Error and trust

Jeff points to Lorie Byrd’s recent column, and correctly notes how voters should want their elected officials to err: on the side of caution. What really stood out for me when I was reading Lorie’s piece, was this:

[I]t must be pointed out that Democrats are not to be trusted with the nation’s security. They have shown that not only will they endlessly debate until it is possibly too late but that after a military action has been initiated, in the face of difficulties and waning public support, many will back out and abandon the mission and the troops. The approach of the Democrats to the threat posed by Saddam Hussein as outlined in all of the intelligence reports available prior to the war in Iraq stands in stark contrast to that of the Bush administration.

Retrophisch™ Read Redux

So I decided the whole blog post thing regarding my book reading was taking up more of my time than I wanted to devote to it. I have a stack of books on my desk that are in the queue to be blogged, and quite frankly I cannot muster the willpower to write said posts. So, back to a static list, which is now also part of the navigation links in the banner at the top of each page.

I’ve always said, “If you want to play games…”

John Gruber:

[N]ext-generation consoles seem set to surpass the PC as the premier platforms for gaming, which means anyone who’s resisted switching from Windows because of the lack of games for the Mac will have one less reason not to switch. I think there a lot of guys out there who are starting to think they’d be better off with a new Mac and an Xbox/PS3 than with a new Windows PC.
Years ago, when I was more fanatical about evangelizing the Mac, whenever the gaming argument came up my reply was always along the lines of “If you want to play games, go buy a Nintendo.” (Update the phrase with the console of your choice.)

Don’t mind us, we’re just voting this way to get re-elected

Hugh Hewitt:

Apparently Brownstein and Vaughn could not find one elected Democrat willing to defend the 2002 vote as right at the time and right in retrospect, which tells us a great deal about the Democrats and national security — primarily that they ought not to be allowed anywhere close to its control.
[Emphasis added. –R]

Determined to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory

Mark Steyn:

Happily for Mr Zarqawi, no matter how desperate the head-hackers get, the Western defeatists can always top them. A Democrat Congressman, Jack Murtha, has called for immediate US withdrawal from Iraq. He’s a Vietnam veteran, so naturally the media are insisting that his views warrant special deference, military experience in a war America lost being the only military experience the Democrats and the press value these days. Hence, the demand for the President to come up with an “exit strategy”.

In war, there are usually only two exit strategies: victory or defeat. The latter’s easier. Just say, whoa, we’re the world’s pre-eminent power but we can’t handle an unprecedently low level of casualties, so if you don’t mind we’d just as soon get off at the next stop.

Demonstrating the will to lose as clearly as America did in Vietnam wasn’t such a smart move, but since the media can’t seem to get beyond this ancient jungle war it may be worth underlining the principal difference: Osama is not Ho Chi Minh, and al-Qa’eda are not the Viet Cong. If you exit, they’ll follow. And Americans will die – in foreign embassies, barracks, warships, as they did through the Nineties, and eventually on the streets of US cities, too.

But there is no media bias, part 7

Mary Katharine Ham:

You can always count on the press to put a gloomy tone on bright economic news.

[…]

Are four-year highs really modest? Here’s hoping the rest of the Christmas shopping season is marked by such “black clouds,” “modest gains,” “reluctance,” and “challenge.”

This is what is known as “hitting the nail on the head”

Jeff Harrell:

It kind of amazes me what shortcomings the people who buy Windows computers are willing to live with. It used to be the case that Macs were more expensive than other kinds of computers, pound for pound. This is no longer true, of course, and hasn’t been for some time, but even if it were, it seems like it would be only proper. It seems like people who buy Windows computers have to spend a lot of time finding and downloading (or buying) programs to make their computers do stuff my computer does all by itself.

“I ain’t missin’ you at all…”

Erik posits he really isn’t missing windowshade functionality in OS X. Neither am I. I began using windowshade less and less in the waning days of OS 9, thanks to LiteSwitch. Like Erik, I have rarely found myself in a situation where windowshade functionality would be necessary with Mac OS X. I hardly ever use Exposé, either.
My extensive use of cool-switching via Command-Tab and Quicksilver has also rendered the usage of multiple desktops as moot. Lee reviewed You Control: Desktops, and I looked at the product, and have experimented with Desktop Manager, but right now multiple desktops don’t fit in to my computing habits.

Happy Thanksgiving

Despite the financial hardships and the extended family dysfunctional, I have an incredible amount of things to be thankful for again this year. I pray you do, too.

“It is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favors.” –George Washington, Thanksgiving Proclamation, 3 October 1789

Michael Hyatt: Judge, Jury, Executioner

Relax, mouth-foamers, we’re talking about software. I like Michael’s system, sequestering apps for a specific amount of time to see if they’re truly needed or not. I need to do something along these lines, though I’ve already pared down to 110 items in the Applications folder from a clearinghouse earlier this year.