New York Post - USA (2020-11-14)

New York Post, Saturday, November 14, 2020

nypost.com

POSTOPINION

Election journal: GOP’s Multiracial Challenge

Based on last week’s election, Republican Sens. Marco Rubio and Josh Haw-

ley say the GOP’s becoming a “multiethnic, multiracial and working-class

party,” Darel E. Paul at First Things reports. An Edison exit poll found Presi-

dent Trump’s support rose four points among blacks, Hispanics and Asians,

making him “the most popular Republican presidential candidate” among mi-

norities in 60 years. Yet keeping the party on this “trajectory” — pursuing a

“socially conservative, multiracial, multiethnic, working-class populism” —

will be a challenge for the right, post-Trump. The movement has “prominent

leaders” like Rubio and Hawley but needs more. It also needs a “socially con-

servative, working-class agenda at the state level.” Absent a “conservative

populist agenda, the Republican Party’s newfound electoral coalition will dis-

solve, and the opportunity of a generation will be squandered.”

From the right: Our Wars Never Seem To End

At Spectator USA, Daniel McCarthy wonders how long America’s wars

can go on. The nation’s “longest war,” in Afghanistan, “just entered its 20th

year,” and it’s been nearly a decade since Osama bin Laden’s death. The me-

dian age in Afghanistan is around 19: “Half the country’s population was born

after the war began.” How long will we fight on? Judging from history, “some-

where between ‘a century or so’ and ‘indefinitely.’ ” After all, Afghanistan

isn’t the only place where US troops remain deployed: “75 years after the end

of World War Two we still have forces in Britain, Japan, Germany and Italy,

and 67 years after the armistice between Seoul and Pyongyang, we remain on

the Korean peninsula.” It’s time to focus on our own “nation-building.”

Libertarian: Biden’s Agenda — vs. His Record

As Joe Biden pushes an “ambitious” agenda, “it’s worth remembering

the impact of the far-reaching laws” he helped pass, “which have created

enormous suffering and exacerbated” still-critical problems, argues Rea-

son’s Justin Monticello. “In the 1980s, Biden sought to escalate the drug

war” and “co-sponsored legislation that locked up tens of thousands of

predominantly young black men for minor crack possession.” The “infa-

mous 1994 crime bill,” along with other Biden-pushed legislation, “ex-

panded mandatory minimum sentences” and “drove up the local, state

and federal prison populations.” In “the 2000s, Biden played a key role in

expanding warrantless surveillance” and “starting disastrous foreign

wars.” Indeed, his “only solution to critical issues over nearly five dec-

ades in office has been to grow the federal government” — and it’s “de-

stroyed vulnerable communities and eroded civil liberties.”

Foreign desk: Putin Successor Might Be Worse

If health rumors prove true, Russia’s Vladimir Putin could be out by Jan-

uary, Paul Roderick Gregory speculates at The Hill. “But do not be hope-

ful for a democratic Russia”; his “inner circle would

preserve the Putin system even without Putin.” Vot-

ers would have “little or no voice in the matter.” And

the health rumors aren’t the only clue; as even the

state-run RT media note, an amendment giving Putin

and his family lifetime immunity from prosecution

after resigning may be “a sign that the groundwork is

being laid” for a transition. Who’ll come out on top

after “an internecine battle royale among various in-

terest groups of Putin’s inner circle” is “anyone’s

guess.” But “we might have to get used to a new Rus-

sian president” even worse than Putin.

Data cruncher: We Really Do Hate Each Other

The 2020 election reaffirmed just how deep America’s division goes:

“People not only disagree with those on the other side,” observes Vox’s

Rani Molla, “they actively hate them.” Policy disagreements aren’t widen-

ing, but “animosity toward members of opposing parties is very high,” a

study in Science magazine found. Americans are more likely to “hate the

opposing side and consider them to be ‘different,’ ‘dislikable’ and ‘im-

moral.’ ” Meanwhile, stories we read and share online both reflect and ag-

gravate tensions, with University of Virginia researchers finding conserv-

atives tend to read more conservative content on Facebook. (The effect

was less dramatic among liberals.) Beware what all this portends, says

Molla: “The results of this kind of alignment are disastrous for a function-

ing democracy.” — Compiled by The Post Editorial Board

Vladimir Putin

M

AYOR de Blasio and I go to

the same barber, but we’ll

soon have to stop: After 74

years, Astor Place Hair-

stylists is closing. When a New

York institution like CBGB or

Ratner’s closes, there’s real loss

and sadness. Change is a con-

stant fact of life in this city, and

it’s good to make peace with it.

