| The Kensington Review |
9 August 2004 |
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Latest Commentary:
Congressman Rodney Alexander Switches to GOP -- Due to odd historical circumstances, the Democratic Party has had, for 140 years of so, a rather conservative accent in the southeast of the US. This is largely a reflection of the inherent conservative political culture of the region. Be that as it may, since the Civil Rights Era and McGovern revolution cum debacle, the southern Democrats have been out of step with the party of Mondale, Dukakis and Gore. Democratic Congressman Rodney Alexander of Louisiana felt the same way about the party of John Kerry and is now a member of Mr. Bush's Republican Party. He gets credit for being an honest man. Iraqi Government Suspends Al-Jazeera, Restores Death Penalty -- The Bush administration's hope that the American-led occupation of Iraq would lead to a liberal, bourgeois democracy like those of Europe and North America receded two giant steps in the last couple of days. The interim government of Prime Minister Iyad Allawi has decided to suspend the news network Al-Jazeera from operating in Iraq for the next month. At the same time, the nation has restored the death penalty. These are both signs that the unrest in Iraq is not getting better. Berkshire Hathaway's Earnings Decline -- Although the government puts out a slew of statistics on the economy, there is no better measure of how the capital markets are performing than by examining the quarterly earnings of Berkshire Hathaway. The company is the investment vehicle of Warren Buffet, without a doubt the most canny investor in America. He buys only those stocks that he believes are undervalued and operate in businesses he understands. The fact that the company's earnings were down 42% in second quarter 2004 compared to second quarter 2003 speaks volumes about American business. Bush, Edwards Condemn "Legacy" College Admissions -- More than a wry smile was raised when the great legacy admission, President George W. Bush, came out and condemned legacy admission points. He said, in so may words, that college admissions should be based on merit rather than on lineage. It was less humorous when Senator John Edwards, the first in his family to attend college, made the same case. In truth, legacy admissions do nothing but lower a university's talent pool, although they may enhance donations. to be more than pent-up since the position has been unfilled since 1649. |
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