GOP Holding On?

Polling Day

You have only about 3 1/2 hours left to vote here in Virginia. Get out there and do your duty.

Wow

Andrew Bacevich writes about the dumbest thing I've read in a while. I can't decide whether the question begging or the vague platitudinal blather is the worst of it.

Tuesday's Elections

Looks like we're gonna have a changing of the guard in Virginia's Senate. Republicans hold 23 out of 40 seats now. I'd say that their over-under for January is 18.5. I'm more inclined to support Republicans than Democrats, but I'm not so sure that this outcome would be all that bad. Having the General Assembly split during redistricting is probably a good thing.

I shouldn't be so quick to assume that the GOP will assume minority status in the Senate. If several of their districts work out the way you would normally expect, the Reps may be able to hold on. We'll know soon enough.

Well Said

J. R. Dunn of the estimable American Thinker pens a column on torture for RCP. Pretty well spot on, I'd say.

Breaking Good News

It looks as though at least two of the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee are going to act like grownups after all. Good for them. I'll admit that may be treating Sen. Feinstein unfairly - but not Sen. Schumer.

More on Iraq

The WaPo reports on the decreased violence in Iraq - but notes some less hopeful items as well. Former Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi wants to change the country's electoral system. He may have a very good idea - it's obviously hard for me to say. I do wonder if his very poor showing in the 2005 election has anything to do with his desire to change the rules.

(Mostly) Good News from Iraq

This LA Times article is worth a read. Here's a bit:

They say the decision to send 28,500 more troops to Iraq has made a difference by allowing them to send soldiers to live on the fault lines between Sunni Arab and Shiite neighborhoods in Baghdad, and to conduct sweeping offensives in provinces east and south of the capital against strongholds of Shiite Muslim militias and Sunni militants linked to foreign insurgents.

But others say that the picture is more complicated than that because those seeking to cleanse their neighborhoods of rival religious sects have largely succeeded. The civilian death toll plummeted nationwide in the last two months; the toll was 2,076 in January but 884 in September and 758 in October, according to the Iraqi Health Ministry.

It remains to be seen if local political progress will translate in progress on the national level. With losses among our troops and Iraqi civilians dropping, maybe optimism is justified.

Some Advice for Republicans

This perspective comes courtesy of Tony Blankley. I wonder if the GOP will have the wisdom to heed his warning.

The Politico

Do you read Politico.com? If not, here's something of an introduction. They have an article on voter anger today. The claim is that angry voters are fed up with Washington and that is bad news for Democrats. I suspect that things are somewhat more complicated than that. Plenty of voters are upset that Dems have not come through on the promises about ending the Iraq War. Do you really think that any of them are suddenly going to vote for Republicans because of it? I think that is a small cadre of voters who may vacillate between the two parties, but most of them will stick with the Dems in 2008.

The (Sort of) Sacking of Stanley O'Neal

Clarence Page hits all the right notes. I'm waiting to hear from Jesse and Al.

Do You Believe in Redemption?

Vivian Paige would like to know. I'm for yes. I hope that Alphonso Albert will get a chance prove himself in his new job.

The Evidence Mounts

I know that some people will always refuse to believe it, but another study points to sexual orientation as "genetically wired." I hear that there's gambling at Rick's, too.

Moment of Silence

Illinois's law faces a court challenge. It makes for an interesting case. I don't think that a moment of silence is likely to fail against a Constitutional challenge, but the idea that it is not meant to promote prayer is nonsense. It just takes a wink and a nod.

Hillary vs. Ronnie P.

Well, this revelation is interesting. It's good news for Republicans, and further proof of Sen. Clinton's high negatives. She has a year to work on those, however....

Update: look at these numbers, too.

I'm back.

I know you're excited. I'd further regale you with tales of 3 days off, but I know better. More posting shortly.

Does Church Make You Poor?

Looks like it. The U.S. and Kuwait are outliers. I wonder how strong the causal relationship really is. Sleeping in on Sunday looks like an even better idea than I already thought it was.

The Fabled Bypass

The News & Advance has an article about the state of the proposed Rt. 29 bypass. I'm happy to see that Senator Newman has gotten an opinion from Attorney General McDonnell on payback by the Culpeper District, for what it's worth. That's pretty much nothing right now. Gov. Kaine owes too many favors to donors in the C'ville area to allow the bypass plans to go forward. Hard to imagine that it would be different under any Democratic Governor. Score one for McDonnell '09.

I see that I'm not the only one.

Stephen Green (Vodkapundit) writes about his libertarian backsliding. I have to say that I've followed a remarkably similar path in the last few years. I would have voted for Ron Paul without much hesitation in 2000 (it took me a little longer to get into freefall). 2008? Not a chance. Let me further say that Rep. Paul's overeager followers are nearly as annoying as those idiotic 9/11 "truthers." God, what a plague those losers are.

Gov. Kaine acts on MRSA

Here's an excerpt from the Governor's press release:

Governor Timothy M. Kaine today approved an emergency
regulation by the State Health Commissioner that requires laboratories
to report Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection
to the Virginia Department of Health (VDH).  The regulation is effective
today, and will assist public health authorities in the effort to
compile data on the prevalence of MRSA for surveillance and
investigation.

Today's action was prompted by concerns among citizens and health care
professionals following the recent death of a Virginia teenager due to
invasive MRSA, as well as the recent release of a study by the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control identifying MRSA as a major public health
problem in the United States.

This kind of stuff makes me a little uneasy, but it's hard to imagine that he was going to do anything else. MRSA may well be dangerous enough to justify this action. I suppose that we'll find out in time.