News Nuggets 475

A rare white lion at a sanctuary in South Africa.  See the Rare Lion Nugget below.  From the Daily Mail of the UK.

UP-FRONT HUMAN RIGHTS NUGGET!!
Burmese Dissident Is Freed After Long Detention from the New York Times
"Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, was freed from seven and a half years of house arrest on Saturday and was greeted at the gate of her compound by thousands of jubilant supporters."

The Elephant Outside the Room from the Economist [of the UK]
"Touring some of Asia’s most successful democracies, Barack Obama has a message for its most successful dictatorship."

Inside the Seven-Hour Clinton-Netanyahu Marathon Meeting (Josh Rogin) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's seven-hour marathon meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Wednesday in New York could signal a turning point in the effort to revive the stalled Middle East peace talks, as the administration works to resolve the dispute over Israeli settlement building by turning the focus to borders and security."

Stability Wins in Iraq from the Editorial Board of the Washington Post
"Ideally, Iraq eventually will become a democracy where elections are fought by parties divided by political program rather than sect or ethnic group identification. But some European countries have not yet reached that point. For now the forging of a coalition deal is another welcome step toward a stable and peaceful state."

GOP Civil War on Defense Spending from Politico
"A proposal to slash $100 billion from the Pentagon budget threatens to spark a civil war within the GOP — pitting hard-core deficit hawks against some members who view military spending as sacrosanct and others who represent districts reliant on defense-related jobs."

Senate Elections 2012: The State of the Senate (Emily Swanson) from Huffington Post
An interesting preview of 2012!
"Without knowing more about what the electoral environment will look like in 2012, it seems likely that Republicans will have more chances to pick up seats than Democrats. On the Republican side, continuing threats from the Tea Party could force otherwise safe Republicans to fight primary battles."

The Blase' Mandate (Charles Blow) from the New York Times
"Democrats still searching for a silver lining to the waxing they took last Tuesday can cheer up a bit. According to a new poll, the public may already be experiencing a bit of buyer’s remorse about the choices they’ve made, and Republicans seem to have unrealistic expectations about what their leaders will be able to accomplish."

Post-Tea Party Nation (David Frum) from the Sunday New York Times Magazine
"While the Bush administration took wise and bold steps to correct the disaster, the unpopularity of its Troubled Asset Relief Program bequeathed the Obama administration a political disaster alongside the economic disaster.  It’s an uncomfortable memory, and until now Republicans have coped with it by changing the subject and hurling accusations. Those are not good enough responses from a party again entrusted with legislative power. If Republicans are to act effectively and responsibly, we need to learn more positive and productive lessons from the crisis."

Tea Party Express Chairwoman: RomneyCare Will Sink Romney in GOP Presidential Primary (Jed Lewison) from Daily Kos
"In an ominous sign for his presidential aspirations, the Chairwoman of the Tea Party Express blasted Romney for the health care plan he put in place as governor of Massachusetts."

Bush's Book 'Decision Points' Lifted Passages from Advisers' Books (Ryan Grim) from Huffington Post
"Many of Bush's literary misdemeanors exemplify pedestrian sloth, but others are higher crimes against the craft of memoir."
Did this man EVER grow up!? 

HOLIDAY & CULTURE NUGGET!!
Random Act of Culture in Philadelphia (VIDEO) via Americablog
A VERY MOVING choral event in a Macy's store in Philly!  Wonderful!

STRANGE HOMES NUGGET!!
Ground Control to Major Home: Old Boeing 747 Recycled into Malibu Wing House from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"Most people go on an aeroplane to get away from home, but one jet-set woman has taken a whole new departure and made her house out of a plane - a Boeing 747, to be exact."

JOURNALISM NUGGET!!
The Five Most Dangerous Countries for Journalists from the Christian Science Monitor
"The brutal beating of Russian journalist Oleg Kashin outside his apartment building Nov. 6 draws renewed attention to the dangers that reporters face in many countries – including death, violence, imprisonment, exile, and threats to their families."

RARE LION NUGGET!!
Introducing Bianca, the New Addition to the Pride of White lions Being Saved from Extinction  from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"It is one of the most endangered species in the world but one unique conservation project is taking giant strides in saving the mysterious white lion."

RAILROAD NUGGET!!
The World's Longest Railroad Tunnel (PHOTOS) from Time Magazine
"The 35.4-mile Gotthard tunnel beneath the Alps will pave the way for high-speed rail travel between northern and southeastern Europe."

News Nuggets 474

Mount Fitzroy among the mountain passes between Argentina and Chile.  From National Geographic.

Obama Takes Asia by Sea (Robert Kaplan) from the New York Times
"In geopolitical terms, the president’s visits in all four countries are about one challenge: the rise of China on land and sea."

