Over a year ago, David Brooks wrote a controversial column claiming that America needed to lose for the Iraqis to win. The logic of the column was compelling to many. The Iraqis as a people had nothing to take pride in. Their country was liberated by outsiders. The only way for them to regain (or gain for the first time) their self-confidence as Iraqis, Brooks' theory went, was for them to shake off the Americans. I didn't think he was right, but I thought he grasped a fundamentally correct fact: the Iraqis did/do need something in their narrative which makes them the heroes, not the Americans. If these people really show up to the polls in large numbers, they'll have exactly the heroic story they need. I think everybody should be hoping they muster the very real courage required.

Just when you think that the EU’s foreign policy can stoop no lower, something like this happens:

“European Union plans to ban Cuban dissidents from national day receptions at EU embassies in Havana has sparked a diplomatic battle, officials said yesterday. Such a ban would bow to an explicit demand from the regime of Fidel Castro. Under a Spanish proposal that will be put to foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday, EU embassies in Havana, including Britain's, would be advised not to invite dissidents to national day receptions.

Vaclav Havel is outraged, as we all should be.

It is now dusk in Baquba, a city that lies thirty-five miles Northeast of Baghdad, along the edge of the Sunni Triangle. The streets are quiet. Vehicular traffic has been banned today, a curfew is due to come into effect soon after dark. Mothers hurry home from the markets. Children scurry to keep up with them. Election posters cling to the walls and streetlights. The city is filled with expectations. The vast majority of the people realize what is at stake here. They are ready to cast their ballots tomorrow, to elect representatives who will govern them and craft a new constitution for their nation. They are eager to write a new chapter in the history of their country. Meanwhile, the enemies of freedom lurk in the dark alleyways of this city. Domestic and foreign terrorists lie in wait. They fear not only the outcome of the vote, but the very process itself. They want to halt the inexorable march of freedom. They may try to disrupt the voting. No matter what happens tomorrow, they are doomed to failure in the long run. The elections will take place, the citizens of Baquba will cast their ballots. The transformation of Iraq is about to commence. Still, this is not the end of the beginning; nor the beginning of the end; it is the beginning of the beginning. Sunday will mark the first step on the long road to political and moral recovery in Iraq – and in the region. When the sun rises, the people will speak.

Ok, after begging, scratching and pleading to see an advance copy of Jonah's Groundhog Day piece, I had to read it in the magazine like everyone else. All I can say is "Wow." And I thought it was a boy gets girl movie. Jonah's writing on the slap to post-modernity that is a 1 1/2 hour Bill Murray classic (though arguably not in his top three -- Caddyshack and Stripes are better comedies, whether or not they are "greater" films), reminds me of three things: 1) the essay I wrote in freshman year at a Catholic college analyzing Darth Vader in terms of Soren Kierkegaard's Sickness Unto Death (all that self becoming the self stuff); 2) the time I met Bill Murray at a Chicago White Sox game (delightfully funny in person); and 3) that I really have no business writing on these pages. So just continue to consider me among the lesser lights of NRO. I've got to say, Jonah, that you really worked that one over.

Testing the limits of Kathryn's patience with me:

A Slovak man trapped in his car under an avalanche freed himself by drinking 60 bottles of beer and urinating on the snow to melt it.

Rescue teams found Richard Kral drunk and staggering along a mountain path four days after his Audi car was buried in the Slovak Tatra mountains.

He told them that after the avalanche, he had opened his car window and tried to dig his way out.

But as he dug with his hands, he realised the snow would fill his car before he managed to break through.

He had 60 half-litre bottles of beer in his car as he was going on holiday, and after cracking one open to think about the problem he realised he could urinate on the snow to melt it, local media reported.

He said: "I was scooping the snow from above me and packing it down below the window, and then I peed on it to melt it. It was hard and now my kidneys and liver hurt. But I'm glad the beer I took on holiday turned out to be useful and I managed to get out of there."

Parts of Europe have this week been hit by the heaviest snowfalls since 1941, with some places registering more than ten feet of snow in 24 hours.

