An analysis from The Moscow Times:
"The hostage-taking drama evolving in North Ossetia has put forth a deadly serious dilemma for President Vladimir Putin, of whether to continue his policy of refusing to negotiate with radical groups in the North Caucasus, or to soften his line and meet some of the hostage-takers' demands, given that the lives of more than 100 children are at stake in this standoff.
The tactic that Russian police and security agencies have pursued in similar situations is to try to negotiate the release of as many hostages as possible, while giving commandos time to prepare for a storming."
Thursday, September 02, 2004
Zell Miller, Music Lover
He introduced Beethoven for Babies in Georgia:
"In January 1998, then-Gov. Zell Miller went to the Georgia Legislature armed with a tape player and a new idea. Miller told lawmakers he wanted $105,000 to pay for a CD of classical music that would be distributed to parents of newborns across Georgia. Miller cited early childhood research touting the benefits of music in developing babies' brains and the link between music and math. To hit home his point, Miller pulled out his tape player and let lawmakers listen to a few minutes of Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy.' Now don't you feel smarter already? Smart enough to vote for this budget item, I hope,' Miller told them. But before lawmakers could decide whether to pay for the 'Beethoven for Babies' program, Sony Music announced that it would provide the CDs for free. And in July 1998, Georgia hospitals began distributing the CD to new parents. "
"In January 1998, then-Gov. Zell Miller went to the Georgia Legislature armed with a tape player and a new idea. Miller told lawmakers he wanted $105,000 to pay for a CD of classical music that would be distributed to parents of newborns across Georgia. Miller cited early childhood research touting the benefits of music in developing babies' brains and the link between music and math. To hit home his point, Miller pulled out his tape player and let lawmakers listen to a few minutes of Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy.' Now don't you feel smarter already? Smart enough to vote for this budget item, I hope,' Miller told them. But before lawmakers could decide whether to pay for the 'Beethoven for Babies' program, Sony Music announced that it would provide the CDs for free. And in July 1998, Georgia hospitals began distributing the CD to new parents. "
Mama and the Marines
They made Zell Miller who he is, according to an official biography:
"Throughout his career, Senator Miller has credited two major influences for his success: his strong mother and the U.S. Marine Corps.
Born Feb. 24, 1932, in Young Harris, Georgia, Miller followed his parents' footsteps into the teaching profession and into politics. He was raised by his single mother after his father died when Miller was only 17 days old.
Miller gets his work ethic and his appreciation for the arts from Birdie Miller, an art teacher and one of Georgia's first female mayors. She hauled stones from a mountain creek to build the family home that Miller still lives in today. Though he never knew his father, Stephen Grady Miller, Senator Miller followed in his father's footsteps by becoming a University of Georgia graduate, a history professor at Young Harris College and a state senator.
Governor Miller accepts a check for $1.1 billion from Georgia Lottery Director Rebecca Paul. Miller used the lottery to pay for HOPE scholarships and his Pre-K program. (1996)
Miller's passions are history, baseball and music. He is a walking baseball encyclopedia who is equally at home at the Grand Ole Opry or Symphony Hall. He has written six books, including 'A National Party No More: The Conscience of A Conservative Democrat' and 'Corps Values: Everything You Need To Know I Learned in the Marines.'"
"Throughout his career, Senator Miller has credited two major influences for his success: his strong mother and the U.S. Marine Corps.
Born Feb. 24, 1932, in Young Harris, Georgia, Miller followed his parents' footsteps into the teaching profession and into politics. He was raised by his single mother after his father died when Miller was only 17 days old.
Miller gets his work ethic and his appreciation for the arts from Birdie Miller, an art teacher and one of Georgia's first female mayors. She hauled stones from a mountain creek to build the family home that Miller still lives in today. Though he never knew his father, Stephen Grady Miller, Senator Miller followed in his father's footsteps by becoming a University of Georgia graduate, a history professor at Young Harris College and a state senator.
Governor Miller accepts a check for $1.1 billion from Georgia Lottery Director Rebecca Paul. Miller used the lottery to pay for HOPE scholarships and his Pre-K program. (1996)
Miller's passions are history, baseball and music. He is a walking baseball encyclopedia who is equally at home at the Grand Ole Opry or Symphony Hall. He has written six books, including 'A National Party No More: The Conscience of A Conservative Democrat' and 'Corps Values: Everything You Need To Know I Learned in the Marines.'"
