Clipmarks | Kore7's 'america' clips

Why America Will Survive George W. Bush

Sat, 10 Nov 2007 14:53:01 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks:

Otto von Bismarck saw how American blunders led to American power and allegedly said that God has a special providence for drunks, fools, and the United States of America.

Walter Russell Mead (of the Council on Foreign Relations) puts Bush's 8-year stint in the White House into proper perspective.

America's foreign policy has been short-sighted and often self-defeating from the get-go, alternately collaborative, passive, and interventionist. And, yet, miraculously, we always come out ahead.

With the unstoppable rise of a global capitalist economy, Mead makes the case that America, for all its past and current faults, will continue to be the inevitable leader of this new international buoyancy. Not even our latest mistakes (unprecedented though they may be) can derail such a powerful incentive that is the modern American world trade system.

Which means, more than ever, we're literally all in this together.

Clip Source: www.tnr.com

Failing Upward

Nothing in the field of international affairs is as scandalous and as perplexing as the fact of American power. From Revolutionary times to the present, virtually all observers foreign and domestic have agreed that Americans don't do foreign policy well.

Moralistic, uninformed, unsubtle, alternately isolationist and hyperactive, hamstrung by a clumsy constitutional process and a public that oscillates between fatuous idealism and ignorant bellicosity, U.S. foreign policy has been shocking the world for more than 200 years.

And, worse still, we win. For two centuries, the United States has astounded critics with its bad foreign policy--and, for two centuries, the United States has steadily risen to an unprecedented level of power and influence in the international system.

The spectacle is often surreal. The United States seems to wander nearsightedly but relatively unscathed past one hazard after another

like a version of the chronically oblivious cartoon character Mr. Magoo.

Tags: america, usa, bush, foreign policy, world, history, war, empire, trade, economy

"We're Not Dangerous...We're Persian!"

Tue, 09 Oct 2007 02:51:00 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: While it's hard to beat the hilarity of his opening bit, Iranian comedian Jobrani's entire politically incorrect routine is online: 1, 2. Sometimes you just gotta laugh at the seriousness of the world....

(Via The Daily Dish.)

Clip Source: www.youtube.com

Maz Jobrani on the differences between Persians and Arabs on the Axis Of Evil Comedy Tour DVD.

[Video]

Tags: persian, iran, maz jobrani, comedy, politics, muslim, middle east, terrorism, arab, america

Bush Seeks Answers for Own Presidency

Tue, 03 Jul 2007 03:56:56 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: For all the talk of his clueless-ness, it's revealed that Bush, the former apotheosis of privileged irresponsibility, is desperately aware of the fateful legacy he has wrought, seeking vindication in unwritten future histories. Yet, for reasons deeply personal (not political) Bush cannot allow himself to own up to his mistakes, for fear the entire facade of capability will come down. Thus, as he shuts his eyes ever tighter, our leader's personal tragedy becomes our own.

"Our members just wish this thing would be over," said a senior House Republican who met with Bush recently. "People are tired of him." Bush's circle remains sealed tight, the lawmaker said. "There's nobody there who can stand up to him and tell him, 'Mr. President, you've got to do this. You're wrong on this.' There's no adult supervision. It's like he's oblivious. Maybe that's a defense mechanism."

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

A President Besieged and Isolated, Yet at Ease

At the nadir of his presidency, George W. Bush is looking for answers. One at a time or in small groups, he summons leading authors, historians, philosophers and theologians to the White House to join him in the search.

Over sodas and sparkling water, he asks his questions: What is the nature of good and evil in the post-Sept. 11 world? What lessons does history have for a president facing the turmoil I'm facing? How will history judge what we've done? Why does the rest of the world seem to hate America? Or is it just me they hate?

These are the questions of a president who has endured the most drastic political collapse in a generation.

Tags: bush, history, legacy, iraq, war, psychology, politics, president, america

A Tragic Legacy

Sun, 24 Jun 2007 19:01:48 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks:

And the president who vowed to lead the war for freedom and democracy has made torture, rendition, abductions, lawless detentions of even our own citizens, secret "black site" prisons, Abu Ghraib dog leashes, and orange Guantánamo jumpsuits the strange, new symbols of America around the world.

New essay by Glenn Greenwald on the future legacy of America's reaction to 9/11.

Clip Source: www.salon.com

A tragic legacy

How a good vs. evil mentality destroyed the Bush presidency.

One who believes himself to be leading a supreme war against Evil on behalf of Good will be incapable of understanding any claims that he himself is acting immorally.

These principles illuminate a central, and tragic, paradox at the heart of the Bush presidency.

