The Republican 2016 Presidential sweepstakes now has a new front runner: Ben Carson, according to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll: Ben Carson has surged into the lead of the Republican presidential race, getting support from 29 percent of GOP primary voters, according to a brand-new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll. That's the highest percentage any GOP … [Read more...] about Poll: Ben Carson is the new Republican Presidential Nomination Front-runner
Keystone Pipeline: Canadian firm asks for postponement
After Obama staff says he will rule before leaving This morning (six hours ago, Eastern time), Reuters reported that President Barack Obama is expected to make a decision about the TransCanada Corp. petition for the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline before he leaves office. A half-hour ago, the Wall Street Journal reported that TransCanada Corporation sent a letter to the … [Read more...] about Keystone Pipeline: Canadian firm asks for postponement
Bad news for Bush: his campaign revamp has little impact on social media
By Angela MoonNEW YORK (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush's attempt to revive a campaign hit in recent weeks by falling opinion poll numbers and drooping fundraising did little to improve sentiment toward him on social media, signaling even more hardship for the struggling candidate.Hashtags such as "JebCanFixIt" started actively trending on social media on … [Read more...] about Bad news for Bush: his campaign revamp has little impact on social media
America is already great, Mr. Trump
Donald Trump's campaign slogan is "make America great again". Inspiring as those words may seem, they are actually a call for returning our country to a time of bigotry, discrimination and privilege. Mr. Trump likes to refer to those struggling as "losers". He has made disparaging remarks about undocumented immigrants from Mexico. He seems to view women as objects or … [Read more...] about America is already great, Mr. Trump
What’s behind US Special Forces in Syria? A new realism
So what's the reason the Obama administration has shifted its policy on Syria? The Christian Science Monitor puts it into perspective in a way you won't get from reading many liberal and conservative ideological websites: President Obama’s foreign-policy realism is on full display this week on two fronts related to Syria. First, the United States sat down Friday with … [Read more...] about What’s behind US Special Forces in Syria? A new realism
The Science Emperor’s New Clothes
Hans Christian Andersen’s fable "The Emperor’s New Clothes" has a humorous ending. A child points out a piece of reality that the adults wouldn’t acknowledge. What is humorous is the fact that the child is far less educated than the adults. The child in this fable acts the way that scientists are supposed to act. Scientists are in the business of making observations and … [Read more...] about The Science Emperor’s New Clothes
(Update) Marine Sgt. Rafael Peralta: A Medal Too Far?
Update: U.S. Marines, Sailors, and guests honor the American and Navy flag during the USS Rafael Peralta christening ceremony at General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine, Oct. 31, 2015. The destroyer was named after Marine Corps Sgt. Rafael Peralta who was killed during the second battle of Fallujah in 2004. U.S. Marine Corps photo Sgt. Gabriela Garcia … [Read more...] about (Update) Marine Sgt. Rafael Peralta: A Medal Too Far?
Sanders and O’Malley Express Reservations On Troops On Syria While Clinton Flip Flops On Another Issue
Barack Obama's decision to send limited troops into Syria has shown the predictable divisions in the Democratic field. Bernie Sanders and Martin O'Malley have expressed strong reservations, while Hillary Clinton has taken only seventeen days to flip flop on her position regarding troops on the ground. The Washington Post reported on Sanders' reservations: Presidential … [Read more...] about Sanders and O’Malley Express Reservations On Troops On Syria While Clinton Flip Flops On Another Issue
These Judges Don’t Put Defendants into Prison
By Walter Brasch HARRISBURG, Pa.—By Tuesday’s election, the seven candidates for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court will have spent about $10 million. Their expenditures can be seen in lawn signs decorating almost every part of the state’s landscape, in millions of full color postcards, some as large as 8-1/2 x 11, mailed to almost every voter in the state, and in TV … [Read more...] about These Judges Don’t Put Defendants into Prison
Politix Update: GOP Tries To Shoot The Messenger But Hits Itself In Debate Flap
In yet another manifestation of the Republican Party being trapped in an alternate universe of its own making as its chances of taking back the White House in 2016 diminish because of the black hole it has worked tirelessly to become, the party leadership and its feckless roster of candidates have now gone postal over presidential debates. The problem, of course, is entirely … [Read more...] about Politix Update: GOP Tries To Shoot The Messenger But Hits Itself In Debate Flap
