SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: Burma’s military junta charged pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi today with breaching the terms of her house arrest over an incident in which an American swam across a lake and entered her home. The 63-year-old opposition leader faces trial on Monday in what critics said was an excuse for Burma’s generals to extend the latest period of her detention, which was due to expire in less than two weeks. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate and her two maids appeared in court at the notorious Insein Prison near Rangoon, hours after police whisked her away from the […]
THE DEGRADATION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED: Obama Reverses Decision On Abu Ghraib Pix Release
WASHINGTON POST: President Obama will oppose the release of several dozen photos depicting abuse of detainees held in U.S. military custody abroad, reversing his previous position on the grounds that the pictures could inflame anti-American sentiment and endanger U.S. troops. In announcing the shift today, the White House said in a statement that Obama “strongly believes that the release of these photos, particularly at this time, would only serve the purpose of inflaming the theaters of war, jeopardizing US forces, and making our job more difficult in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.” Justice Department officials told a federal judge late […]
Tax & Spend Liberalism Ain’t What It Used To Be
WALL STREET JOURNAL: The Obama administration provided more details on the scope of its tax proposals, showing the impact of rate increases on higher earners would hit couples with about $235,000 of “taxable income,” or income after deductions and exemptions. The administration also revealed new details of its initiatives to shut down offshore tax shelters used by some investors and businesses, and to raise taxes on the overseas earnings of many U.S. multinationals. MORE
WEEK IN REVIEW: The Good News Flower Hour
The Good News Flower Hour #20 This week: The last pig in Afghanistan, shit blowing up in Pakistan, anal torture in the UAE, face transplants in the USA, and Joe the Plumber is an assclown. You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. You’ll come as you are. Promise.
NUTTER VS. BRT: Showdown At The Party Hack Corral
INQUIRER: The seven members of Philadelphia’s Board of Revision of Taxes yesterday flatly refused Mayor Nutter’s request that they resign, saying they saw no reason to do so despite news reports that detailed chronic mismanagement and ethical lapses at the agency. Standing six abreast – Joseph A. Russo was absent – they said they would fight for their jobs, which pay $70,000 to $75,000 a year for part-time work. “I take it as a personal affront, quite frankly,” said member Russell Nigro, a former Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice. Though jointly funded by the city and the School District of Philadelphia, […]
BEING THERE: The Good News Flower Hour
This week: The last pig in Afghanistan, shit blowing up in Pakistan, anal torture in the UAE, face transplants in the USA, and Joe the Plumber is an assclown. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll come and go. Episode 20 coming later today.
HOUSE CLEANING: Mayor To Reform BRT, Slowly
UPDATE: Mayor Nutter called on all seven members of the Board of Revision of Taxes to resign this morning, and sent two bills to City Council that would eliminate the $70,000-plus salaries of future board members and bring a large portion of the agency’s funding under the mayor’s direct control. MORE INQUIRER: Mayor Nutter and City Council President Anna C. Verna declared yesterday that they intend to “reform, restructure or dissolve” the city’s independent Board of Revision of Taxes, which sets property values in Philadelphia. Citing Inquirer reports that have raised questions about the quality of the agency’s work and […]
WORTH REPEATING: The End Of The Internet
HUFFINGTON POST: Last month, the nation’s No.2 cable company Time Warner Cable announced plans to test a new billing system known as “metering” that charges Internet customers depending on how much they download. Customers who exceed their limit–say, by viewing online videos–would face steep penalties on top of their subscription rate. Time Warner Cable’s usage penalty would take the unlimited service we enjoy today (albeit slow compared to other nations), and make Internet more like cell phones, where you get overcharged by companies making record profits. It is the latest version of the Net Neutrality debate: should the companies that […]
NPR 4 THE DEF: Giving Public Radio Edge Since 2006
FRESH AIR In his new film Outrage, Academy Award-nominated director Kirby Dick (This Film Is Not Yet Rated) turns his camera on some of the nation’s most powerful policymakers — politicians, in both legislatures and executive suites, who live what some say are closeted gay lives while chalking up what activists describe as deplorably anti-gay voting records. Dick says he wants to “highlight the hypocrisy” by consulting openly gay politicians and journalists for their insights while talking to insiders about what they know. Dicks previous documentary films include This Film is Not Yet Rated, which looks at the byzantine world […]
WORTH REPEATING: Tale Of Two Mikes
PHILLY MAG: On Inauguration Day, thousands of Philadelphians had lined up around City Hall just to shake his hand. Our expectations were overinflated. But the Nutter campaign had furiously worked the air pump, posing him as a bold reformer in a city that desperately needed change. In one commercial, Nutter literally tore the top off City Hall, throwing out the “bums … who have been ripping us off for years.” Our savior. But less than a year into office, he lost his brand. Pick an issue: Libraries. Union negotiations. Transparency in government. The budget. Casinos. Nutter either flipped positions or […]
Feds Probe John Edwards Hush Money Allegations
WASHINGTON POST: The news that former senator John Edwards is under federal investigation for possibly using campaign dollars as hush money for his mistress is simply the latest blow to a man who rose faster and fell harder than almost anyone in modern political history. The North Carolina Democrat acknowledged in a statement to the Raleigh News & Observer that the U.S. Attorney’s office is looking into whether any of the money donated to his campaign was used to keep film maker Rielle Hunter, with whom Edwards had admitted an affair, quiet about their relationship. “I am confident that no […]
FAUX NEWS: 100 Days Of ‘Fair & Balanced’
From the indispensable folks at MEDIA MATTERS.
WEEK IN REVIEW: The Good News Flower Hour
The Good News Flower Hour #19 The week that was in just five minutes! Prepare to smile. You know you wanna.