Star Power

From a story at Reuters via Yahoo:
NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) – The United States is the most admired country globally thanks largely to the star power of President Barack Obama and his administration, according to a new poll.
It climbed from seventh place last year, ahead of France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Japan which completed the top five nations in the Nation Brand Index (NBI).
"What's really remarkable is that in all my years studying national reputation, I have never seen any country experience such a dramatic change in its standing as we see for the United States for 2009," said Simon Anholt, the founder of NBI, which measured the global image of 50 countries each year.

God's Chosen

Ya really think Jesus would wear a USA t-shirt?  I threw up a little in the back of my throat.

Karen Armstrong

A TED lecture (ted.com)

Cluster Fox

The issues have lost some of their magic, but apparently, Fox believes there's still a sizable audience for their bit about having the Dems in charge of national security puts us all in danger.

The Sound Of A Falling Shoe

A couple of potentially big Uh-Oh's:

First is a report at Reuters.

Put that together with this from Calculated Risk a week ago, and it's pretty close to where we just unplug it and stay drunk for a while.

10 Years Of Hell

One thing that hasn't seen much improvement under Obama is BLS's difficulties figuring out what's actually happening with unemployment.  I'd like to see somebody go back and chart the monthly stats as first reported against the real numbers that come out (quietly) several weeks later.

In case you can't see this well, go to calculatedriskblog.com

...the right of the people peaceably to assemble...

It seems a bit counterintuitive, but I think the development of things like non-lethal weapons - area denial devices, sandbag projectiles, etc - is seriously dangerous to active participation in a democracy. These weapons give the bureaucrats and aparatchiks in government the illusion that they can 'control' people; claiming the humanitarian high ground, without using deadly force. Suddenly, they're several steps closer to being able to do whatever they please "in the name of the king and for the good of the state".

Red State Update

It takes some guts to do this.

Cancer Awareness

Moyers and The Wire

Bill Moyers' Journal has a very interesting interview with the creator of HBO's The Wire.

(Be sure to look for the full version - in 2 parts)

The guy has a lot to say about telling a story that journalists should be telling us and aren't - we're only getting some of these stories thru "reality-based fiction".  That's a pretty weird concept.  I should prob'ly think on that one for a while.

"God Bless Atheism"

New Blues

New to me anyway - guy plays the shit out of it.

Stop --Joe Bonamassa

Dead Peasants

Obama "Loses" Olympics

Obama's trip to Denmark was about something, but it wasn't about making a pitch for a Chicago Olympics.  I think he agreed to take a shot at it since he was there anyway, and the IOC meeting provided cover for something else.
Of course, the righty-wingers are trying to make it out to be something like: 'Obama fails in Copenhagen, and that means the IOC will soon have nuclear weapons.'

A couple of things come to mind.

First, he may or may not be going to the Climate Change conference in December.  If he's thinking he won't, then now's a good time to touch some bases and make his points face-to-face with people who will be there.
But second, the quickie with Stan McChrystal was prob'ly a lot more than it seemed.  I think it was a Come-To-Jesus meeting.  I think the general was told straight out that he can shut up and do his job as the president sees fit, or he can resign his commission and run for the office himself.

DoD Spending

I don't know what it means; if it means anything.