Life got you down, Bunky? Afraid that our Islamofascist president will send you to a reeducation camp? That Rick Santorum will be sitting in your marital bed when it’s time to turn in tonight? That the price of gasoline will continue going through the roof? Well, we feel your pain. But don’t fret because you can join us for the 1st Annual & Probably Last Moderate Voice Baker’s Dozen of Great Music. To get the ball rolling, here is my list and explanations about why each...

Any guesses as to the outcome ? I’d say maybe 95% in favor of the reforms to limit the power of the great and glorious leader who can do anything he wants it’s fine with me.

Perhaps former Senator Rick Santorum’s increasingly over the top comments (the latest is that he said JFK’s 1960 speech about separation of church and state made him want to puke) have started to catch up with him. A new Gallup tracking poll shows Romney has now inched ahead of the latest anti-Romney frontrunner, Santorum: Gallup’s tracking poll shows GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney overtaking rival Rick Santorum nationally, after a tumultuous February which saw the presumptive...

UPDATE II: It turns out that Santorum made the same outlandish and false allegations about euthanasia in the Netherlands back in 2009. The Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad has provided the video where “Santorum tells the same bizarre story about euthanasia in the Netherlands that he recently told during a campaign gathering.” There is a little twist, however: In the 2009 video Santorum claims that elderly in the Netherlands carry something in their wallets that says ”I do not want to be euthanized...

For those of you who might be interested, we’re live-blogging the Oscars over at my place. Why? Well, it’s something to do. And against my better judgement I do actually care about this celebrity-worshipping, Hollywood-aggrandizing madness. So for some predictions, analysis, commentary, and outrage, go here.

Seven more Americans were wounded in Afghanistan today. Two high ranking American officers were killed yesterday in a government ministry that should have been the safest place in the country — and the killer got away. Angry local crowds are filling the streets demanding that we get out of their country and out of their lives, unquestionably the popular sentiment of most Afghans. Enough already with Afghanistan. Enough! It was recently announced that America’s active military presence in...

Naturally, given the “too big to fail” banks wild speculation in oil futures, even in the face of over-supply and under-demand, somehow it’s Obama’s fault, according to Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas: Hutchison also hit the president on the more recent issue of rising gas prices. “We can’t slow down global demand for oil and gas, but we can do a lot more here at home to assure that we have the energy we need and to halt skyrocketing costs,” she said. “But President...

Sepehen Colbert reacts to a brand memo from Nabisco, a paid commercial sponsor of his show. “You think you know Wheat Thins? [Bleep] you. [Bleep] you and the cracker you rode in on.” Colbert goes on to violate one of the memo’s stipulations by stuffing seventeen crackers into his mouth. Only sixteen make a serving. With that “technical difficulties” interupt the program. Colbert returns to read an on-air apology. Watch: AdWeek: The real question, of course, is what...

The Ayatollah of Pennsylvania by Will Durst Once again, the wacky wheel of destiny takes a mighty spin and the big red pointer lands smack on the name of the next Great White Republican Hope — Rick Santorum. The seventh or eighth candidate to vault into the lead of the GOP sweepstakes primarily because he is not Mitt Romney. A similar phenomenon has lifted President Obama in the polls for cleverly positioning himself as not a Republican. Poor Mitt Romney, the more people see of him, the less...

Rick McKee, The Augusta Chronicle This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

Is former Sen. Rick Santorum running for President or clock setter — backwards? Now you can his desire to go back before JFK’s speech on separation of church and state to the growing list of items that suggest he is far more conservative than Barry Goldwater and is basically a radical conservative outside of America’s mainstream. To wit: Presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Sunday that the notion of religion not playing role in politics “makes me want to throw up.” “To...

And now another voice — a prominent voice — expressing frustration and dismay over the current field of Republican candidates for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination. And Maine Gov Paul LePage doesn’t mince words: In remarks captured by the Portland Press Herald, Maine Republican Gov. Paul LePage unloaded on the GOP 2012 field Saturday, decrying all the candidates as damaged goods after having battered each other. He said the country “deserves better” than the...

Has the new and old media been incorrect and is what we’re seeing about former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney a nice way to inject drama into Republican primary coverage, but not accurately reflecting what’s going on? Writing in The Daily Beast, Lee Siegel, author of Is Harvard Burning, tells everyone to take a deep breath because Romney is doing what he needs to win the primaries: By performing his aloofness from and contempt for the radical right, even as he fakes solidarity with it,...

