An Iowa libertarian

2007-03-27T08:10:00.000-05:00

Like, the Great Society was like so... just Great

Here's my response to a some Carol Hunter editorial pablum on The Register's Editorial Page.

Yeah, let's have more huge government programs to steal wealth from the people who created it and "redistribute" it to the "poor".

Newsflash - the major heath issue for those mired in "poverty" is obesity.

Got that - OBESITY! Whoo-hoo! We've won that war.

Poor people are fat!!! Congratulations all around. You know, if you told someone in 1965 that poor people in this country would have weight problems - other than being emaciated - that person would have thought you were a nut. The majority of "poor" people in this country today own their own home, own a car, have air conditioning, more than 1 color TV. They live an upper-middle lifestyle compared to an American in the 1950s.

Of course, this is not enough. Progressives (what an ironic moniker for the reactionaries of the new century...) have been attempting to move the goal posts and redefine "poverty" as some "social justice" calculation of the "Gap" between the rich and the poor. You'll never read a piece in The Register that shows a person on hard times and focuses on the cavalcade of bad choices that got them there. No... it's society's fault and society (that's you and me kids) must pay. No thank you.

The Great Society threw billions of dollars down the drain and its main achievement was to dramatically increase the number of children raised by single mothers. Those children ended up in poverty and/or crime. Those children had children. And the dance continues. And, if Bill Clinton did not have the guts to support Welfare reform in the mid 1990’s things would have been much worse.

Again, no thank you.

Jebus, the Democrats have their dander up. They really think that the last mid-term election is going to undo all of the nasty Republican poor bashing of the last 27 years. Yeah guys, good luck with that mandate thing. We'll see how long it lasts after you roll back Bush's tax cuts. That is, if you roll back Bush's tax cuts.

2007-03-20T09:20:00.000-05:00

Kill Him - He's Inauthentic

Just when you thought identity politics and animal rights couldn't get any goofier, check this out:

"Raising him by hand is not appropriate to the species but rather a blatant violation of animal welfare laws," animal rights activist Frank Albrecht told the mass circulation newspaper Bild, whose front page headline Monday read "Will Sweet Knut Be Killed by Injection?" Berlin Zoo is allowing Knut to be raised in such a way that the bear will have a behavioral disorder for the rest of his life, Albrecht believes. "In actual fact, the zoo needs to kill the bear cub," he adds.

He's not alone. Wolfram Graf-Rudolf, director of the Aachen Zoo, told the newspaper, "I don't consider it appropriate for the species that the little polar bear is being raised on a bottle." The animal will be fixated on his keeper and not be a "real" polar bear, he says.

Jeesh, poor little guy.

They should wait to kill him until he's full grown. He'd make a great rug at that point.

2007-03-16T09:20:00.000-05:00

Anthropogenic Global Warming Crisis = Anti-Science

Don't believe me...? Listen to one of the cult's head oracles:

Self-evidently dangerous climate change will not emerge from a normal scientific process of truth seeking, although science will gain some insights into the question if it recognises the socially contingent dimensions of a post-normal science. But to proffer such insights, scientists - and politicians - must trade (normal) truth for influence. If scientists want to remain listened to, to bear influence on policy, they must recognise the social limits of their truth seeking and reveal fully the values and beliefs they bring to their scientific activity.

So, scientists "...must recognise the social limits of their truth seeking and reveal fully the values and beliefs they bring to their scientific activity."

Hey, let's all trade truth for influence! Everybody's doing it.

Welcome back to the Dark Ages, my friends.

BEDEVERE:
And what do you burn apart from
witches?
VILLAGER #1:
More witches!
VILLAGER #3:
Shh!
VILLAGER #2:
Wood!
BEDEVERE:
So, why do witches burn?
[pause]
VILLAGER #3:
B--... 'cause they're made of... wood?
BEDEVERE:
Good! Heh heh.
CROWD:
Oh,
yeah. Oh.
BEDEVERE:
So, how do we tell whether she is made
of wood?
VILLAGER #1:
Build a bridge out of her.
BEDEVERE:
Ah, but can
you not also make bridges out of stone?
VILLAGER #1:
Oh, yeah.
RANDOM:
Oh, yeah. True. Uhh...
BEDEVERE:
Does wood sink in water?
VILLAGER
#1:
No. No.
VILLAGER #2:
No, it floats! It floats!
VILLAGER #1:
Throw her into the pond!
CROWD:
The pond! Throw her into the pond!
BEDEVERE:
What also floats in water?
VILLAGER #1:
Bread!
VILLAGER #2:
Apples!
VILLAGER #3:
Uh, very small rocks!
VILLAGER #1:
Cider!
VILLAGER #2:
Uh, gra-- gravy!
VILLAGER #1:
Cherries!
VILLAGER #2:
Mud!
VILLAGER #3:
Uh, churches! Churches!
VILLAGER #2:
Lead! Lead!
ARTHUR:
A duck!
CROWD:
Oooh.
BEDEVERE:
Exactly. So,
logically...
VILLAGER #1:
If... she... weighs... the same as a duck,...
she's made of wood.
BEDEVERE:
And therefore?
VILLAGER #2:
A
witch!

2007-03-15T08:26:00.000-05:00

And So It Begins

It just touches my heart. Our betters love ~~our money~~ us so much and know what's best for us. I'm sure that every dollar will be put into a reserved account and used only for smoking cessation programs and to deal with tobacco related health care costs.

Thank you for taking care of us. I for one welcome our new Democrat overlords.

2007-03-12T06:53:00.000-05:00

Pseudo-Patrician Pompous Ponce

Mr. Kerry: "Do you think this should matter to me?" Mr. Fox: "I'm sorry?"
Mr. Kerry: "Do you think this should matter to me?" Mr. Fox: "Yes, I do, I do."
Mr. Kerry: "Do you think it should matter to everybody here, as a Senator?"

What an ass.

2006-10-29T08:10:00.000-06:00

Planet Basu - Ethiopian Edition

She's baaaack and in fine form, crusading... oh, sorry, can't use that word... it's insensitive... uh, jihading for the women of Ethiopia.

Rekha's article is front page, above the fold and everything you'd expect it to be. She trots out the familiar, tired characters in the anti-Western freak show. Commercialism! Globalization! Cynicism! Oprah Winfrey!!! Oh yeah, Rekha actually sites Oprah as a positive artifact of capitalism. But of course...

This is Ethiopia at its best: pure, joyful, engaging - and gorgeous. Uncorrupted by fast food, trash TV and materialistic values, free of the pervasive, cynicism-breeding commercialism of the Western world.

It's where a drive through the highlands might include an encounter with a fleet of monkeys [a fleet of monkeys...? -ed] and baboons fleeing down a mountainside. Just miles ahead, you might run across a flock of majestic camels being herded through the street. Approaching a town's center brings the whimsical sight of a group of kids playing at a foosball table by the roadside.

Gee Rekha, sounds almost like Epcot!!!

I'll spare you the rest of the article. Short version - The United States should dole out more money to the Ethopias of the world with no strings attached by heartless cultural conservatives. Anyone surprised...? I thought not.

For anyone who knows the last 40 years of Ethopian history, it should come as not surprise that the country is a basket case. But not one hint of that in Rekha's piece. Historical perspective would only get in the way of feelings. No mention of the Marxist coup in 1974 that made Ethiopia a Soviet client state or the perpetual wars and corruption throughout the various governments that have come and gone in the last few decades. All of that pales compared to the destructive power of social conservatism in the United States.

For the record, Rekha has is precisely wrong. The long-term hope for the people of Ethiopia depend upon the facets of Western Civilization that Rekha views as pathology. "Globalization, materialism", yes... even "fast food" are the sign posts of successful, productive societies.

Maintaining Ethiopia as a sort of Rousseauian Noble Savage Theme Park with "fleets of monkeys... flocks of majestic camels [flocks of camels!!!??? geez Rekha] and other whimsical sights" will do not a whit to lower infant mortality and the brutal subjugation of women.

It will however assuage our guilt and make us feel better. There... ahhhh, I feel better already.

2006-10-04T07:05:00.000-05:00

In The Words of Elton John

"Times are changing, now the poor get fat"

And it's not only the American "poor" that are getting rotund, it's also those poor, misunderstood souls unjustly held in Guantanamo Bay.

So now the big Gitmo scandal is that we're offering the detainees too much food!!! I think that there are some WWII POWs who would have a few choice words to say about this insanity.

If we keep looking for the mote in our own eye while ignoring the beam in the eyes of our enemies, we'll deserve exactly what we get.

2006-09-21T07:02:00.000-05:00

They're Kidding, Right...

From today's Des Moines Register Editorial on voter ID legislation:

It's important to prevent fraud, but legitimate voters must not lose their voting rights in the process. The House bill risks making voting harder for poor Americans who might not be able to afford photo IDs.
Yeah, right. Requiring a photo ID is really a sinister right-wing poll tax.

What amazingly reflexive, reactionary idiots.

2006-03-06T20:00:00.000-06:00

Academy Award Night

It used to be an annual tradition with me. I would watch the award show from start to finish. I've been watching them since I can remember - had to have been the early 1960s.

Have I changed? Has Hollywood changed? Both, I guess.

I leave you with this. The winner for "Best Song" was a lovely ditty called: It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp by that incomparable talent, Djay f/ Shug.

Oh well, last year it was a song tribute to that great humanitarian Che Guevara.

2006-02-23T14:35:00.000-06:00

Geography Quiz

I have always loved geography. I had a world globe around since I could remember. Now if I could just make it pay...

Geography Genius
You scored 97% knowledge, and 0% confusion

Excellent! This is the highest score. You are very knowledgeable about the world. You didn't answer any (or many) of the questions with seriously incorrect answers. Great work. You are now ready to write your own Geography Knowledge test. Don't forget to vote on this test!

My test tracked 2 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 73% on knowledge

You scored higher than 0% on confusion

Link: The World Geography Knowledge Test written by dowland2005 on Ok Cupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

2006-02-19T10:43:00.000-06:00

Comment on "Tribes and Societies"

I've got a full plate today doing demolition work in our master bathroom. So, I thought I'd post this comment I made on ShrinkWrapped to a post on "Tribes and Societies". Here's my comment:

This is an amazingly tangled web and you go great lengths to simplify and clarify it through your related essays.

It is simplistic, dangerous and wrong to believe - as many social utopian quasi-pacifists and hangers on in Europe, the U.S. and Canada do - that the way to deal with the violence inherent in the human condition is abdication of power and the renunciation of violence.

However, in their world view it all makes perfect sense. Individuals are naturally benign, empty vessels that can be molded by their culture. Power (or money, or firearms – name your poison…) is a culture artifact. Power is always corrupting and never so much when those with or in power leverage violence - no matter how just or justified.

The Islamo-Fascists - following in the footsteps of Soviet Union before them - use the harebrained, idealistic notions and faulty science of our progressive elites against us in a sort of sophist ju-jitsu. If power is the ultimate corrupting evil, those in power in our own culture must be brought low. The underdog must always be favored – no matter how heinous their actions or regressive and repressive their culture. Why…? It’s quite simple comrade - they’re the underdog and they’re fighting the power – see “power is evil” above.

Whether we are talking about individual men, tribes or nation states - the true measure of maturity and humanity of an individual or group is how and when it uses or refrains from exercising power.

Our elites can well afford their noble – and oh so self gratifying – philosophical pose because for the most part they are safe. They are safe and free to engage in self indulgent navel gazing or self gratifying spewing of their multicultural vitriol at the very folks who make their childish poses and behavior possible - their moral and intellectual inferiors in the Bush Administration or the military.

Our intellectual betters hate and pity these people, these cultural throwbacks, these Neanderthals from Kansas or Iowa or wherever, that are actually willing (not to mention proud!!!) to get their hands dirty or bloody in the defense of their family, their country or their culture.

How we deal with our aggressive and violent nature – particularly how we control, channel and yes… even embrace the aggressiveness of our young men – will define how we do as a species long term. The war we are in right now is just one of many natural experiments and I have great confidence that it will eventually all work out.

In the long run, I’m very optimistic about us hairless monkeys. In the short term, I fear that if we continue to coddle and enable the people who despise our culture (including the barbarians – foreign and domestic – already inside of the gates) that there will be a great reckoning and many, many people will die in the next 50 years or so.

Most of the dead will not be American or European. And most in our culture still care about these people, recognize their inherent worth, and would rather not seen them die at our hands. If you want to know what makes our culture worth defending by force of arms – that may just be number one on the list.

2006-02-17T10:55:00.000-06:00

Not a Surprise Really

Silly Quiz: What Science Fiction Crew would you best fit in with...?

You scored as Serenity (from Firefly). You like to live your own way and do not enjoy when anyone but a friend tries to tell you that you should do different. Now if only the Reavers would quit trying to skin you.

Which sci-fi crew would you best fit in? v1.0
created with QuizFarm.com
38%

2006-02-17T08:33:00.000-06:00

"Sensitive"

Or "Gevoelig" in Dutch. Here's to one brave - and perceptive - cartoonist from the Netherlands.

H/T Michelle Malkin

2006-02-13T19:07:00.000-06:00

Courage!

Two counter protesters face the Saracen Hordes in Paris! A French-American and Danish-American put their lives on the line for freedom of speech.

"Sons of adultery!" "Hey, you two sons of the whore!" Uniformed policemen join us and start rushing us, more and more quickly down the street (I don't want to run, I tell them), with a growing crowd quickening their steps. A police van's door opens. "Go! Go!" shouts a policeman to the driver, "Foncez!" as sirens wail and the van rushes ahead.

