Grand Strategy of the Authoritarian Axis: How Will the West Respond? (William C. Martel) from The Diplomat
"Recent events – like those in Syria – show increasing coordination among some of the world’s most dangerous states."
New World Coming: America the Energy Superpower (David J. Karl ) from the Foreign Policy Association
"America’s strategic prospects are dramatically brightening due to an unexpectedly improving energy outlook and the looming revitalization of its manufacturing base. This thesis cuts against the reigning anxiety about the nation’s economic course as well as the torrent of prophesying about how China is poised to eat America’s lunch.* A subsequent post extended this theme to suggest that among the foreign policy implications of the U.S. energy boom would be the denouement of Russia’s great power aspirations and the restoration of U.S. soft power."
Mayberry R.I.P. (Frank Rich) from New York Magazine
"Declinist panic. Hysterical nostalgia. America may not be over, but it is certainly in thrall to the idea."
Joe Paterno Was A Dictator: Penn State Deserved Its Punishment (Buzz Bissinger) from the Daily Beast
"Buzz Bissinger says Penn State alumni will whine and wallow in self-pity after the NCAA punishment, but the culture of college football needs to be banished—too bad it’s too late. Plus, Michael Tomasky calls for more punishment."
Penn State's Ex-President Fights Back; Says He Was a Victim of Child Abuse (Dashiell Bennett) from the Atlantic
"Former Penn State President Graham Spanier is fighting back against the allegations made against him in the Freeh Report, but his defense isn't much of a defense at all."
How to Out a Rapist (Jessica Valenti) from the Nation
"In one of my favorite feminist movies—the 1996 flick Girls Town—a group of fed-up young women write the names of the men who raped them on their high school’s bathroom wall. Other students join in, listing their attackers from schoolmates to teachers—warning other women and reclaiming public space. Today, a Kentucky teen is facing jail time for doing much the same thing: naming her rapists on Twitter. "
Philadelphia Church Official Sentenced to at Least 3 Years in Prison from the New York Times
"Msgr. William J. Lynn, the first Roman Catholic official in the United States to be convicted of covering up sexual abuses by priests under his supervision, was sentenced to three to six years in prison on Tuesday."
Ahead Of Voter ID Trial, Pennsylvania Admits There’s No In-Person Voter Fraud from Talking Points Memo
"In that case, Pennsylvania might have handed those groups and their clients (including 93-year-old Viviette Applewhite) a bit of an advantage: They’ve formally acknowledged that there’s been no reported in-person voter fraud in Pennsylvania and there isn’t likely to be in November."
Obama Attacks on Taxes and Bain Hit Romney Ratings (Gabriel Debenedetti) from Reuters via the Chicago Tribune
"Sustained attacks by President Barack Obama's campaign on Republican rival Mitt Romney's business history and refusal to release more tax records appear to be working, a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed on Tuesday."
Obama Ad Showing Romney Singing Off-Key Was Very Effective With Independent Voters (Elizabeth Flock) from US News & World Report
"After showing independent voters the negative ad of Romney singing "America the Beautiful" off-key, for example, approval of Romney by those voters fell sharply from 16 points to 3 points. Obama's numbers, on the other hand, barely moved after independents watched a negative ad about the president. "People have made up their minds about Obama," John Geer, political science professor at Vanderbilt and head of the project, told Whispers. "Whereas Obama's ads have extracted a price for Romney. They are what's moving the dial for the Obama camp. And the Obama campaign knows that.""
Romney's Defense Argument Misfires (Howard Kurtz) from the Daily Beast
"There is a curious omission in Mitt Romney’s speech to the VFW today. He warns against the dire consequences of the massive Pentagon budget cutbacks scheduled to take effect at the end of the year. And that’s an absolutely legitimate issue, prompting concern in both parties. But here’s the rub that Romney neglects, at least based on excerpts released by the campaign: The Republicans agreed to these cuts."
The GOP’s War Against Facts (Dahlia Lithwick and Raymond Vasvari) from Slate
"The truth became dangerous for the Republican Party when it ran out of arguments."
The Secret in Mitt Romney’s Tax Returns (Richard Cohen) from the Washington Post
"By and large, the tax filings tell you nothing you don’t already know. But the refusal to release them is a different matter. In Romney’s case, this is his one and only stand on principle, an odd example of political bravery."
The Divine Miss M (Frank Bruni) from the New York Times
"What I find most fascinating about Michele Bachmann — and there are many, many more where she came from — is that she presents herself as a godly woman, humbly devoted to her Christian faith. I’d like to meet that god, and I’d like to understand that Christianity."
ELECTION HISTORY NUGGET!!
Hasty and Ruinous 1972 Pick Colors Today’s Hunt for a No. 2\ (Lawrence Altman) from the New York TImes
"...a few days after the convention that nominated Mr. McGovern and his running mate, Senator Thomas F. Eagleton of Missouri, Mr. Lilly said, he came to a realization. “It suddenly struck me out of the blue that they didn’t know,” he said, that the decision to pick Mr. Eagleton had been made without some crucial facts. And he was right."
HOLLYWOOD BLOCKBUSTERS NUGGET!!
What's Next for Superhero Movies? (Daniel Snyder) from the Atlantic
"With Batman finished for now, the future belongs to Marvel."
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