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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
Jeff Jacoby: The peace process battered Israel's reputation
Michael Muskal: 'Pro-choice' position hits record low, according to poll
Chris Farrell: Are We in a Tech Bubble?
The Kosher Gourmet by Penelope Wall: PHILLY CHEESE STEAKS --- hold the steak!
May 23, 2012
Tony Pugh: More private colleges offering tuition discounts
Mary Beth Franklin: How to Choose the Right Annuity for You
Tina Susman: The wig wasn't enough: Man gets 13 years for posing as his dead mom
The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen:A simple way to do fish right
May 22, 2012
Warren Richey: Can US group challenge overseas surveillance act? Supreme Court to decide
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
Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
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
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
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
Jeff Bertolucci: Get Home Phone Service for Less Than $10 a Month
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
August 29, 2008
/ 28 Menachem-Av 5768
The nowhere man and his conscience
By
Wesley Pruden
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
DENVER
The shouting and the tumult die, at least for the weekend, and the captains and the king depart. Where do we go from here?
Well, some of us to Minnesota, and another coronation ceremony, to listen to more politicians talk endlessly about themselves and, if Denver is a guide, to watch them bask in the feverish adulation of celebrity.
Barack Obama never looked more like the American Idol than last night, standing before the Athenian columns of his Golden Temple of Obama the Anointed. Television viewers were no doubt puzzled that there were no telephone numbers crawling across the bottom of the screen, urging them to cast their votes now at a dollar a pop.
The columns behind the Idol were constructed not of marble from the quarry of Zeus but of industrial-strength cardboard, plaster and paint from Home Depot, and what could be more appropriate? A goodly portion of the crowd of 70,000 or so in Invesco Field ("Invesco" is either an insurance company or a patent-medicine mustard plaster; nobody here seems to know for sure) waited patiently in the expectation that Indiana Jones would drop from the sky just in time to introduce the new nominee. Indiana Jones should live so long.
The senator's speech, billed as "the oration of a lifetime," continued the theme of the Obama campaign: "I'm not George W. Bush, and aren't you glad?" He accused John McCain, who gets similar coronation treatment next week in St. Paul, of supporting the president 90 percent of the time. "I don't know about you," he said, "but I'm not ready to take a 10 percent chance on change."
After a week of unrelenting biography, we still don't know who Obama really is, and he seems puzzled, too. In addition to not being George W. Bush, he suggests he might be Martin Luther King, without the martyrdom. "Had it not been for that ['I have a dream'] speech," he told the Rocky Mountain News, "I very likely wouldn't be standing in Invesco Field to accept the nomination from my party." The man reduces everything to a speech, forgetting that Martin Luther King did more than make speeches, and the sacrifice of a lot of men and women got him to the Temple of Obama.
Nevertheless, it's a story line that played well this week in Denver, particularly among the black delegates who made up about a third of the convention. About a third of that third say Mr. Obama's race is the most compelling reason why they think he should be president. About 25 percent of the white delegates, so the white folks told pollsters, say that's why they, too, are for him. This is testimony to the enduring relevance of race in America, if not necessarily an enduring testament to the man we're only beginning to know.
Juan Williams, writing in the Wall Street Journal, calls him "a stealth candidate" because in posing himself as "trans-racial," which pleases white voters eager to put the past in the past so everybody can shut up about race, he has been AWOL on the issues most important and most relevant to black voters.
"Mr. Obama is nowhere man when it comes time to speak out on reforming big-city public schools, with their criminally high dropout rates for minority children," he writes. "He apparently refuses to do it for fear that supporting vouchers or doing anything to strengthen charter schools will alienate vote-rich unions. His rare references to the critical argument over affirmative action - an issue on several state ballots this fall - give both opponents and supporters reason to think he might be on their side. He has had little if anything to say about the persistent 25 percent poverty rate in black America."
Only after he speaks as a King-like moral conscience on race, he argues, will Mr. Obama be entitled to talk about how he would settle accounts in Iraq, revive the economy (which shows the first signs of reviving already), and fighting the war on terror.
But the Obama campaign was not built for substance, only speed. There was no attempt here this week to deal with national security, worldwide terrorism or how to do the actual hard work of putting race behind us. It was all hot dogs, cotton candy, bellywash, booing Bush and shouting "hurrah for the American Idol." Two more months of that and we'll all want change.
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 in chief of The Washington Times. Comment by clicking here.
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