So, how’s that “culture of corruption” thing coming along in Congress? As it happens, pretty comically. Here’s the story in brief. House Democrats passed an earmark reform bill. It was kind of light, but not a bad start at all. It would require congressmen to fill out a public disclosure form every time they requested [...]
Archive for January, 2007
A Big Watcher's Council Link Update!
I owe you all a huge helping of Watcher’s Council posts. So, bring your trays to the counter and prepare to get loaded up! Here are all the posts from the December 15th contest from the top to the bottom. Council link The Peace MythAndrew Olmsted Baker’s Bad RecipeSoccer Dad The Sticky Parts of the [...]
US Invades Iran??
Umm….whoa. US forces have stormed an Iranian consulate in the northern Iraqi town of Irbil and seized six members of staff. The troops raided the building at about 0300 (0001GMT), taking away computers and papers, according to Kurdish media and senior local officials. The US military would only confirm the detention of six people around [...]
No Home Television Love for Gilbert
Here’s a nice bit of news. It appears that the Gilbert Arenas jersey is now the 8th most sold NBA jersey. OH sure, that’s not a big deal to most of you, but to those of us who have faithfully followed our local sports teams here in Washington, it means something. It means that finally [...]
Mark and the Hall
Before we all break out the brickbats on Mark McGwire, let us remember a couple of three very important things about his career: 1) We fans were the ones who demanded higher-scoring games and bombastic home runs. 2) The substances he used were not in any way illegal at the time he was using them. [...]
A New (Yawn) Plan in Iraq
I just switched off the President’s speech. I know it’s supposed to go another five to ten minutes but, to be honest, I’ve heard everything I need to hear. I flipped over to the Washington Wizards game because…well…at least Gilbert Arenas is interested in winning decisively. The President? Meh…I couldn’t really tell you. What we [...]
New Heights of Medical Hyperbole
Embryonic stem cells are, according to a quote from Senator Arlen Specter, the cure for everything. Think I’m overstating his case? Here’s what he was quoted as saying in a press conference yesterday (via The Corner): It is scandalous that eight years have passed since we have known about stem cell research and the potential [...]
We Strain at a Gnat, but Swallow a Camel
This, I believe, is important. The rule of thumb for a free society should be that it infringes liberties rarely, but when it does so it is for important reasons. Today, that thumb has been cast down, Caesar-like, pointing in the opposite direction. We have democratized the small assaults on freedom so that everyone must [...]
There is a Difference.
Jim Hoagland is distressed: I never expected to say that the Iraqis who put Saddam Hussein to death made the sadistic dictator look almost noble by their own depraved standards of behavior in that moment. Oh for goodness sake, man, put on a pair of pants and toughen up, would you? Let us not for [...]
Howard Fineman: Sooper Political Genius?
Every time I see some journalist writing about the differences between the MSM and the blogosphere, one things they always seem to mention is that journalists are well-trained, credentialed wordsmiths with finely-honed powers of observation and wisdom born of decades of experience. That’s why their opinions matter more than some unwashed and barely-lettered cretin like [...]
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