There seems to be some debate among conservatives whether the Tea Party movement hurt or helped Republicans at least in certain races. Some establishment GOP types argue that Tea Partyers hurt the cause. I disagree, but I'm really not trying to open that can of worms here.
I've also detected -- not that this takes refined powers of discernment -- that some of the establishment types have a condescending disdain for the TP in general and wish it would go away, even though they'll not admit it outright, anymore than liberal Democrats will admit they don't care about deficits.
As there is residual disdain for Tea Partyers among some on the right, I want to suggest that TPers are entitled to credit beyond their obvious effect on the elections. (I have been gratified that they have not chosen the Third Party route and have instead decided to act as watchdogs against profligate spending, among other things, from both parties. ...
Here's a question to ponder: In the USA, are we free to be lousy parents?
Obviously, I'm not referring to abusive, neglectful adults who victimize, exploit or otherwise harm their children through physical, sexual or emotional abuse.
But let's be honest. Some people are just better at parenting than others, and some are really crappy at it. They capitulate when they should be firm and consistent, they indulge when they should withhold, they turn a blind eye to disobedience and disrespectful attitudes until those behaviors become character traits, they expect others (teachers, administrators, coaches, neighbors, managers in stores and restaurants) to pick up their slack and administer the discipline that they are too lazy/unskilled/apathetic/pick-your-word to provide. Some parents are selfish, some are unorganized, some are clueless.
We all know stinky parents. Close your eyes and envision your cousin watching his kid throw a temper tantrum last Thanksgiving, ruining the feast for everyone, and ask yourself this: If your cousin is really a world-class crap-o-la father, should he be free to rear his child as he pleases, even if his lack of parenting skills ultimately will impact the community as a whole? ...
The speech praises Indonesia's democratic government--and religious tolerance--while acknowledging the importance of Islam in that country--but an Islam that takes a cosmopolitan and tolerant form, and which does not define the country in and of itself. Watch the speech below or read it here.
Though Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world by population, Islam is not the official state religion. As Paul Wolfowitz wrote this week in the Wall Street Journal:
Indonesia is a major emerging economy and potential trading partner. It also exemplifies a successful transition from dictatorship to democracy, and it has the largest Muslim population of any country in the world.
Indonesia is one of the very few Muslim-majority countries where Islam is not the state religion. Reflecting its tradition of religious tolerance, the country officially recognizes six religions, of which Islam is only one. Indonesia's national motto—"Unity in Diversity," so similar to our own—reflects the common values that our two countries share.
Wolfowitz concludes that Indonesia is a critical U.S. ally, especially in the fight against Islamic extremism. Obama, therefore, should not miss the opportunity to reach out to Indonesia and its Muslim population. ...
This YouTube video reminded me that I was the person who introduced Keith Olbermann to America.
Keith was a sportscaster at the local CBS affiliate in Los Angeles at the same time I was doing a talk show for that network. I thought Keith was pretty funny on the air, and I suggested we have him come on the show and talk sports. This was the first of several appearances he made on the show, and he always did a nice job.
Keith tended to wear out his welcome at stations and networks, and he bounced around to several places before he found his niche at MSNBC. When he first went on the air there, he was actually quite entertaining. He was wry and amusing, and he looked at the news at a kind of cockeyed angle that I enjoyed.
I’m not sure how he morphed into the bitter-sounding, hate-mongering name-caller he’s become, but I’m sorry he did. I liked the guy, and he was always a good guest. Maybe it’s just show business and trying to find a place in it and building an audience, but I don’t know. ...
I began my day yesterday, as you may recall, by interviewing His Serene Highness Prince Hans Adam II of Liechtenstein. I ended the day with my head in a toilet tank.
One of the kids heard the toilet running and running, and, after waiting until 10 PM, just before going to bed, decided to tell Dad. My first response? (After groaning and rolling my eyes, I mean.) To find the valve, turn off the water to the toilet, and send an email to the plumber. Seated at the computer, however, I recalled Bill McGurn's post about how he spent his weekend putting up bookshelves, repairing the fireplace, and fixing the electrical box outside the house. Reading Bill's post, I'd felt the usual guilt mixed with inadequacy that I always experience on hearing another man describe repairing his home, laying pipe, or changing his own oil. (George Savage bought a big old BMW for a mere ten grand, with the result that he has to spend every second weekend on his back, sliding around under the car, fixing it. Nothing makes him happier.) Determined to do my manly best, I spent 90 minutes--90 minutes! ...
Several years ago, while still in office, President Bush encouraged veterans to display their medals on Veterans Day. I had a hat with my medals pinned to it resting on the dashboard of my 18 wheeler, but I hadn't actually worn it. My friend and fellow military retiree, Bob Lee, urged me to wear the hat, explaining that only a small fraction of Americans actually know a service member. What they know of us is filtered through the media, he said, and therefore often distorted. As is his custom Bob made good sense, so I reluctantly agreed to wear the hat that day. The reaction was mixed as some people gawked, while some actually glared (Abu Ghraib was in the headlines at the time), and the remainder were just indifferent.