MATTHEWS: Suppose the minority Sunnis, who ran the government with Saddam Hussein when he was in power, supposed they decide as a community, 90 percent of them decide not to vote. Can we continue to call them insurgents or are they not secessionists, people who say we`re not part of this new government and therefore you have to ask the moral authority question. Can American service people fire on them if they simply say we`re not part of this new government? Do we have the right to tell them that they can`t do that...

Let me start with you, Tony, in country. What happens if the Sunnis say, we`re not playing ball, we`re not joining in this election? Could they become then a secessionist movement? What would happen?

PERRY: No, I don`t think so.

I think you have to realize that the Marines -- I`m with the 2nd Battalion, 5th Regiment -- they`re not firing on people because of some philosophic difference. They`re firing on people they have to fire on to protect their own lives, people who have been using roadside bombs and suicide cars and snipers.

And I think -- I spoke to a Marine, a young Marine captain. He made a very good point. He said, this is not Vietnam. The insurgency here has no philosophy to speak of. This isn`t a philosophy like the Viet Cong that had communism, that had a national leader, Ho Chi Minh, that they adored. The insurgents basically have no philosophy, except no government, no control, no self-determination.

So it`s hard to think of them as some sort of legitimate party in that regard. They`re essentially -- in Ramadi, certainly, you could liken them to the Mafioso, who would really like to control, if not the whole city, certain neighborhoods and continue doing so.

Remember, this is a city that not even Saddam Hussein could control. They took over the government center from the Saddam Hussein government while he was in power. This is a very, very tough city as part of a tough province, the Al Anbar Province. There`s no philosophy here. There`s violence.

From a reader:

Hello Jonah,

I am probably way late with this response, and if you have already had enough of this topic please feel free to stop reading right now.

As a practicing dentist, though, I feel I must respond to your post. What your hygienist told you is a bunch of BS. All dentists must first attend and then graduate from an accredited dental school. Where they are taught all the finer things, such as fillings, extractions, securing patient financing, etc. Once they graduate, they can then go on to further study to be a specialist such as an Oral Surgeon, Endodontist, etc. However, they are still qualified to do all the other stuff they were taught.

Now many specialists devote their lives to their specialty and so an endontist will just do root canals and that's all. And after a period of time they may not feel comfortable attempting the work they learned in dental school, but haven't performed in years.

Most private dentists do extractions, and root canals, and some even braces. And most dentists use Nitrous. The specialists are there for when the case would be more difficult and involved.

I hope this helps. I'm available if you need a 'Dental Guy'.

From a reader (I could do without the "even your columns" comment):

Positrons and antielectrons are the same thing. Good Job S.F. Chronicle, and to the careful readers at www.defensetech.org. Should I go into my spiel now about how really, really, really, really, really awful journalism about science is these days? I'm a non-practicing chemist (currently typing with one hand, holding baby #2 with the other), and it ticks me off.

Thanks for the corner, and even for your columns!

Former Clinton aide Ickes supports Dean for party chair
By WILL LESTER Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Harold Ickes, a leading Democratic activist and former aide to President Clinton, said Friday he is backing Howard Dean to be chairman of the Democratic National Committee _ giving a powerful boost to the front-runner.

"I think all the candidates who are running have strong attributes, but Dean has more of the attributes than the others," said Ickes, who considered running for chairman himself before dropping out in early January. "Many people say Howard Dean is a northeastern liberal, he is progressive, but his tenure as governor of Vermont was that of a real moderate."

Ickes, who heads the political action committee of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said the endorsement was his alone and "does not reflect Sen. Clinton's opinion…."

Maybe the real problem is that politicians struggle and strive for high office in part because it gives them the opportunity to hang out with celebrities whose visages and alleged life experiences regale Americans in every grocery-store checkout line. This theory is reflected in the old jibe that "politics is show business for ugly people."

