The Best of The Western Right: 2011

This blog was somewhat less busy this year but still covered many topics. We had 180 posts this year. Here are some of the best posts of 2011.

A series of articles on redistricting in Michigan.
Michigan Redistricting

Conservative of the Year: Scott Walker
Who are the "Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility" and why do they support Fred Upton?
GOP Leaders: Merry Christmas Happy Holidays!
Evangelical Environmental Network Runs Misleading Ads
Van Jones' Speech
Another Kalamazoo College Employee Lies About Van Jones
Kalamazoo College Professor Lies About Van Jones
Howard Wolpe, RIP
City of Kalamazoo Declares War on Kalamazoo County!
Up From the Projects
The Case for a Creator
Weapons of Mass Instruction
The ACLU vs America
Michigan 5th Congressional District Election Preview
Does Detroit Need Immigration?
How Busing Wrecked Kalamazoo
Reagan Forever
Democrat Supervisor Doesn't Pay Taxes
Snyder Appoints Democrat WMU Trustee

2011 Election Preview

Previous:
The Best of The Western Right: 2010
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 2011

It is time for the best articles of 2011. These articles were selected from roughly 10,000 articles this year. More than 400 articles appeared in this year's 52 POLITICAL UPDATES.

The economy and the government were the most frequent topics, inspiring seven updates each. Immigration and the culture war were tied with six each.

Here are the ten best articles of 2011.

Victor Davis Hanson: Two Californias
Gary North: Facebook, Twitter, and the Arab Revolutions
Steve Sailer: Census 2010: Hispanic Hype, Black Backwash, White Flight
Thomas Sowell: Voting with Their Feet
Steve Sailer: Obama and Osama: Can We Go Home Now?
Gary North: College: Why It Is Not a Bubble
Gary North: London Riots: What Nobody Dares to Say
Federale: Obama Regime's Administrative Amnesty: Impeachment Is The Only Answer
Gary North: Too Many Eurozone Summits
Victor Davis Hanson: Vandalized Valley

Previous:
Best Articles of 2010
Best Articles of 2009
Best Articles of 2008
Best Articles of 2007
Best Articles of 2006
Best Articles of 2005

2011 Year in Review

Local news from the Gazette:
Here are the top stories in the Kalamazoo area for 2011

National news from Dave Barry:
Dave Barry’s Year in Review: The 2011 Festival of Sleaze

Conservative of the Year: Scott Walker

2011 was a year of political stalemate, following Republicans' victories in the 2010 election. Consequently there isn't as clear a choice for conservative of the year as in some past years. In Congress, conservatives including Paul Ryan in the House (Human Events' choice for Conservative of the Year) and Rand Paul in the senate fought good, but mostly losing fights. 2009 winner Glenn Beck continued his efforts with a rally in Israel and launching an internet television network.

2011 was also the year of the mob. There were protests and riots in the Middle East and Egypt. There were leftist rallies in Wisconsin and the Occupy Wall Street movement in Manhattan and across the country. No one called this better than Ann Coulter, whose new book Demonic explains the liberal mob.

In the states, many conservatives fought the good fight. Arizona Senate Majority Leader Russel Pearce fought the good fight on immigration, gun rights, and more, and was recalled for his efforts. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie continued his efforts to reform that state. All of the preceding deserve honorable mentions.

But the best embodiment of these trends is Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. Walker proposed reasonable reforms to the budget process and monopoly (collective) bargaining of some government employees. In response, Wisconsin leftists generated a firestorm of outrage. The democrat state senators fled the state, attempting to stop the bill from passing. Mobs invaded the state capital for weeks. But Walker and legislative Republicans refused to give in. They stood their ground and passed the bill anyways.

The issue didn't end there. Democrats tried to snag a state supreme court seat that would have given them the majority, but Republican David Prosser held them off. Leftists tried to recall enough state senators to take a majority of the state senate, but that effort was beaten back, with democrats winning only two seats under exceptional circumstances.

