I had the time to catch both Barack Obama's speech on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan along with John McCain's response today. The number of areas where they agree at this point is probably far larger than either would like to admit. One of the key points came not on the issue of Iraq - in which we all know where they both stand - but the future of our engagement in … [Read more...] about Trying to recycle the “Surge” in Afghanistan
Yankee Stadium: Field of Dreams
At tonight's All-Star Game of major league baseball, there will be a sentimental farewell to the House that Ruth Built, Yankee Stadium, a place that has been the field of dreams for my life ever since boyhood in the Bronx. Herewith a brief excerpt: One night in the early 1980s, an hour before game time, I was in George Steinbrenner’s private dining room for an evening … [Read more...] about Yankee Stadium: Field of Dreams
Dial in, Turn off, Opt out
If you have a credit rating that's not absolutely in the tank, you probably receive a regular flood of paper in your mailbox which gushingly declares that you are a wonderful person, trustworthy and responsible, and because of that you have been pre-approved (sound of horns blaring, balloons floating skyward and pigeons being released) for a credit card from their generous … [Read more...] about Dial in, Turn off, Opt out
Kristol, Russert and Snow
I have come to look forward to reading and commenting on Bill Kristol’s “much-awaited” Monday morning column in the New York Times. Usually there is plenty to comment on and to set the record straight in his writings. As fate would have it, Kristol has written two columns within one month’s time in which he himself set the record straight--in a fitting and most commendable … [Read more...] about Kristol, Russert and Snow
Douglas A. Blackmon on “Neoslavery” and the “Convict Labor System”
Douglas A. Blackmon, author of Slavery By Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II, is interviewed in Newsweek this week: Can you explain the concept of "neoslavery" and the "convict labor system"? Neoslavery is a term to describe a whole range of ways in which all across the Southern United States in the late 19th century and … [Read more...] about Douglas A. Blackmon on “Neoslavery” and the “Convict Labor System”
Oil Companies are Eeevil! (except when they’re not)
It's become quite fashionable in some quarters to blame the oil companies for all ills -- a position verging on hypocritical. Either they're greedy for the big bucks, or they're sitting on oil they could produce but won't. (Can't really make that argument work both ways.) Along those lines... last night, while flipping through the TV channels, I stumbled across C-Span, and … [Read more...] about Oil Companies are Eeevil! (except when they’re not)
Quinnipiac Poll: Obama Leads McCain 50 To 41 Percent
A new Quinnipiac University national poll has some good news and bad news for Democratic presumptive Presidential nominee Senator Barack Obama: he leads the GOP's likely candidate Senator John McCain 50 to 41 percent but a breakdown of the poll numbers shows he remains politically vulnerable: With commanding leads among women and young voters and near unanimous support … [Read more...] about Quinnipiac Poll: Obama Leads McCain 50 To 41 Percent
Civil Rights Roundup: 07/15/08
Your daily dose of civil rights and related news This is a theme I've been seeing a lot of lately: Immigrants being mistreated at detention centers. Obama continued to hit the responsibility theme in his speech before the NAACP. It was a message met with "loud applause" by the influential civil rights groups. On that point, Ta-Nehisi Coates (who is a strong supporter … [Read more...] about Civil Rights Roundup: 07/15/08
“Mental Recession” Continues: Wholesale Inflation Soars While Dollar Sets Record Low
Yet more signs that the "mental recession" is a tad bit more than just a "mental" recession: wholesale inflation is now the worst in 27 years -- and the dollar has dropped to new lows. It'll be interesting to see if the White House blames this on the Democratic Congress or if it's painted as somehow part of a past "Clinton recession." But the seemingly- unraveling strands … [Read more...] about “Mental Recession” Continues: Wholesale Inflation Soars While Dollar Sets Record Low
Social Security: Compare and Contrast
