Imagine the following hypothetical scenario: In 1856, a group of American Blacks convened secretly in Baltimore, Maryland. Made up of some free-born citizens, but mostly runaway slaves, the meeting discussed the prospect a violent, full-scale revolution by Black Americans against Southern slaveholders and the American government in general. The Dred Scott ruling, the … [Read more...] about The Second American Revolution
Stein’s Review
Kenneth Stein, formerly of the Carter Center, has his review/critique of Jimmy Carter's new book out in the Middle East Quarterly. … [Read more...] about Stein’s Review
Rockefeller Charges Cheney Worked To Stall Congressional Intelligence Hearings
Uh, oh -- will Vice President Dick Cheney now charge that West Virginia's Sen. Jay Rockefeller is "out of line"? McClatchy Newspapers reports:Vice President Dick Cheney put "constant" pressure on the Republican former head of the Senate Intelligence Committee to stall an investigation into the Bush administration’s use of flawed intelligence on Iraq, the panel’s Democratic … [Read more...] about Rockefeller Charges Cheney Worked To Stall Congressional Intelligence Hearings
Senate Movement Towards Collaboration
David Broder writes today about promising movement towards building Senate cross-partisan rapport. Forty senators showed up on Jan. 9 for the first of a planned series of weekly 8 a.m. breakfasts designed to provide neutral ground where lawmakers of both parties can meet, rather than caucusing separately. Yesterday, some 60 top Senate staffers of both parties held a … [Read more...] about Senate Movement Towards Collaboration
So John Kerry Bowed Out Of The 2008 Presidential Sweepstakes
But did Kerry get a bum rap? Read David Adesnik. My view: When I watched one of the first debates in 2004 featuring the Democratic hopefuls, I wrote on TMV that Kerry had "a great future as a U.S. Senator." Nothing I saw during the run up to the convention or campaign made me change my mind. Kerry was a flawed candidate and a shockingly naive one. He was Michael Dukakis … [Read more...] about So John Kerry Bowed Out Of The 2008 Presidential Sweepstakes
There Are Ways You Can Honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
But THIS might not be one of them. … [Read more...] about There Are Ways You Can Honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Rape Allegations Force Israel’s President To Take Leave Of Absence From Office
A major scandal is unfolding in Israel, and it's already having internal political repercussions:Israeli MPs today approved a request by the country's president, Moshe Katsav, to temporarily step down from his post while he faces allegations of rape and sexual assault. The Knesset house committee voted 13-11 to declare Mr Katsav "temporarily incapacitated" ahead of a … [Read more...] about Rape Allegations Force Israel’s President To Take Leave Of Absence From Office
Guess Who’s Still Working At The Defense Department
This is starting to sound like the Seinfeld episode where George was fired but showed up for work and did his job anyway:Former Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has left the Pentagon, but not the Defense Department. On Jan. 4, Mr. Rumsfeld opened a government-provided transition office in Arlington and has seven Pentagon-paid staffers working for him, a Pentagon … [Read more...] about Guess Who’s Still Working At The Defense Department
This is Ridiculous!
I have never watched the TV show "Grey's Anatomy" and until recently had never heard of the actor Isaiah Washington. Apparently, he referred to someone sharing my sexual orientation by using a BAD NAME. According to the AP, he is now "in treatment" for this crime. This is PC (Political-Correctness) pushed to the point of total ridiculousness. I'm not offended by his language … [Read more...] about This is Ridiculous!
TIME: Hillary Clinton Way Ahead In Democratic Poll
The Democratic Party clearly has a front-runner for the 2008 nomination, since a new TIME poll fits into some earlier findings...and now it's an early trend: Hillary Clinton is the clear front-runner to win the Democratic party's nomination for President in 2008, but the Republican race will be a close contest between Senator John McCain and former New York mayor Rudy … [Read more...] about TIME: Hillary Clinton Way Ahead In Democratic Poll
“There is no strategy. This is a ping-pong game with American lives.”
