May 2013
13 posts
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“It has been almost nine months since Islamic militants in northern Mali...”
– From The New York Times: The Day the Music Died in Mali
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Wonkbook: The good reasons for the IRS’s dumb... →
The IRS’s Cincinnati branch made some terrible and damaging errors. But they were dealing with a real problem.
Good backgrounder on the IRS scandal
“Let me just start off with a public service announcement to dads, partners, kids...”
– President Obama, May 10, 2013 (via whitehouse)
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““Is it only white males who can be mentally ill? Can’t we consider...”
– Ali Abunimah is co-founder of the website Electronic Intifada, which publishes news and commentary on Middle East issues. He wrote a column on the site criticizing President Obama and others for calling the Boston bombing terrorism just because the suspects are Muslim.
Dalia Mogahed is CEO of...
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Israel Strikes Syria, Will the US Be Next? - To... →
Israeli airstrikes have hit military targets near Damascus, allegedly to prevent weapons from being shipped to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Why now? Will Obama
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What we're reading today: "Next Time, the NRA Will...
Daily Beast’s Michael Tomasky on gun control.
How stupid does the Senate background-check vote look now, I ask the pundits and others who thought it was dumb politics for Obama and the Democrats to push for a vote that they obviously knew they were going to lose. I’d say not very stupid at all. The nosedive taken in the polls by a number of senators who voted against the bill, most of them...
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Some Retailers Rethink Role in Bangladesh →
The Walt Disney Company has ordered an end to production of branded merchandise in Bangladesh, and other retailers are considering similar moves.
On a recent To the Point, we discussed whether pulling out of a country is the right solution. Is it better for a company to force better working conditions?
April 2013
22 posts
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“The detainees, after years of being quiet and waiting for the process to work...”
– Today’s To the Point on hunger strikes at Guantanamo Prison.
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“A game at the new George W. Bush library raises the question: Could a president...”
– How About You Be The Decider by Linton Weeks (via npr)
AP’s Twitter Feed Hacked — Did Markets Just Panic? →
A few minutes ago the Standard & Poor’s 500 plunged, apparently because of a fake report on the Associated Press’ main Twitter feed of explosions at the White House. Here’s what the chart looks like: AP Entertainment @APEntertainmentThe main AP Twitter feed is currently suspended, with another of the news service’s feeds, @APEntertainment relaying news […]
The full complaint against Dzhokhar Tsarnaev →
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“In a criminal complaint unsealed today in U.S. District Court for the District...”
– From the Department of Justice.
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“He will not be treated as an enemy combatant,” Carney said at...”
– White House spokesman Jay Carney talking to reporters Monday about the prosecution of suspected Boston Marathon bomber Dhokhar Tsarnaev
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KCRW interviews Andrew Kitzenberg, a witness to...
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Why Boston Bombings Might Be Scarier Than 9/11 →
Killing Americans at play resonates differently than attacks on economic and military targets.
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A State by State Overview of Abortion Laws →
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Coverage Of Women Candidates’ Appearance Hurts... →
Via Talking Points Memo:
“a study released Monday showed that media coverage of a woman candidate’s appearance actually makes people less likely to vote for her — even if the comments are positive.”
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“So much of what goes on here is really to convey an impression to the citizens...”
– Jonathan Pollack, Director of the John L. Thornton China Center at the Brookings Institution and author of the book “No Exit: North Korea, Nuclear Weapons and International Security”
More on today’s To the Point.
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what we're reading today: "Can North Korea Learn... →
Evan Osnos writes in the New Yorker:
In China, the uprising at Tiananmen Square convinced some members of the Party that the old method of indoctrinating people—which relied on the kind of threats and denunciations we hear from North Korea today—was no longer working in the modern age. Since Soviet-style P.R. had failed them, the Chinese turned to the holy land of public relations—America—and...
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What we're reading today: "How a Fringe Pakistani... →
The Atlantic profiles Pakistani cricket player and politician Imran Khan:
“Pakistan’s despondent voters hope that, just as Obama’s groundbreaking pledges effused euphoric relief for American voters, Khan’s bold promises are a remedy to Pakistan’s current ills. In a country where public officials have become rich at the expense of their country, Khan promises...
March 2013
18 posts
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What we're reading today: "Kim Jong-Un's Latest... →
From Slate. “Given how unpredictable Kim Jong-un has already proved, the latest threat isn’t entirely being brushed off by the international community. Still, the Pentagon doesn’t appear to be very worried.”
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“What [the US and South Korea] are trying to do is deter the North Koreans from...”
– TIME’s Mark Thompson, referring to the B-2 stealth bomber test flights over South Korea on today’s To the Point.
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What we're reading today: "States are cracking... →
Washington Post reporter Sarah Kliff writes:
For decades, support (or opposition) for gay marriage and abortion went hand in hand. They were the line-in-the-sand “values” issues that sharply divided the political parties.
Not anymore. ”As recently as 2004, we talked about abortion and same sex marriage in the same breath,” says Daniel Cox, research director at the Public Religion Research...
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Full audio from the Supreme Court hearing on...
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How are you reflecting on the war in Iraq?
In 2003, Saddam Hussein was said to have “weapons of mass destruction.” There were hints he was tied to September 11th.
Eighty percent of Americans supported the US invasion. Ten years later, 58 percent say it was not worth years of unexpected combat, more than $2 trillion— and the deaths of 4500 Americans and more than 100,000 Iraqis.
How are you reflecting on the war in Iraq?
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The man who shot the "47%" video →
From the Washington Post:
“The guy was running for the presidency, and these were his core beliefs,” he said. “And I think everybody can judge whether that’s appropriate or not or whether they believe the same way he does. I felt an obligation to expose the things he was saying.”
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“Dear Senator Paul:
It has come to my attention that you have now asked an...”
– Via The Washington Post 