And now for something totally different

The National Poetry Contest had come down to two semi-finalists:

a) a Yale graduate;
b) an Upper Michigander.

They were given a single word, then allowed two minutes to come up with
a poem containing that word.

The word they were given was "TIMBUKTU".

The Yale graduate stepped up the microphone and said:
"SLOWLY ACROSS THE DESERT SAND
TREKKED A LONELY CARAVAN.
MEN ON CAMELS - TWO BY TWO
DESTINATION - TIMBUKTU".

The crowd went crazy! No way could the Yooper top that, they thought.

The Upper Michigander calmly made his way to the microphone, and
Recited:
"ME AND TIM A HUNTIN' WENT,
MET T'REE WHORES IN A POP-UP TENT.
DEY WAS T'REE, AND WE WAS TWO
SO I BUCKED ONE, AND TIMBUKTU."

The Yooper won hands down.

A 'yooper' is someone who lives in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and yes, we pretty much talk like that at times.

If you've ever seen the movie Fargo you'll see what I mean.

PS People who live in the Lower Peninsula are called 'Trolls' because the live under the bridge.

Corruption by any other name by The Vegas Art Guy

For those who don't live in the Las Vegas area, we've had a streak going with catching crooked politicians. In the last year we've sent several to jail for corruption charges, including Lance Malone, Dario Herrera and a couple of others. Now another politician is now facing felony charges here in the Desert.

Former County Commissioner Lynette Boggs is facing felony charges stemming from the last election in which she was caught not living in her district. She faces two counts of perjury and two counts of filing false or forged documents. If she's convicted (and I hope she is) she could and should get up to 18 years in prison and $30,000 in fines.

I despise crooked politicians, no matter which party they belong to. I hope that she is convicted and sentenced to a long prison term for how she lied to the residents of Clark County. A clear message needs to be sent to the people we elect to represent us. If you break the law, you're going to go to jail, period. What really makes me mad is that I voted for her in a couple of elections.

Good Riddance to bad rubbish.

Justice in Iraq by the Vegas Art Guy

Don't believe me? Ask any Kurd about the man known as 'Chemical Ali'. He was responsible for killing 180 thousand, yes 180 thousand Kurds in the late 1980's. The chemical part comes from his use of chemical weapons during that time, especially in the Village of Halabja where 5000 men women and children were slaughtered.

Unlike the Saddam's reign of terror, this was not done at a whim, but he was tried, convicted and sentenced according Iraqi civil law. He had access to a legal defense and was treated like any other defendant.

It's a good day in Iraq, especially for the Kurdish North were they can rest easy knowing the man who was responsible for so much bloodshed and heartbreak will soon be answering to God for his actions.

The Un-Fairness Doctrine by The Vegas Art Guy

H/T: Sister Toldjah (she rocks!)

The fairness doctrine, consigned to the dustbin of history in 1987 is again in the news. The democrats, tired of the domination of conservatives in AM talk radio are trying to "balance the content" by law because they can't get on the air by actually having interesting hosts with interesting content. The first rule of talk radio is this... You better be interesting, if you're dull, you're gone.

Balance the content my asinine. This is censorship pure and simple. The doctrine was needed 50 years ago when the average person only had a few means of receiving both news and opinion. But today it's not needed. Go look at the election of 2006 if you want proof. Last I checked the GOP got their butts kicked and rightfully so. If the left were unable to get their message across about how 'corrupt' the GOP is, and how they were going to 'drain the swamp', (how's that going anyway?) why did they win so handily? Pure luck?

Why should a successful radio personality lose their job because of some asinine mandate that says a liberal needs equal time? It's not like the left has newspapers, broadcast networks, the Internet or cable news to fall back on. This is nothing more than another naked power grab by the democrats, who once again have proven that they'll stoop to any level to take and maintain their power.

At What Point? by The Vegas Art Guy

At what point are we going to actually start securing our borders? Thank God that no kids were hurt when 16 illegal immigrants ran from the law enforcement near a school in Mission Texas. The school is question was locked down and all 16 were arrested and are on their way back to Mexico. But at some point innocents like school kids are going to get hurt in large numbers or a terror attack is going to get traced through our porous border. There have already been numerous examples of drunk illegals killing people and most of the "Fort Dix 6" were here illegally as well.

I don't care if it's a fence, the military or some combination of the two, but this is more than a law enforcement or economic issue. It's a national security issue, hellooooo... Anyone home?
I don't want yet another 9/11 seared into my brain, one per lifetime is quite enough thank you.

The Quagmire is in Islamabad by Navy Blue

Regarding the Deaths of Eleven Navy SEALs on the Eastern Border of Afghanistan ~

Recently elsewhere on the web, I encountered the claim that the United States has abandoned its search for bin Laden because we're mired in Iraq in our imperialist grab for oil. If I understand correctly, 'mired' is similar to being 'bogged down', a lot like directionless 'warmongering', and uncannily akin to not having an 'exit plan'. I rebutted the claim we've abandoned the Afghanistan theater by discussing operations there, noting the monumental challenges in managing asymmetrical threats. I also remarked that since the aftermath of 9/11, the administration has stated that in prosecuting the Global War on Terror, bin Laden is but one actor in many. (The sing-song lament of the O My God Chorus that the war is not being fought hard enough should not be confused with its converse jingle that international terrorism is a mere 'law-enforcement' matter. )

As we approach the two-year anniversary of the Afghanistan deaths of eleven consummate warriors from the SEAL community, along with their eight brave comrades from the Army's Night Stalkers, it seems some perspective on the war in that region is in order. Following is a piece I wrote in the summer of 2005 in response to these unprecedented special warfare losses ~

- After the deaths of 19 US soldiers and special warfare sailors in the mountains of Eastern Afghanistan on June 28th, it’s time to correct the record about where the key obstacles in prosecuting the war on terror really lie. If 'quagmire' is the favorite political buzz word when scrutinizing the difficulty in quelling the murderous successes of jihadists, the discussion should then turn to the state actor whose gifts to terrorists just keep on giving - Pakistan.

Pakistan has long been drenched in political dramas that have revolved around killing off or otherwise ousting seated (and corrupt) leadership, then pushing for increased nationalism that has ties to jihadist goals. In 1977, Mohammed Zia implemented a coup to bump Ali Bhutto off the power seat, hanged him, and established a Sharia system that was vital to an eleven-year rule. In an effort to mitigate resistance influences, he sought increasing Islamic control over the culture, lauding it as the national ideology. Iran was exploding during this time, the Soviets were invading neighboring Afghanistan, and Pakistan's ever growing radicalism through its advancement of Sharia-driven domestic politics was shaping a future messy relationship with the mujahedeen and its US supported counter to the Soviet invasion. Zia was interested in a political system that sustained an elite military rule to stop civilian rebellion and called for brutal punishments of violations of Sharia. Notably, Zia was enamored of Mawdudi, founder of the Pakistani Jama'at al-Islami political party, and a radical who viewed Islam as a revolutionary force. To wit:

"Islam wants the whole earth and does not content itself with only a part thereof. It wants and requires the entire inhabited world. It does not want this in order that one nation dominates the earth and monopolizes its sources of wealth, after having taken them away from one or more other nations. No, Islam wants and requires the earth in order that the human race altogether can enjoy the concept and practical program of human happiness, by means of which God has honoured Islam and put it above the other religions and laws. In order to realize this lofty desire, Islam wants to employ all forces and means that can be employed for bringing about a universal all-embracing revolution. It will spare no efforts for the achievement of this supreme objective. This far-reaching struggle that continuously exhausts all forces and this employment of all possible means are called jihad."

Zia promoted Mawdudi to head up the Islamist intelligentsia that conveniently afforded Mawdudi and his ilk an opportunity to burrow deep into the state and its political hierarchy, which by this time, involved the CIA backed mujahedeen under the umbrella of the Pakistani ISI. Ultimately, the Zia intent was to stifle democracy and sanction a military penal code over the People with the support of the intelligentsia. A tax was imposed that funded the Deobandi madrassas whose rosters included poor Pakistani youth and Afghan refugees. The Taliban emerged from this population. Zia later relaxed his political system after achieving legitimacy in the region as a stabilizing force in countering the encroachment of the Soviets, and he declared Pakistan an up and coming 'democracy'. He died in 1985 after continued power struggles over departures from the Islam state, partisan warring, and alleged conspiracies to malign him. A new President and Prime Minister came into power and five years of fighting between and among factions within the political elite and military ensued. Pakistan continued along a trajectory of corruption, resignations, dismissals, and overthrows that led to the current Musharraf government.

