Perhaps....and some think it could be an ominous sign. … [Read more...] about Is There A Secret Hidden Within John McCain’s Campaign Schedule?
Poll: Independent Voters Unenthusiastic About Obama And McCain
This was supposed to be the Presidential year when independent "swing" voters would be excited about having two purportedly less-traditional politicians to choose from -- Democratic Sen. Barack Obama and Republican Sen. John McCain. But a new poll suggests that independent voters are not particularly enthusiastic about either one of them. This political tidbit is noted by … [Read more...] about Poll: Independent Voters Unenthusiastic About Obama And McCain
Photo Op or Listening Tour?
You didn't have to be paying terribly close attention in order to see a bit of a double reverse volley from the McCain campaign this week re: Obama's overseas trip. For some time now, Senator McCain and his surrogates have been hectoring Barack Obama for failing to visit Afghanistan and taking too long between trips to Iraq. As I pointed out in a previous column, I find the … [Read more...] about Photo Op or Listening Tour?
Happy 90th Birthday To Nelson Mandela
FORBEARANCE, HUMILITY AND GREATNESS PERSONIFIED … [Read more...] about Happy 90th Birthday To Nelson Mandela
Laugh Factory Owner Says Jackson Should Pay Fine For N Word
Poor Jesse Jackson. It's tough enough being caught with your verbal pants down in an unscripted moment using bad language about Democratic presumptive nominee Sen. Barack Obama, and then apologizing for it. And it's even more of a downer when it later leaks out that, in an un-aired part of the off-the-air tape, you used the hated "N word" that you campaigned against anyone ever … [Read more...] about Laugh Factory Owner Says Jackson Should Pay Fine For N Word
The Real FISA Issue
I was skimming through this litany of complaints over the revised FISA legislation in The Indypendent and giving fresh thought to some of the major privacy concerns which occupy our national debate on the subject. We live in an era where advancements in technology give rise to fears that our government can now track our movements through our cell phones and, increasingly, the … [Read more...] about The Real FISA Issue
‘It’s Time for Some Campaignin’: JibJab’s Viral Video
Who doesn't love JibJab? This has got something for everyone: Send a JibJab Sendables® eCard Today! People who can bear a trip down nostalgia lane will enjoy the Bush/Kerry version of Woody Guthrie's 'This Land.' My favorite line: 'You can't say 'nuclear'/That really scares me...' … [Read more...] about ‘It’s Time for Some Campaignin’: JibJab’s Viral Video
Budweiser: Good Riddance To Bad Beer
You can't be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline. It helps if you have some kind of football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a beer. -- FRANK ZAPPA While I suppose that red-meat Americans should be up in arms over the impending sale of venerable Anheuser-Busch for 52 billion large to Belgian-Brazilian brewer InBev, it certainly … [Read more...] about Budweiser: Good Riddance To Bad Beer
Sabato’s Crystal Ball: DOES OBAMA HAVE A PROBLEM WITH WHITE VOTERS?
07/17/2008 Alan I. Abramowitz on DOES OBAMA HAVE A PROBLEM WITH WHITE VOTERS? "Poll Finds Obama's Run Isn't Closing Divide on Race," reads the headline on the front page of the July 16th New York Times. The article beneath the headline observes that despite Barack Obama's candidacy, the results of a new CBS/New York Times Poll show that American society is still deeply … [Read more...] about Sabato’s Crystal Ball: DOES OBAMA HAVE A PROBLEM WITH WHITE VOTERS?
