Monthly Archives: March 2007

The zoo in Morningside Heights: An epilogue

Last fall in “The zoo in Morningside Heights” we covered the riot that prevented the speech by Minuteman Project founder Jim Gilchrist at Columbia University. The riot was captured on video (the video is included in our “Zoo” post) and the students participating in it were easily identified. On Tuesday the Columbia Spectator reported the disciplinary sequel to the riot: “University gives protestors ‘slap on the wrist.'” To comment on »

A world without the UN

The current session of the UN Human Rights Council concludes today in Geneva. The delegates have achieved another milestone in bashing Israel and turning a blind eye to the genuine human rights outrages among its ranks and elsewshere. Surely the highlight of this session was the “inadmissible” statement made on March 23 by Hillel Neuer of UN Watch to the Council. UN Watch has now compiled a video supplement to »

A word from LIz

Liz (as she has asked to be identified) writes in response to the post we have updated and corrected below: “Covering up the home front in Iraq?” Liz refers to the version of the NPR report that we originally linked to in the post, though we subsequently learned that NPR also broadcast a longer, eight-minute version of the report including interviews of four families of deployed Minnesota National Guard soldiers. »

The case of the flying imams: CAIR speaks

Nihad Awad, executive director of CAIR, has sent a footnoted four-page letter to the Becket Fund, the response to which is accessible at the linked Becket site. We’ve obtained a copy of Awad’s letter from Patrick Gallagher at the Becket Fund. It is a remarkable document, full of civil rights claims of the “ain’t nobody here but us chickens” variety. Those flying imams, if you take CAIR’s rhetoric seriously, follow »

One more word from Sergeant Krueger

Sergeant Krueger has written to add a word on the issue between CNN and Senator McCain that we raised on “To our readers in Iraq.” Sergeant Krueger emphasizes that he of course speaks for himself alone in his personal capacity. Sergeant Krueger writes: Senator McCain is incorrect on one point. No you cannot just go out and walk around if you were an American. It is not that safe yet, »

Pelosi Refusing to Support British on Iran?

It’s hard to believe, but that’s what we’re hearing from Capitol Hill. A resolution has been proposed in the House of Representatives that condemns Iran for the seizure of British sailors and marines, expresses support for our British allies. It’s hard to see anything controversial in that. But apparently, the resolution has languished all week while Pelosi refuses to allow it to come to the floor. Earlier today, Congressman Eric »

Live-Blogging Sampson’s Testimony

A reader at the Forum has been live-blogging Kevin Sampson’s Senate testimony. There is some interesting stuff; if anyone else is in front of a television set, feel free to join in. »

Did McCain want to switch parties in 2001?

According to this report in The Hill, several Democrats claim that Sen. John McCain discussed with them the idea of switching parties in 2001, shortly before Sen. Jeffords abandoned the Republicans. The Jeffords switch gave the Dems a majority. Former Democratic Senate leader Tom Daschle makes this claim, as does former Rep. Tom Downey, who at the time was a lobbyist. Supposedly, two months of negotiations ensued after a top »

A word from Sergeant Krueger

Sergeant Stephen Krueger writes from Iraq to Speaker Pelosi with a message that bears on our post “To our readers in Iraq.” Sergeant Krueger writes: How can you even think of pushing forward legislation to set a withdrawal date for US forces from Iraq? Do you know how much you embolden the insurgency here in Iraq? YOU ARE JEAPARDIZING THE LIVES OF US SERVICEMEN AND WOMEN WITH YOUR ACTIONS. You »

Covering (up) the home front in our back yard? (Updated)

Reader Ray Van Dune writes from Seattle: On Saturday March 24, National Public Radio, correspondent John McChesney, who was until recently embedded with the Minnesota National Guard in Iraq, told us about his 700-mile trip through Minnesota, interviewing families who have loved ones serving in Iraq: »

Looking at the regional war

Historian Arthur Herman is the author of books including, most recently, one on the British Navy. In yesterday’s New York Post he addressed the display of British impotence in the face of Iran’s seizure of British sailors and marines. The display of British impotence seems to me of a piece with the display of American impotence in the face of the acts of aggression committed by Iran against the American »

Catfight at the Times corral

Reader William Katz points out this Rush & Molloy gossip item from the New York Daily News regarding the fight at the New York Times: A catfight at The New York Times Friday still has staffers in shock. The dustup between two female editors in the Styles department disrupted work on the Thursday and Sunday Styles sections as co-workers froze at the fracas. Fashion editor Anita LeClerc was the aggressor »

Flying on the ground

In her Star Tribune column today Katherine Kersten profiles Dr. Zuhdi Jasser of Phoenix, Arizona. Dr. Jasser is not a fan of the flying imams or of their lawsuit against US Airways and the John Doe defendants, for whom he has vowed to raise a defense fund, if necessary. Perhaps most of interest are these nuggets regarding Dr. Jasser’s personal knowledge of the imams: At home in the Phoenix area, »

McCain Stands in the Gap

Let’s put aside for a moment McCain/Feingold and the right’s other grievances against John McCain. When it comes to the war on terror, is he the Lincoln of our time? McCain has now launched a petition drive, under the name Surrender Is Not an Option. McCain says: * The supplemental appropriations bill that passed the Senate on March 27, calling for a date certain withdrawal from Iraq, is nothing more »

Rumsfeld and Gonzales

Rich Lowry rejects the argument that Alberto Gonzales should stay in order to prevent a “blood in the water” phenomenon. He notes that this argument was raised in favor of retaining Donald Rumsfeld and may have delayed a salutary change at DoD. But Rumsfeld was replaced because President Bush wanted to change policy in Iraq, not in response to a ginned-up “scandal.” Gonzales’ ouster would be a reaction to the »

A British Hostage Speaks

The Iranian government made a video of the British sailors and marines it is holding hostage, and showed it on Iranian state television. I assume it is likely to be played on other Middle Eastern stations as well, if it hasn’t been already. The British have protested the video; a report is here. The video features the one woman who was seized, Faye Turney. It is, as you would expect, »

“Hitting Back,” British Style

The London Times reports that the U.K. is “hitting back” over Iran’s seizure of 15 British sailors and marines: Britain moved to ratchet up the pressure on Iran today over what Tony Blair called its “illegal” seizure of 15 Royal Navy personnel in the Gulf last Friday, freezing all ties with Tehran until the crisis is resolved and the group released. After five days of discreet but fruitless diplomacy, the »