32 Comments

1. heather:

the so called culture war is going on inside the American government, as it is in other parts of the polity.

The book that best clarifies the State Dept’s anti Israel, ivy league snottiness, is “The Arabists, the romance of an American Elite,” by Robert D Kaplan, published by the Free Press in 1993, and still completely relevant.

I have thought about this as I have watched the 9/11 commission hearings on CSpan. In one particularly vivid session, both Hastert and Lantos talked about how unpopular the US is in the Middle East – that after spending BILLIONS of Yankee dollars in Egypt, for example, the government press of that country spews absolutely disgusting lies about America.

I have not read the 9/11 report, but let me tell you, with the State Dept managing the so-called ’soft’ aspect of the War on Terror, ie, education, publishing, etc – you are hiring the fox to camp out in the chicken coop – or more correctly, you are giving new and better quarters to the fox who already is happily crouched within the chicken coop.

This ‘culture’ gap is expressed most clearly by the deep divide between the energetic and intelligent and tech savvy US Armed Forces; and the languid ivy league grads infesting State.

I would not be surprised at all to find that there is some very serious treason is going on right now among some State Employees – and at very high levels, too.

Sep 1, 2004 - 7:41 pm 2. Terrye:

Its sounds like good old fashioned politics to me. Somebody is trying to put the screws to somebody else.

Bush needs to fire some people. These leaks make me wonder where the loyalties of certain government employees lie. If a crime was committed here then it should be persecuted, but it seems that this is about more than crime and punishment.

Sep 1, 2004 - 8:34 pm 3. Mike_Nargizian:

WarandPiece Weblog http://warandpiece.com/

is “investigation” central on the latest on the Franklin, AIPAC, Feith, Israel “investigation” and ‘facts’.

Roger some questions -

1) What did you think of Zell Miller’s speech and in comparison to Rudy, Ahnald, McCain?

2) The same for Cheney’s speech.

3) Get some good food…. Its NYC you can order and get delivery from 1000 different gourmet restaurants… let alone the Convention?

4) Juan Williams, a liberal, on Fox said he thought last night was more fun and glitz and tonight was really more serious and that there was serious buzz in the place tonight particularly with Zell… He said the strategy that came out tonight appears to be a serious and intelligent one…. laying down the gauntlett which is -

Its one thing to make a mistake and be wrong on decisions when you’re a Senator but when you’re President its your job to make the final decision, etc…

LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR FEEDBACK….

Mike

PS If you want some good suggestions on order in food leme know.

Mike

Sep 1, 2004 - 8:40 pm 4. holdfast:

Terrye:

I totally agree – except – the last thing that Bush wants right now is more disgruntled ex-employees (Clarke, Wilson, O’Neil, Anonymous) spending an hour on 60 Minutes plugging their brand new Bush Bashing Book. I’m hoping and praying that he plans to wield a big broom after the election (presuming he is still able to wield – although, come to think of it, could he do a bunch of “midnight” firings? it’d be better than the usual midnight pardons. Even if Kerry were to rehire them all, it might be kind of fun.

I suppose the other option is to radically increase the size of the US mission to Mongolia, as well as the consulate in Novgorod.

Sep 1, 2004 - 8:49 pm 5. Roger:

Sorry, but due to technical difficulties, I can’t blog at this moment. But, for the record, I just came back from dinner with John Hinderaker (Powerline) and Hugh Hewitt. We missed Zell Miller, but I caught the speech by streaming video. I gather the MSM he went over the top. I don’t. I think he was spot on. We are in a world where in the last two days a bomb went off in the Moscow subway, Al Qaeda killed a whole bunch of Nepalis, two buses exploded in Israel with children aboard and now Islamist psychopaths are holding 400 children hostage in a school. Anyone who wants to elect John Kerry in that environment should have his head examined. Shame on the MSM. They are indeed the New Reactionaries.

More tomorrow.

Sep 1, 2004 - 10:07 pm 6. Mike_Nargizian:

Roger,

Zell spoke at about 10pm tonight? That’s a late dinner…. lol…

My guess is you’re tired of the scene down there and wanted a normal relaxing dinner?

You should do what everyone else does, just show up for the prime time speeches each night.

Mike

PS I just watched a re-run of the Zell/Chris Matthews “WWF match”. I gotta say Zell came off as a bit of a nutjob…. The GOP should teach him to try the measured thoughtful rage…. I think Matthews actually handled himself well.

Sep 1, 2004 - 10:32 pm 7. diplomad:

Roger — I agree with you. There is something very funny about this case. The fact that the NYT and CBS would break it just as the GOP convention was getting under and the Republicans were speaking at the AIPAC makes me very suspicious. We have posted on this over at our site, and think it stinks of politics.

