De Facto Democrats?

Tom Friedman of the NY times writes

With the Dems out of business, the real opposition party on foreign policy will now be the "De Facto Democrats": Colin Powell, John McCain and the British prime minister, Tony Blair. They are the only voices that, if raised in opposition to any Bush foreign policy initiative, could restrain the president and sway the public. That is not true of any Democrat today.

"While the Democrats failed to articulate a broad range of policy differences with President Bush," said David Makovsky of the Washington Institute, "their key failure was their inability to persuade Americans — in their guts — that they were prepared to deal with the world as it really is now." That is a world full of terrorists and rogue regimes dedicated to our destruction and not responsive to therapy or social work

Makes sense ... As I've said before, the Dems will need to articulate the challenges facing us and do so from a position of strength and passion .

Where Everything Is Happening

Glitz and glamour, fine food, media and publishing — they define New York. But can the city that never sleeps continue to be the center of all that is trendy?

In a series of reports, NY Newsday exlpores Fashion | Publishing | Ads | Food In NY, among other things.

"New York is about the economics of scale -- what you're producing has enormous effect,” says Glenda Bailey, the British expatriate who is editor in chief of Harper's Bazaar. "And what's so exciting about New York as opposed to other cities is there's not just one industry in town.”

Remembering our War Veterans

The annual parade up Fifth Avenue is just one of many events planned around the city today to honor the nation’s veterans.

The Veterans Day Parade, in its 84th year, will also pay special tribute to U.S. soldiers who have fought against the Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan.

There will be a wreath-laying ceremony and 21 gun salute at the Eternal Light Monument in Madison Square Park at 10 a.m. The parade itself, which runs up Fifth Avenue to 56th Street, is expected to kick off at 11:15 a.m.

To all the U.S. Military men and women who fought to maintain the very freedom we have today, Our noble United States Veterans, of all branches, we honor you, we thank you.

An aerial photograph of my neighborhood as rendered by the folks at Globe Explorer. Looking at the color of the foilage, I'd surmise that this is a shot from the late summer, early fall.

Thanks Doug

Knicks fall in overtime

The Knicks took a nine-point lead heading into the fourth quarter against the visiting Hornets but couldn’t hold on in a 97-91 overtime loss on Sunday. Allan Houston led New York with 27 points, while Kurt Thomas recorded a solid 14 points and 16 rebounds. Lee Nailon scored eight of his 18 points in the fourth.

Recommended Reading

The Conscience of a Liberal: Reclaiming the Compassionate Agenda

by Paul David Wellstone

"This is not a conservative America.... There is a huge leadership void in this country that the Democratic Party, emboldened by political courage and a commitment to the issues that made our party great, can fill."

Democratic leadership, take note

Hispanics now rival blacks as the nation's largest minority group, according to the 2000 census.

Some Gubernatorial, Senate and House candidates took notice of these census figures, and made strong efforts to court Hispanic voters. They spent more than $9 million on Spanish-language television spots, setting a record for non-presidential election years, according to Adam Segal, editor of the Johns Hopkins Journal of American Politics and author of a report on Spanish-language broadcast advertising.

That was a good strategy especially in states with large latino populations like Florida and new York.

Hispanics helped Republican governors Jeb Bush in Florida and George Pataki in New York win their re-election bids.

In Florida, 60 percent of Hispanics cast votes for the president's brother and in New York, 50 percent voted for Pataki, said Sharon Castillo, deputy communications director for the Republican National Committee

As the democratic party reviews it's leadership, they should never assume that they're doing enough. Certain segments of the population, whether latino, blacks, women etc. are open and receptive to messages from both parties. Leaving various groups uniformed and unispired can be a huge tactical mistake, The elections results of last Nov. 5 proved that beyond a doubt.

Looking Ahead

Now is the time to start planning for the future. It may once again come down to a choice between These guys or those guys. Of course, One party will need to do more preparing than the other, but be assured that a formidable challenge looms ahead for all involved.

Salon Books: How the world sees Americans. A great author interview.

Fishy Story: I eat a lot of fish. Some of my favorite dishes are fish based. Looks like now I need to be more aware of where the Salmon I eat comes from after reading this CNN article.

Mind Stretch

Found via Lis and Zoe ... I just had to try this little excercise.

LOVE :: One another
HAPPINESS :: Cold Beer
PEACE :: and understanding
ANIMAL :: Dog
VACATION :: On the sand in the West Indies
DRUG :: WWW
DESIGNER :: Hugo Boss, Pierre Cardin.
SHOES :: Stacy Adams, Sketchers.
HAIR :: Short/winter Bald/summer
FRIENDS :: Quality not quantity
BEAUTY :: In the eye of the beholder
SEX :: Yes
COUNTRY :: USA
MUSIC :: Frees the mind
CD :: Hendrix, Marley, Floyd, EW&F
MOVIE :: Dead Poets society
TV :: CNN, FOX News.
IDOL :: Dad
NEMESIS :: None
VICE :: None
MEN :: Love women
WOMEN :: Beauty, strength.
FAMILY :: Special
CAREER :: Solid
DREAM :: Big
ART :: Life affirming
HOBBY :: Amateur Radio
CAR :: Ford Expedition
NATURE :: Mother
TERRORISM :: Sad reality
AUTHOR :: Jamaica Kincaid
BOOK :: Talk Stories
SONG :: Reasons (EW&F)
JEWELRY :: Wedding band / College ring
PALM PILOT :: Palm V
BRITNEY SPEARS :: Justin did her
BOARD GAME :: Chess
INTERNET :: Necessary
MADONNA :: Much love
OSAMA BIN LADEN :: Loser
PIERCINGS :: Left ear (many years ago)
TATTOOS :: 1 Yin Yang (no regrets)
CRIMINAL :: Osama
MEDIA :: Spin city
SCHEDULES :: Well managed
BARBIE DOLLS :: In the News
P. DIDDY :: Doing his thing
AMERICAN IDOL :: No comment
A PHOTOGRAPHER :: Ansel Adams
LINGERIE :: Eye candy
BLUE JEANS :: Comfortale
THIS INTERVIEW :: Mind stretch