The Trebach Report May 8, 2008 SAN DIEGO STATE AN EXERCISE IN FUTILITY One has to strongly suspect that the American public generally views the massive drug bust at San Diego State as a good thing because we all know that no one ever did drugs on that campus before those particular seventy-five students matriculated there and now no one ever will again. However, not everyone sees these arrests as a positive and some concerned parents will protest by holding a mock graduation ceremony with empty chairs representing the missing students. Fortunately, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) has an outstanding video, where ex-police officers explain the rationale and methodology behind similar operations, that leads one to understand that the protestors not the general public are correct on this issue. [COMMENTS] May 8, 2008 THE DRUG WAR DRAFT Quite naturally, Students for a Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) has a primary goal of changing the provision in the Higher Education Act which denies financial aid to students convicted of drug possession. They have noted that while those offenses preclude education they do not keep the offenders involved from serving in the military. Therefore SSDP has produced a video which explains how the growing number of conduct waivers offered by military recruiters amounts to a drug war draft. One person who has been reached by the above presentation is Congresswoman Yvette Clarke (D-NY). In a speech given on the floor of the House of Representatives she observed that the Bush Administration is allowing “more people with criminal records, including drug convictions, to serve in the Armed Forces. As a matter of fact, conduct waivers granted for felonies and other crimes constitute the majority of all waivers, about 60 percent for the Army, and 75 percent for the Marine Corps.” Clarke then went on to argue that, “it is important to note that the vast majority of such convictions stem from juvenile offenses, but at the same time, a provision of the Higher Education Act, which Congress is currently in the process of reauthorizing, bars young people with drug convictions from receiving Federal financial aid to go to college. I find it absolutely alarming that the Bush administration seems to think that youth who are prone to youthful indiscretions and get into trouble with drug use are, on the one hand, not worthy of Federal support to obtain a college education, but on the other hand, are perfectly fit to go and to fight the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.” [COMMENTS] May 7, 2008 THE THREAT DOES NOT ALWAYS COME IN THE FORM OF A BOMB Once again Frank Gaffney Jr. tries to warn us that the real threat to America posed by the Islamists may not be an explosion but rather a steady erosion of our most cherished values. He begins his piece by asserting that “Even Americans knowledgeable about Europe’s growing accommodation to the totalitarian ideology known alternatively as Islamism, jihadism or Islamofascism tend smugly to believe the same thing can’t happen here. Think again. Every day, new evidence appears of similar acts of submission – the Islamists call it ‘dhimmitude’ – on the part of the U.S. government, judges, the press and leading corporations.” [COMMENTS] May 6, 2008 MARIJUANA DOES NOT CAUSE LUNG CANCER Under the title ”The Greatest Story Never Told” Fred Gardner, the editor of O'Shaughnessy's, explains what is involved in making so many people falsely believe that marijuana smoking is a cause of lung cancer. He reveals that the work of Dr. Donald Tashkin, in the past no friend of cannabis, not only failed to find causation but also discovered evidence of a protective effect. Gardner reports that, ”as to the highly promising implication of his own study -that something in marijuana stops damaged cells from becoming malignant- Tashkin noted that an anti-proliferative effect of THC has been observed in cell-culture systems and animal models of brain, breast, prostate, and lung cancer. THC has been shown to promote known apoptosis (damaged cells die instead of reproducing) and to counter angiogenesis (the process by which blood vessels are formed -a requirement of tumor growth). Other antioxidants in cannabis may also be involved in countering malignancy, said Tashkin.” Nevertheless, the government has decided to ruin the lives of 75 students attending San Diego State University. The DEA, at great taxpayer expense, has arrested them primarily for supplying fellow classmates with marijuana, a practice that has been going on since the 1960s. While it is true that these young people went about their business in a particularly reckless and arrogant manner using cell phone text messages to fill orders, still the effects of using marijuana do not even come close to justifying the waste of their talents and destruction of their careers. [COMMENTS] May 2, 2008 AN INTERESTING VIEWPOINT In the pages of The Wall Street Journal Peggy Noonan gives her interesting and so far little heard take on the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, his relationship with Barak Obama, and its impact on the election. Is Noonan correct in this appraisal? I disagree but maybe she is more on the money then I am. [COMMENTS] May 2, 2008 KRAUTHAMMER ON BARACK'S NEW TOUGHNESS I agree much more with Doc K than I do with Peggy Noonan.  Indeed, while I have long been an admirer of Barack, I have been often troubled by his behavior and this speech just about pushed me to the extreme position of Anyone But Barack.  It hurts but that is where I am now. He is no more a uniter than W is, and remember his claim to be a uniter and not a divider. [COMMENTS] May 2, 2008 ISRAEL AT THE END OF SIXTY YEARS Melanie Phillips, a person who should be listened to, writes about the upcoming 60th anniversary of Israel’s founding on May 8th. She assesses the current situation pointing out that, ”Israel is the only country whose creation was approved by the UN; yet it is the only country whose legitimacy is called into question. It is the only country which the world requires to compromise with its Palestinian Arab attackers and accede to their demands, even while they are firing rockets at its schools and houses and blowing up its citizens.” [COMMENTS] April 24, 2008 HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT INSPIRES ME When there are people like Irshad out there, so also is hope there! [COMMENTS] April 24, 2008 ROOT CAUSE OF THE DISPUTE Tony Blankley discusses the basis for the Western conflict with Islam. He argues that “perhaps the greatest secular gift to the world by Judeo-Christian civilization is its seminal concept of the individual, which it raises above the tribe or the collective.” Blankly then points out that, “radicalized Islam places little value on the individual, while holding up for supreme value the interests of the group — particularly their view of the group called Islam. And it is this aggressive, assertive insistence by radicalized Muslims in the West on subordinating our inherent rights to their collective demands that is slowly and more or less quietly forcing Westerners to take sides on the radicals' demands.” [COMMENTS] April 22, 2008 SAMI AMIN AL-ARIAN IS JUDGED The United States District Court, Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division has made a transcript of the sentencing hearing for convicted terrorism financier Sami Amin Al-Arian available. One can get a sense of how it went for the defendant from this quote by the Judge James S. Moody Jr.; “You are a master manipulator. You looked your neighbors in the eyes and said you had nothing to do with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. This trial exposed that as a lie.” [COMMENTS] April 22, 2008 OBAMA DID INDEED PLAY THE RACE CARD ON BILL CLINTON There is no doubt in my mind that Mr. OBAMA and his campaign staff have deliberately played the race card on Bill Clinton and on anybody else within range.  This is despicable behavior and I personally resent it for many reasons, not least that I was involved in the civil rights struggle way back when it was real.  The charges have been made worse by the drumbeat of media accusations against Bill, aided and abetted by such gutter dwellers as Dick Morris.  As Bill said in a recent radio interview, it is impossible to label him as a racist, given his incredible record on that matter. [COMMENTS] April 21, 2008 THE PATH TOWARDS A DEMOCRATIC ISLAM In an article for the Jerusalem Post Daniel Pipes links to an essay in the Middle East Quarterly by Frederic L. Pryor of Swarthmore College which asks the question "Are Muslim Countries Less Democratic?". Pipes, however, disagrees with those who conclude that because Islam is the common factor it is the cause of Muslim countries’ undemocratic traditions and he points to the Christian Church’s centuries long struggle with democracy as a precedent. He argues that to, “render Islam consistent with democratic ways will require profound changes in its interpretation. For example, the anti-democratic law of Islam, the Shari‘a, lies at the core of the problem. Developed over a millennium ago, it presumes autocratic rulers and submissive subjects, emphasizes God's will over popular sovereignty, and encourages violent jihad to expand Islam's borders. Further, it anti-democratically privileges Muslims over non-Muslims, males over females, and free persons over slaves. For Muslims to build fully functioning democracies they basically must reject the Shai’a’s public aspects.” [COMMENTS] April 18, 2008 ROOTS OF ISLAMIC ANTI-SEMITISM Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME) is calling attention to a paper by Brown University’s Andrew G. Boston. The scholarly article explains the Qur’anic origins of Islamic anti-Semitism. He argues that, “even if all non-Muslim Judeophobic themes were to disappear miraculously overnight from the Islamic world, the living legacy of anti-Jewish hatred, and violence rooted in Islam’s sacred texts—Qur’an, hadith, and sira—would remain intact. The assessment and understanding of Islamic anti-Semitism must begin with an unapologetic analysis of the anti-Jewish motifs contained in these foundational texts of Islam.” [COMMENTS] April 16, 2009 A COUNTERPRODUCTIVE MEETING Frank Gaffney Jr. very disapprovingly comments on the meeting between Jimmy Carter and Khaled Mashaal, the Syrian-based leader of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Palestinian arm, Hamas. His piece includes a history of the negative consequences of ex-president’s meddling and he asserts that, “Mr. Carter has come to epitomize the notion that ‘dialogue’ is always in order, no matter how odious or dangerous the interlocutor – or the extent to which they or their agendas will benefit from such interactions.” [COMMENTS] April 16, 2008 A POWERFUL PLEA TO TREAT THE DISABLED AS A NOBLE, DESERVING MINORITY I can attest to the power of these ideas about the disabled and to the perusasive power of my dear friend, Lynne Landsberg. She is a noble example of interity and true grit and humor -- in the face of adversity. If I were on the other side in this matter, I would surrender and support her efforts. She and her allies will indeed prevail. [COMMENTS] April 15, 2008 THE BLIND SHEIKH WARNED US AND WE DID NOT LISTEN In the pages of The New York Post Douglas Farah reviews former Assistant