Soccer Dad

Watching the weasels 01/24/07

It's been a while since I've synopsized the entries of the other members of the Watcher's Council. I don't always have the time, but I do tonight so here goes:

In Taking Responsibility The Glittering Eye argues that those in Congress opposed to the war are not inclined to actually take responsibility for ending the war.

Keep that in mind when considering the posturing by some of those in the Senate
Sen Biden -

``This amendment is designed to let the president know that there are many in both parties, Democrats and Republicans, who believe that change in our mission to go into Baghdad in the midst of a civil war, as well as surging troops to lay the groundwork for a new Iraqi political solution, is the wrong way to go, and in fact I believe will have the opposite - emphasize the opposite - effect that the president intends.'' - Committee Chairman Joseph Biden, D-Del., on the resolution he co-sponsored.

Sen Hagel -

``This is not a defeatist resolution. This is not a cut-and-run resolution. We are not talking about cutting off funds, not supporting the troops. This is a very real, responsible addressing of the most divisive issue in this country since Vietnam. Yes, sure, it's tough. Absolutely. And I think all 100 senators ought to be on the line on this. What do you believe? What are you willing to support? What do you think? Why were you elected? If you wanted a safe job, go sell shoes.'' - Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., who co-sponsored the resolution and was the only Republican on the committee to vote for it.

If you believe that the president is wrong then do as VP Cheney says and defund the war effort. But don't criticize the effort and then display a badge of courage. Non-binding resolutions are safe. It allows you to say "I told you so" if you're proven correct but to say "I didn't impede the President" if you're wrong. Actually a non-binding resolution is safer than selling shoes.

Colossus of Rhodey discusses aspects of Teacher Merit Pay that I hadn't considered. What metric do you use? What metric can you use? Well argued and enlightening.

In A Mandatory Disaggregation, Eternity Road, considers the dicey proposition of profiling, and what standards might be used to profile potential terrorists appropriately.

Rhymes with Right writes that Opposing Obama Isn't about Race. He's absolutely correct that it's about ideology and experience. It's remarkable that people still rely on that old straw man.

The Education Wonks reflect on No Spanky Spanky in the Golden State and propose an appropriate punishment for legislators who seek to tell parents how best to parent.

Done with Mirrors considers the plight of Iraqi Refugees and argues that the United States must open up its doors wider to accomodate them.

The American Future reflects On the possibility of an Iranian Oil Embargo and using history and an analysis of current events (and trends) suggests that an embargo could be an effective tool against Iran's government.

JoshuaPundit weighs in with 'Moderate' Abbas: Aim guns against Israel in which he follows the most recent follies of the West's favorite Palestinian moderate - the doctor of Holocaust denial, Mahmoud Abbas.

Israel Matzav, by the way, has another example of how Abbas has burnished his 'moderate' image.

Right Wing Nuthouse comes down hard on Dinesh D'Souza's self declared culture war in D'Souza and the illiberality of criticism.

The Sundries Shack contemplates the possibility of Obama the Apostate (which could be an issue even if he was only perceived to have rejected Islam) and what effect it could have on American foreign relations should he become President.

My own entry was Too much Munich in which I defended those who criticized the movie Munich for what it left out about the PLO"s massacre of the Israeli Olympic athletes in 1972. I nominated the post to which I was responding Hasbara management central by the Ignoble experiment for a non-council entry. I thought the post was well argued though I didn't agree with it.

As always there's lots of interesting stuff and new ideas. The toughest part about the vote is picking only two entries to vote for when there are reguarly at least 4 or 5 that deserve credit.

Are you intersted in participating? If you are follow the link here to find out how you can be considered to take the newly opened 12th seat on the Council.

Blogdigger tags: Watcher's Council, Mahmoud Abbas, Iran, Iraq, Education Policy, Profiling.

Posted by SoccerDad at January 24, 2007 11:55 PM