SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 10:52 P.M. ET:

ANOTHER ECONOMIC BLOW - Manufacturing in July had its weakest growth in two years.  To economists, that indicates that the economy may well weaken this summer.  Countries that succeed are countries that make things.  Advancing an economy is always linked to manufacturing.  Our reason at Urgent Agenda for worrying about cuts in the defense budget is primarily concern for our national survival.  But, secondarily and importantly, defense contributes mightily to the economy.  Keeping those production lines open for planes, ships, vehicles and equipment means good-paying jobs for thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of people.  Will someone tell Washington?

WARMTH AMONG BROTHERS – Muamar Gadaffi has expressed warm and sincere thanks for the support he's gotten from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez during the NATO assault on the Gadaffi regime.  There is today a strong link between Venezuela and some of the world's worst anti-American dictators, like Gadaffi and the mullahs of Iran.  And yet this seems to concern Washington very little if at all.  As America weakens, it is more than possible that Venezuela can become a major base for anti-American operations south of our border, as Castro's Cuba has been.  Of course, Chavez also has the enthusiastic support of a number of Hollywood actors, but at least they don't trade in nuclear weapons, despite their talent for making bombs.

CHILDLIKE, OR EVIL? – It was bad enough for the people of Norway to undergo a horrible terrorist attack that took the lives of so many Norwegians, mostly children.  But the behavior of the Norwegian government in the aftermath has been disgraceful, taking no responsibility for failure to protect its citizens – the first job of a government – and lecturing the immediate world on Norway's moral superiority, while wagging fingers at those who question the reckless immigration policies in much of Europe, including Norway.  This morning the Norwegian prime minister gave another moral lecture aimed at the questioning of multiculturalism, something done recently by Angela Merkel of Germany and David Cameron of Britain.  At one time I thought the Norwegian labor party, which is in power, was just naive and childlike.  Now I'm becoming convinced that it is evil, often showing sympathy for terrorist groups, especially the ones that target Israel.  It's been widely reported that Washington is fed up with the current Norwegian government, believing it doesn't take the threat of terrorism seriously.  It's time for a change in Norway, so the Norwegian people can be better served.

MAJOR GAFFE, AGAIN – Joe Biden reportedly compared Tea Party activists to terrorists in a closed Democratic meeting today.  At first his office declined to confirm or deny that the vice president had made the remark, but, after a wave of criticism began to build, issued a statement saying that Biden didn't believe that term was acceptable in political discourse.  That's nice to know.  If the comment hadn't been reported publicly, I wonder if the vice president would have cautioned his fellow Dems about the level of their conversation.

August 1, 2011