The issue still isn't over, as leftists are organizing to recall Walker in 2012. But Walker has continued to calmly stand his ground and argue for the merits of his reforms. His approval ratings have improved, and he stands a good chance of beating the recall.

Budget reform is all the Wisconsin Republicans accomplished. They also made Wisconsin the 41st state with the right to carry a concealed weapon. They strengthened self-defense laws. They passed a voter ID law to protect elections.

For standing up for conservative principles against the worst the left had to offer, Scott Walker is the 2011 conservative of the year.

Previous winners (including retroactive):
2010: Jim DeMint
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

2011: The Year at Western

2011 was a fairly quiet year at Western, at least politically. The big news on campus continues to be the effort to establish a medical school. The school continues to raise money and hire administrators. It was also given a building downtown to serve as the location of the new school. (Presumably, the business that donated it will get a big tax writeoff.)

Construction continued on the new Sangren Hall, with the exterior now mostly complete and interior work continuing. Work is also progressing on an expansion to the Lee Honors College.

There has been little political activism on campus from either the College Republicans or the various leftist groups on campus. The Students for Life were revived from near death. The Western Herald has cut publication down to twice a week and seem to have lost significant readership. The WSA hasn't been involved in any recent controversies.

In February, Governor Snyder reappointed businessman Ken Miller to the WMU Board of Trustees and also appointed former Granholm staffer Dana Debel. Retired professor Joseph Ellin passed away. Veterans of the WMU College Republicans celebrated the five-year anniversary of Ann Coulter's speech on campus.

In March, the speed limit on Stadium was increased to 45 mph. In April, Jesse Jackson spoke on campus. The great Paul Maier finally retired as a history professor at Western. In May, university continued living well. In July, a federal appeals court panel overturned the MCRI; the ruling is being appealed to the full 6th circuit court of appeals . Western bought the University Bookstore , establishing a monopoly on physical bookstores on campus.

In August, Western's 'weak' education college was debated in the Gazette. A Western alumnus was involved in one of the big political stories of the year in Michigan. Western was rated as a 'gay-friendly' campus. In September, the costs of college continued to be debated. Western remembered 9/11.

In October, Human Events editor Jason Mattera spoke at Kalamazoo College, causing controversy. Later in October, it was announced that communist Van Jones would speak at Kalamazoo College. After the Gazette told a little too much truth about Jones' past, Kalamazoo College professor Any Elman and employee Hussain Turk lied about his record. His speech promoted big government under the guise of 'green energy'.

Former Congressman and WMU professor Howard Wolpe passed away. Khan Academy is changing math and science education. Western cut down trees to install solar panels.

What's next in 2012?

Previous:
2010: The year at Western
2009: The Year at Western
2008: The Year at Western
2007: The Year at Western
2006: The Year at Western

POLITICAL UPDATE--Election 2012

This political update focuses on the 2012 election.

Mark Steyn: The Gingrich Gestalt
Larry Kudlow: The 2011 HUMAN EVENTS Conservative of the Year: Paul Ryan
Ann Coulter: Newt: Speak Bombastically and Carry a Tiny Stick
Ann Coulter: Newt Presents a Fresh New Virtual Face
Ann Coulter: If Not Romney, Who? If Not Now, When?
Peter Bradley: Newt Gingrich—GOP’s Anti-White Quota King
Steve Sailer: Herman Cain And The Limits Of Permissible Republican Ideology
James Kirkpatrick: Is “Conservatism” Enough? Russell Pearce’s Defeat And The Future Of “The Movement”
Phyllis Schlafly: National Popular Vote Is a Bad Idea

For campaign and election coverage, visit Red Racing Horses.

Michigan Articles

Steve Sailer on Benton Harbor:

Municipal Coup

Will Grigg on self-defense in Michigan:

The Right To Resist: Will Michigan Repeal the 'Rapist Doctrine'?

POLITICAL UPDATE--Sovereignty

This update focuses on sovereignty.

Phyllis Schlafly: China Celebrates Outwitting Us in the WTO
Phyllis Schlafly: UN Mischief from Durban to Rio
Steve Sailer: Newt Gingrich, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush—Servants of Davos Man
Phyllis Schlafly: Goodbye UNESCO a Model for Goodbye UN
Gary North: Europe's Hangover
Gary North: Too Many Eurozone Summits

POLITICAL UPDATES are archived here.

Who are the "Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility" and why do they support Fred Upton?

Radio ads in Southwest Michigan are touting the supposed fiscal conservatism of Congressman Fred Upton. The ads praise his work on the "Supercommittee" and claim that Upton was picked because "he's a tough conservative", instead of his insider connections. Of course, the supercommittee didn't accomplish anything, though the fact that they didn't raise taxes can be seen as a victory.

The ads are run by an outfit called "Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility". Who are they? Their FEC filing lists the people sharing control and Stephen Linder and Jeffrey Timmer. They are both also listed as owners of the Sterlling Corporation, a major Republican political consulting firm in Michigan. The group had previously run ads in 2010 (presumably) attacking Gary Peters, Mark Schauer, and Gary McDowell.

MCFFR seems to be a "SuperPAC" that is not required to disclose its donations. The organization does not appear to have a website.

It would seem that some wealthy person or persons, who may not actually be citizens of Michigan, paid the Sterling Corporation to run ads praising Upton through a front group that doesn't actually exist except on paper. Listeners are advised to be skeptical.

Deb Buchholtz Resigns

Deb Buchholtz, the county commissioner representing district 13 (Alamo, Cooper, Parchment) will resign to devote more time to her new job.

Deb Buchholtz resigning from Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners

District 13 is staunchly Republican. The county commission will appoint a replacement to finish Deb's term. It will be interesting to see whether they appoint a moderate like Deb or a more conservative Republican.

District 13 was chopped into three pieces in redistricting. The largest part, Cooper, which is where Deb lives, was put in a district with longtime commissioner Jeff Hepler. Parchment was added to a democrat district, and Alamo is in a new, open Republican district. If the county commission wants to appoint someone who will be around for more than a year, that person will likely have to be from Alamo.

2000 Posts

This is the 2000th post on The Western Right. This blog began February 12, 2006 as a group blog for the WMU College Republicans and eventually transitioned into a personal blog when the other contributors moved on to other things. Some of the posts have since been off-lined, but I have kept count.

Here is the first month of posts. Many of the highlights of this blog are linked at right.

GOP Leaders: Merry Christmas Happy Holidays!

Christmastime for conservative activists brings lots of spam emails from GOP leaders in Michigan. These provide a curious sidebar in the "War on Christmas", the leftist effort to eliminate traditional symbols of Christmas as part of the broader culture war.

The chief symbol of the War on Christmas is the battle between the greetings "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Holidays", with "Season's Greetings" making an occasional appearance. Of course, there wouldn't be "Holidays" without Christmas. The bizarre argument for using "Happy Holidays" is that some tiny fraction of the population would be offended by "Merry Christmas", so we must use a phrase that annoys far more people. (But they're the wrong people, so who cares are them?)

Two recent polls have shown that 69% and 77% of Americans prefer "Merry Christmas". The percentages of Republicans was 88% yet another poll.
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/content/pdf/7006
http://www.goppolk.org/?p=1131

Yet some Republican leaders have taken a cowardly stand with the forces of political correctness rather than the vast majority of the Republican base. Here is a list of the greetings used by prominent Republicans who have mailed or emailed me.

