June 1, 2008

The Beginning of the End

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/uselection2008/democrats/2058907/US-Elections-Hillary-Clinton-to-be-offered-dignified-exit.html Hillary Clinton will be offered a dignified exit from the presidential race and the prospect of a place in Barack Obama's cabinet under plans...[More]

"Declaring RSS bankruptcy"

Megan McCardle just came up with the perfect phrase to describe what one should do after a long week away from your feed reader. It's...[More]

June 2, 2008

Asthma And Cockroaches?

Could it be that simple? Maybe....[More]

Adding to McCain's Team

Good to see that McCain has added another reasonable moderate to his campaign staff. Michael Goldfarb, a commentator for the Weekly Standard and now Deputy...[More]

Hey CT Voters... How Ya Felling Today?

The latest in a continuing and apparently unending series... Look at what Sen. Lieberman's best buddy, Pastor John Hagee, had to say about the anti-Christ:...[More]

Flip Flop!

Steve Benen continues his quest to document each and every about face performed by Sen. McCain. Here's just a partial list: Over the last month,...[More]

Meanwhile, In Afghanistan

Here's today's fun stat: According to the outgoing ISAF Commander [Dan] McNeill, NATO needs to deploy roughly 10 times the number of troops it currently...[More]

Quote of the Day III

Scott McClellan's book got all the airtime this weekend, and to some extent that makes sense given his previous connection to this administration. But let's...[More]

Big Barking Dogs

Ross is right - the timing on this simply cannot be a coincidence. Vanity Fair: Over the last few years, aides have winced at repeated...[More]

Whitey!

While I'm on the subject of not-so-well-kept secrets, I think its time to address the rumors about a Michelle Obama tape from Trinity UCC. For...[More]

Field Ops

Ambinder reports on the GOP's efforts to staff up his field operations: The Republican National Committee has hired many of its Victory 2008 directors. These...[More]

Airline Industry Begs For Assistance

WiredNews: The global airline industry is taking a beating these days -- it could lose as much as $6.1 billion this year -- and with...[More]

Bits and Bobs

A few loose ends before I call it a night.... + John McCain is still hopelessly clueless and amazingly hypocritical. + Mitt Romney is still...[More]

June 3, 2008

Over!

AP calls it: Barack Obama effectively clinched the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday, based on an Associated Press tally of convention delegates, becoming the first black...[More]

A Perfectly Clintonian Anecdote

You really can't make this stuff up: As I mentioned yesterday, Vanity Fair dropped a long-awaited article on Bill's exploits since leaving office. Given the...[More]

Bits and Bobs

I've still got to do some last minute lecture prep for tonight's class, so this will have to do for now... + Another day, another...[More]

A Sports Parable

This from Chris Orr is brilliant: A statement from Detroit Pistons general manager Joe Dumars: I wanted to say a few words about the Michigan...[More]

June 4, 2008

Yes We Can? Yes We Have.

There are many, many things that have been said tonight about Obama's historic victory, and no doubt many more will be said tomorrow. And yes,...[More]

Obama Wins. The Sphere Reacts

There were three major speeches tonight, each of them noteworthy in their own way. I'm going to collect a sampling of the best reactions from...[More]

Bits and Bobs

Some non-Obama news for your overnight.... + Wired's Threat Level has much more on McCain's flip flop on his desire to continue Bush's massive expansion...[More]

Montana

On a personal note, can I say that I am beyond ecstatic that Obama clinched the nomination by winning Montana? Because I'm beyond ecstatic. Since...[More]

On the Day Barack Obama Was Born...

Will Bunch: On the day that Barack Obama was born, black people in a number of cities and towns across the United States could not...[More]

McCain's Lost Promise

Via kotkee, David Foster Wallace talks about his new book on the transformation of McCain from a maverick to a standard, flip flopping pol: McCain...[More]

In His Own Words

The Obama bio running in today's NYT is almost too positive to read. But you need to read it, if only so that you can...[More]

Me Too.

Jesse: "We are getting to the promised land that Dr. King dreamed of. I wish he was here."...[More]

WaPo: Clinton Backer Says She's Ready for VP Slot

Here's the subhead from the WaPo homepage: Clinton authorizes her supporters to encourage Obama to pick her if it will help unify party, says Clinton...[More]

Here Comes The End Again!

