The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

LIVE AT FIVEEIGHT – 12.16.11

Posted on | December 16, 2011 | 7 Comments

— compiled by Wombat-socho


TOP NEWS
Christopher Hitchens, 1949-2011: RIP

"The prospect of death makes me sober, objective"

Noted contrarian, atheist abandoned the Left for conservatism; leaves behind wife, three children

House Passes Continuing Resolution
Bill includes repeal of incandescent light bulb ban

Gingrich Talks About Fines, Marriage, Outsider Status
Stands firm on ethics charges, homosexuality



POLITICS
Rivals Pounce On Gingrich At Last Iowa Debate

Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul

Reuters names Michele Bachmann as the former Speaker’s “main adversary”

Feds Accuse Sheriff Joe Of Racial Profiling

Coal Industry Comes Out Firing Against New EPA Rules

WikiLeaks Hearing Starts Today

Rick Perry Hopes To Be Tim Tebow Of Iowa Caucuses

Hollywood-Backed Web Piracy Act Faces More Debate In House

Medal Of Honor Recipient Drops Lawsuit As Marine Corps Defends Citation



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Morgan Stanley To Cut 1600 Jobs
Zynga Raises $1 Billion, Pricing IPO At Top Of Range
Stock Futures Signal Higher Open For Equities
Governor Of France’s Central Bank Takes Swipe At UK Economy
Dollar, Yen Weaken As Signs Of U.S. Growth Damp Safety Bids; Aussie Gains
Labor Market Notches Gains
Encana Calls BS On EPA Fracking Study
The Indian Rupee Is An Abandoned Child
Facebook’s Timeline Is Here: Users Have Seven Days To Edit Profiles
Amazon Selling Over 1 Million Kindles A Week
Dell Axes Netbooks To Focus On Ultrabooks
Google’s Siri Clone To Be Named “Majel” In Trek Homage



SPORTS
Ryan & Abraham Lead Falcons To 41-14 Rout Of Jaguars

Falcons WR Roddy White celebrates his TD with RB Jason Snelling

Atlanta clinches fourth straight winning season

Flyers Win 7th Straight, Beat Habs 4-3

HBO Thanks Heavens For Bryz

Hot Blues Steal The Show

Billups Silent, But Blake Griffin Likes Clippers’ Moves

USC’s Matt Kalil Will Enter NFL Draft

After Lethargic Start, Missouri Runs Record To 10-0

Bears’ WR Hurd Arrested On Drug Charges

Predators 4, Red Wings 3



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Courtney Love Evicted From Her NYC Townhouse

The Widow Cobain

Behind on rent, altered interior without permission, accidental fire in the bedroom…yeah, model tenant!

Rebecca Black Is Google’s #1 Search For 2011

Baba Wawa Rips Noted Attention Whore: “You Have No Talent!”

Jenifer Aniston (Sort Of) Admits To Using Injectables

ABC Cancels “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”

“Thor 2” Star Natalie Portman Furious Over Director’s Departure


Sister Showdown! Kate v. Rooney

Jay-Z Joins Beyonce’s Pregnancy Diet

“America’s Got Talent” Stars React to Addition Of Howard Stern

Britney Spears Not Marrying Until Lawsuits Are Settled



FOREIGNERS
Japan Says Stricken Fukushima Daiichi Nuke Plant In Cold Shutdown
Iraqi Government Supporters Rally In Baghdad Against Iranian Exiles
Putin’s Polls Plummet To Year’s Lowest Point
Syrian Troops Fire At Protesters After Prayers
France Sentences “Carlos The Jackal” To Another Life Term
Hooch Tragedy: Chief Minister Announces CID Inquiry
PRC To Require Microbloggers To Use Real Names
David Cameron Was Right, And Now Has The Allies To Prove It



BLOGS & STUFF
Ed Driscoll: RIP Christopher Hitchens, 1949-2011
American Spectator: A Santorum Surge Or A Jindal Jig?
Allahpundit: Confirmed – Newt’s Numbers Starting To Sink
Riehl World View: Ron Paul Can’t Withstand The Scrutiny Of Being A Front-Runner
Ed Morrissey: Can Ron Paul Win?
Lonely Conservative: Porkulus Now Part Of Baseline Budget
Weasel Zippers: Allen West Says Goebbels Would Be Proud Of The Democrat Party
Via Meadia: Class Warfare Collapse – Americans Not Divided By Class
Rob Long: Nikki Endorses Mitt
Big Government: Obama Panics Over Ryan-Wyden Medicare Reform
Daily Pundit: The Eternal Boobshow
Iowahawk: Is This Hell? No, It’s Iowa