The real GOP divide
MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Maybe our definition of the Republican presidential contest is a little off. It's often cast, accurately enough, as a choice between "outsiders" and "insiders." But another party division may be more profound -- between Republicans who still view the country's future hopefully, and those deeply gloomy about its prospects. The pessimism within … [Read more...] about The real GOP divide
‘Joe, Tomorrow’ Is a Portrait of a Beloved Boxer in His Own Words (Tokyo International Film Festival 2015)
5/5 It shouldn’t work. By all textbook, school-assignment parameters of the effective movie, this should not be as gripping as it consistently is. Why? How? By the twenty-minute mark, I stopped asking, sat back, and simply started listening. Directors often say that the essence of cinema is a face talking. No film testifies more to this than Joe, Tomorrow, a … [Read more...] about ‘Joe, Tomorrow’ Is a Portrait of a Beloved Boxer in His Own Words (Tokyo International Film Festival 2015)
Israelis remember Rabin, but forget what he stood for
Israelis remember Rabin, but forget what he stood for By Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM–Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin was murdered twenty years ago not by a fanatical Palestinian foe but by an ostensibly pious and patriotic Jew. Though it’s not possible to speculate about what Israel would be today had Rabin stayed alive, it is possible to suggest that the murderer, Yigal Amir, … [Read more...] about Israelis remember Rabin, but forget what he stood for
Owner of Orange County Register files for bankruptcy protection
Freedom Communications Inc., owner of the Orange County (Calif.) Register, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Sunday, and its publisher said he plans to lead a bid to acquire the troubled newspaper company. The company said it filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court's Central District of California. Rich Mirman, Freedom's chief executive and publisher, and other… … [Read more...] about Owner of Orange County Register files for bankruptcy protection
Republicans and Immigration Reform: Your cheatin’ heart
My, my. Republicans do go on about immigration and immigration reform. You and I and others with ears and eyeballs have noticed over the years that the right really doesn't want reform. The value of cheap and sometimes virtually slave labor pouring in over the border to clean our California houses and staff our tourist services and labor on our ranches and farms from … [Read more...] about Republicans and Immigration Reform: Your cheatin’ heart
Cartoon: Liberal Media
See great cartoons by all the top political cartoonists at http://cagle.com. To license this cartoon for your own site, visit http://politicalcartoons.com … [Read more...] about Cartoon: Liberal Media
Bush-Rubio rivalry intensifies in Republican nomination race
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Neither Jeb Bush nor Marco Rubio emphasized the need to do well in Iowa in the early months of the 2016 presidential campaign. But that’s changed as their rivalry intensifies and pressure mounts to emerge from the Feb. 1 caucuses as the favorite among mainstream conservatives. Neither has visited Iowa as… … [Read more...] about Bush-Rubio rivalry intensifies in Republican nomination race
Kevin Drum on Bald-Faced Lies in GOP Debate
Kevin Drum explores the preparation failure of CNBC's Becky Quick on Mother Jones. I think we all know what happened here. Someone on Quick's staff prepared some notes that included the quote, but didn't specify where it came from. So when Trump denied saying it, Quick was stuck. Now, sure, the staff work here was bad, and Quick should have been better prepared. … [Read more...] about Kevin Drum on Bald-Faced Lies in GOP Debate
Josh Marshall on GOP Outrage Machine
Josh Marshall unmasks Republican "betrayal" in a debate co-sponsored by the RNC and a right-leaning cable network on Talking Points Memo. Republicans say that the debate was a disaster because the moderators were too hard on the candidates, focused too little on substance and made the debate a showcase of media bias. But let's get real. The debate was co-hosted by the RNC, … [Read more...] about Josh Marshall on GOP Outrage Machine
“From my cold dead hands”
How well I remember when Charlton Heston said those words in 1998 after being elected president of the NRA. I was a third year history major at Florida Atlantic University. I remember wanting to become a teacher so that I could "arm" my students, not with guns, but the with historical knowledge of the reasons for the inclusion of the "right to bear arms" in the Bill of Rights … [Read more...] about “From my cold dead hands”