A Study In Contrasts, or, What Liberal Media? Part XXIX

Chrenkoff the Great tells the tale of two movies, one pro-Iraq War, one anti-, and the reaction of the press. Guess which one is well-received...come on, you'll never guess it. Oh, you got that one after all. Suppose I tell you one is made by Iraqis and one by the BBC; can you guess which is pro-war and which anti-? Damn, you're good...

Beyond Red and Pew

Okay, that's a really, REALLY bad pun. The Pew Center has a new report out called 'Beyond Red and Blue', and Patrick Ruffini has it covered. I mean, really covered - as in, 'you really need to read it' covered. For fun, you can take a quiz online, and find out your classification. I'm an enterpriser, much like fellow test-taker Michelle Malkin. Enjoy your weekend, folks...

Quick Shots: Absolutely Hilarious

This is really, really funny stuff here (hat tip to Daily Pundit)...

Speaking of funny, The Therapist is opening the archives (well, okay, just making the archives more convenient)...

And wrapping up in the same vein, isn't it funny how Kofi Annan's memory strategically goes blank at certain times? No? Not funny? Nah, I didn't think so, either...

Trust Your Feelings, Luke...

...and turn to the Darth Side. If you haven't sampled Lord Vader's blog yet, well, holy cow, what are you waiting for? Delicious stuff...and no doubt Annakin's getting a little nervous, with the countdown in full swing. After some initially rave reviews, some boo-birds are coming out of the woodworks. Myself, I'm still waiting to see what Ebert says...

What's An Infidel to Make of This?

Via Tim Blair (who links to a delightfully funny bit on DVDs), I was turned onto Ask-Imam.com, which bills itself as Islamic Q & A online. To say that it's a culture shock is an understatement. I respect anyone's belief or choice not to believe at all, but really, isn't this a bit much?

How should we pray for the destruction of the enemies of Islam? Can we pray by taking their individual names?

Rather than being chastised, the questioner is given a quite lengthy and very serious answer.

There are those who would doubtless point out similar passages in the Torah, and they'd be right...which leads me to this thought, irrespective of one's view of religion and regardless of one's faith. The appeal of Christianity, and the message of Jesus, is that it recognizes the humanity of unbelievers, elevates the sinner, and advocates the just treatment of the least among us.

It's a given, of course, that Christians and non-Christians alike seldom live up to these ideals, but it's a great message, isn't it? I'm not trying to stereotype the Islamic faith, though, which, like most Westerners, I know little about. I just find the question above, and the gravity accorded it, to be quite anachronistic and harsh. Still, to quote Robert Hunter, 'once in a while you can get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right'. Here's a beauty from the same site:

Lies are only permitted in three instances, for a man to make his wife happy, in war and for reconciliation between people.

Quite right, particularly that first one; now there's an interfaith message I can get behind!

Saturday Must-Read: Frustration at Ground Zero

I've blogged before on how inexcusable it is that we're nearly four years out from 9/11 and still nowhere near breaking ground on the proposed Freedom Tower, and submitted my own proposal for a solution. In yesterday's Wall Street Journal, an article of similar sentiments appeared. Reflecting on the pit that is Ground Zero, the article concludes:

Also missing there--and this may be the sorriest consequence of all--will be concrete signs of the ingenuity, enthusiasm and resilience of the American people. Every day that the pit remains empty, those attributes will be invisible.

Why doesn't Frank Rich, Maureen Dowd, or Paul Krugman ever harp on this? Is the Times forgetful of its own back yard? This would make an excellent journalistic crusade, and relieve the rest of us from the constant rewriting of a single idea: the condemnation of religious conservatives. It's just a thought...

Weekly Jackass Number Twenty-Three: Arianna Huffington

A rumored 8 million visitors the first day! Larry David! Harry Shearer! Jim Lampley! (Umm, scratch that last one - please!). What could be more exciting than the newly launched Huffington Post?

Well, for starters: watching paint peel. A trip to the dentist also comes to mind. Arianna's high-priced venture is a bomb of epic proportions. Don't let the initial numbers fool you; as this excellent article in LA Weekly rightly points out, it would have been almost impossible not to get huge numbers for the launch, given the hype. But blogs live and die by repeat visitors; I've had days of Instalanches, and thousands of visitors, yet what pleases me is to watch my baseline inch up on just normal days.

Arianna's got nowhere to go but down, though, and I predict the flameout will be swift. I am an admitted blog junkie, and whatever the Huffington Post is, it is most emphatically not a blog. What went wrong? How could the site be this blindingly bad? Let's break it down a little.

(1) The exponentially too-large group. Group blogs can be both successful and excellent; PoliPundit and Power Line come to mind. However, PoliPundit has five voices, Power Line three. Longtime fans of both can usually tell whose post they're reading before they even get to the byline - each player has a recognizable voice. Doubtless the same is true of Huffington's gaggle, but sixty-two people waving their arms for attention at once is not only not entertaining, it's downright annoying!

