Everything I have seen and heard so far would seem to indicate that Judge Alito is a spectacular nominee for the Associate Justice vacanacy created by the retirement of Justice O'Connor. He is said to combine the brilliance of Scalia with the politeness of Roberts. I love this quotation, which... More

There is certainly no shortage of chutzpah — that Yiddish word for outrageous nerve, often described as a killer of both his parents asking for clemency on the grounds that he is an orphan — among members of Congress. But the Senate Minority Leader from Nevada, Harry Reid surely... More

While advocates of protectionist trade policy continue to make headlines in the United States, China and Chile are lowering trade and investment barriers.  BusinessWeek reports that Chile and China have successfully ended a yearlong negotiation for a free trade accord. The accord is expected... More

Theodore Dalrymple today has the best analysis of the psychology of suicide bombers that we have seen. "Young Muslim men in Britain — as in France and elsewhere in the West — have a problem of personal, cultural, and national identity. They are deeply secularized, with little... More

How will Western civilization survive... quote: UK to train 20 Iranians in nanotechnology ...when it continues to train those countries which espouse OUR destruction? quote: Nanotechnology: the potential for new WMD Eric Schwappach   10 31 05  More

Slowly, and with many a step backward, the Middle East may be moving forward towars reconciliation with the existence of Israel. Consider this: Jordan bans airing of anti—Semitic TV series Amman: Jordan has banned broadcast of a controversial mini—series criticised as... More

When did Senator Edward Kennedy become the first official voice of the Democratic party? It seems that every time the President makes an announcement Sen. Kennedy gets off his barstool and is the first in front of the reporters to completely disagree with whatever decision the President has made.... More

Tom Maguire brings to our attention the fact the  a U.S. intelligence agency (NSA) made a mistake leading  us into the Viet Nam war and  since has covered up their historian's findings on this since 2001.  Even better, he reminds us that in the media's amicus brief in the... More

Spengler,the acerbic anonymous pundit who writes for the Asia Times, has Part 1 of yet another provocative essay out today, entitled "The crisis of faith in the Muslim World." Spengler starts with the rapidly declining birth rate in much of the Islamic world, a topic he has previously covered. He... More

According to Karl Marx, religion was the opiate of the masses. And of course, he and others who followed him truly believed their communist religion would prevail over all. Indeed, over 40 years ago the USSR's  Khruschev threatened the US and its free market system, boldly promising "We will... More

The US Central Command Newsletter for the week of October 24 can be found here. This week's issue highlights continuing Coalition earthquake relief efforts in Pakistan, the increased role of Iraqi Army units during the recent election, and humanitarian assistance projects in Iraq:  Bagram Air... More

The Mediacrats are fearful that the Valerie Plame story may not have legs. Karl Rove has not been indicted, and may never be, and other than a few Washington insiders, nobody has ever heard of Lewis (Scooter) Libby before. The solution is to push two themes: 1) this is really Cheney's treachery and... More

Just One Minute reviews the situation: Joe Wilson, aka "Mr. Incredible" will be whining appearing on 60 Minutes about threats to his wife.  Uh huh.  Maybe, since Joe admitted to doing consulting work for the CIA in his NY Times op—ed (and the Senate revealed that he undertook a... More

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and his Liberal Democratic Party are taking steps to revise the Constitution to clarify the role of the country's military.  There are powerful implications for American foreign policy in East Asia. Since the tragedy of 9/11, PM Koizumi has been a key... More

The BBC posts an odd story, seemingly written in code. Two boys, it seems, ran away from police in a Paris suburb, climbed onto an electrical [power?] station, and died. So local residents rioted, attacked firfighters sent to rescue the boys, and demonstrated. For two days running. The first... More

Jack Risko, of Dinocrat.com, one of the smartest guys out there, is worried that Libby might have sacrificed himself in order to delay uncovering the mention of Plame's name. Jack is no wild—eyed lefty, so I take his worries seriously. Thomas Lifson   10 29 05 More

Is Lewis Libby guilty of no more than being inarticulate? It is plausible. Clarice Feldman   10 29 05 More

Prince Charles is about to do great damage to the British monarchy by coming to the United States to lecture us that we have been too intolerant of Islam. The Prince of Wales will try to persuade George W Bush and Americans of the merits of Islam this week because he thinks the United States... More

Our friends and allies in India have been attacked with a vicious terror bombing in a market in the capital city, New Delhi. At least 49 innocent lives have been lost, and countless people injured. No group has taken responsibility for the dastradly act, but it happened just before a major Hindu... More

Where to start with this self—pitying parody written by Joe Wilson? He did not seem so put—upon on the cover of Vanity Fair with his blonde, beautiful wife and his Jaguar convertible. His high—profile fame has lead to innumerable speeches and his post as an adviser to the Kerry... More

Whenever I need a pick—me—up, I find Mark Steyn is there — with a spot on, well written and amusing view of the world. Today is no exception to that rule. Here's a sample.Sit back and let him make your day: The difficulty for the Left is that if the problem is Iraq, Katrina or... More

Mediacrity has been doing wonderful work noting how the New York Times systematicaly removes news unfavorable to the Palestinian cause from its coverage of the Middle East. Mediacrity even caught the Times accidentally letting something through in an initial posting to the web, and then removing it... More

UN Watch has released a study of Jean Ziegler, The United Nations official who is supposed to be fighting hunger. Instead, the report finds that he has been abusing his office to attack the United States. Over the four—year period covered by the study, Jean Ziegler, the Special Rapporteur on... More

John Fund resurrects a longstanding desire of mine to see Chris Cox nominated to the Supreme Court. Unfortunatey, Chris has just settled into the SEC, where his talents are needed, and where I suspect he has a large agenda in mind. Nevertheless, if the President asks (and he might, because Chris... More

As Cliff Kincaide correctly notes, Lewis "Scooter" Libby is charged with lying about telling the press their reports(based on Wilson's fables) were wrong. The Washington Post's Pincus is still correcting his corrections of the Wilson fable published 2 1/2 years ago, The NYT's Kristof... More

"Economy expands vigorously: inflation fears ease" According to a Commerce Department report released on Friday, October 28, 2005:  Economic activity expanded at an energetic 3.8 percent annual rate in the third quarter, providing vivid evidence of the economy's stamina even as it coped with... More

Amir Taheri writes in the New York Post about what may lie behind Iran President Ahmadinejad's naked threat to obliterate Isarel: Ahmadinejad has gone several steps further — presenting the destruction of Israel as a major goal of his government. Why? One reason may be his desire to... More

Michael Rubin writes in The Forward (via the Middle East Forum) that a trend toward Arab leaders being held accountable is developing in the Middle East: Long home to farfetched conspiracy theories and a political culture of victimization, the Arab world is now being swept by a new emphasis on... More

Students at American University, an institution chartered by Congress because of its location in our nation's capital, have appealed to Congress to replace the school's trustees in the wake of a 3.7 million buyout package of a president accused of wrongdoing, a protest we covered a week ago.... More

Ward Churchill is denying to the Denver Post having made remarks at an address at DePaul University, which we reported on yesterday. Churchill, speaking Thursday night at a Denver forum on academic freedom, said he was misquoted in two articles in The American Thinker, which said Churchill told... More

The University of North Carolina descends to an infantile level of self—gratification, at the hands of the feminist pro—abortion left. It is hosting an "Orgasm Awareness Festival" — apparently on the assumption that some Tar Heels are unaware of orgasms. Of course, any such person... More

The mainstream media seems to have an extremely difficult time telling the truth about Plamegate. Walter Pincus and Dana Milbank's correction on October 25 of Pincus' almost 2 1/2 year old story in which he credited Joseph Wilson IV's claims and gave them wide distribution has itself been... More

If there is indeed relief on the part of conservatives on the Miers withdrawal, it probably won't last that long.  If the President gives the conservative punditry a Janice Rogers Brown, or a Luttig, or one of many other qualified conservative nominees, are the warriors of the 'conservative... More

Latin America is hot. White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen talks about his native country, Venezuela, at every opportunity. The White Sox, baseball's new World Champions (there I said it), are one of baseball's most Hispanic teams. Hispanics are now the largest minority group in the country,... More

