I would say that European carriers should be subject to a retaliatory fee, such as a landing tax of 10%. Also, European airlines should also be made to undergo heightened security checks before their passengers are allowed to disembark. I think a few months of that would get their attention.

Iran is becoming more and more bizarre. If they make a serious attempt at taking out a U.S. naval vessel, that government would be dealing with more than the loss of a nuclear facility. I would have to say that the leadership of Iran is delusional about its military capabilities. Also, President Obama is unlikely to back down during an election year, if he wishes to remain in office.

I would say that this barrage against Newt Gingrich is reaching bizarre propotions. Newt Gingrich has problems with immigration reform, shifting positions on climate change, etc. However, these issues are not seriously addressed by many of of his critics. Instead, you get obtuse theological articles on torch passing like this one. MItt Romney's backers risk achieving victory over Newt Gingrich at the expense of losing the war to Barack Obama. The level of alienation being generated through these shock and awe tactics against Newt Gingrich will remain long after he is out of the race. Mitt Romney is at risk of becoming the Bob Dole of 2012. I will not vote for President Obama. In fact, I might not vote at all if things do not start looking better.

Frankly, I found him to be an opportunist. He was already doing a u-turn on his supposedly conservative stances back in 2008 when he came out in support of Barack Obama. His cancer diagnosis and subsequent death are sad things, especially for his family. However, one must judge someone on their public statements and writings, and not their physical condition. Also, one must examine the reason for a person's position on an issue, and not just their position in isolation. Christopher Hitchens, as he would have readily admitted, was never a conservative. While many of his writings were well worth reading, there were many others that were ideologically infected. I suspect that his conservative turn reflected a belief that his copy would earn him more in conservative publications than in magazines, such as The Nation. When that environment changed, Mr. Hitchens moved steadily back to the left.

How old is hubby, if he is playing around with an Xbox?

It is nice to know that psychotics are tending to the psychological needs of prison inmates.

I would say that Iranian attack on Turkey would, despite the casualties, have a salutary influence on that state's government. Prime Minister Erdogan would literally find his Islamist foreign policy blown out of the water and his domestic opponents mobilized as never before against him. Turkey has been notorious in recent years for its dealings with Iran, and to a lesser extent Syria. Iran could enfeeble or annihilate

Don't Ask, Don't tell.

Thank you Missy Karen for explaining to us how black people should act. Can't have one of them getting uppity, right?

NASA is in the hands of an administration that is indifferent or even hostile to its mission. The astroid project is a joke that will never happen. Why go all the way out to the Astroid Belt for little or no reason with a manned flight, while ignoring Mars? This will not happen. I am amazed at the relative silence within the scientific community regarding this radical change in direction. Is getting the next grant more important to you than NASA being gradually embalmed?