The president who vowed to lead America in a moral crusade to win hearts and minds around the world has so inflamed anti-American sentiment that America's moral standing in the world is at an all-time low.

The president who vowed to undertake a war in defense of American values and freedoms has presided over such radical departures from the defining values and liberties of this country that many Americans find their country and its government unrecognizable.

Tags: bush, legacy, 9/11, terrorism, iraq, war, liberty, torture, guantanamo, history

Living in the Age of Abundance

Tue, 12 Jun 2007 23:17:00 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: Puts the marvel of modern American life in perspective. Review by George F. Will of Brink Lindsey's new book, The Age of Abundance: How Prosperity Transformed America’s Politics and Culture.

Ever since mass affluence, a phenomenon without precedent in the human story, exploded upon postwar America, social and political theorists have wondered, and worried, about the moral and even the spiritual consequences of material conditions. Putting scarcity behind us has been pleasant, but has it been good for us — meaning good for our souls?

(Also see How Rich are You?)

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Land of Plenty

By GEORGE F. WILL

Until very recently, he notes, when people prayed for their daily bread, they often were praying for just that. Not so long ago, many ordinary lives of quiet desperation ended especially dismally: about 10 percent of burials in New York City in 1889 were in potter’s fields.

In 1900, 1.75 million children between the ages of 10 and 15 — almost one-fifth of all children in that age cohort — were in the work force. Children provided one-fourth to one-third of the incomes for working-class families, which spent more than 90 percent of their household earnings on food, shelter and clothing.

In 1900, Americans spent nearly twice as much on funerals as on medicine, and less than 2 percent of Americans took vacations.

Tags: prosperity, children, income, money, culture, economy, materialism, america, capitalism, history

QUIZ: What American Accent Do You Have?

Sun, 20 May 2007 17:30:27 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: If you think you don't have an accent, think again. This short quiz is a way to find out which dialect of American English you speak.

Different regional accents become more prevalent in countries at different times throughout the years for various socio-economic and geographical reasons. These accents come to be perceived as "neutral" or "accent-less" by the majority during these times. For a while, the American dialect sometimes called "Standard Midwestern" has dominated but, like accents themselves, this "standard" constantly evolves.

Recently, the spoken aspects of American English have trended westward along with the population center of America. Many features distinct to Northeastern accents (think NYC, Boston) are being replaced in popularity with those from Western accents (think LA) across America. This shift tends to be more prominent the younger the speaker is.

Clip Source: www.gotoquiz.com

What American accent do you have?

To most Americans, an accent is something that only other people have, those other people usually being in New York, Boston, and the South. And of those other people, half of the ones you meet will swear they "don't have an accent."

Well, strictly speaking, the only way to not have an accent is to not speak. If you're from anywhere in the USA you have an accent (which may or may not be the accent of the place you're from). Go through this short quiz and you'll find out just which accent that is.

Tags: america, speech, accent, dialect, linguistics, quiz, fun, northeast, west, vowels

Re-Thinking The War

Wed, 09 May 2007 17:58:26 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: Here's looking forward to a time when clips on America's reputation are more fitting for the nation we aspire to be.

When the next major terrorist attack comes, the question will simply be how much liberty Americans have left. That is a victory al Qaeda could not have achieved by force of arms. It is something they have achieved with our witting and conscious help.

Clip Source: andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com

This is why the Iraq war, so far, must be seen as a huge al Qaeda propaganda victory. Their narrative is that Muslims are under siege by an evil, imperialist, infidel army that tortures and abuses Muslims at will. Before Iraq, this was an absurdity. After Iraq, less so. Iraq has helped sustain al Qaeda's narrative with imagery and violence that will always stain the image of America in the Middle East. Yes, the paranoia of the Arab street would have invented such atrocities even if they didn't exist. But they did exist and continue to exist. The images of Abu Ghraib did not shock Iraqis used to far worse horrors under Saddam. But they did help educate Arabs and Muslims across the world into believing the very worst about U.S. intentions. Because this war is a war of ideas and ideals, this matters a huge amount. Our one massive advantage - that we are a free and decent civilization - has been fatally blurred.

Tags: america, us, war, iraq, al qaeda, abu ghraib, liberty, torture, foreign policy, terrorism

Closest GOP Insider Yet Comes Out Against Bush, Cheney

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 17:07:40 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: GOP insider Vic Gold doesn't let his longtime friendship with the Bushes and the Cheneys stop him from cataloging the permanent damage the White House has done to the reputation of the GOP — and America.

Under Bush and Cheney, he argues, the GOP has moved away from principles of small government, prudent foreign policy and leaving people alone to live their private lives — all views Gold associates with his hero, Goldwater.

