An eye-opener.
Month: December 2011
Yglesias Award Nominee
No One “Lost” Egypt
Doug Mataconis gets angry with Republicans blaming Obama for the apparent Islamist victory at the Egyptian polls:
The idea that there was much of anything that the United States either could have, or should have, done during the Egyptian protests that would have kept Mubarak in power any longer ignores all of the available evidence. The protesters in Tahrir Square and in other cities in Egypt had made clear that they would not negotiate with anyone — not the military, not Egypt’s new Vice-President (a Mubarak crony) — until Mubarak himself had stepped aside as early as the end of January. Nothing Mubarak did persuaded them to leave the protests. Much like the downfall of Nicolae Ceacescu in Romania, the crowds were not going to leave until the dictator had left. The idea that we could have controlled that process is absurd, and the suggestion that we should have stood aside and let Mubarak brutally repress this rebellion is, quite honestly, an insult to American decency.
(Photo: An Egyptian anti-military rule protester attends a demonstration in Tahrir Square in Cairo on November 29, 2011. Egyptians went to the polls for a second day of voting in the first round in what is the first parliament elections since the February uprising. By Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty Images)
Ads
Yes, as some of you have noticed, we have some! I know some readers hate them, but they are the only way to pay for what we do (as they were at the Atlantic). We kept the transition to the Beast ad-free, but now we're beginning to pay our way. More on this soon.
Dear Ta-Nehisi, Ctd
My friend's response to my earlier post. It's a riveting area but also a draining one that we've covered pretty exhaustively now from both sides. So let's call it a day, shall we? And thanks for the input.
A Small Note On Bachmann
In her non-response to the student in Iowa, Michele Bachmann simply asserted that exclusively heterosexual marriage is the "law of the land" and that is the reason it is right. The only factual (as opposed tological) problem with this is that in Iowa, same-sex marriage is the law of the land.
Bachmann doesn't seem to know this, which, at this point, is not exactly a surprise. But same-sex marriage in America is no longer an idea or a proposal. It is a fact in many states.
Republicans For Bowles-Simpson?
Michael Scherer is puzzled:
Today we see another headscratcher: The Republican National Committee puts out a press release slamming President Obama for not embracing the Simpson-Bowles deficit reduction commission, the same commission that raises taxes by $1 trillion, and which House Republican leaders unanimously opposed just a year ago. …
There was good political logic behind Obama’s cautious strategy. He was hoping a big deal could be crafted in private, and he knew that his public embrace of Simpson-Bowles in late 2010 would make it radioactive to Republicans in the House, who already said they opposed it, while infuriating the left by endorsing entitlement cuts without further negotiating. The irony is that now the opposite has happened. Republicans are increasingly embracing Simpson Bowles as an anti-Obama plan, even though it jibes, with the exception of a few details, with the sort of policy that Obama would love to make his legacy.
Which is why Obama should run on it.
Containing China: A Good Idea?
Raymond Pritchett thinks a strong US presence in Asia may be crucial to keeping the peace:
What concerns me…is if China fails to mature within the liberal global order over the next few decades and simultaneously attempts to achieve primacy of the global oceans through naval power. If indeed the best and most realistic strategic outcome for East Asia is one in which the major powers are in balance, then it must also be stated that the strategic balance [Malcolm] Turnbull believes is best cannot be achieved should China achieve primacy over US Naval power, and I would go further to suggest US naval primacy is today the single condition that allows strategic balance between the major powers if/when China achieves primacy in other areas of national power like economy.
Ted Galen Carpenter is less impressed:
[T]o embrace a containment policy—especially one that is primarily bluster and symbolism—when Washington badly needs China to continue funding the seemingly endless flow of U.S. Treasury debt verges on being dim-witted. It’s never a good idea to anger one’s banker. And one can assume that Beijing is watching U.S. actions, not just the pro-forma assurances that the United States wants good relations and does not regard China as a threat. Those assurances ring increasingly hollow, and one can assume that Chinese leaders will react accordingly. That does not bode well for the future of the U.S.-China relationship.
Viktor Yadah looks at how India might get in to the mix.
(Photo: A US navy serviceman walks past an F/A-18 Hornet warplane onboard the USS George Washington, a nuclear powered aircraft carrier, in Hong Kong on November 9, 2011. The Nimitz Class warship, which was commissioned in 1992, was in Hong Kong for a port visit. By Aaron Tam/AFP/Getty Images.)
Why Don’t Americans Like Obamacare?
Kevin Drum is fascinated by some new polling on healthcare reform. A highlight:
Among those who don't like Obamacare, nearly half admit that their dislike has nothing much to do with the law itself. They're just mad at Obama and/or Washington DC.
Face Of The Day
French Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand holds a sex toy as he visits the 'Sex in the City' fair during the World AIDS Day on December 1, 2011. According to the latest UN figures, about 34 million people in the world were infected with HIV/AIDS in 2010 and 1.8 million people died, down from a peak of 2.2 million in 2005. By Patrick Kovarik/AFP/Getty Images.
The Dish 
