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Browse by Category
Robert & Ann, Sitting in a Tree...
Borders Bans Magazine Issue
Red Hickey Dies
Bolten Wants Snow Replaced
Christians Besides Rahman Arrested
Favre Decision Probably This Weekend
Judges Back Bush on NSA Spying
New Orleans Bus on eBay
Rahman Flees to Italy
Say a Little Prayer
Smart Candidate
When the Perfect is the Enemy of the Good
On Barbara Bush's Earmarked Donation
An Embarassment to All Seans Everywhere
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March 31, 2006
Waiting on Judgement
Hooray to Jim Geraghty for not jumping on the "Jill Carroll must be crazy" bandwagon. A downside to the instant news and analysis the internet and blogosphere provide is many feel they must comment on an event ASAP. Geraghty writes,
My instinct is to lay off for a bit. If she comes out in a few weeks making the same comments and appears to be defending her abductors, then she’ll be fair game for criticism. But for now, I’m willing to chalk up the pre-release tape to duress and the strange comments in the immediate hours and days after her release to stress and trauma.
There's a time and a place for everything. Just because you can offer your opinion instantly doesn't mean you should.
"Hold Off on Judging Jill Carroll -- For Now"
UPDATE: This explains Carroll's remarks:
The night before journalist Jill Carroll's release, her captors said they had one final demand as the price of her freedom: She would have to make a video praising her captors and attacking the United States, according to Jim Carroll.
In a long phone conversation with his daughter on Friday, Mr. Carroll says that Jill was "under her captor's control."Ms. Carroll had been their captive for three months and even the smallest details of her life - what she ate and when, what she wore, when she could speak - were at her captors' whim. They had murdered her friend and colleague Allan Enwiya, "she had been taught to fear them," he says. And before making one last video the day before her release, she was told that they had already killed another American hostage.
That video appeared Thursday on a jihadist website that carries videos of beheadings and attacks on American forces. In it, Carroll told her father she felt compelled to make statements strongly critical of President Bush and his policy in Iraq.
That's good enough for Captain Ed who wonders why many forgot the enemy uses prisoners for propaganda. They forgot because wanted to offer instant analysis and appear to be on top of the story. They sided with speed instead of truth which travels at her own pace. We amateurs who are still cutting our teeth in this new wide-open media world have to always keep that in the backs of our minds.
"Jill Carroll Forced to Make Propaganda Video as Price of Freedom"
Robert & Ann, Sitting in a Tree...
BetterBadNews found Ann Coulter's illegitimate daughter (note the similar blond hair and obnoxious claims). Somehow Robert Wright gets caught in the quicksand.
March 30, 2006
Borders Bans Magazine Issue
Borders has decided not to carry the April-May issue of Free Inquiry because it will contain Muhammad cartoons that sparked violent outrage among some Muslims:
"For us, the safety and security of our customers and employees is a top priority, and we believe that carrying this issue could challenge that priority," Borders Group Inc. spokeswoman Beth Bingham said Wednesday.
Robert Bidinotto isn't happy:
By its public declaration of pre-emptive surrender, Borders has given the bullies of our age a clear message: Your intimidation works. Your bullying works. Your coercion works. Your terrorist threats work.Borders has set a morally irresponsible and frighteningly dangerous precedent. It has told fanatics everywhere that all they need to do in order to obliterate First Amendment rights is to growl menacingly -- at which point a leading bookstore chain in America will clear its shelves of anything that could possibly offend the thug of the moment.
I work for Barnes & Noble, Borders' chief competitor, and have heard nothing that the same will be done in their stores. I'd be shocked if they did. The company is pretty absolute in making available materials their customers want to buy. You can buy The Anarchist Cookbook for pete's sake.
It's one thing to write a letter to the company expressing your complaint. It's another going into your nearest Borders and asking for the banned issue of Free Inquiry then complaining. This was a company decision. Your average Borders bookseller has no control over this. They're working stiffs like anyone else. Don't give them a hard time.
"An Open Letter to Borders Books"
"Fear of a Jihadi Planet"
"The Heckler's Veto"
UPDATE: Andrew Cory, another Barnes & Noble employee, writes:
See, a bookstore’s only stocking priority ought to be “will it sell”. Once the commercial judgment is replaced with editorial one, a company sets itself up as a censor. It begins to limit access to knowledge, and democracy itself is tarnished.
Making available what people want to buy is a way a free market supports other freedoms. Milton Friedman would be pleased.
Red Hickey Dies
Red Hickey, football coach and inventor of the shotgun offense, die at 89. Football fans may think the shotgun got its name from the center "shooting" the ball to the quarterback. Not so. According to the AP it was "so named by Hickey because it sprayed receivers around the field."
Add that to your knowledge bank of useless facts. I bet Ken Jennings didn't know that.
Godspeed, Red.
"Shotgun Formation Inventor Red Hickey Dies"
[Added to OTB's Beltway Traffic Jam.]
Bolten Wants Snow Replaced
New White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten wants Treasury Secretary John Snow replaced. Snow has been pretty much invisible while serving (like his predecessor Paul O'Neill so it's not like anyone would really notice. Part of it is the times we live in. We're at war so the foreign policy departments, State and Defense, get the limelight. Part of it is also the importance placed on the department by the President. Other than tax cuts Bush hasn't been an economics-focus President.
"Chief of Staff Is Expected to Shake Up 2 Key Teams"
Christians Besides Rahman Arrested
A news outfit called Compass Direct, a "US-based Christian news source" reports two more Afghan Christians have been arrested. I've never heard of Compass Direct, but I wouldn't be surprised if this is legit. It's something to keep an eye on.
"More Christians Arrested in Afghanistan"
Favre Decision Probably This Weekend
Green Bay Packers fans hope and pray Brett Favre decides to return for another season. Signs are pointing to a decision this weekend. The Packers have pushed back Favre's $3 million roster bonus twice with another deadline coming Saturday. If Favre wants to call it quits the team needs time to get back-up QB Aaron Rodgers ready. New head coach Mike McCarthy wants Favre back to see if his stripped-down, back-to-basics version of the West Coast offense will improve Favre's play.
