Yes, I saw the entry at Abu Muqawama. His criticism of Ricks seems pretty spot-on, and I think it's notable that Ricks' original article doesn't offer anything beyond anecdotal observations, many of which have been rebutted by military officers.
Having said that, I still wonder why emulating the Israelis (or the DPRK!) hasn't been tried in the United States. Requiring promising officer candidates to serve as NCOs first isn't mutually exclusive with providing officers with a comprehensive education.
Here's my favorite bit from the Concerned Women for America release:
"Mission America President Linda Harvey doubts that Klein High School’s new GSA will be able to abide by state law.
'Homosexual clubs are always and foremost about sex. So any ‘gay’ club in Texas or any other state with a law prohibiting sexual activity of minors, is an offense to that law,' she told Culture & Family Report."
Nice catch. Later in the article, Ricks suggests eliminating war colleges and integrating military students into the general academic population for similar reasons.
I'll concede that hockey is it a bit more unpredictable (it is, after all, a different game), but consider how wide open the championship would be if the Hornets had Peja and Chandler back at 100%, the Spurs had Duncan and Manu healthy, the Celtics had KG, the Magic never lost Jameer Nelson, and McGrady was back for the Rockets.
Keep in mind that most pundits had LA winning the championship last year and Detroit was favored by many to win the Eastern Conference Finals. There is a bigger talent differential between NBA teams than hockey teams, but that doesn't mean the basketball post-season is totally predictable.
I think a lot of those concerns are valid, but the focus of this post (and the one that preceded it) is the state of intra-conservative discourse. In my view, conservatives suffer from an inordinate attachment to movement orthodoxy. I think the lack of interaction between dissident conservative/libertarian outlets and their mainstream counterparts proves this point rather nicely. The Left, at least, does a better job of engaging everyone under the tent, from wishy-washy moderates to progressive activists.
Oh c'mon - I think the talent differential between, say, the Rangers and the Bruins is pretty substantial. I mean, would the Rangers have even made the playoffs without Lundquist? I'm pretty sure that every sport's post-season features its fair share of second tier teams. In the NBA, at least, most of them have the talent to make a legitimate run if they get their acts together.
Way ahead you, Howie (go Caps!), though I maintain the NBA is pretty interesting. If a few key players hadn't gotten injured (Peja and Chandler for the Hornets, Jameer Nelson for the Magic, KG for the Celts), I think the title would be up for grabs. Right now, I think there are two overwhelming favorites (Cavs and Lakers), two plausible dark horses (Boston and Orlando), and a host of interesting second tier teams who have the talent to make a deep playoff run.
Pretty persuasive analysis, though I think conservatives' internecine squabbles are a bit more venerable than you might think. Perot and Buchanan's break with the Establishment presages a lot of this stuff.
Phew. Lots of interesting stuff to respond to. A few quick reactions:
Rj -
The irony, of course, is that many conservative dissidents are the antithesis of the Eastern Establishment.
Sean Scallon -
Thanks for dropping by. As a self-identified East Coast cosmopolitan, I think you may overstate the cultural differences underlying the conservative split, though many of these mainstream outlets share a certain establishment mindset. Like you, I hope that political reality will eventually force some sort of acknowledgment from the National Reviews of the world that yes, they were wrong and we were right about a few important issues (see Iraq, Invasion of).
Katherine -
I hear what you're saying, but I think we should remember that conservative critiques of the establishment are rooted in a worldview that is very different from your typical progressive/liberal. I'd be careful about drawing too many parallels between dissident righties and leftists. If we really agreed with the Left that much, I suppose we'd already be Democrats.
Culture11 is really the only forum I can think of that actively recruited writers from across the conservative spectrum. Its failure, I think, speaks to the inability of the Right to engage in constructive intramural dialogue. Your "out of power" thesis makes a certain amount of sense, but you would think that the 2006 midterms and the 2008 election would have already prompted some sort of reconciliation.
Katherine -
You may be right, though I hesitate to psycho-analyze an entire party. I also think it's worth noting that the Left has suffered through similarly acrimonious debates and patched things up afterward (arguments over the Iraq War come to mind), so I'm left wondering why conservative reconciliation still seems so far off.
I'm a big fan of communicative rationality - I just don't think our political class is equipped to initiate that dialogue. Too often, "consensus" is code for an extremely narrow spectrum of acceptable discourse.
All valid concerns (a bit reminiscent of Kaplan's "Coming Anarchy), but I'm not sure we need a lock-step political consensus to deal with them. Indeed, I'd argue one-size-fits-all solutions are more likely to develop in a world where our political discourse is dominated by stultifying establishment thinking.
