Friday's Tidbits

Black lawmakers are still elated about the Obama's historic nomination. Many thought that they would never see the day.

Another great column from Peggy Noonan. Among the reasons she describes for Obama not to select Hillary as his VP, "She'd be plotting against him from day one. She'd poison his tea. She undercuts the cleanness of Obama's message. She doesn't turn the page, she is the page." Excellent.

Obama has a 5-point lead according to the Rassmussen poll.

War drums are beating louder. Israel says that they are running out of time to attack Iran. They say time is running out and quickly need our approval prior to going forward. I think they also see the change coming in American leadership. They have to get the war in during this administration. Although both candidates are supporters of Israel, neither of them will okay an Iranian war under the current circumstances. Of course, they do not need our permisssion for a large scale military operation in Gaza. However, the U.S. is stressing diplomacy when it comes to Iran.

Republicans are very concerned about McCain's inability to articulate. Some have trying to find a way for him to be President without having to give another speech. If you're going to compete with Obama, you're going to have to be able to hold your own when it comes to communication.

Jobless rates see highest monthly increase in over 20 years. The Dow lost almost 400 points and oil prices reached an all-time high of $139. I'm sure that the oil companies will raise our gas prices again. But, why didn't we get the benefits from the recent reduction of oil prices when it was at $126; especially when demand has dropped significantly?

The Marine charged in Haditha has been acquitted of all charges.

Obama Locks up Democratic Nomination

For the first time in our country's history, an African-American is the nominee for President by a major party. Barack Obama has clenched the Democratic nomination is now preparing to make a historic run to the White House. If the trends follow, it will be tough for John McCain to slow his momentum. If tonight's speeches were any indication of the tone of the race, McCain should rush in an army of speech coaches in order to try to match Obama's connection with the voters. I thought I caught him nodding off twice while giving the speech.

Congrats Barack. Try not to raise my taxes too much.

Monday Tidbits

Hillary plans on giving a major speech tomorrow. Staffers have been urged to turn in expense reports. Looks like she is ready to bow out.

Great news from the Supreme Court. Law enforcement cannot simply take your money because they "think" that you're trying to launder it. You must have proof. Hopefully this case with affect other cases where assets are seized without due process.

It looks like our ships are still being used as secret prisons. If you include the ships with the prisons we run in Ethopia, Somalia and Thailand, I'm sure that our founders are very proud of the example that we provide.

Texas judge begrudgingly signs order releasing the Mormon children from state custody. However, the parents are now forced to drive around the state in order to collect their children. I'm sure they'll be happy to do so, even though most don't have cars or other means of transportation.

Ted Keddedy's brain surgery was sucessful.

Let's be Realistic Here

A couple of good items came out over the last few days regarding the War on Terror. First, word comes out that Al-Qaida has been severely diminished; which is great news for the United States and our international allies. Then word come out today that the Taliban has been hurt greatly and is on the way out.

All of this is good news. But, let's be real here. How can we possibly think that we can destroy and eliminate Al-Qaida when Osama bin Laden is still out there organizing and operating without discretion? He and his top aides are still out there making tapes and relaying their message to anyone that will listen. All the while, May was our second deadliest month in Afghanistan since we started.

The same goes for Mullah Omar in Afghanistan. He is still a free man along with his top aides. Do we really believe that the Taliban is finished as long as this guy is waltzing around?

How can we really believe that we are crippling these organizations when all of their leaders are still free to roam and create havoc? We are simply fooling ourselves if we believe that Al-Qaida can be elimnated by just knocking off their pawns and footsoldiers. These organizations need to be decapitated if we are seeking true, lasting success. Otherwise, these patient terrorists will simply wait us out and re-emerge once we've left.

The results will be worse for the Afghans and Iraqis that supported us. If we pull out of these countries prematurely, surely the Afghans that have been voting in the elections or the Iraqis that braved the threats from the terrorists will become sacrificial lambs.

Late Night Stuff

Good News for Women in the Middle East

Looks more and more like the bribery scandel will force Olmert to resign. If so, it looks like Tzipi Livni will be his replacement. Also, Bahrain names Jewish woman as ambassador to the United States.

Get well wishes go out to Tony Snow.

Texas Supreme Court confirms lower court ruling. State authorities have to return the kids.

