] about Justice, New York Style (A Perp’s View)
Game Up for Gaddafi? (Video animation)
Game up for Gaddafi? Another video animation from Taiwan's Next Media Animation: … [Read more...] about Game Up for Gaddafi? (Video animation)
Around the Sphere (Blog Roundup)
Our linkfest offering you a buffet of different takes on issues by a variety of websites. The Dictator is Falling in Libya and some folks can't say "I told you so" and in fact will want people to forget their words. And the question Republicans face now is how to respond: to cheer or not to cheer. I predict talk show hosts will not cheer and find some negatives and … [Read more...] about Around the Sphere (Blog Roundup)
Libyan People Win, Qaddafi & Bachmann Lose
It is gratifying that another Middle Eastern henchman appears about to get his just desserts, and that despite extensive U.S. involvement in the NATO mission not a single American life has been lost in the civil war. (How about them apples, Michele Bachmann? Time to retract your statement that President Obama "is not on our side" because the U.S. intervened? Of course you … [Read more...] about Libyan People Win, Qaddafi & Bachmann Lose