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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 19,  2010

REFLECTION – AT 8:35 P.M. ET:  Andrew Malcolm, of the L.A. Times's Top of the Ticket blog, reminds us that November 19th is an important anniversary.  He also reminds us what a great speech really is:

Few people are aware that possibly the greatest speech in American political history was an afterthought.

The big attraction for the dedication of the newest federal cemetery in Pennsylvania on Nov. 19, 1863, was Edward Everett, a famous orator of the day. Shortly before the dedication someone thought to invite the 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. He arrived the day before.

Contrary to popular myth, Lincoln did not jot down his remarks on an envelope. He had....

... written a draft on Executive Mansion stationery in Washington, perhaps in the Lincoln Bedroom, where the original now resides. Lincoln fiddled with the last two paragraphs the night before in pencil...

...Given the dearth of video games in those days, public speeches were a major entertainment. And no loudspeakers either. As the main event, Everett spoke for two solid hours.

Lincoln, as the afterthought, spoke for only a few minutes (see top photo center right in top hat). Lincoln was said to have not thought much of his remarks.

He gave two autographed copies to his secretaries. And later penned three more for charity auctions.

On this anniversary of the Gettysburg Address seven score and seven years ago Lincoln had less than 17 months to live.

Andrew Malcolm makes the point that, in 2009, Barack Obama gave a speech on Afghanistan that contained 4,582 words, and that not one of them is "victory."

Go to the link.  You'll see a facsimile of the original address and a modern recording of Lincoln's words.

November 19, 2010       Permalink

NUTS – AT 8:01 P.M. ET:  In the immortal words of that great philosopher, Jerry Lewis:  "Bad looks you can change; stupid is forever."  From Fox News:

Sen. Barbara Boxer, no stranger to controversy, compared the United States to Iran, North Korea and Pakistan this week, saying America's Don't Ask Don't Tell policy puts it on a par with those three countries.

Appearing with Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman at a news conference on Thursday, Boxer, D-Calif., suggested the military's policy banning gays from openly serving in the military puts the U.S. in the same camp as countries notorious for their human rights violations. Democrats are pushing to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell during the lame duck session.

“We now stand -- with this rule -- with countries like Iran, North Korea and Pakistan in banning gays and lesbians from military service,” Boxer said as Lieberman, an independent who aligns himself with Democrats, nodded his head.

COMMENT:  I doubt if Joe was nodding his head in agreement.  He has too much sense. 

Barbara Boxer was just reelected to the Senate from the failed state of California.  Go figure.  Used to be called the golden state.  Shame on them.

November 19, 2010       Permalink

HMM.  ANALYZE THIS – AT 9:46 A.M. ET:  The intriguing issue is whether President Obama will run again.  Most people seem to think his ego will demand that he make the race.  But consider this, from The Politico:

President Obama says he’d still rather have one good term than be a “mediocre” two-term president.

Getting reelected is “not what I think of my work,” Obama told the Spanish newspaper El Pais. “The description of my work I do is to solve problems and help people. I'm not going to slacken in regard to trying to solve the major problems facing the United States.”

“I still believe it is better” to be a good one-term president than a “mediocre” two-term leader, Obama said in the interview.

Obama added: “I do not want to have to look back and tell myself that all of what worried me was my own popularity. That is not my goal. My obligation is to make sure I'm faithful to the principles, beliefs, ideas that will advance the United States and strengthen our partners around the world.”

COMMENT:  Well, look, he's a politician and maybe he said what he thought people wanted to hear.  On the other hand, most two-term presidents have a miserable time during their second term, when they've already worn out their welcome.  And Obama certainly doesn't want to be the first African-American president to be defeated for relection.

So maybe we're in for a surprise, or maybe Obama just wants to keep the guessing game going. 

Stand by.  If Obama drops out, Ms. Hillary is ready to measure the drapes.

November 19, 2010      Permalink

THIS IS AN AWFUL IDEA – AT 9:20 A.M. ET:  One of the most disappointing aspects of the civil rights movement has been the ignoring of real social pathologies within the black community.  Some African American leaders have been forthright about these problems, but most have not.  The result has been that the problems that cause other problems go unsolved...often with the enthusiastic consent of white leftists who specialize in giving terrible advice to blacks.