"Snap Judgments"
"Coach Has Plan to Help Favre"
March 29, 2006
Judges Back Bush on NSA Spying
An author of the FISA Act told a Senate panel President Bush has the authority to order the controversial NSA wiretapping. Judge Allan Kornblum said,
If a court refuses a FISA application and there is not sufficient time for the president to go to the court of review, the president can under executive order act unilaterally, which he is doing now.... I think that the president would be remiss exercising his constitutional authority by giving all of that power over to a statute.
Four other ex-FISA court judges agreed.
There is a sticking point: none of the judges knows the details of the program. Neither do many politicians, pundits, and webloggers. We're debating while blind.
Still, if Bush's opponents think the NSA terrorist spying is a winning issue they're wrong. Unless they can find proof Bush is using the program for something nefarious like spying on political opponents at worst reasonable people will think Bush committed a sin overreach not malice. Paul Craig Roberts' lunatic rants don't count.
"FISA Judges Say Bush Within Law"
New Orleans Bus on eBay
The New Orleans school district is selling one of their Katrina-damaged buses on eBay. Mayor Ray Nagan must be cringing. On the auction page is the infamous photo of a lot full of flooded buses; buses that could have been used to help evacuate the city.
Then we have Alvarez & Marsal, "the management firm hired last year to turn around the school system," getting all cute in irreverant by declaring the broken bus an "Exclusive Limited Offer!!!" The winning bidder will "Own A Piece of History!!!" It's a "This is a collector's dream come true."
"No Flood of Cash Offers Yet for Waterlogged School Bus"
[via Lakeshore Laments]
Rahman Flees to Italy
Abdul Rahman was granted asylum in Italy and arrived there. Many Afghan Muslim are miffed he was allowed to leave the country instead of converting back to Islam or be killed for apostasy. Clerics called it a "betrayal to Islam" and the Afghan parliment wanted the Karzai government to stop Rahman from leaving.
With this courageous action Italy should prepare for the backlash. I won't be surprised if fatwahs are issued for Rahman's death. Also expect violent protests outside Italian consulates similar to the ones in response to the Muhammad cartoons.
"Italy Welcomes Man Who Fled Afghanistan"
"Afghan Convert 'Arrives in Italy'"
Say a Little Prayer
I think Glenn Reynolds isn't much of the religious type, but I don't think he'll mind your prayers for him and his family for their loss. Glenn has done so much for webloggers and weblogging. It's the least we can do.
I too know what it's like to recently lose a grandparent. We just have to remember they lived fruitful lives. We loved them, and they loved us. Grandparent hugs are some of the warmest in my memory. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's the love they gave out without the discipline parents have to do. Whatever the reason, they make for wonderful memories.
Smart Candidate
You'll notice to the left J.B. Van Hollen is advertising on TAM. That's no endorsement. I'm neutral. J.B.'s campaign put up the dough just like any advertiser can. I haven't followed the attorney general race closely, but I've heard good things from both Van Hollen and Paul Bucher. With the end of the GOP governor's primary more attention will go to the AG race. Van Hollen vs. Bucher will be good to watch but not as much as the slug-fest between Democrats. Kathleen Falk and Peg Lautenschlager.
March 28, 2006
When the Perfect is the Enemy of the Good
With Scott Walker out of the governor's race there's been some Mark Green bashing on local weblogs. Charlie Sykes doesn't offer any links (tsk, tsk; the most important thing about the web; being on vacation is no excuse) so I'm going to assume most of the criticism has been in the comments. After Walker dropped out I knew some people were bummed. Many have quickly come around. Even Chris at Spotted Hourse knows the ultimate goal is to beat Gov. Doyle, and Patrick at Badger Blogger thinks "Green is a great candidate."
To Walker supporters still upset with Green here are two words: chill out. The guy's a conservative. He's voted to cut taxes, control spending, ban partial-birth abortion, and require photo ID at the voting booth. Compare that to Jim Doyle.
It's obvious the Green campaign has to reach out to conservative Southeastern Wisconsin voters who really liked Walker. Since I think he's a smart guy who will do what it takes to beat Doyle I have no doubt he'll do that. All I ask of you Green critics is to keep an open mind. Breathe in, breathe out, then imagine four more years of Governor Doyle.
YIKES!
"Newsflash: Green is Better than Doyle - Much Better"
On Barbara Bush's Earmarked Donation
This is a brief follow-up to a post a few days ago on Barbara Bush's conditional donation of software to some Houston schools. It's garnered plenty of comments.
If the software is donated directly or the cash equivilent is donated to the relief fund Bush can claim both as deductions. In fact, according to my accountant, it would have been better tax-wise if she bought the software from Neil Bush's Ignite! Learning instead of donating cash. Bush's action is not self-maximizing. Plus, it wouldn't have been as noticable and not launched Bush bashers into a tizzy.
An Embarassment to All Seans Everywhere
What little respect I had for Sean Hannity went out the window with this incident with Alec Baldwin.
"Alec Baldwin v. Sean Hannity in Radio Donnybrook" [via Little Miss Attila]
UPDATE: Patrick at Badger Blogger has audio of Sean Hannity's side of the story. He tries all he wants but he doesn't sound positive at all. But Baldwin sounded as unhinged as he usually does.
Sean Penn's Coulter Hatred
Like Sean Penn I'm not a fan of Ann Coulter, but I don't possess an Ann Coulter doll where I burn her "some funny places." I'll leave that to the flaky actor.
"Penn has Torture Doll" [via RWN]
March 27, 2006
A Quibble with a Quibble
In Daniel Suhr's round-up of coverage of Scott Walker's exit from the governor's race he quotes TAM and gripes against "some (self-righteous) finger-waving at Mark Green" with regards to my complaint with Rep. Mark Green's ethanol stance.
Later on he doesn't think Green will campaign to the middle now that he won't have a primary opponent. He uses as an example Green not caving to the "right-wing on ethanol even as he was getting pounded on both talk and paid radio." Does Daniel think government requiring gas to contain 10% ethanol to be a conservative position? Such interference in the free market doesn't sound like the conservatism of Goldwater, Reagan, or Gingrich. It does sound like President Bush's Big Government conservatism which also includes massive increases in educational and social welfare spending along with trade protectionism.
Ethanol has been my primary concern with Green. I'm a conservative first, then a Republican. If Green pushes policies I don't consider conservative I will call him out and oppose them. No candidate will agree with me 100%. If I wanted the perfect candidate I'd run myself. I was no Walker sycophant. In fact, until he dropped out I didn't endorse either GOP governor candidate. When comparing Green and Doyle there's no question who I support. As I wrote last Friday, "On school choice, on taxes, on spending, on government regulations, on ethics Green is superior. For that I'm endorsing Rep. Mark Green for governor of Wisconsin." Ethanol isn't a deal breaker. Green wants to end Wisconsin's image as a tax hell and improve the business climate. If he pulled that off I probably could swallow an ethanol mandate. Politics is the art of the possible. There's a clear choice in the election. Voters can choose the conservative Rep. Mark Green or the liberal, ethically-challenged incumbent governor.
"Quibbles with Commentary"
Sullivan Attacks Former First Lady
Andrew Sullivan extends his Bush bashing to former First Lady Barbara Bush. She directed a portion of a donation to a Hurricane Katrina relief fund to be used to buy educational software from her son Neil Bush's company Ignite Learning. That has "forced" Sullivan to dub Barbara "Marie Antoinette." How is this different from Bush buying the software from Ignite and donating it directly to Houston schools? There isn't a difference, and I think there would be no story if she had done that.
Let's take off our cynical glasses for one moment. Maybe Barbara Bush thinks Ignite's "Curriculum On Wheels" is a good product. Maybe she loves her son and thinks he's doing something important and helpful. It's sad to see some are at the point where anything a certain family does can only be self-aggrandizement. For people like Sullivan the Bush family is guilty until proven innocent.
"Katrina Donation Ignites Debate"
Kane's Bait-and-Switch
First, Eugene Kane wants certain members of the Wisconsin blogosphere to "Get some backbone or get out of the blogosphere." He complained about some webloggers (i.e. Jessica McBride) who don't allow comments. Ironic from a pathetic excuse of a weblogger who doesn't have weblog comments of his own (start griping to your employer if it's so important). I guess McBride's prominent listing of her e-mail address doesn't count. (It's actually in a bigger font than Kane's.)
Now, Kane decided he's superior because he gets letters to the editor and does webchats. It's no longer about comments. I'm still waiting for that coward to send me an e-mail or leave a comment. Hell, I'm still waiting for him to understand that being part of the blogosphere is linking to other webloggers. It's called being polite, a trait he rarely displays in his published words. He's still a weblogging newbie so I'll cut him a little slack. Even big media voices have to earn respect in the blogosphere. Kane has a ways to go.
March 26, 2006
Censuring for Dollars
Sen. Feingold isn't the only Senator to use a Bush censure as a pretense for political fundraising.
Patriot Act
There's someone in Vegas counting all the money they made for betting that George Mason would make it to the Final Four.
They have the coolest econ program in the country. I'm jumping on their bandwagon.
"George Mason Is a Giant-Killer"
[photo via Flickr]
Mission Accomplished
Sen. Russ Feingold wanted attention to "force" him to run for President in 2008. So he decided President Bush needs to be censured. He did this without talking to any fellow Democrats. It wasn't a part of an overall strategy to weaken the President. It was self-promotion. Well, it worked:
A Newsweek poll taken March 16-17 found that 50 percent of those surveyed opposed censuring Bush while 42 percent supported it, but among Democrats, 60 percent favored the effort.
It's not gone two weeks, and Feingold is still getting free media. That had to top any of his expectations.
"Feingold's Censure Call Gives Him Boost"
Instant Hockey Classic
If you can find it turn on the Wisconsin-Cornell hockey game. They've played an entire game and two overtimes and still haven't scored. This has become an instant classic.
UPDATE: Wisconsin wins with a third overtime goal by Jack Skille. They move onto the Frozen Four in Milwaukee in less than two weeks where they will play Maine.
Congratulations also go to the Badger women's hockey team for beating Minnesota 3-0 in Minnesota to claim the national championship.
Rahman Safe for Now
Abdul Rahman will not face charges for converting to Christianity, but he is still not safe. He could be charged later when prosecutors get more evidence, or more likely, someone angry at Rahman's apostasy will kill him.
I am disappointed with the Bush administration's tepid reactions to Rahman's plight. Condi Rice saying we need "to be respectful of Afghan sovereignty" continued that tip-toeing.
Afghan president Hamid Karzai found a way not to alienate the West. This is better than the Taliban who would have killed Rahman days ago. The problem we have is there isn't a model of an Islamic state that practices religious freedom. Turkey is the closest, but they do that by trying hard to keep religion out of state affairs. Even today, the strong military watches the civilian government to make sure they don't go astray from Ataturk's idea of a land of the Turks rather than an Islamic state. (Note that Turkey doesn't call itself the Islamic Republic of Turkey.)
Changing culture and religious attitudes is a slow and painful process. What can't be done is for allied forces to threaten to leave Afghanistan if it doesn't respect religious freedom. Most Afghans would sooner see foreign troops leave and deal with warlords and Islamist terrorists than have the West dictate to them how they should practice Islam. Also, we don't want Afghanistan to again become a homebase for Islamist terrorist. A possibility for more tolerance is for moderate Muslim Afghans who currently live in the West to return to their homeland. These moderates know from experience that Muslims can live side-by-side with Christians, Jews, atheists, etc.
Another possibility is for Muslims to stop looking on the dynastic pride they have in Muslim history and deeply examining the eras when Christians, Jews, and Muslims all lived peacefully together under Muslim rule. Instead of moaning the demise of dar al-Islam to dar al-Harb historic lessons can be found to adjust Islam to the modern world.
Afghanistan will have to change because there are more Christians converts there than just Abdul Rahman:
The middle-aged man, who cannot be named for fear of reprisals, embraced Christianity 20 years ago. Unlike Rahman, who converted while working for a charity in Pakistan, where there is a Christian minority numbering several million, he has never left Afghanistan."We have churches here in Kabul and all the cities of the country, and links to Christians abroad," he said. "There have always been Christians in this country. Some families have been Christian for generations, but most have been converted in recent years."
The Christian interviewed said Afghan Christians "don't get trouble from ordinary people, but being afraid of being identified shows the pull of "extremist religious groups" who "will try to kill or kidnap us, to mount grenade attacks."
