http://dir.salon.com/topics/opinion/?source=rss&aim=opinion en-us Copyright 2007 Salon.com. Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT Exclusive editorials and lively opinion commentary, from independent online magazine Salon. By Joe Conason Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/05/09/clinton_remarks/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/05/09/clinton_remarks/index.html?source=rss Hillary's reckless exploitation of racial division could split the Democratic Party over race -- a tragic legacy for the Clintons. By Dan Conley Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/08/deal/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/08/deal/index.html?source=rss What would it take for Clinton to concede defeat? An insider remembers -- and draws lessons from -- the backroom deals that ended another brutal, racially charged Democratic slugfest. By Garrison Keillor Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/keillor/2008/05/07/mothers_day/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/keillor/2008/05/07/mothers_day/index.html?source=rss Because you entered this cold world causing her more pain than she thought possible and now she won't ever give up on you. By Edward McClelland Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/06/eight_belles/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/06/eight_belles/index.html?source=rss As a racing fan, I've learned to accept injuries as a consequence of a sport. But I also understand the revulsion at the filly's destruction. By George Frost Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/06/gas_tax/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/06/gas_tax/index.html?source=rss Think Clinton's plan to suspend the gas tax temporarily is a bad idea? A similar measure in Illinois -- which Obama backed -- seems to have helped consumers. By Anna Badkhen Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/05/baghdad/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/05/baghdad/index.html?source=rss A reporter flies over the Iraqi capital on her 10th reporting trip, and sees empty swimming pools, kids playing on a grassless field, entire houses buried in trash. By Thomas F. Schaller Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/05/clinton_blackvote/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/05/clinton_blackvote/index.html?source=rss Her failure to challenge Barack Obama's huge momentum among African-Americans -- not a given at the start -- may have doomed her campaign. By Sarah Posner Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/03/black_church/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/03/black_church/index.html?source=rss Black religion expert Jonathan Walton on black liberation theology's roots in slavery, MLK Jr.'s "God damn America moment" and what Jeremiah Wright has in common with Gennifer Flowers. By Fred Haefele Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/03/ameya_preserve/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/03/ameya_preserve/index.html?source=rss When the locals cried green-wash, the elite developer cried class envy. Welcome to Paradise Valley. By Joe Conason Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/05/02/blumenthal/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/05/02/blumenthal/index.html?source=rss Some bloggers accuse Blumenthal, a Hillary advisor, of spreading right-wing lies about Obama. But I get his e-mail blasts and the charge isn't fair. By Walter Shapiro Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/30/Democrats_religion/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/30/Democrats_religion/index.html?source=rss Obama and Clinton have trumpeted their religious credentials -- but is it really more secularism that they need? By Garrison Keillor Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/keillor/2008/04/30/airport_security/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/keillor/2008/04/30/airport_security/index.html?source=rss As we inched through the airport security line, I seemed to be the only one grinding my teeth. Would anyone have defended me if I'd spoken up to the shirts? Compiled by Salon staff Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/29/obama_wright/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/29/obama_wright/index.html?source=rss With the pastor's latest invective clouding Obama's campaign, Salon turns to a panel of political and cultural experts for answers. By Gary Kamiya Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/kamiya/2008/04/29/j_street/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/kamiya/2008/04/29/j_street/index.html?source=rss Sick of right-wing Jews speaking in their name, progressive American Jews have launched J Street to change the way the game is played in Washington. By Steve Fraser Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/28/gilded_age/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/28/gilded_age/index.html?source=rss The titans of Wall Street have failed us like never before. So why does no one care? By Walter Shapiro Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/25/campaigns/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/25/campaigns/index.html?source=rss Hillary's missteps are legion, but both candidates are flesh and blood, and their squandered opportunities have prolonged the race. By Joe Conason Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/04/25/floyd_brown/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/04/25/floyd_brown/index.html?source=rss It's time for the GOP to finally repudiate the creator of the infamous Willie Horton ad, who is back smearing Obama. By Michael T. Klare Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/24/oil/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/24/oil/index.html?source=rss In the new world order, energy scarcity will dominate our lives -- determining when we drive, if we travel, and what we eat. By Garrison Keillor Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/keillor/2008/04/23/spring/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/keillor/2008/04/23/spring/index.html?source=rss Sometimes it's a relief to put on clean clothes every morning and be in an office by 9 and feel like part of a team. By Gary Kamiya Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/kamiya/2008/04/22/springtime/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/kamiya/2008/04/22/springtime/index.html?source=rss April in the Sierra foothills is the cruelest month -- and the most beautiful. By Joseph Romm Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/22/earth_day/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/22/earth_day/index.html?source=rss Affection for our planet is misdirected and unrequited. We need to focus on saving ourselves. By Andrew O'Hehir Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/21/mcgovern_hart/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/21/mcgovern_hart/index.html?source=rss The party is caught in an excruciating Catch-22. Whether it chooses the establishment figure or the liberal reformer, history offers many paths to defeat. By Joe Conason Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/04/18/debate/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/04/18/debate/index.html?source=rss As Wednesday's awful debate proves, it won't matter who the presidential nominee is -- the press will play footsie with McCain and attack the Democrat. By Garrison Keillor Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/keillor/2008/04/16/northwest/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/keillor/2008/04/16/northwest/index.html?source=rss In my youth, I longed to fly away to the edge of the world and I knew Northwest would take me there. Now it's being devoured by Delta. By Michael Lind Fri, 09 May 2008 03:05:00 PDT http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/15/elitism/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/04/15/elitism/index.html?source=rss By calling small-town Americans "bitter," Obama has deepened a long-standing rift in the Democratic base. The party's success in November depends on healing it.