To show solidarity with West Germany against the Soviet threat during the Cold War, the United States declared that “We are all Berliners” (or jelly doughnuts, depending on your translation of President Kennedy’s German). To show solidarity with the United States after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the French declared that “We are all Americans.” …
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Senator steps down, slams ways of Congress
Democrats are in shock after Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh announced last Monday that he would not seek re-election for a third term in office. The centrist Democrat is not retiring because of a lack of popularity. In fact, he had won his prior two elections with over 60 percent of the vote and was poised…
BBC host admits to taking part in suicide
Ray Gosling, a documentary maker for the BBC, made a chilling confession during a narration for a documentary about death and dying. Gosling drifted away from the script and said, “I killed someone once.” That person was Gosling’s terminally ill partner who was dying of HIV/AIDS.
Gosling revealed that he asked the doctor to leave…
Hariri vows to support Hezbollah
After years of turmoil, the tension between Israel and Lebanon has once again heightened with the announcement by Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri that his government will support Hezbollah – a Lebanese political organization which both Israel and the United States consider a terrorist group – should violence transpire.
This declaration came days before the…
World Wide Web: Cold War II?
After two decades of global supremacy, the United States’ role as the world’s only superpower is about to be challenged. China – with a nuclear arsenal, the world’s largest standing army and the second largest economy – has the potential to create the same type of bipolar power structure that existed between the Soviet Union…
Compromise proving elusive for ‘jobs’ bill
With unemployment at the high percentage rate of 9.7 percent, Democrats and Republicans alike have made job creation the top priority on Capitol Hill. Yet there still remains severe disagreements between the parties as to how to best address this ever growing problem. This split between the two parties became even more evident this past…
Iran moving in the wrong direction
Iran has begun enriching uranium to 20 percent – the level considered to be “highly enriched” and the threshold for setting off a nuclear reaction. Iranian Press-TV reported that the country formally informed the United Nations nuclear-watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, of its intentions on Monday.
This announcement comes on the heels of the…
World Wide Web: Some modest proposals
What do you get when you combine homosexuality and Catholicism? A good halftime show.
So the LGBTQ community and its supporters at John Carroll University want the administration’s Equal Employment Opportunity Policy to include sexual orientation. This addition would ensure that the University doesn’t base its employment practices – including hiring, firing, promotion and treatment…
World Wide Web: Haiti: drowning in kindness
Haiti is drowning in a flood of foreign aid. Despite receiving almost $1.5 billion since 1990 from the United States alone, 80 percent of Haitians still live below the poverty line, less than a third have formal jobs, and its government is one of the most corrupt in the world. Clearly, foreign aid has failed…
Yemen: a country on the brink
Yemen, a Middle Eastern nation bordering Oman and Saudi Arabia, is perhaps one of the oldest civilizations still in existence today. However, with its long existence comes a history of turmoil and strife that has led to present day ramifications.
The northern and southern regions formed the Republic of Yemen in 1990 following the fall…
A divided Supreme Court rules against restricting campaign contributions
In an effort to extend the First Amendment right of freedom of speech to business organizations, the Supreme Court decided against the government’s ability to restrict a corporation’s campaign contributions for elections.
While many in support of this decision view it as a rightful extension of freedom of speech that had been denied for decades,…
World Wide Web: Better days for democracy
Democracy has seen better days. According to Freedom House, an organization that publishes an annual report on the state of global political rights and civil liberties, global declines outweighed gains in freedom in 2009 for the fourth year in a row.
Its report listed declines in freedom for 40 countries, representing the longest continuous period…
In upset victory, Brown wins Massachusetts seat
Several weeks ago, Republican Senatorial candidate Scott Brown was a little known Massachusetts state senator facing an uphill battle in an overwhelmingly Democratic state.
However, with his stunning victory on Jan. 18, Brown has burst onto the national political scene. The impact of his election victory extends beyond the borders of Massachusetts, as Brown has…
Moderate Democrats pose obstacle for passing health insurance reform
As the health care debate continues to intensify in the Senate, it has become evident that bipartisan support is highly unlikely.
Therefore, the Democratic leadership is focusing on keeping the Democratic caucus united in order to reach the crucial number of 60 votes needed for passage.
This pursuit of 60 votes will undoubtedly be a…
World Wide Web: I want letters
So my past couple columns have been pretty critical of the Catholic Church. I accused it of sexual discrimination, homophobia, strong-arming society, and blackmailing Congress. I also called it misogynic, elitist, bigoted, ignorant, stubborn, unsympathetic, disconnected and bullheaded. And since we received no letters to the editor from anyone trying to counter my arguments, I’m…
South Korean troops on high alert after naval clash with North Korea
South Korean conservative activists shout slogans during a rally denouncing North Korea’s military in Seoul, South Korea, on Nov. 11, 2009. South Korea’s troops went on high alert after a brief naval confrontation with North Korea.
World Wide Web: I’m not the Pope
Has the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops gone completely insane?
Only a few weeks ago, it single-handedly almost derailed the entire health care reform movement. Using the House’s health care reform legislation as leverage, the bishops said that they would withdraw their support of it unless Congress tightened its restrictions on taxpayer-funded abortions. And…
World Wide Web: Death to the death penalty?
Recent events in the news have been chilling enough to send a shiver down the spine of Stephen King. The police found 11 bodies in Anthony Sowell’s house on the east side of Cleveland. The majority of the bodies were found buried in the ground with ties around their necks. Two of them were found…
With House vote, Democrats closer to passing health insurance reform
After months of lobbying for reform, liberal Democrats and the White House achieved a much needed victory on Saturday by delivering on a top domestic priority. In a late night vote, the House of Representatives voted to pass H.R. 3962 Affordable Health Care for America Act by a tally of 220-215.
Recently the debate surrounding…
Lone gunman kills 13 in rampage at Fort Hood
The Fort Hood Army post in Killeen, Texas underwent a horrific scene of violence on Nov. 5, claiming the lives of thirteen and wounding over two dozen more. Fort Hood, the largest United States base in the U.S., operates like a city with a daytime population ranging around 80,000. Many of the 40,000 troops stationed…
