Month: August 2008

Spinning The Troop Donations

Allahpundit does his best:

Evidence, then, that most troops want out? Maybe! Except … the data doesn’t specify whether the donations came mostly from Iraq or were spread out around the globe, and interestingly, the one branch where McCain leads Obama in contributions is the one most likely to see the hardest action — the Corps. Beyond that, the would-be McCain soldier-donor has a hurdle to clear on his way to his checkbook that the Paul and Obama donor doesn’t. By kicking in to Maverick, he’s making it marginally more likely that he’ll continue to be deployed in the field and away from his family in the future. Even if he agrees with McCain’s foreign policy, thinks we ought to finish the job in Iraq, and is willing to continue serving bravely and well to that end, it’s asking a lot to ask him to pay for the privilege.

For The Love Of Fags

Jacob Grier defends tobacco and lashes out against over-zealous, misguided regulation:

"Tobacco is a wondrous plant, capable of relaxing us, stimulating us, and offering a fantastic range of flavors. The times I’ve spent smoking an occasional pipe or cigar are among my favorite memories of the past few years, times of reflection, celebration, and deepening friendship. I wouldn’t give them up for anything."

And since I am not yet an American, I can drop the f-bomb.

The Next Georgia?

Totten reports from Azerbaijan:

Azerbaijan belongs to that strange region where the sort-of West meets the sort-of East and is another Balkan-style tinderbox with ethnic time bombs that tend to explode. Azerbaijan has lots of oil, too, so it matters to the rest of the world far more than its near absence in the media might suggest. It’s simultaneously being pulled toward Russia, the West, and the Islamic world. No one knows where it will end up, but Russia’s invasion of Georgia next door likely will be a big factor.

The Conventions Approach

Can you feel the excitement?:

If the political press corps were honest, they’d start every convention story with the finding that nothing important happened that day and that your attention is not needed.

I’m not going – again. I’m not a big fan of schmoozing with fellow hacks and can see it all much better from Cape Cod.

The Tory Position

Stuttaford keeps me sane at NRO:

What we have to recognize is that Russia is a (sorta) great power trying to do what great powers do. This will involve plenty of jostling, shoving, pushing, and all the rest of it. It won’t always be pretty, particularly given the KGB-stained nature of Russia’s current leadership. On occasion, the U.S. will have to shove back, and shove back very firmly. That said, to try using what’s going on in Georgia (as some seem inclined to do) as the inspiration of some sort of revived Cold War is not the way to go.

It’s critical to remember that what rivalry there is between the U.S. and Russia is not ideological to any meaningful degree. Moscow is neither Riyadh nor Tehran. Yes, yes, at some level, Russia is, and will remain, a strategic competitor. That’s fine. In a multi-polar world, that’s life. At, another, deeper, and more important level, however, many of Russia’s strategic interests are aligned with those of the U.S. The trick will be in getting the Kremlin to act on that ultimately reassuring fact.