Snow Days

Former White House Press Secretary Tony Snow died today. See Former White House spokesman Tony Snow dies.

After he left his position with the White House, he was interviewed by Jon Stewart:



Part 1

and



Part 2.

I know that the conventional wisdom is that George Bush is a nice guy (someone you'd like to have a beer with), but I could never see that. And it doesn't just have to do with the fact that I don't like beer. I always thought that he was a major BALDie.*

On the other hand, I do think that Tony Snow epitomizes the concept that conservatives can be decent people on a one-to-one basis, but have philosophies that are totally against the common good. Many years ago, a former colleague and friend defined the difference between the soul of a liberal and a conservative in a way I've never forgotten. As I've noted before, in Judge Not, Lest Ye Shall Be Judged:

[A] former co-clerk who interviewed for a Supreme Court clerkship with Justice Rehnquist, made what I have found to be an apt observation: conservatives tend to be nicer on an individual basis, even though their philosophy may not be as kind-hearted (e.g. Justice Rehnquist), while liberals are great in the abstract, but not so nice in person (e.g. Justice Douglas).

That was Tony Snow.


*(BALD = Big Asshole, Little Dick)