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 Sunday, December 01, 2002 By the way, our Rachel is taking on a tremendous task, and I know she will do splendidly in it, but she needs your help. She has been touched recently with a similar re-recognition as I alluded to below, in a monumentally more active way. She is actively pursuing stories about what has been called "the Greatest Generation." She is looking for stories about veterans of the second world war. If you have any information or stories, or have elders in your family or community that may be able to assist her in her endeavor, please hop over to her site and let her know. She is serious about this, and I wish her well. I am forwarding some of my own suggestions regarding people in my life, and hope you all do the same. In the mean time, WE ARE WITH YA, RACH ! Let me tell you about my weekend, thus far DATELINE: Washington, DC I am visiting my mother in the Washington DC area. Left Memphis at 5:20 PM or so Thanksgiving night, and landed here about 8:15. It was a little colder than in Memphis, but not much. Went back to Mom's, and just chilled for a while. It was nice. It was my first time here since she moved this direction, and one of the three or four times I have seen her since that 'debacle'. Anyway... If you haven't been to DC, or haven't been recently, make plans now to do so in the next few years. It really is, for the political/history/tradition/patriotism buff, a wonderful place to be. It is amazing sometimes to drive into town (we are actually in Alexandria, VA) and see the Capitol Dome over the tree tops, or to see the Washington Monument standing tall and proud in the distance. It can- in a weaker moment- take your breath away. We have done a little of the 'tourist' stuff, though I have been here many times before and have seen most of it. It is always fun to go to the various installations of the Smithsonian and see what has changed and what has been improved. It is the fall, so the cherry blossoms are long gone, and the leaves have already changed and taken their obligatory fall to the ground, but it is still a beautiful place, a beautiful city, and a place of strength and pride. I will provide a full accounting- with the interesting stuff, not the mundane- later, and will give all a little 'tour guide' for your next/first trip to the nation's capital. In the mean time, let me say two things: First, if you haven't ever been to DC, you are missing out. Try to find a way to get here sometime. Second, if you have never seen 'The Wall' at night.... there is no way to describe it, and the things that are left there in honor and respect. Saturday, November 30, 2002 Daschle calling the kettle black I love the way Daschle tries to draw attention away from his very own tactics by trying to blame others for doing exactly what he has done. Daschle accuses political talk shows of whipping up emotional responses. If entertainment becomes so much a part of politics and if that entertainment drives an emotional movement in this country among some people who don't know the difference between entertainment and politics, and who are then so energized to go out and hurt somebody, that troubles me about where politics in America is going. This from the guy who was claiming that the Repubs were going to starve children to death by cutting the school lunch program (the truth was, the Repubs plan INCREASED funding for school lunch programs but not as much as the Dems plan. Their logic: the Repubs' plan is less than our plan so they cut back from our plan to their plan, therefore, they cut the funding. This from the guy who claimed Repubs wanted to force senior citizens to eat dog food (his words - not mine) because the Social Security plans were going to be cut (same definition of cut as above). Now if those are not two examples of trying to drive an emotional response, what is? Sorry Tom, I'm not buying your attempt at misdirection. Here's another example of the emotional fear mongering on the part of the libs (I know Jeffords is an ind but they always vote with the libs so they may as well stand up and admit they are libs). Bush policies allowing power plants to avoid installing simple anti-pollution equipment when they modernize will lead to so many extra premature deaths from plant pollution that it would be like enduring the equivalent of a Pearl Harbor every 30 days," Jeffords said. Friday, November 29, 2002 Well it sure looks like those dirty Israelis are at it again. How dare they get in the way of a suicide bomber. How dare they board a plane to return to Israel. Lately I've been hearing a lot of talk about how the Israelis are behaving like the very terrorists the U.S. seeking to destroy. I find the logic behind such thinking to be totally foolish. First, lets examine what is behind the U.S. push to eliminate the terrorists. There have been terrorist attacks on U.S. military bases, the Cole, and 9/11 was the second attack