Sun-set

One of my favourite newspapers, the New York Sun, has ceased publication as of today. This is a very sad development for any fan of unbiased media coverage, or for those who weren't all that fond of (for example) the consistently amoral, pro-Palestinian slant found in 99% of the newspapers across the country. The closing editorial can be found here: http://www.nysun.com/opinion/ideal-of-the-scoop/86858/. For more on the newspaper's history, go here: http://www.nysun.com/obituaries/picking-up-the-flag-of-the-sun/86844/.

The paper will be sadly missed.........

This kind of proves the point, doesn't it?

Publishers were balking at putting out a novel based on one of Mohammed's wives, Aisha. Why? Because there were fears of violence by the nutcase Islamofacist elements out there. So, as if to prove the point, a Dutch publisher which is printing the book had its London office firebombed by (surprise, surprise), Islamofascists: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4837994.ece. Yeah, I'm stunned by this story. Of course, the inevitable mealy-mouthed denials of responsibility will be uttered, and our politically correct leaders will say nothing, but the facts are still the facts. You don't see this out of any other faith. If Jews acted violently everytime something was done which "insulted their faith", they would never stop acting violently..........

Where's Blackbeard?

Apparently, his heirs live on in the waters off the coast of Somalia, the prototypical failed state: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article4842684.ece. I honestly can't believe that piracy lives on in today's world, but it is a problem not only here but in the waters off the Indonesian archipelago. However, in the waters off Somalia it is taking on a far more dangerous dimension, as we see the beginnings of a union (perhaps of convenience) between the pirates and Islamofascists.

As the article reports, the pirates are now going hutning for Americans and Israelis. Isn't that reassuring?

Ignoring a horror

Maybe it is a cultural problem and not a religious problem, as some insist. I honestly don't know. What I do know that is that so-called "honour killings" continue to be limited to the Islamic faith: http://www.meforum.org/article/1988. You do not see them occurring in Catholic, or Buddhist, or Protestant, or Taoist or Jewish groups. You simply don't.

So........why doesn't this issue receive more attention? Why is it ignored by the MSM? Is this still MORE political correctness run amok, as I suspect is the case?

A great moment in public education

This makes me happy that the BHG family doesn't live in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh public schools are following a policy where students can no longer get an "F" if they get below 50% on an assignment. Instead, they get something called an "E", which is equivalent to a 50%: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08266/914029-298.stm. This is asinine. In other words, if you have a test where you get only one out of ten questions right, you still automatically get credit for getting five out of the ten right.

Here's a suggestion: How about grades that actually reflect a student's knowledge? I know that it's a radical concept but work with me on this. We could have schools that are not institutions focussed on building up a student's self-esteem but are instead oriented towards TEACHING children! Imagine that! We could even (I know that this is shocking, so I hope that you're all sitting down) reward students based on their knowledge!

I know, I know, too much to hope for.........

Come again?

Representative Alcee Hastings, a Democrat from Florida, offered Jewish voters in Florida a "good" reason not to vote for the McCain-Palin ticket, which is that she's a moose-hunter: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/09/24/florida-congressman-points-to-palin-to-rally-jews-to-obama/. Here is the one quote that jumped out at me: “Anybody toting guns and stripping moose don’t care too much about what they do with Jews and blacks. So, you just think this through.”

Is Hastings suggesting that Sarah Palin would go hunting Jews and Blacks? What in the world is he trying to say here?

Shana Tovah!

Sorry, blogging has been very light of late due to a heavy workload and the approaching Jewish High Holidays (which are now here!). I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of my Jewish readers the healthiest of New Years, one which I hope will be filled with health, peace, happiness and prosperity (no more 779 point drops for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, please!) for all!

Presidential Debate #1

Last night, Senators John McCain and Barack Obama had the first of their three debates. Frankly, I thought that both came across well. McCain kept true to his theme that Obama lacked the experience and wisdom necessary to be the President, Obama responded by arguing that for all of his supposed judgment, McCain had come down on the wrong side of many issues. Both scored points, but neither delivered a knockout blow. Media reports are all over the place; some have McCain as the winner (http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=PluckPersona&U=3a86a5c341684631abb59d87c02a2df8&plckController=PersonaBlog&plckScript=personaScript&plckElementId=personaDest&plckPersonaPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3a3a86a5c341684631abb59d87c02a2df8Post%3aec9d034f-e49d-4a39-9420-976a206ad4a6&plckCommentSortOrder=TimeStampAscending&sid=sitelife.desmoinesregister.com), others saw an Obama win (http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1845114,00.html).

Here's the problem for John McCain: He trails in the polls, and more importantly, he trails in the majority of the so-called battleground states of Ohio, Florida, Iowa, Missouri, New Mexico, Colorado, Virginia, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan. In those states where he is leading, i is generally within the margin of error and he has not made any inroads into any of the leads that Obama has held in those states where the Democratic nominee is leading. In fact, Obama has been slowly but steadily increasing his leads.

So, ultimately, John McCain can't afford ties in the debates. He needs wins. BIG wins. Last night, his first chance to get one went by the boards. Now, the attention will turn to next Thursday's Vice-Presidential debate. The bump that Sarah Palin gave the Republican ticket has worn off, and this will be her first real chance to try to regain the momentum. Given the way the campaign is playing out, this could very well represent the last, best chance for the Republicans to keep the White House in 2009.

Angry Left, meet Angry Islamofascists. Angry Islamofascists, meet Angry Left

I'm on an Iran kick today. While he was at the United Nations delivering his anti-Semitic tirade (for more on that, read this excellent piece from Anne Bayefsky: http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZGUwMmE0OGY1MDViNDIwMDcyMTY5ZWVlZjViYTVjNWE), Mahmoud Admadinejad found the time to meet with CODE PINK's leaders: http://codepink4peace.org/blog/2008/09/official-release-leading-codepink-activists-and-other-peace-organizations-meet-with-iranian-president-in-new-york/.

CODE PINK's leader, Medea Benjamin, seemed to think that it was absolutely wonderful that she got the opportunity to meet the world's Anti-Semite-in-Chief. In her warped view, HE'S a man of peace. The fact that he denies the Holocaust and wants to wipe Israel off the map seems not to bother her in the least. For that matter, she may even agree with him............

Moonbat electioneering, Canadian-style

A Liberal Candidate runing for Parliament in a Winnipeg riding is catching justified flack after a column she wrote as a freelance journalist came to light. In the column, she claimed that the Mossad and CIA knew in advance about the 9/11 terrorist atacks, and that Jewish-owned businesses had gotten out of the Twin Towers before they were attacked: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canadavotes/story/2008/09/25/hughes-liberal.html.

I don't know what motivates these conspiracy theorist wackos, but there are far too many of them and they are far too prominent.

Watch it happen

Iran is seeking the Asian seat for the United Nations Security Council: http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/story.html?id=832934, a move which needless to say hasn't made Israel too happy: http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jfsdwmGwrZ17h7pkJO7fLl1PT58A. Don't be shocked at all that if the thrice-sanctioned Iranians get their wish. I fully expect Russia and China to support the move, and Lord knows, the bizarro world that is the U.N. General Assembly will certainly be behind the Iranians. And this being the U.N., where the Human Rights Commission can contain members such as Sudan, Libya, Cuba and China, does anyone want to bet against this taking place?

Are they ready?

John McCain? Barack Obama? Sarah Palin? Joe Biden? Paging all comers. As John Bolton notes, the next President, whoever that may be, will HAVE to deal with either a nuclear-armed Iran or preventing the Iranians from becoming a nuclear power: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2008/09/25/2008-09-25_a_wakeup_call_on_irans_nukes.html. Honestly, I don't know which of the candidates will have what it takes to confront the Mad Mullahs, but certainly, Barack Obama's vow to meet with the leaders of Iran "without preconditions" doesn't exactly reassure me.

I'm pretty much at the point where I'm convinced that even seeing Tel Aviv reduced to a heap of radioactive rubble won't rouse the west out of its slumber with respect to the threat posed by Iran. Hell, a good number of the people here would probably stand up and cheer........

A hero scorned

I doubt very much that any of you have heard the name "Mithal al-Alusi". He is Iraqi, Sunni, MODERATE in every sense of the word. He opposed Saddam Hussein. Now, he favours strong ties between Iraq and the United State as well as (GASP!) Israel: http://www.nysun.com/editorials/al-alusi-and-israel/85940/. So, what's happening to him? His own government wants to have him prosecuted for "humiliating" the country by his visits to Israel: http://www.jta.org/cgi-bin/iowa/breaking/110509.html. His two sons were murdered. And, how does our government respond? With timidity, to say the least: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5imF9ctd5kPqV_TreNojt1Az9ZaOgD93BGCI80. Here is the exact quote: "The U.S. Embassy declined comment. "It is an issue for the Iraqi parliament, not the U.S. Mission to Iraq," said spokesman Armand Cucciniello."

What a pathetic, weak, shameful response...............

The Meltdown is only beginning

The dominoes keep falling, and no one seems to care, or even notice. We have the government proposing a bailout of the mortgage industry that will cost--best case scenario--$700 billion (roll that number around your heads for a while), though I think that it much more likely that it will go well past the trillion dollar figure. We have a dollar that was in freefall until a couple of months ago, when it finally levelled off. We have a deficit that is already absurd and which, if this bailout plan is finally passed, as seems likely, will reach a level from which it be impossible for us to recover, and I really do mean impossible.

How will this impact all of us? In the following fashion. Our dollar will collapse. Completely: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/global/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/global/2008/09/24/noindex/dollar.xml&source=EMC-exp_24092008. And what will the effect of THAT be? Let me put it in terms to which everyone can relate:

1) Remember those $4/gallon gas prices from just three months ago? Well, keep in mind that oil is purchased and sold in dollars, so a dollar worth a lot less means that it will cost a lot more to buy a lot less of it. That's Economics 101. By the time prices stabilize, we'll likely be looking at gas which will cost $5 a gallon (at a minimum), and more likely $6/gallon, if not more.
2) I have four kids (and those three commando basset hounds). They cost money to feed, clothe, etc. So, that gallon of milk that you have to buy? It's now going to cost you $4. That American cheese you buy for the sandwiches? Get ready for $3+ per pound, as opposed to the current $1.99 a pound you pay on sale currently. The two litre bottle of Coke, the one that used to cost 99 cents a bottle? It'll now set you back $1.50 a bottle or more.
3) We all need clothes, shoes, etc. That pair of Levis, the one you get at BJ's Wholesale Club for $20, will now cost $25. The New Balance tennis shoes will jump up in price by at least 20%, and probably more.

I think that you all get the picture. A Dollar collapse will hit us all, everywhere. It will affect every aspect of our lives, from the way we live to, in some extreme cases, whether we live. Am I being alarmist? Maybe, but it would seem foolish on our part not to at least consider the scenario I have outlined. We can't overcome a problem by ignoring it, though too often that is exactly what our government (which is merely an extension of us) does. Can the collapse of the dollar be avoided? I don't know, but I have to hope so, because the future is frankly to scary to contemplate if it does.

Not much of a difference

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad delivered a speech at the U.N. yesterday in which he claimed that a "small group of Zionists" were manipulating the foreign policy of the United States (and some European countries) to suit its ends: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/23/AR2008092303093.html. Hmmm.........where have I read/heard that before? Why, it was from Professors Walt & Mearsheimer (see my first post from today), who were defended by Barack Obama advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski.

Ahmadinejad may use more crude rhetoric, but I ask, what's the difference in the message?

So, it's racism again.....

Let's be honest about this. Is there a segment of the American population who will never vote for Barack Obama under any circumstances because he is Black? Absolutely. However many people that may be, it is too many. Of course, the flip side of that question, one that never seems to receive any attention at all, is why Obama has essentially completely locked up the African American vote, and no one at all is calling them racist for supporting Obama purely based on his race.

That said, I have another question: Why is is that for all of the cries of racism, it is only the left that seems to be obsessed with it: http://www.progressive.org/mag/comment1008.html. I have plenty of friends and acquaintances on both the left on the right, and it is inevitably those on the left who bring up the subject of race, who focus on it, and who preemptively blame their candidate's loss next month (as an FYI, I think that Obama is going to win, but that's neither here nor there) on racism. To me, this is a sign of a defective mind, one that cannot debate ideas, policies or candidates on their merits, so it must fall back on shrill, bitter claims that the adversary is evil. It's pathetic, frankly.

Actions speak louder than words

Barack Obama claims to support Israel, but very simply, I don't trust him. Look at his foreign policy team, which originally included Samantha Power and Robert Malley, two prominent anti-Israel academics. They were forced to resign when their presence on the Obama team became a source of embarrassment to the Democratic Presidential candidate. Now, we have Zbigniew Brzezinski, a steady critic of Israel (and the former Secretary of State under President Peanut Farmer) who has recently spoken out in defense of the Walt & Mearsheimer screed claiming that those nefarious Jews were manipulating American foreign policy for their own ends: http://www.nysun.com/national/dershowitz-obama-should-repudiate-brzezinski/62439/. Funny how Brzezinski , who asserted that the Israeli military was engaging in actions that amounted to "killing hostages" in the Second Lebanon War in 2006, seems to have absolutely problem with the Saudis or other Arab states lobbying the U.S. government.

In any event, Senator Obama seems to have this unfortunate tendency of associating himself with people who don't like Israel too much (does the name Jeremiah Wright ring a bell to anyone?), so I really have to wonder how any supporter of Israel can at the same time support him?

Update on Flash

As I type this (it's approximately 9:45 a.m. on Monday, September 19, 2008), Flash is undergoing his surgery to remove the tumour/lump in his neck that caused us to have to rush him to the vet on Friday. It was a stressful weekend at the BHG household. Neither Mrs. BHG nor myself could really focus on anything other than Flash, and we were both feeling very guilty for leaving him at the vet at all weekend, even though we know that it was (from a medical standpoint) the best thing to do for him. Worse yet, the little BHG's were full of questions, as one might expect, and the questions were not always ones we could answer. The number one question was "Is Flash DEFINITELY coming home?", a query undoubtedly motivated by their memories of 2005, when my father went into the hospital and never came home and then when later that same year, the other original commando basset hound, Sprint, was diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma and had to be put down. They still talk about that and worry that Flash is following the same path. Honestly, Mrs. BHG and I worry about the exact same thing.

Flash should be out of surgery by lunch, barring complications, and we are hoping that he is able to come home tonight. I promise that I will update this post when I hear from the vet. Then, we will have to play the waiting game for the next week to ten days while they do a biopsy of the mass that is being removed.

I d0n't have it in me to post about politics right now (hence the post-less weekend). I may post about sports today or tomorow, but it will probably be later this week before I get back into the swing of commenting on the news stories of the day, and I apologize to everyone for that. I want to thank everyone who has posted on the blog about Flash and those who have e-mailed me privately or posted messages of support on my Facebook page. These sentiments are very much appreciated.

UPDATE (4:45 p.m.): Flash made it through the surgery, and the mass that was removed from him is being sent for a biopsy. Unfortunately, according to the vet who did the surgery, what was removed from him had the looks of something malignant, but we won't know for sure until the biopsy results come back in five to seven days. Then, we'll have some decisions to make, apparently.

Once again, thanks to all who have reached out to express their support. It means a great deal to me.

UPDATE 2 (7:55 a.m., 9/23/08): Flash is now home, and boy, is he ever ticked off at us. He seems to be a bit more "with it" this morning, but he still isn't eating or drinking, so that's something on which we'll to keep a close eye.

I'll post periodic updates about his condition over the next few weeks.

A worried dog post

I've posted occasionally on my blog about the commando basset hounds--those who read this blog know why; I love my dogs. They are part of my family and I care about them deeply. Today, Flash, the oldest dog, had to be hospitalized. He has had a growth on the left side of his neck for a while now--the vet told us that it was something called a lipoma, which is essentially (as I understand it) a benign tumour. It suddenly started growing about a month or so ago, and we brought him to the vet yesterday. The vet thought that it should come out, but that it was nothing that required immediate attention, so we scheduled surgery for October 2. Today, at the risk of being graphic, it started oozing blood, and we had to rush Flash to the vet once again. Now Flash is at the vet for the weekend and will have surgery Monday morning. As well, the vet was no longer talking about a lipoma--the word "biopsy" was mentioned (I watched both of my parents and my mother-in-law die of cancer--I know ALL about biopsies), and we're very alarmed by everything that is going on. On top of it all, Mrs. BHG and I are racked with guilt over leaving Flash at the vet for the weekend, but with the cyst/lipoma/tumour/whatever-the-hell-it-is seeping blood, we didn't know what else to do.

Right now, we are both very sad and worried...............

No wonder the U.N. loves him

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian President, is spewing his venom once again, repeating his vows that Israel will disappear and denying that the Holocaust occurred: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hNwBoRdFjRewLNm4NTuzK-0BTzeAD9397VTO0. However, what struck me most about the Associated Press article was this little nugget of information: "He might also be trying to repair damage caused by his vice president, Esfandiar Rahim Mashai, who was recently quoted as saying Iranians were "friends of all people in the world — even Israelis.""

"He might also be trying to repair damage"????? It's "damaging" to say that Iranians can be friendly even with Israelis? If that doesn't spell out the Muslim attitude vis-a-vis Israel, I don't know WHAT does............