News Nuggets 806

The Salmon River in California.  From National Geographic.

Inside Syria's Economic Implosion (Stephen Starr) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"Under the weight of sanctions and eight months of protests, the Syrian economy is starting to buckle. But that doesn't mean business leaders will abandon the regime."

Obama Has Kept Iran Threat at Bay, and U.S. Republicans Know It (Mel Levine) from Al Haaretz [of Israel in English]
"Apparently, the Republican candidates for president, led by former Governor Romney, have been so busy talking with each other that they have somehow developed an alternative universe of facts."

Europe's Odd Couple (Timothy Garton Ash) from the Los Angeles Times
"Germany's Angela Merkel wants to double-down on European integration to solve the debt crisis. Britain's David Cameron wants powers to ebb back."

A Cold and Clever U.S. Base Move (Raoul Heinrichs) from The Diplomat
"U.S. President Barack Obama’s sheen may have worn off somewhat in the United States, but not in Australia. Yet amid the handshaking and backslapping, the photo opportunities and exultations of shared values, interests and history, it’s easy to overlook the fact that Obama’s trip “down under” is driven by cold strategic logic: to sell Australians on accepting a greater burden on behalf of their alliance with the United States."

Bishop in Missouri Waited Months to Report Priest, Stirring Parishioners’ Rage from the New York Times
"In the annals of the sexual abuse scandals in the Roman Catholic Church, most of the cases that have come to light happened years before to children and teenagers who have long since grown into adults. But a painfully fresh case is devastating Catholics in Kansas City, Mo., where a priest, who was arrested in May, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of taking indecent photographs of young girls, most recently during an Easter egg hunt just four months ago."
What is it going to take for the Vatican and the Catholic Church leadership in the US to WAKE UP!?  When they allow these types of episodes to occur and to not take the most vigorous actions possible, they set themselves (and by extension their faithful parishioners) up for further pain and fundamental institutional damage!

GOP’s Loose Lips Sinking Their Covert Options (David Ignatius) from the Washington Post
"The language the GOP candidates used was astonishing, at least for people who assume that covert activities are ones that aren’t talked about openly — much less, touted in campaign debates."

GOP Supercommittee Members’ Tax Plan Gives Party an Identity Crisis from the Washington Post
"Growing Republican support for raising taxes to help reduce the deficit has prompted a GOP identity crisis, sparking a clash within the party over whether to abandon its bedrock anti-tax doctrine."

My Brilliant Second Career: How I Fished Myself Out of Crushing Debt (Nick Rahaim) from Salon
"To pay down my $100,000 in college loans, I had to travel as far from academia as I could get -- a boat in Alaska."

As New Graduates Return to Nest, Economy Also Feels the Pain from the New York Times
"...with the poor job market and uncertain recovery, hundreds of thousands of Americans like Ms. Romanelli (and her boyfriend, who also lives with his parents) have tabled their moves. Even before the recession began, young people were leaving home later; now the bad economy has tethered them there indefinitely. Last year, just 950,000 new households were created. By comparison, about 1.3 million new households were formed in 2007, the year the recession began..."

You've Gotta Believe: Duquesne Refuses Formation of Student Atheist Group from the Pittsburgh City Paper
"Nick Shadowen didn't necessarily think his proposed atheist club would be welcomed at Duquesne University with open arms. After all, with 10,000 enrolled students, Duquesne is the state's largest private Catholic university. Still, the university senior thought the proposed Duquesne Secular Society would be approved nonetheless. It wasn't."

High-speed Rail is on the Right Track (Dan Richard) from the San Francisco Chronicle
"...a small number of critics suggests that the plan and this project are inconsistent with the voters' intent when they authorized a high-speed rail system in 2008 and are calling for a new vote. That step is neither required, practical nor good public policy."

10 Reasons Why Obama Will Win in 2012 (David Rothkopf) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"From the GOP foreign-policy debate to Europe's financial crisis, here's why Obama will declare victory next year."

Flubs Are Rubbing Some Republicans the Wrong Way from the New York Times
"...the embarrassing moments are piling up, and some veteran Republicans are beginning to wonder whether the cumulative effect weakens the party brand, especially in foreign policy and national security, where Republicans have typically dominated Democrats."  ... Notes former Reagan chief of staff Ken Duberstein: "It is an Animal House. It's a food fight. Honestly, the Republican debates have become a reality show. People have to be perceived as being capable of governing this country, of being the leader of the free world.""

Feuding Hurts G.O.P.’s Hopes to Win Senate from the New York Times
"... like a number of his fellow Democrats whose fates could determine whether they lose control of the Senate, Mr. Casey’s best asset may be his competition — in his case, a field of nearly a dozen Republicans, many of them unknown or divisive within their own party."

Another Look at Newt: Conservatives Seek the “Not Mitt Romney” Candidate (Milton Wolf) from the Washington Times
"Mr. Gingrich deserves another look from conservatives who once lauded and still benefit from his monumental accomplishments."

Is Newt Trouble for Mitt? (Josh Marshall) from Talking Points Memo
"The big problem for Newt is that Republican power brokers will not let him within 30 miles of the Republican nomination. A win is just too close. Why throw that away on someone as toxic, erratic and unpopular as Newt? Newt is a creature of the conservative Id, churning with resentment and provocation."

E-BOOKS NUGGET!!
Amazon E-Library Is Publishing’s Profit Model (Virginia Postrel) from the Bloomberg News Service
"Amazon.com Inc. is at it again. To the consternation of much of the book industry, the online giant is again offering digital titles for less than major publishers think books are worth. And this time, the price is zero."