News Nuggets 910

DAYLEE PICTURE: A mural in the center of Athens, Greece.  From National Geographic.

UP-FRONT FILM NUGGET!!

The Road We've Travelled -- The Obama campagin film is being released on line this Thursday.  CHECK OUT the trailer HERE!

The Iceman Leadeth: The Cool Diplomacy of Barack Obama (David Rothkopf) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"...people have come to see Obama more for his actions than his sometimes too-businesslike demeanor.  ... Furthermore, the president has done what many wise leaders do and surrounded himself with top officials who complement his strengths -- deepening relationships, working them behind the scenes, offering warmth and an attentive ear where he can't or doesn't have the time to do so. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has masterfully and tirelessly shouldered much of the burden in this regard, but so too have Vice President Joe Biden, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon, and the administration's two secretaries of defense, Bob Gates and Leon Panetta. Collectively and quietly, they have changed the character of America's relationships with the world."

Europeans Take Lead on Iran Nuclear Negotiations from Der Spiegel [of Germany in English]
"The Europeans want to play a key role in the ongoing conflict with Iran over its disputed nuclear program, jumpstarting stalled negotiations in a bid to prevent Israel from taking military action. But can the EU's hapless foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who will lead the talks, make a difference?"

Obama's Iran Bluff (Amitai Etzioni) from the National Interest
"Commentators, however, are reading too much into Obama’s phrase “all options are on the table.”

Reality Check: A True Friend (Jeff Barak) from the Jerusalem Post [of Israel in English]
"A true friend will act exactly the way US President Obama has acted toward Israel throughout his presidency."

Game Over in Afghanistan (Fred Kaplan) from Slate
"American troops no longer serve a purpose there. It is time to get out. Now."

The Politics of Less (Larry M. Bartels) from Democracy Journal
"Why the coming battles over scarcity don’t necessarily favor the party of small government."

Barack Obama's Had a Pretty Damn Good Presidency (Kevin Drum) from Mother Jones Magazine
"Here are 13 reasons why Obama has done a much better job than progressives seem to give him credit for."

Clinton’s Triumph at State Raises Bar for Next Act (Albert R. Hunt) from Bloomberg News Service
"After the election, when the president-elect surprisingly offered her the post of secretary of state and she surprisingly accepted, there were more than a few predictions of disaster. She now is completing what she has said will be the final year of a successful stint as the top U.S. diplomat. A testament to her standing is the opening she has to become president of the World Bank. Others, including former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, are panting for the job. It would be Clinton’s for the asking. No one matches her global profile and political skills."

Barack Obama: Cold Fish or Warm Fuzzy Teddy Bear? (John Sides) from the Washington Monthly
"In James Fallows’s interesting take on the Obama presidency, he discusses the notion that Obama is “cold.”  He refers to this as one of “Barack Obama’s particular versions of the weaknesses every president brings to office” and one of “the diagnoses that I heard, and have myself observed.” ... This and similar assessments of Obama, which have been repeated over and over by political observers and pundits, were and are absolutely at odds with what a large majority of Americans think."
I totally agree with Sides here.  I have never found Obama to be "cold".  Analytical? Often -- but cold?  No.  I suspect what's happening here is that REPORTERS find him cold.  And there my suspicion is that the days when MSM reporters could expect any kind of warm treatment from a president are long over.  There is virtually no way a president can have an active, for-real reporter as their "good buddy."  The stakes are simply too high.

The Misunderstood Consequences of the Student Debt Crisis (Jordan Weissmann) from the Atlantic
"Americans, young and old, are buckling under the weight of their student debt. It's a threat to the middle class, and a symptom of a malfunctioning education system."

A related story:
Kids Today Still Screwed (Alex Pareene) from Salon
"Loan debt is growing, they're stuck in service jobs, and people keep telling them to go to North Dakota."

What the Limbaugh Ad Boycott Could Mean for Rush (Leslie Savan) from the Nation
"“Here’s what matters: how many listeners start to pull out,” Harrison continues. “Then there’s a problem for the future. We suspect that his audience is increasing now. The irony is that Limbaugh’s advertising is probably worth more than ever."

Rush’s Syndicator Suspends All Station Ad Requirements for Two Weeks from the Reid Report
"Right about now, Rush has got to be thinking real hard about the upkeep costs of that mega mansion of his in Palm Beach, and re-reading his contract to find out what Premiere’s out-clause is…"


Steve Schmidt’s Brutally Honest Assessment of Sarah Palin (Jonathan Capehart) from the Washington Post
"Schmidt’s blunt and unblinking honesty in talking about the selection of Sarah Palin as McCain’s vice presidential nominee and his role in that decision is to be commended. Others who would follow in his footsteps must learn from the mistakes he willingly admits he made.  "

Mike Huckabee Brings on Rush Limbaugh's Decline (David Frum) from the Daily Beast
"Huckabee’s about to take the mike. Can he push Limbaugh off the talk-radio throne?"


DA VINCI NUGGET!!
'Seek and You Shall Find': Secret Message That Led to 'Lost' Leonardo da Vinci Masterpiece Hidden Behind Wall for 400 Years from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"A hidden message in a painting has led to the first evidence of a 'lost' Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece that has lain hidden for 400 years in a secret compartment behind another mural in Florence, scientists announced today.   An 'endoscopic' probe was inserted into the interior of the wall in the Palazzo Vechio, and obtained chemical samples of a dark pigment which Da Vinci also used in the Mona Lisa."

BEACH NUGGET!!
Tide Waits for No Man: The Amazing Beach Artist who Starts Every Day with a New Canvas from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"Artist Andres Amador has been at it again, carving intricate artworks in the sand – only for them to be washed away by the sea just hours later.  The American artist has been creating a series of new designs, spending hours painstakingly carving giant doodles on the beach, some spanning a massive 300 by 500 foot."

AIRPLANE ART NUGGET!!
Blue Sky Thinking: Disused Jets in U.S. Air Force 'Graveyard' Given New Lease of Life by World's Best Graffiti Artists from the Daily News of the UK]
"A cemetery of disused war planes in the scorching Arizona desert has been given a new lease of life – as part of an art project.  ‘The Boneyard Project’ resurrects disused warplanes that lie in the famous Boneyard in Arizona by letting graffiti artists paint them."