"Are you out of your minds?!" ask the two officers. "Do you know how many of them there were?!" "Somebody's got to stand up for free speech", replies the French protestor. After staying with us for 20-something minutes, they let us out. (As a departing farewell, I say, "You know, right before you came, we almost had them surrounded.")
That took no small amount of guts. And 10 out of 10 for style - "... we almost had them surrounded." Beautiful.

If these two men had been torn limb from limb by the crowd, I'm sure many in the Progressive camp would say it was their fault for provoking the Muslim protestors.

As a thought experiment, imagine if you will two black men peacefully counter demonstrating at a Neo Nazi march. Imagine that they are subsequently lynched by skinheads.

In your wildest imagination can you see anyone blaming our two theoretical black heroes for their treatment at the hands of white supremacist scum? Nor can I.

Let's give it up for the soft bigotry of low expectations that drives so much of what passes for thinking in the progressive world view.

2006-02-12T15:29:00.000-06:00

Violence, Cowardice and the Metrosexual Castrati

I've added a couple of links to my Blogroll - ShrinkWrapped and Neo-Neocon. Both were born and raised in New York City. ShrinkWraped is a practicing Psychoanalyst. Neo is a therapist.

I find both balanced, thoughtful and very smart. And it doesn't hurt that both have taken similar journies as yours truly from Left to Right - at least on defense issues.

ShrinkWrapped has a great piece today that dovetails with my last piece on media cowardice.

The West is now reaping the benefits of disarming our young men, physically and mentally; now only barbarians have weapons and are willing to use them. There are plenty of barbarians ready to fight over a "diss" over a Cartoon or an accidental bump on the sidewalk; there are fewer "Real men" who are ready and able to fight for those things they believe in, in Europe and New York.

It was always easy for the liberal cognoscenti to applaud their own faux-courage in opposing freedom from barbarians for enslaved Iraqis; now they must either surrender their own freedom to the hyper-sensitivity of the barbarians or support the Men they have decried to protect them from the barbarians.
Exactly.

One day a couple of years ago, I was picking up my oldest son from some activity at Valley High School. Over the front entrance to the school was a banner with these words:

Violence is never the answer.

Poppycock. Balderdash. Stuff and nonsense.

A man - a good man who cares for his family, his country, the weak, the helpless and his culture knows that there are times when violence is the only answer.

2006-02-12T10:17:00.000-06:00

What We Give Up for Love

Rekha Basu has a very nice column up about what she had to give up when she got married to Rob. You'll be surprised at what she let go... and moved by the end.

2006-02-11T11:57:00.000-06:00

Cowardice?

Oh my, our "Fourth Estate" is so brave, so defiant when they know that there's nothing to fear. "Speaking truth to power" is easy and essentially cost free when you know that "power" happens to be a group of elected officials constrained by and accountable to the mechanisms of a mature constitutional republic.

When "power" happens to be a mob of Islamic fanatics under the sway of an 8th Century religo-political totalitarian philosophy that very well might firebomb your office, uh... that's another story altogether.

And no, it's not just simple cowardice that drives the media to renounce and reject its love of the First Amendment. Multiculturalism, and its attendant Western cultural self doubt/loathing, allows the media elite to wallow in a warm, comfortable pool of self referential rationalization.

"We're not afraid, we simply do not want to incite." Yeah, right. That would explain the release of the Abu Ghraib pictures.

Ah... but Abu Ghraib dinged the United States and weakened our cause. If the American people were allowed to see the cartoons in question vis-a-vis the violence that they provoked... well, that wouldn't do at all. It would make the Islamist nut jobs look like insane a-holes. It would reveal the cultural "other" in all of their fanatical, violent, homicidal, irrational splendor.

No, that simply will not do.

To bastardize Deep Throat: If you want to get to the bottom of this - "Follow the narrative." When exposing abuse of Muslim detainees or the "flushing" of a Koran down the toilet in an American run prison facility is the story - sensitivity and caution be damned. Why? Because stories like these serve the press' anti-war, anti-Bush narrative and makes the press feel like they're fighting the good fight with Woodward and Bernstein. Let's do the time warp again.

Liberal media elites look back on Vietnam and Watergate with so much pride and nostalgia that he late 60's/early 70'a seems to be their "World War II". My World War II defining historical reference is, well... World War II - and the Cold War.

Let's look at one of the cartoons.

Okay, it's not the funniest political cartoon I've seen but it certainly isn't offensive. It shines a light on the philosophy behind Islamo-Fascism. The tone and execution of the piece actually seem soft and gentle to me. Mohammed looks like a friendly sort.

With another caption, he could be St. Peter at the Gates of Heaven. The St. Peter at the gates cartoon template has been used a hundred times over the last 75 years to make one point or another. Has one of those cartoons ever stirred violence in the streets here or anywhere else?

No.

And ta-daaaa! That, my friends is the cartoon's editorial thrust.

The radical Islamists don't like it because it rings true. The MSM doesn't like it because it puts a damper on their anti-war / anti-U.S. narrative.

And yeah, I do think that the Managing Editors of the newspapers in Europe and the United States that chose not to print these cartoons as NEWS - not as an Op-Ed or Editorial piece are more than a little bit afraid of the consequences.

2006-02-09T20:09:00.000-06:00

Say You're Sorry Europe!

Yesterday's Register had a lovely piece of multicultural doubletalk from some of the leaders of Iowa's Muslim community.

Newspapers in Europe have published provocative, extremely offensive cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. Their spokespersons and governments have acknowledged the offense without apology, claiming that "the freedom of speech is absolute."

I don't think that anyone is saying that freedom of speech is absolute - shouting "fire!" in a crowded theatre, libel and the like. But that's not really what they're talking about.

Muslims in Iowa unanimously support the freedom of speech and expression. However, [I knew that was coming - ed.] we also urge everyone to reflect on the effects of their free choices with compassion and empathy. Mere acknowledgment is not enough; an apology is very appropriate.

Ah yes... the all powerful, always appropriate apology that the West owes, well... everybody. Who is to apologize? The Government of Denmark? Denmark didn't publish the cartoons, a private newspaper did. And to whom? The Islamists that pine for the return of the Caliphate and riot at any provocation or their "moderate" apologists who find offense in a series of editorial cartoons?

Again, here are the cartoons in question.

Crude...? Yes. Insensitive...? Yes. Harmless...? Abso-f'in-lutely.

Moral equivalence alert!!!

Like Christians a few years ago, American Muslims were outraged and offended by a government-funded display of art in which the crucified Jesus was in some body waste. We shared the justifiable anguish of Christians then, and Muslims would share the feelings of Jews if Moses were so offensively treated. All Prophets deserve our veneration and profound respect as God's messengers. We would like people of other religions to reciprocate our respect and veneration for all Prophets.

The key difference in the "Piss Christ" controversy and the current situation was that the "art" in question that prompted the ~~millions of dollars of property damage and hundreds of lives lost in the ensuing riots all throughout the bible belt~~ criticism was government funded. And if you're worried about the feelings of Jews gentlemen, you may want to write a column about the government sponsored anti-Semitic cartoons run day after day after day all throughout the Middle East.

Here's a topical, tasty example:

Akhbar al-Khalij, January 29, 2006 (Bahrain)
Caption: "The Penetration of Zionism to Denmark." The cheese, shaped like a Star of David, is labeled "Danish products." The text on the far left reads, "Boycott it!"

Or how about this classic depiction of blood libel:

.

Nice.

Here comes the crux of the multi-cultural argument - emphasis mine.

While it is true that freedom of the press is essential in democracies, those who represent the dominant religion and the government have the responsibility to examine the impact of their free speech on those whose faiths and beliefs place them in the minority. Mutual, reciprocal respect for the faith and scriptures of other traditions is as essential as free speech in societies that aim to promote true democracy in Europe, North America and the Middle East.

Ah yes, the dominant (fill in the blank) has a duty to cast off it's cultural hegemony, sit in a corner think about its sins.

Ya know, this would ring a bit more true if Saudi Arabia would allow non-Muslims to visit Mecca or even possess a Bible within their borders.

Also necessary for democracy are cultural self confidence and tolerance of criticism. That's what a heterogeneous society is about. That's what being an American is about. Tolerance - real tolerance, not lip service - is a two way street. Do not expect that you will be able to make the dominant culture (at least in this country... Europe on the other hand is up for grabs) accept all aspects of your religion and culture without comment.

Commentary is not the same as violence. Would that more of your fellow Muslims understood this and could vigorously condemn the violence against civilians, terrorism and religious intolerance in your own culture without the inevitable "but" that leads straight to a harangue against Israel and rants about Zionist control of the media.

Across the globe people must learn to differentiate between entities that distort the message of a religion in order to justify reprehensible acts of violence. Government-supported, simple-minded expressions of free speech without regard to reciprocal, mutual respect for others do not promote the sense of belonging necessary for a citizen's allegiance

.Ah, the abhorrence of violence and the thinly veiled threat of treason in the same paragraph. Give up the First Amendment and we'll pledge this country our allegiance.

Ain't gonna happen.

If mainstream Muslims wish to stop criticism - and make no mistake these cartoons were a critique of radical Islamic violence - they had best see to their own house. Ironically, the violent rampage unleashed by the "cartoon Jihad" - does nothing but confirm the cartoons' message. The lack of even a nod to the violence occurring in Europe, the Middle East and Asia as the result of some friggin' cartoons makes me question the seriousness of Mr. Aigner, Mr. Dremali and Mr. Kahn to really address some legitimate issue the West could have with Islamic culture.

Self reflection and criticism are never easy but are salutary. Our culture tends to be self-reflective to the point of paralysis - think the NSA kerfluffle or just about anything in Europe. Islam on the other hand...

2006-02-07T14:44:00.000-06:00

But Baby, it's Cold Outside

Check this out.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- A Russian astronomer has predicted that Earth will experience a "mini Ice Age" in the middle of this century, caused by low solar activity.

Khabibullo Abdusamatov of the Pulkovo Astronomic Observatory in St. Petersburg said Monday that temperatures will begin falling six or seven years from now, when global warming caused by increased solar activity in the 20th century reaches its peak, RIA Novosti reported.

The coldest period will occur 15 to 20 years after a major solar output decline between 2035 and 2045, Abdusamatov said.

Dramatic changes in the earth's surface temperatures are an ordinary phenomenon, not an anomaly, he said, and result from variations in the sun's energy output and ultraviolet radiation.

The Northern Hemisphere's most recent cool-down period occurred between 1645 and 1705. The resulting period, known as the Little Ice Age, left canals in the Netherlands frozen solid and forced people in Greenland to abandon their houses to glaciers, the scientist said.

Do you think that he is proposing that the fluctuating energy output of the sun may have more to do with climate variation than us nasty old homo sapiens' and our wicked greenhouse gas output?!

You mean that western civilization in general and its evil spawn globalization aren't going to cook the planet and raise the sealevel by a few meters displacing all those peaceful, subsistence level, indigenous fishing communities?

Could it be that, all things being equal, that we should be happy - and I mean every man jack of us from Huntington Beach to Bangalore friggin' extatic - that we are blessed to live during the safest, cleanest, most disease-free, prosperous time with the longest life expectancy since we climbed out of the trees onto the African savanna.

Would this possibly tell us that we in the developed world should try our damnedest to expand the blessings of economic prosperity, productiveness and free trade to the wretched masses who live perpetual poverty under the heels of despotic kleptocrats?

Naaaahhhhh. Just go about your normal upper middle class angsting and guilty rumination. After all, good news is no news.

Oh... and contrary to what the Social Democrats say, it appears that you have more leisure time too!

I guess that means even more time for angsting and guilt!!!

2006-02-05T16:48:00.000-06:00

How to Make the Iowa Rainforest a Success

At the Blogger Bash last evening, we came up with some nifty ideas to make the ~~Boondogle Porkforest~~ Rainforest a mega-hit.

First and foremost to make the Rainforest a success - let's not limit the venue with the idea that it's mainly for kids. Yeah kids are great and all, but adults need fun and educational opportunities too!

Our first idea was to allow hunting! Now, don't get all worked up. We're not going to allow firearms. In the spirit of the noble indigenous peoples of the rainforest, we're going to only allow blowgun hunting. Imagine the excitement of tracking, killing, skinning and eating a nice juicy monkey! And with a blowgun and poison dart no less! All of our monkeys will be thoroughly screened for HIV/Aids and Kuru. So if chilled monkey brains are what you crave, knock yourself out! All dart poisons will be humanely extracted - without any harm to the frogs - from authentic poisonous frogs from the Amazon. For an additional fee, you'll be able to extract the poison yourself. No licking!!!

And when you're thinking of adult entertainment, what comes first to mind...? That's right baby. Chicks!!! Beautiful native Iowa girls dressed in authentic "Daisy Mae" costumes. Young, blond and corn-fed. Whoo-whee!!! And don't you worry ladies, there'll be a little somethin' for you too. Mama gotta have her beefcake! Can you say "Me Jane"? I knew ya could.

After beautiful native girls and a successful monkey hunt, you'll be ready for a tasty, fruity cocktail at the Slash and Burn Lounge. All of our cocktails are served with a parasol in a souvenir tropical hardwood tiki-mug. That'll look great on the mantel. And while your enjoying a few cocktails, don't forget to take advantage of some hot Slottery action. The state's got to pay for this unique, one-of-a-kind attraction, you know!

Now that you're all liquored up, it's time for some exploring. Come on over to exploration pavilion where you'll be issued a machete and pith helmet. And then it's "off you go"! Blaze a trail. Chop away. Hell, it all grows back anyhow. Mind the leeches.

Well, you get the idea. It's kind of like a Branson MO meets The African Queen thing. People will eat it up.

This is going to put Iowa on the map baby!!!

Update: Hey! Joe at Roth & Co. beat me to the punch!

2006-02-05T16:43:00.000-06:00

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes

I updated my blog template and did some other housekeeping today - updating my blogroll and such. Hope you find the new, simplified look to your liking.

