Green Blue Too

Same old Jets? Same old Jets! We didn't get to see the Jets game because of some broadcasting dispute between Disney and DirecTV. Jerks. New York sports talk radio was fun yesterday in the aftermath of the Giants' debacle. It'll be a blast today. Francesa? Benigno? Here we go! 

Dear god, another presidential debate. We won't be watching. We never do, not since 2004. Except for 2020 when our KGB handler in Moscow wanted a report. Here's our blog post nearly four years ago about the first Trump/Biden debate. Chris Wallace is still a very bad word. 

Election 2004 and More: An hour after the first Bush-Kerry debate, we had a feeling Kerry won. Okay, wow, we managed to dig up Powerline's live blog from 2004, which we read back then. Conclusion: yep, Kerry helped himself. As the great Hugh Hewitt noted, Kerry had been trailing badly in the polls, but did just well enough for the media to upload its 'Kerry comeback' template. This was important because part of the media's Kerry narrative was, 'He's a strong finisher,' whatever that means. One of the news magazines ran an 'off the ropes!' cover. We don't remember or care which magazine. 

Though Kerry won the debate in the short term he lost in the long. Kerry had a huge gaff when he said America shouldn't take military action without passing a 'global test'. You see, back then Dems were obsessed with the fact that the United States invaded Iraq without UN approval. This gaff proved devastating, reinforcing the idea that Kerry was an effete, northeast liberal who was weak on defense.  

Via The Times of Israel, a new poll shows the Israeli opposition could form a government, just barely, winning 61 of 120 seats, and they could do so without the three Arab parties. However(!) that government must needs include the so-called Democrats - an amalgamation of the discredited Labor and peacenik Meretz parties. Exit question, would center-right Gantz and Bennett really form a government with the people who gave Israel the Oslo Process? 

This blog favors a future Israeli government led by Naftali Bennett and including Benny Gantz (center), Gideon Saar (center-right) and Yair Lapid (center- barely left) plus a rump Likud sans Netanyahu. 

Meanwhile Israel has bombed 100 targets in south Lebanon over the last week. They're warning that time for a diplomatic solution in Lebanon is short. The IAF has hit targets in Syria too. The battlefield prep continues. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says the main Israeli war effort has shifted to the north. Good. Say it with us, reader(s). Hezbollah, Bibi. 

The Times of Israel says, 'Unnamed official in Washington quoted as saying there’s ‘no magic solution’ to threat from Hezbollah; diplomatic agreement best way to prevent thousands of deaths, material damage...' Oh good. The full force of American diplomacy will be deployed to bring peace and quiet. It's done such a great job so far. Most modern western diplomats are fools. They're obsessed with process - proposals, counter proposals, bridging proposals. They see 'engagement' as an end unto itself. And the diplomats think they are blessed. Get a load of this asshole. Say what one will about Henry Kissinger, but the man got results.* 

We have a rough (very rough) draft of the Voodoo Genie story, which we may change to Genie Ace. Much mental energy we spent yesterday [Oh did you, now?-Ed] on new War Night concepts. We've got a few ideas, and we can make them work, but they don't really add anything to the story. They're just about normal people staring slack-jawed up at the sky and pointing, 'Look! A mushroom cloud!'

*Never, ever put a diplomat in charge of the State Department. That's how you get weaklings like Warren Christopher or Tony Blinken. You go get a government/corporate type like George Shultz. Or put one of your cronies in foggy bottom, a real SOB like James Baker. Kissinger was an academic.