Mayor Ray Nagin and Governor Kathleen Blanco didn't bother to try to use the school buses of New Orleans to to save residents from the oncoming Hurricane Katrina -- but now a use has been found for these flooded-out hulks.

Sell them on eBay to raise money for the under-funded, sub-standard New Orleans schools that remain open.

Starved for cash, the New Orleans school district is taking a long shot and hoping to sell its flooded, unsalvageable school buses on eBay.

Some submerged to their roofs in the black flood waters, the yellow school buses were widely photographed in the days after Hurricane Katrina and have become an icon of the city's devastated school system.

School officials acknowledge the sale of the buses on the Internet auction site may puzzle some people used to more traditional school fundraisers like bake sales.

"There's no shame in it. Not one bit," said school board president Phyllis Landrieu. "This is a new mechanism for selling things. I think it's very upbeat what we're doing."

Only 23 of 117 Orleans Parish public schools have reopened. They face a $111 million shortfall - about a quarter of the district's $430 million annual operating budget. The district also has $264 million in outstanding debt, carried over from before Hurricane Katrina.

A total of 85 schools flooded, and wind damaged many more. It took three months for the first public school to reopen. Now, the schools that are holding classes have around 9,500 students, about 15 percent of the 60,000 enrolled before the storm.

The school district plans to put one bus up for sale on eBay this week. If it succeeds, more of the 259 ruined buses will be offered.

"It's an example of how bad the situation is that we would have to come up with this idea," said Richard White, schools spokesman.

The district plans to contract out its student transportation.

I wonder whose brother-in-law or cousin will get that contract -- and whether the corrupt political system of Louisiana will allow the eBay cash to go towards education, or towards graft.

Oh, by the way -- here is the link to the auction.

Posted by: Greg at 10:07 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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We've heard it from Rev. Jesse Jackass Jackson and others -- holding an election in New Orleans today would disenfranchise thousands, and result in a white electorate deciding the direction of a black city. The election must be delayed.

Here is one example.

From the very top, let's get something straight.

I think that Ray Nagin, the black mayor of New Orleans, did a terrible job of planning right before Hurricane Katrina hit the city. His leadership during the storm, when people were stranded and dying, was abysmal. And his leadership hasn't gotten any better in that tragedy's aftermath.

That said, I'm appalled that the U.S. Justice Department has blessed the disenfranchisement of black voters in the Big Easy's upcoming municipal elections.

The hurricane and subsequent floodwaters forced more than two-thirds of New Orleans' population to flee that city. Indeed, officials urged and ordered many reluctant residents to leave.

Officials directed residents to get on buses and planes headed out of the Gulf Coast disaster zone. Many of the evacuees had no idea where they were being taken. Against their will, many ended up in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and other cities hundreds -- even thousands --of miles from their devastated New Orleans neighborhoods.

Now that the city is scheduled to hold elections for mayor, guess what? No special provisions are being made to accommodate voting by New Orleans residents who are involuntarily exiled outside Louisiana.

To make matters worse, the U.S. Justice Department, which is charged with making sure that minority voting rights are not being denied, has approved this totally unfair plan.

Don't forget, many of the people forced out of New Orleans were black and poor. Many who have been able to stay or to move back already are white and/or have some measure of financial wealth. Though 23 people have signed up to challenge Nagin, the real race is between Nagin and either Mitch Landrieu or Ron Forman, both of whom are white.

Yet the issue here is not race. It's fairness -- for everyone.

So while the issue ostensibly isn't race for this author (David Porter of the Orlando Sentinel), it is all about race.

But what about the reality on the ground in the New Orleans area?

Interestingly enough, here is what a demographic analysis of the city and the surrounding areas shows. according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

A substantial majority of New Orleans' registered voters still reside within the city or its suburbs, and their racial makeup closely mirrors that of all registered voters before the storm, according to new data commissioned by the secretary of state.

The new data challenges the popular notion that the out-of-state votes of displaced New Orleans residents loom large over the April 22 election, as well as the perception that in-town voters are overwhelmingly white and those out of town are overwhelmingly black, said Greg Rigamer of GCR and Associates, who produced the data as a consultant for the state.

In the first statistical portrait of registered voters, as opposed to overall population, Rigamer's company found that about 80 percent of the city's 297,053 registered voters either have not filed a change of address form or have listed a new address within the metro New Orleans area, the data show. The actual percentage of voters living locally is not that high -- not everyone who has moved informed the post office -- but the data strongly indicates that a majority of voters remain nearby, Rigamer said.

"If I was a candidate running this race, I'd really focus on the local voters," Rigamer said.

Further, the data shows the proportion of white voters to black voters living in the metro area -- although not necessarily in Orleans Parish -- remains almost the same as before the flood, about 32 percent white and 62 percent black. And the data on race is more reliable, Rigamer said, because of the massive size of the sample.

In other words, there is no raqcial or economic disenfranchisement if the vote is held today. The elections can be safely held without unduly impacting any group covered under the voting rights laws of the United States.

Isn't it a bitch when liberal talking points rund smack-dab into a pile of contradictory facts?

Anyone want to bet that it makes a difference?

Posted by: Greg at 10:37 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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And in the course of that service performed deeds of heroism so compelling that Desmond Doss was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Not bad for a pacifist who refused to carry a weapon out of a profound respect for the word of God and human life.

Desmond T. Doss, Sr., the only conscientious objector to win the Congressional Medal of Honor during World War II, has died. He was 87 years old.

Mr. Doss never liked being called a conscientious objector. He preferred the term conscientious cooperator. Raised a Seventh-day Adventist, Mr. Doss did not believe in using a gun or killing because of the sixth commandment which states, “Thou shalt not kill” (Exodus 20:13). Doss was a patriot, however, and believed in serving his country.

During World War II, instead of accepting a deferment, Mr. Doss voluntarily joined the Army as a conscientious objector. Assigned to the 307th Infantry Division as a company medic he was harassed and ridiculed for his beliefs, yet he served with distinction and ultimately received the Congressional Medal of Honor on Oct. 12, 1945 for his fearless acts of bravery.

According to his Medal of Honor citation, time after time, Mr. DossÂ’ fellow soldiers witnessed how unafraid he was for his own safety. He was always willing to go after a wounded fellow, no matter how great the danger. On one occasion in Okinawa, he refused to take cover from enemy fire as he rescued approximately 75 wounded soldiers, carrying them one-by-one and lowering them over the edge of the 400-foot Maeda Escarpment. He did not stop until he had brought everyone to safety nearly 12 hours later.

When Mr. Doss received the Medal of Honor from President Truman, the President told him, “I’m proud of you, you really deserve this. I consider this a greater honor than being President.”

Mr. Doss’ exemplary devotion to God and his country has received nationwide attention. On July 4, 2004, a statue of Mr. Doss was placed in the National Museum of Patriotism in Atlanta, along with statues of Dr. Martin Luther King, President Jimmy Carter, and retired Marine Corps General Gray Davis, also a Medal of Honor recipient. Also in 2004, a feature-length documentary called “The Conscientious Objector,” telling Doss’ story of faith, heroism, and bravery was released. A feature movie describing Doss’ story is also being planned.

Mr. Doss died Thursday morning in Piedmont, Ala. He is survived by his wife, Frances; his son, Desmond T. Doss, Jr., and his brother, Harold Doss.

Visitation will be held from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, March 31, at Heritage Funeral Home, located at 3239 Battlefield Parkway, Fort Oglethorpe.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, April 1, at 3 p.m. at the Collegedale Seventh-day Adventist Church located at 4829 College Drive East in Collegedale.

Burial will take place on Monday, April 3, at 11 a.m. at the Chattanooga National Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the Doss family requests that donations be sent to the Desmond Doss Museum Fund at the Georgia-Cumberland Conference office (P.O. Box 12000 Calhoun, Ga., 30703).

This man, ladies and gentlemen, was a true hero. We look at today's crop of "peace activists" and find a motley crew of ne'er-do-wells and whiners who have little respect for this country or its soldiers. Contrast the actions of Desmond Doss with the refusal of the recently rescued Christian Peacemaker team hostages to offer so much as a word of gratitude for the actions of military personnel who rescued them from terrorists who kidnapped them and murdered one of their number.

I have no doubt that Mr. Doss is this day in Paradise, in the company of the One True God.

ADDITIONAL TRIBUTES: MFVOV, Missing Link, Chaotic Synaptic Activity, Mudville Gazette, The Daily Brief, Hit and Run, Eric Berlin, Slobokan, Riehl World, Chatter, Two Malcontents, Fred Schoeneman, Blackfive

UPDATE: The Washington Post has this obituary, which is very good. It notes that Doss was not the only conscientious objector to receive thh Congressional Medal of Honor, merely the first. The other, Cpl. Thomas W. Bennett, a medical aidman who died while serving during the Vietnam War, also received the nation's highest military honor.

I urge you to click below to read the extended entry, where I have reproduced the full text of the citation that accompanied his Medal. You will be awe-struck by the degree of bravery exhibited by this man over the course of several days. Such Christ-like devotion to his fellow man in the face of his own possible death -- including while seriously wounded himself -- brought tears to my eyes. more...

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I could have told you this without spending the money on the survey.

Heck, I have told you this without spending the money on a survey.

Amid growing concern about the city's homicide rate and overburdened social services, a new poll finds Houstonians increasingly weary and wary of the 150,000 Louisiana evacuees who landed here after fleeing Hurricane Katrina.

Three-quarters of Harris County residents surveyed by Rice University sociologist Stephen Klineberg say the influx of Katrina evacuees, many of whom remain seven months after landfall, has put a "considerable strain" on the Houston community.

Additionally, two-thirds say evacuees bear responsibility for "a major increase in violent crime," and twice as many local residents believe Houston will be "worse off" rather than "better off" if most evacuees remain here permanently.

The preliminary results of Klineberg's annual survey, which is expected to be finalized later this month, suggest that a sizable fraction of area residents have tired of their guests from New Orleans.

"These results reflect what I'm hearing from my constituents," said U.S. Rep. John Culberson, R-Houston. "I think the percentage of people unhappy with the deadbeats from New Orleans would be larger but for the big hearts of Houstonians who want these folks to get back on their feet, as I do."

Why the shift in public opinion? Increased crime, increased violence ins chools, the strain placed upon cstate, county, and city services, the indications that the federal assistance Houston (and the entire state of Texas) was promised in September will not be forthcoming.

Oh, yeah -- we are also tired of able-bodied folks siting on stoops and curbs sipping on forties.

Culberson said the sentiment is much stronger, at least in his district (which includes west Houston, the Texas Medical Center and much of western and northwestern Harris County). He said his constituents are concerned about rising crime and no longer want to house New Orleanians who choose to rely on social services.

"If they can work, but won't work, ship 'em back," he said. "If they cause problems in the schools, if they commit crime, there ought to be a one-strike rule — ship 'em back."

Although Culberson said he has been trying to attach such a provision to pending legislation, it's unclear how such an idea could be implemented.

"Whatever we want to do, these are American citizens, and they can stay here if they want," said Eckels. "The difference is, when they're here and they get into trouble, there are consequences. They put up with a lot of things in New Orleans that we don't put up with here."

In other words, we don't liek the fact that our quality of life is being dragged down to the level that existed in New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina.

Perhaps the biggest issue is this one -- we are getting indications that New orleans will welcome back the productive citizens, but not rebuild housing for the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum. The result will be "urban renewal via hurricane", with the poorest of the poor dumped in our backyards permanently. We were glad to help -- and are even still willing to help -- if we don't, ultimately, have to bear the burden permanently -- and alone.

Posted by: Greg at 11:40 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Gregory Kane of the Baltimore Sun responds to a story in his own paper from earlier this week – and notes that instead of criticizing teens who reproduce while still in high school, we no stigmatize those who find out-of-wedlock pregnancy and birth unacceptable.

Can I be the only one who finds something wrong with this quote?
"They didn't cater to pregnant girls at all. They don't have any sympathy for you. The attitude is, 'It's your fault.'"

Thus spake Alyssa Boyd, with all the wisdom accumulated from living 17 long years on this earth, in an article by Sun reporter Sara Neufeld that ran Monday.

According to Neufeld's article, Boyd was a top student at Western High School before she got pregnant and transferred to the Laurence G. Paquin Middle/High School, which has a history of giving pregnant girls the opportunity to continue their education.

Now I wouldn't presume to judge Ms. Boyd for getting pregnant. The truth is, I can't. In today's society, we judge folks who object to teen pregnancy. Heaven forbid we should judge the teens themselves.

But I'm having trouble with Boyd's line about "the attitude is, 'It's your fault.'"
Well, Ms. Boyd, aside from the young man who made you pregnant, just whose fault is your pregnancy, exactly?

I’m one who finds the quote absurd, but I’m not surprised. I’ve heard stuff along that line too many times in the past. Heck, I had one 18-year-old single mother tell me that her THIRD out-of-wedlock, in-high-school pregnancy was all the fault of the state of Texas – because Medicaid wouldn’t pay to tie her tubes after the second baby and “its not like they can expect me to stop having sex, since I live with their daddy!”

She thought I was an awful human being when I explained that unless a team of Texas Rangers knocked down her door and held her in place while then-Gov. George W. Bush personally impregnated her, it was not the fault of the state of Texas.

After all, how could I be so lacking in sympathy, or have the attitude of “It’s your fault.”

I mean, it isn’t like we can expect a little self-control.

Posted by: Greg at 01:54 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Gregory Kane of the Baltimore Sun responds to a story in his own paper from earlier this week – and notes that instead of criticizing teens who reproduce while still in high school, we no stigmatize those who find out-of-wedlock pregnancy and birth unacceptable.

Can I be the only one who finds something wrong with this quote?
"They didn't cater to pregnant girls at all. They don't have any sympathy for you. The attitude is, 'It's your fault.'"

Thus spake Alyssa Boyd, with all the wisdom accumulated from living 17 long years on this earth, in an article by Sun reporter Sara Neufeld that ran Monday.

According to Neufeld's article, Boyd was a top student at Western High School before she got pregnant and transferred to the Laurence G. Paquin Middle/High School, which has a history of giving pregnant girls the opportunity to continue their education.

Now I wouldn't presume to judge Ms. Boyd for getting pregnant. The truth is, I can't. In today's society, we judge folks who object to teen pregnancy. Heaven forbid we should judge the teens themselves.

But I'm having trouble with Boyd's line about "the attitude is, 'It's your fault.'"
Well, Ms. Boyd, aside from the young man who made you pregnant, just whose fault is your pregnancy, exactly?

I’m one who finds the quote absurd, but I’m not surprised. I’ve heard stuff along that line too many times in the past. Heck, I had one 18-year-old single mother tell me that her THIRD out-of-wedlock, in-high-school pregnancy was all the fault of the state of Texas – because Medicaid wouldn’t pay to tie her tubes after the second baby and “its not like they can expect me to stop having sex, since I live with their daddy!”

She thought I was an awful human being when I explained that unless a team of Texas Rangers knocked down her door and held her in place while then-Gov. George W. Bush personally impregnated her, it was not the fault of the state of Texas.

After all, how could I be so lacking in sympathy, or have the attitude of “It’s your fault.”

I mean, it isnÂ’t like we can expect a little self-control.

Posted by: Greg at 01:54 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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After Rita and Katrina, folks down here do not want to see any more major tropical weather systems coming to Houston.

The Texas coast from Corpus Christi to the Louisiana border is likely to be the target of higher than normal hurricane activity over the next 10 years, private forecaster AccuWeather said today.

The 2006 hurricane season will be more active than normal and could bring a devastating storm to the U.S. Northeast also, the forecast said.

The outlook comes after the most costly hurricane season on record in 2005, with storms crippling New Orleans and other parts of the U.S. Gulf Coast and briefly knocking out a quarter of domestic fuel production.

* * *

Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans and the Mississippi coast last August with winds above 135 mph and a 30-foot-high storm surge, causing more than $60 billion in damage.

Katrina was followed by Hurricanes Rita in Texas and Wilma in Florida. Each wreaked more than $10 billion of insured losses, making 2005 the most expensive year for hurricanes ever.

Bastardi said this year's storm activity will be above normal, but could be less active than 2005.

Forecasters are looking for a big storm to hit the Northeast this year. I don’t like the sound of that – but please, not Houston! One evacuation is enough.

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It is not an unreasonable question, given their decision to traffic with the enemy during time of war.

Our readers have reacted with outrage to our report that NBC News secretly interviewed a Taliban terrorist in Afghanistan, "Commander Ismail," who kills U.S. military personnel. We asked: What's next? Exclusive footage of American troops being massacred while NBC News and Commander Ismail look on and film it for the evening news?

One reader responded: "Just wanted to thank you for the report about NBC and their seditious and treasonous acts. There can be no doubt that the big media outlets in this country have tried their best to undermine this country and this President at every turn…The New York Times should be tried under the treason and sedition laws for their part in aiding and abetting the terrorist in revealing the NSA wiretapping program. These traitors have weakened this country's defense, [they] triumph the rights of the terrorist bastard scum and blame President Bush for everything under the sun. They will stoop to ever deepening lows as evidenced by the childish and hateful behavior towards the President and the First Lady at Mrs. King's funeral. There is no bottom to the pit these snakes come from. Keep up the great work."

Read what else Cliff Kincaid’s readers have to say on the matter – it isn’t pretty.

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It is not an unreasonable question, given their decision to traffic with the enemy during time of war.

Our readers have reacted with outrage to our report that NBC News secretly interviewed a Taliban terrorist in Afghanistan, "Commander Ismail," who kills U.S. military personnel. We asked: What's next? Exclusive footage of American troops being massacred while NBC News and Commander Ismail look on and film it for the evening news?

One reader responded: "Just wanted to thank you for the report about NBC and their seditious and treasonous acts. There can be no doubt that the big media outlets in this country have tried their best to undermine this country and this President at every turnÂ…The New York Times should be tried under the treason and sedition laws for their part in aiding and abetting the terrorist in revealing the NSA wiretapping program. These traitors have weakened this country's defense, [they] triumph the rights of the terrorist bastard scum and blame President Bush for everything under the sun. They will stoop to ever deepening lows as evidenced by the childish and hateful behavior towards the President and the First Lady at Mrs. King's funeral. There is no bottom to the pit these snakes come from. Keep up the great work."

Read what else Cliff Kincaid’s readers have to say on the matter – it isn’t pretty.

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I’m glad they caught this guy, suspected of murder in both my city and his own. And I’m glad that this no-class gang loser has a nickname that fits him – at least until they fry him.

The hunt for a suspected gang leader linked to homicides in both Houston and New Orleans ended early today with his arrest in Kenner, La., police said.

Officers arrested Ivory "B-Stupid" Harris, 20, about 3 a.m. while serving a search warrant at a home in the New Orleans suburb.

Harris was charged with murder for the Feb. 28 shooting death of Jermaine Wise, 22, in New Orleans. Officers found the victim dead about 1:30 a.m. inside a car parked along the 5300 block of Constance Street.

Houston police said Harris is apparently connected to the Dec. 28 slaying of Steven Kennedy, 24, at 1303 La Concha.

Harris was reported to be travelling with Jerome Hampton, 24, who has been charged with Kennedy's death, which police said was a revenge killing for the 2003 murder of James "Soulja Slim" Tapp, a New Orleans rapper.

Hampton, known as "Man-Man," was arrested Mar. 12 by New Orleans police.
Harris also is linked to two other murders in Houston, one that occurred on Dec. 17 and a second on Jan. 4. Police said the slayings may have resulted from disputes over women.

To date, however, Harris has only been charged with a Dec. 18 armed robbery case at Greenspoint Mall, Houston police said.

B-Stupid – sounds about right to me.

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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.

Posted by: Greg at 10:10 AM | No Comments | 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?

Posted by: Greg at 11:37 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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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.

Posted by: Greg at 12:30 PM | No Comments | 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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why should it be sufficient cause to fire a prison guard?

As if anybody needed more evidence of how difficult it is to fire a government employee, consider the case of Lovelock prison guard Amie L. Bianchini.

Ms. Bianchini was let go last November because prison authorities found out she and a fellow officer, Sean Hoferer, engaged in oral sex while on duty. The incident occurred in a bathroom at the prison while inmates were on lock-down status.

Mr. Hoferer quit his job once the incident was discovered. But Ms. Bianchini did not, so she was fired.

Had something like this taken place in the private sector, that would have been the end of the matter. But we're dealing with unionized public employees. So Ms. Bianchini fought her termination.

On March 2 a state hearing officer, Patrick Dolan, reinstated Ms. Bianchini with back pay. Under current prison regulations, Mr. Dolan found, the maximum penalty for Ms. Bianchini's actions is a 30-day suspension with pay.

Now, let's not be too quick to criticize Mr. Dolan. He is, after all, bound by state law and its various mandated parameters and procedures. But if regulations don't allow the dismissal of guards who are having sex while on duty, the state has a problem.

State prison officials say they will try to amend regulations so that guards can be fired the first time they are found having sex while at work. What a concept!

Watch the Nevada Corrections Association -- the union representing guards -- fight them tooth and nail.

You mean that sexual relations in the workplace -- even oral not-sex (after all, that was Bubba's argument with Monica) -- is not a private matter that is of no public concern?

Heck -- if we use the Clinton-Lewinsky precedent, this isn't even sufficient grounds for a suspension.

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Linda Chavez points to another problem with the ports, overlooked in the hub-bub about Dubai Ports World -- the corrupt, mobbed-up labor union that controls hiring at most of the ports in the United States.

Regardless of whether or not a Dubai-owned company manages operations at these ports -- currently the source of much hand-wringing in Washington -- many of those with the most direct access to the billions of tons of cargo that move through those ports owe their jobs to the mob.

How can that be? It all has to do with the peculiar institution of the union hiring hall. No matter who owns or operates the ports, the union, not the employer, actually assigns workers to jobs. You can't work unless you carry a union card. And on East Coast and Gulf ports, the union card belongs to the International Longshoreman's Association (ILA), one of the most mobbed-up unions in the country.

In July 2005, the U.S. Department of Justice filed suit under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) against the ILA, which targets the entire 31-member ILA executive council, including the president, secretary-treasurer, executive vice president, general vice president and more than two dozen others.

* * *

Among the top recipients of ILA PAC money in the last few elections were Sens. Frank Lautenberg, D-NJ, Robert Menendez, D-NJ, Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., Chuck Schumer, D-NY, and Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-NY, all of whom represent states with important ports. Some of these same senators are among the chief critics of the Dubai port deal, but they are noticeably silent when it comes to mob influence in the union that actually controls who works on these ports.

Union bosses who would rob their members of pensions and health benefits, extort money to secure jobs on the docks, and use the docks to run gambling, loan sharking and other illegal enterprises could just as easily facilitate terrorists hoping to slip agents or weapons into the country, perhaps unwittingly, for the right price. But few in Washington seem to have considered the risk. The Dubai deal is not the only port issue that deserves more congressional scrutiny; ILA corruption surely deserves a close look as well.

I guess that since they give money to Democrats, we won't hear these same Democrats raising a stink about the threat to security that organized crime represents. After all, the union has already purchased the right Congressmen and Senators.

Posted by: Greg at 05:55 AM | Comments (52) | Add Comment
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Vic over at Darth Apathy found this little bit on an Indymedia site.

The Rachel Corrie Memorial Committee of Victoria Invites you to a pancake breakfast at DennyÂ’s Restaurant Sunday March 12 , 2006 10 am.

The Public is invited to a memorial pancake breakfast at DennyÂ’s Restaurant on Douglas Street near Finlayson, 10 am, Sunday March 12, 2006 to celebrate the life and untimely death of Rachel Corrie, Peace Activist with the International Solidarity Movement.

There will be a reading of selections from Ms. CorrieÂ’s letters and diary, followed by a ceremony at Topaz Park, where a stone cairn will be erected in her honour.

Attendees are encouraged to wear their keffiahs, and to dress in black.

No weapons, drugs, or alcohol please.

http://www.palsolidarity.org/main/

ISM offers many ways for you to get involved in the struggle for Palestinian freedom. Whether youÂ’re thinking of traveling to Palestine to work with us, or youÂ’d like to work to educate your community about the reality in Palestine, we welcome your involvement.

I'm utterly speechless.

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ItÂ’s a mixed up, muddled up, shook up world except for Lola.

Hood College is reviewing its homecoming rules after a lesbian was crowned king, a college official says.

But Jennifer Jones, the 21-year-old senior who beat out three men for the honor, says her victory last month was a plus for the private liberal-arts college.

"It is cool that Hood allows people to be themselves," Jones, of Newark, Del., told The Frederick News-Post. "If people didn't want me to be king, they wouldn't have nominated me and voted for me."

Waves of discontent are still rippling through the 2,100-student campus in western Maryland more than two weeks after Jones was crowned at the Feb. 18 homecoming dance, the News-Post reported Monday.

One student sees it as a very simple question.

"She is not a man," said Singleton Newman, a 22-year-old senior who was among the queen candidates. "It is a gender issue, and she is a woman."

And I really think that is fundamental. Sometimes gender/sex does matter.

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Medical professionals do not want to work with these evil freaks, and so it is impossible to fully staff "treatment" facilities for them.

The $388-million facility sprawled on the desolate outskirts of this Central Valley town was intended to answer a pressing problem: what to do with hundreds of repeat pedophiles and rapists in California who have served their prison terms but are deemed too risky for release.

This was to be a hospital dedicated primarily to such "sexually violent predators," who can be lawfully detained for mental health treatment.

It was the first state mental hospital built in more than half a century, and few amenities were spared. Shiny keyboards and drum sets now grace private music rooms. Woodworking and printing studios resemble professional shops. A Native American sweat lodge is in the works.

Treatment, however, is in short supply.

Despite vigorous recruiting efforts, not enough nurses, doctors and technicians want to work at this remote outpost. As a result, six months after the 1,500-bed hospital opened to the speeches of lawmakers, only about 170 patients have moved in. More than 400 sexually violent predators await transfer from Atascadero State Hospital near San Luis Obispo.

And hundreds of other beds, which could be filled with patients with other mental disorders, remain unoccupied in a system that otherwise is badly overcrowded.

The largely empty Coalinga State Hospital embodies twin problems of the state's mental health system: its struggle to hire licensed staffers and its difficulty accommodating sexual offenders, who some experts say don't fit conventional definitions of mental illness.

No release date -- no need for treatment/special state hospitals.

But on the bright side, I think we may have found the perfect residence for Bill Clinton if he ever becomes "First Lady". I bet they have saxophones in those music rooms.

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What can i say -- Trisha Yearwood has one of the most beautiful voices in country music. Sadly, the Ash Wednesday night crowd was quite sparse -- so sparse that there was no announcement of attendance figures over the PA system in Reliant Stadium.

Perhaps the only disappointment of the evening was the announcement Trisha made early in the show -- "Sorry folks, he's not here. The laundry was really pining up so I made him stay home to do it." So much for the chance to hear her do the beautiful duet with her new hubby, Garth Brooks.

Rodeo performances were fantastic as well, with http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/rodeo/3695257.html">a new arena record being set in Barrel Racing by the lovely Lynn Brown.

The Chronicle's RodeoBlog talks about carnival food -- in particular, about Fried Oreos (let's not even get into the fat content there!)

Tickets are still available for the Rodeo and concert -- Melissa Etheridge, filling in for the ailing Sheryl Crow. The Rodeo has, appropriately, declared this to be Breast Cancer Awareness Night, so wear pink if you can.

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