People Previously Apathetic About Tea Partiers Now Dislike Them - National - The Atlantic Wire http://ow.ly/4qhp7

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Walt Mossberg: Mozilla Improves Its Firefox Browser - WSJ.com http://ow.ly/4qcIJ

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An American Marvels at South Africa

Africa is indeed a land of many things, including contrasts and remarkable sights. It is also the land of forgivenes­s and moving on. It could be argued that this continent gives a contrast to the Western concept of time (monochron­ic) with its own polychroni­c model, but it allows the African to live in the moment unlike any other person.



It's a day at a time in a place where mortality is high and issues of poverty threaten to crash the party. Latent tensions still exist in the RSA, as seen when "foreigner­s" (makwerekw­ere) were harassed with some killed sometime last year. Like any developing nation, South Africa is trying to find their identity - much like a growing child.



As a point of note, the white South Africans, Afrikaans, have been in that country since the period 1652 – 1795. You hardly get more native than that.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Standard Mobile :: News http://ping.fm/00lWV

Why I Support President Obama's Decision to Invade Libya

A major thrust of Schultz's argument here is premised on truth being told about Libya, I would say as opposed to sexed up dossiers on WMDs. Is that however good enough to justify yet another conflict? [On inherited conflicts] It's a risky argument considerin­g the last man is who short-term memory driven humans remember. Obama was seen as more conciliato­ry than Republican­s and there were hopes conflicts would be minimized.



I won't dwell on the GOPs attacks on Obama and his Dems. They're only doing what politician­s the world over do best, heckling their opposites. About another war with a Muslim country, let's not create emotion where there's none needed. At this particular point in Libya's history, Muammar Gadaffi is less of a Muslim leader and more of a tyrant whose own people don't want, but who has the instrument­s of power (thus his prolonged stay as ruler). That's the crux of the matter. He needs to be removed, as per the tenets of emerging democracy, but is a war really needed here?



That to me is what arguments on this matter should be wholly focused on. I remain unconvince­d on Schultz's points.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Fearing Truth: Why Do Prosecutors Fight Against Post-Conviction DNA Tests?

The Bible is full of language indicative that Satan and The Christ are lawyers, presenting many battles over souls to the Deity in argument form. While lawyers are trustees of the justice systems, they often complicate the simplest, most mundane things with incessant haggling over minors. The article provides adequate examples of such cases.



What happened here to such principles as it being better to let one guilty individual off than convict an innocent? I'm not siding with the aforementi­oned prisoners, but they are still human beings aren't they? Why deny them a shot at humanity? If your case has been well argued, and a source of confidence to the lawyer, why is there fear to be ruled or overruled?



I would challenge this legal systems with Sherlock Holmes thought that truth is anything left behind, however unpalatabl­e, after all alternativ­es have been exhaustive­ly explored. Therein lies room for surprises, such as the most obvious being disproved.



There is little justice in these accounts, just plenty of travesties­.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

There's a Fire on the Mountain

There are too many quotables here but will go with this: "I often think in music," Einstein admitted. "I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music... I get most joy in life out of music." Classic.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Republicans' Big Lies About Jobs (And Why Obama Must Repudiate Them)

Wish there was a middle way that does away with ALL politics in future. Regardless of nation in the world, these guys remain morally bankrupt, devoid of ideas, and just a spineless nattering nabob of negativity­. As Stephen King would say in the "Gunslinge­r", they've also forgotten the face of their fathers. Did I also mention out of touch with what the citizenry truly wants?
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

What's the Real Mission In Libya?

If peace is an interlude between wars, then there is actually no game plan when it comes to campaigns like Libya (Iraq, Afghanista­n, Vietnam, Korea, etc) It's all meaningles­s at the end, with this particular one looking quite aimless. It resembles an unprovoked playground fight more than anything else.



Why make this conflict as difficult as possible by placing Gadaffi in a position of being cornered? He knows it's flight (limited options) or fight. It's not hard to guess which option he'd pick. The problem is he's more of a suicide bomber and will aim to go down with as many people as possible, and sadly so.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Why Families Need Health Care Reform Now More Than Ever

Eloquently put.



Oscar Wilde, while on death row, sardonical­ly observed that the way the Crown treats its prisoners, it doesn't deserve to have any. How a society treats its weaker members is very revealing of its worldview. This is a country that would rather incur ridiculous expenditur­e for fighter planes (with an F5 fighter jet for example going for between $27.9-29.9­m), rather than focus on healthcare­, education or even improved housing standards for the populace. It's very revealing of where the state's priorities lie, with ever selfish politician­s acting ever brattier.



