Mark Steyn Looks At The Future Of The US And Sees......Greece

The incomparable Mark Steyn peers into his social palantir and sees a future for the US of socialism, Greek style.

There is still time.

Tom Friedman Annoys on Energy

Tom Friedman of the NYT has become a one-man garden industry of talking points for the Democratic Party. In today's bit of doggerel, he recounts an interview he had with SC Senator Lindsey Graham, who along with John Kerry and Joe Lieberman is attempting to put together a "bi-partisan" energy bill, presumably along lines of thinking with which Friedman is broadly in agreement.

This bit of ridiculosity from the first paragraph: "What is interesting about Graham is that he has been willing — courageously in my view — to depart from the prevailing G.O.P. consensus that the only energy policy we need is “drill, baby, drill.”


This is what passes for insight from a Pulitzer-Prize winning columnist in America's "Newspaper of Record?" Does Friedman really believe that Republican energy policy is nothing more than "drill, baby, drill"? Didn't the President just recently make hay in his State of the Union Speech by offering support for New Nuclear Power as an olive branch to Republicans? Because Republicans largely are in opposition to the President's Cap and Trade initiative (which offered plenty of goodies for friends and industries favored by the administration and other Dems), does Friedman really believe that Republicans simply want to burn oil until its gone and then figure out the problem?

Friedman has been a leading thinker on matters dealing with the Middle East and with Islam--with good reason. That he has moved into adjacent markets to become seen as some kind of green-energy sage just doesn't hold water. He's a mouthpiece for the secular religion of Greenism and a reliable amplifier for whatever ideas rattle around Manhattan, Georgetown and Davos salons.

POTUS: Forget the Right Cross, Watch Out for that Left Hook

Some interesting plays on the President's last name coming from the lefter wing of the "progressive" side of the house. Maybe we ought to offer a free CW t-shirt to the first person who can post an actual picture of one of these affixed to a Prius similarly festooned with fading anti-Bush stickers. Just make sure your "shutter" settings are set appropriately, I heard those things have a tendency to scoot.

George Wallace Redux?

CW has previously stated that the Tea-Partiers would have influence in the GOP, but be ineffective as a third party movement. The author of this article in National Journal suggests that the champions of true conservatism should be wary of too much influence. He sees elements of George Wallace in today's Tea-Party populism (less the racism).

I am not saying that today's Republicans are a bunch of Wallace clones. Or that everything Wallace did or said was wrong, or that Republicans should shun all of his themes just because he used them. I am saying three things.

First, with the important exception of race, not one of Wallace's central themes, from his bristling nationalism and his court-bashing to his anti-intellectualism and his aggressive provincialism, would seem out of place at any major Republican gathering today.

Second, and again leaving race aside, any Republican politician who publicly renounced the Wallace playbook would be finished as a national leader.

Third, by becoming George Wallace's party, the GOP is abandoning rather than embracing conservatism, and it is thereby mortgaging both its integrity and its political future. Wallaceism was not sufficiently mainstream or coherent to sustain a national party in 1968, and the same is true today.

Conservatism is wary of extremism and rage and anti-intellectualism, of demagoguery and incoherent revolutionary rhetoric. Wallace was a right-wing populist, not a conservative. The rise of his brand of pseudo-conservatism in Republican circles should alarm anyone who cares about the genuine article.

Hunting with Mudge

Well the hunt is over and neither human nor canine was in any way hazarded--though we did put a hurtin' on a few birds, pictured in breathless repose on the fence.

We went two rounds on a hunting preserve about twenty minutes from where I live in Easton, the first with John's dog Cappy (pictured) (a superbly trained Spinone) and the second with Hugh's dog Ollie--a beautiful little black lab. It was a big, beautiful farm ringed with woods and a few nice border-making tree-lines.

The Spinone is a pointer--he'd get on the scent of a bird and go into a point beautifully. John or Hugh would walk toward where the bird was, and then it would either start running out of the brush or immediately take to flight. Once he/she was up in the air and a safe line of fire was established, Eric and I were the shooters--depending on which side of the brush/tree line that bird exited.

I missed my first four shots (two birds, using an over/under Baretta). Eric on the other hand, was hot early, hitting five birds in a row. I improved as the day wore on, and eventually bagged five or so myself.

Contrasted with deer hunting from a stand, the hunting we did today is downright social. No one seemed terribly concerned about being loud or spooking the game, though obviously we got serious when one of the dogs got "birdy". The Lab, Ollie, was a bit younger and less experienced than Cappy, and he "flushed" the birds rather than pointed them. This was a problem every now and then, as he'd get a bit in front of us and flush birds at too great a distance for a good shot--though the birds were often downright accommodating and would fly back toward us, as if offering themselves for our shooting/eating pleasure (I've got quite a bit of breasted pheasant and a few chuckers to enjoy...).

Always great to be in Mudge's company, truly one of the most simpatico gentlemen I know. Hugh's a long-time Easton/Eastern Shore resident, and he told wonderful stories of how the area used to be. John put the trip all together and proved an able and amiable host. All in all, a superb day. Thanks to all involved.

A Few Minutes With Greg Mankiw

Need something to do this weekend? Read the paper linked to in this Greg Mankiw post.

Absolutely fascinating.

Off On A Pheasant Hunt

Still vainly trying to fit in with this country gentleman thing (that was for you, Hammer), I am off on a pheasant hunt this afternoon, an outing I bid on and won at a fund-raising auction at the kittens' school. The leader of the expedition is a friend of mine here in town, and he hunts on a private preserve of a friend of his a bit up the Shore. The chances of actually killing anything are low, as I am told that the snow has beat down much of the cover that pheasants seem to dig. At least this is what I'm told, as I have but once even seen a pheasant in the wild.

Adding also to the unlikelihood that anything will be killed is the fact that Mudge is joining in the fun, driving up from Virginia's sliver of the Eastern Shore. Mudge "hunts" regularly, but based reporting (his and others) he rarely "kills" anything. Kinda like what they call a "cooler" in the gambling business, the guy who sidles up to your blackjack table and kills the run.

I'll try and bring a digital camera along to capture some of the carnage.

Pedophile Case In Delaware: Why Beau Biden's Not Running?

When Delaware Attorney General--and son of the Vice President--Beau Biden announced that he would not seek the "Biden" seat in the US Senate, there was a lot of speculation--much of it here in this blog--as to why he was not running. My gut feeling was that he suffered from "Sanford-Woods Syndrome" and didn't want to expose his family to it. I had ZERO evidence to support the charge, so I said nothing (though in our present day world, it clearly would have shocked no one). Biden cited wishing to continue his AG work in protecting children from sexual predators as his reason for not running.

Boy, was he right. Katie Couric and Jan Crawford of CBS News have been covering the story of a pedophile in Lewes, Delaware who used the cover of his childhood pediatrics practice to indulge his horrific crimes, likely over the course of nearly 20 years. Complaints to State Authorities during that time by concerned parents resulted in little action including one from THE DOCTOR'S SISTER. Even after he came under intense scrutiny from state law enforcement, he continued his depredations, including reports of one assault the day before his arrest.

Beau Biden made protecting children his signature issue in campaigning for Attorney General, and he cited the work as part of the reason he wasn't going to run for the Senate. I'll go him one step further. Biden knew that once this story got big, that once it broke on the national scene (which last week's 471 count indictment has done), the glare of media attention would eventually turn itself on him, his office, and Delaware Law Enforcement--handing an opponent a superb campaign issue highlighting Biden's incompetence as AG. I've yet to see such a report in the BAPF (Bought and Paid For) media, but I will give it some time.

GWB Term III Continues....

Patriot Act re-authorized.

A Great Post On Campaign Finance From Cato

Can be found here.

Key graph:

"The next time someone tells you that donations are “legalized bribery,” ask them why Obama took $18 million from Wall Street and gave them in return endless abuse and hostile legislation.

