News Nuggets 1160

DAYLEE PICTURE: A cold day in Teesdale in the UK. From the Daily Mail of the UK.

The Obama Revolution: Republicans Must Face the Reality of Obama’s Success (Matthew Continetti) from the Washington Free Beacon
"On the eve of his second inauguration, we ought to face the unpleasant fact that Obama will be remembered as a president of achievement and consequence. It does not matter if, like I do, you think those achievements are horrible and that their consequences will be worse. Obama’s reversal of the Reagan revolution is here."

House to Vote Wednesday on Raise in Debt Limit from the Associated Press 
"The House is scheduled to vote Wednesday on an increase in the nation's debt limit, a move designed to prevent a first-ever government default. The vote marks a change in strategy for House Republicans who run the chamber and who remain adamant about reducing government spending but decided not to use the debt limit to trigger a confrontation with President Barack Obama."

‘Obama Made History Today’: Reactions To Obama’s Second Inaugural Address (Pema Levy) from Talking Points Memo
"Liberals and conservatives alike took stock of the progressive vision articulated in President Obama’s second inaugural address Monday, which called for equal rights for minorities and a robust social safety net for those in need. ... Here’s a roundup of key reactions:..."

The Collective Turn (David Brooks) from the New York Times
"The best Inaugural Addresses make an argument for something. President Obama’s second one, which surely has to rank among the best of the past half-century, makes an argument for a pragmatic and patriotic progressivism."

Obama’s Progressive Second Inaugural Address (Jonathan Chait) from New York Magazine
"The Obama who begins his second term is much more acutely aware that the opposing party rejects, at the most philosophical level, the definition of the good that he has put forward as the national creed. Four years ago he expressed a jaunty confidence that the differences must be bridged. Today he committed himself to the same goal, but with a wariness borne of harsh experience."

Obama’s Unapologetic Inaugural Address (E.J. Dionne Jr.) from the Washington Post
"He gave a speech in the tradition of Franklin Roosevelt’s second inaugural and Ronald Reagan’s first: Like both, Obama’s was unapologetic in offering an argument for his philosophical commitments and an explanation of the policies that naturally followed. Progressives will be looking back to this speech for many years, much as today’s progressives look back to FDR’s, and conservatives to Reagan’s."

An Expansive Case for Progressive Governance, Grounded in Language of Founding Fathers (Greg Sargent) from the Washington Post
"Halfway through President Obama’s inaugural address, James Fallows tweeted: “I believe this is the most ‘progressive’ speech he’s ever given.” I would take that a step further. Obama’s speech lacked signature lines and was more direct than soaring, but it was nonetheless enormously ambitious. "

America's Most Important Gay Rights Speech? (Richard Socarides) from the New Yorker
"No one anticipated it, but President Barack Obama used the occasion of his second Inaugural Address to give what was perhaps the most important gay-rights speech in American history. ... President Obama used the occasion to make the first direct reference to gay-rights in an Inaugural Address, and he did so with a power and forthrightness we have not heard before, even from him."

Scenes from the Inauguration (David Remnick) from the New Yorker
"This was Barack Obama without apology—a liberal emboldened by political victory and a desire to enter the history books with a progressive agenda. His rhetoric was not high-flown, but it was muscular, clear. Gone is the primacy of compromise, which marked Obama’s days as president of the Harvard Law Review and even his first years in office. He no longer seems determined to transcend ideology or partisanship; experience has led him toward an engagement with politics in a tougher, clearer way."

Chinese Bloggers, Seeing Obama’s Bible, Ask If Religion is the Secret to Democracy (Lily Kuo) from the Atlantic
"We’ve reported before on how interested Chinese people have been in US politics lately, ranging from fascination with the spectacle of the presidential race to admiration for open debate. Now that a new generation of leaders are taking the helm in China in March and talking about reform, at least some Chinese are looking at the US and wondering if religion is the key to constitutional democracy."

Is Obama Trying to Destroy the GOP? (Jill Lawrence) from National Journal 
"From immigration to climate change, the president lays out an agenda that will aggravate Republican divisions."

HIGHER ED NUGGET!!
Some Ph.D.'s Choose to Work Off the Grid from the Chronicle of Higher Education
"It might be easy to mistake Thomas Ernst for a traditional academic. His CV has a long list of journal articles, and he can often be found on the campus of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He attends lectures, works with graduate students, and spends time in its libraries. But Mr. Ernst is not on the tenured faculty at UMass, nor is he a professor anywhere else. He is an independent scholar, who does most of his research and writing from the solitude of the second bedroom in his small apartment near the Amherst campus. In the past 20 years he has written a book, published a dozen journal articles, and contributed two chapters in encyclopedias."

'MEANING-OF-LIFE'-GONE-WRONG NUGGET!!
Is that a Compass, a Map, a Toothbrush and a Bottle of Purell in Your Pocket, or Are You Just Happy To See Me? from NPR's This American Life 
A cautionary tale of transformation gone wrong!! Hilarious ... and strangely inspiring.
"... he was changing his name to "Peace Pilgrim." He plans to spend six months walking, in hopes that he'll figure out his purpose in life. He gives away everything he owns and all his money, and sets off from Delaware. He lasts three days."

HOUSING NUGGET!!
Rotation, Rotation, Rotation: The House Built on a TRICYCLE for Those Who Can't Afford Their Own Place from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"As the populations of the world's major cities continue to grow, accommodation will become an increasingly sought-after commodity. Now designers in China, which itself has more than one billion inhabitants, have have come up with a potential solution. It's a mobile home called the Tricycle House that has been created for people who cannot afford their own home. It is equipped with an integrated water tank, bath tub and a stove."