More Pope Scoop

TigerHawk has a nice vent against the Islaminuts. See also the Anchoress' review of the Pope's comments.

I will make a couple of comments. First off, there is nothing incompatible with Arabs or Islam or Persia or their history and a modern, functioning government. We seem to forget that a liberal, secular West concerned about human rights is a recent phenomenon: the Christian West has done a fair job - even recently - of producing mass murdering despots. In fairness, the Arab world has quite a bit of catching up to do if they want to match such 20th century examples, such as Nazism, Communism, etc., for crimes against humanity.

As for religious violence, both the Irish and the Basques are overwhelmingly Roman Catholic, yet that has not prevented these groups from using terrorist violence to achieve their aims to this day, in one case openly supported by money from the United States. This does not justify "Muslim rage," but it merely shows that such violent and infantile behavior is not exclusively Muslim. So let's check our "holier than thou" attitude at the door.

Further, when this was Shiites v. Sunnis, we did not care so much. Like Darfur or even black on black violence in the inner city, we have traditionally had other things to worry about. But fly a few planes into buildings and open up the possibility of a nuclear dirty bomb in Atlanta and you have our attention.

The United States can not solve this problem. This is a problem for Islam and the Arab world. We can help; we can encourage certain behaviors; we can even GBU or Hellfire a few key terrorists, but structural changes are necessary. Structural changes (such as the emancipation of women) that the West has already made.

TigerHawk is also wrong about the relative progression of the West over the Middle East. This acceleration has happened since the First World War and has coincided with the Wests embrace of human rights and the value of the individual, in particular women. We still have a ways to go, but unleashing the potential of all your citizens is a powerful force...one that Islam has yet to embrace.

PB16 and the Islaminuts

The Muslim world is in a dither again. This time they are aghast that Pope Benedict spoke about "jihad" and the Prophet. The various Muslim organizations condemn the Holy Father for linking the "spread of Islam" with the "sword." The Pope's remarks, of course, do nothing of the sort. The Pope quotes the 14th-century Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus. The Holy Father calls the quote "brusque."

The "religion of peace" reacted by burning the Pope in effigy.

I can not believe that PB16 was naive enough to think that qualifications of his quote of other's remarks were enough and that he expected someone to actually read his words for context and understanding. Pope Benedict XVI is very smart. I am curious how this will play out.

UPDATE: I should be clear...the Pope's comments do link the spreading of Islam with the sword, but it is unclear to me that he is making that point personally. It is clear he feels that bloodshed and the name of God are incompatible.

As if to prove his point, the religion of peace reacted violently to the accusation that they are violent, including murdering a Catholic nun. You simply can not make up this level of stupidity.

No Habla...

In the immortal words of Chris Tucker...

"Man, can't nobody understand the words that are coming outta your mouth!"

It's All About the Ladies

Two quick off topic points. First, I would stress that you have the freedom to walk down the street in Tehran; burn the American flag and call President Bush names. Second, let me take moment to savor "kudos to him for his coherent thoughts." Ahhhhh.

My point about the women is not original. I have posted that one of the great books to influence my thinking is Robert Wright's "Non-Zero." Wright is an "evolutionary psychologist" and is scary bright. You can see him in person on Bloggingheads.tv with Mickey Kaus. (Note that I don't think he is as good as a political commentator as he is a psychologist.)

One point Wright makes is that monogamy is bad for women, but good for society. Ignoring the emotional costs, it would be better economically for Bill Gates to have lots and lots of wives...or at least better for his wives. As an abstract point, women should have the freedom to go where the money is. Now, of course, if it takes about $1MM to support a family and Bill can support 60,000 wives (!), what of the men who would otherwise marry the 59,999 that are not Belinda?

Well, there is a chain effect that basically leaves the least desirable men in the world without wives. Now, one other salient fact is that married man are generally non-violent. Statistically, you are about as likely to be attacked by a married male as a non-married female. (Okay, I need to find that study.) The point is that frustrated single men without a moderating female influence are FAR more prone to violence. And this cuts across economic status lines.

Now if you have monogamy (eliminating the "Bill Gates gets all the chicks" problem), but do not allow women the freedom to chose a mate, you do not incent men to get a job to support a family. So economic liberty creates jobs, female emancipation creates competition among males to be responsible, ipso facto, less disgruntled single men to wage jihad.

Capice?

Discussing Tilam's point(s)...

When I hear him say the word "honesty", I actually believe that is nearly the right word. Certainly I think he is referring to "self-awareness of the real issue(s)". Frankly, people are lousy at looking in the mirror and telling the reflection the God's honest truth. It doesn't matter whether it's the war on terrorism, our weight or physical appearance, we stink at self-analyzation and honesty with the person in the mirror.

I have stated before that we are a quick hit, immediate gratification, results NOW society. That pervasive outlook in all our facets of life permutates its way into the view that we have on the war on terror. "What have we accomplished?". The honesty that WE as a society has to face (and even if you dispute the dates that Tilam states, i.e. the 43 year cold war) is that this will be an ongoing thing. We HAVE to face that and not expect it to be over quickly because the US kicks ass.

5 years after 9/11 and I believe we are safer in the air, but ultimately NOT AS SAFE in our buses and trains. And as a whole, we are not as safe in general because of our lack of self-honesty. Frankly, as a society, we "remember the attack" but seem, for the most part, to have forgotten the lessons. We are back to the stupid inconsiderate ignorant selfish group of people we were before the horrendous wake-up call. We are not honest with ourselves: just because the people being killed and attacked are thousands of miles away, that doesn't mean we are not in danger!. And we don't consider it an issue because it doesn't DIRECTLY affect us. So our self-delusional dishonesty is "this war on terror doesn't affect me", so we don't have to worry about it as much. The other side of the coin is that the leaders don't do a good job in convincing us a) of any progress we are making with CONCRETE examples, and b) speaking of the true, long ugly drawn out nature of this issue.

I need some info on the "demand side". Are you saying that the primary source of hate propoganda from the Immams are the facts that a) our females can choose their own mate, and b) our men can work where they want and earn what they want to attract a mate? I'm not sure I understand that point. Tilam says "without female empowerment and economic liberty, we will continue to have disgruntled men willing to wage jihad". You gotta 'splain Lucy. Are you saying that the men are willing to wage holy way because their women are not free and they themselves are not able to establish their own career? Yer shitting me, right? OMG it is SO much more than those 2 points, and can frankly be summed up in one word: FREEDOM. I can walk down the street and burn the US flag and not get in thrown in jail. I can stand up in a park and say "president bush is an asshole" and not get shot. They cannot stand our whole society, where we can do almost anything we want and not have the night police break into our homes and drag us to an internment camp. They resent that all encompassing freedom, and despise us for it and all that it represents. And the fact that THEIR people are a bit jealous of us and might be tempted to look at their regime a bit differently forces the leaders that be to denounce us and preach hatred towards us and incite this jihad. I'm not sure I'm getting your point correctly, but I will not limit it to those 2 items.

Tilam's clarification post is a good one, kudos to him for his coherent thoughts.

Honesty...

In my prior post, I mentioned that I was unsure we had the "honesty" to win WWIV. The lack of honesty, to be clear, cuts both ways.

In our blame focused society and in the high spirit of ultra-partisanship, the Left seeks to "blame" President Bush for 9/11. In response, the Right points out that the plot developed under President Clinton and it was President Clinton's policies and lack of action that encouraged Osama bin Laden.

They are both dead wrong; and both are knowingly wrong. It is clear that the 9/11 plot had nothing to do with who was President during 2001; a President Gore would not have caught the hijackers, noone would have.

It is equally clear that President Clinton - like President Bush pere; President Reagan, President Carter, President Ford and President Nixon - did not appreciate the rise and potential lethality of terrorism. Further, in retrospect, the Monica Lewinsky scandal was a big distraction at an important time. While it is true that President Clinton brought that upon himself - and I yielded to no one in my desire to have him resign - the zealous prosecution by the Right was not in the best interests of the country.

The Islamofascists do not care who is in office. The cowboy Bush...they hate him. But it defies reason that a "liberal" President would be tolerated by them. Given the Islamofascists position on gays, women, blacks, etc. , it is illogical that they would find common cause with a "liberal" president.

My own feeling is that Munich 1972 was the first major "shot" in WWIV. We need to understand that. The taking of the US Embassy in 1979 was the enemies first real action against us. It has escalated ever since and will continue to escalate (if we do nothing) in the future.

Let's be honest about this.

The "War" on Terror

Five years after 9/11 and I am still not sure we have the honesty to win World War IV. I use the word “honesty” on purpose as it describes the internal problem we face in the United States. We are not honestly facing our terrorism problem and we are not honestly discussing what lies ahead.

World War IV is an apt description when you see the Cold War as World War III. Further, the Cold War as WWIII begins to give you a sense of the pace and duration of the struggle against radical Islam. If you see the descent if the Iron Curtain (Churchill’s speech in 1946) as the start of WWIII and the Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989) as the end, that struggle took 43 years to “win.” At times – Korea, Vietnam, Middle East, Afghanistan – it blew hot, but mostly was cold. But “cold” in the sense of guns going off between the proxies of the combatants, the ideological struggle was continuous. I suspect that the “war on terror” will be similar.

I also think there are other parallels between WWIV and WWIII. In the 1950s, communism was a very chic political perspective for the Western intelligentsia…utopia for the masses. It is not that anyone really wanted to LIVE in the USSR, but it imbued a sense of revolutionary thought for those who needed it. Similarly today, the hatred of American of the Islamic fascists shares a common cause with the anti-American intellectual left. Not that they really want to LIVE in Iran or Saudi Arabia, but it does give them a sense of moral superiority…to make common cause with the beheaders.

