tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71216522011-04-22T00:38:12.180-04:00A Thinking Person's Blog...Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.comBlogger361100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1098140149327964392004-10-18T18:48:00.000-04:002004-10-18T18:57:44.936-04:00

From the New York Times today: President Bush accused Senator John Kerry today of engaging in "shameless scare tactics" by suggesting that the president would weaken the Social Security program for older Americans and would reinstate the military draft. In an interview with The Associated Press en route to a New Jersey campaign appearance, Mr. Bush accused Mr. Kerry of "trying to scare our

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1097035927796404712004-10-05T23:53:00.000-04:002004-10-06T00:12:07.796-04:00

Exhillarating! That's how I'd describe this one. Edwards was nothing short of brilliant, and if Kerry can do what Edwards did tonight, then there is no doubt in my mind that John Kerry will win this election. To begin with, Edwards was sharp, focused and never missed a beat or an opportunity to address and rebut Cheney. He was effective and thorough on foreign policy and was convincing and

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1096129980533210742004-09-25T13:27:00.000-04:002004-09-25T13:53:28.326-04:00

The ball has really gotten rolling here at Le Penseur. Today Brian Samek, resident dissenter and skeptic (not to mention hard-working NYU undergrad), has a contribution for us. Those who support the "Rumsfeld-approved torture" are fond of arguing that, in times of crisis, we must sacrifice our (or rather, those dirty Arabs must sacrifice their) civil rights. They brush aside those who argue

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1095908825075875882004-09-22T23:01:00.000-04:002004-09-22T23:07:05.076-04:00

John, in a recent comment, mentioned Bias, Bernard Goldberg's book. The book got a lot of attention, but unfortunately for those bent on proving the existence of a liberal media, the book contains NO credible evidence of one. For a more detailed analysis, see Eric Alterman's book What Liberal Media?, or check him out at whatliberalmedia.com.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1095872179738917922004-09-22T13:47:00.000-04:002004-09-22T14:23:07.140-04:00

I just got through reading the comment posted by "Nemesis" regarding our recent discussion of the media. Let's take a look. "The Media Research Center has fully documented the "liberal" bias in the NY Times, not just in the editorials, but in the wording of the articles themselves and the slant the headlines take on a news story.Couple good websites:http://www.timeswatch.org/http://www.mrc.org/

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1095200445979815362004-09-14T17:42:00.000-04:002004-09-15T05:02:06.680-04:00

In his contribution yesterday, Aarron Berg lamented the increasingly polarized media in this country. Berg writes, "...partisanship in the news media has descended to a deplorable level. Accusations and credibility attacks have overwhelmed the ability to have healthy intra and inter publication debates. A no-man’s land has developed between the New York Times and the National Review". Certainly

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1095139349644726652004-09-14T01:19:00.000-04:002004-09-14T01:22:29.643-04:00

I'm glad to say that we've got our first contribution from Stanford student Aaron Berg. Read and enjoy! As I sat reading my Economist, I was stuck with an obscene ethical paradox. As I felt good about myself for reading journals, newspapers and magazines that are highly respected and influential, I felt uninformed and guilty for not reading journals that I consider to be Republican propaganda.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1094690505877008162004-09-08T20:24:00.000-04:002004-09-08T20:41:45.876-04:00

George W. Bush has agreed to two debates with John Kerry this fall. The first is to revolve around domestic issues and the second to focus on international issues. However, the president has declined a third debate with Kerry. This is John Kerry's golden opportunity. With the American death toll in Iraq reaching a thousand this week, Kerry must implore the president to participate in a third

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1094002185581963552004-08-31T21:08:00.000-04:002004-09-08T21:09:07.870-04:00

This post marks the begining of phase II of Le Penseur. We're now going to be publishing a number of posts routinely on an array of political and cultural subjects by an array of authors from around the globe! Today we're going to hear from Eli Cohn-Wein, a student spending his year in Israel. Eli will keep us updated on Israeli and Mid-East affairs. Other contributors include Dave Hererra, a

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1092416269506690672004-08-13T12:54:00.000-04:002004-08-13T12:57:49.506-04:00

Daily Kos has a great thread today about Kerry and Bush as emergency responders. Don't miss it. -Ben's dad

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1090095370571266392004-07-17T16:13:00.000-04:002004-07-17T16:16:10.570-04:00

From today's New York Times: "There’s a bit of a dichotomy," said Ethan S. Harris, chief economist at Lehman Brothers. "Joe Six-Pack is under a lot of pressure. He got a lousy raise; he’s paying more for gasoline and milk. He’s not doing that great. But proprietors’ income is up. Profits are up. Home values are up. Middle income and upper income people are looking pretty good." Noted by Ben's