Why Obama is Right on India (Chalres Krauthammer) from National Review
"Modern China is the Germany of a century ago — a rising, expanding, have-not power seeking its place in the sun. The story of the first half of the 20th century was Europe’s attempt to manage Germany’s rise. We know how that turned out. The story of the next half-century will be how Asia accommodates and/or contains China’s expansion."
Well, this is something of a double milestone: it is only the second time I've ever posted anything by Krauthammer and again only the second time I've posted anything from the National Review.  May miracles never cease.

Obama in India: Taking the Partnership Global (Teresita Schaffer) from YaleGlobal Online
"The most dramatic change for the US and India has been the creation of a security relationship. In 2000, there was practically none…."

Why the GOP Must Back Obama on Iran (Meir Javedanfar) from The Diplomat
"Stopping Iran from getting a nuclear bomb is a bi-partisan issue. It’s essential Republicans work with the Obama administration."

Netanyahu and Clinton in Extended Talks on Mideast from the New York Times
"The length of the meetings — seven hours, including at least two hours in which Mr. Netanyahu and Mrs. Clinton met alone in a suite at the Loews Regency Hotel — suggested the two sides sensed an opportunity to break the deadlock that has stalled the negotiations since last month."

Barack Obama Will Be Back on Top (Robert Shrum) from The Week
"Here's why the president will win re-election in 2012."

Liberals and the Debt Commission (Jonathan Chait) from the New Republic
"How should liberals respond to the debt commission? The correct answer, I think, is to see it as an opportunity for a policy success or a political win. The wrong answer is to reject it out of hand."

Obama Has Boehner Right Where He Wants Him (William Galston) from the New Republic
"Obama faces a win-win situation. If he extends his hand to the opposition and they spurn it, the independents and swing voters whose views will determine the 2012 election will give him credit for doing what they want while coming down hard on Republican obstructionists. If the Republicans grasp his outstretched hand, then the country might actually make some progress."

Pelosi for House Minority Leader: A Bad Idea or Just What the Democrats Need? (Karen Tumulty) from the Washington Post
"Pelosi's decision to hang on as leader of the House Democrats has surprised and confounded much of Washington, including many in her own party. But if it is looked at through the windshield of what lies ahead, rather than the rearview mirror of the midterm election campaign, many argue, her skills as legislator and fundraiser are what's needed now."

Speaker or Not, She's a Keeper from the Editorial Board of the Los Angeles Times
"Judged solely by her record and not shrill Republican attacks, the House speaker deserves to retain her party leadership position."

Cindy McCain does Video Opposing DADT, Accuses 'Our Government' of Sending Signal that Bullying is Okay - Her Hubbie is the Lead Defender of DADT from Americablog
" Today, Cindy McCain joined a number of celebrities in a video about gay youth suicide and bullying.  Mrs. McCain's part of the video condemned DADT and then accused our government of sending bullies a message that what they do is okay. The woman basically accused her husband of sharing the blame for gay kids killing themselves."
It is actually refreshing to see the spouses of Republican politicians actually take stands at variance with their political hubbies.  Throughout the 2008 campaign, Cindy M. seemed like such a suppressed person, someone who once had opinions and a fuller self-expression now condemned to hold her tongue.  It remains one of my peeves with Laura Bush.

The End of the Line for Holy Joe? (Steve Kornacki) from Salon
"Devising a scenario in which Joe Lieberman stays in the Senate past 2012 is getting pretty hard to do."
Good news!  Who's on the bench for the Dems in CT?  Ned Lamont?  Who else?

CHILDREN'S BOOK NUGGET!!
Best Picture Books 2010 (PHOTOS) from Huffington Post
Check out the links here as well!
"This week, The New York Times released 'The Best Illustrated Children's Books 2010' and Pubishers Weekly released its 'Best Books of 2010' list. At the end of last month, the Society of Illustrators honored the best book illustrations of the year with its annual "Original Art" exhibition. Now, it's our turn to weigh in."

News Nugget 473

A capybara, the largest hamster in the world, and its litter.  They come from Venezuela, Columbia and Ecuador.  From the Associated Press via Huffington Post.

Dazzling New Weapons Require New Rules of War (David Ignatius) from the Washington Post
"A new arsenal of drones and satellite-guided weapons is changing the nature of warfare. America and its NATO allies possess these high-tech weapons, but smaller countries want them, too. Here's an inside glimpse of how the process of technology transfer works:"

Obama Vows to End 'Years of Mistrust' Between West and Muslim World as He Impresses Indonesians with Local Language from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"Mr Obama, who is visiting Indonesia, also said the world’s most populous Muslim country – where he lived as a boy – was a shining example to others. In a speech peppered with Indonesian phrases, he said: ‘Your achievements demonstrate that democracy and development reinforce one another.’"

At Democratic Strategist, Ed Kilgore is doing an interesting series on "Big Contradictions for the GOP" that focuses on the budget-cutting problems the Republicans are only now beginning to think about.  Here are two of his entries so far, one on the general dilemma, the other on medicare.  I think they are spot-on!!

