Maybe he did, maybe he didn't. Any other state secrets you'd like to expose while you are at it?
Sunday, 11 November 2012
Meritocracy Versus Democracy
10 Nov 2012
America will be run by the slick and
plausible fund-raisers
An
interesting piece by a good apologist for the Chinese system, one well-versed in
English rhetoric.
Of
course the dichotomy is false: we both have meritocracies, merely selected by
different folks on different criteria. In China ,
bosses pick who was the best at running things while towing the party line.
In
America , political activists pick who
they think is best at winning elections.
Problems?
China will be run by the
Peter-principled: a group of guys who were good at their last
job.
It may
never happen, but hybridization would be fun to see:
A
China where the party puts up two and
everyone votes on which.
(including letting them turf out the incumbent)
An
America where one must have been a
state governor before running for president.
(Or
where congressional candidates have to pass the civil service
exam.)
The Elections, Gridlock and Foreign Policy
November 7, 2012 | 1000 GMT
I would add one impetus
to America ’s overseas strategy: since
9/11 it has been dictated not only by events, but by opinion polls. Bush and
Obama intervened where they thought public opinion wanted them to, and they did
so with inadequate forces because they feared that public opinion would not go
with them if they asked for enough manpower and money to do the job
properly.
One of my friends
thinks Boris Johnson (Tory clown and current Mayor of London) might not make
such a bad Prime Minister for the UK because he is an idle sod, and
nothing is better for the country than an idle
politician.
Still, I worry that the
American impasse we have created (or maintained, if you will) could stuff us
badly when strong action is really needed – e.g the approaching fiscal cliff.
It may be we will muddle through that as well, but perhaps at a cost higher than
it would have been under decisive leadership.
Finally, I despair of
any President or any American government coming up with a clear,
well-thought-out strategy, given that they have only 2.5 to 3 years before the
next election consumes all attention. During the British Empire that Mr
Friedman praises, governments came and went, but election campaigns were 60 days
from start to finish and the sovereign remained the same. That gave a chance
for a longer view to form and prevail.
Victory of the Demagogue By Hyatt Seligman
American Thinker, 7 Nov 2012
Victory of the Demagogue By Hyatt Seligman
American Thinker, 7 Nov 2012
"Kill your opponent by character assassination and promise freebies to your base."
That also sounds like a pretty good description of the Romney campaign against Obama. Both sides seem to concentrate less on what they stood for and more on who they were running against. Both sides promised freebees to their bases: federal spending programs for the Dumbocrats, tax cuts and defense spending for the Retroblicans.
If conservatives had taken 1/5th of the time, money and effort that was spent on demonising Obama and put it on getting the converted to the polls, the result would have been different.
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Wednesday, 7 November 2012
The Heywood files · 8 November 2012 Downton Abbey star heckled on opening night – by Sir Peter Hall · 5 November 2012 Cameron under new pressure to release Brooks texts after leak · What a bunch of nonsense. The only logical conclusion: politicians should have NO friends at all - since they might later do something that is illegal or embarrassing. Everything will then be much better, as we are ruled by cold and isolated men and women.MP Denis MacShane is suspended over string of illegitimate expenses claims · 3 November 2012 Compare this to what would happen in a company:
Employee: Here are my expenses
Employer: They are not acceptable
Employee: Okay, sorry, here is the money back.
Employer: Worse, we think they are deliberately fraudulent and we are beginning a disciplinary procedure against you.
Employee: If you feel that way, it would be better for us both if I quit.
Employer: That works for us, goodbye.No one would be charged or go to jail.Britain accused of war crimes over man held by US for eight years without trial · 1 November 2012 It is NOT a crime to fight for the other side, so the idea of a trial is ludicrous. Those captured in battle are released when the enemy surrenders or a peace deal is signedAverage income stagnant for twelve years – and it won't improve for at least eight more · When you spend a few decades spending more than you make and living on your credit card, eventually the people you owe money to force you to set up a repayment plan that entails significant cuts to your expenditure and a consequent lowering of your lifestyle. No reason to think countries are any different. The average family let their politicians get away running the country on borrowed money, now the average family needs to pay it back.Minds games: Why everything you thought you knew about yourself is wrong · 9 days ago This does not matter: As any sensible buddhist can tell you, everything is an illusion - including David's book and Gillian's article about it.Thousands illegally sectioned under mental health act following 'technical error' · 9 days ago Uh oh! You mean competent experts sectioned people even though they did not have a rubber stamp put on their papers by a bureaucrat? Won't the sky be falling?You posted a comment in Trouble in paradise as radical Islam grows in Zanzibar · 9 days ago Time to put a fatwa and a price on the heads of these moharebeh perverters of Islam.
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