"Afghan Court Drops Case Against Christian"
"Abdul Rahman to Be Released"
March 25, 2006
New FEC Rules on Online Political Speech
The FEC's proposed regulations of online political speech do not look too draconian:
The Federal Election Commission last night released proposed new rules that leave almost all Internet political activity unregulated except for the purchase of campaign ads on Web sites."My key goal in this rule-making has been to make sure that the commission establish clear rules to exempt individuals who engage in online politics from campaign finance laws," said Chairman Michael E. Toner, a Republican.
"We tried to craft a regulation that would allow the maximum amount of freedom for people as possible," said Commissioner Ellen L. Weintraub, a Democrat.
Most bloggers, individual Web users, and such Web sites as Drudge Report and Salon.com are exempted from regulation and will be free to support and attack federal candidates, much as newspapers are allowed.
Jerome Armstrong of Lefty weblog MyDD sees it as webloggers getting "the media exemption." On his weblog he wonders, "However, for a camapign, I'm unsure of the implications of their ruling. From the sounds of it, Google ads and Blogads are now going to have to carry a disclaimer. I can't imagine that even being practical for candidates to run disclaimers in their search-term ads."
Here's the summary [PDF].
It appears I won't be shutting down only to have my Russian cousin (*wink* *wink*) start it up on servers in his motherland.
"Proposed FEC Rules Would Exempt Most Political Activity on Internet"
Some Advice for the Immigration Demonstrators
To those who don't want tougher federal laws on illegal immigration, like the thousands who demonstrated in Los Angeles, I have some advice:
- Ditch the Mexican flags. You came to the U.S. because of better opportunites. By protesting tougher immigration laws you tell everyone you don't want to leave. You will get much more sympathy if you show plenty of allegiance to the nation that has given you your opportunity.
- Speak in english. Don't protest by "giving speeches mainly in Spanish." You're just demonstrating you really don't care about integrating into the country you're living in. No one has problems with bilingualism, but the U.S. has a common tongue.
These two actions will earn you sympathy with a public that understands the universal desire to better one's self but is tired of law-breaking and its costs.
"Immigration Bill Sparks Protests, Bush Plea"
UPDATE: I'm not alone questioning the Mexican flags. [via Instapundit]
Silence Blocks Finding Missing Boys
News about the two missing Milwaukee boys hasn't been found on TAM because I didn't have anything to add that you couldn't find in the newspaper or on television. Now, the story has gotten interesting along with being tragic:
Police now believe people who know something about two missing Milwaukee boys are withholding information that could lead to a major break in the investigation."We have reason to believe there are individuals with information that is pertinent to this investigation who for reasons unknown to us right now aren't coming forward," Milwaukee police spokeswoman Anne E. Schwartz said at a Friday afternoon briefing.
Kids don't vanish without leaving some clues. Since Purvis Virginia Parker and Quadrevion Henning disappeared last Sunday authorities have no leads. We know why. Someone isn't talking. I know the Black community doesn't have the greatest amount of trust in the Milwaukee Police Department. Since inquests looking at police shootings rarely call for an officer to be prosecuted I understand some of that distrust.
While two boys' lives are at stake people with vital information are running a personal "Stop Snitching" campaign. They may be proud of their bravado or fear for their lives, but families are in pain. They want to know what happened to their children.
"Somebody Knows, Somebody Saw Boys, Police Say"
March 24, 2006
Walker Calls it Quits
It will be Rep. Mark Green versus Gov. Jim Doyle this fall. Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker bowed out of the race citing a failure to reach fundraising goals:
"I give my full support and endorsement to my friend Mark Green," Walker said in a speech prepared for a 5th Congressional District audience at the Country Springs Hotel. He released a copy of his remarks this afternoon to the Journal Sentinel.Walker, who entered the race officially in January 2005, pinned his withdrawal on a failure to meet ramped-up fundraising goals designed to compete with Doyle’s expected biggest-ever campaign war chest.
"It became clear to me that our fundraising totals would only allow us to run a campaign in a fraction of the 72 counties in this state," Walker said. "In addition, our resources would be so limited that most of it would likely be spent on ads attacking our Republican opponent." He called that an "unappealing option for me" and one that would only bolster Doyle’s re-election hopes.
"In the end I love this state too much to see Jim Doyle elected to another term," Walker said. "A campaign that does not focus on Doyle before the primary will almost certainly insure his re-election. To me, that outcome is unacceptable."
Walker said his campaign fundraising fell short of keeping up with Doyle’s record-setting pace, revealed in the late-January campaign reports. Walker said a new minimum goal he set for the end of March was "unfortunately" not reached.
Since Walker and Green are very close on most issues their differences, no matter how small, would be magnified. Thus the hammering I gave Green on ethanol. With Doyle's bad poll numbers I expect Green to win in November. If and when the ethanol mandate comes up I will be as opposed to it then as I am today. I'll want Doyle bounced out of office, but that doesn't mean Green will get a pass.
Still I defintely prefer Rep. Green to Gov. Doyle. On school choice, on taxes, on spending, on government regulations, on ethics Green is superior. For that I'm endorsing Rep. Mark Green for governor of Wisconsin.
People are talking over at the Badger Blog Alliance.
"Walker Withdrawing from Governor's Race"
UPDATE: Here's Walker's withdrawal speech.
UPDATE II: Owen Robinson recorded Walker's speech tonight.
Conservative Weblogger Doesn't Last a Week
Ben Domenech didn't last a week as a weblogger for washingtonpost.com. It wasn't the bile-spewing Left or Intelligent Design critics that got him. It was his past. This post at Obsidian Wings is pretty damning. Such criticism must have been damning to Domenech. He resigned.
Lefty webloggers may want his head on their trophy wall. If I were them I wouldn't. First, no body outside the political blogosphere knows who Domenech is. Second, he didn't last a week. That's far from taking down an institution like Dan Rather.
Domenech has written far more than I have. Part of that comes from him being an ex-speech writer. When a young writer is cutting their teeth they will make mistakes. Is past plagerism unforgiveable? Does it have a statute of limitations? When writers are seeking a new gig should they admit the mistakes in their past and hope their recent track record can make up for it?
TAM has existed since 1999. Before that I wrote occasional op-eds in my college newspaper. In all that writing I don't recall ever copying someone elses work, but I might have. Say the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wanted to take weblogs seriously and wanted me on board. How would I deal with a potential time bomb sitting in my archives just waiting for rabid partisans to detonate?
