Articles
July 31, 2004
Reagan, Unto Eternity
Christopher Schweickert
Part 1: June 5, 2004 My sister Kelsey and I pulled into the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley. Although this visit was going to be short, it had been some time in planning. We were going to attend... More
July 30, 2004
A word to the unwise
Edward L. Daley
The Founders of this nation wrote the words "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." in order to prevent the federal government from creating a state sponsored religion like the one... More
July 30, 2004
Image is Everything
Matthew May
Sen. John F. Kerry delivered another in an expanding line of forgettable speeches last night in Boston. It was boilerplate leftist rhetoric full of buzzwords, insults, lies, myths, and misconceptions, and a boatload of domestic programs and promises that no... More
July 30, 2004
Seeds of Jihad (2)
James Arlandson
Part 1 of this series can be read here Some of Muhammad's actions and policy show areas that his later followers misinterpret and misapply, since sometimes his actions and policies—rooted so deeply in Arab custom but missing in the Founder... More
July 29, 2004
The Unbearable Brightness of Being Ken
John B. Dwyer
Thirty—eight straight games, over $1,300,000 in winnings, every record broken and 76 challengers crushed by Jeopardy! juggernaut Ken Jennings. His phenomenal performance has generated responses that run the gamut from love to hate; from deep suspicion to cultish adoration, while... More
July 29, 2004
The quagmire nobody talks about
Douglas Hanson
December of this year will mark the nine—year anniversary of US and NATO intervention in the Balkan War of 1992—95. For almost a decade, our troops have been conducting stability and support operations in Bosnia—Herzegovina, and, later, provided secure bases... More
July 28, 2004
Seeds of Jihad (1)
James Arlandson
A two—part series. Part (2) will appear tomorrow. The deepest source of Islamic terrorism lies in theology. Formed in response to events in the Prophet's lifetime, there are problematic aspects to Islamic theology and practice not found in two other... More
July 28, 2004
Good class origins
Ed Lasky
In Stalin's Russia and Mao's China, 'good class origins' were considered essential for an ambitious apparatchik. 'Good' in the sense of humble —— the poorer the better. When high church communism was discarded, the children of accomplished Chinese and Russian... More
July 28, 2004
At the old ball game
Edward L. Daley
Even with a couple of cheater's steps off the pitcher's rubber working in his favor, John F. Kerry, in front of a sold—out crowd at Fenway Park, couldn't manage to throw the first pitch of Sunday's Red Sox/Yankees game across... More
July 28, 2004
All about Teresa
Thomas Lifson
Teresa Heinz Kerry made it through her unprecedented speech at the Democratic National Convention without losing control of her famous temper, losing her place in the well—rehearsed speech, or otherwise providing dramatic entertainment. But she was just plain weird. Leave... More
July 27, 2004
In a nutshell
Matthew May
In case you were rearranging the sock drawer or doing something similarly productive, here's what happened in Boston last night: When it comes to convention speeches, it's difficult to say that Democrats are inconsistent. During last night's festivities at the... More
July 27, 2004
Israel may be compelled to pre-empt
Rachel Neuwirth
Iran is moving rapidly to become a nuclear power. The Iranian mullahs have publicly promised to use nuclear weapons to exterminate Israel even if Israel were to achieve peace with the Palestinians. They also claim that Iran, with 70 million... More
July 27, 2004
Who knew?
