And we are under a tropical storm watch.

A tropical depression in the central Gulf of Mexico is churning toward South Texas today, its bands of thunderstorms expected to dump heavy rain in southeast Texas and along other parts of the coast beginning tonight, forecasters said.

Given that we are a foot ahead of normal in rainfall totals, it will be interesting to see where the water goes.

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What refrigerator door is complete without them? And if you look in my kitchen, the fridge is covered with Business Card Magnets and other promotional magnets.

Let's see -- we've got one for the dentist, one for the doctor, and one for each of my wife's specialists. There is also the dog groomer, the vet, the pharmacy, a couple of favorite restaurants. . . well, you get the idea. I've even got one listing the phone numbers of all the administrators from my school AND the SubFinder line.

Why are these magnets so great? Because when I need the phone numbers for these essential folks, I know right were to find them to make the call. And yes, they also promote brand loyalty.

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After all -- if the country is in relatively good shape and the Surge is working, how can they run on a platform condemning the party and president that presided over all this good news?

How do you make a Cambridge liberal cry? Tell him some good news.

Mention the amazing state of the American economy - low unemployment, rising wages and record-setting per-household wealth - and heÂ’ll angrily fling his $4 bottle of Fiji in your face.

Show her the new NASA numbers debunking the “it’s the hottest decade on record” panic, and she’ll kick you with rain forest footwear.

Quote USA Today’s report that large al-Qaeda style attacks in Iraq are down nearly 50 percent since the troop surge began, and he may punch you with a “Peace Now” bumper sticker.

You wonÂ’t read it on the front of the Boston Globe-Democrat, and you sure wonÂ’t hear it from cranky Keith Olbermann, but there is actually good news in the world. And itÂ’s putting the left in a foul mood.

Take Karl RoveÂ’s resignation. After years of demanding the Evil GeniusÂ’ head on a pike, the Bush-bashers are finally getting a Rove-free White House. HeÂ’s leaving Washington, his reputation in tatters. Great news for the left - and theyÂ’re miserable about it.

The answer, of course, is simple -- good news for America is bad news for a party that needs things in America to suck in order to achieve success. It is why, for example, one local blogger who leads a major Democrat organization here in Houston spends much of his time arguing how bad life is here in Texas -- even as our population is growing and our economy is booming. Why? because anything else would call into question the notion that the Democrats have anything to offer the state or the nation.

It must suck to have to tear down your state and nation in order to grab hold of political power.

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And the argument here could clearly be used to enable the prosecution of those who leak national security secrets to papers like the New York Times and Washington Post.

Five reporters must testify about their law enforcement sources in a former Army scientistÂ’s lawsuit against the Justice Department, a federal judge in Washington ruled yesterday.

The suit, filed by Steven J. Hatfill, a bioterrorism expert, contends that the government violated the federal Privacy Act by providing journalists with information about him in the F.B.I.Â’s investigation of the deadly anthrax mailings in 2001.

The reporters — Michael Isikoff and Daniel Klaidman of Newsweek; Allan Lengel of The Washington Post; Toni Locy, formerly of USA Today; and James Stewart, formerly of CBS News — have acknowledged receiving information from the Justice Department and the F.B.I. about Dr. Hatfill, the judge, Reggie B. Walton, wrote in his decision yesterday. But they have refused to name their sources.

Judge Walton, of the Federal District Court in Washington, said Dr. Hatfill was entitled to the sources’ names because “the information sought is clearly central to his Privacy Act claims.”

“Denying civil litigants access to the identity of government officials who have allegedly leaked information to reporters would effectively leave Privacy Act violations immune from judicial condemnation,” Judge Walton wrote, “while leaving potential leakers virtually undeterred from engaging in such misbehavior.”

Look at the quote from Judge Walton's ruling. It is no great logical leap to argue that denying federal prosecutors access to the identity of government officials who have allegedly leaked information to reporters would effectively leave Espionage Act violations immune from judicial condemnation while leaving potential leakers undeterred from engaging in such misbehavior.

We as a nation have to decide upon a simple question -- are journalists (however broadly or narrowly you want to define that term) subject to the same laws and obligations as other Americans? If they are, the notion of a press shield or a reporter's privilege undermines such a principle. A reporter with special knowledge of a crime must be obligated to cooperate with authorities -- and if, as journalists claim, that hinders their ability to get a story because folks are deterred from breaking the law, that is a positive impact of that practice.

A different take at Michelle Malkin & Captain Ed

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Because, like it or not, it is the central front of the Crusade Against Jihadism.

Christopher Hitchens goes to great length to explain why al-Qaeda in Mesopotamia is important, and why defeating/discrediting these enemies of all mankind is so important. Crushing arguments that AQM is unimportant, Hitchens concludes:

If I am right about this, an enormous prize is within our reach. We can not only deny the clones of Bin Ladenism a military victory in Iraq, we can also discredit them in the process and in the eyes (and with the help) of a Muslim people who have seen them up close. We can do this, moreover, in a keystone state of the Arab world that guards a chokepoint—the Gulf—in the global economy. As with the case of Afghanistan—where several provinces are currently on a knife-edge between an elected government that at least tries for schools and vaccinations, and the forces of uttermost darkness that seek to negate such things—the struggle will take all our nerve and all our intelligence. But who can argue that it is not the same battle in both cases, and who dares to say that it is not worth fighting?

Indeed -- only those without the vision to understand that the forces of jihad are one common enemy.

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Karl Rove is leaving, but Condi will remain at the State Department.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wants to continue serving President George W. Bush until he leaves the White House, her spokesman said Monday after Bush's top aide Karl Rove resigned.

"The basic question is: Is she planning on sticking around? The answer to that question is, 'yes,'" State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters.

With Rove's resignation as deputy White House chief of staff announced Monday, Rice and Vice President Dick Cheney are among the last of the remaining top officials with Bush since he first took office in 2001.

Rice became secretary of state in 2005 at the start of Bush's second term in office after being his national security advisor since January 2001.

