North Korea says 'Look at me!'

Story: "North Korea yesterday threatened to “mercilessly wipe out” US forces in case of war during a national meeting to mark leader Kim Jong-Il’s 42 years’ work at the ruling party.

The threat, in a ruling party report carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), came as North Korea was reportedly preparing to test-fire a long-range missile despite strong protests from the United States and its allies.

Choe Thae Bok, a ranking Workers’ Party official, said Washington was “hell-bent on provocations of war of aggression” in the report to mark the 42nd anniversary of Kim’s start at the party, KCNA said.

“If the enemies ignite a war eventually, the Korean army and people will mercilessly wipe out the aggressors and give vent to the deep-rooted grudge of the nation,” Choe was quoted as telling the meeting.""

Lost in the bustle about Iran, Criminal immigration and Al-Zarqawi, is poor little North Korea. So, how do they get more attention? By arming a long range ballistic weapon, that could potientally be armed with a nucular warhead.
Oh Boy!
And as usual, the madcap party leaders threaten to destroy the world, most specifically, the US and South Korea. Japan and China are also not to fond of this turn of events, both threatening harsh retaliation. And you have to immagine Russia's got something to say here.

They'd be fools to launch this missle, but I beleive fools are what leads that country.

McKinney let off

FOX News: "A grand jury declined to indict Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney on Friday in connection with a confrontation in which she admitted hitting a police officer who tried to stop her from entering a House office building.

The grand jury had been considering the case since shortly after the March 29 incident, which has led to much discussion on Capitol Hill about race and the conduct of lawmakers and the officers who protect them."

Culture of corruption hits the dems square in the face. But, McKinney is left off. Any other person in this nation wouldn't be able to slap a cop and run off, simply because the guy didn't remember 1 face out of 545. She got away with it by pulling the race card, and saying that the cop was a rascist.
Simply a travesty of justice.

Iran Rattles Saber, Round VI

Story: "Iran's defense minister on Thursday vowed that his country would "use nuclear defense as a potential" if "threatened by any power."

Speaking following a meeting with his Syrian counterpart Hassan Ali Turkmani in Teheran on Thursday, Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar emphasized that Iran "should be ready for confronting all kinds of threats."

Diplomacy sure seems to be working here...
You just can't negotiate with evil.

Illegals busted back to Mexico

"In a blitz that began May 26, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has arrested nearly 2,100 illegal immigrants across the country. Officials said the raids are aimed at child molesters, gang members and other violent criminals, as well as people like Da Silva who sneaked back into the country after a judge threw them out.

The crackdown is called Operation Return to Sender.

"This sends a message," said Monico, standing outside the gray Victorian apartment where Da Silva had been hiding. "When we deport you, we're serious."

An Associated Press reporter and photographer accompanied a fugitive task force as it made Operation Return to Sender raids Tuesday night and early Wednesday.

The operation has caught more than 140 immigrants with convictions for sexual offenses against children; 367 known gang members, including street soldiers in the deadly Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13; and about 640 people who had already been deported once, immigration officials said. The numbers include more than 720 arrests in California alone.

More than 800 people arrested already have been deported."

Thats how you deal with illegal immigrants, bust'em back where they came from, or let them rot in prison. Then seal the border, so they don't come back.

I'm glad to see some one in government is paying attention. Hastard and the House, and the custom's guys. The Senate and Bush are not.

God Bless the US House

Story: "Hopes for a quick compromise on immigration were dealt a blow Tuesday after House Speaker Dennis Hastert said he wanted to take a "long look" at a Senate bill offering possible citizenship to millions of illegal immigrants.

Hastert said hearings on the Senate bill should be held before appointing anyone to a House-Senate committee to negotiate a compromise immigration bill. Later, he said he was unsure what the House's next move would be.

"We're going to take a long look at it," Hastert said late Tuesday.

House Majority Leader John Boehner agreed. "I think we should know clearly what's in the Senate bill," Boehner said. But he added there are lots of ways to understand its contents."

This is the ammnesty bill out of the senate. If the conservative force in the house is strong enough, we may not have to live with ammnesty for 11 million felons. I hope they do not reach a compromise, I hope that the house bill becomes law. The only way to deal with criminals is do punish them, and ammnesty is not punishment.

English please- illegal???

"The U.S. government seized thousands of classified Iraqi government papers when Saddam's regime was toppled, and Washington recently released a trove of these documents on the Pentagon's Foreign Military Studies Office Web site.

The documents, many in Arabic and with no accompanying translation, provide multiple insights into events inside pre-war Iraq. The dossier, however, is huge and disorganized. Digging out its secrets is a laborious task — one that the U.S. government decided to leave to others.
...
Geno's owner Joey Vento, the grandson of Italian immigrants, said he has no plans to remove the sign.
"I don't see why I should have to. It's freedom of speech," said Vento...
He said no one is refused service and no one is discriminated against. The sign, which has been displayed for about six months, is meant to encourage immigrants to learn English, he said.
"If you don't speak English, the sign means nothing,""

I think this is pretty self obvious. The guy wants to run his buisness in english, and thats a great way to garner some buisness. So some criminals take offense because they just have to eat there, it is compleatly impossible to go anywhere else. So, they whine to the city, and some other group of busybodies and crime lovers comes to slap the man with a fine.
This is so stupid.

The S Files

FOX News: " The U.S. government seized thousands of classified Iraqi government papers when Saddam's regime was toppled, and Washington recently released a trove of these documents on the Pentagon's Foreign Military Studies Office Web site.

The documents, many in Arabic and with no accompanying translation, provide multiple insights into events inside pre-war Iraq. The dossier, however, is huge and disorganized. Digging out its secrets is a laborious task — one that the U.S. government decided to leave to others....

"It is my belief," Robison says, "that those who just want to know the truth will find new and shocking information in these documents and may even change their beliefs about the reasons for the war."

Our government documents are difficult to dicifer. I can only imagine how much more difficult Saddams are.

Ann Coulter firestorm

Story: "A member of the Sept. 11 commission on Friday lashed out at conservative pundit Ann Coulter for a "hate-filled attack" in saying the widows whose husbands died in the World Trade Center used the deaths for their own political gain.

In her latest book, Coulter criticizes the four New Jersey widows who pushed for an independent commission to investigate the Sept. 11, attacks. The women also backed Democrat John Kerry's presidential candidacy in 2004.

"These broads are millionaires, lionized on TV and in articles about them, reveling in their status as celebrities and stalked by grief- arazzis. I've never seen people enjoying their husbands' deaths so much," Coulter wrote."

Ya know, I don't think her remarks are off base at all. Do you realize that each family recieved millions of dollars from the federal government, and countless more from the various charity groups? And ya know how much the family of a soldier gets for dying for you and me? Twelve thousand.

For these widows to go campaign for a canidate in an election, touting there status as 9/11 widows as some great credintials, is using their husbands death for political gain. What gives them the credibility? Are they experts on terrorists? No. Are the people that died in the Oklahoma city bombing experts on domestic terrorists? No. Are the folks who were shoved out of louisiana by Katrina experts on hurricanes? No. So why are the 9/11 widows allowed to campaign for canidates, using there status as having lost a husband for political capital?

The Armada sets sail...

I'd like to point out a fine example of the Pirate Armada setting sail into moonbat waters, taking on the clowns of the left.
Left wing nut post: here

The response is below. Basically, the guy claims that a quarter of a million civies have been killed or tortured by the US army, and the media has been covering it up! Those dastardly reporters, always siding with america!!! And this guys state purpose is to give the occupied palistenians a voice.

And so in respose to this, the armada set sail and rather effectivly dismantled his ship.

This folks, is what we're up against in the coming elections. We've got absolutly nothing to fear but fear itself, because this garners no votes.

Hamas takes a blow

Story: "An Israeli air strike Thursday killed the top Hamas enforcer in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian hospital officials and group members said.

Israel has accused militant faction leader Jamal Abu Samhadana of spearheading rocket attacks on Israel and of the fatal 2003 bombing of a U.S. convoy in the Gaza Strip."

This will be a week long remembered in the halls of terror. It has seen the end of Zarqawi, and the end of Samhadana.

Air strikes for both of them. There's an old saying 'He he controls the sea, controls the world.' I think that may well have been replaced with 'He who maintains air superiority controls the world.'

Al-Zarqawi: Now a dead idiot

AP Story:"Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, al-Qaida's leader in Iraq who led a bloody campaign of suicide bombings and kidnappings, has been killed in an air strike, U.S. and Iraqi officials said Thursday, adding that his identity was confirmed by fingerprints and a look at his face. It was a major victory in the U.S.-led war in Iraq and the broader war on terror.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said al-Zarqawi was killed along with seven aides Wednesday evening in a remote area 30 miles northeast of Baghdad in the volatile province of Diyala, just east of the provincial capital of Baqouba, al-Maliki said.

Loud applause broke out among the reporters and soldiers as al-Maliki, flanked by U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad and U.S. Gen. George Casey, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, told a news conference that "al-Zarqawi was eliminated."

But any hopes the Jordanian-born terror leader's death would help stem the violence in Iraq were dimmed hours later when a car bomb exploded in a Baghdad market, killing 12 and wounding 65."

Air strikes take out Abu Musab Al Zarqawi, most likly in his home. Good, its what the terrorist deserved. And so what do his 'followers' do? They kill them selves. Very clever, ya'll.

UPDATE: To see part of the press confrance, click the link

USA Sugar gliders?

This is just too cool. In the old days, the Rangers or SEALs or Green Berrets would come in on a boat or be dropped by parachute. Now, they can glide in from an air drop 120 miles away, be undetectable by radar, and pretty much silent. A 6ft carbonfiber wing strapped on the back, and it can be filled with up to 200lbs equipment, and carry the warrior to the battle.

3 years from now, we'll have a special squadron of these guys called the 'Flying Squirrels'.

5 years from now, they'll add jet engines to these things, and we'll have jet pack troopers hopping all over the place, wreaking havoc upon the enemies.

15 years from now, we'll just be dropping all of our soldiers from the air into the heart of an enemy base, without warning. Now that's a smart bomb.

Hat tip to Daweed for the story.

Abortion Ban for Louisiana?

WWLTV.com | News for New Orleans, Louisiana | Local News: "Gov. Kathleen Blanco was expected to sign a strict abortion ban into law after the Senate on Monday gave the measure final legislative approval.

Blanco has said she planned to sign the bill that would ban nearly all abortions in Louisiana, though only if the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade abortion rights ruling is overturned. The bill by Sen. Ben Nevers, D-Bogalusa, could only take effect under two circumstances: the U.S. Constitution is amended to allow states to ban abortion; or the Supreme Court strikes down Roe v. Wade.

Under the measure, doctors found guilty of performing abortions would face up to 10 years in prison and fines of $100,000."

Awsome. Only problem is the dependancy on the overturning of Roe v. Wade, and that may take a few more years.

June Six

Its June 6th today. If you look at the calendar, it's 6/6/06.

But I think there's something more important to remember.

D-Day, 1942.

"Soldiers, sailors, and airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force! You are about to embark upon the great crusade toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you." - Gen. Eisenhower

Economy: 4.6% unemployment, lowest in 5 years

CBS/AP Story: "the nation's unemployment rate dipped to 4.6 percent, the lowest in nearly 5 years. "

Thats incredible. Most devestating hurricanes in history last year, oil prices skyrocketing, and a persistent barrage of negative news, and the economy still plows ahead.

I'd like to take a look at that last problem, persistent negativity.
If you look at the above quote, the article appears good. When you open the link, you find a morass of gloom, conjured out of some of the best news in the nation.
Examples:
"Cautious employers added just 75,000 new jobs in May, the fewest in seven months,"

"Retail took the biggest hit, losing more than 27,000 jobs. One reason: customers are spending less because they're paying more for gas"

"The other hammer to the economy came from the once-booming construction sector. It came to a standstill in May, adding only 1,000 jobs"

"Those factors, along with sagging consumer confidence, are making companies extra careful not to bulk up their payrolls"

And THEN, the real news:
"Taking a bit of the sting out of the sluggish job creation was the fact that the nation's unemployment rate dipped to 4.6 percent, the lowest in nearly 5 years."

Along with that, we have this bit o' news:
"Manufacturers, retailers, home builders, trucking firms, hotels and motels were among those shedding jobs last month. Financial firms, health care providers, educational services, accountants and bookkeepers, architects and engineers, and computer designers all boosted employment."

One of the most persistant sayings of a doom an gloom liberal: 'The jobs are there, but they aren't good jobs!'. Well, what we have here is the low wage jobs loosing steam, but the high wage, white collar jobs taking up the slack and then carrying the torch. More good news!

How so much despair can be pulled out of record setting unemployment, I can't fathom. I can shake my head, and remember that CBS is the same folks who used forged documents during the elections, and the AP is the clowns who run the stories everytime a soldier is wounded. Both have a vendeda against Bush, and it shows very strongly.

The Church of St. Michael Moore: Built on lies?

AP Story: "A veteran who lost both arms in the war in Iraq is suing filmmaker Michael Moore for $85 million, alleging that Moore used snippets of a television interview without his permission to falsely portray him as anti-war in "Fahrenheit 9/11."

Sgt. Peter Damon, a National Guardsman from Middleborough, is asking for damages because of "loss of reputation, emotional distress, embarrassment, and personal humiliation," according to the lawsuit filed in Suffolk Superior Court last week.

Damon, 33, claims that Moore never asked for his consent to use a clip from an interview Damon did with NBC's "Nightly News."

He lost his arms when a tire on a Black Hawk helicopter exploded while he and another reservist were servicing the aircraft on the ground. Another reservist was killed in the explosion.

In his lawsuit, Damon says he "agrees with and supports the President and the United States' war effort, and he was not left behind."

He said that, while at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center recovering from his wounds, he had surgery and physical therapy, learned to use prosthetics and live independently. He also said that Homes For Our Troops, a not-for-profit group, built him a house with handicapped accessibility.

"The work creates a substantially fictionalized and falsified implication as a wounded serviceman who was left behind when Plaintiff was not left behind but supported, financially and emotionally, by the active assistance of the President, the United States and his family, friends, acquaintances and community," Damon says in his lawsuit."

What a man. He loses his arms in combat, and is now recovered and using prothsetics. Not only that, but he still supports the defense of america, and is standing up for what he believes in, and his own word. If Micheal Moore did this, it is not supriseing. Repulsive? Yes. Taking the words of a soldier out of context and without his permission is about as low as the dirt in the bottom of a potted plant.

Still, not surprising coming from Moore.

The Bahamas

My Vacation:
Well, it was a 2 day drive to Ft. Lauderdale Florida, and from there, we took the early boat to the Grand Bahamas Island. That picture there is the sunrise in Ft. Lauderdale. The boat ride was nice, and a 5 star breakfast and lunch was provided with the trip.
I finished This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti on the ship.

Once on land, we checked into the resort and relaxed. The next day, we took a tour around the island on a tour bus, with others from the resort.
The people there are so friendly, it was incredible. Even with each other, they were kind, not just to the tourists.

That beach there is Xanadu, the closest one to the resort. We went snorkeling in 4 different beaches, and that was one of them. The next two pictures are from the snorkeling. I chased a big 4ft long fish for a couple hundred feet, then we came back into shore later. We looked at the fish chart, and I was chasing a baracuda around. Thats my wisdom of the sea in action...
It also rained that day, and the bugs come out after the rain, and I swear I got 200 bites on me. While at the resort, I read Executive Orders, by Tom Clancy, a 900 page hardback with size 9 font.

We left after a week, and took the boat home again. That sunset picture is from the boat, and the sun is setting. After that picture it was really stormy, so we went in and watched the Heat beat the Pistons. That was a fun part of vacation, being able to watch the Mavricks play in the playoffs, because the resort had cable, and we don't at home.
Anyways, we drove home for 2 more days, and now we're back.


The Bahamas as a Nation:
This place rocked, and not just because of the wonderful weather, ocean, and people. They are very libertarian. No Income Tax, No Sales Tax, and No Property Tax. All government income is off of import duties.
They don't have any welfare either, so the government is minimal. The bahmian citizens are not allowed to gamble, so they can't blow their money.
No seat belt laws, very few traffic laws, and no alchohol laws. The prison systems are very rough, no TV, basic foods, and not many comforts. Basically, the way they ought to be.
On sundays, about 90% of the people are in church, predominantly babtist.

Its a great place, and they recover well from huricanes. I would love to go back.

Also, if the formating is messed up, I apoligise. WYSIWYG isn't working right.

Bush a 'Renegade'

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Gore: Bush is 'renegade rightwing extremist': "Al Gore has made his sharpest attack yet on the George Bush presidency, describing the current US administration as 'a renegade band of rightwing extremists'.

In an interview with the Guardian today, the former vice-president calls himself a 'recovering politician', but launches into the political fray more explicitly than he has previously done during his high-profile campaigning on the threat of global warming.

Denying that his politics have shifted to the left since he lost the court battle for the 2000 election, Mr Gore says: 'If you have a renegade band of rightwing extremists who get hold of power, the whole thing goes to the right.'"

Yeah. If only that were true. The Education bill, the farm bill, the FEMA spending, the medicare bill, and the highway bill are not the products of a radical right wing, but of a liberal domestic view. Aside from cutting taxes and the war on Terror, there is very little this administration has done to further the right wing agenda.

'Speaker' Pelosi- Good for who?

Talk of Pelosi as Speaker Delights Both Parties - New York Times: "Hoping to win a Congressional majority in November, some optimistic Democratic lawmakers have taken to referring to Representative Nancy Pelosi as 'speaker,' as in speaker of the House. So have some optimistic Republicans.

'She ought to be a big component of the fall campaign,' said Ed Rogers, a Republican strategist and lobbyist. 'There are some Democrats who make really good bad guys.'

Ms. Pelosi, the California Democrat and House minority leader, lends herself to easy caricature by Republicans. She is an unapologetic liberal, with a voting record to match (the Republican National Committee chairman, Ken Mehlman, said she was neither a 'New Democrat' nor an 'Old Democrat' but a 'prehistoric Democrat'). She is wealthy (married to an investment banker, she has assets listed at more than $16 million). She represents San Francisco, which Republicans love to invoke as a hotbed of counterculture decadence and extremism.

'Is America ready for Nancy Pelosi's Contract With San Francisco?' asked Representative Ric Keller, Republican of Florida, posing a question that, one imagines, could form the basis of many Republican advertisements this fall."

Yeah, she would be awsome. Ya know how Kerry tried to appear moderate, but only became a flipfloppin idiot? Pelosi could do the same thing, or she could spread her message of liberalsim, which does not win.

Good for republicans, the wanna be speaker is.

Remember?

Harken back to the days of yesteryear... (I've always wanted to say that).
Memorial Day is today. I'll still be in the car headin home, but for the rest of you, go enjoy yourselves. Its what they fought and died for. I should be back full time tommarow.

Anyways, heres a great video. My Uncle just graduated from basic training, and his regiment loved this song.
American Soldier

I'm leaving now

I'm leavng now, but I do intend to come back. Taking an 11 day vacation to the Bahamas!
Yay!
I may or may not have access to the 'net, but if I do, I'll catch up on the news, your blog, and make a post or two.

Until then, God Bless you and America.

Mexico may collapse on it's own

AP Story: "Police enraged by the kidnapping of six officers club unarmed detainees. A bloody battle between steelworkers and police leaves two miners dead. Drug lords post the heads of decapitated police on a fence to show who's in charge.

Less than two months before Mexicans elect their next president, many fear the country is teetering on the edge of chaos - a perception that could hurt the ruling National Action Party's chances of keeping the presidency and benefit Mexico's once-powerful Institutional Revolutionary Party, whose candidate has been trailing badly.

Some blame President Vicente Fox for a weak government. Others say rivals are instigating the violence to create that impression, hoping to hurt National Action candidate Felipe Calderon, who has a slight lead in recent polls.

A poll published Friday in Excelsior newspaper found 50 percent of respondents feared the government was on the brink of losing control."

No wonder they're coming over the border illegally. The government has no control, the police have no respect for the laws, and if they do, the drugs lords make sure they don't last long. The labor unions take to the streets, and go to war with whoever is standing against them, much like the illegals in LA and Dallas, minus the crowbars and copbeating.
Anyways, Mexico appears to be nearing anarchy, which I'm not sure if thats a good or bad thing.
At least if there wasn't a government, they couldn't sue us.

Farm Bill to be vetoed?

Fox News"The Senate wants to spend nearly US$4 billion (euro3.12 billion) to help farmers cope with high fuel prices and damage from severe weather. House leaders object to the aid, saying Congress spends taxpayer dollars too freely, and President George W. Bush is threatening to veto the aid.

The White House dislikes the farm aid because it raises the price of a spending bill for the Iraq war and hurricane recovery. Beyond that, the farm money wouldn't give energy relief to every farmer, said Bush's agriculture secretary, Mike Johanns.

Farmers who don't get subsidy checks — fruit and vegetable growers and many others — "would be absolutely cut out," he said.

....

Even without the disaster aid, the government will spend an estimated US$17 billion (euro13.26 billion) subsidizing farmers this year.

It will spend at least another US$3.6 billion (euro2.81 billion) on crop insurance, which covers unavoidable crop losses. Unlike subsidies, which go to the major crops, crop insurance is available for all kinds of crops, from avocados to macadamia nuts to sunflowers."

A check on federal spending? Its staggering how much we are spending on argiculture!!! I don't care why the increased spending check is happening, as long as it happens! What a waste of money!

Iran with Nuke!

Hey, check this out.
According to a report, Iran now has a weapons grade nuke, as of April 28, 2006.
Pretty interesting.
























Yeah. Sensationalist, sorry. :D

The Bonds Debacle

Barry Bonds Shouldn't Be Allowed to Break Babe Ruth's Total - John Gibson
"Barry Bonds is heading to the plate Tuesday night to try to hit the homerun that would tie Babe Ruth's total. And if he is fortunate to hit two — which would break Ruth's total — it will make Bonds the No. 2 all-time homerun hitter.

Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig should be waiting for him at home plate to send him back to the dugout, back to the clubhouse, back home and not let him near a major league ballpark until the issue is settled once and for all whether Bonds arrived at this historic moment on the strength of arms and legs juiced up with illegal steroids.

I think it is obvious he did. I can't think of any serious person who doubts it. The book 'Game of Shadows' by two San Francisco Chronicle reporters is evidence enough for me. The reporters demonstrate with clarity and authority that Bonds got to where he is on illegal drugs.

He should not be allowed to break a hallowed baseball record by cheating."

In an era where steroids were not illegal, and any other player on the field could have used them, why in tarnation should he not recieve what he has earned? Babe Ruth played in his era, Barry Bonds is playing in his era.
Here's a question. Is the pitiching easier or harder then it used to be?
Are the parks the same size as they used to be?
Is the game the same it used to be?

Despite the pitching being harder, the ball parks being bigger, and the game over analysed to any detail, Barry Bonds is still hitting the home runs in this league. If he breaks the record, he has earned it.
He has already earned his way in to the Hall of Fame with his fielding and base stealing, and his slugging is just as impressive. Don't try to deny the acheivements of a great player.

Cross posted at Sporting News Daily.

They're watching me. And I don't care.

"A little-known spy agency that analyzes imagery taken from the skies has been spending significantly more time watching U.S. soil.

In an era when other intelligence agencies try to hide those operations, the director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, retired Air Force Lt. Gen. James Clapper, is proud of that domestic mission.

He said the work the agency did after hurricanes Rita and Katrina was the best he'd seen an intelligence agency do in his 42 years in the spy business.

"This was kind of a direct payback to the taxpayers for the investment made in this agency over the years, even though in its original design it was intended for foreign intelligence purposes," Clapper said in a Thursday....

After last year's hurricanes, the agency had an unusually public face. It set up mobile command centers that sprung out of the backs of Humvees and provided imagery for rescuers and hurricane victims who wanted to know the condition of their homes. Victims would provide their street address and the NGA would provide a satellite photo of their property. In one way or another, some 900 agency officials were involved.
...

"We are not trying to examine an individual dwelling, for example, because what our mission is normally going to be is looking at large areas," he said. "It doesn't really affect or threaten anyone's privacy or civil liberties when you are looking at a large collective area.""

This doesn't seem like an invasion of privacy. I already thought they did this as a normal thing. And how is helping with search and rescue a bad thing after a hurricane? And another thing. Why is this story coming out now, many months after the 'domestic' spying started? Because there's a new guy up for CIA appoinment. This, and the idiotic phone stories about collecting the number of calls, who they were to, and what length they were being an invasion of privacy is stupid. I can get more information about some one who visits this blog then that.

Not that I'd do anything with it. :D

US lessens trade deficit 5.5%. Again.

BREITBART.COM - U.S. Trade Deficit Improves for 2nd Month: "The U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly declined in March for a second consecutive month, something that hasn't happened in more than two years. The improvement reflected record U.S. exports and a big drop in the country's foreign oil bill.

The Commerce Department reported Friday that the gap between what the country sells abroad and what it imports narrowed to $62 billion in March, the smallest deficit in seven months. It was a 5.5 percent improvement from February's $65.6 billion deficit which in turn had fallen from the all-time high of $68.6 billion set in January.

The back-to-back improvement in the trade deficit, something that last happened in October-November 2003, was certain to be welcomed by President Bush, who is facing increasing election-year attacks from Democrats who contend that Bush's free trade policies have put the nation in hock to foreign governments and cost millions of manufacturing jobs at home.

The trade deficit through the first three months of this year, even with the two months of improvements, is running at an annual rate of $785 billion, up by 8.4 percent from last year's record high of $723.6 billion."

Why is this happening? Because when our economy works, the rest of the world is better off.
As such, they've got more money.
So, they buy electric generators and industrial machines (read:robots and assembly lines), and computers.
I was listening to an interview with Michael Dell, the founder of Dell computers, and he was asked about forign markets. After the US, China and india are now the largest customers of computers in the world. A double digit growth in computer sales over there, in fact.
We're also exporting more food. Soybeans and Corn, because folks gotta eat, and there is no one in the world that can grow food like americans. Even when we do make ethanol and feed ourselves, we've got more then enough to sell to the world.

Arizona Posses

Associated Press Pop-up Link: "ILA BEND, Ariz. (AP) -- Four Mexican men sit in the dirt with their wrists bound, shoulders hunched and eyes lowered to avoid the glare of the rising sun.

The immigrants had been on their way to build a dairy farm in this town about an hour southwest of Phoenix. But after a traffic stop for a faulty brake light, members of a sheriff's task force targeting human and drug smugglers found they were not U.S. citizens. Now they were bound for federal custody.

Beginning Wednesday, more illegal immigrants coming through Maricopa County could meet the same fate as the sheriff's department beefs up its efforts to find illegal immigrants.

A 250-member posse that will operate similarly to the anti-smuggler task force will patrol the area for illegal immigrants who pay smugglers to cross through Arizona, the busiest illegal entry point along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border."

First of all, apart from the unbeliveably bias in the article, they don't mention that the Sherrif is arresting criminals until the very bottom of the 3rd paragraph.
Good stuff is happening out there.

Still rolling: US economy

My Way News - Dow Closes Up 55, Nasdaq Finishes Down 7: "the Dow is poised to break its record and could push higher. Ken Tower, chief market strategist for Schwab's CyberTrader, said investors appeared increasingly optimistic about the market, especially after stocks held onto their sharp gains from the end of last week.

'People became much more bullish on Friday morning, and the fact they didn't sober up over the weekend is a very positive sign for the market,' Tower said. '
...
The Dow rose 55.23, or 0.48 percent, to 11,639.77. The index of 30 blue-chip stocks is 83 points from its all-time closing high of 11,722.98, reached Jan. 14, 2000."

Yesterday, the Dow was 140 points from setting a new record. Ya know what is really incredible about this? Due to the tax cuts, we have a record setting economy, despite 9/11, the Hurricanes, high gas prices and a war, we still have a rocking economy.

Iran Rattles Sabers, Round VI

Guardian Unlimited | World Latest | Iran Threatens to Pull Out of Nuke Treaty: "Iran renewed its threats to withdraw from the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty on Sunday, with its president saying sanctions would be ``meaningless'' and its parliament seeking to put a final end to unannounced inspections of its nuclear facilities."

And why we're wasting time with diplomatic solutions, I don't know. Economic sanctions have not worked on Cuba, North Korea, and they didn't work on Saddam's Iraq. So why will they work with Iran? They have a lot of oil, and someone somewhere will buy that oil.

Zarqawi: Warrior or idiot?

Story:

"Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is shown wearing American tennis shoes and unable to operate his automatic rifle in video released Thursday by the U.S. military as part of a propaganda war aimed at undercutting the image of the terror leader.

The U.S. command showed the footage to reporters...

Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, spokesman for the U.S. command, mocked al- Zarqawi as the previously unseen footage showed a smiling al-Qaida leader first firing single shots from a U.S.-made M-249 light machine gun. A frown creeps across al-Zarqawi's face as the weapon appears to jam. He looks at the rifle, confused, then summons another fighter.

"It's supposed to be automatic fire. He's shooting single shots," Lynch said. "Something is wrong with his machine gun. He looks down, can't figure out, calls his friend to come unblock the stoppage and get the weapon firing again."

By contrast, the edited version which the militants posted on the Web showed what happened only after the fighter fixed the weapon _ a fierce-looking al-Zarqawi confidently blasting away with bursts of automatic gunfire.

His fellow fighters and associates appear similarly inept in the newly released footage. One reaches out to grab a just-fired weapon by the barrel, apparently unaware that it would burn his hand. The camera quickly pans to the ground and then away.

"His close associates around him ... do things like grab the hot barrel of the machine gun and burn themselves," Lynch said. "Makes you wonder" about their military skills."

Hehe. Grabbing the barrel of a hot rifle? ouch.
Wearing american apparel and driving a pickup? Bad publicity.
Letting this film leak out? Priceless.

I hope Al-Jazerrea plays this around, or it's posted on the net.

Something happening down south

KPHO Phoenix - Sheriff to Start Posse Patrols to Curb Illegal Immigration Flow: "Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio announced Tuesday that about 100 volunteer posse and Sheriff's deputies will soon begin randomly patrolling the desert areas and main roadways in southwest Maricopa County as apart of an operation to stem the flow of illegal aliens entering the county.

Arpaio made the announcement just as 11 more illegal aliens were being booked in jail after a Ford Windstar with California plates and 16 people packed inside was stopped by a Sheriff's deputy early Tuesday morning on a traffic violation near Gila Bend.

Despite the growing controversy about illegal aliens nationwide, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office remains the only Arizona law enforcement agency willing to enforce a new state anti-smuggling law.

'There are so many illegals trying to make it into the county that it's overwhelming my deputies, so I have called on members of my 3000 member volunteer posse to assist,' says Sheriff Arpaio. 'It's not only illegals we find and arrest out there, we've also made some recent huge drug seizures involving illegal aliens including nearly 100 pounds of methamphetamine and approximately three pounds of heroin.'"

Wow. That last paragraph is disturbing. Not only should we be concerned about a terrorists just being able to walk straight into the country, but we've got a MASSIVE Drug problem coming over the border. And this would be even more aggrivated by the following:



Story:
"a bill decriminalizing possession of small quantities of marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine and even heroin for personal use, prompting U.S. criticism that the measure could harm anti-drug efforts

The only step remaining was the signature of President Vicente Fox, whose office indicated he would sign the bill, which Mexican officials hope will allow police to focus on large-scale trafficking operations rather than minor drug busts.

"This law gives police and prosecutors better legal tools to combat drug crimes that do so much damage to our youth and children," said Fox's spokesman, Ruben Aguilar."

Yeah. Legalizing drugs makes much more effective enforcement, because there is nothing to enforce!!!

But thankfully, I read this this morning:
Story:
"Mexican President Vicente Fox refused to sign a drug decriminalization bill Wednesday, hours after U.S. officials warned the plan could encourage "drug tourism."

Fox sent the measure back to Congress for changes, but his office did not mention the U.S. criticism.

Fox will ask "Congress to make the needed corrections to make it absolutely clear in our country, the possession of drugs and their consumption are, and will continue to be, a criminal offense," according to a statement from the president's office."

I don't know why this happened, but it's a good thing. Yesterday, I was conviced that the drug lords were taking over mexico, but now it appears the government still has a spine.
Although the prices may stay high with the narcotics being illegal, I can't imagine the drug lords would want to stay illegal.

Iran Rattles Sabers, Rd. V

Iran will hit Israel if US does "evil": agency | Reuters.com: "Iran will target Israel first if the United States does anything 'evil', a senior commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday.

The United States says it wants Iran's nuclear standoff with the West solved diplomatically but has refused to rule out military action.

'We have announced that wherever America does something evil, the first place that we target will be Israel,' Revolutionary Guards Rear Admiral Mohammad-Ebrahim Dehqani was quoted as saying by Iran's student news agency ISNA.

The Islamic Republic has never recognized Israel and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for the Jewish state to be 'wiped off the map.'

Dehqani said naval wargames held in the Gulf last month 'carried the warning to those countries that threaten Iran, including America and the Zionist regime'.

Experts said the wargames, in which Iran said it had tested new missiles and torpedoes, were a thinly veiled threat that it could disrupt vital Gulf oil shipping lanes if it was attacked."

Yup. And we are going to wait around and trust that they won't misuse the nukes? Bad idea.
If they start a war with Isreal, Iran is not going to know what hit them the next day.

Bush says the Star Spangled Banner should be sung in english

BREITBART.COM - Bush Says Anthem Should Be in English: "'One of the things that's very important is, when we debate this issue, that we not lose our national soul,' the president exclaimed. 'One of the great things about America is that we've been able to take people from all walks of life bound as one nation under God. And that's the challenge ahead of us.'

A Spanish language version of the national anthem was released Friday by a British music producer, Adam Kidron, who said he wanted to honor America's immigrants.

When the president was asked at a Rose Garden question-and-answer session whether the anthem should be sung in Spanish, he replied: 'I think the national anthem ought to be sung in English, and I think people who want to be a citizen of this country ought to learn English and they ought to learn to sing the national anthem in English.'
...
'I think people who want to be citizens of this country ought to learn English,' Bush said."

Yay! A top republican standing up, however so little, for America.
Its simple how this immigration works:
1. Register for immigrant status
2. Learn English
3. Pass the citizenship test
4. Welcome to America!

Not:
1. Violate a bunch of laws
2. Become a leach off the backs of americans
3. Try and take back the Southwest for Mexico
4. Burn and defame the US Flag.

Standards of Justice, Episode II

2 Teens Charged in Attack at Texas Party: "Keith Robert Turner, 17, and David Henry Tuck, 18, are charged with aggravated sexual assault, investigators said. Prosecutors are considering whether to attach hate-crime charges, but unless the victim dies, the possible penalty would be the same. If the boy dies and it is ruled a hate crime, Tuck could face the death penalty, authorities said. Turner would be too young to face execution."

You can read the details of the attack after the jump, but I don't want to post it, 'cause its sick.
If the victim lives, then the to jerks are just charged with agrivated sexual assult. If he dies, they are charged with something slightly more, but still less then homicide.

However, for some reason when the race card is played as a 'hate crime', one of them is liable for the death penalty, and the other for life in prison. Don't get me wrong, if they're guilty they should be punished, and if the guy dies, I believe they have a strong case to be hung. However, why is it that a 'hate crime' is needed for that, instead of what, a love crime?

America's Daily Newsrooms Dramatically Miss Ethnic Diversity Goals | NewsBusters.org

America's Daily Newsrooms Dramatically Miss Ethnic Diversity Goals | NewsBusters.org: "“Journalists of color represented only 13.87% of the staff in America's daily newsrooms in 2005, according to the American Society of Newspaper Editors' (ASNE) 29th annual newsroom census released Tuesday.”

Huh? Excuse me? Are these the same newsrooms that are constantly pointing fingers at American corporations as well as the Bush administration and the Republican Party for being bigoted and ethnically intolerant? After all, six of President Bush’s cabinet members are racial or ethnic minorities comprising 40 percent of the fifteen available positions. And, since 37.4 percent of Americans are considered to be part of a racial or ethnic minority according to the 2000 Census, America’s newsrooms are missing the goal of looking like America by fully 63 percent, while President Bush with his cabinet appointments exceeded this diversity goal by seven percent. In fact, as a percentage, President Bush appointed almost three times as many ethnic and racial minorities to his cabinet than currently work in America’s daily newsrooms

So, are these holier-than-thou organizations at least showing improvement in this regard? Hardly: “That percentage represented a nearly invisible increase from last year's census, which identified 13.42% of daily journalists as belonging to racial and ethnic minority groups.”"

I don't think quotas and stuff are a good idea, but the hipocrasy of the journalists and their managers is appalling.

Tax break? Naw..

My Way News - Key Lawmakers Demand Oil Co. Tax Records: "Senate Republicans advocate sending $100 rebate checks to millions of taxpayers, and a Democrat is leading the campaign for a 60-day gasoline tax holiday.

Either way, it seems no one in Congress wants to be without a plan, however symbolic, to attack the election-year spike in gasoline prices.

A vote is possible as early as this week on the Senate GOP approach, which calls for $100 rebate checks for taxpayers to cushion the impact of higher gasoline prices. The measure seems unlikely to prevail, at least initially, since it includes a highly controversial proposal to open a portion of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling.

Senate Republicans also favor extending a tax break that manufacturers receive for each hybrid vehicle they make, and want President Bush to suspend deliveries to the nation's strategic petroleum reserve for six months."

Awful kind of them to give our money back, but it is much much better then fineing the oil companines. Kudos to the conservatives.

The thing that is even better is the part the opens the Artic National Wildlife Refuge, or ANWR. 10.3 Billion barrels of oil, just ripe for the use of the United States.

And the caribu won't suffer a bit.

State by State Tax Analysis

Census State tax rankings

In the Per Capita rankings, Vermont is Numero Uno. Likewise, Texas is an awsome number 49!!

Its interesting, although not suprising, that South Dakota is number 50 both times. What is suprising is that Wyoming has a very high tax per capita.

Yet another blog

Sporting News Daily

Howdy. Comrade Daweed has started a new blog, the Sporting News Daily, and I'll be over there as well. If you have a mild hankering for sports, check it out and leave a comment. We may have more contributors coming soon.

We'll try to avoid the politics, unless something comes up. Heh, I'm sure it will.

'Freedom' in Iran

FOXNews.com - Iran Allows Women in Soccer Stadiums - International News | News of the World | Middle East News | Europe News: " Iranian women will be allowed to attend soccer matches for first time since the country's 1979 Islamic revolution, Iran's president said in a decree posted on his Web site Monday.

Women would sit in separate section of the stands, away from the usually raucous male fans.

'The presence of families and women will improve soccer-watching manners, and promote a healthy atmosphere,' Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said. 'They will be allocated some of the best stands in stadiums,' he added.

Iran's Islamic law imposes tight restrictions on women. They need a male guardian's permission to work or travel and have rarely been allowed to attend public sporting events. In 2001, a group of Irish women was permitted to attend a World Cup qualifier match between Iran and Ireland that was held in Tehran.
...

"Some consider women as the source of corruption and this is a very wrong attitude," he said. However, he added women sometimes expressed objectionable views, or what he called "ideas that are not related to Islam."

Women in Iran are not allowed to become judges, and a man's court testimony is considered twice as important as a woman's. Iranian men can divorce almost at will, while women must go through a long legal battle and often relinquish rights in return for divorce.

Despite such restrictions, Iranian women have more rights than their counterparts in Saudi Arabia and other conservative Muslim countries. They can drive, vote and run for office.

In March, police charged a peaceful women's rights protest in Tehran, beating women and men and provoking condemnation from international rights groups."

What a bunch of bloody tyrants. If Allah is so great, and Mohamad is the answer to all things, then why are you so terrified of women?
Preying on the weak among us is just barbaric, and thats what this nation and the fundamentalist Islam is.

Double Standard of Justice?

KVII Online:"Two Duke University students have posted $400,000 bond and are due to return to court May 15th. Reade Seligmann and Collin Finnerty were arrested early this morning on charges of raping and kidnapping a woman hired to dance at a party. Lawyers deny the 20-year-old lacrosse players raped the stripper, who says three players attacked her."

Sounds pretty bad

heraldsun.com: Teen charged in murder gets $50,000 bond: "A $50,000 bond was set Wednesday for one of two teens accused in Durham's first homicide of 2006, the March fatal shooting of 24-year-old Alvin Lee Jones.

Nicholas Alexander Mack, 17, previously had been held without bond in the case.

He and Dontae Daevon Jones, 18, are charged with shooting Alvin Jones in the back at the Bentwood Park apartment complex on Junction Road in eastern Durham. Authorities have said the shooting apparently was gang-related.

Superior Court Judge Ron Stephens rejected a defense request that Mack's bond be set as low as $25,000.

A lot of people's lives were put in jeopardy," said Dornfried, noting that numerous people were in a parking lot where the shooting occurred.

Evidence indicated that Mack was firing from a car with a .38-caliber gun when Jones was killed, Dornfried added.

He also said that Mack had avoided prosecution in November for giving fictitious information to a police officer, and that he was bonded out of jail on a marijuana charge when the murder occurred last month."

Sounds like a pretty bad crime. What in tarnation is up with the $50,000 FOR ENDING A PERSONS LIFE??? And $400,000 for a crime of rape that may, or may not have happened? (I personally suspect it did not happen, but the trial is still in court)

This is incredible, and insane. The punishment for killing another human should be at least life in prison, if it was deliberite. If it was premeditated, the guilty party should be hung within 30 days of conviction. This 50k junk is never going to stop anyone.

Greenpeace is confused

Planet Ark : Greenpeace Arctic Mission to Spotlight Polar Bears: "Two US explorers plan to start a four-month summer expedition to the North Pole next month to gather information on the habitat of an animal they believe could be the first victim of global warming -- the polar bear.


Lonnie Dupre and Eric Larsen plan to travel 1,100 miles by foot and canoe over the Arctic Ocean to test the depth and density of the ice in summer in a mission sponsored by Greenpeace, the environmental group said on Thursday.

According to some scientific predictions, the Arctic Ocean could become ice-free in the summer within a hundred years.

Polar bears cannot survive without sea ice and the US government said in February it would consider whether the bears should be protected under the Endangered Species Act."

This begs the question: How do polar bears survive in the zoo? And if they're such great creatures, why can they not survive with a slightly changing climate?

Greenpeace vs. UN

ABC News: Greenpeace: Chernobyl Toll May Top 90,000: "Greenpeace said Tuesday in a new report that more than 90,000 people were likely to die of cancers caused by radiation from the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, countering a United Nations report that predicted the death toll would be around 4,000."

Now, which of these two groups would be most likly politically motivated? Greenpeace is on a jihad against nuclear reactors. The UN may have some leniancy for Russia, but not to this degree.
Its greenpeace inflating the state of fear again.

Tax Day is here!

Let us rejoice! Our money can be taken, so as to help out my neighbor. It does not matter that 2/3s of the money is wasted, the politicians can feel good.

Or not.

What is also pretty unfair is the way our tax system works.
If you haven't looked at this, you should. Its an excellent break down of the tax code, and very easy to understand.
The top 50% of the country, they pay more then 90% of the taxes. Not fair or right at all.
Breakdown (And yes, it is Rush limbaugh. Sorry carey.)

Christ is livin

He is Risen

Iran Rattles Saber, Round IV

BREITBART.COM - Iran issues stark military warning to United States: "Iran said it could defeat any American military action over its controversial nuclear drive, in one of the Islamic regime's boldest challenges yet to the United States.

'You can start a war but it won't be you who finishes it,' said General Yahya Rahim Safavi, the head of the Revolutionary Guards and among the regime's most powerful figures.

'The Americans know better than anyone that their troops in the region and in Iraq are vulnerable. I would advise them not to commit such a strategic error,' he told reporters on the sidelines of a pro-Palestinian conference in Tehran."

Yeah, typical hogwash from an imperial regiem trying to avoid a revolution from the inside, while acting tough on the outside.

But what is so disturbing is this line:
" "I would advise them to first get out of their quagmire in Iraq before getting into an even bigger one," General Safavi said with a grin."

Wonder where the get the idea its quagmire? Democrates, Liberals, and the MSM, an unholy alliance of anti americanism. If the dissedents in america can say it, why not our enemies?

And if we needed a reminder:
""If there is serious doubt over the Holocaust, there is no doubt over the catastrophe and Holocaust being faced by the Palestinians," said the president, who had previously dismissed as a "myth" the killing of an estimated six million Jews by the Nazis and their allies during World War II.

"I tell the governments who support Zionism to ... let the migrants (Jews) return to their countries of origin. If you think you owe them something, give them some of your land," he said."

The Seattle Times: Nation & World: Moussaoui proudly shows no remorse

The Seattle Times: Nation & World: Moussaoui proudly shows no remorse: "Zacarias Moussaoui proudly reaffirmed his involvement in the Sept. 11 terrorist plot Thursday and said his only regret was that more Americans didn't die.

Taking the stand for the second time at his death-penalty trial, Moussaoui calmly and matter-of-factly said the sobbing Sept. 11 survivors and family members who testified against him were 'disgusting,' the testimony of one man who crawled out of his burning Pentagon office was 'pathetic,' and executed Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh is 'the greatest American.'

His cool demeanor was on display throughout his cross-examination. Moussaoui laughed when Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Spencer asked if he thought the United States was destined to fall. 'I know it,' he said. He stared at Spencer as the prosecutor inquired: 'You wake up every day to destroy the United States, don't you?'

'To the best of my ability,' Moussaoui responded."

He'll be killed. Good. I still think a public hanging is the best way, but we won't. Another good punishment is to stick him by an airport security line, and have everyone slap him after they wait in line for two hours.
Then kill him.

May God have mercy on his soul.

Iran Roundup

BREITBART.COM - Iran says nuclear drive unstoppable: "A defiant Iran vowed that nothing could halt its controversial nuclear program, in a direct challenge to the UN Security Council that could risk international sanctions.

With the country basking in national pride after regime scientists successfully enriched uranium to make nuclear fuel -- a milestone in its atomic drive -- officials pledged to move rapidly to industrial-scale work.

'When a people master nuclear technology and nuclear fuel, nothing can be done against them,' boasted armed forces joint chief of staff, General Hassan Firouzabadi.

Iran says its nuclear drive is purely peaceful, but uranium enrichment can be extended to make the fissile core of a bomb. The Security Council had set April 28 as a deadline for Tehran to halt the ultra-sensitive work. "

And in related news: Iran could produce a nuclear weapon in 16 days.
"Iran, defying United Nations Security Council demands to halt its nuclear program, may be capable of making a nuclear bomb within 16 days, a U.S. State Department official said.

Iran will move to ``industrial scale'' uranium enrichment involving 54,000 centrifuges at its Natanz plant, the Associated Press quoted deputy nuclear chief Mohammad Saeedi as telling state-run television today.

``Using those 50,000 centrifuges they could produce enough highly enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon in 16 days,'' Stephen Rademaker, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation, told reporters today in Moscow."

Wonder what Isreal's response will be? And how will Rice and Bush address this?
The time for a war with Iran is very, very near.

Mexican-flag burning, Round II

City man arrested after Mexican-flag burning | www.azstarnet.com ®: "A Tucson man was arrested Tuesday for his role in the burning of a Mexican flag as part of a counterprotest at a pro-immigration rally.
At about 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Tucson police cited Roy Warden, 58, on suspicion of assault, criminal damage and reckless burning, and then released him, according to Sgt. Decio Hopffer.
Video footage shot Monday by police and the media showed Warden assaulting a TV cameraman and a photographer, Hopffer said. Because only one of the men pressed charges, there is only one assault charge.
Warden faces the criminal-damage charge for harm done to the concrete shuffleboard court where Warden's group was burning the Mexican flag, Hopffer said."

This is the original post on this

Sounds like petty, if viable charges. Now, if we can go arrest some clown for burning a flag, how about arresting 11 million criminals that came in from down south? And the millions that are at the rallys? There are bigger fish to fry.

In other News:
HE IS RISEN

16 Days: Iran with a Nuke?

Bloomberg.com: Germany: "Iran, defying United Nations Security Council demands to halt its nuclear program, may be capable of making a nuclear bomb within 16 days, a U.S. State Department official said.

Iran will move to ``industrial scale'' uranium enrichment involving 54,000 centrifuges at its Natanz plant, the Associated Press quoted deputy nuclear chief Mohammad Saeedi as telling state-run television today.

``Using those 50,000 centrifuges they could produce enough highly enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon in 16 days,'' Stephen Rademaker, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation, told reporters today in Moscow."

If this is true, God help us.
With Iran flatly ignoring the US, UK, and the UN, diplomatic solutions are not good. And with this immigration deal, we've got some major lack of attention to this issue.
I know our military is capable of dealing with this threat, but only if they are unleashed by the politicians.
I personally think/hope that Iran is not that close, but the time to deal with this problem is very, very soon.

Hey, this is really old. I thought I posted it, but it was a draft.

Dispelling myths about American soldiers

W. Thomas Smith, Jr. - Apr 12, 2006: "Myths abound when it comes to military personnel in the modern American armed forces. Most are in some way related to recruiting new soldiers, who’s fighting, and who’s dying.

Five of the biggest myths include:

1) The U.S. Defense Department is unable to recruit enough military personnel to defend the country and its interests abroad.
2) Critical combat arms units are not being filled.
3) The military will accept any warm body and any dull brain it can get its hands on.
4) American minorities (and those from lower income urban areas) are suffering disproportionately higher losses on the battlefield.
5) Female soldiers are fighting in offensive ground combat operations."

Good read. He goes on to refute each of the above points.

Iraq Liberation Day

The Earth Can Be Moved

Good reminder.

Group burns Mexican flag in front of consulate

KVOA News 4, Tucson, Arizona - Group burns Mexican flag in front of consulate: "Dozens of protestors and counter protestors showed up in front of Tucson’s Mexican Consulate as a Mexican flag was burned in a heated debate that saw tempers flare.

Border Guardians, a group formed along the Arizona border to speak out against the estimated thousands of illegal immigrants that enter the U.S. every day through the Tucson sector, led the protest.

“Flags are symbols of government, not of people,' shouted Roy Warden, as a member of his group, Border Guardians, set foot to the Mexican Flag."

Hm. Don't know what to think of this.

See the protests in dallas? Take that LA, you ain't the only area with a bunch of crimminals!

The State of Fear: Global Warming

Global Warming & Fearmongering:
According to many, the main problem facing today's world is manmade global warming, or eve just plain darned natural global warming and how the ice caps are melting, the rainforests are getting to much rain, and the ski slopes are .5 degrees warmer. Much of the public belief in this is thanks to the fearmongering, both in the media, and the evirofacist groups. Here are some samples.

Rueters
"In an issue of the journal Science focusing on global warming, climate scientist Jonathan Overpeck of the University of Arizona reported that if global trends continue, Earth could ultimately see sea levels 20 feet higher than they are now.

By the end of this century, Earth would be at least 4 degrees F (2.3 degrees C) warmer than now, or about as hot as it was nearly 130,000 years ago.

Back then, significant portions of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets melted, pushing the global sea levels to about 20 feet higher than current levels.

A similarly dramatic, and in some cases catastrophic, rise in ocean levels could happen by the year 2500, Overpeck said in a telephone interview, but he noted it could come sooner."

Gee, this sounds awful.

The Herald:
"A technological revolution is needed if the world is to tackle climate change, Tony Blair said yesterday.
During a visit to New Zealand, the prime minister said hi-tech innovations in the private sector were vital in tackling the problems of security of energy supply and rising greenhouse gases.
He also told a climate change conference in Wellington that Britain wanted to exceed its commitments under the international Kyoto agreement on climate change.
...
The much-delayed climate change review, published by the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs yesterday, predicted that carbon emissions would be reduced to only 15% or 18% of 1990 levels, instead of the 20% promised. High economic growth and the rise in global energy prices were blamed."

Odd isn't it, how world leaders are placing economic security of their country after that of the 'carbon dioxcide' emmissions? How economic growth and High energy prices were to blame? I thought low energy prices were to blame!!!

And now onto the nutcase showcase:
Kansas City:
"Your favorite TV show has ended. You've just seen the ads for Lipitor and light beer, and here comes another:
"Tick. Tick. Massive heat waves.
One after another, the faces of small children appear.
Tick. Tick. Severe droughts.
The kids look serious, maybe even upset.
Tick. Go to www.fightglobalwarming.com. While there's still time."
Yikes - did some ad exec get lost on a horror movie set? Not quite.
Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense, has teamed with the Ad Council, which has challenged social norms with public service campaigns like "Friends don't let friends drive drunk" and Nancy Reagan's "Just say no."

In a series of TV and radio spots that one publicist termed "edgy" - and that a global warming skeptic called "the ultimate triumph of propaganda over science" - the group is hoping to spawn a massive shift in social awareness that will send millions rushing to turn down their thermostats, inflate their car tires and recycle their plastic."

Thats acctualy and extreamly well written article, and a great informative read. As for the ads, what are they supposed to be accomplishing? Another article about this.

