Sobering Thoughts |
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Comments on politics, the culture, economics, and sports by Paul Tuns.
I am editor-in-chief of "The Interim," Canada's life and family newspaper, and author of "Jean Chretien: A Legacy of Scandal" (2004) and "The Dauphin: The Truth about Justin Trudeau" (2015).
I am some combination of conservative/libertarian, standing athwart history yelling "bullshit!"
You can follow me on Twitter (@ptuns).
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Tuesday, May 31, 2005
10 Books that Influenced the 20th Century for the Better A friend suggested that I do a counter-list to Human Events 10 most dangerous books from the 19th and 20th centuries. That was too difficult so I limited this list to books from the 20th century. But here are the ten that I think had the most beneficial influence (in order of most influential). 1. The Gulag Archipelago -- Aleksander Solzhenitsyn (opened the eyes of the West to the brutality of the Soviet Union) 2. The Road to Serfdom -- F.A. Hayek (we are all Hayekians now; before there was Friedman, there was Hayek) 3. Bureaucracy -- Ludwig von Mises (before there was Hayek, there was von Mises) 4. The Theology of the Body According to John Paul II: Human Love in the Divine Plan -- John Paul II (what began as a series of weekly lectures has profoundly influenced Catholic moral teaching for the past 20 years and set the stage for much of what John Paul II later wrote) 5. Smoking and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General -- Surgeon General's Office (I don't like the anti-tobacco fascists but this report did lead to a revolution in our thinking about smoking that will improve the health of millions) 6. Mere Christianity -- C.S. Lewis (I think the Abolition of Man is better and more important but I would suggest that Mere Christianity has touched the hearts of more converts to Christianity (or Christians who became more serious about their faith) than any other book) 7. God and Man at Yale -- William F. Buckley (launched the career of the man - and thus the magazine - that made late 20th century conservatism possible) 8. Capitalism and Freedom -- Milton Friedman (the two are related) 9. Orthodoxy -- G.K. Chesterton (the Catholic Mere Christianity) 10. Natural Right and History - Leo Strauss (influential teacher of so many public spirited men today) Honourable mentions: The Seven-Storey Mountain - Thomas Merton (opened millions of people's eyes to the benefits and fulfillment of the contemplative life), 1984 by George Orwell (influenced our thinking about totalitarian regimes), The Great Terror by Robert Conquest (would have made the list if Solzhenitsyn hadn't written the Gulag), The Conservative Mind by Russell Kirk (proved that conservatism was intellectually respectable), Relativity by Einstein ('nuff said), The Closing of the American Mind by Allan Bloom (both a criticism of the 1960s effect on the university campus and the opening salvo against political correctness that infected the campus in the '80s and '90s), Wealth and Poverty by George Gilder (I think it is better than Capitalism and Freedom but was less influential than Friedman) and the Way the World Works by Jude Wanniski (supply-side theorist influenced the Reagan Revolution -- if it could be proved that this book and not the Wall Street Journal editorial page guided Reagan's economic team's thinking, Wanniski would be in the top 10). There are books that I think are more important -- Witness by Whittaker Chambers and Man's Search for Meaning: An Introduction to Logotherapy by Viktor Frankl -- and better books -- The Education of Henry Adams by Henry Adams and The Second World War by Winston Churchill -- but I don't think they were as influential as those listed above. What direction for the British Tories? According to the Daily Telegraph, the majority of Conservative party members want David Davis, the shadow home secretary, to become the next leader of the Tories. Fraser Nelson explains in The Scotsman why this would be so: "He is by far the most organised and has assembled cheerleaders, a personal narrative and a tax-cutting credo." Fraser suggests that Sir Malcolm Rifkind could emerge as a compromise candidate if all the chips fall a certain way. So who is Rifkind -- not that the veteran of the Thatcher and Major years should need a re-introduction: "So which side would he be on? From his speeches and articles so far, the answer seems to be: all of them. He has called for Tories to be clear in their "modern identity" and speaks about 'progressive Toryism,' reaching the disadvantaged in a one-nation manner. He is also a libertarian Tory, implacably opposed to identity cards and the concept of imprisonment without trial. Not for him the baggage of Michael Howard, who instinctively supported identity cards as a hangover from his time as home secretary. ... And something for the tax-cutters: he has called for the party to 'unambiguously embrace tax reform' to simplify it. So he’s a moderniser, a patrician and a slash-and-burner all rolled into one: arise, Sir Malcolm - the unity candidate." The problem is that all the factions have their favourite and with Davis at 54% among party supporters, there is no need for a compromise candidate. He could, however, as Fraser notes, become the "stop David Davis candidate," should the need for one emerge. Writing in the Times, David Willets suggests that the party not worry so much about leadership and instead answer the question, "What is Conservatism for?" In other words, for what principles do the party stand? Willets says: "The conventional wisdom is that the Conservative Party stands for more personal freedom in a smaller State ... This does not just mean cutting tax or red tape, desirable though these are. It means an ambitious programme of supply-side reform to raise the performance of the British economy. Many people think that this is all that Conservatism stands for — personal choice in a market economy. But free-market economics cannot be the whole story. We should stay true to the free-market economics that originally got so many of us involved in Conservatism, while grappling with the big social issues that go beyond economics. That is why many 'modernisers' want us to match economic liberalism with social liberalism." Willets espouses the benefits of social liberalism before noting the dangers of atomistic individualism and reminding readers (and Tories) that "Social liberalism doesn’t come cheap." He briefly talks about the value of families before offering two directions for the party, both of which he rejects: "the party of neoliberalism and personal freedom" or the "party of cultural Conservatism trying to protect traditional ways of doing things." Instead Willets suggests the Tories mimic Tony Blair and become the second party to promise a third way: "We have to move forward confidently and challenge Tony Blair for the centre ground of British politics by trumping him. We should say that we can offer a stronger economy and a better society as well." Quotidian "He often shifted his opinions on new evidence, but he never changed his emotional disposition toward instruments of power. They were to be kept on a short leash, whether they were run by capitalists, communists, labor leaders or whomever." -- John Chamberlain, writing about John Dos Passos after the author's death, in National Review French voted against arrogance? I'll avoid any cheap shot against the French -- for now, 56% of them deserve our thanks. Stephen Byers had this great line in the (London) Times today: "There can be no question of requiring the French, or anyone else, to vote again, as Jean-Claude Juncker, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister and the current President of the EU, has suggested. It is exactly this attitude of institutional arrogance that has led so many people to turn their backs on Europe." What's he complaining about? Over at Samizdata, Perry de Havilland notes that today is Tax Freedom Day in the United Kingdom, three days later than last year. It's a whole month sooner than Canadians begin working for themselves. The Gay Left is a very angry group Canuckistan Chronicles has found an unpleasant example of heterophobia. (HT: SDA) Michael Moore's nightmare a dream scenario for some Over at The Corner, John Podhoretz shares an email he received: "Let's see here. Bush will have done 8 years. Jeb could do 8 as VP and then 8 as President. Each of their kids kids could do the same. That would be a total of 72 years. We need another 72 years of Bush! Now that's a slogan!" Gunter on the French Over at As I Please, Lorne Gunter has a thought about the French non vote on Sunday: "If the French are so much more committed to a multilateral approach than, say, the Americans -- which all the chattering classes in the Western world assure us they are -- why did they turn down the EU constitution on the weekend? Wouldn’t that have been the ultimate in multilateralism?" Monday, May 30, 2005
