Logging and TMQ

An interesting editorial by Gregg Easterbrook on the disasterous effects of disdain for active management in forests (i.e., active burns, foresting, thinning). At first blush, I don't mind active management, so long as it is careful mangement--whatever that may mean or entail (I'm terrible at hedging, ain't I?)

But the biggest bit o' news from the Easterblogg is that Tuesday Morning Quarterback may be back! Huzzah! (for background and a haiku, go here)

Shaq and Kobe: Codependent

Shaq pushes Kobe.
Kobe pushes Shaq.

Tempers flare.

Kobe makes up to Shaq.
Shaq makes up to Kobe.

As a Lakers fan, this has been a great and terrible season (all one game of it). First Kobe v. Shaq II had me glumly staring at the Sports section. Then the opening night greatness of GP and Malone. Ahhhh, this will truly be a season that typifies the oft quoted blessing/curse, "may you live in interesting times".

Shaq: "'Of course. I need him, he needs me, we need each other. He's the ying. I'm the yang. Opposites attract."

Sounds like something I heard before.

Mike Yaconelli Dies in Truck Accident

Noted author and youth minister, Mike Yaconelli has returned home as reported by Christianity Today.

An interesting article that Yaconelli wrote back in July concerning fundamental Christians can be found here. I find his take interesting:

...what the fundamentalists have been guilty of, more than anything else, is a monumental waste of time. Fundamentalists, because of their obsession with things that don't matter [drinking, dancing, smoking, swearing], have, in effect, made the Gospel irrelevant. . .It makes one wonder if the fundamentalists haven't done what they have accused the liberals of doing. . .eliminated the absolutes.

I would agree in so much that wrong headed focus on behavior for the sake of conformity is not good: action based on groupthink and not "godthink" skirts closely to idolatry--it worships the man and not the God. But I wonder if, perhaps, we could misconstrue Yaconelli's message. If our lives really are transformed by Christ, it is sensible that our behaviors and choices would reflect Christ transformation.

We have freedom in Christ to do many different things, but not all things are profitable.

(cap tip to Boar's Head Tavern)

The Obligatory Halloween Link

Joshua Claybourn has the goods on Halloween.

Site of the Moment

Rantingprofs: "Critiques of media coverage of the War on Terror, and the politics surrounding it". Written by a couple of professors from the Communication Studies departmetns at UNC and Northwestern.

I think it'll go on the blogroll.

(Cap tip to Volokh Conspiracy).

Sometimes You Don't Need Commentary

Google search term to hit the Carpetbloggers recently: "Maureen Dowd %2B mud slinger"

With Allies Like These. . .

It looks like that the rocket attack on Wolfowitz's hotel was done with French missiles, produced AFTER the arms embargo on Iraq.

At first blush, this means that the French either: 1) sold weapons to Saddam, violating UN resolutions, 2) sold weapons to Saddam during the war, supporting the coalition's enemies, 3) sold weapons to Saddam after the fall of the Bahg or 4) sold weapons to some third party character who then did 1), 2) or 3).

And they want to be a player in the world?

(cap tip to Merde in France)

Freedom Mail

An email to Andrew Sullivan from a soldier in the Third Army, whose wife serves at Walter Reed. Excerpt:

"I pray every day that [my children] understand that what their Mother and I do for work is not just a hardship on them, but a way to protect them, and others, for many years to come. . .I've lived in Saudi Arabia, and I've seen what Islamic fundamentalism can do to personal freedom. I will gladly fight to keep that away from my children. And I will work to keep those who think like the writers to the Democratic Underground out of power. My promise on that is as good as my 20 year promise to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. I will never forget."

Some say that the great generation that defeated Hitler and rebuilt America from the ashes of the Depression is disappearing into history. I say that we are only beginning to see another great generation rise from the ashes of the WTC.

With Allies Like These. . .

French table manners are revealed in the isrealinsider.

Sure, maybe the article is being little nitpicky and snippy. . .but, really, when you are an ambassador, you represent your country.

(cap tip to The Shark Blog)

Will they make up their mind please???

This is a good article and raises some good questions regarding the husband of Terri Schiavo and his qualification to decide if his wife should live or be starved to death.

Marianne M. Jennings

What I know as the mother of a "non-cognitive, vegetative state" 16-year-old

“The quest for utopian socialism has its twists and turns. A woman has the right to choose when it comes to the life of her unborn child. But, in the exception-ridden liberal conscience, choice regarding her own life belongs to her husband. Husbands have no say in wives' abortions, but, according to those wacky Florida courts, they have the final say on their wives' lives. In the case of 39-year-old Terri Schiavo, her husband, complete with mistress and their children, wants her starved to death. A Florida court, finally halted in its unrighteous dominion by another Bush, ordered it so. Liberals oppose the death penalty for criminals, but not for innocents.”

So if the male is not qualified to have any say if an abortion should take place, why should he have any say if a HUMAN not a fetus should live or die?

Moore Moore Moore Money!

The blogosphere is great for me because of the limited amount of time I have, I can get a sampler of opinion and see what is pushing people's hot buttons. What caught my eye today is Sullivan's note of a somewhat derisive lefty editorial on fellow lefty, Michael Moore. "Bowling for credibility" damns the filmmaker and ends with a sardonic, "After all, the bottom line is all about profits, not prophets".

This parallels a recent LAT's ed piece on Moore, "Biting the Hand that Feeds Him". I can't link to it because the Times requires not only registion, but also a fee for non-subscribers. I'll see if I can dig up the article at home.

Will we let Iraq fail?? The choice is ours

This is not a question of should we have invaded Iraq and toppled Saddam from power, that debate is over and the war was launched and he was. (I think that was a good thing, but again the point is now mute).

The question now is will we, the people in the West, let Iraq fail and become a failed state, or will we be willing to invest the time, energy and money to make it succeed like Europe and Japan after WW2.

Johann Hari writes in the Independent and on his own page a good article on who is more likely to want the West to fail.

This Holloween could be scary in deed

And I'm not talking about more bad Friday the 13th movies either.

The moratorium on state and local governments preventing them from putting taxes on internet access is set to expire. Now the article in the Oregon Magazine may be worse case scenario, but with over half of the states looking for new taxes, putting taxes on internet access or even on email will be possible starting November 1 unless Congress acts.

Dude, Screw the Iraqi's, Where's My Health Insurance?

Lileks pokes a student who said, "That dude's right" in support of Democratic presidential candidate, Howard Dean, asserting "that the extra $87 billion Bush is seeking to rebuild Iraq could have bought health insurance for every American". Lileks replies:

Would you prefer that your [health] fees were cut so you got free health insurance at the expense of an immunization program in Baghdad elementary schools? If that's what you think, fine; just drop the whole "bourgoise-America-is-so-selfish, man" bit, because it's old and busted. Bourgoise America is going to work. You're the one with your hand out. Both hands out.

Right on, James! Higher taxes may be the result of our government making life better for the Iraqis and, as an important side effect, safer for the world. I'm ok with that. Freedom isn't free--many have given their lives; I can surely suffer the departure of a few dollars. If rebuilding Iraq also means that I have to continue to pay up for health care that beats anything else in the world, so be it.

Dude.

Higher Interest for not too much risk

This is a different topic for me, to write about how to get a higher interest on your savings. I saw this in the Wall Street Journal (subscription required so can’t link the article) about corporate money markets. The article is by Terri Cullen dated September 11, 2003 “Corporate Money Markets Offer Higher Yields, and Risks”

They act like money markets provided by the banks, but they pay higher interest and usually have much lower fees. The down side is they are essentially unsecured loans to the corporations so if they go bankrupt, you lose your savings. The companies say it’s a good place to park short term cash (house down payment etc) for a few months and earn better interest.

There are 4 companies that offer the service:
General Electric
Caterpillar
Ford
General Motors

While I would have doubts about lending money to Ford or GM at this time, for short term investments (90 days or so), these could be a good deal, if you understand the risks.

Bizzare Carpetblogger Search

Google search term that turned up Carpetbloggers: "how can i find out what austalian actors died in june 2003?"

Site of the Moment

Man, you can learn anything on the Internet. . .here is a handy list of Latin Phrases and Words Used in English, a resource provided by the classics department at CUNY, which, in turn, credits the definitions to Merriam-Webster.

Gun Control Follies

Gun control can't stop the criminals from owning guns.

This is Education?

A sixth grader is told to remove his clothes as part of a classroom lesson. For the life of me I can't figure out what the point is, I guess I had to be there. As a parent, to hear that this could happen to my children who will (one day hopefully) go to public schools makes me angry.

Caution! Liberal Media Ahead, v 1.1

The Volokh Conspiracy shows us yet another incident of the media warping the President's quotes. It's a misquote done for the sake of humor--the misquoter calls it 'bushisms'--but it is done to defame the reputation of others for the political purposes of the journalist. Says Eugene Volokh:

This isn't just misplaced humor -- it's plain bad journalism. Whether you're trying to be funny or serious, stripping a quote free of its context (context that most readers have no way of knowing), and trying to making the speaker look foolish when including the context would show that he's making perfect sense, is wrong.

Jeeze I just checked and it looks like the author of the misquote is selling books on 'bushisms'. It's not political, it's greed!

Caution! Liberal Media Ahead

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer (ha!) runs smack on Congressman George Nethercutt, misquoting the representative of Wasington State and refusing his requests for a correction. The original quote concerned the story in Iraq and his accusations that the media is distorting the picture:

"So the story is better than we might be led to believe – I'm – just – indicting the news people – but it's a bigger and better and more important story than losing a couple of soldiers every day which, which, heaven forbid, is awful."

The P-I's version:

"It's a better and more important story than losing a couple of soldiers every day," the would-be senator gaffed at a gathering Monday. The family of Pfc. Kerry Scott of Concrete, who buried their young hero Tuesday, likely would not share Nethercutt's news judgment."

And then Marueen Dowd smells blood and piles on:

"On Monday, Representative George Nethercutt Jr., a Republican from Washington State who visited Iraq, chimed in to help the White House: 'The story of what we've done in the postwar period is remarkable. It is a better and more important story than losing a couple of soldiers every day.' The congressman puts the casual back in casualty."

Jeeze I despise the media sometimes. We need open and fair reporting, we don't need attempts to guide the public as if on a nose ring. A misinformed public is more dangerous than an ignorant public.

The Shark Blog caught this (Sharkansky keeps abreast of the P-I) and Sullivan has the goods in today's Daily Dish.

With Allies Like These. . .

Merde in France reveals the feelings of some in France who applaud American deaths in Iraq.

Reflecting on a Moment of Reflection

Here is a written analysis of a little dustup between Joshua Claybourn and a former classmate, recorded in A Moment of Reflection. The argument is over a leftist objection made by Eli and "goat" towards Claybourn's theistic conservative view. I started out writing something along the lines of "Eli and goat are idiots", which evolved to "Eli and goat are afraid of confrontation in the marketplace" which then turned into a blank piece of paper as it were. I wrote some more and then I realized that this last Sunday's sermon from Pastor Dan was made alive in that revival and transformation must start with the individual. Unfortunately, I end without an application. . .(sigh), but such is life.

Read the original message and ensuing thread that started all this here.

The response:

It seems that Eli and "goat" express the canard that America and the American Way is threatened by religious conservative thinking that runs counter to more liberal mindsets. It is a fear born from a desire to remain free of God.

"American conservatism is so dangerous. . .[it has]everything to do with who has a right to define society and culture. Mr. Claybourn would rather humans defined nothing, and left it up to God (his God, no doubt)."

This feeling, however, presumes that America can be intellectually hijacked and redefined by such conservatives--among whom I count myself one. I tend to disagree that such is possible.

Legislation of society and culture is a popular idea that appeals to many in the faith community, but attempts to transform a flawed world through government institutions who enfore self-secularization will not end in success. Such attempts at change require a foundation that simply does not exist; therefore, lasting transformation cannot be acheived. Bluntly put, you cannot force unbelieving people to act as if they do believe, nor do I think that you necessarily should. It is only the transformation of the individual where real change can occur with lasting effects. A bottom up approach if you will.

Lest anybody should think that I advocate no standards whatsoever, I recognize that a majority of our law does depend on a standard, a standard that I believe does not change as the seasons or fashions change. A standard that is worth working for. However, when it comes to defining society and culture in light of this standard, recognize that many people hold to a different set of norms. This means that action should be exercised fully aware of the disconnect in standards.

Reading back at my tripe, I realize that on one hand I appear to advocate NOT imposing God standards on society and then turn around and say that there IS a standard that must be held to. And there is the tension in bringing God to a world unbelieving.

Must Woman's Suffage End?

Joshua Claybourn points us to a poll to end woman's sufferage. Do you stand with us? Or against us?

(warning: many popups, answer NO to the dialog boxes)

Doing the Right Thing Can Be Costly, Part 2

What is going on with the Anglican Church in Canada? Did the leadership replace the King James bible with the changeable bible (the bible that lets you change those problem passages, example change, “For God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son” to For God so loved the world He gave John and Judith a new car!!!)?

The Bishop in British Columbia, Michael Ingham, thinks blessing same sex unions is a good idea. Seven priests (and their congregations) in the diocese disagree and have asked to report to the Bishop from the Yukon who is more conservative and does not think same sex unions is a good idea.

The priests are charged with not being loyal to their bishop (which is required in the Anglican Church) and are suspended and could be ex-communicated by the bishop. What makes this very interesting is the international Anglican Church does not allow the Church to bless same sex unions so if the Bishop would follow the Church teaching, this wouldn’t be an issue.

The Canadian paper The Globe and Mail has the article. The 7 priests who are making a stand even if it costs them their congregations and even being able to fellowship with the Anglican Church are Rev. Stephen Leung, Church of the Good Shepherd; Rev. David Short, St. John's Shaughnessy; Rev. Barclay Mayo, St. Andrew's Pender Harbour; Rev. Simon Chin, St. Matthias & St. Luke; Rev. Silas Ng, Church of Emmanuel, Richmond; Rev. Dr. Trevor Walters, St. Matthews Abbotsford and Rev. Ed Hird, St. Simon's North Vancouver.

Ipse Dixit - Archives by Month

Ipse Dixit has a revealing photo of protest signage from the anti-war rally in Washington this last weekend.

(cap tip to Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit)

UPDATE: Photo came from the Belligerent Bunny Blog, which has a photo spread on the protest, PLUS bonus commentary. Be careful of those pro-Saddam spokesclowns. . . and I really MEAN clowns.

Failed at Oscar, Let's Try Nobel

A few select Hollywood insiders like Danny DeVito, Brad Pitt, Jennifer Anniston, Edward Norton and Jason Alexander will now try their luck at waging peace, as reported by this Telegraph article. Unlucky at the box office, perhaps their fortunes will change with a peace mission to Palestine in order to "urge people to make their views known on the important sticking points that have thwarted peace negotiations".

Quote:

Pitt and Aniston believe that most people in the region want a negotiated settlement with an end to violence, and imagine that by appealing directly to "ordinary folk", they can bring the warring parties together.

(snip)

The organisers admit that none of the actors has any experience of the Middle East or of conflict resolution, but argue that this may be a good thing as they will be considered non-partisan.

(snip)

Mohammed Darawse, the Palestinian regional co-ordinator of the project, is convinced that they can make a difference. "They asked intelligent questions when we met them and they clearly know the big picture," he said.

AS IF the people in the region haven't already made their views known. AS IF the "ordinary folk" think like them. AS IF people suffering from hundreds of years of war would care about Hollywood stars.

You just can't make this stuff up.

Site of the Moment

Persecuted Christians.

Maybe we think about how we can't speak out in our classrooms about our faith, or maybe we think of the loss of school prayer. Really, we know that this is a relatively mild form of persecution given that the really bad stuff happened back in the days of Nero, who used Christians as torches to light his gardens, right?

Not so fast, pilgrim. Check out Open Doors UK, a site devoted to "serving persecuted Christians worldwide".

Why should we be interested in learning about persecuted Christians? From an article that gives such reasons on their website; here is one of them:

I need to encounter persecuted Christians because they spur me to appreciate the privilege of corporate worship and stop me from complaining about my church.

(cap tip to Joshua Claybourn's blog)

Conservative Media

Gotta run to lunch now, but in the article, "We’re Not Losing the Culture Wars Anymore", is worth a read--be warned, it's long. The article tries to analyze the conservative expression of opinion in the online (blogosphere) and cable media (Fox News) in comparison to the left liberal slant of traditional media (NYT, LAT, ABC, CBS, NBC, etc). The working theory is that in the face of the delivery of news and opinion though cable and the Internet mainstream, differing opinions can now be served with a myriad number of viewpoints, including the conservative. Author Brian C. Anderson concludes:

Think of the mainstream liberal media as one sphere and the conservative media as another. The liberal sphere, which less than a decade ago was still the media, is still much bigger than the non-liberal one. But the non-liberal sphere is expanding, encroaching into the liberal sphere, which is both shrinking and breaking up into much smaller sectarian spheres—one for blacks, one for Hispanics, one for feminists, and so on.

It’s hard to imagine that this development won’t result in a broader national debate—and a more conservative America.

Found this in Andrew Sullivan' Daily Dish for today and he entitles it "South Park Republicanism". Indeed.

Blog of the Moment

Read I Was Pro-Choice, a blog written by a seperated mother of two that proffers this mission statement:

I Was Pro-Choice has been created as a place to air Abortion regrets. Many women have had abortions because they felt their only "choice" was to terminate their pregnancy. What they have failed to realize is that a baby is not a mistake, but a family member!

Please join me in educating women who are faced with an unplanned pregnancy.

Just in Time for Christmas

For your aspiring conservative daughters here is your very own ANN COULTER Barbie!

I'm still undecided on Ann Coulter myself, having not read anything written by her, but this is just too funny to pass on.

(cap tip to Robert Garcia Tagorda at Priorities & Frivolities)

A History Lesson

The following statements appeared in a major American weekly news magazine, no the statements are not taken out of context.

The troops returning home are worried. “We’ve lost the peace,” men tell you. “We can’t make it stick.”

A tour of the beaten-up cities . . . . six months after victory is a mighty sobering experience for anyone. . . . .Friend and foe alike, look you accusingly in the face and tell you how bitterly they are disappointed in you as an American.

Never has American prestige in Europe been lower. People never tire of telling you of the ignorance and rowdy-ism of American troops

Wherever the people have endured . . . the American armies . . . . hopes have been bitterly disappointed. The British have won a slightly better reputation.

But instead of coming in with a bold plan of relief and reconstruction we came in full of evasions and apologies.

The taste of victory had gone sour in the mouth of every thoughtful American I met.

The time has come, for our own future security, to give the best we have to the world instead of the worst.

Was this written about:

The Iraq war? 2003
Balkans War Mid-1990s
Gulf War 1990
Vietnam?
Korea?
World War 2?
World War 1?

The above appeared in January 7, 1946 in Life Magazine and was written by John Dos Passos. To read the article, go Jessica Well's blog here

The Europeans accuse Americans of having a short memory. This is probably a blessing for them. If we remembered what both Americans and Europeans thought in 1946, instead of the success that came afterwards, we would have written off the continent instead of investing in it. Is the rebuilding Iraq a failure? Well if we stop now, it will be, otherwise, ask us again in a year or 5 and if we treat the Iraqis as well as we treated the Germans or Japanese after World War 2 (remember, neither country had a history of democratic government before the war) we should see the country succeed.

Doing the Right Thing Can Be Costly

Being the Pastor at a new church plant can be a challenge. The church plant is dependent on the mother church for financial and other support while it is set up and reaches out to the community the plant is ministering too.

But what happens when the daughter church feels it has to break from the mother church due to theological differences? Suddenly a new church which isn't ready to run on its own has too.

This happened in Canada this week and is another indication the Church is going to have to make some hard choices.

As the on line Canadian paper, The National Post says:

"An Anglican priest has had his pay cut off and his church has been recommended for "termination" after his parishioners voted to defy their bishop by refusing to support blessings for same-sex unions."

So what are we to do if our leaders take the Church in a direction that is unbiblical?

Stay and compromise?
Leave for a new Church (assuming this is an option)
Make a stand and face the consequences?

I think Rev. James Wagner took the correct course of action even if it means he is not being paid at the moment. The flock he is leading will have to decide if they are willing to support him, even at a higher cost to themselves. And the rest of the believing Church needs to think about helping out where WE can as well.

The Iraqi Tip Jar Grows

Good news for the Iraqi rebuilding effort, a huge amount of aid pours in to the tune of $33 billion.

Strangely absent is France, Germany and Russia. With allies like these. . .

Japan tops the list $3.5 billion in loans for a total of $5 billion. Heck, Iran--IRAN--is putting up a $300 million credit card and even Vietnam--VIETNAM--pledged $500,000 worth of rice.

It clearly we can see those who want Iraq to become a free democracy and those who wish for the good old days where their trading buddy, Saddam, was in power.

The Haiti - Iraq Connection

Check it out as Lileks Googles some history from the U.S. invasion of Haiti when Clinton was president and concludes:

Googling the Haiti war is an interesting exercise, if only to revisit old fault lines. Thrill! as conservatives grumble that we’ve no business nation-building. Gasp! as liberals insist that the Armed Forces should be used to topple tyrants.

Lileks also points us to an excerpt from a Time article:

PRESIDENT CLINTON asked aides at a National Security Council meeting on Haiti to prepare a comparison between a possible U.S. invasion of Haiti and Reagan's 1983 invasion of Grenada. Clinton wanted a study of forces needed, likely casualties -- and rationales used. After the meeting one official asked, half joking, " Are there any Americans in medical school in Haiti ?" Another answered, " No, but we've found two American dentists there."

Can you even possibly imagine if something like that came out of President's Bush's mouth about Iraq? Sullivan and Lileks have opined rightly in the past, the Democrats are all a titter about the liberation of Iraq because it isn't theirs.

Boris, Natascha and Bob and Larry??

Old news, but it looks like Big Idea, maker of Veggietales, has declared bankruptcy and is being sold to Classic Media LLC, owners of "Rocky and Bullwinkle". In the story, it appears that the animation of the animated tomatoes and cucumbers will be outsourced. Even with "eight of the top 10 selling videos in the Christian retail market", they couldn't survive in the face of an $11 million dollar judgment that went against them last April for violating a verbal contract with Lyric Studios--makers of Barney.

Now I have yet another reason to dislike Barney.

Sad, sad, sad.

Cultural Blindness

Andrew Sullivan points us to a personal recollection of Matt, who counts a well educated Pakistani as a friend. (Peruse the comments section if you have time as well) This Muslim friend and his brother are convinced that Mossad was responsible for the 9/11 attacks; Matt even alludes to fears for personal safety amidst the mainly Muslim gathering they were at. When culture and faith impose such blinders on a faithful's ability to reason, or even to discourse reasonably, then you cannot reason with the faithful. This is why to let our guard down now would be dangerous.

Key quotes:

I don't think we can penetrate that kind of cultural and religious brainwashing.

It really is us against them. Us and the Israelis and a few others against 1.6 billion zealots.

The 1.6 billion figure he cites might be a little too much since it lumps every Muslim into the category. As much as I wish this account weren't true, I think I agree with Matt on the principle.

What gets me is that a free and open society allows such divergent thoughts and beliefs; yet, there is little kindness reciprocated.

The New Republic Online: Easterbrook

In a recent flap, conservative writer Gregg Easterbrook made unfortunate and, really, unsmart comments towards the Jewish community, ESPN yanked his "Tuesday Morning Quarterback" column, a column that I rather enjoyed reading. Looking at ESPN's columnist lineup, even his past articles have been wiped out. Must have been some ugly argument: "YOU'RE FIRED AND WE'RE ERASING ALL EVIDENCE OF YOU", "WELL, I'M QUITTING AND TAKING MY ARTICLES WITH ME".

Easterbruck apologized for the gaffe, but that didn't buy him any second chances, apparently. I can't seem to find the ESPN/Easterbrook dustup anywhere online. His take on the situation can be found at The New Republic Online.

In honor on Mr. Easterbrook I humbly sumbit my first Haiku since the eighth grade:

ABC muzzles:
No more mega babes to see
Miss the TMQ

With Friends Like These. . .

The U.S. and Israel stood alone with Micronesia and the Marshall Islands in a 144-4 vote against a UN resolution demanding Israel stop construction of the wall intended to keep Palestinian terrorists (aka "militants") out of the West Bank.

(cap tip to Josh Claybourn)

Election 2004

Andrew Sullivan dreams of a race that could outdo a Cubs-Red Sox World Series. Never too early to start thinking about Campaign 2004.

It Is Well With My Soul

I like to "collect" hymns. What I mean is that I like finding the various versions and covers of the great music of our faith (don't worry, I stay legal). One of my favorites is It Is Well With My Soul and this is not in any small part because of the Audio Adrenaline cover that conveys the mood of its sorrowful history very well. The hymn's history is recounted over at Xavier. (cap tip to a blog meta entry by David Heddle)

The hymn speaks of peace amidst turmoil. In no way does the song minimize the pain we feel, nor are we led to believe that sorrow is a lessor quality for a Christian; rather, it speaks of the peace found in the hopeful expectation of the future in the midst of the pain of today.

Media Bias Alert

I'm a little late on this once, but once again, the October 17th LA Times is putting words into people's mouths. This time, the victim is General Boykin, a Christian, who gave some church talks. Read a summary by Hugh Hewitt of the event here and a flip commentary by Lileks. Hewitt does some follow work during in the ensuing days.

Apparently the LAT accuses Boykin of using the term, "Christian jihad" when he clearly did not. However, the general will no longer give talks on his faith and Hewitt sums this consequence:

That in turns sends a message not just in the Pentagon but throughout the land: Express your religious beliefs and you are going to be on the front page getting smashed up and blind-sided by half-truths and fake quote marks. Then a day later the paper will viciously equate you with the world's most notorious anti-Semite[, the Malaysian Prime Minister].

PC Cookin'

Well, in this day and age of PC, we can't even talk about our menu choices without worrying about the PC attack dogs.

Selective Amnesia

What? Have we collectively suffered from a bad case of forgetsies? Democrats polled said that among a list of 12 issues*, fighting terrorism ranked DEAD LAST.

This is the danger of peace, complacency at the cost of vigilence. Once again the pattern repeats and, mark my words, should this trend continue we will see another September Eleventh. We did it with WTC bombing number one and we're doing it again with WTC bombing number two. The religious fevor that those who desire to cause us injury and death is capable of sustaining hatred across decades, if not lifetimes.

(tip to Andrew Sullivan)

* Issues included: education, taxes, big government, the environment, Social Security and Medicare, crime and illegal drugs, moral values, healthcare, the economy and jobs, fighting terrorism, homeland security, and the situation in Iraq.

Welcome to the Country of Aztlan?

This is rather informative. . .Apparently MEChA wants the seven southwestern states as their own. Quote from the page, which is apprently calling MEChA to task:

THOSE WHO SCOFF AT THE IDEA OF A MEXICAN TAKEOVER OF THE SOUTHWESTERN UNITED STATES DON'T UNDERSTAND HISTORY AND THEY UNDERESTIMATE MEXICANS.

Hmmm, now perhaps MEChA means to imply political power as a form of liberation, but then again, who wouldn't want to run their own country? Then again, the people over at "americanpatrol.com" seem to be a bit, ahhhh, how shall we say? Frothing at the mouth.

"America the Forgiven"

Yeah right. Look right into the eyes of Arab world opinion on America

(tip of the hat to Allah)

LILEKS (James) The Bleat

Today's Bleat gave me the willies:

As you may have read - not in newspapers, heaven forfend - a large portion of the blogworld has been crippled by attacks on the company that hosted a pro-Israel website, and the attacks are coming from servers that host Al Qaeda groups. This makes me uneasy; there’s something else going on here, I think. It’s like hearing reports from Alaska radar stations of peculiar blips on the screen. Someone’s testing something.

Indeed. Perhaps it's just random hackers. . .but should we just assume that potential foes are unorganized? That's what got us into trouble in the first place.

Liberal Media Alert

NPR publishes a list of corrections from the previous year. Here is a blogger's summary of the ones that concern the Middle East. Read them and see if you can detect a pattern. (Shamelessly ripped off from Andrew Sullivan)

Pledge of Allegiance is Unconstitutional?

Bah. This has got to be one of the most ridiculous pieces of tripe I have had the misfortune to witness in my lifetime. The Supreme Court has to decide if the Pledge of allegiance endorses a religion. I have evangelical Christian beliefs, and yet I can see that the phrase, "one nation under god" could be interpreted variously by differing religions. The only people who could object would be athesists. . .and perhaps Wiccans.

Ridiculous. . .

Can someone please explain this to me??????

I just saw the most amazing story on MSNBC where Jan Stephenson says "Asians are killing LPGA".

She says Asians have taken over the tour, are not emotional enough and "also believes the Tour should actively sell sex (appeal). “We have to promote sex appeal. It’s a fact of life,” Stephenson told Golf Magazine. “The people who watch are predominantly male, and they won’t keep watching if the girls aren’t beautiful."

So to make the LPGA more appealing, the players should be emotional and dress like Britney Spears instead of showing how skillful they are on the course so guys will watch.

I don't know. From my few times at the driving range, I thought golf was a game of skill, especially being able to concentrate on making a good shot after making a very bad one (golf is 90% mental while the remaining 10% is mental).

So where are the feminists who say women should be appreciated for their minds and skills and not their body?

Where is the Civil Rights lobby denouncing Stephenson because women who are not Caucasian are the best in the sport?

And why did MSNBC decide to give Stephenson this avenue and not denounce her?

Can someone please explain this to me????

The Chinese Golf Exclusion Act of 2003?

Former LPGA tour professional, Australian Jan Stephenson, damns Asians for ruining the LPGA marketability (emphasis mine):

'This is probably going to get me in trouble, but the Asians are killing our tour. Absolutely killing it. Their lack of emotion, their refusal to speak English when they can speak English. They rarely speak.

'We have two-day pro-ams where people are paying a lot of money to play with us, and they say hello and goodbye. Our tour is predominantly international and the majority of them are Asian. They've taken it over.'

'If I were commissioner, I would have a quota on international players and that would include a quota on Asian players,' Stephenson told Kessler. 'As it is, they're taking American money. American sponsors are picking up the bill. There should be a qualifying school for Americans and a qualifying school for international players.'

Hmmm, not bad, 2 for 2 on the stereotype meter and, hopefully, an unintended reference to the days of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 (original text here). Perhaps I need to live in the Golden Mountain without my family, who are back in the motherland, just like the old days:

During the 1870s, an economic downturn resulted in serious unemployment problems, and led to politically motivated outcries against Asian immigrants who would work for low wages. In reaction to states starting to pass immigration laws, in 1882 the federal government asserted its authority to control immigration and passed the first immigration law, barring lunatics and felons from entering the country. Later in 1882, the second immigration law barred Chinese, with a few narrow exceptions. Imperial China was too weak and impoverished to exert any influence on American policy. This law was originally for 10 years, but was extended and expanded and not repealed until 1943, when China was our ally in World War II. However, only 105 Chinese were allowed in legally each year, so the exception process actually continued into the 1950's. Chinese were not on a equal immigration footing with other nationalities until immigration laws were completely rewritten in the mid 1960's.

Ode to Microsoft

Since I just got back from a holiday thought I'd start out with something "serious" as I spent over 2 hours yesterday running the critical updates to my windows program (and the system is checking for updates on a constant basis).

I didn't write this but found it here. A poem to Microsoft:

Used Users' Poem
(inspired by true experiences with Microsoft products)
by Holly

While rushing to client, no moment to spare
I hurried to finish a job in despair.
Trying to upload some files to my site...
Nothing was happening, try as I might!

I pounded and shouted and yelled at the screen,
But this did not work it too well it would seem.
So I thought a download would fix me up quick,
But I should have beaten myself with a stick.

The ftp download wiped out my accounts,
It clobbered my passwords and ate all my fonts.
So I used my backup, but when I reboot,
My mouse was quite active but keyboard was moot.

"Oh my god holy," I think I did scream,
Followed by something extremely obscene.

I got down on my knees...
I crossed my fingers and said "god, OH please!"
"If you can see it in your heart!"
With my hand on my PC I yelled out..."RESTART!"

I then hit the reboot and covered my head,
With my favorite blanket to stave off the dread.
My PC made sounds that I've not heard before,
I got a strong feeling to head for the door.

And when I had gained enough courage to see,
I saw a blue screen staring right back at me.
MICROSOFT ERROR EXCEPTION IS FATAL!
I then wished Bill Gates had been killed when pre-natal.

And just when I thought all my hope had been shot,
A message appeared: "Insert Card Into Slot"
I looked in my wallet and took out my Visa,
And offered it to my PC on my knees-a.

It disappeared quickly and then it popped out,
My PC rebooted, and maxed my account.
Then what to my wondering eyes should appear,
Than a pictures of Gates robbing me peer-to-peer.

"Merry Christmas!" He shouted,
"Not for YOU but for ME!"
"It's Christmas year-round...
...For my MONOPOLY!"