August 2002 Archives

Archives of the entries for this month are listed below, by category. You may jump directly to categories using the navigation bar thumbnails. Please keep in mind that links do expire, and that archived links may not still be available.

American Politics

Bush Loses Support He Never Had
(08-29-2002) As President Bush's popularity has declined from post-September 11 highs of 90% to a still-formidable 65%, some pundits have asserted that Bush's base has begun to abandon him. Not so, writes Byron York. Rather, the erosion in the polls largely comes from people who would never vote for Bush, but nonetheless said they approved of his performance following the attacks.

Beware Consensus Leadership
(08-27-2002) The first Bush Administration began to move American foreign policy from a Reaganite unilateralist approach to more of a consensus approach. The Clinton Administration embraced the shift wholeheartedly. Now, the foreign policy architects of the first Bush Administration are pushing the approach in the public prints. Defense policy intellectual Frank Gaffney responds to them.

On Building Nations
(08-27-2002) Conservatives wrongly shy away from the notion of nation-building, perhaps because of the way it was done by the Clinton foreign policy team. But the sort of involved nation-building such as that done in postwar Japan is exactly what is needed in Afghanistan now and in Iraq when the time comes. Jed Babbin makes the case for a conservative foreign policy of nation-building.

Treasury Void
(08-27-2002) Historically, the Treasury Department has been the central economic policymaking agency of the executive branch. But in the Bush Administration, Paul O'Neill has largely abdicated that role, creating a vacuum that hasn't really been filled. Bruce Bartlett predicts that O'Neill will soon be departing, and suggests a replacement.

Supply-Side Goes To Harvard
(08-26-2002) Liberals and conservatives alike tend to believe that the best (maybe only) reason to trim government spending is that budget deficits push up interest rates. But Robert Barro and Alberto Alesina (among others) find that contrary to Keynesian orthodoxy, trimming government spending actually has an expansionary effect. Alan Murray explains.

Demography And The West
(08-25-2002) For 50 years, the prosperous nations of America and Europe shared a similar demography, as fertility rates declined and the populations aged. But in the 1990s, American fertility rates rebounded to near-replacement levels, partly a result of immigration, whereas Europe's continued to trail badly. The Economist considers the political implications.

Priscilla Owen's "Activism"
(08-25-2002) Liberals have tried to paint Texas judge Priscilla Owen as a judicial activist, even using dicta from President Bush's White House counsel Alberto Gonzales in support of their argument. Steve Chapman reviews the case in question, and finds the charges of judicial activism wanting.

The Disappearing Presidency?
(08-21-2002) The summer Congressional recess is typically a quiet time in American politics, as members go home to deal with local issues and constituents, and Presidents tend to go on vacation. Conservative columnist Michael Kelly argues that President Bush's summer vacation has undermined his two priorities: moving forward with the war on terror, and restoring economic confidence.

Wishful Dem Thinking
(08-20-2002) In an article based on their forthcoming The Emerging Democratic Majority, John B. Judis and Ruy Teixeira argue that the Dems are well-positioned as a neo-progressive majority emerges. Thomas Bray counters that the Dems only come closer to majority status as they adopt Republican themes.

Kristof v. Hatfill
(08-17-2002) For months, major publications have run with a series of FBI leaks pointing to domestic suspects for the anthrax attacks on America. One prominent left-leaning journalist was instrumental in fingering Steven Hatfill, who denies all such charges. Bill Harrison considers the motivation behind Nicholas Kristof's attack journalism. (08-19-02 Update: Robert Bartley and Mona Charen weigh in)

No Democratic Tide (Yet)
(08-13-2002) During most mid-term elections, the party holding the Presidency suffers significant Congressional losses. That may not hold true this time, even with the corporate scandals. Michael Barone, one of our most astute students of electoral politics, surveys the competitive Congressional races, and says no Democratic trend has emerged just yet.