Clarice Feldman
The news media's treatment of Sandy Berger's removal of highly classified documents from the National Archives remarkably focuses on the timing of the leak, casting aspersions on the White House. It's not the first time Democrats have shown that manipulating... More
July 26, 2004
Okrent Spots a Rat
Richard Baehr
Daniel Okrent, the New York Times' recently appointed Public Editor, has already had some run—ins with Times writers and staff, who are apparently not used to criticism or scrutiny from within. After his July 25 column, Is the New York... More
July 26, 2004
The State of the Race
Richard Baehr
The Baehr Essentials If Monday, July 26th were Election Day, instead of the start of the Democratic National Convention, it would likely be a good day for the Democrats and the millions of Bush haters in the US and abroad. ... More
July 26, 2004
Surprising views of Iraq from the French press
Olivier Guitta
Here are some very positive stories and op—eds concerning Iraq recently found in the French press. 1. America that we love to hate, by Bruno Tertrais in Le Figaro Bruno Tertrais, in a very refreshing op—ed, builds a case defending... More
July 25, 2004
Battle Blog 18 - 24 July 2004
Douglas Hanson
Iraq and Afghanistan are making steady progress towards establishment of a secure and democratic form of government. Coalition military units and Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRT) are continuing operations to ensure all eligible Afghan citizens have the opportunity to vote in... More
July 23, 2004
Crimestoppers
Bob Weir
Weir thinking about it In July of 1976, on a hot steamy night in Albuquerque, New Mexico, two criminals shot and killed a young man working at a gas station. They had no idea that they would be responsible for... More
July 23, 2004
Fortitude
Matthew May
President George W. Bush has endured an onslaught of attacks from his opponents and critics in the nation's dominant media organs, the likes of which have not been seen since the days of Richard Nixon. Perhaps it is unprecedented. When... More
July 23, 2004
Bush and Clinton in French face-off
Olivier Guitta
Over last weekend, ex—President Clinton gave two stunning interviews to the French press: one to Le Monde and the other one to Le Figaro. Coincidentally, President Bush also gave a very interesting interview to Le Figaro. This gives us the... More
July 22, 2004
Hostages have Pres. Arroyo and Spain to thank
Christopher Orlet
The six new hostages in Iraq have the governments of the Philippines and Spain to thank for their current plight. Experts warned that giving in to terrorists' demands would only encourage more kidnappings, leading to more demands, and an ever—increasing... More
July 22, 2004
The growing tyranny of the judiciary
Edward L. Daley
A few weeks ago, Queens Superior Court Justice, Laura Blackburne, a notoriously anti—police judge, was reassigned to civil court for helping a robbery suspect, Derek Sterling, evade an NYPD detective who was in the courthouse to arrest the convicted felon... More
July 22, 2004
Gordon Gecko's world
Bob Weir
Weir Thinking about it Jack Benny used to tell a funny story about a guy who approached him with a gun and said: 'Your money or your life!' After a few seconds had passed, the guy said: 'Well?' Benny replied:... More
July 21, 2004
Extra! New propaganda line
Ed Lasky
Readers of the largest, most prestigious American dailies are being treated to a propaganda campaign unprecedented in modern times. In their effort to defeat President George Bush, the New York Times and the Washington Post often choose to run stories... More
July 21, 2004
You know you're a pinkneck if:
R.L.A. Schaefer
Some say that Kerry—Edwards is the first metrosexual ticket. But five syllable words do not lend themselves readily to jokes, slogans, or taunts. Clearly, we need a new new slang expression. How about 'pinkneck'? You know you're a pinkneck if: you can hardly... More
July 21, 2004
A beautiful and amazing story from Israel
Olivier Guitta
Tolerance is the solution to most conflicts in the world. From the French—language website newsmagazine proche—orient.info comes an incredible story of friendship and human dignity. The story starts in Sarajevo at the beginning of WWII. Mustafa and Zaneiba Hardagan were... More
July 20, 2004
The girlie-man gambit
Thomas Lifson
Once again, Arnold Schwarzenegger is outsmarting his California Democrat opponents, and leading the state in the direction of long—needed structural change. The Governator is a brilliant man, a master of strategy and tactics, and possessed of energy, charm, charisma, confidence,... More
July 20, 2004
Kerry bounces backwards
Richard Baehr
Two weeks ago, both Democratic and GOP strategists were talking about the coming Kerry poll bounce. The bounce would have two stages: the VP nominee selection, and then the Democratic convention. The GOP, trying to highball the number, estimated that ... More
July 20, 2004
Revolting Elites
James Holmes
Sighted this week in Princeton, New Jersey: a BMW sports car bearing bumper stickers that proclaimed the driver to have "A PBS Mind in a Fox News World" and enjoined Americans to "Think: It's Patriotic." However silly the sentiments conveyed,... More
July 19, 2004
New ideas in community development
Norman Hapke
The plight of our inner cities has been the focus of elite concern since before Lyndon Johnson's Great Society, seemingly impervious to all manner of initiatives and palliatives from governmental or private institutions. While hundreds of billions of dollars have... More
July 19, 2004
Share the hate
Thomas Lifson
Last night, at a claimed 3192 locations nationwide, Moveon.org held house parties to view the new film Outfoxed, an unfair and unbalanced attack on the Fox News Channel. Already hyped by the New York Times and discredited by Fox News,... More
July 19, 2004
Out of the Frying Pan
Christopher Orlet
Sixty years after the Holocaust transformed much of Central Europe into a massive graveyard, the scourge of anti—Semitism seems alive and well, particularly in France, home of Europe's largest Jewish population. Weekly headlines emanating from Paris, Marseille, and Lyon are... More
July 18, 2004
Revolution in the Palestinian Authority?