SOTD: 40 Boys In 40 Nights

Comments

7 Responses to “LIVE AT FIVEEIGHT – 12.16.11”

  1. Cartoon of the day « Don Surber
    December 16th, 2011 @ 8:39 am

    […] Robert Stacy McCain: Late At Eight. […]

  2. Old Rebel
    December 16th, 2011 @ 9:29 am

    Hitchens never “abandoned the Left for conservatism”; he remained a self-described Trotskyite. The Neocon Wars he supported were conceived and implemented as grand Trotskyite projects to promote big government and globalism.

    If we continue to spread the misconception that support for war, any war, defines conservatism, we could end up abandoning genuine conservatism for a bizarre ideology that promotes open borders, an all-powerful central government, and the surrender of our traditional rights as “conservative.”

    Oh, wait a minute …

  3. Anonymous
    December 16th, 2011 @ 10:06 am

    I agree that Hitchens never “abandoned the Left for conservatism.” Nor did he claim to have done so.

    I’m pretty sure, however, that he abandoned Trotskyism proper (although not a continuing admiration of Trotsky) for a more center-left position. He said that he was “no longer a socialist, but still a Marxist” (because he considered a materialist conception of history valid).

    He was certainly not a “neoconservative,” like so many Trotskyists (Jean Kirkpatrick, Paul Wolfowitz, et. al) became.

    His basis for supporting the War on Terror was not Trotskyist/neoconservative “permanent revolution”  theory of “spreading democracy,” but on “the essential question of defending civilization against its terrorist enemies and their totalitarian protectors.”

    Unlike most neoconservatives — and most self-identified American conservatives — he was not only not especially supportive of Israel, but described himself specifically as an “anti-Zionist.”

    He endorsed Obama in 2008, calling McCain “senile” and Palin a “pathological liar” and a “national disgrace.”

    He was about as far from a social conservative as it was possible to get — not just non-religious but anti-religion, and a personal libertine who dedicated an entire book to slagging Mother Teresa.

    I think it would be a mistake to let any particular ideological bloc claim him in death, as he didn’t allow that to happen in life.

    He was three things: An American (by choice — he moved here and asked to become a citizen, and explained why in moving terms in Hitch-22); a hell of a writer; and an original in every sense of the word.

  4. Joe
    December 16th, 2011 @ 10:31 am

    Christopher Hitchens was not a conservative.  He was a very good writer and a great mind and I will miss him. 

    I disagreed with him on many points.  That said, he would be in my top ten of people for throwing back a few drinks with and spending an evening talking. 

    What I liked about Hithchens is he liked to take on bullies.  Of course he may have set his sights a little high with God, but Hitchens loved a challenge. 

    RIP Christopher. 

  5. Christopher Hitchens, RIP | Conservative Heritage Times
    December 16th, 2011 @ 10:47 am

    […] that legacy is celebrated by supposedly antagonistic camps in the political blogosphere. Over at The Other McCain, Hitchens is recognized as an “atheist [who] abandoned the Left for conservatism.” […]

  6. Anonymous
    December 16th, 2011 @ 11:02 am

    Joe,

    I agree. I envy Stacy the experience of a drinking night out with Hitchens.

    I too disagreed with Hitchens on a lot of things, but he was one of the finest writers, and in particular one of the most effective polemicists, of the late 20th/early 21st century.

    Speaking of which, I probably don’t mention often enough that that’s the basis of my admiration for Stacy as well. Even when I find his ideas silly or repugnant, he delivers them skillfully; and has in common with Hitchens a certain gregarious bon vivantism that’s hard not to love.

  7. Because I’m Libertarian Like That : The Other McCain
    December 16th, 2011 @ 1:48 pm

    […] on campus during the lockdown, which caused him to be three hours late with this morning’s “Live at Five” headline roundup. He sent an e-mail to apologize, explaining that a “suicidal a–hole” was the […]