Saturday, March 7, 2009

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Mother Jones Magazine Tests Nonprofit Model's Strength In Recession Top
In its beginning Mother Jones, the leftist magazine founded in 1976 in San Francisco, viewed itself as a defender of independent journalism free from corporate meddling. Today it sees itself as a defender of journalism itself. More on Magazines
 
How Silicon Valley Can Help Save Newspapers Top
How badly does the newspaper industry need new ideas? Here's the story I often tell when that question comes up. The year was 2005, and I had recently joined the venerable Dow Jones (NYSE: NWS) from Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO), where I had led the team that helped build the financial portal. My job at Dow Jones was head of all consumer online sites, including WSJ.com, Barrons.com and Marketwatch.com. One day I was invited to a meeting to brainstorm about, of all things, the width of the Wall Street Journal. After I made a suggestion that was somewhere between novel and off the wall, the then-publisher leaned on the table, looked at me and said: "How old are you, young man?" The suggestion was clear: If you're under 40, you can't possibly understand the newspaper business. I still wish my response, though impolitic, had been: "How old is your thinking?" More on Newspapers
 
Tsvangirai crash: Prime Minister's Party Calls For Investigation Top
The prime minister's party on Saturday called for an investigation into the car crash that injured Morgan Tsvangirai and killed his wife, but warned Zimbabweans not to jump to conclusions about the cause. More on Zimbabwe
 
Size Of Limbaugh's Radio Audience Largely Up In The Air Top
How many people actually listen to Rush Limbaugh, the radio talk titan White House officials have spent the past week characterizing as "the head of the Republican Party"? According to what Limbaugh delights in calling "the drive-by media," the number varies wildly. Is it 30 million (Pat Buchanan on MSNBC), 20 million (Time magazine, ABC News), 19 million (Fox News), 14 million (CNN), or "14.2 million to about 25 million" (The Washington Post)?
 
Don Siegelman: Disappointed by Yesterday's Appeals Court Ruling Top
The three judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has just ruled. While they threw out two counts of my politically-motivated prosecution and conviction, they upheld several others and have sent the case back to the district court for re-sentencing. Thanks to TPM and Firedoglake for blogging about this. I am disappointed, but not discouraged. The fight will continue. If you have a chance, I hope you'll consider contributing to my legal defense fund so we can keep up the fight. My family and I are deeply appreciative of the outpouring of support and prayers, especially here on Huffington Post and throughout the netroots community. Your words and actions keep our spirits lifted and our resolve strong. We will get through this, and we will win. -- Don Don Siegelman Governor of Alabama 1999-2003
 
Aaron Zelinsky: Don't Let Madoff Cop a Plea Top
Bernie Madoff is trying to plead guilty. The U.S. Attorney's office shouldn't let him. Reports indicate that Madoff's guilty plea could come as early as next week. While the image of this modern-day Ponzi sitting in jail will warm many hearts, Madoff should not be given the privilege of pleading guilty. For the good of the American people, Madoff's victims, and the American financial regulatory system, Madoff should be tried in open court. A public criminal proceeding is the only way to develop a complete record of the largest financial fraud in history. If Madoff cuts a deal, there will be no opportunity to cross examine him, to subpoena documents, and to carry out the careful and meticulous process that a public criminal prosecution will necessarily entail. Already, there is controversy over the extent of Madoff's fraud (amazingly, he may have overstated how much money he stole - some people just don't learn). To get the facts, we need a public prosecution. Private civil litigants lack the incentives to create the complete record the U.S. Attorneys would produce, and will likely settle their suits out of court. Furthermore, a plea deal potentially allows Madoff to derail further criminal investigation. With the lead figure busted, there will be little momentum for going after those who aided and abetted his scheme. However, a criminal prosecution will more likely follow leads to establish a complete case against all who helped Madoff's fraud. Criminal prosecution will also benefit Madoff's by developing a public record which will facilitate their advancement of their civil claims. Most important, a public prosecution of Madoff will help restore confidence in the financial regulatory system. The image of Madoff cutting a deal with the government is likely to go over about as well as Alberto Gonzales at an ACLU rally. Criminal prosecutions don't merely mete out justice to the accused; they also provide an opportunity to reaffirm the values embodied in the laws being enforced. Closed door dealings between lawyers do not reaffirm our faith, or the world's faith, like an open day in court. Moreover, America deserves to know how our regulatory system broke down so severely in Madoff's case. This issue is effectively swept under the table by a plea bargain. As for Madoff himself, the Supreme Court has stated that "there is no constitutional right to plea bargain; the prosecutor need not do so if he prefers to go to trial." Weatherford v. Bursey 429 U.S. 545 (1977). The only real cost is the government resources involved in a trial. In this historically important case, the benefits from the sunlight of prosecution outweigh the burdens imposed on the government. Madoff is, no doubt, hoping to take one last page from Charles Ponzi's book. In 1920, Ponzi managed to settle his federal charges by pleading guilty to a single count of mail fraud, for which he served a scant two and one-half years. Moreover, there were no major institutional changes made to the financial regulatory system, which post-Ponzi kept humming along until its disastrous nosedive nine years later. This time, let's not make the same mistake. Bernie Madoff's case cries out for public prosecution.
 
