Maggie's Farm

Walking is bad for Gaia. Driving is better. No need to even try to satirize the warming movement: it satirizes itself.

Hillary Clinton's "experience." What experience? We missed this April piece by Dick Morris from The Hill. As we have asked before, What has she ever run? What has she ever done?

Erik von Markovic: Master Seducer. I need this guy's book.

Tom Wolfe on the Hedgies: Pirate Poseurs and Twinkie Wives.

Modern Scouting in Dorset. Pitiful. Sounds like a program designed to turn men into Victorian girls mice.

The critics and Jon Swift on Antonioni and Bergman.

Lots of good news from Iraq that we aren't being told. This bit has been passed all around, but we found it first at Synthstuff.

The Ask What Your Country Can Do For You Department: Here's a candidate who has a different view:

“Government cannot take care of you. You’ve got to take care of yourself.” He said the marketplace, not the government “nanny state,” needs to do the work of fixing the nation’s health care problems. He said that “We’ve got to solve our health care problem with American principles, not the principles of socialism.”…

“Americans believe in free-market solutions to the challenges we face, and I believe we can reduce costs, expand access to, and improve the quality of health care by increasing competition. America’s health care system is being dragged down by decades of government-imposed mandates and wasteful, unaccountable bureaucracy.”…

“I don’t care what Michael Moore says in his movie,” he said. “I’ve never had anybody ask me for help to get into a Cuban hospital or a Canadian hospital or an English hospital. They all want to come to America. So let’s take what’s right about our system and let’s improve it.”

How was my three-day AT hiking and camping trip? Wonderful. Gets cold up there at night. Only problems are that, between foot blisters and aching legs, I can hardly walk to the fridge. I think my life is too sedentary except during partridge season. Oh - I almost forgot the nice combination of sunburn and bug bites.

I missed this post by Taranto on Friday. It's almost like the Carnival of Insanities.

No Looking Backwards' quote of the year: “CAIR can go to Hell and they can take their 72 virgins with them.” Read the lawyer's letter at Michelle.

Silicon Valley update, from Never Yet Melted:

“You’re nobody here at $10 million,” Mr. Kremen said earnestly over a glass of pinot noir at an upscale wine bar here. …

 Money never protected anyone from being a total a-hole. I do, however, like Buddy's comment on this post: 

"You're nobody around here with $10, Mr. Kremen said earnestly over a grape soda at an upscale bait shop here..." 

Camping this weekend on the AT in NH. Leaving now, without camera or anything with weight. Bringing buns for toasting though (toasting buns photo via Theo). Wish Theo could join us.

Who do we want in charge of medical care? A good piece on why the SCHIP is a bad idea (h/t, No Left Turns). I guess I just don't care about children, right? Interestingly, polls show Americans don't want to give up their medical freedom... as they have done in the UK, where docs owe their loyalty to the government, not the patient, as in this horrible example of organ-stealing. I thought grave robbing was against the law.

The Death of Sweden. Brussels Journal. A sad story about a suicidal nation. I guess there has always been a lot of depression and self-loathing in Sweden anyway.

Meet Dr. Mohammed Ahmedna - he is the guy who will save peanuts!

More on talk radio and the Fairness Doctrine. Does anyone really want that Fairness Doctrine back? And is it even constitutional? TCS. (h/t, Insty)

In NYS, Bruno and Cuomo are now gunning for Spitzer. As well they should.

Imports beat American cars for the first time. Viking. Well, we still make better wine than the Japanese.

The attempted Russki "land" grab in the Arctic. I guess we have to accept that this is just what Russians do.

Who wants protectionism "to protect jobs"? Dems supported by unions, that's who. Protectionism damages the American economy and damages the American consumer. Is that too subtle for Americans to understand? As Coyote says, "Stop right there or I will shoot myself."

The Euroland Left is moving towards the center, while the American Left is moving further to the left. Europe has already hit the rocks,, but the American Left still hears the syren's call.

What does Africa need? Business schools!

