She's Got My Vote -- Italian Politico Babe

Meet Mara Carfagna, newly elected member of the Italian Parliament. I'm not kidding. She represents the center-right party.

Check her out here, and here.

Why, oh why can't we get people like this to run in Pennsylvania or Maryland?

More Lies Of the Left -- Hitchens on Wilson

Christopher Hitchens is in the process of carefully and thoroughly exposing the many lies of Ambassador Joe Wilson. The latest installment is here. So blatant are the falsehoods perpetrated by Wilson that they raise the question of how anyone other than the Kossack Bush haters, the Democrat hacks like Chris Matthews, and the cynical opportunists like Keith Olbermann can take him seriously. It is important to expose these lies, and since the Bush administration doesn't seem to be interested in doing so it falls to people like Hitchens.

Sic Transit Gloria

They don't last long, the glories of Spring. The picture on the left shows Columbus Circle as it was just a couple of weeks ago; on the right, as it looked yesterday. Quite a difference.

"Black Betty" in Baltimore

"She Who Must Not Be Named" and I spent the past few days at the Inner Harbor [more on that later]. Today the fifth leg of the Volvo Ocean Race, from Rio to Baltimore, ended there. It was won by the
ABN AMRO team, which now has a huge lead in the overall standings and may well have wrapped up the race.

"Black Betty," the ABN AMRO boat, berthed right next to the Constellation and I was there to watch the celebration. The crew took their bows, local officials posed for photo ops, awards were presented, TV crews jostled for good sightlines, the old "Ram Dam" version of Leadbelly's song blared over and over, and a good time was had by all, especially the local vendors who were selling food and drinks. The Volvo Cup boats will be at the harbor for at least the next several days and Baltimore [and also Annapolis] has planned an extensive round of festivities so, if you are in the region, drop on by. Should be fun.

Lies of the Left, continued....

The "Bush lied" mantra is wearing really, really thin these days. From the standpoint of his critics, though, it doesn't matter much. The anti-Bush lies and misrepresentations have done their job and have passed into the common wisdom regarding this administration. John Leo, building on Christopher Hitchens' work, notes that it was Wilson and the New York Times, and not Bush who lied in the Niger uranium affair.

In a surprising editorial, The Washington Post deviated from the conventional anti-Bush media position on two counts. It said President Bush was right to declassify parts of a National Intelligence Estimate to make clear why he thought Saddam Hussein was seeking nuclear weapons. And the editorial said ex-ambassador Joseph Wilson was wrong to think he had debunked Bush on the nuclear charge because Wilson's statements after visiting Niger actually "supported the conclusion that Iraq had sought uranium."

In the orthodox narrative line, Wilson is the truth-teller and the Bush is the liar. But Wilson was not speaking truthfully....

Read the whole thing here.

From a political stance this is far too little, too late. The damage to Bush's credibility has already been done. But it is important, anyway, to set the record straight.

RELATED:

The NY Sun reports:

Contrary to published reports, a State Department memorandum at the center of the investigation into the leak of the name of a CIA operative, Valerie Plame, appears to offer no particular indication that Ms. Plame's role at the agency was classified or covert.

Read it here.

Again, the truth of the matter isn't what is important, the speculation and innuendo that has been widely broadcast for months has served to undermine the credibility of the Bush administration. Now his critics will simply say "never mind" and move on to the next false allegation.

Maryland Politics -- Steele Poses Problem for Democrats

Gregory Kane warns Maryland Democrats not to try to demonize Michael Steele, but notes that they can't help themselves when it comes to race baiting:

If Maryland Democrats were smart, they'd listen to Wayne K. Curry.

That is, if they were smart. But they aren't, so they probably won't.

Curry is the former county executive of Prince George's County, Md., one of the richest counties in the state, if not the country. Curry is also black and a Democrat.

Two weeks ago, Curry warned his fellow party members not to demonize Maryland's Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele.

"Democrats ought to be promoting what they're going to do that's positive," Curry said in a Washington Times story, "instead of trying to knock Steele down."

But Maryland Democrats have a history of trying to "knock down" Republican candidates with the race card. Steele is just their latest target. Surely Curry must remember that nasty business of 1998, when Republican Ellen Sauerbrey ran for governor against then-incumbent Gov. Parris Glendening.

In a classic case of race-based smear tactics gone amok, Democrats ran television ads saying that Sauerbrey opposed three civil rights bills. Each time the ads mentioned civil rights, a black face would appear on the screen.

The record shows that Sauerbrey voted against rewording an open housing law, a second statute requiring Maryland State Police to document crimes against gays and a third that favored more protection from sexual harassment. Most Democrats had no use for such facts.

