Sunday, July 31, 2016
Khizr Khan, Father of Fallen U.S. Soldier: Trump Lacks 'Moral Compass' - NBC News
When Khizr Khan spoke at the Democratic National Convention Thursday night, few could have predicted his emotional rebuke of Donald Trump would still be driving headlines days later.
But that's exactly what has happened
The father of a fallen Muslim U.S. Army Captain told NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday that he didn't expect his speech to have such an impact.
"I was surprised myself," Khan explained. "I spoke from the heart."
Khizr Khan, Father of Fallen U.S. Soldier: Trump Lacks 'Moral Compass' - NBC News
But that's exactly what has happened
The father of a fallen Muslim U.S. Army Captain told NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday that he didn't expect his speech to have such an impact.
"I was surprised myself," Khan explained. "I spoke from the heart."
Khizr Khan, Father of Fallen U.S. Soldier: Trump Lacks 'Moral Compass' - NBC News
Following Trump Remarks, Clinton Calls on Americans to 'Stand With' Parents of Muslim U.S. Soldier - ABC News
"Hillary Clinton on Saturday called on Americans to "stand with" the parents of a fallen Muslim U.S. soldier following Donald Trump's rebuke of the couple.
"I was very moved to see Ghazala Khan stand bravely and with dignity in support of her son on Thursday night. And I was very moved to hear her speak last night, bravely and with dignity, about her son's life and the ultimate sacrifice he made for his country," the Democratic nominee said in a statement, referring to the mother of Army Capt. Humayun S.M. Khan, who was killed in Iraq in 2004."
Following Trump Remarks, Clinton Calls on Americans to 'Stand With' Parents of Muslim U.S. Soldier - ABC News
Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, Defend Khizr Khan's Son's Military Service and Sacrifice - ABC News
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan have both come out with statements strongly defending Capt. Humayun Khan, a Muslim-American soldier killed in combat in 2004 whose father Khizr Khan made an emotional plea against Donald Trump's candidacy at the Democratic National Convention.
The statements come after Trump's controversial response to the Khan family, and after a personal appeal from Khizr Khan to to both the Senate Majority Leader and the House Speaker to denounce the GOP nominee.
Neither McConnell nor Ryan mention Trump by name in their statements, but the repudiation of the GOP nominee is implicit in both responses.
"All Americans should value the patriotic service of the patriots who volunteer to selflessly defend us in the armed services. And as I have long made clear, I agree with the Khans and families across the country that a travel ban on all members of a religion is simply contrary to American values," McConnell wrote.
Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, Defend Khizr Khan's Son's Military Service and Sacrifice - ABC News
Donald Trump Criticizes Muslim Family of Slain U.S. Soldier, Drawing Ire - The New York Times
"Donald J. Trump reeled on Sunday amid a sustained campaign of criticism by the parents of a Muslim American soldier killed by a suicide bomber in Iraq and a rising outcry within his own party over his rough and racially charged dismissal of the couple.
The confrontation between the parents, Khizr and Ghazala Khan, and Mr. Trump has emerged as an unexpected and potentially pivotal flash point in the general election. Mr. Trump has plainly struggled to respond to the reproach of a military family who lost a son, and he has repeatedly answered the Khan family’s criticism with harsh and defensive rhetoric. And Mr. Trump’s usual political tool kit has appeared to fail him. He earned no reprieve with his complaints that Mr. Khan had been unfair to him; on Sunday morning, he claimed on Twitter that Mr. Khan had “viciously attacked” him. Mr. Trump and his advisers tried repeatedly to change the subject to Islamic terrorism, to no avail.
Instead, Mr. Trump appeared to be caught on Sunday in perhaps the biggest crisis of his campaign, rivaling the uproar in June after he attacked a federal judge, Gonzalo P. Curiel, over his “Mexican heritage.” By going after a military family and trafficking in ethnic stereotypes, Mr. Trump once again breached multiple norms of American politics, redoubling pressure on his fellow Republicans to choose between defending his remarks or breaking publicly with their nominee."
Donald Trump Criticizes Muslim Family of Slain U.S. Soldier, Drawing Ire - The New York Times
Saturday, July 30, 2016
Backlash for Trump after he lashes out at the Muslim parents of a dead U.S. soldier
"Republican Donald Trump lashed out Saturday at two Muslim American parents who lost their son while he served in the U.S. military in Iraq and who appeared at the Democratic National Convention last week, stirring outrage among critics who said the episode proves that Trump lacks the compassion and temperament to be president.
Asked to comment on the convention speech of Khizr Khan, a Pakistani immigrant whose son, Army Capt. Humayun Khan, died in Iraq in 2004, Trump described Khan as “very emotional” and said he “probably looked like a nice guy to me” — then accused him of being controlled by the Clinton campaign.
“Who wrote that? Did Hillary’s script writers write it?” he asked in an interview with ABC.
Trump also questioned why Khan’s wife, Ghazala, did not speak on stage, despite the fact that she sat for an interview with MSNBC the following day."
Backlash for Trump after he lashes out at the Muslim parents of a dead U.S. soldier
Asked to comment on the convention speech of Khizr Khan, a Pakistani immigrant whose son, Army Capt. Humayun Khan, died in Iraq in 2004, Trump described Khan as “very emotional” and said he “probably looked like a nice guy to me” — then accused him of being controlled by the Clinton campaign.
“Who wrote that? Did Hillary’s script writers write it?” he asked in an interview with ABC.
Trump also questioned why Khan’s wife, Ghazala, did not speak on stage, despite the fact that she sat for an interview with MSNBC the following day."
