Tuesday, January 30, 2007
With us; or against us?
Oh yes. I've seen them.
And too often, I might add...
And too often, I might add...
In Newsweek, Jerry Adler discusses Dinesh D'Souza's new book, and asks, "Have you seen these people?":
"There's a 'domestic insurgency' afoot, D'Souza warns, that's 'at least as dangerous' as bin Laden's operatives. Here are some of the names on his list:"
Iraq - Current rules of engagement
Even "ready, aim, fire" spoken slowly would be healthier than this...
In the Washington Times, James A. Lyons Jr. tells us about the "Rules of Engagement":
"The current ROEs for Baghdad -- including Sadr City, home of the Mahdi Army -- have seven incremental steps that must be satisfied before our troops can take the gloves off and engage the enemy with appropriate violence of action.
(1) You must feel a direct threat to you or your team.
(2) You must clearly see a threat.
(3) That threat must be identified.
(4) The team leader must concur that there is an identified threat.
(5) The team leader must feel that the situation is one of life or death.
(6) There must be minimal or no collateral risk.
(7) Only then can the team leader clear the engagement."
Customs - "ghost" brides
Every culture has unique customs.
This one is surely barbaric...
This one is surely barbaric...
From Bejing, Jane Macartney reports for the U.K. Times Online:
"'I did it for the money; it was a quick buck,' Yang said, according to the paper. 'If I hadn't slipped up early, I planned to do a few more.'
The women were victims of an old belief, still alive in the yellow-earth highlands of western China, that young men who die unmarried should go to their graves accompanied by deceased women who will be their wives in the afterlife. Often these women die natural deaths."
Sandy Berger - And his integrity?
Mr. Berger is virtually getting a free pass from the media.
And I still can't believe he was a President's NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR...
And I still can't believe he was a President's NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR...
In the New York Sun, R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. keeps following this story:
"Yet now Mr. Berger's story has taken a more serious turn. As part of his 2005 plea agreement, Mr. Berger promised to take a lie detector test. He never did. This week in a letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, 18 Republican congressmen have asked that the Justice Department proceed with the polygraph testing of Mr. Berger. It is more critical today than it might have been back in April 2005.
This autumn a congressional committee made an astounding discovery regarding the contents of Mr. Berger's socks. The archives had failed to catalogue the materials that they gave him to review. No one aside from Mr. Berger has any idea what he took from the archives. He may have doctored documents. He may have destroyed documents. There have been many distinguished former government officials who lived to write their version of the history they participated in. Sandy Berger is the rare government official who has lived to erase history. A polygraph test might reveal how much history he erased."
Anti-war protesters spray paint Capitol building
So, who would just let someone spray paint their home's front steps?...
At TheHill.com, Jackie Kucinich has this story:
"Anti-war protesters were allowed to spray paint on part of the west front steps of the United States Capitol building after police were ordered to break their security line by their leadership, two sources told The Hill.
According to the sources, police officers were livid when they were told to fall back by U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) Chief Phillip Morse and Deputy Chief Daniel Nichols. 'They were the commanders on the scene,' one source said, who requested anonymity. 'It was disgusting.'"
Tom Tancredo - An interesting proposition
I think this point is worth considering...
The NewsMax.com reports this:
"White House hopeful Tom Tancredo said Thursday the existence of the Congressional Black Caucus and other race-based groups of lawmakers amounts to segregation and should be abolished.
'It is utterly hypocritical for Congress to extol the virtues of a colorblind society while officially sanctioning caucuses that are based solely on race,' said the Colorado Republican, who is most widely known as a vocal critic of illegal immigration."
F-117 Stealth Fighter - getting old?
Time sure goes by quickly; doesn't it?...
At Code One Magazine, Joe Oliva discusses the F-117 program:
"Though twenty years old now, the F-117 continues to be a unique, viable weapons system with unequaled capabilities. It has evolved not just technically, but operationally as well. No other aircraft in the world challenges high threat, high value targets like the F-117."
Monday, January 29, 2007
PETA - 7 Things You Didn't Know
Maybe you don't even want to know...
In the Canada Free Press they start with this one:
"PETA president and co-founder Ingrid Newkirk has described her group's overall goal as "total animal liberation." This means no meat, no milk, no zoos, no circuses, no wool, no leather, no hunting, no fishing, and no pets (not even seeing-eye dogs). PETA is also against all medical research that requires the use of animals."And there's more...
War on Terror - in New York City
This is pretty ugly.
And that's an understatement...
And that's an understatement...
In the New York Post, Jason Marchi reports:
"Hundreds of bogus badges have been turning up at some of the city's top terrorist targets, The Post has learned.
Authorities have confiscated 243 fake police badges and some 21,000 weapons and made 164 arrests or citations at city federal buildings since May 2005, according to sources and documents obtained by The Post."
The United Nations - money, money, and even more money
So, how does anyone really know where it goes?...
Claudia Rosett report in the LA Times:
"From the UNDP, Kim gets cash and a seat on the executive board.
Yes, on top of Oil-for-Fraud, Sex-for-Food, the car for Kojo, the $500,000 cash prize for Kofi, the tyrant-packed Human Rights Council, and other ventures of this kind, the UN now has a burgeoning scandal over the UN Development Program’s operations in nuclear-happy North Korea. Scroll down to the “related video” inside this UNDP link to watch Ad Melkert, an official of the UN Development Program, explaining to the press why pouring money without adequate oversight into Pyongyang is just dandy."
Politicians - Harry Reid
I really have trouble respecting politicians...
Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger report in the LA Times:
"BULLHEAD CITY, ARIZ. — It's hard to buy undeveloped land in booming northern Arizona for $166 an acre. But now-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid effectively did just that when a longtime friend decided to sell property owned by the employee pension fund that he controlled.
In 2002, Reid (D-Nev.) paid $10,000 to a pension fund controlled by Clair Haycock, a Las Vegas lubricants distributor and his friend for 50 years. The payment gave the senator full control of a 160-acre parcel in Bullhead City that Reid and the pension fund had jointly owned. Reid's price for the equivalent of 60 acres of undeveloped desert was less than one-tenth of the value the assessor placed on it at the time.
Six months after the deal closed, Reid introduced legislation to address the plight of lubricants dealers who had their supplies disrupted by the decisions of big oil companies. It was an issue the Haycock family had brought to Reid's attention in 1994, according to a source familiar with the events.
If Reid were to sell the property for any of the various estimates of its value, his gain on the $10,000 investment could range from $50,000 to $290,000."
Politicians - Our Senators
I guess this is what is meant by "having it both ways"...
Here's an editorial from the Washington Times:
"The Senate's 81-0 vote on Friday to confirm Lt. Gen. David Petraeus as commander is just the latest sign of the intellectual incoherence of that chamber's approach to Iraq. Right now, anti-war lawmakers are afraid to act on their convictions and cut off funding right away, so they seem to have opted for a two-track strategy: on the one hand, approving some funds for the war so they can't be accused of hurting the troops that they claim to support, on the other, denouncing President Bush's policies at every opportunity regardless of whether such actions project weakness or embolden the enemy."
Politicians - Barack Obama
I wonder if the American media will find out anything.
Or will they even look?...
Or will they even look?...
Sharon Churcher reports in the U.K.'s Daily Mail:
"Yet an investigation by The Mail on Sunday has revealed that, for all Mr Obama's reputation for straight talking and the compelling narrative of his recollections, they are largely myth.
We have discovered that his father was not just a deeply flawed individual but an abusive bigamist and an egomaniac, whose life was ruined not by racism or corruption but his own weaknesses.
And, devastatingly, the testimony has come from Mr Obama's own relatives and family friends."
Politicians - John Murtha
Looks like more of the same...
I found this on the New York Post opinion page:
"Now, it seems that the Pennsylvania Association for Individuals With Disabilities (PAID) does good things. But several lobbyists and contractors who have received millions in government largesse from Murtha sit on its board of directors.
In turn, notes the newspaper, those same officials 'have kept Murtha's campaigns flush with cash.'
Indeed, PAID largely exists through Murtha's efforts. Fully 80 percent of its income comes from direct government funding arranged by Murtha (who has long been known as the House's King of Earmarks)."
Politicians - Chuck Shumer
Nuance?...
Mark Finkelstein watches the news for NewsBusters.com:
"Gregory: 'But how can the public really buy the Democrats support the troops but don't support the mission? How can you do both?'
Schumer: 'Well, that's the difficulty. A resolution that says we're against this escalation, that's easy. The next step will be how do you put further pressure on the administration against the escalation but still supporting the troops who are there? And that's what we're figuring out right now.'
Kudos to Gregory for posing the question. Thanks, too, to Sen. Schumer, for letting the cat out of the bag."
Politicians - Harry Reid
Same old, same old...
At RealClearPolitics.com, Robert Novak reports on "ethical reform":
"A beaming Harry Reid last week basked in the adoration of the Democratic Party's leading Senate reformers and its nine freshman senators. They extravagantly praised the new majority leader as the exemplar of ethical reform. But within 48 hours, Reid was opposing full transparency of earmarks. This week, Republican reformers will target Reid with an amendment to the Senate ethics package.
Sponsored by Republican Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, the proposal is called the 'Reid amendment' because he inadvertently inspired it. Coburn would tighten loose anti-earmark restrictions in the ethics bill by prohibiting senators from requesting earmarks that financially benefit a senator, an immediate family member of a senator or a family member of a senator's staffer.
The proposal follows the revelation that Reid's four sons and his daughter's husband all have been lawyers or lobbyists for special interests. While Reid has declared they are barred from lobbying for their clients in his office, there is little doubt they have taken advantage of their close proximity to a powerful senator.
An example is provided by earmarks that have sent millions of federal dollars to the University of Nevada at Reno."
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Hollywood - Over the top?
Do we really need stuff like this?
I wonder if it would be OK for the 6th grade school play...
I wonder if it would be OK for the 6th grade school play...
At WorldNetDaily.com, Bob Unruh reports:
"The actress' agent, Joy Osbrink, earlier told the New York Daily News fans shouldn't worry.
'It's not just the rape scene – the whole story is challenging Dakota as an actress. And I've never been so proud of her in my life. I've seen the dailies, and in every scene she gets better and better.'"
The Media - There's a war going on
Apparently, anyone who criticizes Hillary Clinton can expect attacks from all sides...
InsightMag.com describes their experience:
(It may be a bit slow to display.)
"The liberal media establishment is at it again. For years, they have been carrying water for liberal Democrats. Today’s hit piece on Insight in The Washington Post is another case in point.