(2) The group members. Look me in the eye and tell me honestly: do you really want to read a random paragraph by Walter Cronkite? Do celebrities need yet another platform to pontificate from? Lord knows I've been itching to hear Laurie David's view on environmental issues, since it's such a big secret. Ditto Norman Lear. Wonder what his political leanings are, anyway? It's so great that he now has an outlet.

(3) The split personality. Is it a blog or a news service? Answer: a poor example of both. The very concept of this venture is wrong, wrong, wrong - it's as if you can just plunk down some people, link to a few headlines, and tell everybody to go to work. That's not the way to do it. Blogs are highly individual, even the group ones; they have their own style, their own pace, their own look and feel, and (with the best of them) a distinctive voice that rises above the fray.

This thing is a train wreck, a complete disaster. As paranoid as sportscaster Jim Lampley's election conspiracies are, his postings are the only ones to cause a buzz, and (not coincidentally) the only ones that seemed to invite dialogue. Conservatives will not come to this site regularly, because of its heavy liberal leaning. (Those that do will come to gloat). Newshounds have Drudge. Liberals aren't impressed, either (read this hatchet job in the Village Voice). And unlike the blog you are currently reading, Arianna's venture costs money - serious money. Money that is now surely as gone as if it had been set on fire.

The real reason I'm awarding this week's prize to Huffington, though, is for the pure arrogance of thinking that celebrity involvement would make the blogosphere 'come of age'. When it's all said and done, the Huffington Post will have as much impact on blogging as Pat Sajak had on late-night TV. Bye-bye, Arianna; don't let the door hit you on the way out.

(A hat tip to the great Tim Blair and Larvatus Prodeo for some of the links above)...and thanks for the link, Tim!

UPDATE 05/15/04 3:52 pm central: A tip of the hat to the great Lorie Byrd for the link, and welcome to all you good folks from PoliPundit. Lorie's suggestion of Chevy Chase instead of Pat Sajak is indeed a good one; that's why she's in the blogging big leagues, while I'm languishing in the minors. Hope your weekend has been an agreeable one...

Miscellanea: Nuking the Filibuster Edition

With the hat tip to Ryan James, here's a good article on Mike Huckabee and his campaign for a healthier America...

Captain Ed says the showdown is imminent; will there be a last minute compromise? Time will tell...

Has the blogosphere jumped the shark? DJ Drummond doesn't think so...

The great Tom Maguire tries to sort out the latest CBS controversy, and does the usual bangup job (hat tip to the Instapundit)...

Ever wonder what mad tyrant holds the dubious bodycount record? Wonder no more...

We've all heard the oft-qouted figure of 100,000 dead Iraqi civilians...the UN says 24,000. That's not good news, don't get me wrong, but this study appears to be a lot more comprehensive, and thus more credible...

Add Ann Althouse to the list of those less than overwhelmed by Senora Huff'n'Puff...

Oil-For-Food: Galloway Coming to U.S. to Testify

I've been meaning to post on this development for a couple of days, but it's been covered so well, by among others, Pejmanesque, Little Green Footballs, and the Daily Ablution, that I'll just refer you to their excellent work. Enjoy your Friday evening!...

Quick Shots: A LONG Streak Comes to an End

In yet another sign that Tiger Woods is indeed a normal man, he missed the cut today. Let me rephrase that: he missed his first cut...in seven years (142 tour stops). Amazing...

I've long thought tenure is vastly abused; Victor Davis Hanson says get rid of it...

Quick Shots: Congrats to Suzanne!

One of our good friends is going to be helping out the esteemed Dr. Shackleford this summer. If you haven't been by lately, check 'em both out, they're always great...

John Hawkins at Right Wing News has still more on that ridiculous Lampley 'stolen election' thread...

Media Watch continues their tired crusade against Arthur Chrenkoff...but check this out! More here from the man himself...

Beyond Belief...

...in more ways than one. Courtesy of Little Green Footballs, take a look at the responses to an on-line poll regarding al-Qaeda at the Democratic Underground. A worldview this paranoid of the government is very near the tipping point of clinical pathology. Reminds me of a former co-worker who insisted on inserting 'IF Osama bin Laden was responsible' into any conversation about 9/11. Sheesh...reality-based community, indeed!

Delay on Democrats

Here's the embattled Republican at a fundraiser, speaking of the Democratic Party:

"No ideas. No leadership. No agenda. And, just in the last week, we can now add to that list, no class," DeLay said, a reference to Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid's remark to school children that President Bush was "a loser."

That sort of statement is inflammatory and politically incorrect - and largely accurate, although I would have preferred if he had avoided labeling all of the Democrats with 'no class' based on the unclassy Reid. The Democrats would do well to remember what happened to the Republicans in the '98 mid-terms, when they found themselves in a very similar spot, and defined themselves largely as the permanent opposition.

Friday Morning Must-Read: A Win is a Win?

