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--Erick Erickson
"Bush campaign should hire The American Mind for the oppo research team."
--Punchthebag
Sean Hackbarth's The American Mind is a good weblog." --Glenn Reynolds
"It’s good enough that I can forgive Sean’s Packers fandom. Almost."
--Steve Silver
E-Mail:
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URL: http://www.theamericanmind.com
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Browse by Category
Stop the Insanity!
Dennis Not Just Done, Fried
I'm Buyin' Me a Star
Serious Problems at Guantanamo
First and Only Word on Paris
Blood as Stem Cell Source
TAM Still Not "Cool"
Black Friday
Sign of the Apocalypse
How Much Can Glenn Bench?
Bush May Dump Steel Tariffs
Bush Bashing Prediction
"The Ultimate Road Trip"
Thankful
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November 30, 2003
Clark Can't Make Up Mind about Faith
We shouldn't be surprised that Weasley Clark couldn't make up his mind about whether he supported the war in Iraq or whether the Bush administration is doing a good job. He's about as wavering on his Bush bashing as he is on his faith. This from the LA Times:
Clark, who supports abortion rights, was born Jewish, raised Protestant and converted to Catholicism as an adult. He attends a Presbyterian church, but hasn't given up Catholicism. Clark describes himself as "pro-choice" and has said during the campaign that "homosexuality is not a sin."
"Church May Penalize Politicians" [via Professor Bainbridge]
Stop the Insanity!
It's bad enough that AmeriCorps even exists. Now, it's got itself a budget increase. This is how bad the Bush administration is doing on domestic budget spending:
The money represents a $170 million increase over AmeriCorps' 2003 budget. And it is at least $99 million more than either the House or the Senate had previously indicated they would grant AmeriCorps in 2004. Both the funding level and the increase are the highest in the corporation's history.
Boy is Big Government Conservatism expensive.
"AmeriCorps Receives Major Boost" [via The Corner]
Dennis Not Just Done, Fried
Rep. Dennis Kucinich's constituents should seriously question the sanity of their representative. Matthew Stinson points out that fictional characters have endorsed him for President. Yesterday, I swear I heard one of the cats say "Kucinich," but that was probably just bad fish.
"Dennis Kucinich's Campaign Fiction" [via OTB]
I'm Buyin' Me a Star
Since TAM was shunned from Commonwealth of the Blogosphere States, I'm going to get a star named after me. I want it to be a big one, just about ready to go supernova. I'll watch in glee as deadly TAM radiation pours across Reynoldssia and into Joyneria. It sure beats Michele's (one L) measly plan for secession.
Serious Problems at Guantanamo
Now, a fourth person has been accused of security problems at Guantanamo. Col. Jack Farr, a reservist, is accused of "wrongly transporting classified material" and lying to investigators. At first glance, this doesn't look as suspicious as Senior Airman Ahmad al-Halabi, who is accused of spying for Syria, or Army Captain James Yee, who received religious training in Syria. But even sloppy handling of classified information isn't very assuring. Let's just say, I'm happy those terrorists are tucked away in Cuba. Heads should start rolling and/or some inquisitive Congressmen should look into this.
"US Officer Faces Security Charges"
"Guantanamo Officer Charged with Security Breach"
November 29, 2003
First and Only Word on Paris
For those of you in need of more Paris Hilton info, I have none to offer. However, I have one bit of pithy analysis: next time you make a porn video skip the night vision and turn on the lights. The point is to see something, isn't it.
This bit of traffic whoring was inspired by Kevin at Wizbang.
UPDATE: Kevin's Google trick sure is working. It's made for a pretty good Saturday since I didn't post anything since really early yesterday morning. I still have nothing more to add about Paris except I will not be watching her Fox television show.
Blood as Stem Cell Source
Oh, I hope this technology is legit. Then the embryonic stem cell debate becomes moot.
"Blood Could Generate Body Repair Kit" [via Instapundit]
TAM Still Not "Cool"
You know you're still not one of the "cool kids" of the blogosphere when you don't even get river on the Politburo's map.
"Map of Blogosphere" [via Amish Tech Support]
Black Friday
I made it through Black Friday without any injuries to me or customers. In fact, it didn't seem as busy as it was (my boss was very pleased with the sales). I also know, that this is just the tip of the iceberg. My store has historically gotten busier the closer we get to Christmas.
Last year, I posted some tips to make last-minute Christmas shopping a little smoother. Almost all of them can be applied already, less than one month from Christmas.
November 28, 2003
Sign of the Apocalypse
I think Oliver and I agree on something.
Reagan having the guts to not abandon SDI in Reykjavik was braver than a secret flight to a military base.
"Bush Visit, Update"
How Much Can Glenn Bench?
Jay's super-secret spies have gotten a hold the cover for Glenn Reynolds' next book. In the comments, Jay and I are both wondering about his buffness. Glenn, have you been working out? Here's a picture of Glenn and I at BloggerCon in October (I'm the short, very attractive guy).
It's hard to tell anything from it, but it might be enough evidence to start testing webloggers for steroids. Maybe that's his secret for his relentless posting.
Bush May Dump Steel Tariffs
It looks like some sense has come to the Bush administration on those stupid steel tarrifs.
Speculation mounted on Friday that Washington will scrap or roll back controversial steel tariffs after it sought and obtained an effective delay in retaliatory sanctions by countries opposed to them....
Officially, Washington wanted the delay because it had not been expecting the meeting to take place before Dec. 10, the legal deadline for WTO states to ratify the court decision.
"The president has said he would make a decision in a timely manner and this action will provide additional time, and the ongoing review will continue," said White House spokeswoman Claire Buchan.
