If you want to read my review of The Conservative Mind please click here. Excerpt: Reading The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Eliot by Russell Kirk was one big adventure for me, and for anyone interested in the conservative philosophy. Russell Kirk goes back all the way to British statesman Edmund Burke to determine what the conservative philosophy or theory exactly is, … [Read more...] about The Conservative Mind: A Review
A Study in Cowardice
Marc Moore writes at The Gazette: The Center for America Progress’ (CAP) recent study entitled “How to Redeploy: Implementing a Responsible Drawdown of U.S. Forces from Iraq†(PDF alert) features a quote from Sun Tzu, author of The Art of War: “No nation has ever benefited from protracted warfare.†This is meant to lead us into the center’s belief that … [Read more...] about A Study in Cowardice
A Consensus on Global Warming?
This is very, very interesting; In 2004, history professor Naomi Oreskes performed a survey of research papers on climate change. Examining peer-reviewed papers published on the ISI Web of Science database from 1993 to 2003, she found a majority supported the "consensus view," defined as humans were having at least some effect on global climate change. Oreskes' work has been … [Read more...] about A Consensus on Global Warming?
Ai. Oops. Sorry ’bout That
Spree (Susan) published a post yesterday about an important Democratic fundraiser named Norman Hsu. Hsu started raising money for Democrats three years back or so, and quickly became one of the best fundraisers the Democrats had. He was one of a few fundraisers who were able (and are able) to raise $1 million dollars, which is quite an accomplishment considering that an … [Read more...] about Ai. Oops. Sorry ’bout That
Blackwater USA: Armed & Dangerous
It seems right out of a shoot-'em-up Hollywood thriller: A shadowy private American security company led by a messianic right winger by the name of Erik Prince who has close connections to the White House and Pentagon hires out his own air force to put down civil unrest at home and insurgencies abroad. Well, it's not a movie, but all too real. There is an Erik Prince and … [Read more...] about Blackwater USA: Armed & Dangerous
Republicans Flushed With Anger Over Craig Men’s Room Scandal
Republicans clearly would like the airport men's room scandal involving Senator Larry Craig (R-Idaho) to go away. They've stripped him of his leadership posts -- and some fellow GOPers are calling on him to resign. But so far Craig seems to want to stick it out. So the question becomes: for how long? The political career of Senator Larry Craig of Idaho appeared to be … [Read more...] about Republicans Flushed With Anger Over Craig Men’s Room Scandal
He Went To See If The Surge In Iraq Was Working
Traveling blogger/journalist Michael Totten has a column in the New York Daily News: While American politicians bicker among themselves from eight time zones away about whether the surge led by Gen. David Petraeus is working or not, I returned to Iraq to see for myself. This trip - from which I returned this month - was my fourth reporting stint in the country since the … [Read more...] about He Went To See If The Surge In Iraq Was Working
Guest Voice: Oil Shale to the Rescue?
NOTE: The Moderate Voice runs Guest Voice posts from time to time by readers who don't have their own websites, or people who have websites but would like to post something for TMV's diverse and thoughtful readership. Guest Voice posts do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Moderate Voice or its writers. This Guest Voice is by J. Thomas Andrews, who lives in the … [Read more...] about Guest Voice: Oil Shale to the Rescue?
What do the Sunni insurgents think?
Are the Sunni insurgents who turned on Al Qaeda in Iraq willing to cooperate with a Shi'ite-run majority government? Are they beginning a long, locally-driven process of reconciliation with the Shi'ite population? Or are they merely waiting to finish off Al Qaeda before they use their new weapons against the Shi'ite-led government - and the US again? Or, worse, are they making … [Read more...] about What do the Sunni insurgents think?
Reform in Pakistan?
Did General Musharraf agree to step down as head of the Pakistani military? Kevin Sullivan looks at the situation in Pakistan and offers some thoughts of his own. … [Read more...] about Reform in Pakistan?
