Scene on Nantucket

Breakfast of Hungover Champions

Artists Murderers Row for your wallet

It Figures

Odds & Ends

Hub Blog is correct, The Legislature is the Problem

I’m Sure Al Qaeda Appreciates It: U.S. releases secret nuclear list accidentally

When Ralph Peters was with us last on Pundit Review Radio, he referred to Obama as “our awesomely naive president“. Hard to argue,

Obama says Iran’s energy concerns legitimate

LONDON — President Barack Obama reiterated that Iran may have some right to nuclear energy _ provided it takes steps to prove its aspirations are peaceful.

But only if they pinky promise. Hot Air’s Ed Morrisey, on the absurdidy of their “legitimate” need for nuclear power,

The inconvenient fact? Iran has all the resources it needs for energy production now. In fact, with the money they’ve spent on nuclear technology, they could have built oil refineries that would have reduced or eliminated their depending on imports for gasoline, producing it themselves from their own abundant supply. Absent sanctions, Iran could make a mint each year off of oil revenues and produce all the energy they need for domestic consumption, too.

So why do they pursue nuclear power? They want it for something other than energy production, although they’ll take that, too. Since they also spend a lot of money testing and launching rockets these days, the conclusion is a lot less difficult than Obama makes it. Iran has mainly illegitimate motives for pursuing nuclear technology.

I guess it depends on what you mean by “largest”? Obama: America “One of the Largest Muslim Countries in the World”

The Weekly Standard blog corrects this bit of “smart diplomacy”

Eight million Muslims seems to be at the high end of estimates of America’s Muslim community. That number barely puts the United States in the top 40.

He may be on to something…Robert Samuelson in the Washington Post: The Obama Infatuation

WASHINGTON — The Obama infatuation is a great unreported story of our time. Has any recent president basked in so much favorable media coverage? Well, maybe John Kennedy for a moment; but no president since. On the whole, this is not healthy for America.

What he said,

What dismays me most about Barack Obama’s Middle East initiative is that the only country in the area he seems to be pressing is Israel.

Lebron James may be a great player, but he is a sore loser and worst of all, he continually insults Celeveland fans by lusting after New York so openly. It’s offensive.

Why carry a gun?

This is like trying to pick sides in the Iran-Iraq war. Can’t they both lose?

Laurie David = Eco-hypocrite

He thought she was was cold and ungrateful? Me too!

I’ve heard of old money, but this is ridiculous!

Odds and Ends

No more “war on terror”? I agree completely with Hillary Clinton, “The administration has stopped using the phrase, and that speaks for itself, obviously.”

He didn’t get the memo. Pakistani Taliban Leader Pledges Attack on D.C.

How is Iraq different from Afghanistan? Hamid Karzai signs law ‘legalising rape in marriage’ and prevents women from leaving the house without permission.

Michael Barone on JournoList, “Not all new ideas are good ones”.

The Obama vetting process is best ever argument for tax simplification. Has it only been six? The replacement pick for Tom Daschle, Obama’s first tax challenged HHS nominee, has tax problems of her own. Cal Mackenzie of Colby College literally wrote the book on the presidential transition process. I loved him as a professor and interviewed him the first Sunday following the election. Obama has now appointed Volker as tax simplification tzar. Why didn’t Bush think of that? I think it’s time to invite Prof. Mackenzie back.

Titanic egos on a collision course.

Clusterstock. Check it out.

Duly Footnoted, Where were GM’s directors?

Odds and Ends: Obama Mediagasms

What a pleasure to watch the sustained and repeated mediagasms over the past few days. Imagine how bad it could have been if the media really went over the top,

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - President Barack Obama’s inauguration generated an unprecedented 35,000 stories in the world’s major newspapers, television and radio broadcasts over the past day — about 35 times more than the last presidential swearing-in — a monitoring group said on Wednesday.

Is that all? It felt like more.

Immediately after the election in November there was a spate of handwringing from the MSM about the campaign coverage. Most notably, Time Magazine political editor Mark Halperin said,

It was extreme bias, extreme pro-Obama coverage.

Rob, my producer at WRKO coined this sudden post election honesty “born again journalism”. His point, now that the election was over, journalists would start to take their jobs seriously again, or at least consider it.

Personally, I think Halperin should talk about this with Time Magazine’s Washington bureau chief Jay Carney. Oh, wait a minute. That won’t be possible because Carney has left journalism to become Joe Biden’s press secretary. Never mind. (What does that job require anyway besides issuing apologies and retractions?)

