Month: September 2010

159 Years Of The New York Times: No Better Historical News Source!

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Today, September 18, in the year 1851, the venerable New York Times began publication!

It became the “newspaper of record” early in the 20th century and has remained so ever since!

Without the NY Times, scholars in all fields, and particularly historians such as myself, would have been unable to do the writing and publication of much human knowledge!

It has always been the most thorough, most complete source of national and international news, as well as local New York City news, the arts, business, and sports!

It has been the source of the best book review, and a much respected Sunday magazine, as well as a succinct review of the week’s news on Sunday!

It has been the only newspaper to have an index that covers the entire history of the newspaper, from 1851 to the present, and without it, one cannot mine the paper, or compare coverage to other newspapers!

It has won more Pulitzer Prizes than any other newspaper, 101, throughout its history!

The NY Times has been the center of controversy over its long history, sometimes for reporting stories that were considered secret, such as the Pentagon Papers, and other times for deciding not to publish information that many feel should have been published in the national interest!

Also, the NY Times has had its cases, as many newspaper and other journalism sources, of created news stories having no factual basis, due to poor journalistic ethics of some of its reporters over the years!

The NY Times has been attacked by every Presidential administration, and by members of Congress and state and local officials, but that has only proved the value of this exceptional newspaper!

Sadly, the New York Times has had problems in recent years, with advertising revenues down, circulation of its paper having troubles, and the undermining of all newspapers by the reality of the internet! The availability of the internet has really hurt the long term prospects of the paper in print form, and it seems likely that soon the NY Times will start a policy of charging for online access, which would be a blow to many readers and scholars who might choose, or be forced for economic reasons, to lose the ability to stay in touch with the best print source in America!

The author personally cannot imagine doing without the NY Times, so will have to shell out for access, as this newspaper is simply a national treasure that cannot be allowed to dwindle in public availability, as that would be the undermining of the knowledge base, the exposure of truth, and the education of the American people about their world and their constantly evolving democracy, through good and bad times!

In any case, Happy Birthday, New York Times, and many, many more years of excellent work in the future! 🙂

Banks Hate Elizabeth Warren: Great Reason For Obama Appointment as Head Of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau!

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Yesterday, President Obama made one of his very best appointments in 20 months in office, when he chose Harvard Professor Elizabeth Warren as the head of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau!

By making her a Presidential adviser, he gives her a seat at the table, able to consult regularly with Obama, and he avoids a difficult confirmation fight with the Republicans in the Senate, since presidential advisers do not need Senate confirmation, so he is gaining her involvement without the headache of a partisan battle!

Of course, the GOP will be upset, but who cares? And, of course, the banking industry is furious, because Warren has been a major critic for years of how banks treat consumers!

Warren has called for a short, explainable mortgage agreement, which would prevent banks from bilking consumers of billions of dollars in undisclosed fees, and deny banks the ability to confuse consumers with long pages of legalese! She would also prevent unwarranted, burdensome fees imposed by credit card companies, and force auto loans to be disclosed in exact details as to fees and charges! Additionally, student loans would be accomplished with the end of banking abuses!

The more the banks hate Warren, the more we as consumers should love her! And the Republican and conservative opposition to her, as a person who speaks for the people, should be responded to as opposition to the interests of the country, and be reacted to at the polls by a smashing repudiation! 🙁

Advice To Sarah Palin: Why You Should NOT Run For President!

Ronald 1 Comment

Sarah Palin is extremely popular among a certain percentage of the American people, and many people think she should run for President in 2012. Behind the scenes, many Republicans, both those planning to run and others in positions of leadership or influence, hope she will not run, as they fear that she could weaken the party and cause a massive defeat in 2012, negating any gains that might be made in the midterm elections in November!

Sarah Palin will have to decide in the next six to nine months, at the most, whether she will plunge into the race! It is extremely doubtful that she will read, watch or listen to anyone who she sees as a naysayer, but in any case, the author will explain below why Sarah should NOT run!

1. You have a family that really needs you to spend more time at home! You have a disabled son who needs his mother more than he has you around! You have two daughters who need to have their mother in their life more, so that they will not become pregnant while in high school, and before they are married! Your husband could use you to be more involved in family matters, than in self promotion for one’s own ego!

