The House Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved a bill that would prohibit states and local governmnets from using eminentdomain to take property for economic development.
The bill (approved 27-3) split Democrats on the Committee with heated debate on the subject. Committee Republicans had a strange ally in Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), who tried unsuccessfully to make the new ban even stronger. Other Democrats, like Rep. Jerrold Nadler (NY), wanted to restrict the ban by offering amendments on the grounds that this bill would hobble city governments seeking to promote economic development.
Republican Howard Coble (NC) stated what the Kelo decision did was create a huge opposition by joining all political view points. "Ethnic minorities and the elderly are disproportionably effected" when private property is taken for a private purpose, Coble explained.
I am in complete agreement with the House panel. Private property should only be taken by the government for a public use. And when I say public I don't mean giving it to a private company to build a baseball park or any other crap like that. This is America where freedom is not just intended to be for hippies to protest. Our Founding Fathers understood private property is the basis of all political and constitutional rights. Without the means to live how does one carryout the 1st Amendment rights (I am no excluding the others Amendments) in the first place?
Sunday, October 30, 2005
Did You Know?
The leading House leadership PAC (in terms of dollars raised) is House Speaker Hastert's Keep Our Majority which raised $1,304,000. Coming in second is National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Thomas Reynolds's Together For Our Majority which brought in $1,024,000.
Cable Companies: More Customer Choice Would Be Nice
The Senate Commerce Committee Technology Subcommittee failed to address at its recent hearing the idea of cable operators offering pay-per-channel programming. The concept has merits and is supported by FCC Chairman Kevin Martin.
There are many channels that go to waste and others I wished I had. In a true capitolistic society these cable companies would allow for greater customer choice instead of merely force-feeding us the same channels as if we all like the same things.
There are many channels that go to waste and others I wished I had. In a true capitolistic society these cable companies would allow for greater customer choice instead of merely force-feeding us the same channels as if we all like the same things.
Friday, October 28, 2005
Quote of the Day
"We want less government in business and more business in government." -- Warren G. Harding
Thursday, October 27, 2005
Speaking of Grand Jury Investigations
Alabama's former Democratic Governor, Donald Siegelman, was indicted yesterday on federal charges of racketeering, fraud, bribery, extortion and obstruction of justice. Siegelman is alleged to have taken bribes while governor. He denies the charges, and is planning on running again next year.
Not too shocking ...
The Volcker committee issued its final report on the U.N.'s oil-for-food scandal, which named several thousand companies and individuals who took bribes and paid kickbacks to Saddam Hussein. The largest number were Russian and French.
Can you believe this?
The Washington Post posted the news of Iraq's new constitution on page A13 under the headline, "Sunnis Failed to Defeat Iraq Constitution." I guess this is nothing new to this newspaper because we all know that majority-Muslim nations that let citizens vote on new constitutions are a dime a dozen. I guess keeping it off the front page is an intellectually defensible stance.
What is the proper role of government following a natural disaster?
Is it simply to restore law and order and essential services? Or is the government supposed to hold people's hand, paying for their every need and waiting on them hand and foot? This is a lesson from Katrina. More and more with each passing day Americans are being taught, and they're learning quite well we must say, to depend on government for just about everything. People who stocked up on necessities such as water, non-perishable food, batteries and other basics weren't the ones complaining. The more we depend on government the more politicians love it, and the less freedom we have. Self-sufficiency is no longer the goal for far too many Americans. Now the goal is to see how much responsibility they can turn over to the government while continuing to live the easy life.
America cannot survive this new attitude of government dependency.
America cannot survive this new attitude of government dependency.
D.C. a step closer to banning smoking
The D.C. Council health committee has approved a plan to ban smoking in all District bars and restaurants by January 2007.I hate smoking but I do not think that government should ban it. People should have the freedom of choice. Freedom to go to a bar or freedom to own a bar that allows smoking. When we let government limit our choice we loose that freedom.
The full council could vote on the measure as soon as December.
Smoking ban legislation has been stalled in committee for two years, but supporters say a majority of the 13-member council now favors some form of a ban.
The ban would be similar to one in New York City, with exemptions for outdoor areas, cigar bars, hotel rooms, retail tobacco outlets and facilities that research the effects of smoking.
Opponents say a smoking ban would hurt the city's thriving hospitality industry and encourage smokers to patronize Virginia businesses.
The bill also provides for an economic-hardship waiver for businesses that can demonstrate a "significant, negative impact."
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Stupid PETA
Ok, what is up with this PETA ad? A naked chick with the meat chart? Come on PETA, don't you know that meat-eating men and lesbians all over the planet are going to see this and think "oh, I'd eat the hell out of that!"
Liberal's G-d George Galloway: A crook like no other
Christopher Hitchens writes:
"Just before my last exchange with George Galloway, which occurred on the set of Bill Maher's show in Los Angeles in mid-September, I was approached by a representative of the program and asked if I planned to repeat my challenge to Galloway on air. That challenge—would he sign an affidavit saying that he had never discussed Oil-for-Food monies with Tariq Aziz?—I had already made on a public stage in New York. Maher's producers had been asked, obviously by a nervous Galloway, to find out whether I had brought such an affidavit along with me. I replied that this was not necessary, since his public denial to me was on the record and had been broadcast, and since it further confirmed the apparent perjury that he had committed in front of the U.S. Senate on May 17, 2005. I added that I wanted no further contact with Galloway until I could have the opportunity of reviewing his prison diaries.
That day has now been brought measurably closer by the publication of the report of the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. This report, which comes with a vast archive of supporting material, was embargoed until 10 p.m. Monday and contains the "smoking gun" evidence that Galloway, along with his wife and his chief business associate, were consistent profiteers from Saddam Hussein's regime and its criminal exploitation of the "Oil for Food" program. In particular:
Yet this is the man who received wall-to-wall good press for insulting the Senate subcommittee in May, and who was later the subject of a fawning puff piece in the New York Times, and who was lionized by the anti-war movement when he came on a mendacious and demagogic tour of the country last month. I wonder if any of those who furnished him a platform will now have the grace to admit that they were hosting a man who is not just a pimp for fascism but one of its prostitutes as well."
"Just before my last exchange with George Galloway, which occurred on the set of Bill Maher's show in Los Angeles in mid-September, I was approached by a representative of the program and asked if I planned to repeat my challenge to Galloway on air. That challenge—would he sign an affidavit saying that he had never discussed Oil-for-Food monies with Tariq Aziz?—I had already made on a public stage in New York. Maher's producers had been asked, obviously by a nervous Galloway, to find out whether I had brought such an affidavit along with me. I replied that this was not necessary, since his public denial to me was on the record and had been broadcast, and since it further confirmed the apparent perjury that he had committed in front of the U.S. Senate on May 17, 2005. I added that I wanted no further contact with Galloway until I could have the opportunity of reviewing his prison diaries.
That day has now been brought measurably closer by the publication of the report of the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. This report, which comes with a vast archive of supporting material, was embargoed until 10 p.m. Monday and contains the "smoking gun" evidence that Galloway, along with his wife and his chief business associate, were consistent profiteers from Saddam Hussein's regime and its criminal exploitation of the "Oil for Food" program. In particular:
1) Between 1999 and 2003, Galloway personally solicited and received eight oil "allocations" totaling 23 million barrels, which went either to him or to a politicized "charity" of his named the Mariam Appeal.
2) In connection with just one of these allocations, Galloway's wife, Amineh Abu-Zayyad, received about $150,000 directly.
3) A minimum of $446,000 was directed to the Mariam Appeal, which campaigned against the very sanctions from which it was secretly benefiting.
4) Through the connections established by the Galloway and "Mariam" allocations, the Saddam Hussein regime was enabled to reap $1,642,000 in kickbacks or "surcharge" payments.
Yet this is the man who received wall-to-wall good press for insulting the Senate subcommittee in May, and who was later the subject of a fawning puff piece in the New York Times, and who was lionized by the anti-war movement when he came on a mendacious and demagogic tour of the country last month. I wonder if any of those who furnished him a platform will now have the grace to admit that they were hosting a man who is not just a pimp for fascism but one of its prostitutes as well."
New James Bond hates guns
The new Bond, Daniel Craig, hates guns. He revealed in OK! magazine: "I hate handguns. Handguns are used to shoot people and as long as they are around, people will shoot each other."I hope he knows he will make alot of money by playing someone who protects his country by shooting others. I doubt he does though. He is just another stupid asshole actor.
Conservatives launch anti-Miers website
There is a growing chorus of conservative leaders lining up against President Bush on his selection of Harriet Miers for the swing seat on the Supreme Court. Conservatives as diverse as Robert Bork, Phyllis Schlafly, Rush Limbaugh, Peggy Noonan, Charles Krauthammer, David Brooks, Gary Bauer, George Will, Laura Ingraham and Mark Levin all are united in their opposition to this nomination. I don't know if this will Change the President's mind, but its not good when you turn around and see your own men firing shoots at you.
By the way Joe Wilson is a liar as well
Weapons inspections in 2003 and 2004 have little bearing on whether Iraq sought uranium in 1999. And the British review of prewar intelligence (known as the Butler report) concluded that the claim was--and remains--solid. Even Wilson's own reporting about a 1999 meeting between Nigerien government officials and an Iraqi delegation seemed to corroborate earlier reports, dating back to October 2001, that Iraq had sought uranium from Niger.
More problematic: Wilson's "central assertion" was not a soft, subjective claim that Bush's statement was incorrect. His central assertion was that he had seen the documents that proved the Bush administration had lied. Wilson's story was compelling not because he had simply come to a different conclusion than the Bush administration, but because he alone could demonstrate that the administration's claim was built on a lie.
Clinton, Libby, and Rove
Teddy Roosevelt once remarked:
We already know former President Bill Clinton is a liar, now we are waiting for word if Libby and Rove. If either failed to be fully candid with federal investigators or with the grand jury that should be enough for them to indicted. No administration is above the law and if anyone in the Bush White House did violate the law, then they should be held accountable. Too bad that didn't happen in the Clinton White House. I hope it does this time.
"Liar" is just as ugly a word as "thief," because it implies the presence of just as ugly a sin in one case as in the other. If a man lies under oath or procures the lie of another under oath, if he perjures himself or suborns perjury, he is guilty under the statute law. "
We already know former President Bill Clinton is a liar, now we are waiting for word if Libby and Rove. If either failed to be fully candid with federal investigators or with the grand jury that should be enough for them to indicted. No administration is above the law and if anyone in the Bush White House did violate the law, then they should be held accountable. Too bad that didn't happen in the Clinton White House. I hope it does this time.
For the liberal media, black people are evil
"Now, Anybody see the difference between the two photos below? You guessed it. The USA Today version on the right was deliberately altered to make Condi Rice look more menacing. Notice how the whites of the eyes are highlighted to make her BLACK eyes look BLACKER and HATEFUL."
Iran wants to wipe out Israel
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's hard-line president declared that Israel should be "wiped off the map." Signing a happy note, he continued: "There is no doubt that the new wave (of attacks) in Palestine will wipe off this stigma (Israel) from the face of the Islamic world. The World without Zionism."
