David Frum's Blog, page 18

Coal Still Isn't Dead

The Wall Street Journal reports that coal is not finished yet, not at least in the Midwest.

America's Government Ignores the Jobs Crisis, Abandons the Unemployed

From my CNN column: why jobless Americans shouldn't expect any help from their government. Get well, soon, America -- you are on your own.

Sitting Bull's Cinco De Mayo

Another Cinco de Mayo anniversary:

What I Wrote About Keynes

Enough about Niall Ferguson; let's talk about me. Twenty years ago, I wrote a critique/appreciation of JM Keynes for the New Criterion. The uproar over Ferguson's off-the-cuff quip sent me back to reread it. Parts stand up reasonably well; others not so much. Submitted for your inspection.

Note to Readers

This weekend we posted an item here on Gov. Rick Perry and the University of Texas. The author has accepted a position as a law clerk, and on reflection decided that the expression of such political opinions was inconsistent with his work commitments. The article has been removed.

Why Are Conservatives Endorsing a Guest Worker Program?

Fred Bauer writes at National Review on a part of comprehensive immigration reform that isn't getting the notoriety it deserves, the guest worker program:

Talk to Your Baby

Class divisions are hardening in America, and the reasons may go deeper than the economic. Earlier in April, the New York Times reported on the lifelong effects of the simple act of talking to your baby. One of the most important changes of our time has been the trend since about 1980 of upper-class families to invest more time in their children even as lower-class families have invested less.

The Doctor Who Helped Us Get Osama is Still in a Pakistani Prison

The doctor who led the United States to Osama bin Laden's lair still languishes in a Pakistani prison - a shocking revelation of the Pakistan government's true orientation and of America's diplomatic weakness. Newsweek offers a powerful report on the enraging case of Dr. Shakeel Afridi. Don't miss it.

Swallowed by a Hippo

Add "being swallowed by a hippo" to the list of things to avoid in Africa:

David's Book Club: The Souls of Black Folk

To read WEB DuBois' The Souls of Black Folk in near proximity to Booker T. Washington's Up From Slavery is a disorienting experience. Up From Slaveryis a book written in a direct style, using a simple vocabulary and homely humor. Yet on every page, an alert reader is conscious of the author's artifice: of the careful self-presentation, of the tight control of every word, of the "oh the story I could tell" omissions, of the steely self-disciplined smile. If Booker T. Was...