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R.I.P., Mariusz Handzlik

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:01:51 -0400

Of the 97 victims of the crash of the Polish presidential airplane outside Smolensk, there were many officials of very high rank, but I would bet that there was not a finer human being among them than Mariusz Handzlik, undersecretary of state in the office of the president. I first met Mariusz in 1993 when he came to the United States as a participant in a program run by James Denton of the National Forum Foundation, later merged into Freedom House. (Denton is now publisher of World Affairs.) The program aimed to help train a new post-Communist elite for the nations of east and central Europe liberated from Soviet occupation.

Palin Calls Out Perry on HPV Vaccine

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:56:48 -0400

Sarah Palin calls out Texas Gov. Rick Perry for his executive order requiring sixth-grade girls to be vaccinated against a sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer….
Full article: Palin Calls Out Perry on HPV Vaccine

Death Toll Passes 600 from Raid in South Sudan

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:46:45 -0400

The New York Times….
Full article: Death Toll Passes 600 from Raid in South Sudan

Gates brings energy pitch to Senate

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:41:43 -0400

Bill Gates and other captains of industry are slated to discuss a new report on energy innovation. …
Full article: Gates brings energy pitch to Senate

Obama: Palestinian State Bid a 'Distraction'

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:31:41 -0400

President Barack Obama says he would “object very strongly” to a possible push for U.N. recognition of a Palestinian state, saying such a move would be counterproductive. Obama reiterated Monday that the U.S. would use its veto to stop the motion for full Palestinian statehood if it reaches the Security Council next week at the opening of the U.N. General Assembly. He called the proposal a “distraction” that would not solve problems that can only be addressed through negotiations. …
Full article: Obama: Palestinian State Bid a ‘Distraction’

Jailed Americans to be freed soon: Ahmadinejad

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:11:36 -0400

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran will soon free two Americans jailed for spying, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Tuesday, in what he called a humanitarian gesture weeks before he travels to the United Nations in New York. …
Full article: Jailed Americans to be freed soon: Ahmadinejad

Drive Recklessly #tcot

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:06:35 -0400

How important is it that you watch this Midnight Show PSA? Let us put it this way: millions of lives depend on it….
Full article: Drive Recklessly

Rich candidates crowd midterm field

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:01:28 -0400

The unusual number of self-funded campaigns is a direct result of both parties’ recruiting strategies. …
Full article: Rich candidates crowd midterm field

Tseng defends NW Arkansas Championship title #sports

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:56:27 -0400

Top-ranked Yani Tseng successfully defended her title in the LPGA Tour’s NW Arkansas Championship on Sunday, beating Amy Yang with a 4-foot birdie putt on the first hole of a playoff….
Full article: Tseng defends NW Arkansas Championship title

Right-Wing Media Preview Obama's Jobs Speech By Pushing Myth That Stimulus Failed

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:51:25 -0400

In advance of President Obama’s speech on job creation, right-wing media have falsely claimed that the stimulus failed. In fact, independent economists agree that the stimulus significantly raised employment and increased GDP, and experts say it is the winding down of stimulus spending that is causing a “fiscal drag” on the economy.Right-Wing Media Falsely Claim Stimulus “Failed” Wash. Times Suggests Stimulus Measures “Didn’t Work In 2009.” From a September 7 Washington Times editorial titled, “Stimulus Jr.”: As with Mr. Obama’s $825 billion spending spree in 2009, the ostensible goal of the latest giveaway is to jump-start job creation. At least he has the priority straight. The economy failed to create any jobs at all last month, the unemployment rate has been stuck above 9 percent for most of this year, and the rate of long-term joblessness has been growing steadily while labor-force participation has declined. It’s his “solution” that will make the situation worse. Temporary tax cuts and permanent spe…
Full article: Right-Wing Media Preview Obama’s Jobs Speech By Pushing Myth That Stimulus Failed

