Tuesday, May 31, 2005
Arthur Andersen Conviction Overturned: Too Little, Too Late
Answers.com
I used it on one of Patricia's more obscure druid references, and got exactly what I needed. And if it works on those kind of searches, it just may replace Google in my heart. One drawback: You can only look up one word at a time.
Monday, May 30, 2005
Memorial Day: Remembrances
We walked among the crosses
Where our fallen soldiers lay.
And listened to the bugle
As TAPS began to play.
The Chaplin led a prayer
We stood with heads bowed low.
And I thought of fallen comrades
I had known so long ago.
They came from every city
Across this fertile land.
That we might live in freedom.
They lie here 'neath the sand.
I felt a little guilty
My sacrifice was small.
I only lost a little time
But these men lost their all.
Now the services are over
For this Memorial Day.
To the names upon these crosses
I just want to say,
Thanks for what you've given
No one could ask for more.
May you rest with God in heaven
From now through evermore
~By C W J (C W Johnson)- May 1975~
Sunday, May 29, 2005
France Reject the EU
Memorial Day: The Wounded Warrior Project
The Wounded Warrior Project was founded on the principle that veterans are our nation's greatest citizens. The Project seeks to assist those men and women of our armed forces who have been severely injured during the conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other hot spots around the world. Many of the injuries are traumatic amputations, gunshot wounds, burns and blast injuries that will retire these brave warriors from military service. These wounded soldiers will return to civilian life minus one or more limbs, or with serious wounds or disfiguring scars, and will face greater challenges today obtaining assistance and finding opportunities that would enable them to provide for themselves and their families.Veterans are indeed are most prized citizens. Those who return from battle wounded deserve our respect, and our assistance.
The Wounded Warrior Project was founded to give a voice to this new generation of veterans facing unique issues and problems. The Project fills the vital need for a coordinated, united effort to enable wounded veterans to aid and assist each other and to readjust to civilian life.
Saturday, May 28, 2005
Memorial Day: A Great Video
Gulags of the Mind
Memorial Day: So Help Me God
Memorial Day: Ways to Remember
Friday, May 27, 2005
Spoiled Elites: VDH
A final suggestion for these unhappy and privileged few: To end your obsessions with the pathologies of America and the West, find a way to create your own alternative sports, literature, corporations, soft drinks, and filmmaking in the non-West.
It is not that we Americans are mad at what you say. It is just that you have all become so hypocritical, then predictable, and now boring — you are all so boring.
Amen.
Memorial Day: Dear American Soldier in Iraq
Memorial Day: I Can't Cry Hard Enough
Thursday, May 26, 2005
The Clinton Legacy: Rainbow Parties
Depends on What the Meaning of "Is" is: When Comity Becomes Comedy
Wonder if Lindsay Graham is getting any sleep tonight?
Looks Like France Will Not Ratify the EU Treaty
Welcome to Politics: Helmet and Shoulder Pads Required
"I guess with that having been spoken, we of the Left and Liberal should just quietly then submit to what it has become or leave.. because evidently there is just no room for more than one voice in this nation anymore.
That's what happens when one party and one ideaology seeks to control the entire nation and everyone in it."
Can't help rolling my eyes at the above. From the sound of the above, what Conservatives should do is sit back now that we've got a majority, and let the Left run things out of some sense of "fairness." By your rules, when a team is ahead by more than 3 points, they need to go get a cup of Gatorade, while the other side scores a few touchdowns unopposed. How silly.
I don't expect the Left to submit to what it has become. I expect, at some point, that the Left will figure out how to win elections again.
I think it will take a long time. As long as the Left(and thank you for finally admitting to being on the Left Patricia) continue to believe the problem is "Darth" Bush and the evil Conservatives, they will have no motivation to look within their own philosophy, and fix what's gone wrong.
Patricia, if you want to walk away, I guess you can. But why would you?
You act like Conservatives have succeeded through some kind of military takeover. If you are so far in Left field as to believe that, then the conversation is pretty much over. You are simply being a victim, by choice. Which is one of the mindsets the Left must overcome to regain power in the future.
In 1974, after Watergate, the Republican Party, and with it the Conservative movement, was given up for dead. I'm glad those Conservatives didn't take on your attitude of defeatism. Thank God folks like Ronald Reagan, and William F. Buckley, and James Dobson didn't decide to take your approach back then.
