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POPSThe Jew Problem Let's see how many people click on that title! I hope I have your attention now, because this is important! Some politically active Jews, although certainly passionate, often have trouble telling friend from foe. The belief among Jews that the Christian Fundamentalist Evangelical community is a friend is a big mistake. Some worry that Obama is part of the nation of Islam, or Palestinian, or that he won't help Israel. But they think the GOP will. But what is the Christian Right's agenda in helping Israel? Clearly, right-wing evangelical fundamentalists like Hagee have no tenderness or fondness for Jews. They believe Israel is simply a part of God's ultimate plan leading to the apocalypse. Although they support the Jews returning to Israel, they also believe it is Biblical prophecy that there will be continuous warfare, so they don't support peace, but an Israel besieged. Many believe this is the prelude to the final destruction of the Jews by a wrathful God.
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POPSAnd Now, The Honeymoon "Either way, when it comes down to it, equal rights should always trump politics in my book. The "right of two adults who share a loving relationship to join together to establish an officially recognized family of their own—and, if the couple chooses, to raise children within that family—constitutes a vitally important attribute of the fundamental interest in liberty and personal autonomy that the California Constitution secures to all persons for the benefit of both the individual and society."
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POPSFlight Of Fancy I was just thinking about putting my feeder out this weekend so I could watch them. :) Aren't they simply amazing?
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POPSOuyangwulong's Travel Plans Okay, so on my next bit of vacation, Marszal and I are going from Hotan, in Xinjiang, accross the Taklamakan Desert to Kashgar on the Pakistani border. We'll cross the Karakorum Pass, over the Pamir and Karakorum mountain ranges north of Nanga Parabat and K2, then chill out along the North West frontier by Afghanistan. That at least, was the plan, untill I checked the local news, and HOLY COW! I mean, I can deal with terrorism and anti-government riots, but dude, wolves eating children? That's just messed up! By the way, does anyone have any good restaurant recommendations in Northern Pakistan?
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POPSLame Duck, or Just Lame? Okay, so there have been people like me on the left, saying that Bush is ruining the economy, and there have been people on the right saying the economy is great for the last 7 years. Very rarely has history been so swift to vindicate a particular side. What amazes me is that there are still people out there who are using the same rose-tinted glasses, taking the rose colored pills, and then drinking the rose-flavored kool-aide as the economy goes down in flames. And you know what bugs me? Even after all of this, unmitigated disaster, there are still going to be people who argue with me that Bush's economic policies have helped the country. If anyone checked, his vaunted "business experience" consisted mostly of driving profitable companies into Chapter 7. Guess what? He did the exact same thing with our country! Maybe next time we can pick a SUCCESSFUL businessman for president!
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POPSTaiwan's Interesting Democracy A democracy, you say? One where the people are concerned about the appearance of impropriety, you say? Impossible, I say, impossible! But it's true! And it's in Taiwan. They actually raise valid concerns about conflicts of interest in high government officials - before the corruption scandal, not after! How come we never thought of that? This blows a giant hole in the "Asian Values" argument, that dictatorship and corruption are inherent elements of "The Asian Mind" that cannot be changed. (Go suck on that one, Lee Kuan Yew!) But seriously, given the track record of the current Taiwanese first-lady, I would say it's better that Chow keeps her job, because this way she won't have to embezzle from the government when she wants to buy new earrings!
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POPSPolitical Junkies: Why it Feels Good to Be an Extremist In The Political Brain , psychologist Drew Western summarizes fMRI experiments exploring the neuro-psychology of systematic bias and rationalization in the brains of political extremists. Finding ways to dismiss contradictory evidence triggers pleasant emotional releases in partisans' brains, eventually becoming a pleasurable, learned behavior. Once partisans had found a way to reason to false conclusions, not only did neural circuits involved in negative emotions turn off, but circuits involved in positive emotions turned on. The partisan brain didn't seem satisfied in just feeling better. It worked overtime to feel good, activating reward circuits that give partisans a jolt of positive reinforcement for their biased "reasoning." These reward circuits overlap substantially with those activated when drug addicts get their "fix," giving new meaning to the term political junkie.