Quid pro quo, indeed."

Restoring Science To Its Rightful Place

Scientists believe they have found why men find the "hourglass" figure the most attractive shape for the female body.

Researchers at Georgia Gwinnett College in Lawrenceville, Georgia studied the brain scans of fourteen young men following viewing of nude pictures of women pre and post cosmetic surgery. The surgery was performed to redistribute fat from the women's waist to the buttocks to give them more of an hourglass figure. The operations did not reduce the weight, but merely redistributed it.

Scans of the study subjects revealed that viewing the post-surgery photographs stimulated the same regions of the brain that were activated by rewards, drugs and alcohol.

Steven Platek, an evolutionary cognitive neuroscientist (I didn't make that up), said the research may help to explain such social phenomena as sexual harassment and whistling at curvaceous women in the street.

Good to know that science is on the case.

Paul Ryan on The President's Healthcare Plan

You got 6 minutes and 11 seconds? Watch this.

Bush, Barack, And Bi-Partisanship

The President makes a lot of noise about bi-partisanship and reaching out to the GOP, but does he mean it? And by that, I mean, is he meaningfully attempting to work with the GOP, or is he just talk about it.

The incomparable Keith Hennessey looks at bi-partisanship in the Bush (you remember him--failure, my way or the highway, most divisive figure in American politics) White House and contrasts it with what we've seen so far from the Obama team. The comparison does not reflect well upon The One.

I've said it before and I'll say it again--historians will (in future years) look back on the Bush Presidency in a more positive light than journalists did. What's the word for how Bush got things done? "Strategery!"

Big Fat Friday Free For All

All Time High (April 1 2009): 192.2
Diet start (June 1): 189
Last Friday: 172.6 (2/12/10)
Today: 174.2
Goal: Sub 150

Sub 150's looking dim these days--I seem to have hit an equilibrium point. Well, that's not exactly true--I didn't eat/exercise as well the past two weeks as I did the week ending 2/12. Back to work, another opportunity to excel.

Enough of that already--what are you thinking about these days? Any topics you want to talk about on the radio show? How'd the GOP do in the healthcare summit yesterday? I haven't seen any video, but I read that my man Paul Ryan did a fine job. Sick of winter yet? I said to the Kitten last night that I'd never been more excited for Spring.

Share, people. Share.

UVA Students To Protest Yoo

Defender of Presidential prerogative and conqueror of Jon Stewart--John Yoo--will speak at UVA on Friday the 19th of March.

I am committed that day--and I'm sick about it. Had I not other tasking, I'd lead the counter-demonstration.

John S--can you take this one on?

HT--Instapundit

Making the Double A-List in California

This just in from the land of fruits and nuts, specifically, from Nancy's and Diane's and Barbara's constituents:

A STATEWIDE (for starters) ANIMAL ABUSERS REGISTRY.

You know, like the National Sex Offender Registry, only different.

Some context: Californians recently legislated certain "rights" to food such as pre-butchered pork, chicken and beef. The NYT reports:

"Last fall, California became the first state to outlaw so-called tail-docking of dairy cows, where the tail is partly amputated to ease milking. In 2008, voters in the state passed Proposition 2, which gave hens, calves and pigs more room in their crates or cages. That law has upset many in the California egg industry and prompted some agriculturally-minded residents to even talk about seceding from the state."

I've got nothing against people treating animals humanely. I've got nothing against holding people accountable for torturing animals that don't wear beards and turbans and shout 'Allah Akbhar' as a prefix to killing other humans. But I've got EVERYTHING against extending "rights" to animals. Especially when the very people who plea the loudest for elevating them to human (and beyond) status are the same ones who so willingly deny unborn humans any such rights or who seem so willing to elect governments that would, given the opportunity, dismantle the Bill of Rights.

Make no mistake, those of you who are thinking, "Well, why shouldn't we publicly shame people like Michael Vick and those who viciously abuse those poor defenseless animals", this is just the next step along a very slippery slope that the likes of PETA, ALF and others have been greasing for a long time. And there's an enormous difference in the commerically-driven shaming of someone like Vick and the government using citizens' resources to lead the shaming. Any of you out there own a...excuse me...have an animal friend/partner/companion/whatever the BS PC term du jour is for "pet", that has a docked tail? Pinched ears? Clipped wings? De-clawed paws? Kept in a cage? Kennel? Tied to a post? Neutered? Spayed? Otherwise denied being "free range"?

You're next.

Any of you ready to see your food bills rise dramatically as farmers and processors contend with more costs and less production? If you answer yes, then you can pay more right now to get what you want. In fact, that is pretty much my point here. If you want to change the way food is produced in this country, you can do that by voting with your purse/wallet. It's precisely why there is an industry that is growing rapidly to fulfill this increased demand. But to have the government step in and impede citizens in their pursuit of happiness or by taking or limiting their personal property by superceding those rights with animal "rights" is dangerous.

And it isn't a very long putt to see where all this heads with hunting.

I'm reminded of something I think maybe George Carlin once said about animal rights, "You know, if you asked a bear how he feels about animal rights, you know what he'd say? NOTHING, HE'S A FREAKING BEAR!"

California can't really be blamed. It's what happens when a whole nation starts leaning too far left. All the nuts and fruits roll to that end. They can stay there for all I care. But so can their "laws."

Uhh, Do You Think It Might Have Had Anything to Do with His FIRST NAME???!!!

This story about a veteran Sea World trainer being drowned by a Kille...er, wait a minute, for all my leftist friends, ALLEDGED Killer Whale following a training session in front of a now slightly disturbed audience reminds me of how irritated I always got when someone ran his ship aground and then submitted a report that tried to lessen the reality: "touched bottom", or "made contact with an unidentified submerged object" [as one Admiral who read that commented: "AKA Planet EARTH") or other such nonsense. Fortunately, groundings were not too frequent and of those who did ground, only a handful failed to take full responsibility for it.

Anyway, Sea World officials initially tried to substitute an entirely different (and false) version of the incident to counter the reports of audience members who were interviewed by the press that the trainer was pulled in from her platform and thrashed about by the AKW until she died. To their quite minimal credit, they finally did concede that the audience reports were correct. BUT, in one last feeble attempt to make everything okay again, they claim that the cause of this abberation in Orca behavior (really? check out video below--warning: cute-furry-animal-gets-eaten alert) was, are you ready for this?--

BECAUSE THE TRAINER HAD A PONY TAIL.

I might have bought it had it been a mullet, but seriously, I am not making this up. And thank God they've warned all of us who might try to ride our ponies along the shoreline where Orcas feed. I am not an expert on Orcas, to be certain, but I can tell when someone's been washing a hog and this is that.

From the "Everyone I Know Voted For McGovern" Department...

Pauline Kael, former movie critic for the New Yorker, is famously thought to have wondered aloud how Nixon could have won the 1972 election, when "everyone I know voted for McGovern." As this Wikipedia reference indicates, it's not certain she actually said that--but you get the picture.

Cut to 2010, and former VP Dick Cheney has suffered his fifth heart attack. Joy Behar (who apparently has something to do with television) is interviewing Bill Maher (ditto). "I just find it interesting that he doesn't get any sympathy from people...people around me, anyway."

US Support For Israel Rises...

even as the Obama Administration continues to tilt away them. So let's see--Obama supports healthcare reform, America disagrees with him (or at least his version). Obama supports Cap and Trade, America disagrees with him. Starting to see a trend? (Instapundit)

Jonah Goldberg On The Left's Fascination With Matters Abroad

We had a chat on the radio program about Ann Coulter, and I revised previously made comments about her, in that I did recognize that she's pretty darn funny. She doesn't deal in ideas per se, but she does crack a good wise.