Backlash for Trump after he lashes out at the Muslim parents of a dead U.S. soldier
Harnessing the Immune System to Fight Cancer - The New York Times
"Hundreds of clinical trials involving immunotherapy, alone or combined with other treatments, are underway for nearly every type of cancer. “People are asking, waiting, pleading to get into these trials,” said Dr. Arlene Siefker-Radtke, an oncologist at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, who specializes in bladder cancer.
The immune system — a network of cells, tissues and biochemicals that they secrete — defends the body against viruses, bacteria and other invaders. But cancer often finds ways to hide from the immune system or block its ability to fight. Immunotherapy tries to help the immune system recognize cancer as a threat, and attack it.
Doctors tried a primitive version of immunotherapy against cancer more than 100 years ago. It sometimes worked remarkably well, but often did not, and they did not understand why. Eventually, radiation and chemotherapy eclipsed it.
Researchers are now focused on two promising types of immunotherapy. One creates a new, individualized treatment for each patient by removing some of the person’s immune cells, altering them genetically to kill cancer and then infusing them back into the bloodstream. This treatment has produced long remissions in a few hundred children and adults with deadly forms of leukemia or lymphoma for whom standard treatments had failed.
The second approach, far more widely used and the one Mr. Cara tried, involves mass-produced drugs that do not have to be tailored to each patient. The drugs free immune cells to fight cancer by blocking a mechanism — called a checkpoint — that cancer uses to shut down the immune system.
Harnessing the Immune System to Fight Cancer - The New York Times
The immune system — a network of cells, tissues and biochemicals that they secrete — defends the body against viruses, bacteria and other invaders. But cancer often finds ways to hide from the immune system or block its ability to fight. Immunotherapy tries to help the immune system recognize cancer as a threat, and attack it.
Doctors tried a primitive version of immunotherapy against cancer more than 100 years ago. It sometimes worked remarkably well, but often did not, and they did not understand why. Eventually, radiation and chemotherapy eclipsed it.
Researchers are now focused on two promising types of immunotherapy. One creates a new, individualized treatment for each patient by removing some of the person’s immune cells, altering them genetically to kill cancer and then infusing them back into the bloodstream. This treatment has produced long remissions in a few hundred children and adults with deadly forms of leukemia or lymphoma for whom standard treatments had failed.
The second approach, far more widely used and the one Mr. Cara tried, involves mass-produced drugs that do not have to be tailored to each patient. The drugs free immune cells to fight cancer by blocking a mechanism — called a checkpoint — that cancer uses to shut down the immune system.
Harnessing the Immune System to Fight Cancer - The New York Times
Donald Trump, Jr. makes curious campaign detour Rachel Maddow describes the tragic racial history of Philadelphia, Mississippi, the creepily calculated Ronald Reagan campaign stop there in 1980, and the curious visit by Donald Trump, Jr. even though Mississippi is not a risk for Republicans this year.
Friday, July 29, 2016
Thursday, July 28, 2016
Hillary Clinton’s Big, Completely Underappreciated Moment Is Here - The Daily Beast
"Clinton has walked through fire to get to the stage where she will stand on the final night of her convention. But the people who benefit the most from her rise completely take her, and her sacrifices, for granted.
Hillary Clinton’s Big, Completely Underappreciated Moment Is Here - The Daily Beast
Donald Trump claims sarcasm, but damage on hack comments lingers - CNNPolitics.com
"Donald Trump said Thursday that he was being sarcastic when he appeared to suggest that Russia should use espionage to find Hillary Clinton's deleted emails.
But he's finding out that presidents -- and by extension, presidential nominees -- don't get that luxury when the topic is national security. "
Donald Trump claims sarcasm, but damage on hack comments lingers - CNNPolitics.com
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
How Hillary Clinton Made History | The Nation
"Eight years later, Democrats needed healing again, and Michelle Obama brought it, giving unhappy Bernie Sanders supporters gracious advice about how to carry on in defeat. “When she didn’t win the nomination eight years ago, she didn’t get angry, or disillusioned. Hillary did not pack up and go home. Because as a true public servant, Hillary knows that this is so much bigger than her own desires or disappointments.” Amazingly, she echoed Clinton’s own concession speech to her husband, which Clinton delivered to bitter, grieving supporters eight years ago, praising her as someone “who has the guts and the grace to keep coming back and putting those cracks in that highest and hardest glass ceiling.” Obama herself seemed moved by the idea that her husband’s top rival could come back at the same goal eight years later, and succeed this time."
How Hillary Clinton Made History | The Nation
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
A Woman President Wouldn’t Erase Centuries Of Male-Dominated Politics | FiveThirtyEight
"Here are a few noteworthy stats:
Women make up about half of the U.S. population, according to census data, and yet are consistently less than 25 percent of those in elected office nationwide, CAWP reports.
Women of color make up only 6 percent of Congress, according to CAWP, despite being 20 percent of the U.S. population based on the census.
According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, if you compare the percentage of female representation in our national legislature to that of every other country, the U.S. comes in 96th, between Cyprus and Kyrgyzstan.
When American women run for office, they win at about the same rate as men, according to “Gender in Campaigns for the U.S. House of Representatives” by Barbara Burrell.
Polling from Gallup shows that the share of Americans who would vote for a woman for president rose from 33 percent in 1937 to 95 percent in 2012."
A Woman President Wouldn’t Erase Centuries Of Male-Dominated Politics | FiveThirtyEight
Women make up about half of the U.S. population, according to census data, and yet are consistently less than 25 percent of those in elected office nationwide, CAWP reports.
