Jan 28, 2014 | Conservativism, Economic Policy, Extremism, Liberalism, Libertarianism, mic, Plutocracy, Political Ideologies
Published: mic (January 28, 2014 Back in 1990, American attorney and author Mike Godwin observed that political discussions (particularly those that occurred online) were oversaturated with Nazi analogies. This gave birth to the expression "Godwin's Law," which argues that anyone who compares a political adversary to Nazis without sound reasoning automatically forfeits the debate. Flash forward...
Jan 28, 2014 | Class Issues, Economic Policy, mic, Political Parties, President Obama, Republicans
Published: mic (January 28, 2014) One of the centerpieces of President Obama's 2014 State of the Union address was his executive order that will raise the minimum wage for employees working with federal contractors to $10.10 an hour. The President is taking action on his own because Republicans are deeply set against Democrats' efforts to raise the federal minimum wage. In short, many in the GOP...
Jan 27, 2014 | Arts and Entertainment, Elections, Elections - Presidential (2012), mic
Published: mic (January 27, 2014) "I think I'm a flawed candidate." You pretty much hit the nail on the head there, Mitt Romney. The central narrative arc in Mitt, the new Netflix documentary chronicling Romney's two presidential campaigns, is that of a candidate who aims for the highest office in the country only to return, heartbroken, to ordinary life. The film, while failing to reveal...
Jan 23, 2014 | Arts and Entertainment, History, mic, Science and Technology
Published: mic (January 23, 2014) n case you missed it, Wednesday was the anniversary of a revolution. Imagine if 30 years ago (only a few years after Al Gore invented the Internet), someone had envisioned a future in which there would be a personal computer in every home. Well, the geniuses at Apple saw it coming, and their iconic "1984" ad was a milestone event in a revolution that would...
Jan 21, 2014 | Conservativism, Democrats, Extremism, Gay Rights and Other LGBTQIA Issues, Gender and Sexism, mic, Political Ideologies, Political Parties, Race and Racism, Republicans
Published: mic (January 21, 2014) You'd think that conservatives, after being repeatedly humiliated for their insensitivity toward rape victims, would have learned to be careful when discussing the plight of the marginalized and oppressed. For proof that this lesson has yet to take, let's look at one of the right wing's most obnoxious, entitled, and ill-informed rhetoric motifs: comparing...
Jan 20, 2014 | Class Issues, Economic Policy, History, mic, Race and Racism
Published: mic (January 20, 2014) If he was alive today, Martin Luther King, Jr. would not have been a Republican. In light of the frequency with which he is cited as a hero and role model, that point cannot be reiterated enough. We often hear about King's crusades to end legal segregation in the South and de facto segregation in the North, but far less attention is paid to the inextricable link...
Jan 17, 2014 | Criminal Justice/Prison-Industrial Complex, mic
Published: mic (January 17, 2014) On Friday, family members of those incarcerated in Mississippi prisoners will gather in the state capital in support of their imprisoned loved ones. For the significant others, imprisonment can be especially trying, and it's about to become even more so. The state that pioneered the concept of family visits is now taking them away. As of Feb. 1, prison...
Jan 14, 2014 | Class Issues, mic, Original Source Salon.com, Plutocracy
Jan 13, 2014 | Conservativism, Elections, Elections - Presidential (2016), mic, Political Ideologies, Political Parties, Republicans, Scandals
Published: mic (January 13, 2014) If you thought things looked bad for Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) after Bridgegate broke, take a look at the new federal investigation into his conduct. According to a letter written by Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) last August, Christie may have abused federal relief funds intended to promote tourism to the Jersey Shore after Hurricane Sandy for his own political...
Jan 11, 2014 | Foreign Policy, History, mic, World Affairs
Published: mic (January 11, 2014) "I am 73 years old. I've seen everything. I've met the kings, the queens, the presidents, I've been around the world. I have one thing that I would like to do: to try to reach peace." When Ariel Sharon uttered these words in the first year of his tenure as prime minister of Israel, observers of Middle Eastern politics were understandably skeptical of their...