Monthly Archives: May 2017
May 31, 2017 — Paul Mirengoff
Jim Bunning, the Hall of Famer who died last week, was part of a breed of pitchers who tried to prevent batters from crowding the plate or otherwise digging in. Vern Law, Don Drysdale, and Bob Gibson were from the same school. Most pitchers in the 1950s and 60s were to some extent. They might not protect the space between the batter and the inner portion of home plate as
»
May 31, 2017 — Paul Mirengoff
To those who have it in for our president, it’s obvious what to make of it — President Trump’s bluster and ignorance have alienated one of America’s most important allies and, in the words of the Washington Post, “sent tremors through Washington’s core postwar alliances.” But is the war of words really Trump’s fault? I don’t think so. One issue of contention is Germany’s unwillingness to meet its financial commitment
»
May 31, 2017 — John Hinderaker
President Trump says he hasn’t made up his mind on withdrawing from the UN’s Paris climate agreement. Let’s hope he isn’t vacillating, as this should be one of his easiest decisions. Reports that Trump is planning on withdrawing have the Europeans in a tizzy: The European Commission president on Wednesday said that it was the “duty of Europe” to stand up to the U.S. if President Donald Trump decides to
»
May 31, 2017 — Steven Hayward
We noted here a few weeks ago the ruckus over the Rhodes College feminist philosopher Rebecca Tuvel, who foolishly thought that the same logic that applied to gender identity (namely that you pick your own) should apply equally to racial identity. Why not? We’re sometimes told from the identity politics left that race is a social construct, too, except when we’re told it isn’t. Left unexplored was exactly why Tuvel’s
»
May 31, 2017 — Steven Hayward
Everyone will recall that Franklin Roosevelt’s first act as president in 1933 was to close the nation’s banks to prevent a full-scale panic and a collapse of the banking system. It was called a “bank holiday,” probably because the legal basis was more than a bit shaky: it was based on the “Trading with the Enemy Act” of 1917. Recognizing that this legal basis was ridiculous, FDR prevailed on Congress
»
May 31, 2017 — Scott Johnson
The Wall Street Journal calls on Evergreen State College biology professor Bret Weinstein to explain the ordeal in which he is engulfed. Professor Weinstein provides the back story in the column “The campus mob came for me–and you, professor, could be next.” Professor Weinstein observes forthrightly: “Evergreen has slipped into madness. You don’t need the news to tell you that—the protesters’ own videos will do.” Professor Weinstein has the rest
»
May 31, 2017 — Scott Johnson
President Trump has decided to withdraw the United State from the Paris Agreement on climate change. Politico asserts that the move “is certain to infuriate America’s allies across the globe and could destabilize the 2015 accord.” America’s allies, however, won’t be as infuriated as America’s mainstream media, though withdrawal will undoubtedly constitute another count in the Democrats’ list of high crimes and misdemeanors supporting Trump’s impeachment. Politico helpfully explains: The
»
May 31, 2017 — Scott Johnson
A reporter at her regular news conference this past Thursday asked House Minority Leader for her impressions of President Trump’s first trip abroad. She prefaced her answer with comments on her own trip abroad during a recent break, passing on foreign criticism of Trump while purporting to find it inappropriate. “We may have our disagreements which we fully air in our own country,” she volunteered, “but we don’t go overseas
»
May 30, 2017 — Paul Mirengoff
On May 30, 1967, Jim Bunning opposed Juan Marichal in a battle of future Hall of Famers at Candlestick Park. Both pitchers went the full nine innings, but it was hardly a classic pitchers’ duel. Together, they allowed nine runs and 16 hits. They struck out only seven and walked six. Bunning began the day 3-5 with a 3.75 ERA. Marichal was having a typical scintillating season. His record was
»
May 30, 2017 — John Hinderaker
There is a deep irony in the fact that Democrats are hysterically demanding investigations of President Trump and his campaign team, and in fact multiple investigations are now in progress, even though there is zero evidence that anyone associated with the president has done anything wrong. On the other hand, we now know for certain that the Obama administration weaponized the intelligence agencies in order to use them against political
»
May 30, 2017 — Steven Hayward
From the “art world” today are two new exhibits of note. First, I never understood the hullabaloo about the “Fearless Girl” statute set up ostentatiously across from the Wall Street bull, but whatever. Today, though, some creative artist has installed an addition to the scene: a dog using “Fearless Girl” as a fire hydrant: Heh. This is sure to be classed as a hate crime against feminism. Speaking of hate
»
May 30, 2017 — Paul Mirengoff
Allison Stanger is the distinguished Middlebury professor who was physically assaulted for escorting conservative political scientist Charles Murray to an event on the Middlebury campus. Stanger, a Democrat, had agreed to moderate a session with Murray because she is committed to the robust exchange of views. An angry mob charged the car carrying Stanger and Murray. Someone pulled her hair. Others shoved her. The car was rocked.
»
May 30, 2017 — Paul Mirengoff
The Fourth Circuit’s decision in the temporary travel ban broke new ground when it comes to judicial activism. I wrote about the decision in a post called “Trump Resisters in Robes.” John wrote about it in a post called “An Affront to the Rule of Law.” For additional criticism of the decision, I recommend this piece by Hans von Spakovsky and this one by David Rivkin and Lee Casey. Von
»
May 30, 2017 — Steven Hayward
We’ve had occasion many times before to mention the case of physicist Alan Sokal, who hoaxed the postmodern journal Social Text into publishing an article that argued that even physics was “socially constructed,” and just two weeks ago we noted a new hoax about the “socially-constructed penis” and how it is responsible for climate change. Well, file this next one under the heading of articles that prove it is impossible
»
May 30, 2017 — Scott Johnson
Poltico reported in February that five House staffers are under criminal investigation amid allegations that they stole equipment from more than 20 member offices and accessed House IT systems without lawmakers’ knowledge. The five staffers all worked for Democratic congressmen and have links to Pakistan. Last week the Daily Caller reported that one of the suspects has hightailed it to Pakistan. Something is happening here. One can only infer that
»
May 30, 2017 — Scott Johnson
Michael Oren is the prominent historian, former Israeli ambassador to the United States, member of Israel’s Knesset and deputy minister for public diplomacy. He recently sat for a 90-minute interview with Times of Israel editor David Horovitz (audio below). Much of the discussion is devoted to President Trump’s visit to Israel last week. Raoul Wootliff reports on the interview here with video clips. Wootliff’s account selects highlights and pulls newsworthy
»
May 29, 2017 — John Hinderaker
The mayor of Portland, Oregon, Ted Wheeler, is trying to block a free speech rally in his city: The mayor of Portland, Oregon, on Monday urged U.S. officials and organizers to cancel a “Trump Free Speech Rally” and other similar events, saying they are inappropriate and could be dangerous after two men were stabbed to death on a train as they tried to help a pair of young women targeted
»
