I have already commented on how the exchange of Samir Kuntar and other terrorists for the bodies of Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser is incredibly offensive. Even worse, we are now finding out that the both of the Israeli soldiers were executed by Hezbollah: http://www.thebulletin.us/site/index.cfm?newsid=19815120&BRD=2737&PAG=461&dept_id=576361&rfi=8.
Isn't that a violation of the Geneva Convention that Israel is constantly accused of violating? Hmm, wonder if we'll hear word one from the U.N. Security Council or the Commission on Human Rights about this? How about the Red Cross? Amnesty International? The silence is absolutely deafening.
The horrible precedent set by this Israeli decision is already being felt, as Hamas has hardened its position with respect to Gilad Shalit, who was kidnapped over two years ago: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080630/ap_on_re_mi_ea/israel_palestinians. Why shouldn't it? This is entirely the right move given what Israel just did.
Monday, June 30, 2008
The forgotten terrorist attacks
Everyone--including me--talks about the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but it seems as though no one recalls the anthrax attacks that followed in October of that year: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121478249006714421.html?mod=djemEditorialPage. Five people died, 22 more were made ill and the government had to spend millions of dollars cleaning up the contaminated offices. No one was ever arrested or no suspect was ever named.
Doesn't it strike anyone else as odd that this story completely vanished? It's as though this never happened. The one "person of interest", a former government scientist by the name of Stephen Hatfill, successfully sued the government for slandering him, so the trail on this case is ice cold.
Why isn't anyone else concerned not only that this happened but that we have no clue who did it?
Doesn't it strike anyone else as odd that this story completely vanished? It's as though this never happened. The one "person of interest", a former government scientist by the name of Stephen Hatfill, successfully sued the government for slandering him, so the trail on this case is ice cold.
Why isn't anyone else concerned not only that this happened but that we have no clue who did it?
A somber video
A friend forwarded this link to me. Why today, I don't know, but it is an extremely well-edited video of the 9/11 terrorist attacks with a U2 musical background. Simply put, it's fantastic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNFaJK1I2Lc&feature=related.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Despicable
The spineless, duplicitous Olmert government has apparently decided that it will agree to trade five Palestinian terrorists, including the unbelievably evil Samir Kuntar (just do a search on his name to find out what kind of horror he perpetrated almost 30 years ago) for the remains of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, who now appear to have been confirmed as dead: http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=982bd500-328a-47f1-9419-2c17fa396b18.
What does this teach us all? Terrorism works. Starting wars works. Israel will give up eventually.
Great job, Olmert.
What does this teach us all? Terrorism works. Starting wars works. Israel will give up eventually.
Great job, Olmert.
Is the net making us stupid?
It's a valid question, I think. We have so much information available to us, and so easily available at that. We no longer have to retain any memories, or not many of them, anyway. There is an excellent article in The Atlantic magazine titled, "Is Google making us stupid?", and it can be found here: http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200807/google.
I wonder whether we as a society have lost our ability to research things, and to do basic "thinking". If we haven't we're not that far away from doing so..........
I wonder whether we as a society have lost our ability to research things, and to do basic "thinking". If we haven't we're not that far away from doing so..........
Friedman gets it right
I am more than happy to point out when I think that Tom Friedman of the New York Times is wrong. The converse should also be true. He talks in his latest column about what he sees as THE issue in the 2008 Presidential Election. It ISN'T Iraq, and it ISN'T Afghanistan. Nope, it's the state of our economy, and I'm inclined to agree with him: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/29/opinion/29friedman.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&oref=slogin. The Presidential candidate who best tells Americans how we will overcome the current economic ailments inflicting the country will most likely be the next President.
Dancing around the issue
There is an interesting article in the New York Times (yes, even that left wing bastion still has some interesting points to make) on the "baby crisis" in Europe: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/29/magazine/29Birth-t.html?ref=magazine&pagewanted=all. The article is on point in that it notes the existence of a very real problem--Europeans aren't having kids, or enough of them, anyway. However, the way that Europe is dealing with this crisis--importing Muslims who are changing the continent in ways that were unimaginable even 10-15 years ago--is what interests me most. All we have to do is look at the changing face of France, Holland, Germany, Great Britain, etc., to understand the impact of not only the immigration--immigration itself is a good thing--but who is being "imported". It's a fair question to ask if European political elites ever considered the true impact of the decisions they made 20+ years ago................
Changing myself?
I am increasingly dissatisfied with the way I look. Not the baldness, which is simply a part of me at this point. Rather, I have gained a considerable amount of weight and now carry around about 184 pounds or so, the most I have ever weighed. So, as of Thursday, I am dieting (not to mention trying to exercise more regularly). I have cut out sweets completely (something very tough for a chocoholic such as myself to do), and have even eliminated diet sodas (I read or heard somewhere that they actually stimulate eating and do contain calories and some sugar, the representations on the bottles notwithstanding). I have also seriously reduced the amount of alcohol I consume (not that I drink so much, but I do love a cold beer on a warm day........).
I just saw an article online that talked about how to exercise, and while I don't know if I can follow it, I'm going to give it a shot: http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/3-surprising-fat-burning-tricks-184802/. My goal is to lose 20 pounds. I'm not going to set any artificial deadlines, but at some point, I want my weight to be back in the low to mid-160s. I think that I can achieve this, so wish me luck...........
I just saw an article online that talked about how to exercise, and while I don't know if I can follow it, I'm going to give it a shot: http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/3-surprising-fat-burning-tricks-184802/. My goal is to lose 20 pounds. I'm not going to set any artificial deadlines, but at some point, I want my weight to be back in the low to mid-160s. I think that I can achieve this, so wish me luck...........
Saturday, June 28, 2008
More San Francisco "values"
The frontal assault against the military by the powers-that-be in San Francisco wasn't apparently enough, so now we have schoolboard officials in the city voting to bar those enrolled in the Junior ROTC ("JROTC") program from using their participating in JROTC to obtain physical education credits: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/06/27/BAJ411FPOE.DTL.
I've really had it with that left wing nuthouse. The people who run the city (and everyone who voted for them) obviously hate the United States. So, good bye. Leave. I'd be more than happy to see the city secede. It wouldn't be missed..............
I've really had it with that left wing nuthouse. The people who run the city (and everyone who voted for them) obviously hate the United States. So, good bye. Leave. I'd be more than happy to see the city secede. It wouldn't be missed..............
Mark Steyn "freed"
The kangaroo court otherwise known as the Canadian Human Rights Commission, has decided that there really was no case against Mark Steyn after all, and it has therefore dismissed the case against him: http://www.macleans.ca/multimedia/pdf/CHRC.pdf. Of course, still pending is the British Columbia human rights case against Steyn and Macleans Magazine, but hopefully this will set a good precedent. Of course, not everyone is happy with this decision: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/June2008/27/c8703.html.
This isn't over, not by a long shot.
This isn't over, not by a long shot.
Toss those cookies!
Some consumer groups are whining because products that (gasp!) aren't good for us are appearing in television shows: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121460653227512051.html?mod=djemEditorialPage. Apparently, if a child sees an Oreo in a television show, he/she might be scarred for life or, just as bad, may be persuaded to nag his/her parents to buy the stuff at the store. Oh, no! HORROR!
What I find fascinating is that no one seems in the least bit worked up when reruns of sitcoms (Friends comes to mind immediately) which are shown during prime time or when kids are eating dinner make explicit sexual references, but cookies get these people aggravated.
What I find fascinating is that no one seems in the least bit worked up when reruns of sitcoms (Friends comes to mind immediately) which are shown during prime time or when kids are eating dinner make explicit sexual references, but cookies get these people aggravated.
Friday, June 27, 2008
The latest linguistic idiocy out of the planet of Quebec
Every now and then, Quebec's racist separatists like to remind us that A) They are still around, and B) they are still racist: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2008/06/26/q-languagereport.html. How else to explain Parti Quebecois leader Pauline Marois' latest words of wisdom, where she claimed that immigrants to the province who choose to learn English are contributing to "social dysfunction", and that small businesses should be forced to "operate in French".
Only in Canada in general and Quebec in particular is this type of institutionalized discrimination accepted...........
Only in Canada in general and Quebec in particular is this type of institutionalized discrimination accepted...........
The Boycott/Divestment from Israel campaign spreads
It's not just limited to Great Britain anymore. No, it has now spread across the channel separating Great Britain from Ireland as the leading Irish trade union has recommended that the organization pursue the goal of boycotting Israel and divesting from any companies that do business with Israel: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1214132665687&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull.
When this campaign began, I said that it was a mistake on the part of Israel to not respond aggressively to it. We are now seeing the consequences of the Israeli n0n-action, as this poison spreads across Europe and the rest of the West.
When this campaign began, I said that it was a mistake on the part of Israel to not respond aggressively to it. We are now seeing the consequences of the Israeli n0n-action, as this poison spreads across Europe and the rest of the West.
Soccer instead of life
I don't follow soccer all that closely, though I do pay pretty careful attention to the "big" tournaments, such as the World Cup, as well as the European and South American championships. I will come out of the closet and admit that I really get a charge out of the nationalist frenzies unleashed by the tournaments. It's fun to see people who are actually proud of their countries and who are cheering them on. It is particularly fascinating to watch this occur in Europe, where any trace of nationalism is deemed to be threatening. Yet, when it comes to the soccer pitch, that changes. Hence, we now have Euro 2008, where Spain and Germany will meet for the right to call themself the best national squad on the continent: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121451886854608749.html?mod=djemEditorialPage.
All of a sudden, Germans can be proud of being GERMAN, not just European. It's okay to "hate" your opponent. Spaniards can cluck about that "nation to the north".
As I said, fascinating................
All of a sudden, Germans can be proud of being GERMAN, not just European. It's okay to "hate" your opponent. Spaniards can cluck about that "nation to the north".
As I said, fascinating................
When peacocks go bad
A town in England is facing a growing threat from a band of peacocks which lives in the town. Previously, the birds had lived peacefully among the people, but the have grown increasingly aggressive of late: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/global/main.jhtml?xml=/global/2008/06/25/noindex/npeacok.xml&CMP=EMC-expat2008.
Maybe it's a function of my infantile sense of humour, or the fact that I am really tired (or both), but I find this story to be VERY funny.............
Maybe it's a function of my infantile sense of humour, or the fact that I am really tired (or both), but I find this story to be VERY funny.............
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Finally!
Maybe the Christian Science Monitor has columnists who are monitoring my blog (if so, they are likely the only ones!), but one of their writers has echoed what I have been saying for months now. If you want to see oil prices drop, the value of the dollar MUST go up: http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0627/p03s01-usec.html. It's not coincidental that oil today raced by the $140 a barrel mark, in conjunction with remarks by Libya that it is considering cutting production (gee, thanks Libya) and yet another decline in value by the dollar against the Euro after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke (does the analogy "Nero fiddles while Rome buns" ring true to anyone else?) declined to hike the prime interest rate. And, of course, President Bush remains completely silent on this issue.
We are flirting with economic disaster and no one in D.C. seems to even notice that there is a problem, let alone care................
We are flirting with economic disaster and no one in D.C. seems to even notice that there is a problem, let alone care................
It's been two years
Two years ago yesterday the terrorist group known as Hamas kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, and he has never been seen since: http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/About+the+Ministry/Behind+the+Headlines/Behind%20the%20Headlines-%20Six%20months%20in%20terrorist%20captivity%2011-Jan-2007. We are also just a few weeks shy of the two-year anniversary of the kidnapping of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev by Hezbollah (that inauspicious anniversary will take place on July 12). Again, as is the case with Shalit, they have not been seen since.
I wonder, would Americans put up with it if American soldiers were kidnappened by Mexican or Canadian terrorists? Would anyone even think of asking the U.S. to "exercise restraint"? Somehow, I doubt it...............
I wonder, would Americans put up with it if American soldiers were kidnappened by Mexican or Canadian terrorists? Would anyone even think of asking the U.S. to "exercise restraint"? Somehow, I doubt it...............
This should NEVER happen
The always tolerant and open-minded Organization of the Islamic Conference ("OIC") has demanded that it be given seats on the U.N. Security Council "representative of its political and demographic power": http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewForeignBureaus.asp?Page=/ForeignBureaus/archive/200806/FOR20080623a.html.
Israel is already by far the most villified nation in the U.N. Can you imagine what would happen if the OIC had representatives on the Council? We'd have U.N. troops doing battle with the IDF in a heartbeat...............
Israel is already by far the most villified nation in the U.N. Can you imagine what would happen if the OIC had representatives on the Council? We'd have U.N. troops doing battle with the IDF in a heartbeat...............
