Why We Need Health Care Reform  —  OUR nation is now engaged in a great debate about the future of health care in America.  And over the past few weeks, much of the media attention has been focused on the loudest voices.  What we haven't heard are the voices of the millions upon millions …

Sarah's Ghoulish Carousel  —  I'm not sure the man who popped off and tweeted that Sonia Sotomayor was a “Latina woman racist” is the best Henry Higgins for the Eliza Doolittle of Alaska.  —  But Newt Gingrich was a professor.  And he does know something about pulling yourself up by dragging …

Maddow Battles Dick Armey In “Meet The Press” Debut (VIDEO)  —  Rachel Maddow appeared on “Meet the Press” for the first time on Sunday, August 16th.  On a panel with former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), former House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-Texas), and Sen. Tom Coburn …

Swimmers are told to wear burkinis  —  British swimming pools are imposing Muslim dress codes in a move described as divisive by Labour MPs.  —  Under the rules, swimmers - including non-Muslims - are barred from entering the pool in normal swimming attire.

K. H. Bacon, an Advocate for Refugees, Is Dead at 64  —  Kenneth H. Bacon, a former journalist and Pentagon spokesman who devoted his last years to highlighting refugees' problems and urging policymakers to find solutions, died Saturday morning at his summer home on Block Island, R.I. He was 64 and a resident of Washington.

Swine flu jab link to killer nerve disease: Leaked letter reveals concern of neurologists over 25 deaths in America  —  A warning that the new swine flu jab is linked to a deadly nerve disease has been sent by the Government to senior neurologists in a confidential letter.

G.I. Jane Breaks the Combat Barrier as War Evolves  —  As the convoy rumbled up the road in Iraq, Specialist Veronica Alfaro was struck by the beauty of fireflies dancing in the night.  Then she heard the unmistakable pinging of tracer rounds and, in a Baghdad moment, realized the insects were illuminated bullets.

Valarie Jarrett Heckled And Hissed At Netroots Nation  —  One year ago at the Netroots Nation conference in Austin, Texas the mood of the crowd was one of excitement and elation over the possibility of a Barack Obama presidency.  —  A year later, with that possibility achieved, a sense of cynicism has begun to creep in.

Who Is Human Rights Watch's Joe Stork?  —  He is, of course, the author of last week's Human Rights Watch report, which claimed that IDF soldiers murdered white-flag-waving Palestinian civilians in cold blood.  He is also the deputy director of HRW's Middle East and North Africa programs.

MEGHAN MCCAIN, BLONDE BOMB SHELL  —  JOHN MCCAIN WOUNDED THE GOP; HIS DAUGHTER IS OUT TO FINISH THE JOB  —  I liked Meghan McCain.  In her faux hipster Urban Outfitter threads, she attempted to humanize her cantankerous, over-the-hill father during the presidential election with her “cute” bloggette.