on the WTC. Can anyone truly believe that the terrorists attacks on the U.S. have been designed to force the Americans out of the U.S.? Does anyone doubt that that is the very purpose of the Palestinians attacks on Israel? If you have doubts about this, don't read any farther. Instead go look up articles about Arafat and you will find he has declared that to be the purpose of his entire organization. Second, who initiated the above mentioned attacks on the U.S.? The terrorists. Who inititated the attacks on the Palentinians? They did. The Israelis are only responding to attacks on them. Look for Israel to respond to the attacks on Israeli citizens in Kenya. Unlike the wimpy liberals here in the U.S., the Israelis are united in their defense of themselves. They don't wait until the union can be sure their jobs are protected or that trial lawyers can have their right to sue the pants off people protected before they respond. If you still think the terrorists and the Israelis are doing the same thing - you must be a trial lawyer or a union employee worried about your right to dictate to management where and when you will work. Wednesday, November 20, 2002 Optical Illusion Headline from FoxNews.Com: Bush Rallies the AlliesNow, does this read "Rally's the Alley's", or "Rall-eyes the All-eyes"? Just curious. Tuesday, November 19, 2002 Sunday, November 17, 2002 Just floating an idea.... I have resisted the idea of a tip-jar deal for two reasons. First, I do this for fun, and really don't care about the compensation that could derive from it. There are a lot of people out there that do a lot better job at commenting on things than I do, and most of them are listed on the left-hand side of this screen. Read them, and tip your ass off. Second, that just seems like a potential tax nightmare, should those contributions ever become substantial. However, FireDogAlley is about to undergo a rather major transformation- both in style and in location. She ain't fired up yet, but www.firedogalley.com is close. That, and buying shares on the most exciting sports site on the net are my plans for the afternoon. That being said, there is a little cost involved in all this movement, and any help that is offered through that vehicle will be applied to those changes. And then, there will be more (hopefully) when those costs are covered. I want, in the comments section, a poll-like conversation on where the rest of that should go. I don't want it, and want to help others, so I need suggestions. The top 5 charitable/philanthropic/advocacy suggestions will receive 20% each over the cost of the change, and I will guarantee 20 bucks to the top 5 selections regardless if the costs are covered or not. At this point, the top 5 are (by my dictum): St. Judes Research Hospital, the Memphis Ronald McDonald House, the NRA, the Heritage Foundation, and National Review. Other suggestions will be counted against those five. If you don't want to comment, feel free to e-mail me. There are a lot of causes out there that need funding, and this is not a bad way to do it. When I get the responses, I'll figure out the details, and let you all know all about it. Thanks in advance..... And who said conservatives aren't compassionate? UPDATE: By the way, please don't offer the "Kevin Pritchard Mortgage Fund", or United Way as suggestions. Let's try to target this a little. We all need the dough, I know, and the UW gets a ton of cash. If you have a local cause you want to be supported, or a special charity close to your heart, let me know. Score Big for SNL A Tex-Ark bonanza last night. As weak as a lot of this season has been, they redeemed themselves completely last night by scoring a parody trifecta. In one skit, they barbacued my favorite target- the absolutely unwatchable Phil Donohue- and also sewered Rachel's most enjoyable bullseyes- Mikey "Could I suck" Moore, and Barbra "No my initials don't mean bullshit" Streisand. Watching it was like standing in the morning sun on a brisk autumn day. A refreshing glow, a cozy warmth.... Is Ms. Lucas writing for Lorne Roberts now? Here's one of the funniest things I've ever heard and it's straight from the Democratic Whip, Steny Hoyer, in the weekly Democratic radio response: "On behalf of all my Democratic colleagues, I promise every listener that we will never waver on the principles that animate this great party's soul: equality, opportunity, compassion, freedom and security. And we will continue to espouse the values that have made America a great and good country: faith, family, hard work, love of country and personal responsibility." This from the same group whose judges have all but removed any trace of "faith" from the government and have ruled that burning the flag is okay because it's "free speech," have passed all the tax laws that penalize married couples, promote welfare over hard work and personal responsibility. It doesn't seem that any Repub has the stones to stand up and say this, so