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Acknowledging my capacity for self-deception about whether political trends are favorable to the causes I support, I can’t help thinking/hoping that I detect some impatience in the press with the Republican habit of letting politics start at the water’s edge. It’s not just that so many GOP politicians have more or less stopped even pretending [...]
Archive for December, 2009
December 30th, 2009
Category: Uncategorized
Five thoughts about the Undie Bomber: 1. This attack wasn’t some unprecedented, sophisticated plot carried out by a wily terrorist enemy constantly searching for ways to strike at the soft underbelly of American national security. This was vintage al Qaeda, circa 2001. The plot looked eerily similar to the Shoe Bomber. It was directed against [...]
December 30th, 2009
Category: Terrorism and its control
Josh Bernstein points out that the Underpants Bomber case and the Shoe Bomber case were virtually identical, except that the Shoe Bomber case occurred on George W. Bush’s watch, and the Democrats decided to pass up the opportunity to demagogue the issue. Steve Benen adds that two of the four organizers of the latest [...]
December 29th, 2009
Category: Uncategorized
The underpants-bomber case once again illustrates that information doesn’t flow freely enough within the network of agencies concerned with terrorism.
December 29th, 2009
Category: Terrorism and its control
Republicans hold up TSA nomination,then complain about lack of air security.
December 28th, 2009
Category: Affordable Care Act
Once the health bill passes, Republicans have to choose between calling for its repeal and not calling for its repeal. Neither choice is attractive. My heart bleeds for them.
December 27th, 2009
Category: Literature
Eric Lotke’s first novel packs a polemical punch, and also succeeds as a story.
December 27th, 2009
Category: Health Care
Anemona Hartocollis has a long piece in today’s NYT about the fine line physicans and families walk with patients at the end. New to me: in addition to pain, agitation and anxiety are now accepted reasons for giving patients a variety of CNS depressants, even though – or is it really because? – they are [...]
December 26th, 2009
There’s an easy way to get rid of the filibuster at the beginning of 2011. If the Democrats fail to do it then, then they have no right to complain.