Alan Dershowitz complains about the moral idiocy of equating the Israeli response with the Hamas provocations that started this latest round of fighting.

An Israeli journalist argues that Israel's fight is our fight, too.

Of course, President-elect Obama's lack of a response is now open for criticism.

Samuel Huntington died the other day, and Fouad Ajami pens this tribute to him. Huntington, who wrote "The Clash of Civilizations", which accurately predicted the clash between radical Islam and the West, was one of the few political scientists who really understood the human elements that are such a large part of political evolution.

Israeli warplanes continue to pound targets in Gaza, while Hamas rockets continue to rain down on Israel.

Benny Morris explains why Israelis feel threatened. In a related piece, Bret Stephens explains why Hamas knows one big thing.

Michael Ledeen puts the Israeli-Hamas conflict in a larger context.

Is Hamas hoping for an Israeli ground operation?

Arthur Herman believes the Iranians will offer President Obama a Devil's Bargain.

It all boils down to one thing, unfortunately. That is the fact that a majority of the Arabs, especially Palestinian Arabs, do not and will not accept the existence of Israel as a Jewish state. Add to their numbers those other Muslims (like the Iranian leadership) who also do not accept their existence, and the various other anti-Semites of different races and creeds who join them in their belief, and those who may not be anti-Semitic but agree that the establishment of Israel was an injustice, and you come up with a rather large population of people who agree that Israel needs to go. There are only two ways to achieve a lasting peace. Either a majority of Arabs, Muslims and others acquiesce to the existence of Israel as a Jewish state, or Israel is destroyed (or ceases to be a Jewish state). I expect the on-again, off-again war between Israel and it's enemies will continue at least for the next several decades, if not longer.

Michael Barone sees Obama as Eisenhower. If so, then expect the Left to be very unhappy.

Israeli troops mass along the border with Gaza as their air force continues to pound Hamas targets. Perhaps the Israelis are sending a message to their enemies.

Ralph Peters says the Israelis are damned if they do, and dead if they don't.

Was 2008 the year that the theory of man-made global warming was disproved? Whether it has been disproved or not, the fact remains that any effort to reduce carbon emissions significantly is simply not politically viable, especially now that we are in a global recession.

How the Israeli cabinet came to the decision to attack Hamas in Gaza, and why the succeeded in catching Hamas by surprise.

Israeli warplanes pound Hamas targets for a second day. Will the Israelis follow up with a ground invasion?

David Broder believes the GOP is becoming a more Southern, right wing party.

George Will believes the spirit of Lyndon Johnson lives on.

Israel is taking preparatory actions for an invasion of Gaza. I've got a bad feeling about this.

Jonathan Freedland in The Guardian hopes that George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, et. al. will someday be convicted of war crimes. Morton Kondracke argues that Obama should not pursue such a course against his predecessor, as it would cripple his own ability to defend the country against terrorists.

One of the reasons our economy is tanking is due to the transfer of wealth from the U.S. to China, and the resultant ability of the Chinese to buy up our debt. This is not a healthy relationship.

More evidence that we are falling into a deep recession is the collapse of retail sales this holiday season. As people see the value of their homes and their retirement funds drop, they naturally hold onto their money a little tighter. I think we are in for a long period of economic retraction, as everyone tries to pay down debt and save more.

A review of Valkyrie, the new Tom Cruise movie about the July, 1944 plot to kill Hitler.

I guess the Yankees don't know there is a recession on.

Criticism of the possibility that Caroline Kennedy might take Hillary's Senate seat continues, with this column taking on the Liberal gentry that supports her.

Ralph Peters laments about the conditions in Zimbabwe, and the failure of the "international community" to do anything about it.

Are we on the verge of a lost decade?

The Census Bureau releases population estimates. America continues to grow, with states like Arizona and Texas leading the way.

Here is an interesting take on the whole Rick Warren flap.

H.D.S. Greenway celebrates the imminent departure of George W. Bush.

Ed Gillespie defends the President.

Thomas Sowell points out why it really was government interventions that caused, or at least exacerbated, the Great Depression.

A piece on professional athletes carrying guns.

Toyota announces that it will lose money for the first time in over 70 years.

