July 2004 Archives

I remember a comic from years back, Calvin and Hobbs as I recall. Calvin is sitting on a bench at lunch time, eating. Just then, the school bully sits down next to him, for once minding his own business. Calvin works himself up into a frenzy, thinking about how the bully is going to hit him. Wound up to the point of exploding, Calvin coldcocks the bully, knocking him out. When the teacher shows up to see what happened, Calvin exclaims, "I HIT HIM BACK FIRST!"

I think this best explains our current policy against terrorists. We know they are going to hit us, we know it will hurt, we know the loss of life will be horrendous.

So why not hit them back first? We no longer face a reasonable country as a foe, one who will weigh the advantages and disadvantages before attacking. We face a relatively small group of men who are not afraid to give their lives killing thousands of us in the process.

If we hit them where they live, keep them disorganized, disrupt their plans, we can keep them from hitting us. Which is exactly what our policy has been since Sept. 12th, 2001.

Senator Kerry doesn't like that policy. He prefers to wait until we and our economy is in ruins before doing a damn thing about it. He would rather be REactive than PROactive.

Want proof? here it is, in his own words:

"I will never hesitate to use force when it is required. Any attack will be met with a swift and certain response."

What I want to hear are words like this, paraphrased from President Bush:

"In this day of global terror, we will relentlessly pursue the terrorists and any other clear and present threats of the American people until they are dead or captured. No more will we wait until we are attacked, because the next attack will result in mushroom clouds appearing over our cities."

That may make me a warmonger, and you could be right. But I ask anybody who would prefer waiting until New York, Chicago, LA, Cleveland, Dallas, et. al. are radioactive craters, please speak up and tell me you want to wait to do something until after a terrorist attack like that.

So what should we do? Hit them back first, or be reactive? Comments, please.

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Found on NewsMax, this article should give you some pause: Comes Death on a Pale Horse.

He walked steadily but not hurriedly. He was neatly dressed in a three-piece Brooks Brothers suit. As he walked he looked directly ahead with a slight smile on his face; no one paid any attention to him. He was everyman; dark-skinned, clean-shaven, with straight black hair neatly combed.
When he reached the front of the largest building in the very center of the busy city, he put his suitcase down and checked his wristwatch. It was 9:54 a.m. His timing was impeccable. He picked up the suitcase and turned toward the street. Traffic was light; most people had already arrived at their jobs and were working. He said his prayers. A few minutes later he placed the suitcase on the sidewalk and slowly bent over and initiated the firing sequence.

"Allah Akbar!" he said, smiling.

Within seconds a huge fireball rose above the city. Already tens of thousands were dead, while buildings blocks away were twisted and ripped open by a wind calculated to approach 700 miles per hour. Within three minutes the dead and wounded would exceed 1 million Americans.

This same scenario was repeated at exactly the same time in six additional American cities. Fortunately, two other bombs failed to detonate. The death toll was over 7 million. America was physically devastated, her economy in shambles. No help came from the United Nations. No European countries sent aid.

Is that our future? I hope not, but we'll find out soon enough, won't we?

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This article, John Kerry's Stalinist Campaign Slogan pretty much explains itself.

In the last days before the Democratic National Convention, John Kerry and John Edwards adopted a campaign slogan: "Let America Be America Again." They were clearly pleased by its provenance, as the first line of a poem written by black poet Langston Hughes (1902-67). At the height of his fame, Hughes was known as the "Shakespeare in Harlem." He also had long history as a Communist activist and virulent atheist. And this poem clearly echoes his admiration of Stalinism.

But then again, according to Jerry Pournelle's political axis, Kerry is a solid Socialist at 4,4, maybe bordering on Communism at 4.5,4.5.

So it's no surprise that they pick a socialist poet with Communist sympathies.

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In this article, 'Hanoi John' Gets Unwelcome Reception From Veterans, it is explained that more veterans are against Kerry than for him, by a wide margin.

"Because of people like Kerry and Fonda, Vietnam vets had to hide under a rock for 15 years," said Reg Cornelia, 60, East Hampton, N.Y. "He came back and he lied about the atrocities, and worse still, he brought guys to testify before Congress who he knew had never served in Vietnam."

Kerry turned on U.S. soldiers as a matter of "political expediency," Cornelia said. He wondered why the news media hadn't pushed Kerry on that subject.

Probably because the media was complicit. After all, it was the media who's slant on the war sparked the protests and fanned the flames.

"We know he's a phony," [Vietnam veteran James] Booth said. "You don't get two Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and a Silver Star in 21 days. You don't do it, no way. I was at Walter Reed [Army Medical Center] for 18 months. I got one Purple Heart. I lost an eye, part of my jaw and got hit in the arm. This guy's got three scratches and he's making a big deal out of it. It doesn't seem right."

As you'll read in the next article, it is alleged that two of his three Purple Hearts were self inflicted. I knew one was by firing a mortar at the shore (no combat, he was bored) and a piece of shrapnel ricocheted back and caught him in the arm.

There you go.