Further, it took some time for the US and the West to stop playing into the Communists hands by getting directly involved in shooting wars (Korea and Vietnam) that they were incapable of “winning.” By the late 1970s, the US was getting the Soviets into a shooting war (Afghanistan) that THEY were incapable of winning. Similarly, the use of proxies by the Jihadists has been superb for the past 30 years and will take some time for the US and West to understand how to play that game better. I suspect that we will by using local rebels; Special Ops and Western “security firms” (read mercenaries) to help us with “plausible deniability.” Finally, as stated in the prior paragraph, the use of non-military power (economic and cultural) must be merciless.

I would also note that the Jihadists have evolved the use of proxies from nation-states to various "group du jours" that will rise and fall in prominence. They understand that they cannot win a straight up military battle, so have developed a "whack-a-mole" strategy, where we spend a ton of effort to "destroy" "God's Islamic Sword only to find out Allah's Virtuous Heroes are doing the bombing, followed by Son of the Jihadis. As time has past, the half life of the terror organizations is diminishing: we are learning and adapting.

This is not to say WWIII and WWIV are the same…rather WWIV is the next evolution of asymmetric warfare. The use of proxies by the Soviets was asymmetric; the West took some time to develop an appropriate response. The use of economic power by the US was asymmetric; and the Soviets never could respond and ultimately “lost” WWIII.

My concern is that the War on Terror will be treated like the War on Drugs. The War on Drugs was (is?) a feel good effort focused on ridding the world of cocaine at the source. A “supply side” war, as it were. This was (and continues to be) an intellectually dishonest policy, IF YOU DON”T ADDRESS THE DEMAND. Similarly, we need to address the supply and demand side of the terrorism question.

By “demand side” I mean that we need to address the combination of hate messages (from imams) and willing young men. I am not close enough to the problem to be specific about a course of action, but it always strikes me that “female freedom” (the ability of an educated woman to chose her mate) and economic liberty (the ability of a man to provide for a family – hence attract a mate) are two fundamental ingredients. Without female empowerment and economic liberty, we will continue to have disgruntled men willing to wage jihad.

WWIV is a long war. It will blow hot and cold. We will suffer defeats (9/11; 7/11; Madrid) and have our victories. I am hopeful that there will be an event, such as the Fall of the Berlin Wall to mark the end of WWIV, but that is wishful thinking.

WWIV will be a test of this country’s ability to adapt its values to a changing environment. It will be a challenge for those in the political extremes (at least the intelligent ones) to distinguish their criticism from the value system of the enemy. It will involve using a broad range of the strengths of the United States and the West. We need Europe involved. We need moderate Muslims to stand strong.

And we need one other thing: for years the IRA was supported by Americans. It is an ugly tale the needs an open airing to help us understand the support of terrorism can come in many forms…even that lovable Irish cop on the corner of Boylston. We, as a nation, need to understand that our enemy will take comfort and draw strength from us if we are irresponsible. We need debate, decision and then action. And our lives depend on it.

Piling On Michelle

I do love watching Thew in a lather over this.

But I was amazed that he did not include her comments that she wanted to play on the Ryder Cup. The lack of self awareness is..well, like a 16 year old.

Please stop paying attention to her! Then we won't point out how underserving she is.

One more time, because TIlam loves it...

Michelle Wie struggled to an 8-over 79 Friday at the European Masters, missing the cut at a men's event for the ninth time in 10 attempts.

"I didn't even know which sport I was playing out there," Michelle Wie said.
The 16-year-old from Hawaii, who shot a 78 in Thursday's first round, finished at 15-over 157.

When will the side show, the lunacy, the vain attemps end?

Great Minds...

The National Review Online thought my email was worth quoting in full.

Though reading it again, it sounds a bit "thrown together." I usually try for "libertarian wacko." Oh, well, no one is perfect.

NRO is funny though, they actually answer the e-mails. I have received replies from Kathryn Lopez and John Podhoretz as well as Jonah Goldberg.

And me, simple citizen of the Republic...

Next up, a big pat on the Thew back for wading into political discourse...

Dipping my toes into the Political Pool

Hezbollah is the current (and by "current" I mean "terrorist of the weak") little whiny butt kid on the playground who is running around screaming and throwing a fit for attention. Meanwhile, in the background, there is someone who is much bigger, more organized, probably tougher, but perfectly content on letting the little people roar on his behalf, who is whispering in the ears of the Hezbollah "go fight that guy", "now go attack that guy", and so on. That big strong silent type, the true threat to the people of the world, is the guy we need to track down and take on, not the current group of people hopping up and down and waving guns.

However, I must digress a little from Tilam's point. I, and I have no proof of this other than my inherent cynicism of politics, have full belief that our government KNOWS this is a civilian war. As a matter of fact, THAT is the main reason they keep to their ideological dogma of the "war on terror". They KNOW that this war is losing support, yet they cling to that catchphrase to keep the civilian population behind them, keep their approval ratings, and otherwise garner public backing for this effort. THAT wording, stating "whooooo, this is dangerous to YOU Mr USA citizen, to YOU Mr John Q Public, this is a war on terrorists who target YOU", presents the fact that their propoganda war is internal as well, offering this reasoning to the american public, protecting their safety against the enemy via our "war on terror". So I think they know FULL WELL this is a civilian war, and while support is waning, they continue to hammer home that phrase as their rallying cry to the american people. Sometimes, when you hear about normal people subduing threats or identifying shifty people, it only seems that we regular shmoes are the only ones actually DOING anything concrete about it. :)

The american people need to see more results, not less. One of the big reasons that President Bush might be falling into liability, as Tilam states, is that truly, we have NO FIRM RESULTS of our "war on terror". Although Tilam might be able to summon some specific successes, I offer the following: we had Bin Laden and let him go, we continue to lose good american men in Iraq, Iran isn't disarming their nuclear program, and I won't even GO into China. Where are our successes? WMD? Where were they? We freed Iraq? No we didn't, least not yet IMHO. Hezbollah? Umm, well, not much there either. In the country of the long TD pass for a score, the long ball for a home run, the fast-break layup, and the power play, we are a society that needs constant attention and success, we hunger for immediate gratification, and this spills into all our phases of operation, sport or political. So what do we see? A game that is dragging on with what is perceived as little progress...

Tilam makes a good point about the Knesset and the IDF. We have laughed about the arab countries in that region, they just keep messing with the Israelis and getting their asses spanked. Israel is getting VERY good (or has been very good) as practicing what I termed in an offline conversation with Tilam as "Patton politics". If you remember, George Patton said "you don't win a war by giving up your life for your country, you win wars by getting the other dumb bastard to give up HIS life for his country". The terrorists and such are willing to give their life, so the Jews are happy to oblige them. And the result is "another 1,000 terrorists I killed who I don't have to worry about in the future". So on many fronts, this appears to take on a war of attrition, with the Jews killing terrorists at an astounding ratio because the terrorists are willing to die for their country. And by doing so, they fight and attack and act recklessly, thus making Israel's job almost easier by comparison. This underscores Tilam's point (and my paragraph above) that there is someone behind these flavour of the weak terrorist groups who is egging them on and using them as fodder or shock troops; it's almost like they are doing this more to make a ideological stand than actually take out any country or group of people. Because I HAVE to believe that if the terrorists REALLY want to attack the Israelis, it would have been a much bigger offensive. But to me, their actions almost indicate "see me, I'm here, I'm not going away, and I'm going to chip away at you like a gnat that you can't squash". If they had any real agenda other than "public notice", it probably would have been much more intense. Or so I think...

Back from the Weekend

Today we mourn the passing of the "Crocodile Hunter", Steve Irwin. A wildlife ambassador and Australian icon, Steve was filming a special when, while swimming above a stingray of average size, he was stung by the barbed tail directly in the chest, and ultimately, in the heart. Resources were unable to save him. Steve was a character, known for saying things like "CRIKEY!" and "isn't she a byooootee!". He seemed fearless around predators and poisonous reptiles, but actually his knowledge and fear gave him the ability to interact with them and not get hurt. His death was the result of a freak accident (the stingray could have hit him anywhere but right in the heart, and stingray stings, while VERY painful, are almost always non-lethal) and shows that no one can preduct wildlife and what spooks them or sets them off. But the world is a lesser place for his passing, although he died doing what he loved most. He leaves behind a wife and young child. Our condolences and prayers are with them in their time of loss.

In the world of sports...

Tiger won his 5th in a row by shooting a reality busting 63 in the final round, head to head against Vijay. Oh how I love to see Vijay lose, especially by getting his ass SPANKED by a better golfer. Hopefully this will go a long way to shutting him up.

Speaking of Tiger, where's Phil been? Haven't heard much of a peep from him...

I posted his requiem earlier, but my final farewell to Andre Agassi, who was ousted in his swan song at the US Open. We'll miss you - but you lucky dog, you get to bone Steffi!

So the truth comes out about the World Cup. Materazzi said he didn't want the shirt off Zidane's back, he wanted his sister. Dunno, is she good looking? Is saying "I want her sister" like saying to Tiger "I want your wife's sister"? (for those of you who don't know, Elin has a TWIN!).

Someone wake up Thew, he's asleep on another long boring conference call...

Four More Mideast Points

Before I get back to everyday bitching about Michelle Wie, I would like to make some more points about the Middle East and the War on Terror. I have not seen any of this discussed elsewhere.

Point One. Despite the immediate media attention, Hezbollah is nothing. They are unimportant in the strategic direction of the Middle East. Yes, they are actors, but they are cannon fodder only. As soon as they have worn out the usefulness to their patrons, they will be done. It is useless to worry too much about them. Their patrons on the other hand....

Point Two. The War on Terror is a civilian war. The sooner the politicians understand that the better. (We average Joes know it. How often do you read about this or that airline passenger subdued by OTHER passengers.) The terrorists use civilians and they target civilians. The quaint late-20th century Geneva Convention idea that civilians are non-combatants is (pardon the pun) dead. This is having a profound effect on the GWOT and the ramifications are not recognized, let alone understood.

