Vox Blogoli Volume 2, Number 1

Hugh Hewitt has once again asked for comments. Johnathan Rauch has written a piece for the New Atlantic confusing the religious right with violent 60's activists.

On balance it is probably healthier if religious conservatives are inside the political system than if they operate as insurgents and provocateurs on the outside. Better they should write anti-abortion planks into the Republican platform than bomb abortion clinics.

Sadly, Rauch believes that anyone who supports life is equivalent to the few wackos who bombed clinics. That's right, the bombers that were widely criticized by the religious right are just the same as the religious right.

He continues:

The same is true of the left. The clashes over civil rights and Vietnam turned into street warfare partly because activists were locked out of their own party establishments and had to fight, literally, to be heard.

Rauch makes a false comparison. Pro-life people have been against legalized abortion for 32 years. Yet as a group, they have not rioted in the streets like the leftists of the 60's. The religious right are not the terrorists, "insurgents and provocateurs", that Rauch believes they are.

It's amazing that someone can grow up in America thinking Christians (which is what they mean by religious right) are terrorists and it is only by the left's reluctant allowance of Christian participation in the political process that abortion clinics are safe from bombing.

Best web art...ever

Today Honeybun and I set up a membership with the best art site on the Internet - Digital Blasphemy. It specializes in images to be used as computer wallpaper. The artist, Ryan, says he makes his sole living by publishing this site and doesn't accept commission work. Here is a peek of what I'm now using for my desktop wallpaper (with permission from the site).

Valley - 2000

I am absolutely stunned by his scenery and planetscape images. They have a way of making me feel small when I look at them. They suggest greatness beyond humanity.

Frankly, I think Ryan would be able to make much more money as a freelance artist. I think he would be better served creating art for book covers and such. I used his free gallery for over a year before getting a membership. Don't be cheap like me though. The $25 one-year subscription is well worth it.

Good night Johnny

The passing of another legend. Johnny Carson died today.

I always thought it was amazing how such a popular entertainer could leave at the peak of his popularity and never seemed to miss the limelight. He was one of the few famous figures who didn't want a comeback.

How we learn

I've come to realize that you can learn new things just by watching other people. I learned something today while I was at lunch. Never wear cycling clothes to go out in public if you aren't riding a bicycle.

Words to live by.

What else would a blizzard dump?

From the department of redundancy department:

AP headline: Blizzard Dumps Snow in Midwest, Northeast

Ecosystem

I am now part of the Ecosystem. You can check out my (lowly) ranking on the left bar of this page.

Tivo Reloaded

OK, the Tivo is now connected to the home network. Now, we have the ability to program the Tivo from any Internet connection. Say I'm at work and I realize the "A-Team" marathon is on. I can set the Tivo without having to call Honeybun at home. Why? Because I can.

My Cyborg name

Cyborg, originally uploaded by semperjase.

Discover your Cyborg name.

Bath Time

Guess who got a bath last night?

Alley, originally uploaded by semperjase.

Cowboy, originally uploaded by semperjase.

Donut

My manager at work brought in donuts today. Have you ever seen one this big?

Donut, originally uploaded by semperjase.

It's like a bear claw that takes up a whole plate. Yum.

Frustration

I just spent 2 1/2 hours setting up a wireless connection for my laptop. Instead of just setting up the connection, I thought I'd do a little clean up on the computer as well. Of course that just hosed everything. Another program I updated got corrupted, so I had to reboot about 4 times, and each time took 10 minutes for the computer to come back up.

Aaaaagggghhhh!

Oh well, it is hooked up now - and I'm blogging from bed. Not because I need to, but because I can. Cool huh?

Tomorrow night, round 2 as I hook the TIVO up to the network.

By the way - yes, I have secured the network.

Lunch

The fish taco combo...mmmm , originally uploaded by semperjase.

I had the world famous fish tacos at Rubios for lunch today. I love these things.

Felt kind of jipped though. You see, Rubios has two ways to order this meal. You can get the fish taco meal that comes with a taco, beans, rice, chips and a drink or you can order the original combo which is two tacos, chips and rice.

I went with the second choice and ordered the drink for an extra charge. Turns out, had I ordered the taco meal, I could order a second taco for $1.49 extra, get more food and saved about a dollar.

Why is it ordering from a menu is a logic puzzle in trying to figure out how to get what you want without overpaying?

Because of Winn Dixie

Thursday night, I got to see a sneak preview of the movie Because of Winn Dixie thanks to Grace Hill Media.

My take? Good movie. It starts a little slow as the audience is introduced to the main character, 10 year-old India Opal, and her divorced father who have just moved to a small town where he is the new preacher (played by Jeff Daniels). Opal finds a stray dog she names Winn Dixie who is the catalyst for her meeting people in town. Opal goes through the movie trying to discover more about the mother who left her as a baby and trying to overcome her loneliness.

This is a family movie that is character driven. The characters in town are interesting people and the movie will keep your attention as the character's backgrounds are revealed and the characters grow.

Singer Dave Matthews stars in a supporting role. His performance is believable and also showcases his musical talent. His guitar playing is some of the most riveting scenes in the movie. Cicely Tyson gives the best performance as a legally blind woman who teaches Opal the most important lessons on life and acceptance.

This movie is worth the time. The characters draw you in and are endearing. Take your family to see this movie. You will feel good when you leave the theater.

Don't trust the ACLU

James Taranto of OpinionJournal.com points out the ACLU has rewritten the Bill of rights. On the ACLU's website they say:

It is probably no accident that freedom of speech is the first freedom mentioned in the First Amendment: "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." The Constitution’s framers believed that freedom of inquiry and liberty of expression were the hallmarks of a democratic society.

The thing is, there is no elipsis in the First Amendment. The first freedom mentioned in the First Amendment is religion:

Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Isn't it scary when the self-proclaimed protector of civil liberties disavows the freedom of religion?

Overturn the "Blog" election

Hugh Hewitt's producer, Generalissimo, is holding votes for favorite "Blog" picture. My entry didn't make the cut for the 10 finalists.

One thing I've learned from Hugh: If it's not close, they can't cheat. Turns out, this one is close. I also learned from Washington state Democrats that vote counting is an inexact science. If you don't win, demand recounts until you do. While recounting, "find" uncounted votes to ensure victory.

So, I declare I have found in my basement 735 previously uncounted votes for my entry of the "Blogwood" sign. Clearly, this is indisputable. I feel vindicated and am thankful to everyone who voted for me.

Blog

Hugh Hewitt's producer is running a contest to see where Hugh's new book Blog is turning up. I snapped this photo when driving by the Hollywood sign...yeah the one right outside Denver.


Blog is everywhere 

In Good Company

Via Hugh Hewitt

Jonathan Bock of GraceHillMedia, one of Hollywood's savviest movie marketers, had the brilliant idea to offer every blogger two free tickets to an advance screening of "In Good Company," provided they agreed to blog about the movie after they had seen it.

Wait, it gets better:

any blogger who signs up for the free tickets and then posts this offer and a link to the IN GOOD COMPANY trailer on their site will be automatically entered in a contest to win their very own private screening of IN GOOD COMPANY in their town. The winner can either fill the screening with their friends and family, or see the film alone with that special someone – it’s entirely up to them. One lucky blogger here in the US will win. Sign up at info@gracehillmedia.com and send them your link. And of course, all the non-winners will still be eligible to attend an advance screening in their area.

Let the guerilla marketing begin! Good luck Mr. Bock. Hope your movie is a big hit.

Poor Ashlee

Ashlee Simpson is once again getting some back publicity for her screaching performance at last night's Orange Bowl. The crowd of 72,000 responded with a chorus of boos. You can see it from this page.

