Maggie's Farm

Our link this morning to the "Make it rain candy, Mr. Obama" bit reminded me of what should be one of the Left's theme songs. Here's the great Burl Ives:

"He's the most unselfish person I've ever met."

Brianna Kelliher of her boyfriend, Lance Cpl. Kenneth Preach, mortally wounded in Afghanistan

From Bruce Kesler:

International Relations professors “are often the last people a president turns to for advice on running the world. At least, that’s what the professors say,” in a 2008 survey of 1743 IR faculty at every 4-year college and university in the US.   “Most revealing? Nearly 40 percent of respondents reported that these scholars have “no impact” on foreign policy or even the public discourse about it.”  Foreign Policy reports the results. 

If they, or you, are wondering why they are so irrelevant, just look at their top priority: “It’s a largely liberal internationalist agenda, one that names the most important foreign-policy priorities facing the United States as global climate change (37 percent).”

What issue could possibly trump a major recession and not one but two foreign wars? Our warming planet. According to the scholars in this year’s survey, a U.S. commitment to take the lead on international climate treaties is long overdue. Although the election of President Obama—who has described the global climate change threat as “a matter of urgency”—promises movement on U.S. environmental policy, it might not be nearly high enough on Obama’s to-do list for these experts. Not only do academics consider the environment to be the greatest threat we face today, they predict it will be an even more important foreign-policy challenge for the United States in 10 years.

If there’s still wonder, I looked into the 93-page survey report the article is based upon. Guess what? “Seventy-five percent describe themselves as liberal,” and that percentage has increased from 69% in 2004.

Still wondering?  Read on:

In 2008, for instance, we see fewer than half as many scholars (23 percent of respondents in 2008 compared to to 48 percent in 2006) describing terrorism as one of the three most significant current foreign policy challenges facing the United States.  Most surprisingly, while 50 percent of U.S. scholars in 2006 said that terrorism was one of the most important foreign policy issues the United states would face over the subsequent decade, in 2008 only 1 percent of respondents agreed….Concern over several other foreign policy issues is also declining markedly: when asked about the most important problems facing the country over the next ten years 18 percent fewer respondents chose WMD proliferation, 12 percent fewer said armed conflict in the Middle east, and 13 percent fewer indicated failed states.  At the same time, 17 percent more respondents in 2008 than in 2006 believed that climate change will pose a serious challenge…

Want more reasons to not look forward to paying those huge tuition bills for your children?

She's a Dartmouth gal, and she keeps rifles around the house.

I think she's a Maggie's Farm sort of senator (despite being D-NY). The self-protective instinct seems sadly lacking in the flabby Western world these days. Plus she has a nice, honest smile.

If you get immunized for Polio, you should just as reasonably immunize yourself against the bad guys by being armed. Both dangers are rare, but can really hurt you.

Somebody made her move those guns, though.

As the angle of Mr. Sun begins to increase in the New England skies, we generally post a few boats that catch our eyes. Usually classic old boats, but this 2003 Beneteau 36 for sale seemed appealing.

They term this Farr design a racer-cruiser, but she looks like a racer to me. In this sort of economy, nice boats become more affordable. Asking 124,000.

Starbuck's stock price tracks the economy. Ouch.

As much as we enjoy promoting the simple virtues of Dunkin Donuts here, we have never really been mad at Starbucks. I like their House Blend, and I think the idea of a "third place" to hang out for a while either alone or to meet - which isn't a pub - is a civilized thing.  

And, when you think about it, they don't charge any more than a pub would charge you for a drink. As with a pub, you are paying for a place to go to, not for the liquid.

I think they over-reached in their expansion. The are spots in NYC where you can see at least two of them from one corner.

Dunkin is still making money, and, if you don't mind hard plastic chairs, no wireless, no semi-cool CDs for sale, no bean-sprout sandwiches on bread so "natural" that I doubt Medieval serfs would want to eat it, no phony 1/4" thick ambience, and no barristas, Dunkin is still a pleasant "third place" for lots of folks.

Still, for your first e-Harmony get-together, Starbucks is probably a better idea...

"First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen, he was second to none in humble and enduring scenes of private life. Pious, just humane, temperate, and sincere; uniform dignified, and commanding; his example was as edifying to all around him as were the effects of that example lasting.... The purity of his private charter gave effulgence to his public virtues...."

John Marshall, official eulogy of George Washington, delivered by Richard Henry Lee, 26 December 1799

On Fitna and dhimmitude. h/t, Stop the ACLU

Photo above: Train of death, according to James Hansen. Cranks rule the world.

And just one related comment about all of the excitement about electric cars. What do they run on? Coal. Coal is where the electricity comes from. Some people seem to think it comes from magic out of sockets.

Aspiring moonbat Prince of Wales to travel with gigantic carbon footprint to spread warming religion

We used to joke about "thought police." It's become real, in the UK. Spiked

Driving ships through the graveyard of the Pacific. I have run a few bars in my time in boats, and it is scary.

Depressing. What we just did. Surber: "Too bad this bill is born-again communism."

The Obama plans for February. They were serious about changing America.

Have Obamacons been Obamaconned? Q&O. Duh.

Obama to Eastern Europeans: You're on your own. Nice. Looks more and more like Carter.

Who was America's best Presidential speechwriter? Ted Sorensen answers.

Jeb Bush: Make Repubs a national party.

I'd be scared to lend too, with these economic idiots in charge

Sign above from Right Wing Prof. More seriously from him, What have I been saying? College kids are not prepared for college-level work.

Get ready. I don't know what this has to do with stimulus, but the stimulus bill gives the government the power to over-rule your doctor for cost purposes. That is insane, politically and humanly.

Stimulus gives states incentive to add to their welfare rolls.

New York State gets stimulus windfall:

Gov. Paterson called yesterday for fiscal restraint with the massive influx of federal aid. His budget office estimated that New York will receive $24.6 billion over the next two years, $4 billion more than first believed.

Restraint? Haha. Fat chance.

Obama's "shock and awe" will be paying the bill. But what the heck, White House admits stimulus won't do anything.

A few things economists agree upon. Mankiw

 From a piece by Paglia:

Speaking of talk radio (which I listen to constantly), I remain incredulous that any Democrat who professes liberal values would give a moment's thought to supporting a return of the Fairness Doctrine to muzzle conservative shows. (My latest manifesto on this subject appeared in my last column.) The failure of liberals to master the vibrant medium of talk radio remains puzzling. To reach the radio audience (whether the topic is sports, politics or car repair), a host must have populist instincts and use the robust common voice. Too many Democrats have become arrogant elitists, speaking down in snide, condescending tones toward tradition-minded middle Americans whom they stereotype as rubes and buffoons. But the bottom line is that government surveillance of the ideological content of talk radio is a shocking first step toward totalitarianism.

One of the nuggets I've gleaned from several radio sources is that Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow, who has been in the aggressive forefront of the campaign to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, is married to Tom Athans, who works extensively with left-wing radio organizations and was once the executive vice-president of Air America, the liberal radio syndicate that, despite massive publicity from major media, has failed miserably to win a national audience. Stabenow's outrageous conflict of interest has of course been largely ignored by the prestige press, which should have been demanding that she recuse herself from all political involvement with this issue.

Stimulus is largest increase in government hand-outs in history. Good grief. Yes, we are back to the dole again, undoing Clinton's best deed for the poor. I think the Admin is over-reaching here. Same mistake Clinton made in the beginning. Nobody wants a change back to 1970.

Greenies upset with stimulus' billions for highways. I am actually sympathetic with them. Don't we have highways everywhere? Around here, we have highways to nowhere already.

Do the Blue Dog Dems have any clout anymore? Less, but still some.

Road to Serfdom, in cartoons. We linked this once in the past. h/t, Insty

Stimulus problems, at RCP. A quote:

"If we borrow money from China to give money back to individuals to spend (in the form of tax cuts or tax credits), will their spending eventually go back to China because they use it to make purchases at stores such as Wal-Mart?" she asks.

Which begs a follow-up question: How would that stimulate job growth here?

The current stimulus plan lacks ambition, innovation and creativity, Brown says. Government shouldn't create jobs; it should create markets that spur private companies to create jobs. "The government's job is to speed up the process known as 'creative destruction,' " she says.

Much of the money in the stimulus plan goes to states to help balance their budgets or to programs created long ago -- some successful (such as Pell grants) and some controversial (sexually transmitted disease prevention) -- but not many that are really "new" or experimental.

"Too much for too little" is Brown's assessment of the stimulus package.

Plus I always wonder what happens when China stops wanting to buy our debt...Won't we be in the same position as the banks? Insolvent, with nowhere to borrow and nobody left to tax? Which is precisely where California is right now.

