tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:48:06 +0000Robert A. George's ruminations on politics, race, pop culture, sports, comic books & various other sundry temptations of the human condition. Yes, he writes for the New York Post, but the views here are solely his own.http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)Blogger2371125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-4994940336729187847Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:45:00 +00002009-11-25T16:48:06.972-05:00Global WarmingClimategateAnyone out there still under the anthropogenic Global Warming delusion?It may be difficult to come to terms with the fact you have been duped by some climate scientists, but as the Washington Post reports:Electronic files that were stolen from a prominent climate research center and made public last week provide a rare glimpse into the behind-the-scenes battle to shape the public perception of http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/light-bulb-on-climategate.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (EdMcGon)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-8203581565884246610Wed, 25 Nov 2009 02:05:00 +00002009-11-24T21:15:14.821-05:00social mediaRupert MurdochGoogleMicrosoftThe social media uber-blog Mashable responds to Rupert Murdoch's floated idea to hook up with Microsoft to take out Google's indexing of Newscorp sites. Obviously, given my day job, I won't comment fully. However, there are two undeniable truths here: As Mashable states, "No, the future is in the web, fast-paced blogs, and social media. The future is in companies that realize that news a day old http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/old-media-vs-new-media.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-7986951394355094755Wed, 25 Nov 2009 01:32:00 +00002009-11-25T12:59:19.084-05:00RNCRepublican PartyabortionA handful of RNC members are trying to impose a certain amount of consistency on Republicans running for office by releasing a 10-point summary of principles. Candidates expecting party support should adhere to at least 7 out of 10. One part kind of jumps out: (9) We support protecting the lives of vulnerable persons by opposing health care rationing and denial of health care and government http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/pro-choice-rnc.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-6336061409518253320Mon, 23 Nov 2009 14:00:00 +00002009-11-23T09:28:42.152-05:00health-care reformdebtdeficit-spendingIn Washington, DC, it's sorta the "best of times" for Democrats: On Saturday, the "motion to proceed" on health care reform passed along party lines in the U.S. Senate. Despite varying poll numbers, various twists and turns and hours-to-come of debate and amendments, this decades-long legislative desire for the Left is closer to becoming the law of the land than at any point in history. Indeed, http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/dickens-of-time.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-1530227124763255997Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:33:00 +00002009-11-20T09:57:34.247-05:00Rudy GiulianiAny slight chance that New York might get a Republican governor next year basically ended with Rudy Giuliani's apparent decision not to run for the office in 2010. There's still some discussion in Hizzoner's camp that he might run for senate against incumbent Kirsten Gillibrand. It's not likely that Giuliani would win a race against Gillibrand. He demonstrated back in 2000 that his heart isn'thttp://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/rudys-end.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-7722406787098201524Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:48:00 +00002009-11-18T09:59:23.069-05:00Sarah Palin; media overkill; Going RogueAs the Sarah Palin media blitz continues full swing this week, it's not a bad idea to realize how scarily prescient Saturday Night Live was with its skits one year ago. Forget the "I can see Russia from my house" bit. This one a couple days before the election is the real deal: Watch, especially from about the 1:28 mark (clip counts down), displaying "Palin in 2012" shirt, declaribng that she's "http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/palin-prophecy.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-7934967685580554445Tue, 17 Nov 2009 04:45:00 +00002009-11-17T09:04:51.498-05:00Barack ObamaBill ClintonLike the Ghost of Christmas Past, the specter of 1994 haunts the contemporary political scene. The Obama administration is desperate to learn from the mistakes of the Clintons in 1993 and 1994; the Republicans use those years to inspire them to remember how quickly the electoral landscape can change. In the clearest example of this dynamic, the Obama White House made the early decision tohttp://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/partying-like-its-1994.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-7179774412777358395Fri, 13 Nov 2009 04:37:00 +00002009-11-13T11:07:52.679-05:00Hamid KarzaiBarack ObamaEight months ago, President Obama chose General Stanley McChrystal to chart out a new Afghanistan policy. His primary recommendation was for a "surge" of 40,000 more troops. Wednesday's New York Times outlined three primary strategies for troop increases -- with McChrystal's plan being one of them. : Three of the options call for specific levels of additional troops. The low-end option http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/obamas-karzai-konundrum.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-904435690361123108Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:32:00 +00002009-11-11T07:32:00.474-05:00Nidal Malik HasanVeteran's DayVeterans Day should not be a sad day. The day before America pauses to honor the men and women who step and volunteer to fight for this great nation was indeed a sad one. The country was forced to note the awful handiwork of two men who dishonored their country and their own comrades -- and killed many of their fellow Americans. Those two men are John Allen Muhammad and (allegedly, we must http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/wiping-stains-off-uniform.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-1446543652770282308Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:53:00 +00002009-11-10T12:15:21.676-05:00Mitt RomneyMike Huckabeesarah palinFormer Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has managed to extend her 15 minutes of fame. Barely known 15 months ago, she's become the "It" girl of the right in the interim. One week from today, her "Going Rogue" book will be released. Her book promotion tour will include stop with both Oprah Winfrey and Barbara Walters. In the recent election, she lined up with conservatives supporting Doug Hoffman in thehttp://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/dont-sleep-on-huckster.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-4144698514495183089Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:47:00 +00002009-11-06T20:59:59.014-05:00Hmmm, interesting week! Including a link from the still-influential Mr. Drudge! Feel free to chat amongst yourselves. http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/open-thread.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-4058834076275846890Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:32:00 +00002009-11-06T20:43:19.040-05:00Barack ObamaFort Hood shootingUPDATE: Welcome, friends and foes directed here from the Drudge Report! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Democrats worried about this week's off-year elections on Tuesday might have reason to go into full-fledged panic after Thursday. The "spin" over the exact reasons why Republicans won governors' races in New Jersey and Virginia http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/presidential-disconnect.