Saturday, May 10, 200810 May 2008 08:37 pm Too Popular Abroad?Daniel Larison thinks that the argument that Obama could appeal to developing countries' populations and transform American soft power will only hurt Obama at home:
I find this too depressing and defeatist an attitude. If Obama's biography and appeal affect global opinion and therefore foreign policy, the subject should be on the table - as a weapon in pursuit of national self-interest. If we cannot have a debate in a democracy about this impact without fostering xenophobia, ignorance and fear, then democracy cannot work. Which, I suspect, is partly Larison's point. I'm not as defeatist - and it's telling that many criticisms of Obama - Carole Simpson's for example - fall into this trap. 10 May 2008 08:03 pm Oil FuturesWith oil at $126 a barrel, Henry Blodget considers our options:
Well: duh. With public transportation booming, there is a silver lining in higher oil prices. 10 May 2008 07:26 pm Can The Internet Write A Book?Yes, but not a very good one. Here's the opening paragraph from Penguin's wiki book experiment:
10 May 2008 06:26 pm The Obama RevolutionMatt Stoller examines the organizational overhaul the Obama campaign promises for the Democrats. Yes: it's extremely ambitious. Money quote from an Edwards supporter:
10 May 2008 05:15 pm Face Of The DayNuremberg's Czech striker Jan Koller drinks during the German first division Bundesliga football match Hertha BSC Berlin vs 1.FC Nuremburg on May 10, 2008 at the Olympic stadium in the German capital Berlin. By Michael Gottschalk/Getty. 10 May 2008 05:13 pm Port-A-John RacingOr how to waste a lot of beer at the Preakness. It's from last year, but the Youtube is great. 10 May 2008 04:15 pm Don't Tell Lou DobbsThomas P.M. Barnett summarizes Suzanne Barlyn's article on outsourcing legal work to India:
10 May 2008 03:56 pm Dissents Of The DayDan Savage, writing from the Starbucks capital of the world, attacks the petite scone I've praised so lavishly:
A reader adds:
I'm grateful for Dan for providing a Proustian edge to my petite scone fetish. Play-Doh! Mmmmm. 10 May 2008 03:30 pm Your Keyboard And A ToiletI had a feeling this was true:
Now we know why Mickey blogs so infrequently. 10 May 2008 02:52 pm Torture Leaves A MarkPhillip Carter reacts to news that Jay Hood won't be named U.S. military attache to Pakistan because of his ties to Guantanamo Bay:
10 May 2008 02:44 pm A Herbivore Tells AllAn excerpt from Taylor Clark's article on vegetarianism:
The rest is here. 10 May 2008 02:30 pm California SwitchesThe big state gave Clinton a ten-point victory in its primary. A new SUSA poll gives Obama a 6 point edge. When you look at the demographic date, you find that the black vote hasn't changed much, unlike in other states. And Latino support for Clinton has dropped, but Obama hasn't managed to gain. White males have moved decisively to Obama but the biggest swing appears among Asian-Americans. The Asian vote has gone from 71 - 25 for Clinton to 54 - 37 for Obama. 10 May 2008 02:12 pm Pure Identity PoliticsThat's been Ellen Malcolm's career: seeing politics as all about gender. And seeing gender as synonymous with being a very liberal Democrat. No wonder she's bitter about a chance to get past identity politics and the big money politics she represents. 10 May 2008 01:07 pm Quote For The Day"They're convinced [Obama] is a Muslim, a terrorist, a guy who's coming to take away their guns. It's just sad," - an Obama supporter in West Virginia. The paranoia and delusions of some parts of white America are no less irrational than the paranoia and delusions of some parts of black America. But the right response to this is not acquiescence: it's engagement. 10 May 2008 12:55 pm Are You A David Archuleta Or A Jason Castro?The general buzz on American Idol this year has been that it's a dud. I disagree. Watching Andrew Lloyd Webber leer at young male talent is always entertaining. And I watch Ryan Seacrest with morbid fascination: how can someone be that smooth, that good, that professional, that young? But I've been most engrossed in the character contrasts, which is what reality shows are best at. David Cook is a fantastic poseur, very talented but so obviously straining for Seriousness it's painful to watch at times. There are few people as sad as rock performers who think they are philosophers - especially those who don't have a drug habit. He's obviously the smartest performer, and probably the most all-round And then Jason Castro: the kid who didn't really want to be there. How wonderful was that? Stoners the world over tuned in to see what this young, dreadlocked, mellow charmer would do next. I was blown away by his "Over The Rainbow" but his singing in general is pretty weak and his main attraction was his sweet-eyed nonchalance, his obvious ambivalence to the commercial cheesiness of the show, his indifference to the cult of celebrity and vanity and ambition that Idol represents. He actually seemed comfortable being himself. He didn't need this shebang. And to see that personal security on network television - a walking (well, meandering) rebuke to the need for external validation and celebrity culture - evoked pure wonder. I was smitten. And then poor David Archuleta. He is obviously the best singer in the competition, is almost certainly going to win it, but just as obviously is totally lost. If Castro was indifferent to the process, Archuleta seems as if his entire life has been directed toward it. Clips show him crashing the show years ago; he won his first singing competition at 10 years' old, and is a veteran Star Search competitor. The kid is still only 17 years' old. He has, alas, a classic over-bearing show-biz dad, who has now been banned from backstage. David looks to me like a Michael Jackson in the making: a brilliant talent sacrificed to the cult of celebrity and stardom at so young an age that his own emotional and spiritual development has been frozen. When he is asked to speak, he has nothing to say, except a Bambi-style mode of total humility, amazement and innocence. I feel for him and it's had not to hope someone could still rescue him from the machine that is about to consume him. Between Jason Castro and David Archuleta, you see two ways of living in the world: one sacrificed to external recognition and one indifferent to it. We all have a bit of each in us in this tabloid, celebrified world. But Jason, to my mind, will probably live a much happier life. And he'll know, at some level, why. There's a lesson in there somewhere - even on a reality show. (Photo: David Archuleta and friend by Ethan Miller/Getty.) 10 May 2008 11:49 am Carole SimpsonListen to her say that whites cannot and will not vote for a black man for president. Money quote: "This country is about race." That's the Clinton argument at this point. Sad. 10 May 2008 11:19 am Obama Edges McCain In The MiddleRasmussen sees a statistically insignificant but persistent lead over McCain nationally, led by unaffiliated voters:
Once Clinton is finally dispatched, it's hard to see Obama's Democratic support being lower than McCain's GOP backing. This contest will be for independents and leaners. Which can only be good for this excessively polarized country. By the way, Rasmussen just dropped their Obama-Clinton tracking poll. 10 May 2008 11:18 am If You're Scared Of HeightsDon't watch this video. If you're not, it's stunning. 10 May 2008 11:15 am Ferguson For McCainA rip-roaring endorsement from my old friend, Niall. My thoughts later: 10 May 2008 11:13 am Quote For The Day"I can’t believe Senator Clinton would say anything that dumb," - Charlie Rangel, on Clinton's "whites" remark. 10 May 2008 11:09 am Nine More Obama SuperdelegatesThe trickle starts to look like a flood. 10 May 2008 10:37 am The View From Your WindowWashington, DC, 6.20 pm. 10 May 2008 09:57 am Where The Aussies LiveWho can blame them?