Bumper sticker below from Gay Patriot:

Geoffrey Malaterra, who compares Robert Guiscard and his brother to "Joseph and Benjamin of old," says of Roger: "He was a youth of the greatest beauty, of lofty stature, of graceful shape, most eloquent in speech and cool in counsel. He was far-seeing in arranging all his actions, pleasant and merry all with men; strong and brave, and furious in battle."

Thus says Wiki. In 1061, he defeated 35,000 Saracens in the Battle of Cerami in Sicily:

His name came up today not only because Roger is a contributor to Maggie's Farm, but because in researching summer travel we got looking into the history of Malta. It's always interesting to be reminded of the Norman conquest of Southern Italy and of Sicily (which was Moslem at the time) - and of Malta, also Moslem at the time.

Those descendents of Vikings really did get around. Besides conquering England and southern Italy, they even invaded Greece and sailed up the Danube.

You cannot mention the history of Malta without mentioning the knights hospitalers of The Order of St. John, properly known as The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem. Maybe Gwynnie will sing their praises here some time.

Via Bruce Kesler, from a reader(with his permission), on our post on the film Defiance. He needs to see the film:

I read with great interest your review of the film, “Defiance,” which I have not  seen yet. I am writing a book on my family's town, Dolhinov, and have been conducting both archival research and interviews, About 450 Jews in the town—the only ones left of 5000 residents and refuges--survived fighting or living with various partisan units, primarily with the one next door to the Bielski's, the 'People Avengers" commanded by Ivan Timchuk whose chief aide was Avraham Freedman of Dolhinov. These stories are just starting to be told, partially because of the availability of new documents and studies from the post-Soviet countries.

In a unique event, about 300, including a number of my relatives, were evacuated by the Red Army on a 500-mile march through German lines, organized by Timchuk. This is an area of swamps and thick forests, perfect for partisan warfare.

A key factor was whether units had Jews as members. The Bielskis were almost unique in being commanders since in most cases, the leaders were chosen by the Soviet command from experienced veterans told to stay behind German lines in 1941.

Another feature of this area was that it experienced 18 months of Soviet occupation followed by 3 years   (though  Jews only lived through the first ten months in their  homes  or at all) of  German occupation. Those who couldn't get out at the war’s end spent the next 12 years  trying to get out of the USSR to come to Israel.

Professor Barry Rubin

Director, Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center http://www.gloriacenter.org
Editor, Middle East Review of International Affairs (MERIA) Journal http://www.meriajournal.com
Watch on the Middle East http://www.watchonthemiddleeast.com
Editor Turkish Studies, http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~db=all~content=t713636933%22
 

Powerline has Global Warming Propaganda Worse Than Expected.

Readers know that, as a general rule, we post climate links and essays in our "Political" category rather than in our "Natural History and Conservation" category.

Information every month, accumulating year after year, confirms our impression that the "Global Warming Crisis" is politically-driven, regardless of the merits of the science.

The Left loves Global Warming, because it has the potential to scare people into giving further power and control to state apparatuses. If it doesn't pan out, they will need to find another strategy. But they have invested a lot of time and energy into this one, and will be naturally reluctant to let it go.  

Regular readers also know that it's my opinion that some warming would be to the benefit of humanity, as it has been in history. England thrived with its vineyards during the medieval warming, and Greenland was green and agricultural. I am skeptical about whether that is happening now, though. More likely, the opposite. I trust tropospheric measures more than land measures, which are corrupted by all sorts of local variables.

In the event of the worst case which the fearmongers promote (and even they admit exaggerating for effect), not a darn thing can or will be done to make a difference. Humans have adjusted to, and survived, far worse in their brief time on this earth.

I also happen to believe that there are too many people. I am open to being wrong about that, but I do feel that it would be a shame for the entire planet to be paved. From what I know about the world, prosperity and opportunity seem to be the best routes to population rationality and land conservation.

From Bruce Kesler:

That isn’t my headline.  It’s the headline on a report in the Huffington Post from Iraq by a reporter opposed to the war in Iraq writing about another who is opposed, Dahr Jamail.

Shane Liddick is a freelancer out of San Diego, with newspaper and magazine reporting experience, currently in Anbar Province, Iraq.  Dahr Jamail is also a freelancer, who has been the darling of the left.

Dahr Jamail’s shoddy anti-Iraq propaganda, indeed invention of false horror stories, has been exposed before.  I wrote about him in March 2008, as “an accomplished propagandist and fabulist on Iraq,” with links to Jules Crittenden, Instapundit, and most tellingly to a series of exposes by Denis Keohane.  The Keohane exposes can be seen here.

