A tour of the Islamic world

In light of the flurry of important news coming from the Muslim world, I'm putting short shots of the more important ones.

We'll start with Sudan, and this absolutely ridiculous reaction to a British Teacher, living in the country to teach children. Gillian Gibbons is a mother of two children. While in Sudan, her class gave her a teddy bear, and the popular vote for the name was Mohammed. In a civilized society, this wouldn't be an issue, yet in the stone age mentality of Sudan, this was blasphemy of the first order.

Moving on, I'll jump to an older story from Saudi Arabia. It is hard to conceive of a news story that greater exemplifies the abject lack of respect for women, and the effect of an Islamic judicial system.
A girl had sent a picture of herself to a teenage boy when they were both 16, three years ago. Earlier this year, she was married, and in order to protect the 'honor' of her family, she sought out the guy and asked for the picture back. When she went to get it, 7 other men took them both away into a different area of the town. The men proceeded to sexual assault them both for several hours, and returned the woman to her house the next morning. Her husband was outraged, but had to complain to the police 4 times before anything was done.
The verdict was reached in what does not deserve to be called a trial, with among other things, the husband being barred from the court proceedings. The final verdict was 1-5 years for each of the assailants, and 80-1000 lashes. Hardly appropriate for the crime, but what followed is even more disturbing.
""He [judge] said: 'You get 90 lashes. You should thank God you're not in prison.'
"I asked him why and he said: "You know why. Because mingling begets evil.' ""
So she complained to Human rights watch and the media, only to be sentenced to 6 months in prison and 200 lashes. The gang's sentenced was bumped up to a minimum of 2 years, which is still a far cry from what justice demands.

After 'our friends the Saudis' actions, there is, on the surface at least, good news regarding Iran.
According to a recent NIE report, Iran stopped its nuclear program back in 2003. (When did we invade Iraq, again?) While my gut tells me there is nothing true to this report, the Neo-Hitler said ""a declaration of victory for the Iranian nation against the world powers over the nuclear issue."""
Also involving Iran, is an issue that was covered on this blog some time ago, when Iran was discover providing IEDs to Shiite terrorists in Iraq. In recent weeks, Iran has been discovered providing even more aid.

Concerning Iraq, however, we do have positive news, coming even from the liberal outlets.
So, how 'bout that surge, huh?

Iraqi citizens that fled the country when the war began are returning from neighboring nations, most notably Syria. Not only is this an indication of results, but results that have been around long enough for people to feel confident and move back in.
Looks like Iraq will not be the forefront issue this election cycle, at least not in the same light as in the 2006 elections.

Victor David Hansen, a historian who's works I have enjoyed, sums up the middle east well with this thought.
"Remember that the fanatic waving his age-old sword in the Khartoum street over a teddy bear shows the same dangerous derangement as the nut in Tehran who may one day want his hand on the Bomb."

Lenin rolls over in his grave, Chavez looses Communist referendum

Story: " Humbled by his first electoral defeat ever, President Hugo Chavez said Monday he may have been too ambitious in asking voters to let him stand indefinitely for re-election and endorse a huge leap to a socialist state.

"I understand and accept that the proposal I made was quite profound and intense," he said after voters narrowly rejected the sweeping constitutional reforms by 51 percent to 49 percent.

Opposition activists were ecstatic as the results were announced shortly after midnight - with 88 percent of the vote counted, the trend was declared irreversible by elections council chief Tibisay Lucena.

...The defeated reform package would have created new types of communal property, let Chavez handpick local leaders under a redrawn political map and suspended civil liberties during extended states of emergency.

Other changes would have shortened the workday from eight hours to six, created a social security fund for millions of informal laborers and promoted communal councils where residents decide how to spend government funds."

Several things to note here:

• Communism was held at bay in Venezuela, if only for a short time. While the margin of victory was concerning, as this election was only of a 2 point differential, it is a victory for liberty nonetheless.
• Chavez has thrown down the gauntlet to the west on numerous occasions, and in essence, has done so again. We shall see just how long he allows pestering little things like elections get in the way of his power grabs.
• More then 50% of the country voted. What's wrong with the US?

UPDATE: Lenin is probably rejoicing with the results of the Russian, or should I say, Soviet, elections.
Putin pretty much just jigged his election to ensure a victory, with democracies in both the US and Europe crying foul. Gary Karaspov was harassed throughout the campaign, and his party was not allowed to run for parliament. Sore news indeed in what is once again becoming the land of Lenin.

Wanted: Intelligence at CBS News

CBS news job posting on JournalismJobs.com:
" CBS is expanding its coverage of the environment. We seek a talented reporter/host for Internet video broadcast. We are looking for smart, creative, hard working up and comers, who can bring great energy, creativity and a dash of humor to our coverage. A deep interest in the environment and sustainability issues will serve you well.

You are wicked smart, funny, irreverent and hip, oozing enthusiasm and creative energy. This position requires strong people, reporting, story telling and writing skills. Managing tight deadlines should be second nature. Knowledge of the enviro beat is a big plus, but not a requirement.

Responsibilities include reporting and hosting two to three news packages per week plus daily writing for our blog. You should be comfortable using a video camera and the Internet. Be prepared to see America. Heavy domestic travel."

No knowledge of the enviroment required, and must have story telling abilities.
Pretty much sums up what the news agencys already have, but when you throw the part about being funny, hip, and irreverent, thats where the difficulties are encountered.

It's just darned hard to be cheerful when talking about the presumed destruction of the world by the hands of man.