Quotidian "To enjoy Mr. James the reader must quite simply be ready to meet him half-way; to place himself at the writer's point of view, and frankly to accept his stipulations. As a matter of fact, this is the essential condition which every literary artist exacts. It is only the journalist who yields everything; who makes things easy, and amuses and excites us with an acute eye for ever fixed upon our line of least resistence." -- Unsigned review in the Times Literary Supplement (September 1902) of Henry James' The Wings of the Dove Not quite Red State/Blue State Le Monde has a map that shows geographic breakdown of non and oui votes in France yesterday. More on Memorial Day From military historian John B. Dwyer: "On Memorial Day we commemorate the noble and the eloquent dead. There is sorrow, yes, but also great reverence and pride in these exemplary Immortals who gave their last full measure of devotion; in knowing that this great country, anchored in liberty and freedom, produces such men and women as these. And there is inspiration that reverberates within our very being, the call to revive our patriotism and strengthen our loyalty. We are reminded to do everything within our power to support our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coastguardsmen deployed around the world in the global war on terror." Every Memorial Day Peter W. Schramm goes alone to a cemetary to pay his respects to those who purchased America's freedom with their blood. But, of course, not all those who fought died and Schramm has some words about the veterans who are also honoured during the Memorial Day parades: "It is hard talking with soldiers who got to grow old. Being in their presence makes you feel as if you don’t know anything, as if you haven’t accomplished anything. And this is right. They have done their duty so you can go to baseball games, so you can look into your wife’s soft and friendly eyes, so you can enjoy the wind in your face while on a motorcycle in peaceful Ohio. Being with war tested veterans always makes you better. Life becomes sweeter because you are prodded into a recognition that there is human excellence, that there is room for virtue. You realize that there is a price for freedom and peace. Veterans are the best teachers." Come for the knee replacement but stay for the morphine In the latest story that demonstrates that state-run healthcare is great until you get sick, the CBC reports: "After waiting more than a year to have her knee replaced, Susan Warner finally had the surgery – but not before becoming addicted to a powerful drug needed to help manage her pain." Over at the CTF blog, Adam Taylor says: "Only in Canada do we brag about how great our health care system is - while waiting/dying in line! Oh, the joys of a monopoly - only in this game you may die before passing GO. Health Care is free in Canada - just don't get sick!" Let It Bleed v. Liberal media axis: LIB scores a knockout Fantastic post by Let It Bleed on the 'fraidy cat reporting of the Toronto Star and Globe and Mail regarding Christians in the public square -- or what LIB calls the "ongoing 'Christians Frighten Me' motif." Let It Bleed notes: "The Globe isn't able to identify a single person, not even an 'anonymous source' who has stated that anyone nominated to the CPC intends to act as a 'single issue candidate,' and/or that their intention, if elected as an MP, is to advocate solely for a single issue to the exclusion of other party policies. So... what exactly is the need for this story? There's not even a controversy, outside of the fevered imaginations of the Globe's editors, that's being addressed. This is just gratuitous smearing, whose only object can be to further the interests of the Liberals by attempting to spook timorous voters with exaggerated fears of an impending CPC-led theocracy." Nicely put. This is also the only mention I've seen that calls into question whether Christian activists-turned-Conservative candidates are merely single issue candidates. At the most basic level, the media usually says (incorrectly in many cases) that such candidates oppose abortion and same-sex marriage and support capital punihsment; that would make them triple-issue candidates. But many are also concerned about judicial activism, high taxes, Canada's relatonship with the United States, the neglect of our military, government corruption, crime, healthcare, etc... In other words, Christian activists are just like most other Conservatives expect, perhaps, in that they are mostly motivated to get involved by a handful of moral issues. But that doesn't fit the Globe and Mail narrative or serve its purposes to spook those Canadians who only know about politics what they read in the Globe. Coyne on Spector Norman Spector is a complete and utter ... Oh, never mind, this is a family blog. Instead, read Andrew Coyne's observations about Spector's Globe and Mail column on the STV, the most important being two examples of how Spector falls back on ad hominem attacks. America is blessed to have Bush as president Norman Podhoretz has said that although it is technically not accurate to praise the words that a president speaks as "his words" modern presidents deserve credit for letting the words come from their mouths. So President George W. Bush should be praised for today's Memorial Day address. I especially like these three paragraphs: "For some of our young heroes, courage and service was a family tradition. Lance Corporal Darrell Schumann of Hampton, Virginia, was a machine gunner for the Marines, but his parents were Air Force. He liked to say, 'Air Force by birth, Marine by choice, and American by the grace of God.' Corporal Schumann was among the first to enter the battle against insurgents in Fallujah, and he was proud of what he -- what we are achieving. He later died in a helicopter crash. In his last letter from Iraq, he wrote, 'I do wish America could see how awesome a job we're doing'. These are the men and women who wear our uniform. These are the men and women who defend our freedom. And these are the men and women who are buried here. As we look across these acres, we begin to tally the cost of our freedom, and we count it a privilege to be citizens of the country served by so many brave men and women. And we must honor them by completing the mission for which they gave their lives, by defeating the terrorists, advancing the cause of liberty, and building a safer world. A day will come when there will be no one left who knew the men and women buried here. Yet Americans will still come to visit, to pay tribute to the many who gave their lives for freedom, who liberated the oppressed, and who left the world a safer and better place. Today we pray that they have found peace with their Creator, and we resolve that their sacrifice will always be remembered by a grateful nation." Sunday, May 29, 2005
Adam Smith jokes of the day I wish the Adam Smith Institute blog limited itself to economist or market-oriented jokes. Mostly good, some are awful, many are old. I liked these two. "The book 'How to Woo' was selling furiously until irate purchasers discovered when they got it home that they had bought volume two of the Hong Kong telephone directory." And: "There was a devout economic forecaster who tried to live each day as if it were his last. Eventually he got it right." Last word on Europe's constitution Perhaps. Several links and comments. Great description of today's vote over at Samizdata: "Wrong reasons, right result." Mickey Craig at No Left Turns says this: "I don’t know much about this but it seems a good thing. The EU Constitution is about 300 pages which means the rule of bureaucrats not self-government." On Saturday, the EU Referendum blog said that non might mean oui. No matter what, the constitution must proceed. The EU Referendum blog has a post-referendum post on this topic: "It is at the European Council that the decision is going to be made and, on current evidence, the indications are that the "colleagues" will decide - by majority vote if need be - to continue the ratification process. Even now, some are also talking about asking France to conduct another vote, but that is for the future. At the moment, the imperative is to buy time, and continuing as before will do just that." No Parasan's reaction? "No means No, and don't ask again." The Independent reports that British Prime Minister Tony Blair will likely scrap plans for a vote on the constitution in the UK. This may also affect his exit plans. The government, through Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, maintains that it will only ratify the charter following an affirmative referendum vote. Conservative foreign affairs critic Liam Fox is calling upon the government to declare the constitution dead or call an immediate referendum. The Independent also has Brussels' reaction to France rejection of the constitution. This line reinforces the idea that there will be a constitution one way or another: "Like the French EU commissioner, Jacques Barrot, whose mood combined anger and despair last night, Mr Barroso [the European Commission President Jose Manuel] says he wants to stick to the rules: that all member states should continue with the process, then review the results." Why go on with the process if it was decided that all 25 member states had to ratify the constitution and today voters in France and, probably, Tuesday their counterparts in the Netherlands, reject it? The French and Dutch are going to have this constitution rammed down their throats eventually. The people have spoken but they will not get the last word. Democracy in Asia Francis Fukuyama had a great column in the Wall Street Journal this week on democracy's growing pains in the world's largest continent. Tsunami-ravaged South Asia finally gets some relief Former U.S. president Bill Clinton cancelled his trip to the Maldives because he was tired. The fringe that opposed the European constitution Just a quick question. Most of the pre- and post- referendum vote on the European constitution characterized the anti side as loosely knit fringe coalition of extreme right and extreme left. (The BBC's formulation: "Those who rejected the treaty included Communists, various left-wing groups, dissident socialists and far-right parties.") How fringe can it be when 56% of those voting rejected the European Constitution? Steyn on Europe If you don't subscribe to The Spectator or otherwise get the dead tree edition of the magazine, you can read the Chicago Sun-Times column to get the gist of Mark Steyn's take on Europe and its two referenda this week on the contintental constitution. In short, it is not just a big lake that separates America and Europe but an ocean of ideas about how society is to be governed. Discussing Will Hutton and his book about America joining the world (where is it, precisely, right now then?), Steyn says: "The great Euro-thinker is not arguing that America is betraying the Founding Fathers, but that the Founding Fathers themselves got it hopelessly wrong. He compares the American and French Revolutions, and decides the latter was better because instead of the radical individualism of the 13 colonies the French promoted 'a new social contract.' Well, you never know. It may be the defects of America's Founders that help explain why the United States has lagged so