But the delay comes amid increasing signs that President Bush's administration is considering ditching the duties, initially for up to 30 percent, which it imposed in 2002 to help defend the country's struggling steel industry against cheap imports.
Ending the tariffs 16 months ahead of schedule could spark a political backlash against Bush in next year's presidential election in the pivotal steel-producing states of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
But key Bush advisers have concluded the tariffs are causing more harm than good and that lifting them would boost Bush's standing with steel consuming industry, another important constituency, political sources say.
Tariffs usually cause more harm than good. That's why free traders like myself oppose them. If Bush and Rove would have listened to me instead of made a purely politically strategic decision, the harm to steel-using businesses wouldn't have happened, and the U.S. wouldn't be close to a trade war with the E.U.
"Speculation Mounts Bush May Give Way on Steel"
Bush Bashing Prediction
Bush bashers' cynicism is so predictable Matthew Stinson already knows what they would say:
I can see the blog posts now: "Bush's memorial service is a PR stunt because he didn't invite Democratic leaders. That makes it look like Bush cares more about honoring the military than Democrats."
"Ending a Big Lie"
November 27, 2003
"The Ultimate Road Trip"
It takes a lot of guts for a President to pull off a secret mission to Baghdad. This wasn't just going anywhere in the occupied country. No, President Bush flew into the heart of the Sunni Baathist Triangle to give the troops a big thank you and some much-deserved moral support. Because of the risk, this trip makes his aircraft carrier landing look like a game of jacks.
Reuters has a great report on how Bush snuck out of his Crawford ranch onto Air Force One bound for Maryland. There he switched planes for the long flight to Baghdad. All along, Bush was willing to cancel the mission if it leaked out. On the way to Iraq, it almost happened:
The plane took off for Baghdad on Wednesday night on an 11-hour flight.Somewhere en route, a British Airways pilot thought he spotted an unusual plane from his cockpit.
"Did I just see Air Force One?" the pilot radioed.
There was a pause. Then came the response from Air Force One: "Gulfstream 5" -- a much smaller aircraft.
Another pause. "Oh," said the BA pilot.
The troops loved it, cynics and Bush bashers nash their teeth, some reporters are ticked at not being on the flight, and the Democrats once again look dumbfounded before a bold and clever man they always underestimate.
In Afghanistan, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) celebrated Thanksgiving with the troops there. Bravo to her.
"Bush Pays Surprise Thanksgiving Visit to Troops in Iraq"
"Amid Tight Secrecy, a Tip: Bush Is Going to Baghdad"
"Guess Who's Coming to Thanksgiving Dinner?"
"How Bush was Whisked to Iraq"
[Links via Michele and Matthew Stinson.]
UPDATE: Oliver Willis tried really hard to be 100% nice about the trip, but he just couldn't stop his case of knee-jerk Bush bashing:
Wonder if he found any WMDs there? Just asking.MEANWHILE: Senator Clinton visited the real front in the war on terror.
(Emphasis mine.)
Note that TAM made no cynical remark about Hillary in Afghanistan. I could, but I won't. She did a good deed. Nothing else needs to be said.
UPDATE II: Matthew Yglesias joins the cynical Bush bashing party by bluntly calling the trip a "little stunt."
UPDATE III: Matthew Yglesias won't renege his comment. He goes even further in this post:
That doesn't mean everything Bush does is harmful -- there's no real harm done here -- but it does mean that none of it should be taken seriously. It was a stunt -- designed to maximize partisan advantage. Hence the secrecy, etc., etc. I'm not going to give the president credit for pulling stunts, even if they are well-executed stunts.
He fits in perfectly with the TAP crowd.
Thankful
Here are a few things I'm thankful for:
- All of God's tremendous blessings.
- Generous family who put up with me.
- A job that pays the bills.
- Good friends.
- President George W. Bush.
- Warriors fighting overseas to protect us from evil.
- Funny, smart, and generous webloggers.
- Instalanches.
- The greatest team in pro-sports.
- The greatest stadium in sports.
- Krispie Kreme doughnuts.
- Sushi.
- Wasabi.
- Led Zeppelin.
- The Blues.
- F.A. Hayek.
- Ludwig von Mises.
- Adam Smith.
- Classical Liberalism.
- Ronald Reagan.
- Howard the Duck, M.D. (for sheer entertainment value).
What are you thankful for? Just leave a comment. Also heed the spirit of Laurence's post. (My, can he be blunt.)
November 26, 2003
New Carnival
Setting the World to Rights is hosting this week's Carnival of the Vanities.
Cranberry Sauce
Michele asks:
One question before I go: Does anyone really eat that jello-like cranberry thing that comes out of the can or do you all just put it on the table at Thanksgiving because it's supposed to be there?
I may be wierd, but I prefer the jellified canned cranberry sauce to the stuff where I can see most of the actual berry. It brings back memories of school lunches were that was served as the fruit at least once a week. Ah, the memories...
You're Gone
James has posted who he wants boot off the HOF island. He's still looking for other suggestions. I'd have to look at the list but have no time now. I'm just ticked Rush isn't in there and it sounds like they're never in the running.
"Rock Hall of Fame, III"
November 25, 2003
Cleland Goes Duck Hunting
Here's more evidence of Duck, M.D.'s Southern problem. This from former Georgia Senator, Max Cleland:
Now, at a time when young Americans are being killed and wounded by President Bush’s failed policy in Iraq... Our country can not afford to have another leader who took the easy way out like George W. Bush who hid out in the Houston National Guard. We can not afford to have a leader who weaseled out of going to Vietnam on a medical deferment for a bad back and wound up on the ski slopes of Aspen like Howard Dean.
