No Iron Lady

Peggy Noonan possesses a rare talent for cutting through the bovine effluence and getting to the heart of the matter. Writing in the Wall Street Journal might limit her exposure somewhat as most of the lefty media tries to ignore the Journal’s existence, let alone its editorial opinions. But for producing tightly reasoned and balanced analysis, it has few peers. What better place to showcase the talents of Peggy Noonan. Moreover, the Journal is very good at getting its message out via the web.

In her recent piece, Things Are Tough All Over, Ms. Noonan cites Margaret Thatcher as an example of a strong and highly-effective leader who never needed, and probably never considered playing anything resembling the gender card. Mrs. Thatcher sought no special quarter from those with whom she dealt and all the while carried her femininity with ease and dignity. And Ms. Noonan cites several other examples of effective leaders who happen to have been women. The article is a great read.

There is a larger point than Hillary whining about how the “boys” ganged up on her in the last debate and that speaks to the need for candidates to provide an honest and forthright articulation of their positions on the important issues. If candidates utilize the strategy of avoiding taking a position so as to avoid future criticism, and Mrs. C is not the only candidate that answers questions with non-answers, they will leave voters scratching their heads as they try to drill down beyond the sound bites to discern just how a candidate might handle the demands of the presidency. Watching Mrs. C. try to avoid taking a position on Elliott Spitzer’s plan to issue drivers licenses to illegal aliens was agonizing and frustrating. How many of us yelled at the screen, "answer the damn question."

The issues are large and complicated. War is easy to hate. What’s to like? And yet we are faced with real and serious threats from dangerous enemies that do not play by the old rules. The United States is a compassionate country that tries to meet the needs of its less-fortunate citizens. But we must ensure that a balance be struck between government control and the self-reliance that has made this country great. As a son of an immigrant, I have special reason to appreciate the opportunity that America has offered to new comers over the centuries. At the same time, if we do not deal constructively with the flood of illegal immigrants in our midst, we run the risk of unraveling the very fabric of our way of life. These, and similar issues, are complex and their solution will not come from fence-sitting non-answers. Would that we had more writers like Peggy Noonan to guide us through the obfuscation.