Tunisia. Algeria. Egypt. Now Yemen. Soon Jordan? Is this a flash in the pan or the beginning of the end for the petro-dictatorships? Unfortunately I have been and will continue to be extremely preoccupied with some nascent personal life changes and haven't been able to keep up. If you have any insights then please comment. I do have these quick feelings: I am more … [Read more...] about Is This The Beginning Of A New Age In The Middle East?
Illinois Supreme Court *Hearts* Rahm
Chicago Tribune: The Illinois Supreme Court ruled today that Rahm Emanuel can stay on the ballot for mayor of Chicago. The decision comes without a moment to spare; early voting for the Feb. 22 city election begins Monday, Jan. 31. You can read the opinion by clicking here. A cheer went up at Emanuel's headquarters when the news came out. The candidate was preparing … [Read more...] about Illinois Supreme Court *Hearts* Rahm
A New Face at the White House
Washington Post: President Obama has chosen Jay Carney to serve as his new press secretary, replacing longtime loyalist Robert Gibbs who is leaving his post in mid February, according to a senior Administration official. [snip] Carney, who is currently communications director for Vice President Joe Biden, came to the White House in 2009 after a long career in … [Read more...] about A New Face at the White House
The Mosquito Birther Armada Keeps On Trucking
Like mosquitoes in a swampy summer heat, the birthers will not go away. You gotta read this update by World Net Daily. People can judge for themselves whether the birther movement is a wing-nut group whose chief propagandist is WND and read into it that the drive is based on resentment that Barack Obama is our first black president and cast aspersions that he is … [Read more...] about The Mosquito Birther Armada Keeps On Trucking
SOTU and Sputnik: Economic Nationalism, Political Paralysis, and the Decline of the American Empire
I haven't yet commented on Tuesday night's State of the Union address, nor on the Republican response, but, then, what more is there to say? TNR's John Judis thinks it was President Obama's best speech as president. I do not agree, though I'm hard-pressed to name a better one. Not because I thought his SOTU was all that great but because he hasn't exactly given many … [Read more...] about SOTU and Sputnik: Economic Nationalism, Political Paralysis, and the Decline of the American Empire
Sex Scandal Worsens for Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi
The sex scandal is worsening for Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi: now it's involving allegations with two minors: Silvio Berlusconi had encounters with a second under-age showgirl, prosecutors believe, as the prime minister was hit by yet more salacious details about so-called "bunga bunga" sex parties at his homes. The prime minister, 74, is already accused of … [Read more...] about Sex Scandal Worsens for Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi
Poll: Republican Party’s Image Net Positive for First Time Since 2005
There's some significant good news for the Republican Party: a new USA Today/Gallup Poll finds the party's image is net-positive for the first time since 2005 -- and the poll suggests both parties are now on more or less equal footing in terms of image as they head into 2012: Americans' opinions of the Republican Party have improved to the point where now more have a … [Read more...] about Poll: Republican Party’s Image Net Positive for First Time Since 2005
Platitudes, Platitudes, Platitudes (Guest Voice)
Platitudes, Platitudes, Platitudes by Michael Reagan President Obama’s State of the Union address said more about the state of his approach to governing than it did with the present condition of this nation under his governance. It was an uninterrupted march of platitude upon platitude, with nary a solution offered to any of the problems facing the United States. As … [Read more...] about Platitudes, Platitudes, Platitudes (Guest Voice)
Kucinich Sues Over Olive Pit in Sandwich
To all of those who thought Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich is the pits, here is a related story. He is suing for $150,000 because he bit into a sandwich wrap three years ago that had an unpitted olive rather than a pitted olive. Here's CNN's Anderson Cooper -- who sticks in a joke that is good to see in too frequently staid news reporting...and shows q video that suggests … [Read more...] about Kucinich Sues Over Olive Pit in Sandwich
The Bachmann Express (Guest Voice)
