Austin Bramwell writing for the The American Conservative questions the right's intellectual vibrancy now that it has reached an unprecedented pinnacle. Once a relatively small group of outsiders, conservatives in the west now find themselves controlling the House, the Senate, the White House, and large swaths of popular thought. This, Bramwell posits, is leading to a lethargy that is undermining one of the most innovative political movements of our time. Having won so much conservatives seem afraid to challenge the status quo:

Though every year the conservative movement raises thousands of aspiring intellectuals, they have no interest in creating a new intellectual synthesis. If they go into academia or the think-tank world, they contribute to research projects long under way; if they go into journalism, they defend an established editorial line. In blogosphere parlance, they become "instapundits", not philosophers.

Conservatives (still) strive for the "Holy Grail" of political philosophy, a doctrine that would prove, once and for all, the inherent limits of liberalism and the fundamental truths tharesonatete through the doctrines that drive conservative thought. Even though "the wisest conservatives know that the Grail reamains beyond their graspsps. Yet, like Arthurian knights of old, they never give up hope that it is there." However, this striving today resembles nothing so much as a self-congratulatory circle jerk.

Bramwell implies that the circular nature of life holds a near religious sway over political philosopy. A fact that is comforting and simultaneously disqueting, regardless of political leanings. The rise, and subsequent demise, of the left in the west offers a cautionary tale for the preminent political powers of today. Liberalism's reign began to erode shortly after the new deal.

Intellectual sclerosis, however, soon set in. Second-tier intellects such as Arthur Schlesinger and John Kenneth Galbraith took over from Lippmann and Dewey and began to take liberal ideology as a given. They proposed not new ways of understanding the world but new ways of advancing liberalism. In the hour of their triumph, liberals became blind to their own ideological shortcomings, which later became all too manifest.

A cautionary tale, perhaps, but there are notable thinkers still plying the trade on the right, he mentions three loosely defined groups:
The academics of the Critical Review, the so-called evolutionary conservatives, and techno-skeptic conservatives. All groups are unabashedly elitist, a description that is nothing less than an endearment.

This elitism, perhaps an electoral handicap, is an intellectual strength. Original thinking often flourishes under conditions of intellectual marginality. Unfortunately, the conservative movement, having discovered a mass audience, risks squandering the intellectual marginality that once made it so interesting and daring.

In future years, it may take a smaller, elite group of right-wingers to animate conservative ideas once more.

So while ThomasFrank et. al. ponder the problems of Kansas, perhaps liberals should find solace in that all seismic poli-intellectual movements plant the seeds of their destruction soon after their mosbountifulul harvest

A story of socialism that works. If nothing else, I agree with Kaiser's summary, we can learn from the educational component of Finnish society.

Is meth is the new crack? But rock, was it ever all it was cracked up to be?

Methamphetamines has grown into a cover-worthy epidemic.Newsweek chronicles the perils of “America’s Most Dangerous Drug”, complete with a photo essay and cringe-worthy anecdotes. While no one doubts the risks of ingesting potentially addictive substances, some are questioning the actual extent of the danger.

As Steve Suo, a writer for the Oregonian who has covered the meth explosion extensively opines:

Media coverage of the issue too often has been laden with generalizations, hyperbole and sensational images. Reporters, with rare exception, have been slow to challenge the conventional wisdom handed to them by purported experts on the topic.

Others have questioned the methodology and numbers (or lack thereof) that have driven much of the media’s breathless coverage of the issue.

For all Newsweek's hysteria, it fails to deliver. For instance, if meth is America's most dangerous drug, how many people has it killed? Newsweek doesn't bother to explore the topic, perhaps because it's so hard to pin down. In 2000, Oahu recorded 35 deaths, Phoenix 105, and Los Angeles 155. Meanwhile, New York City recorded only three that year, while Long Island claimed 38. According to Fred Leavitt's 1982 book, Drugs & Behavior, about one usage in 2 million ends in a fatality. If meth is really the most dangerous drug, you'd think the magazine would have provided some sort of body count

Larger questions about the role of drugs in America, public policy related to treatment and/or prosecution of drug user, and perhaps most importantly, the media’s responsibility to the public’s trust are brought up by a story that seems to reappear like clockwork, every decade. So is meth the new crack? And should we care?