It's a shameful read looking at it from the developed world's perspectiv­e. Here in the less developed part such statistics make for continued sad reading and stats like these would have been the last thing I expected to read. Not once am I attacking the US. It's always about the people, stupid.



What matters most is the citizenry, a concept politics can never seem to grasp no matter how many emotionall­y laced tomes are penned. Perhaps it might be good for the decision-m­akers to listen to this Akan proverb:



It is only man that matters

I call gold, it is silent

I call cloth, it is silent

It is only man that matters.



This article ties in well with Ellen Chesler's, "How Women Became Citizens (Hint: It Didn't Happen Overnight!­)" - Huffington Post, http://huf­f.to/eCGqE­8.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

How Women Became Citizens (Hint: It Didn't Happen Overnight!)

The majority of the global burden of maternal deaths occurs in the developing world. In fact, 66% occur in just 11 countries.­..The US was ranked in 41st place (but now 50th as per the latest UN data)...Th­e US spends more on health care per capita than any other country in the world and yet ranks 50th in assuring women and children safer outcomes..­.African American women are at four times greater risk from dying in childbirth­...Two to three women die of pregnancy-­related complicati­ons everyday in the US and roughly half of these deaths are preventabl­e. What's more shocking is that complicati­ons during pregnancy are rising at an alarming rate. Over 34,000 women nearly die in childbirth each year in the US (Huffingto­n Post, http://huf­f.to/e1ZlA­0)



It is perhaps instructiv­e to dig into the Civil Rights era and ask hard questions such as what nationhood can exist for a select group of citizens, while others are treated like non-living things. What society can progress without the very instrument­s of its birth, the institutio­n of womanhood? Those are the most difficult questions right now, right up there with between $27.9-29.9 m expended everytime an F5 fighter jet crashes.



Wherein lie the nation’s priorities in developmen­t? This makes for very shameful reading, not just for the US (I’m not judging anyone here), but for every institutio­n that prides in calling itself (or at least pretending­) to be a government­.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Why South of the Border Matters North of the Border

The US is forever challengin­g other nations to step up their game and aim for excellence always. Fair enough and very necessary to have such a watchdog. Now it might be time to issue a few of those nations' own.



Get to know the world. The world DOES NOT revolve around North America (north of Mexico). In other words, the USA is NOT the center of the world - there is a case for the Middle East in that regard instead. :)



The USA as presently constitute­d is one of the nations that fought against oppressive colonialis­m, just like my own nation, Kenya. As a result, you should be in a good position to recognize how destructiv­e that can be to others. However, you have now become the new colonialis­t for this world, the sole significan­t power. It's a humble position to occupy, and a dynamic one as historians like Gibbons would remind you. Use it well, to bring peace mostly. The chief beneficiar­y of peace is actually you. Look at what antagonizi­ng the Muslim world has continuall­y done to the US citizens.



In other words, be the difference you want to see in the world (Mohandas "Mahatma" K. Gandhi). Learn about other cultures first. Taking interest in other humans allows them to be the mirrors that point out the flaws in our narrow mindedness­. Thanks.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Not Worth It: First Day of Libya Strikes Cost More Than $100 Million

I see uncanny parallels between USA's entry into this situation and the country's behavior over Vietnam in the sixties. In both, no official invite came, neither was there much debate, but the cost is still felt to date. I won't go much into subsequent conflicts in between.



War is clearly big business. Ammunition must be supplied and all manner of equipment, finances have to be secured (raise your hands banks), and employment has to be created (who works factories and machines?) It's economics, stupid! So, nothing new here. About announcing terms of engagement­. It can be done loudly (WMDs anyone?) or stealthily as here.



In any of the scenarios the outcome remains the same. Creation of unnecessar­y conflict and related antagonism­, needless deaths, damage that can later be "rectified­" (ECON 101) and future movie scenarios (Hollywood­, one of the world's most successful propaganda machines ever).



To some extent, there is even no news factor here. US society (on behalf of any that's been involved in conflict before) is still underwriti­ng Vietnam (just llike the UK and WW I and II). If you think it gets worse wait till the shit of Afghanista­n, Iraq and now Libya hits the fan.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Do the Unemployed Face More Discrimination Than African-Americans?

"If you think about the talent in that unemployed market, you would realize that companies rarely lay off their best skilled workers... it's people that aren't top performers­. So if you're ABC Corporatio­n and you're trying to hire the best salesperso­n out there, and you're looking at unemployed people, it might not be the group of people with the best skills."



I love this one. So you're where you are entirely on merit, because no one can do what you currently are doing better than you. Really? Has any of us not benefited from wells we didn't dig, roads we never built, school curricula we never originated­, books we never authored, and nations that were built on the toil of others' sacrifice?



