A Big Stick

2003-10-10T08:54:00.000-04:00

From the Whimper Dept.

Parents Sue School Over Wireless Network

This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang, but with a class-action lawsuit.

2003-10-06T09:29:00.000-04:00

From the Intel on Drugs Dept.

Intel's Barrett warns U.S. could lose tech edge

Let's summarize Craig Barrett's positions:

1-Subsidize me!
2-Protect me from competition!
3-Don't implement FASB and SEC reforms!

Intel can burn.

2003-10-03T13:29:00.000-04:00

From the Flame On Dept.

A Deplorable October Surprise

Susan Estrich, the national campaign manager for the failed presidential candidate Gov. Michael Dukakis, rips the LA Times in their own paper.

What the Times tried to do is incredibly transparent. This sort of gotcha journalism speaks volumes for the level of media bias and hatred of Republicans at the LA Times.

2003-09-25T13:36:00.000-04:00

From the Italian Logic Dept.

Weak communists and cute secretaries are Italy's main strengths: Berlusconi

Why invest in Italy? Their Prime Minister rattled off a couple of reasons, then laid on these whoppers:

"Another reason to invest in Italy is that there are much fewer communists than before, down from 34 percent to 16 percent today."

"We also have gorgeous secretaries, superb girls."

2003-09-24T13:47:00.000-04:00

From the Doubleplusungood Dept.

'Freedom Rides' Tout Immigrants' Cause

The perversion of the civil rights movement of yore continues.

With that history in mind, Ngouy boarded a bus Tuesday, joining some 900 others on a cross-country ride to raise awareness about undocumented immigrants and labor issues in the United States.

Even the media perverts the language, debasing themselves with bias in the national discourse. These people are not undocumented immigrants. They are illegal aliens. They have no basis for being here. They need to be shipped out.

By working in the US, illegal aliens take away jobs from people who obey the law. By working those jobs that are considered menial or loathsome at minimum level wages, illegal aliens are subverting the free market by accepting lower wages than what it takes to legally gain the services of a willing and able worker.

Illegals ought to be rounded up and shipped out.

2003-09-23T12:46:00.000-04:00

From the Game On Dept.

Court Reinstates Oct. 7 California Recall

An 11-member panel of the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a decision by its most liberal members that would have postponed the Oct. 7th recall election. They ruled unanimously.

What were those three judges thinking when they postponed the vote? Is that something that liberalism and the Democratic Party want to be associated with, namely, the suspension of the rule of law and the constitution of the state of California?

Why is the recall a "constitutionally infirm election" if using punch card ballots when the vote that reelected Gov. Davis was conducted why the same hardware?

This ruling corrects a travesty.

2003-09-18T08:30:00.000-04:00

From the Lying to the People Dept.

BBC leaves Gilligan out in the cold

The BBC reporter Andrew Gilligan was left isolated at the Hutton inquiry yesterday when he was forced to retract key elements of his controversial Today programme report while the corporation's head of news denounced his journalistic standards.

The hacks at the BBC have hung reporter Andrew Gilligan out to dry. He is the whipping boy, the sacrificial lamb offered to atone for their sins of commission.

Both admitted it was a serious error of judgment for Gilligan to email members of the foreign affairs committee (FAC), suggesting questions they might ask of Dr Kelly and effectively outing him as the source for reports by the BBC Newsnight journalist Susan Watts.

Perhaps their judgment was clouded by their political biases and hatred for the Blair and Bush governments.

2003-09-17T11:48:00.000-04:00

From the Kosovo Dept.

Clark to Announce for President Today

The best reason I can come up with to support Gen. Clark with a vote is that he was fired by President Clinton.

2003-09-17T11:45:00.000-04:00

From the Disturbed Dept.

California. Prepares to File Appeal on Recall

It is telling that liberal neocomms want to suspend the rule of law and postpone an election.

It is terrible that their reasoning is that the poor and minorities are too stupid to operate the voting booth equipment.

2003-09-17T10:28:00.000-04:00

From the Dr. Evil Dept.

Magic Number: 30 Billion

30 billion instances of Windows crashing each year?

30,000,000,000?

Keanu would say something astute right about now.

2003-09-17T10:12:00.000-04:00

From the Good for the Gander Dept.

Should Microsoft be liable for bugs?

Microsoft issued security alert #39 this week, according to the good folks at MSNBC and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Bruce Schneier:

"It's crazy that Firestone can produce this tire with a systemic flaw and they're liable, whereas Microsoft produces an operating system with two systemic flaws per week and they're not liable."

It will never be fixed until software faces the exquisite torture of the American legal system.

2003-09-12T08:32:00.000-04:00

From the Brave Words Dept.

British FM Straw accuses French of anti-American 'neurosis'

He said WHAT?

Britain's Foreign Minister Jack Straw:

"There isn't any question but that a significant part of the way in which the French political diplomatic class defines itself is against America, and this has been a continuing neurosis amongst the French political class for many decades."

That was a hip check into the boards.

2003-08-20T13:48:00.000-04:00

From the Inside Scoop Dept.

Governors Delay on Dean

What do Dean's fellow Democratic governors know about him that the public does not?

Would it not make some sense for Democratic governors to stand behind one of their own members, given that the last two Democratic presidents came from the governor's offices of Georgia and Arkansas?

Just about any Democratic governor would be superior as a candidate than anyone in the Senate or House, as the Democratic establishment has gone off its rocker.

2003-08-19T13:41:00.000-04:00

From the End of Western Civilization Dept.

Beaufort County district limits poor grades

How about giving students what they deserve? F level work ought to be graded as an F.

Failing to do any work should be scored a 0, not a 62.