In the end, this is always how it works. If the party elites get fed up with you, you are done. It took Goldwater to...[More]

Another Day, Another McCain Flip Flop

And this is a good one. Apparently he was for investigations into the response to Hurricane Katrina after he had voted against them. Twice. Does...[More]

Today's Edition of "The Slow-Motion Collapse"

It's been awhile since I've done one of these, what with all the elections news to consider. But this article highlighted by Atrios is a...[More]

Obama Corners Lieberman

Ta-Nehisi Coates says there's something wrong about the fact that he likes this. But what's not to love? Furthermore, during a Senate vote Wednesday, Obama...[More]

"My Friends, Good Evening"

TPMtv is usually good, put this episode is even better than normal. Tonight's Daily Show should be brilliant....[More]

Dap

Ta-Nehisi, my new favorite blogger, has a hilarious post about "the scared art of giving dap." Here's a small part: ...one of the more awkward...[More]

Meanwhile, In Iraq....

First, some background from Spencer Ackerman: At Rep. Bill Delahunt's (D-MA) foreign affairs subcommittee this afternoon, the U.S. Congress heard for the first time from...[More]

With Supporters Like These...

If these are the voters Hillary can bring to Barack's coalition, I don't think he will want them. Or need them. When I first saw...[More]

Quote of the Day II

Charlie Rangel always delivers the goods: "We pledged to support her to the end," Representative Charles B. Rangel, a New York Democrat who has been...[More]

Quote of the Day III

John Cole on McCain's horrible, no good, very bad speech: If a student gave a speech this bad in a public speaking class, not only...[More]

About Those Debts

I have said before that I would be vehemently opposed to the idea of Obama paying off Clinton's debts, but this changes things significantly: As...[More]

June 5, 2008

More On Schweitzer

A very, very thorough take on the idea from FiveThirtyEight.com...[More]

From The Archives

It probably won't surprise anyone reading this to learn that I've spent most if not all of tonight reading and watching stories related to Obama's...[More]

June 6, 2008

"A ninth grader wearing the Medal of Honor around his neck"

Go read this....[More]

A Marxist?

Tom DeLay, speaking today about Obama: "I have said publicly, and I will again, that unless he proves me wrong, he is a Marxist." I...[More]

Permanent Bases

This reaction from Amb. Crocker is being portrayed as if it was some sort of serious pushback. But c'mon people, think literally here. First, the...[More]

Today's Obama News

A whole bunch of stories out today, all demonstrating that this guy is not messing around. Obama Camp Sets New Money Guidelines Senator Barack Obama,...[More]

Phase II

I'm late to this story, and its late in the evening, so I'm outsourcing. First, the setup. Steve Benen: We've been waiting for the Senate...[More]

Stretch

Ben Smith offers a great take on why a 50-State Strategy is so essential: ...the widened battlefield may also force McCain to spend scarce resources...[More]

June 8, 2008

Women For McCain?

The idea that disgruntled Hillary Clinton supporters would vote for McCain is just incomprehensible to me. Exhibit A: Or what about this McCain classic? "Why...[More]

Compare and Contrast

James Calmes, writing on Thursday: Clinton's Road to Second Place: Insiders say control over the campaign resided with a small clique of loyalists close to...[More]

McCain Hates War!

That's the theme of his new campaign advert: One question for the Senator: If you hate war so much, why on earth do you always...[More]

More 50-State Madness

Following up on a topic that came up several times this past week, the NYT has today's must-read: Senator Barack Obama's general election plan calls...[More]

The McCain Report

On dear. John McCain has decided to start a blog, and it looks like Michael "the President is a near-dictator" Goldfarb is going to write...[More]

Graph of the Day

Via Brad DeLong, an amazing graph from the NYT: For 90% of the country - 133.5 million families - the last 6 years have been...[More]

Bits and Bobs

A bunch of randomness for your Sunday afternoon.... + An interesting tidbit from the Senate's Phase II Report on Pre-War Intelligence: Michael Ledeen, a neocon...[More]

June 9, 2008

Working the Refs

I mentioned this earlier in the week, but today's story in the Politico makes it worth a second mention. McCain's people are playing a dangerous...[More]

June 10, 2008

Back to the Future!

