News

Even Ascendant, Condi is Still Ineffectual

Staff / Truthdig Jul 11, 2006 From this week's Time magazine cover story: Although the secretary of state has persuaded Bush to give diplomacy a go in the fight against radical Islam, Rice "has yet to pull off any major diplomatic breakthrough that could burnish the Bush legacy." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

The Pope Apparently Has God’s Playbook

Staff / Truthdig Jul 10, 2006 And he's using it to make statements like this to an audience in Spain, where same-sex marriages were legalized last year: "The family is a unique institution in God's plan, and the church cannot fail to proclaim and promote its fundamental importance.? God, what a guy: powerful enough to create a universe but still needs the help of a former Hitler Youth to stigmatize homosexuals. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Christian Weight Loss Programs Booming

Staff / Truthdig Jul 10, 2006 Apparently the programs' emphasis on group support and, like Alcoholics Anonymous, deference to a higher power aid some people in losing weight. But a Yale diet expert is extremely skeptical. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

FBI Plans New Push on Internet Surveillance

Staff / Truthdig Jul 10, 2006 According to CNET: "The FBI has drafted sweeping legislation that would require Internet service providers to create wiretapping hubs for police surveillance and force makers of networking gear to build in backdoors for eavesdropping." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Gay Marriage Ban Punishes Children

Staff / Truthdig Jul 10, 2006 Salon's Sara Miles writes an excellent personal essay on the N.Y. gay marriage ruling -- explaining that the gay marriage ban hurts the children it claims to protect. (Ad wall) Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Parents Use Gadgets to Spy on Teens

Staff / Truthdig Jul 10, 2006 Invasion of privacy is not just for the NSA anymore! Parents have always snooped, but as the SF Chronicle reveals, new tech toys are taking what was once standard parental prying to a whole new level of unacceptable surveillance and spying. Whatever happened to good, old-fashioned conversation? (Via boingboing.net) Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Carolla Hangs Up on Coulter

Staff / Truthdig Jul 10, 2006 The radio talk show host hung up on the right-wing hatemonger when she called in to his show late Carolla: "I don't have time for bitches" Amen, brother Hopefully radio and TV hosts will extend this by not inviting her on their shows in the first place . Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Bush Is Flouting Court After Gitmo Ruling

Staff / Truthdig Jul 10, 2006 Constitutional expert and best-selling author Glenn Greenwald reminds us that the Supreme Court's Hamdan decision not only outlawed Bush's military tribunals, but also removed any conceivable argument to support Bush's illegal wiretapping programs. Greenwald: "Journalists should begin asking the Justice Department every day what their legal justification for warrantless eavesdropping is now that Hamdan has rendered frivolous their prior legal arguments in defense of the President." Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

The Bush Ship-Jumping Spreads…

Staff / Truthdig Jul 9, 2006 Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, sent a "sharply worded letter" to Bush warning him that he may have violated the law by keeping Congress in the dark on several unnamed intelligence programs, and that Bush risked losing GOP support on national security matters. All of a sudden, it's not just predictable GOP'ers like Arlen Specter who are rattling the saber on Bush's excessive secrecy. Hoekstra was, until now, a hard-core Bushie. Seems there's just so much alienation your friends will take before they lash out at you in public. Make no mistake: Bush values loyalty above everything else. That Hoekstra was willing to publicly cross the president says A LOT. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Tom DeLay Won’t Rule Out Another Run

Staff / Truthdig Jul 9, 2006 The disgraced former congressman, who resigned in June and is now awaiting trial on money laundering and conspiracy in a campaign finance case, said he may not be ready for retirement, a day after a judge ruled that his name must remain on the November ballot. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Colin Powell: Close Gitmo Now

Staff / Truthdig Jul 9, 2006 The former secretary of state, speaking on a panel at the Aspen Ideas Festival, said the scandal-plagued detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, should be shuttered immediately. Dig deeper

Tax Dollars to Fund Study on Restricting Public Data

Staff / Truthdig Jul 8, 2006 According to USA Today: "The federal government will pay a Texas law school $1 million to do research aimed at rolling back the amount of sensitive data available to the press and public through freedom-of-information requests." Seriously, this s*#t just got ridiculous; the Bush administration is already the most secrecy-crazed in the 20th century. Now it needs more layers of secrecy? Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )