With Libya, it seems like most commentators have forgotten some essential facts. Kristof has not:
Hugs From Libyans (Nicholas Kristof) from the New York Times
"This may be a first for the Arab world: An American airman who bailed out over Libya was rescued from his hiding place in a sheep pen by villagers who hugged him, served him juice and thanked him effusively for bombing their country. ... In 2005, the United Nations approved a new doctrine called the “responsibility to protect,” nicknamed R2P, declaring that world powers have the right and obligation to intervene when a dictator devours his people. The Libyan intervention is putting teeth into that fledgling concept, and here’s one definition of progress: The world took three-and-a-half years to respond forcefully to the slaughter in Bosnia, and about three-and-a-half weeks to respond in Libya."
Libya: Allied Air Strikes Secure Misrata for Rebels from the Guardian [of the UK]
"Siege ends in key town as bombs destroy Gaddafi's tanks and artillery but regime continue to hold Ajdabiya despite air raids."
Anti-Gaddafi Voices Re-emerge in Tripoli from the Financial Times [of the UK]
"Following three days of air strikes on Libya, some residents of Tripoli on Tuesday felt emboldened enough to whisper their real sentiments to foreign journalists, telling them that they wished to see the end of Muammer Gaddafi’s regime."
The Goldilocks Doctrine: The Right Course? (Clarence Page) from the Chicago Tribune
"Americans can always be counted upon to do the right thing, Winston Churchill is said to have declared, after exhausting all of the alternatives. In that spirit, President Barack Obama intervened in Libya after taking his time figuring out the right thing to do. The result, at least in the short term, is a sort of Goldilocks policy: Not too hot and not too cold. Doing the right thing in Libya has meant going to war against Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. That's a tragedy, but the alternatives were looking even more tragic."
Once upon a time, Clarence Page had interesting, insightful opinions. He's been riding on past glory for *ages* -- but this column is on the money.
Said Another Way: Obama Anxious to Keep his Toes Out of Libyan Water from the Guardian [of the UK]
"US presidents who get involved in wars can very easily come unstuck and Obama is acutely aware of the dangers."
Austerity Guides U.S. Strategy (Gerald Seib) from the Wall Street Journal
"Another, deeper reality also has helped shaped the American response: Libya is the first military response to crisis in which we can see the consequences of an America stretched thin militarily and low on money."
Tribes With Flags (Thomas Friedman) from the New York Times
"Tribes With Flags This is the question because there are two kinds of states in the Middle East: “real countries” with long histories in their territory and strong national identities (Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Iran); and those that might be called “tribes with flags".
Settling the Afghan War from the Editorial Board of the New York Times
"The best moment for the United States to start the process toward reconciliation in Afghanistan is now."
Obama Earns High Marks on South America Tour (Editorial) from the McClatchy News Service
"As Air Force One leaves El Salvador on Wednesday — after a five-day, three-nation trip — some here wonder what will be left behind once the glow of the visit fades. In his first extensive trip to Latin America since assuming office, Obama has won high marks for his conciliatory tone and acknowledgment of Latin America as a powerful economic and political force that deserves a partnership of equals."
Obama’s Quick Trip from Tyrant to Weakling (Dana Milbank) from the Washington Post
"After two years of being called a tyrant and a dictator, President Obama returns to Washington from a five-day overseas trip to find that he has become a weakling."
Weak Tea: Why the Tea Party isn't opposing Obama's position on Libya (David Weigel) from Slate
"If it has one defining characteristic, it's that it's nationalist. If there's a way to remove Qaddafi decades after he aided the Lockerbie bombers, then that's more important than a debate over the deep thoughts of the founders."
Mural of Maine’s Workers Becomes Political Target from the New York Times
"Clashes at state capitols over organized labor have become commonplace this year, with protesters throughout the country objecting to proposed limits on collective bargaining and cuts in benefits. Maine’s governor, Paul LePage, has opened a new — and unlikely — front in the battle between some lawmakers and unions: a 36-foot-wide mural in the state’s Department of Labor building in Augusta."
In WI, It was Never About the State Budget (Janice M. Eisen) from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
"That's what it's about - defunding the opposition party so that it cannot compete against the Republicans. And that explains why Walker refused to compromise, even after the unions offered all the financial concessions he was demanding."
REPORT: Three States Propose Massive Tax Cuts For Millionaires, Tax Hikes for Middle Class from ThinkProgress
"Last week, ThinkProgress documented conservative efforts in twelve states to shift the tax burden onto the middle class even while cutting taxes for corporations and the wealthy. In three states, conservatives are going even further, proposing massive estate tax cuts for millionaires even as income inequality is at its worse since the 1920s."
The New Spin: The White House Would Be A Step Down For Sarah Palin from TalkingPointsMemo
"Pop quiz: you're a right-wing commentator looking at a string of polls showing Sarah Palin's poll numbers sinking to new lows even as the weak field of GOP presidential contenders continues to thin out. But a large chunk of your audience would sooner eat glass than hear Palin's chances maligned by one of their own. What do you do? Here's one answer: claim that Palin is even more powerful outside the White House and that the presidency would be a step down for her."
I've actually concluded that Palin does more damage to the GOP and the Tea Party folks especially the longer she sticks around -- no matter if she runs or not. She makes much more trouble for them than she does for Obama and the Dems.
Is the House in play in 2012? (Chris Cillizza & Aaron Blake) from the Washington Post
"After three straight wave elections in the House over the past five years, there is already considerable debate among party strategists whether 2012 will be a status quo election with few changes or another wholesale swap of seats that could give Democrats a shot at reclaiming the majority. New polling from Democracy Corps, a Democratic-aligned polling consortium, in 50 Republican-held House districts likely to be targeted in 2012 suggests the “new Republican majority is very much in play”, according to pollster Stan Greenberg"
CHINESE CULTURE NUGGET!!
Monuments to Clan Life Are Losing Their Appeal from the New York Times
"the thousands of “earthen buildings” here, built by the ethnic Hakka and Minnan people of rural Fujian Province, are the ultimate architectural expression of clan existence in China."
I am amazed that these survived the revolutions of the 20th century! Pictures of these buildings are located HERE.
LOCAL NUGGET!!
In Transition: The Allegheny County Port Authority is Changing -- into What is the Question from the City Paper [of Pittsburgh]
"Effective March 27, the authority already plans to eliminate 29 routes and significantly reduce 37 others. More than 30 neighborhoods -- including Glassport, Groveton, Natrona and Port Vue -- will be without service entirely in the core of their communities. Other areas, like Edgewood and South Oakland, will see a significant reduction. The Port Authority will also lay off about 190 employees."
OBITUARY NUGGET!!
Elizabeth Taylor, Lifelong Screen Star, Dies at 79 from the New York Times
"Elizabeth Taylor, the actress who dazzled generations of moviegoers with her stunning beauty and whose name was synonymous with Hollywood glamour, died Wednesday in Los Angeles of congestive heart failure, her publicist, Sally Morrison told The Associated Press. She was 79."
For all of the over-the-top aspects of her life, she was also (routinely) a very brave person -- particularly during the early years of the AIDS crisis when few were saying anything and later in life in the face of chronic pain and illness.
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