Daily Tech had an item yesterday afternoon that caused a bit of a stir in conservative circles. The American Physical Society, an organization representing nearly 50,000 physicists, has reversed its stance on climate change and is now proclaiming that many of its members disbelieve in human-induced global warming. The APS is also sponsoring public debate […]
Back in September, during a debate for the Republican presidential candidates, John McCain and Mitt Romney got into a bit of rhetorical tussle. Romney used a couple of phrases that McCain didn’t care for: “the surge is apparently working” and “if the surge is working.” McCain snapped at Romney: “Governor, the surge is working. The […]
Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers: * Resolving a simmering dispute, the Obama campaign has indicated that Barack Obama will not speak at Brandenburg Gate in Germany during his visit, but will instead give a speech at Berlin’s Victory […]
Long-time readers may recall a discussion we had last year about what I call “conversation enders.” These are comments that lead you to know, the moment you hear them, that the writer/speaker is either clueless or intellectually dishonest. Either way, the moment you hear a “conversation ender,” you know the discussion has ended. “If they’re […]
Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson, Bush’s former chief speechwriter, has spent most of the year devoting his columns to bashing Barack Obama. The good news is, he’s been shaking up his subject list. The bad news is, his columns are still awful. A few weeks ago, Gerson mixed things up by bashing Senate candidate Al […]
The only thing worse than John McCain’s proposal for a gas-tax holiday is John McCain’s new proposal for a longer gas-tax holiday. John McCain said Thursday that his proposal to suspend the gas tax for three months this summer may need to be extended longer if high gas prices continue to take a toll on […]
I once saw a funny stand-up comedian who had a great bit about things one can say to soften the blow of insults. A person could say almost anything, just so long as they prefaced it by certain qualifiers. “That guy is blisteringly stupid, bless his heart.” Or maybe, “I can’t believe how ugly that […]
In the modern political era, voters have come to expect presidential candidates to be, well, presidential. There’s an expectation of respect and decorum. Candidates are going to go on the attack on occasion, but Americans have a reasonable expectation that would-be presidents aren’t going to fly off the handle and lose their cool. After all, […]
Today’s edition of quick hits. * And so it begins: “The first war crimes trial at Guantanamo Bay can begin Monday, a federal judge has ruled, saying civilian courts should let the military process play out as Congress intended. U.S. District Judge James Robertson on Thursday rejected an effort by Osama bin Laden’s former driver, […]
The McCain campaign does not wear desperation well. It floats from incoherent attack to incoherent attack, experimenting with anti-Obama memes, and fiddling with smears, waiting for something to stick. Two weeks ago, McCain and his cohorts said Barack Obama was too flexible on Iraq policy. Soon after, they insisted Obama wasn’t flexible enough on Iraq […]