Women of color make up only 6 percent of Congress, according to CAWP, despite being 20 percent of the U.S. population based on the census.
According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, if you compare the percentage of female representation in our national legislature to that of every other country, the U.S. comes in 96th, between Cyprus and Kyrgyzstan.
When American women run for office, they win at about the same rate as men, according to “Gender in Campaigns for the U.S. House of Representatives” by Barbara Burrell.
Polling from Gallup shows that the share of Americans who would vote for a woman for president rose from 33 percent in 1937 to 95 percent in 2012."
A Woman President Wouldn’t Erase Centuries Of Male-Dominated Politics | FiveThirtyEight
Hillary Clinton win the nomination fair and square. She won easily.
Bernie Sanders Supporters have been getting on my nerves for months. They act like overgrown, ignorant spoiled, privileged children. They really need to grow up and realize you don't always get what you want. Democracy is like that. Hillary Clinton won the nomination easily. The DNC did not win it for her. Sanders loss because his message did not appeal to African American and Hispanic voters. He saw only class issues but ignored American's informal racial caste system which is a vestige of segregation and slavery.
John H Armwood
Monday, July 25, 2016
As Democrats Gather, a Russian Subplot Raises Intrigue - The New York Times
"Proving the source of a cyberattack is notoriously difficult. But researchers have concluded that the national committee was breached by two Russian intelligence agencies, which were the same attackers behind previous Russian cyberoperations at the White House, the State Department and the Joint Chiefs of Staff last year. And metadata from the released emails suggests that the documents passed through Russian computers. Though a hacker claimed responsibility for giving the emails to WikiLeaks, the same agencies are the prime suspects. Whether the thefts were ordered by Mr. Putin, or just carried out by apparatchiks who thought they might please him, is anyone’s guess.
On Sunday morning, the issue erupted, as Mrs. Clinton’s campaign manager, Robby Mook, argued on ABC’s “This Week” that the emails were leaked “by the Russians for the purpose of helping Donald Trump” citing “experts” but offering no other evidence. Mr. Mook also suggested that the Russians might have good reason to support Mr. Trump: The Republican nominee indicated in an interview with The New York Times last week that he might not back NATO nations if they came under attack from Russia — unless he was first convinced that the countries had made sufficient contributions to the Atlantic alliance."
As Democrats Gather, a Russian Subplot Raises Intrigue - The New York Times
On Sunday morning, the issue erupted, as Mrs. Clinton’s campaign manager, Robby Mook, argued on ABC’s “This Week” that the emails were leaked “by the Russians for the purpose of helping Donald Trump” citing “experts” but offering no other evidence. Mr. Mook also suggested that the Russians might have good reason to support Mr. Trump: The Republican nominee indicated in an interview with The New York Times last week that he might not back NATO nations if they came under attack from Russia — unless he was first convinced that the countries had made sufficient contributions to the Atlantic alliance."
As Democrats Gather, a Russian Subplot Raises Intrigue - The New York Times
Nevada divided over landmark school voucher program as it heads to top court | US news | The Guardian
"But Nevada’s “school choice” program, originally scheduled to begin in January, is on hold pending arguments on 29 July in the state supreme court. A group of parents are suing to kill the program, claiming that it illegally relies on money reserved for public schools. The ACLU is also challenging the law on grounds that state funds cannot be used for religious purposes, such as parochial schooling.
Nevada divided over landmark school voucher program as it heads to top court | US news | The Guardian
Racist Trump supporter goes after woman during NYC subway ride [VIDEO]
"Anyone who has ever ridden the subway before, especially in Manhattan, knows that during peak hours it’s not exactly unusual to end up having to stand. The subway is incredibly popular and used by most residents in the city.
What kind of a person would go on a rant all over something that happens commonly, to everybody? Someone who probably thinks they’re a little bit better than everyone else. Someone who thinks that perhaps the color of their skin makes them better than people who, say, have a different shade of skin. A racist. And yes, not shockingly, also a Trump supporter."
What kind of a person would go on a rant all over something that happens commonly, to everybody? Someone who probably thinks they’re a little bit better than everyone else. Someone who thinks that perhaps the color of their skin makes them better than people who, say, have a different shade of skin. A racist. And yes, not shockingly, also a Trump supporter."
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Debbie Wasserman Schultz Resigns as DNC Chair - The Atlantic
"Debbie Wasserman Schultz has resigned as the chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) following a leak of thousands of emails that appeared to show committee staffers favoring Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders for the party’s presidential primary contest.
The Florida congresswoman said in a statement Sunday she will step down from the job at the end of the Democratic National Convention, which begins Monday in Philadelphia.
“I know that electing Hillary Clinton as our next president is critical for America’s future. I look forward to serving as a surrogate for her campaign in Florida and across the country to ensure her victory,” she said. “Going forward, the best way for me to accomplish those goals is to step down as party chair at the end of this convention.”
Donna Brazile, the DNC’s vice chair, will serve as interim chair through the election, the committee announced on Twitter.
Wasserman Schultz’s resignation comes days after the leak was reported Friday. The trove of nearly 20,000 emails, obtained by the hacker known as Guccifer 2.0 and shared with and published by WikiLeaks, seemed to show Democratic staffers discussing how to shrink support for the Sanders campaign. One email from May 2016 suggested using the Vermont senator’s religious background as ammunition."