Read the whole thing here.

We've already seen unscrupulous tactics directed against Steele. Rest assured there will be many more such instances. As presently constituted Maryland's Democratic establishment is not just despicable -- it is probably irredeemable. It's time for people such as Ben Cardin to stand up and to not only abjure from, but to actively work to suppress such disgusting tactics.

Chocolate City?

This is for my Louisiana correspondents.

Abagail Thernstrom has a nice piece in NRO on New Orleans voting. Regarding those who wax nostalgic for "Chocolate City" before Katrina hit she writes:

An accurate pre-Katrina picture of New Orleans is not so pretty. The homicide rate was ten times the national average. The marriage rate was much lower than the national average, and the poverty rate was almost 30 percent, compared with 12 percent nationwide. The Hispanic population was only 3 percent — astonishingly low for the region and surely an indicator of the level of economic opportunity. The city was simply not attracting immigrants....

Katrina shattered the stability of intergenerational poverty, adults disconnected from work, and children without fathers. In its wake it left immense personal tragedy, but also opportunity. The racial composition of the New Orleans electorate is unimportant. Out-of-state satellite voting is not a civil right. As usual, the civil-rights groups and spokesmen are spinning their wheels in the old rhetorical rut of discrimination and disfranchisement. But it's a moment of opportunity for them as well. It's time for a different message — one that recognizes the damage that "entrenched cultural stability" does in America's poorest black communities and helps the uprooted move on.

Read the whole thing here.

The Thernstroms have this inconvenient habit of injecting reality into ideological discussions. Good for them!

Note the interesting proposition that the success of a region in attracting immigants is a good indicator of its prosperity. When a Thernstrom speaks on the subject of immigration pay attention. Steve knows as much as anyone about the subject.

And You Thought the Hitler Youth was Scary....

The New Republic has a terrifying article this week about the Basiji, Iran's militant martyrs -- the movement that produced Ahmadinejad and forms his major support today. [here, subscription required]

The article is for subscribers only, so I'll reproduce the first few paragraphs to give you a taste of what it is about.

During the Iran-Iraq War, the Ayatollah Khomeini imported 500,000 small plastic keys from Taiwan. The trinkets were meant to be inspirational. After Iraq invaded in September 1980, it had quickly become clear that Iran's forces were no match for Saddam Hussein's professional, well-armed military. To compensate for their disadvantage, Khomeini sent Iranian children, some as young as twelve years old, to the front lines. There, they marched in formation across minefields toward the enemy, clearing a path with their bodies. Before every mission, one of the Taiwanese keys would be hung around each child's neck. It was supposed to open the gates to paradise for them.

At one point, however, the earthly gore became a matter of concern. "In the past," wrote the semi-official Iranian daily Ettelaat as the war raged on, "we had child-volunteers: 14-, 15-, and 16-year-olds. They went into the minefields. Their eyes saw nothing. Their ears heard nothing. And then, a few moments later, one saw clouds of dust. When the dust had settled again, there was nothing more to be seen of them. Somewhere, widely scattered in the landscape, there lay scraps of burnt flesh and pieces of bone." Such scenes would henceforth be avoided, Ettelaat assured its readers. "Before entering the minefields, the children [now] wrap themselves in blankets and they roll on the ground, so that their body parts stay together after the explosion of the mines and one can carry them to the graves."

These children who rolled to their deaths were part of the Basiji, a mass movement created by Khomeini in 1979 and militarized after the war started in order to supplement his beleaguered army.The Basij Mostazafan--or "mobilization of the oppressed"--was essentially a volunteer militia, most of whose members were not yet 18. They went enthusiastically, and by the thousands, to their own destruction. "The young men cleared the mines with their own bodies," one veteran of the Iran-Iraq War recalled in 2002 to the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine. "It was sometimes like a race. Even without the commander's orders, everyone wanted to be first."

The sacrifice of the Basiji was ghastly. And yet, today, it is a source not of national shame, but of growing pride. Since the end of hostilities against Iraq in 1988, the Basiji have grown both in numbers and influence. They have been deployed, above all, as a vice squad to enforce religious law in Iran, and their elite "special units" have been used as shock troops against anti-government forces. In both 1999 and 2003, for instance, the Basiji were used to suppress student unrest. And, last year, they formed the potent core of the political base that propelled Mahmoud Ahmadinejad--a man who reportedly served as a Basij instructor during the Iran-Iraq War--to the presidency.

There's much more to concern you in this article. Check out the whole thing at the news stand or subscribe.

