Tim Montgomerie says it’s “time to stop apologising for being Conservative” and calls for an end to this Red Tory nonsense and, instead, a return to “red-meat Toryism”. As a committed Conservative it’s not too surprising that Montgomerie thinks this is the way to stabilise a wobbly Tory campaign. The base always thinks the problem
The problem Scientology has… Let me start again, among the problems with Scientology is that it wasn’t founded a couple of thousand years ago. Had it been it might not seem quite so obviously fraudulent and, well, nuts. Age rubs off the harsh edges and all that and at least permits the creation of a
When you’ve got a song called If Drinking Don’t Kill Me (Her Memory Will) then you know you’re travelling through the country of country. But that’s fine, because the Possum is keeping you company. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr George Jones…
Poor Armenia. Just about the only time that wee country gets a mention in Washington is when the perennial Recognise-the-Genocide issue comes up. As tradition demands, the Secretary of State lobbied Congress to avoid passing anything resembling or hinting at any such thing. Nevertheless the Foreign Affairs Committee voted 23-22 in favour of the annual
Like Mr Eugenides, I’m on record opposing the disgraceful ban that prevented Geert Wilders from entering the United Kingdom. So in that sense it’s a good thing that he’s in London today to show his little film to Lord Pearson and his pals. What I don’t understand, like our redoubtable Greek friend, is why UKIP
Sadly this is a safe Republican seat so Ms Rogers won’t be going to Washington any time soon. Still – memo to David Cameron – this is what you can get when you have real* open primaries. Anyway, we’ve been rumbled! The victory in the 22nd Congressional District yesterday by LaRouche Democrat Kesha Rogers sent
More on the “exciting” debates between Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg that are, inevitably, going to become the most “important” moments in this year’s election campaign. As I suggested at the Daily Dish, these are problematic for all sorts of reasons, not the least of which is that they won’t be debates at
Frankly, one would be disappointed if this sort of caper weren’t being run in Donegal: A 72-year-old Donegal man who denied running an illegal public bar in his shed, has been acquitted of two charges brought against him by the County Council under planning regulations. Patsy Brogan said the bar, which has become known as
In general terms I’m a fan of more, much more, local democracy. I think it could do much to improve civic life and promote a genuine local politics of real accountability and value. In other words, it can be a liberating force for good. However, it’s also true that one can perhaps take the principle
Isaac Chotiner has a nice piece at TNR on Michael Frayn’s classic Fleet Street novel, Towards the End of the Morning. Among his observations: The most astonishing aspect of Frayn’s novel [published in 1967] is that so many of the dilemmas and complaints of the characters are easily recognizable today. “He looked anxiously at the
Bagehot of the Economist is beginning to have some doubts about the Obama administration: I have hesitated to read drastic slights into the sometimes awkward diplomacy between Barack Obama and Gordon Brown. But this stance on the Falklands cannot be seen any other way. It really is no way for the Americans to treat their most important
Roger Ailes redefines realism: I see myself between the Hudson River and the Sierra Madres. I do not see myself at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel or Le Cirque here in New York. Those are people who aspire to different things. They’re the chattering class. They’re the people who think Ahmadinejad wants to have a chat
Some readers don’t think it’s fair or reasonable for people living in rural areas to talk about immigration. Fair enough, though it’s not as though I’ve always lived in the countryside. Anyway, some country dwellers don’t much like immigrants either. Here’s a note from a Dordogne correspondent: I live in the countryside and have pretty
Ross Douthat may have found his candidate: Indiana governor Mitch Daniels. “I’ve never seen a president of the United States when I look in the mirror,” Daniels remarked last week, after officially inching the door ajar for 2012. You can’t blame him: At 5’7”, the Indiana governor wouldn’t be the tallest man to occupy the
Ah, the glories of the endless contest between hacks and PR flacks. Pretty mch every journalist will enjoy this, I think. This is a very true: “I will honor the embargo for the rest of my life because I have no intention of writing about it.” [Hat-tip Media Bistro and SA and SM via Twitter.
Just a quick note: Andrew Sullivan is taking a breather for a few days and, as is customary, it takes several people to replace him. I happen to be one of them this week. So while there’ll still, I trust, be plenty happening here, you can also catch up with me over at the Daily
Brilliant New Labour Tactic: the Tories are soft on rapists. Really, that’s what they’re saying. And all because the Conservatives think that innocent* people’s DNA should not be held on a national database. Perhaps Gordon can explain why his ain party north of the border is equally “friendly” to rapists. After all the laws on
Like Norm says, you can’t never have too many articles singing the praises of country music. So hats off to Simmy Richman for his excellent piece in the Independent today. He makes many of the essential points, not least the fact that this is universal music, not merely stuff for hillbillies and cowpokes (not that
There’s lots of sense in Matt d’Ancona’s most recent column, not least his implied warning that if the Tories tack to the right this will, no matter how much it appeals to the base, be a terrible mistake for Dave and his boys. Whether you like it or not – and plenty of Spectator readers*
More on this essay on American exceptionalism in due course, but first Conor Friedersdorf: In a post on President Obama and American exceptionalism, Victor Davis Hanson explains why he thinks our nation is different from all the others: Perhaps it would be better, when speaking of an early rural society, to talk of an absence