In 18 months, President Obama has captained three major pieces of legislation with an economic stimulus package, healthcare reform and overhaul of financial institution regulations. Yet, his popularity is heading south and if it were not for 90% of his black constituents could reach depths not seen since George W. Bush and Jimmy Carter. Here’s my assessment. Jobs. … [Read more...] about Looking Through The Obama Glass Darkly
Selig Cartwright Achieves Job Security; Mr. B. Suffers Hamptons Angst (A new Goldman Sachs washroom attendant adventure)
Mr. B. You look concerned. Is it that fine Goldman just got hit with? Fine, Selig? What fine? I just heard Goldman has to pay $550 million to settle a fraud case with the SEC. For putting investors into a deal where they were almost certain to lose money. Oh that. Just the cost of doing business, Selig. We made $13 billion last year. But the value of the company, … [Read more...] about Selig Cartwright Achieves Job Security; Mr. B. Suffers Hamptons Angst (A new Goldman Sachs washroom attendant adventure)
Did Gibson’s Girlfriend Demand $10 Million From Him Or Tapes Release?
Now the word "extortion" is coming into play in the furor surrounding tapes surrounding Mel Gibson. CBS News reports: Celebrity website TMZ says sources linked to Mel Gibson tell it they have "hard evidence" that the actor's ex-girlfriend, Oksana Grigorieva, tried to extort Gibson by demanding more than $10 million to keep tapes she had of him secret. Gossip website … [Read more...] about Did Gibson’s Girlfriend Demand $10 Million From Him Or Tapes Release?
Obama Shrinks
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reseserved. … [Read more...] about Obama Shrinks
The Financial Reform Bill Battle Ends: The Financial Reform Bill Battle Begins
Yesterday was an exceptionally good day for the White House: BP announced that (for now at least) the oil vomiting in to the Gulf of Mexico had halted and financial reform passed. But was this a turning point on two fronts and a positive turn for the Obama administration -- or just a lull? In the case of BP, it has yet to be determined if the cap will be a harbinger of a … [Read more...] about The Financial Reform Bill Battle Ends: The Financial Reform Bill Battle Begins
War is No Solution in Korea or Anywhere Else: Global Times, People’s Republic of China
In this sober expression of national power from the state-run Global Times, author Dai Xu defends China's role in opposing the United States and its allies in the Korean War, and castigates the 'selfish' who fail to 'account for the interests of all parties.' He writes that the Korean War was a great victory over America, the humiliations and hardships of China's modern … [Read more...] about War is No Solution in Korea or Anywhere Else: Global Times, People’s Republic of China
Mark Williams and the NAACP
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People was founded in 1909 by, among several others, Ida Wells-Barnett and W.E.B. DuBois. … [Read more...] about Mark Williams and the NAACP
This Is Schizophrenic Thinking
I've talked about it before. Here is a classic example: … [Read more...] about This Is Schizophrenic Thinking
Tanning Tax
Weep o' ye melanin-challenged. The tax man cometh for thee. … [Read more...] about Tanning Tax
Book Review – World Made By Hand
Tainter makes this observation; substantial increased costs occurred late, shortly before collapse and were incurred by a population already weakened by a pattern of declining marginal returns. It was not a challenge that caused the collapse but a system that had been unproductively complex was unable to respond. Tainter says that the only solution for over complexity is … [Read more...] about Book Review – World Made By Hand
Democrats Break GOP Filibuster on Financial Reform
Not as strong as it could have been and should have been because of Republican obstructionism, the still historic legislation is now on its way to the White House, where Pres. Obama will sign it in a special ceremony next week. … [Read more...] about Democrats Break GOP Filibuster on Financial Reform
Iran and Israel: ‘Two Sides of the Same Coin’ – Al Seyassah, Kuwait
If forced to choose between Israel and Iran, which side would Arabs in the Arabian Gulf be on? This article from Kuwait's Al Seyassah makes it hard to guess. Al-Sayasseh editor and chief Ahmad Abdal Aziz Al Jarallah accuses the Iranian regime of following the policies of the former Shah to economically and culturally take over Arab lands, starting with calling the 'Arabian … [Read more...] about Iran and Israel: ‘Two Sides of the Same Coin’ – Al Seyassah, Kuwait
Laura Ingraham: Life Imitating Satire
A few days ago, I wrote a piece of satire describing what I believed would be the conservative reaction to the First Lady’s latest initiative to assist parents in improving their kids’ health by doing something about one of our nation’s biggest challenges to their health: child obesity. Michelle Obama published a letter to announce her most recent effort. This is some of … [Read more...] about Laura Ingraham: Life Imitating Satire
Pressure Tests On BP Well Will Tell All
I have been waiting patiently as most of the civilized world that ought to give a damn should on whether this latest attempt to cap the BP oil blowout is successful. What is critical is not that the cap has plugged the gusher 5,000 feet under the Gulf of Mexico. But the pressure tests as to the well’s integrity 8,000 feet below close to the reservoir holding billions of … [Read more...] about Pressure Tests On BP Well Will Tell All
Another Intelligence-Security Defeat for U.S.-Saudi Alliance: Kayhan, Islamic Republic of Iran
The saga of the disappearance of Iranian nuclear researcher Shahram Amiri appears to have ended, with his arrival in Iran to a hero's welcome. But reading between the lines of this news item from Iran's state-run Kayhan newspaper, which calls this a ' fascinating but inevitably obscure story,' it appears that the Tehran regime would rather not address open questions on whether … [Read more...] about Another Intelligence-Security Defeat for U.S.-Saudi Alliance: Kayhan, Islamic Republic of Iran
Bridal Registry for Bristol
Now that America's Sweethearts are reunited and planning to wed, they will need household gifts beyond the usual place settings and silver. Herewith a few gift suggestions for well-wishers: *Caller ID to block incoming messages from anyone named Palin or Johnston. *His and her DVDs of the 2005 Jane Fonda movie, "Monster-in-Law." *Subscriptions to Time and Newsweek to … [Read more...] about Bridal Registry for Bristol
On Libya and Expediency
Congress is in a tizzy because BP lobbied for the release of "the only person ever convicted for the 1988 Lockerbie airliner bombing over Scotland, which killed 270 people, most of them Americans." The released prisoner, Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, was a Libyan intelligence agent who doctors said had only a few months to live due to advanced prostate cancer. However, it's … [Read more...] about On Libya and Expediency
Does Objecting to Apparent Unequal Application of Voting Rights Laws Mean You’re a Racist?
The recent brouhaha over the New Black Panther party getting away with what appeared to be a clear violation of the voting rights act when they stood outside of a Philadelphia polling place with the expressed and admitted purpose of intimidating voters has brought the race card into play from both sides. There are some on the right who point to the fact that the DoJ dropped … [Read more...] about Does Objecting to Apparent Unequal Application of Voting Rights Laws Mean You’re a Racist?
TPE’s Mark Williams: Still Digging
At least one commenter on yesterday's post mounted a defense (or semi-defense) of a point made by Mark Williams of the Tea Party Express, among others. The defended point was essentially this: It's wrong for the NAACP to be flinging charges of racism against individuals within the Tea Party when the NAACP is, itself, racist. I'm curious: Do yesterday's defenders of that … [Read more...] about TPE’s Mark Williams: Still Digging
Puff Goes The Magic Flat Tax Dragon Dream
Someone of greater stature and fortune than myself once wrote that the only thing you can count on is death and taxes. Two scribes, Dave Carpenter and Stephen Ohlemacher, were chastised for writing in the Huffington Post how the estimated $1.1 billion fortune of George Steinbrenner might escape inheritance tax to his heirs because of the timing of his death Tuesday. My … [Read more...] about Puff Goes The Magic Flat Tax Dragon Dream