Mahmoud went on to threatened others: "Anybody who recognizes Israel will burn in the fire of the Islamic nation's fury, any (Islamic leader) who recognizes the Zionist regime means he is acknowledging the surrender and defeat of the Islamic world." Peace be with you too, asshole.
D.C. Seizes Property for New Baseball Park
The D.C. government recently filed court papers to seize 16 owners' properties. The owners will have 90 days to leave and make way for the Nationals new baseball stadium.
This is the type of stuff I love. Let's take private property and give it to another private citizen, not for the public good, but to play baseball. Again, D.C. at its finest.
This is the type of stuff I love. Let's take private property and give it to another private citizen, not for the public good, but to play baseball. Again, D.C. at its finest.
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
Reply to Comment
Jaxebad has made the following comment:
I really didn't know I had to be "fair and balanced" to be a libertarian? When I see liberals holding up signs that say 9/11 was a fraud I'm going to call them on it (I guess I can't support America and be a libertarian). If our former third-rate mayor Marion Barry is up to his old tricks, I'll attack him for it (again calling a black guy an asshole isn't very libertarian?). And I'll bash Al Frankin for being a washed up has been that has not done anything funny since 1990 (but bashing Frankin is wrong and anti-libertarian I guess).
Do I like all conservatives? No (and if you read my blog you would know that), but I wound rather side with them than liberals. Conservatives (and the Republican party) are not perfect but they start with my own core belief ... which is government does not have all the answers. This is something liberals can never agree with. Although I disagree with most conservatives on capitol punishment, abortion, and religion, there is no separation between us when it comes to the danger of heavy spending and the creation of a large federal government. That is why I will attack stupid liberals and support conservatives with small government views every time.
"This blog seems to bash liberal people all of the time while not giving equal offense to conservative people. Yet you claim to be a libertarian. Odd."
I really didn't know I had to be "fair and balanced" to be a libertarian? When I see liberals holding up signs that say 9/11 was a fraud I'm going to call them on it (I guess I can't support America and be a libertarian). If our former third-rate mayor Marion Barry is up to his old tricks, I'll attack him for it (again calling a black guy an asshole isn't very libertarian?). And I'll bash Al Frankin for being a washed up has been that has not done anything funny since 1990 (but bashing Frankin is wrong and anti-libertarian I guess).
Do I like all conservatives? No (and if you read my blog you would know that), but I wound rather side with them than liberals. Conservatives (and the Republican party) are not perfect but they start with my own core belief ... which is government does not have all the answers. This is something liberals can never agree with. Although I disagree with most conservatives on capitol punishment, abortion, and religion, there is no separation between us when it comes to the danger of heavy spending and the creation of a large federal government. That is why I will attack stupid liberals and support conservatives with small government views every time.
Draft Al Gore in 08?
In the New Republic, Ryan Lizza writes about the possible presidential campaign by Al Gore in 2008, and what that he would be the only candidate that could surve the "post-9/11" national security issues. Lizza writes:
Yeah, this would be the same eight years that al-Qaeda grew from a minor threat to a major threat and not nearly enough was done about it. I know Democrats who, after 9/11, were glad Gore wasn't in the Oval Office; his weight-gaining, beard-growing, woe-is-me depression after the 2000 defeat makes one wonder if he has the right temperment to manage a crisis. And this doesn't even mention his veer to the far left in recent years, demonizing bloggers as "digital brownshirts" and his Dean-esque "HE PLAYED ON OUR FEEEEAARRRRS!!!" screaming speeches.
At least the Democrats can say he isn't Howard Dean.
If he runs for president he would be the only candidate in either party who instantly passes the post-9/11 threshold on national security issues. Hillary's credible case that as first lady she engaged in diplomacy and was treated abroad like a world leader would be dwarfed by Gore's eight-year record as vice president sitting on the National Security Council.
Yeah, this would be the same eight years that al-Qaeda grew from a minor threat to a major threat and not nearly enough was done about it. I know Democrats who, after 9/11, were glad Gore wasn't in the Oval Office; his weight-gaining, beard-growing, woe-is-me depression after the 2000 defeat makes one wonder if he has the right temperment to manage a crisis. And this doesn't even mention his veer to the far left in recent years, demonizing bloggers as "digital brownshirts" and his Dean-esque "HE PLAYED ON OUR FEEEEAARRRRS!!!" screaming speeches.
At least the Democrats can say he isn't Howard Dean.
Why California matters
The California special election is approaching and has a number of measures that are not extreme right-wing policies as liberals would have you believe. The three main propositions: 73 [parental notification for abortions for minors], 74 [public schools teachers tenure] and 75 [political contributions for union dues] are actually common sense issues that would probably past in the rest of the country. Only in CA, where the extreme left union types live and control government, could these things be up in the air. At any rate, if 73, 74 and 75 pass in California, Republicans will have a lot to brag about on Election Day, no matter what happens in Virginia and New Jersey.
Quote of the Day
"The most terrifying words in the English language are: 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'" -- Ronald Reagan
Kennedy's Kind of Immigrant -- From Human Events
Where even to begin with the story of 19-year-old Edwin Larios Munoz?
A former Honduran refugee who testified before Congress three years ago about the struggles of young immigrants was charged Monday with killing a pregnant woman and her unborn child.
A look back at his Congressional testimony reveals that it was rather chilling and heartbreaking -- if true. The February 2002 hearing was chaired by Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), who remarked at the end that the immigrant could look forward to a new life with his foster family in Michigan, and wished him well in his goal of becoming an FBI agent..
I have not seen any news reports that tell whether his alleged victim was the mother of his foster family. Meanwhile, Munoz is being charged under Michigan's equivalent of the Federal Unborn Victims of Violence Act.
The charge in the death of the fetus -- a girl who was named Luz Maria by her father -- is the first filed in Kent County under the state's Prenatal Protection Act, a law inspired by a Grand Rapids case.
A former Honduran refugee who testified before Congress three years ago about the struggles of young immigrants was charged Monday with killing a pregnant woman and her unborn child.
A look back at his Congressional testimony reveals that it was rather chilling and heartbreaking -- if true. The February 2002 hearing was chaired by Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), who remarked at the end that the immigrant could look forward to a new life with his foster family in Michigan, and wished him well in his goal of becoming an FBI agent..
KENNEDY: Well, I'll tell you, your worst days are behind you, and I think you'll find that -- know that that family that's welcomed you cares for you and loves you, and I think you'll find people around the communities so happy that you're here. We're so happy that you're here, and we admire you very, very much. We think you'll be a very good FBI -- they'll be very, very lucky -- they'll be very lucky to get you. So I hope the United States will live up to your dreams, because we're all trying to make it that way.
I have not seen any news reports that tell whether his alleged victim was the mother of his foster family. Meanwhile, Munoz is being charged under Michigan's equivalent of the Federal Unborn Victims of Violence Act.
The charge in the death of the fetus -- a girl who was named Luz Maria by her father -- is the first filed in Kent County under the state's Prenatal Protection Act, a law inspired by a Grand Rapids case.
What the Republican party needs is a few good conservatives
Two state governor's elections are approaching (New Jersey and Virginia) and should Republicans lose the fault will lie squarely at the feet of Bush, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Ten), former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex) and congressional Republicans who have turned their back on its conservative base.
Heard in New York
Hobo: Hey dude, got a drink?
Guy: No, man. If I gave you a drink I'd be enabling you. You know what that is? I'll be helping you by not getting you a drink.
Hobo: You've gotta be fucking kidding me.
--St. Marks & 1st
Guy: No, man. If I gave you a drink I'd be enabling you. You know what that is? I'll be helping you by not getting you a drink.
Hobo: You've gotta be fucking kidding me.
--St. Marks & 1st
Monday, October 24, 2005
Confession of the Day -- Part II
"I know that one day I'm going to fall in love with a woman and get married. We will have kids and then one day she will leave me for another man. Crippled by child support payments, I'll be trapped by myself in a shithole apartment. One day, half-crazed with loneliness, depressed from a lack of contact with my kids and crushed under a mountain of debt, I'll put the business end of a shotgun in my mouth and end it all."
Confession of the Day
"I am the male equivalent of a cock tease. I take no greater pleasure than when I get a girl excited and then just walk away, leaving her alone."
There is a danger in thinking like this
"It is thus necessary that the individual should come to realize that his own ego is of no importance in comparison with the existence of his nation; that the position of the individual ego is conditioned solely by the interests of the nation as a whole ... that above all the unity of a nation's spirit and will are worth far more than the freedom of the spirit and will of an individual. .... This state of mind, which subordinates the interests of the ego to the conservation of the community, is really the first premise for every truly human culture .... we understand only the individual's capacity to make sacrifices for the community, for his fellow man." -- Adolph Hitler
"There is the great, silent, continuous struggle: the struggle between the State and the Individual; between the State which demands and the individual who attempts to evade such demands. Because the individual, left to himself, unless he be a saint or hero, always refuses to pay taxes, obey laws, or go to war." -- Benito Mussolini
"We must stop thinking of the individual and start thinking about what is best for society." -- Hillary Clinton
"There is the great, silent, continuous struggle: the struggle between the State and the Individual; between the State which demands and the individual who attempts to evade such demands. Because the individual, left to himself, unless he be a saint or hero, always refuses to pay taxes, obey laws, or go to war." -- Benito Mussolini
"We must stop thinking of the individual and start thinking about what is best for society." -- Hillary Clinton
Quote of the Day
"In general the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one class of citizens to give to the other." -- Voltaire
Wealfare Baby's only worry ... how long will the handouts last?
A victim of Hurricane Katrina, Rolanda Cain, her one-year-old baby and her "boyfriend" are in a rough spot. It appears that since Katrina, Rolanda has been living in a Atlanta motel where the federal government has been paying the hotel bills. BUT, from the sounds of things its the nasty mean old federal government that is to blame bacuse Rolanda doesn't know how long that money will last and is worried about being evicted from the motel. Rolanda says "We have a place to stay. We have food. The only worry is how long it will last."
Well, first off its not the federal government paying for her hotel. It's hard working Americans who have been putting up their tax dollars for Rolanda. The federal government is merely taking that money and giving it to her.
Now, I hear Rolanda's "only worry" is how long the handout is going to last!?! This is just fucking crazy! Maybe it's just me, but if I were in her place I might be worried about, say, getting a job!
Rolanda says that this is all very frustrating. "With no answers, you don't know which way to go." Well, Rolanda is quite the little self-starter, isn't she? Apparently she's sitting around waiting for "answers," instead of spending time on the phone or hitting the streets looking for some work. I wonder if she's even gone so far as to ask the manager of the hotel where she's living at taxpayer expense if he might hire her as a housekeeper?
And her boyfriend? Is he out there looking for a job while Rolanda stays at home with the kid? The article says nothing. For all we know he may also be just sitting around waiting for "answers."
Well, first off its not the federal government paying for her hotel. It's hard working Americans who have been putting up their tax dollars for Rolanda. The federal government is merely taking that money and giving it to her.