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In a related story, straight from Drudges Keyboard to your eyes:

XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX THU JULY 29, 2004 10:24:25 ET XXXXX

KERRY WAR COMRADES PREPARE BATTLE -- AGAINST KERRY

Capped by Kerry's primetime speech to accept the Democratic Party's nomination, Thursday's program will include appearances and remarks by Kerry's Swift Boat crewmates, the Kerry-Edwards campaign announced in a press release this morning.

But a group of veterans will soon try to convince a nation how what is presented on the convention stage tonight -- may not be the full story: "Only 2 of John Kerry's 23 fellow Swift boat commanders from Coastal Division 11 support his candidacy today."

A new bombshell book written by the man who took over John Kerry's Swift Boat charges: Two of John Kerry's three Purple Heart decorations (#1 and #3) resulted from self-inflicted wounds, not suffered under enemy fire.

The startling Purple Heart accusations, outlined in detail for the first time, are found in UNFIT FOR COMMAND, Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against John Kerry.

And that's just the beginning.

The book, previewed by the DRUDGE REPORT, will be unleashed next month by REGNERY.

The book hit #2 on the AMAZON sales chart on the eve of the Kerry acceptance speech in Boston.

Swift Boat Veterans began to fume after Kerry's campaign used a photograph of John Kerry and 19 other Coastal Division 11 Swift boat officers [taken at Ton Sun Nuht Air Base on January 22, 1969] in a pro-Kerry advertisement.

William Shumadine, a member of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth pictured in the photograph, explains in UNFIT: "John Kerry's use of a photograph with his nineteen comrades, with knowledge that eleven of them condemn him and six who cannot or do not want to be involved, is a complete misreprentation to the public and a total fraud."

[A major campaign is being planned, beginning next week, over 200 anti-Kerry vets involved, with news conferences in battleground states.]

Developing...

I quoted the whole thing because, as always, Drudge does not archive his pages.

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I found this article, Notable Quotes: John Kerry Can Secure America and couldn't resist it.

Here's their words and my comments:

Billy Baldwin, actor, representative of the Creative Coalition: "Without a doubt, without a doubt. When it comes to mending fences with the Germans and the French and the United Nations and NATO, I think [a Kerry administration] would take it more seriously...

President Bush spent months courting France and Germany. Then it turned out that these two countries had sweet deals with Saddam and Iraq. If we toppled Saddam, those contracts (and millions of dollars of money) would go down the drain. So they had national interests directly opposed to ours. The only way to get them on our side now would probably to reinstate Saddam.

Aldofo Carrion, Bronx, NYC Borough President:...There are no weapons of mass destruction, there is no evidence, there are no ties with Al Qaeda, no direct ties...

We have found some shells of sarin nerve agent, which shows that there are at least some WMD hanging around. Iraq is a big country and there is a lot of digging to do yet.

The 9/11 commission said there were ties between Iraq and Al Qaeda, just no connection between Iraq and 9/11, which is something the Bush Administration has never said anyway, but the press keeps trying to allude to it.

Michael Moore, filmmaker: "Let me answer that by asking you a question. If a group of people barged in here right now and started to attack us, you and me, who would you rather have standing right here with us, John Kerry or George W. Bush? Think about it in those terms, who do you think would have a better chance of surviving an assault on America with? The answer is clear, John Kerry."

Sure, John Kerry who voted to cut every major military program on the board. John Kerry who voted to cut spending in general to the military. John Kerry who voted to slash intelligence gathering to the very bone. That is who would protect us? Someone who would make us defenseless, subordinate our national security to countries who have interests opposite ours? I don't think so.

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Kerry suffers a severe disconnect from reality concerning our national energy policy. Kerry to assert foreign oil, national security link.

He wants cars to be more fuel efficient, but doesn't realize we have reached the point of diminishing returns as far as fuel efficiency. What we need is a way to diminish the foreign dependence on oil by increasing domestic production. But there is no way for him and his cohorts to increase domestic production. So we have to depend on the middle east to make up the difference. Which means that the stability of the middle east is a national security priority.

It's a circular reasoning problem that is making me dizzy.

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I have been getting a lot of hits concerning the website Jib Jab and their parody of Woody Guthrie and his song "This land" which is here. So, I thought I'd refresh the link so you wouldn't have to go searching through my archives to find it.

Go see it. It's funny.

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The headline says it all: Socialists Join Communists in Backing Kerry.

Two of the most virulent anti-American forces are backing a Presidential candidate. Shouldn't that tell you something about the man? About his policies and outlook on life? It does for me.

With friends such as these, Kerry won't need any enemies.

Amen to that.

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Supporters of Kerry want a cabinet level position, the Department of Peace. Progressives Want Kerry, Dept. of Peace.

I don't know where this reporter got their facts, but it states in paragraph 5 that Kerry spent three tours of duty on Vietnam, when nothing could be further from the truth. He spent 4 months there, whereupon he was rotated out after getting three Purple Hearts.

Still, the progressive activists said they wish Kerry were further to the left.

