Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Blue Yeti ·
May 4, 2011 at 5:07pm
Some guy got whacked this week. Maybe you heard about it? The good news is we've got two professors on to help us parse the story: Paul Rahe and Victor Davis Hanson. We also cover stagflation, why Paul Ryan may be the Republican's best hope for 2012, and the suprising link between Victor's mom and Governor Moonbeam. Seriously.
You know them, you love them, you can't live without them, please give a warm Ricochet welcome to this week's links:
- Here's the story about the dog who's a SEAL. Read with a certain degree of skepticism however, as it's from the British tabloid The Sun, which isn't exactly known for it's fact checking. Update: The NYT is now reporting the story as well. Our apologies to The Sun.
- We concur: Hitler's Last Days: An Eye-Witness Account is an interesting choice for bedtime reading.
- Downfall is a great movie, but we love even more the internet meme a scene from the movie spawned a few years ago, including the inevitable Hitler Finds Out bin Laden is Dead (warning: adult language).
- Here's your robe, what's your hurry? ABC News broke the story that Osama had 500 euros and some phone numbers sewn into his clothes.
- We also are reluctant to wade into this, but the BBC reported (we know, we know) in 2000 that an official Israeli report has acknowledged for the first time that the Israeli security service tortured detainees during the Palestinian uprising, the Intifada, between 1988 and 1992.
- The iconic photo from The Situation Room during the bin Laden raid is well on the way to becoming the most viewed photo ever posted on Flickr. It has also launched thousands of parodies, including our personal favorite, "The Situation in The Situation Room."
- We're not able to find the article that anonymously claims that Obama had to be talked into the mission. Little help, James?
- Curtis E. LeMay (1906–1990) was the often abrasive but utterly effective U.S. Air Force General, heralded as the father of modern strategic bombing (he's credited with orchestrating the firebombing of Tokyo and crippling Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia with devastating aerial assaults). In the classic Cold War film Dr. Strangelove, the character of General Buck Turgidson, played by George C. Scott, is based in part on LeMay.
- We're sure he was a lovely guy, but Richard Helms is the only Central Intelligence Agency director to have been convicted of lying to the United States Congress over CIA undercover activities. In 1977, he was sentenced to the maximum fine and received a suspended two-year prison sentence. But in a weird moment of convergence for this podcast episode, according to Wikipedia, he did interview Adolph Hitler for UPI during the 1936 Olympics.
- Here's the exchange on Twitter that Rob mentioned. Hey @MaxShenker, next time use the comments on Ricochet. That's why they're here.
- Paul Rahe is one of our most prolific contributors. His post on Paul Ryan, The Road Ahead: A Third Man Who Can Lead and his post on Stagflation is just a small sampling of his Ricochet ouvre. Collect them all!
- You know, until this very moment, we had never really thought about the relationship of corn and bacon. Thanks, James.
- North Dakota Senator John Hoeven and Peter Robinson attended Dartmouth together back in the days when checking the weather report on Yahoo! was considered cool. He was also a guest on episode 28 of the podcast.
- Wikipedia has an excellent summation of the territorial dispute over the Kashmir region, the northwesternmost region of South Asia. The countries disputing are India, Pakistan, China, and the Kashmiri people. Maybe it's just us, but Rob's solution sounds a little too Trump to actually work. If they do ever manage to become a sovereign nation, they will have best national anthem ever, though.
- According to Bollywood.com, Indian superstar actor Shah Rukh Khan will indeed portray Saddam Hussein in an upcoming bio pic. We're not sure about the claim that he's a bigger star than Brad Pitt, however. Hollywood stars have huge international audiences. Bollywood stars are unknown here, which is why they sometimes run into problems at Newark Airport.
- Hillsdale College is unsurprisingly located in Hillsdale, MI and is the ideal place to send your conservative son or daughter. Ricochet's own Pat Sajak is on the board there, but no, he won't write a recommendation for your kid.
- Pauline Davis Hanson was the first woman jurist on the 5th District Court of Appeal in California. Here is one of several law scholarships endowed in her memory.
- Jessica Lynch served in Iraq during the 2003 invasion operation. After she was captured Iraqi forces, she was subsequently rescued by U.S. Special Operations Forces. Lynch's was the first successful rescue of an American POW since World War II and the first ever of a woman. However, initial media reports on Lynch's recovery in Iraq were incorrect. Lynch, along with major media outlets, fault the U.S. government for creating the story as part of the Pentagon's propaganda effort.