Olivier Guitta
The liberal media worldwide, the UN, the European Union and the Arab world want you to believe that Israel is more responsible than the Palestinian Authority in the failure of the 'peace process.' Another of the same media's favorite... More
July 18, 2004
Battle Blog 11 - 17 July 2004
Douglas Hanson
The mainstream press is in its normal operating mode, focusing on every negative situation in Iraq, while ignoring the tremendous success stories coming out of both Iraq and Afghanistan. This week's Battle Blog, as always, will continue to inform American... More
July 17, 2004
First Amendment thoughts
Anthony Medica IV
Young American Thinkers In the wake of the COPA decision*, as in the earlier Howard Stern controversy, we as citizens need to look at the true meaning and purpose of the First Amendment. What the amendment means, and how it should... More
July 16, 2004
Sometimes French
Olivier Guitta
During the traditional Bastille Day press interview, French President Chirac was asked to touch on the violent anti—Semitic wave shaking France. He replied, 'Our fellow Jews, Muslims or others, or simply sometimes French are victims of aggressions because they do... More
July 16, 2004
The Presbyterian Church loses its grip
Richard Baehr
Jewish liberals received a shock this week. The liberal Presbyterian Church USA [thanks to readers who corrected the earlier mistake on the name] declared war on Israel at is annual General Assembly meeting, approving a divestment campaign from Israel by an 87%... More
July 16, 2004
A better framework for peace (2)
Rachel Neuwirth
[Part (1) of this article appeared yesterday.] Contrary to popular belief, the Arab—Israeli conflict has a solution. An orderly resettlement elsewhere of the so—called Palestinian Arabs would solve this long standing 'intractable' problem. To propose this solution today elicits automatic... More
July 15, 2004
The UN, Al-Tuwaitha, and nukes
Douglas Hanson
The UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), was very upset last week that the US had shipped about 1.8 tons of low—enriched uranium and other radioactive material out of Iraq for disposition in the US. One would... More
July 15, 2004
Da Wildcard Senator
Richard Baehr
The topic being debated on sports talk radio in Chicago this week was not the coming Bears training camp, or the fading hopes for the Cubs, but whether 'da Coach' would run, and could he win a Senate race for... More
July 15, 2004
A better framework for peace (1)
Rachel Neuwirth
This is the first of two articles outlining a radically different framework for peace, one that doesn't envision endless conflict. Part 1 today argues against the belief that basic human justice requires a new Palestinian state. Part 2 presents an... More
July 14, 2004
The Deception Warriors Gather
John B. Dwyer
They now operate from the U.S. Navy's Fleet Information Warfare Center, Naval Amphibious Base, Little Creek, Virginia. Their missions include: electronic warfare, psychological operations, military deception, operational security and computer network defense. Their predecessors, the men who will gather for reunion 14—18... More
July 14, 2004
Dear John letter
Russ Vaughn
Dear John, After all you've been through in the past year, losing in the primaries and being unable to win reelection to your own Senate seat, I do hate to bring more uncertainty into your life; but I've noticed that since... More
July 14, 2004
Terrorist logic and the November elections
James Arlandson
This final installment in the series of three articles argues that there is an evil and deadly terrorist logic, designed to influence the American elections in November. The articles take the form of examining a series of logical premises. The... More
July 13, 2004
Overlooked news from Iraq