United States Attorney Andrew McCarthy’s new book, Willful Blindness: A Memoir of the Jihad, asserting that, ”the first World Trade Center bombing, in 1993, was the opening salvo in radical Islam's war against the US, yet its importance was missed by almost the entire intelligence and law enforcement communities.” [COMMENTS] April 13, 2008 PETER COHEN'S CRITIQUE OF COSTA'S RECENT SPEECH I give this top UN drug official, Antonio Costa, credit for showing up there in New Orleans at the Drug Policy Alliance conference last year. My old friend, Peter Cohen, nevertheless, demonstrates how wrong his facts are in a critique below of Costa‘s speech to the Commission on Narcotic Drugs in March. Critique of Antonio Costa’s speech opening CND 2008 by Peter Cohen At first sight Mr. Costa’s speech in March 2008 yields some space for critique of the global drug control system similar to that which we have aired for decades. At second sight the space he allows for referring to this critique is no where followed up with space for a different analysis of the drug use phenomenon and the huge variety in which it occurs .A different analysis that would allow the present one size fits all drug control system to be innovated or diversified at least, at best scrapped in its entirety. In this short and limited discussion of the Costa speech I will assume the reader has read it. Its most important words are at the end where he hid a remark of large potential consequences for thousands of prisoners: “Today I propose that Member States extend the concept of harm reduction to include the need to give serious consideration to whether the imposition of capital punishment for drug-related crimes is a best practice.” This remark is courageous inside the killing fields of global drug policy and we should congratulate Costa on having made it, and made it at such a conspicuous location. All the rest of the speech is conventional wisdom, in as far as the word wisdom applies at all. It is simply not true as he says that his speech  is: “drafted with the purpose of stimulating debate and promoting fresh thinking" because he does not allow it to go outside "the parameters and the perimeters of the UN Conventions.” But it  is precisely because of the monolithical legality of  Treaty drug policies (one  the INCB tries to nail on us with relentless vigor) we are in such a deep mess. Fresh thinking should go beyond the obsolete conventions that now span a century, and allow our ways of describing drug use, trade and production other than as self evident problems and criminal acts . What is a problem and crime one day may yield a Nobel prize the next. (Galileo or Savonarola would have won one now, whereas they were criminals during their lifetime in Costa’s homeland.) Costa critiques those that critique the Treaties saying that: “What many people do not see, or perhaps intentionally fail to recognize, are the achievements of the drug control system over the last century, and the improvements over the last decade.” That’s right, he says achievements! The Treaties are supposed, by Costa, to have caused the fact that no more than 0,5% of the world population are problem drug users, plus the fact that non-problem drug users are 250 million, only 5% of the world population. So he says that 90% of the drug users have no problems with it, something we have known all along. Problem drug use is an exception, not the rule, despite the drug policies that marginalise, pathologise and criminalise any user all over the world. So, Costa could easily have said we do not need a UN based Inquisition that constructs a universal problem out of what is mostly not. Moreover, Costa fails to remark that both life time and current use of some illicit drugs, in our present world has grown in countries where it was almost non existent in the days the Treaties were being written. We see large historic and cultural differences over time and place, although in countries where opiate use was culturally embedded (Persia, Afganistan, Pakistan) prevalence is still far higher than in countries where it was introduced in the 19th century. In the latter countries it is probably unchanged in spite of a huge effort to stamp out even its low level of prevalence (See Courtwright, Dark Paradise). Drugs like cocaine and cannabis were almost unknown in the 19th century in the West, but now are normal for large parts of Western countries. In spite of the Treaties and the early onset of illegality for the last mentioned drugs, their use has constantly grown during the life time of the Treaties and there is no reason to assume this growth will stop. Novel drugs take time to become part of the cultural furniture that serves the many spaces of recreational behaviour but not all novel drugs are successful in doing so. This means that culturally novel drugs like cocaine or cannabis will for a long time know a level of prevalence that is far lower than classic culturally embedded drugs like alcohol and tobacco. This is true everywhere, and was true also before the Treaties. And no one knows if or when novel drugs will become as embedded as the classic ones, but cannabis is certainly on the way to become as household as apple pie, alcohol and aspirin. Treaty or no Treaty, other new drugs may follow.   Where Costa sees the ‘achievements’ of the Drug Treaties some one else might simply see nothing but ruins. Costa fails to try to convince us of why one would even superficially allow his ‘achievements’ to exist. “What ever the cause, the result is what counts’ is his grand support for the achievement thesis. Is he being naïve when in talking about the possible effects of UNGASS ( or the Treaties in general)? He says that: “Whether this is a coincidence, or a cause-effect relation, as a social scientist I cannot tell.” As a social scientist he should hear alarm bells go off all over the place! If he really wants to speak of ‘achievements’ of the Treaties as a scientist he should feel obliged to offer more than just their postulation.   In fact, there is nothing. As I said elsewhere, in my review of the UNODC report on the Swedish drug policy, there is not a shred of evidence that Swedish drug policy has any of the "successful" effects that are ascribed to it. The same is true for the alleged effects world wide of  the Treaties, “Few United Nations Conventions have delivered similarly impressive results.“ Not a shred of evidence they produced the situation that Costa describes as a Treaty achievement, that is that culturally alien drugs have a lower level of prevalence than embedded drugs. And who would believe his claim that the Treaties produced a world wide “slashing of drug cultivation“? Plenty of evidence though of the disasters the Treaties produced, and Costa does not shy away from mentioning them. His name for those disasters is not “disaster“, but “unintended consequence“. He probably did not borrow this term from  Lamond Tullis who wrote a detailed study (Unintended Consequences: Illegal Drugs and Drug Policies in Nine Countries (Studies on the Impact of the Illegal Drug Trade, Vol. 4) Boulder 1995.UNRISD) for UNRISD about massive drug productions in North and South America under this title. Lamond Tullis not only shows how and why criminalisation of drug production destroys cultures, regions, governing systems and populations, but that they will continue to do so. After reading this UN study or seeing the ongoing rise of availibity at ever lower prices of drugs, the claim that drug production is "slashed" by the achievements of the Treaties can not be more than a rather tasteless joke. I recommend the Tullis study to Costa, and his staff. A”rowdy pro drug conference“: In his speech Costa mentions his performance at the DPA  conference for drug policy reformers in 2007 in the destroyed city of New Orleans. He was applauded there for coming into the lions den. But everybody there opposed the Treaty policies in lucid and learned argumentations, to which he was helpless to reply. (In Vienna this year he reacted likewise to serious and honest questioning from Fredrick Polak of the Dutch Foundation for Drug Policy.) Now saying to the opposition he had in New Orleans that “legalisation of an anti social behaviour is a poison pill, not a silver bullet” is an unnecessary slap in the face of the seriousness with which he was received by the drug users and non drug users present at this conference . It is superficial and an evasion of discussion.  No legaliser has ever said legalization is a silver bullet- there is no silver bullet- , and Costa fails to give any evidence for  his statements that drug use is “anti social behaviour” or that legalizing it would be any where near a “poison pill“. This been there done that banality, of the kind we always hear from the pitiful liars working for the American Drug Czar’s office (ONDCP) or the White House , does not belong in a UN body that claims it is open to “fresh discussions“. I will finish this short exposé quoting the statement Costa made that: “Therefore, States must live up to their commitments, not least the UNGASS Declaration. A lax approach in one country or for one type of drug - like cannabis - can unravel the entire system.” I agree fully with the last phrase of this statement, and the fear it represents. The Dutch for instance have shown that allowing universal access for adults to cannabis has not produced high levels of prevalence. In fact, use of all drugs in the Netherlands is at average or below average levels compared to surrounding countries. This indeed unravels the rigid belief system that maintains without shame or evidence that putting an Inquisition over access will curb use. The Dutch show that open  access is just one of many factors, and probably not even an important one. The Dutch show that drug use levels vary between cities inside the Low Countries with differences larger than between countries in Europe although access in Holland is about  the same everywhere . Costa can not explain in terms of the belief system that grounds the Treaties why the Swedes use twice as much cannabis as the Portuguese or the British twice as much as the Dutch.   The Dutch did not intend to show anything, just curb stupidity and criminilisation, but nonetheless their experience teaches us such important lessons that studying them might ‘unravel the entire system’, something Costa quite naturally fears and tries to prevent. Therefore there is no room for “fresh” discussion , on the contrary. Apart from his courageous remark on the death penalty, the  Costa speech is stale beer in the guise of a hot potatoes. I thank Job Arnold and Eliot Albert for their comments. [COMMENTS] April 12, 2008 JIHAD FROM THE BEGINNING David Horovitz favorably reviews the new book 1948: A History of the First Arab-Israeli War by historian Benny Morris in The Jerusalem Post. Horovitz observes that Morris’s ”new book, impeccably timed to coincide with our 60th anniversary, is notable for its insistence that the religious dimension of Arab opposition to Jewish sovereignty, the rejection of Israel as an ‘infidel’ and ‘alien’ presence, was overwhelming from the earliest days of the struggle for statehood - and was underestimated by Israel's leaders from the earliest days, too.” [COMMENTS] April 10, 2008 FREE SPEECH UNDER MUSLIM ATTACK IN CANADA The Christian Science Monitor provides us with a story about the attempt by some Muslim groups to use Canada's Human Rights Commissions (HRC) to censor speech they do not like. Specific targets include McLean’s Magazine, Canadian publisher Ezra Levant and author Mark Steyn. However, reporter Rondi Adamson also tell us that, “since January, op-eds supportive of Maclean's and Levant's positions from even left-leaning newspapers have abounded. A motion has been put forth in Canada's parliament to remove the section of the Human Rights Act that prescribes speech. Organizations such as the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and PEN Canada (some of whose members can't abide Levant's and Steyn's politics) have called for similar amendments and for the complaints against Maclean's and Levant to be dropped.” [COMMENTS] April 9, 2008 OBAMA'S SECRET MISSION TO BILLIONAIRE'S ROW IN SAN FRANCISCO There is no doubt that the MSM, most of whom are in the tank for Obama, will make no snide remarks about this visit which runs totally contrary to his claims and those of his wife that this is a truly DIFFERENT candidate who is being supported by the little people of the country. This is a fascinating tour of the realities behind this candidate's campaign.  