10 May 2008 08:51 am Man BabiesA blog that switches men's with babies' heads through the magic of photoshop:
10 May 2008 05:02 am Separated At Birth?Friday, May 9, 200809 May 2008 09:44 pm Two Types Of LoveMark Vernon updates Fromm by explaining the difference between falling in love and standing in love. 09 May 2008 08:16 pm The War On Junk FoodWill Saletan on the latest developments:
09 May 2008 07:24 pm City By The KettleBeijing artist Zhan Wang's model of San Francisco, sculpted from cookware. 09 May 2008 06:51 pm Patriotic BoxersLarison points me to this sentence by Michael Gerson:
When will be rid of this neurosis? The desperate need to prove and re-prove and demonstrate and re-demonstrate one's love of country is not a form of patriotism. It's a form of insecurity. All the way down to underwear. 09 May 2008 05:48 pm Among The HillariansA dispatch from rural Oregon. 09 May 2008 05:48 pm Cool Ad WatchThe walk of shame: 09 May 2008 05:18 pm What The Hell Is Going On In Beirut?Some opinion from around the web. Yglesias:
Continue reading "What The Hell Is Going On In Beirut? " » 09 May 2008 05:10 pm Non-Paul Republicans And The WebThe current GOP has a problem:
I wonder if Obama's and Paul's amazing web success is a harbinger of a more libertarian and self-empowered political culture - because the web does not reward obedience, submission, or authoritarianism. It saddens me a great deal to see conservatism in America increasingly lean toward top-down, authoritarian, fear-based politics. In its best incarnation, conservatism is about self-government, individual freedom and hope-based politics. It's about trusting people, not corralling them. In this, the web is the right's natural ally, and it's a very telling sign of American conservatism's decadence that it doesn't get the Internet as effectively as others. 09 May 2008 04:54 pm McCain, Obama, HamasMcCain's performance on the Daily Show and his remarks today are, in word, slimy. Here's the gist:
The right answer is that nominees for president do not legitimize the attempts of foreign terrorist groups to intervene in American elections. But what's galling here is the Clintonian passive-aggressive pose: I'm not saying it, but the "America people" are "interested". It's a way to peddle slime while pretending that you're not. At some point, McCain will have to choose. But the signs aren't too good. 09 May 2008 04:40 pm Where To Go From Here?R.W. Johnson reports from Zimbabwe:
09 May 2008 04:24 pm Boris's GaysThe new mayor of London has an openly gay deputy mayor and several other openly gay - and married - appointees stand out. When NRO-niks start talking about a British conservative revival, they often fail to point out that it is happening while the Tories have decisively broken with the anti-gay policies that the GOP regards as non-negotiable features of their conservatism. I should add that Boris is also an unashamed member of the most privileged part of the most privileged elite. He went to Britain's most exclusive schools, Eton and Oxford, where he was a member of the Bullingdon. David Cameron is also an Etonian and a Bullingdon member. And yet no right-winger in Britain accuses them of not caring about regular folks. Isn't it revealing that America's political conversation now has more class consciousness than Britain's? Thanks, Karl. 09 May 2008 04:08 pm Mental Health BreakShark-surfing, man: 09 May 2008 03:56 pm Against A Unity TicketTomasky adds his two cents:
The trouble is: the Clintons will create mischief wherever they are. If Obama becomes president without them they will do all they can to undermine, destroy, and polarize him. The question is how one deals with sociopaths like them. It's not easy. 09 May 2008 03:51 pm Foiled By FeilerMickey Kaus tries to explain why he gets so much wrong about politics so often. 09 May 2008 03:43 pm Reefer MadnessJames Gibney tackles the war on drugs:
09 May 2008 03:30 pm Burma Or Myanmar?A useful primer on why many don't allow those thugs in power to control the discourse. It's Burma. 09 May 2008 03:27 pm The Democratic MindsetMatt hates the unity ticket idea:
Well, that wasn't part of my argument at least. 09 May 2008 03:04 pm Face Of The DayAn Iraqi woman attends a consultation with an Iraqi doctor at an improvised medical centre provided by US troops in Yusufiyah, in the so-called 'triangle of death', about 10 miles south of Baghdad. By Mauricio Lima/AFP/Getty. 09 May 2008 02:52 pm The Challenge of A MeritocracyRod Dreher revisits an old but vital topic: what do the more able owe to the less? And can we drop the nonsense that people do not have unalterable - if ameliorable - core inequalities? Meanwhile, Crooked Timber examined the physical pain of those at the bottom. 09 May 2008 02:52 pm A Zero-Carbon CityIn the middle of the oil-rich Middle East, no less. 09 May 2008 02:35 pm Burke and Bush "Conservatism"A reader writes:
Continue reading "Burke and Bush "Conservatism"" » 09 May 2008 02:07 pm FLDS FashionTim Gunn's take. 09 May 2008 01:41 pm We Have Obama's Running MateFrom Iowa, no less:
09 May 2008 01:36 pm Let's Fight The Culture War AgainBoomer-con Krauthammer cannot wait for another election about the red-blue, Vietnam-era, divide:
Not on policy, on attitude. That's what the right wants this election to be about. 09 May 2008 01:26 pm About The Party Of Sam's ClubNot so fast with that data. |