Conservatives have won very slowly, through ideas first, then through the ballot box. We set up Think Tanks like the Heritage Foundation and The Claremont Institute to explore what conservativism is, and what our guiding principles should be. And we found leaders true to those principles.
I don't share your attitude about the left, though. I know folks like Joe are out there. And I know he would prefer to see all four branches of government run by Democrats. He's doing what he can to make it so. And I'm doing what I can to prevent it.
Welcome to Politics. Check your victimhood at the door.
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
The Deal: What Happens When One Posts on Two Hours Sleep
I've had some time to sleep on The Deal, and wish, as they say in Congress, to revise and extend my remarks:
I do think The Deal was a bad thing for Republicans. It would have been better to have ended the Filibuster. The use of the filibuster by the Democrats in such a systematic fashion needed to be stopped. Joe, I'm sure you know your statistic of 200 out of 210 judges approved is misleading to say the least. You know that Appellate judges, where it matters the most next to the Supreme Court, is much, much lower than your figure shows. It's closer to 67%, the lowest percentage in modern history.
The vote to end the filibuster would have allowed votes on all the Judicial nominees. And yes Patricia, I do indeed want to see Conservatives in control of all four branches of government. See my reply to your comment on my previous post. Those votes may still happen, and then we'll see if the Democrat seven can be trusted. We will also see if John McCain can be trusted. I would doubt the latter, even with several days of sleep....
Be that as it may, I do understand the desire to compromise on the part of Graham, DeWyne, and Warner. It's hard to work in a place where there is constant conflict. Trouble is, their compromise didn't stop anything. It simply delayed the inevitable. Does anyone really doubt that the battle will now be joined over the next Supreme Court nomination? Then what will the Republic 7 do? Or better yet, what will the Democrat 7 do?
We all know this fight comes down to Abortion in the end. I have no doubt that Bush will nominate pro-lifers to the upcoming Supreme Court vacancies. There's no doubt that the Maine contingent and Chafee will oppose that. So it again comes down to the Democrat 7, and Graham, DeWyne, and Warner. We'll see in the next few months if The Deal will last....I'm betting it won't.
OpinionJournal has it just about right.
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
The Deal: For Conservatives, A Synonym for Sellout
I've always had respect for Lindsay Graham (R-SC). He was by far the most articulate and logical of the ill-fated House members presenting the evidence in the impeachment "trial" of 1998. He has been one of the better representatives for Republicans on the Sunday Morning talk shows. I've always respected him, until yesterday.
I assumed supporting McCain in 2000 was simply an error in judgement. After yesterday, I know better. He let down his fellow Republicans, and followed McCain to the land of the RINOs. Hope he's enjoying his six years in the Senate. He won't have another term. South Carolina isn't Arizona, and about as far from Maine as you can get and still be in the same nation. I'm not sure what he was thinking yesterday, but it sure wasn't about the folks that put him in office.
I know some of the folks who visit Liberty won't agree with this assessment, and in fact may not even understand what the fuss is about. I mean, we got 3 judges, didn't we? Yes we did.. But I suspect conservatives lost control of the Senate yesterday, thanks in great measure to Lindsay Graham and Mike DeWine (R-OH). And quite honestly, both of them are naive if they think they can somehow pull the Constitutional option from the trashcan they placed it in yesterday. "Extraordinary Circumstances" is a slippery phrase. And for the Party that creatively defined words like "sex" and "is," "Extraordinary Circumstances" leaves alot of room for maneuver. Enough room to drive an eighteen wheeler right over the coming Supreme Court nominations.
DeWine is up in 2006, and the seat may very well return to Democrat control thanks to his stance yesterday. Graham' s got four more years, but South Carolinians have long memories. If you don't believe it, just ask a native about Sherman. Umm, they don't consider him quite the same war hero as folks here in the People's Republic of Illinois.
I honestly think he's followed John McCain right off the cliff. Maybe he thought he could be McCain's running mate in '08, but both of them have badly underestimated just how important the Judge issue is to the Republican base. I seem to remember McCain's candidacy went down in flames in South Carolina in '00. Apparently, Graham forgot that last night. Regardless, both he and DeWine will face big trouble in their next Senate race. I certainly wouldn't vote for either of them now.
