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Jens 'n' Frens
Idle thoughts of a relatively libertarian Republican in Cambridge, MA, and whomever he invites. Mostly political.
"A strong conviction that something must be done is the parent of many bad measures."
-- Daniel Webster
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Saturday, April 05, 2003 :::
I'd meant to attend the first rally described here, but my laziness/cold-aversion got the better of me. I was up too late last night.
::: posted by Steven at 3:15 PM
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According to Virginia Postrel, Eliot Spitzer was already a self-important grandstanding prick when he was in college. Link from Instapundit.
Incidentally, much of that entry is about the "Antarctic Liberation Front", a political party within Princeton's student government of the mid '80s. MIT's best equivalent would be the Gumby Party, which took power around '82 on the slogan "Reason as a Last Resort". They declared Harvard a colony, and I think they were responsible for at least one hack at the Harvard-Yale football game -- my memory's fuzzy, though, I can't find it on the web, and I can't find my copy of the book I know mentions it.
::: posted by Steven at 1:03 PM
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I would guess the taboo against assassination has to do with the distinction between killing faceless grunts vs. targeting specific, identified individuals. My use of the word "guess", though, is deliberate.
The more cynical rationale is that it's a matter of professional courtesy -- the taboo is one followed by heads of governments, and those under their command, so naturally they'd like to be considered out of bounds.
::: posted by Steven at 2:41 AM
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Friday, April 04, 2003 :::
It was suggested to me that Hussein won't have a chance pretty soon to use chemical weapons because we'll be in Baghdad and he would hurt a lot of civilians. "Do you think he cares?" I asked. One of the worst-case scenarios that has been playing out in the back of my mind is that he's waiting until we're in the city to go out in a blaze, as it were, deploying chemicals en masse to gas our troops, his troops, and anyone else in the city. I wouldn't bet even odds on this, but it wouldn't be inconsistent with what we know about him, particularly if we think he would think it would awe future generations.I'm not sure we actually know he's in Baghdad, either, if he's still alive; he could get out of town and pull this off remotely, with no actual harm to himself. Anyway, have a good weekend.
::: posted by dWj at 4:42 PM
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Does anyone have any sense of how "permanent" the creators of the U.N. expected the permanent members of the Security Council to be? Surely it would occur to them that at some point Germany might seem as plausible a member as France, and that over generations the world would change in general. In fact, in reality, two of the members have changed since it was originally constituted, though in theory they kind of haven't. (The regimes represented have changed; the nations represented have not.)
::: posted by dWj at 4:42 PM
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I was going to link to Derb's column. The taboo against assassination certainly doesn't make sense in time of war, as has been well covered; I wonder if it exists on the principle that nobody takes going to war lightly, while one might be more tempted to take assassination lightly.
::: posted by dWj at 4:42 PM
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Also at NRO, Derb -- always one to avoid controversy -- suggests we assassinate Kim Jong-Il. He raises some of the probable objections and responds to them.
::: posted by Steven at 4:11 PM
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Jonah Goldberg thinks Iraq should get a new name. He has some suggestions.
I assume his daughter, Lucy, was named after his mother, Lucianne. I also assume, though, that his wife did the naming. I shudder to think what Jonah would have called her. "Optimus Prime" would not seem unlikely.
::: posted by Steven at 4:08 PM
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Michael Kelly Killed in Iraq
I hadn't realized Michael Kelly was in Iraq.
::: posted by Steven at 2:08 PM
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Kate, while you adequately put "hates China" in scare quotes, you don't quite make clear that what you hate, of course, is not China (the nation or empire), but its government. Meanwhile, "The US harshly condemns the human rights records of those countries it considers its adversaries while commonly giving soft glove treatment to its allies" — in particular our soft glove treatment of China — is exactly what Kate's trying to remedy. We do go a bit light on China because they're big, both economically and militarily, and as a practical matter that may be reason for our special treatment of them, but for long term purposes I do believe that the place for Realpolitik has receded somewhat, and while we will work with the governments of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia as allies, we also need to tell them that certain features of their regimes require termination strategies. (Not to foment antisemitism and anti-Americanism should be a basic prerequisite for alliance with the United States, and if the Saudis think stopping this will destabilize their regime, we should be willing to provide support, economic or otherwise, to help maintain stability during a transition to something that is stable — and if this means fewer perques and less complete control for the House of Saud, we should make it clear that that may be their best option.)I love the United States, even as I am critical of some of its actions, many of which I view as mistaken, not evil. I have no love for the PRC government, which is evil.
::: posted by dWj at 1:19 PM
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Kate asks about supporting the troops without supporting the war, and I'm not sure it's possible. "Supporting the troops" as I understand it means "help boost their morale by assuring them that, now that we have made this decision, we're unanimous that what they're doing is the right thing." To that extent it may be more a support for the institutions that gave us the decision, but it is, in any case, an affirmation of the purpose at hand. Whether a war is justified or not, winning it is better than losing it, and committing oneself to it and putting questions aside once that decision has been made is important to doing it well.
::: posted by dWj at 1:19 PM
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Today is opening day for what apparently is officially called U.S. Cellular ballpark, home of the White Sox (and this year's all-star game); last I had heard some 'T's remained to be crossed, but that appears to have happened. Until now the two most common names in actual currency for the ballpark have been "Sox park" and "Comisky park", and I expect it to remain that way for a while. Third, which has been "Cominsky park", may or may not be bumped from that position.
::: posted by dWj at 10:55 AM
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If that guy has any interest in American citizenship, I think we should be sure to extend the offer. More likely, he wants to live in freedom in his own country, which is okay, too; if he wants to be interim governor of something, we might be able to arrange that, too.
::: posted by dWj at 9:59 AM
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More about the guy who tipped off American forces on the whereabouts of Pfc Lynch.
::: posted by Steven at 2:13 AM
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Thursday, April 03, 2003 :::
I'm learning quite a bit at the Command Post. For example:
- Self-flagellation is common at Shi'ite funerals, and was banned under Saddam, presumably for competing with a state monopoly. In Umm Qasr, they're doing it again.
- It isn't quite "Iraqis killing Iraqis", but the Iraqi Red Crescent is refusing humanitarian aid from Jordan for no apparent reason.
- The Christian Science Monitor has an article about the prospects for arabic democracy.
- A pick-up soccer game between Iraqi civilians and British marines ended in a 9-3 Iraqi victory. Even considering the home-field advantage, I'd have picked marines over civilians, even if the marines weren't British. Oh -- a lot of the Iraqis appear to be fans of top English footballer David Beckham.
::: posted by Steven at 10:10 PM
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Our reader sent me fan mail:
No matter how tired I am or how bad a mood I am in, Jens 'n Frens always offers something to amuse me.
We're happy to oblige.
::: posted by Steven at 9:21 PM
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There were elections here Tuesday, and while I still haven't decided whether to discuss my own experience, I will mention that the Republican won the election for town president of Cicero. I had considered giving money to the Democrat, but didn't, which is just as well, since I don't need the Cicero Republican Committee breaking my legs or anything.This is just the kind of cynicism on which I often seem to find myself proved wrong, and I'd like whichever fate is in charge of that to note this post. Corruption in Cicero will continue! Worse than ever! Nyah!
::: posted by dWj at 6:01 PM
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It has been suggested that the Saddam Hussein airport be renamed after Ronald Reagan, but while that is a name of liberation, naming it after Saladin would not only go over better with the local population, but would be a thumb in the eye of the fellow who has liked to compare himself to Saladin.
::: posted by dWj at 5:58 PM
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Incidentally, I'd especially like comments on that last entry from Iraqis and former Iraqis.
::: posted by Steven at 4:26 PM
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A few thoughts on flags.
It was made clear early on that, since this is to be a war of liberation rather than of colonization, invading soldiers should not plant the American (or British/Australian/Polish/whatever) flag. It could be argued that the American flag is a flag of liberation, but I think the order is an appropriate one. It does leave us, however, without a banner to fly for a free Iraq.
Well, shortly before the Soviet Union collapsed, I spent a month in Russia (whether the timing of the two events is a coincidence is left to the speculation of the reader). The official Russian flag at the time was identical to the Soviet flag, but with a bar down the left side, IIRC. There had been a pre-Soviet flag, of course, which I believe is also the current flag. Considered an emblem of dissent, this flag was illegal -- and fairly popular.
I don't know much about Iraqi history, but this strikes me as one of the better periods, from the little research I've done. The Iraqi flag from the period is what you see above. Until someone has a better idea, I propose it as a banner for a free Iraq.
::: posted by Steven at 3:30 PM
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Apropos my brother's latest entry, I wonder whether baseball player Milton Bradley likes board games.
::: posted by Steven at 2:23 PM
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An Iraqi prisoner of war tells his story. This is from the first gulf war. Link from the Command Post.
::: posted by Steven at 2:20 PM
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American troops, it's reported, are within the city of Baghdad. So the easy part is almost over.
::: posted by Steven at 1:00 PM
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Wednesday, April 02, 2003 :::
I wonder whether baseball player Frank Thomas and General Tommy Franks have ever met.Why, yes, I do have something better to be doing.
::: posted by dWj at 2:09 PM
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Reading my email from Best of the Web.
Sky News http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-12278356,00.html reports that "fanatical pro-Saddam Hussein fighters are shooting children in and around Basra, fleeing civilians told British forces. One mother told British medics her 12-year-old son was among dozens of youngsters gunned down by death squads."