Repealing Health Law Will Backfire on GOP (Joe Conason) from RealClearPolitics
"Come January, the Republicans will be obliged to file repeal legislation -- and to argue that the public will fare better under the tender care of the insurance oligopoly than with any government protections at all. Otherwise, the tea party will wreak havoc in the 2012 primaries, or so they warn."

A Destination for That High-speed Rail Money from Daily Kos
"Not that these Republicans want to send the money back to Washington like the frugal deficit-choppers they'd like people to believe they are. They just want to spend it on "traditional" transportation projects, mostly highways. The U.S. Department of Transportation has told them no go, as greendem notes in the diary Obama Admin: Rail Money is for Rail, Use it or lose it."

USA Today/Gallup Poll: Dems Favor Compromise, GOPers Prefer Holding Firm To Beliefs from USA Today via TalkingPointsMemo
"When asked about the "best approach for political leaders to follow in Washington," 41% of Republican respondents maintain that "it is more important for political leaders to stick to their beliefs even if little gets done," while only 18% of Democratic respondents express the same sentiment. "
This explains a lot.

Pros, Cons of Pelosi as Minority Leader (Eleanor Clift) from Newsweek
"Is Nancy Pelosi’s decision to run for the top Democratic spot in the House a gift for Republicans?

Liars' Club (Timothy Egan) from the New York Times
"If common sense were currency Michele Bachmann would be broke, and holding a tin can by the roadside just now. Alas, because we live in an age where hyperbole is gold, Bachmann is rich."

The Obama Republicans (Chris Cillizza) from the Washington Post
"63 Republicans will hold seats that Obama carried in 2008. Dems need just 23 to win back the House."

A Careless Man: What the Bush Memoir Reveals (Joe Klein) from Time Magazine
"Bush breezes through fundamental and earth-shattering decisions without slowing down to acknowledge their moral complexity. At the most important moments of his presidency — most notably, the decision to go to war in Iraq — he refuses to honestly consider opposing points of view or see the long-term, ancillary effects of what he is deciding."

Sarah Palin: The Sound and the Fury (Michael Gross) from Vanity Fair
"Following the former Alaska governor’s road show, the author delves into the surreal new world Palin now inhabits—a place of fear, anger, and illusion, which has swallowed up the engaging, small-town hockey mom and her family—and the sadness she has left in her wake. "

RADIO NUGGET!!
NPR: The Sound of Sanity from Vanity Fair
"Unlike nearly all the rest of talk radio, which divides civilization into us and our Churchillian allies and Everybody Else (ungrateful bastards who haven’t thanked us in the last five minutes for winning World War II), NPR is cognizant of a whole world out there that isn’t the United States and is worth knowing, even if we’re not dropping bombs on them at the moment."
There's a photo gallery of NPR personalities HERE.

TELEVISION NUGGET!!
HBO's Brilliant War Documentary (Rebecca Dana) from the Daily Beast
"James Gandolfini, still best known as the therapized mobster Tony Soprano, turns the focus on veterans for Wartorn, a new documentary airing Thursday. Rebecca Dana on the making of the film and the ravages of PTSD."

News Nugget 472

Two newly discovered gamma-ray bubbles extending 25,000 light-years, or roughly one-fourth the Milky Way's diameter, above and below the plane of the galaxy.  See the Amazing Outer Space Nugget below.  From Discovery News.

WORTH-A-SECOND-LOOK NUGGET!!
If you missed this from yesterday, check it out!!
Delusion Points (Stephen Walt) from Foreign policy Magazine
"Don't fall for the nostalgia -- George W. Bush's foreign policy really was that bad.  Fourteen reasons why"

In response to this article, Will Indoben has the following response:
In Response to Steve Walt from Foreign Policy Magazine
"The more spurious accusations merit responses -- and the omissions bear noting as well."
I post the response in part to showcase its rhetorical emptiness.  Steve Walt's arguments will be the ones that carry the day in the History books.

A two-fer for Mr. Walt today as well!
Something for Nothing (Stephen Walt) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"With one caveat, I'll give Obama's team credit for the deft endorsement of India becoming a permanent member (with veto powers) of the U.N. Security Council. It was a smart move because it appealed to India's sense of national pride, and because it didn't cost the United States much."

A Significant Visit from the Editorial Board of The Hindu [of India in English]
"The support Mr. Obama announced for a permanent Indian seat on a reformed United Nations Security Council, if and when that happens, holds out the prospect for a reordering of world power even more significant than the Bush promise of resuming nuclear commerce with India."

Media Matters: Going overboard (Sevanti Ninan) from The Hindu [of India in English]
"A US President's visit is a celebrity event to beat all others and, as it happens everytime, there is a bewildering range of stories…"

Obama Visits a Nation That Knew Him as Barry from the New York Times
"His nanny was an openly gay man who, in keeping with Indonesia's relaxed attitudes toward homosexuality, carried on an affair with a local butcher, longtime residents said."

Containment-Lite (Thomas Friedman) from New York Times
"No, Washington is not trying to contain China the way we once did the Soviet Union, but President Obama didn’t just spend three days in India to improve his yoga."

British Deny George Bush's Claims that Torture Helped Foil Terror Plots from the Guardian [of the UK]
"British officials say there is no evidence that waterboarding saved lives of UK citizens, as Bush claimed in his memoirs."
If you look in the dictionary under the word "pathological"...

Concrete Steps to Nowhere (Robert Wright) from the New York Times
"All told, it’s enough to make you wonder whether Republicans are serious about closing the deficit! But if closing the deficit isn’t their real priority, what is?  Here’s a clue: both upper-income tax cuts and the evisceration of the health care reform act appeal to many rich people. "

Nancy Pelosi is a Fighter (Cynthia Tucker) from the Atlanta Journal Constitution
"Even the most rightward- leaning Republican should be able to see something admirable in Nancy Pelosi’s approach to one of life’s more difficult experiences — a very public defeat. She has picked herself up, dusted herself off and walked resolutely back to the front lines of the political war zone, running for the post of House Minority Leader."

Dear Tea Party: You Will Now Get Yours (Mark Morford) from the San Francisco Chronicle
"To all of you who either flip-flopped your wishy-washy ideals and switched your vote from bluish to reddish this past election because Obama and the lukewarm Dems failed to solve all world problems in 700 days, or because you got yourself so emotionally riled up/mentally watered down by the sexy caveman grunts of the Tea Party that you actually bought the BS line about being "mad as hell" about nothing even remotely coherent. Here is your grand message: You are hereby wonderfully, thoroughly screwed."
I LIKE the sentiment!

The GOP's Racial Challenge (Zoltan Hajnal) from Wall Street Journal
"Republicans can't win in the future without more nonwhite votes."

The GOP Can't be Led by Sarah Palin. But Can it Live Without Her? (Kathleen Parker) from the Washington Post
"Despite its considerable gains in the midterm elections, the GOP has a problem looming in the margins named Sarah Palin. She who can rouse the base like none other is now She to Whom Respect Must Be Paid. Like it or not."

MA-Sen: Midterm Elections Offer Grim Omens for Scott Brown’s Future from Politico
"His polling numbers are still solid. There’s no Democratic war-horse candidate primed to take him on. Brown’s campaign coffers are full and his celebrity lets him command a national following.But virtually every result from last week’s elections in Massachusetts offered up grim omens for Brown’s future."

AUDIOBOOK NUGGET!!
Audiobooks for the people (Laura Miller) from Salon
"A company is making recordings of the best of the small presses accessible -- and cheap."

AMAZING OUTER SPACE NUGGET!!
Giant Bubbles Found in Space from Discovery News
"An ancient eruption of a supermassive black hole may have inflated the mysteriously huge bubbles that span 50,000 light-years."

FIRST LADY NUGGET!!
Modestly Chic: Michelle Obama Dons a Headscarf as She Visits Mosque on Indonesia Trip (PHOTOS) from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"Her impeccable dress sense has been praised throughout the world. So it was no surprise that Michelle Obama managed to be stylish and show respect to her Muslim hosts when she visited a mosque on her tour of Indonesia."

News Nuggets 471

The Empire State Building in New York City.  From National Geographic.

Indian Bonhomie from the National Interest

"Are the United States and India destined to become strategic partners?"

Obama's Diplomatic Masterstroke in India (David Rothkopf) from Foreign Policy Magazine

"In a single, unexpected stroke President Barack Obama may have made his trip to India one of the most important of his presidency. By announcing his support for Indian permanent membership in the U.N. Security Council, Obama advanced a number of important goals."

Obama's India Trip: What US May Get in Return from Time Magazine

"Obama then exceeded the Indian government's expectations for the trip and delivered the two most important items on India's wish list: he endorsed India's bid for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council and used strong language toward Pakistan, saying he would "insist to Pakistan's leaders that terrorist safe havens within their borders are unacceptable." Here's what the U.S. can look for in return."

Delusion Points (Stephen Walt) from Foreign Policy Magazine

"Don't fall for the nostalgia -- George W. Bush's foreign policy really was that bad."

A New Bush, a Lot Like the Old One from the New York Times

"He said he still felt sickened that no weapons of mass destruction were ever found in Iraq. Yet former President George W. Bush said that his worst moment in the Oval Office came when the rap star Kanye West claimed that the president didn’t care about black people."