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POPSLosing Hearts and Minds; Empowering Extremism Before anyone asks why we aren't winning the War on Terror yet, consider these sad headlines. All around the world, reasonable people are being dragged into the slipstream of extremism. The cause is blatant moral bankruptcy. Greed, corruption and exploitation, fortified behind the twin bastions of ignorance and righteousness, are discrediting the institutions that are instrumental in overcoming extremism, intolerance, and global violence. Particularly America remains the store house of the world's hopes and dreams. We are not merely a nation but an ideal, and we must live up to our promise. Obama and McCain are both men of admirable morals and transparent character. Meanwhile, as Hillary obfuscates over her finances, we must realize she lacks the moral authority needed to restore America's international credibility. Being Righteous is not nearly as important as being Right.
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POPSIn Defense of Caucusing
I am disappointed that nobody is making the obvious counterpoint to all of Hillary's sour grapes over the caucuses. As I see it, caucuses represent one of the best functions of democracy. Why? Because it entails community dialog. I think more voting should be done like this. If I vote privately, I don't have to think about what I'm doing, or its repercussions on the community, and I don't need to justify my decision. As a result, voting by ballot often becomes a selfish, isolated and disconnected experience. In a caucus you discuss your position with your friends and neighbors and, drawing on that communal wisdom, reach a consensus. Imagine if all voting were conducted this way? We would be a much more conscientious nation as a whole. However, this is specifically ill-suited to Hillary's "I'm right, to hell with you" vision of leadership. Perhaps she is losing caucuses because it is hard to justify voting for her. Anyway, Democracy always works better with free pizza!
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POPSShamefull Religious Intollerance That people would be so transparently discriminatory is honestly surprising to me, although it shouldn't be. There is no right to force non-Christians to recite Christian prayers in American public schools. There is no right to put God in the plege. Just like I have no right to force Christians to leave offerings before the statues of the Buddha. But don't get me wrong. This isn't about Christianity. Christianity no where condones this abhorrent and intolerant behavior. This is about the power of discrimination, and it is an addictive social phenomenon. These people would do the exact same thing with another religion. Christianity was just the most convenient vehicle for their hatred at the time. Apparently we still need to change a lot about our society before we can live with our neighbors in peace.
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POPSRalph Nader: Clueless Egomanica Ralph Nader represents everything that is indulgent, self-congratulatory, and ultimately ineffective about our nation's activist community. He is busy implicitly comparing himself to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. while he is woefully short on valuable political analysis. Obama hits the nail on the head here: Nader doesn't actually understand politics. Anyone who thought Gore and Bush were the same ought to be feeling pretty sheepish after over 6 years of uninterrupted warfare on multiple fronts, economic crisis, financial collapse, and rapacious Nero-esque indulgence from the Bush administration. Nader couldn't have been more wrong. There is nobody quite like George W. Bush! (Thank goodness!)
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POPSA Misunderstanding of Democracy Mr. Dobson clearly misunderstands democracy, typical of many of his clique of evangelical conservatives. Our country is governed by the consent of the people, which also means by the consensus of those representing the people. It is not mere mob rule, and slim majorities cannot and should not be allowed to determine important policies. Just as the peculiar religious convictions of a vocal few should not over-ride the will of the majority of Americans, no matter how sanctimonious their proponents. Our system of checks and balances, though complicated and at times frustrating, is what keeps our nation from descending into a dictatorship of the proletariat. It is sad that his nuanced and praiseworthy understanding of this principle may cost John McCain votes, but on the other hand, who wants votes from the likes of Dobson to begin with? A Message for Dobson: If you don't like democracy, then leave America! (You aren't helping anyway!)
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POPSSeattle's Byzantine Primary System There are good reasons why our primary is seldom, and probably shouldn't be relevant. First, is because Washington State is largely full of people who are willfully out of touch with national trends. We're independent, and most often not interested in following the rest of the nation. Something that is taken for granted as conventional wisdom in Seattle's overwhelmingly liberal voting public would be highly controversial elsewhere. That's why we elect the nation's most radical congressman by margins of up to 80%. In Republican areas Washingtonians are no different - we all love crazy people who make no attempt to moderate their ideals. (Me included, I must confess.) The second reason we shouldn't matter is that our primary system is so complex, redundant and useless it could only have been developed by Microsoft's web developers. (More on this in comments...)