Howard Kurtz’s “Media Notes” column deals with our recent story about the Hillary Clinton camp’s role in investigating Barack Obama’s education as a young boy in an Indonesian Madrassa. Kurtz claims our story is “thinly sourced” and cites “only unnamed sources.” He further quotes officials from the Obama and Clinton camps, attacking the story as false. Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson said, “It’s an obvious right-wing hit job by a Moonie publication that was designed to attack Senator Clinton and Senator Obama at the same time.” Kurtz went on to say that “Insight, like The Washington Times, is owned by a company controlled by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon.” Finally, Kurtz writes, “No one answered the phone at Insight’s office yesterday and its editor did not respond to an e-mail request for comment”—the impression being that somehow we at Insight were reluctant to discuss and defend the story. Nothing could be further from the truth."
United Nations - and one of it's subsidiaries
"Millions go missing from the world weather organisation."
The sad part is that our tax money is a part of this...
The sad part is that our tax money is a part of this...
On the website, TerraDaily.com, is this story:
"The Geneva-based WMO is a specialized agency of the United Nations, and an authoritative voice on the state and behaviour of the Earth's atmosphere.
Le Temps newspaper said the internal report lists the delegates of more than 50 developing countries which had received between 1,000 and 3,000 Swiss francs each to influence their votes.
The main suspect in the fraud scandal, which was first uncovered by the organisation in December 2003, was a Sudanese official Muhammad Hassan, who fled the country in November 2003 after being fired and tipped off from inside the WMO of his imminent arrest, the NZZ am Sonntag said."
Global Warming - and Leif Ericsson?
Whatever you believe, you should consider this article...
I found this article by William Tucker at the American Spectator website:
"THE BIG PROBLEM FOR GLOBAL WARMING alarmists is a period called "The Medieval Warming," which occurred from about 950 A.D. to 1350 A.D. It's well known from the history books. The Vikings colonized Greenland in 982 A.D. and stayed until 1425 A.D., when the cold weather and permafrost drove them out. While there they mapped the northern coast of Greenland, which is now encased in ice (although it's slowly melting). Leif Ericsson, blown off course while headed for Greenland in 1000 A.D., discovered "Vinland" -- probably Nova Scotia -- where he found wild wheat and grapes growing in abundance. Today the land is barren.
In fact, the IPCC had known about the Medieval Warming all along. In 1996 it published a temperature graph that clearly showed the Medieval Warming. There wasn't any dispute at that point."
Global Warming - not man-made?
Apparently, your career is at risk, if you conclude that it isn't.
But, (and I just can't resist this) can 10,000 weathermen be wrong?...
But, (and I just can't resist this) can 10,000 weathermen be wrong?...
On the Inhofe EPW Press Blog, James Spann calls it "the Weather Channel mess":
"I have been in operational meteorology since 1978, and I know dozens and dozens of broadcast meteorologists all over the country. Our big job: look at a large volume of raw data and come up with a public weather forecast for the next seven days. I do not know of a single TV meteorologist who buys into the man-made global warming hype. I know there must be a few out there, but I can’t find them. Here are the basic facts you need to know:
*Billions of dollars of grant money is flowing into the pockets of those on the man-made global warming bandwagon. No man-made global warming, the money dries up. This is big money, make no mistake about it. Always follow the money trail and it tells a story."
Jimmy Carter - Disturbing
To say the least...
In the National Review, Claudia Rosett writes:
"In recent weeks, a number of articles have noted that Carter’s anti-Israeli views coincide with those of some of the center’s prime financial backers, including the government of Saudi Arabia and the foundation of Saudi prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud, whose offer of $10 million to New York City just after Sept. 11 was rejected by then-mayor Rudy Giuliani because it came wrapped in the suggestion that America rethink its support of Israel. Other big donors listed in the Carter Center’s annual reports include the Sultanate of Oman and the sultan himself; the government of the United Arab Emirates; and a brother of Osama bin Laden, Bakr BinLadin, “for the Saudi BinLadin Group.” Of lesser heft, but still large, are contributions from assorted development funds of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, as well as of OPEC, whose membership includes oil-rich Arab states, Nigeria (whose government is also a big donor to the Carter Center), and Venezuela (whose anti-American strongman Hugo Chávez benefited in a 2004 election from the highly controversial monitoring efforts of the Carter Center).
A recent editorial in Investor’s Business Daily, headlined “Jimmy Carter’s Li’l Ol’ Stink Tank,” listed a number of “founders” of the Carter Center. The names were drawn from the annual reports, and included “the king of Saudi Arabia, BCCI scandal banker Agha Hasan Abedi, and Arafat pal Hasib Sabbagh.” And, writing last month in the Washington Times, terror-funding expert Rachel Ehrenfeld described links going back to the 1970s between the Carter family peanut business and the Bank of Credit and Commerce International, whose Pakistani founder helped bankroll the Carter Center at least until BCCI went belly-up in 1991, busted as a global criminal enterprise."
Hillary Clinton - A Blast from the Past
I see this as an example of everything being "set up" to look a certain way.
It's disappointing that the media continues to go along with it...
It's disappointing that the media continues to go along with it...
Here's a old article from Concerned Women for America that exposes how it works:
"The kids pictured with the First Lady in newspapers across the country were actually the very healthy children of hospital staff.
The American Spectator exposed the story, reporting that a hospital source said Mrs. Clinton's advance team 'became squeamish about their boss appearing with kids who weren't looking 100 percent in the pink; in fact, hospital officials were told not to allow any children into the photo-op who were 'drowsy, bald, bearing tubes in their bodies, or 'sick-looking'."
Politicians - Tremoglie in the Philadelphia Bulletin
So what's new? They ARE politicians...
Michael P. Tremoglie writes for the Philadelphia Bulletin:
"A previous column of mine predicted that the only thing Americans can expect from the new Democratic controlled Congress was hate, hypocrisy, race-baiting, class warfare, larceny and deceit.
