In the News Archive

Reading the newspapers.

• In the News

  - A new poll finds that “a majority of Americans think Congress should not continue to fund the war unless a timetable for withdrawal is put in place.” I participated in this poll. A little before dinner time, I received a phone call. “What are your feelings on the Iraq war?” asked the poller. “Bush [...]

• In the News… Political Theater.

  - Some advice to liberal representatives: do not compare the Nazis or Hitler to the events of nine-eleven. It doesn’t equate, and it is not good politics. But the first Muslim congressmen was right when he said that the Bush administration has “exploited the fears that grew from 9/11, in order to pass legislation and [...]

• In the News

  - While the Bush administration was lying this country into the Iraq war, and falsifying Iraqi intelligence, “the President’s Intelligence Oversight Board — the principal civilian watchdog of the intelligence community — was vacant for the first two years of the Bush administration.“ – President Bush plans to “veto a bipartisan plan to expand the [...]

• In the News

  - What could possibly happen in the next two months that would make the conditions in Iraq tenable that hasn’t happened in the last five years? Bush is certainly waiting for a miracle. – John McCain on his as-of-yet disastrous campaign: “I think we’re doing fine.“ – The democrats are marching towards another stand-off as [...]

• In the News

  - The train is where I get (all of) my reading in, so BART putting TVs in the trains and stations upsets me. – A republican is the first to admit (and apologize) to being a frequenter of the D.C. escort trade circuit, but he will definitely not be the last, nor will democrats avoid [...]

• In the News… Part Deux.

  Such a busy news day, I’ve got to do it twice. I’ve gotta. – Bush has cited executive privilege in refusing two high-level aides to testify before Congress in the probe of the U.S. attorney firings. However, wouldn’t it be simpler for Bush to allow his aides to plead guilty, and then for Bush to [...]

• In the News

  - With Katie Couric upset that she made the switch to a “hard-news evening newscast,” maybe CBS will bring back Dan Rather. Or, go for the jugular, and get Jon Stewart. – If Bush wouldn’t have commuted Libby’s sentence (with a full pardon coming January 2009), “it would have caused a fracture with the vice [...]

• In the News

  - Law & Order’s conservative district attorney Fred Thompson was a mole for Richard Nixon during the Watergate hearings. I guess he’s counting on the voter’s short memory. – The biggest complaint with the first version of the iPhone is the battery. The phone must be sent in for service, it costs “$79, plus $6.95 [...]

• In the News… Skeeter.

  - From a European’s perspective, the U.S. “is the no-vacation nation.” And they are right: compared to a standard ten days (unless you work for a school), and not counting sick time (*cough* *cough*, I don’t think I can make it in to work today, the beach at Tahoe is too pleasant), most Europeans get [...]

• In the News… Don’t Be Evil, Don’t Be Google.

  - The Buffalo Sabres have lost both of their captains to free agency. I think this is a good thing in the long run — the price-tag was way too high for a small-market team still rebuilding following bankruptcy. When it comes to my sports teams, I always support a long-term strategy. – Four years [...]

• In the News

  - Well, one must admit, he has two huge balls. Representative Rahm Emanuel, brother of Hollywood super-agent Ari, proposed to cut off funds for the vice president, who had claimed that he had extraordinary powers, and was not governed by the Constitution. – Was there a real reason that price floors were not allowed for [...]

• In the News… the I, Me, Mine Edition.

  - I was forced to cancel plans in Tahoe this weekend because of the forest fire. By the way, because of the fire, Hotels.com refunded my money in full, with no cancellation fee. (Were the customer service people really aware of the Tahoe fire, or was this one of those magical reasons that allowed them [...]

• In the News

  - So powerful, a four-part expose won’t even do. Ana Marie Cox highlights the Washington Post series and “the extraordinary and unprecedented role that Dick Cheney has played as Vice President.“ – A sign of the Roberts/Alito court… “The Supreme Court sided with developers and the Bush administration Monday in a dispute with environmentalists over [...]

• In the News

  - Choose your doctor wisely, because they have the “right to refuse treatment based on values.“ – The OVP gone wild: “Vice President Cheney’s office has refused to comply with an executive order governing the handling of classified information for the past four years and recently tried to abolish the office that sought to enforce [...]

• In the News… the Blogger-Induced Version.

  - Michael Bloomberg has been planning his entrance into the race for the White House the past two years. Will he make a splash? A big one, if he does commit. I’m hoping he does; it’ll make things interesting. – The era of zero accountability continues… “Vice President Dick Cheney has asserted his office is [...]

• In the News

  - Uh-oh, Ralph Nader is supposedly pondering a run. Says Nader, “The two parties are still converging — they don’t even debate the military budget anymore. I really think there needs to be more competition from outside the two parties.” I agree, the two-party system hurts the natural breakdown of the American voting public. And, [...]

• In the News

  - Maybe Bush’s worst legacy will be the plight of the heroes of nine-eleven, the rescue workers. – Just how powerful is Google? Well, Microsoft has decided to alter Vista following a Google complaint. – New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ditched the GOP label that hinders his political future. What is that political future? [...]

• In the News… 2008.

  - GOP presidential hopeful (haha) Sam Brownback sent out a memo criticizing forerunner (and Mormon) candidate Mitt Romney… “The LDS Jesus is not the same Jesus of the Christian faith.” (I wonder what my subcontractor would say. Actually, I don’t.) – Bill Richardson is selling an Iraq war policy that would leave zero troops in [...]

• In the News

  - It is never the original deed, but always the cover-up. With evidence that the RNC has deleted several thousand email messages, “the Bush administration may have committed ‘extensive’ violations of a law requiring that certain records be preserved.“ – It is tough being the “next Ronald Reagan.” Apparently. GOP presidential candidates are being urged [...]

• In the News… the Non-Sensical Version.

  - “Russian astronauts and engineers may have corrected a problem yesterday that caused computers aboard the International Space Station to crash and raised the possibility that the station might have to be evacuated.” I’m just saying, if I was in space, with an internet connection available, I’d be blogging. I’m just saying. (I’m dedicated, I [...]

« newer — older »