Some years ago, I was asked to comment on a paper about the history of anti-Semitism at West Point. It was a fairly solid paper, so there wasn't much to criticize. Somehow I learned that 1/2 of West Point's first graduating class was Jewish. That sounds impressive enough until you think about how you present evidence. The fact that West Point's first graduating class had only two members somehow diminishes the apparent weight of the fraction.

I thought about that example when I was reading Clayton Cramer's blog again last week. He observed that the CP, USA, isn't fielding a candidate for president this year and says that its chief priority is defeating George Bush for re-election. In the absence of the CP's endorsement of John Kerry, Clayton reads between the lines and points out that, if you vote for Kerry, you'll be furthering the chief priority of the CP, USA. Yeh, well, this Republican will just have to get over the charge that I'm aiding and abetting the Communists this time around. In the name of reasonable conservative values, I intend incidentally to do just that. It's not my aim. I don't control their priorities.

What caught my eye was another Claytonism in Cramer's post. Of the CP, USA, he says:"What amazes me is that anyone associates themselves with such an organization with the 20th century's horrifying history. It would be like calling yourself a Nazi. Yet I'm sure that the Communist Party, USA still has a significant fraction of college professors as members." I don't know what Clayton means by"a significant fraction" and I don't know the politics of all American college professors. I do know a lot of history professors and I can only think of one who is probably a member of the CP, USA. There was one Jew in West Point's first graduating class. There may be more than one history professor who is a member of the CP, USA. It certainly has more than two members. It claims to have"around 2,500 members." All 2,500 of them are, no doubt, a serious threat to American democracy. But how many professors would it take to be"a significant fraction" of 2,500? Would that number be"a significant fraction" of the American professorate? Within the same week, Clayton Cramer denies that"the vast majority" of American historians adhere to"professional standards" and claims that the American professorate makes up"a significant fraction" of the CP, USA. This is pitiful, Clayton, shameful!

By the time that Joseph McCarthy got around to making his accusations about Communist infiltration of the United States government, the CP, USA, had largely collapsed as an effective political entity. It was so infiltrated by agents of the United States government that it could be called"the FBI at revolution." But fifty years later and fifteen years after Ronald Reagan rejoiced at the collapse of the"evil empire," the methods of Joe McCarthy live on. McCarthy had no names of known Communists, much less substantiating evidence, in hand when he made the charges. Charges without substantiating evidence. Sound familiar, Clayton?

And, btw, if you do happen to know any Communists, dust off their walkers. This Republican will be happy to drive them to the polls in November.