Liddick’s words are direct:

… I saw many of the same things you did. But I've come to very different conclusions. That, I believe, is because you had a pre-existing agenda you were determined to conform evidence to (i.e., war is bad, the U.S. is waging a war, so whatever it's doing in Anbar is bad); and because you're a coward….

He goes on to say -

I still don't think we should be here. But that debate became passé six years ago. Now it's a question of how soon the U.S. gets out and what happens before and after it does. I've met too many good and decent people here to write this place off, smart and hard working Iraqis that want and deserve a first-world existence….

As a journalist, criticizing military policy without talking to the military is completely incompetent. But with you, it goes deeper. You hide behind political artifice to lob your mines of pre-conclusion, like a craven wretch. And really, I think that goes to the solid core of the dregs of the problem. You're not a coward merely because you're afraid to seek the truth when it might not conform to your views ... rather your chickenshit views are shaped by the fact you're a coward….

Nearly every American soldier on the ground--no matter how misguided vis-à-vis the underlying motivations that brought the U.S. to Iraq--is here because of a sincere and genuine desire to help; none of them, I wager, have come to further an empire. Whether it be to fight against terrorism so people back home feel a little safer in skyscrapers, or to relieve a weary Iraqi population of a dictator, they're here for honorable reasons; just as is the case with the majority of those Iraqi soldiers (who still have targets on their foreheads). Which makes your fink agenda a slap in the face to about a million people who have fought and died and lost legs, brothers, and lots of blood in the hope of making something as simple as a secure place to live.

The military has been surprisingly forthcoming with me and all I had to do was ask. Marine Corps Colonel Patrick Malay sat with me on three different occasions, for long discussions about security in his area of operation in Anbar. One thing I learned quickly is that the military's officer corps is filled with the best of America's minds--kids that aced their college entrance exams, were the captains of their ball teams, and had to be nominated by senators to go to the schools they did. These are the guys (along with their much more experienced superiors) that are deciding strategy--and they're fucking smart. I was allowed to sit in on a couple of their high level briefings--again, all I had to do was show some kind of aptitude for objectivity--and I can tell you their comprehension of the situation on the ground is apt, their thinking clever, and their intentions centrally wrapped up with the Iraqi people….

The military's policy is designed from the bottom-up on security. The plan is simple--so simple (in theory), it can't fail. Security will bring outside investment, which will thereby enhance existing security, which will bring more investment, further enhancing security, and so on. It's uncomplicated and it's already working. The lynchpin is security. The people of Anbar want it desperately (I lived with these people for most of the past month, and I can't tell you how desperately they want it) and they need it to be able to rebuild….

The heart of the problem in all of this isn't only with the people of Iraq, it's also with Americans in this age of rapid and uncensored hydra-headed media--and the fact anybody can print anything. The threat there lies in the fact that 80-percent of people in society are grazers (and you can check Chomsky on this, Colonel Malay, or anybody who's served time); non-thinkers that only want to be herded and told what to do. It's those people who read your half-truths online and don't realize you're "independent" for a reason.

I'm phobically allergic to the conservative Republican types the military is rife with, but I've only been in country four months and already I hate liberals. There's plenty of ugliness to report in Iraq (as there are thousands of stories of hope and headway)--and the U.S. military certainly isn't beyond reproach. Nobody's telling you to report on one side or the other. But manipulating the truth because of your own personal biases is wretched and works in the face of progress. The other end of the political spectrum disregards you, Dahr, and now I know why. I thought it was because you're a liar--but you aren't. You don't have enough backbone to be a liar. You're a craven obfuscationist, intent on promoting your agenda at the cost of a menagerie of much braver men and women. ... s.d. liddick

Thus commented a reader who heard this at Theo. This is a fast Flight of the Bumblebee.

Every blade of grass is a study;
And to produce two,
Where there was but one,
Is both a profit and a pleasure.
And not grass alone;
But soils, seeds, and seasons
Hedges, ditches, and fences,
Draining, droughts, and irrigation—
Plowing, hoeing, and harrowing—
Reaping, mowing, and threshing—
Saving crops, pests of crops, diseases of crops,
And what will prevent or cure them—
Implements, utensils, and machines,
Their relative merits,
And [how] to improve them—
Hogs, horses, and cattle—
Sheep, goats, and poultry—
Trees, shrubs, fruits, plants, and flowers—
The thousand things
Of which these are specimens—
Each a world of study within itself.

That is from a Lincoln speech to the Wisconsin Agricultural Society, rearranged as free verse. It works. It sounds like Walt Whitman.