May I start with something I meant to say in yesterday’s Impromptus? Colin Powell, as you may have heard, has pronounced that, in order to rebound, the Republican party needs to stop listening to Rush Limbaugh. I say: The Republican party would be better off not listening to Colin Powell. After all, who has the better track record over the years? Who has been right more often than the other (and I don’t mean right-wing)? That’s no contest: It is not the former secretary of state.

If the Republican party goes the way of the Obama-supporting Powell, it might as well fold its tent right now. If it goes the way of Limbaugh — it could be singing “Happy Days Are Here Again” before you know it.

And even if not: The party would still be principled and distinct enough to be worth the time of day.

‐The age-old question is, Does a party exist to win elections or to stand for something — to offer the public a certain point of view? The most satisfying answer, it seems to me, is that it exists to do some of each: with the emphasis on standing for something.

And, in American politics, the wind eventually blows your way — as both major parties have found at various stages of their lives.

‐The last couple of days, I’ve thought about global warming — or rather, a particular point about global warming. You have heard it many times, from me and others. I made it in a piece shortly after Hurricane Katrina, and I’d like to quote for a second:

To an amazing extent, global warming has become all-explaining. It is the cause of our natural ills, in all their diversity. It is an idée fixe, a universal bogey. Just as the Jew is both a communist and a capitalist, and the American both a materialist and a puritan, global warming is responsible for heat and cold, drought and flood — anything nature might be throwing at us at the moment. When Al Gore gives a speech on global warming, he is apt to say, “We’ve been having some weird weather lately, haven’t we?” The word “weird” covers a multitude of conditions.

Yes, global warming is embraced as an all-purpose explanation by an alarming number of people. Indeed, this term “global warming” was broadened out into “climate change”: which catches everything under the sun (and probably above). On Sunday afternoon, I was in Denver — where it was well below zero. On Monday morning, I was home in New York, where it was in the mid-60s. Both temperatures were highly unseasonable. And both were said to be the result of global warming (or, excuse me, “climate change”). In truth, we have always had extreme or aberrant weather. Only now, every unusual temperature is freighted with emotion and politics. Which is weird, to use our friend Al’s word. ‐Did you see the piece by Larry Di Rita on General Shinseki in yesterday’s Washington Post? It’s here. A knowledgeable friend of mine said, “It was almost discombobulating to come across something so true in the mainstream media.” There is a Myth of Shinseki, to go along with other myths. Shall we list a few? 1) George W. Bush and his forces played dirty against John McCain in the South Carolina primary of 2000.

2) John Ashcroft tried to cover up the nude breast of a statue in the Justice Department.

3) The Israelis carried out a massacre at Jenin. These are all things that people want to be true — but, alas (for them), are not. Larry Di Rita’s piece was a public service: a dash of cold water against a dull national face. By the way, the kid’s from Ann Arbor, as I recall, and is probably, like me, a “backlash baby” (to use a term I believe I coined my own bad self). ‐Got a lotta, lotta mail about President Bush in Baghdad — about his reflexes, his athleticism, his general shoe-ducking ability. Bush fans were very impressed. Maybe some others were too (although don’t bet the ranch — the one in Crawford or any other). Let me give you my two favorite responses: Guy said, “Kinda reminded me of when Coulter ducked that pie.” (I don’t remember that one, but I can imagine.) And a young cousin of mine texted, “Your boy [my cousin’s not really a Bushie] showed some clutch moves. He could give Keanu Reeves in The Matrix a run for his money.” ‐MEMRI, or the Middle East Media Research Institute, sends out a steady stream of instructive reports. The other day, this one caught my eye. A Yemenite cleric is saying, “Women are subject to menstruation, when their endurance and . . . capacity for concentration are diminished.” And, “When a woman talks, she might use the part of the brain containing the memory for talking — and that’s it, the data is [or are] lost.” Etc., etc. And the following idea occurred to me: If Western liberals began to regard Islamists as a bunch of Archie Bunkers, instead of . . . whatever they regard them as, they might be a lot more interested in fighting the War on Terror. ‐Ed Koch wrote the below in his column of December 1:

Recently I conducted a seminar for twelve interns a few years out of college who were sent to me by a foundation that placed them with private firms and public agencies for work experience.
The group asked me what was my greatest concern. I told them that I feared for America’s future. I said I do not believe our children are willing to fight and die to defend American ideals and that consequently we might lose the war against Western civilization being waged by international Islamic terrorists.
I said that Americans love life and respect religious freedom. Islamist terrorists, on the other hand, long to die as religious martyrs while forcibly converting the infidel, primarily Christians, Jews and Hindus.
I repeated what Bernard Lewis, the great historian and specialist on Islam, had told me, that forced conversion or death could be averted if Christians and Jews recognized the supremacy of Islam and paid tribute, while followers of other religions did not have that option.
I was surprised at the opposition of many in the room to my statements. Two young women identified themselves as Muslims. They vigorously disputed my statements. I asked them to check with Islamic scholars and continue e-mail discussions with me on the subject. They said they would. If I hear from them, I’ll let you know what they say.
At the end of the hour, I asked the group to demonstrate by a show of hands who agreed with me and who agreed with those who do not think Islamic terrorism is the great danger to the world that I had described. It was shocking to me that the interns split evenly, 6 to 6. Now I fear more than ever for America’s future.

And yet Mayor Koch supported Obama-Biden over McCain-Palin (after supporting Bush-Cheney in the previous election). Maddening.

‐Thought you might like a speck of news out of Cuba — well, not like, but be interested in. This report comes from the Human Rights Foundation:

“At least 20 activists were detained in Cuba this week for planning to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). According to independent and verifiable sources inside Cuba, detainees, some of whom were taken by force and beaten, include former political prisoners, human rights activists, opposition political leaders, and independent journalists.”

Yup, business as usual — but not forever. Not forever.

#JAYBOOK#

‐Friends, since this column began (in early 2001), I have had a running theme. Actually, I’ve had many, but I’m thinking of one in particular: Only Thomas Sowell Could Have Written That. Or, alternatively, Only Thomas Sowell Would Have the Cojones to Say That.

Would you like another in the series? Would you like another example of Sowell uniqueness? Well, here he is, blasting . . . “community service”:

Freedom ultimately means the right of other people to do things that you do not approve of. Nazis were free to be Nazis under Hitler. It is only when you are able to do things that other people don’t approve that you are free.
One of the most innocent-sounding examples of the Left’s many impositions of its vision on others is the widespread requirement by schools and college-admissions committees that students do “community service.”
There are high schools across the country from which you cannot graduate, and colleges where your application for admission will not be accepted, unless you have engaged in activities arbitrarily defined as “community service.”
The arrogance of commandeering young people’s time, instead of leaving them and their parents free to decide for themselves how to use that time, is exceeded only by the arrogance of imposing your own notions as to what is or is not a service to the community.
Working in a homeless shelter is widely regarded as “community service” — as if aiding and abetting vagrancy were necessarily a service, rather than a disservice, to the community.

And so on. For the whole bracing, delicious, shocking, wonderful column, go here. I have another theme, quite related: Only Paul Johnson Would Say That. Let me give you a snippet from a recent Spectator column. He is describing a particular street in his neighborhood: “. . . too many Eastern dumps, packed with dark bearded men, arguing, plotting and scowling. Afghans? Persians? Azerbaijanis? Don’t know, or care. All the same to me: scary.” I almost fell out when I read that. Perfectly Johnsonian . . . ‐And only Mark Steyn could have written the piece on Oscar Hammerstein II that appears in the current New Criterion. It is a masterpiece of a piece — and it takes a Mark Steyn to appreciate Hammerstein. Many people regard him — Hammerstein, I mean — as corny, innocuous, plain, middlebrow. Disparage Hammerstein in virtually any room in New York or San Francisco, and you will be a hit. But Steyn knows better: knows his genius. And he says exactly what needs to be said in this New Cri. piece. In other words, it takes someone as sophisticated as Steyn to appreciate the guileless, uncalculating, un-nasty genius of Hammerstein. Purity was one of the 20th century’s least favorite qualities, and Hammerstein had it (though he was far, of course, from square). One lady of my acquaintance said of Mark’s piece, “I laughed, cried, sang, and remembered all through it.” You just might too. ‐Have you heard that Impromptus is now available on RSS (or “via” RSS, or “from” RSS — not sure what the right word is)? Go here. And I’ll leave you with a bumper sticker — not one that now exists, but one that a reader thought of: “Celebrate Diversity — Hug a Conservative.” I like!