Monthly Archives: January 2005

Steadiness and Unsteadiness

I no longer read Andrew Sullivan with any regularity, so I wouldn’t have known that he took a shot at us if I hadn’t read about it on InstaPundit. The context is that Mickey Kaus has criticized Andrew for not being “steady” in his assessment of what is going on in Iraq. Andrew responds, not unreasonably, that his views have see-sawed back and forth with events, and that his blog »

It’s a little late for a “growth” spurt

Steven Lubet, a liberal law professor, identifies three reasons why he thinks liberals should support the elevation of Justice Scalia to Chief Justice, if President Bush nominates him. First, Lubet submits that the move wouldn’t make much difference because the Chief Justice wields little power. Second, he contends that Scalia wouldn’t be an effective Chief Justice because he’s a divider, not a uniter. Third, Lubet suggests, in the alternative, that »

The Associated Press and Its Sources

On the eve of the election in Iraq, the Associated Press went around the world, looking for people who didn’t think anything good would come of the democratic process there. The AP’s article, datelined Paris, is titled “Skeptics Question Worth of Iraq Election.” It begins: Is an election guarded by U.S. forces and marked by assassinations and car bombs better than no election at all? As Iraqis living abroad started »

Spirit of America to Cover Iraq Election

Jim Hake writes: Great news! We’ve just received confirmation that C-SPAN is planning to cover Spirit of America’s Iraq election event this Sunday from 2pm to 4pm Eastern (11am to 1pm Pacific). Please watch. Your support has made this possible. Please forward this message far and wide and encourage people to tune in. Iraq’s elections are an historic event. This broadcast will provide a unique, more complete picture of the »

Why Are Casualties the Only Story?

Thomas Sowell has an excellent column on the subject of media bias as it relates to the Iraq war: If a battle ends with Americans killing a hundred guerrillas and terrorists, while sustaining 10 fatalities, that is an American victory. But not in the mainstream media. The headline is more likely to read: “Ten More Americans Killed in Iraq.” This kind of journalism can turn victory into defeat. Kept up »

“Is This His First Interview?”

That’s what a reader wondered about the interview I just did on Al Franken’s Air America show. “This is absolutely unlistenable,” he continued. Another reader wrote: “I can’t believe you forced me to listen to that dreck!” Well, I didn’t exactly force him, but you get the picture. I can say without hesitation that it was the stupidest interview I have ever been involved in. Franken was interested in one »

Watch Deacon Now

He’s about to begin a panel discussion on the blogosphere as, perhaps, a new media establishment at the Heritage Foundation; you can watch the event here; the link is at the upper right. Here’s what’s a little scary, though. Heritage blogger Mary Katharine Ham writes to point out this post on The Insider, where she writes: And speaking of Powerline, Heritage is lucky enough to have the Deacon himself with »

Birds of a Feather

If you had any doubt about how far left California Senator Barbara Boxer really is, check out this love-fest with her friends at the Daily Kos. Boxer writes: I can’t thank all of you enough — the Daily Kos community, and the blogosphere as a whole — for all of your effective work during the recent debate over Condoleezza Rice’s nomination. [Ed.: I don’t think she really means “the blogosphere »

More Zarqawi Arrests Announced

The government of Iraq announced today that two more close associates of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi have been in custody since mid-January. One of those arrested was described as the head of Zarqawi’d Baghdad operation; he claims to have met with Zarqawi more than forty times over a three month period–suggesing, of course, that he knows where Zarqawi is. It seems pretty clear that one of two things is happening: either »

Pro neoconservatism?

The Claremont Review of Books (subscribe here) has posted the scrupulous review by University of Virginia Professor Gerard Alexander of two new books attacking neoconservative foreign policy: “Anti-anti-neoconservatism.” I had thought that the “neoconservative” rubric applied to current foreign policy debates was at best a useless epithet; Professor Alexander’s review has caused me to think again about that. At Little Green Footballs Charles Johnson has posted James Panero’s review of »

The latest from Milwaukee

Greg Borowski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel continues to expose the vote fraud that plagued Milwaukee on election day: “City ok’d 1,305 flawed voter cards.” Borowski writes: Milwaukee officials said Thursday that 1,305 same-day voter registration cards from the Nov. 2 election could not be processed, including more than 500 cases where voters listed no address and dozens more where no name was written on the card. But the revelation »

Fish or cut bait

As we continue to capture close associates of Zarqawi as part of our effort to roll up his deadly terrorist ring, it would be interesting to know which approaches to interrogation of these key terrorists liberal Democrats (and conservative Republicans for that matter) think should be permitted. For example, if the interrogators think that sleep deprivation would help produce valuable information should they be permitted to use this approach? I »

It Wasn’t Only September 11

We all owe a debt of gratitude to the firemen, policemen and soldiers who contribute to our safety every day. On January 23, three New York firefighters died in the line of duty, the worst day since Sept. 11. I was struck by this photograph of Eileen Bellew, widow of ten-year veteran John G. Bellew, who died in the line of duty, battling a three-alarm fire in the Bronx. In »

Volcker Ties Questioned

The U.N. hired former Federal Reserve chief Paul Volcker to investigate the oil for food scandal. I’ve never heard anyone say anything bad about Volcker, although I do have reservations about hiring elderly gentlemen to conduct investigations that ought to be carried out by, you know, investigators. Hard-nosed ones. Now, however, Fox News has reported that Volcker has some apparently troubling conflicts of interest that bear on the investigation. When »

A former fan’s notes

The Al Franken Show Blog is touting Rocket Man’s appearance tomorrow in its preview of Friday’s show (the post includes generous links to this site and the blog includes online links to the Franken show’s Internet feeds). Rocket Man will follow Star Tribune columnist Nick Coleman on the show. In the linked post, Franken’s flack links, among other items, to “Al Franken: Unfunny, with an excuse,” one of the several »

Editor & Publisher Weighs In

Editor & Publisher has a pretty fair and reasonable story on columnist Nick Coleman’s weird attack on us a month or so ago. The reporter actually talked to us before writing his story, which, of course, is more than Coleman did. UPDATE: The posters at Lucianne.com have some choice comments on the controversy. »

Air America Alert

I’m going to be on Al Franken’s Air America show tomorrow at around 12:45 central time. Why? Beats me, but it seemed like a good idea at the time. They’re doing a segment, I guess, on “right wing blogs.” I wouldn’t normally recommend listening to the Franken show, but it would be nice if some of our readers would tune in for moral support. »