Sep 1, 2004 - 11:40 pm 8. M. Simon:

The thing to keep in mind is that to a certain extent we won the Cold War despite the CIA and FBI.

My guess is that Bush has a plan for destroying the FBI and CIA and it will probably be based on exposing their drug war corruption. Or just switching completely to a treatment model based on “new” research.

The real problem is that the arabists are running the CIA and FBI.

Which is no doubt why DOD does its own intel.

It tends to force the other two to be honest. They don’t like that.

Hence “The Case of the Ameerican Spying for Israel”.

–==–

Why did John Kerry meet three times with the representatives of the Viet Cong and Communist North Vietnam?

Some times it takes a while to sell out your country.

New Soldier

What is the War Hero Afraid of?

Form 180. Release ALL the records.

Sep 2, 2004 - 12:42 am 9. Syl:

Zell was spot on..on everything. Occupiers vs Liberators was disputed by many after the speech, including Mort Kondrake who thought that went over the line.

Au contraire, haven’t they heard all the Dem spewing just that exact thing for the past year!! My god, the party ‘leaders’ and pundits don’t even know what their faithful are spitting out of their mouths. Iraq is just a crime scene, don’t you know.

I saw the Chris Matthews/Zell Miller thing too (the juicy parts that Scarborough reran) and the reason Zell got so frustrated was the typical lefty parsing and deconstruction that Chris threw at him. Spitballs? Do you know what a metaphor is Chris? Sheesh.

I loved it when Chris asked a question, Zell answered ‘Yes’ and continued to explain and Chris interrupted with more crap and Zell told him to get out of his face. ‘If you ask me a question, then let me answer it instead of interrupting’.

Chris was, quite plainly, rude and a bitch. Pfeh.

Oh it’s just shocking, shocking I say, that Zell should say such things. How dare he question our patriotism by accusing us of politicizing national security.

Zell was devastating. But the other side will just say he’s gone senile or something. Bless his passionate heart.

And Bush WILL keep our families safer!

Sep 2, 2004 - 12:50 am 10. Syl:

Oh, and Zell told Chris not to bully him like he did that little lady the other day (referring to Michelle Malkin). Heh.

Sep 2, 2004 - 12:54 am 11. David Thomson:

ìWe have posted on this over at our site, and think it stinks of politics.î

The liberal establishment is hostile towards Israel. And this includes many American Jews! These people are praying for a John Kerry victory. If you think things are bad now—you havenít seen anything yet. Howard Deanís followers guaranteeably consider the Palestinians to be mostly victims of an imperialistic Israeli government. They truly believe that much of Islamic terrorism is the result of the alleged injustice suffered by the Pals. Many of them are on record stating that terrorism cannot be deterred until a settlement is reached between the Israeli and the Palestinians. Guess what that means? Do I really need to spell it out?

Sep 2, 2004 - 12:54 am 12. Syl:

Oh, what the hell, it’s 4 am and everyone else is asleep so I’ll post again.

I’ve noticed Bill Kristol has been in a great mood this week. He’s always had a wry sense of humor but is mostly quite serious.

This week he’s been making jokes and laughing out loud. (His latest was wondering what Bush will do Thursday night to compare with Kerry surrounding himself with his ‘band of brothers’ and thought maybe a curtain would open to show, voila, 250 swiftboat vets! LOL)

When you think about it, this convention has been so positive, optimistic, and upbeat, and finally something just plain feels good.

Ever since Kennedy came out with his ‘lies, cooked up in Texas’ and the campaign started with ‘miserable failure’ it’s been the frustration of fighting off all the Bush Lied, Wilson, Clarke, 911 Commission crap, and the misrepresentation of everything Bush has accomplished from the war, to the economy, to education and jobs.

Finally things seem to be turning around and man does it feel good. Kristol? you’ve earned the right to laugh and smile!

Let’s keep the momentum going!

(and John O’Neill, America owes you a debt of gratitude though they don’t know it yet.)

Sep 2, 2004 - 1:05 am 13. napablogger Haley:

Chris Matthews is a horses’s ass. Basically his questions come down to accusations that Miller is lying, and that he is lying for cynical political reasons. He kept asking him “do you really mean that?” Did Miller seem like he meant it??? I never saw anyone who looked like they meant something more than Miller did tonight.

Matthews is not all that bright, I am afraid, either that or he is so biased to the Democrats that it has addled his brain.

You can see the whole thing on MSNBC’s web site, btw.

Sep 2, 2004 - 1:11 am 14. Warthog:

The State Department, or at least parts of it, has pursued its own agenda since at least the Truman years. Wasn’t Alger Hiss a Statie who thought that nuclear parity with the Soviet Union would be a positive counterbalance to US nuclear supremacy? Given the seeming popularity of today’s canard of mulitculturalism as a rein on US supremacy I wonder if Hiss would have even been prosecuted in a Kerry administration?

