In academia, one of the most common criticisms in research and discussions is that correlation does not mean causation. It refers to the logical fallacy for some who draw a cause-and-effect relationship between two events. The logical fallacy is captured in the Latin phrase cum hoc ergo propter hoc (‘with this, therefore because of this’). With the horrific attacks on Israel this week, some well-known commentators have been criticized for using the killing of hundreds by Hamas as a criticism of conservative figures or Republicans in general. That includes the Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin who appeared to blame the GOP for inviting the attack and Professor Laurence Tribe who suggested (and later retracted) that the war was actually a “wag-the-dog” operation by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to distract from corruption allegations.
Rubin (who goes by the moniker “Jennifer Truthful, Not Neutral Rubin”) immediately attempted to use the attack as another attack on Republicans: “How about this: With US House in chaos and US military promotions on hold, Hamas struck. Republicans’ weakness invites terror.”
Putting aside the effort to use this tragedy as a political cudgel domestically, Rubin ignores the fact that the motion to vacate the chair succeeded due to a unanimous Democratic vote and just eight dissenting Republicans. The Democrats wanted to vacate the chair even though McCarthy was being criticized by the dissenters for working with them and they will now likely receive a far more strident speaker.
Rubin has also called for expelling Republican members, who voted against certifying the 2020 election. She further declared that “we have to collectively, in essence, burn down the Republican Party. We have to level them because if there are survivors, if there are people who weather this storm, they will do it again.”
The Washington Post has repeatedly failed to take down or correct columns containing false claims by Rubin. Instead, it has run her calls to end impartiality and neutrality in journalism.
Now Rubin is suggesting that Hamas decided to launch this massive attack because there is an acting Speaker in the House until next week. It appears that Hamas was just waiting for the motion to vacate to pass.
Laurence Tribe immediately used the massacre to attack Netanyahu. Citing the Washington Post, Tribe wrote “Is Netanyahu wagging the dog of war to take attention away from his own war on the independent judiciary? Can anyone put that past him?”
The response was fast and furious. It was even too much for figures like Keith Olbermann who condemned Tribe stating, “Well this is a moronic and indefensible POV.”
What was striking is that the media finally called out Tribe, who has regularly posted bizarre legal theories and personal attacks against conservative figures, including attacking Bill Barr (erroneously) over his faith. On MSNBC and other outlets, Tribe regularly makes profane or personal attacks against those who hold opposing views of constitutional interpretation, including myself. These attacks include false assertions that had to be later corrected.
These controversies highlight the need to restore an element of maturity and civility to commentary. The “everything-goes” mentality has now taken hold of major media outlets, which regularly feature trash talking and sensational claims. If the target of these attacks is a conservative or Republican, there is a sense of license to remove the safeties in public engagements.
Once again, it is possible to restore a modicum of civility and accuracy in our public discourse. All it takes is for people of good faith to turn away from the rage and return reason in our commentary.
Not sure how much truth there is in the story of miners bringing a canary in a cage to warn miners of dangerous gas. The thinking was, if a tiny, fast breathing bird dies, the miners need to run. Well, the proverbial canary died when Biden surrendered Afghanistan, squandered Pax Americana, and compromised American deterrence against attack. The Western alliance is vulnerable because America has weak and corrupt leadership.
Samuel,
Well said and I agree.
The Biden admin has displayed impressive amount of incompetence, weakness, and corruption for the whole world to see.
And our enemies, our friendemies, and even allies are taking advantage of it.
I was at a 90th birthday party for a dear friend. Another dear friend l had grown up with was there. It was Jim Wright, former Speaker of the House. He told me something that has stayed with me all the decades since. “You can disagree without being disagreeable”. How do We The People expect to elect true statesmen to both parties if we do not practice statesmanship ourselves?
Jonathan: Pardon me if I don’t want to get in the middle of your food fight with Lawrence Tribe and Jennifer Rubin. It has been going on for some time and your column today indicates it will continue. Personal squabbles don’t interest me. So, as I do on the weekends, let’s review the first week of DJT’s civil fraud case before Judge Engoron.
