Watcher's Council Nominations - 26 February 2008

Each week, the members of the Watcher's Council nominate one of their own posts and a second from outside the Council for consideration by other council members in a contest for best post. The Watcher publishes the results each Friday morning. The Watcher also has a process for anyone who would like to submit one of their posts for consideration as part of the weekly contest. You can find out more about that here. This week's nominations are:

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Council Posts:

1. The Colossus of Rhodey - Mrs. Obama's ‘Proud’ Remark: It's the GOP's Fault
CoR ponders the genesis of Ms. Obama's angst with America and liberal academia.

2. Done With Mirrors - Packer on Iraq
DWM critiques George Packer's article on Iraq, interspersing it with his own assessments of historical parallels.

3. The Glittering Eye - Unforced Errors
GWM makes three very important points about Clinton's intervention in Kosovo. One, it was not in our national interest. Two, it pointed up the weakness of Clintonesque limited objective "humanitarian intervention." Three, our actions as regards Kosovo have been one in a series that have seen European nations pass the costs of defending their interests onto the U.S.

4. Soccer Dad - Find the Adjectives
I linked to this post earlier today. Soccer Dad takes a semantic knife to a bit of MSM agenda journalism. He leaves the flayed remains in his wake.

5. Wolf Howling - Obama (with links) & McCain's Petard
McCain has problems on the horizon with campaign financing. Obama is in the middle of McCain's problem at the moment.

6. Big Lizards - Associated Press, Like Others, Retails Malicious Rumor as "Reporting"
The Lizard uses his own semantic knife on an AP article that compares McCain's wife favorably to the other wive's of politicians whose husband's actually have been caught with pants at half mast. The problem of course is that Ms. McCain is not a member of that not quite so august crowd.

7. Cheat Seeking Missiles - In A PC Nation, How Will The GOP Run?
Updated: After rereading CSM's piece, I find it far more nuanced than I gave Laer credit for in the initial reading, and I think that Laer's first draft at a response to the racial politics charge is a very good one. I liked this piece much better on the second read. I think though, that McCain will be able to weather the racial storm probably better than Laer thinks. I note his public denunciation in Texas of the shock jock's comments about Obama was precisely the way he needs to handle that type of situation. I think it will be very difficult indeed to make any racial charges stick against McCain - and indeed, they could well backfire.

8. Bookworm Room - The Pursuit of Happiness
The age old argument of what should be the role of government in our individual lives. BWR uses the vastly different precatory language of the Declaration of Indepenance in juxatoposition with the preamble to the California constitution as the vehicles to frame her arguments.

9. The Education Wonks - John Murtha: Porker of the Year!
Actually, I think Murtha has a lifetime achievement award coming due on this one.

10. Joshuapundit - "I'd rather be with God against man than with man against God..."
The story of a prinicpled man who paid the price for his good deeds, but who has now been recognized for his heroism.

11. Rhymes With Right - An Ethics Flap That Isn't
RWR takes on the NYT McCain hit piece and the logic of those on the left who so want to believe that there is mud hidden under all the dust the NYT has kicked up.

12. Right Wing Nut House - Still At Risk: The Shocking Ignorance of Our Young
I agree with Rick that there is a huge problem with the teaching of our cultural heritage and the state of knowledge amongst our teenagers. I do not think he has identified the crux of the problems. There is nothing wrong with standardized tests. And the claim that teachers are teaching to the exam rather than teaching their subject I don't think a valid argument. I think the problem is that we have stopped teaching literature and history and, in their stead, adopted social studies and using the classroom to teach greater social truths. And if you trace this back, you will find socialism and multiculturalism at its core.

Non-Council links:

1. The Washington Post - The Dumbing of America

2. Roger L. Simon - Bobby Kennedy and Why Obama Unnerves Me

3. Kings of War - Greece and Rome in Iraq

4. My Shrapnel - To Die in Jerusalem, Part II

5. Dr. Sanity - The Democrats' Collective Cognitive Catatonia

6. Captain's Quarters - Clark Hoyt, Conscientious Objector

7. GlobalSecurity.org - DoD News Briefing with Col. James from Iraq

8. National Journal - Obama Logic Versus Racial Preferences

9. Michelle Malkin - 15 Years: The World Trade Center Bombing

10. Michael J. Totten - Guns in the Desert

11. Hillbilly White Trash - Hillary Is Losing

12. American Thinker - The Fierce Urgency of Lies

13. Validating AGW SkepticismThe QandO Blog

14. Fox News Headline -- Video Gamers Leave Baby To DieDodgeblogium