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Monthly Archives: September 2009
Health Care Blackjack : We Need an Ace from Obama
The Card Player by Pablo Picasso / MoMA Collection.The stakes are high:The President and health care reform I have great concern about whether the President will take a principled stand in favor of a true and unfettered public option. By … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged FDR, Health Care Reform, Obama Administration, Public Health, Public Option, Universal Health Care
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Firefighters: Mostly Paramedics in Some Places
Firefighters from Company 10 responding to an emergency call in Washington in late August. Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times.Firefighters Become Medics to the PoorBy Ian Urbina / September 3, 2009 WASHINGTON — Peeling off his latex gloves after treating … Continue reading
Posted in RagBlog
Tagged Health Care, Health Care Reform, Health Insurance, Public Health
4 Comments
Alberto Gonzales, the Tragic Opera
Alberto Gonzales, the Opera, Hits StageSeptember 4, 2009 A graduate music student has taken the political theater of Washington, D.C., one step further this summer. She’s turned it into opera. Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’ congressional grilling in April 2007 … Continue reading
Paul Robeson : Sixty Years After Peekskill
Paul Robeson. Photo from Rutgers Special Collections and University Archives.Remembering Paul Robeson:Sixty years after the Peekskill Riots By Harry Targ / The Rag Blog / September 4, 2009 On September 4, 1949, an angry crowd surrounded the 20,000 friends of … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged African-American, American History, Entertainers, Pete Seeger, Progressives, Red-Baiting, The Left
3 Comments
Net Neutrality : Next Target of Astroturf Groups?
“WWIII Propaganda Posters: Support Net Neutrality” by Brian Moore / Flickr.Will ‘Astroturf’ groups block Net Neutrality reform? It’s no secret the five biggest telecom companies want Net Neutrality to disappear. All just happen to be members of a ‘pro-consumer’ group. … Continue reading
Posted in RagBlog
Tagged Astroturf Groups, Freedom of Information, Health Care Reform, Internet, Net Neutrality, Right Wing, Telecoms
3 Comments
BonTaj Roulet : Bonnie Raitt and Taj Mahal Tour for the Environment
Tour taps blues to raise green:BonTaj Roulet blazes new ground The mix of contributions from promoters/venues and ticketing agencies with matching funds from artists and concertgoers, distributed by popular vote, is a new recipe for concert tour fundraising… By Harvey … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Blues, Environment, Music, Music Producers, Musicians, Rock 'n Roll, Social Activism
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Chomsky: Global Crises and Dealing with Them
Crisis and Hope: Theirs and OursBy Noam Chomsky / September 2009 Perhaps I may begin with a few words about the title. There is too much nuance and variety to make such sharp distinctions as theirs-and-ours, them-and-us. And neither I … Continue reading
Rev. Jim Rigby : Why is Universal Health Care ‘Un-American?’
Rev. Jim Rigby, pastor of St. Andrews Presbyterian Church in Austin, speaks at Austin rally for health care reform, Saturday, Oct. 29. Photo by Alan Pogue / The Rag Blog. I can’t believe I am standing today in a Christian … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Austin, Christianity, Health Care Reform, Social Justice, Universal Health Care
11 Comments
Journalism at its Best : Rachel Maddow Takes on Tom Ridge
Rachel Maddow leaves Tom Ridge begging for Homeland Security In what essentially amounted to a seminar on left-leaning critiques of the Bush administration, Maddow asked pointed questions on the gamut of security issues… By Joe Coscarelli / September 2, 2009 … Continue reading
Posted in RagBlog
Tagged Broadcast Media, Cable Television, Homeland Security, Journalists, MSNBC, Rachel Maddow
4 Comments
Guns of August : Why Obama’s Ratings Are Falling
Obama: sweating out ratings drop? Photo from Google Images. Obama’s approval rating tumbles President Obama’s job approval rating is at the lowest point of his presidency — a drop largely caused by erosion in support among the political independents who … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Blue Dog Democrats, Congress, Democratic Party, Economy, Health Care Reform, Obama Administration
5 Comments
Austin : Thousands Rally for Healthcare; Teabaggers Call for Secession
Health care supporters, Teabaggers rally in Austin, August 29, 2009. Photos by James Retherford / The Rag Blog.Healthcare rally draws over 2,000;Handful of Teabaggers call for secession Rev. Jim Rigby, pastor of St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, pondered how it can … Continue reading
Posted in Rag Bloggers
Tagged Austin, Health Care Reform, Lloyd Doggett, Right Wing Extremists, Tea Baggers, Universal Health Care
12 Comments
Celebrated Novelist Elmer Kelton : A Man of West Texas
Elmer Kelton, celebrated Texan and author Elmer wrote Texas as it was and is with a true ear for dialogue and phrase, his writing far above that of authors who try too hard to write like Texans. By Judy Alter … Continue reading
