Musharraf is a dictator who booted his predecessor out of the way and declared himself President. He is also a seasoned warrior and this begs the question of why he has such a hard time controlling his own border and internal affairs. But in the larger picture, were it not for Pakistan and it’s training up of militant zealots, as well as establishing a funding source and political support for Taliban activities in Afghanistan, Taliban competition for power would not have been possible (the Saudis have provided the same type of help and many of their madrassas are advantageously in Pakistan). Pakistan also supported rebels in Kashmir and has looked the other way when those factions targeted civilians. Pakistan’s government houses jihadists and operatives that offer assistance to al Qaeda and bin Laden who use the eastern border of Afghanistan for a base of operation. Musharraf’s former ISI chief, Hamid Gul, was an advisor to bin Laden before 9/11 and now is a strategic advisor to political parties governing two Pakistani provinces. These parties represent twenty per cent of the assembly in Islamabad. Gul has publicly declared his anti-American position and the 9/11 Commission received a report from a Pakistani source that stated the following:

"The imprints of every major act of international Islamist terrorism invariably passes through Pakistan, right from September 11 — where virtually all the participants had trained, resided or met in, coordinated with, or received funding from or through Pakistan — to major acts of terrorism across South Asia and Southeast Asia, as well as major networks of terror that have been discovered in Europe.”

Harakat ul-Mujahidin (HUM), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JEM), and Lashkar-e-Toiba (LET) have collaborative relationships with al Qaeda and Taliban operatives within Pakistan’s borders and their jihadi members are barely pursued, or altogether conveniently ignored by Pakistani authorities. It was Pakistan that hosted the butchering of Daniel Pearl on videotape. bin Laden is believed to have received medical treatment at a Peshawar military hospital with the knowledge and assistance of the ISI. Pakistani nuclear engineer Dr. Khan sold centrifuge technology to Iran, Libya, and N. Korea and is personally responsible for one of the most volatile proliferating schemes in the history of the planet. When the US became aware of this, Musharraf failed to arrest and prosecute Khan, pardoning him instead after he publicly ‘apologized’. It is believed that if al Qaeda or like-minded Islamic factions obtain a nuclear device it will be delivered though the ISI. Wherever terrorism goes, where proliferation succeeds, and where bin Laden finds refuge, the ISI appears to be in the equation and it is ludicrous to conclude Musharraf is unaware of the activities of his own cabinet and staff and can exert no control over those activities and actors.

Reviewing the litany of deadly and resurgent struggles the US military has encountered on the Afghanistan Eastern border, the quagmire is not in Iraq but well rooted in Islamabad’s ISI and the Musharraf-led government. It is costing the US unacceptable losses in blood and treasure as we deploy the finest resources of the Department of Defense into the same al Qaeda/Taliban death trap to stave off the jihading lunacy of those who re-constitute themselves and re-fortify with the express assistance of Pakistan. There is a discernible pattern: We enter the fray on the Eastern border to search for specific targets and to extract information critical to our greater mission, we encounter well-organized pockets of hostile resistance, lose assets, dispatch additional resources that then encounter their own trouble generated by a well-supported root source, and we lose those assets as well.

Some assert that such losses are tragic, but simply inevitable consequences of war. Many sit back after such a calamity and pass judgment on the military commanders in theatre, citing the improper deployment of certain assets, questioning the hardware they used, criticizing the timing, the number of operators they sent, the decisions the forces on the ground made while conducting operations, and so on. It’s implicit that war is a deadly business and that war with al Qaeda is exceptionally dangerous and fraught with unavoidable surprises. It’s also predictable in military theatres that miscalculations and errors in judgment will be made, particularly when the fog of war is thick and both tensions and intelligence stakes are excruciatingly high. However, those issues are sorted out soberly in de-briefings and retrospective military science, not by civilians non-conversant in tactical applications of counter-terrorist special operations.

But more importantly, missteps in battlefield strategies and tactical rationale are not the grit of what plagues us in prosecuting this war effectively. The war on terrorism ultimately begins and ends in Pakistan, and Afghanistan’s terrorism is the aggressive tumor of an unchecked metastasis wrought by Pakistani jihad. The old Taoist medical paradigm applies – “in acute illness, treat the branch, in chronic illness, treat the root.” One can suppress, shrink, and even kill off an acute surface tumor that extends from a pathogenic mother cell, but to cure the real illness, the root of the cancer has to be choked and starved until it can no longer produce aberrant cells with potential to spread. The US therefore, cannot apply its resources fully and effectively mete out consequences to the enemy if Mother Pakistan continues to supply a feeding tube to jihadist factions intent on our demise and the systematic picking off of our valuable special warfare resources.

Special warfare serves the US when we know we have the unique covert advantages required by our operators tasked with locating and neutralizing high value targets and/or bringing back critical information. That advantage is diminished when the border separating two nation states is routinely proliferated and staffed with enemy operatives who freely traverse two non-democratic political systems, one operating under a fragile transitional government, both still entrenched in tyrannical religious ideation and political history that run counter to legitimate transition and functional democracy. Conversely, when managing nuclear capable state actors who will not stupidly pull the trigger on their futures by entering a battle that predicts their military inferiority, the United States is well served by conventional tactics and unbending new deterrence policies that promise surgical excising of state resources, should an actor facilitate proliferation and serve up aid to US enemies. Pakistan is (currently) unwilling to commit national suicide and knows it can never win a battle with the US for military superiority. This favorable aspect of the security equation affords the US its required advantage in responding with increased success to terrorist activity in Afghanistan via harsh conventional consequences for Pakistani sponsorship of al Qaeda and Taliban. In doing so we would provide our special forces with a desirable political climate and unconventional upper hand in mitigating asymmetric obstacles to stability in their theater of operation.

Additionally, US temerity in standing up to Pakistan’s tacit nuclear blackmail program is essential to communicating to other nuclear capable states and those seeking a program, that no ally in name is worth our continued thwarted efforts and casualties in costly special warfare assets should state support continue to be given insidiously to our enemies. We cannot afford to pay in SEAL lives for bad decisions that place Pakistan in the seat of authority over the Eastern border, and is the foreign policy child of US fear that we will ‘de-stabilize’ the region if we upset a nuclear state. The US should also provide unmatched incentives to indigenous actors on the Eastern border to discourage their willingness to aid jihadists. If the border is to be for sale, the US should control the market, not only through tangible resources, but in political maneuvers that make alliances with American enemies unattractive.

Finally, the US should openly re-define terrorism as a forward deployed asset of nation states that don't want to confront American power directly, citing Pakistan as the template. While politicians currently don’t have the stomach to boldly utter such a raw truth, they should be reminded that calling fascist Islamic states our allies has not reduced the rabid hostilities that continue to issue from the loin of their 1400 year-old jihad and threaten potential for a thriving Middle East, as well as our way of life. When comparing Islam’s political trail and that of the Western democratic republic, the US is in an indisputable position to emphatically assert that Islam’s failure to enter political modernity, while pursuing modern weapons systems, is cause for our superior military presence internationally including on the holy sites that repeatedly breed losses for the West.

Criticizing our operators or their military leadership when valuable US assets are compromised and lost on the Eastern border, or summarily minimizing those losses as a mere by-product of an exceedingly difficult task, is political folly and an unhealthy distraction that yields unacceptable consequences for the United States in its war on terrorism. Pakistan is the insurgent, the quagmire is in Islamabad, and critical remedy lies in an exacting elimination of the base of operation that is the Eastern border, a zero-tolerance deterrence policy we are willing to implement, and unceremonious withdrawal of US dollars from Musharraf’s version of the war on terror. Currently, the US cannot get there from here due to three primary factors:

• A lack of political will and literacy in relevant foreign policy on the part of the American people
• Increasing encroachment of divisive partisan politics onto critical US security issues
• A failure of American leadership to accurately identify Islam as a system of political tyranny which cloaks itself in a social-religious construct to advance its goals

The result is that US special operators don’t have full support of the political arm of their government. They will subsequently experience unnecessary casualties when called to mitigate militarily the messes of foolish political actors prosecuting the war from the perspective that the US can bed down with an Islamic fox and trust it to count the chickens on Afghanistan’s Eastern border.