Debbie Wasserman Schultz Resigns as DNC Chair - The Atlantic
Saturday, July 23, 2016
Friday, July 22, 2016
Donald Trump’s Campaign of Fear - The New York Times
"What historical shift, what tremors in American culture, yielded up Mr. Trump’s moment from the depths of the national id? How did a braggadocious Manhattan billionaire with a history of dodgy business deals convince 13 million people feeling battered by a changing world that he is their solution? Chutzpah, reality TV and a hyperactive Twitter account are part of the answer. But Mr. Trump’s nomination is also a referendum on the Republican Party, delivered by working people fed up with leaders who want their votes but don’t address their struggles.
Given a chance to replace the empty sloganeering and self-aggrandizement of his primary campaign with solid proposals worthy of Americans’ trust, Mr. Trump made clear that he instead intends to terrify voters into supporting him, who will protect them from violence, a word that occurs over and over in his remarks."
Donald Trump’s Campaign of Fear - The New York Times
Donald Trump's father gets name-checked at the RNC. Remember Woody Guthrie's beef with him? - LA Times
You might remember hearing about Fred Trump in connection with the late singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie. A professor from Britain's University of Central Lancashire uncovered more than 50-year-old Guthrie lyrics that accused the elder Trump, who was Guthrie's landlord, of racism.
Here's a verse from the song:
I suppose
Old Man Trump knows
Just how much
Racial Hate
he stirred up
In the bloodpot of human hearts
When he drawed
That color line
Here at his
Eighteen hundred family project
Old Man Trump knows
Just how much
Racial Hate
he stirred up
In the bloodpot of human hearts
When he drawed
That color line
Here at his
Eighteen hundred family project
Fred Trump was was investigated in the 1970s by the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division for discriminating against black renters.
Donald Trump's father gets name-checked at the RNC. Remember Woody Guthrie's beef with him? - LA Times
Thursday, July 21, 2016
Wednesday, July 20, 2016
Monday, July 18, 2016
Sunday, July 17, 2016
Bernie’s Loss Highlights the Progressive Movement’s Greatest Liability (In the Naive Mind Of AN Arrogant, Self Assured Daily Kos Contributer.
"Whereas the Democratic Party tends to be disproportionately female, non-white and working class compared with the country as a whole, the netroots are disproportionately male, white and well educated. As a result, the netroots do not yet have a wide enough reach to take over the reins of the party.
These disparities have been evident since Howard Dean’s presidential campaign and stem in no small part from the racial, economic and educational disparities which formed the digital divide in the early days of broadband, when the netroots emerged as a nascent movement.
The result of these demographic disparities is an electoral cul-de-sac that progressives will need to exit in order to become the dominant force in the Democratic Party. In fact, this is probably the largest obstacle facing progressives in the electoral arena."
This article is a frustrating read to say the least. Education is not the reason that African Americans did not support Bernie Sanders. All of my close Black friends have either a doctorate or a masters and I am the only one who voted for Sanders save for my oldest son. Sanders lost the Black vote and the Hispanic vote because of his failure to understand race relations in America. His arrogance and that of his White followers made me even wish I had not voted for him on Super Tuesday. Sanders and his followers are living in a 1930s vision of class struggle in America. This view is unrealistic and naive and African Americans have always known that. America is a society which is plagued by the twin evils of class and caste. Caste has been the glue which has held together the class system. Since the aftermath Bacon’s unsuccessful, bi-racial rebellion in 1676 in the Virginia Colony whiteness has been a property right in America. Prior to that time both Whites and Blacks were indentured servants living together under the same rules. After the rebellion racial slavery as a permanent institution was created and Whites were given the right to purchase land. More importantly they were a status above Blacks. This status, based in racial caste is what “so called educated” Bernie Sanders supporters do not understand. They say poor Whites vote against their own interest in voting for Trump and Reagan before him. They are wrong. Poor Whites are placing more value on status, caste than their economic interest. This is what Trumps attacks on Mexicans and Muslims is about. Those of you who are old enough will remember his racist rantings in NYC against the falsely accused Central Park five and his settlement of a Justice Department racial discrimination suit in the mid seventies. All in all Bernie Sanders supports aren’t as smart as some suppose. Hillary Clinton has always expressed an understanding of caste, in spite of do whistle ant-crime statements which pushed me to vote for Sanders. White arrogance is the biggest danger facing the left and it always has been.
John H Armwood
Bernie’s Loss Highlights the Progrssive Movement’s Greatest Liability
These disparities have been evident since Howard Dean’s presidential campaign and stem in no small part from the racial, economic and educational disparities which formed the digital divide in the early days of broadband, when the netroots emerged as a nascent movement.
The result of these demographic disparities is an electoral cul-de-sac that progressives will need to exit in order to become the dominant force in the Democratic Party. In fact, this is probably the largest obstacle facing progressives in the electoral arena."
This article is a frustrating read to say the least. Education is not the reason that African Americans did not support Bernie Sanders. All of my close Black friends have either a doctorate or a masters and I am the only one who voted for Sanders save for my oldest son. Sanders lost the Black vote and the Hispanic vote because of his failure to understand race relations in America. His arrogance and that of his White followers made me even wish I had not voted for him on Super Tuesday. Sanders and his followers are living in a 1930s vision of class struggle in America. This view is unrealistic and naive and African Americans have always known that. America is a society which is plagued by the twin evils of class and caste. Caste has been the glue which has held together the class system. Since the aftermath Bacon’s unsuccessful, bi-racial rebellion in 1676 in the Virginia Colony whiteness has been a property right in America. Prior to that time both Whites and Blacks were indentured servants living together under the same rules. After the rebellion racial slavery as a permanent institution was created and Whites were given the right to purchase land. More importantly they were a status above Blacks. This status, based in racial caste is what “so called educated” Bernie Sanders supporters do not understand. They say poor Whites vote against their own interest in voting for Trump and Reagan before him. They are wrong. Poor Whites are placing more value on status, caste than their economic interest. This is what Trumps attacks on Mexicans and Muslims is about. Those of you who are old enough will remember his racist rantings in NYC against the falsely accused Central Park five and his settlement of a Justice Department racial discrimination suit in the mid seventies. All in all Bernie Sanders supports aren’t as smart as some suppose. Hillary Clinton has always expressed an understanding of caste, in spite of do whistle ant-crime statements which pushed me to vote for Sanders. White arrogance is the biggest danger facing the left and it always has been.