Tolstoy on Chechnya
You can read his 1911 novella, Hadji Murad, about Russia's earlier Chechen war, online:
"'What vitality!' I thought. 'Man has conquered everything and destroyed millions of plants, yet this one won't submit.' And I remembered a Caucasian episode of years ago, which I had partly seen myself, partly heard of from eye-witnesses, and in part imagined. The episode, as it has taken shape in my memory and imagination, was as follows."
"'What vitality!' I thought. 'Man has conquered everything and destroyed millions of plants, yet this one won't submit.' And I remembered a Caucasian episode of years ago, which I had partly seen myself, partly heard of from eye-witnesses, and in part imagined. The episode, as it has taken shape in my memory and imagination, was as follows."
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Lileks on Schwarzenegger
From The Bleat:
"Now, Arnold. Odd. Either the audience is undermiked or they're 88% thrilled to see him. He's beaming, waiting for the applause to die down. It seems forced. 'This is like winning the Oscar.'
Like I would know, I say in an Ahnold voice.
'As if I would know,' he said. Or something like that. Joke two: 'True Lies' movie reference. Lame, but we have to get these out of the way. Making reference to his movies is for Arnie what referencing cheapness or violin-playing was to Jack Benny. It simply must be done. Joke three: a man said he was as good a governor as he was an actor. What a cheap shot. The delivery lacked, but it's the sort of self-deprecating thing we like from the ol' brute. Is this going to work? He can connect with millions through the lens uf de cahmera, and he's good on the stump, but maybe he's not the kind of speaker who scales well to an arena.
I love the accent: 'Medicine Square Godden.'
Okay, he gets better. A good Arnold speech is not full of subtle rhetoric, cozening shifts in vocal tone, facial nuance. It's like watching a strong man chop an oak tree: the last blow will be just like the first. (Except that after the last one, something falls on someone's head.) Very simple cadences; you could actually read this speech in a Kennedy voice, and it would sound Kennedyesque. Paging Vaughn Meader; Mr. Meader to the desk.
'Fear of the Soviet Boot.' Yep.
Holy Crow, he's just endorsed DICK FRICKIN' NIXON. Only Arnie can go to China. "
"Now, Arnold. Odd. Either the audience is undermiked or they're 88% thrilled to see him. He's beaming, waiting for the applause to die down. It seems forced. 'This is like winning the Oscar.'
Like I would know, I say in an Ahnold voice.
'As if I would know,' he said. Or something like that. Joke two: 'True Lies' movie reference. Lame, but we have to get these out of the way. Making reference to his movies is for Arnie what referencing cheapness or violin-playing was to Jack Benny. It simply must be done. Joke three: a man said he was as good a governor as he was an actor. What a cheap shot. The delivery lacked, but it's the sort of self-deprecating thing we like from the ol' brute. Is this going to work? He can connect with millions through the lens uf de cahmera, and he's good on the stump, but maybe he's not the kind of speaker who scales well to an arena.
I love the accent: 'Medicine Square Godden.'
Okay, he gets better. A good Arnold speech is not full of subtle rhetoric, cozening shifts in vocal tone, facial nuance. It's like watching a strong man chop an oak tree: the last blow will be just like the first. (Except that after the last one, something falls on someone's head.) Very simple cadences; you could actually read this speech in a Kennedy voice, and it would sound Kennedyesque. Paging Vaughn Meader; Mr. Meader to the desk.
'Fear of the Soviet Boot.' Yep.
Holy Crow, he's just endorsed DICK FRICKIN' NIXON. Only Arnie can go to China. "
What is Enlightenment?
The Wall Street Journal reviews Gertrude Himmelfarb's comparison of French, British, and American Enlightenment thinkers:
"Ever since Immanuel Kant posed his famous question in 1784--'What is Enlightenment?'--critics and commentators have searched for an answer, and they still do. For it is to the Enlightenment--a particular set of 18th-century ideas--that many thinkers trace the political and intellectual origins of the modern world. To pose Kant's question is to ask nothing less than who we are."