Desperation is growing among Senate Republicans, who sent out word today that they would be relieved to somehow prevent the Dems from achieving a filibuster-proof...[More]

The Rise of the Obamacons

Bruce Bartlett, a disgruntled movement conservative if ever there was one, writes about the potential appeal of Obama to his fellow travelers in the new...[More]

Beware Historical Ignorance

It's always baffled me when Bush calls back to Truman as an example of a president he hopes to emulate. Truman, Bush's story goes, was...[More]

Women For McCain, Part II

This story from the Daily Mail makes a nice addition to this weekend's argument. Nothing new here, really. It's all been in the public record...[More]

Debate News

Let me whole-heartedly second Ezra's response to this news: New York's Michael Bloomberg and ABC News have offered to host the first if the (possible)...[More]

Painting Yourself Into a Corner

Kevin Drum is back from his 2-week break, and he's doing some solid analysis of the upcoming campaign. I particularly liked his reaction to this...[More]

This Is Not Who We Are

Once upon a time we stood up against nations that held show trials. Now we have become one. Once upon a time we stood up...[More]

NYT Butchers Another FISA Story

No doubt Glenn Greenwald will rip this NYT story to shreds tomorrow morning. In the meantime, go see Georgetown Law Prof. Marty Lederman's take on...[More]

Jack Abramoff Back in the News

TPMm's Kate Klonick reports: The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released a "proposed" report this morning finding that Jack Abramoff did indeed have...[More]

A Paradigm Shift

Longtime readers know that I'm skeptical that the rising price of gas will have much of an impact on the amount of driving most Americans...[More]

Hillary and Obama Teams Begin Reconciliation

HuffPo: Three Clinton negotiators - all confidantes of the Senator and her husband - have been dispatched to Chicago to spearhead this effort, a source...[More]

Elizabeth Edwards Joins the Obama Campaign?

Yup. TPMe: Obama's speech in Raleigh launching his economy tour is underway, and towards the end, during a discussion of health care, he drops a...[More]

Obama's Troops Have "Ravished our Virgins"

And people wonder why no one takes right wing blogs seriously. Just look at this nonsense: An Obama presidency would signal the final salvo by...[More]

Don't Fuck With Bill Moyers

The man is an old school journalist who served and survived LBJ. You can't ambush him. And it shows just how little you know about...[More]

Stuart Rothenberg Still Misses The Point

I'll give Stuart credit: He's nothing if not consistent. First, some context, courtesy of me back in the days just before the huge Democratic gains...[More]

Bananas Are God's Gift To... Monkeys?

This, via Kottke, is so hilarious that I have a hard time believing it to be real: Kottke responds: I can't wait for the followup...[More]

Uh Oh.

Uh oh. Disgraced NBA official Tim Donaghy told the FBI that referees conspired to assure a seventh game in a 2002 playoff series -- the...[More]

June 11, 2008

Yet More Proof McCain Is A Horrible Campaigner

Also, he doesn't understand YouTube: "That's not too important?" Really? TPM has the McCain camp pushback and the proper response: The McCain campaign is arguing...[More]

Video(s) of the Day

It's called movement building, people: Let's make it two. This one is from back in 2006, but I hadn't come across it until today. And...[More]

Framing

In case you missed it, Obama's speech on the economy from a few days back was a masterful example of how rhetoric can be used...[More]

Loyal Only To Himself

That Obama-Lieberman dustup isn't going away. After Obama gave Joe a good talking to on the Senate floor, Lieberman attempted to come back at him...[More]

Poverty and Crime

As our nation's big cities have broken up public housing projects and dispersed low income renters throughout the Section 8 housing program reforms of the...[More]

McCain's Energy Policies Make No Sense

Yglesias: McCain doesn't seem to favor any changes in federal policy that would lead to reduced carbon emissions. He has no proposals to reduce driving...[More]

1980 vs. 2008

Bob Beckel, who helped manage Carter's campaign in 1980 and Mondale's in 1984, looks back, then ahead, and concludes: 2008 looks just like 1980. The...[More]

Quote of the Day

Afghanistan, the war the Bush administration forgot, is a mess: "We can't win, can't lose and can't leave," said a former CIA official with experience...[More]

Ethnicity and Appalachia

Forget the whole Scotch-Irish thing, apparently. Consider this one big strike against an Obama-Webb ticket....[More]

The "Matthew 25 Network"

While we're on the subject of realignments, this is an absolute must-read. Obama's campaign is conceding nothing to McCain and the GOP. Not a single...[More]

Mac or PC? For McCain, It's Neither

I've highlighted this before, but... McCain doesn't know how to use a computer. I'm with Atrios on this: It's pretty much impossible to have any...[More]

McCain Sends Signals: "On Fire, Keep Clear; Engines Going Astern; I Am Stopped"

I laughed for about 5 minutes when I read this. If he knew how to use the Google, a Google, any kind of Google, this...[More]

Women Painted To Look Like Cows? Huh?

