I just love this editorial from the Richmond Times Dispatch, a paper which I loved during my time in college in Virginia.

Stifling Dissent

In a recent speech on foreign soil, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said people who disagree with her are dangerous, irrational, slavery-loving, bigoted threats to the country.

Not in so many words, mind you. Ms. Ginsburg is far too nuanced for that. But she did say that she and her former colleague, Sandra Day O'Connor, had been the target of death threats (actually, a single menacing posting on an Internet chatroom) from the "irrational fringe" -- and that Republican Congressmen "fuel the irrational fringe" by opposing the growing practice of interpreting the Constitution in light of foreign law.

Many people have disputed the idea that Justices should base their rulings on cues from foreign countries rather than the American Constitution. Ms. Ginsburg noted that one of them was Roger Taney, in his infamous Dred Scott decision. (Because Taney was wrong about slavery, and he also believed that 2 + 2 = 4, we evidently must conclude that mathematical equation also is incorrect.) She pointed out that defenders of Apartheid in South Africa, where she gave her talk, resisted calls from abroad to end the segregation system. Oh, and Justice Antonin Scalia disagrees with her, too. Those people are all alike.

Ms. Ginsburg's thinly veiled attempt to establish guilt by association is a shopworn technique. It was exploited most famously by Joseph McCarthy to intimidate those who disagreed with him. Joseph Stalin also used guilt by association to send potential resisters of Soviet Communist tyranny to the gulag. Recently an Italian commission concluded that the Soviet Union was behind the attempt to assassinate Pope John Paul II.

We are not, of course, in any way suggesting that people who share Ms. Ginsburg's approach are McCarthyite Communist mass-murdering anti-Catholic plotters of papicide. We wouldn't stoop to that level.

Why does she?

Bravo!

If Justice Ginsburg feels that criticism of the Judiciary by members of the co-equal Legislative Branch of government and (even lmore unacceptable) We, the People, is unacceptable and a danger to her safety, I'm sure she can find some court case or law from North Korea, Iran, Cuba, or the People's Republic of China that she and her peers can use to trump both the clear language of the First Amendment that permits such speech and Article III, which gives Congress specific power to check the Judicial Branch.

And if she finds that she cannot get a majority behind her unAmerican goal of suppressing and delegitimizing criticism of the courts on the clearly specious grounds of an epidemic of violence and threats against judges, perhaps she can safeguard her own miserable hide by resigning. I'm sure the Justice Department already has a suitable slate of possible replacements to send over to the president for his consideration.

More At: Colossus of Rhodey

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This seems rather disturbing -- and potentially illegal.

Senate Democrats have mapped a political battle plan for the March congressional recess that calls on lawmakers to stage press events with active duty military personnel, veterans and emergency responders to bash President Bush on virtually every one of his national security policies.

Seems to me that they are out to undermine the civilian control of the armed forces, as well as subborning violations of the UCMJ provisions limiting the political speech and activities of members of the military.

SHAME! (But then again, the party of Teddy the Swimmer, Robert the Kleagle and Howard the Screamer has no shame.)

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IÂ’ve made the argument in the past that state sanctioning of homosexual marriage will inevitably lead to state sanctioning of group marriage. Charles Krauthammer, one of the most gifted conservative columnists living today, makes that argument much more effectively than I ever have.

As Newsweek notes, these stirrings for the mainstreaming of polygamy (or, more accurately, polyamory) have their roots in the increasing legitimization of gay marriage. In an essay 10 years ago, I pointed out that it is utterly logical for polygamy rights to follow gay rights. After all, if traditional marriage is defined as the union of (1) two people of (2) opposite gender, and if, as advocates of gay marriage insist, the gender requirement is nothing but prejudice, exclusion and an arbitrary denial of one's autonomous choices in love, then the first requirement -- the number restriction (two and only two) -- is a similarly arbitrary, discriminatory and indefensible denial of individual choice.

This line of argument makes gay activists furious. I can understand why they do not want to be in the same room as polygamists. But I'm not the one who put them there. Their argument does. Blogger and author Andrew Sullivan, who had the courage to advocate gay marriage at a time when it was considered pretty crazy, has called this the "polygamy diversion," arguing that homosexuality and polygamy are categorically different because polygamy is a mere "activity" while homosexuality is an intrinsic state that "occupies a deeper level of human consciousness."

But this distinction between higher and lower orders of love is precisely what gay rights activists so vigorously protest when the general culture "privileges" (as they say in the English departments) heterosexual unions over homosexual ones. . . .

To simplify the logic, take out the complicating factor of gender mixing. Posit a union of, say, three gay women all deeply devoted to each other. On what grounds would gay activists dismiss their union as mere activity rather than authentic love and self-expression? On what grounds do they insist upon the traditional, arbitrary and exclusionary number of two?

Indeed, once the law is untethered from the definition of marriage which has dominated Western civilization (especially since the beginning of the Christian era) for at least two millennia, then there is really no legitimate basis for arbitrarily upholding any part of that traditional definition. And if, the Lawrence v. Texas holding that “

UPDATE: Eric at The Liberty Papers takes on the issue of homosexual marriage and polygamy from a libertarian perspective.

One of the strongest arguments in favor of gay marriage that IÂ’ve encountered is the one that says that the government has no right to intrude into the personal relationships of consenting adults and forbid them from entering into a legal status, in this case marriage, that they wish to enter into freely. This doesnÂ’t mean that government is endorsing the relationship, any more than it endorses a producer of pornographic films who forms a corporation to run his business. It merely means that the government is allowing people to engage in consensual activities that affect nobody but themselves. The logic, if you accept it, seems to me to be unassailable and its hard for me to find an argument that says that polygamy is per se different.

As much as I would like to endorse his position, I canÂ’t, because the legal recognition of homosexual marriage brings with it government imposed legal burdens upon those not party to that personal relationship. After all, giving legal status to homosexual couples then subjects those who have moral and/or religious objections does not just give the parties to that marriage standing and status before the government. Rather, it also gives them certain special status regarding retirement and healthcare benefits, non-discrimination in housing, and other so-called rights (legal privileges, actually, that are framed as rights) in relationship to private individuals and entities. As such, the recognition of a legal status for homosexual couples forces non-consenting individuals with moral and/or religious objections to act in a manner contrary to their sincerely held beliefs.

So long as such parties to homosexual marriage are in a position to use the power of government to force non-consenting individuals and entities to recognize and reward a relationship that is repugnant to them, then the argument that nobody is harmed by permitting homosexual marriage (or polygamy) must fail – unless we redefine the benefits conferred by the granting of legal status to those relationships. But if we do that, don’t most of the arguments in favor of granting legal recognition to those relationships evaporate?

Others writing include Andrew Sullivan, Ann Althouse, Kathleen Kersten, Susie Bright, Sister Toldjah, , Chez Diva, Icarus Fallen, Uncommon Sense, Bullwinkle Blog, Below the Beltway, Prodigal Sun, Dappled Things, Right Side of the Rainbow,

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This is too weird.

Talk about a wild night near Seguin. A cow came flying out of its trailer, sent DPS and police scrambling, and left two police cars going up in flames.

"It was almost hard to believe," said Detective Sergeant Maureen Watson. She has been in law enforcement for 15 years, and says she "never had a day like this. I mean the best way to characterize this it, is it's bizarre. It's really really strange."

It's strange because it started out with a truck towing cattle, and ended in fire.
Watson told News 4 WOAI, "We believe the gate of the cattle trailer came open, and the cow, for lack of a better phrase spilled out onto the Interstate. It was pretty chaotic for a while."

Several cars hit some of the cows. One cow died. DPS troopers called for backup.

That's when one officer was nearly run down by a speeding truck, carrying two illegal immigrants inside.

Seguin Police were out looking for those illegal immigrants. They parked their cars in the hot grass, burning two of them including that brand new 2006 Crown Victoria. Watson said, "Well, all of a sudden, another officer who'd arrived on the scene, alerted the sergeant that there was a fire."

Everything inside was destroyed, including tens of thousands of dollars worth of equipment designed for the patrol cars.

"You start off with kind of a bizarre accident with these cows spilling onto the interstate. That leads to other accidents, that leads to a car chase, that leads to a foot chase," Watson recalls.

The two Mexican immigrants, ages 21 and 23, are in custody for illegally entering the country and evading arrest. Watson says they have replacement cars for now, but hope the city council will vote to get new cars soon.