Taxing Television
(08-13-2002) HDTV has interested so few consumers that broadcasters have delayed making the transition. Enter the FCC. Last week, it issued a dictate that all broadcast signals must be converted to the new format by 2007. It is effectively a new tax, argues the Washington Times editorial board. (More)

Homeland Insecurity
(08-12-2002) In Secrets And Lies, computer security expert Bruce Schneier argues that security planners mistakenly rely upon technological cure-alls, and rarely consider the points and consequences of system failures. The same mistaken approach, he adds, underlies the new policies of homeland security. Charles C. Mann visits at length with the security guru.

Internal Conflict
(08-05-2002) The anti-Americanism of many Bay Area "progressive" intellectuals is well established, even if some of them would deny it. When that anti-Americanism recently turned to anti-Semitism, however, it came as a bit of shock to left-leaning Jewish Americans (even if it should not have). Glen Martin reports on the phenomenon.

The Do-Something Congress
(08-05-2002) George Bush has fairly quietly put together one of the most impressive strings of legislative accomplishment in recent memory. As political scientist Ross Baker notes, whether you agree with it or not, this Congress has gotten a lot done. Robert Novak, however, argues it might have been better if not for Tom Daschle.

Balancing Act
(08-01-2002) One of the challenges for American foreign policy is to focus on the war on terror while remaining engaged in international affairs more broadly. Much of that work falls to Colin Powell's State Department. The Secetary of State visits with the Far Eastern Economic Review's David Plott on American diplomacy and Asia.

International

Sick System
(08-28-2002) In the early days of the Clinton Administration, proponents of national health care often touted the Canadian system. But a recent report ranks the Canadian health system near the bottom of industrialized nations, just ahead of Hungary, Poland, and Turkey. Eric Beaudan reports on the problems.

Cleaning Up Nicaragua
(08-25-2002) Through the regimes of the Somoza dynasty, to Daniel Ortega's rule, to Arnoldo Aleman's presidency, one constant of Nicaraguan politics through war and peace has been corruption at the top. New President Enrique Bolaños seems determined to change that, formally charging his former boss, Aleman. But Sandinistas and members of Bolaños's own party may frustrate the effort in the country's parliament.

King For Mesopotamia?
(08-25-2002) One of the popular memes among bloggers over the past 11 months has been the notion of Hashemite Restoration. Recently, the learned author of The Closed Circle made the case for restoring the Hashemite kingdom in Iraq. But Claude Salhani argues that David Pryce-Jones and other such neo-colonialist thinkers are wrong.

A Russian Backtrack?
(08-23-2002) Vladimir Putin and George Bush have established a strategic partnership of sorts, with a record of cooperation on issues ranging from the ABM Treaty to the War on Terror. But Russia's recent dealings with rogue regimes have called that relationship into question. Ariel Cohen suggests it's not time to worry just yet.

The How-To Terrorist Collection
(08-19-2002) If the events of 11 September left any doubt that Al Qaeda is a nasty bunch (and for some, there are always doubts), the collection of tapes obtained by CNN in Afhganistan should ease them. Judith Miller, the co-author of Germs, reports that the tapes are literally a documentary of the terrorist organization, replete with lessons in explosives and chemical weapons. (Related)

Turkey's Tension
(08-19-2002) Kemal Ataturk unwittingly created a social experiment that is playing out in the regime he founded. His vision of a secular democratic republic has long been upheld by the military, as David Holley points out. But as Turkey's Islamist movement grows, it exposes the fundamental tension in Ataturk's thought. Can Islam and liberal democracy coexist? (Related)

Difficult Times In Kyrgyzstan
(08-19-2002) A year ago, Kyrgyzstan, with its limited hydrocarbon deposits, was probably the least known of the former Soviet "stans" to Americans. But the American decision to take out the Al Qaeda terror network suddenly elevated Kyrgyzstan's strategic importance, and a burgeoning Islamist movement in the Fergana Valley also attracted attention. Robert Kaiser profiles the new American ally.

A Latin American Axis?
(08-19-2002) Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Fidel Castro has been more of an irritant than a strategic threat to the U.S. His close friendship with Hugo Chavez is troubling because of American reliance on Venezuelan energy, however. And if Luis Inacio da Silva wins the Brazilian presidency, that could mean more trouble for the U.S. Defense policy analyst Constantine Menges elaborates.

Democracy In Latin America
(08-19-2002) Latin America is a mess. The economies in the region are all tanking. There is widespread distrust of political parties, and a belief that corruption is endemic. But there is some good news. A recent poll shows that in most of the region, support for democratic norms has increased in the past year. The Economist highlights results of its polling.

The Tyrant Of Belarus
(08-19-2002) Old tyrants never seem to change. Some, like Fidel Castro, manage to cling to power. Others, such as Nicolae Ceaucescu, meet an uglier end. The "president" of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, has thus far avoided Ceaucescu's fate, but as a merger with Russia looms, Lukashenko may soon be without the state apparatus to protect himself.

Who Is Michael Harrington?
(08-15-2002) The libertarian right in the United States has long acknowledged the influence of Ayn Rand, but her reach has never really extended to British conservatives. Until now. A number of conservative MPs are considering a breakaway party devoted to Randian principles. Michael Harrington doesn't really address the new party or its ideology, but he can't resist sneering at the late novelist.

Al-Qaeda's Fantasy Ideology
(08-14-2002) It's quite natural and useful for analysts of international politics to ascribe rational motives to the actors. Indeed, Lee Harris argues in this provocative essay that seemingly opposed figures ranging from the hawkish Victor Davis Hanson to the dovish Noam Chomsky share Clausewitzean premises -- and that they are wrong. America, he argues, is merely a prop in a ghoulish fantasy.

Thaksin Loses His Grip
(08-05-2002) Thailand's Thaksin Shinawatra won a landslide victory a year and a half ago. As Prime Minister, Thaksin then oversaw the assimilation of his party's junior coalition partner into his own party. One would think the action would have ushered in a period of regime stability. As Urs Morf reports, it has not worked out that way.

Under Siege In Aceh
(08-05-2002) Multinational E&P firms like ExxonMobil are accustomed to working in some of the diciest places in the world. Take Aceh, for example. The world's largest E&P firm is finding creative ways to maintain production even as secessionist rebels take aim. (More)

Books and Arts

The Nature Of Human Nature
(08-25-2002) The question of nature -- and human nature more specifically -- is central to Western political philosophy. Whether it's the Palestinian suicide murderers or Nazis, argues George Will in a wide-ranging commentary on Richard Rhodes's Masters Of Death, "civilization’s enemies attack civilization’s foundational idea, the proposition that human nature is not infinitely plastic...."

Self-Regulation And Civility
(08-25-2002) "Obviously," says Theodore Dalrymple, "we do not want a law telling us to stand there and not stand there—but we have no internal sense that we don’t actually push in front of one another, or bash people aside, and that our rights have to be tempered by respect for other people’s rights—that is what seems to have changed." Peter Saunders visits with the author of Life At The Bottom.

The Mantle Of The Prophet
(08-24-2002) Twenty-six years ago, Joseph Frank published his first volume on Fyodor Dostoevsky. Now 84, Frank has published the the fifth and final volume, Dostoevsky: The Mantle of the Prophet, 1871-1881. Thomas L. Jeffers thinks that Frank's effort to understand Dostoevsky's thought during this period is peerless.

Brain Damage
(08-19-2002) Stephen Hollander's Political Pilgrims examined intellectuals who traveled to Communist regimes over 50 years. His Anti-Americanism explored intellectual hatred of America. Stephen Goode finds that Hollander's latest collection, Discontents, continues his "cogent analysis of intellectual folks and the damage they do in their pursuit of a perfect society and absolute social justice."

Treasonous Behavior
(08-11-2002) Robert Walker Lindh may be the latest to aid and abet an enemy during wartime, but he's certainly not the most prominent American to engage in arguably treasonous behavior. That title, contend former Ayn Rand associates Erika and Henry Mark Holzer, probably still belongs to Jane Fonda. Mac Owens reviews their book, Aid And Comfort: Jane Fonda In North Vietnam.

Shakedown
(08-11-2002) Kenneth Timmerman's Shakedown: Exposing The Real Jesse Jackson, writes Jack Friedman, is exactly what one expects given the title: "a disturbing narrative of Jackson's manipulation of black America's struggle for equality to benefit himself and . . . a coterie of his 'grievance elite.'"

A Savage War Grinds On
(08-08-2002) Chechens define themselves as a warrior people. Russia prefers to characterize secessionist Chechens as terrorists akin to Al Qaeda. Journalist Sebastian Smith's Allah's Mountains fleshes out the details of this little-studied conflict. As reviewer Ralph Amelan notes, "at every turn in Smith's account, heroism rubs shoulders with barbarity."

India's House Divided
(08-08-2002) For much of its existence as a postcolonial state, India has been almost an anachronism: the perfect model of a multicultural, multiethnic, multireligious regime organized under a secular government. More recently, the Hindu-Muslim riots have led some to speculate India will go the way of Yugoslavia. No way, argues Ashutosh Varshney in Ethnic Conflict and Civic Life.

Texana

True Crime?
(08-27-2002) In February 2002, we posted a link to a favorable review of Dina Temple-Raston's A Death In Texas. It has come to our attention that the author may have borrowed certain phrases from the Austin American-Statesman without attribution. Shawn Badgley reports.

Amber Plan
(08-25-2002) The so-called "Amber Plan" that has received so much attention recently because of police successes in the Western U.S. has its roots in Arlington. Although it unfortunately came too late for its namesake, 9-year old Amber Hagerman, the response plan is having a nationwide impact. Carlton Stowers elaborates.

Destiny's Child
(08-25-2002) With some 60 major historical works on Sam Houston, is there really a need for another? Considering the hagiographical nature of much of the work, James Haley's answer is an emphatic yes. Tom Duval writes that "Haley has eschewed the customary devotions and elevated the bar considerably with Sam Houston."

Fixing The Chron
(08-19-2002) The Houston Chronicle has been blasted nationwide for its dreadful coverage of Enron, and critical readers have long called the paper an establishment organ. New editor Jeff Cohen promises improvement, writes Evan Smith, and has brought a new degree of self-criticism and self-analysis to the paper's editors. But will it be enough to fix a really bad newspaper?

Goddess
(08-08-2002) "The goal is global domination. The goal is to get signed. The goal is to get a big, fat record deal and make lots of records and retire in a big house that I design," says Neil Verma of Houston's indie-pop band Goddess. Sara Cress profiles the up-and-coming band.

Society

Hit Charade
(08-25-2002) The music industry, and the RIAA in particular, blames the current decline in music sales and interest on the technology of digital reproduction. They said the same things in the late 1970s about cassette technology, when in reality the problem was a decline in the quality and variety of music being produced. That's the problem today, argues Mark Jenkins, and it's compounded by the conglomeratization of music labels and radio.

Restoration Drama
(08-19-2002) It's a given among most environmentalists that economic growth is destructive of the environment. And it's certainly true that economic development has an impact on the environment. But as this Economist article points out, technologically advanced, affluent societies can and do work to repair the environment.

The Ball Coach
(08-11-2002) Steve Spurrier has suggested Saints coach Jim Haslett's extra hours may not have been spent all that well and that he doesn't think much of Tony Dungy's "keep it close" philosophy. He's also annoyed 49ers coach Steve Mariucci by stomping the 49ers in a preseason game. As Paul Attner points out, the ball coach has already made the NFL a lot more interesting. (More)

Major League Bummer
(08-05-2002) Major League Baseball may well see another work stoppage this summer. Players are threatening to strike, to pre-empt a possible lockout by the owners after the season. The umpires, for their part, have a completely unrelated gripe. They don't like a new computer system that monitors their ball and strike calls. It's all one big dysfunctional family.

Other Headlines

Revolt In Kenya's Ruling Party

Greenspan Defends Record

Luttwak: Bush v. Bush In The Middle East

Barone: Lessons From McKinney's Defeat

Lyons: Visa Vision

Kurtz: What If Both Sides Are Right On Iraq?