John Darkow, Columbia Daily Tribune, Missouri New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd has a classic column today where she weaves together some quotes Republican Party’ seeming transformation with some keen observations. Her main one is correct: today’s Republican Party seems to be racing backwards as its candidates hurl out red meat to a crowd that increasingly wants redder, rawer meat, almost bleeding meat — meat could nauseate the larger crowd gathered around the Republican partisan...

Mike Daisey Takes a Bite Out of Apple by Michael Winship If you would seek proof of that famous Margaret Mead adage, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has,” look at what’s happening as more and more people protest Apple Inc.’s labor practices in China. Take it one step further: if you should ever doubt the impact a solitary artist can have against injustice, meet Mike Daisey. Daisey is a monologist,...

What is the height of arrogance, the epitome of a lack of empathy for those less fortunate, the perfect product of someone who enjoys rubbing his own fortune in the face of someone less fortunate? It’s this: An arrogant banker has done all in his power to enforce his position as the ‘one per cent,’ all the while reminding everyone else they’re not. After dining on a meal at a boutique Newport Beach, California restaurant, the banker left only $1.33 on a $133.54 tab. Adding insult to injury,...

Watch Clinton on PBS. See more from American Experience. WASHINGTON – The rise once again of religious conservatives in the 2012 primary season is a perfect setting for “Clinton,” the PBS American Experience documentary of William Jefferson Clinton’s presidency. Today’s religious conservatives aren’t the same as they were in the Clinton era, but it’s a reminder of how dangerous their politics are for the country. See the Republican war on women being waged...

Many political analysts see a kind of de facto alliance between former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Rep Ron Paul to hammer down former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum in the looooooong battle over the 2012 Republican nomination. Is this their theme song (performed by the then youthful comedy team of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis)?

Did you know that mnemonic memory techniques are 2,500 years old? Their origin is a legend, passed along by Cicero. Greek poet Simonides (c.556-c.468 BC) demonstrated a feat of recall that jumpstarted the theory. He had attended a banquet, where he presented a poem. Afterwards, he went outside, which saved him when the roof collapsed, killing the other guests. Simonides was able to identify the bodies by using visual recall, who sat where during the banquet.  

Here’s yet another political video animation from Taiwan’s Next Media Animation – this time on former Pennsylvania Sen Rick Santorum:

From the study: Using state-level data for the period 1990 through 2007, we estimate the effect of legalizing medical marijuana on suicide rates. Our results suggest that the passage of a medical marijuana law is associated with an almost 5 percent reduction in the total suicide rate, an 11 percent reduction in the suicide rate of 20- through 29-year-old males, and a 9 percent reduction in the suicide rate of 30- through 39-year-old males… We conclude that the legalization of medical marijuana...

Tomorrow night we wallow once again in the soft porn of fame, fashion and film clips, half-watching Academy Awards to movies most of us haven’t seen and artisans we never heard of. Yet, again this year amid the usual scene stealers, some of them canine, I will be thinking of a college classmate who devoted his life to being an anonymous foot soldier in that dream brigade. One of these years, the Academy may want to devote the appropriate screen time of several seconds to the memory of all those...

Pepsi Cola was originally on the market as “Brad’s Drink” in 1898, became Pepsi Cola in 1903 and Pepsi in 1961. But did you know it has had a slew of other versions both here in the United States and, mostly, abroad? For instance, Ice Cucumber in Japan. Just look at this photo list of 19 other Pepsi flavors (some of them not available anymore).

SUnday night is the big night: the Oscars, the dramatic night when the world finally finds what pieces of cinematic art get recognized with the highest award in the industry, and which winning millionaire gets to hold up a gold statuette and thank everyone he or she ever knew. Here’s what you should watch for.

Rick McKee, The Augusta Chronicle This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

Whitney’s Death Should be a Lesson by Michael Reagan Another tremendously talented American who had riches and fame beyond most people’s dreams has killed herself with drugs. Whitney Houston’s life was wrecked and cut tragically short at 48 because she became mired in the self-destructive hell of drug use. In the late 1970s my birth brother was living in L.A. and working as a writer on “Laverne & Shirley,” the number one-rated TV show in the country. It was pretty...

WSJ: In a ruling that could have broad ramifications for law enforcement, a federal appeals court has ruled that a man under investigation for child pornography isn’t required to unlock his computer hard drives for the federal government, because that act would amount to the man offering testimony against himself. The ruling Thursday appears to be the first by a federal appeals court to find that a person can’t be forced to turn over encyption codes or passwords in a criminal investigation, in...

