(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Big drama at MSNBC this week. Will Chris Matthews be co-hosting “Hardball” with his wife, Kathleen Matthews, who is both a TV news pro and also spokes-meister for Marriott Corporation? Continue reading
“It’s been great co-hosting the show with my husband. We will see you — I think? — again tomorrow.” — Kathleen Matthews, with Chris Matthews. Is this a tryout for a new “Hardball?”
As I write this on Tuesday, the Dow-Jones Index has hit an all-time high. It’s historic! Higher than the last record, set in 2007.
Sequestration, which I call Austerity, took effect on Friday.
Devastating economic pain is predicted throughout America, although some exaggeration is baked into the “sky-is-falling” rhetoric.
Exaggeration or no exaggeration, economic growth has been sluggish. Sequestration of $85 billion in federal spending will slow the economy even more. Continue reading
“Sequestration” went into effect in America this week, reducing U.S. government spending by $85 billion.
What does it mean? It means that the United States has accepted “Austerity.”
It’s not the end of the world. The vast majority of U.S. government spending will continue as usual. The government will not grind to a halt, at least not because of sequestration. It’s still possible that Congress could force a shut-down of government sometime in the future, but not likely this year.
Most interestingly, Austerity was NOT imposed by the normal processes of legislative or executive action. Continue reading
Mary Corey, leader of The Baltimore Sun newsroom, died Tuesday of breast cancer. She was 49.
Ms. Corey had worked at the newspaper since graduating from college. She rose through the ranks as a reporter and editor. In 2010, she was appointed to the newspaper’s top editorial position, directing both print and online editions.
An obituary may be found in today’s editions of The Sun.
“The U.S no longer has a well-functioning self-government. . . . American democracy has been hacked. The United States Congress, the avatar of the democratically elected national legislatures in the modern world, is now incapable of passing laws without permission from the corporate lobbies and other special interests that control their campaign finances.”
The above quote is from Al Gore’s new book, “The Future.” It makes sobering reading as the U.S. ship of state drifts, apparently rudderless, toward “sequestration.” Is the bridge abandoned? Have the helm and the engine room broken down?
I don’t understand the panic over sequestration, but I am concerned about the ability of U.S. government institutions to function. Continue reading
NOT TO WORRY. IT’S ONLY A BAD DREAM. THIS WALMART WAS BOARDED UP AS A PRECAUTION BEFORE HURRICANE IRENE A FEW YEARS BACK. — John Hayden photo
February sales are a “total disaster” for Walmart? That’s what the cable news channels report. It must be a slow-news Saturday. Sounds to me like a desperate stretch for a headline. The month is barely half over!
You say Europe is in recession? Fuh-get about it! Europe is peanuts. Europe went out with the 20th century. Get over Europe, already! Walmart — now we’re talking important.
Photo by John Hayden
“If democracy deadlocks here, we raise doubts about democracy everywhere.”
Sen. John Kerry made that sobering comment during his farewell address to the U.S. Senate this week. He’s leaving the Senate to become the new U.S. secretary of state, America’s ambassador to the world.
“My Destination,” a travel industry Web site, is the sponsor of the travel blogging competition referenced in my Jan. 29 repost from the blog, “Bucket List Publications.”
As information goes viral around the Internet, it’s easy to be confused about the original source of the information. You can go straight to the source for more information about the contest here: http://www.mydestination.com/bbb#.UQcaxW8702w
The home page for My Destination is here. Travel is a huge worldwide industry.
Good luck to all in the contest. — John
(NOTE: This post from November, 19, 2009, is getting hits at my other blog. We’re now entering the unchartered waters of 2013, so maybe it’s time to take another look. The post opens with an anecdote, and it takes a while to get to the point. I’ll add a troubling note at the end. — John)
When we talk about corruption, we think of big government and big business. But corruption pervades every aspect of American culture and society. It’s a rot and decay that threatens to destroy American civilization. We hardly notice anymore.
Here’s an example of the current American zeitgeist: Driving from West Ocean City to Salisbury. In the rearview mirror, about a half-mile back on Route 50, is one of those big, modern ambulance vehicles. Continue reading
Living Simply And Still On The Grid 