2003-08-19T13:35:00.000-04:00

From the We Can't Make This Stuff Up Dept.

Herald Sun: Whale flatulence stuns scientists

What will Science! discover next?

2003-08-15T10:46:00.000-04:00

From the Impeaching Whales Dept.

Iceland Braces for Censure as Whalers Ready Harpoons

Iceland took a look at the consequences (censure) of resuming whaling, and then decided to send out the boats.

Censure really isn't a consequence. Using subs to torpedo Icelandic whalers, now that would be an effective remedy for nations opposed to whaling.

2003-08-14T14:35:00.000-04:00

From the Left Wing Thugs Dept.

Schwarzenegger Opposed Immigrant Services

Headline:Schwarzenegger Opposed Immigrant Services

Fact:Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger voted for a 1994 ballot measure to deny social services to illegal immigrants

Why the false headline? It can only be explained by left-wing bias.

Why are we spending tax dollars on illegal immigrants for any reason other than shipping them home?

2003-08-14T14:14:00.000-04:00

From Casting the First Stone Dept.

Huffington Paid Little Income Tax

What else can be said but oops?

How about that Arianna Huffington is one of those rich fat cats not paying her share of state and federal taxes?

How about hypocrite?

2003-08-08T09:12:00.000-04:00

From the Never Fade Away Dept.

Gore, Clinton Steal Democrats' Thunder

Every time Al Gore or Bill Clinton speaks, it damages the Democratic Party.

Why?

They suck all the media attention, the oxygen, out of the room. They put the spotlight on themselves. Instead of Howard Dean on TV, there is Al Gore.

These men are not going to be President. By paying attention to them, the media does a disservice to Democrats of all stripes.

It's narcissistic, self-destructive, damages the party, the civic discourse, and the nation.

2003-08-07T14:21:00.000-04:00

From the Spinning in His Grave Dept.

Khomeini: US is best example of freedom

Ayatollah Seyed Hussein Khomeini, grandson of one of the most vile haters of America had this to say about the USA:

"America is the symbol of freedom."

No wonder the tyrannical mullahs want him dead.

2003-08-07T14:16:00.000-04:00

From the Howard Dean, Liar Dept.

Welcome to the Mercury News on Bayarea.com

Once upon a time, when he did not have to cater to special interest groups inside the Democratic Party, Howard Dean raised the idea of raising the retirement age.

Later on, well into his run for President, he did it again.

Confronted by opponents who are strongly opposed to this idea, he denied ever making those remarks. This was a terribly bad idea.

After all, this is the Internet, and as they say, we can fact check your ass.

He then was trapped by his lie. So, he confessed to his error, and proposed new taxes on payroll to appease groups he is beseeching.

2003-08-05T14:19:00.000-04:00

From the Lies the AP Told Me Dept.

Reds fans not buying explanation

Even then, the Reds traded players like Tony Perez and Pete Rose because they were no longer affordable, he said.

I assume that "he" means John Allen.

Pete Rose was not traded. He left via free agency.

Ignorance.

2003-08-05T10:49:00.000-04:00

From the Wrong Question Dept.

Calif. Democrats mull whether to field recall candidate

The question California Democrats should be asking is: Why is Gray Davis the face of my party in this great state?.

2003-08-05T10:41:00.000-04:00

From the Taking Out the Trash Dept.

Author of 'Shrub' memo resigns

I don't believe how petty some people can be. I don't understand why some people think the President is an illiterate, uneducated moron.

Bush has danced on the graves of far too many political opponents to be discounted as a dolt.

2003-07-30T13:43:00.000-04:00

From the Biased and We Know It Dept.

Senate Rejects Auto Fuel Economy Boost

The AP writer is showing mammoth amounts of bias in the way he structured his article.

How long does it take to find out that 2/3 of the Senate repudiated raising the CAFE standards? How long does it take to say that this was a genuinely bipartisan repudiation of an extremist agenda bent on destroying the US economy and ending basic American freedoms like choosing how they want to commute?

7 paragraphs. 7 paragraphs and one sentence. And never.

Secondly, the Senate did vote that the Transportation Dept. consider raising fuel mileage standards, taking into account job loss and highway deaths.

It assures "that future standards are based on sound science" rather than "a politically arbitrary (mileage) figure," said Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., whose state has a half dozen auto production facilities.

Slyly left unsaid is the implication that Kit Bond is a auto industry stooge protecting the great unwashed masses that work in the local auto plants in Missouri.

The number of auto plants in Missouri is not relevant. Mentioning it is an insult to the Senator from Missouri.

A number of senators were planning an amendment to close the gap between the SUV and passenger sedan requirement, but its prospect is uncertain in light of Tuesday's solid twin votes against more stringent CAFE standards.

Uncertain prospects?

The US Senate had a 2/3rds majority with a clear message: Over our dead bodies.

2003-07-29T08:54:00.000-04:00

From the Nostalgia and Anger Dept.

Moderate Democrats Warn Party on 2004 Prospects

"The Democratic Party is at risk of being taken over from the far left," US Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana.

"If we want to govern, we have to offer the American people more than just nostalgia and more than just criticism."

President Clinton's pollster Mark Penn ran a poll, and the DLC reported it. Penn comments:

"The poll is very clear for those who think that if the Democratic Party just lurched to the left and showed a higher flash of anger, that they would somehow win the next election," Penn said. "This poll puts a laugh to that theory."

America is ill-served when idiots are in charge of the opposition party.

2003-07-28T13:24:00.000-04:00

From the Unfit to Print Dept.

TIMES' 'ABUSE' HOOEY

How did the New York Times blow its latest case?

Read on, and wonder.