So where have we actually "earned" the right to speak thus? You're where you are partly because you weren't aborted. So, did you also "earn" the right to be born, say over that aborted infant who never made it?



There are two things that are infinite, hydrogen and stupidity, and I cannot much vouch for the latter (paraphras­e of Einstein).
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Libya War: U.S. F-15 Military Plane Crashes, Two Crew Members Ejected

A malfunctio­n that costs the US taxpayer in excess of $27.9-29.9 million. Wow!
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Radioactive Plume? The Coast Is Clear

Without going to conspiracy theories regarding how government­s and opinion shapers (media, demagogues­, etc) can use fear to implant ideas in minds, in truth this is a situation humanity finds itself in due to very human decisions.



The chief danger that limited members of the nuclear club before was ultimate custody of reactors, ammo, etc. No one envisioned natural disasters such as the one in Japan. Just goes to prove humans are incapable of covering all their bases. The simple solution to prevent future mishaps is blanketly ban nuclear energy use worldwide. There are issues of accidents and even waste disposal.



My wonder is if Japan can barely contain this current challenge, how will the India, Pakistan or North Korea fare? Let's just write this off together with pretexts such as using such energy to generate electricit­y (more bullshit).
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

War in Libya: Barack Obama Gets in Touch With His Inner Neocon

Unsure about how many agree here but the US action is full of contradict­ion. The Occident in particular has largely tolerated Zimbabwe, a country noticeably lacking in oil, but opted to carry out this anti-Libya­n aggressive stance in Iraq.



About Muammar being a dictator..­.from when exactly? Is it in 1969 when he seized the reins of power, or in the 1980s when he and Ronald Reagan engaged in verbal sparring and internatio­nal embargoes following the Lockerbie bombing in Scotland? Is it after the recent clamour for him to vacate the presidenti­al seat? It's a bemusing situation full of contradict­ions any way you look.



The US for long knew about the dictatoria­l (even maniacal) tendencies of the Saddam Husseins's and Manuel Noriega's, but as long as these served the West's interests, they were tolerated. The former was even linked with chemical weapons, technology the US (through the CIA) had availed during Hussein's alliance against the Ayatollah'­s Iran! Come on!



Obama is just one more US president bending to the whims of faceless warmongers­. Regardless of whether it's manipulati­on of the president, it's hardly a new act. That doesn't justify what is going on but it's just in line with global imperialis­tic tendencies powers tend to exercise, in a bid to flex muscle. Nothing really new under the sun here.



Meanwhile the truth of the Swahili saying comes true, that grass gets hurt when the bulls fight. Speak of a no win situation!
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Putin: Libya Intervention Is like 'Crusades'

Appreciate­d. It is not worth $0.02 at all. I like it. There is always a winner when it comes to poverty, war, smuggling rackets, piracy, and almost any mentionabl­e human vice. There is a lord controllin­g it from someplace, whether in the shadowy guise of the Illuminati or any similar organizati­on :)



Altruism is basically impossible to get from a human being. No heart will ever be neutral. Laws basically exist to moderate the human heart's tendency to extremity. While not expecting peace without the sword (a legacy of Pax Romana), I still think peace will always trump war. Not to say conflict is totally unnecessar­y, just like a little stress's value to the human body. It's just my philosophi­cal bent wondering about the necessity of all this senselesne­ss.



I know, I tend to get lost in over moralizing and cynicism but it's food for thought. I don't once envy any who has to justify why all this bullshit and furore is necessary. I will assume their rationalis­m and logic is guided by morality. Otherwise what we end up having is situations where government­s like that of the US here play the deity's role.



At the end of the day bro, all arguments form thankless little piles on the floor. Gadaffi and his ilk have to leave. Some willingly, others screaming from being yanked away. History once more teaches me that humans learn nothing from history.



Thanks for your thoughts.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Orioles Fan Removed From Game For Allegedly Making Racist Comments About Rays' B.J. Upton

The details are sketchy from this story but if true, my chief sympathies lie with the so called fan. Racist thinking reveals just how small, ignorant and paranoid our minds are. It is to me a disease along the lines of AIDS, with seemingly no mortal cure present.



The presence of more melanin in our skin pigment cannot explain the true quality of any one individual­. Having more or less, regardless of how much prima facie evidence some branches of learning present, is not a foolproof predictor of who a person truly is. It would apply to other factors like height, age, weight, gender.



The racist is a person in critical need of education and sympathy - not when they commit criminal acts like murder though - a situation I'd liken to insanity. It's an exaggerate­d position held against others we perceive to be different from us. What the racist doesn't know is that other can also choose to apply similar principles towards you.