Email gaffe leaves insiders fuming

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:46:22 -0400

World of difference between

Taiwan makes environmental push in disputed South China Sea

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:41:21 -0400

Eager not to be forgotten as a claimant in the South China Sea, as it was in July when China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed to confidence-building guidelines, Taiwan plans to set up an ocean research center and share its findings with others. …
Full article: Taiwan makes environmental push in disputed South China Sea

The Seneca Effect: Why Decline Is Faster Than Growth

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:31:18 -0400

“It would be some consolation for the feebleness of our selves and our works if all things should perish as slowly as they come into being; but as it is, increases are of sluggish growth, but the way to ruin is rapid.” Lucius Anneaus Seneca, Letters to Lucilius, n. 91 Original article Don’t you stumble, sometimes, into something that seems to make a lot of sense but you can’t say exactly why? For a long time, I had in mind the idea that when things start going bad, they tend to go bad fast. We might call this tendency the “Seneca effect” or the “Seneca cliff,” from Lucius Anneaus Seneca who wrote that “increases are of sluggish growth, but the way to ruin is rapid.” Could it be that the Seneca cliff is what we are facing, right now? If that is the case, then we are in trouble. With oil production peaking or set to peak soon, it is hard to think that we are going to see a gentle downward slope of the economy. Rather, we may see a decline so fast that we can only call it “collapse.” The symptoms are all…
Full article: The Seneca Effect: Why Decline Is Faster Than Growth

How Pelmeni Are Made

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:21:15 -0400

Today we

Egypt and the Way of Revolutions

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:16:13 -0400

Nothing in politics is certain. But history offers some guides to what we can expect from the Egyptian revolution. First, revolutions are highly contagious, although the speed at which they spread varies. The American revolution of 1776 inspired the French to revolt 13 years later. In the single year of 1848, some 50 peoples across Europe rose in rebellion. Over the course of roughly a decade from the late 1970s to late 1980s, one country after another in Latin America sloughed off dictatorship for democracy. In 1989, Communism was overthrown in every outpost of the Soviet empire and then in the Soviet Union itself. The odds are that the upheaval that started in Tunis (or perhaps in Iran in 2009) and has spread to Egypt will spread farther. These infections usually travel within regions. Whether it is all at once or over the course of the next few years, no Arab regime can count on being immune, nor can the Iranian mullahs. Second, the odds do not favor happy endings. Many revolutions end in defeat, as did …
Full article: Egypt and the Way of Revolutions

Danica concerned about IndyCar race in Japan #sports

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:01:08 -0400

Danica Patrick said Friday she is concerned about traveling to Japan for the Sept. 18 IndyCar race at Twin Ring Motegi….
Full article: Danica concerned about IndyCar race in Japan

Blount: Chase contenders and pretenders #sports

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 13:51:05 -0400

Sorry, Dale, Denny, Tony and Ryan. Y’all are pretenders in this Chase. The contenders? The rest of the playoff field, led by five-time defending champ Jimmie Johnson….
Full article: Blount: Chase contenders and pretenders

Center of attention - Poll: 'Switchers' see a liberal party

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 13:41:02 -0400

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Full article: Center of attention - Poll: ‘Switchers’ see a liberal party

Deforestation Making Somalia Famine Worse, Forestry Experts Say

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 13:36:01 -0400

photo: Oxfam East Africa/CC BY Some background on one factor contributing to the severity of the famine in the Horn of Africa, from the Center for International Forestry Research: Deforestation CIFOR’s Frances Seymour say, “Forests and trees frequently form the basis of livelihood diversification, risk-minimization and…Read the full story on TreeHugger …
Full article: Deforestation Making Somalia Famine Worse, Forestry Experts Say

Turkey says it is prepared for possibility of war with Israel

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 13:30:59 -0400

Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan said Monday in Cairo that he is prepared for the worst case scenario with Israel, while Israel scrambles to cover its flanks in a multifront diplomatic crisis. …
Full article: Turkey says it is prepared for possibility of war with Israel