Category: The Dish

Stop. You’re killing me. This one is particularly revealing. A gay man as a priest! Why it’s like Goebbels heading Radio Free Europe! I wonder how their gay staffer feels … oh, wait …

Some skepticism about a recent poll on Bush’s approval rating. A more accurate number would be in the low 30s. A better assessment can be found here.

Just noticing something from the Queen’s guest-list. It’s good to be the king.

Another condom drops. This detail is particularly enjoyable:

In 2001, appearing at a NARAL/Pro-Choice America luncheon, he voiced the conservative case for abortion rights, arguing that it "might be more consistent with the philosophy of the Republican Party.

"Because the Republican Party stands for the idea that you have to restore more freedom of choice, more opportunity, more opportunity for people to make their own choices rather than the government dictating those choices," said Giuliani.

Well Walt Disney was never that fond of the Jews, but this is pushing it:

Hat tip: Dave Weigel).

… what God would you be? My results below. Yours? Try here.

Everyone copies the Simpsons, and, at some point the manatees were bound to luck out, I suppose, but …

(Hat tip: Kottke.)

"This is one of the last chances the Republicans have to be a truly national party … I talk to members of Congress about this and they literally walk away, saying the bill is unconstitutional. Unconstitutional? They voted for the Patriot Act! A presidential veto on this would consign the Republican Party in perpetuity to 8 to 10 percent of the black vote," – Jack Kemp on Republican efforts to scotch giving D.C. residents the right to vote for a member of Congress.

A reader writes:

In some ways, I share a very similar world view to many neocons. I do believe that we’re faced with a "Clash of Civilizations" which will last for generations. However, I have a very different view about the battlefield, the enemy, and the way in which this war is going to be fought.

As cliched as it might sound, this war is going to boil down to a battle for "Hearts and Minds". We need to convince those young Jordanians living in Zarqa that they have can expect a better future engaging with the international system than trying to destroy it. We practice this philosophy as part of our counter-insurgency doctrines in hell holes like Iraq. But we don’t apply the same lessons in a more proactive manner. The United States needs to relearn basic principles like foreign aid and trade liberalization are an investment in our long term security.

Democracy can not be imposed with the barrel of a rifle. If the US really wants to promote democracy we need to focus on building functioning societies. This is going to require sustained focus and investment on failing states across the globe. What would the world look like today if the US had been willing to invest real resources for "Nation Building" in Afghanistan after the Soviet withdrawal?

Here’s the good news: the world has gotten a lot smarter regarding economic development models. The extremely wasteful and expensive top down development structures are being replaced with micro-lending programs and community initiatives.

Would we have one without the other? Virginia Postrel agrees with Brink Lindsey.