Nitpicking

It's a small thing, but if you're going to declare yourself "clean and serene".....

The WaPo Goes Rogue

Like Jack Bauer, the Washington Post has thrown out the rule book and gone rogue. They dare to notice hypocrisy of John Travolta, who like most celebrities who exhort us to stop using carbon, can count his energy use in dinosaurs per day. Are they going to notice St Al's energy use next? Or, and I suspect this is the case, are they just going to do this once, throw Travolta to the lions, and ignore the rest of the fumes that rise from wherever Gore, David, Crow, etc go?


This graphic, BTW, is for just one of Al Gore's homes. He owns at least three... not that he's been in any of them lately. He's been flying around the world pumping up the urban legend and getting rich(er) in the process. Think the WaPo will look into his emissions? His income?

The Gorefather

I dunno, is it just me, or does this look like a couple of old criminals discussing dropping a whack on Johnny Shoes? (You know Johnny Shoes, they used to call him that because of his habit of wearing... well, you know)


"Someday, and that day may never come, I'll call upon you to do a service for me...."

Jimmy Didn't Know

What WAS that glug-glug-gluging sound every time he turned on the light?

Disconcerting

I was more than a little freaked when I opened Michelle Malkin this morning and found a picture of these odd people playing baseball.... and Stephen Hawking was the bat! (just like in the dream)


Of course, it's nothing of the sort. Turns out it is Hawking, but he's doing a zero-G thing. Which is cool.

Democratic Debates

I'm liking John Edwards more and more. Did you see the pictures of him trying to be one of the guys?


They didn't show what he was gesturing towards on the other end of the stage:


Here's a better angle:


Really, he's almost succeeding at being one of the guys. I admit, "Bend over baby, I'll drive you to Cleveland," was a little crude, but John has a huge wimp factor to overcome.

Best part of the debate? Had to be Kucinich jumping in front of the other candidates, trying to get camera time. The other Democrats pretending they couldn't see him had to have been worked out in advance. Here's John, being cruel to the crazy guy from Ohio.


What about the substance of the debate? It was mainly comedy.

"The first day I would get us out of Iraq by diplomacy," said New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson

Then the other candidates took turns claiming quicker and quicker endings,
"Well, I'd get us out by diplomacy the first morning,"

"But I'd get us out first hour by diplomacy and feed the whole world by lunchtime."

"Well, I'd get us out the first hour and feed the whole world times infinity!"

At least they're starting to come up with their own plans. So that's good.

Harry's Work

There's no way of knowing, but I can't help but wonder if Harry Reid has helped some suicide bombers make up their minds. Reid told them, "you've almost got us, the US is on the edge of bugging out." There was going to be a terrorist surge-back anyway, but did Harry have give them hope?

The good news is that the surge appears to be making a difference. And this push back by the AIF's is something they cannot sustain. Still, it would be nice if they didn't have American senators encouraging them. Harry Reid is a disgrace.

Carbon Credits

Seen this? :

Companies and individuals rushing to go green have been spending millions on “carbon credit” projects that yield few if any environmental benefits.

A Financial Times investigation has uncovered widespread failings in the new markets for greenhouse gases, suggesting some organisations are paying for emissions reductions that do not take place.

Others are meanwhile making big profits from carbon trading for very small expenditure and in some cases for cleanups that they would have made anyway.

Hmmm, who couldn't see this coming. Still, environmental benefits aren't the point of carbon credits, are they? Feeling good about yourself as you burn more carbon than 50 average people, and lecture them about reducing their carbon footprint is the point.

Impeach Gunner Dick?

I'll admit to pretty much discounting anything that Dennis J. Kucinich says these days. Him drawing up articles of impeachment for Dick Cheney is pretty much classic Dennis Kucinich - a little silly, not to be taken seriously.

