HELPFUL LANGUAGE ADVICE FROM ANDREA SEE. Including this bit: “You don’t post a blog, you post a blog entry. Unless you start a new weblog every time you write something.”
Archive for 2008
July 5, 2008
DON’T QUESTION his patriotism!
UPDATE: More here.
PHOTO OF THE DAY: Chinese Anti-Terror Segway Commandos.
SOME EXPERT grilling tips.
WHY FLY WHEN YOU CAN FLOAT? New interest in Zeppelins.
MUDVILLE GAZETTE: Some things about Bud Day that don’t make CNN.
UPDATE: Bill Ardolino emails:
Saw your post on Bud Day. I just happened to finish his biography written by Robert Coram, and all I can say is “wow” and “highly recommended:”
The man was beaten with a rubber strip hours at a time for months during the summer of 1969, and he never gave up any info about his unit to the North Vietnamese. He once ejected from an exploding jet, his parachute failed to deploy, and he lived. And that’s the tip of the iceberg; the story of his life is so incredible, it’s almost hard to believe.
Anyway, highly recommended. Maybe someone should mail a copy to CNN.
Or several.
MEGAN MCARDLE: “Indeed, it’s possible that consumer driven care would improve preventative care for some conditions–if you have to pay $1,000 for an emergency room visit when you get slack on your asthma management, you might get a lot more motivated.”
THE HIGH COST OF fighting malaria.
CANADIAN KANGAROO COURT UPDATE:
The Canadian Human Rights Commission has dismissed the complaint against Catholic Insight Magazine. . . .
This is good news. It means that the political campaign for freedom of speech and freedom of religion is working. It means the CHRC does not want to be seen to treat big fish differently from little fish. It does not want to be seen as operating outside the rule of law. That is a good thing. It means the CHRC wants the scrutiny to go away and fast.
Free Speech for everyone. What a concept. Keep the pressure on. Plus more here:
While the Canadian Human Rights Commission has bowed to widespread public opposition to proceeding with a complaint against Maclean’s magazine brought by the Canadian Islamic Congress, less powerful and prominent Canadians should beware: For them, the threat of censorship remains. . . . Ironically, it is not I, Mansur, Steyn or the editors of Maclean’s who are ill-serving Canadian Muslims. It is Muslim leaders like Elmasry. By using rights tribunals to intimidate and silence critics, these authoritarian Muslims are undermining the fundamental freedoms of all Canadians, Muslim and non-Muslim alike.
Of course, more than a few non-Muslims also betray scant regard for the historic rights of Canadians to freedom of expression.
Read the whole thing. It’s as if the whole “human rights” thing is really just a weapon for silencing political opposition.
Farragut, Tennessee.
DALE AMON: “I have long said we should change the name of the DOD back to the Department of War. If you are going to make war, then you should damn well be a man and say so.”
TALKLEFT: Church vs. Obama.
BRITAIN, BIRTHPLACE OF FREEDOM: Home Secretary green lights restrictions on photography.
The letter dated 26 June, which BJP has seen a copy of, is in response to correspondence sent by the Union secretary general, Jeremy Dear, who expressed concern at police surveillance of journalists, in particular photographers.
‘First of all, may I take this opportunity to state that the Government greatly values the importance of the freedom of the press, and as such there is no legal restriction on photography in public places,’ Smith writes. ‘Also, as you will be aware, there is no presumption of privacy for individuals in a public place.’
However, the Home Secretary adds that local restrictions might be enforced. ‘Decisions may be made locally to restrict or monitor photography in reasonable circumstances. That is an operational decision for the officers involved based on the individual circumstances of each situation.
They can photograph you, but they get to decide when you can take photographs.
BOB OWENS: Don’t Hammer Obama for ‘Refining’ Iraq Stance. “Republicans should welcome any change of heart from Obama, as recognizing American progress in Iraq could only benefit both countries.”
I don’t think it’s Republicans who are hammering him the hardest, though; I think it’s disappointed Netroots types.
FABIUS MAXIMUS on why you should support the USO. I’ve donated to them on several occasions. They do good work.
UH-OH: Secret report: biofuel caused food crisis.
Biofuels have forced global food prices up by 75% – far more than previously estimated – according to a confidential World Bank report obtained by the Guardian.
The damning unpublished assessment is based on the most detailed analysis of the crisis so far, carried out by an internationally-respected economist at global financial body. . . .
“Political leaders seem intent on suppressing and ignoring the strong evidence that biofuels are a major factor in recent food price rises,” said Robert Bailey, policy adviser at Oxfam.
Perhaps they just fear being tried for crimes against humanity.
UPDATE: Reader Jason Epstein emails:
Did you notice that the writer suggesting that the report was being kept secret “has not been published to avoid embarrassing President George Bush?” Huh?!? How come there is no mention of the culpability of the environmental community, who pushed biofuels more than anyone else?
Yeah, how come?
CNN: “A growing number of Clinton supporters polled say they may stay home in November instead of casting their ballot for Obama, an indication the party has yet to coalesce around the Illinois senator four weeks after the most prolonged and at times divisive primary race in modern American history came to a close. . . . Obama won 59 percent of support from registered Democrats polled in June; now he garners 54 percent.”
MURTHA DOES IT AGAIN.
THEY TOLD ME THAT IF GEORGE W. BUSH WERE RE-ELECTED, we’d see schoolboys punished for refusing to kneel and pray in class. And they were right!
Two schoolboys were given detention after refusing to kneel down and ‘pray to Allah’ during a religious education lesson.
Parents were outraged that the two boys from year seven (11 to 12-year-olds) were punished for not wanting to take part in the practical demonstration of how Allah is worshipped.
They said forcing their children to take part in the exercise at Alsager High School, near Stoke-on-Trent – which included wearing Muslim headgear – was a breach of their human rights.
You can’t make this stuff up. And, sadly, you don’t have to.
UPDATE: Clark Stooksbury is surprised to learn that Stoke-on-Trent is in England. I guess he wasn’t lucky enough to have Mr. Wolfenbarger for geography like I did. He also seems a bit unclear on the point of this “They Told Me” series, which highlights the way in which apocalyptic things said about the Bush Administration tend to come true in rather different settings. I’m pointing that out here, just in case anyone else hasn’t been paying attention.
MORE: Stooksbury’s update just demonstrates that the Andrea See quote over in the right sidebar here is right. Sorry, Clark, you’re just missing the joke here.
July 4, 2008
SOME INDEPENDENCE DAY THOUGHTS from Roger Kimball.
“BUT WE DON’T have any more!”
A COOL PHOTO BLOG, discovered via the comments at Ann Althouse’s.
NOTHING LEFT TO PIVOT ON? Don’t be so sure.
UPDATE: Related item here.