You want to follow a superb thinker who is also funny? That's Jonah Goldberg. Some of his stuff is hilarious--Mark Steyn funny even. But it is all very well-thought-out, including this discussion of the Left's fascination with the way other countries do things. Seemingly no authoritarian society worldwide has escaped the Left's fascination and praise, wistful longings for the kind of centralized power available to the truly autocratic government.

On Mud

I have fond memories of watching M*A*S*H as a kid. One of them is how much time Hawkeye spent complaining about the mud of Korea. Well, I think I now know of what he speaks.

Many of you know I live on a farm on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. The farm has a long lane extending up from the street, a lane presumably comprised of gravel. In the summer, the lane is a dusty mess, instantly turning even the cleanest car into a filthy shadow of its former self. Time and inattention has rendered the lane less gravelly and more dusty than it ought to be (the care of the lane is not the Kitten's responsibility nor mine). The incessant snow of this winter, in addition to aggressive plows, has also taken its toll.

We are now left with a lane that is almost totally mud. This includes the once gravel circular drive in front of our house. There is no place for one to park without instantly stepping into several inches of gooey icky mud. It is demoralizing, especially when one has recently purchased a new automobile. The tires are muddy, the wheelwells are muddy, there is mud along the length of the car and there is mud all over the ridiculously expensive rubber mats I purchased to cover the ridiculously expensive plush carpet underneath. I find myself having to aggressively maneuver the car simply to make it through the accumulated muck without getting stuck.

There is, on our farm, an inherited aversion to blacktopped farm lanes. I won't mention any names, but I happen to be one of the very few full-time inhabitants of any of the dwellings on our little peninsula who would like the lane to be blacktop. Some of the others think blacktop is "for
Washington people", those who have gobbled up the old family estates along the water here for their weekend entertainment, much to the chagrin of the locals. One might even speculate that clinging to gravel is a way of clinging to a past long gone by. I don't know why blacktop has such a bad rap here, but I'm all for it.

I've developed a rewarding relationship with a local carwash. Rewarding for the owners of the carwash, at least. For the low, low price of $26.00, I can have a squad of dubiously credentialed "guest workers" (ahem) descend upon my beautiful, but muddy automobile, and in a matter of minutes, she is returned to showroom glory--chrome gleaming, tires Armor-alled, the faint odor of new car smell once again wafting through the cabin. I am made whole by the Wet Dog Car Wash, at least until my next trip down the lane.

Tonight's Radio Show

Many thanks to the callers and those in the chat room tonight--good show, good conversation. Lost internet with 3 mins to go, so I just let it ride....

It's All Been Done...It's All Been Done...It's All Been Do-o-ne Before

As my favorite Canadian songsters, Bare Naked Ladies, remind us, sometimes the things we think are fresh and novel, have been done in the past. As with putting humans on the moon, something new to the more recent generations (and until the latest budget cuts, on NASA's menu of "new" explorations) so goes putting women on submarines.

"We've never had women on submarines" you say? PSHAW!

Allow me to refresh your memory with THESE pioneer "Ladies of the Deep":

Jamie Lee Curtis (1997)
Yvonne Wilder (1997)
Melinda Naud (1997)
Bond Gideon (1997)
Lauren Holly (1996)
Dorrie Thomson (1977)
Cat Futch (1975)
Joan O'Brien (1959)
Dina Merrill (1959)
Virginia Gregg (1959)
Madlyn Rhue (1959)
Marion Ross (1959)

The women who will, Congress permitting, one day serve in submarines again, owe these trail-blazers a debt of gratitude.






This post is a parody. The views of its author do not represent the views of the CW nor its affiliate broadcasting stations (CW Live tonight at 8pm) or its advertisers from which contributing writers receive no proceeds. Any dissenting views or opinion may be addressed online to http://www.NOW.org

New Arlington Schools Budget

News here of what one would have to believe (were one to buy the tone of the article) is a bare-bones, all the fat cut out budget for the Arlington County, Virginia school district.

Ok. Lets do a little history major math, shall we?

Total budget: $442 million.

Total number of students: 20,268

Average spending per student: approx $21,8oo per student

Number of states nationwide with an average per-pupil expenditure in excess of Arlington: 0


To paraphrase Eva Peron, "Don't cry for me, Arlington".

WaPost Endorsements In Virginia

Two races, two Democrats. Nothing to worry about here, move along.

More News Of Wall Street's Bad Call On Obama

Yet another story here of Wall Street's buyer's remorse with Barack Obama. I'm not a big fan of demonizing entire industries--especially an industry as important as the financial industry--but the move to the left (in a big way) by these guys in 2008 always struck me as ridiculous. More evidence of the "I've got so much money I can afford to be a liberal" mentality.

Death Toll in Afghanistan Hits 1000 Mark

News here of the passing of a milestone in the war in Afghanistan, the death of the 1000th American. This is an occasion for reflection and sadness.

But let us not forget--we have been fighting a war in Afghanistan for 8 and a half years--and while the deaths of 1000 are lamentable, we cannot but be grateful for the technology, training, and leadership our Armed Forces have. These factors have been critical in keeping war dead to under 125 a year there.

Perspective: 58,000 dead in Vietnam. 53000 dead in Korea. 300,000 dead in WWII.

Though I am grateful for the deaths of so few, I wonder whether we have created an expectation in ourselves of the capacity for deathless war (at least on our side), an expectation that at some point could result in the loss of true perspective about cost and benefit in the waging of war. Time will tell.

The Conservative Wahoo LIVE! Tonight at 8PM

Don't forget to mark your calendars for tonight's big radio program, The Conservative Wahoo Live! Listen in on the web, join us in the chat room and please join the fun on the telephone! Calls are taken at 347.637.2203.

Topics for discussion tonight include:

• Ann Coulter, Glenn Beck, and the role of firebrands in the modern Republican Party
• Mossad hit in Dubai?
• Scott Brown’s vote on the jobs bill
• Healthcare Summit tomorrow
• Tiger Woods’ Apology fallout
• Women on Submarines

More Execrable Bunk From Justice

Firstly, good news here of the upcoming guilty plea of Najibullah Zazi on all counts of terrorism with which he was charged.

Yet the ongoing attempt by the Holder Justice Department to point to cases in which terrorists are successfully prosecuted/handled by the civilian court system simply defies logic. The underwear bomber was not a citizen or resident of the US. He had not passed through customs. Mirandizing him and offering the protections of our system was a dumb move and continuing to shroud it in legitimacy through the rear-view mirror of cases like the Zazi case is ridiculous.

Zazi was a legal resident of the US and had been since 1999. He was living and working in the US when his trail was picked up. That he was treated with in the civilian justice system makes a heck of a lot more sense than doing so with the Underwear Bomber, and continuing to compare these situations simply amplifies the charge of the Obama Administration's softness on terrorism and their inability to treat it as a national security threat.

Scott Brown Does Exactly What Scott Brown Said He'd Do

For all those weeping great big conservative tears of regret that Scott Brown hopped on the Harry Reid jobs bill (a.k.a Stimulus 2 (Lite)), go back and read the things he said and how he said he'd vote. It should not surprise ANYONE that he, Snowe, and Collins voted for this bill. This is the best we'll get from Republicans in New England, and that's OK. Brown never wrapped himself in the conservative mantle, rarely espoused conservative rhetoric, and proudly calls himself an independent. Keep in mind--we took Teddy's seat--but we didn't fill it with Jim DeMint. We filled it with the best deal we could get.

Brown's big problem politically is that the more he comes (over time--remember, this is one vote) to vote like a Democrat, the greater will be the argument to replace him with one.

Hennessey on Health Care

When I'm too busy to digest 2000 page bills for meaning, I turn to Keith Hennessey. He's done some looking into the President's new healthcare plan.

Iowahawk Brilliance

I don't seem to visit Iowahawk as much as I used to, but you should today. This man is a comic genius.

