Brad Rourke

Brad Rourke’s Blog

  • "I See It All The Time"

    The Sheriff’s came to the neighbors the other day. Came twice, in fact. First time, they asked if I had seen them recently. I had to admit not since the weekend, when there was a lot of activity in the driveway. The second time the Sheriff’s came, it was with a pair of laborers. They…

  • "I See It All The Time"

    The Sheriff’s came to the neighbors the other day. Came twice, in fact. First time, they asked if I had seen them recently. I had to admit not since the weekend, when there was a lot of activity in the driveway. The second time the Sheriff’s came, it was with a pair of laborers. They…

  • Taxonomy of Bloggers

    A simple taxonomy of the different blogs out there in the public sphere. Annotator and Pointer: InstaPundit, Atrios, Drudge Thoughtful Response: Mark Schmitt, Talking Points Memo, PowerLine, Captain’s Quarters Secret Expertise: Brad DeLong, Mystery Pollster Pot-Stirrer: Michelle Malkin, DailyKOS Omnivorous Essayist: Dynamist, Redeeming Hope, Think Again (Stanley Fish), Bitch Ph.D. Newsroom Bullpen: The Corner, TAPped,…

  • Debate Season

    It’s debate season. So soon? I have a secret confession: I want them to go away. It’s not that I don’t like politics. I do. I am what political professionals call a “high propensity” voter, even visiting the voting booth for local elections where a handful of ballots sway the outcome. I follow current events.…

  • Around Which Messages Fly

    The world is changing. Politics is entering a new age. About time, too. What drove it home is a video that someone — a Web contractor who says he acted on his own — has posted on YouTube. It is a “mash-up” of the classic Ridley Scott-directed Apple “1984” commercial, in which a world of…

  • Two Americas

    Let me tell you about two Americas: popular life and official life. In PopLife, people watch television shows, listen to rap, metal, rock, and country, and go to malls. They don’t have to wait until something’s been in the newspaper to know about. Most people live in PopLife. Some are rich and some are poor.…

  • The Energy Problem: Choices for an Uncertain Future

    I wanted to let you know about a new discussion guide that I have been working on for the past year or so with the National Issues Forums and the Kettering Foundation. It’s called The Energy Problem: Choices for an Uncertain Future. Like other National Issues Forums issue books, it is designed for small groups…

  • Existing For A Purpose

    Also appeared (slightly altered) in The Christian Science Monitor. I almost threw out the Christmas card from my daughter’s orthodontist. I am glad I didn’t. I wish I could set up a trip for bosses to come to Rockville and visit Dr. Miller. They’d learn a lot. When I enter Dr. Miller’s office, perched unremarkably…

  • Kicking The Shins Of Your Enemies

    The well-meaning and optimistic have now stood up, as they seem to do every two years, and made their claims. Such a close majority for the Democrats in the Senate, they say, will oblige leadership to steer a centrist course. Having received such a thumping from America, they say, President Bush must needs be conciliatory…