Robbins: Déjà Vu On Iraq

One Faculty, Indivisible

Charen: Moral Disarmament

September 11 Attack Planned For Months

Foreign Troops Leaving Congo

Peters: Iraq Too Tough?

Caldwell: The Post Buries A Scoop

Oviedo Still Popular In Paraguay

Podhoretz: Cuomo's Collapse

Samuelson: The End Of The Age Of Inflation

Iran's 1979 Revolution Goes Awry

Judis: Cable Access

Did You Lose The Tax Audit Lottery?

Judis: Strike Three

Rosett: On The Turkmenbashi

Mangu-Ward: Lifestyles Of The Poor And Obscure

Hispanics Disappointed By Redistricting

Beinart: First Serve

Sperling: Bush's Green Light On Iraq

Saunders: What Governor?

Qatar's Heterodox Policymaking

Foreman: A Peacenik Coup

Mowbray: Hatfill Strikes Back

Zengerle: Does Washington Deserve Its Mayor?

Lomborg: The Environmentalists Are Wrong

WSJ: The Political Education Of Bill Ford

Castro Card Holds Less Sway In Florida

Long Odds For GOP In California

Sanitizing Islam

Will: Teaching 9/11 Lies

Saudia Arabia's Deal With The Devil

Thieves Steal Rare Dickens Editions

WSJ: Gray Davis Swings Left

Fowler: End Run (Reviews of Two Recent Books On Enron)

Lewis: Deconstructing Osama

Iraq Killed Abu Nidal Over Al Qaeda Row

Schutze: Crossing Division Street

How Al Qaeda Attempts To Buy Chinese Arms

"Deep" Iraqi Involvement In Abu Nidal Death?

Divided Sudan Inevitable?

Neumayr: Bias Busting

Western Democrats And The Sierra Club

Wall Street Rebound?

Judge: Cult Of Bruce

TNR: The Best Case Against Saddam

Grady: Who Needs Baseball?

Steyn: The War Bush Is Losing

Will: Summer Of Discontent

Tyrrell: On Republican Handwringers

King: Bracing For The Digital Crackdown

Musharraf Redraws Constitution

Evolving Tactics Of Terrorism

Aydintasbas: The Death Of Abu Nidal

Greenberg: Secret Enemies, Secret Arrests

GOP Gains Among Hispanic Voters

Wagstyl: Ukraine Looks West

Pipes & Schanzer: Saddam's Rap Sheet

Mitchell: IRS Needs Adult Supervision

Gaffney: Angst. v. Leadership On Iraq

Babbin: Meanwhile, Back In Baghdad

Ledeen: The Death Of Abu Nidal

Timmerman: The Death Of Abu Nidal

Podhoretz: Beyond Bush 41

Paglia: The Left Has Lost Its Way

Ukraine And The West

Russell: Immoral Maize

Six New Acts Of Note In Texas Music

Rich: What Is Anti-Semitism?

NYTimes Misrepresents Kissinger On Iraq

Miller: Chuck Hagel (R., France)

York: The Case For War In Iraq Has Been Made

WSJ: This Is Opposition?

Novak: Greenspan Losing Control?

Krauthammer: The NYTimes Campaign

Miller: "It Gets Hard When They Cheer"

Plunder In Zimbabwe

Pakistan's Empty Election

Dreher: Jesse Jackson's Crackup

Wolfowitz On American Power

Gross: Owners Killing United Airlines

Holding CEOs To Their Word

Muravchik: The Prof Who Can't Count

Henninger: Robot Sports Leagues

Greenberg: The Ghosts Of Mogadishu

When It Raines It Pours

Kristol: The Axis Of Appeasement

Kudlow: Credit Crunch

Stott: "Sustainable Development" Is Dangerous Nonsense

"Domestic Commotion" In Colombia

Who Wants To Be A Billionaire?

Doron: Two Cheers For Irving Kristol

Pipes: The Courage Of My Convictions

Confusion Surrounds Russia-Belarus Union

Assassination Attempt On Qusay Hussein?

