Entries from January 1, 2007 - February 1, 2007
Liberaltarians: the Debate
"You might be a liberaltarian"America's Future Foundation is hosting a debate about "liberalitarianism," the possibility of a liberal - libertarian alliance, this Thursday at the Heritage Foundation. Details here. On the stage will be all the principal combatants: Ramesh Ponnuru, Brink Lindsey, David Boaz and Jonathan Chait. I should be there, unless of course it snows - in which case I'll be behind the wheel cursing at Virginia drivers who can't hack it in the elements. I miss New York drivers.
My brief take on the controversy and some other links are here
Michael Brendan Dougherty
in Politics
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Bright Young Things
Did they have this in mind?It was an odd weekend, a weekend of convergence and premonition. I had the strangest feeling that my haircut at the Grooming Lounge would be observed. Sure enough there was some young woman dutifully taking notes on my skull shape and the wave in my hair. I did have the distinct feeling that she was also recording the gossip that I shared with Kyla, the young woman who cuts my hair. Here's something to take away: Southern women (even young ones) are wise about this world.
Later that day I received an invitation to a party - it involved the birthday of Catherine. Her blog was familiar to me. - but I had never met her. I don't imagine she was anxious to make my acquaintance but she was very gracious nonetheless. Happy Birthday! Three odd things about this party. The first was the red lighting, which can be seen in photographs of the party. It was only odd because I had agreed to watch "Bright Young Things" with a friend the following night. Pictured above is the opening scene: a party in red. The second thing that was odd was the moment I was introduced to someone who currently works at The New Republic. When the name "The American Conservative" was mentioned by the host who introduced me - this person sniffed and said. "Oh, you people are awful." I took that as a compliment of sorts. The third odd bit was the music selection. I was delighted to hear the "Stop Making Sense" version of Pyscho Killer. But though I jumped in at the time I was a bit baffled by the spirit that came into the room and began commanding people to dance to the song "Common People". Fantastic song, but not terribly danceable. It was a great party and I believe Peter, Robert and I left at the right time.
Michael Brendan Dougherty
in Culture
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The Castaway
Sam FrancisMy essay on the life and thought of Sam Francis is now published in Doublethink. I'm pretty sure the piece will upset people as there are several factions which claim Francis as their own. From the time and place of his birth and until he died, Francis did not share the typical life of a Washington pundit. That goes along way to explaining why there was nothing typical about his analysis of the federal city.
While interviewing the friends of Francis I was struck by the affection so many people had for him. Though some of his friends disliked what he wrote (or at least what he wrote about them), no one that knew him personally disliked him.
Fittingly, there is a long section on Francis' opposition to Martin Luther King Jr. Day - a position which grew naturally out of Francis' anti-communism, and his style of analysis which emphasized the importance of cultural symbols. But even fearing the platform which the holiday gives to radical egalitarians he would come to laugh at how America celebrates it - in an orgy of material consumption.
Update: I forgot to mention the other pieces in Doublethink - read them all, especially Cheryl Miller's jaunt through the new prudery.
Michael Brendan Dougherty
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If You Prick Us...
...Daniel Larison will sock you in your goddamned face and you'll stay plastered. Wow.
You know that Daniel is my friend and ally. But let's think for a minute. Daniel will finish his thesis sooner or later. See how much damage he can do on his blog? Now imagine someone paid him to do this regularly. This should scare people who might be the target of Daniel's wrath. People scared of Daniel Larison should begin to put a lot of money in a pot and offer it to him - along with their women, beads and javelins - asking only that he stop blogging and not take a job where he can hurt them. I won't argue with Daniel whether some of my paleo-friends are anti-Semites. Daniel is right. Paleo arguments against the invasion of Iraq were not based in anti-Semitism and it is scurrilous to suggest they were. But let's be honest. There are some paleos you don't want to hang around you while you're picking up women at a bar, or grocery shopping, or doing anything really. There are some paleos who spend their days drinking wine and not fixing the hinges on their front door and saying things just to piss people off (not that there is anything inherently wrong with that). There are some paleos who hand the mainstream media, and the conservative media a free pass to ignore them. But Daniel Larison cannot be ignored. Engaging with him is probably not wise either. In the past a few people could have battled him and he would run the state of Illinois out of pencil lead and paper. But pixels are cheap and the mainstream conservative movement has no shortage of foolish things to say. Unless someone gets him a very full pot, I think Daniel is going to keep himself busy for a long time.
PS: Yes, I'm back. There was a week or so when Eunomia, The American Scene and Surfeited with Dainties were all silent. Let's try to make sure we don't all do that again.
Michael Brendan Dougherty
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