Here and There, Nov. 10

Richard Rappaport argues that Dianne Feinstein would be the Democrats' best bet for President in 2004. I have concerns about Feinstein, as she is more willing than most politicians to whittle away at the First Amendment in order to salve various fits of public hysteria. But on many issues she is pragmatic, centrist and certainly more of a foreign policy realist than the Pelosi Democrats. Nominating Feinstein probably would be a smart political move for the Dems.

The Religion of Peace has just killed some more innocent people.

Thomas Friedman makes some stellar points today:

Let's be blunt: the Democratic Party as a force for shaping U.S. foreign policy is out of business, until that party undergoes regime change. That's not healthy. You can't have a sound foreign policy without an intelligent domestic opposition keeping people honest.

and

Consider the Predator drone that last week fired a rocket and wiped out a key Al Qaeda cell in Yemen. I'm glad we did that. Sometimes it's the only way justice gets done.

I think that Friedman is chronically wrong in arguing that the Palestinian aspriations will be satisfied if Israel removes its settlements from the West Bank. But Friedman is so right on so many other issues.

Maureen Dowd has a run-in with the religious police in Saudi Arabia and writes: "I missed John Ashcroft desperately." Perhaps she's beginning to understand what this whole thing is about. Good for her.

The best new snack food I've discovered in a really long time is called Veggie Booty

Posted by Stefan Sharkansky at November 10, 2002 09:17 PM