Jeff Varasano is a native New Yorker whose work in the tech industry brought him to Atlanta in the early 2000s. Because Atlanta had no pizza remotely as good as that turned out by even mediocre New York slice joints much less top-end pizzerias like Patsy's in Harlem or Sally's in New Haven, Varasano dedicated himself to replicating Patsy's classic New York pie.
"Democrats have occupied the White House for sixteen of the last twenty-four years, and in that time . . . they’ve done nothing to change the vicious cycle of wealth and power that has rigged the economy for the benefit of those at the top, and undermined the working class."
Bernie Sanders received a lot of heat from Black Lives Matter (BLM) activists over the summer and I didn't like it. I criticized aspects of the movement and one of its most prominent leaders Shaun King. I reasoned that Bernie was obviously the best candidate for African-Americans just as he is best for all Americans and rather than confront him and possibly undermine his campaign, BLM should work with him.
White working and middle-class people look at what the two major parties have done over the past 35 years and they see each one pursuing policies that assure one percent of the people get 50% of the pie. Republicans say in barely coded language that A) they will give non-affluent whites first dibs at the crumbs the rich leave behind while B) Democrats will give first dibs to blacks, immigrants, gays, and liburals (most of whom are in the 1% anyway).
The long-simmering race for the Democratic Presidential nomination is starting to boil over as recent polls show Bernie Sanders solidifying his lead in New Hampshire, even with Hillary Clinton in Iowa, and closing fast what had been a 20+ point national gap. The putative frontrunner and Bernie have been battling most notably over guns and healthcare. Following is a brief look at the charges and countercharges, who's right, and what I think it should all mean to Democratic voters.
After I boasted during my show a couple of days ago that I'm the best talk show host on the air, one of my listeners retorted: “You have virtually no guests. You talk about the same things almost every day. You have one of two solutions to every problem….raise taxes or limit freedoms.”
It didn't take much reflection to conclude Jeff in Columbus has a point when he decries my predictability. There's an old saying if your only tool is a hammer then every problem looks like a nail. Based on Jeff's criticism, you can probably guess that the goto tool in my kit is tax policy.
The good parents in central New Jersey's West Windsor - Plainsboro Regional School District are embroiled in a conflict over best educational practices that has broken down along racial lines.
The idea has taken hold in some circles that a fair number of Bernie Sanders supporters are sexist. Fellow Dagblogger PeraclesPlease describes "leftist misogyny" as "waiting for the right woman [not Hillary]".
At Salon, the reliably misandrist Amanda Marcotte identifies a "Bernie bro phenomenon" consisting "of young men whose enthusiasm for socialism is goosed by an unacknowledged sexism". Slate's more credible Michelle Goldberg contends many male Bernie backers "certainly don’t care about female leadership."
By HSG on Mon, 12/21/2015 - 3:18pm | Arts & Entertainment
In case you missed it, the wrong woman was crowned Miss Universe last night. With the choice narrowed down to Miss Colombia and Miss Philippines, the always affable comedian Steve Harvey mistakenly announced Colombia had won. As is customary at these events, lovely Ariadna Gutierrez burst into tears while last year's champion Paulina Vega - also from Colombia - coronated her.
Bernie Sanders' Presidential bid received two significant boosts today. First, the 700,000 member Communications Workers of America (CWA) endorsed Sanders. Then, Howard Dean's Democracy for America (DFA) bucked its founder's call for members to support Clinton and instead overwhelmingly opted to back Dean's fellow Vermonter. Here are five takeaways:
Supporters of the international legal framework - which has, with mixed success, governed international affairs since the end of World War II - have long expressed concerns over the prospect of former senator and secretary of state Hillary Clinton becoming president.
As is her wont, Hillary Clinton is telling tales on the campaign trail. Eight years ago, she cited her landing in Sarajevo during the Balkans war under sniper fire and having "to run with our heads down" from the plane as evidence that she had more foreign policy experience than then-Senator Barack Obama.
Chicago's Rahm Emanuel has about as ugly record as a Mayor can have when it comes to protecting the public - especially African Americans - from police brutality. An ongoing series by the Guardian this year revealed that since Emanuel took office in 2011, the Chicago Police Department (CPD) has detained over 2500 people – nearly all of whom are black - at a secretive facility known as Homan Square. Locals liken it to a CIA “black site” where arrestees are routinely held for hours or longer and subject to physical abuse.
"In her current campaign, Clinton has pledged to rein in Wall Street. She has proposed higher taxes on high-frequency traders and an end to special tax breaks for hedge fund managers, and recently called for more aggressive enforcement of criminal statutes that govern the finance industry. But her rhetoric has not alarmed her backers in the financial sector. So far, donors in the banking and insurance industries have given $6.4 million to her campaign and allied super PACs, behind only those in communications and technology, The Post found."
I'm a hard-core liberal progressive definitely. Or perhaps I'm a progressive liberal. Anyway, I'm one or the other unless I'm both. Conservative ideology in my view is morally and intellectually bankrupt.
Back in the last century, my somewhat more moderate - but still definitely liberal - father and my teenage self debated this. When the argument heated up, he would put his hand on my shoulder and say “my son, surtout pas trop de zèle.” Okay, maybe he didn't always say “surtout pas trop de zèle” but I'm pretty sure he did at least one time. And if he didn't he should have.
Hillary Clinton's kindler gentler Presidential campaign grinds on. It's been a few weeks since the first (and so far only) Democratic debate where she enjoyed her finest hour in this election cycle thanks in no small measure to Bernie Sanders. She has returned the favor by shamelessly and dishonestly playing gender and race cards against him.
In case you missed it, the wrong woman was crowned Miss Universe last night. With the choice narrowed down to Miss Colombia and Miss Philippines, the always affable comedian Steve Harvey mistakenly announced Colombia had won. As is customary at these events, lovely Ariadna Gutierrez burst into tears while last year's champion Paulina Vega - also from Colombia - coronated her.