Olivier Guitta
Libya is still a rogue country During a press conference held in Paris on July 6, 2004 the French lawyer Emmanuel Ludot, one of the twenty attorneys representing the Butcher of Baghdad, Saddam Hussein, made some stunning revelations. First and... More
July 13, 2004
Outside Agitators
Matthew May
Here's a puzzler for you history buffs out there: which prominent elected official wrote the following words in a letter to which civil rights activist from a state other than his own, and when was it written? 'Go home and... More
July 13, 2004
Rebuilding Alliances Involves More than Just Making Nice
James Holmes
A staple of Sen. John Kerry's critique of the Bush foreign policy is that President George W. Bush and his lieutenants squandered the goodwill of longstanding allies by their boastful words, plunged into Iraq without the explicit blessing of the... More
July 12, 2004
What Israel Has Lost
Richard Baehr
A few weeks back, Charles Krauthammer wrote an article, 'Israel's Intifada Victory,' in which he argued that rather than bringing Israel to its knees, the intifada had been a strategic disaster for the Palestinians. In one sense, Krauthammer is clearly correct:... More
July 12, 2004
The lesson of Radio City
Thomas Lifson
Last week's profanity—laden Democratic fundraiser in Radio City Music Hall has important consequences, far beyond its impact on voters' understanding of candidates Kerry and Edwards, and their relationship with the Hollywood elites. The audience which is closely watching this domestic... More
July 12, 2004
Anti-Semitism in France: not only for Jews
Olivier Guitta
Friday morning on a Paris commuter train, the infernal cycle of anti—Semitism, silence and fear appeared once again. Six Arab youths attacked a twenty—three—year—old young mother with her thirteen—month—old baby. They started by stealing her hand bag and then, looking... More
July 11, 2004
Battle Blog 4 - 10 July 2004
Douglas Hanson
The establishment of a sovereign Iraq has put the onus of security squarely on the shoulders of the Iraqis themselves. They are not doing this alone, of course, since recruiting and training occur under the watchful eye of the Coalition. ... More
July 10, 2004
Mainstream press reporter joins the wrong side
Douglas Hanson
Shortly after The American Thinker criticized the mainstream press, especially the conservative daily The Washington Times, for their lack of on—the—ground reporting in Iraq, a Time Magazine reporter finally broke through the leftist haze, and has routinely been with units... More
July 09, 2004
Can anyone in the Times newsroom spell 'objective'?
Ed Lasky
The New York Times is now trumpeting the 'dream team' of John Kerry and his running mate, John Edwards. However, strangely enough, on January 4th the Grey Lady ran a front—page article that disparaged him as a greedy Magus of... More
July 09, 2004
The terrorist logic of strength
James Arlandson
Terrorists would rather fight a weak and discordant opponent so they can win the war they started and impose their ultimate goal. In American politics today, Kerry and the Democrats are the opponents they would prefer to face as leaders... More
July 09, 2004
None dare call it treason
Bob Weir
Weir thinking about it As Iraq continues its struggle to form a democracy, and the hunt for terrorists goes on in Afghanistan, the usual assortment of protesters is back in the news. These holdovers from, and emulators of, the sixties... More
July 08, 2004
Jews mobilize to save Muslims
Ed Lasky
For decades, the Muslim world has been in thrall to the concept of victimhood. The claim that Muslims have been wronged by the avarice of the West, by the crusading Christians, and especially by the Jewish people reclaiming their ancient... More
July 08, 2004
A big whoop?
