meme orandum
| A newfangled news tangle |
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Blogging Sells, and Sells Out LAT — Permalink By most accounts, blogs — web logs to the uninitiated — scored a major coup last week when CBS News admitted that it couldn't vouch for the authenticity of memos supposedly written by George W. Bush's commander in the Texas Air National Guard. | |
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Chris Bowers: Today he wrote an op-ed on blogging in the Los Angeles Times. Richard TPD: Billmon on the death of blogging — One of my very favorite bloggers, Billmon of the Whisky Bar, has written an obituary... Jeralyn Merritt: Are Bloggers Selling Out? Billmon of Whiskey Bar has an op-ed in today's LA Times, Blogging Sells, and Sells Out. |
Roger Ailes: You can read more about the merger here. Present the previous post at any Cracker Barrel restaurant between now and October 5, and ask for 20 percent off any regular entree. Xan @Corrente: Harumph. Now we find his writings, not at the Whiskey Bar but in the editorial section of the LA Times fer chrissakes. Skippy: but since the latimes article was written by billmon, who at last is back from his respite, we are a bit hurt. |
| Also: Steve Bainbridge, Susan Madrak, Ed Cone, Oliver @LiquidList, Matthew Yglesias, Kevin Drum, Digby | |
Battling for Iraq By / WaPo — Permalink BAGHDAD — Helping organize, train and equip nearly a quarter-million of Iraq's security forces is a daunting task. Doing so in the middle of a tough insurgency increases the challenge enormously, making the mission akin to repairing an aircraft while in flight — and while being shot at. | |
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Deacon: David Petraeus, head of the Multinational Security Transition Command in Iraq, reports that "tangible progress" is... Glenn Reynolds: GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS offers thoughts on what's going on in Iraq. Very much worth reading. Cori Dauber: But his piece in today's Post is important because it lays down some key markers for future press coverage. |
James Joyner: Petraeus: Battling for Iraq — LTG David Petraeus has an interesting piece in today's WaPo, in which he describes the daunting task ahead for the Coalition. Orrin Judd: BETWEEN IRAQ AND PETRAEUS: Battling for Iraq (David H. Petraeus, September 26, 2004, Washington Post) Bill @INDCJournal: (Via Vodkapundit) UPDATE: And when you're done with that, read Gen. David H. Petraeus's column in today's WaPo. |
Violence in Iraq Belies Claims of Calm, Data Show By / WaPo — Permalink BAGHDAD, Sept. 25 — Less than four months before planned national elections in Iraq, attacks against U.S. troops, Iraqi security forces and private contractors number in the dozens each day and have spread to parts of the country that had been relatively peaceful, according to statistics compiled by a private security firm working for the U.S. government. | |
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Andrew Sullivan: ATTENTION STEYN: Here's more troubling data on the tenacity of the Iraq insurgency, as compiled by a private security... Matthew Yglesias: Nevertheless, a few choice headlines: "U.S. Arrests Senior Commander of Iraqi National Guard" "Killings Surge in Iraq,... Orin Kerr: 70 Attacks A Day: The lead story in today's Washington Post reports that the number of enemy attacks in Iraq has reached... |
James Joyner: Three stories were featured above the fold on page A01: a) "Violence in Iraq Belies Claims of Calm, Data Show," a piece... Kevin Drum: Here's the latest, from a confidential report about insurgent attacks written by a private security firm for the... DemFromCT: Violence in Iraq Belies Claims of Calm, Data Show — One of the best foreign correspondents writing for the SCLM is... |
| Also: Cori Dauber, Juan Cole | |
Kerry Rips Bush on 'Mission Accomplished' Remark Reuters — Permalink MADISON, Wis. (Reuters) - Democratic presidential challenger John Kerry ripped into President Bush on Sunday for saying he had no regrets over his "Mission Accomplished" speech on Iraq and would do it again. | |
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Oliver Willis: George Bush Likes Playing Dress-Up — As the self-appointed president of fantasy world, it comes as no surprise that George Bush heartily endorses dressing up. Atrios: Big John Swings — Link: [quote] Kerry, arriving in Madison, Wisconsin for debate preparations, called the statement "unbelievable."[end quote] |
Charles Johnson: Kerry Meltdown Watch — Kerry Rips Bush on 'Mission Accomplished' Remark. |
Election Diary: Bush bloggers capture stealth media By / Independent — Permalink My colleagues in American TV News are in a right old tizz over the Dan Rather debacle. Rather claimed he had documentary evidence that Bush was given preferential treatment in the National Guard during Vietnam. | |
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Allah: That task falls to the Independent, which seems more than happy to pitch in: "The real story, however, is not Rather,... |
Glenn Reynolds: UPDATE: A different perspective on the blogosphere here, from The Independent. |
Pakistan Reports Top Al Qaeda Operative Killed By / AP — Permalink KARACHI, Pakistan — Paramilitary police killed a suspected top al Qaeda operative, wanted for alleged involvement in the kidnapping of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, during a four-hour shootout Sunday at a southern Pakistan house, the information minister said. | |
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Jeff Quinton: Pearl Kidnapper Killed — AP/WaPo: [snipped quote] (Via James Joyner.) Other blogging: Rusty Shackleford |
James Joyner: Daniel Pearl's Kidnapper Killed in Shootout — Pakistan Reports Top Al Qaeda Operative Killed (WaPo-AP) [snipped quote] A classic win-win scenario. |
The Media, Losing Their Way By / WaPo — Permalink We don't yet know who will win the 2004 election, but we know who has lost it. The American news media have been clobbered. In a year when war in Iraq, the threat of terrorism and looming problems with the federal budget and the nation's health care... | |
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Deacon: Clueless in D.C. This piece by David Broder of the Washington Post, "The Media, Losing Their Way," couldn't be more clueless if Richard Cohen had written it. David Adesnik: BRODER'S HEAD BURIED IN THE SAND: I thought I really liked where this column was heading: "We don't yet know who will win the 2004 election, but we know who has lost it. Avedon Carol: From the notebook — David Broder on The Media, Losing Their Way: We don't yet know who will win the 2004 election, but we know who has lost it. |
