DAYLEE PICTURE: This on-target cartoon comes from Alas: A Blog.
UP-FRONT GOVERNMENT BENEFITS NUGGET!!
Reconstituting the Submerged State: The Challenges of Social Policy Reform in the Obama Era (Suzanne Mettler) from the Department of Government at Cornell University
"Respondents were asked, first, whether they had “ever used a government social program, or not.” Later, they were asked whether they had ever benefitted personally from any of 19 federal social policies, including some that belong to the “submerged state” and others that are visible and direct in their design and delivery. Table 3 presents the percentage of beneficiaries of each of several policies who reported that they had never used a federal social program."
The following chart comes from this study:
"With Syrian cities under fire and residents saying life is ever more unbearable, President Bashar al-Assad set a date later this month for a referendum on a new constitution, the state-run SANA news agency said on Wednesday, a gesture apparently designed to offer some kind of government-controlled change after almost a year of the most sustained crackdown in the so-called Arab Spring."
Russia Nuclear Disaster Narrowly Averted In Submarine Fire from Reuters via the Huffington Post
"Russia came close to nuclear disaster in late December when a blaze engulfed a nuclear-powered submarine carrying atomic weapons, a leading Russian magazine reported, contradicting official assurances that it was not armed."
Nazi Baggage Complicates Germany's New Role as the 'America of Europe' (Bernd Ulrich) from Die Zeit [of Germany in English]
"Germany is gradually taking on the role in Europe that the U.S. has long played on the global level: As the country that uses and occasionally misuses its power, is to blame for everything, is supposed to save everyone, and which has to endure insults for how it goes about doing it. … But there was one thing the Americans could never be accused of: sending six million Jews to their deaths and plunging half the world into war."
Pakistan’s Musharraf Has Been Accused of Knowing Osama bin Laden’s Hideout (Bruce Reidel) from the Daily Beast
General Ziauddin Khawaja, an ex-security chief for Pakistan, accuses former president Pervez Musharraf of knowing where bin Laden was hiding and saying nothing."
News Corp. Civil War Shows No Signs Of Ending; Company Gives Anonymous Sources To Police from the Huffington Post
"The Times, one of Murdoch's own papers, revealed Tuesday that News Corp. has given the names of some of its journalists' anonymous sources to police. The report, which is behind the paper's paywall online, is sure to cause another round of internal skirmishing within News Corp., which has broken out into what some are calling a "civil war.""
The Rich and the Not-So-Rich Republicans (Harold Meyerson) from the Washington Post
"Republicans have reached their 1984. I don’t mean this in the Orwellian sense, though Republicans have more than their share of Orwellian impulses. Rather, I mean that the kind of divisions that have
characterized Democratic presidential primaries since the 1984 contest between Walter Mondale and Gary Hart have now popped up in GOP primaries as well: This year, Republicans are dividing along lines of class."
Adulthood, Delayed (Derek Thompson) from the Atlantic
"The Great Recession postponed financial independence for millennials, and altered the idea of what it is to be grown up."
A Widow’s Wisdom (Timothy Egan) from the New York Times
"In Walla Walla, Wash., same-sex marriage finds an unlikely Republican champion."
Drumming up a Phony War on Religion (Eugene Robinson) from the New York Times
"Just how has this “hostility to faith in America” manifested itself? ... In his speech at the annual National Prayer Breakfast, Obama cited New Testament scripture in arguing for economic and social justice. Conservatives blasted him for, um, quoting the Bible. This is a war? This is a march to the guillotine? Romney and Gingrich know better; they’re just cynically pandering to religious conservatives. "
Mormon Baptism Of Wiesenthal Kin Sparks Jewish Outrage (Howard Berkes) from NPR's news blog
"Two decades of anger, apologies and agreements have failed to keep the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from ending posthumous Mormon baptisms of prominent Jews and holocaust victims. In the latest incident, the parents of the late Simon Wiesenthal, a survivor of a Nazi death camp and an advocate for holocaust victims, were baptized in a Mormon ceremony."