If the good Senator from Massachusetts leaned any farther to the left, he would be horizontal. They don't realize that he must move to the center to get the uncommitted pool of voters to at least consider voting for him. But his rabid Liberal followers just keep dragging him back to the left.

Kucinich and his backers hoped that the progressive movement would devote some of its energies to pushing hard for a Department of Peace.

Under the headline "U.S. Department of Peace," a banner on the speakers' stage proclaimed: "We, the people of the United States of America, call upon our government to withdraw from the war in Iraq and begin reconstruction of what we have just destroyed."

These people aren't paying attention to the facts. We have been reconstructing Iraq from day one of the invasion. All of the hospitals and schools are open. Oil, water and electricity are flowing better than before the war. It will take a lot of time and effort to fully restore Iraq's infrastructure, because so much of it was neglected during Saddams regime. Instead of investing his Oil for Food money into where it was supposed to go, he built palaces for himself. As with all dictators, he wallowed in luxury while his citizens languished in poverty.

Peace is a pipe dream. Everything we do is a struggle against something and we must wage battles to get what we want. There is no peace. There never will be peace, short of the peace of the grave. We as human beings must fight for everything, including the drawing of breath. Not all fights involve violence. We must fight to win and keep our jobs, fight for payraises, fight with our children so that they may grow up right, and so on.

These people believe that peace is the opposite of war. Slavery is the opposite of war, and that is exactly what Iraq is fighting against right now. The citizens of Iraq are given a choice. They can live in freedom in a country ruled by law, or they can live in a country where there is no freedom and the law of the land is Sharia, or Islamic religious law. They are choosing the former and they have to fight to earn it.

Good for them.

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I finally got in contact with my case manager and med nurse and got my stuff straightened out. I'm picking up my refills this morning.

I'm glad, I've been feeling out of sorts the past couple of days and that's why I haven't been commenting too much yesterday or today.

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I think the picture pretty much says it all:

I think they should hand these out at abortion clinics. It might give pause to those women before they do something like this again. Or at least the act that led up to it.

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Not only has the transmission come off (read that next post) but the wheels are coming off as well.

A couple of weeks back I missed my last medication appointment because of an time-critical emergency task that took precedence over getting my meds that day. I had a weeks worth of meds, so that wasn't the emergency.

Next week comes along and no rescheduled appointment. I am now low on meds, and I call my case manager. He calls the med nurse and then I get a call from her on Friday, when I am down to one days meds. She calls in two weeks worth, but schedules my appointment three weeks down the road.

Well, things broke down last week and I couldn't reach anybody, so I have been off medications now for two whole days. I finally got hold of my case manager who was out sick last week this morning and he's getting the ball rolling.

I've been holding together so far, but the medications I am on are dangerous if you just stop taking them.

I'll keep you informed as to what is going on.

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Just last week I got a rather large bite in my karmic butt.

For those of you who don't delve deeply into my archives, I have a minivan who's transmission died last year. I have been withholding repairing it because it is in my wife's name, even though she doesn't drive. The reason why it's in her name has to do with my mental illness. She hasn't given me permission to get it fixed, I did this on my own.

Anyway, I decided to spend most of my savings and I bought a used transmission. I also contracted with a mechanic friend to replace the transmission. He quoted me one Sunday to do the swap, so I got the transmission and the minivan to his house and awaited the return of my transportation.

Here's where the wrong reason comes in. While my family would have profited from the van working, I would have gotten way more out of it than they would have. It was for almost purely selfish, not altruistic, reasons that I went ahead with this. There are places that I want to be that I can't get to without someone else taking me there and I feel that I am imposing on my friends in this way.

Well, it took my friend a month to get the replacement transmission in. He was delayed by several unavoidable reasons (bad weather, food poisoning, accident, etc.). Once he finally got it in, he discovered that the replacement transmission is dead as well. Because he took so long, the warranty ran out on the transmission and I am now stuck with two dead transmissions and no money to try again. And I still owe him the money for doing the work.

I have no idea if the transmission is repairable or if it is, if he would do it.

Learn from my mistake. Make sure your motives are in the right alignment before you do something, or risk the negative consequences.

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Well, after having some spare money from the transmission fiasco (I was going to use it to register the vehicle), I decided to spend it on getting a new chair. I found one on sale at the local Office Max. It's a nice comfortable executive chair with a thick enough back so that my Conures can perch on it behind me while I type my missives to you.

About the same time, I also discovered that all five seasons of Babylon 5 are out on DVD. I decided to get season 1 and I'll spend about half of my disposable income for the month on getting subsequent seasons as the months go by. This just means that I'll be on the Ramin diet for the next 4 months.

B5 to me beats out Star Trek because in the ST universe, there are very little realities to the human condition. At least in B5 you have that underclass of people who are willing to do anything to survive. It means that no matter how good things get, someone will always be left behind. That may not be right, but it's true.

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Unusually, I watched 60 Minutes last night, and I came across an interesting article.

It was about something called stealth marketing. It's where you're being pitched to and don't even know it.

