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Revisionists on American Revolution Brooding on Left and Right
By IRA STOLL, Special to the Sun
June 28, 2011
This July 4, while most Americans are celebrating Independence Day, a growing number of revisionists will be brooding. It�s an interesting phenomenon, because it isn�t restricted to the hard left, which has long cast aspersions on America�s founding…
Death Throes of Europe More Serious Than America's Ailments
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
June 19, 2011
My column last week described the shocking dimensions of America�s economic collapse. But much of the rest of the developed world is faring no better. Japan is magnificent in its stoicism in the face of earthquake, tidal wave and nuclear…
Cuomo Marriage Bill Fails � Inexplicitly � To Protect Ordinary Religious Individuals
By ROBIN FRETWELL WILSON, Special to the Sun
June 16, 2011
Governor Cuomo said yesterday he would deliver a marriage equality bill identical to 2009�s failed attempt, �no ifs, ands or buts� about it. Who is it that he is kidding? Mr. Cuomo�s bill vastly improves the ability of religious communities or…
Bachmann Steals the Show as GOP Field Starts Its Debates
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL, Jr., Special to the Sun
June 15, 2011
WASHINGTON � So there are two. Two pulchritudinous ones, that is. Michele �Bachmann and Sarah Palin are beautiful, and the feminists tells us, so what? Well, they never say so what when an attractive male, usually a Democrat, comes on stage. They call…
Republicans Could Lose the House If They Get Boxed in on Debt Limit
By DAVID MALPASS, Special to the Sun
June 7, 2011
Republicans may lose the House in 2012 because they are boxed in on the debt limit, which, as currently written, forces a choice between default and more debt. It�s a lose-lose proposition for fiscal conservatives. The current debt limit always goes…
Canada Emerges as a Moral Leader by Standing Up for Israel
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
June 5, 2011
As befits a modest country unaccustomed to leading the world other than by homogenized measurements of the quality of life, Canada seems not to have noticed that Stephen Harper has kicked off his new term as head of a majority government with the…
U.S. Emerges as an Appeasement Power
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
May 29, 2011
Contrary to the famous advice of Franklin D. Roosevelt in his State of the Union message in 1941 � �We must always be wary of those who with sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal would preach the �ism� of appeasement� � the United States is now…
NBC Cable Business News Channel CNBC Emerges as Hotbed of Free-Market Ideology
Joe Kernan Is Latest Star, Following Santelli, Kudlow, Carney, and Caruso-Cabrera
By IRA STOLL, Special to the Sun
May 24, 2011
Think of right-of-center news or opinion in America, and what spring to mind are talk radio, Fox News Channel, some magazines, the Wall Street Journal editorial page. But probably not NBC. That network is known for, if anything, a left-wing tilt on…
What Would Jabotinsky Do?
By DAN FRIEDMAN, Special to the Sun
May 23, 2011
It�s strange that a man who needs no introduction should need an introduction. But such has been the fear and loathing for Ze'ev (Vladimir) Jabotinsky by the Jewish socialists who founded Israel � and ruled unopposed for decades � that they have…
The Reason Powerful Men Prey on Women or Cheat May Surprise You
The Sex Is Often Be the Least of It
By SHMULEY BOTEACH, Special to the Sun
May 17, 2011
�The number of public men destroyed of late through sexual scandals is simply staggering. Within 48 hours of each other we heard that IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who many believed would be the next president of France, as well as Arnold…
Scapegoating Speculators
By IRA STOLL, Special to the Sun
May 17, 2011
Here�s a word you can expect to hear quite a bit between now and the 2012 election: speculators. The way President Obama has been using the word recently, it means, �the guys � not me! � who made your gas prices go up.� In a speech over the weekend…
World Agape as America Runs Over the Debt Cliff and the GOP Searches for a Candidate
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
June 9, 2011
Considering the vulnerability of this administration�s record and its low standing in the polls, and the parlous condition of the country by almost any measurement, the ostentatious confidence with which the president and his entourage have kicked off…
Truth Is Put To the Lies of an Accomplice to Mass Murder
�Every Trawniki man knew that he was part of a well and smoothly operating apparatus that had no other goal than systematically murdering Jews.�
By TOM TEICHOLZ, Special to the Sun
May 14, 2011
The conviction of John Demjanjuk, 91, by a German court is significant in many respects, not the least of which is that this may be one of the last Nazi war crimes trials. Demjanjuk was found guilty of having been an accessory to the murder of more…
Army Move on Atheist Chaplains Could Lead To �Church of Evolution�
By SHMULEY BOTEACH, Special to the Sun
April 28, 2011
The report in the New York Times that atheists are looking for official recognition as chaplains in the American military in order to cater to the needs of non-believing servicemen is interesting. On the one hand, it�s kind of absurd. Atheist…
