Stephen Hayes wrote a great piece on Dick Cheney recently in the Wall Street Journal, and I couldn’t help but be struck by the comparison with the shallowness of what passes as serious political discussion in, for example, the “debates” among the presidential candidates, particularly Mr. Obama and Ms. Clinton. Further to my “questions for […]
Archives for 2007
The AG Fiasco
John Edwards said it, and let the record reflect that for the first and probably last time, I agree with him when, in response to Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez’s resignation, he responded, “better late than never”. I’ll try and be clear: He should never have been appointed in the first place and the job was […]
The New Market Risks
As a former refugee of the commercial banking meltdown of the mid-1980s, I can’t help but hear some echoes of that period in the current fallout from the collapse of the subprime mortgage market bubble. Hopefully, we won’t repeat the mistakes that were made then in adopting the selective bailout procedures, the “too big to […]
When is Enough Really Enough?
The execution-style schoolyard murders of three college students in New Jersey should have once and for all convinced all clear-thinking Americans that the “don’t ask, don’t tell” sanctuary policies we tolerate in our cities should end now. There should be no bail ever for an illegal immigrant and every judge and district attorney should be […]
The Real War Front
As shameful as it is to admit, the real front in the war we now fight is not in Iraq, but is inside the Beltway. It is incredible to contemplate the comments by a Republican U. S. Senator that “the chances for success are limited”, not by our prospects on the battlefield, but by the […]
Arafat’s Legacy
The violence in Gaza in mid-June between the Palestinian factions of Fatah and Hamas was almost universally blamed by the international punditry on President Bush and Israel. But in truth, they confirmed only one thing. Remember, Israel dismantled its Gaza settlements in August 2005, a unilateral concession without anything in return on which to pursue […]
Dangerous Ideas
We should all be aware of the truism that “ideas have consequences”, and I have admired Richard Weaver’s work of that name for its insight into the origins of a number of ideas that have had negative consequences over the past several centuries. About three years ago, the cover story in Foreign Policy magazine featured […]
Questions for the Frontrunner
I haven’t wasted any time on the televised Presidential “debates” that have been staged by either party, but it is difficult to avoid the saturation of follow on coverage of the events, and I am struck more than anything by the pedestrian quality, the lack of depth, and the line of questioning. Former Ohio gubernatorial […]
When Will We Learn?
More from the “when will we learn” file: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke recently indicated in Congressional testimony that the Fed won’t be entirely convinced that the risk of inflation is behind us until it sees a rise in unemployment and a reduction in business activity. This kind of commentary, along with business headlines like […]
The Fault, Dear Brutus…
This quote from Texas Republican Congressman Randy Neugebauer during the debate on the federal agriculture appropriation recently struck me as emblematic of an intractable systemic problem as well as the major reason his party is no longer in the majority: “When you step back and look at it, less than one-half of one penny of […]