I'll add that to read about the distressing political and personal position Bush Jr. has placed his aging father in because of his actions is downright painful.

(Via Andrew Sullivan).

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

Rightist Indignation

"For all the Rove-built facade of his being a 'strong' chief executive, George W. Bush has been, by comparison to even hapless Jimmy Carter, the weakest, most out of touch president in modern times," Gold writes. "Think Dan Quayle in cowboy boots."

Gold is even more withering in his observations of Cheney. "A vice president in control is bad enough. Worse yet is a vice president out of control."

For Gold, Cheney brings to mind the adage of Swiss writer Madame de Stael, who wrote, "Men do not change, they unmask themselves." Cheney has a deep streak of paranoia and megalomania, Gold suggests -- but he says he did not see it at first.

"He was hiding who he really was," Gold says. "He was waiting for an opportunity."

Tags: gold, vic gold, gop, republicans, white house, bush administration, bush, george bush, cheney, dick cheney, president, vice president, america, politics

The Coulterization of the American Right

Wed, 14 Mar 2007 20:23:36 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: "And if the Republicans go down big in 2008, conservatives will finally be forced to confront the Frankenstein monster they created...."

Clip Source: www.salon.com

The Coulterization of the American right

For this isn't really about Coulter at all. This is about a pact the American right made with the devil, a pact the devil is now coming to collect on. American conservatism sold its soul to the Coulters and Limbaughs of the world to gain power, and now that its ideology has been exposed as empty and its leadership incompetent and corrupt, free-floating hatred is the only thing it has to offer. The problem, for the GOP, is that this isn't a winning political strategy anymore -- but they're stuck with it. They're trapped. They need the bigoted and reactionary base they helped create, but the very fanaticism that made the True Believers such potent shock troops will prevent the Republicans from achieving Karl Rove's dream of long-term GOP domination.

Tags: coulter, ann coulter, limbaugh, rush limbaugh, america, usa, gop, conservatives, republicans, politics, faggot, extremism, hate, fear, values

Winston Churchill on America

Sat, 11 Nov 2006 15:19:55 GMT

clipped by: Kore7

Clip Source: time.blogs.com

"Americans will always do the right thing, after they have exhausted all the alternatives," - Winston Churchill.

Tags: churchill, winston churchill, america, usa, quote, history, right

American Conservative Magazine: GOP Must Go

Mon, 06 Nov 2006 15:05:26 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks:

There may be little Americans can do to atone for this presidency, which will stain our country’s reputation for a long time. But the process of recovering our good name must begin somewhere, and the logical place is in the voting booth this Nov. 7. If we are fortunate, we can produce a result that is seen—in Washington, in Peoria, and in world capitals from Prague to Kuala Lumpur—as a repudiation of George W. Bush and the war of aggression he launched against Iraq.

Clip Source: www.amconmag.com

November 20, 2006 Issue

GOP Must Go

It should surprise few readers that we think a vote that is seen—in America and the world at large—as a decisive “No” vote on the Bush presidency is the best outcome. We need not dwell on George W. Bush’s failed effort to jam a poorly disguised amnesty for illegal aliens through Congress or the assaults on the Constitution carried out under the pretext of fighting terrorism or his administration’s endorsement of torture. Faced on Sept. 11, 2001 with a great challenge, President Bush made little effort to understand who had attacked us and why—thus ignoring the prerequisite for crafting an effective response. He seemingly did not want to find out, and he had staffed his national-security team with people who either did not want to know or were committed to a prefabricated answer.

As a consequence, he rushed America into a war against Iraq, a war we are now losing and cannot win, one that has done far more to strengthen Islamist terrorists than anything they could possibly have done for themselves. Bush’s decision to seize Iraq will almost surely leave behind a broken state divided into warring ethnic enclaves, with hundreds of thousands killed and maimed and thousands more thirsting for revenge against the country that crossed the ocean to attack them. The invasion failed at every level: if securing Israel was part of the administration’s calculation—as the record suggests it was for several of his top aides—the result is also clear: the strengthening of Iran’s hand in the Persian Gulf, with a reach up to Israel’s northern border, and the elimination of the most powerful Arab state that might stem Iranian regional hegemony.

The war will continue as long as Bush is in office, for no other reason than the feckless president can’t face the embarrassment of admitting defeat. The chain of events is not complete: Bush, having learned little from his mistakes, may yet seek to embroil America in new wars against Iran and Syria.