"Ever since Immanuel Kant posed his famous question in 1784--'What is Enlightenment?'--critics and commentators have searched for an answer, and they still do. For it is to the Enlightenment--a particular set of 18th-century ideas--that many thinkers trace the political and intellectual origins of the modern world. To pose Kant's question is to ask nothing less than who we are."
Are Blogs Better than Newspapers?
Glenn Reynolds seems to think so [link from Instapundit]:
"With accredited bloggers at both conventions, this can fairly be called the first presidential election to be blogged. And that just might matter -- though if it does, it will be as much because of big-media vices as it is of bloggers' virtues."
"With accredited bloggers at both conventions, this can fairly be called the first presidential election to be blogged. And that just might matter -- though if it does, it will be as much because of big-media vices as it is of bloggers' virtues."
Is Bush a Wimp?
FromThe Jerusalem Post :
"Arguably, any gain in the 'fear factor' brought about by the US overthrow of Saddam is being eroded. Those who argue, in the words of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini two decades ago, that the US cannot do a 'damn thing' are having that feeling reinforced today. The Iraq war's outcome has undermined the credibility of US power no matter how long American forces remain in Iraq. Indeed, one could argue that the longer they remain, the worse the problem will become."
"Arguably, any gain in the 'fear factor' brought about by the US overthrow of Saddam is being eroded. Those who argue, in the words of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini two decades ago, that the US cannot do a 'damn thing' are having that feeling reinforced today. The Iraq war's outcome has undermined the credibility of US power no matter how long American forces remain in Iraq. Indeed, one could argue that the longer they remain, the worse the problem will become."
Roger L. Simon on Arnold Schwarzenegger and Pat Buchanan
Roger L. Simon from his convention blog:
"But first a note of surrealism. I watched Arnold on a television set next to Pat Buchanan. This happened because I was getting agoraphobia/claustrophobia on the convention floor. A few of us bloggers had been escorted down into that terra interdita by the nice volunteer who is helping us. I visited with a friend in the California delegation. I had intended to watch the Governator from there, but I didn't have a seat and the crush was getting too much for me. I retreated to a media area when, earlier than I had expected, Arnold began speaking. I headed for the nearest TV to watch. Suddenly I realized someone was standing behind me. It was Pat. He had a scowl on his face. As we know, Schwarzenegger does not represent Buchanan's Republican Party. Nothing seems to make Pat happy these days. As Arnold began to lead the chant of 'four more years,' Buchanan spun on his heels as if repelled and stalked off, heading for the nearest microphone.
Unfortunately, Schwarzenegger, the first Republican I ever voted for, was not as inspiring as I had hoped. Maybe my own expectation game was too high. He hit the notes but that was about it. And the girlie men joke, even delivered in self-mockery, is getting a little tiresome. Still, I think Arnold's doing a good job as governor -- and that's more important than how great a speech he delivers at a convention. And I'm sure others reacted differently. I'm still thinking about McCain and, even more, Giuliani. He gave the speech of the year so far."
"But first a note of surrealism. I watched Arnold on a television set next to Pat Buchanan. This happened because I was getting agoraphobia/claustrophobia on the convention floor. A few of us bloggers had been escorted down into that terra interdita by the nice volunteer who is helping us. I visited with a friend in the California delegation. I had intended to watch the Governator from there, but I didn't have a seat and the crush was getting too much for me. I retreated to a media area when, earlier than I had expected, Arnold began speaking. I headed for the nearest TV to watch. Suddenly I realized someone was standing behind me. It was Pat. He had a scowl on his face. As we know, Schwarzenegger does not represent Buchanan's Republican Party. Nothing seems to make Pat happy these days. As Arnold began to lead the chant of 'four more years,' Buchanan spun on his heels as if repelled and stalked off, heading for the nearest microphone.
Unfortunately, Schwarzenegger, the first Republican I ever voted for, was not as inspiring as I had hoped. Maybe my own expectation game was too high. He hit the notes but that was about it. And the girlie men joke, even delivered in self-mockery, is getting a little tiresome. Still, I think Arnold's doing a good job as governor -- and that's more important than how great a speech he delivers at a convention. And I'm sure others reacted differently. I'm still thinking about McCain and, even more, Giuliani. He gave the speech of the year so far."
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
Ooops.