Point Three. While the pundits talk about Hezbollah re-arming little attention is being paid to Israel. The IDF and Knesset have learned a great deal in the last two months. When Act Two comes, I expect to be pleasantly surprised by the IDF.

Point Four. As much as I hate to admit it, President Bush has become a huge liability. It is a problem partly of his making (his consistent failure to clearly communicate the stakes), but mostly due to circumstances beyond his control. The 2000 election debacle cleaved off a large part of this country. While Bush is in office, the Bushitler crowd will not be able to think sanely about anything. (I am curious if they come to their senses afterward.) Further, they are prompting once relatively sane people (Kerry, Gore) to become hyperpartisan hacks. I had once hoped they would tire of this game. They have not.

I am not suggesting President Bush step down, but a President Romney or President Thompson (even another President Clinton) would go a long way in taking the wind out of the zealots sails and restoring some sanity to the discourse on national issues.

Hang 'em High

In a disturbing trend of late, I agree with Tilam.

I have a 15 year old daughter. And I would mutilate, maim, kill, and/or otherwise render completely useless critical parts of anyone's anatomy who dared to assault or molest her. Artist? I'd crush hands. Athlete? I'd crush leg bones. Something to take away that which that person prides most, because by doing the heinous crime upon my child he/she would have done the same thing - but on an emotional level, where wounds don't heal for a looooong time.

He is too deep into the Middle East, far more knowledgeable than I. Posting my opinion about the ME would only be a detriment; "better to keep your mouth shut and let people think you are an idiot than to open it and prove them right". At least about this part of world politics.

But, never short with my opinions about the sports world:

Walks will kill you. Scott Proctor walked TWO batters in the top of the 9th last night then give up a 747 jet over the left center wall. PITCH, don't dance...

Oh, and the Sawx are near death in the AL East.

Anyone who said that Greg Maddux was old and done ought to be flogged.

Throwing 3 TD passes in his debut isn't enough for Carson Palmer of Cincinnati. Even thought the media is falling all over themselves to pronounce him back - that is more for HIS confidence than anything else. See what happens when he runs in a real game and takes a real hit. THAT will be the proving ground...

In the NBA...wait, no one gives a shit about the NBA...

Tiger's won 4 straight. Golf bloggers are sporting more wood than that California sequoia forest. But let's remember...his last victory came against Stewart (can't) Cink (a shot to save his life). As in "his tournament victory prospects are Cinking".

Speaking of golf, can anyone name any of the Ryder Cup team after Tiger and Phil? Then again, maybe the 4 rooks (Wetterich, Johnson, Taylor, and Henry) won't be so used to getting pummelled by the Euro's and won't succumb to the pressure and actually perform? Nahhhhh...

What has Gene Wojciechowski been smoking?! Aside from having a near unspellable and unpronounceable last name, he annoints Tiger Woods the "Greatest Individual Athlete" of all time. Mind boggling. Tiger's dominance of golf is akin to MJ's on the court, Wayne's on the ice, Martina's on the other court, hell, even Tyson's in the ring during his heyday, but "Greatest Individual Athelete" of all time? Didrickson, Owens, Thorpe, all were clearly head and shoulders above their peers. I'm sorry, someone turn on my light here.

Is anyone else besides me routing for Andre Agassi at the US Open? He won't win, of course, he might not even make the semis. Possibly not the quarters either. He's injured but soldiers on. Agassi is an athlete who might have taken a long time, but took the time nevertheless to finally "get it". He was an image, fluff, all smoke and mirrrors many years ago; now he's a family man, classy, mature, and someone we should all get behind. I've always liked him; now I just love him. He will retire as one of the US's greatest tennis pro's, and he will retire with dignity and class. We will miss him from that day forward.

Vigilante Justice

From my home county:

A father comes home to hear his wife say that a neighbor (who has exposed himself to others and been shouting obscenities to kids while drunk) has molested his 2-year old daughter. The father - a lawyer who no doubt realizes that the legal system will do NOTHING to protect the innocent - breaks into the neighbors house and stabs him to death.

If I were on that jury, I vote "NOT GUILTY!"

UPDATE: Okay, I am pre-supposing a lot. Mea Culpa. I will track this story and see what else is up. But I know what I would do if anyone molested my daughter...

An Idiot's Guide to the ME

So what happened and where are we in the Middle East? While I posted a few things early on in the fighting, I have been silent ever since. Frankly, I have held back because my views were far enough out of the mainstream interpretation, that I was a bit hesitant about posting them. In particular, I thought the “Hezbollah Won” line of thinking was so off base that I was concerned there was something here I was missing. Ultimately time will tell, but here are several thoughts, mostly not in the mainstream.

Now, the “Hezbollah Won!” theme has yielded to the “Hezbollah Lost” theme, I am more comfortable that the state of things is the same: no one has a clue. I am now willing to throw my two cents in.

Hezbollah neither won nor lost. As the coverage implies, Hezbollah certainly won the immediate PR war – an important, but superficial battle. This is because a) Hezbollah is unconstrained by the truth and b) the Western media east it up in its quest to damage the US and President Bush. But fake photos; staged photos ops; and the like have created a backlash. Ultimately, reality wins.

I do not agree with Steven den Beste that “it's not even clear that Hezbollah is trying to win against Israel; their primary goal at this time may be to try to dominate Lebanon.” Dominate Lebanon by fighting Israel? He makes a case, but it’s not a good one. I am not sure I would classify the battles as "guerilla"; rather they started out as a terrorist action that turned into a defensive battle. What was the outcome Hezbollah wanted? It is not clear enough to justify den Beste's case.

The IDF was not beaten, but did not distinguish itself either. Like Marines in Iraq, there is no way they could “win” against the insurgency. A victory is redefined as a “war crime” and a defeat is, well, a defeat. That said, the IDF learns. And it certainly did here. The next time, things will go differently. The IDF dealt with the symptom not the cause. It has to plan, at the very least, to decapitate Syria next time around. And there will be a next time.

Prime Minister Ohmert was the big loser; setting expectations that were unrealistic and inexpertly managing the campaign. There will be leadership changes in Israel and for the better. More then anything, this was a political failure by Israel. Made even more acute by the tacit “support” Israel received from the Arab League – how many time can Israel count on that!

Iran put the world on notice that it is a force to be reckoned with…and I do not think that was smart. In a world where the US has plenty to focus on, Iran continues to try and draw our attention. Iran became Job 1. Nor did they win any allies in the Arab world. Iran as a non-Arab, Shiite state, stands in sharp contrast to the other Arab, Sunni nations of the Mideast. Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the liberal Gulf Coast emirates will not accept Iran as the “lead” Middle Eastern nation. Even within Shiite Islam, the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani of Iraq is the generally recognized leader of Shiite Muslims., not the Iranian ayatollahs. And all indications are that al Sistani is conscience of the need for Muslims (Shiite and Sunni) to get along. (Sunnis and Shiites have been fighting since the death of Mohammed in 632.)

The US has been tarred with the media defeatist brush. While this is untrue, what the US does regarding Iran in the next few years will determine a significant part of the future of the Middle East. But the table has been set nicely. There is no doubt of the ambitions of Iran, so the US can count on more cooperation from the Arab states.

Then there is France. Chirac needs to go for the good of the Republic. Promising to lead the UNIFIL force in southern Lebanon, France offers only 200 troops out of 15,000 needed. Finally, when the Italians stepped up, Gallic pride prompted them to increase the force to 2,000 troops. I would emphasize that the lack of backbone of the politicians should not be extended to the French soldiers, who have served very well in world hot spots in the past few decades. But I just wish France would stop being so damn French.

The big unknown to me is how the Arab Mideast reacts to all this. Spewing anti-Western slogans and embracing victimhood have served the likes of Hosni Mubarak and the House of Saud well over the years. Do they recognize that this is a different beast? They do not need to make speedy progress toward tolerance, but steady tolerance.

And finally, Iraq. We must get it right in Iraq. A large, educated middle class, relatively moderate clerics, and, so far, a fervent desire for liberty makes this the best opportunity for the emergence of an Arab democracy.

All, of course, is not lost. The post-Camp David payoffs of Egypt showed that over time, nations can respond incentives. (Egypt is NOT a liberal democracy, but they are slowly moving in the right direction.) "Tactical restraint" is a meme being touted by Robert Wright on Bloggingheads.tv and the NYTimes and he uses Zidane as a metaphor. I think that approach needs to be used in most instances; saving pre-emption and the Bush Doctrine for the "hard" cases. (Is Iran a "hard case"? No, but they are getting there.) The trade-off is time: do we have enough time to be patient?

That no one knows.

Race Based Justice

Let me understand this. In Colorado, a man who has confessed to rape and murder is released because there is no evidence of his DNA at the scene of the crime.

In North Carolina, three men who have denied raping a women and at least two of whom have relative solid alibis are still being prosecuted even though there is no evidence of their DNA at the scene of the crime.

The difference: race.

The Duke lacrosse case is not over yet. See KCJohnson and Liestoppers.

Physical Therapy

From the President's Challenge for Kids

Pull-ups: The child hangs from a horizontal bar at a height he or she can hang from and still have their feet free from the floor. The child pulls up until the chin is above the bar and then lowers back to a full-hang starting position.
-- A 6-year-old boy should be capable of two pull-ups and a 6-year-old girl should be capable of two pull-ups.
-- A 10-year-old boy should be capable of six pull-ups and a 10-year-old girl should be capable of three pull-ups.
-- A 15-year-old boy should be capable of 11 pull-ups and a 15-year-old girl should be capable of two pull-ups.

A 10-year-old girl should be capable of doing more pull-ups then a 15-year-old girl? Is that right?