Marriage of William, Kate May Be Set Down as Morganatic, But Promises a Spectacle To Enjoy
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
April 23, 2011
Since the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton is the first, first-time wedding of a British royal who has a serious prospect of being the monarch in nearly 30 years, and only the fourth in the last century, it is natural that it would…
Paul Ryan Gets a Boost From Obama
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL, Jr., Special to the Sun
April 20, 2011
WASHINGTON � Why is it that Donald Trump is a creditable candidate with a significant segment of Republican voters? In some polls he runs ahead of all Republicans save Governor Romney, and all I have heard him say is that he wants to see our…
Geithner�s Optimism Masks a Philosophical Divide With the GOP in Congress
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
April 19, 2011
Secretary Geithner was optimistic today about getting a deal on the budget deficit and raising the debt ceiling. In particular, he was confident that in the next few months a compromise would lock in some clear targets for deficit reduction, with a…
Obama Is Beckoned To Take a Step Backward by Brokering Yet Another Mideast Peace
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
April 16, 2011
There is something faintly nostalgic about former U.S. national security advisor Brent Scowcroft�s Financial Times op-ed, published Wednesday, calling for President Obama to �broker a new Mideast Peace.� The man, the media and the message are all, as…
A Radical Restoration of Sound Money and Fiscal Discipline Will Be Needed To Right the Economy
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
April 15, 2011
There is finally some progress toward deficit reduction, more than two years after the dawn of the era of trillion-dollar annual budget deficits stretching far ahead. The administration was astoundingly late giving any indication of taking the issue…
Pawlenty Doctrine Draws a Distinction With Obama on Libya
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL, Jr., Special to the Sun
March 30, 2011
Monday night I attended a public policy discussion sponsored, not surprisingly, by The American Spectator�I say not surprisingly because I have been attending these meetings for roughly thirty years and always come away with fresh ideas. They are…
Palin Doctrine Emerges as Arab League Echoes Her Demarche on Libya
By BENYAMIN KORN, Special to the Sun
March 16, 2011
The call by the Arab League for Western military intervention in an Arab state � in this case asking that a UN �no-fly zone� be imposed over Libya � is not only without precedent but it puts in formal terms what Governor Palin stated three weeks ago…
America Becoming a Helpless Giant With Policies in Shambles
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
March 10, 2011
An observer is entitled to wonder if this administration has taken leave of its senses. I have often written here that it might do better at some point, but it has been in office for 26 months and its policy record is a shambles. It has given…
Calvin Coolidge, Call Your Office, as Unions Rage Against Democracy at Wisconsin
A National Test Erupts Over Cost of Public Employees
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
February 18, 2011
�� The Democratic/government-union days of rage in Madison, Wisconsin, are a disgrace. Congressman Paul Ryan, of Wisconsin, calls it Cairo coming to Madison. But the protesters in Egypt were pro-democracy. The government-union protesters in Madison…
Fed, Lately a Friend of Stock Market, May Become a Foe
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
February 17, 2011
�� �Don�t fight the Fed� is an old stock market adage. Successful investors pay a lot of attention to it. It means that when the central bank is easy, it�s bullish for stocks. And when the bank turns tight, it�s bearish for stocks. Obviously, the…
While the Baron Walked the Line, She Remained His Valentine
A Twentieth Anniversary Worthy of an Opera
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
February 12, 2011
Public Valentine greetings are a depth of questionable taste I have never before plumbed. But as this is the first Valentine�s Day in eight years I have not spent either in or apprehending my unjust residence in an American prison for offenses I would…
Becoming Reagan: Let�s Hope Obama Stays the Course
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
February 11, 2011
�� A week after Ronald Reagan�s 100th birthday celebration, comparisons between Presidents Obama and Reagan are escalating. The conversation began when Mr. Obama praised Reagan in a USA Today op-ed. He commended Reagan�s leadership, his confidence in…
Reagan, Tapping Wellsprings of Our National Character, Rose To Rank With Washington, Lincoln, and FDR
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
February 5, 2011
�Ronald Reagan, the centenary of whose birth falls on tomorrow, had perhaps, of all presidents, the most astonishingly American of lives. Abraham Lincoln, born in a log cabin and with only a couple of years of formal schooling, was an autodidact who…
Can America Pull Out of Its Nose-Dive?