It did not take them long to prove me right. The Democrats, in only their first couple of weeks in power, have already broken several campaign promises, made scurrilous accusations about Republicans, and tried bait-and-switch legislation."
Politicians - Barack Obama's closet
Looks like Senator Obama keeps interesting company...
I found this at PittsburghLive.com:
"In October the senator talked to a group of magazine editors in Phoenix. The topic came around to his first book, "Dreams From My Father," in which he said he had used marijuana and cocaine. Obama said he had not tried heroin because he did not like the pusher who was trying to sell it to him.
Said the senator later in an interview: "It was reflective of the struggles and confusion of a teenage boy." Usually, when discussing drug use, politicians urge kids and their parents to "Just say no" to drugs. Barack Obama forgot to do so.
Soon after he was elected, Obama and his wife Michelle closed on a $1.65 million home. On the same day an adjacent empty lot was sold for $625,000. The new owner then sold Barack a 10-foot strip of the land for $104,500 so he could build a fence.
These transactions would have been met with only raised eyebrows had the purchaser of the empty lot not been Rita Rezko.
Rita's husband is Antoin "Tony" Rezko, an American of Syrian descent and a major fundraiser, not only for Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (whose administration is under federal investigation) but also for Obama, whom he has known for some time.
Tony also is under federal investigation -- for trying to collect millions in kickbacks on government deals. Gov. Blagojevich's wife, Patti, is heavily involved in Rezko's real estate business. And as these stories were breaking, she was telling the FBI that she was a law-abiding citizen who would never do anything wrong."
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Speed - Bugatti Veyron 16.4
Wanna race?
Wait 'til I find my second key...
Wait 'til I find my second key...
Patrick Hong writes for Road & Track:
"Forget the 660-bhp Ferrari Enzo, the 605-bhp Porsche Carrera GT, the 617-bhp Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, or even the mighty 627-bhp McLaren F1. These supercars are simply slugs compared with the new 2006 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 (16.4 for 16 cylinders, 4 turbochargers)."
Speed - In a hurry to get to Australia?
And shorter in-flight movies?...
DefenceTalk.com has this story:
"Here’s the promise: two-hour flights from anywhere to the other side of the world, replete with 30 minutes of Space Shuttle-like views while in orbit.
The problem: how to mix fuel in the engine of an efficient, hypersonic space plane invented by Astrox Corporation that travels as fast as Mach 25, or 17,500 miles-per-hour, above the Earth’s atmosphere.
The answer: Through two Maryland Industrial Partnerships Program projects, A. James Clark School of Engineering faculty members Ashwani Gupta and Kenneth Yu, along with graduate student Ram Balar, have successfully designed and tested a combustor for the Astrox space plane, which uses something called an inward-turning scramjet engine.
'Hypersonic space planes could revolutionize the transportation industry, much like jet planes did for subsonic commercial aviation 50 years ago,' said Astrox President Ajay Kothari. 'Seemingly remote parts of the world would be nearly as accessible as a two-hour drive.'"
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
RFID: Spychipped Levi's
Read about this technology; and then let your imagination go wild.
Like, it's 12 Midnight and "someone" knows where you are...
Like, it's 12 Midnight and "someone" knows where you are...
SpyChips.com reported this in April 2006:
"Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a controversial technology that uses tiny microchips to track items from a distance. These RFID microchips have earned the nickname "spychips" because each contains a unique identification number, like a Social Security number for things, that can be read silently and invisibly by radio waves. Over 40 of the world's leading privacy and civil liberties organizations have called for a moratorium on chipping individual consumer items because the technology can be used to track people without their knowledge or consent."
President Bush - No surprises
Tonight is the STATE OF THE UNION address by President Bush.
It seems timely to post this perspective from "the Anchoress"...
It seems timely to post this perspective from "the Anchoress"...
In May of 2006, The Anchoress wrote about "The Essential President Bush":
"Perhaps I am a dim bulb, but President Bush has never surprised me, and that is probably why I have never felt let down or “betrayed” by him. He is, in essentials, precisely who he has ever been."
"Uni spots based on political opinions"
Unfortunately, this article is no longer available without a subscription.
However, here is the interesting part...
However, here is the interesting part...
From The Australian, by Adam Cresswell on May 29, 2006:
"MEDICAL schools are giving students coveted university training places based on 'personality assessments' that include asking for their views on the Iraq war and gay marriage.
Less academically gifted students are leapfrogging those with better marks by signing up for coaching programs that school them in handling the interview questions -- fuelling critics' claims that the personality tests are skewing the selection process for the nation's future doctors away from the best and brightest."
Hollywood - Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood is being criticized about his new movie...
I found this at WorldNetDaily.com:
"Perhaps the sharpest criticism has come from nationally syndicated talk-radio host Michael Savage, who compared the director unfavorably to Tokyo Rose, the World War II-era Japanese radio propagandist.
"The astonishing transformation of Clint Eastwood, from his 'Dirty Harry' days, cannot be more forcefully understood than by appreciating the level to which he has gone in order to appease the liberal gods of Hollywood," said Savage. "Tokyo Rose would be more of an American patriot than Clint Eastwood in his new propaganda flick. Almost all of the Japanese soldiers on Iwo Jima were shown as courageous, long-suffering, loyal, kindly men dragged into the war against their wishes. Revisionist historians should watch this film simply to learn new techniques."
"Bush Has Quietly Tripled Aid to Africa"
Sarcasm on. I'm surprised the media would publish this. Sarcasm off...