Pennsylvania Politics -- Is Swanny Stumbling?

Salena Zito, in the Tribune-Review, worries that Swanny doesn't want the governorship enough and that he is surrounded by political amateurs. She faults him for taking a vacation and for skipping some local appearances -- things that a political pro wouldn't do -- and reminds us that Ed Rendell is the ultimate political pro.

Read it here.

RELATED:

Local media outlets are complaining that Swann hasn't given them enough face time. [here]

AND THIS:

I have not been able to confirm this, but one of my correspondents tells me that Franco Harris will campaign against Swann.

AND ON THE SANTORUM FRONT:

The WaPo has a generally uninformative article on the Santorum/Casey matchup, arguing that while Casey has a big lead, the race will narrow significantly and will probably be close. [duh!]

Read it here.

The Second Liberation of Baghdad

The Times reports that after the new Iraqi government is installed there will be a major offensive in Iraq.

THE American military is planning a “second liberation of Baghdad” to be carried out with the Iraqi army when a new government is installed.

Pacifying the lawless capital is regarded as essential to establishing the authority of the incoming government and preparing for a significant withdrawal of American troops.

Strategic and tactical plans are being laid by US commanders in Iraq and at the US army base in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, under Lieutenant- General David Petraeus. He is regarded as an innovative officer and was formerly responsible for training Iraqi troops.

The battle for Baghdad is expected to entail a “carrot-and-stick” approach, offering the beleaguered population protection from sectarian violence in exchange for rooting out insurgent groups and Al-Qaeda.

Sources close to the Pentagon said Iraqi forces would take the lead, supported by American air power, special operations, intelligence, embedded officers and back-up troops.

Read it here.

This makes sense. As the article states, Baghdad is the key to a stable Iraq, and a mopping up operation to supress local gangs and to clean out the last elements of the "insurgency" is very much in order. The article notes that the Mahdi army and the Badr Brigade, both Iranian backed troublemakers, will be specifically targeted. The offensive should start in the late summer.

An Emersonian View Of War Critics

Wretchard over at the Belmont Club critiques the media critics of the war effort:

The men who judge what works in their area of operations are the Commanders. Sometimes they will be wrong and sometimes get it right. The only demand one can make of command going up the line is to learn from their subordinates' experience and reflect it downward in changed guidance. The failure to adapt is the ultimate command failure. Stupidity was not sending men into the face of machine gun fire in August 1914 when that weapon was encountered in large numbers for the first time. What was stupid was to keep doing it even in the Somme in 1916. [This is] the most disturbing aspect of the debate over the War. The press has made consistency in the prosecution of war a virtue; just as it has made the "failure" to live up to the initial plan the ultimate sin. In consequence so much of the debate consists of archaeology. What George Bush said to Tony Blair in Downing Street. What Joe Wilson heard in Darfur. Yet consistency in war is often not virtue but vice. The hobgoblin of small minds.

Small minds, indeed! Contemporary journalists simply follow a professional template, a single methodology, mindlessly applied. They seek inconsistency and exploit it ruthlessly. To them inconsistency is prima facie evidence of bad faith and dishonesty. The template saves them from having to think.

Read him here.

BIG AD!!!

Check out the "Big Ad" from Australia. [here]

Hat tip, Jonah down on the Corner.

Regarding Rummy

The Academic Elephant has an excellent piece on the current wave of criticism directed at Rummy and why he must stay.

She writes:

It seems to me that at the root of this issue is the fact that civilians control our military. In some ways, the very command structure of the Pentagon is an oxymoron, because logic suggests that a military man should head the military. After all, the military is a culture unto itself with highly-specialized protocols and rituals, not to mention highly-specialized information and tactics, which are best understood by those on the inside. But the makeup of our DoD has since 1947 specified civilian leadership, which creates friction in the top tiers of the Pentagon. But that's okay because we don't really want these guys sitting around singing kumbaya together. Such deliberate conflict is designed to force the military to take civilian priorities into consideration and to ensure full oversight of the military--and the military resents it. How could they not? They're supposed to. That's the point. The only time they don't resent their civilian leadership is when that leadership is weak and so does not step on the military's toes, as was the case with, for example, Bill Cohen. I'm sure all the generals in question--Clinton appointees to a man--long for the "business as usual" days of Cohen. But such a SECDEF, while perhaps popular in the corridors, is not doing his job. He's not challenging the military or second-guessing them, as he should--and, for that matter, the military are not challenging or second-guessing him, as they should. This state of affairs might have passed muster in the Clinton era, but in perilous times like these, we can not afford such a comfort level.

