Thursday, June 30, 2005

Bob Herbert Won’t Write About This

But the Army has exceeded its recruitment goal for the month of June by about 500 troops. Since Herbert has attributed prior recruitment shortfalls to fear of dying in Iraq, we can only assume that he will say that it's suddenly become more popular.

Hat Tip: Right Wing News

INTERBLOGATORY TRAVELS

A Change In Mood: Something happened this evening in Aruba to significantly change the tone of the family of Natalee Holloway. Whatever it was is not generally known, but thought to come from a private meeting with Aruban authorities about which the family isn't commenting, other than to say they are feeling better as regards the progress of the investigation.

Early Computer Reference in Batman?: Batman was always well ahead of the technology curve in the comics due to his lack of superpowers. But a 1945 computer reference is really quite early.

Porn Creep: Maybe it's the emergence of the blogosphere detailing every single move a celebrity makes, or maybe just the current zeitgeist, but does anyone get the idea that porn is becoming the new way to celebrity? Forget Jenna Jameson crossing over to the mainstream - we're talking some major stars flaunting their wares.

Death to Rader: When I said that for Raderto spend the rest of his life in prison was a severe, if wholly justified, punishment, my prosecutor friend quipped, "He might like it." She went on to say that sex offenders and homicidal sex offenders such as Rader have very perverted tastes. Some of those tastes can be fulfilled in prisons.

Pat will get you up to speed: Looks like the full court press is going on with regard to global warming; I suppose the intent is to put pressure on President Bushin the runup to the G8 meeting in Scotland next week.

Jackson's Junction has it; watch the Ward Churchill video HERE: "Fragging an officer has a much more impactful effect" When will this anti-American slimeball be fired?

Madeleine Smith and her poisonous tale: At her trial in 1857 the whole of Scotland was scandalised by newspaper accounts of pre-marital sex and arsenic poisoning. Yet the young and attractive Miss Smith walked free after a verdict of "not proven". Even today opinion is split as to whether she was framed, or got away with the murder of Emile L'Angelier.

Absolutely hysterical! Flame Warriors by Mike Reed: Which type of computer user/blogger are you?

Face of Evil

Study this face. It is evil:

Former hostages in the 1979 takeover of the US Embassy in Tehran have identified Iran's president-elect Mahmood Ahmadinejad as a key player in their 444-day ordeal, The Washington Times said on Thursday.

"The new president of Iran is a terrorist," retired Army Colonel Charles Scott, 73, a former hostage told the daily.

"As soon as I saw his picture in the paper, I knew that was the bastard...He was one of the top two or three leaders." said Scott, who lives in Jonesboro, Georgia.

Herbert: Quagmire, Quagmire, Quagmire

Well, the header to this post pretty much tells you what Bob Herbert does in today's column. The "Q-word" appears four times in the piece, and original, insightful commentary nowhere.

More than 1,730 American troops have already died in Iraq. Some were little more than children when they signed up for the armed forces, like Ramona Valdez, who grew up in the Bronx and was just 17 when she joined the Marines. She was one of six service members, including four women, who were killed when a suicide bomber struck their convoy in Falluja last week.

Herbert returns to one of his favorite themes here; that the military is recruiting kids too young to understand what they are letting themselves in for. The only problem with his analysis is that you can't join the Marines when you're 17 unless you have your parents' permission.

Talking about President Bush's "Bring it on!" comment:

It was an immature display of street-corner machismo that appalled people familiar with the agonizing ordeals of combat. Senator Frank Lautenberg, a New Jersey Democrat, was quoted in The Washington Post as saying: "I am shaking my head in disbelief. When I served in the Army in Europe during World War II, I never heard any military commander - let alone the commander in chief - invite enemies to attack U.S. troops."

Perhaps the most famous military response in history came when Xerxes, leader of the Persians offered to spare King Leonidas of Sparta and 300 of his men if they would just lay down their arms. Leonidas replied, "Molon Labe!" Literally, "Come and get them!"

Frank Lautenberg and Bob Herbert would no doubt blast Leonidas as incompetent.

What Has She Been Smoking

Hal Lindsay is cookin' in his latest screed against San Fran Nan (Bella Pelosi):

Now it has a representative government, an independent judiciary and is no longer a threat to anybody except terrorists. Which brings us to part two of Rep. Pelosi's second complaint. Now it is a "magnet for terrorism because the president invaded Iraq ..."

Evidently, Rep. Pelosi thinks that is a bad thing for America. Where would she prefer to locate the "terrorist magnet"? New York? Washington? Los Angeles? I thought that was the strategy – fight them in the Middle East instead of fighting them in the Midwest? Maybe I am missing something about the nuances of politics.

The insurgency "took root" in the unstable conditions of post-war Iraq? How could that have been avoided? Well, we could have nuked Baghdad. Then there wouldn't be any "insurgents" – which is a catch-all phrase that includes remnants of the Bathist regime and thousands of foreign al-Qaida fighters (who, if they were not attacking American military forces in Iraq, would have resumed attacking American civilians in the homeland).

American forces are protected with Kevlar vests and helmets, armed with great, big guns, are supported by radar, unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, heavy weapons, helicopters and fighters, and are trained for exactly this eventuality.


American civilians at home have been disarmed by the government, fly in unprotected commercial aircraft and are protected by business suits and briefcases, and aren't even supported by the liberals in Congress. This is a rebuttal?

Maybe I am missing something. If al-Qaida has concentrated its forces in Iraq, doesn't that limit its ability to concentrate its forces elsewhere? Like Philadelphia? And if al-Qaida is bound and determined to bring war to Americans, isn't it a good idea for them to run into the U.S. Marines instead of a civilian office building?

What has she been smoking?

Mexico Puts Barack Obama on Stamp

Mexican officials claim these are not racist caricatures. Um, if you show this picture to enough of my "kin folk" you won't need a Minuteman Project; black America will handle the situation south of the border.

UPDATE! I am posting this wonderful display prepared by Danegerus on this Memin Pinguin character. Anyone still sitting on the fence? Sure, American's have Sambo, but we aren't going to put him on a stamp.

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

Quote of the Day

"I don't understand the fascination about the runaway bride. Have you seen the guy? You would run away, too."

- Stated in a television commercial for a Tulsa automobile dealership

My Husband Lives Across the Street

Leave it to Californians to be on the cutting edge of married life: living apart.

No, not couples who separate for a while in order to evaluate their marriage, nor couples who maintain two residences because one may "commute" to a job far away and come home on weekends. Literally, men and women who are married, but who live either next door to one another, across the street, or across town.

It's almost a trend. A 2003 census report found that 3 million married couples lived in separate residences (although that statistic must include many who are separated in the "this-isn't-working" sense). Some live in different units in the same apartment building. Some live in separate cities. Some just divide up the house they have into two addresses with one electric bill.

Why would people who want to commit legally not want to live together?

Donna Guadagni, 46, is one of those happy beings. A high school art teacher, she has a well-ordered place of her own in the sleepy former mill town of White Pines in Calaveras County. In June she will marry Dave Wallace, 55, but there will be no "we're-moving-in-together" garage sale to get rid of the duplicate appliances. Wallace lives an hour down the mountain in his own house, and both will keep their houses. The distance is not ideal: Guadagni said she'd prefer what Minnie and Mickey Mouse have -- living next door to each other with a path going from front door to front door. But she likes her own space, and her intended has fits of creative energy, not to mention seven hot rods in the yard. Wallace dreams of a 10-car garage with a modest house at each end.

These are obviously people who belong to the "ME" generation, and whose own needs are more important than the needs of others. Living with someone else takes patience, commitment, and the ability to compromise...qualities that are obviously unimportant to couples who take the marriage plunge but maintain separate addresses.

The article doesn't feature any couples who have children, but what about those couples, if they indeed exist? Do Joey and Sally take turns living in each house, or does one spouse visit the house with the kids in it? That sort of arrangement is difficult at best when a divorce is involved. How do you explain it to them? "Mommy and Daddy are married, but Mommy just likes to live alone." The kids will grow up not knowing how to live in a traditional relationship, not knowing how to compromise, argue and make up, and give of oneself.

And how about those expenses? It can't be cheap to maintain separate abodes. The couples featured in the article are all older, with established careers. Young people just starting out don't usually have the kind of cash flow that would allow them to maintain two residences, especially in an area as pricey as the San Francisco area. But expenses don't seem to affect the decision as much as way of life.

Not surprisingly, different styles can have a lot to do with the decision to live apart. When she thinks of living with her husband, [Juliana] Grenzeback said, "I get anxiety attacks." [Joshua] Brody describes his own style as archival. It's a dark apartment with a music studio in the middle, and other rooms hold shelf upon shelf of 45s. Brody's kitsch postcards -- "Seattle at night," "Florida at night," etc. -- decorate the wall next to the front door.

Then why marry? Why not just be "boyfriend and girlfriend?" Having your cake while not having to live with it (to paraphrase a marriage therapist from the article) is just another way of saying you're too self-absorbed to think about someone else's needs. It's a sad commentary on the devolution of society when couples are no longer "us," but "me and me."

*This post also appears on BlogMeister USA.*

Political Question of the Day

Here is an excerpt from a story published in the 06/29/05 issue of the Tulsa World newspaper.