Ouch!
HOF Survivor
James Joyner want readers to suggestions on who to drop from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I'm going to bed and won't take up his challenge. But what irks me about the HOF is Rush still hasn't made it.
"Rock Hall of Fame, II"
Outsourcing and Entrepreneurial Error
Glenn Reynolds points out that Dell Computer is moving some of its tech support back into the U.S. because "customers weren’t satisfied with the level of support they were receiving." Because no one has perfect insight into the future, businesses have to be allowed to experiment with new ways of doing things. Dell tried outsourcing their tech support to India. It hasn't met the needs of their customers so it was brought back to the states. Maybe in the future Dell will develop ways to make Indian tech support better for customers and cheaper for the company. For now they haven't figured that out.
Experimentation like this is one way the free market better satisfies the desires of consumers (customer feedback that's really listened too is also extrememely important). The possibility to err is vital in channeling resources to their most beneficial ends.
Austrian economist Israel Kirzner writes,
In fact, the one really valuable feature of unprofitable entrepreneurial endeavor lies in its crucially important role in stimulating profitable entrepreneurship. Only in a society where entrepreneurs are free to make errors, can we expect an outpouring of entrepreneurship to lift its economy to new, hitherto unglimpsed, heights of prosperity. Only where potential entrepreneurs are free to follow the lure of profits as they see them, will there be the unleashing of entrepreneurial vision, daring, and judgment that creates profits in fact-and in so doing, creates new, more valuable ways of utilizing resources.
From errors, entrepreneuers re-evaluate how they use their resources. In Dell's case, while outsourcing tech support saved them labor costs, it wasn't keeping their corporate customers happy. With the easy substitution of computers and their life cycles being so short Dell knew unhappy customers would result in lost future sales. Based on the feedback from this failed experiment the company knows how to better allocate scarce resources to meet their customers' needs.
"From Outsourcing to Insourcing"
I'm Still Freaking Out
My latest Freaks of the Week column is up.
ConAgra Makes One Mean Turkey
Sara Dickerman did a turkey taste test for Slate (they should do more food articles). After comparing a Butterball with kosher and organic turkeys, Big Agriculture won the contest.
"Turkey Derby"
Death Cult
Here's a symptom of the Palestinians turning homicide bombers into martyr-heroes. They could use a Care Bear airdrop.
[via StrategyPage.com]
New Bonfire
Feel like your weblog posts just aren't cutting it? Feel like you just aren't getting your point across? Don't fret. Read a few of these bad posts and you'll start feeling much better.
"Bonfire of the Vanities - Week 21"
Opus!
I want to kiss Andrew Baio of Waxy.org or scanning Sunday's Opus. I laughed at the joke, was impressed with the quality of art Berkeley Breathed used for the strip, and smiled knowing that my favorite penguin is back.
I'm still fuming at the Journal Sentinel, but my Opus need has been satisfied.
[via Wizbang]
Yee Released
Military prosecutors must have little else on Capt. James Yee if they've now charged him with having pornography on a government computer and adultery. Yee was arrested for handling sketches of the military prison at Guantanamo Bay. Yee was released from the brig and will work at Ft. Benning. Why he had sketeches of Guantanamo and what he was going to do with them, no one knows. But unless there's evidence that he's a spy there's not a lot that can be done. However, Letting him work at a big army base doesn't make sense to me.
"Ex-Muslim Chaplain at Guantanamo Charged"
Warren Spahn, R.I.P.
Milwaukee sports legend and one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history, Warren Spahn died yesterday at the age of 82. How good was he? Here's a few paragraphs from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story:
During his brilliant 21-year career, mostly with the Boston Braves and Milwaukee Braves, Spahn won 363 games, most ever by a left-hander, compiling 20-victory seasons 13 times. He was known for his longevity, winning 177 games after his 35th birthday, including No. 300 in 1961 at age 40....
Spahn's greatest season came in 1953, the Braves' first year in Milwaukee. He went 23-7 with 24 complete games in 32 starts and led the National League with a 2.10 earned run average.
He still holds or shares nine Braves franchise records and led the league in victories eight times, in ERA three times and in complete games nine times. He ranks fifth on the all-time victory list behind Cy Young, Walter Johnson, Grover Alexander and Christy Mathewson.
...
Spahn completed a remarkable 382 of his 665 career starts (57.4%), including at least 20 starts in 13 seasons.
Spahn was also a World War II veteran who earned a bronze star and purple heart.
Godspeed, Warren.
"Warren Spahn: 1921-2003"
UPDATE: For more Spahn links, read my SportsBlog.org post.
November 24, 2003
Click Here
Continue clicking to build up TAM's forces (now over 100!). Help out my fellow warmongers:
Then help my first officer underling build his army.
Southern Consolidation
Howard the Duck, M.D. isn't the only Dem with Southern problems as James Joyner points out.
"The Solid South"
Anarchist Terrorism
Dean Esmay joins the TAM blogrolling party with his link to Orson Scott Card essay describing another age when the world was ripped by terrorism.
"Fanatic Terrorism from the Past "
Great Econ Posts
The latest Carnival of the Capitalists is up hosted at Truck and Barter. I went straight for Professor Bainbridge's examination of the mutual fund scandal. The most glaring bit of malfeasance mentioned by the professor is the mutual funds' violation of the agreement between money manager and investor. This can create distrust turning the business into a lemons market for mutual funds. For me, the mud thrown on the industry just makes Vanguard look that much better.
Bainbridge has earned himself a place on the TAM blogroll.
There's more there to sink you capitalist teeth into.