Much of what he proposes is impractical. His peace-in-Iraq plan point 5 is: "Prepare an international security peacekeeping force to move in, replacing U.S. troops, who then return home." Well duh. Why didn't we think of that? Maybe because any nation willing to send peace keepers is already there. But if Kucinich wants to round up more peacekeepers, I think he should get right on it. Let us know how you do with the French Dennis.

Course, Kucinich used to think the US had a role in keeping the peace. The following are all Dennis J. Kucinich quotes, from the floor of the House:

Blessed are the peacemakers.

We are able to make peace because we are the strongest nation in the world. We are able to make peace because we have been committed to peace.

Listen to the words of John F. Kennedy's inaugural. He said that we have been unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this Nation has always been committed and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.

and

Let us remember why we sent troops to Bosnia in the first place. Exactly 50 years after the Nazis and their atrocities, another genocide occurred in Europe as a result of nationalism, racial and religious hatred, and the obsession to create ethnically pure states. The international community stood silently by as more than 2 million people were displaced and more than 200,000 human beings were killed, and horrendous acts of torture, systematic rape, and similar expressions of barbarity ensued. There is universal consensus that to protect human beings against gross violations of their basic human rights is no longer considered interfering with the internal affairs of the state. It is no longer a European problem, it is a world problem, it is a world responsibility and as the most powerful Nation in the world it is also our responsibility.

If incidents like these can continue, albeit on a drastically reduced scale, where for example in Mostar recently, a 70-year-old woman's door was kicked in, she was torn from her bed, killed, wrapped in sheets and dumped in a field along the highway. Within days, a soldier and his family moved into her apartment. No charges filed. No arrests made.

If incidents like these can continue, what will happen if we pull out of an area? What will happen to the peace? What will happen to our troops? What will happen to the survivors of genocide? The ghosts of Branjevo are watching. The ghosts of Srebrenica are watching.

and

Now we have heard from sources here today. Let me quote a few sources.

General Wesley Clark, Supreme Allied Commander of Europe. He says, if this resolution passes, it will say to our troops and to everyone else that being there was a mistake; we did not really mean it when we sent our troops to Bosnia. He says, it would undercut all our efforts in Bosnia if this resolution passes.

General Shelton, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has said, pulling U.S. forces out of Bosnia would cripple the mission at a critical time when we are achieving success in that troubled country.

I met with the widows. I saw places destroyed as a result of this war. But I also saw a people who are struggling to rebuild. I saw a nation which has hope because the United States of America has stood by its commitment for freedom and justice, because the United States of America, a leader of 34 nations, has said that we are not going to let genocide exist anywhere in the world.

What changed Dennis? You think there won't be carnage if we leave? Or does your Croatian ancestry cause you to care much about Slavic people; about Middle Eastern people, not so much?

The despicable Harry Reid, Dennis Kucinich, and the other cut and run democrats should remember that as they make their plans to abandon the Iraqis, the ghosts of the Sunni triangle are watching. The ghosts from the rape rooms, the ghosts from the wood chippers, are watching.

Just a Thought

Heard about the potential new earth? Yeah, only 21 light years away, almost next door. And some say it could harbor life, so I propose we declare war on it! No, just kidding. (but wouldn't it be cool to sneak over there and ruin its atmosphere before the environuts get a chance to enjoy it's pristine beauty? Maybe litter the landing site with fast-food wrappers, just to rub it in? Just thinking out loud.)

The Religious Left

Never heard of these guys, the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, but they sound as much anti-Catholic as they do pro-anything-else:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A coalition of religious leaders took on the Catholic Church, the U.S. Supreme Court and the Bush administration on Tuesday with a plea to take religion out of health care in the United States.

They said last week's Supreme Court decision outlawing a certain type of abortion demonstrated that religious belief was interfering with personal rights and the U.S. health care system in general.

Sounds a little dishonest to me. It's a religious view if it is counter to the view of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, a religious organization. Isn't their view as religious as mine?

I don't think you need a religious foundation to oppose the insertion of scissors into an infant's brain. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess there are even some Wiccans who oppose the sucking out of babies' brains.

Anyway, the article made me wonder; Is there any form of abortion that these people would oppose? Would it be ok with these guys to dispatch newborns with clubs, like baby seals? I mean, if partial-birth abortion isn't too much for you, what is? Is anything ok, so long as there's no baby there when it's over?

VP's Take on Harry Reid

Dick Cheney speaks:

Yesterday, Senator Reid said the troop surge was against the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group. That is plainly false. The Iraq Study Group report was explicitly favorable toward a troop surge to secure Baghdad. Senator Reid said there should be a regional conference on Iraq. Apparently, he doesn't know that there is going to be one next week. Senator Reid said he doesn't have real substantive meetings with the President. Yet immediately following last week's meeting at the White House, he said, "It was a good exchange; everyone voiced their considered opinion about the war in Iraq."

What's most troubling about Senator Reid's comments yesterday is his defeatism. Indeed, last week, he said the war is already lost. And the timetable legislation that he is now pursuing would guarantee defeat.

Maybe it's a political calculation. Some Democratic leaders seem to believe that blind opposition to the new strategy in Iraq is good politics. Senator Reid himself has said that the war in Iraq will bring his party more seats in the next election. It is cynical to declare that the war is lost because you believe it gives you political advantage. Leaders should make decisions based on the security interests of our country, not on the interests of their political party.

Exactly. It is despicable to value political advantage over the lives of our troops in the field.

Just Kidding

Over at the Huffington Post Sheryl and Laurie explain that it was all just a joke. Nope, I don't buy it:

Obviously, we were very surprised that Mr. Rove found discussing such an important issue to be insulting. However, rather than continuing to focus on the encounter itself, can we now focus on the urgent need to act on global warming? We would welcome the opportunity to engage directly with the Bush administration in a constructive conversation about solutions to the global warming crisis.

And by the way guys, the toilet paper thing...it was a JOKE!

I'm sure they would welcome the opportunity to engage the administration directly. Every administration has millions of citizens who would like to directly interface with the executive branch. Most of us understand that the administration has work to do and doesn't have time to grant millions of people "direct" engagement. What sets the Charmin Sisters apart from the rest of us?

Do they want a hand in shaping policy because they're respected climatologists? Or is it a rich girl thing? Do they just expect to get whatever they ask for? Regardless, they can engage the government the same way the rest of us do: They can write letters, call agencies, e-mail their congressman, and complain about taxes. Or hire someone to complain about taxes for them.

As for the joke... Reder TJ Martin sends in:


When toilet paper is outlawed, only outlaws will have toilet paper.



Oh yeah, this joke could go on awhile.

Why, It's a Movement

click to, well, you know

Global Normaling

I remember as a kid, learning about how Erik the Red found a green Greenland when he got exiled there back in the tenth century. It was a lesson in how the climate is always changing. Now the lesson is similar except for the addition of calls to the almighty, i.e., "dear God, oh Lord, the climate is changing,":

The map of Greenland will have to be redrawn. A new island has appeared off its coast, suddenly separated from the mainland by the melting of Greenland's enormous ice sheet, a development that is being seen as the most alarming sign of global warming.

So it was green, it froze over, and it's possibly heading back towards green. And some guy at Wikipedia agrees with Mrs Wolf, my fifth grade teacher:

It should also be noted, however, that the southern portion of Greenland (not covered by glacier) is indeed very green in the summer, and was likely even greener in Erik's time because of the Medieval Warm Period.

Just like Mrs. Wolf said, except that she added exhortations to pay attention and quit making spit wads.

Join Sheryl Crow

Hey, I'm all about public service:

Sheryl will enbiggen if you click on her.

Sheryl Crow's Bathroom

Look, she never said she was perfect.

Laurie David doesn't look foolish

But now she has to sneak aboard her chartered Gulfstreams.

