ItÁ¢€â„¢s hard to know exactly what to write in this space today, because as of this writing itÁ¢€â„¢s difficult to know what form this weekÁ¢€â„¢s Republican National Convention will take….
Political Culture
128 Articles
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Jon: Well, so much for the Á¢€Å“civic dutyÁ¢€ I believed would guilt the Popdose community into following the political conventions: Even my heretofore partner in blogging crime, Ted Asredagoo, abandoned…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Jon: Our frequent commenter Á¢€Å“ElaineÁ¢€ is eager for us to objectify Hillary tonight. Are we Á¢€Å“upÁ¢€ for it? Ted: IÁ¢€â„¢m gameÁ¢€¦ Jon: So, Mark Warner looks pretty good. I keep…
Ted Asregadoo
1 Min Read
Jon: What were your impressions of Ted & the Kennedys? He looked pretty good, considering. Ted: He did a very good job. Kennedy finished probably his last political speech, and…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
Jon Cummings: Welcome to the first installment in a Popdose political adventure that wonÁ¢€â„¢t require you (or us) to leave the computer! HereÁ¢€â„¢s my little secret, Ted: A few months…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
John McCain trotted out an oldie-but-a-goodie on Monday at the VFW convention Á¢€” proclaiming once again that, unlike a certain current president who allowed Osama bin Laden to give him…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
Charlie Daniels Band – The Devil Went Down to Georgia My apologies in advance for taking occasional license with the meter… Johnny Mac went down to Georgia, he was lookinÁ¢€â„¢…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Sometime last night, or this morning, or next Tuesday (why canÁ¢€™t the Chinese operate on American time, like everybody else?), George Bush gave what he probably fancies as his Á¢€Å“tear…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Á¢€Å“Napoleon once said, when asked to explain the lack of great statesmen in the world, that to get power you need to display absolute pettiness. To exercise power, you need…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Nearly lost amid the fantastic PR (so far) and blind luck of Barack ObamaÁ¢€â„¢s Middle East tour Á¢€” and the horror show that has been John McCainÁ¢€â„¢s pathetic, flailing response…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
For four days now, the left side of the electorate has been scratching its collective head and asking itself, Á¢€Å“Why donÁ¢€™t I think this is funny?Á¢€ Of course, Á¢€Å“thisÁ¢€ is…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
On the day we celebrated my daughter CatieÁ¢€â„¢s first birthday, my good friend Robert Simonson came out to the suburbs for the party and marveled at the mountain of toys…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
If youÁ¢€â„¢ve watched the TV news carefully this week, you may have noticed that somewhere amidst the all-Russert-all-the-time lovefest there were other events taking place Á¢€” some of which might…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
This was a tough weekend for political junkies Á¢€” particularly those whose televisions generally find themselves tuned to NBC-related channels. Tim RussertÁ¢€â„¢s death on Friday at the far-too-young age of…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
Yesterday afternoon I was shopping around for a new mattress for my sonÁ¢€â„¢s bedroom, and I happened upon a brand-new AmericaÁ¢€â„¢s Mattress outlet in my town with a flashy Á¢€Å“Grand…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
15. His trash-talking during high school basketball games inspired White Men CanÁ¢€â„¢t Jump 14. Until 2004, his last name was X 13. His actual grandmother? Oprah 12. HeÁ¢€â„¢ll only put…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
The strange case of Joe Lieberman just gets curiouser and curiouser. Had things gone slightly different in Florida eight years ago, the current Á¢€Å“IndependentÁ¢€ senator from Connecticut might be wrapping…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
Last week, Republicans half a world apart (in more ways than one) showed us the difference between rational, reasoned political thought and unthinking absolutism. In Israel, on the 60th anniversary…
Jon Cummings
3 Min Read
It happened again last night, a sight that many liberals have come to love. Veins a-poppinÁ¢€â„¢, eyes a-bulginÁ¢€â„¢, ears a-steaminÁ¢€â„¢, limbs a-twitchinÁ¢€â„¢, looking generally like his head was about to…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
I’ve been feeling a lot of pressure to see Standard Operating Procedure, the new Errol Morris documentary about the goings-on at Abu Ghraib. I had already seen Taxi to the…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Some fascinating new polling data has surfaced on the most intriguing political battle of our time. HarvardÁ¢€â„¢s Institute of Politics conducted an online survey of the showsÁ¢€â„¢ key demographic Á¢€”…
Jon Cummings
3 Min Read
As the Democratic primary campaign slogs onward to Indiana and North Carolina this week, Hillary Clinton Á¢€” despite her still-overwhelming deficits in votes, delegates and cash Á¢€” is reveling in…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
One year ago today, my hometown of Blacksburg, Virginia, came face to face with a horror few American towns have had the misfortune of witnessing. To mark this somber anniversary…
Jon Cummings
2 Min Read
I know IÁ¢€â„¢m a few days late, but may I please be the one who gets to pry the gun from his cold, dead hands? Forgive me if I decline…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
In our current age of hyper-partisan combat and contempt Á¢€” to which I have proven myself at least as susceptible as my fellow fifth-rate political blatherers Á¢€” it sure does…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Á¢€Å“Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.Á¢€ — Abraham Lincoln Tuesday evening…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Á¢€Å“ItÁ¢€â„¢s not a country, itÁ¢€â„¢s a company.Á¢€ The most politically daring drama on network television comes to a likely end next Tuesday Á¢€” for a second time. The saga of…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
To no oneÁ¢€â„¢s surprise, Republicans this week trotted out what promises to be one of their primary lines of attack against Barack Obama in the fall, should he win the…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Looking back on a year that many critics hail as one of Hollywood’s best ever, it’s difficult to ignore the fact that many of this season’s Oscar-nominated films bear political…
Jon Cummings
1 Min Read
Silly Republicans: Don’t you know heartland rock is for Democrats? We seem to go through this every election cycle: Another GOP contender tries to trade his corporate-shill reality for some…