Clipmarks | arifsali's 'politics' clips

"America can't kill or capture its way to victory"

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 07:13:39 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates Tuesday said diplomacy and development should lead American efforts abroad, and he warned against a “creeping militarization” of U.S. foreign policy.

In a speech to rousing applause, US Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has said America can't kill or capture its way to victory over the long term, and diplomacy not militarization should lead U.S. efforts abroad. (Click on photo for full story).

“Broadly speaking, when it comes to America’s engagement with the rest of the world, it is important that the military is, and is clearly seen to be, in a supporting role to civilian agencies,” he said.

In a speech interrupted several times by rousing applause, Gates told the audience at a dinner organized by the U.S. Global Leadership Campaign that America cannot simply “kill or capture our way to victory” over the long term.

Tags: united states, politics

What's John McCain's Technology Policy?

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:32:14 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: "Should I double click here?"

No, do a single left click, you [moron].

Clip Source: www.motherjones.com

Washington Dispatch: Surprise—he doesn't have one. And how does that compare to Barack Obama?

Political observers have made much of John McCain's admission that he cannot use a computer without assistance. In a campaign where McCain's opponent is 25 years younger than him, the factoid is potent ammunition for those who argue McCain is out of touch and too old for the presidency. But not knowing your way around a MacBook doesn't mean you can't be president. And McCain's personal Ludditism isn't a deal breaker for tech leaders. "I don't give a damn if McCain ever turns on a computer or not," Michael Arrington, coeditor of the blog TechCrunch wrote in January. "I just want a president who has the right top-down polices to support the information economy."

Tags: united states, politics, technology

Foreclosure Phil

Wed, 28 May 2008 22:42:25 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: From a credible source.

Clip Source: www.motherjones.com

Who's to blame for the biggest financial catastrophe of our time? There are plenty of culprits, but one candidate for lead perp is former Sen. Phil Gramm. Eight years ago, as part of a decades-long anti-regulatory crusade, Gramm pulled a sly legislative maneuver that greased the way to the multibillion-dollar subprime meltdown.

Years before Phil Gramm was a McCain campaign adviser and a lobbyist for a Swiss bank at the center of the housing credit crisis, he pulled a sly manuever in the Senate that helped create today's subprime meltdown.

Yet has Gramm been banished from the corridors of power? Reviled as the villain who bankrupted Middle America? Hardly. Now a well-paid executive at a Swiss bank, Gramm cochairs Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign and advises the Republican candidate on economic matters.

He's been mentioned as a possible Treasury secretary should McCain win.

That's right: A guy who helped screw up the global financial system could end up in charge of US economic polic

Tags: republicans, politics, united states

McCain's "Spiritual Guide" Wants America to Destroy Islam

Sat, 17 May 2008 05:04:42 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: bravenewfilms.org

You may have heard of Rev. John Hagee, the McCain supporter who said God created Hurricane Katrina to punish New Orleans for its homosexual "sins." Well now meet Rev. Rod Parsley, the televangelist megachurch pastor from Ohio who hates Islam. According to David Corn of Mother Jones, Parsley has called on Christians to wage war against Islam, which he considers to be a "false religion." In the past, Parsley has also railed against the separation of church and state, homosexuals, and abortion rights, comparing Planned Parenthood to Nazis.

[Video]

Tags: religion, united states, politics

US agrees to help Saudi Arabia develop civilian nuclear program

Fri, 16 May 2008 22:57:26 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: Ah, the word "civilian"!

Clip Source: www.jpost.com

President George W. Bush and King Abdullah formalized new cooperation on Friday between the kingdom and the United States on a range of topics, including the development of civilian nuclear energy in Saudi Arabia and US protection of Saudi oil fields.

The White House says the president's visit is intended, in part, to celebrate 75 years of formal US-Saudi relations. But the rising price of oil commanded attention.

Tags: united states, saudi arabia, nuclear, politics

US confession: Weapons were not made in Iran after all

Wed, 14 May 2008 20:56:07 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.campaigniran.org

In a sharp reversal of its longstanding accusations against Iran arming militants in Iraq , the US military has made an unprecedented albeit quiet confession: the weapons they had recently found in Iraq were not made in Iran at all.

According to a report by the LA Times correspondent Tina Susman in Baghdad: “A plan to show some alleged Iranian-supplied explosives to journalists last week in Karbala and then destroy them was canceled after the United States realized none of them was from Iran. A U.S. military spokesman attributed the confusion to a misunderstanding that emerged after an Iraqi Army general in Karbala erroneously reported the items were of Iranian origin. When U.S. explosives experts went to investigate, they discovered they were not Iranian after all.”

Tags: iran, united states, politics

Friedman gets a pie!

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:42:32 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: And a clap for it as well.

Clip Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman was hit with a pie Tuesday during a speech at Brown. You can read about Friedman's speech and the pie incident here, or you can watch the video of the pieing below:

[Video]

Tags: politics

An Uninsured Doctor in the House

Thu, 08 May 2008 17:54:26 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.sciam.com

When Steve Kagen became a member of Congress, he declined health insurance coverage. Now he has a plan to provide it for everyone

One of the first things U.S. Rep. Steve Kagen (D–Wisc.) did when he took office last year was to nix his congressional health care coverage. The move stunned a human resources staffer, who, the lawmaker says, looked at him as though he were insane.