And Sheryl Crow? She has to add "one roll of toilet paper" to her list of "touring requirements."
What's happening here isn't news. It's long been known that the rich have too much free time on their hands. That these two actually drip hydrocarbons wherever they go just adds a touch of comedy.

****Update:From their Fix the Whole World By Telling the Nonrich How to Live blog:

Crow (4/19): I also like the idea of not using paper napkins, which happen to be made from virgin wood and represent the height of wastefulness. I have designed a clothing line that has what's called a "dining sleeve." The sleeve is detachable and can be replaced with another "dining sleeve," after usage. The design will offer the "diner" the convenience of wiping his mouth on his sleeve rather than throwing out yet another barely used paper product. I think this idea could also translate quite well to those suffering with an annoying head cold.

OK let me brainstorm with you Sheryl: How bout we make the "dining sleeves" detached permanently? We could make them square and put one at every place setting around the table.... maybe we could call them "nonpaper napkins made from fabric" or "textile face wipes". And to encourage their use, we could fold them into swans or combine decorative folds with "textile face wipe rings". Just a thought.

Two Great Americans

That's right, Dwight Eisenhower counts as two.

Anti

Al Qaeda Looking for Help?

This can be looked at two ways:

Al-Qaeda is reaching out from its base in Pakistan to turn militant Islamist groups in the Middle East and Africa into franchises charged with intensifying attacks on western targets, according to European officials and terrorism specialists.

You can take the view that this presents a new danger, or that it shows al Qaeda's weakness after being ground down in Afghanistan. Of course, the "new danger" angle is being played up. But don't ties between organizations make it easier to identify and unravel networks as we take them down, one by one? The problem is, Al Qaeda Weakened and Looking for Allies is a headline the mainstream media would like to avoid.

One thing I'm reminded of at this point: Ties between these terrorist organizations would involve communications and presumably financial transactions, both of which represent a vulnerability for the terrorists. So maybe now would be a good time to thank the NYT again for exposing the SWIFT program and making the job that much harder.

Pope does away with Limbo

And I know some nuns who are going to be, um, nun too happy.


Go sista, go sista, go sista!

When Patton Met Harry

More Motivation

More motivation for Harry.

click to enbiggen

Motivational

I made up a motivational poster for Harry Reid's office. Maybe he'll have room on the wall next to his copy of the Deteriorata. (remember that?)

click to enbiggen

Homer Simpson Quote

I knew there was a Homer quote to fit the useful idiot's latest stab at helpfulness. It was on the tip of my brain all evening. Then I ran across this picture and thought I'd let Nancy share the quote.

I doing an el-paso on the photoshopping of a pitchfork into the picture. Too obvious.



***Update: Obvious or not... couldn't help myself:

Alec Baldwin, Role Model

See this ? Alec Baldwin showing what he's made of:

On the recording, Baldwin can be heard berating his 11-year-old, Ireland, "You are a rude, thoughtless little pig."

"You don't have the brains or the decency as a human being," he says, apparently upset that she did not answer her phone for a planned call.

"I don't give a damn that you're 12 years old, or 11 years old, or that you're a child, or that your mother is a thoughtless pain in the ass who doesn't care about what you do as far as I'm concerned. You have humiliated me for the last time with this phone."

Humiliated by an 11 year-old? Nope, Alec Baldwin was humiliated by a 49 year-old. What a waste of carbon. Bullying an 11 year old?

Harry Reid Learns a New Pledge

I know there have been reports that things are getting better in Baghdad, and the full compliment of troops won't even be in place until June, but the bad guys have pushed back, so probably it's best to give up now. That's what Harry Reid thinks, anyway. So what if all the troops aren't in place yet? Harry has looked at the situation and, reluctantly, oh, so reluctantly, has to come to the conclusion that the president is wrong to continue. We must admit defeat now. I mean, who could have predicted that the bad guys would fight back? Nothing we can do if they're going to oppose us.