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POPSThe Miracle of Jihad This is the opposite perspective that any American should consider very carefully, especially if they espouse military strategy. Although we see them as "Evil" and "Terrorists" of course, they don't see themselves that way. Since the Napoleon's expedition in Egypt, the Islamic world has found itself besieged by overwhelming European Empires. Although once the dominant force that defeated Europe, with the decline of the Ottoman and Persian Empires, they found themselves weak and helpless against the Europeans. During the 20th century, when much of the Islamic world was colonized, this anxiety became acute. Now, against an overwhelming enemy of superior strength, they are winning back ground. To us it is a disaster, but to them it is a miracle. It is to some in the Islamic world what the American Revolution was for us - a victory of the people. Ask yourself: If I were not blinded by my social context, would I still believe as I do?
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POPSHumanity, Divinity, and Beauty I wonder if this striking interpretation of aesthetics (one which I find quite appealing) still holds true in the cynicism of post modernism? Although it certainly can be found to echo in Kandinsky's "Concerning the Spiritual in Art" what of the later Deconstructivists, Marxists, and other self-styled "realists" who attacked the very idea of beauty? On the other hand, it may be that in these dark times our cynicism is spent and an idealistic revival of Romanticism might rise in response to the desperation and alienation that has become almost universally felt through the deep ideological conflicts marking the beginning of the 21st Century. Another thought: does not this empowered sense of self-determination ring true with the most admirable aspects of Existentialism? ...oh, and sorry for all the alliteration. Don't know how it snuck in there! :P
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POPSThe Tethlon Idiot of Economics It's amazing how nothing sticks for this guy. Let's try to synchronize all his statements... 1.) Tax Cuts made our economy grow... 2.) We are now on the brink of a recession... 3.) Our economy is strong... 4.) We urgently need to save our economy... 5.) The government needs to spend more money 6.) The government needs to collect less taxes 7.) Tax cuts will help our economy now, just like they helped it over the last 6 years. IS HE TOTALLY INSANE? Please, tell me, someone, try to explain at what point we admit that EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE shows that Bush's tax plans have destroyed the US economy, and we are now being dragged deeper into the abyss with Bush blithely turning his sails into the storm.
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POPSThe Truth Behind Bush's Tax Cut Plan: Korsakoff's Syndrome Bush proposes tax cuts to save us from a recession. Apparently he doesn't remember that he's been cutting taxes for the last 6 years, and that's what brought us to the brink of recession in the first place. If six years of consecutive aggressive tax cuts won't save our economy, then wouldn't it seem obvious that one more year of aggressive tax cuts isn't going to either? In fact, I can make the argument that the tax cuts are actually causing the recession, due to our staggering deficit. Doesn't he have any other ideas? Doesn't he remember saying the same things over and over again as things get worse and worse? Korsakoff's Syndrome is what the guy in Memento had, where he couldn't remember what happened 5 minutes ago. One of the causes of Korsakoff's Syndrome is a depletion of Thiamine (Vitamin B1) caused by substance abuse and alcoholism. Given Bush's history, this clip is only half joking.
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POPSREALITY CHECK! There is a frightening new global trend of denial... Europeans think that they don't need to limit fishing... Car companies don't think they need to improve fuel economy standards... Bush thinks he can increase spending and cut taxes at the same time... Jingoists think we are winning the war in Iraq... Democrats think Hillary Clinton has enough experience to win an election... Polluters think that Global Warming won't really happen... Evangelicals think Jesus is coming back soon... Fundamentalists think they can win the war against modernity... The truth is: we're stuck with this world. The rules DO apply. No free passes. You have to face the music sometime. We must choose realism over comfortable delusion. Unfortunately, for now, wistful thinking will rule the day until we let it all collapse around us. Then we'll stand there scratching our heads saying: How could this happen?
