Arguing that “the worst thing to do is nothing,” former President Bill Clinton rounded up Senate Democrats for a talking-to about their upcoming vote on the health care reform legislation passed by the House of Representatives last weekend. Clinton emphasized the need for action and reminded his audience that “there is no perfect bill.”
On Tuesday, President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama were on hand at Fort Hood to pay tribute to those soldiers killed or wounded in last Thursday’s shooting at the Texas Army base. The 13 men and women fatally shot during the attack, in which Maj. Nidal Hasan is expected to be charged, were honored in the traditional manner for soldiers killed in battle, their framed photos set before empty pairs of combat boots next to helmet-topped rifles.
Tensions between North and South Korea escalated to the point of open combat off the Korean peninsula early Tuesday when navy patrol boats of the two nations swapped fire in disputed waters, according to The New York Times.
Oh, to be a fly on the wall at President Barack Obama’s closed-door meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The two administrations have been at odds over Israel’s settlement construction, a disagreement that might have had something to do with Obama’s snubbing of Netanyahu by holding a meeting that lacked the usual fanfare. (continued)
With all the bad press that pigs have been getting of late, owing to the swine flu scourge, it’s good to see that an academic journal, Animal Behaviour, has given our porcine friends a PR boost in the form of a study that shows pigs know how to identify themselves, and explore their surroundings, using mirrors.
A Russian police major lost his job after recording two YouTube videos’ worth of complaints about low pay, long hours and being promoted for arresting an innocent man. In one of the clips, the major invites Vladimir Putin himself to buddy up and investigate the problem. (video after the jump)
To mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, a group of world leaders from past and present—including Mikhail Gorbachev, Lech Walesa, Nicolas Sarkozy and Hillary Rodham Clinton—joined German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday for a stroll through the Brandenberg Gate, which stood between East and West Berlin.
The first volume of a trilogy of Saddam Hussein books written by the late dictator’s lawyer has generated controversy in Iraq. It’s unclear whether the Iraqi government will even allow “Saddam Hussein: From an American Cell. This Is What Happened” to be sold in the country. (continued)
In an interview with Sky News Australia, the News Corp. tycoon laid out his vision for the future of the news business, which bears little resemblance to the present state of the news business. Murdoch said he would soon begin charging for online content, block Google searches and ... (continued)
Severe flooding has killed at least 124 people in El Salvador after heavy rains soaked the country. The government declared a state of emergency as the search for more victims went on.
Hezbollah is reportedly prepping for another possible conflict with Israel, stocking up on arms and reinforcing fixed positions, as fears grow that the Netanyahu government will launch a new assault against Lebanon as a precursor to any attack against Iran and its nuclear facilities.
With a new populist government in place in Tokyo, the people of Okinawa are stepping up their protest against the relocation of a U.S. Marine Corps air base on the island. They want the base gone altogether.
With a few dozen Democrats jumping ship and the support of just one Republican, the House passed a historic health reform bill by just five votes. The measure would expand coverage to most Americans through individual and employer mandates, outlaw some of the insurance companies’ more unsavory tactics and provide a weakened public insurance option. (continued)
A new vaccine trial is underway in Africa in an attempt to control malaria, a disease that not only kills 1 million people every year, but also makes 300 million seriously sick. If the trial results come back positive, a worldwide vaccine could be available as soon as 2012.
More than one in every six U.S. workers are either unemployed or underemployed, a statistic arguably more significant than the 10.2 percent jobless rate posted in October, as it factors in those who have quit looking, as well as part-time workers desiring full-time gigs.
A day after it was announced that the U.S. unemployment rate had hit the double-digit mark, a report was released showing that nearly half of the members of Congress are millionaires, seriously questioning the notion that our lawmakers identify with “we the people.”
By Friday evening, it wasn’t clear whether Saturday’s scheduled vote on the famous health care reform bill would happen on time in the House of Representatives, but Democrats were busy wooing any remaining potential supporters among their congressional ranks.
On Friday, Jason Rodriguez, a 40-year-old engineer who had been fired from an Orlando, Fla., construction firm two years ago, went back to his former office and opened fire, killing at least one person and wounding at least five others before fleeing to his mother’s house, where he was tracked down and arrested.
“Illegal protest” can count a new baritoned bedfellow. In an interview ahead of the Copenhagen climate change conference, former Vice President Al Gore pronounced civil disobedience to be justified, believing that the global warming crisis requires more forceful methods of political activism.
Honduras’ government is on the ropes again. Roberto Micheletti, the interim president, moved to form a new government after a deal to form a “unity” cabinet collapsed. Manuel Zelaya (pictured), the elected president ousted in a coup in June, is now urging a boycott of the election scheduled later this month.
In news that President Barack Obama described as “sobering,” the U.S. unemployment rate in October broke into the double-digit range, with 10.2 percent of Americans without jobs, the highest rate since April 1983.
By the end of the day, some confusion about Thursday’s shooting at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas had been cleared up. It turns out, according to later reports, that the military doctor shot at the scene, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, was the only gunman involved in the attack and that he was still alive in its aftermath.
Don’t be fooled by stimulus critics who cite expenditures such as the “electric fish orchestra” (actually an educational demonstration of a larger project related to robotics and prosthetics) or trips to resorts (to train special-ed teachers). “Waste,” as ProPublica reports, “is in the eye of the beholder.” (continued)
On Thursday afternoon, two gunmen in military uniforms opened fire in a processing center at the U.S. Army’s Fort Hood base in Texas, killing 12 people and wounding at least 31. According to The New York Times, the alleged shooters were U.S. Army soldiers but had not been identified yet. Updated
Thursday would have been a good day for members of Congress to use those underground tunnels to get around the Capitol. Outside, throngs of conservative protesters, heeding Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann’s loony call, converged on the Hill to demonstrate against the proposed health care bill—also known, in GOP-speak, as the first official step in the socialist takeover of our government.
Canada’s Olympic Crackdown