Ron Brownstein, in today's L.A. Times, sees the Bolton vote as a microcosm of the Bush years. Brownstein paints of picture of a Bush administration that will 'accept achingly narrow margins in Congress and at the ballot box to pursue ambitious changes that sharply divide the country'. Brownstein argues that it is this approach of holding the base and squeezing the middle that alienates much of the country. That's true, as far as it goes, but I think Bush is also a president who sees a need for accomplishment over poll numbers; that's certainly the impression one gets from his recent press conference. That's not to say that I don't believe there are pollsters in the Bush camp studying every little whim of the electorate; of course there are. I just don't believe Bush is as beholden to his pollsters as, say, Clinton was. Check it out for yourself...

Is China Indifferent to a Nuclear North Korea?

That's the question I have after reading this editorial in the Washington Times. I've stated before that I feel Beijing is the key to whatever happens in this tense situation; I hope the editorial board at the Times is misreading the tea leaves, because we need the pressure China can bring to contain Kim Jong-Il...

Everything You Wanted To Know About John Bolton (But Were Afraid To Ask)

Jon Henke, in the kind of comprehensive, thoughtful post that I often link to in an attempt to appear smarter than I really am, has a pretty near definitive take on John Bolton. Links aplenty, good analysis, more mentally stimulating than a year's worth of Daily Kos - I'd give it a 9.5...nice work!

New Poll - Continuing In the Movie Vein

The last one was a laugher, of course - The Empire Strikes Back by a huge margin was your favorite Star Wars flick, though A New Hope and Return of The Jedi fared decently. It's that movie time of year, so we'll stick with the theme...back to the political polls soon...

Lampley Continues To Get It Handed To Him

One of the more ridiculous 'threads' going on at Huff'n'Puff has been the conspiracy-theory-laden rants of sportscaster Jim Lampley, and the attempts by Byron York and others to bring him back to the real world. I mentioned Mystery Pollster's excellent response yesterday; now, courtesy of Michelle Malkin, here comes Dirty Harry's righteous butt-kicking...

Another Must-Read From Kissinger

Jeez, does Henry have a book coming out or something? I started the day with Henry, and he's already at it again (hat tip to Real Clear Politics). In a simply extraordinarily on-target piece in the International Herald Tribune, Kissinger highlights the huge impact the Bush administration has had in the cause of freedom:

Extraordinary advances of democracy have occurred in recent months: elections in Afghanistan, Iraq, Ukraine and Palestine; local elections in Saudi Arabia; Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon; the opening up of the presidential election in Egypt, and upheavals against entrenched authoritarians in Kyrgyzstan.

Rarely have conditions seemed so fluid and the environment so malleable. This welcome trend was partly triggered by President George W. Bush's Middle East policy and accelerated by his second inaugural address, which elevated the progress of freedom in the world to the defining objective of American foreign policy....

...American exceptionalism, viewing itself as a shining city on the hill, has always insisted on representing universal values beyond the traditional dictates of national interest.

In a world of jihad, terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, President Bush in his second inaugural address put forward a challenge at once going beyond the interests of any one country and that different societies could embrace without prejudice to their own interests.

Highest recommendation for this one...

Quick Shots - What's the Deal With Robert Byrd, Anyway?

You know, I don't remember why, but I used to respect this guy. I'm sorry I missed his speech today, but Ryan James had me covered...

If you were looking for Viking Pundit, he's gone fisking (ouch!)...

How many chances do you get to read a post containing the phrases 'horse hockey' and 'Soviet domination of post-war Eastern Europe'? Act now while the offer lasts...

Chomsky: Demoralizing Americans Since 1966

(1966 being the year Chomsky's first 'political' book was published). Yesterday, I submitted for your approval the Chomsky Rule; Charles at Little Green Footballs has a post entitled the Chomsky Effect. It seems America's favorite dissident linguist is now praising the 'courage' of yet another slacker who joined the military purely for selfish reasons, only to back out when called upon to fulfill his duties. Ah, yes, courage...my, but you've changed...

John Kerry: An Endless Source of Amusement

Michelle Malkin is astounded at the hubris of Senator John 'What Promise To Sign Form SF-180' Kerry. Seems our favorite junior Senator from Massachusetts is pontificating about the importance of credibility during the Bolton hearings. John, here's a thought - on your way out of the hearings, borrow a pen and sign the form already!

A Turn For The Worse

Christopher Dickey has a troubling article in Newsweek regarding casualties in Iraq. Dickey is no Kossack; he scoffs at the Sgrena conspiracy theorists and finds the 100,000 civilian casualty figure highly improbable. Nevertheless, Dickey calls for more openness from the Pentagon regarding the still extremely high body count and attack levels; I happen to agree. While I applaud the great Arthur Chrenkoff and his always enlightening 'Good News From Iraq', the high price paid by Americans in both treasure and loss of life must be dealt with, openly, so that no one gets any unrealistic expectations of this thing being over any time soon. Clearly, the insurgents remain too well-armed and plentiful for the security situation to stabilize in the near term.

Talk About Your Low Expectations

Via Mickey Kaus, we have another great Huff'n'Puff quote from Evan Smith, re: the cancelled Dennis Miller: "He could have been Bill Maher". Mickey's overall take on Huffington's site:

The so-called "The Blog"--with all the posts, even the ones mocking the entire enterprise--is a big fun mess. A blog-wallow!

