PROBLEM SOLVED
Re: Enemy Central’s Patty
Cake:
Senator Murray’s praise of Bin Ladin, though stupid, is not
isolated. Blaming America for radical Islamic attacks on our
citizens and admiration for the “great works” of Bin Ladin and Al
Qaeda is a theme that runs deep and wide in the Democratic Party
professional political class. Most are too smart to say out loud
what Murray said, but a great majority of politically active
Democrats do believe America is the problem, not our sworn
enemies.
— Bob Hinkley
Edina, MN
AMERICAN BOLSHIES:
Re: Lawrence Henry’s 1968:
The Henry piece is excellent revisionist history. I believe it
was the late Phillip Abbott Luce who told the story of SDS this
way: the original 2,500 members (people like Clark Kissinger who I
used to talk politics with at the laundromat in Hyde Park) were
essentially “pure” as far as Stalinist or Maoist connections were
concerned — very nice, innocent democratic socialist utopians for
the most part.
But the CPUSA, following a prolonged barrage of pro-SDS
publicity from a liberal establishment press alarmed at the rise of
YAF and the Young Republicans (YAF with membership exceeding 50,000
or so at times), ordered its youth wing, the W.E.B Dubois Clubs
(about 7,000 Stalinist diaper babies) to join SDS. The Progressive
Labor Party (with about 13,000 Maoist youth) then did the same
thing and suddenly SDS was another thing altogether — a somewhat
disciplined (lots of internal fighting) leftist army which was the
fighting force we all saw in Chicago and later in the McGovern
campaign. And is now the professoriat on many campuses.
If this has appeared in a book-length history of SDS
(Kirkpatrick Sale’s? It has been too long since I read that, and my
copy is not at hand), I must have missed it.
— Jameson Campaigne
What’s all this nonsense about Southern racists voting for “Tricky
Dick” in 1968. George Wallace (an unreconstructed segregationist,
maybe the last of his breed to say so publicly) ran and took the
angry white racist vote that year. Humphrey and TD got about 45%
each. In 1972 the Democrats ran McGovern on a downright socialist
platform (remember the negative income tax proposal). The
Republicans didn’t have to kowtow to the racists to get their vote.
They had nowhere else to go. As for all the goody two shoes
liberals that year, well TD took the vast majority of states
including NY and CA. Racist strategy, my foot.
— Ed Callahan
La Habra, CA
HOUSE HUNTING:
Re: The Washington Prowler’s Strong-Armed:
Sounds like Hastert and DeLay are angry at the prospect of
having to work with Frist. The implication is that Lott worked well
with the House. But did he? When the House Managers presented Lott
with the evidence the Senate needed to try Clinton after the House
impeached him, his reaction was, “You’re not going to dump this
garbage on us.” When the Senate split appeared to be 50-50 and the
Republicans had a de facto majority, with Cheney the tie breaker,
Lott insisted on engineering a “sharing of power” with Tom Daschle.
It’s difficult to believe Daschle would have been so magnanimous.
Those elements of the GWB agenda that did well in the House did not
seem to fare so well in the Senate, where Lott was responsible for
seeing them through. Indeed, Lott, in addition to not being
terribly smart, seemed to be a weak leader. I should think Hastert
and DeLay would welcome his replacement by Frist, an attractive man
with great humanitarian instincts.
— John G. Hubbell
Minneapolis, MN
There are two years, and that’s only if all goes well, to show the
country what Republicans can do once they have control of House,
Senate, and White House all at once. Perhaps a
once-in-our-lifetimes opportunity nearly lost until Lott stepped
down. If W. had to “interferingly” prod in order help to accomplish
that, so be it: he was merely being smart and
uncomplacent. He has helped keep Republicans from shooting
themselves in the foot again. He has a real war to prosecute, and
needs a cooperative Congress. He as much as anybody is aware of
what can happen in particular to foreign policy achievements left
to the mercies of a subsequent irresponsible Democrat president. He
doubtless wants to get as much done in an irreversible way as
possible. But, because of the turf issues raised by his apparent
involvement in Lott’s stepping down, The American Prowler
article “Strong-Armed” suggests, if not in so many words, that
infighting and gridlock among Republicans in the various branches
of government are a possibility. I don’t think that would be W’s
fault and, if you let that happen, you will have thrown away what
this great opportunity. Don’t be turf-wise and history-foolish.
