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July 31, 2003

The Nazgul

The Washington Post has a good interactive round up of the Democratic Nine that's worth checking out.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:41 PM | Comments (0) |

Democrat's Bane

The biggest problem with being the opposition party is that when good things happen it's bad for your side. Take for instance the economy.

To date, this has been the biggest stick that the Democrats have. What can help their cause more than anything else is for the economy to go further south. When it improves -- as it has been steadily and surely doing -- it makes the President look good, which isn't good for them. And they can't just come out and express their disappointment in an improved economy, either -- that would sound like they believe that their agenda is more important than the state of the nation, and we know Democrats would never believe that.

And the Democrats problems just won't go away. Every time they think they've got the President, the situation improves and he comes out looking like a rose. Democrats have attacked him on Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, and the economy only to see each issue become an example of Bush's success.

And North Korea is fast becoming another such issue:

North Korea has reversed its long-standing opposition to multilateral talks on its nuclear weapons programme, reports from Russia say. After months of demanding one-on-one talks with the United States, Pyongyang has agreed to a proposal for six-nation multilateral talks, the Russian foreign ministry in Moscow announced on Thursday. [...] The announcement follows a fierce verbal attack on North Korea by US arms negotiator John Bolton, who is visiting South Korea during a three-nation tour of Asia.

Kerry hit Bush hard on North Korea in the run-up to the war in Iraq and it has been a recurring theme in his and Dean's campaigns. Although they both said we shouldn't have engaged Iraq unilaterally [is that what a coalition of 30+ countries is?], in North Korea's case multilateralism was out of the question. Yet again we see Bush's policies working where the Democrats said there was no possibility for success.

Update: And for more Democrat maddening success:

General elections to replace the US-appointed Iraqi governing council with a legitimate national government could take place in less than a year, Iraq's US administrator said today. Paul Bremer, a former diplomat and counter-terrorism expert, said he believed that a new constitution could be written and accepted by the Iraqi people in a referendum, and followed by general elections by the middle of next year.

Quagmire indeed.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:05 AM | Comments (0) |

The Primary Problem

Christine Iverson is right:

"The Democrats have been very vocal in expressing what they're against, but they have failed so far to tell the American people what they are for," Iverson said. "They have become the party of protest and pessimism. They have launched attacks on the president in an effort to appeal to the anti-war base of their party, but none of them have been able to articulate what they would do to make our country safer."

This is why Democrats are wishing for Gore to run. But if Gore is the best they've got, shouldn't they be re-evaluating everything?

Posted by bubba138 at 09:10 AM | Comments (0) |

It's Flowing!

"But Gray Davis, interesting man, he said this recall has gotten his juices flowing again. That's what he said. That was his exact quote. It was reported today that former President Bill Clinton's going to come to California to help Davis in his recall election campaign. And believe me, if anyone can show Davis how to keep those juices flowing, it is Bill Clinton." "There was also talk of bringing Al Gore to California to help out. They're concerned that both Gray Davis and Al Gore in the same state could cause some kind of rolling personality blackout." -- Jay Leno

Posted by bubba138 at 08:45 AM | Comments (0) |

It Is Not Over

The problems with the California budget isn't over, it has just begun. There are foundational weaknesses in the system that must be fixed before the next budget cycle:

The state budget Gov. Gray Davis plans to sign Saturday sticks a Band-Aid on California's record $38.2 billion deficit but fails to cure its fundamental financial woes. Even as lawmakers fled the capital and its searing heat Wednesday, the sighs of relief over finally reaching a budget compromise were replaced with the realization that when they return they'll have to defuse a ticking time bomb: a $7.9 billion shortfall. ``Mark my words: This budget solves nothing,'' Sen. Tom McClintock, R-Thousand Oaks, warned his colleagues Sunday night. ``It sets in motion bigger deficits to come. And the day that it is signed will be the first day of the budget crisis of 2004.'' [...] If they [state legislators] fail to address these issues when they return to town Aug. 18, lawmakers may be trumped by proposals that could be put before voters in March. One might cap spending and another, backed by organized labor, would lower the number of lawmakers needed to pass the budget from two-thirds to 55 percent.

So we will be faced with two "solutions." One, backed by the unions, will give the Democrats Carte-Blanche to raise taxes at will -- with no controls on spending. The other will cap budget increases based upon inflation and population changes.

I think we will also see Prop 13 under great attack over the next 12 months.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:35 AM | Comments (0) |

Democrats Are Cracking

What's the surest way to tell if the Democrat's unity is weakening? Gray insists it is not, that's how:

Gov. Gray Davis insists he will enter the recall election "with virtual unanimity in Democratic support" despite Democratic defections from a party strategy of unifying against the recall.

What the heck is "virtual unanimity?" Is that like virtual reality? Davis has been our virtual governor -- so it fits I guess.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:29 AM | Comments (0) |

NPR On The Recall

NPR had a rather snide piece on the recall this morning.

"State recall rules have no standards for what makes for a recallable offense. The governor needn't be a criminal, or immoral, or drunk, or stupid [...] ...so it took less than a million of them [voters] to force a recall -- or indict a ham sandwich. [...] ...and it's beginning to look like half the people who signed the petitions may be running...Darrel Issa...Arianna Huffington...Michael Huffington...Arnold Schwarzenegger...five multi-millionares, four calling birds, oh sorry wrong scripts. And there are plenty of candidates that keep the nuts and sprouts stereotypes alive and thriving.

Of course, nary a mention of the fact that we had a $38 billion deficit that has only been "fixed" by putting it off until later. Or that our governor is more concerned with getting his palm greased and enjoying the perks of office than he is with actually doing his job.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:16 AM | Comments (0) |

There is Unrest In the Forest

James at Outside the Beltway has done an analysis of the traffic rankings tracked by the Truth Laid Bear's Ecosystem. Here's what he found out:

985* blogs have open SiteMeter traffic stats. Their combined traffic is 326,135 average daily visitors over the past week. The top 12 have essentially the same traffic as the bottom 973: 162,583 vs 163,552 Instapundit has more traffic than blogs #83-987 combined: 66,886 to 66,366

So, what we have here is great inequality in the "egalitarian" blogosphere community. In essence, 50% of the currency (traffic) is controlled by the wealthiest 1.2% of the blogs.

Quite obviously, these Higher Beings must be manipulating the internet in such a way as to keep slithering reptiles (and lower life forms) crawling in the dust and muck.

Not all of us had the benefit, as Reynolds did, to receive links from Fox News in the early days of blogging. Once again it is demonstrated that it isn't about what you know, but who you know. I'm sure Glenn, Atrios, and yes even Kevin Drum have some powerful corporate or special interest big wig connections that are more responsible for their claim to the blog world market place than actual content.

Perhaps affirmative action is required? After all, we cannot allow this inequality to continue -- and if they won't shut down and freely give away their traffic, they should be forced, for the good of the greater blog community.

Maybe we can tax them? For each 10 page views they receive, they should be required to forcibly redirect their readership to a randomly selected blog -- regardless of content or quality. Because this we know above all things, diversity is strength -- and the more diverse the reading (good, bad, stupid, or intelligent) the better.

So rise up, bloggites! Attack this oppression. Stand up for your rights. You are only fodder for these Higher Beings -- they care not about your blog plight. Take what is rightfully yours!

Posted by bubba138 at 07:19 AM | Comments (0) |

July 30, 2003

Abortion In California

That's the headline on the Field Institute's latest poll. Off the cuff, nothing very surprising here. It isn't unlike California to be totally out of step with the rest of the nation where 51% of women believe that abortion is too greatly available.

But wait! Let's look at the data before reading too much into the headline:

So actually, more people want abortion to be harder to obtain than those who want to make it easier. Using the same figures, the headline could just as easily say:

More importantly, if one examines the year to year numbers, we see that California is moving more rightward on the issue of abortion. In 1991, 33% wanted easier access to abortion. That figure has descended 12 points in as many years.

Related News Coverage: AP repeats the Field Poll headline in the opening paragraph of it's article. As do the Sacramento Bee (although the meat of the article was the most fair of all the news I examined) and Bay Area TV news outlets KTVU, and KRON4.

The San Fran Chronicle cites the poll as evidence that "more than two-thirds of voters remain firmly pro- choice" -- technically true but not quite the whole truth. They do note that support for making getting abortions easier is declining, but nowhere do they note that support for making them harder to obtain has increased.

Again I ask, "What Liberal Media?"

Posted by bubba138 at 03:23 PM | Comments (0) |

Run Gore, Run!

Talk of Gore joining the race could be a trial balloon to test the atmosphere for a 2004 White House run. Gore lost in 2000 to George W. Bush in an election finally decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. The former DNC official, who was active in Gore’s 2000 campaign, said his prediction of another Gore campaign is based on more than a hunch. But he declined to offer specific evidence. He believes, as other Gore confidants do, that the political climate has changed significantly since December, making Bush more vulnerable to defeat in his bid for a second term. [...] A Time/CNN poll conducted between May 21 and 22 showed that if Gore changed his mind and ran for president, 40 percent of Democrats and Independents who lean Democratic nationwide would vote for him. The Democratic runners-up, Sen. Joe Lieberman (Conn.), Sen. John Kerry (Mass.), and Rep. Dick Gephardt (Mo.), would each draw 7 percent of that vote.

I think there would be huge support for a Gore candidacy -- and not a little of it from the Republican camp. Nothing would be more effective for squelching the "Bush stole the election in 2000" rant than to have Bush just wipe this guy out on 2004.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:06 AM | Comments (0) |

That's a Humdinger of a Car

Who says the Sierra Club is humorless? One must still wonder if they are making the best use of their time, talent, and treasure:

"If you look at what Hummer is, in terms of its impact on the fuel emissions that vehicles put out, its sales are 0.5 of 1 percent of the U.S. vehicle market," said Pete Ternes, a spokesman for Hummer. "So if you consider that little factoid, what they're trying to do is use the popular image of Hummer to promote their cause, which is a P.R. tactic. There are much bigger fish to fry."

Posted by bubba138 at 08:57 AM | Comments (0) |

Riordan vs. Schwarzenegger

Which one will run? Will either run? Why are they wasting all this time figuring it out?

The answers are found looking into the crystal ball.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:37 AM | Comments (0) |

Betting On Death II

Eli Lehrer comments on NRO about the Terrorism Futures Market:

And why should any of this pose a moral problem? After all, people make money by selling tombstones, hospice care, and security services. Making money off of bets about terrorist activities and political instability should not prove any more troubling than the actions of a funeral-home owner who stocks up on coffins after a hurricane. And, indeed, all of the money involved in the markets would come from voluntary participants.

The distinction that Eli fails to make is that burial services, hospice care, and security services provide for a need. People don't just willy-nilly buy a casket on the off chance that someone may die. They buy one because someone is sure to die. The casket is necessary in the proper burial of that person's remains.

No one needs to bet on terrorism. Yes, terrorism happens -- and it will continue to happen. But betting on it will never fulfill a need. And to say that the futures market may be an accurate way of predicting terrorism is out-and-out double talk. The Portsmouth Herald goes a little off the deep edge in their opinion, but they at least get this part right:

...the statement read. "Futures markets have proven themselves good at predicting such things as elections results; they are often better than expert opinions." Unbelievable! The administration is basically saying that people who normally trade in hog bellies and wheat are better able to determine what will happen at some future time in the Middle East than the CIA, NSA or military intelligence sources. It kind of puts a crimp in the whole concept of the Office of Homeland Security, doesn't it?.

Further, if the market really worked, it wouldn't ever pay off for the investors. Follow me here.

• The idea is that futures could successfully predict terrorist targets.
• When an act of terrorism occurred, those that predicted it would be paid off.
• Predictions from the market would be used by our intelligence agencies to prevent terrorism.

Therefore, anyone being paid off would be evidence that the intelligence community didn't do its job based on the prediction of the market. On the other hand, if intelligence agencies defuse terrorist activity based upon market predictions, absolutely no one would be paid off. The market either fails to stop terrorism, or it fails to give a return on investment. Either way, it fails.

Update: According to Instapundit, I'm sided with the idiots. But what is more idiotic, condemning that which is morally wrong, or supporting an investment scheme that is run by those whose primary goal is to prevent the investors from getting a pay off?

Posted by bubba138 at 08:11 AM | Comments (0) |

July 29, 2003

Jonathan On Dean

Jonathan thinks Dean will make a swell Democratic nominee. Jonathan, on the other hand, thinks that idea stinks. Go see Jonathan duke it out with Jonathan.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:26 PM | Comments (0) |

Edwards Health Plan

The New Republic is applauding John Edward's newly unveiled health plan:

This might not seem new: After all, Howard Dean and John Kerry have both proposed to use the same basic formula to make sure nearly every child, as well as most adults, have health insurance. But Edwards has an important wrinkle in his plan: He'd make insurance for children mandatory. Parents would be legally responsible for providing their children with insurance or obtaining government insurance if private coverage was unaffordable. To enforce the mandate--and extend coverage to kids who might fall through the cracks--hospitals, clinics, and schools would check for insurance in the same way they now check for routine childhood vaccines.

One question: If parents don't get the insurance that they are "legally responsible for providing their children", should we soon expect a knock on the door from Child Protective Services?

John Edwards correctly condemned the administration (paragraph 18) for it's "total information awareness" program -- a program which is intended to find criminals bent on killing Americans. Yet he has no problem sharing personal family medical information with state institutions, schools, and hospitals in order to hold non-compliant parents to state determined standards.

This is yet another example that shows how Democrats believe that the state is a better care-taker for our children than we parents -- and another reason why I vote Republican.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:36 PM | Comments (0) |

Don't Read This Article

I'm warning you:

For instance, there was the family of a Canadian man who was killed when he started rocking a 925-pound Coke machine and it tipped over on him. The lawsuit said the machine should have carried a warning that if a person rocks a 925-pound Coke machine, it might tip over and kill him. Or the Pennsylvania man who let go of a stretched elastic cord on the hood of his coat, which then snapped back and hit him in the eye. He sued the maker of the coat because it failed to offer a warning that an elastic cord, when stretched and let go, will tend to snap back. Or the parents of a man killed when he sneaked into a pool containing a large killer whale at SeaWorld in Florida. They sued because the pool offered no warning that it is not a good idea to be in the same pool with a large killer whale. Maybe lawyers ought to come with warning labels. Then again, there is the California ski resort that posted all the right warning signs, including one that said: "Be Aware--Ski with Care." That should do it. A skier slammed into one of the signs. He sued the resort because he had not been sufficiently warned that there might be warning signs.

Update: A hoax? Maybe. Still humorous, though.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:23 AM | Comments (0) |

International Kangaroo Kourt

Here's why Bush prevented our acceptance of the ICC:

Top lawyers from Greece filed a lawsuit with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague on Monday against senior UK officials. They want to indict Prime Minister Tony Blair and other senior members of the UK government and military for allegedly breaching international law by attacking Iraq. They include the killing of Iraqi civilians, depriving the population of drinking water in cities such as Basra, the destruction of food supplies and the bombardment of residential areas.

Notice these same people aren't filing cases against Saddam Hussein and his cronies for using civilians as human shields, filling mass graves, gassing civilians, using elementary schools and hospitals as military outposts, etc.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:45 AM | Comments (0) |

Betting On Death

Several pundits have lauded the terrorist futures market set up by the Pentagon as "out-of-the-box" thinking.

But thinking out of the box doesn't make a gruesome, brutal idea acceptable. Betting on death is wrong. If that's not clear to us, than we have truly misplaced (or smashed) our moral compass.

First, we're proud of reaching the point when it's acceptable to publicly release photos of Uday and Qusay, then we brag about kidnapping women and children (now there's out-of-the-box thinking), now we're profiting on blood and guts?

What's next, a reality TV that follows competing terrorist organizations to see which one can cause the most death and destruction? Maybe we can even get the audience involved and they can pick the target by dialing a 1-900 number.

What's most scary about this isn't that someone thought of it. If our leadership didn't think of these kind of things I would be worried that we don't have the creative juices at the Pentagon we need in order to get the job done effectively. Instead, what is worrisome is the fact that this idea didn't get discussed, thoughtfully weighed, genuinely considered and then carefully scrapped. Someone, or more to the point, several someones said, "Hey, that's a great idea!" And there were more someones, with greater power, promoting this malicious plan than there were those that were advising restraint.

Let's be done with barbarism and get back on the white charger. This started out as a just cause, lets keep it that way.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:59 AM | Comments (0) |

Coming Soon to an Airline Near You?

United States officials say they have learnt of new threats of airline suicide hijackings planned for the latter part of the northern summer. The information was gleaned in recent interrogation of high-level al-Qaeda captives and corroborated by other means, including electronic intercepts, the officials said. Intelligence services have discovered information "related to al-Qaeda's continued interest in using commercial aviation here in the United States and abroad," said Gordon Johndroe, a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security, adding that warnings had been issued to the appropriate airline and security personnel.

I don't see how this could work for al-Qa'eda. Before 9/11, passengers on a hijacked jet thought that as long as they minded themselves and cooperated with the hijackers, there was a better than fair chance they'd eventually end up safe and sound on Terra-firma. Hence, the hijackers were confronted with little or no active resistance.

That's all changed now. Passengers now will naturally assume the hijacked plane is going down, so what's the point of playing it safe and sound. If you're going to die, you might as well do it preventing the deaths of others -- which is exactly why the fourth jet on 9/11 never made it to it's target.

Update: Kathy Kinsley also thinks it would be a stupid idea -- but for a different reason -- you just don't want to piss us off any more.

Update: Scott Ott confirms my thinking with a "man in the terminal" interview.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:36 AM | Comments (0) |

Justene Adamec: Our Next Governor

Here's why Justene is qualified to be governor:

In addition to her law practice, Ms. Adamec serves as a contract Administrative Law Judge for the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. As a judge, Ms. Adamec is extensively familiar with all aspects of employment discrimination claims.

So she's got labor covered.

Ms. Adamec also conducts her own mediation practice under the name Business Conflict Resolutions. She has been a member of the Mediation and Arbitration Panel of the Los Angeles County Superior Courts since 1999 and is also a member of the Southern California Mediation Association. Additionally, she is a graduate of Mediating the Litigated Case, Straus Institute of Dispute Resolution, Pepperdine University.

So now we know she should be able to get both houses to hammer out a budget, ya know, before the deadline is up.

As an educator, Ms. Adamec is a panel member and author of workshop materials...

An edumakater? Wow, she'll even be able to get along with CTA.

Her community involvement also includes serving as a member of the Trustees Committee to the Board of Trustees, Child Educational Center (the “CEC”), La Canada, California. The CEC is a model childcare program serving Caltech, JPL and the surrounding communities. She is a former board member and secretary to the CEC’s corporation.

Childcare? She's got the bleeding heart -- a requirement for a California governor. Oh, and she's real smart too:

Ms. Adamec is a magna cum laude graduate from State University of New York at Buffalo where she received her B.A. in psychology. She received her J.D. cum laude from Southwestern University School of Law, where she served as Editor-In-Chief of Southwestern University Law Review.

So there won't be any jokes about her not being able to spell potato-e. She's got my vote.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:14 AM | Comments (0) |

Iranian Brain Drain

Come home to Iran and you can once again be a citizen:

Parliament on Tuesday approved the general outlines of a key bill on reinstating the nationality of Iranians who have been stripped of that, in an effort to convince the country's skilled elite and entrepreneurs in exile to return home. [...] The measures come in the face of regularly media reports about an 'unprecedented' urge among Iranian youth to quit the country in search of greener pastures. According to unconfirmed press reports, over 90 percent of Iranians who win in world scientific contests are attracted by western countries. They have also cited officials as saying that more than 420,000 Iranian university graduates have left the country in recent years.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but those that left Iran gave up their citizenship because the West offered them something that Iran -- in its present state -- never could. Why would Iranians go back just because Iran would give them something they voluntarily gave up?

Perhaps if Iran stopped beating on those 420,000 university students, they wouldn't be so motivated to leave.

Posted by bubba138 at 06:52 AM | Comments (0) |

July 28, 2003

Waning Support

Can this be true?

...less than one-third of Americans now consider themselves Democrats, down from 49 percent at their peak in 1958. And Democrats lag well behind Republicans among other growing groups of voters whose loyalties swing back and forth between parties and who hold the key to close elections - including suburbanites, professionals and middle-class families with children.

Perhaps that explains this:

Americans have become significantly less accepting of homosexuality since a Supreme Court decision that was hailed as clearing the way for new gay civil rights, a USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll has found. After several years of growing tolerance, the survey shows a return to a level of more traditional attitudes last seen in the mid-1990s.

The more left the Democrats go, the more they lose support. Its plain to everyone...except the Democratic leadership, that is.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:48 PM | Comments (0) |

Making Progress

Saddam's bodyguard has been bagged.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:37 PM | Comments (0) |

Justene For Governor

Xrlq has switched his endorsement for governor to newly announced candidate -- our own Bear Flag League blogger -- JusteneA.

Slings and Arrows will be throwing all it's support behind Justene's campaign. Don't be dissuaded by posts like this -- the purpose of these is merely to give the new candidate breathing room while she is fundraising on vacation.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:40 PM | Comments (0) |

Another Reason Bush Will Win

The number of Democrats making it to the polls will be down in 2004:

The nation's prison population grew 2.6 percent last year, the largest increase since 1999, according to a study by the Justice Department.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:20 PM | Comments (0) |

The End Of Civility

Taranto comments on America's non-reaction to the exhibition of Uday & Qusay's bodies:

To get an idea of what we mean, try to put Iraq out of your mind for a moment, and imagine if in our debut column, three years ago today (happy birthday to us, by the way), we had ventured the following prediction: Remains to Be Seen Sometime in the next few years the U.S. government will kill two men. Then it will distribute photographs of their bloody corpses and later invite reporters into a mortuary to view the bodies close-up and videotape them. Those tapes will be widely aired in America and elsewhere. This would have seemed rather far-fetched, even shocking, would it not? After all, the government occasionally kills people--in executions, for example--but to make a show of, say, Timothy McVeigh's corpse would have been a ghastly transgression of civilized norms, even to those of us who favor capital punishment

I agree, it would have (and should have) been quite shocking -- what with the President complaining that showing American POWs on al-Jazeera was a violation of international law, it was inconceivable that the United States would broadcast the bloody unwashed bodies of enemy officers.

The problem is, where Taranto takes it from there is equally inconceivable:

But last week the government did something that in ordinary times would have been regarded as grotesque, and everyone seems to agree it was necessary. This proves that the Sept. 11 attack really did change America. By awakening us to the utter barbarity of our enemies, it weakened some of our civilized inhibitions about fighting back--and none too soon.

By awakening us to the utter barbarity of our enemies, we have headed down the road to increased barbarity. Not quite a moment of which we can be proud. Was showing the photos necessary? Perhaps -- at least one Iraqi was screaming for it, so one can assume there were many more.

But still, we should be saddened that we did this. It was brutal. It was ugly. It was something the Islamist would have done, not we Americans.

It. Just. Felt. Wrong.

Because it was.

Update: This decline into brutality needs to stop now.

Posted by bubba138 at 06:41 PM | Comments (0) |

Mona Charen Gets It Right

From the day Baghdad fell, U.S. and British media fed us a nonstop diet of woe and defeat, with very little acknowledgment of what British and U.S. forces have achieved in such a short time. J. Paul Bremer, Iraq’s administrator, told The Weekly Standard: “When I got to Baghdad eight weeks ago, the city was burning. It was on fire. There was no traffic in the city, other than coalition vehicles. I slept with earplugs at night because of the gunfire. This is a remarkably better place in all three respects.” I hope I’ll be forgiven an “I told you so” of my own. Five months ago, I was asked at a forum for a prediction on how liberals would respond to the stunning victory in Iraq. I said they’d probably start complaining if Iraq wasn’t a Madisonian democracy within three months. These are the same folks who were ready to declare the war a “quagmire” when we hadn’t defeated the enemy in two weeks (it took three). These nanosecond time horizons for monumental historical undertakings are childish. [...] Rebuilding Iraq can be done — but not without time, trouble and pain. Welcome to the real world.

Yep. (Full article)

Posted by bubba138 at 03:42 PM | Comments (0) |

A Rare Find

Common Sense and Wonder has stumbled across something more rare than Bigfoot -- and about a believable as well.

The Truth is Out There.

I still don't know. It may be a hoax. If so, Snopes hasn't nailed them yet.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:51 PM | Comments (0) |

Judicial Nominees

Matthew Hoy hits is spot-on in his analysis of the treatment of judicial nominees:

It used to be that a judge's credentials, temperment and ability to follow the law were what mattered when it came to being confirmed. Back then, a "well-qualified" rating from the liberal American Bar Association was the "gold standard" when it came to measuring fitness for the bench. But New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, and his like-minded Democrat colleagues, has determined that a nominee's personal beliefs trump all -- the Schumer Doctrine. Since Roe is the Democrats' Holy Grail, no one is fit for the bench who doesn't agree with that decision.

This in an America where 68% of women believe that abortion as it exists today should be more limited.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:56 AM | Comments (0) |

Sarbanes-Oxley

It's the one year anniversary of the Sarbanes-Oxley acts, designed to curb corporate abuse of investor trust. Maxine Shapiro says there's not much to celebrate:

So a year later, companies are complaining the changes cost too much to implement, and the loss of management time is not worth it. Some Silicon Valley executives are only seeing marginal improvement to the quality of their financial statements. One of the main components of the bill requires chief executives and chief financial officers to certify and stand behind their companies' financial reports. If anything is found false or "misinterpreted," so says company heads, the penalties are steep - up to $25 million and 25 years in prison. And although there is no getting around the certification process, a study by the Dallas Business Journal found little else is getting done.

Alison Fraser, on the other hand, thinks the act ought to apply equally to unions -- and she has a point:

Shouldn't modern labor unions be held to the same high standards of disclosure, accountability and transparency as corporations operating in a post-Enron, post-WorldCom environment? Apparently, union leaders don't believe their members deserve the full and complete information that would let them make educated and informed decisions about their own union's financial interests or governance. Secretary Chao's efforts to hold unions to modern standards of accountability should be allowed to proceed. What's sauce for the corporate goose should be sauce for the union gander.

Reading both articles, it is interesting to see that both corporate America and Labor agree on (or more pointedly, complain about) one thing -- implementing these controls is prohibitively costly. Yet business has to swallow the pill while labor gets a pass. Go figure.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:38 AM | Comments (0) |

Stranger Than Fiction

Please tell me this is a jpke:

Meanwhile, supporters of former Democratic Rep. Gary Condit say the congressman -- whose life is the subject of a documentary called "Public Service: The Private Campaign of Gary Condit," to premiere Aug. 8 in Sacramento -- is being urged to consider a run as a Democrat.

Just who are these "supporters of former Democratic Rep. Gary Condit?" Have they been in a cave the last three years?

Posted by bubba138 at 10:04 AM | Comments (0) |

Why did They Do It?

Zota thinks last week's Berkeley press release on conservative thinking was a publicity stunt designed to give attention to the (in his opinion) valid source study.

He cites the conservative blogosphere's reaction to the press release as proof that the study was right-on. Heck, he even thought Slings and Arrows' Fisking was insulting.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:29 AM | Comments (0) |

A Century of Entertainment

Fame and fortune come and go, but very few entertainers will ever reach the stature of Bob Hope. Live, on the radio, movies, tv, he entertained more generations of Americans than any other comic in history.

But more than being a great entertainer, he was a great American. President Bush says it well:

"Today America lost a great citizen. We mourn the passing of Bob Hope. Bob Hope made us laugh. He lifted our spirits," the president said, adding: "Bob Hope served our nation when he went to battlefields to entertain thousands of troops from different generations. We extend our prayers to his family and we mourn the loss of a good man. May God bless his soul."

When our boys went to Europe, Bob Hope was there. When they went to Korea, so did Bob. During Viet Nam and the Gulf War when the Hollywood elite were protesting against American imperialist aggression, Bob Hope eyes were on the troops. He did more than believe in the American ideal, he lived it.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:58 AM | Comments (0) |

WOW. What a Weekend

Spent the weekend at Big Bear mountain with my bro. Both the drive and the site were plain gorgeous, as were the sunsets.

Fire risk this time of year is high, so we weren't able to have a campfire, but we were so tired by the end of the day from riding -- and the riding was good -- that we hit the sack as soon as it was dark.

Coming back to reality yesterday was tough, but here I am.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:23 AM | Comments (0) |

July 25, 2003

I'm OUT!

I'm heading off for the weekend -- won't be back until Monday. My bro and I are heading up Big Bear mountain for a little motorized recreation. (That ought to make the Greens real happy.) Whatever. All I know is I'll be having the most fun I can with my clothes on.

Catch you on Monday.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:00 PM | Comments (0) |

It's Official

Legislating from the bench has now gone completely over the line:

Setting up a potential constitutional crisis in Illinois, the seven members of the state Supreme Court Thursday ordered state Comptroller Dan Hynes to boost their pay from $158,103 a year to $162,530 a year and to boost the pay of all judges in Illinois by about $4,000 a year.

Why stop there? Why not rule for vacation time and benefits as well? How about a fully serviced wet bar in chambers?

Hat tip: Outside the Beltway

Posted by bubba138 at 12:51 PM | Comments (0) |

Bustamante Backs Off

It looks like the Klingon promotion plan has been placed on the back burner:

Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante on Thursday set Oct. 7 for the recall election of Gov. Gray Davis and -- if necessary -- the election of his successor, backing away from his earlier suggestion that the configuration of the ballot be decided by a little-known commission and the California Supreme Court.

Here is a short list of items that have gone the right way in recent weeks:

• Recall Qualified
• Court Action By Democrats to Delay Signature Verification Rejected
• Court Action By Democrats to Invalidate Signature Rejected
• Budget Passed Sans Taxes
• Bustamante Reversed Self on Placing Names on Recall Ballot

It feels so weird to have so many things falling on the side of the Republicans! Gee, Toto, I don't think we're in California anymore.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:31 PM | Comments (0) |

WE WON!

A budget deal has been worked out -- and guess what, NO NEW TAXES!

"The Republicans were absolutely adamant that they would not vote for any increased taxes. We were adamant that we were not going to balance this budget on the backs of the poor, the aged and the blind and disabled," Burton said. "They've apparently achieved their goals; we clearly achieved ours." It signifies a major political victory for Republicans -- who are a minority in both legislative chambers and hold no statewide offices. Absent is a list of tax increases proposed by Davis and other Democrats ranging from a sweeping sales tax hike to higher taxes for cigarettes and for the state's highest earners.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:29 PM | Comments (0) |

Saddam's "Decapitation" Strike Was a Setup

Uday's body guard is now giving us intelligence:

The bodyguard said the Americans’ next “decapitation” strike came a lot closer, and that Saddam survived only because several safe houses had come under attack and he suspected there was an informant within his camp. Saddam asked the suspect, a captain, to prepare a safe house behind a restaurant in the Mansour district for a meeting. They arrived, and left again, almost immediately, by the back door. “Ten minutes after they went out of the door, it was bombed,” the bodyguard said. Saddam had the captain summarily executed while the Pentagon was claiming that the strike had probably finished off Saddam and Uday.

Ooops. That captain got screwed.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:14 PM | Comments (0) |

E.L.O. Reborn

Head banging classical. Very cool.

(Hey Bryon, Who's E.L.O.? Ahh, to be young and naive again.)

Posted by bubba138 at 08:06 AM | Comments (0) |

Davis -- A Poll Watcher?

Daniel Weintraub:

Grown-ups know that almost nothing you see in politics is spontaneous. But the nature to which Gray Davis’ actions and statements are dialed in by polling is extraordinary, and here’s a great example. Wednesday night at 7 p.m., minutes after the recall was certified, Republican pollster Frank Luntz predicted to me that Davis would make some acknowledgement of mistakes he’s made as governor. “While they (voters) have problems with me, while I've made mistakes, while we have a tough economy all across the country, at the end of the day, I believe they will acknowledge we have been making progress in a tough economy."

Determining policy and actions based on polling didn't hurt Clinton. I think gray has higher ambitions than winning a recall.

Related Item: Make sure you "Do The Math" on the cost of the recall.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:44 AM | Comments (0) |

Representative Government In Iraq

Laith Kubba thinks Iraq needs two legislative houses, the current governing council and something like the U.S. Sentate:

But while Iraqis support the governing council in principle, they need more effective representation. Former exiles and Kurdish Iraqi leaders controlled the nominations for the council. The process was driven by a desire to reflect Iraq's ethnic and religious mix - which gave little scope for accommodating representation from Iraq's 18 provinces. The result is that the Sunni triangle - the most critical security concern - enjoys no representation. Such omissions will not help Iraq make a successful transition to democracy. A possible solution would be to set up a second council, comprising an equal number of representatives from each of Iraq's 18 provinces, most of which are currently run by functioning and popular local councils. Its role would be to oversee the constitutional process, leaving the current governing council to form and oversee the interim administration. The second council would deal with one of the Iraqis' most pressing political concerns: fear that the present council institutionalises ethnic and religious divisions. Although Iraqi politicians have repeatedly denounced divisions along ethnic lines, the current process may serve to institutionalise them. The second council could strengthen national unity without compromising representation of Iraq's diverse communities. Inclusion of all Iraqis in an open political system, and not divisions of power and territory along ethnic lines, will accelerate Iraq's recovery and help reconciliation among its people. Long-term security depends on everyone's having a voice.

This same reasoning is exactly why the U.S. with all it's diversity remains a strong, united nation. We have family squabbles constantly, but when push comes to shove, we are all Americans. That's why we pull together in times of trouble, regardless of race, religion, or ethnicity. Each of us has representation. Each of us has political worth.

Success in Iraq requires no less.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:29 AM | Comments (0) |

What Liberal Media?

Major news outlets provided more favorable coverage of the first year of the Clinton administration than of George W. Bush's or Ronald Reagan's government during comparable periods, says a study released yesterday.

To be sure, Alterman will point out that Howard Kurtz, the author of the article, is a conservative. Whether Kurtz truly is a conservative is not a factor, Alterman stating that he is will make it so.

Hat Tip: Crooow Blog

Posted by bubba138 at 06:02 AM | Comments (0) |

July 24, 2003

The Civil War Continues

The Palestinian civil war continued today:

A huge explosion rocked the central Palestinian prison in Gaza City after sundown Thursday, Palestinian security officials said. Palestinian security later said the blast was caused by a rocket-propelled grenade that was fired at the office of Gaza Military Intelligence Colonel Moussa Arafat, who is also Yasser Arafat's newphew. [...] The reason for the attack was unclear. An Israeli military source called the blast an "internal Palestinian matter" and had no further comment.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:07 PM | Comments (0) |

New York City's Finest

As Davis turned to go downstairs to the Council meeting, Askew pulled out a silver .40-caliber Smith & Wesson handgun and fired, hitting Davis at least twice in the chest, officials said. He kept shooting even after the wounded man crumpled. [Officer Richard ] Burt, working as a plainclothes guard assigned to Council Speaker Gifford Miller's security detail, returned fire from the chamber floor. He squeezed off six shots, hitting Askew at least five times, officials said.

Five hits out of six shots? Nice shooting, officer Burt. Now I know why they're called New York City's finest.

Update: I guess it was only four bullets. Still Bloomberg was impressed:

Richard Burt, the officer who killed Askew with four bullets, was promoted to detective investigator at a ceremony in City Hall. He offered condolences to Davis's family and played down his own quick thinking.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:49 PM | Comments (0) |

Free Iran

Project Free Iran. Check it out.

I don't know who's behind this site, but is has a wealth of information on things Iranian.

Because of this site, I found out what it takes to piss off the Canadians. I didn't think that was possible.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:39 PM | Comments (0) |

Ours Are not Western Values

Judith Weiss comments on embryonic market opportunities:

Think Prague in 1990. I have a feeling all the young dot.commers who got laid off two years ago are going to converge on Baghdad over the next six months. And I don't think that's a bad thing. Some people said I was being overly optimistic, but the emergence of Western entrepreneurship in Iraq is right on schedule. Next stop: the Palestininian territories. Far-fetched? No. The Iraqis and the Palestinian Arabs are the most middle-class Westernized entrepreneurial Arab groups in the Middle East. We are not "imposing Western culture" on them, we are helping them remove obstacles to doing what they are already very good at.

Yep.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:09 PM | Comments (0) |

Was the Document Shredder Broken

From the Sacramento Bee:

A small fire in a governor's staff office in the state Capitol late Tuesday night caused nearly $25,000 in damage, according to Sacramento City Fire Department officials.

That won't help the budget much. I wonder what exactly burned in that fire?

...conspiracy theories wafting through the mind...

Posted by bubba138 at 02:49 PM | Comments (0) |

The Economy Is Turning Around

The latest economic news is great for Bush:

The number of American workers signing up for jobless benefits plunged last week to the lowest level in five months, a fresh dose of good news for the economy's revival. It marked the second week in a row that claims went down and represented the first time since the week ending Feb. 8 that claims dipped below 400,000, a level associated with a weak job market. The claims figures were better than economists were expecting; they were forecasting claims to rise slightly. The more stable, four-week moving average of jobless claims, which smoothes out weekly fluctuations, fell by a solid 5,500 last week to 419,250, the lowest level since the work week ending March 8.

Am I the only one who has noticed that good economic news isn't trumpeted in the media as loudly as bad news?

Posted by bubba138 at 01:36 PM | Comments (0) |

The Date Is Set

October 7th, 2003 --

"I'm gunna wash that Gray right outta my hair..."

Pictured here, Gray had just been asked what he was going to do after being booted from office.

"The timing is perfect," the governor replied, "I'm going to run for President!"

Posted by bubba138 at 12:37 PM | Comments (0) |

Lead On Bustamante!

Here's what Bustamante said in order to justify his possible Klingon-style promotion to governor:

"Anything other than setting a date -- that's not in my realm, I don't believe," Bustamante said. "My reading of this is a very simple matter. What I'm trying to do is demonstrate clarity and decisiveness."

Trying to demonstrate decisiveness? How is decisiveness demonstrated by effectively saying "It's not my job?" Just what we need in the governors seat is another person who does nothing when something needs to be done.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:25 PM | Comments (0) |

Short Timer's Disease

That must be Davis' diagnosis. Contrary to his stoic declarations of "I'm not afraid", Davis must become resigned to the fact that his days are numbered. Otherwise why would he allow this:

Unlike the nearly 131,000 state workers who will begin swallowing a 5 percent reduction in their take-home pay beginning with checks issued at the end of the month, Gov. Gray Davis' Cabinet officials and other gubernatorial appointees' "voluntary" 5 percent pay cuts came to an end this month. The state, in the absence of a budget, can't increase the pay of its workers, regardless of previously agreed-upon contracts, senior state officials ruled earlier this month.

Asked about how this may affect state and county workers, and whether they would be able to still eek out a living, Davis replied, "If they can't buy groceries, let them eat cake."

Posted by bubba138 at 12:10 PM | Comments (0) |

Hand In The Cookie Jar

Reuters has been called out:

This is from a story that Reuters news service ran this week with my byline: "Jessica Lynch...was set for an emotional homecoming on Tuesday . . . Media critics say the TV cameras will not show the return of an injured soldier so much as a reality-TV drama co-produced by U.S. government propaganda and credulous reporters." Got problems with that? I do, especially since I didn't write it.

The question is, who did write it? And just who are these media critics? It is obvious someone at Reuters has an agenda in addition to reporting the straight facts.

Again, I think of Alterman's canard, "What liberal media?"

Hat Tip: Chuck Simmons

Posted by bubba138 at 11:31 AM | Comments (0) |

School Vouchers

The plan to bring vouchers to the District of Columbia got a much-needed boost Tuesday when liberal Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a longtime critic of the idea, publicly expressed her support. "This issue is not about ideology or political correctness," the California Democrat wrote in a Washington Post op-ed. "It is about providing a new opportunity for good education, which is the key to success."

I still can't get my brain around this one. California Democrats have been fighting against vouchers for years, and the California Teachers Association is one of Diane Feinstein's biggest supporters.

I'm sure she has a reason why vouchers are right in Washington DC but wrong in California. Either that or the voucher "experiment" in DC will be set up to fail -- thereby "proving" that vouchers won't work.

The other possibility is that Ms. Feinstein is now actually looking at vouchers with an objective eye. This is hard for me to believe, as she has classically taken the party line on vouchers. But if it is the case, it could mark a turn-around in the Democratic party.

The Democrats have accused (and rightly so) the Republicans of hijacking their issues -- health care being the chief of those -- and being very successful at the polls because of it. Democrats now have a chance to do the reverse with the voucher issue. Supporting vouchers would show that the Democrats care more about the students than they do about teachers (or more specifically money from the teacher's unions).

Posted by bubba138 at 10:44 AM | Comments (0) |

Government Gone Wild

I love it when the government tells us what we can and cannot do with our own property:

The Roman Catholic Oblates of St. Joseph operate a church in Santa Cruz, Calif., that seeks to expand its parking lot to accommodate increasing attendance at its church services and to provide parking for staff at a private school that leases space on their property. The City Council of Santa Cruz voted to allow an expansion of 17 spaces. Two scientific studies confirmed that the expansion would not harm the wintering habitat of the Monarch butterflies since there is a nearby 36-acre state park with nectaring sources for the wintering butterflies. The California Coastal Commission even affirmed the city's decision. But neighbors of the church and the local Sierra Club protested the parking lot expansion and appealed the city council's ruling. As a result, the California Coastal Commission reversed its position and decided to take jurisdiction away from the city council and study the situation for another year. In the end, the Commission did decide in favor of allowing the parking lot expansion to spare itself from being taken to court, but the church was denied the right to use its own property as it wished for a year.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:42 AM | Comments (0) |

Dancing On Their Graves?

A good portion of the Blogosphere did look like Palestine on 9/12 after learning the sons of Saddam had been killed. Now a good portion is in healthy repentance and soul exploration -- and that's a good thing.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:59 AM | Comments (0) |

Why We Are In Iraq

Steven Den Beste knows why:

In fact, the real reason we went into Iraq was precisely to "nation build": to create a secularized, liberated, cosmopolitan society in a core Arab nation. To create a place where Arabs were free and safe and unafraid and happy and successful and not ruled by corrupt monarchs or brutal dictators. This would demonstrate to the other people in the Arab and Muslim worlds that they can succeed, but only if they abandon those political, cultural and religious chains that are holding them back. We are not doing this out of altruism. We are not trying to give them a liberalized Western democracy because we're evangelistic liberal democrats (with both liberal and democrat taking historical meanings). We are bringing reform to Iraq out of narrow self-interest. We have to foster reform in the Arab/Muslim world because it's the only real way in the long run to make them stop trying to kill us.

This may be so -- as a matter of fact I think it is very true, and wise, forward, long-term thinking.

Nick Favarito thinks the right is stealing the left's cause, though:

The right certainly has come a long way, hasn't it? Stop me if you've heard this before, but why is the left letting these people get away with this? We are the true liberal-hawks and why are they waffling so much? I'm not neccessarily saying Joe Lieberman needs to cry foul because conservatives are now playing ball in his park, but couldn't he rightly make the argument that the right has only come back to the humanitarian argument because we haven't yet found the weapons?

Posted by bubba138 at 09:40 AM | Comments (0) |

Hugh Hewitt Speaks

Check out this Right Wing News interview of Hugh Hewitt. Hugh starts off by citing why liberal media hasn't been successful on talk radio:

The essence of talk radio is entertainment. Rush showed everyone the way and others have picked up on this. You have to be happy with what you do, you have to be an optimist, and you have to be positive about the direction of the country. Generally speaking, people on the left that have tried talk radio are none of those. People don't like to be yammered at, lectured, driven into the ground, and told what a terrible country they're part of and what a horrible government we have. The refrain of the left is not very appealing to a drive-time radio listener.

I submit it goes beyond talk radio and into everyday politics. People loved Clinton because he talked positively of the future. He espoused hope. That's what made him the exception in the Democratic party. That's what got him elected -- twice.

The Democrats have no one in the race today that exhibits these qualities. All nine (six, really) are too busy putting America down to present anything positive. Bush talks about hope and dreams, and a future. He talks about America's strength, and resolve, and determination. They talk of defeat, Bush talks of victory. That's why Bush will win in 2004.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:26 AM | Comments (0) |

Liberal Bias In College Texts?

Say it ain't so. Here are some examples:

Folsom described the bias against religion, saying: "Christianity as usually viewed is very unimportant as a theme in American history," as well as an economic bias consisting of the contention that "capitalism or the free market has failed and that we need government intervention to correct or modify this failing." [...] Folsom added that a caption of a picture of Cleveland read: "Grover Cleveland: Stubborn Conservative," while a caption of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro later in the book read "Fidel Castro: A Romantic Marxist." [...] Folsom went on to discuss the description of tax cuts guided by Secretary of the Treasury Andrew Mellon under Republican President Calvin Coolidge during the 1920s, a tax cut which Folsom emphasized raised federal revenue despite the negative impression implied toward Mellon. The textbook passage read: "Mellon worked unceasingly to reduce federal expenditures. Expenses had to be cut if he was to achieve his corollary purpose, the reduction of taxes, especially taxes on the wealthy, since it was better he argued to place the burden of taxes on lower income groups." [...] Speaking of former President Ronald Reagan's tax cuts of the 1980s, Folsom noted that Nash used class warfare rhetoric to describe the tax relief without mentioning their benefits to the overall economy, including higher treasury revenues. "Within months of taking office, Reagan got Congress to approve one of the biggest campaign promises, a major reduction in the income tax that favored above all, the wealthiest Americans. That raised a tough question, lower taxes meant less money flowing into the treasury," reads Nash's text.

Around two years ago I took an Intro to Sociology class at the local community college. In the first session Sociology was presented to us as a science -- backed up by the scientific method. The very next week we were introduced to the fathers of sociology -- one of which was Karl Marx, credited for developing what is now called "conflict theory." Throughout the entire course the class was indoctrinated with Marx's ideas and not once did the book or teacher refer to a single scientific study authored by him.

The required text was also full of bald-faced lies -- including asserting that Operation Rescue had taken credit for bombing abortion clinics. Neither the author nor the publisher of the text returned my calls or emails when I contacted them about these falsehoods.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:49 AM | Comments (0) |

July 23, 2003

It's Official

Gray Davis will face a recall election:

Secretary of State Kevin Shelley said in a news conference that counties had reported 1.3 million valid petition signatures, “more than 110 percent of the required signatures.” Lt. Gov Cruz Bustamante said Wednesday he will schedule a recall election Thursday. County elections officials have discussed Sept. 23, Sept. 30 and Oct. 7 as possible election dates.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:35 PM | Comments (0) |

Slings and Arrows

Right Wing News website of the day.

Thanks, John.

He also has, in my opinion, the best quote of the day:

What people like Gephardt, Dean & company seem incapable of understanding is that we don't want to make the terrorists and their allies love us, we want to kill them.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:14 PM | Comments (0) |

Time For Dessert

Two desserts for the price of one: e-Clair slices up some fruitcake.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:28 PM | Comments (0) |

Bustamante Goinf For Bust

Now we know why Bustamante said he's not going to run for Governor on the recall ticket. He plans on moving up in typical Klingon fashion:

After consulting with lawyers from the offices of the state attorney general and legislative counsel, Bustamante said he believes the California Supreme Court will ultimately decide a successor should Davis be recalled. The interpretation calls into question the widespread assumption that the election would determine a possible successor as well. "Article 5, Section 10 of the Constitution states the lieutenant governor becomes governor in the event of a vacancy," said Deborah Pacyna, a spokeswoman for Bustamante. "It provides that the state Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction to determine questions regarding succession. And it calls for a body, the Commission on the Governorship, to be created by the Legislature to consider such questions."

Hat tip: damnum absque injuria

Posted by bubba138 at 03:36 PM | Comments (0) |

Guess Who Is Defending the Administration

"First of all, the White House said -- Mr. Fleischer said -- that on balance they probably shouldn't have put that comment in the speech. What happened, often happens. There was a disagreement between British intelligence and American intelligence. The president said it was British intelligence that said it. And then they said, well, maybe they shouldn't have put it in. Let me tell you what I know. When I left office, there was a substantial amount of biological and chemical material unaccounted for. That is, at the end of the first Gulf War, we knew what he had. We knew what was destroyed in all the inspection processes and that was a lot. And then we bombed with the British for four days in 1998. We might have gotten it all; we might have gotten half of it; we might have gotten none of it. But we didn't know. So I thought it was prudent for the president to go to the U.N. and for the U.N. to say you got to let these inspectors in, and this time if you don't cooperate the penalty could be regime change, not just continued sanctions. [...] Well, here's what happens: every day the president gets a daily brief from the CIA. And then, if it's some important issue -- and believe me, you know, anything having to do with chemical, biological or nuclear weapons became much more important to everybody in the White House after September the 11 -- then they probably told the president, certainly Condoleezza Rice, that this is what the British intelligence thought. They maybe have a difference of opinion, but on balance, they decided they should leave that line in the speech. I think the main thing I want to say to you is, people can quarrel with whether we should have more troops in Afghanistan or internationalize Iraq or whatever, but it is incontestable that on the day I left office, there were unaccounted for stocks...of biological and chemical weapons. We might have destroyed them in '98. We tried to, but we sure as heck didn't know it because we never got to go back in there. And what I think -- again, I would say the most important thing is we should focus on what's the best way to build Iraq as a democracy? How is the president going to do that and deal with continuing problems in Afghanistan and North Korea? We should be pulling for America on this. We should be pulling for the people of Iraq. We can have honest disagreements about where we go from here, and we have space now to discuss that in what I hope will be a nonpartisan and open way. But this State of the Union deal they decided to use the British intelligence. The president said it was British intelligence. Then they said on balance they shouldn't have done it. You know, everybody makes mistakes when they are president. I mean, you can't make as many calls as you have to make without messing up once in awhile. The thing we ought to be focused on is what is the right thing to do now. That's what I think."

Guess who it is.

Posted by bubba138 at 02:55 PM | Comments (0) |

Dean's Next Campaign Move

Howard Dean To Join Next Mars Mission (2003-07-23) -- The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced today that Vermont Gov. Howard Dean would join the agency's next mission to Mars. The trip to the Red Planet is part of Gov. Dean's presidential campaign strategy which aims to maximize the distance between the candidate and the average American voter. Gov. Dean, already a vocal opponent of the liberation of Iraq and a proponent of homosexual unions, said he still feels too close to the American voter. "The other Democrat candidates for president are mere clones of George Bush," said Gov. Dean. "When I'm standing on the surface of Mars, passionately denouncing things most Americans support and advocating things most Americans oppose, people will know I'm the real Democrat in this race." Rep. Dennis Kucinich announced that he would bolster his own presidential campaign by returning to Roswell, New Mexico, "to receive further instructions from the mothership."

Scrappleface is too cool.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:08 PM | Comments (0) |

I'm A Liberal!

The Angry Clam is, well, angry at this report from Berkeley that defines what makes a political conservative.

Let's start from the beginning, shall we?

Politically conservative agendas may range from supporting the Vietnam War to upholding traditional moral and religious values to opposing welfare.

Show me a conservative today who supported the Viet Nam war. I'm sure they're out there, but they're definitely not the majority. What differentiates "liberals" and "conservatives" is that the former spit on our boys when they returned and the latter did not.

And, if you had really done your research, you would have discovered that those who actually hold traditional moral and religious values cannot be opposed to welfare. Opposed to hand-outs to able-bodied sloths? Yes. To not be opposed to that is to not love them. Opposed to welfare? Impossible.

Four researchers who culled through 50 years of research literature about the psychology of conservatism report that at the core of political conservatism is the resistance to change and a tolerance for inequality, and that some of the common psychological factors linked to political conservatism include: Fear and aggression Dogmatism and intolerance of ambiguity Uncertainty avoidance Need for cognitive closure Terror management

Justene nails this one, so I don't have to. It is good to know that I'm still the liberal I was in my youth. I didn't change, the parties did.

From our perspective, these psychological factors are capable of contributing to the adoption of conservative ideological contents, either independently or in combination

"From our perspective" Well, that's the key then, isn't it. These four researchers set off with preconceived ideas about conservatives and guess what? They found what they wanted to find. Well done Oblio! (Obscure reference, I know -- "You see what you want to see, and you hear what you want to hear")

The terror management feature of conservatism can be seen in post-Sept. 11 America, where many people appear to shun and even punish outsiders and those who threaten the status of cherished world views, they wrote.

Cherished world views -- like the view that we all have a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Or that we all have a right to work in our office building without having a plane crash into it.

Concerns with fear and threat, likewise, can be linked to a second key dimension of conservatism - an endorsement of inequality, a view reflected in the Indian caste system, South African apartheid and the conservative, segregationist politics of the late Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-South S.C.).

Why do they always mention Sen. Thurrmond but leave out leave out KKK grand pooh-bah, "it's o.k. to use the word nigger on TV" Sen. Byrd? Also, didn't the Reagan administration place sanctions on South Africa because of apartheid? For the slower of you in the class, that would be a "Yes."

Now the gem of the report:

Disparate conservatives share a resistance to change and acceptance of inequality, the authors said. Hitler, Mussolini, and former President Ronald Reagan were individuals, but all were right-wing conservatives because they preached a return to an idealized past and condoned inequality in some form. Talk host Rush Limbaugh can be described the same way.

Hitler, Mussolini, Ronald Reagan, and Rush Limbaug -- all equal in the eyes of these "researchers." Is it any wonder why "conservatives" properly see the left as loopy?

They also stressed that their findings are not judgmental.

How is equating those four men anything but judgmental? These researchers had conservatives judged and convicted long before their "study."

This intolerance of ambiguity can lead people to cling to the familiar, to arrive at premature conclusions, and to impose simplistic cliches and stereotypes, the researchers advised.

Stereotypes. Oh, like saying Hitler and Reagan are in the same class. Now I'm understanding.

Glaser acknowledged that the team's exclusive assessment of the psychological motivations of political conservatism might be viewed as a partisan exercise.

Ya think?

However, he said, there is a host of information available about conservatism, but not about liberalism.

These guys have had no trouble getting their hands (and cameras) on liberal publications. Perhaps the researchers were a tad choosey in the publications they used in the "study." It is easy to get the result you want from a study if you throw out material that doesn't confirm your hypothesis.

Although they concluded that conservatives are less "integratively complex" than others are, Glaser said, "it doesn't mean that they're simple-minded."

Then what does less "integratively complex" mean, exactly? Admit it. You think conservatives are morons. That's why you are so dumbfounded (and angry) that Bush is President and the Republicans have majorities in both houses. It is beyond your capacity to fathom.

Conservatives don't feel the need to jump through complex, intellectual hoops in order to understand or justify some of their positions, he said. "They are more comfortable seeing and stating things in black and white in ways that would make liberals squirm," Glaser said.

Yep. Facts always do make liberals squirm. It is hard to defend a position when the basis of it is, "Well, it just seems to me that's the way it should be."

He pointed as an example to a 2001 trip to Italy, where President George W. Bush was asked to explain himself. The Republican president told assembled world leaders, "I know what I believe and I believe what I believe is right." And in 2002, Bush told a British reporter, "Look, my job isn't to nuance."

• "I was born gay. I know what I believe and I believe what I believe is right."
• "A women's right to choose is more important than a baby's right to live. I know what I believe and I believe what I believe is right."
• "War never solved anything. I know what I believe and I believe what I believe is right."

I've heard these from dozens of liberals over the years. Simplistic adherence to dogma has never been reserved for conservatives.

I really hadn't intended to Fisk this report, but the more I read the more it needed Fisking. I feel better now.

Update: John Moore (via e-mail) says I'm wrong about one point:

Most conservatives supported the Vietnam War at the time. In fact, most Americans supported it! I was one such conservative, and I volunteered and served in that war. It was the neo-cons and the isolationist-cons who didn't support it (the former were leftists at the time, and the latter were very few in number). Examples of conservatives who supported it: Goldwater, Lemay, Buckley, Reagan.

Ok. I admit, I was quite young at the time. I stand corrected.

John also points to this excellent refutation of the Berkeley "study."

Posted by bubba138 at 07:04 AM | Comments (0) |

Balancing the Budget

The Democrats make it seem like balancing the budget means we have to take milk from babies and wheelchairs from the disabled. I suggest they start here first:

And, then, there is Medi-Cal. If an item is not covered on Medi-Cal, we can get what is called a TAR form. This is a Treatment Authorization Form. Basically, it's information that Medi-Cal looks over (including diagnosis and justification) on why the doctor prescribed that drug over the drug that Medi-Cal covers. Well, I've come across something interesting. It turns out that if the patient is HIV positive, they get anything they want. I received an approved form for Viagra and Propecia. Propecia is a drug used to restore hair loss. The moment you start on this drug, you must stay on it for life. As soon as you stop using it, you start losing your hair again. Yes, that's right, my tax dollars are going to this person's hair and sex life.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:02 AM | Comments (0) |

July 22, 2003

What Did the BBC Know and When Did They Know It?

From a report filed in March of 2001:

...Fadhil Jannabi, held a senior position in the Iraqi nuclear programme. [...] He himself had been to the site. He learned of the successful test from Uday, who, he said, was unable to conceal his jubilation. "They were talking about the test, about their ability to produce a nuclear bomb. They were talking about a new powerful Iraq," said Mr Jannabi. "They had a celebration which was attended by senior officials and ministers." I asked him if it was definitely a nuclear test. He said it was. I asked him who had supplied the uranium for the bomb. "South Africa," he said.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:14 PM | Comments (0) |

Gilligan's Blogland

David Steven remembered something many of us had forgotten: that Andrew Gilligan -- the reporter at the centre of a scandal over the suicide of UK scientist, Dr David Kelly - kept a blog during the recent war with Iraq.

And better still, David gives us an overview of the tone of the entries.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:59 PM | Comments (0) |

What the Democrats Can Learn From Tony Blair

Even The American Prospect was impressed with Blair's appearance last week:

Adopting Blair's formula wouldn't just be a matter of adopting his policies; it would also be a matter of adopting his style. An optimistic plan for reinventing the world calls for inspiring rhetoric

It would be nice to hear something inspiring from the Democrats. Unfortunately, right now all they know how to do is nip at heels.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:38 PM | Comments (0) |

Want It Both Ways

Dan Walters exposes how the California left wants is both ways when it comes to super-majorities:

It is, proponents of the change argue, inherently undemocratic to allow a legislative minority to dictate fiscal policy for the state, noting that California is one of just a handful of states requiring supermajority votes on budgetary matters. The argument may be valid, but it is more than a bit ironic that the same political interests that want to eliminate supermajority votes on budgets in California are very supportive of the Democratic filibusters on President Bush's judicial appointments in the U.S. Senate. It takes a supermajority vote of 60 senators to break a filibuster (ending otherwise unlimited debate), so on highly controversial matters of any kind, 60 votes become the threshold in the Senate. What's undemocratic in Sacramento, those on the political left seem to be saying, is quite appropriate in Washington. [...] All of this smacks of banana republic-style politics -- altering the rules of government to fit the immediate political circumstances and guarantee an outcome -- but that, unfortunately, has become the norm in California.

Which is also why it is so hard for a conservative to live here. We just hope the insanity is temporary.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:25 PM | Comments (0) |

Freedom of the Press

Freedom of the press has come to Iraq:

A wind of freedom has gusted through the Iraqi media for the past three months. For nearly 30 years, it was assigned the single task of glorifying the regime and its leader, President Saddam Hussein. Today, newspapers are springing up in Baghdad and all over the country. Baghdad has about 20 cybercafés providing unrestricted access to the Internet through service providers (ISPs) in Erbil (Iraqi Kurdistan). An hour online costs about two US dollars, which few Iraqis can afford. But the cybercafés, many run by Kurds, are still crowded and users spend a lot of time looking at Arab newspaper sites and those of international and humanitarian organisations. One cybercafé owner said his customers were looking for the reliable information they had been deprived of for three decades. One sign that times have changed are the partitions that help prevent others seeing what a customer is doing online. Under Saddam Hussein, agents of the ruling Baath Party or the secret police (the Mukhabarat) would be looking over your shoulder to see you were not calling up forbidden sites such as private e-mail services like Hotmail or Yahoo.

Where the press is free, freedom for the people is not far behind.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:28 PM | Comments (0) |

Rock the Vote

Scott Hogenson thinks Rock the Vote is being less than honest:

If Rock the Vote wants to bill itself as a liberal organization dedicated to promoting what leftists love to call 'progressive' political solutions, that's fine and dandy. Open and honest debate is what our political process is all about and it ought to be encouraged, regardless of ideology. But Rock the Vote is instead lying by calling itself non-partisan and it should stop the deceit and manipulation of young people. It is clearly engaged in a partisan political warfare.

Yep.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:12 PM | Comments (0) |

The Passion

Quite possibly Mel Gibson's last film, "The Passion" is creating quite a bit of passion -- and from very unlikely sources:

BUCHANAN: ... I want to ask you, you apparently have gone to see this movie that Mel Gibson did called "The Passion" that is causing great controversy among some in the Jewish community and in the Catholic community. Is it anti-Semitic? It's about, frankly, the passion and death of Jesus Christ... and you have seen -- you got an early look at it. What is it like? DRUDGE: ...This may be the last movie Mel Gibson makes, Pat Buchanan. This is the ultimate film. It's magical. Best picture I have seen in quite some time, and even people like Jack Valenti were in the audience in tears at this screening. There was about 30 of us. It depicts a clash between Jesus and those who crucified him, and speaking as a Jew, I thought it was a magical film that showed the perils of life on earth. BUCHANAN: Right. "The New Republic" -- today I read a long report in "The New Republic" said it is an anti-Semitic film, just about flat-out. What's your take? DRUDGE: They haven't seen the darn film and those of us, every single person in there, and I'm not talking about tears, I'm talking total tears. It is something Mel Gibson stood back at the end and took questions for about an hour, and he is -- he told me he's tired of Hollywood. That this is it. He's going to do it. He's going to do it his way, and this film, I tell you, is magic. It's a miracle. It's a miracle...

A miracle? No. That came three days later.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:11 AM | Comments (0) |

Must Get Saddam

Here's why Saddam must be bagged:

Three months after U.S. officials declared an end to Saddam Hussein's regime, the former Iraqi dictator not only appears to be alive, but is also quickly threatening to become a symbol of nationalist resistance to forces opposed to the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq, officials and analysts believe. [...] "The great danger for America is that, as time goes on and Iraqis feel alienated, he might become the symbol for general Iraqi disaffection rather than specifically the Baath Party disaffection..." said John Hulsman, a senior foreign affairs analyst with the Heritage Foundation. [...] So long as there are citizens of Iraq who believe Hussein is not dead, they will likely not be as cooperative as if they thought he was dead or at least caught and jailed, analysts said. Sen. John Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said on Fox News Sunday that during a recent trip to Iraq, he saw firsthand how people still fear Hussein. "He's still alive, and he controls that country," Rockefeller said. "Not through popularity, but through fear and retribution."

We may (or may not) have killed his sons today, but that won't be enough. Until the Iraqi's can see as a nation that Saddam's head has been placed squarely (and figuratively) on a pike, there is great risk od him becoming a national symbol.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:00 AM | Comments (0) |

Are Mugbe's Day's Numbered?

InterPress reports:

South African President Thabo Mbeki is reported to have told United States President, George W Bush, that Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe will leave office at the end of this year. In return, Bush has pledged up to 10 billion dollars in US assistance to rebuild Zimbabwe once Mugabe has left, or is removed, from office.

What the article doesn't say though is how Thabo Mbeki can make such a guarantee. To this point, Mbeki has handled Zimbabwe with kid gloves -- and he shows no signs of changing that strategy. His hand may soon be forced:

Mbeki may well have to face, sooner rather than later, the choice of either dumping his touchy-touchy disposition to Mugabe, or prepare South Africans, Mozambicans, Angolans, Namibians, Zambians and Botswanans, for the eventuality of absorbing the spillover into their countries of refugees and the possibility of a gruesome civil war that is smouldering in Zimbabwe.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:27 AM | Comments (0) |

Loafing Legislature

John Diaz says the state Senate and Assembly members are shirking their duties. I'm inclined to agree:

The California Legislature keeps walking off the job. ... Absurdly large numbers of Assembly members are simply not voting on issues of significance to Californians -- a practice known in the Capitol as "taking a walk" or "staying off" a bill. Do you think regulation of energy is a matter of importance to a state that will be paying for decades for a 1996 deregulation scheme that resulted in blackouts and shameless price gouging? A bill to re-regulate electricity recently died in an Assembly committee when 11 of the 14 members failed to vote.

Diaz notes several bills (all liberal in bent) on which "representatives" declined to vote. This behavior shows how spineless our legislators are -- regardless of party. If a representative is against a bill, he or she should state it with a "no" vote. Taking a pass shows the member is afraid of the political backlash of taking a principled stand.

Perhaps if more of our politicians had taken a principled stand in the past, we wouldn't be in the mess we are.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:46 AM | Comments (0) |

Planned Budget Delay?

Man Without Qualities says that delaying the budget is a winning strategy for Republicans:

An early election would tie the recall even more strongly to the ongoing California budget crisis, since the Governor's performance respecting the crisis and his resulting approval numbers would all be fresh for a September ballot. That in turn means that Republicans would have a much larger incentive to hold to discipline and not pass a budget for as long as possible, for at least two reasons. The impact on the Governor from Republican intransigence goes up, because an ongoing crisis resulting from the want of a budget will drive the Governor's approval ratings ever downward (along with those of the Republicans, but they are not facing a vote this September), thereby increasing the chances of a successful recall. But the impact of their own recalcitrance on the legislature's Republicans goes down, because the earlier the election is held, the more time Republicans (and the entire legislature) will have to recover in the polls before they have to seek election in 2004.

On the flip side, KPBS -- San Diego's public radio -- reported that a budget is due out of the state senate today. Apparently the $38 b-b-b-billion deficit has been largely removed, leaving only a mere $1 b-b-b-billion gap between revenues and expenditures. Contrary to all the Democratic ballyhoo, it looks like it will actually be done without raising taxes.

Wait a minute -- Weren't they telling us that was impossible?

Posted by bubba138 at 08:10 AM | Comments (0) |

Dean Makes Headway

The Field institute surveyed Californians on the Democratic Presidential contenders:

The former Vermont governor has more than doubled his support since April, to 16 percent among likely Democratic voters. Dean is closely followed by Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry with 15 percent, and Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman -- touring the Bay Area Tuesday -- with 14 percent. Missouri Rep. Dick Gephardt -- who plans a major foreign policy speech before the Bar Association of San Francisco today, has only 7 percent of Democratic support in the state, while North Carolina Sen. John Edwards posted the lowest showing of any of the major candidates, with just 4 percent of the party's support. [...] Dean's rise to the top of the Democratic pack here is due to his position as "the anti-Bush candidate . . . at least in the top tier," said DiCamillo. "Dean has caught on in a way that is more appealing to people . . . but the big tipoff is where his support is coming -- the liberal wing, what he calls the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party. He has pretty much staked out the left side of the party . . . and it's not a bad play to start out from."

From the same poll, 46% of likely voters are inclined to re-elect Bush, and 44% are not inclined -- quite a slim margin. More concerning for the Bush camp are the non-partisan, or "swing" voters. Only 41% in that category are inclined to re-elect against 46% that are not inclined.

When put up against an unnamed Democratic nominee, Bush is behind by one point, 40% to 39%.

Posted by bubba138 at 06:25 AM | Comments (0) |

July 21, 2003

Another Reason Bush Will Win in 2004

From Mark Styen:

But tarring Bush as a liar won’t make him a loser. Step back and look at the two years since 11 September. In 2001, the Islamists killed thousands of Westerners in New York and Washington. In 2002, they killed hundreds of Westerners, but not in the West itself, only in jurisdictions like Bali. In 2003, they killed dozens — not Westerners, but their co-religionists in Morocco and Saudi Arabia. The Bush cordon sanitaire has been drawn tighter and tighter. Meanwhile, the allegedly explosive Arab street has been quieter than Acacia Gardens in Pinner on a Wednesday afternoon, and I wouldn’t bet that blowing up fellow Muslims and destroying the Moroccan tourist industry and Saudi investment will do anything for the recruitment drive.

Yep.

Posted by bubba138 at 05:37 PM | Comments (0) |

What Does This Mean?

Anarchist Reverend Chuck0 seems to think it rightly depicts "the assassination of Emperor Bush."

It looks more to me like a condemnation on the attempted political assassination that we've seen in the press and from the Democrats over the last couple of weeks.

Drudge reports that the Secret Service is looking into this:

"The world's first political 'snuff' cartoon... there's a viciousness to this, that's just not funny," noted one White House reporter.

Get a clue. That there is a viciousness in the political assassination that is currently taking place against the President that is just not funny is exactly Ramirez's point.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:59 AM | Comments (0) |

Sexing It Up

It is looking more and more like the story that accused the Blair administration of providing "sexed up" Iraq intelligence was actually "sexed up". And now the walls are crumbling down around the BBC:

In an attempt to shore up Gilligan, the BBC put out a statement on his behalf that insisted he did not exaggerate Dr Kelly's claims. "I want to make it clear that I did not misquote or misrepresent Dr David Kelly. Entirely separately from my meeting with him, Dr Kelly expressed very similar concerns about Downing Street interpretation of intelligence in the dossier and the unreliability of the 45-minute point to Newsnight. These reports have never been questioned by Downing Street." But the statement came too late to paper over the cracks that were appearing between BBC executives and staff. The change in mood could not have been more stark. Until 9.30am on Friday, when Thames Valley police announced the disappearance of Dr Kelly, the BBC had occupied a large expanse of sure ground. Its determination not to reveal its source was seen as a principled stand that contrasted favourably with the cynical and shadowy Whitehall moves to push Dr Kelly unwillingly into the spotlight. Last night, however, the sure ground was rapidly shrinking. A cloud of gloom descended over the organisation when it admitted that Dr Kelly was Gilligan's source. One well-known BBC name said of the BBC's announcement yesterday: "It's a bombshell. Like many others here, I had the impression that the source was not Kelly. My worry is that we may have misdescribed him right at the start, when we called him a senior credible intelligence source. Is that really what David Kelly was? All I can say is that I hope Andrew Gilligan has got very good shorthand." [...] Another said: "The BBC statement is a disaster. On the face of it, based on the evidence to hand, Gilligan sexed up his story. The only other explanation is that David Kelly wasn't being truthful to the committee, but I tend to think now that Gilligan did what he accused Campbell of. And our boss backed him. If that's true, they have tarnished each and every one of us. Until they prove otherwise they have lost my confidence. They should go."

This episode is an example of how and why free press works. The reporting by Gilligan may have been slanted, but because free press allows dissent and encourages the sharks to feed upon themselves, it is also short-lived. This time the slant went left and was corrected right. The next time it may go right and be corrected left. The point is, when free-press is allowed, the truth always eventually comes out.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:28 AM | Comments (0) |

Rallying For Dollars

Davis held a "Democratic Unity" rally in San Francisco Saturday. At least that's the name he gave it. It was really a thinly veiled fund-raiser. Davis, a consummate fund raiser, is going to have a hard time finding donors this time out:

Word is, beating back the recall is going to mean raising anywhere from $10 million to $30 million. That won't come easy, especially since only last year Davis tapped supporters for $67 million to get re-elected. "They're tired of having their pockets picked by this guy," said one prominent booster. "Besides, what do they get if he wins? Damaged goods?"

Money isn't the only thing Gray will have a hard time finding. The turnout for the rally, held in San Francisco, -- the heart of Gray's support base -- was less than impressive. I guess everyone else had something better to do on Saturday than save his hide:

Exactly which names will wind up on the ballot is one of the unknowns swirling around the recall vote like the winds at Pacific Bell Park, just down the refurbished San Francisco waterfront from where about 250 Democrats gathered Saturday afternoon to cheer Davis.

San Francisco's Julian Guthrie noted the rally was held inside "a cavernous hall" at the Delancey Street Foundation on the Embarcadero. With a turnout of 250 people, just about any rented room is cavernous. At the rally...

Davis, who appeared buoyant as he bounded onto the stage, touted his own accomplishments, focusing on gains he sees in education, civil rights, environmental protections and health care.

He sees the gains, but no one else does. And at a time when his state's budget deficit is greater than the deficits of all other states combined, Gray is trying to cast this as a right-winged conspiracy to take away abortion rights, legalize guns and generally instill a police-state in California (from above link to Sunspot.Net):

At his rally, Davis sought to cast the recall not as a referendum on his performance, but as a choice between going forward or backward on matters of importance to the Democratic base: education, jobs, abortion rights, gay rights and environmental protection.

Davis is, without a doubt, clueless.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:49 AM | Comments (0) |

Patriot Act

About 165 communities nationwide have passed resolutions condemning the USA Patriot Act. But one little city in northern California has taken its opposition a step further, making it a misdemeanor for city employees to cooperate in enforcing the federal antiterrorism measure. In March, Arcata officials set down a $57 fine for those who don't "promptly notify the city manager" if federal law-enforcement authorities contact them seeking help in an investigation, interrogation or arrest under the provisions of the act.

This isn't so surprising, as Northern California leans hard left -- and that means anything the President does must be evil. What is worthy of note, however, is that the Patriot Act is creating strange bedfellows:

"From the NAACP to the NRA, people are working together on these resolutions," says ACLU spokesman Damon Moglin, in reference to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the National Rifle Association. "We see this as being a true grass-roots response."

Why these unlikely associations? Because, the Patriot Act needs to go. It is already being abused, and the potential for further abuse is too great to risk. Regardless of political stripe, Americans see it for what it is, the first step toward what could lead to a police state. (DISCLAIMER: I did not say the act itself creates a police state. Nor did I imply this administration is creating one. I said the act is the first step in that direction).

In our Republican Democracy, wise political policy states that the prominent party should never grant powers to the government they do not want the opposition party to wield -- because eventually, the opposition party will be the prominent. In passing the Patriot Act, the Republican controlled legislatures and the President have broken this wisdom.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:07 AM | Comments (0) |

What a Morning

I woke up late today, but still put in some time at the gym before going into work. I arrived at my office at 7:15 -- just in time to remember I had left my computer at home. Since I can't get much work done without my computer, I had to turn around and make the round trip from office to home and back.

Normally, the trip takes 15-20 minutes each way. but at 7:15, traffic is in full swing, so the round trip takes an hour.

Anyway, I'm finally here and ready to start the day.

By the way, Slings and Arrows is (for the moment at least) a Slithering Reptile (rank #871). Not bad for a blog that only days ago was -- with a paltry 8 inbound links -- a Slimy Mollusc.

Fifty percent of this has to do with the "20 Lies" post. The other fifty percent is because Slings and Arrows is now a part of the Bear Flag League. And, as Yogi Beara (sp?) would say, the other fifty percent is because of the greater exposure provided by Blogrolling.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:20 AM | Comments (0) |

July 20, 2003

Speaking of Conspiracy Theories

CalBlog is exploring conspiracy theories:

Now the liberal blogs are all over the "what did Bush know and when did he know it?" conspiracy theory. It's Watergate and Iran-Contra all over again, they cry. (The Watergate analogy appeared in a newspaper somewhere but I can't even backtrack to it. You'll have to trust me.)

Let me help:

• Savanah Morning News:
• Washington Post
• Gulf News
• USA Today (via Yahoo)
• Financial Times

Just to name a few.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:46 PM | Comments (0) |

Charisma or Something Else?

The most memorable quote of the past week in California politics came from Sharon Davis, the wife of embattled Gov. Gray Davis. Comparing the flak her husband has taken to the applause for President George Bush -- deficit for deficit -- she said of Bush, ``When somebody has a little bit more charisma, a little more pizazz, they let him get away with a little more.''

The Mercury News says it's because Sharon's husband is an entirely disagreeable person:

How can I say this politely? Dubya doesn't have a little more charisma, a little more pizazz. He's got more charisma in a wink than Davis has shown in his career.

Then again, it might have less to do with that than it does with actual competence. Bush leads, Davis puts off. Bush's deficit is unfortunate, and a huge black mark on his record. But at the same time that we have a deficit, we have reasons for it that are out of his control: war and the economy. Contrary to Democratic rhetoric, both those were inherited. What we've done with the military over the last two years was made necessary by the events of 9/11. And whether you want to admit it or not, the economy was heading south in 2000 -- before Bush was elected. Check the numbers, they don't lie.

Given these tow things, people can see a reason for the deficit even if they don't like it. At the same time, they see Bush getting things done. We are more secure today, peace in the Middle East is foreseeable, and the economy is turning around.

When people look at Davis, they see very little getting done. They see state spending increased 40% in his tenure -- far outpacing the economy and population. They see the weight special interests have on legislation (plumber's union and prison guards are only two of dozens of examples). They see him acting much too late to address the energy crisis and then when he did do something it was giving millions (or is it billions?) away in long-term contracts -- locking California into higher than market prices over the long haul.

Everyone who pays taxes has benefited from Bush's tax breaks. Everyone who likes living has benefited from Bush's foreign policy. By contrast, unless you are a part of one of his darling special interest groups, it is close to impossible to point to anything positive that Davis accomplished. That is why Bush gets a pass on his deficit and Davis does not.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:16 PM | Comments (0) |

Sunday Sermon

Wielding Our Words
Text: Ephesians 4:29

Several years ago my wife and I were waiting in line at a store during the Halloween season. The line was quite long, and I was bored to death, so I struck up a light conversation with the couple behind us. My youngest, seeing a display of ghoulish props, grabbed a witch’s broom and asked if we could buy it. In an effort to impress my new friends with my quick wit, I replied, “Put the broom back, honey. Only mommy knows how to drive that, anyway.” We all groaned about the bad humor, paid for our items and went home.

Later that night, in the kitchen, I heard my wife sniff back tears. You see, my nasty humor hurt her. I learned that night the truth that Paul shares with us today. The words we use matter. They matter very greatly.

The text we are using today comes from the fourth chapter of Ephesians, verse twenty-nine:

“Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.” - Ephesians 4:29 (New King James Version)

Father, join us as we dive into your word today. I ask that you speak through me. Let this message be yours. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

I want to share with you today three fundamental truths about the words we use.

Truth Number One: Words are Powerful.
We are only three verses into the book of Genesis before we see the power of words. What does the verse say? And God said, “Let there be light” “God said,” and creation itself sprang into being through His words. Skip over a few pages to chapter 10 and we see Nimrod and his cohorts building the tower of Babel. How does God remove their power? He gives each man a different language. He confounds their words.

Paul mentions two ways we can use this power. In the first part of the verse in question, we read, “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth.” This word corrupt, in the original Greek, means rotten, putrid, dead. Paul is telling us that words have the power to cause decay. Words have the power to destroy. Anyone who has been teased, ridiculed, or put-down knows this to be true. The old school chant “sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me” is a falsehood.

On the other hand, our words have the power to build up! Paul says in this verse that our words should be used for “necessary edification”. In the NIV the phrase is translated “helpful for building others up.” The picture Paul paints here is of a craftsman building a fortified structure, reinforcing a castle, or adding strength to a building. It takes a great deal more effort, energy, and intelligence to build or create than it does to destroy.

When we think about the power that words have, we must always remember the Spiderman Principle. What is that? I am sure we are all somewhat familiar with the comic book character Spiderman; after all, the movie hit theaters only a few months ago. Peter Parker, (Spiderman’s alter ego) didn’t become Spiderman as soon as he acquired his super powers. Instead, he tried to use his powers for monetary gain. When faced the opportunity to use his powers to stop a common thief, he let the villain go thinking, “It’s not my problem.”

It is only a couple hours later, however, when Peter Parker discovers that the same thief he let go has killed his uncle. It was at that moment he realized the Spiderman Principle: With great power comes great responsibility.

In the same way the words we use have great power. We must realize with power comes responsibility.

Truth Number Two: Words are Permanent.
I remember the first few times my oldest brushed her teeth on her own. For the most part, she did a fine job, brushing the front, the back, the top, and the bottom, and the sides. Unfortunately, whenever she applied the toothpaste to the toothbrush, she always seemed to get more than she needed. After all, her mouth wasn’t very big, and half a tube of toothpaste was more than enough for the job. I knew, however, that no matter how hard I tried, I would never be able to get that extra toothpaste back into the tube.

Our words are just like toothpaste. Once they are out, they are out. We cannot take them back. We might be able to make up for carelessly spoken words. But sometimes, no matter what we do or say, we cannot. We do well to weigh our words before speaking.

When we are careless with our words, the effect is forever. On my chin I have a small scar. It is result of a minor bicycle accident I had when I was six years old. All I can remember of the incident is that my chin throbbed with pain. After a few days, the pain went away. After a few weeks the wound was healed. But still today I have a scar that reminds me of that accident. Careless words also leave scars. Yes, the people that are hurt by them do heal. Often times we recognize our carelessness, repent, and ask that person’s forgiveness. But even when we do that, even if they forgive us, the mark of the wound remains. They remember. We can never remove someone’s memory of being hurt.

Truth Number Three: Our Words Must Be Positive
Now I will admit, speaking positively at all times is not an easy assignment to undertake. After all, not all subjects of discussion are positive. There are times when we have to tackle tough situations. There are times when we are having difficulties with someone. As ministers it is only a matter of time when we will be called to hold someone accountable. Even then, especially then, we must keep our words as positive a possible.

Paul doesn’t only say to build up. He goes on to further say that our words should “impart grace” to the hearers. It is in those times when it is difficult to speak positively that we are given the opportunity to exercise grace. Not to look the other way, but to perhaps see the person as what they can be.

In the book of Judges we find Israel is having problems with their neighbors once again. It seems the Midianites are harassing the Israelites. Our man Gideon is so brave he has chosen to thresh his wheat inside the winepress, where he cannot be seen. While Gideon is hiding in winepress, the Angel of the Lord comes and addresses him with “The LORD is with you, you mighty man of valor!”

“Mighty man of valor?” He’s hiding in the winepress! What is so mighty about that? Where is the valor? But God chose to see him for what he could be, what he would be. Not for what he was at that moment.

So are you saying, Bryon, that we should sacrifice the truth to be positive? Absolutely, we should not. I once knew someone whose ultimate goal was to speak positively at all times. One day I noticed he was feeling a little under the weather. I asked if he was getting sick. “No,” he said, “I am catching a warm.” Now that is ridiculous. Paul’s stated goals for our speech is that it builds up or imparts grace to others. Playing word games or denying reality serves neither of those.

Instead, what we must do with our speech is begin with the end in mind. We must continually ask ourselves, “Why am I about to say what I am about to say?”

So often we feel we need to tell someone something because, well, “they just need to hear this!” Or, “I just have to get this off my chest.” Wrong.

We must question ourselves “How is this going to build up another?” “How is this going to impart grace?” If what we want to say does not accomplish either or both of these goals, we must remain silent. Lovingly correcting a brother that needs correction does build up. It does impart grace. Unloading on them guilt and blame and condescension does not.

Conclusion
So how do we improve the effect our speech has on others? First, we must remember the power our words have, and that with power comes responsibility. Second, we must acknowledge the permanence of our words and choose them wisely. Finally, we must speak positively and begin with the end in mind.

Posted by bubba138 at 06:44 AM | Comments (0) |

Too Much Time On Their Hands

A coalition of environmental and faith-based groups announced on Friday that it would be issuing 15,000 "tickets" to Washington, D.C./Baltimore area SUV owners as part of its campaign to "save our planet from the catastrophe of rapid global warming."

I sure would like some of the extra time these guys seem to have. Perhaps they'd have less time if they got jobs. (Cheap shot? Yeah, I know, but I couldn't pass it up.)

Here's more:

"SUVs may not fit into the radical green fantasy world where everyone lives within walking distance of their organic alpha garden and solar-powered mass transit train, but Americans in great numbers continue to choose these vehicles because they provide comfort, convenience and safety," Rothbard added. However, Dobb, who rode his bike nine miles to Friday's event in Rockville, believes people must reject today's SUVs on moral and ethical grounds.

I wonder, did Dobb drop his kids off at school and do the grocery shopping on that bike before riding to the love-in on Friday?

Posted by bubba138 at 12:38 AM | Comments (0) |

Another Horse In the Race

Ventura County Assemblyman Tony Strickland is exploring the possibility of running for the U.S. Senate next year, and the chairman of the state Republican Party said Friday there is "a 90 percent chance" that Strickland will become a candidate.

Full article.

And the bloom seems to have fallen off Rosario Marin's rose:

A footnote: Interest in recently resigned U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin as Boxer's opponent has diminished among Republican insiders who first put forward Marin's name. They now say she should run for a lesser statewide office next year.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:34 AM | Comments (0) |

The U.N. Needs to Be Slapped

Tony Blair on the United Nations:

And we need to say clearly to United Nations members: If you engage in the systematic and gross abuse of human rights in defiance of the U.N. Charter, you cannot expect to enjoy the same privileges as those that conform to it.

The United Nations take on Human Rights is one reason Tony said what he did:

ISRAEL will find itself in front of a Libyan ‘judge’ when it appears in the dock at the United Nations this week over alleged human rights abuses. The UN’s Human Rights Commission - chaired by a diplomat from the North African country that was behind the Lockerbie bombing - will hear Israeli officials defend their country’s record in what is sure to be a stormy encounter in Geneva. It is also certain that Israel’s case will be swept aside in a welter of criticisms of the Jewish state, which will result in condemnatory resolutions, all of which will be approved by the UN body.

The mere fact that Libya is even on the Human Rights Commission is a travesty. That they are chairing it would be comical if it wasn't so sad.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:23 AM | Comments (0) |

Absinthe and Cookies

Gaggle of Gals (and one guy) has transmografied (yeah, I made that word up).

What is Absinthe, anyway? <TONGUE_IN_CHEEK>(Do you think she's using it to get to the top of the Bear Flag League List?)</TONGUE_IN_CHEEK>

Posted by bubba138 at 12:06 AM | Comments (0) |

July 19, 2003

La-what?

Who watches Lacrosse at 2am?

Matthew Hoy does. It must have been a boring Friday night.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:32 PM | Comments (0) |

Arnold's Getting Clean

Sometimes you've got to clean house before taking on a new project. Arnold's campaign has just begun.

Also, is Arianna going to join the race?

Posted by bubba138 at 11:21 AM | Comments (0) |

Steeeee-rike Two

The latest lawsuit to stop the recall has been shut down.

That's good news. I am quite surprised at how quickly these decisions are being made by the courts.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:42 AM | Comments (0) |

Stages of Life

With Stripperella and now this, it's official. Comic book genius Stan Lee has recently entered the dirty-old-man phase.

Sad. I used to respect this guy.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:36 AM | Comments (0) |

July 18, 2003

A Word For the French

They're so infuriated with us they're even banning the use of the word "e-mail." Why? Because it is English.

Hat tip: Merde in France

Posted by bubba138 at 04:45 PM | Comments (0) |

High Expectations

High level Israeli Shimon Peres expects the Road Map to Peace to succeed where Oslo failed -- and he says it's U.S. involvement that makes the difference:

Peres said U.S. leadership in today's peace-building efforts was the critical factor that would help the road map succeed where an earlier peace drive launched with the 1993 Oslo accords had come unstuck. "The difference is that there is a major player in the fight against terror, the United States. The change occurred on September 11, 2001," Peres told Reuters in an interview. "Now the Americans are really leading the process more than anybody else. It's not just a commitment, it's part and parcel of their overall strategy to bring an end to terror. The continuation of the (Israeli-Palestinian) conflict harms their overall strategy." [...] "I'm very much optimistic," Peres said of their efforts. "I think that we can develop good relations with the Palestinians like the one that exists between us and the Jordanians."

You can't buy optimism like that. As I said back in April, peace in Israel just might be a major factor in getting Bush a second term.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:32 PM | Comments (0) |

Lieberman Is Too Jewish To Be President

Surprisingly, that's the viewpoint of many Jews:

Joe Lieberman, who is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination for 2004, isn't breaking any records for collecting campaign contributions from fellow Jews. Some of them argue this isn't the right time for a Jewish candidate. Potential Jewish donors fear a Jewish president could stir up anti-Semitism in the middle of the war on terrorism and the military occupation of Iraq, Jews in both parties say. [...] But this time, Mr. Lieberman wants to head the ticket, at a time when Arabs, Muslims and some U.S. allies abroad are criticizing the Bush administration as pandering to the Jewish vote. That is one reason why lifelong Jewish Democrat and San Diego businessman Alan Viterbi told the Financial Times that Mr. Lieberman is a hard sell when it comes to getting Jews to contribute.

The article goes on to say that Jewish votes are trending toward the Republican party as a direct result of Bush's stance on Israel. The last thing Jewish voters want right now is to disrupt the road-map to peace -- and changing horse in the middle of the ride could do just that.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:06 PM | Comments (0) |

Turn Down That Radio

Remember the poor little girl whose lemonade stand was shut down for lack of a permit? As Paul Harvey puts it, here's the rest of the story.

Posted by bubba138 at 02:41 PM | Comments (0) |

Count The Signatures

Just in from the Sacramento Bee:

A group trying to oust Gov. Gray Davis from office won an important court victory Friday when three state appellate judges ruled that Secretary of State Kevin Shelley had given "erroneous" instructions to local election officials about how quickly they must count and verify recall petition signatures. [...] According to the court's order, Shelley, a Democrat like Davis, must now notify the counties that they are required to count and verify signatures as they come in.

Read the law as it is plainly written -- now there's a novel concept. Let's hope the courts are as agreeable to what is right on other issues.

In 2000 the mantra of the Democrats was "let the will of the people be known!" Now, that's the furthest thing from their mind. Don't expect any real action for another five days though:

The court scheduled a follow-up hearing on the matter for July 31. Shelley has until next Thursday to show in writing that he's followed the order or argue why he has failed to do so.

Delay delay delay. I expect a memo will be sent out from Shelley's office late on Wednesday afternoon.

Posted by bubba138 at 02:08 PM | Comments (0) |

Jenin Massacre

So far, none of the domestic news outlets have reported the Palestinian's admission that the "Jenin Massacre" was a hoax. What's more important to them is Palestinian pride:

Palestinians in the West Bank city of Jenin have erected a statue of a horse made by a German sculptor from the scrap metal of cars and homes destroyed during an Israeli army siege. The multi-coloured, five-metre high statue was placed at the southern entrance of Jenin as a symbol of hope and renewal after a farmer dragged it around the West Bank on a cart attached to a tractor in a show of solidarity with the Palestinians.

This statue has one and only one purpose -- to over-dramatize what took place in Jenin and generate sympathy for the "victims" (actually, armed militants) of the siege.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:51 PM | Comments (0) |

Corporate Greed

It's getting worse all the time. Enron, Halburton, and now the New York Times. the Gray Lady is going for a high end real estate land grab -- subsidized by the taxpayers:

The background: While small business owners near Ground Zero in lower Manhattan struggled to pick up the pieces after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, all the midtown Manhattan fat cats at the Times had to do was throw a tantrum to obtain public funding for a new building. After the newspaper's executives threatened to move their workers out of town, city and state officials coughed up a vast tract of land on the edge of Times Square for a shiny, new 52-story headquarters. One minor glitch: The land that government authorities proposed to give away – and the 11 buildings and 30 businesses located on it – wasn't theirs for the taking. No matter. The corporate welfare conspirators invoked two magic words: eminent domain. Eminent domain powers were originally intended only for "public use" projects, such as highways or bridges. But with the wave of a pen, the Empire State Development Corporation, a "public benefit corporation," condemned the coveted private property on Eighth Avenue between 40th and 41st Streets for the Times' new digs. Opposed to special tax breaks for everyone else, the Times' project comes lined with a handy $26.1 million in sales-tax exemptions on equipment and materials used for construction, a waiver of the mortgage-recording tax, and a discount on electricity rates.

Because, ya know, The Times was devastated by 9/11. Devastated.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:44 PM | Comments (0) |

Taranto Imitates Slings and Arrows

Best of the Web Today, 07/18/2003:

"In not coming Monday," Lieberman said, "I was wrong. I regret it and I apologize for it." On foreign policy Lieberman is the most hawkish Democrat in the race, but if these guys can't even maintain a modicum of dignity in the face of Kweisi Mfume, can we really trust them to stand up against America's enemies?

Slings and Arrows, 07/17/2003:

Is this how we can expect them to act when another country's leadership calls us on the carpet? If so, the Dems can keep the lot of them. I've got no use for this bunch.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:31 PM | Comments (0) |

Outage

Slings and Arrows was down for a while there, but it's back up now. I have yet to receive an explanation from the hosting company telling me why it was down.

C'est la vie

Posted by bubba138 at 01:10 PM | Comments (0) |

Ahnold Endorsed

Schwarzenegger picked up his first endorsement today:

Looks like possible California gubernatorial candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger has already won the crucial Jean-Claude Van Damme Primary. "Arnold is a cool guy," the fading action star told reporters at the Ischia Film & Music Global Fest near Naples, Italy, yesterday. "He works out in the gym every day. He is very smart and intelligent. He's a pal of mine. I love him. I will vote for him. He's responsible, and that's important in politics." All the Belgian-born Van Damme has to do now is become an American citizen

Posted by bubba138 at 11:40 AM | Comments (0) |

Recall Strategy

It has now been confirmed. DNC head Terry McAuliffe has spelled out the strategy for the recall:

"I want the folks here in California to know that we are not going to have another Democrat on the ballot. I think that is the single biggest message I can give today," DNC chairman Terry McAuliffe said at a downtown news conference. "So if you're a California voter and you want to vote to recall Gray Davis, you are not going to have an option but a bunch of right-wing conservatives on the ballot," McAuliffe said.

This shows how polarized the Democrats are. Terry's assessment of the Republican candidates is that they are all "right-wing conservatives." Is that so? Darrell Issa is conservative, true. But Riordan? He lost the statewide primary in 2002 because Republicans could see little difference between him and Davis. The third name floated has been Kennedy in-law Arnold Schwarzzengger. He's a Republican, yes, but he is hardly conservative. On abortion and gay rights he lines right up with the Democrats.

Steven Christoforou at Yale Free Press thinks this is just plain a bad plan:

This could have an impact on the presidential race in 2004, after all. If McAuliffe continues to stick with Davis he won't have a Democratic governor in California to help with the campaign. I'm not saying that President Bush will take the state. However, he may gain votes he otherwise wouldn't have, both in California and around the country. Davis's office is the most prominent, and most important, elected office the Democrats now hold; for the Dems to lose it in such an embarassing way will get some voters thinking in 2004.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:16 AM | Comments (0) |

Moving Up the Klingon Way

Don't put this beyond the realm of possibility:

Everyone assumes that when California voters decide whether to recall Gov. Gray Davis, they'll also be deciding who would succeed him if, in fact, he is ousted. However, two words in the state constitution -- "if appropriate" -- introduce another bizarre element into the recall saga. It's at least possible, although by no means certain, that when Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante calls the Davis recall election, he could block voters from choosing a successor and thus declare that he, and only he, would become governor should voters dump Davis. The qualifying phrase "if appropriate" on having an election of a successor creates at least a potential rationale for Bustamante to call the election, once recall petitions have been verified, and declare that it would not be appropriate to elect a successor because the constitution already provides for filling the vacant governorship with the lieutenant governor.

If I were in the Democrat's camp, I would be seriously considering this scenario. Don't forget, Nancy Pelosi has made it clear that the overriding issue is that no matter what happens they must have a Democrat in the state's chief executive chair.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:15 AM | Comments (0) |

Recall Suit

Eugene Volokh weighs in on the threat of a California version of the Nevada law suit for breaking the budget dead-lock:

I'm not up on the details, or on the relevant provisions of the California Constitution; I'm also swamped this afternoon, and probably won't get a chance to get up to speed on this. But if Weintraub is right, then it sounds like a sure loser of a lawsuit (though, hey, I'd have guessed the same about the Nevada lawsuit had I heard about it when it was filed).

Not much hope there.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:11 AM | Comments (0) |

A Prophet Knows No Honor In His Own Country

Buzz Machine Blair perspective:

Right now in the U.S., we are singing a chorus of Tony Blair's praises. Meanwhile, in Britain, sharks in his own party are circling, hoping to kill him. Of course, with Bill Clinton, it was just the opposite. Just as people here were trying to run him out of office, over there, they admired him. Either we're ignorant of the real Blair and they were ignorant of the real Clinton or it's something else: Distance let's statesman be statesman. Distance lets them rise above the petty sniping of politics. Distance -- like time -- puts them in a truer perspective. Britain is wrong about Blair. We're right.

Update: Lileks has this to say:

Blair is, at heart, a socialist; I’ve no time for half the stuff he wants and most of the stuff he’d agree to. But he’d get my vote. We can argue about the shape and direction of Western Civ after we’ve made sure that such a thing will endure. [...] But today he sounded like a man who knew things, who knows that the threat is still grave, and cannot understand why others seek transient political advantage in exploiting those sixteen words. The people are worried, your majesty! "Oh, let them eat yellowcake."

He'd get mine, too. It makes you wonder, why is a pro-war liberal politically successful in England but virtually unheard of on this side of the pond?

Posted by bubba138 at 09:03 AM | Comments (0) |

Mock Jury Says "Let Him In"

I agree. Baseball gives heroin addicts, wife beaters, and perpetual arrestees second, third, and fourth chances, why not let Pete in the Hall of Fame?
Matthew Hoy thinks he should be let too -- under certain conditions.

Also, go see ESPN's stuff -- there's a ton of it, including Dershowitz, Cochran and Crier's lawyerly viewpoint.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:42 AM | Comments (0) |

A Witch Hunt

That's what the British investigation on "sexed-up" evidence has become. It's all fun and games until somebody dies.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:39 AM | Comments (0) |

Troop Morale

Reportedly, troop morale is dropping. This ought to help:

With a thunderous blast, the 30-foot Saddam statue — which featured the former leader atop a rearing horse, brandishing a cavalry sword — was sent flying over the gate to one of Iraq's many presidential palaces. "It felt real good," said Pvt. Reshaun Richardson, of Dothan, Ala., who pushed the button demolishing the solid bronze sculpture. "There were lots of smiles around, and I had the biggest of them all."

Posted by bubba138 at 08:30 AM | Comments (0) |

It's All About Oil

Fox News reports discovery of yet another mass grave:

Soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division found the grave on the side of a dry riverbed in Hatra, 200 miles north of Baghdad. An assessment team was sent to the site. Some 25 sets of remains — all women and children — have been pulled from the grave, each with a bullet hole in the skull. The military said the size of the area leads them to believe the site contains between 200 and 400 bodies. Since the end of the Iraq war, at least 60 mass graves, some with hundreds of corpses, have been discovered. The United Nations is investigating the killing or disappearance of at least 300,000 Iraqis believed murdered during Saddam's regime.

But the war was still wrong.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:09 AM | Comments (0) |

Tony Blair

I listened to the tape of Tony Blair's speech in front of a joint session of congress yesterday and it was great. He really knows how to warm a crowd up:

That's more than I deserve and more than I'm used to, quite frankly. (Laughter, sustained applause, cheers.) Thank you. [...] Mr. Speaker, sir, my thrill on receiving this award was only a little diminished on being told that the first Congressional Gold Medal was awarded to George Washington for what Congress called his wise and spirited conduct in getting rid of the British out of Boston. (Laughter, applause.) On our way down here, Senator Frist was kind enough to show me the fireplace where in 1814 the British had burned the Congress Library. I know this is kind of late, but: Sorry. (Laughter, applause.)

His timing was excellent I was rolling on the floor. Now for the serious stuff:

The virus is terrorism, whose intent to inflict destruction is unconstrained by human feeling and whose capacity to inflict it is enlarged by technology. This is a battle that can't be fought or won only by armies. We are so much more powerful in all conventional ways than the terrorists. Yet even in all our might, we are taught humility. In the end, it is not our power alone that will defeat this evil. Our ultimate weapon is not our guns, but our beliefs. There is a myth that though we love freedom, others don't; that our attachment to freedom is a product of our culture; that freedom, democracy, human rights, the rule of law are American values or Western values; that Afghan women were content under the lash of the Taliban; that Saddam was somehow beloved by his people; that Milosevic was Serbia's savior. Members of Congress, ours are not Western values. They are the universal values of the human spirit, and anywhere -- (applause) -- anywhere, any time ordinary people are given the chance to choose, the choice is the same: freedom, not tyranny; democracy, not dictatorship; the rule of law, not the rule of the secret police.

There's more. Here's some video.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:57 AM | Comments (0) |

More Looting

Not just a little, but a "vast enterprise of looting."

Posted by bubba138 at 07:37 AM | Comments (0) |

Total Recall

Bressler thinks His Grayness will survive and the Republicans will have very expensive egg on their faces:

Now, while Rome burns, Californians have one more issue to distract us while legislators quietly pick our pockets, the Governor Davis recall, which appears to be imminent. I will tell you one thing I know for certain... California Republicans long ago discovered the secret of converting an ounce of gold into a ton of worthless metal slag to hang around their necks while they willingly jump off the Golden Gate bridge. Let's make a low-ball estimate that Davis only spends $25 million to defend himself, a half-dozen or so Republicans will spend anywhere between one and twenty million dollars each trying to get the 10-20% of the vote they think they need to replace Davis, the recall loses, taxpayers get to reimburse Davis for every penny he spent to beat the recall. Score another close call for Davis... Republicans, spend the next decade blaming each other for screwing up a golden opportunity... taxpayers, smile when you get that DMV renewal bill that's three times larger than last year. Wash, rinse, repeat as necessary.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:34 AM | Comments (0) |

July 17, 2003

Why Bush will Win in 2004

From the "progressive" Miami New Times:

As Christopher Hitchens wrote recently in Slate: "To believe that the Saddam regime had nothing to hide is to believe that he threw out the U.N. inspectors in 1998 and then said to himself: 'Great. Now I can get on with my dream of unilaterally disarming Iraq!' Who can be such a fool as to believe any such thing?" Who? Unfortunately a lot of Democrats. In fact it's getting harder to tell the party's principled liberals from the more delusional figures on the Left. Nation editor Katrina vanden Heuvel breathlessly equates antiwar "dissidents" marching in New York with Iranian students risking their lives as they take to the streets of Tehran protesting the ayatollahs. In Fort Lauderdale, New Times's own sister paper earnestly refers to Bush's overseas "jihad" on its cover, seemingly unable to distinguish any difference between al Qaeda's terrorist strikes on the World Trade Center and the U.S. ousting of Saddam Hussein's government. Given a choice between burying their heads in the sand or erring on the side of caution, most Americans in 2004 will opt for the candidate who recognizes the all-too-real threats facing us. John Ashcroft = Osama bin Laden? As Bush himself might say: "Don't be so melodramaculous."

Posted by bubba138 at 02:04 PM | Comments (0) |

Empire

Robert Kaplan says we have achieved empire status:

Based partly on these extensive travels, Kaplan has come up with a list of "Rules for Managing the World": 1. Produce More Joppolos 2. Stay on the Move 3. Emulate Second-Century Rome 4. Use the Military to Promote Democracy 5. Be Light and Lethal 6. Bring Back the Old Rules 7. Remember the Philippines 8. The Mission is Everything 9. Fight on Every Front 10. Speak Victorian, Think Pagan For now, Kaplan argues that maintaining American pre-eminence is paramount—both for the sake of other countries and for our own. He cautions, however, that the American empire is not meant to last forever. We are here as a self-interested but liberal power, shepherding the world along only until a "kind of civil society for the world" exists.

If you are anything like me, your biggest question right now is: "What's a Joppolo?" Find out, it's an interesting read.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:46 PM | Comments (0) |

Is Lieberman Growing a Spine?

Lieberman, the front runner in national polls, has been so quite in this primary race that many people don't even know he's running. His yawn factor is off the scale and his timidity has prevented him from taking a stand against his more-left Democratic competition. While he's not yet brave enough to stand up to the NAACP, he's beginning to show some spine against his opponents:

He says Howard Dean probably can't get elected, accuses John Kerry of waffling on Iraq and calls Dick Gephardt's health care plan "big-government spending." The most conservative of the field's nine candidates, Lieberman may finally be following the advice of frustrated advisers and even former President Clinton. Their counsel: Toughen your spine in a primary race dominated by liberal voters and angry partisans. "I'm the only Democrat who can win in November of '04 because I can take on the president where he is supposed to be strong -- on defense, security and values -- and beat him where we know he's weak -- on his failed economic policies and on his divisive, right-wing agenda," Lieberman told 75 supporters at Hyman's Seafood restaurant this week.

The other Democrats have, and will, branded Lieberman as "Bush lite." But in reality, people like Bush's strong stance on terrorism and on the war. They like the fact that they'll be paying less taxes. If Lieberman has similar stands in these areas it won't hurt him in the national election.

Lieberman's chances lie in the fact that Bush is very vulnerable when it comes to social and fiscal (read: DEFICIT) issues -- areas of strength for Joe. If he can convince Democratic voters that he has the best chance to beat Bush, then he'll have a decent chance at winning the primary.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:06 PM | Comments (0) |

You Knew This Was Coming

Ala Nevada, education officials are suing over the state budget:

State schools Supt. Jack O'Connell just announced that he intends to ask the California Supreme Court on Thursday to intervene in the budget battle "on behalf of the state's six million schoolchildren." O'Connell said he will ask the court to "break the Legislative impasse in order to get a budget and allow California schools to get on with the job of educating our children."

I can't imagine this case will go far until the appeals on the Nevada case have been heard.

I'm sure better men than I will soon analyze the California suit.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:53 AM | Comments (0) |

Why Liberia?

Have you, like me, found it a little confusing that so many of those who were dovish over Iraq are downright hawks over Liberia. Here's why:

They all had a claim on the American conscience. What then was the real difference between, say, Haiti and Gulf War I, and between Liberia and Gulf War II? The Persian Gulf has deep strategic significance for the United States; Haiti and Liberia do not. In both Gulf Wars, critical American national interests were being defended and advanced. Yet it is precisely these interventions that liberals opposed. The only conclusion one can draw is that for liberal Democrats, America's strategic interests are not just an irrelevance, but a deterrent to intervention. This is a perversity born of moral vanity. For liberals, foreign policy is social work. National interest -- i.e., national selfishness -- is a taint. The only justified interventions, therefore, are those which are morally pristine, namely, those which are uncorrupted by any suggestion of national interest.

Yep.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:43 AM | Comments (0) |

The System Works

...when we work the system. The Upwardly Mobile Royal Roman shows us why it is imperative that we participate in politics:

What if my friend and I had stayed home that day? Would it have changed history? No. Like I said, the title of this post is a huge overstatement. But this is one of those things where if enough people do things like this, little things add up (that is one reason things got to where they are, actually; a few highly active people doing enough little things that they end up wagging the Liberal, Democratic dog in many ways. That's not inevitable). If we had stayed home, the poser who wasn't a Liberal and I don't think was really a Democrat (not in his heart, but going to the convention and hooking himself into Democratic party politics was a good opportunistic tactic on his part and clearly he intended a career as a political operative of some stripe or another). Like I said, he was a radical Socialist, a Leftist rather than a Democrat and a Liberal.

Republican or Democrat, left or right, get involved -- do your part. Even if it is just registering and voting, get into the mix.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:22 AM | Comments (0) |

Metallica Madness

I was totally behind Metallica when they were suing Napster for ripping off music, but now they've gone off the deep end:

Metallica are taking legal action against independant Canadian rock band Unfaith over what they feel is unsanctioned usage of two chords the band has been using since 1982 : E and F. [...] According to the drummer, the continued use of the two chords causes "confusion, deception and mistake in the minds of the public".

Two chords? Please, let's be reasonable. Jill Pietrini, Metallica's lawyer thinks they are being reasonable:

"It's just a matter of a band having the right to protect the chords it uses. I couldn't start up my own soft drink company using the exact same formula as Coca-Cola."

No, you cant. But you can start a soft drink company and use two of the ingredients in the same order as Coke and no one would sue you.

C'mon, boys, get real. It's not like the paltry following that Unfaith has is going to affect the monsterous living you enjoy. You all are still the kings of metal, -- although your last CD wasn't all to hot -- be happy with the unparalleled success you have achieved.

To quote a widely disparaged world leader, Lars, you've missed an incredible opportunity to shut up.

Update: O.K. I just went to the soda machine and bought a Coke and a Pepsi. Guess what, not only do they use the same ingredients, but, except for reversing the last two -- caffeine and natural flavors -- they are in the same exact order. Jill's argument just does not hold up.

Update: I've now been to the Unfaith site and I have no idea what Lars and Metallica is upset about. Unfaith sounds absolutely nothing like Metallica. As a long time Metallica fan it's my honest assessment that Unfaith is just plain lame. They've even done a cover version of a Duran Duran song. It doesn't get much lamer than that. Unfaith is not even a band really -- its more of a studio project led by Erik Ashley. It is telling that the bio explains that they...

...continue to hone the Unfaith product and produce songs for Unfaith's loyal internet following (which already includes over 2,000 subscribers to their newsletter, without the benefit of shows or radio airplay).

Unfaith product? No shows? This is nothing more than Back-Street-Boys with an edge. Certainly, it is nothing about which Metallica should be concerned.

Move on boys, this battle isn't worth your time.

Update: Arrg. It's a hoax.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:36 AM | Comments (0) |

Brown Nosing

Three of the nine Democratic presidential candidates have a little something on their noses today:

Democratic candidates Joe Lieberman, Dick Gephardt and Dennis Kucinich apologized to the NAACP convention on Thursday for skipping a presidential forum the civil rights group held earlier this week. Kucinich, who missed the session Monday for votes in the House, said he felt an "an obligation to be there to protect the interests of the American people to try to keep Medicare from being privatized. Now I'm here to let you know that while I have a 100 percent voting record, I'm also 100 percent for the NAACP." [...] Following Kucinich's five-minute speech, the moderator goaded him to offer an official apology, saying: "We have heard the explanation, does the congressman need to say something else?" Kucinich replied: "I'm very sorry I wasn't able to be here, amazing grace, how sweet it is, once was lost, now I'm found." Gephardt was then introduced to the audience and quickly offered his regrets. "I'm sorry I was not here when you had the joint appearance the other night," Lieberman, who said he's worked with the NAACP since the 1960s, also offered his apologies saying he believed in "second chances." [...] "...That's leadership. But leadership also means being able to admit when you are wrong. And by not coming Monday, I was wrong. I regret it and I apologize."

Heaven forbid these men should be off doing the business they were elected to do instead of kowtowing to a special interest group. And what's with the moderator's question to Kucinich? Could it be more condescending?

Kucinich's answer wasn't any better, either. I'm surprised his knees aren't bleeding with the amount of groveling he did. <INDIGNATION>He even started quoting a hymn, for crying out loud!</INDIGNATION>

Is this how we can expect them to act when another country's leadership calls us on the carpet? If so, the Dems can keep the lot of them. I've got no use for this bunch.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:16 AM | Comments (0) |

Dean Gains Support

Dean has picked up another endorsement today. From the Washington Post:

CINCINNATI - Former Democratic Sen. Howard Metzenbaum endorsed presidential candidate Howard Dean on Thursday despite the candidacy of fellow Ohioan Dennis Kucinich. [...] Asked if he thinks Dean, the former Vermont governor, can beat President Bush, Metzenbaum replied: "I don't think I'd be here if he was a loser."

Money, endorsements, Dean's hitting on all cylinders these days.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:01 AM | Comments (0) |

More Callifornia Polling

Field Institute has been busy, busy, busy this week, releasing a third report in as many days. The latest poll concerns Bush's approval rating and Californian's views on the war in Iraq. The report's headline reads:

Off the cuff, this isn't good. And while the trend for Bush is downward, that statistic represents all respondents, whether registered to vote or not. Among registered voters, Bush has a 51% approval rating, with 43% disapproving.

Bush's approval for the majority of the state is also above 50%. Only in the San Francisco Bay Area (42%) and in Los Angeles (45%) does it dip below 50%. In the rest of the state, his approval rating ranges from 53% to 60%, and his disapproval rate is 37% or less.

As far as the war in Iraq is considered, 76% of those surveyed were satisfied with the job the military has done there. 62% are satisfied with what the U.S. is doing in making Iraq a stable and functioning country. The survey was conducted between July 1st and July 13th, before news of the formation of the Iraqi governing council had become widespread. The fact the Iraqis are beginning self-government can only further boost satisfaction with the job the U.S. is doing.

Also consider that, even on the left-leaning left coast, satisfaction with the reconstruction effort is high, despite the constant reminders from Dean, Kerry, Gephardt, and various leftish pundits that American servicemen are still dying over there -- evidence that Californians viewpoint of the sacrifices necessary for such a task is in balance with reality.

While this isn't a rosy report for Bush, it isn't entirely gloomy either. He needs to do some work here to improve his image, but all is not lost. The last couple of years Davis has done a fair job of blaming Bush for the energy and economic crises -- whining about how Bush won't bail us out of the mess we ourselves created -- and that has retained some traction with Californians. But the bloom on Gray's rose has faded considerably of late, so more of what he says is taken with a grain of salt.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:45 AM | Comments (0) |

July 16, 2003

Iraqi Council

Leah at Eschaton has an excellent run down on the Iraqi governing council.