She had not been spared criticism for her role in prosecuting the unpopular Iraq war, which has taken the lives of 3,684 American soldiers since the March 2003 invasion.

McCormack said that while Rice and other cabinet officials "serve at the pleasure of the president," the top US diplomat has "got a lot on the agenda" for the next 17 months, including grappling with the Iraq war, the Israel-Palestine question as well as the North Korean and Iranian nuclear issues.

"And she has a lot that she wants to accomplish on behalf of this president, on behalf of the American people," he said.

She's hoping to head back to Stanford in 2009.

But I wonder -- might we see the Secretary of State resign next fall to be the GOP Vice Presidential candidate? Or is this the signal that she will not accept such an offer?

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I've always liked promotional mugs from different businesses that I've dealt with. Back during college, I made it something of a hobby of mine to scoop one up when I had the chance. I think I had a promotional mugs from every local radio station as well as political candidates of my party lined up along the edges of my bookshelves.

Needless to say, all those promotional mugs made my room the place to have a cup of coffee, cocoa or tea...

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Here's the headline.

Private Paddling Club Faces Congressional Ire

Fix in your mind what you believe the story may be about.

Now read the story.
more...

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Being multi-lingual is becoming a necessity in many professional fields these days. As a teacher, I have found a working knowledge of Spanish to be invaluable, and wish I knew more. Those language skills are important for me to do my job effectively

In business, the need to be able to communicate with one's clients is critical. Foreign language classes are therefore quite important for those regularly involved in international transactions. After all, how can you communicate with that client if you do do not share a common language? How do you build that rapport that is so critical in a business relationship?

Saint George International has been providing language coursework for businesses and organizations in the UK for 40 years and has become a well-respected source for business language education. Their 1-on-1 program can be arranged on a schedule and location convenient for th client -- and is offered for those seeking to learn Spanish, French, German, and Italian. They also offer Dutch tuition London, Dutch courses London and other programs in Dutch.

If you work in an international setting, SGI may provide you with the language skills you need to be a csuccess.

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Speaking as a history teacher, I have a startling confession -- I hate Black History Month. Hispanic History Month, too. Ditto all the other special months that "celebrate" homosexuals, disabled individuals, women, Asians and the oppressed minority du jour.

I also hate special days and weeks for different groups. I'm also not particularly fond of Constitution Day and the federal mandate imposed upon me as an educator to teach about the Constitution on a given day in September.

Does that make me a bigot? Does it mean I hate everyone but for white men? No to both questions.

Instead, it means that I have a problem with agenda-driven history and curricula. And while I don't like the reasons for dropping the designations of special months in the Philadelphia School District, I do like the result.

Consider what I teach -- World History. Now this may come as a surprise to some of you, but history is generally taught in a somewhat linear fashion due to the shocking reality that time itself is linear in nature. As a result, I find it somewhat absurd to drop a less on on the Constitution in the middle of my unit on the early river valley civilizations. Similarly, Dr. King and the civil rights movement really fit better in May when I deal with the contemporary era of history, not back in February during the French Revolution. And as for the noted (alleged and presumed) homosexuals of history, I gladly deal with them in their respective historical context.

In a history classroom, content should not be balkanized in the name of promoting pride. I may have to deviate from a strict chronology from time to time (I deal with Alexander the Great before the Roman Republic because he fits better in the context of Greek Civilization before I chart the rise of Rome, which I concede began over a century before the Macedonian conqueror's death), but a chronological approach does make sense in a subject built, in large part, on chronology.

More to the point, the history of each and every one of these groups is the common heritage of all humanity. Properly taught, history provides us lessons on the common struggles and triumphs of various people's around the world, leading to the global society in which we live. Decontextualizing these groups and their achievements undercuts that message, no matter how much the advocates of these groups claim otherwise.

"It is appalling that a school district would drop months that recognize and educate our school children about the history and contributions of America's diverse fabric," said Malcolm Lazin, executive director of the homosexual advocacy group Equality Forum, in a news release.

"GLBT History Month is important for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) students and for the mainstream community," he said. "The GLBT community is uniquely disadvantaged because it does not learn its history at home or in public schools.

"It is important for young people to have role models, know their history, and take pride in the national and international contributions of their community," Lazin said.

I'm sorry, but that is dead wrong -- the diversity of the fabric is only seen when the threads are blended together to create the whole, while unraveling those threads destroys the fabric. These "separate but equal" months and celebrations, like "separate but equal" schools, do an injustice to our students and sow division, not unity.

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This one is put in the context of Guantanamo Bay, but I think there is a broader context to consider.

Is it ethical for a doctor to force-feed a prisoner on a hunger strike? An opinion piece in the Aug. 1 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association suggests doctors should refuse to force-feed detainees at Guantánamo Bay as long as the prisoners are capable of making rational choices. This month Dr. S. Ward Casscells, the new assistant secretary of Defense for health affairs, went to Guantánamo to "look at it with my own eyes," he told NEWSWEEK. Of the 355 detainees still in Gitmo, about 20 are on hunger strike at any one time, he says. Prisoners who skip nine straight meals go under "observation"; the forced feeding usually begins when they dip 15 percent beneath their ideal weight. (Overeating is actually a problem at Gitmo; Casscells says many prisoners take drugs for diabetes and high cholesterol.)

Now the information about Gitmo prisoners is interesting, but not relevant here. The bigger question is what we should do, as a society, about hunger strikers.

My answer? Let them starve -- to death, if necessary.

And I don't just say that in regard to Gitmo terrorists -- I also mean that in regard to these folks.

Seriously -- if someone is going to threaten to go on a hunger strike, we should expect them to take it to the limit. No food, no water, no supplements. Indeed, it is morally incumbent for us to not interfere with their "courageous moral stand" to "speak truth to power" . Furthermore, we as a society should ridicule and despise anyone who quits a hunger strike short of receiving the goal for which they began it. After all, a three or four day fast is not a hunger strike, and neither is a "no solid food but I'll take smoothies and ice cream" demonstration like Cindy Sheehan did a while back.

