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The Chinavore's Dilemma
Joshua Kurlantzick writes in Mother Jones: "For a while last year, it seemed the reports of tainted food, drugs, and toys flowing in from China would never cease. First came the pet food scare, in which a toxic additive killed thousands of animals. Summer brought vast recalls of lead-tainted Thomas trains and other name-brand toys, counterfeit Colgate containing antifreeze, salmonella-infected toddler snacks, and DDT-contaminated seafood. Yet the Bush administration, in its eagerness to expand trade, has relegated consumer safety to the backseat."

The Fight for Women's Voting Rights
Ailene Taylor writes for the Marin Independent Journal: "August 26 marks the 88th anniversary of the signing of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, an act that granted women citizens the right to vote in all elections. Very few people understand the scope and complications of the suffrage movement. Yet it was full of drama and replete with incredible women of courage and determination who kept the effort going in the face of relentless opposition."

FCC Commissioner Targets Media Consolidation
Greg Griffin reports in the Denver Post that the FCC is beholden to media conglomerates to the exclusion of minority- and women-owned media companies, FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein said at a symposium on media and democracy.

What We Need is a Digital Bill of Rights
Erick Schonfeld for TechCrunch writes that it is time to really think about a comprehensive national technology policy for the Internet Age. Many laws and policies governing the Internet and digital property are inadequate attempts to transplant rules from a different era.

Democracy Burns while the Networks Sleep
Timothy Karr writing for the Huffington Post asks why the "Big Three" television networks are keeping their convention coverage limited to prime time, highlighting the sad reality of a corporate media that prefer laugh tracks and the bottom line to political discourse.

The Christian Right's Got a New Stealth Tactic to Smuggle Creationism into Science Class
Sandhya Bathija writes for Church & State Magazine and republished on Alternet: "In the 21 years Patsye Peebles taught biology in Louisiana public schools, she never received one complaint from parents for teaching evolution. 'The bottom line is that I never questioned their faith,' she said. Whenever she had a student who brought up creationism, she always made it clear that science is science, and religion is religion."

Bush's Deal With Iraq: A Time Bomb Set to Explode
Steve Weissman writes for Truthout: "Back in January, the Bush administration proposed a Status of Forces Agreement to govern relations between American troops and the Iraqis after the UN mandate expires in December 2008. Both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton accused the White House of trying to tie the hands of a future American president and many Democrats in Congress voiced the same concern. Even at the time, any agreement had to be less than a binding treaty, which would have required confirmation by an impossible two-thirds vote of the US Senate."

Running for War President at Any Cost
Robert Scheer writes for Truthdig.com: Just great! Nuclear-armed Pakistan is falling apart, Iran’s nuclear program is unchecked and congressional legislation on cooperation with the Russians on controlling nuclear proliferation is now dead in the water. Horrid news except for Sen. John McCain, who thrills to a repeat of the danger lines of the Cold War, and now stands a good chance of being our next president.