The Incredible
I must say a word or two about The Incredibles:
1. Pro-tort reform
2. Anti the celebration of mediocrity
3. Pro marriage and family
4. Pro heroism
5. pro individualism
and most surprisingly, coming from Hollywood as it does,
it makes two statements that struck me as supportive of the war on terror, when first the mother tells her children that the bad guys are not the ones they see on Saturday mroning TV, but really bad, the kind who would kill children (sound like a reference to any terrorists we know?)
Second, the mother tells them (can't recall the exact words) that things have changed, and they have to use all their abilities to beat the bad guys.
Maybe no one else heard it this way, but I believe it was unmistakable.
See it.

In the immortal words of general McAuliffe, I answer OBL's demand for surrender: "NUTS!"

Belmont Club

A Vote for kerry is a Vote for Zarqawi
Telegraph | Opinion | If Bush loses, the winner won't be Kerry: it will be Zarqawi
"...the man who said of Americans in a document discovered earlier this year "…these are the biggest cowards of the lot, and we ask God to allow us to kill, and detain them, so that we can exchange them with our arrested sheikhs and brothers". He is Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and it is probably he who killed Ken Bigley. Such men believe they have already changed the government in Spain; they will claim at once that they have done the same in the United States. They will be right."

Another Reason to Loathe RapRapper: Blacks 'cheered when 9-11 happened'

Kraft on the Death of Liberalism
KGO-AM 810 NewsTalk
Kraft says what Bush shoul have said. Read it all.
We have created a focal point for the battle now at the time and place of our choosing, in Iraq. Not in New York, not in London, or Paris, or Berlin, but in Iraq, where we did and are doing two very important things:(1) We deposed Saddam Hussein.


(2) We created a battle, a confrontation, a flash point, with Islamic terrorism in Iraq. We have focused the battle. We are killing bad guys there, and the ones we get there we won't have to get here, or anywhere else.

Wkae up Call to Theresa: Afghan Miralce
The New York Times > Opinion > Op-Ed Columnist: The Afghan Miracle

DRUDGE REPORT FLASH 2004�
The level of political discourse continues to deteriorate. Tell me again, why should I vote for this man?

Kerry's Foreign Policy Won't Fly
Iran Mocks Kerry's Idea for a Deal on Uranium - October 4, 2004 - The New York Sun
Iran has rejected Kerry's proposal to supply them with nuclear fuel, so we can put that aspect of his foreign policy out of mind. France and Germany have repeated their rejection of any role in Iraq, so his Iraq policy is stillborn... Leaving us with? Oh, yes, a global test for US pre-emptive action.
We're sure the world will accept that one. Let's hope voters don't give them the chance.

Springsteen Opens UpRollingStone.com: News - Bruce Springsteen - "We�ve Been Misled": "I am a dedicated Times reader, and I've found enormous sustenance from Paul Krugman and Maureen Dowd on the op-ed page. There has been great reporting, but there has also been some self-consciousness in some of the reporting about the policy differences in this election."
This excplain a lot. Springsteen gets "sustanance from Maureen Dowd." That's more than I can stand. Any muscian who drinks from the confused, fertid swamp of her writings has no apparent understanding of the issues. Luckily he is preaching to the choir, or those too young, or too lazy to vote.

Kerry Cries "Uncle"
Yahoo! News - Kerry appeals for end to election advertising war
Things must be looking grim for Kerry, as he calls for an end to "misleadisments." he accuses Bush of using negative ads because he has no record on which to run. Since Kerry's only referenced record goes back to the war in Vietnam, one might think he runs negative ads for that same reason, but no, it's only Bush who's negative.
It's also only Bush who has a sense of entitlement from his life of well, entitlement. Kerry's life of privilege has given him a sense of "...fairness and responsibility," in Kerry's words. Also, in case you were wondering, Kerry's positions on Iraq are right, while Bush has been wrong. Who knew?

Dhimmi Carter Speaks
BBC NEWS | Americas | Carter fears Florida vote trouble

A good reason to vote Bush: We don't need more ex-Presidents of the Democratic Party-ilk undermining the US for the rest of their natural lives.

Steyn on Iraq: A Good Thing
Telegraph | Opinion | All the good things they never tell you about today's Iraq

The MSM has lost the trust of so many for reasons way beyond Rathergate. This piece appeared in MSM, (London Telegraph) but here we get the usual drumbeat of doom which passes in liberal circles for constructive news.

Mr. X Votes for Bush
Living in a Closet - September 8, 2004 - The New York Sun

Try being a Republican in bastions of "liberalism" today.

Bush Opens 20 Point Lead in Iowa MarketsIEM 2004 US Presidential Election Winner Takes All Market Price Graph

As the Memogate controversy continues to suck the air out of kerry's lungs, he dips to a low in the Iowa Electronic Markets.
Wow.

