Recently commenter “Christopher” recommended this 2004 article by the Claremont Institute. It’s about allegations that the GOP purposely appeals to racism, and that racism is somehow inherent in conservatism. Well worth reading.
Continue reading →The topics of the 1918 flu pandemic and the Lisbon earthquake came up yesterday in this discussion thread, which sparked a train of thought for me. The very first time I read about the flu epidemic was when I was … Continue reading →
And I fear we never shall. When I was in school, World War I was hardly touched on in my history classes, so eager were the teachers to get to World War II before the year was over. It was … Continue reading →
A reader has alerted me to the news that the tunnel “Harry” featured in the movie “The Great Escape” has been found (not the movie set tunnel; the real deal). If you’ve loved that movie for many decades, as I … Continue reading →
First, a quote: The pattern is familiar enough: an established autocracy with a record of friendship with the U.S. is attacked by insurgents…Violence spreads and American officials wonder aloud about the viability of a regime that “lacks the support of … Continue reading →
CBS reports that a source says that the Benghazi talking points were changed by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, without the knowledge of the White House. Let me stipulate a few things. The first is that I … Continue reading →
Rumor has it that John Kerry is being considered for the post of Secretary of Defense. If true, this would be another example of what a keen sense of humor Obama has. For what better way to enrage the majority … Continue reading →
In my most recent update to the previous post I mentioned how similar tonight is looking to 2004. Bush won in 2004, of course. It looks like Romney won’t, although it is still within the realm of possibility that he … Continue reading →
A comment by “RickZ” about the failed Iran hostage rescue attempt in the waning days of the Carter administration prompted this reply from me, referring to a post I wrote several years ago on the anniversary of Operation Eagle Claw … Continue reading →
This describes a pretty ghastly, though thankfully rare, way that a some descendents of Holocaust survivors are paying tribute to their aging relatives: having the elderly survivors’ camp numbers tattooed on their own arms. The 10 tattooed descendants interviewed for … Continue reading →
I’d heard a lot about the Florida vote in the 2000 presidential election. Hanging chads, Pat Buchanan, virtual tie, recounts, Supreme Court, lingering rage. But I’d never encountered this factoid before: How campaigns try to sway polling results: “In a … Continue reading →
Remember back to when the fatwa on Salman Rushdie seemed a strange and unfathomable aberration? Never such innocence again.
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