Friday miscellaneous (10/12)

Jeremy Egerer writes why he’s not a libertarian. This led to an interesting discussion on facebook in which yours truly was involved.

In election news, after the most decisive debate victory ever, Romney has taken a lead in swing states. Obama’s response the Romney lied has its own holes. And although he is trying to undermine Romney’s tax plan, his own advisors are recommending similar reforms. These lackluster attempts have made some wonder if he even wants to be president. The New Yorker seems to have doubts.

Obama, meanwhile, cites AARP in favor of his healthare plan. Except that AARP wishes he wouldn’t. And he wants to talk about Big Bird. Except that Big Bird wishes he wouldn’t. And in what can’t be welcome news, a major restaurant chain is experimenting with getting rid of full-time shifts as an effort to reduce the cost of complying with Obamacare.

The State Department, meanwhile, has determined that the attack on the Libyan embassy wasn't a video protest gone wrong after all. Maybe it should inform the White House.

And if you were interested in where your Congressman or Senator fell on the wealth matrix, the Washington Post grids it all out.

Stepping back to view politics from a larger view, Front Porch Republic had some excellent articles this week. First was exposing the sham conflict between big government and big business. Then was one considering the virtues of statesmanship, and how we may not really want a statesman:

We’re conflicted about practical wisdom. The American people want someone with the practical wisdom to solve national problems. But they also want to live in a fantasy world in which they can have everything they want now and not have to reckon with any future consequences. Anyone wise enough to recognize the impossibility of giving them what they want and honest enough to say so cannot get elected. 

We’re conflicted about greatness of soul. The American people want someone with the backbone and self-confidence to act decisively according to what he knows needs to be done, rather than someone blown about in the wind of opinion polls. But they also want someone who will do the will of the people, which is apparently expressed in those same opinion polls. They want someone they can respect, who would therefore have to be better than the average person, but they would be offended by someone who appears to think he’s better than the average person. 

We’re conflicted about justice. The American people want someone honest and fair, not corrupted by special interests, someone perfectly ethical in his dealings with others. But they also want to elect the candidate who supports the positions of their party.

And for those on the right depressed that the election doesn’t offer a purist candidate, even Wilberforce compromised his vote (but not his principles) in his fight against slavery.

Turning to the church, Marc Cortez reminds us that there was no golden age (a reminder also true for politics). Not even the puritans. And speaking of misconceptions, young evangelicals may not be as liberal as commonly thought.

And then there are the courts. Apparently this Supreme Court term, craigslist and ebay (or at least sellers of used stuff) may be threatened.


And finally, since The Avengers is now out on DVD: