The Best of The Western Right: 2010

This blog has been busy this year, covering many topics. We had 300 posts this year. Here are some of the best posts of 2010.

Conservative of the Year: Jim DeMint
National Redistricting Preview
National Conservatives Finally Notice Fred Upton

Analysis: Governor
Analysis: Michigan
Analysis: Kalamazoo

Weaver's Betrayal
The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Founding Fa...
Arguing With Idiots
Analysis of the 20th Senate Primary
Money on Fire
Analysis of 6th District Congressional Race
Jack Hoogendyk for Congress
The Case Against Rick Snyder
Fred Upton's Ten Worst Votes
Fred Upton's Jobs Plan
Who is Grant Taylor?
We Are Doomed
Mike Cox for Governor
Evaluating the Candidates for Governor
Who Killed the Constitution?
The Conscience of a Conservative
Michigan Senate Races
Area State House Races
Hoekstra: Who, Me?
Kalamazoo County Commission Races
Upton on Immigration
Rejecting the Arena
Stand With Arizona
No Arena, for Now
Wrongest Statement Ever in the Herald?
Real Conservative Candidates
Hoekstra on the Bailout
Census Lies
Dave Pawlowski is a Bad Person
Democrats Attack Local Business, Try to Put People Out of Work
Democrats Lie About Margaret
The New Case Against Immigration
2010 Election Preview

Previous:
The Best of The Western Right: 2009
The Best of The Western Right: 2008
The Best of The Western Right: 2007
The Best of The Western Right: 2006

Best Articles of 2010

It is time for the best articles of 2010. These articles were selected from roughly 10,000 articles this year. More than 400 articles appeared in this year's 52 POLITICAL UPDATES.

The culture war was the most frequent topic, inspiring eight updates. Immigration and government were tied with seven. Fourth was the economy with six.

This year there was a clear choice for the best article of the year.

Angelo Codevilla: America's Ruling Class – And the Perils of Revolution

Following this, in chronological order, are twelve more selections for the most important news or opinion pieces of 2010.

Gary North: A Red-Alert Threat to the Regime
Steve Sailer: “Bad Students”—Unmentionable Cause Of The Great Achievement Gap
Gary North: Bring Down the Ruling Elite
Ann Coulter: Justice Brennan's Footnote Gave Us Anchor Babies
National Review: Ten Reasons to Oppose Dodd-Frank
Gary North: Abolish the Public Schools
John Taylor Gatto: Against Schools
Steve Sailer: MSM Buries Lead—American Majority Supports Arizona Law. But Our Elites Don’t Like The American Majority
Gary North: Read All About It! The NY Times and Other Establishments Sheets Are Dead
Allen Wall: Yes, La Raza Really Does Mean "The Race"—And The Idea Was Invented By a Nazi Sympathizer
Gary North: The City of Detroit is Dead: It Was Killed by Government
Steve Sailer: Hidden Key To Last Decade’s Disasters: Dubya’s Commitment To “Diversity”

Previous:
Best Articles of 2009
Best Articles of 2008
Best Articles of 2007
Best Articles of 2006
Best Articles of 2005

2010: The Year at Western

2010 was a fairly quiet year at Western, at least politically. Neither the College Republicans or the various leftist groups on campus made much noise.

Preparations continued all year for a privately funded medical school at Western. An interim dean was appointed and candidates for dean were interviewed.

A bill was introduced in the state house to eliminate the last elements of the Baptist heritage of Kalamazoo College. It passed the state house but was not taken up by the state senate.
The Betrayal of Kalamazoo College

President Dunn suffered a mild heart attack. Governor Granholm signed the bill to expand a business park into Colony Farm Orchard.
Local News

The local Tea Party group had a town hall at Western on health care.
Health Care Town Hall

The Herald was very, very wrong about the WSA.
Wrongest Statement Ever in the Herald?

The few Western students who voted supported the sustainability fee proposal.
Another Green Scam

Never forget America First Day.