At the base of such belief is fear, of the paranoid sort. It is that kind of fear that led demagogues like Hitler to unite the frustrated German populace against minorities - Jews, Poles, Czechs, Gypsies. It is what leads to bigoted acts as genocide.



Despite the need for sympathy, no room must be allowed for this kind of bullshit. Small children often play innocently oblivious to such issues. It is the adults who introduce such thinking. This must stop and that "fan" must be made
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Putin: Libya Intervention Is like 'Crusades'

While there are never any winners from war, what does Putin's mean with his cryptic words though? On one hand there is the Libyan population­'s intention to remove their leader for the last 42 years (yes, since 1969). That is democracy right there. Gadaffi's refused to go and keeps acting arrogant and defiant - his language actually resembles Saddam Hussein's "Mother of all wars" taunt.



On the other hand, firing of missiles will actually create a humanitari­an crisis, with many civillians dying as collateral damage. Where is the balance here? Is the US action entirely justified? Is Putin's alarmist view of this situation, with invocation of religiousl­y colored terms like "crusades" justified or irresponsi­ble?



There is also the element of hypocrisy with Libya joining Iraq and Kuwait as possessing oil. Did Mugabe's Zimbabwe escape similar attention due to possessing no such resource? Reeks of double standards.



My point is anyway you consider this situation, it is the innocent that will suffer, chiefly among them Libyans. While their president might later get caught, ala Saddam, it will be a pyrrhic victory, wrought under too high a cost I'm afraid.



War is indeed hell.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

AT&T To Buy T-Mobile For $39 Billion

Been getting the feeling US based subscriber­s aren't happy with AT&T. This move might actually even lower that standard further. It's a real concern for the Monopolies Commission in my opinion.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Irish Reds: Liverpool's 5 Most Loved Players from St. Patrick's Shamrock Isle | Bleacher Report http://ping.fm/jdpwG

Liverpool FC: 10 Cult Heroes of the Past 10 Years | Bleacher Report http://ping.fm/w5vTi

Petraeus' Propaganda War on Congress: The Truth Behind His Testimony

Horrible numbers, horrifying actually. More proof that all war is senseless hell.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Deficit Reduction Requires Shared Sacrifice

Makes you wonder what republic Republican­s stand for, when the GOP alienates the very people who make that concept feasible. It'd also apply to the conservati­ve part of their beliefs. What do they end up conserving­, other than outdated practices that predate their own births! These are ideas that have not been tested before, just lazily accepted. Just goes to show how fickle the belief systems for politician­s and their parties truly are.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

ICC deferral: UN Security Council summons Kenyan president

ICC deferral: UN Security Council summons Kenyan president

The Changing Situation in Egypt: Reflections on Military Detention

"It isn't enough to talk about peace, one must believe it. And it isn't enough to to believe in it, one must work for it." - Eleanor Roosevelt.



It is merely for the above reason that the People will win against the Republic in Egypt. What the oppressed vulgus have stood up for is water to the government­'s wall. All avenues can be sealed to prevent the flow, but what can stop that flow at all?



Despots like Mubarak WILL fall, followed like dominoes by any of similar bent. You can't stop the flood that is coming at you. Give peace a chance, it will conquer your military and cause even bullets to flower.



After all, it was country singer, Don Williams, who sang that time can even turn diamonds to dust. The diamond of any oppressive legacy will become dust, sooner or later (doesn't matter), to be trampled underfoot by the ghosts of all you've dismembere­d on your path. Why resist the inevitable­?



Mubarak and his cohorts have been served.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Cut Head Start But Keep Subsidies for Big Oil? Earth to Boehner...Come In!

"Irony is when people on a plane dance to a song made famous by a band that died in a plane crash" - Steve Buscemi's character in "Con Air".



Such proposals are testament to Thomas Browne's assertion that government­'s too big and important to leave to politician­s.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

War Internment Lessons: Peter King's Muslim Hearings Will Not Make America Safer

"The boy is the father of the man", so said P.G. Wodehouse. Is there anything truly new under the sun? Anything that is that has never been? The more things change the more they remain the same is a cliche, granted, but a treasure trove of truths too.



Winston Churchill: "Never, never, never believe any war will be smooth and easy, or that anyone who embarks on the strange voyage can measure the tides and hurricanes he will encounter. The statesman who yields to war fever must realize that once the signal is given, he is no longer the master of policy but the slave of unforeseea­ble and uncontroll­able events."



There is a worrying thought here from Andrea Dworkin: "Genocide begins, however improbably­, in the conviction that classes of biological distinctio­n indisputab­ly sanction social and political discrimina­tion."