Oh my goodness. There are not words to say how bad the "performance" was. You almost have to feel sorry for her. Getting booed by 72,000 people and having it nationally televised? Where do you go from there?

I thought she could bounce back from the SNL disaster. Poke a little fun at yourself and fans will forgive you if you make it clear your future performances are live. The problem only gets worse if your live performance is horrible. That had to be the most embarrassing event in half-time show history.

I'm not sure we'll be hearing much more of Ashlee on the radio.

Me 

Toons

Is it me, or have Garfield's feet gotten huge?

2005 predictions

OK, so I was way off for my predictions in 2004. In fact, I only got one right - President Bush was re-elected (possibly two right if you consider Brittany Spears marrying one of her dancers the equivalent of gaining 150 pounds).

Of course, being wrong doesn't stop psychics from trying to predict events every new year. So here are my unlikely predictions for 2005.

1. MoveOn.org will realize their dream of defeating George W. Bush was hopeless and that any tries to impeach the President will fail. They will embrace capitalism and rebrand their site into a moving company - changing their name to MoveYourHouse.org. Look for their bright red moving vans in 2005.

2. Michael Moore will go on a diet.

3. PETA will rally their forces and provide animalarian aid to the hundreds of thousands of domesticated animals who were left homeless after the great tsunamnis in December 2004. Included will be hundreds of animal psychologists dispatched to the area to provide grief counseling for any depressed animals. PETA will also move to outlaw any further tsunamis that may harm animals.

4. Big & Rich (Honeybun's new favorite group) will release a new album that will usher in an era of peace in the Middle East.

5. Something major will happen somewhere at some time in 2005. (That should be sufficiently vague to guarantee a correct prediction).

6. Anna Nicole Smith will give up her fight for her late husband's wealth - the one who died at the age of 90 - to become a Buddist monk (or maybe that is boobist monk....bah dum dum).

7. A summit on the state of the world's environment will degenerate into a riot as the "global warming" faction attacks the "global cooling" faction during a speech by keynote speaker, Sting, on the plight of the rainforest.

8. In 2005, Hollywood will produce a good movie.....one good movie.

9. John Kerry will revert back to his natural color. Then again, he may declare "My truth is that I'm a Pumpkin-American." Liberal columnists across the nation will then commend him for his integrity.

10. Millions of people who bought the Livestrong plastic yellow bracelets will come to discover they are wearing plastic yellow bracelets (see previous link).

Have a great New Year!

Luminarias

I've told a few people about decorating our house with luminarias on Christmas eve. Most people who were not from the Southwest kind of scratched their heads and couldn't figure out why someone would put a candle in a paper bag. "Won't they catch on fire?" was the most common question.

No, they don't catch on fire. Here is a shot of our house after the were all lit.


Luminarias on Christmas eve 

Pretty huh?

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone.

Today will be spent at work until noon (sigh). At least I experienced my own little Christmas miracle this morning. I was expecting to have to scrape the frost off the car before going to work. But even though the temp was in the 30's overnight, no frost. Clear windows. Now wouldn't that just make your day?

Our festivities will begin when I get home and open presents with Honeybun. My parents and brother will come over later in the afternoon for Christmas dinner - ham this year (mmmmmm - ham).

God bless everyone.

Democrats: Don't believe the vote

An Ohio judge threw out a challenge to the 2004 election. Jesse Jackson is mad that George Bush won. So instead of holding to the rules of a democracy - the person that wins the election gets the office - Jackson is trying to get the election overturned.

This is my favorite part of the story:

The complaint questioned how the actual results could show Bush winning when exit-poll interview findings on election night indicated that Kerry would win 52 percent of Ohio's presidential vote.

Without listing specific evidence, the complaint alleges that 130,656 votes for Kerry and John Edwards (news - web sites) in 36 counties were somehow switched to count for the Bush-Cheney ticket.

Exit-polls are more reliable to Jackson than an actual vote count. In other words, Jackson doesn't believe in democracy. He doesn't want every vote to count, only the votes of those who said they voted for Kerry. Exit polls aren't elections. They don't accurately reflect vote counts. The only way to know who wins an election is to count the votes. When Ohio counted, Bush won.

Democrats said they wouldn't accept the election results if Bush won. Why is anyone even listening to these people. The danger is not the Bush won the election. The danger is that some Democrats want to overturn the will of the people.

Any means necessary, right Jesse?

Vox Blogoli VI

Hugh Hewitt has once again asked for bloggers opinion on Jon Meacham's Newsweek article Religion: The Birth of Jesus.

In the article, Meacham claims that the story of Jesus' birth is fiction - invented by the gospel writers to either cover up Jesus' illegitimate birth.

This is not an investigative journalism piece. Meacham starts with a theory - the Nativity is false - and provided only biased evidence in a misguided attempt to prove it is true. Albert Mohler pointed out how Meacham's sources were from liberal scholars, mostly the Jesus Seminar. Meacham didn't cite one source that thought the Nativity was factual - only statistics quoted in such a way as to make it seem that people who believe the story is factual are unreasonable.

He also uses selective interpretation to prove his points. Like this example:

It is also striking that in parts of the Gospels Mary herself appears unaware of her son's provenance and destiny. (In Mark, when Jesus is casting out devils at the beginning of his ministry, "his friends" the sense of the Greek is "family," or "household," which would presumably include his mother thought he was mentally disturbed and tried to stop him, saying, "He is beside himself." If Mary had received Gabriel's message, then she should have known her son was not mad, but the Messiah. And even if she were not around in this story in Mark, had Jesus been born in such extraordinary circumstances, it is logical to assume that those closest to him would have known at least something of it—enough, anyway, to see Jesus as someone with a special role or destiny of which the exorcisms were a likely part.)

Whenever a Bible doubter quotes from the bible, you MUST look it up yourself. They are most likely taking the verse out of context. Meacham is referring to Mark 3:21. The King James Version says Jesus "friends" came to him. The New American Standard Version says "His people" came to him. I will concede that the original text may be translated as "family" here. But to see if that is accurate for this verse, you need to keep reading. In Mark 3:31 the narrative continues,

"Then His mother and His brothers arrived, and standing outside they sent word to Him and called Him."

In context, there are "friends" or "people" who come to him. Then his mother and brothers (catholics believe brothers really mean cousin in this case). The point is, there is a distinction made between friends and family. Meacham puts words in Mary's mouth claiming she said "He is beside himself." The gospel writer is clearly making a distinction between Jesus friends in verse 3:21 and Jesus family in verse 3:31.

Previously, I claimed that Meacham's attempt at proving the Nativity is false is misguided. That is because Albert Mohler points out that Meacham claims to be "a believing Episcopalian." Since the virgin birth is central to the story of Christ, how can someone believe the sacred texts of Christianity or lies, yet still claim to be a Christian?

It is a contradiction that can't be answered. If the Bible lies, then the Bible cannot be believed. A person who says he is a Christian but does not believe the Bible is truthful cannot be a Christian. You are either misguided in believing the Bible is false, or misguided in claiming to be a Christian.

This seems to be a trend in liberalism this year. First we have John Kerry who claims his Catholic faith is important to him, yet does not believe he can use his faith to make decisions that will affect others. In fact, he must make decisions that go against his faith (such as supporting abortion). Now Meacham is trying to reinforce that view by claiming the religion that he believes in is a lie. The only conclusion we can draw from his position is that people should have their religion, but should not use it to form the guiding principles of their lives.

Meacham's article was not written to illuminate us on the meaning of Christmas. He is trying to tell us that Christmas is a lie and we should reject religion in general and Christianity specifically. It is alright to be a Christian as long as you know that Christianity is not worth believing in.

Meacham's example isn't convincing though. He has shown faulty logic and biased "reporting". What he has proved is that liberal writers cannot be trusted to provide a truthful discussion of Christiantiy.