Now comes one of the worst ideas I've seen:

GARY, INDIANA – Black males have higher rates of incarceration and of repeat offenses that land them back in jail or prison, statistics show.

Changing that dynamic could begin with expunging their criminal records.

That was the consensus of a discussion Thursday sponsored by the Gary Commission on the Social Status of Black Males in conjunction with the East Chicago-based group Working Outside the Walls and an alliance of grassroot activists.

The panel discussion brought together activists, religious leaders, law enforcement officers and area legislators to talk about a possible Expungement Summit in Northwest Indiana. Expunging the criminal records of juveniles and adults would help them find jobs and turn their lives around, said Bennie Muhammed, GCSSBM executive director.

Dorothy Brown, clerk of the Cook County (Ill.) Circuit Court, outlined how she has organized expungement summits across the state line.

"It's important for all our communities because we all have the same problem," she said.
Brown recommended that all agencies working with ex-offenders help organize and participate in an expungement summit. That includes police departments, the courts, lawyers, the public defenders office and the prison review board, Brown said.

COMMENT:  Huh?  Where do I begin?  First, the majority of black males don't commit crimes.  So what are these characters saying to them?  You're suckers?  You're fools?  Commit a crime and the record will be expunged, so have a good time like the others. When the record of the criminal looks exactly like the record of the law-abiding man, the good guy loses.

Second, society has a right to be warned before it employs someone with a bad past.  Now, true, that certainly holds an offender back.  But he should have thought of that before committing the crime.

Third, procedures can be put in place for expunging the records of many offenders who've gone straight for a certain period of time.  In fairness, even those advocating expungement agree that certain crimes, like murder, must never be expunged.

But casual expungement teaches no moral lesson and sends the message that crime pays, which, unfortunately, it often does.

Watch this "expungement" movement carefully.  The "excuse society" produces nothing.

November 19, 2010      Permalink

CRUNCH TIME – AT 8:53 P.M. ET:  There's a trend in a number of articles running on the internet this morning, after the terror trial fiasco in New York.  Basically, they ask the question, "How much longer can Eric Holder last as attorney general?"  Michael Gerson lays out the case in WaPo:

Under Holder's influence, American detainee policy is a botched, hypocritical, politicized mess.

The case of embassy bomber Ahmed Ghailani - the only Guantanamo Bay detainee the Obama administration has brought to trial in the United States - was intended to increase public faith in civilian prosecutions. But a terrorist hugging his lawyers in victory can't be considered a confidence builder.

Wonderfully said.

A recent profile by Wil Hylton in GQ magazine attempts to put his tenure in the best possible light - the lonely, naive man of principle undone by politics. But the portrait is unintentionally devastating. Holder clearly views the war on terrorism as a distraction. "The biggest surprise I've had in this job," he told Hylton, "is how much time the national security issues take."

Oh dear, oh dear.  Did he really say that?  Why, that little inconvenience?

Civilian courts were not designed for high-profile enemy combatants...who would use a New York trial to embrace martyrdom and encourage violence. The use of military tribunals at Guantanamo Bay is fully constitutional, approved by Congress and consistent with wartime precedent.

Obama seems to be realizing - gradually, reluctantly - that applying the rules of war in the midst of a war does not destroy the credibility of the rule of law or encourage terrorist recruitment. But his public inability to admit this shift seems to be leading to the worst of possible outcomes.

Finally...

How does Obama back down and accept a tribunal? He could begin by appointing an attorney general who understands the requirements of national security. Some on the left believe Holder should resign out of principle. Some on the right believe he should leave because he is out of his depth. Such bipartisanship should not go to waste.

COMMENT:  Yes, I'm afraid it's true.  Holder must go.  He's doing far more harm than good, and revelations about the politicization of the Justice Department aren't helping him.

Nominations please?

November 19, 2010      Permalink

THE UNSPOKEN ISSUE – AT 8:29 A.M. ET:  As readers know, there's a big to-do over invasive airport screening, and appropriately so.  There have been too many stories of inappropriate or intimidating behavior by TSA personnel.