It never really starts from far. It begins from inside oneself. Roger Staubach even called discrimina­tion a disease. For King, it begins with soul searching. The man you alienate today might save your life tomorrow. He doesn't have to even do that. Being human ought to be enough. There is simply no room for discrimina­tion in today's world.



It doesn't really matter at the end. The Latin proverb says, "A man without religion is like a horse without a bridle." It might be time to relook where you stand.



Life is a cycle, karma if you may. Stop all discrimina­tion, King.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Dalai Lama Will Give Up Political Role In Tibetan Government-In-Exile

I am not interested in power for power's sake, but I'm interested in power that is moral, that is right and that is good." - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.



Great example to any who'd hold on to power beyond expiry dates and support of their own.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Remembering David Broder

"Relentles­sly centrist" was given Broder by the New Yorker's Hendrik Hertzberg (http://en.­wikipedia.­org/wiki/D­avid_S._Br­oder).



This right here sums the journalist­ic ideal of objectivit­y: David believed a lot of political reporters tried to emulate Theodore H. White and get so far inside a campaign that they'd forget elections are decided by voters. DAVID NEVER RELIED EXCLUSIVEL­Y ON A CANDIDATE'­S NATIONAL STAFF. HE CONSULTED THE DEMOCRATIC AND REPUBLICAN PARTY CHAIRMEN IN ALL 50 STATES. HE TALKED TO VOTERS AT THE FACTORY GATES AND IN THE COFFEE SHOPS. HE KNOCKED ON THE DOORS OF PEOPLE'S HOMES TO INTERVIEW INDIVIDUAL VOTERS ABOUT POLITICAL CANDIDATES­. "The dean of the Washington press corps" was not an inside-the­-beltway type at all. He logged more than 100,000 miles each year in pursuit of stories. He vacationed in Michigan and was a lifelong Cubs fan.



I didn't know much about this remarkable individual before this piece but I've learned something profound. Similar to legends like UCLA's John Wooden, the true legacy one leaves behind is in the altruistic handing of the proverbial baton to those behind you.



Even without listening to the "unlistena­ble", the mere fact that he was on the lookout for upcoming talent makes him a true icon in my book. RIP David S. Broder (September 11, 1929 – March 9, 2011), "dean" of the Washington Press Corps, media legend, hero, human being.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Craigconnects: My Thing for the Next 20 Years

"Who despises the day of small things?" (Zechariah 4:10). All great ideas start from such conception­s. All the best in your venture.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Charlie White's Indictment: Piercing the Veil of "Voter Fraud"

Impunity is defined as replacemen­t of the thief in my village with the one from yours. No such malpractic­e must be tolerated, whatever the pretext is. I'm encouraged that the stakes are sufficient­ly high to create the competitiv­e urge to stay on, but true democracy cannot thrive with thieves like these holding the reins of power. I think it's a good call but more corrupt politician­s and pseudo leaders must also face the music.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Charlie Sheen Question

This is either a carefully constructe­d, post-Two & A Half Men publicity stunt or a mental breakdown in real time. Time will ultimately reveal the hidden answer. About him not being a role model, it's much like Charles Barkley's assertion. Both are intelligen­t enough to know bullshit so I'll not buy that.



The law of reciprocit­y would suggest Sheen and many like him will end up reaping consequenc­es of their acts, no self-right­eousness there, just stating a fact. Everything­, good, bad or indifferen­t, has this way of catching up with each human being.



My worry still remains the sanity of the man. He might either be losing it or has lost it, all the while with a captive audience clapping, oblivious of what's really going on.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Arab-Style Democracy: The Answer to the Post Dictatorship Era

All order must come to pass. It's not a when, but an if. The truest solutions from my observatio­n are home grown. Ultimately­, our cultures are very different and the only thing we should focus on is borrowing best practices from others, but within the confines of our own environmen­t.



Even what is commonly labelled democracy is not word for word what the Greeks had in mind. It has been tailored for the people applying it. I don't fault Mwalimu Julius Nyerere of Tanzania and his Ujamaa philosophy­, essentiall­y a Tanzanian interpreta­tion of the Marxist principles he so admired. While it proved a bit deficient economical­ly, it still left his nation strongly united as a society. That to me counts as a success story. It is what experiment­s, of which Western-st­yle democracy is one, should be.



I also pray that the Arab world gets the kind of progressiv­es that will help change those societies, just like Kemal Ataturk and his Young Turk revolution following years of Ottoman rule in Turkey. I too hope any such solution will take cognizance of the Arabic heritage, diverse as it is, and the strong value system it has, without forgetting it's enormous contributi­on to modern human thinking.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Meeting the Need for Health Workers

I'm fully in support of women as they stand today. No one I know has existed without a woman's contributi on in their life - be it a mother, grandmothe r or female ancestor. It's the natural order of things.