Republicans actual and potential are watching you.
— Benjamin Udell
For crying out loud. Isn’t this the same House that did nothing but
complain about Trent Lott slowing down their bills when he was
Majority Leader previously? The same Senate that Lott “shared
power” with the Democrats in 2000 and again halted all bills coming
from the House? The same Senate that became the pawn of the radical
left when Jim Jeffords (Moron-VT) “switched” and basically declared
anything Messrs. Hastert and DeLay passed as DOA?
So now they are complaining about the executive branch meddling
in their workings? This is funny coming from a legislative branch
that has, for decades, watered down or taken away powers from the
executive branch. Speaker Hastert is just worried about his pork
spending and DeLay should be ecstatic that they’ll finally have a
Senate that might actually move forward on House
initiatives….
— Greg Barnard
Franklin, TN
JOIE DE VIVRE GOES MISSING
Re: R. Emmett Tyrrell, Jr.’s Darkest
France:
As a French and Jewish person, I must say I am deeply amused by
your article.
Not only does it show your complete ignorance of the French
culture and history, but it also demonstrates what a sad person you
are, incapable of understanding that some nation have grown
reluctant to war and violence.
Needless to say, you should go back to a journalism school,
provided you ever went to one.
As far as the Cafe Flore is concerned, I hope the waiter spat in
your expresso.
— Marianne Poulot
I’ve just read your article “Darkest France” on www.spectator.org.
Thank you very much for this highly interesting lesson, I feel I
know much more about French people now. But since you accuse France
of anti-Semitism, I suggest you look up the Algeria war episode in
the 1960s and you’ll find the French people the most despicable
people ever: they attack and persecute the weak, Jewish or Arabic.
And they’re really stupid too, they don’t get any perks from this
(perks being oil and other natural resources for instance).
But you know, every country has its own crimes and atrocities to
cope with. I remember stories from the American conquest (not in
school books of course) describing how the great American army
committed one of the biggest genocides in the history of humanity:
there were fights of course, but also virus-contaminated blankets
sold to native Americans (first biological war in history?),
killing (after raping of course, the guys need to have fun too),
killing women to prevent any risk of reproduction, and so on.
I don’t want to waste your day describing all atrocities that
the U.S. committed until today. The only thing I wanted to bring to
your attention, is that history is not a fun thing to remember, it
doesn’t teach lessons, we know that for sure, and one has to be
humble when mentioning it, otherwise, it may sound like the most
despicable Nazi propaganda.
Too bad they didn’t come up with a Goebbels Prize for objective
journalists just like you. Keep up the good work!
— Xavier Valdayron
BARREL OF FUN
“Protestations
on Campus” by John R. Dunlap made me laugh out loud! The
description of the Faculty Senate Council as being like a “junior
high civics club, but with less clout” stopped me for about five
minutes while I tried to compose myself to read the rest of the
very funny article.
Please inform the author that he made my day. As a first-time
visitor to your website, I now feel like I have missed so much.
Merry Christmas!
— Tim Mark
WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?
Re: John Mercer’s commentary on Ben Stein’s article
in Reader Mail’s Clearing
the Holiday Air:
Huh?
What’s your point, John? I’ve read your commentary at least four
times, and I still don’t know what you are complaining about. Did
Ben Stein’s reminiscence about his protest days way back when
offend something in you? You seem to take umbrage at someone
(unnamed) beating a racist drum, but the only people beating racist
drums about Trent Lott are Democrats and their lackeys in the
media. Certainly you cannot be tarring Ben Stein with that
brush!
However, if the point you were trying to make is that you are
displeased with the Democrats complaining about imagined racism in
Republicans in order to further their agenda, why not just say so?
That’s something with which I — and I am sure Ben — would
agree.
Confusedly,
— Bob Johnson
Bedford, TX
AS TIME’S WHISTLEBLOWERS GO BY
Re: Editorial Note Quick
Whistle:
Did you notice that Lucianne’s Short Cuts Pic today —
with the “Whistleblower” pic — is calling this Time
magazine award “the Linda Tripp issue”? LoL!
Merry Christmas!
— H. Leigh
Ft. Myers, FL
