Archive for April, 2009
by James M. Wall In his press conference Wednesday night, President Obama was asked two questions about torture. In his first answer he referred to an article he read recently. His staff did not initially provide the source, but Huffington […]
Filed under: Movies, Politics and Elections | 2 Comments
by James M. Wall Not to be churlish about it, but news that Arlen Specter has switched parties to save himself from certain defeat in the 2010 Republican primary comes as a mixed blessing for peace and justice progressives. Specter brings Senate Democrats a filibuster-proof majority, 60 votes, assuming Al Franken survives Norm Coleman’s prolonged court struggle […]
Filed under: Politics and Elections | 1 Comment
by James M. Wall Pro-Israeli Congresswoman Jane Harman (D-Ca) may not be in so much trouble after all. The U.S. Justice Department may drop the spy case […]
Filed under: Middle East, Middle East Politics | 3 Comments
by James M. Wall Representative Jane Harman (D-California) is in a tough spot. She has been caught on an NSA wiretap cutting a deal with an Israeli agent. Will Representative Harman become the Rod Blagojevich of Washington, accused of “pay for play”? Don’t count on it. Harman has many friends […]
Filed under: Politics and Elections | 1 Comment
by James M. Wall The right wing media wingnuts (Urban Dictionary: “A wingnut: An outspoken, irrational person with deeply-held, nominally conservative, political views”) went wild over the slight bow they detected when President Obama greeted Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah with a cordial two-handed shake. It was an ignorant and silly objection. But what word can the […]
Filed under: Middle East Politics, Politics and Elections | 1 Comment
By James M. Wall The times they are a’changing. Not immediately and not fast enough, but the signs are promising. Consider these three stories: Michigan State President Says No to ADL Michigan State University invited retired South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu to deliver the university’s 2009 commencement address. Tutu is the recipient of the Nobel Peace […]
Filed under: Religion and politics, Religious Faith, The Human Condition | 4 Comments
by James M. Wall Avraham Burg is the former Speaker of the Israeli Parliament and former Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel and the World Zionist Organization. Winding up a recent book tour in the United States, Burg was interviewed by Amy Goodman on Democracy Now. Burg […]
Filed under: Middle East Politics | 2 Comments
by James M. Wall Elections do have consequences. Imagine any other current American politician handling questions from the international press corp and town hall meetings the way Barack Obama has been doing on his European trip. We have much […]
Filed under: Politics and Elections, The Human Condition | 2 Comments
By James M. Wall This blog is concerned, among other things, with current events, history, and religious connections. You don’t like family history? Well stick around, at least long enough to hear, below, a rousing rendering of ”Old Dan Tucker” from Bruce Springsteen. My history is also your history. Our joint histories are our world’s […]
Filed under: Religious Faith | 10 Comments
