President George W. Bush is angry that the world leaders, except for a few from the former Communist bloc countries, have not supported him in his crusade to introduce democracy in Cuba. He "chastised" most other countries Friday for "a sad and curious pattern" of doing little to speak out against human rights and political abuses in Cuba, reports the Associated Press. … [Read more...] about President Bush & Cuba: The Angry Lone Rider…
There Are Some Things We Don’t Need To Know Dept.
Like this. (WARNING: Adult subject matter). … [Read more...] about There Are Some Things We Don’t Need To Know Dept.
Audio: BBC speaks w/TMV blogger re: impact of Samantha Power incident
Listen here if you're interested in knowing what the BBC wanted to know about how I feel and how I feel about the Samantha Power incident. From a clinical perspective, the fact that Ms. Power was unable to filter out intense negative comments about Hillary Clinton and her campaign during an on-the-record interview while on a book tour indicates that Ms. Power may be the one … [Read more...] about Audio: BBC speaks w/TMV blogger re: impact of Samantha Power incident
Canadian Prime Minister’s Office Says Clinton Campaign Didn’t Give Private Assurances On NAFTA
The see-saw narrative continues in Canada with possible continued implications to the political campaign here: the Canadian Prime Minister's office now insists the Clinton campaign didn't give any private assurances on NAFTA, and it only came from the Obama camp: Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton never gave Canada any secret assurances about the future of … [Read more...] about Canadian Prime Minister’s Office Says Clinton Campaign Didn’t Give Private Assurances On NAFTA
“Deficit Hawk” Voinovich Wants to Amend Federal Budget Process
Ohio Senator George Voinovich has long been known as a deficit hawk. Whether as Commissioner of Cuyahoga County, Mayor of Cleveland, or Governor of Ohio, Voinovich has a strong reputation for insisting that government ought to live within its means. In recent years, that's made him out-of-step with Republicans in Congress and the White House who have departed from traditional … [Read more...] about “Deficit Hawk” Voinovich Wants to Amend Federal Budget Process
Mercaz HaRav Yeshiva Buries Its Treasures
Haaretz: In his eulogy to the eight students gunned down Thursday in a shooting attack at the Mercaz Harav yeshiva in Jerusalem, the religious school's head rabbi Ya'akov Shapira declared the attack "a continuation of the 1929 massacre" of the Jewish community in Hebron. He said the gunman had targeted "everyone living in the holy city of Jerusalem." The eight victims … [Read more...] about Mercaz HaRav Yeshiva Buries Its Treasures
The Two-Party Mass O’ Junk: My Hope!
I waded into the Democratic and Republican sea because I was drawn to the first viable black presidential candidate, Senator Barack Hussein Obama (middle name games don't work on me). I followed Senator Obama's run and in the process followed the runs of all the Democratic and Republican candidates. MSM, blogs, flash cards, you name it. I was thoroughly engaged in the … [Read more...] about The Two-Party Mass O’ Junk: My Hope!
McCain’s Evolving Positions
The Carpetbagger Report has an interesting summary of positions that Senator McCain has adjusted recently. I don't have much criticism for a politician altering their positions as information and circumstances change. Sometimes it might be technical issues, or some other contamination, that causes proposed legislation to stray too far from its original intentions. … [Read more...] about McCain’s Evolving Positions
What Muslims Think
Gallup has recently finished the most complete survey of Muslim public opinion that has ever been conducted. The poll took six years (from 2001-2007), and involved thousands of interviews with Muslims from more than 40 different countries. The results are a vindication of what many observers have been saying for a long time: About 93 percent of the world's 1.3 billion Muslims … [Read more...] about What Muslims Think
Campaign Finance Reform Round-up
Here is a round-up of progress from the Public Campaign Action Fund. … [Read more...] about Campaign Finance Reform Round-up
Don’t Like It, Don’t Buy It
Regular readers know I'm an Andrew Sullivan fan. But I have to respectfully disagree with him on this argument. Among other things, he writes: If the Clintons beat Obama this way, I have a simple prediction. It will mean a mass flight from the process. It will alter the political consciousness of an entire generation of young voters - against any positive interaction with … [Read more...] about Don’t Like It, Don’t Buy It
Continuing Our Hypocrisy Friday Theme . . .
