Today on the Dish, Andrew despaired that Obama's attempt Israeli diplomacy couldn't achieve a Palestinian state, but reflected on the relative peace of modern times. Contra Corey Robin, Andrew contemplated why moderation can be conservative in the right time and place, and the National Review went cruising. Andrew praised the English garden in today's video feature and Saleh's return to Yemen didn't bode well for civil war there. Thomas P.M. Barnett wanted the US to ingratiate itself to other countries in the Mideast by disassociating with Pakistan, but mediation between India and Pakistan could help.
On the election front, we were still waiting for Perry's economic plan to materialize, while Perry's tuition policy for immigrants makes total economic sense, if he'd only defend it. David Brooks lost faith in Huntsman, we counted down the days till Palin's decision, and she revealed her insecurity by dissing the presidency. We weighed Chris Christie's charisma and weight, pizza-man Cain pulled head-to-head with Perry and Romney in the race, and Tom Tancredo seized on Perry's Norquist relationship. Dan Amira argued for Florida's right to an early vote, and Perry-campaign hathos alert here. Teaparty.com didn't look like a good investment when you consider the bad Canadian rock that birthed it, at least McGinniss got a fair trial up north, and we examined the demands of the Wall Street protests.
Balko called the US out for sanitizing the death penalty by using unreliable injections rather than the firing squad and the jury is still out about the death penalty's ability to deter crime. Obamacare was headed for the Supreme Court, and Frum believed Romney is the only candidate with a reasonable approach to reforming the ACA. Suspect sketches mess with our images of the perpetrator, the DEA knocked on the wrong door, and you should treat the First Amendment like you treat your penis. Dental care remained a luxury for most Americans, and the US wins the honor of the only country without legally mandated vacation days. Readers lobbied for the best way to raise kids in either cities or suburbs and Reihan wanted the gas tax to work more like a metro card. Traffic congestion isn't cheap, Keith Boyea offered a Camus-view of DC bureaucracy, and gay gangs in DC fought back. Amazon, Google and Apple fought for the tablet market, Google caught itself in a win-win feedback loop of data, and opticians reconsidered the impact of lasers on airline pilots. Hanna Brooks Olsen defended the right of young women to get their tubes tied, and evangelical Christians weren't waiting for marriage to do the deed.
Email of the day here, VFYW here, MHB here, and FOTD here.
–Z.P.
The Dish 