"Uncontacted" Brazilian tribe located. Apparently, there are about 100 or so tribes still completely isolated from the outside world.

Food TV's Most Zestful Personality Branded Terrorist

Say it ain't so Rachel! According to Michelle Malkin, Food Network's rising star and Dunkin Donuts cover girl Rachel Ray has turned to the dark side. She's been tricking us all along. Talks of boycotts have been whispered and the citizens have been engaged. This should not be tolerated! How dare she hide behind that pretty smile and bubbly personality all the while planning to bomb us? How could she have the gall to give us those wonderful food tips and delightful recipes only to harbor deep sympathy with Hizbollah, Yassir Arafat and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? Is she trying to poison us? Come to think of it, she may be hiding Osama bin Laden in her basement!!!

Give me a break Michelle. This boycott would make Jesse Jackson blush. What? Are you going to extort some money now? There is no issue here; no hidden messages to Palestian terrorists. Rachel Ray and her wardrobe crew were making a fashion statement, not a political one. Of course Dunkin Donuts conceded and pulled the ad. They didn't want this fight.

Is this where we've come to? Are there not more serious issues facing America than the color-coding talents of television personalities and their make-up and wardrobe artists?

McCain More Respected as a Known Liberal

A few years ago John McCain was known to be an pricinciple driven maverick that spoke his mind, unfazed by the political norms of either party. Today, he triangulates more than an Egyptian pharoah. Even though I've never been a big fan of his policies, I've always respected McCain for his willingness to stand up for what he believed in, however unpopular his position. In the past I disliked John McCain, but I respected him tremendously. Now, he's just another politician with his finger in the wind.

Here comes another change of heart, this time on amnesty for the Telcos under scrutiny for cooperating with illegal wiretaps. Before it his position on the tax cuts, then it was his position on the use of waterboarding, the ministers, etc.

Stand up for what you believe in McCain. Don't just tell me what you think I want to hear.

The Beauty of Canadian Health Care

I guess this is what we have in store for us under the Democrat's plan for universal health care. You frequently hear about how wonderful the Canadian health care system and how we should emulate their structure.

However, these proponents seem to conveniently forget to relay facts about how long it takes to get a standard medical procedure done in Canada. A basic MRI takes 22 months. The average wait for a non-emergency procedure is almost 18 weeks. This particular Canadian waited in ER on a stretcher for 5 days seeking treatment. She joined other patients that were all lined up on stretchers for days waiting to see a doctor.

Like most liberals worldwide, Canadian politicans have been seeking treatment in the United States for their own personal ailments while mandating the unefficient Canadian system on their populas. When Liberal MP Belinda Stronach was diagnosed with breast cancer, she didn't wait in line in Canada to get surgery, she went to the US. The Premier of Quebec Robert Bourassa followed suit when he needed medical treatment for his cancer.

Before we bring this madness to the United States, we need to take a frank look at the Canadian model before your son ends up waiting two days in an emergency room, simply for an X-ray.

Why Quit before Assassins get their Chance?

Unbelievable. This only proves that the worst politician in American can still sink lower. Typically, my disgust with Hillary has been her socialistic policy and communist dictator's approach to government.

But, when she references the assassination of Robert Kennedy as a reason to stay in the campaign, you know she has reached a new low.

Before her apologists begin to say she was only referening the timeline, Bobby Kennedy was only in the race 6 weeks when he was murdered. Bill Clinton had the nomination locked up much earlier than June.

Senator Clinton is much too savvy and too calculating for this to be an honest gaffe. There is something much more sinister working through her brains as she attempts to claw her way to the Democratic Presidential nomination. I don't believe that she is hoping for someone to kill Obama. But, surely she is hoping that something catastrophic happens to him or his campaign in order to slide into the nomination.

This lady is more calculating than a Stanford mathematician and more opportunistic than a African hyeana. On constant lookout for doom and gloom, this vulture will use any moment in history and/or wish for bad things to happen to other people in her quest for power.

Snipers Against Bullet Proof Vests

Russia and China have announced a nuclear arms deal. I've long said that China presents the greatest threat to the United States of the rest of those who work against us. Now, they are re-engaging the former Soviets in an attempt to provide a greater adversarial role against the US.

