Right Opinion
The best of conservative opinion and commentary, updated daily.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Cultivating Homegrown Terror
"Homegrown" promises something fresh and tasty when applied to tomatoes, cabbage and beans straight from the farmer's field. But about terrorism, not so much. Homegrown terrorists, recruited from the newly arrived from the Muslim countries of the Middle East and Africa, are the latest menace to America. They're new transplants to these shores and sometimes even the native born.
Throw the WikiBook at Them
WASHINGTON -- It is understandable for the administration to underplay the significance of the WikiLeaks State Department cables. But while it is wise not to go into a public panic, it is delusional to think that this is merely embarrassing gossip and indiscretion. The leaks have done major damage.
Scandalous Suggestion From Debt Commission
As if the collapse in the housing market had not done enough damage to the U.S. economy, the president's debt commission is now proposing changes that could take the industry off life support. Among the recommendations in the commission's 65-page report is one to eliminate the tax deduction for mortgage interest on homes over $500,000 (the current limit is $1 million) and restrict it to primary residence only. The recommendation would also eliminate interest deductibility for home equity loans (which are currently capped at $100,000). The effect of these changes would be to immediately reduce the value of all homes by as much as 15 percent. Here's why.
No More Illegal Alien Waivers
Open-borders radicalism means never having to apologize for absurd self-contradiction. The way illegal alien students on college campuses across the country tell it, America is a cruel, selfish and racist nation that has never given them or their families a break. Yet despite their bottomless grievances, they're not going anywhere.
Shock Art and 'Social Dignity'
The curator elites at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery were happily abusing the trust of the American taxpayer, with radical gay activists pushing a gay agenda, replete with the religiously bigoted, sadomasochistic and homoerotic fare, all under the auspices of "art." Then something happened. The public complained. Now these radicals are shocked -- shocked! -- that the "censors" are out to destroy their "artistic freedom."
Thursday, December 2, 2010
November 3 Contract with America, Part 2
President Obama's fiscal commission supposedly offers an "aggressive prescription" to reduce the federal deficit. It's not just the debt and deficit, stupid. It's the size, scope and bloat of the federal government. Here's my plan: 1) Accept the political reality that a) taxes cannot be raised, and b) entitlement spending (Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid) cannot be cut for current or near-future beneficiaries. Voters will not vote to raise their taxes. Voters will not vote to cut off their money. And politicians want votes.
Gridlock You Can Believe In
As the week unfolded, it appeared that the last days of the lame-duck session of Congress might well end in gridlock. Many issues had been left to the last days, but certainly the biggest issue was whether the so-called "Bush tax cuts" would be extended for not only the "middle class," but for those fabulously wealthy individuals who have the audacity to earn more than $250,000 a year -- the "wealthy."
Guarding Jimmy Carter's Tongue
Fans of Hollywood's imaginative take on American politics may remember the movie, Guarding Tess. That 1994 comic hit featured Shirley MacLaine as a former First Lady who was being guarded by a Secret Service detachment headed by Nicolas Cage. Tess was something of a composite figure, part feisty Bess Truman, part liberal activist Eleanor Roosevelt, and part small town belle Rosalynn Carter. Of course, Hollywood being Hollywood, no part of Tess could be mistaken for a Barbara Bush or a Nancy Reagan. Even the fictional former First Ladies have got to be on the side of the Hollywood donor angels.
A Brief on Behalf of Hatred
Some clichés hang on because they're true. Some others, however, hang on just because nobody has bothered blowing the cobwebs off them. A specific one I have in mind insists that hatred is a bad thing -- that it's actually worse for a person to hate than to be hated. I beg to differ.
Bradley Manning: Poster Boy for 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'
The two biggest stories this week are WikiLeaks' continued publication of classified government documents, which did untold damage to America's national security interests, and the Democrats' fanatical determination to repeal "don't ask, don't tell" and allow gays to serve openly in the military.