In the Washington Post, Michael A. Fletcher discovers:
"The moves have surprised -- and pleased -- longtime supporters of assistance for Africa, who note that because Bush has received little support from African American voters, he has little obvious political incentive for his interest.
'I think the Bush administration deserves pretty high marks in terms of increasing aid to Africa,' said Steve Radelet, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development."
War on Terror - Diplomacy
I read this some time ago.
It factually contradicts the belief that we're not negotiating in the Middle East...
It factually contradicts the belief that we're not negotiating in the Middle East...
In the Wall Street Opinion Journal, Joel Himmelfarb wrote:
"the notion that the Bush administration's refusal to talk with Iran and Syria is the reason for our inability to stabilize Iraq.The author concludes:
The premise--pushed by Democratic politicians and others--is absolutely false. The people pushing this, among them Jimmy Carter and Zbigniew Brzezinski, and Sen. Chuck Hagel, seem intent on sandbagging President Bush into negotiating from a position of weakness over some form of 'grand bargain' with some of our most deadly enemies. But the fact is that plenty of engagement has already been taking place."
The record, from Carter to Bush II, strongly suggests that neither regime has any interest in cooperating with us in Iraq, and are more likely than not to view the Carter-Brzezinski-Hagel approach as a demonstration of American weakness.
War on Terror - It's different
Seems like a clear case of "nice guys finish last"...
Here's more on the terrorist's tactics from the Wall Street Opinion Journal:
"Beyond the war in Lebanon, these images suggest how Islamists seek to use the restraint of Western powers against them. They shoot at our civilians from the safety of their own civilian enclaves that they know we are reluctant to attack. Then if by chance their civilians are killed, they call in CNN and al-Jazeera cameras and wait for the likes of Mr. Roth to denounce America or Israel for war crimes.
None of this means the U.S. shouldn't continue to fight with discrimination and avoid civilian casualties. But it means our political leadership needs to speak as candidly as Israelis now are speaking about this enemy strategy, so the American people can understand and be steeled against this new civilian battleground."
Terrorists - Playing unfair?
Terrorist "modus operandi".
It seems that the media should report much more of this...
It seems that the media should report much more of this...
At DefendDemocracy.org, Clifford May reports on the "dishonest" methods of terrorists:
"'This study,' writes Dr. Reuven Erlich, the Center’s director, 'analyzes two central concepts of Hezbollah's warfare. … The first is the broad use of the Lebanese civilian population as a living shield; the second, viewing the Israeli civilian population as the primary target for the enormous rocket arsenal Hezbollah built up over a period of years. Both acts are considered war crimes under international law.'
The report and its accompanying photos and videos show Hezbollah rocket launchers hidden in Lebanese villages, alongside schools, mosques and hospitals; also rockets being launched from near U.N. outposts."
The Media - TIME Magazine & Second thoughts
"Champion of the dispossessed"? "Global everyman"?
You just can't get away with some things.
And I wonder what they publish that goes unnoticed...
You just can't get away with some things.
And I wonder what they publish that goes unnoticed...
Little Green Footballs has the pictures (proof):
Monday, January 22, 2007
The Media - Should we trust the AP?
From the Daily Princetonian, more commentary on the veracity of AP sources in Iraq...
Barry Caro discusses the implications of the lack of criticism of the Associated Press:
"So why have traditional media sources not reported this controversy? Because it is not in their interests to undermine the AP. This summer's 'fauxtography' scandal at Reuters, in which photographers were found to have photoshopped evidence of Israeli atrocities during the Hezbollah war, did not hit at the underlying narrative. The storyline stayed the same with different details. If the AP has to issue a correction for all 61 stories in which Hussein was quoted, it will call into question fundamental perceptions about what is happening in Iraq. If Hussein isn't real, it suggests that there are other as yet undiscovered fakes..
If our media is reporting as fact attacks that never occurred substantiated by witnesses who don't exist, then we have a problem. Public opinion about distant events is necessarily based on what is reported in the press. Therefore, we need to be confident that what we read is real. If we have to look at every source with suspicion and fight over every figure, our country cannot make necessary decisions about this war."
The Media - the New York Times
This is another example of why not to trust them...
Thomas Lifson writes for "the American Thinker":
"But it does stand as proof that top editorial and corporate management of the New York Times is indifferent to the publication of blatant lies, as long as the prejudices of its staff and readers are being reinforced..
Calame has distinguished himself here. He is highly diplomatic in his criticisms, but the facts he lays out speak for themselves. This is major journalistic scandal, not so much for the initial error (bad as it is, especially the reliance on advocates for basic translation services) but for the stonewalling which has followed revelations of the lie. It is one thing to be sloppy, even unethical in journalistic practice, using biased sources as translators. It is quite another to stonewall in the face of facts. The New York Times has hit bottom, and continues digging."
The Media - New York Times "malpractice"?
This is apparently the reason for those "Don't believe everything you read" comments.
Journalists have become worrisome to me...
Journalists have become worrisome to me...
Peter J. Smith writes for www.LifeSite.net:
"The New York Times has once again published another 'hit piece' on the institution of marriage, alleging that for 'the first time more American women are living without a husband than with one'. However, US census data for 2005 shows that the January 16th front-page story in the New York Times is just another disturbing showcase of the Times’ tolerance for 'journalistic malpractice'."
Something wrong here?
I think the writer has a good point...
In the New York Post, Linda Stasi calls attention to this:
"January 19, 2007 -- YESTERDAY, the parents of Shawn Hornbeck did what any parent whose child had been held captive and suf fered hell on earth would do in this circumstance: They put him on TV to suffer further pain, shame and humiliation.
