Oregon Militants Vow To 'Kill Or Be Killed If Necessary,' But FBI Isn't Biting
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Notice the irony of Trump benefitting from the politics of resentment. Billionaires like Trump make off with too much of the nation's income and wealth, at the expense of ordinary working stiffs. And then Trump puts on his politician's hat and cashes in on the resentment. And here's where it gets really tricky. Some of the ultra-P.C. stuff is silly and makes it easier for the right to lampoon liberals. The broader challenge here is that many of the causes that Trump and company put down as P.C. are legitimate and overdue. How long will it take before cops who brutalize black citizens are brought to justice? Do we really want to evict 12 million law abiding immigrants, many of whom were brought here as kids? But when the local working class is getting clobbered economically, it's easier to play off the races against each other.
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Extremists from America's far right wing have carried out well over half of the deadliest terror attacks on American soil since 9/11. Experts on terrorism agree, but argue that some conservative politicians downplay this fact. The question is why?
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The ESSA doesn't settle anything. It doesn't solve anything. Every argument and battle that supporters of public schools (and the teachers and students who work and learn in public schools) have been fighting will still be fought -- the difference is that now those arguments will be held in state capitols instead of Washington D.C.
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Militias are the ancestors of the modern National Guard, not of self-proclaimed "patriots" who show utter contempt for any form of authority beyond themselves. The extremists playing solider in the woods of Oregon are at best criminals and at worst domestic terrorists, and they need to be identified as such.
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I'll be unequivocal -- when protesters in Ferguson challenged government authority and abuse, you labeled them thugs. Guess what, it's 2016, you bunch of goddamn yokels -- you don't get to smash government property and point guns at law enforcement just because you're white.
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When Americans think about nuclear weapons, they comfort themselves with the thought that the vast, nuclear destruction of human life has not taken place since 1945 -- at least not yet. But, in reality, nuclear weapon-related destruction has taken place, with shocking levels of U.S. casualties.
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Rubio can't seem to make up his mind on immigration reform or apparently obey traffic laws and balance his checkbook. But I was most amazed at his recent declaration of war against college education while campaigning in New Hampshire for the upcoming Republican Party Presidential primary.
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As grave and heinous as it is, the focal argument of this article is not about the atrocities committed by Moscow as much as it is about the latent, subtle and protracted consequences of the statement of Russia's Orthodox Church at the opening of their military campaign back in late September.
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Scalia's views are precisely what our forefathers feared so terribly and worked so diligently to avoid. In addition to ignoring our Bill of Rights, Scalia has abandoned any pretense of logic to support his faith.
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Nimr's execution is a dangerous move by the Saudi authorities, but not a surprising one. Although some western politicians and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had called for his release, the United States government has been predictably and disappointingly muted about criticizing its rich Gulf ally.
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A few other tips for avoiding problems while in America. If you approach, or are approached by, law enforcement officers, always do so with your hands up and ask a friend to video the encounter. And finally don't go near any borders or it will be assumed that you entered illegally.
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America has succumbed to a vicious cycle in which great wealth translates into political power, which generates even more wealth, and even more power. The result of this vicious cycle is a disenfranchisement of most Americans, and a giant upward distribution of income from the middle class and poor to the wealthy and powerful.
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More U.S. military personnel have been sent to Iraq and Syria. Trainers, Special Forces, and airstrikes haven't been enough. The administration continues its slow progression to renewed ground combat. President Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize grows more tarnished by the day.
The twin conflicts raging in Iraq and Syria have unleashed an unsettling dynamic that is transforming both the Middle East and the world beyond this deeply troubled region.
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If loyalty, anger and support are all key elements in Trump's current dominance of the Republican presidential field, rolling each back - and doing so in a progressive manner - is equally key to ensuring that that dominance does not persist into the general election itself.
The Saudis, Qataris, and others in the region (like much of the world) are unlikely to change course and take responsibility for their security, because they believe that Uncle Sam will keep doing it for them.
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The "Implementation Day" of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which is in early 2016, will give Iran tremendous sanctions relief. After Implementation Day, Iran's global legitimacy will rise, and foreign businesses will be permitted to operate in the country.
The descent of the Republican presidential debate into new lows of demagoguery highlighted the emptiness of political discourse. And across the country, communities experienced the torrential downpours, record temperatures, floods, droughts, and firestorms predicted by climate change models. But 2015 also brought breakthroughs.
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In 2016, politicians and pundits will certainly continue to pontificate about the pitfalls of political correctness. There just isn't any downside to attacking this imaginary monster of groupthink, so we can expect to hear speakers trumpeting their own courage in "not being pc" as they attack especially vulnerable groups in society.
