Monthly Archives: February 2009

Is Raul Castro the change we have been waiting for?

Richard Lugar (once Richard Nixon’s “favorite mayor”) has denounced restrictive U.S. policies towards Cuba and called for a re-evaluation of these policies to take advantage of political changes in Cuba. Lugar made this argument in an appendix to a report by Republican staffers on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Lugar is the senior Republican member of that committee. Lugar may well have it backwards; recent developments probably cut in favor »

The weak, chatty type

Hillary Clinton is drawing criticism for having told reporters traveling with her in Asia that the U.S. government must continue to press China to improve its human rights record, but pressing these issues “can’t interfere” with dialogue on other crucial topics. Clinton defended her comment on the theory that she was merely stating the obvious. She added that “spend[ing] hours avoiding stating the obvious” is “just not productive.” The Washington »

Correction

Earlier this week, I mentioned the tension between the political party Israel Beitenu and the religious Israeli parties. Both voting blocs are needed for Benjamin Netanhahu to form a “right-wing” coalition government. I was correct about the tension, but I incorrectly attributed it to a dispute over civil unions for gay couples. Actually, the dispute is over whether civil marriage, in addition to religious ones, should be permitted in Israel. »

Would-Be Terrorist Goes Free

Binyam Mohamed is being transferred from Guantanamo Bay to Great Britain by the Obama administration, where he will be let go. Mohamed is generally being characterized as a martyr due to his claim that after his arrest in Pakistan, he was sent to Morocco, where he was tortured. Whether this is true or not is impossible to say, based on the public record. Al Qaeda instructed its operatives, if captured, »

Trashing the Past, Pointlessly

As they travel around the world, the first thing that Barack Obama’s minions do–taking a cue from Obama himself–is to trash the policies of Obama’s predecessor. Most recently it was John Kerry in Beirut, speaking in anticipation of his meeting with Bashar Assad in Syria: “But unlike the Bush administration that believed you could simply tell people what to do and walk away and wait for them to do it, »

Up from history

One American hero who won’t get his due during Black History Month is Booker T. Washington. Shelby Steele’s review of Robert Norrell’s Up From History: The LIfe of Booker T. Washington in last Sunday’s Times Book Review makes me want to read the biography and is worth reading on its own. Steele deals with Washington’s unfashionable reputation, noting that “the brilliance with which he achieved the near impossible is forgotten, »

Taking Chance

in his review/essay “Is there intelligent life on television?,” Professor Paul Cantor makes the case that much of the best comedic and dramatic writing today is on television. He observes that in Hollywood television has become known as a writer’s medium. “Taking Chance” appears tonight on HBO and appears to illustrate Professor Cantor’s thesis. The film is based on the journal kept by Marine Lt. Col. Michael Strobl as he »

Rally in the Valley

Mark Steyn discusses the latest events in Pakistan: [P]eace rallies have broken out all over the Swat Valley, and, at a Swat peace rally, it helps to stand well back: As one headline put it, “Journalist Killed While Covering Peace Rally.” Mark’s otherwise dispiriting column is “Islamic radicalism is on the rise.” To comment on this post, go here. »

Uncount every vote!

If one can achieve some emotional detachment from the stakes involved, the Coleman-Franken recount and election contest may provide entertainment value. The role reversals alone are a fertile source of comedy. Immediately following the election, trailing Senator Coleman by an incredibly narrow margin, Al Franken began the traditional Democratic “count every vote” drumbeat. Franken instituted litigation to accompany the drumbeat. Working through a maze including a trip to the Minnesota »

Public Skeptical of Mortgage Bailout

Scott Rasmussen finds that by a 45%-38% margin, Americans oppose the Obama administration’s plan to subsidize people holding troubled mortgages. A review of the responses shows that there is no consensus as to what, if anything, should be done about mortgage foreclosures. This continues a pattern in which the Obama administration’s economic measures–the “stimulus” bill, aid to the automakers–are unpopular with large numbers of Americans. At the same time, Obama »

Moving forward with or without Kadima, Part Two

Israeli President Shimon Peres has officially asked Likud chairman Binyamin Netanyahu to form a coalition government. Netanyahu promptly said that he would turn first to Kadima. He stated: “I am willing to go to great lengths in the negotiations needed to establish such a government,” adding that he was prepared to offer Kadima several senior portfolios in his cabinet. This in spite of the fact that Netayahu almost certain has »

Underappreciated Comedic Performances

The Oscars are approaching; I anticipate them, as usual, with complete indifference since it is unlikely that I have seen any nominated film. When I interviewed Roger Simon on my radio show last week, he seemed taken aback when I said that I’d never actually seen the Godfather movies. Hey, they’re violent. I don’t like violence. I do like comedy, however, and at Big Hollywood, Steve Mason takes note of »

Pentagon review finds Gitmo in compliance with Geneva Convention

The Pentagon has completed a report, ordered by President Obama, of conditions at the Guantanamo Bay military prison. The report concludes that the treatment of the detainees meets the requirements of the Geneva Convention. Obama will be relieved to learn this, unless he isn’t. Defense attorneys for the terrorist detainees have complained that, at Gitmo, prisoners who go on hunger strikes are force-fed. The Pentagon finds that this doesn’t violate »

The Political Battle Rages

The Obama administration is not pleased with the public’s lukewarm–at best–reception of its pork bill and other economic measures. Rick Santelli of CNBC has become something of a folk hero with this tirade against the administration’s unwise and unfair approach to the economy: > Santelli obviously struck a nerve. Today Obama’s press secretary, Robert Gibbs, went after Santelli by name in a manner that could give demagoguery a bad name: »

Coleman’s quagmire, part 2

Senator Coleman’s case in the election contest has focused on local election officials’ inconsistent treatment of absentee ballots. Some counties rigorously enforced the statutory criteria applicable to absentee ballots; others did not. This past Friday, the election contest judges ruled that the statute provides the touchstone for determining the inclusion of previously rejected absentee ballots. The ruling is reasonable on its face. Senator Coleman’s team has nevertheless attacked the decision »

It’s Official

If the President is a Republican, it’s fine to call him a “chimp.” In fact, it’s morally superior. But if the President is a Democrat, you can’t call a chimpanzee a chimp lest someone think you might have been referring to the President. It all makes perfect sense. To comment on this post, go here. »

“Smart Power”

That’s the Obama administration’s rather obnoxious description of its own foreign policy–as though its predecessors were all dumb. Reality is intractable, though, even when you’re smart. Today it was Pakistan. The Pakistani government, not especially pro-American or anti-terrorist, has cut a “deal” with violent Islamists to install Sharia law in the contested Swat valley–which sounds, of course, more like a capitulation, perhaps a willing one, than a “deal.” The administration’s »