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Osama bin Laden Is Sick ... of the U.S. Dollar
Tweet Share on Facebook January 29, 2010 Comment (11)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
The U.S. Federal Reserve must be quaking in fear as a result of the latest threat from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. In the second tape of the terrorist leader-in-hiding to air on the Arab satellite channel Al Jazeera this week, bin Laden is alleged to have said:
"It is necessary for us to avoid doing business in the dollar, and to finish with it in the fastest possible time."
I say he was alleged to have made the statement because the tape's authenticity cannot be confirmed.
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The State of the Union and Obama’s Gargantuan Makeover Task
Tweet Share on Facebook January 27, 2010 Comment (12)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
I agree with my colleague Peter Roff's description of President Obama's gargantuan makeover task as he prepares to deliver his State of the Union speech tonight:
The image of Obama as a reborn budget cutter as the concluding act of an almost year-long spending binge that would have made Bacchus blush is simply not credible, as Congressional Republicans were quick to point out.
To that I would add, however, that former President Bush's simultaneous war spending binge coupled with his tax cuts are what turned the federal budget from a revenue producer to a voracious money-eater. I do want to add as well, in Obama's defense, this is not the first time he's called for spending cuts. During the campaign and early in his first year, the president made various claims of cost-cutting, although it's arguable whether any of his attempts made a difference.
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Scott Brown Won With Big Money, Naked Double Standard
Tweet Share on Facebook January 25, 2010 Comment (26)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
Let me join in the Thomas Jefferson Street fray (a bit belatedly, I must add) over last week's GOP senatorial pickup in Massachusetts by relative political unknown Scott Brown. Not here, but elsewhere on the Web, I blamed the Democratic loss largely on frustration with universal healthcare in the state (it's not working) and Massachusetts's increasing number and percentage of independent voters.
I would also like to laud editor Robert Schlesinger's post on money inequality in the Massachusetts Senate race, especially late in the game.
I received a phone call from a political insider over the weekend who confirmed that and more to me. Not only did GOP groups come in big with late money for Brown, but I'm also told Democratic coffers dried up for Coakley early in the race because she started out 30 points ahead. Her supporters figured she just didn't need their largesse in this race and the national party funds dried up as well.
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Specter’s Sexism Vs. Bachmann Was Feckless, Not Stunning
Tweet Share on Facebook January 22, 2010 Comment (16)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
It's great to see the Republican National Committee sticking up for women. According to Politico, Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter was on a talk show with the outspoken Minnesota Rep. Michelle Bachmann this week, and lobbed a gender-based snub at her:
The two were on a Philadelphia radio show Wednesday when the Pennsylvania Democrat grew frustrated with Bachmann. "I'm going to treat you like a lady," Specter said to Bachmann. "Now act like one." Appearing on conservative host Sean Hannity's Fox News show Thursday night, Bachmann said she was "stunned" by Specter's outburst.
Then Jan Larimer, the female cochair of the RNC, swung right back at Specter with this little ditty on the RNC's website:
"Senator Specter's rude and arrogant comments yesterday were not only disrespectful to Congresswoman Bachmann, but demeaning to all women. Senator Specter should immediately apologize to the Congresswoman and to all of his constituents for such disgraceful behavior. Women should never be treated as second class citizens. It's clear Senator Specter has spent too much time in Washington, and this November I am confident Pennsylvanians will choose a new direction."
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Americans Now Doubt Obama Presidency Has Helped Race Relations
Tweet Share on Facebook January 19, 2010 Comment (15)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
When then-Sen. Barack Obama began his historic campaign for president, I remember wondering to myself whether America was ready for a black president. I grew up in Manhattan, which has been diverse and multicultural (purposefully so) since I went to grade school in the '60s. I attended a private school in Harlem that was proudly diverse. I remember reading in horror about Southern racism and failing to understand how it could have survived for so long in my own beloved country.
But since then I have spent time in other parts of the country where racism still runs rampant and where I have had to ask people not to use racist terms in my presence.
Now comes news of a poll showing that Americans believe President Obama's historic, color-barrier-breaking presidency has done less to improve race relations than they had hoped when he took office one year ago. This is especially true among African-Americans.
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Beyond the Haiti Relief Effort, How to Fix the Country
Tweet Share on Facebook January 15, 2010 Comment (7)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
Rescue and cleanup efforts following the horror of Haiti's incalculable earthquake losses will continue for months and reconstruction will continue for years. But as large parts of the nation are rebuilt, foreign policy experts are asking, how does Haiti rebuild in a way that leads to long-term economic gain and political stability?