The Real Choice Turkey Has to Make When it Comes to Israel (Michael Singh) from Foreign Policy Magazine

"Israel is involved in another diplomatic standoff whose consequences may be just as dire for the future of the Middle East. The impasse in question is between Turkey and Israel -- erstwhile allies whose deteriorating relations undermine the security of the entire region. This conflict -- more than Ankara's outreach to Iran or tensions with the EU -- calls starkly into question the role Turkey will play in regional politics and peacemaking."

Can We Trade Yudhoyono for Obama? (Editorial) from the Jakarta Post [of Indonesia in English]

"Many Americans, who have been outraged at Obama for defending the construction of an Islamic center near the Ground Zero site in New York City, will love Yudhoyono, who most likely would have refrained from making any comment that would upset the majority opinion if he was in Obama’s position. Many Indonesians, on the other hand, who feel that Yudhoyono has failed to protect the rights of religious minorities, would welcome someone like Obama to stand firmly by his principle of defending freedom of religion."

The Impossible Dream (Bob Herbert) from the New York Times

"What’s needed now is the same thing that has been needed for the past two years and more, a bold plan to put millions of Americans back to work and paying taxes, and a careful, thoughtful, strategic but unequivocal withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan and Iraq."

Boehner's Army (John Heilmann) from New York Magazine

"The Republican revolutionaries have problems with authority—and that may provide Obama an opening."

Boehner will Fail, and Democrats will Pounce in 2012 (Markos Moulitsas) from the Christian Science Monitor 

"Republicans didn't sweep these elections for grand ideological reasons, but because not enough of the Democratic base showed up to vote. Exit polls also show that angry voters who flocked to Republicans will end up disappointed in their actual policies. And in 2012, Democrats will be ready."

Hope so.  We'll see.

Democrats Consoled by Latino Vote in Republican `Game Changer' from Bloomberg News Service

"For Democrats, exit polling of voters in the Nov. 2 elections confirmed this positive trend for the party: For the third straight election, Latinos picked Democrats over Republicans by a ratio of about 2-to-1, strengthening the party’s hold on this increasingly important voting bloc."

Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi Would Play Rough with GOP (Greg Sargent) from the Washington Post

"All this seems to badly miss what one of the most important roles of the new minority leader will be: to draw a very sharp line against GOP efforts to roll back Obama's accomplishments."

In Alaska, a Preview of the GOP's Future (Anne Applebaum) from the Washington Post

"The hypocrisy at the heart of the Republican Party is starkest in Alaska."

SCULPTURE NUGGET!!

Sculptural Witnesses to Nazi Lunacy Go on Display from the Guardian [of the UK]

"Modernist sculptures confiscated for being 'degenerate' appear in exhibition after being unearthed on a Berlin building site."

CUTE BEAR NUGGET!!

Tagging Bears in Algonquin Park (VIDEO) from Americablog

"How amazing would that be to participate in such an event? The bear cubs are completely adorable though I can imagine how nervous the host must have been as they approached the den."

FIRST LADY NUGGET!!

Michelle Obama Travels in Style from the Washington Post

A WONDERFUL series of pictures of Barack and Michelle (mostly Michelle) on their Asian trip!

News Nuggets 470

A view of Italy and the Adriatic from the space station.  From National Geographic.

UP-FRONT SCIENCE NUGGET!!

Climate Scientists Plan Campaign Against Global Warming Skeptics from the Los Angeles Times

"The American Geophysical Union plans to announce that 700 researchers have agreed to speak out on the issue. Other scientists plan a pushback against congressional conservatives who have vowed to kill regulations on greenhouse gas emissions."

It is ABOUT TIME!!  Serious climate scientists have largely absented themselves from the public arena for decades, ceding the space to global warming critics and hacks.  It will take these folks years to make up the ground they've lost.

Obama's China Ambush (Peter Beinart) from the Daily Beast

"The President will skip China on his Asia tour, but his itinerary signals America's growing unease with the superpower's global clout. Peter Beinart on why Obama's cozying up to China's rivals this week—and how his policy is more hawkish than Bush's. "

Obama Backs India for Security Council Seat from the New York Times

"President Obama announced here on Monday that the United States will back India’s bid for a permanent seat on an expanded United Nations Security Council, a major policy shift that could aggravate China, which opposes such a move."

Obama Sends India a Signal of Partnership (George Condon) from National Journal

"Backing for Security Council spot is seen as affirming nation's emergence."

Long Overdue: Adding Permanent Members to the UN Security Council (Editorial) from the National Interest

"More significant, though, is that Obama’s endorsement sends a clear signal that the United States acknowledges India as not only a rapidly rising economic power, but a significant political and security player in the international system as well. The president’s comments also reduce concerns that the arms control crowd in his administration might roll back the improved relationship that had developed between the two countries during the Bush years."

How Obama Saved Capitalism and Lost the Midterms (Timothy Egan) from the New York Times

"If I were one of the big corporate donors who bankrolled the Republican tide that carried into office more than 50 new Republicans in the House, I would be wary of what you just bought.  For no matter your view of President Obama, he effectively saved capitalism. And for that, he paid a terrible political price."

