Archives for 2009

Obama Declares War on Piracy. Yeah, Right!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009 at 2:20 PM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

In previous commentaries, I have criticized President Obama for adopting many of the war-on-terror tactics, like renditioning and wiretapping, that he condemned President Bush for deploying. However, my criticism stemmed not from his (sensible and pragmatic) adoption of these tactics, but from his cynical attempts to pretend otherwise. Now he’s further undermining his credibility by making this patently disingenuous declaration of war on piracy. After… Read more.

Finally, the first pooch arrives at the White House

Sunday, April 12, 2009 at 8:23 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

As reported by the Washington Post, the little fella is a 6-month-old Portuguese water dog given to the first family as a gift by “that Portuguese water dog-lovin’ senator himself, Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts. The Obamas have named him Bo; reportedly because first lady Michelle Obama’s father was nicknamed Diddley and it is a tribute to him and singer… Read more.

Mr President, did you bend or did you bow?

Friday, April 10, 2009 at 7:08 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

Whispers of disillusionment with Barack Obama among left-wing pundits are growing louder each day. Their disillusionment stems primarily from the fact that he is proving to be far more pragmatic than ideological as president. For example, these pundits – who take credit for getting him elected – lament that Obama has failed to appoint a… Read more.

Forget bin Laden, real-life Jack Sparrows are terrorizing the high seas

Thursday, April 9, 2009 at 5:05 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

[Author’s Note: I published the following commentary originally on November 20, 2008. I trust it will be self-evident why I’ve decided to republish it in light of the drama unfolding today between the crew of the US-flagged Maersk and Somali pirates. For the record, despite American reporters covering it as if the Marines were invading Somalia to avenge Black… Read more.

UConn routs Louisville to win NCAA (women’s) Championship

Wednesday, April 8, 2009 at 8:17 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

One can be forgiven for thinking that North Carolina winning the NCAA (men’s) championship on Monday is the biggest story in basketball this year. After all, even President Obama took time out of his busy schedule to have ESPN broadcast him filling out his NCAA tournament brackets, which he completed by picking North Carolina to win.… Read more.

North Carolina routs Michigan to win NCAA Championship!

Tuesday, April 7, 2009 at 7:45 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

Team sports have a way of instilling pride (and hope) in people like no other human endeavor. This is why the Chinese invested so much in hosting the Olympics last year. And it is why I wanted Michigan State to win the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship last night. After all, with its “Hip Hop Mayor” (Kwame Kilpatrick)… Read more.

President Karzai signs Afghan law legalizing rape?!

Monday, April 6, 2009 at 5:36 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

Westerners reacted with indignation and contempt last week when it was reported that President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan had signed a bill which, according the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) “legalizes rape.” In pertinent part, the offending Article 132: … requires women to obey their husband’s sexual demands and stipulates that a man… Read more.

North Korea’s missile diplomacy: calling the world’s bluff … again

Saturday, April 4, 2009 at 6:41 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

No doubt you’ve seen how much fear and loathing North Korean President Kim Jong-Il incited among G-20 leaders this week with his latest threat to test fire his stockpile of missiles. And no doubt he did this in a hissy fit just to remind everyone that he’s still a far greater menace to the world than that Iranian guy – Ahmadinejad. But I’ve been fulminating for years against the… Read more.

The G-20 fails to stimulate or regulate global economy

Friday, April 3, 2009 at 7:19 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

The G-20 is comprised of 19 of the world’s most developed countries plus the EU. Its purported mission is to “strengthen the international financial architecture and to foster sustainable economic growth and development.” But nothing demonstrates its failure in this respect quite like the fact that G-20 countries were the architects of the financial house of… Read more.

Mexico-US relationship is all about supply and demand … of cheap labor and drugs

Tuesday, March 31, 2009 at 5:25 AM

Written by Anthony L. Hall

Anti-immigrant crusaders in the United States scapegoat Mexicans. Never mind that Mexicans provide the cheap labor that is to the US economy what rock cocaine is to a crack head. Likewise, anti-drug crusaders scapegoat Latino drug traffickers. Never mind that Latino drug traffickers are only supplying the US demand that fuels the never-ending war on… Read more.