Here we go again...

H/T: The Oxford Medievalist

Now that Hamas has seized power in Gaza, they have set their sights on destroying any Christian presence in the area. They are going to make life so difficult for Christians there that they'll either have to leave, convert, or die. Not attractive options now are they?

http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56241

Don't expect to see this in the MSM any time soon, they'd sooner die than paint Christians in a positive light. It's far easier for them to roast Jerry Falwell or talk about Fred Phelps than show how Christians are really treated around the world.

Is this the true face of Islam? If not, where is the outcry about the brutal treatment that non-Muslims and especially ex-Muslims that have converted to another faith? And yet Jimmy Carter would have us recognize these, these thugs as the rulers of the Gaza Strip.

I've blogged earlier about how Christians are treated around the world here, here, here, here, and finally, here. Read them if you dare enough to care. We forget that in many parts of the world Christians are in the minority and not the majority and get treated like dirt and worse, especially in Islamic countries where sharia law is the final word. May God help them because nobody else seems to give a damn...

Surge Part II

General Petraeus sure isn't sitting in his easy chair in Iraq, that's for sure. After getting an additional 31,000 troops into the country and radically changing how we are fighting the bad guys in Iraq, the second part of his strategy has begun outside of Baghdad. Instead of having big bases and trying to lure the enemy into set piece battles, Petraeus has made the soldiers and their Iraqi counterparts a daily part of Iraqi life in both the capital and Anbar province, where according to recent reports, (h/t Burkean Reflections) the situation has gone from dire to promising and that's before the 31,000 troops had all arrived.

Now the General hopes to catch or kill as many of our enemies as possible in this new offensive by plugging as many of their escape routes as possible by driving them into the flanking troops who are cutting off their retreat. The other change is the lack of publicity this offensive was given ahead of time. Strategic surprise is difficult to achieve considering you're talking about 10,000 troops, but tactical surprise is another thing entirely. Hopefully tactical surprise was achieved and we were able to catch them with their pants down. (that depends on the quality of the Intel we get, and the indications are that our Intel has been getting better and better since the new strategy was implemented) Every time we have a firefight with the enemy they get crushed at a ratio of 60:1. That means for every coalition soldier that loses their life in the line of duty we kill 60 terrorists. To give you an example of how overwhelming this is, during the Korean war we had a kill ratio of 12:1 in the air which many consider to be total domination. We're talking 5 times that kill ratio in Iraq, talk about taking your enemy to the woodshed!

If this move succeeds and we can make headway on the policital front then things are indeed looking brighter in Iraq and the matter of the troops coming home will become 'when' and not 'if'.
I say this because there has to be a political element to this as well, a purely military solution is impossible and the Iraqis need to do more of the heavy lifting so that we can go from doing most of the fighting to supporting the Iraqis while they take care of their own country, much like we did in S. Vietnam from 68-73.

Ch ch ch ch Changes!

Change is the only constant. Now instead of reading my musings, opinions and other assorted thoughts I am very honored to say that there will be another author helping to keep the desert a glowing. Navy Blue is going to be adding her 2¢ in on a (hopefully) regular basis. She's smart as a whip and is gracious enough to accept my invitation to put her thoughts on screen for all to see. I'll let her add any other details about her she feels like adding.

Be warned, I will not tolerate any abuse here, there are plenty of war zones that masquerade as blogs and forums for that kind of crap. I don't mind dissent, discussions or debates. I don't even mind a good dose of sarcasm from time to time, but I can and will delete abusive comments on this blog.

If you want to play, play nice.

Where did the water go?

I know, three posts in a day is a record for me.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/2007-06-13-lake-superior_N.htm

For those of you who don't know me, my parents are from Michigan's Upper Peninsula or the U.P., and my family still goes back there on a regular basis to see each other and get away from life for a week or two. Naturally I am interested in what I consider to be my second home and simply had to comment on this.

This is a big deal for both Canada, Wisconsin and The U.P.; many of the towns on the shore rely on shipping, boating and tourists for much of their income. When the water drops like is has here people suffer. Now I don't know why it's happening, I do know that they've had some dry seasons and this has certainly led to levels dropping. I don't think it's some sort of conspiracy because there is too much money at stake to pull a stunt like that. It's just one of those things. Still, I'd like nothing better than to see it return to its glory.

Justice!

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1633987,00.html

Finally, justice prevails in the Duke Rape Case...
Mike Nifong was disbarred and resigned from his position as DA. This means he can no longer practice law and his career ends fittingly in disgrace. His troubles are far from over because the three young men that he tried to destroy are going to take legal action against him. Now if only the gang of 88 would face a similar fate.

This case was never about justice, it was about politics and race baiting. Those three men should never have been charged. Was the team guilty of bad judgment by holding that party etc...? Yes, should the coach have lost his job and the season cancelled? Yes, stupid behavior like that should never go unpunished. But those three should never have been subjected to the hell they went through nor should they have to pay for the millions in legal fees they racked up.

Well, we sold the jeep

Honestly? I have mixed feelings about this. Our old Jeep Renegade was sold on Friday for $1500.00... It was old, needed serious interior work, had no A/C and our family was too big for it.

But...

That jeep had been with us since before we were married. For 17 years it's been a part of the family, and when you took the top and doors off, it was a blast, even in the summer. It was great for going off the beaten path, and let's face it... It's a JEEP, if you don't have one or never had one, you'll never understand, It's a jeep thing.

I'm seriously considering getting another one after I start teaching, but this time I'll opt for the A/C, especially if we stay in the desert, I've had enough of 115 and no A/C thank you very much! Plus now they have a 4 door Wrangler! Yea BABY!

When in doubt...

Blame Karl Rove and George Bush...

That's the new mantra I've run across in my Internet travels. Dan Rather was set up by Rove, we were duped by them to invade Iraq. The CIA agent mess, the terror busts were set ups, the government was responsible for 9/11... Rant Moan Blah...

I could go on and on like the song from the Titanic. What's with these people? Are you so blinded by your hatred for the President that nothing else matters but his destruction? Are you really willing to sacrifice our country's security and freedom just to get him? Can you really believe that he not only fixed two elections under the nose a press corps that is liberal to start with, but has managed to keep it covered up for this long? Can you honestly say after looking at the whole Iraq pre-war situation that he intentionally lied for oil? Oil that is not coming our way? Is he actually to blame for high gas prices despite the fact that the federal gas tax is 8¢ a gallon higher than the net profit on a gallon of gas? (18¢ vs. 10¢)

What the hell is wrong with you people?

It's called reality, try living in it...

The Most Open What?

http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007Jun11/0,4670,CongressEarmarks,00.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19100711/
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070603/ap_on_go_co/congress_pet_projects
http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/cbc-digs-in-for-jefferson-2007-06-07.html

H/T: Oxford Medievalist

This is what the most open congress looks like? I don't know if I should laugh or cry. They promised but have not done the following:

• Control earmarks
• Kick out members of congress who are brought up on charges
• Drain The Swamp of corruption

That's just a short list, but it illustrates my point. The democrats have sold the American people a bill of goods. They have done nothing but make a mockery of the legislative branch of government. Once they gained power they decided that those rules only needed to apply to the GOP and that they were immune from silly things like laws and rules. In fact when the GOP called them on this they were threatened not once but twice with the elimination of all GOP earmarks.

Nice, huh?

Separating People from Politics

This is something that's been on my mind for some time now, and I finally decided to write about this subject. What people either forget or ignore totally is that people can and should be separated from their politics. This goes for the person you're debating online about Iraq, as well as public and political figures. Let me give you two examples of this.

The first example is Cindy Sheenan. She's the lady who has been the voice of the anti-war crowd after her son was killed in Iraq. She recently got wise to the fact she was a tool, and nothing more, for the truth-berry punch kool-aid crowd and quit. The reactions to this announcement were less then generous, especially from the right. She has gotten and deserved a large amount of heat for some of her comments and actions. But, she's also a mother who lost her son, and while I disagree totally with her on Iraq and on some of the things she's said, I sincerely hope that she finds some peace and is finally able to grieve and begin to live the rest of her life.

The second example is Tony Snow/Elizabeth Edwards. Both he and Elizabeth Edwards had announced that their cancer had returned at about the same time. This was a very interesting thing to see because you got two totally different reactions to similar announcements. For Elizabeth, it was a huge outpouring of sympathy and prayers from both the right and the left. People at this point pretty much forgot about politics and focused on the fact that she was again facing cancer. Tony Snow on the other hand got the same reaction from the right that Elizabeth did, and exactly the opposite from the left. Many posters hoped that this would lead to a slow painful death, and that the cancer returned because he could not stomach the lies anymore.

Here are a couple of gems to illustrate my point.

• On a personal level, my immediate reaction was "Looks like Snow couldn't stomach all the lies he's been telling as Bush's Press Secretary." His words and spin have hurt Americans and Democracy. So, do I have sympathy for Snow? Not much!

• I suspect Snow's character (or lack thereof) has been in place for many years. I never said he was sub-human, just not someone I feel a need to extend compassion to.

Those are the ones I can post without lots of ******, but you get the idea. The truth is that someone can be totally wrong politically and still be a decent person. Just like someone can have the greatest stands in the world and be a SOB on a personal level. I also need to point out this is something that both sides are guilty of, maybe because we are talking politics and that means things get heated quickly.

My point is this. When you're in a heated discussion about politics, remember that the person on the other side is human, with all the frailties that you have. I have many people on the left that I disagree with on a daily basis politically speaking, but who I get along with just fine on a personal level. Stick to the issues and leave the personal attacks out of it, would you?

Culture of Corruption Indeed...

That would be the pot calling the kettle black. U.S. Democratic Rep. William Jefferson was indicted on 16 charges of bribery and other assorted charges. This is the same guy who was caught with $90,000 wrapped in foil hidden in 9 frozen food containers with each containing $10,000. A further raid on his congressional office netted yet more incriminating evidence against him. This raid is in the middle of a challenge since he believes that it should be off limits to searches by law enforcement. Yea, he said that with a straight face. At least he's come out and stated that he thinks he's above the law. And this is the same party that vowed to clean up the swamp right?

There is a movement in the congress to expel him and so far there is no democratic resistance to the move, but when push comes to shove it may be a different story. This is not the only time the democrats have been caught with their hand in the cookie jar, the difference is that this time it's going to go to trial. Of course, Queen Pelosi's dealings need to have a light shined on them as to Sen. Feinstien's actions, but don't hold your breath.

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSWAT00765020070604?pageNumber=1
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,277774,00.html

Christianity loses again...

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1626300,00.html?xid=rss-topstories

Once again Christianity loses on the world stage. Because Lina Joy was born into a Muslim family she is subject or subjugated to sharia law and not civil law. The highest court in Malaysia has decided that her conversion to Christianity will not be recognized officially and now her life has just taken a decided turn for the worse. Islam takes a very dim view of apostasy, or people who convert from Islam to another faith. In many countries it's a death sentence and in parts of Malaysia this will get you prison time. Don't be shocked when she's killed in the future.

A religion of peace? Really? Or the scourge of Western Civilization? Each time I see or hear something like this it gets harder and harder for me to really believe that Islam is truly peaceful.

Winston Churchill

I've been reading a biography on Winston Churchill, and all I can say is WOW. I truly believe that he was meant to live and lead in that period of history. Here are a few highlights...

He fought in S. Africa, was captured and escaped.
He recognized the importance of air power in combat before the start of WWI.
He fought in WWI on the front lines and was in charge of producing war material until the end of the war and was head of the Royal Navy in 1914 and 1915...
He recognized that neither pure capitalism nor socialism would work in a modern society, that a mix of the two were needed, and worked to expand worker's rights and to set up machinery to settle labor disputes without violence.
He saw the evil of Communism and Nazi Germany before most others in Europe or the USA.
He held several major positions in government before becoming Prime Minister.
That's just a start. In short this was a man for the ages, I think he would be pleased to see the cooperation that Tony Blair had with George Bush in the war on terror.

This is just a short list up to the 1930's.

All or Nothing

One of the things that has started to worry me about the right side of the political spectrum is people are starting to subscribe to the 'All or Nothing' philosophy that the left has embraced for years. In short you either follow 100% of a,b,c etc., or you're not really a conservative. On the GOP side those such tagged are usually called RINO's short for Republicans in name only. Not 100% against gay marriage? RINO! Not 100% for _________? RINO.

This is bad. The strength of the GOP and the right in general is our ability to have differences of opinion on policy issues and still be conservative. We need to demand it to be honest. As iron sharpens iron this kind of discussion strengthens our position because we've discussed, debated and really thought about what is best for this country of ours. We need to have moderates involved, yes Rudy is socially moderate but he's also anti-tax, pro police and 100% on the war on terror. I love the fact that we have such a wide range of views on these issues, it means that we've thought about these issues and even when we disagree we can still be on the same side. The GOP has plenty of moderates in it's ranks as well as conservatives. You can disagree on issues and still be on the same team. Are there issues that you should be 100% for? Yes, in my opinion they are: low taxes, less government, pro military, pro family, pro faith, and putting the USA first. This is an incomplete list and it will vary depending on what you think is important.

Contrast that with the left. Remember Joe Lieberman? He made one mistake according to the left, he supported and still supports the war in Iraq. His own party turned on him and he was defeated in the primary of the 06 election by his own party! He then had the guts to run as an independent and easily won re-election. The moral is that if you don't march lock-step with the left, they'll turn on you in a heartbeat. There is no room for dissenting opinions in the democratic party. That is their great failing and what will eventually lead (I hope) to their demise.

Iran's role in Iraq and why it matters...

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,273474,00.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18492460/

I know that people on the left and some on the right like to bang on the US for the problems in Iraq. What they either fail to realize or just don't care about is a small detail in this situation: Iran.

Over the last few months, the suspicion that Iran is shipping weapons and training fighters has become a certainty. I realize that it's easy and lazy to say that the President is to blame for all that is wrong with Iraq, and yes he shares some of the blame. However, people need to wake up to the fact that Iran is working to undo everything that we've fought for in Iraq. Why? A couple of reasons.

The first reason is that Iran fears a stable democratic Iraq. These two countries share a large border and the last thing that Iran wants is a neighboring country that's free. You see Iran is a religious dictatorship. There are no freedoms in Iran, especially for women and for non Muslims. They keep power via brute force and fear. This is all well and good when most of your neighbors run the show the same way, but when there is a beacon of hope next door for your oppressed citizens it is cause for alarm. You don't want them agitating for freedom, because it comes at the expense of the ruling class.

The second reason is that Iran is at war with the US. It's an undeclared war, but it's a war just the same. This war started when Iran seized the US Embassy and keep our citizens hostage for over a year. They regularly aid terror groups around the world. They are the avowed enemy of Israel. They will do anything to hurt and defeat us. Since they're not yet strong enough militarily to confront us (Thank God!) they use groups like Al-Queda and Hezbollah to do their dirty work. They are the part of the militant Muslims that want to convert everyone to Islam by any means necessary.

Their weapons are killing our soldiers and yet we've done nothing so far. The congress and the MSM are too busy trying to turn the country into another Vietnam and the Bush administration has done a horrible job of bringing this to the collective attention of this country. They've done a worse job of confronting Iran about it as well. I think we need to seriously consider aggressive patrols on the Iran Iraq border and consider air strikes against their arms factories if they don't stop. They can't hate us any more and they need to be taught a lesson about messing with the US, this lesson is long overdue, about 30 years overdue.

Driving Christians out of Bethleham

....chirp chirp
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=55718

That is what you hear from the MSM in regards to this story. Bethleham is probably the holiest city on earth for Christians. It's where our and your savior was born. It's also where the muslim population is driving out the Christians by any means necessary. Forged documents, corrupt government, brute force. Just another day in paradise right? At what point are people going to care? Where is the left, the party of "tolerance" and "compassion'? Oh, right we're talking about those evil Christians, and we all know they deserve no pity at least not according to the left.

I think I'm going to throw up now.

It's called the high road, try taking it...

As most people know by now, Rev. Jerry Falwell died yesterday at the age of 73. I don't know if he's dining with God or roasting in hell right now, that's up to God not me. I do know that the venom from the left screams hypocrisy, lack of tact or anything that resembles class. Honestly, it makes me want to vomit.