Kerry "Shaken" in Steubenville
It seems that Kerry can't figure out just who is likely to support him. He runs as a vet and the vets diss him; he runs as a catholic, and the Catholic vote turns out armed with rosaries to chant "we want Bush." Of coiurse, this Catholic community is more conservative than most, but wouldn't you have people in your campaign to help you figure these things out ahead of time? That is, if you want to win.
Catholics Give Kerry Cool Welcome in Steubenville

Kerry Apologizes to Swiftee
This is Kerry's idea of an apology? "I wasn't talking about Swiftees, but about all the other vets. So, all the other vets were war criminals?
DRUDGE REPORT 2004%AE: "KERRY%3A %22Why are all these swift boat guys opposed to me%3F%22 %0D%0A%0D%0ABRANT%3A %22You should know what you said when you came back%2C the impact it had on the young sailors and how it was disrespectful of our guys that were killed over there.%22 %0D%0A%0D%0A%5BBrant had two men killed in battle.%5D %0D%0A%0D%0AKERRY%3A %22When we dedicated swift boat one in %2792%2C I said to all the swift guys that I wasn%27t talking about the swifties%2C I was talking about all the rest of the veterans.%22 "

IHT%3A With an eye on U.S. vote%2C North Korea rails at Bush
This alone would make one want to vote for Bush.

Kerry Fights Back?:
If Kerry's attempts to counter the Swift Boat veterans for truth is any example of his leadership style, we could expect a kerry administration to whine, tell the other guys to "cut that out" and maybe even ask the UN to "make them stop".
Wouldn't it be more adult to just face the charges with rebuttal, rather than just demand that they stop making the charges? For that matter, why doesn't he stop making this campaign about what he did for 4 months 35 years ago?

The New York Times %3E Washington %3E Campaign 2004 %3E Kerry TV Ad Pins Veterans%27 Attack Firmly on Bush

To Fight Like the Fundamentalists
Belmont Club
This pretty much says it all:A wag once suggested that the War on Terror could end in either of two ways. The Islamic fundamentalist could become like the infidel and within a generation acquire the material wealth and technology whose lack has been their weakness. Or the infidel could become like the Islamic fundamentalist for a day and the end the fight as the fundamentalist would. I thought it was funny once. Let's win this war soon or be prepared to pay the price.

Pre-9/11 Surveillance

Those who would say that the effect of US action against terror has made us less safe should consider this carefully. Even before 9/11 surveillance was carried out on more US targets. The fruits of the War on Terror are being seen now as those enemy plots are being discovered, exposed and hopefully thawarted. The best defense is a good offense.
The New York Times > Washington > Intelligence: Captured Qaeda Figure Led Way to Information Behind Warning

Gomer Pyle, USMC, Reporting for Duty! Shazam!
DRUDGE REPORT 2004�

Good Hair? Good Grief!Ticket touts its values, good hair - The Washington Times: Nation/Politics - July 08, 2004

Kerry has finally come up with a reason for us to vote for him: he and Edwards have better hair. Kerry should, his cut costs about 1,000 dollars, which is a couple of zeros more than mine costs.
I don't like his hair style, but it suits him: stiff, sort of French looking.

North Korean Hamburgers?

The food shortages endemic in North Korea, coupled with persistent longtime stories of cannibalism make me shudder when I see that Kim Jong Il has decided to make hamburgers available to the masses.
I'll bet the processing plant is harder to get into than a nuclear plant. At the same time, I'll also bet that people are dying to get in. Pun intended.
Guardian Unlimited | World Latest | Report: Hamburgers Introduced to N. Korea

Hillary for VP?
DRUDGE REPORT 2004�
I'm not buying this. I don't see either Clinton wanting to take a back seat to Kerry, and I don't see Kerry wanting Bill looking over his shoulder as what the "used to be first man second man"? Of the First Lady Prez in Waiting?
This is the funniest line:"Kerry believes that no one is better on national security than he is, he served in Vietnam after all, so he has that covered and the suggestion that he needs to strengthen the ticket with someone who has national security credentials is dismissed as foolish."
If serving in Vietnam was good, how did Bill get elected? Why did Kerry coet McCain? because he knows he doesn't have good credentials on security. Four months in Vietnam does not cancel out a career of dissing the US military and voting against every major weapons program the nation proposed over the course of his Senate career.

Then there is this: Does anyone truly believe Bill can, or has stayed out of trouble? Wait until the latest Clinton scandal hits; the nation will say "Sorry, been there, done that, we have Clinton bedroom fatigue."
Unless Kerry looks like a lock, Hillary will wait four years. I wonder what her private polls are saying?

Babs on the WorldBarbra Streisand
I'll say this much for Republicans: when they express political opinions they don't sound like they have cornflakes for brains. Reagan and Arnold trump Babs anyday.

Kerry Won't Politick for a Week
Of course, he hopes Bush won't either. Can't have an incumbent pres remind the country of the greatness of another Republican pres.