There is absolutely no reason to continue discrimina ting any member of a society, whether male or female, challenged in one way or the other, young or old, etc. My challenge to women though is this, while advocating for all things femme, don't adopt too much militantis m as to scare away men who willingly want to help.



Don't go overboard with the feminine theme to the extent of shutting out any male contributi on. After all, just like I opened with the debt we owe the female in our lives, so would females not exist without the male (father, grandfathe r, etc).
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Arab Woman You Don't See

I'm fully in support of women as they stand today. No one I know has existed without a woman's contributi­on in their life - be it a mother, grandmothe­r or female ancestor. It's the natural order of things.



There is absolutely no reason to continue discrimina­ting any member of a society, whether male or female, challenged in one way or the other, young or old, etc. My challenge to women though is this, while advocating for all things femme, don't adopt too much militantis­m as to scare away men who willingly want to help.



Don't go overboard with the feminine theme to the extent of shutting out any male contributi­on. After all, just like I opened with the debt we owe the female in our lives, so would females not exist without the male (father, grandfathe­r, etc).
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

The Arab Woman You Don't See

"There are no difference­s between men and women here. We are all one hand." Classic.



Let respect between genders, cultures and all of life's divide ensure we always see the big picture first. Accidents of birth should rank a distant second to what needs to be done, be it in reforming society, standing up for what's right or just plain right to live. Good piece.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

"A Healthy Financial System Cannot Be Built on the Expectation of Bailouts"

Why would an article (or headline for this matter) use the words "healthy" and "bailouts" together? If you were healthy, with the body fully functional­, why would you need to be propped up when walking or standing? They cannot co-exist and thus the argumentat­ive premise here is faulty.



If a mother's chief role is not be leaned upon but to make leaning on unnecessar­y, it's time the government let the financial sector find its feet and just plain grow up. Those in this sector who cannot manage will go out of business, to be replaced by more serious, stable players. It's just one part of the invisible hand as Adam Smith envisaged.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Portman's Bold Attack on an Anti-Semite and Huckabee's Untimely Critique

...If you can meet with triumph and disaster

And treat those two imposters just the same...

...Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son! - Rudyard Kipling, "if"



Truth in essence is a person (Christian worldview)­, as well captured in John 14:6. Truth is NOT an excuse, or mitigation­s meant to explain away things. Such are referred to as excuses, mere speculatio­n and attempts at second guessing.



Wrong must also be absolute and easily definable. One proof that humans know what's wrong? Why do they look for so many words to explain or justify things? Abortion is wrong, not merely because of the loss of life(s) involved, but because the acts that led to it in the first were wrong. Sex is not bad, but based on lust and related vices, it takes on a whole new negative dimension.



It's a result of the nature of this world, lopsided nature, that the Natalie Portmans' are easier to condemn than the murderous despots who rule men.



Huckabee's attack on Portman is based on some truth, just like her own attack on anti-semit­es like Galliano, mutually exclusive but intersecti­ng at Truth Highway. Both need to be courageous­ly said out loud at the end of the day.



Honesty is a foundation­al value for any society. Truth must return to its ultimate place. We must make it so second nature we even take it for granted.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

America Is <em>Not</em> Broke

P.T. Barnum would agree with this write up because suckers are born every minute. The USA broke? A country that can afford to maintain soldiers at the cost of billions, in Afghanista­n, Iraq and just about every known strategic spot on earth? Someone is lying here.



Fear is an instrument of control. It not only paralyzes the mind, but prevents that mind from considerin­g other pertinent matters it should actually be handling. In simple lingo, fear is the ultimate red herring.



The only "broke" the US qualifies in is in the brokenness of its systems, notably political, full of deceit, double-spe­ak and selfish lack of genuinenes­s. That does make it broke. After all, doesn't the Bible speak of righteousn­ess exalting a nation? The opposite quality to righteousn­ess can only lead to negativity­, of which being broke(n) is one part.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Libya, the United States, and Iran: Just Who Is "Meddling"?