"Alex Tabarrok on the Mutual Fund Scandal"
An Adoption Story
In the fight against the Culture of Death, adoption has to be promoted. In a country like China where there is a great desire to have a boy, girls are abandoned or aborted. Slartibastfast posts on going there to get their second child. He writes:
Adoption is a wonderful thing. I have people tell me all the time they have reservations about adoption, wondering if they could possibly love a child not of their flesh as much as a natural born child. I usually reply that I can't imagine loving either of my daughters any more if we'd had them the usual way. So, I have to strongly recommend it for couples who are past safe age of conception, or who are experiencing fertility issues, or who otherwise aren't well suited for childbirth.
"The Second Adoption"
An Economic Fable
Gene Callahan has written one great fable on the benefits of trade. After reading it you'll understand that fears of lost manufacturing jobs are unfounded. The key to wealth is market being free to use scarce resources to satisfy people's desires.
"The Nation That Lost Its Jobs, But Got Them Back" [via Deinonychus Antirhopus]
I Demand a Footnote
David Brooks' column on marriage is generating some heated discussion in the blogosphere. Conrad at The Gweilo Diaries calls it "self-rightous pontificating." What I can't understand is how a writer who calls for legalizing gay marriage, like Brooks does, is considered a member of the Religious Right according to Conrad. Last time I checked, the RR don't want gay couples to get hitched. He might have been distracted by his pursuit of a "hat trick" for the weekend. Stephen Green writes, "What we think about sex reveals a lot of what we think about ourselves." We don't have to play pop psychologists with Brooks. We have a pretty good idea what thinks about himself. He thinks he's a better person because of his marriage. Green thinks he's a better person because he's married. In a blogosphere that doesn't shun from making moral judgements on whether to go to war, some have a problem with others making moral judgements on sex outside of marriage. Brooks' intro is an argument for keeping sex sacred. Commodifing sex reduces the beautiful act to masturbation with someone else's body.
There's one final item I have to point out. Brooks continues the "Half of All Marriages End in Divorce" Myth when he writes, "Nearly half of all marriages end in divorce." Where's the citation? What study has shown this? I wrote a couple posts on this [and here]. No one has yet shown me anything to support this meme.
"The Power of Marriage"
November 23, 2003
A Report from Prague
You could say New Media (broadly defined) was beating the pants off Old Media on the al-Qaeda/Iraq connection if the latter was even bothering to cover it. No big newspapers or news magazines have followed up on The Weekly Standard's report by Stephen Hayes on a Defense War Department memo to the Senate Intelligence Committee. Now, Edward Jay Epstein of Slate has come back from the Czech Republic after talking to people in Czech intelligence. He doesn't prove Atta ever met an Iraqi intelligence officer. What Epstein does do is give enough information to make an al-Qaeda/Iraq connection to Sep. 11 a good possiblity. In order to figure this out, the FBI has to stop being control freaks and work with the Czechs to connect all the dots. They are our allies last time I checked (no pun intended).
"Prague Revisited" [via Blaster's Blog]
Opus, Where are You?
Today, you could call me Mr. Gump. I stayed up too late last night doing nothing productive. I slept all day and missed the Packers' victory over the 49ers. My obsession with Kings of Chaos has taken a bad turn. I've been yelling at my computer because twice in the last day my army has been attacked and lots and lots of gold has been stolen. Stupid, yes, but it's just added to my irritability. Then the Christamas shopping season is picking up, and my store doesn't have enough workers. I have to run around helping even people who only come during Christmas and can only describe the book they want as "yellow and written by a woman."
What really set me off is a comic strip or lack of one. I haven't wanted the comics section in my Sunday newspaper in years. But today is a special day. Berkeley Breathed brought America's most famous penguin, Opus, back to comics. The Berkeley Breathed website assured me the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel would have it. I pulled the section out and hunted for my favorite water-proof bird. It wasn't at the top of the first page where it deserved to be. I open up the section. Second page? Nope! Third? Nope! Fourth? Fifth? No! Nada! I know, they saved Opus for the last page just so fans wouldn't have to sift throught dreck like Pickles and Hi & Lois. I turn to the last and final page hoping the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel isn't one of the most inept papers in America. Was Opus there making some witty introduction telling the world he's back? That may have been exactly what he did, but I have no idea. Opus is no where to be found. The Journal Sentinel can publish a racist jerk like Aaron McGruder (of the unfunny Boondocks) and old Far Side strips, but not Opus.
(I'm hoping my paper was missing a page of comics because Dilbert wasn't in there either. If that's what happened then my ire goes to the Journal Sentinel's printing department for their incompetence.)
It's bad enough that Opus wasn't in the newspaper, but what's worse is the strip isn't available on the Web. Does the Washington Post (which syndicates Opus) and Breathed think people will subscribe to the paper just for one strip? If so, I'd start short selling Post stock.
I can't comment on Breathed's return to comics because I haven't seen it. I'm left with a bunch of links from Daniel Drezner and this short review from James Joyner:
Let's just say the debut strip wasn't worth the ten year wait.
I want my Opus, and I want him now!
It's not a good reason to be grumpy, but to bad.
"Opus Lives!"
You Know the Drill
Continue clicking to build up TAM's forces. Then help out my fellow warmongers:
TiVo Still Rules!
TiVo is beyond words. However, Chuck Barney attempts to understand their owners passion for the black box.
"Worshipping at TiVo's Shrine"
Another Anniversary
Another anniversary directly connected to JFK's assassination was the decision to play NFL games two days later. Kevin posts on it at Sportsblog.org.