Andrew Sullivan: Alas. BRODER'S HARRUMPH: Much of David Broder's worrying about the decline of the mainstream media is well-taken. Melanie @AmStreet: On the page facing the Post eds is a Broder column taking the media to task for shoddy, cheer-leaderish coverage of Iraq and the Bush admin in general. Allah: I wonder, is Marshall one of the bloggers David Broder has in mind when he says "the Internet opened the door to scores... |
| Also: Charles Johnson, Todd Zywicki, Michelle Malkin, Greg Ransom, Joe Gandelman | |
Why the 9/11 fund was a mistake By / Boston Globe — Permalink THE FUND established by Congress to compensate the families of those who died on Sept. 11 closed its books earlier this year. According to Kenneth Feinberg, the special master appointed to administer the fund, all but a handful of the families eligible to apply for an award did so. | |
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Christopher Kanis: Good column from Jeff Jacoby explaining Why the 9/11 fund was a mistake. KJL: THE 9/11 FUND WAS A MISTAKE — That's Jeff Jacoby's column today |
James Joyner: 9/11 Fund Was a Mistake — Jeff Jacoby, writing in the Boston Globe, explains "Why the 9/11 fund was a mistake." |
Quick. Change the Brand. In Five Weeks. By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON — Senator John Kerry tried reintroducing himself last week with a new speech against the Iraq war, but he promptly ran into an old problem. To Democrats, it was a fresh, tough speech that put him in good position to challenge President Bush in this week's debate. | |
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Steve M.: And if Bush isn't winning, why did I spend the morning reading article after article after article in my New York Times... Betsy Newmark: UPDATE: The Telegraph's story seems even scarier when paired with this column by the former head of Saddam's nuclear centrifuge program. |
Orrin Judd: NO AD CAMPAIGN CAN SELL AN EDSEL: Quick. Change the Brand. In Five Weeks. Glenn Reynolds: Go away! Call me crazy, but stuff like this isn't going to help with the Kerry rebranding effort. |
Syria brokers secret deal to send atomic weapons scientists to Iran By / Telegraph — Permalink Syria's President Bashir al-Asad is in secret negotiations with Iran to secure a safe haven for a group of Iraqi nuclear scientists who were sent to Damascus before last year's war to overthrow Saddam Hussein. | |
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Andrew Stuttaford: MORE NUKES — From the Daily Telegraph: [snipped quote] If (the usual caveat) this story proves to be accurate, it... Betsy Newmark: Captain Ed links to a story in the London Telegraph which says that Saddam sent a group of Iraqi nuclear scientists to Syria before the war started. Ace: Telegraph (UK): Syria Harbored Iraqi Nuke Scientists; Negotiating to Send them to Iran — Thanks to a tip from JimW.,... |
Jesse Taylor: That's The Anthem, Get Your Damn Hands Up — I understand that I'm risking conservative blogger charges of treason... Orrin Judd: Syria brokers secret deal to send atomic weapons scientists to Iran (Con Coughlin, 26/09/2004, Sunday Telegraph) Allah: Shell game UPDATE: In an op-ed to be published in today's New York Times, the former head of Saddam's centrifuge program says we ignore Iraqi nuclear scientists at our peril. |
| Also: Captain Ed | |
Saddam, the Bomb and Me By / NYT — Permalink While the final report from Charles A. Duelfer, the top American inspector of Iraq's covert weapons programs, won't be released for a few weeks, the portions that have already been made public touch on many of the experiences I had while working as the head of Saddam Hussein's nuclear centrifuge program. | |
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Gary Farber: A succinct explication of the latter days of Saddam's weapons' program. [snipped quote] And thus the success at the myth bomb. Damian Penny: However, Mahdi Obeidi, a scientist who worked on Saddam's nuclear program, says UN sanctions (the "genocidal American... |
Captain Ed: The Times allows Dr. Mahdi Obeidi to speak for himself, which he already has done in a book, The Bomb In My Garden. Orrin Judd: Saddam, the Bomb and Me (MAHDI OBEIDI, 9/26/04, NY Times) "Iraq's nuclear weapons program was on the threshold of... |
We're Dodging the Draft Issue By / Newsweek — Permalink Oct. 4 issue - It's a potentially lethal issue—the kind that could make young voters swarm to the polls and their nervous parents change their minds about supporting President Bush. Republicans are peeved over Democratic claims that the president will impose a draft if he's re-elected. | |
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Barbara O'Brien: Draft Dodging — Jonathan Alter writes in Newsweek that the Bush Administration has no plans for a draft. Lorie Byrd: Furthering The Draft Scare — Here is another example of why the mainstream media will either have to change or die. |
Betsy Newmark: Particularly, when liberal columnists write columns like Jonathan Alter in Newsweek. |
Syria blast kills Hamas militant BBC — Permalink A car bomb in the Syrian capital, Damascus, has killed a senior member of Palestinian militant group Hamas. Izz El-Deen Sheikh Khalil died after the bomb exploded in his car, completely destroying it. Hamas has accused Israel of the killing and vowed to retaliate with attacks inside Israel. | |
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H.D. Miller: Ironic — Live by the car bomb, die by the car bomb. "A car bomb in the Syrian capital, Damascus, has killed a senior member of Palestinian militant group Hamas. Glenn Reynolds: THIS DOESN'T SEEM ALL THAT TRAGIC, TO ME: "A car bomb in the Syrian capital, Damascus, has killed a senior member of Palestinian militant group Hamas. |
Fred Lapides: The Israeli authorities had vowed to hit Hamas leaders "wherever they are" after suicide bomb attacks in August in... Jan Haugland: Hamas leader killed in Syria — A car explosion in Damascus, Syria just killed Hamas leader Izz Eldine Subhi Sheik Khalil. |
On the stump, the art of distortion By / Boston Globe — Permalink BANGOR — As he often does at campaign events, President Bush got his biggest rise out of the crowd in Bangor Thursday afternoon when he said he was simply paraphrasing Senator John F. Kerry's statements. | |
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Oliver Willis: I truly believe that President Bush can't help himself. He just lies. |
Taegan Goddard: The Art of Distortion — "Distorting an opponent's words and selectively using facts and figures is nothing new in politics," the Boston Globe reports. |
