The other day I talked about this weak and hollow man rich column by Charles Krauthammer. But there was way more about that column that an attentive undergraduate could have criticized. Here's another tidbit. He wrote: And now the mosque near Ground Zero. The intelligentsia is near unanimous that the only possible grounds for opposition … Continue reading Pile on
You have to hand it to Charles Krauthammer, at least he makes an effort to mount an argument. Sadly, however, his effort too often confuses fallacious forms of argument with valid ones. Today's topic: the "Ground Zero" "Mosque." I put "Mosque" and "Ground Zero" in quotes because IT"S NOT A "MOSQUE." People should not call … Continue reading Liberal Intelligentsia
Charles Krauthammer wonders: Here's my question: Why were we drilling in 5,000 feet of water in the first place? Ooo, Ooo [note–how does one write that Horshack noise?] pick me: "because oil, an increasingly scarce, difficult to procure, and fundamentally dangerous commodity must be the basis of our energy policy." Or perhaps I could put … Continue reading Personal virtue
Here's an entertaining misuse of an argument schema (or topic as they were once called): KRAUTHAMMER: It’s only nine times the length of the Gettysburg Address, and Lincoln was answering an easier question, the higher purpose of the union and soldiers who fell in battle. The president had an easy answer. He could have said … Continue reading I wanted to make history
Charles Krauthammer complains that liberals think people are stupid and treat voters with disdain. This is no doubt true of many of them. Just as it true, on the other hand, of many conservatives, such as Krauthammer. That liberals, and people in general, are stupid seems to be implicit in his opening howler: "Iam not … Continue reading Too dumb to thrive
Charles Krauthammer, the most dishonest pundit at the Post next to the rest of them, today goes on a rant about Obama's failure to talk tough in the war on terrorism–which, if we know anything from the Bush administration, didn't do much of anything. Suicidal terrorists, one can imagine, love that kind of stuff. Anyway, … Continue reading The System Worked
Today's Washington Post features two articles about how bad Health Care reform is for us all from guest columnists, an article about awesome natural gas, and two of the regulars (Krauthammer and Gerson) gloating about the recent victories in the historically momentous off-off year governor elections in Virginia and New Jersey. For Krauthammer, these victories … Continue reading A time to gloat
No surprise that Charles Krauthammer would jump to the defense of Fox News: The White House has declared war on Fox News. White House communications director Anita Dunn said that Fox is "opinion journalism masquerading as news." Patting rival networks on the head for their authenticity (read: docility), senior adviser David Axelrod declared Fox "not … Continue reading They had better watch what they say*
Charles Krauthammer is a doctor, the kind of doctor an insurance company would love: How can that be? If you prevent somebody from getting a heart attack, aren't you necessarily saving money? The fallacy here is confusing the individual with society. For the individual, catching something early generally reduces later spending for that condition. But, … Continue reading Preventive scare
In the department of distinctions, today we have the following (via Steve Benen): There are a lot of angry nuts on my side of the aisle [the right]. They simply can’t believe that Barack Obama somehow got elected president and they feel powerless right now. But here’s the thing: There’s plenty of crazy to go … Continue reading Would I lie to you?