Coulter v. Pelosi (Perchance to dream)

I'm not a particularly avid fan of Ann Coulter. In fact, I more often cringe than laugh at her. I also am apparently one of the few middle-aged conservative males who does not find her particularly attractive (I actually think she is becoming more and more ghoulish--see photo at link). That said, you have GOT to read this account of her performance at CPAC.

I particularly liked her shot at the First Lady's "For the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country" comment. I also liked her comment about...well, read the article. I actually liked them all. Even the likely-to-make-the-left-cry-foul comment about Ted Kennedy.

Like her or not, she's unabashed about skewering the left when the left has left reason out of the debate...so she's a pretty busy skewerer these days.

Can't you just picture the Botox-filled prune face of Mme Speaker as she attempts to stammer a response before Coulter is already on to the next slashing witticism?

Cue the band: "Dre-e-e-e-eam, Dream Dream Dre-e-e-eam, Dre-e-e-e-eam..."

Brown Bullies Darling in Attempt to Install Balls (I am NOT making this stuff up)

"Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will say, "This was their finest hour."

-- Prime Minister Winston Churchill (Before the House of Commons, in the days before the Battle of Britain, June 1940)


In what is unlikely to supplant that historic moment as Britain's "finest hour," an ongoing political brouhaha between PM Gordon Brown and a fools gallery of staff and sympathizers (who could not possibly share a single chromosome of DNA with the Britons of WWII) must have Sir Winston spinning in his grave.

It appears that the British, get this, "National Bullying Hotline" received three or four calls from, get THIS, members of the PM's STAFF! That would be ADULT members of the PM's Staff.

So now, in addition to having to step up to the plate to be the single voice of sanity in defending democratic principles around the globe while the guy who was supposed to do that is practicing bowing in 30 languages, AND while trying to keep his nation's economy from collapsing, the incumbent in the job Winston Churchill has now got the founder of this ridiculous hotline on his ass and she's stirring up a whole nest of like-minded numb-minded non-minds who think that the PM should practice hugging, instead of yelling. ("C'mon now Mr. Prime Minister...it takes fewer muscles to smile than to frown")

All this appears to have come to a head when Mr. Brown attempted to replace one appropriately-named Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, with a much better-named, Ed Balls, someone apparently more loyal to the PM. Now there is a tell all book, the opposition (unfortunately, the Conservatives) are rallying that there is a government cover-up conspiracy and this nutcase who runs the hotline is claiming that the PM may be in violation of labor laws:

[The Hotline Director] told The Daily Telegraph that by dismissing the reports of bullying, No 10 could be breaching employment law. "If an employer receives any allegation that there is a culture of bullying or stress, they have a legal obligation to investigate, a duty of care to employees. It appears that due process is not being followed here," she explained.

Look, I'm not a particularly big fan of Brown. I didn't like the way he left Tony Blair hanging out in the breeze. I also don't think people need to scream at people to get jobs done nor do I think it particularly good form for a Prime Minister of a country that prides itself on sophisticated decorum to lose his temper so significantly that this even rises to the level of distraction that it has. But even more, I worry that this is just a portent of things to come in our society as we march down this path of turning a job into a right and as we legislate more and more job killing requirements in the name of coddling workers.

And please, Alistair, buddy, I know your name is "Darling" but really, was the first time you became aware of balls when Brown tried to replace you with Ed? If so, call Maggie Thatcher. She just might loan you hers.

Israel v. Iran--The Plot Thickens

A report on The Heron TP drone, which may in fact give Israel the strategic reach it needs to hold targets in Iran at risk.

H/T Instapundit.

Some Harmless Adult Fun

F/X has a new adult cartoon series on known as "Archer". Archer is a James Bond-like superspy, except that he's sorta dumb.

Lots of bad language and sexual innuendo. And funny as hell.

You gotta sign up for a Hulu.com account because it is adult content.

Ladies!!! If CW Offers You a Free MacBook Computer, DO NOT TAKE IT HOME!!!

Ahh, the joy of trying to keep up with the features of modern technology. Here we have an unsuspecting high school student who took his school-issued MacBook laptop home with him to do his school work (a legal act on the part of the student). However, according to the lawsuit his parents have filed, these MacBooks have a feature installed whereby the school could (and did) activate the computer's built in camera to see whatever was in front of the lens on the laptop.

Officials of the Lower Merion School District in Ardmore, Pa (about 30 minutes from CW's boyhood stomping grounds) argued that this technology is necessary in the event the computer is reported stolen (it was not) or missing (it was not). The student in question learned of this unauthorized cyber-peeping when his Assistant Principal called him in and accused him of using drugs at his computer in his home. When he denied using drugs, the Asst P showed him an image of him popping pill-like items at his desk (which, if they are jelly beans or M&Ms, is also not illegal). In any case, it sure looks as if this kid's parents will be getting a nice little economic stimulus of their own. I wonder if they will buy their son a PC or a Mac.

Either way, Microsoft should have a heyday with this little episode:

"Hi, I'm a PC. And I'm a Ma...whoa! what are you wearing? I like your tatoo. Looking for your cell phone to call 911? Oh, you left it over on your bedstand just before you went to take your shower..."



They should corner the female market easily with that tactic.



(h/t: www.computerworld.com)

Mothers In Combat

I ran across this longish essay this morning whilst perusing The Browser--a nice stop on the daily blog-scan. In it, Mary Eberstadt lays out an argument for making a distinction between the service of women in the armed forces and the service of mothers. I'm a bit torn on this one.

I have never considered it a mark of the advance of our civilization that we have enabled women to participate in the slaughter of war, either as practitioners or victims.

If we as a society have determined that gender equality demands the presence of women in the armed forces (including increasingly, combat), then it seems logical to assume that some of those women will become mothers. It seems to me that such a decision on their part (to become a mother) should not create a situation in which that female service member could not return to her pre-motherhood responsibilities after some appropriate length of time. If the service member cannot do so for whatever reason, she should be removed from service expeditiously under prejudicial terms (to include loss of benefits).

But there is in fact, an additional nuance to this discussion, and that is Ms. Eberstadt's failure to address the status of "fathers" serving in the military, including combat (except for a throwaway line in the last paragraph). It seems to me that if a special distinction is made to accommodate the service of "mothers", we begin a free-falling trip down the slippery slope to such accommodations for fathers. This occurs right about the same time that we decide to become a second rate power.

Gotta Love The Jarheads

Great little look here at the front-line conditions in our ongoing offensive spearheaded by Uncle Sam's Misguided Children (USMC). I love the Marines. Great to read about folks who joined up to fight, not for healthcare for their babies.

Marco Rubio--The Real Deal

Marco Rubio at CPAC. I think he's for real.

Big Fat Friday Free For All

No weigh in today--I've been a bad, bad boy and I'd like to not have the weight of disappointment on me to start the day. So sue me.

What's on your mind, people? Tired of every lunatic who flies his plane into buildings being instantaneously attributed to the conservative movement? Wondering what Tiger's going to say today? Thoughts on the Olympic Games?

Unburden yourselves! Let the world know what's on your mind and use the CW as your amplifier!

One Brit's View of The Mount Vernon Statement, and My Rejoinder

A couple of days ago, I wrote a post about the new statement of Conservative principles put forward in The Mount Vernon Statement. In the comments, Ian--a Brit--has offered some thoughts on the usefulness of "originalist" documents in a modern world. I'm going to extract his comments and my response into this post (sorry GG, it will be a long one) because I think there's an important exchange here.

His comments:

As you may understand from the following comments I am neither conservative, nor in fact American. I hope you'll allow me the privilege of commenting from an outside perspective.
In the UK the closest document we have is the Magna Carta which sought to establish the rights of the aristocracy relative to those of the crown. We no longer use this as a basis for government (it was written in 1215).
The Mt Vernon Statement reads very much like an originalist text and I suspect is intended to be somewhat originalist. Here I have a problem. I suspect none of the signatories, nor any of us, are sufficently educated in British, American and socio-political history, to properly interpret the founding principals of the United States in a truly originalist manner (i.e. one that seeks to follow the intentions of the founding fathers and understand their influences).

