http://www.amconmag.com/larison n. the principle of good order<br /><br /> "Observe the strange inversion of all order and sense! Dignity debased; how vilely is the function of a consul prostituted!" ~The Craftsman Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:45:46 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Still, who could help McCain beat back a populist conservative challenger? Sarah Palin. I predict that Palin will come to Arizona next summer to campaign for McCain, will make an impassioned case for him, and will help him win. She will thereby repay McCain for his confidence in picking her ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/20/a-sure-path-to-self-destruction/ I would note that, as Hounshell himself admits, not a single U.S. president has actually done more than mouth empty threats or apply mild, temporary, pressure on Israel over its settlements. All serious people may believe settlements are corrosive to peace, but those people do not include the current Prime ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/19/the-serious-people-and-the-fringe/ After reading some of the things Palinites have been writing this week, I am tempted to say that they are "objectively" pro-Obama inasmuch as they are doing their very best to make Obama's re-election secure. It's tempting, but it wouldn't be entirely fair. What is a bit sad ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/17/competence/ Reihan: Yet the fact that Matt [Continetti] isn’t unremittingly hostile to Palin is reason enough for many readers to reflexively dismiss his arguments. I find this pretty depressing, albeit pretty predictable. What’s worse is that this contributes to a tit-for-tat culture that is the enemy of thoughtful, reasoned discussion. One thing that ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/16/enemies-of-reasoned-discussion/ Walter Shapiro makes a good observation that the GOP's winner-take-all primary system improves the chances for a Palin nomination bid. There could be just enough true believers to push her over the edge in the early contests, at which point it would become increasingly difficult for rivals to catch ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/16/palins-extremely-long-shot-at-the-nomination/ Pawlenty may not be the next Romney, but John Thune might be. David Brooks was waxing panegyrical in his column on Thune today, and one thing he focused on was Thune's alleged love of all things small and local: He says his prairie background has given him a preference for ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/13/the-romneyesque-thune/ An October Gallup poll put Ms. Palin's favorable number at 40%, her lowest rating to date. In a November Gallup survey, 63% of all voters said they wouldn't seriously consider supporting her for the presidency. Yet Ms. Palin isn't as unpopular as John Edwards, and she has a higher approval rating ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/13/no-she-cant/ "Romneyesque," as an epithet, conveys a willingness to abandon one's core convictions -- in Romney's case, temperance and modesty on social issues -- in order to pander. ~Mark Ambinder This may be how many people use it, but what it really conveys is not so much a willingness to abandon core ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/13/romneyesque/ Lately I have been writing fairly often in defense of Trita Parsi and NIAC, so I was bothered when I saw allegations of legal violations by the organization. Then I read the report and found that there wasn't much to it. The allegations are a slightly more elaborate ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/13/niac/ My new column for The Week is now up. http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/12/obamas-israel-policy/ But at least you always knew that Bush loved America and that he loved Americans. You knew that he valued America's allies even if he didn't always do right by them. You knew that his values were American values. You can't say any of that about his successor. ~Caroline Glick Yes, ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/12/style-over-substance-3/ Rod has an interesting post on allegiance to God and country connected to the Fort Hood massacre, but I think he misses something when he writes this: If any Jew or Christian would put his national identity over his religious identity, he is an idolater and should repent. I pray that ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/11/god-and-country/ Alex Massie enters the debate over Parsi and NIAC from a different angle in response to some of Melanie Phillips' crazy talk. Massie writes: So, to reiterate: pretending that the only sensible way forward vis a vis Iran is to continue the failed policies that have done nothing to avert ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/10/whom-do-you-objectively-serve-ii/ Reading another Politico article on the 2010 midterms, I found the treatment of the '94 elections tremendously unsatisfying. Cook writes: It is the 1994 election that actually draws the greatest comparison with 2010. As was the case 15 years ago, there is a charismatic young Democratic president engaged in a ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/10/2010-will-not-be-like-1994/ Zakaria's column on U.S. domestic politics and international trends seems weakest in this section: Imagine you had been told five years ago that a huge economic crisis would erupt, prominently featuring irresponsible financiers, and that governments would come to the rescue of firms and families. You would probably have predicted that, ... http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2009/11/10/the-trouble-with-trends/