.................................................................................................................................................................
I wrote the above paragraphs before checking the blogs, Rush (except for my 30 minute admisson above), Hugh Hewitt, etc. Nice to see I have some company. Here's Hugh Hewitt's take, which pretty much sums it up. It would appear the Not a Dime More campaign will have to continue for awhile.
Monday, May 23, 2005
The Deal
Strengthen The Good: The Tom Family Education Trust
Walking Away From the Left
And here is the author's website, including another remarkable editorial called Busting the Moral Equivalence Racket. His blog, Sane Nation, is on my blogroll to the right.
Saturday, May 21, 2005
An Obvious Graduate of Survivial Training
The Universal Symbol of Coercion
A Mass Murderer in his Underwear: Say It Isn't So!
Al-Jazeera was shocked! Shocked I tell you! And refused to put the pictures on their network out of decency concerns. A new meaning to the word irony, don't you think? They do allow beheadings, with sound. Guess Westerners being brutally butchered does not offend the carefully tuned decency standards of the terrorist propaganda network. Showing a mass murderer who killed more Muslims in a week than the Coalition forces have in 3 years does offend. Go figure.
I wonder if the screaming victims fed feet first to Saddam's meat grinder were wearing underwear? I'm fairly certain the women in Saddam's rape rooms were not fully dressed. And the 4 and 5 year olds in Saddam's children's prison? I'm thinking they were not the essence of sartorial perfection either. Though I do think most of the Kurdish civilians were fully clothed as they died an agonizing death thanks to Saddam's gas attack.
My point is not that we should not have a higher standard We should, and do. But its important not to fall into the moral equivalency fallacy. Saddam in his clean underwear, with his dyed hair, both paid for by my tax dollars, is not the same thing as his crimes of torture and death. I for one, am not going to lose sleep over the humiliation of a mass murderer. I think his victims, if they could speak, would likely feel the same.
Friday, May 20, 2005
A Health Update and a Thank you
The Mrs. is doing better, but still very weak. I'll be taking both of them back to the doctor later today. I'll likely be seeing an MD too, as I'm coughing again/ All in all, the house sounds like a TB ward. My Number One son is the only healthy one among us, and is really bummed about it. He keeps asking his Mom to lick him so he can miss school too...sigh.
Don't forget the many great blogs in the blogroll, especially Ancient Eyes, Devil's Advocate, Birth of a Neo-Con, and The New Oklahoma Democrat. Take a run by Gun Toting Liberal while you're at it.
I'll be watching the Senate Debate, if I can hear it over the screams of protest from the ladies of the house, who just want to watch the corruption of Oprah. Thank God we have two TVs in the house. Sigh.
Thursday, May 19, 2005
Health Update
Wednesday, May 18, 2005
Michael Isikoff: A History of Holding Stories
It's Not Just Newsweek: Michelle Malkin
An Important Story Gets Lost in the Mess
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
And Speaking of Holy Books: The Colors of the Rainbow
Never Underestimate the Ability of Congress to Spend Money
The Way to Stop the Accusations
Perhaps the only way to ensure an end to stories of desecration of the Koran by American troops would be to ban the book from all military prisons. Had officials done that in the first place there would have never been a problem, right?
It wouldn't happen, of course. It was never even considered. Muslim Chaplains, prayer rugs, the Koran - from the start the only guarantee the prisoners had at Guantanamo was freedom of religion.
It's the American way.
He also quotes from an Al Qaeda Training Manual:
I'm disgusted at the left's willingness to believe terrorists, while casting dark suspicions toward our own military. Not surprised, but disgusted none the less .IF AN INDICTMENT IS ISSUED AND THE TRIAL, BEGINS, THE BROTHER HAS TO PAY ATTENTION TO THE FOLLOWING:
1. At the beginning of the trial, once more the brothers must insist on proving that torture was inflicted on them by State Security [investigators] before the judge.
2. Complain [to the court] of mistreatment while in prison.
I Did Not...With a British Accent
Mr. Galloway denied any charges that he was involved in the Oil for Food scandal rocking the United Nations. He placed the blame squarely on Senator Norm Coleman for having the audacity to question his integrity, and further stated that documents recieved by the Senate sub-Committee are forgeries, including and most especially those with his signature on them.