Tags: american, conservative, conservatives, gop, bush, bush administration, war, iraq, policy, washington, election, campaign, midterm, vote, voters, referendum, principles, conservatism

Soldiers of Christ: Inside America's most powerful megachurch with Pastor Ted Haggard

Fri, 03 Nov 2006 01:14:38 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks:

No pastor in America holds more sway over the political direction of evangelicalism than does Pastor Ted, and no church more than New Life.

Having lived in Colorado Springs for 6 years, some people ask me what it's like living in what some consider the Christian Capital of America. Colorado Springs has a lot going for it besides Dr. Dobson and Ted Haggard, but politically and spiritually speaking, this article explains how the city became the center for the Religious Right movement.

Clip Source: www.harpers.org

Inside America's most powerful megachurch with Pastor Ted Haggard

Posted on Thursday, November 2, 2006. Originally from May 2005. By Jeff Sharlet.

The press tends to regard Dobson as the most powerful evangelical Christian in America, but Pastor Ted is at least his equal. Whereas Dobson plays the part of national scold, promising to destroy politicians who defy the Bible, Pastor Ted quietly guides those politicians through the ritual of acquiescence required to save face. He doesn't strut, like Dobson; he gushes. When Bush invited him to the Oval Office to discuss policy with seven other chieftains of the Christian right in late 2003, Pastor Ted regaled his whole congregation with the story via email. “Well, on Monday I was in the World Prayer Center”—New Life's high-tech, twenty-four-hour-a-day prayer chapel —“and my cell phone rang.” It was a presidential aide; “the President,” says Pastor Ted, wanted him on hand for the signing of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act. Pastor Ted was on a plane the next morning and in the President's office the following afternoon. “It was incredible,” wrote Pastor Ted. He left it to the press to note that Dobson wasn't there.

Tags: haggard, ted haggard, new life church, james dobson, focus on the family, colorado springs, church, megachurch, christian, christians, evangelical, fundamentalism, gay, gay rights, homophobia, politics, conservatives, nae

Republican Ad Calls Black Women "Ho's"

Fri, 20 Oct 2006 20:34:40 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: According to the source, the same group was responsible for similar ads in the past that were so derogatory, even the Republican National Committee called them "racist":

America's Pac is the brainchild of a Kansas-based Republican consultant, Richard Nadler. He said Sunday that he is no longer affiliated with the group.

"Mr. Nadler is the genius. We basically follow his game plan," the group's new chief, Thomas Donelson of Marion, Iowa, said. In 2000, Mr. Nadler came under fire for a school choice-related ad in which parents said their son's violence ridden public school "was a bit more diversity than he could handle." Mr. Bush's campaign denounced the ad as "inappropriate," and the Republican National Committee called it "racist or race-baiting in intent."

Clip Source: www.nysun.com

Republican Group Chides Democrats With Abortion Ads
Aim Is To Win Minority Voters, But Democrats Cry Foul

BY JOSH GERSTEIN - Staff Reporter of the Sun
October 17, 2006
URL: http://www.nysun.com/article/41648

A little-known Republican group that claims to have swayed the 2004 presidential election with provocative radio advertising aimed at black and Hispanic audiences is spending nearly $1 million this year to boost the GOP's chances of holding on to a majority in Congress.

The group, America's Pac, began running ads last month in more than two dozen congressional districts.The campaign discusses issues ranging from warrantless wiretapping to school choice, but the most inflammatory spots pertain to abortion.

"Black babies are terminated at triple the rate of white babies," a female announcer in one of the ads says, as rain, thunder, and a crying infant are heard in the background. "The Democratic Party supports these abortion laws that are decimating our people, but the individual's right to life is protected in the Republican platform. Democrats say they want our vote.Why don't they want our lives?"

Another ad features a dialogue between two men.

"If you make a little mistake with one of your ‘hos,' you'll want to dispose of that problem tout suite, no questions asked," one of the men says.

"That's too cold. I don't snuff my own seed," the other replies.

"Maybe you do have a reason to vote Republican," the first man says.

In one of the communities where the ads are running, South Bend, Ind.,some blacks were outraged.

"They're awful.They're repulsive," a Democratic activist and community leader in South Bend, Gladys Muhammad, said. "When they say Democrats don't like black babies, that's damn fools.They're very insensitive."

"This is so dirty, but it works," a sociology professor at Indiana University, Johnnie Griffin, said. "These are race ads. It's incredible."

Tags: black, african-american, election, campaign, ad, advertisement, tv, republican, gop, women, abortion, new york, dirty politics, derogatory, race, racism, richard nadler, america's pac

America hits 300,000,000!

Tue, 17 Oct 2006 13:08:13 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: The 300,000,000 American arrived 15 minutes ago!