Since I've moved to Blogger comments, all of the previous comments are kaput. Sorry.

2006-02-05T11:08:00.000-06:00

Death by Sensitivity

From Mark Steyn's February 5th piece on the double standard on religious sensitivity.

Thus, NBC is celebrating Easter this year with a special edition of the gay sitcom "Will & Grace," in which a Christian conservative cooking-show host, played by the popular singing slattern Britney Spears, offers seasonal recipes -- "Cruci-fixin's." On the other hand, the same network, in its coverage of the global riots over the Danish cartoons, has declined to show any of the offending artwork out of "respect" for the Muslim faith.

Which means out of respect for their ability to locate the executive vice president's home in the suburbs and firebomb his garage.

Jyllands-Posten wasn't being offensive for the sake of it. They had a serious point -- or, at any rate, a more serious one than Britney Spears or Terence McNally. The cartoons accompanied a piece about the dangers of "self-censorship" -- i.e., a climate in which there's no explicit law forbidding you from addressing the more, er, lively aspects of Islam but nonetheless everyone feels it's better not to.

That's the question the Danish newspaper was testing: the weakness of free societies in the face of intimidation by militant Islam.

One day, years from now, as archaeologists sift through the ruins of an ancient civilization for clues to its downfall, they'll marvel at how easy it all was. You don't need to fly jets into skyscrapers and kill thousands of people. As a matter of fact, that's a bad strategy, because even the wimpiest state will feel obliged to respond. But if you frame the issue in terms of multicultural "sensitivity," the wimp state will bend over backward to give you everything you want -- including, eventually, the keys to those skyscrapers. Thus, Jack Straw, the British foreign secretary, hailed the "sensitivity" of Fleet Street in not reprinting the offending cartoons.
Go read it.

Ya know, magnanimity and tolerance for "the other" is a admirable thing. But, only if that sentiment is shared by the aforementioned "other". That door definitely swings both ways.

If Europe - and the pussy executives at NBC for that matter - do not begin to grow an f'ing spine, it does not bode well at all. We're like the proverbial frog in a I'm not saying that Western Civ. is going to fall - at least not at the hands of conquerors. No, my greatest fear is that, if we do not deal with this here and now, the butcher's bill will be much, much larger. And make no mistake, the casualties will be overwhelmingly Muslims.

The cultural consequences of inflicting this level of destruction, even in self defense... It will be decidedly unpleasant.

2006-02-03T13:15:00.000-06:00

Religion of Peace Gently Questions Western Values

Seems as if they have a slight problem with freedom of expression.

Well... they don't seem to be questioning their freedom to express a desire to kill us. Did I say "kill"?

Sorry, I meant:

"butcher"

"behead"

"slaughter"

"annihilate"

"exterminate"

Okay guys, we get it!

H/T Michelle Malkin

And oh, this "demonstration" took place in London... not Damascus. Does that hit anyone else the way it hits me?

2006-02-03T10:37:00.000-06:00

The Bush Recession

May it continue!

2006-02-03T09:09:00.000-06:00

This is What the Hub-bub's About

Muslims Fundamentlists are rioting worldwide because of the horrible, graphic images of Mohammed published in a Danish newspaper.

My God!!! The HORROR!!!

2006-02-02T16:06:00.000-06:00

The Warm Soothing Fuzzy of an Arch-Martriarch

From an online debate between "The Battle of the Kates". Kate Michelman, former president of NARAL Pro-Choice America and author of "With Liberty And Justice for All: A Life Spent Protecting the Right to Choose," and Kate O'Beirne, former vice president of the Heritage Foundation and author of "Women Who Make the World Worse"

Question from Rockville Centre, N.Y.: With more women enrolled in 4-year colleges and universities than men these days in the United States. Do you believe that its is time that the education system began addressing this imbalance to increase male enrollment in higher learning?

Kate Michelman: We just need to inspire more men to learn!

What a dismissive, patronizing bitch. But as they say, "when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like some guy's head".

2006-02-02T11:16:00.000-06:00

Central Iowa Citizen Journalist's Soiree

Okay, okay... it's a Blogger Bash - just trying to add a bit 'o class to the event is all.

Where - Raccoon River Brewing Co. 10th and Mulberry in beautiful downtown Des Moines, Iowa.

When - Saturday, Feb 4th at about 7:00 p.m.

Why - Uh... 'cause it's fun

Who - Central Iowa's finest Bloggers, friends and hangers on

Come join us! Just look for the geeky looking group with laptops.

2006-01-31T21:03:00.000-06:00

SOTU Speech

Workman like job from GWB.

Good on foreign affairs. Clear on radical Islam, Iran, and the Palestinians.

Some new program to teach lazy high schoolers science to make the country more internationally competitive in technology. Yeah... right. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Hillary's not-so-subtle eye rolling will win her exactly zero male votes in 2008. She's the only politician that could teach W a thing or two about smirking. Unless the Republicans run a pedophile, drug dealing, ex-Enron Executive, she does not have a snowball's chance in hell.

And what do the talking heads say...? Wow, I've never seen the Congress this partisan and divided. Wow... what tremendous insight.

2006-01-31T10:37:00.000-06:00

Democrats Eat Their Own

From Dana Milbank's piece in today's Washington Post.
Right on cue, liberal activists including Cindy Sheehan and Ramsey Clark gathered yesterday at the Busboys & Poets restaurant and bookshop at 14th and V streets NW for what they billed as a forum on "The Impeachment of President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney." But the participants, while charging the administration with "crimes against humanity," a "war of aggression" and even "the supreme international crime," inevitably turned their wrath on congressional Democrats, whom they regarded as a bunch of wimps.
To quote Flounder from Animal House (another relic of the 1970's): "This is gonna be great!"

Update - Giant gasbag threatens to go nova.

New Update - Jeff Goldstein has more with a limerick from proudvastrightwingconspirator in the comments:

There once was a Doctor named Dean,
who habitually vented his spleen.
now his latest screed, against Harry Reid
proves he’s both crazy AND mean.

The Demo’s are now all confused.
For one of their own stands accused
How can they get Ney, or even Delay,
When the rules they themselves have abused?
Priceless.

2006-01-30T06:51:00.000-06:00

What to do About Teen Drivers?

The Register is abuzz today with the debate over whether to tighten regulations for drivers under 18. At the risk of losing even more of my libertarian bonefides, it seems to me that the proposed regulations are fairly reasonable - if somewhat difficult to enforce.

After moving to Iowa I was somewhat shocked to learn that student drivers could get their learner's permits at 14. In California - where I grew up - the you could not get your permit until the age of 15 and a half. Call me an old fogey, but 14 seems awfully young to be in command of 3,500 lbs of steel traveling at 60+ mph. There's a world of difference between the average 14 and 16 year old. Other than special permits for farm kids, I can't think of a reason for a 14 year old to be driving a car.

Like many other issues, this one revolves around our society's indecisiveness about the age of majority.

You can drive a car at 14.
You cannot be charged and tried as an adult until you're 18... that is of course unless we think that you should be tried as an adult then it's slammer time.
You get to vote at 18...
... but you can't buy a beer.
But... you can smoke cigarettes and wear your country's uniform and carry a weapon in a combat infantry squad.
Oh, and at 18 you're old enough to get married without parental consent.

It's nuts.

And don't think that our teens don't get how absolutely, hypocritically bonkers the system is.

Again, I don't think that the new regulations are unreasonable - except for the fact that they are virtually unenforceable by the police and highway patrol.

Parent's will have to take the lead here, to monitor, regulate and be ultimately responsible for their teenage childrens' driving habits.

Good luck with that.

2006-01-29T17:37:00.000-06:00

Hey Everybody - Meet Hamas!

Here's their charter:

Our struggle against the Jews is very great and very serious...The Movement is but one squadron that should be supported by more and more squadrons from this vast Arab and Islamic world, until the enemy is vanquished and Allah's victory is realised...

The Islamic Resistance Movement is one of the wings of Muslim Brotherhood in Palestine. The Muslim Brotherhood Movement is a universal organization which constitutes the largest Islamic movement in modern times...

It strives to raise the banner of Allah over every inch of Palestine, for under the wing of Islam followers of all religions can coexist in security and safety where their lives, possessions and rights are concerned...

The Islamic Resistance Movement is one of the links in the chain of the struggle against the Zionist invaders. It goes back to 1939, to the emergence of the martyr Izz al-Din al Kassam and his brethren the fighters, members of Muslim Brotherhood. It goes on to reach out and become one with another chain that includes the struggle of the Palestinians and Muslim Brotherhood in the 1948 war and the Jihad operations of the Muslim Brotherhood in 1968 and after...

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him salvation, has said: 'The Day of Judgement will not come about until Muslims fight the Jews (killing the Jews), when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. The stones and trees will say O Muslims, O Abdulla, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him...'

Resisting and quelling the enemy become the individual duty of every Muslim, male or female. A woman can go out to fight the enemy without her husband's permission, and so does the slave: without his master's permission...

There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through Jihad. Initiatives, proposals and international conferences are all a waste of time and vain endeavors. The Palestinian people know better than to consent to having their future, rights and fate toyed with...

The day The Palestinian Liberation Organization adopts Islam as its way of life, we will become its soldiers, and fuel for its fire that will burn the enemies...

The Zionist invasion is a vicious invasion... It relies greatly in its infiltration and espionage operations on the secret organizations it gave rise to, such as the Freemasons, The Rotary and Lions clubs, and other sabotage groups. All these organizations, whether secret or open, work in the interest of Zionism and according to its instructions...

We should not forget to remind every Muslim that when the Jews conquered the Holy City in 1967, they stood on the threshold of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and proclaimed that 'Mohammed is dead, and his descendants are all women.'

Israel, Judaism and Jews challenge Islam and the Muslim people. 'May the cowards never sleep.

Hey, they sound like nice, reasonable folks. Just 'cause they're kill-crazy, Jew hating, Islamic fundamentalist nut jobs who have sworn to destroy Israel should not keep us from embracing them as partners in peace.

After all, Hamas brings such wonderful color and diversity of perspective to the table!

2006-01-28T20:31:00.000-06:00

AWOL

I've been extraordinarily busy at work, at home and in the field the last couple of months. Something had to take a back seat - and blogging was that thing.

2006-01-28T15:35:00.000-06:00

Hey... It's Not Piss Christ

But... it's way funnier! You know, if Tom Lehrer were stil funny, instead of a old lefty prude, he might have writen it.

2006-01-28T10:32:00.000-06:00

What Amazing Assclowns

The Democrats are getting close to their version of the Republicans' 1964 moment. This could be their opportunity to reform. However, given what 1968, 1972 and 1994 taught them, we may be seeing their well deserved unraveling.

If the Democrats, lead by the Kos kiddies take the party to a political dirt nap, - my hope is that a coalition of common sensical, federalist-leaning, socially liberal, pro-defense, fiscal conservatives, seize the opportunity and take the center ground.

I would join them.

I do not relish the fact that I have become a de facto Republican. Unfortunately, the Democrats - especially given their antics since 9/11 have left me with no viable option.

May their dangerous, childish antics continue - yeah, like they're gonna stop now - and lead them quickly to true reform or their demise.

Lookie here, here, and here. Hey... I never claimed to have an original thought in my head...

Update: Tom Maguire has much more on this and how the DLC is trying to keep the children in line.

2005-11-23T07:58:00.000-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving - You Genocidal European Rat Bastards

Hope you all have a wonderful time with friends and family. Take time to count your blessings and maybe do something for those who could need a bit of help.

And, if you want a bit of comic relief, read what this professor has to say about our national day of giving thanks.
One indication of moral progress in the United States would be the replacement of Thanksgiving Day and its self-indulgent family feasting with a National Day of Atonement accompanied by a self-reflective collective fasting.

In fact, indigenous people have offered such a model; since 1970 they have marked the fourth Thursday of November as a Day of Mourning in a spiritual/political ceremony on Coles Hill overlooking Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts, one of the early sites of the European invasion of the Americas.
And it gets better from there.

Yes, until we evil Europeans invaded, the peaceful, noble savages of the Americas lived in a virtual Eden. All of the tribes lived peacefully. There was no war. Women had equal rights. Gays were accepted just like in Little Big Man

Isn't it wonderful when a positive human attribute like humility becomes a fetish of self hatred.

H/T - Michelle Malkin

2005-11-18T07:43:00.000-06:00

Why We're in Iraq

I've never heard it put better than this. Here's Daniel Henniger in today's WSJ Opinion Journal:

Here is one man's view of why we are in Iraq: We are trying to democratize this country so they don't try to kill us. That Iraqis should "get their freedom" is genuinely good and desirable. But I wish President Bush would say more often that Iraqi democratization is in our raw self-interest. It doesn't much matter to me whether the country we democratize is Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia or Syria. The theory that democracies don't attack other democracies is as strong as such notions get, and what the world most needs now is a new, large Islamic democracy. A democracy, however "imperfect," is less likely than an authoritarian state to detonate a nuclear device in someone else's territory.

I am beyond caring in the least what weapons Saddam held in March 2003. If the Dec. 15 parliamentary elections in Iraq lead to a party-based government stabilized over time by U.S. troops, then the odds fall that a large and wealthy adversary will try--again--to acquire nuclear weapons in the open market. Saddam may be gone, but what isn't gone is the global marketplace and trade in nuclear-weapons material that is the legacy of the infamous A.Q. Khan network.

