Random Observations about...
Left Versus Right

That Bewitching Right-Wing Media

Rebecca Dana writes from the left about Keith Olbermann's temper tantrums on Al Gore's Current TV. Here's her attempt to...

Froma Harrop on Civility

This is a must-see. The video is so astounding that I thought she had to be in on the joke...

"Madness"

Clayton Cramer: there is something pretty darn scary about a situation developing where expressions of patriotism and national pride are...

The World According to Steve Benen

In "The incentive behind GOP obstructionism", Washington Monthly columnist Benen writes: At first blush, it's tempting to think congressional Republicans...

Supporting Herman Cain Now Evidence of Racism

A few days ago, I mused: I suppose the next "narrative" will be to explain why Cain isn't a "real"...

Religion Blocking Understanding Economics?

I agree, but not quite the way the author meant it... On the right, we're quite aware of what our...

Governing by Fear and Hatred

Here's a common street-level view from the left, a random comment on an LA Times article bashing (who else?) Rick...

What's the Matter with New York?

A friend of mine likes to mention that Republican-leaning "red states" (formerly called "blue states" before the 2000 election) consume...

WSJ Doesn't Get Basic Economics

Conservatives have a hard time getting their message out: their opponents have a virtual lock on the universities and schools,...

OBL versus KSM

As someone who believes that capital punishment is sometimes appropriate, and that war shouldn't be treated as a police matter,...

OBL Brings out the Best in USA

Renee Girard was right: People are most united when they have a common scapegoat. A major source of civil conflict,...

The Left on the Death Penalty

The left demands that we abolish the death penalty; several arguments are cited: 1. The death penalty is a cruel...

Today's Political Litmus Test

From Tom Toles: Complete the following sentence: "Japan's nuclear power plants failed because of..." (a) Insufficient regulations. (b) An early...

Seeing Egypt from Left and Right

Some troubling news from National Review: You can also peruse Tahrir Square in Cairo, where as many as a million...

Be Sure To Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair

Via Bookworm, a recent news snippet from San Francisco: Greg and Christy Baciocco, who have run NuStar Heating and Metal...

More Defamation, Anti-Christian Hysteria; ADL: Christian Beliefs "Shocking"

The governor of Alabama is in a whole heap of hot water today. Why? Because he believes orthodox Christian beliefs...

Ask Yourself: Why Do They Hate You?; Part 681

1. Quasi-respectable American leftist gets access to the foreign press. 2. American leftist tells foreign press absurd things which confirm...

Today's Political Litmus Test

From Gary Varvel: Choose one: A. The economy must be "built", like a road or bridge; it is a kind...

Today's Political Litmus Test

Helpfully illustrated by The Seattle Post-Intelligencer's David Horsey: Choose one: A. Everyone's property really belongs to the government. If the...

Ira Glass & Crybabies

I'm listening to a podcast of "This American Life" — the episode on "Crybabies". Sometimes TAL can be non-partisan —...

Seeking a Christian Roomate is Illegal in Michigan

This is a fairly old item, but still worth noting: A civil rights complaint has been filed against a woman...

Ignorance, Left and Right

I agree that Sarah Palin can be, or at least come off as (I'm recalling a certain debate with Biden)...

She's right about "sarcasm", though: the word is "condescension"

Interesting (well, perhaps "frustrating" is a better word) Rachel Maddow interview with a Republican citizen-politician candidate. ("I'm a scientist, not...

Why Were Mortgages Sold as Commodities?

The new explanation is, of course, that risky mortgages were re-sold as commodities because of GREED by the RIGHT WING......

CEOs Not Very "Right Wing"

An editor of The Atlantic offers the world at large this bit of sage advice: "Don't Replace Larry Summers with...

Left-Wing Violence

I plan to update this as needed... Sept 16, 2010 - MSNBC rhetoric cited as primary influence for death threats...

The "Far Right"

A while ago, a left-leaning relative of mine was expressing her feelings of disgust towards Elisabeth Hasselbeck, who appears on...

Barack Obama, Dogs, Culture, and Paranoia

Bookworm (among others) note Obama's odd off-the-cuff statement in Milwaukee: "Some powerful interests who had been dominating the agenda in...

Jim Wallis Funded by George Soros?

Conservatives usually simply call themselves, as I do, "conservatives"; and will admit they hold views which are considered "right wing"...

"The Stone" -- A Fantastic Journey Inside the Liberal Bubble

Grab your pith helmets, boys and girls! It's Progressive Safari Time! Those living in New York City and other "liberal"...

Gordon McDonald: Jesus's Opinon on Healthcare Reform

This is a bit dated now, but here's the reaction of Gordon MacDonald (author of "Ordering Your Private World", a...

Is Leftism/Liberalism a Mental Illness?

This is mainly a letter to Troy, in response to a comment of his. How the Left Views the Left...

Bob Cesca: Glenn Beck is a Leftist

One of the truly bizarre arguments I encounter from the left essentially boils down to claims that there is no-one...