The talking points have gone out and Democrat Senators are blaming the "extreme" right wing of the GOP for Miers withdrawal. they have obviously consinged to the Memory Hole their own opposition to Miers. For example: Carl Levin (Michigan): 'Well, I think the judicial experience and the lack of... More

It is said an "expert is one who knows more and more of less and less." The proof of this saying was amply demonstrated on October 26, 2005 at the House International Relations Committee's second hearing on the US—India civilian nuclear deal which was titled "The U.S.—India 'Global... More

There is indeed palpable relief at the withdrawal of Harriet Miers from consideration for the Supreme Court. Judging merely by her facial expressions and lack of certitude when answering questions of the Senators (according to reports), Ms. Miers gave a sense of really not wanting to be where she... More

Harriet Miers is gone, but for one member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, she will not be forgotten.  When he was responding in a television interview to the news of Ms. Mier's withdrawal, Arlen Specter teared up. The liberal Republican from Pennsylvania reacted as if his puppy just... More

The initial reaction of relief notwithstanding, the White House will be making a huge mistake if they think that a Gonzales nomination will fly at this point. They should not make the fatal mistake of confusing the conservative anger with Miers, the nominee. Correctly understood, the anger was with... More

In the face of sustained strenuous opposition from many conservative pundits, Harriet Miers has withdrawn herself from consideration for the Supreme Court seat to which her friend, the President of the United States, had nominated her. Let the fallout begin. She cites the likelihood that demands... More

Today is the 90th anniversary of the start of the Armenian genocide, the mass killings and deportations by Ottoman Turks that led to the deaths of as many as 1.5 million Armenians between 1915 and 1923. The very word "genocide" was coined to describe this horrific attempt to exterminate an entire... More

I returned a few hours ago from Ward Churchill event in DePaul University. I'm reeling still. The event was secured by several police cars parked near by the entrance of DePaul Student Center. A crowd of approximately 50 students and some older activists (probably non—students) with banners,... More

The Guardian once again apologizes for a wildly exaggerated report by a foreign correspondent with links to a terrorist operation (this time ELF) and  oddly placed loyalties (he was a "human shield" in Iraq)   I wonder where it is posting it's job openings... More

Mahmoud Abbas, the President of the Palestinian National Authority, called upon Israel to continue to release more "prisoners of freedom"  as a goodwill gesture.  These prisoners have been imprisoned for complicity in terror attacks. Today, one of those released prisoners became yet... More

Joseph A. Wilson consistently told reporters he'd seen the forged documents from Niger and noted that the names and dates on them were wrong and therefore he knew they were inauthentic. He testified in the same vein to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI). When the Committee noted... More

Jimmy Carter's son is to run for the Senate from Nevada. Dishcarged from the Navy for drug use; a man whose grain elevator business failed, and who then engaged in commodity specualtion from Bermuda (a place Democrats hate because of lax regulation, shady dealings, and the tax benefits it offers to... More

The Washington Times reported that the US SecDef visited Mongolia to thank them for their Army's service in Iraq and Afghanistan.  A visit from the SecDef is very significant, especially when he pronounces the United States and Mongolia share a "strong military—to—military... More

I encourage readers to read the FrontPage Magazine interview with Ryan Mauro, who is the youngest hired geopolitical analyst in the country.  He is also a volunteer analyst for Tactical Defense Concepts and Northeast Intelligence Network, and is the owner of WorldThreats.com. Ryan discusses at... More

The Chicago Tribune profiles one of our favorite members of Congress, Rep. Mike Pence (R—Indiana), who is mentioned in today's article by Richard Baehr. If you are not already familiar with him from his apperances on talk radio and cable news, take a few moments to acquaint yourself with this... More

The Palestinian Authority, huge recipients of aid, are to build a huge mausoleum for you—know—who. The largest per capita recipients of foreign aid, the people who constantly claim poverty while spending fortunes to launch terror attacks, who keep their own people shut up in refugee... More

When Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald unseals his indictments regarding Plamegate, assuming there are any, we'll learn one thing for sure: whether the two—year investigation was a clever poker move insidiously initiated by President Bush to expose and discredit his enemies within the CIA... More

A new research study indicates that church—going increases economic well—being — by almost exactly the amount necessary to support tithing! Attending religious services may enrich the soul, but it also fattens the wallet, according to research released on Tuesday. "Doubling... More

Today's New York Times breathlesssly reports that notes from Libby indicate he may have learned about Wilson's wife's role in his Mission from Cheney who heard it from Tenet. The Times notes, "It would not be illegal for either Mr. Cheney or Mr. Libby, both of whom are presumably cleared to... More

It took almost two and a half years, but the Washington Post's Walter Pincus finally concedes many things he reported on June 12, 2003 attributed to  the then anonymously sourced Joseph A . Wilson IV are lies.  Pincus and Dana Milbank  today admit Wilson 's tale to Pincus that the... More

The United Kingdom seems on a slippery slope downward. Jeremy Last writes: A poem which praises the murder of Jews by the Nazis has been included in a book of children's poetry to be distributed amongst schools in the UK. The publication, entitled Great Minds, features the work of school children... More

Russo Martino, the man behind the forged documents indicating Saddam had purchased uranium from Niger, which Joseph A. Wilson falsely claimed he had seen and warned the Administration about, has come forward and admitted that he did this in the pay of France to undermine the British and American... More

Brent Scowcroft says there has been 50 years of peace from the Middle East? He  calls himself a "realist"? How about all the terrorism issuing from that part of the world; Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and our response—the Gulf War of 1991 under Scowcroft's watch? Iraq's invasion of Iran;... More

Matt May, our frequent contributor, wrote for us about drafting Condi Rice for president almost a year ago. The Detroit Free Press today covers his efforts on behalf of the movement to draft the Secretary of State. Dick Morris, you were scooped.   More

Davidsmedienkritik, the invaluable site from Germany, notices that even though Germany bans anti—Semitic literature, it makes an exception when it comes to Iranian publishers at the Frankfurt Book Fair. Can you spell petro—dollars? More

John Connly Walsh reports from Baghdad today that the Associated Press was notified ahead of time of the car and truck bombins near press—occupied hotels yesterday. "The AP and others were notified ahead of time so that they could focus their cameras on the event and record it for history."... More

Lawrence Wilkerson, Colin Powell's former Chief of Staff, writes an op—ed about the White House "Cabal" Ed Lasky   10 25 05 Douglas Hanson adds: Wilkerson repeats this easily debunked myth about troop strength: 'We have a secretary of Defense presiding over the... More

In a cast of characters that includes Saddam Hussein and Jacques Chirac it's hard to pick out the most despicable character in the Iraq Oil for Food scam. But for our money, George Galloway, the oily fellow who represents the "Respect Party" (Socialist Workers) in the British Parliament, takes... More

Instead of choosing to look at Condi Rice as a role model for minorities trying to overcome prejudice, Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson accuses her of willful blindness and ignorance regarding racial prejudice in America. Ideological and racial conformity is being mandated by him. How... More

The vital security relationship with India is becoming more complex, in the wake of the vast destruction Pakistan experienced in the recent earthquake. The enormous physical damage to the Pakistani military—government complex is matched by the massive moral damage —— a... More

The Middle East Forum translates from Italian a valuable new article on Iraq and the democratization of the Middle East. It is very much worth reading. Ed Lasky   10 24 05 More

Our frequent contributor Matt May chronicles an outbreak of Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS) on the sports pages. Always tragic, this flare—up is also pathetic. More

The Los Angeles Times runs a sobering report on the spread of Islamic rebellion in the Caucasus region. Ham—handed tactics in suppressing Chechnya are blamed by writer Kim Murphy. Moscow's disorganized and violent attempts to suppress Caucasian Muslim insurgents have swept up thousands of... More

Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi has always claimed his visits to Yasukuni Shrine are private, but these comments by his Foreign Minister tend to contradict his position. The visits are against Article 20 of the Japanese Constitution, say his opponents. Japan should be more firm with... More

"Price of gas dropping" You can resume driving your SUV now——gas prices are declining.   NEW YORK (Reuters) — The average retail price of a gallon of gasoline in the United States plunged more than 25 cents in the past two weeks, as refining capacity was restored... More

As the clock runs out on the Plame grand jury, my thoughts were on the  indictment of Casper Weinberger by independent prosecutor Lawrence Walsh. As you'll recall, then President Bush lost the election but pardoned Weinberger before he left office. In rereading the account of the furor... More