On "Oprah" yet.
Yes, Pam and Craig Akers, Shawn's parents, who say they have not (yes, that's "not") asked him about his ordeal because it would be too painful right now, nonetheless had no problem dragging their traumatized child out before God and everyone to answer questions on national TV"
Immigration - Illegals costing lives?
Could this be true?
If it is, where's the outrage?...
If it is, where's the outrage?...
At DiscoverTheNetwork.org , Randy Hall writes about the ramifications of illegal immigration:
"While the mainstream media is focused on the Iraq war, this ongoing silent war is 'taking its toll in lives and domestic tranquility,' said Jim Gilchrist, founder of the Minuteman Project.
'Since 9/11 alone, about 45,000 U.S. residents have been killed in action via homicide or manslaughter at the hands of illegal aliens, and about another quarter of a million to 300,000 have been wounded,' Gilchrist told Cybercast News Service in an interview.
Gilchrist said he used the terms 'killed in action' and 'wounded' intentionally 'because essentially, we have a war going on here that's not a declared war, that's not a conventional war, but it is costing us 9,000 lives a year.'
That amounted to 'about 15 times the rate of KIAs [soldiers killed in action] in Iraq,' he said."
Immigration - "The Illegal-Alien Crime Wave"
And it is not new knowledge...
At City-Journal.org, Heather Mac Donald called it, "The Illegal-Alien Crime Wave" back in 2004:
"Police commanders may not want to discuss, much less respond to, the illegal-alien crisis, but its magnitude for law enforcement is startling. Some examples:
In Los Angeles, 95 percent of all outstanding warrants for homicide (which total 1,200 to 1,500) target illegal aliens. Up to two-thirds of all fugitive felony warrants (17,000) are for illegal aliens."
The Palestinian Authority's President says this?
I just can't understand how we expect peace to prevail there...
In the Jewish Press, Aaron Klein discusses the media's omission:
"In a major speech here last week in front of scores of international reporters, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called on Palestinian factions to put an end to weeks of infighting and instead 'raise rifles against the Israeli occupation.'
Abbas also praised Hamas and said that Jews are corrupting the world.
But Abbas's call to arms and his anti-Semitic remarks were not reported by most media outlets featuring articles on the Palestinian leader's address.
'Shooting at your brother is forbidden. Raising rifles against the occupation is our legitimate right, but raising guns against each other is forbidden.'
'We should put our internal fighting aside and raise our rifles only against the Israeli occupation,' said Abbas in the speech, which commemorated the 42nd anniversary of the founding of his Fatah party."
Sunday, January 21, 2007
The Media - What they have done?
This article closes with,
"America. It’s five to midnight. Do you know where the terrorists are?",
however, for me, it was this paragraph that rang most true...
"America. It’s five to midnight. Do you know where the terrorists are?",
however, for me, it was this paragraph that rang most true...
At MensNewsDaily.com, Frank Salvato tells it like it is:
"I do have to congratulate the mainstream media progressive propaganda complex. They have done an incredible job of creating a generation of people whose attention spans are so limited they can’t even recall the horror they felt on September 11, 2001. The empathy all Americans displayed, but for Ward Churchill, for those who had to leap to their deaths from the upper stories of the World Trade Center has waned. We are back to feasting on the bubblegum for the mind that are the antics of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan and the feud between the ego with the comb-over and the ego with no talent."
Politics - Some "fun" in San Francisco
In every aspect, this case is just ugly...
In the San Francisco Chronicle, Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross give us the dirt:
"Dawydiak was incensed by the mayor's comments, especially his remark that the incident was 'a good reminder how important it is to remind our parents to be good stewards of underage drinking.'
'This,' Dawydiak shot back, 'from a 40-year-old mayor (he's 39) who was out taking his underage girlfriend to bars and parties where liquor was being served?'"
999 team lunch as man dies
Some rules are OK to be broken...
In the United Kingdom, Emma Morton reports in "the Sun Online":
"A London spokesperson said last night: 'We can confirm crews were on a rest break at the time.'"
Food for Fuel
Here's something most of us probably never thought about...
In the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Rick Barrett reports:
"Across the Midwest, farmers are selling more corn to ethanol plants and are getting some of their highest prices in a decade.
In 2008, U.S. ethanol production will consume 139 million metric tons of corn, roughly half the nation's corn crop, the report notes. If that estimate is even close to being correct, the resulting strain on supplies of the ubiquitous crop could have dire consequences.
'What we are beginning to see is the unfolding of an epic competition between 800 million people who own automobiles and want to maintain their mobility, and the 2 billion poorest people in the world, many of whom are spending more than half of their income on food already,' Brown said at a news conference."
On Campus - Prayer Space Requested
It was the "only place he could find".
Give me a break...
Give me a break...
Dan Fletcher and Paul Takahashi report for The Daily Northwestern:
"Amid the cheering Northwestern football fans at Ryan Field, all Ashar Wasi wanted was a quiet place to pray. The only place he could find was a spot of less-than-clean floor in a public walkway.
'We had to pray in front of the concession stand, in front of all the people,' the McCormick junior said.
Perhaps someone noticed. At last Wednesday's ASG meeting, the Muslim-cultural Students Association proposed a bill establishing a designated prayer area at Welsh-Ryan Arena for Muslim students for football and basketball games.
McSA President Amir Siddiqui estimates more than 20 Muslim students are in attendance at nearly every game.