- Here's the piece in Time about the kids who listened while George W. Bush read My Pet Goat to them on September 11th, 2001. The biggest shocker isn't that they thought the President did the right thing by finishing the story, its that they are now in high school.
- The "Keep Calm and Carry On" poster was first produced by the British government as a morale booster during WWII. There are dozens of parodies and variations of it. Make your own here.
- Peter's post, Poets' Corner, Or a Double Dactyl for Osama is a lot of fun. James Lileks' double dactyl is the second comment down, but be sure and read them all.
- Thanks for reading this far. Did we miss anything? Add your own links in the comments below.
Music from this week's episode:
- Chopin's Sonata No. 2 (Funeral March) by Vladimir Horowitz
- Dead! by My Chemical Romance
The direct link to this week's episode (great for mobile devices!). But be calm and subscribe. Don't use iTunes? Visit our Feedburner page for a number of other subscription options.
The Ricochet Podcast is proudly sponsored by Encounter Books and their Broadside series. This week's featured title is Government Unions and the Bankrupting of America by Daniel DiSalvo. Available in all formats at EncounterBooks.com.
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May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
I'm about a third of the way through the podcast. I had to pause to comment on how much I appreciated Peter's contributions. I agree with him on all points.
- However necessary and just Osama's killing was, and however natural our relief and satisfaction in it, the triumphalist cheering in front of the White House was off-mark. Death is awful. So is killing. I, too, would have cheered and celebrated the end of World War II, not the news of Hitler's death.
- There is a real and crucial moral distinction between "enhanced interrogation methods" and torture. We should adamantly and forcefully reject the left's conflation of the two. We are not just winking and nodding and putting a benign legal cover on torture. We are--as a matter of law and morals--refusing to engage in it.
- We should keep reminding the left that they cannot celebrate the demise of Osama without implicitly approving the methods by which it was accomplished. (Personally, I wouldn't say we "celebrate" those methods; but we do accept them as necessary. We endorse them in certain, very strictly limited cases. We still hate them, and regret them.)
Sep '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
However necessary and just Osama's killing was, and however natural our relief and satisfaction in it, the triumphalist cheering in front of the White House was off-mark.
I agree with you and Peter. My reaction was the same as when Johnny Unitas would finish a football game. Remove the chinstrap, walk off the field, and then do the same thing next week.
Sep '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Let me add my thanks to Peter for pushing back at Rob on his comments about the Mossad. (They must be torturers, because they're not "nice guys"? Please.)
But Peter... is there any way you can refrain from pounding your table when you get real serious? Or failing that, can you move your microphone to a less resonant surface?
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
"Peter's post, Poets' Corner, Or a Double Dactyl for Osama is a lot of fun. James Lileks' double dactyl is the second comment down, but be sure and read them all."
Yes, thank you Blue Yeti for drawing attention to what the Big Shots ignored: mine was the only double dactyl submitted by a civilian. Which was roundly, universally ignored and which killed the thread dead.
Hey, wait. Thread. Dead. Let me write that down. I can use that.
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Sharon Botesazan: There are standards and there are red lines.
And to add an additional thank you, I really love these podcasts. · May 5 at 12:29am
Beautifully put, Sharon. Just the point I was trying to make. (Next time, I'll remember your line. Where I was all fumbly, you were crisp.)
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
You know what? That's exactly the kind of comment that really and truly represents constructive criticism. Yes, I can indeed stop pounding my desk. (Although I'll need to be reminded--I do it completely unconsciously. Yeti? Will you stop me next time?)
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Fredösphere:
Hey, wait. Thread. Dead. Let me write that down. I can use that. · May 5 at 12:05pm
Your mind works exactly like mine. You must be a writer under deadline from time to time, too. (I don't necessarily mean that as a compliment. More as a form of commiseration.)
Apr '11
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
We bombed Soviet Russia? When did that happen?
Jan '11
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
This is totally off topic, but then again, this is kind of an open-ended sort of post.
Does anyone else think $1 million is way too much to pay for that ugly Pakistani box that bin Laden was living in? I mean, it had no cable, no phones, no internet. It looked depressing, if you ask me. They had over a dozen people living in that place?
And don't tell me that it's location, location, location ... it's in Pakistan, after all.
