Eye on the Watcher’s Council

As you may know the members of the Watcher’s Council each nominate one of his or her own posts and one non-Council post for consideration by the whole Council. The complete list of this week’s Council nominations is here.

A position has opened up on the Watcher’s Council. If you have a blog, please consider joining. The rules and regs are here.

The Glittering Eye, “Living on $1 a Meal”

In my submission for this week I take up the gauntlet implicitly thrown down by several U. S. senators: a buck a meal may not be a great deal of fun but, as my commenters and I demonstrate, it’s eminently doable.

The Colossus of Rhodey, “But Isn’t the Real Question…?”

Hube’s post this week is a plaint about hypocrisy on the part of those on the left side of the aisle and I’ve got to admit I’ve got mixed feelings. The complaint of hypocrisy as such is an ad hominem argument—that Al Gore’s personal carbon footprint is bigger than the footprint he might like for you and me doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t all conserve. But there is something probative that’s all too frequently lost in the hypocrisy witch hunt: when somebody’s behavior doesn’t comport with their espoused beliefs it’s reasonable to ask for clarification on what those beliefs are.

However, I don’t think that Hube understands the real point here. Neither Leonardo diCaprio nor Al Gore are hypocritical. Both are much more concerned about collective action, government action than they are about individual action. That’s the barrier to understanding between libertarians and those whose reflexive response is a government solution to any given problem.

Bookworm Room, “Mitt the Mormon”

Like Bookworm I don’t think that Mitt Romney’s Mormonism will pose a serious barrier to his securing the Republican nomination for president. IMO, however unlikely the candidate is to secure election in the general election, partisans will line up behind the candidate they think is going to carry them over the finish line. I continue to be amazed at the capacity for self-delusion that partisans of all stripes manage to maintain. That was the problem with the Democrats last time around: why on earth did they think that John Kerry was the most electable of their candidates?

Soccer Dad, “Talking With the Bad Guys”

I guess I’m more optimistic about negotiations than Soccer Dad is. The key thing is knowing what you want, what you’re willing to accept, and not allowing talks to become running out the clock.

Done With Mirrors, “No Friend Left Behind (Update)”

Callimachus continues his examination of the prospects for the Iraqis who’ve thrown their lots in with the U. S. if the U. S. withdraws before the Iraqi government can secure the country on its own.

Rhymes With Right, “HuffPost Writer Equates Isolated Christian Nutjob to Islamism’s Global Terror Network”

I’m with Greg on this one—I think those who are worried about Christian theocracy in the United States are hyperventilating and my view can be summarized this way: the inability to distinguish among categories of evil is the inability to distinguish between good and evil.

Right Wing Nut House, “Reflecting on 230 Years of Blood and Sacrifice”

Rick Moran posts his thoughts on Memorial Day for a country at war including with itself.

Cheat Seeking Missiles, “Bush Defies Warming Autocrats at G8”

The greatest concern I have about Laer’s prescription for curing the problems of global warming (let the market decide) is that I’m not sure that too many people understand the implications of a truly free market any more. National boundaries and banking regulations, for example, are both interferences in the market.

Joshuapundit, “A Cure for ‘Anti-Zionism’”

Freedom Fighter’s prescription for dealing with anti-Zionism, the denial of Israel’s right to exist, is confrontation. The state of Israel was established before I was born and will continue to exist as long as the Israelis care to defend it. I have little more to say on the subject other than to note the obvious: the Israelis are in an unenviable pickle and I honestly don’t know how they’ll extricate themselves from it.

Big Lizards, “Let Their Victims Come”

Dafydd ab Hugh’s critique of Hugh Hewitt’s thoughts on immigration from countries that have a Muslim majority or strong minority highlights the complexity of coming up with a comprehensible immigration policy, with or without consideration of terrorism. For example, Dafydd writes:

They argue not that we should scrutinize immigrants from such countries — which is a reasonable proposition I favor…

which calls up a barrage of follow-up questions. Where should such scrutiny take place? Who should bear the cost and why? Is such scrutiny even possible?

Immigration is a complicated issue for which no single solution will satisfy everyone, rendered all the more complex since 2001, and I don’t have any better solution than anybody else. I do know that it doesn’t make a great deal of sense to be paying for border control and having de facto open borders.

The Education Wonks, “Memorial Day: Just Another Day of Instruction?”

EdWonk takes note of a school district in Lafayette Parish, the heart of Cajun country, that doesn’t observe Memorial Day.

Well, I’ve decided which posts I’ll vote for. Which posts would get your votes?

1 comment… add one
  • “…the inability to distinguish among categories of evil is the inability to distinguish between good and evil.”

    And that very inability creates the useful idiot so valued by Islamists.

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