Of the many issues which raged in the national debate during the 2004 election cycle but have since fallen down the memory hole, Social Security is surely one of the most curious among the missing. I have never counted myself among the masses crying out that the Social Security system is "hopelessly broken" or needs to be scrapped entirely. However the inversion from an era … [Read more...] about Social Security: Compare and Contrast
TMV Welcomes Its Latest New Member
If you think you've noticed some new names at TMV in recent weeks, you're correct. Over the past month we've added three new people to our list of TMV writers. Two introduced themselves upon coming on board. Yours truly wants to take some time while on a long trip (this is written from Wall, South Dakota) to formally welcome Tony Campbell to TMV. Tony is a columnist for … [Read more...] about TMV Welcomes Its Latest New Member
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
RJ Matson, The St. Louis Post Dispatch … [Read more...] about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Viacom, YouTube, & You: agreement to mask user data
You may have missed it, but over the 4th of July YouTube received a court order to hand over user viewing data from its database -- including usernames and IP addresses -- to Viacom in the ongoing $1 billion lawsuit against the video sharing service. YouTube refused. Randy Picker at the University of Chicago Law Faculty Blog, and David Robinson at Freedom to Tinker … [Read more...] about Viacom, YouTube, & You: agreement to mask user data
Mayer’s ‘The Dark Side,’ Or How The War On Terror Became A War On American Ideals
CHENEY ONLY PRETENDED TO BE SLEEPING; MAYER WAS WIDE AWAKE While it had been widely assumed that the decision to torture enemy combatants and other detainees in the War on Terror began at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and the Bush administration long hid behind that "trickle up" explanation, it is now apparent that the origins of this dark chapter in American history -- and the … [Read more...] about Mayer’s ‘The Dark Side,’ Or How The War On Terror Became A War On American Ideals
Sabato’s Crystal Ball: CAN MCCAIN OVERCOME THE TRIPLE WHAMMY?
I missed several Sabato’s Crystal Ball emails due to accidental unsubscribing. Here is one of many make-up posts. 05/29/2008 Alan I. Abramowitz's CAN MCCAIN OVERCOME THE TRIPLE WHAMMY? Electoral Barometer Shows Democratic Advantage With the long and contentious Democratic nomination race finally winding down, the attention of the media and the public is beginning … [Read more...] about Sabato’s Crystal Ball: CAN MCCAIN OVERCOME THE TRIPLE WHAMMY?
The Great Depression Part II (Guest Voice)
Is what we're seeing The Great Depression Part II? In this Guest Voice, author Martha Randolph Carr contends we're at a tipping point. The Great Depression, Part Two by Martha Randolph Carr In life there is a tipping point for everything where what had seemed impossible has inched its way forward against the odds and is now about to pick up a lot of speed. … [Read more...] about The Great Depression Part II (Guest Voice)
David Caruso: Acting Genius Or Acting Hack?
When David Caruso did his first season on NYPD Blue he was praised by critics for his exceptional acting and intense performances. And when I went through DVDs of the first season and the few episodes he made during the second season, his performances were works of dramatic art. They hold up quite well. Caruso then left for a movie career which fizzled and his name became … [Read more...] about David Caruso: Acting Genius Or Acting Hack?
Obama New Yorker Cover
Daryl Cagle, MSNBC.com … [Read more...] about Obama New Yorker Cover
New Yorker’s Alternate Cover
Cartoon by Simanca Osmani, Cagle Cartoons, Brazil … [Read more...] about New Yorker’s Alternate Cover
Afghanistan Casualties: Pakistan Under Twin Attack
Pakistan has come under a blistering attack from Afghanistan and India. Afghanistan alleges that Pakistan's intelligence service (ISI) and army are behind the bloody Taliban-led insurgency, calling the security forces the "world's biggest producers of terrorism and extremism." While India has blamed Pakistan's ISI for the suicide attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, and said: … [Read more...] about Afghanistan Casualties: Pakistan Under Twin Attack