Mark Steyn: An Act of Political Hygiene

The Wall Street Journal ^ | January 26, 2006 | Mark Steyn

[quidnunc]

Quebec City – Remember the conventional wisdom of 2004? Back then, you'll recall, it was the many members of George Bush's "unilateral" coalition who were supposed to be in trouble, not least the three doughty warriors of the Anglosphere — the president, Tony Blair and John Howard — who would all be paying a terrible electoral price for lying their way into war in Iraq. The Democrats' position was that Mr. Bush's rinky-dink nickel-&-dime allies didn't count: The president has "alienated almost everyone," said Jimmy Carter, "and now we have just a handful of little tiny countries supposedly helping us in Iraq." (That would be Britain, Australia, Poland, Japan…) Instead of those nobodies, John Kerry pledged that, under his leadership, "America will rejoin the community of nations" — by which he meant Jacques Chirac, Gerhard Schröder, the Belgian guy…

Two years on, Messrs. Bush, Blair, Howard and Koizumi are all re-elected, while Mr. Chirac is the lamest of lame ducks, and his ingrate citizenry have tossed out his big legacy, the European Constitution; Mr. Schröder's government was defeated and he's now shilling for Russia's state-owned Gazprom ("It's all about Gaz!"); and the latest member of the coalition of the unwilling to hit the skids is Canada's Liberal Party, which fell from office on Monday. John Kerry may have wanted to "rejoin the community of nations." Instead, "the community of nations" has joined John Kerry, windsurfing off Nantucket in electric-yellow buttock-hugging Lycra, or whatever he's doing these days.

-snip-

[adorno]

...or whatever he's doing these days.

I hear Teresa has him threatening filibusters against Alito or she's going to bail on him.

[jigsaw]

What a great read!   Thanks for posting this.

[Zeppo]

("It's all about Gaz!")

Gotta love Steyn's skill at skewering the left... Brilliant, absolutely brilliant!

[lexington minuteman 1775]

Kerry was calling for a filibuster in the Swiss Alps.I hear he may be taking yodeling lessons. Guess he thinks that is as important as the US Senate which pays his salary. Heck the slopes are better there than along Pennslyvania Avenue!

[lawgirl]

Totally fabulous piece by Steyn.

[aligncare]

...And true...all true!

[decal]

"They clung on to over 100 seats and the votes of Canada's three biggest cities. Truly, the Liberals are one of the most amazingly resilient parties this side of Kim Jong-Il's..."

No more so than urban Democrats, and for the same reasons (scare tactics, politics of envy, graft, vote-rigging, dead voters still on the poll lists,...).

[Graymatter]

"Et moi, moi, je viens pour le gaz!" --- Jacques Brel

[OldArmy52]

Senator Kerry should be paid by the hour (of work)...time clock the best idea. Then at the end of the year he could declare his 17 hours of accounted time at work as income.

[NZerFromHK]

It would be a stretch to argue that Mr. Chirac, Mr. Schröder and now Paul Martin in Ottawa ran into trouble because of their anti-Americanism. Au contraire, cheap demonization of the Great Satan is almost as popular in the streets of Toronto as in the streets of Islamabad.

Ouch.

[Petronski]

...by which he meant Jacques Chirac, Gerhard Schröder, the Belgian guy…

LOL

[Eagles6]

ping

[Lurker]

For a country whose national anthem lyrics are mostly endless reprises of the line "we stand on guard for thee," we could at least stand on guard.

Ouch...that one's gonna leave a mark.

L

[Fair Go]

Did you see the latest captured films of Saddam Hussein's reign? People being thrown from buildings, floggings and other material unfit for showing? Now there is the problem of Hamas being elected in Palestine and of course Iran and nuclear weapons. Naturally the US will be expected to lead the world out of trouble as it did in Europe and the Pacific in World War 2. Of course, let us not forget that it rebuilt Europe and Japan. Again it will take a lot more than waving a few protest banners or posing as peace activists to get the world back on track. The Paul Martins, the Chiracs, the Michael Moores etc will have a lot to answer for along with all the hate America posters to the G & M.

[Fair Go]

Very good post.

[JennysCool]

For a country whose national anthem lyrics are mostly endless reprises of the line "we stand on guard for thee," we could at least stand on guard.

Another Steyn winner! Thanks for the post!

[nutmeg]

bttt

[ntnychik]

John Kerry may have wanted to "rejoin the community of nations." Instead, "the community of nations" has joined John Kerry, windsurfing off Nantucket in electric-yellow buttock-hugging Lycra, or whatever he's doing these days.

Great Steyn article! This line cries out for a photograph.

[hsalaw]

it seems one can never underestimate the appeal of a party of floundering discredited kleptocrat incompetents led by a vindictive empty suit who fought one of the most inept campaigns in modern political history.

I think he's talking about the dems and the Kerry campaign!