PIED TYPE
World
Oslo
In Sympathy from an Oklahoma City native
Congressional cost-cutting should start with TSA
Whatever respect I might have had for the TSA, whatever leeway I might have accorded them in the interest of security, is gone. Long gone. While Washington wrangles over the debt ceiling, the budget, cost cutting, etc., they should consider abolishing the TSA. Established by a terrified (literally) government in the wake of the 9/11 … Continue reading
Bin Laden is dead and lots of people are happy
The news came this evening: Osama bin Laden was killed today in Pakistan in a U.S. special ops raid. And while the media are going bonkers and crowds are cheering outside the White House, I’m sitting here not feeling much of anything one way or the other. It’s been almost 10 years since 9/11. I’d … Continue reading
War is not healthy for children
I’m usually insulated from the news on weekends because there’s always something else going on. So I was caught completely off guard when I clicked on the MSNBC website a short time ago and saw this headline: Gadhafi’s youngest son, grandkids killed in NATO attack Gadhafi’s name scarcely registered as I saw “son, grandkids killed.” … Continue reading
Kate becomes Princess Catherine
No, I didn’t watch The Royal Wedding this morning. I was still in a snit over not having been invited, and a 2 a.m. telecast did nothing to make amends. In fact, knowing the whole thing would be endlessly replayed, I deliberately went to bed at 1 a.m. It’s all been rather amusing, the hoopla … Continue reading
Predictable consequences
Reportedly as many as 20 U.N. workers were killed today in Afghanistan during a protest turned violent, and at least two of the dead were beheaded. Demonstrators were protesting the March 20 burning of a Koran by controversial Gainesville, Fla., preacher Terry Jones. Jones had threatened to burn Korans last September 11 to mark the … Continue reading
Nothing he said
Last night President Obama tried mightily, in the loftiest of terms, to defend U.S. involvement in Libya. Yet the soaring ideals he espoused seemed no more applicable to Libya than to any other nation facing a rebellion. His reasoning seemed to justify intervention whenever someone violates not our security, not our economic interests, but our … Continue reading
Nothing he can say
President Obama will address the nation tomorrow night to explain U.S. involvement in Libya. Or at least, attempt to explain. How many times has he already tried to explain — first why he was keeping us out of Libya, then why we were going in. It made sense for us to stay out and let … Continue reading
About that California radiation thing
Count on the media to keep stirring the pot. They report on radiation from Japan; people on the West Coast get concerned. They report that people on the West Coast are concerned; everyone gets more concerned. The more the media talk about it and try to explain it, the more people get worked up about … Continue reading
Why AP spells it ‘Gadhafi’
More than forty years after Libya’s leader seized power, there is still no consensus on the spelling of his name. CNN and MSNBC prefer “Gadhafi”; the New York Times and Fox News use “Qaddafi”; the Washington Post prefers “Gaddafi” and the L.A. Times, “Kadafi.” The inconsistency has been especially obvious recently as headlines focus on … Continue reading
Thinking of Japan
The Denver Post has published a large gallery of photos from the earthquake disaster in Japan. So has the Boston Globe. Leave the banner headlines, talking heads, and speculation behind; contemplate for yourself the enormity of the tragedy … … and give your loved ones an extra hug tonight.
Lieberman’s moratorium should be on earthquakes, not power plants
Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) wants a moratorium on the construction of nuclear power plants in the U.S. It was only a matter of time until someone in this country freaked out over events in Japan, and the Senator stepped up. On “Face the Nation” this morning, he opined: “… I don’t want to stop the … Continue reading
Those amazing Japanese ‘nuke factories’
It’s difficult to imagine anyone hasn’t heard about the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Personally I’ve had the television on constantly since Thursday night, when the first live feeds began airing. It was both horrifying and fascinating to witness the real-time unfolding of a monumental natural disaster from half a world away. I’ve watched … Continue reading
Leave Libya to the U.N.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates has explained clearly that establishing a no-fly zone over Libya means bombing Libyan air defenses. Enforcing a no-fly zone could also mean bombing airfields and/or shooting down Libyan aircraft. That’s war, folks. Bombing another country is tantamount to declaring war. The US doesn’t need and cannot afford another war. Remember Afghanistan? … Continue reading
Worrywarts, don’t read this
Depressed about the economy? Concerned about education in the US? Then you don’t want to check out this chart from the New York Times. It’s a comparison of some key statistics (unemployment rate, prison population, level of democracy, life expectancy, etc.) from the International Monetary Fund’s “advanced economy” countries. Australia, anyone?
Awed by the Egyptian people
International policy concerns aside, who isn’t thrilled with what the Egyptian people have accomplished? Who could have imagined their massive demonstrations against Pres. Mubarak would remain largely peaceful, much less succeed? But they did. And the army, instead of suppressing them, supported them. To cap it all off, the people stayed in Tahrir Square to … Continue reading
Egypt through the media’s eyes
Cable news has been fixated on events in Egypt for more than a week now. The citizens are demonstrating; they want their president of thirty years, Hosni Mubarak, to leave the country — now. Not after the September elections, as he has promised, but now. We’ve heard detailed analyses of why the US government has … Continue reading
World TVs tuned to Chilean rescue
The world is watching and rejoicing this evening as 33 Chilean miners are being pulled one by one from their underground prison of 69 days. The entire story has been so uplifting, so full of hope (after early despair), so absolutely fascinating with its detailed engineering plans, medical contingencies, etc. It’s a shining story of … Continue reading
Nine years in Afghanistan is too long
Today is the 9th anniversary of the beginning of the U.S. war in Afghanistan. Nine years of spending U.S. blood and treasure in an unwinnable war. 1,200 American lives have been lost. We should pause today to remember those men and women for their service. They didn’t choose this war; our leaders did. And those … Continue reading
Attacking America
In today’s Washington Post, Ted Koppell writes convincingly that it’s time we stop playing into bin Laden’s hands. We have, in so many ways, exceeded what would have been an appropriate response to the 9/11 terror attacks. And nine years later, we continue to do so. A group of terrorists based in Afghanistan managed to … Continue reading
Subscribe Via Twitter
Click to get new post alerts via Twitter:
Pied Type
on Facebook
