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Blog of Adam Daifallah -- author, journalist, law student. Lover of politics, writing, golf, curling, fitness, fashion, bacon and maple products -- not necessarily (but probably) in that order. Partisan of the Anglosphere. Contact me via email at adam@daifallah.com. This summer I am joined by Keir Wilmut and Omar Soliman.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Hope on campus?
From no less a source than The New York Times comes word that with the retirement of the 1960s-loving cohort of professors, a new generation of academics is sprouting into positions of power:
Baby boomers, hired in large numbers during a huge expansion in higher education that continued into the ’70s, are being replaced by younger professors who many of the nearly 50 academics interviewed by The New York Times believe are different from their predecessors — less ideologically polarized and more politically moderate. “There’s definitely something happening,” said Peter W. Wood, executive director of the National Association of Scholars, which was created in 1987 to counter attacks on Western culture and values. “I hear from quite a few faculty members and graduate students from around the country. They are not really interested in fighting the battles that have been fought over the last 20 years." We can only hope.
# posted by Adam Daifallah : 10:22 PM
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Choke?
Too bad for Greg Norman, although he didn't seem upset about it (I think I might be more disappointed than he was, actually.) It wasn't a choke per se, but just some bad play at the beginning of the round, and stellar golf by Padraig Harrington. I doubt we'll ever seen Greg Norman near the top of a leaderboard again (maybe on the Champions Tour) but he doesn't seem to really care -- and why should he?
# posted by Adam Daifallah : 9:45 PM
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Up early
It has been many years, I think, since I've forced myself to wake up at 6am on a Sunday. I used to do it regularly when I was younger to make a 7am tee time. But tomorrow, I am getting up to watch the British Open at the crack of dawn because I don't want to miss a minute of what could be a serious historical event.
53-year old Greg Norman, who was at the top of his game when I was growing up playing golf in the 90s, is primed to win his 3rd open (each in a different decade).
Norman used to be known as the game's most prolific choker, having given up countless leads at major championships throughout the 1980s and 90s. But this time, something feels distinctly different -- one reason being he just doesn't care because he isn't expecting anything. He hardly plays or practices anymore (too busy running an international business empire) and hadn't even entered a major championship for two years before this. His expectations are so low that there doesn't seem to be any pressure.
Go Greg!
# posted by Adam Daifallah : 11:47 PM
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
McCain on Afghanistan
Via David Mader comes news of a major speech by John McCain on the importance of winning in Afghanistan:
McCain calls for, among other things, a new unity of command in Afghanistan, not only within the American forces operating there but among all NATO countries. So here's my question: What's Canada's take on an Afghanistan surge? Do we have the troops to contribute to a boots-on-the-ground increase? If not, are we prepared to work with American forces in other respects, such as unity-of-command, in furtherance of a surge strategy? Do Canadian military commanders believe that a surge is possible? Promising? Useful? Necessary? And what do the parties think about the idea - would the Grits support a surge strategy if it offered the promise of an early (or earlier) withdrawal? Would the Tories support a surge notwithstanding the relative unpopularity of the Afghanistan war?
Excellent questions from David, and an excellent speech by McCain (not to mention a very important one for Canada, but which is apparently being ignored.) I like how he is tying Iraq and Afghanistan together. He obviously realizes how intertwined these two fronts in the larger battle are, and how crucial it is to win both. My enthusiasm for McCain increases with this kind of rhetoric.
# posted by Adam Daifallah : 10:46 PM
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Tony Snow
I was saddened to learn of the death of Tony Snow, the former conservative pundit and Bush spokesman. Tony Snow was an articulate, intelligent and loyal conservative who seemed impossible to dislike. The saddest part of this story, of course, is that he has three relatively young children. Apparently his own mother died from cancer when he was just 17. RIP.
# posted by Adam Daifallah : 8:45 AM
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Hitchens gets waterboarded
Christopher Hitchens, likely one of the most talented polemicists of this era (calling him "the finest English-language opinion writer in the world right now" might be a bit much) has a piece in the new edition of Vanity Fair on waterboarding.
As part of his research, Hitchens underwent waterboarding himself -- see the video here. That is commendable journalism, regardless of what you think of waterboarding:
You may have read by now the official lie about this treatment, which is that it “simulates” the feeling of drowning. This is not the case. You feel that you are drowning because you are drowning—or, rather, being drowned, albeit slowly and under controlled conditions and at the mercy (or otherwise) of those who are applying the pressure. The “board” is the instrument, not the method. You are not being boarded. You are being watered. This was very rapidly brought home to me when, on top of the hood, which still admitted a few flashes of random and worrying strobe light to my vision, three layers of enveloping towel were added. In this pregnant darkness, head downward, I waited for a while until I abruptly felt a slow cascade of water going up my nose. Determined to resist if only for the honor of my navy ancestors who had so often been in peril on the sea, I held my breath for a while and then had to exhale and—as you might expect—inhale in turn. The inhalation brought the damp cloths tight against my nostrils, as if a huge, wet paw had been suddenly and annihilatingly clamped over my face. Unable to determine whether I was breathing in or out, and flooded more with sheer panic than with mere water, I triggered the pre-arranged signal and felt the unbelievable relief of being pulled upright and having the soaking and stifling layers pulled off me. I find I don’t want to tell you how little time I lasted.
# posted by Adam Daifallah : 11:05 PM
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Vindication remains elusive
There has been surprisingly little media attention paid to last week's decision in the Conrad Black appeal. As you undoubtedly know, the Seventh District Court of Appeals affirmed the first instance decision, virtually guaranteeing Lord Black a five year stay in prison.
The decision was rendered by Judge Richard Posner -- one of America's top public intellectuals, who once wrote a book attacking public intellectuals. Judge Posner is known as something of a Renaissance man, teaching courses, giving lectures, writing articles and books and penning an astounding number of decisions on annual basis. He is clearly a brilliant man, and likely one of the most able jurists alive today.
I guess that's why I expected a better and more soundly reasoned judgement from him, not something that appears to have been written on the back of a napkin.
This is an unusually-written opinion at best, and a travesty at worst. It barely deals with the substance of the appellants' arguments and dismisses others out of hand, preferring to ignore them. There are also a number of factual errors in the text (one example: Ravelston is not a "defunct" company.) This is not what one expects of an Appeals Court.
My feelings were best summed up in this excellent commentary by Father Raymond de Souza:
Many readers have written over the past year inquiring as to why I – and others at the Post – defend him. It is because we believe him to have been grossly mistreated by a flawed process, and that he is entitled to a measure of loyalty from a country – and the journalistic profession – for which he did so much, even as the birds of prey were taking wing.
Despite this newest setback, Lord Black will plough ahead, make the best of a bad situation and prepare to begin anew once he reclaims his freedom in a few years.
# posted by Adam Daifallah : 2:24 PM
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