Why did he hide this visit?  How much money did he take in during these few hours from these very rich people? At the same time it is heartening to see a guy of his background treated like royalty by these rich folks. [COMMENTS] April 8, 2008 THE ENIGMA OF OBAMA Like so many people who were actually involved in the real civil rights movement, I continue to be confused and conflicted over the Obama candidacy. I admire him very much and wish him well but I am deeply troubled by aspects of his character and approach to the campaign.  This piece from the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies raises many issues that resonate with me. [COMMENTS] April 7, 2008 PEACEFUL MAJORITY MUST NOT BE IGNORED On the Future of Freedom Foundation website Sheldon Richman refutes the pernicious idea that the vast majority of nonviolent Muslims are irrelevant. He argues that, ”the peaceful majority cannot be irrelevant as long as ideas rule the world. That last phrase may startle some readers, but it’s true. Contrary to what many people think, force does not rule the world. Ideas do, says historian and defense theorist Jeffrey Rogers Hummel, because ideas determine the direction in which people point their guns. If we want peaceful Muslims to prevail over those who use violence against innocents, it would be helpful if their ideas about nonviolence were reinforced.” [COMMENTS] April 7, 2008 COMMENTATOR PUT IN HER PLACE Syndicated columnist Bridget Johnson has written a rather pedestrian essay criticizing Dutch politician Geert Wilders film Fitna. From her piece, it is clear that Johnson favors a certain species of political correctness over the rights of women and the principle of free speech. However, the overwhelming majority of readers who commented on the story do not share her viewpoint. Most of them rebuke Johnson, some of them quite substantially and eloquently. [COMMENTS] April 2, 2008 TO THE OBJECTIVE-MINDED, BUSH DID NOT LIE US INTO WAR Here is more proof that the myths about cooking intelligence and lying about WMDs are just that - myths.  I reviewed all of the available evidence some years ago and came to the same conclusion.  It is in my latest book Fatal Distraction. You may dislike W and believe that the Iraq war was a bad idea, but you cannot claim to have proof that he lied about pre-war intelligence. [COMMENTS] April 2, 2008 HATRED BROADCAST AND TAUGHT TO THE VERY YOUNG The top of Melanie Phillips website presently features two pieces titled ”The war against the Jews” (14 and 13). In the first entry she links to an article by former New York Times Jerusalem bureau chief, Steve Erlanger, which discusses the ubiquitous incitement to hatred of the Jews in the Palestinian mosques and media, some of it aimed at toddlers. Phillips finds the essay worthwhile, however, she observers that, ”as of last month Erlanger moved on from Jerusalem to run the NYT’s Paris bureau. But in his entire four-year posting in Israel, he barely mentioned the Palestinian Arab incitement against Israel and the Jews. It was only when he had safely left the region altogether that he suddenly discovered that.” In the other installment Phillips reproduces a message sent to her and the BBC by reader Kevin O'Sullivan. He asserts that ”if I stood on any street corner in London, holding anti-Semitic placards vilifying Jewish people, and encouraging hatred towards the most persecuted race in the history of man, I would rightly be arrested and hopefully prosecuted under any number of race hate laws, but the BBC can commit exactly the same crime day after day, and absolutely nothing is done.” [COMMENTS] April 1, 2008 WHY WAFA SULTAN REPRESENTS HOPE The Syrian born psychologist Wafa Sultan, who lives under a death threat, participated in a debate with an Egyptian Islamist named Tal'at Rmeih about the Danish cartoons depicting Mohammed. Al-Jazeera televised the event and in a perceptive column Frank J. Gaffney Jr. discusses it. He quotes Sultan as saying that, “all religions and faiths, throughout the history of humanity, have been subject to criticism and affronts. With time, this has helped in their reform and development. Any belief that chops off the heads of its critics is doomed to turn into terrorism and tyranny.” He also relates her advice to the Islamists: “If you want to change the course of events, you must reexamine your terrorist teachings, you must recognize and respect the right of the other to live, you must teach your children love, peace, coexistence, and productive work. When you do that, the world will respect you, will consider you in a better light, and will draw you in a better light.” Later, Al-Jazeera felt it prudent to apologize for allowing Wafa Sultan airtime. [COMMENTS] March 31, 2008 THE VIEW ALSO IN THE TANK According to this description by The New York Times Barak Obama’s recent appearance on The View sounds much more like a pep rally than a serious presidential candidate interview. [COMMENTS] March 28, 2008 HARASSMENT IN BANGLADESH Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME) has sent out a call for action from Richard L. Benkin, Ph.D of Interfaith Strength. It is in support of Muslim journalist Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury who has been deemed by some to be too sympathetic towards Israel. The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) a para-military arm of the Bangladeshi government, ”notorious for its crackdowns on dissidents and wholesale violations of human rights,” stormed the offices of his newspaper and held Choudhury prisoner for some time. [COMMENTS] March 26, 2008 MARIJUANA DE-CRIMINALIZATION HAS THE TIME COME? On the most recent edition of HBO’s Bill Maher program Representative Barney Frank (D) Massachusetts states his intention to file a bill which would end federal prohibition of possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use. Congressman Frank is already receiving some published support. In an excellent column for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer travel writer Rick Steves compares the European approach to marijuana policy with that of the United States. He observes that, ”when it comes to marijuana, European leaders understand that a society must choose: Tolerate alternative lifestyles or build more prisons. They've made their choice. We're still building more prisons.” [COMMENTS] March 25, 2008 MORE ISLAMIC CENSORSHIP? Earlier this space called attention to a new film by Dutch politician Geert Wilders that is highly critical of the Koran. Well, Information Week is reporting that the e-business service company Network Solutions has suspended the website promoting this movie pending an investigation of possible acceptable use policies. Reporter Thomas Claburn tells us that, ”the Networks Solutions Acceptable use policy forbids, in addition to protected intellectual property, 'material that is obscene, defamatory, libelous, unlawful, harassing, abusive, threatening, harmful, vulgar, constitutes an illegal threat, violates export control laws, hate propaganda, fraudulent material or fraudulent activity, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable material of any kind or nature.' The inclusion of the clause 'otherwise objectionable material' appears to give Network Solutions the right to block sites because of any imaginable objection.” [COMMENTS] March 20, 2008 OH YES WE USE WOMEN AND CHILDREN AS HUMAN SHIELDS For those who do not understand the utter deparvity of too many radical Muslim leaders, look and listen to this from The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI). [COMMENTS] March 20, 2008 FROM ALL FAWNING TO MUCH CRITICISM: IS THIS FAIR? My neighborhood is full of Obama signs and my neighbors and friends and relatives voted for him in droves.  The media fawned over him for months, for the most part.  Much of the media still does but now the cable news, the internet, and the bloggers are full of harsh new attacks.  Here is just one example. Is this fair?  I am not so sure but most of the alleged facts in this one piece seem accurate and damning. [COMMENTS] March 20, 2008 OBAMA'S FAMOUS RACE SPEECH IS WORTH HEARING IN FULL While it did not answer all the questions about his pastor, it will be remembered for a long time. Click here for the entire effort. [COMMENTS] March 18, 2008 SOME SUFFERING IS LARGELY IGNORED The American press has devoted an ocean of ink to the suffering of the Palestinian people living in Gaza but a relative trickle addresses the torment of the Israelis living under a daily barrage of Hamas rockets. Mona Charen tackles this imbalance somewhat with her essay Worlds Apart Morally: Facing Mideast Facts. She reminds us that those living in, “Ashkelon, a city of 117,000 that traces its history back to the Canaanites, have been targeted by 50 rockets a day. The elderly, who cannot sprint to bomb shelters, simply ignore the sirens. They have little choice. But they, like all of Sderot’s residents, particularly the children, suffer from anxiety, sleep deprivation, and depression. Those who could afford to move have done so, but many remain trapped — unable to sell their homes.” [COMMENTS] March 18, 2008 HOW DO WE DEFINE “MODERATE MUSLIM”? The Syrian-American psychologist, Wafa Sultan, human rights commentator, Thomas Haidon, president of Muslims Against Sharia, Khalim Massoud, scholar of Islamic history, Robert Spencer, and ex-Muslim author, Abdul Kasem all took part in a fascinating and very important Frontpage Symposium. The question nominally being discussed concerned Christopher Hitchens notion that the term “moderate Muslims” should be replaced by ”anti-Fascist Muslims” as the former was condescending towards those so courageously risking their lives by speaking out. However, that query was quickly superseded by the agreed upon need to define just exactly who was and was not a ”moderate Muslim” with Thomas Haidon setting the tone in the initial statement. He asserted that currently, ”there is no cohesive formulation as to what a moderate Muslim is. If we rely on the media, and misguided Western policy makers (and influencers) we see a distorted picture. We need to develop a clear understanding of what we mean by a moderate Muslim. Basically we need an objective test. Without a basic litmus test, it is impossible to understand the Muslim enemies of civilisation. So the starting point is to look at the characteristics of these people.”