From Time's Mike Allen: "So the White House is now on a survival footing, and Bolten is essentially planning a six-month campaign that will not only prevent a Republican hemorrhage in the fall but might even produce accomplishments for Bush in his lame-duck years." The plan: Deploy guns and badges (referring to a tough policy on illegal immigration); make Wall Street happy … [Read more...] about Bolten to the rescue?

For my fellow Big Love fans out there (or for those of you who just don't get it or who dislike it or are even repulsed by it without even giving it a chance), here's an interesting analysis of a key theme by William Saletan at Slate. He's right, more or less, yet I wonder if he quite grasps the show's intentional irony. The show is immensely entertaining, but beneath the … [Read more...] about Jealousy and polygamy

Well, there's another bin Laden tape. Maybe: A newly broadcast audiotape believed to be from Osama bin Laden slams the West for cutting off funds to the Palestinian Hamas-led government and calls on al Qaeda followers to fight a proposed international force in Sudan. In the tape, aired Sunday in part on Arabic-language TV network Al-Jazeera, the speaker repeatedly blasts a … [Read more...] about Bin Laden on tape, Canada at war

Sheryl Gay Stolberg reports in the New York Times that Democratic candidates across the country are preparing campaign strategies which highlight their support for embryonic stem-cell research. The issue has "cropped up in Senate races in Maryland and Missouri, and in House races in California, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin, especially … [Read more...] about Time to Pass Stem Cell Legislation

In an op ed piece in the Washington Post, historian and former JFK advisor Arthur Schlesinger Jr. looks at President George W. Bush's remaining 1,000 days in office....and is concerned about what he sees. He notes the rumors of a preventive war against Iran and writes this:The issue of preventive war as a presidential prerogative is hardly new. In February 1848 Rep. Abraham … [Read more...] about George Bush And Preventive War: More To Come?

Did it give you bad vibes as it did him? … [Read more...] about Osama Bin Laden’s Latest Message

Then here are some examples. … [Read more...] about Want To See A Pulitzer Prize Winning Cartoonist’s Work?

Should this be kept in mind? … [Read more...] about On The Generals Defending Donald Rumsfeld

Some warn that it is. … [Read more...] about Is The Internet As We Know It At Risk?

Can you call it "All Right, Not All Right"? Taylor Marsh discusses (and we're sure the Bush administration would disagree). … [Read more...] about So What’s The New Leaking Game?

And is it a good thing that prices are going up? More here. … [Read more...] about How Much Would You Pay For Gas?

The Netherlands needs a refresher course on what the word "citizen" means. … [Read more...] about Sub-Citizenship

Is it just me, or does Cardinal Martini's statement on condom use sound suspiciously like Abstinence Plus education? … [Read more...] about I’ve Heard This Policy Before

Hu is reaching out to the Vatican -- which has implications for the U.S. and Taiwan. … [Read more...] about The Vatican, China’s Hu and Taiwan

Trapped methane gases under the ocean threaten to rapidly speed up global warming if they're released. But by how much and how quickly? Amba has the answers. … [Read more...] about Not With A Bang, But With A Burp

In a speech at Boston's Faneuil Hall marketplace (a wonderful part of the city that I frequented regularly during my years at Tufts), John Kerry said that dissent during wartime is patriotic, "a response to Republican critics who insist that questioning the conduct of the war in Iraq emboldens America's enemies," according to a report in The Washington Post. Said Kerry: "I … [Read more...] about Patriotism and dissent

It's not much, but it's something. And, for what it is, it's awfully important: One of the Roman Catholic Church's most distinguished cardinals has publicly backed the use of condoms among married couples to prevent Aids transmission. Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini said that in couples where one had HIV/Aids, which could pass to the partner, the use of condoms was "a lesser … [Read more...] about Prominent Catholic leader defends limited condom use

This is just an addendum to Swaraaj's excellent posts on the situation in Nepal — see links below. ********** It's not a major story here in North America, but the political crisis in Nepal — marked by pro-democracy protests in Kathmandu, a clampdown by state police, and King Gyanendra'a promise to restore democracy — continues. You can find a historical … [Read more...] about The pro-democracy protests in Nepal

Perhaps it's due to changes in "learning tools". … [Read more...] about College Students Seem To Enjoy Getting Their Education More These Days

Who says that just because someone comes from a powerful family (or has friends in a powerful family) that means they not only don't have to make the same sacrifices that other less powerful people seemingly feel they don't have to make — but that they can't DEMAND that they make the same sacrifices? Already he's a role model for many politicians and their relatives who … [Read more...] about Prince Harry Reportedly Demands He Be Allowed To Fight