(Plus or minus a few months, apparently. )

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Nations Population to Hit 300 Million

Published: October 17, 2006

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The nation's population is scheduled to officially hit 300 million at 7:46 a.m. (EDT) Tuesday, when the Census Bureau's population clock rolls over to the big number.

But don't expect wild celebrations, fireworks or any other government-sponsored hoopla to mark the milestone. Why bother? Many experts think the population actually hit 300 million months ago.

''I don't think anybody believes it will be the precise moment when the population hits 300 million,'' said Howard Hogan, the Census Bureau's associate director for demographic programs. But, he added, ''We're confident that we're somewhat close.''

It's not easy estimating the exact number of people in a country the size of the United States. It gets even more complicated when you take into account illegal immigration, another reason for the federal government to let the milestone pass quietly.

When the U.S. population officially hit 200 million in 1967, President Johnson held a news conference at the Commerce Department to hail America's past and to talk about the challenges ahead. Life magazine dispatched a cadre of photographers to find a baby born at the exact moment, anointing a boy born in Atlanta as the 200 millionth American.

This year, there's a good chance the 300 millionth American has already walked across the border from Mexico.

''It's a couple of weeks before an election when illegal immigration is a high-profile issue and they don't want to make a big deal out of it,'' said William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.

Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said the Bush administration isn't playing down the milestone, though he said he had no plans for Tuesday. Census Bureau employees planned to mark the moment Tuesday afternoon with cake and punch.

Tags: usa, america, population, 300, 300 million, people, milestone, census, celebration, cake, punch

Bipolar Disorder: America's Schizophrenic View of Warfare (Josh Manchester)

Mon, 09 Oct 2006 17:28:32 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks:

The result of these two national experiences is that warfare exists along a one-dimensional axis for most Americans. World War II exists as the positive terminal of this circuit, and Vietnam as the negative; the tendency then is to reinforce the one, while eschewing the other.

Clip Source: www.tcsdaily.com

Bipolar Disorder: America's Schizophrenic View of Warfare

By Josh Manchester : BIO| 30 Aug 2006

Our attempts to compare every conflict to World War II or Vietnam hinder our ability to fight different kinds of wars, including the current one.

In the pantheon of American warfare, no conflict garners as much popular admiration as the Second World War, which holds the title of ideal war. Consider:

The campaigns in both Europe and the Pacific were largely conventional affairs, leading to decisive victories
The nation was largely unified in the war's prosecution; politics ended "at the water's edge"
The entire country was put in uniform; everyone served in some way or another, whether in the infantry, at sea, or in factories at home
The economy was militarized; the entire resources of the country went toward the war effort
The result was unconditional surrender; and yet the victors made allies of the vanquished.

Whereas World War II is the gold standard for US warfare in most Americans' reckoning, the specter of Vietnam forever haunts our every move in any conflict that does not appear to resemble World War II. In Vietnam:

Conventionally fought battles never seemed to result in sustainable progress
The nation was divided as it had not been since the Civil War
Only volunteers and those drafted were sent to Vietnam; the National Guard was never mobilized, and draft deferments galore were available for a variety of reasons
The result was a qualified defeat; a hollowing out of the US military; a loss of confidence in US commitments abroad; and various forms of outrage that continue to affect a number of Baby Boomers today.

Tags: josh manchester, war, warfare, wwii, world war ii, vietnam, insurgency, victory, defeat, usa, opinion, history, strategy

Clipmarks | Kore7's 'america' clips

Why America Will Survive George W. Bush

"We're Not Dangerous...We're Persian!"

Bush Seeks Answers for Own Presidency

A President Besieged and Isolated, Yet at Ease

A Tragic Legacy

A tragic legacy

Living in the Age of Abundance

Land of Plenty

QUIZ: What American Accent Do You Have?

What American accent do you have?

Re-Thinking The War

Closest GOP Insider Yet Comes Out Against Bush, Cheney

The Coulterization of the American Right

The Coulterization of the American right

Winston Churchill on America

American Conservative Magazine: GOP Must Go

Soldiers of Christ: Inside America's most powerful megachurch with Pastor Ted Haggard

Inside America's most powerful megachurch with Pastor Ted Haggard

Republican Ad Calls Black Women "Ho's"

Republican Group Chides Democrats With Abortion Ads Aim Is To Win Minority Voters, But Democrats Cry Foul

America hits 300,000,000!

Bipolar Disorder: America's Schizophrenic View of Warfare (Josh Manchester)

Republican Group Chides Democrats With Abortion Ads
Aim Is To Win Minority Voters, But Democrats Cry Foul