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Is Durbin’s “Apology” Enough?

A few days ago I contacted Senator Ken Salazar's office to get a statement on Senator Dick Durbin's outrageous remarks. This morning I received the following message in my inbox: Thank you for contacting me regarding your concerns about comments attributed to Senator Durbin. I know Senator Durbin, and I know that he has only the deepest respect for our troops and their families. He did not -- and would not -- intend to criticize our troops. Nonetheless, to his credit, Senator Durbin recognized that he chose his words poorly and that he offended many people -- like yourself -- in using the words that he did. As a result, on June 21, Senator Durbin publicly apologized for his remarks on the floor of the United States Senate. … [Read more...]

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An Excellent Question

Colorado's eminent leaders of the political Left, the gurus who give us the acerbic wit of ProgressNow, apparently have reached a moment of metaphysical crisis. Below I've pasted an email they are sending out to all their subscribers (my emphases in italics - I have underlined the repeated question of the hour): PLEASE FORWARD THIS QUESTION: WHAT DO WE STAND FOR? Whether you consider yourself a liberal, progressive, populist, moderate, or just part of "the Left," we need to answer a fundamental question. Some are talking about how we can "frame" our issues better. Others are arguing over a list of common values or positions. But it's really the same conversation -- What do we stand for? It seems we agree on much of what … [Read more...]

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The Scoop on the “Real” Saddam

Quick link blogging this morning: read this AP story from today's Washington Times - America's fascination with the details of celebrities' everyday lives takes another twisted turn as U.S. military personnel who guarded Saddam Hussein in an Iraq prison give GQ the big scoop on his living habits, favorite foods, and various personal opinions. The AP story gives no hint of the actions that earned Saddam the nickname "Butcher of Baghdad." How easy to forget.... … [Read more...]

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Joe Wilson and the Downing Street Memo

Even one prominent career State Department official and notorious, embittered critic of President Bush's foreign policy has noted that some of the hullabaloo surrounding the Downing Street Memo is overblown: ...on Thursday, former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson admitted that "we all believed" Saddam had WMD. "I believe the threat to the United States posed by Saddam's weapons of mass destruction -- which we all believed he had -- could have been dealt with using something less violent than the invasion, conquest and occupation of Iraq," Wilson said in a response to a question from Cybercast News Service following a Democrat-sponsored hearing on the matter. Wilson's comment, that "we all believed" Saddam had WMD, appeared to … [Read more...]

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“Dump Dick Durbin”

In light of the senior Senator from Illinois's outrageous and vile remarks about our military, this has got to be the most aptly-named blog of the day. After today's lame "apology" attempt, Dick Durbin has shown he is a man without honor. The second-highest ranking Democrat in the United States Senate making whiny, weasely remarks like this: ...I do not even know if the interrogator involved here was an American soldier. I didn't say that at any point. To suggest that I am criticizing American servicemen, I am not. I don't know who is responsible for this.... And this: To suggest that this is somehow an insult to the men and women serving in the uniform, nothing could be further from the truth. But it is no credit to them or … [Read more...]

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One-Way Teacher Exchange Program

Stories like this from the Washington Times - an account of Virginia school districts hiring more foreign nationals as teachers - points to some bigger issues going on in education today. Questions that need to be asked (and hopefully explored in future posts): Are our schools of education adequately preparing teachers for the profession? What incentives could be introduced to overcome shortages in hiring educators qualified to teach math, science, foreign language, or special education? What do we do about the single salary schedule, that pays all teachers in a district according to the same rate (by advanced degrees and seniority)? Is offering teachers "performance bonuses" even feasible, and how would you measure that? The … [Read more...]

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Outrages and More

Some of you may have noticed the dearth of extensive writing and posting here of late. Let's just call it "outrage fatigue." Everything from the Michael Jackson verdict to the obnoxious posturing over the Gitmo affair and more has caused my blood to boil in recent days. But frankly, I haven't had much to add to the conversation, and I haven't wanted to dwell on it anyways. Just in case you were wondering.... Meanwhile today, the news reports emerged from the Terri Schiavo autopsy. Her death by dehydration has not stifled the debate.... … [Read more...]

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Wet and Wild Weekend for Baseball

Excited by the prospect of an early Friday game likely to end by sundown, Joshua was planning to be at Coors Field this afternoon for the game between the Detroit Tigers and Colorado Rockies. Knowing my deep dedication as a Tigers fan, he invited me along to today's game. I was thankful he thought of me but am tied up at work and have a 5:30 appointment besides, so I had to decline. Besides, I have tickets to attend the Saturday (with my friend Steve) and Sunday (with the lovely Mrs. Virtus) games. But the skies had opened and the rains had come earlier today, pushing back the starting time from 3:05 to 4:00. I hope Joshua found another companion to go to the game with - and if he did, I hope the contest speeds along enough so he can … [Read more...]