UPDATE: I was wrong about the Kozinski case, and for that I apologize. The Cargol update, however, I still stand by. --------------- It does not...[More]

Exorcism?

You've got to be kidding me. Bobby Jindal, the 36-year old governor of Louisiana who many Republicans see as a rising star, not only believes...[More]

Cheney To Serve in McCain Administration? McCain Says "Hell, Yeah!"

Politico: In an interview he gave to the Weekly Standard's Stephen Hayes in 2006 for Hayes's biography, "Cheney: The Untold Story of America's Most Powerful...[More]

What If They Tell Us to Leave?

I hadn't pondered the domestic political consequences. But David Corn has: In recent days, there has been a spate of news reports on the troubled...[More]

Simple Question, Simple Answers

Borrowing the format from Atrios for a moment here... Joan Walsh asks about this. I answer: Do you try to explain that "baby mama" is...[More]

Bits and Bobs

Some things I missed yesterday: + The DOJ is apparently funneling money for at-risk inner city kids into a golf program run by friends and...[More]

June 12, 2008

KneeGate?

I must have missed that part of last night's game. Fortunately, Bill Simmons didn't, and he's here to set the record straight: Q: What was...[More]

June 13, 2008

Epic

That is the only word that describes what happened tonight at the Staples Center. I mean... just... WOW. We score 14 points in the first...[More]

Rent Seeking Republicans

Go read BenBuck. I think his comment about how observing the reality of Republican politics versus its rhetoric (my words, not his) is particularly interesting....[More]

Limbaugh Gets Smacked Around By Will Bunch

Wow. Limbaugh tried to pick on Philly's Will Bunch yesterday, and for his effort he just got pummeled. ...Which brings me to the substance, such...[More]

Kennedy Saves the Constitution

Security subsists, too, in fidelity to freedom's first principles. Chief among these are freedom from arbitrary and unlawful restraint and the personal liberty that is...[More]

Another Day, Another Flip Flop

I never can quite make up my mind if McCain's problem is that he doesn't remember what he has said in the past, or that...[More]

McCain's Campaign Skills Are Virtually Nonexistent

Josh Marshall is right when he says here that the different primary experiences of McCain and Obama produced two campaign organizations in wildly divergent states...[More]

Graphs of the Day

Sometimes no commentary is necessary: Paul Krugman: Via Kevin Drum and The Tax Policy Center: Let's give that some context. WaPo: Via Ezra Klein: One...[More]

Doom and Gloom for the GOP

Wow. NRSC chairman John Ensign announced yesterday that they won't "waste money" on Senate races in Virginia and New Mexico. He also said their goal...[More]

Quote of the Day

John McCain, today: "The United States Supreme Court yesterday rendered a decision which I think is one of the worst decisions in the history of...[More]

The Only Thing We Have To Fear...

Dahlia Lithwick: The Supreme Court, by a 5-4 margin, determined that neither the president, nor the president plus Congress, could strip detainees at Guantanamo of...[More]

Goodbye, Tim. You Will Be Missed.

Sad beyond words. So much so that I don't know what to say. So... Dana Goldstein: I don't have a lot to say, except that...[More]

50 States, 17 States, Or Both?

You fight in all 50, but with focus: Colorado Florida Georgia Iowa Michigan Missouri North Carolina New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico Nevada Ohio Oregon...[More]

From the Creator of The Wire...

Are you kidding me? David Simon is doing a new HBO mini-series on the Marines First Recon Battalion during the first 40 days of the...[More]

I'm In It To Win It!

Whalen mania!...[More]

June 14, 2008

Sovereignty Now.