.The rest of this forum is devoted to an informative discussion of such a definition. [COMMENTS] March 16, 2008 OBAMA AND HIS MINISTER A CONTINUING CONTROVERSY Videos posted on YouTube such as this one have become an issue in this election. They have inspired widespread commentary including an essay by Ronald Kessler in The Wall Street Journal and Tel Belman’s opinion piece found on the website Israpundit. [COMMENTS] March 15, 2008 BARACK OBAMA'S MINISTER, AGAIN I have mentioned in past posts on this site that I do not agree with guilt by association but the candidate has praised this hatemonger time and time again, even though Obama has said he sometimes says things he does not agree with.  Listen and watch these sermons -- and you will relaize that Obama must say more and do more. Truly horrible utterances that have no place in American life. [COMMENTS] March 14, 2008 MUSLIMS WHO PUT THE WEST TO SHAME Signs of hope (and despair) as explained by Melanie Phillips. [COMMENTS] March 14, 2008 NICHOLAS SARKOZY’S DECLINING POPULARITY Paul Belien observes that ten months after his election victory, based largely on a promise to curb the excesses of a Muslim population prone to rioting, France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy’s approval rating has fallen from 65 to 38 percent. Belien’s article posted on The Brussels Journal contains a list of reasons for this decline including the fact that “the ‘thugs’ have since begun to ambush police and no longer refrain from shooting at officers, but the Sarkozy government had not clamped down on them.” [COMMENTS] March 11, 2008 DASTARDLY ATTACK CONDEMNED One group that could be expected to be especially upset by the horrendous attack on the Yeshiva Mercaz Harav in Jerusalem would be Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME) and they have condemned it in the strongest terms. The president of SPME, Edward S. Beck, states that, “The deliberate attack on this venerable institution of Jewish learning, a sacred seminary, cannot be interpreted as anything but an overt act of premeditated, genocidal anti-Semitism not dissimilar from pogroms in Eastern Europe and Nazi SS raids on Jewish communities in Western Europe. Jews were killed simply because they were Jewish. In no way can this be interpreted as an act of political liberation or of Palestinian self-determination and if the Palestinians insist that it is, then it must be interpreted as nothing less than an act of war against Jews and not just Israel.” [COMMENTS] March 8, 2008 AFGHAN WOMEN STILL IN PERIL There is no question that the American presence in Afghanistan and its ouster of the previous regime has enormously improved the plight of women living there. However, as M. Ashraf Haidari, Political Counselor of the Embassy of Afghanistan in Washington, D.C., informs us they still face a danger that is growing. He reports that, “the Taliban have been able to regroup and expand their presence in the countryside where women are prime victims of attacks against soft targets. Taliban fighters have killed female teachers and burned down hundreds of schools, depriving more than 300,000 girls of education in the south and east of Afghanistan.” [COMMENTS] March 8, 2008 HARM REDUCTION IN DENMARK The Danish Parliament has approved a $14 million pilot program to provide 500 incorrigible addicts with heroin maintenance. The Drug War Chronicle informs us that, “Denmark will join a select group of European countries, including Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands, where such programs have consistently resulted in a decline in property crime, as well as improvements in clients' health and welfare.” The fact that one country is copying another country’s program is important testimony to the efficacy of harm reduction strategies. [COMMENTS] March 6, 2008 FILM HIGHLIGHTS DRUG PROHIBITION INJUSTICE The Showtime cable network is now showing a powerful documentary titled American Drug War: The Last White Hope. It includes some especially insightful comments from Judge James Gray and former Governor of New Mexico Gary Johnson. When asked in an interview about motivation for making the film auteur Kevin Booth replied, “when my mom was dying from liver failure, she was in an ICU unit with several others facing the same fate, all from a life of hard drinking. I was hit with this horrible smell that sickened me so deeply that I instantly lost my appetite for alcohol. After attending my third funeral in a row, I realized that the corporate culprits, Smirnoff, Dewar's, RJ Reynolds, DuPont and others, would never be punished.” You can view the entire film here. [COMMENTS] March 4, 2008 OLD IRENA SHOWS THAT THERE IS HOPE FOR THE SURVIVAL OF HUMANITY YET Read this story of an old Polish woman and you will be inspired through your tears. [COMMENTS] March 2, 2008 HOW MUCH OF THIS PROBLEM CAN BE TRACED BACK TO DRUG PROHIBITION? A remarkable story by Associated Press writer Holbrook Mohr tells about a survey his organization conducted which contacted each state agency in charge of juvenile correction facilities. They inquired about confirmed cases of physical, sexual and emotional abuse by staff members. He reports that, “according to the survey, more than 13,000 claims of abuse were identified in juvenile correction centers around the country from 2004 through 2007 — a remarkable total, given that the total population of detainees was about 46,000 at the time the states were surveyed in 2007.” [COMMENTS] February 29, 2008 NEW FILM PROMISES GREAT CONTORVERSY The government of Holland is very worried about a film that is supposed to be released next week by Dutch politician Geert Wilders. The piece will intersperse verses from the Koran with images of terrorist actions. The self-described Progressive Blog Getting it Right quotes the MP as saying that, “With the help of existing images I want to show that the Koran is far more violent than all other holy books. It's a fascist book, because it inspires people all over the world to the most barbaric deeds, which are contrary to all our laws and values we believe in." Wilders’ purpose is to show that there is a fundamental difference between Islam and Christianity. The film is already generating consequences with the trailer being the reason that the government of Pakistan took down You Tube not just in their country but throughout the world. In addition, there are the traditional death threats against Wilders this time posted on You Tube. However, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who has some experience with this type of thing, is in a fascinating video interview defending Wilders’ right to speak. [COMMENTS] February 28, 2008 DOES DRUG PROHIBITION HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THIS? The Associated Press is reporting that for the first time in history more than one out of every one hundred American adults is in prison, 2,319,258 people overall. This of course is causing enormous expense with just the states spending more than $49 billion last year. Also, there is a racial component with one in thirty white males between the ages of 20 and 34 years old being behind bars, while the numbers for black males of the same age group is one in nine. [COMMENTS] February 26, 2008 UNESCO’S STRANGE CHOICE Nir Boms, vice president of the Center for Freedom in the Middle East, and Jonathan Spyer, a senior research fellow at the Global Research in International Affairs Center, take issue with UNESCO’s designation of Damascus as the Arab Capital of Culture for 2008. The Cultural Capitals Program is supposed to foster greater international cooperation. They quote Syrian President Bashar Assad as declaring that, "Damascus is the capital of resistance culture by symbolizing Arab culture," characterizing it as, "the culture of freedom and defending freedom.” However, Boms and Spyer point out that, ” the new Arab Capital of Culture has a unique approach to ‘international cooperation.’ Damascus serves as the headquarters of a long list of designated terrorist organizations, including Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC), and an alphabet soup of smaller organizations similarly committed to the practice of violence against civilians.” [COMMENTS] February 25, 2008 A DISPARITY IN NEED OF REPAIR One of the most unfair aspects of drug prohibition is the disparity in sentencing between those who are sentenced for possessing crack cocaine, predominately black people, and those who are sentenced for possessing powdered cocaine, predominately white people. Although 66% of crack users are Caucasians, 82% of those given jail time for crack are African-Americans and the sentences tend to be very harsh mandatory minimums much longer than if one had the same amount of powdered cocaine. Once again some Senators are attempting to remedy this injustice with a new bill (S. 1711) and the Drug Policy Alliance is urging us to call our Senators in support of this legislation. [COMMENTS] February 22, 2008 GREAT BRITAIN ON THE FRONTLINE Daniel Pipes discusses three recent developments in Great Britain on the History News Network. They are a counter-terrorism phrasebook that instructs civil servants issued by the Home Office whose purpose is obfuscation, the recognition of polygamous marriages, and the remarks of the Archbishop of Canterbury to the effect that the introduction of Islamic Sharia into British law may be unavoidable. On the latter, Pipes applauds the widespread reaction against the idea but fears the Anglican Church leader may be correct. He ends his piece by saying that, “these developments suggest that British appeasement concerning the war on terror, the nature of the family, and the rule of law are part of a larger pattern. Even more than the security threat posed by Islamist violence, these trends are challenging and perhaps will change the very nature of Western life.” [COMMENTS] February 21, 2008 MEDICAL MARIJUANA A STEP FORWARD The Drug War Chronicle is reporting that American College of Physicians has endorsed the use of medical marijuana. The nation’s second largest doctor’s group, with 124,000 internal medicine specialists, wants more studies of medical use for cannabis and an end to government interference in that process. In their position paper they state that, “additional research is needed to clarify marijuana’s therapeutic properties and determine standard and optimal doses and routes of delivery. Unfortunately, research expansion has been hindered by a complicated federal approval process, limited availability of research-grade marijuana, and the debate over legalization. Marijuana’s categorization as a Schedule I controlled substance raises significant concerns for researchers, physicians, and patients.” One person who would have been delighted and vindicated by the above news was Dr. John Morgan, who ironically passed away on the same day that the physicians issued their statement. In a farewell to the good doctor piece posted on the Reason website Jacob Sullum tells an anecdote which illustrates just how much the drug reform movement specifically and the world in general has lost. After a conference panel in December during which Sullum had with some trepidation talked about the taboo subject of controlled use of amphetamines Dr. Morgan told him that, ” he agreed that concern about the ‘methamphetamine epidemic’ had made it difficult to talk about the drug's legitimate uses, which do not necessarily require a doctor's prescription to validate them. He said he had personally found methamphetamine tremendously useful during his education and career, calling it one of the safest drugs around when used responsibly. Coming from most people in most contexts, this would have been a startling admission. But coming from the eminently reasonable Morgan and delivered in his usual matter-of-fact tone, it cut through the hysteria and introduced a much-needed alternative perspective. Morgan made a career of doing that, and his well-informed skepticism will be sorely missed.” [COMMENTS] February 20, 2008 IS OBAMA A DELUSION OR A SLICK MAGICIAN OR .... ? It was inevitable that serious questions would be raised by the columnitariat about Prince Barak -- and the process is now starting in earnest.  