I'm autistic, so I've never been able to work well with others in a field of my choice. I was able to reach a level of Junior at Beloit College (Wisconsin) but I just couldn't understand algebra, so I never got a degree. I was a paperboy, so I perused the LaCrosse Tribune at a young age, especially the political cartoons and comics. I cut my adult teeth on TIME magazine. I have read widely and well, but not with any guidance other than my own interest. I've always been drawn to the most challengeing questions about life and have fought great battles within myself, which makes me more of a liberal than a conservative. I joined News Trust after I started reading the Daily Briefing on the Doonesbury webpage. I'm trying to get my thoughts out there.
It's very authoritative because Dean spent time at the nexus of political power in the Nixon Administration witnessing the stress of a war gone bad during a scandal. The implications of his insight should satisfy many of Obama's supporters who want to prosecute war crimes. Presidents can't always do what is right.
The interview itself is only moderately interesting, but my attention was caught by the participants. Alternet is one of my favorite organizations, and Liliana Segura is one of their best writers. My daughter has read Howard Zinn's Young People's History. I am impressed enough that I will probably be one of the two million to buy the adult version.
I am slowly increasing my political activity. I signed up today for a meeting in Des Moines about the subject of universal medical care.
This is a four-page article that lays out the comparison between our situation now and that of Germany after WWI. Talk about fascism has been co-opted by the right since the election of Obama. Nancy Pelosi has been compared to Hitler, and Obama to Madoff, but the danger of fascism has not gone away. It is good that Freeman has brought up the subject again in a serious way, continuing the watch begun during the Bush presidency. Democracy is by no means safe.
I have been an underachieving student of the World Wars and the politics surrounding them, and the one thing I am sure of is that it can all happen again. It terrifies me to think that human nature could be unbridled again, and this time with even more destructive ability. The right-wing obstructionists seem very confident that they won't be trampled.
Excuse the excitement very much but there isn't much to this story. It's about 5% news and 95% hyperventilation. The headline is just the most depressing example of shoddy journalism. This thing was posted on msnbc.com too with no editing. It appears that General Electric is pissed over the drubbing Jim Cramer took. Also, the bosses at NBC told the troops not to mention the Cramer debacle, and even Olbermann and Maddow had to obey.
The election of Obama hasn't done anything to improve the quality of journalism in the MSM. I am astonished to hear and read the crap that passes for public debate these days. Someone suggested some new law to regulate the media. I concur.
Is it the kind of journalism that sells these days? No, it's only 5 miles from the border of naivete, and you can almost feel the emotions of the writer. There isn't enough of the big-shot authority in it to convince people who don't like to do their own thinking. The writer is just too excitable at a time when it's best to be more cynical. It suggests that Obama-Clinton-Mitchell want to, and have a chance to stand up to the raging bulls of the Middle East while lifting up those who have been trampled by the bulls, and change US policy toward Israel. It's great journalism, but it doesn't sell.
I believe that Israel has become a raging bull, surrounded by raging bulls, fed by its keepers who sharpen its horns, and is poked at mercilessly until it has no sanity left. The horror story of Gaza should give all the bulls pause to think about where all this hate will end. Now may be the last time the world will get a chance to tame the bulls of the Middle East.
I think it's very timely as conservative talk radio is under scrutiny because of Limbaugh's confession. The article deserves wide distribution for its examination of the situation in California, which is often the harbinger of things to come nationwide. I like it because it doesn't stray into ideology or opinion, but just tells it like it is right now. I offer my appreciation to the writer for helping me keep my attention on this important aspect of our pollitics.
Wouldn't it be great if most of conservative talk radio listeners just got bored and quit listening to that crap? What a great alternative to the Fairness Doctrine or other regulations along that line!
Just the kind of thing we need but on a larger scale. A cooperative effort which puts the reality of political life into the spotlight without undue recrimination. It really brings up the question of whether we have the political will to solve some of these problems facing our public servants or will we continue to let them come up with their own solutions, which inevitably go against the public interest.
