A while ago, President Obama revealed his new plan for Afghanistan. For those of you who don’t remember (Okay, I’ll admit it. We need a refresher too!), the plan included aid that would help Afghanistan’s development.

Some of the aid money goes directly to local tribal elders, who then disperse it in the community.

Back in the 1990s, when similar outlays of cash were made available to the tribal elders, the Taliban would go to the elders and demand the money. Today, the newly resurgent Taliban is trying the same trick.

However, now, some tribal leaders are standing up to the Taliban.

Their actions come with consequences. Recently, elders who have refused to give money to the Taliban have been shot.

This is a shocking reminder of the dangers that threaten progress in Afghanistan.

Still, the resolute opposition by some tribal elders to the Taliban’s demands is an interesting new development.

It could indicate that Obama’s strategy for civilian aid might be working. What do you think? Is Obama’s plan wise?

Some days you get out of bed … and want to roll back into bed and pull the covers over your head. In the cartoon above, the poor sea bed doesn’t look so enticing.  Yes, things are not looking so good in the Gulf of Mexico these days. Even so, things could be worse. You could be a fish. (cartoon by KAL)

 

All right, let’s start with Wall Street. As displayed in the cartoon above (by KAL), Washington politicians are not pleased with the money folks from Wall Street. The biggest target is Goldman Sachs, who  sent its best and brightest to the Hill this week to answer some tough questions. Here is their highlight real:

Sad. We know what you are asking yourselves right now: these guys are MILLIONAIRES?! (Remember Gucci Mane is also a millionaire, so think about that.)

Really, the truth is that these bankers are playing very smart to act stupid.

According to K. Lee Blalack II, the lawyer Goldman hired to help navigate the hearings, acting dense is their official strategy.

“Blalack says a well-trained witness can minimize exposure by simply running out the clock:

Long, thoughtful pauses followed by rambling non responsive answers can easily devour half of a member’s allotted questioning time.

COYOTES BEWARE… Don’t Mess With Texas:

You especially don’t want to mess with Texas’ governor Rick Perry, who, according to recent events, travels strapped with a .380 Ruger laser sighted pistol. (Loaded with hollow points.)

Perry was reportedly jogging with his dog near Austin when a coyote began to stalk him and his Labrador.

The Governor put the coyote down with one shot.

Marijuana and the GOP:

Would you be suspicious if a Republican asked you to support marijuana legalization? If you said “yes,” then you would be on the right track.

A number of Orange County residents have found themselves to be registered Republicans after signing a petition to legalize marijuana.

Many people are complaining that they were never told they were registering for a party or that any of the documents they were signing were official. The con seems to be coming from a Republican voter registration effort, which pays $8 a head for new Republicans.

Some critics suggested the bonus incentive would lead to fraud.

Remember Sarah Palin?

It turns out that the former vice presidential candidate may have had some of her answers scripted for her debate against Joe Biden. McCain political advisor Steve Schmidt said the prep was going terribly, and decided to give Palin pre-fabricated answers to memorize.

President Barack Obama gave a big speech yesterday. He was addressing the leaders of Wall Street and challenged them to join him in an effort to fix the problems that caused the financial crisis the world is facing today. The cartoon above addresses the same issue. The cartoonist thinks that this is a burning issue.What do you think?

Okay quiz time… this cartoon above deals with a recent news event…

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So… Baseball season officially opened yesterday. In honor of this great day we thought we would share this cartoon with you. Please tell us… is this cartoon Off Base?  (Cartoon by KAL)

You may have read our coverage of the Sex abuse scandal that has been rocking the Catholic church for the past 8 years. With Easter holiday would rather focus on other things but unfortunatley, this story does not want to go away. (cartoon by KAL)

With all the arguing in the world… we thought it was a good time for a laugh. Anyone want to argue with this cartoon? (cartoon by KAL)

As if President Obama did not have enough troubles on his plate… US ally Israel is causing continued heartburn for the President. We are told there will be no peace in the world until there is peace in the Middle East… and the prospect for long term peace seems to be in pieces at the moment. What would you tell the President to do?