May 13, 2013
Shooting At New Orleans Mother’s Day Parade
In case you missed it, and it’s possible you did since the media is treating this as just another day in America, well, because it is:
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May 9, 2013
NRA’s Wayne LaPierre Says ‘We Are In The Midst Of A Once-In-A-Generation Fight’
During the National Rifle Association’s (NRA) annual celebration of gun violence (and rights), otherwise known as their national convention, executive vice president Wayne LaPierre made it clear that he believes the NRA and gun owners are in a war. “We are in the midst of a once-in-a-generation fight for everything we care about,” said LaPierre. Many of us on the left label the gun crazies as one-issue voters, and with that single statement, LaPierre has confirmed it.
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May 1, 2013
American Paranoia: ‘Shock And Awe’ Style ‘Active Shooter’ School Drills
Well at least they don’t involve the students.
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April 29, 2013
Ron Paul Compares Boston Lock-down To A ‘Military Coup In A Far Off Banana Republic’
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April 26, 2013
Long-Term Unemployment Proves Economic Austerity Folly
The Bureau of Labor Statistics showed little change in long-term unemployment in March, with 4.6 million Americans being tossed away like garbage. These are people who want a job but cannot find one, and their elected representatives are doing nothing about it. Republicans, particularly congressional Republicans, have shown very little concern for the unemployed. They reject any attempts to stimulate the economy, and when the long-term unemployed try to get by on unemployment benefits, Republicans try to snatch that from them as well.
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April 22, 2013
Boston Marathon Bombing: Terror And Fear In America
With some reflection on the tragedy a week ago at the Boston Marathon, it’s clear America is still deeply scarred by the events of 9/11 over a decade ago. Why is it so clearly obvious to so many Americans that we should label last week’s bombing as a terrorist act, but not the Newtown school shooting? What is our definition of terrorism? Was Newtown not sufficiently terrifying? On the contrary, while many more people were wounded from last week’s bombing, last December’s school shooting saw many more fatalities. On that measure, we should consider the Newtown shooting to be at least on the same level as the Boston Marathon bombing, yet we do not, at least not from a perspective of public safety.
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April 17, 2013
If The Boston Marathon Bomber Turns Out To Be White, Is It Still Terrorism?
Yes, that is a silly question. And yes, in the past we have labeled white bombers as domestic terrorists. It’s not like we play semantics with something as important as terrorism, right?
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April 15, 2013
Boston Marathon Explosions And Modern Society
I don’t have any special insights or exclusive information regarding the two explosions near the finish line of the Boston Marathon today, but what I can say is this — we are not living in a more violent time. We are not witnessing a societal free fall of morals and values. The human race is not degenerating into a vengeful, hateful species with no hope for the future. Chance are this was the work of one person, but I’ll leave that for the authorities to sort out. Even if it was the work of more than one person, they do not represent the rest of us.
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April 13, 2013
Yes, People Do Cling To Guns And Religion
In April 2008, then Senator Barack Obama got into a bit of political trouble. Referring to working-class voters, the presidential hopeful said, “They get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.” This statement caused an immediate and lasting backlash. Ultimately he got past it, won the Democratic primary and then the presidency. And to this day, the common wisdom is that Obama was wrong when he made this statement. But was he?
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April 8, 2013
Glenn Beck’s Problem With Melissa Harris-Perry’s ‘Kids Belong To Whole Communities’
Glenn Beck has a problem with a recent “Lean Forward” ad on MSNBC. In the ad, Melissa Harris-Perry says, “kids belong to whole communities.” Of course, Glenn Beck also has a problem with reality, so that should be taken into consideration.
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