The door was cracked open by Reagan and thrown open by Geo. W. Bush. It's every man for himself, and audacity is the word. This could go on for decades or centuries. The time for regaining conrol of our own system of government is coming to an end, and will take a furious public uprising to beat the clock.
I like this article because it puts the arrow right into the heart of its subject, and because it came through several portholes before it got to me, Progressive Populist, The Institute for Southern Studies, and Buzzflash. It's like hearing a name for your disease. You don't like it, but at least you know what it is. It's not JUST racism, it's oligarchy. Bob Corker knows how to get to the top and stay there. You put on your spikes and climb up there on the backs of your fellow man, and then you walk on them some more if they try to grab your leg.
This is what many Southerners of means (and some of no means) would never admit to Chris Matthews, but carry around in their heads every day. They think it's right, and they are gleeful about it.
It is like a voice (or two) crying in the wilderness, "Make zero tolerance the basis of your Middle East policy". I comes loud and clear from the tiny crevice between those who claim "This land is my land.' and those who claim, "This land is my land". It is a plea arising from the horrendous putrid rash that continues to develop and worsen in the lands so many refer to as "holy". This has been going on during my whole lifetime, and has forced me to abandon any sense of faith, while it has eroded whatever hope I started life with. The hope I have left is in tune with the "still, small voice" that Elijiah heard on the mountain. " Insist upon zero tolerance of new Jewish settlements in Palestinian territories", it seems to say..
This is legitimate critcism from the progressive community about an issue that has gained in urgency every year since Ronald Reagan. Segura treats it with the intensity it deserves while showing no trace of anger or frustration. The separation of church and state is as important to democracy as voting rights are.
It's hard to tell what Obama might be up to. My guess is that he wants to lead the world into the next phase of development, and he knows he has to deal with people who actually believe in God. My hope is that he is not afraid of God, so that he can speak to religious people in their own language while making decisions based upon the whole truth as we know it so far. I support Barry Lynn and Americans United for Separation.
It asks a good question, even if it doesn't fully answer it, but then how can one fully explain why McCain is such a dick? My theory is that he is suffering from dementia, and all those around him are being studiously clueless like those around Reagan in the late White House years. Who has the clappers necessary to remove a belligerent momma's boy from such a position of influence? At least Mike Madden has the cohens to fly at the subject on an oblique course, and I commend him for it. Did I mention that it was really well-written?
Seriously though, McCain revealed his whole personality when he said "I screwed up" on David Letterman. I'm sure he said that every time he was called on the carpet during his Navy career. He is just a lovable screw-up who has stumbled through his padded world like the drunken sailor that he is.
As an intelligence report it is hard to find fault. Behind the report is a courageous reporter and behind him, the courageous defenders of human rights, including the officials of the SPLC. It shouldn't be surprising that there are hate groups in the world, given the fact that the world itself is a vicious place. The surprising thing is that there are so many people who are struggling to establish a new kind of world in which terror, hatred, and viciousness have all but died out. The only way this could possibly be done is for those who hope for that kind of world to face the danger, experience the terror, and feed the "good wolves" of our nature by supporting groups like the SPLC. This report and the illustration that goes ... More »
This is a journal entry that makes its author feel good about himself but doesn't have much connection to reality. It's Frank Barnes' opinion, and that is all. He is in a distinct minority that still believes that the Bush tax cuts have kept the economy from tanking even more deeply than it has. It's irrational to find nothing good to say about a man whose political talents outshine Clinton and even Reagan. Roosevelt and Lincoln were dead before I was born, so I won't invoke them. It's absurd to claim that "Obama specializes in knocking down straw men" when the real champion of that tactic was G.W. Bush. We are not facing straw men, they are more like concrete men, and none of them have been even badly chipped so far. ... More »
Barack Obama has the most potential of any recent political leader. I can't understand why Barnes has his snout so twisted around. Does he make over $250,000 a year? I can understand why a person making several million a year might be afraid of Obama, but fear is no excuse for loathing. Let's be honest. The rich think they deserve to have all the money. Fred Barnes is just saying that they are justified in that belief.
