Your one stop pundit shop.
Eugene Robinson:
For Roman Polanski, the long, unspeakable nightmare of being confined to his three-story chalet in Gstaad, the luxury resort in the Swiss Alps, is finally over. The fugitive director is free once again to stroll into town, have a nice meal, maybe do a little shopping at the local Cartier, Hermes or Louis Vuitton boutiques.
Or he could just scurry like a rat into France or Poland, the two countries where he has citizenship -- and where authorities have a long history of acting as if Polanski's celebrity and talent somehow negate his sexual brutalization of a 13-year-old girl.
I'm betting on the rodent option, even though Swiss authorities are doing their best to convince Polanski that he can relax and enjoy the fondue without ever having to answer for his crimes.
Gabriel J. Chin and Kevin R. Johnson:
In its challenge to Arizona's controversial immigration law last week, the Justice Department argues that the state law conflicts with federal law, intruding on federal power and ability to regulate immigration. [...]
The federal lawsuit raises a number of questions. We think the government's claim of federal preemption is likely to prevail: There is room for one immigration law, not a 50-state patchwork of immigration laws. But the discussion should not stop there. Perhaps that is why last Friday the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) filed another challenge focusing on S.B. 1070's potential for racial profiling. For the Arizona officials who enacted S.B. 1070, the next step is to repeal the part of the law that authorizes racial profiling.
Bob Herbert:
What a country. We’ll do whatever it takes to make sure the bankers keep living the high life and swilling that Champagne while at the same time we’re taking books out of the hands of schoolchildren trying to get an education.
I’m no friend of the deficit hawks, but the staggering amounts of money we’ve been spending for the past several years have not benefited the people most in need of help and have not laid the foundation for a more secure economy going forward. We’ve handed over unconscionable tax breaks to the very rich (you can see the Prada paraders high-stepping along Fifth Avenue in their million-dollar flip-flops) and countless billions to the private contractors brazenly feeding off the agony of the endless wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Roger Cohen:
In case you missed it, Paul went eight for eight in the World Cup, predicting the outcome of Germany’s seven matches (five wins and two losses), and Spain’s triumph in the final. He chose before the matches from two transparent containers lowered into his tank. Each contained mussels and was adorned with the national flag of one side. Whichever team’s food he devoured first would win. [...]
It was a great World Cup. The best team won. Without eating mussels, I predicted a Spanish victory at the outset before having a German wobble caused by emotion to which octopi are immune.
Speaking of emotion, Germans got upset with Paul for predicting their team’s semi-final loss to Spain, calling for him to be roasted, as witches were once. I’m partial to well-spiced octopus but think Paul can be put to better uses, among them predicting possible outcomes of BP’s attempts to cap the Gulf oil spill. The depths ought to be his element — even more than the beautiful game.
Jonathan Moore:
AS US foreign policy makers wrestle about Afghanistan, three temptations must be forcefully resisted: re-asserting the US commitment to winning the insurgency war against the Taliban; weakening the US plan to begin withdrawing forces; and blocking local and regional efforts to negotiate a resolution.
The review of our Afghan policy scheduled for December should begin now, with its efforts devoted to getting out as soon as can be managed, and not to hanging on open-endedly, hoping against evidence and reason that things will seriously improve.
This is a risky balancing act, but continuing with the existing option is more treacherous.
Peter Funt:
Imagine getting a robotic phone call in which the candidate greets you by your first name. Think how positively spontaneous campaign speeches would seem if politicians walked across a stage while magically reading from an invisible floor-prompter that follows them around. Consider the value of TV commercials that invite contributions or pitch bumper stickers simply by asking viewers to push a button on the remote control. Ponder a political website so personalized that it’s written in each voter’s preferred language — be it English, Spanish, or Chinese.
All this is part of the digital Disneyland that is Republican Meg Whitman’s campaign for governor here in California. And why not? The former eBay CEO certainly knows the tech territory. And her bank account, from which $80 million was drawn just to fund her win in the primary, can support the most advanced eCampaign.
... critics of Whitman’s eCampaign believe that electronic sleight of hand allows her to disguise her image more easily, while also confusing voters about her record. Is she the first avatar candidate?
Jonah Goldberg tells us that China hasn't banned plastic bags, that President Obama is arrogant, and that reusable bags may harbor bacteria.