far behind France in technological innovation, economic growth, military performance, standard of living, etc. Entranced by his Europhilia, Hutton insists that 'all western democracies subscribe to a broad family of ideas that are liberal or leftist.' Given that New Hampshire has been a continuous democracy for two centuries longer than Germany, this seems a doubtful proposition. It would be more accurate to say that almost all European nations subscribe to a broad family of ideas that are statist. Or, as Hutton has it, 'the European tradition is much more mindful that men and women are social animals and that individual liberty is only one of a spectrum of values that generate a good society.' Precisely. And it's the willingness to subordinate individual liberty to what Hutton calls 'the primacy of society' that has blighted the continent for over a century: Statism -- or 'the primacy of society' -- is what fascism, Nazism, communism and now European Union all have in common. In fairness, after the first three, European Union seems a comparatively benign strain of the disease -- not a Blitzkrieg, just a Bitzkrieg, an accumulation of fluffy trivial pan-European laws that nevertheless takes for granted that the natural order is a world in which every itsy-bitsy activity is licensed and regulated and constitutionally defined by government." And considering EU president Jean-Claude Juncker's remarks last week that if France or the Netherlands voted down the European constitution they'd have to vote on it again, the EU's thinking seems to be disturbingly close to that of communists and fascists. Quotidian "The journey took about a week each way, and each day had my parents in their grip. Riding behind my father I could see that the road had him by the shoulders, by the hair under his driving cap. It took my mother to make him stop. I inherited his nervous energy in the way I can't stop writing on a story. It makes me understand how Ohio had him around the heart, as West Virginia had my mother. Writers and travelers are mesmerized alike by knowing of their destinations." -- Eudora Welty, One Writer's Beginnings American Gulag? The Halifax Herald has a great editorial decrying the media's coverage of Amnesty International's criticism of US behaviour at Gitmo, portraying the United States is the worst human rights offender on the planet: "Amnesty is an equal-opportunity critic of everyone in its nation-by-nation annual assessment. Tell the international media that. They led with the litany of American sins. Buried in the body of the stories were the real bodies - the stuff that makes the Bush administration look like boy scouts. There are the legions of dead in Darfur, at the behest, if not the hand, of the Sudanese government. In a similar vein was the lack of effective response to the systematic rape of tens of thousands of women and children in the misnamed Democratic Republic of Congo. Russia's very own 'war on terror' in Chechnya is far more indiscriminate than Washington's and the Chinese government's war on dissent is an ongoing obscenity. As for North Korea, the whole country is two parts armed camp and one part concentration camp. If you want to single out 'the gulag of our time,' perhaps that would be a good place to begin." There are many stories to be reported of human rights abuses in these countries, including the criticism of them in the AI report. But the media is virtually silent on these. Centre-right hope for Germany a former commie The Daily Telegraph reports that Angela Merkel joined a communist youth group and won awards from them for being a top student. Big deal, though. She later rejected communism and has been one of the great voices for freedom (even though she is quite supportive of Germany's welfare state) to come from East Germany. Merkel is expected to win the Christian Democrats' nomination to face Chancellor Gerhard Schröder later this year. More on French rejection of Euro charter International Herald Tribune's sophomoric coverage here. Example: "Feelings have been running high in France for weeks, and today was no exception." However, in typical New York Times fashion -- IHT is owned by the NYT -- it ignores the specifics of "right-wing" complaints although the story acknowledges that the constitution's French detractors included those on both sides of the political spectrum. The Guardian's coverage here. Not much in it. Daily Telegraph does not an updated story yet. C'mon guys -- it's been 15 minutes since the others have posted their stories. European constitution fails in France AP reports: "With about 83 percent of the votes counted, the referendum was rejected by 57.26 percent of voters, the Interior Ministry said. The treaty was supported by 42.74 percent, the ministry said." For whatever reason, the Dutch will still vote on Tuesday. The charter could be re-negotiated or perhaps re-submitted to the French electorate for another vote. Let's clarify our terms A comment on my Shotgun post on Canada's healthcare system: "Let's be frank. Canada does not have a public healthcare system - it has a public health care RATIONING system." Point taken. The worse crime There is fuzzy thinking about the Gurmant Grewal tape but over at The Shotgun Western Standard editor Kevin Libin clarifies the issue nicely: "People, this is governance 101. If Canadians don't get this, we're beyond help. When a backbench Opposition MP goes to the highest office in the land and asks to be bribed, and the Prime Minister's chief of staff responds with 'How much?', the greater concern is with the prime minister's office, not the two-bit backbencher." Read the whole post here. Me on Iran in the Herald I review The Persian Puzzle: The Conflict Between Iran and America by Kenneth M. Pollack and Atomic Iran: How the Terrorist Regime Bought the Bomb and American Politicians by Jerome R. Corsi in the Halifax Herald today. Saturday, May 28, 2005
Quotidian "'Your distinction is too nice for my comprehension,' replied Morton. 'God gives every spark of life -- that of the peasant as well as the prince; and those who destroy his work recklessly or causelessly, must answer in either case'." -- Walter Scott, Old Mortality 'The tolerant centre' Jim Meek writes in the Halifax Herald that there is little room for Christian activists in party politics because in Canada there is "a tolerant centre." The problem with this tolerant centre, however, is that it pushes Christians to the margins. Meek would have politically involved Christians move south of the border: "Now, I'll admit there is a place for faith-based politics. It's called the United States." Some tolerance. Gunter on Liberal extremism Over at As I Please, Lorne Gunter notes the under-reported views of new Liberal MP Todd Russell of Labrador according to a CanWest news service: "Todd Russell, the newest Liberal MP who won a seat this week in a Labrador, has an outspoken if not controversial past that includes several attacks on his new Liberal colleagues. As leader of the Metis nation, he's advocated 'aggressive civil disobedience' against Ottawa, accused federal Indian and Northern Affairs minister Andy Scott of helping "extinguish" the Metis, criticized Justice Minister Irwin Cotler for ethnic "profiling" of his people and has supported arguments that government policies against his people are a form of "cultural genocide." Russell acknowledges his past, but says he has no plans to temper his message as he comes to Parliament Hill." Apparently there was so much news on Friday that no newspaper could make room for this story. As Gunter reports: "The originating paper was the Calgary Herald. I checked the Herald today and our other major metropolitan daily papers. (Inside the company they are known as 'the metros.') And nothing. Not a word. Let's hope the delay can be explained by the need to fact-check the story, or by an interview that didn't materialize when planned. I'd hate to think this important story had been packed off into an editorial closet somewhere. This Russell sounds like quite the piece of work. Image the media reaction if a Conservative who had said equally inflamatory things had just won a by-election." If that was a Conservative MP -- well, he wouldn't have been an MP because his views would have been all over the news before the by-election. (Hat tip: Adam Daifallah) The Globe and Mail and Christians within the Conservative Party Hacks and Wonks says this of a Globe and Mail story yesterday that attempted to drum up fear of a Religious Right takeover of the Conservative Party: "Take the word 'Christian' out of the headline, and insert 'black' or 'aboriginal' or 'Muslim'." Indeed, when Sikhs, for example, takeover a Liberal riding association, I don't recall the Globe and Mail talking about takeovers or infiltration or hidden agendas. A slightly more charitable view of the Globe and Mail's story is not that it is anti-Christian but that it is anti-democratic. The Globe reported yesterday: "John Reynolds, the retiring Conservative MP who ran the party's nomination process, said the fact that social conservatives have won his party's nominations is simply a function of democracy. 'I don't believe in appointments and neither does our party, so we get some real battles,' Mr. Reynolds said. 