Re: Backlash to Pelosi's Foot-in-Mouth Syndrome...

UPDATED

I'm sure many of you are well aware of Nancy Pelosi putting her foot in her mouth a week or two ago on Meet The Press, when she claimed to be an "ardent, practicing Catholic" then went on to espouse deeply flawed and completely inaccurate historical Church theology to support her position on abortion. Add to that the Democratic VP candidate Joe Biden who is also Catholic, yet is also pro-abortion.

You all can find much better commentary throughout the web on the issue and the resultant backlash (Whispers in the Loggia, Fr. Z, West Coast Catholic, Jimmy Akin, Insight Scoop, First Things, Amy Welborn, Catholic Minority Report, among others - see my links in the left column). I've lost count on how many bishops have spoken out (sometimes quite forcefully, and with much clarity) about the absolute nonsense Pelosi claimed, the danger that it poses, and also laid out the unvarnished and clear truth about the Church's 2000-year position and teaching on this crucial issue on life.

The list of Bishops includes (from Fr. Z's site):

Archbishop Chaput and Bishop Conley of Denver
Cardinal Egan of New York (probably the strongest statement)
Archbishop Donald Weurl of Washington D.C.
Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia and Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, CT on behalf of the USCCB (on USCCB homepage)
Bishop Sheridan of Colorado Springs
Bishop Zubik of Pittsburgh (on homepage)
Archbishop Neinstadt of St. Paul, MN (on homepage)
Archbishop Gomez and Bishop Contu of San Antonio, TX (on homepage)
Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo, ND
Bishop Farell of Dallas, TX
Bishop Murphy of Rockville Centre (Long Island)
Bishop Listecki of LaCrosse, WI NEW (added Aug 30)

Add to that Burke (now in Rome, formerly of St. Louis)

Seems B16's visit to the U.S. in April, and his "instruction" to the bishops, is starting to have an affect. For some, at least. SF Archbishop Niederauer (diocese that covers Pelosi's district) is supposedly issuing a statement on Sept. 5. (???) LA Cardinal Mahony hasn't said "boo". Neither has Wilmington, DE, Bishop Malooly (diocese that covers Biden's residence).


FYI: The Didache (DID-ah-KAY) is a brief and concise 16 chapter document on the norms and practices of the early Christian/Catholic Church and community. It's known as "The Doctorine of the 12 Apostles" and was written during the first century:

"For convenience the contents may be divided into three parts: the first is the "Two Ways", the Way of Life and the Way of Death; the second part is a rituale dealing with baptism, fasting, and Holy Communion; the third speaks of the ministry. Doctrinal teaching is presupposed, and none is imparted."

In Chapter 2 is this clear sentence, in Latin:

"You shall not murder a child by abortion nor kill that which is begotten."

Can't get any clearer than that. For even more detailed and voluminous clarity from early Church History on the issue, read this post.

UPDATED LIST of Bishop's who've spoken out against Pelosi (as of 9/5).

Schwarzenegger Out, Fred In!

With failing CA Governor AH-nold Schwarzenegger (I voted for McClintock in the special election four years ago) struggling in office to pass a state budget, he's staying put and will not be at the RNC Convention next week. In his place to give the prime time speech on Tuesday night is... Fred Thompson!

Awesome.

One RINO-squish gone; one True Conservative in the spotlight.

UPDATE: Looks like the RNC is cutting Day 1 (Monday) to just the essentials. No speeches or big hoopla. With Hurricane Gustav roaring up the Gulf, and six major speakers staying put to deal with any potential storm issues (FL-Gov Crist, AL-Gov Riley, MS-Gov Barbour, LA-Gov Jindal, TX-Gov Perry, plus Pres. Bush and VP Cheney also heading to the area).

The Classy First Response from The Obamessiah Campaign...

After McCain made & broadcast a genuine and sincere video congratulating The Obamessiah on his historic accomplishment, and after McCain officially announced and introduced Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate, this is the first thing that The Obamessiah campaign had to say about her:

"Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency. Governor Palin shares John McCain's commitment to overturning Roe v. Wade, the agenda of Big Oil and continuing George Bush's failed economic policies - that's not the change we need, it's just more of the same," said Bill Burton, Obama campaign spokesman.

Classy, huh?

Nevermind that they try to diminish her as "the former mayor of a town of 9,000" (meanwhile, The Obamessiah vocally touts his "community organizer" credentials and his four years as a Senator - less experience than Dan Quayle had, while Palin was City Councilwoman, Mayor, State Ethics Commissioner, and Governor, with more executive experience than Obama, Biden and McCain combined!).

Nevermind that they try to claim her "zero foreign policy experience" (she's the Governor of a state that borders Canada and Russia, meanwhile The Obamessiah has no foreign policy experience of his own).

Nevermind that he states that she'd be " a heartbeat away from the presidency" (meanwhile, The Obamessiah - with less experience - is hoping to actually be the President).

Nevermind that he points a finger at his opponents' "commitment to overturning Roe v. Wade" (meanwhile The Obamessiah is so radiocally to the left of this issue that he forcefully opposed the Baby Born Alive Act four times while in the Illinois state congress).

Nevermind that The One claims that she has an "agenda of Big Oil" (if he'd just look at her record he'd see that she actually went up against Big Oil and the "Good Ol' Boy" network, and fought corruption from all political parties - including her own; The One, though, has his own issues with connections to the likes of unrepentant American terrorist Bill Ayers and convicted felon Tony Rezko).

Nevermind that The Obamessiah charges that the McCain team will "continuing George Bush's failed economic policies" (meanwhile, the economy never gets into a recession, oil prices have dropped 20% since mid-July, GDP grew more than expected, and unemployment remains steady).

Nevermind that they try to make the claim that "that's not the change we need, it's just more of the same" (meanwhile, The Obamessiah picks Joe Biden - actively the fifth longest serving Senator at 36 years, and who started his career as the ultimate D.C. insider when The One was 9 years old).

Nevermind that The Obamessiah doesn't even mention the historic achievement of the second woman to be on a National ticket, just days from the 88th anniversary of women's suffrage, introduced on Palin's 20th wedding anniversary and on McCain's 72nd birthday (meanwhile, McCain praised and congratulated Obama on being the first (half-)African-American to be nominated on the 45th anniversary of MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech. Or that The One and his own Lady MacBeth (Michelle) had such big egos and harbored so much hate of the Original Lady MacBeth (Hillary) to not even consult her on his VP selection, let alone not even pick her as his running mate. Or that The Hildabeast herself was filled with so much ego and disdain of The One that she could never bring herself to accepting yet another "second fiddle" political post).

And they say that Sarah Palin is inexperienced??? To paraphrase a commenter from one of the many blogs covering this whole thing:

"Excuse me... Mr. Pot? Mrs. Kettle is on Line 2."

P.S. Mark Steyn chimes in. Charlie Martin over at American Thinker comments, as well.

UPDATE: Several more commentaries - Over at RWN is a 12-point comment by Morgan Freeberg. Also at RWN is a 25-point comment by Gina Cobb. And RedState has a side-by-side comparison of Palin vs. Obama by Jeff Emanuel (a few minor inaccuracies, but otherwise very good). And the McCain campaign has raised over $7,000,000 since Palin was introduced as his Veep.

Video of Palin's Introductory Speech @ Dayton, OH

Masterfully Played, Mr. McCain... Masterfully Played!

First, McCain launches the following video after Biden gave his acceptance speech:



Then pix got leaked about The Obamessiah's Greek/Roman "Barthenon" backdrop at Mile High Stadium:



Notice that the only times The Obamessiah needs flags (and so many) are when he had to hold that press conference in Philly to distance himself from 20-year spiritual mentor Rev. Jeremiah "G-D America" Wright, and last night in front of the entire universe.