Speaking for myself, it's day four, and I'm bored to tears with the whole thing already...

Today's Must-Read: Kissinger On A Nuclear Iran

Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has a lengthy op-ed on proliferation, and I'm more pessimistic than ever. Why? Because he makes a case that a nuclear Iran is an even bigger nightmare than a nuclear North Korea, and that 'regime change' must be our goal. Some highlights:

...Diplomacy is about demonstrating to the other side the consequences of its actions and the benefits of the alternatives.

One reason European negotiators have made the limited progress they have on the nuclear issue with Iran is the implied threat of actions the US may take in case of deadlock. The key issue between the US and Europe should not be over the necessity of pressure if diplomacy fails but the definition of it, the timing and precisely by what process that pressure is designed to lead to a non-nuclear Iran.

It is in that context that the proposition that regime change is the most reliable guarantee for Iran's denuclearisation must be evaluated...

...A non-proliferation policy must achieve clarity. How much time is available before Iran has a nuclear capability and what strategy can best stop an Iranian weapons program?

How do we prevent the diplomatic process from turning into a means to legitimise proliferation rather than avert it? We must never forget that failure will usher in a new set of nuclear perils dwarfing those that we have just surmounted.

As they say, read it all...

Advice To Lampley: Before Blogging, Learn To Read

The Mystery Pollster has a simply devastating and wildly entertaining critique of one of the Huff-n-Puff Post's most ridiculous posts to date...bonus points for working in the Wisconsin fraud angle. Highly recommended...

Quick Shots: Look Out, Tom Cruise!

Scientology is facing some rough competition (hat tip to bebere)...

Miriam reflects on bumper stickers - man, you see some stupid ones here in Austin (the most popular is the liberal chestnut of W with a diagonal through it - you know, no W)...

Another great post from Chrenkoff, on Ridley Scott's Kingdom of Heaven...

I'll Concede This Much to the Liberals...

...there was voter fraud in 2004. Massive voter fraud...it was in Wisconsin, and it was to the advantage of the Kerry ticket. Power Line has more...

The Chomsky Rule

If Noam Chomsky, or any group or figure who draws inspiration thereof, is opposed to a measure, said measure carries the strong presumption of excellent policy. Hmm...there must be a flaw there, but I don't see it...

UPDATE 05/13/05 5:40 p.m. - Welcome, Outside the Beltway Traffic Jam readers...enjoy your weekend...

What's Wrong With Star Wars? Lucas Doesn't Respect His Own Baby

At least that's the conclusion I draw after reading this entertaining wish list of plot resolutions. While I highly recommend the article, the end effect, for me, is to wistfully sigh about what might have been...geez, all of a sudden I'm really depressed thinking about the finality of it all. Time to check in with the Therapist...

The NY Times: The More Things Change...

I have great news! MoDo is on leave until July...and in a single column, her temporary replacement makes more salient, thought-provoking points than Maureen has managed in the last five years of Bush-hating. Make no mistake, Matt Miller is a liberal, and he makes that clear; but just imagine the following coming from Maureen or Frank Rich:

You'd never guess from the Democratic hysteria that President Bush's plan to "progressively index" Social Security is an idea we liberals may one day want to embrace. So farsighted Democrats who want to (1) win back power and (2) use that power to fix big problems should quit carping about Bush's evil "cuts" and punish him instead with what I call Responsible Demagoguery: harsh politics that leaves sound policy intact.

Why do I say this? Start with this poorly understood fact: Under today's system of "wage indexed" benefits, every new cohort of retirees is guaranteed a higher level of real benefits than the previous generation. Workers retiring in 2025, for example, are scheduled to receive payments 20 percent higher in real terms than today's retirees. Today's teenagers are slated to get a 60 percent increase. When Democrats cry about "cuts," they mean trims from these higher levels.

Um, Maureen, don't be in a rush to finish that book (let me guess, is it going to be a 'wacky' take on the Bush administration?)...

Don't get too excited, though, because the Times is still the Times. TaxProf Blog (hat tip to the Instapundit) has an excellent example of how selective data can warp meaning; of course, a less charitable interpretation might be that if you make less than $50,000, you're not visible on their radar screen.

UPDATE 12:47 p.m.: Maureen's absence is not going unnoticed...more here...

North Korea Soon to Have Ten Nukes

That's the implication of this article, assuming that Kim Jong-Il already has the half-dozen he is believed to have. Really, though, numbers no longer matter. Once a country has more than one, who cares if they have a thousand? Clearly, a nuclear war is unthinkable, but think about it, we must. The danger is that some lunatic, whether Kim or another party, will explode a nuke over a populated area. Of course, this would be a tragedy of unthinkable proporations: today's arsenal is composed of weapons far more powerful than Fat Man and Little Boy.

What would the reaction of the world be? Clearly, a nuclear attack by North Korea would present the gravest threat to the globe since the days of Hitler. I suspect the scenario would be concentrated air strikes against all North Korean installations, real or suspected, followed by a massive military buildup in South Korea aimed at invasion of the North. Kim would then threaten to nuke the troops building up, or would actually do so; alternatively, he might preemptively invade the South. In either case, would we have the nerve to break the nuclear taboo ourselves?

