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Tuesday, November 17, 2009

News Nuggets 256


Quite the dog house!!


Some nifty pet images today -- we may have a few more later this week.


Obama's Year of Vitriol and Rebuff at Home, Deadlock Abroad. Not a Bad Start (Jonathan Freedland) from the [Manchester] Guardian

"Obama's victory speech at Grant Park may seem a distant mirage. But for all the failings, he can point to real progress."


Russia's Pivot in the Iran Nuclear Issue (Editorial) from RealClearWorld

"From a critical meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart, Dmitri Medvedev, to an escalating proxy battle between Iran and Saudi Arabia on the Saudi-Yemeni border, this was a loaded weekend."


China and US Poised to Break New Ground in Green Technology Partnership from the [Manchester] Guardian

"Barack Obama said the US and China will break new ground in their partnership on clean energy technology during a summit in Beijing tomorrow that will also seek to find a new way forward for global climate talks."


Chinese Gov't Monitors Obama Memorabilia from the Washington Post

"With President Obama in the Chinese capital Monday on the second day of his first state visit to the country, the government seems to have adopted a two-track policy toward Obama memorabilia for sale here. Obama dressed as Superman is in. Obama dressed as a Red Guard is out."


The Global Reset Button from the Times [of London]

"Former Vice-President Cheney, it turns out, stood firm and erect and shook the Emperor’s hand. Mr Cheney worked for an Administration that inflicted immeasurable damage on America’s global reputation. Mr Obama leads one that finds itself challenged on every front, but still has the potential to turn its initial promise of enlightened leadership in a multipolar world into reality."


Obama Opposed to Stupak Amendment from CNN

"As Democrats on Capitol Hill are trying to avoid a brewing intra-party battle over treatment of abortion in health care reform legislation, a top presidential adviser is reiterating that President Obama remains opposed to legislation that contains language preferred by more conservative Democrats in Congress."


The Obama Diaspora from New York Magazine

"When Barack Obama’s half-brother George releases his autobiography early next year, he may transition from Kenyan bad boy to best-selling author. How are the fellow members of the far-flung First Family adjusting to their sudden associative celebrity?"


Hate Obama? You May Not Be Racist. But You Will Be White (Michael Tomasky) from the [Manchester] Guardian

"The president's critics are not all prejudiced but the crowd is mutating to the extremes. And we have a bad history on this topic."


Hundreds Attend Vigil Outside Lieberman's Home Over Health Care from the Danbury News Times [of Connecticut]

IT'S ABOUT TIME!

"Quietly holding candles, hundreds of clergymen, congregants and reform advocates lined the sidewalks outside Independent U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman's Stamford home Sunday night in a show of support for universal health care."


Dems Poised to End GOP Court Filibuster from RealClearPolitics

This actually happened later in the day.

"Democrats were poised Tuesday to end a Senate filibuster against a controversial appeals court nominee and show Republicans they can't stop President Barack Obama from turning the federal judiciary to the left."


Conservatives Say Gitmo Detainees Would Be Fine in IL, Warn of 'Scaremongering' from Talking Points Memo

"Former Republican Congressman and Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr, David Keene, chairman of the American Conservative Union and Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, have teamed up to urge the Gitmo detainees be taken to the U.S."


Bazooka Joe: Lieberman's Comic Health-Care Ploy (Jonathan Alter) from Newsweek

"A decade ago, Joe Lieberman was a source of great pride for American Jews. Now Jews (who voted 78 percent for Barack Obama) are debating a critical question: why is Joe such a putz? Tough crowd. "Putz" is a Yiddish word for the male anatomy."


Palin's Base Appeal (Christopher Hitchens) from Newsweek

I usually find Hitchens to be arrogant and condescending -- and he certainly is in this article -- but I think there's more truth than usual here.

"The problem with Palin's populism is not just that it stirs prejudice against the "big cities" where most Americans actually live, or against the academies where many of them would like to send their children. No, the difficulty with populism is that it exploits the very "people" to whose grievances it claims to give vent."


One-man Crusade Taking Toll on Ensign from Politico

You know, it is fascinating these days how ONE VERY DETERMINED PERSON -- combined with a modest amount of media coverage -- can create very big stinks for establishment pols! Don't be surprised if some right-wing teabagger jumps into Ensign's reelection bid next year and creates more trouble for him.

"Five months after Sen. John Ensign admitted to having an extramarital affair, the scandal is still in the headlines — in large part because the husband of his onetime lover keeps making them."


Republicans Heading for a Bloodbath in Florida (David Frum) from CNN

"The Republican fratricide in the November 3 special election in upstate New York may prove just an opening round of an even more spectacular bloodbath in Florida in 2010."


Conservative Club for Growth Targets GOP from Politico

The tea party movement -- at it again!

"the anti-tax, anti-big-government group now is positioning itself to be a major 2010 player in Senate races, too, a development likely to cause headaches for both parties."


HISTORY NUGGET [OF A SORT]!!

Hitler? He's just a big softie: The diaries of Mussolini's lover that show what Italian dictator REALLY thought from the [London] Globe and Mail

"Diaries written by the mistress of fascist dictator Benito Mussolini have revealed how he thought Adolf Hitler 'an old sentimentalist at heart'.

The previously unpublished diaries of Claretta Petacci also note Mussolini's fervent anti-Semitism, his disgust at mixed-race marriages between Italians and locals in African colonies, and his anger at the pre-war Pope, Pius XI."



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