The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

Juliet Eilperin and Zachary A. Goldfarb of The Washington Post just wrote an article which has me simultaneously chuckling and scratching my head. The title of the article is, "After string of setbacks, more charm may be the last, best option for Obama." In the article, the following is written: "After more than four years in the White House and weeks into his latest effort to woo lawmakers, Obama still isn't very good at using his personal charm to achieve political success. Yet, it may be one of the few strategies the president has left if he hopes to accomplish his remaining second-term priorities, including a sweeping budget deal and a comprehensive immigration bill." Charm? Really? President Obama's best hope at accomplishing his second-term goals is to charm Congress? Okay... So, how is he to do this exactly? How does Obama "charm" Congress? According to one website, the following are all examples of how to charm a person. I will be ...

I've heard it many times and the more I read in independent and alternative news, the more I read about teachers being labeled as too "liberal." Right as the war in Iraq began, an elementary school teacher spoke to a class about alternatives to war. A student asked if she was for or against protests and she stated that she favored all alternatives to war, until it was truly the last resort. So, a student tattled on her and not long after, she was let go by the school. Not too long after that, a college professor made comparisons between George W. Bush and Adolf Hitler. Toward the end of his speech, he noted that all he was trying to do was provoke thought and just because he said what he did, didn't make him right. He was just attempting to get the students to open their minds and look at things in a different light. A student ratted on him and the teacher got suspended from teaching until the investigation comes to a close. These are only two of the many storie...