Speaking of Biden, another spouse of a Democrat is spilling the beans and embarrassing their husband on Oprah. George Stephanopoulos’ wife Ali Wentworth is the latest,

We watched everything and George was still doing all the anchoring for ABC and as soon Beyonce said “At Last…” George called me at home and he went, “Honey?” and I said “I know!” and we both started crying.

Somewhere Stephy was saying “Shhhhhhhhhhhhh” at the top of his tiny little lungs. MSM big shots and Democrat operatives are like two peas in a pod. Jay Carney went in one direction (journo to operative) while Stephy went the other (operative to journo). Let me know when Karl Rove is offered to host a network Sunday morning interview show would you please….thanks.

Need a specific example of how the media works to advance their friends? From Bryon York at NRO,

In 2001, during the confirmation of John Ashcroft to be attorney general, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee forced a one-week delay in the committee’s vote on Ashcroft, saying there had not been enough time to answer all the questions about the nomination. On January 24, 2001, the Washington Post reported the story under the following headline:

Vote On Ashcroft Is Delayed A Week; Democrats Cite Need for More Review

Yesterday, Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee did precisely the same thing for the nomination of Eric Holder to be attorney general. Today, the Washington Post is reporting the story under the following headline:

Republicans Obstruct Holder’s Path to Justice Department

That’s called nuance my friends.

At some point during the next four years, an issue will arise that requires the media to dig into the actions of the Obama administration. When that time comes, most of them will be asking the famous Ray Donovan line,

Where do I go to get my reputation back?

Good luck with that.

Inauguration Odds and Ends

First thing, hats off to the Secret Service and everyone involved in law enforcement. An uneventful day from a secuirty perspective.

As for the entire day, it was a great one for the country. We now have a black president and perhaps more importantly, a black first family. The Obama’s seem like the prototypical American family, happily married parents who clearly love each other and are raising their children with all the care and love required. The fact that they are an intact black family sends a powerful message to that community which has been devastated by several generations of fatherlessness.

The inauguration ceremonies at the Capitol left a lot to be desired. When the music is the highlight of the event, that’s a problem. It started with the classless Obama supporters booing President Bush when he was introduced. Several other things from the event were at odds with what Obama has been telling us he is all about. For starters, Rev. Lowrey’s invocation had an unfortunate closing.

Lord, in the memory of all the saints who from their labors rest, and in the joy of a new beginning, we ask you to help us work for that day when black will not be asked to get in back, when brown can stick around … when yellow will be mellow … when the red man can get ahead, man; and when white will embrace what is right. That all those who do justice and love mercy say Amen.

The inauguration ceremony was the wrong setting. Obama is supposed to be above that stuff. And for the record, it was white folks who got Barack Obama elected president because they judged him by the content of his character and not the color of his skin. When I think of the racial implications of yesterday, I think first of the black senior citizens of Rev. Lowrey’s generation who have lived through such an incredible arc of history. Too bad Rev. Lowrey seems not to have noticed how much things have changed since his days with Dr. King.

The stumbling over the oath seemed to me to be entirely Chief Justice Roberts fault. I couldn’t help but wonder if Roberts was punking Obama at bit for not voting to confirm him. Truthfully, I think it was a simple case of nerves.

The Obama speech was a major disappointment. He got the somber tone and call to action right. That’s about it. I thought Obama was bringing Americans of all political stripes together. I thought this was the time for solutions, not the politics of division? Instead, the speech was filled with cheap shots at the Bush administration. Those were beneath him and the moment. Beyond that huge sections of the speech sounded like standard campaign boilerplate.

The speech left me thinking about two America’s, the one I’ve been living in and the one Obama was describing. For example,

Obama, who says the scientific debate about the climate is “over” talked about “restoring science to its rightful place.” What a joke. Here is the quote of the day, Dr. Takeda Kunihiko, vice-chancellor of the Institute of Science and Technology Research at Chubu University in Japan,

CO2 emissions make absolutely no difference one way or another. … Every scientist knows this, but it doesn’t pay to say so.

Stifling debate on global warming climate change and demonizing dissenters is hardly restoring science to its rightful place.

Speaking of dissent, is it still patriotic now that Bush is back in Texas?

Obama also said “we are ready to lead once more”. WTF is he talking about? What does he think America has been doing since September 11, 2001? We’ve been leading the free world in its fight against radical Islam. Thanks to George W. Bush, the United States has taken the fight to the enemy on all corners of the globe, and we have left Al Qaeda in shambles for the Obama administration. That is in sharp contrast to what Bush inherited from Clinton, a fully formed global organization operating freely around the world and striking American interests at will and without consequence.