Here is the problem: we are incredibly detached from the situation in circa 1776. None of us are slave holders (freedom of man?), the USA is no longer a collection of semi-independent (ex-)colonies but rather a well integrated behemoth, the US military is no longer a militia established to protect the property and liberty of the citizens. Now, I'll concede the better educated and more eloquent men than me could probably counter all these points. But I would remind you of one thing: we do not try to live within a literal interpretation of the Bible for good reason (it uses metaphors and allegory and countenances horrible punishments for what are today relatively trivial practices).
One country that tries to live within a framework of a founding historical document and an originalist approach to that document is Iran. Does America want to be in that situation in a thousand years?
As for Paul Ryan's proposal: read the latest economist for a critque.
I hope no one is offended by my comments.

Here is my response:

Ian--many thanks for your thoughtful comments from a perspective (both geographically and politically) we don't get enough of here on the CW.

The Mount Vernon Statement is indeed, a restatement of what you might call "originalist" views; that is, they are restatements of the founding principles discussed broadly in our Declaration of Independence and then codified as a system of government in the Constitution.

A comparison with the Magna Carta works partially with the Declaration of Independence--which was also a statement asserting rights (and in this case, accusing King George III as having trampled upon them).

A comparison with our Constitution is however, problematic, as would then suppositions be about a document's relevance centuries after its drafting. We operate a bit differently here, in that we have a written Constitution--which includes in its provisions several means for its update and renewal should such changes be considered important by the populace (something the populace has done 27 times).

The themes touched on by the drafters of Mount Vernon Statement (limited government, federalism, republican self-government) have as of the writing of this blog post, not been repudiated, amended, or abandoned by the population of the US--and therefore, they remain the law of the land. Some believe that these basic threads in the fabric of our system of government are fraying under the pressure of a political assault by those who would wish a different basic relationship between the government and the governed.

So yes, the times have changed since the founders of the US drafted the Constitution. In that time, the document has been updated 27 times to reflect great national consensus. It is this process of consensus based renewal that--basic to the text of the document--that gives it its present-day strength. You don't like it? Change it. But if you don't like it, and your change isn't persuasive enough, well then, you'll just have to see if you convince a few more of your friends.

So while we cannot exactly adduce what it is those wise men meant or thought in 1787, we have their words as written, and we have methods of overturning their provisions.

Which brings me to some of the other points you made, namely comparisons to the Bible, and to Iran.

Let's start with the Bible. You state that we do not try to live within a literal interpretation of the Bible "with good reason". Well, some would dispute that (though I won't)--but more importantly, even the most liberal biblical scholar would have a hard time finding mechanisms within the Bible that provide for its alteration or amendment. It's just not that kind of document. Were our Constitution more like the Bible in that regard, this comparison would be apt. As it is, it is ineffective.

As for the comparison with Iran, it seems you're simply restating the Biblical problem and misstating the way things are done in the US. By missing/ignoring that our Constitution and our way of governing ourselves is subject to change by a determined majority, it doesn't surprise me that you might make an Iranian comparison. It just doesn't hold water.

As Goes WalMart...

Uh oh. This isn't encouraging: "Walmart suffers first US sales decline"

Video Of My Panel In San Diego

Two weeks ago, I appeared as a panelist at the USNI/AFCEA WEST 2010 conference. The subject of my panel was "What Kind of Navy Does America Need?"--David Hartman (of Good Morning America fame) moderated for myself and Undersecretary of the Navy Bob Work. Video takes a while to load, but if you want to check it out, here it is.

Olympic Fail

Downhill skier Marion Rolland's bid for Olympic glory came crashing down only five seconds after she left the gate.



Good news: She did have the best time. Bad news: There was still 1.8 miles to go.

Disputing the "Hearts and Minds" Strategy

We had a nice discussion of the current operations in Afghanistan on The Conservative Wahoo Live! radio program last night, with several listeners very much espousing the "win their hearts and minds" strategy that has become part of the background noise in Washington's current fascination with counterinsurgency theory (COIN). Here is a rational, well-argued criticism of modern COIN from today's New York Times.

I was a student at the Joint Forces Staff College in the Summer of 2006, about the time the COIN cabal began their ascendancy. After a day-long symposium on the subject in which no fewer than five separate speakers parroted the "hearts and minds" line, I stood up in the Blue Bedroom (the main auditorium, so named because of its color and the propensity of the lighting/atmosphere to put students to sleep) and asked the unlucky lecturer a simple question:

"Has an insurgency ever been broken through a policy of fear, terror and murder?"

His answer was a very quick "yes", and as if to prove his credentials as a COIN expert, he named a half dozen or so. I then asked, "How come we don't study those?"

He was aghast. His answer was basically, "Because that kind of fighting is inconsistent with American values and ideals."

I then went on. "But we firebombed Japanese and German cities night after night, killing tens of thousands of civilians at time. We dropped two atomic weapons on an opponent who was obviously losing the war. Is it a question of from how far away the fear, and terror and murder is delivered? Is that the prime determinant of whether something is "consistent" with our values?"

My point is this: winning the hearts and minds of a population is a proven strategy for breaking an insurgency--because it has been proven to work. But it hasn't always worked. Shouldn't our forces then also at least discuss other methods of breaking insurgencies? Or is it the discussion of such distasteful methods that is actually inconsistent with our values and ideals, rather than the conduct?

I'm all in favor of the "hearts and minds" approach being the default, textbook US method of addressing COIN. I'm not in favor of ignoring history.

George Will Agrees With Me On Sarah Palin and Populism

He just says it much better. Here's a key graph:

"Populism has had as many incarnations as it has had provocations, but its constant ingredient has been resentment, and hence whininess. Populism does not wax in tranquil times; it is a cathartic response to serious problems. But it always wanes because it never seems serious as a solution."

The Mount Vernon Statement

A group of Conservative grandees released a new statement of principles called the Mount Vernon Statement today. I read the entire thing on the radio show last night, and I'll include it below the cutline here.

A couple of quick thoughts:

1. It is mercifully short--well written--and pitch perfect in tone.
2. It seeks to resurrect our hallowed documents, the very basis for our Republic. Its language is the language of the founding, the language of liberty--the language of a Conservative revolution.
3. It is basically bereft of divisive social criticism, but chock full of positive statements of support--for family, community, etc.
4. While I like it very much, it doesn't occur to me that it will be particularly effective in doing anything---unlike the 1994 Contract with America, it doesn't have a "roadmap" for action. Long on inspiring rhetoric, short on action.

------------------------------

We recommit ourselves to the ideas of the American Founding. Through the Constitution, the Founders created an enduring framework of limited government based on the rule of law. They sought to secure national independence, provide for economic opportunity, establish true religious liberty and maintain a flourishing society of republican self-government.

These principles define us as a country and inspire us as a people. They are responsible for a prosperous, just nation unlike any other in the world. They are our highest achievements, serving not only as powerful beacons to all who strive for freedom and seek self-government, but as warnings to tyrants and despots everywhere.

Each one of these founding ideas is presently under sustained attack. In recent decades, America’s principles have been undermined and redefined in our culture, our universities and our politics. The selfevident truths of 1776 have been supplanted by the notion that no such truths exist. The federal government today ignores the limits of the Constitution, which is increasingly dismissed as obsolete and irrelevant.

Some insist that America must change, cast off the old and put on the new. But where would this lead — forward or backward, up or down? Isn’t this idea of change an empty promise or even a dangerous deception?

The change we urgently need, a change consistent with the American ideal, is not movement away from but toward our founding principles. At this important time, we need a restatement of Constitutional conservatism grounded in the priceless principle of ordered liberty articulated in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

The conservatism of the Declaration asserts self-evident truths based on the laws of nature and nature’s God. It defends life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It traces authority to the consent of the governed. It recognizes man’s self-interest but also his capacity for virtue.