On the editorial page of The Washington Post today, Robert J. Samuelson writes a stinging attack on the front runner, titled "The Obama Delusion." Samuelson bases his attack on study of the candidates proposed programs and on the content of his speeches. He sees his programs as nothing new and rather pedestrian.  Samuelson's final words: "He seems to have hypnotized most of the media and the public with his eloquence and the symbolism of his life story.  The result is a mass delusion that Obama is forthrightly engaging the nation's major problems when, so far, he isn't." Yesterday in The New York Times, columnist David Brooks wrote a similar essay explaining that many Obama supporters are now experiencing Obama Comedown Syndrome.  This occurs when they come to realize that behind the wonderful speeches and the dazzling persona, there is very little substance. On the other side, I can report that several very sophisticated friends have contacted me and my wife recently to say they have studied Obama's books and his record.  They have become convinced that he is the real deal and that he deserves our support. As I have also mentioned recently, many of my closest family members have reached similar conclusions. This is going to be a difficult election. Since Obama may be in the Oval Office soon, I hope my friends and family members are correct in their optimism about him. [COMMENTS] February 20, 2008 IRSHAD IS AGAIN DEMONSTRATING COURAGE AND WISDOM Look at several items on her site that demonstrate her value to civilization in its current crisis. [COMMENTS] February 19, 2008 A DARK SIDE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA Playboy Magazine has a fascinating special report by Frank Owen which looks at the 2007 murder in Denver of registered caregiver and medical marijuana activist Frank Gorman and the growing association of violence with legal medical marijuana distribution. A very clear conclusion can be drawn here that these inadequate state medical cannabis laws do not end the black market in pot with its attendant mayhem. The article quotes Jeff Schaler one of the harshest critics, from a libertarian perspective, of the medical marijuana movement: ”Being pro-marijuana is a religious crusade just as being anti-marijuana is a religious crusade. It has nothing to do with medicine. The reformers lie about marijuana just as much as the prohibitionists. To say marijuana is a cure all is just as ridiculous as saying it is evil. It’s neither.” While we may disagree with Dr. Schaler on the medicinal worth of cannabis, after all aspirin does not cure anything either, we do agree on the solution to the problem, an end to government involvement with all aspects of the plant, medical, industrial and recreational, then people can decide for themselves if marijuana has medical value. [COMMENTS] February 18, 2008 DR. JOHN MORGAN WILL BE MISSED Another courageous pioneer in the drug reform movement, Dr. John Morgan, has passed away. He died from leukemia on February 15th. He was a tireless advocate of scientific rationalism when it came to the study of and policy towards marijuana. This approach produced an invaluable resource, the book Marijuana Myths, Marijuana Facts which he co-wrote with Lynne Zimmer and published in 1997. It remains the most reliable source of scientifically accurate information on marijuana yet written. While he did not claim marijuana to be 100 percent harmless, he did argue that the evidence showed cannabis to be one of the most benign psychoactive drugs known to man. However, when he pushed for the legalization of marijuana he made it clear that it was not because the drug was largely safe but rather because there were some hazards that prohibition was ill advised. Morgan believed that a regime of regulation and control offered the best way minimize these dangers. Dr. Morgan offered us a much needed rational, humane, courageous, authoritative voice and he will be missed. [COMMENTS] February 18, 2008 MORE ON THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY AND ISLAMIC LAW Writing perceptively in the Weekly Standard Joseph Loconte, a senior fellow at Pepperdine University's School of Public Policy, comments on the recent assertion by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, that the introduction of Islamic Sharia into the British legal system is unavoidable. Loconte discusses the origins Anglo-American conception of human rights quoting political philosopher Jeremy Waldron: "It is a conception of equality that makes no sense except in the light of a particular account of the relation between man and God.” He then gets to the heart of the matter arguing that, ”the difficult fact is that Islam has yet to show convincingly that its conception of God supports the human-rights ideals of liberal societies--from freedom of religion to the rights of women. The question that remains, the question ignored by the Archbishop of Canterbury, is how his Sharia scheme could possibly hasten this great democratic task.” [COMMENTS] February 16, 2008 A COMMENDABLE ACT BY THE ITALIAN GOVERNMENT Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME) is circulating a petition designed to thank the government of Italy for removing a website which targeted Italian academics who opposed the boycott of Israeli universities. It reads in part: We stand in solidarity with and thank those colleagues from Italy, of different faiths and ethnicities, to let them know that they are not alone and that, as scholars, we have an obligation to stand against racism and anti-Semitism. We have learned from history that when intolerance and racial hatred is allowed to permeate academia, tyranny will prevail. The Italian government is to be commended for having learned the lessons of history. You can sign the petition here. [COMMENTS] February 14, 2008 THE WAYWARD ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY In her recent editorial Helle Dale discusses the remarks by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, to the effect that the introduction of Shariah into British law was unavoidable. She argues that, “interestingly enough, social cohesion is exactly what the Rev. Williams' remarks have produced as the British started contemplating the demise of their legal system. Sometimes, appreciation for your own institutions and values does not come until you find them under threat. In this case, the threat is not Muslims living in British society as much as it is those who advocate their presence as a reason to abandon the cultural, legal and political structures that have made Britain what it is over the centuries.” We can all take some comfort from the widespread and very negative reaction to the churchman’s assertion. [COMMENTS] February 14, 2008 THE PROPER JOURNALISTIC RESPONSE TO A MURDER ATTEMPT The Danish police have foiled a plot to kill cartoonist Kurt Westergaard who incurred the wrath of Islamic fundamentalists with his published drawing of Muhammad wearing a bomb in his turban. In a rare act of courageous European defiance three of the largest newspapers in Denmark have committed to reprinting the offending editorial cartoon. [COMMENTS] February 13, 2008 THE MEDIA CANONIZATION OF OBAMA REALLY CANNOT GET ANY LOWER THAN THIS Yes, lower.  This is really bizarre stuff. The media keeps sending Obama Valentines.  Mathews talks about the thrill going up his leg.  I am not making this up.  And then the commentators dump on McCain and the Virginia Republican Party etc.  What has happened to the ethical traditions of fair journalism? Obama has captivated almost everybody including much of the media. The other bizarre part of this is that I think Obama is a decent guy and a brilliant one at that -- and as I have said repeatedly I would not be terribly upset if he won the whole thing.  Except for the way he has been treated with such awe by the press.  And except for the shabby way that the Clintons have been treated.  They are not angels but I do remember how well off the country was during Bill's reign.     I also wonder what will happen when President Obama emerges from his honeymoon in office.  Will the media turn on him with savagery like jilted lovers? [COMMENTS] February 13, 2008 HERE'S HILLARY'S SIDE OF THAT FJB STORY It is hard to say at this stage if this story is true and if it is an important issue.  It certainly runs against the grain of all the stories about Hillary.  Who knows if it might have been said in the heat of the moment and then never repeated again?  If true, it certainly is not a pretty side of HRC.  In any event, here is her side. Of course, she does not need any more bad news at this stage of her career. [COMMENTS] February 12, 2008 CONTINUED EROSION OF BRITISH LAW The erosion of British law in favor of Islamic Sharia continues with a decision by the Department for Work and Pensions that was not publicly announced. The Sunday Telegraph is reporting that, “Husbands with multiple wives have been given the go-ahead to claim extra welfare benefits following a year-long Government review. Even though bigamy is a crime in Britain, the decision by ministers means that polygamous marriages can now be recognised formally by the state, so long as the weddings took place in countries where the arrangement is legal.” The money can be deposited directly into the husband’s bank account. [COMMENTS] February 12, 2008 A READER DISAGEES WITH ME ABOUT BARACK AND CLINTON In response to several posts a reader writes: "You fail to apply the same critical standards to Hillary as you do to Barack. While each of us has a right to our opinions, nonetheless, it is disturbing that you fail to apply the same critical standards to Hillary as you do to Barack. Regarding him, far more threatening to Israel than anything Jeremiah Wright or Farrakhan says is the role the Catholic Jihadist Zbigniew Brezezinski will have in his administration. FYI the Jesuit order, along with their British collaborators (chief among them 'Jack' Philby) removed the conservative Hashemite rulers of Arabia, descendents of the founder of Islam, and placed the medieval Wahabbis in charge of the oil wealth and the holy sites of the religion Read John Loftus and Mark Aarons book the secret war against the Jews for more background. As for Hillary, remember the kiss, the one she bestowed upon Suha Arafat only a few years ago, or what she told Paul Fray, Bill's campaign manager, after his first election defeat in Arkansas, 'you f**king Jew bastard.' Is this your idea of Israel's savior? If so, you have lost your sechel." I doubt some of the facts this reader sends along but I do understand his complaint.  