Historic tide
"I was brought up in Republican circumstances, firmly grounded in convention. I was swept out to Marxist sea by a flood of sex. I was trying to impress cute beatnik girls. Then, one day, I found myself washed up on the shore of jobs and responsibilities, and I was Republican again. ... As both a radical and a reactionary I was moved by the forces of history and institutions. All those beatnik girls had a history. And many of them wound up institutionalized. ...
"I have ex-leftist friends who recall long, intense, fractious political arguments from their university years. But I was at Miami of Ohio, not Berkeley or Columbia. My college friends and I may have begun such discussions, but then the rolling papers were brought out and the debate became over where to get Mallomars."
-- P.J. O'Rourke, from the new book, "Why I Turned Right: Leading Baby Boom Conservatives Chronicle Their Political Journeys," edited by Mary Eberstadt
'Lust in Space'
"There is probably some high moral reason that I shouldn't feel sorry for astronaut Lisa Nowak, who is now charged with attempted murder and kidnapping, but I just can't help it.
"And lots of people I know are also riveted by this tale, straight out of 'Desperate Housewives,' filled with so many kooky soap-opera touches. ...
"Sure, I know that in the great scheme of things, 'Lust in Space,' as the New York Post's headline shrieked, is not very important -- but it is oh-so-interesting. The shrewd media know this, albeit there will still be some pious whining about what a fuss is being made. ...
"In a recent 'Right Stuff' interview for Ladies' Home Journal, Lisa, who describes herself as 'competitive, determined, ambitious,' talks about trying six times to get into test pilot school. ...
"Remember St. Teresa's wise admonition that more tears are shed over answered prayers than unanswered.
"Lisa finally went up in space last summer after waiting almost 10 years for the chance. ... Although NASA said her performance had been 'excellent,' it was likely she would never go up again. After waiting and working all those years, could there be a greater downer? ...
Read more... >>>
"I was brought up in Republican circumstances, firmly grounded in convention. I was swept out to Marxist sea by a flood of sex. I was trying to impress cute beatnik girls. Then, one day, I found myself washed up on the shore of jobs and responsibilities, and I was Republican again. ... As both a radical and a reactionary I was moved by the forces of history and institutions. All those beatnik girls had a history. And many of them wound up institutionalized. ...
"I have ex-leftist friends who recall long, intense, fractious political arguments from their university years. But I was at Miami of Ohio, not Berkeley or Columbia. My college friends and I may have begun such discussions, but then the rolling papers were brought out and the debate became over where to get Mallomars."
-- P.J. O'Rourke, from the new book, "Why I Turned Right: Leading Baby Boom Conservatives Chronicle Their Political Journeys," edited by Mary Eberstadt
'Lust in Space'
"There is probably some high moral reason that I shouldn't feel sorry for astronaut Lisa Nowak, who is now charged with attempted murder and kidnapping, but I just can't help it.
"And lots of people I know are also riveted by this tale, straight out of 'Desperate Housewives,' filled with so many kooky soap-opera touches. ...
"Sure, I know that in the great scheme of things, 'Lust in Space,' as the New York Post's headline shrieked, is not very important -- but it is oh-so-interesting. The shrewd media know this, albeit there will still be some pious whining about what a fuss is being made. ...
"In a recent 'Right Stuff' interview for Ladies' Home Journal, Lisa, who describes herself as 'competitive, determined, ambitious,' talks about trying six times to get into test pilot school. ...
"Remember St. Teresa's wise admonition that more tears are shed over answered prayers than unanswered.
"Lisa finally went up in space last summer after waiting almost 10 years for the chance. ... Although NASA said her performance had been 'excellent,' it was likely she would never go up again. After waiting and working all those years, could there be a greater downer? ...