If Bush says not one word the public can't help be reminded of a president who was reviled as stupid, scorned by the Euros and nose-in-the-air Americans who think they don't belong in the same country with the ordinary Joes that make this country work. We all know now the tone history is liable to take about Reagan as the enormity of his accomplishments sinks in.
Remember Bedtime for Bonzo? Reagan was always compared unfavorably to the chimp, much as W's face is made to be chimp-like in various cruel satires. Who was the first US president to be villified as ape-like, compared to a baboon? Lincoln. Great company, Lincoln, Reagan, Bush: stupid common-folk, like unto apes.

UN Stands Up for Justice! Not!
Amazing how the UN responds to nothing in the world unless the US or Israel are involved.
Yahoo! News - UN Says U.S. Soldiers Could Face War Crimes Charges

The Day After Tomorrow

What is it about Americans who love to see America humiliated?
My experience of TDAT:
Silly science parading as real science. I think they used the same team of top scientists who gave us Godzilla v Rodan
Political speeches for the masses "Oooh, isn't America bad! Wasting all those natural resources."
The audience roaored with approval. Manhattan audience. I suppose none of them run air conditioners, drive gas consuming autos or take flights on fuel consuming airplanes. It's all the fault of the US president and VP who won't do anything about global warming. The Kyoto Accords are brought up as if it's some new deal, to be blamed on the Cheney look-alike VP, and by association, Bush. yet it's the same accord Clinton and Gore negotiated yet couldn't get ratified. In hindsight, the negotiators confess it was not a good treaty anyway. As the rest of the world is largely ignoring it, why is the US to blame?

When the US needs to ask Mexico to permit refugees the audience cheered, as if the US hasn't been the biggest net welcomer of immigrants in the history of the modern world. Haven't we been generous to nations facing disaster scenarios?
Why should anyone, especially US citizens, cheer when we're the ones needing aid? I don't know the answer, but they did cheer, and that was disheartening. When a nation starts to loathe itself it's time to check the national pulse.
One last thing. the destruction of Manhattan brought 9/11 back to me. I don't like seeing manhattan building falling down.

Kerry on Bush: "Did the Training Wheels Fall Off?"

Kerry pokes fun at Bush mishap - The Washington Times: Nation/Politics - May 24, 2004

Kerry is just not a ni9ce man. The tactic being employed by the Dems and their cronies in the press is like the one used by them to defeat Ford. In that case an All-American football player with a law degree from Yale was made to appear to be a bumbling, dull witted, klutz. Now W is made out to be an incompetent child. When will issues surface in this campaign? When Kerry figures out what the polls are telling him to say?

Heinz-Kerry UntouchableMy Way - News

Nothing against Theresa, yet, but I'm amused at the politicians who use their wives for money, for TV attention, etc., yet demnad that those same wives be off-limits with respect to attacks. If one is in the game, one is part of the game. To keep her safe from attack, keep her out of the game.

Safire Tells Rummy: Stay the Course
Sometimes even the NYT prints words of wisdom.
The New York Times > Opinion > Op-Ed Columnist: Rumsfeld Should Stay

What Not to Wear, BBC

Trinny and Susannah are pretty dishy, so, the show is unmissable for me. Today, however I saw the ep (again) where a rather fat, frumpy husband and his bitchy mother and sisters (wicked in-laws) want the wife made over into a new model so that he doesn't have to "turn her in." I dare say he'd be damn lucky to find anyone half as good as her, unmade over. Fat slug.

Rumsfeld Blame?

Trust the NYT to take Rumsfeld's acceptance of responsibility and transmute it to "blame". A significant gap lies between the meaning of those words, and don't bet that the NYT headline editors don't know that.
The New York Times > Washington > Rumsfeld Accepts Blame and Offers Apology in Abuse

Press MisrepresentationGuardian Unlimited | World Latest | Iraq Militiamen Clash With U.S. Troops

What can the press have in mind when a story opens with "U.S. forces in Najaf came under their most intense attack yet by Shiite militiamen..."
Bad for our guys,right? Yet read on.
"...in a clash Monday that may have killed up to 20 Iraqis."
My headline would have been:
US Troops Kill 20 Iraqis

Time to Come Home from GermanyABCNEWS.com : Germany Says Protection of U.S. Bases to End

The Germans have had the benefit of US protection for decades. Let the EU take care of things now. We are needed elsewhere, our funds can have better uses.

Kerrey Mocks 9/11 Commission WorkBlunt: �9-11 Commission Turning Into Comedy Central�
One might be excused for not taking the 9/11 Commission seriously. The members themselves don't. Couple this with Gorelick's continued participation despite obvious conflictss of interest and Kean's testy comment that people questioning Gorelick's role should ..."stay out of our business." And here i was thinking that 9/11 is our business, not theirs.