The New York Times specializes in hoo-hah, distortion, and untruth.

2003-07-28T13:18:00.000-04:00

From the Hindenburg Dept.

Boone doesn't let the boos get him down

I read this story an hour after Bob Boone was fired.

I guess Kyle Nagel was duped or clueless.

Heh.

2003-07-24T14:34:00.000-04:00

From the Inventing the News Dept.

Dear Elizabeth: I Didn't Do It

How bad is Reuters bias? How deep is the decay and depravity?

Read what they did to the words of their contributor.

2003-07-24T10:57:00.000-04:00

From the Waste the Youth Dept.

Medicare Bills' Costs Exceed Bush Limit

Why is Congress giving the wealthiest slice of American (senior citizens) tens of billion in subsidies?

The best idea would be to only provide drugs to the needy. Use means testing to see who can afford the drugs, and who needs Uncle Sam to pay for them.

The elderly don't like this. It is ingrained that they are owed something.

2003-07-24T10:54:00.000-04:00

From the Shoot the Kids Dept.

In Shift, Feinstein Backs D.C. Vouchers

The teachers unions are mighty ticked at Sen. Diane Feinstein's baby step support for school vouchers.

Of course they would. Their jobs are at stake.

Which, looking at test scores, literacy rates, and the number of dropouts, is a good thing.

Radically reducing the power of teacher's unions can only help the schoolkids of America.

It's as if some Democrats don't want their kids to go to school with poor black children.

2003-07-24T10:51:00.000-04:00

From the Sacramento Death Watch

Numbers Add Up to Fall Recall Election

It's a recall. Good for California. They can't keep spending a billion dollars a month more than they take in in tax revenue.

2003-07-23T13:47:00.000-04:00

From the AWOL Dept.

CBS News boss: Dan still the man

CBS News President Andrew Heyward admitted yesterday that he had no answers to why the "CBS Evening News with Dan Rather" continues to struggle in the ratings.

If that's the case, why is this grown man in charge of a network news division?

"We probably don't get as much credit from the audience for the things we do that are distinctive and original. We can do a better job at promoting that."

Blame our ad department. That's his excuse.

What if the people aren't buying what you're selling, a septugenarian liberal that spins in some cornpone once in awhile?

2003-07-23T11:09:00.000-04:00

From the Cleaning up the Neighborhood Dept.

Let D.C. Try Vouchers

Senator Dianne Feinstein makes a case for the use of school vouchers in America's worst school system, Washington DC.

This will appall many orthodox Democrats.

Why only DC? Is it because that's where she lives?

I am inclined to support Williams effort to experiment with this program. I believe that education is a local issue and that if the mayor wants this program, it should be given the chance to work.

Remember.

2003-07-23T10:13:00.000-04:00

From the Flatter than Kansas Dept.

If those are hills, we're not in Kansas anymore. 22/07/2003. ABC News Online

Why read Fark?

Links to stories like this one. Kansas is flatter than a pankake, wouldn't you know.

2003-07-23T10:06:00.000-04:00

From the Behind Closed Doors Dept.

Open microphone catches California Democrats talking about prolonging budget crisis

Unaware that a live microphone was broadcasting their words around the Capitol, Assembly Democrats meeting behind closed doors debated prolonging California's budget crisis for political gain.

Some members of the group, including Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg, said if the budget crisis were extended, it could improve chances for a ballot initiative that would make it easier for the Democrats to raise taxes by lowering the threshold for passage from two-thirds to 55 percent.

The California State Democratic Party wants more pain for residents. They calculate that causing people to suffer today will allow them to amend the state constitution to make it easier to raise taxes.

Every member of the "brainstorming" session should be purged, tarred and feathered, and run out of state on a rail.

It's official. The Democratic Party wants people to suffer in order to exploit their misery.

2003-07-21T15:55:00.000-04:00

From the Summing Up Dept.

Forbes.com: Anti-Americanism Is Racist Envy

First, an unadmitted contempt for democracy

Second, anti-Americanism is a function of cultural racism
Third, European elites tend to look at Americans as a subcivilized mass, whose function is to be obedient consumers in a system run by big business

Three sentences cut to the chase on why Europe hates the US.

2003-07-21T09:01:00.000-04:00

From the Sexing it Up Dept.

BBC under fire as it admits Dr Kelly was source

MP Robert Jackson

"I believe that Dr Kelly went to his death not knowing whether or not he was the source and I think that was playing on his mind and that would have been a factor," he told Sky News.

And he told BBC News 24: "I think the fact of the matter is that Gilligan, under pressure from his news colleagues for a scoop, for an exclusive story, under pressure from the wider BBC establishment and its general vendetta against the government on the question of the war against Iraq, I believe he sexed up the whole story and this created the situation that led to the death of my consitutent.

2003-07-21T08:58:00.000-04:00

From the Sexing it Up Dept.

BBC in crisis as Blair mood swings

When will the BBC be liberated from the apparatchiks running the place?

They have run their asset into the ground, and hounded a man into an early grave.

Enough already.

2003-07-21T08:55:00.000-04:00

From the Head Rolling Dept.

The 9-11 Report: Slamming the FBI

Who gets fired over 9/11 at the FBI?

When does the US overthrow the Saudi regime?

2003-07-17T09:35:00.000-04:00

From the French Pogrom Dept.

For Jews in France, a 'Kind of Intifada'

No one is predicting a large-scale exodus. But later, in the car heading home, Zenouda says he wonders whether France can still be considered home. A bond of trust has been broken somehow, and he cannot see how it can be restored. "Maybe it's time for people to go," he says.

2003-07-17T09:27:00.000-04:00

From the Shooting Back Dept.