Watch the MSM today on this story. They'll play Galloway's denials again and again. I wonder if they'll play the cross-examination by Coleman though?
The Constitutional Option: Here We Go
A National ID Card: Balance of Power is Up and Running
Monday, May 16, 2005
Retraction
The retraction came as the White House, the Pentagon and the State Department all heavily criticized the report and said it had damaged the U.S. image abroad. White House spokesman Scott McClellan had said it was "puzzling" that Newsweek had not retracted the story a day after apologizing for it.
"A retraction is a good first step," McClellan said after Newsweek issued its statement. "This allegation was unsubstantiated and it was contrary to everything that we value and all that our military works to uphold. We encourage Newsweek to now work diligently to help undo what damage can be undone."
"People lost their lives. the image of the United States abroad has been damaged. It will take work to undo what can be undone," McClellan said.
Good first step is right. It's not just the image of the United States that has been damaged. The image of journalism, which couldn't take much more damage, is now more suspect than ever.
Michelle Malkin: Newsweek Lied, People Died
Some sharp-eyed bloggers are looking at Sgt. Erik Saar, former Guantanamo Bay interrogator and co-author with Time magazine's Viveca Novak of a tell-all book about alleged abuses called Inside the Wire--just released and being promoted by the Washington Post and everywhere else.Makes alot of sense. Heard him last week, and he certainly could be Isikoff's source. It once again brings up the whole issue of anonymous sourcing. That was okay when people trusted the MSM, but those days are dead and gone. When I read that the source was anonymous, I just assume the journalist is quoting himself and his own opinion.
Captain Ed has a great post on Newsweek's continued non-apology and excuses. This story isn't going away quickly, no matter how much Newsweek may be praying it will.
Phishing Expeditions
Nice to see Harry Reid and my own Senior Senator Dick Durbin are learning some new things about technology, and applying their new knowledge to their positions as Senate Minority Leader and Senate Minority Whip, respectively. Here's hoping their tactics, under the cover of NARAL, are treated just like other phishing expeditions, report them, as Bob Novak did in the link, ignore them, and laugh at their stupid and desperate attempts to obstruct the Senate.
Sunday, May 15, 2005
Newsweek Bites the Bullet
Risks of Abortion to Next Baby
Saturday, May 14, 2005
Alien Planet:
Hubble Will Be Saved, But At A High Cost
Brave New World: The Library Without Books
"In this information-seeking America, I can't think of anyone who would elect to build a books-only library," said Fred Heath, vice provost of the University of Texas Libraries in Austin.I spend more time in Cyberspace than most folks, yet my computer is in a home office surrounded by books. There is a sterility to computer screens, and I find it difficult to curl up on a rainy day with my laptop.
Evolution as Revealed Truth: The Heretics
A NEWS ALERT on the ongoing threat to the Revealed Truth of Evolution, and the heretics who threaten that Faith. While steps are being taken to protect the revealed Word, the heretics within our ranks are finding new voices among the unwashed heathens of Kansas. These attacks on our Faith will not stand. Despite the lies spread that the Fossil evidence does not support our Faith, despite the unfounded accusations that our Scientist/Priests are closing their eyes to evidence that Evolution is but a Theory, we will continue to stand by our Faith, no matter what may come to light in the future.
Further alerts will be chronicled as they come in....:-)
Friday, May 13, 2005
The Hillary Scandal Part I
Harry Steps Over the Line...Again
Historical Revisionism: World War II
History continues to be revised to fit whatever biases the historian may hold. One exception to this rule is Victor Davis Hanson. This link is a great example.
The Myth of the Divorce Rate
Slavery Alive and Well...in Great Britain
Thursday, May 12, 2005
More Comment That Post Today
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
History You Never Knew: The Proud Tower
The President's Latvia Speech
This excerpt is from the end of his Georgian Speech:
We are living in historic times when freedom is advancing, from the Black Sea to the Caspian, and to the Persian Gulf and beyond. As you watch free people gathering in squares like this across the world, waving their nations' flags and demanding their God-given rights, you can take pride in this fact: They have been inspired by your example and they take hope in your success. (Applause.)