Separation of Church and State

Numerous left-leaning friends, associates, and relatives have argued that when religious people legislate or vote from their convictions, it "violates...

Salon Portrays the Right

Steven Lubet in Salon apparently slept through the Bush years: American political discourse has gotten increasingly nasty over the past...

Calibrating the Tolerance-O-Meter

Via Instapundit, another mall vendor selling anti-Obama items has been evicted: Marsha Hammond, the mall's marketing director, has a different...

Tom Degan's Rant: Facts Don't Matter?

Is it important to embrace policies which help, rather than harm people? Is it at all important to tell the...

Kathleen Parker: Still Unhinged

... over Palin, apparently: ... I'm not saying Sarah Palin did that. I'm just saying that there's this subliminal level,...

Google, NY Daily News: Health Care Protestors Actually Unconcerned about Health Care

I've been hearing this narrative a lot: "President Obama is the real target of health care protesters, not policy." Yup:...

Rethinking Megan McArdle

When "Jane Galt" first appeared in the wake of 9/11, I found her a refreshing and interesting libertarian voice. But,...

The Motivations of Those Demanding Higher Taxes

We're used hearing progressives and liberals claim they are motivated by generosity and caring, while their opponents are cold-hearted and...

Corporations Are Right Wing?

Politico: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is taking heat from Johnson & Johnson, Nike and other corporate members over its...

I Know You Are, But What Am I?

One of the stranger characteristics I've observed in the left is the need to project or find all of one's...

Grateful To Be Insulted By Canada's Elite

"Freedom of speech is an American concept, so I don't give it any value." So said a Canadian Human Rights...

Paul Krugman and Brad DeLong's "Reality-Based" Economics

Dr. Paul Krugman is a respected professor of economics -- one who has a column my country's most prestigious newspaper....

Racism and Collectivism

I was talking to a friend a work recently, and he implied that southern racists all switched parties and became...

Affirmative Action: In Favor of the Little Guy?

If you have any friends, relatives, or co-workers who have a strong affinity for, shall we say, left-leaning politics, one...

Cox & Forkum Throw in the Towel

Cox & Forkum have produced some of the most powerful right-leaning political cartoons of the last seven years. Their art...

Bang. Head. Against. Wall.

Sometimes, I get tired of the echo chamber blogs have become, and feel the need to attempt to engage in...

Conservative Media Apathy

In wake of the Kerry-related "tasing" incident, Steve Graham ruminates about Andrew Meyers' prospects for future fame. I took a...

Voting Against One's Values

There are many Democrats who hold strong personally-conservative values. They work hard, are frugal, contribute to society, have raised their...

Amodio Study: "Left" versus "Right" Brains

Here's an interesting study write-up in the L.A. Times which seems to indicate political orientation is hard-wired into the brain....

Democratic Patriotism

Today's topic is patriotic Democrats. I know there absolutely are patriotic Democrats. But what are they patriotic about? For example:...

The Joys of Conservativism

If you're looking for a philosophy which will impress a lot of the "cool" people out there, conservatism is not...

The Commit/Accuse Pattern

One of the tactics I've noticed over and over among the left is something I'm calling the commit/accuse pattern, in...

Propounding Inversely With Expertise

One of the odd phenomena I've noticed is that a large percentage of those who would be externally identifiable as...

Slapped for Wishing Pelosi Well (And Requesing the Same)

Just a final follow-up on my last post, where I pointed out that I'm opposed to liberal-ism, and don't harbor...

Potty Mouths Amok

During the last election, we remember how Dick Cheney was lambasted for a not-very-public use of the F-word to a...

Chiang Kai-shek, Mao, and the Japanese Invasion

Where have I seen this behavior before? Chaing Kai-shek was on the verge of defeating Mao Tse-Tung's Red Army, which...

The Appalling Ignorance of ProgressiveU

This is the kind of thing which currently makes it onto Google's "News" page. Apparently, in "Progressive U", we can...

Durham Wonderland's Dissent

KC Johnson, "a 38-year-old bowtie-wearing Brooklyn College professor", who operates the "Durham Wonderland" blog, which covers the Duke (non-)rape case:...

Enemies

In the conservative world, the oft-repeated belief is that liberals hate and fear us more than Islamic terrorists. After a...

Daily Kos and the Amanda Marcotte Flap

This isn't the kind of thing I normally pay much attention to here, and never planned to write about it:...

Eric Boehlert Knows Inner Motives!

If somebody says they want a banana, and then suggests it's because they're hungry, and like bananas -- the charitable...

What is the Purpose of Democracy?

Readers: This article is part of an apparently-ongoing correspondence. If you want brevity, you can skip the greetings below and...

Dennis Prager, Ad Hominem Attacks

There's been an ongoing discussion on several posts regarding my contention there is no conservative equivalent of the tendancy among...

Patriotism, Left and Right

It's been common, in recent years, to hear defensive-sounding complaints from "the left", protesting loudly that, yes, they love their...

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