The conservatism of the Constitution limits government’s powers but ensures that government performs its proper job effectively. It refines popular will through the filter of representation. It provides checks and balances through the several branches of government and a federal republic.

A Constitutional conservatism unites all conservatives through the natural fusion provided by American principles. It reminds economic conservatives that morality is essential to limited government, social conservatives that unlimited government is a threat to moral self-government, and national security conservatives that energetic but responsible government is the key to America’s safety and leadership role in the world.

A Constitutional conservatism based on first principles provides the framework for a consistent and meaningful policy agenda.

• It applies the principle of limited government based on the
  rule of law to every proposal.
• It honors the central place of individual liberty in American
  politics and life.
• It encourages free enterprise, the individual entrepreneur, and
  economic reforms grounded in market solutions.
• It supports America’s national interest in advancing freedom
  and opposing tyranny in the world and prudently considers what we can and should do to that
  end.
• It informs conservatism’s firm defense of family, neighborhood,
  community, and faith.

If we are to succeed in the critical political and policy battles ahead, we must be certain of our purpose.

We must begin by retaking and resolutely defending the high ground of America’s founding principles.

February 17, 2010

Obama Claims Stimulus Made Second Depression Less Likely

What a truckload of baloney. The stimulus--two-thirds of which remains unspent--has had little impact on our economy. The TARP credit market intervention (a.k.a "bank bailout") remains the only act of government that has had an appreciably positive impact on our economy. And it was a Bush initiative.

Mossad Hit on Hamas Figure?

Here's an interesting story of a high ranking Hamas figure who was assassinated recently in Dubai (lovely country, by the by). Lots of folks think it was a Mossad hit, and normally, I'd be inclined to agree. But his one was just so...amateurish. Not up to Mossad standards. Makes me think it maybe wasn't them....

The Conservative Wahoo LIVE! Tonight at 8PM

Join in the fun tonight on The Conservative Wahoo Live! Call in at (347) 637-2203

Here's sorta kinda the outline for tonight, though if we get a lot of callers, we'll focus on what you want to talk about.


Conservative Wahoo Live!
17 February 2010

• Evan “Bye” Bayh
o Principled move
o Sick of the Senate
§ Probably has something already to move onto
§ $13M in the bank—probably would have won
o Presidential contender
§ Though saw the Clinton/Obama machines coming in 2008 and decided not to run
o Raises the chances of Repubs taking the Senate

• Biden/Cheney Throwdown
o Dueling Sunday appearances
o Obamaians want it both ways
§ Want to say they do things differently
§ While they continue to do things the same
o Point to Shoe bomber as evidence for how Bush team did things
§ Shoe bomber three months after 9-11
§ No commissions existed
§ Of course they mirandized him!
§ Would never have happened as time went on

• Winter Olympics
o Feminization of sport?
§ Ridiculous mandolin playing gauzy human interest stories
§ Contrast competition vs. human interest stories in coverage 30 years ago vs today
§ Doc Milnamo brought this up on the blog
§ What do you think? Is it all about bringing more female viewers? Or is it what America wants?

• Climage-gate
o Melting Himalayas?
o Fudged data?
o Has there been so much damage done to the science of climate change as to make it irrelevant?

• Assault on Marja (Afghanistan)
o Great week for the Marines, for coalition forces
o Interesting tactic—told the enemy we’d be coming
§ Gave them a chance to bug out
§ What do you think of this tactic?
§ Strict ROE slowing the pace of things?
• Tension of wanting to fight and kill the enemy with the reality of winning hearts and minds.
o I am in support of the President’s Afghanistan policy---thought he took a bit long to get there, but do not begrudge him the deliberation.

• Discussion with the Kitten
o I was lucky because I don’t have biological children
o I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about the world left to my children—because I don’t have any
§ My response: True enough—no children. But I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about most things.
§ My hope, my enthusiasm, my confidence in this country and its ability to persevere is boundless
• We have a system of government more closely aligned with the strivings of the human heart than any other system yet devised by man.
• It is imperfect, but it is the best yet.
• We will face enormous challenges….but we will overcome them because the US IS a special place—we are exceptional.
• So no, I don’t spend a lot of time worrying—but then again, if I had children, I wouldn’t do much worrying either.

A Neo-Socialism Dustup!

One of the great things about that little box on the right side of the blog that tells me where people are tuning in from (though it DOES NOT give me your IP address or your name--back in your hole, libertarian thugs) is that I get to see where people came to the blog FROM--as in which site. This morning, I saw that someone in Tokyo has come to the CW from this site--Savage Minds. And lo and behold, there it was--a post about Neo-socialism that had extensive references to my November post.

I've responded to Professor Dominic Boyer's post on that site, but I think it the response is undergoing review. And though it appears likely that Professor Boyer and I aren't likely to agree on much (Gadzooks--the man seems proud to be a "Marxian") , I am grateful to him for the citation and for the generally fair treatment of what I wrote.

Good News in Capture of Taliban Figure

Big congratulations to the Obama Administration for the recent capture of the Taliban's #2 guy in Pakistan. I know, I know--some of you will say "but it wasn't the Administration, it was the Special Forces, the CIA and the ISI who did it". Yeah, yeah I know. But if they screwed it up (can you say "Tora Bora"?) we sure would all be piling on.

That said, a couple of questions are worth pondering:

1. Will this gentleman be Mirandized, afforded a lawyer, and then transferred to a federal prison? Or will we do the right thing (which is what the Bush folks would have done), and leave him with the Paks who will likely extract a bevy of fine intelligence under their own regime of "persuasion"? I think the latter, no? Yet this Administration continues to try and tell us why it is they are better on the War on Terror than the previous one. Truth is, they are Bush III when it comes to these matters--mostly.

2. I wonder why it is we feel the need to broadcast things like this? Why not wait a few weeks--interrogate the BeJesus out of this guy WITHOUT ALL HIS HOMIES KNOWING THAT HE IS IN CUSTODY. Wouldn't that be smarter? Wouldn't we have a better chance of closing in on his cohorts if they aren't "spooked" that he's ratting them out?

Mikulski Rumors? CW For Senate?

There is increasing talk of a possible retirement of one of my Senators, Barbara Mikulski. I would be pleased to see her go.

Any talk of my candidacy for that Senate seat is premature, even if I'm the only one doing it.

Palin Derangement Syndrome (PDS)

A new malady of the political mind has arisen, one equally devastating to the left and the right. "Palin Derangement Syndrome" (or PDS)--unlike related illnesses (Clinton Derangement Syndrome and Bush Derangement Syndrome)--causes the victim to lose any and all rationality and objectivity when discussing the former Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin.

Here we have evidence of Richard Cohen's slip into the disease. When the disease strikes a liberal, it renders the sufferer incapable of understanding the Governor's obvious appeal as a public figure. There are reflexive, jerking, references to obscure 20th century French populists (of course) and thinly-veiled exhaustion with the vapidity of the American Public.

For conservatives, PDS is particularly pernicious, in that it tends to greatly distort what are otherwise natural and useful political instincts. One classic symptom of PDS is a condition manifesting itself as "RCS" (Reagan Comparison Syndrome), in which Mrs. Palin is glowingly compared to President Reagan for her cheerfulness and her ability to connect with everyday Americans. While a comparison to Reagan may be apt, it would likely be best to compare her to the Reagan of the 1950's, stumping for GE and creating his conservative ideological baseline, than it would be to compare her to the finished product--a conservative Colossus standing astride the social and fiscal conservative wings of the Republican Party.

Sarah Palin is an interesting political phenomenon, tailor-made for the media age. She is not the potential undoing of the Republic, and she is not the savior of modern Conservatism. Palin Derangement Syndrome is an equal opportunity brain-cell killer, and we must continue to watch for signs of it in our loved ones.