Dec '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
I second Sharon Botesazan. Thanks to Peter for insisting that Israel is serious about dealing with the moral issues of enhanced interrogation. It is that kind of unsubstantiated assertions regarding Mossad methods specifically and Israel generally that contribute to the anti-Israel/anti-Semitic meme that is so prevalent in the world today.
Dec '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Holy moly! I can't tell who is who on this podcast... I know Peter's voice from Uncommon Knowledge and other productions. But Peter definitely uncovered a Ricochet contributor who is VERY contemptuous of Israel. Amazing. Whoever he was, he attempted to cover over Peter's suggestion (literally tried to drown him out) that we consider Israel's struggle with info gathering. The interrupter was dripping contempt and ridicule, with no reasoning on the topic. That segment is in the first 20 minutes of the podcast. Now, in later minutes, I hear that he is Rob Long... Quite an eye-opener... Unexpected Knowledge of Ricochet.
Edited on May 5, 2011 at 6:06pmRe: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Let me be clear: I support Israel. I even support Israel's right -- and, frankly, need -- to use rather harsher interrogation techniques that we might. I think to suppose that they don't use techniques that go beyond sleep deprivation and waterboarding is naive. Personally, surrounded by enemies bent on their destruction, I hope they're using the most effective and robust means possible.
Put it this way: they also say they don't have nuclear weapons. But I'm awfully glad that they do.
Dec '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Rob - You're in SoCal? If you think the situation in Israel's neighborhood will be permanently different from the SW US, this video and the next link may be worth Ricochet's attention.
http://www.10news.com/news/27780427/detail.html
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/04/28/americas-war-arming-mexican-cartels/
Jul '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Be still my heart, a Lowly Worm reference on a podcast!
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
I don't think it'll be different. I hope it never gets as bad here as it is for Israel, with enemies literally within her borders. Which is sort of my point. Israel faces different -- and in many ways more dire -- threats. Their standard for what constitutes torture is going to be different -- and probably a little looser -- than ours. So be it. But to suggest that it's the same as ours, that it's as strict as ours, is naive. At least, I hope it's naive. For Israel's sake.
That's my point about the nuclear weapons Israel says it doesn't have but almost assuredly does. The official American position is that they don't have them. The official Israeli position is that they won't be the "first to introduce them" to the region. But the official position and the real position are different. And that's a good thing.
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Peter Robinson
Fredösphere:
Hey, wait. Thread. Dead. Let me write that down. I can use that. · May 5 at 12:05pm
Your mind works exactly like mine. You must be a writer under deadline from time to time, too. (I don't necessarily mean that as a compliment. More as a form of commiseration.) · May 5 at 4:06pm
Not really, Peter, but I'm very flattered you would compare my mind (AKA, "the junk drawer") with yours (AKA, "the Swiss 21 jewel watch").
Apr '11
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Since this is one of my personal hobby-horses; the mention of a show on Mexico was something I was not only looking forward to, but also rather disappointed did not actually materialize.
However, I am hoping that this hopefully short wait might allow for some suggestions of guests.
Austin Bay, I would recommend in a second, though I don't know what schedule problems that might cause...
Anyone else got any suggestions?
Edited on May 7, 2011 at 4:35amMay '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
I'd love to hear Dr Rahe on these podcasts a lot more.
Apr '11
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Peter, comments you and James made regarding young people cheering Osama’s death have rankled me enough to comment. You said “they were cheering about something they did not understand” and James followed with “They were cheering a guy who made Transformers go off for a week.” My 20 year old son is currently a cadet at West Point (where the cadets did celebrate). When I heard the news of Osama's death, I pulled out my son’s 5th grade journal. He had written of his horror at pictures of people jumping out of the WTC and that “Osama thinks he can attack the United States and we won’t do anything, but he is wrong.” I know that his decision to seek an appointment to West Point was informed by September 11. I am sure that is true of many of the men and women who are serving in this Long War. His 5th grade comments were not sophisticated, but I do think that they reflect an understanding of what Bin Laden had tried to do to this country and that it could not be allowed to stand. (And he was not a uniquely mature 5th grader.
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #68: He's Dead, James
Electrodes to the testicles seems to be the ne plus ultra exemplar of torture, at least according to Rob.
I have three children in the U. S. Army, a fourth is a civilian contractor in Afghanistan. If applying electrodes to the testicles of an Al Quaeda or Taliban operative (non-uniformed irregulars not subject to the Geneva convention) would prevent their being killed or maimed would I support it? By extension would I support it to benefit other people's children.
Yes.