There was some sort of controversy over the WSA presidential election.
Local News

A Western student was sued by a local towing company after criticizing its dubious business practices on Facebook. The lawsuit was dropped in December.
Local News

WMU College Republicans Endorse Margaret O'Brien

Western reached a contract agreement with the part-time employees union.

What does the MSA stand for?
Muslim Students Association

Earthquake at WMU

The Board of Trustees approved a 7.4% increase in tuition.
Local News

A local professor wants to talk about race, then calls people racist if they disagree with her.
Local News

This blog defended, then graduated, hopefully for the last time.
Piled Higher and Deeper
Congratulations, Graduates!

Western began construction on the new Sangren Hall despite only having secured part of the funding from the state. Further funding fell through in the legislature, and Western threatened to raise tuition by 3% to compensate.

Previous:
2009: The Year at Western
2008: The Year at Western
2007: The Year at Western
2006: The Year at Western

Conservative of the Year: Jim DeMint

2010 was unquestionably the year of the Tea Party. Begun in 2009, and drawing from the Ron Paul campaign of 2007-8, the movement went from nothing to rocking Washington in a short time. The conservative movement and Republican party, pronounced dead by some in the wake of the 2008 election are back and in some ways, stronger then ever.

The Tea Party is what conservatives have always needed--a genuine grassroots movement. The movement is leaderless and so cannot be easily corrupted.

Even before winning elections, the Tea Party had a significant impact in Washington. They made democrats pay dearly for passing Obamacare and are keeping up the pressure for repeal. They made cap-and-trade and card check dead in the water. They defeated the omnibus spending bill and the DREAM act.

Unlike previous conservative movements, the Tea Party does not view voting Republican as The Answer. Thus they mounted primary challenges to a slew of unconservative Republicans and defeated Bob Bennett at a convention, Lisa Murkowski in a primary (though not the general), and Bob Inglis in a primary. Arlen Specter and Charlie Crist fled the party rather than face challenges, and both lost. Moderate Mike Castle was denied a Senate nomination. These and a slew of other unsuccessful primary challenges made it clear that congressional Republicans had better shape up or ship out, and that 'the lesser of two evils' was not good enough. Thus even unsuccessful candidates like Christine O'Donnell served a useful purpose. And to think that an early liberal lie about the Tea Party was that it was an AstroTurf creation of the Republican establishment.

The Tea Party is now busy trying to rest control of the Republican party from the establishment.

To achieve its victories, the Tea Party had to overcome one of the most vicious smear campaigns in politics. The biggest lie of course was that they are RAAACIST! depsite a shred of evidence to support this. They didn't let the lies show them down, and in November elected Allen West, Tim Scott, Marco Rubio, Brian Sandoval, Nikki Haley, and a half-dozen Hispanic Republican congressmen.

No one person represents the whole movement, of course. But a strong case can be made for Senator Jim DeMint as the predominant Tea Partier in Washington. DeMint has a long track record of fighting for conservative causes. This often means opposing his own party, as when he fought against the prescription drug bill in 2003 and amnesty in 2006 and 2007. This year, he led the fight against government spending in the Senate, sponsored Ron Paul's audit the Fed bill, and held up a slew of bad legislation.

Having earned the respect of the grassroots, he helped to elect Tea Party candidates in November. He gave early endorsements to Pat Toomey and Marco Rubio. He offered support to Rand Paul and Mike Lee. He used his PAC to send them financial support helped them to raise more on their own. Next year, he will have more staunchly conservative allies in the Senate.

For these reasons, Senator Jim DeMint is The Western Right's conservative of the year.

Honorable mentions: Glenn Beck, Ron Paul, Sarah Palin, Russell Pearce, Sam Alito, Jeff Sessions

Previous winners (including retroactive):
2009: Glenn Beck
2008: Sarah Palin
2007: Ron Paul
2006: Jerome Corsi
2005: Tom Tancredo
2004: John O'Neill
2003: Roy Moore
2002: John Ashcroft
2001: George W. Bush
2000: William Rehnquist

Conservative First at RightMichigan

This blog had some incisive comments on this article on redistricting.