Uh, yeah.

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I donÂ’t blame these guys for seeking to pass a law setting out specific guidelines for surveillance of foreign communications that involve an Americans. I just find the idea to be a flawed, especially because of the conclusion that some will draw from it.

The Bush administration could continue its policy of spying on targeted Americans without obtaining warrants, but only if it justifies the action to a small group of lawmakers, under legislation introduced yesterday by key Republican senators.

The four senators hope to settle the debate over National Security Agency eavesdropping on international communications involving Americans when one of the parties is suspected of terrorist ties. President Bush prompted a months-long uproar when he said that constitutional powers absolve him of the need to seek warrants in such cases, even though the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act requires warrants for domestic wiretaps.

The program, begun in 2001, was first publicized late last year.

The bill would allow the NSA to eavesdrop, without a warrant, for up to 45 days per case, at which point the Justice Department would have three options. It could drop the surveillance, seek a warrant from FISA's court, or convince a handful of House and Senate members that although there is insufficient evidence for a warrant, continued surveillance "is necessary to protect the United States," according to a summary the four sponsors provided yesterday.

They are Mike DeWine (Ohio), Lindsey O. Graham (S.C.), Chuck Hagel (Neb.) and Olympia J. Snowe (Maine).

I think the motive is good – these Senators want to settle the issue once and for all. Unfortunately, this bill does not accomplish that end – in fact, it muddies the waters even further.

First, as IÂ’ve already pointed out, Congress lacks the authority to prevent such surveillance, as the Constitution grants the President the inherent power to conduct it to protect national security. Nothing Congress does can limit that power, any more than the President can issue an executive order limiting the power of Congress to consider certain legislation.

Second, the legislation could be interpreted by partisans opposed to the President (or the security of the United States) to be a concession that the current program is illegal. IÂ’ve already seen gleeful Leftists make exactly that assertion, despite the fact that this is clearly not the intent of the bill. Simply put, you do not give your enemies (and the enemies of the United States) ammunition to attack programs essential to protecting the national security of the United States.

No, this piece of legislation needs to be withdrawn immediately, for the good of national security and the preservation of presidential power under the Constitution.

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I’m not a big fan of reparations, generations-late apologies, and ethnic guilt – but I do believe that historical wrongs need to be brought to light and remembered lest we repeat them. Thus I am very happy to hear about this program.

OYSTER BAY, N.Y. — A group of mostly white seventh and eighth graders sleepily sauntered into their school library on a recent morning, soon to get a surprise awakening about a part of their town's history they never knew existed.

"Did anybody in this room know there were 60 enslaved Africans, people, human beings, buried a mile from here?" Alan Singer, a professor at Hofstra University, asked them. "Those people have been erased from history. It is as if they never existed."

Singer and Mary Carter, a retired middle school social studies teacher, were in Oyster Bay to speak to the kids — part of a quest to develop a public school curriculum guide focusing on slavery's impact in the northern U.S., specifically New York.

Their efforts have been buoyed by state legislation enacted last year creating the Amistad Commission to examine whether the slave trade is being adequately taught in New York schools.

The commission, one of a number formed around the country in recent years, is named for the slave ship Amistad, which was commandeered by slaves who eventually won their freedom in the U.S. Supreme Court.

"Many people are surprised when you talk about slavery's existence in New York," Carter said. "They're surprised because it's taught as something that happened in the South."

Yeah, that is right – slavery was a Northern phenomenon as well as a Southern one. Let’s remember that in our discussions of race, culture, and region.

Posted by: Greg at 10:03 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Neverland Ranch is Kaput.

Michael Jackson has shut down his Neverland Ranch for good.

Employees were summoned to the ranch Thursday at 5 p.m. PST in staggered groups, given back pay for 12 weeks through today, and were told the ranch had been shut down by the California Department of Labor.

In fact, Jackson made the decision to lay off more than 60 loyal staffers after making them wait through three months with no pay. Their health insurance ran out on February 28th. Last week, the State closed the ranch because Jackson carried no workmen's compensation.

Despite misleading statements from JacksonÂ’s spokesperson Raymone Bain, I am told that Neverland is indeed closed except to JacksonÂ’s family members and security staff.

Some of the employees of Neverland had been there with Jackson since he bought the place in the late 80s. A few actually had worked for the previous owner. They leave without pensions or the ability to apply for COBRA health insurance. All they can do now is apply for unemployment. My sources say many of them have already done that.

I wonder – will the California legislature look into the working conditions of employees of major entertainments, and regulate that industry? Or is it only the productive sector of America that has to bear the burden of government imposed labor rules?

Posted by: Greg at 10:02 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I've noticed a trend at school of more fights for trivial reasons. You know, someone steps on a shoe or makes a rude comment and the "victim" comes out swinging. I'd assumed it was just high spirits on the part of kids or increased awareness on my part -- but now I see it is probably part of a larger trend.

Andre Vincent Jr. was inside a Forestville carryout, joking with a neighborhood acquaintance. When the wordplay turned tense, Vincent, 19, tried to defuse the situation, waving off Wendell E. Jones and saying, "Ah, y'all a clown."

Thirty minutes later, as Vincent stepped to his car with a group of friends, Jones, 22 at the time, sneaked up behind him and fired six bullets into his head. As Jones walked away, court testimony would reveal, he snickered, "Who's the clown now?"

The 2004 murder was part of what law enforcement sees as an alarming trend in Prince George's County: low-"flash point" killings, in which attackers resort to deadly violence over trivial confrontations.

Police say the trend, in part, drove the sharp increase in the county's homicide count last year: 173, a record and a spike from the 148 that occurred in 2004. Twenty people have been killed in the county as of yesterday, compared with 33 by the same date in 2005.

Any speculation on what causes this increased tendency to resort to deadly force over trivial insults? Any suggestions over what to do about it?

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Aye and Begorrah, it is the weekend of Leprechauns and Green Beer! It is also time for my usual weekend Linkfest and Open Trackback Party.

You know the drill -- feel free to link here with any interesting posts you have made recently. I won't limit the number of links, but I will ask you to act reasonably. No Porn, no advertising links, please.

We'll be open here all weekend!

OPEN TRACKBACKING AT: Conservative Cat, Stuck on Stupid, Adam's Blog, Samantha Burns, Third World Country, Liberal Wrong Wing, Bacon Bits, Real Ugly American, Camelot Destra Ideale, Voteswagon, Uncooperative Blogger, Blue Star, Jo's Cafe

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His position, when you come right down to it, is a reasonable and legitimate one for someone to hold.

The Rev. Franklin Graham, who outraged Muslims in 2001 when he said that Islam "is a very evil and wicked religion," told an interviewer for Wednesday's edition of ABC News "Nightline" that he hasn't changed his mind about the faith.

Asked by ABC correspondent John Donvan whether Muslim groups had succeeded in altering his outlook about Islam, Graham said "No."

"Do they want to indoctrinate me? Yes. I know about Islam. I don't need an education from Islam," he said. "If people think Islam is such a wonderful religion, just go to Saudi Arabia and make it your home. Just live there. If you think Islam is such a wonderful religion, I mean, go and live under the Taliban somewhere. I mean, you're free to do that."

Read the Koran. Read the Hadith. Look at the history and the present of Islam. It is hard to argue with the assessment of this Christian leader -- especially when one considers that the claims made about Christ by Islam can only be described as blasphemous.

Let's delve a little deeper into why he makes the claim.

The younger Graham angered Muslims following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks when he told NBC News: "We're not attacking Islam but Islam has attacked us. The God of Islam is not the same God. He's not the son of God of the Christian or Judeo-Christian faith. It's a different God, and I believe it is a very evil and wicked religion."

Islam is a religion that claims the Old and New Testaments are wrong and corrupted (despite the fact that evidence shows remarkable accuracy in the preservation of OT texts over the last couple of millenia, andthe evidence of the textual fidelity of the New Testament is very strong. Jesus is relegated to the status of prophet, and thee Resurrection is labeled as false. Sounds like a different God to me.

And Graham makes a crucial distinction, one I affirm with him.

In a subsequent Wall Street Journal piece, Graham wrote that he doesn't think Muslim believers "are evil people because of their faith. But I decry the evil that has been done in the name of Islam, or any other faith — including Christianity."

Good people -- evil faith.

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Alan Jackson has covered the Bocephus hit “Texas Women" for years. He changed one line up last night in Houston, and the Chronicle’s critic wants to complain about it.

He did, however, manage a cheap dig during a cover of Hank Williams Jr.'s Texas Women. Jackson inserted the line, "I'm a cowboy fan/Not a Brokeback man," which drew cheers from the crowd. It was a smudge on an otherwise shining performance.

In other words, Joey Guerra so needs to find something to criticize in a stellar performance by a talented performer that he has to stoop to whining that a man singing a song about his love for women asserting his heterosexuality in a humorous manner reminiscent of Jay Leno or David Letterman.

Get a life, dude.

And remembr -- those who can, do; those who can't become entertainment critics.

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Will this scandal over illegal spying on an American citizen purely for political advantage – as opposed to constitutionally valid spying on enemies of America to protect national security – be covered aggressively by the American press? Or will they continue to ignore and suppress the misdeeds of the Democrat Party.

Federal prosecutors have decided to bring charges against a Democratic researcher accused of fraudulently obtaining a credit report on Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele, now a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate.

Lauren B. Weiner, who has since resigned from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in Washington, will be charged with obtaining the report without authorization, according to a letter sent to Steele by the U.S. attorney's office in the District.

A copy of the March 8 letter, which notified Steele that he is considered a victim in the case, was obtained by The Washington Post yesterday.

The episode, which happened last July, came as both parties started digging into the backgrounds of opposing candidates for one of Maryland's marquee races this year, the contest to replace retiring Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes (D). Opposition research is typical in contested statewide races, but it is illegal under federal law to obtain a credit report under false pretenses.

Whitney C. Ellerman, an attorney for Weiner, said his client plans to plead guilty to a misdemeanor under an agreement with prosecutors that could result in the charge being dismissed in a year.

"She basically made a mistake, and she is accepting responsibility for that mistake," Ellerman said. "She wants to get on with her life."

Ellerman said Steele's credit report was destroyed and not disseminated to anyone.

That this crime has been dropped down to a misdemeanor and will be wiped from Weiner’s record is utterly unacceptable. The conduct of DSCC staff is comparable to some Watergate figures who illegally obtained personal records of individuals on Nixon’s “enemies list”.

WhatÂ’s more, no one else will face charges over the matter.

Weiner and Katie Barge, then the DSCC's director of research, resigned after their superiors learned of the incident, which drew the FBI's attention. The DSCC is the arm of the national Democratic Party that works to elect U.S. senators.

William Lawler, an attorney for Barge, said it is his understanding from prosecutors that neither his client nor the DSCC will be charged.

"We're pleased to see this matter come to a conclusion," DSCC spokesman Phil Singer said last night. "Our thoughts are with Lauren. She is a fine person who made a mistake."

Channing Phillips, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office, would not comment on the case or why the office is apparently not charging Barge, who was Weiner's boss at the DSCC.

Of great concern to me is the failure to go after the DSCC and its chairman, Sen. Chuck Schumer.

Not that I am surprised – our justice system and the obsolescent mainstream media hold the Democrats to a much lower standard of conduct that that to which Republicans are held.

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Chuck Colson makes an interesting connection between a celebrated young man and a trend in Western society.

We’ve all been moved by the striking success of Jason McElwain, the autistic boy from upstate New York whose phenomenal basketball play won a game for his team when hope seemed gone.

But will there be more shining stars like Jason? Not if current trends continue.

While watching the news reports, I felt great for Jason and his family. As the grandfather of an autistic child, it was wonderful to see a reminder that these wonderful kids can be helped and can exceed our expectations.

But, as a Christian, I was struck by a savage irony: At the same time that Americans were touched by one disabled child, countless disabled children in the West face annihilation.

For example, in the Netherlands, medical protocols allow for the killing of disabled infants. As Wesley Smith points out, “disabled” includes Down syndrome, hemophilia, and other conditions that don’t prevent people from living happy lives. All that matters is that the child’s death “serves the interests of their families.”

Here in the United States, children with Down syndrome have been systematically “targeted for elimination.” A combination of amniocentesis, abortion, and pressure from physicians has made bearing a child with Down syndrome an heroic act.

Given this track record, can anyone seriously doubt what will happen as more disabilities can be detected through genetic screening? The pressures to abort children with possible disabilities will be immense. Just last Sunday, the New York Times Magazine had a chilling story about doctors being sued for “wrongful birth” because they have failed to warn the mother of defects in time for her to get an abortion.

It would be a shame if the sentimentality over the Jason story blinded us to the most important lessons we can learn from kids like Jason: What makes their lives worth celebrating is not what they do; it’s who they are. For me, what really mattered most was the love and respect shown to Jason by both his teammates and the crowd.

It’s a model for how all life should be treated, and anything less is missing the point altogether.

I spent a year working to provide educational and vocational services for developmentally disabled adults, and consider it to be one of the most rewarding things I have ever done. That year taught me more about what matters in life than any of the other 40+ years I have lived. As a result, I can only add a hearty “amen” to Colson’s observations.

Posted by: Greg at 12:30 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Chuck Colson makes an interesting connection between a celebrated young man and a trend in Western society.

WeÂ’ve all been moved by the striking success of Jason McElwain, the autistic boy from upstate New York whose phenomenal basketball play won a game for his team when hope seemed gone.

But will there be more shining stars like Jason? Not if current trends continue.

While watching the news reports, I felt great for Jason and his family. As the grandfather of an autistic child, it was wonderful to see a reminder that these wonderful kids can be helped and can exceed our expectations.

But, as a Christian, I was struck by a savage irony: At the same time that Americans were touched by one disabled child, countless disabled children in the West face annihilation.

For example, in the Netherlands, medical protocols allow for the killing of disabled infants. As Wesley Smith points out, “disabled” includes Down syndrome, hemophilia, and other conditions that don’t prevent people from living happy lives. All that matters is that the child’s death “serves the interests of their families.”

Here in the United States, children with Down syndrome have been systematically “targeted for elimination.” A combination of amniocentesis, abortion, and pressure from physicians has made bearing a child with Down syndrome an heroic act.

Given this track record, can anyone seriously doubt what will happen as more disabilities can be detected through genetic screening? The pressures to abort children with possible disabilities will be immense. Just last Sunday, the New York Times Magazine had a chilling story about doctors being sued for “wrongful birth” because they have failed to warn the mother of defects in time for her to get an abortion.

It would be a shame if the sentimentality over the Jason story blinded us to the most important lessons we can learn from kids like Jason: What makes their lives worth celebrating is not what they do; itÂ’s who they are. For me, what really mattered most was the love and respect shown to Jason by both his teammates and the crowd.

ItÂ’s a model for how all life should be treated, and anything less is missing the point altogether.

I spent a year working to provide educational and vocational services for developmentally disabled adults, and consider it to be one of the most rewarding things I have ever done. That year taught me more about what matters in life than any of the other 40+ years I have lived. As a result, I can only add a hearty “amen” to Colson’s observations.

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Yesterday I posted about a church in Canada being sued for telling a couple over a year in advance that a homosexual could not be a part of the wedding party. It seems that my comments reflect the prophetic prediction of Mary Ann Glendon (as quoted in a different context by Jeff Jacoby).

"As much as one may wish to live and let live," Harvard Law professor Mary Ann Glendon wrote in 2004, during the same-sex marriage debate in Massachusetts, "the experience in other countries reveals that once these arrangements become law, there will be no live-and-let-live policy for those who differ. Gay-marriage proponents use the language of openness, tolerance, and diversity, yet one foreseeable effect of their success will be to usher in an era of intolerance and discrimination.... Every person and every religion that disagrees will be labeled as bigoted and openly discriminated against. The ax will fall most heavily on religious persons and groups that don't go along. Religious institutions will be hit with lawsuits if they refuse to compromise their principles."

When liberal hypocrites speak of “freedom” and “diversity”, what they really mean is that you are have no choice but to believe, speak, and act precisely as they demand.

The Doors Of Perception has commentary on this issue as well.

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The Democrat obstruction continues – time for the GOP to go nuclear.

On May 9, 2001, President Bush nominated U.S. District Judge Terrence W. Boyle of Edenton, N.C., to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. It took nearly four years for the Judiciary Committee to send his nomination to the Senate floor. It has languished there for more than a year with no prospect for Senate confirmation and no apparent interest by the Republican leadership.

Boyle has been on the federal bench for 22 years, and his only liability is that he is a conservative who spent a year on Sen. Jesse Helms's staff. While he is the Bush appellate court nominee who has been waiting for confirmation the longest, he is not alone. Ten other prospective appeals judges face Senate inaction, with the window of opportunity in the second Bush term already closing.

They seem unaffected by last year's avoidance of a constitutional crisis over the confirmation process and the approval of two Supreme Court justices.

Five years is enough time for deliberation – vote now on Terrence Boyle, an extraordinary jurist who is being obstructed merely as political payback.

And while you are at it, give these folks a vote as well.

-- Brett Kavanaugh, White House staff secretary. First named to the District of Columbia Circuit by Bush on July 25, 2003, Democrats blocked the routine retention of his nomination at the end of the last Congress and now demand a second hearing to delay any hopes for him. His liability is being a senior Bush aide and a former assistant to independent counsel Kenneth Starr
.
-- William Haynes, general counsel of the Defense Department. A former General Dynamics executive nominated to the 4th Circuit, he has been blocked by Democrats for his association with the Pentagon's enemy combatant policies as a protege of vice presidential chief of staff David Addington.

-- Michael Wallace, a Jackson, Miss. lawyer. He was named to the 5th Circuit six weeks ago to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of Judge Charles Pickering. A former aide to Sen. Trent Lott, Wallace faces the same opposition from the Left that filibustered Pickering until he reached the bench on a Bush recess appointment.

There is not a single extraordinary circumstance among these nominees – just politics-as-usual by the Democrats. Use that majority or loose it, Senators.

Posted by: Greg at 12:16 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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If those on the Left actually believe in the rule of law and the importance of court precedent, they would be condemning Russ Feingold and other mentally-ill sufferers of Bush Derangement Syndrome for insisting that the President be censured for taking actions that courts have consistently ruled are within the scope of his constitutional authority.

Byron York points to the case – decided by the FISA Court of Review – that settles the question of presidential authority on the matter. No, not the Truong case, but a little matter known as In re: Sealed Case. The details of the case itself are not known, but the decision regarding presidential authority to engage in warrantless searches and surveillance is.

In its opinion, the Court of Review said the FISA Court had, in effect, attempted to unilaterally impose the old 1995 rules. "In doing so, the FISA Court erred," the ruling read. "It did not provide any constitutional basis for its action — we think there is none — and misconstrued the main statutory provision on which it relied." The FISA Court, according to the ruling, "refus[ed] to consider the legal significance of the Patriot Act's crucial amendments" and "may well have exceeded the constitutional bounds" governing the courts by asserting "authority to govern the internal organization and investigative procedures of the Department of Justice."

And then the Court of Review did one more thing, something that has repercussions in today's surveillance controversy. Not only could the FISA Court not tell the president how do to his work, the Court of Review said, but the president also had the "inherent authority" under the Constitution to conduct needed surveillance without obtaining any warrant — from the FISA Court or anyone else. Referring to an earlier case, known as Truong, which dealt with surveillance before FISA was passed, the Court of Review wrote: "The Truong court, as did all the other courts to have decided the issue, held that the President did have inherent authority to conduct warrantless searches to obtain foreign intelligence information. . . . We take for granted that the President does have that authority and, assuming that is so, FISA could not encroach on the President's constitutional power."

It was a clear and sweeping statement of executive authority. And what was most likely not known to the Court of Review at the time was that the administration had, in 2002, started a program in which it did exactly what the Court of Review said it had the power to do: order the surveillance of some international communications without a warrant.

The Left demands that FISA be followed. This decision makes it clear that the surveillance problem illegally disclosed by James Risen and the New York Times (a crime for which they can and should be prosecuted) is itself legal due to authority granted to the president by the Constitution of the United States. The Supreme Court chose not to review the case, allowing the decision of the FISA Court of Review (the functional equivalent of a US Circuit Court of Appeals) to stand. It is therefore incontrovertible that George W. Bush has the same power exercised by Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, Harry Truman, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and other presidents dating back to the founding of the Republic.
To use a phrase that was a mantra for the Left during the Roberts and Alito hearings, that position is Settled Law. Now let the President do his job and quit giving aid and comfort to our enemies by interfering with attempts to keep this country safe.

Posted by: Greg at 06:40 PM | Comments (21) | Add Comment
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Here’s more from the homicidal Muslim SOB who ran down a bunch of students at UNC a couple of weeks ago. He’s written to one of the local television stations to provide his side of the story – and they have posted his words on their website.

"Allah gives permission in the Koran for the followers of Allah to attack those who have raged war against them, with the expectation of eternal paradise in case of martyrdom and/or living one's life in obedience of all of Allah's commandments found throughout the Koran's 114 chapters..."
"The U.S. government is responsible for the deaths of and the torture of countless followers of Allah, my brothers and sisters. My attack on Americans at UNC-CH on March 3rd was in retaliation for similar attacks orchestrated by the U.S. government on my fellow followers of Allah in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, and other Islamic territories. I did not act out of hatred for Americans, but out of love for Allah instead. "

What we have here is a confession of guilt – terrorism on the basis of his Islamist beliefs. It is time for all major media to refer to this whoreson bastard as a terrorist. It is time for the government to treat him as such.

He says he acted out of love. We should do the same.

Because we love our country and our fellow citizens, this guy should be executed via firing squad on national television – forced to stand with his feet in a bucket of bacon grease.

Hat Tip – Michelle Malkin

More At Publius Rendevous, Ed Driscoll, Small Town Veteran, Demonrats, The Nose On Your Face, A Blog For All, Little Blue Alien, Capital Region People, IMAO

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Mayor Richard M. Daley, the arrogant and corrupt mayor of Chicago (just like his dad), wants the gun owners of Illinois to appear before him in person to justify allowing them to continue to exercise the rights guaranteed under this.

Amendment II
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

I won’t be coming to Chicago, Richie – I wouldn’t even come at the summons of your father, who was a bigger and more competent thief than you are. But I will gladly give you an explanation of my need to have my gun.

I need it in the event that it becomes necessary to defend myself and my family against those who would do us harm or violate our rights – including uppity politicians who decide that the inalienable right to the means of self-defense may be revoked if they feel that we, the people don’t “need” our guns.

Sic semper tyrannis, asshole.

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Mayor Richard M. Daley, the arrogant and corrupt mayor of Chicago (just like his dad), wants the gun owners of Illinois to appear before him in person to justify allowing them to continue to exercise the rights guaranteed under this.

Amendment II
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

I won’t be coming to Chicago, Richie – I wouldn’t even come at the summons of your father, who was a bigger and more competent thief than you are. But I will gladly give you an explanation of my need to have my gun.

I need it in the event that it becomes necessary to defend myself and my family against those who would do us harm or violate our rights – including uppity politicians who decide that the inalienable right to the means of self-defense may be revoked if they feel that we, the people don’t “need” our guns.

Sic semper tyrannis, asshole.

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Advocates for homosexual “rights” continue their efforts to force Christianity back into the catacombs in their efforts to normalize and sanction immoral behavior. This case is just the latest move in the direction of forcing churches to perform homosexual “marriages”

The Observer, the local paper for Sarnia/Lambton Ontario, reports that the pastor of a local church is in hot legal water for his defence of Christian principles.

Tamara Bourgeois, 29, and Jerry Condie, 34, were to marry in June 2007 at Sovereign Grace Community Church and have told the Observer that they are considering legal action against Pastor Glenn Tomlinson when he refused to allow an active homosexual to be part of the wedding party.

Tomlinson said he believes that allowing an unrepentant homosexual in the ceremony is tantamount to sanctioning homosexuality. "I'm OK with a gay person attending in the congregation. We are all sinners," Tomlinson told The Observer. "But the key to me is that a gay man is standing up in an official capacity. If we allowed that, we'd be sanctioning something in the actual ceremony."

Sovereign Grace church bills itself on its website as a church that "believes, teaches, and rejoices in the historic doctrines of Christianity."

Allowing a gay man to stand up for the couple would send the "wrong message, "Tomlinson said. "As a Baptist church, we believe that the scripture is God's word, without error."

Bourgeois was apparently expecting the pastor of this conservative congregation to be in full agreement with the liberal doctrines of "tolerance" for sin. Bourgeois reacted with indignant astonishment when Tomlinson said yes when she asked him if having a "gay man" in the wedding party would be a problem.

"He said it is a problem. I couldn't believe it. I can't be part of a church that feels this way."

"Shouldn't the church be about tolerance?" she asked.

The "tolerance" dogma of liberalism, however, only goes in one direction. Having found another church more to her theological taste - one in agreement with her support of the homosexual political agenda - Bourgeois is vowing to use the courts to persecute Sovereign Grace church for their adherence to Christian doctrine.

I plan on taking this all the way. If I have the means for a civil suit, I'll sue for discrimination," she said, "Who attends at a wedding should have no bearing on the wedding itself. It's not like we're asking him to marry us and we're gay."

Where will it end? Will the human right of religious freedom be utterly extinguished in order to accommodate all nature of immoral activity? While I don’t necessarily agree with Pastor Tomlinson on his decision, I cannot do other than support his right to make that decision as being in line with the theological beliefs and practices of his congregation. For there to be any sanction against a church or a pastor over decisions regarding who may participate in a religious ceremony and how they may participate is outrageous – but is perfectly in keeping with the Canadian trend towards placing the right to practice sodomy above the right to practice one’s religion.

And for those who argue that such Canadian cases are irrelevant to the American experience, please realize that the tendency to American courts to apply foreign law and precedents makes this matter of intense interest to American citizens. In addition the “gay” “rights” movement (not to mention other liberals) often points to Canadian laws and social practices as models for America to follow. In addition, there is the moral obligation to speak out against the persecution of religious believers who peacefully follow their religion, regardless of what political boundaries are involved.

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For having the courage to publish newsworthy material of international importance, the editor of the Daily Illini has been fired.

An editor who chose to publish caricatures of Prophet Muhammad in the University of Illinois' student-run newspaper last month has been fired, the paper's publisher announced Tuesday.

Acton H. Gorton was suspended, with pay, from The Daily Illini days after the Feb. 9 publication of the cartoons, which sparked Muslim protests around the world after they first appeared in a Danish newspaper.

At the time, Daily Illini publishers said the action was taken against Gorton not for publishing the cartoons, but for failing to discuss it with others in the newsroom first.

The Illini Media Co. board of directors, which comprises students and faculty, voted unanimously to fire the editor after a review "found that Gorton violated Daily Illini policies about thoughtful discussion of and preparation for the publication of inflammatory material," according to a statement.

Gorton has said he sought out advice from The Daily Illini's former editor-in-chief and others before deciding to run the cartoons. He has said that accusations he tried to hide his decision were wrong.

On Tuesday, he called his firing a blow against free speech on college campuses.
"If I can be fired, what will other students think who maybe want to challenge the status quo?" said Gorton, who had briefly addressed a board meeting the previous night. "This is a bad precedent."

Gorton said he intends to sue the publishers of The Daily Illini, citing, among other complaints, unlawful dismissal.

Board member Adam Jung said he is confident the company "has acted properly on this issue."

The paper's opinions page editor, Chuck Prochaska, also was suspended for his role in publishing the cartoons. He declined to be reinstated, the board said.

Prochaska said he and Gorton moved quickly to publish the cartoons because they were newsworthy.

"We had a news story on our hands, with violence erupting about imagery, but you can't show it because of a taboo, because of a taboo that's not a western taboo but a Muslim taboo?" he said. "That's a blow to journalism."

Decisions like this show why the major media in this country were such panty-waists when it came to publishing the Muhammad cartoons – that’s how they are trained in college. I hadn't realized that a J-Schoool degree included castration.

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IÂ’ve often wondered what I would do if gunfire broke out at my school. IÂ’d like to think that IÂ’d place myself between the shooter and my students. IÂ’d like to think I would act in a way that would keep my kids safe. But I donÂ’t know that I would be as cool as this lady.

A gym teacher is being hailed as a hero for risking her life to persuade a 14-year-old student to drop his gun after he allegedly wounded two eighth graders.

The teacher at Pine Middle School heard three shots just before 9 a.m. and rushed out of a room to find the alleged shooter, James Scott Newman, standing outside the school cafeteria.

"She empathized with him, tried to be understanding and de-escalated the situation. She was successful in having him place his gun on the ground which is pretty amazing," Reno police Lt. Ron Donnelly told KKOH Radio.

After he dropped the gun, the teacher "bear hugged" Newman until additional staff arrived on scene, Donnelly said. "It was an heroic job done by the school teacher," he said.

Newman was booked into the Washoe County Jail as an adult on a charge of attempted murder, Donnelly said. He also was charged with use of a deadly weapon and use of a firearm by a minor.

Two students were injured during the shootings. One boy was shot in the upper arm and chest and was treated and released from a hospital. A girl received a superficial wound to the leg from shrapnel and was treated at the scene.

Investigators were withholding the names of the victims - both eighth graders.

Steve Mulvenon, spokesman for the Washoe County School District, said the teacher who intervened had requested that her name not be released.

"She didn't want any publicity," he said.

Wow! I think I can guess who will be teacher of the year.

Posted by: Greg at 10:08 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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I wonder if Emily post deals with the proximity of a second wedding to the murder trial of your first spouse -- especially when the victims were your children.

Russell "Rusty" Yates will remarry this weekend, two days before his ex-wife, Andrea Yates, is retried for the 2001 murders of the couple's children.

On Saturday, Yates will marry Laura Arnold, a woman he met while attending Clear Lake Church of Christ, according to the Rev. Fairy Caroland, Yates' aunt.

"He's happy, and the family's happy," said Caroland, who added that the wedding date was set long before state District Judge Belinda Hill scheduled Andrea Yates' retrial.

Arnold has two sons, 21 and 9.

On June 20, 2001, Andrea Yates called police to her home, where they found the bodies of the five Yates children, Noah, 7; John, 5; Paul, 3; Luke, 2; and Mary, 6 months. All had been drowned in the family's bathtub. She was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Last year, the 1st Texas Court of Appeals overturned her capital murder conviction because of erroneous testimony from a forensic psychiatrist who was the state's expert witness. Two months later, on March 17, 2005, Andrea and Russell Yates' divorce was finalized, ending nearly 12 years of marriage.

Yates, 41, declined to discuss the wedding.

"It's not something I want to talk about," he said. "Just trying to keep my private life, private."

Yates and Arnold are to be married at Clear Lake Church of Christ on Saturday afternoon. Caroland said her nephew met Arnold after getting to know her 21-year-old son.

"He's simply trying to enjoy this without getting into a lot of stuff about it," Caroland said.

Yates told the Associated Press that he had informed his ex-wife of his plans to remarry.

"Andrea has been aware of it for a couple of months, and she wishes me the best, just as I wish her the best," Yates told the AP on Tuesday via e-mail.

Andrea Yates' attorney, George Parnham, said he was not certain how his client is handling the information.

"We all have to get on with our lives," he said. "This doesn't discount the things that happened on June 20th, but it saddens me that Andrea might be in any way negatively or emotionally affected by this."

A lot of folks around here still put a lot of the blame for the murders on Rusty -- this will just bring the debate forward again.

And it reminds me of why I'm so glad we didn't buy one of the houses we looked at in May of 2001 -- just a few doors down from the one where we saw the Dad playing with his four boys, and the odd looking mother holding a baby.

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Well, here comes this Wednesday's linkfest and trackback festival. This is an open trackback time, so link to me with your best, most interesting, or favorite post, and it will be featured here.

This will get you additional traffic, me additional traffic, and others additional traffic -- and let me determine if my trackbacking is working, as I've gotten nothing but spam trackbacks for days.

So help a brother blogger out -- trackback with one or more posts -- though be reasonable.

Enjoy!

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I love my state's junior senator, John Cornyn.

His latest zinger is up on his official website.

Democrat co-sponsors of Feingold Resolution: 0

al Qaeda communications intercepted by Feingold Resolution: 0

Terror attacks prevented by Feingold Resolution: 0

I think it is time for the Senator from the not-so-great state of Wisconsin to be Murtha-ized. Will get anyone to join him in voting for his resolution? Probably not -- which is why Harry Reid is doing everything in his power to prevent a vote on the Feingold Resolution.

Hat Tip -- GOPBloggers & Blogs for Bush

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And more importantly, why is it controversial?

Muslims are "crazed fanatics" motivated by "demonic power" whose goal is "world domination," religious broadcaster Pat Robertson said.

Robertson's comments during Monday's "700 Club" program followed a segment about radical Muslims in Europe.

"These people are crazed fanatics and I want to say it now; I believe it's motivated by demonic power, it is satanic and it's time we recognize what we're dealing with," watchdog group Americans United for Separation of Church and State quoted Robertson as saying.

"The goal of Islam ... is world domination," Robertson said.

I don't see anything wrong with the statement -- the position that Islam is a Satanic counterfeit of the Judeo-Christian faith is one that dates back centuries. If you doubt that, read Dante, and note the fate reserved for Muhammad. If Robertson believes this and wishes to advocate it, then there is nothing wrong with this -- in fact, I am willing to go so far as to say that I agree with him regarding the origin and nature of Islam.

And as far as the issue of world domination, I only have to point to the history of Islam from the time of its founding to make the case that it is an agressive faith that spreads itself sing violence. The Qu'ran makes it clear that Islam accepts no equality with other religious beliefs, and that those who follow such beliefs are to be subordinatate to Muslims and the dictates of Islam. If you want to see that in action, consider the response to the Muhammad cartoons from Denmark.

Is that an attack on your average Muslim? No, not any more than a critical dismissal fo Scientology as a fraud perpetrated by a hack science fiction writer is a personal attack upon Tom Cruise, John Travolta or other followers of that ersatz religion.

Has Americans United for the Separation of Church and State (which began as the virulently anti-Catholic "Protestants and Other Americans United for the Separation of Church and State") taken upon itself the role of defending Islam and censuring (and censoring) the religious expression of Christians who do not follow its PC line on religious speech?

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Rusty from Jawa Report offers this suggestion for dealing with the violence associated coming from the Muslim world.

Can Hookers Save Islam?

If the Germans believe that mobilizing an army of hookers will help reduce the normal amounts of violence associated with the World Cup, wouldn't logic dictate that a few thousand prostitutes are what is needed to stop the annual Haj stampede? And if that is the case, maybe we should unleash Amsterdam's Red Light district on the Sunni Triangle?

It could work........

I wonder -- is this just another way of saying "F*ck Islam"?

Posted by: Greg at 01:53 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I found this comment on my site this morning, from my liberal regular Dan. Rather than deal with the substance of the item I posted, he decided to attack the source I used (the generally accurate Drudge Report).

Right wing logic - Drudge, the least accurate source in the world, says something, and the left should react as if it's true, and if they don't, their hypocritical.

I said that doubt that the silence of the Left will stop when the article comes out.

I wonder if the Left has equal contempt for this source -- the reliably liberal Washington Post, which is engaging in spin control on behalf of senior staffer Bradlee.

Vanity Fair is reporting that former Washington Post executive editor Ben Bradlee says it is reasonable to assume former State Department official Richard L. Armitage is likely the source who revealed CIA operative Valerie Plame's name to Post Assistant Managing Editor Bob Woodward.

In an article to be published in the magazine today, Bradlee is quoted as saying: "That Armitage is the likely source is a fair assumption." Armitage was deputy secretary of state in President Bush's first term.

In an interview yesterday, Bradlee said he does know the identity of Woodward's source and does not recall making that precise statement to a Vanity Fair reporter. He said he has no interest in unmasking the official who first told Woodward about Plame in June 2003.

"I don't think I said it," Bradlee said. "I know who his source is, and I don't want to get into it. . . . I have not told a soul who it is."

The identity of Woodward's source emerged as one of the big mysteries of the CIA case after he disclosed last year that a government official with no ax to grind had told him about Plame, an undercover operative, a month before her name was revealed by columnist Robert D. Novak. Since then, guessing Woodward's source has been a Washington parlor game.

Plame is at the center of an investigation by a special prosecutor into whether White House officials knowingly disclosed her name to the media to discredit allegations made by her husband, former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, that the administration twisted intelligence in the run-up to the Iraq war. The probe has resulted in charges of perjury, making false statements and obstructing justice against I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff.

Beth Kseniak, spokeswoman for Vanity Fair, said the reporter who wrote the story, Marie Brenner, was traveling in India and was unavailable for comment.

Bradlee, currently Post vice president at large, said he learned the source's name from someone other than Woodward. Woodward said he did not reveal the source to his friend and former boss.

"He is not in the management loop on this," Woodward said. "Maybe he was alerted from somebody else, if he in fact did learn" the source's name.

Woodward and Bradlee refused to disclose the source's name. Armitage did not return phone calls requesting comment.

Bradlee's brief comments about the source are included in a lengthy article about the Plame case. Bradlee is the longtime Post editor who rose to prominence when his reporting team of Woodward and Carl Bernstein broke the Watergate story. Woodward and Bradlee refused for many years to reveal the identity of Deep Throat, a key source.

So now we wait -- will the silence continue? Will there be demands for an Armitage perp-walk? Or will the hypocritical liberal silence continue?

Posted by: Greg at 11:19 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Rouge prosecutor Ronnie Earle had his mountain of subpoenas thrown out by a Texas court today. It seems the stay in the case that he had demanded!

A state appeals court today threw out more than 30 subpoenas requested by Travis County prosecutors building a criminal case against U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, saying the investigation should have stopped in December when a district judge halted proceedings in his court.

District Attorney Ronnie Earle has been issuing the subpoenas ever since Senior District Judge Pat Priest dismissed all or part of three indictments against DeLay, R-Sugar Land. Earle appealed Priest's ruling, and the judge stayed the case pending a ruling by the Third Court of Appeals.

Most of the subpoenas involved political fund-raising controversies that have involved DeLay, some dating back to 1996.

After Earle subpoenaed records from DeLay's wife, Christine, DeLay's legal team asked Priest to quash the subpoenas. Priest told DeLay lawyer Dick DeGuerin that the case was stayed while on appeal, so he would neither halt Earle from issuing subpoenas nor would he enforce them.

DeGuerin then asked the appeals court to intervene.

"Because the state has obtained a stay in the proceedings ... we hold that subpoenas may not issue compelling witnesses to testify and produce documents at the stayed proceedings," the order by a three-judge panel said.

The panel, which is scheduled to hear Earle's appeal on March 22, said Earle may not issue any more subpoenas while the stay is in effect; ruled all the ones issued after the stay are "null and void;" and any subpoenas issued before the stay are suspended while the appeal is pending.

The unsigned order was issued by Judges Bea A. Smith, David Puryear and Alan Waldrop. Smith is a Democrat. Puryear and Waldrop are Republicans who are up for re-election this year.

What more evidence do you need that this guy is out of control and on a political fishing trip? First he attempts an ex post facto prosecution of actions in 2002 under a statute that did not go into effect until 2003. Then he ignores fundamental rules of procedure. Can we just get all charges dismissed and this Democrat demogogue disbarred?

More At Wizbang,

Posted by: Greg at 03:32 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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That is what Drudge is claiming.

THE WASHINGTON POST's famous Watergate editor Ben Bradlee claims that it was former State Department Deputy Secretary Richard Armitage who was the individual who leaked the identity of CIA official Valerie Plame.

In the latest issue of VANITY FAIR: "Woodward was in a tricky position. People close to him believe that he had learned about Plame from his friend Richard Armitage, Colin Powell's former deputy, who has been known to be critical of the administration and who has a blunt way of speaking. 'That Armitage is the likely source is a fair assumption,' former WASHINGTON POST editor Ben Bradlee said."

'I had heard about an e-mail that was sent that had a lot of unprintable language in it.'"

Llama Butchers doubts the Left will now demand the arrest and imprisonment of their favorite Bush-trashing former State Department official.

Richard Armitage is said to have outed Valerie Plame, via Drudge. Armitage was Deputy Secretary of State and his comments critical of Administration foreign policy are thought to be Colin Powell's. Somehow I doubt we will hear cries from the antique media for Armitage to do the "perp walk" like we did when the leak was attibuted to Rove.

Politburo Diktat notes this response.

So far, the Leftie blogs are not calling for the cuffs and orange jump suits.

I won't hold my breath until I turn blue.

Posted by: Greg at 03:12 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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This is sickening!

An artist invited Germans to come and be symbolically gased with car exhaust fumes in a former synagogue. Jewish leaders and media commentators say he is belittling the Holocaust and insulting its victims. But hundreds of people have lined up for the experience.

Santiago Sierra, a Spanish performance artist, pledged on Monday to hold talks with Jewish community leaders outraged by his project to give people a sense of the Holocaust by pumping lethal car exhaust fumes into a former synagogue and letting visitors enter one by one with a breathing apparatus.

Sierra, known internationally for his controversial work, led hoses from the exhaust pipes of six parked cars into the building in the town of Pulheim-Stommeln near Cologne to create lethal levels of carbon monoxide there.

* * *

There has been damning criticism from the German media. The Kölnische Rundschau newspaper said Sierra's "art horror light" led to just the kind of trivialization Sierra claimed to be fighting. "What Santiago Sierra is doing in the Stommeln synagogue indeed takes your breath away, unless you're a visitor, in which case you get plenty of oxygen, take zero risks and are even caringly accompanied by a fireman," it wrote.

"That's quite a contrast with the countless victims of the death camps. How pretentious to seek to evoke their horror and fear of death in such a cheap way! In a cynical game which yields no insight whatsoever."

"At a time in which ever fewer authentic witnesses are alive to tell of the Nazi terror, we have to find serious and appropriate ways to give young people a sense of responsibility for the present and the future, without apportioning guilt," the paper said. "Sierra's work degrades history to a fictional spectacle and only does damage in this respect."

Thank God this is not taking place in America – your tax dollars would probably be paying for this “little synagogue of horrors” belittling of the Holocaust.

Posted by: Greg at 02:02 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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This is sickening!

An artist invited Germans to come and be symbolically gased with car exhaust fumes in a former synagogue. Jewish leaders and media commentators say he is belittling the Holocaust and insulting its victims. But hundreds of people have lined up for the experience.

Santiago Sierra, a Spanish performance artist, pledged on Monday to hold talks with Jewish community leaders outraged by his project to give people a sense of the Holocaust by pumping lethal car exhaust fumes into a former synagogue and letting visitors enter one by one with a breathing apparatus.

Sierra, known internationally for his controversial work, led hoses from the exhaust pipes of six parked cars into the building in the town of Pulheim-Stommeln near Cologne to create lethal levels of carbon monoxide there.

* * *

There has been damning criticism from the German media. The Kölnische Rundschau newspaper said Sierra's "art horror light" led to just the kind of trivialization Sierra claimed to be fighting. "What Santiago Sierra is doing in the Stommeln synagogue indeed takes your breath away, unless you're a visitor, in which case you get plenty of oxygen, take zero risks and are even caringly accompanied by a fireman," it wrote.

"That's quite a contrast with the countless victims of the death camps. How pretentious to seek to evoke their horror and fear of death in such a cheap way! In a cynical game which yields no insight whatsoever."

"At a time in which ever fewer authentic witnesses are alive to tell of the Nazi terror, we have to find serious and appropriate ways to give young people a sense of responsibility for the present and the future, without apportioning guilt," the paper said. "Sierra's work degrades history to a fictional spectacle and only does damage in this respect."

Thank God this is not taking place in America – your tax dollars would probably be paying for this “little synagogue of horrors” belittling of the Holocaust.

Posted by: Greg at 02:02 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Do students have the right to expect their professors to speak English in a manner that can be understood? One would hope so, and a piece of legislation under consideration in Minnesota would require that they do so.

Instructors who want to teach at Minnesota colleges would have to prove they can speak English clearly before appearing at the head of the classroom, if a bill at the Legislature becomes law.

The bill would require schools in Minnesota State Colleges and Universities to ensure their undergraduate teachers speak plain, unaccented English. It would request the same of the University of Minnesota, which the Legislature has limited authority to regulate.

Rep. Bud Heidgerken, a former teacher and current cafe owner, said he's heard plenty from former students and employees about their struggles to understand professors with thick accents.

"I've had many students say they dropped a course or delayed graduation for a semester because they couldn't get around this one professor they couldn't understand," the Freeport Republican said. "All I'm trying to accomplish is getting the best education we have for postsecondary students."

Three states -- North Dakota, Texas and Pennsylvania -- have laws dealing with the English proficiency of college teachers.

MnSCU officials said few international students teach undergraduates at state colleges and universities. At the University of Minnesota, officials say international students already take a spoken language test before they are allowed to teach.

Peter Hudleston, associate dean for student affairs at the university's Institute of Technology, said comprehension problems sometimes crop up. But he said school officials warn students "they have to expect to be able to understand and converse with people from other parts of the English-speaking world. They have to be able to deal with different accents."

Wait just one minute – shouldn’t those who are coming here to teach be able to make themselves understood by people in this part of the English-speaking world? After all, the needs of the students who are paying to take these courses should take precedence.

Of course, there are the usual obstructors of common sense coming out to play.

Travis Reindl, director of state policy analysis with the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, finds the legislation troublesome.

"If we start sending a message here that if you can't speak the king's English flawlessly, we don't want you in our classrooms, that sends a message that the U.S. is not a friendly place for them," he said. "(Besides), there are parts of this country where you would swear that English is a second language based on your own background. If you took somebody from Minnesota and plunked him in Mississippi, then you might have a question."

What a patronizing response. No one is demanding flawless English, or even unaccented English. What is being sought is comprehensible English, which is a significantly lower barrier. I can recall being in an economics class many years ago, taught by a graduate student from India. He could not be understood by nearly half of the 150 students in the lecture hall, and was finally reassigned after a sufficient quantity of complaints – but such complaints should never have been necessary.

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Do students have the right to expect their professors to speak English in a manner that can be understood? One would hope so, and a piece of legislation under consideration in Minnesota would require that they do so.

Instructors who want to teach at Minnesota colleges would have to prove they can speak English clearly before appearing at the head of the classroom, if a bill at the Legislature becomes law.

The bill would require schools in Minnesota State Colleges and Universities to ensure their undergraduate teachers speak plain, unaccented English. It would request the same of the University of Minnesota, which the Legislature has limited authority to regulate.

Rep. Bud Heidgerken, a former teacher and current cafe owner, said he's heard plenty from former students and employees about their struggles to understand professors with thick accents.

"I've had many students say they dropped a course or delayed graduation for a semester because they couldn't get around this one professor they couldn't understand," the Freeport Republican said. "All I'm trying to accomplish is getting the best education we have for postsecondary students."

Three states -- North Dakota, Texas and Pennsylvania -- have laws dealing with the English proficiency of college teachers.

MnSCU officials said few international students teach undergraduates at state colleges and universities. At the University of Minnesota, officials say international students already take a spoken language test before they are allowed to teach.

Peter Hudleston, associate dean for student affairs at the university's Institute of Technology, said comprehension problems sometimes crop up. But he said school officials warn students "they have to expect to be able to understand and converse with people from other parts of the English-speaking world. They have to be able to deal with different accents."

Wait just one minute – shouldn’t those who are coming here to teach be able to make themselves understood by people in this part of the English-speaking world? After all, the needs of the students who are paying to take these courses should take precedence.

Of course, there are the usual obstructors of common sense coming out to play.

Travis Reindl, director of state policy analysis with the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, finds the legislation troublesome.

"If we start sending a message here that if you can't speak the king's English flawlessly, we don't want you in our classrooms, that sends a message that the U.S. is not a friendly place for them," he said. "(Besides), there are parts of this country where you would swear that English is a second language based on your own background. If you took somebody from Minnesota and plunked him in Mississippi, then you might have a question."

What a patronizing response. No one is demanding flawless English, or even unaccented English. What is being sought is comprehensible English, which is a significantly lower barrier. I can recall being in an economics class many years ago, taught by a graduate student from India. He could not be understood by nearly half of the 150 students in the lecture hall, and was finally reassigned after a sufficient quantity of complaints – but such complaints should never have been necessary.

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That’s “Cana of Galilee” to those of us of the Christian faith – though this discovery dates to centuries before the time of Christ.

In a rare find, remnants of an ancient Israelite city that dates back three thousand years have been uncovered during excavations in the Israeli Arab village of Kfar Kana in the Lower Galilee, Israel's Antiquities Authority announced Monday.

The area, located north of Nazareth, is revered by Christians as the site where Jesus is said to have performed his first miracle.

The settlement being unearthed existed at the time of the United Kingdom of King Solomon and the Kingdom of Israel following the split between Israel and Judah, in the 10-9th centuries BCE.

A section of the ancient city wall and remains of buildings were exposed during recent excavations at the site, which began three months ago, the director of the excavation at the site, Yardenna Alexander said.

She added that evidence was found there indicating the place was destroyed during the 9th century BCE, probably by an enemy forces.

In addition to the wall, an assortment of pottery vessels, large quantities of animal bones, a scarab depicting a man surrounded by two crocodiles and a ceramic seal bearing the image of a lion were also discovered at the site.

Following the destruction the ancient Israelite city, the site was abandoned until its ruins were re-inhabited by Jewish settlers in the Early Roman period in the 1st century CE, Israel's top archaeological body said.

The identity of these residents as Galilean Jews is already known from previous excavations that were carried out at the site, and from historic information that identifies the settlement as "Kana of the Galilee" which is known from the New Testament as the site where Jesus performed his first miracle by turning water into wine at a Jewish wedding.

In the previous excavations at the site a few years ago, which identified the ancient Galilee settlement as Kana of the Galilee, archeologists discovered remnants of buildings, grinding stones, cooking ovens stone vessels and several Jewish ritual purification baths or mikvahs, one nearly 7 feet high with an arched roof.

Some of the ancient walls that were destroyed in the 9th century BCE were reused in the newer construction nearly one thousand years later in the 1st century CE and new floors were laid down.

The Jewish settlers built igloo-shaped pits on the ruins of the previous settlement, with the bedrock serving as the floor of the pit. A rock-hewn pit was discovered in one of the tunnels and in it were 11 complete storage jars characteristic of the second half of the 1st century CE.

Among the other antiquities discovered at the site include underground pits linked by short tunnels that were apparently built and hewn prior to the Great Revolt by the Jews against the Romans in 66 CE.

The pits are connected to each other by short tunnels which apparently were used as underground hiding places ahead of the revolt, Alexander noted.

Every day we learn more and more about the lives of the people whose day-to-day lives were inextricably tied to the historical events of Scripture.

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More neat Egyptian discoveries!

An Egyptian-German archaeological team has discovered 17 statues of Sekhmet, an ancient Egyptian goddess with the head of a lioness and the body of a woman.

The statues, estimated to be about 3,000 years old, were found during restoration work on the temple of Amenhotep III, in the southern city of Luxor, Culture Minister Farouk Hosni said in a statement Sunday.

Last week, the team discovered six similar black granite statues depicting Sekhmet seated on a throne and holding the "key of life" in her left hand. Two of those statues were broken, with only the lower parts found.

The condition of the 17 statues was not revealed, though the council's chief, Zahi Hawass, said in the statement that each figure will be removed from the site for maintenance. Hosni did not say when the figures were found.

Hawass said Amenhotep III's different names and titles were delicately engraved on both sides of the statues' thrones, reflecting the advanced stage of arts during the 18th dynasty rule.

Sekhmet was considered the goddess of war and recovery, which could explain why so many similar statues were found on the same site, according to Mansour Breik, the official supervising the Luxor antiquities.

These statues are from the reign immediately prior to that of Akenaten (AKA Amenhotep IV), and so were likely carved within 50 years of the reign of King Tut.

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Recruiting goals are being met and exceeded by the Army National Guard, according to the most recent monthly figures.

The Army National Guard, which has suffered a severe three-year recruiting slump, has begun to reel in soldiers in record numbers, aided in part by a new initiative that pays Guard members $2,000 for each person they enlist.

The Army Guard said Friday that it signed up more than 26,000 soldiers in the first five months of fiscal 2006, exceeding its target by 7 percent in its best performance in 13 years. At this pace, Guard leaders say they are confident they will reach their goal of boosting manpower from the current 336,000 to the congressionally authorized level of 350,000 by the end of the year.

"Will we make 350,000? The answer is: Absolutely," said Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau.

The rebound is striking because since 2003, the Army Guard has performed worse in annual recruiting than any other branch of the U.S. military. The Guard was shrinking while it was being asked to shoulder a big part of the burden in Iraq. Together with the Army Reserve, it supplied as many as 40 percent of the troops in Iraq while also dispatching tens of thousands of members to domestic disasters.

Why the turn-around? It seems that hearing about the Guard and it mission from Iraq veterans has been an important factor.

A driving force in this year's early success, Guard leaders say, is that thousands of Guard members have now returned from Iraq and are reaching out to friends, old classmates and co-workers -- widening the face-to-face contacts that officials say are critical to recruiting. Guard members "are staying with us and want to fill up units with their neighbors and friends," Blum said in an interview. "Now that they're back -- watch out."

The development of a more regular deployment cycle has helped as well.

MORE AT: American Thinker, Blogs for Bush (twice), Cigar Intelligence Agency, Right Wing News, Ranting Profs, WILLisms, Say Anything, Mudville Gazette, reconsider, Execupundit, UNCorrelated, Backcountry Conservative,

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Recruiting goals are being met and exceeded by the Army National Guard, according to the most recent monthly figures.

The Army National Guard, which has suffered a severe three-year recruiting slump, has begun to reel in soldiers in record numbers, aided in part by a new initiative that pays Guard members $2,000 for each person they enlist.

The Army Guard said Friday that it signed up more than 26,000 soldiers in the first five months of fiscal 2006, exceeding its target by 7 percent in its best performance in 13 years. At this pace, Guard leaders say they are confident they will reach their goal of boosting manpower from the current 336,000 to the congressionally authorized level of 350,000 by the end of the year.

"Will we make 350,000? The answer is: Absolutely," said Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau.

The rebound is striking because since 2003, the Army Guard has performed worse in annual recruiting than any other branch of the U.S. military. The Guard was shrinking while it was being asked to shoulder a big part of the burden in Iraq. Together with the Army Reserve, it supplied as many as 40 percent of the troops in Iraq while also dispatching tens of thousands of members to domestic disasters.

Why the turn-around? It seems that hearing about the Guard and it mission from Iraq veterans has been an important factor.

A driving force in this year's early success, Guard leaders say, is that thousands of Guard members have now returned from Iraq and are reaching out to friends, old classmates and co-workers -- widening the face-to-face contacts that officials say are critical to recruiting. Guard members "are staying with us and want to fill up units with their neighbors and friends," Blum said in an interview. "Now that they're back -- watch out."

The development of a more regular deployment cycle has helped as well.

MORE AT: American Thinker, Blogs for Bush (twice), Cigar Intelligence Agency, Right Wing News, Ranting Profs, WILLisms, Say Anything, Mudville Gazette, reconsider, Execupundit, UNCorrelated, Backcountry Conservative,

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Gee, I wonder what the Left will make of this?

Audiotapes of Saddam Hussein and his aides underscore the Bush administration's argument that Baghdad was determined to rebuild its arsenal of weapons of mass destruction once the international community had tired of inspections and left the Iraqi dictator alone.

In addition to the captured tapes, U.S. officials are analyzing thousands of pages of newly translated Iraqi documents that tell of Saddam seeking uranium from Africa in the mid-1990s.

The documents also speak of burying prohibited missiles, according to a government official familiar with the declassification process.

But it is not clear whether Baghdad did what the documents indicate, said the U.S. official, who asked not to be named.

"The factories are present," an Iraqi aide tells Saddam on one of the tapes, made by the dictator in the mid-1990s while U.N. weapons inspectors were searching for Baghdad's remaining stocks of weapons of mass destruction.

"The factories remain, in the mind they remain. Our spirit is with us, based solely on the time period," the aide says, according to the documents. "And [inspectors] take note of the time period, they can't account for our will."

The quote is from roughly 12 hours of taped conversations that unexpectedly landed in the lap of Bill Tierney, a former Army warrant officer and Arabic speaker who was translating for the FBI tapes unearthed in Iraq after the invasion.

Mr. Tierney made a copy, which he provided to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. The committee in turn gave a copy to intelligence analysts who authenticated the voice as that of Saddam.

Mr. Tierney said that the quote from the Saddam aide, and scores of others, show Saddam was rebuilding his once-ample weapons stocks.

"The tapes show that Saddam rebuilt his program and successfully prevented the U.N. from finding out about it," he said.

There also exists a quote from the dictator himself, who ordered the tapings to keep a record of his inner-sanctum discussions, that Mr. Tierney thinks shows Saddam planned to use a proxy to attack the United States.

"Terrorism is coming ... with the Americans," Saddam said. "With the Americans, two years ago, not a long while ago, with the English I believe, there was a campaign ... with one of them, that in the future there would be terrorism with weapons of mass destruction."

This does sort of upset the applecart, doesnÂ’t it?

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