Is another surge the best answer?

I listened to President Obama’s speech on Afghanistan last night, and I remain unconvinced.  Yes, there were definitely some things that represent a positive change in policy — more Congressional oversight, no more “no-bid” contracts come to mind immediately, as does the reality of whether we can afford the financial drain an open-ended commitment implies.  [...]

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Wow, that was a surprise…

Although I’m still taking pain meds, I feel like I’m reasonably lucid and beginning to heal.  My jaw dropped when I learned this morning of President Obama’s selection for a Nobel Peace Prize.   I agree with those who say that it wasn’t based on accomplishments, at least not yet, but I’m most curious to learn [...]

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Pot, meet kettle

It seems that Chris Wallace’s nose is out of join because President Obama has chosen not to appear on his Sunday show.  He’s calling the White House the biggest bunch of crybabies he’s ever seen in 30 years.  Hmmmm, do I detect a hint of projection here?  Seems it’s Wallace and Fox News who are [...]

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NEWS FLASH: An openly gay justice?

Wow!  Is Sen. Jeff Sessions going way out on a limb with his fellow Republicans when he says that he wouldn’t necessarily oppose a gay, pro-choice Supreme Court justice.  Wonder how soon Rushbo will take him to task and force him to recant.  After all, Eric Cantor is now denying that the Republican rebranding effort [...]

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The Torture Memos — UPDATED

UPDATE: Remember Gen. Taguba?  His report on the abuses at Abu Ghraib (and that they resulted from more than just a few bad apples) led to him being forced out of the Army, much like happened to Gen. Shinseki.  Well, here’s an interesting article linking the common values of human rights advocates and the US [...]

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Another GOP canard

The other day we were treated to Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) going all ballistic about how SecDef Robert Gates, and by extension President Obama, were “gutting” the military.  That piece of hyperbole is to be expected from the far right, who rarely let facts get in the way of their sound bytes.
Just in case you’ve [...]

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When do we get the regulations?

Perhaps I’m just impatient.  Perhaps Treasury needs to staff up first.   But rather than trying to figure out “legal” ways to restrict salaries and bonuses for the folks in companies getting public bailout funds, I’d much rather see Congress work on re-regulating the system.  Sure, it doesn’t fuel populist anger like taxing bonuses does, but [...]

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Science is cool again

Yesterday, President Obama announced that science is once again COOL!  He signed a memo declaring that science would guide decisions by his administration, not ideology.
And no sooner did he announce that than Eric Cantor came out blustering that taxpayer money would be wasted on unproven research.  One wonders whether Rep. Cantor is that ignorant, of [...]

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Middle East Irony

The Obama administration has sent numerous signals that it intends to be more engaged in the Arab-Israeli peace process towards a two-state solution.  Yet at the same time, the newly elected Israeli government that has signaled that pursuing a two-state solution is not a high priority.  Meanwhile, the Palestinians are, once again, caught in the [...]

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Catalyze. He said catalyze!

More evidence that our new president is an educated adult.  Not only that, but he thinks we’re adults, too.  When President Obama used that word last night, I whooped with joy. Not only that, but he pronounced nuclear proliferation correctly, without even the hint of a stumble.  So nice to have an adult in charge.
Listening [...]

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