Again, when Obama said that we must “no longer ignore the suffering outside our borders”, I had to wonder which America he’s been living in. Jay Nordlinger at NRO asked,

“In fact, one of the biggest criticisms of Bush is that he has gone too far in trying to alleviate the suffering of others — “imposing our values” and all that. And will Obama better Bush’s Africa program? Fat chance.”

Indeed.

As for the evening portion of the festivities, the only thing I saw was the Obama’s first dance, to AT LAST sung by the talented and beautiful Beyonce Knowles. When I awoke at 5am this morning I was wondering about the Obama’s and how tired they must have been last night. A long day that is scripted down to the second, filled with stress and excitement, a parade and having to attend ten balls last night. This morning, President Obama meets with Gen. Petraeus. It really is a job like no other.

Despite my criticisms of the speech and certain aspects of the inauguration, overall a great and historic day for the country. Obama has inspired millions of Americans. He has more goodwill in the tank than any incoming president I can think of. Now it is up to him to use it wisely. The time for talk is over. For the first time in his life, Barack Obama will be judged because of what he does and not what he says. I wish him well.

Odds & Ends

Getting Chilly for Global Warming Climate Change Fanatics: Even some at the the Huffington Post have had enough, Al Gore’s crime against humanity,

Mr. Gore has stated, regarding climate change, that “the science is in.” Well, he is absolutely right about that, except for one tiny thing. It is the biggest whopper ever sold to the public in the history of humankind.

Also, there is a bull market in sea ice apparently. How inconvenient. But that’s not all, the indespensible Gateway Pundit has a complete rundown of all the inconvenient truths.

BC About to Fire Football Coach for Interviewing for a Job: A huge part of me loves what BC is doing. I love that they are taking an old school stand. Just like holding to some pretty strong academic standards. These things make BC’s successes even better.

Yes, it is accepted that coaches have to move on in order to move up in their profession. It is a fact of life. However, in recent years the school jumping has gone over the line in basketball and football. BC would never have hired Coach Jags if they thought he was two-and-through guy. I’m sure this topic was discussed during the hiring process. I understand why BC is doing this. No, I do not think they would have any problem getting another highly qualified coach. From a bottom line legal standpoint, this Herald story makes it seem like BC doesn’t have a clause preventing the interview. Still, I like it.

Debating Leon Panetta: Uncle Jimbo says the Panetta pick is a lurch left and rated it an F. Micheal Leeden disagrees, he thinks it’s a smart move. Richard Miniter says, “It is hard to know what is worse: the rampant Washington insiderdom or the shocking lack of experience.” Meanwhile, hell hath no fury like Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) scorned.

Hi honey, what are you doing here?

Odds and ends

The new round of anonymous trashing of Sarah Palin is illuminating. These leakers must really want to hurt Palin. They are so incompetent that have hurt themselves more. They have proved to be untrustworty and disloyal. They are clearly poor political operatives to have begun all this self-serving leaking with two weeks to go in the campaign. Not only did the leakers expose their disloyalty and incompetence, they have now made Palin a sympathetic figure.

Counterintuitive Rahm Emanuel - good pick by Obama, evidence of pragmatism. Chief of staff is a good position for Emanuel in that he is loyal and ruthless. He will be mostly behind the scenes protecting Obama and running a tight ship. Instapundit thinks he will play bad cop to congress and interest groups. Even better.

Joe Lieberman - Hartford Courant’s Stan Simpson makes the case to kick him out of the party. On the heals of Rahm Emanuel, an overly aggressive move means GOP will have its theme…Democrats are not serious about bipartisanship and different tone in Washington. I think this is for show and they won’t follow through.

Speaking of a new kind of politics - will Obama pursue card check and unfairness doctrine in first 100 days? That would be a Clintonian-style early term disaster. At least it should be.

Republicans aren’t serious about cleaning house. Meet the new boss.

Wall Street votes - worst two-day performance in history.

Yahoo! has gone from one of the greediest CEO’s to one of the worst.

John Kerry will not be Secretary of State. His campaigning for the position is unseemly and his pomposity and verbosity would make him a disaster. Prediction, he will be offered Homeland Security instead via an appeal to his ego (I heard somehwere he served in Vietnam and is a self proclaimed national security expert. Plus, with a attack all but guarenteed by his Senate colleague Joe Biden, it’s a critical position).

Why does Eliiot Spitzer get off (again) and the booker and the hooker get arrested?

Amazon customers top history books of 2008. Number four, Havana Nocturne: How the Mob Owned Cuba and Then Lost It to the Revolution. Author T.J. English joined me for a fun discussion about this excellent book,

Did you ever wonder what Chris Matthews sounds like naked?