Conservatives have complained for years about violence in [tag]video games[/tag], but apparently their concerns were limited to certain kinds of violence. When the video game is “[tag]Left Behind[/tag]: Eternal Forces,” and the violence is directed towards heathens, apparently the right isn’t as concerned (via C&L). Imagine: you are a foot soldier in a paramilitary group […]
Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers: * Former Kansas Republican Party Chairman [tag]Mark Parkinson[/tag] became a Democrat yesterday, and became Gov. [tag]Kathleen Sebelius[/tag]’ (D) running mate today. Parkinson, 48, acknowledged that he had doubted Sebelius when she first ran […]
The war in [tag]Iraq[/tag], unfortunately, features daily [tag]violence [/tag]and bloodshed. I expect the [tag]president [/tag]to be [tag]informed[/tag], but it’s unreasonable to think that Bush will get briefed on every single [tag]incident[/tag]. There are, alas, just too many. That said, the alleged [tag]massacre [/tag]in [tag]Haditha [/tag]was not just another routine incident in Iraq — and it’s […]
It’s been coming down the pike for a while now, but next week, a repeal of the [tag]estate tax[/tag] will reach the [tag]Senate[/tag] floor. Harold Meyerson makes a compelling case today that the Republican proposal is nothing short of “lunacy,” and the measure is indicative of [tag]Congress[/tag] loosing “any scintilla of sense” it has left. […]
In March, [tag]South Dakota[/tag] Gov. [tag]Mike Rounds[/tag] (R) signed legislation banning nearly all [tag]abortions[/tag] in the state, a measure which generated an immediate [tag]lawsuit[/tag]. As it turns out, however, we may not have to wait for a court ruling to see if the measure stands. Abortion rights advocates on Tuesday submitted more than 37,000 [tag]signatures[/tag] […]
Last month, a report prepared by the [tag]Center for Media and Democracy[/tag] found that corporations are producing [tag]fake-news[/tag] [tag]segments [/tag]– which amount to little more than mini-informercials masquerading as actual news — and TV stations are running them as if they were actual news reports, never disclosing the corporate role to viewers. The Center found […]
Yesterday, we learned that the AP ran a big story on Senate Minority Leader [tag]Harry Reid[/tag] accepting some [tag]tickets[/tag] to [tag]boxing[/tag] matches from the Nevada Athletic Commission, which the AP’s [tag]John Solomon[/tag] suggested was an ethical lapse on Reid’s part. It wasn’t. Today we learn that the [tag]AP[/tag] has managed to make the same article […]
In the grand scheme of things, examples of Bush’s mendacity are so common and disturbing, lying about replacing his [tag]Treasury[/tag] [tag]Secretary[/tag] probably doesn’t rank very high. It is, however, an interesting example of the [tag]White House[/tag] spinning a fairly obvious falsehood. As Think Progress noted, [tag]Bush[/tag] was asked on May 25 if Treasury Secretary [tag]John […]
[tag]Richard Ceballos[/tag] seemed like a fairly classic example of a [tag]whistleblower[/tag]. He was a deputy district attorney in Los Angeles who reviewed a warrant in a criminal case. Ceballos raised objections to flaws in the warrant, put those concerns in writing, but was overruled by his superiors. Later, he testified in the case about his […]
Greg Sargent at The American Prospect’s new media blog, The Horse’s Mouth, raised a really good point today about conservatives who criticize the media for Iraq coverage, not necessarily because it’s overly negative, but because the individual reporters are allegedly unwilling to leave their hotel rooms and see all the happy Iraqis. As Laura Ingraham […]