The left loves to throw the words tolerance, understanding, multiculturalism, etc., at the right and when the time comes to practice what they so loudly preach we get nothing but bitter hatred, bile and venom.

For those of you on the left, either practice what you preach or come clean about the fact that you want US on the right to accept your world view and that you will NEVER return the favor. Otherwise, shut the hell up.

Planned Parenthood not obeying the law...

Update! HT: KC Catholic
http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-planned-parenthood-lawsuit,0,853638.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

Guess they don't feel the need to report sexual abuse either. And yet the secular way is preferable to one of faith? I need to switch brands of kool-aid because this one isn't doing the trick...

HT: Michelle Malkin, LaShawn Barber

This is nice. A reporter goes undercover posing as a 15 year old who is pregnant by a 23 man. The employee at PP tells her to pick a birthday to make her 16 so it does not have to be reported as statutory rape. This is against the law in California for obvious reasons. Now PP claims this is an isolated incident and is pursing legal action against the reporter because the PP employee was filming this w/o PP's knowledge, this is also against the law. Why? Don't know...

I doubt seriously this is an isolated incident.

Mother's Day Fun

First I want to wish all mom's out there a happy if slightly belated Mother's Day. You can't get enough kudos for everything you do. Now, I want to tell you what Mother's Day was like at my house.

Travel in the not-so-way-back machine to Saturday the 12th of May. My daughter and I were out to get those all important gifts and cards. After stopping off to get a new fuse for my car so I would know how fast I was going it was off to gift world. Our first stop was Super Wally World to get cards and to pick up a gift certificate at the nail shop so my wife could get a pedicure.

While we were there we also looked for some pipe cleaners and tissue paper so that my daughter could make a special gift. We had no luck on the pipe cleaner or tissue paper, so after we paid for the cards and got the gift certificate, we then went to Payless Shoe Source to get a gift card, and then off to Michael's to get the aforementioned pipe cleaners, tissue paper and also a couple of wooden hearts that she could paint as another gift.

After getting home my daughter headed up stairs to start on the gift making and brought everything up with her so my wife would not find out. And she didn't for about 45 minutes until my daughter asked her if she wanted to see what she was doing... Sigh I really need to train her on the SURPRISE part of gifts... Anyway she then takes everything downstairs to work on.

Forward to Mother's day. I'm up with my son (2 1/2) and assembling the cards and gifts for coloring signing etc. One small problem, I can't find the pedicure certificate. Now my wife is asleep and my son is eating breakfast so I'll go upstairs and look in my daughter's room for the certificate. No luck there either... Now I'm starting to get a bit nervous. I go back downstairs and really start to look everywhere for this certificate. Still nowhere to be found. I then start looking in the garbage thinking that my wife (bit of a neat freak) or my daughter threw the envelope away by mistake. Still nowhere to be found... Now I'm in a total panic. It's 7:30, I have not even started on breakfast for my wife, my daughter has not finished either project and we're missing a gift. I wake her up and grill her about the certificate. She can't remember where it is either. Now at this point I'm resigned to the fact that I ruined Mother's Day. We don't have the $$$ to spare on another certificate nor do I have the time to get another one.

I get my daughter to finish her gifts and we get breakfast made. At 8:30 we surprise my wife with breakfast in bed and give her the gifts we have on hand. I then explain what happened and after a few minutes of discussing this disaster, my wife goes, "Oh a blank envelope? I found one and put it on the filing cabinet...", well what do ya know! It's the certificate! Mother's Day is saved and I'm not sleeping on the couch!

The rest of the day went pretty smoothly, my wife went shopping with her gift card, and I cooked her up a mean steak dinner.

Ah, the best laid plans of men...

And we need to secure the border why?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17874369/

Considering that Hezbollah now has functioning bases in South America, and that Hezbollah is armed, funded, and trained by Iran, and that they want to destroy our way of life, ya think we should really truly secure the damn border?

Do we need another 9/11 before we put the army and marines on the US/Mexico border in force and actually do something to make us safer? I am very afraid the answer is yes. If you care at all about our security write your legislators and tell them to secure the border, now.

Barak Obama

Rush Limbaugh did a song that parodies the belief that many have about Barak Obama as the great black savior. http://thomaschronicles.com/2007/04/03/obama-as-our-savior/ Personally I won't vote for anyone who courts the Pharisee Sharpton. Anyway, people are in a tizzy about his song. >shrug<> Rush uses sarcasam and irony in his show... Deal with it. He is also dead on about Obama being seen as the savior of the Democratic party. Rush is not a racist, so just stop already.

HT: Thomas Chronicles for the savior photo...

Three Martyrs and their last hours

http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/1067893/18109220

Details are starting to come out about the final hours of the three murdered Christians in Turkey. Not only was this brutal crime planned well in advance but the victims were stabbed numerous times and the killings were methodical and ritualized. The killers seemed to be following instructions from the Koran as follows below.

"The distinctively ritual manner of the murder, particularly the slicing of fingertips, is convincing observers of the consciously religious motivation of the assassins. The perpetrators seem to have been following the instructions of Sure 8:12, from the Koran. There it says (in the Rudi Paret German translation of the Koran), “I will strike terror into the hearts of unbelievers. Flay their necks (with a sword) and strike every finger.” The last half of the sentence is translated in even more striking terms in some versions. In the Rassoul and Zaidan translation it says, “chop off every finger;” the Azhar and Ahmadeyya translation says, “chop off every finger tip.”

This is the face of evil, make no mistake about it. They were killed to send a message that only Islam would be tolerated in Turkey. And if any were foolish enough to worship anyone or anything other than Allah that they would meet the same fate. And yet we hear nothing from the MSM, guess they're too busy making sure that we fail in Iraq and that the President's last two years in office are a living hell. Of course they probably think that those evil Christians deserved their fate.

HT The Point Blog

Pastors and Pharisees

If you've read the Bible or have more than a passing familiarity with it you'll know that Jesus had time for everyone, with the exception of the Pharisees. A Pharisee, in Biblical times, were the religious leaders of the Jewish people. They were responsible for the spiritual well being of their people. They were to set the example for all to follow via their actions and teachings.
However, in reality they often lorded their position over the people. They often decided who was acceptable to be with in society and who were not. They looked down upon people who were not Jewish, i.e. the Gentiles and the Samaritans. They considered 'sinners' less than human and would gleefully point them out for judgement and condemnation. During Jesus' time on earth he repeatedly pointed out the gaps between their teaching and their actions. When they questioned his choice of dining partners, he replied that it was the sick that needed a doctor, not the healthy. He repeatedly showed the hypocracy that ran rampent in their ranks, so much so that they ended up having him crucified.

Fast Forward to 2007 in America. Christian leaders daily face the challange of living out their beliefs and teachings. One wrong step and they go from pastor to pharisee. Now let me tell you how I define these two terms and give you some examples so you know where I am coming from.

Pastor: Does his best to live by the teachings in the Bible. Puts words into actions via ministry work like Angel Tree, Christmas in April, feeding the homeless, volunteering at a hospice. They are more concerned with spreading God's message than their own glory and power. They don't want the biggest church they want an effective one.

Think Billy Graham, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Pope John Paul II. The churches who were too busy helping others to rebuild their churches after Katrina were led by real pastors.

Pharisee: Claims to be a Christian and will speak with authority. Knows the Bible from stem to stern. Often makes strong moral statements about hot button issues. May or may not be active in ministries mentioned above. Says one thing and does another. Doesn't live by what is preached or will not preach according to what's in the Bible. Often very concerned with their personal power and glory, God gets the leftovers if He's lucky. Will often fall from grace in public scandal, usually due to an extra martial affair of some sort.

Think Jim Baker, Jerry Falwell, Jimmy Swaggart, Fred Phelps, Pat Robertson, Ted Haggard, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton.

I'll bet you recognize the Pharisees or had a similar list as you were reading my description. To be honest you'll rarely see Pastors in the news because they don't call attention to themselves or their work, because they're not in it for personal glory. And honestly the MSM won't report on them because they don't like to paint Christians in a positive light. They'd rather focus on the Pharisees and show the world that all Christians are like this, no matter what the reality is.

Vouchers and School Choice

As a future teacher and as a parent of two kids, this is a subject near and dear to my heart. It's also an assignment for my advanced composition class at Nevada State College. Hopefully it will get good reviews here and with my teacher.