But let's take this a bit farther.

-- A 20-year-old girl should be able to just stand there and look good.
-- A 25-year-old girl should be able to have her boyfriend do 15 pull-ups for her.

Ideas on Dominance

No, Tilam, down boy, I said "dominance", not "domination"...freak!

Dominance is, and ever will be, the topic of useless debate. Coffee machine pundits debate for too many hours (there goes Monday morning productivity at the office!) about "who's better, Tiger or Jack?". "Tiger or Roger?". "1999 Yanks or 1978 Yanks or 1927 Murderer's Row?". "Niners or Cowboys or Steelers?" As american sports fan, we are obscenely obsessed with labelling everything as "the greatest" or "most dominant" when, in fact, there are too many points on both sides of the coins to come up with an answer.

Tiger is dominant in a sport that does NOT require him to beat his opponents, just the course. However, as Tilam suggested, Tiger's dominance is still noticeable, albeit an intellectual or emotional or mental dominance; in majors, how many times has he played top golf in the last group only to see bodies litter the course, through which he strolls to another victory? Tiger's (and Jack's, frankly) dominant alpha male role comes from the fact that they can handle the pressure, and all other KNOW that they need to play their "A" game to win, and ultimately they collapse under the strain (except for Bob May and Chris DiMarco, who lost in playoffs to Tiger). Duval, Ogilvy, Donald, Love III, Goosen, PHIL, Garcia (multiple times, including fading badly at least twice this year), the list goes on and on. Tiger and Jack instill doubt and a little trepidation in their opponents (including the course, who I'm sure shivers at their coming), at least 3/4 of whom are done before teeing off. Is their game THAT much better? Nah, probably not on the grass, but between the ears, it's light years ahead. And EVERYONE knows it.

Roger Federer's dominance is direct, except for Rafael Nadal on clay. Otherwise, pretty much lights out.

Do you measure NFL greats by how many Super Bowls? Franchise winning percentage? What?

The assignment of "the greatest" is merely a prelude to a ranpamt and spirited and beer-laden discussion for guys of all ages and background, who come together to yap and debate and have fun with the topic.

The Yankees-Sawx series is a wipeout so far for Boston. I mean not even close. Last night Papelbon served up a big ol' boner in the top of the 9th. I was hooting at 1am as Giambi took the cheese on a silver platter from Hansen and sent it into the bullpen. Then Georgie hooked a line drive around the pole, and it's done. Today is just the ending of the ass-whooping that is this series. But I'd sure like to know what Theo Epstein is smoking: "Things haven't changed because we lost three games, things haven't changed because we're thinner pitching-wise than we want to be. We're still on the road to get where we want to be. You don't start questioning everything about your processes because of a moment like this." And this was BEFORE last night's debacle. The Yankees have turned a 3½-game deficit into a 5½-game lead in just one month...I'd say it's time to start sweating if you're a resident of Boston...today is pretty much meaningless except to salvage a little pride for Boston...and I stress "a little".

Frankly, I'm pretty surprised that they took the Ramsey murder suspect back to the states in "business class", where he dined on king prawns and drank champagne. WHAT THE HELL! Fundamentally, it doesn't bother me except for the fact that I bet that the US taxpayers are footing the bill for that stuff. Put him in cattle class...

Dominant

Okay, Thew and I have had an off-blog conversation on Tiger's dominance. It was inspired by a PTI question, "who is more dominant, Tiger Woods or Roger Federer?" I think that it is an interesting debate...made harder by Sunday at Medinah.

There are many ways to describe dominance. Tiger is now 12-for-12 when leading in the last round of the majors. The three guys in the last two twosomes finished 2-over, 1-over and 2-over.

Sundays at a Major are about as close as one gets to mano-a-mano in golf. And in these circumstances, Tiger has been dominant. I think the big factor here is between the ears. Tiger manages to not only remain focused, but causes his opponents to lose focus. The pattern is too consistent to dismiss.

Is Tiger the greatest of all time? I have not been willing to say that, but maybe he is.

17 Second Quickie, including begging

Whenever you feel low, you can always be comforted by the downward spiral of stupidity and idiocy that was, and is, Maurice Clarett's life. Amusing is the only word I can really use for this pathetic series of decisions. And when the Israeli mob gets a hold of him, lights out...

Is ANYONE in the sports world going to be watching anything other than the Yanks-Sawx series this weekend? Okay, the PGA Championship is on, but still, what's more exciting, Tiger-Phil or New York-Boston? I'm a golfer, and I'm going to be riveted to MLB for the next few days.

In NBA news...wait, no one gives a shit about the NBA...

Glen Wesley of the Carolina Hurricanes took his day with the Stanley Cup and went to Camp Leujune, NC, to share the Cup with marines who had been wounded in the Middle East (and some other jarheads who were stationed there). Helluva guy, doing that for the boys in fatigues...

Tougher than a $2 Steak

Ignorance is bliss, that's why I am always happy...

The eternal optimist ALWAYS thinks there is a way out. Stubborn, that's me. But I must concede the point; unless you have walked the mile in someone's shoes, do not presume to know what they think nor understand their outlook/views...

And OMG, anyone who's ever seen Underworld, either movie, knows that Kate Beckinsale is the shizznitz!

While There is No Hope, There is a Great Ass

You vote...

When There is No Hope

The depths of despair that cause one to contemplate suicide is something you have to experience to understand.

Consolidation loans? What if your credit rating does not allow this? Home equity? Sure, unless the IRS and past litigants have liens on your house.

And then there are the phone calls. All hours of the day until about 10:00 pm. From dinner time to bed time there will be 30 calls. The dialing is automatic, just a computer doing its job. Then a machine will leave a message. The next morning there will be dozens of new messages. All the same: "please call us."

Every ring is a reminder of your situation. Every ring destroys your hope, ruins your marriage and fuels your fear: What if I can't get out from underneath this?

Like I said, all you have to do is make it look like an accident. You "lose control" on the highway going a little too fast. And insurance money comes and saves the day.

Lose their Daddy? What if they have "lost" their Daddy already? Years of living under pressure have changed Daddy, made him into something he is not. You have ceased being a Daddy, husband, son, brother, whatever. You look in the mirror and wonder what has happened to you.

And if everything is suddenly made right, it will be years before he can return to normal...whatever "normal" is now.

Thew, life is complicated. And sometimes it traps you. It is easy to say, you can do this or that, but sometimes you can't. You can't turn to friends or family tell them how things really are. You can't look to your wife for support becuase she is looking to you to solve the problem. You maintain a brave and solid exterior and die slowly inside.

At some point, I can understand that someone finally believes they are dead, but for the dying.

At that point, the dying part is easy.

The things you thought you knew about people...

I must be cut from a different mold...

suicide, in my opinion, is the way of the lazy and speaks of cowardice. And I forgive Tilam his ignorance, since there is much he does not know about my friend's sister's situation; heck, there is much *I* do not know about it.

But my post was a global post, not a post specific to this situation. "Jane Doe" had financial troubles, but she also had the love and support of her children and husband, and she was a stay at home mom, so financial troubles can be held at bay were she to get a job. Her life was a shambles many years ago but she met this man and things turned around for her. There are many ways to overcome financial difficulties, suicide is NOT one of them. As a matter of fact, her family would have been WORSE OFF after her death because I don't believe insurance companies pay benefits in the event of a suicide, at least not the last I heard.

My question goes to this...how low must one go before one considers taking your own life as an option? Teens do it all too often, many adults do it as well. I'm the eternal optimist, I'm always thinking there is some way out of many situations. Addicted to drugs? Get in a program. Financial troubles? Get some advice, even from a friend, and consolidation loans. Get up off your lazy butt and face the problem, don't run and hide. The ONLY situation I can see is euthanasia, assisted suicide for the terminally ill and wracked in pain. THEN I would consider it. But to "end my life's pain" and leave nothing but the SAME (financial) problems on my family after my death (and add to it my funeral costs? start digging a hole in the yard honey), not to mention hears of grief and sadness and possibly therapy, only exponentially compounds the problems left to the people who stood by and loved my, while supposedly ending them.

This is a side to Tilam that I never knew, this opinion about suicide. I must admit I'm somewhat taken aback. And to his post I ask THIS question: "do you think your family would rather have you and troubles, or just troubles? do you think your kids would give a damm about "creditors" if their daddy wasn't around? what about Mrs Tilam, do you think that she'd be able to go it alone if you offed yourself and the insurance benefit was exactly $ZERO?" The Thew brood would rather have a destitute and poor father around than no father at all...

The Wisdom of William S.

Hamlet had the best reflection on suicide EVER.

...[A]nd by a sleep to say we end
The heartache, and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to. 'Tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished...

There are many thing I did not understand in my youth, that I understand (better) now. Suicide is one.

Financial troubles steal your soul of hope. The constant calls from creditors (day and night), the tears of your spouse, depriving your children, the guilt of buying a cup of Starbucks coffee. The despair is pervasive. It is with you every waking minute and when you dream. There is simply no escape.

And then comes the realization that there are $3.5 million reasons your family would be better off without you. And your job is to make it look like an accident. Yes, I understand very clearly what might cause Thew's friend to think the unthinkable.

We will all die, why not now?

Suicide may be a selfish act, but maybe the idea that you simply want to see your kids grow up and are willing to make everyone continue to suffer for this right is selfish too.

Blog...Interrupted

Serious matters...

I got a call from one of my best friends in the world (no, not YOU Tilam). Her sister tried to take her own life today.