On Friday, a single judge on the NY Court of Appeals ruled on DJT’s request to both stay the trial and Judge Engoron’s order cancelling DJT’s business certificates in NY. On the former Justice Moulton gave DJT disappointing news. He ordered the trial to continue. On the latter issue Moulton gave DJT a temporary reprieve. He stayed the order dismantling DJT’s real estate empire. DJT’s lawyers immediately claimed victory. Kris Kise said: “We are pleased the First Department upheld NY law and put a halt to any cancellation of business certificates, receiver or dissolution”.
It was a pyrrhic victory. Why? Letitia James’s prosecutors told Justice Moulton they would agree to the temporary stay. Their reasoning? They want DJY’s businesses to continue to make money so it can add to the final amount of disgorgement–that could amount to between $500 million and a $1 billion.
So Engoron’s trial will continue until a final judgment. In the meantime the NY Court of Appeals, a 5 Justice panel, will sit on the temporary stay and will probably not rule until the trial is over. At that point the evidence of DJT’s business fraud will be overwhelming and, no doubt, the Court of Appeals will lift the stay and order the cancellation of DJT’s right to do business in NY. Not exactly the victory DJT’s lawyers wanted.
Wrong again Nostradamus.
You’re 2 for 6000 on your little predictions.
I here Jeff Toobin calling you.
Keep your pants on, Jeff!
You should have your “hereing” checked.
“Hear” is whack-a-moles man crush, the good judge
https://youtu.be/b2JAzFirT1A?si=yEx3SiCmamojIE-l
“. . . the final amount of disgorgement . . .”
That is called: Government confiscation of wealth and property, under the color of “law.” It’s a corrupt scheme long used by communists.
OT but related,
“A professor at Brandeis University’s daughter and son-in-law were killed after they guarded their teenage son with their bodies after Hamas terrorists invaded their home in Israel.”
https://justthenews.com/events/brandeis-professors-daughter-and-son-law-killed-israel-while-protecting-son-hamas-gunmen
The Hamas posted a video of their terrorists going through neighborhoods and killing people with little to fear of resistance.
Think about that the next time someone calls for more gun control.
What is John Kerry’s response to this environmental disaster?
What disgusts me the most is that ANY part of our society/civilization can give any credence or value to what these two and their ilk have to say. They are pernicious fanatics of their own particular ideologies and are skewed so far by that fanaticism that anything they utter has little value to the sane world. Especially Rubin, a Jew by genetic heritage, like Schumer, but totally bereft of true Jewish understanding. My Orthodox Jewish husband says to me, everytime we see a news item concerning Schumer, that this man makes him ashamed to share a Jewish heritage with him. I think that statement by him underscores the baseless nature of what Rubin says since her thoughts are more controlled by her progressive ideologies and are, also, suspect. As for Tribe, he perpetuates the stigma of being black by constantly relying on a need for vituperative condemnation of the white man but offering no solutions to any grievance other than revenge and hatred.
Anonymous says “I don’t intend to post many more comments at this garbage dump website, so I’m not too worried by signing off by telling people the TRUTH that Turley will never tell.” She left because she said it was a garbage website so why did she come back. Would you bet your house that in the future she will be posting less on this garbage website. I like having Anonymous on this blog because she is the quintessential example of leftist thinking in America. Thankfully, she displays what we should know. Please don’t “sign off” Anonymous. If you go your umpteen daily comments will be sorely missed. Think about it. What else will you have to do from your basement enclave?
TiT,
I have no idea which Anonymous is whom but they do offer a degree of insight into the woke leftist mind.
I have learned more from their comments here on the good professor’s blog then I have anywhere else.
Their lack of critical thinking skills is quite impressive.
Their view of reality is not in line with reality at all. More like a mushroom induced hallucination.
They are emotionally driven and dismiss logic and common sense like a anxiety filled teenager. Feelings before facts.
Hate fills them to the point of insanity.
This criminal crapsite also removed my reply to your lie.
LOL — I replied, and this criminal crapsite removed the reply while keeping your lie up.