They've also mentioned their displeasure with our missile defense program. We've been able to develop anti-missile technology that has the ability to shoot down nuclear weapons in the air before they have the ability to kill Americans and destroy cities.

Apparently, they feel that they should be able to bomb us freely and easily. Following their advice is like empathising with killers complaining about the unfairness of bullet proof vests.

Justice Shows its Face in Texas

Finally! A Texas appellate court has ruled that state authorities had no right to seize over 400 children from the Mormon compound. The judge ruled that those authorities overstepped their authority and presented no evidence of danger, abuse or "grooming" boys to be abusers.

The Third Court of Appeals in Austin ruled that the grounds for removing the children were "legally and factually insufficient" under Texas law. .............The state never provided evidence that teenage girls were being sexually abused, and never alleged any sexual or physical abuse against the other children, the court said.

Also, to follow up on another issue relevant to this case, state authorities conceded that along with the over 15 adults taken in their raid of the compound, they also took away a 27 year old woman. Some still haven't been released. Strangely, they still say that it will take a few days to get them "reclassified" in the system.

Score one for justice, due process and religious freedom!!

Talking NOT Appeasement

President Bush spoke in front of the Israeli Knesset last week on his farewell tour throughout the Middle East. He emphasized his longstanding public policy of not negotiating with hostile enemies. Right or wrong that came as no real surprise because this has been a longstanding policy of his administration during his tenure as President. However this time, he added an additional caveat that has drawn world-wide scrutiny especially in the United States.

For the most part, American politicians have left partisan politics at the coast and usually refrain from domestic criticisms while abroad. However, this time the President packed plenty of condemnation with him for his visit to Israel.

The President was not shy about his supporting his policy of not engaging those opposed to America. He likened those who believe that we should be speaking to Iran to naive Hitler appeasers.

"Some seem to believe we should negotiate with terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along. We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: "Lord, if only I could have talked to Hitler, all of this might have been avoided." We have an obligation to call this what it is – the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history."

I think this line of thinking has been discredited not only by history, but also by almost every spiritual leader that has walked this earth. If you found yourself locked in a disagreement with another party, war and violence is not the only answer. You cannot kill or battle everyone that doesn't agree with you.

At the height of the Cold War Ronald Reagan used fierce negotiations with the Soviets to avoid nuclear war. His use of alternative means of persuasion finally led to the demise of U.S.S.R. while keeping our nukes in our submarines.

At a time when China was lobbing very vocal threats towards the United States, Richard Nixon negotiated a way to avoid war and bring China into the world community. He also negotiated the end of the Vietnam War.

There are countless other examples of the validity of peaceful negotiations with enemies. Even Israelis themselves negotiated peaceful agreements with Egypt and Jordan. It was confirmed earlier this week that Turkey is assisting them in their negotiations with Syria. Obviously, they also see the need to find peaceful solutions.

President Bush wake up! You cannot kill everyone who disagrees with you. Otherwise, how do you plan on dealing with your 68% disapproval rating in the United States?

Tuesday's Tastings

Some very interesting things make the news today. War drums are beating louder, Hillary will never go away and we decided that nuclear technology is good for some countries in the Middle East.

Army radio quoting a senior Israeli official reported that the United States will go to war with Iran before the end of Bush's term.

Democrats that actually witness the success of school choice support the program.

Bush tells OPEC the oil is running out and they need alternative energy sources. He agrees to build a nuclear reactor for Saudi Arabia. Some believe we have a new arms race going on.

Hillary Clinton is trying to keep everyone from forgetting that she is still running for President.

Monday's Musings

All you can say of this is WOW! Did these Oregonians believe they were going to see a free Nirvana concert or Barack Obama?

U.S. Military commander apologizes for soldier using the Qu'ran for target practice.

Israeli Prime Minister bribery case gets deeper. I guess that Dollar Bill Jefferson doesn't feel so lonely any longer.

Mike Huckabee apologizes for his joke at the NRA about somebody pointing a gun at Obama.

Four Philly cops to be fired for their role in the video taped beating.

Just One More War on My Way Out

Today Israel announced that after meeting with President Bush they both agree that "something tangible" needs to be done against Iran. We've already sanctioned them. That hasn't really worked out. Clearly he doesn't believe that negotiations are in order. What else could they have in mind?