In a symposium on the Bush Doctrine for the November issue of Commentary magazine, I wrote: "September 11 changed a lot, but what truly 'changed everything' was the revelation of A.Q. Khan's production network for nuclear-bomb know-how." Khan, the father of Pakistan's Bomb, created a commercial network in centrifuge designs and parts and weapons technologies. His nuke catalog flowed through the same global canals of commerce as legitimate goods and reached shipment points in Iran, Libya and North Korea. If a backwater nation like North Korea can acquire nuclear weapons and develop missiles that may soon reach the U.S., then mass murder has gone mass market.
Of course, if you believe that we can always depend on old Mohamed ElBaradei to keep nations with 9th Century sensibilities or 20th Century totalitarian philosophies from developing or acquiring nuclear weapons, then we have no business there. Right Stef...?

Yeah... that's the ticket.

Go read it.

2005-11-17T16:59:00.000-06:00

Not Exactly Shocking

Maybe I should rename this blog "An Iowa capitalist"? Although Stef would probaby call it "An Iowa Fascist".

You are a
Social Moderate
(50% permissive)

and an...
Economic Conservative
(76% permissive)

You are best described as a:

Capitalist

Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid
Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

2005-11-12T10:48:00.000-06:00

The President's Veteran's Day Speech

I just finished watching the speech via foxnews.com. You have to watch it chopped up into six segments with commercials. Annoying but, thank God for the Internet or - not having cable - I would not been able to see it at all.

First, let's take as written that he's a horrible public speaker. I'm sure he thinks he's telegraphing strength, determination and resolve. In reality, he looks shifty and smirky. His language is sloppy in a way that projects intellectual laziness - he often says "tuh" instead of "to".

I'm convinced that if he had Clinton's stage presence, Bush's poll numbers would be at least 10% higher. You look at the man when he's at the podium and you can see that he'd rather be anywhere else. He does not like to do this.

Too f-ing bad Mr. President. You've got to get out in front and lead this thing. You're not up for re-election so it's time to throw political caution to the wind and go balls to the wall on this. You should be giving a similar speech and press conferences every week on this topic. You cannot sit back in the White House.

We need more of this:

THE PRESIDENT: "While it is perfectly legitimate to criticize my decision or the conduct of the war, it is deeply irresponsible to rewrite the history of how that war began. Some Democrats and anti-war critics are now claiming we manipulated the intelligence and misled the American people about why we went to war. These critics are fully aware that a bipartisan Senate investigation found no evidence of political pressure to change the intelligence community's judgments related to Iraq's weapons programs. They also know that intelligence agencies from around the world agreed with our assessment of Saddam Hussein. They know the United Nations passed more than a dozen resolutions citing his development and possession of weapons of mass destruction. Many of these critics supported my opponent during the last election, who explained his position to support the resolution in the Congress this way: 'When I vote to give the President of the United States the authority to use force, if necessary, to disarm Saddam Hussein, it is because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a threat, and a grave threat, to our security.' That's why more than 100 Democrats in the House and the Senate, who had access to the same intelligence voted to support removing Saddam Hussein from power.

"The stakes in the global War on Terror are too high, and the national interest is too important, for politicians to throw out false charges. These baseless attacks send the wrong signal to our troops and to an enemy that is questioning America's will. As our troops fight a ruthless enemy determined to destroy our way of life, they deserve to know that their elected leaders who send them to war continue to stand behind them. Our troops deserve to know that this support will remain firm when the going gets tough. And our troops deserve to know that whatever our differences in Washington, our will is strong, our Nation is united, and we will settle for nothing less than victory."

Good on 'ya sir!

The President has to re-affirm, explain and, when necessary, defend his Administration's policies in the War on Islamo-Fascism. This is the reason that I - and many other libertarian leaning types - voted for the man. It certainly wasn't for his position on gay rights or the war on drugs.

Keep it up. Don't slack off. Take the fight to your "critics". More of this and more often please.

Lead this country in time of war.

2005-11-11T06:55:00.000-06:00

American History - Picking and Choosing

Andrew Sullivan's anti-Bush hysteria is making him sloppy:

QUOTE FOR THE DAY I: "I fear you do not fully comprehend the danger of abridging the liberties of the people. Nothing but the sternest necessity can ever justify it. A government had better go to the extreme of toleration, than to do aught that could be construed into an interference with, or to jeopardize in any degree, the common rights of its citizens," - Abraham Lincoln, in the midst of a national insurrection. It's on page 523 of Doris Kearns Goodwin's wonderful new book, "Team of Rivals." The italics are in the original.

QUOTE FOR THE DAY II: "We do not torture," - George W. Bush, earlier this week.

What a silly bint.

Hey Andrew, did you forget when Lincoln - in the midst of a national inssurection - suspended habeas corpus? Take a pill Andy.

2005-11-10T20:58:00.000-06:00

Marine Corps Day

People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. - George Orwell

Every year for four years at college, the head our Drama department - who served as a Marine in the Pacific in WWII - would take us out for pizza and beer on this day. He had some intense stories to tell. He always ordered the pizza with anchovies. We always got drunk. And, after much laughing, kidding and singing he always ended the evening with the "10,000 yard stare" look on his face.

Even as a young man I knew that there were some things he just would not, could tell us about his time on Saipan.

God bless him and the rest of the Marines who have served this country for 230 years.

2005-11-10T16:37:00.000-06:00

Three Wallace Hettle Updates

First - Check out Hettle's email to Paul Deignan PhD Advisors:

Yesterday and last night Paul Deignan spent in "trolling" a feminist academic web site with disruptive and abusive comments.

This is a highly visible liberal site. He was banned, but used his computer expertise to defeat the ban and taunt the host of the site.

This kind of behavior is not unheard of on the net. But Mr. Deignan chose to do this action from a homepage that claims you as a dissertation adviser.

Mr. Deignan has a right to free speech. He shouldn't disrupt the discussions of others--it is highly unprofessional. And it is linked to your name.

Might you please advise him to exercise a little discretion in the future. As matters stand, Mr. Deignan appears to be doing a bit more politicking than mechanical engineering.

Thank you,

Wallace
Hettle

Speaks volumes...no? What an pompous a-hole. I'd love to audit one of Hettle's courses just to take him to task. I'm assuming he would find any challenges to his classroom belief system as "disruptive".

Second - the story has made an article in Inside Higher Ed. Check it out.

And third - there has been an impact to Deignan's academic career. From the Inside Higher Ed article:

What might have ended there as an everyday online spat was only the beginning. A frequent visitor to the Bitch Ph.D. site, the University of Northern Iowa history professor Wallace Hettle, felt obliged to defend Bitch Ph.D.'s liberal end of the blogosphere. Hettle found Deignan's curriculum vita at Info Theory, which lists his academic advisers, the Purdue mechanical engineers Galen King and Peter Meckl, who will play a big part in deciding if he will ultimately receive a Ph.D. Hettle e-mailed them, indicating that Deignan'?s comments were "unprofessionalÂ? and Â?contrary to the spirit of free enquiry." Hettle announced his actions within the comment section of Bitch Ph.D.

"Yes, we received an e-mail,"? King confirmed on Wednesday. "?It said that Paul was exceeding his bounds, if you will, on what is essentially a private site. He's been asked to refrain, at least until he'?s [graduated from Purdue]."?

Libel...? I have no idea. But again, what an pompous a-hole.

Also, I do not understand why Paul is going after Bitch PhD. Sure, she lived up to her Blog moniker, but worth a lawsuit. I don't think so.

Hettle, on the other hand, deserves everything he gets - even if that's only the problem of having to deal with the emails and letters.

Once again H/T Protein Wisdom

2005-11-10T07:06:00.000-06:00

Jarhead

"Platoon" in Iraq. Color me not surprised.

It's almost like the media is trying to undermine our morale or something...

2005-11-09T06:36:00.000-06:00

Fight the Power with a Girlcot!

Ah... Rekha's never ending quest for social justice had entered the fashion world.

There's no better way to turn around a situation that strips you of power than by taking action, seeing results and getting empowered in the process.

Right on my Marxist sisterfriend!

Look, I think the tee shirts were in bad taste. I also have no problem with these girls organizing a boycott. I'm not even disappointed that they won.

But tee shirts as a some bellwether of the erosion of women's right? We're nitpicking here people. Women's rights have come leagues in the last 100 years. In fact, as the father of two boys I have some major concerns that women have become culturally dominant - particularly in the academy to the detriment of their male peers. And I don't just mean post secondary education. Elementary and middle schools have no idea to do with boys that, well... behave like boys.

Girls do better in school than boys. More young women go to college than young men and the gap is growing. Women have tons of opportunity in the business world and often receive preference in the name of "diversity". Women have an overwhelming advantage in family court. There is a huge emphasis on "women's health" even though women on average live significantly longer than men.

If any of the conditions in the last paragraph were reversed (imagine if the average female lived 5 or so years less than the average male!!!) it would be a huge societal scandal. Katie Couric would be bleating about it every weekday morning. But when it comes to men and boys, it's their fault and they need to change. Use your inside voice and take your ritalin my son.

I'm sick to death of Rekha and her fellow (hey, can I use the world "fellow" when referring to womyn...?) aging gender feminists trying to impose their concept of what they think women should be. Choice is good and all, but gender feminists want their sisters to make the "right" choice. But the personal is political is all that.

And speaking of family life... what parent in their right mind would let their 13 year old daughter wear a demeaning tee shirt? But then again, what parent would let their pre-pubescent girl wear makeup and revealing clothes to school?

2005-11-07T16:23:00.000-06:00

Burn the heretic or... what are they teachin' them youngsters at UNI???

Okay, so a Purdue Engineering PhD candidate drops some acerbic comments on a left-wing academic blog post on why Judge Alito is the Antichrist and must be filibustered. Said engineering candidate actually discusses one of Alito's decisions on the merits of the case and gets labeled a Troll and banned from posting further comments.

So far this ain't news right? But wait... there's more.

One of the commenters, an outraged University of Northern Iowa History professor decides to take the matter into his own hands and contact the engineering PhD candidates advisors to tell them of the candidate's "unprofessional conduct".

First I'm not at all surprised at the initial thread reaction to Paul's comments. It would be like walking into Wednesday evening church service at the local Assembly of God and trying to explain to the congregation that "... there's not even an historical record of Jesus the Christ, so what's all the supernatural, hocus-pocus resurrection fuss about..."

You're not likely to get a positive or measured response. You're even likely to get called some unflattering names.

Paul may not have been crashing a church service. But he was questioning the common wisdom in leftist academia. And that's messing with religious belief baby, make no mistake about it. But man... going straight to "I'm telling teacher!!!"

Whoo... that's pretty harsh.

Okay, so after demanding - and not receiving - a formal apology, Paul is taking said UNI History Professor to court.

Follow the links. Follow the chain of comments, counter comments and events. If you think it's right and proper, Email the History Professor, his Department Head and the President of UNI: Robert Koob. His office can be reached here: Office of the President, 20 Seerley Hall, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0705 - (319) 273-2566 (voice); (319) 273-6494.

I'll publish my letter(s) after I send them.

H/T Protein Wisdom

Update - I forgot to include this link to a .pdf file Paul captured before his later comments were scrubbed. Odd - The more logical and less goading Paul got, the more riled up bitchphd gets. She goes right to the sexism card:

No, Paul Deignan is an arrogant sexist who is determined to show how much smarter he is than the lady professor.

Which pretty much explains why trolls of that sort are always men.

I assume that the last sentence was written without a sense of its inherent irony.

And the punchline - it looks like she's Canadian. Perfect.

2005-11-07T07:13:00.000-06:00

"French Youths"

This morning The Today Show finally covered the growing French Intefada. They said the word Muslim precisely once - about 3/4 of the way through the piece.

The roots of the rioting aside... imagine if you will what the worldwide media coverage would be like if these riots were occurring in Washington DC.

Nothing to see here. Move along.

2005-11-01T15:46:00.000-06:00

Good On Ya Duffy

2005-10-31T06:54:00.000-06:00

Suitcase Nukes...

... apparently do not exist. Richard Mintner has a clear analysis that essentially shows that the suitcase devices are urban myths.

In "Al Qaeda's Nuclear Program: Through the Window of Seized Documents," a research paper for a think tank linked to the University of California at Berkeley, Albright concluded: "Whatever al Qaeda had accomplished towards nuclear weapon capabilities, its effort in Afghanistan was 'nipped in the bud' with the fall of the Taliban government. The international community is fortunate that the war in Afghanistan set back al Qaeda's effort to obtain nuclear weapons."

For now, suitcase-sized nuclear bombs remain in the realm of James Bond movies. Given the limitations of physics and engineering, no nation seems to have invested the time and money to make them. Both U.S. and the USSR built nuclear mines (as well as artillery shells), which were small but hardly portable--and all were dismantled by treaty by 2000. Alexander Lebed's claims and those of defector Stanislev Lunev were not based on direct observation. The one U.S. official who saw a small nuclear device said it was the size of three footlockers--hardly a suitcase. The desire to obliterate cities is portable--inside the heads of believers--while, thankfully, the nuclear devices to bring that about are not.

Good news on a couple of levels. 1st, at this point at least, there appears to be no "suitcase nukes" available to al Aqaeda or any other group.

2nd, even though we did not nab Osama in Afghanistan, we did put the kibosh on whatever nuke program al Aqaeda had there.

What this article also shows is that al Aqaeda has and is actively pursuing WMDs and is eager and willing to use them against us.

2005-10-30T16:34:00.000-06:00

Firefly

I just completed the DVD series. One of - if not the best TV series I've ever seen. Superb characters with loads of room for development. The characters are archetypes in a tribe or family - but they're utterly believable. Wonderful vision of the future - loads of technology over the next 400 years, but guess what? That old human condition is still there haunting/blessing us. Good acting - actors well cast, well directed - great ensemble work.

I knew nothing about it when it was on Fox. Nothing.

It ran for less than a full season. The Fox executives apparently did not know what to do with it. They mucked in - not letting the production team run the pilot as the first aired episode. They put in a time slot that was doomed to failure.