Go. now. Read.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:10 PM | Comments (0) |

Speaking of Polls

Carol Liebau was poll the other day -- and it was obvious who was doing the polling (no permalinks, so scroll down to the first entry under 7/25/2003):

A number of the questions also contained information designed to tout Davis' "achievements" in office; at the top of the Governor's list (and mentioned repeatedly) was the establishment of the "Amber alert." Now, "Amber alerts" are certainly good -- they combat child abduction by facilitating the distribution of immediate, up-to-date information about a kidnapped child -- but it may be a sign of just how little Davis has to brag about that the adoption of this non-controversial legislation (borrowed from Texas) is viewed as the primary jewel in his legislative crown. But then again, it wouldn't make sense for him to remind voters that government spending has increased by 40% and that he tripled the car tax, would it?

Posted by bubba138 at 12:45 PM | Comments (0) |

Money Money Money Money....Money

The second quarter fund raising numbers are in for the 2004 Presidential race. Only three candidates, Kerry (<$13 mil), Edwards ($12 mil), and Dean ($10 mil) have broken double digits.

Candidate Q1 Q2 Total Change John Kerry (D)  $7,010,242  $9,018,024  $16,028,266 Up from 2nd John Edwards (D)  $7,418,568  $4,517,709  $11,936,277 Down from 1st Howard Dean (D)  $2,639,209  $7,908,771  $10,547,980 Up from 5th Dick Gephardt (D)  $5,951,721  $$3,799,081  $9,750,802 Down from 3rd Joe Lieberman (D)  $3,013,842  $5,137,733  $8,151,575 No change Lyndon H. Larouche Jr (D)  $821,814  $3,934,068  $4,755,882 Up from 7th Bob Graham (D)  $1,124,186  $2,012,140  $3,136,326 Down from 6th Dennis Kucinich (D)  $178,080  $1,560,873  $1,738,953 Up from 8th Carol Moseley Braun (D)  $72,450  $144,659  $217,109 No change Al Sharpton (D)  $82,656  $101,759  $184,415 No change

Lieberman places fourth in the pack with a paltry eight million dollars. He may be the front runner in national polls, but he continues to have problems getting people to support him in a substantial fashion.

It looks like Gephardt and Graham haven't reported Q2 yet -- I find it hard to imagine they didn't take in any contributions [now updated]. Neither did Sharpton or Moseley-Braun. In an ideal world, embarrassment would force them to drop out of the race soon -- even Lyndon Larouche Jr is out fund raising them. But the Democrats will allow them to take the stage until the bitter end because its always good for a campaign to to have a token African American and token female candidate. (Oh, my mistake, it's only the Republicans that have token minorities. Please forgive me.)

Of all the candidates, Dean raised the most Q2 cash, putting him squarely in the running for the Iowa caucuses.

Related: Q1 Analysis

Update (10/01/2003): The chart has been updated to reflect more current numbers. Ranking changes are no longer accurate.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:06 AM | Comments (0) |

TypePad Beta

Ross M Karchner is beta testing TypePad. Check in regularly with him to see what's up with the new hosted blogging service published by the creators of MoveableType.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:46 AM | Comments (0) |

Democratic Recall Strategy

It looks like the plan of keeping Democrats off the recall ballot may be showing some cracks. The hometown rag is reporting that the party is looking for a "caretaker" candidate -- one who can finish the term but won't run in 2006.

What caught my eye was this quote:

"I think (U.S. Rep. Minority Leader) Nancy (Pelosi)'s unequivocal issue was that the day after that recall election takes place, if there is one, we need to have a Democrat in the chief executive's office in California," Thompson said.

<sarcasm>I agree with her, ya know, because the Democrats have done such a bang-up job in California so far.</sarcasm>

This shows one of the problems with the Democrats today. They are less concerned with the welfare of the governed than they are with who is doing the governing. The Republicans are equally guilty on this count, but being out of power for as long as they've been forces them to be more sensitive to what can benefit the actual people of the state.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:11 AM | Comments (0) |

A New Middle-Eastern Government

Kuwait is changing the way it does government:

Kuwait's designated prime minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah yesterday formed his first Kuwaiti government. As usual, al-Sabah family kept the main posts in this Cabinet. This was upon the decision taken by Kuwait's Amir Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah to separate the two posts of the crown prince and the presidency of the government.

Now this may only be shadow moves to give the appearance of government reform, but it is clear that there is a new wind blowing through the Middle-East. There is a very real possibility that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and other 53 Islamic countries have agreed to recognize Israel by 2005.

One wonders if these changes would have happened if we had not gone into Afghanistan and Iraq. These wars were about alot of things but the best of the reasons was that the Middle East is being re-shaped -- being brought, kicking and screaming, but eventually for the good of all concerned, into the current century.

Steven Den Beste opines that Saudi Arabia is due to very soon fall out of favor with U.S. policy. We no longer need them. They're government is not unlike that of Kuwait's pre-reform government. So the pressure on the Sauds will be coming not only from a change in U.S. policy, but also from a change in the socio-political make up of two of its border countries, Iraq and Kuwait.

Having a reformed Afghanistan and a democratic Iraq on its borders only gives more power to Iran's inner struggles.

The tepid success of the road map to peace has pushed Syria to renew relations with Israel. It is also pulling its forces out of Lebanon.

This is an historic time. We are looking at an old world changing into a new one. Not since the fall of communism in the eighties has the geo-political map been in such a state of flux. What is happening today, this week, this month, this year will affect generations after us -- and they'll be better for it.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:28 AM | Comments (0) |

Give This Guy a Medal

From the LA Times:

A West Covina man leaped 20 feet into the ocean from a restaurant window on the Redondo Beach pier to save a 3-year-old girl who had fallen into the water, officials said Monday. "I didn't stop to think about it," said Larry Abeyta, 51, a deliveryman. "I just wanted to get a hold of the baby."

Posted by bubba138 at 09:23 AM | Comments (0) |

Poli-Genetic Research

Maybe not in 2004, but by 2008 the Dems will have a killer presidential candidate:

Democrats Grow Spine From Stem Cell A scientific source with ties to the group, StemDem Research Lab, claims they've already grown the candidate's spine, and that it's being kept safe in the bowels of an underground laboratory/bunker. [...] Former Sen. Paul Wellstone's DNA has been donated to create "Mr. Smith," code name for the Democrats' top-secret biotech candidate in the 2004 presidential candidacy. [...] In fact, new research reveals that Republicans were active with stem cell experiments in the 1990s. They once created a presidential hopeful called "Newt" from former Senator Joe McCarthy's DNA, but serious genetic flaws rendered the candidate insane and underscored the dangerous side effects of fooling around with Mother Nature

Well, I guess it's worth a shot!

Posted by bubba138 at 09:08 AM | Comments (0) |

Rosario Marin Update

From The Hill:

Could Marin topple Boxer in 2004 race? Calif. GOP says no, claims she is not experienced enough By Peter Savodnik Rosario Marin looks as if she ought to be the California Republicans’ best bet to knock off Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer in 2004. Marin, who until last month was U.S. treasurer and the highest-ranking Latina in the Bush administration, moved to the United States from Mexico when she was 14. She became mayor of Huntington Park in Los Angeles County and worked for Republican ex-Gov. Pete Wilson. Most important, perhaps, Marin, 44, could enable Republicans to put Proposition 187, which barred illegal immigrants from getting government services and was supported by Wilson, behind them, helping the California GOP shed its anti-immigrant image.

What's with the sub-title? Who in the California GOP said she's not experienced enough? I sure would have liked Savodnik to go into a little more detail here.

Related Item: Chicago Tribune: Advocates aim to launch Hispanics into national prominence

Key point:

Much was made last month when the Census Bureau confirmed that Hispanics had surpassed African-Americans as the nation's largest minority group. So several advocates say the gains made by blacks are both inspiring and cautionary. African-Americans have been presidential candidates, Supreme Court justices, heads of major Cabinet departments and mayors in the three largest U.S. cities. Hispanics have achieved none of those breakthroughs.

Hispanics are an untapped political "market" that is up for grabs to the party that really knows how to connect with them. The party that captures the Hispanic vote today controls the country in 50 years.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:55 AM | Comments (0) |

Budget Woes

Bad News: The senate rejected the Republican based budget proposal yesterday.

Good News: The "No Tax Increases" idea is gaining traction:

Some Democratic lawmakers have begun to suggest they would support a budget without a tax increase, and Gov. Gray Davis has indicated that he believes a no-tax budget may be likely.

And given the poll numbers in the previous post, -- which indicate a greater possibility of survival for the governor if a budget is passed soon -- Gray is probably warming up even more to the idea of a budget sans new taxes. Such a budget can't hurt his anemic approval ratings, which according to another Field poll released yesterday is at a paltry 23%. (The legislature has an even worse 19% approval rating.)

The same poll indicates a trend towards a "no tax" solution -- and that the vehicle fee increase was unjustified:

By a 53% to 37% margin voters believe that a tax increase will be necessary to resolve this year’s budget deficit. This represents a decline in the proportion of voters who feel this way from April, when 62% of voters felt that there would have to be a tax increase for the budget to be resolved. [...] When asked about this, 67% of voters feel this recent [vehicle fee] fee hike was unjustified, while just 28% say it was justified.

Still, the pressure on the Repubs to compromise is huge. Regardless, they are holding strong:

The outcome of Tuesday's debate was never in doubt, but Republicans used the opportunity to blast Democrats for what they believe is fiscal mismanagement over the past three years. "We don't want a tax increase in part because whenever you get money, you spend it," Brulte said. [...] The self-proclaimed sole moderate in the Republican caucus said he wanted to see cuts instead of taxes. "Talk about a tax increase is a nonstarter," said Sen. Bruce McPherson, R- Santa Cruz.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:27 AM | Comments (0) |

Davis Recall Poll

The left-leaning Field Institute released a new poll today and it doesn't look good for Davis:

(Page 2) When likely voters are asked if they would vote yes or no in a recall election of the Governor, 51% currently support removing Davis from office, while 43% would retain the Governor. Among the larger pool of all registered voters, sentiments for recalling the Governor have grown over the past three months. At present, 54% of the overall voter population favor Davis’s recall, while 39% are opposed. This represents a significant increase in support for a gubernatorial recall from last April, when the overall electorate favored Davis’s recall by a narrow 46% to 43% margin.

But that's not the whole story. 43% of the likely voters said their decision on the recall will be affected by who is on the ballot to replace Davis:

(Page 5) For example, 22% of all likely voters (and 23% of Yes voters) say their decision on how they will vote on the recall of Davis will be affected “a lot” by which candidates run in the replacement election. Another 21% say they would be affected some or a little.

This goes right in line with the Democrat's strategy of keeping Democrats off the ballot completely and making this a Republicans vs. Davis race.

Further, the poll indicates that Davis should be motivated to get the budget balanced and passed as quickly as possible:

Another factor that could reduce voter inclinations to recall Davis is whether the legislature and the Governor approve a satisfactory state budget in the next few weeks. Among all likely voters 19% say that a satisfactory budget resolution in the coming weeks would make them less inclined to recall Davis. Just 7% say it would make them more inclined and 72% say this would make no difference to their recall vote decision.

As far as possible candidates is concerned, Riordan has the early lead in the poll:

(Page 10) When likely voters are then asked for their first choice preferences among these candidates, Riordan, at 21% is ahead of Schwarzenegger at 15%. Simon is in third place with 12%. Next in order of preference are Camejo, who has 8%, McClintock (7%) and Issa (4%). A relatively large 24% of likely voters report preferring someone else or would not vote for any of these candidates, and 9% are undecided. If Riordan were not running, Schwarzenegger would be the leader over Simon 20% to 15%. If Schwarzenegger were not a candidate, Riordan’s lead would open up to nine points over Simon – 25% to 16%.

It amazes me that Simon polls a mere 3 points behind Ahnold. Who is saying they'd vote for this guy?

What this shows is how important it is for the Republicans to come together and pick one -- and only one -- person to run in this race. If any of these candidates gets elected with a mere 25% of the vote he will not have the nebulous -- but oh so important -- "mandate" of the voters.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:49 AM | Comments (0) |

I Think I'm Going Bald

Thom at Elf Reflection is a bit disconcerted:

I just found my first gray chest hair. I don’t know why this disturbs and distresses me in a way that the gray at my temples and liberally salting my goatee has not. But it does.

Perhaps he could use some musical therapy from long ago:

My life is slipping away I'm aging every day But even when I'm grey I'll still be grey my way

Posted by bubba138 at 07:22 AM | Comments (0) |

July 15, 2003

Nevada Tax Update

Here's more on Nevada's unconstitutional constitutional requirement to have 2/3 majority for raising taxes:

A federal judge on Monday put a temporary halt to the Legislature's move to raise taxes by nearly $800 million with a simple majority vote. Chief U.S. District Judge Philip Pro issued a restraining order to halt passage of taxes by less than a two-thirds supermajority, a state constitution requirement that temporarily was set aside by a Nevada Supreme Court ruling. Pro ordered a 9 a.m. Wednesday hearing before all of Nevada's U.S. District Court judges.

Full Article.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:37 PM | Comments (0) |

Recall Obstruction

Obstruction of the recall effort is in full force. Davis' cronies filled a suit to block the recall on the grounds that the signatures are invalid:

Attorneys for Taxpayers Against the Governor's Recall told a downtown news conference that recall proponents violated the law by using petition circulators who were not registered California voters and did not witness signatures being signed. [...] The lawsuit seeks an injunction stopping Shelley from taking any action on the recall, including certifying it for the ballot, unless county elections officials verify that the people circulating recall petitions were registered California voters.

This is quite possibly true. The recall web sites all published the petitions in PDF format and encouraged people to print them and mail them in. Whether the gatherers were registered or not, verification of California voter registration in these cases is close to impossible.

But we already knew this was going to happen. These guys, after all, are part of the same party that wanted to throw out the military ballots in Florida.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:25 PM | Comments (0) |

Matrix Ping Pong

(In best Keanu Reeves voice) Woh.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:53 PM | Comments (0) |

It's a Cash Game

If Rosario Marin wants to make a run for Barbara Boxer's seat, she'd better make the exploration phase real short and quickly move into the fund raising phase, as she's already $3.2 million behind the incumbent:

That amount is far less than what she probably will need to advertise in California's expensive television markets. But Boxer is more than $1 million ahead of her fund-raising pace six years ago, when she spent $13 million to defeat Republican Matt Fong.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:16 PM | Comments (0) |

"Our Bastard" Strategy?

That's the crux of John's 2004 election analysis over at FreeSpeech:

On the left, Dean seems to have alienated the African-American vote, and (it appears) the moderate Democrat vote with his hard-line disagreements on Iraq. Running against a popular war is never easy, and Dean seems to be running harder than the others. On the right, Bush is losing the support of conservatives, who may also sit out this coming election. This is balanced, however, by the moderates who find Bush's "spendthrift conservatism" acceptable. [...] My guess is that Bush will win, because the conservatives will choose the "our bastard" strategy, and support him, even though they are unhappy at the results - primarily because Dean is scarier than Bush, and the dislike-Dean moderates don't have much to lose with a Bush re-election If Kerry or Gephardt etc win the nomination, however, I suspect it will be a closer race, since more of the conservatives will sit out.

My guess is that John's take is pretty close to spot-on.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:49 AM | Comments (0) |

Desperately Seeking Scandal

Posted by bubba138 at 11:44 AM | Comments (0) |

Palestinian Cease Fire

The Palestinian definition of the cease-fire is becoming increasingly clear:

A Palestinian man stabbed one Israeli to death and wounded another on Tel Aviv's seaside promenade on Tuesday in an attack claimed by a group linked to Palestinian President Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction. [...] A 23-year-old Palestinian from East Jerusalem first stabbed and wounded a security guard outside a Tel Aviv restaurant, then fled to the beach where he killed a 24-year-old Israeli man who was taking a stroll with his girlfriend. The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility for the stabbing in statements issued in Beirut and on its Arabic website, saying it was behind the attack and vowing more. ''There will be more martyrdom operations until the occupation leaves our land,'' it said on its website.

To Arafat's minions, cease-fire means "We can kill Israelis, but they won't kill us." Sounds like a good deal, if you're a Palestinian.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:19 AM | Comments (0) |

Bob Graham Lies About Spelling

Bob Graham had this to say while speaking at the NAACP convention's candidate's forum:

"I would not use the three-letter word," the Florida senator told reporters. "I would use the five-letter word: deceit."

Hmm, isn't that a six letter word? Here's another word you may remember: P-O-T-A-T-O-...E.

What we have here is a test of Alterman's "What Liberal Media?" mantra. If the media leans as far right as Alterman insists, this minor gaffe will be blasted all over the commentaries and Graham will forever be labeled as an imbecile, just as Quayle was.

I suspect the opposite will happen, though, and barely anyone will notice his stumble at all.

Update: You got me Danny.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:50 AM | Comments (0) |

Satire We Wish Was Reality

From Scrappleface: Congress, White House Agree to Slash Spending

"It's outrageous that we would take peoples' money and mismanage it this way," said Senate Budget Committee Chairman Don Nickles, R-OK. "Everyone was blaming the tax cuts, the weak economy and the war on terror. That's bunk. When you get right down to it, deficits come from spending more than you take in. And we already take in more than we really need."

Someday I hope reality imitates Scrappleface.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:47 AM | Comments (0) |

Voyeurism...In Public?

This will make for an interesting court case:

A Greenwich man who was arrested on charges that he videotaped couples having sex in a Greenwich park claims he has a right to videotape because he was in a public place. Court papers said Robert Berwick has pleaded not guilty to breach of peace and voyeurism charges for allegedly secretly videotaping people in Bruce Park and other areas of town. Prosecutors said even visitors to a public park can expect some privacy if their acts are not in plain view. The lawyer who is representing Berwick said a park is different from a home or a locker room, which are private. A Superior Court judge ruled Monday that both sides can debate state law at a hearing on Oct. 15. Court papers said two women at Bruce Park reported last October that that Berwick was pointing a video camera at them. He was arrested and charged with breach of peace, criminal trespass and interfering with police.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:41 AM | Comments (0) |

Bloviation Award

I just found out I am an amateur psephologist. Professional psephologist Charlie Cook says Bush's recent poll numbers aren't so bad:

In eight Gallup polls taken between March 22 and May 21, Bush's approval ratings were in the tight 69 percent to 71 percent range, while his disapproval ratings were between 25 percent and 28 percent. Yes, the president's approval ratings have declined, but the drop occurred since mid-May when they were in the 69 percent to 71 percent range to 66 percent and then 64 percent. Bush's approval ratings have stayed between 61 percent and 63 percent in four polls since early June. In the Ipsos/Cook Political Report polls, Bush's approval ratings have been in the 58 percent to 62 percent range in five polls since early May. None of this is to cast any aspersions on the polls mentioned or the pollsters that conducted them, only that it is important to look at patterns when a sharp drop appears to have taken place to verify if it really did take place.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:28 AM | Comments (0) |

More Good News for the Democrats

Even if the economy does come roaring back, GW is tremendously vulnerable on this issue:

The Bush administration projected Tuesday that the federal deficit will climb to a record $455 billion this year and surge to $475 billion in 2004, underscoring the toll that recession, tax cuts and the fight against terror is taking on the government's books. The White House estimated that the red ink will begin to ease after that, dipping to $213 billion in 2007. The deficit will bump upward again to $226 billion in 2008, according to the figures, which were obtained by The Associated Press.

To my way of thinking, while $213 b-b-b-billion is better than $475 b-b-b-billion, it is still $213 billion more than it should be. That sure is a big government for a "right-wing" conservative.

Update: Glenn sez:

There are lots of real issues (hey, I'm giving 'em away for free here, every day) that they could use, but they're running with this one because they hate Bush more than they care about the truth. Or, seemingly, about winning.

Yep. And this is one of those issues.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:48 AM | Comments (0) |

Ahnold For Governor

Wientraub opines:

If Schwarzenegger runs, Democrats won't be able to lay a finger on him with issues they've long used to demonize Republicans: abortion, gun control, gay rights, the environment. And Republicans who think they can hit him on culture issues (he smoked pot as a young bodybuilder) will find their bullets bouncing off him as if he were a machine. That's because Arnold has something that few modern politicians possess: a story. It's a captivating personal tale that meshes perfectly with his political beliefs. And if he runs, I think, it will get him elected.

Yep.

I watched Larry King interview Arnold at the 2000 Republican convention. He was impressive. He's a little more left than I'd like, but if you look up compassionate conservatism in the dictionary you'll find his picture right there.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:24 AM | Comments (0) |

Affirmative Action On Our Colleg Campuses

Here's what happened at the UCSD College Republican's Affirmative Action Bake Sale:

The bake sale triggered a response by dozens of students who support affirmative action. Upwards of 40 people gathered around the table, voicing their dislike of the message being promoted. Some were quite offensive. “A protestor called me the ‘token female,’” said Vice-Chair Amanda Steele. “If they think that only tall, white males can be Republicans, then they’re the ones who are truly ignorant and racist.”

Sweet.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:14 AM | Comments (0) |

More Bad News for the Democrats

Good news for the nation is bad news for the Democrats that seek the White house in 2004. Reuters is reporting that the economy is shaking off the war-related slump:

Sales at U.S. retailers posted a healthy gain in June, the government said, lifting hopes for an acceleration in economic growth in the second half of the year from the current sluggish pace. The Commerce Department said retail sales grew 0.5 percent to $310.42 billion in June after being flat a month earlier, the strongest gain since March. June sales excluding motor vehicles were up a stronger 0.7 percent after May's 0.1 percent gain.

All the economic indicators except unemployment are looking positive. This is not unusual, as unemployment is normally the last of the economic indicators to change direction -- and California isn't helping the nation on that score at all.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:58 AM | Comments (0) |

More Massacre of the "Massacre"

Meryl Yourish thinks the word on the "massacre" in Jenin will be suppressed by the institutions that initially spread the lie. I think that is very possible. Here's Yourish's take:

The JCPA paper states that civilians were intentionally used as human shields and that both women and children were deployed by Fatah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad to divert IDF troops into ambushes and booby-trapped areas. The Jenin Refugee Camp was prepared as a "reinforced fortress" where nearly 200 Palestinian terrorists had gathered for the battle, the JCPA research states. Look again at some of that information. Un-freaking-believable. And Arafat still gets mileage out of the lie of the "massacre." This should be front-page news on the papers that passed along the lie, but you know it will be buried. Perhaps the blogosphere could do something about that. Bloggers, get those links ready. Take my whole post and put it on your site. I don't want credit. I don't care, just link to and excerpt the Jerusalem Post article. This story needs to get legs.

I'll do my part.

Here is a short list of news outlets that ran with the Jenin "massacre" story. Let see if the blogosphere can put pressure on them to broadcast the truth about what really happened:

• INSIDE THE CAMP OF THE DEAD - The Times
  
• GRISLY EVIDENCE OF WAR CRIMES - The Independent
  
• THE LUNAR LANDSCAPE THAT WAS CAMP JENIN - The Guardian
  
• BLASTED TO RUBBLE BY THE ISRAELIS - The Telegraph
  
• JENIN CAMP SITUATION 'HORRENDOUS' - BBC
  

Update: The BBC and the Guardian both ran articles last August that indicate no massacre took place. However, none of the above outlets have run a story such as the one in the Jerusalem Post that is based upon Palestinian accounts.

Update: The Independent's (ie: independent from reality) headline on the same report:

• UN issues 'seriously flawed' report on Jenin killings

And just two days ago they had this to say:

Visits by Israeli officials usually involve intense security, and none is more controversial than Mr Sharon, who has presided over the reoccupation of Palestinian towns and cities and the Jenin atrocities as Prime Minister.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:45 AM | Comments (0) |

July 14, 2003

News From Iran

Bad news:

The Iranian president, Mohammad Khatami, yesterday ordered an urgent investigation into the death of a Canadian photojournalist who died in custody after being arrested for taking photos of a notorious prison. Iranian officials said the freelance photographer Zahra Kazemi, 54, was arrested last month by guards at Evin prison in Tehran and, after reporting discomfort, died of a brain haemorrhage on Saturday.

Discomfort? She obviously had her brains bashed in. I'd say discomfort is an understatement.

More bad news:

President Mohammad Khatami, responding to dissatisfaction over his commitment to make changes, has said he would resign if people wanted him to, a newspaper said yesterday. It was the first time Khatami has publicly offered to resign. He has come under pressure to stand firm against clerics and to fulfill election promises of freedoms and democratic change in Iran.

Hoder thinks this may be evidence of a clerical crack-down.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:18 PM | Comments (0) |

What Liberal Media?

How do Americans want their news? Fair and balanced, that's how:

The Pew study -- taken from June 19 to July 2 -- found that 70 percent of the respondents thought it was good for news outlets to take a strong pro-American point of view. Yet, 64 percent said news coverage of the war on terrorism should be neutral. Pew Research Center director Andrew Kohut believes the poll shows citizens want objective news, but want to feel in sync with those gathering and presenting it. ''They don't want propaganda,'' he says, ''but they want the media to be on our side, so to speak, giving you the sense that they have your values, your interests.'' [...] Nearly half of those polled -- 46 percent -- say some news organizations are becoming too critical of America. [...] While some critics have accused the cable network of a distinctly rightward tilt, Fox's famous ''Fair and Balanced'' slogan seems to appeal to an audience convinced the rest of the media is rife with left-leaning bias. The poll reveals that the long-smoldering issue of liberal media bias is alive and kicking, with 51 percent of the public subscribing to that belief, compared to only 26 percent who see the press as conservative.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:37 PM | Comments (0) |

Setting the Straw Men Ablaze

Paul Greenburg gets it right:

But the prewar debate wasn't about whether Saddam Hussein had a nuclear weapon, but how to keep him from getting one. He didn't. Mission accomplished. [...] But it's not just George W. Bush that his critics are unhappy with. They're disappointed in the American people -- who don't seem much bothered by this president's decision to go to war and his determination to win it in short order. [...] Maybe the American people intuitively understand some things that reflexive critics of American presidents don't. Like the need to confront a growing danger before it becomes an imminent threat.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:09 PM | Comments (0) |

Day By Day

Chris Muir is out on medical leave for 30 days. I get the feeling that's a bit more serious than a common cold.

We'll miss you Chris -- get well.

Update: Daily Pundit is doing Day by Day re-runs while Chris convalesces.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:53 PM | Comments (0) |

Bring 'Em On

The "flypaper" is working:

"I swear by God no one from his (Saddam Hussein's) followers carried out any jihad (holy struggle) operations like he claims...they are a result of our brothers in jihad," said an unidentified voice on a video tape aired by Dubai-based Al Arabiya television Sunday night.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:07 PM | Comments (0) |

Jenin Massacre?

The Palestinians called it a massacre. It got great world attention. It's now been totally debunked:

Palestinian sources are now saying that their death toll in the 2002 IDF incursion into Jenin, was 52, at least 34 of whom were armed, contradicting earlier Palestinian claims that thousands had died, a study to be released next month says. The study indicates for the first time that Palestinian terror organizations saw themselves as "armed combatants" and not as civilians who died in a deadly massacre. The study's significance is that it uses Palestinian sources to rebut the original Palestinian claims.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:24 AM | Comments (0) |

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

Hunting for Bambi is just plain wrong. (Part Two)

It's a new form of adult entertainment, and men are paying thousands of dollars to shoot naked women with paint ball guns. They're coming to Las Vegas to do it. This bizarre new sport has captured the attention of people around the world... George Evanthes has never been hunting...He's not hunting ducks or even deer. He's hunting woman. Naked women. Hunting for Bambi is the brain child of Michael Burdick. Men pay anywhere from $5000 to $10,000 for the chance to come to the middle of the desert to shoot what they call "Bambi's" with a paint ball gun...The men get a video tape of their hunt to take home and show their friends. Burdick says safety is a concern, but the women are not allowed to wear protective gear -- only tennis shoes. ... I don't go deer hunting and see a deer with a football helmet on so I don't want to see one on my girl either," said Burdick.

1. Women are not dear. They are human beings and should be accorded with the dignity that they deserve.

2. I have played paintball for over 15 years. For one eight year stretch I was out on a paintball field between 40 and 50 weekends each year. Paintball is inherently a dangerous sport. To send participants out into a field without head protection is negligent beyond belief. I hope the owner of this business venture gets his butt sued off.

3. Concerns about heightened sexual aggression are founded. How did George Evanthes react to his participation in shooting on of the naked women?

He just shot one of the women in the butt. "It was sexy. Let's put it that way," says Evanthes. "It got me going."

Even Hunting for Bambi's proprietor's views are scary:

Burdick says the majority of the men who pay the $5000 to $10,000 to play the game are the submissive, quite type: "For the individual who's used to saying I can't go out with the boys tonight ...my wife doesn't want me to, and yes dear, no dear, the wimp of America, it's a chance for him to come out and vent his aggression and really take charge and have some fun."

Research shows that violent offenders often act out their sexual aggression with animals before they actually graduate into the real thing. Each act is a rehearsal for the "real thing" -- with each episode building up the fantasy with greater intensity. Hunting for Bambi poses a very real risk of enforcing a budding sexual offender's fantasy of shooting and killing a naked women. This is not kid's stuff. This is dangerous, immoral and wrong.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:41 AM | Comments (0) |

Go See It

I went to see Pirates of the Caribbean last night, and really can’t recommend it highly enough. It’s as much fun as movies can get. Johnny Depp is a revelation as Captain Jack Sparrow, moving like a fey, drunken Keith Richards who hasn’t gotten his land-legs; Geoffrey Rush is nearly as good. The plot is hokum of course, something about cursed Aztec treasure and blood sacrifice, but you don’t notice while you’re watching; you just go along for the ride.

I saw it on Saturday and I totally agree. This isn't an Oscar winner, but I have seldom had as much fun watching a movie. Not a cent was wasted on admission.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:20 AM | Comments (0) |

Palestinian Pride

As Instaman would put it, more crushing of dissent:

A mob of about 100 Palestinian refugees stormed the office of a Ramallah polling organisation yesterday to stop it publishing a survey showing that five times as many refugees would prefer to settle permanently in a Palestinian state than return to their old homes in what is now Israel.

Also interesting is last month's poll by the same organization. More than 60% of Palestinians disagreed that they should:

(05-3) Declare an unequivocal end to violence and terrorism, and undertake efforts to arrest disrupt and restrain individuals and groups conducting and planning violent attacks on Israelis anywhere.

And more than 70% are against:

(05-4) Cutting off funding and all other forms of support for groups supporting and engaging in violence and terror

I'm sure the television commercials have nothing to do with these results.

Oddly enough, the Palestinians are optimistic about the negotiations continuing. When asked...

What do you expect to happen now after Israel and the Palestinians have accepted the Quartet's Roadmap and after the Aqaba declarations of Prime ministers Abu Mazin and Sharon and President Bush and after the Palestinian side declared its readiness to assume security responsibility for, and to enforce a ceasefire in, areas from which the Israeli army withdraws?

...more than 72% expected further negotiations.

On the other side of the coin, less than 40% think the negotiations will eventually result in a political settlement between Israel and the Palestinians, and barely 52% are prepared to recognize the right of Israel to exist.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:55 AM | Comments (0) |

20 Truths About 20 "Lies"

Several dozen anti-war blogs have latched onto an Independent article that asserts 20 lies about the war in Iraq. Let's handle these "lies" one by one:

1 Iraq was responsible for the 11 September attacks

The argument has never been whether Iraq was responsible for the 9/11 attacks. The issue has always been, in a post 9/11 world, we must come against countries that sponsor terrorism. Iraq was such a country. When 9/11 was referenced in relation to Iraq by U.S. politicians, it wasn't done as a cause-effect scenario.

As far as your precious polls that show large numbers of people believe Iraq had a direct ling to the attacks, what does that prove? If surveyed about the basic workings of their own government these same people would give equally inaccurate opinions.

2 Iraq and al-Qa'ida were working together

The charge was that al Qa'eda was given safe haven in Iraq. And that was the case. Don't lose hope, though. There yet may even be that elusive link between Saddam and al Qa'eda.

3 Iraq was seeking uranium from Africa for a "reconstituted" nuclear weapons programme...The Foreign Office conceded last week that this information is now "under review".

Under review does not mean "lie." Even if the report isn't true, this wasn't the end all and be all of the intelligence against Iraq. We did not go to war over this one little issue. We went to war based on a mountain of intelligence that showed Iraq was a threat. As William Safire puts it, "There was no 'intelligence hoax'"

Update: It now seems there were more than one source indicating Iraq was trying to buy uranium from Niger. British secret service says their intelligence isn't based upon the discredited report anyway.

4 Iraq was trying to import aluminium tubes to develop nuclear weapons

1. This Washington Post article reported IAEA findings in January -- four months before we invaded Iraq -- so it could have hardly been an issue for the invasion. The tubes were never the issue. The issue was whether Iraq was trying to develop nuclear weapon capability, which there is no doubt they were. Why else would an oil rich nation like Iraq had built a nuclear reactor? Atrios and Scott Ritter team up to kindly share that, not only did they have a program running, but those working on it were proud of their work.

5 Iraq still had vast stocks of chemical and biological weapons from the first Gulf War

This is an undebatable fact, not a lie. Inventories of chemical and biological weapons and elements were given to the U.N. at the close of the first Gulf War. The problem was that the burden of proof of destruction of these weapons had always fallen upon Saddam Hussien's government: a burden that was never met.

6 Iraq retained up to 20 missiles which could carry chemical or biological warheads, with a range which would threaten British forces in Cyprus

I claim ignorance on this one. It's a Brit issue on which I am not informed.

7 Saddam Hussein had the wherewithal to develop smallpox This allegation was made by the Secretary of State, Colin Powell, in his address to the UN Security Council in February. The following month the UN said there was nothing to support it.

The U.N. said there was nothing to support Collin Powell's claims? What does that mean? Scott Ritter says that George Galloway is a swell guy. Does that make it so?

8 US and British claims were supported by the inspectors According to Jack Straw, chief UN weapons inspector Hans Blix "pointed out" that Iraq had 10,000 litres of anthrax. Tony Blair said Iraq's chemical, biological and "indeed the nuclear weapons programme" had been well documented by the UN. Mr Blix's reply? "This is not the same as saying there are weapons of mass destruction," he said last September.

Please. Are we going to split hairs here? Saddam with 10,000 liters of anthrax in his back pocket is a bad thing™. Anthrax kills people, that makes it a weapon. I would certainly say that 10,000 liters qualifies for the term "mass." Living beings that come into contact with the substance face destruction. Delivery system: an envelope. I think this fulfills the requirements for being called a weapon of mass destruction.

9 Previous weapons inspections had failed

We knew they had the weapons. They told us themselves. They gave us lists of weapons and chemicals. Where are they now? This is the question that isn't being asked enough. Where are those weapons? If they aren't in Iraq what did Saddam Hussien do with them? The job of the inspectors was to determine whether Iraq was complying to the terms of the U.N. resolutions. They neither concluded that Iraq was in violation nor in compliance. In other words, the inspectors failed.

10 Iraq was obstructing the inspectors

Dr. Hans Blix also said that the Iraqi cooperation with inspectors was not satisfactory. Unsatisfactory cooperation is obstruction.

11 Iraq could deploy its weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes

The dossier actually said that "Saddam's military planning allowed for some weapons of mass destruction to be ready within 45 minutes of an order to use it".

12 The "dodgy dossier"

Because some of the information in this dossier was plagiarized doesn't make it a lie.

13 War would be easy

First, no one in official capacity said this was going to be an easy war. Second, it was an easy war. Allied casualties are so minimal as to defy belief. Iraqi civilian deaths are lower than the number Saddam's regime would have killed in the same period of time, and most assuredly less than the "millions" predicted by the doom-sayers. Allies were in control of the entire country in less than two months! What are you crying about?

14 Umm Qasr 15 Basra rebellion 16 The "rescue" of Private Jessica Lynch 17 Troops would face chemical and biological weapons

None of these are as much "lies" as they are examples of the ebb and flow of intelligence. The fault here isn't with U.S. or British governments as much as it is with a free press corps. The governments could have prevented this ebb and flow from happening by simply keeping all the information close to the vest. If they had, the press would have accused them of trying to cover up. Instead, the press was free to report what they saw as they saw it. So we got a lot of reports like this one before they had been confirmed.

18 Interrogation of scientists would yield the location of WMD

Let me paraphrase an oft-heard quote from the anti-war types: "Give the interrogators time to do their jobs!"

19 Iraq's oil money would go to Iraqis

Roads, water, electricity, an Iraqi government, oil revenues. Which shall we handle first? To whom shall we give the revenues? Should we just throw bank notes out the window and hope they get distributed evenly? I have an idea. Why don't we stick to priorities and set in place a body that can make these kind of decisions instead of whining and complaining about greedy western interests?

20 WMD were found

Was it a mistake to make the statement before the trailers had been completely examined? Perhaps. Was it a lie? I don't think so.

Update: Quidnunc (how do you say that?) appends...

Posted by bubba138 at 07:56 AM | Comments (0) |

Davis Doesn't Fear Anybody

The Mercury News reports several possible recall scenarios. In it is this interesting tidbit from Davis:

The man behind the door -- Gray Davis -- has said precious little about the maneuvering to succeed him. While he has mobilized supporters to oppose the recall, Davis scoffs at the notion he's been distracted by it. ``I don't fear anybody,'' Davis told a recent radio interviewer.

How's this for sending a flag up and seeing who salutes it:

But ever since Jerry Brown left Sacramento in 1983, the capital has had a succession of nondescript governors. None has had have the star power of Schwarzenegger or, for that matter, Brown. In fact, maybe Brown would like to leave his gig as Oakland's mayor for another bow in Sacramento. Or maybe Kathleen Brown, his sister, a former candidate for governor, just might make a comeback bid. Or maybe . . .

Posted by bubba138 at 07:43 AM | Comments (0) |

For the People, Of the People, By the People...

The Iraqi government is governing. The Iraqi people are watching the forefathers of a new Iraqi nation shape the future on TV:

Baghdadis, who had been waiting for the announcement, gathered around televisions and radios. In a newspaper office downtown, designer Hamid al-Gailani wept in front of his colleagues, out of a combination of happiness and sadness at the end of many decades of dictatorship. ''I felt that we had gone back to the year 1930. I feel that Iraq has started back from zero,'' Gailani said. ''We have wasted 75 years waiting to taste freedom.''

Important point: this government is representative of the country's population:

In its final form, the council included 13 Shi'ite Muslims, granting them a majority stake in the government after years of repression by Hussein's Sunni-dominated regime. Five members are Kurds and five are Sunni Muslims, one is Turkmen, one is an Assyrian Christian. Three council members are women. More than half are exiles or Kurdish leaders who were excluded from a role in the government under Hussein's regime... ''The overwhelming majority of the Iraqi people are represented,'' Sawers said. ''What we're seeing today is the marginalization of the people who benefited by the tyranny of the Iraqi people.''

First order of business? Get recognized internationally by sending a delegation to the U.N.:

At the close of its first full day of business, the council - which was announced to the world on Sunday - issued a statement that said the U.N. delegation would "assert and emphasize the role of the governing council as a legitimate Iraqi body during this transitional period."

Posted by bubba138 at 06:56 AM | Comments (0) |

July 13, 2003

Commercials in a Culture of Death

For almost three years, Palestinians have been fed a steady diet of video clips and montages of Palestinians getting killed by Israelis or other violent subject matter. These clips are gone, said Carmon, but another video, which he calls just as troubling, is still being shown. In it, a Palestinian youth sees his girlfriend get killed by Israeli soldiers and then decides to seek revenge. He is enticed to become a martyr by pictures of beautiful women with long flowing hair dressed in white gowns frolicking and dancing in pools of water in a garden - the Islamic dream of paradise. Palestinians consider those who die in confrontations with Israeli troops or those who carry out terror attacks to be martyrs. Suicide bombers particularly are promised that 72 virgins await them in paradise. The video clip is simple. But in a society where it is taboo for young men to be close to the opposite sex, this is very enticing, said Carmon

Is it any wonder why there isn't peace in Israel? (Full Article)

Posted by bubba138 at 07:28 AM | Comments (0) |

July 12, 2003

The Civil War Has Begun

From AP:

In a sign of tensions between the Palestinian leadership and armed groups, members of the Islamic militant Hamas fired bullets and hand grenades at police cars in Gaza City after a Hamas member was shot by bodyguards for Palestinian security chief Mohammed Dahlan on Thursday, a Palestinian security source said. Trying to restore peace momentum, the United States has invited Sharon to Washington at the end of July - almost two months earlier than scheduled.

This was buried at the bottom of the article, seeming unimportant. But this could very well be the first incident in a Palestinian civil war between those who want peace and condemn terrorism and those that love bloodshed and won't be satisfied until Israel no longer exists.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:23 PM | Comments (0) |

It's Good To Be In The Business

Posted by bubba138 at 12:03 PM | Comments (0) |

Will Davis Resign?

CalNews.Com's teaser for a WesternPR article (subscription required) says this:

"This is an issue with national implications" WesternPR has been monitoring persistent rumors within the ranks of the Democratic Party about the possibility that Gray Davis will resign from office prior to the recall election qualifying. These rumors are for real and are based on a very real fear by powerful labor organizers who are afraid that a Republican takeover of the Governor’s office will rollback the significant financial gains they have made in California.

Gray himself has stated he will not resign, saying, "I am not going to retreat" But he may be getting national pressure form the Democratic party in addition to the pressure he's receiving from the unions.

Duane Moore, chairman of the Kern County Democratic Central Committee, also wants him to quit.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:35 AM | Comments (0) |

July 11, 2003

Why Bush Will Be Re-Elected

Mike Reagan opines:

I promise you that if Howard Dean or John Kerry get the Democrat party’s nomination, one of the planks in their platform will be "if you elect me I will bring the troops home from Iraq." And that will be all the terrorists in Iraq will need to hear – that if they just hang in there long enough and keep killing Americans, sooner or later Americans will go home with our tails between our legs, we’ll be gone, and they’ll be back in power. If that happens, then the whole world will be in turmoil, and Armageddon will be right around the corner. The world will know America doesn’t have the guts to finish what we start.

The last thing we need is another Somalia. You know it, I know it, most of America knows it. Will the Democrats figure it out? If they don't, Bush will be re-elected in a landslide.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:32 PM | Comments (0) |

Dean -- A Moderate?

Here is why moderate Democrats will latch onto the Dean wagon:

In a fiscal year that saw states across the nation swimming in seas of red ink, Vermont ended with a $10.4 million General Fund surplus. Like most states, Vermont has endured a dramatic drop in revenues in the past several years, particularly in the income tax, but unlike many other states responded quickly with budget cuts once the size of the revenue losses became apparent. When analysts 2½ years ago first adopted a revenue forecast for fiscal year 2003, they projected that state General Fund taxes would generate $950.7 million, a number that was then ratcheted down several times to the $854.4 million target forecasters finally adopted in January. Each time the revenue projection was dropped, first Dean and then Douglas and lawmakers responded with equal drops in spending.

This is also the one area Dean has Bush beat, and soundly. Bush is anything but a small government politician, and his fiscal responsibility, well, isn't.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:31 PM | Comments (0) |

The Right Man For The Job?

Is Abbas the right man for securing peace in Israel? Arafat must think so. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so hopping mad:

Abu Mazen is betraying the interests of the Palestinian people," Arafat said, according to the source. "He is behaving like a tyro who doesn't know what he is doing. How does he dare to stand next to an Israeli flag and next to [Prime Minister Ariel] Sharon and to act friendly with a man whose history is known to all the world?"

Abbas just might broker peace, which in Arafat's view always has been and always will be contrary to the Palestinian people's interests. Violence has ever followed Arafat, and until he is totally off the scene violence will always follow him. He was, is, and will be nothing but a blood-thirsty terrorist.

Abbas is gaining more and ore influence with both the Palestinian people and the Israelis -- this is what is upsetting Arafat. No matter how hard he tries, Arafat will never -- nor does he have any desire to -- hear Sharon speak these words about him:

"I, Ariel Sharon, want to help Prime Minister Abu Mazen," he told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, referring to Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas who is also called Abu Mazen. Prime Minister Sharon is expected to meet with Abbas next week, after Sharon returns from England, to discuss the release of more Palestinian prisoners and the transfer of more cities from Israeli to Palestinian control. "I want to help him because he is a man who believes that the only way to arrive at peace is not via violence, not terrorism. It's through negotiation," Sharon said, adding violence had decreased since Palestinian militant factions called a truce in late June.

Posted by bubba138 at 05:05 PM | Comments (0) |

Springing for a Senate Seat

Please, say it ain't so.

Springer claims to speak for a neglected constituency. What, people who curse and throw furniture? Well ... yes. "Someone has to be fighting and speaking just for ordinary hard-working Americans that don't have all the breaks," said Springer.

Judging by the out-of-work trailer trash that frequents his show, is it possible Springer knows any ordinary, hard working Americans? Oh, and he's one of the reasons the Democrats raise fistfulls of cash from rich people:

He's been a generous Democratic campaign contributor, giving $20,000 to the New York Democratic Party's 2000 Senate campaign.

I hope Geraldo runs against him.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:42 PM | Comments (0) |

Busting the Big Money Lie

The common wisdom and the often repeated Democratic mantra is that the Republicans have gained their power because they are beholden to big money. Open Secrets has just revealed that that is not the case:

The study also found that Democrats were far more reliant than Republicans on deep-pocketed givers in the 2002 election cycle, and were much less successful than the GOP at raising money from donors giving small amounts. The findings were released today at an event launching the Center's comprehensive study of the effects of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, commonly called the McCain-Feingold law. [...] ... individuals giving less than $200 to federal candidates, parties or leadership PACs gave 64 percent of their money to Republicans during the last election cycle. Democrats raised just 35 percent of the money from those donors. Among very wealthy donors, Democrats reigned supreme. Contributors of $1 million or more gave 92 percent of their money to Democrats, and 8 percent to the GOP. (emphasis mine)

And even though the Republicans didn't get the big donations, they still out-fundraised the Democrats. This shows that, contrary to popular belief, more individual Americans tangibly support the Republican agenda while the Democrats are ruled by the wealthy elite.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:02 PM | Comments (0) |

Progress In Iraq

Every day we here of new attacks on our servicemen in Iraq. What we really need is to have some progress...something to show that the Iraqis will someday control their own land. Oh, wait, that's already happening:

Representatives of the major political, ethnic and religious groups of Iraq — some of them skilled politicians, some of them exile leaders coming home and others political neophytes united by their suffering under Saddam Hussein — will declare the first postwar interim government in Iraq this weekend, Western and Iraqi officials said tonight. After eight weeks of negotiations with the American and British occupation powers, a "governing council" of between 21 and 25 members will be granted extensive executive powers.

And it is a diverse lot, as well:

The new body of Kurds, Shiites, Sunnis, Christians and Turkmen will share responsibility... Last week, Lena Aboud, a 28-year-old gynecologist and women's rights advocate said she had been invited to join the government by Mr. Bremer. At least two other women were expected to be named, along with a Chaldean Christian, a Turkmen representative and one or more prominent tribal leaders.

When you've got a gynecologist in the government, I think you've covered all the bases.

Posted by bubba138 at 02:44 PM | Comments (0) |

Will the Real Democratic Candidate Please Stand Up - Part II

We bloggers (especially those of us who concentrate on the political news) may are kind of sick in that we emerse ourselves in news that few really care about. Evidence of this comes from a recent poll:

"From what you have heard or read, can you name any of the candidates running for the 2004 Democratic nomination for president?"If "Yes":"Who is the first one who comes to mind?"
			ALL	Repub- licans	Demo- crats	Indepen- dents
			%	%	%	%
	Yes, can name a candidate		34	35	34	33
	Howard Dean		7	5	7	8
	John Kerry		7	5	7	8
	Joe Lieberman		6	6	6	6
	Richard Gephardt		3	4	3	2
	Al Sharpton		2	1	2	2
	Hillary Clinton		2	1	2	2
	John Edwards		1	1	1	0
	Al Gore		1	3	0	0
	Bob Graham		1	1	1	1
	Dennis Kucinich		1	1	1	0
	Other		3	7	4	4
	No, can't name a candidate		66	65	66	67

There are two observations to make from this. First, only a little more than a third of those surveyed could even think of a singe Democrat that is running for President. This means most people aren't even thinking about the race yet. They've got better things to do.

Second, Dean is the man to beat. Early last month, Dean was eighth on the list of recognized candidates. Now he's the first to come to the mind of those who can name a candidate. While we cannot do an apple-to-apple comparison of these two studies, it is plain that Dean is doing a better job at getting the his message out than the other candidates.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:50 PM | Comments (0) |

Gephardt View On WMD's

Gephardt had this to say about Iraq on Tuesday on CBS' "Face the Nation":

BOB SCHIEFFER, host: ...Do you feel in any way that you were had? Were you duped? Representative DICK GEPHARDT (Democrat, Missouri; Presidential Candidate): Well, Bob, there--there is a long line of evidence going back to the early '90s that Saddam Hussein had lots of weapons of mass destruction and that he used them against his own people. The UN believed that. Hans Blix believed that; President Chirac, President Schroeder, certainly Bill Clinton and his administration and now this administration. If they were all duped or if they all didn't have the right information, then this is the most colossalful--colossal hype that ever was. I think... SCHIEFFER: But you, in a sense, think you were--there was some hype there? Rep. GEPHARDT: I--I--I don't know. We'll--we'll have an investigation in the Congress. We should. You should after any war review what happened, what the intelligence was and whether things were done right. But there is long, consistent, clear evidence that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, and I'm still convinced that we're going to find them. (emphasis mine)

Posted by bubba138 at 01:42 PM | Comments (0) |

The Color of Money

Our wallets will soon resemble a Monopoly game:

Subtle green, peach and blue colors are coming to a pocket, wallet or purse near you this autumn when the new $20 bills fall into circulation. [...] In fact the new security features will allow for individuals and business owners to easily check for counterfeiting. These three features were developed in the 1990s. The watermark - the faint image similar to the large portrait which is part of the paper itself and is visible from both sides when held up to the light The security thread - also visible from both sides when held up to the light, this vertical strip of plastic is embedded in the paper. "USA TWENTY" and a small flag are visible along the thread The color-shifting ink - the numeral "20" in the lower-right corner on the face of the note changes from copper to green when the note is tilted.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:34 PM | Comments (0) |

Rosario Marin

It has been a while in coming, but Rosario Marin has finally shown some public interest in the 2004 Senate race for the seat currently held by Barbara Boxer:

Marin, who stepped down on June 30 from her post with the Bush administration, announced Thursday that she had formed an exploratory committee to allow her to begin raising money for a possible run.

Go Rosario, Go!

Posted by bubba138 at 01:30 PM | Comments (0) |

Recall Analysis

The Angry Clam has done a bang-up job at analyzing the candidates for the upcoming recall. Of his conclusions, this one is the best:

[On Bill Simon] I owe Californians an apology for supporting this tool. He's an utter loser who should stay clear of the recall election. The possibility of Bill Simon winning it is lower than that of Camejo.

Yep. I'm sorry too.

Don't just stop there, read the entire analysis.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:17 PM | Comments (0) |

Legislating From The Bench

Bad news has come from Nevada, where their courts re-wrote the law in order to raise the taxes that Nevada residents pay:

The Nevada Supreme Court -- ruling 6-1 on a dispute arising from a budget crisis similar to the one plaguing California -- decided that Nevada lawmakers' constitutional duty to fund education outweighed the constitutional requirement for a two-thirds majority vote to increase taxes. The two-thirds vote requirement on tax hikes has triggered political gridlock in deficit-ridden Nevada, the same as it has in California, which is facing a much larger $38 billion budget gap.

Gray Davis and the tax-tax-and more-tax and spend Democrats are sure to use this as a club over the Republican's efforts to keep the California budget from growing this year.

The Republicans are getting beat up in the press who are presenting them as a roadblock to a balanced budget. What doesn't get reported is the fact that every budget the Democrats have presented has in them both increases in taxes and spending. In other words, in a time when we cannot pay for what has already been budgeted, the Democrats want to increase the spending, and make us pay for it.

Currently the Republicans have the power to hold off any tax increases, as the law requires a 2/3 majority to raise taxes. But if it goes to court, and they rule that a majority is all that is needed, all bets are off -- and the Dems will make California a place where it is even harder to make a living.

Update: The Volokh Conspiracy dissects the decision, and Eugene thinks its loopy.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:52 PM | Comments (0) |

NASA

N.A.S.A has updated their web site and it is awesome. While you are there, make sure you check out the multi-media section.

The "Image of the Day" gallery makes for great desktop wall papers.

Update: More great NASA desktop wallpapers can be found here.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:35 AM | Comments (0) |

Delicious, and So Good For You!

Fluffernutter. This can't be healthy.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:20 AM | Comments (0) |

The Cost of the Recall

George Neumayr discusses the cost of the recall:

It just tears him up to think that taxpayers will have to finance a recall that could cost up to $45 million. It was amusing to watch a governor who has created a $38 billion deficit... But apparently this faux concern is polling decently, so Davis is likely to stick to it. The Times says that his line -- the costs of the recall "will come out of the same general fund that pays for teachers, police officers and health care" -- is "one of perhaps seven or eight key messages that the Davis team expects to resonate with voters." Unnecessary spending has never displeased Davis before. Californians should remember...Davis's costly horn-blowing earlier in his term after the car tax was lowered. Davis spent millions on an utterly gratuitous mail notice announcing that the car tax had been cut. The notices were a purely political expenditure, an attempt to ingratiate himself with Californians. Needless to say, Davis won't be sending out notices by mail announcing that he is tripling the car tax. (emphasis mine)

No, I don't think he will. But every Californian will find out about it when they have to renew their registration. Davis is betting that most Californians won't be renewing until after the recall

Posted by bubba138 at 09:54 AM | Comments (0) |

Be Careful What You Ask For

From a CNN interview:

RONETTE CHENEY, LIGHTNING WITNESS: The thunder just kind of started probably about 10 minutes after he had started his sermon, and he said thunder is like God's voice, so we were kind of like, oh, all right, and we were sitting in the church trying to concentrate. He was talking about repentance, and as the thunder got louder, he said, "OK, speak to me, God, speak to me, tell me what you want me to say." And boom, lightning struck the church and everything lit up. [...] He had a cordless microphone on, and the lightning strike was so strong -- the lightning (UNINTELLIGIBLE) up his cordless microphone, and it was kind of like a blue aura around him. Also the speakers had static come right out of them. In the back of the church, there was a sound system and it blew up. [...] CALLEBS: Well, I guess there will be some clean livers in that community for some time to come.

Yep!

Posted by bubba138 at 09:42 AM | Comments (0) |

Beating a Dead Horse

&c. writes:

WHEN YOUR ZONE GOES BONE DRY: We've taken our fair share of shots at Howell Raines. But say this for the former New York Times executive editor: You'd certainly be able to tell from reading his paper that the Bush administration was embroiled in its first major foreign policy scandal. By contrast, the Times' actual coverage of the Niger uranium hoax has been virtually non-existent under interim executive editor Joe Lelyveld--save for a single David Sanger piece earlier this week, written mostly on the basis of an Ari Fleischer press conference. Pretty much the only place you can consistently read about that scandal in the Times these days is in the paper's the op-ed pages. Is it too much to ask that the paper put a single investigative reporter on the beat? (Or, if there already is one, then how bout an investigative reporter who produces a piece every once in a while?) Under Lelyveld the paper seems to have lapsed into its prior stupor as the official, but barely readable, paper of record.

Wah wah wah.

The reason the NY Times hasn't put any serious investigative effort into this is because it is newsworthy only for political hacks who want to use this as a stake through the President's political heart.

I am amazed at the media play this non-issue is getting. Was the Niger report false? Yes. We've all known that for months. It's been hashed over and over and it keeps coming back. This last round was fired up because of an article in which an "unnamed source" claimed to be in a meeting with the President ten months before the State of the Union address in which Bush was allegedly told the report was false. This touched off a fire storm of articles and opinions claiming that there was finally "proof" that Bush lied. Then, on Wednesday, the author of the article recanted, saying his unnamed source had lied, and in fact had been lying to him for over twenty years.

Bottom line here is that the opposition party doesn't know what to do to get its message across, so all they have left is to attack Bush. But that begs the question, "Why can't the Democrats get their message across?" Answer: They have no message. The Democrats once stood for something. In a day when America needed it, they stood for social security and welfare. In a day when America needed it, they stood for unions. In a day when America needed it they stood for civil rights. They were the progressive party because they could see the needs of changing times and they sought to address those needs. The Democrats have been highly successful and because of that America is a better country.

Democrats were broadly opposed to freeing blacks from slavery. Republicans championed the cause of emancipation. President Lincoln was one of the first successful Republican politicians. This opposition to equal rights for blacks remained in the Democratic party all the way into the early days of the civil rights struggle. At that time the Democratic party had in it the most racist bunch of politicians in the nation. But some key Democrats (JFK among them) recognized the immorality of their party's position and began to influence it in the right direction. These leaders stood for morality and right, and because of that (and some serious mis-steps by the Republicans) they won over the minority voters and civil rights became their cause.

The point here is that the Democrats looked at the nation and asked the question, "What do the people need in order to fulfill the promise of our forefathers? How can we clear the way so they have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?" The answer was natural -- but the solution required them to change, and grow, and -- most importantly -- offer a positive vision of hope and a future for the nation.

Today's Democratic party has no vision of hope. All they preach is doom and gloom. They revel in telling us that America is the root of all evil in the world. They love to share how much pain we cause. They work on guilt and thrive on division. They look with derision upon our forefathers and spit on those who built this nation over the last two hundred some odd years. They bitch, and whine, and complain, and people are tired of hearing it.

I look for a day when Democrats have a new message. A day when they can do more than just cut down straw men, and instead begin again to build men (and women) up. Democrats have largely been successful when they've tackled issues that are important to the American people. Civil Rights today are light years ahead of where they were. Can improvement be made? Sure, but the heavy lifting has been done and all that is left is to sweep clean the corners. Racism, once the norm, is now socially unacceptable. Democrats have made unions so powerful they rival large corporations. But each of these issues are dead now. Americans consider the case closed -- the problem has been fixed. Americans have moved on -- the Democratic party has not.

The Democrats were once called the progressive party. If they continue to look back and try to hold on to old, dead issues, that label will no longer apply. It won't be long, if they do not change their ways, before the Democratic party is known as the regressive party.

Update: Heretical Ideas has this to say about the "Bush Lie":

Heaven knows I'm no Bush supporter, but if this is the best the Democrats can do, then they're going to keep losing for a long, long time. This was one sentence in one speech, people! The Bush Administration's case for going into Iraq was a lot more than this statement. Hell, I wouldn't even have remembered Bush had said it if it hadn't sparked so much brouhaha. This was not a vital part of Bush's case. It was hardly part of it at all. Look, Bush is vulnerable on a lot of issues related to national security: overextension of troops, Taliban resurgence in Afghanistan, ties to the Saudis, a pathetic Homeland Secuirty effort, the apparent willingness to go ahead and let N. Korea have nukes, and more. And what are the Democrats doing? Focusing their attention on this non-issue, and a little bit on the continuing conflict in Iraq (ie criticizing without offering any credible alternative--and "send in more troops" is not a credible alternative). But what the Democrats certainly are not offering is a credible foreign policy, particularly as regards terrorism. Instead, they offer petty, sniping bullshit. Surely, the opposition party can do better than this. But instead, they're so blinded by their hatred of Bush that they're not accomplishing shit, nor are they offering any constructive alternative to his policies.

Yep.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:23 AM | Comments (0) |

July 10, 2003

Can One Person Make a Difference?

High school student Steve Miller did.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:30 PM | Comments (0) |

California Budget Problems

The next time a paper blasts the state's Republicans for going hardline on new taxes, remember this:

But more to the point, California is not suffering a revenue shortfall. In the first four years of this administration, revenues have increased 25 percent while inflation and population combined have grown only 21 percent. The problem is that spending has increased 40 percent. Tax increases – even legal ones – cannot bail out a state that is increasing its spending almost twice as fast as its revenues. (emphasis mine)

Revenue is not the problem, spending is. Increasing revenue doesn't fix the problem, it only makes it worse. Increasing revenue to the state now would be like giving more heroine to an addict in the hopes he can now get it under control.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:42 PM | Comments (0) |

Opinion Journal Imitates Slings And Arrows

From today's Best of the Web:

Weasel Watch The French and Germans are coming around to President Bush's worldview, The Economist reports: [Germany's] government this week approved the plans of the finance minister, Hans Eichel, to lop €22 billion ($26 billion) off income taxes from January. Chancellor Gerhard Schröder hopes that the cuts, which should prune the average worker's tax bill by 10%, will help to fizz up the economy. . . . France is also cutting taxes, regardless of the effect on the budget deficit. President Jacques Chirac has now confirmed that he will press ahead with the 30% cut in income taxes that he promised in last year's election campaign. "Income tax has been reduced by close to 7%", he said last week, "and this reduction will continue." Granted, Schroeder and Chirac haven't yet acknowledged America was right about Iraq, but at least they're ahead of our Democrats where tax policy is concerned.

From Slings & Arrows, (June 30th, 2003):

Here's an interesting contrast. Our lowest tax bracket pays 0%, Germany's now pays 15%. Yet, 0% isn't low enough for the Democrats who are howling about the latest tax cuts not giving credits to the lower income (those who pay no income tax) earners.

Posted by bubba138 at 01:19 PM | Comments (0) |

Stripperella Exposed

Stan Lee is being sued over his newest creation, Stripperella:

The suit, filed late Monday in circuit court by Janet Clover, names the show's creator, Stan Lee...also named as defendants are Viacom TV Networks doing business as TNN. Clover, 37, is an unemployed Palm Coast resident who identifies herself in the lawsuit as "Sensual Entertainer's Home Studio Founder." She claims she is Stripperella's "true creator." [...] she claims she asked Lee about the concept of Stripperella a year ago during a private dance session.

If you had created this show, would you admit it, let alone sue over it?

Posted by bubba138 at 12:39 PM | Comments (0) |

Dealing Drugs

In Canada, selling marijuana is illegal -- unless, of course, it is done by the government.

Under an interim policy announced Wednesday, the government will sell bags of marijuana seeds and dried marijuana to sick patients who qualify under Ottawa's medical pot program. The announcement came on the day an Ontario court judge set as the deadline for the federal government to come up with regulations for distributing medical marijuana. The judge ruled Ottawa couldn't logically give sick people permission to use pot without also providing a legal source of supply.

Brilliant. Before you know it Canada will be supplying heroine to addicts.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:09 PM | Comments (0) |

Why Democrats Don't Get It

Richard Reeves hits the mark, on this point at least:

My old-fashioned thinking on this goes back to the 1970s. After the United States' humiliation in Vietnam, after Watergate and the disgracing of President Richard Nixon, Democrats (and the press, too) thrived by telling Americans what was wrong with their country and its history. That worked so well that an unknown former Democratic governor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter, was able to make simple truth-telling into a national wedge issue. "I'll never lie to you" became a winning slogan, apparently because many Americans thought that most everyone else was lying. [...] Along came Ronald Reagan (news - web sites), saying that the United States of America was God's greatest creation -- "a shining city on a hill" -- and Americans were God's gift to the world. It was morning in America; we had nothing to be ashamed of and millions of reasons to be proud.

And the trend continues today. Americans want to move forward with a bright outlook on the future. democrats want to look back at all the unjustices that have been done since the beginning of time.

As far as Kerry or Gephardt being better candidates than Dean? I'm not sure they're any better than him in this regard.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:04 AM | Comments (0) |

It's Fr-ahn-ken-steen!

John Fund weighs in on the recall:

In the comedy classic "Young Frankenstein," a police inspector played by Kenneth Mars addresses an angry crowd in the town square below the Frankenstein family castle. "A riot is an ugly thing," he lectures the group. Then he suddenly switches his tone and points to the castle, yelling "And I think it's about time we had one!" He then leads the peasants with their pitchforks up the hill. A recall is similarly an ugly thing, but sometimes circumstances make it a necessity. Otherwise, organizers couldn't possibly have collected 1.6 million signatures in the space of four months or drawn support for such a radical move from Californians of all political stripes.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:55 AM | Comments (0) |

Lieberman Campaigns for the GOP

From a Lieberman press release:

Lieberman Announces Appointment of New Senate Communications Director Matt Gobush

Hat Tip: Best of the Web

Posted by bubba138 at 10:43 AM | Comments (0) |

Tehran Was Live

...with protests yesterday:

Tens of thousands of people defied a huge police deployment Wednesday night by taking to an area around Tehran University in their cars to mark the fourth anniversary of bloody pro-democracy student riots, but authorities did at least manage to prevent renewed clashes. Despite a blanket ban on any gatherings, masses of vehicles were seen jammed around Enghelab (revolution) Square and the tense city-centre campus well into the early hours of Thursday. [...] But those who dared to sound their horns while passing rival gatherings of vigilante groups in the normally quiet nocturnal streets were quickly surrounded and harassed.

The BBC (surprise, surprise) reported the totalitarian regime's tactics on keeping the flow of information to a minimum:

The authorities had jammed the transmissions of American-based TV and radio stations run by Iranian anti-regime exiles, who had in the past directed people to protest sites. The authorities also apparently disabled the mobile phone system in the immediate area of the demonstration, and closed down the university's campus earlier.

So, what does the BBC call tactics designed to limit speech? "Safety Measures"

Posted by bubba138 at 10:18 AM | Comments (0) |

The "D" Word

The D-word is now being used in connection with what's going on in California. D as in default, as in not paying one's debts. This is rare in the municipal market, occurring less than one- half of 1 percent of the time. California would be the first state to default. "Any payment default would lead to a lowering of the long- term ratings to a high speculative-grade level," Moody's Investors Service said last week when it placed $34 billion of California's bonds on review for a possible downgrade.

Well, at least we'll be first in yet another category.

"It's certainly not in their best interest to default," said David Moore, vice president and director of research at American Century Investments...

Ya think?

This we know: When bad things happen, they tend to happen very quickly, with reams of unintended consequences. If California defaults, the politicians will lose whatever financial control they have of the state to a very small group of lawyers and creditors. For this, the Republicans may very well face a "disgust" backlash.

What...and the Democrats will get off Scot-free? I don't think so. The "disgust backlash" is already in full swing -- and it's aimed at the politicians who got us here by over-spending.

The only certainty is that Californians -- and their descendants -- will pay, and pay, and pay.

That much is certain. Full Article

Posted by bubba138 at 10:02 AM | Comments (0) |

California GOP and the Recall

What do we know about how the GOP will handle the recall?

No. 1: The party would be best off uniting behind one candidate. No. 2: That's unlikely to happen. "If ever a situation called for a smoke-filled room, this is it," said Bill Whalen, a research fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and former speech writer for Republican Gov. Pete Wilson. In such a situation, party leaders would get together to appoint a single person to run, Whalen said. "The problem is the California Republican Party is not really built that way."

If there has ever been a time for the California GOP to get it's act together, it is now. The GOP must present one, and only one candidate.

Oh, and by the way, that candidate should be...me, of course!

Posted by bubba138 at 09:52 AM | Comments (0) |

California News?

How's this for a headline:

Posted by bubba138 at 09:46 AM | Comments (0) |

Are We More Secure?

"Experts" say we are less vulnerable to terrorist attacks now than we were on September 11th, 2001.

The United States is less vulnerable to terrorism today because of heightened vigilance but must improve its international relations in order to starve terrorist groups of new recruits, experts said Wednesday

They credit this added security to the success we've had against al-Qa'eda in the last two years.

But are we more secure? This article presents evidence that the Department of Homeland Security still has a lot of work to do:

Congressional investigators working undercover obtained Social Security numbers for nonexistent newborns and used the Social Security numbers of dead people to obtain driver's licenses, exposing weaknesses at the Social Security Administration that could be exploited by identity thieves. The thieves use a person's personal information, such as a Social Security number or credit card number, to establish a false name or citizenship, purchase goods or fraudulently apply for credit. [...] In the undercover investigations, fake birth certificates and baptismal certificates were used to obtain Social Security numbers for infants. Social Security policies do not require that the agency's workers verify documents used to prove the identity of children younger than 1 year old.

This is truly scary.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:02 AM | Comments (0) |

Coulter Crusade

I have enjoyed Coulter's sharp wit and, how shall I say, spicy retorts to liberals over recent years. I have often disagreed with her, but I have always found her entertaining. I think she's found herself entertaining as well -- a little too entertaining perhaps, as it seems with her latest book she's stepped beyond entertainment into la-la land.

McCarthy may not be the villain that the liberal left has painted him to be, but he's definitely not the saintly hero that Coulter portrays either. And defending her thesis has pushed her over the deep edge, as David Horowitz relays:

Ann Coulter: What I mean is that the Democratic Party, as an entity, has become functionally treasonable, including what you’re talking about, turning over documents to the enemy … Matthews: Well, should they be prosecuted? … Coulter: I wish it were that easy a problem, but that trivializes the point of my book, which is not that there are just a few dozen traitors out there. It is that the entire party cannot root for America. Matthews: Well, let’s talk about the leaders of the Democratic Party over the years. Was Jack Kennedy a traitor? Was he guilty of treason? Coulter: He was not as strong a president as a Republican would have been. But I’m referring, as I say again, I’m referring to a party that is functionally treasonable. … Matthews: Was Jack Kennedy a traitor? Coulter: No, he was not a traitor. Matthews: Was he guilty of treason? Coulter: His heart was in the right place but he was surrounded by bad policymakers and he harm[ed] the country and its national security. This exchange made me extremely uncomfortable. When somebody as smart and as gutsy as Ann Coulter equivocates over so direct a question – Was Jack Kennedy a traitor? – you know (and they know) – that something is very wrong with the position they are defending.

Of course, the liberals are jumping all over Coulter's new book. It is as if they are all screaming in unison, "She what a nut-job she is!"

I came into work this morning and to find that a liberal friend had placed a time article on my desk entitled "10 Questions for Ann Coulter." Written across the top of the article by his girlfriend was this:

Must she? Wouldn't that be censorship? Aren't we supposed to be promoting free speech and a free exchange of ideas, no matter how offensive they might be? Or does that only apply when the offensive ideas agree with our own beliefs?

But the most remarkable aspect of the Coulter Crusade isn't what's being said about her, but who is saying it. When David Horowitz, editor of the very right Front Page magazine criticizes her book, people should take note. Right wingers have come to the conclusion that Ann has marginalized herself out of all reason. More importantly, they are voicing that opinion.

By way of contrast, when the ultra-nutz in the left camp spout off nonsensical ravings, do we hear the "sensible" lefties calling them into line? Nope. The silence is deafening. Instead, they're given a newspaper column.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:46 AM | Comments (0) |

I'm Back

As you noticed by lack of posts yesterday, I was away from my computer all day. I had a couple of ministry obligations that kept me quite busy -- in a good way.

I'll be back up to speed today though. Just let me get some coffee...

Posted by bubba138 at 07:30 AM | Comments (0) |

July 08, 2003

Iranian Independence Day?

Visit Cox & Forkum comments:

As an editorial below puts it: on "July 9th [...] on the occasion of the annual commemoration of the bloody suppression of the student uprising of 1999, there will be renewal of massive protests inside and outside of Iran." We support the students and other Iranians in their fight for freedom against the Islamist tyranny and hope our government will do more to help them.

Agreed. Check out the editorials on that page as well.

Posted by bubba138 at 03:38 PM | Comments (0) |

How's This For Scare Tactics?

Posted by bubba138 at 03:31 PM | Comments (0) |

We Also Cause Tornados to Blow and Volcanoes to Erupt

Is anti-Americanism rampant and unfounded? See for yourself:

Ismail also commented on the plane crash that killed 105 passengers plus 11 members of the crew, in Sudan, in the early hours of Tuesday, saying that it was due to technical problems, caused by the lack of spare parts for the repair of the plane. The only survivor of the accident was a two year old child. He said that it has been about five to six years that the ill-fated plane, a Boeing 737, of American make, had any of its parts replaced because, with the sanctions, Sudan cannot purchase the parts, either from the United States, or from any other country.

In other words, our sanctions are responsible for the deaths of those on the plane. Puh-lease...

Of course, continued slave-trading in the Sudan had nothing to do with the sanctions. This is a country that has provided sanctuary to terrorists, including Osama bin Laden, and has let terrorist groups plan and carry out operations from Sudan. There is nothing that indicates that these type of operations have ceased.

But this is the interesting part:

... in September 2001, a U.S. abstention on a Security Council vote allowed the lifting of U.N. sanctions on Sudan.

So are they really under sanctions or not?

Posted by bubba138 at 02:38 PM | Comments (0) |

The Shuttle and Foam

It's now well known that the piece of foam that hit the wing of the Shuttle craft is being blamed for the disaster. Silent Running says the causes may be deeper than that:

It is also coming to light that NASA became more concerned with procedural niceties than getting to the bottom of a potential problem. Pictures which could have given engineers the information needed to properly assess the situation were lost in the staff qweep. Pathetic. These guys are focusing too much on the bucks, and not enough on the Buck Rogers.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:46 PM | Comments (0) |

Blogs Gaining Political Power

The Guardian reports on the rising power blogs are gaining in the political arena:

"They can say 'I haven't decided what I'm doing with this particular issue.. come and help'." Ireland's favourite example of how effective weblogs can be comes from one of only two MPs currently blogging. Tom Watson, Labour MP for West Bromwich East, has been campaigning on airgun laws. Type "airgun laws" into Google.co.uk, and Wat son's weblog is top of the rankings. "This is a big benefit for most MPs. This is not only showing their constituents how they're working on a day-by-day basis, they draw people to them who care about issues they care about, be they constituents or not.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:37 PM | Comments (0) |

Prayer Made Illegal in California

...that is, if you use Jesus' name:

Since 1953 the city of Burbank had allowed members of a nondenominational ministerial association to open its council meetings with prayer. But Irv Rubin, the late chairman of the Jewish Defense League, filed suit in 1999 after a Mormon leader prayed in the name of Jesus Christ. A California Superior Court judge ruled in November 2000 in Rubin v. City of Burbank that sectarian prayer at a city council meeting violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. [...] The California judge said cities have to instruct clergy not to pray in a sectarian manner at meetings. Douglas Colladel, an attorney who filed an amicus brief in support of the prayer policy, told the Los Angeles Daily News the decision would affect the entire state. "It affects all legislative bodies in California," Colladel said. "To avoid being sued, many cities may decide to abolish prayer altogether."

What exactly makes a prayer "sectarian"? How far can one go in his or her prayer before he / she steps into his or her tradition enough for it to be sectarian? Can Muslim's invoke Allah? Will Hindu's then be restricted from reciting sanskrit?

Must we then pray thus:

"Oh God, goddess, gods, earth, wind, fire, and water, nothingness, or whatever you may or may not be,

Look down, or up, or sideways upon us and our dealing with each other and bless us, or not, with your wisdom, or your chaos, depending on who we may or may not offend.

May we please you, or not, or please ourselves in our endeavors and may we be guided by your light, or darkness under the banner of your truth, if truth really exists at all.

We thank you, Lord, or not lord, or perhaps lady or just it for your continued benevolence -- or derision -- upon us.

Amen -- or not"

What does the Bill of Rights say about prayer?

Article the third... Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;

Am I the only one that thinks the above ruling "prohibits the free exercise" of religion?

Posted by bubba138 at 11:35 AM | Comments (0) |

Political Fundraising

Dean is the pioneer of political campaigns in the 21st century. His efforts on the internet are turning ears and opening pocketbooks. Whether you agree with his politics or not (which, of course I do not), what he -- or more specifically what Joe Trippi, his manager -- is doing via the internet is destined to give a political voice back to the average American:

In the old soft money system, the most efficient way to raise $100 million was through a small number of very rich people. One hundred people giving $100,000 each quickly gets you to $10 million. But Joe Trippi, Dean's campaign manager and an evangelist for the gospel of online politics, describes the alternative: You can raise $100 million if a million people contribute an average of $100 each. [...] Dean shocked the political world by raising more money -- roughly $7.5 million -- in the last quarter than any of his more established opponents, and, according to his campaign, he raised nearly half of that in the eight days before the June 30 filing period ended, largely through online contributions. In one day, noted Trippi, Dean took in $800,000 online. Dean's figures show that 80 percent of his first-time donors gave less than $250; 60 percent gave less than $100. ...what Dean has set in motion will long survive this campaign. Even if he loses, Dean will be seen as a political innovator, as John F. Kennedy was in understanding the power of television and both Barry Goldwater and George McGovern were in using direct mail fundraising. "Whatever hyperbolic language you use about this, it's true," says Simon Rosenberg, president of the centrist New Democrat Network

In the 1996 and 2000 presidential campaigns, the unpublished secret about campaign finance was that both Clinton and Gore had a higher donation-per-person ratios than their Republican challengers. In other words, more people gave less money to the Republicans and fewer people gave more money to the Democrats (so much for the theory that the Repubs are whores for big money). Even so, in both elections, the Republicans raised more funds.

This election we may see that trend reversed. As Dean's war-chest grows, the validity of his candidacy grows. As his validity grows, more contributions will flow in. Other candidates will be forced to emulate Dean's internet presence...easy to say, but not so easy to do. I'd be surprised if any of the other candidates even know what a blog is, let alone knows how to use one -- or more importantly, how to network with other blogs.

Bush is the worst of the lot on this account. His 2004 web site is barely operable at this point.

Imagine replacing the lust for big money with a yearning for the small donor. By making that once wistful idea plausible, Dean has already done his party a favor.

Exactly. But He has not just his party a favor, but the entirety of American politics.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:51 AM | Comments (0) |

The Cease-Fire Is Over

From Ha'aretz:

A local cell of the Islamic Jihad Tuesday claimed responsibility for Monday night's suicide bombing at a home in Moshav Yavets in the Sharon area, but leaders of the militant organization in the Gaza Strip were quoted as strongly denying the claim, declaring that the temporary truce in attacks on Israelis was still in effect.

Nine days. they could only hold it together for nine lousy, stinking days.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:04 AM | Comments (0) |

It Didn't Come Soon Enough

Michael Savage is everything that is wrong with the "far right." Reactionary, inflammatory, disgusting. He deserves to be fired.

It will be a great day for America when he is totally off the air, radio included.

Update: Best of the Web has this take on the Savage firing:

Even so, remember all the hullabaloo awhile back about the Dixie Chicks? After one Chick made an obnoxious comment about President Bush while on an overseas trip, some fans were outraged. Clear Channel Communication ordered the Chicks' tunes off the playlists of its radio stations. A Louisiana radio station held a "Chick Bash," where fans threw their Chick CDs into a pile to be run over by a tractor. The Guardians of Democracy were apoplectic. It's the crushing of dissent! A corporate conspiracy to destroy America's freedom! Another Kristallnacht! (That middle one is from a certain former Enron adviser.) Now, this is all nonsense. The Dixie Chicks have a perfect right to say whatever they want, but their detractors also have a right not to play their songs, or to engage in "symbolic speech" by crushing their CDs. Likewise for Michael Savage. He has the right to say whatever he wants, but MSNBC is under no obligation to provide him a forum. But will the sanctimonious hypocrites who wailed about the criticism of the Dixie Chicks utter a peep of protest now that Savage has been Dixie Chicked?

Ya know, Taranto's got a point there.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:54 AM | Comments (0) |

It's Not Important If You Win Or Lose...

it's how you play the game. Of course, that doesn't apply to politics. The fight against the recall is sure to be a dirty one:

San Fernando Valley voters were disgusted with misuse of their taxes by flagrant overspenders at Los Angeles city hall, 20 miles away. By 2002, secession fever was so strong that the possible loss of 1.36 million Valley residents---and the resulting slippage of Los Angeles to third-largest city in the nation---sent L.A.’s power elite into a controlled panic. A coalition of unions, racial identity groups, downtown businesses and highly partisan Democrats used every legal trick to keep Valley cityhood off the ballot. Once secession made the ballot, the Democrats launched a campaign of fear and race-baiting. Talk about your eerie similarities to the Gray Davis Recall Defense. I recently bumped into political consultant Kam Kuwata as he emerged from the Capitol’s private "horseshoe" where aides sit near Davis. Kuwata helped mastermind the defeat of Valley cityhood. His sudden visit to the embattled Davis is no accident. "I'm just offering whatever help I can because I think this is wrong, and it's going to create a whole new era of recall attempts and put California into a risky new scenario that nobody wants," Kuwata told me. That’s what Democrats said of secession: costly risks and unknowns, plus a domino effect.

And the strategy worked. This time, the plan will be double pronged. Prong one, make a state led by a Republican governor unthinkable. Villainize any Republican that runs. Make him look so bad that keeping Davis, while disastrous, would not be equal to the sure catastrophe of replacing him. Prong two, make sure no other Democrat runs. We've seen just about every viable Democrat bow out of the contest. Add that to recent LA Times poll results:

When recall supporters were asked whether the absence of Democratic gubernatorial candidates would change their mind about ousting Davis, 8% said it would. That was enough to shift the result into a victory for Davis. [...] The governor and his strategists believe that if voters face a choice between Davis on one hand and a Republican or minor-party candidate on the other, they will keep him in office.

The article states that this strategy is risky, but the Davis camp must be thinking the negative campaigning will turn the tide. One thing we know Davis is more than competent in (perhaps the only thing he's competent in) the negative campaign.

Update: Pathetic Earthlings has come to the same conclusion. But then asks:

And this begs the question: How the hell do the Democrats expect to get people to the polls? This is going to require the mother of all Get-Out-The-Vote efforts by the Dems. They've always been lousy at using the absentee ballot and somehow, "Get on down to the polls to keep Gray Davis in office" doesn't strike me as a compelling storyline for anyone beyond the core 25% of their party.

Which brings to point prong number three: Do everything possible to move the recall election to the March primary date. Democrats will be out in droves choosing their presidential candidate. The delay tactics have already begun .

Posted by bubba138 at 08:14 AM | Comments (0) |

Space Blog

NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu is blogging about his experiences while he's living aboard the International Space Station.

You may have noticed that I keep mentioning the speed we are traveling at up here - about 18000 MPH. That is the key to what keeps us from falling back down to the ground. In fact, we are always falling towards the Earth, it's just that we manage to keep missing it. [...] The reason we are weightless here is that the entire ship around is also being pulled by gravity in exactly the same way, so we are both falling around the Earth together. It is the same feeling that you get when in a roller coaster going over the top, you feel light in your seat for a moment because the seat is falling out from under you. In a sense the entire Space Station has been pulled out from under us. In fact, when flying around and doing flips inside the Space Station, I am just doing exactly what divers do when they do flips as they dive off a diving board. They are "weightless" also while they are in the air, it is just that they only get a second or so until they hit the water. We get 6 months.

Very cool. Check it out.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:13 AM | Comments (0) |

Dismiss The Charges

John Allen threw a water balloon at an antique fire truck during a local town parade. For that he was arrested and charged with felony aggravated battery. Why? Because Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert was piloting the truck.

Have we lost our legal minds? It was a water balloon in a parade for crying out loud.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:06 AM | Comments (0) |

July 07, 2003

Bush's God Connection -- Continued

Chris Floyd, who wrote a widely published article about Bush's alleged "God told me to..." statement responds to criticism about his journalism:

Otherwise, as already noted in the column, the quote was related by Abbas as a verbatim statement from Bush; it was reported in a credible mainstream newspaper, Haaretz. Neither Abbas nor Haaretz seemed to think the remark was unbelievable or even controversial; the latter put it at the very end of their story. However, if Bush ever denies saying such a thing, we'll be sure to report it.

Well, it was denied last Thursday -- and yet the articles keep coming. Harley Sorenson, a "longtime journalist and liberal iconoclast" is the latest to jump on the dog-pile. Of course his article has no mention of the White House's denial of the statement. Did this "longtime journalist" do any research before writing his opinion article? Did he even Google it? If he didn't, one has to question his diligence as a journalist. If he did, and chose to omit it on purpose, one has to question his ethics.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:51 AM | Comments (0) |

Bush Recession?

The unemployment numbers released last week were less than stellar -- a fact that can only help Democrats in their run for the President's office. But Mark Styen points out that this may not be Bush's recession, but Davis':

Even now, her fellow limousine liberals insist it's all the fault of "the Bush recession", though there's plenty of statistical evidence to suggest that if you sliced off California and floated it out into the Pacific there'd be no "Bush recession" at all. Shorn of LaLaLand, in May America would actually have seen a net gain in employment - an extra 4,500 jobs - but then the monthly figures from California came in - another 21,500 layoffs - and drove the national figure down again. Meanwhile, if you drive in California, your vehicle registration just tripled: if it was 200 bucks last year, it's 600 now.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:38 AM | Comments (0) |

Good Morning!

I hope you had a great Independence Day weekend.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:30 AM | Comments (0) |

July 03, 2003

"God Told Me..."

In yesterday's White House press conference, Ari Fleischer was asked about God's direct message to the President:

Q Ari, staying on the Middle East. Prime Minister Abbas today, according to Ha'aretz, told a meeting with Hamas -- he quoted the President and at that point, during that meeting, he suggested that the President conveyed that now is the time to move forward or else I'm going to focus on the election, or the election is coming up shortly. Can you tell me whether or not -- MR. FLEISCHER: Yes, somebody else asked me about that quote. I never heard the President say it. He certainly didn't say it in the trilateral meeting that I attended, and I'm not aware of any other conversation in which he said it. Q So there is no deadline attached -- MR. FLEISCHER: You're seen the President on this issue. He's focused on it all the time. And he will be focused on it now, he'll be focused on it a year from now, he'll be focused on it two years from now. Q Part of the same quote, Prime Minister Abbas suggested the President said that God spoke to him about al Qaeda and spoke to him about Saddam. Is that a stretch? Is there anything to that? How would you characterize that part of the -- MR. FLEISCHER: It's beyond a stretch. It's an invention. It was not said.

