Monthly Archives: April, 2011

David Brooks is not all bad. Even Bernie Goldberg, who is a frequent critic of the liberal intelligentsia, says Brooks is “intelligent and knowledgeable.” But Brooks also has an emotional need to belong, so he pulls his punches. It is about access to people in power and being accepted by the so-called “beautiful people.”
Today Brooks [...]

When the Constitutional Convention ended someone asked Benjamin Franklin what kind of government they had created. He answered:
“A Republic, if you can keep. it.”
The quote from Federalist 55 explains why it is so difficult to keep a republic. It requires a well informed and honest population. We certainly do not have that today. Madison wrote:
“As [...]

Karl Rove and Daniel Henninger write in the Wall Street Journal about Barack Obama’s sudden lurch to the left, after a brief attempt to come across as a centrist candidate for re-election. Henninger’s focus is on Obama’s effort to demonize so-called rich people (Obama’s Millionaire Obsession), and Rove argues that what Obama is saying today [...]

We are supposed to respect people with moderate views, and shy away from extremists. That may be why many voters like to say they are independents. That presumably means they can see both sides of an issue and for that they deserve more respect.
Michael Kazin, who writes for the New Republic, disagrees with this assessment [...]

The Economist, in a special report on California (Where it All Went Wrong) concludes that the state’s dysfunctional politics can be traced back to Hiram Johnson, who was the leader of a movement called Progressivism. One hundred years ago Johnson, who was governor of California, called a special election. Voters in 1911 were asked to [...]

The bureaucratic mind is focused on avoiding risk. Superiors derive satisfaction from criticizing underlings, because it is proof they deserve their loftier positions. Underlings do not enjoy being criticized, so they avoid situations that might lead to humiliation. It is better to be safe than sorry. It is best to keep doing things the way [...]

Daniel Henninger writes in the Wall Street Journal (Obama’s Likability Gap) that the Barack Obama we have seen lately is a different personality from the one that ran for the White House in 2008. Back then Obama was patient, open and optimistic. In 2011 he has been something else-petulant, arrogant and increasingly a divider.
Of course, Henninger [...]

Clive Crook writes in the Financial Times (Tax Reform Can Yet Save America) that Republicans and Democrats are only “secondarily concerned with deficit control.” What is important to Republicans, says Crook, is to reduce the size of government. Democrats believe they must prevent this from happening. Consequently, it is not likely much will be done [...]

Maureen Dowd writes in the New York Times (Atlas Without Angelina) that Barack Obama is “antithetical” to the heroes in Ayn Rand’s novels because he believes what makes America great is our collectivist spirit. He traces the beginning of America’s greatness back to 1965, when Lyndon Johnson managed to force Medicare legislation through Congress. That [...]

The Economist writes about David Cameron’s attempt to reform the British health care system, and what they have to say is very relevant to what is happening in America. Cameron’s reforms involve a dismantling of the centralized health care bureaucracy. This is the exact opposite of what Obama is trying to do in America.
The Economist [...]