Now, I hear Rolanda's "only worry" is how long the handout is going to last!?! This is just fucking crazy! Maybe it's just me, but if I were in her place I might be worried about, say, getting a job!
Rolanda says that this is all very frustrating. "With no answers, you don't know which way to go." Well, Rolanda is quite the little self-starter, isn't she? Apparently she's sitting around waiting for "answers," instead of spending time on the phone or hitting the streets looking for some work. I wonder if she's even gone so far as to ask the manager of the hotel where she's living at taxpayer expense if he might hire her as a housekeeper?
And her boyfriend? Is he out there looking for a job while Rolanda stays at home with the kid? The article says nothing. For all we know he may also be just sitting around waiting for "answers."
Even DC can't take liberal radio talkers like Al Franken or Janeane Garofalo
Air America, the liberal talk network carried on WWRC-AM (1260), went from bad to nonexistent. After WWRC recorded a mere fraction of a rating point in the spring with syndicated shows from the likes of lefty talkers Al Franken, Janeane Garofalo and Stephanie Miller, Arbitron couldn't detect a measurable listenership for the station this time around.
North Country: Conservative Bashing at its best
The new moview North Country is being given high marks for bringing a true to life story to the big screen. This isn't all that the movie brings. John Hinderaker writes the following:
I shuddered when I heard that a movie called North Country was being made out of the Jenson case, in which a group of female miners sued the owner of a taconite mine in northern Minnesota. I happen to know something about that case, which inspired a book called Class Action. The movie was said to be loosely based on the book and the actual case, and I could imagine how distorted Hollywood's product would be.
The movie is now out; it stars Charlize Theron, who was no doubt cast for her striking resemblance to the miner she plays. The film's web site is remarkably preachy, posturing the movie as a landmark in the battle against sexual harassment. The New York Post's review of North Country confirms that the movie is awash in liberal stereotypes. But one jarring note jumped out at me:
The real Jenson case was filed in 1985, six years before the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearing. So this particular embellishment is pure fiction. Why did the moviemakers throw it in? Why do you think? The Supreme Court is in the news, and Justice Thomas is a hero to conservatives. So the liberals who made North Country went out of their way to slime him, shifting the movie's time line by six years just so they could slander a Republican. No wonder conservatives hate Hollywood.
And, by the way, what's this about Anita Hill being "confronted" by a "defense" that "focuse[d] on her own sexual past"? I don't remember hearing anything about her sexual past; the defense put forward by Thomas and his supporters was that she was a liar, which the evidence seemed to show pretty convincingly.
I shuddered when I heard that a movie called North Country was being made out of the Jenson case, in which a group of female miners sued the owner of a taconite mine in northern Minnesota. I happen to know something about that case, which inspired a book called Class Action. The movie was said to be loosely based on the book and the actual case, and I could imagine how distorted Hollywood's product would be.
The movie is now out; it stars Charlize Theron, who was no doubt cast for her striking resemblance to the miner she plays. The film's web site is remarkably preachy, posturing the movie as a landmark in the battle against sexual harassment. The New York Post's review of North Country confirms that the movie is awash in liberal stereotypes. But one jarring note jumped out at me:
Inspired by Anita Hill's testimony at the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Josey talks Bill, a local hockey-hero-turned-lawyer (Woody Harrelson, in his best work in years) into mounting a lawsuit. And like Hill, Josey is confronted by the mine owner's "nuts and sluts" defense that focuses on her own sexual past.
The real Jenson case was filed in 1985, six years before the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearing. So this particular embellishment is pure fiction. Why did the moviemakers throw it in? Why do you think? The Supreme Court is in the news, and Justice Thomas is a hero to conservatives. So the liberals who made North Country went out of their way to slime him, shifting the movie's time line by six years just so they could slander a Republican. No wonder conservatives hate Hollywood.
And, by the way, what's this about Anita Hill being "confronted" by a "defense" that "focuse[d] on her own sexual past"? I don't remember hearing anything about her sexual past; the defense put forward by Thomas and his supporters was that she was a liar, which the evidence seemed to show pretty convincingly.
Quote of the day
"The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they're ignorant: It's just that they know so much that isn't so." -- Ronald Reagan
Saturday, October 22, 2005
Quote of the Day
"Always remember that I have taken more from alcohol than alcohol has taken from me." -Sir Winston Churchill
Friday, October 21, 2005
How does Katie Couric find work?
In an interview with Bill O'Reilly on The Today Show, Katie Couric again displayed her true nature. In a discussion about the O'Reilly Factor, Katie asked, "could we have more intelligent conversations about these divisive issues...?"
First of all, can we have an intelligent converstation with Katie? I doubt it. Second, the O'Reilly Factor probably brings more "intelligent conversations" to tv than Larry King or any other piece of crap show that liberal media airs. I have my problems with O'Reilly, but I must say you hear things on his show that no other program would air. The only other place talking about these issues is blogs.
Katie and her smug liberalness can shove it for all I care.
First of all, can we have an intelligent converstation with Katie? I doubt it. Second, the O'Reilly Factor probably brings more "intelligent conversations" to tv than Larry King or any other piece of crap show that liberal media airs. I have my problems with O'Reilly, but I must say you hear things on his show that no other program would air. The only other place talking about these issues is blogs.
Katie and her smug liberalness can shove it for all I care.
Liberals bashing Fox News
"With six out of the Top 10 worst shows for family viewing during prime time (as judged by the Parents Television Council), Fox TV continues to make up for the sins of Fox News." Wonkette
The ultra liberal blog, Wonkette, joined in on the attacks against Fox News. I for one can't understand liberals who attack the channel. Why? They got ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, CNN, MSNBC, Clear, and a host of other media outlets, but they get all pissed about one channel. I call it sad. Just like a liberal wanting to dominate everything like some dictator.
And one more point, what "sins of Fox News"? I really don't see anything wrong the channel does. Does it violate the constitution, Bill of Rights, or Ten Commandments? Again, I don't get it.
The ultra liberal blog, Wonkette, joined in on the attacks against Fox News. I for one can't understand liberals who attack the channel. Why? They got ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, CNN, MSNBC, Clear, and a host of other media outlets, but they get all pissed about one channel. I call it sad. Just like a liberal wanting to dominate everything like some dictator.
And one more point, what "sins of Fox News"? I really don't see anything wrong the channel does. Does it violate the constitution, Bill of Rights, or Ten Commandments? Again, I don't get it.
Thursday, October 20, 2005
Quote of the Day
"Republican politicians are the same as Democratic politicians in that they like to spend money. Democrats want to raise taxes to pay for it, and Republicans allow the next generation to pay for it." -- Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK)
I usually don't comment on my quotes of the day, but I thought this one needed some explanation. Senator Coburn is a conservative who is not happen with the spend spend spenmentalityty of the Republican party. He also said that the Democrats taking Congress in 06 might be a good thing. I kind of agree with him. I think the Republicans in Congress forgot where they came from and are acting too much like Democrats. This needs to stop. If bringing down the Republican party and starting over is what it takes then I am all for it. What good is having a Republican majority if it does not believe in small government?
Far too long I have looked the other way. I say now and forever stop the madness. I am officially stating my opposition to President Bush and the Republican Congress.
I usually don't comment on my quotes of the day, but I thought this one needed some explanation. Senator Coburn is a conservative who is not happen with the spend spend spenmentalityty of the Republican party. He also said that the Democrats taking Congress in 06 might be a good thing. I kind of agree with him. I think the Republicans in Congress forgot where they came from and are acting too much like Democrats. This needs to stop. If bringing down the Republican party and starting over is what it takes then I am all for it. What good is having a Republican majority if it does not believe in small government?
Far too long I have looked the other way. I say now and forever stop the madness. I am officially stating my opposition to President Bush and the Republican Congress.
D.C. officials have threaten to take private property to build $535 million dollar ballpark
I love baseball. I think it is one of the greatest games ever. That is why I supported bringing baseball to the Washington, D.C. area in 2004. Although I support D.C. baseball, I do not agree that District citizens should be forced to pay for a ballpark nor do I think property owner's land should be taken away.
The city is set to build a $535 million ballpark along the Anacostia River. That park will be primarly funded by taxpayers like myself. In addition, 23 private landowners along the Anacostia River area are forced to either sell their property to the city or have it taken away through eminent domain.
The land is not just sitting there. It is home to the city's gay nightclubs. Twenty years ago the District government told the gay nightclub owners to move down to the Anacostia area but now the city wants the land so its tough luck for those suckers.
The lession I learn from all of this is you can't trust government. They will try to screw you everytime. That is why I can never understand why liberals want more government that one day will just shove it up your ass. Sorry for the language but I really get upset when private property is taken for this type of use. Its not public. Not everyone enjoys baseball. Most people in the District will never go to a game nor benefit from the team. Actually the team with hurt most citizens through the tax increase that will have to come in order to pay for the ballpark. But MLB does this in every city. Force the taxpayers to pay for their expense parks while they make billions off of us going to their games. And to add to our pain the local government goes along with MLB's plan by forcing its citizens off their private property. Isn't America great!
The city is set to build a $535 million ballpark along the Anacostia River. That park will be primarly funded by taxpayers like myself. In addition, 23 private landowners along the Anacostia River area are forced to either sell their property to the city or have it taken away through eminent domain.
The land is not just sitting there. It is home to the city's gay nightclubs. Twenty years ago the District government told the gay nightclub owners to move down to the Anacostia area but now the city wants the land so its tough luck for those suckers.
The lession I learn from all of this is you can't trust government. They will try to screw you everytime. That is why I can never understand why liberals want more government that one day will just shove it up your ass. Sorry for the language but I really get upset when private property is taken for this type of use. Its not public. Not everyone enjoys baseball. Most people in the District will never go to a game nor benefit from the team. Actually the team with hurt most citizens through the tax increase that will have to come in order to pay for the ballpark. But MLB does this in every city. Force the taxpayers to pay for their expense parks while they make billions off of us going to their games. And to add to our pain the local government goes along with MLB's plan by forcing its citizens off their private property. Isn't America great!
M&M Post
I am sorry about the M&M post. My girlfriend said it was gross. To anyone out there that reads this I am sorry but I am still not taking it down. That will show her!
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
Parking on the street is for suckers
Damn, I am glad I have my own personal parking space in the District. Even more so since the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) announced the designation of 50 new on-street parking spaces for carsharing vehicles throughout the city. This is in addition to the 150 spaces already in use for carsharing.
Heard in New York
Man #1: Look at that bum. It's 2 in the afternoon, and he's just sleeping in a doorway.
Man #2: He's homeless. What the fuck else is he supposed to do?
--Charlton & Hudson
Man #2: He's homeless. What the fuck else is he supposed to do?
--Charlton & Hudson
Is Bush wrong on Miers?
The White House has made the case for Harriet Miers by emphasizing her religious views. Indeed, it is funny that religious identity politics is used at all. Remember William Prior was used as an attacking point against Democrats. Republicans called them anti-Catholic for their opposition to the nominee.
I do not make my arugement against Miers on the point that the administration is using double speak. I agrue that for far too long Republicans have been fooled by stealth appointments. The problem can be summed up as this: it is entirely possible for someone to hold conservative religious (liberal for that matter) views, yet to approach judging in ways that are at odds with the judicial conservatism. I believe John Roberts, even if he doesn't overturn Roe, is the right kind of justice for the Court. As for Miers, lets just hope her confirmation hearings relieve her true convictions.
I do not make my arugement against Miers on the point that the administration is using double speak. I agrue that for far too long Republicans have been fooled by stealth appointments. The problem can be summed up as this: it is entirely possible for someone to hold conservative religious (liberal for that matter) views, yet to approach judging in ways that are at odds with the judicial conservatism. I believe John Roberts, even if he doesn't overturn Roe, is the right kind of justice for the Court. As for Miers, lets just hope her confirmation hearings relieve her true convictions.
Buknell College says no to calling terrorists ... well terrorists
Three members of Bucknell College's Conservative Club were punished for use of "offensive" language. In an email promoting a speaker, they wrote, "Where were you during the months following Setember 11? Major John Krenson was hunting terrorists" in Afghanistan. The offending part isnt' immediately clear, but it turns out that in the cosseted world of Bucknell the phrase "hunting terrorists" is verboten.
Universtiy president Brian C. Mitchell called it "unfortunate language" and said that he wished to "prevent this from happening again."
I got it! Next time how about writing, "Krenson was trying to start a useful dialogue on sensitive issues with freedom fighters subjected to U.S. imperialism."
Universtiy president Brian C. Mitchell called it "unfortunate language" and said that he wished to "prevent this from happening again."
I got it! Next time how about writing, "Krenson was trying to start a useful dialogue on sensitive issues with freedom fighters subjected to U.S. imperialism."
Why I am against hate-crime laws
The very idea of hate-crime laws is misguided. The laws themselves establish a special class of victims whose injuries are given special weight. Hate-crime laws imply, correspondingly, that victims who do not belong to a designated group are less worthy of protection and it punishes criminals for what they think in addition to what they do. Prosecuting all crimes does not require us to abandon the idea that all men are created equal in favor of the idea that men who use a wheelchair, or are of a different color, sex, or religion are more equal than others.
Look who needs help
No one ever talks about Saddam's IQ but from the looks of his hand he doesn't seem to have mastered the necessary legal terms needed in his trial. I mean its hard to say guilty so you better make sure to write crib notes on your hand reminding you.
D.C. Government changes drunk driving law
Finally, the D.C. government does something that actually makes sense:
Still this is only the first step to a new better government.
The D.C. Council voted yesterday to relax the city's "zero tolerance" drunken
driving law, which allows drivers to be prosecuted for minimal amounts of
alcohol in the bloodstream.
D.C. law gives police the authority to arrest drivers with blood alcohol levels above .01 but below .08, the level at which a driver is considered legally intoxicated in the District.
The council voted 9 to 3 for emergency legislation under which drivers with less
than .05 blood alcohol would be presumed to be not intoxicated. Mayor Anthony A.
Williams (D), who called the bill "hastily written,'' has 10 days to decide
whether to veto it.
Still this is only the first step to a new better government.
Quote of the Day
"That's all a man can hope for duing his lifetime--to set an example--and when he is dead, to be an inspiration for history." President William McKinley
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Confession of the Day--Part II
"In my economics class in high school we are doing a project where we sell cookies and compete with each other. I have been pocketing my group's money and saying I made less."
Confession of the day
Ok, this will be a semi-regular post for me. I don't understand these people but there intermost thoughts make me laugh. With that said here is ther first of what should be many confressions of sick twisted people:
"i want to do lines of coke and i want my bf to do lines off of my stomach and ass....right after that i want him anal rape me.... "
"i want to do lines of coke and i want my bf to do lines off of my stomach and ass....right after that i want him anal rape me.... "
Will Ferrell's Harvard Commencement Speech
This is not the Worcester, Mass Boat Show, is it? I am sorry. I have made a terrible mistake. Ever since I left "Saturday Night Live," I mostly do public speaking now. And I must have made an error in the little Palm Pilot. Boy. Don't worry. I got it on me. I got the speech on me. Let's see. Ah, yes. Here we go.
You know, when Bill Gates first called me to speak to you today, I was honored. But when he wanted me to be one of the Roxbury guys, I -- Sorry, that's Microsoft. I'm sorry about that. Star Trek Convention. No. NRA. NAACP. Dow Chemical. No. But that is a good one. That is a good speech. The University of Michigan Law. Johns Hopkins Medical School. I'm sorry. Are you sure this is not the boat show? No, I have it. I do have it on me. I do. It's here. Thank you.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Distinguished Faculty, Administrators, Friends and Family and, of course, the graduating Class of 2003, I wish to say hello and thank you for bestowing this honor upon me as your Class Day speaker. After months of secret negotiations, several hundred secret ballots, and a weekend retreat with Vice President Dick Cheney in his secret mountain bunker, a Class Day speaker was chosen, and it was me. You obviously have made a grave error. But it's too late now. So let's just go with it.
Today's speech is going to be a little different, a little unorthodox. Some of you may find it to be shocking. I'm not going to stand up here and try to be funny. Because even though I am a professional comedian of the highest caliber, I've decided to do one thing that a lot of people are probably afraid to do, and that's give it to you straight.
As most of you are probably aware, I didn't graduate from Harvard. In fact, I never even got a call back from Admissions. Damn you, Harvard! Damn you! I told myself I would not get emotional today. But damn it, I'm here, and sometimes it's just good to cry.
I'm not one of you. Okay? I can't relate to who you are and what you've been through. I graduated from the University of Life. All right? I received a degree from the School of Hard Knocks. And our colors were black and blue, baby. I had office hours with the Dean of Bloody Noses. All right? I borrowed my class notes from Professor Knuckle Sandwich and his Teaching Assistant, Ms. Fat Lip Thon Nyun. That's the kind of school I went to for real, okay?
So my gift to you, Class of 2003, is to tell you about the real world through my eyes, through my experiences. And I'm sorry, but I refuse to sugarcoat it. I ain't gonna do it. And I probably shouldn't use the word "ain't" during this day in which we celebrate education. But that's just the way I play it, Homes.
Graduates, if you will indulge me for a moment, let me paint a picture of what it's like out there. The last four or, for some of you, five years you've been living in a fantasyland, running around, talking about Hemingway, or Clancy, or, I don't know, I mean whatever you read here at Harvard. The Novelization of the Matrix, I don't know. I don't know what you do here.
But I do know this. You're about to enter into a world filled with hypocrisy and doublespeak, a world in which your limo to the airport is often a half-hour late. In addition to not even being a limo at all; often times it's a Lincoln Towncar. You're about to enter a world where you ask your new assistant, Jamie, to bring you a tall, non-fat latte. And he comes back with a short soy cappuccino. Guess what, Jamie? You're fired. Not too hard to get right, my friend.
A world where your acting coach, Bob Leslie-Duncan -- yes, the Bob Leslie-Duncan -- tells you time and time again that you will never, ever be considered as a dramatic actor because you don't play things real, and are too over the top. Amazing! Simply amazing!
I'm sorry, graduates. But this is a world where you aren't allowed to use your cell phone in airplanes, during live theater, at the movies, at funerals, or even during your own elective surgery. Apparently, the Berlin Wall went back up because we now live in Russia. I mean just try lighting up a cigar in a movie theater or paying for a dinner for 20 friends with an autograph. It ain't that easy. Strong words, I know. Tough talk. But more like tough love. Because this is where my faith in you guys comes into play, Harvard University's graduating Class of 2003, without a doubt, the finest, most talented group of sexual beings this great land has to offer.
Now I know I blew some of your minds with my depiction of what it's really like out there. But if anyone can handle the ups and downs of this crazy blue marble we call Planet Earth, it's you guys. As I stare out into this vast sea of shining faces, I see the best and brightest. Some of you will be captains of industry and business. Others of you will go on to great careers in medicine, law and public service. Four of you -- and I'm not at liberty to say which four -- will go on to magnificent careers in the porno industry. I'm not trying to be funny. That's just a statistical fact.
One of you, specifically John Lee, will spend most of your time just hanging out in your car eating nachos. You will all come back from time to time to this beautiful campus for reunions, and ask the question, "Does anyone ever know what happened to John Lee?" At that point, he will invariably pop out from the bushes and yell, "Nachos anyone?!" At first, it will scare the crap out of you. But then you'll share a laugh with your classmates and ultimately look forward to John jumping out of the bushes as a yearly event.
I'd like to change gears here, if I could. Talk a little bit about "Saturday Night Live." Now, during my 18-year stint on the show, I had the chance to play or impersonate some very interesting people, none more interesting than our current President, Mr. George W. Bush. Now in some cases, you actually have contact with some of the people you play. As a byproduct of this former situation, the President and myself have become quite good friends. In fact, I might even call him a father figure of sorts, granted a dim-witted father figure who likes to take a lot of naps and start wars, but a father figure nonetheless.
When I told the President that I'd be speaking here today, he wondered if I would express some sentiments to you. And I said I'd do my best. So, if you don't mind, I'd like to read this message from the President of the United States.
Students, Faculty, Families and Distinguished Guests, I just want to take time to congratulate you on your outstanding achievement as graduates of the Class of 2002. The great thing about being the Class of 2002 is that you can always remember what year you graduated because 2002 is a palindrome which, of course, is a word or number that is the same read backwards or forwards. I'll bet you're surprised I know that word, but I do. So you can suck on it.
Make no mistake, Harvard University is one of the finest in the land. And its graduates are that fine as well. You're young men and women whose exuberance exude a confident confidence of a bygone era. I believe it was Shakespeare who said it best when he said, "Look yonder into the darkness for knowledge onto which I say go onto that which thou possess into thy night for thee have come with only a single sword and vanquished thee into darkness."
I'm going to be honest with you, I just made that up. But I don't know how to delete it from the computer. Tomorrow's graduation day speaker is former President of Mexico Ernesto Zedillo. Ernie's a good man, a deeply religious man, and one of the original members of the Latino boy band Menudo. So listen up to Ernie. He was at the beginning of the whole boy band explosion.
As you set off into the world, don't be afraid to question your leaders. But don't ask too many questions at one time or that are too hard because your leaders get tired and/or cranky. All of you sitting here have the brightest of futures ahead. Many of you will go on to stellar careers and various pursuits. And four of you -- and I'm not at liberty to say which four -- will go on to star in the porno industry.
One of the challenges you will be faced with is finding a job in our depressed economy. In fact, the chances of landing a decent job are about as good as finding weapons of mass destruction in the Iraqi desert. Slim and none. And Slim just left the building. In fact, the closest thing I found to looking like a weapon of mass destruction is the turd that Dick Cheney left in the Oval Office toilet about an hour ago. Man, that thing is a WMD if I've ever seen one. On that note, God bless and happy graduation.
You know, I sincerely hope you enjoy this next chapter of your life because it's really going to be great, as long as you pay your taxes. And don't just take a year off because you think Uncle Sam is snoozing at the wheel because he will descend upon you like a hawk from hell. Let's just put it this way. After some past indiscretions with the IRS, my take-home pay last year was $9,000.
I figured I'd leave you today with a song, if you will. So, Jeff, if you could come up here. Jeff Heck, everyone. Please welcome one of your fellow graduates. Jeff is, of course, from Eliot House. You know what you guys? You guys at Eliot House, give yourselves a nice round of applause because you had the head lice scare this year, and it shut you down for most of last semester. But you didn't mind the tents they set up for you, and you were just troopers. You really were.
Anyway, here's a song that I think really captures the essence of the Harvard experience. It goes a little like this.
[SINGING]
I close my eyes, only for a moment, and the moment's gone,
All my dreams, pass before my eyes, a curiosity.
Dust in the wind, all they are is dust in the wind.
Same old song, just a drop of water in an endless sea,
All we do, crumbles to the ground, though we refuse to see.
Dust in the wind, all we are is dust in the wind.
Okay, you know what? I'm just realizing that this is a terrible graduation song. Once again, I'm sorry. This is the first time I've actually listened to the lyrics. Man, it's a downer. It's bleak.
Boy, I want to finish this. Just give me a minute, and let me figure out how to fix this thing. Okay. I think I got it.
[SINGING]
Now don't hang on, nothing lasts forever but the Harvard alumni endowment fund.
It adds up, has performed at 22 percent growth over the last six years.
Dust in the wind, you're so much more than dust in the wind.
Dust in the wind, you're shiny little very smart pieces of dust in the wind.
Thank you. Good luck. And have a great day tomorrow.
You know, when Bill Gates first called me to speak to you today, I was honored. But when he wanted me to be one of the Roxbury guys, I -- Sorry, that's Microsoft. I'm sorry about that. Star Trek Convention. No. NRA. NAACP. Dow Chemical. No. But that is a good one. That is a good speech. The University of Michigan Law. Johns Hopkins Medical School. I'm sorry. Are you sure this is not the boat show? No, I have it. I do have it on me. I do. It's here. Thank you.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Distinguished Faculty, Administrators, Friends and Family and, of course, the graduating Class of 2003, I wish to say hello and thank you for bestowing this honor upon me as your Class Day speaker. After months of secret negotiations, several hundred secret ballots, and a weekend retreat with Vice President Dick Cheney in his secret mountain bunker, a Class Day speaker was chosen, and it was me. You obviously have made a grave error. But it's too late now. So let's just go with it.
Today's speech is going to be a little different, a little unorthodox. Some of you may find it to be shocking. I'm not going to stand up here and try to be funny. Because even though I am a professional comedian of the highest caliber, I've decided to do one thing that a lot of people are probably afraid to do, and that's give it to you straight.
As most of you are probably aware, I didn't graduate from Harvard. In fact, I never even got a call back from Admissions. Damn you, Harvard! Damn you! I told myself I would not get emotional today. But damn it, I'm here, and sometimes it's just good to cry.
I'm not one of you. Okay? I can't relate to who you are and what you've been through. I graduated from the University of Life. All right? I received a degree from the School of Hard Knocks. And our colors were black and blue, baby. I had office hours with the Dean of Bloody Noses. All right? I borrowed my class notes from Professor Knuckle Sandwich and his Teaching Assistant, Ms. Fat Lip Thon Nyun. That's the kind of school I went to for real, okay?
So my gift to you, Class of 2003, is to tell you about the real world through my eyes, through my experiences. And I'm sorry, but I refuse to sugarcoat it. I ain't gonna do it. And I probably shouldn't use the word "ain't" during this day in which we celebrate education. But that's just the way I play it, Homes.
Graduates, if you will indulge me for a moment, let me paint a picture of what it's like out there. The last four or, for some of you, five years you've been living in a fantasyland, running around, talking about Hemingway, or Clancy, or, I don't know, I mean whatever you read here at Harvard. The Novelization of the Matrix, I don't know. I don't know what you do here.
But I do know this. You're about to enter into a world filled with hypocrisy and doublespeak, a world in which your limo to the airport is often a half-hour late. In addition to not even being a limo at all; often times it's a Lincoln Towncar. You're about to enter a world where you ask your new assistant, Jamie, to bring you a tall, non-fat latte. And he comes back with a short soy cappuccino. Guess what, Jamie? You're fired. Not too hard to get right, my friend.
A world where your acting coach, Bob Leslie-Duncan -- yes, the Bob Leslie-Duncan -- tells you time and time again that you will never, ever be considered as a dramatic actor because you don't play things real, and are too over the top. Amazing! Simply amazing!
I'm sorry, graduates. But this is a world where you aren't allowed to use your cell phone in airplanes, during live theater, at the movies, at funerals, or even during your own elective surgery. Apparently, the Berlin Wall went back up because we now live in Russia. I mean just try lighting up a cigar in a movie theater or paying for a dinner for 20 friends with an autograph. It ain't that easy. Strong words, I know. Tough talk. But more like tough love. Because this is where my faith in you guys comes into play, Harvard University's graduating Class of 2003, without a doubt, the finest, most talented group of sexual beings this great land has to offer.
Now I know I blew some of your minds with my depiction of what it's really like out there. But if anyone can handle the ups and downs of this crazy blue marble we call Planet Earth, it's you guys. As I stare out into this vast sea of shining faces, I see the best and brightest. Some of you will be captains of industry and business. Others of you will go on to great careers in medicine, law and public service. Four of you -- and I'm not at liberty to say which four -- will go on to magnificent careers in the porno industry. I'm not trying to be funny. That's just a statistical fact.
One of you, specifically John Lee, will spend most of your time just hanging out in your car eating nachos. You will all come back from time to time to this beautiful campus for reunions, and ask the question, "Does anyone ever know what happened to John Lee?" At that point, he will invariably pop out from the bushes and yell, "Nachos anyone?!" At first, it will scare the crap out of you. But then you'll share a laugh with your classmates and ultimately look forward to John jumping out of the bushes as a yearly event.
I'd like to change gears here, if I could. Talk a little bit about "Saturday Night Live." Now, during my 18-year stint on the show, I had the chance to play or impersonate some very interesting people, none more interesting than our current President, Mr. George W. Bush. Now in some cases, you actually have contact with some of the people you play. As a byproduct of this former situation, the President and myself have become quite good friends. In fact, I might even call him a father figure of sorts, granted a dim-witted father figure who likes to take a lot of naps and start wars, but a father figure nonetheless.
When I told the President that I'd be speaking here today, he wondered if I would express some sentiments to you. And I said I'd do my best. So, if you don't mind, I'd like to read this message from the President of the United States.
Students, Faculty, Families and Distinguished Guests, I just want to take time to congratulate you on your outstanding achievement as graduates of the Class of 2002. The great thing about being the Class of 2002 is that you can always remember what year you graduated because 2002 is a palindrome which, of course, is a word or number that is the same read backwards or forwards. I'll bet you're surprised I know that word, but I do. So you can suck on it.
Make no mistake, Harvard University is one of the finest in the land. And its graduates are that fine as well. You're young men and women whose exuberance exude a confident confidence of a bygone era. I believe it was Shakespeare who said it best when he said, "Look yonder into the darkness for knowledge onto which I say go onto that which thou possess into thy night for thee have come with only a single sword and vanquished thee into darkness."
I'm going to be honest with you, I just made that up. But I don't know how to delete it from the computer. Tomorrow's graduation day speaker is former President of Mexico Ernesto Zedillo. Ernie's a good man, a deeply religious man, and one of the original members of the Latino boy band Menudo. So listen up to Ernie. He was at the beginning of the whole boy band explosion.
As you set off into the world, don't be afraid to question your leaders. But don't ask too many questions at one time or that are too hard because your leaders get tired and/or cranky. All of you sitting here have the brightest of futures ahead. Many of you will go on to stellar careers and various pursuits. And four of you -- and I'm not at liberty to say which four -- will go on to star in the porno industry.
One of the challenges you will be faced with is finding a job in our depressed economy. In fact, the chances of landing a decent job are about as good as finding weapons of mass destruction in the Iraqi desert. Slim and none. And Slim just left the building. In fact, the closest thing I found to looking like a weapon of mass destruction is the turd that Dick Cheney left in the Oval Office toilet about an hour ago. Man, that thing is a WMD if I've ever seen one. On that note, God bless and happy graduation.
You know, I sincerely hope you enjoy this next chapter of your life because it's really going to be great, as long as you pay your taxes. And don't just take a year off because you think Uncle Sam is snoozing at the wheel because he will descend upon you like a hawk from hell. Let's just put it this way. After some past indiscretions with the IRS, my take-home pay last year was $9,000.
I figured I'd leave you today with a song, if you will. So, Jeff, if you could come up here. Jeff Heck, everyone. Please welcome one of your fellow graduates. Jeff is, of course, from Eliot House. You know what you guys? You guys at Eliot House, give yourselves a nice round of applause because you had the head lice scare this year, and it shut you down for most of last semester. But you didn't mind the tents they set up for you, and you were just troopers. You really were.
Anyway, here's a song that I think really captures the essence of the Harvard experience. It goes a little like this.
[SINGING]
I close my eyes, only for a moment, and the moment's gone,
All my dreams, pass before my eyes, a curiosity.
Dust in the wind, all they are is dust in the wind.
Same old song, just a drop of water in an endless sea,
All we do, crumbles to the ground, though we refuse to see.
Dust in the wind, all we are is dust in the wind.
Okay, you know what? I'm just realizing that this is a terrible graduation song. Once again, I'm sorry. This is the first time I've actually listened to the lyrics. Man, it's a downer. It's bleak.
Boy, I want to finish this. Just give me a minute, and let me figure out how to fix this thing. Okay. I think I got it.
[SINGING]
Now don't hang on, nothing lasts forever but the Harvard alumni endowment fund.
It adds up, has performed at 22 percent growth over the last six years.
Dust in the wind, you're so much more than dust in the wind.
Dust in the wind, you're shiny little very smart pieces of dust in the wind.
Thank you. Good luck. And have a great day tomorrow.
Monday, October 17, 2005
Heard in New York
Hobo: ...Lick Al Sharpton's balls! Suck out his asshole! You're Democrats! It's your job!
--18th & 7th
--18th & 7th
Friday, October 14, 2005
For those would be dads
Yuppie guy #1: Well, they're in that "Baby-Coma mood" for, like, the first, three or four months. You can basically plop 'em down anywhere, and they just stay there. It's cool.
Yuppie guy #2: But what if it starts wailin'?
Yuppie guy #1: Oh, then you give it to the wife. You just say, kinda sweet-like, "Someone wants his Mom-my."
Yuppie guy #2: That works?
Yuppie guy #1: That's what my brother-in-law said...But then again, he is divorced now.
--Penn Station
Thursday, October 13, 2005
United Nations: The Origin of Jewish Mistrust
On May 14, 1948, the Arabs and Jews were fighting for control over the land that would become Israel. A United Nations plan had called for a two state solution, but one aspect of the land division was left unanswered: what to do with Jerusalem. Debates on that day produced a series of resolutions that were put forward at the General Assembly that would have placed Jerusalem under United Nations rule. Three such resolutions were proposed: first by Guatemala, then by Australia and finally by the United States. Each resolution was rejected, the Arab nations being emphatic that Jerusalem must not be under international control, but an Arab run city (despite its Jewish majority). The failure to reach aggreement meant that at 6:00 pm no government controlled Jerusalem (previously Britain had control). A representative of Iraq rose and cried out, "The game is up!" The United Nations had lost its right of succesion.
There would be no United Nations administration to prevent Arab countries from attacking the newly formed Jewish state. From here on there would only be a struggle for power between the Jews and Arabs in direct confrontation. Many Arabs found this much to be welcomed. Finishing what the Nazis had started would be an easy task ... at least they thought.
One Jewish obsever, Abba Eban, wrote of the UN's actions: "It was not a passive default, but an active relinquishing of responsibility in a critical hour. Israel would never forget the lesson. If the United Nations would not take responsibility in time of peril, by what right could it claim authority when the danger passed?"
The said truth is that in peace or war, Arabs and Jews have to work out their destiny of their land alone. No country or organization can do for them what they must do for themselves.
There would be no United Nations administration to prevent Arab countries from attacking the newly formed Jewish state. From here on there would only be a struggle for power between the Jews and Arabs in direct confrontation. Many Arabs found this much to be welcomed. Finishing what the Nazis had started would be an easy task ... at least they thought.
One Jewish obsever, Abba Eban, wrote of the UN's actions: "It was not a passive default, but an active relinquishing of responsibility in a critical hour. Israel would never forget the lesson. If the United Nations would not take responsibility in time of peril, by what right could it claim authority when the danger passed?"
The said truth is that in peace or war, Arabs and Jews have to work out their destiny of their land alone. No country or organization can do for them what they must do for themselves.
Heard in New York
Waiter: How was everything tonight?Woman: Absolutely wonderful! This was some of the best Mexican food I've ever had! And you can take my word for it. I'm from Colorado. We know Mexican food.
--Mexico Lindo, 2nd Avenue
--Mexico Lindo, 2nd Avenue
At it again!
Wait.... Wait.... Wait.... I told you so!!!!
I can't help but to be a proud of the fact that I am again proven correct. Not like it wasn't hard. D.C. Councilman Marion "I hate crime and corruption" Barry is under federal investigation for not paying his taxes since 1998. When this scumbag does stand trial at least he will know where to go. The Courthouse is the same one he was at in 1990 when he stood before it for drug charges.
I can't help but to be a proud of the fact that I am again proven correct. Not like it wasn't hard. D.C. Councilman Marion "I hate crime and corruption" Barry is under federal investigation for not paying his taxes since 1998. When this scumbag does stand trial at least he will know where to go. The Courthouse is the same one he was at in 1990 when he stood before it for drug charges.
Monday, October 10, 2005
PETA at it again
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have decided to hit opponents with pies instead of actually living by the stands of normal society. I mean when I disagree with someone I know the first thing I do is grab a pie and throw it at them. An anti-fur demonstrator only did what any normal person would when faced with such horrible actions by Vogue. What did Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour expect when she choose to run fur ads while refusing to use PETA's anti-fur messages? Thats right a pie to her face!
Credit card debt means I pay more for beer
I have perfect credit. If a girl was picking a guy just on his credit score I would be one of the top candidates. Why do I mention this? Too many young people risk years of buying power death because they over spend. And since interest rates are on the rise (the average variable-rate credit card now charges 14.2 perent, up from 11.9 percent from last year), one would probably think twice about using a credit card. Yet, many people, not just the young, are in debt. Economists est. that consumer credit grew to $2.16 trillion in August, up from $2.07 trillion last 2004. Only 5 years ago consumer debt was only at $1.64 trillion (10 years ago it was under $1 trillion).
Now I really don't care if people I don't know get into credit card debt, but looking at the macro-economic picture of it all huge consumer debt equals inflation (which is bad for me). Since inflation can occur through the increase in the supply of money at a rate greater than the expansion in the size of the economy then taking in too much credit card debt would naturally expand money flow in an unnatural way.
Why all of this is bad for me or people with no credit debt? Inflation increase prices because of people spending too much or over extending their credit. Higher prices means that I have to pay more for beer. I love beer but dont' like paying more for it because some asshole thought they would put all their x-mas shopping onto their master card. My point. Stop going into debt. If you do interests rates go up which is bad but more importantly I have to pay more for beer.
Now I really don't care if people I don't know get into credit card debt, but looking at the macro-economic picture of it all huge consumer debt equals inflation (which is bad for me). Since inflation can occur through the increase in the supply of money at a rate greater than the expansion in the size of the economy then taking in too much credit card debt would naturally expand money flow in an unnatural way.
Why all of this is bad for me or people with no credit debt? Inflation increase prices because of people spending too much or over extending their credit. Higher prices means that I have to pay more for beer. I love beer but dont' like paying more for it because some asshole thought they would put all their x-mas shopping onto their master card. My point. Stop going into debt. If you do interests rates go up which is bad but more importantly I have to pay more for beer.
Susette Kelo and Eminent Domain
I should have done a post on the Kelo decision months ago, but I found the outrage over the Supreme Court's ruling great enough to allow for time to go by before I stated my thoughts.
For many weeks after hearing about the Court's 5-4 decision I tried to place myself in Susette Kelo's situation. How would I react if I was forced by local officials to sell my home to some company looking to build shops where I lived for years? I still think about this question because I don't know. What I do know is that I am angery about the implications of the decision. As Justice Sandra Day O'Connor stated in dissent: "The spector of condemnation hangs over all property. Nothing is to prevent the state replacing any ... home with a shopping mall, or any farm with a factory."
Private property is at the root of all power. Look at most politicans. Most, if not all, are property owners. They could not go into government service without securing wealth to live. The same is true of those who protest. Ever wonder how one can afford to go to Washington, DC or the lastest G8 Summit city to yell about the injustice of people in Africa or the War in Iraq? Without money and land that brings about the feeling of security to worry about others lives, one would not be able to protest. Most people without private property are too busy working to pay next months rent or the min. payment on their credit card bill.
Private property is the first step to independence and freedom. Our Founding Fathers understood this concept and fought a Revolution over it. It is too bad that five justices on the Supreme Court forgot about history and choose to screw all Americans.
For many weeks after hearing about the Court's 5-4 decision I tried to place myself in Susette Kelo's situation. How would I react if I was forced by local officials to sell my home to some company looking to build shops where I lived for years? I still think about this question because I don't know. What I do know is that I am angery about the implications of the decision. As Justice Sandra Day O'Connor stated in dissent: "The spector of condemnation hangs over all property. Nothing is to prevent the state replacing any ... home with a shopping mall, or any farm with a factory."
Private property is at the root of all power. Look at most politicans. Most, if not all, are property owners. They could not go into government service without securing wealth to live. The same is true of those who protest. Ever wonder how one can afford to go to Washington, DC or the lastest G8 Summit city to yell about the injustice of people in Africa or the War in Iraq? Without money and land that brings about the feeling of security to worry about others lives, one would not be able to protest. Most people without private property are too busy working to pay next months rent or the min. payment on their credit card bill.
Private property is the first step to independence and freedom. Our Founding Fathers understood this concept and fought a Revolution over it. It is too bad that five justices on the Supreme Court forgot about history and choose to screw all Americans.
Hawaii and Gas Prices
The state of Hawaii is attempting to place caps on gasoline prices. Most likely outcome -- long gas lines and shortages. Let's go back to the early 1970s again.
Its about placing limits on what you eat
I really dislike the movie, "Super Size Me." It makes a point that is ... well obvious for everyone: eat too much and you get fat. Well, a 35 year old North Carolina woman has taken up the McDonald's diet that is suppose to be very bad for you. What happened? She limited herself to 1,400 calories a day and lost 33 pounds in two months. McDonald's food is going to kill you if you just restraint yourself. The guy who filmed "Super Size Me" had a political message he wanted to send. He did that. You just don't have to accept it.
Saturday, October 08, 2005
Disregard. I am on my high horse
I can't stand drivers who ride in the turn lane and I also hate when people use the wrong sayings. One that I really have a problem with is when some asshole says, "Well, why not use the 'carrot or stick' method" or something to that effect. It's "carrot on a stick," not "carrot or stick." Look it up if you don't agree with me.
Walken for President
"If you want to learn how to build a house, build a house. Don't ask anybody, just build a house." -- Christopher Walken
Sex Position to try out.
I am sure you have tried this position once in your life. If not, I highly suggest you do. Its called the deckchair position. Basically, it can be done laying on the bed as shown in this picture or with the male standing up next to the bed while his partner is laying on the bed.I don't know why the girl looks passed out or dead in this drawing but I must say everytime I have done it I have gotten positive feedback. The ladies love it.
See if you can pick me out in this photo?
Hint: I am the guy holding up the bright orange sign in the back.
100 Most Challenged Books
I for one will not stand for anyone challenging the greatness of "Where's Waldo?" Who would challenge that book? I guess retards that have nothing better to do then to look a book titles that may have a sexual meaning to them. I for one look for my "Waldo" after a long night of drinking ... and sometimes I have my better half help me out. Its hide and seek, but better.
My G-d. What can't photoshop do?
Check out these photos that have been retouched. It is amazing to see the before and after touchups of this woman's photos. Does every model look like this?
Friday, October 07, 2005
Peter Griffin Soundboard
Probably the best Family Guy related link I have posted. Great quotes from the all time best tv dad.
Need help with your woman?
Ok, I am finally doing something for my fellow man. I know most of you guys are like me and aren't as romantic as you should be. You know with football and beer drinking taking up all your time you barely have enough time to say hi to your better half. So, on that note I want the men who read this to go to SAVEMYASS.COM. Maybe the best thing you do for your entire life.What is it you might ask?
Save My Ass is a personal assistant that helps you make your girlfriend or wife happy by sending her flowers on your behalf, on a regular but semi-random basis.
How does it work? You provide them with your billing info and her delivery address. They will periodically send her flowers every 4-6 weeks, and bill you for each delivery individually (not prepaid) ... then they will notify you before each order, and you can edit them in advance if you'd like. They'll schedule flowers for all the obligatory dates she expects (you'll never miss an important date again!) and you'll score you major points by making deliveries she doesn't expect.
Rangel's Bull Connor comment
At a town-hall meeting of the Congressional Black Caucus, Representative Charles Rangel took the stage and declared, "George Bush is our Bull Connor." This comment is preposterous enough on its own--Bull Connor, the Birmingham politce chief who turned hoses and dogs on civil rights marchers in 1963 and became a symbol of Southern racism, would never have had a black secretary of state. To equate President Bush's failures concerning Katrina with Connor's brazen, unrelenting bigotry is an insult to those activists who endured Connor's persecutions.
But, incredibly, instead of repudiating Rangel, various black leaders have opined that his comparison is insulting -- to Bull Connor. "I think that's an insult to Connor," New York City Councilman Charles Barron told the New York Sun. "What [Bush] did in New Orleans [is] worse than what Bull Connor did in his entire career as a racist in the South." Others agreed, dragging the counversation down to breathtaking lows: Al Sharpton remarked, "We've gone from fire hoses to levees," and Representative Major Owens pointed out that "Bull Connor didn't even pretend that he cared about African Americans. You have to give it to George Bush for being even more diabolical."
There is a rich and horrible irony here: Martin Luther King, Jr. once said Bull Connor "didn't know history." But today Rangel, Sharpton, and the rest of the black leaders -- who claim the mantle of the civil rights movement -- don't know history. Or, rather, they believe bad history makes for good politics. It doesn't. It makes for demagoguery and its shameful and wrong.
But, incredibly, instead of repudiating Rangel, various black leaders have opined that his comparison is insulting -- to Bull Connor. "I think that's an insult to Connor," New York City Councilman Charles Barron told the New York Sun. "What [Bush] did in New Orleans [is] worse than what Bull Connor did in his entire career as a racist in the South." Others agreed, dragging the counversation down to breathtaking lows: Al Sharpton remarked, "We've gone from fire hoses to levees," and Representative Major Owens pointed out that "Bull Connor didn't even pretend that he cared about African Americans. You have to give it to George Bush for being even more diabolical."
There is a rich and horrible irony here: Martin Luther King, Jr. once said Bull Connor "didn't know history." But today Rangel, Sharpton, and the rest of the black leaders -- who claim the mantle of the civil rights movement -- don't know history. Or, rather, they believe bad history makes for good politics. It doesn't. It makes for demagoguery and its shameful and wrong.
Neal Boortz responds to a letter to the editor of The AJC
Monied America lacks moral goodness
Congratulations, monied America : You wanted your gated communities to keepout the poor, to protect yourselves from crime, to separate yourselves fromundesirables. You took the high roads and built your gated communities onthem so you would stay dry and clean while the stormwaters of filth and despair flooded their neighborhoods. You did it. You kept out the poor, youconcentrated the crime in the poor neighborhoods, effectively ensuring those neighborhoods would remain poor and broken. You separated yourselves fromthe undesirables. And then you left them, to die in attics and on roof top sand in the streets and in the disgusting halls of commerce and sports. The richest nation in the world is the most destitute when it comes to truemoral goodness. God could not bless this America at all.
SAM MARIE ENGLE
***********************
Neal's response:
OK .. we're going to give Engle a pass for misspelling "moneyed" and for her failure to realize that "storm waters" are two words. It goes with the territory. And just what territory might that be, you ask? Well, fromreading her screed, haven't you already guessed that Sam Marie Engle stalks the halls of academia? Engle is the director of something called the KennethCole Fellowship in Community Building and Social Change <<http://oucp.emory.edu/Info/KCAdvi!+sory.html>http://oucp.emory.edu/Info/KCAdvisory.html> and is the senior program associate in the Office of University-Community Partnerships at EmoryUniversity . Emory. That says a lot.
Now let's deal with Engle's rant.
Obviously Engle has a problem with achievement. In a word, she harbors great resentment toward those who have gone the extra mile to achieve success andwealth. Somehow she has convinced herself that the problems that afflicted the poor in New Orleans were due to the existence of gated communities andthe presence of the evil rich. If there had been no wealthy neighborhoods inNew Orleans the poor, somehow, wouldn't have suffered.
Engle also finds great fault with the idea that people would go to extra lengths to protect themselves from crime. How hideously insensitive of the rich! How very un-American! No doubt were we to locate Ms. Engle's automobile wherever it is parked while she is out there community-building,we would find it to be unlocked; ditto for her home. After all, Engle certainly wouldn't want to do anything to protect herself from crime, would she? That would be a certain indicator of a complete lack of moral goodnesson her part. Furthermore, when Engle finally moves on to her well-deserved retirement (and it can't be soon enough) I'm certain that she is going to build her retirement home in a flood zone rather than seek higher and saferground. After all, if a flood were to occur Ms. Engle wouldn't want to beaccused by anyone of actually using her wealth and power of choice wisely inselecting a building location. It's all about demonstrating moral goodness,and you can't demonstrate moral goodness making wise and safe choices in your personal life.
Actually, Engle's letter to the AJC editor is a literary achievement seldom matched in our age. How one woman can get so many things wrong with so few words is something that philosophers and scholars in logic will be studyingfor years to come.
Shall we do a little picking apart?
Engle feels that the evil rich "kept out the poor" from their high-and-drygated communities. Sorry, Sam, the poor weren't "kept out" of those gated communities; they just failed to make the decisions in life that would have gained them access. The rich did nothing to them. They did it to themselves. It wasn't the evil rich who decided that the poor would ignore the educational opportunities available to all in America , rich and poor alike.Rich people don't teach poor young blacks that learning is a "white thing."It wasn't some rich family living in their gated community that decided thata poor woman was going to have a child she could not afford to raise at 18,then another at 20 and a third at 21. It wasn't "monied America" that madethe choice for the poor that living on the taxpayer's teat was a far moredesirable way of life than developing a work ethic and putting it to use inour opportunity-rich free market economy.
And here's something else for you to ponder as you light those votives underyour Che Guevara poster, Ms. Engle: It won't be the poor who rebuild those New Orleans neighborhoods, and it won't be the poor who come back to the Big Easy to invest and to provide the job opportunities that some, but certainly not all, of the poor might seek.
Also, Ms. Engle, can you tell us just how those wicked rich people managedto "concentrate(d) the crime in the poor neighborhoods"? Is it because they take precautions to keep the crime out of their neighborhoods? Well, excuse the hell out of them! How dare they sit there in their fancy homes and not accept willingly their fair share of crime? Maybe we need some new kind of bussing program. That can be your next letter to the editor, Ms. Engle; ademand that some court order the bussing of petty thieves, burglars, rapist sand murderers to gated communities so that the rich can enjoy the benefitsof the culture of predatory crime together with the poor. The culture of thelaw-abiding should be forced to mingle with the culture of the lawless, don't you think? Isn't that part and parcel of the liberal mantra of multiculturalism?
And now, Ms. Engle, I need to take the gloves off for a moment, you supercilious jerk. How dare you say that "you left them, to die in atticsand on rooftops and in the streets and in the disgusting halls of commerce and sports?" You sure told us a lot about yourself with that sentence,didn't you? Commerce is disgusting? This is the label you attach to the one economic system that has lifted more people out of poverty than any othersystem in the history of civilization? Disgusting? But then, you work in theacademic world, don't you? One wonders if you have a job skill that could earn you a comfortable living in the private sectors.
My guess would be that you do not. "Left them to die?" What in the hell are you talking about? When police and firefighters, the fantastic first-responders we all rely on, went in torescue the stranded they were fired on by roving gangs of thugs from thepoor neighborhoods you so love - and this started happening on day one.Nurses and doctors (who very well may have lived in gated communities) stayed on duty in their hospitals moving their patients to ever-high floorsas the looters and predators worked their way up from below. Helicopterstrying to evacuate patients from hospitals and from the Super Dome werefired upon. Left them to die? These people were risking death to rescue the poor, and you write that the poor were left to die?
Then you say that "the richest nation in the world is the most destitutewhen it comes to true moral goodness." You mindless, hate-filled leftist, anti-capitalist gasbag. Katrina has brought forth the greatest show of American generosity since 9/11. Many believe that the charitable contributions of Americans will far surpass that of four years ago. From the very day that Katrina hit New Orleans people of means from across the country were writing checks, making pledges and taking action. The total giving to date is nearing $800 million, and will most likely surpass one billion dollars within a week's time. This is the America , an America of compassion and giving, that you say God would not bless.
Oddly enough, though, I do want to thank you for your letter to the editor, Ms. Engle. You have done more to demonstrate the moral decadence of the left with your pompous diatribe then I could hope to do with five years of talking about your type on the radio.
Please keep writing your anti-individualist rants. You're the best thing the right has going out there.
Congratulations, monied America : You wanted your gated communities to keepout the poor, to protect yourselves from crime, to separate yourselves fromundesirables. You took the high roads and built your gated communities onthem so you would stay dry and clean while the stormwaters of filth and despair flooded their neighborhoods. You did it. You kept out the poor, youconcentrated the crime in the poor neighborhoods, effectively ensuring those neighborhoods would remain poor and broken. You separated yourselves fromthe undesirables. And then you left them, to die in attics and on roof top sand in the streets and in the disgusting halls of commerce and sports. The richest nation in the world is the most destitute when it comes to truemoral goodness. God could not bless this America at all.
SAM MARIE ENGLE
***********************
Neal's response:
OK .. we're going to give Engle a pass for misspelling "moneyed" and for her failure to realize that "storm waters" are two words. It goes with the territory. And just what territory might that be, you ask? Well, fromreading her screed, haven't you already guessed that Sam Marie Engle stalks the halls of academia? Engle is the director of something called the KennethCole Fellowship in Community Building and Social Change <<http://oucp.emory.edu/Info/KCAdvi!+sory.html>http://oucp.emory.edu/Info/KCAdvisory.html> and is the senior program associate in the Office of University-Community Partnerships at EmoryUniversity . Emory. That says a lot.
Now let's deal with Engle's rant.
Obviously Engle has a problem with achievement. In a word, she harbors great resentment toward those who have gone the extra mile to achieve success andwealth. Somehow she has convinced herself that the problems that afflicted the poor in New Orleans were due to the existence of gated communities andthe presence of the evil rich. If there had been no wealthy neighborhoods inNew Orleans the poor, somehow, wouldn't have suffered.
Engle also finds great fault with the idea that people would go to extra lengths to protect themselves from crime. How hideously insensitive of the rich! How very un-American! No doubt were we to locate Ms. Engle's automobile wherever it is parked while she is out there community-building,we would find it to be unlocked; ditto for her home. After all, Engle certainly wouldn't want to do anything to protect herself from crime, would she? That would be a certain indicator of a complete lack of moral goodnesson her part. Furthermore, when Engle finally moves on to her well-deserved retirement (and it can't be soon enough) I'm certain that she is going to build her retirement home in a flood zone rather than seek higher and saferground. After all, if a flood were to occur Ms. Engle wouldn't want to beaccused by anyone of actually using her wealth and power of choice wisely inselecting a building location. It's all about demonstrating moral goodness,and you can't demonstrate moral goodness making wise and safe choices in your personal life.
Actually, Engle's letter to the AJC editor is a literary achievement seldom matched in our age. How one woman can get so many things wrong with so few words is something that philosophers and scholars in logic will be studyingfor years to come.
Shall we do a little picking apart?
