Moe Lane

Two Days and counting.

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To liberal talk radio, that is. Several thoughts: 1). I’d be interested to hear what the people planning to tune into it are hoping to get out of the new service. 2). I’m surprised that there isn’t a more easily-findable website. 3). OK, to tell the truth I’m still perplexed about why they’re busy reinventing … Read more

Hrm.

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While I agree with Skip Perry that giving Cynthia McKinney even the vaguest, slimmest, faintest hope of a chance that she would even be allowed to see her old House seat would be bad, bad, BAD… Rep. Denise Majette’s not a bad choice by the Democrats* to replace the outgoing Zell Miller, she just might … Read more

John Kerry – actually not a theocrat.

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Now normally I let my cobloggers have all to themselves the topics that they’ve stalked and brought down – I can do my own hunting, after all, and there’s a biggggg blogosystem out there – but this one I’m interested in, not least because it’s fascinating to see just how different Kerry’s recent Scripture quoting looks from the other side. Edward’s opinion can be found here… so now let’s talk a little bit about the Epistle of St James.

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This Margolis thing.

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Look, on the one hand I’m appalled by it on general principles, on the other hand I can’t believe that any of my Lefty readers here would have a reaction substantially different than Philosoraptor’s and on the gripping hand I am not entirely certain why Philosoraptor feels the need to apologize quite so comprehensively: he … Read more

Birthdays.

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I was just told that I should mention that today is my 34th birthday. It feels a bit hubristic, not to say self-congratulatory, so instead I’ll make this the Funny Birthday Story Thread; if you’ve got one which isn’t umpteen pages long, let’s hear it.

Why does this fool still have a job?

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The fool in question is Terry McAuliffe, who has apparently acquired a doormat with George Bush on it, the better to have people walk over it. I’m guessing that it didn’t take the Commissar long to remember a parallel to remember somebody else who wanted his visitors to ritually defile the image of an American … Read more

Early night.

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I’ve got a long day ahead tomorrow, after all, here in lovely, exciting Trenton, NJ (a much less interesting vacation spot than the Outer Banks, let me tell you). I probably should stop hogging my buddy’s computer anyway, so let this be a weekend Open Thread about… I don’t know. Intelligent Design? I’m a theistic … Read more

Sing it, Brother.

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Better late than never: Phil Dennison’s discussion of Dizzy City’s Metro system is spot-on. I’ve had to deal with it for over two years now, and let me tell you: I miss the NYC subway system. Better hours of service, more cars, not notably more likely to break down, more likely to find a train … Read more

Updates.

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We have a new email address, not to mention a new mailman: Edward, who’s officially here full time now. Other clarifications and changes in the roster to follow; watch this space. Also, our blogfather is finally switching to Scoop. I dunno if this is going to be the final URL for Tacitus, so I won’t … Read more

I’m surprised that it’s still up, frankly.

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Unless, of course, I’ve seriously underestimated the maturity level of my own side’s frothing partisans when shown the vision of Noam Chomsky’s blog. I do notice that Chomsky has already prudently removed comments from his site. Wicked, evil naughty frothing partisans! Bad! No biscuit! (via Pejmanesque, who’s being a blogging purist about the whole thing.)

Not very surprising.

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Although it might seem so, or at least odd, to my generation: US May Halve Forces in Germany.

The Pentagon has drafted plans to withdraw as many as half of the 71,000 troops based in Germany as part of an extensive realignment of American military forces that moves away from large concentrations in Europe and Asia, according to U.S. officials.

Under the plan, which is nearing approval, smaller, relatively spartan bases would be established in Romania and possibly Bulgaria, and designed for the rapid projection of U.S. military power against terrorists, hostile states and other potential adversaries.

Farther east, in Central Asia, bases in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan that were established in 2001 to support the war in Afghanistan would be preserved as training sites and as staging areas that U.S. forces could use in emergencies.

I am of course pleased to see this added confirmation that the nightmare scenario of my childhood – the one that started with a massive Soviet armored invasion of West Germany and ended with mushroom clouds sprouting over Berlin, Warsaw, Paris, Prague, London, Moscow, Washington – is well and truly dead, at least in its current form. It’s been going on sixty years now: I think that we can safely reduce our military presence in Western Europe to something a bit more reasonable. For that matter, there’s some indication that our new deployments will reflect current geopolitical realities, which is equally welcome. The Cold War is over, too, and I mourn its passing not.

It still feels odd, though. Possibly because so much time and effort was spent preparing for a conflict that never quite materialized, thank God; it’s like climbing a stairway and thinking that there’s one more step than is actually the case. You don’t get hurt when your foot jerks through the air to smack against the floor, but it does put you off your stride.

(Via Outside the Beltway)

Moe

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Well, I’m back.

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And, upon looking at the umpteen million comments to a a zillion different posts*, I’m not gonna even try to catch up; I’m sure that I’ll be suitably apprised of anything absolutely vital for me to see. As usual, some excellent posts.

Expect to hear the solitary call of the right-winged, pink-nosed** blogger to start up again tomorrow. I’ve got a ton of mail to sort through, not to mention roughly half a week’s worth of various and sundry Internet comics.

Moe

UPDATE: OK, I understand that one of the advantages of a group blog is that people can take little breaks and everything without it affecting content, but this is just slapping me in the face with a halibut. 3,000+? Great googley moogley.

If I had a policy of using emoticons in my main posts, there’d be a smiley after the paragraph above.

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Greetings from scenic Duck, NC…

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…because travelblogging is the thing to do these days, it seems. It’s been very relaxing: I turn on the television, establish that the planet hasn’t blown up yet, turn it off and go look at another tourist attraction, of which North Carolina has a remarkable number. So far on this trip we’ve seen Yorktown (on … Read more

Sheesh, I knew what that phrase meant…

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…before I was out of high school: A dirty welcome ‘mat’ (scroll down). New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller had his boss, Arthur Sulzberger Jr., and media and literary grandees swearing like Russian sailors the other night – and they didn’t even know it. New Yorker magazine editor David Remnick threw a dinner for … Read more

I guess that we watch. And wait.

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Something is going on in Pakistan regarding the pursuit of a high-level al Queda operative; possibly Ayman al-Zawahiri, deputy of OBL. There’s an indication that he’s been tracked down and close to capture – which, if true, would be excellent news, not least because with him in Coalition hands we stand a much better chance … Read more

Meta-blog discussion.

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‘Tis probably an undead thread, but I’m curious about something. I’ve noticed that some of the trackbacks to our posts are one-way (ie, there’s no link back to our original post at the article). Ignore? Delete? And why do people do it? It’s not that much trouble to link both ways, right?

Open Literary Thread

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I’m posting this open literary thread for three reasons: 1) It amuses me to reinforce Short Hope Unfiltered’s Stephenson meme; 2) I think that this is the first time that this site got called a blog ‘of note’ (you’d think we’d get more trackbacks/links, though); 3) I’m going to take a mini-vacation to Kitty Hawk, … Read more

Well, there’s a relief.

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I don’t know whether this was originally an incredibly stupid act of bigotry or just an incredibly stupid publicity stunt* – I tend towards the former, but a reading of the article gives some weight to the latter – but I’m sure that all of you will be happy to know that Rhea County has … Read more

Don’t try this trick at home, kids.

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Now, I freely admit that I default to cheering on the American in any international sports competition, but there are limits… Australia boxer Robbie “The Bomber” Peden lived up to his ring name with a ferocious, but bizarre, knockout victory in a world-title elimination bout in California on Sunday. Peden could not believe his eyes … Read more

Where did you want them to bring it, John?

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I sincerely hope that all of you enjoyed Senator John Kerry’s pleasant idyll through Election 2004, because it’s officially over:

Senator Kerry’s voting record on national security raises some important questions all by itself. Let’s begin with the matter of how Iraq and Saddam Hussein should have been dealt with. Senator Kerry was in the minority of senators who voted against the Persian Gulf War in 1991. At the time, he expressed the view that our international coalition consisted of ” shadow battlefield allies who barely carry a burden.” Last year, as we prepared to liberate Iraq, he recalled the Persian Gulf coalition a little differently. He said it was a “strong coalition,” and a model to be followed.

Six years after the Gulf War, in 1997, Saddam Hussein was still defying the terms of the cease-fire. And as President Bill Clinton considered military action against Iraq, he found a true believer in John Kerry. The Senator from Massachusetts said, quote, “Should the resolve of our allies wane, the United States must not lose its resolve to take action.” He further warned that if Saddam Hussein were not held to account for violation of U.N. resolutions, some future conflict would have ” greater consequence.” In 1998, Senator Kerry indicated his support for regime change, with ground troops if necessary. And, of course, when Congress voted in October of 2002, Senator Kerry voted to authorize military action if Saddam refused to comply with U.N. demands.

A neutral observer, looking at these elements of Senator Kerry’s record, would assume that Senator Kerry supported military action against Saddam Hussein. The Senator himself now tells us otherwise. In January he was asked on TV if he was, quote, “one of the anti-war candidates.” He replied, “I am.” He now says he was voting only to, quote, “threaten the use of force,” not actually to use force.

Even if we set aside these inconsistencies and changing rationales, at least this much is clear: Had the decision belonged to Senator Kerry, Saddam Hussein would still be in power, today, in Iraq. In fact, Saddam Hussein would almost certainly still be in control of Kuwait. (Laughter.)

Yup, Cheney’s speech. Damn feisty one, and from the accounts that I’ve heard so far from my fellow VRWCers, well presented, too. Now, I’m sure that a lot of you are prepared to spin, explain, redefine and (probably, in a couple of cases at least) correct Cheney’s comments… but I would seriously recommend against thinking that this was not bad mojo for Kerry, skillfully applied. I’m betting that this one is going to have an impact past the base (who will spread it far and wide; we’ve been chomping at the bit lately*), so watch out.