Hunger strikes are supposed to be a non-violent demonstration of one's willingness to die for what one believes in. Claiming to be on a hunger strike while having anything short of such a commitment is simply publicity-seeking self-aggrandizement that merits contempt -- and outside interference with such an act of self-sacrifice is meddling with a fundamental right to individual autonomy.

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The New York Times is nothing if not consistent in its inconsistency.

Five weeks ago, the New York Times insisted that the US must leave Iraq immediately, despite the potential for chaos and bloodshed.

It is time for the United States to leave Iraq, without any more delay than the Pentagon needs to organize an orderly exit.

Today, on the other hand, the New York Times insists that the chaos that would follow a US withdrawal is reason enough to stay in Iraq -- and to keep troop levels high.

The United States cannot walk away from the new international terrorist front it created in Iraq. It will need to keep sufficient forces and staging points in the region to strike effectively against terrorist sanctuaries there or a Qaeda bid to hijack control of a strife-torn Iraq.

But there should be no illusions about trying to continue the war on a reduced scale. It is folly to expect a smaller American force to do in a short time what a much larger force could not do over a very long time. ThatÂ’s exactly what the British are now trying to do. And the results are painfully plain to see.

Now wait just a minute -- In July you said that such chaos was no reason to stay, and it was a part o the reason for leaving. Now you say it is the reason to stay? Why the reversal?

Oh, and the editors give a signal about how little the New York Times values our troops. They make it quite clear that they believe the US has failed in Iraq -- but insist that more American soldier must die to continue that "failed mission". I wonder -- will they ever consider giving success a chance? Well, perhaps the wind will have changed to that direction by September.

More At NewsBusters and Don Surber

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Hillary Clinton may get the nomination from the Democrats, but is she an asset to other Democrats seeking office? Many think not.

Looking past the presidential nomination fight, Democratic leaders quietly fret that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton at the top of their 2008 ticket could hurt candidates at the bottom.

They say the former first lady may be too polarizing for much of the country. She could jeopardize the party's standing with independent voters and give Republicans who otherwise might stay home on Election Day a reason to vote, they worry.

In more than 40 interviews, Democratic candidates, consultants and party chairs from every region pointed to internal polls that give Clinton strikingly high unfavorable ratings in places with key congressional and state races.

"I'm not sure it would be fatal in Indiana, but she would be a drag" on many candidates, said Democratic state Rep. Dave Crooks of Washington, Ind.

Unlike Crooks, most Democratic leaders agreed to talk frankly about Clinton's political coattails only if they remained anonymous, fearing reprisals from the New York senator's campaign. They all expressed admiration for Clinton, and some said they would publicly support her fierce fight for the nomination _ despite privately held fears.

The chairman of a Midwest state party called Clinton a nightmare for congressional and state legislative candidates.

A Democratic congressman from the West, locked in a close re-election fight, said Clinton is the Democratic candidate most likely to cost him his seat.

A strategist with close ties to leaders in Congress said Democratic Senate candidates in competitive races would be strongly urged to distance themselves from Clinton.

"The argument with Hillary right now in some of these red states is she's so damn unpopular," said Andy Arnold, chairman of the Greenville, S.C., Democratic Party. "I think Hillary is someone who could drive folks on the other side out to vote who otherwise wouldn't."

"Republicans are upset with their candidates," Arnold added, "but she will make up for that by essentially scaring folks to the polls."

And let's be honest here -- as polarizing as the President has been during his presidency, both Bill and Hillary Clinton have the same sort of effect. There is no candidate that the Democrats could nominate who would fire-up the GOP base to work against the Democrats -- and turn away independent voters in GOP-leaning states.

I really hope she gets the nomination.

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A strange email appeared in my inbox early this morning. It seems to be an ad for a new product -- but was is dated August 13, 2017. Any thoughts?

Attention educators!

Tired of those housekeeping tasks around your room after students have tracked in dirt of dropped candy wrappers?

Frustrated by this year's changes in last year's "best grading and attendance program known to man"?

Looking for some way to be two places at once while assisting students with work, filling out paperwork and maintain discipline all at the same time?

In other words, do you need a classroom aide even though the district cut those funds during the last budget reduction and you lack the inherited wealth to hire your own?

The solution is at hand -- iRobot's new TeachBot Mk1.

The TeachBot Mk1 is the all-purpose classroom assistant. Not only will it perform basic housekeeping tasks like the so many iRobot offerings have over the years, but it also incorporates many important tools especially for educators.

* Grading and attendance module with the ability to link with most district software.
* Templates for over 50 standard educational forms and correspondence (discipline referrals, notes home) which can be selected and completed through voice commands.
* Curriculum database which allows for interaction with students needing academic assistance.
* Translation module for communication with students and parents whose first language is other than English.
* Unfiltered wireless internet access for when the district filtering software decides that sites about "breast cancer" are unacceptable for viewing but Hooters.com is.

TeachBot Mk1's arms are fully extendable, and the claws can be used to move items up to 300 pounds -- making classroom redecoration and breaking up fights in the hallway both simple tasks. The durable metal construction ensures that TeachBot Mk1 will be safe in virtually any teaching environment. And the sensor pod has full 360 degree visual range, so while you may not have eyes on the back of your head, TeachBot Mk1 does!

In addition to the standard TeachBot Mk1 feature, a number of options are available. The two most popular are the taser accessory (pictured in action above) for difficult disciplinary situations and an administrator detection module adapted from iRobot's line of sniper detection robots.

The TeachBot Mk1 follows in the iRobot tradition of delivering innovative robots that are making a difference in people’s lives. From cleaning floors to disarming explosives, we constantly strive to find better ways to tackle dull, dirty and dangerous missions—with better results. From war zones and crime scenes to your classroom -- iRobot!

So, my fellow teachers -- does this sound like a resource you would appreciate in your classroom.

