The bombings today in Baghdad–Sunni attacks on Shi’ites, it seems– may be a precursor to a very delicate situation. On Wednesday, October 1, the U.S. relinquishes responsibility for the Sunni Awakening Councils–the former insurgents we pay ($300 per month) to not insurge–and the Maliki government takes over. Will Maliki continue to pay them? Will he incorporate them into the Iraqi Security Forces? Will he find other work for them?…Or will he stiff them? This is a big moment–if Maliki behaves well, this could go a long way toward reconciliation. If he behaves badly, things could get very messy very quickly.
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Rick Santorum Wants to Fight ‘The Dangers Of Contraception’
Candidates often say things when polling in the single digits that come back to haunt them when they start leading the polls. Last October, Rick Santorum gave an interview with an Evangelical blog called Caffeinated Thoughts, in which he said contraception is “not okay,” and that this would be a public policy issue he would tackle as President. In particular, he said he would “get rid of any idea that you have to have abortion coverage or contraceptive coverage” as a government policy. Start watching the following video at 17:55.
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There’s nothing “wrong” with protests built around placard-hoisting and park-squatting, but Occupy the SEC is definitely doing something right with its radically different tack. The OWS-offshoot has submitted a 325-page letter to federal financial regulatory agencies on the Volcker Rule, a controversial measure designed to prohibit banks from proprietary trading, or making investments with their own dollars rather than their customers’, that was passed as part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform law.