In response I would say that I would guess that Barack will be as good or better for Israel than Hillary.  However, I am still worried by the Farrakhan connection that Barack seems to have. And I still believe that Barack is getting a free pass from much of the press and much of the press acts as if they were on his team. Another point of interest -- many of my family members and most of my neighbors are solidly for Barack.  Finally, I would not be upset, as I said, if he ends up in the Oval Office but I worry about the mistakes he will make in the first two years. [COMMENTS] February 11, 2008 THREE VERY DIFFERENT CANDIDATES In her column Suzanne Fields discusses our expectations for each of the three leading candidates for the Oval Office. She concludes that, "Nobody's perfect, but fine distinctions are important. Voter, know thyself. [COMMENTS] February 11, 2008 HERE IS ANOTHER THOUGHTFUL APPRAISAL OF THE CULT OF OBAMA -- AND THIS ONE FROM AN AUSSIE Thank heavens for these insightful journalists who raise valid questions about the Obama magic movement.  Geoff Elliott writes: "The atmosphere at his events is such that one wonders if Obama is about to walk out with a basket with some loaves and fishes to feed the thousands.  And therein lies the danger for Obama.  The Obama shuttle has made it into orbit but at some point he's going to have to land this thing back on Earth." And he is going to have to come up with some specific policy proposals in addition to leaving Iraq. [COMMENTS] February 11, 2008 WHY HILLARY DESERVES TO WIN -- BECAUSE SHE IS THE BEST QUALIFIED Below is the best, and the most passionate, argument I have read making the case for why Hillary should be nominated. Because she is the most qualified. Sexist criticism of her is accepted as the norm. Any critcism -- repeat, any criticism -- of Obama is labeled as racist. Read this and go out and work for justice and for Hillary. GOODBYE TO ALL THAT  (#2)                                by  Robin Morgan "Goodbye To All That" was my (in)famous 1970 essay breaking free from a politics of accommodation especially affecting women.         During my decades in civil-rights, anti-war, and contemporary women's movements, I've avoided writing another specific "Goodbye . . .". But not since the suffrage struggle have two communities--the joint conscience-keepers of this country--been so set in competition, as the contest between Hillary Rodham Clinton (HRC) and Barack Obama (BO) unfurls. So.          Goodbye to the double standard . . .         --Hillary is too ballsy but too womanly, a Snow Maiden who's emotional, and so much a politician as to be unfit for politics.         --She's "ambitious" but he shows "fire in the belly." (Ever had labor pains? )         --When a sexist idiot screamed "Iron my shirt!" at HRC, it was considered amusing; if a racist idiot shouted "Shine my shoes!" at BO, it would've inspired hours of airtime and pages of newsprint  analyzing our national dishonor.         --Young political Kennedys--Kathleen, Kerry, and Bobby Jr.--all endorsed Hillary. Sen. Ted, age 76, endorsed Obama. If the situation were reversed, pundits would snort "See? Ted and establishment types back her, but the forward-looking generation backs him." (Personally, I'm unimpressed with Caroline's longing for the Return of the Fathers. Unlike the rest of the world, Americans have short memories. Me, I still recall Marilyn Monroe's suicide, and a dead girl named Mary Jo Kopechne in Chappaquiddick.)                 Goodbye to the toxic viciousness  . . .         Carl Bernstein's disgust at Hillary's "thick ankles." Nixon-trickster Roger Stone's new Hillary-hating 527 group, "Citizens United Not Timid" (check the capital letters). John McCain answering "How do we beat the bitch?" with "Excellent question!" Would he have dared reply similarly to "How do we beat the black bastard?" For shame.         Goodbye to the HRC nutcracker with metal spikes between splayed thighs. If it was a tap-dancing blackface doll, we would be righteously outraged-and they would not be selling it in airports. Shame.         Goodbye to the most intimately violent T-shirts in election history, including one with the murderous slogan "If Only Hillary had married O.J. Instead!" Shame.         Goodbye to Comedy Central's "Southpark" featuring a storyline in which terrorists secrete a bomb in HRC's vagina. I refuse to wrench my brain down into the gutter far enough to find a race-based comparison. For shame.                 Goodbye to the sick, malicious idea that this is funny. This is not " Clinton hating," not "Hillary hating." This is sociopathic woman-hating. If it were about Jews, we would recognize it instantly as anti-Semitic propaganda; if about race, as KKK poison.  Hell, PETA would go ballistic if such vomitous spew were directed at animals. Where is our sense of outrage-as citizens, voters, Americans?         Goodbye to the news-coverage target-practice . . .         The women's movement and Media Matters wrung an apology from MSNBC's Chris Matthews for relentless misogynistic comments (http://www.womensmediacenter.com/ and http://www.womensmediacenter.com/ ). But what about NBC's Tim Russert's continual sexist asides and his all-white-male panels pontificating on race and gender? Or CNN's Tony Harris  chuckling at "the chromosome thing" while  interviewing a woman from The White House Project? And that's not even mentioning Fox News.         Goodbye to pretending the black community is entirely male and all women are white . . .         Surprise! Women exist in all opinions, pigmentations, ethnicities, abilities, sexual preferences, and ages--not only African American and European American but Latina and Native American, Asian American and Pacific Islanders, Arab American and-hey, every group, because a group wouldn't be alive if we hadn't given birth to it. A few non-racist countries may exist--but sexism is everywhere. No matter how many ways a woman breaks free from other oppressions, she remains a female human being in a world still so patriarchal that it's the "norm."         So why should all women not be as justly proud of our womanhood and the centuries, even millennia, of struggle that got us this far, as black Americans, women and men, are justly proud of their struggles?         Goodbye to a campaign where he has to pass as white (which whites-especially wealthy ones--adore), while she has to pass as male (which both men and women demanded of her, and then found unforgivable). If she were black or he were female we wouldn't be having such problems, and I for one would be in heaven. But at present such a candidate wouldn't stand a chance-even if she shared Condi Rice's Bush-defending politics.         I was celebrating the pivotal power at last focused on African American women deciding on which of two candidates to bestow their vote--until a number of Hillary-supporting black feminists told me they're being called "race traitors."                 So goodbye to conversations about this nation's deepest scar-slavery-which fail to acknowledge that labor- and sexual-slavery exist today in the US and elsewhere on this planet, and the majority of those enslaved are women.         Women have endured sex/race/ethnic/religious hatred, rape and battery, invasion of spirit and flesh,  forced pregnancy;  being the majority of the poor, the illiterate, the disabled, of refugees, caregivers, the HIV/AIDS afflicted, the powerless. We have survived invisibility, ridicule, religious fundamentalisms, polygamy, teargas, forced feedings, jails, asylums, sati, purdah, female genital mutilation, witch burnings, stonings, and attempted gynocides. We have tried reason, persuasion, reassurances, and being extra-qualified, only to learn it never was about qualifications after all. We know that at this historical moment women experience the world differently from men--though not all the same as one another--and can govern differently, from Elizabeth Tudor to Michele Bachelet and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.         We remember when Shirley Chisholm and Patricia Schroeder ran for this high office and barely got past the gate-they showed too much passion, raised too little cash, were joke fodder. Goodbye to all that. (And goodbye to some feminists so famished for a female president they were even willing to abandon women's rights  in backing Elizabeth Dole.)         Goodbye, goodbye to . . .         --blaming anything Bill Clinton does on Hillary (even including his womanizing like the Kennedy guys--though unlike them, he got reported on). Let's get real. If he hadn't campaigned strongly for her everyone would cluck over what that meant. Enough of Bill and Teddy Kennedy locking their alpha male horns while Hillary pays for it.         --an era when parts of the populace feel so disaffected by politics that a comparative lack of knowledge, experience, and skill is actually seen as attractive, when celebrity-culture mania now infects our elections so that it's "cooler" to glow with marquee charisma than to understand the vast global complexities of power on a nuclear, wounded planet.         --the notion that it's fun to elect a handsome, cocky president who feels he can learn on the job, goodbye to George W. Bush and the destruction brought by his inexperience, ignorance, and arrogance.         Goodbye to the accusation that HRC acts "entitled" when she's worked intensely at everything she's done-including being a nose-to-the-grindstone, first-rate senator from my state.         Goodbye to her being exploited as a Rorschach test by women who reduce her to a blank screen on which they project their own fears, failures, fantasies.         Goodbye to the phrase "polarizing figure"  to describe someone who embodies the transitions women have made in the last century and are poised to make in this one. It was the women's movement that quipped, "We are becoming  the men we wanted to marry." She heard us, and she has.         Goodbye to some women letting history pass by while wringing their hands, because Hillary isn't as "likeable" as they've been warned they must be, or because she didn't leave him, couldn't "control" him, kept her family together and raised a smart, sane daughter. (Think of the blame if Chelsea had ever acted in the alcoholic, neurotic manner of the Bush twins!) Goodbye to some women pouting because she didn't bake cookies or she did, sniping because she learned the rules and then bent or broke them. Grow the hell  up. She is not running for Ms.-perfect-pure-queen-icon of the feminist movement.  She is running to be President of the United States .         Goodbye to the shocking American ignorance of our own and other countries' history. Margaret Thatcher and Golda Meir rose through party ranks and war, positioning themselves as proto-male leaders. Almost all other female heads of government so far have been related to men of power-granddaughters, daughters, sisters, wives, widows: Gandhi, Bandaranike, Bhutto, Aquino, Chamorro, Wazed, Macapagal-Arroyo, Johnson Sirleaf, Bachelet, Kirchner, and more. Even in our "land of opportunity," it's mostly the first pathway "in" permitted to women: Reps. Doris Matsui and Mary Bono and Sala Burton; Sen. Jean Carnahan . . . far too many to list here.         