'Nuff said.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:29 PM | Comments (0) |

What's Really Important

To the parents, the kids are important. To the teacher's union, the kids are secondary:

But Sacramento High didn't improve, and faced a possible state takeover. Instead, the district school board voted earlier this year to close the campus and hand the grounds to a nonprofit corporation headed by former NBA basketball star Kevin Johnson [...] Sacramento High would be a public charter school...the teachers would not be members of the local union, the Sacramento City Teachers Association. That's the problem. The union could not accept the loss of membership and control, and has done everything possible to stop the school's rebirth. The harassment started while the district was pondering the change, as teachers at the old Sacramento High frightened their students with horror stories about what would happen if the transition occurred. But the signatures of more than 1,000 parents on petitions supporting the proposal carried the day. [...] Once the school board voted narrowly to move ahead, the local union, with the backing of the California Teachers Association, took the district to court. The teachers' claim: The school was illegal because it wasn't really new but only a conversion of the old campus. State law, the union insisted, required the support of half the school's teachers for a conversion. If the school was closed and reopened, parental backing would be sufficient.

Here is a failing school with kids who deserve a better education than they've been given. The union teachers failed these kids once and they are determined to condemn them to failure for the rest of their educational lives.

These are the same people who are against the voucher system -- and the reason is the same. They will tell you they are against the charter schools and vouchers because they fear what can happen to the kids. But -- as illustrated in this case -- what they really fear is honest, open competition. The possibility that the parents of California might find out that non-union teachers can do a better (or at least equal) job than the whining union teachers for less money threatens their position and power.

It is time we put our kids first.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:03 PM | Comments (0) |

Slowing the Count: The Plan

Weintraub shares:

If you want a glimpse of how Gray Davis might litigate to stop or slow the recall, a hint might be in a letter sent Monday to Secretary of State Kevin Shelley by the president of California’s county clerks association... The problems, which are common to every ballot measure campaign, include: the county in which the petition was circulated is not listed or was changed; the circulator’s name is either absent, indicated only by initials, changed, typed or is the name of a person who is not a registered voter; the circulator’s address is not listed, is only a PO box, or has been crossed out and replaced by a different address; the information for the date circulated and the community in which the petitions were circulated is blank, incomplete or changed; the box for when and where the petition was “executed” is blank, incomplete or was changed; the box for signatures is blank, or the names were typed or only initials were used.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:59 AM | Comments (0) |

Don't Call Me!

If you are like me, you have already placed your phone number on the federal "Do Not Call" list to prevent those annoying telemarketing calls that always come when you least want them (which is always).

The tele-marketers are developing strategies to make up for their lost business:

"We plan to shift into other communication mediums, and rely more heavily on traditional TV advertising and e-mail marketing," Allstate acting Chief Marketing Officer Todd DeYoung told the paper. "We also plan to stimulate inbound call volume by doing more directed advertising and more direct mail."

Great, no more calls at home but my SPAM mail is going to double. I can't wait.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:25 AM | Comments (0) |

It's a Three Horse Race

AP Reports:

The poll...showed Gephardt at 21 percent; the Missouri congressman won the Iowa caucuses in his unsuccessful 1988 White House bid. Dean, the former Vermont governor, was at 20 percent, and Massachusetts Sen. Kerry 18 percent.

Where's Lieberman? Off the radar with a paltry 11%. The paucity of support for Lieberman is staggering, but expected. Fewer politicians have had a greater ability to induce sleep than Joe.

Come Labor day, look for the "nice-nice" between the Democratic candidates to fall apart. Dean won't be able to hold back much longer and Gephardt's voting record (he's missed 89% of the House votes this year) makes him extremely vulnerable. Kerry won't fair much better as his stance on the war can at best be called "wishy-washy". Howard is bound to jump all over that soon. Gephardt and Kerry now have to acknowledge Dean as a serious competitor, so they'll begin slamming him on his temper, and his lack of knowledge on federal issues. Dean's biggest weakness is he is still thinking like the governor of a small-state. The sooner he broadens his thinking on federal issues, the better it will go for him.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:42 AM | Comments (0) |

Dean IS THE Internet Candidate

But long before the online poll, Dean was the dominant cyberspace candidate. A study by George Washington University's Institute for Politics, Democracy and the Internet shows Dean has spawned at least 293 online discussion groups. That's more than the eight other Democratic candidates combined. The Dean campaign has also inspired 44 separate volunteer Web sites, as well as numerous blogs. These are free form Web logs, or online daily journals. One Dean blogger even put the candidate's words to a driving musical beat. (Sound of song, "Disco Dean.")

Listen to the report...there's even a clip from a Dean song put together by a blogger.

Don't want to listen? Read it here (but you don't get to hear the song).

Posted by bubba138 at 09:34 AM | Comments (0) |

A Bit Under The Weather

Yesterday I was suffering from Blogstipation. I didn't even know that was a diagnosis until Samizdata clued me in. Check out the entire Blog-Glossary.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:40 AM | Comments (0) |

U.S. Offers $25 Million Reward For Saddam

Well, that ought be enough to pay for a ticket to Baghdad. I can't wait to see the "Wanted: Dead or Alive" posters.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:07 AM | Comments (0) |

The War That Never Ends

That's what Time has called the war in Iraq.

And in the age of fast food, when the news cycle is measured in minutes instead of hours, when people start honking their horn if you don't go within five seconds of a light turning green, this must seem like forever.

A little reminder, lest we forget, it was less than a year ago when war in Iraq even became a serious item for discussion. The U.S. has only been "in country" for three and one half months now! The national public debate on Iraq took longer than that. The international public debate took longer than that. The amount of time spent in the U.N. obtaining Resolution 1441 took longer than that. The amount of time at the U.N. trying to get them to enforce Resolution 1441 took longer than that.

Did anyone really think we were going to go in there, blow some stuff up, leave, and then everyone would live happily ever after?

It is time for America and Americans to stop whining about every little thing that goes wrong. It's time for America to look forward to the future -- not ignoring the obstacles before us, but expecting them and handling them as they come -- knowing achievement of lofty ideals comes only with pain, sweat, and sacrifice.

"But wait, Bryon, aren't you stifling dissent? Don't these people have a right to scream and yell and stomp their feet?"

No, I aim not to stifle dissent. In no way am I saying, "Shut up." Instead, I'm saying, "Grow up."

Update: This letter on Andrew Sullivan's site sums up my feelings quite nicely.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:37 AM | Comments (0) |

Un-Dong

Well...uhhh...maybe the economy isn't roaring back quite yet:

The Labor Department said the unemployment rate jumped from 6.1 per cent to 6.4 per cent - the highest level since April 1994 - amid significant job losses in June that followed losses in May that were much bigger than previously reported.

This will give the Bush-bashers fodder for another month. Gephardt, Kerry, and Dean are dancing right now.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:28 AM | Comments (0) |

July 02, 2003

The Fourth of July

You have probably read this before, but it worth reading a second (and third, and fourth) time:

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence? Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and tortured until they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had his two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War. They signed and pledged their lives, their fortunes, their sacred honor. What kind of men were they? Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; they were men of means and well educated, and they signed the Declaration knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured. Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags. Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward. Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton. At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt. Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The British jailed his wife, and she died within a few months. John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children gone. At times, we take the liberties these men valued above all else for granted, but we shouldn't. No, we should not and we can not forget the freedom we enjoy and the men who laid it all down to give us that precious gift. So, maybe you'll join me in taking a few minutes on our 4th of July holiday to silently thank these patriots. Maybe you'll tell your friends to do the same. Maybe you'll pass the legacy and appreciation of these men on to your children. To me, it's not much to ask for the price they paid. I hope you will show your support by sending this to as many people as you can. It's time we get the word out that the Fourth of July has more to it than beer and picnics, fireworks and baseball. Not that there's anything wrong with beer, picnics, fireworks, or baseball

As this says, our fore-fathers pledged their lives, their fortunes, their sacred honor -- and that is exactly what they gave.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:35 PM | Comments (0) |

Does God Care Who Wins?

Gregg Easterbrook says no:

God has a lot to do with our lives and hopes; God has nothing to do with who wins games, or throws or catches touchdowns. God is neither honored by good performances nor dishonored by poor ones. It's just sports, a very minor concern compared to faith, a major concern.

Perhaps not, but God does care that His name is honored. So it is only right that when a Christian has the opportunity to praise God in front of millions that he do so. But said athlete should also be careful to praise Him in defeat as well.

Hat tip: Thinkling Daniel

Posted by bubba138 at 12:28 PM | Comments (0) |

Dirty Politics

Recall foes are showing how low they are willing to go. Taking a page from Michael Moore's play book, they are trying to paint Issa as a Nazi:

At a news conference, a spokesman for Taxpayers Against the Governor's Recall ran a 10-minute videotape shot by Democratic operatives during now-U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa's failed run for the U.S. Senate in 1998. The video showed an Issa campaign table set up at the entrance to a Southern California gun show; elsewhere on the grounds, the video showed one or more exhibits displaying a flag with a swastika. [...] The video never shows Issa, nor does it record any interaction among Issa campaign supporters and anyone displaying Nazi paraphernalia. Instead, the lens zooms in on images of swastikas inside a building at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds, which was hosting the Great Western Gun Show, then pans outdoors, where an Issa for Senate table was set up next to a National Rifle Association registration booth. "These are the things that are on display at gun shows like this," said Carroll Wills, a spokesman for the group calling itself Taxpayers Against the Governor's Recall. "It's not to suggest necessarily that Congressman Issa is himself a Nazi sympathizer. However, I think that there are an awful lot of politicians who would eschew the idea of participating in any event where that type of flag is shown."

"It's not to suggest"? Bull. That is exactly what they are suggesting. As Daniel Weintraub points out, there were over 8000 exhibitors at this show. If proximity indicates a relationship, then the video tape should be a lot longer than ten minutes.

Posted by bubba138 at 11:08 AM | Comments (0) |

Recall Update

I did it. On Monday I signed the recall petition, even though I am not in support of the recall. By the time I had signed it, the organizers had probably already reached the goal of +892K signatures (current count is now at 1,102,430), so mine was an insurance scribble. I signed it as a protest of the shenanigans that Shelly is pulling.

In related news, the Los Angeles times has an interesting piece on the RNC's view of the recall.

Some RNCers think it will be good for Bush if Davis gets booted, others think it won't help at all:

"I'm not sure that we are not better off having someone who is so unpopular ... representing Democrats there. The quagmire is if you get a new Republican in office, and the [state's] problems are just translated to them." [...] "To the people that are pushing the recall, [the White House] is saying: 'We are going to watch it ... but we're not involved,' " said one California GOP activist working hard to oust Davis. "But the donors seem to get a different message. I think it's subtle in that [administration officials] communicate to the donors that they don't think it's a good idea, and that detracts."

Here's my take on this. If the RNC doesn't like it, tough. California could well have been saved the pain of a recall had the RNC just bucked up and supported Bill Simon in 2000. Instead, because Rove's guy Riordan (read: Davis-clone) didn't get on the ticket, the RNC did absolutely nothing to help Simon.

In the final analysis, all Simon had to do was make up five lousy percentage points and we would have a Republican for governor. Simon's biggest weaknesses were first funding, and second, political inexperience. To watch ads on television, one almost thought Davis was running unopposed. Heck, it's possible millions of California voters would not have even known Simon's name had Gray not mentioned it on his attack ads. Further, if Simon were handled correctly, with competent coaching, he would have won hands down, even without extra funding. The RNC chose to ignore both these challenges.

So, as far as California is concerned, the RNC can take a long walk on a short pier. They don't live as an unrepresented minority here. We do.

Update: Thinking about this has given me another perspective. The reality is that we are really better off without RNC involvement, or even verbal support of the recall. No one can accuse the national Republican party of "stealing" the governor's seat if the RNC stays out of it. Having them stay out will continue to show that this really is a grass-roots effort by Californians to get rid of a crooked, incompetent governor.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:22 AM | Comments (0) |

Progress and Perils: New Agenda for Women

The Washington Post has picked up on the Center for the Advancement of Women's study on women's issues.

Kudos must go to the center's president, Faye Wattleton, who also headed the Planned Parenthood Federation of America for 14 years. She may not have liked the results of the survey, but she maintained her integrity and published the finding without slant:

"While we do have a certain point of view on women's issues, we don't believe we should suppress information," Mrs. Wattleton said in an interview yesterday with The Washington Times. "You don't want to create false or artificial data." [...] Mrs. Wattleton, a women's rights activist in the 1970s, called the survey's results a "disturbing" step against the pro-choice perspective.

What makes this survey particularly effective is that it was sponsored by a pro-choice organization and clearly shows that among women -- traditionally the strongest voice in pro-choice -- abortion as we see it today is not acceptable.

This should make for interesting debate when it comes time to place a litmus test on judicial nominees.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:07 AM | Comments (0) |

Double Check Your Syllabus

CNN Reports:

..."the explosion that destroyed a building in the compound of a Fallujah mosque early Tuesday was "apparently related to a bomb-manufacturing class that was being taught inside the mosque" -- and did not involve U.S. forces.

One of the students must have failed the final. I wonder what else was on this semester's schedule?

Posted by bubba138 at 09:33 AM | Comments (0) |

Prophet George?

A slew of left-leaning (read loopy) sites are all over this "quote" that is being attributed to George Bush:

"God told me to strike at al Qaida and I struck them, and then he instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did, and now I am determined to solve the problem in the Middle East. If you help me I will act, and if not, the elections will come and I will have to focus on them."

The source for this quote is an article in Ha'aretz from last week.

Now on the surface, this is pretty scary. After all, if the reason we've gone to war is because our President has had some direct word from God, then we need to be very afraid.

But here is what none of these left leaning sites want to explore:

This quote was not directly attributed to Bush. This is a huge game of telephone:

The left-leaning Ha'aretz says that...

the Hebrew to English translator said that...

the Arabic to Hebrew translator said that...

Mahamood Abbas said that...

The English to Arabic translator said that...

Bush said that...

God said to strike al Qa'eda

Do you think something may have been lost in the translation?

The context of this meeting wasn't a Bush-Abbas encounter. Abbas was negotiating with religious fanatics in order to get them to stop killing people. I imagine it may have gone something like this:

HAMAS:We cannot stop killing people, God has told us to kill people.
ABBAS:You think you can kill people? Let me tell you about someone who can really kill people. Have you checked Afghanistan? Have you heard from Saddam lately? Got any greeting cards from bin Laden this week? I thought not. If you want to play a game of God said, let me tell you what God may be telling Bush.

And, oh yeah, you only have to worry about this until the elections come up in the U.S. When Bush starts campaigning, you can start killing again.

The lefties are so incredulous at the notion that Bush considers himself a prophet of God that they wasted no time in crucifying him: Amazing is that they are so quick to believe without question what someone else (Abbas) has said. Most of these sites don't even mention the fact that "Abbas said Bush said...", but directly attribute the quote to Bush.

Chris Floyd states it as fact, totally leaving Abbas out of it: "Here are Bush's exact words, quoted by Haaretz: "

(Chris' take is reprinted by the Moscow Times, and a ton of other sites and news papers without fact checking or disclaimer:

Green Left lists it as a direct quote entirely without context: “God told me to strike at al Qaeda and I struck them, and then he instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did.” — Emperor George Bush II, quoted in the Israeli daily Haaretz, June 25.

Maxspeak does the same thing, calling him the "Prophet from Crawford"

Vegsource falsely claims that "Ha'aretz was given transcripts of the session between Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, Ariel Sharon and Bush."

Here is what Ha'artez really said:

"Selected minutes acquired by Haaretz from one of last week's cease-fire negotiations between Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas and faction leaders from the Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular and Democratic Fronts"

Veterans for Common Sense states the same falsehood: "Minutes from private meetings President Bush held last week in the Middle East quote Bush as saying"

These are only a few examples. Advice to these sites: concentrate a little less on the hype and a little more on the homework.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:49 AM | Comments (0) |

July 01, 2003

Why Ashcroft Must Go II

Here's more on Ashcroft's heavy handed tactics:

BRETT BURSEY will be back in court again, fighting the forces of reaction, on June 24th. The veteran protester was arrested last October for trespassing at the Columbia Metropolitan Airport as he held a sign (“No War for Oil”) while waiting for George Bush to arrive. Shortly after his most recent arrest, the trespassing charge against Mr Bursey was also dropped. But in March the local US attorney, Strom Thurmond junior, suddenly brought federal charges against Mr Bursey under a little-known law that allows the Secret Service to restrict access to areas the president is visiting. If convicted, Mr Bursey, who is 54, faces six months in jail and a $5,000 fine. Yet a growing number of liberal sorts seem to think that the real issue is the intolerance of John Ashcroft's Justice Department—and, in particular, its intention to start using the rare Secret Service law to get rid of protesters. Last month, 11 members of Congress, including one Republican and several members of the House Judiciary and Homeland Security committees, sent a letter to Mr Ashcroft urging him to drop charges against Mr Bursey. They insisted that “no plausible argument can be made that Mr Bursey was threatening the president by holding a sign which the president found politically offensive.”

I'm one Republican who would add his signature to that letter.

Posted by bubba138 at 04:45 PM | Comments (0) |

Election 2004

Why I support Bush:

1. He believes my money is my money. I believe my money is my money.

2. He believes (although has not yet pushed) I should have a choice as to who educates my children.

3. He believes in (although has not yet pushed) changing Social Security from a legalized ponzi scheme (ie: pyramid) into an investment model in which I'll actually be able to collect from what I put into Social Security.

4. He isn't afraid of military action. Cold? Yes. Required in the leader of a nation? Absolutely. Clinton was afraid, as evidenced by Somalia. Al-Qa'ida perceived that fear as weakness which is why we had embassy bombings, the Cole in Yemen, and (I know you won't be able to believe I credit Clinton with this), the attacks on the Trade Centers and the Pentagon. Carter is another example. No Americans should be held hostage for over a year by any government for any reason without some serious ass-kicking.

Contrast that with Reagan's dealings with Granada, the Soviet Union, Panama, etc. It is clear to me which strategies increased security and which ones threatened security.

5. He has a balanced environmental policy. Many, of course, are now laughing cynically. But those that see Bush on the far right of environmental issues are themselves very far left. So even centered politics look far right to them. Many of the issues the enviros slam Bush for are merely him undoing the extreme things that Clinton did in the dusk hours of his term.

6. I do not see animosity in him for America or for Americans -- regardless of political stripe.

What I do not like about Bush:

1. He's a big-government guy. His actions have shown this. I hate the fact that we have a federal deficit. Tax cuts aren't really tax cuts if I have to pay them later. (Wow, that's an awesome line Dean could use.)

2. He doesn't advocate states rights enough. He preaches federal education, I abhor the idea.

Why I won't vote the other way this election:

1. All the Dems believe that my money is their money. (maybe not Lieberman -- but his position switches based on the whether. ie: whether he's talking to a pro-tax or anti-tax crowd, a pro-life or anti-life crowd, etc)

The "tax credit for the poorest families" garbage is an excellent example of this. The families to which they refer do not pay taxes. Hence, the credit the Democrats would give them comes out of my pocket and goes into theirs, all because they popped another child out. That isn't tax relief, that's wealth redistribution.

2. They are in the hip-pocket of the teacher's unions. The teacher's unions don't give a rip about my children or (someday) yours. They only care about two things, (1) preserve and profit the NEA, and (2) if we have enough money left over advance the issues important to teachers. This is evidenced by their support of so many issues that bring in fund raising money but do not agree with large portions of their membership.

3. They waffle on security. I at least respect Dean's position here. he hasn't waffled. He has always held, and still holds he would not have gone into Iraq. I am not informed on what his position is/was on Afghanistan. But he has maintained his integrity.

The others check the polls before supporting/going against military action. Military action requires leadership. Leadership is not had by checking with the troops, intelligentsia, the media, or anyone before forming an opinion. It involves getting the facts, getting advice from people smarter than you, and making a decision. Popular opinion strays, but military action requires resolve. None of the candidates have shown this. If we were running Iraq the way Clinton ran Somalia, the recent resistance would have caused us to turn tail right now.

4. The Democrats cater to nuts. Given, both wings have nuts in them. but when Trent Lott made his comments the din from Republicans was sounded earlier and was as loud if not louder than that of the Democrats. When Senator Byrd uses the word nigger on national television all you can hear from the Democrats is the sound of tumble weeds blowing across the road. The fact that extortionist Jesse Jackson and ultra-racist Al Sharpton are taken seriously shows that the Dems have no problems with nuts.

Update:
5. I see a great deal of animosity for America and Americans in the Democratic party. Related to that, I see a rabid anger against Bush that is not healthy. He is not the demon they make him out to be. He is a man, both flawed and great, both inadequate and remarkable, who has been placed in the unenviable position of being the leader of the most powerful nation on Earth in the history of man during a time when his people are under attack. And he's doing a damn fine job. Ideological differences does not an evil man make.

Posted by bubba138 at 12:53 PM | Comments (0) |

This Isn't Your Mother's Feminism

The face of American Feminism is changing, according to the Center for the Advancement of Women. In a two year study they sponsored, they found that women's priorities have changed:

Progress & Perils: New Agenda for Women revealed that women of the 21st century have surprising new priorities that a women's movement should focus on, with 92% saying that reducing domestic violence and sexual assault is a top priority. Ninety percent (90%) cite equal pay as a top concern. Child care ranked third, with 85% of survey participants citing it as a top priority and improving women's healthcare was close behind, at 83%. Abortion was not considered a high priority. Only 41% of women surveyed identified keeping abortion legal as a top priority. Of greater importance to women is the ability to take time off to care for family (74%), reducing drug & alcohol addiction (72%), reducing sexual harassment (71%) and increasing women's study of math, science, and technology (66%). More than 6 in 10 women also cited improving the lives of women outside the U.S. (64%) and getting more women elected in the U.S. (61%) as top priorities compared to just 4 in 10 who choose keeping abortion legal.

According to this, abortion doesn't even make the top ten of concerns for women. Also conspicuously missing from the top concerns is gay and lesbian rights. But to hear the Nation Organization for Women tell it, those are the top two things on the minds of their constituents.

Further, Stuart Buck has looked closer at the survey and found:

...(on page 4 and on page 16): 51% of American women think that abortion should be legal only in cases of rape, incest, or where the woman's life is in danger. And a further 17% think that it should be available "but with stricter limits than it is now." I would read this as implying that 68% of women would probably be happy if Roe were overturned and the state legislatures were once again able to pass laws further restricting abortion... Keep these figures in mind the next time a Democratic Senator lambastes a judicial nominee as "out of the mainstream" simply because the nominee would likely vote, not to ban abortion directly (although even that would be in line with the beliefs of a majority of American woman), but simply to allow the people of each state to vote on what restrictions they would prefer.

Now I won't go so far as to say that 68% of women would be happy if Roe vs. Wade were overturned. However, it is obvious that 68% believe that abortion as it exists in the U.S. today is too readily and widely available, and far too widely used.

What do you suppose that 17% block of women meant by available, "but with stricter limits than it is now"? I'd lay better than even odds that is a direct reference to the partial-birth, late-term [how can anyone not judge this to be murder?] abortions that are only acceptable to those who are making scads of cash in the abortion-mill industry.

Consider this quote from the Center for the Advancement of Women's report on this survey (page 18):

We caution readers that there are many findings in the typology that challenge conventional notions about women—particularly the notion that women fit into neatly defined categories. For example, in even the most conservative groups there are women who consider themselves feminists, and in the most liberal groups there are women who show little support for abortion rights. As a result, readers may find themselves asking if the word “feminist” has lost its traditional meaning, or if abortion rights have lost their traditional base of support.

Posted by bubba138 at 10:58 AM | Comments (0) |

Goodbye, Buddy

You will be missed.

Posted by bubba138 at 09:50 AM | Comments (0) |

Overtime

A battle is brewing over changes in the national overtime pay rules. The administration wants to bring the rules "inline with the 21st century", while labor groups say that up to 8 million workers could lose their overtime benefits.

Unfortunately, I have not found yet a single article that details what exactly the changes will be. Instead, every piece merely states labor group's vs. business group's opinions. It is no surprise that the two groups are diametrically opposed on the rule changes.

My question is "Why is the administration making these changes now?"

The timing couldn't be more wrong. With confidence in the war declining, no WMD's found, and elections coming next year, why would Bush & Co. want to make themselves look like they're in business' back pocket? Why erase the Medicare victory with taking overtime benefits from millions of people.

I think the answer is obvious. But before I share it, I need to make sure I have my facts straight. More to come...

Update: These changes are going to cost business millions of dollars:

However, the annual payroll costs--estimated at $335 million to $896 million--could be hard for some businesses to swallow. The changes would mean higher payroll costs for businesses, especially for those who have several employees who work long hours but still make salaries less than the $22,100, like assistant managers of stores and restaurants. "Basically these employers will either start to pay those employees overtime," says McCutchen, "or they will have to raise their salaries over the $22,000 level."

But if these changes are costing business millions, why are they hailing them as an improvement? Here's why:

Failure to update the FLSA's Depression-era job-duties test has tripped up employers and exposed them to lawsuits, said Michael Eastman, director of labor law policy for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In recent years, several large companies have been slapped with multimillion-dollar jury awards from class-action lawsuits filed by employees who are eligible but were denied overtime pay. Many employers said they believed they were in compliance. [...] "This is long overdue. Our members are crying out for clarity," said Katherine Lugar, vice president for legislative and political affairs for the National Retail Association. "Trying to comply with labor regulations that are 50 years outdated has been a source of great confusion and frustration." Specifically, employers want clarity to the job duties that describe which employees are exempt from overtime. Under the proposal, those who direct the work of two or more employees, have authority to hire or fire, hold positions of responsibility, or have a combination of education, training and work experience equivalent to a college degree would be exempt.

The job descriptions spelled out by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) haven't been updated in over 50 years. Fifty years ago, a computer with the power of the one on which you are reading Slings and Arrows was so big is filled entire buildings and required its own air-conditioning system. Data processing, bio-tech, and a slew of other professions were non-existent.

These changes benefit the worker. Before the change, all employees making $8000 a year automatically receive overtime pay. That floor is raised to $21,000 after the change. The rules are simplified, so they will be more fully applied. I do not see the down-side to these changes.

Unless...I am a Democrat and I know workers will be getting raises because Bush's administration went to bat for them. Once again, the issue here isn't Bush has big business in his pocket, but that Bush may steal what the Democrats once thought was their issue. And the Democrats can't have that. Look again and see from where the 8 million figure came:

More than 8 million professionals would lose their overtime pay under a Bush administration proposal to change the types of jobs that must receive more money for extra work, says a study by a union-supported think tank.

I'm sure that was a balanced study.

Posted by bubba138 at 08:19 AM | Comments (0) |

Lieberman Hammered

The New Republic hammered Joe Lieberman's comments on the Medicare reform bill:

"This bill is a first step toward answering the prayers of our seniors who are struggling to pay for drugs they need to live longer and healthier lives. But my vote is not an enthusiastic endorsement; we cannot ignore the substantial weaknesses in this proposal." He continued, "The best way to achieve significant Medicare reform is to lay this foundation today and then fix the roof tomorrow under my presidency." This was a sensible analysis of the legislation, one that many Democratic senators shared. But there was one major shortcoming in Lieberman's explanation of his vote--he didn't actually cast one. (Lieberman was on the West Coast campaigning and claims to have misjudged the timing of the final vote.) For Lieberman to blather on about his Solomonic splitting of differences when he couldn't even bother to dip his card in the voting machine is a bit much even for his defenders.

Ouch. And well said.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:40 AM | Comments (0) |

Early Numbers Are In

Dean is quickly becoming the man to beat in all areas, now including fundraising. The early totals:

Dean: - $7.1 million

Kerry - more than $5 million

Edwards - more than $5 million

Gephardt - less than $5 million

Graham - $2 million to $3 million

Kucinich - "in seven figures" [huh?]

Lieberman - wait until they had closed their books before announcing results

Sharpton -  declined to commen

Moseley-Braun's - office did not return several callst

Of course, these are only the early reports. Full accounting won't be complete for a couple of days, at least.

Posted by bubba138 at 07:29 AM | Comments (0) |