For Afghan Wives, a Desperate, Fiery Way Out from the New York Times

"Even the poorest families in Afghanistan have matches and cooking fuel. The combination usually sustains life. But it also can be the makings of a horrifying escape: from poverty, from forced marriages, from the abuse and despondency that can be the fate of Afghan women."s

Here Come the Jobs! The Case for Economic Optimism in 2011 (Derek Thompson) from the Atlantic

"If it's not easy to find evidence of a strong economic recovery next year, it's not impossible either. So I'm rounding up whispers, rumors and green shoots for a surprising economic bounce back and making a list you can use as a resource or a rebuttal to the doom and gloom."

Personally, I'm a convinced doom-and-gloomer at this point -- but I'm open to being wrong!

Health Care Reform Challenge Rejected by Supreme Court from the Associated Press via Huffington Post

"The Supreme Court has turned down the first preliminary challenge to President Barack Obama's health care overhaul….Of more significance is the sign that all the justices took part in rejecting the appeal."

Hispanic Vote a 2012 Wild Card from Politico

"Hispanic voters saved the Democratic Party Tuesday — buoying Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, keeping California blue, playing an outsize role in preserving the party’s Senate majority and demonstrating a partisan loyalty Democrats didn’t exactly earn in two years of inaction on immigration policy.  But that support is anything but certain for 2012, and both parties face difficult and immediate choices when it comes to the Latino vote as they

position themselves for the presidential election."

Obama's Populism Problem (Christopher Orr) from the Atlantic

"resident Obama is a black man--and, as such, has unique cause to be wary of the adjective "angry."  Even when Obama has been at his cucumber-coolest--and has earned abuse from the left and center for it--figures on the right have aggressively tried to hang the "angry black man" label on him. "

I agree with the general idea here.  Obama can't do Huey Long or William Jennings Bryan -- because in the eyes and ears of many whites he wouldn't come off as Long or Bryan -- but simply as a 1960s radical "angry black guy".  Black populism is simply to threatening to many working-class whites.

The Unready Republicans (Ross Douthat) from New York Times

"Instead, they tend to fall back on the reassuring story they’ve been spinning for the last two years, in which they lost to the Democrats only because they failed to hold the line on spending. It’s a narrative that flatters conservative self-regard, while absolving Republicans of the obligation to think too deeply about policy."

The Tea Party: Old Whine in New Bottles (Gary Younge) from the Guardian [of the UK]

"This incoherent group has no leaders, no policies, no headquarters. It is held together by Fox TV and big money."

JFK NUGGET!!

JFK's Election: On 50th Anniversary, Never-Seen Photos Emerge from the Atlantic

"While his 1,000 days in office are well-documented, Life magazine has just released never-before-published photos that cover the campaign of 1960."

BOOK REVIEW NUGGET!!

George Bush's Unmemorable Memoir (Jacob Heilbrunn) from the National Interest

"George W. Bush's book is an inadvertent reminder that you needn't be an interesting leader to be a terrible one."

OUCH!!

News Nuggets 469

Lily pads at sunset in the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia.  From National Geographic.

President Obama Hasn't Changed, We Have (Jon Meacham) from the Washington Post

"I would not hold out for a fundamentally New Obama. For better or for worse, Obama is today - and will be tomorrow - what he has always been: a bright man engaged in an endeavor that rewards luck and happenstance more often than it does intellect and good intentions."

Texas Considers Medicaid Withdrawl from the New York Times

"Far-right conservatives are offering that possibility in impassioned news conferences. Moderate Republicans are studying it behind closed doors. And the party’s advisers on health care policy say it is being discussed more seriously than ever, though they admit it may be as much a huge in-your-face to Washington as anything else."

It would be huge political disaster for the TX GOP as well.  For the sake of finally blowing out the underpinnings of the GOP there, it wouldn't be an entirely bad thing if it actually happened.

New Day Rising (The Case For Democratic Optimism--Real or Fake) (Jonathan Bernstein) from the New Republic

"Democrats should pound the 1996-2012 analogies, remind themselves that reversals are not only possible but happen all the time (...), and convince themselves and anyone who will listen to them that good times for Dems are, once again, right around the corner. "

Inside The Bruising Democratic Leadership Fight: Pelosi Moves To Box Out Hoyer from TalkingPointsMemo

"Part of the reason, according to a third Democratic aide, is that Hoyer and Pelosi still don't really get along. But it's more complicated than just personal rivalries. For one thing, after Tuesday's losses, Hoyer doesn't really represent a significant portion of the caucus anymore."

Ahhh!  So that's what's going on!  I think I shall avert my eyes until it's over.  

To Hell With the Press (Mark McKinnon) from the Daily Beast

"Rick Perry won an unprecedented third term as Texas governor while actively shunning the press corps. Mark McKinnon on the GOP's trendy tactic—and how newspapers are fighting back."

