Ten years after the U.S. began its occupation/liberation of Afghanistan, we still haven’t figured out how to relate to a nation of poppy-growing Muslim fundamentalists. It might seem “obvious” to some that burning Korans is not a good idea when you’re trying to teach Muslims how enlightened you are and how much you respect their…
Pseudo-New Yorker
Legal humor here. “What did I tell you? Ten years ago, this car would be nothing but ‘gators. The Bronx has totally gone to hell.” “Don’t worry, folks. My buddy and me, we’re out for fun, not for food. But if you could help us score a couple of tickets to “The Inexplicable Redemption of…
Liberalism and the white working class, expanded
A few posts back, I ended a rant on Charles Murray (one of two, actually) with a cheap shot at liberals, to wit: “So why doesn’t the white working class vote Democratic? Because liberals don’t care about them.” Let me unpack that, just a bit. Liberals have in fact done a fair amount for the…
Obama Wins One
Was it all a plot? And, if so, who was plotting whom? A couple of weeks ago, the New York Times was telling us that the Catholic Church, scenting from afar that the Obama Administration was likely to announce a policy requiring religiously affiliated universities and hospitals to cover birth control costs in their employees’…
A fence to keep the bad guys out, and the cute boys in
The headline in the Phoenix New Times says it all, or at least most of it: “Paul Babeu’s Mexican Ex-Lover Says Sheriff’s Attorney Threatened Him With Deportation.” Yes, Paul Bebeu, an Arizona sheriff who’s running for Congress as a Republican in Arizona’s Fourth District and who, until recently, was Arizona co-chair of Mitt Romney’s presidential…
U.S. Government not yet entirely a wholly owned subsidiary of Goldman-Sachs, as of this writing
Felix Salmon points us to a rare victory of common sense and decency over leading Wall Street tentacle Goldman-Sachs and its subsidiary tentacle, the U.S. Justice Department. Of course, Wall Street quasi-hustler Sergey Aleynikov had to put in about a year of jail time to win this famous victory, but all’s well that ends well,…
Monk in Motian— “Let’s Cool One”
Paul Motian’s Electric Bebop Band, featuring guitarists Zacc Harris and Park Evans; saxophonists Scott Fultz and Brandon Wozniak; bassist Matt Peterson; and drummer Pete Hennig, along with Motian on drums. Recorded November 8, 2009 at the Artist’s Quarter in St. Paul, Minn. Posted by donberryman
Constantly not the New Yorker
Legal humor here. “I’m not splitting hairs. You’re sitting next to her. It’s your job to ask her.” “No, I’m not worried. Why the hell should I be? I can type!” “I think she’s supposed to have a soothing effect on the rest of us, but I totally don’t see it.” “When they hatch, they…
New at Brightlights
Not too much—not too much by me, at least, just a riff on Car 54, Where Are You?, a show that made me laugh a lot when I was 15, but now not so much. The rest of the issue, not entirely safe for work as always, offers meatier fare here.
Charles Murray, refuting himself
“Data can bear on policy issues, but many of our opinions about policy are grounded on premises about the nature of human life and human society that are beyond the reach of data. Try to think of any new data that would change your position on abortion, the death penalty, legalization of marijuana, same-sex marriage…