Any way you cut it, the ugly people of politics should try to ween themselves from excessive dependence on the pretty people of People…

Science moves us closer to the show which cannot be named and the Hulk! From defensetech.org:

"Unlike regular nuclear bombs, positron bombs wouldn't eject plumes of
radioactive debris. When large numbers of positrons and antielectrons
collide, the primary product is an invisible but extremely dangerous
burst of gamma radiation. Thus, in principle, a positron bomb could be a
step toward one of the military's dreams from the early Cold War: a
so-called "clean" superbomb that could kill large numbers of soldiers
without ejecting radioactive contaminants over the countryside."

Just a reminder. The Young Republicans at American University Feb. 2 (Groundhog Day!) at 8:15. PM. 4400 Mass Ave, in the University Club Room. I'm told all are welcome, but I have no idea what seating will be like. And you Georgetown and Georgewashington kids aren't invited because why should you cheapskates get a free-ride off of AU.

Okay, you can come too. But you're banned from asking questions.

I just got back from the dentist. Okay actually, I just got back from a late lunch with my bride which I went to after the dentist. Nonetheless, I learned something interesting. According to my loquacious dental hygenist, specialists in dentistry aren't allowed to practice general dentistry and vice versa. In other words, if you do root canals, you pretty much can only do root canals. If you're a kids dentist, you can't handle grown-ups. Etc. I found this out when I (wink, wink) jokingly asked for as much nitrous as they could spare. She said they didn't have any because they don't do anything that requires it in their practice. I said, "What happens when you've got to pull some teeth? (Or when you want to have a righteous nitrous-and-Quiet-Riot party?). She said they aren't allowed to do extractions. From their she spilled the beans.

I didn't get much info about why this is so. I can't imagine there's a federal law about this and if it was up to the states it wouldn't be a nationwide policy. Now I could be misinformed, but I suspect there's a racket here. I willl find out more...or I won't. It's that kind of hard-hitting, definitive reporting you've come to expect from me.

The Washington Post’s absurd story today that criticizes Vice-President Cheney’s attire at commemoration ceremonies at Auschwitz as childish, while simultaneously describing uber-weasels Chirac and Schroeder as “adults,” puts me in mind of a famous quote by Albert Einstein: "If most of us are ashamed of shabby clothes and shoddy furniture, let us be more ashamed of shabby ideas and shoddy philosophies... It would be a sad situation if the wrapper were better than the meat wrapped inside it."

It looks, from the pics, that it's actually a military-issued, cold-weather parka with hood (1 each). I can honestly say that this was probably one the of the best things I was ever issued. With the buttoned in liner, it the warmest piece of clothing I have. That and my military-issued mittens are the perfect combination for shoveling and keeping toasty.

Mine, however, does not have my name embroidered on the patch -- maybe I should have done that after I inadvertently neglected to turn it in with the rest of my field equipment.

FAIRFAX, Va. --- USA Next Chairman Charlie Jarvis blasted AARP’s just released poll on Social Security as “misleading and biased,” and vowed to get the truth out to AARP members as well as Congress and the general public.

“It looks as if AARP has a serious TRUTH-IN-POLLING problem. AARP’s misleading and biased survey does a grave injustice to AARP members, Congress and the general public,” Jarvis said. “We are committed to getting the truth about this poll to AARP’s members – as well as everyone else – so people can make informed decisions about the best way to reform Social Security.”

USA Next sent a memo to all Members of Congress featuring an analysis of the poll by nationally renowned pollster John McLaughlin. Among McLaughlin’s findings about the poll:

*The survey includes no respondents under age 30, even though voters age 18 to 29 made up 17% of the 2004 electorate.

*Those age 60+ constitute 34% of the sample, yet they were 24% of the 2004 electorate.

*20.7% of adults receive Social Security benefits. Yet 33% of AARP’s respondents report receiving benefits. This biases results against plans to strengthen Social Security since all surveys show resistance to change among Social Security recipients.

*AARP’s sample gives Democrats a six-point advantage over Republicans (37% to 31%). However, the parties made up equal percentages of the 2004 electorate (37% to 37%).

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - An abortion rights group is urging supporters to ask lawmakers to mail them a chastity belt in anticipation of the Legislature's annual designation of Chastity Awareness Week.

The form letter distributed Tuesday by NARAL Pro-Choice America said the organization wants lawmakers to support comprehensive sex education, equitable coverage for birth control and emergency contraception for rape victims.

"Until you give us real choices, please rush me the only thing that the Pennsylvania State Legislature seems to want to provide to protect my reproductive health: a chastity belt. My address appears below," the letter reads.

The poll finds that 53% of respondents favor a revote for governor; 35% oppose; and 12% are undecided. If there was a revote, 51% would support Republican Dino Rossi; 43% would support Christine Gregoire; and 6% were undecided. When asked who they believe actually won the gubernatorial election in November 53% said Dino Rossi; 37% said Christine Gregoire; and 10% were undecided. When asked if they believed if the courts would allow a revote, 41% said yes; 55% said no; 4% were undecided. Christine Gregoire was viewed favorably by 38%; 57% viewed her unfavorably; and 5% were undecided. Dino Rossi was viewed favorably by 50%; 47% viewed him unfavorably; and 3% were undecided.

From a reader in the military:

Jonah, I have a response to your reader who asks how we would feel if soldier's were forced to watch a crucifix being desecrated or a Torah being destroyed. Those things already happen, and they're paid for by the US Government under the premise that the acts are "art". Maybe we can just say that the people at Gitmo are artists, not interrogators. Then the left would have to appreciate their pushing the envelope. Just a thought.

From a reader, following-up on yesterday's post about how NRO is banned in China:

Howdy Jonah,

Never fear, I am living in Xi'an, China and cruise by NRO every day. To the
best of my knowledge you aren't blocked. Blogspot and Typepad are though.
China has a war on blogs. Fortunately I can use the proxy addon for Mozilla
Firefox to bypass this when necessary. So, bie dan xin (don't worrry -
Chinese Pinion) tech savvy flying monkeys across China will always be able
to get their daily dose of Star Wars/Simpsons quotes/inane time wasters!

The administrators decided to eliminate the spelling bee, because they feel it runs afoul of the mandates of the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

"No Child Left Behind says all kids must reach high standards," Newman said. "It’s our responsibility to find as many ways as possible to accomplish this."

The administrators agreed, Newman said, that a spelling bee doesn’t meet the criteria of all children reaching high standards -- because there can only be one winner, leaving all other students behind.

"It’s about one kid winning, several making it to the top and leaving all others behind. That’s contrary to No Child Left Behind," Newman said.

A spelling bee, she continued, is about "some kids being winners, some kids being losers."

As a result, the spelling bee "sends a message that this isn’t an all-kids movement," Newman said.

Furthermore, professional organizations now frown on competition at the elementary school level and are urging participation in activities that avoid winners, Newman said. That’s why there are no sports teams at the elementary level, she said as an example.

The emphasis today, she said, is on building self-esteem in all students.

"You have to build positive self-esteem for all kids, so they believe they’re all winners," she said. "You want to build positive self-esteem so that all kids can get to where they want to go."

A spelling bee only benefits a few, not all, students, the elementary principals and Newman agreed, so it was canceled.

I am overwhelmed by this huge crowd but if all we do is march today, that will not change the direction that this country is headed under the leadership of this administration. This march must be the beginning, not the end of making sure that we register every American who agrees with us that this is a question of conscience and faith and personal choice.

BASRA, Iraq, Jan. 27 - A convoy of flag-bedecked sedans and pickup trucks, packed with cheering campaigners, nosed its way through the this southern Iraqi city on Thursday, accompanied by a pop-music-style refrain, a paean to Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, the country's most important Shiite cleric.

Campaigning in much of Iraq is a furtive, life-threatening affair, best done on the quiet, if at all. Not so in the south, where the party identified with Ayatollah Sistani, symbolized by a burning candle and called the United Iraqi Coalition List, is one of dozens stumping openly and sometimes raucously.