Meanwhile, in Iraq.... BAGHDAD, June 13 -- The Bush administration's Iraq policy suffered two major setbacks Friday when Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki publicly rejected key...[More]

A Stupid Mistake, And I Apologize

A few days back, I pointed out the odd case of Judge Alex Kozinski, a conservative federal judge who was discovered to have some bizarre...[More]

Dirt Is His Canvas

This is really, really, really amazing. H/T: A.S....[More]

Finally, Some Consistency!

I could not possibly disagree with this more, but at least Sen. Graham is willing to follow his insane ideas to their logical conclusion: Sen....[More]

More McCain Campaign Incompetence

Yet another example of how his people don't understand the Internet. ABC's Rick Klein reports: Sen. John McCain on Friday abruptly cancelled a Monday fundraiser...[More]

New Politics

When people ask me why I think Obama's campaign has the potential to thoroughly transform politics, I usually respond by talking about the way his...[More]

McCain v. McCain

Matt is right. This is crying out to be made into a TV ad. Hello? MoveOn?...[More]

June 16, 2008

Oil!

I've always wondered if something like this was possible, but because I no absolutely nothing about the science, wonder is all I've been able to...[More]

The National Debt

I see Ross Perot is back, and he's brought his charts with him. Here are three of my favorites. I've made small modifications to each...[More]

Meanwhile, In The War On Terror...

As you read these articles, remember that the point of Habeas Corpus is that it gives individuals accused of a crime the opportunity to appear...[More]

Obama's Fathers' Day Speech

In case you missed it.... MojoBlog described the speech as Obama "channeling Chris Rock" Full text here. Some reactions: Jon Taplin: This is a man...[More]

Poverty and Crime, Part II

Following up on my thoughts about the link between poverty and crime, a post that came as a reaction to Hanna Rosin's new piece in...[More]

"A calm and civilized gathering"

One of the interesting things about realignments is that they are always incomplete. The 1932/26 realignment driven by FDR, for example, didn't shake lose the...[More]

Dear Everyone: please stop this nonsense

A Hilzoy classic....[More]

Cindy McCain Steals Cookies!

OK, not cookies, but cookie recipes. Not once, but twice. Could this campaign be any more incompetent? I'm asking that seriously. UPDATE: That reminds me......[More]

If A Cap Isn't Mandatory, It Is Meaningless

McCain doesn't seem to understand even the basic fundamentals of his own cap-and-trade proposal....[More]

The Big Picture

I keep meaning to mention a new blog I discovered at Boston.com, but then I keep forgetting. Time to correct that. As far as photojournalism...[More]

Wes Clark Takes On McCain

Wow. It's amazing to me how many people conflate McCain's status as a war hero with expertise on national security issues and foreign affairs. Clark...[More]

The Philosopher Kings

Via BenBuck, an amazing trailer for a movie that I absolutely must include in my PoliSci film series. The connection to politics isn't necessarily obvious,...[More]

June 18, 2008

C's Win!

As good as last Thursday's epic comeback win was, this was even better. 39 points? Are you kidding me? And before the next season starts,...[More]

Halliburton

It really never ends with these people, does it? WaPo: Audit Faults KBR's Repairs of Hurricane Damage Efforts by defense contractor KBR to repair hurricane-damaged...[More]

War Crimes

Atrios is right when he says that words matter. It is useful to properly name things: A Senate investigation has concluded that top Pentagon officials...[More]

McClatchy's Must Read Series

An absolute must-read. Here's the setup: For eight months, reporters Tom Lasseter and Matthew Schofield traveled to 11 countries -- from England to Pakistan --...[More]

Quote of the Day II

Today's quote comes from Retired Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba, the man who led the investigation into prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib: "After years of disclosures...[More]

Poverty and Crime, Part III

Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a follow-up to his (and my) previous discussion of Section 8 housing vouchers from one of his readers. I don't know why...[More]

Another Day, Another McCain Flip Flop

A few months back, McCain went after Obama when Barack said that as President he would not hesitate to strike at al Qaeda targets inside...[More]

Bits and Bobs

Catching up on some missed blogging opportunities from last night and this morning... + New swing state polls out today show McCain losing Florida, Ohio,...[More]

"If the detainee dies, you're doing it wrong."

I missed this one when I read through McClatchy's new series on our policy towards detainees in the war on terror: Documents confirm U.S. hid...[More]

It Won't Even Be Close...

Yet more evidence. Kevin Drum sets us up: John McCain's reputation for cross-party moderation has been so ingrained for so long that a lot of...[More]

Whitey!

