How does one make the USA, or the world, more secure? History tells us that ultimately a nation has to fall back upon the tried and tested “civilian instruments” such as diplomacy and foreign aid. The world has seen the dangers inherent in “creeping militarisation” of US foreign policy. Lexington, in his column in The Economist, states: "Mrs (Hillary) Clinton’s success has … [Read more...] about Hillary Clinton: ‘The Superstar Of Obama Cabinet’
Must-View Video: The Opposition’s Ask
If this has already been posted here and I missed it, or if you've seen it elsewhere, my apologies for the duplication. But it's entirely worth watching again. Nico provides important context, at the "12:28 AM ET" mark of his liveblog today. (Incidentally, I think that should be "12:28 PM," given the time markers on the entries just before and after it.) Note: This … [Read more...] about Must-View Video: The Opposition’s Ask
Nationalized Health Care The Tax Shuffle (Guest Voice)
Nationalized Health Care: The Tax Shuffle by Michael Reagan Last week I wrote about the serious risks which older Americans and those seriously or terminally ill face in the so-called “efficiencies” which President Obama and congressional Democrats say will fund a large part of their health care plans. These “efficiencies” can only refer to reallocating doctors, hospital … [Read more...] about Nationalized Health Care The Tax Shuffle (Guest Voice)
Watch Your Step, Ladies
Memo to anyone traveling to the White House: Watch Your Step! Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton fell and injured her elbow this morning while walking to the White House. Her aids said she will undergo surgery soon. Several weeks ago Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor slipped and cracked an ankle at a Boston airport en route to visit the White House and … [Read more...] about Watch Your Step, Ladies
What Do We Really Know About Iran’s Election?
I feel like I'm living on the cusp of the world Orson Scott Card created with Ender's Game, a world where anonymous internet posters Locke and Demosthenes shaped global public opinion. Today, public opinion is increasingly shaped by discourse on the Internet, although we don't have two clear antagonists in the online public sphere. Case in point: Iran and Twitter. But what, … [Read more...] about What Do We Really Know About Iran’s Election?
America Standing With The Iranian People: How And Why?
If there is a consensus on events in Iran -- even as (sigh) traditional partisanship starts to surface on talk radio and elsewhere, where events in Iran and responses to it take back seat to trying to score political points -- it is this: the America must stand with the people in Iran who believe the vote there was either totally rigged or..embellished. Now the questions … [Read more...] about America Standing With The Iranian People: How And Why?
The “Breathtaking Hypocrisy” of John Ensign
What can one say about adulterer John Ensign, Republican senator from Nevada? Like my friend Steve Benen, and so many other liberal-minded adults, I really don't care what Ensign does with his personal life, as long as it doesn't involve animals or children -- or, rather, I do care, insofar as people may have been hurt by his actions, but whatever he did really isn't my, or … [Read more...] about The “Breathtaking Hypocrisy” of John Ensign
The Sotomayor Debate Rages On
Even in San Diego. … [Read more...] about The Sotomayor Debate Rages On
Twitter Revolution Buzz Pushback
Jack Shafer at Slate is doubting Twitter: Unlike several other technology-friendly journalists, I've found it more noise than signal in understanding the Iranian upheaval. I'm not saying that there is no signal to be found; I'm just saying that my cognitive colander isn't big enough to strain out Iran information I can rely on.... I appreciate, as Atlantic Senior Editor Andrew … [Read more...] about Twitter Revolution Buzz Pushback
It’s About Credibility
This meme surfaced in the comments thread of my primary post yesterday. That meme hinges on this news, per the WSJ: The Iranian government ... accused the U.S. for the first time of interfering in the postelection dispute. Iran protested to the Swiss ambassador, who represents U.S. affairs in Iran because the two nations have no diplomatic ties. White House spokesman … [Read more...] about It’s About Credibility
Iran, You Will Make Progress For You Stand on the Shoulders of Burma, Tienamen, Budapest 1956
You likely read the extensive coverage here at TMV of Burma's monks and nuns rising up against Senior General in Charge Of Everything, Mr. Than Shwe, the butcher of Burmese tribal people, the over-fed scourge of the poor of Burma. You may have seen the photos I put up from one of my frightened correspondants in Yangoon, photos of innocent elderly monks with their heads … [Read more...] about Iran, You Will Make Progress For You Stand on the Shoulders of Burma, Tienamen, Budapest 1956
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Elected, or Self-Selected?