As you build freedom in this country, you must know that the seeds of liberty you are planting in Georgian soil are flowering across the globe. (Applause.) I have come here to thank you for your courage. The American people value your friendship, and admire your determination. On behalf of all Americans, thank you, God bless you. Sakartvelos gaumarjos. (Applause.)
We are indeed living in historic times. Free people gathering in squares like the one in Georgia; thousands of people turning out to hear an American President, in a former Soviet state. Who would have dreamed of this 20 years ago?
History Repeats Itself: The Filibuster in the House
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
The Vice President Wins a Big One in Federal Court
I wonder how much of this you'll see on the MSM? And how much more of this story you would see if the decision went the other way. Not the MSM has an agenda or anything...
A lawsuit seeking to force Vice President Dick Cheney to reveal details about the energy policy task force he headed and the pro-industry recommendations it made was scuttled Tuesday by a federal appeals court.
The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit unanimously found that two private groups that sued Cheney failed to establish that the federal government had a legal duty to produce documents detailing the White House's contacts with business executives and lobbyists.
The lawsuit, filed by the Sierra Club and Judicial Watch, alleged that energy industry officials effectively became members of the task force, while environmental groups and others were shut out of the meetings. It also argued that the task force was a federal advisory committee with an obligation to publicly disclose its operations.
The appeals court disagreed. "There is nothing to indicate that nonfederal employees had a right to vote on committee matters or exercise a veto over committee proposals," it said. The court ordered a lower court to dismiss the case.
Cheney's energy task force was not an advisory committee and "it follows that the government owed the plaintiffs no duty, let alone a clear and indisputable or compelling one," said the opinion by Judge A. Raymond Randolph.
I'm sure not everyone will be happy with this decision. I think it's a good ruling, and keeps the environmentalist wackos out of government decisions. Having said that, I'll sit back and wait for the fallout...:-)
Was Lincoln Forced to Free the Slaves?
Democrats Kicked Out of Baptist Church?
A Skewed View of Liberty
What’s missing in all of this talk about “decisions” and “compassion” is any appreciation of the absurdity that underlies the abortion debate. In any other context, the idea that a 13-year-old has a constitutional right to choose against her parents’ wishes an invasive surgical procedure, or even consent to one, would be absurd. Schools need parental permission to dispense over-the-counter medications. And a 13-year-old can’t get her ears pierced without mom or dad being present.
Similarly, an unrelated adult who took a minor out-of-state for another medical procedure would be called a “kidnapper.” We’d issue an “Amber Alert,” and her picture would be on CNN and Fox 24/7. Upon apprehension, the adult would face possible charges of endangering the welfare of a minor or interference with parental custody—both of these are felonies.
Yet, because the “procedure” in question is abortion, none of this applies. Abortion is not a right anymore; it’s the right. It trumps everything else and, thus, embodies our deepest commitments and most treasured values.
The absurdity of the abortion debate. Who's rights are being violated, the child, or the child making the decision to kill the child?
Monday, May 09, 2005
My Favorite Music Critic Has A New Post
Balance of Power is Up and Running!
Arianne's Site: The Reviews Are In, and It Ain't Pretty
Two Girls Slain in Zion
Sunday, May 08, 2005
Cultural Intifadah
Saturday, May 07, 2005
A Letter From Dick Durbin
But, if I'm ever in Washington at 8:30 AM on a Thursday, you can just bet I'll stop in for Coffee and Donuts so he and Senator Obama can hear what's on the mind of this particular Illinoisan...yessiree, I've got a thing or two on my mind to tell my Senators from The People's Republic of Illinois...much of it relatively profanity free.
May 3, 2005
Dear Mr. :
Thank you for contacting me about President Bush's judicial nominees. I
appreciate hearing from you.
I have voted to approve more than 90% of President Bush's district and
circuit court nominees. The vast majority of his judicial nominees – more
than 200 of them – have been confirmed by the Senate.
As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I carefully review the
merits of each nominee. During this process, I evaluate the nominee's
past record, professional competence, integrity, temperament, and judicial
philosophy; his or her commitment to upholding the rights and protections
established by the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and subsequent laws;
and the background information and testimony collected in the course of
the candidate's confirmation hearings.
Throughout its history, the Senate has encouraged thorough debate on
important matters. Senate Rule XXII, known as the "cloture rule,"
guarantees that we can meet our obligation to conduct the kind of debate
necessary to ensure that candidates for the judiciary have broad support.