A Disappointing Speech by Obama Is Met With Incoherent Replies by the GOP, Tea Party
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
January 30, 2011
It was a seriously demoralizing experience to read that the majority of Americans thought that Barack Obama gave a good State of the Union speech this week. Their approval may indicate that the process of the country's decline is more advanced even…
The Last Kennedy Liberal
By SETH LIPSKY, Special to the Sun
January 20, 2011
Senator Lieberman�s decision to retire from the Senate after four terms is a tragedy for the Democratic Party, particularly for the party of President Kennedy, who 50 years ago today gave the inaugural speech that inspired Mr. Lieberman�s career. The…
In America�s Contest With China, the Best Weapon Ignites a Boom
Pro-Growth Policies, Reagan Taught, Produce the Goods
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
January 21, 2011
A number of people, myself included, have looked to President Reagan�s Cold War triumph over the Soviet Union as a possible solution to Red China�s rising arrogance. Times are different today. But Reagan argued forcefully that domestic economic growth…
Recovery Looks Better, But Beware of Inflation
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
January 17, 2011
�The United States�economic recovery continues to look better, according to the stock market and a boatload of economic statistics last week. Stocks jumped 133 points on the Dow, which hit a 30-month high following its seventh straight weekly rise…
When � and How � To Intervene With Unstable Citizens Looms as a Question After Tucson
By HENRY STERN, Special to the Sun
January 13, 2011
So much has been written about the tragic shootings in Arizona that we are reluctant to add to the paper flow. The terrible event has given people the opportunity to express their views on hatred (a word which is variously defined), guns (including…
Big Step Toward the Center Marked by Appointment of Daley as Chief of Staff
Bullish Move Seen in Elevation of Pro-Business Democrat
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
January 6, 2011
President Obama marks another milestone in his post-election move to the center by appointing pro-business Democrat William E. Daley to the powerful post of White House chief of staff. If there are any doubts that Mr. Obama wants to repair his…
LAWRENCE KUDLOW: Washington Is Moving Toward the Supply Side
�Stop the bad stuff� is what John Boehner told a bunch of us at breakfast a few weeks before the election. That�s how he defined the GOP mission. Now he�s Speaker. And now there�s an opportunity for both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue to move in the…
LAWRENCE KUDLOW: The Gipper Must Be Smiling Over U-Turn by Obama Team
Past is not always a prologue. But looking at some of the big winners and losers of 2010 does provide some strong hints of a positive 2011. The biggest winner last year was the Tea Party, which shellacked President Obama in the election. Mr. Obama…
Castro�s Cuba Nears an Anniversary, Cheered by PBS
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL, Jr.