CBS explodes liberal media bias myth By / San Francisco Chronicle — Permalink If ever a story should destroy the myth of liberal media bias, it is the flap over Dan Rather's flub. For CBS, the admission that it cannot verify the authenticity of documents used in a story about President Bush's National Guard service is a serious matter to be sure. | |
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Skippy: as the sfchron (link via atrios) points out, the cbs fiasco was not nearly as important as other recent press... Betsy Newmark: Only a Berkeley professor could come up with this argument. |
Atrios: Priorities — From the SF Chron: Just four months ago, lest we forget, the New York Times issued its own mea culpa,... |
Fear and Laptops on the Campaign Trail By / NYT — Permalink Nine blocks north of Madison Square Garden, next door to the Emerging Artists Theater, where posters advertised ''The Gay Naked Play'' (''Now With More Nudity''), the bloggers were up and running. It was Republican National Convention week in New York City, and they had taken over a performance space called the Tank. | |
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Steve M.: A million bloggers have already commented on the big blogging article in The New York Times Magazine, and I don't have... Jim Treacher: Open letter to everybody who thinks they should have been included in that NYT Magazine thing on bloggers today —... Skippy: both concern blogs, and both fail to mention ours. we can't expect the nytimes to know everything. |
Dave Johnson: Atrios, you have new readers at your blog — especially today! They aren't "in the know" but they are interested and want to explore this online phenomenon. Baldilocks: Fronting — Right-of-center bloggers have been disappeared. * At least by the New York Times they have. William J. Dyer: Josh Marshall's history PhD seems wasted — As today's New York Times Magazine has helpfully reminded us, liberal... |
| Also: Andrew Sullivan, Mike Rappaport, KJL, Digby, Hugh Hewitt, Matthew Yglesias, Daniel Drezner, PoliPundit, Ed Cone, Ann Althouse, Betsy Newmark, Mitch Berg, Glenn Reynolds, Barbara O'Brien, Michele Catalano, Jesse Taylor, Stirling Newberry, Jon Henke, Natasha @PacificViews, Rickheller @Centerfield, Charles Johnson, Ace, Gary Farber, Ezra Klein, Steve Gilliard, DemFromCT | |
Bare forests left Haiti exposed By / Miami Herald — Permalink DIBEDOU, Haiti - The Sot is usually a gurgling little creek, just a few inches deep, that doesn't even provide enough water for the dozen families living near it. They walk 30 minutes to the Branle River to get water and wash their clothes. | |
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Randy Paul: Deforestation in Haiti — This pretty much explains the magnitude of the crisis in Haiti: [snipped quote] This satellite... |
Hugh Hewitt: Here is a longer story on the island country's bare forests that leads to the flooding. |
Whoever Wins, More Taxes May Be the Only Way Out By / NYT — Permalink IT'S often forgotten that President Ronald Reagan signed a bill to raise taxes in the early 1980's after first cutting them. President George H. W. Bush abandoned his "read my lips" pledge and raised taxes in 1990. Could Republicans soon be in a similar position again? | |
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Steve M.: (Source.) |
Libertarian: The winning party will have to raise taxes (or cut benefits drastically): "President Bush has called for freezing the... |
Bush: Would Give 'Mission Accomplished' Speech Again Reuters — Permalink CRAWFORD, Texas (Reuters) - President Bush said he had no regrets about donning a flight suit to give his "Mission Accomplished" speech on Iraq in May 2003 and would do it all over again if he had the chance, according to excerpts from an television interview released on Sunday. | |
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Matthew Yglesias: But I never really thought he would stoop to this: "When asked by Fox News if he still would have put on a flight suit... |
Charles Johnson: The al-Reuters wire service quotes President Bush in their headline and first paragraph as having said "Mission... |
President's Radio Address White House — Permalink THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This week, I was honored to welcome the Prime Minister of a free and sovereign Iraq to the White House. In less than three months, Prime Minister Allawi and his government have accomplished a great deal, despite persistent violence in parts of Iraq. | |
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DeLong: But here is what Bush had to say about it in today's radio address: (emp add) "We're making steady progress in... |
Michael Froomkin: But here is what Bush had to say about it in today's radio address: (emp add)We're making steady progress in... |
Beate Ruhm von Oppen Guardian — Permalink Beate Ruhm von Oppen, who has died aged 86, was a historian and translator, who came to Britain before the war from Nazi Germany, but spent most of her adult life in the United States. | |
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Patrick Belton: ACADEMIC, CHORISTER, SPY: Robin Burk remembers Beate Ruhm von Oppen, her former teacher. |
Robin Burk: Beate Ruhm von Oppen was far better known in international circles. |
Plans: Next, War on Syria? Newsweek — Permalink Oct. 4 issue - Deep in the Pentagon, admirals and generals are updating plans for possible U.S. military action in Syria and Iran. The Defense Department unit responsible for military planning for the two troublesome countries is "busier than ever," an administration official says. | |
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Jeralyn Merritt: Considering the source is Newsweek, Plans: Next, War on Syria? is pretty frightening: [snipped quote] While some Bush... |
Orrin Judd: HE'S GOT A LITTLE LIST AND THEY'LL NONE OF THEM BE MISSED: Plans: Next, War on Syria? |
A Big Increase of New Voters in Swing States By / NYT — Permalink COLUMBUS, Ohio - A sweeping voter registration campaign in heavily Democratic areas has added tens of thousands of new voters to the rolls in the swing states of Ohio and Florida, a surge that has far exceeded the efforts of Republicans in both states, a review of registration data shows. | |
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Taegan Goddard: Democrats Lead in Attracting New Voters — The New York Times notes that a "sweeping voter registration campaign in... Ampersand @Amptoons: GOP losing "get out the vote" battle — Here's some good news: According to a New York Times study, Democrats in the... |
Steve M.: And in swing states, new voters are being registered in heavily Democratic counties at a much faster pace than in Republican-leaning counties. |
