Month: March 2014

Senate Torture Report Examines Hunt for Bin Laden

NEWSMAX: …From the moment of bin Laden’s death almost three years ago in what was America’s biggest counterterrorism success, former Bush administration and some senior CIA officials have cited the evidence trail leading to the al-Qaida mastermind’s compound in Pakistan as vindicating the “enhanced interrogation techniques” they authorized after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. But […]

Health care spending growth hits 10-year high

USA TODAY: Health care spending rose at the fastest pace in 10 years last quarter, a development that could foreshadow higher costs for consumers this year. Expenses for health care rose at a 5.6% annual rate in the fourth quarter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said last week. The jump triggered a sharp upward revision […]

Kerry warns of ‘intimidation’ of Ukraine

FINANCIAL TIMES Moscow had created a climate of “fear and intimidation” in Ukraine, US secretary of state John Kerry said after talks in Paris on Sunday night with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, as he refused to endorse Moscow’s calls for a federal solution for the country… He added that the Russian suggestion of a […]

Robert Gates on Barack Obama

I rarely saw him rush to a decision when circumstances allowed him time to gather information, analyze, and reflect… As a participant in that decision-making process, I always felt more confident about the outcome after thorough deliberation. When the occasion demand it, though Obama could make a big decision – a life-and-death decision – very fast.”

A Christie Appointee Quits, Finally

NEW YORK TIMES Editorial: The only thing wrong with the resignation announcement on Friday of David Samson, Gov. Chris Christie’s top appointee to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, was that it took so long. A close associate of the governor, Mr. Samson was running the authority while its employees and the […]

Borrowed Time on Disappearing Land

NEW YORK TIMES: … As the world’s top scientists meet in Yokohama, Japan, this week, at the top of the agenda is the prediction that global sea levels could rise as much as three feet by 2100. Higher seas and warmer weather will cause profound changes. Climate scientists have concluded that widespread burning of fossil […]