But please note which part of this story isn't being covered.  Who, precisely, are these people hired by the TSA?  What are their qualifications?  What is their training?  How many, if any, have criminal backgrounds? 

And why won't the mainstream media ask any questions about the people involved in these screenings?  Are reporters afraid of what they might find?  Or are they totally intimidated by a journalistic and academic culture that holds that people at a certain level are always victims?

Other countries do not seem to have run into these problems of intimacy.  And now that enemies know exactly what full-body scanners will reveal, and not reveal, they will adjust accordingly, making the scanners somewhat less useful. 

Of course we want to be careful.  Under certain circumstances, even patting down young children is appropriate because we know that our enemy would not hesitate to strap a bomb to a child. But I must believe that part of our problem is an obsessive political correctness.  We're subjecting everyone to humiliating procedures because we won't do what Israel and other nations do routinely – target the terrorist and not the weapon.  Reasonable profiling, which, despite denials, law enforcement does every day, would ease the current situation substantially.  But it will not be done.

If anyone ever tells you that political correctness is just a minor nuisance, think again.

November 19, 2010     Permalink

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18,  2010

AH, SOMETHING FOR THE BUZZ – AT 9:24 P.M. ET:  The hottest property in the Republican Party right now is newly minted Senator Marco Rubio of Florida.  He is literally everyone's choice for V.P. on the GOP's 2012 ticket.

But only V.P.?

I can report some internet buzz, based on informed speculation, that Rubio might just pull an Obama, skipping the vice presidential slot and trying for the top spot. And note this:

After Marco Rubio’s win in the Florida Senate race, he and his wife bolted to Israel.

Is this a sign that the Republican — and speculated possible vice presidential candidate in 2012 — is making an attempt to bone up on his foreign policy credentials?

Rubio’s spokesman, Alex Burgos, downplayed the trip’s importance: “It was a personal vacation with his wife Jeanette. There were no official meetings.”

Asked about prior travel outside the country, the spokesman said Rubio has spent some time out of the United States before the Israel trip, though mostly in Latin America and in the Caribbean. This was his first trip to Israel.

Burgos said Rubio “hopes to return [to Israel] early next year in an official capacity as senator.”

COMMENT:  Political observers caution against reading too much into the trip, but it makes sense for Rubio to polish his credentials and establish his gravitas, just in case a party looking for a star turns to him in 2012.  He's a very smart guy, and has been speaker of the Florida House of Representatives. 

The inexperience factor could hardly be used against Rubio by the Democrats, who gave us Barack "Amateurs have more fun" Obama in 2008. 

I think there's going to be a substantial undercurrent of interest in Rubio's going for the top spot.  He brings substantial advantages.  As a Hispanic, a Cuban-American, he sews up Florida immediately, a major gain for the GOP.  And he would certainly cut into the traditionally Democratic Hispanic vote.

This is all theory, but keep an eye on Marco.

November 18, 2010       Permalink

IT'S ABOUT TIME – AT 7:12 P.M. ET:  It's about time someone exposed the Center for Constitutional Rights for exactly what it is – an old red group passing itself off as a "civil liberties" organization.  Of course, the mainstream media has nothing to say.

Commentary magazine does:

There is appropriate horror being expressed today all over the blogosphere about the statement released by the radical leftist group called the Center for Constitutional Rights on the verdict in the Ghailani trial: “CCR questions the ability of anyone who is Muslim to receive a truly fair trial in any American judicial forum post-9/11,” it says. “However, on balance the Ghailani verdict shows that federal criminal trials are far superior to military commissions for the simple yet fundamental reason that they prohibit evidence obtained by torture. If anyone is unsatisfied with Ghailani’s acquittal on 284 counts, they should blame the CIA agents who tortured him.”