Repeal Of D.C. Gun Ban Urged

Guns are banned in Washington DC. If you are packing, you are breaking the law, and have done so for 27 years.

This means that only outlaws have guns.

Washington DC has had incredible crime rates after disarming law-abiding citizens. What do DC officials like Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D), Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D) and council Chairman Linda W. Cropp (D) have to fear from their citizens excercising their 2nd Amendment rights?

2003-07-14T16:21:00.000-04:00

From the Never Mind the Bollocks Dept.

Throwing Out the Rules

The Nevada Supreme Court just vomited on their state Constitution. They've said that the law of the land is irrelevant.

They should be run out of the state on a rail after being tarred and feathered.

2003-07-14T16:16:00.000-04:00

From the Welcome to the Machine Dept.

Lost In Translation

Why is Homeland Security a joke?

Because the FBI has told translators to work slower so they can get a bigger budget during the next budgetary cycle.

2003-07-14T13:51:00.000-04:00

From the Weasel Words Dept.

Democrats' comments may come back to haunt them

Because Richard Benedetto writes for the USA Today, he has to modify strong statements with words like "may", "could", and "might"

But many of the 2004 Democratic presidential candidates and Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe, who continue to harbor the false belief that their party's anti-war left wing represents the views of the nation as a whole, just can't help themselves.

I read a delicious comment about the 1972 election. When mcGovern ran against an unpopular war, he lost 49 states. This time around they could lose 56 states.

If there were 56 states for them to lose.

Democrats trash the administration at their own risk. They still haven't passed the foreign policy credibility test. Bush and Powell have.

Trying to turn Iraq policy into a campaign issue is dumb. You can't win from any angle. If Democratic attacks and domestic politics lead to withdrawing US forces from Iraq, it's a strategic disaster. If US policy in Iraq leads to a wonderful new era of Arab democracy, then it's a disaster for opponents of that policy.

Here is a five second fix on campaign strategy and Iraq.

"Good luck on Iraq." Then change the subject.

2003-07-14T13:30:00.000-04:00

From the Off the Record Dept.

Going on the record about those anonymous sources

I can think of no common journalistic shortcoming that is more threatening to media credibility than the overreliance on unnamed sources.

Assume anonymous quotes are part of a hatchet job, and you'll be right most of the time.

2003-07-14T08:26:00.000-04:00

From the Memo to Bush Dept.

Outrage over Mugabe job 'mockery'

Message from Africa to George W. Bush, re: Democracy in Africa.

"Drop dead."

2003-07-11T09:27:00.000-04:00

From the Hardly Likely Dept.

Club of three can bring European unity

Listen the what the EU hucksters have to say:

Europe will never be a serious political actor as long as its national leaders keep using foreign policy as a vehicle for their imaginary greatness, and as long as they decline to give Europe the means to realise its goals.

Translated: We aren't taken seriously individually. Maybe we can come to a consensus and then be taken seriously.

Membership would have to be earned by proven competence, capability and seriousness.

Of the three listed states (Germany, France, Britain), only the British pass the test. The French are poseurs, and the self-absorbed (and still under US occupation) Germans are along for the ride.

Torn between Europe and their country's intimate ties with America, the British still harbour the illusion that they may best be served by an exclusive "special relationship" with the US.

Where will 10 Downing Street have more influence? The Oval Office or in the backrooms of a schizoid European beauracracy?

2003-07-11T09:17:00.000-04:00

From the Stalling for Time Dept.

Low-Income Tax Break Loses Steam

Why is the Congress even bothering considering a tax cut for people who don't pay taxes?

The issue was first spotlighted as Bush signed the $350-billion tax-cut package he had sought to stimulate the economy. Democrats and liberal interest groups criticized the measure's omission of a per-child tax break for families making too little to pay federal income taxes — those earning from $10,500 to $26,625 a year.

It's vote buying.

2003-07-11T08:54:00.000-04:00

From the Vote Buying Schemes Dept.

Time to narrow the gap

Want to imrove economic efficiency? Have the government quit interfering with a free market? Cut taxes and cut spending? Improve the conditions of third world nations?

End agricultural subsidies worldwide.

It will never happen, as governments use tax dollars to buy reelection through welfare payments to farmers.

Remember, Bush signed a mammoth welfare program for some of the wealthiest people in America last year.

Is this what we should expect from elected conservatives?

2003-07-10T16:18:00.000-04:00

From the Can't Tell the Apart Without a Scorecard Dept.

For Democrats, energy is coming from the left

They really want to make it easy for Karl Rove, don't they?

The only time the US elected a Democrat President in the past two generations was after a mammoth abuse of power scandal and after the End of History. Those Democrats were pretty atypical, and were elected because they persuaded voters that they were different sorts of Democrats.

What happens when the kooks nominate one of their own.

Adult leadership of the Democratic Party is wholly absent. It's Clinton era apologists vs. terrorist sympathizers.

Not how you win votes.

2003-07-10T15:48:00.000-04:00

From the Expense That Dept.

Welcome Steps on Stock Options

Mr. Edwards put it pretty well when he explained why it is important to count options for what they are: real expenses that a company incurs and that should be taken into account when it calculates earnings.

A stock option has got to be paid for somehow. The high-tech industries can't be allowed to pay with promises and fool their investors any longer.

Pay the rent.

2003-07-08T16:04:00.000-04:00

From the Dying of the Light Dept

The Neo-McGovernites

Mr. Kaplan, a senior editor at The New Republic continues to rage at the dying of the light. His political party seems hellbent on 40 years in the wilderness.

If the Democratic Party intends to run against a popular war, its leaders might wish to recall the lesson of a Democrat who ran against an unpopular war. He lost 49 states.

2003-07-08T15:22:00.000-04:00

From the True Faith and Alliegance Dept.

Supreme Court citing more foreign cases Scalia: Only U.S. views are relevant
I'm to the right of Scalia on this topic. Considering the opinions of other nation's courts is not merely irrelevant or scandalous, it's treasonable.

The US is not a member of the European Court of Human Rights, and has about as much influence over that august body as Snoopy. Why let that court influence American constitutional law?

I am not a citizen of the world; I am an American, and I'd like to keep it that way.

2003-07-08T15:17:00.000-04:00

From the Quitters Never Prosper Dept.

Euro-Sluggishness

Europe has phoned it end for a generation.

What's needed is massive deregulation, dismembering state-run businesses, ending subsidies, rolling back welfare spending, reducing the power of unions, cutting back on vacation time, increasing the hours of the workweek, and...

It's a long list. Thanks to the nascent EU superstate being developed, the odds of this are vanishingly swim. Europe won't change without violence.

2003-07-08T15:11:00.000-04:00

From the Talking to Yourself Dept.

An Online Revolution? I Don't See It

Dean's preaching to the choir. His sales pitch seems exclusively tailored to Democratic primary voters and technologically savvy White Internet users.

That's a decent idea to get a buzz early in a nominating race. It's an easy way to get smeared in the electoral college come November 2004.

There's more to the Democratic Party than the people who frequent meetup.com or moveon.com.

A Dean nomination will inspire millions of Black Democrats to yawn and stay home.

2003-07-03T13:20:00.000-04:00

From the Dangerous Men Dept.

Activists Are Out of Step

You can listen to Al From and Bruce Reed today, or you can listen to them say "I told you so in Dec. 2004.

I'd put money on the latter. The lunatic left leadership of the Democratic Party needs at least one more demolition before coming to.

At least one more.

2003-06-30T15:08:00.000-04:00

From the Selling Fear Dept.

SARS is not one of the true mass killers

SARS has killed 808 people in six months, or roughly 1.25 people for every article about it in the New York Times.

Contrast the annual death toll of the following diseases:

- diarrhea diseases: 2.2 million deaths;

- measles: 900,000 deaths;

- typhoid fever: 600,000 deaths;

- hepatitis B: 600,000 deaths;

- influenza: 250,000 to 500,000 deaths

Are you buying what the media is selling?

2003-06-30T13:55:00.000-04:00

From the Blog This Dept.

BlogThis and BlogQuote Installers

I have just found out how to fix the annoying 500 error when using Blog This.

In short: Uninstall, then install ver 1.1. Works well enough for me. I've been too busy to much of anything during the entire month of June, so until today I have not been bothered to try to fix things.

2003-06-30T13:45:00.000-04:00

From the Dead Broke and in Denial Dept.

Calif. Near Financial Disaster

Let's see Davis and the Democratic legislature come up with 38 billion dollars worth of gimmicks, smoke and mirrors, loans and lies to balance their state budget.

They can't.

It' s time to bite the bullet and roll back on the extravagant size of government. Massive layoffs of state workers are needed. Massive cuts in spending programs are needed. Wholesale elimination of programs are needed. The incompetence of the state is staggering.

A scythe needs to be taken to the state government. Any business would have started cutting long ago.

2003-06-27T08:33:00.000-04:00

From the Mouths of the BBC Dept.

The first casualty of Pilger...

I accuse John Pilger of cheating the public and favouring a dictator.

Yes, that's a BBC reporter shredding the self-loathing, West-hating John Pilger.

2003-06-27T08:25:00.000-04:00

From the He Said It Dept.

Kenneth Lay's Kerry Connection

Two wonderful little gems are in today's Lloyd Grove column.

Opposition research in an unnamed Democratic campaign connected the dots of Ken Lay to Sen. John Kerry. The disgraced Enron comandante and Bush crony was on his wife's environmental protection nonprofit for a decade.

Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) boasted that he has never worked a day in his life.

"I don't need Bush's tax cut. I have never worked a fucking day in my life."

Hmm.

2003-06-25T15:31:00.000-04:00

From the Payback's a Bitch Dept.

Envoy: No U.S. Aid for Turkey Without Troops Deal

What an anticlimatic end to the issue that nealy destoyed the Atlantic Alliance. The Turkish Parliament failed to OK US troops to flood their shores as a staging point to invade Iraq. Due to this, the promised tens of billions in grants and loans will not be coming, according to US ambassador Robert Pearson.

It might be a good idea to establish a Kurdish state out of the northern part of Iraq too.

Actions mut have consequences. The Turkish betrayal will liely cause US lives, and by definition be unforgiveable. Ankara's inept parliamentarians must be held accountable for their actions.

2003-06-23T09:31:00.000-04:00

From the Gone Crazy, Back Tomorrow Dept.

Democrats Go Off the Cliff

This describes my theory on the state of the Democratic Party.

They are nuts. They are clueless. They are deluded. They lie to each other in an echo chamber resembling a circle jerk.

2003-06-20T13:40:00.000-04:00

From the Faking it Dept.

Galloway papers deemed forgeries

The Christian Science Monitor has been taken in by an Iraqi scam concerning George Galloway.

Gen. Salah Abdel Rasool may have sold reporters a bill of goods instead of evidence of treason.

They are far too neat, had nearly identical handwriting over a 10 year span, used the wrong logos, went through the Iraqi paperwork machine too quickly, were far too blunt in language, and the ink had not dried yet.

The Telegraph's papers are still likely authentic.

Looks like an Iraqi scam artist can use the Internet.

