A New Series?

The Cleveland Cavaliers appeared to be on the brink of defeat a few nights ago, leaving Detroit down 0-2, and apparently demoralized after two heart-breaking losses. But after two wins at home, the Cavs will return to the Motor City Thursday night with a chance to steal a game on Detroit's home floor.

There's no question that a LBJ coming-out party in the NBA Finals would be a win for th league, especially after the disaster of the Suns/Spurs series, and the quiet dismantling of the Jazz that the Spurs have embarked upon during the Western Conference finals.

If Donyell Marshall had made an open three at the end of Game One, or if either LBJ or Larry Hughes had been able to connect in the waning seconds of Game Two, the Cavs would be sitting in driver's seat. As it is, they have put the heat back on the Pistons.

But an NBA playoff series begins when one team loses a home game.

"Enhanced Interrogation"

Andrew Sullivan's must-read post yesterday on 'enhanced interrogation' techniques has resonated throughout the blogosphere, and for good reason. The very euphemism -- "enhanced interrogation" -- was apparently coined in the late 1930s by a Nazi party that was concerned (at least at that time) about public appearances:

Other translations include "intensified interrogation" or "sharpened interrogation". It's a phrase that appears to have been concocted in 1937, to describe a form of torture that would leave no marks, and hence save the embarrassment pre-war Nazi officials were experiencing as their wounded torture victims ended up in court. The methods, as you can see above, are indistinguishable from those described as "enhanced interrogation techniques" by the president.

To his credit, Sullivan has been writing about torture for some time, and taking on the Administration's position. His post focuses on a post-WWII trial in Norway, wherein 3 Nazis were convicted for the war-crimes of 'enhanced interrogation', aka torture.

Sullivan concludes:

Critics will no doubt say I am accusing the Bush administration of being Hitler. I'm not. There is no comparison between the political system in Germany in 1937 and the U.S. in 2007. What I am reporting is a simple empirical fact: the interrogation methods approved and defended by this president are not new. Many have been used in the past. The very phrase used by the president to describe torture-that-isn't-somehow-torture - "enhanced interrogation techniques" - is a term originally coined by the Nazis. The techniques are indistinguishable. The methods were clearly understood in 1948 as war-crimes. The punishment for them was death.

Surprise?

Hillary yesterday on her deputy campaign manager's memo outlining a proposal to abandon the Iowa caucuses:

“It’s not the opinion of the campaign,” Mrs. Clinton told Radio Iowa on Wednesday, referring to the memorandum. “It’s not my opinion.”

Hillary: Skipping Iowa?

A 'leaked' memo apparently advises Hillary Clinton to skip Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucuses. The Clintons have never competed in Iowa (Bill skipped Iowa in 1992 on the grounds that Iowa's Tom Harkin would dominate the caucuses anyways), and Hillary apparently is having trouble making up ground on current leader John Edwards.

But the bet here is that Hillary declares that she "is in Iowa to stay" on her next trip. Perhaps that announcement will jump-start her Iowa efforts.

How did NYC's Emergency Center Get Sited?

More controversy on the decision back in the late 1990s to locate NYC's Emergency Management Center in the World Trade Center (Building 7), despite the fact that the WTC had been a previous terrorist target (in 1993).

Today's Times has a long piece on Jerome Hauer, a former Giuliani confidante who has left the inner circle and recently been interviered for a book about Rudy's emergency preparedness. (The title of the book speaks as the authors' perspective: "Grand Illusions.")

From the NYT article:

One of Mr. Hauer’s first tasks was to find a home for an emergency command center to replace the inadequate facilities at police headquarters. Mr. Hauer suggested an office complex in downtown Brooklyn as a “good alternative” in a memorandum.

But Mr. Hauer said the mayor insisted instead on a site within walking distance of City Hall. Given that concern and others, Mr. Hauer said he decided that offices on the 23rd floor of 7 World Trade Center, next to the twin towers and just a few blocks from City Hall, seemed the best choice.

The site was immediately controversial because it was part of the trade center, which had already been the location of a truck bomb attack in 1993. City officials, though, including Mr. Hauer, have long defended their decision, even after the command center had to be evacuated during the 2001 terror attack.

Last week, in an interview with Fox News, Mr. Giuliani again faced questions about the site. He put responsibility for selecting it on Mr. Hauer.

“Jerry Hauer recommended that as the prime site and the site that would make the most sense,” Mr. Giuliani said. “It was largely on his recommendation that that site was selected.”

Mr. Hauer took immediate exception to that account in interviews. “That’s Rudy’s own reality that he lives in,” he said. “It is not, in fact, the truth.”

With the GOP campaign heating up (witness McCain's sharp comments on Romney yesterday), it seems likely that Rudy's opponents will be returning to the preparations for 9/11 before too long.