Looks like we're about to go to war against Iran. We still haven't defeated the Taliban in Afghanistan, in fact they are getting stronger. Our surge in Iraq was successful. However, "surge" by definition is temporary. Nobody has really said what we're going to do after the surge. Surely, we cannot maintain those levels in Iraq indefinitely. But, it looks like we are on our way to war with Iran. Great. I'm sure that's going to help out our economy. Bush appears to be trying to squeeze in another war before he leaves office.

It seems like we have had increasingly strong rhetoric against Iran lately. We also have sent a second aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf. Defense Secretary Gates says we sent the other carrier not as an escalation, but as a "reminder" to the Iranians. Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton has called for air strikes against Iranian targets in Southern Iraq.

That's funny. Even at the height of the Cold War when Russia was a clear and direct threat against America, Reagan said "The only way there could be war is if they start it; we're not going to start a war." He also said "History teaches that wars begin when governments believe the price of aggression is cheap." Obviously, this administration views both war and government much differently than Ronald Reagan.

Brace yourself Americans. We're on our way to another war. This time the enemy will be better armed, better financed and with the direct ability to effect our economy. Does Bush really believe that a war against Iran will make the United States safer or stronger?

A Texas-Sized Kidnapping

This Texas compound issue gets worse and worse by the day. Texas Child Protective Services has admitted to taking adult women against their will while rounding up the children from the Texas Morman compound several weeks ago. Among the 450+ children were several adults over the age of 18 that were seized and taken into state custody. There are 27 claims of adults being held against their will amongst the children.

One particular case, a 23 year-old woman presented authorities a valid drivers license. Her parents provided her birth certificate. They still took custody of the woman and her child and placed both of them in a foster home. They insisted that she was only 16.

This case is one of the greatest travesties and miscarriage of justice that you will ever hear about in our country. If you haven't been following; several weeks ago Texas authorities receive a phone call from someone claiming to be an abused 16 year-old girl married to a known sex offender more than twice her age. The phone call caused Texas authorities to raid the compound that the girl claimed she was being held.

After extensive interview of the women and the girls, authorities were unsucessful. Although their sweep failed to locate and identify the "victim" in question, authorities were convinced that they could produce one from among the 450+ children at the 1,700 acre ranch. So, they decided to take all of the children at the compound. In buses, they took the now terrified kids away. Officials separated sons and daughters from their mothers while police held their fathers at bay, unable to protect their families.

Constitutional due-process requirements and 4th amendment considerations aside, government officials arrogantly felt that as long as the kids were now under their control, their lives would be improved. However, these kids are now suffering from diarrhea and other digestional problems from the change from their organic diet. They are also being subject to forced immunization. Of course Texas CPS doesn't have the infrastructure to take on 450 new cases. So, now these kids are being scattered across the state separated from their parents and other siblings.

Now, I'm all in favor of shots for kids and would by no means ever condone any abuse to a child. Any person guilty of such an unspeakable crime should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. A closed society is no protection from our country's laws.

But, we know today that the phone call was bogus, so of course they never found the girl. The sex offender in question hasn't been in Texas in two decades. The caller has been arrested for making bogus claims. However, these parents are still in courts trying to regain custody of their children. They are being subject to hearings en masse and being forced to defend themselves against a claim known to have been faked. Of course they come from a closed self-sufficient society, so they don't have the resources to secure quality legal representation.

Again, if grown men were abusing young girls, they need the book thrown at them. But it is the government's responsibility to produce evidence of a crime, charge a specific individual for that crime and give Americans due process as they dispute the charges brought against them. I don't see any of that happening in this case.

Unfortunately the seriousness of the charges may be causing some civil libertarians to turn a blind eye to this case. It also doesn't help that they make their own clothes, live completely outside of society and in lifestyles that would be considered unacceptable to many Americans. However, these people are no less worthy of individual justice and constitutional rights.

Who gets to decide what level of weirdness is good enough to deny you of your family? If the sight of pregnant teenagers is justification alone to take away communities of children, then there would be several projects and trailer parks childless with their parents subjected to mass hearings.

