The Dish

A very useful reminder of the long view, in these days of precipitous decline after the disastrous, bankrupting, morale-breaking over-reach of the Bush-Cheney years:

Even if America is exhausted, worn out and a shadow of her former self, from having spent her way from world dominance into a chasm of debt, the U.S. does have something to show for it the last six decades.  

A world saved.  A majority of human beings lifted out of poverty. That task, far more prodigious than defeating fascism and communism or going to the moon, ought to be viewed with a little respect.  And I suspect it will be, by future generations.

This should be contemplated, soberly, as other nations start to consider their time ahead as one of potential triumph.  As they start to contemplate the possibility of becoming the next great pax or "central kingdom."

If that happens … will they emulate Marshall and Truman, by starting their bright era of world leadership with acts of thoughtful and truly farsighted wisdom?  Perhaps even a

little gratitude?

Or at least by evading the mistakes that are written plain, across the pages of history, wherever countries briefly puffed and preened over their own importance, imagining that this must last forever?

Probably not.  This unconventional assertion will meet vigorous resistance, no matter how clearly it is supported by the historical record.  The reflex of America-bashing is too heavily ingrained, within the left and across much of the world, for anyone to actually read the ancient annals and realize that the United States is undoubtedly the least hated empire of all time.  If its "pax" is drawing to a close, it will enter retirement with more earned goodwill than any other.  Perhaps even enough to win forgiveness for the inevitable litany of imperial crimes.

Yo, Happy Thanksgiving, ya'll:

(Hat tip: Daily What)

And why I will not relent on Palin and the danger she represents:

"The energy that actually shapes the world springs from emotions — racial pride, leader-worship, religious belief, love of war — which liberal intellectuals mechanically write off as anachronisms, and which they have usually destroyed so completely in themselves as to have lost all power of action …  [H.G. Wells] was, and still is, quite incapable of understanding that nationalism, religious bigotry and feudal loyalty are far more powerful forces than what he himself would describe as sanity."

And we appease or ignore those forces at our peril.

Hank Hyena, writing for transhumanist magazine H+, imagines the consequences of lab grown meat:

In-Vitro Meat will be fashioned from any creature, not just domestics that were affordable to farm. Yes, ANY ANIMAL, even rare beasts like snow leopard, or Komodo Dragon. We will want to taste them all. Some researchers believe we will also be able to create IVM using the DNA of extinct beasts—obviously, “DinoBurgers” will be served at every six-year-old boy’s birthday party.

Humans are animals, so every hipster will try Cannibalism. Perhaps we’ll just eat people we don’t like, as author Iain M. Banks predicted in his short story, “The State of the Art” with diners feasting on “Stewed Idi Amin.” But I imagine passionate lovers literally eating each other, growing sausages from their co-mingled tissues overnight in tabletop appliances similar to bread-making machines.

Enjoy that turkey.

(Hat tip: Reason)

Biden gets in on the act.

A military wife reflects:

I remember the year we celebrated Thanksgiving on a Sunday evening in October. It was the fall of 2007, the night before my husband, Scott, left for his seven-month deployment on an aircraft carrier. Other military wives, far more seasoned than I, gave me the idea to whip up one giant festive dinner to mark all of the holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and milestones that my husband would miss while his squadron was in the Persian Gulf. It was a long list: Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Ethan’s fifth birthday, Estee’s third birthday, and our wedding anniversary, to list just a few.

San Francisco, California, 8 am

Today on the Dish, Andrew and a reader studied the president's cool demeanor while Massie and another reader wondered whether Obama is a liberal Reagan. Packer discussed his disappointed supporters.

Just as news broke that Israel is legalizing medicinal pot, David Knowles explored its potential to treat ADHD. Jason Zengerle explained why Palin will never shut up, Ben Smith rolled his eyes at Susteren's latest softballs, and several readers debated whether Palin should be used by her enemies.

A reader took Andrew to task over his coverage of the Sparkman scandal, Matt Welch went after the Weekly Standard, a reader revealed the emptiness of the GOP's purity test, and Sully tackled the selective morality of Christianists.

— C.B.

Jennifer Reese raised her own turkeys this year:

The heritage bird runs very fast around the yard first thing in the morning, flapping his wings and trilling musically while the factory-bred girl stands there, calm and blinking. They nuzzle each other, and when one moves out of sight, the other whimpers. How can I kill one or even both of them when they're just settling into their marriage, into their new home? Can't. As I type, it's Nov. 23, I've spent $75, driven all over northern California, and I still don't have a damned turkey.