------------------------->>>
The extent of editorial intelligence at CBS News right now.

Basic explanation of the US tax system

Full disclosure: I got this in an email. It's a fantastically simple explanation of the United States Tax system, and deserves to be read.
And if nothing else, it is my first post ever involving alcohol on this blog.

Bar Stool Economics

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all
ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes,
it would go something like this:

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that's what they decided to do.

The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with
the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. "Since
you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the
cost of your daily beer by $20." Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so
the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free.
But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could
they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his 'fair
share?' They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they
subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the
sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar
owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by
roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts
each should pay.

And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four
continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men
began to compare their savings.

"I only got a dollar out of the $20,"declared the sixth man. He
pointed to the tenth man," but he got $10!" "Yeah, that's right,"
exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair
that he got ten times more than I!" "That's true!!" shouted the
seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The
wealthy get all the breaks!" "Wait a minute," yelled the first four
men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine
sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the
bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough
money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, journalists and college professors,
is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get
the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them
for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact,
they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat
friendlier.

French railroad strike waves a white flag, Sarkozy the Victor

Story: "...Yesterday, the strike of rail and subway workers that has crippled France for nine days was clearly crumbling, as workers began returning to work in large numbers and union branches conceded that support for the dispute is collapsing.

"We think a dynamic of return to work has begun," Julie Vion, a spokeswoman for France's state-owned railroad network, SNCF, said.

Union leaders began to concede defeat yesterday. "We have to face reality. Since yesterday's negotiations, things have changed. The strike is no longer the solution. The strike strategy is no longer winning,"...

Managers for SNCF announced yesterday that 42 out of 45 rail union committees have voted to abandon the national strike that has frozen the country's economy, and will return to work without delay."

Good to see socialsm take a hit, even in France.
This Sarkozy President really seems to have it together, and having the political backbone to both start this reform, and successfully pull the first stage off, is something incredible.

American Hegemon

Mark Steyn:
"...But on this Thanksgiving the rest of the world ought to give thanks to American national sovereignty, too. When something terrible and destructive happens – a tsunami hits Indonesia, an earthquake devastates Pakistan – the United States can project itself anywhere on the planet within hours and start saving lives, setting up hospitals and restoring the water supply.

Aside from Britain and France, the Europeans cannot project power in any meaningful way anywhere. When they sign on to an enterprise they claim to believe in – shoring up Afghanistan's fledgling post-Taliban democracy – most of them send token forces under constrained rules of engagement that prevent them doing anything more than manning the photocopier back at the base.

If America were to follow the Europeans and maintain only shriveled attenuated residual military capacity, the world would very quickly be nastier and bloodier, and far more unstable. It's not just Americans and Iraqis and Afghans who owe a debt of thanks to the U.S. soldier but all the Europeans grown plump and prosperous in a globalized economy guaranteed by the most benign hegemon in history.

That said, Thanksgiving isn't about the big geopolitical picture, but about the blessings closer to home. Last week, the state of Oklahoma celebrated its centennial, accompanied by rousing performances of Rodgers and Hammerstein's eponymous anthem:

"We know we belong to the land

And the land we belong to is grand!"

Which isn't a bad theme song for the first Thanksgiving, either.

Three hundred and 86 years ago, the Pilgrims thanked God because there was a place for them in this land, and it was indeed grand. The land is grander today, and that, too, is remarkable: France has lurched from Second Empires to Fifth Republics struggling to devise a lasting constitutional settlement for the same smallish chunk of real estate, but the principles that united a baker's dozen of East Coast colonies were resilient enough to expand across a continent and halfway around the globe to Hawaii."

Absolute brilliance in this column. To often do we forget what the United States has done for the world.
Or perhaps a better way to term it:
What would this world be like without the United States?
How would this world be different without a peaceful empire of liberty stretching from the foamy shores of the Atlantic to the shining coast of the Pacific, with Texas in the middle?


Happy thanksgiving ya'll.

A gap in the space/time blogger-tinium

Ok, so life has become very busy for me in the last few weeks, and as I look forward, I do not see a break in the near future. As I look over my priorities, I'm realizing that as much as I love this blog, it has to fall below 'senior stuff' this year before I graduate.
As such, I'm taking a break for the time being, and I don't know when I shall return. I'll be gone to mexico from Nov. 4-11, so I'll probably leave a report here from the aftermath.

Otherwise, I'm temporarily departing with nothing but happy memories. Thank ya'll.






In the mean time, I would like to recommend some other great blogs, run by people far better at this task then myself.
Matt's Cult of Christ
The Far Wright
Seventh Sola
Mercy Now
Young Dead Elms

That's My King

The greatest man ever to walk the earth...

Couple cleans up house with gun

Story: " My husband Adrian caught the thief red-handed in our home," she said. "And what is even crazier, the man even had my husband's hat sitting right on his head."

Adrian McKinnon held the suspect, 33-year-old Tajuan Bullock, at gunpoint and told him to sit on the floor until he decided what to do.

"We made this man clean up all the mess he made, piles of stuff, he had thrown out of my drawers and cabinets onto the floor," Tiffany McKinnon said.

When police arrived, Bullock complained about being forced to clean the home at gunpoint.

"This man had the nerve to raise sand about us making him clean up the mess he made in my house," she said. "The police officer laughed at him when he complained and said anybody else would have shot him dead."

Brilliant. :D

Stark raving mad on the floor of the House

Iran, Soviets, er, Russians in league for nukes

Story: "Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that the delay in completion of Bushehr power plant has no political reason and Russia is seriously working to complete it as soon as possible.