But what makes a person get to that point? Perhaps I'm sheltered in my nice job, my nice household income, and my nice family life. But life is truly the second best gift we've been given (next to Christ's sacrifice on the cross), and given freely by the lord, I really have no concept of how low a person must go to get to a point of actually ending it all. Not to mention that it's considered a sin in the Catholic faith. I cannot fathom looking in a mirror and deciding that I (as well as my family and friends, and frankly, the world in general) would be better off dead. Life is just too beautiful a gift to just throw away (or, if you are a buddhist, to "regift"), at least in my humble opinion. I cannot imagine leaving before my time (and by my own hand too!), never growing old with Mrs Thew (although this option might sound appealing to her) and never seeing my kids and grandkids. Never having suffered THAT much in my life, it's so alien a thought that simply have no concept of this urge.

The good news is that at the last minute she changed her mind and got herself to the hospital in time to be saved, and she is now resting comfortably in the bed. Alone with her thoughts and fears and demons, but soon to be buttressed by the love and support of he husband, kids, and family.

Okay, back to Thew's Tantrum...

So Phonak is disbanding in the wake of Floyd Landis' doping scandal. Is anyone surprised? Of COURSE there are no buyers for this team - Landis isn't the first one to be caught! Do people forget that Phonak's image had already been badly damaged by 10 other doping cases since the Swiss-based team was launched seven seasons ago. In face, the International Cycling Union refused to issue Phonak a racing license for 2005 because of the team's doping record after three Phonak riders - 2004 Olympic time trial champion Tyler Hamilton, Oscar Camenzind and Santi Perez - were all found guilty of doping violations in 2004 and fired. SHEESH!

So the Atlanta Falcons are scuffling all over the place at pre-season camp. Nice to see they are hitting something this early in the season...

So Matt Leinart finally signed a deal with the Cardinals. Butt, meeting bench pine; after losing most of camp is there any doubt that he's wasted too much time to just step in? Apparently he isn't that good at feeling the game around him, because if he had looked into his backfield, he'd see EDGERRIN JAMES! Hello, McFly *tap* *tap*... Oh, and his contract could pay him more if is plays more - hmm, wonder if he considered the fact that he's going to see limited action until he actually practices and understand the Cardinal's offense. Mind-boggling...

In the category of "nature or nurture", we have to point that so far, the Leo Mazzone Magic is still nowhere to be found in Baltimore: since the All-Star break, Orioles pitchers have posted an unsightly 5.84 ERA. Perhaps it's just that he had that GREAT pitching staff in Atlanta and didn't ruin a good thing...

On the NBA front...wait, no one gives a shit about the NBA...

Wayne Rooney is truly misunderstood...everyone thinks he's really a nice guy. BUT: The English Football Association rejected an appeal from Manchester United to overturn the three-match ban of Wayne Rooney who was sent off in a 3-1 preseason win over FC Porto in Amsterdam on Aug. 4 for violent conduct (Rooney picked up a red card). Million dollar talent, 5 cent head...

Comic Relief

Well, a couple of observations about Tilam's post.

I laughed my ass off about Scott Adam's post. I'm not sure if women really truly understand the things that men go through with the old plumbing, especially in public...spontaneous wood (just as the class ending bell rings), some days your long dong silver, some days wee willie winkie, shrinkage, and a whole slew of others. Oh, and my favorite: splitting the streams...

I had no idea who this Ali-G guy was before this video, and I still don't know who the hell he is, but he's much funnier than Dame Edna, I'll tell you that. And although I didn't find it as "pee in my pants funny" as Tilam did, it was still very humourous, and Posh/Becks were very game and good sports about his questions and comments. I might check out more of his comic relief in the future.

And on that note, a tentative yet hearty "welcome back" to Barbaro, who as we all know suffered horrific and life-threatening injuries in the Preakness, but who is taking short strolls out in the yard and starting back on the road to recovery outside the equine ICU.

Wardrobe Malfunction

On the lighter side, Scott Adams of Dilbert fame has "issues." Haven't we all?

The beautiful Mrs. Tilam can not understand the occasional "realignment." When I point out to her that occasionally women need to adjust the over-the-shoulder-boulder-holders, she replies in typical female fashion, "that is different."

Also, Ali G interviews the Beckhams on Comic Relief. (NOT family friendly.) But I dare you not to laugh. I admit that Posh and Becks are really good sports, I can't see either set of Mr. and Mrs. Ts handling it as well.

Q: So, Mr. T, you mean to tell me you ain't never been caught offsides?
A: How offsides?

Memorial

Farewell, Heather Clarke. A classy and wonderful woman who showed courage and aplomb even as she was being attacked relentlessly by cancer. She won the first battle yet ultimately lost the war, as the big C came back with a vengeance. We thank God that she is happy and free in a better place. He has truly called an angel to his side.

Our condolences and sympathies to her husband and pro golfer, Darren Clarke. As fond of cigars and ale as he was of kicking US ass during the Ryder Cup, he showed his true devotion and support as well as his loving soft side during Heather's battle against a nearly undefeatable foe. We pray for healing and grace during this time of loss in his life.

"Heather's courage and bravery throughout the last two years when she was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer has been an inspiration," Clarke said in a statement. "Heather never complained once throughout her ordeal and we will all miss her greatly. She was a wonderful and enormously supportive wife, mother and friend."

Heather Clarke was 39...

Ramblings

Okay, the golf matched sucked. The fact that there was a late scoring controversy only allows us a re-match. Ugh. There was no part of Thew's or my game that did not suck. But the deal breaker was on the ONE freakin' hole that Thew manages to play like he normally does and has a tap-in birdie, the Kid manages to snake in a right-to-left 20 footer for a net EAGLE! Crap. And that was the only clutch putt they made. (Of course, the way we played, they did not need to be clutch.)

Maurice Clarett. Just amazing.

Michelle Wie now has a SI pictorial on the Biggest Controversies of Michelle Wie's Career. There are 7 slides, which amounts to 7 more wins then she has. There are finally rumblings about the fact that her behavior and attitude might well overshadow her potential.

Red Sox are swept by the Royals. Ugh. They are now 3 back of the Yankees and 2 behind the Other Sox in the WC race. They are 12-15 since the All-star break, when they were 3 ahead of the Yankees. It ain't over, but the Curse seems to be making a comeback.

Tiger v. History. Too soon to tell and too tough to compare. I think Thew has it right...the equipment differences alone are enough to really wonder if Tiger is the best of all time. The competition factors in also. The modern pros can earn quite a good living without winning, so you wonder about the incentive. What drives Phil? The stories of Jack and Dot driving the kids around in a station wagon from match to match in the summer are charming, but also speak to the reality that an up-and-coming pro like Nicklaus, J. did not have the advantages of a Woods, E. Tiger has 15 or so more years before we can start to judge.

Okay, done for now.

The final tumble?

Maurice Clarett is done, both in football and in life. Good Riddance. I'm sorry to say this is particularly satisfying...

Michelle Wie fired her caddie VIA HER AGENT after her finish at the Women's British Open. Hmm, a guy who won 4 majors while caddying for Juli Inkster seems to have become the scapegoat for Michelle's issues? Not sure what they were thinking, but the mature, professional thing to do would have been at least, as the caddy said, "for someone named Wie to speak to me". So now she's a choker AND classless.

Thew art richeer!

Tiger wins #50 the quickest in golf history. Worthy of noting - I believe that in 20 years there will be a HUGE case for Tiger to be named the best of all time...and little to refute that. However, comparing players and teams of different eras is a very sticky conversation - better to say he was the best of his era. Points to ponder: what if he wins the most majors but never a grand slam? what if he passes Jack but not Sam Snead's 84 wins? what if he passes Slammin' Sammy but not Jack? what if he wins the grand slam but falls short of both Jack and Sam? Too many variables to consider. What would Jack do if he played with today's clubs and balls in his prime? How would Tiger fare with persimmon woods and that nappy MacGregor ball that Jack used? Better to call out "best golfers of eras" instead of all time. But you COULD make a case for Tiger anyway.

I'm not even going to comment on Floyd Landis. Idiot...

So the MLS all-stars took down reigning EPL champs Chelsea 1-0. Normally I'd be very ethno-centric here, but the MLS all-stars are NOT a mixture of all Yanks, it's a mixture of the melting pot of MLS players - still, I think it shows that the MLS is getting better and better. Fueled (unfortunately) by foreign players, yes, but forcing the american players to show up and represent can't be a bad thing. Not sure if Chelsea didn't consider this anything important, and didn't make the effort, but still, a feather in the cap of the MLS.

Note to the BoSox...that thing in your rear-view mirror is...WAIT, that thing AHEAD of you in the AL East are, yes, the Yankees. I think it's a credit ot the Yankees that they've been able to catch and overtake the Sawx without Matsui, Cano, and Shef. It'll be a test of the Sawx' character now that THEY have some injury issues. Again, the best rivalry in sports - stay tuned, baseball fans...

Tilam makes an excellent point about the Hezbollah. They are like a hydra - cut off a head and 2 will spring to take the place. As long as you have people who will continue to carry the torch, it doesn't matter if they get pushed back into hiding now, they will arise later. Like Al Queda. Killing Bin Laden would be a victory, but mostly an ineffective one at best. Why? Because those nameless, faceless (mask wearing) cowards will multiply like cockroaches, always an infestation somewhere in the world. The best way to defeat them is to obtain total, global (well, mostly global, say 95%) disapproval and non-cooperation for them - we know the french will always cave in because they have no spine. But no support, no haven, no funding, will be the BEST way to rid the world of terrorists; sure, there will be conflicts here and there, but all nations have to realize that while they are focused on a few countries, this is becoming a global issue, and many other countries will feel pain. But ultimately, you have to have guts and resolve and determination to fight terrorism, and at this point not enough countries have that...

On the Tilam-Thew golf front...we got smoked, but it's under protest since Tilam got shafted on his strokes. Tilam played like an epileptic monkey, and he was the GOOD golfer on our team. Of course, I'd have picked the Kid had I known then what I know now. I am very close to completing a Ian Baker-Finch or David Duval like plummet from the ranks of "low-to-middle single digit handicap" to just plain "handicapped". I will not comment on Michelle Wie this week - she played solid but ultimately not good enough at the Women's British Open.

