Gramm Refuses to Apologize - I'm Conflicted

I'm conflicted as to how to respond to Phil Gramm's refusing to back away from his remarks on the US being a nation of whiners.

My initial reaction is: "You go girl." People are really whiny. The Iraq War is far less popular than the Vietnam War ever was, which makes no sense to me. The economy hasn't even officially entered recession and you've got Mort Zuckerman - hardly a liberal - saying this is an economic downturn to rival the Great Depression. It's perplexing, and thank you Phil Gramm for trying to bring the country back to reality.

On the other hand, he seems to have forgotten that there is a campaign going on. McCain needs to "feel people's pain", because those whiners out there in the country get to vote. It was bad politics on Gramm's part, very bad politics. I guess maybe you can make a case that by having McCain denounce Gramm - whom he had hitherto touted as one of the people he listened to about economic matters - makes McCain look good for "getting it". But ultimately I think this was net negative for the McCain campaign.

Canada Soon More Capitalist Than US

It appears that for the first time since the pre-Trudeau era, Canada is poised to be more capitalist than the US. Perhaps this might explain why the Canadian economy is doing "quite well", while the US economy is "stagnating".

I predict that, should Obama become president and raise taxes and increase government spending (as he wants so desperately to do), the result will be: 1) prolonged US recession; 2) Canada finally taking its place as the one true bastion of capitalism on the continent, thus reversing the bizarre trend of American liberals who wanted to move to Canada after Kerry's defeat in 2004. Yes, soon it will be the conservatives hankering to move to Canada after the US economy is decimated in the name of "fairness" and "social justice".

Obama: Vanguard of the Proletariat

This quote from Obama's Wall Street Journal interview, in which the Illinois Senator mourns the deleterious effects of globalization on the American worker, nicely sums up Obama's economic and cultural worldview:

"Globalization and technology and automation all weaken the position of workers," he said, and a strong government hand is needed to assure that wealth is distributed more equitably. He spoke aboard his campaign bus, where a big-screen TV was tuned to the final holes of the U.S. Open golf tournament.

There is a long history on the academic left of criticizing the harshness of capitalism while enjoying its fruits. Obama is in good company.

Roar of the Celtic Tiger

By rejecting the Lisbon Treaty (a warmed-over reworking of the EU Constitution), Ireland has once again proved itself to be one of the most sensible countries in Europe. On a recent visit to Ireland, I was amazed by the ways in which the adoption of pro-growth policies had transformed what had been one of Western Europe's poorest countries into one of the rich world's most dynamic economies. Once again, the Irish have made the right decision. All of Europe should be grateful.