Straight out of the Closet
It should bring me pleasure to watch the GOP convulse over this Larry Craig thing, but it doesn't. It doesn't because the behavioral patterns of all the actors in the sorry tale are symbolic or contributory of a larger pattern of destructiveness that ruins countless lives. Craig's may or may not be one of them. But even one is too many. … [Read more...] about Straight out of the Closet
The Moderator’s Voice
When I joined this blog (middle of 2005) I was significantly more "moderate", in the usual sense of the term, than I am now. I freely admit that since then, I have drifted distinctly off to the left. It actually probably looks worse from your vantage point, because on the issue I most care about (race relations), "drifted" probably is less accurate than "ran with reckless … [Read more...] about The Moderator’s Voice
Israel Willing to Compromise
The Jerusalem Post reports: The teams of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas met in Jerusalem Tuesday, ahead of a private meeting between the two leaders. Israel Radio reported that during the extended meeting the Israelis gave their Palestinian counterparts general offers on core issues. An unnamed official was quoted as saying that … [Read more...] about Israel Willing to Compromise
Darn Those Needles
Providing drug addicts with clean needles: a good or a bad idea? What do you all think? On the one hand it seems to me that this way the government may be able to prevent certain people from getting HIV, on the other hand I also worry that it may make it more easy for people to do drugs. … [Read more...] about Darn Those Needles
Gül Elected President
Please say hello to Turkey's new President, Abdullah Gül: Beaming as the votes were counted, a veteran government figure with roots in political Islam won a parliamentary vote to become Turkey's president Tuesday, in defiance of the country's strongly secular military. Abdullah Gul's triumph presented Turkey's generals with a choice: overthrow Gul in what would be a deeply … [Read more...] about Gül Elected President
Can We Have Too Much Democracy?
Michael van der Galien stirred the pot last week in his August 25 post, "Progressives Unite!," criticizing the efforts of Matt Stoller, et. al., to un-elect Democrats with whom they disagree. Subsequently, 73 comments were attached to Michael's post, and the resulting dust cloud was significant enough to earn some extra and much-deserved attention at Real Clear … [Read more...] about Can We Have Too Much Democracy?
Can Sadr reign in his “rogue” Mahdi Army elements?
Today comes a report that Sadr is suspending his Mahdi Army militia for six months to "rehabilitate it in a way that will safeguard its ideological image." This follows up on the utter chaos surrounding the Shi'ite pilgrimage to Karbala. The violence between Sadrist Mahdi militiamen and the Supreme Islamic Iraq Council (SIIC)'s Badr Corps in Karbala reflects similar … [Read more...] about Can Sadr reign in his “rogue” Mahdi Army elements?
The Future
and Jason Steck (edited to add as co-signatory) Some people seem to think that we may be considering resigning at TMV and simply to continue work at The Gazette. Just to make sure that these rumors will not spread we decided to publish this post as to say that we are not considering doing such a thing. We are proud to be on staff at TMV and plan to contribute here for a … [Read more...] about The Future
Diana and the Culture of Death & America’s Sinking Economic Ship
Pieter Dorsman wrote a fascinating post at my own blog about - what he calls - culture of death. It is Pieter's first post for The Gazette (my blog) and, when you read it, I am sure you will understand why I asked him to co-blog (again at my blog not at TMV). A small excerpt in an attempt to persuade you to read the post: Diana’s death accelerated the emergence of a new and … [Read more...] about Diana and the Culture of Death & America’s Sinking Economic Ship
Bush Stepping Up the Rhetoric: Iran Puts Region under Shadow of Nuclear Holocaust
US President George W. Bush is stepping up the rhetoric (directed towards Iran). He said that Iran is playing a destabilizing role in the region and that a nuclear holocaust could be the result of Iran's nuclear program. Obviously, the US is determined to prevent such a nuclear holocaust from happening. Meanwhile, Raw Story has a fascinating article up: it seems that the US … [Read more...] about Bush Stepping Up the Rhetoric: Iran Puts Region under Shadow of Nuclear Holocaust