The knives are coming out in both the Democratic and Republican parties as both parties gear up for 2012 and wings of the each party feel the other wing is dragging them down. The latest twist is a New York Daily News piece that says former President George W. Bush feels that former Alakas Gov. Sarah Palin is not qualified to be President, John McCain was wrong picking her - … [Read more...] about George W. Bush: Palin Not Qualified to be President and McCain Wrong In Picking Her
As the Dust Settles, not too Early to Start Honoring our Veterans
As the dust begins to settle after Tuesday’s F5 tornado (An F6 tornado is possible but no one has ever observed one. Perhaps we’ll see one in 2012, from the other direction), dust chasers---Thank you, Doug---are beginning to set their sights on the future. In the very near future, Thursday, November 11, we will be celebrating Veterans Day. Veterans Day is a day to … [Read more...] about As the Dust Settles, not too Early to Start Honoring our Veterans
Barack Obama Visit: Is Mumbai In US Officials’ Control?
Remember there was a storm in India when the former President of India, Abdul Kalam, was body searched while boarding an American airline? Now the security-obsessed US officials have again kicked up a storm by asking the Chief Minister and other senior officials of the state of Maharashtra (whose capital city is Mumbai) to present their identity cards before attending any … [Read more...] about Barack Obama Visit: Is Mumbai In US Officials’ Control?
Electeds’ Freshman Orientation: More Like A Hangover Than a Party
You don't have to be a professional number cruncher to know that with so many seats in Congress swapping parties, it also means that we've swapped people who have been there and done that (aka incumbents) for people who've either never been there and done that, or have only been there and done that in local settings under local or state procedures. In other words, freshman … [Read more...] about Electeds’ Freshman Orientation: More Like A Hangover Than a Party
What I’m Reading Now
I am reading Matthew Alexander's (pseudonym) account of his work on the interrogation team that got the intelligence that was used to take out Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, then the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq. He and his team got the intelligence the old-fashioned way: by establishing trust and rapport with the detainees they questioned, not by terrorizing and torturing them. The book … [Read more...] about What I’m Reading Now
John Gavin, a key leader of the lunar module program for the Apollo missions, dies
Although it appears he had a full, long life, it is still sad when one of the people who helped us land on the moon passes. John G. Gavin Jr., who rode herd over the immensely complex design, construction and testing of the first vehicle to visit the moon— a task that included anticipating 400 different landing surfaces, from ice to boulders to dust to potholes — died on … [Read more...] about John Gavin, a key leader of the lunar module program for the Apollo missions, dies
Good News From the Left Coast
Patty Murray's Republican opponent, Dino Rossi, has conceded. She has succeeded in her bid for reelection to the U.S. Senate. … [Read more...] about Good News From the Left Coast
A Dire Midterm Result for the U.S. and the World: La Jornada, Mexico
Continuing with our global roundup of reaction to the U.S. midterm elections, this editorial from Mexico's La Jornada expresses grave concern about the consequences of resurgent U.S. conservatism. Yesterday's La Jornada editorial says in part: What happened yesterday in the United States is the triumphal return of political and social conservatism, vanquished in 2008 in … [Read more...] about A Dire Midterm Result for the U.S. and the World: La Jornada, Mexico
Michelle Bachmann Is An Idiot (And The Sky Is Blue)
Now she's claiming the Obama overseas trip will cost 200 million a day Just for reference the the war in Afghanistan is costing roughly 190 million a day. So she's claiming the trip will cost more than all the troops in Afghanistan. Idiotic. … [Read more...] about Michelle Bachmann Is An Idiot (And The Sky Is Blue)
Is Barack Obama in Denial?
After President Barack Obama's press conference some pundits wondered: is Obama in denial about what happened on election day? Here a good roundup on that issue. … [Read more...] about Is Barack Obama in Denial?
Charting the Tortured Path of the Tea Party: Le Monde, France
As we have amply demonstrated, the French have a particular disdain for the Tea Party. Along the lines of that short tradition, this article from Le Monde by Jean-Christian Rostagn takes a crack at explaining the 'Tea Baggers' to French readers. According to Rostagn, the Tea Party's obsession with the deficit is 'only because it's a convenient vehicle for expressing resentment … [Read more...] about Charting the Tortured Path of the Tea Party: Le Monde, France
When the dust settles
When the dust settles, what have we learned? Much of our news reporting is dust chasing. We look for the scuffle, report the melee, and move on to the next conflict. Humans kick up enough dust to foster this cycle in perpetuity. Unfortunately, in our endless pursuit of today’s dust storm, we sometimes forget to pause and reflect upon the deeper implications of yesterday’s … [Read more...] about When the dust settles
The Mainstream Media is a Myth
The Mainstream Media is a Myth by Tina Dupuy The mainstream media gets denounced on cable news programs, corporate talk radio, best-selling books and behemoth blogs every day. This strangely doesn't seem to bother the mainstream media as it heroically absorbs all the jabs thrown at it from, well, itself. It's stoically unfazed. Admirable in its immunity. Yes, this code … [Read more...] about The Mainstream Media is a Myth
Boehner Blows Smoke
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved. … [Read more...] about Boehner Blows Smoke
LIFE GOES ON
The national, statewide and local results of the November 2nd Midterm elections were hardly unexpected. The winners will accomplish nothing with respect to altering the real direction of the country which is a seriously ailing and quickly declining hyper-empire. The electorate was never provided any meaningful choice but instead had to pick between the two defunct and … [Read more...] about LIFE GOES ON
Panicked Fed Bombs Again
There is no recovery underway except in the minds of a few myopic economists and a Geithner-ridden Obama Administration. Though it desperately wished to avoid doing so, the Federal Reserve has been forced to twig to this reality. It has tried all the old style ways of getting the economy back on its feet, most notably lowering the fed funds rate to virtually zero, all to no … [Read more...] about Panicked Fed Bombs Again
Blaming China Led Obama to Midterm Election Defeat: Wen Wei Po, Hong Kong
Can the results of the U.S. midterm elections be credibly traced to the Obama Administration's policy of blaming the yuan's peg to the dollar for America's fiscal woes? According to this editorial from Hong Kong's Beijing-friendly Wen Wei Po, if President Obama had focused his attention on improving the competitiveness of U.S. companies and removing trade barriers with China … [Read more...] about Blaming China Led Obama to Midterm Election Defeat: Wen Wei Po, Hong Kong
Couple Gives Away Lottery Win
Given how amazingly generous and kind this story is, let's see if we can enjoy it without someone raising a partisan issue. Nice break from the election nonsense. … [Read more...] about Couple Gives Away Lottery Win
Can America Be Governed?
Another election has resulted in the ousting of the party in power. That’s three elections in succession. It’s likely that 2012 could see the pattern repeated if Republicans can complete the sweep, as the Democrats did in ’08, by retaking the remaining chamber of congress and the White House. Is America really that divided? The answer is both yes and no. Certainly it is … [Read more...] about Can America Be Governed?
Pelosi Should Stay in House Leadership
I'm very pleased to read that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is not done fighting. I also don't want her to be done leading - for the sake of all women who look to see where they can go. This country, in fact, not just women, need the visible presence of a woman at the uppermost positions of power in Congress now more than ever. If she listened to her own words here, I … [Read more...] about Pelosi Should Stay in House Leadership