TIM CAVANAUGH: Is California’s Decline Just More Right-Wing Propaganda?
Archive for 2010
November 30, 2010
VIDEO: Freedom By The Pound.
BILL QUICK: Pathetic, Gutless Poseurs. “Switch out your ant-drenched Jesus for an ant-riddled Mohammed.”
FDA: THE CONQUERING BUREAUCRACY. A new history of the FDA shows how regulators entrenched and extended their own power.
THOUGHTS ON THE POLITICS OF WIKILEAKS, from Pejman Yousefzadeh. “In addition to their being no big lies, there are also no surprises–at least, no surprises for anyone paying attention to foreign affairs. Anyone really surprised by the fact that in private, Arab leaders are just as worried about a nuclear Iran as is Israel? Anyone really surprised that Nicolas Sarkozy has been said to have an authoritarian streak, that Silvio Berlusconi is too much of a party animal for his (and his country’s) own good, that democracy is dead in Russia, and that the Chinese are sick of the antics of the North Koreans? Oh, sure, the cables are very interesting, and informative. But are they all that shocking in their content? Hardly; we all are familiar with the storylines found in them. The titillating aspect of the cables is that they confirm what many have suspected regarding the opinions that are held by American diplomats, and that many of the cables make their points in interesting and colorful language.”
There’s not a lot of damage here to the country, but there’s a lot of damage to the bureaucratic establishment. If I were more suspicious, I would say that this is someone’s effort — perhaps someone burned by leaks in the past Administration — to teach the career bureaucrats who were behind those leaks that leaking may be a bad thing, and that a world in which any statement may be leaked to the press is not a world that’s good for them.
ARE WE ENTERING another phase of financial crisis? I thought everything was fixed with “Recovery Summer.”
JIM TREACHER: Libs freak out over Obama’s meaningless spending freeze. The thing to remember is that the audience for lefty blogs contains a lot of government employees. And while meaningless in itself, this looks like the camel’s nose.
WIKILEAKS: Hezbollah Smuggled Weapons In Ambulances.
JONATHAN ADLER: Did the TSA back down?
CHRISTIAN ADAMS: Democrats Should Seek Eric Holder’s Resignation. “President Obama’s supporters should hope Attorney General Eric Holder resigns. His embarrassing tenure has given Republicans a potent symbol of leftist extremism combined with comic incompetence. This nasty blend is symbolic of the entire administration, as shattered expectations of moderation and competence played a significant role in the midterm tsunami. . . . If nobody is fired by the time Holder next testifies, Congress can seek the names of the officials responsible for the mess and subpoena them to testify. Congress can ask Holder why he didn’t overrule these bureaucrats and order immediate lawsuits when non-compliance was discovered in August, and earlier. Congress can ask why these bureaucrats failed to reply to the Pentagon’s request for assistance to give states guidance to implement the new law. Military voters and their families who lost their right deserve answers. It will be a nasty experience for the administration if Holder is on the firing line. Wiser Democrats should ensure he isn’t.”
THE IMPORTANCE of incandescence.
HAS VITAMIN D BEEN OVERSOLD? I’m not sure, but I’m going to keep sitting in the sun, drinking red wine. Why take chances?
WIKILEAKS: Obama lied, diplomacy died.
MEGAN MCARDLE: The Miracle Of Jet Lag.
A WITNESS LIES, THE COURT SHRUGS, and veterans are outraged.
JAMES COOPER: The Fed is Playing with Fire as it Tweaks Inflation.
MARCIA MORRISSEY: Give Thanks In All Circumstances.
Somebody tell the NFL.
WHOOPING COUGH OUTBREAK stalking New York’s north country.
November 29, 2010
MICHAEL S. MALONE on how Silicon Valley got its name.