They were really missionaries, not aid workers, and thus technically illegal by Afghanistan law, although they were allowed in anyway. Taliban-types are likely to view them, as to treat them, as sub-human. I admire these young people, but now is not the time to try to convert Afghanistan to Christianity.

If they are killed, they will be martyrs for Christ. Does God love the foolish? Yes, indeed, when they are fools for Him.

Image: Saint Sebastian

Yes, it was spooky that we posted the Tacoma Narrows bridge collapse video yesterday.

Sympathy for Hitler, in the UK? This could be a dubious news item.

Westerners claim federal rules make wildfires worse. I have no problem with wildfires anyway. They are natural and necessary.

Finding relatives lost in institutions

"Promoting Diversity and Love with an iron fist", from Hot Air, via Dust My Broom:

Hate ought not be a crime. It’s an emotion. Hate can lead to crimes, but so can many other emotions and attitudes that we haven’t (yet) criminalized. Greed, envy, lust, jealousy — all of these can lead to crimes just as often, if not more often, than hate does. Are we going to criminalize all of them, too?

Farming the government. Factory farming and federal subsidies. View from 1776

Fun with Chomsky. Attack Machine

Is Iraq ready for self-governance? Rick Moran is fed up.

LaShawn says that the fight against voter ID shows contempt for blacks. Where I vote, you have to show an ID with an address.

Hillary's college thesis. I thought that Wellesley had it under lock and key.

Count me a skeptic: I see nothing in the paper giving an historical context or a political science context for the subject matter, which one would expect from a Wellesley girl. Well, unless she was one of those 60s types for whom history and political philosophy were "irrelevant" to the brave new world.

Don't be a victim! The Childhood Goat Trauma Foundation (h/t, reader)

Filson's semi-annual sale.

Germany encourages incest? Is this for real? Right Wing News

A mind is a terrible thing to lose. "Tillson executed." I learned in college that paranoia was about projection.

Dems scramble to restore NSA eavesdropping ability

Don't get kidnapped in Venezuela. The reasons here.

In praise of Wendell Berry

Journalists don't want to believe that they are part of an industry. Prof Bainbridge

Even Rolling Stone editorializes against ethanol as fuel. Viking

Antonioni: Here's one obit, via piece at Never Yet Melted. Here's his wiki entry

Canada's nightmare health system.

Kids take on the Lunch Lady

Losing hope for the Korean hostages.

The cost of travel in 1800. Marginal Revolution. No wonder nobody ever went anywhere beyond their local market village, unless they were rich. Stagecoaches were expensive.

Sovereign Wealth Funds: The new thing. Government entities are learning to be capitalist investors. Guess they realized they can't run businesses themselves.  Dinocrat. Yes, governments love money and power, don't they?

Uppity whites in Boston.

Debka Files is not the most reliable source. Gateway linked this story. Is it true? I hope it is true, but count me as a skeptic.

The tax hike that the Dems long for. John Kyl discusses. Pure class warfare, if you ask me.

Great comments by Old Man Tyme on this Jules piece. For some reason, I have been having trouble getting to his site this week.

How Congress is hampering terror surveillance. Never Yet Melted. Idiots.

Boy Scouting turns 100 years old.

Brits "horrified" by Olympic shooting sports. Who are these people?

Joe Lieberman escalates his attacks on Dems. The Hill

From Wretchard (h/t, Reader):

The US campaign in Iraq is probably one of the most complex campaigns in military history. It is an event fundamentally unsuited to facile political characterization. And I am afraid that, if General Petraeus' efforts meet with some success, what was officially a "bad" war -- after first having been a "good war" -- will become a "good war" again, as politicians anxiously reposition themselves according to the latest polls. Iraq will become, whatever it is, exactly what the politicians want it to be. And that's bad. Because the one thing that Gen Petraeus is doing right -- if he is doing anything right at all -- is adapting; moving through the OODA loop faster than his enemies and unfettered by restricting shibboleths and doctrinal dogma. Success is based on seeing things as they are as opposed to viewing them through political lenses. In some sense you have to see things different from Washington to have a snowball's chance in Hell.