Ha! Michelle Obama's eyes flicker tentatively even as she offers a trained smile. As her campaign plane arcs over the Flathead Range in Montana, she...[More]

How Torture Kills Americans

Borrowing without apology from Mr. Sullivan:...[More]

Who Knew? The CIA Knew.

TNR has asked James Martin, an international security issues expert at Cambridge University, to dig deep into the Senate intelligence committee report on pre-Iraq war...[More]

Fighting Dems (Updated)

Tougher and tougher: "Democrats are not going to be lectured to on security by the mayor who failed to learn the lessons of the 1993...[More]

About Grad School

Megan McCardle asks a series of complex questions that have one very simple answer: Don't go to grad school until you've spent at least 4...[More]

Quote of the Day

ThinkProgress: At today's House Judiciary Subcommittee on Civil Rights hearing on torture, Lawrence Wilkerson, former chief of staff to Colin Powell, told Rep. Jerrold Nadler...[More]

Meanwhile, In Idaho...

Go read this....[More]

June 19, 2008

C's Win! Take II

If you are a basketball fan, #9 on Bill Simmons' list will be your favorite. If you are a Celtics fan, it will be #5....[More]

The Mars Rover Said Woot!?!

Kottke has the details....[More]

June 20, 2008

Permission Slips From the King

War is in fact the true nurse of executive aggrandizement. In war, a physical force is to be created; and it is the executive will,...[More]

An Odd Line of Attack

Here's a quote from Sen. Obama that the Republican Party decided to highlight yesterday: I think what would be important would be for us to...[More]

Another Odd Line of Attack

For literally decades, the Republican Party has fought tooth and nail against campaign finance reform, framing the opposition as a defense of the First Amendment...[More]

Disgrace

Andrew Sullivan takes on the defenders of Bush's torture regime (in this case, NRO's Peter Wehner) and writes this, a must-quote that stands on its...[More]

Quote of the Day: "shoot-on-sight"

Today's quote comes from Illinois Rep. Mark Kirk, a Republican: "I would much rather have a policy where if we see Obama, there's a shoot-on-sight...[More]

Connect the Dots

Yale Law's Jack Balkin writes in US News: Shortly after the 9/11 attacks, in an early draft of the Patriot Act, Attorney General John Ashcroft...[More]

Oil!

As you read this and this, remember this: "I am saddened that it is politically inconvenient to acknowledge what everyone knows: the Iraq war is...[More]

I Was Wrong

Two items. 1. Thanks to higher gas prices, Americans really are driving less. I expected it to take years if not decades for this to...[More]

Quote of the Day II

David Brooks: This guy is the whole Chicago package: an idealistic, lakefront liberal fronting a sharp-elbowed machine operator. He's the only politician of our lifetime...[More]

Condi is Confused

Attackerman explains: Condoleezza Rice, a woman of integrity and credibility, discusses the no-bid contracts four Western oil companies will reap from the Iraq war: Secretary...[More]

"With the exception of the cross-burning episode..."

I don't even know what to say about this....[More]

Obama's FISA Statement

Like so many others around the sphere, I was initially despondent, but now I am not so sure. Obama's statement: After months of negotiation, the...[More]

June 21, 2008

More On FISA "Reforms"

Yale Law's Jack Balkan is right about this: What gives? Why did Obama stay silent for so long, and why did he finally offer such...[More]

Campaign Finance Reform

Via Atrios, NYT's Francis Wilkinson: Mr. Obama may be on slippery ground because of his previous commitment to stick with the public system. But given...[More]

Weekend Reading

Some bits and bobs to fill your weekend: + Articles like this remind me once again that Paul Krugman should stick to economics in his...[More]

It's the Economy, Stupid

This post is a perfect example of why, if played properly, Carly Fiorina's role in the McCain campaign could turn into a huge liability....[More]

June 22, 2008

No More Bananas?

