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The Moderate Voice

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The Medal of Honor: A Medal Too Far?

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Almost five years into the Afghanistan war and three years into the Iraq war, something started to nag at me, something just didn’t seem right. In spite of the high number of casualties (killed in action and seriously maimed and wounded); in spite of the heroic deeds we knew our brave troops were accomplishing; and in spite of the importance of those wars to the security of … [Read more...] about The Medal of Honor: A Medal Too Far?

How It Goes Down

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Anyone with an active interest in economics, or with the kind of bank account and job that causes them to read the Wall Street Journal should by now have a very good sense of what is coming down the pipe in the USA. Most of the rest of the world – especially the Chinese – seem to have a very good sense of it. While it is true that the USA is full of ingenious and … [Read more...] about How It Goes Down

Fixing Health Care in a Week

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Yesterday, I wrote about the hypocrisy of Republicans and conservative Democrats who have been telling us that it's "too expensive" to extend to all Americans the generous single-payer health insurance coverage that they and their families, as federal employees, enjoy at Americans' expense. Today, Los Angeles Times reporters Mark Z. Barabak and Faye Fiore have a lengthy, … [Read more...] about Fixing Health Care in a Week

The Art Of Stealing The Other Guy’s Property

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I would suggest must reading of Ian Shapira's story in today's Washington Post for those of us who use the Internet to write articles and opinion pieces plundered from reliable properties such as WaPo, the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Economist and others of that ilk. Shapira said his ego was stoked when the snarky cultural website Gawker cherry picked the best … [Read more...] about The Art Of Stealing The Other Guy’s Property

Reconciliation and Health Care Reform

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Carl Hulse has a piece in today's New York Times about House Democrats' tentative plans -- which Hulse (rather bizarrely) says are being kept very close to the vest -- to pass health care reform legislation via reconciliation. The major obstacle to doing so, however, is something called the "Byrd Rule," which limits the use of reconciliation to bills intended to fund existing … [Read more...] about Reconciliation and Health Care Reform

Update on Bloodbath in Tel Aviv

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I want to see all rabbis, priests, ministers, imams, and other spiritual leaders publicly denounce this murderous attack on a group of gay teenagers and their friends. No matter what you think of homosexuality, we can all agree that shooting children is a grossly inappropriate way of expressing one's opinion. If the shooter is a Jew (not yet determined), he did not get the … [Read more...] about Update on Bloodbath in Tel Aviv

Silly Season Thrillers

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August arrives with a dandy metaphor about the difference between the old journalism and the new--the New York Times' record-setting number of errors in reporting Walter Cronkite's death juxtaposed against a blog frenzy over the news of a Sarah-Todd Palin divorce. Even for this traditional month of fake and flaky news, it's an impressive start. The Times Public Editor tells … [Read more...] about Silly Season Thrillers

Pay-to-Play Is Washington’s Sport of Kings (Guest Voice)

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Pay-to-Play Is Washington's Sport of Kings by Michael Winship As we marvel over the depths of hypocrisy and greed currently plumbed in the health care reform debate, it may help to remember that even Honest Abe Lincoln had his share of tainted colleagues, one of the most notorious of whom was his first Secretary of War, Simon Cameron. According to Doris Kearns Goodwin's … [Read more...] about Pay-to-Play Is Washington’s Sport of Kings (Guest Voice)

Speaking of non-controversial people …

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As noted below, the WaPo described President Obama's candidates for the Presidential Medal of Freedom as not "particularly controversial". Aside from the points MK raised about Ted Kennedy, it's worth noting that Desmond Tutu isn't exactly a stranger to controversy either. Wikipedia reports that Tutu has persistently compared Israel to apartheid South Africa, called on Jews … [Read more...] about Speaking of non-controversial people …

Can a scandal last for forty years? Should it?

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On Thursday, President Obama announced that he would award the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, to sixteen individuals, including Sen. Ted Kennedy. Mary Katherine is not amused. She asks how many individuals considered complicit in vehicular manslaughter could be given such an honor. Would a conservative (or any non-Kennedy) rise to the … [Read more...] about Can a scandal last for forty years? Should it?

Congress Faces Summer School Final Exams

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It's test time for the Legislative branch of our government. As the Associated Press correctly points out, House members and Senators are now heading home where they will face questions, criticism and scrutiny from their many employers (i.e. the voters) who will decide in the months and years to come whether or not they will keep their jobs. The problem they face in this … [Read more...] about Congress Faces Summer School Final Exams

Palin: Anatomy of the divorce rumor

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The Orlando Sentinel reports on an Alaska blog's claim that Sarah Palin is getting a divorce: The No. 1 search term in Google right now is “sarah palin divorce.” The reason? A couple of bloggers in Alaska posted stories this morning claiming to have inside information that former Gov. Sarah Palin is divorcing her husband, Todd. The bloggers went on to claim that Sarah Palin … [Read more...] about Palin: Anatomy of the divorce rumor