Politics

Those mostly boys must have been terrified to be facing the direct fire and defenses the Germans had on the coast of France. They should have been. Another war to end all wars which did not work. Still we should remember their sacrifice. I see little to no mention of it in today's "news". Pity. Best regards, RA1

Black spider memos: Prince Charles's five most unusual concerns http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jun/04/black-spider-memos-prince-charless-top-five-most-unusual-concerns

Interesting because of the linkage of climate change to specific weather patterns. Rapid Arctic ice loss linked to extreme weather changes in Europe and USArctic warming appears to be the prime reason behind fluctuations in the polar jet stream that is causing unusual weather, study says http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jun/01/rapid-arctic-ice-loss-linked-to-extreme-weather-changes-in-europe-and-us

The GOP Is Dying Off. Literally. http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/05/the-gop-is-dying-off-literally-118035.html?hp=t3_r#.VVkkqz29LCQ

Pretty much a foregone conclusion after his attorney admitted he participated. Here is my question: The defense attorney's tack is to claim that Tsaraev was unduly under the influence of his radicalized brother. How is that different from, I was just following orders? Best regards, RA1

OP-ED COLUMNIST How Hillary Is Winning MAY 9, 2015 Frank Bruni The New York Times AS fleetly as Hillary Clinton vacuums up the money, she piles up the paradoxes. She showed fatal weaknesses the last time she chased the presidency and her inevitability evaporated like a California puddle, but shes somehow inevitable all over again. Invincible, even. Journalists have to remind themselves daily not to type or say presumptive Democratic nominee before her name. Shes fashioning herself as someone uniquely attuned to everyday Americans while her husband fashions $500,000 speeches as amulets against the bill collector. Someones got to pay for the burrito bowls. And her R…

Prayer, food, sex and water parks in Iran's holy city of Mashhad Since the escalation of Iraqi violence in 2011 and the appearance of Isis, the number of Iraqi Shia pilgrims to Iran has risen fast http://www.theguardian.com/world/iran-blog/2015/may/07/prayer-food-sex-and-water-parks-in-irans-holy-city-of-mashhad

Benjamin Netanyahu is a problematic, egotistical, power-hungry, self-serving problem that Israel needs to get rid of as soon as possible if it has any hope of peace and statehood advancement for the Palestinian people. If I were a Jew - I would be doing everything possible to achieve this. But I digress..... Netanyahu Urges ‘Mass Immigration’ of Jews From Europe By ISABEL KERSHNER FEB. 15, 2015 JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said on Sunday that his government was encouraging a “mass immigration” of Jews from Europe, reopening a contentious debate about Israel’s role at a challenging time for European Jews and a month before Israel’s nationa…

Hope! NSA phone surveillance revealed by Edward Snowden ruled illegalhttp://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/may/07/nsa-phone-records-program-illegal-court

This chart is not from the article below, but is fascinating & relevant: Global carbon dioxide levels break 400ppm milestone Record carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations in the atmosphere were recorded worldwide in March, in what scientists said marked a significant milestone for global warming. Figures released by the US science agency Noaa on Wednesday show that for the first time since records began, the parts per million (ppm) of CO2 in the atmosphere were over 400 globally for a month. The measure is the key indicator of the amount of planet-warming gases man is putting into the atmosphere at record rates, and the current concentrations are unprecedented in m…

Who’s Afraid of Pope Francis? Garry Wills An authentic pope should be a scary one. Jesus scared the dickens out of people (it cost him his life). Is Pope Francis truly scary? One might think so from the reaction of some guardians of orthodoxy, men like New York Times columnist Ross Douthat, who thinks he must threaten the pope with schism to protect the sanctity of marriage, since “this pope may be preserved from error only if the church itself resists him.” But ecclesiastical nitpickers have no armies of similar thinkers to summon. This is not even medium scary. Now, however, something is looming that has billionaires shaking in their boots, and when Catholic billio…

Been nice knowing you. One in six of world's species faces extinction due to climate change – studyhttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/apr/30/one-in-six-of-worlds-species-faces-extinction-due-to-climate-change-study

http://www.theguardian.com/society/live/2015/apr/28/same-sex-marriage-us-supreme-court-obergefell-hodges-live

Same-sex marriage: US supreme court has few choices but to ''end the debate'' http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/apr/27/same-sex-marriage-us-supreme-court-arguments-constitutional-right

Transcript: President Obama's 2015 White House Correspondents' Dinner Speech“I look so old, John Boehner has already invited Netanyahu to speak at my funeral.”

http://billmoyers.com/2015/03/25/new-american-order/

Inside Obama's drone panopticon: a secret machine with no accountability An apparatus of official secrecy, built over decades and zealously enforced by Obama, prevents meaningful open scrutiny of 'signature strikes' http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/apr/25/us-drone-program-secrecy-scrutiny-signature-strikes

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/apr/24/comcast-time-warner-internet-activists-challenge-big-cable

The Book That Changed Campaigns Forever How Teddy White revolutionized political journalism -- and came to regret it. Read more: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/04/teddy-white-political-journalism-117090_Page2.html#ixzz3Y8Mnr0In

I get it, it's going to be a long road, but seriously..too quite, too subtle, too bland, too little substance, and uninspiring. http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/not-shock-awe-hillary-clinton-plans-slow-smaller-rollout-n339326

In Brief to Justices, Former Military Officials Support Same-Sex Marriage The New York Times WASHINGTON — The most influential friend-of-the-court brief in living memory was filed by a group of retired military officers in a 2003 affirmative action case. When the case was argued, the justices echoed the brief’s argument that military preparedness would be threatened if service academies could not ensure a diverse officer corps. Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s majority opinion, allowing race-conscious admissions at public universities, quoted at length from the brief. The law firm that filed the brief, now called Sidley Austin, has filed a new one by former military offi…

Presidential candidate and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said in an interview with Univision’s Jorge Ramos on Wednesday that he would attend a gay wedding of someone he was close to—while qualifying that he wouldn’t condone the union itself. Washington Post Other Gay events Rubio might consider attending.

Nice interview. http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/apr/18/jon-stewart-why-i-quit-the-daily-show

Aha. How Corporate America Invented Christian America http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/04/corporate-america-invented-religious-right-conservative-roosevelt-princeton-117030.html?ml=po#.VTJvGj29LCQ