2003-06-20T13:03:00.000-04:00

From the Bomb Today Dept.

North Korea Vows Retaliation if Censured by U.N.

The current regime in North Korea is threatening retaliation if the UN censures them.

I wonder hom Bill Clinton would have retaliated if Congress had censured him?

The regime in North Korea has run their country into the ground. They need to go, preferably by a Chinese-sponsored coup, or if need be, after the US Army liberates Pyongyang.

2003-06-20T12:58:00.000-04:00

From the Blame Canada Dept.

Senate Votes to Allow Drugs From Canada

It's a terribly written headline.

Opponents argued that it poses a particular danger in today's age of bioterror threats.

"It opens a new door, a new opportunity, and it is a new threat to the security of the people of this country," said Sen. Thad Cochran R-Miss.

Terrorism is being used as a club by a clueless senator. If the bad guys contaminate Canadian pills, then a bunch of Canucks are going to drop dead first. Our neighbors will be the canary in the coal mine.

Besides, terrorists have proven techniques to use. Car bombs, suicide bombers, airplane hijackings, and kidnapping are the tricks of the trade. Contaminating reimported Viagra isn't one of them.

2003-06-13T10:39:00.000-04:00

From the Decapitation Dept.

Israel Moves to Target Top Hamas Leaders

It's about time. Why has the Israeli leadership not targeted the leadership of organizations bent on the destruction of Israel?

Shoot them, and then move on. If and when new murderous leaders emerge, repeat.

Repeat until the organization is destroyed.

2003-06-12T10:59:00.000-04:00

From the Yanking Chains Dept.

Lost from the Baghdad museum: Truth

Furious, I conclude two things from all this. The first is the credulousness of many western academics and others who cannot conceive that a plausible and intelligent fellow-professional might have been an apparatchiks of a fascist regime and a propagandist for his own past. The second is that - these days - you cannot say anything too bad about the Yanks and not be believed.

Remember that you read it in The Guardian. Remember that the article draws heavily on original reporting from the BBC.

Will the chattering nabobs employed at these organizations read this and be affected?

2003-06-11T15:41:00.000-04:00

From the Big Lie Dept.

GRAHAM'S IMAGINARY ROLLBACKS

Taken together, Bush's three pro-environmental decisions will cause the next round of progress toward clean air. Have you heard of any of them? Of course not. The media (especially Howell Raines's truth-optional New York Times) resolutely pretend these decisions do not exist. Democrats and enviro lobbyists have learned they can make hay by pretending these decisions do not exist.

Gregg Easterbrook lets you in on a dirty little secret. George Bush has a decent environmental record that the press refuses to report about, and that the green lobby lies mercilessly about.

If you repeat a lie long enough, people will start to believe it.

2003-06-10T14:44:00.000-04:00

From the It's In Your Head Dept.

Against Depression, a Sugar Pill Is Hard to Beat

Placebos are as effective, if not more effective in treating depression as Prozac, Paxil and Zoloft.

There's not much money selling sugar pills, or for doctors telling their patients to grow up.

2003-06-05T14:55:00.000-04:00

From the Careful What You Wish For Dept.

US Troops to Move From Korean DMZ

The Koreans have had US forces in their divided land for a half-century. The troops have been uner the gun since the end of combat in 1953. The troops have been in artillery range of North Korean guns. This has made them hostages to the North Koreans.

The South Koreans have gone on to great things after the 1950-53 war. Their nation has prospered greatly. The US garrisons occupy some prime real estate that the South Koreans would love to develop.

The US agreed today to pull back from frontline positions.

This means that the US could bomb North Korea nuclear sites without massive US casualties in retalitory bombardment.

This caused a sense of unease is some of the smarter South Koreans. They realize that what the ramifications of the redeployment mean. If and when shooting starts, the South Korean public will be taking it on the chin, and not the 2nd Infantry Division. The redeploymen increases the US ability to strike the DPRK.

2003-06-04T16:03:00.000-04:00

From the Bogus Dept.

Sosa's legacy could be broken beyond repair

Innocent until proven guilty. But, guilty for life.

Sammy Sosa can rot in a special place in Hell occupied by Mike Scott, Pete Rose, and the Black Sox, for all I care. His disgrace is complete.

2003-06-03T12:04:00.000-04:00

From the Don't Drop the Soap Dept.

Feds Pursue Indictment Against Stewart

This is a major opportunity for art directors working on women in prison movies.

2003-06-02T13:14:00.000-04:00

From the Class Warfare Dept.

Tax Demagoguery

Liberal interest groups have been up in arms over the weekend about an additional $400 tax credit for children. About 12 million of them won't ge the tax credit.

Why?

Their federal income tax bill is already zero.

They don't want a tax cut, they want to redistribute someone else's paycheck.

2003-05-30T10:37:00.000-04:00

From the Bass Ackwards Dept.

Campaign-finance reform, ad nauseum

Goo-goo types have been railing about money corrupting the political process for a century. For the last decade, they've been at a fever pitch. They thought they won a powerful victory with the passage of McCain-Feingold, but with the courts finding many elements unconstitutional, they have been in a tizzy.

They are attacking the problem the wrong way. The problem is not money influencing politics. Politics influences money. Why is that? The tax code.

The tax code is three hundred pounds of social engineering that rewards the well-connected instead of a means to pay for government.

This is the best reason for a flat tax.

Have a individual exemption of $15,000, and $4000 per dependant. The government gets 20% of what's left. No other deductions, not for mortgage interest, for charitable donations, or for alternative fuels.

Congress will not be able to reward or punish via tax code tinkering. That's a tremendous loss of power. People seeking to influence how that power is wielded via campaign donations have zero incentive to pony up checks.