Anyone that is interested enough to read this probably knows that there's a movie out - "Serenity" that's an extension of the series. As I write this, it's only playing one screen in Des Moines. It's only been out for three weeks.

I guess I'll have to wait to see it on DVD.

I hope the market will allow this property to be produced for DVD or some other format. I'd love to see more of this universe and the people in it.

2005-10-30T14:20:00.000-06:00

Gas Price Gougers

No... not who you'd suspect Sen. Harkin.

Since 1977, governments collected more than $1.34 trillion, after adjusting for inflation, in gasoline tax revenues—more than twice the amount of domestic profits earned by major U.S. oil companies during the same period:

Go read the whole thing.

H/T - Instapundit.

2005-10-30T08:36:00.000-06:00

Sound Familiar?

The Register Editorial Board ("REB") has the perfect strategy for the War in Iraq. They think we should cut and run. Hey, the press was able to do it over 30 years ago, and that worked out well... not.

Bringing the troops home while violence still reigns might seem like leaving before the job is done, but violence has been a condition in Mesopotamia for 6,000 years. It is unrealistic to believe the United States could bring it perfect peace.

Yep, if we can't leave it perfect, we should leave now. Rekha must have had a hand in this one.

2005-10-29T23:19:00.000-05:00

mil·i·tant: adjective

1 : engaged in warfare or combat
2 : aggressively active (as in a cause)

Why am I one, do you ask...?

High school girls beheaded because they're ~~American lackeys~~ not Muslims. New Delhi market bombed and 60 dead because they're ~~American lackeys~~ uh... not Muslims.

Second in a series. And believe me, I won't run out of material.

2005-10-29T12:47:00.000-05:00

Recycling vs. Deposit

State had a good piece (I'm late to the game on this one, it's from last Monday...) on how the can/bottle deposit law is a bit out of date since the onset of curbside recycling.

I absolutely hate having to take cans and bottles to HiVee for redemption. The time. The smell. Yuck.

When we lived in Minnesota, we would crush our cans - which reduces the volume by a tremendous amount - and take them curbside.

And guess what...? The value of aluminum helps pay for the recycling program.

But hey... if you don't suffer for being "Green", what's the point?

2005-10-29T09:18:00.000-05:00

"Interpreting" the Constitution

Saw this snippet from a legal opinion by Alex Kozinski on Instapundit. I'm responsible for the bolding:

Judges know very well how to read the Constitution broadly when they are sympathetic to the right being asserted. We have held, without much ado, that "speech, or... The press" also means the Internet, and that "persons, houses, papers, and effects" also means public telephone booths. When a particular right comports especially well with our notions of good social policy, we build magnificent legal edifices on elliptical constitutional phrases--or even the white spaces between lines of constitutional text. But, as the panel amply demonstrates, when we'?re none too keen on a particular constitutional guarantee, we can be equally ingenious in burying language that is incontrovertibly there.

It is wrong to use some constitutional provisions as spring-boards for major social change while treating others like senile relatives to be cooped up in a nursing home until they quit annoying us. As guardians of the Constitution, we must be consistent in interpreting its provisions. If we adopt a jurisprudence sympathetic to individual rights, we must give broad compass to all constitutional provisions that protect individuals from tyranny. If we take a more statist approach, we must give all such provisions narrow scope. Expanding some to gargantuan proportions while discarding others like a crumpled gum wrapper is not faithfully applying the Constitution; it's using our power as federal judges to constitutionalize our personal preferences. . . .

All too many of the other great tragedies of history - Stalin's atrocities, the killing fields of Cambodia, the Holocaust, to name but a few - were perpetrated by armed troops against unarmed populations. Many could well have been avoided or mitigated, had the perpetrators known their intended victims were equipped with a rifle and twenty bullets apiece, as the Militia Act required here. See Kleinfeld Dissent at 5997-99. If a few hundred Jewish fighters in the Warsaw Ghetto could hold off the Wehrmacht for almost a month with only a handful of weapons, six million Jews armed with rifles could not so easily have been herded into cattle cars. My excellent colleagues have forgotten these bitter lessons of history.

Wow. This man gets it.

Like the majority of America's Christians' attitude toward the Bible, many jurists treat the Constitution as a smorgasbord where they can eat what they like and ignore - nay, spit on - the rest. [Painful overextended metaphor alert]. In that wacky world, the 1st Amendment is the "hand-carved roast beef carved by the nice man in the white chef's hat at the end of the line" and the 2nd is the "liver and onions that has sat there for hours"[/alert].

This is what "legislating from the bench" is all about - building circles, within circles, within circles to arrive at the desired result. It's the lawyers version of The Harmony of the Spheres in which more and more elaborate structure must be employed to make the world - and more precisely the people in it - what you think they should be.

This is why there is no human activity (minus sexual... uh... "speech") that cannot be defined as "interstate commerce".

This is why in the 2nd Amendment to The Constitution of the United States - a clear and simple sentence that even I can understand -

A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

- the words "the people" can mean "the state".

This is why in the takings clause of the 5th Amendment to The Constitution of the United States "public" really means "private".

This is why a woman's "right" to abortion is protected by an extended or imagined "right to privacy" that has been "discovered" in the 4th Amendment to The Constitution of the United States and recreational drug use is not.

And this is why the 9th and 10th Amendments to The Constitution of the United States today mean precisely... nothing.

2005-10-28T09:48:00.000-05:00

Europe is More Civilized

Or just plain kee-razy.

ROME, Italy (Reuters) -- The city of Rome has banned goldfish bowls, which animal rights activists say are cruel, and has made regular dog-walks mandatory in the Italian capital, the town's council said on Tuesday.

I'd like to say that I'm shocked and appalled. But I'm just appalled.

H/T - Lileks.

2005-10-28T09:26:00.000-05:00

When forks are outlawed...

Only outlaws will have forks. Anyone else see "gun control" as a slippery slope menace yet...?

2005-10-28T07:28:00.000-05:00

Excuse me Rekha, is that drool on your chin?

Yeah, she can almost taste it. Rekha gives us Howard Dean's talking points in the guise of an OpEd piece written by the daughter of United Nations apparatchiks.

My favorite part:

He failed to respond decisively on first learning of the three most cataclysmic events to occur during his administration - Sept. 11, 2001; Dec. 26, 2004 (the Asian tsunami); and Aug. 29, 2005 (Hurricane Katrina). In the latter case, victims were locked in a Superdome with rotting bodies while the federal government forked out $236 million to Carnival Cruise Lines to take other refugees cruising.

First, I'd probably not put 9/11 in the same category as the tsunami and Hurricane Katrina. There's a subtle but definite difference between natural disasters and an act of war.

Next, I can't believe your dragging out Bush's immediate reaction to learning of the 9/11 attacks. What was he supposed to do? Stop reading to those kids, grab one of his Secret Service agents' side arms, run out of that classroom and start shooting anyone who looked remotely Middle Eastern? Oh please.

And, as I recall, you objected to our going after the Taliban in Afghanistan. You were against the Patriot Act. Oh, I know... Bush should have handed the matter to the UN for... well whatever harsh language that they use for such matters.

As for the Tsunami, the American (as well as Australian) armed forces were the first responders to that disaster. They actually delivered water, food and shelter to the victims of that disaster while UN bigwigs were forming committees and dining at 21.

And Katrina, Katrina, Katrina. I'm surprised that you didn't bring up the 10,000 death figure and cannibalism at the Superdome.

Look, I've got huge problems with Bush and agree that he needs a lesson in admitting and taking responsibility for errors. But Rekha bases her criticisms of Bush on the presumption of perfidy - not only of Bush as President but of our country as global citizen. This presumption is based upon belief in Transnational Progressivism and that funny old sot of an uncle we keep in the attic - socialism.

Basu's point of view shouldn't surprise me at this point, but when her combination of vitriol and tired, discredited philosophy runs this rampant - I'm still taken aback.

2005-10-27T10:35:00.000-05:00

Somber Reflection at Mystical Number

Here are some San Francisco protesters displaying their grief. Touching, ain't it.

Previously: Gonna Party like it's ~~1999~~ 2000.

2005-10-27T06:39:00.000-05:00

Here Comes a Pulitzer, Baby!

The Register has hard hitting investigative reporting in its front page story today. Hold on to your hats people, this will be life changing. You ready? Most drivers ignore Iowa's 70 mph limit.

Over the past three months, 67 percent of motorists exceeded 70 mph and 25 percent of them drove faster than 75 mph, state records show. Four percent exceeded 80 mph. Overall, the average speed on Iowa's rural interstates has inched up nearly a half-mile per hour to 71.86 mph.

Holy crap! 71.86 mph!!!

And then there's this shocking revelation from "Sgt. Genie":

"The Iowa State Patrol is not happy because our goal is 100 percent compliance" with the speed limit, said Sgt. Genie Clemens , a patrol spokeswoman. "We are going to do the best we can with the people that we have in order to make people comply with the law."

Well, that just won't do Sgt. Genie. We citizens of the great state of Iowa deserve and demand 100 percent compliance. Until then, expect the intrepid investigative reporters of the Des Moines Register will be watching you... always watching.

2005-10-26T18:54:00.000-05:00

mil·i·tant: adjective

1 : engaged in warfare or combat
2 : aggressively active (as in a cause)

Well the first definition doesn't fit me. At least unless things get pretty damned desparate. The second... well, that fits pretty well.

Why am I a militant? Why do I feel we must make a stand right here? Right now?

Here's today's reason.

POLICE are being advised to treat Muslim domestic violence cases differently out of respect for Islamic traditions and habits.

Officers are also being urged to work with Muslim leaders, who will try to keep the families together.

Women's groups are concerned the politically correct policing could give comfort to wife bashers and keep their victims in a cycle of violence.

First in a series.

2005-10-26T06:35:00.000-05:00

Rob and Rekha...

...you gotta love 'em.

Rekha's uses Rosa Parks' death to stoke the fires of moral equavalence. You see, there's just as much injustice in the US today as there was in 1954 when Jim Crow ruled. And did I mention the war...? War bad. Bush bad. My columns pretty much all same.

Rights are like expiring coupons: Stash them in a drawer, don't use them and you risk losing them.

I think of "rights" more as a pair of socks. You did know that "the Man" through his government agents and lackeys steals one sock from each pair you own. Not aliens. Not the sock eating Dryer Monster. The MAN.

Meanwhile Rob offers us an elitist tribute to obnoxious rich Mercedes driving, chain smoking East Coast power maven. You know the trouble with Iowa...? There's too damned many Midwesterners here.

This town has a lot going for it - cheap parking, minor-league hockey -? but it's short on characters. It doesn't have enough of those in-your-face types who are obnoxious, talented, smart and funny.

Ah knock it off Rob. That's why you and Rekha are here. Fish, ponds and all that.

Oh, and there's the hard work enlighteningng us poor, ignorant Midwestern bumpkinns.

Poor Rob and Rekha - pearls before swains.

2005-10-25T17:17:00.000-05:00

Gonna Party Like It's ~~1999~~ 2000

Here it is, the latest "~~gleeful~~ grim milestone" from the MSM in their fifth column action against Operation Iraqi Freedom. Look to see it on the front page of the DMR tomorrow.

However, some folks have their number.

The fact that the Iraqis just approved their constitution with a small fraction of the violence on election day compared to last January... that's NOT news. Nice round numbers and place value lessons for simpletons... now THAT's news.

Hey, hang on just a second... as a matter of fact, I seem to remember Bush - in the 2003 State of the Union Address - said that if we go into Iraq at 2,000 KIA, we have to strike out tents and bugout. Game over.

Just kidding...

Some useful perspective can be found here.

Update: Picked up the paper and there it was - "2,000th U.S. troop dies". Granted, it was at the very foot of the front page. Not only that, right above it was an AP report on Iraqi casualties - 30,000 so far. Sounds bad, no...? Only if you you're unaware of the casualty rate under Saddam.

2005-10-24T07:21:00.000-05:00

The NRA is EVIL, EVIL I Tell You!!!

The Des Moines Register Editorial Board has a boilerplate editorial bemoaning the passage of the "Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act" (S. 397).

The gun industry has built its popularity on promoting the 2nd Amendment Â? Americans have a right to bear arms and protect themselves. But when it comes to protecting itself, the industry runs to Congress. Lawmakers, like victims of an armed robbery, give the industry everything it demands.

Okay, it's not just the "gun industry" that's promoting this law. It's citizens like yours truly who are concerned that the anti-gun lobby (I wonder if the REB considers anti-gun crusaders as "special interest groups"?) will use civil litigation to destroy the gun industry.

This legislation is an exercise in special-interest politics. No other industry enjoys the protection Congress wants to grant the gun industry.

Maybe that is because no other industry (at least yet...) has its existence threatened by "tort gone wild". Make no mistake about it, anti-gun groups are engaged in an incrementalist campaign to eliminate private ownership of firearms. These people believe that guns themselves are the problem. They really believe this and will do anything they can to achieve their goal.

The gun industry likely isn't responsible for the acts of individuals who use its products to commit crimes.

Then the REB should have not a problem with this legislation. Here is the "Purposes" section of the act in full:

(1) To prohibit causes of action against manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and importers of firearms or ammunition products, and their trade associations, for the harm solely caused by the criminal or unlawful misuse of firearm products or ammunition products by others when the product functioned as designed and intended.

(2) To preserve a citizen's access to a supply of firearms and ammunition for all lawful purposes, including hunting, self-defense, collecting, and competitive or recreational shooting.

(3) To guarantee a citizen's rights, privileges, and immunities, as applied to the States, under the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, pursuant to section 5 of that Amendment.

(4) To prevent the use of such lawsuits to impose unreasonable burdens on interstate and foreign commerce.

