In the news...

My thoughts and prayers go out to those affected by Hurricane Katrina. The images from New Orleans, Biloxi and the surrounding area are horrifying. It's sobering to be reminded of how powerful nature can be, and how vulnerable we are. To make a donation for hurricane victims, click here.

Christopher Hitchens has an interesting article in the Weekly Standard. He forcefully argues the case for the war in Iraq, using his customary broad and erudite analysis. He claims the liberal dream that became a reality with the fall of Communism in the late 1980s soon disintegrated, to be replaced with far more fearsome dangers in Bosnia and Rwanda -- and Iraq. In contrast to the Bush administration, Hitchens succinctly explains why the Iraq war was justified; somewhat less convincingly, he lambasts the war's critics, including Michael Moore. Despite Moore's tempestuous personality and evasive relationship with the truth, to quote Pistol in "Henry V," "I love the lovely bully." The most interesting line in Hitchens' piece? "I am one of those who believe, uncynically, that Osama bin Laden did us all a service (and holy war a great disservice) by his mad decision to assault the American homeland four years ago." Had this not happened, Hitchens asserts, we would have had a Talibanized nuclear Pakistan to add to our now-decreased list of threatening nations.