Election May Hinge On Debates By / WaPo — Permalink For Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), stuck in second place with just five weeks left in the presidential campaign, the debates that begin this week may be the best chance remaining to close the sale with voters and beat President Bush. | |
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Taegan Goddard: The Washington Post sets up the challenge for Sen. John Kerry: "Beating Bush in these debates — the first on Thursday... DemFromCT: Sunday Morning Talk Show Open Thread - The Debate Debate — Note this story regarding the debates, and Chris Bowers'... |
Hugh Hewitt: The expectations game for Thursday's big debate gets underway in the Washington Post this morning, with a piece intended to drive down Kerry's expectations and elevate Bush's. |
Insiders Worked Both Sides of Gaming Issue By / WaPo — Permalink Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff and public relations consultant Michael Scanlon quietly worked with conservative religious activist Ralph Reed to help the state of Texas shut down an Indian tribe's casino in 2002, then the two quickly persuaded the tribe to pay $4.2 million to try to get Congress to reopen it. | |
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Jesse Walker: Today's Washington Post includes a detailed demonstration of how the system works. |
Charles Kuffner: Weekend scandal roundup — The WaPo updates us on the Scanlon/Abramoff/Ralph Reed casino-swindling scandal. |
In Magazine Interview, Kerry Says He Owns Assault Rifle By / NYT — Permalink Senator John Kerry, a hunter who supported the recently expired assault weapons ban, frequently tells audiences he has never met anyone who wanted to use an AK-47 to shoot a deer. But it is not clear what Mr. Kerry does with the Chinese assault rifle he told Outdoor Life magazine he kept in his personal collection. | |
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Bill @INDCJournal: But he needed to have 500 [flight] hours, but he only had just over 300 hours so he wasn't eligible to go," Morrisey recalls. ... and John Kerry owns an assault weapon. Glenn Reynolds: THE NEW YORK TIMES PICKS UP on the story of Kerry's Chinese assault weapon: [snipped quote] He's got laryngitis! Go away! Allah: And if you're still not satisfied after that, read this and luxuriate in the many rich nuances of Waffles's position on assault rifles. |
PoliPundit: The Old York Times asked his long-suffering spokesman, Michael Meehan, about it and got this answer: "On Thursday... H.D. Miller: NY Times: Kerry Own Assualt Rifle — What's he use it for? Shooting himself in the foot? (Hat top to Orrin Judd.) Orrin Judd: JUST MAKE SURE IT'S TRIGGER-LOCKED ON NOVEMBER 2ND: In Magazine Interview, Kerry Says He Owns Assault Rifle (JODI... |
'De Gaulle option' may be our best Iraq exit strategy Seattle Times — Permalink Each prosecuted that war — Johnson reluctantly, Nixon because he thought he could do better. Both failed and were destroyed by the war. This does not have to happen to Kerry. There is an alternative. However, it is an alternative that he seems determined to exclude. | |
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Bird Dog: Advice From a Paris-Based Pundit: Be Like the French and Lose — Of course, William Pfaff doesn't call it that, but that is the message. |
Charles Johnson: The French Strategy — In the Seattle Times, columnist William Pfaff says that if John Kerry is elected he'll have a... |
Skewing the middle class By / Washington Times — Permalink I know many New York Times reporters and have always found them very good at their jobs, interested only in getting the story and getting it right. One I don't know is Timothy Egan, who confirms most conservatives' perception of the Times as little more than a conduit for Democratic Party press releases. | |
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Matt Singer: Here's How — Jesse Taylor is not impressed with Bruce Bartlett's attempts to explain that, really, for the working poor everything is alright. |
Jesse Taylor: Don't Pay Attention To Your Wallet...It's Being Silly — This Bruce Bartlett commentary has been making the rounds on various conservative sites (and in my inbox). |
Top Hamas leader assassinated in Damascus Jerusalem Post — Permalink A car bomb exploded in Damascus on Sunday, killing a top Hamas leader Izz El-Deen Al-Sheikh Khalil, Israeli security sources said speaking on condition of anonymity. According to media reports, Hamas officials are blaming Israel for the assassination. | |
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Wretchard: The Road To Damascus — Just after Izz El-Deen Al-Sheikh Khalil climbed into his white Mitsubishi in Damascus a bomb planted in the vehicle exploded, ending his career. |
Charles Johnson: Got One in Damascus — A top Hamas terrorist has been killed by a car bomb in Damascus, Syria. |
The Genesis Project By / NYT — Permalink One morning, a little more than a year from now, a group of scientists, members of what is known as the Stardust mission, will be standing around on a remote stretch of salt flat in the Utah desert, eagerly awaiting the arrival of a very special package. | |
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Ed Cone: The Times mag also has an interesting article on astrobiology, which includes a useful definition of "life" from Jeffrey... |
Stirling Newberry: Invasion Europa — A story into today's New York Times on the search for life known as "astrobiology", which is worth a... |
Kerry as the Boss: Always More Questions NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Sept. 25 - For 15 minutes in Milwaukee the other day, Senator John Kerry pummeled his staff with questions about an attack on President Bush, planned for later that morning, that accused the White House of hiding a huge Medicare premium increase. | |
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H.D. Miller: In today's New York Times we learn the reason why: John Kerry is a terrible manager, or rather, John Kerry is an... Hugh Hewitt: The New York Times provides a warning that, regardless of ideology, Kerry would make a terrible president: "The morning... Avedon Carol: Dig this: Kerry as the Boss: Always More Questions. [snipped quote] Blah blah blah. |
Orin Kerr: Kerry's Management Style: The NY Times has an interesting article in today's paper on Kerry's management style. Jesse Taylor: I Ran The Crystal Pespi Division — Avedon Carol points out that being in a position of leadership does not make you a leader. Orrin Judd: NOT EVEN JUNIOR EXECUTIVE MATERIAL: Kerry as the Boss: Always More Questions (ADAM NAGOURNEY and JODI WILGOREN, 9/26/04,... |
