People unclear on the topic - John Forbes Kerry

From the UK Telegraph:

Israeli defence minister says John Kerry should 'take Nobel prize and leave us be' - reports
Israeli defence minister Moshe Yaalon has scathingly attacked US Secretary of State John Kerry and the US-led peace process in private conversations, according to reports.

�Secretary of State John Kerry�who arrived here determined, and who operates from an incomprehensible obsession and a sense of messianism�can�t teach me anything about the conflict with the Palestinians�, Mr Yaalon is reported as saying.

Mr Yaalon reportedly made his statements in the course of a number of conversations held with American and Israeli officials, according to Israeli daily Yediot Ahranot.

�The only thing that might save us is if John Kerry wins the Nobel Prize and leaves us be�, said the Defence Minister.

A bit more:

�The American plan for security arrangements that was shown to us isn�t worth the paper it was written on�, he is quoted as saying.

And that did leave a mark -- from Yahoo/AFP:

US: Israeli minister's attack on Kerry is 'offensive'
The White House reacted angrily Tuesday after Israel's defense minister attacked what he called US Secretary of State John Kerry's "obsession" with Middle East peace.

President Barack Obama's spokesman Jay Carney said Moshe Yaalon's remarks "if accurate, are offensive and inappropriate, especially in the light of everything Secretary Kerry is doing to support Israel's security needs."

That's funny -- I thought that progressives liked speaking truth to power. I guess that if the truth is actually -- true -- they don't like it so much... In other news, from The Wall Street Journal:

America's Dwindling Economic Freedom
World economic freedom has reached record levels, according to the 2014 Index of Economic Freedom, released Tuesday by the Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal. But after seven straight years of decline, the U.S. has dropped out of the top 10 most economically free countries.

For 20 years, the index has measured a nation's commitment to free enterprise on a scale of 0 to 100 by evaluating 10 categories, including fiscal soundness, government size and property rights. These commitments have powerful effects: Countries achieving higher levels of economic freedom consistently and measurably outperform others in economic growth, long-term prosperity and social progress. Botswana, for example, has made gains through low tax rates and political stability.

Those losing freedom, on the other hand, risk economic stagnation, high unemployment and deteriorating social conditions. For instance, heavy-handed government intervention in Brazil's economy continues to limit mobility and fuel a sense of injustice.

It's not hard to see why the U.S. is losing ground. Even marginal tax rates exceeding 43% cannot finance runaway government spending, which has caused the national debt to skyrocket. The Obama administration continues to shackle entire sectors of the economy with regulation, including health care, finance and energy. The intervention impedes both personal freedom and national prosperity.

Not surprizing...