Your Virtual Front Page, Thursday, September 5, 2013

33 Replies

It’s been a busy day, but at least I can give you one of these:

  1. France Pushes G-20 Nations To Denounce Syria’s Assad (WSJ) — The Russians, of course, do everything they can to stop it.
  2. In Russia, Obama lobbies Congress on Syria strike (WashPost) — Which causes me to wonder about something that is perhaps off-point: How secure are these communications from there? I’m sure POTUS uses the latest encryption and satellite uplinks, all mod cons, but Putin’s an old KGB guy…
  3. US and UK spy agencies defeat privacy and security on the internet (The Guardian) — Well, I certainly hope our boffins can do that. If not, what are we paying them for? But it brings me back to my question on the previous item. If we can do this, why can’t the Russians read our most secure stuff? I don’t know…
  4. Coroner: Benedict student bled to death in dorm room after delivering baby (thestate.com) — My God.
  5. Columbia Chamber chief McLeese suffers heart attack — I actually haven’t seen any news accounts of this; it’s based on a release from the Greater Columbia Chamber, which says Ike will be out for 4-6 weeks. I hope he recovers quickly.
  6. Strong-mayor won’t make fall ballot (The State) — Yes, this is old now, but still important enough to mention, since I haven’t before now.

33 thoughts on “Your Virtual Front Page, Thursday, September 5, 2013”

  1. FParker

    4. What I question is a first time mother who didn’t think to get medical attention when she started having contractions? She didn’t think to get medical attention after giving birth? Nobody in the dorm heard her delivering an 8 month old baby? Women know what I’m talking about, men can imagine trying to pass a kidney stone the size of a golfball. She didn’t think something was wrong when she missed her period for 8 months in a row?

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    1. Brad Warthen Post author

      Yes, obviously this poor kid made a whole series of bad judgments, the greatest of which was the desperate belief that she could handle this alone. That’s obvious, and really doesn’t need to be pointed out. And she paid for them with her life, which is beyond horrible. I suppose that’s the point you’re leading up to.

      You hear all the time about girls and women who hide their pregnancies, and deliver secretly and alone. Usually, they survive, although often the baby does not. Here’s a case in which that was attempted, and failed horribly. The thought of her lifeblood flowing quietly out of her body makes my own blood run cold. Did she even know what was happening, or did she lose consciousness before the realization set in?

      It doesn’t bear thinking about, but it’s hard not to…

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  2. bud

    1. In a related OMG moment I watched a bit of Rachel Maddow last night discussing the Fox News interview with Donald Rumsfeld about Syria. Can’t these guys just go crawl back under the maggot invested rock they came from. There is not one member of George Ws inner circle that has one iota’s worth of credibility when it comes to issues related to war. The country has had enough of these lying gasbags.

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      1. FParker

        I agree with Bart. You could toss out 90% of those in office today and people would still complain that you left 10% of the garbage behind.

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        1. Bart

          Anyone who gets their news from Maddow, Schultz, O’Reilly, Hannity or anyone else on MSNBC or Fox Shows (O’Reilly, Hannity) and relies on it are not to be taken serious anyway.

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          1. Brad Warthen Post author

            I’ve only seen Rachel Maddow (who interviewed me once, back during her radio days) a couple of times. I like her because she makes you think.

            Of course, she’s frequently dead WRONG in what she’s saying. But she makes her case intelligently enough that you really have to think to realize WHY she’s wrong. And that’s good for the brain…

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  4. Phillip

    re #1: Can I just say, Brad, how much I really dig your Pope since he took office? As with most everything I’ve heard from him, once again I just have to say, Right On, Francis.

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    1. Brad Warthen Post author

      Peggy Noonan seems to agree with you:

      After 10 days of debate in Europe and America, the wisest words on a path forward have come from the Pope. Francis wrote this week to Vladimir Putin, as the host of the G-20. He damned “the senseless massacre” unfolding in Syria and pleaded with the leaders gathered in St. Petersburg not to “remain indifferent”—remain—to the “dramatic situation.” He asked the governments of the world “to do everything possible to assure humanitarian assistance” within and without Syria’s borders.