The News Gap
I sometimes think that the real gap in the US has little to do with gender, age, income, race, religion or region. The gap lies between those who rely on mainstream media for news and opinion, and those who seek alternative sources. What one reads on a daily basis ( I read newspapers nation, and much of the world, wide online every day) is a picture of world and natioanl events. Other picture are available. I seek those out as well. They are very different, in terms of facts alleged, analysis, opinion and commentary. You will know them by the news they read.
Belmont Club

Kerry's Floundering Laid at Bush's FeetThe New York Times > Washington > Campaign 2004 > Kerry Struggling to Find a Theme, Democrats Fear
The fact that Kerry is not an attractive candidate is because Bush is outmanuevering him?
Who knew Bush and his team are so clever? Can't the NYT admit that Kerry is just not appealing?
Think Muskie. Think Dukakis. Think Gore. Not to be partisan, think of Dole, or Bush the Elder. Kerry is too poderous, too self important, too dull to be elected.

I worry when a victory by the US in killing Iraqis at a ratio of ten-to- one is interpreted by those dumasses as a victory, because we choose not to kill them as effectively as we could. If only we'd stop worrying about collateral damage and get on with it!

My Way - News

Surprise, Surprise, Surprise!
Spending 60 minutes with Don Hewitt

Victor Davis Hanson gets It Right, Again
Victor Davis Hanson's Private Papers

Wish I'd said this is so many words:
Any good that will come out of such an investigation in the midst of a terrible global war has already been forfeited by the commission’s election-year timing and cheap manner of inquiry. If we wished to win this war, it would be far better instead for Americans to review those so rarely played tapes of the falling towers, the innocents jumping from so high above, the toxic cloud that engulfed the city, and the mug shots of those creepy Middle Eastern mass murderers than to allot blame to us rather than to them.

Why do we not see the towers hit by planes? They don't want us to remember the anger we felt, and should still feel. That would make the war against terror, including the actions against Iraq, justifiable in the mind of most Americans. Can't have that, can we?

Muslim Truce offered EuropeChicago Tribune | Purported Bin Laden Tape Offers 'Truce'

This, of course, is really saying "We'll eat you last."

Dem Ad Calls for Rumsfield Hit
DRUDGE REPORT 2004�

I thought they were the party of peace. Just goes to show you...

The Enemy Within

ThisisLondon: "'They warned them in New York - stop the terrorism in Afghanistan and Iraq. They did not listen. They gave them bloodshed in New York. Now Tony Blair has been warned.' "

Gee, and here I thought we had given them plenty of space in Afghanistan and Iraq to bedevil each other with little outside interference. NYC hapened anyway - twice. When we the civilized of the world send all the ranters to jolly Arab land with only each other for company? Whoever can deliver that has my vote.

Hollywood Out to Get Bush
TV Shows Take On Bush, and Pull Few Punches

Given the liberal bias of mainstream press and the Hollywood "elites", it is a puzzle why the Dems seek outlets for thier pov, eg Al Franken's raiod gig, and Gore's attempt to buy a cable station.
Haven't they realized that conservative media outlets do so well because people are in full retreat from hte liberal bias so evident everywhere.
I don't watch Law and Order, have never seen even one episode, so I can't now boycott the show. I suspect people who agree with the anti-Bush pov will enjoy the Bush barbs, people who don't like them will turn the show off in anger.

More Bombs in Spain

Happily, the Spanish found a bomb on a train track before it detonated, and defused three letter bombs sent to journalists. The price one pays for safety is like a premium, renewable whenever the demand is made. Spain's decision to pull its troops from Iraq will not buy security, yet the Spanish will pay and pay, as more groups decide that that is the way to success.

My Way News

Muslims Code of Dishonor

There was a time I thought seldom of Muslims, and had no strong feelings about them either way. The more I hear them express their views, the less I think of them. If Muslims are not to work with authorities against other Muslims who may (surprise!) be involved in terrorist activities, then they should all hop a ship back to jolly Arab land, there to live in the excellent company of other Muslims. So help me, I'll cycle everywhere I go rather than buy petrol, if that'll help.
Telegraph | News

"The Worst Place On Earth"
Marines Defend Decision to Stay Out of Falluja After Killings

Hieronymus Bosch had a glimpse of Falluja in his sights when he depicted deomns busy at their work. That the demons turn out to be devotees of Allah serves as no surprise; the shame their mullahs feel at the grotesque celebration of death, complte with hands-on mutilation of the corpses does come as a surprise. I was beginning to think the Religion of Peace had no shame left.
I hope all the dead had recently consumed pork products.

All Good for Bush as "Activists" Act Out

News that activists stormed Karl Roves' home is only good news for Bush. Wee know these folk who were banging on his doors and windows demanding, er, something or other, won't vote Bush, if they vote at all. What they have done is demonstrate the temperament of those who will support the Dems. Intemperate, demanding, the nightmare of the average taxpaying, law-abiding citizen who probably will vote, and make very sure they will vote to keep the mobocracy out of the Oval Office.
Thanks, National People's Action. Please come to Manhattan for the convention to get it all on network TV.

Demonstrators Swarm Around Rove's Home (washingtonpost.com)

Iraq- Al Qaeda Connection, Says Clarke
Deroy Murdock on Richard Clarke & War on Terror on National Review Online

French Enlist Cinema to Combat Anti-SemitismTelegraph | News | France tells its schools to screen Schindlers List and The Piano to combat a rising tide of anti-Se

Giving credit where it's due, I'm glad to see the French making a stab at combating anti-Semitism.

