WASHINGTON – Here’s how Maine’s members of the U.S. Senate were recorded on major roll call votes in the week ending Nov. 14. Brown nomination Voting 53 for and 43 against, the Senate on Nov. 14 failed to reach the 60 votes needed to end a Democratic filibuster against the nomination of California Supreme Court […]

There are good reasons why there is a separation of church and state. In 1954, after a campaign by the Knights of Columbus, Congress added the words “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance.It was less a theological statement than a reflection of America’s desire to stand against “godless communism.” And yet its theological implications […]

Polls say country is almost evenly split between Democrats and Republicans.By Steven ThommaKnight Ridder Newspapers WASHINGTON – A year before Election Day, the number of people who identify themselves as Republicans is significantly larger than when George W. Bush was elected president, particularly in several pivotal states such as Florida and Michigan that often prove […]

While the nation has grown more Republican since George W. Bush took office, party affiliation in Maine has remained relatively stagnant for the two major parties. In fact, the GOP lost slightly more than 1,000 enrolled voters between 2000 and 2002, while Democrats increased their numbers by a little more than 1,000.The number of independents […]

AUSTIN, Texas – Sheesh, it’s hard to keep up with this administration. Just a few days ago, we were going to stick it out, no matter what. Like Horton the Elephant, we would be faithful, 100 percent – never give up, never surrender.Now we’re going to bug out before next year’s election, troops must be […]

AUSTIN, Texas – What a great country. We’ve just had a fierce public debate over a docudrama no one has seen, culminating in a form of censorship. Not having seen the bio-pic about the Reagans was no bar to the punditry, which held forth ferociously.Indeed, many of our fellow citizens, who also hadn’t seen the […]

Q I have an interest in hypnosis. Can you tell me anything about the origin of the word “hypnosis” or “hypnotism”? – G. K., Danbury, Conn. A: “Hypnosis” comes from a name in Greek mythology, and from the same story that also gives us the word “morphine.” In Greek mythology, Hypnos (in Latin, Somnus) was […]

Not long ago, a columnist who covers the Supreme Court was writing about a defamation case from Iowa. The case involved a Methodist church that had been torn by dissension. The dissension, said the writer, “appeared to center around” a woman.Center “around”? Tom Foote of Olympia, Wash., objected: “‘Around’ is an imprecise word that evokes […]

WASHINGTON – Here’s how Maine’s members of Congress were recorded on major roll call votes in the week ending Nov. 7. HOUSE Prison industries Voting 350 for and 65 against, the House on Nov. 6 passed a bill (HR 1829) enabling private companies to compete against the federal prison system for a range of government […]

Top university administrators recognized for lack of vision. Many readers with far too much time on their hands have written in and asked: Whatever happened to this column’s annual Sheldon Award? Well, it’s back. As all Sheldon fans know, the prize goes to the university president who does the most to look the other way […]