Flirting for Food
‘Galatea’ is a columnist writing about her experience looking for work after her recent downsizing. Previous entries in her series can be strong> read here
Entries
No Discussion of Europe at GOP Debate
First GOP Foreign Policy Debate CBS made some questionable broadcasting decisions with this debate. They decided that the last half hour of the debate will only be broadcasted in some television markeys. Most networks reverted to NCIS so many viewers had to get the rest of their debate fix from …Crowdsourcing a Personal Question
I've finished work on a novel about Washington in the time of the Tea Party. With a view to publishing during primary season, I'm weighing e-publishing as opposed to a paper book. I'm curious to know how many Frum Forum readers use e-readers--and in particular, whether you use them only for …Killing Keystone Won't Reduce Oil Use
In my column for the National Post I explain why ending the Keystone XL pipeline won't reduce the amount of oil people consume: The true locus of opposition to the pipeline is not Nebraska, but California, where big liberal environmentalist donors have seized on the pipeline as a talismanic …
The Free Market Can't Clean Up This Nuclear Mess
Eli Lehrer ably defends the Department of Energy, the flawed and unloved agency whose name fell away from Rick Perry's lips when his neural network took an inopportune coffee break. As Lehrer pointed out, about half of DOE's budget is allotted for watchdogging our nuclear arsenal and cleaning …Upward Mobility: It's a Race Thing
You don’t have to accept some of the anarchistic radicalism at Occupy Wall Street to admit that America is a country with high income inequality and low upward mobility. Some Conservatives have tried to obfuscate this reality but others are actually wrestling with it. A recent issue of National …
My Questions for the Next GOP Debate
Had I been on the panel for Wednesday's economics debate, I'd have opened with the question: "Are taxes lower or higher today than on the day President Obama was sworn into office?" Just for fun. CBS and National Journal asked me among others to suggest some questions to ask the candidates at …
In Defense of the Department of Energy (Sort of)
Before he famously stumbled in the debate earlier this week, Rick Perry said he would eliminate the Department of Energy. Ron Paul agrees. Any time one sees a bunch of libertarian minded people in a room together (heck, even libertarian-leaning liberals) the Department of Energy often ends up on …
Admit it, it Could be Newt
I note with smug satisfaction the growing buzz for Newt Gingrich. For months now, I’ve felt like the Prophet Jeremiah, prophesying destruction to people who won't listen or believe me. Yes, Newt has a staggering number of very ugly skeletons in his closet. Yes, his campaign stumbled badly out of …
Coming Soon: A Keystone Op-Ed
img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-106780" title="keystone" src="/files/wxrimport/2011-11/keystone.jpg" alt="" width="394" height="295" />James Clinton, Revolutionary War Hero
Previously at Frum Forum , I wrote about two early American political leaders: DeWitt Clinton , New York governor and mayor and key figure in the nation-building achievement of getting the Erie Canal built; and George Clinton , governor turned vice president, whose efforts to limit …
Remembering the Fallen
In America, Veterans Day is when we respect our Veterans. Throughout the British Commonwealth, today is known as Remembrance Day, for the Honorable Dead. The date November 11th was originally Armistice Day, for of course; the "Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month" when the …
TLC Reveals the Lives of `All-American Muslims'
A new and very different kind of reality show that will be premiering this Sunday night at 10pm (ET/PT) on TLC--one that is perhaps the flip-side of Sarah Palin's recent reality show--called All-American Muslim. (We'll be giving the show a full review the week after next, Nov 18th, after we look at …
Compare and Contrast
Here's the clip of Gerald Ford's famous gaffe from the 1976 presidential debate, in which he denies that the Soviets "dominate" Eastern Europe. It's pretty bad. But notice that Ford is struggling to make an intelligent and important point: what he wants to say is that the US does …Bob McDonnell: The Gov Who Governed
More than a few liberal commentators will celebrate the supposed " shellacking " that the Republicans got in the elections on Tuesday. And, certainly, on two major issues--government union power (in Ohio) and abortion (in Mississippi)--the voters sided with the political Left. But, in one of …
The Euro? Um, Next Question Please
Last night, the CNBC anchors addressed the most urgent economic question of the moment - the fate of the euro - to four of the Republican presidential candidates: Herman Cain, Mitt Romney, Ron Paul and Jon Huntsman. I want to begin with what we saw today, another rough day for our money, for …
Freddie Mac Didn't Pay $300K for History Lectures
In the obsequies over the Perry candidacy, let's not overlook this audacious moment from the debate: Newt Gingrich's breathtaking assertion that Freddie Mac paid him $300,000 for a lecture he gave "as a historian" about how they should forthwith cease their business practices. Turns out, that's …
D'OH!
img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-106679" title="Perry" src="/files/wxrimport/2011-11/perry.jpg" alt="" width="486" height="391" />Do Facts Matter in the Inequality Debate?
In the Weekly Standard , Matthew Continetti warns conservatives that the data on income inequality might, just might, not be backing up conservative talking points: What too many [conservatives] have done is accept the premise that the purpose of government is to lessen inequalities of …
Winning the Next Ohio
In my column for The Week I explain why voters rejected John Kasich's anti-collective bargaining bill and what can be done to allow bills like that to succeed in the future: Republicans have been looking to cuts in future retiree benefits as a way to avoid future tax increases. In the …