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-2758469855721829476Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:31:00 +00002009-11-04T14:48:13.578-05:00Jon CorzineBarack ObamaDoug HoffmanDede ScozzafavaConsider the two portentous signs Barack Obama received Tuesday. Taken together, they represent perhaps the biggest obstacle yet to passing the sweeping health care reform that consumed most of the energy of his first year in office. Sign No. 1 was Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, chastened by reaction from his colleagues his pushing a public option, basically saying that a vote on health http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/changing-winds-of-change.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-5728945256051330519Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:25:00 +00002009-11-03T07:46:51.757-05:00Rush LimbaughBarack ObamaFox News ChannelOne year after the exuberant optimism that accompanied Barack Obama's historic election, the nation's mood is considerably different. Conservatives and Republicans are both furious and disappointed that the admittedly liberal senator elected last year has hardly proven to be an individual with whom they can find much ballyhooed "common ground." But it isn't a big surprise that the http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/promise-unfulfilled.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-6011082004706106257Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:01:00 +00002009-11-03T07:25:34.106-05:00Bill OwensDoug HoffmanDede ScozzafavaA whirlwind 24-hour period in New York's 23rd congressional district shows the peril and possibilities for the shaky relationship between the conservative movement and the Republican Party. Saturday morning, a Siena Research poll had Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman leading Democrat Bill Owens 36-35 percent. The official Republican choice, Dede Scozzafava had fallen to third at 20 http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/11/dede-does-dems.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-7342824122642168712Sat, 31 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +00002009-10-31T20:04:36.973-04:00Yankees, Phillies, Halloween, off-year elections...whatever...http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/open-thread_31.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-3363764023737196191Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:30:00 +00002009-10-28T09:52:18.828-04:00New York YankeesRonald ReaganBarack ObamaGerald FordBill ClintonJimmy CarterThe championship round of the national pastime should be a moment of unity. Save for supporters of the teams playing in the Fall Classic, the country should come together and celebrate a sport as American as apple pie. Alas, this year's World Series carries with it serious built in conflicts. As The New York Times pointed out Tuesday, poor New York Mets fans are torn between hating their http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/yankees-white-house-stimulus.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-8365764746573873382Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:45:00 +00002009-10-27T12:25:28.463-04:00HalloweenKanye WestTrying to figure out what to do for Halloween? My day job outlet offers up some suggestions"ripped from the headlines," including, ahem, this one: (Photo: Caitlin Thorne Hersey)If you're in the NYC area, it woudn't be a bad idea to pick up the actual paper to see the full layout -- including some neat Photoshop of what's in my left hand!http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/yes-we-kan-ye.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-5757022257403175071Mon, 26 Oct 2009 03:28:00 +00002009-10-26T01:33:04.401-04:00GleeFoxIn Sunday's Post, I question FOX's new show Glee for its questionable depiction of women.http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/diminished-glee.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-5804401586213886965Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:40:00 +00002009-10-23T11:49:08.230-04:00Soup SalesThe '60s TV funnyman died yesterday at the age of 83. Here's a classic clip -- two, actually -- of a prank his production crew pulled for his birthday. Let the whole piece run. The first half is what the TV audience saw, then there's a pause and the in-house feed runs -- a slightly different experience.Even though it is in black and white, this technically counts as NSFW, so proceed with http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/soupy-sales-rip.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-2874648042783811072Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +00002009-10-22T08:24:59.625-04:00Barack ObamaOprah Winfreysarah palinOprah and Sarah sitting down for a chat? Really? One an uber-famous talk-show host, black liberal Democrat. The other an instant media lighting rod, white conservative Republican. They have hardly anything in common (well,except for both having had famous feuds with David Letterman -- Oprah's was a few years back; Palin's was earlier this year. Won't they have fun at Dave's current http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/oprah-sarahs-sarah-power.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-3786313590749964721Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:32:00 +00002009-10-20T06:32:00.128-04:00Department of EducationstimulusArne DuncanThough not getting quite the attention as the economy and health care, education has also been something of a major domestic priority for President Obama. As an example of the importance he placed on the issue, he pulled his friend and well-respected education reformer Arne Duncan from running the Chicago school system and named him secretary of education. So far, Duncan has received fairlyhttp://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/getting-schooled-by-numbers.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-7083781852141943743Sat, 17 Oct 2009 19:39:00 +00002009-10-17T15:45:56.732-04:00Yankee playoffs, great college football games -- plus Jints and "Aints" on Sunday! What a weekend!http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/open-thread_17.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-312890970460091985Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:43:00 +00002009-10-16T15:45:25.081-04:00NFLWall Street JournalRush LimbaughWith all due respect to my friends (and corporate colleagues) at The Wall Street Journal, but they are off-base in today's editorial decrying the NFL's deep-sixing Rush Limbaugh's ownership bid:Earlier this year, the NFLPA's Mr. Smith and several player reps visited our offices and made clear their determination to win the negotiation with the league's owners. Fair enough. The group made a stronghttp://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/right-mans-burden.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11836276.post-2699492019596240338Fri, 16 Oct 2009 10:30:00 +00002009-10-16T06:30:01.164-04:00Merrill LynchBank of AmericaBank of America chief executive Kenneth Lewis has decided to forgo his total pay for 2009 -- giving into pressure from the Obama administration's "pay czar" Kenneth Feinberg. Lewis announced recently that he was stepping down -- a victim of the continuing fall-out from BofA's purchase of Merrill Lynch last year. Both federal regulators and New York's attorney general are probing the http://raggedthots.blogspot.com/2009/10/slouching-toward-socialism.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Robert A. George)