It was supposed to be a mock-up of the White House. Either way, it looked bad because if it's the Barthenon then it perpetuates the whole god-like image, and if it's the White House then it's the height of presumption (just like when he tried to float the faux "Presidential Seal"):



Then McCain pulls one head fake and airs the following ad in the Battleground states (and with the internet, EVERYONE gets to see it):



Which through the Obamessiah campaign off it's game (what, McCain being nice and genuine and congratulatory?).

Then, after the over-inflated empty rhetoric from The Obamessiah last night, all the news outlets were supposed to be gloating and glowing about The One and his "Oratory From On High." Instead? To quote Ross Perot, that "giant sucking sound" is the entire political universe talking about McCain and his mavericky pick as his running mate -- Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin:



* Young (44)
* Female (the first Republican female VP candidate)
* Family Woman (Married with five kids: her oldest about to serve in Iraq, and her youngest has Down Syndrome)
* Career Woman with Executive Experience (Governor 2 years, former Ethics Commissioner, former Mayor, former City Councilwoman)
* Husband works in oil fields and is also a commercial fisherman
* Social Conservative with a Strong Pro-Life & Pro-Family record
* Fiscal Conservative
* Maverick Reformer (taking on corruption in both political parties)
* 80% approval rating in Alaska
* Strong and knowledgeable on oil and energy (active "drill here, drill now" proponent)
* Supporter of 2nd Amendment and lifetime member of the NRA
* Avid hunter, fisher and sportswoman
* Attractive (former runner-up in Miss Alaska contest)
* Intelligent
* Her state borders two countries: Canada and Russia (right across the Bering Strait - crucial in today's foreign policy climate)
* Can hold her own, politically (I can't wait for Joe Biden to do in the VP debate what he inevitably does - stick not just one but both feet into his mouth)

Perfectly played, McCain! Masterfully done!

Let the games begin.

P.S. *cough* I mentioned Palin as a great choice back on July 21.

UPDATE: The college kid who may have been responsible. And his website.

UPDATE #2: John over at RWN has a great post with excerpts from members of the Hillary Clinton Forum. They are flocking to McCain.

P.P.S. I cannot wait for the Biden v. Palin debate. That may be the under-card, but that debate will be THE showdown to watch with a large box o' popcorn.

A Lot of Hot Air...

No, not the speakers at the Democratic Convention (that's a completely different sort of hot air). The hot air I'm talking about is the so-called "alternative energy" scam that's currently blowing through with wind power. RWN had an interesting post that kinda puts things in perspective. I like perspective... goes well with common sense.

"An Inconvenient Penguin" now available as a download!

Back in the spring I posted about my friend's humorous mockumentary, An Inconvenient Penguin. Well, now it's available as a download for PC users on Amazon.com. It's only three bucks to buy this 20 minute short, and if you love watching Al Gore get mocked then this is for you.

Mac users will have to be patient. Downloads for that platform are coming soon.

Chess vs. Poker

RedState has an interesting post regarding the Russia/Georgia situation, in which he challenges Spengler's charge that Russia is playing a Chess match while "stupid" America is playing Monopoly. Streiff counters that what America is play is Poker.

Is McCain About to Royally Screw Up His Chance?...

The following is the most recent McCain internet ad:



This concerns me. Why? Not because he's using Hillary's own words about The Obamessiah to great effect. It's because the ad starts out with the words: "She won millions of votes, but isn't on his ticket."

That may be a tip that on August 29 McCain is going to announce Romney as his running mate. If he doesn't, then Mccain's own ad opens himself up to the same attack. If he does pick Romney, then McCain will lose millions of voters that he's taking for granted. Millions of evangelicals, other Christians, and conservatives.

Including this Catholic conservative!

Romney is nothing but an overly slick Clintonesque politician. A New England/Massachusetts liberal in the general mold of Kennedy, Kerry, Tsongas, Dukakis, and Weld, who only "saw the light" about abortion and his new-found Pro Life stance after he decided to run for President two years ago. Add to that the whole mormon issue and, well......

