Beginning in the 1920s, Louis Armstrong was the undisputed fountainhead of American jazz. With his bright, clear trumpet and his ebullient, gravelly voice, he more or less defined how jazz is meant to be played and sung. Read full article > >

View post:
Louis Armstrong’s memorable National Press Club performance to be rereleased

Whatever else you think of Sarah Palin, she has, since the 2008 presidential campaign, been a clear voice in favor of a robust American presence in the world, a defender of the Afghanistan war, a friend of Israel and a counterweight to neo-isolationist elements on the right. But careful observers of Palin noticed that recently she was sounding more like Obama’s liberal critics than the VP candidate who echoed Sen. John McCain’s forward-leaning foreign policy. She put out a statement on Facebook last week on Libya that can only be described as incoherent. It was hard to tell if she wanted more or less American firepower in Libya. (“At this point, to avoid further mission creep and involvement in a third war — one we certainly can’t afford — you need to step up and justify our Libyan involvement, or Americans are going to demand you pull out. Simply put, what are we doing there?”) Was she for or against a war to remove the Libyan dictator? Read full article > >

Go here to see the original:
Sarah Palin changes advisers, and her worldview.