May 27 2009
I don’t usually engage in this kind of “gotcha” wordplay, but I can’t resist this one… “At this time he’s the only [president] we’ve got”??? Doesn’t that seem to tell us how many presidents we had under Bush?
May 24 2009
Sometimes when I listen to General Colin Powell and President Barack Obama, I think – why don’t we let black folks run the country for a little while?
Then I remember Alan Keyes… and think, nevermind.
May 22 2009
Christopher Hitchens talks about his experience with waterboarding (aka drowning/aka torture) here: http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/08/hitchens200808
From the link: There was a paramedic present who checked my racing pulse and warned me about adrenaline rush.
Ok. So this would be a possibly fatal procedure for Vice President Cheney. He’s got a bad heart – we don’t want to kill him. But since this is merely harsh stuff, with no threat of death, and therefore reasonable for the US to practice, I say that Liz Cheney, VP Cheney’s daughter, should undergo the practice. She’s young and healthy, and can take it.
Vice President Cheney – I call upon you to put your daughter up for waterboarding – at least 3 times, because Hitchens did it twice.
May 13 2009
I hope that we can at least get public television and NPR in the room for the next and future White House Poetry Slams. How awesome is this! 
Taking it one step further – how gorgeous in Michelle? I can’t tell if that’s a blouse or a dress – but where are the fashionistas to comment??? She looks simply stunning!
May 13 2009
C-SPAN didn’t cover this, so far as I’m aware – so if anyone has more video on this – please share!
May 12 2009
POLITICO 44: The Obama Presidency. Minute by Minute 5-12-2009.
Quoted in its entirety:
May 12, 2009 – 05:25PM
Even down to the arrangement of the furniture, tonight’s poetry jam in the East Room is all about dialogue, according to a White House aide.
The room will be set up, not in rows of chairs or tables, but with ottomans, tall tables for people to stand around and chat, and other seating arrangements that encourage guests to talk and get to know each other.
“It’s a very important part of the Obama’s philosophy,” said the aide, who described the event as “a really organic group setting.”
The president and first lady will each make brief remarks at the event, which will feature light appetizers and drinks. The idea is to hopefully inspire young and old alike with a mix of successful artists – James Earl Jones – and up-and-coming performers.
“Hopefully the people who watch this online will get a good feeling from it,” the aide said. – Carol E. Lee (5:25 p.m.)
Seriously? The Presidential Poetry Jam. I hope this is on C-Span…
QT
May 08 2009
For those wonderiing if there’s value to twitter – Mark posted that Louis Caldera (who authorized this picture) has resigned. Can’t find any other outlet reporting this news online…
(And actually – I’ve now posted WITH comment. But not on the picture, per se. So I’m keeping the title! 
QT
May 08 2009
http://politics.theatlantic.com/mt-42/mt-tb.cgi/8241
via The GOP’s Action-Thriller Detainees Video – The Atlantic Politics Channel.
“Action-Thriller” is Mark Ambinder’s tongue-in-cheek description of the video that commences immediately upon accessing the link. For people who were directly affected by the events of 9/11, these videos may trigger trauma reactions. Hence, my warning in the title. For myself, the stress headache that comes on everytime I have to watch 9/11 footage is probably a very mild post-traumatic stress disorder symptom – and I was only marginally impacted by the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center.
In fact – this is the perpetration of high-tech terrorism against the American people – video reminders – cue scary music on top of genuinely scary footage of real life events – and then make a political demand. Al Qaida thanks the republican party for their high-tech, state of the art advertisement. People in New York City, and perhaps in DC or in Pennsylvania near the United 93 crash site, might be deeply offended by this crass display – but people who were more remote from the events of the 9/11 terrorist attacks will be terrorized by this – and perhaps manipulated by their fear.
I hope some high-tech visual folks with good sense oppose and call the republican partisans on this – in defense of the American people.
Editing to add: this seems to be a good time to promote some mental defense against this kind of garbage:
I’ve blogged previously about Bob Cesca’s book, “One Nation Under Fear” – I highly recommend it (again!) if you haven’t read it.
Editing to add: Here’s the link to the book: One Nation Under Fear: Scaredy Cats and Fear-Mongers in the Home of the Brave (And What You Can Do About It)
QT
May 06 2009
A Turning Point for Voting Rights Law – Room for Debate Blog – NYTimes.com.
The New York Times has created a blog called “Room for Debate” – in which prominant Times contributors debate various thorny issues in the news. It is a wonderful contribution to the ongoing struggle for genuinely trustworthy, nonpartisan education on various issues, and I heartily recommend it.
This issue relates to the Voting Rights Act reauthorization – and I’m posting because so far I feel myself unable to follow the argument. The argument (and therefore presumably, the law itself) seems to hinge on two separate issues, but commentators seem to address only one at a time. The first is a concern about laws that would prohibit or suppress minority (in general, black in particular) votes, and the second is a concern about districting. While I can see how they are related – they don’t seem to be the same at all – and it seems therefore that those in favor and those opposed to recertification are talking past each other.
I’ll be digging more into the issue – but if anyone has more to share on the topic, please do!
QT
