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April 1, 2007 (word)
April 1, 2007 (pdf)
Mark Steyn wonders when the West will fight back.
… So we live today in a world of one-way sovereignty: American, British and Iraqi forces in Iraq respect the Syrian and Iranian borders; the Syrians and Iranians do not respect the Iraqi border. Patrolling the Shatt al-Arab at a time of war, the Royal Navy operates under rules of engagement designed by distant fainthearts with an eye to the polite fictions of “international law”: If you’re in a ”warship,” you can’t wage war. If you’re in a ”destroyer,” don’t destroy anything. If you’re in a “frigate,” you’re frigging done for. …
Mark and Neal Boortz note the UN handling of Iran.
Theodore Dalrymple with a contrarian view of affairs in Iran.
… In the name of gender equality, one is not permitted to refer to spokesmen and spokeswomen, or actors and actresses, and one must disregard altogether the masculinity of military tradition. But as soon as a woman soldier is captured, ill-treatment of her is regarded as especially heinous.
If it is true that women and young mothers are entitled to special consideration when they are captured, merely because they are women and young mothers, then the real coldness and callousness is in having exposed them to capture in the first place. Let us have either mothers of young babies who are entitled to special consideration, or women soldiers, but not both.
Charles Krauthammer has fun with the folks who have “good” wars and “bad” wars.
The Captain and IBD comment on Africa’s response to Mugabe’s deprivations.
… The moral failure of these African nations is complete. Even South Africa’s Mbeki collaborated in this shameful display, despite his nation’s courageous fight for its own representative government. I recall when people around the world boycotted his nation in solidarity with their struggle for freedom. Now South Africa aids and abets a bloody and incompetent tyrant, even to the point of scolding the same nations that supported his cause for not selling out to a thug. South Africans should feel shame and embarrassment for not assisting their real neighbors — those whom Mugabe has impoverished and oppressed for more than 27 years.
Fascinating WSJ piece about the benefits immigrants bring to cities.
Slate writes on how the world’s poor live on $1 a day.
According to the World Bank’s “Doing Business” reports, the poorest countries often boast red tape that means it takes months and costs a small fortune to set up in business.
Michael Barone with some of Larry Sabato’s projections for the swing in house votes by region.
Jonah Goldberg reminds we do have some notable victories.
… Considering how badly things have been going for conservatives, right-wingers, Republicans and anyone else whose brain doesn’t explode like one of those guys from the movie Scanners at the thought of another Republican president, it’s worth noting that one of the greatest conservative victories of the last 40 years is quietly unfolding right in front of us. On March 9, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an epochal ruling. The court found that the Second Amendment actually protects the right to bear arms for individuals.
Now, that in and of itself is huge. For decades, the courts, the legal and academic establishments, the press and all right-thinking people everywhere have been arguing that not only is the Second Amendment a chestnut from a bygone age, but that enlightened judges should just go ahead and void the darn thing like a bad parking ticket.
Lots of posts from Division of Labour. First is a good illustration of tax-cut impacts. Then we learn about a Penn & Teller episode about Wal-Mart and sweatshops.