Let Me Write the Law. I'll Give Myself Immunity

Man, Tony Rezko would love to be in this situation. I'm sure that the executives from Enron wished they could have pulled this off. As Congress begins to debate the FISA act, our Congressional Democrats are allowing the telecom companies, who clearly broke the law, to write new laws that give themselves retroactive immunity for past illegality.

Think about that for a moment.

The companies that committed the violations are actually writing the laws to get themselves off of the hook. Our President has pushed this. In fact, he has demanded that all new FISA laws contain immunity for the telecom companies. He said he'll veto any new bill that doesn't contain this provision.
After 9/11 our country was rightfully angry about what happened and wanted to do everything possible to prevent it from re-occurring. When the President asked them to tap the phones of Americans, they complied without question. However, they knew very well that this activity was illegal. They have been tapping the phones of criminals for years. However, this spying was always was accompanied with a court order that gave them permission to do so. They knew they were acting outside of the law.

The Bush Administration took advantage of everyone being all lathered up and began to enact several illegal and unconstitutional measures that removed constitutional rights from the citizens and transferred those powers to the executive branch. This is just one piece of a much greater pattern of abuse of powers from this administration and their blatant disregard of the due process that is guaranteed in our Constitution. As they grab power, the people lose.

I'll use this great quote from Reagan to articulate the point.

"I hope we once again have reminded people that man is not free unless government is limited. There's a clear cause and effect here that is as neat and predictable as a law of physics: As government expands, liberty contracts."

This government is expanding at unprecedented levels. Our liberties are obviously deteriorating at the same rate.

A Real Conservative Jumps into the Race

Bob Barr, the former Congressman from Georgia has entered the Presidential race as a Libertarian. Mr. Barr is a former Republican that has been very critical of the Bush administration and the way that it has conveniently disregarded the founding documents to the left as it waged the war against terrorism. The complicity of today's Republicans made Mr. Barr abandon the Republican Party in its entirety. He later joined the ACLU to combat the deprivation of civil liberties.

Barr, 59, quit the Republican Party two years ago, saying he had grown disillusioned with its failure to shrink government and its willingness to scale back civil liberties in fighting terrorism.

Although he doesn't really have a real chance of winning the highest office in the country. But, I think his candidacy is much more than winning one election. It's about making a point against the radical exploitation of executive powers by our President and the blind support from the Republican Party that has enabled these abuses. Enough is enough!

Mr. Barr will surely be attractive to the greater than 20 percent of Republican voters who chose somebody besides McCain for President, even when he has already locked up the Republican nomination.

Good luck Bob.

Congrats to Andre Carson

Congrats go out to Andre Carson. In March, he was elected to finish the term of his late grandmother for Indiana's 7th Congressional district. Carson is the second Muslim elected into the United States Congress.

On Tuesday, Mr. Carson won the Democratic Pary's nomination for the 7th District's seat.

Mr. Carson took his symbolic oath of office on the United States Constitution. I guess there are still some members of Congress who still hold this document in high regard.

Congratulations Andre!

Let's not Rush to Judgement

Philadelphia police investigating a triple shooting pull over three suspects on Monday. According to an undercover investigator, they were responsible for a nearby shooting. The situation in Philadelphia has been tense because of another recent shooting that killed a police officer.

Philly police arrive with a vengeance. About six officers hold the men down while other officers kicked, punched and used their batons on the men in the shadow of night in an urban neighborhood. But, a news helicopter camera was focused on them while they focused on making human punching bags out their suspects on the streets of Philadelphia and deprived them of the constitutional rights they pledged to protect.

"Let's not rush to judgement" was the theme of the talking points first stated by Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey and later echoed by Mayor Michael Nutter. Surely, they are lobbying for greater due process given to the officers than what they themselves provided under law. "It doesn't look pretty" was probably the greatest understatement as the politician tried to balance public anger with his political future in Philadelphia.

As these politicians weigh out the best strategy for themselves, I personally wonder when our country is going to say that enough is enough with police brutality. When are we going to hold them accountable to normal American standards? Does a beating have to come with an arrest or police encounter?

I too, won't rush to judgement. Apparently, these criminals were resisting arrest. These fine officers were clearly within law and reason as they carried out their duties that evening. There's nothing unethical on that video. That baseball-sized knot on that boy's head and those other bruises were already there when they arrived at the police station. I don't fall for stuff like this.