If the Boston City Council has to be weak and ineffective, it might as well be entertaining. And, boy, has it been entertaining of late. The new year started off with a bizarre council presidency vote that turned identify politics inside out — and yesterday the parliamentary insults and demands for apologies flew with abandon, right from the get-go, as the Herald reports in a great blow-by-blow account of the meaninglessness of it all.

There really are some principled conservatives left. Not many. But they’re there. Such as National Review editor Ramesh Ponnuru, who writes at the Post that the outright falsehoods issued by administration officials after the killing of Alex Pretti are “signs of moral rot and civic irresponsibility. People speak the way (Kristi) Noem and company have when they have decided that fighting their enemies, even the dead ones, is more important than being decent.”

And from George Will – yes, good old George Will – also at the Post:  

“Today, it is more than prudent, it is good citizenship to assume that everything ICE says, and everything the administration says in support of its deportation mania, is untrue until proved to be otherwise. Or, as Noem might say, until it has been ‘adjusted.’”

Update — 1.29.31 — One can add the Globe’s Jeff Jacoby to the list of principled conservatives.

Update II — 1.29.26 – Might as well throw in U.S. Judge Patrick Schiltz (via NYT)

They counted him out. But he’s back. The pride of Lowell. The native son who ranks right up there with John Adams, Sam Adams, Emerson, Thoreau, JFK, Ben Affleck. The would-be Massachusetts state legislator himself. Yes, it’s none other than … Corey Lewandowski! And he’s at the center of the current ICE uproar. What a surprise. The NYT has more. … Photo via Wikipedia, C.L’s historic 1994 campaign for the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

How bad have ICE’s deportation tactics gotten from a PR standpoint? They’re starting to alienate regular local police officers, most of whom deep down normally sympathize with ICE’s goals, according to the WSJ. … A sheriff in Maine is calling ICE’s tactics “bush-league policing.” … A police chief in Minnesota says federal agents are now stopping even off-duty police officers “for no cause” and demanding they prove their citizenship. … Police leaders in NY and Florida, some of them Republicans, are also complaining about ICE practices in their districts. … Separately, former BPD commissioner Ed Davis was complaining about ICE even before the latest shooting — and he was again criticizing ICE agents’ inexperience and training yesterday on CNN (can’t find the video).

When you lose the cops in a public-safety debate like this, you know something is very wrong.

Re the latest ICE shooting: it’s well beyond bush-league policing. It’s lethal bush-league policing. … The WSJ provides an excellent video analysis of the shooting. …

I know, I know. Some of the protesters are obnoxious and overly aggressive. A few of them are actively trying to impede ICE operations and oppose any and all deportation efforts. But shooting protesters multiple times at point-blank ranges and then giving accounts of incidents that have no basis in reality?

Update — 1.26.26 — The NYT reports that current and former ICE/U.S. Border Patrol officials are increasingly frustrated with how agents are being deployed, saying they’re simply not trained to handle the duties and challenges they’re facing today.

Update II — 1.26.26 — In an editorial headlined ‘Time for ICE to Pause in Minneapolis,’ the WSJ concludes:

“Pretti made a tragic mistake by interfering with ICE agents, but that warranted arrest, not a death sentence. The agents may say they felt threatened, but it’s worth noting the comments over the weekend by police around the country who say that this isn’t how they conduct law enforcement. Either many ICE agents aren’t properly trained, or they are so on edge as they face opposition in the streets that they are on a hair trigger. Either way, this calls for rethinking how ICE conducts itself.”

Update III — 1.29.26 — From the Globe: “Some Republicans are starting to criticize ICE tactics. Here’s what they are saying.”

I couldn’t find a clip of John Hurt portraying a mad Caligula actually waging war against Neptune in the classic ‘I, Claudius’ series. But I did find one in which Hurt’s Caligula expresses his fury that he wasn’t awarded a victory celebration for his stupendous triumph over that impertinent god of the seas. … Roman victory celebrations, Nobel peace prizes, same thing. … And, yes, Caligula indeed declared war on the sea, according to some historians.

Btw, check out Holman W. Jenkins’s “Greenland is Trump’s White Whale” in the WSJ. I loved these lines:

 “Mr. Trump’s preoccupation with owning Greenland, like his Nobel Prize obsession, would be best addressed elsewhere: in therapy. I’m perfectly serious. Once he started unburdening himself of his insecurities and traumas, he probably wouldn’t stop for a week. The world, and the U.S., would be better for it.”

You might also want to check out Jeff Jacoby’s inspired ‘The Founding Fathers warned this could happen’ at the Globe. Keep in mind: both Jenkins and Jacoby are conservatives.

Update — 1.22.26 –– From Bret Stephens at the NYT: “An Unhinged President on the Magic Mountain.”

The Globe’s Hiawatha Bray conducts a post-mortem on Bedford’s iRobot and its sad, decades-long decline. He covers some of the same ground I did back in November. But he provides so much more, such as the company’s foolish stock buybacks, the breakup of its original development team, and various missed product opportunities, etc. … 

How can you read President Trump’s texts to Norway’s prime minister and not conclude he has a screw or two loose? …  The most successful military alliance in history, down the drain (NYT), because of his hurt feelings. … Yes, Trump’s Greenland letter to Norway should be the last straw, as Ann Applebaum writes at the Atlantic, and it may well be for some Republicans (see update). But will it be enough? I doubt it.

Update — 1.21.26 – From the NYT: “Some Republicans Begin to Echo Trump’s Case to Acquire Greenland.” But of course.

— In the end, it wasn’t even close: “Senate Snubs Boston Tax Shift Proposal” (B&T)

— The Quebec hydroelectricity finally flowing south is a true good-news story that isn’t getting enough attention: “A decade in the making, clean energy power line for Mass. is up and running”  (GBH)

— Hopefully, this projected trend is accurate. We desperately need more ‘missing middle’ housing: “Smaller, Better New Houses Coming” (B & T)

— The feds admitted a mistake – but still won’t give her justice: “A mistakenly deported Babson student’s lawyer wants a judge to order her return” (ABC News)

— One step closer to a developer ruining an entire neighborhood: “The Burren agrees to move into a future Davis Square high-rise” (WBUR)

— Another higher-ed land sale in the offing? “Hampshire College warned of potential closure by auditors” (BBJ)

— Every time you think the MassGOP couldn’t sink any lower, it sinks lower: “Republican candidates in Mass. are bankrolling their campaigns amid little support from state party” (Globe)

— No kidding. They never have. “Supersize CEO Pay Packages Aren’t Paying Off for Shareholders” (WSJ)

— Hugo Gonzalez is good, but let’s not overdo it with the praise: “Boston Celtics rookie exceeding every expectation at midway mark” (MassLive)

 

I really enjoyed Peggy Noonan’s WSJ column this morning on the first anniversary of President Trump’s second term. … I know, I know. I quote Noonan too often. But … it’s complicated. Just read it yourself. She nails so many aspects of Trump’s complicated personality, good and bad, including his part Sonny, part Michael, and part Fredo behavioral components. She explains.

Update 1.23.26 –– And more from Peggy Noonan: “Trump Can’t Tolerate Peace and Quiet.”