Your comment reminded me of an interview I heard (probably on NPR, Fresh Air, or Chef's Table) with the author of this book: The Earth Knows My Name: Food, Culture, and Sustainability in the Gardens of Ethnic America

http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Knows-My-Name-Sustainability/dp/0807085626/ref=pd_sxp_f_r

One of the reasons Klindienst was inspired to write the book was her own reaction to a family photo of her mother (as a child) and siblings holding up a newspaper with a headline about Sacco and Vanzetti, and a denied appeal. Just hours before their execution.

She wanted to write a memoir about that story, and found a connection while reading some of Sacco & Vanzetti's letters from prison, which included reminiscences about ancestral gardens in Italy... and in that she found something hopeful to hang her story on.

http://www.whyy.org/91FM/chef/200710.html

Klindienst's interview begins at approximately 41:20.

I haven't read the book yet, but it's high on my list. I loved listening to her even in that short interview.

...so I rebooted my computer, wondering if that would help. Either it helped, or my finally getting access was just a coincidence. I was beginning to wonder if it had anything to do with giving up my subscription (i.e., do subscribers have easier access than non-subscribers?).

Re: last night's early shut down of comments, there was a message in the upper left hand corner of Salon's home page, about some maintenance work they would be doing that would prohibit accessing letter from 4:00 pm to 10:00 pm (PST). I don't think that had anything to do with the other time it happened, though.

Last night's maintenance work might also explain the rough terrain today, too. Something always seems to happen where I work after "routine" maintenance.

As for Time... I don't have a subscription that I can cancel. Do you suppose they would pay attention to letters from non-subscribers explaining why they have no intention of subscribing?

"FISA: More Than You Want to Know."

should read

"Everything you wanted [and need] to know about FISA, but the [so-called] journalists were afraid to ask!?"

Oh, wait! That's Glenn Greenwald's topic, not Joe Klein's!

* * *

Finally! Able to post again... Earlier I lost one in the ethers.

Shorter version: Mark Halperin has also has a change of heart/mind:

http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/13708.html

Steven Benen had a link from Salon's Blog Report to his post at The Carpetbagger, and included this link to Halperin's piece:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/25/opinion/25halperin.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

As Benen also writes, it is flawed, but still worth the read.

He begins:

MORE than any other book, Richard Ben Cramer’s “What It Takes,” about the 1988 battle for the White House, influenced the way I cover campaigns.

I’m not alone. The book’s thesis — that prospective presidents are best evaluated by their ability to survive the grueling quadrennial coast-to-coast test of endurance required to win the office — has shaped the universe of political coverage.

Voters are bombarded with information about which contender has “what it takes” to be the best candidate. Who can deliver the most stirring rhetoric? Who can build the most attractive facade? Who can mount the wiliest counterattack? Whose life makes for the neatest story? Our political and media culture reflects and drives an obsession with who is going to win, rather than who should win.

The weekend before my 'comrade' died, he told me he was weary of suffering. The canned Budweiser beer was not quenching his thirst like it use to, and he'd upchuck from his his guts until he'd bleed. Pain was reaching the maximum endurance level. His wife and children gave him permission to die. He was okay and needed peace and rest.

Someone, somewhere, knows who that source is.

Most likely, neither Painton nor Klein will say who, nor will the source be likely to come forward, but...

I would bet that there is someone else who knows who it is.

Glenn, if you and Jane can be tenacious and resourceful enough together, you may be able to come up with the name yourselves. (Just a little original, investigative reporting...)

It would be most revealing to know who.

...what about starting with any "known" sources that Klein has been "comfortable" using in the past?

One more in defense of bebop-o's posts...

Just about a moon ago, in response to another commenter unhappy with bebop-o's presence here, I typed up a bit on why we simply could not do without him. I had to do a bit of searching, but here it is:

http://letters.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2007/10/31/boylan/permalink/e77ba9e51087da16e63066c4eda2d7a3.html