Sitting down to dinner that Veterans Day evening, my hat on the table, I was reflecting on the reactions I had experienced and feeling a bit down. I didn't exactly expect a parade, but a smile would have been nice. A gentleman's voice interrupted my brooding. "You've got a lot of hardware on that hat. ...
In the Wall Street Journal today, Kimberley Strassel has an excellent interview with our prior president, George W. Bush.
The interview hits on many fascinating points, and really gives you a sense of Bush-the-man (and his affinity to crocs, the footwear of middle aged women who garden and young hippies who don't). I thought the most interesting part of Strassel's interview was Bush's defense of his fiscal record. A common criticism of Bush, especially among conservatives, is that he was a big spender and, therefore, deviated from the prudent principles of small government conservatism--that he's part of the reason why tea party folks and independents have grown disillusioned with the Republican Party, the establishment, and so on and so forth.
Well here is his defense:
One perception the president is determined to shift is that of his spending record. "Decision Points" contains one graphic: a table comparing, among other things, President Bush's average spending-to-GDP (19.6%) to that of Bill Clinton (19.8%), Bush 41 (21.9%), and Reagan (22.4%). It also shows that his deficit-to-GDP was 2%—half that of Bush 41 and Reagan.
I come armed with a slew of spending questions. ...
Although I can think of acts more evil than defrauding a fund for Holocaust survivors--obviously I can, that fund existed for a reason in the first place--it's kind of hard to think of a more tastelessly evil act. Can you imagine one? Not easy, is it?
So if you’re not following Claire’s Twitter feed (and if you’re not, really, take a good long look at yourself and where your life is headed), you may have missed that a Turkish seismologist accidentally left years’ worth of earthquake data at a bus stop. I’m hoping the good professor has a backup, but he sounds a little bit desperate…
What could be worse to lose than that? Take it away, Teton County, Wyoming, sheriff’s department sergeant Lloyd Funk!
JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) - Officials in Wyoming want people to be on the lookout for a black box with white lettering that says "METH," after a deputy lost a stash used to train police dogs. Teton County sheriff's Sgt. Lloyd Funk said the deputy accidentally left the box on a bumper after a canine training exercise Oct. 27. It contained nearly an ounce of methamphetamine.
The deputy drove off with the drugs perched on the vehicle.
The Jackson Hole News & Guide reported that officers literally trying to get drugs off the street haven't been able to find the box.
Anyone with information is being asked to call the sheriff's office. ...
No, I'm not talking about Tea Partiers in Park Slope.
This is a slideshow of animals that have adopted animals of different species. I serve it up to you as a tonic from some of the vitriol being splashed around the news of late. I just finished reading that Obama's first act on arrival in Indonesia was to slap Israel around a little. There isn't much new to say about that bad romance right now, so instead, here are some pictures of animals living together in peace and harmony.
My question about the mystery of merchants who can't make change in Istanbul prompted my Turkish friends to leave a series of interesting comments on my Facebook page, giving me cause again to reflect upon the curiosities of expatriate life.
I've been here for five years, going on six, and you'd think I'd pretty much understand the basics of Turkish etiquette by now. Yet regularly it is revealed to me that I've been doing something that is, by American standards, completely normal and by local standards weird, rude and inappropriate. Why haven't I noticed? Because those around me have been far too polite to point it out.
Here's the transcript of a chat I had some time ago with my brother about this. Note that his wife is Italian.
Claire says: I had one of those days where by Turkish standards, I just kept doing the wrong thing. I am very sick of hearing, "In Turkey, it's considered rude to do X," X being whatever perfectly normal thing I've just done.
Mischa says: I am so sympathetic. I hate being a foreigner all the time. ...
The ACLU of Pennsylvania recently filed a civil rights lawsuit on behalf of a couple whose newborn baby was kidnapped by Lawrence County Children and Youth Services (LCCYS) because her mother recklessly consumed an "everything" bagel from Dunkin' Donuts the day before the birth. Jameson Hospital, where Isabella Rodriguez was born on April 27, has a policy of testing expectant mothers' urine for illegal drugs and reporting positive results to LCCYS, even without any additional evidence that the baby is in danger of neglect or abuse. LCCYS, in turn, has a policy of seizing such babies from their homes based on nothing more than the test result. Unfortunately for Isabella's parents, Elizabeth Mort and Alex Rodriguez, Jameson sets the cutoff level for its opiate test so low that it can be triggered by poppy seeds, which is why two caseworkers and two Neshannock Township police officers visited their home the day after baby and mother returned from the hospital. LCCYS seized the three-day-old girl and put her in foster care for five days before conceding it had made a mistake. ...
The New York Times has a story about President Obama's visit to Indonesia, the country where he spent part of his boyhood. The graph that caught my eye:
His nanny was an openly gay man who, in keeping with Indonesia’s relaxed attitudes toward homosexuality, carried on an affair with a local butcher, longtime residents said. The nanny later joined a group of transvestites called Fantastic Dolls, who, like the many transvestites who remain fixtures of Jakarta’s streetscape, entertained people by dancing and playing volleyball.
This is the newspaper that couldn't be bothered to find anything out about Obama during his college years. Am I alone in thinking that if, oh, I don't know, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin had a similar background, The Times might have found that newsworthy years ago?