It's journalism. Anybody can keep a journal. A stupid person will keep a stupid journal. The problem these days is there are pleny of publications that are willing ot publish stupid journal entries. The fundamental assumption of the article is that the cartoon is racist. It isn't necessarily racist. It does condone and even encourage assassination. The cartoon is drenched in violence of various kinds, violence against animals, police brutality (one shot would have killed the chimp), and hatred of political enemies. The telling point is that the cops knew the chimp wrote the stimulus bill, but they shot him anyway (it couldn't be helped). The raw ugliness of the chimp, the weird symmetry and precision of the bullet ... More »
It is what it claims to be, a letter from Atlanta, a mysterious place utterly unknown to me, a far-north white small-town boy. Somehow, in a tiny space, Cobb manages to give me a flavor, a whiff, of what it might have been like to be black in Atlanta. He does it by making me look through the milky corneas of an old black woman who lived in Atlanta her whole life. An act of charity, a spark of interest, and an attitude of humility made this remarkable piece possible. Though it certainly could have been longer, its title lends credibility to its length.
Journalism is sometimes expressed or defined simply by what one writes in his or her journal. Some people might use a journal like a twitter account, and others might fill their journal with facts. The only standard for journalism is the quality of the writing, and if the writing is good enough it should be published. Thanks to EbonyJet for publishing this excellent journal entry, and to Derek Hawkins for submitting it.
This article grounds itself in the recent past and makes a good projection into the near future of what dangers we face as a democracy because of the violence-loving right wing of the now practically defunct GOP. Ironically, in preparing for the permanent Republican majority, the Bush Administration handed over a military honed to a razor's edge in Iraq, and plenty of precedent for violating and ignoring the Constitution in the name of national securtiy. A civil war would be the most dire threat to national security short of an invasion from another solar system. Obama has already shown that he is not afraid to use the military to kill people if they are deemed a security risk.
Eight years of pandering to the gun-loving Southern white male and the sudden reality of a black woman in the White House has turned the veil the militant insurrectionists have been wearing during the Bush era transparent . They have been wanting a race war for decades, and they want to pick the Civil War up where it left off. Terrorism in the Southern states, insurrection in the region, and sabotage will be rooted out just like it was in Iraq. Glen Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Ann ... More »
Chris Hedges puts himself in line with Naomi Wolf and Naomi Klein among others whose urgent warnings about the future permeate every line. The age of optimism is over, the age of denial is not. Hedges has an impressive world view, and he is not afraid of criticism. This article lays out the likely course of events that even the National Security establishment is beginning to make public. It is looking more and more like those who cashed in during the Bush years were aware of the coming disaster and got out just in time.
I've been a pessimist all my life, but never a cynic. Optimism seemed too much like denial to me. Because of that I am prepared to live well even through a depression, not because I have money stashed away, but because I have always lived well within my means.
My compliments to the Boston Globe for featuring this economics special report. Dean Baker has thought this through in the course of his research and produced a superb article laying out the way to regulate the economy in a fair and deliberate way, forsaking the "more or less" regulation model that has only served to obfuscate the motives of the political factions. What more can you ask of a reporter?
I worked through the golden years of labor, and I benefitted greatly from regulations allowing unions to strike and engage in collective bargaining. This may have allowed unions to go a little too far, and resulted in everybody else above us on the food chain to demand more. As Baker says, regulation, free from ideology, can be easily changed or adjusted. Fastened to ideology it's either/or, and that can be seen in the Republican desire to eliminate unions. They should actually ... More »
This seems to be Barney Frank himself, that's the way he talks, but to see his thoughts in writing is even more impressive. Only someone of his stature on the national stage could bring this subject up in public without losing his seat. The military is a scary institution, and has been joined by industry, corporations, financial institutions, and government itself in greedy competition for money and power. Unless there is a great reckoning led by the Obama Administration and this Congress and supported by a majority of the people, we will see an ever-poorer nation and world in the future. Those who have already gotten theirs won't be much affected, but those living on the edge or just with the minimum comforts will feel it ... More »
Defense spending is insurance, and health spending is not, or should not be. To those who think that military spending or wars are economical I ask, then why have so many nations gone bankrupt fighting them? Wars cost money, and the military serves no purpose if there is no war. It's a luxury that we can still afford, but at this rate of spending, we will likely lose our house.