I wrote my review of North Country as soon as I got home from the theater, concentrating on the film's amusing bits of political correctness run amok.  Upon reflection, I realize  I overlooked the biggest dishonesty in the film.  The movie did not exaggerate the ordeal of the first... More

When it's Christmas in America, radio and TV are filled with commercialized versions of peace on earth, good will to men. People watch The Grinch that Stole Christmas  or  Miracle on 42nd Street. Americans constantly argue whether Christmas is too commercialized, or too religious, or... More

Word on the Hill is that the latest internal polls show that that inside the Beltway conservative pundits seem to speak only for and to themselves. After a barrage of opposition against Miers from them, the polls show only 7 percent of the members of the GOP who identify themselves as conservative... More

Historians are upset as France re—writes history to add glory to its colonial history. This is the nation that accuses the US of fabrications? The French colonial machinations and mistreatment of locals indisputably played a huge role in the South East Asia travails of the Vietnam era... More

Something very unusual is happening in Sino—Japanese relations. The Japan Times reports that a top level delegation from Keidanren, the extremely powerful federation of big business organizations, paid a secret visit to China, to meet with top Chinese leaders, including President Hu... More

Some are suggesting that Miller's testimony puts Libby in jeopardy on an obstruction or perjury charge. Really? Here's why no such charge should ever be brought on a he said/she said conflict in which Miller is the she said even if you could find her testimony coherent about the June 23... More

Attention has been focused on the purported leak of Plame's name and status, and not on the leak to Andrea Mitchell of the CIA referral of the matter to the Department of Justice. Stephen Hayes asks who leaked this and why. He suggests, like the other damaging(albeit false) leaks against the... More

New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller attacks Judith Miller in an e—mail to the staff and suggests he should have been more probing of her role in the Plame case.  While he's reviewing what he might have done better, perhaps he might share with us how probing he was of... More

I have not seen this film.  I am only responding to one statement by the author, but that statement was at the heart of her review: "My objection was more practical. Could it be possible she told no one at all about this rape when it happened?  Even if she was afraid of her parents'... More

San Francisco already has the lowest ratio of people under 18 to total population of any city in the United States. A new survey indicates that half of the families with preschool children plan to move out. This is hardly unexpected, since housing costs are crippling. But even more so, the City is... More

Little Green Footballs brings us news of incrdible bungling in covering up Kofi Annan's efforts to protect the guilty parties in Syria: Someone at the United Nations apparently doctored the report on the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri—and was stupid enough to... More

The higher education industry, one of the biggest businesses in America, is in the process of destroying its credibility with the public, which lavishly subsidizes it with gifts and taxpayer monies, and which has ponied up tuition rising at a pace twice that of inflation for generations, now. The... More

First it was supposed leaks from the Special prosecutor's office and grand jury. Now it is supposed to be the heretofore leakproof White House that is spreading stories in the press. The Washington Times reports: The White House has begun making contingency plans for the withdrawal of Harriet... More

While millions of Asians continue to express their outrage over Japanese Prime Minister Junichro Koizumi's repeated visits to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, Brian Bremner at BusinessWeek suggests a more confrontational figure could be waiting in wings to claim the top job after Koizumi... More

John Dean is a big Joseph Wilson IV supporter. The former Watergate figure appeared in the MoveOn.org (Soros) sponsored Bush Lied film co—starring with  Wilson and Rand Beers, John Kerry's National security advisor. Dean has written a number of articles available on FindLaw... More

In the Southern United States the word "goober" is understood to be the regional term for a peanut. The term is also used by non—Southerners to describe the residents of the South.  Most Southerners are not offended by this title, and quite a few of us wear this badge with pride. Given... More

1. We're the party that wants to see an America in which people can still get rich...  2. [It is] best for all to leave each man free to acquire property as fast as he can. Some will get wealthy. I don't believe in a law to prevent a man from getting rich [but] we do wish to allow the... More

Our contributor Andrew Bostom's new book, The Legacy of Jihad,  is a landmark study of the history of this foundational institution Islam. My high opinion is shared by the Washington Times, whose editorial today recommends that President Bush read it: "After September 11, Mr. Bush declared... More

The Special Prosecutor investigating the leaking of Valerie Plame's name, Peter Fitzgerald, has a website, of which I had no previous knowledge. If it is new, perhaps it forecasts the posting of interesting information soon.  Hat tip: Clarice Feldman  10 21 05 More

Bob Somerby details the Aesop's Fables nature of the press reporting  of Wilson's claims and how they cling to his tale even though he hoodwinked them into believing his report contradicted rather than supported the President's claims.  And the inimitable Tom Maguire does the best... More

Michael Young at Reason has an interesting explanation as to why the names of several Syrians — including Assad's brother in law — implicating them in the plot were left out of the final version of the report, as I reported this morning. Where I quoted the Daily Star as saying it... More

Tom Utley writes a very clever piece in the Telegraph advocating the withdrawal of the UK from the European Union, by comparing the changes the EU requires with Napeolean's agenda, had he won the Battle of Trafalgar. It is well worth reading. Thomas Lifson  10 21 05 More

Lawrence Henry, of The American Spectator, addresses the issue of teenagers and automobile accidents, a subject also touched upon by our own Ed Lasky. Unlike Ed, Larry doesn't want to raise the driver's age, but rather favors increased legal vigilence with regard to seat belts. As always, with... More

I have noted on a number of conservative blogs various laments regarding the transfer of space technology to the Chinese that occurred during the 90's under the Clinton administration. The theme generally runs along these lines "Clinton enabled the Chinese to purchase the technology from US... More

"Who are these people that keep telling us lies and how did these people get control of our lives and who'll stop the violence 'cause it's out of control? Make 'em stop."  These are the words of Burt Bacharach.  Yes, the words of Bacharach.  Mr. Bacharach decided for his latest album... More

Over at The Smoking Gun you can check out Tom DeLay's arrest warrant and suitable—for—framing mug shot. (Double entendre intended.) Dennis Sevakis   10 21 05   More

If Al Franken and friends are still broadcasting on Air America but no one is listening, are there any sounds?  Apparently not.   Air America, the liberal talk network carried on WWRC—AM (1260), (Washington DC) went from bad to nonexistent. After WWRC recorded a mere fraction... More

Still wondering about those pathetic unemployed caused by the devastating hurricanes and Bush's indifference to the poor?  Worry no more——they don't exist. "Jobless claims plunge" Oct 20, 2005 — WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The number of unemployed U.S. workers asking for... More

Sometimes media mistakes can develop into major international misuderstandings. The Japan Times has discovered a fake news story that could do further damage to the country's complex relationship with China. In a bilateral relationship plagued by historical mistrust and a fight over natural... More

There are ways to preserve food traditions without patronizing poor people or attacking capitalism. The San Francisco Chronicle yesterday ran a nice article (with a clever double entendre headline) on raclette cheese and the rituals associated with its consumption, as practiced by the Golden Gate... More

The New York Times hosts many ads from advocacy groups, seeking to bring their causes to the attention of the high income readership the Times still enjoys. The vast majority are left wing in politics. As reported in the Wall Street Journal today ($link)   Janet L. Robinson, president and... More

Stephen Moore today reports on his visit to Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream headquarters in Vermont and the various contradictions in the posturing of both founders and company. It seems that food and self—righteous hypocrisy go together like peanut butter and jelly. Ed Lasky   10 20 05 More

The "international arrest warrant", or the "arrest anyone, anywhere, anytime, for anything because I say so" warrant, is on the march. This time being issued for the arrest of three U.S. soldiers, a tank crew, for having fired on the Hotel Palestine in Baghdad in April of 2003 and killing two... More

Eli Lake of the New York Sun lectures the American left about its obsession with prosecuting presumed leaks of Valerie Plame's name by Karl Rove and Lewis Libby: This prosecution has the potential to criminalize the very kind of journalism that for the past four years has served so well the... More

Christian families in California have sued to halt public schools having students don Islamic dress, recite phrases from the Koran, and mimic the fasting associated with the Muslim observance of Ramadan. The New York Sun reports: Two Christian families from Contra Costa County, Calif., east of... More