UPDATE: Domenech (AKA Augustine) posted his explanation to plagerism charges and his resignation. The story made it on The Drudge Report so the RedState servers are under a lot of stress. They're reasonable explanations. More reasonable than the hateful responses of his Leftist critics. They are still errors of judgement, but being young (he was 17 at the time) is about making mistakes and learning from them. It makes me ask the question, "When does a writer's past mistakes no longer hurt him?"
Here's something to think about: had Domenech been caught drinking at 17 he would still be writing Red America. If he would have been caught smoking pot he might be praised. Some youthful indiscretions are more forgivable than others.
UPDATE II: National Review Online admits Domenech plagerized, and it wasn't for a college paper. "A side-by-side comparison to another review of the same film speaks for itself. There is no excuse for plagiarism and we apologize to our readers and to Steve Murray of the Cox News Service from whose piece the language was lifted."
With that Domenech would have been booted from the Red America weblog had he not resigned. That's understandable for an institution like The Washington Post who has a reputation to maintain. I would like to know is Domenech scarred for life? Will editors reject job opportunities or even free lance articles when he's 40, 50, or even 80 because of what he did in his teens and 20s? With the internet as a permanent archive we all should wonder how long our past mistakes will haunt us.
What's really disappointing is washingtonpost.com will be "likely to look for someone with a more traditional journalism background." Domenech's flagrant copying tarred the reputations of conservative webloggers everywhere. Thanks a lot, Ben.
[via Michelle Malkin]
Eggroll
With its funky Asian flavors and crunchy vegetables surrounded by a crispy skin eggrolls make for good eating. Just don't do it while in front of your keyboard. After every bite you need a pile of napkins to wipe the grease off your fingers, and you have to make sure no morsels fall into the cracks between keys. Picking out Napa cabbage doesn't sound like fun.
Charlie's Show Prep #65
- A Hong Kong company will operate a radiation detector for cargo destined for the U.S. at a port in the Bahamas.
- Someone found a way to make ethanol out of cheese waste. An ethanol mandate is inevitable when you unite special interests such as farmers with cheesemakers.
- Tensions in the Far East grow. Japan cut off its loans to China.
- Someone help me figure out what Ted Thompson is doing. He has a chance to build the Packers in his image, but he's not signing anybody. Ryan Longwell goes to Minnesota, but he offered a similar amount of money to Adam Vinatieri. Now, with Mike Vanderjagt in Dallas the kicking pickin's are getting slim. Mike Flanagan ran off to Houston which leaves a hole in the middle of the offensive line, and Tony Fischer went to St. Louis because the Packers didn't even offer him a new contract.
- I want to become famous like Dick Cheney just so I can have all my hotel televisions tuned to Fox News upon arrival.
March 23, 2006
March Madness Continues
Another night of tournament games meant further destruction of my brackets. Cross Duke off my final four list. Did they get stuffed by a young, hungry LSU team. The two later games offered adrenaline rushes. Texas walks off the court with a game-winning three-pointer after West Virginia tied it. Then Gonzaga collapses and hands UCLA a big win.
On High Altert
Do not, I repeat, DO NOT get between Sen. Russ Feingold and a reporter. Think "Hulk smash!" if you do, and that's from either direction.
I'm just warning you.
"Alert Level Raised to HIGH"
Charlie's Show Prep #64
- President Bush found Abdul Rahman's possible death sentence "deeply troubling," and will use American influence "to remind [Afghanistan] that there are universal values."
- When people like Robert Samuelson, far from being a firebrand conservative, opposes a guest worker program it will be very tough for the President to get it through Congress.
- Business done at strip clubs will be a thing of the past for Wall Street firms.
- The FEC's online political speech regulations have been delayed until next week.
- "Today is the fourteenth anniversary of the death of F.A. Hayek -- the greatest social scientist of the 20th century." Hayek happens to be my intellectual hero.
- A real-life version of The Terminal took place in Chicago. A Romanian who overstayed his visa may have been living at O'Hare Airport for months.
March 22, 2006
RNC Ad Spanked
FactCheck.org slaps the RNC for its Sen. Russ Feingold-bashing ad. Emi Kolawole writes,
[Feingold's] resolution would censure Bush for the way in which he ordered wiretaps, not for the wiretaps themselves. It would condemn him for "unlawful authorization of wiretaps of Americans within the United States without obtaining the court orders required " (emphasis added), and also for "failure to inform the full congressional intelligence committees," and for "his efforts to mislead the American people" about the legalities of the program.
Feingold complains about an unlawful process. With reasoning like Rick Esenberg's [also here] that's not a clear-cut case. He writes,
President's interpretation of his constitutional authority is reasonable and certainly does not constitute the type of criminality and wholesale disregard of the law that would warrant censure.
A problem with FackCheck.org's analysis is it leaves out the political context. Feingold launched his censure crusade because he wants to run for President and rally the Left to his side. From reading Kolawole's piece one could easily think Feingold is just a Jimmy Stewart-type getting beat up by the big, bad, misleading Republicans.
"RNC Mischaracterizes Feingold's Censure Resolution"
The Bile Toward Ben Domenech
A few people don't like Ben Domenech writing a conservative weblog for The Washington Post. Instead of ignoring him or actually challenging his ideas some decide to play quote-pulling (some from as far back as 4 1/2 years ago), insult him (and all others like him) for being home schooled, and call him an idiot for believing God created the universe.
At least Steve Verdon puts some real thought into his challenge of one of Domenech's points about intelligent design. Others should take notes from Steve on how a serious debate is done.
James Joyner collects a number of Domenech-bashing posts and observes:
And am I the only one who sees the irony in a bunch of 40- and 50-something bloggers with advanced degrees resorting to name calling and over-the-top rhetoric to attack someone on the basis of being too young, immature, and lacking in nuance to blog?
Let them waste their time and energy. It's better than having this shreiking part of the Left doing things they think are actually helpful or productive to their political cause.
Pork Bus
American for Prosperity (AFP) will announce tomorrow a nationwide bus tour to expose pork barrel spending. "The Ending Earmarks Express" will "roll out of Washington, DC, on April 7 and visit the sites of some of the nation’s most egregious and wasteful earmarks. Our inaugural swing in early April is largely scheduled, but we're planning to crisscross the nation until Congress passes real earmark reform." Embarassing wasteful spending politicians sounds like fun and is a good idea. (The green and gold logo is also a nice touch.)