And Knee-jerkers, please, don't call Harry Reid unpatriotic without at least specifying which country he's unpatriotic towards.

Solar Ovens

"This solar powered barbecue is a very good example of how inventors are successfully tapping into that potential in more innovative ways. It's a sign of the times."

Wait. Sign of the times? Didn't we see solar ovens 30 years ago? And I know we built one 5 years ago for my daughter's science class. It was called Solar Cooking Day, I think, but it became known as the Great Salmonella Experiment of 2002. And it did save energy because nobody involved was able to travel for several days. I think the kids who elected to "cook" chocolate chip (already baked) cookies did ok. But most of us stood around taking bites of our cold hot dogs and saying (inaccurately), "I think it's warm." Face it Earthists, solar ovens are good for getting bacteria up to incubating temperature, not much else.

More Abortion Ban Reactions

So convenient that Drudge summarized reactions:

HILLARY: 'Erosion of our constitutional rights'...

GIULIANI: 'I agree with it'...

OBAMA: 'I strongly disagree'...

ROMNEY: 'A step forward'...

MCCAIN: I'm very happy...

EDWARDS: 'Keep YOUR laws off OUR bodies'...

It's easy to rag on Hillary today. Regarding the ruling that partial birth abortion bans are legal:

"It is precisely this erosion of our constitutional rights that I warned against when I opposed the nominations of Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito."

Ah, the constitutional right to suck the brains from babies. Course she says:

"Today's decision blatantly defies the Court's recent decision in 2000 striking down a state partial-birth abortion law because of its failure to provide an exception for the health of the mother."

But she's talking about the mental health of the mother. There is never a physical health reason for performing this horrendous procedure. Add in mental health and anyone who is willing to say, "A baby would drive me crazy," gets a Hillary-pass. "Crazy you say? OK, hop up on the table and we'll get that old vacuum pump running."

***Update: From the Corner concerning Harry Reid's reaction:

REID: I would only say that this is the only decision a lot of
us wish that Alito weren't there and O'Connor were there.

Apparently Harry forgot that he voted for the ban. He must have been stuck in getbushgetbushgetbush mode

The First Woman President?

Look John, I'm sorry. I sit down at the computer intending to carry out my assignment of vilifying Hillary, but before Photoshop even opens I find myself wondering what you'd look like in an Easter bonnet. I can't help myself.

And I know the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy can get by without me, but really, when I drop the ridicule-Hillary ball, well that just means some other worker bee has to ridicule her twice as much.

Maybe I can get a transfer to the John Kerry desk.

OK, late homework:

Remember that picture of Hillary greeting an old friend? Hillary is saying, "Oh, how nice to see... MY DEAR GOD! Beelzebub is clawing his way out of your neck!"
(I over sepia-ed Hillary so you could tell which one is her)

Expensive Haircuts

I can get twenty haircuts for what John Edwards pays for one. More, if I go to the barber college. And, (here's a money saving tip you can only get at Lumberjacks) you can actually make money if you get your haircuts at the dog grooming school. The fresh-puppy-scented powder can get old though. And sometimes you have to put up with little blue bows. And the muzzle.

But $400 for a haircut? Still, John is a fine looking man:

Tragedy at Blacksburg

I'll never understand how minds can become so twisted as to think that taking innocent souls out of this world is a desirable thing. Not one, not two, and certainly not thirty.

So it's happened again. All we can do now is pray for the families and the souls of the lost loved ones. And pray that our loved ones will never fall victim to this sort of insanity.

Not much funny to write about today.

***Update: Reading the blogs... I have to think that using this horror to advance your political argument, whether it's for gun control, or for concealed-carry, or for whatever reason, is kind of sick too. I understand people have strong convictions on these subjects, but now isn't the time.

