By Karen Russell from www.oprah.com

A dog named Waffles--and a job at a veterinary clinic--taught the author of Swamplandia! how to survive life's rockiest moments.

For two and a half years, I worked as a technician and receptionist at a veterinary clinic on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Each...

Happy that the Major League Baseball Player's Association condemned Arizona's misguided, mean-spirited new immigration law. Racial profiling is important to baseball, where 27% of the players are Latino. I urge the NFL, NHL and NBA unions and all the Major Leagues to join them.

It's obvious that...

Sarah Palin hasn't had a press conference or released her medical records. I'm not surprised.

The McCain/Palin camp telegraphed that Palin wouldn't have a press conference. Back in early September, McCain's Head Mudslinger Rick Davis said Palin wouldn't take tough questions from reporters "until the point in time when...

A while ago I pointed out that every couple of years, the "black kid" gets blamed for some random crime by some random white person:

Now Lindsay Lohan is that random White person. Lindsay has played the race card. She claimed that the "Black kid" was driving after...

"Kill Him!"
"Traitor!"
"Terrorist!"
"Sit Down Boy!"
"Barack HUSSEIN Obama!"
"That One!"
"Bomb Obama!"

Senator John McCain needs to put the brakes on the "Hate Talk Express." McCain must end the shameful and dangerous hate mongering erupting daily at McCain/Palin rallies....

For months, McCain has been bragging about his twenty-six years of foreign policy experience while belittling Obama's experience and judgment in this arena. We've heard how this is McCain's sweet spot. That no one is more qualified to navigate murky global waters.

As Nate Silver aptly points out in the...

The democrats need to stop whining about Senator Obama, get off our butts and help him win. Enough with the all the hand wringing, with all the "what Obama NEEDS to do NOW" advice and Hillary comeback fantasies. Obama WILL win but he needs YOUR help.

Let's focus our energy...

Yes He Did.

Senator Obama shows us what kind of president he will be in a crisis. Obama will be a brilliant teacher, a sincere uniter and an inspirational leader. Often accused of peddling false hope and empty rhetoric, Obama put that criticism behind him. Obama put his words...

Before there was March Madness, there was Black Magic, the story of basketball's black pioneers. I love sports, I love great films, and I especially love great, sports films. Filmmaker Dan Klores' Black Magic is a great, sports film and more.

Black Magic is an entertaining, engaging and...

WASHINGTON - A photo appearing on the internet of Senator Barack Obama's Chrysler 300 without a giant, yellow, magnetic "I Support The Troops!" ribbon is causing chaos in the presidential campaign over what constitutes a smear.

The AP photo show Obama's car in his Chicago, IL. driveway WITHOUT a...

It's baaack! Just when you thought it was safe, we are back at Whitewater. If Hillary and her attack pack want to play the Rezko card, let's all strap on some waders, because now we're forced to wade through the Whitewater mud again.

Clinton claimed...

Senator Obama nailed it during the South Carolina debate when he mentioned Bill Clinton, "I can't tell who I'm running against sometimes."

Don't get me wrong. I love Bill Clinton. I always have. I hope I always will. But lately, not so much.

...

As if his Bush ass-kissing weren't enough to get you to turn the channel, Friday's Hardball exchange with CNBC Street Signs anchor Erin Burnett is enough to turn your stomach.

Matthew's transcript isn't "up" yet on MSNBC.com but here is a rough version:

MATTHEWS: Yeah. Could you...

Every couple of years, the "Black kid" gets blamed for some random crime by some random White person.

Now Lindsay Lohan is that random White person. Lindsay has played the race card. She claimed that the "Black kid" was driving after she got pinched for a DUI. I...

I was all fired up and poised to blog about the Hot Ghetto Mess TV show flap after I read that BET's Reginald Hudlin is comparing his shameful minstrel show to Bill Cosby's calls for change and responsibility.

"The intent of the show is no different than...

Happy Birthday President Bush!

I am on a lot of weird mailing lists. A few days ago, Robert M. "Mike" Duncan - RNC Chairman sent me an e-mail asking me to help President Bush celebrate his 61st Birthday. Mike urged me not to miss this opportunity wish the President a...

"All Men Are Created Equal" -- The Declaration of Independence

All men are created equal, except for mobbed-up, White House perjurers who are apparently MORE equal than the rest of us.

King George sure loves to bend the rules when it comes to his cronies. Today, it was "Heck...

If you are running for president, how do you respond intelligently and effectively to "tribute videos and ads," like the new risqué "I Got A Crush.... On Obama" video? Should a campaign always distance itself from these types of ads or videos? Is "no comment" and "we didn't do...

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." -- Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from Birmingham Jail

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Even with Paris. Especially with the Duke lacrosse players. It will be fascinating to see the tables turned on disgraced Duke District attorney Mike Nifong's...

Like the Duke Rape Case, we have another case of prosecutors run wild. Like the Duke Rape Case, we have the uneasy intersection of sex and race. Like the Duke Rape Case, justice is long overdue.

Enough already: Georgia needs to free Genarlow Wilson. Now.

It boggles the...