The Defense Department paid $285 billion in two years to about 100 contractors who were defrauding taxpayers between 2007 and 2009. About $15 billion was spent on contractors who at the time were either suspended or debarred for misusing taxpayer funds, according to its audit report released Wednesday. The report was required in the last defense budget and it's response back … [Read more...] about Department Admits $285B Fraud By Defense Contractors
America Must Act or Cede Egypt to the Islamists: Salzburger Nachrichten, Austria
When it comes to Egypt, is it time for the United States to stop hedging its bets? According to columnist Thomas Spang of Austria's Salzburger Nachrichten, without actively asserting its waning influence, Washington risks the worst imaginable outcome for the Western world: an Egypt governed by Muslim fundamentalists. For the Salzburger Nachrichten, Thomas Spang writes in … [Read more...] about America Must Act or Cede Egypt to the Islamists: Salzburger Nachrichten, Austria
Senate Health Care Repeal Effort Fails
The Senate has just defeated a Republican-led effort to repeal the entire national health-care overhaul, with lawmakers voting strictly along party lines. "The decision underscores the hurdle that the GOP faces in that Democratic-majority chamber as it tries to overturn the law." All 50 Senate Democrats present and one independent voted against the repeal, while all 47 … [Read more...] about Senate Health Care Repeal Effort Fails
Egypt: America’s ‘Shameful’ Faustian Bargain Unravels (Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany)
Call it a Cold War hangover or a broken deal with the Devil - but according to columnist Stefan Kornelius of Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Egypt shows that the era of paying off potentates regardless of how they treat their citizens and mistaking stagnation for stability is over, and the will of the people will no longer be denied. For the Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Stefan … [Read more...] about Egypt: America’s ‘Shameful’ Faustian Bargain Unravels (Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany)
Egypt’s Army, No Longer Protesters’ Pal
Egypt's Army has told protesters to go home and is reportedly trying to evacuate Tahrir Square. Jerusalem Post: Pro-Mubarak protesters retreat as anti-gov't rioters charge: 630 injured, three killed in clashes; machine guns are fired and Molotov cocktails hurled from surrounding buildings; protesters target Egyptian Museum. … [Read more...] about Egypt’s Army, No Longer Protesters’ Pal
Core Rate Employment Exceeds 90 Percent!
I used to be bothered by core rate blather about inflation. I thought it preposterous. I believed it was merely designed to ease people's worries about the true rate of inflation by pretending that food and energy, two absolute necessities of human life, could be excluded from a "core rate" measure because they're "volatile" — as if most other factors that go into computing … [Read more...] about Core Rate Employment Exceeds 90 Percent!
J Post: Machine Guns Fired Into Tahrir Square
Jerusalem Post: Machine Guns Fired Into Tahrir Square. 600 reported injured, one killed in clashes; Pro-Mubarak rioters hurl Molotov Cocktails, rocks at opposition from surrounding buildings; protesters target Egyptian Museum. Machine gunfire was heard on Wednesday night, shortly after Egyptian state television ordered all demonstrators to evacuate Cairo's Tahrir … [Read more...] about J Post: Machine Guns Fired Into Tahrir Square
Horse- and Camel-Mounted Hoodlums Attack Cairo Demonstrators (UPDATE)
Latest from the BBC (18:09 ET) The struggle for control of the future of Egypt continued in Cairo. Egyptian anti-government protesters remain entrenched in Cairo's main square, after at least three people were killed in clashes with supporters of President Hosni Mubarak. Hundreds of people were also wounded as rival groups fought pitched battles in and around Tahrir … [Read more...] about Horse- and Camel-Mounted Hoodlums Attack Cairo Demonstrators (UPDATE)
Mubarak Tries the ‘Rent-a-Thug’ Gambit
In the time honored tradition of dictators who have reached the end of their rope, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has decided to crack down on the demonstrations that have brought his regime to its knees. Rather than use his army or uniformed police to do the dirty work, Mubarak has instituted a jobs program for thugs. He has hired several hundred - perhaps thousands - of … [Read more...] about Mubarak Tries the ‘Rent-a-Thug’ Gambit
The Sky Is Falling — or Is It?