He told IRNA and the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) that there are issues which should be settled between the two parties.

"Experts from Iran and Russia are currently working to resolve the issue," he said.

Asked about the delivery of fuel by Russia, he said that fuel should be delivered three months ahead of putting the reactor into operation."

So the good 'ol boys over in Russia are working with the Iranians, and no longer in supposed secrecy.
I think it's funny they blame busted equipment, fortunately it gives us more time to sit and watch, as apparently neither party has the intestinal fortitude to act on this looming world threat.

Pack's Back, 5-1

Stuck it to the Redskins

Introducing: The Terrorists choice for President

Story: ""I hope Hillary is elected in order to have the occasion to carry out all the promises she is giving regarding Iraq," stated Ala Senakreh, West Bank chief of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terrorist group. ...

"The Iraqi resistance is succeeding," stated Hamed. "Hillary and the Democrats call for withdrawal. Her popularity shows that the resistance is winning and that the occupation is losing. We just hope that she will go until the end and change the American policy, which is based on oppressing poor and innocent people."

The Brigades, together with the Islamic Jihad terrorist group, took responsibility for every suicide bombing in Israel the past three years. The Brigades also has carried out hundreds of recent shootings and rocket attacks.

Abu Ayman, an Islamic Jihad leader in Jenin, said he is "emboldened" by Clinton's calls for an eventual withdrawal from Iraq.

"It is clear that it is the resistance operations of the mujahideen that has brought about these calls for withdrawal," boasted Abu Ayman.

Nasser Abu Aziz, the West Bank deputy commander of the Al Aqsa Brigades, declared it is "very good" there are "voices like Hillary and others who are now attacking the Iraq invasion.""

This isn't surprising as a concept, that the terrorists would vastly prefer a Dovish Left Wing president over a Hawkish Right Wing president, but I didn't think they would say it.
Take what you will from this story, but not many people will hear about it, and as such, it will have very little impact on the election. Not that it shouldn't, but it won't.
Just remember, on top of all the Neo-Bolshevism she's been bandying around in recent months, she's also the islamo-nazi terrorists choice for Leader of the Free world.

(Picture, btw, is at Reagan's Funeral)
(Note: I refrained from posting this picture, which is somewhat disturbing in nature.)

Packers casually throw Chicago a bone, forfiet game by stupidity (Refs & Pack)

Enjoy it while it lasts, Gino.
Just remember, 12 men on the field.

Army Rips off 2600 soldiers

Story: "When they came home from Iraq, 2,600 members of the Minnesota National Guard had been deployed longer than any other ground combat unit. The tour lasted 22 months and had been extended as part of President Bush's surge.
...
"It's pretty much a slap in the face," Anderson said. "I think it was a scheme to save money, personally. I think it was a leadership failure by the senior Washington leadership... once again failing the soldiers."

Anderson's orders, and the orders of 1,161 other Minnesota guard members, were written for 729 days.

Had they been written for 730 days, just one day more, the soldiers would receive those benefits to pay for school.

"Which would be allowing the soldiers an extra $500 to $800 a month," Anderson said.
...
Both Hobot and Anderson believe the Pentagon deliberately wrote orders for 729 days instead of 730. Now, six of Minnesota's members of the House of Representatives have asked the Secretary of the Army to look into it -- So have Senators Amy Klobuchar and Norm Coleman."

This is simply unacceptable. Two thousand, six hundred men volunteered to serve in the National guard, which traditionally does not provide overseas roles, are send to Iraq for almost 2 years, and they rightly are expecting just compensation. They return home, only to discover that they are offcially deemed to be 1 day short of education and pay benifits.
This situation needs to be addressed, and fixed by the Army quickly, because this is nothing short of a travesty, both to the soldiers and their

Brutal crackdown continues in Burma

Story: "Thousands of protesters are dead and the bodies of hundreds of executed monks have been dumped in the jungle, a former intelligence officer for Burma's ruling junta has revealed.

The most senior official to defect so far, Hla Win, said: "Many more people have been killed in recent days than you've heard about. The bodies can be counted in several thousand."

Mr Win, who spoke out as a Swedish diplomat predicted that the revolt has failed, said he fled when he was ordered to take part in a massacre of holy men.
...
Reports from exiles along the frontier confirmed that hundreds of monks had simply "disappeared" as 20,000 troops swarmed around Rangoon yesterday to prevent further demonstrations by religious groups and civilians.

Word reaching dissidents hiding out on the border suggested that as well as executions, some 2,000 monks are being held in the notorious Insein Prison or in university rooms which have been turned into cells.

Picture (Graphic in Nature)

There were reports that many were savagely beaten at a sports ground on the outskirts of Rangoon, where they were heard crying for help.

Others who had failed to escape disguised as civilians were locked in their bloodstained temples."

So the initial reports were indeed false, and far more blood was spilled by this dictatorship then was previously let on.

As much as I usually don't like hollywood, but Slyvester Stallone was present recently, and only further confirms the brutal nature of this government.
"The 61-year-old actor-director returned to the U.S. eight days ago from shooting "John Rambo," the fourth movie in the action series, on the Salween River separating Thailand and Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.

Stallone said he was in Thailand for six months, most of it along or on the river.

"This is a hellhole beyond your wildest dreams," Stallone said. "All the trails are mined. The only way into Burma is up the river."

