Michael Barone is my pick as the most perceptive national political analyst on the scene today. Here is his take on the Ned Lamont primary win over Joe Lieberman in Connecticut: “The center of gravity in the Democratic Party has moved from the lunch bucket working class that was the dominant constituency up through the […]
Archives for 2006
Tyranny of the Grandmothers?
Kevin Hassett has an interesting take on U. S. consumption data compiled by professors at the Universities of California and Hawaii. It seems that total consumption increases dramatically with age, so that a 25-year old spends about $26K per annum and an 80-year old $40K. Why the big difference? Mostly because of government spending on […]
Labor Day Reflections
Two divergent quotes from a Labor Day report card for American workers, as reported by the Wall Street Journal:“There’s no doubt that relative to the growth rate of the economy over the last five years, the state of the American worker is in pretty sorry shape.”—Lawrence Katz, Harvard University and chief economist during the Clinton […]
By Their Fruits Ye Shall Know Them
In recent weeks, we have been treated to an intellectual discussion on the nature of our enemy that, frankly, is long overdue. More often in his public appearances, President Bush has referred to them as “Islamic fascists”, setting aside at least momentarily the characterization of our conflict as a “war on terror”, a term which […]
Philanthropic Mega-Merger
I have several thoughts about Warren Buffett’s decision to double the size of the Gates Foundation by contributing $30 billion of his fortune to it. First, it’s his money, and he can do with it as he pleases, although I wish he would support the repeal of the estate tax so that others with much […]
The Yates Verdict II
In the wake of the second trial of Andrea Yates, in which she was acquitted by reason of insanity for the murder of her five children, The Houston Chronicle wants us to throw out what it calls the “restrictive, outdated” Texas law that requires juries to find a defendant guilty if she knew the difference […]
What Will It Take?
“It is not clear to me what exactly the U. S. is trying to accomplish by not taking a stance in favor of an early cease fire.”—Zbigniew Brzezinski, ex-national security advisor to President Jimmy Carter. What will it take to convince world opinion leadership and the denial crowd in this country that Newt Gingrich is […]
At Long Last, a Veto
“I think modern science is a religion for many of its practitioners, by which I mean they have utter faith in the sufficiency of their concepts to give full account of life. But science cannot be a source of wisdom. By design it is morally neutral and indifferent to the pursuit of wisdom about human […]
Announcing the founding of the Texas Institute for Education Reform
Pardon the “infomercial”, but I am pleased to announce the founding of the Texas Institute for Education Reform, a non-profit, non-partisan collaboration of Texas business leaders committed to the objective that every Texas child will graduate from high school fully prepared for higher education, the 21st century workplace, and responsible citizenship. We plan to accomplish […]
Mid-Summer Potpourri
A few random thoughts on the passing scene: • World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz is rightly concerned that the Doha Round of trade talks will be a failure unless the proposed rollback of subsidies and expansion of markets for agricultural products is approved, with dire consequences for world trade and economic growth in underdeveloped countries. […]