SUBMITTED AS AN ENTRY FOR THE PPP BLOG BATTLE ROYALE

Posted by: Greg at 03:30 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Whatever will the Democrats do with the Source of All Evil no longer in the West Wing?

Karl Rove, President Bush's longtime political adviser, is resigning as White House deputy chief of staff effective Aug. 31, and returning to Texas, marking a turning point for the Bush presidency.

Mr. Rove's departure removes one of the White House's most polarizing figures, and perhaps signals the effective end of the lame duck administration's role in shaping major domestic policy decisions. Mr. Rove revealed his plans in an interview with Paul Gigot, editor of The Wall Street Journal's editorial page.

Mr. Rove, who has held a senior post in the White House since President Bush took office in January 2001, told Mr. Gigot he first floated the idea of leaving a year ago. But he delayed his departure as, first, Democrats took Congress, and then as the White House tackled debates on immigration and Iraq, he said. He said he decided to leave after White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten told senior aides that if they stayed past Labor Day they would be obliged to remain through the end of the president's term in January 2009.

"I just think it's time," Mr. Rove said in the interview. "There's always something that can keep you here, and as much as I'd like to be here, I've got to do this for the sake of my family." Mr. Rove and his wife have a home in Ingram, Texas, and a son who attends college in nearby San Antonio.

Personally, this Republican is not sad to see Karl Rove go, nor do I think he is leaving too soon or showing disloyalty. Let's be honest here -- this is the time when Presidents get ready for the home stretch of their administrations, and if someone is planning to leave early the time to do so is now. Besides, an earlier departure would have looked like an admission of guilt in the Plame case or some other sign of weakness -- instead we have Rove leaving on his own terms.

Posted by: Greg at 03:27 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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One of the great things about being a history teacher is that there is always something more for me to learn. After all, I don't know everything about every place. It is therefore quite likely that from time to time I will stumble across new information that might even serve to recast my view of the past or give me a new understanding of some event or region.

Take the Caribbean, for example, which Americans often ignore historically following Columbus' arrival in the New World and the European colonization of North and South America.

Over the last few months, I've been feeding my recently developed passion for literature about the British Navy. One of the novels I picked up dealt with the American Revolution and the strategic naval importance of the Caribbean in that war. Frankly, I was bowled over -- my mind has pictured battles along the American coast or taken into British waters by men like the intrepid John Paul Jones. It had never entered my imagination that the islands of the Caribbean had an incredible strategic importance for the British, the Americans, and the French, as well as the Spanish. Wow!

Now there are many reasons to visit the Caribbean -- sunny beaches and a vibrant culture among them. But friends, don't miss the history -- it is fascinating!

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I mentioned last week that John Edwards, despite attacking FoxNews and NewsCorp as enemies of the Democrats, had taken $500,000 in advance money and $300,000 in expense money to write a book.

Well guess where the $300,000 went --to Deputy Campaign Manager Jonathan prince, and to the candidate's own daughter, Cate Edwards.

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards recently defended taking a lucrative book contract from a publisher controlled by Rupert Murdoch -- whose News Corp. empire Edwards has sharply criticized -- by insisting that “every dime” of his $500,000 advance went to charity.

Left unmentioned by Edwards, however, was that MurdochÂ’s HarperCollins paid portions of a $300,000 expense budget for the book to EdwardsÂ’s daughter and to a senior political aide, Jonathan Prince.

The sums paid to Cate Edwards and Prince, who are listed as co-authors on the little-noticed 2006 coffee table book, "Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives," have not been made public, but were confirmed by two sources with first-hand knowledge of the book deal.

Edwards demanded that all Democrat candidates return all money from Fox executive -- and even adopted a policy of not allowing any contribution from any Fox employee, no matter how low on the food chain. But until he demands that this senior campaign staffer and his own daughter divest themselves of the "tainted" cash, he is just one more liberal hypocrite.

Unless, of course, he is willing to fire Prince and disown Cate so that they can keep the filthy lucre obtained from the evil Rupert Murdoch -- but we know that isn't going to happen.

Oh, and for what it is worth, the whole book deal itself smells, given that Edwards received advance and expense payments that sales of his book never even remotely covered.

The book was sold to HarperCollins without an auction after that publishing house showed decidedly more interest than any other, a person familiar with the book's sale said.

The person said the Edwards campaign dealt with editor Joe Tessitore and HarperCollins President and CEO Jane Friedman (who didn't respond to calls and emails seeking comment), but never with Murodch.

The doubters, however, appear to have been validated by the book's sluggish sales. Nielsen Bookscan, which is thought to account for between 60% and 70% of domestic sales, reports that it has sold about 20,000 copies so far, and thus perhaps about 30,000 overall.

Publishing economics are notoriously murky, but with a cover price of $29.95, those sales might have earned back roughly $100,000 royalties, a fraction of the $500,000 advance, publishing industry sources said.

Indeed, the book's gross sales, at full price, would have roughly covered Edwards' advance and expenses -- and publishers usually net roughly half of that gross sum, and then pay authors a relatively small percentage of that net.

So Edwards, his daughter, and his staffer have received payments far in excess of the actual value of what Edwards' book -- and the contract for the book was arranged THROUGH HIS CAMPAIGN. Doesn't it therefore appear that Edwards used campaign dollars to feather the nests of a senior staffer and a family member, as well as himself? I wonder what campaign finance laws have to say on that sort of thing?

More At Malkin

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As a teacher, I need to be able to work both at home and at school. That often means that I need to ensure compatibility between the software at school and the software I run on my own computers. But let's be honest -- Microsoft Office (the standard in my school district) can be rather expensive. There is an option, however, that makes the price go down significantly -- academic pricing. This allows me as a teacher, and also my students, to purchase the full version of the same software that we run at school with a steep discount.

CostCaptain.com offers Microsoft Office and many other programs at academic prices. All you have to do is provide proof that you are a student or teacher (and this includes homeschoolers) and you are eligible for the lower price. And CostCaptain.com doesn't only offer Microsoft software -- you can get many fine programs from Corel, Intuit, Adobe and other software companies. So do yourself a favor before school starts -- check them out.