Who should stay and who should go now?

That's Chief Justice Young

Conservative Robert Young is slated to take over as Chief Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court.

Young aims to be state’s next chief justice

Local News

Local news around Kalamazoo.

Texas Township trustee proposes stripping supervisor of some duties as discord grows
After 10 years in Lansing, state lawmaker Tom George returns to first career as anesthesiologist
Litigation between T & J Towing, Justin Kurtz over Facebook group to end with no payments
Planning Commission appointment stirs debate on Texas Township Board of Trustees
Kalamazoo Gazette 2010 top stories: I-94/Westnedge interchange takes shape
Kalamazoo Gazette 2010 top stories: Rep. Robert Jones dies before election

POLITICAL UPDATE--The Economy

This update focuses on the economy. All of the articles are by prolific writer Gary North.

The Emperor Keynes
Theft By Mercantilists
How to Defend the Free Market Gold Coin Standard: Stop Defending the Government Counterfeits
Bernanke Is Untouchable
The Zombie Banks Feast
The Ron Paul Hot Seat
Rats Desert the Sinking Bernanke
No More Treasury Debt Purchases?
Dr. Bernanke Gets a Phone Call
Judgment Days

POLITICAL UPDATES are archived here.

National Redistricting Preview

With the release of the 2010 census of state populations, the number of members of congress each state is allocated is now set. Next year we will see the decennial process of redistricting commence.

Redistricting 2010: Who Controls What
A Preview of 2012 Redistricting
Dave's Redistricting App

The posts above explain who controls the redistricting process in each state and what is likely to happen. The analysis is pretty good, though this blog would take issue with it in a few cases. 'Dave's Redistricting App' allows you to try your own hand at political mapmaking. This blog may post its own maps in the future.

The following table contains our projections for what will happen in redistricting. The second column says who controls the process with
R = Republican
D = democrat
S = Split control
C = 'Independent' commission

The third column gives the old number of districts for the state. The fourth column says how many are gained or lost. The fifth column gives the current (post-election) R/D split of the congressional delegation.

The final three column contain the best case, most likely, and worst case scenarios for Republicans of gains or losses due to redistricting. Note that this does not account for gains or losses for other reasons.

Note also that a state gaining or losing a seat leads to a gain or loss of half a seat. This follows the same reasoning that leads to saying that a baseball team leads its division by half a game. That is, if a democrat is eliminated in Michigan and a Republican is added in Georgia, Republicans have gained only one seat, not two.

Here is the table.

