Andrew Sullivan's Blog, page 2740

Mel Gibson And The Christianist Right

"Mel Gibson might be my favorite feminist. If he's not number one on my list, he's pretty close, in competition with Pope John Paul II. As you probably suspect, I don't have in mind the usual definition of "feminism." I can guarantee you there'll be no fawning Ms. magazine cover story on Gibson (or JPII). But give me a few minutes to fawn a little," - Kathryn Jean-Lopez, in 2003, after being given a sneak preview of the pornographic sadist snuff movie called "The Passion Of The Christ."

Now...

The Man Bristol Dumped

He's apparently close with Todd:

As ex Ben Barber said quite succinctly, "They may go get married, make
however much money, and call it quits." Barber says he texted Bristol
last night, asking whether she was pregnant again. No, came the answer,
Barber says.

Samuel Barber - England - Bristol - Ben Barber - Bristol Palin

"Kicked Off The Team"

Mercede's latest.
















Mercedes-Benz - Recreation - Autos - Makes and Models - United States

How Much Money Did Bristol And Levi Get?

Somewhere around $100,000, according to the New York Post.

New York Post - United States - New York - Business - Government-Related Organizations

Imaginationland

Making my way through the WaPo piece on our massive national security police and surveillance state, the following quote from retired Army Lt.
Gen. John R. Vines leaps out:

"I'm not aware
any agency with the authority, responsibility or a process in place to
coordinate all these interagency and commercial activities. The complexity of this system defies description."

The result, he added, is that it's impossible to tell whether the country is safer because of all this spending and all...

What If Obama Did Nothing?

Jonathan Cohn imagines a world where Obama gave up on his domestic agenda:

Insofar as policy decisions really have hurt this administration
would argue (as have others) that the rescue packages for Wall
and the auto industry were the biggest liabilities. People
"bailout" fatigue pretty quickly and came to associate
administration with handing money to people and companies that
deserve it, which is a sure-fire way to destroy faith in government.

But the alternative...

Mercede Reacts

From her blog from last week:

I looked up to see that my mom was very upset, with tears running
down her face, yet still trying to console my other family members who
were texting her and sending messages via Facebook saying they were
upset that they had to find out about this engagement from the media
and not from Levi himself. I sent a message telling them not to feel
too badly since even his own mother and sister had to find out that way.

I have to say with all the odd things...

"Digital Drugs"

Vaughan Bell laughs at reporting on the subject.

Vaughan Bell - Brain - Police - Research - Flickr

Palin: GOP Front-Runner

Gallup reminds Washington's journalist class of the bleeding obvious:

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is the best known and most positively rated of five possible contenders for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination. Her 76% favorable rating among Republicans is higher than those for Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, and Bobby Jindal... Palin has the strongest name identification and positives among Republicans at this juncture. Only 4% say they don't know enough about her to...

Selling Glamour

Virgina Postrel, picking up one of her old hobby-horses, compares feeling and being glamorous:

Real glamour requires a receptive audience. You can only beglamorous if others perceive you that way. Feeling glamorous, on theother hand, means that your mental picture of yourself is one that youwould find glamorous. You become the audience for your own glamour,creating a image of yourself that veils your flaws. Defying theultimate intimacy, you somehow manage to turn yourself into an...