Are many analysts missing the true political story unfolding before our eyes? Is what we're really seeing the exit of the Kennedy and Clinton dynasties and the entrance on the national stage of Senator Barack Obama as the first "true post-Reagan Democrat?" Salon's Walter Shapiro (one of the country's best political columnists) thinks so - and he makes a good case that as the … [Read more...] about Is Barack Obama The First True Post-Reagan Democrat?
Cable TV: Information Highway Robbery
Their licenses to steal are paying off better each year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which reports Cable TV fees rising 77 percent since 1996, roughly double the rate of inflation. For most American TV viewers, unless they buy iffy satellite dishes, hooking up to the local Cable provider is the only game in town. No matter where they live, their community … [Read more...] about Cable TV: Information Highway Robbery
Nurture the GOP in case the Democrats tank
David Brooks writes today about Running Mates but drops in a very sobering warning: He (Obama) will find himself surrounded by highly partisan Democratic politicians, committee chairmen and interest groups thrilled to finally seize power. Some of them might have enjoyed his lofty rhetoric about change, but in practice, these organization types have no interest in changing … [Read more...] about Nurture the GOP in case the Democrats tank
Media Symbiosis: When the Host Dies
Joe Windish wrote earlier today about the "meltdown" of the broadcast TV industry. Elsewhere, the WaPo's Howard Kurtz turns in a pre-death obit for newspapers. Toward the end of his column, Kurtz offers this telling vignette: The ticking time bomb here is the wholesale abandonment of newspapers by younger people who grew up with a point-and-click mentality. When I was … [Read more...] about Media Symbiosis: When the Host Dies
The Armenian Genocide (Guest Voice)
In this Guest Voice post, blogger Kathy Kattenburg calls on Congress to again take up a controversial resolution on Armenian Genocide. This Guest Voice is cross posted at Comments from Left Field. Guest Voice posts do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Moderate Voice or its writers. The Armenian Genocide by Kathy Kattenburg Remember back in October when a … [Read more...] about The Armenian Genocide (Guest Voice)
Bar patrons hand Barack Obama a victory
From MediaPost's Online Media Daily: The interactive survey, which ran on TouchTunes jukeboxes in bars nationwide from April 28 through May 11, asked bar patrons about the presidential candidate and current social issues. It also allowed people to enter their email address to receive a voter registration form from Rock the Vote, which resulted in nearly 10,000 … [Read more...] about Bar patrons hand Barack Obama a victory
A signal moment in the slow, painful meltdown of the broadcast TV industry
The LATimes reports that network TV just ain't what it used to be... Broadcast networks under siege: Like the networks themselves, though, the quarterly sweeps -- which some stations still use to set local ad rates -- have fallen on hard times. For the May sweep that ended last Wednesday, NBC couldn't be bothered to make the earth move. Among the network's prime-time … [Read more...] about A signal moment in the slow, painful meltdown of the broadcast TV industry
What Barack Obama Owes George W. Bush
When and if Barack Obama takes the oath of office as President of the United States, who most will he owe that high privilege to? According to Alexandre Adler, one of France's leading historians, journalists - and according to many - a neocon, that person would be George W. Bush. … [Read more...] about What Barack Obama Owes George W. Bush
Google says Viacom’s lawsuit against YouTube ‘threatens’ the Net
AP: A $1 billion copyright infringement lawsuit challenging YouTube's ability to keep copyrighted material off its popular video-sharing site threatens how hundreds of millions of people exchange all kinds of information on the Internet, YouTube owner Google Inc. said. Google's lawyers made the claim in papers filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan as the company responded … [Read more...] about Google says Viacom’s lawsuit against YouTube ‘threatens’ the Net
Titanic & Memories of Cold War
The 1997 movie Titanic, the highest-grossing film of all time, became popular worldwide for its powerful depiction of romance and pathos. Now The Times of London reports that "the man who located the wreck of the Titanic has revealed that the discovery was a cover story to camouflage the real mission of inspecting the wrecks of two Cold War nuclear submarines." More here... … [Read more...] about Titanic & Memories of Cold War
“The Soldier’s Promise,” Memorial Day 2008