But this time feels different.

Astor Hair is not a store that

sells typewriters or top hats. Its

demise is not foreordained, de-

spite COVID. With the proper

city leadership, this barbershop —

and businesses like it — can en-

dure. Instead, our leaders’ scare-

mongering and aggressive restric-

tions have crippled the economy;

Astor’s closure is the result.

When you first enter Astor

Hair, you walk down a flight of

stairs; it’s like getting your hair-

cut in the subway. The large

room is filled with cubicles dec-

orated with personalized flair

that give the shop a county-fair

atmosphere.

Each barber’s pictures and

tchotchkes make it their space,

and you feel like you’re a part of

their team. The diversity here is

unique: The shop’s barbers

speak Spanish, Italian, French,

German, Polish, Romanian, Rus-

sian, Greek, Farsi, Portuguese

and “even a little English.” You

feel the comforting chaos of a

cosmopolis.

Hizzoner’s barber, Al-

berto Amore, displays

swag from his favorite

Italian football team, Ju-

ventus, as well as pictures

of celebrity clients and

his life mottos. He’s always play-

ing the Eagles and the Beatles

and sometimes lets an aria slip

in. Depending on who ap-

proaches, Alberto will answer in

Italian, Spanish or English and

even more expressive gestures.

Oh, and not to bury the lede: A

haircut is only $23.

Will we survive the loss of this

institution? Yes — but we don’t

have to. Instead of always taking

the cautious approach to the vi-

rus, de Blasio and Gov. Cuomo

should simply level with constit-

uents about risks. Remember

when President George W. Bush

told us to go about our business

after 9/11? When he threw out the

first pitch at Yankee Stadium in

the World Series that year? The

city recovered in no small part

from this tone at the top.

It’s true that COVID is differ-

ent — the threat of death here is

more real and present than fac-

ing the minuscule odds of dying

in a terror attack. But the odds of

catastrophe today are still tiny.

For the overwhelming majority

of healthy Americans, this dis-

ease is not a death sentence. By

taking precautions, we can de-

crease the risk.

Societies are not gov-

erned by scientists. When

doing their jobs, scientists

pursue factual truths —

they explain the natural

world to make it more

predictable. They can say, for in-

stance, smoking makes a person

more likely to develop lung can-

cer. It’s not the job of the scientist,

however, to recommend ciga-

rettes be made illegal.

Politicians have sadly depu-

tized public-health officials to

decide what are essentially pol-

icy questions. And this week,

Cuomo tightened restrictions

further, even as Dr. Anthony

Fauci advised, “You can get a lot

done without necessarily lock-

ing down,” if you adhere to

safety principles.

To be sure, for certain groups,

like the elderly, this virus poses a

greater danger. But we don’t set

public policy for single groups,

especially when there are practi-

cal ways to mitigate their risks.

Wise politicians make trade-

offs with the entire community

in mind. Paul Vezza, one of As-

tor’s owners, says the shop

hasn’t had a single case of

COVID; they check tempera-

tures, wear masks, use partitions

and collect information to con-

tact-trace if necessary.

The mayor and governor

should explain the risks. But

they should also ask New York-

ers to weigh the risks sensibly.

They should encourage parents,

for example, to send children to

school, which is not a major vec-

tor of spread and is essential to

restoring normalcy.

De Blasio and Cuomo need to

acknowledge the costs of their

overly cautious approach — the

economic damage, nursing

home deaths and deaths from

delayed treatment — as well as

our need for connection and fun:

No politician wants New York-

ers to die, but living is not sim-

ply the absence of dying.

Astor’s red, white and blue

barber pole may come down

temporarily, but don’t lose hope:

Vezza vows that if the situation

improves next year, the shop will

be back. Other businesses may

not be so lucky. Which is why

our leaders should do their jobs

and prevent them from closing

in the first place.

Max Raskin is an adjunct profes-

sor of law at New York University.

Twitter: @maxraskin

Hair Today...

Blame misguided NY pols for shops’ closure

Trimming businesses: Mayor de Blasio gets haircuts from Astor’s Al-

berto Amore, but the shop will soon close — thanks in part to Hizzoner.

William Farrington

max

raskin