| Also: Betsy Newmark, Glenn Reynolds, Ann Althouse | |
President Lindbergh in 2004 By / NYT — Permalink PHILIP ROTH is one of America's great novelists, but you don't expect him to be barreling up the best-seller list with a book that hasn't even been published yet. "Literary fiction," as it is now stigmatized in the cultural marketplace, no longer flies off the shelves unless struck by the TV lightning of Oprah or the "Today" show. | |
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Xan @Corrente: Frank Rich writes that without—I wonder why—being hyped by the SCML at all, Roth's new Plot Against America,... |
Orrin Judd: A TWO-FER OBLIGATORY: President Lindbergh in 2004 (Frank Rich, 9/26/04, NY Times) [snipped quote] Never mind George W... |
Dance of the Marionettes By / NYT — Permalink It's heartwarming, really. President Bush has his own Mini-Me now, someone to echo his every word and mimic his every action. For so long, Mr. Bush has put up with caricatures of a wee W. sitting in the vice president's lap, Charlie McCarthy style, as big Dick Cheney calls the shots. | |
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Betsy Newmark: Maureen Dowd scrapes the bottom of the barrel today. She picks up Joe Lockhart's characterization of Allawi as a Bush puppet. Michael Froomkin: And, oh yes, it's so true: Dance of the Marionettes: It's heartwarming, really. |
Allah: Elsewhere on the op-ed page, while the grown-ups talk about nuclear weapons, Dummy amuses herself by... |
New Iran missiles can reach London WorldNetDaily — Permalink Iran said today it has successfully test-fired a long-range "strategic missile" and delivered it to its armed forces, saying it is now prepared to deal with any regional threats and even the "big powers." | |
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Joe Gandelman: Note this item in World Net Daily: [quote] Iran said today it has successfully test-fired a long-range "strategic missile" and...[end quote] |
Allah: Twice. UPDATE: If you're wondering why you should care about Iraqi nuclear scientists being in Iran, here's why. |
Eye on CBS American Thinker — Permalink CBS announced this week it had named Richard Thornburgh and Louis Boccardi to head a panel to investigate what went wrong with the now notorious Sixty Minutes broadcast. | |
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Glenn Reynolds: UPDATE: Bill Adams and The American Thinker have more on the latest CBS developments. ANOTHER UPDATE: More here, too. Charles Johnson: Eye on CBS — Clarice Feldman at the American Thinker has more on the curious coincidences tying together CBS News's use... |
Allah: S**t, if you're really stupid, you just might light yourself on fire. Although I'm sure it's not as bad as all that. |
Both Parties See a Big Increase in New Voters By / NYT — Permalink COLUMBUS, Ohio - A sweeping voter registration campaign in heavily Democratic areas has added tens of thousands of new voters to the rolls in the swing states of Ohio and Florida, a surge that has far exceeded the efforts of Republicans in both states, a review of registration data shows. | |
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Digby: And, apparently, there are a bunch of them: [snipped quote] This is awfully good news for us, guys. Kevin Hayden: Registration up, and leaning Democrat — In Ohio, the NY Times says GOP registration is up 25% this year. Ken Layne: Vote Early and Often — New York Times: A Big Increase of New Voters in Swing States: [snipped quote] Interesting. |
Oliver Willis: A Big Increase of New Voters in Swing States [snipped quote] Looks like they've got a song related to the effort that's doing pretty well. Tbogg: GOTV — It's pretty much a "no duh!" that John Kerry's success is going to hinge on the Get Out the Vote efforts of... Yuval Rubinstein: Hit the Ground Running — I saw this story over at Kos in tomorrow's NYT regarding voter registration in swing states. |
| Also: Ajsnow, Chris Bowers, Susan Madrak | |
The Big Mahatma By / Weekly Standard — Permalink SUPPOSE you were doing a little research into the history of Supreme Court nominations, and you learned from one book that Grover Cleveland "bested Benjamin Harrison by almost 100,000 votes in the election of 1888, but the vagaries of the electoral college caused him to lose the election" (p. | |
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Pejman Yousefzadeh: That is the import of this article, and the message is most disconcerting for anyone aware of Tribe's central and... Orrin Judd: The Big Mahatma: Laurence Tribe and the problem of borrowed scholarship (Joseph Bottum, 10/04/2004, Weekly Standard)... Stuart Buck: More Harvard Plagiarism — Looks as if Laurence Tribe wrote a book in the mid-1980s that borrowed heavily from another scholar's work, without attribution. |
Betsy Newmark: Joseph Bottums has an expose of how Laurence Tribe has basically plagiarized Henry Abraham's 1974 Justices and Presidents in Tribe's own God Save This Honorable Court . Ampersand @Amptoons: Laurence Tribe - possibly the most influential lefty law prof in the world - is guilty of "plagiaphrasing" from another... |
No Place is Safe By / Newsweek — Permalink Oct. 4 issue - Bricks and plaster blew inward from the wall, as the windows all shattered and I fell to the floor—whether from the shock wave, or just fright, it wasn't clear. The blast was so loud it sounded as if the building couldn't possibly stand, but it did. | |
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Kevin Hayden: Watch out for that tree! [snipped quote] - George Bush Freedom's not winning. Death is. Got that? Death is. |
Natasha @PacificViews: Pay No Attention To The Bomb Behind The Curtain — As Bush continues a sunny residence in his fantasy world of spin, foreigners living in Iraq are seeing a different picture. |
For Edwards and Kerry, an Evolving Partnership With Awkward Moments By / NYT — Permalink WASHINGTON, Sept. 24 - They present the image of a close partnership, starting with campaign signs that, unlike President Bush and Vice President Cheney's, give their names nearly equal billing. | |
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James Frederick Dwight: The New York Times today has a fascinating article about the Kerry/Edwards relationship that hints at some trouble in paradise for the political newlyweds. |
Orrin Judd: BEING UNBEARABLE AND THE LIGHTNESS: For Edwards and Kerry, an Evolving Partnership With Awkward Moments (RANDAL C... |