Editor & Publisher interviewed some of the New York Times columnists whose work is no longer accessible on the web without charge. They are not happy about the reduced readership, and note that in many overseas locations the $50 charge the Times imposes would pay for a lot more than on the... More

Today, the editors of the Washington Post at last inform their readers that the Fitzgerald investigation may well lead to no indictments: [S]o far, in the accounts given by reporters about their conversations with administration officials, no such crime has been described. What has been depicted... More

"New York Times Company stock hits new 52 week low, on back of poor earnings" More

The International Red Cross has long denied the Israeli medical service membership in the international organization. This is clearly due to Arab and Third—world pressure, as well as the usual anti—Israel suspects in Europe and elsewhere.   The Red Cross has justified this refusal... More

Paul Volcker, charged with investigating the oil—for—food scandal at the UN, is now urging the US to link future funding of the UN to reforms. He must be really disgusted by what he has found. Mr. Insider is beginning to side with the critics. Ed Lasky   10 19 05 More

Kathleen Parker of the Orlando Sentinel notices all the missing headlines (a continuing fascination of ours) about the success of the Iraqi constitutional referendum. Here are the headlines you may have missed: "Iraqi democracy takes bow to standing ovation, global applause" Or "Iraqi voter... More

Thomas Bray, columnist for the Detroit News, chooses the New York Sun to express his concern that Delphi and the rest of the automobile industry will ulitmately seek taxpayer money to pay off their pension and medical benefit commitments. We agree. More

Tariq Ramadan, a figure about whom we have published several articles, and who was denied entry to the United States, has found a new place of honor in Britain, despite Tony Blair's proclamation that after the July 7 bombings "The rules of the game have changed." Olivier Guitta has the discouraging... More

From the Gulf News of Bahrain comes a report on the woes besetting publishers of Arabic books, especially novels. As elsewhere, the rise of DVDs, video games, and other electronic entertainments has lured some former recreational readers away to other sedentary leisure activities. But the... More

Frederick W Stakelbeck Jr. has written for us on national security issues, particularly on China. He has a pair of recent articles well worth reading. The first, in the Asia Times, examines the serious need in China for a credit—reporting agency. The lack of such nuts and bolts... More

Wednesday's New York Times reports  WASHINGTON, Oct. 18 — The special counsel in the C.I.A. leak case has told associates he has no plans to issue a final report about the results of the investigation, heightening the expectation that he intends to bring indictments, lawyers in the... More

The Daily Howler takes on Arianna Huffington, Richard Cohen and Chris Mathews as he took on Joseph A. Wilson. His skewering of Chris Mathews is particularly worth reading, for what he says about Mathews could be said about almost all the Wilson/Plame reporting: SPEAKING OF STANDARD DYSFUNCTION:... More

The UK Guardian, via the Sydney Morning Herald, cites as evidence of an underground resistance movement in North Korea, the shooting of forbidden video tapes of public executions, an offense almost certainly punishable by death. The man behind the videos is the former head of a North Korean... More

Stern Magazine of Germany is reportedly breaking the news that UN investigators are about to name the brother—in—law of Syrian President Bashar al—Assad as a suspect in the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al—Hariri. Moreover, Secretary of State Condoleeza... More

There are two very odd stories in the news today.  The Associated Press and Reuters are both reporting that all their previous stories on Scooter Libby and  Karl Rove could be wrong.Reuters just wrote that  three separate CIA accusers are suddenly backing off. They now say... More

Our contributor Andrew Bostom, whose landmark book, The Legacy of Jihad, has just been published, is interviewed at Redstate.org. It is a long and highly worthwhile read. President Bush comes in for thougthful criticism for ignoring the real nature of the jihad tradition, something that every... More

Hillel Halkin of the New York Sun congratulates President Bush for finally identifyting Islamofascism as our enemy. But he goes on to wish that the President would be a little bit less politically correct: The president is of course right to insist now, too, that the enemy is not Islam itself. He... More

Our contributor Rick Moran has posted a heretical essay on his own site, RightWing Nuthouse. He takes on the conservative blogosphere establishment, the heavy—hitters like Michelle Malkin and Glenn Reynolds, who have been promoting a "Porkbusters" effort to identify and target for cuts... More

The eagle—eyed Mediacrity blog has caught the New York Times editing out a reference to Palestinian failures to live up to responsibilities in the "road map" that was part of the Oslo Agreement: In an item yesterday, I described how the New York Times —— in a seeming reversal of... More

Matt May, a frequent contributor to these pages, casts a jaundiced eye on David Frum's online petition to withdraw the nomination of Harriet Miers. Along the way, he also zings Frum's citing of Arlen Spector: As of 12:03 a.m. Tuesday morning (EST), the number stood at 4,321 "and counting," as Mr.... More

China is not comfortable with the concept of the free flow of information. Criticism of the regime is anathema, indicating a realization that its hold on power is not to be taken for granted. But information freedom is an important component of a modern economy, and without adequate information... More

MEMRI is an Israeli outfit that tranlates the Arab language media into English. Period. Like all other human beings, the people at MEMRI have their biases. But that's not why people read MEMRI. They just translate both extremist and moderate voices in the Middle East, show TV clips, and publish... More

Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf is being blamed for incompetence in responding to the earthquake in the politically—sensitive northwest region of his country. The death toll has already reached 50,000, and spreading disease threatens to kill many more. The powerful quake hit... More

According to Eli Lake of the New York Sun, the letter from Al—Qaeda's number two man to terrorist field commander in Iraq, Abu—Musab Zarqawi, may be a fake.  Some analysts have even counted the words that terrorists are likely to use such as 'infidel' and 'crusader,' and concluded... More

John Leo describes an outrageous practice in many of America's teaching training schools. Under the mild—sounding title of "dispositions theory" schools of education are even expelling or threatening to expel teachers—in—training for objecting to affirmative action or even for a... More

Time Magazine has a fascinating piece in its latest issue about the intra—conservative controversy caused by Harriet Miers.  After describing in painful detail how the White House is trying to re—start the nomination, Time offers this ominous quotation: Bush's friends contend... More

DavidsMedienkritik posts an alarming collection of information about a German film, Paradise Now, which appears to resurrecting tradiitons last practiced under the supervision of Geobbels. Of course, I haven't seen the film, so no final judgment is possible, but the descriptions are fairly... More

New York Times sports columnist William Rhoden considers the 1968 anti—American Olympic protest the  most courageous act of sports demonstration in his lifetime, or maybe in history. The whole paper just cannot get over the late 1960s.The Times sports columnist indulges in nostalgia for... More

Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, invigorated by his smashing electoral victory suuporting his economic and political reform agenda, extended his advances to the diplomatic sphere. For the fifth time he visited Yasukuni Shrine today, a religious site which honors the war dead,... More

In the next decade, China has ambitious long—term goals for its Shenzhou space program. Already a great source of national pride, Beijing plans to put men on the moon by 2010 and build a space station similar to the Russian Mir station.  With mounting social problems at home and... More

A couple of passages from the book A Matter of Character: Inside the White House of George W. Bush regarding David Frum may shed some light. First, from pages 137—138, a bit about Frum: "In his book 'The Right Man,' former White House speechwriter David Frum, who came up... More

Gustavo Coronel has a superb essay  on the utter strangeness of the likes of Jesse Jackson and Danny Glover taking their race—grievance show on the road to Venezuela. Neither showed any interest in this country earlier in their careers, but all of a sudden, now that Venezuelan dictator... More

Warm congratulations to the people of Iraq. Yesterday's election turnout was a heroic action. Millions of people voted, in a turnout dwarfing our own, against a ferocious terror campaign. We haven't seen anything quite like this since Solidarity in Poland and more recently the Orange... More

A poster (#15 on this thread) at Lucianne.com named "Mama D" brought to my attention a startling statement by David Frum on his NRO blog in July. Sure enough, I checked, and there it was: ... in the Supreme Court sweepstakes: Keep an eye on Harriet Miers, White House counsel. Miers was the first... More

The Washington Post publishes an article today by Business Week correspondent Lorraine Woellert that seems to praise Harriet Miers, but which also coincidentally throws out some red meat for her conservative critics. Woellert notes, as we have previously, that Miers brings rich practical business... More