'Oftentimes while students are at sporting events, the prayer time falls during the game,' the Weinberg senior said."
"Two State Solution" - unlikely?
We're thinking about peace between Israel and Palestine, right?
Is it possible that we're being really stupid?...
Is it possible that we're being really stupid?...
Rachel Neuwirth writes at the American Thinker:
"Nor should we forget that the political-terrorist organization to which Abbas and his supporters belong, Fatah, continues to openly proclaim in its constitution, which is broadcast in both Arabic and English on its web site, that its goal is 'complete liberation of Palestine, and eradication of Zionist economic, political, military and cultural existence.' (Article 12, 'Goals' section), and that 'armed struggle is a strategy and not a tactic, and the Palestinian Arab People's armed revolution is a decisive factor in the liberation fight and in uprooting the Zionist existence, and this struggle will not cease unless the Zionist state is demolished and Palestine is completely liberated' (Article 19, 'Methods' section.)"
Hollywood - Cheap Shots?
Maybe it's just me; but, I think this could have been done differently.
Entertainment doesn't have to be political, does it?...
Entertainment doesn't have to be political, does it?...
At Newsbusters.org, Michelle Humphrey seems to have a point:
"Last night ABC’s Boston Legal was packed full of political jabs. Lawyer Denny Crane (played by William Shatner) was placed on the "No Fly List" and when Alan Shore (played by James Spader) asked if Crane has called for help, his response was, "Well, I can’t get anybody. I called Tom Delay, his number’s disconnected. Foley has got his hands full, Frist said, "Don’t take it personally." I called Clarence Thomas; his office said he was indisposed." Shore then asked, "How you tried going right to the top?" Crane’s response was, "Cheney?"
Soon after, Shore described Crane to a Homeland Security official saying, "Mr. Murch... there is nobody more red, white and blue than this man here. He's for the death penalty. He's pro-life. He doesn't read newspapers. He's exercised every loophole to avoid paying taxes. He's even donated to. The Jack Abramoff ball."
That Border Agent conviction - the prosecutor
This interview reveals a much different view of this case than I had previously heard...
Jerome Corsi interviews the prosecutor:
"My bottom line is that it is the outrageous behavior of Ramos and Compean that got us here. They were not doing their jobs. They committed a number of very serious crimes. All that evidence that was presented to a jury of their peers in El Paso that was willing to give these two Border Patrol agents the benefit of a doubt. El Paso is a town that is very much a Border Patrol town. Border Patrol is loved and admired in El Paso. The huge presence of Border Patrol in El Paso has made it one of the safest cities in the United States, due to their presence there.
Both Agents Ramos and Compean testified at their trial. They told their story and they explained everything that they saw. Aldrete-Davila got on the witness stand. The other agents, who were at the scene, testified at the trial. Many of the supervisors testified. There was two and a half weeks of evidence that was presented. So it's not as if these agents' story did not come out. Their story was presented to the jury. The problem was that the story was very inconsistent and not believable. The jury rejected the story of the agents and that is why they were convicted."
That Border Agent conviction
I have to wonder what is "really" going on here...
At NewsMax.com, George Putnam reports:
"Three jurors say they were coerced into convicting the two agents.
Judge Cardone, the prosecution, and the jury got it wrong the first time and now it seems they have it wrong again!
This ruling by judge and jury is the most disgraceful act I have heard of in the history of our great nation. Judge Cardone and the prosecutors should be ashamed of themselves for distorting the facts in the case.
The two dedicated border patrolmen are now behind bars and the drug smuggler is free to go about his illicit traffic in drug pedaling and thumbing his nose at us all of us while justice weeps.
And yet still no response from the White House or attorney general."
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Politicians - and Medicare Part D
Beware! Politicians are involved.
Changing Medicare Part D could create unintended consequences...
Changing Medicare Part D could create unintended consequences...
Russ Wilcox considers some ramifications:
"Now along comes Nancy Pelosi on a mission to have the federal government negotiate drug prices for Medicare recipients – a sure winner politically to gain votes from ignorant and naive voters. She cites the program of the Veterans Administration, which does negotiate drug prices. Of course, she only mentions the lower prices; she doesn’t mention the limited number of drugs available to VA members (1400 vs. 4300 for Medicare Part D), nor does she mention that VA members have no access to any of the newer drugs according to a study by the General Accounting Office.
And most of all, she never mentions what two independent researchers have concluded would happen to the development of future wonder drugs if the federal government gets involved in setting prices: that approximately 200 new drugs over the next 20 years will never be developed for our children and our grandchildren. We would be robbing the next generation with our selfishness, while simultaneously reducing the number of drugs available to us now. This is not mere alarmism; both Canada and Europe are already experiencing a decline in the development of new drugs."
Meanwhile, in the Italian Parliament
Here's an article I saved from the Christmas season.
Apparently, nothing is sacred...
Apparently, nothing is sacred...
Philip Pullella reports via Reuters:
"Two leftists in Italy's ruling coalition on Wednesday outraged fellow lawmakers by placing four dolls representing homosexual couples near the baby Jesus in the official nativity scene in parliament.
The two parliamentarians from the small 'Rose in the Fist' party said their gesture was to promote the legalization of gay marriage and granting legal recognition to unmarried couples.
Bruno Mellano and Donatella Poretti placed the Barbie and Ken-type dolls in the parliamentary nativity scene, each couple lying down embraced among the shepherds witnessing the birth of Jesus.
Each of the two doll couples, which parliamentary ushers removed after a few minutes, wore miniature placards with slogans in favor of gay rights."