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Gee -- that didn't take long.

Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, the longshot who had pinned his 2008 presidential hopes on a top-two showing in the Iowa Republican Party Straw Poll, has decided to end his candidacy, FOX News has learned.

"I'm outta the race," Thompson told MyFoxMilwaukee.com.

Thompson, 65, said he felt like he'd been hit by a Mack truck after hearing the news of his 6th place finish at Saturday's Iowa Republican Party Straw Poll, adding that his campaign was shocked after hearing the results. They were hoping for a top two finish.

No money and no support -- the kiss of death in a presidential race.

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I've mentioned in the past that my wife is a former church pastor, with a theological degree from the oldest seminary in the United States.

So when our pastor decided to get away for the weekend, he asked my wife to fill in as guest-preacher.

And, as luck would have it, she developed a cough that turned into full-blown bronchitis and on Friday was put on bed-rest by the doctor. That meant no preaching for her.

A quick call to our associate pastor resulted in the suggestion that I fill-in for her in the pulpit, since I have four years of seminary education myself.

That's why Friday was a slow posting day -- I was writing a sermon, something I haven't done since my wife had her own church and I filled in for her when she had laryngitis. Its been over ten years.

And so this morning was the big day -- with my darling wife listening in via cell phone (she has never heard me preach before).

By all accounts, it went well.

If you are interested, I've posted the text below. I departed from it a little bit, but not significantly. Sorry -- no podcast.
more...

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Mitt Romney wins in Iowa. But so did Mike Huckabee.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won an easy and expected victory in a high-profile Iowa Republican Party Straw Poll on Saturday, claiming nearly twice as many votes as his nearest rival.

Romney had been expected to win the test because he spent millions of dollars and months of effort on an event that was skipped by two of his major rivals.

Romney scored 4,516 votes, or 31.5 percent, to outpace former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee who had 2,587 votes, or 18.1 percent. Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback was third with 2,192 votes, 15.3 percent.

Announcement of the results was delayed for 90 minutes because a hand count was required on one of the 18 machines.

The biggest loser of the evening likely was former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who finished in 6th place with 1,039 votes. He had said repeatedly that if he didn't finish in the top two his campaign was likely to end. He left the event before the results were announced.

Now remember -- Fred, Rudy, and McCain all sat this one out, so a Romney victory was a given here. If anything, the diminished turnout and the fact that he didn't win more votes should be of concern to the campaign, though this is a clear win for the former Massachusetts governor.

Mike Huckabee was the surprise, though, coming in second place. I guess some of Sam Brownback's dirty campaign tactics have turned folks off, and we should expect to see him disappear from the campaign in relatively short order.

Tom Tancredo's fourth place finish seems to indicate more support for his position on immigration than it does support for the candidate.

Ron Paul failed to meet expectations set by his campaign.

"We expect to be in the top three," Benton said. "We've got four staffers organizing and we've got a lot of web site RSVPs from volunteers."

I therefore agree with Don Surber -- "If Iowa ever annexes Sim City, he has a chance."

Tommy Thompson is dead -- and I think he even realizes it now.

And the saddest outcome? Duncan Hunter's pathetic 1%, trailing even Fred Thompson and Rudy Giuliani, neither of who competed and one of whom is not even a declared candidate yet. He's a good man and deserved better.

Posted by: Greg at 02:22 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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As a teacher, I get a lot of bags. Every conference gives away a tote bag full of stuff. So do the textbook merchants. One national office supply store provides one each year. And let's not forget my school and my district -- even my teacher association, since I am the building rep. I've got bags coming out of my. . . well, never mind.

But the one thing that all of these custom tote bags have in common is the promotional logo on the side. They show off brand loyalty, whether to the school, district, or association, not to mention the companies with which I do business. And while I have been deluged with bags over the years, I do have some that I frequently use and like, giving free advertising to those who gave me the gift.

And while I'm looking forward to getting my new school bag when we report for teacher in-service next week, I'm a little scared. We have a new Assistant Principal who picked the design this year. She is into the froo-froo stuff -- so I'm worried it might be this!

My masculine pride might not survive. Here's hoping she's made a more gender-inclusive choice!

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They keep saying they want to bring the troops home immediately -- but then outline plans that will keep us in Iraq for years.

Even as they call for an end to the war and pledge to bring the troops home, the Democratic presidential candidates are setting out positions that could leave the United States engaged in Iraq for years.

John Edwards, the former North Carolina senator, would keep troops in the region to intervene in an Iraqi genocide and be prepared for military action if violence spills into other countries. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York would leave residual forces to fight terrorism and to stabilize the Kurdish region in the north. And Senator Barack Obama of Illinois would leave a military presence of as-yet unspecified size in Iraq to provide security for American personnel, fight terrorism and train Iraqis.

These positions and those of some rivals suggest that the Democratic bumper-sticker message of a quick end to the conflict — however much it appeals to primary voters — oversimplifies the problems likely to be inherited by the next commander in chief. Antiwar advocates have raised little challenge to such positions by Democrats.

As i look at these positions, I see a big problem (besides the duplicity) -- in addition to eschewing victory, each involves drawing down the force in Iraq to the point that it cannot defend itself and accomplish the mission for which it remains behind. If the Democrats REALLY believe that the mission in Iraq is hopeless and that troops killed there are dying in vain, why are they prepared to leave a force that is more of a target and less ready? Are the lives of those soldiers somehow less valuable than those whose sacrifices they are politicizing in the name of surrender?

Well, except for Bill Richardson, who proved he learned something while at the UN. Unfortunately, he took French lessons, and so proposes a strategy could be drawn from the French Defense ministry.

Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico stands apart, having suggested that he would even leave some military equipment behind to expedite the troop withdrawal. In a forum at a gathering of bloggers last week, he declared: “I have a one-point plan to get out of Iraq: Get out! Get out!”

