History News Network
Fascinating view from Europe on Bush's legacy and the consequences of the 2008 Presidential election.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Michelle Malkin » Prayers for the Scouts
Michelle Malkin » Prayers for the Scouts
The comments are touching.
To the fallen boys . . . "May the Master of all Scouts be with you until we meet again." God bless them. God bless those Scouts and Scouters remaining and their dedication to the Scout Law:
"A Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverent."
Their trustworthiness to do their duty, their loyalty to their fellow scout, their helpfulness, their kindness, their bravery were all on full display for the world to see.
I call on all to support their local Scout troops, Cub Packs, and Venture Posts so that we can teach more boys and girls to be like these Scouts.
The comments are touching.
To the fallen boys . . . "May the Master of all Scouts be with you until we meet again." God bless them. God bless those Scouts and Scouters remaining and their dedication to the Scout Law:
"A Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverent."
Their trustworthiness to do their duty, their loyalty to their fellow scout, their helpfulness, their kindness, their bravery were all on full display for the world to see.
I call on all to support their local Scout troops, Cub Packs, and Venture Posts so that we can teach more boys and girls to be like these Scouts.
Friday, June 06, 2008
Pajamas Media » Why We Need More Leaders Like Vaclav Havel
Pajamas Media » Why We Need More Leaders Like Vaclav Havel: "“What is a concentration camp but an attempt by Utopians to dispose of those elements which don’t fit into their Utopia?”"
Now that is a catch phrase for the Republican Party!
Now that is a catch phrase for the Republican Party!
Friday, May 30, 2008
American Thinker: Obama, Black Liberation Theology, and Karl Marx
American Thinker: Obama, Black Liberation Theology, and Karl Marx
For anyone who doubts that Barack is Communist, even if of a non-revolutionary variety, here's strong evidence of the truth.
For anyone who doubts that Barack is Communist, even if of a non-revolutionary variety, here's strong evidence of the truth.
Pajamas Media » Obama Dodging Fact-Finding Trip to Iraq?
Pajamas Media » Obama Dodging Fact-Finding Trip to Iraq?
Why would Obama wish not to go to Iraq? I don't believe it is because he does not wish to learn.
Can you imagine the news photos of peaceable Iraqis without tanks surrounding Obama? What would that do to his campaign? What would that do for Republican campaign ads in the fall?
Why would Obama wish not to go to Iraq? I don't believe it is because he does not wish to learn.
Can you imagine the news photos of peaceable Iraqis without tanks surrounding Obama? What would that do to his campaign? What would that do for Republican campaign ads in the fall?
Saturday, May 03, 2008
Hillary picked the filly and . . . condolences
Hillary picked the filly. I have been waiting since the horrible news about Eight Belles came out to see if there would be a discussion of the irony.
The first whiff of it I found was here: http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/05/hillarys-horse.html.
By tomorrow morning there will all sorts of people trying to discuss it: fortune? simple irony? warning? untouchable story line?
Personally I believe it will be most interesting in hindsight, say from after the General Election. Then we can look back and see what thematic parallels were there for us to study or what fate mislead us to believe. Either way this types of events are interesting for literary types.
The first whiff of it I found was here: http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/05/hillarys-horse.html.
By tomorrow morning there will all sorts of people trying to discuss it: fortune? simple irony? warning? untouchable story line?
Personally I believe it will be most interesting in hindsight, say from after the General Election. Then we can look back and see what thematic parallels were there for us to study or what fate mislead us to believe. Either way this types of events are interesting for literary types.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Study on Economy & Tax Increases
This article demonstrates that Capital Gains Tax increases are hurting our economy already.
Don't wait, suffer now!
Don't wait, suffer now!
Monday, February 25, 2008
Lorne Gunter: Welcome to the new ice age - Full Comment
Lorne Gunter: Welcome to the new ice age - Full Comment
So Ice Age or Global Warming fiasco?
I vote for neither being a likely provable hypothesis.
So Ice Age or Global Warming fiasco?
I vote for neither being a likely provable hypothesis.
Friday, February 01, 2008
Conservatism and Lack of Ideas
Has Conservatism run out of ideas? Has it reached its end?
These are themes that I have heard bantered about lately, particularly as related to the rise of John McCain in the primary votes and Obama's discussion of Reagan's transformational effect on the body politic that Hillary Clinton tried to distort into a praise of Reagan over Bill Clinton.
Let's lay these current issues aside and deal with a growing myth that conservatism is out of ideas.
To say that a political movement is out of ideas is to assume that political movements are driven but specific legislative proposals. This is inherently false. That is not the way the human mind works.
(Since 80% of the human population is visually oriented in their method of thought and analysis, allow me to use the vocabulary of this method of thought to discuss this topic. The idea can easily be adapted to auditory and kinesthetic thought, too.)
People have a photograph or a movie in their respective minds of what the world should be in the ideal. They analyze the world of politics based on how close the political proposals come to that ideal or come to making that ideal come true. Some seek an ideal of process. ("Don't be mean in debate or advertising! I don't care the outcome as much.") Some seek an ideal of result. ("Don't make a hospital do THAT by legislation!")
Those who focus on the ideal of process tend to swing widely between different ideas and are very hard to keep on one side of the political aisle or the other. They tend to describe themselves as "moderates." They want the process of politics to similar to calm, academic debate that ends in polite applause and a genial trip to the pub with the loyal opponent to bask in the glory of an evening well spent.
Those who focus on the ideal of result tend to stick tenaciously to the result sought from politics, legislation, and executive action. The tend to identify themselves relative to a politic doctrine, so long as that is not likely to make them a social pariah at the cocktail party on Friday night.
Then there are those that seek to combine these two together. The order of process over result or result over process is likely to follow political success. Emphasis on result over process leads to more aggressive political behavior. Since winners in all forms of competition tend to be the more aggressive, choosing result over process tends to create short-term winners.
In the long term, this focus on success tends to create short cuts favoring small group benefits that anger the larger population. This creates a pendulum swing against the focus on results due to "corruption" of the desired result. Inherently, this small group benefit focus is what sunk the Democrats in 1994 with the House Banking Scandal and the Republicans in 2006 with earmarks and other petty scandals.
Consequently, long term political success is a blend of focus on a desired effect while not excessively favoring small groups which would derail the pursuit of the desired result.
The desired result goes back to the mental photograph or movie in the body politic's collective mind. Inherently, people are constantly updating their mental picture that they seek. They can never run out of ideas.
The question is can all these pictures be collected in a proper and orderly fashion that motivates those focused on result while not offending too many of those that are focused on process.
All this is to say, when a pundit claims that a politic party is out of ideas, they are really saying that they have a central, unifying message. It may be because the focus on the ideal of process suggests that the political message has been lost to backroom favoritism. It may be because the previously prevalent goals have been accomplished to the satisfaction of the average voter(e.g., Welfare Reform), become anachronistic (e.g., anti-Soviet, anti-Communism), or been proven a false goal (e.g., Bull Connor segregationism).
Neither the Republican Party or Democrat Party is out of ideas. The Democrat Party can't talk about many of their ideas publicly in great details, because they lose popularity when the public can analyze the likely outcome of their goals. They can't keep those with focus on result in the fold over time. They can easily lose those focused on process by the common tactics of their supporters, like labor union activists.
The Republican Party in Washington has lost credibility that it is willing to pursue the goals described by Conservatives. Those focused on result are angry and unwilling to facilitate those like John McCain who suggests that he is focused on the process without regard to any clear sense of the result sought.
Now let the melee begin in the darkness of little guiding picture of the actual results sought on either side of the aisle.
These are themes that I have heard bantered about lately, particularly as related to the rise of John McCain in the primary votes and Obama's discussion of Reagan's transformational effect on the body politic that Hillary Clinton tried to distort into a praise of Reagan over Bill Clinton.
Let's lay these current issues aside and deal with a growing myth that conservatism is out of ideas.
To say that a political movement is out of ideas is to assume that political movements are driven but specific legislative proposals. This is inherently false. That is not the way the human mind works.
(Since 80% of the human population is visually oriented in their method of thought and analysis, allow me to use the vocabulary of this method of thought to discuss this topic. The idea can easily be adapted to auditory and kinesthetic thought, too.)
People have a photograph or a movie in their respective minds of what the world should be in the ideal. They analyze the world of politics based on how close the political proposals come to that ideal or come to making that ideal come true. Some seek an ideal of process. ("Don't be mean in debate or advertising! I don't care the outcome as much.") Some seek an ideal of result. ("Don't make a hospital do THAT by legislation!")
Those who focus on the ideal of process tend to swing widely between different ideas and are very hard to keep on one side of the political aisle or the other. They tend to describe themselves as "moderates." They want the process of politics to similar to calm, academic debate that ends in polite applause and a genial trip to the pub with the loyal opponent to bask in the glory of an evening well spent.
Those who focus on the ideal of result tend to stick tenaciously to the result sought from politics, legislation, and executive action. The tend to identify themselves relative to a politic doctrine, so long as that is not likely to make them a social pariah at the cocktail party on Friday night.
Then there are those that seek to combine these two together. The order of process over result or result over process is likely to follow political success. Emphasis on result over process leads to more aggressive political behavior. Since winners in all forms of competition tend to be the more aggressive, choosing result over process tends to create short-term winners.
In the long term, this focus on success tends to create short cuts favoring small group benefits that anger the larger population. This creates a pendulum swing against the focus on results due to "corruption" of the desired result. Inherently, this small group benefit focus is what sunk the Democrats in 1994 with the House Banking Scandal and the Republicans in 2006 with earmarks and other petty scandals.
Consequently, long term political success is a blend of focus on a desired effect while not excessively favoring small groups which would derail the pursuit of the desired result.
The desired result goes back to the mental photograph or movie in the body politic's collective mind. Inherently, people are constantly updating their mental picture that they seek. They can never run out of ideas.
The question is can all these pictures be collected in a proper and orderly fashion that motivates those focused on result while not offending too many of those that are focused on process.
All this is to say, when a pundit claims that a politic party is out of ideas, they are really saying that they have a central, unifying message. It may be because the focus on the ideal of process suggests that the political message has been lost to backroom favoritism. It may be because the previously prevalent goals have been accomplished to the satisfaction of the average voter(e.g., Welfare Reform), become anachronistic (e.g., anti-Soviet, anti-Communism), or been proven a false goal (e.g., Bull Connor segregationism).
Neither the Republican Party or Democrat Party is out of ideas. The Democrat Party can't talk about many of their ideas publicly in great details, because they lose popularity when the public can analyze the likely outcome of their goals. They can't keep those with focus on result in the fold over time. They can easily lose those focused on process by the common tactics of their supporters, like labor union activists.
The Republican Party in Washington has lost credibility that it is willing to pursue the goals described by Conservatives. Those focused on result are angry and unwilling to facilitate those like John McCain who suggests that he is focused on the process without regard to any clear sense of the result sought.
Now let the melee begin in the darkness of little guiding picture of the actual results sought on either side of the aisle.
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
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