Call It Treason
If we had a president in the White House who understood that we are at war with a crazed faction of Islam, and was willing to act on that belief, there would be no question about how we should deal with people who give aid and comfort to the enemy -- they'd be tried for treason and when found guilty stood up before a firing squad.
Rahm's Residency
WASHINGTON -- My campaign for mayor of Chicago against Rahm Emanuel is getting under way. I already announced on Sean Hannity's nationally televised program and have Sean's endorsement. After careful consideration, Rush Limbaugh undoubtedly will be aboard and Mark Levin and, of course, the tea partyers. Moreover, I already have two major newspapers endorsing me, The New York Sun, which was very kind in noting my talents and relative integrity compared with the opposition, and The Washington Times -- also very kind. Neither had a good word to say for Emanuel. Perhaps more endorsements are coming. Frankly, I would not be surprised if both the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times endorsed my candidacy. I am as clean as a hound's tooth!
Cure or Care?
Which do you think is less expensive, not to mention preferable: a cure for cancer, Alzheimer's disease and diabetes, or caring for people with these diseases? Wouldn't it be better medical and public policy to direct more resources toward finding a cure for diseases that cost a lot to treat than to rely on a government insurance program, such as Obamacare, which seeks mainly to help pay the bills for people after they become ill?
Jerry Brown's Last Hurrah
The most interesting current political question is not whether Barack Obama will triangulate after his party's midterm shellacking -- he probably won't -- but what in the world California's new/old governor, Jerry Brown, will do in January 2011. At 72, Brown is returning to a third term as California governor after a hiatus of 28 years to face a $26 billion budget deficit and an unemployment rate above 12 percent. So is it to be more taxes, more government, both or neither?
Is NPR for Sale?
Here's the latest from that continuing show, "As the Media World Turns." It seems George Soros, sugar daddy of 1,001 leftish crusaders, personal hobbyhorses, and even some good causes, has just given NPR $1.8 million to hire a hundred new reporters. Some commentators on the state of the American media, formerly the American press, are shocked, shocked! Others aren't. Inquiring minds want to know if this is a scandal, just philanthropy, a menacing portent for the independence of American journalism, or all of the above.
Treaty in a Time Warp
WASHINGTON -- The Framers of the Constitution, a nuisance regretted by most modern presidents, gave the legislative branch -- another indignity inflicted on presidents, as they see it -- an important role in making foreign policy. The Framers did so by, among other provisions, requiring the Senate's two-thirds (today, 67 votes) consent to treaties. The Framers' wisdom is confirmed by Barack Obama's impatience with senators reluctant to ratify, during Congress' lame-duck session, the New START treaty pertaining to Russia's nuclear weapons.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Can Republicans Talk?: Part II
Guess who said the following: "It is incredible that a system of taxation which permits a man with an income of $1,000,000 a year to pay not one cent to his Government should remain unaltered." Franklin D. Roosevelt? Ted Kennedy? Nancy Pelosi? Not even close. It was Andrew Mellon, Secretary of the Treasury under conservative Republican President Calvin Coolidge.
What Is Chanukah?
This evening we light the first candle on the Chanukah menorah, for it's the first night of this minor eight-day Jewish holiday that's become a major one over the years. There are blessings to be recited, songs to be sung, latkes to be eaten. ... But just what does Chanukah celebrate?
Glorifying 'Great' Liberal Judges
America was founded on the principle of representative democracy: The government would make policy based on the consent of the governed. Liberal elitists have grown increasingly impatient with this unenlightened system, and more and more, they are relying on judicial activists to remake society in their desired image. Far from being tribunes of the people, these judges are honored by the media elite for going around public opinion -- and the Constitution -- whenever the liberal impulse beckons.
TSA and Security: The Naked Truth
Years ago, the biggest question you'd get while flying was "Coffee or tea?" Now it's "Naked body scan or aggressive pat-down?" Behind that dilemma is the real choice. It's the one too many Americans have been unwilling to face: Should we "profile" -- i.e., concentrate our security efforts on the individuals more likely to pose a threat? Or continue with the absurd fiction that every man, woman and child stands an equal chance of being a terrorist?