This was before the crackdown last week against the largest pro-democracy protests in Myanmar in two decades. After the government increased fuel prices in August, public anger turned to mass protest against 45 years of military dictatorship. Last week, soldiers responded by opening fire with automatic weapons on unarmed demonstrators."

As they say, Power Corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutly. Thank God America has some checks and balences that keep this fragile union in the balence.

Red Dawn again in Burma, freedom silenced.

Story: "Burma’s generals silenced the Buddhist monks yesterday morning.

For a week and a half, the monks had been on the streets of Rangoon in their tens of thousands, and their angry calm gave courage to the people around them.

But overnight, they were beaten, shot and arrested, and locked in their monasteries. Handfuls of them emerged yesterday – two or three brave individuals, a dozen at most – but nothing to approach the mass marches of the previous nine days. Everyone felt their absence.
...
In the Mwe Kya Kan pagoda in the South Okkala district of Rangoon, it began at 2am, but seven hours later the evidence was plain to see – a dozen thick patches of congealing blood and human tissue splashed about the yard. The windows of the monks’ dormitories were smashed jaggedly by the impact of rubber bullets – hard, round spheres fired from green cartridges that the monks had carefully gathered up and put on display.

Inside everything had been smashed – the thin plywood walls, the monks’ plaster statues of the Buddha – and the thin mattresses were soaked with blood.

“We had to flee for our lives into the neighbourhood,” said a small bespectacled young man named Ashin Thu, one of the few monks to have evaded arrest. “A family let me hide in one of their houses, I was so scared.”"

I was watching this story with fascination, but this is my first post on it.
Here's the gist of the story: Thousands of Buddhist monks filed into the streets several days ago, silently protesting the lack of freedom in Burma. Seeing their religious leaders out, thousands more regular people followed them, in some cities, protests numbering 400,000 or more.

That was all before last night. Burma's military cracked down on them, ravaging Buddhist monasteries and killing civilians.

So there are two things that can happen here.
1. This outrages the populace enough to start a violent revolution, and 2-3 years from now, there will be another military dictatorship set up.
2. Now that one 'revolution' has been shut down, the government becomes more crushing then other.
I think 2 is more likely, and it is a sad day for this poor nation.

"It's a Trap!" After unjust hammering, Columbia speaks the truth and hammers Ahmadinejad

Story: "But before he even spoke, the Iranian leader, whose appearance had sparked outrage notably among US politicians and the Jewish community, sat through 10 minutes of broadsides from university president Lee Bollinger.

"Mr President, you exhibit all the signs of a petty and cruel dictator," Bollinger told Ahmadinejad, accusing him of brutal crackdowns on the country's academics and homosexuals.

"Why are you so afraid of Iranian citizens expressing their opinions for change?" he asked, challenging the leader of the Islamic republic to explain his comments downplaying the Holocaust.

"Frankly, in all candor Mr President, I doubt you will have the intellectual courage to answer these questions," he added.

"When you come to a place like this, this makes you quite simply ridiculous. You are either brazenly provocative or astonishingly uneducated," he said.

When he did get to his feet, wearing a white open-necked shirt and gray suit, Ahmadinejad accused Bollinger of a "wave of insults and allegations" while largely avoiding any direct answers to any of Bollinger's challenges."

In other news, it wasn't just Bollinger there to challenge Ahmadinejad. And estimated 25,000 showed up to protest. Many were protesting Ahmadinejad, some were protesting for war in Iran, be it for or against it, and a few were actively denying the holocaust. Nice, big blender of people and their ideals.

When Ahmadinejad was questioned concerning his view on the holocaust, Iran's treatment of women and homosexuals, the Nation of Israel, and other issues...
"But he often declined to offer the simple answers the audience sought, responding instead with his own questions or long statements about history and justice."

Yesterday turned out far better then I anticipated, although I did have hopes it would be this way.

Ahmadinejad in America

Story: "Hatemonger Mahmoud Ahmadinejad landed in a hornet's nest of outrage yesterday as Columbia University prepared to welcome him with open arms today and stuck by a dean's outrageous assertion that it would let Adolf Hitler speak, too.

The Holocaust-denying Iranian tyrant jetted into New York as students, faculty and political leaders protested Columbia's decision to roll out the red carpet.

"It's a stain on the university," said sophomore Elizabeth Friess, 20. "You can't have an open debate with someone who wants to wipe out Israel. There is no reasoning with someone like that."
...

The moderator of the event, School of International and Public Affairs Acting Dean John Coatsworth, has sparked a furor by saying he would invite anyone for a little academic give-and-take - even the Fuhrer himself.

He stood his ground yesterday, telling the Daily News he was talking about the more palatable Hitler when he had "not started the war and the Holocaust hadn't begun."

"There's never a good forum for a dictator," said Coatsworth, "but the advantage of Columbia is he would have been challenged and criticized.""

1. Finally, someone outside the blog sphere and talk radio calls Ahmadinejad for what he his, a hate mongering Muslim anti-Semite. And yet, one of our esteemed universities invites him to speak on its campus. The Dean then has the intestinal fortitude to say, in light of intellectual honesty, that the holocaust creator, Hitler of the Third Reich, would be allowed to speak.

It is so outlandish, that I almost think he's luring Ahmadinejad into a trap, waiting for the vast numbers of Americans on campus to mob him out... But no. Its just one leftist accepting another dictator in the name of tolerance.

And in the mean time, Iran is rattling its saber towards the US.
Iran's version of tolerance?
" Iran’s judiciary has sealed off the offices of a popular news Web site critical of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s policies after journalists continued to update it despite official filtering, the Web site said.