Goodbye to a misrepresented generational divide . . .         Goodbye to the so-called spontaneous "Obama Girl" flaunting her bikini-clad ass online-then confessing Oh yeah it wasn't her idea after all, some guys got her to do it and dictated the clothes, which she said "made me feel like a dork."         Goodbye to some young women eager to win male approval by showing they're not feminists (at least not the kind who actually threaten the status quo), who can't identify with a woman candidate because she is unafraid of eeueweeeu yucky power, who fear their boyfriends might look at them funny if they say something good about her. Goodbye to women of any age again feeling unworthy, sulking "what if she's not electable?" or "maybe it's post-feminism and whoooosh we're already free." Let a statement by the magnificent Harriet Tubman stand as reply. When asked how she managed to save hundreds of enslaved African Americans via the Underground Railroad during the Civil War, she replied bitterly, "I could have saved thousands-if only I'd been able to convince them they were slaves."         I'd rather say a joyful Hello to all the glorious young women who do identify with Hillary, and all the brave, smart men-of all ethnicities and any age--who get that it's in their self-interest, too. She's better qualified. (D'uh.) She's a high-profile candidate with an enormous grasp of foreign- and domestic-policy nuance, dedication to detail, ability to absorb staggering insult and personal pain while retaining dignity, resolve, even humor, and keep on keeping on. (Also, yes, dammit, let's hear it for her connections and funding and party-building background, too. Obama was awfully glad about those when she raised dough and campaigned for him to get to the Senate in the first place.)         I'd rather look forward to what a good president he might make in eight years, when his vision and spirit are seasoned by practical know-how--and he'll be all of 54. Meanwhile, goodbye to turning him into a shining knight when actually he's an astute, smooth pol with speechwriters who've worked with the Kennedys' own speechwriter-courtier Ted Sorenson. If it's only about ringing rhetoric, let speechwriters run. But isn't it about getting the policies we want enacted?         And goodbye to the ageism . . .         How dare anyone unilaterally decide when to turn the page on history, papering over real inequities and suffering constituencies in the promise of a feel-good campaign? How dare anyone claim to unify while dividing, or think that to rouse US youth from torpor it's useful to triage the single largest demographic in this country's history: the boomer generation--the majority of which is female?         Older woman are the one group that doesn't grow more conservative with age-and we are the generation of radicals who said "Well-behaved women seldom make history." Goodbye to going gently into any goodnight any man prescribes for us. We are the women who changed the reality of the United States . And though we never went away, brace yourselves: we're back!         We are the women who brought this country equal credit, better pay, affirmative action, the concept of a family-focused workplace; the women who established rape-crisis centers and battery shelters, marital-rape and date-rape laws; the women who defended lesbian custody rights, who fought for prison reform, founded the peace and environmental movements; who insisted that medical research include female anatomy, who inspired men to become more nurturing parents, who created women's studies and Title IX so we all could cheer the WNBA stars and Mia Hamm. We are the women who reclaimed sexuality from violent pornography, who put child care on the national agenda, who transformed demographics, artistic expression, language itself. We are the women who forged a worldwide movement. We are the proud successors of women who, though it took more than 50 years, won us the vote.         We are the women who now comprise the majority of US voters.         Hillary said she found her own voice in New Hampshire . There's not a woman alive who, if she's honest, doesn't recognize what she means. Then HRC got drowned out by campaign experts, Bill, and media's obsession with All Things Bill.         So listen to her voice:         "For too long, the history of women has been a history of silence. Even today, there are those who are trying to silence our words.         "It is a violation of human rights when babies are denied food, or drowned, or suffocated, or their spines broken, simply because they are born girls. It is a violation of human rights when woman and girls are sold into the slavery of prostitution. It is a violation of human rights when women are doused with gasoline, set on fire and burned to death because their marriage dowries are deemed too small. It is a violation of human rights when individual women are raped in their own communities and when thousands of women are subjected to rape as a tactic or prize of war. It is a violation of human rights when a leading cause of death worldwide along women ages 14 to 44 is the violence they are subjected to in their own homes. It is a violation of human rights when women are denied the right to plan their own families, and that includes being forced to have abortions or being sterilized against their will.         "Women's rights are human rights. Among those rights are the right to speak freely--and the right to be heard."         That was Hillary Rodham Clinton defying the US State Department and the Chinese Government at the 1995 UN World Conference on Women in Beijing (the full, stunning speech: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/hillaryclintonbeijingspeech.htm).         And this voice, age 22, in "Commencement Remarks of Hillary D. Rodham, President of Wellesley College Government Association, Class of 1969" (full speech: http://www.wellesley.edu/PublicAffairs/Commencement/1969/053169hillary.html),         "We are, all of us, exploring a world none of us understands. . . . searching for a more immediate, ecstatic, and penetrating mode of living. . . . [for the] integrity, the courage to be whole, living in relation to one another in the full poetry of existence. The struggle for an integrated life existing in an atmosphere of communal trust and respect is one with desperately important political and social consequences. . . . Fear is always with us, but we just don't have time for it."         She ended with the commitment "to practice, with all the skill of our being: the art of making possible."         And for decades, she's been learning how.         So goodbye to Hillary's second-guessing herself. The real question is deeper than her re-finding her voice. Can we women find ours? Can we do this for ourselves?  "Our President, Ourselves!"         Time is short and the contest tightening. We need to rise in furious energy--as we did when courageous Anita Hill was so vilely treated in the US Senate, as we did when desperate Rosie Jiminez was butchered by an illegal abortion, as we did and do for women globally who are condemned for trying to break through. We need to win, this time. Goodbye to supporting HRC tepidly, with ambivalent caveats and apologetic smiles. Time to  volunteer, make phone calls, send emails, donate money, argue, rally, march, shout, vote.         Me? I support Hillary Rodham because she's the best qualified of all candidates running in both parties. I support her because her progressive politics are as strong as her proven ability to withstand what will be a massive right-wing assault in the general election. I support her because she's refreshingly thoughtful, and I'm bloodied from eight years of a jolly "uniter" with ejaculatory politics. I needn't agree with her on every point. I agree with the 97 percent of her positions that are identical with Obama's-and the few where hers are both more practical and to the left of his (like health care). I support her because she's already smashed the first-lady stereotype and made history as a fine senator, and because I believe she will continue to make history not only as the first US woman president, but as a great US president.         As for the "woman thing"?         Me, I'm voting for Hillary not because she's a woman--but because I am.         RM         February 2, 2008         New York City                 [Also posted on http://www.womensmediacenter.com/] [COMMENTS] February 9, 2008 MORE EGYPTIAN HYPOCRISY The website PRESSTV is reporting that Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit is decrying the collective punishment imposed on the people of Gaza by Israel. However, with regard those people seeking relief of their suffering in Egypt he states in a television interview that, “anyone who breaches the border will have their legs broken.” [COMMENTS] February 8, 2008 AN OBAMA SUPPORTER CAUTIONS--BARACK IS NOT JESUS This item is mentioned in the Tapper piece but it is worth putting out here in full. Powerful and sensible at the same time.  Some very thoughtful stuff.  Read  and ponder. [COMMENTS] February 7, 2008 JEFF SCHALER IN LONDON!! It is great to see the attention paid to my good friend's important work across the pond. Jeff Schaler (introduced by Anthony Stadlen) conducts Inner Circle Seminar No. 131 Sunday 12 October 2008, 10AM to 5PM ADDICTION IS A CHOICE Professor Jeffrey A. Schaler is the world’s leading disbeliever in ‘addiction’. He is an existential psychotherapist and full time professor in the Department of Justice, Law and Society at American University’s School of Public Affairs in Washington, D.C. His book Addiction is a Choice (2000) argues: 1. No drug (including alcohol and tobacco) is ‘addictive’. 2. Drugs are not intrinsically safe or dangerous, good or bad. 3. Disease refers to cellular pathology, not behaviour. 4. ‘Loss of control’ is an unfalsifiable, hence unscientific, hypothesis. 5. ‘Addiction’ is ethical, not medical. 6. Focussing on the existential reasons for ‘addiction’ can help drug users address and resolve the problems in living they try to solve with drugs. Whether you agree, disagree, or are undecided, you are welcome to discuss Professor Schaler’s argument and evidence with him in this important seminar.   Venue: Herringham Hall, Regent’s College, Inner Circle, London NW1 Subscription: Students £88, others £110, by 12 April 2008 Apply to: Anthony Stadlen, ‘Oakleigh’, 2A Alexandra Avenue, London N22 7XE Tel: +44 (0) 20 8888 6857, E-mail: stadlen@aol.com [COMMENTS] February 7, 2008 OBAMA AS THE SECOND COMING? The news today is all running in Obama's favor with some of the support expressed in almost hysterical religious terms.  If this keeps up he will be in the Oval Office by next year.  This might not be bad thing for the country, maybe. MAYBE. But in line with some of the comments linked to this story from Jake Tapper, I have not the vaguest idea what he will do once he gets into office.  This is both wonderful and scary.  I congratulate commentators like Tapper for raising these issues.  