Just Another Vegan Monday...Wish It Were A..

Herein FoxNews.com breaks the news of the draft proposals to the Cambridge Climate Congress for "building a stronger local response to the climate emergency." To be fair, there are some good ideas put forth, but mandatory Vegan Mondays?!?!?! These people have been huffing bat guano.

What's Wrong With A Military Dictatorship In Iran?

Secretary of State Clinton told a group of students in Qatar yesterday that the Administration fears that Iran is moving toward a "...military dictatorship". This is--again I stress--a cause for fear.

But why? Is a military dictatorship any worse than a religious dictatorship? Or the farcical "democracy" over which the mullahs preside now?

Two things strike me from this story--the first is that military dictatorship per se isn't a bad thing for Iran--but a military dictatorship presided over by the Revolutionary Guards, is. But say for instance, a group of military officers got together and overthrew the mullahs and drove the Revolutionary Guards out of power--would THIS necessarily be bad because it was a military putsch? I don't think so.

Secondly, I think the Administration is undertaking a not so subtle program of trying to instill doubt in the regime--they are trying to get inside Ahmadinejad's head (sorry if I spelled it wrong--I don't care enough to do so correctly). And to that extent, I think it's worth the effort.

My Dream Job

I've fantasized for a long time about running the Washington DC public schools---probably since they hired a three star general in the 90's who quit in frustration a year and a half later. His departure was met with no small helping of smarmy "we told you so's" from the merchants of mediocrity who took great pleasure in explaining why a "military" mindset was inappropriate for public education.

So now it seems that DC Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee has hired a retired one-star general as the Chief Operating Officer of the DC Public Schools--the guy who makes the trains run on time. Anthony Tata answers only to Rhee, and she takes the political heat for the two of them. In exchange, he gets to wade into the morass that is the cronyism, incompetence, overcapacity and under-performance of our nation's capital's education system. That job would make me wake up every day excited about slaying dragons.

Good luck General--and if you need a Chief of Staff---call me.

Because They're Not COMMUNICATING Well Enough

Here's a little gem about the White House retooling its communications effort--seemingly in response to the President's political fortunes and lack of any real legislative impact in his first full year in office. Remember everyone--it isn't the POLICIES or the POLITICS--it is that the President's MESSAGE isn't getting out! It's that his MESSAGE is being drowned out by those birthers, truthers, Tea Partiers and the talk radio crowd!

What evidence is there of this? Well--the fact that the legislative agenda hasn't passed, of course. After all, it is self-evident that cap and trade, health care and more stimulus (aka "jobs" bills) are the answer to what ails us--and since the votes haven't been there (for these necessary and oh-so-reasonable programs) and since these policies are dying in the polls (remember--these are the RIGHT policies PEOPLE!), it must be a lack of communication or poor communication. Because if the American people ONLY UNDERSTOOD these policies better, they'd OF COURSE support them. More cowbell.

Cold War Coolness

Confirmation of the Glomar Explorer mission to raise a Soviet Sub in 1974. Wicked cool.

Obama Names Envoy to Islamic Conference

The President has named a new US envoy to the Organization of the Islamic Conference as part of his ongoing "outreach" effort to the Islamic world. Ridiculous? Yes. Part of a flawed strategy? Yes. Most enraging of all? This appointment is the replacement for the first such envoy--appointed by George Bush.

Princeton 1, Harvard 0

Those rascals at Princeton Tiger Magazine decided to do some charity work in Cambridge, delivering hot meals to the needy.....Harvard students.

HT--Tigerhawk, of course.

Congressional Black Caucus--Shake-down Artists

Corporate money in politics is bad, bad, bad--except of course, if it is lining the pockets of the Congressional Black Caucus and its "interests" and "charities". Good on the New York Times for bringing this up.

Skunk Baxter, Renaissance Man

I attended great event last night, the annual "Wallow" of the Military Order of the Carabao. You can read about the Order and its big annual party, but what I want to talk about is the fellow who did a brief instrumental performance to cap off the night--Skunk Baxter. Doc Milnamo is I'm sure, quite knowledgeable of Baxter's great musical career as a guitarist in "Steely Dan" and "The Doobie Brothers". But how many of you knew of Baxter's current endeavors--as a consultant to the Department of Defense?

Read this little Wikipedia piece on Baxter, and tell me if it isn't simply way cool. The guy took looking at common problems from an uncommon viewpoint to a new level. He sure did look out of place at the event last night--but people talked about him like he was a Rock Star--and not because he is a Rock Star. Hat's off to Skunk Baxter.

A New Recommended Site

Robert Thorn recommends The Browser as a nice compendium of interesting links, and so it is added.

Obama: Moderate Republican?

According to this Mr. Brenner fellow at HuffPo, he is.

Glenn Reynolds on the Tea Partiers

Instapundit actual--Glenn Reynolds--has a piece in the WSJ about what he saw at the Tea Party convention.

We talked at length about the Tea Partiers on the Radio Show earlier this week. Give a listen here for the details.

Bottom line: they will have influence, but it will be within the Republican Party--they are ineffective as a third party movement.

"Heroism" Frequently Isn't...But This One Surely Is

No doubt this week, as we watch coverage of some truly remarkable performances of athleticism and competition in the Vancouver Winter Olympics, we will be subjected to commentators and announcers using the term "hero" as they, and we, stand in awe of what it takes a person to achieve such levels of performance. And, to be fair, Mr. Webster would not take issue with such use of the word. Here, (Merriam-)Webster defines "hero" as:

1 a : a mythological or legendary figure often of divine descent endowed with great strength or ability b : an illustrious warrior c : a man admired for his achievements and noble qualities d : one that shows great courage
2 a : the principal male character in a literary or dramatic work b : the central figure in an event, period, or movement
3 : an object of extreme admiration and devotion : idol.

So it is a pretty broad brush with which we might paint one another as "hero".

Still, absent a better word, I choose to reserve my use of the word to a far narrower definition: "one who shows great courage, especially in the face of signficant personal risk to life and limb, while engaged in service to others."

For an example of such heroism, read this article from The Cincinnati Enquirer, covering Ohio Governor Ted Strickland awarding the Silver Star to Ohio National Guard Sergeant First Class Mark Wanner last week for lifesaving gallantry and competence under fire in eastern Afghanistan. The Silver Star, being the third highest decoration our Armed Forces have for valor, is not an easy bar to clear. But if there be any doubt as to whether SFC Wanner cleared it, all you need to do is listen to the testimony of one of his fellow Soldiers, SFC Sean Clifton [standing beside SFC Wanner in photo below], who had a particularly intimate view of the events (as recounted in the Enquirer article and Defense.Gov News):

Fighting back tears, Army Sgt. 1st Class Sean Clifton recounted the day he almost lost his life after being shot multiple times during a raid on a Taliban compound in eastern Afghanistan.

The previous week, Clifton and his team had received word that a known Taliban leader soon would be meeting with about a half dozen Taliban fighters in a nearby village.

After waiting for five days with what Wanner referred to as “tactical patience,” the team received word that their target was in position. It had been training with their Afghan counterparts for nearly five months, and the plan was to allow the Afghans to take the lead and for the U.S. soldiers to follow closely behind.

But when the team approached the village, the Afghans already were in trouble, and the situation was deteriorating quickly. They had expected five or six Taliban fighters, but there were at least 30. They reacted immediately. “I led some guys into a doorway, and that just happened to be the room that had 80 percent of the threat,” Clifton said. “I knew something wasn’t quite right. Then I got hit.” Clifton had taken at least four rounds. The first entered his pelvis just below his body armor, the second hit the chest plate of his body armor, the third shattered his left forearm, and the last round hit his helmet, knocking off his night-vision goggles.
When he saw his injured arm and realized his rifle had dropped in front of him, Clifton knew he was in trouble.