McCain picks Romney. I vote write-in. And, to quote Rev. Wright, the country be damned if they're too stupid enough to trust either The Obamessiah or The McCainiac. I hope I'm wrong. But this ad is telling me I may be right. And McCain won't know what hit him until it's too late.

And, maybe, that'll cause a groundswell within the huge conservative base of the Republican party to be so outraged about being either fooled or taken advantage of that they'll seriously try to recruit a REAL conservative to run as an unaffiliated independent against BOTH of the major party's candidates -- kinda like a Ross Perot 2.0, but only sane... and with real conservative credentials.

Or, maybe, we could all vote "NO OF THE ABOVE" -- I'm sure it'll get over 50%. Is that enought "change" for you, Obamessiah? Is that "maverick" enough for you, McCainiac? *sigh*

August 29.

Your move, McCain.

The Obamessiah - the gift that keeps on giving...

He actually choose Joe Biden - a political insider/Washington career man: three short years as a lawyer fresh out of law school, then 36 long years in the Senate. No executive experience. No business experience. The only foreign policy experience is while sitting on his butt in congressional committees.

Seems The Obamessiah needed to fill up the foreign policy gravitas jar, especially after the recent events with Russia in Georgia. He could've picked from the likes of Sam Nunn, Wesley Clarke, Jim Webb, Richard Clark, or even Colin Powell. Something tells me they all said no.

Instead, The Obamessiah had to resort to Joe Biden?!? (And don't tell me Ol' Joe wasn't angling this from the get-go... he's one shrewd character.) A guy who's been a harsh critic of The Obamessiah's lack of experience. A guy who tends to go off on tangents and not be able to find his way back on topic. A guy who tends to say the most notoriously politically incorrect things, in the worst way (remember his 7/11 "Indian accent" comment some years back?). A guy who constantly flashes his toothy grin like a used car salesman. A guy with a really bad mean streak (even the lefty media late last night were calling him The Obamessiah's attack dog).

So, he disses the PUMAs by not picking The Hildabeast (she was never going to play second fiddle to him after being in that role all her life behind Billy). He disses them even some more by not picking another female.

He also disses his base because he chooses a career D.C. politician (which doesn't fit too well with the whole youthful "Change" theme).

I may disagree with Hugh Hewitt at times, but there are also times when he is spot-on. Like this morning when he calls Biden the "Cliff Clavin" of D.C. (I'd add, "with a mean streak").

Now all McCain has to do is pick either Palin or Kasich and ride his way into the White House. Sarah Palin would be great because all Biden would need to do is say one snarky thing to her or about her and the media and the women voters will be all over him like a cheap suit. John Kasich is familiar with Biden when he was a congressman, and is so affable and likable that anything Ole Joe says would run off Kasich like water off a duck's back.

NObama '08
KEEP THE CHANGE!

NObama '08
BECAUSE IT'S ABOVE
HIS PAYGRADE

Obama/Biden '08
ON-THE-JOB TRAINING

Obama/Biden '08
DUMB & DUMBERER

It's like Christmas in August!!!

UPDATE: Looks like the McCain camp was ready to go on this one. (Hah!)



UPDATE #2: Man, it gets even better and better. They can't even get out of the gate at the introduction rally without both of them making gaffes. First, The Obamessiah introduces Biden as "... the next president...":

(heh)

Then Biden introduces The Obamessiah as "... the next president of the United States, Barack America.":


This truly is Christmas in August!

UPDATE #3: *sigh* And, just like clockwork, Hugh Hewitt starts shilling for Romney again.

The Obamessiah Speaks! (humor)

This has been making the rounds today:



Heh-heh-heh...

Meanwhile, on to much more serious issues regarding The Obamessiah and abortion (hat-tip to RedState).

Speculators?... What Oil Speculators???

A number of people (experts as well as the general public) had sneaking suspicions that a large part of the reason oil prices went through the roof this summer (along with certain foreign countries purposely slowing down supply) is because of speculators messing with the market.

