Lorrie Heasley, 32, of Woodland, Washington, was flying home from Los Angeles on October 4 on a Southwest Air jetliner.

The flight had a layover in Reno before proceeding to Portland, but Heasley was booted off before takeoff to Portland.

And it was all because of a shirt she was wearing. read more

I don't know about you but I found news coverage of last week's "attack" on the New York subway annoying. It must be a sign of how jaded we are that the threat of mortal peril provokes irritation.read more

October 5, 2005

At his press conference Tuesday, Bush strung together a series of low lights. On Iraq, for instance, he said, “We’re making good progress in Iraq,” despite all the evidence to the contrary. And he said, “I have pledged to the American people—and, more importantly, the troops and their families—we’ll make sure they have what it takes to succeed.” This, after woefully underequipping the troops for more than two years now.read more

October 3, 2005

You have to admit there are times when Bill Clinton looks awfully good in retrospect. Just the I.Q. drop-off in the White House is enough to make you catch your breath.read more

October 3, 2005

After coming under withering criticism for cronyism, Bush turns around and appoints a crony to the Supreme Court.read more

October 2, 2005

The Republican House, so worried about attending to the crises facing this country in the wake of Katrina and in the midst of the Iraq War, last week took time out to clip the wings of the Endangered Species Act.read more

September 29, 2005

Tom DeLay indicted.

It’s got a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

I’m deLighted and eLayted.read more

September 28, 2005

Lynndie England just got three years and a dishonorable discharge.

When is Donald Rumsfeld going to face the music and get canned or indicted for his part in the torture scandal?read more

September 27, 2005

Bush finally woke up to the energy crisis.

Too bad he slept through it for the first four and a half years of his Presidency.read more

October 2005 Issue

Just so you don’t have to, I actually read ...Rick Santorum’s entire new book, It Takes a FamilySantorum, the conservative, pro-life Republican from Pennsylvania, is up for reelection in one of the most closely watched Senate races of 2006. His opponent, conservative, pro-life Democrat Bob Casey, the Pennsylvania state treasurer, has pulled into a double-digit lead. But Santorum has a strong operation and has come from behind before. He is a national leader of the cultural conservative movement. Thus, his Senate race, his rumored Presidential ambitions, and his current book tour are a kind of barometer of rightwing Christian popularity.read more

September 26, 2005

The front-page story in the Sunday business section of The New York Times is all about the military's stepped-up effort to recruit new soldiers. The business part of the story is the millions of dollars in tax money now on offer to Madison Avenue firms that can put a good spin on the idea of joining the military in the era of Iraq, Abu Ghraib, and the amorphous and potentially eternal "war on terror."read more

October 2005 Issue

Randall Robinson is a disillusioned man. So much so that he decided to leave the United States in 2001 and settle down in St. Kitts, where his wife is from. He has written a book, Quitting America: The Departure of a Black Man from His Native Land, explaining the reasons for his relocation. Robinson hasn’t completely quit the United States, though. He still maintains a home in Virginia and comes back often for visits.read more

From the July 2005 Issue

In her third term in the U.S. Senate, Barbara Boxer, Democrat of California, has come out swinging, the most visible and vocal opponent of the Republicans and George W. Bush in Washington, D.C. The petite, Brooklyn-born grandmother won a landslide reelection victory in 2004, receiving the third-highest number of votes in the nation, right behind John Kerry and George W. Bush. read more

Take Your Buttons Off Before Entering Federal Buildingread more

August 17, 2004

The FBI is intimidating political protesters as in the days of yore. As many as 40 or 50 people have been contacted by the FBI about their knowledge of possible violent protests at the conventions or other political events, according to The New York Times.read more