School choice and vouchers are two new ways that have been developed to help inner city families better educate their children, who are often stuck with poor schools and few opportunities to transfer them to better schools.


There are differences between school choice and vouchers. School choice allows parents to transfer their child from a bad school to a good school. As Richard Whitmire pointed out in Washington Monthly’s March 2004 issue, this is being done in St. Louis, where parents can have their kids attend a good public school, (yes they actually exist) and the state pays the school a fee for accepting inner city students. This program, started in 1983 and renewed in 1999, has been popular and successful. Not only do students who transfer score higher on standardized tests; their graduation rates are twice that of their inner city counterparts.

Vouchers are similar in that parents are allowed to pull their child from a failing public school and place them in one of their choice. Instead of going to another public school, the government pays the tuition for the student to attend private school. Vouchers are aimed at students that are at, or near, the poverty level. Because of the Supreme Court’s decision upholding the constitutionality of vouchers, more states are seriously considering these programs.


Teacher’s unions, liberal legislators and public school officials don’t like vouchers and will do anything in their power to defeat them. One argument is the program violates the separation clause of the Constitution because many private schools are religious in nature. They’ll argue that schools will lose money because fewer kids are enrolled in them. Another objection is that private schools aren’t bound by No Child Left Behind standards and don’t have to produce the same test results that public schools do. Because we don’t know what the test scores are we don’t know how good a job those schools are doing educating kids they’ll argue.

Although these sound reasonable, they have flaws that need exposing. First, private schools most often do a better job of educating students than public ones. Why? Because if a private school is not producing educated children then nobody is going to send their children there. Unlike public schools where the amount of money they get is fairly certain from year to year, a private school has to insure that their customers are getting good value for their money or the parents will go elsewhere. The free market forces them to do their best or they’ll be forced to shut their doors.


Secondly, the government is required to be neutral in regards to religion. The government cannot favor nor discriminate against religion. If vouchers could only be used at secular private schools then they violate the constitution and the program would either be forced to allow religious schools in, or cease operation. This has already happened as some state supreme courts has ruled voucher programs illegal because they accept religious schools which violates the state constitution. The Supreme Court has let one ruling stand, but there will be more.

What we’re doing now is flawed to say the least. Education is the best way to lift people out of poverty, yet we place another hurdle in front of them by forcing them to attend schools that don’t educate students for life in the real world. Parents in poverty can’t afford to send their kids to private schools and school choice is no good if there are no good schools to transfer to or not enough spaces for all the kids who want a better education. Vouchers can and do fill that void.

Anti Catholic Bigotry Updated

What the? This really pisses me off. It's bad enough Rosie O'Donnell thinks that Roman Catholics shouldn't be judges but now Tony Auth has added his 2¢ to his view of Christians and Catholics in particular.

Now this cartoon is in response to the partial birth abortion ban that the court upheld. The 5 in the mitres are all Catholics. Notice that the two Jews and the two protestants are not identified in this cartoon by similar garb. Why the hell do people think it's OK to bang on Christians? Because we don't go nuts, starting riots and killing people of other faiths?

I'm sorry this is bigotry pure and simple. The message he is sending with this cartoon is that Catholics cannot be trusted as judges because they get their marching orders from the Pope. What crap, and yet we as Christians are just supposed to get a thick skin and deal with it right? Uh, no. This should not stand and all Christians need to let Tony and the paper know that you cannot bang on Christians without consequence. The cartoon appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer so if you want to let them know how you feel they're the ones to contact.

Update 3:27pm...

http://thepoint.breakpoint.org/2007/04/christian_marty.html

Three Christians in Turkey had their throats slit for the crime of selling Bibles last week. Funny how it didn't seem to get any mention in the MSM. Of course had they been Muslim or any other religion aside from Christian it'd all over the place, with pleas for tolerance and understanding. But Christians? You'd be lucky to even get crickets to chirp. Anyone else see the hypocrisy here or is it just me?

Should Teachers or Administrators Have Guns?

Pretty simple question right? If you say yes, explain why, and how would police know who on campus had a weapon if there was an emergency. If, no explain why. Keep in mind that if a student or teacher had been carrying a gun last week at VT lives may have been saved.

Forgotten Victims of VT

As anyone with a brain and any connection to reality knows. Monday was a black day for Virginia Tech. A student armed with 2 pistols went on a rampage killing 32 people, wounding about 15 more and finally killing himself. You can read about him and his victims all over the web but www.foxnews.com or www.msnbc.com is a good place to start.

But what about the family of Cho Seung-Hui? Is is unreasonable to pray for his family as well? After all they have not only lost a member of their family but he was also responsible for the deaths of 32 people and he tried to kill another 15 or so. That is bad news following bad news. Imagine the shame and embarrassment that family feels because of what their son did. If the country of S. Korea feels ashamed then his family must really be embarrassed. Their only saving grace is that he was an adult and not a minor when he committed this act of evil.

His family is just as much a victim as the families that lost loved ones. Keep them in your prayers as well.

Tax and spend...

Well, looks like your friends the democrats are back to their tax and spend ways. In a column at townhall.com, Rep. Jim McCrery lays out all of the tax cuts the democrats want to either expire or outright get rid of. Many of those don't affect the rich but rather the middle and lower class.

These include lowering the child tax credit from $1000.00/child back to $500.00/child, reinstating the marriage penalty, the estate tax (55%), and eliminate the 0% capital gains tax for the lowest two tax brackets and raise the lowest tax bracket from 10% to 15%. That's just to name a few. And yet they call themselves the friend of the working class. Why does this smell like a dirty diaper? This is why you want a divided government, if all three parts of the government (president and both houses) are occupied by one party we get screwed. Thank goodness that a republican is still in the White House and that the democrats don't have a super majority in the senate. If we as voters don't start putting pressure on the government we're hosed come 2011. Don't say I didn't warn you.

More on this subject...
http://www.townhall.com/Columnists/Column.aspx?ContentGuid=f3e177ed-ad84-4a93-9953-4f3b3ef90a1e&page=1
http://www.townhall.com/Columnists/Column.aspx?ContentGuid=abc91156-236d-494f-a708-a3818eb6edde
http://www.townhall.com/Columnists/Column.aspx?ContentGuid=8ca429d0-edcb-43cc-8456-83d98483d155
http://www.townhall.com/Columnists/Column.aspx?ContentGuid=ddbdc9ac-b7e4-4f2f-8489-8a1bf719705c

Imus... my radio show!

Yea, I'm sure he misses his show. CBS decided to kick Imus to the curb after his infamous 'nappy headed hos' comment he made regarding the Rutgers' Women's Basketball team. Honestly I'm of two minds on this one. I don't like the fact that Imus got canned because of the two Pharisees Jackson and Sharpton, but I do think he deserved at least the suspension. Going after whole groups or famous people is one thing, but to personalize an attack on a bunch of student athletes was so wrong it's stunning. The other thing is that it puts us on a slippery slope of censorship where just a couple of people have the power to censor speech they don't like. Imus used satire and mean humor on his show and no I never listened to him or found him interesting. I didn't even know he was still on the air until this hit. In a free country people are going to say unpopular, bigoted, stupid things. They need to able to say them, BUT we need to be able to not listen, not buy products that are on those shows etc. The good news is that we are again talking about race and the two Pharisees are getting exposed again for the frauds they are. They don't speak for black America, hell they only care about their money and power and how to increase both, who they hurt in the process well they don't care...

A Class Act

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=hill/070412&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab1pos1

One of the commenters on La Shawn Barbers blog mentioned that a reporter had written a column apologizing in public her rushing to judgement and pronouncing the Duke LAX players guilty before all the facts had been revealed. Jemele Hill was able to swallow her pride and utter two of the most powerful words in the English language. "I'm Sorry"

She is to be commended for her actions and her apology. It took guts and showed just what a classy woman she really is. Thank you Jemele, thank you.

Blog Updates

Blogs evolve, at least they should as the blogger evolves. Mine is no exception. I've so many links to blogs and other sites that I needed to break them down into general categories so that you the reader can more easily browse what interests you. I do realize that many blogs touch on more than one category but I put them in the spot that currently best describes the blog itself.

Isreal uses human shields...

