The Michael Vick case brings to the forefront some interesting bits of history concerning what constitutes sport; the relationship of sport to gambling; the confluence of sport and masculinity.

Ahe evolution of what is seen as civilized and barbaric behavior; and the ways in which people react to that behavior.

More concern seemed to focus on cruelty to animals than to humans, a tendency still familiar to us today.

Cruelty to animals was increasingly described as uncivilized or barbaric, especially as a form of entertainment.

Social reformers -- both evangelical Christians and humanitarians, who saw this as part of a larger crusade to clean up society and infuse it with Christian values -- drove the attack on blood sports.   more »

Shortly after Lindsay Lohan was busted on suspicion of drunk driving and drug possession her father and a parade of Hollywood celebrities made sobbing, heart wrenching pleas on the Larry King show for public understanding of Lohan's ordeal.

There are thousands of drug offenders that need the same compassion and help as Lohan.

The big difference is that these drug abusers aren't high-profile, bankable screen commodities.

They are mostly poor blacks and Latinos. The estimate is that nearly one-fourth of the more than one million blacks that pack America's prisons are there for non-violent, drug-related crimes. It costs billions to keep them there.   more »

Having spent more than a decade in the world of advertising, I suppose it's only natural I tend to view political candidates and their campaigns as brands.

Brands can be broken down into two components: a rational offer (I buy Product X because it does Y) and an emotional appeal (I buy Product X because it makes me feel Y).

Of course, the most successful brands do both, presenting a compelling reason for consumers to choose one product over another.

In the race for the Democratic presidential nomination right now we're witnessing a battle between two powerful brands.   more »

The Bush Regime has set out to make fear and anxiety over terrorism the center of public life. It hopes to appeal to the confusion of more backward sections of the population in order to bludgeon popular opposition to its agenda of militarism and political repression at home.

In so doing, Bush has enjoyed the support of the Democratic Party, which, far from exposing this cynical attempt to manipulate public opinion, has fully embraced the so-called “war on terror.”

The Democrats have frequently attacked Bush for not going far enough in “securing the homeland.”

There is no doubt that the brutal neo-colonialist foreign policy of the US government has placed the American people in danger of another terrorist attack.

However, the greatest threat to the democratic rights and safety of the American people, and the people of the world, comes not from Islamic extremists in the Middle East, but from US imperialism and the warmongers in Washington.   more »

The report also criticized the US-led financial and political boycott of the Hamas government.

It lamented how the aid cut led to "a devastating effect on the socio-economic fabric and on the human rights situation in the Palestinian territories. "

"It is becoming evident that the Quartet approach contributed nothing to ameliorate the crisis," said the parliamentary subcommittee.

In the wake of June's bloody infighting that ended up with Hamas controlling the Gaza Strip, Washington adopted a "West Bank first" strategy to support Abbas.   more »