Falwell says evangelicals control GOP, Bush's fate By / San Diego Union-Tribune — Permalink WASHINGTON - The Rev. Jerry Falwell said yesterday that evangelical Christians, after nearly 25 years of increasing political activism, now control the Republican Party and the fate of President Bush in the November election. | |
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Gary Farber: IF YOU SAY SO. Enjoy the "big tent." [snipped quote] Vote for the Republicans. It's God's Own Party, and God instructs you whom to vote for. LQ @AmStreet: He's not the only one: Jerry Falwell said yesterday that evangelical Christians now control the Republican Party and the fate of President Bush. Oliver Willis: And if they forget that for two seconds, their mullahs will be the first to remind them who's driving the bus. |
Orrin Judd: An interview with Allen D. Hertzke (Christianity Today, 09/22/2004) -Falwell says evangelicals control GOP, Bush's fate (Scott Shepard, September 25, 2004, Cox News Service) Susan Madrak: Or maybe I'll just show them this: [snipped quote] :And that's as good a reason as any to pull the lever for Kerry. |
Zarqawi's Palestinian No. 2 Dies in US Targeted Assassination DEBKAfile — Permalink On Thursday, September 23, US forces resorted to targeted assassination to dispose of Abu Anas al-Shami, a senior aide of the Jordanian al Qaeda mastermind, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, in Baghdad. | |
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Betsy Newmark: Debka reports that we were able to kill one of Zarqawi's top lieutenants. Take it with a grain of salt, but it would be good news. |
Tom Smith: Debka reports assassination of top Al-Quaeda aid — Debka reports that US forces killed a top al-Quaeda aid in Baghdad in a missile attack. |
Another Triumph for the U.N. By / NYT — Permalink And so we went the multilateral route. Confronted with the murder of 50,000 in Sudan, we eschewed all that nasty old unilateralism, all that hegemonic, imperialist, go-it-alone, neocon, empire, coalition-of-the-coerced stuff. | |
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Betsy Newmark: David Brooks' column from yesterday on Darfur was brutal and brilliant. [snipped quote] Read the rest. And weep. KJL: BROOKS ON SUDAN — Read it if you didn't. David Adesnik: REAPING THE REWARDS OF MULTILATERALISM: David Brooks savages the United Nations (and especially the Security Council)... |
Pejman Yousefzadeh: SHAME — David Brooks rightfully excoriates the United Nations for its failure in Sudan: [snipped quote] Behold multilateralism and its legacy. FrancoAlemán: Read this superb piece by David Brooks from the first to the last letter. Arthur Chrenkoff: If you read just one thing today...make it this piece by David Brooks in the "New York Times": [snipped quote] It's... |
| Also: Bird Dog, Hugh Hewitt, Damian Penny, Glenn Reynolds, Jeanne D'Arc, Cori Dauber | |
Bush Twists Kerry's Words on Iraq By / AP — Permalink WACO, Texas - President Bush opened several new scathing lines of attack against Democrat John Kerry , charges that twisted his rival's words on Iraq and made Kerry seem supportive of deposed dictator Saddam Hussein . | |
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Jesse Taylor: It's seen in the microcosm of this story. The original Yahoo headline was "Bush Twists Kerry's Words on Iraq". Spoons: Note that if you follow the link to the original AP story, you'll see that the news service has re-titled it. Mathew Gross: Rebuilding the Fourth Estate — Could it be? Is the AP really rediscovering there are such things in the world as facts,... |
Jason Van Steenwyk: Circus Beat Reporter Caught Sleeping With Elephants — [snipped quote] Well, it turns out that one of the Associated... Hindrocket: This morning, many readers have directed our attention to this astonishing AP story titled "Bush Twists Kerry's Words on Iraq". Charles Johnson: Mainstream Media Carrying Water for Kerry — Several readers emailed about this nakedly biased editorial masquerading as... |
| Also: Oliver Willis, Orrin Judd | |
Kerry's looking for American failure -- and he's it By / Chicago Sun Times — Permalink Before John Kerry, the only alumni of Swiss finishing schools I'd ever met (in my younger days) were a certain type of lively English girl, a couple of minor princesses from Gulf emirates and a charming young Iranian lady whose family had been forced to flee after the shah fell. | |
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Jan Haugland: How not to treat allies — Mark Steyn: Kerry's looking for American failure — and he's it As much as it's an attack on... Ginny @ChicagoBoyz: So Mark Steyn describes the press conference with Allawi and Bush: "They're six feet from Iraq's head of government and they've got not a question for him. H.D. Miller: A Small, Graceless Man — Mark Steyn picks up the theme of the week: John Kerry's Policy of Defeat. |
Brian Micklethwait: I always enjoy reading what Mark Steyn has to say about things in general, and about John Kerry and his supporters in... Lorie Byrd: Just Brilliant, As Always — I am sorry I did not post this Mark Steyn piece earlier. For some reason I thought it already had been. Glenn Reynolds: MARK STEYN ON THE PRESS: [snipped quote] Indeed. |
| Also: Roger L. Simon, Betsy Newmark, Tom Smith, Charles Johnson, Hindrocket | |
Experts See a Wider Threat LAT — Permalink RABAT, Morocco — Authorities have made little progress worldwide in defeating Islamic extremists affiliated with Al Qaeda despite thwarting attacks and arresting high-profile figures, according to interviews with intelligence and law enforcement officials and outside experts. | |
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Steve Bainbridge: LAT on Al Qaeda — A major article in today's LA Times claims:Even before the Sept. 11 attacks, Al Qaeda was a loosely... Kevin Hayden: The LA Times provides a review of the dangerous outcome. (via Intel Dump) David Adesnik: THINK GLOBALLY, ACT LOCALLY: Apparently, that's Al Qaeda's new strategy. |
Norbizness: (3) As a follow-up to the previous post (and mentioned in its comments), a long story on the dispiriting evolution of... Hugh Hewitt: Speaking of transparent bias, the Los Angeles Times provides an incoherent assessment of the state of Al Qaeda today,... Gary Farber: THE DECENTRALIZED TERRORIST, what Tom Friedman years ago called "the super-empowered individual," is a huge part of the... |
| Also: Barbara O'Brien, Phillip Carter | |
Mark O. Hatfield: For me, choice for president is clear: Bush Oregonian — Permalink As a young Navy officer in World War II, I was one of the first Americans to see Hiroshima after the atomic bomb was dropped in 1945. That experience lives with me today, and it helped to shape the view I held during my public service career: a view that war is wrong in nearly every circumstance. | |
