The Obama I Remember The Obama I Remember
Watching Barack Obama become President of the United States made me proud and hopeful, but I also found the experience somewhat amusing. I think many of us who were his Hyde Park n...
Jan 30, 2010 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Prankly, My Dear, They Don’t Give a Damn Prankly, My Dear, They Don’t Give a Damn
You know how you can tell the Age of Reagan has ended? Because at his State of the Union address, Barack Obama didn't do any of those ordinary-folks-who-make-a-difference shout-out...
Jan 29, 2010 / Leslie Savan
Tony Blair Channels Piaf: Je Ne Regrette Rien Tony Blair Channels Piaf: Je Ne Regrette Rien
What did Tony Blair know, and when did he know it?
Jan 29, 2010 / D.D. Guttenplan
In Defense of Root Canals In Defense of Root Canals
In his State of the Union, President Obama scored some laughs early on with his comment that the bank bailout was "about as popular as a root canal." "If there's on...
Jan 29, 2010 / Laura Flanders
Extracting Recovery, Too? Extracting Recovery, Too?
Yesterday it was security, today's it's recovery: another nifty, ubiquitous word that means a whole lot of different things to different people.
Jan 28, 2010 / Laura Flanders
SOTU as National Rorschach Test SOTU as National Rorschach Test
A contemporary State of the Union address is less an assessment of our national circumstances than it is a collective Rorschach test: an inkblot given meaning by the viewer more th...
Jan 28, 2010 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Howard Zinn: The Historian Who Made History Howard Zinn: The Historian Who Made History
Howard Zinn, who died in 2010 at the age of 87, did nothing less than rewrite the narrative of the United States.
Jan 28, 2010 / Dave Zirin
Rightwing lawlessness revealed, again Rightwing lawlessness revealed, again
Here's a bizarre trait a friend of mine likes to point out about America's privileged class: The accusations too many of its denizens hurl down at poorer, usually darker people sa...
Jan 27, 2010 / Kai Wright
Define Security, Mr. President Define Security, Mr. President
A three-year freeze on public spending on everything except entitlements, veterans benefits and security?
Jan 27, 2010 / Laura Flanders
An Idiot Among Us: Basketball’s Paul Shirley on Haiti An Idiot Among Us: Basketball’s Paul Shirley on Haiti
In most cases, I've believed strongly in the right of professional athletes to state their political beliefs loudly and proudly. The concept that jocks should just "shut up a...
Jan 27, 2010 / Dave Zirin