Blurbs

* "Without maintaining a single and consistent moral standard in their work," Norman Solomon reminds us, "journalists - no matter how brave, skilled or hardworking - end up prostituting their talents in the service of a war machine."

* Gal Beckerman contends that the coverage of the recent Gitmo suicides provides a "damning" case study "in which the straitjacketed writing style of newspaper journalism and the demands of the daily news cycle have smothered the news instead of exposing it."

* "Is the NSA spying on U.S. Internet traffic?" asks Kim Zetter in Salon.

* How many civilians, including a disproportionate number of children, does Israel have to kill before the world starts to give a damn? Here are accounts of the carnage from yesterday and today.

* According to the Guardian, Hamas is getting close to recognizing "Israel's right to exist" as long as it is able reach "a negotiated and final agreement with Israel to establish a Palestinian state on the territories occupied in 1967, including East Jerusalem."

* A boost in the minimum wage? Yes, that'd be a good start.

* Reuters reports, "For-profit nursing homes and hospitals on average provide an inferior quality of care compared with their nonprofit peers, according to an extensive review of studies published on Tuesday."

* Mickey Z. reviews provides intriguing excerpts from Derrick Jensen's new book, Endgame. Last month, I posted an essay adapted from it.

* Potshots at Chomsky are always amusing to witness, especially from alleged liberals.