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POPSThe Question of the South Now, I would like to disagree with the author (Matt Bai) on two points... First: He argues that the loss of the South for the Democrats was due to desegregation, which is no doubt party true. But if that's the case, what does he mean when he says Democrats have to run a candidate who "resonates in the south..." As I see it, the Democrats are already suffering from a retreat in their values. Pandering to isolationist extremists still absorbed in racism and a antebellum culture of violence is not the way to win the country, its a way to lose your credibility. On the other hand, I think Mr. Bai stereotypes the South as most Northerners have, by presuming that it is and always has been a land of Bible-belt anti-government racists and redneck gun nuts. The truth is the South is not nearly so monolithic as pundits portray it. Southerners are not as backwards, not as ignorant, and not as conservative as most political analysts think. The Democrats need to Awaken the Radical So
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POPSOn The Difference Between Belief and Politics If someone holds conservative, right wing beliefs, I've got not problem with them. I might even find myself agreeing with them sometimes. On the other hand, right wing politics are what really get under my skin. And when it comes to Bush, it's pretty much 100% pure politics. So what's the difference? Well beliefs are ideas - principles you think are right, and that you are willing to stand up for. Politics is using other people's beliefs to get what you want. Bush doesn't believe in being a "fiscal conservative!" He just talks about that so that right wing voters will support him. He wants to be fiscally conservative on public schools and health care and other areas that don't directly benefit him or his friends, but when it comes to something he wants, belief takes a back seat to unadulterated greed. Why do conservatives feel they have to defend him? Why deny reality to defend something that is against your values? Bush has dragged the entire GOP into deluded solipsism
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POPSCome See The REAL New China! Jia Zhangke looks at what's really there, rather than what he wants to see. That's something more people should do. On the one hand, he doesn't flatter global capitalism, but he's not blind to the essential progress that China has made either. China's underground auteur may well be a better anthropologist than entertainer. Although his movies sometimes dwell on the mundane to the point of being unwatchable, they are invaluable documents on the true nature of China's modernization. So few people understand what the "New China" is, but it's all here for anyone who bothers to look. He is the definitive realist of his generation, and a strikingly insightful observer of the human condition. His quotes throughout the article are all gems, but too numerous to clip.
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POPSInside the Actor's Studio: Chuck Norris Chuck Norris gives his fine opinion on the craft of acting, in the form of his Huckabee endorsement. Apparently he acknowledges that his acting skills are on par with the likes of Mit Romney. Actually I have to say, I agree: Romney and Hillary (the depressingly presumptive nominees) deliver their platforms from B-rated scripts from hackneyed writers with roughly the same native talent for acting as Mr. Norris. To make up for their lack of appeal, they kick around whoever is within easy reach. If the shoe fits!
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POPSTruly Understanding Martin Luther King Jr. I love Sarah Vowell. Not because I'm an NPR nerd. Not because I'm a history nerd. Not even because I'm an assasination nerd. I have been accused of such vile things! But I protest! I love her because I'm an Emma Goldman nerd, in all her obscure anarchistic and humanistic glory. Emma Goldman perfectly balanced being a political figure with still being a living-and-breathing, loving-and-losing human being. Something that many professional activists (as well as historians) lose track of. I think Sarah Vowell introduces just enough levity to bring the force of irrefutable humanity (and its resultant moderation) to a field badly needing in perspective. Although she could take glib pot shots at the Christian right like Marueen Dowd, she has enough class instead to put it all in perspective and remind us that people who are different aren't necessarily deviant. She actually appears to have listened to what Dr. King says.
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POPSIf You Are Afraid, The Terrorist Win Politicians secretly have a romance with terrorism. They feed off the fear to justify (or overshadow) their excesses. Terrorists secretly have a romance with politicians, because they provide the easy targets and fodder for their extremist agitprop. Politics and my love of desert adventure have occasionally collided, like in dealing with Islamic Terrorist in the Gobi Desert. But never before like this! They canceled the Dakar Rally! And NOW I'M ANGRY!
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POPSA Positive Political Process Frank Rich, in an op-ed I don't feel like clipping (too glib), declared the GOP Platform to be Dead on Arrival. I beg to differ. Although McCain had a dark period of pandering, he seems to be back to saying what he thinks, and playing clean. He's the Boy Scout of Electoral Politics, and he's got my respect. (Not something I give out often to candidates.) But the really interesting thing is that Huckabee, who was always a nice guy, seems to have become more insightful and philosophical as the campaign goes on. His observations on political process I thought were exactly what America should be. We'll put him on my "provisional respect" list. Although his last bizarre bit about the Confederate flag will probably cost him the Hootie and the Blowfish vote, I'd bet they were already going to vote for Hillary anyway. Now if only the losers like Thompson and Giuliani will take a hint: sharpen up, start thinking, or drop out.