Le Figaro Editorial: ‘Bush’s About-Face On Iran’
Is the Bush plan to meet with Iran's nuclear negotiator a significant change in policy? And if so, why - and why now? Say what one will about the French - they are no strangers to political intrigue and bureaucratic gamesmanship. According to this Le Figaro editorial by Pierre Rousselin, this was a major change in policy - not the minor adjustment claimed by the White … [Read more...] about Le Figaro Editorial: ‘Bush’s About-Face On Iran’
GOP sends CafePress cease and desist over logo on shirts & stickers
Wired's David Kravets: Sean Cairncross, the party's chief counsel, wrote (.pdf) the Foster City, California online vendor that the GOP "takes infringements upon its trademarks seriously." "Please cease and desist from allowing vendors to utilize the federally registered trademarks of the RNC or we will be forced to consider a legal remedy," Cairncross wrote … [Read more...] about GOP sends CafePress cease and desist over logo on shirts & stickers
Obama’s Letters from Home
Having been raised in New York I'm familiar with the way politicians coming out of some big city environments can have a few skeletons in their closet, either large or small. But when you run for President, it seems that every last bone will eventually come sliding out onto the dinner table. (Which can really ruin the appeal of your centerpiece, according to Martha.) It seems … [Read more...] about Obama’s Letters from Home
It’s Still the Economy, Stupid (Guest Voice)
This is a Guest Voice post by journalism professor and author Walter Brasch who is also a syndicated newspaper columnist and radio commentator, and president of the Pennsylvania Press Club. Guest Voice posts do not necessarily reflect the opinion of TMV or its writers. It’s Still the Economy, Stupid by Walter Brasch George W. Bush looked into the TV … [Read more...] about It’s Still the Economy, Stupid (Guest Voice)
From Germany’s Der Tagesspiegel: ‘For Obama, There’s a Better Place than the Brandenburg Gate!’
Should Barack Obama be permitted to speak at Berlin's famed Brandenburg Gate? It seems the latest obsession in Germany, with politicians and pundits of every stripe urging or decrying the notion of allowing the American political phenom to utter remarks at the landmark. Malte Lehming of the newspaper Der Tagesspiegel has a novel solution. Lehming writes in part: "What the … [Read more...] about From Germany’s Der Tagesspiegel: ‘For Obama, There’s a Better Place than the Brandenburg Gate!’
Bob Barr Conference Call Today
Several of us got the chance to talk to Bob Barr today on a conference call. I found the candidate to be highly engaging and ready to reach out to bloggers and the new media in any way that he can. Below are a few of the topics covered and the answers given. Q. What does it mean to you to run as a 3rd party candidate? Barr hopes to accomplish three things. He feels that … [Read more...] about Bob Barr Conference Call Today
The Conservative Reformation: ‘Stops’
“In all affairs it's a healthy thing now and then to hang a question mark on the things you have long taken for granted.” -- Bertrand Russell --------------------- After an extended delay followed by a brief detour, here are my promised albeit untested (and largely uncredentialed) suggestions for the conservative reformation. I’ll group these suggestions in two … [Read more...] about The Conservative Reformation: ‘Stops’
The Manchester Manual
To most observers, the sheer number of torture allegations, the diversity of the inmates who allege such abuse, and the overlapping techniques that are commonly described is, in sum, a pretty good indication that American intelligence isn’t always collected the way it used to be. James Taranto, writing at the Wall Street Journal, doesn't quite see it that way; in his online … [Read more...] about The Manchester Manual
There He (Al Gore) Goes Again
Al Gore's work to protect and preserve not only this country's but the world's natural environment has found a great many useful expressions. He is, in fact, the best-known spokesman in this realm. Yet, for reasons that seem incomprehensible to me, he still seems to be missing the key point that could advance this end far more effectively—the fact that environmentally sound … [Read more...] about There He (Al Gore) Goes Again
Senior Sex Makes News
Cohabiting among older people increased 50 percent from 2000 to 2006, the McClatchy Newspapers report today: "The total--1.8 million--counts only couples who live together full time and were willing to admit it to census interviewers. Part-time cohabiting--traveling together, sharing a summer house, spending weekends together--is up at least as sharply, according to seniors … [Read more...] about Senior Sex Makes News
Civil Rights Roundup: 07/17/08
Your daily dose of civil rights and related news. I'm going to New York this afternoon and won't be back until late tomorrow, so the roundup will be off until Monday What is the world coming to when hippies attack the homeless? An Arizona sheriff is being accused of racial profiling in his aggressive efforts to roundup undocumented immigrants. The University of Texas … [Read more...] about Civil Rights Roundup: 07/17/08