This is why it was so important for Democrats to take back Congress in November. Checking and balancing. The American way. From the AP: "In a calculated snub of President Bush, the Democratic-controlled Senate Foreign Relations Committee dismissed plans for a troop buildup in Iraq on Wednesday as 'not in the national interest' of the United States." In other words, NO to the … [Read more...] about “There is no strategy. This is a ping-pong game with American lives.”
Democrats Fall Short On Minimum Wage… For Now
ABC News reports: Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked the Democrats from fulfilling a campaign promise to increase the federal minimum wage, demanding that the pay hike include tax relief for small business. On a vote of 54-43, Democrats fell six short of the 60 needed to end debate and go to passage of a House-approved bill, to raise the minimum wage for the first time … [Read more...] about Democrats Fall Short On Minimum Wage… For Now
Letters of Otto Frank Found
Otto Frank: Anne Frank's father Both Yahoo news and The Enquirer report that letters written by Anne Frank's father, Otto Frank, have been discovered. He wrote them in 1941, in a desperate attempt to get his family out of Nazi-occupied the Netherlands. Written when the U.S. consulate in the Netherlands had closed, the letters show how Otto Frank investigated potential … [Read more...] about Letters of Otto Frank Found
Thoughts on John Kerry
(Shaun has already posted his thoughts on Kerry. Here are mine.) John Kerry has announced that he will not run for president in '08. The Boston Globe has the story here. There isn't much I can add to what's already been written -- see Memeorandum here for reaction from around the blogosphere. All I wish to say is that I admire and respect Senator Kerry a great deal. … [Read more...] about Thoughts on John Kerry
What the silence says about New Orleans — and us
In Tuesday night's State of the Union address, Bush talked about a number of issues -- all of which are pressing and valid. Unfortunately, he was silent about the Gulf Coast, and New Orleans. Silence is sometimes its own sound, and in this case I'm worred -- no, sad -- that what it articulated was thunderous indifference from both the federal government, and the people it … [Read more...] about What the silence says about New Orleans — and us
The Tenacious Allure of Term Limits
Nelson Lee Walker is a retired engineer who has developed a passion for Congressional term limits, and he’s certainly not alone. His advocacy site lists more than a dozen other sites/organizations fighting the same fight. What’s more, despite the failure of the idea to gain traction, it has a healthy populist appeal for many voters. After all, if we can term limit the … [Read more...] about The Tenacious Allure of Term Limits
Putin Chief Guest At India’s Republic Day Parade
Although India became free of the British yoke on 15 August 1947, it declared itself a Democratic Republic on 26 January 1950. Ever since the occasion is marked with ceremonial pomp and display of India's military might and the cultural diversity. Last year, India invited the Saudi King to be the Chief Guest on the occasion of the Republic Day. Tomorrow the Russian President … [Read more...] about Putin Chief Guest At India’s Republic Day Parade
When DSL Is NG for the SOTUS By the POTUS
Tuesday was a tres frustrating day if you are a blogger, or at least for some of the folks such as myself who co-blog at The Moderate Voice. (That's TMV editor-in-chief Joe Gandelman at the left in the photograph. He's complaining about his hotel room not having high-speed Internet access. I'm on the far right trying to figure out what a moderate is.) Anyhow, most of you … [Read more...] about When DSL Is NG for the SOTUS By the POTUS
It’s Dick Cheney Versus CNN’s Wolf Blitzer: Who Is “Out Of Line?”
And here we all thought Vice President Dick Cheney was the Vice President of the United States...when his REAL job is editor and media critic. (Attention Jay Rosen: has the Veep approached you yet to be a coblogger on your GREAT media blog Press Think?) It seems that Mr. Cheney was on CNN's The Situation Room with veteran journalist Wolf Blitzer when Blitzer dared to ask … [Read more...] about It’s Dick Cheney Versus CNN’s Wolf Blitzer: Who Is “Out Of Line?”
8 Reasons To Hate Cats
From moderate cartoonist Tom Briscoe: P.S. Yours truly is the proud "guardian" of two cats (one of them was a feral kitten). … [Read more...] about 8 Reasons To Hate Cats