America's Vote for Maturity (Peggy Noonan) from the Wall Street Journal

"in the future the tea party is going to have to ask itself: Is this candidate electable? ...  This is the key question the tea party will face in 2012. And it will be hard to answer it, because the tea party doesn't have leaders or conventions, so the answer will have to bubble up from a thousand groups, from 10,000 leaders.  Electable doesn't mean not-conservative. Electable means mature, accomplished, stable—and able to persuade.."

I DON'T agree with Noonan's implication that somehow this last election cycle somehow produced a crop of "mature" lawmakers -- and I suspect the Tea Partiers could not care less what conservative intellectuals like her think of their maturity.

Mid-term Election Results Not a Mandate for GOP, Poll Shows from Raw Story

"It's the economy, stupid. That catchphrase from the 1992 election -- which saw Bill Clinton propelled to the Oval Office on a wave of discontent over unemployment -- applies just as strongly in 2010, a new poll indicates."

UK NUGGET!!

Breathtaking Britain: Nature's Beauty from Dusk til Dawn from the Daily Mail [of the UK]

"Using a panoramic film camera in the magic hours of sunrise and sunset, Mark Denton has captured England’s greatest landscapes for his new book England: The Panoramas."

BASEBALL OBITUARY NUGGET!!

Postscript: Sparky Anderson from the New Yorker

"When I heard the news yesterday that Sparky Anderson had died, I thought immediately of the opening of “Agincourt and After,” Roger Angell’s account of the 1975 World Series, in which Anderson’s Cincinnati Reds defeated the Boston Red Sox in seven games."

News Nuggets 468

Aspens in autumn in the Elk Mountains of western Colorado.  From National Geographic.

Shhh, Don't Tell the Scaremongers, But Things Are Getting Better (Elizabeth Renzetti) from the Globe and Mail [of Toronto, Canada]

"It takes guts to be an optimist in this climate, to proudly wear pink-tinted glasses and, toting a sheaf of statistics and historical knowledge, shout: “People, chillax. It's not so bad, and it's getting better.”"

While I agree with the general sentiment, as long as people are seeing and experiencing a 9.6 unemployment rate, I would avoid an excessive "things are getting better" message.

Obama Can Grab Opportunities in Asia (Editorial) from the Korea Times [of South Korea in English]

"Over the next week or so, our troubled American President, fresh from that unmistakable midterm elections rebuke, will hit the foreign-relations trail. All the stops are in Asia, the world’s fastest rising region that is perhaps slowly becoming its most important.  Thankfully, many parts of Asia are not so antagonistic to America these days. Barack Obama should find it a relief to spend time with people who like him. "

In Russia, Search for Identity is Caught in Swirl of Symbols from the New York Times

"As Russia shut down this week for the Day of National Unity on Thursday — a state holiday instituted to substitute for the Nov. 7 commemoration of the 1917 October Revolution — the tussle between Byzantine, czarist and Soviet symbols as beacons for the new, post-Communist Russia was in full view."

The Do-Lots Congress (Ezra Klein) from Newsweek

"The votes are (mostly) counted. The Republicans have clearly and decisively won. But did the Democrats actually lose? They lost the election, certainly. And many of them lost their jobs. But the point of legislating isn’t job security. It’s legislation. And on that count the members of the 111th Congress succeeded wildly, even historically."

America the Volatile (Reid Wilson) from National Journal

"American politics is in a state of upheaval not seen since the end of the Second World War. That upheaval is by no means unique; voters tend to be equally angry at both parties, and equally willing to kick the bums out, during periods following wars and recession. This time, the country is experiencing both at once."

Repeal and Replace? from Newsweek

"Not so fast. An insurance-company defector explains why the most controversial provision of the health-care law will survive."

Why Democrats Should Make Nancy Pelosi House Minority Leader (Ben Adler) from Newsweek

"Pelosi would be perfect as minority leader. Matheson has it precisely backward when he reasons that the Democrats must elect a moderate after suffering a loss. You govern from the center, to look effective and protect vulnerable incumbents, but you oppose with partisanship, to make the majority look ineffective and drive down their approval ratings."

Interesting theory.

Why Nancy Pelosi is Running for House Minority Leader (E.J. Dionne) from the Washington Post

"I spoke with Pelosi less than 24 hours before she announced she wanted to stay on as Democratic leader, and everything she said made clear that she's not ready to allow millions of dollars in Republican attack ads to drive her from public life. She wants another crack at winning electoral vindication for a record she believes stands well on the merits."

Pelosi Unlikely to Face Challenge (Major Garrett) from the National Journal

"Without Hoyer, no one is likely to step forward."

Nancy Pelosi, Undone by Her Own Success (Eugene Robinson) from the Washington Post

"Amid the wreckage of Tuesday's GOP rampage, there's one person for whom I feel awful: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She's losing her job not because she does it poorly but because she does it so well."