The astounding and vicious vulgarity of the sentiments expressed here — no Muslim can get a fair trial, anyone dissatisfied with the fact that a man who confessed to his role in the murder of 224 people has been acquitted of those killings should be more upset that the person who killed those people was treated roughly by agents of the U.S. government — tells you everything you need to know about the Center for Constitutional Rights. Atop a CCR website posting by a member of the organization’s board denouncing the guilty verdict and sentencing of Lynne Stewart, a lawyer who served as a courier for terrorist messages sent through her from her imprisoned client to his network, is a quote from Karl Marx: “At all times throughout history the ideology of the ruling class is the ruling ideology.” That same item described Stewart’s client, the “blind sheikh” Abdel Rahman, as “was the leading oppositionist to the U.S.-sponsored Mubarak dictatorship in Egypt,” whereas in fact what he did was oversee the bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993.

COMMENT:  Over the years, it's been impossible to get a straight story about groups like this from the mainstream media.  Terms like "anti-war" group, "peace group," "liberal group," and the like, are often euphemisms for far worse.  How many times, for example, have you heard Code Pink described as an "anti-war" organization, which it clearly is not.  It's a viciously anti-American group led by hard leftists. 

The mainstream media wonders why it's lost credibility.  One reason is its refusal to confront the reality of some of these organizations, and tell us exactly who they are.  Of course, their fear is that they'll be accused of "McCarthyism," the standard, generic charge issued daily by the far left.  Some spine, people, some spine.

November 18, 2010      Permalink

GREAT MOMENTS IN JOURNALISM – AT 6:39 P.M. ET:  An actual news headline today:

Hollywood Shooting Shocks Many

Many?  Urgent Agenda is hard at work to, bluntly put, name the names of those who weren't shocked.  It's about time the truth came out about these unfeeling people.

November 18, 2010      Permalink

THE TRIAL FIASCO – THE MORNING AFTER – AT 10:21 A.M. ET:  As you know, the trial of the first Gitmo detainee to be tried in a civilian court ended yesterday in a humiliating defeat for the government, with the defendant, despite overwhelming evidence against him, convicted on only one of 280 charges.

Repercussions are being felt.  From Fox News:

The acquittal is seen as a major blow to the U.S. government, as Ghailani was the first former Gitmo detainee to be tried in a civilian courtroom. The case had been viewed as a possible test case for President Barack Obama administration's aim of putting other terror detainees -- including self-professed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed and four other terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba -- on trial on U.S. soil.

Why do I think that plan might be put on hold?

The anonymous federal jury deliberated over seven days, with a juror writing a note to the judge saying she felt threatened by other jurors.

I want to know all about that.  I mean, all about that.  Who was doing the intimidating?  Why?  Were there ethnic factors involved?  This was a New York City jury, and, believe me, we know about that stuff here.  The fact that the jury was anonymous means that intimidation was easier.  The perpetrators can't be identified. 

Good lawyers can influence who is on the jury...and we saw what happened with the O.J. Simpson jury.

True, the defendant in the case decided yesterday still faces a stiff jail term on the one conspiracy charge for which he was found guilty.  But all those rejected charges, and the fact that the jury could not hear certain evidence because civilian rules were in place, should worry us to no end.  We are talking about a defendant who made war on the United States.

Military tribunals would be just fine, and the new GOP majority in the House should start pushing for them.

November 18, 2010      Permalink

SNIPPET OF THE DAY – AT 9:26 A.M. ET:

(Nov. 17) -- Invite a sword swallower to a museum and it's bound to happen: He's going to swallow an exhibit. On Sunday, Dan Meyer did just that when he dropped a 100-year-old serrated saw down his throat.  Meyer, president of Sword Swallowers Association International (SSAI), swallowed the tool in front of a packed lecture hall during his presentation on the history and science of sword swallowing at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Conn.

The Sword Swallowers Association?  Really?  Can you imagine what the initiation must be like?  On the other hand, we're sending a gift membership to Nancy Pelosi.  If she's swallowing a sword, she can't be talking. 

November 18, 2010       Permalink

A VERY IMPORTANT STORY, AND A LESSON FOR AMERICA – AT 9:05 A.M. ET:  Americans are voting with their feet, and self-indulgent, fatheaded states like California and New York had better take note.  From The Washington Examiner:

Migration from high-tax states to states with lower taxes and less government spending will dramatically alter the composition of future Congresses, according to a study by Americans for Tax Reform.

