No astute political analyst am I, this Economist article reflects my amateur political analysis towards John Edwards’ political future:

Mr Edwards is well on the way to becoming a man with a brilliant future behind him. What did he add to the Democratic ticket other than a boyish smile and a well-honed stump speech? He failed to deliver either of the Carolinas to the party (even though he was born in the southern one and represented the northern one in the Senate). He has no clear ideological constituency.

In addition to the foregoing, Edwards’ Senate seat was won by a Republican, he was surprisingly poor in his debate performance against Dick Cheney, and he made an incredibly inept gaffe late in the campaign after the death of Christopher Reeve. In view of all of this, my sense is that a decent case can be made that Edwards cost Kerry the election in a reasonably close race. That’s not much of a foundation upon which to build a political future.

Jamie Malanowski, a New York-based writer, pens this Washington Monthly op-ed on Houston congressman Tom DeLay and provides the following overview to a discussion of the various ethics complaints and criminal investigations that are currently dogging Mr. DeLay:

Tom DeLay is the most odious character in American politics today. He does not lack for competition, of course, but what sets him apart is that all of his perversions have been accomplished under the radar screen. Apart from his colorful name ?the Hammer,? DeLay has no public identity, and even that nickname will more likely inspire people outside the Beltway to think of old jocks like Fred Williamson or Dave Schultz than the beady-eyed former exterminator who terrifies Capitol Hill. . . Tom DeLay is a cancer cell, silently metastasizing.

Statesmanship is not a word that comes to mind when thinking about Tom DeLay.

This Economist article addresses the second political murder in the Netherlands in the space of two years. The murder of outspoken and provocative film director, Theo van Gogh, by a Muslim radical has shocked Dutch society, which has long been the European epitome of tolerant and liberal values. Dutch people fear that they may now live in a place where violence has become a way of settling differences of opinion, especially over rocky relations with a growing Muslim minority. The article is an insightful account of the difficulties that even the most liberal Western culture faces in assimiliating intolerant Muslim fascism.