Charlie's Show Prep #63
- President Bush called Sen. Feingold's censure idea "needless partisanship." Russ loves this attention along with (bad) RNC radio ads. He says Republicans "have something to hide." The grandstander really likes them because it keeps on generating free media for himself brings in money to his PAC. Yes, Sen. Campaign Finance has a political action committee.
- The Bush administration's response to the possible execution of Abdul Rahman, an Afghan Christian, was tepid. Yes, Afghanistan's cooperation is very important in the Islamist War, but one must speak out against such injustice.
- Today is judgement day for political speech on weblogs. The FEC will release internet campaign finance rules. I'll be thinking of Sen. Feingold when TAM has to move to Russian web servers to escape the U.S. government.
- Northwest Airlines and Midwest Airlines were behind the idea of turning control of Mitchell International Airport to a regional authority. Midwest will be in hot water after Milwaukee County gave it $14.3 million in credit in 2003 to prevent the airline from going bankrupt.
- Single-sex classrooms: wave of the future?
- The most promising season for the Brewers in a long, long time will start with ace Ben Sheets on the disabled list.
- Microsoft is pushing back Windows Vista to 2007.
March 21, 2006
Lousy Anti-Feingold Ad
It's great the RNC is running radio ads against Sen. Russ Feingold. He deserves all the ridicule he gets. However, the ad is awful. With slightly scary music in the background a voice monotonously tells us Feingold and the Democrats are weak on fighting terrorism. Big time snoozer. I fell asleep half-way through it. It was a good idea, but bad execution. Amateurs could do a better job. Do any of my readers want to take a crack at making their own Feingold-bashing ad? If you give it a shot, send me the file. I'll host it and give you lots of love (if it's any good of course).
Or if you have little audio editing talent (like me making podcasts) then leave me a voice message below. All you need is a microphone connected to your computer.
President of the Kosites
Congratulations to Sen. Russ Feingold. He's the far Left's choice for President beating Wesley Clark and whupping Sen. Hillary Clinton. Glee fills Bill Christofferson:
Russ Feingold is President of Daily Kos blog by a wide margin. Not a representative sample, by any means, but not a bad place to start for someone who's willing to run as a progressive.
It's not a good place to start either. The track record of Kos-endorsed candidates is--how do I put it nicely?--pathetic. That's what happens when you believe in the internet-flavored kool-aid you're drinking. Get ready to add Feingold's name to the list should he be formally crowned "progressive savior."
"Feingold Wins the Netroots" [via Right off the Shore]
Packers May Nab Top Kicker
The New England Patriots and the Green Bay Packers are both in the running for clutch kicker extrodinaire Adam Vinatieri. What doesn't make sense is if he goes to the Packers they'll end up paying more for him than the Minnesota Vikings paid to snatch Ryan Longwell. Vinatieri in a Packers uniform would be great, but general manager Ted Thompson won't look very smart of cost conscious.
"Packers Still in Vinatieri Sweepstakes"
UPDATE: Jib politely informs me Vinatieri is going to Indianapolis. The Colts' bid came out of no where (or sports reporters don't have the connections we think they do). The Packers could go after ex-Colt kicker Mike Vanderjagt, but he's kicked half his NFL career inside the RCA Dome. That's a far cry from the cold and wind of Lambeau Field.
Rich Liberal Raises NJ Taxes
It must be nice to be rich like New Jersey governor Jon Corzine. That way you can raise taxes to compensate for runaway state spending while not feeling the pain those taxes put on less-prosperous citizens.
There's a reason liberals are called "tax and spenders." It's because they are.
"Corzine to Hike Sales Tax in NJ Budget"
Slapping Russ
Patrick McIlheran goes off on Sen. Feingold. To sum it up: Feingold is full of himself.
"Everyone Likes to Listen"
Weblog Addiction Syndrome
Business Week's Stephen Baker joins me and thousands of others and admits their problem. We're addicted to weblogging. While Washington Post reporters wonders if they should be paid extra to post (and wonder if the newspaper can "compel employees to blog") Baker would do it for free.
"Should Mainstream Bloggers Be Paid Extra? Should I?"
Charlie's Show Prep #63
- We must give Sen. Feingold credit. His censure grandstanding is still giving himself and his embryonic Presidential campaign plenty of free media. We now got reaction from people attending his listening sessions. When the Q&A revolves around whether Feingold will run for President you shouldn't be surprised the audience supports censure.
- Conservative base roiling begins. The RNC will start running ads against Feingold and his censure resolution.
- Rep. Gwen Moore questions whether a costume company should move into the Menomonee Valley. To her no new jobs in Milwaukee is better than those not meeting her criteria.
- Power Line deconstructs a paper on how "The Israel Lobby" supposedly led the U.S. into Iraq and caused Sep. 11.
- On a related note President Bush warned Iran the U.S. will "use military might to protect our ally Israel." The lobby strikes again!
- The House of Representatives is on pace to be in session for only 97 days this year. Some people think that's a bad thing.
- Sharon Stone demonstrates she lives in la-la land.
Freedom Defeats Tyranny
There's justice in the world. Japan beat Cuba 10-6 to win the first World Baseball Classic. Cubans are relieved to know they won't be enduring a six-hour victory speech by communist dictator Fidel Castro.
"Japan Crowned Classic's First Champ"
"In the End, Japan Outlasts Field to Claim Title of World Champion"
Dreaming and Polygamy
Ann Althouse has some questions about Sunday's episode of The Sopranos and Big Love. My concern is Tony's dream will go on and on. I liked the occasional episode where Tony dreams and it's filled with other characters and symbolism. In this dream the only familiar character is Carmela's voice. I don't want this to go on much longer. They should either wake him up or kill him--which they better not do. We need to get started with the mob war. From the preview for next Sunday's episode we see some of that. But without Tony playing his games and strategizing it won't be the same.
One more thing, I don't care if it's HBO, I don't want to see Tony's wound. Yuck!
I decided to watch an episode of Big Love to see if I'd like it. There's potential there. I immediately had a crush on wife #1, Barb. There's some interesting elements dealing with why Bill's religous beliefs require him to have multiple wives. Along with the voyerism is the mystery of Bill's past on a Mormon compound. Unfortunately that part feels like a Utah version of The Sopranos. Besides the curiosity of how a household can handle three wives I don't find much there to keep me watching Big Love.