. . . which insult is worse? A Barack Obama aide calling Hillary Clinton “a monster” or a Clinton aide calling Obama a reincarnation of Special Prosecutor Ken Starr? Before you try to answer the question, consider that the Obama aide apologized and resigned while the Clinton aide ain’t going nowhere because Hillary’s campaign plays by its own rules. This includes the … [Read more...] about Continuing Our Hypocrisy Friday Theme . . .
Obama Aide Resigns After Calling Hillary Clinton “A Monster”
The increasingly bitter and vitriolic tone of the Democratic Presidential nomination campaign featuring Senator Hillary Clinton and Senator Barack Obama has taken its latest foot-in-mouth victim: A Barack Obama adviser resigned Friday after calling rival Hillary Rodham Clinton "a monster." Samantha Power, an unpaid foreign policy adviser and Harvard professor, … [Read more...] about Obama Aide Resigns After Calling Hillary Clinton “A Monster”
More Media Opinions On Obama-Clinton Clash…
An example: Daniel Henninger, columnist, The Wall Street Journal: "We don't yet settle political campaigns on paper, the Web or on talk shows. Obama famously proved that politics remains a public-performance art. It took 11 straight losses for Hillary — once the smugly 'inevitable' nominee — to learn to play in Barack's league. She's certainly competitive now. ... Democrats now … [Read more...] about More Media Opinions On Obama-Clinton Clash…
U.S. Unexpectedly Loses Jobs In February
More signs that the economy is worsening and that despite President George Bush's insisting that it just ain't so, the U.S. is in a recession: The U.S. unexpectedly lost jobs in February for the second consecutive month, adding to evidence the economy is in a recession. Payrolls fell by 63,000, the most in five years, after a revised decline of 22,000 in January, the … [Read more...] about U.S. Unexpectedly Loses Jobs In February
Libya blocks U.N. council resolution condemning killing of Jerusalem seminary killings
From the TimesOnline (UK): In an extraordinary development in New York, an emergency session of the United Nations failed to agree on a condemnation of the killings, the first major attack in Jerusalem in four years. Ban Ki-moon, the UN Secretary General, Britain, France, the European Union, Canada, Israel and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian President, condemned the … [Read more...] about Libya blocks U.N. council resolution condemning killing of Jerusalem seminary killings
Iraq: An Artist’s Idea Of Remembering Forgotten Soldiers
Within three weeks the world would observe the 5th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq by the US-led forces. The extent of pain and suffering of the Iraqi men, women and children (as also those of the brave US and other soldiers ordered to perform a thankless job, and their families) is yet to be convincingly reflected in the international media. Even the brave soldiers remain … [Read more...] about Iraq: An Artist’s Idea Of Remembering Forgotten Soldiers
Ohmygawd! Where’s His Flag Lapel Pin?
JUST ASKING. … [Read more...] about Ohmygawd! Where’s His Flag Lapel Pin?
A More Perfect Union: Redistricting Reform
In Political Entrenchment the Washington Post editorializes about noncompetitive congressional districts. And I agree that along with Campaign Finance Reform this is the central obstacle to a more rational government. "members of Congress are "worried about taking a rational position" because they fear being punished in primaries by challengers questioning their ideological … [Read more...] about A More Perfect Union: Redistricting Reform
Fake Memoirs and Fictional Diaries
In the Search for Truth, book and magazine publishers are running into a few problems. Herewith two new trends in the reality business: The continuing hoo-ha over the latest publishing fraud, the Valley girl who posed as a druggie gang member, brings up the question of where to draw the line between writers with vivid imaginations and out-and-out liars. Truman Capote, who … [Read more...] about Fake Memoirs and Fictional Diaries