Doesn't it feel like Christmas?

This year's tree. 

Oh Christmas tree...

We have officially decorated for Christmas. The Christmas tree is up and all the decorations are on. Honeybun did most of it. Well, she did all of it. She moved the few decorations I put on. She did such a great job, she was tearful when she finished. It looks great.

She also decorated the tree with some cinnamon scented pine cones. Now when I say scented, I mean you can almost see the cinnamon in the air. These are the most powerful smelling things ever. The entire upstairs smells like a cinnamon factory. I think our neighbors can smell it. Don't get me wrong, it smells good, but I've never had any scented things this strong. Honeybun said she bought them because she first smelled them two aisles away at the grocery store.

Although she decorated the tree, I did contribute. Last night I designed and printed up our Christmas cards and our annual Christmas letter. Its starting to feel like Christmas.

"I'll let you off with a warning..."

Last night was my last class for the semester. I was going home not paying attention to how fast I was going and got pulled over.

Every time I have been pulled over I have gotten a ticket (not there there have been that many times in all). Even though I am always respectful, I must not be a sympathetic figure.

Last night was different. For the first time, an officer let me off. Whew! Christmas is not a good season for traffic ticket payments. I guess I'll be paying a little more attention for a while at least.

Hard charger

Here's an inspiring blog. Sgt. Lizzie was wounded in Iraq yesterday by a roadside bomb. Her story is inspiring for her personal strength and her positive attitude.

Hang in there Sgt. and thank you.

When will they realize?

I was driving yesterday and saw a bumper sticker trying to insult George Bush.

Somewhere in Texas, a village is missing an idiot...

Now George Bush has won four elections in a row - first beating a popular Democrat incumbent governor in Texas then getting re-elected before winning two Presidential elections. How many times does George W. Bush need to beat the Dems before they realize he isn't stupid?

The Dems who are convinced that Bush is stupid actually give the President an advantage. As long as they underestimate him, they won't be able to beat. While they are scratching their heads about how an idiot can beat them, he keeps winning.

Who is the idiot?

Stuff

I know I haven't posted anything in the last few days. I have an excuse this time - the flu since Thanksgiving evening. Yuck. I think I'm over the worst of it now though.

I'm watching the Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders play in the snow here in the Denver area.

Tomorrow is Honeybun and my seventh anniversary. I don't even feel itchy.

Happy anniversary Bun.

A firm grasp of the obvious

The leading headline on AP News on this Thanksgiving evening?
Millions Celebrate Holiday Across U.S.
Who writes this stuff?

Thanksgiving

Thank you Honeybun, for being my wife. I can't imagine life without you.

Thanks Mom & Dad for raising me right, for teaching me values and teaching me about the consequences (and rewards) of my actions.

Thanks Steve, for being my little brother, for playing games with me, for being my friend.

Thanks Sally, Dave, and Kay, for being great in-laws. You welcomed me into the family years ago and always made me feel important to you.

Thank you God for meeting our needs, for giving me a paying job, a place to live, and food to eat on this Thanksgiving day. Most of all, thank you for giving me the people I'm thankful for.

Why America became great

(hat tip Hugh Hewitt)

General Thanksgiving
By the PRESIDENT of the United States Of America
A PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and assign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed;-- for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish Constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;-- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge;-- and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also, that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions;-- to enable us all, whether in publick or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us); and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine.

(signed) G. Washington

Source: The Massachusetts Centinel, Wednesday, October 14, 1789

This still is and always has been a Christian nation with a secular goverment. Being thankful to God on this day doesn't threaten our rights as some anti-religion groups would have you believe. Excercising our rights can't be a threat to the Constitution.

God bless America

Cowboy Bush

President Bush was in Chile this past weekend. The Chileans weren't too pleased that the Secret Service refused to cede its mission to proctect the president to the Chilean security services. They tried to get some pay back when the President Bush was going into a meeting with the Chilean president.

Law-enforcement authorities said the Chileans, who claimed to be in charge of security for the event, stopped Secret Service agent Nick Trotta as he was escorting Mr. Bush and first lady Laura Bush into the center, jumping in front of the agent as he approached the building entry. The authorities said the Chilean officers had seemed poised to act.
At least one Secret Service agent was shoved against a wall, the authorities said, as Mr. Trotta continued to push his way into the center. It was then that Mr. Bush responded, pushing into the crowd of angry security officials, pointing at Mr. Trotta and ordering that he be released. Mr. Bush finally reached over and grabbed the agent by the suit collar.
"He's with me," Mr. Bush said as he waded into the scuffle and pulled the agent through the crowd.

President Bush is the man. He sees one of his guys getting roughed up and he takes action. Is that too cowboy? No way. It sends a message to world leaders that President Bush does what needs to be done. He doesn't sit back wringing his hands and worrying about what our allies will think. He does the right thing.

Now, if you were a Secret Service agent and President Bush went into a melee to pull one of your guys out, wouldn't that instill some loyalty? You betcha.

Tryouts today

Ron Artest was suspended for the rest of the season - 73 games - for his part in the brawl on Saturday night.

That's going to cost him $5 million. Whoo! That's one expensive temper. Steve Jackson was suspended for 30 games and Jermaine O'Neal for 25. If you want to play in the NBA, the Pacers are probably holding tryouts today. So much for the Pacer's season.

You think this is the result of the NBA cultivating a thug culture? Or maybe it was just the result of the NBA's plan of trying to capture the NHL audience going tragically awry.

Money from South Africa

I finally received one of those scam e-mails offering to wire millions of dollars to my bank account if I just send my information to some guy. This time its from South Africa.

Oo! I can't wait. Of course, I'm not stupid enough to give anyone my bank account information. I thought I'd be a bit more creative. Here is my response followed by the original e-mail:

Date: Sat, 20 Nov 2004 18:45:02 -0800 (PST)
From: Jason
Subject: Re: Private
To: smith-bowani2@homemail.co.za

Mr. Bowani,

I would like to take advantage of this wonderful
opportunity. Sadly, I do not have a bank account to
deposit the funds into.

I am still willing to help. Please wire me $9,000 USD
(so as not to attract the attention of the I.R.S.) and
I will set up an account for you.

I anxiously await your reply.


--- SMITH BOWANI wrote:

> Hello,
>
>
> I am Mr. Smith Bowani, an auditor of a reputable
> bank in Johannesburg, Gauteng Province in the
> Republic of South Africa. I have an urgent and very
> confidential business proposition for you.
>
> We had a foreign client named Mr. Wooin Shim, who
> deposited a huge sum of money (18.6 Million United
> States Dollars), with our bank. Eventually, this
> client died in a plane crash and since his death we
> have not had anybody come up for the claims as the
> next of kin.
>
> You may want to take a look at other passengers,
> who were on the same plane; here is a site for your
>
perusal.http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9708/06/guam.passenger.list/
>
> A situation I have monitored closely with my
> position in the bank. Now having monitored this
> deposit and managed it over the years before his
> death, and hence nobody has showed up as the next of
> kin for the past years. I now solicit for your
> assistance to present you as the next of kin as
> every other arrangement/ processes will be monitored
> by me and my partners involved. However I got your
> contact from a trade consultant here in South
> Africa, though I did not disclose the purpose of my
> seeking for a foreign business partner to him.
> Although we will still have to sign some agreement
> before the final transfer of the fund into any of
> your designated bank account.
>
> I have involved a very senior official in the
> operational department, and we have agreed that
> after the transfer of the money into your account,
> you shall be entitled to 20% of the total sum, my
> colleagues and I will have 75% while 5% will be used
> to reimburse any expenses incurred. All necessary
> precautions have been taken to ensure a risk free
> situation on the side of both parties. Please note
> that this deal can only take place on the following
> conditions;
>
> 1. You will provide the bank account and other
> relevant particulars/information for easy and onward
> Remittance of the Eighteen million, six hundred
> thousand USD.
>
> 2. Absolute confidentiality and sincerity will be
> required and guaranteed, considering our positions
> in the bank.
>
> 3. Assurance that our own share will be released to
> us in good faith when this money finally gets into
> your account.
>
> Please treat with utmost confidentiality. Contact me
> as quickly as possible through my e-mail.
>
> Expecting your urgent response,
>
> Best Regards,
>
> MR. SMITH BOWANI

Alexander the Gay

Oliver Stone is about to release his $160 million epic "Alexander the Great" to some controversy. I had high hopes for this movie. Years ago, I read a biograhpy of Alexander. His military accomplishments were amazing. It is almost incomprehensible that a man could conquer the known world by the age of 30. His troops were outnumbered in most of the battles they fought, yet his brilliant strategies conquered every army fielded against him.

