Tuesday's links and comments

A lot of stuff going on. Here are several links with brief commentary.

Yesterday, Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) announced he was forming an exploratory committee for a presidential run. I wish him luck. Political junkies know Hunter to be a smart, well-informed congressman with a good grasp of military issues and foreign affairs. However, no one else knows him. If I asked 100 people at random if they recognize his name I'd have less than 5 correct answers.

Here is Thomas Sowell's latest column. He hits on two subjects. He correctly points out that the excitement over a potential Barack Obama presidential run is extremely premature and he discusses the nightmare of a Speaker of the House named Pelosi.

If you're in the mood for a history lesson, Michael Barone has an informative look back on the history of sixth-year-of-the-presidency off-year elections. Have big gains for the out party been a harbinger of future voting patterns? His definitive answer is sometimes yes and sometimes no. Whenever I hear someone using the past to predict the future I'm reminded of the disclaimer used by mutual funds: "Past performance is not guarantee of future results."

How do Democrats respond to the truth about their intentions? Here is one example:

Rep. Charles Rangel yesterday blasted Dick Cheney as a "son of a bitch" after the vice president said the Harlem lawmaker would raise taxes and destroy the economy if Democrats take control of the House.

Apparently, liberals don't have a monopoly on bad manners.

Barbra Streisand's politics didn't find a wholly agreeable crowd during her Monday concert at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise. As Babs traded political barbs with a George W. Bush imitator, a fan of the songstress who apparently disagreed with her politics pelted her with a beverage. And as her anti-GOP riff ended, another man in the crowd found himself being escorted out of the center as he shouted at Streisand.

Streisand is misinformed on nearly all her political views and is sophomoric in her attempt at humor. Regardless of that there is no valid excuse for throwing a beverage at her or interrupting her concert. People paid good money for the show and they should be able to enjoy the show without interruption.

Here is a story which could have only come from Arkansas.

Man Tries to Use Fake $100 Clinton Bill

The article does not say how many times he was successful before he was caught.

In recent national elections, the political experts in the media have cherry picked a demographic that they believe control the keys to the political kingdom. Whether hyping "soccer moms," Nascar dads," "security moms," or some other group that is mistakenly believed to be THE important voting block to be courted they err in assuming these groups vote together in lockstep. This election cycle the Sunday newspaper magazine USA Weekend decided to cover all the bases by picking 7 keys groups. The analysis is simplistic and clearly tilts to the left. With each group they describe the group and then say where that group matters. For example group number 5 is Midwesterners and the authors decide midwesterners will decide the statewide races in Ohio. No kidding, you mean Ohio's elections won't be decided by the folks living on the coasts.