Mission accomplished

If the writers of the NIE last year sought to give Iran a free diplomatic pass on its nuclear program, well it's "mission accomplished," then. According to today's New York Times, the newest draft resolution on Iran's nuclear program is

[. . .] far weaker than what the United States, Britain and France were seeking, and officials say their efforts to win support from Russia and China have been undercut by the release in Washington in December of a National Intelligence Estimate that said Iran had abandoned its nuclear arms program.

Experts theorized that the timing and content of the NIE was meant to insure that the diplomatic process -- and not airstrikes -- would be used to stop Iranian nuclear enrichment. Alas, they have taken the wind out of the diplomatic sails of Western powers looking to enforce and expand sanctions -- which the NIE itself implied would be useful in persuading Tehran. The Russians and Chinese now have boundless excuses to delay and water down any diplomatic effort against Iran. So thank you, American intelligence community, for helping stop the development of the Iranian nuclear bomb.

Shalom, Shalom

That's, "Hello, Goodbye" in Hebrew. The Jerusalem Post reports that the State of Israel has officially apologized to The Beatles 43 years after withdrawing an invitation for the world's biggest band to perform on their 1965 world tour. But that's not all!:

Israel's ambassador to Great Britain is scheduled to . . . present the [Beatles Museum in Liverpool's] manager with an official apology letter, including an invitation to remaining band members Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr to come perform during the celebrations of 60 years of Independence of the State of Israel, Army Radio reported.

This story illustrates Israel's progression from a moralistic, socialist state in the 1960s (The Beatles were turned away because of the government's paternal attitude) to a capitalist, liberal democracy today. It's a progression that started with state-owned media and has resulted now in a diverse popular culture. It's a progression that Great Britain went through too, oddly enough. Having the remaining Beatles perform in Israel for its 60th birthday celebrations is a bit idealistic, but would be a fitting tribute to the way the Western world has changed in the last 43 years.

The magical disappearing e-mails

Apparent gaps in White House e-mail archives coincide with dates in late 2003 and early 2004 when the administration was struggling to deal with the CIA leak investigation and the possibility of a congressional probe into Iraq intelligence failures.

Doesn't this incident sound a lot like the 5 million missing e-mails related to the Justice Department hiring/firing controversy? And doesn't it also sound a lot like the 18-and-a-half minute tape from the Nixon days? Shameless.

Crazy talk

Ever wondered why most economists vote for Democrats in presidential elections? It's because they know that cutting taxes does not replace the revenue it loses. But Rudy Giuliani does not. He says that cutting taxes should only be supplemented by cutting other taxes if it wants to maximize revenue. His argument would seem to imply that a tax rate of 1% would generate even more revenue to the government. This is of course nonsense. Giuliani is playing to the crazy Republican base for the primaries -- and losing his head as he does so.

Norman Finkelstein: mere critic?

Former Professor Norman Finkelstein always said he was simply a scholar whose legitimate criticism of Israel was met by unmerited rejection. "What's wrong with being a critic of Israel?", he and others insist. Criticism of Israel is one thing. Meeting with Hizballah leaders is another. Does this sound like mere critiquing of Israeli policy?:

I think that the Hezbollah represents the hope. They are fighting to defend their homeland.

Defend their homeland? So when their operatives send Katyushas into Kiryat Shmona completely unprovoked, who are they defending against? Where will you find a singular Israeli soldier in Lebanon? Finkelstein is no critic, he is a terrorist sympathizer.

Poll smoking

Stephen Colbert, in his first show back from a writer-strike-induced hiatus, told his guest the following (paraphrased):

You can get 50% of Americans to say anything! [turns to audience] Who wants to be a pirate? [audience roars] You see? 100% approval.

With the 2008 primary campaigns in full swing, polls are on everyone's mind. We heard about the legendary Des Moines Register poll, which supposedly had great influence and accuracy picking the winners of the Iowa caucuses. I was skeptical of this legend, yet Obama (huzzah!) and Huckabee won their respective contests.

Months and months of meaningless polls having been conducted, two candidates bucked consistent polling trends and came out on top. Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney have fallen by the wayside. When will the media stop obsessing over surveys that will not have any actual bearing over the election? My guess: never -- they would eliminate so much campaign coverage that they will be around forever. This is such a shame, given that voters obviously pay them no heed. (Amazingly, the voters are making an informed decision in doing so!)