The Last Ayatollah (Maziar Bahari) from Newsweek
"The Green Movement's bloody street protests may not have toppled Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei—but they will."
Loss of Moneyman a Big Blow for al-Qaeda (Stuart Levey) from the Washington Post
"Last month, al-Qaeda was dealt a major blow. In losing Mustafa Abu al-Yazid -- also known as Sheik Saeed al-Masri -- the terrorist organization was deprived of one of its founding members and also its third-highest official. An early confidante of Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri, Yazid has essentially served as al-Qaeda's "chief financial officer," coordinating the group's fundraising and overseeing the distribution of money essential to its survival."
The Beijing Blues: A Rising Power Plagued by Doubts (Fareed Zakaria) from Newsweek
"One complained that even getting meetings with senior officials had become difficult. "By common consent, the country has come out on top after the global economic crisis. ... But in a series of discussions with people in and out of the Chinese government last week, I was struck less by arrogance than by the doubt, uncertainty, and apprehension that seemed to be plaguing the Chinese."
The Ballgame and the Sideshow (Thomas Friedman) from the New York Times
"I adore the Israelis and Palestinians, but God save me from some of their European and American friends. Their grandstanding interventions — like those blockade-busters sailing to Gaza or the wealthy American Jews who fund extremist settlers’ housing purchases in Arab East Jerusalem — often fuel the worst trends on either side and divert our energies from the only thing that is important: forging a two-state solution."
Containment Cap Offers Hope Even as Oil Spews On from the Associated Press via Yahoo News
"The containment cap placed on the gusher near the sea floor trapped about 441,000 gallons of oil Saturday, BP spokesman Mark Proegler said Sunday, up from around 250,000 gallons of oil Friday. It's not clear how much is still escaping; an estimated 500,000 to 1 million gallons of crude is believed to be leaking daily."
Don't Get Mad, Mr. President. Get Even (Frank Rich) from New York Times
"The frantic and fruitless nationwide search for the president’s temper is now our sole dependable comic relief from the tragedy in the gulf. ... Not going to happen. ... That’s not who Obama is. If he tried to go off, he’d look ridiculous."
Dreams from My Stepfather (Blake Hounshell) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"How Indonesia taught Obama to be tough."
Gay? Whatever, Dude (Charles Blow) from the New York Times
"Last week, while many of us were distracted by the oil belching forth from the gulf floor and the president’s ham-handed attempts to demonstrate that he was sufficiently engaged and enraged, Gallup released a stunning, and little noticed, report on Americans’ evolving views of homosexuality. Allow me to enlighten:"
A Guide to the Summer's Senate Races from the Washington Independent
"Below, we’ve mapped out which Senate races to keep an eye on between now and Labor Day and why you should be watching:"
Fate of the 'Tea Party 3' will be Critical to the GOP's Future (Mark Greenbaum) from Salon
"Three Senate candidates will test whether the Tea Party is a fad or a force for the future"
GOP Lags in Early Redistricting from Politico
"Outmaneuvered by the GOP during the last round of redistricting a decade ago, Democrats appear to have an early advantage as the two parties gear up again for the expensive and high-stakes battle over redrawing state legislative and congressional districts. "
This is excellent (and unexpected) news!! Many interesting observations noted in this article.
Elections Aren't for Sissies (Gail Collins) from the New York Times
"Loads of exciting primaries next week! Although it’ll be hard to top the one in South Carolina, where two Tea Party candidates are fighting about a lie detector test and a state senator has argued that racist comments he made over the radio don’t really count since the interview occurred in a bar."
SC-Gov: Is the GOP Out to Get Nikki Haley? from The Week
"As rumors of a second affair plague Haley's campaign, a Republican state senator slings a racial slur at her. What is going on in South Carolina?" ... Why "does every political race in South Carolina look like a screening of Deliverance?"
The main points of this piece sound quite plausible. Sounds like quite the political knife-fight!
SC-Gov: Bauer Challenges Haley to Take Polygraph on Affair Claims from TalkingPointsMemo
"Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer has challenged state Rep. Nikki Haley to take a polygraph to prove she did not sleep with former Bauer consultant Larry Marchant."
What if she says 'no, I won't"? If he takes the polygraph and his statements register as 'true', what then?
SC-Gov: Scandals Turn Politics into Persecution in Pursuit of Perfection (Kathleen Parker) from the Washington Post
"I reluctantly decided to weigh in on the Haley story because therein lie issues of more general consequence. This isn't only politics at its worst. It's a persecution, a witch hunt, a political rape. "All I know to do is fight," said Haley by phone Friday. "Just stay strong and keep a smile on your face. . . . I refuse to let this distract me.""
IL-Sen: More Mistakes in Kirk's Remarks: Errors in Foreign Policy from the Chicago Sun-Times
"Some of the stories Kirk tells on the stump seem a bit too good to be true. When he last ran for re-election to his congressional seat, he got into trouble for saying China was drilling for oil off the coast of Cuba, which was not true, he acknowledged Thursday in a meeting with the Sun-Times editorial board. Speaking to the City Club of Chicago last year just after President Obama authorized the shooting of Somali pirates who kidnapped American Capt. Richard Phillips, Kirk got a whole lot wrong talking about pirates attacking ships off Africa."
The Chicago Tribune and the Sun-Times seem to be tag-teaming on Mark Kirk, seeing which one will lay the fatal blow on Kirk's senate hopes.
NH-Sen: Drill, Baby, Drill (the Coast of New England) from Daily Kos
"Take it as a sign that Kelly Ayotte is worried about losing the Republican primary -- but don't forget to take it as a reminder how horrific a senator she'd be."
MN-Rep: Conservative Darling Short on Legislative Help from Politics Daily
"Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann has more staffers devoted to the media than to legislative issues, an AOL examination shows."
I think this is the first time Ms. Bachman has shown up in a news nugget. The reason for this I suspect is that she has mastered the art of 'wingnut-speak.' She is not in a dialogue with the real world -- and thus is unlikely to make any real news. She's in a dialogue with an alternative universe, one populated by conspirators, detention camps, death panels -- and where Sarah Palin is queen. And, the only way you can stay there full-time is to have most of your staff putting out press releases. When the real world is not your primary focus, what is there to legislate?
STAGE NUGGET!!
'Thurgood' Does Justice to the Man (Review) from The Root
"The portrayal is so alive you could claim with some justification that the great man spoke to you."
NPR RADIO NUGGET!!
"Animal Minds" from Radio Lab on NPR
"When we gaze into the eyes of our pets, it often seems as though we can tell what they're thinking. Can we? Or is it silly to assume they're thinking what we are? Radio Lab looks at what goes on in animal minds."
In Pittsburgh, this is on this evening on WDUQ-91.5 after All Things Considered. The previews sounded quite interesting. Check your local NPR listings.
No comments:
Post a Comment