The 'progressives' couldn't attain change through Obama. Now it might be time for more drastic measures. The Blaze has the scoop:
“Are things in our country so bad that it might actually be time for revolution?” Dylan Ratigan asked yesterday on his MSNBC show. His unequivocal reply: “The answer is obviously ‘yes.’ The only question is, ‘how to do it?’”
So what kinds of abuses are we obviously going to rise up against? “Wrongful wars,“ ”corrupt economy,“ ”special interest industries,” “the political system itself,“ and ”gerrymandering.”
“To clear our dire problems may require even more drastic solutions,” he said. While introducing his cartoonist guest, Ratigan says those solutions might include “violence or at least the threat thereof.”
Take a look at the MSNBC segment in question. Are these liberals really weighing violence as a viable solution to their problems?
The demise of the nation-state has been predicted for decades. But certainly as one looks at the Middle East region it is very much alive and well. It is striking to me that although the borders of many modern Middle Eastern countries are the result of decisions by colonial powers with which the peoples of the area had nothing to do, nonetheless they have been ready to fight and die to preserve the sanctity of those borders....No Middle Eastern borders have changed [since early in the twentieth century]. National identity within the post-World War I constructs that were determined by the colonial powers have nonetheless been absolutely solid.
The death of the nation-state. Yet another concept so obviously out of keeping with the facts that only intellectuals can believe it.
I'm an amateur investor. Pretty much as amateur as they come, really, because I don't have much money to work with (which really limits the options). I've always been tempted to diversify my portfolio with a gold-based ETF or mutual fund. But every time I look into it, I'm discouraged by how high the price of gold already is. It can't keep going up forever, can it? And I don't want to be the sucker who buys into gold just before prices plummet. The last time I thought about investing in a gold-based financial product, gold was around $900 an ounce. Now it's over $1400 an ounce.
In the wake of the Fed's decision to do even further quantitative easing, a decision which has invited criticism from China, Russia and the Euro zone, gold has now shot above $1400 an ounce. Perhaps I'm too ready to call bubbles in assets, but this sure looks like one to me.
[...]
The whole idea of gold as some sort of unique store of value is badly flawed. It doesn't make a particularly good currency, and it also doesn't make a particularly good investment. ...
The defendant, Steven J. Hayes, sat motionless at the defense table as a court clerk read, again and again, the jurors’ findings that Mr. Hayes should die for joining in the July 2007 home invasion that led to a night and morning of unimaginable terrors, of sexual abuse, baseball-bat beatings and flames, in the bucolic suburban town. Only one person has been executed in the state since 1960.
The crime was savage--beyond savage; evil--and Hayes's guilt was never in doubt.
Has the jury done right? I'd be particularly interested to learn what my friends Richard Epstein, John Yoo and Bill McGurn have to say. Legal scholars, Richard and John will have given a lot of thought to Supreme Court cases on the death penalty over the years, as also to the practical aspects of the penalty. (Hayes's appeals will take years, costing Connecticut taxpayers millions.) Bill McGurn? He's a learned Catholic, no doubt aware that Bishop William Lori, in whose diocese (if I'm not mistaken about the boundaries) the murder took place, represents one of the Church's--and the nation's--leading advocates for abolishing the death penalty outright.
Michelle Obama's handshake is in the news again. Two years ago it was the "terrorist fist jab" faux controversy. Today it's Tifatul Sembiring's unfortunate photo op.
Tifatul Sembiring is described by media as a "conservative" (defined as what, I wonder) government official in Indonesia. He is the country's Minister of Communication and head of the Prosperous Justice Party.
He has a goal of cleaning porn from the Internet (there's porn on the Internet?) and a penchant for blaming natural disasters on a lack of morality, a la Jerry Falwell and Ted Turner.
He is also known for such Muslim piety that he vows never to touch a woman to whom he isn't related (because, you know, women are SO un-pious!).
Today he was caught on tape grabbing a big ol’ fistful of Michelle Obama's lovely hand.
Caught in this Islamic Fundamentalist faux pas, he did what any real man of honor would do: He blamed the girl. Nice job, Sir Galahad. He is claiming that he tried to avoid being touched, but the first lady imposed her will on him by holding her hand out too far. ...
Just recorded an Uncommon Knowledge interview with--and I'm not making this up--His Serene Highness Prince Hans Adam II, Reigning Prince of Liechtenstein. The interview won't go up on the Internet for another ten days, but, in the meantime, a few impressions:
The United States and Europe “have to free the state from all the unnecessary tasks and burdens with which it has been loaded during the last hundred years, which have distracted it from its two main tasks: maintenance of the rule of law and foreign policy.”
Every word of that, I said, could have been written by Sarah Palin. The prince laughed, then remarked that he'd be quite happy as a member of the the Tea Party. And he meant it. Over and over again--particularly in addressing the need to roll back the welfare state--the prince sounded just like Sarah Palin or Rand Paul.
When we Americans talk about taking the long view, we ordinarily mean thinking in terms of a decade or two. The prince? I asked about the pressures Germany has been placing on Liechtenstein to change its banking regulations. ...