Eight states are projected to gain at least one congressional seat under reapportionment following the 2010 Census: Texas (four seats), Florida (two seats), Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah and Washington (one seat each). Their average top state personal income tax rate: 2.8 percent.

By contrast, New York and Ohio are likely to lose two seats each, while Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania will be down one apiece. The average top state personal income tax rate in these loser states: 6.05 percent.

The state and local tax burden is nearly a third lower in states with growing populations, ATR found. As a result, per capita government spending is also lower: $4,008 for states gaining congressional seats, $5,117 for states losing them.

And, as ATR notes, “in eight of ten losers, workers can be forced to join a union as a condition of employment. In 7 of the 8 gainers, workers are given a choice whether to join or contribute financially to a union.”

COMMENT:  We're in New York, and we see this effect all the time.  Small business owners have told me they're fed up with state taxes and the inflated cost of living.  One owner with a legendary establishment said to me, "What am I doing here?"

New York and California are almost bankrupt, and Illinois has an enormous debt load. 

I'd like to see, however, if New Jersey falls off the endangered list as a result of the incredible work by Governor Chris Christie.  It will take time and effort, because the damage to New Jersey has been great, but Christie is getting the job done in the form of budget cuts and confrontations with state employee unions.

November 18, 2010      Permalink

AND AGAIN – AT 8:53 A.M. ET:  This has the appearance of a test run:

Namibian police have hindered a possible terrorist attack on a flight from Windhoek to Munich, Federal Criminal Police (BKA) said Thursday. A suspected explosive device was found in a piece of luggage discovered as the LTU/Air Berlin flight was being loaded.

X-rays of the suitcase showed batteries connected to a detonator and a running clock. Authorities are examining whether the device could have exploded.

The BKA sent officers based in neighbouring South Africa to the Namibian capital to aid local authorities in the investigation, and plans on sending more help from Germany soon.

Every passenger and piece of luggage on the flight by the charter airline underwent an additional security check before the plane was allowed to take off. It arrived safely in Munich early on Thursday morning with 296 passengers on board.

"Only after the conclusion of an investigation and visual inspection by the BKA will there be information as to whether these were explosives,” the police statement said.

COMMENT:  A later report indicated that there were no explosives.  But if it was a test run, to see if the electronics could be detected, explosives would not be required.  Clearly, batteries connected to a detonator and a running clock could not be construed as a toy, or a substitute for an iPod.

They're out there, and eventually they'll get lucky.

November 18, 2010      Permalink

WELL SAID – AT 8:29 A.M. ET:  I've been very impressed with the style the Republican congressional leadership has shown thus far as it contemplates the power it will have in January.  Consider this, from The Hill:

House Republicans announced Wednesday they plan to force a floor vote on defunding NPR in response to the firing of analyst Juan Williams last month.

House GOP Whip Eric Cantor (Va.) and Rep. Doug Lamborn (Colo.) said that cutting funds to the publicly subsidized news organization was the winner of the conference's weekly "YouCut" contest, in which the public votes online on spending items they want eliminated.

And this is truly superb:

"When NPR executives made the decision to unfairly terminate Juan Williams and to then disparage him afterwards, the bias of their organization was exposed," the two Republicans said in a statement. "Make no mistake, it is not the role of government to tell news organizations how to operate. What is avoidable, however, is providing taxpayer funds to news organizations that promote a partisan point of view. Eliminating taxpayer funding for NPR is precisely the kind of commonsense cut that we have to begin making if we want to fundamentally alter the way business is conducted in Washington.”

Yippee.  Every great governmental action is a teaching experience.  What Republicans must teach some of these snotty institutions, like NPR, is that with federal funding comes federal oversight.  No more blank checks.  And that goes especially for colleges and universities.

No one has an automatic right to the people's treasury.  And the people, through their representatives, have a right to know how their treasury is spent, and to object when they wish.

I'm agnostic on cutting all funding to NPR.  There are arguments both ways.  But a little scare can produce wondrous results. 

November 18, 2010      Permalink