"Questions after watching last night's Sopranos and Big Love."
March 20, 2006
David Duke, Al Jazeera on Same Page
As an addendum to my piece below on Al Jazeera International David Duke and Islamists are fond of the same study the Arab Al Jazeera promoted:
A paper recently co-authored by the academic dean of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government about the allegedly far-reaching influence of an "Israel lobby" is winning praise from white supremacist David Duke.The Palestine Liberation Organization mission to Washington is distributing the paper, which also is being hailed by a senior member of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist organization.
"David Duke Claims to Be Vindicated By a Harvard Dean" [via Betsy's Page]
Defending TPA
It's new to me so I'm linking to Rick Esenberg's pro-Taxpayer Protection Amendment op-ed from last week. He makes some great points including this:
For example, tax-limitation opponent Andrew Reschovsky has run the numbers and claims that, had the amendment been passed in 1985, state government in 2003 would have had 30% less to spend.One is tempted to say that this is not a problem, that it is the point.
If the cost of state government over the past 30 years has grown by 30%, more than what would have been required by inflation and increases in population, then we are buying "more" government today than we were in 1985.
No problem, says Reshovsky, of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He claims that government revenue has not increased as a percentage of state income. We can "afford it."
For some, the answer to the question "how much does the government need?" is "how much do the taxpayers have?"
I look at it differently. If I am paying more, I want more. I'm funny that way. Are the roads better? Are the schools more effective? Have we pulled more people out of poverty? I am skeptical.
I'm leaning for the TPA, but I have to read all 2,500 words of it before I fully back it. So many words mean many possibilities for loopholes. I agree with the intent: state and local government should be restricted fast much it can suck out of taxpayers' pockets. In the TPA's case it won't mandate reductions in revenue collection. It will only control its growth. That's quite modest for economic libertarians like me. People like Milton Friedman, Rep. Frank Lasee, and Americans for Prosperity like it which is a good indication. Like the proposed gay marriage amendment the devil is in the details.
"Spending Control Isn't Monstrosity" [via Rep. Frank Lasee]
Where are the Protesters?
One of my frequent commenters, Mjm, pointed out Gateway Pundit's coverage of the small number of anti-war protesters at demonstrations this weekend.
"Anti-War Anniversary Protests a Bust"
Al Jazeera's English Face
The toughest sales job in the world today has to be getting Al Jazeera International (AJI) broadcasting slots in the U.S. Here they're known for airing terrorist and hostage videos. In building the new news network they've hired former Nightline reporter David Marsh, ex-Marine Josh Rusing, and British interviewing legend David Frost.
What doesn't help in selling AJI are "news" articles from the Arabic Al Jazeera with headlines like "AIPAC Behind U.S. Criminal ME Policy" [emphasis mine]. They offer nothing to show what laws the U.S. broke. The article is simply a lengthy passage from a study "proving" the U.S. is in the pocket of "Israel Lobby."
[CORRECTION: The article mentioned above is from Aljazeera.com which isn't connected to the news network. My correction is here.]
AJI will be attempting a more global approach to international world coverage with rotating news centers throughout the day:
Instead of being run out of a central command post, AJI's news day--and news management--will follow the sun: Programming will begin in Doha, Qatar, which will likely host a 12-hour chunk of the day, then shift to London for a four-hour segment, then to Washington, DC, for a 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. (local-time) slot, and finally to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The top of each hour will be hard news; the back half, analysis, chat shows, and documentaries, some of it generated by viewers. There will be only one feed, so viewers worldwide will all see the same broadcast at the same time.More intriguing, each news desk will be run independently, with the mandate to report international news through its own lens. Imagine, says Stebbins, by way of illustration, the follow-up to Bush's recent State of the Union speech: In Doha, broadcasters might have lined up reaction to the president's warning to Hamas to disarm; in Kuala Lumpur, analysis might have dialed in on Bush's comments on protectionism; and in London, on his admonishment of Iran. And in the States, Stebbins says, instead of the usual pundits, he might have rung up Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's fiery president, or polled Mexicans on Bush's remarks on immigration enforcement.
Even without American distribution AJI will move forward. That's because its audience is more than the almost 300 million U.S. viewers:
Prior to being hired, Rushing learned an embarrassing lesson in the blinding effects of cultural myopia. At a lunch with AJI managing director Nigel Parsons, he'd suggested that the channel consider changing its name before launching in the United States. Parsons just laughed: Because of the Al Jazeera name, "it will gain access that other media outlets won't have, not just in the Middle East but in other places in the world," he told the young Marine. "It's not all about America." As Rushing says now, that was "a perception-shattering moment."
There are one billion english speakers worldwide. AJI is gunning for them as well.
"Al Jazeera's {Global} Mission"
Editor's note: I'm going to try something new. If you want to talk (or scream) instead of type Odeo has a feature allowing anyone to easily send me voice mails. All you need is a microphone plugged into your computer. Then just click on the button below. Either state the subject of your message or type it into the neighboring text box. I will either post the most interesting audio messages and/or include them in a future episode of my podcast Speak.
Charlie's Show Prep #62
- War protests, war protests everywhere. They cry, "Leave Iraq!" Well, if the U.S. did then there certainly would be a civil war. Then the Bush-haters would scream, "Why didn't you do anything?" With these people President Bush knows he won't win. So he must continue on the course he thinks is right.
- National Republicans can't agree on an election strategy for this fall's elections. It used to be Tip O'Neill's maxim that "all politics is local" ruled. My how Newt Gingrich changed things.
- Two House Democrats see Sen. Feingold's desire to censure President Bush as a waste and "somewhat self-serving."
- Archbishop Dolan prevents a liberal Catholic group from holding a meeting in his cathedral.
- The third-annual National Black Marriage Day will be celebrated in Milwaukee 03.25.06.
- From the "Europeans are crazy about soccer" file: The Liverpool team apologized for their fans attacking Manchester United fans with human excrement, coins and food." And we're worried about bird flu.
March 19, 2006
My Sweet 16 Massacre
That smoking pile of ash is what's left of my basketball brackets. Stick a fork in me, I'm done. Two of my final four teams are kaput with North Carolina losing to George Mason (great econ department but little praise on the basketball court) and Ohio State getting knocked off by Georgetown.
