Live Q&As

Live with Brad Hirschfield

Is it a failure for those close to Amy Winehouse that they couldn't do more to help her? Or is it that sometimes there are some people who are beyond help?

Not apocalyptic. Terroristic. The GOP Tea Party threaten to destroy the U.S. economy if the nation does not capitulate to them and do as they dictate. That is using terroristic extortion. The GOP Tea Party are willing to intentionally crash the U.S. economy for the good of the nation. Terrorism! alQaida attacked America on 911 to crash our economy. Ten years later the minority GOP Tea Party want to crash the U.S. economy to coerce and intimidate the nation into capitulating to them and do as they dictate. Since when is terrorism part of America's democratic process?

Can you please explain why you use the term the following language, "may explain why many politicians are finding a solution so elusive, and may actually not really want want one -- on any realistic terms at all."? I assume you are implying that the Republicans demand that the no tax increases be part of any agreement is unrealistic. Why? The yearly budget deficit could be eliminated via spending cuts only. So this demand is realistic. By using the term "realistic" we are avoiding the real issue. Balancing the budget by spending cuts only would severely curtail the social safety net and hurt the poorest and most vulnerable of our fellow citizens. I would prefer we characterize the Republicans budget priorities as immoral, inhumane, and unpatriotic.

I'm one of those independents people talk about..The GOP and it's economic theories are not provable by the data and the Dems are historically spineless and cowards. Last night the Speaker of the House declared as fact that their cut, cap, and balance bill passed with bipartisan support...This borders on an outright lie since only FIVE Dems joined the GOP..Yet the media seems to give him a pass..It's one thing for a back bencher to embellish but the Speaker of the House in a national address??..Why wont the media hold him to account?..I'm more and more concerned that we have a media only concerned with the horse race and we poor slobs trying to make ends meet have to somehow find truth on our own..

Do you think Obama's approval rating would be higher or lower if the GOP and conservatives didn't make a show of challenging him at every step? Do you believe his willingness to compromise so often helps or hurts him in the long run?

Fifty years ago, many futurists predicted that by this time the standard work week would be something like 25-30 hours. How did we manage to not get there, and not even have flush pension reserves to show for it?

Is there a situation when Keynesian economic policy has worked? If so, when? I want to know why Keynesian ideology is so popular in Washington. The Japanese bubble broke and took years to recover as the government took on debt and poured money into make-work civil projects, but never encouraged innovation and marketable products/services (thereby increasing hiring through demand). Will the government keep trying to steer businesses through the promises of tax breaks/tax increases?

LAST QUESTION: In light of what I've been reading in several Euro blogs this morning, I would like to raise the question: Should managers and officers in the federal government be required to disclose all Masonic memberships?