"Black Sunday"
On This Day... Part II
James Joyner dug through Glenn Reynolds' pre-Sep. 11 posts. He didn't find any non-terrorist news that stood out. He does note the explosion in Glenn's traffic.
I'm again going through the dusty TAM archives. This time I'm looking for big stories before the Sep. 11 attacks.
On 9.04.01, Compaq and Hewlett-Packard announced their merger.
Around the same time, Janet Reno decided to run for Florida governor.
This post reminded me of the biggest story that Sep. 11 tossed aside: Gary Condit and Chandra Levy.
I searched through a few weblogs on my blogroll and realized few had posts from that time. It makes me feel a little old (I was posting on Elian Gonzalez back in 2000.), and it illustrates how the weblog phenomenon has exploded.
If you remember some interesting non-terrorist news from around Sep. 11, let me know.
"All the News That's Not Fit to Print"
November 22, 2003
Allow Steroids?
Dave Pinto is leaning toward the legalization of player-enchancing drugs--steroids for example.
So my position is becoming, why not let players who want to use steriods under a doctor's care for a short time period during the off-season? It has to be better and safer than what's going on now.
Unfortunately, what would happen is most players would use them. Those that didn't would be at a significant disadvantage. It would be similar to batting glove use today. Most players use them because they think they'd be at a disadvantage if they didn't. Of course, that doesn't explain the amazing (and gloveless) Vladimir Guerrero.
"Steroid Hysteria?"
On this Day...
Amazing! I learned from James Joyner that C. S. Lewis died the same day JFK was killed. There's some cosmic meaning to that. This makes James ask, "One wonders, for example, what happened on September 11, 2001 and the week or so thereafter that virtually no one knows about."
Let's see what non-terrorist news I posted on:
I wrote in 9.23.01:
If it wasn't for the September 11 attacks, Andrea Yates would be America's biggest story. The mother who killed her five children was found competent to stand trial.
Andrea Yates, remember her?
On 9.25.01, the Supreme Court took up the Cleveland school voucher case.
On 9.26.01, I posted on a NASA probe that caught up to a comet.
In local (Wisconsin) news, philanthropist Jane Pettit died on 9.10.01.
There must be more, so fellow webloggers, do some archive digging. I'll link to your discoveries.
November 21, 2003
Quiet Day at TAM
I'll be at work early tomorrow so no posting until the afternoon if I'm in the mood (it is College Football Saturday). For your reading pleasure, check out Daniel Drezner's post on President Bush's "creeping protectionism." Then read my post on new restrictions on Chinese clothing. After that do some Kings of Chaos clicking for me and my compatriots.
Attack of the Big Government Conservatives
Late tonight the House will vote to add prescription drugs to Medicare. The cost is estimated at $400 billion, but since when has a government program been anywhere close to its estimate? The GOP leadership and the White House want this bill passed, but it's just not good policy. There is a group of Republicans fighting this massive increase in an already massive federal entitlement. Since the House will be working late, Congressional offices should be open too. The Capitol switchboard number is 202-224-3121. Just tell the operator you Congressman's name or zip code, and they'll connect you to the right office.
"A Senior Moment"
GOP Ad Hits Dems Hard
The RNC must be pretty sure Howard the Duck will get the Democratic nomination. It's first commercial doesn't address the recovering economy or tax cuts. Instead, it defends President Bush's "policy of preemptive self-defense."
[via Jeff Jarvis]
November 20, 2003
From the No Duh! Department:
This headline from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
UW System Students Drink More than Average
Terri's Brain
Since the brain is an amazing, yet baffling organ, imagine what Terri Schiavo's life could be like now, if her husband had put her through therapy instead of spending money on lawyers to kill her.
James' Inferiority Complex
James Joyner doesn't think he's an "Influential."
Now, since I'm a super-duper Influential according to the checklist, one would think people would be flocking around asking for my advice on everything under the sun and copying my every move. So far as I can tell, that's not the case.
Strangely, James doesn't include all the weblogs that link to him and generate traffic. In N.Z. Bear's Ecosystem, OTB is ranked #49 with 381 unique inbound links. To compare, TAM is #363 with 102 unique inbound links. In the daily visitor count the difference is similar (1190 vs. 404 visits/day). Assuming the Ecosystem is a pretty good indicator of weblog popularity, OTB is about three-times more popular than TAM. Being read more also means one's writing is more desired and therefore more influential. So, it's safe to conclude that OTB is more influential than TAM.
Don't be so modest James. People aren't reading you just because you're another pretty face.
"The Influentials"
Jobless Claims Down Again
Good economic news for the President. This from Reuters:
First-time applications for unemployment aid fell 15,000 to 355,000 in the week ended Nov. 15, the Labor Department said, well below the 365,000 expected by Wall Street economists."These are good numbers," said Gary Thayer, chief economist for A.G. Edwards and Sons. "It suggests that the labor markets are improving and that the economy is, indeed, getting a little bit healthier."
How will Bush bashers spin this to make it sound like the economic sky is still falling?
"U.S. Jobless Claims Fell 15,000 Last Week"
Gould's History of the GOP
In a review of Lewis Gould's Grand Old Party, James Ceaser points out what has stayed firm throughout the history of the GOP:
Despite all their shifts, Republicans have shown an abiding commitment to four principles. First, the GOP has been the party of the idea of the nation, stressing this theme at its origins even when half the country denied it. Republicans have retained this pride in the nation, and it has always marked their brand of internationalism, so clearly on display today. Second, Republicans have placed great reliance on the "rising" individual and the self-made man. The horror of Republicans is for the wealth and property of society to be thought of as being owned collectively, to be distributed on the basis of "social justice." Third, the party has always been concerned with maintaining traditional standards of morality. From its early opposition to polygamy (coupled with slavery in the 1856 platform as one of "the twin relics of barbarism"), to the "just say 'no' to drugs" campaign, the party has stressed the connection between moral restraints and ordered liberty. Finally, the Republican Party has adhered to "Nature and Nature's God" as the transcendent source of truth. It has asserted this position in opposition to those who claim that standards derive only from evolving conceptions of morality, or from the social construction of values, or from humanitarian norms temporarily affirmed by bodies of international lawyers. A recourse to natural right was the first principle of Abraham Lincoln, just as it is the first principle of George W. Bush.