According to the Congressional Research Service, cloture motions, which
require a super-majority vote to proceed, were filed and brought to a vote
on 14 appeals court nominations from 1980 to 2000. Although cloture was
invoked in each of these instances, it was not invoked in 1968, when the
Senate filibustered President Johnson's nomination of Abe Fortas to be
Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.
Any attempt to bypass the use of the filibuster now would undermine a
fundamental principle upon which our country was founded - the system of
checks and balances. This mechanism was created to limit the power of the
President and the majority party in Congress. It was designed to protect
the rights of the minority and promote compromise among the branches of
government.
President Bush must respect the Senate's constitutional role in the
judicial nomination process and seek our advice, not just our consent.
The Constitution does not make the Senate a rubber stamp for the
President's nominees. By working together, the President and the Senate
can make progress on nominations as well as other important matters.
I will keep your views in mind as I continue to consider judicial
nominations. Thank you again for contacting me.
Sincerely,
Richard J. Durbin
United States Senator
RJD/el
P.S. If you are ever visiting Washington, please feel free to join Senator
Obama and me at our weekly constituent coffee. When the Senate is in
session, we provide coffee and donuts every Thursday at 8:30 a.m. as we
hear what is on the minds of Illinoisans and respond to your questions.
We would welcome your participation. Please call my D.C. office for more
details.
Shocked and Enraged: Good for the Soul of a Terrorist
It Would Be Easy to Yell at the School, But...
Maybe he should've went about it differently?!?! The teacher should not have grabbed the phone, if that's what happened. But it sounds like the kid isn't exactly without fault here either. According to reports on the radio, the suspension has been dropped to 3 days. That's more reasonable, considering the circumstances."Kevin got defiant and disorderly with Mr. Turner and another assistant principal," Parham said Thursday. "He got defiant with me. He refused to leave Mr. Turner's office. When a kid becomes out of control like that they can either be arrested or suspended for 10 days. Now being that his mother is in Iraq, we're not trying to cause her any undue hardship; he was suspended for 10 days."
Wendall Turner is another assistant principal at Spencer.
Parham said the student used profanity when he was taken into the office. He said he tried to work out something with the student. But Francois said he was too frustrated he couldn't answer the phone when his mother called him the second time.
"I even asked Kevin, 'You know we can try to work something out to where if your mother wants to call you she can call you at the school,'" Parham said. "So we've tried to work with Kevin and we're going to continue to try to work with Kevin and his mother and his relatives. In the course of good order and discipline, we have to abide by our policy."
Francois admitted he was partially at fault for his behavior but said he should have been allowed to talk to his mother.
"I was mad at the time, but I feel now maybe I should've went about it differently," he said. "Maybe I should've just waited outside to pick up the phone. But I don't I feel I should've changed any of my actions. I feel I was right by not hanging up the phone."
Thursday, May 05, 2005
Who's Being Offensive Here?
Pictures, and Words
I also think of the Children's prison discovered there. And the rape rooms. And the mass graves. And the months of hell the Kuwaitis suffered through before Desert Storm. And I remember the payments made to the famlies of homicide bombers from Saddam. And I remember the Kurdish villages destoyed by gas attacks on Saddam's orders.
I think about the thousands of photographs of women, mosly pornographic, that Saddam's son kept in one of the "palaces." Including pictures of President Bush's own daughters. And the meat grinders, used for execution. Victims were fed feet first, slowly, so Saddam and his sons could savor the screams.
All of those things would still be happeining if the United States had not gone in to Iraq. All except one. That American soldier would not be cradling the body of that child after Islamo-Fascist murderers killed civilians. That little girl, and her parents, would still be slaves to an evil dictator and his maniacal sons.
Are there other evil dictators in the world? Certainly. The concentration camp the world calls North Korea still exists, and is still killing thousands each year. The reality is the United States can't take all the evil in the world, nor should we.
But we did take on two of the most evil regimes in the world, the Taliban, and the Baathist parasites of Iraq. Both countries are well on their way to being Democracies. The terrorists who brought pain and destruction to that little girl understand well the stakes. Losing Iraq to Liberty destroys their claims of speaking for the Arab world. Losing Iraq sets off a chain reaction in the other dictatorships and true theocracies of the Middle East. The Islamo-Fascist murderers understand the stakes, and are trembling. I wonder when we in the United States will be as intelligent as the terrorists, and begin to act like we too have counted the cost, and continued the building of Liberty.