2. You need to be honest, Sarah! You are a person who is very attractive in person, and seems very energetic and enthusiastic when you speak in public! But you have shown no evidence of having any great knowledge about economics, science, or international relations! You don’t seem to read very much, or have much interest in learning from others, including those who may disagree with you! You allow your religious beliefs to overwhelm common sense and to shape your public statements! You are intellectually inferior to the challenges of making tough decisions, as you have never had to do anything significant as Governor of Alaska, a state with the population the size of a congressional district! You might have great advisors as President, although you might also be subject to manipulation by others and make bad choices, as for instance Richard Nixon did when he was President! Would you really want to have to be awakened in the middle of the night to make a tough, immediate decision, when you have no experience in any political position that you have not quit because of boredom or lack of interest?

3. Running for President is HARD work, something you are adverse to, Sarah! Pat Buchanan, who ran for President a few times, makes clear that it is hard, retail work, not all glory and fame! You would have to be involved in debates with your Republican challengers and with the President of the United States! You would have to face interviews with media of all kinds, and if you refused to do so, you would be bitterly attacked, and not only by Democrats, but also Republicans! You would have to take definite stands on issues, and would make a lot of enemies, and your crowds would include many who do NOT adulate you, and you are not good at accepting criticism! You are a lazy person, who will not like being on camera and audio for 18 hours a day, will not like being second guessed all of the time, and will discover for the first time in your life what real WORK is! Sarah, do you really want to put yourself through all this? Think hard about it, Sarah, before you take the step that will change your life, and wear you down, and even have the effect of aging you earlier than necessary!

4. You will have to give up your lucrative income, as you cannot charge for speeches at universities and political gatherings anymore, if you run for President! You will not be able to have a reality series on cable anymore, and will not have time to write more books with shadow assistance, to gain royalties! It is so much more fun to endorse others, and speak for others, and keep your Fox News Channel salary, and have Sean Hannity, Bill O”Reilly, and Glenn Beck fawn and gush over you! Do you really want to give all of this up, which has given you at least $12 million income, if not more, in the past two years?

5. Finally, John McCain honored you and made you what you are, a multimillionaire, which you never would have been without him! You owe him a debt of gratitude that cannot be fully repaid, and he has been very good to you, and supportive of you ever since he chose you to run with him for Vice President! But isn’t it your responsibility to be thankful, and also realistic, about your talents, abilities, and character? Should you not look in the mirror and realize that you have been put into a position in public affairs way beyond your own reality, and that you need to be appreciative, but not burden your party and the nation with unsightly ambitions, which would, if by some freak chance, led to the White House, would be a danger to the American future? Not everyone, in fact most people, who may fantasize about being President should be President, as this is a position that requires the BEST among us, not just any average American! And yes, there certainly are women who could be qualified to be President, but face the facts, YOU ARE NOT ONE OF THEM, SARAH! Stop living in a fantasy of your own making, Sarah, and do what is right for you, your family, and the country: ANNOUNCE SOON YOU ARE NOT RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT, so that we can focus and concentrate on those who ARE qualified to compete in running for the White House! It would be the patriotic thing to do, to recognize your own limitations, and be thankful for the role you already have in political life!

Assuredly, this advice from the author will NOT be paid attention to, or even noticed by Sarah Palin, but this is a heartfelt appeal for reason, rather than emotion, to control her decision making process!

Fighting For The “Soul” Of The Republican Party: Internal Struggles in Florida, Delaware And Alaska!

Ronald 1 Comment

It is good to see that some Republicans, considered moderates, are refusing to allow the Tea Party Movement reactionaries to seize control of their party without a fight!

First, we had Charlie Crist, who decided to run as an Independent for the US Senate in Florida, and has a good chance to defeat Marco Rubio, the GOP and Tea Party nominee for that seat!

Then, we had Congressman Mike Castle of Delaware, who has refused to endorse Christine O’Donnell for the Senate after she defeated him in the primary this week, because of her lies and distortions, along with her lack of qualifications!

Now, belatedly, Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska is attempting to do something only one Senator ever has achieved–win the election by write ins only! Only Strom Thurmond of South Carolina accomplished that in 1954 as a Democrat! Murkowski lost the Senate nomination by a very small margin to Joe Miller, who she and many describe as an extremist with loony views! She attributes her defeat to her earlier unwillingness to come out fighting against him!

Of course, this Murkowski attempt at a write in victory will be very difficult, but she is well known and liked throughout the state, and her father also was Senator and Governor of Alaska! This is also a personal battle between the Murkowski family and Sarah Palin! The likelihood is that this move by Murkowski will fail, but help Democrat Scott McAdams to win the Senate seat!

The odds are that these internal revolts in the GOP will help the Democrats to keep control of the Senate and lose fewer seats than often imagined in the polls!