December 29, 2010
WASHINGTON � Next week marks the 52nd anniversary of Fidel Castro�s accession to his Cuban throne. I cannot wait to see how it will be solemnized. Will little children appear before Fidel throwing flowers? They better not throw them too hard. He is…
LAWRENCE KUDLOW: Obama�s Economic Ideology Is Cast Aside in a Fell Swoop
�The new Tea Party Republican Congress on a historic Thursday completely transformed American economic policy. Elections matter, and so do their ideas. Smaller government, low taxes, and less spending were key election themes in the Republican…
Rahm Emanuel and the Case of the Hound�s Tooth
Chicago Mayoralty Campaign Gets Underway, And One Won't Catch Our Scribe on the Phone With Blagojevich
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL, Jr., Special to the Sun
December 1, 2010
WASHINGTON � My campaign for mayor of Chicago against Rahm Emanuel is getting underway. I already announced on Sean Hannity�s nationally televised program and have Sean�s endorsement. After careful consideration, Rush will undoubtedly be aboard and…
Deficit Commission Moves the Ball in the Right Direction
But Needs To Be Much Tougher on Spending
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
November 10, 2010
My first cut at the Bowles-Simpson deficit-commission recommendation is that it basically moves the ball in the right direction. It goes after entitlements, domestic and defense discretionary. It puts some kind of freeze on federal hiring and salaries…
An Extraordinary Event in the Markets as Investors Scramble To Stay Ahead of Collapsing Dollar
Negative Yield Emerges on Inflation-Protected Securities
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
October 26, 2010
An extraordinary event for bond markets occurred yesterday when the Treasury sold $10 billion of 5-year inflation-protected securities, or TIPS, at an auction with a yield of negative 0.55 percent. That�s right. Negative. Can�t remember when that�s…
Why I Like Tony Blair
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL, JR., Special to the Sun
September 7, 2010
Mr. Rangel Goes To Washington
By SETH LIPSKY, Special to the Sun
August 31, 2010
Mr. Smith: �Are you drunk?� Miss Saunders: �Certainly. You didn't think I was a lady, did you? You don't think a lady would be working for this outfit. Even I can't take it anymore. I quit. Can't take a lot of things. You. I can't watch a simple guy…
Sarah Palin Celebrates Shabbat And Offers Echoes of Esther
By BENYAMIN KORN, Special to the Sun
August 30, 2010
Driving to Lancaster from Philadelphia Friday afternoon, my wife and I passed through a town named Ephrata. It was named after the town that, in ancient times, was part of the city of Bethlehem; today it is a thriving Israeli city of 8,000-plus…
WikiLeaks and Other Failed Radicals
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL JR., Contribting Editor of the Sun
August 25, 2010
WASHINGTON � They are beginning to die out, or at least to retire. So long suckers. Surely the Clintons, Senator Jean-Francois Kerry, Al Gore and dozens of others who presented themselves as reasonable alternatives to the radicals of the 1960s thought…
Obama Turns Out To Be, After All, Merely a Community Organizer
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL JR., Contributing Editor of the Sun
August 18, 2010
WASHINGTON � It is becoming apparent for all to see, that a man who made his name as a community organizer does not have the skills to be President of these United States. Maybe he could develop the requisite skills as a governor. Possibly, he could…
Kagan�s Record on Religion Offers Some Grounds for Hope
By AVI SHAFRAN, Special to the Sun
August 13, 2010
Imagining that one can divine how a new Supreme Court justice will rule on the sort of fundamental issues often brought before the High Court � particularly when the justice has never before served as a judge � is a pastime best left to gamblers and…
Conrad Black: My Prison Education
By CONRAD BLACK, Special to the Sun
July 31, 2010
In my 28 months as a guest of the U.S. government, I often wondered how my time in that role would end. I never expected that I would have to serve the whole term, though I was, and am, psychologically prepared to do so, now that I have learned more…
The Real Road to Jewish Unity
By AVI SHAFRAN, Special to the Sun
July 23, 2010
The proposed Israeli conversion-reform legislation known as the Rotem Bill � now on hold for several months � became a sort of Rorschach test for many Jews� fears. The bill was introduced by Yisrael Beiteinu, a nationalistic and not infrequently…
King Dollar and Lower Taxes Emerge as the Model
Time Is Right for a Deal
By LAWRENCE KUDLOW, Special to the Sun
November 30, 2010
How ironic. Chairman Bernanke launches QE2 and everyone worries about a dollar collapse. But instead, it�s the euro that has collapsed, dropping 9.5% relative to the greenback. Overall, the dollar index has appreciated 7%. Some, like Robert Mundell…
Foxes, Hounds and Liberty
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL JR., Contributing Editor of the Sun
July 14, 2010
WASHINGTON � My friend, Andrew Roberts, has inherited the title of Historian of the English-Speaking Peoples, from Winston Churchill. Churchill wrote his four-volume history up to 1900. Roberts took up the story from there and has written his…
Mother Russia's Finest
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL JR., Contributing Editor of the Sun
July 8, 2010
WASHINGTON � Well, well, well � now it appears that even the Soviet � strike that � the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is afflicted by the general mediocrity of the moment. There was never any reason to doubt that the Soviet grasp of the…
Outpourings of Emotion Stir City As A Central Park �Killer Tree� Claims An Infant
By HENRY STERN, Special to the Sun
June 28, 2010
The tragic death of a six-month-old baby on Saturday just outside the Central Park Zoo was the result of a major limb of a honey locust tree which suddenly fell about thirty-five feet. The infant was being held by her mother when the falling branches…
Conrad Black�s Principles
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL JR., Contributing Editor of the Sun
June 28, 2010
WASHINGTON � �If you have nothing else you have your principles,� Lady Thatcher told me when things were pretty tough at The American Spectator in the late 1990s. Sharks were circling the ship and there was blood in the water and I was getting anxious…
Should Turkey Be Expelled From NATO?