(5) To protect the right, under the First Amendment to the Constitution, of manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and importers of firearms or ammunition products, and trade associations, to speak freely, to assemble peaceably, and to petition the Government for a redress of their grievances.

(6) To preserve and protect the Separation of Powers doctrine and important principles of federalism, State sovereignty and comity between sister States.

(7) To exercise congressional power under art. IV, section 1 (the Full Faith and Credit Clause) of the United States Constitution. .

There is nothing in this legislation that prevents a civil suit being filed when there is evidence that a manufacturer or dealer sells firearms to groups or individuals that they have reason to believe are up to no good.

Then again, there may be some cases where gun manufacturers or dealers are negligent. Again, it's up to a court to decide.

I agree. And so do the Congresscritters that voted for the Act. If the REB had actually read the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, they would know that it lists all of the conditions where a civil suit can be brought against gun manufacturers and dealers. Don't believe me? Well, read it yourself:

(A) IN GENERAL- The term `qualified civil liability action' means a civil action or proceeding or an administrative proceeding brought by any person against a manufacturer or seller of a qualified product, or a trade association, for damages, punitive damages, injunctive or declaratory relief, abatement, restitution, fines, or penalties, or other relief' resulting from the criminal or unlawful misuse of a qualified product by the person or a third party, but shall not include--

(i) an action brought against a transferor convicted under section 924(h) of title 18, United States Code, or a comparable or identical State felony law, by a party directly harmed by the conduct of which the transferee is so convicted;

(ii) an action brought against a seller for negligent entrustment or negligence per se;

(iii) an action in which a manufacturer or seller of a qualified product knowingly violated a State or Federal statute applicable to the sale or marketing of the product, and the violation was a proximate cause of the harm for which relief is sought, including--

(I) any case in which the manufacturer or seller knowingly made any false entry in, or failed to make appropriate entry in, any record required to be kept under Federal or State law with respect to the qualified product, or aided, abetted, or conspired with any person in making any false or fictitious oral or written statement with respect to any fact material to the lawfulness of the sale or other disposition of a qualified product; or

(II) any case in which the manufacturer or seller aided, abetted, or conspired with any other person to sell or otherwise dispose of a qualified product, knowing, or having reasonable cause to believe, that the actual buyer of the qualified product was prohibited from possessing or receiving a firearm or ammunition under subsection (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, United States Code;

(iv) an action for breach of contract or warranty in connection with the purchase of the product;

(v) an action for death, physical injuries or property damage resulting directly from a defect in design or manufacture of the product, when used as intended or in a reasonably foreseeable manner, except that where the discharge of the product was caused by a volitional act that constituted a criminal offense then such act shall be considered the sole proximate cause of any resulting death, personal injuries or property damage; or

(vi) and action or proceeding commenced by the Attorney General to enforce the provisions of chapter 44 of title 18 or chapter 53 of title 26, United States Code.

Maybe I'm a simpleton, but it seems to me that these exceptions cover the gamut of potential malfeasance on the part of gun manufacturers and dealers.

So we're left with two equally unsavory possibilities to account for the cluelessness of the piece. 1 - The REB never actually read the Act. 2 - The REB did read the act, but intentionally... well... let's say "misrepresented" it to their readers.

But that's just crazy talk. The professional journalists at The Des Moines Register would never, never compromise their professional integrity to promote their agenda.

2005-10-23T09:36:00.000-05:00

Stick a fork in her...

Miers is done. George Will has a blistering piece that gets to the heart of the hypocrisy on both sides and highlights the attendant risks. First, the Dems:

And Democrats, with their zest for gender politics, need this reminder: To give a woman a seat on a crowded bus because she is a woman is gallantry. To give a woman a seat on the Supreme Court because she is a woman is a dereliction of senatorial duty. It also is an affront to mature feminism, which may bridle at gallantry but should recoil from condescension.

Next, the Republicans:

As for Republicans, any who vote for Miers will thereafter be ineligible to argue that it is important to elect Republicans because they are conscientious conservers of the judicial branch's invaluable dignity. Finally, any Republican senator who supinely acquiesces in President Bush's reckless abuse of presidential discretion -- or who does not recognize the Miers nomination as such -- can never be considered presidential material.

Oh man.

Finally, he cuts to the bone on what's wrong about this nomination and - much, much more importantly - what's wrong with system. We have legislators who refuse to make law that doesn't feed their constituents' pocketbooks or challenges their comfort. We have judges that fill the legislative vacuum - legislating from the bench - instead of refusing bail out Congress and demanding that legislators, well... legislate.

In their unseemly eagerness to assure Miers's conservative detractors that she will reach the "right" results, her advocates betray complete incomprehension of this: Thoughtful conservatives' highest aim is not to achieve this or that particular outcome concerning this or that controversy. Rather, their aim for the Supreme Court is to replace semi-legislative reasoning with genuine constitutional reasoning about the Constitution's meaning as derived from close consideration of its text and structure. Such conservatives understand that how you get to a result is as important as the result. Indeed, in an important sense, the path that the Supreme Court takes to the result often is the result. [Emphasis Mine]

Right on brother Will!

And, by the way - to make it official (however irrelevant to the world at large), I oppose the Miers nomination.

2005-10-20T06:54:00.000-05:00

Bob...?

Are you okay...?

2005-10-19T06:31:00.000-05:00

Do you think it's alright...

... to leave the boy with Uncle Ernie?

State 29 rightfully defends Ed Fallon (did I just write that...?) in Fallon's effort to enforce reasonable restraints on convicted sex offenders.

29 and Fallon are right on this one. Reactionary legislation is seldom good legislation - and this law seems to confirm that.

Not only that, Reka Basu was right in this column. And this gets to the heart of the matter. A drunken 19-year old who drops trow at a drunken party (where a minor happens to be) is not even on the same planet at that animal that snatched a toddler at the Des Moines Public Library and took her to the men's room. Given no other brushes with the law, the former should get a fine and severe talking to about his deportment.

The latter...? Tree. Rope. Human Waste. Some assembly required. Okay, we'll give him a fair trial and 1 appeal first.

This mess is another unintended consequence of "Zero Tolerance" nonsense. This, combined with a state legislature that wants to score political points - I mean, who's going to argue for "sex offenders"? - leads to law that is poorly thought out and unworkable.

Okay... I'm gonna say it. I disagree with Fallon on many issues. But man, he sure seems to have a rare combination of guts and integrity.

2005-10-18T16:30:00.000-05:00

Hail to the Chief

Seattle's former chief of police has some common sense words on prohibition. Namely... it DOESN'T WORK!

I don't favor decriminalization. I favor legalization, and not just of pot but of all drugs, including heroin, cocaine, meth, psychotropics, mushrooms and LSD.

It's a shame repeal won't happen in our lifetimes. The amount of wasted money and human capital from the War on Drugs is staggering. What's that old saying about the cure being worse that the disease...?

Go read it.

2005-10-18T07:36:00.000-05:00

Readers Respond to Doak's Silliness

Dick's vapid piece urging John Kerry (who by the way served in Vietnam...) to sue the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth has gotten some good replys.

From today's Letters to the Editor:

Include media in lawsuit

Maybe the Swift Boat Veterans would welcome a John Kerry libel lawsuit. In fact, maybe the Swift Boat Vets should sue Kerry for libel. A good airing of Kerry's military service and his behavior after returning may be just what this country needs.

Unlike you, I believe a libel suit that would have a far greater chance of success would be the Bush campaign vs. Kerry campaign, CBS News and Dan Rather.

I agree, an educated citizenry is important. I just don't trust you to do the educating.

-Steve Weltha, Winterset.

Lawsuit could determine truth

Here I am, a lifelong Republican, agreeing with Register senior editorial columnist Richard Doak, who urges Sen. John Kerry to sue the Swift Boat Veterans For Truth for libelous statements regarding his wartime service in Vietnam ("Kerry Can Serve His Country Again: Sue the Swift Boat Vets," Oct. 10).

Maybe such legal action will require Kerry to make available full disclosure of his service records, including his medical records and the actual reports he submitted describing his actions in a particular engagement that now seem to be in question. Likewise, the Swift Boat Vets would be required to make available their records.

As I recall, the Swift Boat Vets invited a libel suit by Kerry during the heat of the campaign, but none was forthcoming. I wasn't there in Vietnam, where the disputed actions took place, and I am rather sure Doak wasn't either.

Absent on-sight verification, who really knows whether Kerry "puffed up" his reports and/or exaggerated his injuries? A court action could put all the facts on the table, and the public could determine who was libeled.

-John M. Ropes, Mason City.

Good on ya guys!

2005-10-18T07:25:00.000-05:00

No Justice - No Cookies!!!

This is what the Des Moines Register came up with to tell us about the civil rights crisis in Iowa:

In 2003, Shade alleged that a recruiter with the Girl Scouts of Moingona Council of Des Moines discriminated against her granddaughter, Brianna , because she is black. Shade's complaint says the recruiter repeatedly ignored the black family to attend to whites. Her case languished for nearly two years at the Des Moines commission, which she described as a "farce" and a "waste."

What's the answer you ask...?

I don't know... maybe more public funding? Whatever it costs. We can't let these atrocities stand.

If a complaint against the Girl Scouts is all the DMR can come up with, more than anything else the article tells me that we've made trememdous progress in this country over the last 40 years.

And this was their headline front page story. Yeech.

2005-10-17T19:45:00.000-05:00

Theatre Blogging

Angels in America got a great review from Bruner in the Register. Looks like Todd did a an excellent job on a complex and difficult play.

I'm really looking forward to seeing it next week.

2005-10-17T06:33:00.000-05:00

Rush to Judgment

Okay, I can't believe I'm linking to Rush Limbaugh. But hey... this piece is pretty darned good.

For decades conservatives have considered judicial abuse a direct threat to our Constitution and our form of government. The framers didn't create a judicial oligarchy. They created a representative republic. Our opposition to judicial activism runs deep. We've witnessed too many occasions where Republican presidents have nominated the wrong candidates to the court, and we want more assurances this time--some proof. The left, on the other hand, sees the courts as the only way to advance their big-government agenda. They can't win national elections if they're open about their agenda. So, they seek to impose their policies by judicial fiat. It's time to call them on it. And that's what many of us had hoped and expected when the president made his nomination.
I'm not concerned about the Miers nomination because I'm a social conservative. I'm concerned because I fear that she will be use her seat on the court to be an activist.

The Founders created a system that is imperfect, but works. That system was slow to respond to a rapidly changing society in the first two-thirds of the 20th Century. There was unfinished business from the 19th - slavery. In an understandable rush to clean up our embarrassing mess - but unwilling/unable to do it by the rules, we contracted the SCOTUS to put a hit on Jim Crow. To paraphrase the Dixie Chicks - Jim had to die. But, by cheating the system and not forcing THE PEOPLE through their elected representatives to clean up the mess, we opened a Pandora's box. The judiciary has become something it was never intended to be. And the stage was set for Roe v. Wade.

Sure, there are unprincipled social conservatives that want to use the judiciary to legislate their religious beliefs. They are short-sighted and are conservatives in name only. Real conservatives do not jigger the rules to get their way. They change the frippin' rules.

Most of the time, tried and true systems - like our little ol' Constitutional Republic - are more important that immediate outcome. The more noble or humane the outcome, the more tempted we will be to skirt the rules. We do so at our peril.

Our Constitution is imperfect, but it WORKS. A pox on those on the left AND THE RIGHT who crap all over it to promote their agenda.

2005-10-15T12:13:00.000-05:00

"George's War"

Yep Stef... we just wanted their oil, big old contracts for Haliburton and death, death, death.

Assuming that's true - Bushitler is really an asocial maniac who cares not a whit for the young men and women he sends into harms way - this whole defeating a fascist dictator, killing terrorists away from the US, helping a country move toward being a democratic republic are some pretty sweet unintended consequences.

Some photos of the latest attrocities. Damn those long lines at the polls! The humanity of it all.

On the down side, at some point soon they're bound to have an Iraqi version of Tim Russert. Well, freedom isn't free.

2005-10-15T07:51:00.000-05:00

DMR Discovers Verb

Bork: "to destroy a judicial nominee through a concerted attack on his character, background and philosophy".

The Des Moines register is defending a Bush SCOTUS nominee. Whoo, if this isn't a reason to be concerned about the Miers nomination, I don't know what is.

Internet bloggers, radio talk-show hosts, syndicated columnists and other members of the conservative commentariat have savaged her in the most demeaning terms, not just for a lack of judicial experience but for general intellectual shortcomings. At least the Bork critics confined their criticism to his constitutional philosophy without questioning his IQ.

I don't listen to talk radio, so I can't speak to that. However, I haven't seen anything in "Internet Blogs" (are there other kinds...?) that have demeaned Miers. Have they questioned her qualifications? Yes. Have they questioned her conservative bona fides? Yes. Have they questioned Bush's tactic of picking a "stealth" nominee instead of a Janice Rogers Brown? Yes. But I've read nothing in The Corner, for example that went after her personally. The discussion has been civil, balanced and thoughtful.

Does the REB even remember the Bork hearings? You want some demeaning, distorting, intellectually bankrupt demagoguery? Read what this savage had to say:

"Robert Bork's America is a land in which women would be forced into back-alley abortions, blacks would sit at segregated lunch counters, rogue police could break down citizens' doors in midnight raids, children could not be taught about evolution," - Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-MA

Wow... looks like Teddy took a big handful of hyperbole pills with his gin that day. I've seen nor heard nothing about Miers (from the right or left) that even comes close.

Maybe I'm not being enough of a pragmatist. The REB's editorial reaction could be exactly what Bush had in mind for the left. Not so the reaction from certain corners on the right. I'm sorry, but the fact that James Dobson has given his seal of approval to Miers does not exactly make me feel positive.