John H Armwood
Bernie’s Loss Highlights the Progrssive Movement’s Greatest Liability
Obamacare’s Kindest Critic - The New York Times
"History will almost surely rank health care reform as one of President Obama’s greatest accomplishments. About 20 million Americans have insurance that might otherwise have been unaffordable, and the law has cost much less than anticipated. But one senior administration official thinks the Affordable Care Act has fallen short. His name: Barack Obama.
Presidents usually wait until their memoirs to review their work. Not, in this case, Mr. Obama, who recently marked the act’s sixth anniversary with an unusual article in The Journal of the American Medical Association. Health care costs are still much too high, he wrote, and 29 million people still lack coverage. He then sketched some ideas for the presumptive presidential nominees. Hillary Clinton is likely to listen, having proposed improvements of her own. Donald Trump, not so much. He has so far adopted the “repeal and replace” position of his party.
Six years ago, 16 percent of Americans did not have health insurance; that number is now down to 9.1 percent. People forced to pay out of their own pocket were often bankrupted. Some went without care, and others resorted to charity care at emergency rooms. The law has helped many of these people by expanding Medicaid, which insures the poor. For millions of others, it created health care exchanges where people could buy coverage with the help of government subsidies."
Obamacare’s Kindest Critic - The New York Times
Saturday, July 16, 2016
Release of 9/11 report could strain US relationship with Saudi Arabia The report – classified in December 2002 on orders of then president George W Bush – is almost certain to feed public suspicions that the Saudi government gave extensive support to Osama bin Laden before 9/11, and perhaps even directly to the 9/11 plotters themselves, as the US government looked the other way. | US news | The Guardian
Elizabeth Warren Is Invited to Speak on Democratic Convention’s First Night - The New York Times
"In an apparent sign that Senator Elizabeth Warren will not be named Hillary Clinton’s running mate, Ms. Warren was invited by Mrs. Clinton’s campaign on Tuesday to deliver a prime-time address on the first night of the Democratic convention this month — a marquee speaking slot but one that is earlier than vice-presidential picks typically appear."
Elizabeth Warren Is Invited to Speak on Democratic Convention’s First Night - The New York Times
Military "Solutions" Force Others To Live With Terror - NYTimes.com
"No society should “live with terrorism.” Our collective goals should be to eradicate it.
Before 9/11 law enforcement filled that role. Since then, nations, led by the United States, adopted a military approach, and terrorist attacks have only risen.
There is no future with terrorism as a way of life, nor is there a future with endless wars victimizing civilians in the name of fighting terrorism.
To eradicate terrorism, we need a much more honest discussion about what terrorism actually is. If it means the use of force against civilians to achieve a political goal, than that should include all such attacks on civilians, and not merely the ones launched by nonstate actors. In practice, we limit the term to include only nonstate actors."
Military "Solutions" Force Others To Live With Terror - NYTimes.com
Friday, July 15, 2016
#ObamaJAMA: Obama Just Became the First Sitting President to Publish an Academic Paper
"Barack Obama just became the first sitting president to publish a scholarly article.
The article, titled "United States Health Care Reform: Progress to Date and Next Steps," with "Barack Obama, JD" listed as the author, was published in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association (known as JAMA) on July 11.
It's a pretty badass move for a president, and he got a lot of love on Twitter with the hashtag #ObamaJAMA.
#ObamaJAMA: Obama Just Became the First Sitting President to Publish an Academic Paper
Thursday, July 14, 2016
Wednesday, July 13, 2016
For Whites Sensing Decline, Donald Trump Unleashes Words of Resistance - The New York Times
"The chant erupts in a college auditorium in Washington, as admirers of a conservative internet personality shout down a black protester. It echoes around the gym of a central Iowa high school, as white students taunt the Hispanic fans and players of a rival team. It is hollered by a lone motorcyclist, as he tears out of a Kansas gas station after an argument with a Hispanic man and his Muslim friend.
Trump
Trump
Trump
In countless collisions of color and creed, Donald J. Trump’s name evokes an easily understood message of racial hostility. Defying modern conventions of political civility and language, Mr. Trump has breached the boundaries that have long constrained Americans’ public discussion of race.
Mr. Trump has attacked Mexicans as criminals. He has called for a ban on Muslim immigrants. He has wondered aloud why the United States is not “letting people in from Europe.”
His rallies vibrate with grievances that might otherwise be expressed in private: about “political correctness,” about the ranch house down the street overcrowded with day laborers, and about who is really to blame for the death of a black teenager in Ferguson, Mo. In a country where the wealthiest and most influential citizens are still mostly white, Mr. Trump is voicing the bewilderment and anger of whites who do not feel at all powerful or privileged.
But in doing so, Mr. Trump has also opened the door to assertions of white identity and resentment in a way not seen so broadly in American culture in over half a century, according to those who track patterns of racial tension and antagonism in American life."
