Sexist IMO.

But Tom, if a life is worthy of any moral consideration at all, it is worthy of not being killed. Saying that you believe a life is worthy of moral consideration but that doesn't mean it deserves the right to not be killed is utterly incoherent.

I think that anyone who is serious about this issue can't avoid coming to a decision about the the nature of an unborn human life. To do so is simply cowardly. And while I can see how one comes to the conclusion that a fetus isn't due the full moral consideration that a born child is, I still find the idea that it deserves no moral consideration rather disgusting. And frankly, Tom, that is what the position you've laid out boils down to.

I mean, if you believe a life deserves some form of moral consideration, surely the minimum, the absolute most basic consideration any morally valuable entity deserves is the right to life. That is, even if you think a fetus deserves less consideration than a born life, to entertain that it doesn't at least deserve the right to be alive is to declare that it doesn't really deserve any moral consideration at all. That is the logical conclusion of your viewpoint, Tom. Believing otherwise is rationalization and denial.

Even if its not a direct hit, it seems highly likely that Tampa is going to be experiencing some really nasty weather, and it may actually become necessary to do an evacuation even though the storm might miss. I mean, this is such a stupid choice. My spouse and I got married at the end of August about ten years ago. We thought it prudent to postpone our honeymoon in the Carribbean until November because we knew the risks of hurricanes ruining our plans. It doesn't take much intelligence to know that placing something really, really important, like the most crucial party convention in decades, right in the middle of hurricane alley at the time they are most likely to come is a really, really, really bad idea.

PPP is starting to skew their sample to be much more pro-Republican. Their poll yesterday in Missouri showing Akin still beating McCaskey is a GOP +9 sample, as opposed to a Dem +2 sample they used in May. This Wisconsin poll has a GOP +2 sample, which seems optimistic in a traditionally blue state. I don't trust PPP at all.

Romney is not allowed to spend his campaign money yet and the press is doing everything to help Obama distort Romney's image. There is not a lot you can do when the press ignores every great speech and line of attack while blowing every word or phrase that can possibly be misconstrued into the gaffe of the century. Until the convention and ability to open up the war chest happen, Romney will struggle. It's not his fault. Don't panic.

Peter, I wonder why you rarely if ever make the arguments against Romney yourself, but always cite a surrogate to hide behind and make your criticisms for you.

I think the pollsters have an interest in making the race look close or even showing that the weaker candidate is doing well because that keeps hope alive for the weak candidates supporters and keeps them looking at the polls. If the polls consistently show a solid advantage for one candidate, people stop paying attention, and people stop noticing the polls.

The latest Pew poll is even worse. It's dem +12. It really is outrageous. I suspect the samples will be adjusted once the election gets closer so that the final polls are more accurate. Right now the pollsters are more worried about getting their poll noticed than having their poll be correct. If they get the final poll in November correct, they know they can still maintain their reputation for accuracy.

Gosh, I wish Rob hadn't been so reticent in his feelings on Romney's trip. Seriously, that was perhaps the most thorough flogging of an expired equine I've ever listened to. Did you think we were too busy skipping through the podcast, Rob, that we missed the first six times you let fly with your circular firing squad volleys about Romney being on auto-pilot and trying to impress the Sunday talk show crowd and the irrelevance of foreign policy that you felt the need to reiterate it another half dozen times?

Peter, you were missed. 

I found the memorial tribute bizarre and boring. Sorry. The interpretive dance was just queer (you'd think that would have made NBCs programmers want to show it!) I also don't know why a tribute to the 7/7 victims belongs in the Olympic opening ceremonies. The whole ceremony was incredibly parochial and very tacky for the majority. Where it wasn't tacky it mostly seemed irrelevant to the themes of the Olympics. The giant rings and the flame lighting were the only things I thought were well done. The dove on the bike was a neat image but why the hell does a dove need a bike to fly??? The whole thing was really lame IMO.

Why didn't they want us to see it? I'd say they spared us from seeing it. That was boring, queer and confusing.

Tacky, shallow, inappropriate, vapid and uninspiring.

What a tacky, shallow, and embarrassing affair. The overdone and inappropriate use of British pop music that permeated so much of the ceremony was just tasteless and it had zero connection to anything that the Olympics are meant to represent or honor. It was just mindless low-brow filler seemingly meant to keep people entertained. I mean what kind of metaphor was that stupid story about the couple trying to find each other meant to be? And did they really need to start making out in the middle of the stadium??? Gross.

The Olympics are an ancient tradition meant to elevate mankind and celebrate our dignity and the nobility of the human spirit. Instead of trying to pay respect to those ideas and inspire us, the ceremony designers decided we needed to endure a medley of dated, ephemeral, tired, treacly, vapid pop tunes accompanied by bad dancers in ugly spandex and cheesy lighting effects.

Poor form, UK. Most unbecoming.

I see you've never heard of Chicago.

Chicago is a large city on the shore of Lake Michigan, started as a trading center and later a strategic military post named Fort Dearborn. During the mid-1800s it's central location in the rapidly expanding nation, along with the advent of the railroad industry, allowed it to grow at an amazing rate.

It gained a reputation as a city of incredible opportunity as well as bald-faced corruption. Meat packing, a chief industry, drew hundreds of thousands of Irish, German, Polish, and Italian immigrants. This working class backbone made it a frontline for labor organizers.

Politicians gained power by exercising extensive patronage favors to the various immigrant communities and a culture of big promises and grandiose rhetoric by it's politicians gained the city the nickname, "The Windy City" in honor of all the "hot air" spewed by the cities ruling class.

The patronage system reached its height under the administration of Richard J. Daley who ruled the city for decades and who is often credited with giving the presidency to John Kennedy through the election fraud his underlings performed on Kennedy's behalf.

Politics is not about principles, it is about winning power. I don't think our current crop of politicians are any weaker or more corrupt than we've always had. If anything our increasing ability to scrutinize every aspect of our politicians has made them less able to get away with their weasely ways than they ever have been able to.

When will George Weigel be on a podcast or invited to contribute here. He is amazing.