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POPSThe Middle Swings Left this Year I was discussing this with Kmcolo, and this seems to bear out some of my hunch. It would appear that the Republican Party is polarizing in the primaries, rather than gaining strength as it did in the past. It would appear that only the core party faithfull are turning out for the primaries. This is especially striking in Michigan, because there was no functional Democratic primary. (Their delegates got suspended) This should bring up independent numbers voting GOP since it was pretty much that or stay home. Given this, it looks like the independents in Michigan are pretty squarely waiting to vote for the ultimate Democrat nominee. Romney, Huckabee and Ron Paul are all riding high on a wave of pessimism that drives away normal voters and leaves only extremists.
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POPSSinister Socialist Conspiracy Afoot in Spain You got to love Spain's conservatives. It's like they are being run by Colonel Ripper, protecting their "Purity of Essence"! "No Gays! No Girls! And no filthy Catalans! Viva Espagne! Down with Barcelona!" ;) But in the end, isn't this also what Americans fear? That some liberal will screw up our country by protecting "gays" and "working women" and "illegal immigrants"? Are we really any different? On the whole, and interesting article, though. This is a process that China has yet to go through, although I think the situations are extremely analogous.
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POPSDebating the Color of Europe: Point-Counterpoint between Marine Le Pen and Tariq Ramadan What people fail to appreciate is that Europe was never as pure as we imagine it. Western culture developed in tandem with Eastern culture, not separately. Most European ethnicities originally came from Central Asian populations. The process of redefinition and cultural influence has been going on in Europe for centuries. Short-sighted people like Le Pen are not just foolish for wanting to stop it, but for even thinking they can. A culture cannot isolate itself from the world. This was true during the Medieval Crusades, and it is even more true today. Immigration is the fundamental nature of man. Isolation is the basic reaction of the ignorant and fearful. Of course, Europe has never been bashful about imposing its culture over local cultures around the world. Could the immigration debate be a vestigial reflex of imperialism?
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POPSThe Taste of Money: High Wine Prices Tickle Your Brain So, it would seem that we actually are that gullible. If you raise the price on something, we will enjoy it more. But, what they failed to answer is the question of why? Here's my best shot: Raising the price challenges us to think and appreciate. I believe the act of thinking enhances the experience. If you tell me a wine costs two bucks, I'll knock it back and never think twice. But if you ask me to fork over a hundred bucks, or even better, if you remind me you paid a fortune for it, you force me to focus. I can't simply let it slide by, because then all that money would have been wasted. Thus we notice more about wines when they cost us dearly, and enjoy the experience as fully as we should. The 5 best bottles of wine I've ever had (and I've had a lot, I come from wine country) were $0, $10, $45, $19 and $15, respectively when I bought them. But the stories behind each one and the circumstances are what I really savor.
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POPSBush: Out of Touch, and Out of his Mind At a certain point I fail to understand what our President thinks he is doing. It would seem he is newly possessed with an urgent desire to invade Iran, regardless of the circumstances. Apparently, he doesn't understand the game he's playing. He's confirming America's stereotype as a global villain in they eyes of the rest of the world. Bush led the push to attack and isolate Iran because of their nuclear weapons program. When that allegation was firmly contradicted by our own intelligence community, he didn't miss a beat. He's going on as if the NIE never even came out, still talking about nuclear weapons as if nothing had changed. Now Iran agrees to answer questions and open up to the IAEA, as well as fulfilling other obligations to the UN. As they do, Bush keeps cheer leading for war. Doesn't he realize that he's impeaching what little credibility America has internationally?
