Bernstein, 2/10: [Quoting Ha’aretz] Travers also rejects Israel Defense Forces photographs as proof that Hamas hid weapons in mosques during the conflict. “I do not believe the photographs,” Travers said, describing the IDF evidence as “spurious.” [Who are you going to believe? Me or your lying eyes?] Dershowitz, 2/14 Travers came to the job having […]
Author Archive | David Bernstein
Sullivan v. Wieseltier
The New York Times reports on the Andrew Sullivan vs. Leon Wieseltier controversy. The report is not quite right; it says that Wieseltier accused Sullivan of anti-Semitism, when Wieseltier actually accused Sullivan of recklessly engaging in venomous rhetoric that gives aid and comfort to anti-Semites and stokes anti-Semitism. This may be cold comfort to Sullivan […]
“Poll Finds Edge for Obama Over G.O.P. Among the Public”
That’s the headline on the N.Y. Times’s home page. Of course, headlines don’t always reflect the actual article, but here’s how the article starts: WASHINGTON — At a time of deepening political disaffection and intensified distress about the economy, President Obama enjoys an edge over Republicans in the battle for public support, according to the […]
Scotus Blog Post on Buchanan v. Warley
In honor of Black History Month, Scotus blog is running a series of guest posts on race and the Supreme Court. My post appears today, entitled “The Neglected Case of Buchanan v. Warley.” It’s an excerpt from my Rehabilitating Lochner book, due out next Spring from University of Chicago Press. Here’s the beginning: Buchanan v. […]
Goldstone Report Co-Author is a Nutter?
I wrote back in September, re the Goldstone Report on Israel’s actions in Gaza during Operation Cast Lead: My inclination is to dismiss out of hand any report that emerges from the U.N. Human Rights Council, which includes such human rights stalwarts as China, Cuba, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. I’m even more inclined to do […]
Snow to Hell
That’s my name for our latest D.C. storm. I grew up in New York City, lived in New England for six years and Michigan for one, and I’ve never seen so much snow, in such rapid succession.
Bronner and the N.Y. Times
There’s a bizarre controversy brewing over the fact that New York Times Middle East reporter Ethan Bronner’s son has decided to volunteer for the Israeli military. Anti-Israel activists are arguing that this means that Bronner will be tempted to bias his reporting in favor of Israel and the IDF, rendering his reporting non-objective, or at […]
A (Relatively) Brief Followup/Clarification re Roscoe Pound
[You should probably scroll down and start with Orin’s first post on Glenn Beck if you want to follow this thread] First, thanks to Orin for the nice plug for my Rehabilitating Lochner book, which probably won’t be out until about a year from now. Second, just to clarify, my broader concern in criticizing Roscoe […]
Roscoe Pound, Enemy of American Constitutionalism
Below, Orin expresses amazement/bewilderment that Glenn Beck deems Roscoe Pound an important enemy of American constitutionalism, by which I assume Orin means a proper understanding of the U.S. Constitution. I watched the clip, and I’m not going to vouch for Beck’s bizarre claim that Pound was somehow responsible for American lawyers interpreting the Constitution via […]
The New Deal Court
Below, Jonathan raises the following from a Jeff Rosen blog post: The conservative justices may have calculated that they could strike down campaign finance restrictions without provoking a full-blown presidential backlash. But it takes only a few high-profile presidential attacks to tar a Court as activist in the eyes of history. During the 1930s, the […]
Is that 44 Geckos and Skinks in Your Pants
or are you just happy to see me?
Puff Piece on Justice Stevens
Some “tough journalism” from the Times’s Adam Liptak. We learn of Stevens’s “plainspoken style,” his “common sense” and “moral clarity,” and that he is “the leader of the court’s liberal wing.” While in his early years on the Court “his views often seemed idiosyncratic,” he has since “emerged as a master tactician,” who uses the […]
The Art of the Polemic
Via Instapundit, Conrad Black has a scathing attack on Obama. I suggest putting aside one’s positive or negative feelings about Obama, and enjoying the piece as a model polemic.
A Downside to the Brown Victory
Like others who oppose much of President Obama’s legislative agenda, I’m pleased that Scott Brown won, and even more pleased that he won relying on generally libertarian themes. There is a downside, however. From what I can tell, the swing vote for Brown, and more generally against Obama these days, is senior citizens who want […]
Pat Buchanan on the “White Vote”
Commenters identified as “conservative” often get unfairly, and generally absurdly, labeled by their opponents as “fascists,” but Buchanan is a rare one who deserves it. Why is he still a “respectable” media presence? UPDATE: Let me clarify: this post is just one of many examples of Buchanan’s general fascistic mentality, not “proof” by itself of […]