Monthly Archives: May 2002

Notwithstanding the political ads, this

Notwithstanding the political ads, this place is pretty idyllic. Maybe it only lasts for a few days at the end of May, but if you’re trying to approximate Eden, check out northeastern South Dakota. »

I’m in South Dakota for

I’m in South Dakota for a couple of days. Last night I had a beer with my brother. He flipped on the television and on came the political ads–one after another. I don’t think we ever saw a program, just political ads, and there are still more than five months to go before the election. There was one by John Thune, whose race against Tim Johnson is the key to »

The situation in India and

The situation in India and Pakistan is a reminder that, while we hear constantly about Muslim hostility to Christians and Jews, it’s Hindus they really hate. I don’t know why Americans keep forgetting about conflicts with Hindus when we talk about the problem of Islamofascism, but this aspect could turn out to be the most serious of all, if Pakistan and India really do go to war. Also, I don’t »

Here’s how French foreign policy

Here’s how French foreign policy is changing according to the Arab News. Let’s hope they’re right. »

A reader wants to know

A reader wants to know whether we have any details about polling data on the Democrats’ now-retracted attack on President Bush. We don’t. We’ve been told that Republican Party polling has showed huge support for Bush and a backlash against the Democrats. The Democrats’ polling apparently was similar; hence the retreat by Daschle et al. »

Multiculturalism has exacted a truly

Multiculturalism has exacted a truly terrible toll on the ability of average Americans to think clearly even about the things closest to their heart. Witness the embarrassing inability of Minnesota’s Governor Jesse Ventura to formulate a respectable thought about a state law requiring public school teachers to lead students in saying the pledge of allegiance. James Lileks, Minnesota’s Dave Barry, turns a lemon into a lemonade . »

America has martial courage in

America has martial courage in profusion with which to fight the war on Islamofascism. What it lacks is intellectual clarity of the kind demonstrated in this piece by Daniel Pipes . What it also lacks is the public courage to call the war on Islamofascism by its true name. »

Today I drove by a

Today I drove by a business in our neighborhood that used to be a tanning and video place. Then it changed owners, and now it is a coffee, gifts, tanning and…..sushi place. So far we haven’t tried the sushi. »

Daschle skedaddles. I’ve heard that

Daschle skedaddles. I’ve heard that the parties’ polling, which is more incisive than the bland stuff done by Gallup et al., has been disastrous for the Democrats vis a vis their effort to attack the President. This suggests the polling data are even worse than we thought. »

Another murder-bomber struck today, to

Another murder-bomber struck today, to the applause of most of his fellow Palestinians. Meanwhile, five Israeli soldiers were sentenced to prison for destroying Palestinian property during the recent fighting on the West Bank. Just another day in the “cycle of violence.” »

This is the first Memorial

This is the first Memorial Day in many years on which America has been at war. (The Gulf War was over prior to Memorial Day 1991.) Perhaps never in our history–certainly not since World War II–has our country been so united; thankfully, Daschle, Gephardt, Clinton and their ilk have few followers when it comes to the great issues of war and peace. And not since World War II have Americans »

The teen sex debate seems

The teen sex debate seems to have died down at Instapundit. I had nothing to contribute to that debate, having no experience whatever in that area. The dating simulation found here seems very accurate to me, especially in its more frustrating moments. »

My father was not an

My father was not an intellectual, but he was an extremely thoughtful man. He used to tell me the things he was grateful for and in retrospect I can see he thought about it a lot. He frequently said that the three things he was most grateful for were: 1) that his grandfather didn’t miss the boat from Russia to the United States, 2) that when he arrived in New »

One thing that amazes me

One thing that amazes me is that there is no consistent standard for dealing with ethics issues in government. Here is just one example: Tom Daschle is a very wealthy man, not because of his government salary, but because his wife is an extremely highly-paid lobbyist. Now why do you think his wife makes so much money? Is is because she is so exceptionally persuasive? Or is it possibly because »

Here’s another optimistic way of

Here’s another optimistic way of looking at the war. Until a few years ago, about 50,000 Americans were killed every year in car accidents. That represented many individual tragedies, but no one thought it was a crisis. No one worried much about the impact of car accidents on the economy. Eventually the total was reduced by, I think, about 50% because of nearly universal use of seat belts, safer cars »

We’re just back from the

We’re just back from the race track. I do exactly the same at the race track and in the stock market, only I lose much less at the track and I get to watch the horses run. »

Boycott the New York Times

Boycott the New York Times for being anti-Israel? Sure. Better yet, boycott it for being anti-American. Actually, I haven’t read the Times in years, because it’s an inept paper. Does anyone still take it seriously? »