'People say, "Can't you do something about these guys running?" and I say "Hey, you can do something: go out and sign up some more people"'." The tone of the Globe story was that what the Christian activists and candidates was wrong. There are only two likely explanations: either the paper is anti-Christian or it fears or dislikes letting regular folk decide who their federal candidates should be. And of course it will pay for itself Actually, to his credit, Jack Wilson, writing in the Boston Globe, doesn't quite use those exact words whilst arguing for public funding of post-secondary education in Massachusetts but he does say: "It is clear that an investment in our community and state colleges and universities is an investment in the future of Massachusetts. If we fail to make public higher education a priority, Massachusetts will lose the economic race to its leading competitors and its citizens will suffer the consequences in a declining standard of living." And, for the record, Wilson is president of the University of Massachusetts. Two of many upsides to France saying non to the European constitution The London Times reports that if France were to reject the European Constitution tomorrow, President Jacques Chirac would be considered a lame duck and France's stature within the EU will be diminished. Yuck The New York Yankees lose to the dreaded Boston Red Sox 17-1. Its the most the BoSox have scored against the Yankees, surpassing the 16 runs they scored against the Bronx Bombers in 1937. Hewitt interviews Steyn Mark Steyn was interviewed by Hugh Hewitt this week. I liked this bit on senators as presidential candidates: "But Bill Frist is not...was never...I don't believe Senators should be presidential candidates. And whenever they try, they're always shocked at how no real people have heard of them. You know, I remember talking to Orrin Hatch during the New Hampshire primary in 2000. And he's a guy who, you know, been on the Sunday morning talk shows for as long as anyone could remember. And he told me in this rather sad voice that he was devastated by how few people in New Hampshire had heard of him. And I think, you know, to be honest, I wish I'd never of most Republican Senators, either. What a blessed world that is to live in." Steyn also has some good things to say about Ohio's RINO senator George Voinovich. Red tape leads to further Sri Lankan suffering From today's Daily Telegrpah editorial: "The Sri Lankan victims' plight would be understandable if there was a shortage of money to rebuild their villages. But nothing could be further from the truth: £1.75 billion in the tsunami war chest has been earmarked for Sri Lanka alone. The money is not being spent because the Colombo government refuses to delegate authority on the ground, to revise its ludicrous bureaucratic procedures, to root out corruption or to speed up the snail's pace of supplies through customs." May 29 and making Old Europe new William Kristol says that if the French say non to the European Constitution, there is a chance for fresh thinking on the continent. Kristol says: "Europe deserves better than the political class and the political discourse (to use a European formulation) that it has been stuck with. In this respect, the leftists rallying in Paris against the constitution last Wednesday were right to insist that their 'No' was 'A hopeful No.' This is a moment of hope--for the prospects for a strong, pro-American, pro-liberty, more or less free-market and free-trade, socially and morally reinvigorated Europe." Liberals: about nothing more than power Michael Coren has an excellent column on how the Liberals are only "A vehicle for power, an entity obsessed with government for its own sake, a symbol of empty boast and plastic politics." I have a book about this topic relating to Jean Chretien that you can purchase here and some thoughts wondering where the Liberals of Howe and Pearson's age went over The Shotgun. PR will not cure what ails Canadian democracy The current Arab Reform Bulletin notes why Palestinian President Abu Mazen wants proportional representation (it will make it easier for him to cobble together a governing coalition) but notes this seldom mentioned aspect of PR: "it would also result in a parliament with a stronger sense of party discipline, all deputies having been selected by virtue of their party positions rather than their individual and local popularity." Those looking to make Canada's electoral system "fairer" by making it more democratic might consider that. Do we really want Paul Martin to have more power over his caucus? (By the way, the bulletin has much rewarding reading about the Middle East including developments in Lebanon and how the politics of the Shiites in Iraq have become more religious than political. Hat tip to Oxblog.) Friday, May 27, 2005
Yankees and me The New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox tonight, 6-3 (coming back with five runs in the sixth inning). When the Bronx Bombers were 11-19 I noted that something had to be done. Since then they have won 16 of 18 and moved from last to second in their division. I don't want to take credit for their turn-around but I remind you of my post of May 15: "The New York Yankees have won eight in a row, having beaten just minutes ago the Oakland A's 6-4. I hadn't blogged much about baseball until last weekend when I lamented that they were eight games under 500, needed to go 79-53 to reach 90 wins and that Joe Torre should probably be fired. Now they are at 500 (not updated as of this post), need to go 71-53 to reach 90 wins and Torre is probably safe in his job. I don't want to take credit but as Stephen Leacock once wrote, 'When I state that my lectures were followed almost immediately by the union of South Africa, the banana riots in Thailand and the Turco-Italian war, I think readers can form some opinion of their importance'." In other words, if the New York Yankees make the post-season, I want to be considered for team MVP. Concerned Canadian taxpayers That should be everyone reading this blog anywhere in Canada. Bookmark and check often the group blog of the Canadian Taxpayers' Federation. Neat item that Tanis Fiss links to is this story about a Chamber of Commerce proposal for B.C. to lower its sales tax from 7% to 4.5%. Values v. principles Earlier this week I noted a Daily Telegraph editorial proposing a set of values for the British Tories to adopt. Burkean Canuck makes a fine but legitimate distinction: "Do Tories have 'values' or 'principles?' I prefer the latter, but whatever you call them, I like these from the Daily Telegraph." Quotidian "The thing that poisons life for gunmen and sometimes makes them wonder moodily if it is worth while going on is this tendency of the outside public to butt in at inconvenient moments. Whenever you settle some business dispute with a commercial competitor by means of your sub-machine gun, it always turns out that there was some officious witness passing at the time, and there you are, with a new problem confronting you." -- P.G. Wodehouse, The Crime Wave at Blandings Mary Kay cosmetics not Desperate AP reports that cosmetics peddlers Mary Kay will not advertise on Desperate Housewives. The company's philosophy is "God first, family second and career third," so it makes sense that advertising on a TV show that finds no problems with promiscuity and infidelity would be something they eschew. My only question is why did the American Family Association have to remind them of this? Why did South Dakotans get rid of Daschle? It appears that Senator John Thune (R, SD) will vote against John Bolton. AP reports that it is in retaliation for the closing of a military base in his state although Thune denies this. However, Thune is saying that Bolton is not the right person for the job even though the man who defeated former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle said earlier this year that Bolton was the right man for the job. Shameful. Thursday, May 26, 2005
Great Toronto Sun editorial It's great when newspapers stop pretending that other papers don't exist. In this case, the Toronto Sun castigates the Toronto Star for its rosy coverage of the Liberals: "Given all these "good news" stories apparently raining down on the Liberals, we can only imagine how the Star might have tackled other, similar "good news" stories over the years. Stories like: 'Adam and Eve finally catch break -- apple eaten in Garden of Eden did not contain pesticides.' Or: 'Good news for Titanic's builders -- iceberg not seriously damaged.' Or, at the start of the Great Depression: 'Investors overjoyed!! Bargains to be had after big stock market correction.' Or more recently: 'Streets of joy! Tsunami misses Toronto'." Iran and nuclear pursuits It's time to spell naive with an EU. Germany, France and the UK have been suckered again by Iran's promises to not resume its nuclear processing activities in exchange for the E-3 giving them financial aid. The Los Angeles Times has the story. I'm sure this work out as well as the deal the Clinton administration worked out with North Korea. Rebutting arguments for a living wage The Employment Policies Institute has released a study by Dr. Aaron Yelowitz of the University of Kentucky and Dr. Richard Toikka of the Lewin Group that finds "that living wage ordinances do little to actually increase the standard of living for low-income families." The study examines specific local ordinances and how they were utterly ineffective. Kudlow on the next tax reform Larry Kudlow says that Congress should focus on eliminating the estate tax because "death should not be a taxable event." Noting that "Inheritances theoretically could be taxed as much as five times: once as work income, again as corporate income, again as dividends, again as capital gains, and yet again upon death," Kudlow concludes: "I hope Congress can reform the estate tax burden. It would put more capital into capitalism." Goldberg on Hillary Jonah Goldberg on Hillary Clinton and her move to the centre: "I just don't see Hillary's moves as anything more sincere than a sincere desire to position herself advantageously." Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Quotidian "The very thought of a generation mentality (the pride of the herd) has always repelled me." -- Milan Kundera, The Joke Tory values The British Conservative Party is in turmoil. (It's one of the hazards of being the Conservative party.) Francis Maude came up with a statement of values that the Daily Telegraph doesn't much like and the paper suggests an alternative statement: "We are a national party. We wish to preserve the traditions of our country and to extend freedom and opportunity to everyone in Britain. We believe taxation should be significantly reduced. We believe marriage should be actively promoted, via the tax code, as the best context for the bringing up of children. We believe parents and patients should be entitled to gain access to the school or hospital of their choice. We believe these schools and hospitals should be independent institutions once again. We believe police forces should be accountable to individuals directly elected by the local community. We believe locally run services should as far as possible be locally financed. We believe social security should be reformed to promote personal responsibility and neighbourliness, so the 'welfare state' becomes the 'welfare society', underpinned by devolved and voluntary civic organisations. We believe Britain's Parliament should be sovereign. And we believe our Armed Forces should be properly equipped to fight terrorism and dictatorship, and that free trade and property rights should be promoted across the globe." Sure Ottawa politics is a mess ... But I'm in a good mood. As AP reports: "The Yankees, who twice left the bases loaded, won for the 14th time in 16 games, moved a season-high four games over .500 at 25-21 and closed within a half-game of second-place Boston in the AL East." On the other hand, AC Milan lost the Champions Cup to Liverpool by blowing a 3-0 half-time lead. Liverpool won on penalty kicks after 120 minutes of play. Not to be a sore loser but Liverpool goaltender Jerzy Dudek did come off the line before Andrea Pirlo (and perhaps also Andriy Shevchenko) actually shot. Nonetheless, the first 90 minutes were exciting although it was obvious that Liverpool was playing for the shoot out during extra time. Things that make you go hmmmmm Adam Daifallah ponders Paul Well's post: "Martin has named Belinda as the person in charge of implementing Justice Gomery's recommendations after he files his report. Martin also promised to call an election within 30 days of the report being tabled. So, does this leave the (functionally) unilingual Belinda one month to get those recommendations implemented? Right." Johnson executed Gregory Scott Johnson died this morning much more humanely than his victim,Ruby Hutslar. I posted about this case last night. Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Alligators heading north Alligators are being found in Maryland and Virginia. The Washington Times reports that it might be due to popularity of the reptiles as pets but how long until global warming gets blamed? Shocking LA Times editorial The Los Angeles Times often runs editorials that amount to little more than the most recent talking points of Democrats. But today's thoughtful editorial on filibustering judicial appointments (and other filibusters) has this excellent point: "... the filibuster is essentially a reactionary tool that unduly empowers obstructionist minorities. Due to its disproportional representation — California (population 36 million) and Delaware (population 830,000) each get two senators — minority rights are already well protected in the Senate. The filibuster, as an additional brake on democracy that goes beyond the constitutional framework to give individual senators even more power, should have been nuked for all purposes, not just in the context of judicial nominees." As I have noted before, I do not favour changing the rules on filibusters but rather the enforcement of what a filibuster truly is by making the Democrats speak until they drop. But the Times demonstrated unusual intelligence on this issue and made points that the GOP should have utilized in their now aborted attempt to nuke the filibustering of judicial appointments. Show us the money (flow) Because a flow chart clears things up nicely, anticorruption.ca shows you where the money involved in Adscam went. Civic state vs. therapeutic state Burkean Canuck has an excellent post on the civic state and the therapeutic state and concludes that in representing the former against what Canada is becoming under Paul Martin (and Jean Chretien and Pierre Trudeau), Conservative Leader Stephen Harper has done the nation a great service. Burkean Canuck says: "In pressing accountability on the Martin Liberal Government, Stephen Harper and the Conservative caucus were doing their job -- they are the Opposition, after all -- in defence of Canada's civic state. It may seem quite foreign, shocking even, to members of the MSM and to a Canadian public which has grown to expect a therapeutic state. But what Mr. Harper and his Tories did was to administer just the sort of shock therapy Canada's body politic needs if the Canadian civic state is to be revived. Thank you, Mr. Harper. The civic institution you lead -- the Opposition -- is undiminished by last week's high-profile departure. If anything, the Opposiiton as a civic institution is a little more robust, and so is Canada for it." Read that again. Indeed, if you read only one blog post all week, this is it. Email it or print it out and pass it on to others so that your friends and co-workers can understand the aforementioned point but also to understand the difference between the civic state and therapeutic state. One example: "The civic state is one in which no party or person or business can expect special fund or favour from the public treasury. The therapeutic state is one in which the ruling party can use the power of the public treasury to buy votes or reward party faithful. See the terms and rationale under which the sponsorship program was created -- even before it became the AdScam allegedly favouring friends of Prime Minister Chretien and Liberal Party activists. Ask why Mr. Martin did a deal with Jack Layton and the NDP on the budget; ask why the prime minister suddenly decided to announce an unwanted, wag-the-dog force to travel to Darfur in Sudan; ask why Steve Mahoney and Carolyn Parrish both decided to stand down from running in the next general election for the same seat; ask why a college drop-out who has never had to go out and find a job was made Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development; and ask why the allegations of Liberal overtures made by other Conservative MPs are doubted after Ms. Stronach's crossing the floor." Democrats exploit fears of racism Thomas Sowell, as usual, has a great column on why the Democrats need blacks to perceive themselves as victims of racism or a legitimate fear of it. He makes three points worth repeating: 1) "If the share of the black vote that goes to the Democrats ever falls to 70 percent, it may be virtually impossible for the Democrats to win the White House or Congress, because they have long ago lost the white male vote and their support among other groups is eroding." 2) "...contrary to political myth, a higher percentage of Republicans than Democrats voted for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. But facts have never stopped politicians or ideologues before and show no signs of stopping them now." 3) "What blacks have achieved for themselves, without the help of liberals, is of no interest to liberals. Nothing illustrates this better than political reactions to academically successful black schools." This leads to a question that Sowell doesn't ask: who are the real racists? Fanning fears and resentment of a supposedly racist America is toxic -- it poisons the black community by setting blacks up for failure and making them reliant, against their best interests, on one party. Sowell concludes: "Many things that would advance blacks would not advance the liberal agenda. That is why the time is long overdue for the two to come to a parting of the ways." International law and U.S. law MSNBC reports that in a speech to the 7th Circuit Bar Association and Judicial Conference of the Seventh Circuit, U.S. Supreme Court of the United States Justice John Paul Stevens defended the use of international law in decisions of the SCOTUS. Stevens makes the too fine distinction between consulting international law (as it did in March in determining that executing juvenile killers was unconstitutional) and permitting such law to determine what U.S. laws should stand. What other purpose but to measure U.S. laws to international standards and scrutiny would a Supreme Court justice "consult" international law? And while liberal activist judges will say that they are a determining factor but not the determining factor in deciding cases, logic dictates that if any factor taken into consideration can shift the decision one way or another then it logically can be the determining factor. Of course, liberal judges are not "consulting" international law and the laws of other nations ("international norms") but rather are finding justification for imposing their own values on U.S. law when it is obvious the Constitution would not let them do it. Islamist persecutes Fallaci Little Green Footballs links to this AGI story noting "The Italian city of Bergamo is going to put author Oriana Fallaci on trial—for defaming Islam," because of a complaint from Adel Smith, president of the Italian Muslim Union. On the plus side, at least the Islamist is resorting to the judicial system to remedy his grievance (if you know what I mean). Terrorism's Irish flavour The Guardian reports that the Independent Monitoring Commission "said the Provisional IRA (PIRA), which says it is on a ceasefire, continued to recruit and train, as did dissident groups including the Continuity IRA and the Real IRA, which was responsible for the 1998 Omagh bomb." First point: that's a lot of IRAs. Second point: hasn't anyone in the British government realized that as long as one is maintaining weapons and the right to kill innocents, there is no peace. The Daily Telegraph reports: "Peter Hain, the Northern Ireland Secretary, said: 'There has got to be crystal clarity from the IRA on the ending of paramilitary and criminal activity. It has to be definitive and credible. I am hopeful that we can find a way out of the impasse but a crucial staging post in that will be the clarity and certainty of any IRA statement and some verification of that reality on the ground'." But hope won't bring back Robert McCartney or make Northern Ireland any safer. Instead of waiting for "crystal clarity" on the part of the IRA and its political cover, er, allies, that it does not condone or partake in violence, a little moral clarity on the part of Tony Blair's Labour government would be in order. (Where are the War on Terror types on this side of the Atlantic who supported Blair because he was such a good ally? Blair loses a lot of credibility in