Grounded by Reality

Labor Day is approaching. I heard an interesting tidbit on a radio show I normally don't listen to, so maybe they have a new listener now. I like one that isn't just dwelling on the same stuff everyone else is, something new to ponder. Seems the Machinists union has endorsed both a Dem and a Repub. Whoa, Nelly. They stated that they expect an estimated 1/3 of their union members to vote Repub and thought it was time to begin some sort of bi-partisan process. It was a hallelujah moment for me, I'll tell you that. Imagine that. Unions members voting Republican? As if it hasn't always been so? As if union members were a monolithic group, like say, black Americans? Yeah, even that is marginally changing. There does seem to me to be room in all organizations and groups of people for more than one point of view.

The endorsements? Hillary and Mike Huckabee. Huckabee because he was the only Republican to show up! Republicans are missing out by not reaching out and forgetting about stereotypes. Think about it. Regular working Joes and Joans in the Heartland have just about nothing in common with the socialist agenda of Hillary. They get up and go to work everyday. They support families and educate their children. They aren't waiting for the government to take care of them. Republican tax cuts and low interest rates, low unemployment, higher consumer confidence is just as important to them as any sector. They are Reagan democrats.

And, with Labor Day almost here, all the buzz is about the upcoming report on Iraq by General Petreaus and Ambassador Crocker. The defeatists are in a distinct panic mode, trying to backpedal as swiftly and quietly as possible. According to a new Zogby poll, no friend normally to conservatives, reports that 54% of Americans believe Iraq is not a lost cause. 54%. Problems arise with the following breakdown: "While two in three Democrats (66%) said the war effort has already failed, just 9% of Republicans say the same." The point is that a majority of Americans are not ready to surrender just yet. The surge is showing signs of progress. The drag is the political side of the equation. Even a major development last week, though, failed to get prominent coverage - the three major populations, the Shiite, Sunni and Kurds, came together and formed a union of sorts to pull the country together. Joining forces to resolve a national oil policy, easing of de-Baathification, and the release of certain detainees. No big media coverage there. Gee, wonder why.

A common complaint is that the Petraeus report will be written by the White House, therefore, it is not to be trusted. As if all of a sudden the rug had been pulled out from under the defeatists and the writing of the report hijacked by the White House. In fact, the law was written thus:

"Public Law 110-28 specifies that the President, having consulted with the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the Commander, Multi-National Forces - Iraq, he United States Ambassador to Iraq, and the Commander of the U.S. Central Command, will prepare the report and submit the report to Congress." "The United States Ambassador to Iraq and the Commander, Multi-National Forces Iraq will be made available to testify in open and closed sessions before the relevant committees of the Congress." (H/T Blackfive)

So, there you go. The braying donkeys will get lots of public and private testimony from all involved. They will have the opportunity to put on whatever kind of show they wish to subject the taxpayers to and live on C-SPAN, I'm sure.

The defeatists really ramped up the rhetoric when congressmen like Brian Baird, D-WA, a staunch anti war kind of representative came back from his journey to Iraq, who previously called the war "one of the worst foreign policy mistakes in the history of our nation", said he is convinced the situation "has at long last begun to change substantially for the better." And, along with that honesty from him came the predictable attacks from the far left blogging world. One of the nicer 'insults' was he's now Dick Cheney's trained monkey. As if.

And, when Hillary came back and said to the Veterans of Foreign Wars last week, "We've begun to change tactics in Iraq" she was warned by David Bonior, John Edwards's campaign manager about "undermining the effort in the Congress to end this war." To which Hillary did the expected bowing to any criticism and pandered "The surge was designed to give the Iraqi government time to take steps to ensure a political solution. It has failed...We need to start getting out." Atta girl, Hill.

They don't want no stinkin' honesty. Doesn't fit the agenda in which they are so heavily entrenched. Rooting for defeat.

Quite a party platform for 2008.

One of Those Days

Blogging pal, Debbie, over at http://www.righttruth.wordpress.com/, has nominated me for the Nice Award. She is a sweet gal and I will take any good strokes I can get today.

What a day. I was picking up the boy at school and maneuvered through the parking lot to get back to the side street. Onto the side street, stopped, in line, waiting for the stop light to change to green to get onto the main street. Some young chickadee was driving far too fast and not paying attention, evidently, and rammed into my rear bumper. She was in her daddy's SUV and I suppose it could have been worse. It did unnerve me, I must admit, as these accidents out of the blue can do to a person. Bleck.

Let me just say that the high school parking lot, alive with new drivers, scares the water out of me.

I read an interesting article written by Jodi Kantor for The New York Times the other day. Do you realize how many potential presidential candidates this time around have very young children at home? It's quite extraordinary. Proves we baby boomers refuse to grow old gracefully, I guess.

You know John Edwards has Emma Claire (I adore her Southern name, by the way) age 9 and Jack age 7. Well four others have young ones, too. Chris Dodd has Grace age 5 who suffers from some life-threatening allergies and Christina age 2. Barack Obama has the two young girls but it appears he is disrupting their lives the least. He and Michelle have made the decision to not have them on the campaign trail, as opposed, to say, the Edwards.

Sam Brownback has twin nine year olds, Mark and Jenna. And Fred Thompson, as soon to declare candidate, has two really young ones, the youngest being Samuel who is only 9 months old.

Interesting.

And then Peggy Noonan's column "To Old Times" that appeared in the Wall Street Journal last week. She reminisced about a trip to Normandy in 1991. It was summer and she went hot air ballooning. The balloon had to land unexpectedly in a farmer's field. He was an old man and was so excited to host some Americans. He ran into his house and came back out, carrying a bottle of Calvados, to make a toast. His toast? "To old times." He had not seen any Americans since the Normandy Invasion. Wild. He was honored to thank the next generation of those who fought their way through France, to give France back to the French, as Noonan said.

She went on to write her thoughts of the children of Iraq. They will one day tell stories to the next generation of the American soldiers. Our soldiers are doing wonderful acts of kindness in Iraq, as well as yeoman's work, such as building hospitals, schools and distributing school supplies.

"It is not possible that the good people of Iraq are not noticing, and that in some way down the road the sum of these acts will not come to have some special meaning, some special weight of its own. The actor Gary Sinise helps run Operation Iraqi Children, which delivers school supplies with the help of U.S. forces. When he visits Baghdad grade schools, the kids yell, "Lieutenant Dan!" -- his role in "Forrest Gump," the story of another good man."

Makes a person proud.

Some of This, Some of That

Today brings a bit of this and a bit of that.

Pat Leahy, D-Vt, kicked off the Senate Intelligence Committee, as its chairman, a few years ago for leaking classified info to the newspaper reporters when the opportunity arose, said this upon the resignation of Alberto Gonzales: "The Attorney General's resignation reinforces what Congress and the American people already know - that no Justice Department should be allowed to become a political arm of the White House, whether occupied by a Republican or Democrat". See, he's all bi-partisan and all. What a guy. Does the name Bobby Kennedy ring a bell, Senator Leahy?

Leahy would do well to remember the separation of the three branches of government he is so fond of whining about to the administration whenever they do anything of which he disapproves. Like showing up in the morning for work. That group of senators still think they get to make the president's administrative appointments.

Another endorsement in for Hillary Clinton : Fidel Castro gives props to a ticket with her and Obama on it. She must be proud.

Good news for the American people/bad news for John Edwards: The U.S. Census report was released and poverty is down in our country. Sorry, John. Wages are up. And the uninsured that all of the socialists running want to pander to? Seems that 45% of the uninsured in this country are illegal aliens. 45%. The next biggest percentage is the 19-24 year old segment of society. Makes sense. They fall off the parents' policies at 18 and some until college graduation, but it's always been like that.

Ever been to an emergency room in Houston on a Friday night? Ah, good times.

New York architect Robert A.M. Stern, dean of Yale's School of Architecture has been named the architect chosen to design the George W. Bush presidential library. No official announcement as to where it will be but rumor has it that SMU has been chosen, in Dallas. It's one of Laura's alma maters and George W. donated a million to fund the Laura Bush something or the other there.

Lucy, the fossil found in Ethiopia in 1974, making her the oldest fossil found at the time, is on display here in Houston. She's visiting for a while and letting folks gawk at her to see more evidence of the progression from ape like beings to humans now.

As contrast, yesterday an original light saber prop from the original Star Wars was delivered by NASA employee to Space Center Houston as part of a commemoration of the 30 year anniversary of said movie.

Ancient man to space man. If nothing else, we are a city of dramatic contrasts.

Note to Kenye West: President Bush and Laura Bush were in New Orleans and Mississippi today to remember Hurricane Katrina's arrival on the Gulf coast two years ago. Black folks were hugging him, freely and openly. Guess the president must have found some black people he doesn't hate, huh Kenye?

Apparently they didn't get the memo, Kenye, as most seemed to be reaching out to hug him as he moved to them.

The Katrina cottages built in Mississippi are awesome. Unlike New Orleans, the state of Mississippi came up with a plan for moving people back into homes and thus, received the federal money. The state of Louisiana, however, is doing the same old, same old. So corrupt, still, that plans aren't being made and money isn't being distributed. They'd like to say it is Bush's fault. The only blame I have for Bush is that he has allowed the state to have too much power in the state of emergency. The governor and the mayor have failed miserably and the federal money is slow to be received because of them. It's a disgrace. Plus, the people of Mississippi are used to doing for themselves. Whole towns in coastal Mississippi were completely destroyed, gone, after the hurricane came through. New Orleans didn't receive the full force of the storm and the infrastructure of most of the city remained in tact.

And so it goes.

Senator Tim Johnson, D-S.D., made an appearance for a crowd in Sioux Falls yesterday. He is hoping to return to his senate duties next week after all this time. He's making progress from speech and physical therapy after his massive stroke. I'm proud Republicans wished him a full recovery at the time of his stroke and none moved to have him replaced. I'd like to think the Dems would have done the same for a Republican but I don't.

Now, I think Johnson should announce he won't seek re-election and go on with his life as best he can.

Resigned to the Stories

So, the week began with the resignation of Alberto Gonzales. Kind of surprising but not really. He's done all he can do in D.C. for this president and as long as he's around will remain a source of continued disparaging remarks and actions. Who needs it? He's a good man who deserves better. I think he was in over his head for the Washington atmosphere, where this president is so hated by the left and irritating the right. It's the start of the new school year and his boys can start fresh.

You know who I think should replace Gonzales? No one. I think the acting AG, Paul Clement, the current solicitor general should just remain in the job. He can be reappointed acting AG for the rest of President Bush's term, over and over as the time constraints demand. Why do I think this is the way to go? Because the pit bulls of the left who are running the show, Schumer, Kennedy, Leahy, Conyers and the like have made it abundantly clear that all of the investigations will continue no matter what, no matter that there is nothing of substance to investigate, and as they admit there are no smoking guns to anything. Schumer has openly stated that any appointments of judges will be slow going and obstructed, if possible. Do you think they'll put through any nominee with dignity and in a respectful manner? Of course not. It's still all about bashing Bush. It's what they live and breathe for there. It's also why they have an 18% rating with the American people. It's ok with me.

Deny them a platform for their pious grandstanding.

And then today brings us Senator Larry Craig, R-ID. Seems he was caught and arrested for misdemeanor public disobedience and pleaded guilty in Minnesota. Seems he was caught in an airport men's room and had been the subject of a long term investigation. Seems the newspaper in Idaho has a big article on him, going back to this fraternity days in college, over 40 years ago. He says he's innocent, not gay, and now has lawyered up to fight back. Why did he plead guilty to something he didn't do?

Time for him to resign and show some respect to his wife and family. Stop dragging them through all his just for the sake of his ego.

See, this is why I am so resentful of the far right, the 'religious right' of the Republican party. They hijacked the platform of my party and claimed moral superiority to the Dems. It's just wrong and it sets up stuff like this to detract from work that needs to be done. As long as it is a sport for wealthy pornographers, like Larry Flynt and socialists like George Soros who backs the group known as C.R.E.W. pushing this story on the media, to offer money to anyone who can produce a good story of Republican hypocrisy, well, this is the atmosphere that is created.

I have no patience for all the hypocrisy going around in D.C. these days, from both parties. Neither are doing the work of the people, neither are conducting themselves as adults, neither are abiding by professional ethics. The Republicans lost their way after a dozen years in power after being in the political wilderness for over 40 years. The Dems rode back to power in November, promising to stop the corruption and earmarks, the rampant spending and leave the tax breaks alone. Not happening. Every thing is status quo.

A pox on both their houses.

Back to School

My son began his senior year of high school today. We will celebrate his 18th birthday Sunday. I don't know where the time has gone. I could swear it was just yesterday that I was wishing he was older and more independent.

Ah, public school. My son's French IV class had no teacher today. The teacher has been hired, pending the standard background check. Problem is, no one bothered to run the check until yesterday and it takes a week to complete, the class has been told. Another teacher supervised the class and spoke to them in French to verify they were in the right class. My son was amused that she swore in French and he understood what she said. She was giving her opinion of the hiring process. My tax dollars at work.

The list making has begun. We leave Saturday morning and head to New Orleans. Then home on Monday, Labor Day. I see every politician in the country will be there this week to commemorate Hurricane Katrina. I am hesitant to see my former favorite city yet really curious. As a little lagniappe, I tuned into the muffeletto throw down with Bobby Flay and two brothers in New Orleans last night as I was trying to get to sleep. Yum. I hope Central Market is still there and open. The best in the city there.

There is a certain parade we will watch. It's New Orleans in the French Quarter, so I'm not talking a Macy's parade. I'll write about it later.

Laissez les bon temps rouler.

A Penguin Is Hard to Silence

I've just read about a controversy that has developed surrounding a recent cartoon strip or two by Berkeley Breathed. His "Opus" has long been a favorite of mine. Wonder why. But I admit that my regular comic strip reading has long ago fallen by the wayside. Now I feel compelled to monitor this one.

Seems the character Lola Granola is on another spiritual journey and this time is garbed in cloth, like the covering done by Muslim women. I read that at least 25 newspapers have refused to print the comic strip, including the Washington Post, even though the Post runs the syndication service that distributes Opus. Well now. Lola is dipping her toe into Islam and major newspapers are running scared that Muslims may be offended.

Opus only runs in the Houston Chronicle's Sunday newspaper, as far as I know. I don't even know if Breathed still does a daily strip. I know he retired in 1995 so that he could write children's books. He had a book published in 2003 and then returned to doing the Opus cartoons.

According to the article on Salon.com, The Washington Post ran the cartoon online but buried it. The article sourced Editor and Publisher as saying "some papers were concerned that the strips were sexually suggestive" which has to do with a conversation Lola and her boyfriend Steve have in today's version. I think that's just a petty excuse. I saw the cartoon and it's nothing. Nothing profane, obscene, bigoted, disrespectful.

Rarely do I have a reason to praise the Houston Chronicle. Today, though, is an exception. The newspaper ran the cartoon and I was proud to see it in the comics section, in its usual spot. For all I know, tomorrow there will be an editorial by those in charge chastising Breathed, but today it was there and they didn't succumb to all the politically correct ninnies.

I agree with Joan Walsh, at Salon.com, who said,"I thought the strip satirized the loopy American seekers who customize world religions for their own needs, not Islam. But either way, it's cowardice to shun the strip. And newspapers wonder why they're dying?" Well said.

Brings to mind the Hollywierd crowd and the Kaballah trend. Or Scientology.

The ironic part is that Berkeley is a self-proclaimed atheist. From an interview in Psychology Today "The interesting thing is that I have absolutely no neuroses. I have no mother issues, no issues of self-actualization, no sibling envy or weight issues. Although I'm an atheist, I don't fear death more than, say, sharing a room in a detox center with a sobbing Rush Limbaugh...This is why I'm returning to Opus. One of us needs to be a mess if this writing business is going to work."

Oh yeah, he's married to a psychologist.

Breathed lampoons everyone. Both genders, all political trends, religions, trends of the culture. It doesn't matter. Everything is on the table for his skewer and that is what makes his cartooning entertaining. Nothing is immune.

And now he has inadvertently pointed out the weakness in liberal totalitarianism. Those censoring the cartoon are cowardly hypocrites. Freedom of speech is not exclusively theirs.

Shame on them.

Truth to Power

I began this morning drinking my Boca Java, South Beach Rhythm blend, and ushering out the guys. They are helping one of the Scouts with his Eagle project, this one for the Houston Arboretum. It's quite a back breaker involving some sort of path construction, from what I've been able to understand, so they'll be worn out when the work is finished today. It is in the mid 90's again here, sunny, and 'will feel like' 100 degrees. That whole 'will feel like' estimate drives my husband crazy. He's an engineer. He lives in a world of exact facts produced by proven methods. Guestimates send him over the edge. Don't ask him about global warming. I'm just sayin'.

So, as Max settled on the couch for his morning nap and Oreo settled down for a post breakfast nap in the back of the house in his favorite spot, right next to the sliding glass door so he can watch the creatures in the back yard, I began enjoying a quiet house all to myself. I watched two guests on C-SPAN's morning show talking about the process of choosing a college. Since we are there now with our son, it was a timely show for me. Kenneth Terrell, Assistant Managing editor for U.S. News and World Report and John Zmirak, Editor in Chief of Choosing the Right College Guide. It was an interesting discussion. One student from Emory University called in and Zmirak spoke about the resources available at Emory. It is a very well -endowed school, very wealthy from its alums, and Zmirak commented about everything on campus being gold-plated. That amused me. I attended another private liberal arts university in Atlanta, smaller and not so wealthy and what he said was true even back then.

The world is my son's oyster right now, at this point in time. He is receiving propaganda from everywhere. Colleges large and small, private and public, state and out of state. He's received the usual inquiries from military recruiters, too. Army and Marines so far that I've seen. His dad is an Air Force veteran so that's interesting. Emory sends frequent recruiting material, by the way. See, lots of money for publishing materials and postage. Duke University, too. My son participated in a program of Duke's, beginning in 7th grade, which targets gifted students and offers testing and tracks them as they proceed through school. They offer summer enrichment opportunities, and the like. My son was in private school up until his high school years so he was among thousands in this program, I'm guessing. It's a clever way for Duke to groom its future applicants, I think.

Last night as I was reading articles I'd printed out during the day from Internet sources, I was struck by two related articles. The first from the New York Post. This article reported that Hillary Clinton declared that if our country is attacked before the election in 2008, it will be to the Republican candidate's advantage. "But if certain things happen between now and the election, particularly with respect to terrorism, that will automatically give the Republicans an advantage again, no matter how badly they have mishandled it, no matter how much more dangerous they have made the world," she told supporters in Concord (N.H.).

"So I think I'm the best of the Democrats to deal with that, " she added.

Wow. So, we have the junior senator from the state of New York, hardest hit on 9/11/01, bringing terrorism into the political arena to declare her the strongest candidate for national protection.

The next article sort of answers Clinton's bravado. Zbigniew Brzezinski, formerly of the Carter administration as a national security advisor, said, "Being a former first lady doesn't prepare you to be president." Holy cow. I hope he has a safe house lined up for his protection in the upcoming weeks. From Bloomberg.com, it's reported that Brzezinski is supporting Barack Obama for the nomination of presidential candidate. He says Clinton's foreign policy approach is very conventional and "I don't think the country needs to go back to what we had eight years ago." I agree rarely with Brzezinski. His former boss brought us today's problems with his ineptitude and naive outlook of the world. Not to mention Carter's hatred of the Jews and Israel. But I commend Brzezinski for speaking up about Hillary's feeling of entitlement for the nomination and the office of President simply by virtue of her hanging around the governor's mansion in Arkansas and the White House. If it were not for the deal she must have cut with Bill Clinton after the impeachment embarrassment, she wouldn't have been elected senator from New York. It's all been on his coattails, despite her boasts that she is no stand by your man woman. Of course she is a prime example of such a woman. She'll suffer any public humiliation as long as her goal for power is met. She could care less about the good of the country. It's her ego and what she wants to dictate.

For Hillary to politicize the threat of terrorism, after belittling the current administration for allegedly doing that during the 2004 election cycle, and for her to hide her papers from her time as first lady and the health care policy disaster of hers under the guise of privacy as they are now part of the Clinton Presidential library, as she accuses the current administration of extraordinary secrecy, well, come on. Clinton and Clinton claimed Executive Privilege more than any other President and co-President in recent times. They were leading the most indicted and corrupt administration since Nixon, a name she is fond of throwing out there with the fascism theme for this administration. She has no core. She has no inner guidance. She will say and do anything for an election victory and a grab for power. It's all about her.

Watch your knees, Zig.

Mission Completed

I watched all three installments of "God's Warriors" and I'm relieved it is over. Last night's show on Muslims brought out the Christian Amanpour I remembered. She smirks and giggles with the Islamofacists. Nothing much as far as depth of content, no news. Tonight was Christianity night. She has the last interview with Jerry Falwell, taped one week before his death. She highlights his Liberty University and its new law school. She goes into the Supreme Court's 'sharp turn' to the right. Well, after years of wishy washy judicial legislating from the bench, I guess getting back to the Constitution is a switch for her. She speaks with a legal advisor to CNN about the upcoming election in 2008 and how the next president will probably install at least 2 more justices, with John Paul Stevens being 86 and Ruth Bader Ginsburg is 74. Horrors. Might be more conservatives. I guess all the years it was packed with liberals was normal, though. She concludes the country goes to hell in a handbasket if a Republican wins the White House again. She looked surprised that the outside of the Supreme Court building has religious references.

She brings back Jimma Carter to speak about that horrible Christian in the White House now and the evil religious right in the country. See, he's a born again Christian, but he's a good one. So superior for such a traitor to our country during a time of war. Such a bitter old man.

Clinton was dragged in because he has joined with Carter in forming a new organization of the Southern Baptists. He didn't like the original group and broke away in 2000 after he thought they were too conservative. You know, when I think of forming new religious organizations, Bill Clinton doesn't leap to the front of my list. Maybe it's just me. He and Hillary are quite religious, when the cameras are rolling. Or running for office and need some personal tidbits.

The amusing part is that liberals are so intrigued that those of strong religious faith actually try to live their faith in everyday life. Those who view themselves as intellectuals consider the deeply religious among us as stupid people. How could an educated person let religion guide them?

I am not a member of a church. Like my husband, I was raised in the Presbyterian church. We were married in the Unitarian-Universalist Church. We joined a Presbyterian church in Lafayette, LA when we lived there but rarely attended services. It is what it is. I say live and let live. I don't think saying a prayer at a graduation ceremony destroys the fabric of our society. I think we will all survive. I say prayers and believe myself to be a spiritual person on some level. Traveling to a specfic building on certain days doesn't seem necessary to me.

I keep thinking of a statement I heard once, there are no atheists on death beds.

Peace be to us all.

Country First

Yesterday the President gave a speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars. I only listened to a bit of it, as lately my tolerance for his speeches is waning. He is always difficult to listen to, not being the most eloquent of speakers, but the substance of his speeches have fallen short and I don't know why he doesn't employ speechwriters with the ability to pound home the facts, especially concerning the war in Iraq. From the reviews I read this morning, the speech was factual with references to WWII, the Korean War and then Vietnam. I cringe that he brought Vietnam into the mix. I know he was trying to make the point that our withdrawal, if not done with utmost care and consideration, will be a prescription for slaughter to the Iraqis left behind. Much like the millions who were slaughtered in Vietnam and Cambodia, especially under the thumb of Pol Pot. It's a lesson that can't be forgotten. I don't want to see anymore desperate people hanging onto the skids of helicopters, trying to escape from their country. That is a visual in my mind that I still can't shake off after all these years.

Remember when the war in Iraq was new and maybe about two weeks old? Teddy 'the swimmer' Kennedy and his ilk began the mantra that it was a quagmire and just like Vietnam? Unfortunately, like so many mistakes made in the execution of this war, the administration was very slow to push back and draw the distinctions between Vietnam and Iraq. It allowed the drumbeat to escalate into the mess we have today with all sorts of false claims touted as facts being spread in the media and on the floor of Congress. All for political gain. Party above country. And, to me, any reference to Vietnam by Kennedy is amazing, considering it was his brother the former President who laid the groundwork for the war in the first place.

That's why I cringed when I heard the reference to Vietnam in the President's speech.

I am watching a press conference given by Senator John Warner, R-VA, speaking about his recent trip to Iraq with Senator Levin, D-MI from the U.S. Capitol Senate Radio and TV Gallery. Levin is the chairman of the Armed Services Committee and Warner is the ranking member. These two men have taken turns back and forth being chairman for the recent past. Both need to retire.

The newsworthy part of the trip, for me, was that Levin came back and admitted that the surge is working, militarily. The problems with the politics in that country is the holdup in the minds of most pundits. The anti-war defeatists, lead by the likes of Levin, have claimed the war is lost, that Petraeus in incompetent and on and on. From the floor of the Senate and the well of the House, of course. But, don't question their loyalty to the troops. They say we have to withdraw rightthissecond. The media agrees and pushes the agenda. Petraeus was unanimously voted to lead the surge and they gave him about a month, troops not even all in place, before they claimed it was a complete failure. So, for Levin to come back and have to admit this bad judgement of the facts on the ground was quite a spectacle.

Levin, in order to appease his constituents, left Iraq for a trip to Israel where he gave a press conference demanding that al-Maliki be removed from office. An elected leader 'be removed' from his fledgling democracy. Granted the guy is inept and not willing to step up but this kind of call from Levin feeds right into the fears of those believing the propaganda that the U.S. is a puppet master. It is further evidence the Dems are not worthy of the Oval Office. They still show no care about public statements, as though these statements are not carried all around the globe and used for the benefits of some very bad men.

Warner went first to Kuwait, then joined Levin to go into Iraq. They were only allowed to spend one night there. After meeting with the leadership there, he proclaimed his support for Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker. He said they worked hard together to find agreement on issues in Iraq. One issue where they completely differed, Warner said, was the statement by Levin, after leaving Warner and on his own, promoting the removal of al-Maliki. Warner said he was not willing to go that far.

Warner knows words matter. Country over party.

Elite Ignorance

I survived the first installment of "God's Warriors" so far so good is what I say. The worst for me was when she included Jimma Carter in the discussion of the Palestinians. He's still clueless. I keep thinking about him telling his inner circle that he'd 'make the Jews pay' if he was re-elected as President because of his inability to negotiate lasting peace in the region. He is just plain nasty.

Tonight it is the Muslim extremists who are highlighted. Waiting for Christiane to costume up while in Iran, interviewing a sect there. The birthplace of our current terrorist dilemma. And, who was in charge? Jimma.

I understand that during tomorrow's Christianity installment, Christiane will ask a member of a 'fundamentalist' group, as she describes them, "In noting how girls at some BattleCry events are encouraged to wear long dresses, Amanpour asks the group's leader how it is different from the Taliban. That, according to an article written by Matthew Balan on the NewsBusters site. Comparing a group of Christians encouraging modesty and chaste behavior in young girls to the Taliban. No stretch there, I guess. Elite ignorance on display again.

Speaking of elitist ignorance, have you notice that the radio company founded by geezer feminists like Jane Fonda and Gloria Steinem has failed? No more paychecks after this week's according to their front office. Named Greenstone, it began in September 2006 to deliver "de-politiced, de-polarized talk radio by women hosts for female listeners" according to Steinem who also said it would offer "an alternative to current radio talk, which she described as very argumentative, quite hostile, and very much male-dominated." It was picked up by a whopping eight affiliates in small and mid-sized markets. According to the CEO of Greenstone, Susan Ness, "We developed fabulous shows, but we were not successful getting station carriage. Perhaps it was because we ere ignorantly perceived as being too feminist or too political. (It's odd that radio executives consider Rush Limbaugh entertainment and not political, but women - well, that's another story.) All they had to do was listen!"

Women as victims. Potential listeners too ignorant to tune in for their fabulous shows. Mean old Rush Limbaugh is so successful. Waaaah! What's the matter, couldn't she work Karl Rove into her excuses? Note to Ness: does Air America sound familiar? Liberals don't need talk radio, they have all tv, except Fox News to some extent, most newspapers, etc. Your gender had no bearing would be my guess. And, if it was perceived as too feminist, maybe you should have thought of that as you trotted out Fonda and Steinem as the spokeswomen, extolling the superiority of the talent of women.

And, as Geoffrey Dickens pointed out in his writing of this development for Greenstone, they still have the love of the Today show on NBC. It's not even bringing up the failed attempt by them, after they promoted the launch with Jane Fonda last year. Shocking, I know.

Blech.

Extreme Positions

Haleh Esfandiari, held since early May, has been released from her Iranian captors. Quiet, behind the scenes diplomacy is credited for her release, including a letter from the Woodrow Wilson International Center's Lee Hamilton. Esfandiari is the Iranian American Scholar for the D.C. think tank, the Director of the Middle East Center of the institute. The 67 year old grandmother was in the country visiting her 93 year old mother, who had to mortgage her apartment for bail for Esfandiari, as part of the release agreement. Esfandiari has been accused of supporting the demise of the political leadership.

Tonight a three part series on religion begins, brought to us by the folks at CNN and the cable news network's shining star international reporter, Christiane Amanpour. "God's Warriors"
will feature a different religion each night. Her angle is to interview the more extreme sides of Judiasm, Christianity and Islam. Tonight begins with Judiasm.

I don't know if I have the stomach for her 'journalism' any more. She's spent eight months working on this, according to her interview promoting this series I read in the Houston Chronicle. For tonight's segment, she went to the Jewish settlements in the West Bank, occupied territory. "These are religious people who really believe they're chosen, that this is their Promised Land," she said. Wow, what ground breaking insight, Christiane. Also on the agenda tonight is a segment on the U.S. Zionists, featuring a New York state legislator and his wife who raise money to support the settlements. Also, she interviews evangelical Christians working for the same cause because they believe the Jewish settlement is ordained by God.

Tomorrow night will the the religion of Islam, as portrayed by Muslim activism. She went to Iran and interviewed a sect that dons black robes and scarves that allow only part of women's faces to peek out. She costumed up herself.

Thursday night focuses on Christians and was filmed solely in the U.S.. She went from D.C. to Washington state , Virginia and Minnesota. "I've had never inquired into the nuts and bolts of how Christian conservatives operate here in the U.S.", she said. "We tend to look at them like some exotic subspecies, while they're actually a huge segment of the population here. They have huge impact, and we can't afford to treat them as a sort of loony fringe. I think that's quite clear." Again, wow, Christiane. You're killing me with your analytical brilliance.

About time she shed some of the intellectual superiority she possesses, in her mind anyway, and looked at the real world. She loves to speak of her life, "I've lived my personal life in a multi ethnic, multi faith, multicultural environment," she gushes, "And I've spent my professional life dealing with the opposite, covering wars based on divisions among faiths."

Amanpour, 49, was raised in Tehran by her Catholic mother and Muslim father. She was educated in Iran, England and the U.S. and is based in London. She is married to Jamie Rubin, a Jewish American, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, for President Clinton. She was Maddie Notsobright's right hand man. You know how terrific and smart they were, don't you?

Typical elitist babble in the publicity tour. We'll see how she does.



"You've given a new meaning to higher education." - NASA control room to the astronaut Barbara Morgan, upon the landing of the Shuttle Endeavor at KSC today.

An Earned Priviledge, Not A Right

Elvira Arellano, an illegal immigrant from Mexico defied a deportation order from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to report on August 15, 2006. Instead she walked into the Adalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago and openly sheltered there with her now 8 year old son. Her son is an American citizen, an anchor baby, so he was free to come and go without fear of arrest. Some like Javier Salas, a Univision Talk Show host said many in the Mexican community knew this was a stunt as most Mexicans are Catholic, so what's she doing in a Methodist church?

Several months ago Elvira called herself the Rosa Parks of the immigration reform movement. Rosa Parks? Rosa Parks wasn't performing illegal activities. She was a woman on a bus demanding to be allowed to sit where she pleased. Citizenship in the U.S. is not a 'right', it is an earned privilege for those not born in this country.

Elvira Arrellano is being used as a helpful stooge for the activists on the side of amnesty and automatic paths to citizenship for all those here illegally in this country. Elvira came into this country in 1997 the first time and was deported back to Mexico. In 2000 she came back into this country and went to Chicago. She's been employed at O'Hare International Airport as a part of the cleaning staff of planes, using a bogus Social Security number. She was arrested in 2002 and convicted of working under this bogus Social Security number. She was ordered deported due to this conviction.

She deliberately gave birth to an anchor baby to remain in this country, believing no one would force her to go back to Mexico if she had a child who was an American citizen. She claims her son, Saulito needs medical treatment for ADHD. I'm fairly certain those drugs are also available in Mexico.

While sheltering in this Methodist church, she has appeared on numerous tv shows, along with the minister of the church, Rev. Walter Coleman. She was driven out to Los Angeles to speak in four churches, but was finally arrested after the third speech. She was sent to Mexico. Her son remains here under the legal guardianship of Emma Lozano, head of the immigration rights group Centro Sin Fronteras.

So, what took so long, ICE? You knew where she was and how she was flaunting her status in that church. You knew the arrogant tone of the minister harboring her. Why wasn't he arrested for harboring a fugitive?

If Elvira has only the purest of best interests of her son in mind, why was she allowing him to live as he has the past year? Why was he used as her shield. Aren't mothers supposed to protect their children, not the other way around? And, most importantly, if she is such a devoted mother, why didn't she take him with her back to Mexico. The only person insisting on the breaking up of this family is Elvira herself.

The New Sanctuary Movement has weighed in on this. They claim more than 600,000 families in the U.S. have at least one member up for deportation due to illegal status. So? Whose decision was that? Because you can run across the checkpoint, swim across the river, or hike across the desert, does that mean you landed here and no longer abide by the rules of the country you insist you have a right to live in? Just coming into the country is the first illegal act. Then working with a bogus or stolen Social Security number is the second offense.

It's a tough issue to deal with today. Bringing this whole destroying families argument into it is just for show value. To tug at American heartstrings. Elvira is being used, willingly, by this group and she has now moved from sympathetic mom trying to make a better life for her son, who wasn't even born when she first broke into this country, to just another illegal activist.

Much like Cindy Sheehan, who went from grieving mother to anti war activist traveling the world with her hate speech, Elvira is on the fast track to the land of no sympathy.

No other country allows illegal immigrants to just stay in their country with no action taken. It's a privilege, not a right.

Voicing Opinions

Watching C-SPAN's morning show, Washington Journal, format revolved around two blogger guests. The first up was Matt Stoller, a liberal/progressive blogger. I tuned into the program about half way through his time. From what I saw, it's just as well. What a pompous little snot. All he did was continuously describe the Republicans as 'a gang of criminals' and wildly dishonest statements, such as the usual tripe of Bush lied us into war, we torture as a military policy, Gonzales is a criminal, and of course the standard bash of the Bush family in general. He's young so I can only assume that fact is a big part of his naive world vision. He seems to think being anti-war and socialism is the way to go. Both losing strategies, but maybe with maturity will come some wisdom.

The second blogger featured was Liz Mair. She bills herself as a libertarian Republican. She was interesting. Her world vision was a bit more sophisticated. She is American but educated in London and Germany. She practiced law in England before moving back. She received a lot of calls from Ron Paul supporters. She said he has no chance of the nomination, of course, but does like his voting record.

If I heard the moderator correctly, each morning this week the program will feature bloggers and other commenters in the media.

I ran across an interesting article on the NewsBusters site over the weekend. A 'journalist' who has a blog was called on a theory he was promoting and so he backed down claiming he was only joking. This was straight out of the Kerry playbook, reckoning back to his 'joke' about the intelligence level of military personnel. Seems 'journalist' Charles Feldman has a B.A. in political science and would like you to know his own political opinion. Maybe he missed the day at NYU when the professor spoke about journalistic integrity when he was pursuing his M.A. in journalism. He posted that Hurricane Dean is heading toward Texas and it must be because George W. Bush is from the state. He went on to say the hurricane is to punish 'Tex-assians', as was the flooding brought on by Tropical Storm Erin.

Just when you thought Bush Derangement Syndrome has stooped as low as it can go after a relentless seven years of every foul, self-indulgent tirade possible hitting the airwaves and print media, here's some new fodder: "While forecasters try to explain why mother nature seems bent on unleashing her fury on the Lone Star state, the bigger question to ponder is - is this weather so foul, God's retribution for giving onto the world George W?? (Think that last line got me on some FBI/CIA watch list?) It is something to seriously consider. The Bible is filled with accounts of divine retribution ;and if there is one thing God ought to be pissed about, (or at least embarrassed about) it's Baby Bush..."

What a charmer. He finishes with "Keeping with this religious theme...if it is true that man is created in God's image, the thought that the almighty might look like George W is enough to convert someone to Satan."

Frankly I hope that this guy and Stoller remain out there in the public discourse front and center. They speak volumes about the civility of the left. So much for the argument that the right is so 'mean' and nasty. Stoller, in particular, labeled Republicans as racist and homophobes several times on the part his segment I saw this morning. Good thing he doesn't resort to stereotypes that have long been discounted as his style of argument. He continues to prove that if you have no educated argument, you name call.

Frequent, front and center. Fingers crossed.

Following Numbers

Forbes.com did a poll about the personalities of the candidates. Barack Obama is most articulate. Fred Thompson is second in that question. Hillary consistently scores highest in the negative qualities of candidates. She's viewed as the meanest, most aggressive, only 30% view her as likable. Interesting.

This poll plays into the polling just out that Rudy has jumped in the lead over Hillary in a general election contest, 47-40. This is the biggest lead over Hillary yet. When the last polling was done, they were in a statistical tie. The data from the latest Rasmussen Reports says that Rudy continues to do well against Obama and Edwards, too.

Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit writes on his blog that this development doesn't bode well for Hillary. His idea is that Hillary is slipping in the polling against Rudy due to attacks from Obama and Edwards in recent days. Finally they are starting to act as though they are running against each other and not just against the non-candidate, President Bush. We have seen some zingers aimed at She Who Must Be Obeyed on the stumps by other Dem candidates. I don't know why they waited so long, frankly. What do they have to lose? Hillary will be the nominee, come hell or high water because the Clinton machine is a well run and cash heavy operation. These people are true pros, full of career politicians and advisers. This is what they do. Obama, in second place still after a robust start, is now 30 points down against Hillary in most polls. Edwards even further down. I also think this is why both men are using their wives to make the noise in interviews. So, Reynolds asks, if she is not holding up against Rudy this early in the season, how will she do in the general election when all the gloves are off?

And Fred Thompson? I think he has missed his window of opportunity. I know he is seen as the great hope for many of the most conservative Republicans, a group of which I am not a part, but I think with Romney's strong showing in Iowa and all the ads he is running, he will be able to win over the more conservative wing of the party. There is nothing wrong with Thompson, I suppose, but it's a little late in the game now and I, for one, am quite bored with his tease of when he'll announce and be serious. I'm not interested in cutesy, I expect better. Especially with the stakes so high this time around, as a nation at war and the distinct differences of how best to protect us at home during the war on terror. The Clinton administrations were a direct lead up to what we are dealing with now. Issuing subpoenas against terrorists didn't prove to be the most effective of strategies. The Islamofacists simply laughed and noted how unserious we were about impending threats.

Public opinion can be fickle, depending on the events of the day. It will be interesting to track if these findings hold over the next few months.

Words

Lots of rain today, courtesy of Tropical Storm Erin. A grocery store in Clear Lake, south east of Houston, a suburban community, had a roof cave in a little while ago. Death and injury from that. It's not pretty out there.

The taser is now a weapon for both sexes. I just saw a story about them and now there is a woman's version available. In the colors of pink, silver, blue and black. Who knew? I do have a girlfriend that carries a taser. I'll have to tell her she needs to upgrade to the girl's version.

Remember how indignant the journalists get when someone dares to call the print journalists and msm people of the liberal persuasion? Today in the Wall Street Journal are two examples of the print variety. Just act like you are stupid, though, and insist the Congress Dems go forward with the Fairness Doctrine on Capitol Hill. It would only cover talk radio, and you know a lot of it is conservative, as the only available outlet to conservative views, so it must be stopped.

As reported in Editor & Publisher: Executive Editor Dave Boardman of the Seattle Times called "an awkward moment" at a news meeting the following: "When word came in of Karl Rove's resignation, several people i the meeting started cheering. That sort of expression is simply not appropriate for a newsroom...As we head into a major political year, now's a good time to remember: Please keep your personal politics to yourself."

Boardman sent a follow up e-mail: "I ask you all to leave your personal politics at the front door for one simple reason: A good newsroom is a sacred and magical place in which we can and should test every assumption, challenge each other's thinking, ask the fundamental questions those in power hope we will overlook.
"If we wore our politics on our sleeves here, I have no doubt that in this and in most other mainstream newsrooms in America, the majority of those sleeves would be of the same color:blue. Survey after survey over the years have demonstrated that most of the people who go into this business tend to vote Democratic, at least in national elections. That is not particularly surprising, given how people make career decisions and that social service and activism is a primary driver for many journalists."

Wow. Eye opening, isn't it? Ok, not really. It's just refreshing to have all the acknowledgement for a change. Of course they are generally biased. But the kicker is his arrogant, rose colored vision of a newsroom. Magical? Sacred? And the fact that he believes Democrats are more into social service and activism than Republicans. Social service as paid careers, yes, but certainly not volunteer social works. Republicans are certainly not outshone in that area. And the activism is going along quite nicely, thank you, especially after the recent years of history. Journalists, like liberals, simply think they are superior human beings. Not so eye opening.

How about they leave their personal politics out of reporting because it is the ethical thing to do? The professional thing to do.

And from Sports Illustrated, in an article about tall athletes by Frank Deford: "Our two greatest American leaders, Washington and Lincoln, were exceptionally tall, and right up until the end of the American century - the tall century - it was unusual for the shorter presidential candidate ever to win. Indeed, given what a mess of things the shorter choice -- George W. Bush -- has made of his presidency in the fat century, Hilary (sic) Clinton's main obstacle may not be that she's a woman, but that she's shorter than most men. We gotta stand tall again."

Again, no one is running against Bush. He is a lame duck president with about 16 months left and no support from the public. Every one's going to have to find someone else to hate with the void left from Rove and Bush. New ideas are going to have to surface to win elections, not just we-hate-Bush rhetoric. And, believe me, Hillary's height is the least of her problems.

Let's bring out the sweeping generalization that sports guys are dumb. Maybe that'll explain Deford's words better.

Column A, Column B

OK, my all time favorite childhood toy, except for my Chatty Cathy doll, was the Easy Bake Oven. Bad enough that it was recalled recently due to a pesky burning the child's hand problem. But now? The Chinese have added Polly Pocket sets on the gonna-kill-the-kids-with-lead-poisoning-and tiny-magnets nightmare. This will not stand.

In Austin, First Lady Laura Bush was honored with a library named after her. She spoke to the audience about the meaning of libraries in her life and what it means to the current patrons. She reminded all of the Texas Book Festival in November (always well received and interesting) and the National Book Festival in Washington next month. Both festivals were the idea of Mrs. Bush and she saw her idea to fruition in both instances.

While in Austin, in the Westbank Community's library, Mrs. Bush was the target of anti-war protesters. Three of them. Two were holding "Impeach Bush" signs. The third was busy sipping her coffee. That is an unbelievably small operation for Austin, a well known liberal haven. They all three felt the need to publicly let their opinion known that Laura Bush must be held accountable for her husband's decisions. Ok.

On the anniversary week of Elvis' death, can we please have a moratorium on the Viva Viagra commercial using the music of Viva Las Vegas? I just find a circle of men sitting around and singing about the drug to that tune disturbing.

Seen Hillary's first venture into political commercials in Iowa? It's a pip. She says President Bush has forgotten the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Of all the things she could have used, she chose to lead with that attack. First, the President isn't on the ballot. Second, the day it began to run, the President was at Walter Reed visiting injured troops and their families. Again. And, how many times has Hill visited? And do we need to be reminded her handlers had to 'persuade' troops from New York to sit at her table at chow time so she could get her photo op with them when she visited Iraq and Afghanistan? They were running from her. Or, how about the image of Hill demanding the military guards at the White House not be in uniform while she was running it? She didn't want any of her ilk to be 'uncomfortable'. What's that say? And the fact that the troops didn't want White House duty during her reign as she used them as butlers at State Dinners. Just another group of house staff to her. But, don't you dare question her support of the troops.

And, finally, Barack Obama's latest anti military blast. During his latest tete a tete with supporters at a rally, he said President Bush's policy in Afghanistan was "solely of air raids and bombing on civilians." His campaign spokesman, Reid Cherlin, confirmed this quote when questioned about it. Confirmed it. Excuse me, Senator Obama: there are over 17,000 Army soldiers in Afghanistan and about 3,100 Air Force. Aren't you in Congress? Do you attend briefings and read reports?

Another Winter Soldier campaign moment. Not only is he an empty suit, clearly, but he's not even proving worthy of the VP slot on the ticket. Seems President Bush isn't the only leader who graduated from Ivy League schools, Harvard and Yale, who can be labeled 'stupid'. Cuts both ways, I'd say.

Small World

I finally got around to reading Peggy Noonan's weekly Wall Street Journal column today. From last week. She is such a calm, reasoned voice. Last week's column was about Gen. Petraeus.

In "Get It Done" she explains that next month the General will be all over the media, speaking to his report to Congress and the President. Already we can probably decipher what the report will say, as he has been quoted as saying more time is needed for the job to be done.

What I found interesting about the column was a personal story she told of the General. A favorite genre of literature for me is a good biography. I enjoy reading the story of someones life. Why the person chose the path he or she chose, or a reference to personal character.

Turns out the General "graduated from West Point in 1974, 10th in his class, and his career has been the very model of the new Army: a master's in public administration, Ph.D. in the lessons of Vietnam, a fellowship in foreign affairs at Georgetown. Wrote the book, literally, on counterterrorism. Ten months in Bosnia. Time in Kuwait. Fought in Iraq, in Karbala, Hilla and Najaf, and became known and admired for rebuilding and administrating Mosul. Academically credentialed, bureaucratically knowing, historically well read. "

September 21, 1991, General Petraeus was commanding the Third Battalion of the 101st Airborne in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. During a live-fire training exercise, a soldier tripped. His M-16 fired and the bullet hit the General in his chest.

General Petraeus was medi-vaced to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. There, in Nashville, the surgeon on call was at the elevator as the gurney carried the soldier, with a tube in his chest. He asked the General if he wanted to be stabilized before surgery. Unlike the usual answer, according to the surgeon, the General said, "Don't waste any time. Get it done. Let's get on with it."

Oh, the surgeon? Dr. Bill Frist. Later Senator Frist, Senate Majority Leader. The operation was successful and 24 hours later General Petraeus asked Dr. Frist to be transferred back to Fort Campbell's base hospital so his soldiers wouldn't worry about him. "His soldiers were first and foremost in his mind. That's why they like him so much, " Frist said.

Noonan continues: "What does it all mean? Life is interesting, mysterious, and has an unseen circularity. You never know in any given day what's going to happen or who's going to have a big impact on you and on others. A future military commander got shot, and a future leader of the Senate stopped the bleeding."

I'll be waiting on the biography of the General's life.

Small world.

She's Overcome Already

So, showing their usual level of class and grace, Edwards and Obama are on tape saying goodbye and good riddance to Karl Rove. Leahy furthering his Watergate style of deeds conspiracy ideas. And, again they forget they are not running against President Bush in this election. Just waiting on Hillary's remarks now.

So, at the age of 56, with his only child starting college in San Antonio, Karl Rove is stepping out of the political consulting business. He and his wife will live in their home in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. Good for him.

He's so hated because he is good at what he does. He was tuned into the conservative movement on the Republican side and rode it to the White House. Not so many consultants can make that claim. He's too far to the right for my taste but he's advanced some good policies. He's been instrumental with pushing forward tax breaks, Social Security reform and judicial nominees.

A good friend of mine introduced me to Rove's first wife several years ago. We were at the same functions on a couple of occasions and I had some interesting conversations with her. From her account, Rove has always been obsessed with politics. I have to say, I can relate.

Hillary Clinton would like to be the next black President, Bill being the first according to Toni Morrison and himself. In some circles Obama is not considered black enough, whatever that means, so, does Hillary have black cred?

In the Clinton pattern of crisis mode - any issue they wish to advance is considered a reaction to a crisis - She has the Youth Opportunity Agenda as her initiative for solving the crisis of "neglect facing young black men." A crisis of neglect. She told CNN's White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux, in order to keep her strong black voter support, as president she'll "call for a national response". Code for hold on to your wallet. According to Les Payne in Newsday, Hillary said, " 1.4 million young men of color between the ages of 16 and 24 who are out of school, and out of work and too often out of hope. It includes nearly one out of every three young African-American men. They're not earning legal wages or learning marketable skills; many grow up without fathers, locked up in prisons, or end up losing their lives, or taking lives, due to guns and violence." She said her crisis is not a "moral crisis but an economic crisis". She wants to expand Headstart, Increase funding to schools and rehabilitation projects and tackle the excesses of the criminal justice system. Morality is not a condition Hillary is one to address. She's no "Stand by my Man" kind of woman, you know. Until he promised her a Senate seat. And a run at the White House, too. There's your morality.

She is one scary candidate. Especially her views on overtaking every aspect of the educational system. She was going to have education as her issue as first lady in Arkansas, and she failed to move the state up one place during all her years when this was to be her focus. Still on the very bottom.

She was pandering this day to the National Association of Black Journalists. Just another group to promise the moon. This will turn your stomach:

"In a moment of levity with the black columnists, Clinton joked about how, as a flat-toned Midwesterner, she sometimes lapses into a drawl in the South and tends to drop her "g's" more around black audiences. In a snide reference to author Toni Morrison's comment that her husband was the "first black president," she mused: "I do find myself dropping g's. I lived all those years in Arkansas, and you know, I'm in this interracial marriage."

The fake accent is insulting, the attitude that she can out-black any person of color, as she likes to say, and then take all the minority votes for granted with pandering lies she can never accomplish. And they eat it up. How much longer is the Democrat base going to be happy as perpetual victims?

If I see her one more time linking arms with a row of black politicians and ministers and singing "We Shall Overcome" one more time...

Sunday Scribblings

This month's Coffee Donation to the Troops from my standard order went to : MNCI JCC-1 Unit 42007. Didn't have a base or city but from a quick search on the Internets seems to turn up at Camp Victory in Baghdad.

From the AP on 8/10/07, via http://www.blackfive.net/: "A general dropped all charges Thursday against a Marine who had been accused of killing three Iraqi brothers in response to a roadside bomb attack in Haditha in 2005. The evidence does not support a referral to a court-martial," Lt. Gen. James Mattis wrote in his written decision."

Continuing, "Lance Cpl. Justin L. Sharratt, 22 had been charged with the murder in the deaths of three of those killed after the bomb attack Nov. 19, 2005. The decision to drop the charges followed an earlier recommendation from a hearing officer who listened to evidence in the case. Under military law, a commanding general has total jurisdiction over a case. In his recommendation, Lt. Col. Paul Ware said murder charges brought against Sharratt were based on unreliable witness accounts, poor forensic evidence and questionable legal theories."

Ending, "The government version is unsupported by independent evidence," Ware wrote in an 18 page report. "To believe the government version of facts is to disregard clear and convincing evidence to the contrary."

Representative Murtha? Should we be holding our breath for your upcoming heartfelt, impassioned apology to this Lance Cpl and his loved ones? I know we're between elections now and all but I'm thinking it is the very least you can do for him.

Mayor Ray Nagin thinks it a bit of publicity lagniappe that the murder/crime rate is still at such high levels that the stats warrant media notice. "Anti-violence activist Baty Landis called Nagin's remarks 'stunningly insensitive'." According to a news blurb in the Houston Chronicle, while as mayor of the city of New Orleans, he worries about the killings and dangerous criminal activity, the reporting of the crimes "keeps the New Orleans brand out there." What an idiot.

Hillary was in town yesterday, scooping up campaign contributions at a rally, then at a 'private function' among the fabulously wealthy. The tv coverage of the rally was interesting. There she was, doing her standard screeching, monotone while promising the crowd everything under the sun but forgetting to mention we all will pay dearly in the wallet for it, yet the comments after the speech by attendees showed nothing good for her in particular. One young woman said she hadn't made up her mind between Hill and Obama, the other said both parties need to come together and find solutions on Capitol Hill. Weird.

And the Iowa Straw Poll Saturday with the result most were expecting: Romney was the winner. My reaction? Ho-hum. I like him, I like his wife and family. He's a smart man, a good politician. He'll never beat Hillary so I hope someone else is the nominee. Frankly, I don't care who it is as long as he can beat Hillary. That is all that matters this election cycle. Sometimes it's like that. Sometimes we have to vote party affiliation. In today's world there is no way I'll vote for anyone but a Republican to keep our country moving forward in the war on IslamoFacism. I don't want anyone who caves to the Kos Kids and their anti-war rants.

McGovern wasn't right then, and not now.

Girls and Books

There seems to be a successor to the Harry Potter series of books for today's teenage reading market. In the popular new series, author Stephenie Meyer's gentlemanly vampire and the girl who loves him is capturing the imagination of young adults around the country. "Eclipse" is the third in the series. Just released, the author sold 150,000 copies in its first day of sales, Tuesday.

The two previous books are "Twilight, published in 2005 and "New Moon" published last year.

"I've been in this business for 20 years, and I've never seen anything like this," said Megan Tingley, publisher.

The series is especially popular with teenage girls. The author heavily uses the Internet to promote her books, mostly MySpace and her own web site. Meyer is a mother of three young boys, 33 years old and lives in the suburbs of Phoenix. The idea of the first novel came to her in a dream one night, she said. The books have vampires, romance and suspense.

Yesterday I read an article in the Houston Chronicle by Hillel Italie of the AP. Laura Bush and daughter Jenna are writing a book to be illustrated by Denise Brunkus of the Junie B. Jones series. The story is about "a mischievous little boy who likes to do everything but read. With the help of his teacher, he finds out that books and their characters can be a lot of fun.", according to HarperCollins. Experiences from teaching in classrooms will be used by both Bush women. Jenna Bush is a teacher in an elementary school in Washington, D.C.

Jenna also has her own book to be in bookstores this fall. It is titled "Ana's Story" where she draws on her experience with UNICEF in South and Central America. The story is of a 17 year old single mother who is HIV-positive.

Other Bush twin, Barbara, works with health policy issues for African nations, concentrating on HIV/AIDS and distributing medicine to children and women.

Last week the New York Times ran a front page story on the former first daughter, Chelsea Clinton. Front page story. She's fabulous, according to the news rag. I don't recall them running stories on her as she was falling down drunk in London while a student at Oxford, out on the town with her boyfriend. Plenty of stories to go around on the Bush twins and their younger, college days though. The Clintons, who want socialism for you and me but not themselves, installed Chelsea in a job at a Hedge Fund on Wall Street, starting salary in the six figures. The New York Times would like you to know how perfect a human being she is.

Hey, isn't her mother running for President? Just one of those crazy coincidences, I know.

Thoughts Outloud

Sometimes posts are just meant to be written. All signs today have pointed to this one, so who am I to resist? It's Friday and it's been a long week.

This morning I read an opinion piece in a Philadelphia newpaper online. The columnist, Stu Bykofsky, wrote a very interesting, thought provoking article with his idea being this country has long forgotten we must be unified in knowing who our true enemy is out there. It is not each other - it is not President Bush, Hillary Clinton, or any other American we might disagree with. The terrorists are our enemies.

Bykofsky's headline read, "To save America, we need another 9/11." I knew what he meant, I in no way thought he meant we 'need' another attack. He meant we must get back to being a unified country, to feel as we did immediately after the attacks of 9/11. Our collective outrage and motivated call to action has been lost.

He rightly says Americans demand quick, easy solutions to big problems. "We like fast food and fast war." The 1991 Gulf War's outcome was declared victorious after 100 hours by former President Bush. Problem is, the war we are undertaking now has no set battleground. It is global, on multiple fronts, with civilians as soldiers.

He has taken a good amount of criticism over the headline of his column. He didn't write the headline, though, someone at the newspaper does that. He is not some blind Bush supporter, either. He points out that the war in Iraq has been badly mishandled, as most Americans now agree, and this has contributed to our national unrest.

Then this morning I tuned into C-SPAN, as I have a habit of doing, and I watched several interesting taped talks before audiences given by western Muslims. Muslims from America and Canada, mostly.

The first was a talk given by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, author of "Infidel", on 2/13/07 at the American Enterprise Institution where she has a six month fellowship. I have watched previous talks given by her and am always so impressed with her presentation. Ayaan's book tells the story of her life, beginning with her Somalia tribal Muslim life to her 14 years in Amsterdam. She was a colleague of Theo van Gogh, the film maker in Holland who was killed by Muslims. She is a very calm, very well educated and clear in her speaking.

Ayaan told the story of her life to a writer, not wanting to write her own story. It is not a book full of data and statistics, on purpose, just her story. She is worried about the lack of concern by the majority of Americans over the threat of radical Islamists. Complacency is deadly, she said. "The generation of the West who is enjoying all the freedoms is not the ones who built it." "The current generation doesn't know what freedom costs."

She said in Europe, younger, more aggressive Muslims are impatient for the bliss of the Caliphate. In the West, Muslims in the U.S. are older, more financially successful and patient. They are using the means of persuasion though our judicial system, media, universities and are willing to wait for change.

The next was a speech made on 1/22/04 in Cambridge, Massachusetts by Irshad Manji, author of "The Trouble with Islam". She is a Canadian, born in Uganda, currently a professor at the University of Toronto. She is a different type of speaker, quite animated and coarser in language. She is very entertaining to watch, as I have also seen her several times. She, too, was berating the apathetic feelings of Americans of the coming threats to western ways. She said the IslamoFacists think of Islam as the consummate faith, like God 3.0. They take the chronological timetable literally to mean that the religion of Islam is superior since the Koran comes after the Torah and the Bible.

Irshad said Americans are so apologetic, not wanting to ever offend any one's feelings, that we don't make a convincing case against the ways of radical Islam.

Both women are still Muslims. Both women now must live with security protection due to death threats. Not only are they speaking out in favor of moderate Muslims, true Muslims, but they are also women. The radicals want women covered, silent and in the home.

The third appearance I watched was a conversation with Flemming Rose, the cultural editor of the Copenhagen newspaper, Jyllands-Posten, which published the cartoons of Mohammad from 2/7/06. He apologized for offending some in the Muslim community but said radical Dane Imams were behind the turmoil caused after the cartoons ran 4 months prior to the outcry. He said the Danes didn't have harsh reactions to the newspaper, with a circulation of 160,000 (Denmark's largest), so the radical Imams went on a campaign throughout Europe to stir things up.

A panel was taped on 2/6/06 featuring the American Muslim Society in D.C. at the National Press Club. Their panel was of several speakers, including an American who converted to Islam and is active in the Interfaith Alliance Foundation in Arizona. She was covered and spouting the party line. She angered me to no end. She claimed her organization fights religious discrimination of all religions. And, so did Don Parker, the president of the national Interfaith Alliance Foundation. He said since 9/11 American Muslims have been unfairly targeted for poor treatment. Blah, blah, blah.

Where was the American Muslim Society and Interfaith Alliance Foundation, both claiming to be champions for religious freedom for all and fighting disrespect of any religion when the cross was in a glass of urine, funded by a government grant? Where were they when creches were removed from public squares during Christmas, a Federal holiday with a religious foundation? Where were they when temples and synagogues came under attack from vandals and the gunman in Seattle? Only after the cartoons about Mohammad did we hear from them.

An Arab public school, funded with NYC taxpayer money, with Muslim teachings is being opened in Manhattan. Is this ok with them? The principal resigned today after the ruckus over the t-shirts for the school became known to the public. They said "Intifada NYC" on front of them. She tried to lie about the meaning of the word Intifada. Who will replace her in a school that shouldn't be in existence with public money?

And, last was a talk by Salman Rushdie. "Language is important. You have to name things properly."

I agree.

Our national lack of unity has not served us well in the war in Iraq, piling onto the poor decisions made by the administration over the past 4 years. Our determination to bow to politically correct speech and actions is the most dangerous of all to our way of life. I would much rather be reading a column with the 9/11 headline than the idiotic, publicity grab by the New York Times with their new blogger, Steven Leavitt, asking for thoughts on how the readers would carry out a terrorist attack on our country.

Those Wacky Kids

Continuing the mad dash to the far left, all of the Democrat candidates for the presidential nomination ignored the Democratic Leadership Council meeting in Nashville and opted instead to attend the YearlyKos convention in Chicago. This is the convention attended by the leftist bloggers and party activists. The DailyKos website is the sponsor and creator of the shindig. This is a truly nasty website and the founder is a thirtysomething man suffering from what I commonly call the "Neapolitan complex". He's a little Greek guy who has been determined to make it his life's work to completely destroy the Democrat party.

Now, he doesn't think he is destroying his party. He thinks that by demanding his followers go as far left in the political arena and advance policies of the extreme, they will succeed in winning back the White House in 2008. Maybe so. However, I would argue that this tactic hasn't worked in the past and nothing leads me to think they will succeed this election cycle.

More and more the Dems are looking like the party of McGovern. You remember how well that election worked out for the liberals, don't you? The far left has completely cowed the presidential candidates into submission. Hillary has now become an anti-war candidate, although her husband's administration put the policy of removing Saddam from power into effect in 1998. The Dems have been hoodwinked into appearing in a 'debate' on YouTube and now doing the bidding for this site.

You may remember the founder, Markos Moulitsas from Berkeley who once remarked that the first of the contractor's killed in Iraq had it coming to them. That's cleaning up the remark considerably. He is just vile and encourages the most vicious of posts on the website. It's a badge of honor for his village.

So, the traditional gathering of presidential candidates at the DLC is ignored. Founded in 1985, the DLC began as a venue to counteract the McGovern left of the party. After the humiliating defeat of McGovern by Reagan, lobbyists, consultants and politicians came together. Even some Mondale supporters joined in the beginning. They were to bring about a new Democrat party, more in the mainstream. The Washington insiders and older businesses were key to its success as a kingmaker. Clinton was a proud recipient of DLC support. It'll be quite difficult for even Hillary to try to go back to disguising herself as a moderate for the general election. The Heartland doesn't like the bombthrowers, you know. They want civility and results.

But, the left is wacky in the blogosphere. They demanded the candidates ignore the Fox News and Congressional Black Caucus sponsored debate in Nevada. It worked. Then candidates like John Edwards rushed to confirm attendance to the Chicago convention, least he be seen as some sort of moderate person, even though he is a former member of the DLC.

Pajamas Media has been doing excellent reporting about the developments over at the place of the KosKids.

Seems Kos co-authored a book with a blogger named Jerome Armstrong, his site being MyDD. Armstrong has been fined by the SEC $30,000 to settle stock-touting allegations, according to the Drudge Report and Pajamas Media. According to Blue Crab Boulevard, "This was the incident where Kos circulated a demand that other lefty blogs deprive the story of coverage. They obediently complied. Funny how the left likes to charge that the right are doing that sort of thing but ignore confessions of that on their side of the aisle." To try to change the subject, the KosKids are calling Drudge 'gay'. Those wacky kids.

So, despite rants to the contrary, corruption is alive and well in the far left. According to Watching the Watchers, "In April, Armstrong received the Paul and Sheila Wellstone Award for Political Organizing for the Twenty-First Century Democrats "for his visionary leadership in working to create the online netroots community, which has changed the face of politics forever in America by creating a mechanism for people to come together and demand accountability from their leaders." Now the group has removed any references to Armstrong on its web site, even this photo with the award.

According to the SEC, Armstrong made at least $20,000 by selling shares he received from the promoters of the stock he was touting. He didn't disclose in his postings that he was being compensated for making the postings. Oops.

Perhaps a scoop of ice cream with the humble pie?

Rocketing to Class

We watched the lift-off of the shuttle Endeavor this evening. Still gives me the tingling feeling every time I watch one of these modern day miracles take place. I cannot begin to relate to the amount of bravery these astronauts possess, to allow themselves to be rocketed into space.

"Endeavor, expanding the International Space Station while creating a classroom in space." I always listen for the blurb the control room says as the lift-off happens. Love 'em.

The buzz for this launch was the amazing story of Barbara Morgan, a 55 year old teacher who was chosen as the back-up for Christa McAuliffe's spot on the Challenger in 1986. They were representing NASA's teacher-in-space program. After 21 long years, Barbara Morgan gets her ride.

Laura Bush phoned the teacher Monday to wish her well and praise her for her dedication to the education of our country's children. Morgan worked for NASA after the Challenger disaster, traveling to schools around the country spreading the word of the benefits of our space program.

The teacher-in-space program was a vision of President Reagan. He thought it was a wonderful tool for promoting the importance of math and science education to school children.

"Morgan is racing toward space on the wings of a legacy." A quote heard from a former astronaut used as a commentator on tv. Well said.

What really impresses me about Barbara Morgan is that she was in such great shape at the age of 55 and able to train and go up as the oldest member of this crew. I'm three years younger than her and I'm awed by her physical superiority.

She'll teach from space. She and maybe other members of the crew will do 20 minute question and answer sessions with students via live television. How cool is that? She brought along 10 million basil seeds and NASA will distribute them to schools around the country upon return to earth. It's an experiment planned to design and build a plant growth chamber like the type future space settlers on the moon and Mars will need to grow fresh food. Now that's exciting.

NASA extended its commitment to the teacher-in-space program in 2004. Three more teachers are now in advanced stages of training. Two are middle school science and math teachers and one is a high school science teacher. Rock on.

Safe travels.

Just As Predicted

I knew it was just a matter of time for the predictable reaction to come. Today on cable news the story of the arrest of the two 'students' from Florida near the base in South Carolina is making a splash. And, along with the photos of the alleged wrongdoers, was a brief statement from a father of one of the two. He cries 'ethnic discrimination' is what the trouble is, that the Middle Eastern people are being blamed for everything. My response to him? When blue eyed blonde Lutherans from Sweden are consistently arrested trying to do harm to us, then we'll reconsider the whole profiling thing, ok?

These guys were stopped for a traffic violation. Found in the car's trunk were pipe bombs. The father said they were just going on a college guy kind of trip and enjoyed fireworks. Ok then.

Profiling is a perfectly legitimate investigative tool. It works. Before the age of uber political correctness, the hands of law enforcement, or our military for that matter, were not tied for fear of law suits, which is exactly what the criminals and terrorists rely on today. Today in the news reports, especially those on local television, the news readers deliberately do not even describe the criminal's skin color. How is the ordinary citizen to report a suspected criminal on the loose without all the information?

So, two IslamoFacists and one father are insulted by alleged ethnic discrimination? I say congrats to the alert police officer and to the judge who set bail and denied release of the prisoners until approval came from the federal level. Seems the question of legality of being here in the first place is in play.

Looking Ahead

Saturday 13 squirrel boxes were completed by members of Boy Scout troop 825, under the guidance of my son and his father. The Eagle Scout project is complete and delivered to Texas Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. The President of the operation happened to be there as the boys delivered the boxes and she was full of gratitude and gracious in welcoming their participation. One of the volunteers brought out some baby squirrels there for the boys to see.

To reward themselves, my guys went to see the movie, "The Simpsons" Sunday afternoon. Doh!

Today I mailed off our order for the son's Senior pictures. I didn't go hog wild and get the super duper packages. I did order an extra, though. I purchased all his proofs of the different shots taken, (there are 13!) and for the fee they will touch them up and take off the studio's banner across them so they can be framed.

Our son's 18th birthday is Labor Day weekend. Yes, he was my Labor Day baby. Who doesn't appreciate irony? I've been trying to decide where we should go to celebrate this special birthday. We wanted to get out of town and take a break from everyday routine for a couple of days. I chose New Orleans. Hotel reservations have been made, Max has a reserved spot at the boarders place (which is our vet's operation), and now we'll have a nice celebration to look forward to as the end of the summer approaches.

Our son was born in Lafayette, Louisiana. He was going into third grade, age 7, when we moved to Texas. My husband and I lived there for 12 years and truly enjoyed it. We haven't been back to New Orleans since Katrina. It was always a favorite destination for a long weekend or quick trip to get away. My husband has been throughout the area as he traveled for work and reported back on the devastation he saw so it'll be interesting to see what progress has been made. He hasn't been in the area in about 7 or 8 months now.

We'll act like tourists and hang in the French Quarter where little damage was done and it is up and running. We'll be careful of the increased murder/crime rate. We'll go by and see where the husband lived as a bachelor for 7 years, in the uptown area of town, to see how the area looks now. We never hung in the 9th ward anyway so don't plan to make any big effort to go there. We'll wait and gauge our curiosity level when we get there.

I have a new weekend bag to break in. Good times.

August the 5th: Day of Support for Jailed Iranian Students

From the website of http://www.republicaninthearts.blogspot.com, blogging friend, Incognito, encourages everyone wishing to support blogging freedom in Iran to check out a movement generated by a group of Iranian bloggers. The goal is to publicize the plight of jailed students in Iran. The action today was begun by Arash Kamangir, an Iranian student in Canada.

"August 5th, 2007 is the 101st anniversary of the Iranian constitutional revolution. But Iranian people still struggle for democracy and student activists are still sent to jails. Several student activists spend this year's anniversary in jails. In support and memory of our fellow activists, who some of them are bloggers as well, a group of Iranian bloggers will change their blog title on August the 5th to "August the 5th: The day of support for jailed Iranian students." We invite you, even as a non-Iranian blogger, to participate in this cause."

Human Rights Watch claims the students have been tortured and abused. There is also the charge that the students have been forced to confess to trumped up charges. Some claim to have been targeted for participating in the student protests against Ahmadinejad.

It seems to me that when those inclined to bellow that we Americans are losing our 'rights' and freedoms at the hands of this current U.S. administration, though there is no evidence of any such claims from any legal challenges, would be wise to look at countries truly taking away personal freedoms from its citizens.

Here's a little nugget of info about authorities in South Carolina thwarting a possible terrorist attack: yesterday in Berkeley County a van with Florida tags was stopped by police on a routine traffic stop. This happened near Goose Creek, north of Charleston. Goose Creek is the home of the naval Weapons Station and the U.S. Naval Consolidated Brig, a military prison holding enemy combatants. The van was driven by two men of Middle Eastern descent. Explosives were found in the van. The highway, Highway 1-76 was closed for more than 5 hours. Early this morning, as we all slept, technicians exploded an item. The men were detained pending a charge of unlawful possession of an explosive device.

Middle Eastern men in a van with an explosive device, heading towards the Weapons Station and Brig? Let's see how well this is publicized. Let's see how long it takes CAIR and their supporters to scream discrimination.

Blogging with Wine

I am watching "My War Diary" on the Military Channel tonight. Do you watch it? It's videos of footage from Iraq produced by the soldiers. It is incredible stuff. I cannot express my admiration and gratitude for the U.S. military enough. You know, when I was growing up, back when the dinos roamed, the Vietnam War was on the evening news every night as we ate dinner. I grew up with war as the lead story each and every night. Walter Cronkite was king. So, as a teen, I was naturally very anti-war. Bobby Kennedy was going to save our country, don't you know. I was too young to know the corruption of the Kennedy clan, I just knew the name was a bad word in my house. Teenagers are liberal. That is how it should be. I have one in my house now and I am ok with it. Now, if he's thirty years old and still of the same opinions, well, it's a different ballgame.

Turns out I married a Vietnam veteran. Who knew? Now I see both sides of war and the life of a soldier.

Let's think about the tragedy of the bridge collapse in Minneapolis, shall we? Scary, horrible story, to be sure. So, how long did it take for the Bush Deranged to blame the administration for the event? About ten minutes. What utter fools. But here's the real travesty, the media is lapping it up. Have you noticed? Every cable and network news channel has resorted to the same talking point, well, if we weren't spending so much money in Iraq, the bridges would be safe. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

First, the budget for the Department of Defense has absolutely nothing to do with the budget of the Department of Transportation. NOTHING. As usual, the defeatists are taking pot shots and the media, their willing accomplices, are jumping on the bandwagon.

Yesterday Laura Bush was there to offer support and comfort. Then today the president went there. Begrudgingly, the media has to say he was a welcome visitor and the trip was successful. But so far we have heard from Senator Amy Klobuchar, the junior senator from Minnesota, who has been in the senate for about 5 minutes, claim that "we've spent $500 billion in Iraq and we have bridges falling down in this country", she said on MSNBC. "I see a connection between messed-up priorities". Yeah, I've got your messed-up priorities, Amy. The messed-up priorities are when politicians try to make political hay out of a national tragedy.

Senator Klobuchar, you are a stupid, ignorant bitch. That's the facts. The fact is that the current administration has increased federal funding for highways every year, all the way into 2009. The state of Minnesota received an increase of 47%. Do you really think it's the fault of this administration's that your bridges weren't properly maintained? No, of course not. You are just taking pot shots and doing the bidding of your pathetic leadership.

Shame on you, Senator Klobuchar. You do not deserve to be in office. And, there you were, taking the free ride on Air Force One with the president, smiling and back slapping with all the others there like you were really concerned with the people of Minneapolis.

You make me sick.

I expect to hear all the incredibly stupid comments made on news shows by those who wish ill of our country to make political points, going unchallenged, but for sitting politicians to turn tragedy into political speeches and camera time? Disgusting.

And our brave soldiers continue to fight for the rights of these traitors.

God bless them.

Friday's Findings

The statue of limitations has run out in Mexico and officials are dropping charges against Dog Chapman. Finally.

Cindy Sheehan, running against Grandma Mimi Pelosi in San Francisco, announced plans to go to Syria, Jordan and Iraq. How did that tour work out for Grandma?

Sean Penn is visiting his new best friend, Hugo Chavez. He's gone to Venezuela in hopes of being taken seriously as a freelance journalist. I can't make this stuff up. You remember his fascinating insights from his visit with Saddam and the boys in Iraq, don't you? And his canoe trip in New Orleans, armed with a rifle, to 'help' Katrina victims? Well, you know, if George W. Bush would just run this country correctly, Sean wouldn't have to. Do you think the rally Sean attended with Hugo, mostly to denounce the Iraq War and speak of the common hatred they have for Bush violated any kind of journalistic ethics?

The Dems still are trying to find something to brag about as far as legislation is involved. They voted on passing the final 9/11 Commission report suggestions. They failed to mention that 37 out of 39 have already been put into place by executive order by Bush. So, that leaves two - the ramped up inspection guidance and they make no intentions known that the massive amount of committees be reduced, as suggested, to consolidate the oversight of intelligence and terrorism concerns.

I tuned into C-SPAN for a bit yesterday and was wondering if it was the U.S. House of Representatives that I was watching. What a circus. I stumbled upon a coup executed by the majority when the Agriculture bill was going the way of the minority opinion. Several Dems changed their votes after much arm twisting and one was Nick Lampson, D-TX. He has the old Tom DeLay seat. He'll have some 'splainin' to do to the home voters. The drama occured after a very close vote, 215 - 213, on a provision to allow welfare benefits and health care to illegals here in this country. The minority was opposed to such nonsense and some honest Dems voted with them. So, Pelosi and her followers lost the vote. The Congressman with the gavel, however called the vote a tie. The Republicans protested. Loudly. The vote was then opened back up and allowed to continue on until the arms were twisted hard enough to bring the count to 212-216. This hasn't been done before, after the gavel is hit.

One hundred Republicans walked out in protest. The vote was pulled. Steney Hoyer, Majority leader apologized this morning and both sides have agreed for the bill's vote to be scrapped and they will find a way to work it out.

Grandma Mimi needs a bigger broom to clean up that House. It is more corrupt, more earmarks (no matter what she labels them) and making up rules as they go. The voting machinery and microphones mysteriously were not working properly for the first vote taken this morning. Hmm.

John Edwards has gone after Hillary for taking $20,000 in campaign donations from News Corp, parent company of Fox News. He says Fox News is hostile to Dems. Hostile while donating to Hill? Rupert Murdoch just had a big fundraiser event for Hill and Bill in NYC. Edwards didn't want you to know that he received $500,000 in advances for his last book, published by HarperCollins, a News Corp subsidary. He says he gave the money to charity so it's ok. He didn't say he received another $300,000 for 'expenses' while the book project was underway. No word where that money went. He also received campaign contributions from News Corp execs but downplays it now by saying they were just 'middle level' execs. Does that make a difference? Does he imply only CEOs and Corp Presidents count? Hey, what about the little guy?

The frosting on the cake yesterday? Chuckie Schumer's face as he heard Diane Fienstein's statement in the Senate Judicial Committee as she said she would vote yes to send the nomination of Judge Leslie Southwick to the floor of the Senate for a confirmation vote. Chuckie must not have been informed that she was the only Dem to vote with the Republicans on the committee. So, the nomination will finally be brought to the floor for a vote. It's for the 5th Circuit Court, which includes the state of Texas. So, the committee vote outcome of 10-9 was quite a disappointment to Chuckie, who vows to block votes on Bush judicial nominees. He never voted for them anyway, I don't know why he acts as though he ever thought the president was entitled to his nominees. Chuckie's face fell. It was priceless. The smug smirk was briefly on vacation. Priceless.

The typical Pat Leahy inspired smear campaign was in full force against Southwick. He renounced any previous statements in his career that offended people before the committee during the nomination process. The Dems are always shouting for apologies, but refuse to 'move on' if it comes from the other side.

Whole lot of nuttiness going on out there.