We carry a joke of sad irony in our family ...about elections that took place in the Soviet states during the time of Communism. My father's large family who farmed in a remote part of Hungary, was over-run by propagandists who claimed Hungary had totally free elections, but in fact, everyone in the little village of 46 families, knew the higher ups bullied, deceived, thieved … [Read more...] about Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Elected, or Self-Selected?
PLAYTIME IS OVER – NOW LET’S REALLY GET DIRTY
President Obama should study the tough political wheeler-dealers, horse-traders, and consummate arm-twisters that preceding him in office: Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ), and Ronald Wilson Reagan (RWR). They may have been all smiles for public consumption but they were top politicians behind closed doors who left policies and legacies that … [Read more...] about PLAYTIME IS OVER – NOW LET’S REALLY GET DIRTY
Obama’s Remarks on Gay Rights
The White House: REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT AT THE SIGNING OF A PRESIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM REGARDING FEDERAL BENEFITS AND NON-DISCRIMINATION Oval Office 6:04 P.M. EDT THE PRESIDENT: Well, today I'm proud to issue a presidential memorandum that paves the way for long-overdue progress in our nation's pursuit of equality. Many of our government's hard-working, … [Read more...] about Obama’s Remarks on Gay Rights
Public Worried About Deficit
According to a new poll from MSNBC the public is getting increasingly concerned about the amount of debt that is being incurred by the administration. As mentioned in the MSNBC article this may be a sign we are moving past the honeymoon phase to where the public starts to split between how they feel about the person and how they feel about the policies. It's actually pretty … [Read more...] about Public Worried About Deficit
The dynamics of revolution
Lots of commentators have pointed out the relatively conservative aims of the Iranian protesters. The marchers seek only to perfect the Islamic Republic so that it lives up to its ideals. They have only called for new Presidential elections, with hints now and then for the replacement of Supreme Leader Ali Khamanei with a different cleric. The chief players in the movement - … [Read more...] about The dynamics of revolution
The American Tribe – Unite
I wrote yesterday about tribes and how I believe President Obama is getting us back to respect and need of the whole tribe. I got to thinking about the American Tribe, which I tend to do. What makes the American Tribe unique is that we are a tribe composed of people who were kicked out of, or in rare circumstances voluntarily left, virtually every other tribe on earth. The … [Read more...] about The American Tribe – Unite
Why Twitter Works
In Iran, why didn't they just turn Twitter off? From All Things Considered: Jonathan Zittrain, co-founder of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School, says Iran uses a basic filtering architecture that has the average Internet connection piped through a government server farm before it goes anywhere else. But, like resourceful American students in … [Read more...] about Why Twitter Works
Lebanon and Iran: Mr. Obama’s Push of Dialogue and Openness Kicks In – L’Orient Le Jour, Lebanon
To what degree can the recent election result in Lebanon and the current events in Iran be attrutible to President Barack Obama? That question is at the heart of much of the global commentary in regard to the unfolding drama in the streets of Tehran, and as we learn from this article from Lebanon's L'Orient Le Jour, Beirut as well. For L'Orient Le Jour, Issa Goraieb … [Read more...] about Lebanon and Iran: Mr. Obama’s Push of Dialogue and Openness Kicks In – L’Orient Le Jour, Lebanon
TV Blames Victims, Not Perps
I was watching the evening news last night and they had a story about credit cards. It seems a lot of people are no longer able to service them. In response, in hopes of getting at least something back on their bad loans, card issuing banks now often cut deals for a lot less than outstanding balances. This is not a very surprising phenomenon, given the way the economy has … [Read more...] about TV Blames Victims, Not Perps