"I'll respectfully decline until you can make that same offer for all of my constituents," he says he told her, explaining his decision to turn down what many say is the Cadillac of U.S. health plans.

Kagen, 58, is now one of millions of Americans, including at least nine million children, without health insurance. "I have absolutely no health coverage at all," he told ScientificAmerican.com during a recent interview. "I have no health conditions and am pretty darn healthy." And if he gets sick? "I'd be just like the 47 [million] to 50 million American citizens who don't have coverage,"

Tags: health, insurance, congress, politics, medical

Israelis Claim Secret Agreement With U.S.

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:29:53 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

A letter that President Bush personally delivered to then-Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon four years ago has emerged as a significant obstacle to the president's efforts to forge a peace deal between the Israelis and Palestinians during his last year in office.

Ehud Olmert, the current Israeli prime minister, said this week that Bush's letter gave the Jewish state permission to expand the West Bank settlements that it hopes to retain in a final peace deal, even though Bush's peace plan officially calls for a freeze of Israeli settlements across Palestinian territories on the West Bank. In an interview this week, Sharon's chief of staff, Dov Weissglas, said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice reaffirmed this understanding in a secret agreement reached between Israel and the United States in the spring of 2005, just before Israel withdrew from Gaza.

Tags: united states, israel, politics

Former President Carter To Be Tried For Peace Crimes

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 01:11:31 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.theonion.com

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND—An international peace-crimes tribunal commenced legal proceedings against former U.S. President Jimmy Carter for alleged crimes against inhumanity Monday.

"Jimmy Carter's political career includes a laundry list of anti-war-making offenses," said chief prosecutor Charles B. Simmons. "Carter's record of benevolence, diplomacy, and respect for human life is unrivaled in recent geopolitical history. For millions, the very sight of his face evokes memories of his administration's reign of tolerance."

The former president, whom Simmons described as "relentless in his naked pursuit of everlasting global peace," has been sought by peace-crimes officers in the international war-making community for decades.

Police apprehended Carter on July 25 in South Florida, where he was building low-income housing as a part of a Habitat For Humanity project. Shortly thereafter, he was extradited to Geneva, where he will be prosecuted for "grossly humane acts against all nations."

Tags: humor, politics

Bush invokes faith to defend war policy

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 22:16:36 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: Here you go.

Clip Source: www.iht.com

President George W. Bush delivered a rousing defense of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan on Tuesday, mixing faith and foreign policy as he told a group of Christian broadcasters that his policies in the region were predicated on the beliefs that freedom is a God-given right and "every human being bears the image of their master."

With the fifth anniversary of his invasion of Iraq coming next week, and a decision on troop cuts in Iraq on his plate, Bush used a 30-minute speech before an enthusiastic audience - the National Religious Broadcasters association - to make the case that liberty is on the march, so long as the United States does not lose its nerve.

"The decision to remove Saddam Hussein was the right decision early in my presidency," he said, to rousing applause and a standing ovation. "It is the right decision at this point in my presidency, and it will forever be the right decision."

Tags: religion, politics, bush

Conservatives are fake Christians: Charles Barkley

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 17:21:32 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

The comment came after Barkley was asked his reasons for supporting presidential candidate Barack Obama, rather than Hillary Clinton or any of the Republican candidates.

"I've got great respect for Sen. McCain, great respect, but I don't like the way Republicans have taken this country," said Barkley. "Every time I hear the word 'conservative,' it makes me sick to my stomach, because they're really just fake Christians, as I call them. That's all they are."

Tags: politics, religion

Coulter: Obama running because he's half black

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 21:02:08 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: mediamatters.org

Summary: During a speech to the Young America's Foundation, right-wing pundit Ann Coulter said of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, "Barack's really been kind of coasting on his record, since his first big accomplishment of being born half-black. ... He wouldn't be running for president if he weren't half-black."

Tags: politics, united states

Huckabee: I am made of miracles

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 20:57:29 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.presstv.ir

Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee says he is a man of 'miracles', announcing his intention to continue fighting for nomination.

"I didn't major in math," said the former Arkansas governor. "I majored in miracles."

"I'm not quitting," said Huckabee who is lagging behind McCain.

The Republican Party 'better have a candidate who's battle-tested', he added.

Tags: politics, united states

Which God? Whose God? Huckabee's God?

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 20:16:13 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: Award-winning author and professor emeritus, University of Chicago

Clip Source: newsweek.washingtonpost.com

In 1786 Thomas Jefferson's bill on religious freedom was passed in Virginia. James Madison reported that some legislators wanted to insert the words "'Jesus Christ.' He and the legislature rejected it because it would have worked for "a restriction of the liberty defined in the bill to those professing his religion only. Jefferson saw rejection of the restrictive bill to be "proof" that the legislature "mean to comprehend within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and Gentile, the Christian and Mahometan, the Hindoo, and infidel of every denomination."

Tags: article, politics