Noooooooooo!...[More]

I Can't Stand Those Useless Fools

I'm watching the Cosmos marathon on the Science Channel today, and in the episode about the Voyager spacecraft I learned something that I somehow missed...[More]

June 23, 2008

More Cosmos Blogging

Its not even Space Week yet, but there seems to be nothing but planets and galaxies on my TV. Cosmos is, well... Carl Sagan's Cosmos,...[More]

Jukebox John McCain

Steve Benen has a new nickname for Sen. McCain. "Jukebox John," because he changes his tune every four minutes! Steve continues to catalogue McCain's major...[More]

FISA Blogging

A few bits and bobs from over the weekend: Over at Jack Balkan's place, guest bloggers David Kris (Associate Deputy Attorney General in charge of...[More]

Inside a 9/11 Mastermind's Interrogation

NYT had an absolute must-read over the weekend. Here's an excerpt designed to convince you to read the whole thing: In a makeshift prison in...[More]

Menace Tooth Society...

...with Luda-Crest. It starts about 5 minutes in: The Simpsons 1822 You Kent Always Say What You Want Dirty dirty mouth, y'all! When The Simpsons...[More]

Immigration Will Be His Downfall

This guy thinks he's clever, but he's not. The minute other people move to his island paradise, he's going to face a whole host of...[More]

Meanwhile, In Iraq....

Stories like this (via John Cole)make me wonder what would have happened had we not disbanded the army and de-Baathified the government in the early...[More]

Great Moments In Constitutional Democracy and The Rule of Law

Surely this (via Andrew Sullivan) is one of them. From the Closing Argument in Favor of Dismissal of the Case Against Mohammad Jawad, Major David...[More]

Quote of the Day

This one comes from McCain's top campaign advisor, Charlie Black: The assassination of Benazir Bhutto in December was an "unfortunate event," says Black. "But his...[More]

Is McCain The New Rudy?

Joe Biden got it right. Ask Giuliani a question, and what you got back was a noun, a verb, and 9/11. It seems McCain is...[More]

June 25, 2008

Video of the Day

[More]

Lieberman Must Go!

Sign me up for this movement:...[More]

Bits and Bobs

It's the end of the summer semester, so I'm knee deep in grading and last class prep. Here are some missed blogging opportunities from the...[More]

Schweitzer For Veep!

A guy can dream, can't he? "I don't think that's going to be a factor in selection." -- Obama campaign manager David Plouffe, quoted by...[More]

McClatchy: Breakthrough expected in North Korea nuclear talks

What? Talking to our enemies actually works? Say it isn't so! WASHINGTON -- North Korea on Thursday will provide a long-awaited declaration detailing its nuclear...[More]

Are You Kidding Me?

[More]

Non-Political Bits and Bobs

+ This story about collapsing whale populations gives me yet another opportunity to sing the praises of Carl Sagan's Cosmos marathon that I watched over...[More]

June 30, 2008

Bits and Bobs

Summer Session grading is complete, so its time to play catch up. A short and incomplete list of some things I missed these past few...[More]

Taibbi Takes on "Full Metal McCain"

Matt Taibbi's take on Sen. McCain is today's must read. I know I'm repeating myself here, but this kid can write. Here's part of the...[More]

Friedman Asks, I Answer

Yesterday's column from Thomas Friedman is an indictment of our political system that begs a simple question: Why have we gone so of course? First...[More]

Gen. Wes Clark Says the Unsayable

This needs to be added up front.... VoteVet's Brandon Friedman: As we begin the work of counteracting those attacking General Wesley Clark (Ret.) for daring...[More]

"You're not going to hear about it beforehand when the real killer comes"

What does Biggie Smalls have to do with Israel and Iran? Ezra and Tony explain....[More]

Oil!

As you read this, remember what Alan Greenspan once said: "I am saddened that it is politically inconvenient to acknowledge what everyone knows: the Iraq...[More]

"Homosexual misjudged the finish"

This is easily the funniest thing I have read all day....[More]

More on Clark vs. McCain [Updated]

Following on my previous post (with multiple updates!).... some thoughts from around the sphere: Josh Marshall: The McCain campaign's claim that there's any attack here...[More]

The Meaning Of Patriotism

Forget the negative back and forth. Let's end the day on a positive note: On a spring morning in April of 1775, a simple band...[More]

Meanwhile, In Montana....

Have I mentioned recently that the Nature Conservancy rocks? Because the Nature Conservancy rocks: A huge patchwork of privately owned forest in northwest Montana --...[More]

So Much For That Myth...

Nathan O. Hatch, president of Wake Forest University, writing in this weekend's WaPo: For example, students from the top quarter of the socioeconomic hierarchy are...[More]