      But, he said, a “military solution” is a “futile pursuit.”

      And he is right. The only strong response is not a military response.

      The world must think—and speak—with stature and seriousness, of the moment we’re in and the darkness on the other side of the door. It must rebuke those who used the weapons, condemn their use, and shun the users. It must do more, in concert—surely we can agree on this—to help Syria’s refugees. It must stand up for civilization.

      But a military strike is not the way, and not the way for America.

      Francis was speaking, as popes do, on the moral aspects of the situation. In America, practical and political aspects have emerged, and they are pretty clear….

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      1. bud

        Silence do you read what I say then automatically choose to take the opposite view? Doesn’t seem like a very thoughtful way to decide. I loathe Rush Limbaugh but on a tiny number of issues he has managed to get it right. Doesn’t happen often but I won’t automatically disregard what he says because of his disgusting, perverse, obtuse, offensive, despicable, vulgar, nasty, hateful, belligerent, preposterous, biased and downright weird tone.

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        1. Bart

          “Doesn’t happen often but I won’t automatically disregard what he says because of his disgusting, perverse, obtuse, offensive, despicable, vulgar, nasty, hateful, belligerent, preposterous, biased and downright weird tone.”..bud

          Well damn bud, anyone who feels this way about another person is definitely going to give them a break every once in a while. And hot is on the right, cold on the left and crap does run uphill, doesn’t it?

          But on the other side of the spectrum of gasbagging idiots we have Schultz and Maddow who are paragons of honesty, virtue, and civility, right? Is it o.k. with you if I use the term gasbag?

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          1. bud

            Schultz can get a little over the top at times, but Maddow is generally thoughtful and sensible for a TV talk show host. Joe Scarborough on the right is pretty good as well. Even though I usually disagree with him John Stossels is a very thought provoking libertarian talk show guy. In general the worst of the worst are on the right, Hannity, Oreilly, Limbaugh are all excruciating to watch or listen to.

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          2. FParker

            “Schultz can get a little over the top at times”

            Only if you count “at times” as 99.9% of the time. I wish I could find the clip where he threatened to “burn this f#(&ing place to the ground” and stormed off the set.

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        2. Kathryn Fenner

          I cannot stand to listen to Limbaugh. He might occasionally slip in some kernel of truth, but I cannot hold my breath that long!

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        3. Silence

          bud – I’m pretty sure I’ve agreed with you in the comment section of this blog a number of times. However, I do like to tease you!

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  6. bud

    I’ve only seen Rachel Maddow (who interviewed me once, back during her radio days)
    -Brad

    How do you see someone on radio.

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          4. Brad Warthen Post author

            While I’m name-dropping, I’ll drop a slightly less exotic one. I’ve also been interviewed by Michele Norris. But that interview never made it onto the air (meaning it was SUPPRESSED, right?).

            Here’s a fairly goofy video of that interview. I was holding my camera while talking, as I often did during interviews in those days, but then, every time I start to say something, the picture starts swinging around wildly — indicating that I was forgetting the camera, and talking with my hands…

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        2. Brad Warthen Post author

          And Silence — you use Bing?

          You know, I think I know one other person who uses Bing. And she’s not weird or anything…

          They say that the more friends you have who use Bing — or especially if you have Bing users in your family — you are more likely to be tolerant of such people. You might even be willing to let them marry, and reproduce…

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          1. Silence

            We’ve talked about my use of “Bing” here before. At some point someone was commenting about “Googling” something and I responded that I’d “Bing” it, using the term as a verb. I think it also drew some comment at the time.

            But yes, I use Bing as my primary search engine. I own some MSFT shares, but only own GOOG through mutual funds. I try to support the companies that I have an ownership stake in. Therefore, please use AT&T, Norfolk Southern, SCE&G, Coca-Cola, Berkshire Hathaway and a host of other blue chip names. 🙂

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    2. Brad Warthen

      I appear to have written a second awkward sentence in a week.

      My point was that I have seen her — on television — a few times.

      The reason I took enough interest to do so (as opposed to ignoring her entirely, the way I do with most of those folks) is that she interviewed me back when she was in radio, and she made a good impression.

      That’s what I meant.

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