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
A Bouncing Baby Lawsuit For ABC?
But he's got voice mail from a woman that sounds an awful lot like Paula Abdul. And he's got phone records. So who knows?
On a positive note, Scott Savol has finally been eliminated. I'm still rooting for Carrie Underwood. I have to. My mother can forgive me being a Republican. She can even forgive me being an Episcopalian (though I'm not sure God can, at this point). But to vote for anyone other than Carrie would ruin my chances of being able to come home for Thanksgiving, or Christmas for that matter. My goodness, it would be like rooting for Nebraska.
You can take the boy out of Oklahoma, but you can't take..ah forget it. Time to get back to war and politics, don't you think?
Morale of the Troops Dropping Fast, Letter Says
The letter, dated April 27, was seized in a raid on a house in Baghdad that also netted the coalition other documents, including a list of possible targets.Now you see why that headline won't appear in the New York Times. Much too positive for the front page of "Amerika's Newspaper of Wreckage."
"The morale has weakened and lines of the mujahidin have become separated due to some leaders' action," Yemeni wrote. "God does not accept such actions and that will delay victory. We do have big mistakes where some of us have been discarded."
Prophet of Doom: What Did Mohammed Really Say?
When Columnists Cry "Jihad"
I have been looking at myself, and millions of my brethren, fellow evangelicals along with traditional Catholics, in a ghastly arcade mirror lately -- courtesy of this newspaper and the New York Times. Readers have been assured, among other dreadful things, that we are living in "a theocracy" and that this theocratic federal state has reached the dire level of -- hold your breath -- a "jihad."
In more than 50 years of direct engagement in and observation of the major news media I have never encountered anything remotely like the fear and loathing lavished on us by opinion mongers in these world-class newspapers in the past 40 days. If I had a $5 bill for every time the word "frightening" and its close lexicographical kin have appeared in the Times and The Post, with an accusatory finger pointed at the Christian right, I could take my stack to the stock market.
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
A Liberal Prayer
The government is my shepherd:This is a keeper.
I need not work.
It alloweth me to lie down on a good job;
It leadeth me beside still factories;
It destroyeth my initiative.
It leadeth me in a path of a parasite for politic's sake;
Yea though I walk through the valley of laziness and deficit-spending,
I will fear no evil, for the government is with me.
It prepareth an economic Utopia for me, by appropriating the earnings of my own grandchildren.
It filleth my head with false security;
My inefficiency runneth over.
Surely the government should care for me all the days of my life,
And I shall dwell in a fool’s paradise forever
Amen/woman.
Trivial Matters: Military Recruiting on College Campuses
But, I have to leave such important stories to Drudge, Hannity and the 24 hour news channels. I'm only a blogger, after all. So on to trivial stuff, certainly not as important to our National Security as Jennifer, Paula, and, lest we forget, Michael.
One story, which pales in significance compared to the above earth-shattering revelations, is that the Supreme Court has decided to look at the Solomon Amendment. The amendment, stating that universities must allow military recruiting on campus if they accept federal funds, was struck down by a Federal Appeals Court. This has allowed Universities to recieve millions of dollars in funding, yet keeps military recruiters off their sacred campuses in wartime.
This decision by college officials protects their innocent students from hearing about the military industrial complex, and keeps their virgin ears from being corrupted by the thought that military service might be a good thing.
After all, one must maintain the God-given right of free speech on campus by banning speech from anyone in a military uniform.
Oh wait. Can't say "God-given right." Let's see, how about Providence inspired right to free speech? Nope. Too close to God-given. I got it! Here we go...
After all, one must maintain the American Civil Liberties Union protected, not in any way inspired by any form of religion, conferred by the culture as it is now but may change in the future based on court decision, right...sorry...privilege granted by the fascist State...of free speech by banning speech from anyone in a military uniform.
Oh, jeez. Sorry. I realize that word military is offensive to those on college campuses. Please replace that awful word with "repressive representatives of the fascist government."
Wait. That word "speech" may be deemed offensive to those who can't speak. How about "free expression?" Nope. May offend those who are manually challenged with no arms.
And, that word "anyone" is deeply offensive to those of us who have multiple personalities, and should be referred to as "anytwo" or anyfourhundred" depending on the number of residents in that particular head....
Sigh. Please return to viewing those issues of national importance, like why IS Scott Savol still on Idol? while I look for ways to make that last statement so inoffensive it would even by accepted at an Ivy League university. (I imply no offense to those of you who are Vegans by using the discriminatory word "Ivy.")
Monday, May 02, 2005
This Explains Scott on American Idol
Laura Bush: Just One More
The one talker I simply cannot listen to is Michael Savage. I know some folks like him, but there is just something about him that reminds me of cats with tails caught in rocking chairs, women with 9 inch nails scratching on 12 foot chalkboards, Hillary giving a speech...you get the idea.
Today I was in the Army Surplus store with my son, and Savage was on complaining, whining, moaning about Laura Bush's speech. How no radio talk show hosts were there, why didn't she talk about terrorists, or China, or Korean missiles. It reminded me of all the reasons I quickly turn to anything else at 5pm, when his show comes on.
And, it also gave a whole new meaning to the phrase:
Lighten Up!
Laura Bush and the Sensibilities of the Press
Was it Bill Clinton having oral sex in the Oval Office with an intern? Nope.
Was it the continuous lying he did from January to August of 1998? Nope
Was it Ward Churchill, and his rambling anti-American rants? Nope.
Was it Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) making offensive statements about Jews at the opening of the Lincoln Library? Nope.
Was it The First Lady, giving a great roast of her husband and the Bush family? Perhaps. At least, that's what the Press is saying now.
My suspicion is that the MSM was far more offended by the end of her speech:
Mrs. Bush closed her act affectionately.For the Left, any praise of the Bush family would be deeply offensive. Or maybe they were offended that Laura Bush has enough confidence in herself and her husband to be able to laugh at themselves. Either way, the reactions of the MSM says far more about the Press than it does about Laura Bush, or her husband.
"In all seriousness, I do love the ranch, and I love the whole Bush family," she said at the end of her bit. "I was an only child, and when I married into the extended Bush clan, I got brothers and sisters and wonderful in-laws, all of whom opened their arms to me. And included in the package, I got this guy here."
The Good News From Iraq
Sunday, May 01, 2005
So, How Long Will You Live?
Abstinence: What You Won't Read in the Papers
A Nexis search of the words "abstinence," "pledge" and "STDs" brought up 60 hits for the past 90 days, beginning with the Village Voice's contribution "F--- Abstinence" and ranging through the big networks and major newspapers.
Most conveyed the lesson in the headline, such as that of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: "Abstinence-only programs fail and deceive our kids, says Stacey I. Young." There were dozens of stories touting a related finding that those who pledged to abstain from sex were more likely than others to engage in anal or oral sex.
Yet the results of a new study showing that abstinence programs do work to reduce sexual behavior get only two hits on Nexis -- one a UPI story and the other a PR Newswire item. So much for the idea that the media are no longer dominated by liberals.
Great report. Too bad you won't read it or hear it in the MSM.
Transitions
He continues to be a great friend, but will no longer be an active partner in Liberty. Here's why:
Blogs take time. News blogs take alot of time. Good news blogs like Liberty take an ungodly amount of time. It's not unusual to read 50 different editorials, articles etc, and out of those 50, only post one.
Jon is one of the best psycho-therapists I've ever known. And at a certain point, he had to make a choice as to where to put his talents to best use. I hate to lose him, but I think he's made the right choice. As Liberty Just in Case continues to grow, it will take more time than Jon can spend.
He will continue to use the comment section, and may even do a "guest blog" or two over the coming months. I'm hoping he will remain a part of the advisory committee for Liberty Just in Case, and keep me from steering the ship to far to the right...
Liberty Just in Case will be changing over the coming months, improving, growing. More on that in later posts. Jon will be a key part of making sure the site remains true to it's origins throughout that change. I will miss his Saturday posts very much.
Liberty will continue to be true to it's mission statement:
An ongoing dialogue about Politics, Culture, Religion and the Universe in general in the September 12th World.The impact of September 11th continues to reverberate throughout our culture. Liberty will continue to bear witness to the impact of that day that changed us all.