This is by far the most pressing matter facing the world at the moment. The questions I outlined above are only some of the horrors we must be prepared to consider. Let's pray it's only a clumsy bluff by a dying regime; however, we can't afford to wait and find out. This is not a Republican or American issue; this is, perhaps, a pending global tragedy, and the clock is ticking.

Wictory Wednesday: More Help For Kerry

It's really touching, all the support being displayed in John Kerry's time of need. The outpouring of aid makes my heart swell with pride. Get the details here, and as usual, please click a random link or two from the blogroll at bottom right...because, really, it's better to give than receive...

Quick Shots: Happy Anniversary, Priscilla

Doug TenNapel on Prisclla Owens (hat tip to J.A. Gillmartin):

I'd like to wish a special Happy Anniversary to the Honorable Priscilla Owen...it's been four years since she was first nominated. She's experienced more blockage than Ted Kennedy after an all-you-can-eat-Philly-Cheese-steak competition.

That's a lot of blockage, alright...

More signs that the Republican congressional leadership is failing us...but Tony Blankley thinks they're turning the corner. I hope he's right...

Why I Never Go After Krugman

Oh, alright, occasionally I do, but not with the energy that I save for Dowd and Rich. And why should I? After all, who can top the Minuteman when it comes to taking on Paul? He's done it again...highly recommended.

A Close Call...

...apparently, for President Bush in Georgia today. Man, that is scary stuff! Thank God it didn't explode (hat tip to the Hedgehog Report)...

Miscellanea: WETA Goes To Narnia Edition

I didn't know, until informed by Suzanne Wood, that the brilliant team at WETA Workshop is working on The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. A good sign indeed!...

Punditish has more on the political genius that is Howard Dean...

Even more on that OTHER political genius, JFK II, at the Bernoulli Effect...

Even our good friend Fargus is giving up on the junior Senator from Massachusetts...

Carpe Bonum continues his award-winning ways...

Americans for Freedom has some tough questions for Chris Matthews...

Add Pam Meister to the list of those underwhelmed by Huff'n'Puff...

Quick Shots - BEST. DAY. EVER

Thanks to Michelle Malkin and PoliPundit, and all you wonderful people, Decision '08 had the biggest traffic day ever (even with that half hour or so the Blogger sites were down), over 7,000 visitors at last count. Wow...I really appreciate my regular readers the most, though (you know who you are!)...

Ryan James dissects Harry Reid's latest statement on filibusters and finds he's in need of a civics lesson...

More on filibusters from Gary Gross...

On March 3, I posted an open letter to John McCain regarding the rumored regulation of blogs, and I promised I'd let you know if I received a response. I did - yesterday. The letter was dated April 20, 2005 (wow - that's some quick delivery!). Nowhere, literally, does the letter mention the Internet. Instead, it seems to be standard boilerplate about the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, and '527's, and (this is the closest it came to addressing my concerns) the recent introduction of legislation to force the FEC to do its job. Well...at least he replied.

Drum On Huffington

Perhaps it's a given that conservatives aren't going to be blown away by the Huffington Post, given its pretty heavy liberal slant. One of my favorite liberal bloggers, Kevin Drum, isn't exactly blown away either, though, and many of his complaints I can only echo. The biggest problem, and one that many commentators have noted, is that there are too many voices (and far too many of those voices don't have any clue as to what a blog is - it's not a giant linklist to op-eds. If that's what you want, you can't get any better than Real Clear Politics, in my opinion).

For most of us, I suspect, the beauty of blogs for both the blogger and the reader is watching someone discover 'their voice'. For example, read the initial entries on almost any blog (this one included), and the awkwardness is painful to behold. It takes a few weeks before you really decide on your tone, your style, etc. So am I being unfair? After all, The Huff-and-Puff bunch haven't really had a chance to discover their voices, right?

Well, yeah, maybe...but who's got time to figure out five dozen individual voices at one website? It's really, really hard to see this thing succeeding...but time will tell.

25 Things For Bloggers To Know

John Hawkins has the list. Myself, I need to pay more attention to #5 (I probably am making myself too much of a pest with some folks), and #25 (so if I post less during the day, you'll know why). Good post! (hat tip to Lorie Byrd at PoliPundit)...

Form SF-180: Kerry Responds

Statement by Senator John Forbes Kerry, Massachusetts

For Immediate Release

My friends, I am under attack by a lynch mob of salivating morons who would rather discuss whether or not I have signed Form SF-180 than the important issues facing us today. My critics ask why I have not signed the form, as if it were that simple, as if I could simply pick up a pen and sign my name. This unilateral approach is exactly what led to such tragedies as Mariah Carey�s career. I believe there is a better way.

I have a plan that addresses not only my Form SF-180, but also the Form SF-180s of all Americans. If my plan is enacted, the day will come when we no longer are two Americas, one with the appropriate resources to ensure children have adequate Form SF-180 skills, and the other lacking in Form SF-180s at all.