When it's third and ten, you can take the milk drinkers and I'll take the whiskey drinkers every time.- Max McGee

The biggest sport in America is about to return and football fans are ready. Before us armchair prognosticators make our picks about which team can possibly hold back the dawning juggernaut that is the Patriots, it's worth looking back at an eventful pre-season.

Receivers are always quote and note-worthy, and this summer is no different. The biggest off-season story is the maelstrom that swirls around uber-grabber Terrell Owens. Less than a year after pulling a Willis Reed and valiantly leading the Eagles to 1st runner-up status, the goodwill he earned has all been engulfed by his battles with Philadelphiaa teammates and coaches. While not making the media circuit with new agent Drew Rosenhaus, or busting out those freaky-ripped abs in his driveway, TO spent this summer trying to figure out a way to renege on the second year of a seven year contract. The City of Brotherly Love was not amused. All may be forgiven if McNabb and TO can produce (akward silence and all) like they did in their first pre-season game together.

Not to be out done, brand new Oakland Raider Randy Moss admitted that, yeah, he's toked the green bud a few times. Not an earthshaking revelation if he wasn't employed by a league mired in the mid-20th century, and he's had a ahem past with pot.

Infinitely more serious is the situation at the 49er's camp. While #1 overall pick Alex Smith struggled to learn the QB position in the big leagues, his teammate from Utah, and fellow Niner rookie Thomas Herrion showed how fleeting it all can be. Shortly following a preseason game Herrion collapsed and died. An autopsy was inconclusive but pundits have speculated that Herrion's 300+ pounds and the incredible rigors of playing football in the NFL led to his death. Herrion's passing was a stunning reminder that we (should) play and watch games to embrace life, not replace it.

Regardless of New England's recent run, the NFL is still a league beset by parity, so make your picks now. After all, since some of the smart money is picking the Cardinals to be this year's Chargers, we definitely know anything is possible.

I'm back all.

Thank you all for your kinds words and wishes...

Andrew Sullivan breaks rank with most of the Right (and much of the Left) and proclaims Hillary is the one to beat in 2008.

Senator Clinton has finally escaped one of the critical drags on her national reputation. What many people disliked about her was what they perceived as her unreconstructed liberal politics and her use of her marriage to gain and wield political power.


(Charges of nepotism doesn't seem to be a problem for most people who run for office.)

Sulli says her speechs on abortion and the war position her as a moderate Democrat which undermines the most substantial criticisms directed towards her.

Korea seems to be doing a good job of making a place for themselves in the coming years. Is this something we want?

How refreshing it is to live in the Age of Revolution. Though his critique of Bush the Elder and Clinton smack a little too much of a very public turf-war, Ledoon's larger points ring true.

"If anyone orders Merlot, I'm leaving. I am not drinking any fucking Merlot." So says wine-snob Miles in the critically acclaimed movie Sideways. And those two sentences have reverberated throughout the wine making (and drinking) world.

Many oenophiles have turned up their noses since the mid-1990s, when "a glass of Merlot" became synonymous, for casual drinkers, with a glass of red wine. But sales never stopped rising, and Merlot passed Cabernet as America's best-selling red wine in 2000, according to the Wine Institute.


Napa Valley met Hollywood and the impact is noticeable. Not only has the sales of Merlot started to show some signs of slipping, now it's more than just wine-aficionados who are turning their backs on Merlots. Miles' favorite varietal is Pinot Noir and a positive impact has been felt in the valleys as well.

Pinot noir sales reached 370,000 cases for the 12 weeks ending Jan. 15, up nearly 16 percent from the same period a year ago, according to an ACNielsen analysis released Monday.


Let's pause before we toss Merlots into the same heap as White Zin, Everclear, and the other guilty pleasures those of us whose thirst for a buzz occasionally overide our thirst for status. Let's remember this gentle, but firm, and always versatile wine. What are your favorite merlots? And for those of you who have turned your back on the "cashmere sweater" of wines (even those of you who did so before Sideways) share with us your favorite flavor of grape.

Thank you for all the kind words. I haven't neccisarily gone the way of Andrew Sullivan, or have succumbed to the sachirine. There will be more coming here soon, thank you all for your patientce.

Speaking of bloggers navel gazing, Justin Hall is stepping down.