Some other people have been laughing off the idea that speculators were part of the problem. (Hugh Hewitt being one of these people, stating as much on his daily radio program.) They said that it's purely supply and demand (which would normally be the case, but doesn't make sense when market prices triple in less than a few years while global demand hadn't increased anywhere near that level during the same period). They said that "the market" is just doing it's thing and will adjust itself just fine.

Hmmmm.... guess what???

"Regulators had long classified a private Swiss energy conglomerate called Vitol as a trader that primarily helped industrial firms that needed oil to run their businesses.

"But when the Commodity Futures Trading Commission examined Vitol's books last month, it found that the firm was in fact more of a speculator, holding oil contracts as a profit-making investment rather than a means of lining up the actual delivery of fuel. Even more surprising to the commodities markets was the massive size of Vitol's portfolio -- at one point in July, the firm held 11 percent of all the oil contracts on the regulated New York Mercantile Exchange.

"The discovery revealed how an individual financial player had gained enormous sway over the oil market without the knowledge of regulators. Other CFTC data showed that a significant amount of trading activity was concentrated in the hands of just a few speculators."

Read the whole thing.

I like you, Hugh. But sometimes you're all wet. Like you were during the lead-up to the '06 elections. Like you were over the past year as a Romney shill. Like you are now with the oil prices.

Realism and the Beijing Olympics...

ESPN (yes, ESPN) has a wonderfully snarky post about the Chinese government's whitewashed presentation of their society during the Olympics. You've gotta read this.

Should Political Trial Balloons Become an Olympic Event?

It's getting a bit ridiculous now, isn't it. You can't see the sky any more for all the trial balloons floatin' about regarding both party's eventual VP picks. It'll all come out in the wash. (Bad mix of metaphors, there, I know.)

For what it's worth, I'm guessing that some of McCain's balloons will actually be high ranking cabinet members instead (don't mind me... I'm just contributing to the overall Trial Balloon Air Lift Brigade):

Lieberman as Secretary of State

General Petraeus as Secretary of Defense

Meg Whitman as Secretary of Commerce

Mitt Romney at Housing and Urban Development

Rudy Guiliani at Homeland Security

D-John Lewis at Health & Human Services

Charlie Crist as Attorney General

Lindsey Graham at Veteran's Affairs (or on the National Security Council).


That leaves the following offices to be filled: Interior, Agriculture, Labor, Transportation, Energy, Education, plus a few other high-ranking office positions (OMB, EPA, Trade, National Intelligence, etc.). Must mull over this a bit more before I finish out my brackets.

And his VP pick? Though I'm hoping for Palin, I'm guessing Kasich because of the Ohio venue (and I'd be very happy with that).


THE UPDATED UPDATE#1: Regarding The Obamessiah's VP and Cabinet picks? I really don't care. Although, I will say this... his VP pick WON'T be a female, because Hillary refuses to be his underling after being in that post all her life next to Bill. And for him to choose some other female to be his VP will make all the "wymyn" Hillary supporters' heads explode. Smart money is on Evan Bayh, but that'd be assuming that The Obamessiah is smart enough not to shoot himself in the foot. And we ALL know what the definition of the word "ASS-U-ME" is, don't we? Virginia governor Tim Kaine is the other possibility.

THE UPDATED UPDATE #2: RedState has a post with the Republican Convention speaker line-up.

People on the list (who were all on the trial balloon list at one time or other): Palin, Jindal, Steele, Fred Thompson, Lieberman, Ridge, Romney, Huckabee, Guiliani, Whitman, Fiorina, Pawlenty, Crist, Brownback, and Mel Martinez.

Who's NOT on that list? John Kasick (former Ohio Congressman), Mark Sanford (Governor of South Carolina, Episcopalian, 92% lifetime rating with American Conservative Union), Bill Owens (former two-term Governor of Colorado, Roman Catholic, recently going through a divorce), Linsey Graham (Senator from South Carolina, close McCain friend and major RINO-squish), Eric Cantor (Virginia Congressman, Jewish). You can also add fellow Ohioans... Ohioites... Ohio-ohs... hmmm... political guys who are from Ohio: Rob Portman and Ken Blackwell.