If I, a wealthy, privileged, French-speaking, aristocratic, handsome Senator married to a ketchup heiress, am unable to sign a Form SF-180 in 100 days, what chance is there for that disadvantaged youth, raised by a single mother, worrying about enough to eat? Is that young man even aware of the Form SF-180? We can do better.

So, my fellow Americans, ask not whether Senator John F. Kerry has signed his Form SF-180, but rather, what Form SF-180 can do for that disadvantaged youth. Thank you, and God Bless America!

UPDATE 9:36 a.m. - thanks to the lovely and talented Michelle Malkin for the link, and to any new readers, you might also enjoy this piece of SF-180 inspired satire...

UPDATE 10:53 a.m. - hurray! PoliPundit linked as well - many thanks (remember, PoliPundit is the guy to thank for the counter at the top of the page - add one to your site if you haven't already)...

Quick Shots: Defending Chrenkoff

JoJo has some followup on Media Watch's attempt to discredit our good friend Arthur Chrenkoff...

Trey Jackson has an excellent site that provides video of current events; I'm a frequent visitor. Trey's been getting a lot of hits, and that's good; but video is a killer in terms of bandwidth, and it's become a very expensive proposition for him. I think his contribution is valuable, and I want him to stick around. So a challenge to you...donate, if nothing else, $1. $1 to keep up a great site. Of course, if you can do more, do it...I'll start things out; as soon as I post this I'm going to Trey's place and sending him $5...come on now, $1, you can do it! Alright, enough...have a great day!

The Long Journey Continues

I posted my satirical glance at Operation Sign Form SF-180 ten days ago to celebrate the 90th day since Kerry went on national television and promised to sign the form. I was fortunate to get a lot of links and good feedback, yet there were those who felt I was picking on him, or who tried to draw an equivalence with Bush and (bizarrely) those discredited National Guard memos, or who quoted various statements Kerry made on the campaign trail.

To the critics, a reminder: Kerry made the promise. I didn't bring it up, and neither did PoliPundit. Tim Russert did; Kerry said he would sign; it's been 100 days, and he has not.

Quick Shots - Kerry Knows a Good Idea When He Steals It...

...or so says Blue State Republican, who suggests we just go to the source...

Peter Beinart argues in the Washington Post that Hillary can't move to the center because she was always there - but I'm not convinced. Hillarycare wasn't a program of the left? Does a centrist politician blame the problems caused by her husband's infidelities on a 'vast right-wing conspiracy'? Hillary has moved to the center, Peter, whether from conviction or expediency...

The Attack of the Obtuse

You'll either laugh or work yourself into a rage after reading this account from Tim Blair about how Australia's Media Watch is attacking our good friend Arthur Chrenkoff, and his invaluable periodic survey 'Good News From Iraq'. Highly recommended...

Topic B With Tina Brown

Over at the all-new, scintillating Huffington Post, Tina Brown repeats the saw that she is leaving Topic A to complete a book on Princess Di (ooohhh, can't wait for that - THERE's a topic A for you - haven't we beat that horse enough yet?). For the REAL reason, look to this article in Cable & Broadcasting - to call Brown's ratings low would be an insult to low. Hey, this Huffington thing may turn out to be alright, after all - I mean, where else can you keep up with so many C-list celebrities in one spot?

Huffington Post is Open For Business

The inaugural day of the Huffington Post is upon us; my reaction - ehhh, I could take it or leave it. Very few of the 'celebrity' posts are interesting, although I did crib the Tom Cruise story from the front page (though the Post stresses the Scientology angle - read the whole article). Check it out for yourself, and you have any thoughts, why not share them with the rest of us?

If The Choice is Between Americans and Vicious Aliens, They'll Take the Aliens...

German magazine Der Spiegel, in an interview with Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg, speculates on the global reaction to an alien invasion:

SPIEGEL: Aren't you afraid that audiences in some parts of the world may even applaud when they see Americans lying on the ground?

Spielberg: I wouldn't want to speculate about that. We aren't responsible if people perceive the film differently because of their ideology and their aversion to our country.

Ye gads, has it come to this? The question is troublesome enough, but people cheering dead Americans? Ah, those sophisticated Europeans...

Quick Shots: A Blogger Code of Ethics?

I haven't commented on the NY Times and its concern over blogger ethics, so, for now, I'll refer you to Christine Hurt, who makes the salient point that there is no overarching body to enforce a blogging ethical code (I'm in the group that thinks blogs are fairly self-policing, btw) (hat tip to the Instapundit)...

From Viking Pundit, we learn that Robert Novak is reporting on a fundraising shortfall for the Democrats since their disastrous selection of Howard Dean as DNC Chairman...

Monday Morning Must-Read: The Cosby Critique

James Campbell in the Houston Chronicle (hat tip to Real Clear Politics) talks about Bill Cosby's ongoing crusade to inspire better parenting. It's worth pointing out, as Campbell does, that Cosby is doing this at his cost, appearing free across the country to discuss these issues. He's a very rich man; he doesn't need to do this, but he chooses to, and I admire him for it.

