Many of your favorite Firedoglake contributors, diarists, and community members are gathering here at The Rio in Las Vegas for the next few days. . . and I am here, too.

Daniel Okrent was the first public editor of “The New York Times.” In his new book “Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition,” he tells the fascinating and often-overlooked story of Prohibition. Despite being one of the most important issues in the country for decades and a dominant force in our nation’s politics, the history of Prohibition is little known to most Americans.

If, like some, you wondered why Obama, Pelosi, and other Democrats wasted time praising a generally reprehensible Republican like Coburn, it’s because he stepped into the trap — as long as the debate is about how to solve the problem, the progressive side (which actually cares about solving it) holds the advantage. And when even one Republican joins the debate on those terms, the pretense of his colleagues is easier to expose.

Over the past month, the health care debate has increasingly become a debate on the left over the relative merits of the bill. Most everyone has weighed in on this, often multiple times, with substantive critiques of the reform package and reasons for the urgency of its passage. But until now, the debates have had [...]

Just click through and watch the video. Seriously.