February 2012
On the president as alien - The Washington Post →
By E.J. Dionne Jr., Published: February 22
They say that President Obama is a Muslim, but if he isn’t, he’s a secularist who is waging war on religion. On some days he’s a Nazi, but on most others he’s merely a socialist. His especially creative opponents see him as having a “Kenyan anti-colonial worldview,” while the less adventurous say that he’s an elitist who spent too much time in ...
The big spenders behind the super PACs - The... →
Super PAC donors revealed: Who are the power... →
Simmons is part of a rarefied group of millionaires and billionaires acting as kingmakers in the GOP contest, often helping to decide, with a simple transfer of money, which candidate might survive another day.
Although many of these mega-donors have long participated in politics, none were able to wield the kind of influence now possible under loosened campaign finance regulations, which allow...
Colorado woman must turn over computer password -... →
Sophisticated encryption software has become so readily available and so effective, it’s surpassed the federal government’s ability to seize computers and gather evidence in criminal cases.
That development has raised questions in a mortgage and real estate fraud criminal case in U.S. District Court in Denver about whether turning over a computer password amounts to a violation of the...
Does AIPAC Want War? Lieberman "Capability" Red... →
Crisis and the creeping militarization of American... →
Earlier this month, Congress passed House Resolution 658, the “Federal Aviation Administration Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act,” which President Obama is expected to sign. One of the over 1,000 sections of H.R. 658 authorizes domestic use of aerial spy drones by the U.S. government.
This is but the latest case of the increased militarization of U.S. police forces....
US Expands Afghan Prison It Promised to Hand Over... →
Israel to US: Talk of Avoiding War Helps Iran --... →
Israeli officials on Monday complained that U.S. officials speaking publicly about their reluctance to start a war with Iran ”served Iran’s interests.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and other senior officials lambasted U.S. national security adviser Tom Donilon, who has been in Israel this week, saying any criticism of Israel’s impending attack on Iran...
Rick Santorum could take Republicans down with him... →
At times, it seems as if Santorum is running to become theologian in chief. He made the bizarre allegation Saturday that Obama’s actions are motivated by “some phony theology, not a theology based on the Bible.” On Sunday, he said by way of clarification that he understands Obama is a Christian, but that the president was somehow misinterpreting God’s truth — as revealed to Rick Santorum —...
Santorum Takes Climate Change Denial To A Biblical... →
Climate change denial has become a litmus test for modern Republicans, but Rick Santorum, in his fondness for melding faith and government, has become one of the precious few to cite the Bible as evidence that the science-accepting crowd has it all wrong — and apparently the first to bring that thinking to the presidential stage.
“We were put on this Earth as creatures of God to have dominion...
The Imperial Way: American Decline in Perspective,... →
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The regime is doubtless a serious threat to much of its own population — and regrettably, is hardly unique on that score. But the primary threat to the U.S. and Israel is that Iran might deter their free exercise of violence. A further threat is that the Iranians clearly seek to extend their influence to neighboring Iraq and Afghanistan, and beyond as well. Those...
Why China’s Political Model Is Superior -... →
So I was having my morning coffee, perusing the headlines as I am wont to do, when lo! I came across this interesting bit of incitement titled, get this, Why China’s Political Model IS Superior. Now hold on right here, ‘merica. IS superior? WTF?! Oh and then you are going to explain WHY it IS, not if it is, or might be, no no no no no, you go on and explain in simple enough...
Daily Kos: Darrell Issa refuses to let woman speak... →
Because Republican Rep. Darrell Issa’s hearing “Lines Crossed: Separation of Church and State. Has the Obama Administration Trampled on Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Conscience?” is a very serious matter that is all about religious freedom and not at all about birth control, no siree, it can only feature the testimony of very serious religious persons whose freedom is ...
“At ease, Christian soldiers. There is no “war on religion,” no assault on the...”
– EUGENE ROBINSON, “Drumming Up A Phony War on Religion,” in today’s Washington Post (via inothernews)
WatchBy defeating the Dallas Stars 3-1 on Tuesday night at Joe Louis Arena, they became the first team in League history to win 21 straight games on home ice in one season.
“We’re thrilled this has happened for our team,” Wings coach Mike Babcock said. “I think it’s really good for our logo, it’s really good for our ownership, our team. I’m proud of the...
Mitt Advocates Taking Healthcare from Retirees to... →
Lt. Col. Davis’s ‘Manufacturing Consent’ «... →
Over the weekend, Rolling Stone magazine published a full copy of the unclassified report that Lt. Col. Daniel Davis submitted to Congress. Davis is of course the army whistleblower who has written and spoken out against the “rosy official statements by U.S. military leaders about conditions on the ground” in Afghanistan, which he claims bear “no resemblance” to the truth.
Unlike other recent...
Last week I mocked the very notion that Iran could successfully attack America and still openly do. Seriously? If, 11 years later our Fatherland >ahem!< Homeland Security is so porous as to allow an Iranian operative into the nation, our tax dollars have been wasted.
Around that time or maybe even before it, the UKs Guardian ran this article that I only stumbled upon a few days ago, which...
Russia and China were never going to let pass a security resolution regarding Syria because of America’s militarism, combined with their view that the Western European nations (read as: NATO) is merely a lap dog for the United States. Russia and China have had bad blood between them for decades (if not centuries) yet both nations seem to have put all that past them as they seek to be a sort...
Iran is the root of all evil - Salon.com →
The Washington Post‘s David Ignatius yesterday reported that Leon Pantta believes there is “a strong likelihood that Israel will strike Iran in April, May or June,” while the Face of American Meritocracy, NBC News‘ Luke Russert, today said that ”NBC can report Sec of Defense Panetta says there’s a greater than 50% chance Israel will attack Iran in the coming months.” If that does happen, many...
I feel magnanimous.
Romney Isn’t Concerned - NYTimes.com →
By PAUL KRUGMAN Published: February 2, 2012 If you’re an American down on your luck, Mitt Romney has a message for you: He doesn’t feel your pain. Earlier this week, Mr. Romney told a startled CNN interviewer, “I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there.”
Faced with criticism, the candidate has claimed that he didn’t mean what he seemed to mean, and that his words...
“Perhaps it is a universal truth that the loss of liberty at home is to be...”
– James Madison
“Of all the enemies to public liberty war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded,...”
– James Madison, “Political Observations” (1795-04-20)
“Show me that age and country where the rights and liberties of the people were...”
– Patrick Henry
“Experience declares that man is the only animal which devours his own kind; for...”
– Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Colonel Edward Carrington (16 January 1787). Or to us present day Americans?
How the GOP Is Resegregating the South | The... →
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Mansfield’s district is emblematic of how the redistricting process has changed the political complexion of North Carolina, as Republicans attempt to turn this racially integrated swing state into a GOP bastion, with white Republicans in the majority and black Democrats in the minority for the next decade. “We’re having the same conversations we had forty years ago in the South, that...
“The State, through counter-insurgency, will do everything in its power to thwart...”
– Occupy Oakland and State Repression
(via solitaryforager)
The Assange Case Means That We Are All Suspects... →
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The consequences, if he loses, lie not in Sweden, but in the shadows cast by America’s descent into totalitarianism.
In Sweden, he is at risk of being “temporarily surrendered” to the US where his life has been threatened and where he is accused of “aiding the enemy” with Bradley Manning, the young soldier accused of leaking evidence of US war crimes to...