2003-05-30T08:52:00.000-04:00

From the Smile on Cue Dept.

Wanted Man Busted by Baseball 'Kiss Cam'

I heard about this story yesterday on the radio. Doesn't the girl just look thrilled?

"Out of all the coincidences, we had 20- or 30,000 people at the ballpark, and who do they put on the 'Kiss Cam'? And then, who is there but his parole officer?" said Richard Goldberg, Horton's attorney.

The lawyer can't believe it either.

2003-05-30T08:48:00.000-04:00

From the Navigating Microsoft's Surrender Dept.

Microsoft to pay AOL $750 million

Microsoft bought AOL of rather cheaply, settling the antitrust case AOL filed against the convicted monopolist for $750 million in cash, plus a few trinkets.

Microsoft has plenty of cash. The trinkets tossed to AOL will probably strengthen Microsoft in the long run. This is a major win for Microsoft, because the settlement will be paid out of a few months of interest on their billions in cash, and their monopoly goes unchallenged.

2003-05-30T08:40:00.000-04:00

From the Dot Dot Dot Dept.

5/30/03 Maureen Dowd not wanted here

Until she explains to our satisfaction her own ethical transgression — an apparently deliberate distortion of a comment by President Bush — you will not find the work of Times columnist Maureen Dowd on this page.

The Lufkin Daily News has stopped publishing columnist Dowd for her gross distortion of President Bush's words.

Newspapers sell honesty, accuracy, and tenacity. When these qualities are absent, then they are just a means to deliver comics and TV schedules.

2003-05-29T12:45:00.000-04:00

From the Karma Bites Man Dept.

SARS kills man who went to work

Toronto is having a devil of a time dealing with SARS. No doubt the difficulty was compounded by the behavior of an unamed 62 year old HP employee who was ordered into quarantine and defied the instructions. He went to work, and public health officials then opted to send home 200 HP employees into quarantine due to this man's blatant disregard of the law and humanity.

He's dead from SARS.

2003-05-29T10:58:00.000-04:00

From the Good Day for a Hanging Dept.

Rick Bragg Quits At New York Times

New York Times employees were incensed by writer Rick Bragg's comments on using stringers to do grunt work reporting. The indignation spilled out in several media outlets. Bragg made a comment about working in a poisonous environment. Someone later claimed that this was true, because Bragg was the poison.

Will the revolt at the Paper of Record finally amount to anything and destroy Howell Raines? It remains to be seen.

2003-05-29T08:33:00.000-04:00

From the Keep Talking Dept.

Clinton Wants Change in Presidential Term Limits

Disgraced former President Clinton wants to modify or repeal the 22nd Amendment.

It's a bad idea.

I don't think anyone has explained it to Mr. Clinton yet. Every time he opens his mouth, he is stealing oxygen from a Democratic presidential candidate. The best thing Mr. Clinton could do for his party is to drop out of sight for a year, work on his memoirs, and show up at fundraiser events from time to time.

When he's musing on 60 Minutes, or quoted in the Washington Post, he's robbing the future of the Democratic Party. Perhaps Clinton is a bored narcissist and craves the attention. Perhaps he's deliberately sabotaging Democratic candidates with the eye to his wife's 2008 presidential run. Perhaps no Democrat has the guts to tell him to sit down, shut up, and get off the stage.

Until that point, Democratic candidates will continue to gasp for air.

2003-05-28T14:02:00.000-04:00

From the Hatchet Job Dept.

SCO's Big Lie

Oops.

SCO is a dead man walking. What were they thinking? Novell's comments today make a fascinating short read.

2003-05-28T10:22:00.000-04:00

From the 15 Minutes Dept.

Reading the tea leaves after a meeting with Bush

The White House stuck it to the German chancellor again, finding 15 minutes to talk to a state-level executive hours before Colin Powell arrived for talks in Berlin.

Coupled with the devalued dollar, the troop withdrawals, and the diplomatic cold sholder, perhaps Germany will learn of how much of a disaster it was to flirt with Gaullism and using anti-American sentiment as an election ploy.

2003-05-27T15:09:00.000-04:00

From the Rumor and Speculation Dept.

According to Someone

An unamed source ought not be used in news gathering.

The press has constitututional protection, and with that protection comes the responsibility to print the truth, whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

Why tolerate anonymous sources? It allows the insertion of speculation, rumormongering, and gossip into the news cycle on sources who won't bet their jobs on what they are leaking. When someone will not go on record for a story, they are selling spin instead of providing information. This is media management. Why does the press tolerate this SOP government practice?

The press ought to get off their asses and find the heralds of truth.

This might be too strenuous for some of them.

2003-05-27T14:23:00.000-04:00

From the Burned Bridges Dept.

Intuit Will Discontinue Product Activation

Product activation means no sale. I've been a regular customer of Intuit's for years, and I bought a competing product this tax season. I don't expect to return to Turbotax anytime soon.

The nerve of Intuit, treating me like a thief.

2003-05-27T08:48:00.000-04:00

From the Fabulist Strikes Back Dept.

New York Times Suspension Exposes Issue Over Bylines

Indeed, some Times staffers expressed surprise at Mr. Bragg's suspension because using material from stringers and assistants without giving credit is common practice at the paper.

It's SOP at the New York Times to have barely-paid stringers do legwork fact gathering, and for the big-named writer to swoop in at the last moment and edit the gathering material into a passable story.

Can you consider anyone at the NY Times a reporter? Not from where I sit. From now on, I'll have to remember to call them writers, as they do no actual reporting. This stuff ought to be grounds for termination.

2003-05-23T13:44:00.000-04:00

From the Appeasing the White House Dept.