The CENTCOM Newsletter for the week of October 10 can be found here.  The world's attention is naturally focused on what appears to be a very large voter turnout for ratification of Iraq's new constitution.  On other fronts, military training and reconstruction projects continue all... More

Belarus, run by a jurassic communist dictator, is the most horrible tyranny in Europe. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has specially noted the vileness of this brutal Marxist dictatorship,  where human rights are utterly absent, and encouraged the opposition.  But in this gray,... More

Responding to the following statement by Ryan Sager at TCS: "No one serious (and perhaps no one at all) is making the case that Miers is "qualified," in any conventional sense of the word, to serve on the Supreme Court"  I offer this Rhyme:  To the Nay Sayer  Beware ye the all... More

Ed Lasky's article urging a minimum driving age of 21 has elicited many comments from readers. Some examples: Bob Svoboda of Willis, TX writes Thought—provoking article by Ed Lasky on teen drivers.  While I hadn't been thinking in terms quite so sweeping, how about a step in that... More

BusinessWeek has published its first annual ranking of Asia's best—performing publicly listed companies. With soaring oil prices, the top four slots —— and 11 of the BW 50 —— were captured by regional energy giants such as PetroChina, India's Oil and Natural Gas, and... More

Terrorism is an unmitigated and absolute evil. It's also perfectly definable. At the Ibero—American Summit in Salamanca, Spain this morning, mysteriously missed by Fidel Castro (see why here), President Alvaro Uribe of Colombia, stood up to a shady underhanded effort by the Marxist... More

Mediacrity catches Steve Erlanger of the New York Times minimizing (as in ignoring) Palestinian failure to live up to their obligations under the Oslo "road map." Not there is anything surprising about it. The Times has a pattern and practice of exactly this sort of distortion in its coverage of... More

Militant secularists tend to get exercised by any public display using taxpayer money, however indirectly, to "endorse" or even "recognize" traditional religious beliefes. Unless, of course, the religious beliefes are their own or serve their agenda. The Pacific Justice Institute, whose... More

The vitriolic, anti—American, former Chancellor of Germany is exiting stage left with a major military failure on his hands.  It appears that Gerhard Schroeder (Social Democratic Party [SPD]) succumbed to the inevitable economic pressures of failed socialist policies and withdrew the... More

Two years ago Seymour Hersh ,in a usual anti—Bush article, offered up this interesting nugget about the "forged documents"  which I think are the true target of the Wilson/Plame investigation. I give his report no particular credence but thought it might be of interest to... More

The New York Times notes that Ramadan has become a big occasion for shopping in Muslim countries. Ramadan becomes a shopping holiday—this is a good thing for a holiday some have coined "Bombadan" because of the frequency of bombings during this period. Once an ascetic month of fasting,... More

The Oil—for—Food scandal has caught two French (so far) taking bribes, and the French government apparently has not lost all capacity for embarrassment. The Times of London reports: TWO former French ambassadors have admitted earning hundreds of thousands of dollars from the sale of... More

Dems are attacking the cyber free speech — of other Dems. Ryan Sager of the New York Post explains. Jack Kemp (not the politician)  10 14 05 More

The New York Post publishes an excellent editorial on the Nobel Prizes, quoting Harold Pinter, the latest literature prize—winner: "I've been writing plays for about 50 years," he said. "But I am also very politically engaged and I am not at all sure to what extent that factor had anything... More

James Taranto's article on Harriet Miers is fairly devastating . He suggests that she would not be subject to liberal salon DC conversion over time — but has already been there, done that. She has a history of being very comfortable playing with the other side. It is hard to see her as... More

As lifelong readers of newspapers, we take no pleasure in the difficulties experienced by this industry. But technology has made the distribution of news (and more importantly, the dissemination of advertising messages) on dead trees comparatively slow and expensive. Shares in two of the... More

Wines Central, a specialized storage facility for wine, seemed like a good idea — the time. Converted from a torpedo storage facility at the former Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo, California, it featured thick concrete walls and floors, steel doors and a concrete roof. Ideal for... More

E. Emmett Tyrrell, founder of the American Spectator, uses the famous Goldwynism to describe his attitude toward the conservative critics of the Harriet Miers nomination. He cites pragmatic political reasons. Read his important thoughts, and then compare them to Peggy Noonan's opposite political... More

Michael Fumento looks into the high honor the Harvard School of Public Health awarded to Erin Brockovitch, made famous by the movie of the same name. What he presents isn't pretty. He attributes the award to a lack of reearch, but I have to think that a poltical agenda had a lot more to do with... More

Left wing pundit Richard Cohen, columnist for the Washington Post, all of sudden has second thoughts about the desirability of the Plame grand jury issuing indictments. Why now? After all the leftist hysterics about exposing the identity af a CIA desk jockey who used to be an undercover agent,... More

Another outspoken anti—American and Bush critic wins the Nobel Prize. Harold Pinter, the latest lierature laureate, called President Bush a "mass murderer" and America "a vast Gulag" intent on reducing the world's kids to street beggars. He joins hoaxster Rigoberta Menchu on the rolls of... More

J.R. Dunn in his October 11th article posits that the conservative reaction to Harriet Miers' nomination is an indicator that the movement is showing signs of ideological sclerosis that has besotted the Left.  While fine points are found in this article, particularly in delineating what ails... More

I was part of a conference call today, organized by Patrick Ruffini, with Ken Mehlman, the Chairman of the RNC addressing and then taking questions from a group of bloggers. Pressing business prevented me from writing up my notes of the call until now, but other the bloggers have beaten me to... More

The office of the U. S. Director of National Intelligence has posted on its website the contents of a letter from al Qaeda's top deputy, Ayman Zawahiri, to the leader of the insurgency in Iraq, Abu Musab al—Zarqawi.  In the letter, which was apparently captured in Iraq, Zawahiri... More

It would seem to include Bill Kristol, Pat Buchannan, David Frum, Laura Ingraham, Charles Krauthammer, Michael Savage and ...Hugo Chavez's Venezuela. All seem to oppose the nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court. El Universal of Caracas reports: Appointments at the White House of people... More

The grand jury hearing testimony from Rove, Judith Miller, and others may not be investigating what the press thinks. The Washington Post's Walter Pincus and the New York Times' Nicholas Kristof have failed to respond to Joseph Wilson's backtracking from their year earlier interview—based... More

The remarkable letter from Al—Qaida's second in command Ayman al—Zawahiri to Abu Musab al—Zarqawi, the leader of Al—Qaida in Iraq, will probably get far too little attention and analysis from the MSM. It portrays a movement which realizes it is losing. For far too long, the... More

In a piece that supposedly criticizes the major media for deliberately spreading falsehoods in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, USA Today actually adds to the glut of misinformation about disaster and homeland security preparedness. Staff Writer Mark Memmott (with the AP contributing) rightly... More

As displayed in the writings of conservative punditry and, most interestingly, among American Thinker contributors, by far the most fascinating thing about the Miers nomination is the resulting turmoil within the conservative movement. Some thoughts...   The consuming void in what should be a... More

Interior Minister Brigadier General Ghazi Kenaan "committed suicide" today. He was the Syrian intelligence chief in Lebanon from 1982 to 2003, presiding over Syrian control of that nation. He had been a suspect in the assasination of Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri. Ironically or prophetically, he... More

While some lambast Harriet Miers for a supposed lack of qualifications to serve on the nation's highest court, one wonders exactly what the qualifications are for those members of the Judiciary Committee who are set to judge her. — Senator Feinstein: Not a lawyer —Senator Hatch: A... More

The United Strates government has officially accused North korea of manufacturing high quality $100 bills, and using the IRA to help distribute the bogus notes. The Washington Times reports: "Quantities of the supernote were manufactured in, and under auspices of the government of, the Democratic... More

Can this be accurate? Maybe so. Corzine beat Forrester by 3 points in 1000, and New Jersey voted for Kerry by 6% in 2004. New Jersey's governor's race, once considered a Democratic lock, is now in a dead heat with four weeks to go before the Nov. 8 off—year election, a new independent poll... More

UBS, the giant Swiss bank that advertises itself as the "world's largest wealth managament firm", is under Congressional investigation to see if it has laundered money for, and abetted an anti—American axis of Baghdad, Tehran, and Havana. The investigative trail started with the $762... More