Thanks. We tend to think of the courts as free-floating arbitrators, but they can't really be separated from their larger political context. To make unpopular (yet necessary) constitutional decisions, the courts need to retain a certain amount of public legitimacy. So I think that deferring to the legislature on divisive social issues is a good way to protect the courts' judicial independence.
Having said all that, Mark is on the cusp of convincing me that the way Iowa's equal protection laws are formulated precluded the Iowa Supreme Court from ruling any other way. So maybe my objections don't apply to this particular case.
Call me old-fashioned, Jay Bird, but I don't think judges should be in the business of "anticipating" public opinion. Moreover, I think that many judges are drawn from a demographic - the prosperous, socially liberal elite - that is ahead of the curve when it comes to evolving social mores.
Despite my undying affection for James Franco (Desario!), I didn't really enjoy "Pineapple Express," though McBride was quite good in "All The Real Girls."
As I said above, I have a lot of sympathy for anti-war commentators who tried to disassociate themselves with the radical anti-war left for fear of being labeled "anti-American." In much the same way, I'm sympathetic to Goldberg's conundrum - he's a guy with generally liberal views on the settlement issue who tries to over-compensate by being hyper-sensitive to any hint of anti-Semitism.
Goldberg's politics are a bit more nuanced than that, I think. He has pretty liberal views on the settlements and the Palestinian issue in general. That he would be sensitive to accusations of anti-Semitism or particularly concerned about Hamas's latest rocket barrage is not terribly surprising. My larger point was that his knee-jerk defensive posture is pretty understandable.
*Comment archive for non-registered commenters assembled by email address as provided.
On “On the Bounce”
steve -
Yes, I saw the entry at Abu Muqawama. His criticism of Ricks seems pretty spot-on, and I think it's notable that Ricks' original article doesn't offer anything beyond anecdotal observations, many of which have been rebutted by military officers.
Having said that, I still wonder why emulating the Israelis (or the DPRK!) hasn't been tried in the United States. Requiring promising officer candidates to serve as NCOs first isn't mutually exclusive with providing officers with a comprehensive education.
On “Hypocrites invoking libertarian arguments are still hypocrites”
Here's my favorite bit from the Concerned Women for America release:
"Mission America President Linda Harvey doubts that Klein High School’s new GSA will be able to abide by state law.
'Homosexual clubs are always and foremost about sex. So any ‘gay’ club in Texas or any other state with a law prohibiting sexual activity of minors, is an offense to that law,' she told Culture & Family Report."
I dare them to sound more clueless.
On “On the Bounce”
Doctor Science -
Nice catch. Later in the article, Ricks suggests eliminating war colleges and integrating military students into the general academic population for similar reasons.
"
Interesting. I wonder why more countries haven't emulated that approach.
On “Who was Spengler?”
I was always impressed by his ability to reference Tolkien at the drop of a hat
On “The NBA: Where a pretty predictable post-season happens”
I'll concede that hockey is it a bit more unpredictable (it is, after all, a different game), but consider how wide open the championship would be if the Hornets had Peja and Chandler back at 100%, the Spurs had Duncan and Manu healthy, the Celtics had KG, the Magic never lost Jameer Nelson, and McGrady was back for the Rockets.
Keep in mind that most pundits had LA winning the championship last year and Detroit was favored by many to win the Eastern Conference Finals. There is a bigger talent differential between NBA teams than hockey teams, but that doesn't mean the basketball post-season is totally predictable.
On “Intellectual Insecurity”
Jason Arvak -
I think a lot of those concerns are valid, but the focus of this post (and the one that preceded it) is the state of intra-conservative discourse. In my view, conservatives suffer from an inordinate attachment to movement orthodoxy. I think the lack of interaction between dissident conservative/libertarian outlets and their mainstream counterparts proves this point rather nicely. The Left, at least, does a better job of engaging everyone under the tent, from wishy-washy moderates to progressive activists.
On “The NBA: Where a pretty predictable post-season happens”
Oh c'mon - I think the talent differential between, say, the Rangers and the Bruins is pretty substantial. I mean, would the Rangers have even made the playoffs without Lundquist? I'm pretty sure that every sport's post-season features its fair share of second tier teams. In the NBA, at least, most of them have the talent to make a legitimate run if they get their acts together.
"
Way ahead you, Howie (go Caps!), though I maintain the NBA is pretty interesting. If a few key players hadn't gotten injured (Peja and Chandler for the Hornets, Jameer Nelson for the Magic, KG for the Celts), I think the title would be up for grabs. Right now, I think there are two overwhelming favorites (Cavs and Lakers), two plausible dark horses (Boston and Orlando), and a host of interesting second tier teams who have the talent to make a deep playoff run.