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Roger L. Simon: Vietnam Not — I believe the comparisons between the Vietnam War (whatever you may think of it now) and the War on... Greg Ransom: Pacifist Mark Hatfield endorsed Bush — and the war on terror. PoliPundit: And former Senator Mark Hatfield (R-OR), one of the most stubborn pacifists of the last century, is voting for President Bush. |
Glenn Reynolds: (Me and Mark Hatfield! And Barack Obama!) . I think it's a pretty good article. Deacon: But guess what? Mark Hatfield has endorsed President Bush. |
Dan Rather's Day of Reckoning By / Weekly Standard — Permalink At another point in the documentary, the program's host, Roger Mudd, was seen asking a question of Assistant Secretary of Defense Daniel Z. Henkin. The program dealt with the Pentagon's public-relations campaign in the United States and abroad. | |
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Greg Ransom: AS PRESTOPUNDIT READERS KNOW, IT DIDN'T START WITH DAN RATHER. The Big Trunk: We certainly don't know, but in the new issue of the Weekly Standard John Podhoretz demonstrates the salience of the... Roger L. Simon: "Deja Vu All Over Again" — Channeling Yogi Berra... or was it Nietzsche's doctrine of "eternal return"?... John... |
Deacon: Cohen thus overlooks more than 30 years of history, as recounted, for example, in this piece by John Podhoretz and this one by Victor Davis Hanson. Susanna Cornett: Essential reading — John Podhoretz puts Rathergate into its historical context in this fascinating and powerful article in Weekly Standard. Charles Johnson: Dan Rather's Day of Reckoning — An essential column by John Podhoretz unearths the skeletons buried in CBS News's back... |
| Also: PoliPundit, Jay Rosen | |
How Bush's grandfather helped Hitler's rise to power Guardian — Permalink George Bush's grandfather, the late US senator Prescott Bush, was a director and shareholder of companies that profited from their involvement with the financial backers of Nazi Germany. | |
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Joe Gandelman: Not All Garbagy Journalism Is American: Truly Reprehensible — Just seconds after sending a friend with the initials... H.D. Miller: A Very, Very Thin Thread — With only a month left in the campaign, The Guardian has predictably enough decided that... LQ @AmStreet: How Bush's grandfather helped Hitler's rise to power — The Guardian has got an explosive article on how George W... |
Jan Haugland: The highly misleading headline speaks for itself: How Bush's grandfather helped Hitler's rise to power. Richard TPD: The reason for Joseph's (and my own) excitement is a groundbreaking article in today's Guardian that uses previously... |
An Un-American Way to Cam NYT — Permalink President Bush and his surrogates are taking their re-election campaign into dangerous territory. Mr. Bush is running as the man best equipped to keep America safe from terrorists - that was to be expected. | |
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Tom Maguire: On Saturday, the Times denounced as "un-American" the recent tactic of various Bush surrogates who have expressed their... Mathew Gross: The New York Times also runs an editorial today deriding Bush and his surrogates for suggesting that a vote for Kerry is... DemFromCT: NY Times: This is despicable politics — Note the recommended diary on the topic, but this is an important editorial today by the NY Times. |
Russ Barnes: The New York Times rightly branded this line of attack as "despicable politics" and an indication of a party for whom... Paradox @LeftCoaster: NYT's Says Bush Campaign Despicable, Then Shows How it Happened — Gail Collins and her staff are feeling better, no... |
'60 Minutes' Delays Report Questioning Reasons for Iraq War By / NYT — Permalink CBS News said yesterday that it had postponed a "60 Minutes" segment that questioned Bush administration rationales for going to war in Iraq. The announcement, in a statement by a spokeswoman, was issued four days after the network acknowledged that it... | |
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Skippy: the nytimes: "the announcement, in a statement by a spokeswoman, was issued four days after the network acknowledged... Dave Johnson: CBS has decided not to tell the public some things it has uncovered about the Bush drive to war: The Fallout: '60... Avedon Carol: NYT: '60 Minutes' Delays Report Questioning Reasons for Iraq War: CBS News said yesterday that it had postponed a "60... |
Norbizness: (2) There's only one way to atone for f**king up some inconsequential National Guard memo, and that's to put a... Steve Soto: After Dan Rather and CBS News allowed themselves to be bullied by the Mighty Wurlitzer into eating their story on Bush's... Radley Balko: A CBS spokesperson says of the story on the forged uranium documents CBS killed for the Rather memogate story: [snipped quote] What? |
| Also: Atrios, Kevin Drum, Lambert @Corrente, Jay Rosen | |
Kerry's Unlikely Detractors By / WaPo — Permalink Those who dismiss critics of John Kerry's Vietnam service as just a bunch of right-wing Republicans out to advance George W. Bush's cause don't know what they are talking about — or they are engaged in wishful thinking. Okay, I may have once thought that about the critics, too. | |
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Greg Ransom: He's a straight up, circumspect, call-them-as-they-are guy, and I admire his work on this topic quite alot. But enough introduction. Glenn Reynolds: But this column by Colbert King explains why it's playing so badly: [snipped quote] Read the whole thing. |
Orrin Judd: Kerry's Unlikely Detractors (Colbert I. King, September 25, 2004, Washington Post) "Two weeks later, another e-mail arrived on the same topic. PoliPundit: Kerry and Vietnam — Liberal Washington Post columnist Colbert I. King has changed his mind about Unfit for Command. |
Indian Country By / Opinion Journal — Permalink An overlooked truth about the war on terrorism, and the war in Iraq in particular, is that they both arrived too soon for the American military: before it had adequately transformed itself from a dinosaurian, Industrial Age beast to a light and lethal... | |
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John J. Miller: KAPLAN ON IRAQ — A fascinating article by the inimitable Robert Kaplan, on how the war in Iraq is like fighting the Apaches, may be read here. Tom Smith: Indian country — Sometimes the more un-PC, the truer the metaphor. This is a must-read. |
