Right Opinion
The best of conservative opinion and commentary, updated daily.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
And Now Government Press
It had to happen. At a time when we've seen the birth of Government Motors and even Government Hedge Fund, aka AIG, it was only a matter of time before it was seriously proposed that we have a Government Press, too. This time the idea came from the distinguished president of an Ivy League university, another well-cushioned part of the American establishment.
What I Would Do If I Were Governor
I agreed to be on a panel at UC Berkeley's Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service Monday night, where we addressed the question "California's Next Governor: What Should the Agenda Be?" Here's my agenda for her or him.
Spiritual Indifference and the Importance of Worshipping Together
"I don't take my children to church," the young woman said. "I'll let them choose for themselves what to believe in, when they're older." Her casual approach to her children's religious involvement will surely affect her children's lives. Even more so, decisions like hers have unintended consequences for our moral culture and political future.
Democrats Chose Wrong Moment for Big Government
As a social conservative who has written extensively about abortion, stem cell research, family structure, failing schools, the degradation of popular culture, and abstinence education, I submit, without fear of misinterpretation, that the next two elections are not going to be about those issues.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Musings About Israel and Obama
I believe that eventually there will be peace in the Middle East. It will probably only take a few more of these "peace process" sessions before Israel cedes so much land to its enemies that it will simply disappear from the face of the earth.
Dems at War: Public Unions vs. Gentry Liberals
My subject today is the civil war raging in one of our great political parties, as highlighted in recent primary elections. No, I'm not talking about the split between the tea partiers and the Republican establishment (is there a Republican establishment anymore?). I'm talking about the split between two of the core groups of the Democratic Party, as witnessed in the Sept. 14 primaries in heavily Democratic New York (63 percent for Barack Obama in 2008), Maryland (62 percent Obama) and the District of Columbia (92 percent Obama).
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Castro's Reality Check
WASHINGTON -- Fidel Castro, 84, may have failing eyesight but he has noticed something: "The Cuban model doesn't even work for us anymore." So, the secret is out. And there is no joy among the alumni, if any still live, of the golden days of Les Deux Magots.
A Lesson in Sales
At one time I sold houses for a living and, believe this, that has developed into a tough profession in this economy. The market is flat and not many people are buying and a lot of my buddies are having to scramble.
End Prohibition
"In almost every respect imaginable, Prohibition was a failure," former New York Times public editor Daniel Okrent concluded at the close of his new book, "Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition." "It encouraged criminality and institutionalized hypocrisy. It deprived the government of revenue, stripped the gears of the political system, and proposed profound limitations on individual rights."
A Capital Idea!
I would venture that the question over which Americans are most passionately divided isn't abortions or even whether or not Julia Roberts has any sex appeal, but the issue of capital punishment.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
A Convenient Excuse
Is Michael Bloomberg to blame for the deaths of the 18 Muslim men in Indian-controlled Kashmir who rioted over reports that someone in America burned the Koran? Let's think it through.
Reggie Gives It Back
During the 2005 college football season, there was no doubt in my mind that Southern Cal running back Reggie Bush was its best player. For that he was awarded the Heisman Trophy, the biggest and best award that can be bestowed. But earlier this week he achieved an even higher plane when he gave it back. Tuesday Reggie Bush did the right thing.
A Diverse Opinion About Diversity
Recently, I heard from a guy who claimed that squirrel tasted just like chicken. Some days, I swear, I get the idea that everything's supposed to taste like chicken. But it brought home the fact that what we eat, as well as what we think, is often more a matter of geography than of anything else. Frankly, I wouldn't care if it tasted like chocolate ice cream, I've never had squirrel on my plate and I aim to keep it that way. As with frogs and snakes, there are some things I regard as food and some things I'd prefer not to think about at all. And that's how I want to keep it.
A Bullish Tea-Party Revolt
This past week, I gave a speech to a group of investors. The organizer of the event e-mailed me the night before, asking that I please try to be optimistic. Well, that's my usual habitat. But optimism has been hard for me this year. Our muddle-through economy and lackluster stock market, challenged by so many taxing, spending and regulating problems coming out of Washington, are the reasons why.
From The Comedy Store
Fidel Castro was conciliatory toward the United States government in an interview this week in the Atlantic Monthly. He's got only two months left to get the U.S. Congress to lift the trade embargo. Democrats don't see Cuba as the enemy, they see it as the cigar room.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Harry Reid's Illegal Alien Student Bailout
The so-called DREAM Act would create an official path to Democratic voter registration for an estimated two million college-age illegal aliens. Look past the public relations-savvy stories of "undocumented" valedictorians left out in the cold. This is not about protecting "children." It's about preserving electoral power through cap-and-gown amnesty.
The Buckley Rule
WASHINGTON -- Tuesday in Delaware was a bad day not only for Republicans but for conservatives. Tea partier Christine O'Donnell scored a stunning victory over establishment Republican Mike Castle. Stunning but pyrrhic. The very people who have most alerted the country to the perils of President Obama's social democratic agenda may have just made it impossible for Republicans to retake the Senate and definitively stop that agenda.
The Money of Fools: Part IV
One of the many words that sound so attractive, to people who do not think beyond the word, is "disarmament." Wouldn't it be better to live in a world where countries were not armed to the teeth, especially when they are armed with nuclear weapons? Of course it would.
What They Really Think of Us
Rarely does a single remark in the news, whether from politician or pundit, sum up the attitude of a whole class, in this case our betters. Call them the elite, the anointed, the ruling class -- if we would only recognize their superior insight and follow their lead. For they know us better than we know ourselves, at least to hear them tell it. And they do keep trying to tell us. At length. They seem intent on explaining our mysterious refusal to follow their enlightened leadership. But how sum up their whole worldview in a single quote?
The 3rd Front
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Our "War Stories" team is here to document what's happening on our southern border. Herewith, some observations based on interviews with dozens of local, state and federal officials -- and regular American citizens.