I have taken a hiatus from writing for weblogs, but I feel compelled to add this small tidbit to the supposed "debate" over immigration into the United States: For those of you/us who were among those fortunate enough to be born inside the United States, whether to parents who were citizens or aliens, legal or illegal, it is important to keep in mind that our very own status … [Read more...] about An accident of birth

It was not a good day for Great Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair whose Labour Party took a beating in local elections — leading to predictions that the cabinet may be reshuffled...and even suggestions that it may be time for Blair to go:Prime Minister Tony Blair's Labour Party suffered losses in Britain's local elections, indicating flagging voter support for his … [Read more...] about Blair’s Labour Party Battered In Local Elections

Last week Dick Meyer, editorial director of CBSNews.com wrote this piece where he discussed the fact that both political parties seem to feel they know what's good for you and will shove it down your throats if they have to. Now, he expands on that theme in this thought provoking essay titled "E Pluralism Unum." Once again, the original column must be read completely. In … [Read more...] about The American Vital Values Deficit

In a MUST READ TRANSLATED ARTICLE on the indispensible website Watching America, Christophe Ayad and Christophe Boltanski, writing in France's Liberation, takes a look at how Al Qaeda's bigwigs are adeptly using the media...and the Internet in particular. A small part of it:Within a week, bin Laden, Zarqawi and Zawahiri have all appeared on the Internet. The Internet is now, … [Read more...] about Al Qaeda’s Invasion Of The Media

It's a battle royal between the Senate, the House, GOPers in the Senate and the House and the White House. And, as the New York Times notes, it could even end in President George Bush casting his first veto:The Senate approved a $109 billion measure on Thursday to pay for the war in Iraq and Gulf Coast hurricane recovery, ignoring a veto threat by President Bush and an … [Read more...] about Senate Passage Of Spending Bill Divides GOP And Risks Bush Veto

Emails from some readers said they enjoyed our first embedded video on TMV, the Lou Costello outtakes. And some wanted more on a classic comedian. So click on the arrow above and see one of the and most popular comedy teams ever — Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis. Martin was the smoother, relaxed singer. Lewis, who idolized the older Martin, did a kind of facial and … [Read more...] about Since You Asked: Another Comedian Tribute (Martin & Lewis)

Emails from some readers said they enjoyed our first embedded video on TMV, the Lou Costello outtakes. And some wanted more on a classic comedian. So click on the arrow above and see one of the and most popular comedy teams ever — Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis. Martin was the smoother, relaxed singer. Lewis, who idolized the older Martin, did a kind of facial and … [Read more...] about Since You Asked: Another Comedian Tribute (Martin & Lewis)

You've gotten a song and dance from the politicians and oil company executives on skyrocketing gas prices so now sit back and enjoy THIS VIDEO cartoon-song from Atom Films: "I Can't Afford My Gasoline." … [Read more...] about “I Can’t Afford My Gasoline”

You rarely see such a good specimen of it in today's climate. Krikey. … [Read more...] about Racism Unmodified

One of the new leafs Bush administration members seem to have turned over is to inch towards more accessibility in less controllable situations. If they're not getting all that pesky publicity about keeping people who disagree from entering, they can then focus on their message. The problem is that if you are in a situation where polls show your support plummeting in terms of … [Read more...] about Rumsfeld Gets Blunt Questions And Follow Ups From Ex-CIA Official

Here's one (at times politically incorrect) view of it. … [Read more...] about The Immigration Debate

I guess I kind of lied when I said I'd be giving round-ups throughout the week. Sorry. Anyway, my computer is back in my hands, but I'm going to Miami this weekend (cue Will Smith music), so full posting probably won't resume until Monday. Thanks for your patience. … [Read more...] about I’m Back In Business

Over at The Reaction, if you'll excuse a quick pointer post, co-blogger Creature takes a critical look at the nature of the White House press briefing. It's become something of an embarrassment, but perhaps the White House itself is to blame. … [Read more...] about Fixing the White House press briefing

The Incredibles has solid advice for Republicans tempted to "take the gloves off" in Iraq. … [Read more...] about Of Power and Principles

Some blogs take an ABC satire alleging to be a memo from White House Press Secretary Tony Snow seriously. (Hey, that happens to best of us. We once took seriously all the memos from readers suggesting a special, dark place where we should stick our computer but we know all of our readers love us...) … [Read more...] about A Big Fat “OOPS”

This is not a lot of baloney. From the AP:Some might call a partially-eaten sandwich ordered by then-Vice President Richard Nixon 46 years ago just a piece of trash. But Steve Jenne thought he saw a piece of history and has held onto it ever since. Jenne retrieved the left-behind buffalo barbecue sandwich after Nixon dined at a political rally in Sullivan, Illinois, during … [Read more...] about Is This The Sandwich Eaten By Richard Nixon?

Nuclear-armed Pakistan has been ranked among the top ten 'failed states' in the world, ahead of Afghanistan and a host of crisis-ridden African countries, in a new world survey released on Tuesday, says the Times of India. While a similar report in the BBC says "Pakistan 'is a top failed state'." Abdul Qadeer Khan, who has confessed to transferring nuclear technology to Iran … [Read more...] about Pakistan: A “Failed State”?

Sorry, I just had to put the title of this post in all caps. The reality of global warming is obvious to many of us, but its deniers occupy the highest reaches of political life and continue to block efforts to deal with it appropriately. Despite all the evidence, these deniers have long claimed that there's just too much uncertainty to reach any definitive conclusion. And so … [Read more...] about THIS JUST IN — GLOBAL WARMING IS REAL!

Someone needs to cut up the Senate's credit cards. Yesterday, that body added several additional spending projects to the "emergency" appropriations bill, sending the overall cost soaring to near $109 billion, making it now $17 billion over the $92.2-billion threshold (plus another $2 billion for avian-flu preparedness) Bush says he'll veto at. Bush reiterated his veto threat … [Read more...] about “Stop Us Before We Spend Again!”

Mexico's President Vincente Fox is doing a quick about-face on signing a controversial new Mexican drug law that would decriminalize small amounts of some drugs — and that could have led to a boost in tourism for Mexico for all the wrong reasons:After intense pressure from the United States, President Vicente Fox has asked Congress to reconsider a law it passed last week … [Read more...] about Mexico’s President Backs Down On Controversial Drug Law