As a small-government social liberal, I fear that Miers will be the worst of both worlds - e.g. a pro-Affirmative Action / anti-stem cell research religious Luddite who plays the judicial activism game to promote her idea of "progress".

I expect the committee hearings (there's no way Bush is going to pull the nomination...) to be interesting. Not for Miers' responses - I expect her to reveal absolutely nothing if she can help it - but for the conduct of the Senators. Given the deference shown to Miers by Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, the dynamic should be fascinating.

2005-10-13T07:20:00.000-05:00

If these are Iowa's "best and brightest"...

I weep for our future.

Ramsey Tesdel - Germany's new Chancellor is gonna turn that country around. Why...? Of course!!! Because she's a girl.

Beth McKiernan - The sky is falling! The sky is falling!

Kathryn Skilton - Hey Government! You tell me all about avian flu so I can... can... Well, I can tell Beth and she can freak out even more! That's always fun.

Bryce Bauer - Don't build new refineries. Forget about oil shale. Forget about research that confirms the theory that petroleum is itself a renewable resource. Wear a sweater, turn your car into a greenhouse and flush prosperity down the toilet.

Heidi Schnakenberg - Hey men... You know the way you are. Stop being like that. We women will show you how to behave.

Mike McGinn - Hey Beth... Have you heard about peanut butter?

Beth - THE SKY IS FALLING!!!

2005-10-12T15:01:00.000-05:00

Hey, I'm a Barbarian!!!

But, you already knew that. From State 29 - An anti-bowhunting letters to the Cedar Rapids Gazette:

Since commissioners who approved this plan don't think the hunt is cruel, I suggest they be chased through the woods and shot with arrows. Perhaps this will give them much needed insight into the pain and suffering this hunt will inflict on these helpless, gentle creatures of God.

Several does live on our wooded lot. Each year we wait with anticipation to see the new fawns. The city's hunters will not be allowed on our property, and I encourage everyone opposing this slaughter to contact the City Council and ask them to stop this barbaric hunt.

Yes, they're "creatures of God"... So are we, by the way. And those deer sure is tasty!

And, there's way to many of them around here. And did I mention that you can eat them and they're tasty...?

Gotta go now. I'm off to my friend's property in Madison County to stalk and hopefully kill the big doe I missed last Saturday. (hey... bow hunting is anything but a sure thing) She has two beautiful fawns with her. I saw them frolic and spar with each other that evening. It was very, very cool.

If I kill the doe, I will make every effort to kill and eat them as well. Ummmm... veal deer.

Ponder that. I found them beautiful and I'm ready to kill and eat them. Call me a barbarian, but I find that life affirming.

2005-10-12T08:15:00.000-05:00

"Anyone who judges a man by the group is a peawit".

The grizzled old Irish sergeant Kilrain says this in Michael Shaara's The Killer Angels. In conversations on group identity politics, I refer to this as "Kilrain's Law". You deal with people - regardless of background and station - one at a time with respect and the benefit of the doubt as best you can.

However, denying that group differences exist is anti-scientific idiocy. Charles Murray (remember The Bell Curve...?) breaks years of silence to challenge the Phrases of Blank Slate Political Correctness on the science of race, gender and group outcome.

He starts with the Larry Summers Harvard Women in Science debacle and goes from there. There is going to be much wailing and gnashing of teeth over this. Man, I love it when "progressives" go after the religious right for being anti-science. On this one, lefties live in a big old glass house.

"Anyone who does not evaluate the group as a group is just as big a peawit." As far as I know, I made that up. Well... at least I made of the saying. As for theory and practice - talk to anyone who understands the insurance industry about actuarial tables.

2005-10-10T13:21:00.000-05:00

Bring Civility Back to Politics John Kerry - Report for Duty and Sue the Bastards

Dick Doak has a humdinger of an opinion piece in the Des Moines Daily Fishwrap. He wants some payback and has a plan. He wants John Kerry to sue the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth for libel.

John Kerry is scheduling appearances in Iowa again, leaving little doubt he harbors hopes of another shot at the presidency in 2008.

Forget it. Democrats are unlikely to give another chance to a candidate who they think should have been able to beat George Bush, but didn't.

But there is a significant public service Kerry could perform without running for office. He could sue the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth for libel.

Of course, Doak camouflages his partisan objectives in terms like:

A few well-chosen libel suits might give pause to the well-funded smear campaigns that are taking over American politics on both the left and right.

Okay then Mr. Doak, where'’s your example of libelous campaign shenanigans from the Left? Anything at all Dick...?

Hey, I can think of one example - and it wasn't even perpetrated by one of those dreaded 527 groups. It was "reported"” by that paragon of nonpartisan journalism, Dan Rather. Any clue..?

And while we'’re at it, would you care to offer any background on the Swift Boat Vets. Do you say anything about founder John O'Neil - including the fact that he is anything but a partisan Republican shill? Do you mention anything about John Kerry's despicable - and I think treasonous - actions while still a commissioned officer in the Naval Reserve? Uh... anything on Kerry'’s Christmas in Cambodia fairy story that he told numerous times including on the floor of the US Senate? Or Kerry's Magic Hat...? And have you heard about his Flying Dog?

Nah... I didn'’t think so.

Here's what we get from Doak regarding the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth:

The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth was the group that, among other charges, asserted that Kerry did not deserve the combat medals he was awarded by the Navy in Vietnam. The available evidence indicated the Swift Boat assertions were false.

And why must Doak use the term available evidence? Because, despite promises to do so and claims to the contrary, Kerry has not released all of his service records. If he did, we could find out - as some have reasonably speculated - that he received a less than honorable discharge for his dealings with our enemy during the course of a war.

Look, Kerry brought all this down upon his own head. The cornerstone of his campaign was his heroic service in Vietnam. He couldn't run on his record in the Senate after all... Somehow he neglected to mention the whole Winter Soldier thing - which is what the Swift Boat Vets are really steamed about.

Kerry took a poorly advised risk - run as a "warrior" presidential candidate in a time of war as if he had no involvement in Vietnam Veterans Against the War. The Swift Boat Vets along with the alternative media (including the Blogosphere) caused it to blow up in his face.

And that wimply little Shirley Temple salute he "snapped" at the Democratic Convention didn't help either.

Doak then goes on to propose that a libel suit could be brought against the Swift Boat Vets and that Kerry could win. I'm not an attorney (Random???) so I'll refrain from commenting on the likelihood of a successful libel suit against the group. I'm also not sure which of the Swift Boat Vet's accusations about Kerry's combat record directly contradict their previous comments. I've seen this site, but nothing from a source that does not lead back to Media Matters or some other left-wing partisan outlet.

And there's no disputing that Kerry unjustly accused his brothers in arms of butchery and conspired with the enemy. If that doesn't make one unfit to be Commander in Chief, then what does?

But it was the hilarious and clueless irony below that got me out of my apathy and write a response:

Of course, most negative-campaigning techniques would be immune from libel law because they don't require out-and-out lies. The half truth, the innuendo, the information out of context, the invention of straw men - the stock in trade of negative campaigns - could continue unfazed.

For them, there is only one remedy - an educated citizenry with a low tolerance for being fed propaganda dung and a willingness to shun politicians and their surrogates who spoon it out.

Oh boy... that's rich Mr. Doak. Fortunately for you, an "educated citizenry" is as elusive as a balanced Edtorial - one without half truths, innuendo, information out of context and the invention of straw men - in your newspaper.

Were it not... Well, you get the idea.

2005-09-09T07:49:00.000-05:00

And then he does this...

For the love of God, President Bush - you make it hard to be a supporter.

2005-09-08T16:27:00.000-05:00

Greg Gutfeld at Huffpo

From HUFFPO EMERGENCY BUSH BASH BLOG APPLICATION FOR THE VICTIMS OF ALL DISASTERS EVERYWHERE!

-Do you believe that no one can voice support of the IRAQ war UNLESS they are willing to serve in it?

-YET when it came to the flood, you readily assumed an expertise in crisis management within hours of the disaster?

-And only so you could heave blame at Bush like a monkey flinging his own feces

Hey... he's just askin'...

2005-09-04T14:04:00.000-05:00

Back From the Woods...

... and deep in the sh#$. After a day back at work, it was as if I had never been away. Not sure if that's good or bad.

2005-08-11T18:42:00.000-05:00

Gone Canoein'

For the next two weeks I'll be on my annual wilderness canoe trip with my two sons. Here's are some pictures I've taken on previous trips to The Quetico.

It'll be nice to get away from the news!

2005-08-02T19:56:00.000-05:00

Intelligent Design - It Ain't Science Okay?

Which is worse...? The possibility that Bush is playing to the religious right or that he really believes that ID should be taught along side scientific theories of evolution.

Man - no matter how much I approve of his conduct of the war and other international affairs - some days it's hard being a Bush supporter.

2005-07-28T08:34:00.000-05:00

Kids Say the Darndest Things

They sure do! Just check out today's Register's vapid Reply All.

Here's my favorite from this edition - From the incredibly insightful Sasha Kemmet:

Last week, a Brazilian man living in England was chased by plainclothed police officers, pinned down and shot five times in the head and chest. At the time, officers believed he was involved in the London bombings. Later, it was revealed that the man had no connection to the bombings. It is a tragic story, less about the mistakes of Scotland Yard than about underlying sentiments of fear and anger. People are angry about what happened and scared that it might happen again. [Emphasis mine.]

Ladies and gentlemen - behold the product of our politically correct, postmodern educational system. When people blow other people up in subway trains and busses, people get "scared and angry" and are afraid that it might happen again. And that's really "tragic" ya know.

What's tragic...? That those people may actually may want to do something about it to see that it doesn't happen again?

These emotions are not far from our own. According to a recent AP-Kyodo poll, six in 10 Americans think a new World War is likely. Fear, as history has shown us, is not a good leader. In the 1940s, fear led us to imprison thousands of civilian Japanese-Americans. In the 1950s, fear led us on a McCarthyism witch-hunt of scholars and entertainers exercising "too much" freedom of speech.

Ah... the old chestnuts - Japanese internment in the 40s and McCarthyism in the 50s. But the 60s... them were the days! Oh, Sasha - you forgot about Wounded Knee and the Robber Barons. If you're going to recite the litany girl, go for it all!

But of course, you're right. Because the West is imperfect, we have no right defend ourselves. I mean, isn't that obvious. We should be still, introspective, passive and think about how we created the "root causes" that made these poor young men strap on nailbombs and blow up some "innocent" commuters. Free Mumia!

Today, fear leads us to passively approve an act that allows the government to search our personal, medical and even library records without our knowledge or a warrant. We need to be a well-informed and well-educated populace, not spied on by Big Brother, to turn our fear into thoughtful, positive action.

And "even LIBRARY records...". Oh boy...

But I do agree that "we need a well-informed and well-educated populace". And Sasha, you make that argument more strongly than you'll ever know.

If these kids are Iowa's best and brightest - and that goes for their token conservative voice... oh man.

Update: I almost forgot the capper! In the print version of The Register, what was immediately left of Reply All? A David Broder column the Register titled: Our children are failing history.

Beautiful.

2005-07-28T08:29:00.000-05:00

Fresh and Funny

City Journal has a piece on right leaning comic strips. If you don't already, check out Day by Day.

It is indeed both.

2005-07-27T20:51:00.000-05:00

Like Going into Space in a '72 Plymouth Duster

We have got to junk this thing and start over. It first went into space 25 years ago. It was designed in the early 1970's for God's sake.

I'm a huge manned spaceflight supporter. I'm even for govenrment funding (consistency being the hobgoblin that is is...). But, we need a private/Federal partnership of some kind to get it back on track.

One way the Feds could at least get out of the way is to stop legislating safety regulations that would essentially prohibit space tourism. Look, if you have $500k or so and want to risk sitting on top of a giant roman candle to go suborbital or into low Earth orbit... why not?

Shit, liberals should love it. Think of all of the rich people who could put themselves in harm's way. And think of the potential death tax revenues.

[HomerSimpson]Ummmmm... death taxes...[/HomerSimpson]

2005-07-27T19:24:00.000-05:00

Islamic Nailbomb

Take a look at this.

This is an x-ray image of one of the bombs that the authorities secured in London. Pretty nasty, huh?

I guess the only logical response is to outlaw nails. Sure... it's pretty extreme - it will play hell on the construction industry and do-it-yourselfers - but we can't have people going around and doing horrible, tragic stuff like this so it seems like the only solution.

2005-07-26T06:44:00.000-05:00

Fallon for Governor

State 29 has been an early Fallon booster. Yeah, he may look good compared to the other yahoos. But check this out. And this. And this. This guy if a Wellstonian socialist of the first order.

However, this one kind of jars my preserves.

Oh... I don't know. Fallon has a reputation for being a straight shooter and a really good person. Despite his socialist tendencies and his boneheaded opinions on the War (which as a Iowa's Governor, wouldn't really matter all that much...) he may be the best choice. State may be right.

2005-07-24T19:37:00.000-05:00

They DID Shoot a Civilian

And the London Police have not backed down from the policy. In the same situation, the will shoot the perp in the head. Which is exactly what they have to do.

Ugly? Yes.

Tragic in the case of the poor Brizilian guy who was killed? Yes.

But that man was a casuality of war - killed by al-Qa'ida and their tactics as surely as if he had been blown up by one of their bombs.

Much discussion on the topic here.

The truth...? You can't handle the truth..

2005-07-22T17:19:00.000-05:00

Hey... it's a GOOD Thing

Unless they shot a civilian, right? This guy weren't no civilian, okay. And there's no reason those British officers should have ANY reason to think that he was.

Why do I feel pretty secure in this? So, what would you do?

Here's the scene: You're following a guy wearing a big, bulky overcoat (hey, yeah, it's London... but it's JULY 22nd, okay). He's a known terror suspect... I'm sorry, I meant Islamic Soldier. He's heading toward the Tube. He will not respond when you order him to stop. He goes into the Tube. You're in hot pursuit.

