Jack Bauer Is Not Dead by Rick Moran Greg Gutfeld wonders (parenthetically) if Jack Bauer is dead because the Obama Administration released the memos concocted by Bush era lawyers to justify the use of torture. Earlier today President Obama said charges might be brought against those evil Bush lawyers behind the just-released memos justifying the harsh … [Read more...] about Jack Bauer Is Not Dead (Guest Voice)
Hayden on waterboarding
Gen. Michael Hayden, former director of the CIA, walked a fine line this past Sunday on the question of whether waterboarding is torture. His message seemed to be, "I know it's wrong. I'm proud I stopped it. It may be torture. But in this charged partisan environment, I'm not going to say that explicitly." Check it out: WALLACE: One of the concerns about the memos is … [Read more...] about Hayden on waterboarding
The Bill Collector Blues
Pity the poor bill collector He loved to call and snarl and hector To pester 'bout an unpaid debt 'Bout payments that you haven't met. Pity the poor bill collector He loved to diddle and dissect ya Get you feeling beat and small Just to get you in his thrall. Pity the poor bill collector The long-time ego vivisector Alas these days to get his slice The poor man finds he must … [Read more...] about The Bill Collector Blues
Torture: Did releasing the memos hurt our national security?
Gen. Michael Hayden, former director of the CIA, says 'yes'. I think his argument is on very weak ground. Here's Hayden on Fox this past Sunday: [CHRIS] WALLACE: And you [told the White House] this would be a grave threat to national security to... HAYDEN: I probably didn't use those words, but I marshaled the arguments as to why I thought it would make America less … [Read more...] about Torture: Did releasing the memos hurt our national security?
Did Torture Stop Another 911?
Some thoughts here. … [Read more...] about Did Torture Stop Another 911?
AP And Pew Polls: Obama Popularity High And Country Headed In Right Direction
As President Barack Obama inches towards his "first hundred days" mark, two new polls from the AP and Pew Research Center suggest he's is scoring points and reassuring the coalition that elected him, not making significant inroads among Republicans and social conservatives who opposed him -- and has reversed a years long feeling among Americans that country is headed in the … [Read more...] about AP And Pew Polls: Obama Popularity High And Country Headed In Right Direction
Economic Crisis: Springtime for Hitler?
Mel Brooks' musical "The Producers" will be performed in Berlin in May, writes Der Spiegel (in English). It's not that much of a controversy. Just the usual "Should one be allowed to laugh about Hitler?" newspaper articles. A bit more shocking is the comment by the heads of the Federation of German Trade Unions Michael Sommer, who suggested that Nazis might rise outside the … [Read more...] about Economic Crisis: Springtime for Hitler?
Accusations of Bias for Pirate Bay Judge
Gizmodo: Tomas Norström, the judge who sentenced the Pirate Bay Four, was recently found to have been a member of two copyright advocacy organizations, prompting rumblings about a mistrial. Some Swedish attorneys believe that Norström's membership of the Swedish Copyright Association and the Swedish Association for the Protection of Industrial Property (where he is a board … [Read more...] about Accusations of Bias for Pirate Bay Judge
The Lessons of Sri Lanka
Guest post by Peter S. Henne Peter S. Henne is a Security Fellow with the Truman National Security Project and a doctoral candidate at Georgetown University. On picturesque Sri Lanka, a brutal conflict has been raging for nearly three decades between the majority-Sinhalese government and the militant Tamil opposition group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The … [Read more...] about The Lessons of Sri Lanka
On Torture
I don't have a whole lot to add to the discussion of the torture memos that doesn't echo what has already been said. Of the two debates currently taking place about the implications of the memos—one about whether preventing another terrorist attack justifies torture and another about whether or not to bring those responsible to justice—I am only really interested in … [Read more...] about On Torture
Insurance Is The Problem (Guest Voice)
Insurance Is The Problem by Jim Bell Many of us have this dream that we could have less government in our lives and a better quality of life at the same time. Seems silly doesn’t it? When you look at it objectively, we give the government a lot of money with our taxes. The only thing we need in life from government is a good, safe life and the ability to exercise our … [Read more...] about Insurance Is The Problem (Guest Voice)
Buying American
This morning, on Mid Stream Radio, Cindy and I will be talking to Roger Simmermaker, the author of How Americans Can Buy American: The Power of Consumer Patriotism. We'll talk about the difficulties Americans face in finding "Made in the USA" type products on the shelves and the impact of government policy on prices, product quality, wages and unions. Tune in at the link above … [Read more...] about Buying American
Credit Card Control
I have been more than a little irked to hear pundits & pols proclaim their concern for the indebtedness of future generations when they're happy as clams to let students go deep into publicly subsidized student loan debt and sit by silently as nothing is done to shore up the broken public education system. Especially so given that those same pundits & pols were … [Read more...] about Credit Card Control
Washington & U.S. Enter Uncharted Territory As The Torture Dam Breaks
"WE DO NOT TORTURE TERROR SUSPECTS." -- President George Walker Bush (November 7, 2005) By SHAUN MULLEN GUEST VOICE With a mighty crack and roar, the torture dam finally has broken. After being little more than background noise for years, the grotesqueries of the Bush torture regime have gone prime time as the discussion suddenly has morphed from whether government … [Read more...] about Washington & U.S. Enter Uncharted Territory As The Torture Dam Breaks
Terror Memo
Mike Keefe, The Denver Post This cartoon is copyrighted and licensed to appear on TMV. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Terror Memo
Fox News’ Passionate Shepard Smith Illustrates GOP Split Over Torture
We've noted before here that growing split in the GOP between those who will follow the party's line-of-the-moment and defend the Bush administration versus others making it clear that they want to move forward and re-embrace some once-sacred values sacrificed along the way in a bid to onto power and justify what was done with power when it was held. Nowhere can you see it … [Read more...] about Fox News’ Passionate Shepard Smith Illustrates GOP Split Over Torture
The Greenest Republicans?
On this earth day, it's important to remember that care for the Environment has to be a bipartisan effort. Sadly, the GOP has not always lived up to it's environmental heritage, but there are those who still do. Republicans for Environmental Protection has released it's scorecard of Congress touting "Green Republicans" while slamming the "Brown Republicans." Here is their … [Read more...] about The Greenest Republicans?
“Cheney Could Not Have Been Cheney If Bush Had Not Been Bush”
That is the simple but compelling explanation offered by one of Josh Marshall's readers for the transformation in Dick Cheney's personality that many political observers have noted: … [Read more...] about “Cheney Could Not Have Been Cheney If Bush Had Not Been Bush”
Michael Hayden: Critical Analysis is Dangerous, M’Kay?
On the estimable Fox News this past Sunday, former head of the CIA Michael Hayden has this interesting bit to say about the Obama administration's decision to release the memos outlining interrogation techniques used against enemy combatants and what may or may not constitute torture, which caught my ear: There's another point, too, that I have to make. And it's just not the … [Read more...] about Michael Hayden: Critical Analysis is Dangerous, M’Kay?
Hillary Clinton And Robert Gibbs Blast Back At Cheney’s Anti-Obama Comments
When former Vice President Dick Cheney used the show of his favorite interviewer (Fox News' Shaun Hannity) to blast President Barack Obama for releasing torture memos and say Obama was looking "weak," it was big news and the question became: would the new administration try not to give Cheney more publicity and let it just fade away, or would it answer back but not with both … [Read more...] about Hillary Clinton And Robert Gibbs Blast Back At Cheney’s Anti-Obama Comments