Most of the press serves as a cheering section for this religious revival masquerading as an election. [COMMENTS] February 7, 2008 WHERE IS OBAMA ON MARIJUANA DECRIMINALIZATION? Columnist Steve Chapman has a perceptive article in The Washington Times commenting on Barak Obama’s seeming inability to make up his mind on the subject of marijuana decriminalization. Chapman asserts that this, “episode reveals that as a candidate, Mr. Obama is more fond of bold rhetoric than bold policies. But it also proves the impossibility of talking sense on the subject of illicit drugs during a political campaign. That course of action would mean admitting the inadmissible: that the prohibition of cannabis has been cruel, wasteful and fraudulent.” [COMMENTS] February 6, 2008 ACADEMIC ANTI-SEMITISM The latest offering from Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME) features an informative article by Barbara Kay which discusses in depth an important book Academics Against Israel and the Jews. She describes it as a, “collection of essays by knowledgeable scholars and pro-Israel activists” and “an important new information resource, for it is the first comprehensive analysis of this subject extending beyond a single country.” [COMMENTS] February 5, 2008 MORE QUESTIONS FOR OBAMA THAT RARELY GET ASKED By the MSM, that is. To his credit, Obama has addressed some of these issues in various interviews but they rarely get much attention. He is a brilliant guy and an attractive candidate. At some point he is going to have to make a major statement about his pastor and his long affiliation with a church that treats Farrakhan as a hero. I am sure that all the press folks and bloggers who are biased in favor of Obama never really dig in on these matters, which reveal rank hatred and bias. Click here to read the FrontPageMag.com article on this subject. [COMMENTS] February 5, 2008 SUPER TUESDAY ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF THE PRESS CORONATION OF OBAMA I overslept today and when I came downstairs for coffee, my wife, Marj, told me that I was lucky that I was not awake to watch the interview of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton on the NBC Today Show. She was more than a little upset at the unfairness of it all. She said that Matt Lauer did a softball interview, a puff piece treating Obama with great deference and acting as if he were being crowned. He faced no hard questions. On the other hand, Meredith Viera grilled Clinton in just the opposite fashion, showing little respect and raising all kind of tough issues. As I have made clear in previous messages and posts on this site and elsewhere, at one level of my being I am delighted to see an eloquent black man in line to become president. Same for my wife. We both have been devoted to the cause of racial equality for decades. However, we both oppose the racial pandering that has become a kind of press riot or stampede to say nice things about Obama and bad things about Hillary and Bill. The bias is a disgrace to the traditions of a free press and an unbiased government. As a result of all this I am going to vote for Hillary in the Maryland Primary next Tuesday. For a whole variety of reasons, I had not planned to do this but the reeking bias in favor of Barack has pushed me over the edge. This is a shame. I am not sure which way I will vote in the general election. I do wonder how many other traditional Democrats share my concerns. [COMMENTS] February 5, 2008 A PLEA TO ACCEPT THE FACT THAT FANATICS RULE ISLAM TODAY This message by Dr. Emmanuel Tanay has been sent to me by several people. It is making the rounds of the Internet. This is a compelling cosmic plea. I suspect that most of it is true. [Tanay's message] I would add the fact that I remember being on an investigation in Mississippi in about 1962 or so when the federal troops were facing a near-insurrection at the University of Mississippi in Oxford. At the time I was Chief of the Administration of Justice Section of the US Commission on Civil Rights. My investigation was taking place some distance away in Jackson, the capital of the state and some would say the center of Southern resistance to desegregation and civil rights for Negroes. These were tense, dangerous times and I recall being somewhat concerned over our personal safety. "Our" meaning the young attorney with me and myself, both unarmed. My reason for bringing this up in this context is that while the fanatics were fanning the flames of hatred, I found that the average native white Mississippian who opened his or her door to us was polite and helpful. Remember that I identified ourselves to them as staff members of the US Commission on Civil Rights, looking for evidence to defend a white Christian minister who was helping Negroes obtain their civil rights. That minister had been put in jail by the racist local officials. I helped get him out and defended him in a local court. I was helped by these decent white folks -- but the fanatics still seemed to be in charge. Eventually in the years ahead the good guys who helped me and whom I helped became dominant. Lets help the silent or cowed majority of decent Muslims -- and hope they persevere over the fanatic nut cases who now dominate the Muslim universe. [COMMENTS] February 4, 2008 A REASONED ATTACK ON HILLARY'S CHANCES As it happens, I think these are powerful arguments.  As it also happens, I guess they are wrong. [COMMENTS] February 1, 2008 MELANIE PHILLIPS ON OBAMA Melanie Phillips expresses reservations about Barak Obama on her Blog. January 30, 2008 AT LEAST SOMEONE AGREES WITH ME IN DEFENDING THE CLINTONS ON THE RACE CARD CHARGE I am getting royally annoyed at the gang mentality in the media and among political leaders that the Clintons keep playing the race card.  Here is one among many others who say no.  I do not even say I intend to vote for Hillary. It is just that the country has gone overboard in annointing Obama -- who I admire -- and in treating every challenge to him as a vicious racial attack.  I have linked to only one supporting comment from Crawford but there are many others, as I said.  It is good to know that all of us have not lost our minds. January 26, 2008 A QUESTION FOR JIMMY CARTER, BISHOP TUTU, AND OTHER BIGOTS LIKE THEM Below you can see an article by Melanie Philips describing the propaganda victories that Hamas and other terrorist organizations are winning regarding the plight of Palestinians in Gaza.   I find that, save for drug policy, I agree with Ms. Philips on almost everything. Her columns and diary entries should win all the prizes possible, including Pulitzers, if she is eligible.  In any event, my main point regarding her piece is to emphasize the argument made that to the world and to bigots like Jimmy Carter and Bishop Tutu only the Jews are committting apartheid in regard to the Palestinians living in Gaza.  The Arabs in Egypt control the other border and insist on keeping their Arab kinsman locked up so that they can blame the Jews in Israel for all of their misfortunes.      My question for Jimmy and the Bishop and to others (to whom we shall email these questions) is: to what extent and in what manner do you agree with Ms. Philips' argument that the Arabs in Egypt are practicing apartheid in the same manner that the Israelis are?  A related question is: do you believe that both bordering countries bear part of the blame for the Palestinian situation or only the Jews in Israel?  Are you not being religious bigots if you say the latter? January 25, 2008 WILL WONDERS NEVER CEASE? THE GRAY LADY MAKES SENSE ON ITS ENDORSEMENTS OF CLINTON AND MCCAIN I am so used to disagreeing with the wimpy liberalism of The New York Times on most matters of editorial opinion that I was shocked when my wife told me late last night that the news was out that the editors had said they were for Hillary Clinton as the Democratic nominee and John McCain on the Republican side. These choices are explained in the paper today. I agree more strongly with the rationale of the Democratic choice than I do with that regarding the Republican.  However, at the bottom line I am with the Times, a rare event. Read the editorials here and here. I would be happy with either one as president.  Wait, not happy -- supportive, accepting. January 24, 2008 HAMAS: 2, WORLD: NIL By Melanie Philips Once again, the shrewd strategists of Hamas have played a blinder in the past few days, managing to wrong-foot the governments of both Israel and Egypt and manipulate the ever-obliging western media. FULL TEXT January 23, 2008 VILE AS USUAL And more proof that the thugs are winning most of the propaganda wars -- or the war of words and ideas.  It is not just Israel that is placed in danger but the entire West.  The Islamists are doing a wonderful job of gaining allies among the Western elites who are thereby destroying the basis for the freedoms that allow them to survive and prosper and speak.  Again, Melanie Philips is superb in her analysis of this truly depressing and vile situation. Who shut off the electricity in Gaza. Those miserable Israelis.  Right? Wrong again. January 21, 2008 THE UPLIFTING EBENEZER SERMON -- BY OBAMA This is a beautiful statement.  I give the guy a lot of credit for this one.He deserves it.  Again, I wonder what it means in practical terms, but perhaps it simply means that beautiful ideas, eloquently expressed, have a place in presidential politics.  A hat tip to Andrew Sullivan for alerting me to this. Again, it all fits on MLK day. January 20, 2008 OBAMA,WHITE GUILT, AND THE FAILURES OF THE LIBERALS Let me be clear. Barack Obama deserves to be admired and applauded -- but not canonized.  Yet, the latter is what is happening.  It all stems from white liberal guilt and from a belief in affirmative action.  This wonderful, brilliant man is indeed America's first affirmative action presidential candidate.  It would not be tragic in my eyes if he ended up in the Oval Office, just terribly unjust and a violation of the basic principles that underlie our free society. The failures of the liberals are further documented when traditional liberals like me usually have to find sensible commentaries on this situation in what must be termed right wing or conservative publications.  That bothers the hell out of me.  Here is a sensible one I read today, on the MLK weekend Sunday, in FrontPage Magazine.  Thanks to that publication and to author Joseph Puder for being honest and right on target. My hope is that the Dems somehow come to their senses and compromise on Hillary for Pres and Barack for VP.  I predicted that a long time ago in print in one of my columns in The Washington Times.  It ought to happen.  Still, as I wrote then in that column, I will have difficulty voting for them because the major theme of the liberals like them is retreat and appeasement.  I suspect they will change once in office.  At least I hope so since such a ticket would win in my opinion. January 20, 2008 I TOLD IRSHAD SHE REMINEDED ME OF DR. KING And here is the latest message from her that just arrived on the start of the MLK weekend.  Read this material and I know you will be as impressed as I was.  MLK always inspired me when he spoke to crowds and so did Irshad.  And when he spoke person to person, he was humble and easy.  Same for Irshad.  Today we need heroes and heroines.  Here is Irshad.  A force of nature.  Thank God for her.  Or thank whoever you pray to.