There is a term out there known as 'viral marketing.' It's where a person pleased with a product or service will tell other people how much they like it. If the listening person tries the product in question and likes it, they become 'infected' and will pass the good recommendations along to the next person, and so on.

Stealth marketing takes the form of being a paid viral marketer. They are salesmen cloaked in innocent conversation.

One example was a young person at a bar with a pack of cigarettes open and on the bar. They are waiting for someone to come by and then bum a cigarette. Then the person launches into a low-scale pitch about "how good it tastes" and so on to sell this brand to their new found acquaintance.

To me, this is at least slightly dishonest. It just doesn't feel right because there is an element of deceit involved. You could say there is an element of deceit in all marketing, but that's involved with the product, I'm talking about the method of marketing here.

It is things like this that are souring me on striking up conversations with strangers. I must now be suspicious that they will be trying to sell me something.

I'm not paranoid, but I'm getting there.

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Only cowards take hostages. - Klingon proverb

In their latest gig, the terrorists have started kidnapping Indians, who don't even have troops in Iraq. India, With No Troops in Iraq, Faces Latest Hostage Crisis.

Please notice they have stopped taking American hostages, they have seen that it doesn't work with us. But it worked great with the Philippines, so they are seeing who else doesn't have the stomach to see a little blood.

Please don't take this the wrong way. I grieve for the dead, and I am enraged by the manner of their death. But to give up all that we have gained to prevent one death would be to insure the deaths of thousands later. Terrorists are no better than your common criminal. They pick on the weak and unprotected. If they see a house with bars on the windows and dogs in the yard, they just go on down the street until they find a house that is as good as open.

Actually, this proves to us just who we want on our side in this fight. Better to find out now then if we go to them really needing help and the can't/won't provide that help. Our best friends don't have to tell us we're friends, they show it through their actions.

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The eco-nuts are at it again. States, NYC Sue Energy Companies Over 'Global Warming'.

They are specifically suing out of state energy producers because they can't harm NYC, et. al. Imagine if NYC sued NYPower. NYPower would just totally cut power to the city, claiming that they are no longer contributing to global warming. If they did this with timing and killed power during the hearing, they could settle the case right there, with a rather large exclamation point.

The eco-nuts are going after these specific entities because they have MONEY. You see, Africa pollutes almost as much as we do by burning thousands of tons of dung in campfires for cooking and stuff. But there's no money in suing African tribesmen. Besides, they're living "in tune with Nature," which means a subsistence level two lumps ahead of an animals, with horrendous AIDS levels and a child mortality rate that is through the roof.

If you want to solve the problem of too much CO₂, all you have to do is plant more trees. That will solve the problem right there. Also, maintain the trees so they don't burn up in wildfires so they release CO₂, instead of absorbing it.

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Linda Ronstadt could be invited back to the very same hotel she just got booted from as early as September, after it changes management. Welcome Mat For Linda Ronstadt.

I don't think the message is getting through. It was the audience that got upset and performed a mini-riot over her comments. The management got Ronstadt out of the hotel as quickly as possible to quell that mini-riot. When paying customers don't like your product, they tend to go elsewhere, and the new management needs to take that into consideration.

I think that performers need to understand that the stage is a place for them to sing, not proselytize, unless the concert itself is for a particular cause. I wouldn't have a problem with Ms. Ronstadt saying what she said at a Democrat fundraiser, but not part of a Vegas show. The audience didn't pay for that and in this case they let the management know unequivocally that they did not appreciate her message.

Now what will happen if the new management books Ronstadt again and bills her with Moore? I don't know. They will likely pack the house again, this time with people who are tuned into that message.

But I can hope that no one shows up.

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Like I said yesterday, I'm not a wild sports fanatic, but I do root for the Titans.

It seems that Eddie George landed on his feet after all. He's almost signed a one-year deal with the Cowboys, all he has to do is pass a physical.

The Titans didn't waste any time in replacing George either. They've already signed Antowain Smith, fresh from the Pats.

This should turn out to be an interesting year.

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Michael Moore plans to crash the Democrat Convention. Fahrenheit 7/26: Michael Moore: I will crash Kerry's party.

This will be wonderful. Kerry is trying to appeal to the uncommitted middle of the country, and the loony far-left is bounding up saying, "I want to help!" This is akin to the Vietnam movie where the newbie doesn't watch where he's going and trips the booby trap, wiping out the whole squad.

This kind of help Kerry doesn't need right now. This is specifically why Moore wasn't invited to the convention. Kerry is trying to go centrist without alienating the Left, and the Left refuses to leave him to go there. As long as the vocal Looney Left is with Kerry, there is no chance for him to get any significant portion of the centrist vote. In fact, as long as the LL stays loudly vocal, it will drive the centrist vote right into the GOP camp.

Perfect.

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The latest Rocky Top Brigade Tailgate Party is up at
Big Orange Michael. And yours truly has the first slot. Boo-Yah!

