LESSONS of the SPILL a Report from the Gulf Coast MARIO LOYOLA
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
2010_7_19 upc_cover61404-postal.qxd 7/13/2010 7:24 PM Page 1 August 2, 2010 49145 $3.95 DANIEL FOSTER: When the Left Attacks ( Itself) LESSONS OF THE SPILL A Report from the Gulf Coast MARIO LOYOLA $3.95 31 PLUS: Stephen Spruiell on the Case for Austerity Christopher Papagianis & Reihan Salam on Housing After the Bust 0 74851 08155 6 www.nationalreview.com base_milliken-mar 22.qxd 5/18/2010 12:00 PM Page 1 ÍÍÍ ÊÊ ÊÊ Nuclear Energy Produces Reliable (*%- ÊÊ ÊÊ Ê Electricity When You Need it. 3FOFXBCMFFOFSHZTVDIBTXJOEBOETPMBSXJMMCFB Average Operating Eciency* HSPXJOHQBSUPGPVSDPVOUSZTFOFSHZGVUVSF BMPOHXJUI by Source of Electricity MBSHFTDBMFTPVSDFTMJLFOVDMFBSFOFSHZUIBUQSPEVDF Nuclear 92% FMFDUSJDJUZBSPVOEUIFDMPDL Coal 71% /VDMFBSFOFSHZIBTBOBWFSBHFPQFSBUJOHFG¹DJFODZ PG GBSCFUUFSSFMJBCJMJUZUIBOBOZPUIFSTPVSDFPG Natural Gas 42% FMFDUSJDJUZ8FOFFEFMFDUSJDJUZFWFSZNJOVUFPGFWFSZEBZ Wind 31% UPESJWFPVSFDPOPNZBOETUBOEBSEPGMJWJOH/VDMFBS Solar 21% Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê Ê ÊÊ ÊÊ Ê FOFSHZ BMPOHXJUISFOFXBCMFFOFSHZTPVSDFT DBOMFBEUIF XBZUPBQPSUGPMJPPGDMFBOFSFOFSHZPQUJPOTUIBUQSPUFDUT 0 755025 100 Sources: Ventyx / U.S. Energy UIFFOWJSPONFOUBOEQSPNPUFTFOFSHZTFDVSJUZ Information Administration, 2008 *Operating efficiency is measured by capacity factor, the ratio of the amount of electricity produced by a plant to the amount of electricity that could have been produced if the plant operated all year at full power. Nuclear. Clean Air Energy. 7JTJUOFJPSH*2UPMFBSONPSFBOEUBLFPVSPOMJOFRVJ[ toc_QXP-1127940144.qxp 7/14/2010 2:17 PM Page 1 Contents AUGUST 2, 2010 | VOLUME LXII, NO. 14 | www.nationalreview.com COVER STORY Page 22 Beyond the Spill Jay Nordlinger on Russian Spies . p. 18 Comprehensive energy and climate BOOKS, ARTS legislation has been part of Obama’s & MANNERS green plans ever since he ran for senator, and it’s no surprise that he is 39 A COOL LOOK AT THE COLD WAR using the BP spill as an excuse to renew his Steven F. Hayward reviews The push for it. What is more startling is that, judging Atlantic and Its Enemies: A History of the Cold War, by appearances at least, Obama may be trying by Norman Stone. to advance his agenda by intentionally 41 CHURCHILL, CLOSE UP causing a fuel shortage. Mario Loyola Conrad Black reviews Winston’s War: Churchill, 1940–1945, COVER: ROMAN GENN by Max Hastings. ARTICLES 42 CULTURE CLASH James V. DeLong reviews The Next 15 PRO-BUSINESS, NOT PRO-BUSINESSMAN by Ramesh Ponnuru American Civil War: The Republicans should make a stand against corporate welfare. Populist Revolt Against the Liberal Elite, by Lee Harris. 16 CUT TO GROW by Stephen Spruiell Want stimulus? Trim the budget. 44 TRUE WEST Travis Kavulla reviews Prairie 18 RUSSIA’S NESTING DOLLS by Jay Nordlinger Republic: The Political Anna, Vicky, and other spies among us. Culture of Dakota Territory, 1879–1889, by Jon K. Lauck. 20 THE REVOLUTION EATS ITSELF by Daniel Foster Kos and Olby at daggers drawn. 46 FILM: FAMILY PLOT Ross Douthat reviews The Kids Are All Right. FEATURES 47 CITY DESK: 22 BEYOND THE SPILL by Mario Loyola THIS CUP IS EMPTY In pursuit of an imaginary green-energy future, Obama is The Mondial invades Richard leading us into an oil shortage. Brookhiser’s New York. 29 OBAMACARE’S POLITICAL FUTURE by James C. Capretta The more voters learn, the darker it gets. SECTIONS 31 WE CAN’T AFFORD THIS HOUSE by Christopher Papagianis & Reihan Salam 2 Letters to the Editor It’s time to end tax benefits and subsidies for homeowners. 4 The Week 37 The Bent Pin . Florence King 35 CHANGE OF SERVICE by John J. Miller 38 The Long View . Rob Long Hopes for a GOP congressional majority rest in part on a crop 40 Poetry . Jennifer Reeser of Afghan and Iraq War vets. 48 Athwart . Rob Long NATIONAl ReVIeW (ISSN: 0028-0038) is published bi-weekly, except for the first issue in January, by NATIONAl ReVIeW, Inc., at 215 lexington Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10016. Periodicals postage paid at New York, N.Y., and additional mailing offices. © National Review, Inc., 2010. Address all editorial mail, manuscripts, letters to the editor, etc., to editorial Dept., NATIONAl ReVIeW, 215 lexington Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10016. Address all subscription mail orders, changes of address, undeliverable copies, etc., to NATIONAl ReVIeW, Circulation Dept., P. O. Box 433015, Palm Coast, Fla. 32143-3015; phone, 386-246-0118, Monday–Friday, 8:00 A.M. to 10:30 P.M. eastern time. Adjustment requests should be accompanied by a current mailing label or facsimile. Direct classified advertising inquiries to: Classifieds Dept., NATIONAl ReVIeW, 215 lexington Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10016 or call 212-679- 7330. POSTMASTeR: Send address changes to NATIONAl ReVIeW, Circulation Dept., P. O. Box 433015, Palm Coast, Fla. 32143-3015. Printed in the U.S.A. RATeS: $59.00 a year (24 issues). Add $21.50 for Canada and other foreign subscriptions, per year. (All payments in U.S. currency.) The editors cannot be responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or artwork unless return postage or, better, a stamped self-addressed envelope is enclosed. Opinions expressed in signed articles do not necessarily represent the views of the editors. letters--ready_QXP-1127940387.qxp 7/14/2010 2:17 PM Page 2 Letters AUGUST 2 ISSUE; PRINTED JULY 15 The Limits of Tolerance EDITOR Richard Lowry Jacob Sullum’s review of New Threats to Freedom (“Free Association,” July 5) Senior Editors is wrong on at least two counts. Richard Brookhiser / Jay Nordlinger Ramesh Ponnuru / David Pryce-Jones First, he defends Somali taxi drivers who refuse to pick up passengers with Managing Editor Jason Lee Steorts Literary Editor Michael Potemra alcohol or dogs, saying that they are merely “exercising their freedom to run Executive Editor Christopher McEvoy National Correspondent John J. Miller their businesses as they see fit.” But taxis are public accommodations, in which Art Director Luba Kolomytseva Deputy Managing Editors we rightfully forbid many forms of discrimination. If Holiday Inn refused to Fred Schwarz / Kevin D. Williamson Associate Editors admit a Jew or a blind man with a dog, we as a society wouldn’t stand for it. We Helen Rittelmeyer / Robert VerBruggen Research Director Katherine Connell wouldn’t tell the Jew or the blind man, “Just use the next hotel, you only have Research Manager Dorothy McCartney Executive Secretary Frances Bronson to wait a minute.” This case should be no different. Assistant to the Editor Natasha Simons If Somali taxi drivers don’t want to accommodate Contributing Editors Robert H. Bork / John Derbyshire people with alcohol or dogs, they can get out of the Ross Douthat / Rod Dreher / David Frum Roman Genn / Jim Geraghty / Jonah Goldberg public-accommodation business. Florence King / Lawrence Kudlow / Mark R. Levin Yuval Levin / Rob Long / Jim Manzi Second, Sullum says the book should have dealt Andrew C. McCarthy / Kate O’Beirne David B. Rivkin Jr. more with threats to freedom arising from the War on NATIONAL REVIEW ONLINE Terror. He claims that “the detention powers claimed Editor-at-Large Kathryn Jean Lopez Managing Editor Edward John Craig by the Bush administration” were “so broad that Deputy Managing Editor Duncan Currie Staff Reporter Stephen Spruiell Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia, no one’s idea News Editor Daniel Foster Web Developer Nathan Goulding of a bleeding-heart liberal, felt compelled to insist (in Technical Services Russell Jenkins a case involving a U.S. citizen accused of taking up arms for the Taliban) that EDITORS- AT- L A RG E Linda Bridges / John O’Sullivan the executive branch cannot unilaterally suspend the writ of habeas corpus.” Contributors Detaining someone who made war against the United States may be a Hadley Arkes / Baloo / Tom Bethell James Bowman / Priscilla L. Buckley unilateral exercise of executive power, but it was never considered even Eliot A. Cohen / Brian Crozier Dinesh D’Souza / M. Stanton Evans re markable until Justice Kennedy said so on June 12, 2008, in the Boumediene Chester E. Finn Jr. / Neal B. Freeman James Gardner / David Gelernter v. Bush decision. Justice Kennedy’s reasoning—founding a foreigner’s stand- George Gilder / Jeffrey Hart Kevin A. Hassett / Charles R. Kesler ing and right to habeas relief on “separation-of-powers principles”—is James Jackson Kilpatrick / David Klinghoffer Anthony Lejeune / D. Keith Mano questionable enough. He also departed radically from our history. Michael Novak / Alan Reynolds William A. Rusher / Tracy Lee Simmons Copperheads complained when Lincoln suspended habeas, but no court Terry Teachout / Taki Theodoracopulos Vin Weber suggested that “separation-of-powers principles” were enough to trump the Chief Financial Officer James X. Kilbridge Accounting Manager Galina Veygman suspension clause or order the release of someone who’d been killing Accountant Zofia Baraniak Treasurer Rose Flynn DeMaio Americans in war. As late as 1946, the Ninth Circuit held that we could detain Business Services Alex Batey / Amy Tyler an American who had deserted the Army to fight against the U.S. Nowhere in Circulation Director Erik Zenhausern Circulation Manager Jason Ng the opinion was there any dread of unilateral exercise of executive power; there WORLD WIDE WEB www.nationalreview.com was only a recognition that people who make war against the U.S. need to be MAIN NUMBER 212-679-7330 SUBSCRIPTION INQUIRIES 386-246-0118 detained so they don’t kill Americans. WASHINGTON OFFICE 202-543-9226 ADVERTISING SALES 212-679-7330 We need to draw lines. We can’t tolerate hotels that discriminate on the basis Executive Publisher Scott F. Budd Advertising