John LeBoutillier says Bush's Freudian slip during the Republican Convention is a big boost for John Kerry:
"Day - and Night - One of the GOP Convention in New York was devoted to extolling President Bush’s conduct of the post-9/11 War on Terror. That is why former NYC Mayor Rudi Giuliani and Senator John McCain were selected by the convention organizers as the main speakers. But then something unexpected happened: President Bush told Matt Lauer on the TODAY SHOW that, on the very same topic - the War on Terror- 'I don’t think we can win it.'
"Can’t 'win' it?
"In Mr. Bush’s standard stump speech every day he talks about what we are doing to win the War on Terror! But suddenly he let his hair down and admitted we 'can’t win it.' By last night the Kerry/Edwards ticket - down for weeks due to the Swift Boat attacks - were re-energized. ABC’s NIGHTLINE lat night was devoted to this incredible misstatement/admission/blunder. It is unbelievable to think that on the very day of the Convention devoted to the War on Terror, GW Bush contradicts himself and thus undercuts the very premise of his re-election campaign!
"You can bet that John Kerry tomorrow in Nashville when he addresses the American Legion National Convention will use this blunder against President Bush. And you can bet that the Democrats will go on a full offensive with this “can’t win” statement.
"Their rejoinder?
"“We must win the War on Terror and we are going to win this war.”"
"Day - and Night - One of the GOP Convention in New York was devoted to extolling President Bush’s conduct of the post-9/11 War on Terror. That is why former NYC Mayor Rudi Giuliani and Senator John McCain were selected by the convention organizers as the main speakers. But then something unexpected happened: President Bush told Matt Lauer on the TODAY SHOW that, on the very same topic - the War on Terror- 'I don’t think we can win it.'
"Can’t 'win' it?
"In Mr. Bush’s standard stump speech every day he talks about what we are doing to win the War on Terror! But suddenly he let his hair down and admitted we 'can’t win it.' By last night the Kerry/Edwards ticket - down for weeks due to the Swift Boat attacks - were re-energized. ABC’s NIGHTLINE lat night was devoted to this incredible misstatement/admission/blunder. It is unbelievable to think that on the very day of the Convention devoted to the War on Terror, GW Bush contradicts himself and thus undercuts the very premise of his re-election campaign!
"You can bet that John Kerry tomorrow in Nashville when he addresses the American Legion National Convention will use this blunder against President Bush. And you can bet that the Democrats will go on a full offensive with this “can’t win” statement.
"Their rejoinder?
"“We must win the War on Terror and we are going to win this war.”"
"Thank God that George Bush is Our President"
From CNN, a transcript of Rudy Giuliani's speech to the Republican convention.
Lileks on Giuliani
In The Bleat:
"But what Giuliani did was completely typical: aggressive graciousness. It's why people who disagree with many of his positions admire him greatly, and why he spoke Monday night. And dang: he was good. He was hard: first time I've heard someone get up and slam Arafat by name in such a context. A sharp elbow at Germany. A Kerry section played mostly for laughs. An amazing last 10 minutes - dodged nothing. It was like watching a blacksmith at work while he whistled opera "
"But what Giuliani did was completely typical: aggressive graciousness. It's why people who disagree with many of his positions admire him greatly, and why he spoke Monday night. And dang: he was good. He was hard: first time I've heard someone get up and slam Arafat by name in such a context. A sharp elbow at Germany. A Kerry section played mostly for laughs. An amazing last 10 minutes - dodged nothing. It was like watching a blacksmith at work while he whistled opera "
Did the KGB Kill Lord Mountbatten?
From Mosnews:
"The Committee for State Security (KGB) of the Soviet Union was involved in the assassination of Lord Louis Mountbatten, cousin of the British Queen, Vlast weekly magazine writes... Lord Mountbatten was killed on August 27, 1979. He went fishing on a boat with his relatives near his Irish estate. The bomb, weighing 50 pounds, was put into a box with lobsters. The lord, one of his twin grandsons, Nicholas, 14, and a 15-year-old Irish youth employed as a boat boy, Paul Maxwell, were killed. The assassins were soon found. The Irish Republican Army (IRA) admitted carrying out the attack. However, the bomb was given to them by KGB officials, the weekly wrote quoting former security members. The KGB had links with the secretary general of the Irish Communist Party, Michael O'Riordan, who was connected with the IRA. It was well-known already that the USSR had helped the IRA and its communist wing. Joseph Stalin said once that "the Irish movement against British imperialism is a democratic movement--and that the Soviet Union m'ust support this movement.'"