In contrast, check out this New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/01/international/worldspecial/01MILI.html?pagewanted=all report: "On the contested bridge in Hindiya, the captured town south of Baghdad, an American company commander, Capt. Chris Carter of Watkinsville, Ga., dashed to a wounded Iraqi woman in a black chador lying exposed to fire in the center of the span. Captain Carter crouched with his M-16 rifle to cover her position until medics could evacuate her by stretcher, according to journalists traveling with the unit." While Saddam Hussein murders Iraqi civilians in cold blood, America's fighting men risk their lives to save them.
Also,
The Telegraph reports that a local religious leader, Sheikh Malik Naqshbandi, has returned to the Kurdish village that was Ansar's headquarters and has now been liberated. "Sheikh Malik's house was used by Ansar and destroyed by an American missile. He said he didn't mind. 'I don't think there will be a happier day in my life.' "
I really want to give the Kurds a country. Maybe France.
::: posted by dWj at 11:23 AM
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A question about the Iraqi civilians killed in their van while running a checkpoint: Am I the only person who was concerned that they didn't kill all of them? If one of them had been a suicide bomber, killing the rest of the suicide bombers does little good.
An additional point here that some of the media discussion suggests is worth noting: The use of suicide bombing of military targets is a legitimate tactic of war, but doing so while giving the appearance of a civilian in need of help is intolerable.
::: posted by dWj at 11:23 AM
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Heard some clips from the afirmative action case last night (the audio was released). Ted Olsen did much better than the appelants' lawyer, at least of what I heard. Hope to see more full transcripts later.
::: posted by dWj at 10:07 AM
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Tuesday, April 01, 2003 :::
The other day, I said that the top three women's basketball teams had an average chance of winning their regions of 80% (I actually said the chance that they'd all win was 50% -- if we assume independence of events, this is roughly the same). Note:
- They did, in fact, all win.
- No men's basketball team has an 80% chance of beating the eighth best team in the country.
- The number one seed I left out of my pseudo-prediction was LSU. They just lost by a good margin.
- Texas has both their men and their women in the final four. The same school has had both teams in their final fours three times in the past. None of the six teams won the title.
At this point, I'll say 2-1 odds against UConn winning it all, 3-1 each against Duke and Tennesee, and 5-1 against Texas.
Tomorrow, incidentally, will be the first day I don't watch college basketball in at least two weeks. The men's NIT championship will be Thursday, men's NCAA games resume Saturday, and the women's NCAA semifinals are on Sunday.
::: posted by Steven at 11:15 PM
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Yahoo! News - U.S. in Push to Baghdad, Female Soldier Rescued
Word that U.S. special forces rescued a female prisoner of war from a Nassiriya hospital boosted the morale of U.S.-led troops who continued to encounter suspicion among civilians and tougher-than-expected resistance from Iraqi defenders.
I assumed none of our PoWs would come back alive. I'm pretty psyched about this.
::: posted by Steven at 11:02 PM
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Georgetown vs. Minnesota, St. John's vs. Texas Tech in the NIT semis tonight.
::: posted by dWj at 5:08 PM
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An American Airlines flight from Tokyo was quarantined on the tarmac at San Jose's airport Tuesday after four people on board complained of symptoms like those reported from the mysterious new illness spreading through Asia, airline and city health officials said. Foxnews
::: posted by dWj at 3:08 PM
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Here is an attempt to weigh the costs of war against the "costs of containment". The 2% discount rate they use is ludicrously low, but there are some interesting numbers here.
::: posted by Steven at 11:29 AM
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Monday, March 31, 2003 :::
The Cubbies look okay.
::: posted by dWj at 5:12 PM
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The northbound part of the "Big Dig" (big project pushing I-93 and parts of I-90 below Boston, rather than above) is now open, and has had a number of accidents.
People will get more used to it. I hope.
::: posted by Steven at 4:13 PM
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Is the "just one factor" "defense" of racial discrimination logically coherent? Is "looking at the whole of the application" supposed to make a difference? It seems to me that either there is an applicant who is accepted and would not be if of a different race or vice versa, or there is no such applicant; whether the criteria are easily disentangled (or whatever the opposite of looking at the application "holistically" is) seems not terribly relevant to much of anything.
::: posted by dWj at 3:39 PM
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This is kind of a question about pleasantries, but it's mostly a kvetch. You've been warned:
I went to the post office to get a tax form, and they aren't there where they have been years past. I wandered around for a while, trying to find where they were, and finally found someone to ask, who told me they didn't have them but that they were next door, at a federal building, on the twenty fourth floor.
On my way out, I saw signs posted on the entrance by which I left; these signs informed visitors that IRS forms could be acquired next door, and they got me much more irritated than logic can defend, because they started, "For your convenience".