Yea, you heard it right. Israel in violation of it's own law has been caught using innocent civilians as human shields. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18058725/ What the hell is wrong with them? Don't they realize that it just drives more people over to the terrorists when they pull crap like this?

One of the things Israel used to have going for it was that it could claim the high moral ground, sadly this is no longer the case. You don't win people over to your side by making innocents walk ahead of you to become bullet catchers when things go wrong. It's bad enough they used the young man in question but an 11 year old girl? What the hell is that about? Can someone smarter than me explain it in short sentences so I understand what's going on? Please?

Don Imus

Update 4/11 4:05pm: MSNBC is dropping the simulcast of the Don Imus show. His radio show for now is still a go, but it remains to be seen what happens next. Sponsors are also pulling the plug, as is their right. Don may come back from his suspension and not have a show to resume. I don't know how I feel about that. Again not a fan, but...


First off, I'm not a Don Imus fan, I don't think he's all that funny or even interesting...

Well, I wasn't sure if I had anything to say about this current incident. For those of you to engrossed in the Anna Nicole Smith saga to know what I'm talking about let me get you up to speed. Last week radio personality Don Imus called the Rutgers Women's Basketball team a 'bunch of nappy headed ho's.' His words not mine. After a few days the whole thing exploded. Don quickly apologized, spent time on the Al Sharpton radio show and has offered to personally apologize to the basketball team, who has accepted his offer. This however, is not enough for Jesse Jackson and Mr. Sharpton who have called for his head on a platter. Imus is lots of things, he's crude, edgy and pushes the envelope on a regular basis and has in his decades long career managed to insult just about everyone on the planet.

Imus on the other hand was very critical of the handling of the Katrina disaster, basically saying that if the city were full of rich white people FEMA would have fallen all over themselves trying to help. In addition, he's spent time raising money for causes such as children's cancer autism and more. Of course, none of this seems to matter now that he's made this statement.

Look, Imus really hosed this one up, big time. He's apologized, gotten a two week suspension and his name has been dragged through the mud. I don't know if he's really a racist or if he just stuck his foot in his mouth. Live radio is like flying on a trapeze without a net, one mistake and you're roadkill.

But Sharpton and Jackson are not really concerned about the plight of black America. They see something like this and then use it to garner money, power and media attention. If they were really concerned about black America, where's the outrage over the crap that BET puts out? What about the image that many rap artists have and the messages in their music? What about how THEY objectify women, glorify drug use and the use of violence to settle a dispute? What about the fact that there are more single black mothers today than there were 50 years ago? Why are they not up in arms over this? Well, what would get them more attention, blaming Whitey McCracker every time someone says something stupid or calling attention to the real problems in their communities? How much power do they stand to lose if they start telling people that the need to be responsible for the lives they lead and not to expect the government to take care of it all for them? Really makes you think doesn't it?

Happy Easter

Hey everyone,
I am taking this week off to spend with my family. I'll be back after Easter with more commentary about the world as it is.

Peace.

Cancer

So we have two public figures that have both been re-stricken with cancer. John Edward's wife and Tony Snow.
http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007Mar27/0,4670,TonySnowCancerOptional,00.html

Now I hope and pray that both people will be able to treat their cancer. I know that Elizabeth Edwards' cancer looks like it's terminal and Tony's looks like it can be eliminated again. What I find interesting is the outpouring of support for Elizabeth and the rather muted response for Tony. In the hours after Elizabeth's news had broken there were two threads discussing that on wet canvas. It's been 24 hours and nothing about Tony Snow. If I were a cynic I'd say it's because Tony works for Satan, er the President and therefore deserves everything he gets and Elizabeth therefore deserves all the attention she is getting and then some.

Now I've lost a grandmother and an uncle to cancer so I'm not picking sides on this. I feel for both families and wish them the best.

Iran keeps pushing: Updated

http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2007-03-23T124131Z_01_COL331821_RTRUKOC_0_US-IRAQ-IRAN-BRITAIN.xml&src=rss&rpc=22

The British were in IRAQI waters for crying out loud. This is an act of war in my book anyway.
Let's see what kind of brass Tony Blair is really made of. This reminds me of what Hitler did in the 1930's. England needs to respond and push back, HARD. I don't think this was any sort of an accident. Iran's leader is very smart and knows exactly what is going on and what buttons to push. I'm kind of curious if this has anything to do with Russia pulling most of it's techs and other personnel over a pay dispute with Iran regarding it's nuclear weapons pro---- I mean it's nuclear reactor that is being built for strictly peaceful purposes. What peace, all the little pieces that will be left of Israel? If a democrat gets elected in 08 expect Iran to do this to us. Remember how Carter reacted to the hostages in 79-80. That worked REALLY well.

I have a suggestion for Tony Blair. Call Iran and tell them they have 6 hours to release all the prisoners and equipment or you wipe his military off the face of the earth from the air. And at 6 hours and 1 seconds the bombs start to fall. Do not pull a Spain under any circumstances.

Funny how Iran didn't try this with the USA it would be the excuse we need to crush their nuclear ambitions and wipe out their military, then let the citizens do the rest...

Hat Tip:http://ymarsakar.wordpress.com/

Update #1:

http://news.monstersandcritics.com/middleeast/news/article_1283092.php/Iran_continues_to_hold_15_British_navy_personnel__2nd_Roundup_

Well the Iranians are still questioning the British sailors and marines and deciding if they are going to charge them with any crimes. The British to their credit are not taking this lying down. I have a feeling that behind the diplomatic and public posturing etc., the Brits have a plan B as in Bomb... I certainly hope so anyway. Iran needs to see they cannot get away with things like this. If it were the French I'd have a completely different opinion.

Duke Case Dropped

Hat Tip: http://texasfred.net/

Finally, this sad chapter is over.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,260426,00.html

I have said this over and over (just not on this blog) that Nifong needs to be disbarred. He has ruined the lives of three families and made a mockery of the justice system. Normally I am not a big fan of lawsuits, but this is a big exception. Not only the DA's office needs to get slapped, but Duke, the gang of 88 and the stripper, whose kids should be taken away and placed in a better home than the one she is providing. All of them need to be brought into court and have their actions or lack thereof brought into the light for all to see.

I'd also like to recognize La Shawn Barber for keeping people updated with her blog and links to even more information on this travesty. http://www.lashawnbarber.com/

Update: Ok it was a bit premature but it is really over. At least this part is. Nifong is fighting for his job and I see lawsuits on the horizon coming from the three victims...

Tigger Gets Student Suspended... Seriously

http://www.ksby.com/Global/story.asp?S=6255486

Yea, ummmm what can I add to this? I understand dress codes and why they exist. But Tigger? What, does he tempt students into bouncing into Rabbit's garden and threaten to trample his crops? Or bounce into Pooh Bear and interrupt his never ending hunny er honey quest? You have GOT to be kidding me. If common sense is so flipping common then why doesn't anybody USE IT??? Doesn't the school district have anything better to do like kowtow to the NEA or something?
Sheesh...

Tigger?

The End of Religious Freedom · Updated!

http://www.breakpoint.org/listingarticle.asp?ID=6301

Don't look so surprised.

The assault on religious freedom has reached a new high, or low depending on your viewpoint. Now England wants to outlaw Christian Schools from teaching about sexuality from a biblical viewpoint. What did we expect from across the pond anyway?

Western Europe has been becoming more and more secular, when that happens, religious freedom becomes something that is now subject to the whims of governments. And in England that means that you can no longer legally practice your religion like you have for the last several hundred years.

Those that continually call for tolerance from people of faith are finally showing their true colors and that the only thing they tolerate are views that are in lock step with theirs. All others are intolerant, homophobic, an assault on women's rights etc. Expect laws like this to spread throughout Europe, which will make life very interesting for countries like France that have large Muslim populations and who find homosexuality abhorrent to the point where you can get killed for your sexual preferences. I doubt seriously that the Muslims will go quietly into the night on this one and that will probably give the fanatics even more traction in their war against the west.

The USA is next on the list and I doubt even the First Amendment will be enough to protect people of faith. Of course they'll go after the Christians first, then once they've been made irrelevant then the 'minority' religions are next in line. After all they must be treated the same right? That's the reasoning they will use.

If you're a person of faith, be it Jewish, Islamic, Christian or whatever...

Be afraid, be very afraid...