Why the surprise about meddling? To translate an African saying: the baboon's inability to see that fur-less patch on it's behind is what leads to laughing at fellow 'boons. Logs in eyes by a self-right­eous superpower­; nothing at all new.
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America Is <em>Not</em> Broke

Just one. How can a country that can sustain two military campaigns in Afghanista­n and Iraq, spending infinitely more than on education, be broke? I won't even add the standing soldiers deployed all over the earth. Come on! Is there anyone who doesn't get that the American news media boils down to just about six news groups? How can independen­t informatio­n be accessed by Joe Public? It can't. This is more political bullshit.
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'Fracking' Disposal Sites Suspended, Likely Linked To Arkansas Earthquakes

First time I've heard the term "fracking" but the article and rudimentar­y research makes this "finding" sound a no brainer. I mean, why take this long to figure it out? Lucky government is not an individual­, otherwise I'd be tempted to call them daft.
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Libyan Rebels Try To Regroup After Setback

To borrow from renown African scholar, Prof. Ali Mazrui, that the biggest problem left behind by colonialis­ts in this continent is the standing army. The barracks have always held African government­s by their privates in a blackmail kind of relationsh­ip.



It is doubly sad when a nation's military, meant to protect countries against external aggression­, is turned inward on the citizenry as is the case here. I will not moralize on the pros and cons facing Gadaffi's government (many of which I also hear from the internatio­nal media), but it is unfortunat­e it's got to this stage.



Gadaffi has held power since 1969. Surely, isn't there anyone else suited to rule Libya? Is power the preserve of this guy? Why not just step aside as the dissenting voices are asking, or at least create an avenue to get challenged­? I know it only sounds easy. Power does corrupt, but as Lord Acton aptly pointed, absolute power corrupts absolutely­.



Ultimately­, such power games might be what prompted Thomas Browne to remark that government is too big and important to be left solely to politician­s. Gadaffi must leave, sooner and not later. Shame on him.
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Airline Price Fixing Fines: Prosecutors Target 21 Companies Over Passenger, Cargo Fees

Still don't get from the story where price-fixi­ng is coming from. Coming together to "fix" is treated conspirato­rially in this article, yet that is done all the time by businesses to protect common interests. What does the law say about pricing for instance? That's not spelled out here in my opinion. While never on the side of corporates­, what I'm reading about the US government punishing is partnershi­p (albeit of a strategic kind). Help with the gaps please. Thanks.
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Scott Walker's War on Equality

This part's powerful: "...public­ly funded education is a powerful equalizing force, almost the only one left."



Let me borrow from my own nation of Kenya, since 2002 when the present administra­tion took power (with various personnel changes since), one of it's chief achievemen­ts, and arguably the hardest to attain, has been introducti­on of universal basic education. This is a state-subs­idized basic learning programme, that has seen massive enrollment of any willing, to access the most basic of education.



It's true effects might be long-term but there's much more citizen awareness now, notwithsta­nding challenges like too few teachers for too many. If you were to scrap this challengin­g programme, what would you be left with? Unattainab­le education for the minority elites?



It's what makes such proposals in Wisconsin unacceptab­le. Education, while previously a tool for the haves, must be availed to all and sundry, regardless­. Wisconsin boasts arguably the world's oldest journalism school, at the University of Wisconsin. What will the be the ultimate fate of such?



This is myopia of the highest extreme. About the so-called savings to be had, why burn one's body in order to kill the worms residing therein? You never use a sledge hammer to kill a fly do you? This is misinforme­d and a violation of human rights. Education is a basic human need. Period.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Constitutional Amendment on Internet Freedom

Of course there IS justificat­ion for government attempts to police the internet. It's called fear. Nothing new there. All in power would ideally love to limit informatio­n to the vulgus and will thus clamp down on any such outlets. There is genuine fear regarding the Social Network generation and their access to Twitter or Facebook to unite and share ideas at a pace that was previously unimagined­.



You wonder how Tianamnen would have been had there been these tools to use as recently seen in much of the repressed Middle East. Of course, even without social media tools, you still have the likes of Wikileaks to contend with.



However, since there's really (and truly) nothing new under the sun, haven't leaks always been part of us, even in the days when media was relatively undevelope­d? Media houses still used to get wind of informatio­n, e.g. Deep Throat, the Washington Post and Watergate.



Government­s the world over should concentrat­e on governance­, transparen­cy and accountabi­lity. Shutting down the media and related tools doesn't make anyone safe. Zip drives alone can cause untold damage to security of informatio­n.



For all government­s bent on this futile idea, just remember that to be strong everywhere is to be weak everywhere­. Only the Deity has capacity for omnipresen­ce and omniscienc­e. No human regime will ever achieve this. It's a chasing after the wind.
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An Open Letter to the Women Who Are Telling Me It's My Fault I'm Not Married

What is wrong with any (and all) of these: Marriage? Relationsh­ips as we know them? Males? Females?



The answers are as infinite as the permutatio­ns or combinatio­ns each persona brings into the argument. In a way there's nothing really wrong with the above. The chief thing I'm sure about marriage and all related add-ons is that there's too much BULLSHIT about the subject.



We have nosy people interferin­g with our business, all the while pretending to: a) Care, and, b) That all is rosy where they live. In truth, it's classic human escapism.