"The Committee for State Security (KGB) of the Soviet Union was involved in the assassination of Lord Louis Mountbatten, cousin of the British Queen, Vlast weekly magazine writes... Lord Mountbatten was killed on August 27, 1979. He went fishing on a boat with his relatives near his Irish estate. The bomb, weighing 50 pounds, was put into a box with lobsters. The lord, one of his twin grandsons, Nicholas, 14, and a 15-year-old Irish youth employed as a boat boy, Paul Maxwell, were killed. The assassins were soon found. The Irish Republican Army (IRA) admitted carrying out the attack. However, the bomb was given to them by KGB officials, the weekly wrote quoting former security members. The KGB had links with the secretary general of the Irish Communist Party, Michael O'Riordan, who was connected with the IRA. It was well-known already that the USSR had helped the IRA and its communist wing. Joseph Stalin said once that "the Irish movement against British imperialism is a democratic movement--and that the Soviet Union m'ust support this movement.'"
From the Archives of Rudolph W. Giuliani
It was a very impressive speech that Rudy Giuliani gave on behalf of George Bush last night. He must have been a heck of a prosecutor in court, a real performance. Sometimes he didn't seem to fully believe everything he was saying, yet still he said it with tremendous panache. It certainly should help Bush. Too bad that Giuliani isn't at the top of the ticket, himself. Most notable were his repeated references to support for Israel as an important ally in the global war on terrorism. Giuliani went out of his way to talk about the Munich Olympics in 1972, the Achille Lauro hijacking, the failures of the European response, and the need for a consistently strong anti-terrorist stance. It's not a new position. Here's an old speech along similar lines from the Archives of Rudolph W. Giuliani .
Monday, August 30, 2004
France Stands Firm on Headscarf Ban
Won't give in to hostage-takers, says TurkishPress.com:
"Asked if there was any chance of the headscarf ban being suspended, Cope told Canal Plus television: "That is not the way to look at the problem. Our aim is to reject any link between the two issues and to emphasize the fact that the values of the French republic are a reference for the world... French newspapers gave blanket coverage to the hostage-taking on Monday, many stressing the sense of national unity that the crisis has provoked. 'War is ugly. But the absurd terrorism that today threatens Georges Malbrunot and Christian Chesnot is something else -- monstrous and indescribable. It is an entire vision of the world -- the freedom to speak, to describe, to inform -- that is at stake,' said Le Figaro in an editorial."
"Asked if there was any chance of the headscarf ban being suspended, Cope told Canal Plus television: "That is not the way to look at the problem. Our aim is to reject any link between the two issues and to emphasize the fact that the values of the French republic are a reference for the world... French newspapers gave blanket coverage to the hostage-taking on Monday, many stressing the sense of national unity that the crisis has provoked. 'War is ugly. But the absurd terrorism that today threatens Georges Malbrunot and Christian Chesnot is something else -- monstrous and indescribable. It is an entire vision of the world -- the freedom to speak, to describe, to inform -- that is at stake,' said Le Figaro in an editorial."
David Frum on the Franklin Case
From National Review :
"Somebody sold CBS News, NBC, and the Washington Post a grand conspiracy theory of sinister Zionist influence in the Pentagon based on -- well on what really? The theory alleges that
a) Two years ago, some Pentagon planners wrote a draft memo suggesting that the US adopt a tougher policy toward Iran; b) One of those planners then supposedly informed a friend at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee about the memo -- who in turn informed the Israeli embassy. Can we pause to consider what an amazing non-story all of this is? The memo in question - a draft of a proposed presidential policy directive for Iran - was essentially rejected. The Bush administration has opted since 2001 for a policy of engagement and attempted compromise with Iran. For all practical purposes, the memo was an expression of something close to a purely personal opinion. And even if the memo had been adopted, it involved no spycraft, no technical secrets. It simply offered a vision of what US policy toward Iran ought to be: a series of policy options. Discussing policy options with knowledgeable people -- and even with allied governments -- is not espionage. Which is why, after 18 months of investigation, the investigators were about to drop the matter. It looks as if whoever leaked the story of the investigation leaked it precisely because he or she was annoyed that the investigators were concluding that the whole thing was much ado about nothing. "
"Somebody sold CBS News, NBC, and the Washington Post a grand conspiracy theory of sinister Zionist influence in the Pentagon based on -- well on what really? The theory alleges that
a) Two years ago, some Pentagon planners wrote a draft memo suggesting that the US adopt a tougher policy toward Iran; b) One of those planners then supposedly informed a friend at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee about the memo -- who in turn informed the Israeli embassy. Can we pause to consider what an amazing non-story all of this is? The memo in question - a draft of a proposed presidential policy directive for Iran - was essentially rejected. The Bush administration has opted since 2001 for a policy of engagement and attempted compromise with Iran. For all practical purposes, the memo was an expression of something close to a purely personal opinion. And even if the memo had been adopted, it involved no spycraft, no technical secrets. It simply offered a vision of what US policy toward Iran ought to be: a series of policy options. Discussing policy options with knowledgeable people -- and even with allied governments -- is not espionage. Which is why, after 18 months of investigation, the investigators were about to drop the matter. It looks as if whoever leaked the story of the investigation leaked it precisely because he or she was annoyed that the investigators were concluding that the whole thing was much ado about nothing. "
High School is Harder Than Ever
Instead of hanging out at the drugstore soda fountain, kids today are publishing research in scholarly journals. From The Washington Post:
"Across the country, new emphasis on rigorous college-preparation programs has resulted in thousands of high school students succeeding at the kinds of scholarly research that master's degree candidates tackle, educators say, even as some worry about the strain placed on 17-year-olds. A leading indicator is the growing number of high schools using the International Baccalaureate program, which includes a 4,000-word paper, called an extended essay, among its requirements. About 10,000 of these papers were written this year in the United States, six times as many as in 1990. In the Washington region, at least 20 public high schools have IB programs, and several more public and private schools are encouraging long research papers in selected classes."
"Across the country, new emphasis on rigorous college-preparation programs has resulted in thousands of high school students succeeding at the kinds of scholarly research that master's degree candidates tackle, educators say, even as some worry about the strain placed on 17-year-olds. A leading indicator is the growing number of high schools using the International Baccalaureate program, which includes a 4,000-word paper, called an extended essay, among its requirements. About 10,000 of these papers were written this year in the United States, six times as many as in 1990. In the Washington region, at least 20 public high schools have IB programs, and several more public and private schools are encouraging long research papers in selected classes."
Happy Birthday to the Internet
The Internet is 35-years old, according to this story from the Associated Press [via Matt Drudge]:
"Thirty-five years after computer scientists at UCLA linked two bulky computers using a 15-foot gray cable, testing a new way for exchanging data over networks, what would ultimately become the Internet remains a work in progress. University researchers are experimenting with ways to increase its capacity and speed. Programmers are trying to imbue Web pages with intelligence. And work is underway to re-engineer the network to reduce spam and security troubles. All the while threats loom: Critics warn that commercial, legal and political pressures could hinder the types of innovations that made the Internet what it is today. Stephen Crocker and Vinton Cerf were among the graduate students who joined UCLA professor Len Kleinrock in an engineering lab on Sept. 2, 1969, as bits of meaningless test data flowed silently between the two computers. By January, three other "nodes" joined the fledgling network."
"Thirty-five years after computer scientists at UCLA linked two bulky computers using a 15-foot gray cable, testing a new way for exchanging data over networks, what would ultimately become the Internet remains a work in progress. University researchers are experimenting with ways to increase its capacity and speed. Programmers are trying to imbue Web pages with intelligence. And work is underway to re-engineer the network to reduce spam and security troubles. All the while threats loom: Critics warn that commercial, legal and political pressures could hinder the types of innovations that made the Internet what it is today. Stephen Crocker and Vinton Cerf were among the graduate students who joined UCLA professor Len Kleinrock in an engineering lab on Sept. 2, 1969, as bits of meaningless test data flowed silently between the two computers. By January, three other "nodes" joined the fledgling network."
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