My hopes for a good movie have been dashed by seeing the trailors of an effeminate (although fit) looking Collin Farrell. Oliver Stone has decided to showcase Alexander's alleged homosexual side, complete with a masscara wearing male lover. A line in the movie even claims, "Alexander was defeated only once -- by Hephaestion's thighs."

First of all, there is no conclusive evidence that Alexander and Hephaestion (Alexander's closest friend for 19 years) had a homosexual relationship. There best argument for the claim is circumstantial evidence based on the permissive Macedonian culture. There is evidence for his heterosexuality based on the fact that he had three wives and other female lovers.

It's not looking good for a hit movie here. Middle America does not go to movies about guy-on-guy action. If there are as many as 10% of the population that is gay, that means the other 90% can't relate to him.

Finally, the supposedly great director Oliver Stone is reduced to cliche. In one scene, Alexander's wife puts a knife to his neck on their wedding night after seeing him take a ring from Hephaestion. How many times has the woman-threatens-to-kill-man-before-he-takes-the-weapon-away-and-they-have-hot-sex gimic been used in the movies? It's happened so often in the movies, I almost think I missed out on something because it never happened to me. You'd think Stone could come up with something more original.

I'm starting to think the recent movie Troy will look like a Shakespearean play compared to this one.

NBA thuggery

Last night, the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers were involved NBA's most shameful moment in history. A bench clearing brawl followed Pacer Ron Artest's hard foul of the Piston's Ben Wallace. That was followed by Artest charging into that stands and attacking a fan. Artest was mad because someone threw a cup of beer at him.

Artest's lack of self-control endangered him, and his teammates who went into the stands to protect him. When I was watching the replay on ESPN, I was wondering how Artest knew which person threw the beer. The thing was, he didn't. ESPN's reporter at the arena, Jim Gray, reported that the man Artest attacked was not the one that threw the beer. Artest's teammate, Steve Jackson, then entered the stands and started throwing punches at fans.

The fans in Detroit were embarrasingly misbehaved. That doesn't excuse Artest's or Jackson's behavior. ESPN thinks it does though. Tim Legler writes:

Artest will probably receive the brunt of the media condemnation from this situation because he's a lightning rod for controversy and that's not fair. It's not fair because he's not truly at fault for what happened...

In the paragraph before that, Legler said, "Once again, I'm not justifying the players' actions." OK, so after he doesn't justify the players actions, he justifies the players actions by claiming it wasn't Artest's fault.

The "he made me do it" defense won't fly. The fans responsible for attacking any Indiana Pacer should be held responsible for their actions. Artest is responsible for his actions. He was not defending himself when he went into the stands and attacked a man who did not throw anything at him. Steve Jackson was not defending himself when he followed Artest and punched another fan who had not attacked his teammate.

Sadly, this is what you get when you cross a few drunk people with some over-payed hot-headed thugs.

Update: The NBA has indefinitely suspended Indiana Pacers' Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal and Stephen Jackson and Detroit Pistons player Ben Wallace. Indiana is going to be hurting with three of its stars out.

Target gets targeted

Target has decided not to allow the Salvation Army to place its red kettles and bell ringers at its stores this Christmas season. This could cost the Salvation Army up to $9 million.

Another part of American culture (and English for that matter) may be dying. Salvation Army has used bell ringers and their signature red kettles since 1891. Who doesn't hear the bell ringing in December and not think its Christmas in the United States?

The Sacramento Bee speculates that Target's move means the bell ringers are a thing of the past. If so, American culture will surely suffer. The sound of the bell ringers in front of stores reminded us that in the hurry of buying gifts for our loved ones, there are other people in the world who need our help.

The bell ringers also taught us appreciation. How many times during the year do you hear a heart felt "thank you"? But you hear it when you throw some change in the kettle. The ringers thank us because they know that little bit of change adds up to millions of dollars every Christmas.

I remember asking my parents for change to put in the kettle when I was a child. It was part of the joy of experiencing Christmas, giving to others. I hope to be a father in the next couple of years, will my child be able to experience the same joy? If the Salvation Army bell ringers are being told to leave, charity is going with them.

After a Christmas tree disaster last year, Honeybun and I have decided it is time to get an artificial tree. Our next stop was Target. We've crossed them off our list this year and won't be doing any Christmas shopping there. We'll check out WalMart and go to the malls. Before we do, we'll make sure we have change for the bell ringers.

Update: Hugh Hewitt linked to me again. Welcome Hugh Hewitt readers. Feel free to leave a comment.

A great day in history

Born on November 15
1708 William Pitt the Elder, secretary of state of England whose strategies helped win the Seven Years War.
1738 Sir William Hershel, British astronomer who discovered Uranus.
1887 Georgia O'Keefe, American artist.
1891 Erwin Rommel, German field marshal in World War II.
1942 Daniel Barenboim, Israeli pianist and conductor.
1969 SemperJase - Jason

I'm 35 today. Is this what 35 feels like?

What's up

There just doesn't seem to be a lot to write about lately.

Tomorrow, Honeybun and I will go through the rite of acceptance as part of the process of confirmation in the catholic church. It is important, but not the kind of thing my adoring fans here (both of you) probably want to read about.

Evander Holyfield lost another fight tonight. The 42 year old needs to retire, but doesn't realize it. It's a shame, the man that literally drove Mike Tyson crazy is a shadow of the fighter he once was. After going through battles with Riddick Bowe (that knocked Bowe out of boxing even though he won two of the three fights) and beating Tyson convincingly, he has gone downhill ever since. Hopefully he will retire with some dignity, but that doesn't look likely.

Marine Corps Birthday

Today is the 229th Birthday of the United States Marine Corps. Happy birthday to all Marines. For those in harm's way, God bless you.

Semper Fidelis.

Update: Powerline blog and Hugh Hewitt have also acknowledged Marines today.

Marines on the move

U.S. Marines attacked insurgent strongholds in Iraq today. Rush hour is going to be a bitch in Fallujah tomorrow.

Fortune cookie revisited

Honeybun and I ordered Chinese food tonight. She got the same fortune again as she did twice in July. Doesn't this sound ominous?

I ask again, what kind of sick bastard puts this in a fortune cookie? 

The head scratching begins

Hollywood did everything it could to elect John Kerry. Rock musicians toured for Kerry. Dan Rather used fake documents against George Bush. The New York Times published a fake story to hurt George Bush. It turns out America didn't care what the self-appointed elites thought.

In the early morning hours after the polls closed, it became obvious that George Bush won. Ohio had gone to George Bush by more than 130,000 votes. The only network that admitted it was Fox News - for that, I'm sure critics will claim a bias. In spite of the margin, ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN refused to admit that President Bush won until John Kerry conceded. Even now, ABC, CBS, and CNN have not included Ohio in their electoral vote tallies which even though they are headlining the story the Kerry has conceded on the same page. So tell me, which networks are biased?