For Whites Sensing Decline, Donald Trump Unleashes Words of Resistance - The New York Times
Trump
Trump
Trump
In countless collisions of color and creed, Donald J. Trump’s name evokes an easily understood message of racial hostility. Defying modern conventions of political civility and language, Mr. Trump has breached the boundaries that have long constrained Americans’ public discussion of race.
Mr. Trump has attacked Mexicans as criminals. He has called for a ban on Muslim immigrants. He has wondered aloud why the United States is not “letting people in from Europe.”
His rallies vibrate with grievances that might otherwise be expressed in private: about “political correctness,” about the ranch house down the street overcrowded with day laborers, and about who is really to blame for the death of a black teenager in Ferguson, Mo. In a country where the wealthiest and most influential citizens are still mostly white, Mr. Trump is voicing the bewilderment and anger of whites who do not feel at all powerful or privileged.
But in doing so, Mr. Trump has also opened the door to assertions of white identity and resentment in a way not seen so broadly in American culture in over half a century, according to those who track patterns of racial tension and antagonism in American life."
For Whites Sensing Decline, Donald Trump Unleashes Words of Resistance - The New York Times
Tuesday, July 12, 2016
Monday, July 11, 2016
Sunday, July 10, 2016
Saturday, July 09, 2016
Penn. town outraged after disabled Walmart greeter gets fired - NY Daily News
This confirms my decades old refusal to spend one red cent in Walmart.
Penn. town outraged after disabled Walmart greeter gets fired - NY Daily News
Elie Wiesel and the Agony of Bearing Witness to the Holocaust - The Atlantic
"What stays with me is this: Elie made it look bearable to bear witness to horror again and again, to on a daily basis invite traumatic memories back into his consciousness. He never claimed he was comfortable with this role. He accepted this painful duty in order to defend human rights and advocate for the oppressed. In his 1986 Nobel acceptance speech, Elie spoke of the community of Holocaust survivors as honored by a terrible burden. He asked, “Do I have the right to represent the multitudes who have perished? Do I have the right to accept this great honor on their behalf? I do not. No one may speak for the dead, no one may interpret their mutilated dreams and visions. And yet, I sense their presence. I always do. ... This [Nobel Prize] belongs to all the survivors and their children…”
Elie Wiesel and the Agony of Bearing Witness to the Holocaust - The Atlantic
Elie Wiesel and the Agony of Bearing Witness to the Holocaust - The Atlantic
Clinton rebuts FBI charge of recklessness | TheHill
“I do not believe that all of the professionals that I dealt with in the State Department were careless in handling classified material,” she added moments later, in a separate interview with Lester Holt on MSNBC.
The position is a striking rebuttal of Comey's statements. He twice this week called her behavior “extremely careless,” even while asserting it did not violate the law.
“Certainly, she should have known not to send classified information,” Comey testified before the House Oversight Committee on Thursday.
“I think she was extremely careless. I think she was negligent. That, I could establish,” he added. “What we can't establish is that she acted with the necessary criminal intent.”
In her interviews, Clinton referred to “over 300 people” she communicated with via email, including longtime diplomats and government officials.
“I do not believe that they did anything that they believed was in any way inappropriate,” she said on MSNBC.
“Other agencies have said maybe they should have known at the time, but these are professionals ... they were doing the best job they could. They were not careless. The material they sent to me they did not believe was classified.”
Clinton rebuts FBI charge of recklessness | TheHill
Friday, July 08, 2016
Is America Repeating the Mistakes of 1968 and Ignoring Structural Racism? - The Atlantic
"The Kerner Report confronted a tense nation with data about structural racism throughout the country and made recommendations to solve the problem. But America looked away."
Is America Repeating the Mistakes of 1968 and Ignoring Structural Racism? - The Atlantic
Is America Repeating the Mistakes of 1968 and Ignoring Structural Racism? - The Atlantic
Did a Fear of Slave Revolts Drive American Independence? - The New York Times
"FOR more than two centuries, we have been reading the Declaration of Independence wrong. Or rather, we’ve been celebrating the Declaration as people in the 19th and 20th centuries have told us we should, but not the Declaration as Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and John Adams wrote it. To them, separation from Britain was as much, if not more, about racial fear and exclusion as it was about inalienable rights.
The Declaration’s beautiful preamble distracts us from the heart of the document, the 27 accusations against King George III over which its authors wrangled and debated, trying to get the wording just right. The very last one — the ultimate deal-breaker — was the most important for them, and it is for us: “He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.” In the context of the 18th century, “domestic insurrections” refers to rebellious slaves. “Merciless Indian savages” doesn’t need much explanation."
Did a Fear of Slave Revolts Drive American Independence? - The New York Times
The Declaration’s beautiful preamble distracts us from the heart of the document, the 27 accusations against King George III over which its authors wrangled and debated, trying to get the wording just right. The very last one — the ultimate deal-breaker — was the most important for them, and it is for us: “He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.” In the context of the 18th century, “domestic insurrections” refers to rebellious slaves. “Merciless Indian savages” doesn’t need much explanation."
Did a Fear of Slave Revolts Drive American Independence? - The New York Times
The Theology of Donald Trump - The New York Times
After Mr. Trump met with hundreds of evangelical Christians a couple of weeks ago, James Dobson, who is among the most influential leaders in the evangelical world and serves on Mr. Trump’s evangelical executive advisory board, declared that “Trump appears to be tender to things of the Spirit,” by which Dr. Dobson meant the Holy Spirit.
