News Nuggets 782

A child walking on mirrors at the "Beyond the Vision' exhibition in Beijing.  From the Atlantic.

U.S. Troops to Leave Iraq by Year’s End, Obama Says from the New York Times
"President Obama said Friday that the last American soldier would leave Iraq by the end of the year, bringing to an end a nearly nine-year military engagement that cost the lives of 4,400 troops and more than $1 trillion, divided the American public, and came to define America’s role in the world."
I must say: I did not expect this.  I was expecting that there would be some agreement between Obama and Malaki to keep some large group of troops/"trainers" in Iraq.  The phrases "zero troops in Iraq" and "the Iraq war is over -- like REALLY over!" are EXTRAORDINARY!!

In Defense of 'Leading From Behind' (Tom Switzer) from the New York Times
"Whether it was worth doing in the first place is debatable and how it will end remains to be seen. But it looks as if the Obama administration is scoring a victory in Libya. A brutal tyrant has been overthrown; the heavy use of air power, including drones, was highly effective; a broad, international coalition remained united; and there was no loss of American lives. Perhaps “leading from behind” is not an oxymoron after all."

Is Obama Still Weak? (Michael Tomasky) from the Daily Beast
"The GOP loves accusing Obama of “leading from behind,” but Michael Tomasky says that’s looking pretty good after Gaddafi’s death."

The Politics of President Obama’s Iraq Withdrawal Decision (Chris Cillizza) from the Washington Post
"President Obama’s lunchtime announcement that all American troops will be out of Iraq by year’s end will produce a series of political reverberations — some of which we know and some that, quite frankly, we don’t."

U.S. Approach Highlights Obama, Bush Differences from the Washington Post
"How President Obama helped bring about the end of a long-standing American antagonist in Libya captures in microcosm the vast difference in the way he and his predecessor, George W. Bush, have employed diplomacy and military power against their declared enemies."

Former Libyan Dictator Found Hiding in a Sewer Waving a Golden Gun from the National Post [of Canada]
"Gaddafi called the rebels who rose up against his 42 years of one-man rule “rats,” but in the end it appeared that it was he who was captured cowering in a drainage pipe full of rubbish and filth."
My first reaction was that he died/was killed like one of these really bad James Bond villains.  Even now, I could easily see Harvey Keitel playing the part.  But the more I hear, the more his end seems just simply pathetic -- a pathetic, sad end to an evil, quivering old man.  The National Post has a disturbing,  in-depth graphic laying out how it happened HERE.

Do Gaddafi, bin Laden and Al-Awlaki Still Think Obama is a Wimp? (Jonathan Kay) from the National Post [of Canada]
"By prevailing against Gaddafi, Obama arguably has chalked up just as many victories against Middle East tyrants as George W. Bush — and at considerably less cost in lives and money."

Syrian, Yemen Opposition Buoyed by Gadhafi Death from CNN
"Inspired by the death of deposed Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi in Libya, demonstrators took to the streets of Syria and Yemen on Friday filled with a renewed sense of purpose to end the regimes there."

Death of Qaddafi Revives Opposition in Syria (Anthony Shadid) from the New York Times
"The death of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi reverberated across Syria on Friday, reviving protests that had begun to stall and focusing attention on a newly organized, unarmed opposition group seeking to challenge the Assad family’s four decades of rule."

You Have To Admit the Economy’s Getting Better (Annie Lowrey) from Slate
I admit nothing.  As regular readers know, my pessi-meter reads well into the red zone right now.  But I hope she's right.
"No, no, I know. It seems as if everything is getting worse again. ... And it certainly doesn’t feel as if things are getting better. ... Even so, a spate of new data suggest that the trends, at the least, might be looking up for now, and the possibility of a double-dip recession might be fading."

A Skeptical Physicist Ends up Confirming Climate Data (Brad Plumer) from the Washington Post
"Skeptics cheered the effort. ... The Charles G. Koch Foundation even gave Muller’s project $150,000 — and the Koch brothers, recall, are hardly fans of mainstream climate science. So what are the end results? Muller’s team appears to have confirmed the basic tenets of climate science. "

American Crossroads: Obama’s ‘Class Warfare’ Message Is Working from Talking Points Memo
"American Crossroads, the big money GOP group founded by Karl Rove, is warning Republicans that President Obama’s new campaign to raise taxes on millionaires is a political winner. Under the header “Obama’s New Class Warfare May Resonate,” the group’s director, Steven Law, cited their own polling data in a strategy memo to argue that the White House was gaining ground with its proposal to raise taxes on the wealthy."
Who knows?  Let's hope Bush's brain is right for once!

It’s Hard to Hate these Occupiers (Harold Meyerson) from the Washington Post
"Despite the best efforts of trained pundits, working feverishly to convince the public that these are not people you’d want running the republic or dropping by for lunch, Americans seem remarkably unperturbed by the menace of Occupy Wall Street. In fact, the majority supports the protesters."

The 2012 Candidates, Running for America’s Next Top TV Personality (Kathleen Parker) from the Washington Post
"Now we judge a candidate’s worthiness for public office as much according to his stage performance as by his plan to balance the budget. Scorecards include hair, makeup, wardrobe and body language. In other words, the leader of the free world has to be someone we want to watch. Is he or she good TV? The problem with this question is that the answer means nothing that matters."
Parker doesn't come out and say this directly (it's implicit) but this is largely a GOP problem.  I think Republicans sold their souls on this issue when they embraced Ronald Reagan and his approach to campaigning and governing. They gave him a pass on way too many areas of substance where he knew little or simply faked it.  Make no mistake -- based on recent histories of Reagan's presidency, he actually ended up being way more substantial as president than many liberal critics care to admit.  The problem is that Reagan convinced GOP voters and the next generation of GOP politicians that all you really needed was a winning personality, a good hair stylist, a ready quip, and a top-flight PR firm to have a very successful political career.  Since Reagan, the GOP road has been strewn with empty suits who achieved status and power that FAR EXCEEDED their abilities.  It began slowly with figures like Dan Quail and, with the assist of FOX News, has accelerated dramatically in the last decade.  Conservatives have shown themselves the MOST SUSCEPTIBLE to the superficial blandishments Parker mentions.  Seemingly, more than anything, Republicans want leaders who can "play the role" or "look the part" (remember Fred Thompson?) -- all the rest can be improvised or faked.  As Rick Perry shows, this view doesn't hold up.  On the Dem side, neither John Kerry nor Al Gore made for especially compelling TV. A clear-eyed look at the current crop of GOP candidates will tell you that Romney and Huntsman are the only ones who have the inner tools, experience, and knowledge that they should even be considered for the big chair.  The rest are poseurs hoping they can make it through another day without having to face a real question.

The Birthers Eat their Own (Dana Milbank) from the Washington Post
"Say what you will about the birthers, but don’t call them partisan. The people who brought you the Barack Obama birth-certificate hullabaloo now have a new target: Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, a man often speculated to be the next Republican vice presidential nominee. While they’re at it, they also have Bobby Jindal, the Republican governor of Louisiana and perhaps a future presidential candidate, in their sights."

SMALL BUSINESS NUGGET!!
Bitter Brew (Michael Idov) from Slate
"I opened a charming neighborhood coffee shop. Then it destroyed my life."