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POPSPutting Huckabee in Perspective: Understanding Caucuses Although various people have come up with various interpretations of the Huckabee (almost all of which reinforce the positions they held to begin with...) they have all overlooked one critical element: This was a caucus primary! What does this mean? It means that, a certain number of people who woke up that morning had decided already that they were going to support a republican but they didn't know who. They then went to the caucuses, and talked with their neighbors for an afternoon, and slowly, the candidates with less support were eliminated in favor of those with more. Like an endless series of run-off elections, with your friends and neighbors acting as cheer leaders, it finally comes down to one. This means that Huckabee had the most zealous and energetic adherents among the voters so conservative that they defacto caucus for the GOP. While most moderates are swinging behind Obama, it seems like Huckabee is simply cashing in on the influence of the fringe in primaries.
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POPSIn Memory of Sir Edmund Hillary In the age of flight, why climb? For only a few hundred dollars anybody can rise to the height of 30,000 feet, and as we do, most of us fall asleep or lazily flip through a magazine. The appeal of Hillary, and the ascent of Everest is not the feat, but the humanity. To climb to the top of Mount Everest is not merely to conquer nature, it is a bold step into the world. It is direct involvement in the endeavor of Life. It is an affirmation of our place as a wild, exuberant part of this world, rather than simply a drowsy passenger behind dual panes of Plexiglas. Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzin Norgay did not conquer Everest. No mountain is ever conquered. They joined Everest, shaking off the insulated civilization and linking themselves directly with the dirt and rock of the ground on which they stood. Most mountaineers die on the mountain, vainly trying to triumph over nature. Hillary, however, lived. He lived as a man in the world, and of the world, at peace with nature.
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POPSA Plan to End the Crisis With Iran Just so nobody can say I only criticize Bush, I offer here a plan to immediately end the crisis with Iran. Ahmadinejad is an aggressive, anti-Western president who is isolating Iran, much to the chagrin of the Iranians. The economy is weak, and it is getting harder for people to make a living, which is causing unrest. On the other hand, his predecessor Khatami was a progressive, who wanted relations with the west, and had a good record on the economy. I suggest that we use these factors in to our advantage in the following plan: (see comments bellow.)
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POPSWrong on Taxes: Bush sells America to China Romney says McCain was wrong to vote against Bush's tax cuts. If he really believes this, then he is not a true conservative. What is the truth about Bush's tax cuts? Bush slashed the revenue of the US government to help rich people get richer. This means the government has less money to spend. But he is the greatest spendthrift in the history of American Presidents. So who is paying for all of Bush's spending? It isn't Romney, who is getting millions back in tax cuts. It's the Chinese, who are buying US Treasury bonds to gain power over the US. Look at the numbers. the Chinese have almost literally financed the Iraq war. A true conservative spends money when he has it, and when he doesn't, he works for more. Bush's extravagance has sold our economic independence to a rival nation. Does this sound like treason to you? Because it sure does to me!
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POPSThe Soul of the Commuter Roughly one out of every six American workers commutes more than forty-five minutes, each way. People travel between counties the way they used to travel between neighborhoods. Until recently, I was one of these Americans. What started out as an invigorating drive through new urban environs eventually became repetitious and wearisome. Even though I was careful to fill my time with music, podcasts, audio-books, or phone calls, I don't miss this daily aggravation at all now, instead embracing the freedom public transportation confers. (Trains can be your friends...who knew? :).) The mental relaxation that comes with not being on constant heightened alert for all the unpredictable hazards is priceless and has returned a small measure of serenity to my life I thought I had lost. What do clippers think? Are extended commutes worth their return? Given its finite supply, shouldn't most of us be valuing our precious time higher?
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POPSImmanuel Kant & Brittney Spears The central question this poses is: did we do this to Brittney Spears? Isn't this somehow our fault? Spears poses an interesting challenge to this conventional interpretation of Kant. Consider this: it seem very clear now that Spears was merely a meat puppet, who's trials (both literal and figurative) and travails (mostly figurative) have destroyed her as a person. And to what ends? Nothing more than our temporary amusement, no doubt. The creation and destruction of Brittney Spears won't even provide long-term amusement, except maybe for later day insomniacs who watch VH1 20 years from now. But, did she not concent? Was not this devils bargain something she not only entered into fully appraised of the situation, but even sought it out? Didn't she get the life she wanted? (Albeit in a twisted and cruel way.) It seems Kant places too much confidence in people's rationality. We explained the ends to her and accepted it, but deep down didn't we all know something that s
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