A thought about war and presidents
“We have long since made clear that a state of war is not a blank check for the President when it comes to the rights of the Nation’s citizens.”— Sandra Day O’Connor The U.S. Supreme… Read More
Tag: Politics
A thought on the powerful connections between women
“The connections between and among women are the most feared, the most problematic, and the most potentially transforming force on the planet.”— Adrienne Rich The poet Adrienne Rich had a long writing career and a… Read More
Yep, that’s a spike: Charts that help explain Friday’s big jump in gas prices
UPDATE | In this post from Friday morning, I noted the PUB uses interruptions to make adjustments outside of the scheduled weekly setting … and it did. Early on Saturday morning, prices surged another 12.4… Read More
A thought on the limits of being neutral when you’re a journalist
“It would be irresponsible for me and CNN to tell you what the person being gang-raped says, what the rapist says — and to give each equal time and moral equivalence. I can’t do that… Read More
Like a deer in the headlights, this cabinet minister couldn’t explain his own steep cuts
Most journalists are accustomed to encountering a politician who is thrown by a question, or who seems uncertain while formulating an answer. Occasionally, though, you get the “deer in the headlights” look, with a politician… Read More
A thought on propaganda, and who craves it
“Only the mob and the elite can be attracted by the momentum of totalitarianism itself. The masses have to be won by propaganda.” — Hannah Arendt Hannah Arendt, who had an enormous influence on what… Read More
Saturday digest: What went wrong between John Risley and Brendan Paddick?, and other notes
I wonder if there are many shared smiles between John Risley and Brendan Paddick these days, as the two of them deal with separate court actions — one in which they are pitted against each… Read More
A thought on what a decent nation can aspire to
“No nation can be really great unless it is great in peace, in industry, integrity, honesty. Skilled intelligence in civic affairs and industrial enterprises alike; the special ability of the artist, the man of letters,… Read More
It’s an age-old comms strategy: when things are awful, fire the messenger
Kristi Noem has been under intense scrutiny and political attack this winter (including from her own side), but the person out of a job is not the controversial Homeland Security (DHS) secretary, but the spokesperson… Read More
Like the leaks in its tunnels, hope springs eternal for MUN’s crumbling infrastructure
I don’t even notice them anymore. Thin plastic hoses, draping down from the ceilings in Memorial University’s network of tunnels, eventually finding their way to buckets. They collect water that otherwise would — and indeed… Read More
Saturday digest: Downtown squatters; travel ban upheld; Vikings on fire
When you’re in St. John’s, you might well walk right by an abandoned house without noticing something’s amiss. Take a closer look, though, and you notice things. The electrical meter is missing, or the paint… Read More
‘Some things aren’t that great any more’: Paddy Daly on knowing when to say goodbye
Less than two weeks ago, Paddy Daly announced he was done as host from VOCM’s Open Line, as much of a political institution in Newfoundland and Labrador as the House of Assembly itself. I mentioned… Read More
A thought on presidents and journalists
“In America the president reigns for four years, and journalism governs forever and ever.”— Oscar Wilde Today’s quote comes from a posthumously published lecture Wilde gave called Decorative Art in America. It appeared in print… Read More
A thought on not overdoing it with the adjectives
“Adjective salad is delicious, with each element contributing its individual and unique flavor; but a puree of adjective soup tastes yecchy.”— William Safire The American pundit William Safire was born in the same year as… Read More
Traitors, but they’re fictional, and it’s Joffrey, Patsy and Sister Michael (and other things to see)
I got a good chuckle from a post on Facebook this morning. It imagined what the popular TV series Traitors might look like if everyone in the castle was a fictional character. Some months ago… Read More