The liberal agenda failed miserably. Every single one of the 11 state initiatives to protect marriage were passed. Even in Oregon where Kerry won the state and where they did elect a Democrat for the U.S. Senate, an decisive majority said no to gay marriage. Americans overwhelmingly said marriage is between a man and woman. This looks promising for the next session of Congress to get a federal constitutional amendment passed.

Third parties were found to be irrelevant. A final warning is happening in Washington State where the governor race is still undecided with the Republican candidate leading by about 1000 votes while a Losertarian candidate has taken 38,000 votes. The only thing the Losertarians can accomplish in that race is to help elect someone with the polar opposite politcal agenda.

Ralph Nader had no impact on any race. He was not the spoiler Democrats were worried about. This election showed that a third party vote is an irrelevant vote.

Some races show the voters were schizophrenic. In Colorado, about 32,000 people voted for President Bush then turned around and voted for a Democrat for Senate. Again, Oregon voted against gay marriage, but then voted for Kerry and a Democrat Senator (not the party of preserving marriage). In Ohio, Bush won, but 12% of the people who voted for the Republican senator voted for John Kerry. Finally, in South Dakota, about 9% of the people who re-elected President Bush voted for Tom Daschle who has obstructed the President at every opportunity. That wasn't enough to keep Daschle from losing his seat though.

Even though some voters didn't understand what a split vote means, the nation gave the GOP and President Bush a mandate. They want the President to lead the nation in the fight against terrorists. They do not want to change the definition of marriage. They are comfortable with the economy, where unemployement is still near historic lows.

The Democratic party became shrill and unhinged. Now after the election it is in shambles. Its political influence is at its lowest point in decades. DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe has led the party to defeat after defeat. In the past four years, it has moved farther left away from the beliefs of America. Yes, they took a significant part of the vote. What that proves is that the Democrat party can get just enough votes to lose an election.

Better late than never

The AP is reporting John Kerry called President Bush to concede the election.

Do you think Pete Coors early concession in Colorado was meant to teach the Democrats how to lose with dignity?

Me, oh mi oh, what about Ohio?

OK, that is the cheesiest title I've ever come up with for the blog.

Still, looks like it is coming down to Ohio. I heard a few people predict it would come to which ever candidate won two of three - PA, FL, and OH.

Is Ohio the new Florida?

Why am I doing this?

I told myself I wouldn't watch the election results come in today. I would ignore TV and radio and just look at the results in the morning.

What am I doing? Sitting here watching the election results on the web and TV. Its like picking a scab. I can't help myself. Honeybun is pretty much able to ignore it. She's sitting on the couch playing Fable (the new Xbox game we just bought).

Blogging the election

Blogger and blogspot are already running slow on election morning.

CBS Marketwatch seems to think that is dangerous. In spite of the fact the the networks miscalled the election last year which surely effected the results by encouraging people to stay home instead of complete their vote, CBS Marketwatch thinks that bloggers are the real danger and they may leak exit polling data.

It seems to show they believe the blogosphere has influence. Of course there is no ignoring that influence since blogs broke the story about CBS using fake documents against President Bush.

Anyway, if you are a Bush supporter, go vote. If you are a Nader supporter go vote (a vote for Nader is a vote for Bush). If you are a Kerry supporter, remember it is a cold day today and you don't want to get sick standing in line. :)

Alzheimer patients don't need stem cell lie

The Democrats are advancing two lies right now.

The first is that President Bush has banned stem cell research. He hasn't. He has merely limited embryonic research.

The second is that embryonic stem cell research will find a cure for Alzheimer's disease. It won't. Alzheimer's disease is a whole brain disease. Developing new cells for part of the brain won't fix the problem with the whole brain.

Thankfully, real science is aware of this fact. It looks like scientists actually doing the research are on the right path. Fox News reports on research for a new treatment to fight the plaque in the brain associated with the disease.

Free speech for Democrats only?

What is it with Democrats trying to silence Republicans?

Now the mayor of Arvada (a Denver suburb) has been video taped stealing yard signs that supported a Republican for the state senate.

Do Democrats believe in the free exchange of ideas?

Free game of the day

Here is a real game for you. You know, the kind of game people played before computers. No, really, you can actually play games without the computer. Just download this one from Cheapass Games. OK, you do need a computer for that part. Then print out rules and the cards (on some cardstock) and go play.

Here is the description:

Welcome to Sherwood Forest, where the Poor are getting richer. A lunatic named Robin Hood has taken it upon himself to rob the rich nobles of Merrie Olde England and redistribute their ill-gotten wealth to those who deserve it even less, the ubiquitous Poor.

You and your friends, a small band of wandering merchants, have taken it upon yourselves to relieve these simple peasants of their newfound wealth, with such desirable medieval amenities as fyne arte, olde milke and tropical fyshes.

Why, if it weren't for you, they might not even manage to stay poor.

While you're there, check out some of the other games they have for sale and buy some for stocking stuffers.*



This is an unpaid endorsement. Cheapass Games is not affiliated with Always Jason, Ltd., Inc. (a non-profit corporation - because there are no profits) or any of its employees (of which there are zero).

I voted today

Today Honeybun and I had to go get replacement absentee ballots. The ballots the county mailed to us on October 1 never got here (fraud anyone?). The issuance of the replacement ballots invalidates the ones mailed out earlier, so the old ones can't be voted.

Before I went to vote, I saw this piece of advice from Bill Clinton:

"If one candidate is trying to scare you and the other is trying to get you to think, if one candidate is appealing to your fears and the other one is appealing to your hopes, you better vote for the one who wants you to think and hope."

Although I don't think I ever agreed with him in the past, I took his advice this time and voted for George W. Bush. Thanks for the help Bill.

Fun link of the day

Try the paper toss game for minutes of mindless fun. (hat tip fark.com)

Hey, not fair!

Coaches around the league have been jumping on the bandwagon of criticizing the Denver Broncos for using chop blocks in their blocking schemes. For those who don't know, a chop block is when a player hits another below the waist to take an opponents legs out from under him. Unfortunately, one of the Cincinnati Bengals was injured on Monday night when he was chop blocked by one of the Broncos.

Of course, John Madden and Al Michaels immediately jumped on a high horse to condemn the practice. Apparently they feel it just isn't sportsman like and the Broncos rely on it too much for the success in their running game.

The Bengals coach, not surprisingly, criticized the Broncos for chop blocking after the game. Then Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher chimed in.

So in a press conference today, Broncos head coach Mike Shannahan took the press to a video room and showed them footage of.....Bengals and Steelers players chop blocking.

How funny is that?

Kerry - the new Perot

Kerry claimed in the last presidential debate that he met with all the members of the U.N. Security council before voting for the war in Iraq in October 2002.

Apparently Kerry confused the concepts of not meeting with any security council members and meeting with all of them.

The Washington Times:

But of the five ambassadors on the Security Council in 2002 who were reached directly for comment, four said they had never met Mr. Kerry. The four also said that no one who worked for their countries' U.N. missions had met with Mr. Kerry either.

Wow. Is he delusional? Stories like this is why Ross Perot did not get elected and became a laughing stock.

Vote Bush.

Why you can't trust the U.N.

The AP news service has admitted that U.N. sanctions against Saddam Hussein were not working:

Interviews with dozens of former and current Iraqi officials by congressional investigators have produced new evidence that Saddam Hussein micromanaged business deals under the U.N. oil-for-food program to maximize political influence with important foreign governments like Russia and neighboring Arab states.

This proves that the "we rushed to war" crowd is out of touch. Sanctions were supposed to help depose Hussein. Not only were the sanctions not working, they were having the opposite of their intended effect. The sanctions were keeping Hussein in power and expanding his influence.

Relying on U.N. diplomacy to protect the United States will only encourage threats to grow. Yet this is what John Kerry is advocating in his run for president.

Another reason to vote for Bush

Honeybun and I were driving by the University of Denver today and saw a lone protestor on the corner. He had a reason to vote for President Bush that I had not thought of before. On a big red board in white spray-painted letters his sign said,

KERRY THROWS LIKE A GIRL

Fourteen minutes left

I think I had one of my fifteen minutes of fame over the weekend. Hugh Hewitt posted a link to this blog from his site. A blogger's dream come true. My link is part of his 1:45 PM, Saturday update. Check out some of the other entries while you're at it.

Mary Cheney and the Religious Right?

John Kerry made a gratuitous mentioned of Mary Cheney's life-style during the last presidential debate. Not only did he use her as a political tool, he decided to speak for her as well:

We're all God's children, Bob. And I think if you were to talk to Dick Cheney's daughter, who is a lesbian, she would tell you that she's being who she was, she's being who she was born as.

John Kerry doesn't address exactly how he knows what she would say. He assumes that all gay and lesbian people claim they are born that way. Without speaking to Mary Cheney on the issue, he is an authority on the reasons for her sexual orientation.

So where is NOW? Shouldn't they be offended that a candidate for the highest office in the land decides to speak for a woman without first consulting with her on her own opinion?

How about PFLAG or other activist organizations for homosexuals? Do they want straight people telling homosexuals what they think? If you listen for their protests, you'll only hear crickets.

Instead of try to calm the controversy, they fan the flames. Kerry campaign manager Mary Beth Cahill calls Mary Cheney "fair game." That is, the Democrats will use her personal life to their advantage. Elizabeth Edwards made the gaffe of judging Dick and Lynne Cheney's relationship with their daughter by claiming the felt a "certain degree of shame" about her. Her reasoning seems to be they're Republicans. They obviously don't love their gay daughter.

What a gift from the Democrats. Voters know that parents - Republican or Democrat - love their children. To use a political opponents' children against them is beyond the rules of decency. There will be a price to pay for doing it.

Funny

This is the BEST DILBERT EVER.

Is she stupid or just naive?

Britney Spears said in an interview she wants to change her last name to that of her new husband's. But "society" probably won't let her. I think she may be confusing her managers and agents with "society".

She goes on to say she wants to have children soon - presumably with her new husband.

In that case, I recommend she don't change her name to soon. After all, her husband is the one who left his pregnant girlfriend and 2 year old daughter to be with Britney. Not a good track record to indicate he will be a good father and husband.

Hope you signed a pre-nup Britney. You're gonna need it.

A new record

The New England Patriots beat the Miami Dolphins to set a new record. They have won 19 straight regular season games going back to last year.

Now going into the game, it was obvious that Miami didn't have a chance to beat New England. Still, I was hoping Miami would be able to stop the streak.

My question is, does that make me unpatriotic? (buh, dum, dum)

French politics

Here is the t-shirt of the day (nominated by Beth). You can even buy it here. Support your favorite French politician.


 

Score one for President Bush

I didn't get to see the presidential debate last night, so I had to rely on media reaction. Most of the opinion writers say President Bush won the debate. Since I read a lot of conservative writers, I really wasn't convinced until I found reaction from (left leaning)Slate.

When their writer admits President Bush won, it must have been a clear victory.

I think the most damaging answer from Kerry was when he showed he has no convictions and explained how religious convictions are irrelevant. He was asked for assurance that tax dollars would not fund abortion. His reply:

First of all, I cannot tell you how deeply I respect the belief about life and when it begins. I'm a Catholic, raised a Catholic. I was an altar boy. Religion has been a huge part of my life. It helped lead me through a war, leads me today.

But I can't take what is an article of faith for me and legislate it for someone who doesn't share that article of faith, whether they be agnostic, atheist, Jew, Protestant, whatever. I can't do that.

So, because his belief is supposedly based on his religious views, he refuses to take action to support that belief. In that case, I have to say he really doesn't have the beliefs he claims to hold.

What is most alarming is that this candidate for President is saying it is wrong for people with religious convictions to support public policies that support their religious beliefs. He thinks the ethical position is for religious people to support policies that do the opposite of what they believe. In this case, religious people should support laws that promote abortion.

Never mind that non-religious people are forcing their views on us with their public policy. John Kerry believes that is OK because it is supposedly not religious. So much for Freedom of religion.

27

Twenty seven days until election day. And John Kerry still thinks the way to keep Iran from developing nuclear weapons is to give them nuclear fuel.

Mmmmm

I love grape juice.

Appeasement

Last night in the Presidential debate John Kerry was asked what the biggest security threat is. He answered nuclear proliferation.

Yeah, that is a concern. His answer to get Iran to stop developing nuclear weapons? Give them nuclear fuel as long as they promise not to develop bombs with it and let inspectors in. What the hell?

UN inspectors didn't work in Iraq, they didn't work in Korea, and empty promises from mad Islamic clerics will surely keep the world safe.

Appeasement is not a security policy. It didn't work for Rome. In fact, it got Rome sacked. It won't work now either. Especially when appeasing an enemy involves giving them the tools to destroy us.

Diversity failure is triumph

Last night, my technical writing class was discussing proposal writing. For an example, we reviewed an actual grant proposal submitted by the University of Colorado at Denver (UCD) in response to an RFP (request for proposal) seeking to fund new educational programs. UCD hopes to receive funding to offer a new certificate related to M.S. program I'm in.

One of the requirements of the funding organization was for the proposed program to involve women and minorities as part of a diversity initiative.

In their proposal the university sited a "diversity" statistic. Eighty percent of the graduates of UCD's technical communication program are women. That's 80%.

Remember back when there was a diversity failure if less than 50% of graduates were women? Now that it's 80%, that is advertised as a success. It seems more like a failure from my position. Overall, college enrollment is approaching 60% women. This hurts women as well as men.

How? Well, this is why well educated women are having problems finding dates. It's a fact, men are more likely to date women with less education than women are to date men with less education. That leads to a lot of single well educated women.

Back to the subject. Let's face it. "Diversity" doesn't really mean diversity. It means giving advantages to certain politically favored groups. Christna Hoff Sommers covers more about this in her book The War Against Boys.

The French don't get it

Remember this statement from a terrorist web site?

"As if there was any question of negotiation. Far from it - they must obey the demands of the Mujahadeen. If you refuse, we slaughter."

Here is the French solution to terrorism:

"France said Monday that it would take part in a proposed international conference on Iraq only if the agenda included a possible U.S. troop withdrawal...
Paris also wants representatives of Iraq's insurgent groups to be invited to a conference."

Strangely, France doesn't take the terrorists at their word. Why does France want to negotiate with people who refuse to negotiate?

John Kerry is.....orange?

Apparently George Hamilton has become a Kerry campaign advisor. Overnight, Kerry turned orange. Shocking.

Clearly this is more evidence of collusion with CBS. Fake documents/fake tan? Stay tuned for more details. Did Dan Rather coordinated with the campaign to choose which fake tan to use?


Tan-from-a-can Kerry 

It hailed tonight

Honeybun with a hand full that fell on our house 20 minutes ago.


Honeybun 

Hail at our house

This is what our driveway looked like after the hail storm. Nasty.


Hail storm this evening 

Hail, hail, go away

This one is dark, but you may see white on the street behind the car. That's not snow.


See white in the street? That's hail. 

Why we need to kill terrorists

It sounds harsh but it's true. We must kill the terrorists. The culture of Western civilization believes that differences can be talked through and negotiated. What many fail to consider is that other cultures do not share that beliefs and does not value human life in the same way we do.

The British government refused to negotiate with terrorists for the release of captive Kenneth Bigley. The two Americans taken with him had already been executed.

The British government may sound uncaring unless you realize the terrorists refuse to negotiate.

[The hostage takers] began taunting Western governments over their efforts to seek their citizens’ release from captivity. Late on Friday a fresh message appeared on a website believed to be used by al-Zarqawi which read: "What is laughable is the insistence of the ministers of all infidel nationalities on the phrase ‘no negotiations’. As if there was any question of negotiation. Far from it - they must obey the demands of the Mujahadeen. If you refuse, we slaughter."

The Islamic terrorists have defined the rules. Kill them or they will kill us. There is no "talking it out."

From the "well duh" files

My uncle forwarded a news article to me.

It has a good point that there needs to be more study on how a patient's gender can effect diseases.

Still, the article manages to make one person look pretty stupid.

"Women are different than men, not only psychologically (but) physiologically, and I think we need to understand those differences," says Dr. Catherine DeAngelis, editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Women are different physiologically. This is a new conclusion? I figured that out for myself at a pretty young age without any medical training. In light of this evidence, it turns out I was a prodigy and should have trained in the medical field. I mean if I knew that men and women were different when I was 4 years old and medicine is only discovering that fact now, I should have been able to cure cancer by the time I was 25.

The new terrorists

The U.K. is finding a growing terror threat at home. This time, it is not from Islamo-fascists. Now, it's from animal rights groups. The Sunday Herald reports(emphasis added):

The case of Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS), a drug-testing facility near Cambridge, is one example of how far extremists can go. Last weekend, a “terror list” naming 150 individuals – including 21 children – emerged, most with an indirect link to the company.

If you keep reading the article you find out:

[Robin Webb of the Animal Liberaton Front] rejects the notion that the families of scientists and researchers should not be targets.

“Some say it is morally unacceptable but it is equally unacceptable to use animals in experiments. The children of those scientists are enjoying a lifestyle built on the blood and abuse of innocent animals. Why should they be allowed to close the door on that and sit down and watch TV and enjoy themselves when animals are suffering and dying because of the actions of the family breadwinner? They are a justifiable target for protest.”

How sick is this guy? This is not moral equivallency - it is moral bankruptcy. He doesn't believe that animals are equal to humans, he believes animals are better than humans.

Don't think this is a problem limited to England. The Center for Consumer Freedom warns about domestic animal rights terror coming to the U.S.

Jerry Vlasak has been associated with Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (an organization related to PETA). Jerry Vlasak also has connections to SHAC, an organization that has been indicted for terrorism along with seven of its leaders. Here is Vlasak's view on using terrorism to support the animal rights movement:

"I don't think you'd have to kill -- assassinate -- too many," Vlasak said. "I think for five lives, 10 lives, 15 human lives, we could save a million, two million, 10 million non-human lives."

He later clarified his statement as reported by The Guardian from a radio interview:

"I am simply saying that it [violence] is a morally acceptable tactic and it may be useful in the struggle for animal liberation."

Don't support terrorism. Don't give money to PETA, PCRM, or SHAC.

Kerry first, America second

Teresa Heinz Kerry gave a speech in Phoenix last Wednesday (hat tip to James Taranto).
The Business Journal of Phoenix reports:

In regard to the hunt for terror leader Osama Bin Laden, Heinz Kerry said she could see the al-Qaida chief being caught before the November election.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he appeared in the next month," said Heinz Kerry, alluding to a possible capture by United States and allied forces before election day.
Heinz Kerry is accusing the Bush administration of a consipiracy theory.

Capture of Bin Laden bad for Kerry. The Kerry campaign would prefer Bin Laden be free rather than be captured to benefit their campaign. Scary stuff when Democrats love Bin Laden more than President Bush.

Bad career advice

You can tell when a actor/actress is having career problems when they star in a sex flick. Neve Campbell is having career problems. The Rocky Mountain News reviewed the film and wasn't too flattering in their opinion.

Apparently the movie becomes a series of random sex scenes complete with an orgy in Central Park and another scene with some lesbian action involving Neve Campbell's character. Unlike the movie Wild Things, Neve does drop her clothes in this one.

Why do actors think that these kind of movies will help their careers. Bo Derek's career was pretty much ended with Bolero. Elizabeth Berkeley became a laughing stock after Showgirls. Demi Moore's Striptease was a bomb. Eyes Wide Shut was a disaster for Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Their careers improved in spite of, not because of, that movie which only revealed that Stanley Kubrick had some wierd fantasies.

So why are stars so gullible that they keep doing this stuff?

Update: Add Meg Ryan to the list for "In the Cut"

The baptism

Here is a shot of Cody getting baptized. That's me in the white shirt and Honeybun the first on the right ready with the towel.


The baptism 

Aww, how cute?

Here is a question for the ages. Why is a baby with cereal all over his face normally disgusting. Then when you are the one doing the feeding, it's cute? I've never thought a baby with a dirty face was appealling in anyway. Then, last Friday, I was babysitting Cody and feeding him. Suddenly I think, "I've got to get a picture of this." What the...?

The good thing about this weekend: Years from now, when Cody becomes a smartass teenager (redundant phrase) I can now tell him, "I've changed your diapers." :)


Feeding Cody.  

On the road again

We're just about ready to get on the road to go back to Colorado. As I'm sitting here in shorts in warm southern New Mexico, the weather report is telling me that the high in the Denver area will be 47 degrees. Chilly.

I would change, but the car is already packed.

Godparents

Honeybun and I are now officially godparents. It's somewhat anti-climactic. Cody didn't get that wet after all, just a little dribble on his head that didn't even run over his face. He didn't cry. Not even a whimper either. He is a very good natured baby. He pretty much just looked around wondering what all the hubbub was about. Not much else happened. The whole thing was shorter than a Vegas wedding.

You'd think the church would have a gift-shop that sells "My nephew got baptized and all I got was this lousy t-shirt" t-shirts.

We did get a gift - a plaque that says "Godparents" with a greeting on it. Which is cool. We also got a card from Cody thanking us for being his godparents - but I suspect it was forged. I'm sure he doesn't know how to write yet. Which leads me to question, what did Dan Rather know and when did he know about the forged greeting card from Cody.

So Jase (you ask), when are you two going to have a kid? Well, Honeybun and I are talking about it. We're planning to pull the goalie off the ice after the holidays are over.

Low fat blogging

I can't say that I've done on "light" blogging the last few days since my blogging is normally light anyway. So, my posts being even less than usual, my adoring fans are down to low fat blogging at this point.

Why? Well, I'm in Las Cruces, NM visiting my in-laws. My nephew (see archive for February 17th) is getting baptized today. Honeybun and I are godparents. Cool huh?

Sorry, no witty rejoinders, this is a solemn family occasion (I'll even be wearing a suit and tie) Followed by dinner somewhere.

Get ready to get wet Cody.

What size is this?

Each of the last three nights, I've been going to McDonald's to get an ice cream cone for Honeybun and a chocolate shake for me. At the drive-thru, my exact order was "an ice cream cone and a medium chocolate shake".

It's actually become a game because each I get different sizes each time. I'm not sure if they know what a medium is - 21 oz. or 16 oz.

Apparently tonight is the medium is 21 oz.

Mmmmm. Chocolate.

Men & women

Honeybun recently told me to wash out a water bottle. Sure, I'll wash out the lip, but probably not fill it with soap to do the inside.

This is where men and women are different. If I'm cooking and I need some water for the recipe, I use the measuring cup, dry it out and put it back in the cupboard.

Honeybun would use the measuring cup, and put it in the dishwasher where it will be washed...with water.

I love being married.

Using rights to complain about no rights

I was perusing some blogs today and came up on Losers Lounge. In her side bar, the writer laments the loss of her Constitutional rights:

IN MEMORY OF: The Bill Of Rights (1791-2001) Slain By The Patriot Act. Rest In Pieces

Of course she voices her complaint by blogging and therefore using her rights of free speech and freedom of the press. She also uses a tyrant's title as her pen name, "Tsarina".

I guess she doesn't see the irony of her writing.

Tsarina doesn't understand the true threat. Bin Laden wrote an open letter containing his seven demands of the American People. Note the first:

(1) The first thing that we are calling you to is Islam.

And the consequences:

"If you fail to respond to all these conditions, then prepare for fight with the Islamic Nation."

The threat of freedom comes from Islamic fascists. Not from our government where the Bill of Rights is still the standard of liberty in the world.

Useless headline of the day

Dolphin's quarterback Jay Fiedler was benched at half-time in Saturday's game against the Titans.

An AP headline tells us "Dolphins' Fiedler Not Happy About Benching." AP must have Captain Obvious writing headlines.

When in the history of sports has a player ever said, "I'm happy the coach benched me. Did you see how bad I was playing? I was just about to ask him to bench me when he gave me the news. Hopefully, I'll be sitting the bench next week too."

CYA or self-incrimination

The memos supposedly revealing 1st Lt. Bush was AWOL and a bad soldier written by Lt. Col. Killian were addressed "To file", meaning they weren't actually sent to anyone, just filed in Lt. Col Killian's personal file. One of the memos dated 18 aug 1973 is titled "CYA" (link is to Powerline). It documents how (then retired) General Staudt pressuring the Lt. Col. to "sugarcoat" a review for 1st. Lt. Bush.

So let's get this straight. A retired General no longer affiliated with the National Guard (yes, that is redundant) is pressuring a commanding officer to falsify a report about a 1st Lt. That commanding officer is so concerned about the ethics of the situation, he agrees to accomodate the retired General then creates evidence his report was false by documenting he backdated the report and omitted a rating in lieu of giving a presumably bad rating. The Lt. Col. then calls that "CYA" (cover your ass).

Instead of filing a memo to self, a commanding officer would include justification for not giving a rating in the report itself. The reasoning for writing the memo doesn't follow. The implied logic is that if ever asked about the report, the Lt. Col. could claim "I filed a false report but I was pressured to do it." That excuse would not relieve him of the responsibility of making a false report. The memo would only prove he did so knowingly.

Was he a fool or is the memo a forgery?

Crash!

If you read my last entry, you've been waiting for the crash.

It happened thanks to ABC News laying out the evidence that the memos revealed by CBS were forged. Not good news for Kerry. The article's conclusion sums it up:

Many Democrats are worried that if they are found to be forgeries, it will be a setback for Sen. John Kerry's campaign to defeat Bush in November.

Its hard to come away from reading the article and not believe that articles were forgeries.

Uh oh!

As a child I remember the feeling of waiting to see if the dumb move I made would end in disaster. Like playing with your friend with a ball and bat. Your buddy tossed the ball and you hit it dead-on with the bat. There was that moment where you heard a satisfying crack. Then you and your buddy watch the ball arching toward the neighbor's window.

For a seemingly timeless moment your gut twists up and you say "uh oh". To your side you see your buddy's dumbfounded look as you both wait to see if the ball will crash through the window or somehow hit the ground before it without doing any damage.

Today the big news is that newly found documents indicate President Bush was AWOL and disobeyed orders while in the National Guard. That is the satisfying "crack" of the bat the Democrats felt.

Then later in the day, serious questions have been raised about the authenticity of the documents. Supposedly they came from the personal files of Mr. Bush's former commanding officer (why did the officer keep personnel files in his personal files?). That officer is now dead but his son believes the documents may be fake. Some typographists believe the documents are likely fake as well.

Uh oh.

Somewhere a Democrat oppretive and his buddy are staring at each other with a dumbfounded looks on their faces hoping this doesn't end in disaster.

If the documents are real, President Bush will take a hit in the polls and keep on rolling.

If they are fakes, CBS has egg on its face for not checking its facts before releasing the documents and revealing their biases. Some Democrats will be exposed (think Watergate, but worse) and President Bush will become bullet proof from any further accusations.

No, thanks. It'll give me gas.

This past Sunday, volunteers at the Nevada state fair in Reno laid down tortillas and heaped on refried beans, sour cream and salsa to create the world's largest burrito.

I've always wondered what happens to the food created in these stunts. Who gets to eat them? Apparently no one in this case. Organizers feared bacteria growing in the sour cream after sitting in the sun for the two hours it took to create the super burrito.

One volunteer said, "Sour cream and sunshine don't mix."

Football

It's football time again. The season opens tomorrow night with Indianapolis playing New England.

I've been a San Fransicso 49ers fan since grade school. This year I'm making the switch to officially being a Broncos fan (even though the preseason isn't giving me a positive feeling about this year).

Sadly, I now work on Sunday mornings. It will be mainly Internet game day coverage for me this year. I should be able to get home in the middle of the second quarter for the second game of the day and also catch the evening game.

Go Broncos.

The Kerry campaign

Another blogger has created a time line of Kerry campaign blunders from August. Not very encouraging if you're a Kerry fan.

What the?

You may have noticed I updated my blog template. Found it on blogskins.com then edited the heck out of it.

So what do you think? Feel free to discuss amongst yourselves in comments.

Security

I was speaking with a coworker about the security events at LAX yesterday. He made the observation that airports have much more security than our borders.

I pointed out that no one is going to take over the border and fly it into a building.

It seemed funny at the time, but then again, its not quite 7:00 am and I got up for work before 5:00.

Bounce

Newsweek is reporting that President Bush got a bounce from the Republican national convention. He is leading John Kerry by 11% in the latest poll.

When reached for comment John Kerry said, "But I served in Vietnam"

Kerry: begging to be unfit

In a midnight stealth speech this past Thursday, John Kerry whined that Vice President Cheney called him unfit for service.

One problem with Kerry's claim. Vice President Cheney didn't call John Kerry unfit for service. Cheney did question his senate voting record. Now if Kerry thinks that criticism of his voting record means he is unfit for service, it makes me wonder if it isn't true after all.

Sort of like when someone says, "I'm hungry" and another person replies replies "I didn't rob that restaurant," it makes you wonder if he robbed the restaurant.

His proof that he is fit and the President is not? Kerry once again pointed to his four months in Vietnam. After 20 years in the Senate, his main claim for fitness is a four month tour of duty that happened 35 years ago.

Kerry then responded to Cheney's non-accusation by calling President Bush and Vice President Cheney "unfit for service". Really.

So it is insulting to Kerry to be unfit for service when others don't say he is, but alright for him to call his opponents unfit.

Why does this man so badly want his oppenents to call him unpatriotic and unfit? There is something sad and desperate about that.

President Bush: Insensitive

President Bush expressed his concern for the residents of Florida who are in the pathe of hurricane Frances. He said:

"I've ordered teams to be in position to help the good people of that state"

The National Organization of Bad-people (NOOB) immediately condemned the remarks. NOOB Spokesbeing (the title Spokesperson is offensive to non-persons) Eustace Nutley issued the following statement:

Why do "good people" always receive assistance? Never bad people. I'm an ass and I demand respect! Bush is bad-person-phobic. We need a leader that will embrace his inner ass. NOOB demands an immediate congressional investigation into this adminstration's anti-bad-person policies.

The ACLU immediately agreed to take up NOOB and Mr. Nutley's cause. A lawsuit is expect to be filed right after the court house is rebuilt from the hurricane damage.