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. Don’t be surprised that the Council’s submissions are being hosted this week by Joshuapundit. The Watcher has prudently decided that taking care of his health takes precedence over maintaining his role as head of the Watcher’s Council. I wish him the best and sincerely thank him for collecting this merry band and all of the work he’s done over the years in support of the Council.
We’re planning to continue the Watcher’s Council in the wake of the Watcher’s retirement and there will be some changes. Stay tuned!
Joshuapundit, “Will Israel Attack Iran?”
Freedom Fighter gives his reasons for believing that an Israeli attack on Iran is more rather than less likely. I disagree for a host of reasons foremost among them being that Israel doesn’t have the capability of doing enough harm to make a material difference in Iran’s nuclear development program and the Israelis know it.
Soccer Dad, “The Army’s Top 10 inventions And The Legacy Of Harry Diamond”
Soccer Dad has an interesting post on a subject about which I know nothing whatever.
The Glittering Eye, “Sen. Obama Re-States His Plan for Iraq”
The only thing I’d add to my post on Sen. Obama’s Iraq policy is examine your assumptions carefully. We are in the post-Clinton era after all.
Cheat Seeking Missiles, “Laundry Guilt”
Laer muses on using human ingenuity to make clothing more energy and water efficient. And, Laer, only two decades of research? Forsooth! More like five decades (or throughout human history). Have you never read the classic, A Stress Analysis of a Strapless Evening Gown? It’s more than fifty years old.
Bookworm Room, “It’s official: Obama doesn’t flip flop, he just does nuanced “rephrases†*UPDATED*’”
Bookworm considers Sen. Barack Obama’s phraseology. I think that Sen. Obama is quite lawyerly (as was President Clinton). By that I mean that you must pay very close attention to what he actually says without making too many assumptions about what he didn’t say. And FWIW I live in an eruv, or at least it’s considered that by the Jews who live in the neighborhood. It wasn’t one when we moved in but there was a ceremony and a symbolic wall erected, etc. a few years thereafter.
Rhymes With Right, “NY Times Sides With Border Jumping Immigration Criminals”
Greg is unimpressed with the New York Times’s sympathy with Mexican workers here illegally.
Wolf Howling, “Critiquing the Obama Manifesto on Iraq”
GW is deeply critical of Sen. Obama’s policy on Iraq as expressed in the same op-ed I commented on . I agree with some of what GW says but I think he’s making a few assumptions that go beyond what Sen. Obama has actually said (or that take only one side of the contradictory things Sen. Obama has said about Iraq).
The Razor, “What Can We Do to Lower Oil Consumption?”
Scott’s submission is a solid post on the limits of lowering oil consumption in the near term. I’ve already expressed my views on this: I think that in the longer term we should stop subsidizing new highway construction and new home building. Those are effective subsidies on driving, the best thing we can do to use less oil is to drive less, and we’ll drive less if we live closer to work.
Done With Mirrors, “Poetry Matters”
Does poetry matter? I think yes but I also think that Callimachus is limiting the definition of poetry too strictly. The best poetry of today is song lyrics.
The Colossus of Rhodey, “The latest: Global warming causes kidney stones!”
I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes. There is a study which says that global warming will lead to more kidney stones. Thanks, Hube!
Hillbilly White Trash, “What To Do About the Dollar”
I’m afraid that all four of LC’s prescriptions of what do do about the dollar are non-starters and that they wouldn’t help a great deal, anyway. Going to the gold (or silver) standard would probably hurt rather than help: most “dollars” are in the form of financial transactions these days. The paper money we exchange is just a small part of the whole. What should we do? Nothing. The problem will take care of itself but, of course, we can’t say that.
The Education Wonk, “Texas Teacher Shortage? ”
EdWonk comments on the shortage of teachers in Texas. I have no idea what compensation plans are for teachers in Texas. Here in Chicago, if there’s a teacher shortage (I haven’t heard of one), it’s not due to low pay and the idea that we’ll be able to pay bachelors-only teachers the same for nine months that a doctor or lawyer makes in a year sounds pretty unlikely to me.
Well, I’ve decided which posts I’ll vote for this week. Which posts would get your votes?
