Not having previously heard of these two sheilas I don’t know much about them. (Ann Coulter & Michelle Malkin)

When I went to read their stuff, I got only as far as their respective photos.

Am a bit glassy eyed after that. They both score in excess of 10.

They’re both certainly glossily groomed and telegenic.

But would they be considered meaningful pundits by the conservatives in the US if they weren’t? If they were saying exactly the same things but carrying a smidge of avoirdupois or not wearing professional makeup? Is there a single Right-Wing woman with a public platform who is not a high-maintenance ultra-fem?

The only way the Right considers them acceptable as public intellectuals is because they both fully play up to the eye-candy role. Who is it again that thinks what they say is more important than how they look?

That’s totally sexist shit.

Craig Mc on 7 March 2007 at 7:39 pm

This is the second time youâ??ve brought up ancient blogwars (July 2006) elsewhere in response to Greenwaldâ??s name.

You forgot to say â??Good DAY, sir!â??

Ya smooth-talking honey-dripper, I’ll pay that.

Howard’s biggest micro-economic reform has been a tax: the GST. Most of this is going to fund the state community services and infrastructure that he quoted above. When not being spent on a bit of routine pork-barrelling and paying off the debt

As every cent of the GST goes to the states to spend as they wish, it wouldn’t be paying for Howard’s pork-barrelling nor paying off the debt. Not that the states aren’t beyond looking after their cronies – witness the S11 protester payouts this week.

I state catergorically that I am against any form of rent seeking, and Burke and Grill seem to be great facilitators of such behaviour. Rather than worry about whether individuals are trying to take advantage of government regulation for commercial gain, I’m concerned about limiting the impact of government on commercial activities such that rent seeking becomes less of a problem. Such activity increases transaction costs and lowers economic efficiency, making us all worse off.

You may stamp out Burke’s influence in the halls of WA state and local government, but so long as there are regulations and bureaucracy to overcome or exploit, there will always be willing participants. Sure such behaviour may be considered immoral and unethical, but unless the system changes, it will continue, because human nature sure as hell isn’t going to change any time soon.

Iâ??ve often argued that Howardâ??s practice is about as far from neoliberalism as you can get, while still paying â??the marketâ?? lip service.

Since I went out of my way to stress that Howard’s policies had reverted to classic Coalition “centralised liberal nationalism” I am entitled to politely suggest that you tell me something I don’t know. YOu are more than three years behind me on the political learning curve, too.

You also need to bring yourself up to speed with Howard’s ideological revisionism. Things have moved on since your hairer undergraduate days when Howard-style Razor-gangs loomed large.

Nowadays Howard does not “pay” that much “lipservice” to the free-market ideals of his wacky middleage anymore. Pr Q quotes from a landmark concession to social statism by Howard:

There is a desire on the part of the community for an investment in infrastructure and human resources and I think there has been a shift in attitude in the community on this, even among the most ardent economic rationalists.

Howard’s biggest micro-economic reform has been a tax: the GST. Most of this is going to fund the state community services and infrastructure that he quoted above. When not being spent on a bit of routine pork-barrelling and paying off the debt

mark says:

Crony capitalism is right – this government specialises in deals for mates and the big end of town, and throwing hundreds of million at rural industries under the spurious guise of restructuring.

Sure Howard has gone in for a bit of crony capitalism. But that is no crime. No one has been charged or even seriously investigated for criminal dealings over cosy ethanol deals or media baron-friendly laws.

Every government rewards its friends and punishes its enemies. Its called politics. Left wing govts go one step futher and get into crony socialism, witness the bloated union, “community” and welfare bureaucracies sticking their snouts into the public trough.

Whingeing about Howard’s pork-barrelling is rich coming from a self-confessed multiculturalist, the system designed for succouring ethnic lobbies.

mark says:

An ethical climate where Howard can damn Rudd for meeting with Burke but simultaneously say â??oh, no, itâ??s fine for corporates to hire a grubby fixerâ?? is indicative.

An “ethical climate” where even a self-annointed Mr Clean is wallowing in the muck is indicative of the old saw “they are all in on it together”. So why be a partisan apologist for Rudd?

Truth is the democratic political system is dyfunctional because political elites are in cahoots with financial and cultural elites to do the populus over in favour of minority class and clan interests. Some old-fashioned, but well-informed, populism is indicated.

I merely asked the question as a matter of historical record.

Katz,

Fair enough, but I don’t think the author of the original post has done enough to back up her allegation of wrong doing by Burke & Grill, or acknowledged that she cannot back it up and retracted it.

This is the second time you’ve brought up ancient blogwars (July 2006) elsewhere in response to Greenwald’s name.

You forgot to say “Good DAY, sir!”

it’s so easy to get sucked into being pruient and pervy isnt it? but i think you’re right kim, i’m already bored!

so what does michelle malkin look like?