Democratic Rep. Eric Massa has suddenly become a conservative hero now that he charges that the White House and Democrats in effect indulged in a conspiracy to force him to resign on what he suggests are trumped up charges -- and that it was all done to get rid of him so that health care reform could pass. But now some conservatives are saying: "Not so fast." That may not … [Read more...] about Eric Massa Conservative Hero? Some Conservatives Say “Not So Fast”
Living With Cancer (Guest Voice)
Living with Cancer by Martha Randolph Carr I am a second stage, Clark Level IV, and an in situ first stage, survivor of melanoma and I’m living with cancer. I want to get that out right up front because the idea of living with cancer doesn’t regularly make the news, especially when talking about melanoma. Melanoma is the fastest growing cancer in America and is second … [Read more...] about Living With Cancer (Guest Voice)
Uncle Sam Will Take Care of Us
In light of some recent discussions here at TMV about various entitlement programs -- particularly Social Security -- CNN Money has a timely article out: The percentage of workers who said they have less than $10,000 in savings grew to 43% in 2010 from 39% in 2009, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute's annual Retirement Confidence Survey. That excludes the … [Read more...] about Uncle Sam Will Take Care of Us
A Different Path to AI
Google has extended the same "statistical machine learning" it so successfully uses for spelling -- the did you mean... functionality -- to language translation. With that comes a different path to AI: Creating a translation machine has long been seen as one of the toughest challenges in artificial intelligence. For decades, computer scientists tried using a rules-based … [Read more...] about A Different Path to AI
Supreme Court Takes Up Funeral Protest Case
The US Supreme Court will hear an appeal involving Fred Phelps and his disgusting Westboro Baptist Church. For those not familiar with Mr. Phelps he and his church are vehemently anti gay and among other things they regularly picket the funerals of dead soldiers. At the funerals they hold up signs celebrating the deaths as divine justice for the US 'tolerating' gays (which … [Read more...] about Supreme Court Takes Up Funeral Protest Case
Money Changes Everything
Specifically, the money gap between the richest and poorest in society -- income inequality, in other words. And according to a new book called The Spirit Level, income inequality is a leading explanation for why the United States ranks at or near the bottom on a number of social indicators, compared with other developed nations in the world. … [Read more...] about Money Changes Everything
News Roundup From My Twitter Feed
The city of Miami wants to cut down on litter by making it illegal to give food to homeless people: … [Read more...] about News Roundup From My Twitter Feed
Some Avatar Fans Think James Cameron Was Robbed
Some Avatar fans are furious that their favorite movie didn't win the Oscar. We have the reaction of one fan, but due to his language we will not post the actual video on TMV. Click HERE and you can watch it. … [Read more...] about Some Avatar Fans Think James Cameron Was Robbed
The Postal Service
Nate Beeler, The Washington Examiner This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to appear on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved. … [Read more...] about The Postal Service
For Once, NATO Forces Fight for Russians, Too: Argumenty i Facty, Russia
Is Russia now fully on the side of the NATO allies in Afghanistan? This article from Russia's Argumenty i Facty argues that while Moscow still relishes seeing the alliance suffer, the battle for Afghanistan shouldn't be one of those times. For Argumenty i Facty, columnist Mikhail Melnikov writes in part: Exactly 21 years ago, after being there more than 10 years, … [Read more...] about For Once, NATO Forces Fight for Russians, Too: Argumenty i Facty, Russia
More Republicans Break With Liz Cheney Over “Al Qaeda 7” Ad Campaign
More Republicans have broken with Vice President Dick Cheney's daughter Liz Cheney, who is proving to be a polarizer in her own right. In, fact, she's proving so effective at polarizing that she is polarizing her own party. But they all must be RINOS: A group that includes leading conservative lawyers and policy experts, former Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr and … [Read more...] about More Republicans Break With Liz Cheney Over “Al Qaeda 7” Ad Campaign
Tea Party, Hollywood Style
James Cameron was not king of the world this time as his former wife took custody of all the Oscars for an explosive low-budget howl of pain in this time of American rage. Symbolically, millions of metropolitan New Yorkers were blinded to it all by a clash between two Goliaths of greed, ABC and Cablevision, acting out for the night in their living rooms what Wall Street has … [Read more...] about Tea Party, Hollywood Style
You Too Can Conquer What Has Killed So Many Engineers
If you have found yourself thinking, "My day has been nice thus far, but has been missing an excellent explanation of the foundations of imaginary number theory" then have I got something for you! This link. Also it has a fractal and those are always fun. … [Read more...] about You Too Can Conquer What Has Killed So Many Engineers
America Cannot Maintain its Contradictions Toward China: Global Times, China
Are we nearing the moment when the president of the United States will no longer take the risk of speaking openly about defending democracy in Taiwan, human rights in China, the Dalai Lama and Tibet, or the exchange rate of the yuan? According to Wang Wen, the international forum editor of China's state-run Global Times, the 'contradiction' of an America that needs China's … [Read more...] about America Cannot Maintain its Contradictions Toward China: Global Times, China
“They Saved the Big Banks But Kind Of Lost The Economy Doing It”
Please read the latest piece from Simon Johnson. He sounded so optimistic a few months ago, but has since become resigned. … [Read more...] about “They Saved the Big Banks But Kind Of Lost The Economy Doing It”
Census Wasting Money
So today I got a letter in the mail marked US Census. I assumed it was the form for me to fill out and send back in. Nope.. it was a letter telling me that in a week I will get another letter containing the form for me to fill out. Presumably I will get a 3rd letter telling me I got a form to fill out. And they are doing this something like 75-100 million times...... … [Read more...] about Census Wasting Money
Political Decisions: Afghanistan and Iraq.
On February 20, 2010 the Dutch coalition government collapsed over disagreements within the government on extending the Dutch military presence in Afghanistan beyond December 1, 2010. Nearly 2000 Dutch troops will be coming home by the December date. It was a political decision. On March 18, 2003, the Bush administration began the invasion of Iraq. Well over one million of … [Read more...] about Political Decisions: Afghanistan and Iraq.
The “Catastrophic” Hyperbole of Lindsey Graham
Appearing on CBS's Face the Nation yesterday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said -- I kid you not -- that using reconciliation for health-care reform would be "catastrophic." Remember when 9/11 supposedly marked the death of irony, when words like "war" and "courage" took on new meaning? In what world should the word catastrophic be thrown around this recklessly? How exactly … [Read more...] about The “Catastrophic” Hyperbole of Lindsey Graham
Ouch! A Pulitzer For The National Enquirer
Call me a snob, an elitist, a purist, a fossil. Under no circumstances would I consider the National Enquirer a candidate for journalism's most prestigious award, the Pulitzer Prize. Hold on, Jer. The New York Times, one of the top five newspaper you respect, argues the supermarket gossip tabloid may be worthy for its series of stories that knocked John Edwards out of the … [Read more...] about Ouch! A Pulitzer For The National Enquirer
Cleaning Up the Supreme Court’s Mess (Guest Voice)
WASHINGTON -- In a city where the phrase “bipartisan initiative” is becoming an oxymoron, the urgency of containing the damage the Supreme Court could do to our electoral system creates an opportunity for a rare convergence of interest and principle. At issue is the court’s astonishingly naive decision in January that allows unlimited corporate spending to influence … [Read more...] about Cleaning Up the Supreme Court’s Mess (Guest Voice)