Rights groups and diplomats say there is a broad crackdown on dissenting voices in the Islamic state, which is under growing Western pressure over its disputed nuclear programme. The authorities deny such moves, saying they allow free speech."

That is just about as tolerant ACLU towards prayer in school.

And the Bush Administration's response to the situation?
"White House deputy press secretary Tony Fratto said Friday that the Bush administration had no involvement with Columbia's decision.

"This is a country where people can come and speak their minds," he said, adding, "It would be wonderful if some of the countries that take advantage of that here allowed it for their own citizens there.""

Green Bay Packers: 3-0

Brett Favre: 420 career Tds.YES!

The doors are open...

... and to quote King David, The inmates are running the asylum.

Story: "They were celebrating outside the governor's office Friday as Eliot Spitzer handed a landmark victory to a half-million illegal immigrants.

The state will no longer require proof of citizenship for driver's licenses.
...

The new rules will start to kick in at the end of the year, unless someone finds a way to put a halt to them.

Under the new policy, the Department of Motor Vehicles will accept foreign passports and birth certificates from immigrants as proof of identification. They will no longer need to provide a Social Security card"

I don't get it... why on earth would anyone consider this a good idea?

A shadow of the past

Story:" The cause of Thursday's demonstrations dates to August 2006, when a black Jena High School student asked the principal whether blacks could sit under a shade tree that was a frequent gathering place for whites. He was told yes. But nooses appeared in the tree the next day. Three white students were suspended but not criminally prosecuted. LaSalle Parish District Attorney Reed Walters said this week he could find no state law covering the act....

The noose incident was followed by fights between blacks and whites, culminating in December's attack on white student Justin Barker, who was knocked unconscious. According to court testimony, his face was swollen and bloodied, but he was able to attend a school function that same night.

Six black teens were arrested. Five were originally charged with attempted second-degree murder—charges that have since been reduced for four of them. The sixth was booked as a juvenile on sealed charges.
...
"I believe in people standing up for what's right," said resident Ricky Coleman, 46, who is white. "What bothers me is this town being labeled racist. I'm not racist."

Mychal Bell, now 17, is the only one of the defendants to be tried. He was convicted of aggravated second-degree battery, but his conviction was tossed out last week by a state appeals court that said Bell, who was 16 at the time of the beating, could not be tried as an adult on that charge.

He remained in jail pending an appeal by prosecutors. An appellate court on Thursday ordered a hearing to be held within three days on his request for release. The other five defendants are free on bond.

A group of about a dozen white residents and black demonstrators engaged in an animated but not angry exchange during the march. Whites asked blacks if they were aware of Bell's criminal record. Blacks replied that Jena High administrators mishandled the incidents."

This is shameful. Comparing this kind of march, where there is almost no issue at stake, to the marches for freedom that were led by Dr. King, is simply reprehensible. The fire, the passion, and the justice of what they wanted, indeed, deserved, is undeniable.
But this? This is nothing but old lions trying to recover some of their lost glory, and a bunch of college kids trying to make themselves as important in their eyes as their parents are in the eyes of others. But defending a couple of kids with a criminal record after they assault other students, there's no honor in that.

If this was a group of white people protesting somewhere else, say, the Duke Lacrosse trial...
It'd be a revival of a clan. But this? No, this is just a civil rights march!

Hatred on the Left: Hilary

Story:""Vice President Cheney came up to see the Republicans yesterday. You can always tell when the Republicans are getting restless, because the Vice President’s motorcade pulls into the Capitol, and Darth Vader emerges," Hillary Clinton said just now at a $100-a-head fundraiser at Town Hall near New York's Times Square, referring to Cheney's efforts shore up Republican congressional support for the Iraq war.
...
She was referring specifically to the White House's successful effort to stem Republican support for Senator Jim Webb's legislation to limit troop deployments, which failed today in the Senate by a vote of 56-44, short of the 60 it needed to pass."

Darth Vader? The Dark Lord of the Sith and Dick Cheney do not compare.
Seesh, it cannot be that unusual for a veep to go and rally the troops on Capitol Hill before a bill.
And talk about your creative political insults...

Syria, N. Korea, Iran together-forever with nukes?

Times Online: " Andrew Semmel, a senior US State Department official, said Syria might have obtained nuclear equipment from “secret suppliers”, and added that there were a “number of foreign technicians” in the country.

Asked if they could be North Korean, he replied: “There are North Korean people there. There’s no question about that.” He said a network run by AQ Khan, the disgraced creator of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons, could be involved.

But why would nuclear material be in Syria? Known to have chemical weapons, was it seeking to bolster its arsenal with something even more deadly?

Alternatively, could it be hiding equipment for North Korea, enabling Kim Jong-il to pretend to be giving up his nuclear programme in exchange for economic aid? Or was the material bound for Iran, as some authorities in America suggest?" "

Further details emerge, it was not solely a syria cache, but rather, one made and operated with North Korean assistance, as well with ties to Iran.

What this article claims, is that the Syrian air defense network is far superior to Irans', yet Isreal was able to waltz in, with commandos 'painting' the target, blow the tar out of the objective, and leave, all without a loss of Israeli life. That may prove significant in the coming year.

In other news, an Army Robot scored a kill on some terrorists planting a bomb.
Ha ha, tell allah you were killed by a souless machine!

Isreal Sticks it to Syria, Iran

Story: "After days of silence from the Israeli government, American officials confirmed Tuesday that Israeli warplanes launched airstrikes inside Syria last week, the first such attack since 2003.