Tax Day

I guess everyday is tax day. Some are worse than others though.
I don't have much time to blog but I'll note that one of the places where John Kerry hinted that he might run again was:

The 2004 Democratic nominee told a crowd of more than 250 at the Tattered Cover bookstore in lower downtown Denver that he had no desire to endorse any candidate for the office right now, choosing to wait to see how they addressed the issue of global warming.

Poetry it is, the tattered cover candidate.

Rosie's Blog

Drudge headline said "ROSIE: NO MORE 'IMPEACH BUSH ' TALK ON THE 'THE VIEW'" but I don't know; I followed the link and what I found was a mishmash of words. It was a sort of stream of disturbed-consciousness. OK, I know, I have my own problems with communicating clearly, and, by the way, have been accused of comma abuse, but Rosie's blog makes me feel like the Great Communicator himself, Ronald Reagan. Maybe it's a gonzo thing, and it helps to be drunk when you read it.

From Chicago

At the wharf. Go figure. (the fisherman's wharf in SF, that is)

Also - It just struck me, after a week of instructions not to molest the bears - I don't think I was attracted to any of them. Not even tempted. Really. Well.... except for the good looking ones.

***Update: Well, we're back east in time for the bad weather. Woo-hoo.

While I Was Out Vexing the Animals

I found time to tame the wild rivers. Here I am, staring certain death in the eye, well, maybe it was more of a staring certain wetness in the eye, on the wild river. That's Skyler, the guide, behind me saying, "dude, you've become masterful, and I'm so glad you've quit falling in the river."


And here I am in the forest again, with the kid. This is in front of the General Sherman tree. I think it was Theodore Roosevelt who named many of the giant sequoias after civil war figures. The kid and I took turns telling foreign tourists that the General Sherman was so named because at the end of the war he was drug out in the middle of the night and hung from this tree. "Terrible chapter in our nation's history etc...." We had much the same story for the General Grant.



So Friday is travel again... up at 4:30 to get my airport pat-down. Then it's a few quick patrols around the airport to make sure there's no unfamiliar praying going on, then onto the plane for a quick check for foreign accents, and we're on our way back... OK, ok, I was just trying to rile ACLU googlers, but I will be checking for anyone with more than 3 oz.s of liquid. I just don't feel safe flying when I know there's a tube of hand lotion on board.

Back From The Mountains

Turns out that internet in the forest is an iffy thing. But that was ok, we were so busy fighting off bears, there was really no time to blog. We stayed in a cabin for two days, and the exposure to nature should be enough to last me many years. Barring mental illness, I won't be going back without an armed escort.

Course, you can see from the picture of me and lumberkid, above, that yes, nature can be enjoyable. This picture was taken before the bear incident, though. Hey, I know you don't believe it. Well, here's proof:


This image is of the first bear, just before he attacked. Thank goodness, I had read the bear brochure and knew to bang pots and pans and whoop to show the bear that I wasn't to be messed with. Sadly, the bear hadn't even browsed through the brochure, and didn't know that he was supposed to be afraid. He kept trying to climb into the trash can so I had to wallop him with a frying pan. Turns out you can drive a bear a pretty fair distance if you get a good back swing and follow-through.

So ok, I've had this bear experience escaping with just my life and one very badly dented frying pan, so you'd think the US Forest Service would understand the need to clear an area around the camp with fire, right? I figured that burning the underbrush away for maybe 50 feet around the cabin would make it harder for the bears to hide. Well, 50 feet at first, there was a little overage, but I'm not altogether sure that it wasn't someone else's fire that took out the ranger station.

Anyway, we'll let the courts sort it out. Right now I'm back in San Francisco and it feels like I'm in a remake of Shaun of the Dead.

Side-Job in California

I'm thinking this could take awhile.
Plus I've got to work at night becaause these park rangers get all overprotective about the trees. Go figure.

I'm Off

But regular readers knew that. This time I'm really off though. On my way to San Francisco and points south. I'll be gone a week or so but I'll have a laptop with and should be able to post at least some of the time.