Fred on Federalism. I strongly agree with this piece (h/t, Right Wing Nation). A quote:

A good first step would be to codify the Executive Order on Federalism first signed by President Ronald Reagan. That Executive Order, first revoked by President Clinton, then modified to the point of uselessness, required agencies to respect the principle of the Tenth Amendment when formulating policies and implementing the laws passed by Congress. It preserved the division of responsibilities between the states and the federal government envisioned by the Framers of the Constitution. It was a fine idea that should never have been revoked. The next president should put it right back in effect, and see to it that the rightful authority of state and local governments is respected.

Why are we importing doctors? From a piece by Kesler:

Physicians in the USA: 794,893.
Foreign graduate doctors in the USA: 185,234 (from 127 countries).
* Percentage of doctors in U.S. training programs who are foreigners: 24%.

That's a paraphrase of what Dem leader James Clyburn said the other day, about Iraq.

Does he realize what he said? He told the truth. As Surber asks, "Who is the enemy to Clyburn?" See Jules on the latest optimistic view from the NYT, of all places.

Does one have a right not to be offended in America?

From a piece on the toilet Koran story by Rick Moran. Also, with photos, at Moonbattery. In my view, it is the privilege of every American to both offend and to be offended. This kid was charged with a felony? Gimme a break. The only thing he is guilty of is bad manners.

Is it art or a crime? Never Yet Melted. It's not a crime, just terrible manners.

In defence of Ward Churchill: He's just like the rest of them. Coyote

Always late? No matter - time may not exist. Samizdata

How the Brits prevented us from catching Osama. Ace. This was sick. More from Dinocrat.

Dr. Pettit speaks about his lost family.

A free public service school? I say nuts to that commie, Frenchie notion, and so does Tammy. Part of the idea of America is citizen-politicians, not trained managers of us masses. That is why I am sympathetic to term-limits.

If our gummint can't run a passport office, why should we imagine they can run American medicine? Cafe Hayek

The Dissident Frogman is back.

The Gonzales story. There is no story. He is just another potential scalp. The Democratic Party: The Party of Hate. Not to defend the dopey Repubs or to be unbalanced, but the Dems have gone over the edge.

Mr. Sun is good for you. Take off that greasy sunblock.

Cool new US Army weapon systems.

Ulrich Muhe died. Still need to see this movie.

World's tallest woman. Video. That is one big hunk of woman.

Waziristan update. Powerline. It's an un-reported battle.

"Attempts to Islamize the West cannot be denied," warns the Vatican. Gates of V.

The foreign policies of Spain are not usually a hot topic, but right now it's an interesting subject. Brussels Journal

While the surge seems to be working, the government of Iraq is in splinters. CSM. Maybe they need a dictator or king or whatever, to be civilized.

We had lots of posts about hippies last week. Driscoll looks back on that era via Tom Wolfe.

The Red Fox making a comeback in the Northeast. That is good. We have a family of them on the farm. Our coyotes are known to kill fox kits - so much for canine multiculturalism.

Speaking of foxes, more on the war against FOX News, at Gateway

And speaking of the dog family of animals, Derbyshire ponders whether dogs have consciousness, based on the latest research - and thus whether they have souls.

Photo: That is our North American version of Mr. Red Fox. We wrote about him in Dog of the Week a while ago.

How good is Tony Snow? See press conference video. Gotta love this guy.

The dark side of green. Michael Eckhart of Harvard.

Must Christians support illegal immigration? LaShawn

Deforestation and crimes against humanity in Vietnam, Camobodia, and Laos. Democracy Project.

The Nero Dems. Conspiracy. Why are they anti-growth? Must be because there is a conspiracy to keep you poor and stupid.

Orson Card on computer modeling and warming. We missed that one. h/t, No Looking Backwards

As most readers are aware, The New Republic really f-ed the pooch, pooped in its pants, etc. this week. If you scroll down through Ace you can see most of the story, delivered in an appropriately sarcastic manner.

Schumer: We will confirm no more Bush Supreme nominees. That is a declaration of war.

The perfect relationship. She talks a bit slow, but it's good.

The economy: Wages are rising for everyone. Marginal Rev. (h/t, Insty)

MoveOn targets FOX. Silliness.

Stop trying to help Africa, says an African. I am sure he is right. WaPo. Not only is it condescending as hell, but it's a new form of colonialism. Crooks there will take our money gladly, however. What the West can offer Africa is opportunities to trade, especially in agriculture. We already buy their oil.

Photo: One of Theo's girlfriends. She slipped me her phone number while he wasn't looking, but I lost it. I like her nice, firm biceps.

From Opinion Journal:

The U.S. homeland hasn't been struck by terrorists since September 11, and one reason may be more aggressive intelligence policies. So Americans should be alarmed that one of the best intelligence tools--warrantless wiretapping of al Qaeda suspects--has recently become far less effective and is in danger of being neutered by Congressional Democrats.

President Bush approved this terrorist surveillance not long after 9/11, allowing intelligence officials to track terrorist calls overseas, as well as overseas communications with al Qaeda sympathizers operating in the U.S. The New York Times exposed the program in late 2005, and Democrats and antiwar activists immediately denounced it as an "illegal" attempt to spy on Americans, à la J. Edgar Hoover.

Democratic leaders were briefed on the program from the first and never once tried to shut it down. But once it was exposed, these same Democrats accused Mr. Bush of breaking the law by not getting warrants from the special court created under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) of 1978. Mr. Bush has rightly defended the program's legality, but as a gesture of compromise in January he agreed to seek warrants under the FISA process.

This has turned out to be an enormous mistake that has unilaterally disarmed one of our best intelligence weapons in the war on terror. To understand why, keep in mind that we live in a world of fiber optics and packet-switching. A wiretap today doesn't mean the FBI must install a bug on Abdul Terrorist's phone in Peshawar. Information now follows the path of least resistance, wherever that may lead. And because the U.S. has among the world's most efficient networks, hundreds of millions of foreign calls are routed through the U.S.

That's right: If an al Qaeda operative in Quetta calls a fellow jihadi in Peshawar, that call may well travel through a U.S. network. This ought to be a big U.S. advantage in our "asymmetrical" conflict with terrorists. But it also means that, for the purposes of FISA, a foreign call that is routed through U.S. networks becomes a domestic call. So thanks to the obligation to abide by an outdated FISA statute, U.S. intelligence is now struggling even to tap the communications of foreign-based terrorists. If this makes you furious, it gets worse.

Read the whole thing. Also, some comments from Betsy. Why do the Dems seem to want to handcuff us in a war against foreign enemies? (That's a rhetorical question.)

Baqubah: Michael Yon's latest. Fascinating, especially about the drones.

Baghdad: Crittenden. About Al Quaida, and a battle. Plus he reminds you of what you can do on the home front: This Sunday, Get Naked for America. (No Grannies, please.)

The American Left has learned from their past errors. They are now more committed to incremental Socialism instead of grand plans.

It's the old trick of boiling a frog. Someday I will wake up and realize that they will have taken my money, and left me with no choices, and my frog will be cooked.

The battle over S-CHIP is an example. Klein in American Prospect, via RCP - a quote:

Democrats and Republicans both view this battle as a harbinger for a coming showdown over full reform of the health care system. Rahm Emmanuel likes to call it "spring training for universal health care." Mitch McConnell and Trent Lott wrote warned that expanding S-CHIP "takes a significant step toward a government-run health care system." And indeed it does.

I still cannot understand why Putin is trying to provoke, and alienate, the West. What's in it for him? Internal politics? We mean them no harm.

Quit washing your clothes. It's bad for Gaia.

For the children. Internet censorship proposed. h/t, Insty.

What are "Men of Goodwill"? Anchoress. It is my goal to be one of those men.

Things I've learned since 9/11.  Right Thinking from the Left Coast. It's impossible to agree with Lee on everything, but he can be counted on to say what he thinks.

