So if you really think U.S. troops, depleted and debauched from their illegal and immoral occupations of recent years, are going to take on Russian armor and infantry (still the best in the world) you’d be wrong.
Kane’s challenge of special prosecutor’s role shows a void in Pa. law
HARRISBURG PATRIOT-NEWS EDITORIAL: …Letting judges appoint prosecutors does seem to contradict the separation of powers that generally applies in the American system of criminal justice. Judges typically judge cases, not initiate them. The common pleas court judge who appointed the special prosecutor working on Kane’s case is the judge who oversees the statewide investigating grand […]
World’s largest solar plant opens in California desert
USA TODAY: …U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell joined state officials on Monday to open the 550-megawatt Desert Sunlight solar project in the town of Desert Center, Calif., near Joshua Tree National Park. Built by First Solar, the project generates enough electricity to power 160,000 average California homes… [T]he Department of Energy reported last year that […]
“Putin’s Kleptocracy; Who Owns Russia?”
Here are excerpts from the recently published and well reviewed book by Karen Dawisha, Professor of Political Science at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, who has published several prior books on related subjects: “Instead of seeing Russian politics as an inchoate democratic system being pulled down by history, accidental autocrats, popular inertia bureaucratic incompetence or poor […]
Nobody Understands Debt
NEW YORK TIMES COLUMN: …European leaders completely bought into the notion that the economic crisis was brought on by too much spending, by nations living beyond their means. The way forward, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany insisted, was a return to frugality. Europe, she declared, should emulate the famously thrifty Swabian housewife.
Kerry Tells Lawmakers He’s for Arming Ukraine
BLOOMBERG: Secretary of State John Kerry told lawmakers during a private reception in Germany that he personally supports sending lethal aid to the Ukrainian military, even though President Barack Obama has yet to make a decision on whether to say yes to Ukraine’s arms request. Kerry is the latest top U.S. official to favor arming […]
Capitolwire: Wolf plans to replace Corbett’s Healthy PA with traditional Medicaid expansion by the fall. UPDATED with reaction from Sens. Costa, Corman
“Governor Wolf directed DHS to withdraw the ‘low-risk’ (Healthy) health care package from further federal consideration,” wrote Kait Gillis, press secretary for the state Department of Human Services (DHS).
Pa. Bar rejects Republican Supreme Court pick, who fights back
PENN LIVE: Anne Covey, the judge most famous for her involvement in the NCAA Pennsylvania State University case, has been asked by the state Bar Association to withdraw from this year’s historic Supreme Court election.
Comcast-Time Warner Cable Deal Still Up in the Air a Year Later
NEW YORK TIMES: A year after it was announced, Comcast’s audacious acquisition of Time Warner Cable remains in limbo as Washington regulators scrutinize the deal. No surprise there. After all, the $45 billion merger would consolidate an already-concentrated industry, uniting the two largest cable operators in the United States. But in recent weeks, the air […]
European Central Bank resists latest Greek bailout plan
FINANCIAL TIMES: The European Central Bank is resisting a key element of the Greek government’s new rescue plan, potentially leaving Athens with no source of outside funding when its international bailout expires at the end of the month… The ECB’s stance raises the stakes in the stand-off between the anti-austerity government in Athens and its […]
Report shows Pittsburgh consultant gave PAC $100K for McCord
PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE: Pittsburgh health care consultant put up most of the $125,000 that a political action committee gave ex-Treasurer Rob McCord after he lost the Democratic gubernatorial primary, according to a report filed Friday… The Enterprise Fund’s donation to McCord was its sole donation — as was the $25,000 donation from Campaign for Equality in […]
US drug czar supports DC pot legalization drive
ALJAZEERA: Michael Botticelli, the U.S. drug czar, said on Friday that he agrees Congress should not interfere with Washington D.C. voters’ decision to legalize recreational marijuana use for adults. “As a resident of the District, I might not agree about legalization, but I do agree with our own ability to spend our own money the […]
Canadian Supreme Court says yes to doctor-assisted suicide in specific cases
CBC: …The Supreme Court of Canada says a law that makes it illegal for anyone to help people end their own lives should be amended to allow doctors to help in specific situations. The ruling only applies to competent adults with enduring, intolerable suffering who clearly consent to ending their lives. The court has given […]
Netanyahu to Nix Congress Speech
NEWSMAX / AP: Israeli opposition leaders are calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to cancel his planned speech in front of the U.S. Congress. Labor Party leader Isaac Herzog said Saturday that instead of warning the world about Iran’s nuclear program, the controversy around the speech had damaged Israel’s crucial relationship with the United States. […]