If I were Rick Santorum, I would demand that Romney give his opinion on this and the general principle of Mormon baptism of the dead. As a former bishop of the Mormon Church, Romney was very much involved in this process. So ... does he agree with this process (which, if yes, would almost certainly further alienate the evangelicals more than they already are) or not (which, given his status as a former bishop would make him look like a pandering hypocrite). Romney loses this conversation no matter what he says.
Preschooler’s Homemade Lunch Replaced with Cafeteria “Nuggets” from the Carolina Journal Online
"A preschooler at West Hoke Elementary School ate three chicken nuggets for lunch Jan. 30 because a state employee told her the lunch her mother packed was not nutritious. The girl’s turkey and cheese sandwich, banana, potato chips, and apple juice did not meet U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines, according to the interpretation of the agent who was inspecting all lunch boxes in her More at Four classroom that day."
IF TRUE, this is astounding. However, I will say there is something a little off about this story. It smells just a little bit of a "set up."
Poll: Catholics' Approval of Obama Little Changed from Gallup
"Catholics' views of President Obama were little changed during a week in which the administration battled publicly with Catholic leaders over whether church-affiliated employers should have to pay for contraception as part of their employees' health plans."
Poll: Obama Holds Edge Over GOP Hopefuls from CBS News
"President Obama holds a significant lead over each of his potential Republican opponents in the general election, according to a poll released Tuesday by CBS News and the New York Times. That includes Mitt Romney, who was even with Mr. Obama last month."
Americablog has a plethora of stories and analysis relating to this and other polls showing Obama's resurgence.
Obama's Revived Coalition Spells Trouble for Romney (Ronald Brownstein) from the National Journal
"Whether the electorate is viewed by race, gender, partisanship or ideology (or combinations of the above), Obama's numbers against Romney now closely align with his support against McCain, according to the 2008 exit polls. Overall, the Pew survey put Obama ahead of Romney by 52 percent to 44 percent, close to his actual 53 percent to 46 percent victory over McCain."
It’s Not Just National, Obama Improving In Swing States Too from Talking Points Memo
"... while nationwide numbers provide a snapshot of the country’s mood, the battle for the presidency will be fought state by state. So are Obama’s numbers also looking up in the all important swing states? It sure looks that way."
Rick Santorum’s Pincer Movement (Ross Douthat) from the New York Times
"Mitt Romney is getting hit from his left and his right by the same opponent."
Severe Conservative Syndrome (Paul Krugman) from the New York Times
"As Molly Ball of The Atlantic pointed out, Mr. Romney “described conservatism as if it were a disease.” Indeed. ... That’s clearly not what Mr. Romney meant to convey. Yet if you look at the race for the G.O.P. presidential nomination, you have to wonder whether it was a Freudian slip. For something has clearly gone very wrong with modern American conservatism."
Rick Santorum's Very Real Surge, in Poll Numbers from Daily Kos
"There's been a lot of attention on Michigan. It was a state supposedly safe for Mitt Romney, the state where his father once ran as governor. Yet as the numbers above demonstrate, it's become prime real estate for Santorum, with a conservative electorate more interested in knee-capping the Romneybot than in playing favorite son."
Obama Shatters GOP’s United Front On Birth Control from Talking Points Memo
"... as GOP leaders push to repeal the requirement entirely, the White House is welcoming that battle. The shift is looking like an act of political jujitsu as Obama has not only unified his base but splintered the GOP coalition, which initially appeared united against the President’s rule."
Does the GOP Care About Latino Voters? (Dana Milbank) from the Washington Post
"When it comes to Latino voters, Republicans must have un impulso suicida. What else but a death wish could explain the party’s treatment of the fastest-growing voting bloc in the nation?"
PBS NUGGET!!
‘Downton Abbey’ and How PBS Got Cool from the Daily Beast
"The massive success of 'Downton Abbey' has brought PBS an increase in donations, funding for 'Masterpiece,' a boost in ratings for other programs, and an unlikely place in the zeitgeist."
No comments:
Post a Comment