In other words, "Throw down you weapons and run, boys!"

Of course, with the Surge working, I wonder how many of these Democrats will embrace it as their own invention in the coming months, just as they did the original use of force in 2003. After all, the only victory they care about is their own political victory -- and winning or losing in Iraq doesn't matter to them at all.

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I normally enjoy online quizzes. They are a little bit of silliness that offers me a few laughs. However, I've found one that I really don't like -- it is clearly just about getting me to look at ads for stuff I don't want.

For example, take this Where Should I Live Quiz. Sounds like fun, doesn't it? But they want my personal information before I can get results -- and expect me to plod through 20 pages of ads to get the silly analysis that tells me the city where I should live is a place I despise.

And I won't even get into the silliness that is the Cooking Test.

Nope, I'm not interested in going back.

Even the badges are pretty annoying -- and I'd argue offensive.

As a straight man, that one offends me.

Posted by: Greg at 06:57 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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It is clearly unequal justice for similar crimes.

After all, look at these two incidents.

Such a brutal crime was unusual, but not unheard of, in Laramie, Wyo. The victim had spent the evening drinking in a bar and accepted a ride from a stranger. It would be the victim's last. The victim would be assaulted and then left outside of town on the prairie on a cold night — to die. No one would find the victim until the next day. The attacker, who was on drugs, had left his child and the child's mother at home.

Hold it, you are probably thinking -- there is only one crime mentioned there.

Well, sort of.

You see, there are actually two crimes described there -- virtually identical -- that happened three months apart in Laramie, Wyoming. Everybody knows about the Matthew Shepard murder (a despicable act of evil by lowlife scum) -- but they don't know about the killing of Cindy Dixon three months later in a similar manner.

The punishment for the two men who killed Matthew Shepard was life in prison. The killing of Cindy Dixon netted her killer 4-to-9 years for manslaughter.

We know what the difference was -- one was a member of a designated protected class and the other wasn't. Even the added aggravating factor of the sexual assault of Cindy Dixon by her killer failed to get her justice equal to that given for the murder of Matthew Shepherd.

We are a nation that professes to believe in equality. Our Constitution mandates equal protection of the laws. But where is that equal protection when similar crimes result in disparate sentences because the death of one victim is deemed more heinous because of their race, religion, gender, or sexual identity? Why shouldn't the Cindy Dixons of the world get the same sort of consideration as the Matthew Shepherds?

Oh, and let's not forget that these two crimes show the evil of such disparate impact of the law in another way, too. Cindy Dixon's son will see his mother's rapist and killer walk out of prison a free man while that son, Russell Henderson, will do life for the remarkably similar murder of Matthew Shepherd because that murder is deemed a "hate crime". Tell me -- where is the justice there? Why should the law deem the life of Cindy Dixon to be any less valuable than that of Matthew Shepherd?

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You know -- California Senator Dianne Feinstein has no problem with telling American employers to raise the wages they pay their workers, even if they have little trouble filling the positions.

Today marks an important step forward in alleviating poverty. Millions of hard-working Americans will finally receive a well-deserved pay raise. The federal minimum wage increase goes into effect today – rising from $5.15 to $5.85 per hour. This is the first increase in a decade. It is a step that is long overdue.

In fact, todayÂ’s increase is the first of three increases which will occur over the next two years. One year from today, it will rise to $6.55 and one year after that, in 2009, it will increase to $7.25. Increasing the federal minimum wage to $7.25 will add nearly $4,400 to a minimum wage workerÂ’s annual income.

The bottom line is this: this two-year increase in the minimum wage will mean the difference between self-sufficiency and living below the poverty line for millions of American families who are struggling to make ends meet. It is an accomplishment for which the Democratic Congress can be very proud.

Now I won't get into a discussion of how an externally imposed artificial increase in wages does not help workers or the economy. That isn't what I'm about here.

Instead, I'm struck by the hypocrisy revealed by Senator Feinstein's reaction to the enforcement of American immigration laws.

Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, who has worked closely with growers, described the new enforcement as a “catastrophe.”

“The crisis is that crops will not be harvested,” Mrs. Feinstein said.

That is actually not true -- those crops will, in fact, get harvested. The thing is that growers will have to pay American workers a rate of pay that Americans are willing to accept, not the same amount that they paid two decades ago when I did summer work detasseling corn in central Illinois on days that I didn't have summer school classes. Those harvest jobs are jobs that Americans will do -- if you pay them on an American scale and not the slave wages given to border-jumpers who undermine the wages of American workers.

It is as simple as Economics 101, Senator -- and if you are willing to demand that American employers give a pay raise that does not make sense from an economic point of view, why not tell these folks to give one that the laws of economics clearly require.

Oh, yeah -- and at the same time quit outsourcing American jobs to illegal workers.

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We've seen plenty of attacks on the spouses of GOP candidates recently -- and a recent effort to undermine a GOP candidate because of his daughter's MySpace page appeared to support another candidate. Now it appears that the MSM is out to make a scandal of the fact that the Romney family is supporting -- Mitt Romney!

They have driven here from California, Ohio, Canada or Texas, while others have flown from Michigan, Utah or Florida. There are aunts, uncles, cousins, second cousins, in-laws, nieces, nephews and grandchildren.

At last count, 96 members of the Romney clan, a veritable army, have arrived here over the last few days to help out at SaturdayÂ’s Republican straw poll, bolstering what is already a huge ground operation for the event that far outstrips the efforts of any other campaign.

Leading the shock troops will be Mr. RomneyÂ’s five adult sons, who have come to occupy an increasingly prominent place in their fatherÂ’s campaign, giving speeches, holding fund-raisers, blogging and even weighing in on strategy, all the while helping their father paint a not-so-subtle contrast to some of his leading Republican rivals.

"Shock troops"? I'm curious -- the Kennedy Klan has been deploying for family campaigns for decades. Has the New York Times ever described them "shock troops"? And, of course, the Times finds it important to get in this week's MSM talking point about the lack of military service by the Romney sons, despite the fact that the only two candidates with children in the military are John McCain and Duncan Hunter. I doubt we will get similar coverage of Chelsea Clinton's six-figure sinecure working for friends of her parents.