In reply to dgsnowden at 11:59. He said the following. “The present fate of 5-10 million people packed into the 10 mile strip of Gaza, and the plight of the Palestinians more broadly, may have something to do with it.” The Gaza strip has a population of 2,000,000 million not five to ten million Palestinians. The Gaza strip is 140 square miles. In contrast, New York City is made up of a land mass of 305 square miles and has a population of just under eight million. This conflict is not defined by landmass but rather by hatred by one people toward another. Here’s another fact you should know. The taking of civilian hostages has been condemned by the Geneva Convention. In contrast to your made up facts the condemnation by the Geneva Convention of taking private citizens as hostages is a real fact. One of your favorite phrases has been “Stop the Hate”. This phrase is now conspicuously absent from your discourse concerning the actions of Hamas and it’s well known benefactor Iran. You hear what you want to hear and disregard the rest.
@ tit
I may stand corrected on the exact geographical boundaries and pop. density of Gaza .. . but *I* said none of that stuff.
*I promote the assimilation of Palestinian and Jewish heritage and culture in Israel as a matter of fact.
This has all of the ear marks of wag the dog.
On a global scale.
Maybe the dog ate the laptop?
* it had all the hallmarks of Russian disinformation
Professor Tribe later stated.
“I sent the tweet in response to Netanyahu’s reported comments before I saw the news of what Hamas had actually done, at which point I immediately deleted the tweet as a clearly premature, ill-informed and inappropriate response to incomplete information.”
~+~
Somehow the lesson of being prepared before presenting one’s case was lost between enrolling in law school and becoming professor emeritas.
So Trump cut off aid to Palestine and Biden restored it. Which one is the anti-semite? I ask this question of all the liberal vote for Biden Jews out there. If they could speak today what would your Jewish ancestors who fought for there freedom and a right to a homeland say about your support for the real anti-semite sitting in the Whitehouse. There should be no surprise when when we consider that Biden supported racists in the south before he didn’t.
It is hard to fathom how Jewish folks can vote for the party of Tlaib, Omar, AOC, Pressley, Jeffries and all of the pro-Palestine appointees in the Biden team.
This is a subset of what is happening to our culture starting at the college level. On campuses the pro-palestine groups have taken over through intimidation, peer pressure, professorial pressure and the end of debate. Jewish kids are cowed into not allowing pro-Israel speakers on campus, they are pressured down to accepting what they know in their hearts to be wrong and they need to acquiesce in order to pass their courses.
The good news is that the VAST majority of voters see the enemy, see the terror and see the crimes against humanity that the so-called palestinians are committing today. We have women being kidnapped, raped, murdered and then dragged in public and yet we don’t hear a peep from the champions of women??? The leftist women will not complain about what the Afghans do to the women in their midst, the leftist women will not complain about what Arabs do to women in their own lands, leftist gays will not complain about what Iran and other Muslims do to gay people.
Islam is the one and only favored group that actually trumps woman’s rights and safety, gay rights and safety and even trans rights and safety. The left will scream that a very adult book that is full of graphic mature sexual content is banned when it is pulled from an elementary school, but they won’t say a peep about gays being murdered in Iran.
Hey trans folks, try being trans in Hamas held territory. Try going out for the man’s Olympic swim team in Iran. Go try trans reading hour in Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Yemen or any other Islamic/Arab utopia.
Yet Dennis the genius claims that if people shrink in the face of intimidation, their cause isnt just.
Every time Turley writes another article abour Lawrence Tribe, it reminds me of the William F. Buckley v Gore Vidal debates that accompanied the 1968 election.
This causes me to reasonably suspect that Turley and/or Tribe are trying to contrive a similar situation for the 2024 election, NOT because the public has any need to pay attention to their extremely-goofy competition, but because it would serve Turley’s and Tribe’s own self-promotional purposes.
One is a leftist professor who seems to say anything, if it will get his opinions published in the “news,” and the other is a former advocate of the opinions of since-convicted multiple felon Michael Avenatti.
Hopefully the public will be spared any lame Buckley-Gore conservative v liberal reenactment by liberal v progressive Turley-Tribe.
>”… and the other is a former advocate of the opinions of since-convicted multiple felon Michael Avenatti.”
Well, Turley is clearly not advocating for him now. .. ask him if you don’t believe me.
I once advocated for Obama .. . and look what happened to me.
*everybody makes mistakes, sometimes .. . nobody is perfect.
Information about Avenatti’s multiple felonies was READILY available in the news back when Turley was peddling Avenatti as the greatest lawyer since Clarence Darrow merely because they were both admirers of each other’s BLIND anti-Trumpism.
