Dec 1, 2004 | Dollars & Crosses
From Cox and Forkum:
From The Union Leader: FALLUJAH SEARCH:Yields huge cache of weapons.The seizures [by U.S. troops] -- amounting to tons of weaponry, from rifles to heavy bombs, from hand grenades to artillery rounds -- are part of what U.S. authorities describe as an intelligence and tactical bonanza uncovered in the city 35 miles west of Baghdad, the capital. The munitions were found in homes, mosques, cargo containers, bunkers and other sites.
Among the most novel finds: An ice-cream truck that had been converted into a mobile car-bomb factory, complete with all the parts and weaponry needed to turn any vehicle into a weapon on the spot.
Charles Johnson at Little Green Footballs has put together a slide show about the Fallujah operations: Telling the Fallujah Story to the World.Dec 1, 2004 | Dollars & Crosses
The dymanic duo of John Cox and Allen Forkum are proud to announce the availability of the second collection of Cox & Forkum editorial cartoons. Black & White World II contains over 450 cartoons (four times the number in our first book) and covers over two years of work -- starting in September 2002 and ending in November 2004 with the conclusion of the presidential election.
The book includes almost every new cartoon that has appeared on this Capitalism Magazine, but there are also about 40 cartoons/illustrations previously unpublished or unposted. For ordering information please visit their website.Nov 30, 2004 | Dollars & Crosses
From Cox and Forkum:
CNN reports: Ukraine opposition cancels talks.Opposition officials say they have cut off negotiations with Ukraine's government aimed at settling the country's bitter and divisive presidential election dispute.
The behind-the-scenes talks had been progressing alongside parliamentary debates and the Supreme Court's consideration of opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko's charges that voting irregularities cost him victory in his contest with Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych.
The crisis has brought hundreds of thousands of demonstrators to Kiev, where Yushchenko supporters have blocked government buildings for several days. ...
With Western observers saying the election did not meet acceptable standards of fairness, the United States and Europe have refused to recognize the results.
But Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose country still has much influence over the former Soviet republic, congratulated Yanukovych and complained of Western meddling.
Putin on Tuesday repeated his call for the Ukraine crisis to be resolved without international intervention.
Nov 26, 2004 | Dollars & Crosses
From Cox and Forkum:
USAToday reported Wednesday: Rather: 'Time for me to move on'.Dan Rather, the CBS Evening News anchor conservatives loved to hate, was a network news survivor of the highest order: He lasted a record 24 years despite repeated attempts to unseat him by people inside and outside CBS. Rather, 73, said he will continue to work for CBS, as a correspondent for both editions of 60 Minutes.
But in the end, a single controversial story that Rather reported at the height of a brutal presidential contest, one that questioned President Bush's National Guard service during Vietnam, probably sped his departure. ...
Rather's departure could signal the rise and influence of politically motivated Internet "bloggers," who relentlessly attacked him and the documents that were used to back up his 60 Minutes story. Some political and media analysts have said the "Memogate" scandal damaged CBS News' reputation, especially among viewers in largely rural, conservative states -- the network's core audience. ...
As word spread Tuesday afternoon that Rather was stepping down, the anchor known for his quirky, folksy style addressed 200 CBS staff members -- some of them with tears in their eyes -- in his Evening News "fishbowl" in New York City. Dressed in a sweater, Rather said the time was right for him to go. But he also alluded to a possible driving force, the Guard scandal, which he referred to as the "hippopotamus in the room."
The scandal tainted what might have been an orderly transition from Rather to a new anchor, said Evening News producer Jim Murphy. "This thing obviously messed everything up. ... This has been a very trying time."
And from The New York Post: A Rather Ugly Exit. (Via Little Green Footballs)In the face of compelling evidence that documents [memos] had been forged by a long-time Bush foe, Rather insisted instead that he was being targeted by enemies with political motives.
The anchor postured and preened and hemmed and hawed before admitting, not that the documents were fake, but that he had made "a mistake in judgment."
That's one way to put it.
Andy Rooney, Rather's curmudgeonly "60 Minutes" colleague, had a different take last week -- more blunt, and far more accurate: "I am very critical of some of the people at CBS who make it apparent what their political leanings are," he said. "That's what happened to this thing of Dan Rather's that got out. There's no question they wanted to run [the story] because it was negative towards Bush."
Rooney clocked it: Rather has it in for the Bush administration.
To cite just one of many examples, as war clouds gathered over Iraq in February 2003, Rather proudly aired an exclusive interview with Saddam Hussein — set up by lunatic-fringer Ramsey Clark and filmed by Saddam aides.
But he refused a White House offer of Condoleezza Rice to appear to rebut Saddam's comments.
Nov 25, 2004 | Dollars & Crosses
From Thank You by Michael J. Hurd:
Most are thankful to God. I am thankful to man...
Nov 23, 2004 | Dollars & Crosses
Professor Henry Manne's on Elliot Spitzer's terrorizing of business:
In an era of general acceptance of deregulation and privatization, Mr. Spitzer has introduced the world to yet a new form of regulation, the use of the criminal law as an in terrorem weapon to force acceptance of industry-wide regulations. These rules are not vetted through normal authoritative channels, are not reviewable by any administrative process, and are not subject to even the minimal due-process requirements our courts require for normal administrative rule making. The whole process bears no resemblance to a rule of law; it is a reign of force. ...Since Mr. Spitzer wins his cases in the media, where business is now all but defenseless, the best hope is for the American business community to develop its own public voice. The free-market scholarship needed for this purpose is available, though it is rarely availed of in these fights. Too often the corporate defenders conclude, out of ignorance to be sure, that the opposition really has the better case.
But make no mistake: Eliot Spitzer represents, wittingly or not, an attack on the entire corporate free-enterprise system. Clearly we need new or invigorated institutions to defend industries and companies publicly when they come under unwarranted or disproportionate attack. Responsible leaders of the business community should make it a high priority to develop these capabilities before more harm is done. [Wall Street Journal op-ed, Hat Tip: Don Luskin]