Bombs kill 15 amid political crisis in Pakistan Top
ISLAMABAD — Three separate bombings killed 15 people in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday, while authorities investigated reports that a pilotless U.S. drone crashed elsewhere in the militant-plagued region bordering Afghanistan. The bombings, coming days after gunmen attacked Sri Lanka's visiting cricket team, were a fresh reminder of the militant threat in Pakistan, where Western leaders worry that a growing political feud could distract the government from tackling the extremists head on. Al-Qaida and Taliban fighters are believed to use pockets of Pakistan's northwest as bases to plan attacks on U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan. The U.S. has used drones to fire missile strikes against militants in the area, prompting protests from Pakistani officials who say the attacks fuel anti-American sentiment. Saturday's reports of a drone crash came from Angoor Ada village in South Waziristan, a tribal region where the main Pakistani Taliban leader, Baitullah Mehsud, is based. Army spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said authorities were investigating the reports. Two intelligence officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, said their informants and agents had yet to locate wreckage. The U.S. rarely discusses the missile operations, and the drones are believed to be CIA-operated. Col. Greg Julian, the top U.S. military spokesman in Afghanistan, declined to comment on reports of the crash. Militants have staged numerous attacks against Pakistani security forces in recent years, but one Saturday _ a car bombing _ was unusual in that a body was used to lure police, officials said. Local police chief Rahim Shah said police went to the Badaber area after an unknown caller told them of a body in a parked car. Residents and police had recently evicted militants from the area, prompting threats of retaliation. "They found the white car. They also saw a body inside, but when they were pulling it out, the car bomb went off," Shah said. Seven police and a bystander were killed. Meanwhile, a roadside bomb killed three civilians and wounded four troops Saturday in the town of Darra Adam Khel. In the Khyber tribal region, a suicide bomber killed four people and wounded five at a mosque that served as a headquarters for the militant group Ansarul Islam, government official Sadiq Khan said. Ansarul Islam is the rival of another extremist group, Lashkar-e-Islam, Khan said. Pakistan has staged military offensives in parts of its northwest, recently declaring it had defeated insurgents in the Bajur tribal region, but is also pursuing peace talks with militants in the region's Swat Valley, where it has promised to impose Islamic law. Western leaders worry that Swat could turn into a militant haven, but Pakistan has persisted with the talks. On Saturday a top regional official said authorities decided to release 12 Taliban militants. The 12 had been arrested "on charges of extremism," Syed Mohammad Javed said. "We are now setting them free." In violence elsewhere in Pakistan, heavily armed gunmen attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team in the eastern city of Lahore last Tuesday, killing six police and a driver and wounding several players before fleeing unscathed. The assault bore some resemblance to November's terrorist rampage in the Indian financial capital of Mumbai. The Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba has been blamed for that attack, in which 164 people were killed. The group's chief spokesman, Abdullah Ghaznavi, in a call Saturday to The Associated Press denied it was involved in the attack on the Sri Lankans. The group also denies involvement in the Mumbai attacks. The Sri Lankans were attacked in Punjab province, the stronghold of Pakistani opposition leader Nawaz Sharif. The federal government recently dismissed the provincial government, led by Sharif's brother, after a court disqualified the Sharifs from elected office. Their party plans to participate in a massive march on the capital in the coming week organized by lawyers calling for an independent judiciary. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said Friday it was "vital" for Pakistani politicians to stop feuding and "unite against the mortal threat that Pakistan faces, which is a threat from its internal enemies." Sharif showed no sign of backing down Saturday, encouraging Pakistanis to join the march and warning President Asif Ali Zardari he would lose support if he does not restore the deposed chief justice and reduce some presidential powers. "Zardari, you will have to pay a heavy price," Sharif warned. In response, federal Information Minister Sherry Rehman, a ruling party member, said Pakistani politicians should think about the "larger interest," "see the dangers this country is facing, and do not engulf it with flames of instability." ___ Associated Press writers Munir Ahmad and Asif Shahzad in Islamabad, Riaz Khan in Peshawar, Ishtiaq Mahsud in Dera Ismail Khan and Sherin Zada in Mingora contributed to this report. More on Pakistan
 