State Control #Dist. Change Now Best Likely Worst
AL ___ R ___ 7 ___ 0 ___ 6\1 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
AK ___ S ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 1\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
AZ ___ C ___ 8 ___ 1 ___ 5\3 __ 1.5 __ 0.5 _ -1.5
AR ___ D ___ 4 ___ 0 ___ 3\1 ___ 0 ___ 0 __ -1
CA ___ C __ 53 ___ 0 __ 33\20 __ 5 ___ 0 ___ -5
CO ___ S ___ 7 ___ 0 ___ 4\3 ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ -1
CN ___ D ___ 5 ___ 0 ___ 0\5 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
DE ___ D ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 0\1 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
FL ___ R __ 25 ___ 2 ___ 19\6 ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 0
GA ___ R __ 13 ___ 1 ___ 8\5 __ 2.5 __ 1.5 __ 0.5
HI ___ D ___ 2 ___ 0 ___ 0\2 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
ID ___ C ___ 2 ___ 0 ___ 2\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
IL ___ D __ 19 ___ -1 __ 11\8 __ -0.5 _ -2.5 _ -3.5
IN ___ R ___ 9 ___ 0 ___ 6\3 ___ 2 ___ 1 ___ 1
IA ___ C ___ 5 ___ -1 ___ 2\3 __ 0.5 __ 0.5 _ -0.5
KS ___ R ___ 4 ___ 0 ___ 4\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
KY ___ S ___ 6 ___ 0 ___ 4\2 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
LA ___ S ___ 7 ___ -1 ___ 6\1 __ -0.5 _ -0.5 _ -0.5
ME ___ R ___ 2 ___ 0 ___ 0\2 ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 0
MD ___ D ___ 8 ___ 0 ___ 2\6 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ -1
MA ___ D __ 10 __ -1 __ 0\10 __ 0.5 __ 0.5 __ 0.5
MI ___ R ___ 15 __ -1 __ 9\6 __ 1.5 __ 0.5 ___ 0.5
MN ___ S ___ 8 ___ 0 ___ 4\4 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
MS ___ S ___ 4 ___ 0 ___ 3\1 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
MO ___ S ___ 9 __ -1 ___ 6\3 __ 0.5 __ 0.5 _ -0.5
MT ___ S ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 1\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
NE ___ R ___ 3 ___ 0 ___ 3\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
NV ___ S ___ 3 ___ 1 ___ 2\1 __ 0.5 __ -0.5 _ -0.5
NH ___ R ___ 2 ___ 0 ___ 2\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
NJ ___ C ___ 13 __ -1 ___ 6\7 __ 1.5 __ 0.5 _ -0.5
NM ___ S ___ 3 ___ 0 ___ 1\2 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
NY ___ S ___ 29 __ -2 __ 8\21 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ -1
NC ___ R ___ 13 __ 0 ___ 6\7 ___ 4 ___ 2 ___ 1
ND ___ R ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 1\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
OH ___ R ___ 18 __ -2 __ 13\5 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ -1
OK ___ R ___ 5 ___ 0 ___ 4\1 ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 0
OR ___ S ___ 5 ___ 0 ___ 1\4 ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 0
PA ___ R ___ 19 __ -1 __ 12\7 __ 2.5 __ 1.5 __ 0.5
RI ___ D ___ 2 ___ 0 ___ 0\2 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
SC ___ R ___ 6 ___ 1 ___ 5\1 __ 0.5 __ 0.5 __ 0.5
SD ___ R ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 1\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
TN ___ R ___ 9 ___ 0 ___ 7\2 ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 0
TX ___ R ___ 32 __ 4 ___ 23\9 __ 3 ___ 1 ___ 0
UT ___ R ___ 3 ___ 1 ___ 2\1 __ 1.5 __ 0.5 __ 0.5
VT ___ D ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 0\1 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
VA ___ S ___ 11 ___ 0 ___ 8\3 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
WA ___ C ___ 9 ___ 1 ___ 4\5 __ 1.5 __ 0.5 _ -1.5
WV ___ D ___ 3 ___ 0 ___ 2\1 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ -1
WI ___ R ___ 8 ___ 0 ___ 5\3 ___ 1 ___ 1 ___ 0
WY ___ R ___ 1 ___ 0 ___ 1\0 ___ 0 ___ 0 ___ 0
Total______435 ___ 0 _ 242\193 _ 35 __ 9 ___ -15

Thus our best projection is a GOP gain of nine seats, with quite a bit of variation between the best and worst case scenarios. Republicans can also shore up some vulnerable incumbents.

Michigan Loses a Seat

As expected, Michigan will lose a seat in the upcoming round of redistricting. Michigan was the only state to lose population over the past decade. It is likely that Gary Peters' district will be carved up.

Once again, all over the country people fled political jurisdictions run by liberals and moved to those run by conservatives. Whether they learned anything along the way is an open question.

Local News

Local news around Kalamazoo.

