Top Items:
David E. Sanger / New York Times:
Why Not a Strike on Iran? — DIPLOMATS around the world keep repeating the mantra: There is no military option when it comes to slowing, much less stopping, Iran's presumed ambitions to get the Bomb. The Europeans say so. The Chinese, who need Iran's oil, and the Russians …
Discussion:
Right Wing Nut House, ShrinkWrapped, Stop The ACLU, Asymmetrical Information and democracyarsenal.org
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Philip Sherwell / Telegraph:
Iran extends nuclear plant in secret — Iran has secretly extended the uranium enrichment plant at the centre of the international controversy over its resumption of banned nuclear research earlier this month, satellite imagery has revealed. — Seven buildings have been erected around …
Fareed Zakaria / Newsweek:
Time to Face Reality on Iran — At best, a military strike would set back Iran's program a few years, inflame public opinion there and unify the nation in its bid to go nuclear. — Jan. 30, 2006 issue - The huffing and puffing in Washington is so strong these days, it could start a gale.
Captain Ed / Captain's Quarters:
NY Times Talks Pre-Emption Against Iran — In a strange coincidence, right after Senator Hillary Clinton criticized the Bush administration for its lack of unilateral, imperial action against Iran, the New York Times has suddenly developed an interest in the possibility of a pre-emptive attack …
Time:
When George Met Jack — White House aides deny the President knew lobbyist Abramoff, but unpublished photos shown to TIME suggest there's more to the story … As details poured out about the illegal and unseemly activities of Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff, White House officials sought …
Steven Erlanger / New York Times:
U.S. Spent $1.9 Million to Bolster Palestinian Faction's Image — JERUSALEM, Jan. 22 - The United States spent about $1.9 million of its yearly $400 million in aid to the Palestinians on dozens of quick projects before this week's elections to bolster the governing Fatah faction's image …
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Newsweek:
The Other Big Brother — The Pentagon has its own domestic spying program. Even its leaders say the outfit may have gone too far. — Jan. 30, 2006 issue - The demonstration seemed harmless enough. Late on a June afternoon in 2004, a motley group of about 10 peace activists showed …
Los Angeles Times:
States Step Up Fight on Abortion — Anticipating a more conservative Supreme Court, lawmakers are proposing bans in hope of forcing the justices to revisit Roe vs. Wade. — INDIANAPOLIS — Taking direct aim at Roe vs. Wade, lawmakers from several states are proposing broad restrictions on abortion …
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George W. Bush / White House:
National Sanctity of Human Life Day, 2006 — A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America — Our Nation was founded on the belief that every human being has rights, dignity, and value. On National Sanctity of Human Life Day, we underscore our commitment to building …
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Steve Bainbridge / ProfessorBainbridge.com:
Does the Academy Police Itself? — The brouhaha last week at UCLA over the Bruin Alumni Association prompted the LA Times' to devote most of its editorial section today to the question of whether universities are biased ideologically. Granted, the BAA's UCLAProfs.com site undermined …
John Cole / Balloon Juice:
Last Thoughts on Haleigh — In a long post/update on the sad case of Haleigh Poutre, Michelle Malkin laments the fact that no talk-show hosts or big media types have taken up the cause, and then dishonestly singles me out: … Some days, Michelle seems to exist only to make Bill O'Reilly look like a straight shooter.
Discussion:
Malkin(s)Watch
Atrios / Eschaton:
Abramoff — I imagine that there are some out there who wonder why a factual error in an ombudsman's column combined with the dismissive attitude about complaints pisses people off so much. It's very simple. Time and time again those of us who pay attention see how right wing narratives grow to dominate ongoing news stories.
Marc Schulman / AMERICAN FUTURE:
Effective Forward Deployment — The Foreign Service has been buzzing this last week in the aftermath of Secretary Rice's recent speech regarding the administration's planned focus on what has been termed "transformational diplomacy" (TD hereafter). The Secretary has offered the following explanation …
Glenn Greenwald / Unclaimed Territory:
Saddam copying Bush's talking points? — There are a few Bush-loving sites which are vehemently denying that GOP commentators compared Bush opponents with bin Laden by "pointing out" that bin Laden's latest message "sounds like" Democrats. I am currently have a mini-debate with a couple …
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Ian / The Political Teen:
Reynolds, Huffington, Zuckman Discuss Abramoff, Gore, and Murtha (VIDEO) — Glenn Reynolds, Arianna Huffington, and Jill Zuckman of Chicago Tribune appeared on CNN's Reliable Sources to discuss top political issues of this week. The panel reviewed the Abramoff scandal and if it is a Republican …
RJ Eskow / The Huffington Post:
Found! Al-Zawahiri's Poetry Notebooks — The world learned today that Al-Zawahiri writes poetry, but it was old news at the CIA. They've known ever since a set of spiral notebooks was found on a park bench in Kandahar. You know the kind: black and white speckles on the front, with a white box in the middle that says "My Notes."
Demosophist / The Jawa Report v3.0 Beta:
The Iran Dilemma — Well, my first impulse after reading Strategic Forecasting's attempt to untie the Mullahs' Gordian Knot was that the Geneva Convention should have banned tortured logic. The author of the report, George Friedman, believes that Iran isn't actually serious about developing a nuke.
Brad / THE BRAD BLOG:
Washington Post Reports on Hacked Diebold Machines and Other Electile Dysfunctions in Sunday Paper! — Reports Story of Last Month's Leon County, FL Election Results Flip and Even October's GAO Report on Lack of Security, Accuracy in Electronic Voting Machines! — Better Late Than Never!
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Dan Gerstein / Opinion Journal:
Base Dogma — Left-wing bloggers observe the Alito hearings from an alternative universe. — It's hard not to listen to the reviews of the Democrats' performance in the Alito hearings and come away thinking that much of our party is living in a parallel universe.
Denise Grady / New York Times:
Struggling Back From War's Once-Deadly Wounds — PALO ALTO, Calif. - It has taken hundreds of hours of therapy, but Jason Poole, a 23-year old Marine corporal, has learned all over again to speak and to walk. At times, though, words still elude him. He can read barely 16 words a minute.
Discussion:
Mudville Gazette
Bill Petti / The Duck of Minerva:
No Words — The United Nations has cancelled the speaking engagement of Pakistani human rights activist Mukhtaran Mai (a.k.a. Mukhtaran Bibi). For those that don't remember, Ms. Mai was sentenced to be gang-raped by a tribal court as punishment for misconduct by her brother.
MSNBC:
'The Situation with Tucker Carlson' for Jan. 19th — Read the transcript to the Thursday show — Guest: Jeb McMahon, H. Alexander Robinson, Michael Jacobson — JOE SCARBOROUGH, HOST, "SCARBOROUGH COUNTRY": That is all the time we have. THE SITUATION with Tucker Carlson starts right now.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars
Jane Hamsher / firedoglake:
Late-Nite FDL: C-Team To the Rescue — I was going to post last night about Unrequited Bush Virgin K-Lo's threnody at the NRO about the sacking of Kato's book, but alas Jim Brady shared precious moments with Hugh Hewitt and it had to wait 'til tonight. All's the better, because in the meantime …
Pieter Dorsman / Peaktalk:
TIRED CLICHÉS, WEAK REPORTING, POOR CONCLUSIONS … This is Jasper Emmering at his Hollandaise blog. He's right and his comments capture exactly my sentiments which I've been expressing here and elsewhere for quite a while now. North American mainstream media dived into The Netherlands …
Discussion:
The Corner on National …
