PJ Media

Actress Sally Field made headlines with her Emmy Awards acceptance speech by claiming that there wouldn't be any more wars "if mothers ruled the world." PJM advice columnist Dr. Helen Smith offers her opinion on the likelihood of world peace if moms were in charge.

Michael Ledeen joins host Austin Bay to talk about the Iranian regime’s internal tensions, the country’s attempt to exert influence in Iraq, and Ledeen’s latest book, %%AMAZON=0312376553 The Iranian Time Bomb: The Mullah Zealots’ Quest for Destruction%%.

Produced by Ed Driscoll. Brought to you by Volvo USA.

A sick, elderly man naked and neglected, in what was supposedly a premier medical facility in Amman. Natasha Tynes explains how the scandalous conditions in Prince Hamza Hospital were brought to public attention by Jordanian bloggers, "who are proving to be their nation's Woodwards and the Bernsteins."

What do an unpunished celebrity murderer and a disgraced former anchorman have in common? According to Roger L. Simon, Dan Rather and OJ Simpson both feel their fame diminishing and are out to reclaim it.

"Payday" loan companies comprise a $28 billion industry in terms of loan volume. PJM columnist Brad Rourke questions the morality of these operations "that can only survive on poor decisions made in desperation."

Columbia University has invited Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - the Iranian president who believes in the Mahdi, but not in the Holocaust - to speak at their World Leaders Forum. PJ Media has obtained a copy of the letter sent by Columbia dean Mary McGee to students concerning the event. "Given the heightened level of security expected on campus on Monday ... we want to remind students to make sure to have their Columbia IDs on hand."

Elizabeth Edwards vs Hillary; Vilsack vs Giuliani, Giuliani vs MoveOn, Biden vs Richardson… This week, David Corn and Richard Miniter agree that the presidential campaigns seem to be getting a little nastier. Also, McCain’s cash crunch, how Democratic candidates are doing with the unions, and they talk about Ron Paul. Click and watch! (Audio-only MP3 version available here)

I read a href=”http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0446580961?ie=UTF8tag=wwwviolentkicomlinkCode=as2camp=1789creative=9325creativeASIN=0446580961″emMicrotrends: The Small Forces Behind Tomorrow’s Big Changes/em/aimg src=”http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=wwwviolentkicoml=as2o=1a=0446580961″ width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”" style=”border:none !important; margin:0px !important;” / yesterday and while I disagree with much of what author Marc Penn (chief advisor to Hillary Clinton’s campaign) has to say–like the Republican Party is losing membership, its identity and is ripe for a breakup–haven’t Democrats been saying that for the last 20 years? (yawn)–there is some good data that is worth contemplating. The book is divided into a number of chapters that identify microtrends in “religion, leisure, politics and family life that are changing the way we live.” The trend that caught my eye was in a chapter entitled, “Smart Child Left Behind: Kindergarten Hold-Backs in America.” br /br /Penn points out that the big trend in education today is “holding kids back.” And the odd thing is, the smarter the child is, the more likely they are to be held back. br /br /blockquoteIt’s called “red-shirting,” after the practice of keeping college athletes out a year while they grow bigger. A U.S. Department of Education report issued in 2005 suggested that nearly 10 percent of American students in kindergartern were actually eligible to have enrolled the year before. br /br /Who’s doing this? The typical red-shirt child is a boy, with white, well-educated parents. So well educated that they know how good it feels to be at the top of their class–and they want that for their children, even if their children are currently smaller, less advanced, less developed, or less capable than their peers. So–ever the problem-solvers–they sign them up for peers who are one year younger./blockquotebr /br /Schools have also gotten in on the act and do what Penn refers to as pink–shirting: br /br /blockquoteIn the past twenty-five years–in reaction to bold new standards in the 1980′s that aimed to make American’s elementary schools more rigorous–nearly every state in the union rolled back it’s kindergarten cut-off date from December to about September, effectively edging the younger 5-year-olds right into next year’s class…br /br /The emChicago Tribune /emhas called it “the graying of kindergarten.”br / br /Whereas virtually nobody used to be 6 in kindergarten, now a serious chunk of children are, including nearly 1 in 5 boys. /blockquotebr /br /My question is, is holding a smart boy out of school for a year really good for boys? People say that boys mature slower than girls so maybe it’s a good thing but I’m not so sure. As Penn points out, “most studies of red-shirted students have concluded that they do no better than their younger classmates in the long term, and that any short-term gains disappear by third grade.” br /br /Think about it, a smart boy is sitting in class, a year older and wiser than his peers and graduates at 19 year old. His life and adulthood is put on hold another year and he is in high school at an age where he can vote, marry and join the military. Perhaps in the short run, it might be helpful but it could also be contributing to why so many boys–especically smart ones–don’t like school. The curriculum is already dumbed down and now you are a year behind. After this experience, it’s no wonder that many smart young men have decided to skip college.

My latest a href=”http://www.pjmedia.com/2007/09/dr_helen.php”"Ask Dr. Helen” column /a is up at PJM:br /br /blockquoteActress Sally Field made headlines with her Emmy Awards acceptance speech by claiming that there wouldn’t be any more wars “if mothers ruled the world.” PJM advice columnist Dr. Helen Smith offers her opinion on the likelihood of world peace if moms were in charge. /blockquotebr /br /a href=”http://www.pjmedia.com/2007/09/dr_helen.php”Read the column /a and let me know if you think we’d really have world peace if moms ruled the world.

In the second part of his discussion of "The Age of Psychopathy" Sigmund, Carl, and Alfred takes on the latest 'research' on the presumed differences between 'liberal' and 'conservative' brains. Part One is here.

PJM Paris: Many have accused the photo of young Mohammed Al Dura's father shielding him from Israeli bullets of being a fake, but the original videotape from which this photo was drawn was hidden from view by France 2. Yesterday a French judge finally ordered the channel to produce it. PJM's Nidra Poller was one of the few journalists witnessing this stunning turning point.

According to exclusive information obtained by PJ Media's Washington editor Richard Miniter, the movement of key CIA station personnel in Baghdad has been all but shut down. Are we witnessing Iran's counter-strike to the surge?

PJM Algonquin, Illinois: Seductive as following world news on the Internet may be, you've still got to know what's going on in your own backyard, writes Rick Moran.

The a href=”http://homeschooling.about.com/b/a/216467.htm”Homeschooling Carnival is up/a and focuses on Autism:br /br /blockquoteIn choosing a theme for this weeks carnival, I had originally planned on doing something with fall or apples or Johnny Appleseed. But after keeping my grandchildren for the weekend, I decided to go with the theme of Autism. This could be a very long post./blockquotebr /br /If you have a child with Autism, this week’s carnival is definitely worth looking at for some helpful suggestions and ideas.

PJM ROUNDUP: Jesse Jackson sharply criticized presidential hopeful Barack Obama on Tuesday for "acting like he's white" in what Jackson said has been a tepid response to six black juveniles' arrest on attempted-murder charges in Jena, Louisiana. (The State) Bloggers reacted to the news.

PJM ROUNDUP: On the same day that the Iranian air force commander announced that Iran has drawn plans to bomb Israel, NY Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly revealed that the Bloomberg administration was in discussions to escort Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Ground Zero. Mahmoud won't get there , but he will speak at Columbia University after addressing the UN on Monday. UPDATE: The Iranian leader plans to go to Ground Zero on Monday at 10 AM with a Secret Service escort - over NYPD objections. (WABC-TV) Bloggers react to the news:

PJM Bucharest: State-run energy strategies in the former Soviet bloc countries raises questions as to whether capitalism truly won the Cold War. The New European wonders whether Russia may, in the end, again divide and conquer Europe, "not with tanks, but with oil and natural gas."

PJM Reno: How did the Silver State become the Rodney Dangerfield of the 2008 presidential campaign? The Anon Guy laments.

O.J. Simpson's arrest in Las Vegas has PJM CEO Roger L. Simon reminiscing about the trial that changed his life - or at least his political leanings - forever.

PJM PARIS....FLASH: The French Appellate court trial of Phillippe Karsenty in the matter of Mohammed Al Dura - the epochal case of the Palestinian boy allegedly shot by Israeli troops in 2000 - took a huge turn today. Photos of the boy have been accused of being the birth of fauxtography. For the first time the court has ordered France 2 to produce the original tapes that could prove the whole enterprise a fake.

a href=”http://gmroper.mu.nu/archives/240839.php”Take a tour of the Psych bloggers/a over at GM’s Corner.

Glenn Sacks a href=”http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=57635″has an interesting column/a on the Mary Winkler custody case. Take a look.

PJM ROUNDUP: Videos posted on the Internet Tuesday show police shocking a Florida university student with an electric stun gun during a speech by US Senator John Kerry, prompting the former presidential candidate to express regret over the incident. (AFP) Bloggers wasted no time expressing their own feelings about what transpired at the University of Florida.

Glenn Reynolds and Helen Smith talk to Laura Ingraham about her new book, %%AMAZON=159698516X Power to the People,%% which looks at ways that ordinary people can empower themselves in the culture and in politics. They also discuss large families and prejudice against parenting, as well as porn (the Knoxville duo are a lot more favorable than she is,) the 2008 elections and the immigration battle. Brought to you by Volvo Automobiles.

a href=”http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/159698516X?ie=UTF8tag=wwwviolentkicomlinkCode=as2camp=1789creative=9325creativeASIN=159698516X”img alt=”laurabio1.jpg” src=”http://instapundit.com/archives2/images/laurabio1.jpg” align=right border=0 width=”200″ height=”284″ //aRadio host Laura Ingraham joins us today to talk about her new book, a href=”http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/159698516X?ie=UTF8tag=wwwviolentkicomlinkCode=as2camp=1789creative=9325creativeASIN=159698516X”emPower to the People./em/aimg src=”http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=wwwviolentkicoml=as2o=1a=159698516X” width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”" style=”border:none !important; margin:0px !important;” / Ms. Ingraham discusses why people stereotype big families, why getting involved in local politics is important and her thoughts on the 2008 elections. And don’t miss the heated discussion about whether or not porn is destroying the culture. br /br /You can listen to the show directly — no downloading needed — by a href=”http://politicscentral.com/2007/09/17/the_glenn_and_helen_show_laura.php”going here/a and taking advantage of the gray Flash player. Or you can download the file directly a href=”http://richmedia.pjmedia.com/audio/politicscentral/glenn_helen_show/20070918-Ingraham.mp3″by clicking right here/a and listen at your leisure. As always, there’s a a href=”http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=116559643s=143441″free subscription available via iTunes/a — you can’t beat free!br /br /This podcast is brought to you by a href=”http://volvocars.us”Volvo Automobiles./a Music is by a href=”http://frankportman.com/”Doktor Frank’s/a band, the Mr. T Experience.