By CONRAD BLACK
June 5, 2010
The world appears to have descended into an unusually deep slough of the blahs. It is easy to imagine that the horrible oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and the provocations from the sinister gangster regime of North Korea, will never end. Job himself…
�Dirt�
By AVI SHAFFRAN, Special to the Sun
May 28, 2010
With all the hyped-up headlines, the old joke practically insisted on being dusted off. The one about the group of scientists who inform G-d that His services are no longer needed, that their knowledge of the universe now allows them to run it just…
Why American Jews, Such Advocates of Immigration, Should Support Arizona
By BENYAMIN KORN, Special to the Sun
May 26, 2010
Can American Jews, who have always embraced ethnic diversity and generous immigration policies, support Arizona's controversial new immigration law? Yes, we can � and we should. Traditional Jewish support for a liberal American immigration policy has…
The Turning Point
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL, JR., Contributing Editor of the Sun
May 26, 2010
Owing to the promotion tour for my new book, After the Hangover: The Conservatives� Road to Recovery, I have been meeting with what the intelligentsia once called �the masses.� They read books. They pay taxes. They attend lectures. Oh, and by the way…
Skenazy Braces for Blame As �Take Your Kids To the Park Day� Looms for Tomorrow
By LENORE SKENAZY, Special to the Sun
May 21, 2010
Hi Readers. I�m writing this today, because by evening tomorrow, I have a feeling I will be in the crosshairs for something that has happened to some child somewhere in this country, or even another country that has heard about Saturday�s �Take Our…
The Rapper�s Sabbath
By AVI SHAFFRAN, Special to the Sun
May 21, 2010
Despite having eclectic tastes in many things, I have no appreciation of urban music.� And so I had never heard of Q-Tip (the person, that is; the object is familiar to me).� He is apparently a rapper.� Presumably with clean ears. I was introduced to…
How a British Election Turned Into A Torah Teaching Moment
By AVI SHAFRAN, Special to the Sun
May 7, 2010
The British election campaign just ended would seem an unlikely source for a Torah teaching moment, but there it was. One of the blows the Labour Party absorbed in the days preceding the election was precipitated by Prime Minister Gordon Brown�s…
Narrow Escape Sets New Yorkers To Reflect on Question of Iran
By HENRY STERN, Special to the Sun
May 6, 2010
New Yorkers are thinking a great deal this week about the attempted bombing in Times Square. Our narrow escape from death and destruction in the heart of the city reminds us of the police work that frustrated the July 1997 plot to explode bombs on the…
Mayor Betrays an Awkward Discomfort In Wake of Times Square Car Bomb
By R. EMMETT TYRRELL, JR.
May 5, 2010
WASHINGTON � As we read the news about this Pakistani jackal who admits to planning a cowardly assault on hundreds of innocent people in New York�s Times Square a thought that occurs to me is, how endlessly interesting history is. Often things take…
What Does Sarah Palin Read Her Daughter From the Bible?