Andrew Ferguson deftly skwers the narcisism, pretentiousness, and incompetence of George Clooney's new movie about Edward R. Murrow, while exposing the same flaws in its subject matter. The review actually makes me slightly interested in seeing the movie, which sounds like an unintentinal comedy.... More

Israel's withdrawal from Gaza seems to have provided impetus for a thawing of relations with some Arab states. Qatar has announced a donation of $6 million fo a stadium to be used by a mixed Jewish—Arab soccer team. The gift represents the first such funding by an Arab state for any town... More

The US media may not be telling us much about it, but on Saturday the people of Iraq will vote on their draft Constitution. It is their greatest opportunity ever to escape a history filled with bloody horrors. It could make or break America's strategic gamble in overthrowing Saddam Hussein.... More

The are so much more sophistiacted than us. A big Parisian fashion—show which is being compared to a carnival "freak show" by Robin Givhan of the Washington Post: The Saturday night show was set against a backdrop that called to mind the confluence of a carnival sideshow and a burlesque... More

A high level French official (one of 11 charged with participation in the Oil for Food scandal) was detained for questioning today. PARIS (Reuters) — Police have detained a former French ambassador to the U.N. Security Council for questioning in a corruption inquiry over the U.N.'s... More

CENTCOM Public Affairs has provided us the latest news releases concerning US earthquake relief efforts in Pakistan.  US and Coalition forces responded quickly by delivering the first relief supplies within 48 hours.  Helicopter support from Afghanistan was also due to arrive in... More

ABC's The Note reports: In remarks to the NAACP in Waterbury, CT this morning, RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman was expected to respond to recent criticism from DNC Chairman Howard Dean. In remarks prepared for delivery, Mehlman is expected to say, "Chairman Dean said it took nerve for me to join you... More

John Tierney writes a brave New York Times column today on the topic of left wing cronyism, as revealed by journalism school professorships and his own experience in 6 different newspapers. Unless you pay for the "Times Select" access to NYT pundits, you can't read the full article. But here are... More

John O'Sullivan writes about the need for confronting terrorism with strength, not appeasement, and has some observations on what peaceful Muslims, Europeans, and Americans need to do differently. Well worth reading. Ed Lasky  10 11 05 More

Only a few weeks ago we were told by gleeful voices in the Islamist world that Hurricane Katrina represented the wrath of Allah, aimed at the people in New Orleans who didn't have SUVs to get out of town. Well, Shazzam! Allah has done it again, but this time by way of a truly horrific earthquake in... More

I am a child of the fifties. Before the recent firestorm of the Harriet Miers nomination I had experienced two episodes of sweeping disillusionment.  The first related to the assassination of President Kennedy— not his death — but the creation of the Warren Commission. I had been... More

The BBC, Washington Times, and the Guardian are all reporting that Lu Banglie, a Chinese activist seeking the ouster of an allegedly corrupt mayor in Guangdong Province (just north of Hong Kong, in the rich Pearl River Delta), was dragged from a car and beaten by a mob as he tried to enter the... More

DavidsMedienkritik is posting the news that Gerhard Schroeder is officially out, and will be replaced by Angela Merkel, who will lead a "grand coalition." Unfortunately, such coalitions have a tendency toward paralysis. Time will tell, of course, but Merkel has a lot to lose if she cannot bring... More

Politically correct science enforced by the EU is killing people in Africa. Do the Europeans care? Ed Lasky   10 10 05 More

A month before Robert Novak wrote his column supposedly outing Valerie Plame, Joseph Wilson gave a speech in which he talks in the third person about a person who is obviously himself, allows Valerie Plame to be identified as his wife, and discloses his intense opposition to the war in Iraq, as... More

Teresa Heinz (with no Kerry added) writes op—ed in the Boston Globe. One can accept using a maiden name. But using the name of your deceased husband while married to another man? Is this the guy who could have stood up to terrorists and Hussein? Ed Lasky    10 10 05 More

I have heard a lot of talk form conservatives about the Miers nomination and I disagree with the negative takes. How much damage to President Bush and the Republican Party would be done if the President nominated a succession of proven 'right wing' judges only to have the gang of 14 (and maybe... More

Led by many so—called experts in the mainstream media, millions of hard—working Americans have come to believe that China has an endless supply of cheap laborers willing to work super long hours for meager wages. While it is true millions of migrant workers have endured managerial... More

Winston Churchill has been credited with creating and promoting the idea of an Anglosphere: a partnership between America and England that would benefit the world. People frustrated and disheartened by the fecklessness of the United Nations and  disgusted by continental European leaders have... More

Much of the concern about China and the internet on this side of the Pacific has focused on censorship. But Melinda Liu of Newsweek highlights more complex dimensions. It has value as a positive tool for regime propaganda.  hey worry less about the Web as aninformation source than as a... More

Jack Risko, of Dinocrat.com, has some characteristically astute comments on the Miers nomination, which he formerly proclaimed was a fight he would watch from the sidelines. Jack's still on the fence, but check out this list of considerations he cites in Miers's favor:  — more solidly... More

"The Empty Suit Solves a Problem" Read it here. This is just too much fun! Thanks, Barney. Thomas Lifson  10 09 05 More

The Washington Post's April Witt writes a lengthy and highly entertaining account of the main players involved in the year 2000 Hillary Clinton fundraising event in Hollywood which has become a campaign fundraising scandal of the first magnitude. The cast of characters is extraordinarily sleezy and... More

G.K. Chesterton once asserted that 'The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried." If for 'Christian' one substitutes 'conservative' in the aforementioned quotation, I would surmise that one could thereby capture the essence of conservative... More

Reading though the commentary ignited by President Bush's nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court — from Hugh Hewitt, Thomas Sowell and Thomas Lifson's defenses of the President's choice to the daisy—cutter air strikes on it by Charles Krauthammer, Bill Kristol, David Frum and... More

Software billionaire David Duffield wants to build a large home. Make that a very, very large home. Maybe the biggest home in the United States. Bigger than Bill Gates. Bigger than the White House. Let the criticism begin. Thomas Lifson   10 08 05 Dennis Sevakis adds: How 'bout 175,000... More

In July, I suggested that it was more likely than not that Libby and Rove did, as they assert, learn of Plame from reporters, and that Judith Miller was one of those likely sources . Today, the Washington Post indicates as much: New York Times reporter Judith Miller has discovered notes... More

The Los Angeles Times takes a welcome stance in favor of free markets and against government subsidies. At least in the case of Airbus, which benefits from enormous low interest loans used to finance the development of new airliners intended to compete with Boeing, a major Los Angeles—area... More

It appears to me this Ronnie feller, Thinks he might be a new Old Yeller,Fearless defender of all that's good,Chasing skunks out of our neighborhood.But some observers of this hound, Believe he should be in the pound.That telltale frothing round his muzzle, To those who know him is no... More

The BBC and al Jazeera share the same anti—Isarel bias. According to reports from the BBC, TV has—been personality Sir David Frost, has signed up to broadcast for al—Jazeera, the Arab station which spews anti—American and anti—Israel hatred.   Along with the... More

Judith Miller, who was allowed to provide the Prosecutor with redacted notes of her conversations with Libby (redacted by whom we've never been told), has now turned over more, undisclosed notes of those conversations to the Prosecutor. Some have suggested that the Prosecutor's agreement that... More

The New York Times and Washington Post and AP are running  highly charged, thinly sourced and puzzling (because they are inconsistent with the record) stories on the Plame grand jury today.  Separating the facts from unsourced leaks and innuendo we get this: Karl Rove will... More

How big a fool is Tom Friedman? He provides more data today. Fortunately for Tom, internet readership of his column is now restricted to those willing to pay cash money for the privilege. And, interestingly enough, the Times is not telling anybody how many people have signed up, suggesting that not... More

Ronald Cass, who has the academic chops to write about the constitutional jurisprudence, urges conservative critics of the nomination of Harriety Miers to cool their jets. Among many worthwhile points: Miers brings to the Court skills and experience that should not be dismissed so blithely by the... More

Hugh Hewitt debunks the worries of Charles Krauthammer and others that Harriet Miers will have to recuse herself from too many cases reaching the Supreme Court. ...the recusal requiriement is (1)limited to matters in which she had substantial and personal involvement, and (2)is decided solely... More