Things have not been going well for Mitt Romney. His speech in Detroit fell flat. And, this week, he made yet another gaffe. On the subject of the economy, he diverged radically from Republican doctrine. Cutting spending, he said, was a simplistic solution to America’s problems: If you just cut, if all you’re thinking about doing is cutting spending, as you cut spending you’ll slow down the economy.” Republicans were aghast. Almost immediately, he issued a clarification. A Romney spokesman...

WASHINGTON – The Washington Post had an amusing poll on Rick Santorum and women on Friday. I hope Republican primary voters buy into it. But in fact, Santorum has grown more popular among women while talking about his opposition to abortion, his disapproval of birth control and his view that the federal government shouldn’t pay for prenatal screenings. A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows not only that Santorum is doing better among GOP women than he was a few weeks ago, but also...

There’s an old joke about a politician. “He’s out campaigning in outlying areas. He’s out lying in them.” A bit of reporting by The Politico seems to bring that to mind: Rick Santorum on Thursday afternoon slipped away from the campaign trail to speak to a fundraiser for a supportive super PAC, despite denying previous reports that he planned to do so. As Texas Gov. Rick Perry might say: “Oops.” The fundraiser drew between 20 and 25 donors to a gated country...

UPDATE: The White House has published the list of names of the 78 servicemembers invited to the “A Nation’s Gratitude Dinner” at the White on February 29 honoring veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn.(Previously it had been announced that 64 servicemembers would be invited) The Stars and Stripes: Troops were selected by a committee of the Defense Department’s senior enlisted members, said Assistant Secretary of Defense Douglas Wilson, the Pentagon’s public affairs...

A specter of Cold War suddenly appeared today as President Bashar Assad’s desperate murders of his own people took a turn towards a dangerous standoff between a US-led coalition on one side and Russia and China on the other, going beyond a civil war in Syria. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton told a meeting in Tunis of Assad’s opponents it was distressing to see two permanent members of the Security Council using their veto while people were being murdered. “It is just despicable and I ask...

If you haven’t been paying attention there has been a coup in Greece.  Yes, the home of democracy has been taken over by the global banksters.  Unelected technocrats, some from Greece but most not, are now calling all of the shots in Greece.  They are pillaging the country in an attempt to extract as much wealth before the inevitable default of the country.  And Greece is just the beginning.  Steve Lendman: Predatory bankers make serial killers look good by comparison. Their business...

This is not an insignificant story. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who many think will one day run for President, has taken a polite but quintessential firm shot at the current crop of Republicans running for President and their often over-the-top rheotoric: Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said Thursday that he found it “troubling” that the 2012 presidential candidates are “appealing to people’s fears and emotion” on the campaign trail, according to reports. Bush expressed concern about the...

No matter how former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney does in his goal of getting the Republican Presidential nomination, today will go down as a day that political operatives will likely talk about for some time due to the lessons it taught to candidates. LESSON ONE: Be sure not to have your candidate deliver a speech with lots of media attention in a stadium that has lots of empty seats in camera range. LESSON TWO: Don’t deliver boilerplate or deliver a line that was highly ridiculed by...

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The latest Republican-centric Rasmussen nightly tracking poll is out and it’s bad news for the struggling Mitt Romney: For the first time, he dropped below 40 percent against President Obama despite a strong performance in the Arizona presidential debate. Rasmussen tracked the incumbent at 49 percent while Romney got 39 percent, and if the pattern of tit-for-tat primary victories — with Romney taking one or two and then Rick Santorum taking two or three — continues, the likelihood...

The conventional wisdom is shattered again with the news that former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum is picking up support among women rather than losing it — picking up support from Republican women: Over the past several weeks, Republicans have watched squeamishly as presidential contender Rick Santorum has waded into multiple controversies that risk alienating half the 2012 electorate: women. But in fact, Santorum has grown more popular among women while talking about his opposition to abortion,...

The final Republican faceoff was notable for what didn’t happen, the classic Sherlock Holmes clue of the dog that didn’t bark in the night. Neither the moderator nor Santorum’s opponents pressed him to explain his positions on religious issues that have been making headlines, so extreme that even Rush Limbaugh concedes he must answer because they make him look like “an absolute religious nut and wacko.” But none of the debate dogs barked on the subject as they went at him on government...

Daryl Cagle, MSNBC.com This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to appear on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

When East Met West by David Goodloe “This was the week that changed the world.” –Richard Nixon In hindsight, I don’t think I really understood the significance of what was happening when, 40 years ago Tuesday, Richard Nixon began his historic trip to the People’s Republic of China. I wasn’t old enough. I had a general understanding of the fact that the United States had been fighting a war in Vietnam (actually, I couldn’t remember a time when America wasn’t...

WASHINGTON — We’ve heard this quickening drumbeat before. Last time, it led to the tragic invasion and occupation of Iraq. This time, if we let the drummers provoke us into war with Iran, the consequences will likely be far worse. Rat-ta-tat-tat. Weapons of mass destruction. Boom-shakka-boom. A madman in charge. Thump-thump-thump. Mushroom clouds. Tune out the anxiety-inducing percussion and think for a minute. Yes, there are good reasons to be concerned about the Iranian nuclear...

Three strikes and you’re out? First there was Minnesota with former wrestler Jesse Ventura whose celebrity and charisma propelled him into the governor’s chair. But he fizzled in office and no one seriously talks about him running for President on a third party ticket anymore. The came actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose biceps proved to be a lot bigger than his political smart and skills: he utterly bombed after sailing into office as a recall Governor replacement. He was a Republican...

Update: City officials may suspend bond payments and try to cut a deal with creditors to avoid filing bankruptcy Word out this week that Stockton, California may be on the road to filing the largest municipal bankruptcy in US history. Before they can file they must comply with a California law that requires them to declare a fiscal emergency. This requires them to spend 60 days in negotiations with their creditors, which is largely a sop from Democrats to the labor unions. If the case is filed it...

Chris Geidner: A year ago today, the announcement about the Defense of Marriage Act came by way of a letter from Attorney General Eric Holder to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio)… Three hundred and sixty four days later, U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey S. White agreed. White — who has served as a federal judge for the past decade after being nominated by then-President George W. Bush in 2002 — issued his order and opinion finding Section 3 of DOMA unconstitutional in a case...

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Okay, so a Republican gets to be president. What happens to the national debt? The national debt is likely to balloon under tax policies championed by three of the four major Republican candidates for president, according to an independent analysis of tax and spending proposals so far offered by the candidates. …WaPo Except for Ron Paul. His cuts would take $2 trillion out of the budget. Don’t tell me you’re surprised at this report. For years Republican administrations have...

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This is just a really cool link During World War 2 they wanted to hide an aircraft factory in Burbank because they were afraid of Japanese air raids. So they disguised it as a housing development. The pictures are amazing.

I had been looking forward to meeting and talking with Vietnam War veteran Allen Hancock. Finally, thanks to local Austin, Texas, Realtor Jean Susaraba, there I was in her comfortable living room talking with Hancock. I could tell, however, that Hancock was not comfortable talking about himself. Somehow our conversation turned to Hancock’s father and he opened up a little more. From the way Hancock talked about his father — his eyes moistening, his voice choking up a little bit...

One of my favorite shows that I can watch over and over and over and over and over is Seinfeld, which featured the highly talented (he is a fine song and dance man as well as a character actor) Jason Alexander as George Constanza, a character reportedly based on the great Larry David who co-wrote many of the shows. At last night’s CNN Republican Presidential debate former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney referred to George Costanza and quoted the character. And Alexander Tweeted back. First the...

Is there an inverse relationship between improved employment numbers from the government, and declining freelance and part-time work opportunities? And is the overall economic effect of this inversion necessarily a good thing? The U.S. economy is an incredibly complex organism. You pull on what you think is just one thread and a dozen others get unwound. Thus, while economists, policy-makers, and most of the public cheer news that claims for unemployment insurance have declined, that a lot more full-time...

In a letter sent to 48 states, Corrections Corporation of America asks states to consider the “benefits of partnership corrections.” In essence, the company offers to buy up state prisons: But there’s a catch…the states must guarantee that are there are enough prisoners to ensure that the venture is profitable to the company. Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) has reached out to 48 states as part of a $250 million plan to own existing prisons and manage their operations. But...

by WALTER BRASCH It’s the end of February, and one of my friends is still sporting a summer tan. I know it’s phony—and she knows I know it’s phony—but I have long ago stopped teasing her about it. In her never-ending quest to appear to be beautiful and healthy, she has slathered skin tanning lotion into every pore of her body, laid out on roofs and beaches to catch whatever ray was passing by, and goes to a tanning salon once a week. I’m not sure she’s ever stepped into the surf. For...

The Virginia bill pushed by Republicans, including Governor Bob McDonnell, that would force women going for an abortion to have an ultrasound first, appears as if it will be modified. To be certain the features of the fetus were well-defined, the original bill mandated that an ultrasound was to be done vaginally. In other words, women would have a large wand inserted into their vaginas to depict the fetus, even if the abortion was being done after rape or incest. Was this to be done for medical reasons...