Penguins and conservatism

Four interesting posts at The Carpetbagger Report (where I recently guest-blogged):

1) Conservatism without compassion: Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), who recently voted against federal relief for the victims of Katrina, is blocking an attempt to exempt those same victims from the new bankruptcy law. He's clearly one of the leading candidates for most noxious politician in Washington.

2) The death of conservatism: Tom DeLay's recent defence of Big Government (claiming that the budget is right where it should be, with all the fat cut out) indicates that conservatism is dead. I'd argue that conservatism isn't dead, it's just been banished from the corridors of power in the Republican Party.

3) Conservatism without intelligence: Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO), who also voted against federal relief for the victims of Katrina, argues that a proposed Pennsylvania memorial to the victims of Flight 93 on 9/11 in the shape of a crescent could, given the association of the crescent with Islam, inadvertently honour the terrorists. Clearly, Sensenbrenner has competition.

4) Penguins and politics: Some conservatives seem to have convinced themselves that March of the Penguins, a well-reviewed new documentary about, yes, penguins, supports the case for intelligent design (such as there is one), the pro-life movement, and monogamy. How convenient that they left out homosexuality. All I can say is, isn't evolution wonderful?