Why is the the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee paying for legal fees for  Katie Barge and her deputy, Lauren Weiner, two ousted staffers being probed by federal authorities for illegally accessing the credit report of an up—and—coming Republican, as reported by the... More

The White House has released a fact sheet giving some details of the ten foiled terror plots mentioned in yesterday's important presidential address. In addition, there is a list of 5 casings and infiltrations discovered. Here is the release: Overall, the United States and our partners have... More

Bono would have been better, I guess. Must have been ElBaradei's success containing the Iranian and North Korean nuclear programs, not to mention LIbya's. I guess every second year the prize needs to go to a Bush basher. Weren't there any deserving members of Hamas or Islamic Jihad to honor for... More

Sir Humphrey's, a British blog, has caught an AP/Reuters photographer making posed pictures of "insurgents"; Today the same pics turn up in an equally fake video propaganda piece carried by the BBC and SKy News. It provides a link to the BBC piece, and also pictrues and a script. The BBC used the... More

In the long run all this prattle about the nomination of Harriet Miers may prove naught but moot. Somewhere down the road we may find our jurisprudence being adjudicated by the Spanish courts thus obviating the need for our Supreme Court. For. . . Thousands of disappearances and killings... More

Conservatives are not sounding their best these days, amid  gale—force Bush—bashing on The Right Side of America.  The trouble is that George W is playing poker again, and it's impossible to read his special Texas poker face. Nobody knows Harrier Miers except the man who... More

Ever since Gen. Casey's Congressional testimony, the media has been dishing disinformation about the operational readiness levels of Iraqi army units.  Here is a link to yesterday's Pentagon press conference with LTG David Petraeus, just back from 2 1/2 years in Iraq as the man in charge... More

Don Surber writes about the reaction to Harriet Miers with his usual style and wit. More

Pundits who oppose Harriet Miers' nomination to the Supreme Court are being tagged as elitists.  That accusation came up twice yesterday on the FOX Special Report with Brit Hume.  First, during his Grapevine segment. Hume pointed out that Miers' critics Bill Kristol, Charles Krauthammer,... More

Well, it's always something. If it isn't one thing, it's another. Who would have guessed — other than the legal eagles — that the provisions of Title 28 U.S. Code sec. 455 covering the recusal of judges, justices, and magistrate judges would provide such a compelling reason to sink the... More

In the days since President Bush nominated Harriet Miers to the highest court in the land, we have learned one thing from many pundits on the Right:  Ms. Miers does not have the resume to fill one of nine seats on the Supreme Court.  As one who sits on a couch in a Red State (watching Fox... More

The New York Daily News reports: Former President Bill Clinton says Iraq "looks like a quagmire," and estimates "the odds are not great of our prevailing there." Recall, he avoided serving in the military. I guess he expected George bush to lob a few harmless cruise missiles into Iraq, blow up a... More

Slate reports that fewer corporations are recruiting Ivy League graduates. Are they losing faith in the superiority of the formerly preferred schools? Have the barbarians inside the gates, with their feminist and gay studies majors, their adulation of transgressive analytical stances, and the... More

As we watch North Korean and Iranian nuclear weapons potential with serious interest, we should not neglect the expansion of China's existing nuclear weapons potential. Any uranium fired reactor will produce various byproducts including isotopes of plutonium as the uranium is 'burned'.  The... More

I have been reading the internet debate about Miers. I'm not sure I agree with Lifson but I don't agree with the NRO folks either. What the people at NRO don't realize is that the Republicans have gotten control of Congress and the presidency because they are seen as more central than the... More

Ann Coulter is one of many conservative pundits criticizing the SCOTUS nomination of Harriet Miers. I relish the opportunity to debate the matter with those, like Ann, who take a stance different from mine. In fact, because I believe that serious debate is such enlightening fun,... More

My tax practice centered on family owned business and I have always found the interpersonal dynamics fascinating.  That's because each family member sees the business differently: Legacy, protectorate, tool, cash cow, burden and even enemy are among the options I've seen.  A wise estate... More

As Washington focuses on newly—confirmed Chief Justice John Roberts, another Supreme Court Justice — in China — is tackling a complex issue that has major implications for many Western multinationals trying to business in the Middle Kingdom: the enforcement of intellectual... More

Who else could we be talking about but the New York Times? Blogger Simon from Hong Kong has found some blatant lifting from his Simon World blog site regarding the closely followed Andy Kissel murder trial. In the course of the trial, Simon attracted some high—power posts from everyone who's... More

The battle cry of the American conservative movement was sounded by its Godfather, Barry Goldwater, at the 1964 Republican convention when he proclaimed, "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice; moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."  I have no idea how many wall plaques... More

Our strategic partner in the war on terror, India, is going great guns. It used to be a snide and ironic claim that "India is the country of the future — and always will be." But since the London School of Economics—trained socialist bureaucrats there lost influence, and India lost... More

Even within media circles in Manhattan, the reputation of the New York Times is slipping. Amongst themselves, and now openly for the rest of us to see, prominent voices are saying that the Old Grey Lady ain't what she used to be. Fourth generation hereditary publisher "Pinch" Sulzberger is... More

The common wisdom is that given the nature of grand juries, a prosecutor could get one to indict a ham sandwich. In this case, it appears that Earle found one which indicted a cartoon of a ham sandwich. If you read through this Austin American—Statesman article, you'll see that when it became... More

Years back I heard Ross Perot cackle and say that if he hired a roomful of A—list Ivy League graduates who graduated atop their classes, all he'd get out of them would be an argument. He said this to justify hiring people from less prestigious schools who could work together as a team and... More

The right is starting to sound like the left — shrill and reactionary. Take a tip from the master, George Bush — ignore them, it really tees them off. The right is also being coopted by the left, as is revealed in the Miers situation, into valuing words more than deeds — that's... More

Let's see: the inaccurate media reports regarding desecration of the Koran sparked riots which costs dozens of people their lives. Ill—founded rumors, created and spread by the Democratic Mayor of New Orleans and negligent journalists, now seem to have led to aid not reaching Katrina... More

Our frequent contributor (and proud new papa) Matt May takes on George Will. More

Mark your calendars, folks. The big day is rapidly approaching. Forget about all the brouhaha surrounding DeLay and Miers. That stuff will work itself out one way or the other. On the other hand, on October 15th the Iraqis go to the polls to vote on their new Constitution. Though I prefer to get my... More

Democrat politicians in Illinois are embroiled in an apparently building scandal. But the national media can barely stifle their yawns. The Chicago Tribune reports: "Daley aide quits amid questions" City Planning Commissioner Denise Casalino, once a rising star at City Hall, resigned Tuesday in... More

Yep. France — the masters of diplomacy. Their leader did not, and does not, seem to have much of an issue with Iran or Iraq under Hussein. Apparently it is different when France might be negatively affected. French President Jacques Chirac said Tuesday that Turkey would need to undergo a... More

Michelle Malkin, a woman I adore [editor: me, too] — from a safe distance — tells us that those of us who are not outraged by the Harriet Miers nomination are "rationalizing Bush." Well, mebbe so, Michelle, m'love. But being a Bush—brained robot has some advantages. In fact, let's... More

Don Surber, one of my favorite bloggers, has posted a top ten list of reasons to like the Miers nomination. Don also reports the very discouraging news that Shelly Capito, a challenger with at least some hope of defeating Senator Robert Byrd, is withdrawing from the Senate race in West... More

I have just read my first e—book, plunging into the brave new world of publishing's future. I can report that I am extremely happy with my experience. For a mere two dollars, you too can try out the new technology for yourself, and in the process read an extremely valuable book at a... More

Among the bloggers (and legal minds) I respect the most is Stephen Bainbridge, UCLA Law professor and proprietor of ProfessorBainbridge.com.  He writes: Thomas: I'm afraid I don't buy your argument on Miers, mainly for the same reasons I express in the following post that responded to some of... More

With Another Supreme Court battle looming, this time over Harriet Miers, let's acknowledge something up front: Republicans are right to complain about judicial activism. So begins a startling commentary by Nicholas Kristof in today's New York Times. Kristof absolutely gives the game away with... More

Travis County, Texas, prosecutor Ronnie Earle, screwed up on the indictment announced last week against Tom Delay.  So, Earle has rushed through a second indictment to clean up his mistake on the first, this time charging Delay not with conspiracy, but with money—laundering. Minister... More

