On Georgia Regents University

The merger of the campuses of Augusta State University and Georgia Health Sciences University has been in process for some time.  A major part of that process was, of course, naming the new university. Names had been thrown around, but ultimately there were three choices for the Board of Regents to choose from: Georgia Arts and Sciences University, Georgia Regents University, and University of Augusta. 

Popular opinion in the city of Augusta quickly coalesced around University of Augusta. After all, it would have reflected a tradition of the name of the city staying in the title (with Augusta College and Augusta State coming before it) and it would have made perfect sense from a marketing standpoint. While Augusta has The Masters and James Brown as claims to fame, it wouldn't hurt that the new university still keep the name of the city. 

Of course, this meant that the Board of Regents chose the least liked name: Georgia Regents University. As soon as it was announced yesterday (Aug. 7) the uproar was swift and virtually unanimous. For proof of the amount of citizens upset over the decision, just look at the comments against it on The Augusta Chronicle's story, as well as the hastily formed facebook group "Everyone Against Georgia Regents University Sound Off", which has over 2,300 likes after only a day of operation. 

Suffice to say this isn't over, as there's already talk of protests against the name, as well as Regent University in Virginia not being happy about the name either. Expect to see more here, but right now most citizens of Augusta want something more than sharing an acronym with a Russian intelligence agency or the villain from an animated film.

Election 2012: Going Global

Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson (one of my favorites) makes an astute observation that this year's election campaign may depend as much on overseas events as on domestic concerns about the economy:

It may not be the economy, stupid.

Then again, James Carville’s famous maxim about the 1992 presidential campaign might well be valid in 2012. But it’s quite possible that on Election Day, voters’ most urgent concerns — economic or not — will be driven by overseas events that neither President Obama nor his Republican opponent can predict or control.

Robinson notes Afghanistan, Korea, Syria, Iran, and events in Europe as potential pitfalls for both the President and Governor Romney. While overseas events have had major impact on presidential campaigns (1940, 1948, 1968, 1980, and 2004 come to mind with varying degrees of impact), 2012 presents so many different international issues that trying to predict the election right now is a fool's errand.

French Election 2012: The Spring of France's Discontent

Sunday will see the first round of voting in the 2012 French Presidential Election. The key candidates are Nicholas Sarkozy, the incumbent president of France; Francois Holland, the Socialist Party candidate and seen by many as the favorite; Marine Le Pen, the far-Right candidate who's made noise much as her father, Jean Le Pen, used to for their National Front Party;  and Jean-Luc Melenchon, candidate of the Left Front, a coalition of lefitsts.

The economy is the big issue in France, and it may be one of the factors that costs Sarkozy his job the same way it has cost incumbent governments their positions in the United Kingdom, Italy, and Spain. The Washington Post has a fascinating piece about why the election should matter to Americans here. Suffice to say, with French discontent with the current structure of the European Union at an all time high, and the fragile coalition struggling to deal with the myriad of economic crises facing the world, this election may have effects on our own, and certainly on the future of the relationship between France, Europe, and the rest of the world.

Do the French know that? Or are they seeking an escape from a Europe that has somewhat passed them by:

But few things have been said about the gravity of the French economic crisis: the deficits in France’s public accounts and balance of payments; its drop in competitiveness; its decline in international commerce; its apathetic growth.

Discontent with the Establishment and the elite is high in France right now, due to the economic crisis and the malaise French mainstream politics have become to millions of French citizens.

The two-part structure of France’s presidential race means that many voters may be using the first round to afford themselves a protest vote. Even so, analysts say, the number who appear willing to do so by voting for the political fringe signals an alarming degree of disaffection, even anger, among the French at a critical time when they must decide which direction to take in addressing the grinding euro crisis and their nation’s economic malaise. 

 I'm almost surprised we haven't seen some sort of third party rise up in the United States. Putting aside talk of a centrist candidate drafted via the internet, nothing else has come up--yet. But in France, due to their unique electoral system, the system will hear the complaints of millions who want more out of their candidates.