The Bachmann Express by Peter Funt Michele Bachmann for President. There's a bumper sticker that should definitely make the Obama team feel more confident about retaining the White House in 2012. The Minnesota Congresswoman has just completed her third campaign trip to Iowa where she told reporters she’s weighing her options about a run for the presidency. Such a … [Read more...] about The Bachmann Express (Guest Voice)
On Holocaust Remembrance Day, ‘The Letter’
Today marks the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp---a day that has been designated as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. About three weeks ago I posted a link to an article about a letter written by a Jewish relative as he was being transported in a cattle train from the Netherlands to his death in Auschwitz. The article … [Read more...] about On Holocaust Remembrance Day, ‘The Letter’
Egypt and Iran
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. all rights reserved. … [Read more...] about Egypt and Iran
California City Approves Mosque Over Town Protests
As a resident of Temecula, Calif., I am ashamed of the ignorant and uniformed protesters who dealt venom based on fear conjured in their own twisted minds. The lone, sane, argument is, indeed, traffic congestion. Hopefully, this development will play out and someday all will learn the truth. (Courtesy Reuters file photo) … [Read more...] about California City Approves Mosque Over Town Protests
Good Luck With Those Cuts
Everyone wants to cut the budget and the Republicans are making it the center of their policy. As we have noted before there is a problem - the voters who want to cut the budget don't actually want to cut anything. Gallup's most recent poll indicates that nothing has changed. The only thing a majority want to cut is Foreign Aid which makes up less than one percent of … [Read more...] about Good Luck With Those Cuts
A Four-Point Reform Plan to Build on SOTU Bipartisan Momentum (Guest Voice)
From No Labels -- the bipartisan and independent group with the slogan "Not left. Not Right. Forward" that is popular with those Americans fed up with political labels and partisan and ideological demonization who seek to put the focus on problem solving: No Labels Proposes Four-Point Reform Plan to Build on SOTU Bipartisan Momentum Urges President and Congress to Adopt … [Read more...] about A Four-Point Reform Plan to Build on SOTU Bipartisan Momentum (Guest Voice)
Barack Obama: Paradoxical Whig
WASHINGTON -- Be ready for the paradoxical phase of Barack Obama's presidency. Many things will not be exactly as they appear. Paradox No. 1: Because over the next two years he can't get sweeping, progressive legislation through the Republican-led House, Obama will be doing far more to make the core progressive case that energetic government is essential to prosperity, … [Read more...] about Barack Obama: Paradoxical Whig
Public Services: Does the Private or Public Sector Do a Better Job?
EDITOR'S NOTE: Due to a technical glitch this was up on TMV with the wrong byline for a few minutes. There are some sporadic technical issues now occurring. We regret the error. Last Sunday I wrote a column from Pro Publica investigative writers that JP Morgan was earning millions of dollars processing food stamps for about half the nation's states which outsourced the … [Read more...] about Public Services: Does the Private or Public Sector Do a Better Job?
“We Do Big Things”
As Barack Obama used the phrase last night, it was no boast. It was a a simple statement of fact. From Abraham Lincoln`s establishment of the land grant colleges, to Franklin Roosevelt`s electrification of America through projects like of the TVA, to Dwight Eisenhower`s construction of the Interstate Highway System, to John Kennedy`s commitment to land on the moon -- what Obama … [Read more...] about “We Do Big Things”
Our Social Security System—Time for ‘Adjustments’
A letter to the editor in my hometown newspaper yesterday morning caught my attention. The letter: Time for updating In 1870, Otto Von Bismarck, chancellor of Germany, in a shrewd political move, decried that every German citizen age 65 or older would receive a lifelong pension. Longevity then was about age 55. Thus we have the origins of our eligibility for Social … [Read more...] about Our Social Security System—Time for ‘Adjustments’
Polling on Reaction to Obama’s State of the Union Speech: A “Landslide” of Positive Polling
Polling has been coming in on reaction to Obama's speech and David Meadvin, former chief speechwriter for the U.S. Attorney General and U.S. Senate Majority Leader writes in a Guest Post on Political Wire that it's a landslide: The early returns are in, and it's a landslide. Snap polls (surveys with a small sample size taken immediately after a speech or event) almost … [Read more...] about Polling on Reaction to Obama’s State of the Union Speech: A “Landslide” of Positive Polling