By BENYAMIN KORN, Special to the Sun
May 3, 2010
When Governor Sarah Palin spoke to 16,000 Christian evangelical women in Louisville, Kentucky on April 16, guess which book she mentioned as the one she reads to her daughter at bedtime? Try the biblical Book of Esther. That�s right � Sarah Palin…
Report From the �Lion�s Den�
By AVI SHAFRAN, Special to the Sun
April 30, 2010
�Boy, you�re brave,� said the first fellow to approach me at the table after the symposium. The panel discussion Sunday was the second time in as many months that I had made a presentation on the topic of Jewish religious pluralism in Israel. Back in…
Clinton Gives Cover To the Angry Left
Something Is Missing From the Debate Over the Tea Party
By R. Emmett Tyrrell, Jr., Contributing Editor of the Sun
April 19, 2010
WASHINGTON � Not so long ago there arose on the American political scene something called the Angry Left. It was an indignant group of ritualistic liberals whose appearance the mainstream media apprised us augured well for Democratic victory in 2008…
The Ghost of Ngo Dinh Diem
Is Obama Making the Mistakes That JFK Made?
By R. Emmett Tyrrell, Jr., Contributing Editor of the Sun
April 9, 2010
WASHINGTON �The increasing static between Kabul and the White House brings to mind other dicey episodes in American diplomacy. Even dealing with allies can be tricky. Recall de Gaulle. He was heartburn for five American presidents. Even Churchill…
Dwight David Obama: President Is Likened To Eisenhower
By YOUSSEF IBRAHIM, Special to the Sun
April 7, 2010
NEW YORK � The latest prediction from the Arab World is that President Obama shall transmogrify into a new Eisenhower, an American president who will ��force�� Israel to withdraw from the West Bank as Eisenhower ��forced�� the Britain, France, and…
Albany Flails for an Escape Route
By HENRY STERN
April 1, 2010
The March 31 constitutional deadline for the adoption of the New York State budget has come and gone. The legislature and the governor have not decided on a budget, and there is no prospect of early agreement between the two houses and the governor on…
What Is Cooking in Albany
By ANDREW WOLF
March 14, 2010
Albany has now become the latest front in the war to drag us all, kicking and screaming, into state-mandated good health.
Ravitch Offers Passionate Defense of America�s Public School System
By ANDREW WOLF
March 2, 2010
No silver bullets. This is the simple premise of Diane Ravitch�s eagerly awaited new book, �The Death and Life of the Great American School System.�
Red-Letter Day in Albany As the Law Takes a Hand
By HENRY J. STERN, Special to the Sun
February 11, 2010
Yesterday was a red letter day in both political corruption and criminal behavior. We observed the indictment of Councilman Larry Seabrook for a multitude of crimes over seven years, and the expulsion from the Senate of Hiram Monserrate. Both are noteworthy events.
'Gimme Shelter'
By SETH LIPSKY
February 10, 2010
One thing that comes to mind as I travel the country to talk about the Constitution is the lyrics from the Rolling Stones song �Gimme Shelter�:
The floods is threat�ning
My very life today
Gimme, gimme shelter
Or I�m gonna fade away
For today it seems that all over the country government officials and ordinary citizens alike are reacting to the expansion in power of the federal government by turning for shelter to the Constitution.
Getting Beyond Bernanke
By LAWRENCE PARKS
January 26, 2010
The right move for the Senate at this juncture is to use the confirmation process for the Fed chairman, Ben Bernanke, to open up the question of the our central bank and the need for a reform of the laws in respect of the dollar. This is because the problem with the Federal Reserve isn�t its personnel but rather the Fed itself.
Double-Cross of Gold
By LAWRENCE PARKS
January 22, 2010
Now here�s a coincidence to ponder � the same day that the Democrats in the Senate proposed allowing the federal government to borrow another $1.9 trillion, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal called for America to sell its gold.
Get Rich, Quick
By LAWRENCE PARKS
January 11, 2010
The question that intrigues us this morning is whether that most celebrated of liberal columnists, Frank Rich of the New York Times, is going to end up in harness with those of us who favor honest money. I�ve been thinking about it because Mr. Rich issued a column the other day lamenting derivatives, which he quotes Warren Buffet as calling �financial weapons of mass destruction.�
Founders in the Crossfire
By SETH LIPSKY
January 5, 2010
Host: Good evening to our television audience, and welcome to this special edition of �Crossfire.� What makes it special is that we have with us tonight two Founders of America, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton. Gentlemen, it�s nice to have you with us.
