The Incredible Smugness of Being . . . a Liberal

To think, Pat Schroeder once was considered a serious presidential candidate.

The funny thing is according to the survey she based her statements on, liberals read on average 9 books a year, conservatives 8 (and moderates 5). So basically, as president of the Publishers Association, she is trashing a large part of her association's customers.

This is further proof in my mind that a big part of the problem with political discourse in this country is incivility -- it seems as though pundits are more interested in making sarcastic points about their adversaries than really addressing issues. Liberals love to play the conservatives are dumb racist line while conservatives love to say that liberals are all baby aborting traitors.

Which is why "What's Your Problem" with New Republic's Peter Beinart & National Review's Jonah Goldberg is such a breath of fresh air. Two people, talking like adults, about the great issues of the day, rather than throwing insults back and forth. I think we need more of it.

Ron Paul (Again) and Ronald Reagan

Ron Paul is trying hard to claim the mantle of Reagan.



You have got to admit, Paul supporters are both technologically savvy and committed.

EDITED TO NOTE -- in response to a commenter, I note that this video was made by a supporter of Ron Paul, not his campaign. Which I knew, but did not make clear. So it would be better to say that a supporter sees Paul grabbing the mantle of Reagan.

Bear Invasions -- We were warned!

Instapundit notes that bears are becoming more aggressive and invading homes.

We were warned:

The Republican YouTube Debate

The Florida GOP has decided to get into the act and is sponsoring a "YouTube" debate. However, unlike the Democrats, the leading GOP candidates seem like they may pass. Big mistake. Like most on the right, I do think the media is biased, though I think the bias is more toward a collectivist/aristocratic bend rather than a true liberal bias. Thanks to technology, we are able to break the big media monopoly on information -- the web, podcasts, blogs open up new lines of unfiltered thought.

The YouTube debates are merely one manifestation of this new technology.

GOP -- listen to Ann Althouse -- don't wuss out!

Jet Blue and the Yearly Kos

The Daily Kos is a blog run by Markos Moulitsas Zúniga. It has become the premier site for the left wing side of the blogsphere. This site (and others like it) has been successful in influencing the Democratic Party to push leftward the last few years. Kos will be having its second annual convention in August.

Unlike the usual Internet gathering, which consists of some posters and readers showing up in a bar to drink beer, Yearly Kos will the held at Chicago's McCormack Center. The three day conference features an impressive schedule of seminars, working groups and general sessions. Speakers include Donna Brazile, Howard Dean, Wesley Clark, Senator Dick Durbin, and you have to believe some of the Democratic candidates will make an appearance. It will be a major gathering for the Internet left, possibly rivaling CPAC's annual meeting in importance to American politics. Not bad for a site only 5 years old.

Almost as impressive is the number of sponsors lined up for the conference.

So what is the problem?

Kos won a real coup by lining up an official airline, JetBlue. Then JetBlue pulled out. Why? Because Bill O'Reilly and a host of conservative bloggers started to raise a fuss. Roger Simon has a good run down here and a defense of JetBlue here. I really cannot add much to Simon's statements. This is bad for the blogsphere as a whole, bad for the conservative and libertarian blogsphere, and bad for public discourse.

It is bad for the blogsphere as a whole because now it will cause mainstream companies to be wary of "investing" in the blogsphere. The idea of the blogsphere is to help break the stranglehold the mainstream media has on the intellectual marketplace. Companies must be able to see the blogsphere as an inexpensive and cost effective alternative to network television as a way to reach their customer base. Companies will be reluctant to invest in this new medium if every time they do, they are threatened with boycotts.

It is bad for the right side of the blogsphere as for one it looks vindictive and two anything that hurts the blogsphere as a whole, is going to hurt the right side too.

Finally, Glenn Reynolds thinks this whole thing may be Fox's payback for the "netroots," lead by Daily Kos, forcing the Nevada Democrats to cancel a debate on Fox News Channel. I think there may be something to that.

I am a minor blogger in this great and wonderful blogsphere. So while unimportant, I have no vested interest in the snipping and infighting that have marked the blogsphere since its beginning.

So how about this for a proposal -- a truce. The left got one, the right got one. Let's call it even. From now one, let's try and be civil. The Daily Kos is not the website of the anti-Christ. Let's try to win with ideas, not with overheated rhetoric.

Let's make civility the word of the day, week, month, year and decade.

The You Tube Debate

I was stuck late at work tonight, so I did not watch the You Tube debate. Instead, I periodically checked Ann Althouse to see her thoughts.

While some may argue it was a silly and pointless exercise, this is further proof in my mind that technology is changing the way the country is governed. All of those complaining about the main stream media as being biased toward the left are fighting the last war. Thanks to the Internet, it is easy for anyone to create a platform to spread their ideas. Howard Dean was I believe just a precursor. Ron Paul is creating an Internet based campaign. Fred Thompson has created much buzz through smart use of the Internet.

This You Tube debate is just the beginning.

Now for a question the candidates did not answer:

Ron Paul supporters love me!

I have been writing this blog for almost a month. In that time, I received 2 comments from a person I know on a soccer board wishing me luck, and one piece of spam. I then had a post about Ron Paul (and some of his extreme supporters) and I received two quick comments, one of which was a slightly nasty rant against me. Considering the obscurity of this blog, I have no idea how they found me. I assume that Ron Paul supporters are spending lots of time on technorati.com and checking out every entry tagging "Ron Paul" (it is one of the more popular searches on that site apparently).

So Mr. Anonymous:

I stand my my statement that at times libertarianism shades off into crazy land.

As for the Fed, I am aware of its history and the reason for its founding. There had been a push to a central bank and a sounder currency since the Second Bank of the United States lost its charter in the 1830s. We had the national bank system founded in the 1860s. But after the Panic of 1908, there was a real push for a new central bank. There was a minor panic in 1910, so that further incentivized people for a new bank.

That is a gross over simplification, I know. But good enough for this general discussion. Now I need to go look for black helicopters

As for Dr. Paul, I agree with most of what he has to say, but he does say some wacky things at times and does have some "interesting" supporters.

Long live freedom!

Immigration Bill Passes Cloture

The immigration bill passed cloture and that sound you heard was the storm getting started on the right side of the blog sphere. While I am a supporter of the bill, I understand the reason for the opposition. A large part of it is that, frankly, no one trusts President Bush any more. The bill was sold as amnesty (without using the word) coupled with enforcement. No one believes that there will be meaningful enforcement (though it could be argued that enforcement at the border has never been better). Furthermore, the behavior of some of the supporters of the bill has been horrendous.

The Daily Kos, the premier left wing blog, which you would think would be interested in the issue, seems not to care. The most recent post on immigration is one from June 25th setting forth a progressive case against the bill. The argument is that it will depress wages.

While current the immigration issue is tearing apart the GOP, the longer it goes, its effects will be felt by the Democrats also. One of the Democrats key constituents, African Americans, may find themselves in competition with recent immigrants and guest workers for jobs. And while the heavily immigrant unions such as the Service Workers support immigration reform, other unions may see immigration as a threat.

Immigration has no easy and good answers. Both parties need this to be over quickly.