A House Divided (Eleanor Clift) from Newsweek

"How the GOP will need to work with the Tea Party and the president."

HOLLYWOOD NUGGET!!

Debra Winger Drops Back In from the Sunday New York Times Magazine

"The actor fled from fame and into happy obscurity. More than a dozen years later, she’s tiptoeing back into view."

CHINA CULTURE NUGGET!!

The Rise of the Tao from the Sunday New York Times Magazine

"China is in the grips of a religious revival. But can the country handle the return of its most venerable faith?"
Wow!  Taoism in China is suddenly hip! Who knew?!

US CIVIL WAR NUGGETS!!

Civil War 150 from the Washington Post

The Washington Post has developed a page/section of their website devoted to commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.  Lots to read for Civil War buffs!

News Nuggets 468

Aspens in autumn in the Elk Mountains of western Colorado.  From National Geographic.

Shhh, Don't Tell the Scaremongers, But Things Are Getting Better (Elizabeth Renzetti) from the Globe and Mail [of Toronto, Canada]

"It takes guts to be an optimist in this climate, to proudly wear pink-tinted glasses and, toting a sheaf of statistics and historical knowledge, shout: “People, chillax. It's not so bad, and it's getting better.”"

While I agree with the general sentiment, as long as people are seeing and experiencing a 9.6 unemployment rate, I would avoid an excessive "things are getting better" message.

Obama Can Grab Opportunities in Asia (Editorial) from the Korea Times [of South Korea in English]

"Over the next week or so, our troubled American President, fresh from that unmistakable midterm elections rebuke, will hit the foreign-relations trail. All the stops are in Asia, the world’s fastest rising region that is perhaps slowly becoming its most important.  Thankfully, many parts of Asia are not so antagonistic to America these days. Barack Obama should find it a relief to spend time with people who like him. "

In Russia, Search for Identity is Caught in Swirl of Symbols from the New York Times

"As Russia shut down this week for the Day of National Unity on Thursday — a state holiday instituted to substitute for the Nov. 7 commemoration of the 1917 October Revolution — the tussle between Byzantine, czarist and Soviet symbols as beacons for the new, post-Communist Russia was in full view."

The Do-Lots Congress (Ezra Klein) from Newsweek

"The votes are (mostly) counted. The Republicans have clearly and decisively won. But did the Democrats actually lose? They lost the election, certainly. And many of them lost their jobs. But the point of legislating isn’t job security. It’s legislation. And on that count the members of the 111th Congress succeeded wildly, even historically."

America the Volatile (Reid Wilson) from National Journal

"American politics is in a state of upheaval not seen since the end of the Second World War. That upheaval is by no means unique; voters tend to be equally angry at both parties, and equally willing to kick the bums out, during periods following wars and recession. This time, the country is experiencing both at once."

Repeal and Replace? from Newsweek

"Not so fast. An insurance-company defector explains why the most controversial provision of the health-care law will survive."

Why Democrats Should Make Nancy Pelosi House Minority Leader (Ben Adler) from Newsweek

"Pelosi would be perfect as minority leader. Matheson has it precisely backward when he reasons that the Democrats must elect a moderate after suffering a loss. You govern from the center, to look effective and protect vulnerable incumbents, but you oppose with partisanship, to make the majority look ineffective and drive down their approval ratings."

Interesting theory.

Why Nancy Pelosi is Running for House Minority Leader (E.J. Dionne) from the Washington Post

"I spoke with Pelosi less than 24 hours before she announced she wanted to stay on as Democratic leader, and everything she said made clear that she's not ready to allow millions of dollars in Republican attack ads to drive her from public life. She wants another crack at winning electoral vindication for a record she believes stands well on the merits."

Pelosi Unlikely to Face Challenge (Major Garrett) from the National Journal

"Without Hoyer, no one is likely to step forward."

Nancy Pelosi, Undone by Her Own Success (Eugene Robinson) from the Washington Post

"Amid the wreckage of Tuesday's GOP rampage, there's one person for whom I feel awful: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She's losing her job not because she does it poorly but because she does it so well."

A House Divided (Eleanor Clift) from Newsweek

"How the GOP will need to work with the Tea Party and the president."

HOLLYWOOD NUGGET!!

Debra Winger Drops Back In from the Sunday New York Times Magazine

"The actor fled from fame and into happy obscurity. More than a dozen years later, she’s tiptoeing back into view."

CHINA CULTURE NUGGET!!

The Rise of the Tao from the Sunday New York Times Magazine

"China is in the grips of a religious revival. But can the country handle the return of its most venerable faith?"

US CIVIL WAR NUGGETS!!

Civil War 150 from the Washington Post

The Washington Post has developed a page/section of their website devoted to commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.  Lots to read for Civil War buffs!