There's more, much more to her analysis.

Read it here.

I would point out that this conflict has been a dominant feature of US military activity ever since the creation of the DoD. Remember the struggles with McArthur over Korea, the intense conflict between civilians and the brass over Vietnam, etc.

I would also note that since WWII there has been a tendency for conflicts to terminate in ways that are unsatisfactory to the military, which would prefer a clear-cut victory. The Cold War itself just sort of sputtered out and its aftermath has been problematic. Korea became an interminable cease fire; Vietnam a withdrawal that turned into a rout. Iraq is turning into something equally frustrating. In each case the military response has been to blame civilian interference.

But, that is to miss the point. The important fact to note is that through this long period of military frustration the political, economic, and cultural influence of the US has grown immensely to the point of being, in the minds of many, a global hegemon. This points to the fact that in the modern world military power is not the only, nor even the primary, instrument by which the U.S. projects influence abroad.

Military commanders are, quite appropriately, concerned with the immediate task at hand -- winning the war. Civilian officials, however, have a broader view. Their concern is to find a favorable resolution to a difficult situation, and military victory may not be the optimal outcome. Iraq is a case in point. There it is far more important that the Iraqi people create and direct the instruments by which civil order is established and maintained than it is for the US forces to go in and kick ass.

Bush and Rummy understand this. Many of their critics do not.

Alexandra on Maltzan over at All Things Beautiful has links to much of the blog commentary favorable to Rummy as well as some interesting artwork.

Happy Easter!

One of my favorite aspects of Easter observance is Ukrainian Easter Eggs (pysanky). Here are a few examples. Wonderful, aren't they?

Appalachian Springtime -- Azaleas are In Full Bloom

It Sucks To Be Frodo

In case you missed them when broadcast, here are the TBS promos for the Lord of the Rings weekend. Watch Gandalf rap, learn why it sucks to be Frodo, and check out the Brokeback Hobbits. [here]

Pagne Lingua on the Web

Just in time for Easter -- an mp3 of Pange Lingua (Sing, My Tongue). Open the file and listen to it. You'll be impressed. Read about it here.

[Hat tip: Mirabilis]

The Unhinged Left -- Meet the Moonbats

The WaPo has a nice piece about lefty haters on the web.

Meet Maryscott O'Connor, author of "My Left Wing":

SHERMAN OAKS, Calif. -- In the angry life of Maryscott O'Connor, the rage begins as soon as she opens her eyes and realizes that her president is still George W. Bush. The sun has yet to rise and her family is asleep, but no matter; as soon as the realization kicks in, O'Connor, 37, is out of bed and heading toward her computer.

Out there, awaiting her building fury: the Angry Left, where O'Connor's reputation is as one of the angriest of all. "One long, sustained scream" is how she describes the writing she does for various Web logs, as she wonders what she should scream about this day.

There you have it folks..., the looney left in full bloom. And they call the Republicans the "Party of Hate!"

Read the whole thing here.

A Consortium of Madmen -- Mugabe Supports Ahmadinejad

News 24 (South Africa) reports:

Harare - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe expressed his support of Iran's controversial programme of uranium enrichment, the country's state radio reported on Friday.

Speaking after a meeting with Iran's foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki in Harare, Mugabe said his government would look at ways of strengthening ties with Iran.

The radio station reported: "President Robert Mugabe has thrown his weight behind Iran in the current dispute where the United States and her allies are opposing Iran's nuclear enrichment programme.

Read it here.

Can't say I'm surprised....

More Good Economic News

For those of you, and there are many, who still think that Bush has mismanaged the economy, behold.

Reuters reports:

Output from U.S. factories, mines and utilities rose 0.6 percent in March, slightly more than expected, as capacity use reached its highest point in 5-1/2 years, the Federal Reserve said on Friday.

Capacity utilization, a measure of how close to full potential factories, mines and utilities are running, rose to 81.3 percent from a downwardly revised 81.0 in February, marking its highest level since reaching 81.5 percent in September 2000.

The Fed said output from the nation's mines rose 0.9 percent in March after falling 0.7 percent in February, while manufacturing and utility output both gained 0.5 percent.

Yep, employment is at historically high levels. So is productivity. Inflation continues to be under control. The housing bust never happened. The recession, thanks to Bush’s policies, was one of the mildest and shortest ever. Now manufacturing is hitting new highs. There is a tremendous growth in high level, high-paying jobs. And this year there were more new job openings than there were college graduates. And still, people persist in believing that the economy is in bad shape.

Go figure….