Mel Gibson...pathetic is the best word that children under 13 can read that I can use to describe him. Fundamentalism at it's best - "honey, I'll wave to you from heaven because you're going to hell when you die." It boggles the mind that a man who is THIS fervent in his beliefs even married the woman. And producing children? In the words of Doc Holliday in "Tombstone" - Mel's "...hypocrisy knows no bounds...". Welcome to the list of my "moronic stars that I will no longer tolerate" - consisting of Sarandon, Robbins, Gere, Hilton, and a few others. There is simply no concept or touch with reality with these people - sometimes it's the press artificially creating, and sometimes it's the star doing the idiocy work...but nevertheless, it's a case for "dood, get in touch with the real world".

Mel's Mea Culpa

Mel Gibson has published not one, but two apologies. The second specifically speaks to Jewish people (okay, I have a beef, the term "Jews" seems derogatory along the lines of Juden and the "Jewish people" seems condescending).

So we will see. Gibson's anti-Semitism has had no consequences thus far, but this incident is different. Some Jews will accept the apology and some will not. Some non-Jews (my wife for example) will be ready to forgive, while others (your truly) need to see him live the life he proclaims he want to live.

My problem with Mel Gibson is not his faith (I am Catholic), but his hypocrisy. I respect orthodox practices (whether Christian, Jews, Muslim, whatever) when they live the life they proclaim. (Okay, I am not sure what life real orthodox Muslims would live...kill all infidels?) But Gibson doesn't. He a drunken womanizer who feels he is superior to everyone else (remember he has said his wife is going to hell because she is not Catholic). Was that Christ's life? Did he throw back a dozen goblets, fondle Mary Magdalene and laugh at the Jews, Romans and Arabs? If so, I missed that Chapter in the Bible.

Being pious is wonderful, assuming your own piety while living like an asshole is pathetic.

Where Art Thew?

The dearth of Thew posts (posts unusually recognized by the incoherent rambling and multiple appearances of the words "Wie" and "over-hyped" in the same sentence) is due to his and the lovely Mrs. Thew's travel up toward Tilam land.

Actually, we are meeting in Connecticut for a golf match. In an effort to avoid the direct confrontation with me on the course (and the inevitable drubbing that occurs), he has deftly managed a team match and has cleverly paired himself up with me. The good news is we are playing the Old Man and the Kid. The bad news is we are spotting them like 1,000 strokes.

Afterward, I am heading out on vacation for a few days, but will post a hole by hole account of our match upon return.

And, Thew, when you read this, I did not say who drubs who...

On a Less Serious Note

So Mel, how's that head feeling? Gibson gets drunk and spews forth anti-Semitic bile. Dan Drezner summarizes this non-event. Missing is the sexist comments: he allegedly said to a female sergeant, "what are you looking at sugar tits?" Members of the Jewish community suggest we re-examine the Passion of the Christ in light of these new circumstances.

Uh, no.

As a Catholic, I think at his core, Mel is an anti-Semite. He may cover up well during sober, daylight hours, but deep down he is his father's son. Whatever you feel about his movies, as Hitchens says, "One does not abruptly decide, between the first and second vodka, or the ticks of the indicator of velocity, that the Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion are valid after all." (NOTE: this remark is funny, but Hitchens is BRUTAL to Gibson and lets his animus overwhelm his prose. Proceed at your own risk.)

That said, the POTC was very moving to me. True to the New Testament, the Jews were the bad guys, no doubt, but that was not my focus (nor was that the focus of any Catholic I have talked to). Never once did I look at the movie and say to myself, "those damn Jews." Gibson's rant does not change the power of watching the Passion for me.

In fact, the religion of the mob and Sanhedrin were of little import. As a post-Vatican II, suburban American Catholic, I was not brought up to focus on the culpability of the Jews in Christ's death. Mel Gibson was raised differently.

I understand the sensitivity of the Jews to this sort of portrayal. I can get pretty prickly when I sense anti-Catholicism, so I think I can appreciate when others perceive anti-religion prejudice. And I acknowledge that I am in no position to judge the movie in that way, but I am in a position to judge Gibson's remarks: Reprehensible.

The End Game

So it seems now that my thought of a wider war on Syria by Israel was off the mark. So now, the logical question is what is the end game for Israel? There is no doubt that time is running short as the drum beat of media shows Lebanese "victims" of Israel. No matter about the questions related to Qana, the media is right on track to help the terrorists.

So what now. Hezbollah can not be defeated. It is the nature of the organization to melt away prior to destruction and reform later. Destroying is rocket arsenal is a good thing, but these can be replaced. Assassinating Hassan Nasrallah? Okay, again good, but someone new will emerge. My point? No one will declare Hezbollah defeated. There is no one to surrender. Absent such a clear cut victory, the world media will declare Hezbollah the winner thereby compounding the problem. (Truth is irrelevant and consequences are unimportant given the opportunity to repudiate the Bush administration and its "proxy" Israel.) Cowering at the Iranian embassy, surrounded by children (as shields), Nasrallah will commend the courage and bravery of his terrorists fighters and their "victory."

I think that there is a way for Israel to "win." First, they must degrade Hezbollah significantly and I am not sure how they would know when that is accomplished. Second, after winning, Israel must make a "Grand Gesture" toward peace with the Lebanese and Sunni Muslims (Hezbollah and the Iranians are Shiites). I need some time to think through what a "Grand Gesture" would look like (an Israeli Marshall Plan for Lebanon?), but the "Grand Gesture" would allow Israel to immediately seize back the moral high ground and not allow Hezbollah, the Iranians; the anti-Israel Europeans and the media acolytes to make up "war crimes" against the IDF.

Withdrawing within Israel's borders will not work. The Knesset needs to think this one through. This battle may have been rough going for the IDF, but it is a cake walk compared to the next one if Hezbollah gains face.

Two Enemies

As Israel's offensive against Hezbollah over the past few weeks drags on, it is a fair question to ask, "who is winning?" Unfortunately, that is a very difficult question to answer. Almost certainly, Israel has made large strives militarily. But it has faced an unexpectedly ferocious, amoral enemy who will stop at nothing to win: the media. The Islamic terrorists have become masters of media manipulation. Combined with a world view that is already extraordinarily prejudice against Israel, you have a situation where the media continues to "disproportionately" (to use a favored word) show one side of the story.

Take Qana. The Israelis take out a building and 54 civilians are killed (46 of them women and children...amazing, where are those menfolk?). This is a tragedy. But it is a bit more complex. It seem there are reports that the building collapsed 8 hours after being hit. Confederate Yankee speculates that maybe, just maybe, there were munitions and rockets "cooking off." (See PowerLine also.)

There is a joke making the rounds (H/T Mere Rhetoric):

A young man was walking the streets of Paris. Suddenly he saw a Rottweiler attacking a young girl. He jumped on the dog, struggled with him and strangled it. Both he and the girl escaped with minor scratches. Immediately, excited journalists surrounded him and said: Tell us your name! All Paris will know of you! The headlines shall be: "Parisian hero saves little girl from savage dog" But the man said: I am not from Paris. The journalists surged with nationalistic pride: OK, so all France will hear of you! The headlines shall be: "French hero saves little girl from savage dog" But the man continued: I am not from France. The journalists changed gears, and tittered with post-national excitement: Even better, we will tell all Europe about you! The headlines shall read: "European hero saves little girl from savage dog". Yet the man insisted: But I am not from Europe. Now confused, the journalists demanded: Where are you from? The man said firmly: I am from Israel. All at once, the journalists seemed to come to a consensus: Indeed, the whole world will hear about you. The headlines will be: "Israeli murders little girl's dog."

Can't argue with that...

UPDATE: Here is a perspective from a Lebonese.

Twins = Tigers

Twins are 8 1/2 games behind Detroit? How is that tied for the dividsion lead?

Where are the damn fact checkers at this Blog and why haven't they been fired!

Back to the daily rant...

And I know you miss me, Tilam Blog Fan.

Keep on holding out, Reggie Bush. The NFL wants to see that you are just like every other spoiled, self-centered, draft pick who considers yourself above the game and team.

I CANNOT love the AL East enough. Even though I hate Boston, I'm a huge fan of the greatest rivalry in sports, the Sawx-Yanks. Yankees are riding some timely and good pitching and some solid offense (even A-Clod is hitting a few here and there, albeit with his bat and not with the heel of his glove or foot while fielding) to climb back within 1 1/2 games of the leading Sawx, and to the top of the Wild Card race. But you gotta also be a fan of the AL Central, where the Twinkies have clawed and scratched their way into a tie for the division lead. I love dis game!

So Greg Anderson would rather go to jail than testify that Bonds took steroids. I'm a little torn here...torn because I admire the loyalty of a lifelong friend to stick by his buddy and stay loyal to him, but also torn because this is a truth that really NEEDS to be validated. Who in the world doesn't suspect Bonds of taking steroids? Okay, aside from some aborigine in the outback, who? This is an intersting case because it's really no longer about whether he took steroids (he did), but ultimately whether he KNOWINGLY took steroids, and whether he lied to the Grand Jury about that fact. Oh, and tax evasion. The key here is proof, and the simple fact that Anderson refuses to testify is a really smoking gun indicating that he doesn't want to admit that Bonds KNEW he was taking steroids. We already know that Anderson gave Bonds steroids, and that Anderson was completely in on this, we are just trying to find out if Barry knew. And remember, this is bigger than just some guy juicing it - it's about some guy who broke hallowed baseball records after doing so. Bud Selig (the idiot) is worried about tarnishing the legacy of baseball and the fact that one of the most popular and most exciting records in baseball is under scrutiny here. Bad Mojo...

Interesting note...Al Capone was arrested on tax evasion, not on any of the OTHER stuff he did.

It seems that Tiger and Annika are talking smack back and forth. Tiger now has the lead now, 11-10. I wonder what he texted to her on Sunday, since Annika said "it was a smart ass comment, but warranted". Hmmm...

Danica Patrick is staying in the IRL, which is good. But her contract is up, and she ultimately defected to Andretti-Green racing from the Rahal-Letterman team. Ultimately, this is a good and positive move for her, to the winningest team in IndyCar, and really cements her potential to claim a podium within a year. She'll have the biggest and best equipment on the best team for next year. But expectations will be HIGH for her...she better produce soon or else interest will wane and the sport will again retreat to the darkest recesses of fandom. She has, rightly or wrongly, been annointed the saviour of the sport, her looks and personality and ability really capturing our eye and interests...but now, with the best team, it's time to put up or shut up. If her equipment is the best in the business, she has no more excuses NOT to win...

Charles Barkley, the Round Mound of Rebound, the Gov of Alabama? This is truly a sign of the apocalypse!

Andrea Yates...I teeter back and forth at the tragedy and absurdity of this. Andrea Yates' acquittal means she won't spend her life in prison for the bathtub drownings of her children, but she will be committed to a state mental hospital until she is deemed "no longer a threat". A threat to whom? Her five young children? Too late for that... But on the other hand, she is clearly mentally ill, and needs to be taken care of in an institution built for that purpose. Frankly, to even remotely consider the fact that she is NOT insane and maliciously drowned her FIVE children, one at a time, takes me to a place where I really don't want to go...

*** And lastly, in the "best laid plans of mice and men" category, pity poor Adam Sutton... ***

A plane that was chartered to help a man propose to his girlfriend crashed, injuring the couple and the pilot, authorities said. Relatives holding a sheet with "Erica, will you marry me?" painted on it watched from the ground as the Cessna 127, circling low over the airport, stalled and then crashed into the ground Friday evening.
The couple, Adam Sutton and Erica Brussee, and the pilot were taken to a hospital with injuries that did not appear to be life threatening, authorities said. Brussee suffered a broken leg, and the other two had cuts and gashes.
As Brussee was loaded into the ambulance, she said "Tell Adam I said yes," said Joshua Willis, Sutton's cousin. The ring was lost in the wreckage, he said.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the incident.

One wonders if they are investigating the crash or the fact that the crazy woman said "yes" after almost being killed! :)

I am Sick

Andrea Yates gets off. Not guilty by reason of insanity. Unbelievable.

Six-month-old Mary, 2-year-old Luke, 3-year-old Paul, 5-year-old John and 7-year-old Noah were unavailable for comment.

In June of 2001, my kids were 7, 4 and 2 years old. Unbelievable.

In Memoriam

Carl Brashear died. Captain's Quarters takes note. Like most who know of his story, I first learned of it watching Men of Honor with Cuba Gooding, Jr. Brashear was a pioneer along the lines of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier against insults and threats (except there were a million ways to die in underwater training, while baseball seems comparatively sedate).

Oddly, I am currently reading Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson. Wow. Chapter 2 is a basic description of the hazards of deep (>180 feet) diving and it is truly frightening. Its description of the type of death (drowning in close quaters in zero visibility) that takes these men is very powerful.

Brashear had the right stuff.

The Exception Does not Break the Rule

Hold on. I don't see a contradiction here. There were 14 players within a few strokes of Woods on Sunday and, of this group, several (most notably Garcia) fell apart and the rest (excepting DiMarco) could not keep up.

The worst I am guilty of is a bit of hyperbole...

I'll take "Contradictory Statements" for $300 Alex

Ummm, confusion here...

In the first paragraph, you state "...posting the lowest round of the day and watching his competition fall apart...".

In the last paragraph, you state ""...but no one lost this match, Tiger won it..."

So which is it? Did the competition fall apart and cough it up? Or did they play well and Tiger won it? Two words dood...Chris DiMarco...

Sure, Sergio fell apart (heck, on the practice range probably), seems "yellow" is his color. But DiMarco went after Tiger like a tiger himself, Woods just played top notch golf (yes, "like Tiger") and won the tournament. This was another bit of a nailbiter for Woods, but he came through like the champion he is...some of his chasers fell by the wayside, but some didn't.

Make My Claret a Triple, Please

Tiger Woods won the British Open by 2 strokes this past weekend. He did it in typical Tiger fashion, posting the lowest round of the day and watching his "competition" fall apart.

I was happy to see Chris DiMarco coming in at number two. It adds a bookend to Tiger's story: Tiger lost his Dad and Chris lost his Mom. Chris (and the rest) had a shot at Woods, but Tiger is so tough mentally. He is now 11 for 11 in majors after being in the lead after the third round. Phenomenal.

Of course, the stories all focused on Sergio's explosion (didn't take him long) or Furyk's stumble, but no one lost this match, Tiger won it. There is a difference.

Wee Little About Wie

Okay, I am a bit disappointed in Thew's remarks about Michelle Wie. Could it be the side-show has just gotten boring? How many times must we predict failure - and then be proven correct - until it is no longer fun or challenging.

The men don't respect her, the women don't respect her and the sponsors will soon become tired of sponsoring a loser.

She is 16 years old. She has accomplished much and has a future in golf. But she is a sideshow.

UPDATE: Okay, this horse is dead. One quick comment comes from a live conversation with Thew. The thing I fear about Michelle is that failure is becoming acceptable. It is "okay" she does not win on the LPGA and it is "okay" she does not make the cut in the PGA. At some point this will take its toll mentally. Lining up a big putt, will she think, "it is okay if I miss it"?

Tiger wouldn't. Michelle needs the fire in the belly. She does not have that yet.

Response

To SteveA, cross posted on SoccerBlog.com (well, attempted to post, network error)!

My apologies for the ADD comment, which was mine (I said that US fans are basically like ADD kids, needing constant stimuli in their sports, not having the patience for a beautiful game). I merely meant to indicate that American fans (of which I am one) tend to like quick and interesting and high action sports, and cannot understand nor really retain the patience for a soccer game that has 88 minutes of plotting and setting up and 2 minutes of real action. Think of the spurts of action that hold the american public captive in those sports you mention: the pitch and hit in baseball, the football play, also look at hoops with the 24 second shot clock, not to mention my favorite team sport, hockey. Quick, fast paced action, constant bursts of energy...not a lot of time testing, pressing, looking for chinks in the defense's armor. At least that is what I've heard in my travels. Your experience might run different, but think of it this way; if you had a 2-1 soccer game (equalling a 14-7 football game), how much fun would you have if there were a boatload more shots on goal than currently? How many plays does a football team get during the course of a game? How many pitches in a baseball game, with all the budding excitement that might happen with each throw? Basketball possessions that do NOT end in a shot are even sometimes exciting. And hockey... How many shots on goal do you see in the typical World Cup match? MAYBE 10 total between the teams? I think it fundamentally boils down to "a lot activity without much exciting action accomplishments". And I'm a FAN of soccer.

You can go to youtube.com and Google Video and see astounding goals scored by players. But the OVERALL game must be made more exciting as a matter of course, or else we'll never capture the imagination and interest as much as we'd hope. Remember, we are not trying to impress those who already play hookey from work to watch the World Cup, we are trying to attract people who don't know much about it. Those are the people we need to get into the game...

My humble opinion.

No change in status

from ESPN: "Michelle Wie was forced to withdraw from the John Deere Classic on Friday after nine holes due to dehydration." PUHLEEZE. Aside from the fact that she was playing SHITTY! Oh wait, she carded a 77 in the first round, the cut was 140 - so facing the prospect of having to shoot a 63 to make the cut, perhaps she tanked it? Not sure. Or, perhaps she was playing shitty because she was dehydrated. Hmmm... Still, another no-go, this time because of no-mas. Oh, and she's put on a little weight in the keister too...is gonna need to be careful wearing those short skirts soon, at the rate she's going.

from THEW: "Dear Sawx, that thing you see in the rear view mirror getting closer is the YANKEE TRAIN!"

Eric Lindros signed a 1 year deal with the Dallas Stars. Typical Stars signing: aged, beat up, washed up, star on the decline of his career. But I have to admit, they seem to be one team capable of getting production out of their players...that is, until playoff time. Over Under is 45 - the number of games that Lindros will play during next season...

So, Thew, How is Michelle Doing?

I understand she was playing in another men's tournament this past weekend, trying to make her first cut.

Care to mention anything about that? The cut line was 141, I think.

Whack a Mole - Middle East Version

I believe what we are NOT seeing in the Middle East is more interesting then what we ARE seeing.

The democratic West continues to play "whack-a-mole" in the Middle East. Al-Qaida in Iraq - WHACK! Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon - WHACK! Syria is poised to get whacked next; followed by Iran.

The problem is, like the arcade game, the moles still keep popping up. Waiting in the wings are Egypt and Saudi Arabia, each very different problems then the boy dentist in Syria and the nutty 12th Imam in Iran.

To the extent Iran has miscalculated, it is not in regard to Israel's response - that plays right into Iran's thinking - it is in regard to the reaction of fellow ME nations. The semi-dictatorships of Egypt and KSA cannot afford the continued destabilization of ME politics by Iran. Each of Egypt and KSA are the product of the balancing of radical and moderate elements and neither Hosni or the House of Saud is particularly fond of pushing the power of the radicals TOO much. Egypt and KSA can draw kudos in the West for condemning Hezbollah (and, in certain quarters, Israel) and be ready to step into a lead role in the ME if (when?) Iran gets its comeuppance.

Iran has started this proxy war to justify to the UN its development and possession of nuclear weapons. Iran does not need a distraction to its "nuclear crisis," it needs justification. Iran knew it could count on a strong Israeli response and could count on its apologists in the West to - at minimum - condemn Israeli fro being "overly" aggressive. Iran can now say, "see we NEED nukes."