Update #1 3/21/2007
Et, tu Brutus?
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3376215,00.html
Now this I thought I'd never see. Now it's not only illegal to convert Muslims in the Middle East but now Israel is off limits? As it stands you can't convert anyone under the age of 18 in Israel now they want to make all Israelis off limits. Huh? Maybe we need to take a hard look at our so called ally. Needless to say I am surprised and disappointed in Israel for this policy.

Credit to Alex http://alexlsilva.blogspot.com/2007/03/83-interesting-links-viii.html
(A fine blog in it's own right)

Tolerance is a one way street

Yea, I love this stuff... As a Christian I'm the one who is supposed to bend over backwards to be tolerant of ALL sorts of stuff, abortion, TV, music, movies etc...

And then I see crap like this.

"Everyone, forgive me for being such a posting hog but honestly, I just had to get at least ONE star under my name! Plus, I'm gone all next week on business and won't be able to post much. Thank you for your kindness and patience.RETAIL THERAPY is here and Hobby Lobby knew I was getting paid today! You are NOT going to believe this incredible deal. I have to shop quickly in Hobby Lobby because they constantly play that annoying Church music and if I stay too long, I'll burst into flames! Seriously... like garlic to Vampire.. Blessed Assurance Jesus is calling ... ~Whoof!~ Somebody, get a bucket of water! He's in the linen section and the whole store is gonna go! "What a world... What a Cruel World, I'm melting..." What was I talking about? "

Yea, and yet those who hate Christians can just post this stuff and go on their merry way. What if I had posted something like this about the gay community or about Islam? How long before the torches and the pitchforks are out? And yet Christians and conservatives are intolerant? See this is what really makes me mad. I'm still debating about responding and pointing out how nasty that post really is. I'm not sure it will be worth the effort though so I may let this one go. Then again maybe not.

Catholic Church raises money to build a what?

http://www.playfuls.com/news_10_19335-Catholic-Church-In-Cologne-Collects-Money-For-A-Mosque.html

WTF? Sorry, not getting it. If you believe you're the one true faith then why the flizz do you help build a place of worship for a faith you consider false and wrong? I'm all for freedom of religion. You're Christian? Jewish? Muslim? Hindu, etc? Fine, no problem. You want to worship sports, money, sex, power the oak tree in your back yard? Enjoy. But this is wrong. Very wrong. I have no problem with community projects that people of different faiths can participate in together, it breaks down the ignorance and hatred, I'm all for that. You want to have celebrations and have people from different faiths participate? Be my guest. But I don't get raising money for what is a totally different religion and faith.

Are European Christians so weak in their faith that they're willing to embrace another faith in this way? Is the spiritual vacuum that great in Western Europe?

What am I missing folks?

Credit to KCC and their fine commenters for the news story...
http://kansascitycatholic.blogspot.com/2007/03/kcc-100000.html

Here's A Novel Thought in Education...

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,258891,00.html?sPage=fnc.national/education

Hey let's try raising standards for kids instead of dumbing them down. The gist of the article is that a 'D' is no longer good enough to pass and now the same district wants to do the same for 'C' grades, so that if you want to pass you need at least a 'B' to do so. As a future teacher, I fully support the D=F grading policy, the bare minimum should not warrant you passing the class. But I don't know if this is going to far or not. Kids are better at some things than at others. Some excel in math and struggle to get a C in English or History and the other way around. I was one of those kids who could do well in English and History and I readily admit I suck at math and science. I was thrilled my senior year to get a C in my Algebra II class, and to say that's not good enough sticks in my craw a bit. There is a big difference between a 'D' and a 'C' after all. But to say a 'D' is not good enough makes me want to cheer and dance. (Be lucky you can't see me dance!)

And then, this gem is doing the opposite.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,252949,00.html?sPage=fnc.national/education

C'mon folks, this is America and we speak English here. I know how hard the language is to master, I am studying to become an English teacher myself and I can't master commas to save my life. But NCLB has been in place for a long time and school have had more than enough time to adapt to it. Too late to come with hat in hand begging for a reprieve. And we wonder why our schools lag? I know that many students are ESL but NCLB became law in 2002 and schools have had 5 years to get this kind of thing done and come up with appropriate substitute tests for ESL students...

Sheesh... Expect nothing get nothing, expect more get more, how hard is that to understand?

A Line in the Sand

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/03/13/pope.vatican.ap/

For many of it's failings the Catholic Church has stood firm on many issues, some I agree with and some I don't. The main one I have a problem with is the whole divorce issue. I don't understand the RC stand on this issue, especially if one spouse walks out on the other one. At that point the marriage is over, and unless the RC Church has an efficient means of annulling such marriages they do themselves and their parishioners a great dis-service.

It's one thing if you do the walking out for no good reason, or because you found a young hottie or cabana boy. At that point I totally agree with the RC church that you've sinned against God and need to make it right. I totally agree that if the marriage can be saved every effort needs to be made to make the marriage work. I know that marriages go through rough patches. I've been married for almost 14 years, and we've had some VERY rough patches, but we worked through it, and our marriage is stronger than ever.

It's a totally different scenario if one spouse is addicted to drugs, or is abusing the spouse or kids. That happens more often than not and it's not fair to punish one for the sins of the other. Your husband is raping your kids and abusing you? Too bad stay married is the message the Church is sending and that is very very wrong.

A clear double standard

On wetcanvas.com there was a discussion about the Christophobia label and if it applies in the USA. Judging from stories like this, I'd say there is a clear double standard at work in this country regarding the first amendment.
http://www.thomasmore.org/news.html?NewsID=364

In short, it's OK to indoctrinate kids into becoming muslims in public schools as long as you don't do it with Christianity. I'm sure this was done under the banner of multiculturalism but that's a load of horsepucky. There are tons of ways to teach Islam without forcing them to become Muslims for three weeks. I mean what if they did this with Christians? The ACLU etc would be all over this like white on rice. But hey it's OK if it's Islam... What did I miss? Where is the MSM screaming about the first amendment?

Then there is this gem also from California...

http://www.onenewsnow.com/2007/03/school_officials_reverse_earli.php

Parents pay for an ad that mentions God and the school takes the word God out. I'd be willing to be had it been Allah, or Goddess etc., no problem...

The message is clear all faiths but Christianity are welcome in the public square. Ever wonder why Christians get so worked up? This is why...

Why do I even bother?

What really makes me mad are militants of any stripe, who are so blinded by their cause that their way is the only way and when you attempt to reason with them you get attack after attack after attack.

"Originally Posted by Person A
Person B: This country cannot work for anyone if it is convoluted into a 'mob rules' tool.Your saying that the group you don't agree with is a "mob"? Where are thugs? Where are the baseball bats like the ones used against the unions that were trying to vote in the 60's? Where are the police dogs and mob intimidation used against blacks in the 60's when we wanted to vote? I don't see the "mobs" from the Conservative Political Action Conference. Where are they blocking the doors to prevent you from registering to vote? Where are they stopping you from voting? Looking forward to seeing the Proof of your allegations. Disagreeing with another group doesn't make them a "mob" ]

And her Reply: {Then you probably don't see us in Iraq either, or notice no WMD were found. But that doesn't change the reality of the situation. Mobs can be groups of radical christians who opened up their church doors to Bush in order to get more of a foothold in our federal government through the appointments of actual activist" judges to the Federal courts, also leading to the appointment of radical christians in positions of administration over federal science agencies, who have actually tried to change science by banning the revelation of research paid for by our own tax dollars."Mob", for the 'family-centric' man of color, will be laws telling his wife and daughter what they will and will not do, no matter how much you love them or what you think."}

Nice huh? You can't reason with people like this, don't know why I bother...

Travesty at Walter Reed Hospital

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7671131


We send off our young men and women to far off places to risk their lives so we can remain free. The least we can do is to properly care for them when they are injured and maimed in the line of duty. Sadly that's not what is happening. Walter Reed hospital is supposed to be careing for those soldiers and rehabbing them so they can have the best shot possible for the rest of their lives. Instead we treat them like dirt. At least the general in charge got canned and the President is setting up a bi-partisan panel to investigate this travesty.

I included a link to the story and links to contact your Senator, Congressmen, the President and VP to let them know this will not stand. We owe these brave men and women everything, good medical care should be the LEAST we can do for them.


http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/

http://www.house.gov/writerep/

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm