The Hollywood Liberal

Where’s the Recovery? Hopes for Economic Rebound Fade
Jeff Cox, CNBC

Murdering the Messenger in Russia
Steve Weinberg, In These Times
On Oct. 8, 2006, thousands demonstrated outside the Russian Embassy in Helsinki to protest Anna Politkovskaya's assassination.(Photo by: Marja Airio/AFP/Getty Images)The title of Anna Politkovskaya's new posthumous anthology, Is Journalism Worth Dying For?: Final Dispatches (Melville House, April), poses a provocative question. The answer is probably no. But freedom of speech and freedom from corruption might be worth dying for, and sometimes only journalists can make those freedoms happen.Politkovskaya, who worked as an investigative reporter for the independent Moscow newspaper…

Palin Revs Up at Rolling Thunder
Rachel Weiner, Washington Post

Message to College Grads: It’s Not About You
David Brooks, NY Times
Over the past few weeks, America’s colleges have sent another class of graduates off into the world. These graduates possess something of inestimable value. Nearly every sensible middle-aged person would give away all their money to be able to go back to age 22 and begin adulthood anew. David Brooks The intellectual, cultural and scientific findings that land on the columnist's desk nearly every day.David Brooks and Gail Collins talk between columns. But, especially this year, one is conscious of the many ways in which this year’s…

Putting Greece Up For Auction

Italy Jails Seismologists for Quake Deaths
Six seismologists and a government official are being tried for manslaughter in the deaths of more than 300 people in a 2009 earthquake in L’Aquila, Italy. The city’s public prosecutor says the scientists downplayed the possibility of a quake to an extent that townsfolk did not take precautions that could have saved their lives.

Late, Late Night FDL: Summer of ’69
Bryan Adams – Summer of ’69

Bryan Adams – Summer of ’69

A little something to kick off the Summer…!

What’s on your mind tonite…?

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The Sky Really Is Falling
The rapid and terrifying acceleration of global warming, which is disfiguring the ecosystem at a swifter pace than even the gloomiest scientific studies predicted a few years ago, has been confronted by the power elite with self-delusion.

By Chris Hedges

The rapid and terrifying acceleration of global warming, which is disfiguring the ecosystem at a swifter pace than even the gloomiest scientific studies predicted a few years ago, has been confronted by the power elite with self-delusion.

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Kate Kelly: Memorial Day: Remembering All Who Have Served, Including Dogs in the Military
Memorial Day, initially known as Decoration Day, began shortly after the Civil War in the way that one might expect a day of remembrance to…

Jeff Danziger: Palin Rolling Thunder

Obama To Name New Joint Chiefs Head
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is expected to introduce Army Gen. Martin Dempsey as his choice to lead the Joint Chiefs of Staff in a…

WATCH: Bikers Believe Sarah Palin Is A Real American
WASHINGTON — Sarah Palin came prepared. Whether formally invited or even welcomed, the former governor arrived at the Rolling Thunder biker rally Saturday donning black…

The History Behind Memorial Day
History.com – Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day because it was a time set aside to honor the nation’s Civil War dead by…

Supreme Court Says Arizona Can Punish Businesses That Hire Illegal Immigrants
The Supreme Court today upheld an Arizona law, passed in 2007, that allows the state to punish business that hire workers who are in the country illegally.

Watchdogs Say Stephen Colbert’s PAC Request Is No Joke, Urge FEC Not To Expand Media Exception
Two good government groups are urging the Federal Elections Commission to reject Stephen Colbert’s request for a “media exception” which would allow his employer Viacom to cover the costs of his “Super PAC” without having to disclose those expenses as in-kind contributions — including the group headed by the lawyer representing Colbert.

Disney Withdraws ‘SEAL Team 6’ Trademark Application
Out of “deference” to the Navy, Walt Disney Co. has withdrawn an application to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for use of the term “SEAL Team 6,” a company spokesman told The Wall Street Journal.

Down By the Old Rumor Mill Stream, Part Whatever
Devon Keester’s Hollywood Lowdown “The dark, sweaty juncture where politics and show biz meet!” [Note: Since Keester’s sources are shady and unreliable and usually found near a vinyl-covered barstool, his ramblings should be taken with a several grains of salt from the rim of his next margarita.] – Biden Over and Out: Obama will not be running with […]

There’s a Right Way and a Wrong Way to Deal With a Jobs Crisis — Why Is Germany Doing It So Well?
Germany’s success indicates that one way to fight unemployment would be some modest efforts to give U.S. employers incentives to cut hours, not workers.

America’s Education Problems Way Deeper Than ‘Good’ or ‘Bad’ Teachers
Educational disparities may be getting worse, not better, yet the heated debate over school reform has paid little attention to the hard realities families and teachers face.

Why Our 21st Century Slave Society Can’t Last
We’re the slave masters of energy-driven gadgets that replace human labor. But don’t count on it sticking around.

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Netanyahu’s House: Knowing Your Audience
Anyone with a shred of knowledge about the Middle East conflict knows that yesterday’s performance alienated its most critical audience. I am not speaking about Netanyahu’s performance. He played the Israeli center, American Jews, and American media like Isaac Stern…

Obama expected to name Army general to head Joint Chiefs of Staff

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is expected to introduce Army Gen. Martin Dempsey as his choice to lead the Joint Chiefs of Staff in a Rose Garden announcement Monday.

Dempsey is an accomplished veteran of the Iraq war. He would succeed Navy Adm. Mike Mullen as the president’s top military adviser when Mullen’s term ends Sept. 30. Dempsey would need Senate confirmation.

Two people familiar with the selection process told The Associated Press of Obama’s choice last week. They spoke on condition of anonymity because it had not been announced by the White House.

Read full article >>

Rep. Weiner says lewd Twitter photo was sent by hacker; recipient tells of ‘outlandish’ backlash

This post has been updated.

Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) has become the latest member of Congress to run into Twitter trouble after a lewd photo was sent from his account on the microblogging site Friday night.

The photo, which was taken from the waist down and shows a man in bulging gray underwear, was first reported early Saturday by BigGovernment.com, the Web site of conservative commentator Andrew Breitbart.

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Week after deadly tornado nearly levels Joplin, Obama consoles Mo. city and pledges help

JOPLIN, Mo. — Exactly a week after Joplin was nearly leveled by the deadliest tornado to strike the U.S in decades, President Barack Obama visited the Missouri city to offer hope to survivors and promises of help.

Obama came face to face Sunday with the legions of homeless, consoling the community as it remembered the more than 130 people killed in the storm. The memorial service erupted in cheers when Obama said, “I promise you your country will be there with you every single step of the way,” a pledge he extended to all parts of the nation raked by violent storms this season.

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