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1089648573515189212004-07-12T12:02:00.000-04:002004-07-12T12:46:09.603-04:00

Ben's dad again. Brian asked for a response to this concern about Kerry's consistency on abortion. So here are a few reflections. It doesn't qualify as a flip-flop to assert, as I take Kerry and like-minded Catholic politicians (such as Mario Cuomo) to do, "I personally oppose abortion but am not prepared to impose that moral view on others and am, moreover, committed to ensuring that all women

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1089254111075836232004-07-07T22:24:00.000-04:002004-07-07T22:43:50.646-04:00

Ben's dad here. While he's herding twelve year-olds, Ben has given me permission to make an occasional guest appearance on Le Penseur. I'll post a thought here and a link there when I can. Today's New York Times contains the following candidate for the Bush flip-flop files: Some American officers expressed frustration at the start-stop nature of the military campaign last April. First came

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1088037708005953622004-06-23T20:39:00.001-04:002004-06-25T09:02:18.660-04:00

Perhaps John has a point. It’s hard to see the administration’s racism from just those few comments that I’ve cited. However, John’s missing the context that the whole Iraq war and war on terror are taking place in. It’s impossible to ignore the racist underpinnings of Huntington’s book, Clash of Civilizations (by the way, his new book, Who Are We?, is a great exercise in using pseudo-social

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1087783527850649342004-06-20T22:05:00.000-04:002004-06-20T22:08:18.173-04:00

I'll be at Trinity College for the next couple of days, so there'll be a slight lag in the posts. Thanks for understanding.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1087616173037260672004-06-18T22:53:00.000-04:002004-06-18T23:38:42.416-04:00

It may be enlightening to take a look at the language the Bush administration and its ideological compatriots use to describe terrorists in the Middle East. There have been a number of essays and studies that discuss the religious language the administration uses to make its arguments in support of policy and certainly that kind of language is quite discernible in the Bush rhetoric. The flag

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1087545062029533232004-06-18T03:42:00.001-04:002004-06-18T03:52:44.110-04:00

I saw Super Size Me! earlier this evening, and it was even better than I expected. Spurlock does a good job showing not only the adverse health effects of fast food, but also the marketing involved. When I realized the degree to which children are targeted, I realized how fast food sells just as much as an addictive substance as it does a food. These places get you hooked from a very young age

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1087441513679782882004-06-16T22:53:00.000-04:002004-06-16T23:09:15.240-04:00

I disagree with the comment that kindergarteners are too young to understand child birth. It was explained to me at this age, and besides, the children's potential confusion only supports my point that it's okay to show the educational video (it was a Reading Rainbow video targeted at that age group) in a classroom setting where kids have a chance to ask questions. As to the mouth-washing

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1087359911721871702004-06-15T23:32:00.000-04:002004-06-16T21:25:39.150-04:00

Recently, Susan Braverman, a kindergarten teacher at Council Rock Primary School, a k-2 school in a suburb of Rochester, NY, showed her class a video depicting a live human birth. The video caused some controversy among district parents. The following is excerpted from an article in the Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester's local paper: The video started by telling a story through illustrations

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1087261272437414612004-06-14T20:47:00.000-04:002004-06-14T21:01:12.436-04:00

This article is a must read if you have any interest in American history.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1087016976078614222004-06-12T00:42:00.002-04:002004-06-12T10:19:16.036-04:00

I was very glad to read the comment posted late yesterday evening by Drunken Proletariat. I thought he was very complimentary, and also quite insightful. His writing was to the point and incisive. I think the analysis of Reagan's policy was right on the money; it's exactly the kind of discussion that Americans should engage in. The right has a rather odd tendency to dismiss the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086920216356699632004-06-10T19:57:00.000-04:002004-06-10T22:19:12.326-04:00

It seems that our local public television affiliate is airing a political talk show hosted by none other than the right's wünderkind, Tucker Carlson. The show is called Tucker Carlson: Unfiltered, and in the words of WXXI, our local PBS affiliate, Carlson is the "freshest face in the conservative party". Metro Justice, a Rochester based liberal activist group encouraged letters to WXXI

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086874657591530252004-06-10T09:35:00.000-04:002004-06-10T09:38:45.590-04:00

Who's flip-flopping now?