A leftist page, with charts illustrating computer charts.

Time:
"No one can say exactly what it looks like when a planet takes ill, but it probably looks a lot like Earth. Never mind what you've heard about global warming as a slow-motion emergency that would take decades to play out."

Yes, I did just consider Time a nutcase organization. It is. Read it! The fearmongering in that article is insane, as is the cover. "Be worried. Be very worried."


The Effects of all this fearmongering?
Drudge report
POLL: VAST MAJORITY OF AMERICANS (88%) THINK GLOBAL WARMING THREATENS FUTURE GENERATIONS
Sun Mar 26 2006 10:41:53 ET

Eighty-five percent (85%) of Americans say global warming is probably happening, according to a new TIME magazine/ABC News/Stanford University poll, out Sunday, March 26th. A vast majority of respondents (88%) think global warming threatens future generations. More than half (60%) say it threatens them a great deal. About four-in-ten (38%) feel that global warming is already a serious problem, 47% feel that it will be in the future. TIME's special 26-page cover story, 'Be Worried. Be Very Worried,' hits newsstands Monday, March 27th.

Half of Americans (52%) say weather patterns in the county where they live have grown more unstable in the last three years and half (50%) feel that average temperatures have risen in their county. A majority (70%) thinks weather patterns globally have become more unstable in the last three years and more than half (56%) feel average temperatures around the world have risen.

Almost half (49%) say the issue of global warming is 'extremely' or 'very important' to them personally, up from 31% in 1998. When asked about the causes of rise in the world's temperatures, about three-in-ten (31%) feel it is caused by the things people do, almost one fifth (19%) feel it is caused mostly by natural causes; almost half (49%) feel it is a combination of the two. Almost seven-in-ten (68%) Americans think the government should do more to address global warming, according to the poll. More than six-in-ten respondents (64%) think scientists disagree with one another about global warming.

Two-thirds of Americans (66%) say President George W. Bush's policies did little or nothing to help the environment in the past year. More than half (54%) feel American businesses did little or nothing to help. Three-quarters want to see Bush and others-Congress, American businesses and the American public-take action to help the environment in the year ahead. However, about one-third (35%) of Americans say that in the past year they have personally given a lot of thought to the impact they were having on the environment.

Six-in-ten Americans (62%) think much can be done to curb global warming and 52% favor government mandates. Six-in-ten (61%) say they would support a government mandate on lowering power plant emissions, and 87% support tax breaks to develop water, wind and solar power. Eighty-one percent oppose higher taxes on electricity, 68% oppose higher gasoline taxes and 56% oppose giving companies tax breaks to build nuclear power plants.

The partisan gap on global warming seems to be shifting, according to the poll. In 1998, 31% of Republicans and Independents alike were sure that global warming was happening; it was not a distant 39% among Democrats. Today, 46% of Democrats and 45% of Independents are certain, and 26% of Republicans feel that way, according to the TIME/ABC News/Stanford University poll."

The Reality:
Palm beach temps:
"Sunday morning's temperature was about 16 degrees cooler than normal for this time of year, forecasters said. The cool temperatures will return again Monday morning."
Rober D. Novak
"Basketball junkies watching March Madness on CBS March 19 may have been enticed by promotions for ''60 Minutes'' to stay tuned for a tale of impending global doom that the Bush administration was suppressing. A senior government scientist apparently risked his job to at long last reveal that only 10 years remained before global warming would ruin planet Earth. But the impression given on the broadcast did not square with reality..."

Gee, this sounds awful. One of the Best novels I've read is State of Fear by Michael Crichton. If you ever get the chance read it. A lot of science, interwoven with a great story.

Global temps, 2005.
Not one of the states list last year as the warmest year on record. If we're having such a problem, whats with this? Although many of the high temps are recent, most of them are from 1998, which was when we had el nino making so much havok.

While some warming is certainally occouring, how much is man made, and how much is natural? According to the same Ruerters article, "The climate warming we're in now is global and it's year-round and it's due to human influences on the climate system," he said. "That will be more damaging to the ice sheets than the that warming we had 130,000 years ago.". Question: Was man around 130,000 years ago during this warming trend? No. Is man around this time? Yes. Whats different? Nothing.

So this moves onto the next topic. Is global warming a bad thing? If the glaciers are melting, we've got more fresh water. Good thing. If the poles are melting, then they're just putting more water into the ocean, which is one of our most valuable reasources. If the tropics warm up, who cares? Just means more vacationers.

Ok, so in the event that global warming is a bad thing, we've got the next issue. Could we cause it, and can we stop it?
Heres a question. If we wanted to, how would we melt the poles? If we wanted to, how would we make the sea level rise? Quite simply, we couldn't. We could nuke the poles, but what would that accompish? Melting about 50 square miles of the poles, out of 2 entire contienents of them? And in the next several weeks, they would just refreeze.
How about the sea level? Considering 98% of the water in the world in salt water, we've got precious little fresh water to raise it with.
So if nukes can't melt the poles, we certainally aren't going to do it with cars and barbecue pits.

If we can't cause it, with our most powerful implements, then how else would we do it? Well, the answer generally comes in the form of greenhouse emissions, which is really code for Carbon dioxide. Well, how much CO2 is caused by nature, and how much is caused by mankind?
Volcanoes it spew forth 5x10^11 kg of CO2 per year. How much comes from all mankind? 17.6X10^12 kg of CO2, or slightly more then all the volcanoes. And volcanoes aren't the only ones that make CO2, termites and cows do as well, each of them more so then all cars in the world, combined. So mankind makes less then half of the greenhouse gases in this world. How can we be causeing the problems, an how much can we do to fix it?

I believe many of the global warming beleivers are exceedingly arogant, in thinking that man can change the entire world's enviroment, either for the better or worse. We cannot alter the cycle of the earths enviroment, and to think so it the hight of arrogance.
Much of the reason that envromental groups have latched onto this, is to have an excuse to try to halt industrial production, which for some reason, they are on a crusade against.

If you've read this far, thats incredible. :D Love to see the comments.

FOXNews.com - Italy Thwarts Subway, Church Terror Attacks - International News | News of the World | Middle East News | Europe News

FOXNews.com: "ROME — Italian authorities have thwarted planned terrorist attacks against a Bologna church and Milan's subway, the interior minister said Thursday.

'There was a terrorist project that was to be carried out in our country and the monitoring and prevention action of our forces allowed us to thwart it,' Interior Minister Giuseppe Pisanu told the Apcom and ANSA news agencies. His office later confirmed the comments to The Associated Press.

Pisanu, who spoke to the agencies while in Sardinia to address a political rally, said the plot involved seven people. Three people have been expelled from Italy, two have been arrested, one was under surveillance and one was at large, ANSA reported."

Wonder why they're going after italy. Good save, Italy.

Federal Budget

USATODAY.com - Growth in federal spending unchecked: "The federal government is currently spending 20.8 cents of every $1 the economy generates, up from 18.5 cents in 2001, White House budget documents show. That's the most rapid growth during one administration since Franklin Roosevelt.

RELATED: How federal spending has climbed since 2001

There are no signs that the trend is about to turn around. The House Budget Committee last week rejected a proposal that would require spending hikes to be offset by cuts in other spending or by tax increases.

This week, the House is scheduled to debate the $2.8 trillion budget for 2007, which projects an additional $3 trillion of debt in the next five years.

The Sept. 11 attacks, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and Gulf Coast hurricanes account for only part of the increased spending.

Other factors: the biggest military buildup in decades, domestic spending, and the rise of benefits for the elderly, poor and disabled."

Some terrible budget descions: Education bill, farm bill, Medicare, Katrina aid.
He's tried to fix it: Social Security, tax code.
What he's done right: 8% Military Buildup, Homeland security, and Tax Cuts.