News Nuggets 1299

DAYLEE PICTURE: Blue Ghost Fireflies in North Carolina.  From National Geographic.

Obama on the Path to Success in Syria (Fareed Zakaria) from the Washington Post
"While Syria and Russia are doing so as a way to avert an attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin might also be happy to see Assad’s weapons locked up or destroyed. In fact, this gambit might be a way for Russia to achieve its real goals in Syria: no regime change and no chemical weapons."

U.S., Russia Reach Agreement on Seizure of Syrian Chemical Weapons Arsenal from the Washington Post
"The United States and Russia agreed Saturday on an outline for the identification and seizure of Syrian chemical weapons and said Syria must turn over an accounting of its arsenal within a week. The agreement will be backed by a U.N. Security Council resolution that could allow for sanctions or other consequences if Syria fails to comply, Secretary of State John F. Kerry said."

Hearing You Out (Nicholas Kristof) from the New York Times
"... since I’ve obviously offended many readers by supporting missile strikes on Syria if it doesn’t give up chemical weapons, let me try to confront directly your objections. ..."

The Right’s Sickening Syria Spin (Michael Tomasky) from the Daily Beast 
"If Obama persuaded Assad to step down and move to Siberia, the critics would still find something to whine about. Michael Tomasky deflates the arguments against the new arms deal."

Can Obama Recover? (Michael Hirsh) from the National Journal
"At first, the president bungled badly. But now he's getting it right—along with America's role in the world."

Rich Man’s Recovery (Paul Krugman) from the New York Times
"While the great majority of Americans are still living in a depressed economy, the rich at the very top are doing just fine."

Oh Look, There Goes the Deficit (Daniel Gross) from the Daily Beast 
"A funny thing happened on the way to the debt-ceiling battle: a big chunk of our annual budget quietly melted away. Daniel Gross on the good news you didn’t see coming."

Back to Boehner (Gail Collins) from the New York Times
"Compared with Syria, it seems like a walk in the park. Good old fiscal cliffs. It’s possible you’ve lost track of this over the summer, so I have prepared a calendar of upcoming events. Feel free to put it on the refrigerator: ..."

“Brighter Future for Politics and Policy Requires a Different Republican Party” (Mann and Ornstein) from Salon
""The Republicans have become a party beholden to zealots -- with little respect for science, facts or compromise."

Conservatives Step Up Push To Undercut GOP On Obamacare from Talking Points Memo
"Obamacare is becoming a huge headache for the Republican Party. ... Conservative advocacy groups are rallying behind House legislation backed by 43 Republicans to threaten a government shutdown unless Obamacare is defunded, undercutting GOP leaders’ efforts to lock in low spending levels by goading the party into a self-defeating confrontation."

The House GOP Is About to Crack Up: Three Theories Why (Jonathan Cohn) from the New Republic 
"... it makes you wonder why the right wing is making Boehner's life so difficult. Their explicit goal, getting rid of Obamacare, would seem to be out of reach. The political cost of pursuing that goal would seem to be high. Why keep at it?  Three theories come quickly to mind:..."

GOP, Tea Party Face Growing Divide (Bill Barrow) from the Associated Press 
"Tea party activists, once unquestioned as a benefit to the Republican Party for supplying it with votes and energy, are now criticizing GOP leaders at seemingly every turn."

More Republican on Republican Violence (Markos Moulitsas) from Daily Kos 
"... the real fun is in the comments. How much do the wingnuts hate their weepy House speaker? Head below the fold for the answer! (Hint: Lots.)"

Occupy Wall Street Legacy (Charles Blow) from the New York Times
"... it was not clear if the greater narrative of income inequality had legs and if it would move forward as the economy turned up. I believe it has. There are signs that the narrative may have taken hold in some parts of the electorate beyond the protesters in the parks..."

WINGNUT NUGGET!!
Now the Crazies are Coming for Mister Rogers (Virginia Montanez) from Pittsburgh Magazine
"Fred Rogers spent decades making our children feel special. What a jerk."

HOPE FOR PAWS DOG RESCUE VIDEO NUGGET!!
Saving Cadence - an abused Pit Bull shows us the power of second chance from Hope-for-Paws 

VIETNAM WAR NUGGET!!
Vietnam Legacy: Finding G.I. Fathers, and Children Left Behind (James Dao) from the New York Times
For veterans longing to salve the scars of an old war and their half-Vietnamese children wanting to know their roots, the need to find one another has become more urgent than ever."

LOS ANGELES NUGGET!!
The Los Angeles that could have been: Amazing pictures of structures designed for LA but never built from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
A new exhibition showcases groundbreaking designs that could have changed the face of Los Angeles - if they had ever been built. Never Built: Los Angeles at the Los Angeles Architecture and Design Museum looks back at design projects that never made it off the drawing board."