Rick Snyder: "Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays"
Brian Calley: "Seasons Greetings"
Bobby Schotak: "holiday season"
Saul Anuzis: "Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays"
Bill Scheutte: "Happy Holidays"
Randy Richardville: "holiday season, a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year"
Pete Hoekstra: "Merry Christmas"
Dan Horning (candidate for UM regent): "Warmest Holiday Wishes"
Jack Hoogendyk: "Merry Christmas"
Senator Tonya Schuitmaker: "Happy Holidays"
Rep. Margaret O'Brien: "Merry Christmas"
Speaker Jase Bolger: "A Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy New Year!"
Kalamazoo GOP: "Merry Christmas"

Please post any additional data you have in the comments.

1967 Detroit Riots

POLITICAL UPDATE--The Culture War

This update focuses on the culture war.

Immanuel Velikovsky: Deluge
Gary North: The Coming Break-Up of the Nation-State
Pat Buchanan: The Equality Racket
Steve Sailer: Steve Jobs: Nature, Nurture, And Apricot Orchards In Silicon Valley
Pat Buchanan: Why We Should Care If Whites Become A Minority
Gary North: The Paterno Affair and Western Liberty

POLITICAL UPDATES are archived here.

WMU CR alum's latest column

Hey everyone, I've been writing a few articles for a number of places across the nation. My latest has been published on RealReaganConservative.com. Here's a short preview:


It seems that a number of conservatives won’t be getting what they want in 2012. Far too many conservatives are defining the current presidential pack as less than inspiring. What followed was a number commentators and pundits hoping that someone with experience and a solid conservative record would jump in and save us all from the mediocrity they saw in the current field.

For the past few months, I’ve heard nothing but comments like “Sarah Palin needs to run,” and “Marco Rubio would be prefect!” Ann Coulter even joked about taking away Chris Christie’s inhaler until he ran. But the window has come and gone for people to join in the race, and there’s a lot of disappointment with many now talking about 2016.

It’s as if all the hoopla surrounding the race for the White House has caused us to completely forget the fact that there are other elections taking place in November.  One third of the Senate seats and the entire House of Representatives will be determined by voters in November.  There are also numerous state and local elections taking place across the nation. That’s a sizeable chunk of our government that cannot be ignored.

Read more

POLITICAL UPDATE--The Economy

This update focuses on the economy.

Gary North: French Fried Banks
Gary North: Europe's Two Endgames
Gary North: German Pope, Italian Central Banker
Gary North: Boomer Blindness
Gary North: Compound Economic Growth and Atlas
Phyllis Schlafly: Let's Talk About Jobs

POLITICAL UPDATES are archived here.

Evangelical Environmental Network Runs Misleading Ads

An environmentalist group that claims to be Christian is running ads in Michigan.

http://creationcare.org/
http://creationcare.org/blog.php?blog=35
Christian environmental group says the EPA's new rules on mercury pollution is a pro-life issue

The Evangelical Environmental Network is running radio ads in six states. The ads are virtually identical, merely substituting the name of the state and the senators who are targeted in the ad. The ads, narrated by "Pastor Tracy" (no last name given) all say that "children here in [state] are vulnerable". But unless she recorded identical ads in each state, she is LYING about where she is in most or all of the ads.

The ads also reference "members of Congress who say they are pro-life", which is bizarre since since some of those mentioned, including Levin and Stabenow, say no such thing.

I can't claim to be an expert on mercury emissions, but I am extremely skeptical of the scientific claims of environmental organizations, which have a long history of distorting science for their own ends. But whatever the dangers to the unborn of a few parts per billion of mercury, it pales in comparison to the dangers of BEING STABBED IN THE NECK AND HAVING YOUR BRAINS SUCKED OUT.

Abortion has killed 50 million or so unborn, and Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow are ardent defenders of it. For "Pastor Tracy" and the EEN to imply that Levin and Stabenow are pro-life is outrageous, and to attempt to use the pro-life cause to promote their environmental agenda is despicable.

The EEN also uses bad theology. In the Bible, God requires that we "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it." Earth's resources are there for our use, and while we should use them responsibly, producing energy is essential to our standard of living. Coal plants are an essential part of our energy production, and taking them away would hurt our economy and even our lifespans.