One Canadian commentator in the Toronto Star suggested:
With its 1,500 kilometre coastline, it could easily be developed into a key transport and tourism hub for the Antilles, one that provides a lot more than just sun and sand for today's jaded travellers. This earthquake could be the wake-up call that the international community needed to step up to the plate and come through not just with 9,000 men and women in blue helmets to keep the peace, but with the billions of dollars needed to build up its infrastructure nationwide, to relaunch its agriculture (sadly crippled after misguided Washington Consensus reforms imposed in the '90s destroyed its rice production), to recover its degraded environment and to provide its population with the skills needed to survive in the 21st century.
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Palin Perfect for Fox News: Glamour With No Need for Smarts
Tweet Share on Facebook January 11, 2010 Comment (60)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
So today Sarah Palin delivers some great news: She's becoming the TV star she's apparently always wanted to be and sparing us (for the moment, at least) the worry that she might run for national office. She's much better suited to TV, where glamour is everything and intellect is of little consequence. Besides, going to Fox means she can proselytize all she wants (as did former anchor Brit Hume most recently) and need not let minor things such as the facts get in the way of a good story or, for that matter, a good sound bite. According to the Los Angeles Times:
Palin will appear as a commentator on programs across the network, joining a lineup of pundits that includes fellow conservatives Karl Rove, Newt Gingrich and Mike Huckabee. She will also help host a recurring series that profiles everyday Americans.
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Harry Reid's Remarks Raise Questions About Democratic Leadership
Tweet Share on Facebook January 11, 2010 Comment (17)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
A couple of comments about the Sunday talk show dust-up over Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's ridiculous remark about the Obama candidacy, as reported here by USA Today:
Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele demanded that Reid step down after reports of his 2008 comments that Obama could win the presidency because he was "light-skinned" and did not employ a "Negro dialect."
Much to his credit, Reid immediately apologized about the remark, which he must have made in a defensive manner about whether an African-American could be elected president. No one can doubt Senator Reid's early commitment to and support of the Obama candidacy.
That said, it shows how out of touch the senator is in his attitudes toward race. Perhaps it is a matter of his age and his generation's more race-conscious approach toward politics and everything else. No matter what a politician's generational affiliation, however, that does not mean he can be forgiven for being so out of touch with the times.
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Obama Taking Blame for Terrorist Attack Was Presidential
Tweet Share on Facebook January 8, 2010 Comment (20)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
As much as I criticize the Obama administration for not being ready for prime time, I must also credit the president with acting extremely "presidentially" earlier this week when he actually took the blame for the Christmas Day airline bombing attempt. The Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz noted:
"Declaring that 'the buck stops with me,' President Obama on Thursday released the results of an internal investigation into the Christmas Day airline bombing attempt and ordered a series of incremental measures meant to close gaps in the U.S. intelligence system that failed to detect it in advance," says the L.A. Times.
Can anyone imagine such an apology from former President Bush? It takes more self-confidence and, indeed, honesty, to admit mistakes as the leader of the free world than it does to use the Bush approach of denying everything. It's a refreshing and much-needed change at the top and for that, I laud President Obama.
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Understanding Why America Loves Animals, But Eats Them
Tweet Share on Facebook January 6, 2010 Comment (17)By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
A new book asks the question in the title, Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows, and then attempts to supply answers from a psychological perspective. Author and psychologist Melanie Joy has some pretty surprising answers to that question, one that I must admit plagues me every day. I was in a natural food grocery store just the other night, watching another female shopper garbed in a mink coat. I was tempted to go up to her and ask her if she realized she was covered in dead animals? Reason got the best of me, but Dr. Joy's book has some intelligent explanations of how we can love our dogs and eat our cows.
Dr. Joy was interviewed by To the Contrary Associate Producer Danielle Brinkley and the interview will air on my PBS program, To the Contrary with Bonnie Erbé:
MELANIE JOY, PhD:
The easiest way for me to answer that question is with an illustration. So imagine that you are at a fancy dinner party. You're sitting at a beautiful table, you're enjoying the conversation, you're drinking the fine wine, you're eating a delicious beef stew and in fact this stew is so delicious that you ask your host for the recipe, and flattered she replies, "The secret ingredient is the meat. You use three pounds of well-marinated golden retriever." Now stop for a minute and think about your thoughts and feelings upon hearing that. Chances are the meat on your plate no longer looks appetizing, but looks like a dead animal. Your reaction is an example of what I call carnism.
