On the Streets of Beirut

This one from Al-Jazeera English, it's a taste of what's happening on the streets of Beirut now that Hezbollah has taken control of many parts of the city. Euronews and No Comment tv have more of the fighting:

From Sichuan University

More out of Sichuan - this from about 100 miles away from the epicenter, recorded by a student at Sichuan University.

Videos out of Sichuan

This video from giorgiusgam comes from a security camera in Sichuan.  Start paying attention at 4:45 and to get a real sense for the strength of the quake, watch the goldfish bowl in the bottom right corner.  RheinOnline has more below, all of it frankly terrifying.  The NYT also has a photo essay worth checking out.  The death toll, now at 12,000, is still climbing; relief workers warn that as more buildings are uncovered (80 percent of those in downtown Chengdu are said to have fallen), bodies will continue to surface.  The NYT suggests that as many as 10,000 names could be added to the lists of those gone at the hands of the quake which the LAT reports was felt from "Beijing to Bangkok."  Human disaster...

Spoof on Obama's "Yes we can" video

G4TV, a gaming channel, released this spoof of the now famous "Yes we can" video. This one, entitled "Yes we shall," features celebrities, but the candidate they are supporting isn't Obama. It's completely silly, but amusing, nonetheless. Check it out below.

Tags: Obama , yes we can , spoof , g4tv

Previewing tomorrow's W.Va primary

It looks as though Hillary Clinton is well-positioned for a big win in Tuesday's West Virginia primary, according to polls. The latest poll coming out of the state has her up 36 percentage points over Barack Obama. With daunting math in front of her, and the media already crowning Obama, what significance might tomorrow's contest have on the nomination battle? CNN's Bill Schneider writes that a huge win could send a message to superdelegates that a lot Dems are not ready to join team Obama. It also may cause Obama to think twice about putting Clinton on the ticket, he writes. I'm not so sure about that, but a big win will probably be a slight wake-up call for superdelegates-not a game changer, however CNN:

Tags: hillary clinton , barack obama , democratic nomination , west virginia

Welcome Daniel!

A huge congratulations to Josh and Millet and welcome (already adorable) Daniel Marshall to the world.

Tags: daniel marshall , josh marshall baby

Obama adviser who met with Hamas resigns

Call me crazy, but I don't think this will help Obama with the Jewish vote. From the Chicago Sun-Times:

May 11, 2008
LYNN SWEET blogs.suntimes.com/sweet

Rob Malley, a Middle East policy adviser to likely Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama, resigned after news surfaced that he had been meeting with Hamas -- something Obama pledged he himself would never do.

Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt said Saturday Malley called the Obama campaign on Friday to sever ties with the candidate after learning the Times of London was publishing a story about his contacts with the terrorist group.

Malley is an analyst at the Washington, D.C.-based International Crisis Group, specializing in the Israeli-Arab conflict. He told NBC...

Tags: Obama , McCain , resignation , hamas

For Missouri voters, you better have proof you're American

The battle of voter identification may get nastier. Now, lawmakers in Missouri are expected to support a proposed constitutional amendment to enable election officials to require proof of citizenship from anyone registering to vote, according to the New York Times. This would allow even stricter demands than the current voter ID requirements, in which voters have to prove their identity with a government-issued card. NYT:

"Sponsors of the amendment — which requires the approval of voters to go into effect, possibly in an August referendum — say it is part of an effort to prevent illegal immigrants from affecting the political process. Critics say the measure could lead to the disenfranchisement of tens of thousands of legal...

Tags: missouri , voter identification , presidential election

Monday Morning Must-Reads

Leader of GOP Convention Resigns after Myanmar Ties Reported  [AP]   The man picked by the John McCain campaign to run the 2008 Republican National Convention resigned Saturday after a report that his lobbying firm used to represent the military regime in Myanmar. Doug Goodyear resigned as convention coordinator and issued a two sentence statement: "Today I offered the convention my resignation so as not to become a distraction in this campaign. I continue to strongly support John McCain for president, and wish him the best of luck in this campaign."  Goodyear, chief executive of lobbying firm DCI Group, resigned a few hours after Newsweek posted a story posted online that the company was paid $348,000 in 2002 and 2003 to represent...

Score one for the good guys

Newsweek's Michael Isikoff reports earlier today:

After John McCain nailed down the Republican nomination in March, his campaign began wrestling with a sensitive personnel issue: who would manage this summer's GOP convention in St. Paul, Minn.? The campaign recently tapped Doug Goodyear for the job, a veteran operative and Arizonan who was chosen for his "management experience and expertise," according to McCain press secretary Jill Hazelbaker. But some allies worry that Goodyear's selection could fuel perceptions that McCain—who has portrayed himself as a crusader against special interests—is surrounded by lobbyists. Goodyear is CEO of DCI Group, a consulting firm that earned $3 million last year lobbying for ExxonMobil,...