Hamilton: Good to be here.
Madison: What�s this doo-hickey?
Host: A microphone, Mr. President. Gentlemen the Senate of the United States just brushed aside a constitutional point of order in respect of the Health Care Reform, specifically whether the Congress has the constitutional authority to require Americans to purchase health insurance. One of the architects of the measure, Senator Max Baucus, was quoted in the New York Times as saying the power is there under the clauses of the Constitution that grant Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce and to tax and spend for the general welfare. Now I understand you gentlemen have maintained almost a feud but, in any event, two very different views of these powers.
A Towering Example
By SETH LIPSKY
October 28, 2009
The death of Marek Edelman, who led the uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto and whose example towers over the generations, offers much to think about in the current crisis.
Flat Earth Society
By ANDREW WOLF
October 24, 2009
No sooner did the Daily News lambast critics of Mayor Bloomberg�s educational program as �flat earth� adherents than the federal NAEP math test released its results, which undermine the mayor�s claims for academic improvements on his watch.
Bloomberg�s Diversion Strategy
By ANDREW WOLF
October 18, 2009
The negative tone of Mayor Bloomberg�s reelection effort must signify that there is concern in the Bloomberg camp over Comptroller Thompson�s surprising strength with just over two weeks to go in the campaign.
The Dreaded Cupcake
By ANDREW WOLF
October 10, 2009
News is in from the front lines of the epidemic afflicting our nation. No, I�m not talking about Swine Flu, which seems to be well under control, but the raging �Childhood Obesity Epidemic,� against which Mayor Bloomberg has just banned the common practice of selling at school fund-raisers the dreaded cupcake. Apple pie, no matter how American, will, I predict, be next.
New York�s Education Challenge
By ANDREW WOLF
October 2, 2009
David Steiner was sworn in as the new State Commissioner of Education Thursday, and was immediately greeted with a familiar song: Send More Money.
These are the education �advocates� who have become the perpetual remains of the �Campaign for Fiscal Equity,� undeterred even in the face of evidence that huge increases in expenditures in New York City schools during the Bloomberg years � some 79% in just six years � has barely moved student performance.
Corazon Aquino's Lesson
By SETH LIPSKY
August 5, 2009
One way to reflect on the death of Corazon Aquino would be to go onto the Internet and bring up the address she gave to a joint meeting of the United States Congress. It took place nearly 23 years ago, on September 18, 1986�half a year after Aquino acceded to the presidency of the Philippines in a triumph over the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. Even from this remove, the speech leaves one trembling with emotion, particularly when the universal hunger for democracy is being demonstrated yet again, this time in Iran.
Surprise Witness
By SETH LIPSKY
July 9, 2009
The curtain is about to go up on the confirmation hearings for President Obama�s nominee to the Supreme Court, Judge Sonia Sotomayor. During the advance maneuvering, The New York Times reported that the campaign against Sotomayor has been drawing inspiration from the attacks that succeeded against President Clinton�s nomination of Lani Guinier for a Justice Department position.
The JTA's Bizarro Attack on Neo-Cons
By IRA STOLL
July 3, 2009
The Washington bureau chief of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Ron Kampeas, has posted a screed against neoconservatives on that organization's Web site. "For eight years we in Washington lived in a bizarro world where the most obvious conclusions were not just ignored, but mocked, actively suppressed and made akin to treason," he said. Now, "neoconservatives are losing," because of "their failure, or their abject inability, to say 'I was wrong.'" He writes, "The Bush administration had not merely an aversion but a psychotic fear of saying 'We wuz wrong.'"
Sotomayor and Spellman
By ALICIA COLON
May 28, 2009
President Obama�s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court has unleashed, among other things, a cascade of emails into my computer from friends remarking on the similarities of our backgrounds. I, too, am a Newyorican who lived in a housing project. Mine was in Spanish Harlem, hers in the Bronx, and we both went to parochial schools. Our fathers passed away when we were young, and our mothers struggled to support our families. We also speak perfect unaccented English and are both Catholic.
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