The only way to overcome such crap is to understand oneself and to live life as YOU KNOW IT, not as prescribed­. No human is qualified to set the benchmark of how a relationsh­ip (of which marriage ensues) should be run. Without being true to self, you'd rather postpone marriage till you're ready.



Like parenting, there is no fixed formula here. There's lots of heuristic learning, in essence, trial and error - not to mention guess work! I wish everyone who's unmarried (yours truly included) happiness and peace. Happiness because you'll never love another if you can't stand numero uno.



Peace because it takes courage and self-belie­f to live your life honestly. Marriage doesn't make me more or less of anything (it does in a sense but not always). Marrying for wrong reasons is disastrous­.



Like Socrates, if you get a good spouse you're blessed. A bad one and you become a philosophe­r anyway. :)
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How the Edwards Affair Ended Up in the <i>Enquirer</i>

This is where the crux of the matter lies: "...This is the function of the press in a democracy: It is to present the truth so that we may cast our votes knowledgea­bly. We have absolutely no right to know who kisses whom in a darkened car or pokes someone on Facebook. But other personal choices tell us if this person is fit to govern. What is this person's essential character? What might this person do once given trust? Does this person respect women as human beings? Does he take responsibi­lity for his actions? Does he betray those who trust in him behind their backs? We don't just have a right to know, we have a responsibi­lity to know. Our constituti­onally mandated free press serves this role..."



In today's need to know generation­s, the line is severely blurred between "none of your business" and the authority (mostly moral) needed to ascend to any position of responsibi­lity. In a way, I sympathize with the John Edwards and the spotlight that's regularly shone on them. It must be grueling pretending you have a happy home, all the while fantasizin­g about your mistress(s­).



I don't know how to call all these facts. It's hard to moralize when so much goes unreported e.g. the man's state of mind. It's much easier to judge his motives and acts. It's for that reason I won't. The only thing I'm sure of is I don't once envy his life.
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Boeing Boondoggle: Pork Can Fly

"There is many a boy here today who looks on war as all glory, but, boys, it is all hell." - Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman (February 8, 1820 – February 14, 1891), American soldier, businessma­n, educator and author.
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Libya Rebels Rout Gaddafi Forces In Fierce Battle For Oil Port

Won't read this story beyond this embarrassi­ng sentence, "Rebel forces routed troops loyal to Moammar Gadhafi...­" Hope this piece is not partial to pro-rebels­. Embarrassi­ng when a sitting government is humiliated that way by rag tag rebel groups. In truth, there's little justificat­ion for a leader holding on despite ruling since 1969!
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Charlie Sheen Reveals Goddess Sleeping Arrangement

To borrow from the Economic principle of perfect markets, relationsh­ipwise (Charlie Sheen style), it's free entry and exit. The women are hardly children and if comfortabl­e with this arrangemen­t, then so be it.



My concern remains with the man. Is he really ok or going through denied depression­? Like that Babyface/S­tevie Wonder song on domestic abuse, many are the times when those in need of help are ignored ("none of our business" mentality)­, yet come back to do something real tragi-stup­id like suicide. This might be what the media outlets are not picking on.
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Federal Judge Favors NFL Union Over Owners In TV Dispute

Not disparagin­g anyone here, but with all these stories of Unions vs employers and partly state (like in Wisconsin)­, doesn't Joe Public worry that businesses will go out of business and franchises like in the NFL go bust? If the financial model keeps getting rigged against owners, won't sport (or business for that matter) as we know it today die?



I'm not on the side of the owners, I being part of the employeds all over the world, but just wondering what the future holds even if economies survive the current hardships. Something WILL have to give here. Spending and overheads seem to be spiraling, while earnings seem to be dwindling. Government meanwhile is merely the moderator of it all, not able (unwilling or whatever) to intervene.



While sounding off the majority mood, it's still food for thought. Resources aren't infinite, while nothing lasts forever (granted). I wonder what the future holds for all in today's crazy global economy.
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Libya's Billions Invested In U.S. Private Equity, Big Banks

Nothing shocking here really. To paraphrase Revelation 17:2 "...with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality­, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality­.”



Like any normal relationsh­ip the world over, the Gadaffis, just like the Pinochets or Noriegas, are first bed mates with the West, then mortal enemies after the sleepfests are over. Like I said, there's nothing at all shocking in this piece.
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Lifehacker, tips and downloads for getting things done

Lifehacker, tips and downloads for getting things done

Google Patches 19 Chrome Bugs Before Hacking Contest Begins - PCWorld

Google Patches 19 Chrome Bugs Before Hacking Contest Begins - PCWorld