Tom Barnes Radio Interview on Tues., Aug 19

Last month I posted about Tom Barnes and his new book on "Casablanca" movie trivia. Well, He's going to be interviewed this Tuesday, Aug 19, on the Reel Talk Movie Reviews program on Blog Talk Radio.

There seems to be a little confusion about the time. I received an email stating that it was to be @ 1:00 PM Pacific, but the website (here) states that it'll be at 8:00 PM (unsure what time zone). It's possible that they are recording the program early, and then will edit and broadcast it later that evening.

So, check in at both time slots and give a listen! Sounds like it'll be a lot of fun.


UPDATE & BUMP: The BlogTalkRadio interview can be listened to here.

Post#500 - The DMV...

I was utterly shocked last week when I went to my local DMV to re-up my driver's license (including getting the proverbial mug-shot).

My appointment was scheduled for 9:10 AM.

I arrived 20 minutes early.

I kid you not... I walked out of there at exactly 9:12 AM!!!

SEE, GOD DOES EXIST! IT'S A FRIGGIN' MIRACLE!

McCain to announce VP running mate on August 29

Well, it looks like McCain is going to announce his running mate on August 29 as party of a birthday party/campaign rally. This will be immediately after the Democratic Convention in Denver (which itself begins immediately after the Olympics).

The place where McCain will make his announcement?

OHIO

Could this be a tip-off that the VP slot will go to.......... former Ohio Representative John Kasich???

"Above My Pay Grade"

(Major hat-tip to Southern Appeal)



Meanwhile, Captain Ed is in rare form about the whole content of The Obamessiah's comments on abortion yesterday.

The "Purpose Driven" Debate...

Five things of note about yesterday's "debate" (actually, more of a 1-on-1 interview) with Rick Warren, wherein both candidates got asked the same questions. With a coin flip, The Obamessiah went first while McCain went into an isolation area so that he would not be privy to the questions ahead of time.

1) Take the Obamessiah off-script and away from the TelePromptr and what you get is a lot of "umm... uhhh... yah know... hmmm... ahh...".

2) McCain, for all his faults, has definite command of the issues. It's an overused phrase but, yes, he's got "Gravitas" (with a Capital-G). The Obamessiah pales by comparison.

3) The Obamessiah's near slip-up when asked "Which existing Supreme Court Justice would you not have nominated." The Obamessiah says Clarence Thomas, and then he says:

“I don’t think that he was exp– a strong enough jurist or legal thinker at the time.”

Hmm... you don't think that Thomas was experienced enough for the position, Barrack O'Baby??? Is THAT what you were about to say? (heheheheheh)

4) The Obamessiah's response to the question, "At what point does a baby get human rights, in your view?":

"Whether you are looking at it from a theological perspective or a scientific perspective, answering that question with specificity is, you know, above my pay grade."

Above your paygrade, huh? And you want to be President of the United States???

5) On the question as to which three people he would consult, McCain responded with General Petraeus (Great! Probably Sec. Def. or Sec. State in a McCain administration), Democrat-GA Congressman John Lewis (An interesting, across-the-aisle, choice.), and former EBay CEO Meg Whitman.

That last name is another VP trial balloon (I can spot them a mile away), so I did some digging. Whitman was behind the Romney campaign. Once Romney bailed out, McCain picked her up as Co-chair of his campaign. If (and that's a big if) she's Mormon just like Romney, that could potentially be a big problem for McCain among some Christians (especially Evangelicals). I haven't been able to find anything about her religious affiliation, other than a brief mention in a year-old article that she along with a few other members of Romney's campaign staff were "non-Mormon". I have yet to find much else on this point, and I don't know how valid that reference is.

Secondly, although she's contributed financially to both Democrats and Republicans in the past, the vast majority of her contributions have been to Republicans. Still, though she's contributed to the likes of George Allen, James Sensenbrenner, and Charles Pickering, she's also contributed to the likes of liberal Republican Olympia Snowe, and Democrats Maria Cantwell (?), John Kerry (??), and Barbara Boxer (???). Rumor has been going around that Whitman may also have her sites on the 2010 California Governor's race.

Finally (and this is the big one), while Whitman was CEO of EBay, there was a major dust-up about an auction on the site back in 2005 when a non-Catholic Iowan tried to sell a Eucharist Host. Archbishop Chaput sent a letter to Whitman to have the auction removed. The initial response wasn't up to snuff, but eventually EBay did remove the auction. This could be a BIG problem for McCain from Catholics if he chooses her for VP.

Another name that's been floated about is former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina. Don't know much about her, either. NOTE TO McCAIN: If you want a strong, successful, conservative woman on your ticket you can choose... oh, I don't know... maybe... Sarah Palin, Governor of Alaska? At least she has some political experience and also fills most of the social and fiscal conservative bona fides.

1978 Address by Alexander Solzhenitsyn...

This has been posted by quite a few blogs since the very recent passing of Alexander Solzhenitsyn. This link is the text of an address given at Harvard by exiled Russian poet and novelist Solzhenitsyn in June of 1978. It’s a long but insightful read. Things to keep in mind while reading the text are (a) his references to the “West” encompasses all of western society, including western Europe, and (b) the state of the U.S. internal economy and its external affairs – both weakened at that time, and soon to get worse (double-digit inflation & unemployment, long gas lines, the recent retreat from Vietnam, and the soon to occur Iranian hostage crisis) – and well as it’s cultural decline.

It is no accident that the current events in Georgia by Russia are occurring shortly after Solzhenitsyn’s passing, and during a distracting Olympic event (being held in communist China, displaying it's military-like precision and unity during the opening ceremonies), and after a long hard-fought battle by the west against terrorists abroad in which significant segments of the west have weakened it’s resolve to combat said evil terrorist regimes and their supporters.

Now I know why Solzhenitsyn’s name is often placed along side Reagan, Thatcher and Pope John Paul II as the key influential figures in the eventual (but apparently not permanent) downfall of the former Soviet Union — Solzhenitsyn internally, Reagan & Thatcher externally, and JPII spiritually.

Be prepared to have your eyes opened!

Russia Threatens...

This does NOT bode well at all.

Meanwhile, while John McCain is actively involved on this escalating situation, what's the Obamessiah doing?

God Bless Women's Beach Volleyball!

I repeat... God Bless Women's Beach Volleyball!

That is all.

WalMart Follow-up...

Last month I posted my little soapbox rant about a door-to-door petition going around my neck of the woods regarding the potential arrival of a WalMart in town.

Well, last Friday's local newspaper had an article stating that the petitioners have garnered enough signatures to put the proposition on the November ballot. So I revisited my post, did a little editing and revising, and sent at as a "Letter to the Editor". After not seeing my letter posted by Wednesday morning, I thought that it wasn't going to get published.

Then I opened up TODAY'S paper. Not only did they publish my letter (practically verbatim), but they placed it above the fold as a commentary in the Op-Ed section with a full headline and byline! (Holy S***!)

Then, while I was in the bathroom shaving, I get a phone call this morning from a woman who read my letter in the paper and wanted to personally thank me for expressing the views which she also shared.

Yeah... I felt good this morning. But I ain't gonna let it go to my head.

Nephew Update...

Last month I posted about two of my nephews. The older nephew went through the heart procedure last week. The doctors are confident that the situation is now rectified, and he should not experience any symptoms in the future. He was back home after a couple days, and he's already back to work.

I want to thank all of you who offered up prayers! Again, it was much appreciated.

Edwardian Fall From Grace...

I'm not going to comment on the whole John Edwards political meltdown. It'd just be too easy. I'm not gonna kick him when he's down. My concern is for his children and, most especially, his wife who has been battling cancer over recent years. They deserve much better than this from their dad/husband.

