by Walter Brasch There’s good news this week. There’s only about two weeks before the midterm elections. Now for the bad news. There’s still about two more weeks to be garroted by TV ads. Back-to-back-to-back, we are choking on lies, distortions, and half-truths. This year may go into history as having the most vicious attack ads since the “dark ages” shortly after the nation was founded. Biggest difference? More than two centuries later, most of the ads scream...

Now, we all know that in this political season that some reporters have been hamstrung by Republicans running from office who will only be interviewed on Fox News or by candidates who literally run away from them. But now the bar has been lowered/raised (put your political bias here) by the news that Alaska Tea Party favorite and GOP candidate Joe Miller didn’t like being interviewed so his security guards pushed a reporter away — and then actually handcuffed him. From hamstrung to...

Here’s Barack Obama’s musical defense of himself:

It’s a conspiracy theory that has been brewing for years and its adherents now believe the moment of truth has come: Have America and Iran made a deal on the disposition of Iraq? Columnist Tariq Hameed of the Iraq News Agency writes that Iraqis who question this conspiracy theory have another perhaps less flattering explanation: Washington is clueless. For the Iraq News Agency, columnist Tariq Hameed writes in part: Among much of the Iraqi and Arab political, intellectual and media elite,...

Sasha Abramsky reports on new research demonstrating precisely how the prison-to-poverty cycle works: In devastating detail in Daedalus [the Journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences], the sociologists Bruce Western of Harvard and Becky Pettit of the University of Washington have shown how poverty creates prisoners and how prisons in turn fuel poverty, not just for individuals but for entire demographic groups. Crunching the numbers, they concluded that once a person has been incarcerated,...

Former lead prosecutor in the Savings and Loan fraud Bill Black and derivative expert/author Janet Tavakoli have been saying for the last couple years that the financial problems were not caused solely due to unforeseen circumstances but the largest fraud in history. Information about the nature of mortgage backed securities that confirms this view has trickled out for years now, but we appear to have reached a tipping point where it is now flooding. It’s becoming widely known that 1) banks...

Here in the North Star State, people on the center right tend to joke about the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Minnesota’s largest newspaper. We call it the “Red Star” because it tends to be a liberal paper and tends to endorse liberal candidates. Well today, the “Red Star” has shocked everyone not just by not endorsing a Democrat for governor, but by endorsing a third-party candidate and a former Republican no-less. Today, the Star Tribune endorsed businessman and former...

The image of the old Senator John McCain has now left the building. Granted, the Senate race between Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer and Republican Carly Fiorina has been fierce, with Fiorina steadily gaining in the polls with victory within her reach. But at an event here in San Diego McCain injected a new level of poison into it – a toxicity suggestiong that now that the Republicans will be in control in Congress again he has decided to let ‘er rip: Former Republican presidential contender...

Jacob Weisberg may not believe that (I do) but he calls Thiel out on this: The Thiel Fellowship will pay would-be entrepreneurs under 20 $100,000 in cash to drop out of school. In announcing the program, Thiel made clear his contempt for American universities which, like governments, he believes, cost more than they’re worth and hinder what really matters in life, namely starting tech companies. His scholarships are meant as an escape hatch from these insufficiently capitalist institutions...

Perhaps Frank Rich is right. Sanity will not return to American politics until there is “a decisive rescue from our prolonged economic crisis.” Until then, he wrote in Sunday’s New York Times: Don’t expect the extremism and violence in our politics to subside magically after Election Day — no matter what the results. If Tea Party candidates triumph, they’ll be emboldened. If they lose, the anger and bitterness will grow. . . Not for the first time in history...

Taking transparency too far, the White House is recapping a midterm disaster prematurely with what Mark Shields calls the President’s “retrospective before the election.” “How would you like to be a Democratic member of the House fighting for your life right now,” the PBS News Hour guru asks, “getting hit over the head for having voted for the stimulus bill, and have the president say in the New York Times Sunday magazine, there’s no such thing as a shovel-ready...

Not only baby boomers but anyone with a TV has seen “Leave it to Beaver” as a kid — a show that was on for 6 seasons and shown continously since it went off the air in 1963 in reruns. Here’s the grown up “Beaver” Jerry Mathers talking about his TV mom:

Editor’s Note: In going through an old file cabinet, I found a letter that I had used in my anti-drug shows for schools. A letter written in about 1990 by a teen who had been using drugs, got into a struggle with another teen, a gun went off — and he was in jail…serving 15 years to life. This is being published on TMV without the prisoner’s name, since it was a private poem letter to a friend. But it’s message is so powerful it’s worth preserving and indexing...