A Defense Department official said Israeli jets had struck at least one target in northeastern Syria last Thursday, but the official said it was still unclear exactly what the jets hit and the extent of the bombing damage. Syria has lodged a protest at the United Nations in response to the airstrike, accusing Israel of “flagrant violation” of its airspace. But Israel’s government has repeatedly declined to comment on the matter.

Officials in Washington said that the most likely targets of the raid were weapons caches that Israel’s government believes Iran has been sending the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah through Syria.

Iran and Syria are Hezbollah’s primary benefactors, and American intelligence officials say a steady flow of munitions from Iran runs through Syria and into Lebanon. In the summer of 2006, during fighting between Israeli and Hezbollah forces, the militant group fired hundreds of missiles into Israel, surprising Israel with the extent and sophistication of its arsenal.

Israel has tried repeatedly to get the United Nations to prevent the arms shipments across the Syria-Lebanon border. "

Finally! Some one took action on Iran, if only at a distance. Now we have an explanation for why Syria was firing at Isreali planes, they were being attacked. I have nothing but applause for this move by the Isrealis.

9/11/2001

Never Forget

'Bin Ladin' pipes up, hates Bush

Story: & Transcript"Bush talks about his working with Al-Maliki and his government to spread freedom, but he is in fact working with the leaders of one sect against the leaders of another sect, in the belief that this will quickly decide the war in his favor.
And thus, what is called the civil war came into being, and matters worsened at his hand before getting out of his control and him becoming like one who plows and sows the seas, he harvests nothing but failure.
"That the morality and culture of the holocaust is your culture, not our culture. In fact, the burning of living beings is forbidden in our religion, even if they be small like the ant, so what of a man? The holocaust of the Jews was carried out by your brethren in the middle of Europe, but had it been closer to our countries, most of the Jews would have been saved by taking refuge with us. And my proof for that is in what your brothers, the Spanish, when they set up the horrible courts of inquisition to try Muslims and Jews, when the Jews only found safe refuge in our countries. And that is why the Jewish community in Morocco is one of the largest in the world..."

Ok, so Bin laden has a way of presenting a pseudo-intellectual arguments in a video.
Of course, that is provided this is Bin Laden. Honestly, it looks fishy.

Still, there is a truth about middle Eastern culture that runs deep here. They tend to have far, far longer memories then we do, and claim to see little distinction between ideologies of the west. Lumping the free thinking of the west in with the putrid ideology of Nazism and the tyranny of the Spanish Monarchy is absurd, yet because of this in the past, we are more dangerous to Jews then Muslims are.

If Bin laden hates us being in Iraq, might that indicate some success we are having?

It's too early

Count down to election: 14 months.

Toughts from the Straw Poll

I just came back from the first ever Texas straw poll, and I'm recharged politically.

First of all, Ron Paul may be a fine, upstanding man, but his campaign is one nasty cat of a campaign. It seemed at the beginning like half the place was a Ron Paul supporter, with all the noise, both positive and negative they made.
I support a lot of Ron Paul's stands, but he simply ignores the threat of Islam, and the terrorists within, to the western world.
And, booing when Dick Cheney comes up on screen is simply unacceptable.

Now before I went, I had absolutely no preference for any of the candidates, just anyone besides Rudi, Mitt and John McCain.
Well, I found my new candidate to support.
I'd like ya'll to meed Ray McKinney. His speech was a gigantic breath of fresh air to the status quo, and while I doubt he will win the primary, I am supporting him for President. He's not a politician, just a man disappointed with his country's course.

AND WHAT IS UP WITH FRED THOMPSON?? THE MAN HASN'T EVEN ANNOUNCED....Yeahggg....

As for Duncan Hunter, I could be happy with him. Yet, his protectionist agenda rubs me wrong, but I'd take him over the big three easily.

Blogging at 800

This marks the 800th post in Pushing Back the Frontiers of Ignorance history.
But lest you assume I am doing this just to make another post, there is a history lesson.

I don't think many of you were around well nigh (sept. 14, 2004) 3 years ago when a friend of mine started this place, under the name of 'What in the World is Going on?' Those were a more light hearted time in the blog sphere, and with our blog.
Alas, all things must end, and she moved on to the highly successful Beauty from the Heart.
I changed the name at some point after that, and began a daily bid to push back the frontiers of ignorance.

Thanks for staying with me through this lackadaisical (blog-posting-wise) summer!

Smoking, at 100

Story: "An iron-lunged pensioner has celebrated her 100th birthday by lighting up her 170,000th cigerette from a candle on her birthday cake.

Winnie Langley started smoking only days after the First World War broke out in June 1914 when she was just seven-years-old - and has got through five a day ever since.

She has no intention of quitting, even after the nationwide ban forced tobacco-lovers outside.

Speaking at her 100th birthday party Winnie said: "I have smoked ever since infant school and I have never thought about quitting."

That is dedication.

In other news, we have 2 presidential canidates deciding that we need a national ban on smoking. Not like that would be an egregious breech of personal freedoms, or anything.
Hilary Clinton: "Asked at an Iowa forum on cancer whether banning smoking in public places would be good for America, Clinton replied, "Well, personally, I think so. And that's what a lot of local communities and states are starting to do.""
Mike Huckabee would support a national ban on indoor smoking as well. This is unfortunate, I expected more from a republican canidate.