"Right Turns"
Call and Response
Professor Bainbridge links to the responses to Howard Dean's call for "re-regulation." Sen. Joe Lieberman responded in a statement,
He would give us a treacherous trifecta of policies that turn back the economic clock: new trade barriers, a larger tax burden on our middle class and now bigger bureaucracy. Either he doesn't know how to turn the economy around, or this is another reckless mistake.
Weasley Clark showed why the nickname I've given him fits. The general scolded Duck, M.D.'s ideas, calling them an abandonment of "proven policies that were the cornerstone of our party's success." He then went on to say, "I agree that we need far stronger protections for workers, consumers and our environment going beyond where the Clinton administration went in several respects, as times and circumstances have changed, too." It seems Clark has never come to a political fork in the road that he hasn't taken.
The Duck, M.D. campaign's response sounded even more populist than AlGore's in 2000:
If Democrats in this race want to side with big corporations over regular people, that's their choice. Howard Dean is going to grow the economy and reestablish the trust of the American people.
We know how well this strategy worked in 2000. No wonder many Democrats are scared.
"Opponents Assail Dean's Economic Proposal"
MJ's Road to Pervertdom
We shouldn't be flippant about child molestation charges, but Michele attempts a musical anaylsis of Michael Jackson's path to pervertdom.
"Essential Media: Charting the Demise of MJ through his Music"
November 19, 2003
A Bush Bashing Compulsion
Oliver Willis just can't stop his knee-jerk Bush bashing. In a post on FirstEnergy's blame in the East Coast blackout, he had to note that some company executives raised money for President Bush. I'm sure if he could, Oliver would blame Bush for his dog catching a cold.
He and Duck, M.D. are a perfect match.
"Cause, Meet Effect"
All Wet on Economics
Democrats may claim President Bush has had the worst economic record since Hoover, but Howard Dean, M.D. sounds like he wants to recreate FDR's massive New Deal regulation. That means "re-regulating" (to use Duck, M.D.'s term) "utilities, large media companies and any business that offers stock options." His two prime examples are Enron and the California energy crisis. On Enron, Dean said in a speech, "those at the top enriched themselves by deceiving everyone else and robbing ordinary people of the future they'd earned." The result was the company going into bankruptcy and its executives undergoing criminal investigations. The Enron scam was going on way before Bush came into office. Unless we want a government regulator watching over every action done by a private company (maybe that's what Duck, M.D. wants) fraud will take place.
On the Golden State's energy crisis, I'll steal Steve Verdon's words:
Great, just great. I figured this would be the possible reaction to the California Energy crisis. Never mind that the roots of the crisis are to be found in the blundering and ineptitude of government.
Duck, M.D. is maintaining his appearance as a "decentralized paternalist."
"Dean Calls For New Controls on Business"
Kings of Chaos Update
The TAM army is up to 73. Continue clicking to build up TAM's forces. Then help out my fellow warmongers:
KoC is fun. You should join the fun. It'd also be cool to have some officers under me. For every two men you recruit, I get one. It's another way to help my army grow.
Bad Art Mascarading as Memorials
The finalists in Ground Zero memorial competition are about as bad as the architectural plans for the area itself. All these memorials are about contemplation and weeping. None show off New York City's and America's ability to rise from the ashes. America's grandure and greatness aren't found in these proposals. Dare I say it? These ideas are worse than the Oklahoma City bombing memorial, and that's saying a lot. Majestic tributes to the dead like those at Gettysburg, these aren't. The art world is in seriously bad shape if these are the best that it can come up with.
Bush Still Bad on Trade
The last thing our economy needs while working its way into a decent recovery are new trade restrictions. But that's just what the Bush administration is doing. Limits on import growth will be implemented as a sop to uncompetitive U.S. textile factories. I hoped that the WTO's ruling against Bush's steel tariffs would have let the President reverse his trade stance with some political cover.
The affect on the world economy was immediate. The dollar dropped to a record low against the euro. That means U.S. buyers don't have as much buying power of European goods as before this decision. American consumers' choices have been restrained in exchange for an attempt to save some jobs.
Let's put this on a personal level. The U.S. government has no business from whom or where I buy my clothes. If an American company can produce a good product for a good price, then they'll have my business. If I can get better and/or cheaper stuff from a place like China, then so be it. This is how a free market works. This institution, not intentionally designed by any single mind, has created more wealth and a better quality of life to more people than any other in human history. Messing with it ends up hurting everyone.
"U.S. Announces Limits on Apparel Imports From China" [via Drudge]
New Carnival of the Vanities
A post loaded with good links means another Carnival of the Vanities. Peaktalk is hosting this week.
Cult Duck
Here's something that won't be mentioned on Howard the Duck's weblog. This is a comment from Joe Klein on Howard Dean's performance at last weekend's big Iowa Democratic rally:
He seemed more like a cult leader than a candidate for president.
Judging by the dreamy, utopian vibe you get from his followers, Klein is right on the money. Guru Howard plays to his base very well, but all will do is scare everyone else.
What Happened to Terri?
Nat Hentoff is doing one heck of a job in asking important questions surrounding the Terri Schiavo case. His latest column reports on a bone scan that shows, "This patient [Schiavo] has a history of trauma. The presumption is that the other multiple areas of trauma also relate to previous trauma." Where did this trauma come from and why has Michael Schiavo been so insistent on wanting her to die? These are important questions that should have been asked before the courts let Michael starve Terri.
"Was Terri Schiavo Beaten in 1990?" [via The Smarter Cop]
Freaks of Nature
For your fantasy football pleasure my latest Freaks of the Week column is up at SportsBlog.org.
And King, I will defeat you next week!
November 18, 2003
Burn Blogosphere Burn!
Have fun with all the bad posts on this week's Bonfire of the Vanities.
A Few Quick Hits
I don't have time to post anything substantial. I'm off to dinner with a friend and his family. Then I have to work on in very important Week 11 Freaks of the Week column. But I won't leave you in the lurch so here are a few links (discuss amongst yourselves):
DaveL and Steve at Deinonychus antirrhopus respond favorably to the Massachusettes State Supreme Court's decison to allow same-sex marriages. Note this from DaveL's post:
My only quibble is that it's another instance of judicial fiat, and will probably produce a backlash. I would much prefer that legalized gay marriages come from the legislatures, not the courts.
To use a weblog cliche, "Indeed."
James Joyner links to a review of Rush Limbaugh's return to the talk radio airwaves. I listen to his first hour and was proud of his return and attitude. He's learned alot and will continue to grow. He will also be telling us more about his legal situation when circumstances permit.
Continue clicking to build up TAM's forces. Then help out my fellow warmongers:
Southern Dem Primaries
Michael Van Winkle argues that Howard the Duck, M.D. should abandon the Iowa caucuses and worry about Weasley Clark in South Carolina. His scenerio is plausible, but I just don't see any buzz from the Clark campaign. He lost all his momentum with his ridiculous waverings on Iraq and his campaign's rejection of the grassroots movement that gave him so much buzz in the first place.
For Clark to stop Howard Dean in the South, you have to assume Duck, M.D.'s confederate flag remark alienated Southern Democrats, not just average voters. I just don't think there are that many Zell Millers left down there. Over the past 20+ years those Southern conservative Democrats have switched parties. By default, those left are more liberal which should help Duck, M.D.
"Forget Iowa: A New Strategy For Howard Dean"
UPDATE: Duck, M.D. isn't taking Van Winkle's advice. His campaign started running ads aimed at Gephardt.
November 17, 2003
Dean's N.H. Support Grows
Duck, M.D. expands his lead in New Hampshire. Sen. John Kerry, who by the way served in Vietnam, continues to look like a Republican version of Phil Graham.
"Dean Continues to Surge in NH; Clark Sputters"
Reporter Awakens from Coma
Here's a case where the man wanted the woman in a coma to live, and they weren't even married yet. Steve Fullington has more love for his fiance Rebecca Spitz than Michael Schiavo has for his wife Terri.
"NY1 Star Awakens" [via The Corner]
Duck Can't Win South
It may be obvious to any serious political watcher, but Duck, M.D.'s followers are too drunk with their "emergent democracy" to realize this: Howard the Duck can't win the South. Without the South, he has a slim chance of beating Bush.
James Joyner then comments on an article telling the Democrats to forget about the South. Joyner doesn't see victory in that strategy.
"Dixie Democrats Consider Dean 'Too Liberal' to Win"
Township Approves Wind Farm
The Town of Marshfield approved a plan to build 44 wind turbines. Navitas Energy will pay land owners $4000 per year for each turbine on their land. The township government will get $133,360 a year from the company. Why this isn't considered a bribe I don't know. It may have been a reason why getting this plan through was so much easier than in my township. The battle over building a wind farm here lasted over two years and shut down the local government.
It's good people are actually allowed to use their land to make money. I'm just disappointed that the energy company had to give the government almost as much cash as the landowners ($133,360 vs. $176,000).
"Fond du Lac County Farmers Look to the Sky for Newest Crop"
Kings of Chaos Update
It was a bad day for the TAM army. While its numbers continued to swell, defenses couldn't repel an attack that resulting in the loss of over 100,000 pieces of gold. Resources are now going into boosting defenses and intelligence. Information is crucial before engaging in an effective counter-attack. Continue clicking to build up TAM's forces (up to 43). Then help out my fellow warmongers:
New CotC and Mutual Fund Scandal
There are some really good posts in this week's Carnival of the Capitalists hosted by Professor Bainbridge. Sadly, there's nothing from TAM this week. However, read this post by Chris Noble on the mutual fund scandal. He responds to some bad writing by a MSN Money columnist.
With [open ended] mutual funds, shares are created when the purchase is made and destroyed when the shares are sold. There is no direct harm to another investor. Indirect through higher fees and operating expenses, maybe. But not directly.
I've followed the story only casually because a local fund executive is in Elliot Spitzer's sights. Throughout all the reporting I've read, I never found out how investors were being harmed. Does "higher fees and operating expenses" justify the witchhunt by regulators and the press? Or am I missing something?
"Mutual Fund Misinformation"
More on "Weblog Incest"
Jonathan Wilde at Catallarchy.net has a great response to Jennifer Howard's article. Jonathan writes,
There is absolutely nothing democratic about blogs. Rather, the blogosphere is the ultimate free-market anarchy. Bloggers are vendors and ideas are their wares. Readers who spend their time reading blogs are free to choose which blogs they visit, and they are free to never come back again, just like the customer who never re-visits the restaurant that served him cold pasta.