McBeth: The Case For Islamic Law

Hazlett: The Clinton-Reno Microsoft Meat Grinder

Will: Regime Change In Iraq

Winkler: The U.S.-German Conversation

Balzar: Happiness And Materialism

Kelly: To Attack Iraq, Or Not

Bockhorn: Hairbrained Howard

America's Skies On 9-11, I

America's Skies On 9-11, II

Chipman: America's Right To Fight Iraq

Larry Miller's Excellent (Israeli) Adventure

Gordon: Mischaracterizing The "Occupation"

Democratic Glass House

GOP Optimistic About Senate Races

Hawkins: Armey, Bandow, and Iraq

Kristoff: The Anthrax Files

Kiesling: Green Market

Olasky: A Little-Noticed Pro-Life Victory

Borchgrave: Counterpoint On Saudi Arabia

Charen: Fields For Seeds Of Freedom

Kurtz: Postmodernism Kills

Bartley: Liberating Iraq

Kudlow: Battling Deflation

Burne: Webs Of Intrigue

Risky Oil

Reynolds: Market 'Disconnect" Was Disconnected

Rabushka: Colonial Roots Of American Taxation

The Spoiled Boys Of Summer

Caballero: Colombian Ghosts

Henriksen: Bush's Geopolitical Coup

O'Reilly: A Friendly Reminder

Will: Baseball's Paradox

Scowcroft's Cloudy Crystal Ball

Turkmenistan's President Ops For Nontraditional Calendar

Henninger: People Are Trying To Kill Us

Rubin: Thinking About Post-Hussein Iraq

Schulz: Comedy And Climate

Gedmin: Ich Bin Ein Slacker

Al Qaeda Massing For New Fight?

US Seeks To Galvanize Iraqi Opposition

Hoagland: Making Saddam Squirm

The AOL Time Warner Flameout

Kudlow: The GOP's Pro-Investor Lifeline

Music Makes Comeback In Iran

Babbin: Turning Iran Around

Kanfer: Sontag Strikes Again

Moment Of Truth For Iraq's Kurds

Barone: Our Enemies The Saudis, II

Blankley: Tipples, Trenches, And Tilts To The Left

Keane: Mugabe's Ethnic Cleansing

Lord: Anatomy Of A Failed Borking

Ledeen: Iran's (Invisible) Revolution

Pipes: Israel Is Winning

Reynolds: Don't Get Mad, Write Novels

Rahn: Pursuit Of Economic Literacy

Dunlap:Fateful Reasons

King: Doris Kearns Goodwin, Kleptomaniac?

South America's Dominoes

Ledeen: Scowcroft Strikes Out

Varadarajan: Nachman's Knack

Exposing Al Qaeda's European Network, II

Exposing Al Qaeda's European Network, I

Briefing Depicts Saudis As Enemies

Podhoretz: Timely Bias

Sheley: Bushophobia On West 43rd

The Elusive Enemy

McWhorter: Get The Led Out

Kinsley: A Tough Pill

Venezuela's Other Strongman

Uganda Cracks Down On "Terror"

Tomlinson: Paving The Way For Ideas

York: Bush's Credibility, And Gore's

Supreme Discomfort: Justice Thomas And Black-On-Black Racism

Woolsey: Iran's Coming Revolution

Exposing Al Qaeda's European Network, I

Lost Voices

Brooks: Patio Man And The Sprawl People

Greenberg: The 17-Year-Old Ex-President

Brazil Faces Old Demons

Bigger Blue

UN: No Massacre In Jenin Camp

Bush Wins Fast-Track Authority In Senate

Sowell: Galloping Costs Of Ecology Cult

Rubin, Lieberman, and Lay

Uribe's Hour

Glassman & Hassett: Dow 36,000 Revisited

Sullum: Two Styles Of Sleaze

Arrison: Hollywood Hacks Consumers

Tyrrell: OBL, Rest In Hell

Novak: Economic Non-Spokesman

Brooks: The DLC And Me