“I am going to be judged by History,” proclaims Mad John McCain at the Iowa debate, “not public opinion polls.” Translation: L’Etat, c’est moi. [Read More]

“I overslept,” writes Kathyrn Jean Lopez in National Review‘s “The Corner. “Almost forgot about the Republican debate. Woke up to Iowans cheering Ron Paul. Hit snooze.” Yes, Kathryn, go back to bed: you’ve been sleeping since the war began. Why wake up now?  [Read More]

When it comes from FOX News, of course. On Tuesday, July 31, FOX News published a transcript of Neil Cavuto’s “Common Sense.”  According to the transcript, Cavuto—supposedly a financial journalist—tried to claim that Apple had overpromised and underdelivered on its opening weekend of iPhone sales: “Lo and behold, we’re told 146,000 iPhones were activated in the day and a half between … [Read More]

For several years I’ve been arguing over the same point with my son and my colleague Wes McDonald. Both think that I’m too hard on Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh. They describe them as clever entertainers of the Right, whom I too would appreciate if I weren’t so damned “anti-Republican.” Because I’m soured on the GOP, I can’t perceive the wit … [Read More]

I hate to spoil the romance of the grape, but most wine estates once run by monks or noble families are now in the hands of corporate vintners with publicly traded shares, human resource departments, and 401k plans. The closest connection to aristocracy or the Church most wines now keep is a coat of arms on the label. However, a few … [Read More]

This is for us oldies. Remember when the summers lasted longer back then, when all men seemed to wear hats, and all women acted like ladies?  My best summer ever was 1952, when I came to New York from Blair Academy and my father informed me we were leaving for the south of France via ocean liner. I was 15 and … [Read More]

The buzz about Ron Paul has gotten louder, as was inevitable in the case of the lone antiwar Republican candidate, and yet there is something about “Dr. No” personally that has struck a chord in the popular imagination: he seems to represent the very spirit of rectitude, with his stern warnings of a coming financial crunch if we don’t mend our … [Read More]

I was visiting someone in the hospital last night, so I was forced to sit there and watch the Larry King interview with Richard Cheney. Normally, I don’t watch a speech or interview given by either Cheney or his marionette, G.W. First, it is infuriating. Second, it’s just a complete waste of time. These folks do not have an ounce of … [Read More]

        An English classicist, broadcaster, and man of letter, Sean Gabb, has just sent me a copy of a booklet he had written Cultural Revolution, Culture War: How Conservatives Lost England and How To Get It Back (Hampden Press, 2007). Sean’s tract has aroused my interest because of its unconventional revelations about English society and government. He tells … [Read More]

“As an eleven-year-old boy I could not do much for Kader Mia as he lay bleeding with his head on my lap. But I imagine another universe, not beyond our reach, in which he and I can jointly affirm our many common identities (even as the warring singularists howl at the gate). We have to make sure, above all, that our … [Read More]