Miscellanea: Oh, No, It's The End of the Weekend! Edition

Victor Davis Hanson engages in America's past-time: that's right, dissecting what's wrong with the Democrats (did you think I meant baseball? Sheesh!)...

Mickey Kaus's First Rule of Journalism: Always generalize wildly from your own personal experience (paging Pauline Kael)...

UN watchdog: North Korea may have up to six nuclear weapons...

Time magazine: Oil-For-Food about to heat up...

I was all prepared to rip this apart, but it's actually kind of funny, in a sycophantic way...

I don't know how he keeps coming up with this stuff - hilarious!...

You may have heard about the 60th anniversary of V-E Day, where we recall the victimhood of Germany...

Lugar: Bolton nomination to clear committee on party line vote. In other news, the Pope is Catholic...

Do you want your tax dollars to subsidize Bill Moyers? Nah, I didn't think so. Of course, I don't want my tax dollars subsidizing conservative television, either - and that's a good argument to just do away with PBS, in my view...

Yo, Frank, You Had A Week And That's The Best You Could Do?

The detestable Frank Rich's latest column is, basically, a condemnation of Laura Bush's recent comedy routine as representative of a trend towards 'fake' news in the Bush administration (complete with the obligatory reference to Jeff Gannon). Wow, Frank, that really stinks, as usual...

How bad is this column? For proof that we live in a time of fake news, Rich goes back to the Mission Accomplished kerfuffle...oh, and he mentions Jonathan Klein's admonition to the White House Press Corp, without mentioning that it was Klein's CNN network that turned into RBN for a week or so (the Runaway Bride Network, that is). That's enough for me - I'm convinced.

Apparently, Rich feels that when the White House correspondents get together for one evening a year of fun, food, and drinks, with no less a guest than the President himself, it should be a solemn affair with much head-nodding and stern glances to the left and right. Please! As I've said before, this is nothing more than a celebrity 'roast' - watch some old Dean Martin, Frank, you'll get it. Of course, Dean was pretty clean, so you'll have to do without that profanity that you see as the height of artistry.

At least he doesn't carp on the Religious Right this time (but he can't resist one little shot at the 'faith-based demagoguery of the Family Research Council' - why faith-based, Frank? Why that choice of adjectives? Why demagoguery? If an interest group campaigns for its interests, that's demagoguery? You really need to to see a shrink about your obsessiveness). Fair warning, though, folks - Rich says '...[n]ewspaper circulation is on the skids, the big three network anchor thrones are as precarious as King Lear's, bloggers are on the rampage, and the government is embracing fake reporters and threatening to jail real ones'. Did you hear that, kids? Bloggers are on the rampage - look out, I'm coming your way!

Scary, ain't it?

Another Freedom Up in Smoke

We had an election yesterday, in Austin, and the draconian smoking ban passed with 52% of the vote (free registration may be required). As I mentioned before, I quit smoking some ten months ago; I haven't cheated once, and I have no doubt that I will not. My smoking days are over, period. For eighteen years that wasn't the case, and for quite a few of those years, I frequented the live music establishments that make Austin unique. Let me let you in a little secret, folks; people that go to bars like to smoke.

Make no mistake about it, this ban is terrible for the 'Live Music Capital of the World'. We were told, in the run-up to this election, about the teaming masses who longed to see live music, but were chased away by the smoke. Yet, every bar that tried having 'smoke-free' nights inevitably cancelled them for lack of attendance. So, the 'progressives' have voted to achieve by governmental fiat what the marketplace would not support, the livelihood of club owners be damned.

And this is a 'progressive' cause, make no mistake. It just doesn't seem right that people should be able to engage in that awful smoking, so let's make it illegal. (Exhaust fumes are harmful, too, and every day we must inhale them - are the days of the automobile numbered?). Look at the communities across the country that have imposed a complete smoking ban; almost all are largely liberal (though, I suppose, the case could be made that most cities are more liberal than their rural counterparts).

If I seem bitter about this, I am. Going to a club and seeing live music is not a right - it is a privilege granted to you by the owner of that club, who has put his money on the line to try to entertain you and make a living. Nothing in the world stops a club owner who wants to ban smoking from doing so in the absence of a ban; now, they have no choice in the matter. All those who supported this measure had better go out, every night, and start spending the dollars, like they assured us they wanted to all along. What a fiasco; it's almost enough to make me want to smoke a cigarette...

My Beagle Attempts Investigative Reporting Through Google

I'm tired of waiting for the clowns in Washington to okay this story, so I'm plowing ahead; this is potentially explosive stuff, so I hope you're sitting down.

Everyone loves a beagle; from Snoopy to, well, me, we've long been man's best friend. It has come to my attention, however, that some people, some very famous people, love beagles - TO EAT!!!

As you can see through my exclusive link here to somebody else's web page, the dastardly Michael Klein has styled himself the 'beagle boy to the stars', and has served my kinfolk to, among, others, the lovely Brooke Shields, the lovely Sharon Stone, the lovely Walt Frazier, and the even lovelier Bill Murray. I'm outraged, outraged that this is going on, and as soon as I figure out how to get to New York City, or even where it is, I intend to visit this so-called 'beagle boy', and poop on his floor.