Barbara Billingsley best known to us all as Mrs. Cleaver has died at the age of 94. For many, perhaps most of us she was a comforting memory of childhood and innocence. A couple interesting tidbits. She wore pearls on LITB because she had what she calls a ‘hollow’ in her neck, a physical defect that would have really shown up on camera back then. They didn’t always use pearls but that was why she always had them. High heels were to compensate for the fact that Tony and Jerry were...

In recent weeks we have had a series of tragic suicides and horrifying attacks involving the GLBT community. Even worse, we have had people using the beauty of faith for their own hateful purposes. I fully accept that different people have different views on faith, but nobody should use a loving God for purposes of hate. For all my friends, and indeed for everyone in the GLBT community, know that despite what some may say, God does love you and always will. No matter what….

Are the days of laughter about to stop? Tea Party movement member and GOP candidate for Senate in Delaware Christine O’Donnell has apparently made some big gains in the polls, seemingly with the twitch of a nose (and her debate performance against a notably stiffer Democrat Chris Coons) — not enough but still enough to be impressive.

Former President Bill Clinton and his former Presidential rival Attorney General Governor Jerry Brown buried the hatchet — at least part of the way — when Clinton turned up at a rally supporting Brown in his battle to re-gain the governorship. But you have to say “almost” since the CNN report also notes how Brown seemed impatient while Clinton spoke and how they went their own separate ways when it was all over. The two have a bitter political history dating to 1992, when...

Pee Wee Herman has risen again (this time on Broadway). And for Pee Wee Herman fans everywhere, here’s someone who influenced Pee Wee Herman — the Emmy-award winning, early 1950s Pinky Lee:

(Editor’s Note: This is part of an ongoing series to preserve on the Internet the “lost” poetry of Nunihal Singh Layal, the “Tradesman Poet,” who I met in New Delhi in 1974. Poems contain his original introductions. Joe Gandelman) Visit To Moon by Nunihal Singh Layal The rivalry between the scientists of the U.S.A. and U.S.S.R to reach the moon-land has given me an idea to write a light though on it. Let us go to the moon Sooner than soon To find a suitable room For,...

Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved.

Is the United States whining about an artificially devalued yuan, when its real economic problems have more to do with an undereducated work force and a concomitant lack of jobs? Columnist Jan Dams of Germany’s Die Welt warns that if the United States expects to pull itself out of its economic doldrums, it should follow Germany’s example. For Die Welt, columnist Jan Dams writes in part: The reason that this currency adjustment can’t come soon enough for the U.S., and Americans resent...

I live in Oregon.  I have not been in a voting both since 1996 but I have voted in every election because we have vote by mail.  I will receive my ballot tomorrow or Monday.  That’s right, election day is three weeks long.  Both political parties initially opposed vote by mail because it makes last minute campaigning difficult.  But more people vote and so the Republicans still oppose it because those additional voters are primarily the poor and middle class who vote for Democrats more...

No words of mine could add to his powerful message Good for him

Columnist Mario Antonio Sandoval of Guatemala’s Prensa Libre has a suggestion for how the United States could help compensate Guatemalans for the experiments U.S. doctors and scientists performed on unwilling Guatemalan subjects in the 1940s. In George W. Bush’s time in office, Guatemala President Alvaro Colom pushed hard for ‘Temporary Protected Status’ for Guatemalans in the U.S. illegally. TPS is granted to nationals of designated countries who can’t return home...

One of my tasks seeking column material, when I’m not interrupted by pesky doctor appointments, PET scans and biopsies, is a path that routinely takes me to the Huffington Post. Now, the HuffPo is my source of amusement and entertainment and I admire its chutzpa as a model of economic success in a media world struggling for survival. If you want political balance, HuffPo is not the place to look. The ink in my journalistic juices is not dry and for whatever reason I felt today like Vince Lombardi...

It now appears certain that Republicans will gain control over at least one house of congress and maybe both. What can we expect from them in this new political environment, and how might their behavior differ from the behavior of Democrats after the 2008 elections? 1. Whatever their margin of victory, Republicans will proclaim they have a mandate for great change and act accordingly. They won’t compromise. They won’t desperately seek bi-partisanship. They will say that voters put them...

A Fox News anchor says “all terrorists are muslims” and a Fox bigwig tries to tell everyone he didn’t say what he said. But his statement was clear.