Engle feels that the evil rich "kept out the poor" from their high-and-drygated communities. Sorry, Sam, the poor weren't "kept out" of those gated communities; they just failed to make the decisions in life that would have gained them access. The rich did nothing to them. They did it to themselves. It wasn't the evil rich who decided that the poor would ignore the educational opportunities available to all in America , rich and poor alike.Rich people don't teach poor young blacks that learning is a "white thing."It wasn't some rich family living in their gated community that decided thata poor woman was going to have a child she could not afford to raise at 18,then another at 20 and a third at 21. It wasn't "monied America" that madethe choice for the poor that living on the taxpayer's teat was a far moredesirable way of life than developing a work ethic and putting it to use inour opportunity-rich free market economy.
And here's something else for you to ponder as you light those votives underyour Che Guevara poster, Ms. Engle: It won't be the poor who rebuild those New Orleans neighborhoods, and it won't be the poor who come back to the Big Easy to invest and to provide the job opportunities that some, but certainly not all, of the poor might seek.
Also, Ms. Engle, can you tell us just how those wicked rich people managedto "concentrate(d) the crime in the poor neighborhoods"? Is it because they take precautions to keep the crime out of their neighborhoods? Well, excuse the hell out of them! How dare they sit there in their fancy homes and not accept willingly their fair share of crime? Maybe we need some new kind of bussing program. That can be your next letter to the editor, Ms. Engle; ademand that some court order the bussing of petty thieves, burglars, rapist sand murderers to gated communities so that the rich can enjoy the benefitsof the culture of predatory crime together with the poor. The culture of thelaw-abiding should be forced to mingle with the culture of the lawless, don't you think? Isn't that part and parcel of the liberal mantra of multiculturalism?
And now, Ms. Engle, I need to take the gloves off for a moment, you supercilious jerk. How dare you say that "you left them, to die in atticsand on rooftops and in the streets and in the disgusting halls of commerce and sports?" You sure told us a lot about yourself with that sentence,didn't you? Commerce is disgusting? This is the label you attach to the one economic system that has lifted more people out of poverty than any othersystem in the history of civilization? Disgusting? But then, you work in theacademic world, don't you? One wonders if you have a job skill that could earn you a comfortable living in the private sectors.
My guess would be that you do not. "Left them to die?" What in the hell are you talking about? When police and firefighters, the fantastic first-responders we all rely on, went in torescue the stranded they were fired on by roving gangs of thugs from thepoor neighborhoods you so love - and this started happening on day one.Nurses and doctors (who very well may have lived in gated communities) stayed on duty in their hospitals moving their patients to ever-high floorsas the looters and predators worked their way up from below. Helicopterstrying to evacuate patients from hospitals and from the Super Dome werefired upon. Left them to die? These people were risking death to rescue the poor, and you write that the poor were left to die?
Then you say that "the richest nation in the world is the most destitutewhen it comes to true moral goodness." You mindless, hate-filled leftist, anti-capitalist gasbag. Katrina has brought forth the greatest show of American generosity since 9/11. Many believe that the charitable contributions of Americans will far surpass that of four years ago. From the very day that Katrina hit New Orleans people of means from across the country were writing checks, making pledges and taking action. The total giving to date is nearing $800 million, and will most likely surpass one billion dollars within a week's time. This is the America , an America of compassion and giving, that you say God would not bless.
Oddly enough, though, I do want to thank you for your letter to the editor, Ms. Engle. You have done more to demonstrate the moral decadence of the left with your pompous diatribe then I could hope to do with five years of talking about your type on the radio.
Please keep writing your anti-individualist rants. You're the best thing the right has going out there.
Moderate judges
Supreme Court Justice Scalia said in a speech: "Now the Senate is looking for moderate judges, mainstream judges. What in the world is a moderate interpretation of a constitutional text? Halfway between what is says and what we'd like it to say?"
I think someone made a funny.
I think someone made a funny.
Did you know?
In total, 41 of the 109 Supreme Court justices lacked prior judicial experience. The most recent 10:
William Rehnquist (1972-2005)
Lewis Powell (1972-1987)
Abe Fortas (1965-1969)
Arthur Goldberg (1962-1965)
Byron White (1962-1993)
Earl Warren (1953-1969)
Tom Clark (1949-1967)
Harold Burton (1945-1958)
Harlan F. Stone (1941-1946)
Robert Jackson (1941-1954)
William Rehnquist (1972-2005)
Lewis Powell (1972-1987)
Abe Fortas (1965-1969)
Arthur Goldberg (1962-1965)
Byron White (1962-1993)
Earl Warren (1953-1969)
Tom Clark (1949-1967)
Harold Burton (1945-1958)
Harlan F. Stone (1941-1946)
Robert Jackson (1941-1954)
Former President Clinton at it again
Bill Clinton has a remarkable talent for being on the popular side. Back in 1998, after ordering miliarty strikes against Iraq, he said, "The hard fact is that so long as Saddam remains in power, he threatens the well-being of his people, the peace of his region, the security of the world ... The credible threat to use force, and when necessary the actuall use of force is the surest way to contain Saddam's weapons-of-massdestruction program ...."
That was then, but now Clinton is blasting the Bush administration for doing what he did and saying what he said. In an ABC news interview, Clinton said, President Bush "decided to launch this invasion virtually alone and before the U.N. inspections were completed, with no real urgency, no evidence that there was any weapons of mas destruction there."
I understand that anything that comes out of President Clinton's mouth is for two reasons: 1) his ongoing legacy-rehab. project and 2) his wife's campaign for the presidency. At the moment, he deems it advantageous to attack President Bush on the war (despite the fact that Hillary Clinton voted to authorize the President's actions). But things could change in Iraq and if they do watch out because as we know, in 1998, he said he was all for it.
That was then, but now Clinton is blasting the Bush administration for doing what he did and saying what he said. In an ABC news interview, Clinton said, President Bush "decided to launch this invasion virtually alone and before the U.N. inspections were completed, with no real urgency, no evidence that there was any weapons of mas destruction there."
I understand that anything that comes out of President Clinton's mouth is for two reasons: 1) his ongoing legacy-rehab. project and 2) his wife's campaign for the presidency. At the moment, he deems it advantageous to attack President Bush on the war (despite the fact that Hillary Clinton voted to authorize the President's actions). But things could change in Iraq and if they do watch out because as we know, in 1998, he said he was all for it.
Who decides how you should live
Britain, like the United States, forbids sentenced prisoners from voting. The European Court of Human Rights just ruled that such a ban is unlawful. Now for me a prisoner is there for a reason. Maybe its rape, murder, or some other destructive evil that government must protect society from but whatever it is liberty needs to be taken away. More than a phsyical separation there needs to be a political break as well. If a person is not fit to live in society is he or she really fit to make judgements about its possible political structure?
I am an old style Whig who believes in self-governance but also fears the impulse of uneducated people do things they think is right. In addition, I believe intellectual eggheads look down on citizens and think they know better. This is happening in the United States where more and more local and state governments are losing power to a centralized governments that doesn't make decisions based on your needs but on a calculation from some ecomonic egghead. Local governments are the best protectors of liberty and the best deciders of who shall vote or not. A European Court or a Supreme Court should play a limited role in our every day lives. Remember once we allow (yes, allow because we have the power) government to do something we would otherwise do, then liberty through choice is taken away.
I am a dreamer. A dreamer who sees the world not as it is but as it could be. Many out there are like me. In my world local governments would decide if prisoners could vote, not some far away body who knows nothing of who or what we are. How can someone 3,000 miles away trully understand or care for the life that we live or want? In the end "all politics is local." What we need is fewer Washington or Bussell elites telling us what is good for our lives and more saying, "let them decide." A great jurist, Oliver W. Holmes once said, "if my fellow man wants to go to h-ll, I am not going to do anything to prevent him." Liberty and freedom can only happen when government stops trying to mother its citizens and actually listens to them. That is what the Constitution embodies and that is what the Founders fought for.
I am an old style Whig who believes in self-governance but also fears the impulse of uneducated people do things they think is right. In addition, I believe intellectual eggheads look down on citizens and think they know better. This is happening in the United States where more and more local and state governments are losing power to a centralized governments that doesn't make decisions based on your needs but on a calculation from some ecomonic egghead. Local governments are the best protectors of liberty and the best deciders of who shall vote or not. A European Court or a Supreme Court should play a limited role in our every day lives. Remember once we allow (yes, allow because we have the power) government to do something we would otherwise do, then liberty through choice is taken away.
I am a dreamer. A dreamer who sees the world not as it is but as it could be. Many out there are like me. In my world local governments would decide if prisoners could vote, not some far away body who knows nothing of who or what we are. How can someone 3,000 miles away trully understand or care for the life that we live or want? In the end "all politics is local." What we need is fewer Washington or Bussell elites telling us what is good for our lives and more saying, "let them decide." A great jurist, Oliver W. Holmes once said, "if my fellow man wants to go to h-ll, I am not going to do anything to prevent him." Liberty and freedom can only happen when government stops trying to mother its citizens and actually listens to them. That is what the Constitution embodies and that is what the Founders fought for.
I am sorry!
Ok, so I am the guy who makes drunk phone calls late at night. Take me to court! I don't care cause I like talking to people when I am shit faced (is that one word?). Is that so wrong?
Anyhow, I am really sorry for calling two people in particular. Their last names starts with a P and end with an ala to give my readers a hint. They are married and I don't think the female of the two really understood by marrying this guy that she would have to put up with me calling at all hours of the night. She actually is lucky that half the time I am too drunk to call or my cell phone is dead. Not to mention the fact that if I lived anywhere near them I would be showing up at their front door to raid their refregator all the time. Heck, I might stay there and pass out on their floor. I swear to G-d, some of the best naps I have had has been on this kid's floor.
So, summing up -- 1) I am sorry for whatever stupid things I did or will do, 2) I don't understand why these two stay friends with me, 3) Be prepared for more of the same cause this isn't a sign that I plan on ending the madness!
Anyhow, I am really sorry for calling two people in particular. Their last names starts with a P and end with an ala to give my readers a hint. They are married and I don't think the female of the two really understood by marrying this guy that she would have to put up with me calling at all hours of the night. She actually is lucky that half the time I am too drunk to call or my cell phone is dead. Not to mention the fact that if I lived anywhere near them I would be showing up at their front door to raid their refregator all the time. Heck, I might stay there and pass out on their floor. I swear to G-d, some of the best naps I have had has been on this kid's floor.
So, summing up -- 1) I am sorry for whatever stupid things I did or will do, 2) I don't understand why these two stay friends with me, 3) Be prepared for more of the same cause this isn't a sign that I plan on ending the madness!
College, what is it good for?
"We just like taking money from kids and their parents," said one college spokesman that I just made up. Those bastards did nothing useful for me the four years I was in college. Most of the time I was talking during class because I knew more than the professors. Now that I am qualifed to be one I must say I can't wait to allow one smart kid to talk the entire class while I sip on my Jake & Coke. Ok, so I don't like Coke but I bet I will be sipping on something or checking the Internet to see if I did well in my football fantasy pool. Remember kids the only important thing about college in the parties and girls. You still get a degree no matter if your GPA is a 1.2 or a 3.8.
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