Andrew Sullivan's Blog, page 2619

Point Of Return

by Patrick Appel

Marc Lynch sizes up the Iran debate thus far:

I'd say that Goldberg's article has succeeded not in paving the way for
military action but in focusing attention on the issue in such a way as to make
an attack less likely.

Marc Lynch - Iran - Patrick Appel Marc Lynch - History - United States

Playing The Odds

by Patrick Appel

Yglesias is "a lot more open to the view that Barack
Obama is secretly a Muslim than to the view that the spirits of dead
people can return in certain situations." Douthat differs:

[W:]hereas I would happily stake most of my net worth on the premisethat Barack Obama is not, in fact, a secret Muslim, I wouldn't riskmuch money at all on the proposition that ghosts do not exist. That'snot because I'm a huge believer in haunted houses: It's just that Ithink I have an excellent...

When Rape Accusations Hurt Women

by Chris Bodenner

Tracy Clark-Flory addresses the rapid reversal of rape charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange:

It certainly appears that the case was handled poorly, but there is a whole lot we still don't know. Here's what I doknow: Regardless of the validity of the specific claims againstAssange, high-profile prosecutorial reversals and fumbles like this area disservice to victims of sexual assault. They help perpetuate adistorted sense of the frequency of false accusations and...

Not An Onion Headline

by Chris Bodenner

Rhode Island Democratic Lawmaker Goes After 'Anchor Embryos'

Rhode Island - United States - Democratic Party - Politics - Recreation and Sports

For-Profit Prisons

by Patrick Appel

Suzy Khimm finds that private prisons aren't up to snuff:

I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with privately run prisons, but if they can't even save taxpayers money -- and create greater security risks in an effort to deliver as promised -- then lawmakers should think again before resorting to them.

Serwer is on point :

The way to save money on prisons isn't to give contracts to privatecompanies that will lowball costs and cut corners, it's to be lesspunitive...

The Daily Wrap

Today on the Dish, Muslims prayed at Ground Zero, while detractors angrily protested a non-Muslim man. Stephen Prothero put Mormons on the spot; Kinsley kept at Krauthammer; Eli Lake and Adam Sewer squared off for a Blogging Heads round; and moderate Muslims do (obviously) exist. We opened the thread on America and its ruling elites and asked the Tea Party what changes they might propose.

Sharron Angle campaigned against jersey colors, Hasselbeck supported gay marriage, and John Hawkins

Night Walking

by Patrick Appel

TNC is still out in the woods doing his best Thoreau impression:

I took my first night-walk last week--no flashlight and no company. Iwould not exaggerate my courage. The moon was a fertility god, stoutagainst the black blanket of sky. In many places I could not so muchsee the road, as an almost shadow of the road--a strip more blueishthan black. But when I looked up, I could see the tops of trees swayingin the night-wind, marking the borders. And so I walked...

The Value Of Truth, Ctd

by Zoe Pollock

I was very impressed with but not surprised by the wealth of knowledge and opinion expressed in response to this subject. To clarify, perhaps unnecessarily, I meant no disrespect to Hitchens, someone who is greatly admired by the Dish and whom I personally enjoy and respect very much. It was my
first lesson in the passions and precisions of Dish readers and I look forward to more. Here is a sampling of some of those responses:

Once we accept things which aren't true in order to...

Did The Stimulus Work? Ctd

by Patrick Appel

Manzi forcefully rebuts Chait:

Macroeconomic assertions about the effect of a proposed
policy are not valueless, but despite their complex
justifications, do not have standing as knowledge that can trump
sense, historical reasoning, and so on in the same way that a
predictive rule that has been verified through experimental testing

When using stimulus to ameliorate the economic crisis, we are likeprimitive tribesmen using herbs to treat an...

Faces Of The Day

Christian penitents known locally as 'Battenti' beat themselves during a procession in honour of the Virgin Mary in Guardia Sanframondi, near Benevento south of Italy, on August 22, 2010. Around 1,000 penitents from across the world attended the procession which occurs once every seven years. By Mario Laporta/AFP/Getty Images.

Italy - Mary - Religion and Spirituality - Christianity - Denominations