Guest post by G. Scott Hulsey Mr. Hulsey is a fellow with the Truman National Security Project and resides in Atlanta, Georgia. America is on the brink of collapse. Or so one would think, listening to today's pundits. According to the shrill voices comprising today's media, the United States is devolving into a socialist, God-hating country that is ruled by an alien … [Read more...] about The Sky Is Falling — or Is It?
Crises Also Bring Hope
February arrives with a reminder that life takes turns that don't fit into the mold our minds have constructed for the world: An uprising in Egypt suddenly changes the Middle East power equation and forces us to recalibrate our investment of blood and money in the region. Here at home, state courts keep overturning the essence of health care reform, racing ahead of GOP … [Read more...] about Crises Also Bring Hope
Lest We Forget
A personal note. I'm about to jump in my car and will be offline most of the next 7 hours except for a brief check in at Starbucks. The events now unfolding in Egypt are highly dramatic but also an example of watching history truly unfold. As we watch the protests and seeming escalation of clashes, it's notable that this week was a sad anniversary for history buffs or those of … [Read more...] about Lest We Forget
Yemen’s Saleh Will Not Run For Re-Election
MSNBC: Yemen's president: I won't extend term or pass power to son. U.S.-allied Saleh says he'll stand down in 2013; 'day of rage' protest looms. SANAA, Yemen — The Yemeni president told parliament Wednesday that he would not seek another term in office or hand power to his son — an apparent reaction to protests in this impoverished nation that have been inspired by … [Read more...] about Yemen’s Saleh Will Not Run For Re-Election
Good Riddance, Mubarak. The Egyptian People Demand Freedom.
With a popular, pro-democratic uprising in full swing, and with their economy facing disaster, Egyptians took to the streets in huge numbers yesterday in Cairo. In a country ruled for decades by a brutal authoritarian tyrant, it was simply extraordinary. The outcome of the uprising has been unclear, but change seemingly was at hand. And then it came. With the writing on … [Read more...] about Good Riddance, Mubarak. The Egyptian People Demand Freedom.
Internet Turned Back On In Egypt
After a five-day internet shutdown, President Hosni Mubarak said he would seek re-election. And apparently turned the internet back on: Reports from bloggers and Egyptian twitterati have confirmed that the Internet has been restored in Egypt by the country’s major Internet Service Providers ISPs. The decision has yet to be clarified as whether it is a single sided decision … [Read more...] about Internet Turned Back On In Egypt
Watch Al Jazeera English Live Feed of Protests in Cairo
Al Jazeera (which is growing as a must-see news source just as CNN became a just-see news source with the first Iraq war) has a live stream video of the protests in Cairo. Coverage is quite good and extensive both in visuals and info that reporters give to supplement the often dramatic images. GO HERE TO WATCH THE LIVE VIDEO COVERAGE OF THE PROTESTS AND EVENTS IN CAIRO. … [Read more...] about Watch Al Jazeera English Live Feed of Protests in Cairo
UPDATE: All Hell Breaks Loose in Cairo
UPDATE: CNN reports seeing machetes, razors, Molotov cocktails, tear gas, and clubs while hearing some gunshots. Mubarak supporters are storming Tahrir Square from all sides, rumored to be accompanied by plainclothes policemen. An Army vehicle has been overturned. Tear gas may have been fired by police. CNN: EARLIER: Was just watching CNN. Pro-Mubarak demonstrators, … [Read more...] about UPDATE: All Hell Breaks Loose in Cairo
Taking Exception (Guest Voice)
Taking Exception by Peter Funt Even in the midst of serious shortfalls involving the economy, education, health care, and military entanglements overseas, America remains truly exceptional in many ways. However, clinging to the phrase “American exceptionalism,” and elevating it as yet another password for patriotism, only misappropriates the concept. “They've refused … [Read more...] about Taking Exception (Guest Voice)
Mubarak Stays
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved. … [Read more...] about Mubarak Stays
Friedman: A Perilous Time for Israel
But also, he believes, one presenting a window of opportunity to make a deal with the Palestinians and ensure peace: To put it bluntly, if Israelis tell themselves that Egypt’s unrest proves why Israel cannot make peace with the Palestinian Authority, then they will be talking themselves into becoming an apartheid state — they will be talking themselves into permanently … [Read more...] about Friedman: A Perilous Time for Israel