-
Running of the Bulls in Pamplona Is Cruel, Sadistic, Outdated and Should End
Tweet Share on Facebook July 10, 2009 Comment (37)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
Let's hope the Spanish government takes yesterday's tragic death of a runner in Pamplona, and the injuries of many others, as a signal that bull running and, indeed, bull fighting are outdated customs that need to go. From Bloomberg:
The victim, Daniel Jimeno Romero from Alcala de Henares, a town near Madrid, was wounded in the neck and chest, the regional government of Navarra said in a statement on its Web site. Five of the 11 injured were released from the hospital. The others include a 61-year-old American man in intensive care.
-
Michael Jackson Does Not Deserve a Congressional Resolution
Tweet Share on Facebook July 10, 2009 Comment (47)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog.
Bravo to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for nixing a House vote on a resolution honoring the late singer and performer Michael Jackson. It is, I am sure, a move for which she will take flak from the Congressional Black Caucus. Caucus Chair Barbara Lee, a California Democrat, had no comment on Pelosi's decision, which was made to soften divisions in the House, not harden political differences. From the Los Angeles Times:
-
Warren Buffet Wrong on Push for a Second Stimulus Package
Tweet Share on Facebook July 9, 2009 Comment (9)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
I thought Warren Buffett was smarter than this. He told ABC News the United States may need a second federal stimulus package:
-
Obama Makes a Rare Strong Stand on Global Warming, Without Result
Tweet Share on Facebook July 9, 2009 Comment (10)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
President Obama is probably the most cautious president in recent U.S. history, so for him to take a tough stand is rare—he's too afraid of alienating someone. But he apparently did so today in Italy at the climate change summit of the G8 countries and the 9 most quickly emerging economic powers:
-
Legalize Marijuana and Solve California's Budget Crisis
Tweet Share on Facebook July 8, 2009 Comment (71)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog.
Here's a possible solution to California's budget crisis, and for that matter, a possible solution to most state's fiscal crises: legalize and tax marijuana.
These TV ads started airing in California today, featuring a marijuana consumer who—along with millions of others in in the state—wants to pay taxes to help bridge California's massive budget gap. Nadene Herndon, 58, declares that "instead of being treated like criminals for using a substance safer than alcohol, [marijuana consumers] want to pay our fair share."
-
Democrats Smartly Back Off Healthcare Benefits Tax
Tweet Share on Facebook July 8, 2009 Comment (5)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street
Senate Democrats have apparently put their fingers to the wind and wisely decided to step back from proposals to tax middle-class taxpayers' health insurance plans to help pay for healthcare reform. That ill-conceived notion has drawn boos from voters and nonvoting Americans. Senate Democratic leaders are finally reading the poll numbers. Yesterday, according to the Associated Press, they told reporters off the record that the idea is now history.
-
Good News for Home-Schooling: Single-Sex Classrooms May Increase Girls' Learning
Tweet Share on Facebook July 7, 2009 Comment (10)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog.
Home-schooling parents of home-schooled daughters take note:
I'm not a huge fan of home-schooling as I believe the socialization kids receive at school is critical to success later on in the real world. And yes, I know that home-schoolers are heartily exposed to other kids in the classes many attend outside of the home, in sports activities and/or at camp (my sister home-schools her daughter). But I still believe I could not have functioned as well as I do in the real world if I spent the majority of my time in the cloister of my parents'/siblings' company. Computers, too, are an isolating influence more often than not. Social networking notwithstanding, of course.
Nonetheless, there's an interesting development in home-schooling I'd like to share herewith. Four private girls' schools have convened to offer home-school classes tailored to the way girls learn, according to the Washington Post:
-
Opposing Reactions to Michael Jackson's Real Death & Sarah Palin's Political One
Tweet Share on Facebook July 7, 2009 Comment (12)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog.
There will be no more news until tomorrow--until the Michael Jackson Memorial is completed at not one but two stadia in downtown Los Angeles.
But it's worth comparing how Jackson's actual death and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's self-inflicted political death have had almost polar opposite effects on the American public.
-
Republican Attacks on Sotomayor Could Alienate Women As Well as Hispanics
Tweet Share on Facebook July 6, 2009 Comment (11)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog.
Message to GOP: On Sotomayor, give it up. With Judge Sotomayor's Senate confirmation hearings set to begin next week, Republicans are still peering under every pillow in Washington, seeking issues to use against her during those hearings. Most of the media attention on Judge Sotomayor's record has been on her position on civil rights. Wily GOP strategists are realizing her position on that issue is a nonstarter.
Most media reports focus on the possibility of the GOP further alienating Hispanics by going after Judge Sotomayor. Take this from the AP:
-
Americans Are Cluing In to Obama's Healthcare Reform Problems, Polls Show
Tweet Share on Facebook July 6, 2009 Comment (40)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog.
The American public seems to be waking up to the mess that President Obama has created as he tries to revamp the nation's health care system. According to Bloomberg:
