Monthly Archives: November 2002

Am I alone in thinking

Am I alone in thinking Fox News is actually fair and balanced? I think the distinction between it and the other outlets is that it not only holds itself out as being so, but actually is. »

Good theory, Rocket Man. I

Good theory, Rocket Man. I suppose that, from the standpoint of Time, CBS, and some newspapers., the risk in taking off the gloves is that they will lose readers/viewers. I don’t think the liberal base as a whole is interested enough in the news to sustain these media outlets in the style to which they have become accustomed, if they move to the left. They’ve already gone about as far »

There has been a lot

There has been a lot of head-scratching over what Tom Daschle, Al Gore, Paul Krugman and others have been trying to achieve with their attacks on “right-wing media bias” as exemplified by Rush Limbaugh, Fox News and the Washington Times. I actually don’t think it’s too mysterious. For years, Republicans have attacked the obvious liberal bias of the mainstream media, with great success. Organizations like the Media Research Center track »

Coincidentally, we blogged on the

Coincidentally, we blogged on the danger posed by shoulder-fired anti-aircraft weapons a few days ago. The New York Times has more on this threat. I really don’t understand how the terrorists managed to miss the Israeli airliner yesterday, given the reported ease of hitting large, hot, slow-moving commercial airplanes on take-off or landing. »

Mark Steyn in Jewish World

Mark Steyn in Jewish World Review is also less than sanguine about our progress in the war against Islamofascism. Steyn complains, for example, that the war against Iraq “keeps getting deferred, to the point where it’s beginning to look like the Bush version of the Soviets’ endlessly rolled-over Five Year Plans.” He concludes with this wish: “Next, Ramadan, when the traditional calls for a bombing pause are issued, let’s hope »

This Jerusalem Post editorial on

This Jerusalem Post editorial on yesterday’s terrorist attacks is an interesting counterpoint to the optimistic piece by Tim Hames in the London Times that Deacon linked to earlier today. »

The Washington Post has a

The Washington Post has a good article on the Paradise Hotel bombing, from the perspective of the Kenyans who worked there. Their admiration for the hotel’s owner, an Israeli, is touching. »

The hate campaign against newly-elected

The hate campaign against newly-elected Republican Senator Norm Coleman continues. I have a feeling this could get very ugly; Garrison Keillor may have been only the beginning. »

No wonder Al Gore and

No wonder Al Gore and Tom Daschle are so anxious to bring down Fox News, along with other independent news sources. The latest Nielsen ratings show Fox as the number one prime-time cable network. Fox’s prime-time viewership is up 17% over a year ago, while the Democrats’ network, CNN, is down 31% and MSNBC is down 43%. Fox now has four of the five top-rated cable news shows, with O’Reilly »

Tim Hames of the Times

Tim Hames of the Times of Londonbelieves that Al Qaeda’s attack on the hotel in Kenya, a decidedly soft target, is less a sign that Al Qaeda is “back in business” than evidence that the outfit is “in its last desperate stage before U.S. bailiffs arrive unannounced at the door and seize somewhat more than just the furniture.” Thanks to our friends at Real Clear Politics for enabling us to »

Diana West of the Washington

Diana West of the Washington Times on attempts to describe Thanksgiving “as a time when families get together to celebrate their traditions and their heritage.” »

Don’t miss Frank Schaeffer’s “Thanking

Don’t miss Frank Schaeffer’s “Thanking Our Troops” from the current Frontpage. »

City Pages is a Minneapolis-based

City Pages is a Minneapolis-based “alternative weekly” like the Boston Phoenix. A reader has kindly sent us a piece from the current issue on the Star Tribune’s Minnesota Poll: “Poll Axed.” (The reader, going under the nom de cyber “Lawdog” that he he earned in the Army’s JAG Corps, turns out to be my colleague Peter Swanson, whom we thank for the tip.) The piece itself is completely clueless, but »

A Swiss laboratory claims that

A Swiss laboratory claims that the audio tape recently aired on Al-Jazeera is not the voice of bin Laden. »

As expected, Haaretz reports that

As expected, Haaretz reports that Ariel Sharon has won an easy victory against Benjamin Netanyahu in the Likud primary. Meanwhile, a Palestinian poll says that 76% of Palestinians now support efforts to achieve a cease-fire with Israel. This is not based on newfound moral principles, apparently, as 53% support attacking Israeli civilians and 90% support attacks on Israelis in the West Bank and Gaza strip. The pollster interprets the results »

In the conflict between Nigerian

In the conflict between Nigerian Islamofascists and the Miss World pageant, I was naturally prepared to take the side of the pageant. Like Bret Stephens (see Deacon’s post below), I have a healthy regard for the “prurient center.” So I thought I would check the official Miss World site to see what the pageant has to say about being driven out of Nigeria, and about the hundreds of Christians and »

A couple days ago I

A couple days ago I tried to express my indebtedness to the Claremont Institute and my appreciation for its outstanding flagship publication, the Claremont Review of Books. I also posted my favorite review from the current issue that is available online (I understand the new issue is in the mail), Steve Hayward’s review of the third volume of Robert Caro’s gargantuan biography of LBJ, The Master of the Senate. Steve »