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May 25, 2012
Mark Clayton: Is Hillary's State Dept. hacking Al Qaeda? Not quite
Erika Bolstad: Temple cancels Wasserman Schultz speech
The Kosher Gourmet by Ethel G. Hofman: The former president of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, whose members included the likes of Julia Child, is back with contemporary Shavous cuisine: Ruby Fruit Soup, Sweet Noodle Kugel with Cheese, Key Lime Curd, Calsone Casserole Frittata with Wild Mushrooms, Sun-dried tomatoes and Olives, Baked Tilapia with Pepper Cheese Cream and Brown Sugar Shortbread
May 24, 2012
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Michael Muskal: 'Pro-choice' position hits record low, according to poll
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The Kosher Gourmet by Penelope Wall: PHILLY CHEESE STEAKS --- hold the steak!
May 23, 2012
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The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen:A simple way to do fish right
May 22, 2012
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Thomas M. Anderson: Walking Away From a Mortgage
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: Enjoy a celebration of the most rich and layered flavors: Black bean, sweet potato and quinoa chili
May 21, 2012
Mark Clayton: Cybersecurity: How US utilities passed up chance to protect their networks
Howard LaFranchi: NATO summit: Who will foot the bill for long-term Afghanistan security?
Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Stephen Whiteside, Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Social anxiety disorder --- or just shy?
Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: Famed chef's veal shoulder farsumagru: A festive meat course for late spring
May 18, 2012
Rabbi Berel Wein: Striving: The People of the Book's Book for (All of) the People
Steven Goldberg: 5 Great Stock Picks and the Exchange-Traded Fund that Owns Them
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The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
Steven Goldberg: Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Amina Khan: Research links coffee to lower death rates
The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
Carmen Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: A variety of exercises can help improve balance
Melissa Healy: National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025
The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
Pat Mertz Esswein: Homes are now affordable again and mortgage rates are low. What you need to know before you buy
Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
Sue Hubbard, M.D.: The Kid's Doctor: Lactose intolerant young child? Check again
The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Hunt: Spread a Little Excitement with EXOTIC CONDIMENTS (4 RECIPES)
May 14, 2012
Lisa Gerstner: How to Protect Your Identity, Finances If You Lose Your Phone
Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
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Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
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The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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Jewish World Review
June 8, 2010
/ 26 Sivan 5770
When politicians say the dumbest things
By
Wesley Pruden
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Art Linkletter, who died the other day at 97 after an illustrious career as a radio and television interviewer, discovered to his considerable profit that "kids say the darndest things." He knew better than to confine himself to politicians, who only say the dumbest things. Kids are often cute, politicians never.
Sometimes politicians suffer for it, but not often enough. The lucky ones acquire an immunity, and can say outrageous things and live a long life. Joe Biden, for example, has acquired such immunity. He regularly says things ranging from goofy to merely silly to outrageous, but the passage of the years has made him a lovable old uncle that nobody any longer takes seriously, which is what every president wants for his vice president. But not everybody can be good ol' Joe.
Campaigning in 2008, good ol' Joe was trying to ingratiate himself with the folks listening to a speech in Virginia, and reminded them that he was from Delaware, which was one of the four slave states that remained loyal to the Union in "the late unpleasantness." There was a strong implication, or inference anyway, that old slavers should stick together. Since slave-owning went out of fashion in Virginia like everywhere else, good ol' Joe's appeal to shared tradition fell to the floor with a thud heard from Fort Sumter to Appomattox. Barack Obama (who has slave-owning ancestors himself) took good ol' Joe as his bumbling mate, anyway.
Rand Paul, the surprise winner of the Republican primary to choose a candidate for the U.S. Senate in Kentucky, similarly tried musing out loud about race and politics and for his trouble took several hard licks about the head and shoulders. He learned, as good ol' Joe didn't have to, that abstract discussions about certain points of constitutional law, such as whether the Civil Rights Act guaranteeing everyone access to public accommodations might have run afoul of the Constitution, is not only a no-no, but a triple no-no-no. Mr. Paul was hardly advocating repeal, or disagreement with the aims of the Civil Rights Act; he just forgot who and where he was. Such discussions are only for law professors, and then only law professors meeting in the middle of the night in sealed caves. He evaded a lynch mob, barely, but a Republican slam dunk in Kentucky was overnight turned into an attempted lay-up.
Another Republican candidate can't resist the temptation to think out loud about whether Social Security should be dismantled as a way to shave the size of the federal government. Because the candidate is new to big-league politics, she had never heard of Social Security as "the third rail of politics" you touch it and you die. Other conservative candidates have ruminated about repealing the 17th Amendment, which took the election of U.S. senators away from the state legislatures, where the founding fathers put it, and established popular elections as the way to elect the Senate. Returning these elections to the states is a good idea, but only newspaper columnists and eccentric law professors should risk saying so until the public is better educated.
Congress, whose brighter bulbs understand the risks of free speech and saying something dumb, thinks it has devised a way to avoid disaster. Growing numbers of congressmen have fled to Dick Cheney's "undisclosed location," where neither reporters nor constituents can find them. The New York Times reports that the timid and the cowardly are skipping town-hall meetings and retreating to small gatherings with bankers and friendly businessmen. They're determined to know which way the wind is blowing before they put a finger to it.
Rep. Frank Kratovil Jr., a Maryland Democrat, for example, is avoiding anything like the tea parties he had to endure last summer, when he was hanged in effigy. He's allergic to tea and none is served at his parties. "This time," The Times reports, "a round of applause [is] followed by a glass of chilled wine, a plate of crackers and crudités as he mingled with an invitation-only audience at the Point Breeze Credit Union [in Bel Air, Md.], a vastly different scene than last year's wide-open televised free-for-alls. . . . If the time-honored tradition of the political meeting is not quite dead, it seems to be teetering closer to extinction. Of the 255 Democrats who make up the majority in the House, only a handful held town-hall forums as legislators spent last week at home in their districts."
They're taking a lesson familiar to the nerds and weenies in the schoolyard: "If you can't beat 'em, run and hide."
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Wesley Pruden is editor emeritus of The Washington Times. Comment by clicking here.
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