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You know, stealing Top Secret code word documents and notes is a serious offense, and Billy Bob ain't there to bail him out. Whatever his motivations are for doing this, the consequences has to be more serious than 20 years hard time in Club Fed. Unless something miraculous happens Sandy is Persona Non Grata for the rest of his life. His breaches of security is of such seriousness that he can no longer be trusted with sensitive documents.

Archives Staff Was Suspicious of Berger and Guards left Berger alone, sources say are today's reports of more information on this subject.

It is likely that the guards in question who violated protocol will be fired, since they knew better. Ever since the John Walker spy ring, handling and destruction of highly classified material has been tightened to an extreme factor. When dealing with such material, you do so only in places known as "No Lone Zones," where obviously no one is alone in these places. If Sandy Burglar had to make a sensitive phone call, he should have done so outside of the No Lone Zone.

His theft of highly classified documents (and there is no other way to put it, you simply cannot be a National Security Advisor and be that sloppy in the handling of classified documents) constitutes a grave threat to the security of the United States.

He should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.

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Well, it seems the Internet is getting crowded. Trillions more internet addresses may emerge. They are looking to revamp the current TCP/IP protocol with IPv6, which will provide the opportunity for approximately 3.4 x 10³⁷ addresses, or 34 followed by 37 zeros. That's billion, billion, billion, billion. That means that every one of the 6 billion people on the planet can have almost 4 billion web pages each. And still have room to spare.

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I'm not normally a sports fanatic, but this one caught my eye. Eddie takes the money and runs - to where?

I root for the Titans because they're the home team around here. I thought Eddie George was great. His stats has not been fantastic over the past couple of years, but he did his best. Because he got greedy, he's out on his butt, and it's likely no one will touch him. After all, who wants someone who's near the end of their career who's demanding top dollar? If it's anyone, it's someplace that has no one to begin with.

Oh, well. Good bye Eddie.

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My apologies good readers, but no commentary today.

I am not having an attack, but I think I took a fall on the emotional scale to about a -4 today. Just for reference, Zero is normal and -10 is a suicide attempt. I am feeling down because I am facing a pile of emergency chores that I don't want to do. I am long overdue to clean the apartment, do the laundry and go grocery shopping, even a haircut. I woke up two hours late because I just didn't want to get out of bed this morning.

I know, I know, everybody has days like this. But when it's gone on for a couple of months, it's depression. And this has gone on for a couple of months.

I have had to force myself to do even the simplest things, like feeding myself. Personal hygiene is almost non-existent. Even perusing the message boards that I love to read and post on has become a chore. Blogging has been a way for me to get out of bed in the morning and get my juices working so I can do more stuff. Sometimes it works.

Still, I plan on at least doing my laundry today. That involves my case manager taking me a mile down the road and dropping me off at the closest Laundromat, then picking me up from it to bring me back. It just requires that I have everything ready when he comes by, which hasn't happened over the last couple of weeks. This is something I should be doing at least every other week, not every other month.

I'm going in. Cover me.

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It has been a bedrock of the Clinton administration. If something was potentially embarrassing, it would mysteriously disappear before the press could get hold of the details. As always, it was 'inadvertently' lost, destroyed, etc.

Well, it's happened again. Sandy Berger Probed Over Terror Memos.

As someone who has handled classified material, if I did something like this I would have been in Leavenworth for a looong time. Mr. Burger won't even get a slap on the wrist because he was a high level official under President Clinton.

How do you "accidentaly" stuff classified notes into your pants? How is it only the papers that could be critical of the Clinton Administration end up in his briefcase?

Here's even more evidence of how bad this is: Sandy Berger Not Front Page News in Some Major Newspapers.

The Washington Post played the story at the top of page 2. The New York Times played the story at the bottom of Page 16. USA Today was among the newspapers playing it above the fold on the front page.

Good for the USA Today.
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Linda Ronstadt got unceremoniously tossed from a gig in Las Vegas this past Saturday. Ronstadt Praises 'Fahrenheit,' Gets Booed.

She opened her mouth and praised Moore and his schlock piece, Fahrenheit 9/11. The audience got so raucous that Ronstadt was immediately escorted off the property. They sent her stuff afterwards.

I find this wonderful, that there is an audience that is not willing to put up with celebrities cashing in on the pulpit they have and editorializing their views down the audiences throats. For once, they fought back and the venue was listening.

I'm proud of you guys. Shame on you Ms. Ronstadt.

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Ladies and Gentlemen, dear readers.

My family lives off my disability, and I live off what Social Security lets me earn, which is $800/month. It's a very tight existence, I can barely afford the bills that I do have, let alone have a lot of disposable income.

As you can see by the picture below, the chair that I use to communicate with you is in very sad shape. I have to sit on it like a one legged stool, and yes there were at one time one legged stools. Ask me and I'll tell you about them.

Anyway, I am asking you to donate $2.00 to my new chair fund. I ask for $2 because by the time PayPal takes it's cut, it's about $1.25. If I can get everyone who visits over the next 3 days to donate 10 minutes and $2.00, I can afford a new chair. This would let me concentrate more on what I need to communicate to you rather than falling off and breaking the chair even worse.