I look at the levant and see one group of people who grow melons as big as basketballs, create technology companies listed on the NYSE, field a baseball-size team of Nobel prize winners, and another group who harvests its own children for publicity and cash. Are some cultures better than others? Do all groups contribute equally to human progress?

Sep 2, 2004 - 5:18 am 15. Knucklehead:

Some day (I hope I live long enough) the the 20/20 Hindisight Only Twenty-fove or Thirty Years Can Allow histories of what is now going at State will be written. Just speculation, but I think what will be exposed is a disease something similar to what is happening in our school system – a calcified beauracracy that has long since come under the control of idealogues, zealots, and habitues and is fully dedicated to raising its young in its likeness and passing along the estate.

Sep 2, 2004 - 5:37 am 16. Knucklehead:

Geeze, PIMF!!! Hindisight, BTW, is an Asian adaptation of the telescope concept but uses only vegetable matter in the construction. A fove is an asymptotic formulation that yields a number between four and five but will never yield four or five.

Sep 2, 2004 - 5:41 am 17. Simon W. Moon ksc:

It’s hard not to see the timing of the leak from the investigation(s) as politically motivated. The question is, “What are the motivations?”

Is Abraham Foxman’s call for an investigation into who leaked the story gaining any traction? He maintains that he thinks it was someone in the Bush Admin who leaked.

It seems like it’d be great idea to find out who did it. It may add insight as to what the political motivtions (if any) for the leak were.

Sep 2, 2004 - 6:20 am 18. Warthog:

Sounds like France is not getting the positive feedback from Arabworld that it was looking for. Gotta’ wonder how high up the Islamist foodchain the order to kidnap the French journalists came from, and what they were expecting to find out by doing so.

Syria May Face U.N. Resolution

My guess is that Assad stiffed the French diplomats.

Sep 2, 2004 - 6:25 am 19. David Thomson:

ÔøΩLet’s keep the momentum going!ÔøΩ

Let us also not get overly confident. This election is not over. Rasmussen daily tracking poll yesterday had both Bush and Kerry tied at 47%:

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/Presidential_Tracking_Poll.htm

The liberal establishment desperately want a Kerry victory. They run the media which provide the news to most voters. Chris Matthews is only one of many who will do just about anything to help Kerry. We do indeed have the odds in our favor—but letÔøΩs not have a repeat of Dewey vs. Truman.

Sep 2, 2004 - 6:25 am 20. David Thomson:

ìIs Abraham Foxman’s call for an investigation into who leaked the story gaining any traction? He maintains that he thinks it was someone in the Bush Admin who leaked.î

I was unaware that Abraham Foxman apparently is blaming the Bush administration. Why would he believe something so absurd? We must not forget that Foxman is old enough to remember the ìGentlemanís Agreementî era when the Republican Party did not welcome Jews with open arms. He still lives in the past. It may be existentially difficult for such a man to admit that todayís Democrat party is to be feared.

Sep 2, 2004 - 6:37 am 21. Simon W. Moon ksc:

“I was unaware that Abraham Foxman apparently is blaming the Bush administration. Why would he believe something so absurd?.”

Who is to say?

Given the dearth of evidence about the leaker’s (leakers’) identity, it’s hard to rule much out, yet

What info have you used to reach the conclusion that Mr. Foxman’s belief is absurd?

Sep 2, 2004 - 7:06 am 22. David Thomson:

“What info have you used to reach the conclusion that Mr. Foxman’s belief is absurd?”

The Bush administration is pro-Israel. It’s just that simple. Perhaps half of all John Kerry’s supporters consider the Palestinians as victims of Israel’s “aparthied” policies. Wake up and smell the coffee—the Democratic Party no longer a reliable ally of Israel.

Sep 2, 2004 - 7:16 am 23. Charlie (Colorado):

I’ve sort of lost track — has anyone blamed Michael Ledeen yet? He’s usually the Prime Eevil Neocon Suspect when Iran is involved.

Anyway, remember Charlie’s Law of the Press and intelligence: when something about intelligence is leaked, it’s almost always false, and intended to benefit the leaker.

Sep 2, 2004 - 7:55 am 24. Charlie (Colorado):

Mike:

PS If you want some good suggestions on order in food leme know.

Don’t tease, man. I’m still trying to get my favorite 3rd avenue deli to let me order by Federal Express.

Sep 2, 2004 - 7:57 am 25. Simon W. Moon ksc:

“The Bush administration is pro-Israel. It’s just that simple.”

On what basis do you discount the idea that the leak was made to derail the investigation(s).

There’ve been several reports that have noted how these sorts of investigations work best when they are secret.

If someone wanted to lessen the impact of the investigation(s), one way to do it would be to leak that there was such an investigation going on.