The Soldier's Promise Tiny Prayer "New seed roots most deeply in the places that are most empty." ------------ CODA [The Soldier's Promise] "Tiny Prayer", excerpted from book The Faithful Gardener: AWise Tale About That Which Can Never Die by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, ©1996, All Rights Reserved, Harper Collins/ HarperSanFrancisco … [Read more...] about “The Soldier’s Promise,” Memorial Day 2008
Dutch Expedition to Washington
The Dutch people, as most Europeans, have traditionally been very close to and supportive of the United States and of Americans--politically, economically, militarily, philosophically and in just about every other manner. Especially after World War II, Americans were beloved, almost idolized. I know, because I lived in The Netherlands and its Antilles for seven years shortly … [Read more...] about Dutch Expedition to Washington
News From the Israeli and Palestinian Front: May 26th
A biweekly feature of news and opinion pieces from the Israeli and Palestinian press. 1.) As an ongoing corruption investigation puts Ehud Olmert at great risk, there is increasing discussion in the Israeli press as to who might be the next prime minister. Although Tzipi Livni, the current foreign minister, has often been mentioned as the favorite, some opposition figures … [Read more...] about News From the Israeli and Palestinian Front: May 26th
Fox News Contributor Jokes About Obama Assassination
Can someone please tell me? Is there something in their water? In the air? Is it what they're drinking -- or smoking? There seems to be an epidemic now of foot-in-mouth comments involving the once-taboo "a-word" (not the "a-word" people use to describe some politicians, but the "a-word" that describes what tragedy can befall politicians...). As Senator Hillary Clinton's … [Read more...] about Fox News Contributor Jokes About Obama Assassination
Accusations of Appeasement Against Obama ‘Unfounded’
What are German-speaking people saying about whether Barack Obama is a Neville Chamberlain-like 'appeaser' for suggesting talks with Iran - or as President Bush put it 'radicals and terrorists?' From Austria - one of the nations gobbled up by the Nazis before America entered World War II - Christian Ultsch concludes for Die Press: "If Democratic candidate Barack Obama is … [Read more...] about Accusations of Appeasement Against Obama ‘Unfounded’
Clinton Fatigue: Bill Clinton Lashes Out At Wife Being Treated “Disrespectfully Just For Running” (UPDATED)
Former President Bill Clinton has raised eyebrows (again) by lashing out at unnamed forces and an unnamed "they" for what he says has been unprecedented disrespect shown to his wife Senator Hillary Clinton in the way she has been treated and being asked to pull out of the Presidential race. The only problem is: like some other of the former Commander in Chief's blanket … [Read more...] about Clinton Fatigue: Bill Clinton Lashes Out At Wife Being Treated “Disrespectfully Just For Running” (UPDATED)
Database Provides Portraits Of California Military Personnel Who Died In Afghanistan And Iraq Wars
On Memorial Day it's important to remember -- and the Los Angeles Times has now produced the first-ever census database of California members of the military who died in Afghanistan and Iraq. The findings are interesting: Nearly 500 Californians have lost their lives in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. At least 58 were immigrants; more than 160 were parents and left … [Read more...] about Database Provides Portraits Of California Military Personnel Who Died In Afghanistan And Iraq Wars
Memorial Day 2008 (Observed): ‘Things Are Really Bad Here In the States, Aren’t They?’
It is Memorial Day (Observed) today in the U.S. If you don't already know, "Observed" is a euphemism for pulling up our national holidays by their roots and plopping them down into three-day weekends that have nothing to do with why they are supposed to be celebrated. This one originally was called Decoration Day. It was a day of remembrance for Union soldiers who died in … [Read more...] about Memorial Day 2008 (Observed): ‘Things Are Really Bad Here In the States, Aren’t They?’
Presidents Manson and McCain
The current political climate, with growing voter dissatisfaction and the Republican brand being termed "significantly damaged," has many Democrats smiling like cats in the vicinity of empty canary cages. In fact, many observers seem to already be of the opinion that Barack Obama could take off on a long, well deserved vacation following the Democratic National Convention and … [Read more...] about Presidents Manson and McCain
A Man Called “Sweet Pea”
This Memorial Day, as they have for the past five years, residents of Skowhegan, Maine will be thinking about Jay Aubin, one of the first among 4081-and-counting American troops to die in Iraq. What the numbers conceal is the continuing grief of countless families, friends and neighbors in every corner of the country who live with the loss of young men and women like Aubin, … [Read more...] about A Man Called “Sweet Pea”