Is $100 dollar oil on its way? I wouldn't be surprised. Prof. Deneen. Economic consequences? You bet.

The Lancet was once the most respected medical journal in the world. Since it went political, it isn't any more. Rick Moran. It survives only on its old reputation.

World poverty plummets. There's nothing like commerce and trade to do that.

And some details on American poverty. Attack Machine. Bear in mind that poverty stats for the US do not include the funds or money value of benefits such as welfare, food stamps, subsidized housing, Medicaid, etc.

How the Left provides "force multiplication" to Islamic extremists. Dr. Sanity. Same as they did for the North Vietnamese.

Pythons in the Everglades. More unwanted and uninvited aliens. The government wants to put chips in every non-native snake that is bought or sold. Wish they could be as determined when it comes to illegal humans.

A graphic demonstration (graph on the right) that the primary role of the US government has become redistribution of money, from a piece at Villainous Company:

Even the Guardian admits progress in Iraq. Jim Miller

 Who is rich, according to the Dem candidates? Meaning whose taxes can they get away with raising?

That bottom-smacking story from Oregon sounded like a joke, at first. Now it just sounds utterly insane.

"Are there any white kids in your school?" Another teacher for school choice.

JR Dunn at American Thinker. It begins:

It's now quite clear how the results of the surge will be dealt with by domestic opponents of the Iraq war.

They're going to be ignored.

They're being ignored now. Virtually no media source or Democratic politician (and not a few Republicans, led by Richard "I can always backtrack" Lugar) is willing to admit that the situation on the ground has changed dramatically over the past three months. Coalition efforts have undergone a remarkable reversal of fortune, a near-textbook example as to how an effective strategy can overcome what appear to be overwhelming drawbacks.

Read the whole thing. If Petraeus can hold back the barbarians, it will change many things. (h/t, reader)

Darn darn darn. Accidentally deleted my entire morning links piece for today, and now I don't have time to try to reconstruct it. Here are a few of them:

Al Quaida opening a new war front in Africa. Captain Ed. It is very self-centered of the US and the West to imagine that we are their sole enemies: we are just one of many.

The Left usually prefers to talk about "root causes" instead of individual choices. Their political stance tends to be one of socio-economic determinism rather than the dignity and freedom of the individual. Case in point - poverty. What is the number one cause of poverty in the US? Unmarried mothers. Will Edwards discuss that? No.

Alphecca's Quote of the Day, recently, from the Pittsburg Tribune:

The Brits haven’t learned that inanimate objects do not cause crime. Guns and knives do not rob, rape or murder. Criminals will use whatever means possible to prey on the innocent; potential victims will use whatever means possible to defend themselves.

And when Big Brother then grabs every fork, spoon and toothpick in Britain, will anyone, no matter how trustworthy, be allowed to hold a rock?

Why Woolworth had to die.  I still miss my Woolworth's, but I guess it's capitalism's "creative destruction." American Heritage. They say Woolworth was once what WalMart is today.

Great Statists of History. Licinius, at Dust My Broom

If you are returning from vacation today, don't miss a couple of our good recent essays - they are up on the left column. Also, our piece on the Roger Scruton essay - scroll down.

Breaking news. Teens don't like the Nanny State. They rebel against that sort of thing, naturally.

Do you take Vit C? It's made in China.

Aid to poor nations does no good at all. Mankiw. Of course it doesn't - it's just a feel-good thing.

Brave police work in the UK. Blair. How can you catch a guy if you can't say what he looks like? On the same theme, Captain Ed, like me, is also confused about why the Dems seem to want to protect possible terrorists. Is it just PC gone psychotic?

The Call of the Entrepreneur. It's a new movie, which celebrates freedom. Kling discusses at TCS.

Even the WaPo finally gets it about Iraq. Jules. And John at Powerline on the surge's success:

Currently, there are two tides running in opposite directions: a trend toward success on the ground in Iraq, and a seemingly inexorable drive toward defeat, or will to lose, in Congress.