A Bash from Rantisis Will Boost Bush
My Way - News

Wow. You couldn't buy that kind of publicity.
Enemy of Islam? Good on ya' mate.

Democrats Delude Themselves

Democrats see favorable 9/11 report - The Washington Times: Nation/Politics

If Dems truly believe the 9/11 Report will hurt Bush and help them, they need a reality check. People say time and again that the Clintons (both of them) had 8 years, the Bushies 8 months, with a transition delayed by the Gore fight to the bitter end. Clarke has come across as a bitter, vituperative civil servant, constantly portrayed as Bush's anti-terror man, but far longer an architect of the failed Clinton policy, a partisan and a grandstander, making money hand over fist with his book.
I don't believe the Dems will carry this very far, since 9/11 finger pointing at Bush will invite, indeed, provoke 9/11 finger pointing at Clinton. Does Hillary really want that, given her own ambitions? Does Clinton want that, considering his own worries about his legacy? Having done little to construct a legacy while he was in the White House, Bill now seeks to construct one from whole cloth, spinning things to make them look as he'd like them to, as opposed to how they do. The Clintons would rather be roasted over a fire than have this become a major election issue. Since they can be counted on as fund raisers, the Kerry people will find it hard to cross them on this one.

US Would Vote Bush After Terror Attack (NY Sun)

In the event of an attack, the US would be more likely 38.9 to vote for Bush, against 30.3 who would vote for Kerry. This is heartening news, and as the Sun says "...we're proud to be Americans rather than Europeans."

MSNBC Doesn't Get ITMSNBC - U.S. foreign policy still reeling

Why does the mainstream media persist in repeating the lie that the US invasion of Iraq was unilateral? Why do they never mention that France and Russia were resisting UN action because they sought to lose lucrative business deals with the rotten regime? Why fail to mention that the Oil for Food Program with the UN seems to have been so rich a money pot for those involved that they all hated to see sanctions, and Saddam end? Objectivity and truth in reporting is long dead. They should have a jackass on the mast head to remind us that they are a tool of the Democrat Party.

Saddam's Delusion Based on French, Russia Hope

New York Post Online Edition: news

How different things might have been if France, Russia and Germany had not led Saddam to believe he had a chance to stay in power. Saddam apparently believed they could save him and his rotten regime. Instead of Blaming Bush, Blair and Aznar for events, the foolish Left should point some fingers at those who persisted in oppostion to holding Saddam accountable.

"Has War on terror Made Us All Targets?"Times Online - Home

This question rather puts the cart before the horse. What was I doing on 9/11/01? Fighting a War on Terror? Don't think so. That war was started in response to 9/11.

Hear, Hear, Jack Straw
Guardian Unlimited | World Latest | Britain, Spain Said Not at Risk of Attack

But I fear no one will hear Jack Straw. Certainly not Dean, Kerry, or other people of the Left.

Gee, 'Ya Think?
ABCNEWS.com : Arabs Fear More Discrimination After Madrid Bombs

Arabs would do well to stop dancing in the streets when a terrorist act is carried out. More vocal criticism of the terrorists instead of decrying the reaction of the victim-states would serve the Arabs well.

Europe's Wake-Up CallSpain Bombings Seen as Europe's 9/11: "'It's like if a brutal shock has woken us from a long, blissful, stupid dream of extraneousness and immunity,' states a front-page editorial in Italy's Correire Della Sera. 'Suddenly we can't any longer. . . act as if the devastation of the world doesn't regard us.'"

Spain Mourns, Wonders Why

The answer is more complex than Gala (read below) suggests. Spain would suffer an attack, as will all Europeans, whether they join the War on Terror or not. Remember, Muslims still seethe over the reconquista.

Yahoo! News - Spain Mourns 'Our September 11,' Qaeda Link Probed: "'If the hell unleashed which burned the whole of Madrid on Thursday is the result of Islamic fanaticism, we must look at Spain's role in the Iraq war: an involvement which our citizens rejected, a personal decision by the prime minister beyond the wishes of the majority,' commentator Antonio Gala said. "

We Should Have Left Him to the People of HaitiAristide Plans to Sue U.S., France for Kidnap -Lawyer (washingtonpost.com)

The people's court leaves no chance for appeal.

Maureen Dowd on Kerry's CultureOp-Ed Columnist: J.F.K., Marilyn, �Camelot�

As an arbiter of culture, Ms. Dowd is as authentic as sequins. Be that as it may, she presents us Kerry's culture, right down to his "phantom" Irish. Did she mean "sham", "ersatz", "false"? Who knows, maybe she was speaking nuance, which like Esperanto still has its admirers, though I don't see it replacing truth for any appreciable amout of time.
Asked to name his favorite movie, he rips through 37, to make sure he lets us know he has seen many movies, and liked many movies. This is in keeping with his positions on many topics. He doesn't so much as take a stand, as surround an issue with many stands.