Kansas City, home again

Ok, so I'm back for real now. School starts tomorrow, and that will most definitely affect my posting rate. But, I'll try to regain a steady pace.
And pictures aren't working for posting right now, but a fast recap.
Stayed in KC for three nights, visited 'Worlds of Fun' and nauseated myself with the rides, then visited Arrowhead Stadium for a Preseason NFL game with the Chiefs and the Saints.
The next day (Friday), we visited the Harley-Davidson Plant, and I whacked a former Marine's truck with our vehicle, and we then went to a Royals baseball game.
And then fireworks. Golly, Fireworks.

The next morning, we started driving home. And now we're back home after a nice dinner in Oklahoma City.

Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City

Ok, so its been a long time since I've posted, but I'm back. For now. :D

I must say, coming back online and seeing ya'll's discussion on my drinking choices, be it Old Style, Pinot Noir, or Welches. Still, I'll stick with my Vault and Water.

So, Recap:
We drove to DeVry university and parked on Wednesday night last week. From there, we took the shuttle over to Wrigley Field. It then rained for an hour and a half, so I sat there listening to podcasts waiting for the game to start. The atmosphere at this stadium, and the exuberance of the fans, not just towards the Cubs, but just for
the game of baseball was great. Cubs lost, and the Reds won. But the Hot Dogs were fantastic, and the people were great, and the stadium definitely has its charms. As one of the other people said, everybody should make a trip to Mecca once.

The next day, we went down and just walked the downtown area of the city, topping it off with a dinner at Pizzera Uno. Good stuff, if rather expensive and crowded.

The next morning, we drove over to a small rural town outside of St. Louis, and stayed Friday night. Our friends from Texas were moving in this weekend, so we helped with that.
That was Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Tuesday, we took off to St. Louis for a Cardinals game.
After parking, which is far less expensive in St. Louis then in Chicago, we walked over to Busch Stadium and took a tour of it. Sat in the dugout, and realized that if your rich and have $28,000 to spend on seats, there are simply incredible seats to have.
I hadn't realized it before hand, but the Cardinals are second only to the Yankees in number of World Series rings.

After the tour, we took off to the St. Louis Arch and Jefferson Expansion Memorial. At first, I was indifferent to visiting this, but after being there, I can do nothing but recommend it. The arch itself is magnificent from both the outside and on top. But the real star of the place, in my mind, is the museum underground. Starting with Lewis and Clark, and carrying through the rest of our manifest destiny to the conquering of a continent, it was a brilliant display. I was there for an hour, and managed to make about 15% of the way through.


Meanwhile, part of my family was watching
batting practice. So we caught back up with each other, and the game started.
First of all, Busch Stadium is a great park, if the concessions are expensive.
Second, the fans are even better then the cubs fans. They don't boo their own pitcher.
Third, the Cardinals are a good team.
So the game was quiet until the 8th, and the Cards busted out a 4 inning to win the game.

And I decided I like Albert Pujols.
A. He hits Home Runs.
B. He fields well.
C. Nice Charity.

So now I'm in Kansas City, I'll come back later. Incidentally, Bush is here right now. I won't meet him, but it is the closest I've been since Election Day.

Still alive

Hey, Still alive. I'll be back in a few days. Thanks ya'll!

Obama on Afganistan

Story: "Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama came under fire Tuesday for saying that U.S. troops in Afghanistan are "just air-raiding villages and killing civilians." The junior senator from Illinois made the comment Monday at a campaign stop in Nashua, New Hampshire.

"We've got to get the job done there," he said of Afghanistan. "And that requires us to have enough troops so that we're not just air-raiding villages and killing civilians, which is causing enormous pressure over there."

The comment drew a rebuke Tuesday from the campaign of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

"That is a very troubling remark on so many levels," said Romney spokesman Kevin Madden. "Most importantly, it's emblematic of Senator Obama's lack of experience for the job of commander-in-chief. But it's also an entirely inaccurate condemnation of the efforts of the men and women of the United States military who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.""

To quote Gino on Obama: "Brilliant Barack. Just brilliant. You never miss a chance to say nothing, do you."

Mitt, thank you for saying what needed to be said.

In other news, I'm having a great trip. Stopped in Oklahoma City, went to a Redhawks game, then stayed the night in the middle of some Illinois farm country, then went to the Lincoln museum in Springfield (If you ever go there, grab some hot dogs from 'Weinerdog' a few blocks away. Great stuff.), then spent the night at the Indiana Dunes state park. I'll spend the next two days in Chicago.

I guess its fitting to post with Obama in it, seeing as I am in his jurisdiction. And in light of that, this is a picture I took at Lincoln's museum. It is in the gift ship in the area set aside for biographies on Lincoln.

Perspective on Iraq

Approx. number of US murder victims in 2005:
16,500 (cite)

Approx. number of US highway fatalities in 2005:
43, 443 (cite)

Approx. number of US abortions in 2003:
1, 287,000 (cite)


Number of United States Soldiers Killed in Iraq from 2002-2007:
3,683 (cite)

Public Sees Media as Uncaring, Wrong

Story:" More than two-thirds of the Internet users said they felt that news organizations don't care about the people they report on; 59 percent said their reporting was inaccurate; and 64 percent they were politically biased.

More than half -- 53 percent -- of Internet users also faulted the news organizations for "failing to stand up for America".

Among those who get their news from newspapers and television, criticism of the news organizations was up to 20 percentage points lower than among Internet news audiences, who tend to be younger and better educated than the public as a whole, according to Pew.

The poll indicates an across the board fall in the public's opinion on the news media since 1985, when a similar survey was conducted by Times Mirror, Pew Research said.