Politicians - Reporting for work
Are you getting nervous yet?...
At the Washington Post, Dana Milbank reports on the convening of the Senate:
"The attention quickly shifted -- to Robert Byrd. The 89-year-old West Virginia Democrat, beginning his ninth term, wore a red-white-and-blue tie and punctuated the opening prayer with shouts of "Yes!" and "Mmmhmmm!" and "Yes, Lord!" and "Yes, in Jesus's name!" When he was sworn in, he twice cried out "Hallelujah!" and then "Amen!" Minutes later, he was installed as Senate president pro tempore, the majority party's most senior member. "Yeah, man! Yeah, man!" he shouted. "Hallelujah!" "I do, so help me God!" he shouted when the oath was administered. "Yeah, man!"
"His colleagues were amused. Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) at one point pretended to tilt a bottle into his mouth, though it was unclear whether Byrd was the target of that gesture."
Pastor Rick Warren - Purpose Driven?
Well, it may have started out that way...
In an article titled "Looking Behind the 'Purpose Driven' Sheep's Clothing", at CNSNews.com, Christopher G. Adamo includes this commentary:
"Yet an amazing degree of compatibility and congeniality exists between the Warren Church model and the social structures of Chicago and Southern California.
The tradeoff between true Christian principle and acceptability to the locals is apparently worth the spiritual sacrifice it entails, with expanding parking lots, increasingly lavish facilities and, of course, fuller collection plates bearing witness. Meanwhile, such churches offer ever less of a worthwhile and much-needed alternative to the ailing world around them.
Ultimately, Warren gives conformist Christians, wearied from their ongoing battle with a world that is increasingly hostile to true Christian faith, an apparent 'out' by offering a version that the modern world can find more acceptable while remaining in its present spiritual darkness.
Many among Warren's vast following have made the mistake, in light of his 'purpose driven' ministering, of presuming, at the heart of the movement, a Christ-driven purpose. Yet as Warren's real character continues to be revealed, it is becoming apparent that members of that following are presuming too much."
"A Deadly Story We Keep Missing" - from Peter J. Woolley
Could it be that automobile deaths are considered "acceptable"?...
Writing for the Washington Post, Peter J. Woolley presents this fact:
"At the 2006 casualty rate of 800 soldiers per year, the United States would have to be in Iraq for more than 50 years to equal just one year of automobile deaths back home."
The Media - and their priorities
This writer takes the time to point out the priorities and biases of TV news networks and their talking heads.....
At NewsBusters.org, Brent Baker reports:
"The AP obtained the November 4, 2005 report from the Inspector General of the National Archives and in a dispatch late Wednesday led with how “President Clinton's national security adviser removed classified documents from the National Archives, hid them under a construction trailer and later tried to find the trash collector to retrieve them, the agency's internal watchdog said Wednesday.” But despite the colorful details about how Sandy Berger cut the documents, about the Clinton administration's reaction to terrorist threats in 1999, into small pieces, the broadcast networks weren't interested Thursday morning or evening even though the report discredits Berger's claims he simply accidentally mishandled the documents.
The evening newscasts, which all began with the bad weather in the Rocky Mountain states and how four Marines were charged with murder for the alleged massacre in Haditha, didn't utter a syllable about Berger's apparent efforts to cover up an aspect of how the Clinton White House responded to a terrorist threat."
Sandy Berger - Covering the tracks?
How about, "The devil made me do it."?...
In this article by Chelsea Schilling at WorldNetDaily.com, also discovers that Bill Clinton authorized Sandy Berger's access:
"Berger said if someone had always been with him, he would not have taken any documents."
"Despite his April 1, 2005, guilty plea for Unauthorized Removal and Retention of Classified Material, Berger still vehemently denies smuggling any documents in his socks. According to the report, he said he was adjusting them 'because his shoes frequently come untied and his socks frequently fall down.'"
Sandy Berger - former National Security Advisor
It's not hard to criticize characters like this...
The Wall Street Opinion Journal reports on the House Government Reform Committee's report on Mr. Berger's pilfering of classified documents from the National Archives:
"The committee's 60-page report makes it clear that Mr. Berger knew exactly what he was doing and knew that what he was doing was wrong. According to interviews with National Archives staff, Mr. Berger repeatedly arranged to be left alone with highly classified documents by feigning the need to make personal phone calls, and he used those moments alone with the files to stuff them in his pockets and briefcase."
"One incident is particularly suggestive. By his fourth and final visit to review documents and prepare for testimony before the 9/11 Commission, the Archives staff had grown suspicious of how Mr. Berger was handling the documents, so they numbered each one he was given in pencil on the back of the document. When one of them--No. 217--was apparently removed from the files by Mr. Berger, the staff reprinted a copy and replaced it for his review. According to the report, Mr. Berger then proceeded to slip the second copy 'under his portfolio also.' In other words, he stole the same document twice."
Sandy Berger - What? and Why?
This writer thinks we deserve some answers...
At RealClearPolitics.com, Ronald A. Cass asks, "What Did He Take and Why Did He Take It?":
"Some things cry out for explanation. Like finding $90,000 in marked bills in a Congressman's freezer. Or finding out that a blue-chip lawyer who held one of the most important jobs in the nation was willing to risk his career, his livelihood, and his liberty to steal, hide, and destroy classified documents.
We all have a pretty good idea what the money was doing in Representative William Jefferson's freezer. But the questions about President William Jefferson Clinton's National Security Adviser, Sandy Berger, just keep piling up.
It's time we got some answers."
