How We're Doing in the World from the Brookings Institution
"Judged by most standards, America and the world are better off today than they were a year ago when President Obama entered office. While few Americans will forget the fear of global economic meltdown that accompanied the 44th president’s inauguration and the drastic stimulus and triage measures that had to be taken to arrest the economic freefall, public optimism, as measured by a variety of opinion poll measures, has recovered."
Do Not Even Think About Bombing Iran (M. O'Hanlon & B. Reidel) from the Financial Times [of London]
Coming from O'Hanlon (a closet neocon who supported the Iraq conflict) this is rather interesting and it's a point I have long felt myself.
"The strike option ... lacks credibility. America is engaged in two massive and unpopular military campaigns in the region. Given Iran’s ability to retaliate against the US in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is simply not credible that we would use force in the foreseeable future. Tehran, Moscow and Beijing know this."
Beijing's Labor Pains from Foreign Policy Magazine
"Why the conventional coverage of China may be missing the most interesting story of all."
Learning from History: Israel is Taking a Beating on the International Stage (Editorial) from the Editorial Board of the Jerusalem Post
"In this neck of the woods, where pieces of land, and especially religious landmarks, are often drenched with meaning for two or more faiths, and where men of violence are eager to exploit any opportunity to foster hatred, even the semblance of a change in the religious status quo can trigger a cycle of conflict and confrontation."
Back to the Crash: The American Economy Has Just Had Its Worst Decade Since the 1930s from the Economist [of the UK]
"Taking the decade between 2000 and 2009 as a whole, growth was slower than in previous decades. These figures, compiled by Christopher Wood, a former journalist with The Economist and now a strategist at CLSA, a Hong Kong-based investment group, provide stark reminders of various aspects of the poor performance the American economy demonstrated during the “noughties”."
GOP's Kyl Vows Senate Will Pass Jobless Benefits Extension This Week from the McClatchy News Service
"Congress will pass legislation aimed at keeping certain jobless benefits, highway and transit money and other government programs funded, Sen. Jon Kyl, the Senate's number 2 Republican,said Sunday."
The HealthCare Summit: A Waste of Breath? from the Economist [of the UK]
"Barack Obama’s bipartisan summit on health policy accomplishes more than meets the eye."
The Inkblot Test: Do Democrats have 217 votes, or don't they? from the New Republic
"Does this mean reformers finally have the upper hand? No. But a variety of administration officials, congressional staff, and lobbyists have said in the past few days they feel the odds for passage are higher than they have been at any time since January, when Scott Brown’s victory in Massachusetts took away the Democrats’ filibuster-proof margin in the Senate."
A New Low for the Cheneys and Their Friends (Joan Walsh) from Salon
"While the GOP bashes Obama for adopting Bush terror policies, the U.S. makes gains against the Taliban and al-Qaida"
National Journal's Vote Rankings for "Most Liberal" in Congress from the National Journal
More than anything this showcases how few real progressives there are in the Senate. I simply don't get Chris Dodd as a genuine "liberal." This is the man who as the minority leader on the Senate Banking committee signed off on bankruptcy "reform" back when the GOP was in charge; this was one of the biggest gifts to the credit card companies in decades!
The Party of George Wallace? (Scott Horton) from Harper's Magazine
"They reflect a brand of reactionary Republicanism that stands far to the right of Reagan, and is a sharp repudiation of the legacy of Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Eisenhower. Are they the party’s future?"
GOP's Moderate Poised to Gain Ground in Congress from the Los Angeles Times
It'll take more than one vote on a jobs bill before I buy this line.
"With healthcare legislation mired in partisanship, "tea party" activists on the march and GOP leadership dominated by conservatives, Capitol Hill looks like a parched landscape for the withered moderate wing of the Republican Party. But green shoots are sprouting in Washington and on the campaign trail."
ENVIRONMENTAL NUGGET!!
Ten Things You Can Do to Shrink Your Carbon Footprint from the Nation
"Individuals can be a powerful engine for change by demanding green products and reducing consumption of fossil fuels. This can make you healthier and save you money too, says Mindy Pennybacker, editor of GreenerPenny.com and author of Do One Green Thing: Saving the Earth Through Simple, Everyday Choices, to be published in March. Here are some of her recommendations for small steps that make a big difference."
SNAKE NUGGET!!
How to Catch a Giant Python from the Daily Beast
"The Everglades, overrun with huge reptiles, is about to host its first-ever open season on snakes. Catharine Skipp nabs her first python—and gets out alive."
HOLLYWOOD NUGGET!!
Out of the West: Clint Eastwood's Shifting Landscape (David Denby) from the New Yorker
"Being underestimated is, for some people, a misfortune. For Eastwood, it became a weapon. Certainly, no one meeting him in his twenties, before his movie career began, would have seen much more than a good-looking Californian who loved beer, women, cars, and noodling at the piano—a fun guy to hang out with."
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