"Two decades ago, public attitudes about how news organizations do their job were less negative. Most people believed that news organizations stood up for America... a majority believed that news organizations got the facts straight," Pew said in a report. "

People are smart, and I think most of us know when we're being lied to. Which only happens for 6 half hour periods each night on TV.
I do find it interesting that Internet users are more suspicious of media in general. Perhaps there is some credence to the theory of Seniors sitting around watching CNN and getting panicked, and then voting democrat because they have nothing else.

The surge is effective - Even in the MSM

Story: " The new U.S. military strategy in Iraq, unveiled six months ago to little acclaim, is working.

In two weeks of observing the U.S. military on the ground and interviewing commanders, strategists and intelligence officers, it's apparent that the war has entered a new phase in its fifth year.
...
The U.S. military, partnering in many instances with Iraqi forces, is now creating that security cushion—not everywhere, but in much of the north, the west and most importantly in key areas of Baghdad.

Sectarian killings continue and extremist groups remain a threat, yet they are being squeezed harder. The U.S. military has caught some momentum, thanks to the extra 30,000 troops—for a total of 159,000 on the ground—that Bush agreed to send as part of the new counterinsurgency strategy announced in January. The troops are interacting more with the local people and are protecting them more effectively."

Its working. Out of time, I'm on a different computer, my laptop is broken.
I'll be back later

7 Arrested in Reporter's Murder

Story: "A day after a prominent newspaper editor was shot to death downtown, the police here on Friday arrested seven men and seized several weapons that they suspected were used in his killing and those of two other men.

Oakland police officials said they suspected that the men were part of a group operating “a very violent criminal enterprise” out of a neighborhood bakery.

The arrests came after a predawn raid by SWAT teams at the bakery, the Your Black Muslim Bakery, and three bakery-owned properties, where the police found several firearms, including the gun they believe was used to kill the editor, Chauncey Bailey, of the weekly Oakland Post.
...
One of seven men arrested on Friday was Yusef Bey IV, the son of the bakery’s founder, Yusef Bey, a well-known local black Muslim leader who died in 2003.
...
The police said the raid came after a lengthy investigation of other crimes, including two kidnappings on a single day in May, and two killings in July that occurred in the same north Oakland neighborhood where the bakery is located. The police had connected those crimes and put the bakery under surveillance before Mr. Bailey was killed.

“During our investigation, Chauncey Bailey was murdered, and it turns out that the evidence in that case also linked the same individuals we were looking at in the other two prior murders to that case,” said Lt. Ersie Joyner of the Oakland Police Department....

The bakery’s operators had been investigated by the police in the past. In 2002, the founder, Mr. Bey, was charged with rape, sodomy and lewd acts with a child under 14, stemming from accusations that he had fathered a child with a 13-year-old girl in 1982. Mr. Bey died of cancer in 2003 before his trial began.

In late 2005, several members of the group that operates the bakery, including the younger Mr. Bey, were charged in an attack at a small neighborhood grocery store, in which liquor bottles were smashed and other merchandise was destroyed. The attack was treated as a felony hate crime, the police said, because the store, which is owned by Muslims, had sold goods forbidden by Islamic law.
...
Lieutenant Joyner said that many residents of the neighborhood surrounding the bakery had been afraid of the Muslim group, whose members sometimes shot automatic rifles in the air in a show of intimidation. Other members of the group, the police said, flaunted their defiance of outstanding warrants on assault and gun charges.
...
By midafternoon, the bakery had been boarded up and closed by the city’s health department. "

Sorry, that is an avalanche of information. Let me try and boil it down, in the event you didn't read it.
1. A newspaper editor, Mr. Bailey, was murdered by shotgun in broad daylight in downtown Oakland yesterday. These are the men responsible, or better put, suspected.
2. The SWAT teams took 7 of the 9 suspects down at their staging house/bakery, Your Black Muslim Bakery.
3. Yusef Bey IV is the only confirmed arrested suspect, and the likely ringleader.
4. Yusef and his band are considered responsible for two kidnappings and two murders in their neighborhood in the last year.
5. Yusef is the son of a 'local black Muslim leader', who was investigated in 2002 for lewd acts with a minor, rape and sodomy. He was also suspected to have fathered a child with a 14 year-old girl.
6. The band is also charged with attacking a rival grocery store for selling non-islam approved items.
7. Repeated reports of intimidation by fire-arms, and a refusal to follow fire arm policy.



Radical Muslim terrorists, or just another violent street gang, or possiblly something else?
And if guns are outlawed, then only outlaws will have guns.
I gotta run, I may edit this later. Something seems squirrly to me here.

Ruskies claim Santa's domain

Story:" Russian explorers dived deep below the North Pole in a submersible on Thursday and planted a national flag on the seabed to stake a symbolic claim to the energy riches of the Arctic.
A mechanical arm dropped a specially made rust-proof titanium flag onto the Arctic seabed at a depth of 4,261 meters (13,980 ft) under the surface,
...
Under international law, the five states with territory inside the Arctic Circle -- Canada, Norway, Russia, the United States and Denmark via its control of Greenland -- have a 320 km (200 mile) economic zone around the north of their coastline.
...
"The aim of this expedition is not to stake Russia's claim but to show that our shelf reaches to the North Pole," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters in Manila, where he is attending a regional security conference."

What is up the Russians? I suppose leaving well enough alone with this issue just was not good enough.
Anyways, it'll all be melting soon anyways, so they may have a point, the early bird gets the worm.