Good Riddance to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”
This will make for happier holidays.
We applaud the long-awaited, hard-fought repeal of the destructive policy commonly known as Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell by a Senate vote of 65 to 31. It is good for American society and its individuals, and it’s good for the U.S. armed forces and for national ...
Sanctimonious Purists Unite
“People will have the satisfaction of having a purist position, and no victories for the American people. And we will be able to feel good about ourselves, and sanctimonious about how pure our intensions are and how tough we are.”
—President Obama, in reply to a question about “what your ...
Mary Landrieu Slams “Obama-McConnell Plan”
“I’m going to argue forcefully for the nonsensicalness and the almost, you know, moral corruptness of that particular policy. . . . This is beyond politics. This is about justice and doing what’s right.”
If we had three hats* we’d tip them all to Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu, who today ...
Is Barack Obama a “Manchurian Republican”?
[ cross-posted at Daily Kos ]
Are you a Manchurian Republican? When we sent money to your campaign and went door-to-door to get out the vote and made phone calls for Obama for America, were we helping elect a (soft) Republican? If not, then prove you’re a Democrat.
Thus begins our latest ...
Writing Against the (American) Empire:
A Tribute to Chalmers Johnson
[cross-posted at Daily Kos]
“[Blowback] refers to retaliation for the numerous illegal operations we have carried out abroad that were kept totally secret from the American public. . . . This means that when the retaliation comes, as it did so spectacularly on Sept. 11, 2001, the American ...
Warm Thanksgiving Wishes to You and All
First we’d like to extend a simple, sincere wish for our readers and their families, and all their friends and communities: good food, good health, pleasant company, maybe a few drinks in good fellowship, and better prospects for the days ahead.
As we gather around tables filled with good ...
“So Let Us Persevere . . .”
On the anniversary of the assassination of a peace-seeking, war hero president—and at a time when the arms-reduction efforts of another peace-seeking president are being opposed for only political, not strategic, reasons by a few obstinate Republicans in Congress—we thought it fitting to ...
No “Kumbaya” for Billionaires
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[ cross-posted at Daily Kos ]
Today when the New York Times reports “Tax Cut Timing Is Proving Problematic for Democrats,” we faxed and mailed the following letter to President Obama and sent similar messages to his economic team (Goolsbee, Bernstein, Elizabeth Warren), along with ...
A Failure to Communicate—Not a Failure to Govern
[ cross-posted at Daily Kos ]
Not Good (at All), But Could Have Been Worse
A party that governs well but communicates poorly was set back by a party that obstructs well but is more interested in holding power than in governing.
What could have been a hideous wipeout following a grotesque ...
Yes We’re Voting Tues. Nov. 2.
Not Voting = Not an Option.
Dear readers: We promised recently we’d soon be getting off our donkey and rejoining the Organizing for America phone banks to help get out the vote for Tues. Nov. 2. Our cell phones are recharged and we’re back in action.
Here’s what you can do: Click the Organizing for America web site ...
When Harry Met a Cover-Up:
Shearer Talks about “The Big Uneasy”
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[ cross-posted at Daily Kos ]
We sat down recently with Harry Shearer—that is, we sat down and e-mailed him some questions, and he sat down and wrote some thoughtful replies—to talk about his new film The Big Uneasy, which tells the real story of why New Orleans flooded in Hurricane ...
10th Year of Afghan War Begins
America Slogs On, “Dead or Alive”
Briefly, sadly noted: Today, October 7, 2010, begins the tenth year of the U.S. war in Afghanistan. How’s that hunt for Osama bin Laden going? How’s that expansion into Pakistan going? How much taxpayer-supplied money has the U.S. spent on the war in ...