A lot of my male heroes have been assholes. Dr. Seuss, they say, was a philandering bigot. John Lennon, by all accounts, was abusive. J. D. Salinger and Charlie Chaplin preyed on young women. And, as we know, Thomas Jefferson actually bought and sold human beings, at least one of whom he had sexual relations […]
Tag Archives: John Edwards
Facing sexual assault allegations, Al Franken forces Democrats to confront the fact that sexual abuse isn’t a partisan issue
Howard Dean on his 2004 run for President: “We were really running against the Democratic party… The Democratic party was becoming increasingly what we would now call corporatist. They’d given up. They just weren’t fighting for a better country.”
A few days ago, at the Netroots Nation conference, I had the good fortune to catch a session with former presidential candidate, and progressive standard bearer, Howard Dean. Following is the first of three videos I hope to post over the coming weeks, accompanied by my quick attempt at transcription. In this clip, you’ll hear […]
The subject of poverty finally makes its way into the presidential campaign
As I’ve mentioned before, I was born in Lexington, Kentucky, the day before Robert Kennedy arrived there to begin his tour of Appalachia. I don’t know that it explains why, over the course of my life, I’ve been so drawn to Kennedy, but it’s an odd coincidence, I think, and I find it hard to […]
Winning in November isn’t enough, says Van Jones. We also have to mobilize against Obama.
I know he’s a big hero to many on the left, but Van Jones sometimes rubs me the wrong way. He’s too smiley, or something. Maybe it’s a reaction to having been taken in by John Edwards, but I now prefer my heros to be a bit more wonky, and bit less telegenic. But, at […]