This was a true straddle week, ushering out 2008 and ushering in 2009. And some of the top political stories reflected this split. Blago calling a press conference felt very '08; the Burris/Senate Dems showdown is totally '09. Franken v. Coleman is '08; Franken v. the Senate Republicans threatening to filibuster his seating is '09. Gov. Patterson considering Bill Clinton and Mario Cuomo doesn't feel '08 -- it feels 1988; Caroline in the Senate could be one of the more, y'know, compelling stories of '09. The top quote of straddle week had to be Alberto Gonzales' pathetic: "I consider myself a casualty, one of the many casualties of the war on terror." Let's see, he approved torture, politicized the Department of Justice, and lied to Congress about warrantless wiretapping and pre-war intelligence. Definitely not an '09 definition of a victim.
The newspaper headlines in the American media shows the difference. “Clashes Continue in Gaza” “Ground Fighting Widens War on Hamas” and “Israel Launches Ground Assault on Gaza” The sense one gets from reading these headlines is a clash of equals. You can almost picture two great armies facing off across a vast no man’s land. The stark reality is that one is a significant military power backed by the greatest military power of all time; facing off against a limited number of ill equipped, marginally trained but democratically elected Islamic organization, struggling to survive in the minimal space left available to them
Unless and until the United States begins to implement an even handed policy in the treatment of the Palestinian people with respect for their plight, grievances and human rights, world opinion will continue to be against us. While this may not matter to many Americans consider this; as our economy worsens and business opportunities dwindle, our ability to expand and operate in the greater world is tied to our international reputation. Right now our reputation is at an all time low.
Brilliantly stated.
Alberto Gonzales, another pathetic figure in the GWB administration, trying to rewrite "the Legacy". These people should just fade away into the sunset, and let sleeping dogs lie....
McClatchy reports that Bush will receive 192k plus perks a year for his service from the feds.
Why not have the Illinois Legislature vote on a non-binding resolution addressed to US Senate, recommending acceptance of Burris. Maybe 3 days of public comment like a confirmation hearing first. This gives Illinois a vote in the Senate and the US Senate cover to allow Burris to be seated. It can remove the Blago stigma.
You have the power to stimulate this conversation. It could flush out some hot news stories. & It could get a critical democratic vote on line in the Senate sooner!
I encourage you to get this into the public discussion as a viable solution, and if it isn't a viable solution, that will be just as telling in itself.
-Elaine Southard Colo Spgs CO
Obama appears to have the ability to reflect on situations from many angles and he is gifted in terms of communication and language. So I am glad you made this point because it is so interesting to consider.
Let's take a second glance at the facts.
Fact #1-by all accounts he is qualified
Fact#2-by most accounts "Blogo" is within his rights to appoint.
Fact#3-Once appointed he will be the only African American in the senate.
Seat the man!
citizens of this country are going to have to become responsible
monitors of their employees, the elected representations at the
local, state and national level.
The first question every citizen should ask themselves is: What can
I do to return this country to the vision that the founding fathers
had of a government of, by and for the people?
The second question is: How will I take responsibility for
solving the problems that have been brought upon my
country over the last 8 (actually closer to 30 years ?
If the average man-in-the-street citizen is not willing to
commit their time and energy to reconstructing the country,
it isn't going to happen. We've seen what couch potato,
sit-on-the-sidelines citizenship produces.
Air America on the FM spectrum, for a start, instead of on tinny AM radio.