Two weeks after the Republican convention in St. Paul, Minn., John McCain and Sarah Palin were striding forward toward victory. They had erased the eight-point lead Barack Obama had opened up in Denver and watched as one blue state after another moved into the toss-up category. That is ancient history now. Since mid-September, the stock market has cratered, losing half of … [Read More]

Last week’s column I managed to offend a fair swathe of my audience by using an acronym I didn’t make up in reference to the GOP’s vice-presidential candidate. Lesson learned: From now on, I’ll refer to women like Gov. Palin exclusively as “momshells.” In fact, I’m going to swear off using other people’s acronyms altogether. No more “MILFs,” “DWEMs” or “WASPs” … [Read More]

There are two types of people who may find this article interesting. If you’re involved in a 12-step program of any kind and maintain your sobriety, but secretly delight in the confessions of relapse or of wild times before Antabuse, you might enjoy what follows as your daily does of Schadenfreude. If you’re a traditionalist chagrined over the infiltration of the … [Read More]

Of all the candidates for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination, only one took the time to address the 35th-annual March for Life on Jan. 22, the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. On the day of the march, this candidate, Texas Rep. Ron Paul, received the endorsement of Norma McCorvey, the eponymous “Jane Roe” of 1974, who since the verdict converted … [Read More]

NEW YORK--The war on terror, as the most inarticulate man ever to inhabit the White House calls it, has now lasted longer than World War II. And take it from Taki, it’s not going away, not in my lifetime, that’s for sure. Insurgencies have a tendency to wear out their enemy and eventually prevail. Malaya (1948-1960) is the only exception. (Thank … [Read More]

Having seen “American Carol” on the basis of James Hirsen’s glowing review on Newsmax I am still reacting to this flick’s neoconservative message with a queasy stomach. From my exposure to this movie that David Zucker threw together with Bill O’Reilly, who appears as one of the movie’s characters, it seems that I was viewing a cinematic adaptation of Victor Davis … [Read More]

“(O)nce war is forced upon us, there is no other alternative than to apply every available means to bring it to a swift end. “War’s very object is victory, not prolonged indecision. “In war there is no substitute for victory.” Familiar to every graduate of West Point, the words are from the farewell address of Gen. MacArthur, to Congress on April … [Read More]

The crushing defeat and subsequent victory of the $700 billion economic bailout bill last week left both parties pointing fingers, claiming both the failure of conservatism and the triumph of liberalism depending on one’s party or politics. But the Republicans and Democrats doing the most pointing had it completely backwards, as what we saw was the triumph, and then defeat, of … [Read More]

The Two Minutes of Hate began in Ballston before the movie even began, when the previews of Oliver Stone’s W. hit the screen.  My brief speculation as to the political leanings of the crowd dissipated, as the Republican faithful screamed in rage at Stone’s biopic. “Judas,” “Traitor,” and the ultimate insult from any National Review conservative, “Fascist,” echoed through the theater.  … [Read More]