This SHOULD be a joke.........but it isn't
A Saudi cleric who is ostensibly an expert on marriage has offered several fascinating opinions on the subject, and in his bizarro world, girls as young as one year old can be married "provided sexual relations" are delayed: http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/1798.htm. The transcript of the interview follows, but if this isn't an incredibly good example of just how backward thinking the Saudis are, then I don't know what is:
Dr. Ahmad Al-Mu'bi: Marriage is actually two things: First we are talking about the marriage contract itself. This is one thing, while consummating the marriage – having sex with the wife for the first time – is another thing. There is no minimal age for entering marriage. You can have a marriage contract even with a one-year-old girl, not to mention a girl of nine, seven, or eight. This is merely a contract [indicating] consent. The guardian in such a case must be the father, because the father's opinion is obligatory. Thus, the girl becomes a wife... But is the girl ready for sex or not? What is the appropriate age for having sex for the first time? This varies according to environment and traditions. In Yemen, girls are married off at nine, ten, eleven, eight, or thirteen, while in other countries, they are married off at 16. Some countries have legislated laws forbidding having sex before the girl is eighteen.
[...]
The Prophet Muhammad is the model we follow. He took 'Aisha to be his wife when she was six, but he had sex with her only when she was nine.
Interviewer: When she was six...
Dr. Ahmad Al-Mu'bi: He married her at the age of six, and he consummated the marriage, by having sex with her for the first time, when she was nine. We consider the Prophet Muhammad to be our model.
Interviewer: My question to you is whether the marriage of a 12-year-old boy with an 11-year-old girl is a logical marriage, which is permitted by Islamic law.
Dr. Ahmad Al-Mu'bi: If the guardian is the father... There are two different types of guardianship. If the guardian is the father, and he marries his daughter off to a man of appropriate standing, the marriage is obviously valid.
[...]
People find themselves in all kinds of circumstances. Take, for example, a man who has two, three, or four daughters. He does not have any wives, but he needs to go on a trip. Isn't it better to marry his daughter to a man, who will protect and sustain her, and when she reaches the proper age, he will have sex with her? Who says all men are ferocious wolves?
Dr. Ahmad Al-Mu'bi: Marriage is actually two things: First we are talking about the marriage contract itself. This is one thing, while consummating the marriage – having sex with the wife for the first time – is another thing. There is no minimal age for entering marriage. You can have a marriage contract even with a one-year-old girl, not to mention a girl of nine, seven, or eight. This is merely a contract [indicating] consent. The guardian in such a case must be the father, because the father's opinion is obligatory. Thus, the girl becomes a wife... But is the girl ready for sex or not? What is the appropriate age for having sex for the first time? This varies according to environment and traditions. In Yemen, girls are married off at nine, ten, eleven, eight, or thirteen, while in other countries, they are married off at 16. Some countries have legislated laws forbidding having sex before the girl is eighteen.
[...]
The Prophet Muhammad is the model we follow. He took 'Aisha to be his wife when she was six, but he had sex with her only when she was nine.
Interviewer: When she was six...
Dr. Ahmad Al-Mu'bi: He married her at the age of six, and he consummated the marriage, by having sex with her for the first time, when she was nine. We consider the Prophet Muhammad to be our model.
Interviewer: My question to you is whether the marriage of a 12-year-old boy with an 11-year-old girl is a logical marriage, which is permitted by Islamic law.
Dr. Ahmad Al-Mu'bi: If the guardian is the father... There are two different types of guardianship. If the guardian is the father, and he marries his daughter off to a man of appropriate standing, the marriage is obviously valid.
[...]
People find themselves in all kinds of circumstances. Take, for example, a man who has two, three, or four daughters. He does not have any wives, but he needs to go on a trip. Isn't it better to marry his daughter to a man, who will protect and sustain her, and when she reaches the proper age, he will have sex with her? Who says all men are ferocious wolves?
Defending the indefensible
The venomous ruler of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, has few defenders, though among them is former American ambassador to the U.N., Andrew Young: http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/tucker/stories/2008/06/13/tucked_0615.html. What a shock, Young was an appointee of President Peanut Farmer. In any event, Mugabe is one of the more vile rulers on a continent that regrettably has all too many of them. He has rightfully been spurned by the West--even the amoral Europeans want nothing to do with him--and his "leadership" has resulted only in ruin, death and misery for his beleaguered countrymen.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Who's playing the race card?
Umm...........it's not the Republicans, as Barack has already charged will be the case: http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/06/21/obama-suggests-gop-will-use-race-to-scare-voters/. No, it's him, and it's far left loonie Ralph Nader: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/jun/25/nader-critical-of-obama-for-trying-to-talk-white/.
So, far, this election has gone exactly according to script (with the exception of the idiotic pronouncements of the irrelevant Ralph Nader). The Republicans have debated policy, the Democrats have accused everyone and anyone who dare speaks against Obama of being a racist.
So, far, this election has gone exactly according to script (with the exception of the idiotic pronouncements of the irrelevant Ralph Nader). The Republicans have debated policy, the Democrats have accused everyone and anyone who dare speaks against Obama of being a racist.
I will defy the law
The United States Supreme Court has just invalidated a Louisiana law which allowed the state to execute individuals who were convicted of raping a child: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080625/ap_on_go_su_co/scotus_rdp;_ylt=Al35xjPxop1lTuTvI7Ho2eME1vAI. I have a rhetorical question about this: If executing a pedophile rapist violates the accused's Eighth Amendment right against "cruel and unusual punishment", as the Supreme Court just held, how would the Court characterize the act of raping a child? Does it get any more "cruel and unusual" than that?
Here's my promise: If anyone were to ever touch one of the little BHG's, I would promise the person who did it that they would experience an entirely new form of "cruel and unusual" punishment............
Here's my promise: If anyone were to ever touch one of the little BHG's, I would promise the person who did it that they would experience an entirely new form of "cruel and unusual" punishment............
Drifting in a negative direction
A poll conducted in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, has revealed that a majority of those polled favour the imposition of Shariah law in the country: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/global/main.jhtml?xml=/global/2008/06/25/noindex/nsharia.xml&CMP=EMC-expat2008.
This should concern us all. So far, Indonesia is mainly notable for having been the victim of Islamofascist terrorist attacks. It is likely that if it moves in this Saudi-like direction, it will producing terrorists as well.............
This should concern us all. So far, Indonesia is mainly notable for having been the victim of Islamofascist terrorist attacks. It is likely that if it moves in this Saudi-like direction, it will producing terrorists as well.............
What oil money can buy
It can buy you, for example, skyscrapers which rotate: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,371223,00.html. Where are these towers planned? In Dubai and Russia, two countries flush with oil cash.
Isn't it nice to know that that $4/gallon gas money is being put to good use?
Isn't it nice to know that that $4/gallon gas money is being put to good use?
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Massachussets lawyers at their finest
Uh...........not really. Massachussets State Representative James Fagan is apparently a little displeased with the consideration by the Commonwealth of "Jessica's Law", a bill that would mandate automatic 20-year sentences without the possibility of parole for anyone convicted of raping a child under 12: http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/politics/view.bg?articleid=1102761. Well, he's actually more than a little displeased, because here's what he promised he would do to the victims when he go them on the stand (he was on the floor of the Assembly when he made this speech):
"When they're 8 years old they throw up; when they're 12 years old, they won't sleep; when they're 19 years old, they'll have nightmares and they'll never have a relationship with anybody."
What a swell guy!
"When they're 8 years old they throw up; when they're 12 years old, they won't sleep; when they're 19 years old, they'll have nightmares and they'll never have a relationship with anybody."
What a swell guy!
Great Britain in the 21st Century
Everytime I think that political correctness has hit a new high (or I should say, a new low), a new standard is set. The latest example of the mind-numbingly paralyzing political correctness that has gripped the country is a hairstyling salon owner who has been ordered to pay 4,000 pounds sterling to a Muslim woman for "indirect discrimination" as the Muslim woman's "feelings were hurt": http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1027300/How-I-nearly-lost-business-refusing-hire-Muslim-hair-stylist-wouldnt-hair.html. The amazing thing is that Sarah Desrosiers, the salon owner, was penalized because she wouldn't hire Bushra Noah, the Muslim woman, as the latter refused to take off her head scarf, something that Desrosiers required as the business owner.
Hurt feelings are now actionable? Business owners can't mandate dress and style codes for their employees? What's next, a requirement that strip clubs be forced to hire women in full burqas?
Hurt feelings are now actionable? Business owners can't mandate dress and style codes for their employees? What's next, a requirement that strip clubs be forced to hire women in full burqas?
Canadian Highway of Heroes
This actually brought a tear to my eyes and a lump to my throat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFmXKMki8sA. I honour the fallen soldiers as well as the crowds that gathered to welcome them back home. I just hope that they know how much their sacrifice is appreciated.
Does the punishment fit the "crime"?
I'm really torn on this one. A 59-year old man in a Philadelphia suburb has been charged with involuntary manslaughter after he forgot his 14 month old grandson in his car during the early June heatwave. By the time the man remembered and went back to the car, the child was struggling to breath and ultimately, the boy died: http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20655614.html.
Police have already said that they have no doubt that this was an accident. While I am a big supporter of jailing criminals, I have to ask what this will accomplish. The man will have to go through the rest of his life with the knowledge that his actions killed his grandson. Is that not enough?
Police have already said that they have no doubt that this was an accident. While I am a big supporter of jailing criminals, I have to ask what this will accomplish. The man will have to go through the rest of his life with the knowledge that his actions killed his grandson. Is that not enough?
When is a Jihad not a Jihad?
When it's being "defined" by the textbooks teaching our kids, of course: http://www.examiner.com/a-1429570~Council__Mongtomery_schools_cave_to_pressue_with_Islam_book.html?cid=temp-popular. After reading this story, you can be sure that somewhere right now, Ibrahim Hooper (CAIR's mouthpiece) is laughing hysterically. We don't get it, and he knows that we don't get it. To say that Jihad has nothing to do with violence is like saying that World War II had nothing to do with the Nazis. Apart from Pitchfork Pat Buchanan, no one would agree with you on that point.
How can one confront a problem when one can't even define the problem?
How can one confront a problem when one can't even define the problem?
Monday, June 23, 2008
The New York Times does it again
Apparently, it's not satisfied with exposing covert anti-terrorism programs, thereby eliminating their effectiveness more or less completely. Now, it's published a detailed examination of the interrogation of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the al Qaeda terrorist mastermind, giving readers the name of the interrogator despite an appeal from the CIA that this information not be revealed: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/22/washington/22ksm.html?_r=1&&pagewanted=all&oref=slogin. The fact that the interrogator's life may now be in danger apparently doesn't concern the Times in the least: http://nytimes.com/2008/06/22/washington/web22ksmnote.html.
I really do think that the NYT wants the U.S. to lose this war..............
I really do think that the NYT wants the U.S. to lose this war..............
The end of the line for a longstanding sports media team?
New York Newsday is reporting that sports talk show legends (and after 20 years together, that's a fair description) Mike Francesa and Chris "Mad Dog" Russo may be splitting up, perhaps as early as this summer: http://www.newsday.com/sports/ny-spmike0622,0,842426.story. For those who aren't sports fans, or who have never heard the show, you've missed on what is probably the seminal sports talk show of our generation. They didn't restrict their subjects to New York area teams, though that was obviously the main focus of their show. Here's hoping that they work out their differences and continue the show.............
We continue to enrich them
Agence France Presse is reporting that the Arab Gulf Staes will take in no less than 1.3 trillion dollars in oil revenue over the next two years: http://www.gulfinthemedia.com/index.php?id=411065&news_type=Economy&lang=en.
Let's see. They hate us. They fund people who want to kill us. And we pour dollar after dollar into their piggy banks (oops, sorry, how politically incorrect of me to use that analogy)...................
Let's see. They hate us. They fund people who want to kill us. And we pour dollar after dollar into their piggy banks (oops, sorry, how politically incorrect of me to use that analogy)...................
George Carlin, 1937-2008
I'm a huge fan of standup comedy, so I was very saddened this morning to read that the iconoclastic but amazingly talented (and brilliantly funny) George Carlin died yesterday at the age of 71: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080623/ap_on_en_tv/obit_george_carlin. Carlin will forever be known for his routine on the "Seven words you can't say on television" (Shit, Fuck, Piss, Cunt, Cocksucker, Motherfucker and Tits--Amazing, I still remember them off the top of my head), but he had so many other brilliant routines.
The world today is a less funny place than it was yesterday..................
The world today is a less funny place than it was yesterday..................
Saturday, June 21, 2008
The Rabbi has arrived!
The San Francisco Giants have brought up a Jewish player, Brian Horwitz, who his teammates have naturally nicknamed "The Rabbi": http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/06/20/SP8U11C30G.DTL.
After all those years of cheering against the Giants because of the presence of the odious Barry Bonds, I now have a reason to cheer for the team!
After all those years of cheering against the Giants because of the presence of the odious Barry Bonds, I now have a reason to cheer for the team!
Hellooooo, anyone listening?
Robert Mundell, Nobel Prize-winning economist is speaking. And to paraphrase the old E.F. Hutton commercial, when Mundell speaks, people listen. So, what's he saying now? Why, it's something that no Democrat or angry leftie wants to hear, which is that Bush 43 tax cuts need to be made permanent. IMMEDIATELY: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121400327981993375.html?mod=djemEditorialPage.
I know that Democrats don't want to talk about this. You see, in their world view, I'm rich. They ought to see my house, my mortgage, my credit card bills, etc., but despite all that, I'm stinkin' rich in their view. So, I should be taxed more. A lot more. Again, I'm no economist, but it seems logical to me that in a relatively weak economy where consumer spending is down, it is not smart or good fiscal policy to restrict even further the amount of money that people are spending. But, like I said, I'm no economist..................
I know that Democrats don't want to talk about this. You see, in their world view, I'm rich. They ought to see my house, my mortgage, my credit card bills, etc., but despite all that, I'm stinkin' rich in their view. So, I should be taxed more. A lot more. Again, I'm no economist, but it seems logical to me that in a relatively weak economy where consumer spending is down, it is not smart or good fiscal policy to restrict even further the amount of money that people are spending. But, like I said, I'm no economist..................
I'm your enemy! No, I'm your friend! Never mind, I'm your enemy! Wait, I've changed my mind........
Farouk Hosni, an Egyptian political hack, in first in line to become the head of UNESCO: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121400293735693309.html?mod=djemEditorialPage. The only problem is that Mr. Hosni has a "slight" problem with Israel. But then he doesn't. But, then he does, again. This man engages in so much double-talk, he COULD be running for President of the United States.
I guess that it comes down to this for me. We are 30 years plus past the signing of the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel, and even now, in 2008, Egypt still refuses to have any cultural ties whatsoever with Israel. Doesn't that one fact alone tell you all you need to now about the Egyptian "perspective" on Israel?
As a side note, the fact that he may be in favour of burning Israeli books is probably a plus in the eyes of most U.N. members.............
I guess that it comes down to this for me. We are 30 years plus past the signing of the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel, and even now, in 2008, Egypt still refuses to have any cultural ties whatsoever with Israel. Doesn't that one fact alone tell you all you need to now about the Egyptian "perspective" on Israel?
As a side note, the fact that he may be in favour of burning Israeli books is probably a plus in the eyes of most U.N. members.............
Friday, June 20, 2008
Hezbollah on the prowl?
There is increasing "chatter" in the terrorism world that Hezbollah, which until 9/11 had killed more Americans than any other terrorist group in the world in the world, is poised for a major attack, possibly in Africa, Canada, Europe, or Latin America: http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5203570&page=1. Needless to say (I'll say it anyway), the target(s) would be Jewish.
If this is true, somewhere in this world, a lot of innocent people are going to pay with their lives for Israel's not finishing the job it started in 2006............
If this is true, somewhere in this world, a lot of innocent people are going to pay with their lives for Israel's not finishing the job it started in 2006............
Sending a message
Israeli armed forces have engaged in a large-scale exercise which saw the IDF air wing fly out over the Mediterranean some 900 miles: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/20/washington/20iran.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all&oref=slogin.
Hmm............Why, that's just the same distance as from Tel Aviv to Natanz, where the Iranians have those buried nuclear centrifuges. I'm sure it's just a coincidence.........
Hmm............Why, that's just the same distance as from Tel Aviv to Natanz, where the Iranians have those buried nuclear centrifuges. I'm sure it's just a coincidence.........
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Sticking its nose where it doesn't belong
A court in Quebec has overturned a decision by a father to ban his daughter from attending a school trip: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/06/19/father-court.html. The daughter was living with her father and stepmother, and had a fight with the step-mom. The father then banned the daughter from attending the trip, so she stomped out and moved in with her mother, and several days later, a petition was filed to overturn the father's punishment. Stunningly, a judge agreed with the girl.
How is a judge sticking her nose into a legitimate disciplining of a child anything other than an example of the state interfering with familial relations?
How is a judge sticking her nose into a legitimate disciplining of a child anything other than an example of the state interfering with familial relations?
Human cruelty
We are horrible to each other, so it really shouldn't come as a surprise that humans are often incredibly cruel to animals. It shouldn't............but somehow, it still does. Seven gorillas were killed in cold blood in an African wildlife preserve for absolutely no reason whatsoever: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/07/virunga/jenkins-text/1.
Why? What could possibly motivate a person to do something like this to innocent animals? What the hell is wrong with us?
Why? What could possibly motivate a person to do something like this to innocent animals? What the hell is wrong with us?
Israel surrenders
There is no other way to describe the "truce" to which Israel has agreed with Hamas. It is an unquestioned political and military victory for Hamas, and a colossal defeat for Israel. As Michael Oren notes, a terrorist group once again achieved victory by not losing: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121383448634286853.html?mod=djemEditorialPage. The Ehud Olmert government has through its incredible bumbling and mind-numbing incompetence destroyed whatever deterrence Israel had left. With this move, Hamas will be allowed to rearm and get ready for the next, deadlier round of fighting, and it STILL holds Israeli Corporal Gilad Shalit hostage.
I've asked this question before, but I'll ask it again: If Israelis don't care enough about their country to toss out their corrupt, incompetent, self-hating government, why should I care about their country?
I've asked this question before, but I'll ask it again: If Israelis don't care enough about their country to toss out their corrupt, incompetent, self-hating government, why should I care about their country?
If a tree falls in the forest.............
Criticisms of the U.N. are just like those trees falling in the forest. No one hears them. For that matter, no one is even listening. That is why, the hopes of Mark Dubowitz notwithstanding, no country from Europe will boycott next year's "Durban II" anti-racism conference: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121382874218086413.html?mod=djemEditorialPage. Europe is completely subservient to its Islamic masters, a fact well-recognized by the OIC.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Not looking good
A Quinnipiac University poll has given Barack Obama a decent edge in three of the major "swing states" in the upcoming election, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Florida: http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/06/18/poll-3-key-swing-states-put-obama-over-mccain/. This is the first time that Obama has led McCain in Florida, a state which many thought would be certain to go for McCain given his military background and the large numbers of military personnel who live there. If Obama sweeps those three states, you can stick a fork not only in John McCain's presidential hopes but in the Republican Party in general.
It is shaping up to be a LONG night in November for the Republicans......................
It is shaping up to be a LONG night in November for the Republicans......................
Words of wisdom
This is the voice of moderation, Hussein Fadhlallah, the top Shiite cleric in Lebanon, talking about how it's okay to beat your wife, how the Jews use the Holocaust to extort money from Germany and how 9/11 really was an inside job: http://www.memritv.org/newsletter/fadhlallah.htm.
Isn't he one of those who we keep getting told is one of the "moderates"? Why does this type of lunacy not receive more attention in the western MSM?
Isn't he one of those who we keep getting told is one of the "moderates"? Why does this type of lunacy not receive more attention in the western MSM?
The place to be
From a sports perspective, it is Boston. No other city is even remotely close right now. The Celtics clinched their 17th NBA title last night: http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=424987. The Boston Red Sox are the defending World Series champions and are in first place in their division once again. The New England Patriots are a last-minute Eli Manning drive away from having completely the first 19-0 season in NFL history, and are a favourite to get back to the Super Bowl once again. Even the Boston Bruins are on the upswing. And let's not forget that Boston College just won the NCAA men's hockey title.
Boston, the City of Champions.....................
Boston, the City of Champions.....................
A plea for help
One would think that the situation is hunky-dory now in Sudan, given the lack of media attention the ongoing genocide there has received. Of course, that's far from the case. As this Sudanese writer notes, over 400,000 people have died in the ethnic violence there, a number that absolutely dwarfs the combined number of Israeli and Palestinian deaths since 1967: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121373660373782099.html?mod=djemEditorialPage.
What is going on in Darfur is a stain upon humanity. Future generations will look upon what we did--or more appropriately, what we DIDN'T do--and ask, "How could they allow this to happen?"
What is going on in Darfur is a stain upon humanity. Future generations will look upon what we did--or more appropriately, what we DIDN'T do--and ask, "How could they allow this to happen?"
Tim Russert, redux
The tributes to the late Tim Russert continue to pour in, five days after his sudden passing last Friday. A number of people have commented that maybe the coverage of his death is a little over the top. Perhaps it is, but there is a reason for that in my mind. Russert was part of what is unfortunately a dying breed; journalists who are respected equally by politicians of both stripes. He was always honest about the perspective from which he was coming (generally liberal), but at the same time, he was clearly genuinely interested in what those on the other side of the political spectrum had to say. In fact, he felt that it was necessary to hear their viewpoint, as related by Bernard Goldberg: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121375187453382965.html?mod=djemEditorialPage.
It's just one guy's perspective, but I think that Tim Russert will go down as one of the seminal journalists of our generation. We will come to view him the way our parents' generation viewed Edward R. Murrow and Walter Cronkite.
It's just one guy's perspective, but I think that Tim Russert will go down as one of the seminal journalists of our generation. We will come to view him the way our parents' generation viewed Edward R. Murrow and Walter Cronkite.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Iran ascendant
The United States doesn't have the will to do it, and neither does Europe. Israel doesn't have the ability to do it. So, it is all abut inevitable that at some point in the next few years, Iran will join the club of countries who own nuclear arms: http://www.nypost.com/seven/06152008/postopinion/opedcolumnists/bombs_awaywhy_the_us_policy_isnt_working_115609.htm. The ramifications of this will be global, as Amir Teheri notes. Iran is already closely allied with Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba and a whole list of other anti-American regimes. What will stop Iran from, as Teheri speculates, basing nuclear weapons in Cuba? It's not like we have a JFK in the White House now who will stare down the Iranians, and if it's Obama in the White House, you can be sure that any aggressive Iranian move would not be met with any American resistance whatsoever.
Good news about Israel???
I guess that it can happen occasionally. Despite intense lobbying by the Palestinians and Israel's supposed "friend" Egypt, the EU has pleasantly shocked me by agreeing to significantly upgrade its relationship with Israel: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1212659748504&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull.
The importance of this development cannot be understated. We all know how anti-Israel most European institutions are. However, this may be the start of what will hopefully be an improved relationship between Israel and Europe. Israel has long desired EU membership, and though that is not even a glimmer on the horizon, maybe this is the first sign that it's not just an impossible dream. And, how ironic is it that Israel's relationship with Europe appears to be improving just as its relationship with the United States seems to be ebbing?
The importance of this development cannot be understated. We all know how anti-Israel most European institutions are. However, this may be the start of what will hopefully be an improved relationship between Israel and Europe. Israel has long desired EU membership, and though that is not even a glimmer on the horizon, maybe this is the first sign that it's not just an impossible dream. And, how ironic is it that Israel's relationship with Europe appears to be improving just as its relationship with the United States seems to be ebbing?
Condi targets Israel...........AGAIN
Forget what I wrote yesterday, because Brent Scowcroft and James "F--- the Jews" Baker were NEVER this bad insofar as Israel was concerned. Condhimmileeza Rice's latest "words of wisdom" are to express approval for Hezbollah's increased role in running Lebanon (so they've killed hundreds of Americans. Big deal, right?) and to start pressuring Israel to vacate the barren piece of land know as Shebaa Farms: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hKO6E2Vs5MktD_-DXHsbQ6tnT1-QD91BE2VO0. Shebaa Farms is a disputed piece of land which is claimed by both Syria and Lebanon, and Israeli control of it (it was captured in the 1967 Six Day War) has been the purported "raison d'etre" behind Hezbollah's continued militarization.
Let me ask a rhetorical question: Is ANY other country in the world constantly asked--no, make that TOLD--to give up land? When will the United States be asked to return California, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico and Nevada to Mexico? When will the Poles be asked to return East and West Prussia to Germany? When will the Russians be asked to return the Sakhalin Islands to Japan? When will the British return Gibraltar to Spain? For that matter, when will the 300 million plus Americans and the 32 million Canadians vacate North America and return it to the Iroquois, Algonquin, Aztec, Apache, Navajo, Seminole, Onondega, etc., etc.?
Let me ask a rhetorical question: Is ANY other country in the world constantly asked--no, make that TOLD--to give up land? When will the United States be asked to return California, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico and Nevada to Mexico? When will the Poles be asked to return East and West Prussia to Germany? When will the Russians be asked to return the Sakhalin Islands to Japan? When will the British return Gibraltar to Spain? For that matter, when will the 300 million plus Americans and the 32 million Canadians vacate North America and return it to the Iroquois, Algonquin, Aztec, Apache, Navajo, Seminole, Onondega, etc., etc.?
Monday, June 16, 2008
What if they held an election and no one showed up?
That's actually happened: http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/article.html?in_article_id=177198&in_page_id=2.
Why do I find this so funny?
Why do I find this so funny?
Clueless Condi
She is a disciple of Brent Scowcroft and James "F--- the Jews" Baker, so I guess that I should not be surprised that she now sounds exactly like them. They were part of the so-called "Realist" school of international affairs, and those "Realists" are part of the "blame Israel first" group. If there is ever a problem in the Middle East, Israel is blamed, the latest example of this knee-jerk reaction being Condoleeza Rice's criticisms that Israel was "expanding its settlements" in the West Bank: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/16/world/middleeast/16mideast.html?_r=1&oref=slogin.
Of course, this was published in the New York Times, whose bias against Israel is well-known, so one can certainly question whether Rice's comments were misstated or taken out of context. That said, the Bush 43 Administration has morphed into the Bush 41 Administration insofar as its policy towards Israel is concerned, so it is certainly not out of the question that Rice's comments were accurately reported by the NYT.
Of course, this was published in the New York Times, whose bias against Israel is well-known, so one can certainly question whether Rice's comments were misstated or taken out of context. That said, the Bush 43 Administration has morphed into the Bush 41 Administration insofar as its policy towards Israel is concerned, so it is certainly not out of the question that Rice's comments were accurately reported by the NYT.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Tunneling through to the other side of the world
President Peanut Farmer hasn't hit the bottom yet. He just keeps digging. Meeting with Hamas wasn't enough. Now he's going to meet with Hezbollah: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/148198.
This vile, odious man is a disgrace. He was the worst President of our lifetime, and now despite his earnest and commendable work for Habitat for Humanity, he's going to make sure that he's known as the worst ex-President as well.............
This vile, odious man is a disgrace. He was the worst President of our lifetime, and now despite his earnest and commendable work for Habitat for Humanity, he's going to make sure that he's known as the worst ex-President as well.............
Litigation Jihad in Canada
Mark Steyn, one of the pre-eminent conservative journalists around, is embroiled in a thought crimes "human rights trial" in British Columbia, Canada. The case was filed by Ontario Muslims who claim that Steyn promotes an "Islamophobic" viewpoint, and that he didn't offer an "alternative" viewpoint in his column: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080606/macleans_article_080606/20080606/.
First of all, I wasn't aware that opinion columnists were under any obligation to offer viewpoints other than their own. Second, this is nothing more than a transparent attempt by the litigation jihadists to silence anyone who dares speak out against them. The scary thing is that it's working.................
UPDATE ( 7:21 p.m.): For a fascinating (but long) discussion on this subject, go here:http://www.cpac.ca/forms/index.asp?dsp=template&act=view3&pagetype=vod&lang=e&clipID=1593.
First of all, I wasn't aware that opinion columnists were under any obligation to offer viewpoints other than their own. Second, this is nothing more than a transparent attempt by the litigation jihadists to silence anyone who dares speak out against them. The scary thing is that it's working.................
UPDATE ( 7:21 p.m.): For a fascinating (but long) discussion on this subject, go here:http://www.cpac.ca/forms/index.asp?dsp=template&act=view3&pagetype=vod&lang=e&clipID=1593.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
I'm a masochist
I have to be. What other explanation is there for my reading Ted Rall's columns when they pop up on Yahoo? His latest missive is a continuation of the theme that I said would be the main story line once Barack Obama secured the Democratic Party's nomination for the presidency, which is that if you vote against Obama, it MUST be because you are a racist: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ucru/20080612/cm_ucru/barackobamatoken. No other explanation will suffice. It couldn't be because of policy differences, and even Rall were to allow for that, he would still blame those policy differences on racism, sexism, or some other "-ism".
Get ready. This will only build up as the election approaches.
Get ready. This will only build up as the election approaches.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Tim Russert, 1950-1958
Those who check out my blog from anywhere outside the United States will undoubtedly be bored by this post, if not completely uninterested. Tim Russert, moderator of Meet the Press and one of the journalistic giants of our age, passed away suddenly today of a heart attack at the young age of 58: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25145431/.
Obviously, my first thoughts are for his family and his close colleagues. He was one of those incredibly rare individuals who had the respect and admiration of politicians of either stripe. Just watching the tributes pour in about him is ample evidence of his tremendous character. It goes without saying that the Washington political scene and journalism in general will be the poorer for his departure. Rest in peace, Little Russ.................
Obviously, my first thoughts are for his family and his close colleagues. He was one of those incredibly rare individuals who had the respect and admiration of politicians of either stripe. Just watching the tributes pour in about him is ample evidence of his tremendous character. It goes without saying that the Washington political scene and journalism in general will be the poorer for his departure. Rest in peace, Little Russ.................
Too funny!
The esteemed United Nations Human Rights Commission has issued a report calling on Great Britain to abolish its monarchy: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/global/main.jhtml?xml=/global/2008/06/13/noindex/royal.xml&CMP=EMC-expat2008. Let's see......who's on the Commission? Right, Saudi Arabia.........A MONARCHY. And with all of the world's problems, this is what concerns them (well, other than when the member states are trashing Israel, of course)?
The latest from our good friends, the Saudis
Saudi Arabia is apparently pushing hard behind the scenes for a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Israel for "expanding its settlements" in the West Bank: http://www.nysun.com/foreign/saudis-pushing-un-demarche-against-israel/79974/. This move would place the U.S. in a very uncomfortable position of either having to veto the resolution or letting Israel get hung out to dry.
The timing of this move on the part of the Saudis is curious, but the way I see it, it's indicative of the growing rift between the United States and the world's prime exporter of oil and terrorists. I wonder if this will stop the Bush 43 Administration from groveling at the Saudis' collective feet? Probably not, unfortunately.
The timing of this move on the part of the Saudis is curious, but the way I see it, it's indicative of the growing rift between the United States and the world's prime exporter of oil and terrorists. I wonder if this will stop the Bush 43 Administration from groveling at the Saudis' collective feet? Probably not, unfortunately.
Off-season game plan
The Montreal Canadiens came out of nowhere to finish atop the Eastern (Prince of Wales!) Conference last season, and then rapidly returned to nowhere in the playoffs, where they struggled to a seven-game victory over a Boston Bruins team that quite honestly deserved to beat them, before being wiped out in five games in the second round by a Philadelphia Flyers squad that simply played harder.
Still, there is actually a sense of quiet optimism about the Habs going into the off-season for the first time in well over a decade. There is plenty of speed on offense, a mobile defense (though if the team loses Mark Streit to free agency, that will hurt a lot) and solid young goaltending, though certainly questions about Carey Price will abound after his weak performance in the playoffs.
Canada's TSN has an excellent analysis of the team's off-season game plan, and it can be found here: http://www.tsn.ca/columnists/scott_cullen/?id=240496.
Still, there is actually a sense of quiet optimism about the Habs going into the off-season for the first time in well over a decade. There is plenty of speed on offense, a mobile defense (though if the team loses Mark Streit to free agency, that will hurt a lot) and solid young goaltending, though certainly questions about Carey Price will abound after his weak performance in the playoffs.
Canada's TSN has an excellent analysis of the team's off-season game plan, and it can be found here: http://www.tsn.ca/columnists/scott_cullen/?id=240496.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Putting the cart before the horse
Canada's left-leaning Toronto Star has already called the November's U.S. Presidential election and--surprise, surprise!--Barack Obama is the winner: http://www.thestar.com/News/USElection/article/438233. And, of course, this will result in a near utopia on this side of the 49th parallel, and paroxysms of joy north of it (according to the Star).
Can't they even pretend to be objective?
Can't they even pretend to be objective?
Conspirary theorists of the world, unite!
Libya's Moammar Khaddafy is back in the news again, explaining that Barack Obama's words of support for Israel at the recent AIPAC conference stem from a fear on Obama's part that the Mossad will assassinate him...........just like it took out JFK: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/991948.html.
I wonder if he knows that JFK was very pro-Israel?
I wonder if he knows that JFK was very pro-Israel?
Not a good precedent
In a major defeat for the Bush 43 Administration, the United States Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision struck down the law that allowed the government to try the Guantanamo Bay detainees in front of military tribunals: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080612/ts_nm/guantanamo_court_dc_6. I'll ignore the gleeful, one-sided reporting in the article, and concentrate on the facts. What this will do is allow the detainees to petition federal courts for trials there, and one of them, Osama Bin Laden's former driver, has already filed just such an application. Of course, once they are in the federal court system, you can be sure that there will be one ruling after another in their favour by Clinton-era appointed judges.
What the Supreme Court just did is wrong, plain and simple. Think that the Supreme Court can't be wrong? Try the Dred Scott case.
I shudder to think what would have happened had these justices been around when Lincoln was fighting the Civil War..................
UPDATE (5:44 p.m.): The entire opinion can be found here: http://supremecourtus.gov/opinions/07pdf/06-1195.pdf. Justice Scalia's dissent is as withering as it is brilliant.
What the Supreme Court just did is wrong, plain and simple. Think that the Supreme Court can't be wrong? Try the Dred Scott case.
I shudder to think what would have happened had these justices been around when Lincoln was fighting the Civil War..................
UPDATE (5:44 p.m.): The entire opinion can be found here: http://supremecourtus.gov/opinions/07pdf/06-1195.pdf. Justice Scalia's dissent is as withering as it is brilliant.
Lebanon in flux
I just read an excellent analysis of the the situation in Lebanon since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war ended, and it can ben found here: http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateC05.php?CID=2897. The analysis is fairly accurate, I think. Israel's army performed poorly and was badly led; and while Hezbollah was pushed back from the border with Israel, it has restocked its arsenal with longer-range and more accurate missiles. As well, and though the article never mentions it, the very reason for the war was the attack into Israel and kidnapping of IDF soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, and they are still prisoners nearly two years later. No wonder Hezbollah claimed victory...............
I'm not the only one who noticed
The NBA has a serious problem on its hands with the whole referee issue. I don't just mean Tim Donaghy's admitting that he shaved points. We now have an allegation by Donaghy that the refs and the NBA conspired in 2002 to fix a game, as discussed so well by Michael Wilbon in today's Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/11/AR2008061104008.html.
As a sports fan, what I can't understand is why this isn't bigger news. The game in 2002 that Donaghy has asserted was fixed was Game Six of the Western Conference Finals between the Sacramento Kings and the Los Angeles Lakers, a game universally recognized by basketball fans as being one of the worst officiated games ever, one where the refs single-handedly handed the game to the Lakers. This allegation should be the front page of every sports section in the United States, and yet it is not really generating much discussion. Can anyone explain that to me?
As a sports fan, what I can't understand is why this isn't bigger news. The game in 2002 that Donaghy has asserted was fixed was Game Six of the Western Conference Finals between the Sacramento Kings and the Los Angeles Lakers, a game universally recognized by basketball fans as being one of the worst officiated games ever, one where the refs single-handedly handed the game to the Lakers. This allegation should be the front page of every sports section in the United States, and yet it is not really generating much discussion. Can anyone explain that to me?
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Barack Obama, phone home!
A delegate at the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Denver has announced that he wants the city of Denver to establish a commission on extra-terrestrial affairs: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/2088554/Alien-video-man-Jeff-Peckman-asks-Barack-Obama-to-back-UFO-plan.html.
I wonder if Dennis Kucinich is available(http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2007/10/31/kucinich-i-saw-a-ufo/)?
I wonder if Dennis Kucinich is available(http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2007/10/31/kucinich-i-saw-a-ufo/)?
An open plea to the Brits
This comes from Ron Prosor, in the Daily Telegraph, as he implores ordinary Brits not to buy into the rabid and increasingly hostile anti-Israeli propaganda that they are fed on a daily basis by their elites, including the BBC, unions, etc.: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/06/10/do1002.xml.
I've blogged about this before. I think that the situation in the U.K. is past the point of no return insofar as Jews in general and Israel in particular is concerned. Were I a Jewish resident of that country, I'd think long and hard about moving elsewhere.
I've blogged about this before. I think that the situation in the U.K. is past the point of no return insofar as Jews in general and Israel in particular is concerned. Were I a Jewish resident of that country, I'd think long and hard about moving elsewhere.
He's more optimistic than I am
Tom Friedman, generally regarded as one of the more astute commentators on all things Middle Eastern, penned a piece in the New York Times in which he predicted in no uncertain terms that Israel would outlast Iran, mainly due to its very strong economy: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/08/opinion/08friedman.html?_r=1&oref=slogin. If one were to remove the homicidal regime running Iran from the equation, perhaps he would be right. However, and unlike Friedman, I take the Iranians at their word when they fulminate about wiping Israel off the map. One nuke over Tel Aviv would be the end of Israel, and then so much for that little economic engine that could about which Mr. Friedman is singing so many praises.
Maybe it's not so bad after all
The Obama-ites and Democrats in general like to spout off about how horrible our relations with Europe have been since Bush 43 took office, and they talk in grandiose terms about how Obama will "heal" the transatlantic alliance. Well, turns out that he may not have all that much "healing" to do: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121305526251459171.html?mod=djemEditorialPage. Relations between the two sides of the pond aren't that bad after all.
Of course, those inconvenient facts interfere with the MSM's narrative, so you can be sure that you won't read much about them.
Of course, those inconvenient facts interfere with the MSM's narrative, so you can be sure that you won't read much about them.
Monday, June 9, 2008
My life to a "T"
As readers of this blog (I know that there must be SOME of you out there) are aware, by profession I am an attorney. I kind of fell into it by default. I wasn't looking to be a lawyer, but given that I liked to talk alot and that becoming a history professor seemed to be an even more miserable career choice (the "publish or perish" routine seemed entirely not to my liking), I ended up in law school, and I have now been a practicing attorney for about 14 years.
Those who know me also know that I'm absolutely miserable doing what I do. Well, it turns out that I'm not alone. In fact, far from it: http://www.nd.edu/~ndmag/legl2f99.htm. Lawyers in general are miserable, and as the cliche goes, most would turn back the hands of time and pick something else to do if the could. Lord knows, I think that on a daily basis (many times a day, in fact), and I often lecture others who are preparing to march down the same path to nowhere that I took.
My message to anyone who reads this? DON'T GO TO LAW SCHOOL. If you do, go into a career field other than practicing law. It's simply not worth the price attorneys are asked to pay on a daily basis (and that's not even counting the daily public scorn that we receive). By the way, this is no way meant to be a pity play. Rather, I would just like to see some people not make the mistake of pursuing a career choice that does not reward those who follow it sufficiently to make the sacrifices worthwhile.
Those who know me also know that I'm absolutely miserable doing what I do. Well, it turns out that I'm not alone. In fact, far from it: http://www.nd.edu/~ndmag/legl2f99.htm. Lawyers in general are miserable, and as the cliche goes, most would turn back the hands of time and pick something else to do if the could. Lord knows, I think that on a daily basis (many times a day, in fact), and I often lecture others who are preparing to march down the same path to nowhere that I took.
My message to anyone who reads this? DON'T GO TO LAW SCHOOL. If you do, go into a career field other than practicing law. It's simply not worth the price attorneys are asked to pay on a daily basis (and that's not even counting the daily public scorn that we receive). By the way, this is no way meant to be a pity play. Rather, I would just like to see some people not make the mistake of pursuing a career choice that does not reward those who follow it sufficiently to make the sacrifices worthwhile.
Some sporting thoughts for a sweltering Monday
It's going to hit 100 degrees in my neck of the woods today, so I'm going to try not to get riled up by politics. Let's see what's going on in the world of sports........
1) My Miami Hurricanes had their back to the wall in the NCAA Super Regionals after losing Game One of their best of three series against Arizona on Friday night (6-3), but they won Game Two with offense (14-10) and Game Three with pitching (4-2) and are heading back to the College World Series as the #1 seed. ACC rivals North Carolina and Florida State will be there waiting for them, along with perennial powerhouses such as Rice and LSU.
2) One of the least orthodox but most accomplished goaltenders in modern NHL history will be hanging up his skates today as the Detroit Red Wings have called a press conference this afternoon to announce the retirement from the NHL of Dominik "The Dominator" Hasek. I've never been a huge Hasek fan, but his body of work cannot be questioned. He is a certain first ballot Hockey Hall of Fame selection.
3) Rafael Nadal continued to show why he is the dominant clay court player of our time as he absolutely thrashed the #1 player in the world, Roger Federer, 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 in the final of the French Open. Nadal has now played 28 matches at the French Open and won every one of them. He has dominated Federer completely on clay, to the point where Federer's otherwise sublime game is reduced to a joke and a bad one at that. The irony of course is that Nadal is not really a threat to win anywhere else. Until he breaks through and wins a Major in Australia, the U.K. or U.S., I'll consider him to be a one-dimensional player.
4) The Boston Celtics are up two games to none against the Los Angeles Lakers, with Games Three, Four and (if necessary) Five scheduled for L.A. this week. You can count me as being among those who are very surprised that the Celtics are up in the series, given the way the two teams were playing coming into the Finals. Of course, Boston DID almost blow a 24-point second half lead yesterday in Game Two, as the Lakers whittled that lead all the way down to two points before the Celtics hung on for the victory. The Lakers haven't lost a game at home in the playoffs so far this season, and I think that that pattern holds true here. When the series goes back to Boston, Los Angeles will have a 3-2 series lead.
5) The Top Five and Bottom Five in Baseball right now:
TOP FIVE
1) Chicago Cubs (40-24): Yeah, they're the Cubs, so you know SOMETHING will go wrong, but they're playing very well right now. Of course, it is June, and the term "June Swoon" was invented with the Cubs in mind.
2) Boston Red Sox (40-26): No Big Papi, no problem. The Sox have so far weathered the spate of injuries which has struck the team, but how long can they keep it up?
3) Los Angeles Angels (39-25): Angeles Manager Mike Scioscia is quietly putting together a Hall of Fame resume. He already has the World Series title, and the Angels just keep racking up wins.
4) Philadelphia Philies (39-26): These are the Sillies, so they'll choke somehow, somewhere. Still, to go into Atlanta and sweep the Braves, a team that was 25-8 at home before the series, is very impressive at any point in the season.
5) Chicago White Sox (36-26): Could we be looking at Windy City World Series clash? The Pale Hose are getting the pitching and plenty of timely hitting.
BOTTOM FIVE
1) Colorado Rockies (24-39): From the penthouse to the outhouse. Was it really just last October that the Rockies were Baseball's hottest team, going 21-1 (including sweeping seven playoff games) to get to the World Series? This year's team brings back memories of the awful Rockies teams of the late 1990s and early 2000s, though losing Matt Holliday and Troy Tulowitzki to extended stays on the DL hasn't helped.
2) Seattle Mariners (22-41): The Mariners are the #2 candidate for the title of "Most Disappointing Team". A lot of money is being spent on a team that is producing nothing but a lot of "L's".
3) Detroit Tigers (26-36): The Tigers are by far Baseball's "Most Disappointing Team". Barring a sudden turnaround, they'll finish below .500 in a season where a lot of people were picking them to win the World Series, or at least go to it.
4) Washington Nationals (25-39): Yup, that switch to the new ballpark really did wonders for the Nats, didn't it? The fact of the matter is that a bad baseball team will be a bad baseball team no matter where it plays.
5) Kansas City Royals (24-39): Remember the days when the Royals were considered to be one of Baseball's model franchises? Yeah, me neither.......
1) My Miami Hurricanes had their back to the wall in the NCAA Super Regionals after losing Game One of their best of three series against Arizona on Friday night (6-3), but they won Game Two with offense (14-10) and Game Three with pitching (4-2) and are heading back to the College World Series as the #1 seed. ACC rivals North Carolina and Florida State will be there waiting for them, along with perennial powerhouses such as Rice and LSU.
2) One of the least orthodox but most accomplished goaltenders in modern NHL history will be hanging up his skates today as the Detroit Red Wings have called a press conference this afternoon to announce the retirement from the NHL of Dominik "The Dominator" Hasek. I've never been a huge Hasek fan, but his body of work cannot be questioned. He is a certain first ballot Hockey Hall of Fame selection.
3) Rafael Nadal continued to show why he is the dominant clay court player of our time as he absolutely thrashed the #1 player in the world, Roger Federer, 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 in the final of the French Open. Nadal has now played 28 matches at the French Open and won every one of them. He has dominated Federer completely on clay, to the point where Federer's otherwise sublime game is reduced to a joke and a bad one at that. The irony of course is that Nadal is not really a threat to win anywhere else. Until he breaks through and wins a Major in Australia, the U.K. or U.S., I'll consider him to be a one-dimensional player.
4) The Boston Celtics are up two games to none against the Los Angeles Lakers, with Games Three, Four and (if necessary) Five scheduled for L.A. this week. You can count me as being among those who are very surprised that the Celtics are up in the series, given the way the two teams were playing coming into the Finals. Of course, Boston DID almost blow a 24-point second half lead yesterday in Game Two, as the Lakers whittled that lead all the way down to two points before the Celtics hung on for the victory. The Lakers haven't lost a game at home in the playoffs so far this season, and I think that that pattern holds true here. When the series goes back to Boston, Los Angeles will have a 3-2 series lead.
5) The Top Five and Bottom Five in Baseball right now:
TOP FIVE
1) Chicago Cubs (40-24): Yeah, they're the Cubs, so you know SOMETHING will go wrong, but they're playing very well right now. Of course, it is June, and the term "June Swoon" was invented with the Cubs in mind.
2) Boston Red Sox (40-26): No Big Papi, no problem. The Sox have so far weathered the spate of injuries which has struck the team, but how long can they keep it up?
3) Los Angeles Angels (39-25): Angeles Manager Mike Scioscia is quietly putting together a Hall of Fame resume. He already has the World Series title, and the Angels just keep racking up wins.
4) Philadelphia Philies (39-26): These are the Sillies, so they'll choke somehow, somewhere. Still, to go into Atlanta and sweep the Braves, a team that was 25-8 at home before the series, is very impressive at any point in the season.
5) Chicago White Sox (36-26): Could we be looking at Windy City World Series clash? The Pale Hose are getting the pitching and plenty of timely hitting.
BOTTOM FIVE
1) Colorado Rockies (24-39): From the penthouse to the outhouse. Was it really just last October that the Rockies were Baseball's hottest team, going 21-1 (including sweeping seven playoff games) to get to the World Series? This year's team brings back memories of the awful Rockies teams of the late 1990s and early 2000s, though losing Matt Holliday and Troy Tulowitzki to extended stays on the DL hasn't helped.
2) Seattle Mariners (22-41): The Mariners are the #2 candidate for the title of "Most Disappointing Team". A lot of money is being spent on a team that is producing nothing but a lot of "L's".
3) Detroit Tigers (26-36): The Tigers are by far Baseball's "Most Disappointing Team". Barring a sudden turnaround, they'll finish below .500 in a season where a lot of people were picking them to win the World Series, or at least go to it.
4) Washington Nationals (25-39): Yup, that switch to the new ballpark really did wonders for the Nats, didn't it? The fact of the matter is that a bad baseball team will be a bad baseball team no matter where it plays.
5) Kansas City Royals (24-39): Remember the days when the Royals were considered to be one of Baseball's model franchises? Yeah, me neither.......
Sunday, June 8, 2008
From Barack Obama's OFFICIAL website
I offer the following, without comments and completely unchanged:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/juancarloscruz/gGBPjx/commentary
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Post from Socialists for Obama:
The Israeli Connection to 9/11
By Juan Carlos from Knoxville, TN - May 26th, 2008 at 11:54 pm EDT
Also listed in: Tennessee for Obama '08 Tennessee Action Team
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Mossad: The Israeli Connection to 9/11By Christopher Bollyn – American Free Press April 10, 2005 U.S. investigators and the controlled media have ignored a preponderance of evidence pointing to Israel's intelligence agency, the Mossad, being involved in the terror attacks of 9/11.
From the very morning aircraft smashed into the World Trade Center (WTC) and the Pentagon, news reports have indicated Israeli intelligence being involved in the events of 9/11 ? and the planting of "false flags" to blame Arab terrorists and mold public opinion to support the pre-planned "war on terror."
Shortly after the destruction of the twin towers, radio news reports described five "Middle Eastern men" being arrested in New Jersey after having been seen videotaping and celebrating the explosive "collapses" of the WTC.
These men, from a phony moving company in Weehawken, N.J., turned out to be agents of Israeli military intelligence, Mossad. Furthermore, their "moving van" tested positive for explosives.
Dominic Suter, the Israeli owner of Urban Moving Systems, the phony "moving company," fled in haste, or was allowed to escape, to Israel before FBI agents could interrogate him. The Israeli agents were later returned to Israel on minor visa violations.
The Assistant Attorney General in charge of criminal investigations at the time was Michael Chertoff, the current head of the Dept. of Homeland Security. Chertoff, the son of the first hostess of Israel's national air carrier, El Al, is thought to be an Israeli national.
One of the Israeli agents later told Israeli radio that they had been sent to "document the event": the event which took the lives of some 3,000 Americans.
Despite the fact that the Israelis arrested in New Jersey evidently had prior knowledge or were involved in the planning of 9/11, the U.S. mainstream media has never even broached the question of Israeli complicity in the attacks.
Israelis Forewarned
On September 12, 2001, the Internet edition of The Jerusalem Post reported, "The Israeli foreign ministry has collected the names of 4,000 Israelis believed to have been in the areas of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon at the time of the attack."
Yet only one Israeli was killed at the WTC and two were reportedly killed on the "hijacked" aircraft.
Although a total of three Israeli lives were reportedly lost on 9/11, speechwriters for President George W. Bush grossly inflated the number of Israeli dead to 130 in the president's address to a joint session of Congress on September 20, 2001.
The fact that only one Israeli died at the WTC, while 4,000 Israelis were thought to have been at the scene of the attacks on 9/11 naturally led to a widespread rumor, blamed on Arabic sources, that Israelis had been forewarned to stay away that day.
"Whether this story was the origin of the rumor," Bret Stephens, the Post's editor-in-chief wrote in 2003, "I cannot say. What I can say is that there was no mistake in our reporting."
Odigo Instant Messages
Evidence that Israelis had been forewarned several hours before the attacks surfaced at an Israeli instant messaging service, known as Odigo. This story, clear evidence of Israeli prior knowledge, was reported only briefly in the U.S. media ? and quickly forgotten.
At least two Israel-based employees of Odigo received warnings of an imminent attack in New York City more than two hours before the first plane hit the WTC. Odigo had its U.S. headquarters two blocks from the WTC. The Odigo employees, however, did not pass the warning on to the authorities in New York City, a move that could have saved thousands of lives.
Odigo has a feature called People Finder that allows users to seek out and contact others based on certain demographics, such as Israeli nationality.
Two weeks after 9/11, Alex Diamandis, Odigo's vice president, reportedly said, "It was possible that the attack warning was broadcast to other Odigo members, but the company has not received reports of other recipients of the message.?
The Internet address of the sender was given to the FBI, and two months later it was reported that the FBI was still investigating the matter. There have been no media reports since.
Odigo, like many Israeli software companies, is based and has its Research and Development (R&D) center in Herzliya, Israel, the small town north of Tel Aviv, which happens to be where Mossad's headquarters are located.
Shortly after 9/11, Odigo was taken over by Comverse Technology, another Israeli company. Within a year, five executives from Comverse were reported to have profited by more than $267 million from "insider trading."
Through Israeli "venture capital" (VC) investment funds, Mossad spawns and sponsors scores of software companies currently doing business in the United States. These Israel-based companies are sponsored by Mossad funding sources such as Cedar Fund, Stage One Ventures, Veritas Venture Partners, and others.
As one might expect, the portfolios of these Mossad-linked funding companies contain only Israeli-based companies, such as Odigo.
Reading through the strikingly similar websites of these Israeli "VC" funds and their portfolio companies, one can't help but notice that the key "team" players share a common profile and are often former members of "Israel's Intelligence Corps" and veterans of the R&D Department of the Israel Air Force or another branch of the military. Most are graduates of Israel's "Technion" school in Haifa, Mossad's Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya, or a military program for software development.
The IDC, a private, non-profit university, is closely tied to the Mossad. The IDC has a "research institute" headed by Shabtai Shavit, former head of the Mossad from 1989 to 1996, called the International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism.
The IDC also has a "Marc Rich Center for the Study of Commodities, Trading and Financial Markets" and a "Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy." The cosmetics magnate Ronald S. Lauder, who is a supporter of Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his far-right Likud Party, founded the Lauder school.
Lauder, president of the Jewish National Fund and former chairman of New York Governor George Pataki's Commission on Privatization, is the key individual who pushed the privatization of the WTC and former Stewart AFB, where the flight paths of the two planes that hit the twin towers oddly converged. Ronald Lauder played a significant, albeit unreported, role in the preparation for 9/11.
Pataki's wife, Libby, has been on Lauder's payroll since at least 2002 and reportedly earned $100,000 as a consultant in 2004. According to The Village Voice, between 1994 and 1998, Gov. Pataki earned some $70,000 for speaking to groups affiliated with Lauder.
The Ptech Cutout
Ptech, a mysterious software company has been tied with the events of 9/11. The Quincy, Massachusetts-based company was supposedly connected to "the Muslim Brotherhood" and Arab financiers of terrorism.
The firm's suspected links with terrorism resulted in a consensual examination by the FBI in December 2002, which was immediately leaked to the media. The media reports of the FBI "raid" on Ptech soon led to the demise of the company.
Ptech "produced software that derived from PROMIS, had an artificial intelligence core, and was installed on virtually every computer system of the U.S. government and its military agencies on September 11, 2001," according to Michael Ruppert's From the Wilderness (FTW) website.
"This included the White House, Treasury Dept. (Secret Service), Air Force, FAA, CIA, FBI, both houses of Congress, Navy, Dept. of Energy, IRS, Booz Allen Hamilton, IBM, Enron and more," FTW reported. "Whoever plotted 9/11 definitely viewed the FAA as the enemy that morning. Overriding FAA systems would be the most effective way to ensure the attacks were successful," FTW reported.
"To do this, the FAA needed an evolution of PROMIS software installed on their systems and Ptech was just that; the White House and Secret Service had the same software on their systems ? likely a superior modified version capable of 'surveillance and intervention' systems."
But did the U.S. government unwittingly load software capable of "surveillance and intervention" operations and produced by a company linked to terrorism onto its most sensitive computer networks, or was Ptech simply a Mossad "cutout" company?
Oussama Ziade, a Lebanese Muslim immigrant who came to the U.S. in 1985, founded Ptech in 1994. But the company's original manager of marketing and information systems was Michael S. Goff, whose PR firm, Goff Communications, currently represents Guardium, a Mossad-linked software company.
And Goff comes from a well-to-do line of Jewish Masons who have belonged to Worcester's Commonwealth Lodge 600 of B'nai Brith for decades. So, why would a recently graduated Juris Doctor in Law leave a promising law career to join forces with a Lebanese Muslim's upstart company sponsored with dodgy funders in Saudi Arabia?
"As information systems manager [for Ptech], Michael handled design, deployment and management of its Windows and Macintosh, data, and voice networks," Goff's website says. "Michael also performed employee training and handled all procurement for software, systems and peripherals."
AFP asked Goff, who left the Worcester law firm of Seder & Chandler in 1994, how he wound up working at Ptech. "Through a temp agency," Goff said. Asked for the name of the agency, Goff said he could not remember.
Could it be Mossad Temps, or maybe Sayan Placement Agency?
Goff, the original marketing manager for Ptech software, said he did not know who had written the code that Ptech sold to many government agencies. Is this believable?
Goff leaves a legal practice in his home town to take a job, through a temp agency, with a Lebanese Muslim immigrant who is selling software, and he doesn't know who even wrote the code?
AFP contacted the government agencies that reportedly have Ptech software on their computers, and IBM, to ask if they could identify who had written the source code of the Ptech software.
By press time, only Lt. Commander Ron Steiner of the U.S. Navy's Naval Network Warfare Command had responded. Steiner said he had checked with an analyst and been told that none of the Ptech software has been approved for the Navy's enterprise networks.
Finis
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Gobbleygoog! Report to Admin
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By Joe from Ontario, CA May 27th 2008 at 12:01 am EDT
That is what this post is.
? Report to Admin
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By Talkeasy May 27th 2008 at 12:07 am EDT
Although I disagree on some of Israel's stance in the middle east, I can't co-sign this. It would not serve their best interest.
Content on blogs in My.BarackObama represents the opinions of community members and in no way should be interpreted as endorsed or approved by the campaign.
UPDATE (7:11 p.m.): The post is gone from Obama's website, but thanks to Little Green Footballs and other blogs, it lives on. Go to LGF for a screen shot of the actual website with this post on it.
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/juancarloscruz/gGBPjx/commentary
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Post from Socialists for Obama:
The Israeli Connection to 9/11
By Juan Carlos from Knoxville, TN - May 26th, 2008 at 11:54 pm EDT
Also listed in: Tennessee for Obama '08 Tennessee Action Team
Comments Mail to a Friend Report Objectionable Content
Mossad: The Israeli Connection to 9/11By Christopher Bollyn – American Free Press April 10, 2005 U.S. investigators and the controlled media have ignored a preponderance of evidence pointing to Israel's intelligence agency, the Mossad, being involved in the terror attacks of 9/11.
From the very morning aircraft smashed into the World Trade Center (WTC) and the Pentagon, news reports have indicated Israeli intelligence being involved in the events of 9/11 ? and the planting of "false flags" to blame Arab terrorists and mold public opinion to support the pre-planned "war on terror."
Shortly after the destruction of the twin towers, radio news reports described five "Middle Eastern men" being arrested in New Jersey after having been seen videotaping and celebrating the explosive "collapses" of the WTC.
These men, from a phony moving company in Weehawken, N.J., turned out to be agents of Israeli military intelligence, Mossad. Furthermore, their "moving van" tested positive for explosives.
Dominic Suter, the Israeli owner of Urban Moving Systems, the phony "moving company," fled in haste, or was allowed to escape, to Israel before FBI agents could interrogate him. The Israeli agents were later returned to Israel on minor visa violations.
The Assistant Attorney General in charge of criminal investigations at the time was Michael Chertoff, the current head of the Dept. of Homeland Security. Chertoff, the son of the first hostess of Israel's national air carrier, El Al, is thought to be an Israeli national.
One of the Israeli agents later told Israeli radio that they had been sent to "document the event": the event which took the lives of some 3,000 Americans.
Despite the fact that the Israelis arrested in New Jersey evidently had prior knowledge or were involved in the planning of 9/11, the U.S. mainstream media has never even broached the question of Israeli complicity in the attacks.
Israelis Forewarned
On September 12, 2001, the Internet edition of The Jerusalem Post reported, "The Israeli foreign ministry has collected the names of 4,000 Israelis believed to have been in the areas of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon at the time of the attack."
Yet only one Israeli was killed at the WTC and two were reportedly killed on the "hijacked" aircraft.
Although a total of three Israeli lives were reportedly lost on 9/11, speechwriters for President George W. Bush grossly inflated the number of Israeli dead to 130 in the president's address to a joint session of Congress on September 20, 2001.
The fact that only one Israeli died at the WTC, while 4,000 Israelis were thought to have been at the scene of the attacks on 9/11 naturally led to a widespread rumor, blamed on Arabic sources, that Israelis had been forewarned to stay away that day.
"Whether this story was the origin of the rumor," Bret Stephens, the Post's editor-in-chief wrote in 2003, "I cannot say. What I can say is that there was no mistake in our reporting."
Odigo Instant Messages
Evidence that Israelis had been forewarned several hours before the attacks surfaced at an Israeli instant messaging service, known as Odigo. This story, clear evidence of Israeli prior knowledge, was reported only briefly in the U.S. media ? and quickly forgotten.
At least two Israel-based employees of Odigo received warnings of an imminent attack in New York City more than two hours before the first plane hit the WTC. Odigo had its U.S. headquarters two blocks from the WTC. The Odigo employees, however, did not pass the warning on to the authorities in New York City, a move that could have saved thousands of lives.
Odigo has a feature called People Finder that allows users to seek out and contact others based on certain demographics, such as Israeli nationality.
Two weeks after 9/11, Alex Diamandis, Odigo's vice president, reportedly said, "It was possible that the attack warning was broadcast to other Odigo members, but the company has not received reports of other recipients of the message.?
The Internet address of the sender was given to the FBI, and two months later it was reported that the FBI was still investigating the matter. There have been no media reports since.
Odigo, like many Israeli software companies, is based and has its Research and Development (R&D) center in Herzliya, Israel, the small town north of Tel Aviv, which happens to be where Mossad's headquarters are located.
Shortly after 9/11, Odigo was taken over by Comverse Technology, another Israeli company. Within a year, five executives from Comverse were reported to have profited by more than $267 million from "insider trading."
Through Israeli "venture capital" (VC) investment funds, Mossad spawns and sponsors scores of software companies currently doing business in the United States. These Israel-based companies are sponsored by Mossad funding sources such as Cedar Fund, Stage One Ventures, Veritas Venture Partners, and others.
As one might expect, the portfolios of these Mossad-linked funding companies contain only Israeli-based companies, such as Odigo.
Reading through the strikingly similar websites of these Israeli "VC" funds and their portfolio companies, one can't help but notice that the key "team" players share a common profile and are often former members of "Israel's Intelligence Corps" and veterans of the R&D Department of the Israel Air Force or another branch of the military. Most are graduates of Israel's "Technion" school in Haifa, Mossad's Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya, or a military program for software development.
The IDC, a private, non-profit university, is closely tied to the Mossad. The IDC has a "research institute" headed by Shabtai Shavit, former head of the Mossad from 1989 to 1996, called the International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism.
The IDC also has a "Marc Rich Center for the Study of Commodities, Trading and Financial Markets" and a "Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy." The cosmetics magnate Ronald S. Lauder, who is a supporter of Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his far-right Likud Party, founded the Lauder school.
Lauder, president of the Jewish National Fund and former chairman of New York Governor George Pataki's Commission on Privatization, is the key individual who pushed the privatization of the WTC and former Stewart AFB, where the flight paths of the two planes that hit the twin towers oddly converged. Ronald Lauder played a significant, albeit unreported, role in the preparation for 9/11.
Pataki's wife, Libby, has been on Lauder's payroll since at least 2002 and reportedly earned $100,000 as a consultant in 2004. According to The Village Voice, between 1994 and 1998, Gov. Pataki earned some $70,000 for speaking to groups affiliated with Lauder.
The Ptech Cutout
Ptech, a mysterious software company has been tied with the events of 9/11. The Quincy, Massachusetts-based company was supposedly connected to "the Muslim Brotherhood" and Arab financiers of terrorism.
The firm's suspected links with terrorism resulted in a consensual examination by the FBI in December 2002, which was immediately leaked to the media. The media reports of the FBI "raid" on Ptech soon led to the demise of the company.
Ptech "produced software that derived from PROMIS, had an artificial intelligence core, and was installed on virtually every computer system of the U.S. government and its military agencies on September 11, 2001," according to Michael Ruppert's From the Wilderness (FTW) website.
"This included the White House, Treasury Dept. (Secret Service), Air Force, FAA, CIA, FBI, both houses of Congress, Navy, Dept. of Energy, IRS, Booz Allen Hamilton, IBM, Enron and more," FTW reported. "Whoever plotted 9/11 definitely viewed the FAA as the enemy that morning. Overriding FAA systems would be the most effective way to ensure the attacks were successful," FTW reported.
"To do this, the FAA needed an evolution of PROMIS software installed on their systems and Ptech was just that; the White House and Secret Service had the same software on their systems ? likely a superior modified version capable of 'surveillance and intervention' systems."
But did the U.S. government unwittingly load software capable of "surveillance and intervention" operations and produced by a company linked to terrorism onto its most sensitive computer networks, or was Ptech simply a Mossad "cutout" company?
Oussama Ziade, a Lebanese Muslim immigrant who came to the U.S. in 1985, founded Ptech in 1994. But the company's original manager of marketing and information systems was Michael S. Goff, whose PR firm, Goff Communications, currently represents Guardium, a Mossad-linked software company.
And Goff comes from a well-to-do line of Jewish Masons who have belonged to Worcester's Commonwealth Lodge 600 of B'nai Brith for decades. So, why would a recently graduated Juris Doctor in Law leave a promising law career to join forces with a Lebanese Muslim's upstart company sponsored with dodgy funders in Saudi Arabia?
"As information systems manager [for Ptech], Michael handled design, deployment and management of its Windows and Macintosh, data, and voice networks," Goff's website says. "Michael also performed employee training and handled all procurement for software, systems and peripherals."
AFP asked Goff, who left the Worcester law firm of Seder & Chandler in 1994, how he wound up working at Ptech. "Through a temp agency," Goff said. Asked for the name of the agency, Goff said he could not remember.
Could it be Mossad Temps, or maybe Sayan Placement Agency?
Goff, the original marketing manager for Ptech software, said he did not know who had written the code that Ptech sold to many government agencies. Is this believable?
Goff leaves a legal practice in his home town to take a job, through a temp agency, with a Lebanese Muslim immigrant who is selling software, and he doesn't know who even wrote the code?
AFP contacted the government agencies that reportedly have Ptech software on their computers, and IBM, to ask if they could identify who had written the source code of the Ptech software.
By press time, only Lt. Commander Ron Steiner of the U.S. Navy's Naval Network Warfare Command had responded. Steiner said he had checked with an analyst and been told that none of the Ptech software has been approved for the Navy's enterprise networks.
Finis
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Write a Comment on this Post
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Gobbleygoog! Report to Admin
Reply
By Joe from Ontario, CA May 27th 2008 at 12:01 am EDT
That is what this post is.
? Report to Admin
Reply
By Talkeasy May 27th 2008 at 12:07 am EDT
Although I disagree on some of Israel's stance in the middle east, I can't co-sign this. It would not serve their best interest.
Content on blogs in My.BarackObama represents the opinions of community members and in no way should be interpreted as endorsed or approved by the campaign.
UPDATE (7:11 p.m.): The post is gone from Obama's website, but thanks to Little Green Footballs and other blogs, it lives on. Go to LGF for a screen shot of the actual website with this post on it.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
It's over for Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton has suspended her campaign for the Presidency and thrown her support behind Barack Obama: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24993082/. I thought that this was one of Clinton's best speeches, and had she made more like this one, she'd probably be listening to Barack Obama concede the Democratic Presidential nomination to her.
I'm no fan of hers, but from strictly a human standpoint, one can't help but feel a slight tinge of sympathy for Clinton. That said, I think that she lost because of the many mistakes she made during the campaign, not the least of which was her clear belief that she was the "Inevitable Candidate". That's the same affliction that took down Rudy Giuliani's campaign on the Republican side, though much earlier in this process. When faced with a fight, she wasn't ready for it, and by the time she was, it was too late for her campaign.
We'll find out of over the next few months just how sincere she was in throwing her support behind Obama, and whether she ends up being the Vice-Presidential nominee. If she is, look out John McCain............
I'm no fan of hers, but from strictly a human standpoint, one can't help but feel a slight tinge of sympathy for Clinton. That said, I think that she lost because of the many mistakes she made during the campaign, not the least of which was her clear belief that she was the "Inevitable Candidate". That's the same affliction that took down Rudy Giuliani's campaign on the Republican side, though much earlier in this process. When faced with a fight, she wasn't ready for it, and by the time she was, it was too late for her campaign.
We'll find out of over the next few months just how sincere she was in throwing her support behind Obama, and whether she ends up being the Vice-Presidential nominee. If she is, look out John McCain............
The U.N. is at it again
It has elected Father Miguel D'Escoto Brockmann as its new President: http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D913K3CG0&show_article=1. Who is he? None other than the former Sandanista foreign minister, so it shouldn't be hard to figure out where he is coming from politically. Among his first statements was a call for an end to the "wars of aggression" in Iraq AND Afghanistan. Yup, Afghanistan is now a "war of aggression".
All in favour of kicking the U.N. out of Turtle Bay and turning it into a condominium development, say "Aye".............
All in favour of kicking the U.N. out of Turtle Bay and turning it into a condominium development, say "Aye".............
Not enough people "get it"
Michael Ledeen has a thorough and well-reasoned piece in today's Wall Street Journal on how we as people rarely take seriously those who threaten us, and why we are so foolish not to do so: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121279291616353311.html?mod=djemEditorialPage.
The point he raises is an excellent one. History is full of examples of one nation or group threatening another (or others) with death, extinction, etc., and yet time and again, those warnings are ignored. Of course, the best example of this is the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany and its threats to wipe out the Jews. Once it obtained power, it set about accomplishing that objective.
So, why are we ignoring the Iranians when they are promising the exact same thing? Iran is not a country with a long history of anti-Semitism, or even anti-Israeli sentiment. That began 29 years ago, when the Khomeini-ist revolution swept the country. The steady stream of anti-Israeli propaganda and pronouncements by the Iranian President is therefore NOT something "for domestic consumption". It's something much more ominous than that, and the sooner we realize that, the better.
The point he raises is an excellent one. History is full of examples of one nation or group threatening another (or others) with death, extinction, etc., and yet time and again, those warnings are ignored. Of course, the best example of this is the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany and its threats to wipe out the Jews. Once it obtained power, it set about accomplishing that objective.
So, why are we ignoring the Iranians when they are promising the exact same thing? Iran is not a country with a long history of anti-Semitism, or even anti-Israeli sentiment. That began 29 years ago, when the Khomeini-ist revolution swept the country. The steady stream of anti-Israeli propaganda and pronouncements by the Iranian President is therefore NOT something "for domestic consumption". It's something much more ominous than that, and the sooner we realize that, the better.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Good!
The United States has apparently thrown its hands up in disgust with the odious U.N. Human Rights Commission, reasoning correctly that this despicable collection of tinpot dictatorships and Islamofascists (and their enablers) is beyond redemption: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L06927371.htm.
Better late than never, I guess.
Better late than never, I guess.
Doomsday is-a coming!
And it will be next Thursday, June 12: http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5008225&page=1.
I was planning to get my lawn mowed that day. So much for that plan!
I was planning to get my lawn mowed that day. So much for that plan!
NHL Playoffs; The final word
Canada's TSN has a great video recap of all four rounds of the Stanley Cup playoffs, and it can be found here: http://watch.tsn.ca/nhl/clip57814#clip57641.
Watch and enjoy...........
Watch and enjoy...........
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Losing an "endorsement" he'd rather not have, anyway
Alas, Barack Obama's speech at AIPAC the other day cost him the all-important terrorist vote: http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/06/hamas-un-endors.html. Obama, you see, made some comments which were actually favourable to Israel. That his comments were virtually lies (see here: http://directorblue.blogspot.com/2008/06/was-he-lying-then-or-now-im-guessing.html) is irrelevant.
Where does that leave the voters in Dearborn, Michigan, and Jersey City, New Jersey?
Where does that leave the voters in Dearborn, Michigan, and Jersey City, New Jersey?
Robert F. Kennedy, November 20, 1925-June 6, 1968
I was only two years old when RFK was shot by Palestinian terrorist Sirhan Sirhan forty years ago today, dying the next day (June 6, 1968), but I've read enough about the man to form something of an opinion about him. I can hardly be called a "Kennedy lover", but there is little doubt in my mind that this country would have taken a markedly different path had he not been assassinated (I think that he would have gone on to win the Democratic Presidential Nomination and that he would have likely beaten Richard Nixon in November, 1968). Whether you want to say that that path would have been better, worse or even the same is up to you.
Here is one of his greatest moments, his speech commenting on the death of Martin Luther King: http://www.historyplace.com/speeches/rfk.htm.
Ladies and Gentlemen - I'm only going to talk to you just for a minute or so this evening. Because...
I have some very sad news for all of you, and I think sad news for all of our fellow citizens, and people who love peace all over the world, and that is that Martin Luther King was shot and was killed tonight in Memphis, Tennessee.
Martin Luther King dedicated his life to love and to justice between fellow human beings. He died in the cause of that effort. In this difficult day, in this difficult time for the United States, it's perhaps well to ask what kind of a nation we are and what direction we want to move in.
For those of you who are black - considering the evidence evidently is that there were white people who were responsible - you can be filled with bitterness, and with hatred, and a desire for revenge.
We can move in that direction as a country, in greater polarization - black people amongst blacks, and white amongst whites, filled with hatred toward one another. Or we can make an effort, as Martin Luther King did, to understand and to comprehend, and replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed that has spread across our land, with an effort to understand, compassion and love.
For those of you who are black and are tempted to be filled with hatred and mistrust of the injustice of such an act, against all white people, I would only say that I can also feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man.
But we have to make an effort in the United States, we have to make an effort to understand, to get beyond these rather difficult times.
My favorite poet was Aeschylus. He once wrote: "Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God."
What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but is love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.
(Interrupted by applause)
So I ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King, yeah that's true, but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love - a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke. We can do well in this country. We will have difficult times. We've had difficult times in the past. And we will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; and it's not the end of disorder.
But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, and want justice for all human beings that abide in our land.
(Interrupted by applause)
Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world.
Let us dedicate ourselves to that, and say a prayer for our country and for our people. Thank you very much. (Applause)
Here is one of his greatest moments, his speech commenting on the death of Martin Luther King: http://www.historyplace.com/speeches/rfk.htm.
Ladies and Gentlemen - I'm only going to talk to you just for a minute or so this evening. Because...
I have some very sad news for all of you, and I think sad news for all of our fellow citizens, and people who love peace all over the world, and that is that Martin Luther King was shot and was killed tonight in Memphis, Tennessee.
Martin Luther King dedicated his life to love and to justice between fellow human beings. He died in the cause of that effort. In this difficult day, in this difficult time for the United States, it's perhaps well to ask what kind of a nation we are and what direction we want to move in.
For those of you who are black - considering the evidence evidently is that there were white people who were responsible - you can be filled with bitterness, and with hatred, and a desire for revenge.
We can move in that direction as a country, in greater polarization - black people amongst blacks, and white amongst whites, filled with hatred toward one another. Or we can make an effort, as Martin Luther King did, to understand and to comprehend, and replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed that has spread across our land, with an effort to understand, compassion and love.
For those of you who are black and are tempted to be filled with hatred and mistrust of the injustice of such an act, against all white people, I would only say that I can also feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man.
But we have to make an effort in the United States, we have to make an effort to understand, to get beyond these rather difficult times.
My favorite poet was Aeschylus. He once wrote: "Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God."
What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but is love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.
(Interrupted by applause)
So I ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King, yeah that's true, but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love - a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke. We can do well in this country. We will have difficult times. We've had difficult times in the past. And we will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; and it's not the end of disorder.
But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, and want justice for all human beings that abide in our land.
(Interrupted by applause)
Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world.
Let us dedicate ourselves to that, and say a prayer for our country and for our people. Thank you very much. (Applause)
Welcome to the party, Wall Street Journal!
All of a sudden, EVERYONE realizes that the dollar's collapse is a bad thing, and people are (finally) starting to talk about it: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121262433590346895.html?mod=djemEditorialPage. All I can ask is, "WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG????"
We'll have to wait and see whether the Federal Reserve and our fiscally irresponsible government back up their collective words with action, but the fact that the problem is at long last being recognized is a start...........
We'll have to wait and see whether the Federal Reserve and our fiscally irresponsible government back up their collective words with action, but the fact that the problem is at long last being recognized is a start...........
Hockey Season is over. :-(
For a hockey freak like me, the day after the Stanley Cup Finals end is always a dismal day, as I confront four months without the sport I love so much. Yesterday, the Detroit Red Wings put the final nail in the Pittsburgh Penguins' coffin, winning Game Six 3-2 in Steeltown: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2008/06/04/det-pit-six.html. I'm no Red Wings fan, but I can certainly appreciate the skill level of the players on that team. To use a "Star Trek: The Next Generation" reference, Detroit is the Borg, i.e., "Resistance is futile". It redefines the term "well-0iled machine". The most amazing thing about the Red Wings is that they have retooled so much since their great run began 11 years ago, a testament to a management team that may be the best we have seen in the modern era. The team finds stud players everywhere and anywhere--Niklas Lidstrom, Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg were NOT blue chip, first round draft choices, and it never has salary cap issues. My hat is off to the team.............
On the other side, the Pittsburgh Penguins, despite their loss last night, will be stacked for years to come if General Manager Ray Shero can manage the salary cap well: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2008/06/05/penguins-reaction.html. The Pens had a great run during the playoffs, and with a star nucleus consisting of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Marc-Andre Fleury, Ryan Malone and Jordan Staal, they will be the dominant team in the East for a long time (barring injuries or free agent defections, of course). The team also proved that it has plenty of character, as it showed in its Game Five, triple-overtime win in Detroit.
This sport has so much going for it. It's a shame that a goober like Gary Bettman is running it............right into the ground.
On the other side, the Pittsburgh Penguins, despite their loss last night, will be stacked for years to come if General Manager Ray Shero can manage the salary cap well: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2008/06/05/penguins-reaction.html. The Pens had a great run during the playoffs, and with a star nucleus consisting of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Marc-Andre Fleury, Ryan Malone and Jordan Staal, they will be the dominant team in the East for a long time (barring injuries or free agent defections, of course). The team also proved that it has plenty of character, as it showed in its Game Five, triple-overtime win in Detroit.
This sport has so much going for it. It's a shame that a goober like Gary Bettman is running it............right into the ground.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
And they're the "moderates"!
Jordan, a country known the world over as a "moderate" Arab country, wants to try the Danish cartoonists who drew the Mohammed cartoons: http://www.denmark.dk/en/servicemenu/news/generalnews/danisheditorsfacetrialinjordan.htm.
Is it just me, or has the Islamic world lost its marbles on this issue?
Is it just me, or has the Islamic world lost its marbles on this issue?
Obamanation
Now that he's officially clinched the Democratic nomination for the Presidency, the media hoopla over Barack Obama can REALLY get going: http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-06-03-clinton-delegates_N.htm. It's going to be very, very difficult for John McCain to beat Obama, and if those persistent rumours that Obama will make Hillary Clinton his Vice-Presidental nominee come to fruition, I think that McCain is toast in November no matter what he does. Look at the numbers now in the so-called battleground states (courtesy of Realclearpolitics):
Pennsylvania
Obama +5.8
Michigan
McCain +3.0
Ohio
Obama +1.3
Wisconsin
Obama +2.0
Iowa
Obama +6.4
Virginia
McCain +1.3
Florida
McCain +8.3
Those are NOT good numbers for the Republican nominee, who absolutely needs Ohio to have a shot at the Presidency. If Hillary Clinton joins the Obama campaign, the Democrats will have pretty much a lock on the female and minority vote.
It's looking like it will be a very, very ugly November for the Republicans.........
Pennsylvania
Obama +5.8
Michigan
McCain +3.0
Ohio
Obama +1.3
Wisconsin
Obama +2.0
Iowa
Obama +6.4
Virginia
McCain +1.3
Florida
McCain +8.3
Those are NOT good numbers for the Republican nominee, who absolutely needs Ohio to have a shot at the Presidency. If Hillary Clinton joins the Obama campaign, the Democrats will have pretty much a lock on the female and minority vote.
It's looking like it will be a very, very ugly November for the Republicans.........
Lost in the shuffle
Lost in the media euphoria yesterday and today over Barack Obama's clinching of the Democratic Party's Presidential nomination (more about that in my next post) were the comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke which appear to suggest that maybe, JUST MAYBE, someone at the Fed has finally realized that yes, the collapse of the dollar is playing a part in the rise in prices here in the U.S. (the cost of a barrel of oil being the most obvious example): http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/06/bernanke_backs_king_dollar.html. More importantly, it looks as though some steps may finally be taken to strengthen the Greenback.
I'm no economist, and yet I realized this long ago. What took the eggheads at the Fed so long?
I'm no economist, and yet I realized this long ago. What took the eggheads at the Fed so long?
At least he's consistent
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is in Rome for the U.N. Food Summit, and he's sticking to his script by blaming the world's problems on (who else?) those EEEEEEEEVVVVVVVVVIIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLLLL Jews/Zionists: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/2069523/Mahmoud-Ahmadinejad-attacks-Jews-at-UN-food-summit-in-Rome.html.
And then people wonder why Israelis are so concerned about the man?
And then people wonder why Israelis are so concerned about the man?
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Nope, no anti-Semitism here, just keep moving along........
I know that I'm beating a dead horse on this one, but the United Nations is about hit yet another low in its neverending war against Jewish people in general and Israel in particular. It is about to revoke the charter of the World Union of Progressive Judaism (WUPJ) as a licensed NGO. Why is it doing this? Well, the head of the WUPJ had the audacity to complain to the Human Rights Council about the Hamas charter: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2008/06/02/2008-06-02_unspeakable_hypocrisy.html.
Imagine that, a Jew complaining about a charter that calls for the death of all Jews. Completely unacceptable, of course, so the U.N.'s move is completely understandable (yes, I'm being sarcastic)...................
Imagine that, a Jew complaining about a charter that calls for the death of all Jews. Completely unacceptable, of course, so the U.N.'s move is completely understandable (yes, I'm being sarcastic)...................
Again, this is supposedly from a FRIEND of Israel
I guess that I should be more specific. It's a country that has signed a peace treaty with Israel. Israel is attempting to upgrade its economic relations with the EU, a move that has been (surprisingly) meeting with positive reception on the part of the EU.............except for the fact that Egypt is sending out its ambassadors to try to sabotage the Israeli move: http://haaretz.com/hasen/spages/989457.html.
This is what is being made public. God only knows what the Saudis and Iranians are doing behind the scenes............
This is what is being made public. God only knows what the Saudis and Iranians are doing behind the scenes............
Go green!
Not because it's environmentally sound, or because you're concerned about your "carbon footprint". No, do it because.............it'll help you score with the ladies: http://green.yahoo.com/blog/ecogeek/539/ecogeeks-get-all-the-girls.html. I have to admit, this is a novel argument, and were I single and 20 years younger, it would intrigue me...........
Monday, June 2, 2008
Life in the U.K., 2008
Stories like this just floor me. Two American evangelists who were proselytizing in Birmingham, England, were subjected to a verbal tirade from a police officer about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and were also told that they were committing a "hate crime" by proselytizing in the mainly Muslim area: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/global/main.jhtml?xml=/global/2008/06/02/noindex/arrest.xml&CMP=EMC-expat2008.
I swear, the U.K. is beyond hope............
I swear, the U.K. is beyond hope............
Crime story of the week
Have you ever been at a bar when someone has thrown a shrimp at you, causing you to become "alarmed and disturbed": http://www.thetelegraph.com/news/kimbrow_14576___article.html/report_says.html.
What kind of a world do we live in where people people are free to hurl shrimp at each other with impunity?
What kind of a world do we live in where people people are free to hurl shrimp at each other with impunity?
With peace like this, who needs war?
Let's not forget, Egypt was the first Arab state so sign a peace treaty with Israel, over 30 years ago. Yet, here we are so many years later and the Egyptians STILL won't put Israel on a map: http://www.moneybiz.co.za/africa/africa.asp?story=3c2e4df1-99e6-4a5e-8403-c971f10af263. There is still daily incitement against Israel in the Egyptian media.
If this is what Israel can expect from its "friends", why should it even bother seeking peace with the other Arab/Muslim states, even if they wanted it?
If this is what Israel can expect from its "friends", why should it even bother seeking peace with the other Arab/Muslim states, even if they wanted it?
An unbeatable ticket?
There is increasing mumbling on the street that Hillary Clintont will be on the ticket in November as Barack Obama's Vice-Presidential nominee: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121236324804036403.html?mod=djemEditorialPage.
If that is the case, then look out Republicans in general and John McCain in particular. The Democrats would have a hammer lock on the Black vote, the female vote AND probably the Hispanic vote as well. What would that mean? The way I see it, a Democratic landslide the likes of which the country hasn't seen since 1932.
If that is the case, then look out Republicans in general and John McCain in particular. The Democrats would have a hammer lock on the Black vote, the female vote AND probably the Hispanic vote as well. What would that mean? The way I see it, a Democratic landslide the likes of which the country hasn't seen since 1932.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
The state of Hockey
I guess that it says something that after a tension-filled Game Four of the Stanley-Cup finals (which was won 2-1 by the Detroit Red Wings, giving them a three games to one lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins), this is what's on my mind. Gary Bettman was recently asked about NHL revenues, and he spouted off his usual idiocy. I really, really, REALLY can't stand the guy. He has been the worst thing for Hockey since, well, ever. Under him, the sport has gone from the fourth of the four "major" sports to a sport that that gets MUCH lower ratings than poker and reality shows on the Home & Garden Network. The NHL went from being on ESPN and ESPN2 to being on Versus, a network that many cable systems still don't carry. Great job, Buttman! If an exec ran a company in the "real world" this way, he or she would have been fired LONG ago.
Now we have revenues which are up for NHL teams in general, but to a much lesser degree for the American-based franchises. They have shot up for the Canadian teams, due in large part to the sharp increase in value for the Canadian dollar: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2008/05/31/bettman-hnic.html. That doesn't explain everything, however. There are several U.S. teams which Buttman refused to name (of course) who are not doing as well--anyone want to take a guess as to which ones they are?
The fact of the matter is that Buttman's expansion has, by and large, been a failure. The "Southern Strategy" hasn't worked. The NHL was at its most successful when it played to its strengths--it is a regional sport and will never be anything but. It is NOT a sport that will succeed in the long term in markets such as Carolina, Florida, Nashville, Phoenix, Tampa, Atlanta, Columbus, etc. I don't think that the sport is working in Washington, either, but Alexander Ovechkin may give that franchise a chance at re-establishing itself.
If Buttman and his cronies really want a bigger NHL (something I don't think is good for the sport, but then again, I'm just a fan. What do I know?), why not have teams in markets where the sport really would appeal to the locals? If you want more American markets, put teams in Milwaukee (Wisconsin is a hockey-mad state), Seattle (long history of successful minor league hockey there), Portland (Oregon), Cleveland (the NHL never really gave the Barons a chance at success), and (going against what I said, I know, but hear me out on this one) Las Vegas--the NHL would be the first of the big sport to place itself in this virgin market, and it could establish itself ahead of the NFL, MLB and NBA. But, then again, why would the Buttman-led NHL want to do anthing that forward-thinking?
Of course, to me it seems obvious that the sport should "go back to its roots" and there should be more teams in Canada, where ratings and revenue are more or less guaranteed. Put teams back in Winnipeg and Quebec City. Move existing teams to "new" markets like Hamilton. I would even suggest that Halifax could support a team.
All in all, the state of the NHL is a sorry one indeed. Anyone who is bothering to read this is a fellow hockey-lovers. I throw it open to you--is there anything we as fans can to do reclaim OUR sport?
Now we have revenues which are up for NHL teams in general, but to a much lesser degree for the American-based franchises. They have shot up for the Canadian teams, due in large part to the sharp increase in value for the Canadian dollar: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2008/05/31/bettman-hnic.html. That doesn't explain everything, however. There are several U.S. teams which Buttman refused to name (of course) who are not doing as well--anyone want to take a guess as to which ones they are?
The fact of the matter is that Buttman's expansion has, by and large, been a failure. The "Southern Strategy" hasn't worked. The NHL was at its most successful when it played to its strengths--it is a regional sport and will never be anything but. It is NOT a sport that will succeed in the long term in markets such as Carolina, Florida, Nashville, Phoenix, Tampa, Atlanta, Columbus, etc. I don't think that the sport is working in Washington, either, but Alexander Ovechkin may give that franchise a chance at re-establishing itself.
If Buttman and his cronies really want a bigger NHL (something I don't think is good for the sport, but then again, I'm just a fan. What do I know?), why not have teams in markets where the sport really would appeal to the locals? If you want more American markets, put teams in Milwaukee (Wisconsin is a hockey-mad state), Seattle (long history of successful minor league hockey there), Portland (Oregon), Cleveland (the NHL never really gave the Barons a chance at success), and (going against what I said, I know, but hear me out on this one) Las Vegas--the NHL would be the first of the big sport to place itself in this virgin market, and it could establish itself ahead of the NFL, MLB and NBA. But, then again, why would the Buttman-led NHL want to do anthing that forward-thinking?
Of course, to me it seems obvious that the sport should "go back to its roots" and there should be more teams in Canada, where ratings and revenue are more or less guaranteed. Put teams back in Winnipeg and Quebec City. Move existing teams to "new" markets like Hamilton. I would even suggest that Halifax could support a team.
All in all, the state of the NHL is a sorry one indeed. Anyone who is bothering to read this is a fellow hockey-lovers. I throw it open to you--is there anything we as fans can to do reclaim OUR sport?
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