Bear in mind that i’ve not seen any evidence that points in this direction. I’m merely noting that I’ve yet to see anything that rules out such a possibility. Basically, I’m wondering if you have seen any such thing.

Have you seen anything that would rule out the possibility that the leaker leaked to lessen the effectiveness of the investigation? If you have will you be kind enough to share what it is that you have seen?

Sep 2, 2004 - 8:18 am 26. jedrury:

Translation Guide to the MSM:

1.) “Zell was offering the crowd red meat” means “Zell is hitting Kerry hard and his speech is killing us.”

2.) “Zell’s speech was on too late and not heard around the country” equates to complete wishful thinking by the MSM. This brillant utterance by Frank Rich, the Times’ cultural guru, along with Maureen Dowd, [on Imus this AM], makes one wonder after hearing 10 minutes of their blather if either deals in the real world or just Manhattan gossip.

After Chris Matthews disgraced himself with his repulsive interview with Zell, Frank Luntz, the pollster, did a focus group interview in Cincinnati with a group of about 15 Ohioans. With one exception, the focus group enthusiastically endorsed the Zell Miller speech and found it credible because he was a Democrat speaking about the state of current affairs. Rather remarkable comments.

Sep 2, 2004 - 9:32 am 27. Warthog:

If W’s plain talk scares the hell out of those ever so nuanced Old Europeans, Zell Miller’s speech will create an unprecedented, continent-wide run on adult diapers.

Steven Den Beste has written about the stickiness of Jacksonian democracy in American culture. It’s worth a read or a Google.

Sep 2, 2004 - 10:28 am 28. jerry:

Warthog:

Hiss was not your basic Ivy-league Kerryesk elitist. He was an active Soviet mole. His advocacy for nuclear parity had little to do with the Ivy League part and everything to do with the Soviet Mole part.

Sep 2, 2004 - 10:57 am 29. Percy Dovetonsils:

“I just watched a re-run of the Zell/Chris Matthews ‘WWF match’.”

I understand the only way it could have been better would have been if Miller broke a chair over Matthews’ back, posed over him in triumph, and hollered out “Can you smell what the Zell is cooking!?!?!”

(Roger, I noted in another thread that I was interested in your take on Miller’s speech – I’m glad to find it here, and happy to hear you feel it was a positive.)

Sep 2, 2004 - 2:52 pm 30. David Thomson:

ìBear in mind that i’ve not seen any evidence that points in this direction. I’m merely noting that I’ve yet to see anything that rules out such a possibility.î

Youíve got it all backwards. It is not my responsibility to prove that the moon is not made of green cheese. Neither am I obligated to prove that the earth isnít round. No, Abraham Foxman and you have the obligation to prove that the Bush administration is responsible for trying to smear the Israeli government. The ball is in your court, and not mine. I have yet to read Foxmanís views on this most recent incident. However, if your assessment is accurate—then this gentleman owes President Bush an apology! Foxman is flirting with outright slander.

Sep 2, 2004 - 5:02 pm 31. Homer:

Why do I have the feeling that there are a more than a few FBI types sweating right now. This has all the ear marks of a CYA operation. Still don’t know enough, but this does look bad for the FBI now.

Sep 2, 2004 - 5:03 pm 32. Simon W. Moon:

“You’ve got it all backwards. It is not my responsibility to prove that the moon is not made of green cheese.“

Forgive me. I wasn’t as clear as I would like to be.

I’m not asking you to prove that the leaker is not a member of the Bush Admin.

I’m asking about the word “absurd“. You described the idea that a member of the Bush Admin could be the source of the leak as “absurd”. I assumed you chose the word ‘absurd’ to imply that you had ruled out the possibility that someone from the Bush Admin. (Perhaps I’m mistaken to make this equivalence and you have not ruled out the possibility?)

I was asking why you find the possibility that someone in the Bush Admin was the source of the leak to be “so absurd“. What is it that makes the idea absurd? IOW, “Do you know something that I don’t?”

“No, Abraham Foxman and you have the obligation to prove that the Bush administration is responsible for trying to smear the Israeli government. The ball is in your court, and not mine.“

I have not asserted that the leaker is tied to the Bush Admin.

Before I asked you about what you knew or had seen, I wrote, “Given the dearth of evidence about the leaker’s (leakers’) identity, it’s hard to rule much out, yet.” By this I meant to convey that I hadn’t a clue about who it might be. Your statement implied (IMHO you knew who it was not- a member of the Bush Admin. This made me curious.

I’m not trying to impugn the Bush Admin. I just wondered if you knew something I didn’t.

My apologies for not being more clear as to what I was asking.

Anyway, I hope you decide to share.

Thanks in advance.

Sep 2, 2004 - 9:18 pm

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