challenging world terror when he does not about the terror in his own backyard.) It is sad that the closest thing to moral clarity in Northern Ireland comes from an anti-Catholic bigot. Last week, before the IMC's findings were released, Democratic Unionist Party leader Ian Paisley said that power sharing with Sinn Fein, the "political arm" of the IRA, was impossible and declared that the Good Friday agreement was "dead" and should "be given a reasonable burial." Amen. No stay for Gregory Scott Johnson The Indianapolis Star reports that both the U.S. Supreme Court and Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels refused a request to stay the execution of Gregory Scott Johnson. Johnson also sought a temporary reprieve so that he could explore the feasability of donating his liver to his ailing sister. Fortunately such a transparent attempt to rejuvenate his reputation was not found to have any medical merit. Johnson is to be executed before sunrise for the 1985 murder of 82-year-old, 90-pound Ruby Hutslar, details of which can be found here. He beat Hutslar to death and then burned her house down. The senior was found in her home five feet from the front door with 20 broken ribs, broken bones in her face and a fractured larynx and spine. He stomped her with his feet and beat her with a broom. She died of the beating injuries, not the fire. He was found guilty and then sentenced to death on June 19, 1986. The wheels of justice grind slowly. Quotidian "One crucial element of free co-operation is a respect for truth. Under all circumstances, the pressure of expediency causes considerable distortions of fact. In a crisis, this pressure increases." -- Kenneth Minogue, The Liberal Mind Monday, May 23, 2005
This is not surprising when government delivers healthcare The New York Sun reports that: "Rapists and other offenders convicted of the most serious sex crimes have been able, for the past several years, to get the erection-enhancement wonder drug Viagra for free through Medicaid, the government-financed health-insurance program for the poor." The story is behind the subscription wall but thanks to my lovely wife who gave me a NYS subscription for Christmas I can share with you two relevant details: 1) According to the state comptroller's office, state Medicaid recipients received $21.3 million in free Viagra in 2004 (or a total of 358,000 Viagra prescriptions). 2) Comptroller General Alan Hevesi has discovered that 198 Level 3 sex offenders (child molestation to rape) received state-subsidized Viagra prescriptions from January 2000 to March 2005. What is more offensive? That 198 serious sex offenders got free erection assistance pills or that 358,000 poor New Yorkers did? It's a close call. Victoria Day The Halifax Herald begins its editorial noting that few people today understand the significance of the holiday with these observations: "Not often do Canadians have the honour of having their monarch in their midst on a day set aside to officially commemorate her birthday. But that's exactly the case today in Alberta, as Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh continue to make their rounds on their 22nd visit to Canada. They're here to help the people of Saskatchewan and Alberta commemorate the 100th anniversary of their respective provinces joining Canada. That their visit coincides with the annual observance of Victoria Day is a bonus. Her Majesty was born on April 21, 1926, but her birthday is celebrated in Canada on Victoria Day, permanently established as an official holiday in 1957. That Queen Elizabeth's birthday differs from the day we celebrate it makes absolutely no difference. But having the Royal Couple in Canada makes the observance all that more special this year." Queen Elizabeth, like Queen Victoria, has long exuded dignity and decency, two traits long missing in Canada's politics. May these pair of monarchs be examples to today's elected representatives. Star Wars a New Age menace? Some people, including Thomas Horn at Raiders News Update, are idiots. Horn concludes his article thusly: "The Star Wars films offer impressionable young minds a delicious introduction to fantasy and mysticism, but do they also pave the way for acceptance of Antichrist?" Everything prior to this rhetorical question indicates Horn would answer yes. Good news from Iraq Arthur Chrenkoff has his bi-weekly (under-reported) good news from Iraq. Great news includes these item: 1) Free markets: "The industry ministry plans to partially privatise most of its 46 state-owned companies, as part of the government's plan to establish a liberal free market economy." 2) Modernized banking: "Iraq's cash economy will get a jolt of modernity in the coming weeks -- automated teller machines and credit cards, the president of the Trade Bank of Iraq said yesterday." 3) Australia invests in reconstruction: "The Australian Government will provide an additional $45 million over two years to provide further reconstruction assistance to Iraq. This funding demonstrates the Government's commitment to helping build stability and democracy in Iraq. This additional funding will bring Australia's total reconstruction commitment to Iraq to over $170 million since 2003..." 4) Progress is being made fixing the educational infrastructure: "Currently, more than 450 schools throughout Iraq have been renovated, with 350 left to rehabilitate. These 800 schools will greatly improve the education of more than 300,000 Iraqi children..." 5) Increased security: "The U.S. Army told Congress on Thursday it had sharply reduced the proportion of military casualties from roadside bombs in Iraq even as they have become increasingly powerful in the past year. Even as insurgents continue to launch devastating attacks on Iraqi police, politicians and civilians, the ratio of death and injury among among U.S. troops from roadside 'improvised explosive devices' has fallen by three-quarters, two generals told the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee." New York Times will never get it Daniel Okrent's valedictory address -- "13 Things I Meant to Write About but Never Did" -- ran in the Sunday New York Times. Item #4 proves the paper and its employees will never undertand the criticism of them: "4. Last July, when I slapped the headline 'Is The New York Times a Liberal Newspaper?' atop my column and opened the piece with the catchy one-liner 'Of course it is,' I wasn't doing anyone - the paper, its serious critics, myself - any favors. I'd reduced a complex issue to a sound bite. The column itself, I'll stand by; I still believe the paper is the inevitable product of its staff's experience and worldview, and that its news coverage reflects a generalized acceptance of liberal positions on most social issues. For The Times's ideologically fueled detractors on the right, though, there was no reason to invoke this somewhat more complex analysis when they could paint my more incendiary words on a billboard: 'According to The Times's own Daniel Okrent. ...' I may wish they'd live by one of the same standards they ask The Times to adhere to - the fair representation of controversial opinions. But I handed them a machine gun when a pistol would have sufficed." The point of the Times' "ideologically fueled detractors on the right" is not so much that the Times is a liberal newspaper but that a left-liberal worldview colours every bit of the paper (from its news reporting to its arts coverage) and that the Times pretends that it is itself not ideologically fueled. New York Times, freelancers and ethics Virginia Postrel reacts to Daniel Okrent's farewell column in the New York Times, specifically his comments about freelancers. Okrent notes that economics realities being what they are, the paper is forced to use more freelance writers. Okrent says: "Now, I've got nothing against freelance writers; I've been one myself, and tomorrow morning I'll become one again. It's a respectable way to make a living (even if a fiscally preposterous one). Though Times freelancers agree to abide by the paper's ethical rules and professional standards, there's no way someone who's working for The Times today, some other publication tomorrow and yet another on Tuesday can possibly absorb and live by The Times's complex code as fully as staff members. Unrevealed conflicts, violations of Times-specific reporting rules and a variety of other problems have repeatedly found their way to my office over the past 18 months." Postrel responds: "Damn straight I don't 'live by The Times's complex code,' since I have my own personal integrity--and brand--to worry about. I do, of course, abide by the provisions of my contract. Those provisions are not identical to those by which staffers are governed; if they were, I would have to quit, since I subsidize my writing with speaking. But Okrent is right about one thing: The Times does get my labor, and the labor of its other freelancers, dirt cheap (with no raises!). We also generally pay our own expenses. The upside is that we get to be independent thinkers and don't drown in a giant, semi-functional bureaucracy." Now many of the problems that the paper would have with freelance news writers are not the same as they would have with a commentator such as Postrel. But for real "unrevealed conflicts" consider this WorldNetDaily story about a protest against Senator Bill Frist written for the Times by Princeton student Elizabeth Landau who had herself taken part in the demonstration. The paper ran a note about this on the weekend and apologized (for getting caught, I suppose) but greater care by the paper of record would be appreciated in the future. Unless, of course, articles that paint a negative picture of Republicans do not fall under the rules of the paper as explained by the Times itself in which freelance writers "are not ordinarily" allowed "cover events in which they have taken part, and the paper's staff and contributors are not permitted to join rallies or demonstrations on divisive issues." Not ordinarily. I like that qualifier. You can be sure that no woman who took part in a Silent No More demonstration, for example, would ever be able to write about the event. Quotidian "Our