They're not. Some of them get that way when they are bombed, their nations are invaded, and they live under dictators which the United States supports. That's the gist of this thoughtful article by Glenn Greenwald, excerpted here: First, some leading American opinion-makers love to delude themselves and mislead others into believing that the US is attacked despite the fact … Read More
‘Sweet Caroline’ Sales Up 597%
Well, that's not surprising.
Explanation Please
The Boston Marathon bombing suspect is being charged in civilian court with, among other things, conspiring to use a "weapon of mass destruction" against people. I'd like to know how a pressure cooker bomb which kills three people is a "weapon of mass destruction" but a semi-automatic rifle which kills 20 kids isn't. [UPDATE: Or killing four people with a … Read More
All Over But For The Finger-pointing
I'm not sure how much I want to blog about the Boston bombers. I hate this part of the cycle. It's full-on recrimination time in the right blogosphere. You can almost here them cry: Who shall we hate? Chechnians? Muslims? Please please PLEASE give us a group that we can hate. Or let's just hate ALL immigrants. I think the … Read More
Some Tweets Of The Boston Bomber (Suspect #2, Currently At Large)
Jahar was his handle. From this past weekend: @troycrossley @gameofthrones every character on that show got some sort of std bro, I do like the show tho — Jahar (@J_tsar) April 14, 2013 And here I thought nemo's dad was about to get it with dory but apparently this man turned into a female #thatscray — Jahar (@J_tsar) April 14, … Read More
Insanity In Boston
As I write this, the drama is still unfolding… but it has been a crazy night in Boston. In a nutshell: Yesterday at 5;15 pm, the FBI released photos of 2 men, believed to be responsible for the Boston Marathon bombing. Last night, these two men — who we now know to be brothers — robbed a 7-11 near MIT … Read More
Boston Marathon Explosions
It's hard to know what to say about what happened yesterday. Obviously a terrorist attack. Is it domestic or foreign? You automatically assume foreign, but given the event (Patriot's Day, Tax Day), you just can't be sure. 3 dead, including an 8 year old boy, pictured below. 144 injured (although that latter number still varies). Many amputees. Typically, major praise … Read More
Ten Years Later And I Get To Say “I Told You So”
Ten years ago today, President Skippy McNumbskull announced that we were going to war with Iraq. They said Iraq had WMDs. I said the administration had no evidence of WMDs in Iraq. I said the UN inspectors who were, you know, there, hadn't found any evidence of WMDs, or even the precursors necessary to create WMDs. They said we would … Read More
Rand Gets His Answer
You have to appreciate the opening line: "It has come to my attention….." So here's the breakdown: Rand Paul asks “whether the president has the power to authorize lethal force, such as a drone strike, against a US citizen on US soil.” Holder responds "It is possible, I suppose, to imagine an extraordinary circumstance in which it would be necessary … Read More
Twenty Years Ago Today: The Warning Bell Nobody Heard
February 26, 1993 I was a third-year law student at NYU in 1993. As any third-year law student will tell you, a 3L's focus in the second semester is not so much on completing law school and passing law school exams, but preparing for the impending bar exam. Throughout law school, I clerked part-time at the law firm of Slotnick & … Read More
The Memo
NBC got a hold of a white paper which provides the legal justification for assassination of an American not on American soil, without the constitutional protections of due process. You can read the original here (as a PDF), or read the wiki transcription. The nub of the white paper is this: [t]he Department of Justice concludes only that where the following three conditions … Read More
What Is It With Republicans And Calling Something Terror?
So Romney had a chance to screw Obama on Benghazi, but he blew it. He decided to make it about when Obama called it an "act of terror" and he got his facts wrong, and he looked really really really stupid. Obama did in fact call Benghazi an act of terror the very next morning after the attack happened, in the Rose … Read More
Tripoli, No Benghazi
Keep this in mind when it is brought up in the debate tonight. According to State Department officials involved, the security requests were for the U.S. Embassy in the capital, Tripoli, not Benghazi, the New York Times reported last week: In a stream of diplomatic cables, embassy security officers warned their superiors at the State Department of a worsening threat from Islamic extremists, … Read More
Romney Condemns The Movie That The U.S. Consulate Criticized, After Which Romney Condemned For The Criticism
And now Romney's campaign is desperately circulating talking points to supporters, to try to deal with the fallout from his crass statements. Expect all of these to immediately start spouting from the right wing media and blogs:Romney Camp Tries to Manage Fallout From Libya Response. From the "Questions and Answers" section: Questions & Answers: Don't you think it was appropriate … Read More
The Attacks On U.S. Ambassador
Well, it's ugly no doubt. As you probably know by now, families are in mourning, and the diplomatic corps is dealing with the tragedy of four Americans — including the U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens — being killed in the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya. It is the first time a U.S. ambassador has been killed in 33 years. Obviously, there … Read More