The inequality obsession. Libertarian Leanings. Also, the piece by Arthur Brooks in City Journal, What Really Buys Happiness? A quote illustrating true insanity:

Cornell economist Robert Frank, a major critic of income inequality, adds that such a move might not make the rich as unhappy as you’d think, since they tend to use their income on things they don’t really want or need. “We could spend roughly one-third less on consumption,” Frank writes, “and suffer no significant reduction in satisfaction.” Some egalitarians even make the astounding argument that we should tax the economically successful in order to discourage them from working, since their work will only make them richer and thus sadden the less successful. According to British economist Richard Layard, “If we make taxes commensurate to the damage that an individual does to others when he earns more”—the damage to others’ happiness, that is—“then he will only work harder if there is a true net benefit to society as a whole. It is efficient to discourage work effort that makes society worse off.” Work, according to this postmodern argument—contrary to millennia of moral teaching—is no different from a destructive vice like tobacco, which governments sometimes tax in order to discourage people from smoking.

These inequality mavens seem to believe that the sin of envy is the most important source of unhappiness. It may apply to them, but not to most. I feel every sort of emotion on occasion, including envy, but it doesn't ruin my life. Plus I know that I could do something entrepreneurial any time I want. Right now, finding a nice girlfriend is all I need to be fully happy.

10th Century Viking treasure found in Yorkshire. Nice stuff.

Partner pay in top 200 law firms. Rising fast. They make this on the backs of the child labor of their young and hungry Associates. It's a good deal.

How Music Works. A great site for the real basics of what music is made of, if you know nothing about music theory. There is enough here to give oneself a little basic music course.

The Supremes haven't considered the Second Amendment for 70 years. Will they take a look at Parker? More thoughts on the subject at Willisms. I hope the Court will take it on, but letting Parker stand is fine too.

Looks like TNR got busted. Gateway. Fake but accurate? On the same subject, this bit from Ace is hilarious.

An $18,000 hand. Cheap at any price, if you ask me.

Nobody has ever said that Charlie Rangel lacked cojones. I can so easily imagining him saying to his staff "F- them if they don't like it. I'm in charge here."

Does Putin want another Cold War? What for?

Sexual assaults in the military. CSM. Not good.

Bill McKibben not too smart, and a bit lacking in imagination. But he's virtuous, right?

Dawkins makes enforced atheism sound like Sharia. Wizbang

Purdue Pharma spanked hard. The lawyers of the addicts no doubt made out well.

More BBC disasters. Does anyone trust them anymore, when it comes to politicized matters?

From Martin Durkin (who produced The Great Global Warming Swindle) in a piece in The Australian following the airing of his film last week (h/t, Lubos Motl):

Why are the global warmers so zealous? After a year of arguing with people about this, I am convinced that it's because global warming is first and foremost a political theory. It is an expression of a whole middle-class political world view. This view is summed up in the oft-repeated phrase "we consume too much". I have also come to the conclusion that this is code for "they consume too much". People who believe it tend also to think that exotic foreign places are being ruined because vulgar oiks can afford to go there in significant numbers, they hate plastic toys from factories and prefer wooden ones from craftsmen, and so on.

All this backward-looking bigotry has found perfect expression in the idea of man-made climate disaster. It has cohered a bunch of disparate reactionary prejudices (anti-car, anti-supermarkets, anti-globalisation) into a single unquestionable truth and cause. So when you have a dig at global warming, you commit a grievous breach of social etiquette. Among the chattering classes you're a leper.

But why are the supporters of global warming so defensive? After all, the middle classes are usually confident, bordering on smug.

As I found when I examined the basic data, they have plenty to be defensive about. Billions of dollars of public money have been thrown at global warming, yet the hypothesis is crumbling around their ears.

To the utter dismay of the global warming lobby, the world does not appear to be getting warmer. According to their own figures (from the UN-linked Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), the temperature has been static or slightly declining since 1998. The satellite data confirms this. This is clearly awkward. The least one should expect of global warming is that the Earth should be getting warmer.

Photos: All of these boats are for sale to prosperous capitalists. God bless 'em. Details here.