Luke Reader, Case Western Reserve University After the election of Boris Johnson as Conservative Party leader and prime minister, does Britain have a populist, nativist politician as its head of government? It’s hard to say. Johnson has been a little of everything during his career. Over three decades in public life, Johnson has shifted between social liberalism and … [Read more...] about Is Boris Johnson, Britain’s new prime minister, anti-immigrant, a homophobe, a bigot – or just politically expedient?
WHAT FOOLS THESE MORTALS BE!
Puck Magazine was a political satirical magazine founded in 1871. It was infamous and beloved - a magazine of reform that mocked monopolists, corruption, money in politics, bigotry, fraud, and hypocrisy in government. Its home was the Puck Building in Manhattan’s Nolita district of Lower Manhattan. Puck made and unmade politicians, and waged war on corruption. Its successor, … [Read more...] about WHAT FOOLS THESE MORTALS BE!
McConnell is Gaming The System
Pascal’s Wager is one of the best concepts I learned in college [In law school I learned its less useful alternative - it never hurts to ask. Sometimes it does]. If you live virtuously and God exists, then you enter the kingdom of Heaven. If God doesn’t exist, you’ve given up only a few material things. On the other hand, if you act godlessly and it turns out you’re wrong, … [Read more...] about McConnell is Gaming The System
GOP’s Secret 2020 Election Weapon (Cartoon)
When it comes to Russia, McConnell is no patriot
WASHINGTON -- Mitch McConnell is a Russian asset. This doesn't mean he's a spy, but neither is it a flip accusation. Russia attacked our country in 2016. It is attacking us today. Its attacks will intensify in 2020. Yet each time we try to raise our defenses to repel the attack, McConnell, the Senate majority leader, blocks us from defending ourselves. Let's call this … [Read more...] about When it comes to Russia, McConnell is no patriot
Year 1714 CE: The Start of Accurate Temperature Measurements
Prior to Year 1714 CE, people did not have a way to make accurate temperature measurements. From Live Science: "The concept of measuring temperature is fairly new. The thermoscope — essentially a thermometer without a scale — was the precursor to the modern thermometer. . . A thermoscope could show the differences in temperature, allowing observers to know if something was … [Read more...] about Year 1714 CE: The Start of Accurate Temperature Measurements
The English Psycho and Brexit: A Psychological Profile (Extended Analysis)
These are fast and confusing times with technological, societal and economic change spinning our heads in all directions. Most of the changes are improvements, but some aren't and sheer disruption is unsettling. It is a psychological fact that in chaotic times people frequently allow narcissists and psychopaths to rise to the top of organizations, often faster than they do … [Read more...] about The English Psycho and Brexit: A Psychological Profile (Extended Analysis)
MUELLER HEARING (Column and Cartoon)
Mueller time came with a whimper for many and devastation for others. If you have read the Mueller Report or at least paid attention to legitimate news sources over the past few months, then Mueller’s testimony before the Congressional Judiciary Committee wasn’t revealing and didn’t present any new grounds to impeach Trump. You already knew this stuff. However, if you’re … [Read more...] about MUELLER HEARING (Column and Cartoon)
Republicans make it clear: They’re lying about Trump’s innocence
By E.J. DIONNE JR. WASHINGTON -- President Trump and his Republican apologists -- including his defense lawyer who moonlights as the nation's attorney general -- do not believe a single word they have said about former special counsel Robert Mueller's report. The GOP has claimed that it shows "no collusion, no obstruction." But their behavior at Wednesday's hearings, not to … [Read more...] about Republicans make it clear: They’re lying about Trump’s innocence
The Mueller hearing and the death of facts
Lee McIntyre, Boston University Listening to former special counsel Robert Mueller’s testimony on July 24, the nation heard a duel over the facts. Not what the facts imply, not our response to them, but what the facts are. Founding Father John Adams once said, “Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our … [Read more...] about The Mueller hearing and the death of facts
The New Wizard of Oz
Is there any there, there is the question the House Judiciary and Intelligence Committees tried to decide using the testimony of the Special Counsel, Robert Mueller. The two year investigation into Russian involvement in the 2016 election and Trump’s possible obstruction of justice came to an end over two months ago with a report of over 400 pages issued. Extremely circumspect … [Read more...] about The New Wizard of Oz
Cartoon: Mueller testimony
Mueller’s Testimony: Impeachment Accelerant or Anticlimax?
Remember the now-distant days when we Americans who closely track Donald Trump's lies and lawlessness waited in great anticipation for "Mueller Time"? That historic reckoning seemed virtually assured - until Trump's servile attorney general, Bill Barr, falsely spun the Mueller report as a total exoneration of his client. Barr's bumper-sticker mantra, amplified by his … [Read more...] about Mueller’s Testimony: Impeachment Accelerant or Anticlimax?
Trump, Go Back Where You Came From
Don’t let this presidential pickpocket use cruel verbal assaults to distract you from the truth. by Michael Winship Every presidential election year, Frontline, the superb investigative TV series on PBS, produces an in-depth look at the Democratic and Republican candidates. It’s called “The Choice,” and invariably offers some insights that likely you won’t see … [Read more...] about Trump, Go Back Where You Came From
‘Eindstation Auschwitz,’ a Survivor’s Account of Auschwitz, the ‘Final Destination’
"We know that there is only one ending to this, only one liberation from this barbed wire hell: death." -- Eddy de Wind He was one of the approximately 107,000 Dutch Jewish men, women and children who were transported in train cattle wagons to a dozen or more Nazi death camps bearing the now-sinister, odious names of Auschwitz-Birkenau, Sobibor, Bergen-Belsen, Dachau, … [Read more...] about ‘Eindstation Auschwitz,’ a Survivor’s Account of Auschwitz, the ‘Final Destination’
Send GOP congressmen home
If only we could send them back. Republican lawmakers have long cut profiles in cowardice during the Trump presidency, but never before have the consequences of their leadership vacuum been as vivid. GOP legislators professed dismay when a crowd at President Trump's North Carolina rally, riled by his attacks on a member of Congress who emigrated from Africa as a child, … [Read more...] about Send GOP congressmen home
Send her back! (Cartoon)
The politics of fear: How it manipulates us to tribalism
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., respond to remarks by President Donald Trump. J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo/ Arash Javanbakht, Wayne State University People have always used fear for intimidation of the subordinates or enemies, and shepherding the tribe by … [Read more...] about The politics of fear: How it manipulates us to tribalism
Happy Moon Day 50th Anniversary Edition
I already wrote this, and have posted annually for years. There's something a little "different" about this photo. Sadly, most coverage has been nationalistic and jingoistic. Let me tell you this: the moon landing will be remembered long after "USA" has been forgotten. Here's the 47th annual post. (Sometimes known as “A Secret History of Neil Armstrong”) Beware of … [Read more...] about Happy Moon Day 50th Anniversary Edition
The Sahara Desert was once a waterway.
From Gizmodo: "The Sahara might seem like one of Earth’s most lifeless regions today, but its fossils show it was once a vast seaway filled giant fish and some of the largest sea snakes the planet has ever seen. . . During warm periods between 50 million and 100 million years ago, rising sea levels caused a waterway to develop, probably connecting the Gulf of Guinea to the … [Read more...] about The Sahara Desert was once a waterway.