In all, Ms. Dowd presents just that many more reasons to vote for Bush.

Kerry - Brokaw?
The best thing about this is knowing that the pretendency (yes, I know it's not a word; it is now) of the media to be objective will be seen for what it is. I guess he can't choose Jennings because Peter is not a native born American.

OpinionJournal - John Fund on the Trail

"Asses of Evil" Pin Pegs Heinz-Kerry as CluelessJohn Kerry for President Blog

kerry has made it clear he feels no urgency about the War on Terror, now Mrs. 57 Kinds ridicules a prominent shorthand term used in that effort, and, too boot, calls the people fighting it evil.
Events will decide all this, in the end, but the H-Ks are sure gonaa make it easy.

Kerry Will Send a Team to IraqDRUDGE REPORT FLASH 2004�

Finally Kerry will try to understand Iraq, now that he's attacked every Bush position, voted for the war, based on misunderstanding (he says: being misled by Bush) and voted against additional funding for the war.

How much his team will assess, and how much they will meddle with US policy is yet to be seen. I would hasten to advise the Senator that being the Democrat's nominee gives him no powers over US policy.

Ever have kethcup on waffles?

North Korea Casts It's Vote for kerry!
As if I needed another reason to vote for anyone else.
FT.com Home US

The Rag Paper the Guardian weighs In

I wonder how the newly freed citizens of Iraq feel about Bush? Do they hate the man who removed the dictator from his throne? From his torture room pleasures? I suppose the french, Iranis, Al Queda and other enemies of the US would vote for Kerry. That's why we don't let US enemies vote for our President.
On the other hand, Kerry does sem determined to let the UN dictate our foreign policy...
News

The Apple Doesn't Fall Far from the Tree Dept.

Kerry's daughter apparently thinks the old saying "one man, one vote, one time" is acceptable. Aristide was propped up in power once, by Clinton, and has proven to be nothing resembling a democrat. Get elected once, stay in office forever is his motto. Kerry's daughter agrees. Corruption, violence, suppression of dissent, have at it, jen-bertrand Aristide, we'll let you stay in power though you ruin the nation you pretend to serve. Sounds a lot like what's his name...You know, the guy sitting on his butt in Baghdad. I'm sure she didn't want that evil dictator deposed, either.
The Philadelphia Daily News - The People Paper

Congratualtions to Another Country that Doesn't Have it's Head in the ...er, Sand
Yahoo! News - Australia to Upgrade Radar System

The Lord of the Rings as a Saga of Whiteness

Andrew Sullivan unearthed (middle-earthed?) this essay decrying the LOTR as too white, lacking the multicultural aspects, of say, The Matrix. Thsi appeared in a journal published for teachers and families to raise multicultural kids, under the guise of teaching tolerance.
Is the LOTR worthy of a tolerant attitude? I should keep a closer watch on this journal.
Tolerance.org: A 'Return' of the White Patriarchy?

This Just In: Kerry Willing to Debate Vietnam Era
Headline news from Sky News - Witness the event

Democrats pushed hard to talk about Bush and the National Guard during the VN era. Bush supporters then, rightly raised questions about Kerry and VN, i.e. his denigration of other US vets. Now Kerry tryies to turn it around and take on Bush over Vietnam. Hasn't he heard that that was a couple of wars ago?
There's a new war on Kerry, get with the program, Rip van Winkle.

Fidel:Still Delusional After All These Years
Fidel mocks and keeps his hangers-on in stiches making comparisons between the US and Cuban economies and reading Bush malapropisms. Maybe Castro is shielded from the news of Cubans trying to escape from pardise. Perhaps the sycophants who travel to Havana to suck-up to Fidel help his maintain his delusion that somehow he is good for Cuba. This piece of filth pollutes the island and renders meaningless any pretensions of democratic centralism.
Senor Castro, you have stayed toolong! Go!
CBS News | Fidel Mocks Bush, US Economy | February 14, 2004�13:33:53

Kerry and the Intern
DRUDGE REPORT 2004�
Don't think I'd let a chid of mine intern in Washington. The public will not be inclined to believe denials after the Clinton debacle and LIES.

Osama Taunt at US Mexico Game

What would be a suitable response to such a taunt? How about:
Stay Home! or Close the Borders!
Mexico 4, U.S. 0: The U.S. Is Vanquished by Taunts and Mexico

The French Amaze

Is there another country in the world where you can marry a person who is deceased?
Woman marries dead boyfriend - SpecialsStrangeButTrue - www.smh.com.au

Democrats Find an Issue for 2004: Vietnam!
Of course my concerns are over what is happening in the current war.
Telegraph | News | Let battle commence

Mid-flight Bomb Assembly Threat

They keep trying.
The Observer | Special reports | Terrorist bid to build bombs in mid-flight

Bush's Numbers Slide

The big news is that Bush's approval ratings are at a 3 year low, 48%. The real news is that that isn't such news. President's have approval ratings rise and fall on events, the economy, the election year cycle. Bush has not yet begun to run. Consider Clinton. In 1996 his approval rating was at about 51%.
Before summer 1996 — meaning before the recovery hit home — Clinton's job approval rating averaged 51 percent. He, of course was re-elected.

