Weekly Links: NYC, Neoconservatism, Secret Intelligence, John Bolton, Teh Panty Bomber, Tea Parties, Chessmasters, & Paul Krugman

In any given week, I collect so many links to good articles on which I'd like to opine, I'm unable to get to all of them. Thus, these weekly link dumps. If you're looking for something good to read, read one or all of these, listed in no particular order of priority.

(these aren't all political)

In NYC, old real estate families are getting back in the biz after the bubble burst on the new comers. (h/t Scott L.)

Father/dean of neoconservatism, Norman Podhoretz, answers questions about his ideology and why Jews tend to be liberal, among other things. (h/t Matt L. or Scott L.)

The Binyam Mohamed trial last week in London resulted in the release of secret American intel given to their British sources. According to high ranking British sources whom I personally questioned, the real concern is over the day to day sharing of intelligence between the middle management types. This will inevitably affect the long term development of intelligence.

My favorite ex-diplomat, John Bolton, makes the case for a military strike against Iran to preempt their development of a nuke.

Michael Mukasey, former US Attorney General, breaks down, point by point, why the administration's handling of the "panty bomber" did not have to be handled the way it was--Miranda rights, etc.

Glenn Reynolds reports on what he saw and heard at the Tea Party convention.

Russian opposition leader, Garry Kasparov, updates and warns us about current US policy towards Russia & Iran.

Finally, Paul Krugman makes an interesting argument on the one hand, if the Euro is to succeed, for greater EU political union and on the other hand, against the hubris of adopting an single currency. (h/t Taylor B.)

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David Broder On Sarah Palin

Misunderestimate her at your own peril.

Her lengthy Saturday night keynote address to the National Tea Party Convention in Nashville and her debut on the Sunday morning talk show circuit with Fox News' Chris Wallace showed off a public figure at the top of her game—a politician who knows who she is and how to sell herself, even with notes on her palm. . . . This is a pitch-perfect recital of the populist message that has worked in campaigns past. There are times when the American people are looking for something more: for an Eisenhower, who liberated Europe; an FDR or a Kennedy or a Bush, all unashamed aristocrats; or an Obama, with eloquence and brains. But in the present mood of the country, Palin is by all odds a threat to the more uptight Republican aspirants such as Mitt Romney and Tim Pawlenty—and potentially, to Obama as well. . . . Those who want to stop her will need more ammunition than deriding her habit of writing on her hand. The lady is good.

(Via the WSJ)

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On Obama's 'Partisan, Condescending' State Of The Union Speech

Marc Thiessen was lead writer on President Bush's last two SOTU speeches. He offered his critique of Obama's speech at The Corner and in today's WaPo.

Listening to President Obama's speech, I could not help wondering how different this night would have been had Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab's bomb not malfunctioned. Four weeks ago our country was the target of a catastrophic terrorist attack. But for the grace of God, Northwest Flight 253 would have crashed into downtown Detroit, killing thousands. Yet just a month later, it is an afterthought for this president. His only mention of the failed attack was a passing reference that he was responding with "better airline security."

Worse, the president's brief discussion of terrorism focused not on what he was doing to defend the country but was, rather, a vigorous defense of himself. His first words on the subject were a chastisement of those who would dare criticize his handling of terrorism, declaring that "all of us love this country" and warning his Republican critics to "put aside the schoolyard taunts about who is tough." It's all about him. No acknowledgement of how close we came to disaster or praise for the brave passengers who subdued the terrorist. No, only this message for his critics: If you question the wisdom of telling a captured terrorist "you have the right to remain silent," you are really questioning the president's patriotism and engaging in childish taunts.

The fact is, the American people have real concerns about Obama's approach to terrorism. They do question the wisdom of eliminating CIA interrogations, closing Guantanamo Bay, bringing the terrorists held there to this country, putting Khalid Shiekh Mohammed and his cohorts on trial in civilian courts, and giving captured terrorists Miranda rights after 50 minutes of questioning. Instead of acknowledging these concerns, Obama dismissed them. It was strange, defensive, arrogant -- and un-presidential.

I'm also bothered that Iraq & Afghanistan get such short shrift from this President. I read a lot of military blogs and try and keep on top of what's happening in those places. One of the things that comes across a lot is how frustrated members of the military are with the fact that many Americans both don't know and don't seem to care about what's happening to them wherever they are.

Part of the reason for this has got to be the complete lack of attention given to them by President Obama and the Democrat party. And this was reflected in Obama's SOTU last night.

Ps. Yes, I am also annoyed by the arrogant, lecturing tilt of his head when he speaks.

UPDATE 2:34pm GMT: If you need a palate cleanser, here's President Ronald Reagan's SOTU in 1988. (via Orin Kerr @ The Volokh Conspiracy)

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Programming Note: Everybody Needs A Vacation

Folks, apologies for my absence. As some of you know, I've recently returned to American and have been busy celebrating national holidays, waterskiing, watching M's games, entertaining guests, etc. Forgive my writing absence. I'll bet back to it in the next day or so.

In the meantime, here's a couple of good reads to tide you over.

• At Rasmussen, Michael Barone holds forth on the "accomplishments" of the Obama administration thus far.

• Matt Welch & Nick Gillespie do something similar in the Washington Post. Taken together, these two columns are a devastating critique of President Obama.

• Finally, in the City Journal, Ed Glaeser, an economist at Harvard, writes about human capital in New York City. Get a rope. (h/t Matt L.)

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End Of The Honeymoon (UPDATED)

Already.

Well, now, that didn't last long. From the comments in this WaPo article:

From the poor choice of anti gay, anti woman, creepy fundy freak Rick Warren, to the botchd National Anthem by way, way past her prime, Aretha Franklin in a crazy, tacky hat, to the flubbed up oath of office by Obama and Roberts, to the less than inspiring speech by Obama, to the racist Rev. Lowry, to the weired "poet", to the rude attendees who booed Pres. Bush, the ENTIRE EVENT WAS JUST NOT CLASSY!

I am a Democrat and I am embarrassed. If this is the best Obama's got he's going to be a one termer.

The fawning media is embarrassing itself again.

This is the same crowd that pelted the Presidential limo in 2001 with eggs--you know, before they knew that Bush was Bushitler and that they hated him more than their unloving alcoholic fathers.

"Classy," dear WaPo commenter, has never been a word to describe this crowd.

(thanks to Stephanie S.)

UPDATE 9:51pm BST: A few weeks ago, I noted a Military Times poll that showed U.S. troops were "skeptical" of Barack Obama. I guess that doesn't really make them a whole lot different to the rest of us who aren't drinking the kool-aid.

Well, they got theirs. The Obama administration reprisals have already begun. From This Ain't Hell, via Ace:

According to TSO who was at the “Salute to Heroes Inaugural Ball”, this newly sworn-in President for the first time in 56 years blew off the ball (that’s 14 Inaugurations).

Some background on the ball;

The American Legion sponsors the ball, which recognizes recipients of Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military award. It started in 1953 for President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s first inauguration.

Event co-sponsors include 13 other veterans service organizations, among them the Military Order of the Purple Heart and the Paralyzed Veterans of America.

As DrewM notes, wounded vets ain't got nothin' on Kanye & MTV!

UPDATE 10:07pm BST: I "borrowed" this picture from Drudge: I call it, "Liberals, walking the green walk."


Remember, this crowd was filled with people voted "most likely to live in a cave, fashion their clothes from already-dead animals, & sterilize themselves, in order to reduce their carbon footprint & save the world" in high school.


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Raising The Bar

This is up there with saying that ol' bi/post-partisan-Obama is governing from the "center-right" because he nominated Hillary Clinton--friend of conservative-Republicans everywhere--as Secretary of State. (thanks to Morgan H. for the image)

Reads the Washington Post headline: Obama Sets Expansive Goal for Jobs - Plan Aims to Create or Save 2.5 Million Positions by 2011

Has the WaPo turned into the Onion? How can they put something like that on the front page ... and keep a straight face? Could you imagine if President Bush had made such a claim? Yeah.

If you thought the media's inthetankedness for Obama would end with the election, think again: They got him there, now they aim to keep him there for 8 years (or longer, Obama willing).

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NewsBusters.org

Cruise on over to NewsBusters.org and check out my first post for my new gig:

Big Media Analysts: Liberal Bias Not to Blame for MSM Edwards Silence

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Mitt Romney Watch III

We're late to the game with these links, but the questions they address remain relevant to the ongoing issues surrounding Mitt Romney's campaign for President.

First, Romney's Mormon Question over at time.com. From Time you get about what you'd expect. Left of center writing for the slightly above average American reader. Time is for the intellectually curious who are interested in politics, but not that interested and not that intellectual. They want more than they get from a newspaper, but not what they might get from The Nation on the left or National Review on the right. So, option one is the superficial, mainstream look at Mitt Romney.

For the more ambitious, those who fancy themselves to be a bit more intellectual, check out the transcript of a lengthy interview/discussion with Professor Richard Bushman. Hat tip to our old man for finding and emailing us the link to this insightful dialogue.

All the heavy hitters from most of the major periodicals attended and many of them asked questions: John Fund from The Wall Street Journal, E.J. Dionne from The Washington Post, et al. The piece starts out with a prepared presentation by Bushman, followed by Q&A with members of the press.

Of particular interest to us was the evolution of Mormon politics since the church's inception. From the radicalism of Joseph Smith to the conservatism of the last century, Bushman explores the historical factors surrounding these ideologies. If you want to know about the compatibility of Mormonism and Democracy, this is your primer. Mormonism and Democratic Politics: Are They Compatible?


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Pardon Libby

We've been reading the op-ed "soundoffs" section over at the Seattle P-I. It's part of our effort to avoid becoming as insular our liberal friends who continue to drink the kool-aid over at Daily Kos, The Nation, NYT op-ed, Washington Post op-ed.... uh, yeah, it might be a quicker exercise to list only the conservative outlets.

Predictably, they are all foaming at the mouth about the 30 month sentence given to Scooter Libby yesterday. Never mind that there was no original crime committed. Never mind that the prosecutor knew it wasn't Libby who leaked the information to the press, but rather Bush administration critic Richard Armitage. Never mind also that Libby's only crime was not being able to remember from whom he first heard about the leak. None of that matters. For the loony left, it's far more important that facts are bent to fit the conspiracy theories that soften their reality.

Kind of like the loony left's favorite accepted notion about Castro's Cuba--specifically, that health care down there is awesome(!!). Michael Moore produced his latest docu-drama based on that "fact." Forget for a moment that all the information we have about Cuba's health care comes from Castro's propaganda machine. He wouldn't lie about this stuff, would he?

But, like Miller, we don't want to get off on a rant here. The point is that the loony left substitutes "liberal talking points" for "facts." Kind of like the dustup between whacky Rosie and Elizabeth Hasselbeck on The View we watched on Youtube yesterday. Kind of like the ideological differences between the Democratic candidates in the debate the other day (sarcasm in print just doesn't work; there were no differences). All of this from the party that insists it is open minded and intellectually diverse. Has "pro-life Democrat" become an oxymoron yet?

So, for now, they get to rant about how Libby is the first of the administration "criminals" to face prison time. Hopefully, President Bush will soon pardon Libby, so then the loony left can add another layer of complexity to their favorite campfire conspiracy stories.


***Remember: D-Day Anniversary, 6 June 1944.***


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