This Week in the LA Progressive: March 2 to 8

Budget

• Obama Rescuing Capitalism: That’s a Lot of Weight for One Brother. Obama is present at the re-creation of the global economic system. “It is a challenge he has to take up,” Like I said, that’s a lot of weight. –Carl Bloice

• Is Obama Responsible for Wall Street’s Meltdown? Where Populist Rage Is Heading. The argument that Obama is somehow responsible for the collapse of Wall Street is absurd. –Robert Reich

• A Nation of Tax-Evaders. The furor over the non-payment of taxes by recent nominees for public office should not obscure the deeper truth that we have become a nation of tax-evaders. –Lawrence S. Wittner

• With Obama, It’s 1935 All Over Again. I wonder how many readers really expected President Obama to so quickly and aggressively promote such huge new domestic programs and spending increases. –Randy Shaw

• Worse Than Expected on the Economy. The stimulus is too small, says Robert Reich. He bets the President will be back for more stimulus. –Robert Reich

Prop Hate

• Court Should Strike Down Proposition 8. The Court should strike down Prop 8. Same sex marriage has the protection of Article 1 and, like other inalienable rights, cannot be taken away by a popular vote -–Jerry Brown

• Prop 8: 18,000 Same-Sex Marriages Hang in Balance at California Supreme Court Hearing. Within the next week, the California Supreme Court will hear oral arguments to help determine the constitutionality of Proposition 8. –Carl Matthes

War & Peace

• Erasing Red Ink: Slash the Defense Budget. Obama has a tough row to hoe to equal his Democratic compatriots Carter and Clinton at deficit reduction; he must start with big cuts in the defense budget. –Ivan Eland

• Afghan War Haunted by Bush’s War Crimes. While additional American troops are being deployed to Afghanistan, George W. Bush’s misdeeds continue to handicap combat effectiveness there. –Michael Haas

• Bringing Veterans and Military Personnel into the Democratic Party. As Democrats, we need to support military families and veterans, and set aside the politics! –Carla Mays

• Obama’s Military Response in Afghanistan Not the Path Martin Luther King Would Have Walked. If he truly reveres the example of Martin Luther King, Obama will forge a non-violent response in Afghanistan that will lead to a peaceful resolution. –Sherwood Ross

Equality

• Southern Governors Block the Stimulus Like the Schoolhouse Door. If nothing else, this latest chapter of the Republican Party makes for good entertainment, and I have my popcorn ready. –David A. Love

• Study Links Poorer Hospital Care to Racial Segregation. Doctors and researchers find that African-Americans with heart disease receive lower-quality care, part of a larger problem of health disparities in America. –Sheri Fink

• Prop 1E Threatens Mental Health Services for Needy. Proposition 1E would impact counties’ ability to provide mental health services to people in need, and lead to long-term adverse consequences. –Patricia Ryan

• New Americans: A Springboard for California’s Economy. California’s immigrants and their children climb up the socioeconomic ladder over time and most Californians have economically benefited as a result. –Andrea Christina Nill

• Return to Mexico City – Growth of a Nation. The ESPN special, “Return to Mexico City ” is a thorough retrospective on the legacies of Tommie Smith and John Carlos. --H. Scott Prosterman

• R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Regardless to the manner in which African Americans conduct themselves, the New York Post’s actions are not in the least bit acceptable or justifiable. –H. Lewis Smith

Political Skulduggery

• Cons, Convicts, and Government Contractors. As Obama calls for reform in government contracting, it’s worth taking a look back at last week’s congressional hearing. –Christina Jewett

• Memos Provide Blueprint for Police State. Seven newly released memos from the Bush Justice Department reveal a concerted strategy to cloak the President with power to override the Constitution. –Marjorie Cohn

• Who’s Leading the Republican Party? Rush Limbaugh and the Resurrection of “Massive Resistance.” imbaugh is trying to inspire a resistance movement that he knows exists, but most of America had simply forgot about. Massive resistance hasn’t gone anywhere. -Anthony Asadullah Samad

Media

• Is iTunes New Economic Model for Failing Newspapers? As the San Francisco Chronicle faces its last days and others have died, the question is whether any comparable news alternative can emerge. –Randy Shaw

• Samuel J. Wurzelbacher, Joe the Plumber: Fighting for the American Dream. The Honorable Samuel J. Wurzelbacher is in fact a humble American workingman who wants nothing more than to unclog toilets and chase turds in obscurity. –Joseph Palermo