Considering the stakes of this election, I hope we say the same about GWB.

Bloomberg.com: Top Worldwide

Clinton-Gore had One Eye on the Election During Kosovo Action

The fear that Kosovo would be a campaign issue in 2000 had the Clinton Admin anxious to end it quickly at any cost.
This according to Wesley Clark. Now Clark is a Dem, with Clinton's backing. Honor is in short supply at the highest levels of US public life.
Clark Papers Talk Politics And War (washingtonpost.com)

Rummy: Press Coverage of War "...absolutely shocking."

I agree with Rumsfeld about the righteousness of the US cause, and about the way the press chose to cover it. I'll say what he didn't: if a Democrat was in the WH, the press would have supported the war in a big way.
Yahoo! News - Rumsfeld makes emotional defense of war on Iraq: "Rumsfeld acknowledged an assertion that the US image in the world had been hurt but blamed it on media coverage, which he called 'shocking, absolutely shocking.'
'To think what was going on in Iraq a year ago with people being tortured, rape rooms, mass graves, gross corruption, a country that had used chemical weapons on its own people, used them on their neighbors, defiant to the United Nations (news - web sites) through 17 security council resolutions,' he said.
'And look at the way it was treated in the press. There were prominent people who represent countries in this room who opined that they didn't think it made a hell of a lot of difference who won,' he said"

US Soccer Team hears "Osama" chant in Mexico

Call me touchy, but if Mexico boos the US anthem and cheers for Osama at a soccer game, why in the name of Sweet Sassafras does GWB want to make it easier for Mexicans to get here and live here. Spending is out of control, immigration policy is blowing in the wind and Dem policy on security, immigation and spending is likely to be worse if they win the WH.
If they hate the US let them stay home.
U.S. soccer team hears Osama chants in Mexico

The Shadow of Sharia SpreadsJanice Shaw Crouse on Sharia & Iraq on National Review Online: "Nigeria is learning this lesson the hard way. Examples abound: 23 Christian women have been brought before Islamic courts, charged with non-compliance with the Muslim dress code, or prostitution (i.e., being unmarried and older than 13 years). At the University of Maiduguri in Borno state, female students have been forced to adhere to the Islamic dress code in order to sit for exams, and some are being expelled from the university for failing to do so. Eleven female nurses were fired in Azare when they refused to exchange their nurse uniforms for Islamic attire. "

Canada Speaks: No One Notices
AxisofLogic/ Canada

Maybe it's their French legacy, maybe it's too many pucks to the head, maybe they prefer Saddam's bluster to W's swagger, and Chretien's cynical smile to W's grin. Maybe Canadian's have something against ordinary Iraquis, who have benefitted mightily from W's intervention on their behalf. regardless, Canada doesn't like W. Most Americans won't notice and Canada has no electoral votes, so it makes no difference at all.
Enough time spent on Canada.

Actress Drew Barrymore Named 'Friend of the U.N.'

And the UN is the Friend of...?

Dictators, terrorists, corrupt politicians.

The friend of my friend is my friend. That would make Drew...?
Firgure it out.

Pressure Cooker
The pressure's on Bush and Blair to explain why WMD are not being found. I maintain they will be, in Syria, or buried, perhaps. Regardless, the war has made the world a safer place, IMHO.

The pressure's also on Osama (or whoever is fronting for him; I still maintain that he is long dead) to strike at the US again. 9/11 is a tough act to follow, since we are on alert; tagets that tempting are no longer so soft. US might has been projected on the Muslim world in a big way since 9/11, and they haven't been able to do much to counter it. The Muslim street which seems to be a pretty gullible lot must be wondering exactly what Osama accomplished with 9/11. Sort of like a mouse off in the corner doing his darndest to emit a mighty squeak only to find a Red Wing construction boot smashing his skull the next instant. He got the attention of the West, and now what? Osama can't even show his face. One might suggest he peaked too early. I'm sure they're trying day and night, nasty little demons gnashing their teeth trying to pull off a stroke, and wondering why Allah isn't helping out.
Pressure's on, Osama.

Sharia Spreads IT's Ugly Shadow
Like Sauron, sharia spreads the shadow of darkness across the earth.
Where's frodo when you need him?

Paul Marshall on Sharia & Nigeria on National Review Online

Hillary for Veep

Dick Morris explains why the dem nominee should give Hillary a chance to run for VP, and why hill should say yes. He makes a convincing case. I wonder how many pollsters the Clintons will employ to help them determine whether a Dem has a real chance against GWB. At this point things look good, but I can't help but believe the election will be determined by events out of control rather than by the reasoned machinations of politicians.
New York Post Online Edition: postopinion

The More I Know about Islam...

