Electric Politics

RIP Hugo Kenney

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 23:23:00 -0500

Hugo came from the Pioneer Kennel. I got him as a puppy in November 2000 — hence his AKC registration name: Pioneer Millennium Baby Hugo. He was an outstanding dog in every way, especially his gentle temperament. All of eleven years old he was getting old for a Black Labrador, but I'd hoped he might live another couple years. It was not to be. He'd had trouble for the past month defecating. After he'd completely stopped for two days I gave up fiddling with his diet and yesterday took him to the animal hospital. Today, for the first time, he had trouble urinating, so the hospital took some x-rays, which showed several rather large and evidently fast growing cancers, under his backbone and above his colon (very much constricting it, which had caused the constipation), on his spleen, and elsewhere. The choice was massive surgical intervention plus chemotherapy or to put him to sleep. I chose the latter. Of course I was with him during the procedure, as was Sharon. She said a prayer, he seemed calm, and it was over quickly. He was much beloved and is ever so greatly missed.

Cheap Jingoism

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 23:39:05 -0500

If tonight's State of the Union speech didn't remind you of Mr. Obama's transition, it should have done. The worthy things he called for are mostly non-starters in the Republican House while the rotten things he called for are conservative gimmes. Mr. Obama is, as always, a Republican decked out in liberal flourishes. For me, perhaps the most interesting aspects of the evening were close-up television shots of Representative Boehner and Senator McConnell, who seemed to choke inwardly at the notion that a few of their plans might be realized by the Democrats. In terms of pure electioneering the speech probably did Mr. Obama and the Democrats some good but I'll be completely shocked if he actually fights for any of the things he mentioned. And then, of course, even if he were reelected and even if the Democrats were to retake the House, and not lose the Senate, it's unlikely in the extreme — judging from recent history — that Senator Reid would try to get rid of the anti-democratic sixty vote cloture rule; in 2013, therefore, even in a "best case" scenario, obstruction plus a Republican agenda will continue to be the name of the game. Indeed, I'd guess Mr. Obama is counting on it.

More Electable?

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 03:18:17 -0500

Conventional wisdom has it that Mitt Romney would be the strongest Republican to run against Mr. Obama. Accordingly, Newt's victory in South Carolina should augur well for those who prefer a lesser rightward shift, if his victory translated into Newt's nomination. But is Mitt really more electable? I'm not so sure. In particular, one must wonder whether any Mormon is electable — because so many Americans see Mormonism as a cult. They happen to be right about that and they probably won't be changing their minds anytime soon.

Assassinations, Inc.

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 22:35:44 -0500

So — Israel tells itself nobody knows what it's doing while it busily assassinates as many Iranian nuclear physicists as it can. Meanwhile, the serious Washington set struggles to find a one-sided definition of terrorism that's sufficiently salable, at least in a media pretend sort of way. But on that nuclear issue, let's not forget the NUMEC story. For a full accounting see Victor Gilinsky & Roger J. Mattson, "Revisiting the Numec Affair," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, March/April 2010. It's behind a paywall, unfortunately, but the gist is that in the mid-1960s Israel probably surreptitiously (and very much illegally) took several hundred kilograms of highly enriched uranium from a plant in Pennsylvania, which Israel then used for its first nuclear weapons. Some "ally" — and the same applies for feverishly trying to get the U.S. to go to war with Iran...

Vacation Vicissitudes

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 00:42:30 -0500

Not to complain... Oh, hell, why not? It was more than enough my dad having a heart attack on Thanksgiving — going to see him every day, sometimes twice a day, and occasionally three times a day has taken a lot out of me. Once he finishes rehab, in a few days, I'll be his physical therapy coach at home for some time. I'm happy to do all this and I tremendously appreciate the extra time we've got together. But it hasn't been a particularly timely time for problems of my own to crop up. Namely, my teeth.

EP Podcast Schedule Late January/Early February (Amended)

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:04:30 -0500

The EP Podcast will start the 2012 year on Friday, January 20th, the subject being Iran, with Ambassador John W. Limbert. The week following, Friday, January 27th, talking about nuclear power, my guest will be Dr. Victor Gilinsky, a former two-term Commissioner of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. A very, very smart guy. On Friday, February 3d, my guest will be Belén Fernandez, talking about her latest book, The Imperial Messenger: Thomas Friedman at Work (Verso, 2011). And Friday, February 10th, ~~scheduled but not yet recorded,~~ I'm talking again — for the fourth time — with Dr. Bruce Cumings, about North Korea. I look forward to being back! Thank you all for listening!!

Miscommunications With Iran

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 23:30:24 -0500

The market for oil is a global market. Not perfectly homogenized, but global. So if the U.S. and Europe say that they plan to further "punish" Iran for its nuclear program by implementing a European boycott of Iranian oil or sanctions generally against those who buy Iranian oil, well, that's the proverbial paper tiger talking. To be sure, the Iranians understand. It was, then, a very serious mistake for Iran to threaten to retaliate by closing the Strait of Hormuz, not only because it was unnecessary but because the threat turned war from a negligible possibility (because self-evident direct costs are too great) into something much more tangible. Although Iranian Rear Admiral Mahmoud Mousavi walked back the Iranian position on Sunday, Iran's Army Commander in Chief, Maj. General Ataollah Salehi, further stoked the dispute on Tuesday, saying "We recommend to the U.S. warship [the USS John C. Stennis] that passed through the Strait of Hormuz and went to the Gulf of Oman not to return to the Persian Gulf... The Islamic Republic of Iran will not repeat its warning." Let's hope not. Going forward the Iranians would be extremely well advised never to say anything again about disrupting the West's oil supply.

Oil has not become a higher priority than nuclear proliferation but an American decision to go to war can sometimes have less to do with principles or objective calculations than with the inertial momentum of a vast national security apparatus. Hit the right buttons and war pretty much automatically ensues.

On the Power of Naming Things

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 17:43:07 -0500

For the sake of argument, let's suppose that I'm right: if we want a functional, modern, democratic national government we must have an entirely new constitution and, in spite of the current odds against, that eventually we will have one. But, then, should we keep the name of our country the same? The United States of America seems such a throwback to the colonial era, in sync with our current dysfunctional government but perhaps not quite an appropriate name for a new government. And what about the American flag? Too much change in either our name or our flag, or both, would be difficult, perhaps in themselves as much a barrier to reform as it will be to devise and gain acceptance for a new constitution. Just something to ponder...

In Praise of Milk

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 07:12:36 -0500

If you're of a certain age you may remember that milk used to taste better. A cold glass of milk being a treat. And plain whole milk being just as good (or better) than half and half in coffee. Those were the days of local milk home delivery, in glass bottles. Somewhere along the way in the 1960s-1970s all that changed as we traded freshness and flavor for convenience. Of course, as people get older they tend to drink less milk anyhow so for most the loss seems less acute, or goes unnoticed. Younger folks have no idea. But if you live in Virginia or the DC area you may be able find outstanding retro milk — produced without the use of hormones or antibiotics — from the Homestead Creamery, sold in certain Whole Foods stores, and other outlets, and also home delivered in a limited area around southwest Virginia.

Damn His Eyes

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 22:42:36 -0500

Chris Hitchens was a user, of people. I kept his last message to me on my answering machine for I don't know how long, but eventually erased it out of dismay regarding his militancy toward the former Yugoslavia. I could say more, but I think Sam Smith says it much better than I could ever do.

Family News

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 18:09:54 -0500

On Thanksgiving Day, my dad, who's eighty eight years old, had a heart attack. A relatively mild one — his heart wasn't damaged. He was two weeks at one local hospital, discharged to a rehab facility for about six hours, suffered a second, very, very mild heart attack, and spent about a week at a different hospital. He'd had a quadruple bypass about fifteen years ago, with multiple stents added over the years, but these were his first heart attacks. Now he's got a new stent and his heart seems to be stable. This afternoon the hospital sent him to a second rehab facility (less than five minutes driving from me), so hopefully he'll be back up on his feet and getting around on his own much as before, though that may take a little while.

The EU Panics

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:43:58 -0500

It's more than passingly ironic that David Cameron, an arch conservative, should find himself the last defender of Keynesianism in Europe. Probably he doesn't see it that way but Cameron's entirely correct rejection of a new, treaty-imposed fiscal straightjacket means that the UK, alone among EU member states, will retain the ability for government to step in and spend when the economy experiences a lack of demand. For the rest of the EU the new treaty will mean leaping from the frying pan into the fire: national adjustments to balance of payments problems within the EU will become more difficult, not easier, and by concentrating on government debt instead of the regulation of financial markets the EU is only setting itself up for more market manipulation. In the throes of predictable balance of payments crises, one country after another will face withering fire from "nation state short-sellers" in the bond markets. The European financial crisis is about to get much worse.

Euro Gestalt

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 06:53:04 -0500

Now that Italy is firmly fixed in the crosshairs of the bond market and now that the Eurozone crisis is widely seen by the wise and the good as having the shortest of fuses before it implodes, two things are notable for their absence: The "fixes" under discussion don't include either the regulation or the closure of derivatives markets, and the political role of Germany on the loose has gone largely unnoticed. Why is that?

All the News That's Fit to Print?

Sat, 26 Nov 2011 07:30:14 -0500

Same story, competing headlines. The UK version in the Guardian: "Britain unites with smaller countries to block US bid to legalise cluster bombs." The US version in the New York Times: "Talks on Cluster Bomb Restrictions Collapse." Entirely contradictory, as is their content. Note that the reporter for the Guardian is Richard Norton-Taylor, one of the most seasoned international correspondents in the world. Nick Cumming-Bruce for the New York Times, by coincidence also a Brit, is not so well known, but the paper has editors in New York. Nor is it a trivial story, in either substantive or political terms. So a prime example of corporate media stenography in the U.S. political system. (Read both and decide for yourself but for me it's obvious that the UK report is the correct one.)

Taking a Rest

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 07:13:51 -0500

Today's podcast is the end of the season and of the year. I'll resume production in January 2012, though I haven't yet decided exactly when. I will, however, post advance notice a couple weeks ahead. And I won't be completely away: I'll continue blogging sporadically. If you miss the podcast please avail yourself of the archives — in six years' worth of podcasts I'm sure you'll find several of interest; or feel free even to download the entire archive, as newer listeners often do!