"While Republicans believe in their party and in the cause of building its organization from bottom to top, Democratic sympathizers tend to focus on favorite causes and favorite candidates, notably in presidential years," E.J. Dionne writes in his Washington Post column today. He notes that Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean’s attempt to address this weakness by investing money in long-term party building in all 50 states is being criticized by some who want to target the spending on winning the November elections. "The odd result is that Republicans, who defend individualism in theory, act like communitarians where their party is concerned," Dionne writes. "Democrats claim to be more community-minded but act like radical individualists in their penchant for candidate-centered, one-cause-at-a-time politics."
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
The photo of Cuban leader Fidel Castro holding a newspaper that was in Monday’s Eagle had a Photoshop quality to it — as if it had been pieced together on a computer. The photo came from Cuba’s Communist Youth newspaper’s online edition, and Associated Press included a disclaimer that it couldn’t verify the authenticity or the date the photo was shot.
Maybe the photo was authentic. But we’re pretty sure that these other two are fake.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
The Department of Homeland Security admittedly has an almost impossible task in trying to screen airport passengers, but do the new restrictions really hold water?
For instance, all liquid is now banned except for "limited amounts of baby milk, personal prescription medicine and personal insulin. Four ounces of non-prescription medicine will be allowed as well," according to this article.
Do we really think terrorists aren’t sophisticated enough to change the contents of prescription medicine or insulin?
Moreover, all passengers — every single one — must now remove their shoes. Is it really a good use of limited security resources to require every 85-year-old granny from Peoria to remove her shoes?
And why does the Transportation Security Administration allow iPods, laptops and other electronic devices on board when British authorities don’t? Shouldn’t the rules be the same?
What do bloggers think?
Posted by Randy Scholfield
It was nice that the Patriot Guard and fallen U.S. soldiers were honoredat the Mulvane American Legion Sunday. The motorcycle group evolved from the Mulvane chapter of the American Legion Riders, a group from Post 136 that started in 2002. The Patriot Guard now has about 40,000 members nationwide. Its main mission is to attend the funeral services of American soldiers, as invited guests of the family, to show respect and to shield the mourners from protests from the Fred Phelps clan. Keep up the good work.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
The U.N.-imposed cease-fire between Hezbollah and Israel already has seen some violations. No surprise there. But overall, it’s holding, authorities say. What’s remarkable is how quickly Lebanese citizens began to head for home — or what’s left of it — in defiance of Israeli officials. Now the hope becomes that the fragile peace will last long enough to allow the international peacekeepers to move in and diplomats to work on the next goal — a lasting peace agreement. Unfortunately, sentiment in the region is that Hezbollah and its more than 4,000 rockets effectively won this 34-day war.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., aptly creditedthe intelligence community Sunday on CBS’ "Face the Nation" with foiling the airliner bomb plot, singling out the British and Pakistanis for their involvement (see CBS photo). It seemed odd, though, to hear Roberts — a defender of the Bush administration’s warrantless wiretapping and other anti-terrorism tools of questionable legality — say "the British have better tools. If you want to get a warrant, all you have to do is call up a minister in regards to Great Britain. I’m not advocating that in the United States with the FISA court or anything else, but it seems to me that they have taken actions that would really speed that along." How can calling someone and securing a warrant be better and faster than engaging in surveillance without a warrant?
And somehow when Roberts talks about the need to "take politics out of this at least to a certain extent with national security," he increasingly sounds as if he’s the one engaging in political talk.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
