This is the heading of an article published in today's edition of the Asia Times by Kim Myong Chol ("Unofficial" spokesman of Kim Jong-il and North Korea, Kim is the author of a number of books and papers in Korean, Japanese and English on North Korea. He is executive director of the Center for Korean-American Peace.) Here are the excerpts from the article: "The Foreign … [Read more...] about “Kim Jong Il Message: War is Coming to US Soil “

It is not quite so easy to make obituary references to a fellow journalist whom you have known for a long time. But world media has risen as one to pay moving tributes to R. W. Apple Jr of the New York Times, better known as Johnny Apple, who passed away on Wednesday at age 71. In a NYT career spanning 43 years, he travelled to more than 100 countries. Johnny, who covered … [Read more...] about Apple of the American Journalism Eye

A lot can happen in five weeks in politics — more reversals than in a professional wrestling match. But three polls show the GOP and former wrestling coach turned House Speaker Dennis Hastert are sinking in the polls and need a reversal — fast.... Apart from the legal and moral issues involved in the still-raging controversy about former Rep. Mark Foley's salacious … [Read more...] about Three New Polls Show GOP Battered By Foley Teen Email Sex Scandal

The most fascinating (and revealing) aspect of the scandal over Rep. Mark Foley's inappropriate emails to underage teen pages is the fact that it underscores a split in Republican ranks — one that has become evident on other matters as well. More traditional conservatives are outraged about the entire mess and are demanding answers and accountability in a display of why … [Read more...] about The Latest Foley Teen Page Scandal Defense Spin? It Was A “Prank” That Got Out Of Hand (UPDATED)

I'm in Deming, New Mexico and may not be able to post anything on this site until Sunday night. The hotel's "high speed wireless internet" disconnects every four minutes. The lobby computer won't work. Dialup doesn't work from the room, either, because it dials yet it gives a busy signal at the same time that it's dialing. Please check back often since our cobloggers will … [Read more...] about TMV Himself Is Unable To Post

October is my favorite month. The leaves change. Football season gets into high gear. The academic year gets exciting. The weather's beautiful. My wedding anniversary comes around. Elections loom. And then there's post-season baseball. Oh how I love baseball, especially when the bunting covers the stadiums across America. I'm a Mets fan and a White Sox fan. Before Interleague … [Read more...] about Let’s Talk Baseball!

The 4th Circuit has denied rehearing in my pet-evil-case of Jordan v. ARC. That's the one where the 4th Circuit decided it was objectively unreasonable for an employee to think that a co-worker with a history of racist remarks advocating putting "two black monkeys in a cage with a bunch of black apes and let[ting] the apes fuck them" could create a hostile work environment (the … [Read more...] about More 4th Circuit Evil!

ABC News reports: Congressional Republicans, already struggling against negative public perceptions of Congress, now face voters who say new scandals will significantly influence their vote in November. With midterm elections less than five weeks away, the latest Associated Press-Ipsos poll found that about half of likely voters say recent disclosures of corruption and … [Read more...] about More Bad News For Republicans

UPDATE: CQ Transcript of Hastert Press Conference ======================================================================= John at AMERICAblog has commented at length on the press conference Denny Hastert just gave in Batavia IL - the one I announced at the bottom of this post: Hastert, I did nothing wrong by John in DC - 10/05/2006 02:40:00 PM - "I first learned about this … [Read more...] about Hastert’s Press Conference

I am appalled by the idiotic, intolerant, indecent, extreme and even violent behavior of students at Columbia University. When the founder of the Minutemen was holding his speech, left wing 'students' moved in and attacked him. Continue reading. … [Read more...] about Disgraceful Students At Columbia University Decide To Silence Ideological Opponents

This is a CALL TO ACTION. According to one of my contributors, "[s]even women have been sentenced to be stoned to death in Iran for adultery (or 'crimes against chastity')". You can get more information here. You can find out what to do here. Please do something. … [Read more...] about Women face death by stoning in Iran

Over at The Reaction, Heraclitus has written a powerful post on why President Bush is such a nightmare. Heraclitus is an independent if ever there was one, but he concludes that Bush "combine[s] the satisfied arrogance of the privileged and the dangerous obstinacy of the incompetent, and the damage he has done to America in six years is immeasurable". Give it a read and, … [Read more...] about The nightmare of Dubya

I read about this bizarre traffic accident last week:Any possible charges against the 17-year-old girls who hung a red bra out of a car on I-75 on Sept. 26, causing a single-car accident that hurt two men, would be filed next week, a Wood County Juvenile Court prosecutor said yesterday. James Campbell, 37, and Jeff Long, 40, both of Toledo, were hurt seriously when Mr. … [Read more...] about Bad Bra Behavior

Bombshell Leaves Republicans with Unwanted Fall "Foley-Age" One sign that a party is heading downhill is when it literally gives away seats in Congress. In 1994, the Democrats did so. Twelve years later, the Republicans are following suit.... … [Read more...] about Sabato’s Crystal Ball: OCTOBER SURPRISE! (And a Leadership Demise?)

That's what people such as Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh have suggested but — get ready for a surprise — it turns out that was all speculation and not correct, according to The Hill:The source who in July gave news media Rep. Mark Foley’s (R-Fla.) suspect e-mails to a former House page says the documents came to him from a House GOP aide. That aide has been a … [Read more...] about Did The Democrats Leak The Foley Emails To The Press?

Before throwing its weight behind Ban Ki Moon, the South Korean in the leading position to succeed Kofi Annan, the British Government set out conditions that included the promise of top jobs in the United Nations for British officials. The Times quotes diplomatic sources that "unseemly' horse-trading also involved other countries. " 'It was like the European states carving up … [Read more...] about Britain Asks For The Moon: Horse-Trading At UN

Fear and hysteria are the two words often mentioned in the wake of 9/11. To this I would add 'insecurity'. The comments that followed the two TMV posts on the gun issue bring to light the hidden fears. That it may not be the 'terrorist' alone, but also the state that may take away individual liberty by intruding/impacting into one's personal/private life. Guns, it seems from … [Read more...] about American Scenario: Guns, Fear & Hysteria?

This post will be updated throughout the day. Pam's House Blend - Gingrich: Dems' sex scandals are worse AND Report: Drunken Foley showed up at page's dorm Pam's House Blend - Hastert to Weyrich: I'll resign if it will help the GOP AMERICAblog: Several posts WP's NPRRaw Fisher - Foley Case: Why Parents Keep Silent--But That's No Excuse for Hastert WP's The Fix - Parsing … [Read more...] about Today in Page-Gate

Poetry has travelled a long distance from the romantic yearnings of William Wordsworth to the present disturbed outpourings of young British poets who participated in a recent competition. "The grim realities of the contemporary world - including terrorism and racial strife - loom large in the work of the winners of the biggest competition for young poets, says a news … [Read more...] about Poetry: From Romance To Harsh Realities

The winds of change affecting one of the most beautiful tourist destinations in the Indian ocean, not far from India and Sri Lanka, seem disturbing. Here is a recent news story from Maldives... "While the holiday makers change into their bikinis in their £1,000-a-night rooms and recline in the sunshine, the face of the real Maldives, rarely seen by outsiders, is slowly … [Read more...] about Maldives: Disturbing Developments In Tourist Paradise