Of course, if you feel confident enough, you can ignore my advice completely. I have it on excellent authority that my side is all made up of dunderheaded poltroons.

Moe

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Hibernating?

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NZ Bear, that is: it’s been, like, two weeks since a post and at least one since the Ecosystem crashed. I’m all for letting people work through their blogging tech problems on their own, but I would’ve figured that somebody would have said something. Bear, if you’re reading, post somewhere so that we know that … Read more

Fear my Avenging Overdue Strike!

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We have apparently entered into a surreal portion of Election 2004, so why not link to this Onion article? Rumsfeld Hosts No-Holds-Barred Martial Arts Tournament At Remote Island Fortress. FANG ISLAND—U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has opened his fortified island headquarters to participants in his second no-holds-barred martial arts tournament, the enigmatic mastermind announced … Read more

It’s not funny: I live inside the Beltway now.

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Matt Yglesias may have, frighteningly, worked out the specific answer to the age-old question, “Why are we ruled by these idiots?” I say ‘frighteningly’ because 1). I’m not exactly in a position to prove him wrong; 2). That was how the Romans went over the side, IIRC; and 3). I just had a pretty damn … Read more

Oddly fitting, sorta kinda not really.

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The always-interesting to read* folks over at Socialism in an Age of Waiting had a very interesting metapost about Japanese… stuff (UPDATE: Stupid links are bloggered, as usual; scroll down to Tsupa, Tsupa, Nicha, Nicha. FYI, SIAW, TypePad’s $15/month, maximum). OK, OK, what got my attention was the link to this review of a book on erotic/pornographic art of the Edo period. Just so you know, there’s no actual pictures or anything, but it’s an interesting and educational** review just the same.

There’s also a poem from that post that has nothing to do with Japanese erotica. I devoutly hope so, at least.

Moe

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For those not into poetry.

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I have another topic for all y’all. An aphorism, even – one that I came up with while on the trip home. To wit:

“If the media actually were a bunch of lapdogs, they would be those little psychotic yapping ratdogs that you would never quite be comfortable around, because you never know what event might cause them to snap like an old rubber band. You can’t tell me that they’re happy about not being wolves anymore, that’s all I’m saying. Look at the resentment, man! Look at the rage in their eyes! They could lose it at any moment!”

(pause)

OK, OK, I read too much Terry Pratchett* and John D MacDonald**, but you get the point. Discuss?

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ObWi goes Slamming…

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In comments here Reader sidereal said: Obsidian Wings poetry slam impending. After reading up on the subject… sure, why not? Rules: 1) Do your own work; 2) Keep it… hmm, thirty lines or so maximum; 3) If you’re looking for a topic, Spring is almost here. I’ll create an actual Poetry Slam entry page that’ll … Read more

Cheerfulness, Moe, Cheerfuness.

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When you get emails asking if things are OK, it’s time for a subject change. Therefore, I shall belatedly link to this Onion article that I somehow completely missed last week: Jesus Demands Creative Control Over ext Movie: Christ said He considered returning to the physical world to make an accurate film depiction of His … Read more

Iran, again.

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Seeing as my cobloggers have flooded the zone on the subject of recent events in Spain*, and flooded it quite well, I’m going to exercise my own perennial worry: Iran. Something’s going on over there (via Pejman):

According to sketchy reports, an uprising has occurred in the northern Iranian city of Fereydunkenar.

Demonstrations are reported to have begun on March 13, in the small town in the northern Iranian province of Mazandaran.

Activist chat is claiming that the demonstrations are spreading; so is SMCCDI. As usual, the regular news organizations apparently don’t have a blessed clue about what’s going on: I drew a blank with AP, Reuters, Fox, CNN… shoot, right now I’d be happy to get some sort of information from AFP, even.

So, I guess we wait and see.

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As you might have guessed…

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…I’m not precisely my chipper self today. A good deal of it has to do with this: I happen to live within spitting distance of UMD. Close enough to smell the burning mattresses, in fact. Now, normally I’d be saying that “It’s not so much…” blah blah blah, and then go into what really bugs … Read more

Get used to the following:

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1) That the belief will continue that Senator John Kerry claimed that ‘foreign’ leaders were telling him that they wanted him to win, even though the reporter involved is now saying that Kerry had actually said ‘more’ leaders; (Hat tip: Reader rilkefan) 2) That the belief will continue that President George Bush used actors instead … Read more

Silence and Cold

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I beg your indulgence, all of you, for one more attempt at versification. This is a bad attempt at Spanish verse form: 8 syllable, abbaabba and consonant rhyme. I tried to make it sound the way classical guitar sounds to me; somber, almost sad, but with purpose. Dunno if it worked.

Again, our prayers and good wishes go out to the people of Spain.

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