European officials are now discussing the possibility that they may accept some detainees from Guantanamo. Obama will find that the disposition of these detainees is the one thing that will keep him from closing the facility anytime soon.

Charlie Cook thinks the GOP may lose more seats in the Senate in 2010. It all depends on how well President Obama is doing in public opinion. If he has high approval ratings it will be very tough for the GOP.

Amir Taheri believes some recent terror plots may have links to Iran.

This piece in The New York Times points out that conservative talk radio may benefit from having Obama in the White House.

A former Tory cabinet minister believes Britons may have lost the stomach for a fight.

As I predicted when the financial crisis began, many nations are turning to protectionism, which will only make things worse.

Mona Charen decries the increasing availability of pornography.

Ralph Peters believes the Left is bereft, as they watch Obama make decisions as if he were a centrist. The reality is that Obama is a politician, which means he needs to be a centrist to properly represent his national constituency. When he was a Chicago politician, he could be a Leftist and still get elected. That is no longer the case.

Some prominent people have passed, including the man who coined the term "moral majority" and the man who was known as "Deep Throat".

Paul Krugman has some thoughts on the Madoff economy. I almost always disagree with Krugman, but he is right about this stuff.

Michael Gerson sees a problem in our dealings with North Korea.

An argument for American-style capitalism. An economist once called it "creative destruction". It can be painful but, in the end, it has always worked for us.

Why Ford Motor Company will survive without taxpayer assistance.

I've heard it said by many so-called experts that the 21st Century will be the Asian Century or, more specifically, the Chinese Century. Here is an argument that opposes that view, primarily because the author believes China is headed for a collapse.

LET THERE BE LIGHT

And so it was. Dreading the prospect of returning to a cold, dark house, without my family, I drove from Logan Airport to New Hampshire this evening. But as I drove down the road connecting to the road where my house stands, I saw light, and dared to hope. Then, turning the corner, I saw a light on my front porch, and knew that power was restored. As I pulled into the driveway, I saw my family returned from exile (patience and forbearance being required by mother and daughter, happy to see one another part, for a day or two, at least). So, kudos to Unitil for making it happen, on this the sixth day without power. As I said in the last post, kudos to Fair Point Communications for giving me back my phone and Internet the day before. I should have known, thought, that Comcast would be last, as I am without cable (wasn't there once a time when cable meant something you attached a winch to?). I guess I'll live.

THE LONG NIGHT

Day five without power. No sign of a Unitil truck (and I have not seen a single one in my shuttling back-and-forth between my house and my mother-in-law's house, since she saw power restored on day two). I have a power line drooping across my driveway entrance, and the other night the geniuses at Unitil decided to put some juice down that system, causing sparks to fly. You would think that they would check the lines before powering them up, rather than killing someone or starting a fire. At least I have a 5K generator, and a neighbor who helped me get it running. The nights are lonely without my family (staying with the aforementioned mother-in-law), and it is a chore pulling the generator out of the garage, starting it up, running the big units (furnace, water pump, hot water tank) one at a time, etc., but at least I have it.

Today's good news is that I have telephone and Internet back, so kudos to the folks at Fair Point Communications. No cable yet (what's up, Comcast?), but I expect them to beat Unitil, too.

So, what really caused the real estate bubble? Greed? In part, I suppose, but good intentions played a role.

So, is the GOP really on the way to minority party status? Karl Rove says no, and recent elections prove it, but much work remains to be done.

The auto bailout bill remains stalled.

Nostalgia for the old, chaotic system for big-time college football, as opposed to the current, chaotic system.

While I believe the economy, and the unique appeal of Barack Obama, were the main reasons for the Republican defeat this year, here is an argument that says the downfall of Conservatism was caused by the Iraq War.

Five men implicated in the 9/11 attacks try to plead guilty at a hearing before a military judge at Guantanamo. Apparently, they wish to be martyred.

Is a world government possible? Some believe it is, and that it is necessary.

Jay Leno will go prime time. Since I don't usually make it to 11:35 PM these days, it means I may actually get to see the show.

Congress continues to work on legislation that would bail out the Big Three, and the details of the legislation seem to indicate that taxpayers would take a stake in the companies, as well as a certain degree of control. Perhaps the word "nationalization" applies.