Ralph Luker describes the blogsphere well:
The blogosphere is like a library in which books offering competing interpretations of things sit quietly beside each other until you open them up and the dialogue begins.
I would just add that since some kind of network principle underlies much of Man's social behavior (have read little on this topic so bear with me) it's natural for there to be hubs or link concentrations. I suspect it has something to do with people having limited time to deal with an unlimited amount of information. We need ways to filter all this stuff. Popular weblogs like Instapundit do just that. But since the blogosphere is in essence an anarchy, Glenn's popularity depends on him continuing to produce useful content.
A flaw in Howard's (I'll use her last name since she feels webloggers use first names too casually) analysis is the list of weblogs she uses to prove her point. For example. Old Hag my be popular in Howard's world, but it's a "Crawly Amphibian" in N.Z. Bear's ecosystem with only 17 unique inbound links. The Minor Fall, The Major Lift has even less link popularity with only two unique inbound links. In comparison, TAM is ranked 357th with 103 unique inbound links. That's not big time, but it certainly makes TAM a giant compared to those Howard mentioned. If she would have mentioned all the linking between the big time webloggers like Glenn Reynolds, Andrew Sullivan, the Volokh gang, and Kevin Drum then she'd have some credibility. Instead, she looks like a Big Media writer who doesn't know what she's talking about.
"The Blogosphere: a Free-Market Anarchy"
November 16, 2003
Weblogs Illustrate Human Nature
Jennifer Howard thinks the blogosphere is too incestuous. Certain webloggers are constantly linking to one another. Somehow, she fell into the trap of believing that weblogs would end the cult of personality. It obviously doesn't. Something is engrained in Human Nature that draws us to people. What that is is the desire to find something interesting (subjectively defined). Weblogs ease of use and few barriers to entry only give people the opportunity to get their views out. Having a weblog doesn't ensure those views will be read.
"Incestuous Blogging?"
November 15, 2003
Bombing in Turkey
To follow the horrible events in Turkey, check out Kris Lofgren's weblog. It's live from Turkey.
[via a small victory]
A Smoking Gun
The Weekly Standard has a blockbuster on a memo showing a 13-year link between al-Qaeda and Iraq. It even appears Iraq wanted to finance the Sep. 11 attacks. From the memo (as quoted by Stephen Hayes):
The Czech counterintelligence service reported that the Sept. 11 hijacker [Mohamed] Atta met with the former Iraqi intelligence chief in Prague, [Ahmed Khalil Ibrahim Samir] al Ani, on several occasions. During one of these meetings, al Ani ordered the IIS finance officer to issue Atta funds from IIS financial holdings in the Prague office.
Hayes adds, "Note that the report stops short of confirming that the funds were transferred. It claims only that the IIS officer requested the transfer."
Is this the reason we toppled Saddam? Is the intelligence contained in this memo the reason Iraq was an immediate target after the Sep. 11 attacks? How much training does al-Qaeda have in regards to WMD? Is the reason they haven't carried out such an attack due to lack of materials (uranium, killer viruses, certain chemicals), the lack of knowledge, or both?
My guess is the White House leaked this memo to the sympathetic magazine.
"Case Closed"
Getting Plucked at Dartmouth
The conservative student newspaper, The Dartmouth Review, covered Duck, M.D.'s bad day at the school. I have a good feeling Dean will turn the dial ever "Rebel Yell" comes on the radio.
"Rebel Without a Cause" [via Dartlog.net]
Thanks Milt
Milt Rosenberg may be the smartest man on radio. I don't listen to his show Extension 720 enough, but when I do Milt is just as insightful as his guests. Milt also has a great weblog and was kind enough to add TAM to his blogroll.
Wisconsin Crushes Michigan State
Lee Evans scored five times in the Badgers' win.
"Evans Spears Spartans"
November 14, 2003
Kings of Chaos Update
TAM's army has grown. It's up to 43. Unfortunately, while earning real money (and it wasn't gold) my stockade was attacked and whole bunch of gold was stolen. To prevent this from happening again I need you to continue to click and make my army grow. Then help out my fellow warmongers:
The Birth of a Nation
Mark Pierce is on a roll. This time, he has a good piece on the U.S. occupation and the creation of a new Iraqi state.
"The Iraqi Double Fork"
Let Me at Him! Let Me at Him!
If Tacitus can volunteer to be a "warblogger in the war" by going to Iraq, TAM volunteers to cover Duck, M.D.'s campaign from his headquarters in Burlington, VT. Let's see how open Duck, M.D.'s followers are to that.
One Yucky Word
From now on I will feel icky everytime I hear the word "chickenhawk."
Thanks, Steve...I think.
"Hawks and Doves"
Local Hero Honored
Maj. Mark Mitchell will received the Army's Distinguished Service Cross, the military's second-highest honor, today for his heroism in attacking a prison in Afghanistan two years ago. That was the prison filled with al-Qaeda and Taliban prisoners of war where CIA agent Johnny Spann was killed.
"In the Line of Duty, a Hero Emerges"
Michele's Album List
Michele is listing the best 100 albums of the 90s. For some reason, I didn't think her and I would be musical comrades, but she started off with two good ones.
"Best Album's of the 90's"
Kings of Chaos Status
TAM's rag-tag group of marauders is up to 37. They'll all nicely tucked away in a new stockade ready to defend themselves from all the other armies I've been sniping at. You're clicks are helping. Keep it up. Also, think about playing. I'd like some officers. You'd have fun, and my army would grow even stronger.
UPDATE: Click here to build Laurence's army and here to help out Dr. Schloktopus' Army of the Squid.
And yes, I'm a dork for obsessing about this.