Should we bring back the lash?
It would be a lot less cruel than being raped.
And while we’re at it, I’d have to agree that the stocks had their uses, too.
A “Troubled Marriage”?
No, Pakistan is essentially at war with us, and has been for many years.
More thoughts from Stanley Kurtz:
Unfortunately, it’s now time to at least begin thinking about what the United States should do in case of either an overt anti-American coup within Pakistan’s army, or in case Kayani himself is forced to effectively break relations. Although liberation from Pakistan’s double-game and reversion to honest hostility might come as a welcome relief to some, I see no good scenario here.
Should anti-American elements in Pakistan’s army displace Kayani, they would presumably hold our supply lines to Afghanistan hostage to a cessation of drone attacks. The step beyond that would be to cut off our Afghanistan supply lines altogether. Our minimum response to either of these moves would likely be a suspension of aid (on which Pakistan’s military is now dependent) and moves to provide India with technology that would give them major advantages over Pakistan. Pakistan may run eagerly into the arms of China at that point.
These developments would pose many further dangers and questions. Could we find new supply lines, and at what geo-strategic price? Should we strike terrorist refuges in Pakistan, perhaps clashing with Pakistan’s own forces as we do so? Would Pakistan actively join the Taliban to fight us in Afghanistan? In short, would the outcome of a break between America and Pakistan be war–whether low-level or outright?
There is no good or easy answer here. If there is any single spot it would be hardest for America to walk away from conflict, Pakistan is it. Bin Laden was not alone. Pakistan shelters our greatest terrorist enemies. An inability to strike them there would be intolerable, both in terms of the danger posed for terrorism here in the United States, and for the safety of our troops in Afghanistan.
Yet the fundamental problem remains Pakistan’s nuclear capacity, as well as the sympathy of many of its people with our enemies. Successful clashes with Pakistan’s military may only prompt sympathizers to hand nuclear material to al-Qaeda. The army is virtually the only thing holding Pakistan together. A military defeat and splintering of the army could bring an Islamist coup, or at least the fragmentation of the country, and consequent massive expansion of its lawless regions. These gloomy prospects probably explain why our defense officials keep counseling patience, even as the insults from Pakistan grow.
Pakistan has always been the biggest problem since 911 (and before, actually, though we didn’t realize it). It would be an impossible military task to conquer the country, absent massive carnage, but I wonder if there would be some way to take away the nukes?
Smart Diplomacy
The Czechs want out of our missile defense plans:
They see the Obama administration as more concerned with appeasing Russia — at their expense…
There’s going to be a lot of necessary bridge rebuilding (and “resetting”) with our real allies after this disastrous administration. Let’s hope it won’t have to wait another five and a half years — it may be too late.
Why Business Is Buying Capital Equipment (Including ATMs)
…because it is exempt from ObamaCare. Makes sense to me.
A Sneak Preview
…of the Weiner household today.
[Via Treacher at Facebook]
[Update mid morning]
Speaking of Treacher, Weinerquitzel.
Seeking Volunteers
…at Tea Party in Space.
It’s a great cause.
The Other Shoe About To Drop
You remember that letter from Senators Boxer and Feinstein? ATK and Orrin Hatch aren’t going to be very happy with another one coming out tomorrow, from a surprise source (though it’s not that much of a surprise when you think about it). The divide-and-conquer strategy against the porkers is working.
[Update a while later]
No need to wait for tomorrow — I have the scoop over at Competitive Space.
A Shock To The Warm Mongers
I’ll obviously have a lot more to say about this in the coming days, but it’s going to be a major battle of one “settled” science versus another:
The big consequences of a major solar calm spell…would be climatic. The next few generations of humanity might not find themselves trying to cope with global warming but rather with a significant cooling. This could overturn decades of received wisdom on such things as CO2 emissions, and lead to radical shifts in government policy worldwide.
We won’t just be firing up the SUVs. We’ll be burning fossil fuels for everything we’re worth, and not just for electricity–for heat. But unlike the watermelons who have been waging war against carbon, I don’t propose any massive government solutions, other than to get the hell out of the way, and let the market work. Oh, and I think I’d be shorting carbon-trading schemes. I wonder if Algore is?
The New Normal
I refuse to believe that, because I don’t take pictures of my privates and send them out on the Internet to women not my wife, I’m abnormal. But I also agree with this comment:
So, besides the grey underpants photo shoot Anthony Weiner shot himself with; he is strange because he is PSYCHOTIC.
He was also strange when he was in the Well of the House, screaming at some republican … “THE GENTLEMAN WILL SIT DOWN”
Yeah, Anthony Weiner does spittle very well.
He isn’t really Jewish. His mom’s not Jewish. And, his marriage to a muslim flew under the radar screen. But is now out there with Hillary’s balloon attached.
Every time I’ve seen Anthony Weiner with his nutty rants in the Well, I’ve thought him deranged — that he was also self-and-marriage-destructively sexually obsessed surprised me not at all (I would be similarly unshocked by similar behavior from the unlamented vaginal-rinse container Alan Grayson). The only thing that surprises me, but shouldn’t is that the Democrats thought he was just fine, and a rising star in the party, until this.
The Incredible Shrinking Protest
…in Madison:
Upon entering the capitol, visitors are greeted by a large sign explaining all the items they are forbidden to carry in. Someone unfamiliar with the February protests would be flummoxed as to why some of these items show up on the list, but the list itself tells the story of what happened when hundreds of protesters took up residence in the statehouse a few months ago. Among the verboten items: snakes, crockpots, massage chairs, mattresses, and balloons, plus a catch-all (“… other items that may be considered inconsistent with a plan to depart the building at the posted closing time or whose use is considered a threat to public health or safety”).
In the capitol rotunda, around 100 people are gathered, watching the beginning of the assembly session on large monitors that have been set up for their benefit. At the height of the protest, over 6,000 people were reported to be crammed into this space. Resident irritant and multiple-arrestee Jeremy Ryan, who has earned the sobriquet “Segway Guy,” slowly makes his way around the crowd perched atop his two-wheel mobility device.
Soon, three men wearing pink tunics appear. “We Are Walker’s Pink Slips!” they begin chanting loudly. “If you have to chant what your protest costume is, it’s probably not a good one,” cracks a nearby lobbyist.
At noon, the crowd is joined by the “Solidarity Singers,” a group which congregates every day to sing at the top of their lungs in the rotunda. Last week, an American Red Cross blood drive had to leave the capitol because of the irritating cacophony produced by the singers. A woman weaves her way through the crowd, handing out song books so everyone can sing along. The books include many union favorites, tailored to the Wisconsin struggle. (For instance, “We Shall Overcome” now apparently references the effort to recall Scott Walker.)
This may be what democracy looks like, albeit mob democracy. It’s not what a Republic looks like. Here’s to continued failure of the left to subvert the laws of Wisconsin, and to it as a harbinger of failure across the nation.