The Oklahoma Democratic Party owes money to the Internal Revenue Service and the state Tax Commission as part of nearly $500,000 in unpaid bills, records show. The party also failed to pay its employees while accumulating debts for a multitude of campaign services under the chairmanship of Jay Parmley, filings with the Federal Election Commission indicate.

Political Question of the Day:
Will Howard Dean stop ranting against Republicans long enough to help his party pay off its debts?

Why Irish Eyes Are Smiling

Tom Friedman takes a look at the Irish miracle, which I have often blogged on at Brainster's.


Here's something you probably didn't know: Ireland today is the richest country in the European Union after Luxembourg.

Well, actually I did know it, Tom, but I suspect that many readers of the New York Times may be surprised. How did they do it?

And change Ireland did. In a quite unusual development, the government, the main trade unions, farmers and industrialists came together and agreed on a program of fiscal austerity, slashing corporate taxes to 12.5 percent, far below the rest of Europe, moderating wages and prices, and aggressively courting foreign investment. In 1996, Ireland made college education basically free, creating an even more educated work force.

Friedman, selling this to the liberal readers of the Times, stresses the impact of social benefits (like free education and healthcare), but most observers credit the low tax rates. Indeed, that is the major difference between Ireland and the struggling economies of France and Germany. In fact, those two countries have been prodding the EU to force tax "harmonization", which of course will work only in one direction.

Guest Blogging at Ankle Biting Pundits

Check out my first post at ABP on Bush's speech last night.

Here's a taste:

The Democrats and liberals want to forget 9/11 as quickly as possible and get back to reminding Americans not to forget about FDR. What crap...

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

Larry David:  Funny Nut

I get upset when, what I believe to be well written posts are not picked up by conservative bloggers. But if leftists can get away with this CRAP on the HuffPuff, then I will not be too concerned. I am glad we have higher standards. Will someone translate the following?

I wonder how long I've been up. It feels like at least forty minutes. Maybe I should look at the time. No, don't look at the time. How's that gonna help? I'm just curious. Don't look. DO NOT LOOK…three- thirty. Are you happy? Idiot. I told you not to look but you know everything…I can't stand this quilt. The comforter inside always slips down. I’m grabbing at nothing here! I haven't had a good quilt in a long time. Where'd this quilt come from anyway? Tomorrow I'll mention the quilt. She's not gonna like that. She'll say there's nothing wrong with the quilt and that'll be that. It's sad I can't have a quilt I rove…Rove, damn it, that’s the second time today I’ve done that. God, I hate that man. See, this is what he wants. He wants to get in your head. He wants to keep you up. You’re giving him what he wants! If he keeps us all up, we’ll be too tired to fight them. That’s their strategy, and you’re playing right into their hands. We have to start keeping them up. But how? The only things that bothers them enough to keep them up are fetuses. They love that fetus. The fetus and Jesus. Sounds like a comedy team. “Ladies and gentlemen, give a warm welcome to Fetus and Jesus…” Stop thinking about them. I can’t. Try!

Princeton University sells book On Bullshit

On Bullshit is the name of a book that has been published by Princeton University Press. The book's author is Harry G. Frankfurt, a Princeton philosophy professor.

The book has an obvious flaw. Its title could mislead a person into thinking that the book was a "how-to" manual for Washington, DC. politicians.

To learn how to buy the book, click here.

Behind the scenes of the MSM

The Poynter Institute's website has a column called Romenesko that gives a peak at what MSM insiders are telling each other.

Recently, the column featured a commentary by a MSM member who suggests that CNN hire Dan Rather. In the Romenesko feedback column for 06/28/05, David Keller makes the following comment:

Journalists continue to wonder why mainstream America doesn't like, trust and understand the media. Look no further Verne Gay's June 27 "Off Camera" column in Newsday in which Gay urges CNN to hire Dan Rather. Rather's action at CBS News made it clear that he possesses the type of demeanor and values that most Americans find questionable in a journalist. Why would Gay subject a ratings-hungry CNN to Rather? Why would Gay subject America to Rather? It's obvious that Gay is as out of touch as the rest of the elite media.

If you want to keep tabs on what is happening inside the mainstream media, then a good way to start would be to place the Poynter website in the "Favorites" section of your web browser.

NEW BLOG ON THE BLOCK!

Lucianne and I helped Keigh (key) to courageously go into the blogosphere with KeighNotes. So, (drum roll please), give a big welcome to the little lady! (Pat, we may have to ask your help sometime, should the techie problem arise:)

I am an armchair ruler of the world, a sports fan, a book lover, and an ardent supporter of all that is family. I won't play poker against George W. Bush- and will crawl on broken glass to make sure that Mrs. Clinton does not enter the White House again- except as a guest.