Thanks.

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All men are equal, up to the point of exertion. How much you exert will determine how far you will go. The Power of Optimism.

I quote it all because it's short and important.

Blacks from immigrant families outperform native-born blacks in school, notes Clarence Page, a black columnist, somewhat belatedly. Why? Page says it doesn't take a Harvard study to figure out the answer:

Immigrant kids work harder.

They work harder, in part, because their parents work harder -- and their parents work harder because of their relentless optimism: Where others see a dead-end job, immigrants of all colors see an entry-level opportunity.

Where others may see inequities, immigrants tend to see a ladder to be climbed. With a hyper-optimism, they move ahead, upward and outward, undeterred by discrimination, short-term poverty, substandard housing, lack of financial capital or any other barriers that fate throws in the way of their hopes and dreams.

And they pass this spirit of enterprise on to their children. A University of Chicago study in 1995, for example, found children from a variety of minority groups whose mothers are immigrants outperform students from their same ethnic group whose mothers were born in the United States. "Family optimism" about the future played a crucially important role in determining school success, according to sociology Prof. Marta Tienda.

In the 20th century, optimistic blacks moved from the rural south to the industrial north, Page writes. But that spirit has been lost and needs to be revived.

There are many outreach programs designed to help the poor and underperforming Black person. But they have to expend the effort to get the help and outperform everybody else. I have found throughout my travels that if you want a promotion, you have to already been doing that job for a while. If you want to be shop supervisor, you need to be doing that job whenever the supervisor is out sick/on vacation/etc.

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Sir Elton John should be a little more careful on what he talks about. Elton attacks 'censorship' in US.

Of course, he gets it all wrong. There are no Bush Brownshirts stationed at every radio and TV station to make sure all output is "approved" by the President.

When the Dixie Chicks were yanked off the air, it was because outraged listeners called in to the radio stations and told them not to play their records. When Charlie Daniels, Lee Greenwood and Darryl Worley had patriotic hits, it was because a large majority of that target audience is patriotic.

There are no anti-war events because a majority of people believe that the war in Iraq was the right thing to do. They may not agree with how the plan is being executed, but when faced with the choice of suicide bombers here or there, almost everybody chooses there.

The only people who are truly anti-war are the rabid peace-at-any-cost people, who would rather have 9/11's on a regular basis (because they believe we "deserve" them) than try to prevent them. These people believe that peace is the opposite of war.

You want an example? Here you go:

This is your anti-war crowd. Get used to it.

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This article, Senate Approves Tobacco Buyout and New Curbs idealizes the phrase "Congress: If it moves, tax it. If it still moves, regulate it. If it stops moving, subsidize it."

The Senate has moved into Phases 2 and 3 in the above statement, handing regulatory power of tobacco to the FDA and subsidizing tobacco farmers so they can continue to produce their product.

I've been saying for a while that Congressmen pass laws like they were paid on a commission basis, and this just proves it true.

Stronger warnings and weaker ads will not change anyone's mind to start. I remember a while back there was a brand called "Death" Cigarettes. Instead of the standard warning on the side, it said something like "You are guaranteed to get cancer by using this product." It was a popular brand from what I understand.

I don't like smoking. Both my parents were two pack a day smokers for over 50 years and they inspired me not to smoke, simply because I hated the way their product invaded my zone of comfort, especially in the car. The windows would be up and they would both light up, never minding the car filling with smoke. I had to yell at them to open the vents to make the air breathable again.

If you want to pollute your body with carcinogens and poisons, that's fine with me, just do it somewhere else.

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Now that I am getting a lot of hits, I am getting a lot of comments. I wanted to start responding to those excellent comments by giving them their own post.

Michael Moore is a lying bastard

He may be, but the clip in the movie where President Bush does nothing for 7 minutes after being told a second plane has hit the World Trade Center is very powerful. I have not heard anything saying that clip is fake. If it's accurate then clearly Bush is merely a figurehead president. The excuse about not wanting to frighten the children is crap. Protecting the entire country during a major attack is far more important then getting up and walking out on reading time.

Zack

All right, I accept your premise. He should have done something.

What could he have done? What orders could he have given? Fighters were already scrambling, the FAA was shutting down the sky's and grounding all of the planes, etc. The only order that Bush would be forced to make (and he made it, but after all the planes had crashed) was to give the okay for a fighter to down an airliner.

A good leader does not have to make all of the decisions for himself. He sets up a network of lower level managers and gives them authority to do things and responsibility to make sure they do the right thing. That in your definition makes him a "figurehead" since he makes very few decisions, most of them are already made by his subordinates. That is what happens when you pick the right people and then let them do their jobs.

Considering that no one (read: sane person) had even thought of someone intentionally ramming an aircraft into a building, I think we reacted remarkably well. Yes, there was a large amount of shock and awe over the paradigm shift, but people took charge and did things. It was too late for it, but not any more.