church is, I believe, the first split-level church in America. It has five rooms and two baths downstairs -- dining area, kitchen and three parlors for committee and group meetings -- with a crawl space behind the furnace ending in the hillside into which the structure is built. Upstairs is one huge all-purpose interior, divisible into different-sized components by means of sliding walls and convertible into an auditorium for putting on plays, a gymnasium for athletics, and a ballroom for dances. There is a small worship area at one end. This a has a platform cantilevered on both sides, with a free-form pulpit designed by Noguchi. It consists of a slab of marble with four legs of four delicately differing fruitwoods, to symbolize the four Gospels, and their failure to harmonize. Behind it dangles a large multicolored mobile, its interdenominational parts swaying, as one might fancy in perpetual reminder of the Pauline stricture against those 'blown by every wind if doctrine.' Its proximity to the pulpit inspires a steady flow of more familiar congregational whim, at which we shall not long demur, going on with our tour to say that in back of this building is a newly erected clinic, with medical and neuropsychiatric wings, both indefinitely expandable. Thus People's Liberal is a church designed to meet the needs of today, and to serve the whole man." -- Rev. Andrew Mackerel describing his People's Liberal Church of Avalon, Connecticut, in Peter DeVries, The Mackerel Plaza Belinda, defender of democracy Prime Minister Paul Martin named Belinda Stronach -- I will no longer call her Blahlinda because I don't want this blog to be thought sexist -- Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development and Minister Responsible for Democratic Renewal. Burkean Canuck finds this as funny as I do. He notes that Martin's budget passed 153-152 and that, "They're also the numbers that included Stronach's vote on the side of the Liberals that prevented a democratic renewal of Parliament by way of a general election." Hitchens on Galloway, the Left and Iraq Christopher Hitchens writes in the Weekly Standard -- the Weekly Standard! -- about George Galloway and his fellow travellers: "Those who had alleged that a million civilians were dying from sanctions were willing, nay eager, to keep those same murderous sanctions if it meant preserving Saddam!" Ouch. He continues on the moral bankruptcy of the Left and the betrayal of its own principles when it comes to Iraq: "The bad faith of a majority of the left is instanced by four things (apart, that is, from mass demonstrations in favor of prolonging the life of a fascist government). First, the antiwar forces never asked the Iraqi left what it wanted, because they would have heard very clearly that their comrades wanted the overthrow of Saddam. (President Jalal Talabani's party, for example, is a member in good standing of the Socialist International.) This is a betrayal of what used to be called internationalism. Second, the left decided to scab and blackleg on the Kurds, whose struggle is the oldest cause of the left in the Middle East. Third, many leftists and liberals stressed the cost of the Iraq intervention as against the cost of domestic expenditure, when if they had been looking for zero-sum comparisons they might have been expected to cite waste in certain military programs, or perhaps the cost of the 'war on drugs.' This, then, was mere cynicism. Fourth, and as mentioned, their humanitarian talk about the sanctions turned out to be the most inexpensive hypocrisy." It's a little longer than their Daily Standard fare but well worth reading. Sunday, May 22, 2005
Weekend List VI 10 favourite athletes, my lifetime 1. Don Mattingly (MLBB - New York Yankees) 2. Denis Savard (NHL - Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadians) 3. Ozzie Smith (MLBB - S.D. Padres, St. Louis Cardinals) 4. Rickey Henderson (MLBB - New York Yankees, Oakland A's) 5. Ruud Gullit (Soccer - Netherlands, PSV Eindhoven, AC Milan) 6. Derek Jeter (MLBB - New York Yankees) 7. Michael Jordan (NBA - Chicago Bulls) 8. Tony Esposito (NHL - Chicago Blackhawks) 9. Paolo Maldini (Soccer - Italia, AC Milan) 10. Chris Chelios (NHL - Montreal Canadians, Chicago Blackhawks) 11. Marco van Basten (Soccer - Netherlands, Ajax, AC Milan) 12. Tony Gwynn (MLBB - S.D. Padres) We will be celebrating Victoria Day today Happy Victoria Day everyone. Here is a good website for information about Queen Victoria but it should be considering it comes from the Official Website of the British Monarchy. Here are is a gallery with some nice stone and metal portraits of the British monarch. (For a closer view of the beautiful Victoria Monument by Sir Thomas Brock and a short write-up of the monument, see here.) Quotidian "Though experience be our only guide in reasoning concerning matters of fact; it must be acknowledged, that this this guide is not altogether infallible, but in some cases is apt to lead us into errors." -- David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding Star Wars The Derb didn't like Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith and concluded his post with this thought: "And how come a transgalactic civilization hasn't developed the epidural?" Good question. As I said earlier this week, not a great movie but an entertaining movie -- High Noon it is not, but most movies aren't. (And High Noon isn't Paradise Lost.) Anyway, $108.5 million worth of people agreed with me. That would make it (unofficially) the 262 top grossing movie in U.S. of all time ahead of Terms of Endearment, Pulp Fiction, Scream and American Pie. Saturday, May 21, 2005
Quotidian "He knew the precise psychological moment when to say nothing." -- Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray Thursday, May 19, 2005
Quotidian "They are waiting on the shingle -- will you come and join he dance? Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance? Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you join the dance?" -- Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland What days to take off blogging Need I explain why? Make you sure you read Maderblog (especially his comments on whore as sexist language), Political Staples (especially this one on The Tape) and As I Please (especially "I blame the judges") for everything you need to know about this little circus we call Canadian politics. Then there's the story no one is talking about. (Hint: It starts with "U" and ends with "zbekistan". Also, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith was entertaining which is all I ask from such movies. Too much emphasis on special effects but certainly more story than SW I & II. That said, it is a lot darker and in one part, more graphic, than the other movies and I encourage parents of children 8 and under to preview the movie before taking them. Quotidian goes up tonight after The Apprentice airs and I return to regular blogging this weekend unless the family decides to abandon the city for the long weekend. Wednesday, May 18, 2005
Quotidian "Growing old is like being increasingly penalized for a crime you haven't committed." -- Anthony Powell, Temporary Kings, penultimate novel of The Dance to the Music of Time Tuesday, May 17, 2005
Quotidian "Just for a handful of silver he left us, Just for a riband to stick in his coat" -- Robert Browning, "The Lost Leader" Life is too good to blog I'm reading Stephen Harper and the Future of Canada by William Johnson (due out in July from McClelland & Stewart), finishing up an article for the Halifax Herald following my interview with Robert Cooper this afternoon, following the Yankees-Mariners game online, and re-writing my top story for the June issue of The Interim which was going to be about the imminent election which is no longer imminent. (Okay, that last item isn't so great.) On Wednesday, I'll be taping an episode of Behind the Story which will air Sunday evening on CTS. I'll be at a theatre with my oldest son waiting for the midnight showing of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith starting shortly after sunset. (Yes, I know what I said yesterday but offer as my only defense that I will not line up for more than a few hours and that I'm taking a 14-year-old.) On Thursday I'll be watching the new Seinfeld and Team America DVDs I bought today. So I'll only be posting the quotidian each day until Friday. There is nothing to add to the extensive blogging already committed on the Blahlinda betrayal today. Right Ho! has the best line: "In other words, Stronach has come out in support of a corrupt government. In doing so, she has implicated herself. There's really no other way to look at it." Small Dead Animals has the second best line: "Well, we always knew she was a Liberal - they were just hagging over the price." Monday, May 16, 2005
Quotidian "Then nowise worship dusty deeds, Nor seek, for this is also sooth, To hunger fiercely after truth, Lest all thy toiling only breeds New dreams, new dreams; there is no truth Saving in thine own heart. Seek, then, No learning from the starry men, Who follow with the optic glass The whirling ways of stars that pass - Seek, then, for this is also sooth, No word of theirs - the cold star-bane Has cloven and rent their hearts in twain, And dead is all their human truth." -- William Butler Yeats, "The Song of the Happy Shepherd" There are geeks and nerds in Britain, too The Guardian reports: "Half a dozen teenagers huddled together in the doorway of a London cinema at 5am yesterday to pledge their undying allegiance to the Force. They came, not from a galaxy far, far away but from the solar systems of Oxford, Shropshire and Birmingham." The geeks are the people who showed up for the movie days in advance of the screening. The nerds are the ones who showed up to cover the geeks. I have no words to describe those who have already purchased their tickets for a marathon showing of the six movies together. Another victory for our much-vaunted 'soft-diplomacy' That's Adam Daifallah's sarcastic reaction to the latest news about Zahra Karzemi. The AFP story Adam links to concludes thusly: "Last month the judiciary again rejected Canada's demand for Kazemi's body -- which was hastily buried inside Iran after her death -- to be dug up and handed over for a new autopsy. The latest request from Ottowa was made amid allegations from an exiled Iranian doctor that the photographer had been raped and tortured. Iran, which does not recognise dual nationality, asserts that Canada has no business looking into the affair." There are only two explanations for Canada's non-reaction. One -- Adam's conclusion -- is that soft power equals no power; normally, I would agree. Another possibility is that Canada, which has barely squeaked regarding the allegations of Kazemi's beating death at the hands of her Iranian captors, would seem to agree with Iran that the murder of one of our citizens at the hands of a foreign government is none of our business. Sunday, May 15, 2005
