Photo: Joshua Trujillo / Seattle Post-Intelligencer Worse than outrageous: Seattle photographer Joshua Trujillo captured what may become the defining image of this week of Occupy unrest — an elderly woman being led away from the mayhem, her face covered with pepper spray. A pregnant woman and a preist were also hit with pepper spray during a…
Politics
Film, Politics
Television and Film: Inspiring, Instructive, and Misleading
by JOHN ADAMS •
Americans have all the drama, comedy, horror, and adventure programs and films anyone might want (and more each day, as desire and creativity are both dynamic). There are so many ways in which so much art is enjoyable and useful. That’s true of what appears on the screen, and true of what one thinks of…
Politics, Religion
On Schedule: Left Reports on How Right is Upset with Romney’s Mormonism
by JOHN ADAMS •
Politics
Gov. Walker’s Actual Political Standing in Wisconsin (October 2011)
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’m not a Walker supporter, because Gov. Walker’s far from libertarian. If one is a Walker supporter – as the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute surely is – it’s right to see Walker’s political prospects honestly. Despite a bit of spin in a WPRI narrative, a recent poll commissioned and published by WPRI reveals Gov. Walker’s…
Politics
Conservative Website FreeRepublic.com to Romney Supporters: ‘ENEMIES OF THE CONSTITUTION … ARE NOT WELCOME HERE’
by JOHN ADAMS •
No real surprise about FreeRepublic.com taking this position, but other rightwing sites may follow, and that’s the bigger deal for Romney. I’m no fan of Romney, but I wouldn’t consider him an enemy of the Constitution. (He’s more like a younger McCain in his politics, but that similarity only cements his reputation as an enemy…
Politics
A Very Simple Venn Diagram of Where the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street Agree
by JOHN ADAMS •
From Alexis Madrigal of The Atlantic (h/t Althouse). I’d say this is about right, and also shows where libertarians (who share some of the beliefs of these two groups, but definitely not others) land: in the overlapping area of TP and OWS, coming from the area Madrigal assigns to the TP (government has too much…
Crime, Politics
Guilty plea in marijuana case forces Whitewater city councilman to step down – Walworth County Today
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a solid, straightforward story about the conviction by plea and subsequent resignation of Whitewater Common Council member Javonni Butler over at the Gazette, portions of which are excerpted below. Of this, three things may be said with confidence: that for some, this is a moment of particular schadenfreude; that so hidebound is Whitewater that…
Politics
Power, Judgment, Success
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a false but persistent notion that a powerful person must, after all, have good judgment: how could he or she be so well-situated without discernment of the highest order? One often hears this expressed as an assertion of flawless understanding: “You don’t really think someone as successful as X could possibly be wrong about…
Freedom of Speech, Politics
Going to a Protest? Tips to Prepare Your Digital Camera
by JOHN ADAMS •
History, Politics
Bob Strauss on Jimmy Carter
by JOHN ADAMS •
Not long after Jimmy Carter was elected, things began to go sour for his administration. Just about everything, including opposition from both Republicans and sometimes even the Democratic majority in Congress, bedeviled him. Carter called longtime Democratic politician Bob Strauss into the Oval Office, after the Bert Lance scandal broke. Carter found the change in…
Politics
Gallup: Americans Express Historic Negativity Toward U.S. Government
by JOHN ADAMS •
Politics
What Rep. Wynn Hopes You’ll Misunderstand about Next Year’s Election
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a story at the Janesville Gazette about the possible candidacy of Andy Jorgensen for the 43rd Assembly District. Jorgensen is now an incumbent representative from the 37th District, and is considering running for the 43rd next year. The 43rd’s freshman incumbent had a few words for his possible challenger. Rep. Evan Wynn’s quoted as…
Libertarians, Liberty, Politics
Can Libertarians Be Christian? Must Libertarians Be Socially Liberal?
by JOHN ADAMS •
One hears all sorts of questions like this, about whether libertarianism requires a certain religious view, or a certain social outlook. One can certainly be a Christian and libertarian, and libertarians run the range from socially liberal to socially conservative. Although libertarianism is more influential in America than ever (so much so that many groups…