Bruins' Thomas Taunted With Obama Signs

Tim Thomas Taunted With Obama Signs By Capitals Fans:

Despite being named Stanley Cup MVP, Thomas refused to join his team in D.C. when Obama honored the Bruins, citing political issues. In a statement posted on Facebook, 

Thomas said he believes the federal government "has grown out of control" but also wrote that he blames both political parties.
Before the playoffs began, Thomas abruptly ended a media session when a question was asked about the skipping out on Obama. 

Capitals fans didn't let him off the hook that easily. In honor of Thomas' White House snub, several Caps bloggers coordinated a fan effort to revisit the story and taunt him with pictures of Obama's face and posters depicting the president (some which were gigantic).

This is the first time I've seen a political form of taunt from sports fans. I know certain hooligan and ultra groups in Europe and South America have either extreme left-wing or right-wing ideologies, but I've never seen American fans overtly using politics to taunt a player or team. Is this a symptom of the polarization of today's politics? Or is it just a clever prank?

Tet 2.0?

Juan Cole:

"One local Afghan newspaper was left puzzling as to the purpose of these attacks, which, like those in Baghdad, likely have not hope of tactical success. The article speculates that the Taliban are trying to keep the US boots on the ground, just as President Hamid Karzai is, so as to extract strategic rent from the ongoing Western presence in Afghanistan. That is, some allege that the attacks in Kabul were motivated by a desire to draw the US into a longer-term occupation, so that the Taliban can be assured of having someone to fight. (Seems unlikely to me, but interesting that it appeared in the Afghan press. And, I don’t think it would work. Most Americans, even Republicans, want out, and I think most US troops will be out by 2014…)"

Taliban attacks on Afghan and Coalition forces are becoming increasingly more brazen. This past weekend the group launched a series of coordinated attacks in Kabul. The attacks caused minimal damage and were quickly repelled, but worries remain. The purpose of the attacks may have been more about winning the media war than winning the war on the ground. Kabul, the capital, was once thought to be the only "safe" place in Afghanistan. So safe in fact, that US and NATO forces handed over security to Afghanistan in 2008. But not anymore. Using tactics that are reminiscent of 1968 Tet Offensive, the Taliban are starting to attack places once thought to be untouchable. The more brazen the attack, the more headlines it gets back in the U.S., and the more likely we are to sue for peace. It's a strategy that worked for the Viet Cong and it may very well work again.

Perhaps Another "First" For President Obama?

The first polls portraying a head to head matchup between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama are out. They vary, as is expected, with the CNN poll giving the incumbent president a good, but not insurmountable, lead, while the Gallup poll gives Mitt Romney a slight lead that's within the margin of error.

The most important news, however, is that President Obama is the first incumbent to trail in the poll at this point in the election since 1976. However, some pundits have pointed out that, for example, Jimmy Carter led Ronald Reagan at this point in 1980 (in fact he led until a week before the election) and George H.W. Bush led Bill Clinton at this point in 1992. And even looking at 1976, Gerald Ford almost pulled off a stunning comeback against then-challenger Jimmy Carter.


Of course, national opinion polls have to be considered in context of the Electoral College. President Obama's actually doing better there, leading in most key battleground states at this point. With the disparate polling results, it's begged the question on  The Atlantic.com of whether President Obama will become the first incumbent president re-elected without winning a majority of the popular vote. One could easily see the scenario of President Obama winning a tough re-election fight, the Democrats taking back the House (or at least cutting into the GOP margin) and the Democrats losing the Senate. Essentially, neither party would have much of a mandate.


But we've got a long way to go yet.

Obama Starting a Rap Beef?

The Atlantic:

“Although I like Kanye,” Obama continues, with an easy smile. “He’s a Chicago guy. Smart. He’s very talented.” He is displaying his larger awareness of the question, looking relaxed, cerebral but friendly, alive to the moment, waiting for me to get to the heart of the matter. 

“Even though you called him a jackass?,” I ask. 

“He is a jackass,” Obama says, in his likable and perfectly balanced modern-professorial voice. “But he’s talented.” The president gives a wink, poses for a few more pictures, and then glides away to meet with the rich Manhattan lawyers in the other room, leaving behind a verdict that he intended to be funny, and also entirely deliberate: even before an audience of one, the leader of the free world is still not letting Kanye West off the hook.