We’ve all heard the jokes, some of them funny, about [tag]Dick Cheney[/tag] being the real president, but over the weekend, Robert [tag]Kuttner[/tag] made a compelling case that the jokes actually understate the case — Cheney really is the one “running the country.” (via Stickings) Recent vice presidents Walter Mondale and Al Gore were given more […]
To follow up briefly on yesterday’s discussion about democracy’s ills, it seems Al Gore has chosen to weigh in on the subject. Former Vice President [tag]Al Gore[/tag] said Sunday ever-tighter political and economic control of the [tag]media[/tag] is a major threat to [tag]democracy[/tag]. Gore said the goal behind his year-old “interactive” television channel Current TV […]
This may be a bit esoteric for a discussion-group topic — indeed, it’s possible none of you will like this at all — but I hoped to expand a bit on a subject that came up the other day. In trying to diagnose what, if anything, ails our democracy, a number of political scientists and […]
As it turns out, it’s probably a good thing Bush is reading Hamlet (or at least pretending to), because as Maureen Dowd noted today, there’s a Shakespearean drama being played out behind the scenes. Increasingly, the current president seems to be blaming Bush pere “for policies that led to 9/11 and the rise of Osama […]
You know the [tag]Republican Party[/tag] has shifted to the far-right when [tag]Barry Goldwater[/tag] starts to sound like a [tag]liberal[/tag]. An interview in this Sunday’s New York Times Magazine with C.C. Goldwater reveals that her HBO film to be aired Sept. 18 paints her late grandfather, Sen. Barry Goldwater, “as a kind of liberal,” with testimonials […]
My friends at the World Stupidity Awards emailed this week to let me know about their fourth annual event, with winners to be announced on Sept. 20. There are quite a few noteworthy categories and nominees, but I had a few favorites. * Stupidest Man Of The Year — Donald Thompson (District Judge – a.k.a. […]
First up from the God machine this week is a Baptist church that is filled with the Christian spirit — just as long as church officials approve of your racial background. Fellowship Baptist Church in Saltillo, Mississippi, voted out a 12-year-old boy who “asked Jesus to live in his heart” at the church two weeks […]
Guest Post by Morbo Read the following party platform planks and take a guess at who wrote them: 1. Pass a constitutional amendment confirming that all life is a gift from God and should be protected; and that life begins at conception 2. Require public schools to offer Bible Literacy as part of their curriculum […]
Guest Post by Morbo Apparently, some people, when they check in to hotels, view pornographic movies in their rooms. I know, I’m shocked too. People like to watch porn? You could have knocked me over with a feather boa! You’ll be happy to know that Focus on the Family is going to put a stop […]
I’ll describe the scenario, you guess the race: a well-funded incumbent faces a primary challenge that strikes a chord with the party base. The party establishment rallies to the incumbent lawmaker’s aid, while the upstart challenger gets support from partisan activists and a nationally-known organization, which commits extensive resources to the campaign. In the end, […]