“We have not been able to find mutually acceptable solutions at this point, and the situation is practically at a dead end”

Russia threatens to strike NATO missile defense sites

By Shaun Waterman

“We’ll spend the next nine to 10 months trying to work through some of these technical aspects of what’s a very complex proposal” ... In Moscow, Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov indicated that the “red line” for Russia would be the deployment of ground-based interceptor missiles, estimated to happen in 2018 at the earliest. ... “Red lines are a dangerous game,” said Mr. Ludes. “This has been simmering for years.”  ... “The Russians have opposed U.S. plans, whether offered by the Bush administration or the Obama administration. But the fact that they would make this kind of public threat gives us an idea of just how strongly they feel about it” 


http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/may/3/russia-threatens-strike-nato-missile-defense-sites/

“Every Action done in Company, ought to be with Some Sign of Respect, to those that are Present.”

A Requiem for Manners

by Stephen M. Klugewicz

Christian chivalry, Burke believed, “made power gentle” and served to “beautify and soften private society.” It harmonized human relations. Without it, society could only be held together by brute force and cold reason. Gone would be the warmth of considerate human relations, corrupted would be the morals of men, and all would be reduced to slaves.
“Every Action done in Company, ought to be with Some Sign of Respect, to those that are Present.” This maxim had presided over Western culture since the Middle Ages, and it was exemplified in the courtly manners of the upper classes everywhere and at all times...


http://www.crisismagazine.com/2012/a-requiem-for-manners

'Dictators ride to and fro upon tigers from which they dare not dismount.' --Winston Churchill

Putin's History Lesson

BY RICHARD BOUDREAUX

MOSCOW—At the start of his second term as Russia's president, Vladimir Putin gathered some leading free-market policy wonks for brainstorming at his dacha. One of them, José Piñera, had been a cabinet minister in Chile during the 16-year dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet.

Mr. Piñera's advice went beyond economics and included a warning against holding "too much power for too long." Quoting the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, he bluntly urged Mr. Putin, in a Moscow newspaper essay after the meeting, to retire after two terms: "Oh, kings, you owe your crown and writ/To Law, not nature's dispensation."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304743704577381641570549300.html

“Feminist mystique”, ironically fails to treat women as intelligent individuals capable of making their own choices, but instead demands conformity to a “feminist norm”.

Dangerous housewives

Stay-at-home moms are a problem, all right. They think, educate their children and vote.

Mariette Ulrich

Has enough been made of theHilary Rosen "stay-home-moms-don’t-work" calamity? Maybe yes, maybe no, but as a college-educated full-time mother of seven, I am not about to let it go without comment. (I wish I could have weighed in a bit sooner, but, well, I was busy with family activities.)

Ms Rosen (pictured) took a lot of heat for her remark about Anne Romney, from all sides of the political spectrum: fellow Democrats scrambled to distance themselves; even Mrs. Obama tweeted her displeasure. Far from censuring Ms Rosen, however,the Wall Street Journal’s James Taranto says she deserves thanks for being an “honest feminist”.

Taranto points out that, beginning approximately with Freud’s influence, the denigration of motherhood has been an ongoing “major theme in American culture”. If the disparagement of motherhood (especially the full-time variety) is a socio-political creed, then feminism is its prophet and the Democratic party, despite its avowals to the contrary, its church-home base.

http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/dangerous_housewives

The slogan "Forward!" reflected the conviction of European Marxists and radicals that their movements reflected the march of history, which would move forward past capitalism and into socialism and communism.

New Obama slogan has long ties to Marxism, socialism

The Obama campaign apparently didn't look backwards into history when selecting its new campaign slogan, "Forward" — a word with a long and rich association with European Marxism.

Many Communist and radical publications and entities throughout the 19th and 20th centuries had the name "Forward!" or its foreign cognates. Wikipedia has an entire section called "Forward (generic name of socialist publications)."  "The name Forward carries a special meaning in socialist political terminology. It has been frequently used as a name for socialist, communist and other left-wing newspapers and publications," ...

http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/inside-politics/2012/apr/30/new-obama-slogan-has-long-ties-marxism-socialism/

Ron Paul - Exploiting party rules could complicate Romney’s path to nomination

Paul supporters create delegate mischief

Mitt Romney may be the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, but Rep. Ron Paul of Texas is quietly racking up some organizational victories that could complicate Mr. Romney's anticipated coronation at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., this summer.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/may/1/paul-supporters-create-delegate-mischief/

“Whenever possible, we will develop innovative, low-cost, and small-footprint approaches to achieve our security objectives.”

Pentagon is planning ‘contingency’ for Iran and North Korea

By Rowan Scarborough

The U.S. military is discussing significant changes in its war plans to adhere to President Obama’s new strategic guidance that downplays preparing for conflicts such as Iraq andAfghanistan, and counts on allies to provide additional troops. War planning for Iran is now the most pressing scenario, or what the Pentagon calls a contingency.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/may/1/pentagon-planning-contingency-iran-n-korea/