Some liberals are unhappy with the President-elect.

Richard Cohen would like Robert Mugabe to undergo an "intervention".

Fareed Zakaria says Pakistan must change it's ways, or else. I don't think they will take his advice (and there is more evidence the Pakistani intelligence services were involved in the Mumbai massacre).

Ralph Peters hopes our new President will not listen to the academics when crafting his foreign policy. I don't think he will take his advice.

Bill Kristol says Republicans should not limit themselves to calling only for small government. I don't think they will take his advice.

Congressional Democrats are putting together legislation that would bail out the Big Three automakers, but it has many strings attached.

The recession is shaping up to be the worst since World War II, impacting all sectors of the economy, including newspapers like the Tribune Company.

Robert J. Samuelson writes about Bernanke's efforts to mitigate the effects of the downturn.

George Will slams efforts by some inside the "Progressive" movement to revive the so-called "Fairness Doctrine".

The unemployment rate has shot up to 6.7%, another sign that we are in a deep recession. I expect the rate will continue to climb, but I have no clue as to how high it will go or how long the downturn will last.

A new study shows that the job losses are, for now, primarily happening in male-dominated jobs.

The idea that Barack Obama is not a "natural born" U.S. citizen won't go away, and may actually be considered by the Supreme Court.

Perhaps the most valuable test subject in history, at least when it comes to research about the human brain, has died.

In Canada, the Prime Minister manages to suspend Parliament before they can hold a vote of no-confidence that would probably have sent his government packing. A neat trick, if you can pull it off.

Victor Davis Hanson says the Mumbai attacks should remind us that we are still living in a post-9/11 world.

Clifford May says the Mumbai terrorists cannot be negotiated with, only fought.

Still, there are people who do not believe there is such a thing as a "war on terror". In terms of the phraseology, I agree. You cannot make war on "terror", which is a tactic, not a political body, or even a political movement. We should be engaged in a war with Islamofascism, as expressed by the ideology of such groups as al Qaeda, but not limited to them.

The Hollywood version of the story is always this...a man is pulled over by a policeman for driving too fast. The policeman discovers the frantic man is trying to drive his wife, who is in labor, to a hospital. The intrepid officer provides an escort, sirens blaring and lights flashing. The baby is born, and the grateful parents choose the cop's first name as the baby's middle name. Of course, that's Hollywood. In Massachusetts, the cop issues a citation.

Once upon a time, a very bleak time indeed, the German soldier was feared as a paragon of discipline, tactical ingenuity, and toughness in a fight. Now, at least according to this story, he is fat, lazy, and unwilling to fight. Of course, lest we forget, after the Second World War, an effort was made to de-militarize the German people. It succeeded.

George Will is skeptical when it comes to all this talk of "creating jobs" by the President-elect.

Want to raise the IQ of the world's population? Just add iodine.

Tensions on the rise between India and Pakistan in the wake of the Mumbai massacre.

Robert Kagan believes that the international community should take action to contain the problem, even if Pakistan's sovereignty is violated.

Arthur Herman believes the Mumbai attacks have disabused the Indian people of some of their illusions about fighting terrorism.

The effort to fight global, Islamofascist terrorism is not helped by the unwillingness of some to call it by it's proper name. Still others find a way to blame America.

New economic data indicates we are in a deep, global downturn.

Paul Krugman says that an argument can be made for fiscal discipline in normal times, but in times like these deficit spending is the way to prevent an economic downturn from getting worse.

The latest intelligence report indicates things in Africa are getting worse, and StrategyPage says it is about tribalism and corruption.

Richard Cohen believes Eric Holder's role in the Marc Rich pardon disqualifies him from the job of Attorney General.

Ralph Peters writes about the terrorists who struck Mumbai. Their real target was any effort at achieving a lasting peace between India and Pakistan. India's security chief has resigned as a result of the success of the terrorists, and India has raised it's security status to "war level".

Bill Kristol has some other thoughts about the terrorists, and the true face of jihad.

Robert J. Samuelson says President-elect Obama should move forward on stabilizing the economy before working on a more far-reaching agenda.