This is a clear mismatch between one journalist who is trying to entertain people who don't know how to think (Goldberg) and one who works very hard to keep the truth in front of people who do (Boelert). Obviously Boelert has the more difficult and time-consuming task. For anyone who has the time, patience, and interest, Boelert's criticism of Goldberg's criticism of the press is very rewarding. It is the tactic of the misunderstood conservative writer's club to hide the obvious so that their ideology can be considered as the only available belief system. Their truth is buried under 6 feet of lies. The obvious advantage of lying all the time is that you never have to admit it, whereas if you try to tell the truth, you ... More »
I'm so sick of lazy idiots spouting off on TV, radio, and in the newspapers, and getting paid handsomely for it. In the same spirit of new regulations for the banks and the financial system, we should be looking at new regulations for the corporate media. Rule #1: Those caught lying three times should be fired.
Despite its deliberately informal and self-deprecating style, this article is a sophisticated but futile attempt to take on the advanced cancer that is killing America. Just like Rome, we are now in a position where we may be only able to choose amongst the disasters we need to find our way out of the hell we have created in the name of "democracy" and "capitalism". As the author points our, these things are not easy to contemplate from the inside. I have been able to watch it from inside because I am autistic. Lonliness and despair in my case are products of my brain organization, and massive lonliness and despair are products of societal organization. We work because we are forced to work in order to preserve our ... More »
This article had a special impact on me since only recently I visited my neighbor who has been a citizen for 30 years in rural Illinois, but is from a village in Mexico. He described his childhood and the culture in Mexico and claimed that we, himself included, are slaves of the multinational corporations. This is not news, of course, but with the looming failure of the industrial system in America, is it any wonder that Americans are terrified?
I read this article three times. I seldom do that, and I love it when a writer is that interesting. Seymour resolves some of the perplexity attendant upon the attitudes and positions that writers and politicians who could have been called "liberal" before 9/11 apparently abandoned their positions in favor of invading Iraq. I can't summarize the piece easily because its logic is systemic. You must begin at the beginning and read all the way to the end. Then repeat as needed.
The idea that Christopher Hitchens is a whore appeals to me. Granted, I don't know him as well as Sean Penn does, and I don't have that serenity of mind that Obama has. I sometimes think all the veteran reporters and columnists should be fired and young people hired. Whether far right or far left, it seems that very few of those writing at the time of 9/11 clung to their principles. That is unless their principles welcome a return to American Imperialism.
It is somewhat whimsical and half-serious, which makes it neither funny nor profound. I get a whiff of Thomas Friedman when the parade of point support goes by. The reasons for the public's switching parties can't all be put in the spending category. Carter lost the election on national securty and macho grounds. The article doesn't treat transitions from Republican to Democrat regimes, which at least leaves me suspicious of his point.
Ronald Reagan increased the size of government and increased the budget by more than all of his predecessors combined, but there is no mention of that in the article. I find it a little difficult to make the leap from the price of a blue-plate special to the cost of government. Whether spending improves the lives of people, and who those people are has some bearing on the case.
I don't usually review interviews, but this subject is one that is unresolved in me, and the interface of these two characters is so interesting and almost amusing, like I'm having an argument with myself, or my old self with my new self. It seems odd to me that people who believe that we will someday escape the solar system or discover new habitable planets and occupy them would think that we can't solve the problem of nuclear waste and safety.
Coming of age in the sixties surrounded by threat radiation, I have been suspicious of nuclear power, but on the other hand, the facility at Byron, IL on the Rock River holds a peculiar fascination with me. If we are to convert to clean energy before the tipping point, then we had better get started, and coal plants, liquified or solid, are not the answer.
I don't usually review interviews, but this subject is one that is unresolved in me, and the interface of these two characters is so interesting and almost amusing, like I'm having an argument with myself, or my old self with my new self. It seems odd to me that people who believe that we will someday escape the solar system or discover new habitable planets and occupy them would think that we can't solve the problem of nuclear waste and safety.
Coming of age in the sixties surrounded by threat radiation, I have been suspicious of nuclear power, but on the other hand, the facility at Byron, IL on the Rock River holds a peculiar fascination with me. If we are to convert to clean energy before the tipping point, then we had better get started, and coal plants, liquified or solid, are not the answer.
Chris Hedges comes down somewhere between the two Naomi's. He has no doubt about his convictions, and his conversation with Sheldon Wolin has only reinforced his belief. The underlying truth of the crisis is that there is a lot of money floating around, but people have no faith in it. The stimulus is made up of phantom value, and more of it will be demanded in the future. When Americans and other peoples finally perceive that they have lost practically everything, they are going to be very angry.
I have been expecting a depression my whole life. I heard and took to heart the stories of my elders from the time I was a kid. I have made certain that I and mine will have something to eat if everything goes under. We are just animals, after all.
I certainly appreciate the information, and hope that it is just a symtom of the kind of reporting we will see in the future from all our media outlets. It is characteristic of the quality often achieved when two or more reporters collaberate on a complicated investigation and report.
I have been suspicious of globalization since the Reagan presidency and GHWBush, who touted the concept from the bully pulpit. The only ones to gain from it are those who occupy the top tier of the global elite who have no interest in individuals who cannot help them get more wealth and power. Globalization is the mechanism by which this upper crust has stolen my money and has no fear of ever being tried for it.
I might recommend it to those who are opposed to the inclusion of loan guarantees to nuclear and coal interests. It isn't long enough to be excellent journalism. It's barely news at all, rather good news for a narrow interest group and some much needed publicity for NIRS.
Back when John Edwards was running for the nomination I encouraged him to back nuclear energy. Unfortunately he was focusing his energy elsewhere. It seems to me that nuclear advocates could have been solving problems concerning the environmental impact of nuclear plants, nuclear waste problems, and standardized constrution methods since 3 Mile Island. Apparently no progress has been made, so I have dropped my support for more nuclear plants. I see four trains of 130 cars each ... More »
I've been reading The New Yorker for years. David Remnick is one of my favorites. But seldom does any article make the tears flow like this one. The story of John Lewis in the context of the civil rights struggle and the election of Barak Obama brings the magnitude of these events into better focus. The human brain has a limited ability to generate emotion, otherwise people like Lewis would collapse or have convulsions living through the inaugural days. The power is deftly captured by Remnick and then released through the written word. Even to me, far from the epicenter, the strength of it is awesome.
As a white kid raised in Wisconsin, I could not comprehend what was happening in the South, or assess the courage that decendants of slaves needed to survive there. It was only later in life that I fully realized that the activity we called "making a nigger pile" (all of us piling on top of each other), had a horrible parallel activity in the south (killing African-Americans and making a pile with their bodies). I haven't faced police dogs, trenchants, chains, and fire hoses, but I ... More »
I've been reading The New Yorker for years. David Remnick is one of my favorites. But seldom does any article make the tears flow like this one. The story of John Lewis in the context of the civil rights struggle and the election of Barak Obama brings the magnitude of these events into better focus. The human brain has a limited ability to generate emotion, otherwise people like Lewis would collapse or have convulsions living through the inaugural days. The power is deftly captured by Remnick and then released through the written word. Even to me, far from the epicenter, the strength of it is awesome.
As a white kid raised in Wisconsin, I could not comprehend what was happening in the South, or assess the courage that decendants of slaves needed to survive there. It was only later in life that I fully realized that the activity we called "making a nigger pile" (all of us piling on top of each other), had a horrible parallel activity in the south (killing African-Americans and making a pile with their bodies). I haven't faced police dogs, trenchants, chains, and fire hoses, but I ... More »
Dean convinced me that Obama had to "about face" on the release of the photos because it would embarrass the national security bureaucracy, and he needs them to carry out his agenda.