March 18, 2006
"Blog" Summit
The WisPolitics/WisOpinion Blog Summit turned out better than expected. I was right that the conversations away from the speakers were the highlight, but the speakers had insight and were valuable too. If it wasn't for the Bucks game I had to go to tonight I would have stayed and yapped longer. I'll write up something tomorrow.
Go Panthers!
While some of us will be yapping about the Wisconsin blogosphere UW-Milwaukee will be trying to get to the Sweet 16 for the second year in a row. Go Panthers! Beat those Gators!
"Gators Pose Serious Threat"
March 17, 2006
Don't Roll Out the Red Carpet
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, your not-so humble host will be making an appearance at the "Inaugural WisPolitics/WisOpinion Blog Summit." Sorry, I won't be tossing candy. Instead I'll be seeing how many Hershey's kisses I can toss into Aaron's mouth while he's griping about ethanol.
My gripes with the event are known. At the summit I promise to try to be a good boy. Key word is "try." As a veteran of weblogging conferences I've found the conversations away from the panels and speakers are the highlight. Putting a face to a weblog is great. There's instant camaraderie because we already know so much about other webloggers' interests and how they think.
If things get really dull, as in Ed Garvey droning about the greatness of Bob LaFollette, it's off to the hotel bar for me and whoever I can drag.
I hope to see many of my Wisconsin readers there.
Crushing Dreams
Everyday I come across a statement in the new that I laugh at. It usually is some kind of spin or melodramatic hyperbole that makes me question if the intended audience will fall for it. Talking about how some policy will "help the children" is a prime example. While I just mock the speaker to myself Dennis York turns this stuff into "must-read weblogging."
"Damn You, Tax Code!"
Blogger Bounces Betsy
One of my favorite webloggers (who I don't link to enough) Besty Newmark is having Blogger troubles. It's still not fixed even though Blogger says it's fixed. Blogger's problems was the reason I moved to Movable Type a few years ago. Their service wasn't reliable enough for me. When Google bought Blogger I had hopes their infrastructure and software would get fix and be stable. That hasn't happened. A company can't do everything well, but Google has had a good run. A stable, reliable Blogger/BlogSpot would get more people to write weblogs which would mean more real estate for their ads. Why the company never has gotten Blogger fixed is beyond me.
My advice: go with weblogging software that's on your server. My host, Dreamhost, lets you install WordPress with one click so you don't have to deal with UNIX commands, FTP, or PHP. If you want free try WordPress.com.
"Bloggers, Back up Your Work"
UPDATE: Betsy's weblog is back, and she's not pleased with Google. I don't blame her.
The Roberts Crack Up Continues
Paul Craig Roberts' public breakdown continues. On his latest path down the deep end he theorizes President Bush will explode a nuclear weapon near U.S. soil and blame it on Iran to start a nuclear war:
It is obvious that Bush intends to attack Iran and that he will use every means to bring war about.Yet, Bush has no conventional means of waging war with Iran. His bloodthirsty neoconservatives have prepared plans for nuking Iran. However, an unprovoked nuclear attack on Iran would leave the US, already regarded as a pariah nation, totally isolated.
Readers, whose thinking runs ahead of that of most of us, tell me that another 9/11 event will prepare the ground for a nuclear attack on Iran. Some readers say that Bush, or Israel as in Israel’s highly provocative attack on the Jericho jail and kidnapping of prisoners with American complicity, will provoke a second attack on the US. Others say that Bush or the neoconservatives working with some "black opts" group will orchestrate the attack.
One of the more extraordinary suggestions is that a low yield, perhaps tactical, nuclear weapon will be exploded some distance out from a US port. Death and destruction will be minimized, but fear and hysteria will be maximized. Americans will be told that the ship bearing the weapon was discovered and intercepted just in time, thanks to Bush’s illegal spying program, and that Iran is to blame. A more powerful wave of fear and outrage will again bind the American people to Bush, and the US media will not report the rest of the world’s doubts of the explanation.
Roberts asks, "Reads like a Michael Crichton plot, doesn’t it?" Someone get that guy out of the library. I'm all for reading but not if it makes you delusional.
Add this to his belief the NSA is spying on Democrats and reporters and blackmailing them. Oh, I shouldn't forget Roberts theorizing the no-fly list will soon be used to keep Congressmen from voting.
"Paul Craig Roberts and the Certifiable Right" [via Marquette Warrior]
Last Team Standing
Charlie's Show Prep #61
- An incompetent Milwaukee poll worker failed to notice the bold "offender" label on a prison I.D. and allowed a convicted felon to vote last November.
- The controversial V for Vendetta comes out today.
- Mike Wallace will retire from 60 Minutes. As this NewsBusters post points out his most infamous moment came when he declared himself a journalist first, then an American.
- Expect huge drops in World Baseball Classic ratings (they couldn't have been that high to begin with) since the U.S. was eliminated by losing to Mexico. America isn't the king of America's Pastime anymore.
March 16, 2006
Panthers Win!!!
Chalk up another tournament upset for the UW-Milwaukee Panthers. They beat Oklahoma 82-74. And for once I picked an upset.
"Wis. Milwaukee 82, Oklahoma 74"
Weblogger Protection Bill Pulled
Mike Krempasky reports the House Rules Committee couldn't agree on how to proceed on HR 1606, the Online Freedom of Speech Act. "[I]t's been pulled until after the recess."
We now have more time to put pressure on our Congressmen to protect online political speech.
"HR 1606 Pulled for the Week"
Bomb Scare Empties Arena
Cox Arena at San Diego State University has been evacuated because a bomb-sniffing dog noticed something near a hot dog cart. Police and homeland security have been concerned about threats to sports arenas during the NCAA basketball tournament since a discription of such an attack was found on an internet discussion board last week. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security had no "credible intelligence or threats" but alerted local law enforcement.
"San Diego NCAA Arena Evacuated on Bomb Scare" [via Drudge]
UPDATE: Technology can be used for both good and evil. At the Cox Arena website a spectator can see where they want to sit for a basketball game. That same information about seats, aisles, and exits can be used by terrorists to plan their attacks. I don't advocate removing this information from the internet. I think the good outways the bad simply because there are more non-violent sports fans interested in good seats than terrorists trying to kill people. Adequate security is also needed with the explosion of information access. It looks like they succeeded in this instance by employing bomb-sniffing dogs.