On “Pomocon returns”
Gmix!
On “A Plea for Engagement”
Lighthouse -
Pretty persuasive analysis, though I think conservatives' internecine squabbles are a bit more venerable than you might think. Perot and Buchanan's break with the Establishment presages a lot of this stuff.
"
Phew. Lots of interesting stuff to respond to. A few quick reactions:
Rj -
The irony, of course, is that many conservative dissidents are the antithesis of the Eastern Establishment.
Sean Scallon -
Thanks for dropping by. As a self-identified East Coast cosmopolitan, I think you may overstate the cultural differences underlying the conservative split, though many of these mainstream outlets share a certain establishment mindset. Like you, I hope that political reality will eventually force some sort of acknowledgment from the National Reviews of the world that yes, they were wrong and we were right about a few important issues (see Iraq, Invasion of).
Katherine -
I hear what you're saying, but I think we should remember that conservative critiques of the establishment are rooted in a worldview that is very different from your typical progressive/liberal. I'd be careful about drawing too many parallels between dissident righties and leftists. If we really agreed with the Left that much, I suppose we'd already be Democrats.
"
Mark -
Culture11 is really the only forum I can think of that actively recruited writers from across the conservative spectrum. Its failure, I think, speaks to the inability of the Right to engage in constructive intramural dialogue. Your "out of power" thesis makes a certain amount of sense, but you would think that the 2006 midterms and the 2008 election would have already prompted some sort of reconciliation.
Katherine -
You may be right, though I hesitate to psycho-analyze an entire party. I also think it's worth noting that the Left has suffered through similarly acrimonious debates and patched things up afterward (arguments over the Iraq War come to mind), so I'm left wondering why conservative reconciliation still seems so far off.
On “Call to Arms”
d.eris -
I was going to challenge your comment, but then I caught this entry from Glenn Greenwald. Proves your point rather nicely:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2009/04/14/surveillance/
That said, I think my larger concerns are still valid.
On “Fragmentation”
Chris -
I'm a big fan of communicative rationality - I just don't think our political class is equipped to initiate that dialogue. Too often, "consensus" is code for an extremely narrow spectrum of acceptable discourse.
"
Chris -
All valid concerns (a bit reminiscent of Kaplan's "Coming Anarchy), but I'm not sure we need a lock-step political consensus to deal with them. Indeed, I'd argue one-size-fits-all solutions are more likely to develop in a world where our political discourse is dominated by stultifying establishment thinking.
On “When Should Judges Defer?”
Cascadian -
Thanks. We tend to think of the courts as free-floating arbitrators, but they can't really be separated from their larger political context. To make unpopular (yet necessary) constitutional decisions, the courts need to retain a certain amount of public legitimacy. So I think that deferring to the legislature on divisive social issues is a good way to protect the courts' judicial independence.
Having said all that, Mark is on the cusp of convincing me that the way Iowa's equal protection laws are formulated precluded the Iowa Supreme Court from ruling any other way. So maybe my objections don't apply to this particular case.
"
Call me old-fashioned, Jay Bird, but I don't think judges should be in the business of "anticipating" public opinion. Moreover, I think that many judges are drawn from a demographic - the prosperous, socially liberal elite - that is ahead of the curve when it comes to evolving social mores.
"
Full disclosure: Mark's a lawyer; I'm not. Hopefully that explains my limited knowledge of legal procedure.
On “Observe and report.”
Despite my undying affection for James Franco (Desario!), I didn't really enjoy "Pineapple Express," though McBride was quite good in "All The Real Girls."
"
Danny McBride in "Tropic Thunder" - greatest performance by a supporting actor ever?
On “Saved By The Bell’s Twisted Morality”
I will never forgive you for ruining Saved by the Bell for me, Mark.
On “Innovators Needed”
Wow. I'm duly impressed.
On “Goldberg Variations”
As I said above, I have a lot of sympathy for anti-war commentators who tried to disassociate themselves with the radical anti-war left for fear of being labeled "anti-American." In much the same way, I'm sympathetic to Goldberg's conundrum - he's a guy with generally liberal views on the settlement issue who tries to over-compensate by being hyper-sensitive to any hint of anti-Semitism.
"
Goldberg's politics are a bit more nuanced than that, I think. He has pretty liberal views on the settlements and the Palestinian issue in general. That he would be sensitive to accusations of anti-Semitism or particularly concerned about Hamas's latest rocket barrage is not terribly surprising. My larger point was that his knee-jerk defensive posture is pretty understandable.
*Comment archive for non-registered commenters assembled by email address as provided.