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October 31, 2005
Next, it will be The Muppets
So Britian wants to ban piggy banks because they might offend Muslims? This is beyond parody and paints a good portrait of where an appeasement culture leads.
Posted by Richard Miniter at 01:15 PM
Paris v. Islam
You’ve probably read about the nighttime riots in Paris this weekend, pitting "French youths" against the police. Why don’t they go on strike as the French usually do? Because, well, they are not ordinary "French youths." The Brussels Journal pulls back the politically correct curtain...
Posted by Richard Miniter at 11:56 AM
How do you say ignorant in French?
Simply astonishing. A French foreign minister, visiting Israel, wonders how many Jews were deported from the United Kingdom to Nazi concentration camps. The Israeli author’s tongue-in-cheek defense of the minister makes a good read.
Posted by Richard Miniter at 10:35 AM
Free chapter in WSJ
The Wall Street Journal’s editorial page website, opinionjournal.com, is running a complete chapter from my new book Disinformation. You can read it here for free. If you have ever been curious whether the scare stories about al Qaeda laying its hands on "nuclear suitcases" are true, you should read this.
Posted by Richard Miniter at 08:36 AM
October 28, 2005
Disinformation Available
Disinformation: 22 Media Myths That Undermine the War on Terror now available! Visit your local bookstore or order online at either Amazon or Barnes and Noble.
Posted by Richard Miniter at 08:17 AM
October 08, 2005
Iran is "playing chicken"
Amir Taheri, writing in Arab News, has a interesting reporting from inside Iran. He does not say it outright, but a fair surmise would be the anti-war protests have emboldened the mullahs of Iran. Worth reading.
Posted by Richard Miniter at 10:09 PM
New Danish Blog
A free-market revolution has been slowly unfolding in Denmark for the past two decades, but it was accelerated in the past five years. That peninsular nation now is home to two laissez-faire think tanks, the Copenhagen Institute and Cepos. If you read Danish, you should check my friend Peter Kurrild-Klitgaard’s blog. He and few other of Denmark’s friends of liberty opine on a wide variety of subjects. Even if you don’t read Danish, visit anyway and read (in English) the inspiring quotes at the top and bottom of the blog. Peter is a political science professor at an university in Odense—and his wit and intelligence daily make me sorry that I can’t read Danish either. He is probably even funnier and smarter in his native tongue.
Posted by Richard Miniter at 03:57 PM
October 06, 2005
For A Laugh
Here is a light piece I wrote for National Review, which is on its web site today. For those of you who have asked, yes, I sometimes write about things other than terrorism—when I think I have something original to contribute.
Posted by Richard Miniter at 12:37 PM
October 04, 2005
Most Qualified?
So who knew that the former Texas Lottery commisioner was one with the winning number for the U.S. Supreme Court?
The Left is crying cronyism and it hard to say that they are wrong. Bush could have thrown darts at the D.C. Yellow Pages and found a more qualified woman attorney. In fact, woman lawyers should feel insulted; does the president honestly think the Miers is the most qualified American woman with a law degree? Just for fun, let's compare Miers' résumé with that of radio talk show host Laura Ingraham.
| Compare | Miers | Ingraham |
|---|---|---|
| Sources and methods: | For items, not listed on Laura Ingraham's bio, I consulted her producer, Lee Habeeb.For items not listed on Miers's bio, I phoned the White House and relied on wire reports. | |
| Undergraduate college | Southern Methodist University | Dartmouth College |
| Campus conservative? | No | Yes, Dartmouth Review editor |
| Law school | Southern Methodist University | University of Virgina Law School |
| Federalist Society Member? | No | Yes |
| Law review? | No | Yes, Notes Editor |
| Clerked for federal judge? | Yes, for U.S. District Judge Joe Estes (Dallas) | Yes, Ralph K. Winter, U.S. Court of Appeals (second circuit) |
| Clerked for U.S. Supreme Court? | No | Yes, Clarence Thomas |
| Watched Supreme Court proceedings at least once? | No | Yes |
| Published law review articles? | No | No |
| Age | 60 | 42 (roughly) |
| Attorney at top 20 national law firm? | No, even after a merger between Mier's firm (Locke, Purnell, Rain & Harrell), the new firm known as Locke, Liddell & Sapp was ranked 94th by National Law Journal in 2003 | Yes, Skadden, Arps, Meagher & Flom (ranked no. 3 by National Law Journal in 2003) |
| White House Experience? | Yes, Deputy Chief of Staff (Bush) (one year). Also, Staff Secretary. |
Yes, Speechwriter (Reagan) (two years). |
| Other government experience? | Texas Lottery Commision (5 years) | U.S. Dept. of Transportation (Reagan) U.S. Dept. of Education (Reagan) |
| Papertrail? | No | Yes, two books, including one bestseller. Many bylined articles in national outlets. |
| First woman president of fill-in-the-blank? | Yes. Who cares? It is a Supreme Court appointment, not a pitch for cover story in Ms. magazine. | |
| Known by millions of Americans? | No | Yes. Laura hosts the fourth most-popular radio show in the nation. |
Posted by Richard Miniter at 09:07 AM