A suicide bomber rammed his car into a police residential complex in Pakistan yesterday, killing at least 20 people, officials said, in another blow for a country grappling with devastating floods.A decades-long decline in smoking rates leveled off in 2005 and has changed little ever since, according to a government study that calls for more funding for anti-smoking programs.The pastor of a Gainesville, Fla., church planning to burn Korans on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks said he’s now “weighing” what to do after Army Gen. David Petraeus’s warning that the event would endanger U.S. troops.Despite spending two seasons on “Real Housewives of New Jersey,” it seems Danielle Staub managed to emerge with some notions of self-worth, decency and the dangers of reality TV. Bravo, Danielle!Drew Barrymore has had some duds for onscreen partners in romantic comedies — not that she’s about to name names. “The worst is when you’re kissing someone who is not a good kisser, and you’re trying to make it look good, and you feel like you’re just working on your own,” she says. Luckily her latest film, “Going the Distance,” pairs her with someone very near to her heart: ex-boyfriend Justin Long.Ready to tackle all those home-repair projects you’ve been putting off in favor of days down the shore? Head to the West Philly Tool Library, where homeowners can borrow an unlimited number of tools and ladders for up to seven days. It costs just $20 for a yearly membership, and “tool librarians” are always on hand to lend expert advice.NEW YORK. The State University of New York has adopted new practices to help prevent students from falling victim to deceptive credit card marketing that can burden them with too much debt in tough economic times.Surfing is an excellent total-body workout combining upper and lower body strength, cardiovascular fitness, core strength, stability, balance and flexibility.Just as the world looks to Brazil as a nation that knows how to party, Bra-zil looks to Salvador as the city that can out-party even Rio. This corner of the northeastern state of Bahia is party central 365 days a year. Salvador is the oldest city in Brazil and was its capital for more than 200 years. And even 300 years ago it picked up a nickname which translates to Nearly All the Sins.Placing yourself in a choice college can be a numbers game, and if your GPA or tuition veers off, your most frugal and strategic bet might be to transfer.
Political movements are becoming ever more like a match tossed into a room full of dynamite: No matter which stick you are aiming for, chances are a lot of others will fire off, too.
Case in point: the movement to side-step the Electoral College and elect presidents purely by popular vote. Massachusetts jumped hard on that bandwagon, and rattled down the last stretch of road toward making it their law this week. New Jersey, Maryland, Washington, Illinois and Hawaii have already approved such measures.
The attraction is simple. Americans don’t like the idea of the person they pick for office losing the election because of this strange, historic institution of the Electoral College. In fairness, it doesn’t happen often, but it can and it did in recent memory. Al Gore in 2000 had more popular votes than George Bush, but you may have noticed Mr. Gore never moved his things into the Oval Office, we went to Iraq, and the rest ... as they say ... is the stuff vendettas are made of.
So common wisdom has it that disgruntled Democrats are driving this movement. That said, pundits on both sides of the aisle are dissecting the ways in which a popular vote might benefit their party. But if this movement continues, I suspect they both might be shocked by the long-term results.
Voters are hugely united by a profound irritation with the status quo, and a purely popular vote would make it much harder for either party to triangulate key states to win, especially in a tight election. That volatility could make the White House door swing much wider for all sorts of third-party, no-party and wild-party candidates who simply capture the public’s fancy in the home stretch. Did anyone say Howard Stern?
What’s more, if the winner must have a majority, not merely a plurality, relatively oddball players who grab, oh say, 10 percent of the vote, could suddenly become kingmakers, wheeling and dealing their support to whichever near-front-runner will give them the most concessions.
I’m not saying a popular vote is a bad idea. What I’m saying is the unintended consequences could also prove to be utterly unexpected and calamitous for the two parties and their supporters, some of whom even now seem blind to the surprises the public may have in store for them.
– CNN’s Tom Foreman is a regular on “AC360°”/www.ac360.com and “Campbell Brown: No Bias, No Bull.”
Metro does not endorse the opinions of the author, or any opinions expressed on its pages. Opposing viewpoints are welcome. Please send 300-word submissions to letters@metro.us.
|
|
| Advertise with us | About Metro | Contact us | Careers | Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Classified Advertising © Copyright 2010 Metro International |
|