[Mark - that's it? I've been hyping this investigation for three weeks, and that's all you had?]

Well, it's very difficult for dogs to use computers, so it took a while. I don't have opposable thumbs, you know...

[Mark - You know, your whole premise is wrong. He's the bagle boy to the stars - bagle. B-a-g-l-e. Bagle boy.]

Did I mention dogs can't spell very well, either?

Until next time, folks...and remember, always be a best friend to man's best friend.

UPDATE 3:54 p.m. - ha, ha! The beagle gets the last laugh. Mark, you spelled 'bagel' wrong, too! That's bagel. B-a-g-e-l. Never mess with a dog ([Clint, you got me! - Mark])...

Candidate Profile Eighteen: Evan Bayh

I've long made a habit of warning our side that if we take Hillary for granted, we'll regret it; similarly, if Hillary takes Evan Bayh for granted, she would be very foolish indeed. The Democratic Senator for Indiana is considered by some to be the most likely primary candidate to unseat Hillary, so let's take a closer look.

Birch Evans Bayh III - Official Senate page

Americans for Bayh unoffical 2008 website

Resume - son of former Senator and Democratic presidential candidate Birch E. Bayh II; two-term Senator from Indiana; former Indiana Secretary of State; member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Select Committee on Intelligence; chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council; advocate of 'Third Way' politics (think Tony Blair in the heartland); two-term Governor of Indiana (1989- 1997)

As Chip Bennett recently noted, all the signs of a 2008 run are present for Bayh. I think we can safely assume he'll be around for the primaries. It is in the primaries that Bayh would face his most difficult battle, one symbolic of the struggle for the Democratic soul: will the Dems be the party of Bill Clinton and the Democratic Leadership Council, or the party of Howard Dean and MoveOn.org? (Ironically, Bayh would be a more representative 'New Democrat' candidate than Clinton's own wife).

The problem is the Democratic Leadership Council is relatively centrist, as is Bayh, and that's anathema to the Kossacks and their ilk. For Markos, MoveOn.org, and the other Radical Left elements, it is apparently more important to preserve an atmosphere of vitriolic hate and crude profanity towards Republicans than to ever win another national election. It's the 'purity' (ha!) of the movement that counts, you see. Of course, what MoveOn and Kos don't realize is that their 3 million members and 400,000 daily visitors aren't symptomatic of a larger America that agrees with them - in fact, those numbers capture virtually everyone in America that agrees with their viewpoint - call it the Unsilent Minority, if you will.

What's all this got to do with Bayh? Plenty. I believe that the Democratic primaries of 2008 will be the most important held for that party since the days of Vietnam; truly, the future of the party is at stake. Hillary, Bayh, the DLC, the New Democrats - they understand this, and have taken pains to distance themselves from the Radicals. The 'progressives' are motivated, though, united in their belief that the entire world is composed of idiots that have been brainwashed into selling out; they make a fearful noise, and one of their own is now the Chairman of the Democratic Party.

If the centrist wing can recapture the primary process, and if the centrists consider Hillary to be the bearer of too much baggage to win (two big ifs, I know), then Bayh may present himself as a quite attractive alternative. Personally, I'm rooting for the centrists; although the partisan in me relishes a fight against the Progressives, I believe we need a strong Democratic Party to engage us in meaningful debate. Needlessly to say, we'll have more on this as events develop.

CURRENT ODDS: 17-1

UPDATE 07/04/05 10:38 p.m. central: Once you get past Hillary, this is shaping up to be a weak field. Bayh's a player, for now...

CURRENT ODDS: 12-1

A Slew of 2008 Links

All of a sudden, real attention is beginning to be shown to the 2008 race; I'm not sure what to make of it - probably the whole proposition has gotten so expensive that the hopefuls are already beginning to fish around for buzz and donors. In any event, here's a few from just the past couple of days:

Chris Suellentrop of Slate assesses George Allen in the L.A. Times, and notes how he's quickly moving up the ranks...

Joe Klein, while acknowledging the frontrunner status of Hillary, hopes she won't run - sorry, Joe, that circus is coming to town, whether you care to attend or not...

John Edwards is laying the ground work for 2008 by rightly disparaging the management of the 2004 campaign...

That's not making perenniel loser John Kerry happy as he gears up for his exercise in futility (run, John, run! - I need the material)....

The latest Marist poll has Rudy G. and Hillary still heading for a showdown...

Robert Novak assess the potential candidacy of Mitt Romney...

And if that's not enough for you, then get away from the computer awhile and go tell your mom Happy Mother's Day!...

Poll Wars, Episode VII: Revenge of the Blog

Not surprisingly, Ronald Reagan was your choice for greatest 20th-century president by a WIDE margin; perhaps a little surprisingly, Franklin D. Roosevelt was a strong second. I won't dissent from that - FDR takes a lot of flack from conservatives for starting the welfare state in the U.S., but he was an extremely important president.

So, you see the new poll - please note: if anyone asks why Episode III isn't on there, you are automatically disqualified...