Archive for 2006

THERE’S A NEW PARLIAMENTARY REPORT ON ANTISEMITISM IN BRITAIN: It sounds pretty hard-hitting. Norm Geras has a link-rich roundup.

IN THE MAIL: The Psycho, a graphic novel by blogger James Hudnall that’s being made into a movie by Universal. The notion: Superheroes as walking WMDs, with concomitant government unhappiness.

porkbustersnewsm.jpgPORKBUSTERS UPDATE: Here’s the latest on developments, from the Christian Science Monitor:

Facing unprecedented public scrutiny and an election this fall, Congress is under the gun to tighten the rules on the time-honored lawmaker practice of slipping pet projects into legislation – and it has about 30 days left to get the job done.

Both House and Senate leaders pledge to change the rules on lawmakers’ earmarks this month, before Congress breaks for the midterm election. But this week, sticking points emerged, complicating their pledge to push the changes through. . . .

“I don’t think senators realized that people cared so much about transparency and responsiveness,” says Zephyr Teachout, national director of the Sunlight Foundation, a broad-based coalition of groups that mobilized bloggers to identify the source of secret holds.

Public support for change should be credited to former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R) of California, whose vast defense earmark-for-bribe scam – some earning his co-conspirators profit margins in excess of 800 percent – stunned many colleagues and sent him to prison. It also raised the profile on the hidden process of securing funds for member projects and mobilized public-interest groups and bloggers to shine a bright light both on earmarking and moves to reform the process.

Even if negotiations fail to produce comprehensive lobby reform, House and Senate leaders say they will change the rules of both bodies to require disclosure of all member projects and their sponsors.

“One way or another, we will address this issue,” said House majority leader John Boehner, as Congress resumed work Tuesday. “It’s important to use taxpayers’ resources wisely – and important [that] we move forward on reform.”

I think that there will be major backlash if nothing gets accomplished this fall.

KILL THE PRESIDENT? Good idea!

BDS has really gotten out of control.

HOWARD KURTZ ROUNDS UP Clintonite complaints about the ABC 9/11 docudrama. Call me crazy, but I don’t regard Sandy Berger as trustworthy on the historical record here, as given his document-removal activity I think he had something to hide.

This response, of course, will only add to that impression.

DISASTER PREPAREDNESS — IT’S NOT JUST FOR INSTAPUNDIT ANY MORE: Actually, it never was, but I do go on about the subject. But I notice that my latest Consumer Reports has an article on it, and Slate is covering the subject, too. An ounce of prevention, and all that.

UPDATE: Here’s another installment from Slate.

VIOLENT DEATHS IN IRAQ FOR AUGUST revised upward sharply. Huh. I don’t know what could account for this discrepancy.

RESPONDING TO RICHARD POSNER’S NEW BOOK, Arnold Kling proposes that we start naming our enemies. The Bush Administration has seemed curiously reluctant to do what Arnold describes.

Some somewhat related thoughts from Newt Gingrich.

ROBERT SAMUELSON writes on the difference between the American education system and the American learning system.

MISREPORTING Bush’s speech.

A DEFAMATION SUIT AGAINST A FLORIDA BLOGGER: My thoughts on blogs, defamation, and the law can be found in this article.

CNN’S THE SITUATION ROOM had more on PorkBusters, the Earmark Reform Bill, and the secret hold situation. Hot Air has the video.

THE CLINTONISTAS are freaking out. Sandy Berger is quoted, though his pants aren’t mentioned.

It seems to me that all this protest is merely drawing attention to the subject of Clinton’s treatment of terrorism, which had previously not gotten a lot. They’d be wiser to stay silent, I think.

UPDATE: Dean Barnett, however, notes the importance of factual accuracy, even in docudramas, on topics of this sort.

And on Sandy Berger, a reader emails: “Now we know what he slipped into his pants and why.”

Heh. Indeed.

ADVICE TO THE REPUBLICANS, from Mickey Kaus. Like the Democrats, the Republicans would be better off if they took Mickey’s advice. Also like the Democrats, they probably won’t.

UPDATE: Ed Driscoll says they’re listening to James Taranto, though.

PLAME UPDATE: Ed Morrissey writes:

The Times scolds Fitzgerald for his lack of response, but they still have not taken responsibility for their own role in this witch hunt. These men and women led the public charge for the investigation to be wrested from the DoJ and assigned to a special prosecutor accountable to no one except a panel of judges, also accountable to no one but themselves. They reversed their own stand on special prosecutors taken during the Clinton administration and demanded this appointment, and they made sure enough Democratic politicians spoke up to get it. Now that the case has utterly collapsed, the Gray Lady acts like a prim schoolmarm, wagging her finger at little Patrick for mischief she thoroughly endorsed.

I confess that it’s kind of fun to watch, though. “Fitzmas” is looking more and more like the wait for The Great Pumpkin. Which I guess is why Tom Maguire can’t finish his list for laughing too hard.

ARIANNA HUFFINGTON is fearless.

BILL ROGGIO: “The news of the Pakistani government signing a truce agreement with the Taliban in North Waziristan is far worse than being reported.” Note, however, that Pakistan is denying reports that it’s given Osama a pass.

I’LL BE ON MSNBC at around 11:30, talking about the midterm elections.