Category Archives: Politics

ONLY ON YAHOO! SHINE: Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden Discuss Supporting Military Families in Honor of Veteran’s Day

*Michelle Obama: If Malia or Sasha Joined the Military, “I Would Be Proud.”*

In an exclusive interview with Yahoo! Shine (https://shine.yahoo.com), the leading women’s lifestyle website with more than 30 million visitors per month, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden discuss the importance of supporting military families and how the First Lady would feel is her daughters enlisted. As a military mom herself, Dr. Jill Biden also discusses ways we can support returning Veterans. (more…)

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Greek ‘Anti-Economist’ Offers Solution to Economic Crisis

*Standing room only crowd at Hart House*

Yanis Varoufakis, a self-described anti-economist, told a standing-room only crowd at Hart House that the current economic crisis could be solved in two weeks; provided the political will to do so also existed. (more…)

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Government Secrecy Claims Too Broad, MU Study Finds

*Mosaic theory interferes with public’s right to know, MU expert says*

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Since September 11, 2001, the global war on terror has changed the way the U.S. government regards secrecy and transparency. Journalism researchers from the University of Missouri are concerned about the impact this may have on information freedom in the future. Charles Davis, an associate professor of journalism studies at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, has found that more and more government agencies are using the “mosaic theory” to rationalize keeping government information secret. Mosaic theory is a legal theory used to uphold the classification of information, saying that a collection of unclassified information might add up into a classified whole. Davis finds this trend disturbing. (more…)

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Digital Media A Factor in Ferocity of Political Campaigns

MU researcher finds negative language inspires further viciousness

A University of Missouri study of recent political blogs indicates politics are getting nastier due to digital media, which are segmenting people into polarized interest groups. The researcher recommends a balanced approach to finding information in order to return civility to political discourse, which is at the heart of democracy. (more…)

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Black and White American Voters Live in One Country, But Two Different Worlds

The political outlook of blacks in America has undergone dramatic swings in the last ten years — from the depths of powerlessness during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, to the zenith with the election of the first black president, Barack Obama.

Now, with another presidential election looming, blacks are again confronting new issues as they judge and sometimes question the impact of Obama’s election, contends UChicago political scientist Michael Dawson, whose work finds sharp contrasts between how African Americans and whites feel about their country. (more…)

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Native Americans Stuck in a Political Irony

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Domestic violence against Native American women and pollution of American Indian land – mostly at the hands of non-Native Americans – are just two of many issues that could destroy the American Indian way of life, according to a Michigan State University law professor. (more…)

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Personal Relationships Key to Successful Diplomacy: Mulroney

*Former prime minister’s speech honours Alan Gotlieb, former ambassador to U.S.*

Former prime minister Brian Mulroney, the man entrepreneur Peter Munk described as “one of our greatest statesmen,” attributed much of his success – and Canada’s under his leadership – to the personal relationships he and his ambassador cultivated with leaders south of the border.

Mulroney spoke at a University of Toronto conference, Diplomacy in the Digital Age, Oct. 13, an event held in honour of Alan Gotlieb, the former ambassador to the United States who served three prime ministers. (more…)

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Great Speeches: How to Know One If We Hear One

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — With the season for political oratory hard upon us, how does the rhetoric of this year’s crop of presidential contenders measure up?

“So far none of the Republicans stands out as a great orator,” said Sara Forsdyke, an associate professor of classical studies and history at the University of Michigan College of Literature, Science & the Arts (LSA).

“And while President Obama has delivered some great speeches in the past, his oratory has gone downhill recently. I was quite disappointed in his jobs speech to the joint session of Congress.” (more…)

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