The question is "what is next?" Many, including me, thought Israel would go after Syria right off. This, of course, is stupid. Tactically, Israel must do what it is doing before it addresses the Syria question. Further, Israel is not a nation builder. In the event it destroys Assad's regime, it will require the US to step in (France will probably play a constructive role here - for once).

The big question is that if Israel strikes Syria, what will Iran do? Do Syria and Iran has a mutual defense pact? Iranian involvement, it seems to me, presents the US with an opportunity to legitimately bring down the mullahs, but it is not clear to me that we will seize this opportunity. (I think that direct Iranian involvement would stretch Israeli resources too thin for Israel's comfort.) We might get away with allowing Iraqi AFB as refueling stops and form a one-way picket against Iranian air incursions (not that that would be a problem for Israel, but it would distract them from the main objective). But are there enough Neocons in the administration to take a bold step?

Taking a deep breath...

Movie Tie-Ins...

"I'm sorry, your son is dead because he was stupid". Top Gun Noteworthy quote from the article: "I have seen a lot of horseplay over the past years, but I think this is the first time I have ever seen somebody playing paintball at 75 mph," patrol Lt. Pete Norwood said.

"God got his periods reversed, he's only nice for 3 days a month". Purple Rain So Ed Carpenter says that Danica Patrick would do well in NASCAR because she'll trade paint and be agressive while she's on the rag. What an incredibly freekin' STUPID thing to say!

*****

OMGAWD, I laughed my ASS off when I saw that video of Castro's assasination!

Materazzi might not be a racist, but what is definitely IS is an asshole thug who plays dirty soccer.

Moral Equivalence...what a nice debate. It strikes me that Sara is one of those people who are standing in their antiseptic bubble with no germs or terrorists affecting her, criticizing others in their attempt to make the world a safe place. Tim Robbins, Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon, Richard Geke - just a few of the more notable people who, in the last several years, have expressed their opinion that we not strike out and turn the other cheek. Only people like Sara and those "hollywoodies" are directly affected by the rampant death of the terrorist agenda will they possibly consider changing their tune. I'd like to see where she derives her statement that the US has become a "terror state". See, I cannot understand people like her who whine about "we need to explore peace" seemingly without a full understanding of terrorist people and their goals. You can see from Tilam's second post how well "peace" has worked between the Israelis and Syrians. They simply do NOT understand anything but violence and death. That is their language. That is the verbiage they understand. Do people not see this? You cannot reason with these people. Better yet, in order to help Sara understand more about terrorist assholes, let's try this exercise...during a debate/discussion with Sara, while she is talking and explaining her point, PUNCH HER IN THE FACE. When she gets up and gets all mad, you say "WAIT! The solution to terror is not to become a terror state yourself, so you must go the peaceful route". When she settles down, and begins to speak again, PUNCH HER IN THE FACE AGAIN! When she gets up REALLY pissed now, repeat your original statement about turning the other cheek and resolving your difference of opinions via peaceful means. Try this ONE MORE TIME and see what the "peaceful" people do. They will probably jump your ass and try to pound it into the ground. This might be a valuable lesson in "dealing with violent assholes". They just don't listen to reason, all they understand is fear and violence. I don't believe it is a question of morality - it is a question of ideology, and theirs is one of violence and death - Tilam's statement about a "baseline" of morality is true, but ultimately this baseline is set by religious ideology, and will differ region/culture to culture.

I understand her concerns that countries like the US don't go TOO far over to the dark side, but remember, terrorists are types of people you need to take out of the equation BEFORE THEY KILL SOMEONE! It is easy for her to sit on her ass and smile at how wonderful the world is until someone close to her gets whacked; then see how the tune changes. And the ONLY silver lining (and I hate to say this) of the propogation of terrorism across the world is the simple fact that OTHER countries are beginning to feel the pain and recognize that this is a serious situation that needs to be nipped in the bud - how can you explain to a bereaved parent or sibling that their loved one is dead because you decided to wait around until something happened? This is no longer a problem of people targeting the US only, this is becoming an epidemic of assholes killing people around the world. It is quickly becoming a global problem. But ultimately, morality is a direct result ideology, frankly - the morality of killing innocent people is justified by the ideology of "them being not us" and needing to die (I won't even go into the "kill a buncha americans and you will die in the arms of 40 vestal virgins")...

People like Sara are effective at simplifying this type of discussion...but it is simple by any means...

More Rumor Mill

Okay, since I am engaging in rumor mongering, there is a report tha Castro has died.

Murdered, in fact! A video has been secreted out of Havana...

The '06 War?

An Israeli blogger is claiming that a well placed source says Israel will declare war tonight. Well, won't that be interesting.

In particular, if Israel calls a spade a spade and declares war on Syria (rather than on Hamas/Hezbollah or Lebanon), the world's attention will turn to the US and Iran. The declaration of war against Syria explicitly represents a step in President Bush's GWOT analysis: those who harbor terrorists will be treated as terrorists themselves. Syria will suffer the consequences of its use of terror proxies. Now what of Big Brother Iran?

Neither Syria or Iran want a war, but Israel has been pushed too far and has lost appetite for Sharon's strategy of a unilateral peace process. Syria and Iran evidently feel Olmert does not have the stomach for this, but they maybe very wrong.

The US has a different problem, but probably has some room to finesse a bit. Israel can kick Syria's ass by itself and the US war machine on Iran's western border will keep the nut job Abamnjahewhatever in line. A thorough whomping of Syria will continue to knock a little more sense into the Middle East. And, at some point, the people of Syria, Palestine and Lebanon will get sick of this crap and start supporting responsible leaders. (One can dream.)

Moral Equivalence

Oddly, over at SoccerBlog.com, I got into a minor political debate with a “Sara.” The subject was a post by Shourin Roy that struck a decidedly one-sided, pro-Gaza stance. While he correctly admonishes Israeli fans who use racial against the Arab-Israeli players, he somehow never gets around to noting that the notion of a Jew playing on the KSA or Iran team is absurd.

But I digress, the lovely Sara chimes in when I suggest we keep the politics out of SoccerBlog: “Only in the US media are we seeing no mention of Israels's stupidity. [snip] Tilam, this is beyond politics. We should not allow ourselves and our government to become terrorists, which is in fact what has happened. So keep talking."

I reply: “There are many reasons to be critical of the US or Israeli policy, but moral equivalence (in this instance) is repulsive. To equate the President or US armed forces with the beheaders or to equate the IDF with people who strap on suicide belts to kill innocent civilans does a disservice to your argument. Clearly we are not perfect, but we are nowhere near them."

Oh, and by the way, if they were in charge YOU (Sara) couldn't express your opinion. Theirs is a Men Only club.”

She comes back: “No one is saying that Hamas are saints. What I'm saying is that everyone is guilty. Some more than others- especially when our government becomes a terror state. The proper response to terror is not to become a terror state yourself.”

My final word: “[I]t is obvious you have no idea what a real terror state is.”

Moral equivalence. This notion that everyone is morally equal, that no causes are inherently better (or worse), no cultures are inherently better (or worse). Moral equivalence is the product of a lazy intellect. It lacks the strength of a rigorous argument and fails the slightest analysis. My 7 year old daughter understands right from wrong, but Sara refuses to.

I believe there much to be reasonably debated about different cultures and religions, but I also firmly believe that there is some, universal minimum moral standard to become part of that debate. For example, valuing human life. This is a big difference between the radical Islamists and us. To be precise, the radical Islamists believe your life has no value unless you are BORN one of them. So me, Sara and most of you are just simply more infidels to kill.

It seems to me that while there is no rule that is inviolate – I do believe taking a human’s life can be justified – there is a set of principles that should govern moral behavior toward our fellow man. And fundamentally, morality is not about how one treats those like oneself, but how one treat those different. And we all know how the radical Islamists treat others.

Finally, I firmly believe Western civilization (as a cultural concept, not a geographical concept) is the best alternative currently available. I would quickly point out that “western civ” is actually an amalgamation of many ideas which have originated around the world. Hammurabi’s code, the Greek polis are as much a part of “western civ” as the Puritan ethic and capitalism. In that, “western civ” is really “human civ.” It does have its flaws, but it currently represents the integration of the best ideas we have had and the furthest advance of human culture and morality.

May the Best Team Win...in 2010

Cross-posted at SoccerBlog.com.

Like many of SoccerBlog contributors and readers, I have this overriding sense of disappointment in this year's Cup. Zidane's offing in the Final perfectly encapsulated it for me; this sense of WTF?

What was he thinking? Why did he do it? What did Materazzi say? (Zidane, afterall, was putting distance between the two, when he turned around and slammed him.) There many things about this Cup that were/are inexplicable to me: the refs; the dives; the US MNT and the 3 Lions in general to name a few.

But, sad to say, my biggest disappointment was the Champion. I like Italy, but I simply have a hard time feeling much joy in their victory. I would have much rather seen the Germans hoist the Cup. Or the Argentinians for that matter. I don't believe the best team won.

My list of memories are all about the disappointments. To Christian's list, I would add "coaching." Ultimately, I felt the level of coaching was a huge disappointment (I would note my general exception of the four Dutch coaches and Klinsmann). Conservative formations; cronyism and excessive loyalty; a general lack of imagination seemed to be the common ingredient of the coaches. As a young player, I thought coaches were useless, but great coaches can unlock the talents of players and create a "team" out of a bunch of well paid prima donnas. There was little greatness evident on the sidelines this year.

UPDATE: Materazzi called Zizou a "terrorist"? Okay, Zidane is from Algeria, but I can't believe "nah, nah, you are a great, big, fat terrorist" set him off. Besides, Italians have more imagination then that.