Portage City Council welcomes Cory Bailes as newest member, sees off state representative-elect Margaret O'Brien
New commissioners sworn in Tuesday; others say goodbye at last board meeting in 2010
Kalamazoo County Treasurer Mary Balkema to discuss land bank with citizen group
How will Michigan redraw Congressional districts with Census showing population loss?
Margaret Bakker is installed as Allegan County's first female circuit judge
Former St. Joseph County Register of Deeds Cynthia Jarratt sentenced to 10 days in jail for embezzlement
Kevin Hollenbeck credited with restoring stability to Portage school board

A post office 'with some personality': Oshtemo building closing after 52 years of memories
Tuition to rise 3 percent at Western Michigan University after state cuts funding for construction of Sangren Hall
Could the Kalamazoo River Valley Trail connect to Kalamazoo College and Western Michigan University?
Here are the 2011 construction projects approved by the Kalamazoo County Road Commission
Does Western Michigan University have the 'worst' professors? Provost says Internet listing is not legitimate
U.S. Rep. Fred Upton will oversee 'vitally important legislation' as chairman of Energy and Commerce Committee

POLITICAL UPDATE--The Culture War

This update focuses on the culture war.

Peter Brimelow: Announcing VDARE.com’s War Against Christmas 2010 Competition!
Pat Buchanan: Christian Rout in the Culture War
Phyllis Schlafly: Lame Duck Judges Should Not Be Confirmed
Steve Sailer: Electing A New People: Arizona Chooses Conservatives
Mathew Richer: Newt Gingrich: The Aspiring Americano President
Ann Coulter: Bradley Manning: Poster Boy For 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'
Ann Coutler: Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Call Our Troops Homophobes
Gary North: Sitting Ducks: Why the Tea Party Movement Is Vulnerable to Economic Charlatans, Ignoramuses, and Statists
Nancy Pearcey: Give Thanks! Time’s View of Marriage Is Obsolete

POLITICAL UPDATES are archived here.

Congratulations, Graduates!

Western Michigan University doctorate candidates for Dec. 18 commencement

Upton Gets His Wish

As expected, Congressman Fred Upton was selected to lead the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Upton campaigned as a conservative, as he always does in his district. We will see over the next two years whether he will act that way.

Upton's bid to lead the committee was opposed by many conservative organizations and commentators. Ironically, Upton's higher visibility may guarantee a high-profile primary challenge in two years.

Down With Upton
National Conservatives Finally Notice Fred Upton

POLITICAL UPDATE--Money and Spending

This update focuses on money and spending.

Gary North: The Digit Juggler
Gary North: Bernanke Lied His Way Through a '60 Minutes' Infomercial
Gary North: The Establishment Is in Despair
Gary North: Who Should Be Burned?
Gary North: Ellen Brown Betrays Her Followers
Gary North: Warren Buffett Lives Off You
Lew Rockwell: The Gold Standard Never Dies
Dan Flynn: Watch the Amazing Fed Turn a Dollar into a Dime!
Gary North: There Is a Revolution Coming

POLITICAL UPDATES are archived here.

POLITICAL UPDATE--News from Abroad

This update focuses on news from abroad.

Pat Buchanan: European Union: R.I.P.?
Brenda Walker: Mexico’s Meltdown Coming Here—Unless Washington Acts
Pat Buchanan: Who Fed the Chinese Tiger?
Sean Gabb: A Nail in the Fuse Box: The Persecution of the British National Party
Steve Sailer: Habermas's Huff About Thilo Sarrazin
Rafael Koski: Thilo Sarrazin, Gushing Philosemitism, And The German National Question

POLITICAL UPDATES are archived here.

PB Election Analysis

Lefty blogger Peter Bratt has some interesting analysis of the 2010 election in Michigan.

2010 Recap Part II: Michigan State House
2010 Recap Part I: Kent County

Local News

Local news around Kalamazoo.

More money could be spent improving local parks, beaches and trails thanks to new state grants
Tonya Schuitmaker easily outspent opponents Bobby Hopewell, Robert Jones in 20th District state Senate race
WMU medical school dean could be selected later this month or early 2011
Cory Bailes picked to replace Margaret O'Brien on Portage City Council
U.S. Census to help reshape Kalamazoo County Board
Oshtemo Township wrestles with fire chief's recommendation to ban burning yard waste
Kalamazoo City Commission asked to transfer 78 properties to Kalamazoo County Land Bank Authority