Blogcritics Category: Politics: Government

Legal Analysis Should Not be a Partisan Plaything.

Dan Miller — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 18:14:08 EDT

Partisan gamesmanship can easily backfire. That is likely to happen in the highly emotional "torture" debates.
There is an old legal maxim,When the facts are on your side, pound on the facts.When the law is on your side, pound on the law.When neither is on your side, pound on the table.Sometimes this works, but more often it fails. The table is being pounded upon, very heavily and very noisily, but neither the law nor the facts appear to be on the side of...

To Investigate or Not to Investigate - That is the Question!

Roger Nowosielski — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 08:41:15 EDT

Shall we use the office of Special Prosecutor to look into past administrations? I'd say it's high time.
The recent controversy surrounding the release of the CIA "torture memos" has become the number one issue on American political scene - far surpassing the much debated stimulus package, Mr. Obama's controversial "good will" tour, or even the recent furor over the authenticity and the true meaning of the "tea-parties." And understandably so, for...

Get the Government Out of the Marriage Business

Jonathan Lockwood Huie — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 00:21:40 EDT

Imagine a new unfettered society in which the tradition of marriage is returned to its proper home.
I am a strong believer in the separation of church and state. There is little overlap between religion's interests and those of Uncle Sam, and there is no reason to try to force an alignment of those interests.Marriage is one of the few institutions today that straddles the line between being a civil matter and a religious one. The sacrament...

Ballot Access Laws are Detrimental to America

Kenn Jacobine — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 23:31:46 EDT

At the end of the day, ballot access laws are detrimental to our political system for at least four reasons.
This past week, a panel of judges in North Carolina heard the appeal of a 2005 case filed by the state’s Libertarian Party over its loss of ballot access following the 2004 elections. Even though the Libertarians have regained ballot status, the suit has gone forward on behalf of other minor parties still struggling to meet ballot access...

The Perils and Pitfalls of a Torture Witch Hunt

Dave Nalle — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 20:44:17 EDT

Once the witch hunt train gets rolling it's very hard to stop.
The raging question of the moment is whether it is a good idea to prosecute members of the Bush administration for war crimes, crimes against humanity or just for some simple crime because they condoned the torture of three well known terrorists and in the process discovered and prevented a "second 9/11" attack on the United States.Some...

Universal Health Care is the Only Right Action

Jonathan Lockwood Huie — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 18:20:43 EDT

The lack of universal health care in the Unites States is a blot on the morality of our great nation.
There are many reasons why adopting universal health care in the United States is the right thing to do. First, it would save money. Yes, you read that right - SAVE money. At first glance it would appear that providing better health care to more citizens would add substantial cost. There are more than 40 million Americans without health...

Satire: The News in Pictures VI - The Military Edition

Diana Hartman — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 10:46:52 EDT

What do Home Depot, Rob Riggle, and Pashmina have in common?
No active combat photos were used in the making of this essay.Welcome to "O Caption! My Caption!", Blogcritics' examination of news, sports, and politics utilizing the most efficient and time-saving method: looking at pretty pictures and deducing what happened based on the pixels.↓ "Sorry dude, it's triple to tow after 1800 and your credit...

Not Another Obama Rant

The Obnoxious American — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 02:23:37 EDT

For this article, I've decided to not discuss the disagreements I have with the Obama administration - this article isn't about that.
If you've read my prior articles, then you know I am not too fond of the activities of the Obama administration. I've gotten criticism from my friends on the left for only complaining when I disagree with Obama, yet never saying anything about the good Obama has done. So for this article, I've decided to not discuss the disagreements...

Rule of Law Vetoed by President Obama

Joel S. Hirschhorn — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:58:19 EDT

The rule of law is a terrible thing to waste.
There are no headlines or pontificating pundits, but the real news that has become crystal clear to any but the most delusional and distracted Americans is that President Obama has no commitment to applying the rule of law where it counts. Certainly, not applying it to the large number of rich and powerful people that have violated our...

It's Time to Stop Card Check

Dave Nalle — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 14:53:17 EDT

We fought a Civil War to ensure that we would have an economy based on free labor. Workers forced to join a union are not free.
When the Republican party was founded it formed around a nucleus of anti-slavery activists and northern labor reformers. They saw that the larger economic and political issue of the time, of which the abolition of slavery was only a part, was the idea of free labor. Slave labor was not free, and neither were workers in the industrial towns of the...