US presidential candidate Barack Obama returned to the islands of his birth on Friday and began a much-deserved week-long family holiday. His wife, Michelle, said that you 'can’t really understand Barack until you understand Hawaii', reports The Times. His half-sister, Maya, whom he will be seeing in Honolulu this week, calls Hawaii “such a generally sweet place... you can … [Read more...] about Hawaii: A Cure For ‘Obama Fatigue’…?
Election 2008: Summary
We are now through 40 states with 10 more to go. If you haven’t taken a look at the state-by-state summaries, please check the blog for each one. President: So far Senator Obama retains his lead over Senator McCain. The numbers from the first 40 states give him 269 Electoral Votes to 171 for Senator McCain. He is now just 1 state shy of victory. This is a net Democratic … [Read more...] about Election 2008: Summary
‘Enormous Error’ of President Bush’s ‘Georgian Protege’: From Poland’s Gazeta Wyborcza
Now that war has broken out in the Caucuses between Russia and America's staunch ally, Georgia, what do those other staunch U.S. allies, the East Europeans, have to say? In our first East European translation of the consequences of the conflict, Waclaw Radzinowicz writes for Poland's Gazeta Wyborcza: "In deciding to 'liberate' South Ossetia, or as he called it yesterday … [Read more...] about ‘Enormous Error’ of President Bush’s ‘Georgian Protege’: From Poland’s Gazeta Wyborcza
Isaac Hayes (1942 – 2008)
The great soul singer, producer, musician, and sometimes actor has died at age 65 today. Hayes, 'Shaft' singer and disco presage, dies ASSOCIATED PRESS MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Isaac Hayes, the baldheaded, baritone-voiced soul crooner who laid the groundwork for disco and whose "Theme From Shaft" won both Academy and Grammy awards, died Sunday afternoon after he collapsed near … [Read more...] about Isaac Hayes (1942 – 2008)
The Grist on The End of Food
Paul Roberts' first book, The End of Oil, was called by Bill McKibben "perhaps the best single book ever produced about our energy economy and its environmental implications." Having anticipated the energy crisis, Roberts has turned his attention to what we eat. His new book, The End of Food, is reviewed by Tom Philpott in The Grist: By switching from oil to food, Roberts … [Read more...] about The Grist on The End of Food
Georgia Being Clawed
Manny Francisco, Manila, The Phillippines … [Read more...] about Georgia Being Clawed
Election 2008: South Carolina
In 1936 when FDR ran for re-election, he won 98% of the vote in South Carolina and won several counties with 100%. In the last 70 years there have been a lot of changes and all of them have benefited the GOP. President: Even when they discuss the idea of breaching the usual GOP dominance in the South, few Democrats talk about South Carolina. Obama will of course benefit from … [Read more...] about Election 2008: South Carolina
Election 2008: Rhode Island
In the contest for the least exciting state in the 2008 campaign, Rhode Island is a serious contender. Republicans currently hold just 18 seats in both houses of the state legislature compared to 95 for the Democrats (in fact if they packed all 18 into the state senate they would still be outnumbered 20-18) President: If Senator Obama never steps foot in the state he will … [Read more...] about Election 2008: Rhode Island
Election 2008: Pennsylvania
Birthplace of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, this has been one of the key states in recent Presidential races. The state was once a GOP bastion, shifted to the Democrats, then to a swing state. President: Pennsylvania is going to be a key battleground in 2008 and the latest polls continue to show a close race though one that is likely up to the … [Read more...] about Election 2008: Pennsylvania
Election 2008: Oregon
Oregon is not only one of the prettiest states in the Union but also a potential swing state. Although it has not voted for a Republican in 20 years, most of the contests recently have been close. President: The Republicans will work hard to make sure that the Obama campaign has to fight to keep this state in their camp, but I suspect that the effort will fall short. The … [Read more...] about Election 2008: Oregon
Election 2008: Oklahoma
Oklahoma may be the inspiration for some great music but it is unlikely to offer much in the way of excitement this November. President: The last time a Democrat won Oklahoma in a Presidential election, the castaways were just settling in on Gilligan's Island (1964, for those who wonder). Senate: Incumbent James Inhofe (R) should have little trouble with State Senator … [Read more...] about Election 2008: Oklahoma
Can You Hear Me Now?
At this rate, I'm worried that John McCain is going to need a wheelchair if the Iraqis shoot him in the foot any more. Iraq's Foreign Minister came out today with yet another statement to clarify the clarification of the enhanced explanation of the last five statements on the future of any sort of military presence by the United States in Iraq. Iraq demands "very clear" U.S. … [Read more...] about Can You Hear Me Now?
Hanoi Hilton to Paris Hilton
The Obama attacks may be damaging the John McCain "brand" in the long run, according to a growing chorus of Republican supporters and admirers, including McCain's mother who calls one of the ads "stupid." But the candidate himself isn't backing off. On radio yesterday, he compared an Obama speech to "watching a big summer blockbuster, and an hour in realizing that all the … [Read more...] about Hanoi Hilton to Paris Hilton
Sabato’s Crystal Ball: THE OTHER “HOUSE” ELECTIONS
08/07/2008: Sabato's Crystal Ball's Larry J. Sabato says, THE OTHER "HOUSE" ELECTIONS: STATEHOUSES '08 Leave the presidential contest aside for the moment. At other levels of politics, the Republicans may eventually file the 2008 campaign under the Double Jeopardy category of "It Just Keeps Getting Worse". Surely, GOP House strategists are asking themselves whether they … [Read more...] about Sabato’s Crystal Ball: THE OTHER “HOUSE” ELECTIONS
Quote Of The Day: On The John Edwards Affair
The Political Quote of the Day comes from New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd: The president manqué [Democrat John Edwards] gives Rielle Hunter, formerly Lisa Druck, more than $114,000 to shoot vain little videos for his Web site (even though she’s a neophyte), one of which is scored with the song “True Reflections” about the Narcissus pool, which goes: “When you look … [Read more...] about Quote Of The Day: On The John Edwards Affair
Let’s Give ’em Something (dumb) to Talk About
As we've noted recently, we're in the somewhat boring days of summer - at least in terms of the campaign - and while we await fresh grist for the mill, many will be looking for something to fill the time. Cue the Right wing, with their "discovery" that Barack Obama may hold dual citizenship in Kenya. As James Joyner immediately noted, this is yet another "so what?" … [Read more...] about Let’s Give ’em Something (dumb) to Talk About
No Kidding, John. Take The Damned Test
HUNTER AND EDWARDS ALOFT John Edwards' half-assed effort to come clean about his affair with Rielle Hunter left a slew of questions unanswered. Chief among them are: * If he wasn't the father of Hunter's child and broke off the affair two years ago, why was he lurking in a stairwell of her current digs, the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles, in the middle of the … [Read more...] about No Kidding, John. Take The Damned Test
Stock Market Summer Silliness
Stock markets have rallied this summer on falling crude oil prices. But is this a sane and sensible response to what these falling prices actually portend? The answer to this question is this: Only if you happen to be a Wall Street trader and playing with OPM—Other People's Money, my money and yours in mutual and pension funds. Crude prices are falling for two reasons: a … [Read more...] about Stock Market Summer Silliness
Pakistan President Musharraf’s ‘D-Day’
Monday would be a crucial day for President Pervez Musharraf when impeachment proceedings against him begin in the Pakistan Parliament. However, there are reports that all-powerful Pakistan army would like to avoid the public humiliation of Musharraf and ask him to resign within a week. The Telegraph reports: "The claim was supported by a former military aide to the … [Read more...] about Pakistan President Musharraf’s ‘D-Day’
Book Review On ‘Mirage: Napoleon’s Scientists And The Unveiling of Egypt’
Iraq certainly wasn't the first war where the invaders sought moral cover to justify their actions, but you have to go far to top Napoleon's claim that he was going into Egypt as a mission civilsatrice in order to bring French-style culture and democracy to all those unwashed Arabs. But as Nina Burleigh writes in Mirage: Napoleon's Scientists and the Unveiling of Egypt, … [Read more...] about Book Review On ‘Mirage: Napoleon’s Scientists And The Unveiling of Egypt’