Andrew Sullivan's Blog, page 2775

The Empty Campaign

John Dickerson assesses the all-vent-no-solutions campaign gearing up for the fall:

Both sides are focusing on highlighting just how bad the other party isin part because they can't satisfy voter anger by talking aboutsolutions. People aren't in a mood to believe in promises fromWashington. And, for different reasons, neither party has much to say.Democrats can't excite people with the programs they've passed. Only 33 percent of those asked in a recent Pew poll think the stimulus bill has...

Quote For The Day III

"as a journo who tweets, gotta say this trend toward career-ending posts is a might disturbing," - David Carr.
















Twitter - David Carr - Online Communities - Social Networking - Business

A Media Purge Bleg

Glenn Greenwald compiles a long list of journalists fired because they violated neoconservative orthodoxy. Even if you think these purges are a good thing (which I don't), one might suspect that the p.c. police would occasionally work both ways, especially given how liberal the MSM allegedly is. Greenwald asks:

Does anyone ever suffer career-impeding
injuries of this type -- the way Nasr and Thomas also just have --
for expressing anti-Muslim or anti-Arab views? 

I can't think of any off...

Quote For The Day II

From a riveting piece on Catholic outreach to the young drug dealers in Mexico City by Marc Lacey in the NYT:

"I want to connect with God," said a glassy-eyed teenager holding a St.
Jude statue and sniffing glue, when asked about his religious fervor.

"Yeaaaaah," said his friend, swaying precariously, also high on glue.

Mexico City - Mexico - Illegal drug trade - Catholic Church - God

Beck U.

Michael Moynihan reads and watches some of the curriculum in the "pro-Mormon and pro-McCarthy" online college that makes the John Birch Society seem mainstream.
















John Birch Society - Mormon - Joseph McCarthy - Christianity - Religion and Spirituality

A Real Mama Grizzly Vs A Fake One

A reader writes:

I apologize upfront for this long note, as I know you are busy, but frankly the "Saint Sarah, advocate for those with special needs" BS is something I find so offensive that I feel the need to set the record straight. 

As the parent of a special needs child, I know "Mama Grizzlies." Sarah Palin is not a Mama Grizzly.  She actually represents the sort of ignorance of the special needs community that makes the job of real Mama Grizzlies much more difficult.  For instance, I was...

Quote For The Day

"Israelis, rightly, look at the past and have skepticism about what's possible. They see the enmity of neighbors that surround them in a very tough neighborhood. They see a track record of attempts at peace where, even when concessions were made, a deal could not be consummated. They see rockets fired from Gaza or from areas in Lebanon, and say to themselves that the hatreds or history are so deep-seated that change is not possible.

And yet, if you think back to the founding of Israel, there ...

Sanity On Social Security? Ctd

Yglesias thinks it make sense to cut money from Medicare rather than slashing Social security:

What's more, if we're going to cut spending on retirement programs then such cuts should be broadly shared
and not exclusively inflicted on younger people. Such moves are both
fairer and more credible. Last, if you want to cut Social Security
benefits you should just cut Social Security benefits.

But the retirement age has in no way caught up with life expectancy in America. I agree that Medicare is ...

Iraq Surge Fail Update

Two days, two sectarian bombings that killed close to 60 people and wounded hundreds of others. If this had happened in any other country, it would be dominating the news cycle. There is still no post-sectarian government in Iraq and no sign of one either.
















Iraq - Middle East - Government - Warfare and Conflict - Baghdad

Hathos Alert

Via Saint Petersblog, a truly fantastic promotional video for state rep Mike Weinstein. Cheered me up no end:

Web Design and Development - Hosting - Free - Business - Sports Related