David Rodeback's Blog

Saturday, October 15, 2005

Good Readings, Various Topics

Part of my self-appointed function here is to point out things to read on the Web which I have found interesting, insightful, or entertaining. I rely somewhat on others who sift through the political chaff and link to the kernels of grain they find, such as RealClearPolitics.com and JewishWorldReview.com, but I gather from other places on the Web, too. Most of the pieces listed here today I happened to find through RealClearPolitics.com.

Here's most of the best of what I've read this week.

• Here is a short, great piece by Leonard Pitts, Jr., looking back to the ideals of the (wildly misnumbered) Million Man March and wondering what happened to them in the past ten years. What he says is not just applicable to African-Americans.
• A surprising story on a foiled act of terrorism is Oklahoma. Reasonable security did the trick.
• A smart Wall Street Journal piece by Peggy Noonan (pardon the redundant expression) on an exit strategy for the President and Harriet Miers, and why they should want and use one.
• Pat Buchanan (who doesn't deserve to be pilloried every time he opens his mouth) has some pointed thoughts on where gender-based discrimination really lurks in the Supreme Court nomination picture.
• R. Emmett Tyrell takes a different view of the Harriett Miers thing, asserting in the process that "the greatest unsung force in history is boredom." Stay tuned long enough for the barb at the end of the article.
• On Russia: Detailed thoughts from Policy Review on what to do, and a good piece from The Washington Post. Also this on Russia and England.
• A lengthy Weekly Standard discussion and chronology of the White House / Niger / Joseph Wilson / Karl Rove / Iraq / Yellowcake flap, good for anyone who suspects the reality might not be quite as simple as "Bush lied and Karl Rove leaked the name of an undercover CIA operative." (In fact, both those charges are quite dubious.)
• Mark Tapscott wonders when the Big Media Acronyms will come clean and apologize for their wildly inaccurate coverage of Hurricane Katrina's aftermath.
• By way of following up on my previous post, here's a passionate personal statement from Bill Bennett. I knew most of this; it's why I've admired the man for decades. He does a clear, excellent job of explaining the celebrated quotation's context and defending himself against silly charges of racism. It seems only fair to read his side. But conservatives who want to affect our national politics still cannot afford to serve up such high-grade gotchas on a silver platter.
• China, the Internet, Iraq, and even Deep Throat find their way into this Dick Morris piece.
• Smart thinking from Thomas Sowell on people who think the government exists to impose their biases on others. But we've caught Sowell in a slip: He refers to your tax money and mine as "the government's own tax dollars." He knows better.
• Here's a scary thought: The UN wants to regulate the Internet.
• I enjoyed this long essay on the culture of celebrity. If you stop enjoying it, bail out.
• Tony Snow on the media treatment of President Bush's recent great speech. The headline is sarcastic, but the substance is worthwhile.
• Finally, Scott Adams set himself a challenge: Use the phrase "stupid Founding Fathers" in a strip which even those of us who revere them would find funny. Seriously, I'm making up the challenge. I think. But here's the strip.

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