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086830758965410832004-06-09T21:25:00.000-04:002004-06-10T20:31:15.620-04:00

I’m glad to see that our anonymous poster has decided to continue the discussion. I think that a little ongoing discussion can only help this blog’s publicity. Firstly, I’d like to point out that I never said that George Bush was stupid. I said he was incompetent, simple-minded, and intellectually challenged, but I never said stupid. Secondly, I don’t know why the anonymous poster

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086749279916556162004-06-08T22:45:00.000-04:002004-06-08T22:47:59.916-04:00

For more on Ronald Reagan, see Paul Krugman's article in today's Times.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086748965826962432004-06-08T22:21:00.000-04:002004-06-09T08:59:54.500-04:00

In the technical sense, he’s probably not. Is he intellectually challenged? I vote yes. The writer of a comment today who suggested that Bush is not stupid because Yale doesn’t admit stupid people is wrong. In addition to what Brian said, consider the logic the writer uses. George Bush is not stupid by virtue of the fact that he went to Yale. I can use the same logic to prove the opposite:

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086663214734298222004-06-07T22:51:00.000-04:002004-06-07T23:14:28.126-04:00

In a recent comment Brian Samek makes several criticisms of my last post on Reagan’s death. Yes, I did make several grammatical errors throughout the post, but those have been corrected, and I apologize for the poor quality of the post. However, Samek’s assertion that any sensible liberal is in fact scared at Reagan’s death makes no sense. Firstly, Samek’s point that Reagan’s death will

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086495114669679302004-06-06T00:03:00.000-04:002004-06-07T22:42:41.876-04:00

Ronald Reagan is dead. I know many who read this blog may expect me to jump for joy, and I imagine that there are some on the left who are inwardly, or perhaps outwardly, happy at his death. I, however, will not take his death as an opportunity to celebrate. I think that there is something somewhat tragic about a man dying with little or no recollection of his life, and with little idea of

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086298234409141052004-06-03T17:18:00.000-04:002004-06-03T17:31:43.706-04:00

Well, I've recieved a little bit of feedback on the recent post on the library rules as well as the McCain/Kerry post. I appreciate the comments, and I see that at least one person has taken issue with ctopher5's (Chris's) political stance. I think it's fantastic that everybody is responding, and I hope to generate as much discussion/disagreement as possible. But...In the future it

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086272361697190582004-06-03T09:58:00.000-04:002004-06-03T17:34:13.546-04:00

If you look under the comments for the post "Thoughts on the Recent Bush Speech" you'll notice an interesting comment posted by ctopher5 (Chris, I happen to know him). He expresses his disdain for the current administration but hesitation at the thought of voting for Kerry. I think Chris represents a large segment of the population right now. An old political adage goes that if you

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086097027667509872004-06-01T09:30:00.000-04:002004-06-02T22:34:54.406-04:00

As my senior year in high school is winding to a close, I thought I'd take the moment to get away from politics a little bit and talk about some criticisms I have of the high school I'm sitting in right now. First, I'd like to start with the library. Just a few moments ago I was chastised for talking to another student while we were both sitting at the comupters. Apparently, our whispers

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1086042900211071092004-05-31T18:30:00.000-04:002004-06-01T00:05:49.986-04:00

In an age of technology and instantaneous information, hardly anything is more important to the maintenance of democracy than a responible media. In a world where public opinion is shaped and manipulated by the forces of mass media and information, aggressive, investigative, and truthful reporting is essential. See Daniel Okrent's excellent article in yesterday's Times.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1085846977919592052004-05-29T11:41:00.000-04:002004-05-29T12:13:10.023-04:00

The nomination of Dr. Ilyad Alawi to Prime Minister of the interim Iraqi government leaves a sour taste in my mouth. According to an article in the New York Times today, Alawi's nomination did not sit well with Lakdhar Brahimi who was quoted as saying that he "respected" the nomination. Alwai is a former Baathist with close ties to the CIA and a strong pro-U.S. stance. I know that it may

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1085687803650138002004-05-27T15:55:00.000-04:002004-05-27T15:56:43.650-04:00

Hope you're lovin' the new picture!

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1085664632904783392004-05-27T09:13:00.000-04:002004-05-27T15:16:13.593-04:00

A New York Times article today quotes the Bush campaign as saying "[John Kerry] has played politics with homeland security throughout this campaign." This has come after the recent Ashcroft announcement of an imminent terror threat this summer. The Bushies were responding to a Kerry press release that sharply criticized the administration for not funding domestic security initiatives. Now

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7121652.post-1085623964905315352004-05-26T20:23:00.001-04:002004-05-26T22:12:44.906-04:00

Well, I finally got around to reading about the Bush speech the other night...I was too depressed to view it myself, but I've got to say, nothing really new came up. I mean frankly, he ought to be familiar enough with multi-step programs given his past, but I digress... The real point is when is the man going to have a substantive policy on the table? He continues to issue these vague and

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07216831323672991763noreply@blogger.com4