Pakistani Reports Capture of Taliban Inner Circle from the New York Times
This continues to be an important developing story. Two things are in play here that I have not heard mentioned: First, the US and Pakistani intelligence authorities are clearly working together at a pretty high (and effective) level. I view this as another significant difference Obama's presence in the White House makes. For PR reasons alone, Pakistani authorities found it almost impossible to work closely with the Bush folks for fear that they would be savaged at home. Not nearly so much with Obama. And two, as the Taliban's areas of control shrink combined with Obama's conciliatory tone and more nuanced treatment of muslim communities in Afghanistan and Iraq have, I suspect, led to a flood of good intelligence which in turn has led to greater success in capturing or assassinating Taliban leaders. I may be wrong, but I think it only a matter of time before Mullah Omar and bin Laden himself get captured or wiped out.
"Mullah Kabir is a member of the Quetta Shura, the small group of leaders who direct the Taliban’s operations and who report to Mullah Muhammad Omar, the group’s founder."
EU Plans Massive Sanctions Against Iran from Der Spiegel [of Germany in English]
"The EU is preparing tough sanctions against Iran's energy and financial sectors, according to a confidental list of proposals drawn up for EU foreign ministers and obtained by SPIEGEL ONLINE. The measures, aimed at forcing Iran to back down in the nuclear dispute, would have a dramatic impact on the economy."
China's Alternative to Communism and Democracy: Enter Confucius from the Christian Science Monitor
"In the Cultural Revolution, “Confucius” was often just a label used to attack political enemies. Today, Confucianism serves a more legitimate political function; it can help to provide a new moral foundation for political rule in China."
Compared to Europe, the US Can at Least Make a Pretense at Democracy (Gary Younge) from the Guardian [of the UK]
"Nation states have been superseded by greater forces. Greece's people are now seeing the naked disregard for their will."
A very interesting take on the importance of the disputes in Greece this last week. It definitely forecasts some future problems for the EU.
Martyrdom Interrupted from The National Interest
"The former head interrogator in Iraq goes undercover in Indonesia to learn the secrets of their top-notch interrogation program. To win the battle against terrorism, violent extremists must be converted into antijihad advocates. Learn how a country can become terror free."
Sudan to Sign Darfur Ceasefire Deal from Aljazeera English
"Sudan's largest opposition group is set to sign a peace deal with the government that could end the conflict in Darfur."
It's interesting how most US news sources have completely ignored this story.
Blacks and Education: What We Learn (Opinion) from The Root
"In 1960, more than 40 percent of adult whites were high-school graduates compared to 23 percent of adult blacks. That’s nearly a 20 percent gap. Now, black and white high-school graduates are nearly the same—87 percent for whites and 83 percent for blacks."
Obama Stays on Offense with Health-Care Proposal from the Washington Post
Not meaning to quibble, but has he ever been on offense with health care? If he was, I guess I missed it.
"There had been rampant speculation that the White House would narrow its ambitions for health-care legislation after the loss of the Democrats' filibuster-proof Senate majority last month. Instead, the president's proposal is striking for the extent to which it hews to the basic scale and framework of the bills on which Congress has toiled for months."
The President's Punchy Proposal: How His Health Care Bill Is Better (Walter Shapiro) from Politics Daily
"The President's Proposal represents a significant improvement over the original Senate legislation. Rather than eviscerate the Senate bill in a last-minute quest for a mythical middle ground for compromise, the White House surprisingly and seriously addressed the major flaws in the legislation."
Health Care No Stranger To Reconciliation Process (Julie Rovner) from NPR
"Health care and reconciliation actually have a lengthy history. "In fact, the way in which virtually all of health reform, with very, very limited exceptions, has happened over the past 30 years has been the reconciliation process," says Sara Rosenbaum, who chairs the Department of Health Policy at George Washington University."
Steele's Spending Spree Angers Donors from Politico
This has been one of the more interesting developing under-the-radar stories concerning the GOP's money situation. They are WAY BEHIND the Dems right now -- and the Tea Baggers have added very little to their coffers despite their enthusiasm. I'll be curious to see how this unfolds at election time.
"“Michael Steele is an imperial chairman,” said one longtime Republican fundraiser. “He flies in private aircraft. He drives in private cars. He has private consultants that are paid ridiculous retainers. He fancies himself a presidential candidate and wants all of the trappings and gets them by using other people’s money.”"
Senate Advances Jobs Bill After Collecting Five GOP Votes from the Washington Post
"Five Republicans, including new Sen. Scott Brown (Mass.) joined 57 Democrats in voting to proceed on the jobs bill, after a suspenseful buildup in which members of both parties wondered whether Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) could cobble together enough votes to proceed."
Conservatives Turn Venomous on Scott Brown Over His Vote for the Jobs Bill from Americablog
No surprise. Many people forget that Brown is up for reelection in TWO years. Voting like this puts him in jeopardy in MA GOP primaries -- but (if he continues along these lines) enhances his chances for reelection in the general.
"Congratulations to Comrade Scott "Marxist" Brown on Voting For Bolshevik Jobs Bill. ... You're aiming for a 1 term seat eh? forgot, you can just run next time as a democrat."
The Quest for Innocence and the Loss of Reality in Political Journalism (Jay Rosen) from PressThink at New York University
"In a word, the Times editors and Barstow know this narrative is nuts, but something stops them from saying so — despite the fact that they must have spent over $100,000 on this one story. And whatever that thing is, it’s not the reluctance to voice an opinion in the news columns, but a reluctance to report a fact in the news columns, the fact that the “narrative of impending tyranny” is ungrounded in any observable reality, even though the sense of grievance within the Tea Party movement is truly felt and politically consequential."
Conor Friedersdorf has a good follow-on to Rosen's critique HERE from True/Slant
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