And should Murkowski pull out a miracle victory, and Crist win and even organize with the Republicans who have repudiated him (which seems highly unlikely), we will still be better off with two “moderate” Republicans than with two right wing fanatics in the Senate!

The future of the Republican party as an opposition is to be what they were historically–a centrist party leaning to the right, just as the Democratic Party is a centrist party leaning to the left–the mainstream where most Americans are then and now!

The worst possible scenario would be if the “Tea Party Eight” all won Senate seats, as that would be a nightmare not just for the Democratic party and the nation, but also for Senator Mitch McConnell and other establishment Republican leaders in the upper chamber!

Using The Power Of The Majority: Finally, The Democrats Are Taking Action On Important Legislation!

Ronald 1 Comment

With less than seven weeks to the midterm elections, the Obama Administration is coming out swinging, ready to assert the power of the majority, something the Republicans know how to do when they are the majority!

With the threat that the Republicans might regain the majority, the Democrats are finally moving to take action that may not succeed, but will at least show their intentions!

A small business bill has made it through the Senate, with the help of two “Georges” who are not seeking reelection, and have broken with the Republican filibuster. Senator George Voinovich of Ohio and Senator George LeMieux of Florida broke the filibuster on the legislation, making it a 61-38 vote to pass the bill.

Meanwhile, a Pentagon appropriations bill next week will be the moment where the Democrats in the Senate try to push through the end of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in the military, and also push through the DREAM Act, which would allow children of illegal immigrants who are in the US through no action of their own, but arrived before age 16, have lived here for at least five years, have graduated high school, and have been in college for two years or served two years in the military, to become American citizens!

It is possible that the GOP will block passasge, but if so, it can be used as a campaign issue against them! It is long overdue for the Democrats to play hardball, and not worry about bipartisanship and cooperation since the Republican Party clearly declared war on the Obama Administration on Day One!

It is time for action on gay rights and immigration, and even though the Democrats have a low rating on their Congressional performance in Gallup polls, the GOP has an even lower score, so let them continue to bottleneck and blockade, and they will, hopefully, suffer at the polls on November 2!

Celebrating Constitution Day: The Need To Understand The Intentions Of The Founding Fathers!

Ronald 2 Comments

Today is Constitution Day, the day 223 years ago that the Founding Fathers signed the Constitution at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, and started the process of ratification of the sacred document that we have lived under for 221 years!

There is great admiration and respect for the Founding Fathers, but the ideas of the Founding Fathers have been hijacked by many groups that claim to understand what the Founding Fathers believed and put into effect in 1787!

Many would have you believe that the Founding Fathers set up a rigid document that was not meant to be adaptable to changing times!

Many promote the belief that the Founding Fathers were setting up a Christian nation, rather than a nation with religious freedom!

Many want us to believe that the national government was meant to be secondary to states rights!

There is so much misunderstanding of what the promoters of the Constitution intended, and many believe that they would support the intentions of today’s social conservatives and the Tea Party Movement!

All of the above assumptions are totally false, as the Founding Fathers intended for a broad interpretation of the Constitution, as shown in Article 1, Section 8, the Elastic Clause; promoted a separation of church and state; and had no intention of promoting states rights which would defy the Constitution’s intention of one united nation! They were not narrow minded and bigoted, as social conservatives and Tea Party Movement people have proved to be!

The Founding Fathers had a forward looking view of the future, not the narrow minded, negative view of many today who keep on distorting the reality of the Founding Fathers and the Constitution! We must not allow these negative forces to destroy the true meaning of the Founding Fathers and the fantastic document they bequeathed to us!

Tom Coburn Wants To Hold Up Food Safety Bill: Is This NOT Insanity? :(

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Republican Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma has a reputation for being one of the most loony members of the US Senate!

He is only adding to this reputation by his threat to use Senatorial privilege to prevent the passage of a food safety bill, as too expensive and giving too much control to the Food and Drug Administration!

This bill has already been held up for a year, and that means there are more chances of tainted food in the future if this is not passed!

As it is now, the FDA cannot inspect many food facilities for a decade or more, and there is great danger to the public from the lack of inspections and regulation!

How anyone could see the blockage of legislation to promote food safety, health safety, as acceptable is beyond understanding for anyone who is sane! 🙁

This whole issue of senatorial privilege needs to be addressed in the future, as it is totally destructive of government doing what it MUST do–promote public safety, which should be defined as more than just defense of the nation! 🙁

The Biggest Loser Due To The Tea Party Takeover Of The GOP: Mitt Romney!