Apparently, the Israeli government’s decision to allow construction of 238 new housing units in East Jerusalem at the precise moment when peace talks are on hold pending word on whether Israel will extend its 10-month freeze on new construction on the West Bank means that Palestinians don’t want peace. It seems that Palestinian objections to building new Jewish settlements on land that does not belong to Israel (because it is territory captured in war and its ownership status is subject...

I’ve always liked Mitt Romney, even though I liked him in the days when he was a moderate Republican — before he woke up and discovered he was a conservative and put more fudge on his positions than Friendlie’s Restaurants put on their ice cream. But this is truly sleazy. And I’m sure some of the authors who write here on TMV would heartily agree.

RJ Matson, The St. Louis Post Dispatch This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to appear on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved.

I was going to call Brian Kilmeade a moron, but Oliver Willis got there first.

“The past is a foreign country–they do things differently there” is the opening line of a 1950s novel and movie evoked by the mortgage mess splattering the American landscape now with greed, misconduct and, worst of all, a breakdown of social trust built up over more than two centuries. Bank stocks are plummeting as financial institutions, courts and endangered homeowners scramble to cope with the “near certainty that significant numbers of borrowers are being defrauded–charged...

Democrats should continue to dread election day or quadruple their efforts to stave off GOpers more than ever. The reason: The University of Virgnia’s Larry Sabato, arguably one of the most accurate forecasters of election results in the country, says the Republicans are poised to take over the House and possibly even the Senate: As alert readers of the Crystal Ball will note, we have not changed our projection of +47 Republican net House seats in many weeks. We made this prediction prior...

Reading Nathaniel Philbrick’s outstanding book, Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War, roused some thoughts in me regarding the separation of Church and State, something I see as a positive good. I posted about it over on my blog. Out of respect to those who adhere to religious beliefs other than my own, I’m not posting it here. Still, I felt that Moderate Voice readers of all stripes might be interested in a discussion of the roots of this important principle for the United...

To say that the Chevrolet Volt is the most anticipated new car in recent Detroit history is an understatement. How well the vehicle sells will speak volumes about the long-term viability of General Motors, which while technically out of bankruptcy is still not out of the woods as it struggles to present a cutting edge face while trying to get back some of the market share it squandered over years of shabby leadership and even shabbier vehicles. A key GM claim about the Volt — repeated over...

Military and Overseas Voters Are Still Routinely Disenfranchised by Mr. Anonymous MY FIRST EXPERIENCE attempting to vote from overseas, in 1996, was a failure. I was in the Navy at the time, and I received my absentee ballot the day before Election Day. It was delivered to my ship in the South China Sea, along with the rest of our mail, by an SH-60 Seahawk helicopter. The Seahawk had come from an aircraft carrier, which had in turn had received the mail from a C-2 Greyhound cargo aircraft,...

EDITOR’S NOTE: In 1974 when I was in New Delhi a best friend and mentor of mine was Gian Singh, an editor of The Hindustan Times Evening News. He told me about his uncle who he felt was a little eccentric, Naunihal Singh Layal, who had self-published a few volumes of poetry. Some of it was quirky. I met his uncle who gave me a book. I cherished that book. And today, as I among others feel the crush of the recession, I found the book I had lost so many years ago. I had it with me in a box sitting...

Asking hasn’t worked. Twitching her nose hasn’t worked. So now Tea Party favorite and Delaware’ Republican candidate for Senate Christine O’Donnell is using a threat to try and pry big bucks out of the Republican party establishment and big bankroll groups: she’s warning them that she has Fox News and talk show radio host Sean Hannity in her “back pocket” (literal words) and if they don’t cough up the dough she’ll go on his show and attack them....

I think the analysis is too positive for the GOP but it is interesting to note that he has both GOP and Dem pickups, including a few D pickups in places most people would not predict.

Sounds like an SNL skit but… Election

Some are calling it the worlds first billion dollar home, though the bulk of that price is land value so I think it a tad deceptive. However as noted in this 2008 article it is pretty over the top, even for the mega rich. The home features a 160 car garage, a 50 seat movie theater, *three* helipads (with ATC center of course), and will have a 600 member staff. The ‘home’ is ready for occupancy now and they are planning one heck of a party I bet. I wonder if they want someone from the...

Posting articles like these is no pleasure. But part of the practice of journalism is to alert the public to things they might not want to see or hear, and which, in our judgment as journalists, they ought to see or hear. Global reaction to how the United States government intentionally infected unknowing Guatemalans and perhaps even American troops – is one such occasion. Over the past 24 hours we have posted two additional articles about America’s STD experiments on unknowing Guatemalans...