In general, I always saw Edwards as nothing but a a two-bit, lightweight politician/ambulance-chasing lawyer/hack. I'll never forget eight years ago during the VP debate between Edwards and Cheney, sitting down at a table with the moderator, going through all of the key issues. Cheney came across as the wise elder with total command of the issues, while Edwards came off as an inexperienced little kid.

The moment - the key moment -- of that entire debate came when John Edwards actually wiped his nose with the sleeve of his suit jacket, right there live on TV for all of America to see. I still remember that moment as I said out loud at the time, "Wow. I don't believe he just did that." It was at that point that I said to myself that that was the turning point of the election.

I wasn't a supporter of Bush in the 2000 primary, and his choice of VP was very important to me before I decided to cast my vote for him in the 2000 main election. When he chose Cheney it sealed the deal for me, and I "pulled the lever" for Bush/Cheney instead of voting third party or doing a write-in.

Kasparov Speaks Out On Russian Invasion of Georgia...

Opposition Party leader Garry Kasparov speaks out against the Medvedev/Putin regime's military attack and invasion of northern Georgia. This act of war (that's what it is) will not end soon, nor well.

It's time to take a shower...

... a Meteor Shower!

It's that time again for the annual displays of God's own fireworks show, the Perseid Meteor Shower. The peak time to look for them is very early Tuesday morning (after the moon sets at about 2:00 AM). So stay up late on Monday night and, if the sky is clear, go outside and look up in the Northeastern portion of the sky. Expect to see as many as 50-80 per hour (depending on the amount of "light noise" in your area).

First The Good News...

Oil prices are now at $114/barrel (down $33 from it's July 11 high of $147). Is this the bubble bursting (just like the current housing bubble and the previous tech bubble)?

Now The Bad News...

Russia has attacked Georgia ("their" Georgia, not our Georgia). With the tensions there, and also with China, add North Korea, and the Iran/Israel situation that's soon to escalate... this is not boding well.

Fox News' Neil Cavuto interviewed on ABC...

(Hat-tip to Newsbusters)

Fox Business anchor and managing editor Neil Cavuto was on ABC's "Good Morning America" with Diane Sawyer. It's a fascinating little interview that's worth a read.

Near the end of the interview Neil mentions his recent battle with MS (Multiple Sclerosis). One of my sisters has been living with MS for nearly 30 years, thankfully doing relatively better than many others who are not as fortunate.

The ultimate hotfoot...

Puzzling "hot spot" in Fillmore section of Ventura County, CA, that has ground temperatures reaching 800 degrees.

I'm Back!....

Tons of internet problems this weekend; from Blogger's 2-day server issues, to Sitemeter's issues, to my own ISP's mail server and internet server issues. Trying to browser (let alone, post on) the internet this weekend was like swimming in a pool of honey (very slow and sticky, but certainly not as sweet).

UPDATE: Creative Minority Report has a funny post on the recent blogosphere woes.


I just wanted to link to a few really good posts (hat-tip's to Paragraph Farmer and RedState).

This is a lengthy, two-page article about film director/producer David Zucker (of "Naked Gun" and "Airplane!" fame), his new comedy "An American Carol", and the current political climate in Hollywood that he and many other actors and filmmakers have to contend with on a regular basis.

Actor Jon Voight has an Op-Ed in The Washington Times (also a good read).

And Charles Krauthammer has a little message for Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the issue of oil.

The Obamessiah... The One... The Choosen One...

McCain's latest web ad ("The One"):


Gerard Baker of The London Times makes the mock pronouncement from on high (heh!):


To quote The Gore-acle, "Devastating!"

Glenn Beck's still lookin'... and so am I...

Glenn Beck seems to be spot-on with his commentary about this year's presidential election.

Meanwhile, John Hawkins over at RWN has a new TownHall commentary listing the Top 10 Reasons why not to vote for The Obamessiah.

In other words...