In its more than 1200 years of existence, Baghdad has accumulated many monuments to human greed, stupidity, and folly. The city got off to a very good start in 762 when the caliph Al Mansur founded it as the capital city for the Abbasid Empire and for centuries it was one of the greatest cities…
Bellevue Jazz Festival Rising Stars —“Brilliant Corners”
Colin Ramsay, Max Bates, Eddie Bond, Joe Gladow, Mal Muntz, and Ariel Pocock. Sorry, but I don’t have the instrumentation. I’m guessing that it’s Ariel on piano. Posted by alecramsay
Editorial standards at the New York Times: What has four legs and goes “Woof, Woof, Woof”?
Over at the New Yorker, Ken Auletta devotes what appears by my count to be about twenty column feet to the long, happy career of NYT Executive Editor Jill Abramson. Somewhere around the twelve-foot mark Ken mentions that while Abramson was managing editor of the Times, she “began writing a popular online column for the…
Touching words, disastrous deeds
It was very moving to hear President Obama speak at the dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial yesterday. A black President of the United States, speaking of the career of the man symbolized, more than any other, the American civil rights movement, is something worth hearing. I wish that President Obama’s deeds were…
Look who’s talking!
The rats are doing all of the talking in this latest exercise in Harrisburg surrealism. More cartoons here. “I have no idea either, but if it will get us a flat-screen I’m for it.” “Because he has no life, that’s why.” “Yeah, the sign’s shitty, the cheese is shitty, everything is shitty, but I’m still…
Obama Administration: “We are so that stupid!”
President Obama seems so determined to burnish his butt-kicking rep that he’s willing to turn himself into an international laughing stock, based entirely on information supplied by a Mexican gang member/informant regarding the activities of Iranian-American master spy/used car salesman/party boy Mansour Arbabsiar. As in the plots previously exposed by the federal government to cut…
Capitalism and Journalism at The National Review: A Seamless Whole
Over at the National Review, Rich Lowry pens this description/putdown of likely Republican nominee Mitt Romney in action: “In such circumstances it’s as if he doesn’t see persons, only disembodied data points to be slotted into his hard drive so he can download the appropriate response.” Why is the word “drive” underlined? Well, if you…
The Reagan Myth (Part MCCCLXXVII)
During last night’s Republican debate, Rick Perry, showing remarkable presence of mind when responding to a clip of Ronald Reagan arguing on behalf of higher taxes when coupled with cuts in spending. In his diary, Perry pointed out, Reagan wrote that the Democrats took the tax increases but never delivered on the spending cuts. Of…
The anointing of Mitt, the shiving of Rick
Have you heard? Mitt’s the guy. Chris Christie says so. Ramesh Ponnuru says so. Jennifer Rubin says so.* All the cool kids say so. Mitt’s cool! Well, pretty cool. He hasn’t killed as many people as Rick, but, hey, he was in Massachusetts! Wait til he’s President! Look out! It wasn’t so long ago that…
Daniel Larison, working way too hard
Over at the American Conservative, Daniel Larison is working overtime trying to keep Mitt Romney honest on foreign policy, searching his speeches for errors: “Greg Scoblete finds another untrue statement in Romney’s foreign policy speech from last week,” Dan announces excitedly, in his latest post. Dan, let me save you some trouble. In each Mitt…