An ugly thunderstorm over Nashville from several weeks ago. From Americablog.
Obama on Iraq (Joe Klein) from Time Magazine
"Well, at least he didn't announce the end of major combat operations in Iraq under a banner that said "Mission Accomplished." He did it in front of the Disabled American Veterans, the most grave and sober audience imaginable. And appropriately so, after a war that should never have been fought, a war that by some estimates will cost $3 trillion before it's done (including the health care services rendered to those represented by the DAV), a war whose casualties number in the 100s of thousands."
Obama Affirms Drawdown in Iraq (Robert Dreyfuss) from the Nation
"Those who supported the war in Iraq, whether they were bloodthirsty neocons in Dick Cheney’s camp, useful idiots such as Peter Beinart of the New Republic, or iconoclastic weirdos such as Christopher Hitchens, weren’t patriots. They were regime change addicts, imperialists, and worse."
A ripping critique of the Iraq war and its supporters. Mostly on the mark I think.
The Rising Power of the Chinese Worker from the Economist [of London]
"In China’s factories, pay and protest are on the rise. That is good for China, and for the world economy."
How Does Stoning Work in Iran? (Christopher Beam) from Slate
"First, you get buried. Iran's Islamic Penal Code states that men convicted of adultery are to be buried in the ground up to their waists; women, up to their chests..."
Repeal a Tax Cut No One Can Afford (Derrick Z. Jackson) from the Boston Globe
"The tax cuts did nothing to create jobs. The Bush administration promised 5.5 million jobs would be created with his fiscal policies by the end of 2004. But the policies came up 3.1 million jobs short, according to the Economic Policy Institute."
On Medicare's Complicated Birth (Robert Dallek) from American Heritage Magazine
"LBJ passes comprehensive federal insurance for seniors with shrewd politics and a strong dose of compromise."
How the US Learned to Love Healthcare Reform (Sahil Kapur) from the Guardian [of the UK]
"From opposition to acceptance – America's relationship with social programmes is best understood through a historical lens."
We're Still Haunted by Angry White Males (Steve Kornacki) from Salon
"That race has featured prominently in the right’s campaign to derail the Obama presidency is indisputable. Rush Limbaugh has warned that "Obama’s entire economic program is reparations" and that "in Obama’s America, the white kids now get beat up with the black kids
GOP Shows Historic Amnesia on Spending Cuts (Anne Applebaum) from the Washington Post
"We forget that we supported the dictator before we decided to destroy him. Then we can't understand why others, especially the dictator's subjects, don't always believe in the goodness of our intentions or the sincerity of our devotion to democracy.
Domestic policy is no different."
Did Ann Coulter Get Tired of Ann Coulter, Too? (Tom Scocca) from Slate
"Google News does say she went on TV some to yell about the Shirley Sherrod thing, but it was like Branson, Missouri for pundits: "Rick's List"? "The Joy Behar Show"? This is not famous-person television, or even famous-screaming-head-on-the-television television."
AIRPLANE NUGGET!!
Incredible Planes From the Future (PHOTOS) from the Huffington Post
"Take a look at these incredible design concepts for the airplanes of the future. Have you seen other eye-catching ideas?"
ACCIDENTS WAITING TO HAPPEN NUGGET!!
3D Express Coach (Pictures): China Plans Huge Buses that can Drive OVER Cars from the Huffington Post
"Instead of spending millions to widen roads, the Shenzhen Huashi Future Parking Equipment company is developing a "3D Express Coach" (also called a "three-dimensional fast bus") that will allow cars less than 2 meters high to travel underneath the upper level carrying passengers."
Looks really cool -- but I would think it would freak out the drivers it goes over and would have very limited practical utility.
OBITUARY NUGGET!!
Mitch Miller, Maestro of the Singalong, Dies at 99 from the New York Times
"Mitch Miller, an influential record producer who became a hugely popular recording artist and an unlikely television star a half century ago by leading a choral group in familiar old songs and inviting people to sing along, died on Saturday in Manhattan. He was 99."
I remember Miller's show. I hate to say it -- but I thought he had died 20-30 years ago.
ANCIENT EGYPT NUGGET!!
How Cleopatra Won Her Bet from Discovery News
"Cleopatra and Marc Antony settled a wager more than 2,000 years ago. Now, a researcher believes she figured out how the Egyptian queen won the bet."
MEMOIR NUGGET!!
"The following is adapted from "Everything Is Going to Be Great: An Underfunded and Overexposed European Grand Tour," Rachel Shuker's just-published memoir of traveling and living in Europe in her very early 20s."
No comments:
Post a Comment