Richard Baehr
The Baehr Essentials Last week, Bush campaign strategist Matthew Dowd emailed Bush supporters that they should expect to see a 15 point bounce for John Kerry in the next month. This bounce would be consistent with those for candidates in... More
July 08, 2004
Declare war
Thomas Lifson
Satire The failure of the Bush Administration to seek a Declaration of War following the 9/11 attack is once again causing problems, in the wake of the recent Supreme Court rulings on the rights of detainees. The lack of an... More
July 07, 2004
Kerry's plan
James Arlandson
In a Washington Post op—ed article, John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, adumbrates a plan, of sorts, for Iraq. He writes the piece so he can appear in—touch with the events in Iraq. But he keeps it vague and... More
July 07, 2004
Kerry the hero
William Fielder
A photograph of Senator John F. Kerry, being honored by the Marxist government of Vietnam for special contributions to the communist victory in their war of domination, hangs in the War Remnants Museum (formerly the War Crimes Museum) in Ho... More
July 07, 2004
Pressuring Israel
Rachel Neuwirth
Daniel Pipes has called attention to the many disastrous unilateral concessions that Israel has made to the Arab Palestinian terrorist "leadership" since 1992, and the terrible price in dead, maimed and suffering people, not to mention a ruined economy, that... More
July 06, 2004
For Jews, Belgium is no better than France
Olivier Guitta
Recently, the wave of anti—Semitism in Europe has been the fiercest in France. That is why we have been focusing on that country, reporting at length on the situation of the French Jewish population. France hosts the largest Jewish and... More
July 06, 2004
Lebanese love imbroglio
Olivier Guitta
From the June 30 issue of al Hayat, we learn that the Lebanese government's top priority of the day was deciding whether or not to approve a wedding between two Christian Maronites. Why is that so important? Because the bride happens... More
July 06, 2004
Curtain call in the Balkans
Douglas Hanson
The nine year—long deployment for US forces in the Balkans finally appears to be coming to a close, yet amazingly, the US mainstream media has chosen to completely ignore this major shift of our defense strategy. Meanwhile, the American people... More
July 05, 2004
The siege of Western Civilization
Thomas Lifson
Television, for the most part, belongs to the left. The advent of the Fox News Channel, and the occasional History Channel program to the contrary notwithstanding, 'progressive' pabulum dominates the tube. Anyone who has ever raged at the unfairness of... More
July 05, 2004
Let's do lunch
Thomas Lifson
Berkeley, California, my home town, has a well—deserved reputation for leftist absurdity. Many bad ideas either originated here, or were developed to their logical extreme by activists in and out of the local municipal government. Yet, like a broken clock,... More
July 05, 2004
Remember the Liberators
John B. Dwyer
As Iraq celebrates its regained sovereignty and independence, it is appropriate, with the meaning and importance of 4th of July weekend fresh in our minds, that we take a moment to remember some of those who made this historic event... More
July 04, 2004
Battle Blog 27 June - 3 July 2004
Douglas Hanson
Since the handover to Iraqi officials earlier this week, terrorist attacks have apparently fallen off sharply. Problems still remain with Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) and roadside bombs, but there have been no reports of coordinated assaults against Coalition forces or... More
July 04, 2004
Teed off without women
Bob Weir
Weir thinking about it Recently, at a dinner function with some friends, one of the guys brought up the idea of a golfing holiday for men. He said that he and a bunch of other guys were planning to spend... More
July 02, 2004
Prison predators
Bob Weir
Weir thinking about it How much does the average American know about the conditions that exist in our prisons? Similar to the 'outside' world, there are gangs, religions, male and female type relationships, and business deals. A complex society in... More
July 02, 2004
France's everlasting love for the PLO
Olivier Guitta
In a deliberate snub, French Foreign Minister Barnier decided to visit Palestinian Authority head Yasser Arafat, rather than Israeli Prime Minister Sharon, on his visit to the region. We revealed this intention to readers earlier. Now we have an account... More
July 02, 2004
Israel, the courts and Michael Moore
Richard Baehr
On July 9th, the International Court in The Hague is expected to announce its ruling on the legality of Israel's security fence. Perhaps in a bow to The Hague, Israel's Supreme Court, in two separate rulings this week, struck down the... More
July 01, 2004
Finally!
Douglas Hanson
It appears that the nine—year old stability and support mission to the Balkans will finally come to an end this year for US forces. An article published by the Guardian (UK)today, describes the low—key ceremony marking the closing of the... More
July 01, 2004
The media and the election
Richard Baehr
Last week, the New York Times ombudsman was forced to acknowledge that the Times headline about the 9/11 Commission's findings on an Iraq Al Qaeda link was misleading. He noted, however, that the error was unintentional, whatever that might mean.... More
July 01, 2004
The Abdullah option
Olivier Guitta
America has been ignoring a highly promising set of political ideas and institutions, in its rush to establish a democratic republic in Iraq. By doing so, we discount one of the most important lessons of the last century of political... More
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