Of all the descriptions of Mr. Trump we’ve heard this election season, this may be the most farcical. As described by St. Paul, the “fruit of the Spirit” includes forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, hardly qualities one associates with Mr. Trump. It shows you the lengths Mr. Trump’s supporters will go to in order to rationalize their enthusiastic support of him
The Theology of Donald Trump - The New York Times
Of all the descriptions of Mr. Trump we’ve heard this election season, this may be the most farcical. As described by St. Paul, the “fruit of the Spirit” includes forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, hardly qualities one associates with Mr. Trump. It shows you the lengths Mr. Trump’s supporters will go to in order to rationalize their enthusiastic support of him
The Theology of Donald Trump - The New York Times
Thursday, July 07, 2016
The 2nd Amendment Is So White: What the Past 24 Hours Have Taught Me About Black People’s Right to Bear Arms
"Black America yet again bears witness to state-sanctioned violence at the hands of trigger-happy rogue cops—one in Louisiana, a state that has open-carry laws, and the other in Minnesota, where the victim had a permit to conceal and carry firearms.
The 2nd Amendment Is So White: What the Past 24 Hours Have Taught Me About Black People’s Right to Bear Arms
Following odd tirade, is there 'something wrong with' Trump? | MSNBC
"The Atlantic’s James Fallows, watching this spectacle unfold, wrote, “It would be rash ever to declare Peak Trump. But really, there is something wrong with this man.” MSNBC’s Chris Hayes added, “I’ve been watching these now for 13 months … and that was the most unhinged thing that I’ve seen from him. It was all over the place. It was like Charlie Sheen during his ‘Winning’ tour.”
And then it got worse.
After the event, Trump took on the role of an online troll,publishing an image from Disney with a six-pointed star, demanding to know why the media isn’t outraged by this.
This probably shouldn’t be necessary, but The New Republic’s Jeet Heer explained, “What Trump fails to realize is that the original tweet was offensive because of the context: The star was placed over money in a message about political corruption, playing to old anti-Semitic tropes about wealthy Jews controlling the political process. (It doesn’t help that the image came from an anti-Semitic message board.) None of that, of course, applies to Frozen.”
Following odd tirade, is there 'something wrong with' Trump? | MSNBC
Wednesday, July 06, 2016
For his next trick, Trump offers praise for Saddam Hussein | MSNBC
"Donald Trump’s views on Iraq have long been at odds with Republican Party orthodoxy. The GOP candidate, for example, has said more than once that he believes the Bush/Cheney administration “lied” about weapons of mass destruction. Trump also likes to say he opposed the U.S. invasion from the start – a claim that’s patently false.
But the presumptive 2016 Republican nominee also appears to be the only politician in America who’s willing to publicly praise Saddam Hussein.
Donald Trump praised former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein Tuesday night, allowing that he was a “really bad guy” but had redeeming qualities when it came to his handling of terrorists.Trump lauded the former U.S. adversary for how “well” he killed terrorists, recalling that he “didn’t read them the rights, they didn’t talk. They were terrorists, over.”
Oh. So in Trump’s mind, Hussein may have been “bad,” but Trump is nevertheless impressed by the efficiency with which the Butcher of Baghdad massacred people without regard for due process."
For his next trick, Trump offers praise for Saddam Hussein | MSNBC
Tuesday, July 05, 2016
Why Muslims around the world made my tweet go viral | Xeni Jardin | Opinion | The Guardian
Dude ISIS is bombing Muslim people in Muslim communities during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan how is ISIS Muslim no they're psychopaths— Xeni Jardin (@xeni) July 3, 2016
Why Muslims around the world made my tweet go viral | Xeni Jardin | Opinion | The Guardian
Donald Trump riles 2016 race with anti-Semitic imagery | MSNBC
"The list of American constituencies that Donald Trump has alienated during his presidential candidate isn’t short. At various points over the last year or so, the Republican candidate and his operation have alienated women, Latinos, African Americans, Muslims, veterans, people with disabilities, and Native Americans, among others.
But let’s not leave out Jewish voters.
In December, Trump spoke at a Republican Jewish Coalition forum, where he told attendees, “I’m a negotiator, like you folks. Is there anybody that doesn’t renegotiate deals in this room?” The GOP candidate added at the time, “You’re not going to support me because I don’t want your money.”
Over the holiday weekend, however, Trump made matters vastly worse.
An image of Hillary Clinton that was widely criticized as anti-Semitic after it was tweeted by Donald Trump, the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee for president, appears to have originated two weeks ago on a Twitter account devoted to bigoted memes.Trump tweeted the graphic on Saturday attacking Clinton in an image that included what appears to be a Jewish Star of David layered over $100 bills. The tweet calls Clinton “the most corrupt candidate ever.” Painting Jews as corrupt money-grubbers out to secretly control the government has been a well-worn anti-Semitic trope since long before World War II.
Trump deleted his Twitter message on Saturday, and did not comment on the controversy he created until yesterday – two days after publishing the initial message – when he complained about the “dishonest media.” Trump added that his critics have tried to “depict a star in a tweet as the Star of David rather than a Sheriff’s Star, or plain star!” (Last night, Dan Scavino Jr., the campaign’s director of social media, said he was responsible for lifting the image without attribution.)
It’s difficult to take such a response seriously. We know, for example, that the star of a sheriff’s badge has globes on the points, and the image Trump tweeted did not. We also know if Trump’s tweet was a harmless symbol connected to law enforcement, he wouldn’t have been so quick to delete it on Saturday morning.