Orrin Judd: DEMOCRACIES ARE NEVER READY FOR THE NEXT WAR: Indian Country: America's military faces the most thankless task in the history of warfare. Michael DeBow: "More like Apaches" Robert Kaplan offers an interesting take on the future of the American military. To buy a solider a beer, click here. |
More Iraqi civilians killed by U.S. forces than by insurgents, data shows By / Knight Ridder — Permalink BAGHDAD, Iraq - Operations by U.S. and multinational forces and Iraqi police are killing twice as many Iraqis - most of them civilians - as attacks by insurgents, according to statistics compiled by the Iraqi Health Ministry and obtained exclusively by Knight Ridder. | |
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Meteor Blades: U.S. Killing More Civilians Than Insurgents Are — Coalition fatalities in Iraq: 1183 U.S. military fatalities in Iraq:... Jason Van Steenwyk: Some Funny Things in a Pretty Good Article ...from Knight Ridder. Gary Farber: It's impossible to know, for now, how inaccurate or accurate, reliable or unreliable the numbers, and assertions, in this story are. |
Libertarian: The U.S. military is killing off more civilians than the "terrorists": "BAGHDAD, Iraq - Operations by U.S. and... Matthew Yglesias: Via Laura Rozen comes an eye-opening Knight-Ridder story on civilian casualties: [snipped quote] Apparently one man's counterinsurgency is another man's dead brother. Barbara O'Brien: [Nancy Youssef, Knight Ridder, 9/23]" I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, how can Knight Ridder get away with saying these treasonous things? |
| Also: Juan Cole, Laura Rozen | |
Twisting Dr. Nuke's Arm By / NYT — Permalink ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — President Bush has been searching vainly for Osama bin Laden for three years now, so I've decided to help him out. I'm traveling through Pakistan and Afghanistan to see whether I can find Osama, bring him back in my luggage and claim that $25 million reward. | |
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Andrew Stuttaford: Seen in this light, the apparent failure of the administration to make enough use of the Lugar program on ex-Soviet... DemFromCT: Would that be the one that Nicholas Kristof refers to today in his NY Times column? |
Matthew Yglesias: I have my differences with Nick Kristof, but the good thing about him is that he keeps asking this question. Tarek @LiquidList: Nick Kristof is right that the Bush administration is coddling Pakistan and cutting it some slack on nuclear... |
When the Shooting Stopped By / NYT — Permalink The death last weekend of my friend the photographer Eddie Adams took me back to a visit to the Saigon bureau of The Associated Press before Christmas of 1965. I was arranging, in those years before personal computers, to use the bureau's telegrapher to send back dispatches to my newspaper in New York. | |
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Edward _: I was thinking about Mike and what he's seen in Iraq when I read this piece on photojournalists in the NYTimes today. Barbara O'Brien: Speaking of treason — Pete Hamill speculates in today's New York Times why there were better photographs of Vietnam than there are of Iraq. |
Jason Van Steenwyk: Wierd Quote — Here's Pete Hamill, writing for the New York Times. [snipped quote] Uh, yeah. Right. Whatever, dude. Cori Dauber: THE IMAGERY OF WAR — Writing in today's Times, Pete Hamill wonders why the war in Iraq has yet to produce the kind of iconic image that so captured the war in Vietnam. |
Source for Rather Seeks New Lawyer, Might Sue CBS By / WaPo — Permalink Former Texas National Guard officer Bill Burkett, who provided CBS News with possibly fraudulent documents purporting to show that President Bush shirked his Guard duty, is looking for a lawyer to pursue a possible defamation case against the network. | |
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Greg Ransom: BILL BURKETT wants a new lawyer who will help him sue Dan Rather for defamation. William J. Dyer: Tucked away on page A8 of today's WaPo is an article by Michael Dobbs entitled "Source for Rather Seeks New Lawyer, Might Sue CBS." |
Allah: Reader Nancy B. alerts me to Dobbs's latest on Rathergate. We already knew from the New York Sun that David Van Os is no longer representing Bill Burkett. Jeralyn Merritt: Bill Burkett wants to go after CBS and Dan Rather for damages. |
Insulting A Friend Investor's Business Daily — Permalink Politics: Sen. John Kerry and his crew have proved Sen. Zell Miller right. They really will say anything to get elected, even if that means undermining a courageous ally and greasing the skids to defeat in Iraq. | |
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H.D. Miller: Zell Was Right! Here's something from Investor's Business Daily. [snipped quote] Yep. As I keep saying, Kerry has adopted a policy of defeat. PoliPundit: Here's what Kerry senior adviser Joe Lockhart (of RatherGate fame) had to say about Allawi: "The last thing you want to... |
Betsy Newmark: Investor's Business Daily takes the Kerry campaign to task for insulting Allawi. |
Demise of Iraqi Units Symbolic of U.S. Errors By / WaPo — Permalink SAQLAWIYA, Iraq — The police outpost here is supposed to house 90 armed members of Iraq's National Guard. Their job is to keep watch over a stretch of six-lane highway, deterring insurgents from laying roadside bombs and trying to blow up a bridge over the nearby Tharthar Canal. | |
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Gary Farber: I'M SLOW. Who wants to vote for more of this? I just don't get it. But, as I said, I'm slow. Read The Rest Scale: 3.5 out of 5. Cori Dauber: EXAMINING PAST MISTAKES — The Post has a piece up that argues early errors made in the training of Iraqi security... |
Xan @Corrente: WHO was the "private contractor" hired to do this training, and WHO ordered it chosen? (via WaPo) [snipped quote] To go... |
Modern philosopher of tradition Telegraph — Permalink Asked to name the most important British political philosopher of the 20th century, most people with an interest in the field would probably hesitate for a while, and then come up with the name of Isaiah Berlin. | |
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Orrin Judd: MEMOIRS OF FOX-HUNTING MEN: Modern philosopher of tradition: a review of Michael Oakeshott by Paul Franco (Noel Malcolm,... Patrick Belton: OAKESHOTT VERSUS BERLIN: Noel Malcolm compares them side by side. |
Michael DeBow: Michael Oakeshott: A new book by Paul Franco got a favorable review in The Telegraph last month. (Hat tip: Arts & Letters Daily.) Andrew Sullivan: Terrific piece by Paul Berman. OAKESHOTT AND BERLIN: Noel Malcolm sees Oakeshott as having a more enduring legacy. I agree. |