On the Wireless Tonight!

Listen to radio AM1130 tonight.  I'll be a guest on the Late Debate with Jack and Ben at 9 pm.

Avoiding "Sherpa Conservatism"

[Prototype for "The Column"]

Over the next few months, in the wake of the recent elections, Republicans and conservatives at every level (national, state, local) will (and should) be engaged in a big rethink of who we are and what we are about.  Clearly, the current approach is not working well enough.

Those on the other side, in an uncharacteristic bout of apparent helpfulness, suggest that Republicans need to return to the halcyon days of the "moderate Republican."  This political creature was quick to compromise and always looking for ways to split the difference.  I'm all for improving the tone and working constructively, but limits need to be set.

Columnist Jonah Goldberg has coined a phrase for this "moderate" approach to politics:  Sherpa Conservatism.  Writing in National Review, Goldberg describes Sherpa Conservatism as follows,

"Good conservatives... should know their place and gladly serve as Sherpas to the great mountaineers of liberalism, pointing out occasional missteps, perhaps suggesting a slight course correction from time to time, but never losing sight of the need for upward 'progress' and happily carrying the extra baggage for progressives in their zealous but heroic quest for the summit."

The Perpetually Forthcoming Book

Before my recent adventures in electoral politics, I was rolling out parts of a book on government reform under the nom de guerre "Private Citizen."  So far, I have reissued three excerpts that can be found here

• "More Admirals Than Ships" explores the bureaucratic animal
• "Education" more money is not the answer
• "The Reform Agenda" whatever can't go on forever, won't

Why Don't The Streets Get Plowed Anymore?

My latest essay is posted above under the tab "Let is Snow."  Large urban centers in the North depend on timely snow removal to stay open for business during the long winters.  Unfortunately, such mundane tasks no longer hold the attention of our leaders.

More Admirals Than Ships

[Editors Note:  Late last winter, before embarking on my adventures in electoral politics, I started the process of excerpting sections of my book over at the still slumbering Private Citizen Media site.  As a public service, I will bring over those items, piece-by-piece, for temporary housing here, until a more permanent location can be found.]

Back in March, The American Interest's Walter Russell Mead took Midwestern (specifically Minnesota) Republicans to task in a blog post for failing "to turn voters’ urgent concerns...into a politically sustainable program for deep change."  Mead observed that,

"Rather than propose innovative new ideas toward a vision for the future, the Midwestern GOP is projecting a message about what they are against.  Those who want to get beyond blue need to think more creatively about the next steps."

Thus chastened, over at Private Citizen we offered this except from our perpetually forthcoming book as a partial down payment on that program for deep change.

“The nearest approach to immortality on earth is a government bureau"

--South Carolina politician James F. Brynes

Count us in favor of both government reform and reduced spending.  Simply voting less money is the easy part.  How to change business as usual is more difficult, especially when government is part of the problem.  Quoting Walter Russell Mead,

Government is inevitably going to be part of the solution for these problems—if only by correcting so many of the misguided policies that in many cases make existing conditions worse. [1]

So reform, yes, but what kind of reform?  To answer that question, we need to go back to the beginning and cover a little economic theory.

A government program, once created, develops its own constituencies—the direct recipients who want to continue getting benefits, bureaucrats whose careers depend on the program’s existence, not to mention the lobbyists and advocates who will go to bat for a program, if it were threatened.

Carousel of Regress

I've posted a new essay above about the future of energy policy.  Enjoy!

Obama Vetoes Carbon Tax?

Today's man bites dog headline from the Wall Street Journal's editorial page declares "Obama Vetoes a Carbon Tax—in Europe."  We've finally found a tax he doesn't like!

Honduras Nixes Charter Cities

Honduras says "no" to charter cities. 

Electric Grid Reliability

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, National Geographic looks at the issue of electric grid reliability and quotes the University of Minnesota's Massoud Amin.

...And I'm Back

As promised, it is November and I have returned.

Congratulations to Ron Erhardt for his victory in yesterday's election.