If you don’t believe me, just read the comment section from Turley’s past articles published at this website, where news reports of Avenatti’s KNOWN conduct were linked in the comment section but never detered Turley from advocating for Avenatti’s anti-Trumpism, possibly because Turley has never once read his own comment section and merely licenses this website to publish his articles.
Well, can’t speak to Turley’s choice of website licenses . .. but I do like to know who I’m talking to, anonymous.
You don’t have to be ‘blind’ to be anti Trump either. Trump is too leaky a vessel. Trump is not the answer to the long, insidious corruption of Biden’s ilk and never has been.
*He can be a useful foil. .. for the Democrats to rally around.
“… but I do like to know who I’m talking to, anonymous.”
LOL LOL LOL — I originally began commenting at this thoroughly-disgraceful comment section using my real name many years ago. It was actually recommeneded in Turley’s published rules that people comment using their real names. Most didn’t, but I did, same as I used my real name commenting a dozens of websites ranging from left to right — from the NYT to Townhall — and eventually got banned by ALL of them, because they’re ALL as dishonest as this one and need to manipulate the conversation anytime it gets too close to the TRUTH.
So I came back to this disgraceful, fraudulent website years later using a pseudonym because that’s what I had to do — because this is a disgraceful garbage site where I was prohibited from posting comments under my real name and because this website authorizes trolls like you to engage in defamation.
Nonetheless, you could easily review Turley’s old articles about Avenatti from April 2018 and locate my REAL NAME via my posting links under my real name to articles about Avenatti’s felonies that were being investigated while Turley was promoting Avenatti as the greatest thing since canned beer.
Of course, it wasn’t wasn’t long before this fraudulent website recently stopped posting my comments under the pseudonym, so now I’m just one of the many “Anonymous” posters — not by MY choice but by the choice of this fraudulent website. I don’t intend to post many more comments at this garbage dump website, so I’m not too worried by signing off by telling people the TRUTH that Turley will never tell.
Is that you Ralph?
*I’m here now .. . the truth, whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Of course its Ralph. Not even the lefties hate Turley as much.
He constantly complains about people carrying on, yet how many posts is this about
michael ave-f*ck-anatti???
I’m not aware of Turley ever having retracted his agreement with convicted multiple felon Avenatti — an extraordinary thing for a lawyer to do when not in Avenattie’s employment. If you can direct me to any public statement by Turley whereby he’s retracted the opinions he shared with convicted multiple felon Avenatti, I’d be happy to put the issue to rest.
But when someone is on record — a record that they themselve freely generated — saying that Hitler or Stalin or Charles Manson or Michael Avenatti have or had some good ideas, it’s not an issue that’s likely to be forgotten with or without explanation, and certainly not without explanation.
Turley’s licensed crapsite appears to be blocking my replies. I’m shocked.
Ralph,
Two of my posts have not appeared.
Am I being blocked?
No.
Why would I? Neither comments had anything offensive in them at all.
Sometimes the WP server has a hiccup and a comment does not get posted.
This disreputable crapsite blocked an entire day’s worth of my comments the other day — it was WAY more than two. And it’s doing it again today. You lose LOTS of credibility when you make excuses for what’s going on here — especially since it links you to the attack trolls that attack for the sake of attacking while never even attempting to address the subject matter. This garbage site specializes in hosting that sort of nonsense.
Ralph, I’m sorry to hear this. There’s no reason for Darren to be blocking your comments.
– a sane Anon.
How do you explain replies I provided to people right here in THIS thread being removed AFTER they posted and were upvoted?
Sorry, Gomer, but Turley’s licensed crapsite can’t handle the truth. Truth has ZERO to do with what’s going on here with Turley’s troll-infested comment section. Just look at how many attack me (it’s called ad hominem) instead of addressing the substance.
I addressed the substance Maximus Minimus. .. what more do you want?
Why don’t you ask the webmaster why he’s blocking some of my replies and actually removing others that were upvoted?
And how many Ava-fuc*-anatti posts is this? Garbage. Buts its your garbage so thats ok.
YAWN
Anonymous, please sight your source where Professor Turley agrees with Michael Avenatti. As usual we must assume that you have no source to sight. You call it “goofy competition” because you do not believe in the competition of ideas but rather only in the censorship of those you do not agree with. Every day you attack the positions of Professor Turley but we have never heard one peep in protest by you about anything that Laurence Tribe has said. You spend a great deal of your time on this blog debating but you think that when someone that you do not agree with debates it is just a “goofy competition”. However, in your argument “goofy” is more aptly applied.
This criminal crapsite removed my reply.
I watched these banterings live, as I’m sure many of you did also…It was the summer of 1968 ……….at one point in the debate, Gore V. made a disparaging remark about Robert Kennedy, who had just been assasinated by Sirhan.
Anyone remember that??
The reason for the attacks is simple – It’s Yom Kipper and the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kipper War.
The present fate of 5-10 million people packed into the 10 mile strip of Gaza, and the plight of the Palestinians more broadly, may have something to do with it.
*also, I don’t believe the state of Israel ‘belongs’ to Jews or the Jewish Faith.
If you don’t believe that, then you don’t accept Saudi Arabia belongs to the Saudis, Syria belongs to the Syrians, etc. It is the same for the rest of the Middle East.
You have to discover what your definition of “belongs to” is. The Jewish presence in Israel precedes all others and has been permanent. The area of Israel today was established by international law. Israel survived and is a member of the UN recognized by most nations.
Israel is not occupying Jordan, Syria, or any other nation.
Israel is a democracy where all citizens are equal. There is Arab representation in the Knesset and Supreme Court.
Do you know what you are talking about?
Reason for the timing of the attack.
Thats the reason??? LOL
It’s not Yom Kippur.
Dear Prof Turley,
Don’t speak no Latin, you know, but it seems the Kings and rulers of the earth have been wagging the dogs of war in the Holy Lands for past 40 years. At least. That I know of. All the Masters & Commanders on the far side of the world.
The vote to vacate the Speaker was ALL democrats and 8 ‘extreme’ republicans. Noted, and submitted for the record.
*The Holy Lands … hardly those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
~ Yeats
Biden learned a new word today: “fungible”.
Rubin and Tribe should remember the axiom,”it is better to remain silent and thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.’
Rubin and Tribe….Biden….the Democrats and the Media (but I repeat myself)…Hillary….and so many others are beyond good at provoking the brain dead into displaying their ignorance in general on any topic raised.
Most use “anonymous” as their call sign!
Biden states that he was made aware of the attack at 7:30-8:00AM…but the attack happened about 10 hours before that!!!!
Remember Hilary and the “who do you want taking THAT phone call at 3:00AM? Well we now have a guy that they let sleep for another 7 hours since he would have been mush anyway.
Why wake him? He isn’t calling the shots.
I think it’s very useful for Tribe and Rubin to continue to talk and print. If just shows the magnitude of their stupidity. When a man is standing in a hole and digging it deeper, the best thing to do is back up after handing him a larger shovel. Eventually the hole will collapse on him. If others climb into the hole to help him, all the better.
No, the 6 billion $ has not been spent yet but, as mentioned above, it frees up other money to be used while still technically not being used itself for nefarious acts. Maybe better than giving money for hostages we tell people who go to Iran that it is a hostile state and they travel at their own risk. If they come back great but we are under no obligation to go after them. If a man decides to walk off a cliff I am under no obligation to throw myself of the cliff with him.
Joe Biden did restart money to the Palestinians that Trump had stopped and raised the engagement level and he refused to engage with Israel after Netanyahu’s election. It’s hard for me not to think that this attitude placed a de-emphasis on working with Israel and interaction on intelligence. So yes, I think Joe bears a great deal of responsibility in this instance. The fiasco in Afghanistan in 2021 also slapped a facade of weakness on Biden’s Leadership.
Many think that this idea of weakness and strength posturing is beneath us and of little to no importance but we are simply intelligent apes and posturing and screaming and charge and retreat is how we express ourselves when threatened. Hesitancy implies weakness and an opportunity for an opponent to charge into the fray and bowl you over and cost you the confrontation before rational actions can save you.
More than likely, the hamas attack on Israel was a “wag-the-dog” by biden to divert attention from himself and his son.