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As one analyzes the growing influence of the Tea Party Movement on the Republican Party, it is obvious who the biggest loser is with the emergence of this radical, anti government, anti incumbent fringe movement: Mitt Romney!

Romney is no Tea Party type, but instead is a solid, experienced businessman and competent governor, who dealt with the issue of health care in Massachusetts!

He is also often seen as a liberal from New England, although he has worked very hard to create the image that he is a solid conservative!

He is a Mormon who will have great troubles overcoming social conservatives who keep on espousing Christian values, and consider him as radical because he is a Mormon!

On paper, even though he has shortcomings, he seems to be the most qualified, competent candidate the GOP could offer as a challenger to President Obama! Romney has great business experience, and made the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics a success!

If the GOP used its intelligence, rather than its emotions, it would nominate Romney as the best of the group of potential candidates!

But it is clear that Mitt Romney has lost any edge he might have had, once the Tea Party Movement emerged as a significant influence, pushing the Republican Party far to the right!

So the GOP will lose any chance it had to win the 2012 Presidential election, and the worst scenario of all is if Sarah Palin somehow emerged as the nominee two years from now! 🙁

Republican Presidential Candidates Must Be Asked: Is Sarah Palin Qualified To Be President Of The United States? :(

Ronald Leave a comment

The Presidential campaign of 2012 is about to begin, as soon as the midterm congressional elections take place on November 2.

This country faces many tough challenges, and we need candidates for the Presidency who are fully qualified to deal with the multitude of issues that are faced by the occupant in the White House!

Certainly, we cannot expect perfection from our presidential candidates, but we have a right to expect basic competency and knowledge of economics, science, and international relations at the least!

Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has not shown competency in any of these areas, and refuses to face the challenge of interviews with media that she deems as unfriendly! We cannot afford to have a President who is so lacking in skills, knowledge, and insights about national and international affairs as Sarah Palin represents!

The question that must be asked of EVERY Republican Presidential candidate–Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich, Mitch Daniels, Haley Barbour, Tim Pawlenty, Rick Santorum, John Thune, Bobby Jindal and any others–do you believe Sarah Palin is qualified to be President of the United States?

If they refuse to answer, they should be rejected, and if they say that she is qualified, they should be rejected! If they say she is not qualified, call any of them who do so a profile in courage, as it would be the absolute truth!

We deserve the best, not just a photogenic quitter who has never given any evidence of any deep thoughts or ideas! We should hope that someday we will have a woman President, but not just any woman! Mediocrity cannot be allowed to govern the greatest nation in the world!

Christine O’Donnell: Questions About Her Competency, Integrity, And Motivations! :(

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Delaware GOP Senate nominee Christine O’Donnell is a new Tea Party favorite, but one who makes you wonder about the competence, integrity and motivations of this right wing Republican associated movement! 🙁

Questions have been raised about her competence, including the fact that she has lied about being a college graduate, which she only became this year after finishing one more course and paying much belated fees and bills due to Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey from the 1980s!

Also, O’Donnell has not held a paying job for years, and seems to have used campaign funds to pay her personal expenses, including rent and credit card bills! And she has alienated campaign staff who have not been paid for their services in past campaigns for the Senate! 🙁

O’Donnell also has in the past promoted a very narrow minded view of sexuality, including arguing against any sexual activity outside of marriage, including masturbation, and yet lives with a boyfriend, and seems unlikely now to be practicing celibacy, which she pushed as a religious issue in the 1990s!

She claims to be an expert on the Constitution, but has never written or expressed orally any specific knowledge of government issues, and just seems to be a professional office seeker, with three attempts for a Senate seat, but with no actual credentials! 🙁

This woman is extremely attractive, but comes across as not very bright or knowledgeable, in many ways a clone of Sarah Palin!

The Delaware Republican Party repudiated her before she defeated Congressman and former Governor Mike Castle in the primary by a small margin of votes, and Castle will not endorse her as he states that she has lied consistently, which indeed seems to be totally true, including claiming that she had won two counties in Delaware against Joe Biden in 2008, when she won none of the three counties in the small state! 🙁

Karl Rove, former adviser to George W. Bush, may be switching gears under pressure to back O’Donnell, after criticism of his strong stand against her competency, integrity and motivations, but the fact he has switched views does not take away from his earlier views, which seemed indeed legitimate!

Karl Rove may be objectionable in many ways, but he truly knows politics and candidates backwards and forwards, and his initially strong doubts about O’Donnell have to be seen for what they were! CHRISTINE O’DONNELL IS NOT QUALIFIED TO REPRESENT DELAWARE IN THE US SENATE! 🙁