Iran admits holding al Qaeda operatives

Iran's mullah's are trying to figure out how many al-Qaida members they have to give up to avoid US airstrikes.

The number seems awfully low. Iran seems to have figured this out witht the help of Syria. The US is not requiring much change from these regimes.

Perhaps the US is betting on a counter-cultural revolution in Iran.

2003-05-22T10:29:00.000-04:00

From the Better Late than Never Dept.

Security Council lifts Iraq sanctions

The UN is attempting to deal itself back into the game. They lifted most of the sanctions on Iraq today, and they will let the US and UK run the nation temporarily. The Oil for Food scam is being discontinued, which is a great thing.

2003-05-22T10:21:00.000-04:00

From the Blame Canada Dept.

Canada delayed mad cow diagnosis

Canadian scientists sat four months on the mad cow diesease data.

How should beef from Canada be considered safe? Because their government says so?

Hardly.

2003-05-21T11:35:00.000-04:00

From the Not Getting It Dept.

Singer Elvis Costello Defends Outspoken Artists

Elvis Costello is being willfully dumb.

Artists can say whatever they want. They can believe whatever, and espouse whatever.

Just don't expect me to purchase their work if they say something that I disagree with. Many stars equate their damaged checking accounts with the destruction of the freedom of speech.

I do not need to economically support people I consider blithering idiots.

2003-05-21T10:13:00.000-04:00

From the Not Distracted Dept.

Final 'Buffalo Six' Member Pleads Guilty

The last thug picked up in western New York has copped a plea. It does not look that the US has been distracted one bit by this Iraq war. Prosecution of the war on terror continues.

2003-05-21T10:10:00.000-04:00

From the Plain Truth Dept.

What Would Scoop Do?

Elements of the Democratic Party are laying the groundwork for their recovery from the 2004 onslaught.

Brazille has gotten more votes than just about anyone in American history, and members of the party would do well to listen to her.

Our own fathers, one a World War II veteran, the other a veteran of the Korean War, both wonder what happened to the old Democratic Party that honored their service and did not shrink from a fight when it was in America's interest.

I wondered this as a 6th grader. I found the party irrelevant, and chose the GOP.

2003-05-21T09:03:00.000-04:00

From the Speaking Truth to Power ept.

Speaker disrupts RC graduation

The graduates and family members booed a willfully clueless New York Times reproter off the stage as he attempted to deliver an antiwar screed mascarading as a commencement address.

Good for the people at Rockford College. How long will it take for the elite writers at the Times that the public views them as vile and borderline treasonous?

2003-05-19T14:37:00.000-04:00

From the Harvey Keitel Dept.

The Mighty Poles

The nation of Poland is doing yeoman's work in Iraq. It's irritating the hell out of Germany, France, and Eurocrats.

European Commission President Romano Prodi"

"One cannot entrust his purse to Europe and his security to America."

Poland remembers how well things worked out the last time the nation relied on a security guaruntee. They also remember how European players dismembered their nations in previous centuries.

One of the latest European security promises was made to the people of Srebrenica. That worked out well.

2003-05-16T15:23:00.000-04:00

From the This is What You Get Dept.

Lawmakers see abuses in Iraqi oil-for-food programs

It is clear that the UN needs to be terminated. It is nothing more than a den for exiled political hacks bent on thievery.

The United Nations oil-for-food program in Iraq allowed billions of dollars in illegal oil revenue to flow to Saddam Hussein, lawmakers said Wednesday in a call for making internal audits public.

From the same people who killed smallpox, no less!

2003-05-09T11:05:00.000-04:00

From the Blunt Talk Dept.

Minuteman faces P.C. onslaught

Having stood up bravely to the British more than 200 years ago, the Minuteman is finding he may be no match for 21st century political correctness and marketing savvy at the University of Massachusetts.

Now that's a punchy lead paragraph.

2003-05-09T10:38:00.000-04:00

From the Safe Side Dept.

Microsoft: flaw left millions at risk

Be on the safe side. Assume any personal data you've given to Microsoft is in the hands of the most vile mafia criminals.

Protect yourself accordingly.

The incident was yet another embarrassing lapse for Microsoft and could result in sanctions by the Federal Trade Commission and even a staggering fine. The episode occurs in the midst of Microsoft's "trustworthy computing initiative" to improve security for all its software products and services.

The use of scare quotes around trustworthy computing is priceless.

2003-05-09T10:32:00.000-04:00

From the Out of Control Agency Dept.

FBI Still Watching Hatfill

The FBI can't prove Dr. Steven Hatfill sent anthrax tainted letters to several places in the fal of 2001, leading to several deaths.

What they can do is anonymously leak this to the media, in order to besmirch him.

Hatfill is either guilty or innocent. If he's innocent, then the FBI's campaign is wreckless, criminal. If's he's guilty, then the FBI is feckless.

The FBI should play it safe, sit down and shut up. Perhaps it is politically damaging for the FBI and Bush administration to say that they have no clue how people died from anthrax. Their calulus may be that it is easier to defame Hatfill and pay him damages than to admit they can't catch the murderers with bioweapons.

2003-05-09T10:25:00.000-04:00

From the Deliberate Insult Dept.

Poles want to lead German peace units

Delightfully, the Pentagon is screwing over the Germans. After a sucessful war in Iraq, Poland is being given a tremendous amount of responsibility in the stablization process. More troops are need to help out. Germany is going to pitch in, as it hopes to repair relations with the US.

The US response to German machinations at the UN and NATO?

A great big poke in the eye. The Germans figured out American intentions from reporters.

Are the Germans afraid of working with a NATO ally and EU partner?