'If there's a hell on earth, it's probably Zimbabwe'

There are things about Fred Thompson that concern me. Namely: his choices for advisers, his supply-side credentials, his past life as a trial lawyer, his past support of McCain-Feingold, his conviction (does he have the same clear purpose that made Reagan's administration so successful?).

But one area where Thompson is spot-on is his take on the United Nations:

Two United Nations agencies have just released a report saying that 4 million people in Zimbabwe are in danger of starving. That's a third of the entire country's population. Take note that I said "two United Nations agencies" are predicting the mass starvation.

The reason I want you to take note of that is that, last month, the same United Nations elected Mugabe's Zimbabwe to lead the UN Commission on Sustainable Development. That's the organization charged with promoting sound long-term economies.

Now you might ask why a country in economic freefall would be chosen by the UN to advise the rest of the world about economic growth. But you might also ask why Iran was made vice-chair of the UN Disarmament Commission last year -- even as it ramped up its nuclear weapons program and threatened to destroy Israel. Or, for that matter, you might wonder why Libya was made chair of the Commission on Human Rights -- as Libyans don't even have basic democratic rights.

The UN never seems to have good answers, but I'll offer one. Robert Mugabe was given chairmanship of the commission because his view on sustainable development fits right in with much of the UN's.

Always refreshing to see politicians eschew diplomacy in favor of honesty.

Fred Thompson, Principled Conservative?

Perhaps.

Here he is on taxes, from last Saturday's Wall Street Journal:

President John F. Kennedy was an astute proponent of tax cuts and the proposition that lower tax rates produce economic growth. Calvin Coolidge and Ronald Reagan also understood the power of lower tax rates and managed to put through cuts that grew the U.S. economy like Kansas corn. Sadly, we just don't seem able to keep that lesson learned.

Now, as before, politicians are itching to fund their pet projects with the short-term revenue increases that come from tax hikes, ignoring the long-term pain they always cause. Unfortunately, the tax cuts that have produced our record-breaking government revenues and personal incomes will expire soon. Because Congress has failed to make them permanent, we are facing the worst tax hike in our history. Already, worried investors are trying to figure out what the financial landscape will look like in 2011 and beyond.

And the 2nd Amendment:

Virginians asked their legislators to change the university's "concealed carry" policy to exempt people 21 years of age or older who have passed background checks and taken training classes. The university, however, lobbied against that bill, and a top administrator subsequently praised the legislature for blocking the measure.

The logic behind this attitude baffles me, but I suspect it has to do with a basic difference in worldviews. Some people think that power should exist only at the top, and everybody else should rely on "the authorities" for protection.

Despite such attitudes, average Americans have always made up the front line against crime. Through programs like Neighborhood Watch and Amber Alert, we are stopping and catching criminals daily. Normal people tackled "shoe bomber" Richard Reid as he was trying to blow up an airliner. It was a truck driver who found the D.C. snipers. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that civilians use firearms to prevent at least a half million crimes annually.

Maybe Republicans should embrace Hollywood.