Now, bear in mind that you're following a guy into what amounts to a cave... a guy who has a high probability of exploding with hot nails shooting out of him and stuff. You reach the train. You take him down. He's still struggling.

[Over-puntuation alert] You. shoot. him... Dead.

Why?

Well, he was soldier, right? I mean, soldiers - in uniform or mufti - are the same, right? (That's what people are saying about GITMO and the Geneva Convention and all.) And that train was loaded with civilians, right?

So, by that definition, he is an enemy soldier very likely with his finger on the trigger of a weapon that can take out oh... conservatively a 100 people or so - most of whom are "civilians".

And their fucking problem is...?

2005-07-22T14:05:00.000-05:00

Multi-Culti Suicide
And while we're at it... read this brilliant eassy by Lee Harris. It's a long one and comes from a different angle, but man, it's worth the trip.

After reading Harris' eassy - check this out.

2005-07-22T12:38:00.000-05:00

Another Brick in the Wall

So... ~~the People's Republic~~ State of Illinois is going to decide whether you can finance a home or not. From the Belleville News Democrat

Gov. Rod Blagojevich signed a bill Thursday that will require homeowners in the test areas to turn over all their financial, personal and loan data to the state for a mandatory review before they will be allowed to buy a home. It also affects refinancing and home equity loans. The bill requires the selected Cook County borrowers to submit information to the state, which will then decide whether a borrower must undergo mandatory financial counseling before agreeing to the home loan. It is intended to aid state regulators in tracking and cracking down on dishonest lenders.

... The law creates a predatory lending database with personal and financial information about people seeking home loans in a test area, as well as information about the loans, in portions of Cook County. After four years, the pilot program will be reviewed and possibly expanded to cover the entire state.

So... with arguably good intentions (when is it not...?), Illinois is going review and place conditions on individuals seeking to finance a home. No one has broken a law and yet, "State Re-education" is required.

Christ, this is an outrage. Once again, property rights plays the red-haired stepchild of personal liberties.

Here's a thought experiment. Imagine, if you would that the government created a similar system for any form of non-criminal/non-economic behavior with possible negative consequences. How about... sexual promiscuity or predilection.

Imagine the outrage.

Explain to me how this is less heinously intrusive.

H/T - my friend Jeffrey.

2005-07-20T14:03:00.000-05:00

Rest in Peace Scotty

2005-07-20T13:56:00.000-05:00

Making Law

I heard three talking heads on The Today Show say something like: "... but this is different then when he was Appeals Court Judge. As a Supreme Court Justice, Roberts will be able to make law, not just intrepret it".

Anyone else see a wee bit of a problem with this?

2005-07-19T21:39:00.000-05:00

Bush Nominates Conservative for SCOTUS

And the New York Times thinks this could "tilt the court" rightward.

Zounds! I thought the Constitution said that when the President doesn't win by a 60% popular majority, the Executive Branch was compelled to appoint justices that would "unite the country", "makee nicey-nice", "not hurt anyone's feelings" and all that.

Man, that ~~Rove~~ Bush sure has a brass set.

2005-07-18T18:45:00.000-05:00

I'm Not a Right WingNut Mikey... Really

This post, inspired by "comedian" Margaret Cho naming her dog after a terrorist, got a strong response from Mikey.

The first one is just funny. She's a comedian for godssake. George Carlin suggested that raping an old woman was funny.

The second one is just stupid (meaning somebody should tell Begala to chill out). But events titled "Campus Progress National Student Conference" are just a likely to produce stupid soundbites as the "Republican National Convention"

And the last one, since when did Islamist-terrorist-sympathizers become part of the left? Is this part of the campaign to put every stupid idea or thing you disagree with in the left's mouth?

There's no monopoly on the left or right for saying stupid things.

True enough Mikey. But I was talking about the Left in reactionary mode to the war. In that area, the Left has it sown up. My response:

Cho - no, Mikey... she's a comedian/activist - which makes her comedy as funny as political revolutionary theatre and their attendant giant puppets are entertaining.

Begala - show me a quote from a national Republican talking head that is even close to being as stupid and over the top as:
They want to kill me and my children if they can. But if they just kill me and not my children, they want my children to be comforted -- that while they didn't protect me because they cut my taxes, my children won't have to pay any money on the money they inherit...
And the last one, since when did Islamist-terrorist-sympathizers become part of the left?

When they're published in The Guardian.

Mikey's reposte:

Rick Santorum:
"If the Supreme Court says that you have the right to consensual (gay) sex within your home, then you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy, you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery."
Vice President Cheney:

"Fuck yourself."

President George W. Bush

It was at this point I thought I'd get this off comments and on the blog proper.

Mikey's not going to get me to defend Senator Santorum. Santorum is a narrow minded frightened boob who is among the worst the Republicans have to offer. But... he does have something of a point.

Forget about bigamy - it's fraud and there's an obvious victim - the spouse(s) unaware of the other spouse(s).

Polygamy...? Why not. Gay marriage is on the way. We're likely to see it in this country within the next couple of decades. If that's what we want... fine. Furthermore, I have absolutely no problem with polygamy, polyandry, group marriage. Consenting adults in a binding contract that forms a "family" and supports the raising of children. Go for it. Given our imperfect predisposition for monogamy, it seems like a tough row to hoe, but... it's not really our business now is it?

Incest... if you're not planning on contributing to the gene pool (like gay partners - at least with each other anyway...) what's the harm. If an adult brother and sister are in love, what's the problem. Sure, you may think it's all yucky and stuff - being so closely related and all, but what business is it of yours? There are folks that so narrow minded that they used to think that homosexuality was actually wrong.

Well, you see where I'm going here. I'm pulling out a variant of the dreaded - and in this case appropriately named - "slippery slope" argument. But, to me it seems rather apt. Where do we draw the line. I honestly don't know. But to claim that drawing the line is not an issue seems ingenious, to say the least.

Enough of the ~~good~~ dim Senator.

Dick Cheney did indeed say "Go Fuck Yourself". He said it to Senator Pat Lehey when Lehey was acting all "buddy-buddy" during a photo shoot. No one really knows why Vice President Cheney said that to Lehey. Some think it may have been because Lehey had been accusing Cheney for weeks of essentially being a war profiteer (Halliburton! Halliburton!) and leveraging the deaths of our young men and women for he and his capitalist cronies to make money.

Stupid...?

No, I credit the Vice President for having the intelligence to not pop Lehey in the mouth - the vile, hypocritical little pissant. Words have consequences.

And yeah - there are still such things as "fighting words".

Oh... and of course Bush is dumber than a chimp... everyone knows that. Rove's the puppeteer... stupid gladhanding fratboy, dimwitted Chimpy-bush, Bushy-chimp, etc.

Look, I'm not a Republican. I've written in this venue on the Republicans' stupidity trying to leverage the pro-war vote as some kind of "moral mandate" for religious right falderal. But, my last few posts have been my reaction to the MSM's and Left's reaction to terrorist bombing in London. The Democrats (with the exception of Joe Lieberman and a few other adults) have had no problem using the war as a political lever. This is a war that we're likely to be involved in for decades to come.

I'd LOVE for the Democrats - Christ I'd love for Europe and the rest of the world that actually has the priviledge of living in the 21st century - to step up and deal with this now - like adults.

What do I mean by "like adults"? I mean by having the intestinal fortitude to see this conflict and attendant responsibilities in their historical perspective - not in a comfortable opium cloud of chic, upper middle-class faux - and really, isn't faux the best kind of - guilt.

For doubt it not for one second this is going to be with us for a while and there's a good chance that we'll see a sizeable terrorist attack on American soil within the next decade. The sooner that we are victorious, the better - for everyone. That's why the stupidity of Cho and Begala and Reid and Durbin and Pelosi and Kennedy and Franken and Garofalo and Keiler and on and on and on almost always trump the Republican and Right-Wing variety.

Given the times we live in - and the enemies we have in the world - I find the Democrat/Left Wing brand of stupidity way more dangerous than global warming, the issuing of concealed carry permits, the Plame kerfuffle, disrespect for the UN or even the possibility that the SCOTUS - packed by Bush with right-wing misogynist crazies - will overturn of Roe v. Wade.

2005-07-18T12:52:00.000-05:00

We're Just As Bad

Uncle Sam in a bomb vest made of smokestacks. You get it don't you...? We're the same as the scum that blew up the tube riders in London because we... well, we drive our big nasty cars and SUVs.

And this cartoon was in that "mainstream left-leaning" (don't want to say "hard-left" now...) Washington Post.

2005-07-17T14:10:00.000-05:00

"Art Terrorism"

Yeah... there's nothing wrong with the self-hating, reactionary left. Here's an excellent example of how there's absolutely nothing screwed up about their world view.

Oh... and here's another.

And another...

2005-07-15T10:36:00.000-05:00

The 3 Pillars of Postmodern Silliness

Victor Davis Hansen has his best essay in months up. It sums up nicely the left's "alternative narrative" on the War on Islamo-Fascism. In a word, this version of events brings spiritual calm for millions of troubled though affluent and blessed Westerners. There are three sacraments to their postmodern thinking, besides the primordial fear that so often leads to appeasement.

Our first hindrance is moral equivalence. For the hard Left there is no absolute right and wrong since amorality is defined arbitrarily and only by those in power.

Taking back Fallujah from beheaders and terrorists is no different from bombing the London subway since civilians may die in either case. The deliberate rather than accidental targeting of noncombatants makes little difference, especially since the underdog in Fallujah is not to be judged by the same standard as the overdogs in London and New York. A half-dozen roughed up prisoners in Guantanamo are the same as the Nazi death camps or the Gulag.

Our second shackle is utopian pacifism "war never solved anything" and "violence only begets violence." Thus it makes no sense to resort to violence, since reason and conflict resolution can convince even a bin Laden to come to the table. That most evil has ended tragically and most good has resumed through armed struggle - whether in Germany, Japan, and Italy or Panama, Belgrade, and Kabul - is irrelevant. Apparently on some past day, sophisticated Westerners, in their infinite wisdom and morality, transcended age-old human nature, and as a reward were given a pass from the smelly, dirty old world of the past six millennia.

The third restraint is multiculturalism, or the idea that all social practices are of equal merit. Who are we to generalize that the regimes and fundamentalist sects of the Middle East result in economic backwardness, intolerance of religious and ethnic minorities, gender apartheid, racism, homophobia, and patriarchy? Being different from the West is never being worse.

These tenets in various forms are not merely found in the womb of the universities, but filter down into our popular culture, grade schools, and national political discourse - and make it hard to fight a war against stealthy enemies who proclaim constant and shifting grievances. If at times these doctrines are proven bankrupt by the evidence it matters little, because such beliefs are near religious in nature Â? a secular creed that will brook no empirical challenge.
Hey greenman, check it out and let us know what you think. I find it hard to argue with, but please... give it a shot. Be specific, check all strawmen and ad hominem argument at the door and give it a go.

2005-07-08T12:11:00.000-05:00

Ames High School Student Discovers How to End to All Bad Stuff in Life

How awesome. And it's just so simple:

We can no longer just click off the television set following a half-hour news program filled with murder, rape, torture, theft, and suffering. There are questions we must ask ourselves - what if it were me? What about my friend? Brother? Daughter? Father?

Of course, these questions alone are the main ingredients in a recipe for deep depression. We can neither shield ourselves by ignoring the misery of others nor become so deeply immersed in empathy that we feel too crushed to function.

The only solution that comes to mind would be to eliminate suffering itself. Then we wouldn't have to ignore it or have it keeping us awake at night.

That's it!!! Eliminate suffering simply by changing human nature and ridding the world of evil. Man... why didn't someone think of this before?

Great going Beth! We'll get right on that.

Visit 29 who doesn't take issue with the Fisher Price premise of the piece - but with the questionable source of the kid's huge revelation and why the Register day care provider/editor didn't catch it.

Update: 29 takes Beth to school and exposes her to the Fiskcratic teaching method. Courage Beth... courage.

2005-07-07T22:31:00.000-05:00

Mourning Becomes Diane

Saw snippets of Primeitme Live's very special coverage of the London Islamo-Fascist terrorist bombings this evening. The take-home message...? Be really, really sad.

Lots of sad music. Diane Sawyer sighing her way through the program. Man, she was the perfect picture of the grieving mature spokesmodel.

Saw the Ambassador to Kenya who survived the 1998 embassy bombing say how terrorism changes your life forever. You'll never be the same. Now she's helping other victims deal with their fear and... sadness.

Saw Diane henpecking Gov. Pataki - kind of like a wife grilling her milquetoast husband about his nere do well drinking buddies - asking something like "How can you guarantee that the Subways are safe? How can anyone every ride the subway and not be scared... and sad. Sigh..." She was confrontive... but sensitive... not to mention really, really sad.

Now people, don't get mad, okay? Wouldn't want that now. Stay calm. Be passive. Turn inward. Be sad. People are dead, blown up and all and it's sad.

Like, how will we ever go on? I mean people... it's scary and really, really sad when this kind of stuff happens.
.
.
.
And this kind of coverage is just. what. the. bastards. want.

Update: And Scary... did I mention scary?

Another Update: From Daniel Henniger's 7/8 Wonderland Column:

For bin Laden and al-Zarqawi, the relatively small bombs they set off in Iraq or London are a second-grade weapon. Their large-bore weapons in the terror war are modern electronic news technology and, ironically, open democratic societies.

Thanks again Diane.

2005-07-07T07:38:00.000-05:00

Tony Blair

Responding this morning to the London Underground bombings:

We shall prevail. And they shall not

He appeared to be shaken, angry and full of resolve. Don't expect another Spanish bug-out.