Frankly, I'm surprised that this article didn't try to make much of century-old polygamous ancestors to make the story even more sordid. Maybe they are saving that for after the Romney victory in the Iowa straw poll.

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What's that old line from John Lennon? I believe it is "Instant karma's gonna get you."

Well, seems to me that there might just be something to that in this case.

Turns out, even beheaded rattlesnakes can be dangerous.

ThatÂ’s what 53-year-old Danny Anderson learned as he was feeding his horses Monday night, when a 5-foot rattler slithered onto his central Washington property, about 50 miles southeast of Yakima.

Anderson and his 27-year-old son, Benjamin, pinned the snake with an irrigation pipe and cut off its head with a shovel. A few more strikes to the head left it sitting under a pickup truck.

“When I reached down to pick up the head, it raised around and did a backflip almost, and bit my finger,” Anderson said. “I had to shake my hand real hard to get it to let loose.”

Experts say it was a reflex action by the severed nerves. Gee, do ya think?

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I've long believed in wind power as a good source to meet a large part of electricity needs. For several years, there has been an effort to stop one project, though, because it might slightly mar the view of some fat-cats and pompous wind-bags in Massachusetts.

John Stewart tackled this issue on the Daily Show. It is one of the times that I actually do agree with him.

Please note the "horrific" impact on the view of the few that is undercutting the public good.

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In my life, I've watched two significant and vital men struggle with Alzheimer's Disease. One, President Ronald Reagan, shared his struggle with us until he faded into the twilight the disease creates -- and his death led to my creating the predecessor to this blog.

The other is a dear friend from church. A vital man in his eighties, until only a short time ago he was clear-headed and lucid -- and then the mists of Alzheimer's descended, as it slowly robs this WWII Purple Heart navy veteran of all the things his injuries could not. I'll never hear from him the rest of those stories of his time on a destroyer during the war, nor of the early days of NASA here in Houston. My heart aches for him and for his wife of over 60 years as they struggle to live with the devastation this disease has wrought.

Over the next couple of months, the Alzheimer's Association will be sponsoring its annual Memory Walk to raise awareness and research funds, that this disease will one day be a horror story from the past. There is likely a walk in your area, in which you can participate as a sponsor, a walker, or a Team Captain. I'd like to urge you to consider this possibility, according to your ability -- I know my wife and I will be talking to determine what we can do to help. There is a special need for Team Captain's, so I would like to especially urge you to consider that role.

Friends, the sad reality is that most of us know someone who has been stricken with Alzheimer's Disease. Let's work together for a future in which that statement cannot be made.

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are My Excellent Adventure At Yearlykos by Right Wing Nut House, and Bread and a Circus, Part II of II by Michael Yon.  Here are the full results of the vote:

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Believe it or not, my high school has a Surf Club. Yeah, I know that Houston isn't what one thinks of as Surf City USA, but there are some decent sufing spots within an hour or two of the city. One of the things I've learned from my kids is that the board can mean as much as the wave for a surfer.

The Surfboard Warehouse is a great source for custom surfboards in the Orlando area -- and they now have an online presence as well. they provide a whole array surf equipment. Indeed, they are a great connection with a lot of great custom shapers to get a surfer just the right custom board.

They also have a great selection of surf fins. If you are looking for FCS fins or Future fins or any other fine surfing product, TheSurfeboardWarehouse.com is the place to stop and look. Check them out -- you won't be sorry.

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Proving once again that we have the laws we need to deal with border-jumpers, if only the federal government has the will.

The Bush administration on Friday will announce plans to enlist state and local law enforcement in cracking down on illegal immigrants, which previously was largely a federal function, according to congressional sources.

The administration is unveiling a series of tough border control and employer enforcement measures designed to make up for security provisions that failed when Congress rejected a broad rewrite of the nationÂ’s immigration laws in June. The plans are scheduled to be announced at 10:30 a.m. by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez.

Details were provided to Capitol Hill on Thursday. As part of the new measures, the secretary of Homeland Security will deliver regular “State of the Border” reports beginning this fall.

In one of the most interesting revelations, the plans call for the administration to “train growing numbers of state and local law enforcement officers to identify and detain immigration offenders whom they encounter in the course of daily law enforcement,” according to a summary provided to The Politico by a congressional source.

“By this fall, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will have quintupled the number of enforcement teams devoted to removing fugitive aliens (from 15 to 75 in less than three years),” the summary says.

In other words, this is a concession that those of us favoring enforcement were right. After all, if the amnesty bill had really been needed, this would not be happening because the federal government would have lacked the authority to implement this plan.

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Some places are just nice places to live -- and Charleston, South Carolina is one of them. But if you are planning to relocate, of course, you need a real estate agent who is an expert in both the real estate field and the community itself -- and in Charleston, that would be Century 21 Properties!

What is the market like for Charleston SC real estate? Well, in recent years it has been booming, as has the entire South Carolina real estate market. Century 21 Properties can help you sort through the thousands of currently listed properties to find you a home that is just what you want at a price that you can afford. And as a growing company that has added four offices in the last three years, you can be certain that they are good at what they do, because such growth indicates happy customers.

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Some people are just scum -- take this Democrat lawyer who has set up a Fred Thompson smear site trying to link him to racist groups.

It doesn't take long for provocateurs to crawl out of the woodwork to attack candidates, especially in stealth attacks. With Fred Thompson, they've apparently started before he officially enters the race -- and in one case, race is the operative word. Apparently hoping to confuse web surfers looking for Fred's website at www.imwithfred.com, a new site has appeared at www.imwithfred2008.com -- only this site welcomes people to the Ku Klux Klan, "Bringing a Message of Hope and Deliverance to White Christian America!" It includes links to a variety of disgusting racist sites.

How do we know he is Leftist scum? Donations to Kerry, the DNC, and MoveOn.

Kudos to Captain Ed for uncovering this Democrat Dirty Trick.

Also covered at StixBlog, Blue Crab Boulevard, Blogs for Fred Thompson

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George H. W. Bush left the White House under a whithering barrage of attacks from political and personal enemies who managed to destroy his credibility in office despite his many successes. And while I was never an enthusiastic supporter of Mr. Bush, my admiration for him has grown over the years, especially during the decade I have lived here in Houston. You see, I have had the opportunity to see him (and his wife, Barbara) in situations where he is not "The Former President Of The United States", but rather as simply one more member of a diverse and vibrant community.

Take this spring, during RodeoHouston. My wife is disabled, so we often arrive early on evenings we attend the event so that we can get good parking and avoid crowds. One night we arrived to find the Lil' Rustlers activities for special children still underway on the floor of Reliant Center, with physically and mentally challenged children experiencing the thrill of participating in rodeo events with real cowboys and cowgirls. And at the end of it all, presenting them with gifts and trophies, stood the 41st President of the United States and his wife. Every kid got a hug and a photo -- and there was not a press photographer in sight, and no mention of it appeared in the media. Why not? Because that is the sort of people that the Bushes are.

Which leads me to this article on how a father watches his son bear the same burdens he did in the highest office in the land.

There are times in the life of George Herbert Walker Bush, the 41st president of the United States and father of the 43rd, that people, perfect strangers, come up to him and say the harshest things — words intended to comfort but words that wind up only causing pain.

“I love you, sir, but your son’s way off base here,” they might say, according to Ron Kaufman, a longtime adviser to Mr. Bush, who has witnessed any number of such encounters — perhaps at a political fund-raiser, or a restaurant dinner, a chance meeting on the streets of Houston or Kennebunkport, Me. They are, he says, just one way the presidency of the son has taken a toll on the father.

“It wears on his heart,” Mr. Kaufman said, “and his soul.”

God bless you, sir -- and your son as well.

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Modern Skate & Surf is a great action sports shop in Michigan -- they have locations in Lansing, Royal Oak, Grand Rapids, and Novi -- that provides a whole array of skate and surf equipment. Well, they have a wonderful website selling their products, including skateboards, rollerblades, ice skates, snowboards, wakeboards and all the accessories you could think of. They provide a great selection of items for active folks looking for a bit of skating fun.

Right now, Modern Skate & Surf has a great selection of skate decks just waiting for you -- Element skateboards, Zero skateboards and many other leading brands. So drop on by their website at ModernSkate.com and check them out!

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After all, the problem seems to be a design flaw from 1964, not anything the Bush administration did. I guess that there was just too much time and money being spent on Great Society programs to do the job right.

Investigators have found what may be a design flaw in the bridge that collapsed here a week ago, in the steel parts that connect girders, raising safety concerns for other bridges around the country, federal officials said today.

* * *

In Minneapolis, state transportation department officials seemed stunned by the sudden focus on the bridgeÂ’s gusset plates, which are the steel connectors used to hold together the girders on the truss of a bridge. On this bridge, completed in 1967, there would have been hundreds of them, officials here said.

Maybe the same liberals who blamed the Crusade Against Jihadists for the bridge collapse and demanded immediate surrender so we can focus on repairing infrastructure will show some intellectual integrity and demand a decrease in social spending for that purpose -- after all, the Johnson-era programs have shown much less success than the Surge in Iraq in accomplishing their goal.

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As you apply for a mortgage, you need to seriously consider where you will get your mortgage advice? Will you go to the bank you have always done business with, or will you work with a mortgage broker? I took the latter course, and was able to get myself a mortgage with a low down payment and low interest rate, tailored people in my profession. I might have missed that one because it was offered through a bank that I did not do business with. So if you are looking for Texas mortgage brokers, you might want to look here -- and for Houston mortgage brokers (including the one I worked with), check out PersonalHomeLoanMortgages.com. They also have great Massachusetts Mortgages, as well as good mortgages available in other states.

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After all, her Mom actually voted in favor of committing troops to both Afghanistan and Iraq -- and her Dad set the stage for both invasions with his lack of concern for terrorism and repeated insistence that there were WMDs in Iraq. That the Left would insist that Mitt Romney's kids should be in uniform while Chelsea holds her six-figure, parent-arranged sinecure is downright hypocritical and obscene.

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney on Wednesday defended his five sons' decision not to enlist in the military, saying they're showing their support for the country by "helping me get elected."

Romney, who did not serve in Vietnam due to his Mormon missionary work and a high draft lottery number, was asked the question by an anti-war activist after a speech in which he called for "a surge of support" for U.S. forces in Iraq.

Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, also saluted a uniformed soldier in the crowd and called for donations to military support organizations. Last week, he donated $25,000 to seven such organizations.

"The good news is that we have a volunteer Army and that's the way we're going to keep it," Romney told some 200 people gathered in an abbey near the Mississippi River that had been converted into a hotel. "My sons are all adults and they've made decisions about their careers and they've chosen not to serve in the military and active duty and I respect their decision in that regard."

He added: "One of the ways my sons are showing support for our nation is helping me get elected because they think I'd be a great president."

Of course, the press gets the story wrong, too -- as the video shows, Governor Romney pointed out that there are many ways to support the troops and their families, big and small.

Now if the Left wants mandatory, universal military service (none of these namby-pamby "public service" programs -- real military service), then let them say so, and explain how degrading the readiness of the American military for political purposes is in the national interests. Or if they want to create a second-class citizenship for those who have not served in the military (sort of a fascist fantasy, I'd argue) then let them make that argument. But as long as we have an all-volunteer military, military service (or lack thereof) should not be an issue, especially with regard to the children of candidates and not the candidates themselves.

Oh, and by the way -- if that whiny Leftist really believes her rhetoric, I guess she'll have to give her vote to either John McCain or Duncan Hunter, both of whom are vets with children in the military. Unless, of course, she is just a liberal hypocrite.

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