The hypocrisy of the Islamic rulers has no limits. It gets easier to understand why women must be covered at all times. Islam breeds men who have no control over their passions, and need have none as long as sex slaves are available. The denial of basic rights to women (such as driving a car) makes it easier to subjugate them and objectivize them. How could profit be made from sex slaves if women had any capacity to object, or resist?
You recall that feast where Satan's temptation of Muhammed? Who says Muhammed didn't succumb?

Read it all:
FrontPage magazine.com

Nobel Prize Annual Joke

The Nobel Committee continues it's race with the UN to the ash heap of history. It is posible that more evil is done in the name of peace than in the pursuit of war in these times.
Of course, Rotters,oops, that should read Reuters, presents what purports to be news in it's usual subjective manner.

Reuters | Latest Financial News / Full News Coverage

Muslim Holiday Celebration

Mullah Omar reminds us that the typical Muslim can only be faithful to Muslim values if they are imposed by the threat of violence. Allah seems to rely heavily on police to keep the world free from Muslim recognized sin.
Also, it appears that Osama is believed to be alive and hiding in some rat hole. That bottle of champagne comes out of the fridge the moment we get him. I'm still betting that he's toast, however. If Saddam could convince the world he had extensive supplies of WMD, I suppose it's a piece of cake to convince us that Osama is still breathing.

FOXNews.com - Top Stories - Karzai: Bin Laden Alive and Well

Why We Fight: A British (Liberal!) Perspective
John J. Miller on William Shawcross on National Review

Read this review of a new book by William Shawcroft, once and probably critic of US foreign policy, who argues persuasively that the removal of Saddam was justified and a good thing.Why so much Europen anger about the war?

"A lot of Europeans don't like being led by an American or by Bush. There's an awful lot of hypocrisy in this anti-Americanism. If Bill Clinton was fighting this war, there would be more support because he's more user-friendly than Bush. But Clinton probably wouldn't have done it."

Sliding Fast
Recall the slippery slope arguement of the Pro-Lifers? Danges if they weren't right:

href="http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=93982004">Scotsman.com News - UK - Government adviser: killing children with defects acceptable

What is Truth?

Ananova - British book sparks ancient manuscripts destruction

Scholarship is hard to maintain in the best of circumstances. We can certainly hope that scholars love the truth, seek the truth, strive to publish truth...In the worst of times, truth is whatever the mob determines it to be. If Oxford U press pulls the book after a mob riots in India, destroying tens of thousands of ancient manuscripts in the process, what hope is there for scholarship? For truth? If Oxford U Press is representative of Western intellectual culture in a general sort of way, what does it say about Western intellectual culture that OUP surrendered to the mob, pulling Mr. Laine's book from the market. They may as well join in the book burning fun.

The Dowd Secret
I've finally gotten a handle on Dowd. Never carry a thought to completion. If she thinks the way she writes, no wonder she holds the opinions she does. She throws an idea out there, maybe raises a question, possibly suggests an answer, then on to the next hal-thought. Thanks God there still exists in this world journalists and commentators who construct and present arguements with logic and precision. To be fair, I should add that Dowd's main reason for writing seems to be entertainment rather than information, education or persuasion. Maybe she'd be better suited to SNL.

Op-Ed Columnist: Riding the Crazy Train

French Corruption Rules Policy

Just so we don't think France needs to be taken at its word, David Frum reminds us that the level of corruption in French society and government is so deep that hip boots won't help. Policy is dictated by a need to accomodate, not rock the boat for fear of all levels of society being swamped. A nation built on lies cannot stand on principle.
We're not perfect, but we do on occasion throw the scoundrels out.

David Frum's Diary on National Review Online

Gore Sponsored by Moveon.orgNewsday.com: Gore Slams Bush Administration on Environment

Moveon.org sponsored an advertisement contest as well, in which enthusiasts likened Bush to Hitler. Moveon cn't get enough hyperbole, it would seem.

On Deck

Calling on Syria and Iran to be the next regimes to be changed is one thing, moving France from the list of Allies to the list of rivals or enemies is the real story.
In the long term it may do France some good, force them to wake up and smell the coffee, so to speak, before they wake up with Notre Dame a mosque.
Telegraph | News | Hawks tell Bush how to win war on terror

Clark's Support for Iraq War
DRUDGE REPORT 2004�

Clark made persuasive points for war with Iraq consistently, until he became a candiate for the other party. His candidacy is something of a joke. Let's see how Madonna manipulates her tiny mind to rationalize this.

O'Neill Unbuttons
DRUDGE REPORT FLASH 2004�

"One journalist concluded of O'Neill that "if he can't learn to keep his lips buttoned and continues his gaffe-prone ways, he risks being branded permanently as a buffoon." National review December 2002, at the time of O'Neill's resignation, at the request of Bush.

Castro Apologists, Please Sign-InCBS News | Cuba Cracks Down On Web Access | January 9, 2004�16:41:59

That Castro still has supporters astonishes me.