Seen "Leftwing Blogs Get Punked" over at Michelle Malkin's place? Pretty funny. That's what prompted this:



Well, what do you know? It really is a vast rightwing conspiracy. Cool.

At the Corner

I know it's a flaw in me to enjoy Rosie bashing so much - she should just be written off as a kook - but I'm loving the Corner today:

Actress And Guest Co-Host Marcia Gay Harden Called The Phrase "Propaganda." "But even you worded a 'war on terror,' personally that is propaganda. ... Don't like the wording of it like that." (ABC's "The View," 3/29/07)

Rosie O'Donnell Agreed: "Exactly, Marcia Gay. Thank you. ... It makes people into evil and good." (ABC's "The View," 3/29/07)

Which, I think, is a clue into Rosie's malfunction. She doesn't want a world with good and evil. Heck, I don't either. But you play the cards your dealt and it looks like good and evil is what we were given. Or, if you balk at calling yourself good, like I do, not-evil and evil. Or evil, and not-so-bad. Or evil, and not-going-to-let-evil-get-away-with-it. But there is evil Rosie. There are guys who want to kill the Dalai Lama, and there are guys who want to kill as many Americans (women, and children, and you, women who think like children) as they are capable of killing.

Root Causes

Here's something to make you think:

SECURITY surrounding the Dalai Lama has been tightened after reports of an attempt by the al-Qa'ida-linked terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Toiba to assassinate the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader.

So the question is: What has the Dalai Lama done to anger them so? Is he a liar-liar-liar, or is he out to make his oil company friends rich?

Ah, but the article goes on to say:

In a recent document, Osama bin Laden denounced "pagan Buddhism" as part of his general attack on anything not Islamic.

The assassination threat picked up by Indian authorities is thought to be based on bin Laden's denunciation and the extremist jihadi movement's hatred for anything and anyone that is not Muslim.

Ah-ha! So maybe Nancy Pelosi has the right idea. Put on the headscarf and avoid their wrath. Isn't it just like the oafish Republicans to anger bin Laden, and put us all at risk, by arrogantly continuing to not be Muslim?

The Way-back Machine

James Taranto noticed:

Although no one doubts our forces will prevail over Saddam Hussein's, key regional leaders confirm what the Foreign Relations Committee emphasized in its Iraq hearings last summer: The most challenging phase will likely be the day after--or, more accurately, the decade after--Saddam Hussein.

Once he is gone, expectations are high that coalition forces will remain in large numbers to stabilize Iraq and support a civilian administration. That presence will be necessary for several years, given the vacuum there, which a divided Iraqi opposition will have trouble filling and which some new Iraqi military strongman must not fill. . . . Americans are largely unprepared for such an undertaking. President Bush must make clear to the American people the scale of the commitment.
-Dec. 20, 2002
Sen. Joe Biden and
Sen. Chuck Hagel
OpEd in the Washington Post

"President Bush must make clear to the American people the scale of the commitment." Apparently senators need to be reminded as well.

Bob Parks Has Something to Say

Bob Parks message to those serving in Iraq. (about 10 min.)

Second Fiddle

Not all Democrats are happy with Nancy Pelosi playing the cheif Understander of Islam.

"No, I'm the Understanderer. I am!"

Proof

Who knew the Iranians would have such compelling proof of British incursion into their territory?

Lloyd Brown

CHARLOTTE HALL, Md. - Lloyd Brown, the last known surviving World War I Navy veteran, has died. He was 105.
Brown died Thursday at the Charlotte Hall Veterans Home in St. Mary's County, according to family and the U.S. Naval District in Washington.

How strange to see this picture up on Yahoo news. I met him two or three weeks ago for the first time. He said that when he went into the navy they scrubbed the wooden decks with sand and a brick. He wasn't getting around well on his own but he was still sharp. We were there for another vet's birthday but meeting Lloyd was a plesent surprise. I'm glad we could meet him and share some strawberry shortcake with him. He lived a full life. God bless.