"What if intimacy happens in quiet moments?" he said. "I think the Web makes me not alone and I feed it my intimacies, and the Web is my constant connection to something larger than myself ... but what if something you do, something you practice like religion as a dialogue with the divine, drives people away from you?"

I'll see you all soon.

"When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro"

Hunter S. Thompson is dead. The father of Gonzo-Journalism, and best selling author of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas shot and killed himself at his home just outside of Aspen.

Whether writing about the depravity that sucked away the soul of America, or the latest line on a big football game, Thompson connected to his readers in indelible ways, for better or for worse.

It had the makings of an instant classic. Undefeated and ranked #1 all season, USC played #2 and undefeated all season, Oklahoma. Two storied programs, full of Heismans, National titles, and rabid fans, it was a marquee match up. The game turned out to be less close than anticipated. Led by current Heisman trophy winner Matt Leinart, and his 5 TD's, USC destroyed last year's Heisman winner Jason White's squad.

An almost perfect game for the Trojan faithful has once again ended the season in controversy as undefeated Auburn helplessly watched. Even the horrific East Coast media bias, that screwed the Trojans two seasons ago and Cal this year (or not), couldn't find a spin that would grant Auburn a share of the national title. Still, the BCS finds itself being second-guessed yet again.

Now that the ADT trophy has been lifted, it gives us a chance to reflect on an amazing college season. Will the PAC-10 finally get the respect is deserve from the sports writers stuck in their offices in Manhattan? How long until the BCS is demolished? (And by the way, what are the best ways as fans and alumni to hasten the demise of the BCS?) Who has the biggest gripe from Bowl Season? Cal, Auburn, or Utah? And just how good is USC? Is it time to bust out the D-word?

The Washington Post has bought the venerable (at least in internet years) Slate.com. Fingers crossed, hoping for the best.

The #1 team in America has another Heisman. "Tailback-U" generates another QB who wins college football's most coveted individual award. Fight on! Matt Leinart.

I'm mostly sitting this round of the steroid "issue" out. Most of you long-time readers know where I stand. However, I did want to point you over to Andrew Sullivan's take, which I believe overlaps well with mine. It's nice to see reason starting to reveal itself on this issue.

There are conflicts of interest.

And then there's the Bowl Championship Series.

The BCS is to college football what Tony Soprano is to waste hauling in New Jersey -- a monopoly turning a tidy profit by cleaning up messes without dithering over who gets hurt along the way.

This season's victims were Auburn and California. Last season's was Southern California. In past seasons, Oregon, Colorado, Kansas State, Miami and a few other schools got the back of the BCS hand. All got sympathy notes, too, and promises the beatings would stop. But the only thing that's changed since the BCS hijacked the postseason in 1998 is the name of the victims.

The holidays are upon us and that can only mean one thing, it's time for college football fana to continue the annual rite of BCS-bashing. For the first time ever the preseason #1 and #2 teams went through the season undefeated and will meet for the national championship. But we don't have to go too far down the poll to find some hacked-off programs. Shut out is Auburn, who at 12-0 felt they deserved a chance to compete for the national title. Perhaps even more stupefying is what happened to the 10-1 Cal Bears. Ranked #4 going into this weekend's final game they were seemingly headed to the prestigious (and lucrative) Rose Bowl for the first time since 1959. Many Cal fans worried they'd have to beat Southern Mississippi by an impressive margin to hold off a charging Texas team. Cal won in a close road game (even taking a knee in the final plays rather than running up the score to impress voters) and the results were all that was feared. Cal got bumped in the polls and Texas will be going to the Rose Bowl and the Cal Bears, whose only loss came to the #1 team in America, fell out of the BCS and into the Holiday Bowl.

So folks, who got screwed the most? Cal or Auburn? Is this really another example of the horrific East Coast bias? Is a playoff system even possible, let alone feasible?

Another shooting in Gaza. This time a 13-year-old girl. A political nightmare for the Israelis.

The U.S. has found a way to defend the morally indefensiable, torture.

Dahlia Lithwick, who for my money is journalist who best covers the Supreme Court, with a dispatch about the current medical pot case. It doesn't look promising for us fans of federalism and individual autonomy.

Dan with all the goods on the situation in Ukraine,