Should China rethink it? Only if they’re smart. Tom Friedman will be very disappointed.
Of course, the more important question is whether or not Congress will cancel the boondoggle before we waste much more money on it.
Category Archives: Media Criticism
More Hoplophobia From The Media
Good Advice To The Democrats
Good for Republicans, that is. I hope they take it.
Don’t Hold Your Breath
It’s nice to see the New Scientist holding the Obama administration’s feet to the fire on its war on science:
“The public must be able to trust the science and scientific process informing public policy decisions,” Obama stated. Scientific information used by the federal government in making policy should be published, he added, and political officials should not suppress or alter scientific findings. John Holdren, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, was given 120 days to draft a new policy on scientific integrity in government.
We’re still waiting for that policy to see the light of day. The precise reasons for the lengthy delay remain unclear – the watchdog group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility has even sued the government under the Freedom of Information Act, in an attempt to obtain documents that may explain the impasse. But it seems likely that the sticking point has been resistance from government officials who just don’t like the accountability that the new policy is supposed to usher in.
It’s less thrilling to see them perpetuate the myth that the Bush administration was worse:
Obama may be a friend of science, but many of the functionaries in his administration are rather less friendly. And if he fails to institute a sea change on the crucial issue of scientific integrity in government, there will be little to prevent a future President who sees little value in science from taking us back to the bad old days.
First, I’m unaware of any evidence that Barack Obama is a “friend of science,” except when the “science” fits his political agenda (e.g., AGW). And assuming that the “bad old days” is a reference to his predecessor, you’d think they might at least make the case that he was worse, but apparently they either can’t, or just think that we should accept it as an obvious given. I think that Obama’s record is much worse than George Bush’s, who, as far as I can tell, seemed to have acquired his “anti-science” creds based on little more than his policy to not provide government funding for embryonic stem-cell research, a decision that seems to have resulted in a flourishing of much more effective research in adult stem cells.
Will Sarah Run?
She already is.
And Joe Katzman says that she’s “country dumb.” And at this point, any “conservative” who would prefer Barack Obama to her has to be an idiot in full blither.
Why The Obama Plan Is Good For NASA
Scientific American weighs in. I wish they wouldn’t call it the “Obama plan.”
Let’s You And Him Fight
Thoughts on the collectivists’ attempts to split the Tea Party. Count me as an agnostic libertarian who has no problem with evangelical Christians, or church charity.
The Repeal Amendment
More thoughts. I, too, am mystified by the commenter who wants to grant tenure to all existing federal laws. To me, one of the benefits of the amendment would be in its potential to clean up the existing code.
The Beginning Of Justice
Corey Maye has been granted the right to a new trial. In a just world, Radley Balko would get a Pulitzer for this.
Dana Milbank
Cantor, Bishop and the other supporters of the amendment believe they are rebalancing the Constitution in a way the Framers would like. But it’s strange that the lawmakers would show their reverence for the Founding Fathers by redrafting their work.
Hey, Dana. The Founders put an amendment process into the Constitution for a reason. Though I suspect that one reason that hadn’t occurred to them would be that people like you would decide that it was a “living document,” subject to perverse interpretation that would eviscerate it of their original intent.
[Afternoon update]
More thoughts on Milbank’s ignorance, from La Althouse.