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Medicare now covers being fat

Obesity can be caused by thyroid dysfunction, high blood pressure, digestive tract ailments and much more - so take a hike ya anti-fat bozo.
Brian

I totally agree with you. I was pretty overweight before, but since I've gone on this amazing new diet called get-off-your-ass-and-stop-eating-so-much, I've MIRACULOUSLY lost twenty pounds, with only ten more to go! But seriously, all I did was start eating less (and making my food choices HEALTHY) and got active, and the fat started to go away- slowly but steadily. Another important thing is to have a healthy goal. I know I'm never going to look like Heidi Klum, but I know I can look much better and feel better about myself. And thanks for the support! It's good to know that someone believes in me.
Tessa the Bold

Tessa,

*BIG HUG* I am so proud of you! Congratulations! You are my hero!

Brian,

I realize that there are many MEDICAL reasons why people get fat, which is why I caveated with, "Unless you are taking medications that bloat you,."

Most overweight people eat too much for their activity level. If you are sedentary and eat 5k calories a day, you're going to look like a sumo wrestler. If you run 10 miles a day, plus an hour of weight training, then 5k is proper for you.

I'm not trying to slam fat people, I want to inspire them, like Tessa is.

I wish I could get on a weight loss program, but I lack the commitment. I have trouble doing things like brushing my teeth and shaving every day, let alone going out and exercising. I need to lose 20-30 pounds myself.

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The Canadians want to arrest Michael Moore

Getting in line to kick Moore is the no-brain right wing party trick du jour. Wake up.
Fergus

I'm not kicking him because his name is Michael Moore, I'm kicking him because he is a lying bastard of a propagandist on the scale of Goebbels. He is a fat, full-of-himself son of a bitch who thinks he's the greatest thing since Cecil B. DeMille. He and his friends on the Looney Left are so filled with an irrational hatred of _anybody_ who puts an (R) by their name.

The Left Hated Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush 41 and now Dubya. They hate him just because he draws breath. He could do everything Clinton did (as far as policies go) and they would still hate him. Just because he's Conservative.

People with such an irrational feature about them should be watched with great suspicion and everything they say should be taken with a salt lick.

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I hope that clears things up.
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I received a question in comments on one of my posts asking to describe what an attack consists of. Here you go:

It starts off with a feeling of someone putting a 50 pound bag of sand on my shoulders and neck. Then I get an impulse to stick a gun just behind my right ear and pull the trigger. I start getting racing thoughts (think merry-go-round out of control) and then waves of irrational fear roll over me. I am consumed with emotions that I cannot control and I have to scream and cry and whimper until the attack subsides, which can go from 15 minutes to 6 hours. Being in the darkness and quiet of the closet (or hiding under the covers of my bed, etc.) is the only place that I can wait for these images and feelings to subside. If I were out in the world when one hits me, I can defer it somewhat, but at the cost of increased severity later.

I am lucky to work in a job that requires a mental illness as a job qualification. It means they understand that some days I am not too functional. They have a place set aside for me if I need it.

If I am interrupted or someone (tries) to force me to do something other than crawl into the closet during an attack, I become violent. This is when I have physically hurt my family. My wife has tried to "help" and gotten the shit beat out of her for her troubles. My family has had the daylights scared out of them and this is when I end up in the hospital. This is why I live alone. There is no one here to stop me. I don't have the tools to actually hurt myself here, and I can deal with the suicidal urge. Blowing my brains out is not something that I want to do, it's merely a very clear and insistent image, coupled with an urge to carry the image out.

My anti-psychotics have gotten rid of the gun urge, but not completely. I still get that mental image 2-3 times a week besides the attacks, but without the urge behind it. I used to get the urge 5-10 times a day. My mood stabilizers has finally brought me to Zero on my emotional gauge (it's a Manic +10 - 0 - Suicidal -10). I have been on the minus side for several months, but I have been creeping slowly up to zero.

The best way I can describe it is I am like a recovering alcoholic. It is something that has a large impact on my life. It is never far from my thoughts and I have to wake up every morning with the intention of "I will not have an attack today." Most days I win, some days I don't. I'm glad I survive the attacks and I carry on with my life as best I can.

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Yes, the title is correct. The Canadians want to arrest Michael Moore and put him in jail. Elections Canada to charge Moore

It seems that during a showing of his movie, he came out against a particular candidate, which is against Canadian law, under the "Non-Interference by Foreigners" clause (Part 11, Division 9, section 331) of the Canadian Elections Act:

No person who does not reside in Canada shall, during an election period, in any way induce electors to vote or refrain from voting for a particular candidate unless the person is

A) a Canadian citizen; or

B) a permanent resident within the meaning of subsection 2 (1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

Penalty under this law is a $2,000 fine and/or a jail term of up to six months less a day.

The good news (I guess) is that he will be expelled from Canada and prevented from entering again.

You can find out "Moore" about this at chargeMoore.com.

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Medicare will now cover obesity treatments. Medicare says obesity may now be covered.

Though not all weight-loss therapies are reimbursable, the move opens the door to payments covering stomach surgery, diet programs and behavioral and psychological counseling.

Unless you are taking medications that bloat you, if you're fat YOU'RE EATING TOO MUCH.