Bullets [had] hit him in the wrist, head, chest and stomach. His helmet and chest armor deflected two shots. The other two bullets did extensive damage. His wrist bone was shattered. His insides were shredded.

[SFC Clifton] turned to Wanner.

Before collapsing, he said two words: "Save me."

And Wanner did.

He treated wounds. He used his body as a shield. He helped carry a man taller and heavier than his five-feet, nine-inches and 170 pounds to safety. He saved a life while bullets zinged around his head and danced at his feet.

“I’m standing here today, alive, because of the heroic and competent actions Mark performed on the night of May 31, 2009 -- Memorial Day,” Clifton said.

You know, I (Mudge) have never done anything approaching heroic in my entire life. And there is a darned good chance I never will. But I still get teary-eyed when I learn of the deeds of such men as SFC Wanner who saved, in my opinion, one of his fellow heroes while serving with a whole mess of heroes who daily protect non-heroes like me. And believe me when I tell you this is just the tip of the hero iceberg and, regrettably, like a real iceberg, most of that which comprises it will forever remain unexposed.

Tax Credit for New Employees

The Obama Administration is pushing a failed policy (failed during the Carter Administration) to grant small businesses tax credits for hiring new workers. Message to the President--business will expand and hire when it has customers to sell to. They will have more customers to sell to if the customers believed that the economy was growing. The economy would grow if people had more money in their pockets--to buy things. Then businesses would make things--and hire people.

The Administration is counting this as a "pro-business" tax cut. Nonsense. Cut the corporate income tax rate if you'd really like to do something pro-business and pro-growth.

A good overview of the situation here.

"Single Mom" Discharged From the Army

Ridiculous. Love the "Single Mom" headline. You know who we have to blame for this? George W Bush and his White House Communications Director--Karen Hughes. She's the one who convinced GWB to talk about "Moms and Dads" in speeches, not "parents". She's the one who convinced him to talk about "single Moms" rather than "single mothers. All to sound more heartwarming, more folksy, more sympathetic.

So now, we have a no-load soldier (I'm sorry to have to use that term--she's not a soldier) who just decided not to go. She's a "cause celebre" and the Huffington Post uses the Bush term "Single Mom" to help us frame the story--because she's really not a no-load getting over on the system, being paid to serve her country while she instead decides to grow her family without necessary support--she's a "single mom"!

CW Logo Development

I like what the graphic artist has done with the fish--any thoughts on the three presentations above?

Big Fat Friday Free For All

All Time High (April 1 2009): 192.2
Diet start (June 1): 189
Last Friday: 176.6
Today: 172.6
Goal: Sub 150

Now that's a little more like it. Being snowed in helped quite a bit (shoveling burns lots of calories, and the treadmill sits right here next to me in the mancave), as did the daily calorie tracking on the MyPlate feature of the Livestrong.com site.

So what's on your mind, America? Had enough of Old Man Winter? Had enough of Old Man Barack? Get it off your chest! Take a little time to tell us all about what's bothering you. Try it. You'll like it.

A Sincere Get Well Wish for Former President Clinton

Former President Clinton is reported to be recovering well in New York-Presbyterian Hospital following surgery to install two stents into one of his coronary arteries. He underwent quadruple bypass surgery six years earlier, but apparently one of the bypassed arteries was once again blocked.

For all his faults, I still admire this man's ability to overcome setbacks, albeit often self-imposed. He always looks like he's just having a great time. And for someone who is married to our current Secretary of State, that must require a heck of a lot of "happy thoughts" to get through the day in such fashion.

Apparently, he is resting comfortably under the care of his personal nurse.








In any case, I hope he gets well soon and is back on his feet doing the good deeds that former US Presidents often do.

Men's Men, A Dying Breed

"Life's journey is not to
Arrive at the grave safely
In a well-preserved body,
But rather to skid in sideways,
Totally used up and worn out, shouting '..man,what a ride!"

Two men who many might describe as "men's men" passed away while the rest of us complained of being snowed in and having sore backs rendering us little more, in comparison, than a colloquial term for...uhm...yeah, that's it, cats.

First was former Representative ["Good Time"] Charlie Wilson, recently immortalized with a typically fine performance by Tom Hanks in the movie, "Charlie Wilson's War". He was everything I often rail against in our politicians: corrupt, womanizing, drunk more than sober, Democrat. He used his office to avoid accountability for countless indiscretions and even alledged (and probable) felonies. But man oh man, did I like him.
Granted, the movie didn't hurt, but I really learned a lot more about him from a less Hollywoodified documentary for one of the cable channels. What I admired, perhaps in the way liberals who can't stand men who use women as sexual objects (or who leave them underwater in their cars) yet still admired Ted Kennedy, is the way he let absolutely nothing stand in the way of that in which he believed. NOTHING. And he was unapologetic about how he chose to live his life, especially when so many made it clear they were looking for just such an apology. The Washington Post does a much better job recounting this man's contributions (and foibles) to (and in) society and if you haven't seen the movie, I highly recommend it (get the kiddies out of the room for the opening scenes--better still, put them to bed then watch it). BTW, no doubt his finest accomplishment in life was to graduate, barely, from the US Naval Academy and to serve as a Naval Officer.

The second man's man to pass was Captain Phil Harris, of The Discovery Channel's "Deadliest Catch". I've experienced a fair share of harrowing moments at sea, a few of them in command of a ship and its crew. These are times when, with but a few "controllable forces", you are pretty much at the mercy of a far more powerful set of "uncontrollable forces" wrought upon you courtesy of the winds and seas. In the few fleeting moments of reflection such circumstances allow you, you feel the gut-punch reminder that you, and you alone, are responsible for the lives of the crew counting on you to make the right decisions at the right time. Now keep in mind, these moments were relatively rare compared to what we got to witness with nearly every episode of "Deadliest Catch". Captain Harris probably felt that gut-punch pretty darned regularly given that he made a point of frequently going out into one of the worst weather places on earth and doing so in a much smaller vessel than anything I ever sailed in. Oh, and while I would have ordered all my crew into the far safer refuge of the ship's hull and superstructure, he ordered them out on deck to work deadly equipment, hauling tons of destabilizing weight aboard so he could pay them when (if) they made it back to port. He rarely slept, he smoked like a cheap diesel and I'm guessing he tipped more than a few when he made it back to port. But again, I admired this guy. He was smart, courageous, a master of his trade. He would have sooner put on a skirt and walked out in public before he would have complained about having to shovel some snow like I and others sometimes do. Hell, he didn't complain when he started coughing up significant amounts of blood while underway one season. Tough, like you read about.

When we lose men like these, I can't help but wonder whether our kinder-gentler, struggle-avoidance society is going to be able to replace them. Some would say "thank goodness, NO!" but I value having such men's men as examples of how to face challenge, make the tough decisions and live life always with the wind in their hair.

Fair winds, men.

The Underwear Bomber and the Shoe Bomber

I'm getting tired of reading Obama Administration officials state that Mirandizing the Underwear Bomber (I won't type his name because it is too long, but you know who I mean) was no problem, 'cause it's what the Bush Administration did with Richard Reid (The Shoe Bomber). This is ridiculous, and Dana Perino and Bill Burck have a nice rejoinder for it here.

Reid's attempted attack occurred a little more than 90 days after the terrible events of 9-11--the country, the Administration, the courts, the military--everyone was still largely groping their way forward in determining how to prosecute this war against Islamic extremism. In fact, there were NO military commissions empaneled to deal with such a situation--though there soon would be.

Any suggestion that 8 years later--after all we've learned and all we've done--a "Bush" team would have Mirandized the underwear bomber--enabling him to "lawyer up"--is just loony. The team in there now just reflexively looks at these events as law enforcement issues, not acts of war worthy of intelligence exploitation.


More on the arrest of the Shoe Bomber.