Today’s lead story on NBC: Wall Street tells homeowners to pay their damn mortgages and stop whining about foreclosures even though the bank’s system of processing them is messed up. Me to Wall Street: Screw you. Deals can be struck. Meet Darrell. He is now working as a medical transportation driver before he lost his job. Three years ago, Darrell bought a new home in Riverside County, Calif., for $435,000. His mortgage payment was $3,000. A year and a half ago, Darrell lost his job and hooked...

One of the possible surprises of the 2010 campaign is the US Senate race in West Virginia. When Robert Byrd died and the special election was set most expected Governor Manchin to win the race with ease over perennial candidate John Raese. But polls have shown the race quite close, with Manchin trailing in some polls. Although there are obviously a lot of factors at play, I am wondering if Manchin is experiencing what I like to call the Weld Syndrome. In 1996 Massachusetts Governor William Weld ran...

Bill O’Reilly got Joy Bihar and Whoopie Goldberg so angry they walked off the set. He later apologized and they came back. The subject: the Mosque at Ground Zero:

Long-time admirers of National Public Radio (including moi) may be taken aback by a recent memo from Ellen Weiss, Senior Vice President for News: “NPR journalists may not participate in marches and rallies involving causes or issues that NPR covers, nor should they sign petitions or otherwise lend their name to such causes, or contribute money to them. This restriction applies to the upcoming John Stewart and Stephen Colbert rallies.” Jon will doubtless have some comment of his own on...

Tuesday, the President said we don’t need a moratorium on foreclosures. Indeed, the statement said the administration was concerned about unintended consequences. Wednesday, the states rendered his opinion irrelevant. Forty states — no, 49! — no, all 50!* — state Attorneys General have opened investigations into mortgage fraud. It should surprise nobody if one of the first things those investigations do is halt pending foreclosures. Ally has joined Bank of America in voluntarily...

Pollsters and election statisticians have turned an eye to registration numbers in an effort to keep their heads above water in the sea change that is taking place in American politics. More people are becoming independent, choosing candidates not parties. There’s chatter about a third party… And as Jackie Salit pointed out in her recent Report from the President at IndependentVoting.org “Right now, it’s very hard for the American people to express themselves. The media has molded...

In a surprising but heavily lauded move, Chilean officials are lowering the cast of Jersey Shore into the now vacant mine. If all goes well, the cast of Dancing with the Stars is soon to follow.

New York Tea Party movement favorite and GOP candidate for Governor Carl Paladino now seems to be someone who’s bringing him to together: it sounds now as if he could lose the gay and the anti-gay vote: Carl P. Paladino and an Orthodox rabbi from Brooklyn has fallen apart, with the rabbi denouncing Mr. Paladino on Wednesday for his apology over remarks he had made about homosexuality on Sunday. The rabbi, Yehuda Levin, who helped write those remarks, said Mr. Paladino “folded like a cheap...

Columbia University historian Eric Foner was a guest this week on Fresh Air. He discussed his new book, The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery. Towards the end of the interview Terry Gross asked his opinion of the originalist interpretation of the Constitution: The originalists try to go back to the original Constitution, but they have little to say about the Civil War amendments, 13th, 14th and 15th, which actually fundamentally changed the Constitution by wrenching slavery out of...

The Washington Post has this fascinating piece about what has happened to Harry Whittington, the man then Vice Dick Cheney shot in the face in a hunting accident in 2006 — leaving Whittington with scars, a somewhat changed voice, and a huge relief that he no longer has to listen to late night comedians using Cheney shooting him as a punch line. What’s most glaring about the Post piece are the facts that (1) despite what we were told at the time, Whittington was not a Cheney best bud...

NEW YORK — Having long been one of the proud tough guys of New York politics, Andrew Cuomo, the state’s attorney general, finds himself with a Republican opponent in this year’s governor’s race who makes him look like St. Francis of Assisi. To call Carl Paladino brash and a loudmouth understates the case. The New York Daily News has taken to referring to the Republican nominee as “Crazy Carl,” and his latest series of outbursts demonstrated why. Appearing...

CNN was the most watched network for the Chile mine disaster rescue coverage during the first hour when some miners were brought to the surface.. CNN became big with its breaking news coverage. Could this be a harbinger of things to come under its new leadership?

….and seemingly heartless.