All Politics is Local: Competence Counts

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Wednesday November 04, 2009 · 4:58 AM PST

2009/11/04 · 04:58

While the punditry yammers away with the meme of the day -- Republican wins mean a repudiation of President Obama -- those of us who live in the reality based world recognize that local elections are just that, local. Democrats who ran poor campaigns, and incumbent Democrats who lost touch with the electorate, lost. But the same held true for the Republicans (see New York's 23rd for a great example).

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Monday September 28, 2009 · 6:46 AM PDT

2009/09/28 · 06:46

The American Library Association has asked supporters to modify a canned "letter to the editor" and send it to their local papers to remind people that this is "Banned Books Week." I haven't seen this on the Daily Kos website, so what follows is my modified version:
Throughout the country, a new academic year is underway and teachers are handing out their lists of required reading. But in some cases, classics most of us take for granted -- books like "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," "The Catcher in the Rye," and "To Kill a Mocking Bird" -- may not be included in the curriculum or available in the school library due to challenges made by parents or administrators.
For example, in 1996 Harper Lee’s "To Kill A Mockingbird" was banned from the Lindale,Tex. advanced placement English reading list because the book "conflicted with the values of the community." Imagine living in a town whose values were at odds with Atticus Finch’s! And as recently as 2001 another favorite target of censors, J.D. Salinger’s "The Catcher in the Rye," was challenged by a Summerville, South Carolina school board member on the grounds that it is "a filthy, filthy book."

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Wednesday January 07, 2009 · 5:53 AM PST

2009/01/07 · 05:53

I am a resident of New York, and I think Caroline Kennedy is uniquely well-suited to provide the representation my state needs in the Senate.

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Wednesday November 05, 2008 · 6:09 AM PST

2008/11/05 · 06:09

Welcome to a new and improved America.

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Tuesday November 04, 2008 · 6:01 AM PST

2008/11/04 · 06:01

To paraphrase Pogo (and yes, I realize I am dating myself): Conservatives have met the enemy, and it is them.

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Saturday November 01, 2008 · 3:05 PM PDT

2008/11/01 · 15:05

Actress/civil rights activist/icon Ruby Dee headlined our Parade for Change rally here in New Rochelle, NY today.

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Saturday October 25, 2008 · 6:42 AM PDT

2008/10/25 · 06:42

My daughter and I saw a special sneak preview of Ron Howard’s new film "Frost/Nixon" last night, followed by an in-depth conversation with Mr. Howard and Peter Travers, film critic for Rolling Stone It was a benefit for the Pelham Picture House here in Westchester County, New York, which aspires to be a new regional film center for the southern part of the county.

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Thursday October 23, 2008 · 5:08 AM PDT

2008/10/23 · 05:08

I used to enjoy "Morning Joe", but Joe Scarborough's intense jealousy of Barack Obama and obvious despair at the state of his party is making him unwatchable. My question is this: If Republicans are so upset why don't they do something positive about it -- like come up with better policies and plans, or nominate better candidates? -- instead of tearing down a really superior candidate with fresh ideas like Barack Obama? Then we could have a grown-up discussion about the best direction for this country instead of the childish, disgraceful mudslinging that passes for campaigning.

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Tuesday October 14, 2008 · 8:02 PM PDT

2008/10/14 · 20:02

My son is a student at Penn State University, where he got to attend a kick-ass concert for Obama last night! Penn State is smack in the middle of Pennsylvania, and I can report that it is an oasis of Obama-mania. During the primaries the students were organized and enthusiastic, and when we were there in August there were already plenty of lawn signs visible.

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Monday September 29, 2008 · 2:35 PM PDT

2008/09/29 · 14:35

It's a beautiful sunshiny afternoon here in suburban Westchster County, New York. Low humidity, moderate temperature. As I drove around this afternoon listening to the news about the bailout vote on the radio, I couldn't help but notice the blue sky, so like the sky that morning of September 11, 2001. The weather had been beautiful that day, too, as I sat on my front stoop and pondered what I was hearing on the news.
Are we dancing on the edge of a volcano? And what does this mean for my kids -- whose college funds are diminishing by the day?
I can't help thinking that what is sorely missing in the debate over the bail out is old-fashioned politics: The "science of government", practiced by leaders who know how to listen, synthesize different viewpoints, negotiate if needed, then demand accountability.

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Saturday September 20, 2008 · 7:40 PM PDT

2008/09/20 · 19:40

Today my 16-year-old daughter and I got up at 5 am to leave our home in Westchester County, New York and head for Scranton, PA. We had seats on a bus shared by 49 Obama volunteers from Mt. Vernon and Chappaqua (home of President and Sen. Clinton), and we joined hundreds of others in an all-out canvassing effort.

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Wednesday September 17, 2008 · 9:03 AM PDT

2008/09/17 · 09:03

Campaign insiders say that Sara Palin is relying on a "secret" team of stylists who put her into a $2,500 shantung silk jacket for her acceptance speech at the Republican convention. Why so secret? Maybe if they knew she was relying on pricey image makers her supporters would be reminded that Palin -- who also installed a tanning bed in the Governor's mansion and used public funds to buy herself a white SUV when she was Mayor of Wasilla -- is not much like them after all.

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All Politics is Local: Competence Counts

Celebrate Banned Books Week: Read Something

Caroline Kennedy for Senator

New and Improved

Clueless on Morning Joe

Ruby Dee at Obama Rally in New Rochelle

Frost/Nixon Preview

Morning Joe Jealousy

Grateful Dead Play for Obama

Where are the old-style politicians?

On the Ground in Scranton

Attention WalMart Shoppers: Palin is not like you