Julia Moulden: An Open Letter To Jeff Skoll Top
Dear Jeff Skoll, I always had you pegged as an ideas guy. I mean, co-founder of eBay, how cool is that? But lately I've been starting to see you as a man of the people. The idea at the core of eBay was empowering, wasn't it? The revolutionary notion that everyone can become an entrepreneur. And then, when your big idea made you very rich, you thought hard about what to do with those resources. And you got a great piece of advice, "Bet on good people doing good things." Which is precisely what you've done. And, maybe because you deliberately have such a low personal profile, Jeff (I mean, you're not in boldface alongside Paris Hilton, are you?), I'm just starting to put it all together. First, I watched the talk you gave at the TED conference. That helped. I knew that you'd started the Skoll Foundation to help develop the emerging field of social entrepreneurship. (I've been writing about social entrepreneurs in recent weeks, Jeff, but need to do a quick definition for those who are new to this world. A social entrepreneur is someone who applies the approaches and spirit of the entrepreneur - things like innovation, leadership, tenacity, risk-taking, and vision - to help drive social change. Rather than focusing exclusively on making money, these entrepreneurs are driven to achieve social goals - like helping people start small businesses and secure access to health care, education, and clean water.) The Skoll Foundation has been investing in, connecting, and celebrating social entrepreneurs around the world for more than a decade. And social entrepreneurs aren't billionaires (no offence intended), which is what people often think - "You have to be rich to do this work." In fact, one of the best-known examples was started with just $27. There's more in the Social Entrepreneurship 101 video your team produced. Next, you created a way for the growing community of social entrepreneurs to connect. Social Edge is a site where social entrepreneurs can exchange ideas and information, and support one another. I particularly like the discussions hosted by these innovators and professionals in various disciplines, like marketing and finance. All good, but not yet enough for you. Eager to reach even more people, you came up with the wild idea of starting a production company to make films with big messages, Participant Media. http://www.participantmedia.com. The best-known example? The one everyone calls Al Gore's movie, "An Inconvenient Truth." Here, I need to pause for breath, Jeff. Phew! But before I sign off, there's another piece I need to mention. Each year, you host the Skoll World Forum - kind of like Davos, but for social entrepreneurs. This year, 800 people from 60 countries will convene at Oxford University's Said Business School to talk about how to advance social entrepreneurship, to network, and share best practices. It happens on March 25 - 27, and everyone can "listen in" by following live blogs on both the Skoll World Forum and Social Edge sites. Sessions will be recorded and aired after the event, right? Jeff, I see social entrepreneurs as being of a larger movement I've dubbed the New Radicals -- that is, men and women who've discovered how to put skills acquired in their careers to work on the world's greatest challenges. New Radicals are people like you and me, Jeff, who truly believe that each of us can make a difference in the world. (For more, please see archived articles .) I'm writing to say, "Go, Jeff!" - and that we look forward to your next big idea. I also want to ask the question that's on everyone's minds - What impact will the economic downturn have on all of this hopeful, world-changing work? Yours sincerely, Julia Moulden, New Radical P.S. As always, I invite readers to share their thoughts on today's post by commenting below, or by emailing me directly (julia@wearethenewradicals.com.) More on The Giving Life
 
Obama Puts Defense Contractors On Notice About Crackdown On Costs Top
President Barack Obama fired a surprise broadside at the defense industry, saying he intends to clamp down on practices that have resulted in billions of dollars in cost overruns and delays in recent years. At a time when Washington faces the prospect of bailing out multiple sectors of the economy, contractors' cost overruns are showing up on the radar of many in the capital. And the Pentagon, which spends about $330 billion a year to buy everything from fighters to paper clips, is a particular focus of the new administration.
 

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