Now, I may respond to pleasantries differently from some people, but going to a federal building — where most entrances have been disabled so you can be directed through the metal detector and put your stuff through the X-ray — and finding your way to the twenty fourth floor, that's not a terrible burden; it's more convenient, say, than flying to Washington to get a schedule B, but where the audience is people who apparently came to the post office to get tax forms there, are they going to feel the signs are more polite because they assert that they're not inconveniencing us? Why did they decide to rub our nose in the inconvenience of it?
::: posted by dWj at 3:38 PM
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As for SARS deaths versus cases, my first thought was probably a variant on (3), but is that non-fatal cases weren't being noticed at first.
::: posted by dWj at 3:38 PM
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Speaking of smart people opposing partitioning Iraq, I think it makes sense myself. The current lines were drawn more or less at random, and have nothing but recent history to argue for them. Much as I want a good alliance with Turkey, I really, really want to give the Kurds a homeland; would a loose confederation work for anyone? What about giving the Kurds a country with a firm admonition that they want to remain our friend?
::: posted by dWj at 3:32 PM
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In case you haven't heard, Peter Arnett is still a tool.
::: posted by Steven at 12:20 PM
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Instapundit on SARS:
[T]his graph of cases and deaths is interesting. The number of cases continues to climb, but not the number of deaths. I think that means one of the following: (1) The outbreak started, or at least was first noticed, in an unusually vulnerable population; or (2) the virus is becoming less deadly; or (3) the reporting is wrong, and the number of deaths is actually greater now, or the number of cases was actually greater earlier.
(4) There were a few strains, early, some of them deadlier than others, and the deadliest ones tended to kill their victims before they could spread.
I suppose that's a variant on (2), but it's the first rationalization that popped into my head.
::: posted by Steven at 12:13 PM
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I sort of like the idea of partitioning Iraq, though I'd probably give Turkey help defending their border. I'm keenly aware of my lack of expertise here, though, and all the smart people seem to disagree with me.
::: posted by Steven at 12:02 PM
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The high school robotics contest I went to this weekend apparently was started by Dean Kamen, which explains why there were a couple of Segways there; I got a go on one of them. Turning, apparently, isn't done with body weight; there's a control at the left hand. I would think it would be easier to coordinate with speed if it were the same type of control; it couldn't detect you falling over in that direction, since the wheel base would make it difficult to do that, but your feet go in designated places, and it could surely detect a weight shift through those.I don't get why the webpage seems out of date. It doesn't mention this year's contest, but I assure you there was one, and it involved pushing stacks of containers around. And thanks to a member of the team from Rochester, MI, who was quite generous with his time when he could otherwise have been worrying about the final rounds of competition. I didn't get his name, but he obviously won himself a fan for those last matches.
::: posted by dWj at 11:38 AM
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In NCAA div-1 Women's basketball, meanwhile, they're down to the "elite eight", which consists of the four number 1 seeds and the four number 2 seeds. And the odds of Duke, UConn, and Tennessee all making the final four are probably at least even. "Parity" there is not.
::: posted by Steven at 11:16 AM
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How regularly does the final four contain no team that won its conference tournament?
::: posted by dWj at 10:17 AM
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A probably too late welcome back to Chicago for Kate Malcolm, who asks
Why don't we talk about how playing the peace card is shameless? If you're going to accuse some camps of saying anti-war equals anti-America, then let's talk about how the anti-war bunch think they have a monopoly on the desire for peace. Good for her for asking it. To repeat Eric Zorn again, "[P]eace is a goal, not a strategy."
::: posted by dWj at 10:17 AM
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Mayor M jealously guards his reputation as an arrogant son of a bitch by destroying Meigs Field (reg req) the way the Berlin Wall was built: in the middle of the night, with no more hint that it was coming than that we all new he had wanted to do this for a decade. Just last week he assertively failed to hint at this when asked what impact the no-fly zone over part of the city, newly granted by the FAA, might have on the field, which is (was?) about a mile south of the southern edge of that no-fly zone.
::: posted by dWj at 9:53 AM
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Sunday, March 30, 2003 :::
Kim Jong-Il as King Herod
All triplets in North Korea are being forcibly removed from parents after their birth and dumped in bleak orphanages.
The policy is carried out on the orders of Stalinist dictator Kim Jong-il, who has an irrational belief that a triplet could one day topple his regime.
He read his tea-leaves wrong -- it's going to be twins. I'll see you in Pyongyang, Dean.
::: posted by Steven at 9:22 PM
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Here's a story you won't see in the New York Times.
Energy and construction company Halliburton Co. is out of the running for a massive U.S. government contract for reconstruction in Iraq, the Agency for International Development (AID) said on Friday.
::: posted by Steven at 9:00 PM
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More NCAA Men's Basketball: If Texas doesn't win the game they're about to play, it'll be the first time in 23 years that no number one seed will be in the final four, and the first time in five that no number one seed will win the tournament.
::: posted by Steven at 5:07 PM
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