Tag Archive 'anti-semitism'

Implications of the Pletka Purge

Lee on Dec 22 2008 | Filed under: Foreign affairs, Lee's Page, Military Matters

Roland picks up an interesting piece by Jacob Heilbrunn for the National Interest, describing an ongoing purge of neoconservative intellectuals from the American Enterprise Institute, allegedly instigated by Vice President Danielle Pletka. So far Michael Ledeen and Reuel Marc Gerecht are gone, with Joshua Muravchik soon leaving. Others are said to be soon in following.

This could signal the reemergence of an old conflict over machtpolitik and just war doctrine, which used to exist in Republican security policy circles (ie, coercion-for-values vs. coercion-for-interests). If Pletka is indeed purging with intent, we may even expect AEI to shift its attitude toward the Middle East, Asia and Africa, given how much more amenable authoritarian regimes tend to be to interest pressure.

And the idealism of the AEI departed is considerable. Gerecht for instance wrote a fascinating but bizarre book I read in the late 1990s under the pen name Edward Shirley, in which he smuggled himself into Iran in the trunk of a car, essentially for the romance of it.

(more…)

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Smarty Pants

Peg on Aug 18 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Politics, Election 2008, Media, Peg's Page

Every day, Professor Keith Burgess-Jackson reprints a Letter to the Editor from the New York Times.  This offering left me gape-jawed.

The Professor’s first point is well-taken.

Where is the evidence that Barack Obama is more intelligent than John McCain? Have they taken intelligence tests?

One might argue that because Obama performed better in college than McCain, he is the more intelligent of the two.  Yet, we all know many people where one individual had a superior college record to another, but the first is not more intelligent than the second.  Perhaps Obama is smarter than McCain.  But, I do not know of any overwhelming evidence that this is so.

In any case - let us grant the writer this point.  So what?  While a certain level of intelligence is assuredly required for someone to be a good President - it is but a necessary condition, and not a sufficient one.  A wide variety of other factors matter:  character, experience, leadership, voting record, viewpoints on issues and more.  Essentially, this is Keith’s second point:

Americans want an intelligent president, but not at the cost of good character and good judgment.

If people believe that Obama is a superior candidate to McCain - that is their decision.  Yet, their choice should be based upon this entire set of qualities - not simply which man is smarter than the other.

Finally, the writer’s point about race is not framed properly.  Of course racism has not been eliminated; I am not aware of any reasonably sized society on the planet where all hate and racism has been excised.  Unfortunately, I believe that a certain amount of hate, racism, sexism, anti-semitism and the like is endemic to the human condition.  It will never disappear entirely within my lifetime - or that of future lifetimes.

The question we need to ask is this:  is racism diminished enough and have racists been re-educated and shamed enough that racism is low enough to allow a non-white to win a Presidential election?  I believe that it is.  Of course, if Obama does not win this fall, I am sure that many will pin the blame on racism.  In part - they may be correct.  Nevertheless, it just may be that enough people do think that McCain’s set of characteristics:  his intelligence, leadership, qualifications, moral fiber, experience and voting record is more of what they want than Obama has to offer.

We shall see.

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Do Not Stay Silent

Peg on Feb 23 2008 | Filed under: Foreign affairs, History, Peg's Page, Religion and theology

Please read this, and then pass it on and post it yourself.

We cannot stay silent.

Poljew1_2

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Bobby Fischer Dies

Lee on Jan 18 2008 | Filed under: Around the Web

For years the answer to the question “can you respect a raving lunatic?” the great ex-American chessmaster died of an unknown ailment in Iceland. Here’s a splendid little of moments from his greatest triumph, before deranged conspiracy theories and Anti-Semitism had completely poisoned his mind.

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Perfunction Awakens the Mighty King of Trolls

Lee on Jan 14 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Politics, Humor, Society

Troll

The other day Perfunction posted David Duke’s political advice for the Ron Paul campaign. The noxious white nationalist’s recommendations being essentially that while Paul was great, he needs to be just a wee bit more, you know, anti-Semitic.

Anyway, it made enough rounds on the blogs that apparently the news reached Duke himself. He emerged from the depths of his cold and dark lair to personally troll Perfunction, lashing out at the Iraq war and “Jewish Neocons.” An excerpt from the comments thread:

From the beginning it was a war based on lies for Israel and not for the United States, and as I predicted, as anyone can check out, it has been a catastrophe for America (and the Iraqi people) on every level. The only ones who have really benefited is Israel (which is quite happy for the war) and Al Qaida.

Trillions of dollars wasted, tens of thousands of American lives lost or ruined, more hatred against America.

All because the Jewish extremists who dominate the American media could lie about “weapons of mass destruction” without hardly any fear of contradiction.
(David Duke trolling Perfunction via LGF)

The more you read comments like this, you begin to wonder why it is that the far left and far right haven’t yet settled their differences (assuming they still have any) and joined forces completely.

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