In the wake of the Bali bombings, there's no question that terrorists form an implacable enemy. But it doesn't help anyone that they have a perfect environment in which to operate. Indonesia has been providing that to them, by taking a law—enforcement approach to fighting terrorism instead... More

The Cuban essayist Carlos Alberto Montaner has outdone himself with the singluarly most brilliant essay on the impact of property rights destruction — that's probably ever been written. Montaner explains what Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez is trying to accomplish by destroying property... More

Given Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez's rhetoric and choice of friends, it's always a lingering thought in one's mind that maybe he's al—Qaida—friendly. There've been stories about him sending money to them after 9/11 but nothing concrete lately. That's changed. Sunday, a Venezuelan... More

The news from the diplomatic front keeps on getting better for the US and the anti—terror Coalition.  Not that the MSM will give any priority to news of  President Bush's recent diplomatic triumphs. Yesterday, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced that the IAEA... More

So you think our political discourse is sullied? Behold our gift of democracy to the Iraqis... "God curse your moustache you Bedouin on a camel"   Dennis Sevakis   10 04 05     More

Daniel Pipes, writing in the New York Sun, demonstrates that some terrorists are not recruited for their intellects: One would think Mahmoud Maawad, a 29—year—old illegal immigrant from Egypt living in Memphis, Tenn., would lay low and stay out of trouble. But no, he defiantly did just... More

John P. Avlon of the New York Sun identifies signs that African—Americans are gradually de—coupling from their 90% support of the Democrats. As with so many political movements, this one is more visible at the local level. the diversification of the black community economically and... More

Kimbery Hefling of the AP reports that Democrats have already lined—up 6 war veterans to run for Congress. Presumably they think this will give them cover for defeatism in the war on terror. Perhaps they should consult President Wesley Clark and President John Kerry on the matter. Hat tip: Ed... More

Frank Ching, a veteran foreign correspondent working in China, comments on China's baby steps toward relaxing its extraordinary secrecy about all sorts of data. Essentially, anything not published in the state—sanctioned press is deemed a state secret. Chinese authorities seem to be gaining a... More

Will Senator Feinstein attack Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers for not knowing what it is like to be a mother? Senator Feinstein, after all, asked Chief Justice Roberts questions which attempted to probe him for his feelings as a father. Will she attack Miers for not knowing what it is liek... More

Once again, "the world's smartest woman" shows that she has the world's largest political tin ear.   Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has quietly hired an unconventional corporate teen—marketing guru who believes the supernatural can be used to pitch products to young people — and... More

From the New York Daily News: WASHINGTON — The independent counsel investigation that led to the conviction of a former Clinton administration housing chief could come back to haunt Sen. Hillary Clinton. The Daily News has learned that lawyers are fighting to suppress a potentially... More

Prior to serving in her most recent position of White House counsel, Harriet Miers, the new Supreme Court nominee, was the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy for President Bush.  That means she has a great understanding of issues like the economy, education, energy, national security and, of... More

UPDATE: I was misled by google. If you put in "Exodus Ministries (the words used by President Bush), the first listing is the group linked below. I am, however, informed by readers that Exodus Ministry is in fact a group working with ex—offenders. See this website:  To quote Gilda... More

The American media—left establishment plays a much larger role in fomenting anti—Americanism overseas than most of us have realized. The criticisms of America they create and publicize for partisan purposes are picked up and amplified by antagonists overseas, many of them... More

No "normal" person commits suicide by blowing himself up in public with a backpack full of explosives. Yet that is the official story regarding Joel Henry Hinrichs III, who was killed Saturday night in an explosion outside the University of Oklahoma's football stadium, where 80,000 fans were... More

Clarice Feldman raises important questions and an intriquing perspective on the Wilson—Plame story.   But as regards Iraq's WMD, if anything she understates the unanimity on the issue. The consensus among Western (and other) intelligence agencies was that Saddam retained significant... More

Rush Limbaugh has found the information that Harriet Miers is an evangelical Christian, a member of a church in Dallas that most would describe as "fundamentalist." I believe that this vindicates my earlier analysis based on mistaken information about a Ministry supported by Ms. Miers. Blue state... More

Dr. Zin of RegimeChangeIran reports on a poll suggesting that many Iranians may be more loyal to their country than to Islam. Details of the poll are almost nonexistent, but it appears to be an online poll. It may even be in English, and on a site primarily visited by overseas Iranians. So too much... More

The kerfuffle over Bill Bennett's recent remarks on his radio show — like the earlier kerfuffle over Harvard President Larry Summer's remarks at a seminar, and like a dozen other such kerfuffles I no longer can recall — all stem from the same root: Creative and intelligent people... More

Jay Sekulow, who was involved in screening candidates for the Supreme Court vacancy, is predictably sanguine about the choice of Harriet Miers. I have worked with Harriet Miers over the last several years and believe the President made a great choice.  Miss Miers led the opposition to... More

James D. Miller, writing on TechCentralStation, makes a fundamental and useful distinction between those who react emotionally to public events, and those who react from a process of reason. He uses the imbroglio over Bill Bennett's recent comments as the most recent, but far from the only... More

I take David Frum very seriously. He is not only smart, he knows Harriet Miers. He lays out the strongest case against her nomination for the Supreme Court: I worked with Harriet Miers. She's a lovely person: intelligent, honest, capable, loyal, discreet, dedicated ... I could pile on the praise... More

CBS News president Andrew Heyward, speaking at the Museum of Television and Radio in New York City (an estimable institution which received much funding from the late William Paley, founder of CBS), said  "the notion of objectivity in mainstream news needs to be reexamined," according to TV... More

Our frequent contributor Noel Sheppard also blogs at Newsbusters, an essential service of the Media Research Center. Noel is on the case of Walter Cronkite who thinks Americans are too damn ignorant to know what's good for ourselves. Too bad he didn't tell us so when he was the "most trusted man in... More

Apparently, lots of people who hate religion. The most emailed story there at the moment is a screed against religious faith, based on a junk—sociology study. Ed Lasky   10 02 05 More

Our friends at CENTCOM have issued their latest newsletter, well worth viewing here. More

Gail Collins makes some half hearted feints towards restoring a bit of integrity to the New York Times today, by acknowledging some recent errors, particularly with regard to Paul Krugman's columns.  Today, October 2nd, the Times is still correcting Krugman's original August 19 collection of... More

It's true that our country's 'loss' of manufacturing jobs has been due partly to our shift from labor—intensive products, such as textiles, to high—tech products, such as pharmaceuticals.  But there are pieces of this jobs puzzle that aren't getting nearly the attention they... More

Earlier this week, I thanked Representative Steve King (R—IA) for defeating a measure to name Berkeley's Main POst Office after former Berkeley City Councilwoman Maudelle Shirek. One of the matters Rep. King brought to the attention of the House of Representatives was her service on the board... More

A measure of gender equality was achieved among the Taliban today: KABUL, Afghanistan —— U.S. and Afghan forces arrested a Taliban commander suspected in bomb attacks against coalition forces during a raid on central Afghanistan home, where he tried to conceal his identity by... More

Robert Satloff examines (subscription only) the supposed truism that Arab public opinion is against the United States in The New Republic Online. The assumption that Arabs are enraged at America relies heavily on a single source——polling data. But there are two major problems with... More

Zombie, the San Francisco photo—blogger, uncovers some rather misleading context—omission by the San Francisco Chronicle. The Chron published a front page photograph of a black teenager at an anti—America "anti—war" rally. As Zombie captured with other photos, she was part... More

For years, liberals and and their labor union allies have generated many myths about American jobs being exported overseas, and have created a sense of fear in millions of hard—working people.  In fact, the truth is much more complex.  Rejecting the pessimistic labor union cries... More

The Los Angeles Times publicizes a badly—designed study intended to impugn faith in God. "The dark side of faith: "It's official: Too much religion may be a dangerous thing." By correlating expressions of faith in God in various nations with selected "quantifiable societal health" indicators... More

Noam Schreiber, writing the venerable TRB column (subscription only) for The New Republic, gleefully identifies tensions within the GOP voting coaltion, and uses the insight to explain the persistence of GOP spending procilivities and to infer impending doom for continued GOP dominance of domestic... More