Quotidian "At school I never minded the lessons. I just resented having to work so terribly hard at playing." -- John Mortimer, A Voyage Round My Father Don't look now The New York Yankees have won eight in a row, having beaten just minutes ago the Oakland A's 6-4. I hadn't blogged much about baseball until last weekend when I lamented that they were eight games under 500, needed to go 79-53 to reach 90 wins and that Joe Torre should probably be fired. Now they are at 500 (not updated as of this post), need to go 71-53 to reach 90 wins and Torre is probably safe in his job. I don't want to take credit but as Stephen Leacock once wrote, "When I state that my lectures were followed almost immediately by the union of South Africa, the banana riots in Thailand and the Turco-Italian war, I think readers can form some opinion of their importance." The Case for Democracy My review of The Case for Democracy: The Power of Freedom to Overcome Tyranny and Terror, by Natan Sharansky with Ron Dermer (HarperCollins Canada, hardcover, 303 pages, $37.95) is up at the Halifax Herald. There is one point I didn't make in the review that didn't really fit within the confines of those 900 words. Sharansky defines a free society as one in which anybody can walk into a public square make a speech about pretty well any topic and not be afraid of being arrested; fear societies are ones in which people would not feel safe doing so. Considering the proliferation of hate crime laws in Canada, the United States and Europe, how many would qualify as free societies under Sharansky's definition? I didn't make this point because it wasn't appropriate for the review but it is something I have thought about a lot since reading The Case for Democracy. Bad news for British Tories The Observer reports that Kenneth Clarke wants to become the next leader of the Conservative Party. After initially sending signals that he was either too old or not interested in the job, he has now said he would run if there is enough interest. Considering that the the "modernizers" (the Belinda Stronach/Colin Powell wing of the British Tory party) don't have another credible candidate, it seems a forgone conclusion that Clarke will toss his overly-experienced hat into the leadership ring. You won't learn much in this Observer profile of David Cameron, the 38-year-old shadow Secretary of Education and another possible leadership contender. Although we find out that he thinks the best show on TV is Desperate Housewives, there isn't much else there. His lines about, "We need to repair the rungs in the ladder as well as the holes in the net. A lot of people in this country feel very held back, that even if they work hard, pay their taxes and do the right thing, they can't get up that ladder," are all true but there isn't much policy in that, is there? It will be sad if the party thinks the way to connect with British voters is by pandering to their tastes in popular culture. The absurdity of our Sudan policy My fellow Shotgunner Kate McMillan has it covered. Loved this tidbit: "Martin spokeswoman Melanie Gruer said Canada needed the approval of the African Union for the troops' deployment rather than that of Sudan. 'It's up to the African Union to get Sudan's approval'." So Canada will send money and troops but only if the AU does our bidding for us in Khartoum. Of course, Prime Minister is a little distracted right now to worry about something as mundane as genocide. Political stereotypes David Brooks looks at "poor" Republicans based on research from the Pew Research Center. It is an interesting column although I would take issue with this comment: "The Pew data demonstrated that people at the top of the income scale are divided into stable, polar camps. There are the educated-class liberals - antiwar, pro-choice, anti-tax cuts - who make up about 19 percent of the electorate, according to Pew. And there are business-class conservatives - pro-war, pro-life, pro-tax cut - who make up 11 percent of voters." This doesn't jive with the phenomenon of wealthy but leaning socially liberal Country Club Republicans, but that doesn't make the rest of the column any less thought provoking and politically significant. Poor Republicans are unlike poor Democrats because they are attracted to the GOP's optimism inherent in the opportunity society that party has embraced in recent years. Like poor Democrats, poor Republicans support government initiatives but do so for the security they provide until hard-working Americans can get back on their feet, something they are more likely to do under the GOP's agenda than the Democrats'. Saturday, May 14, 2005
Weekend list V Five boys names and five girls names I would want to name my future child* Boys 1) Matthew 2) Benjamin 3) David 4) J.P. (John Paul) 5) Nathaniel Girls 1) Victoria 2) Rachel 3) Mary Grace 4) Lindsay 5) Laura * Current children include Patrick, Michael, Kathryn and Madelyn Friday, May 13, 2005
Announcements This will be a light-posting weekend because I have pay-the-bill writing to do. And considering that next week is my production week, it might be light posting until the long weekend. I will put up at least the quotidian each day and the weekend list by Sunday, but I don't know how much more. If I do have time for substantial blogging, I'll make an appearance at The Shotgun. Next week I will have details about an up-coming television appearance. You can order my book Jean Chretien: A Legacy of Scandal from the publisher or from Amazon. You can send comments to paul_tuns [AT] yahoo.com. Provocative thought Writing in his Los Angeles Times column, David Gelernter says: "The national interest requires that all children be educated and that all taxpayers contribute. But it doesn't follow that we need public schools." He proceeds to explain why public schools have failed students and turned parents into "saps" and argues that they no longer serve any public (that is, shared) function. He concludes: "Today's public schools have forfeited their right to exist. Let's get rid of them. Let's do it carefully and humanely, but let's do it. Let's offer every child a choice of private schools instead." Quotidian "Breathes there the man, with soul so dead, Who never to himself hath said, This is my own, my native land! Whose heart hath ne'er within him burn'd, As home his footsteps he hath turn'd From wandering on a foreign strand! If such there breathe, go, mark him well; For him no Minstrel raptures swell; High though his titles, proud his name, Boundless his wealth as wish can claim; Despite those titles, power, and pelf, The wretch, concentred all in self, Living, shall forfeit fair renown, And, doubly dying, shall go down To the vile dust, from whence he sprung, Unwept, unhonour'd, and unsung." -- Walter Scott, The Lay of the Last Minstrel Politics aside, Parliament will be losing a lot when it loses Broadbent Right Ho! explains why. Noting that Ed Broadbent has volunteered to sit out the budget vote to be "paired" with cancer-striken Tory MP Darrel Stinson who can't make the vote, Right Ho! says: "Broadbent would sit out the vote along with Conservative MP Darrel Stinson, who is unable to attend due to scheduled surgery. As he said, 'We're not losing anything. What we're doing is failing to take advantage of a very sick MP.' As far as I'm concerned, that was a very noble thing that Ed Broadbent offered. You may not like what Broadbent stands for or believes in, but you have to acknowledge that our Parliament is going to lose a very decent individual." China and North Korea The Economist's lead editorial is about the need for the world to get serious about Iran and North Korea acquiring nuclear weapons. After all, the magazine sensibly concludes, it is not in anyone's interest (except perhaps Iran and North Korea) if these other two charter members of the axis of evil were to acquire such weapons. But as the Washington Times editorializes, "China seems dangerously oblivious to the possibility of a nuclearized Asia." So oblivious that one cannot trust the nation's intentions, or at least actions, in the six-way talks to address North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Giving Wendy's the finger Police find source of the piece of finger that a woman found in her Wendy's chili: her husband's co-worker lost it in an industrial accident. Two sides of CAFTA There is Patrick Buchanan's from the current issue of The American Conservative [sic] and then there is the right side from Daniel W. Fisk of the Heritage Foundation. The AU & Darfur Just wondering what the African Union has said about the genocide in Darfur lately and found little. Last major item in their Darfur file was a motion passed in January that sounded very UNish (The AU "REQUESTS the Peace and Security Council (PSC) to keep the situation in Darfur under constant review and to take all necessary measures to promote an early negotiated solution.") Wow. That will stop the "violence with an ethnic dimension" (to use actual UN-speak). Religious freedom in Vietnam Or more accurately the lack of religious freedom. Human Rights Watch highlights the persecution of the Montagnard (forest) Christians including forcing these evangelicals to recant their faith. The full report is available here. Conservative Ship Or is it Right Ho!? Either way, it is must read blogging including this post on the sad state of boxing. |