But perhaps most important is the fact that the image Trump published had been circulated and promoted by white supremacists. The Washington Post noted the pattern: “For at least the fifth time, Trump’s Twitter account had shared a meme from the racist ‘alt-right’ and offered no explanation why.”
Jonathan Greenblatt, chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League, told the Post, “We’ve been alarmed that Mr. Trump hasn’t spoken out vociferously against these anti-Semites and racists and misogynists who continue to support him. It’s been outrageous to see him retweeting and now sourcing material from the website and other online resources from this crowd.”
And that broader takeaway is arguably the most important point. Trump and “this crowd” have been ringing alarms for quite a while now, with white supremacists attending Trump rallies, registering as Trump delegates, offering to provide Trump security, and creating content that Trump has, on multiple occasions, been only too pleased to promote through his social-media accounts.
And earlier this year, Trump hedged when asked to denounce support from David Duke and other white supremacists.
The most charitable interpretation is that Trump is blisteringly incompetent. Pro-Trump voters might choose to believe that the presumptive Republican presidential nominee and his aides saw an anti-Clinton image with an anti-Semitic subtext, they weren’t observant enough to recognize why it’s offensive, and so they shared it with the world without thinking. Maybe, the argument goes, the GOP candidate has no idea why all of these white supremacists are gravitating towards his candidacy, and isn’t deliberately encouraging them.
The uncharitable interpretation is that the Trump campaign is peddling racist and bigoted propaganda on purpose.
Neither of these explanations is reassuring.
Reader M.W. emailed me over the weekend to remind me of something Politico noted a month ago: “To minority voters, Trump’s candidacy feels like an existential threat.” Every time the Republican candidate promotes a message with white supremacist ties, the severity of that threat intensifies."
Donald Trump riles 2016 race with anti-Semitic imagery | MSNBC
Monday, July 04, 2016
Trump’s Star of David Hillary Meme Was Made by Racist Twitter User - The Daily Beast
"The image using an anti-Semitic trope to attack Clinton appeared on 8chan after a vile Twitter user created it two weeks ago.
Trump’s Star of David Hillary Meme Was Made by Racist Twitter User - The Daily Beast
‘Donald Trump Has a Decency Problem’: MSNBC Panel Clashes Over Anti-Semitic Trump Tweet | Mediaite
"MSNBC host Joy Reid and Mother Jones‘ David Corn battled Donald Trump supporter Amy Kremer this morning over Trump posting an image of Hillary Clinton and the Star of David that was shared on a Neo-Nazi white supremacist message board.
During the segment this morning, Reid said sharing or RT’ing material from white supremacists and Neo-Nazis has been kind of a pattern with Trump this election cycle. Kremer rolled her eyes, blamed a staffer, and said Trump just gets blamed for anything these days.
She called it a “slight error” and said we should all “move on,” because in the grand scheme of things this isn’t that important.
Corn jumped in to point out the disturbing origins of the image Trump tweeted. He wondered why Trump never bothers to make sure he’s not sharing messages from anti-Semites on Twitter before doing so. Kremer defended Trump by saying no one has time to check the entire history of everyone they want to RT."
‘Donald Trump Has a Decency Problem’: MSNBC Panel Clashes Over Anti-Semitic Trump Tweet | Mediaite
Sunday, July 03, 2016
James Earl Jones Reads Frederick Douglass - The 4th of July- "What, to the American slave, is your Fourth of July? I answer: a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciation of tyrants, brass-fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are, to Him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy-a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. Own a full-size, 3D Rosetta Stone replica There is not a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are the people of the United States at this very hour. Go where you may, search where you will, roam through all the monarchies and despotisms- of the Old World, travel through South America, search out every abuse, and when you have found the last, lay your facts by the side of the everyday practices of this nation, and you will say with me that, for revolting barbarity and shameless hypocrisy, America reigns without a rival.
Saturday, July 02, 2016
Trump deletes tweet with image of the star of David, Hillary Clinton and money | US news | The Guardian - Trump finally plays his anti semitic-card. I have been waiting for this. The racist is almost always anti-semitic, misogynistic and a homophobe. This sums up Trump
Donald Trump deleted an image of Hillary Clinton and a six-pointed star from social media, following accusations of antisemitism on Saturday given the star’s placement over an image of money and his repetition of the controversial phrase “America first”.
The original graphic, which depicted the Democratic presumptive nominee over a pile of money, contained the text “most corrupt candidate ever” in a six-sided star, reminiscent of the Jewish star of David
Almost four hours later, Trump tweeted out a second image, with the text inside a circle instead of a star, though the star’s points were still visible on the edge of the circle. The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment."
Elie Wiesel, Auschwitz Survivor and Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Dies at 87 - The New York Times
We have lost a truly great humanitarian.
"Elie Wiesel, the Auschwitz survivor who became an eloquent witness for the six million Jews slaughtered in World War II and who, more than anyone, seared the memory of the Holocaust on the world’s conscience, died on Saturday at his home in Manhattan. He was 87.
Menachem Rosensaft, a longtime friend and the founding chairman of the International Network of Children of Jewish Survivors, confirmed the death in a phone call.
Mr. Wiesel was the author of several dozen books and was a charismatic lecturer and humanities professor. In 1986, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. But he was defined not so much by the work he did as by the gaping void he filled. In the aftermath of the Germans’ systematic massacre of Jews, no voice had emerged to drive home the enormity of what had happened and how it had changed mankind’s conception of itself and of God. For almost two decades, both the traumatized survivors and American Jews, guilt-ridden that they had not done more to rescue their brethren, seemed frozen in silence."
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