A Lion Passes

A prominent member of the Second Generation of the leaders of the Conservative movement has passed.

Paul M. Weyrich, first head of the Heritage Foundation, and current President and CEO of the Free Congress Foundation, died early this morning at age 66.

Like William F. Buckley, Jr., earlier this year, his voice was resounding to the last.

While I never had the privilege of meeting Mr. Weyrich, his work is much in evidence in Washington. I've spent many hours at the Heritage Foundation, through participation in the Third Generation group, and at other programs, and was interviewed on Tom Jipping's show on Free Congress' cable network (back in 1997, during the Teamsters strike against UPS), which eventually strayed far from its moorings to become [P]MSNBC.

He will be missed.

RIP.

UPDATE: And at least one moonbat has chimed in with his comments. He's all class.

LATEST IN BLAGOJEVICH SCANDAL!!!

It seems that the burgeoning Illinois scandal over Governor Rod Blagojevich's (D) efforts to sell President-elect Barry Obama's Senate seat has yielded a direct link to the incoming administration.

It seems that Vice President-elect Joe Biden was trying to make a deal for Blagojevich's hair.

And Some Wonder Why He Lost

Apparently, John McCain believes that the GOP shouldn't ask questions about Barry Obama's involvement in the Blagojevich scandal.

I honestly don't know if there was any involvement. I rather doubt it.

But that doesn't mean that The One shouldn't have to answer questions.

Thank You For Smoking

On the road yesterday, I had occasion to hear Rush Limbaugh report on the discussion Barack Obama had on Meet the Press about his smoking habits and whether he will indulge (if he hasn't quit), when he moves into the White House. Barry apparently responded that he will follow Federal policy, which bars smoking in government buildings.

While I would encourage anyone to quit smoking cigarettes, if Barry exercises his right to indulge, his response should be to say "To Hell with 'Federal policy'!"

I expect to be highly critical of Barry and his administration. He is, for all practical purposes, a socialist. If he indulges his policy preferences, I expect to oppose him.

Nevertheless, for the next four years, barring anything unforeseen, the White House will be his residence.

And if he chooses to smoke, he is entitled to do as he damn well pleases in his own house.

I certainly won't be criticizing him for doing so.

Amazing

I used to consider Waldo Jaquith one of the more tolerable members of Virginia's Liberal blogosphere. His blog aggregator is indispensable, and unlike many on the Left, who bar comments from Conservatives, he does not fear debate, even if he has a rather childish doorway to post a comment (one has to type "democratic").

Now, I'm not so sure. He declares in a recent comment that "Communism is downright cute."

Perhaps I'm just old-fashioned (well, of course I am), but I have a real problem with anybody who characterizes an ideology responsible for the death of as many of one hundred million souls and the enslavement of more than a billion others as "cute."

Whether it bespeaks ignorance or fundamental evil ... well, I just don't know.