Fad diets mostly "work" on drastically restricting caloric intake by limiting your eating choices, usually to something nasty. All this does is train your body to store more into fat when the diet goes away, leading to 'yo-yo' dieting.

Proper weight loss dieting means a lifestyle change. Like stay away from fried foods. That alone can make a large weight change for the better possible. Just bake what you eat instead of frying it.

Second is portion control. If you eat for six you're going to weigh like six. A normal person consumes about 2,000 to 2,500 calories a day. If you can cut your intake down to 1,900 calories a day (instead of 900 on those fad diets) then you will lose weight gradually instead of a "crash" diet.

Third is the speed. You gained weight gradually, if you lose it just as gradually then you're doing great. This isn't a race with anybody but yourself, and the object is to lose weight in a healthy manner, not how fast you do it.

Weight loss is simply a manner of a small lifestyle change and sticking to it. It takes willpower, which by and large many overweight people have a problem with, otherwise they wouldn't be overweight to begin with.

I highly suggest if you want to lose those unwanted pounds, get Dr. Phil's book on losing weight.

Things like gastric bypass only treat the problem, not the condition.

If you have some extra pounds, you can lose weight, I have faith in you.

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It seems that the Federal government has come to its senses for once. Doffing CAPPS II.

CAPPS II, the massive intrusion into ones life just to take a trip on an airplane, has been halted, since it provides a minimal increase in security for a massive cost in personal privacy.

Thank God.

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I have an important appointment on Friday. So I don't have to take a leave day, I'm working today instead to cover for a co-worker that is out today.

I need to start cleaning myself up, I have spent the last several days sweltering in my apartment, but I'm starting an attack. Hopefully I will at least be able to shave. I have great difficulty in maintaining person hygiene. Thankfully I don't stink, but my face gets a little long at times.

It's off to whimper for a few minutes before I start cleaning myself up.

Later.

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This article, The Affirmative Action Myth talks about how it doesn't matter where minorities go for education, as long as they go.

If you had a graduate of the University of Memphis, and put him up against a graduate of Harvard, they both would make the same money at the same time (assuming, of course, that they both work as hard).

Like I said, it doesn't matter what college or university you go to, as long as you have done the high school work and are qualified to go. If you do the work and earn the degree, it doesn't matter where you went to school, your salary potential is almost exactly the same.

Read the article, it will open your eyes.

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For those of you who don't know, Whoopi Goldberg showed up at a Kerry fundraiser a week or so back. She came on stage drunk, with a bottle in her hand, and proceeded to rip into President Bush, mostly by pointing at her nether regions. The Democrats have released no audio or video of the routine, probably because it would be very embarrassing.

Well, as I have said many times before, there are consequences to every action you perform, and if you do something for the wrong reasons, you get bit in the butt over it. Slim-Fast Cans Whoopi Over Bush Remarks.

Of course, once she sobers up Whoopi will scream "Censorship!" which of course it's not. It is merely a company exercising discretion as to whom they select as a spokesperson.

Good for them, I'll have to pick up a case next time I go to the grocery store.

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This article, Campaign Finance Flap Over 527s talks about how the 527's (over 90% of which are Liberal) are stepping over the line.

The rules say 527s are not allowed to call for the victory or defeat of a certain candidate, but some watchdog groups say these organizations are crossing that line.

"They are staying away from what they call 'express advocacy,' which means saying who to vote for or who to defeat in explicit words. But what they are doing is very clearly doing ads that very clearly oppose a candidate or promote a candidate," said Larry Noble, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics.

It's actually nothing new. I've been talking about this for a while, the Liberals don't like the law that they wrote, so they ignore it by raising money through 527's and just running whatever kind of ads they want to run.

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The AOL Instant Messenger robot Smarter Child is for John Kerry. AOL's Instant Message Robot a Bush Basher.

For those occasions when you want to IM and have no one to talk to, you can always talk to this robot, which is basically a modified Turing program. Kerry is "awesome," but Bush is "uncool."

Even after they "fixed" it, it's still biased towards Kerry.

It is still possible to get the robot to reveal its true feelings however. When told that "John Kerry rocks," Smarter Child still responds "Right on!" with a wink. When told that "John Kerry is awesome," it responds "Absolutely. John Kerry rocks." And when users tell Smarter Child that "George Bush is awesome," it replies, "I'll remember that. It's interesting especially since other people I've talked to say they don't like George W. Bush."

I can put this down as another of the 58 reasons why I hate AOL. Don't get me started.

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You know, just when I get to be feeling like a normal person, things like this happen. I had a major attack yesterday, I almost didn't get into work. Then I had another major attack this morning as well. I'm still not over it, but I wanted to get out my posts. Now that I've completed that task, I'm going to crawl into the closet and whimper for a while.

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You want documentation that he's a worse lying bastard than in Bowling for Columbine?

Here you go: Fifty-nine Deceits in Fahrenheit 9/11.

Read it. It's long but it's worth it. The article takes apart the movie scene by scene.

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