I will. THEY ARE LIARS!!!! Well here it is; the Dems idea of a new strategy. Select a black, a woman, an Hispanic and an old guy to your leadership and no matter what the Repubs say you can accuse them of being haters of one minority or another. Still no counter proposals to the Repubs ideas, still no true issues, still no core beliefs. It's just another example of how the Dems use the various minorities to further their political careers. Why are the minorities too blind to see they are being used? Simple - the Dems give them your money and mine. All these minority groups have bought into the lie that they are totally incapable of making anything of themselves unless the Dems are there to pave the way for them, lower the standards for them or give them whatever they want. And when someone like J.C. Watts makes something of himself and ISN'T a Dem then they accuse him of selling out to "the man." How pathetic is that? As further evidence of their lack of strategy (other than scare tactics) I found this AP story: Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., makes the case that his party is the only one looking out for the interests of black people. "African-American men between 25 and 40 responded to our views on entrepreneurship and wealth creation," Steele said. He said the campaign offered a valuable opportunity "for our point of view to reach a segment of the population that seems willing to listen." Conyers, dean of the Congressional Black Caucus, said the Republican success in Nov. 5 elections should make blacks concerned. "If you're not feeling a little nervous ... you need to see a doctor," he said Thursday at a forum on the elections and the black community. Saturday, November 16, 2002 Not an official member of the Empire But I can tell you I am tired of hearing about things like this. (thanks to Emperor Misha for the story.) There has to come a time when the sensibilities of the real, honest, and caring men and women of the world rally behind this charge, so things like this never happen again. Israel is a nation, it will always be a nation, and her people deserve to live in freedom and safety. A time will come when this kinda shit won't stand anymore. When that time comes, the only people that will be regretful will be the Israelis. But self-defense is not aggression. And the Israelis will be regretful that they had to act in self defense against people who wake up and fall asleep- and the entire time between the two, they want only to kill peaceful people. They will be regretful because their attempts at peace have not achieved that peace. For you people who stand with the Islamofacists and Palestinian terrorists, please find me the Hebrew or Christian equivilant of Jihad. When you do that, I might take you seriously a little. Until then, you are just supporters of terrorists. And there is a hot seat in hell for every one of you. For the Islamic factions that do not support murder and genocide, who actually stand for Islam as a 'religion of peace', it is time for you to get off your Muslim butt and speak out. This is not a time for equivocation. It is a time for the good Muslims to recover their religion. If you haven't done it yet.. READ RACHEL NOW !!!Our dear friend Rachel Lucas is becomming famous, due in large part to her scooping of the idiocy that is Michael Moore, and his hilarious predictions about the last election outcomes. Linda Seebach of the Rocky Mountain News has mentioned Rachel and Dr. Reynolds in an article about the wonderful world of blogging. Check it out, and bask in the glory that we are all a part of. And congratulations, Rachel. You deserve the honor. For the unaware, being listed in an article with Instapundit is like being named to the Cabinet, or being nominated for an Oscar. This is the big-time, and I can tell you from personal experience that no one deserves it more than Rachel. When I first got into this strange little world, she was a gracious, helpful, and wonderful friend. I won't call her 'Bloggermommy' like my Arka-pal Rita does, but I would definately consider her a fantastic 'bloggerbuddy'. She was, I believe, the first to link over to us here, and for that- among other things- I am eternally grateful. And she is always a great read. If you don't read her daily, you are missing out on one of the great things in life. We luv ya, Rach, and are clapping our collective hands in praise and respect for what you have done, and the recognition you are beginning to receive. You deserve it and we are proud of you ! Friday, November 15, 2002 Ed Rooney is a pervert ! Jeffrey Jones the stellar actor of such gems as Howard the Duck and Mom and Dad Save the World (two serious pieces of 'Streisand') has been arrested on child pornography charges and for having sex with a 17-yr old boy. Actually, he is probably best known as the bumbling principal in the movie Ferris Buehler's Day Off, or as the dad in Beetlejuice. Decent actor, but nothing that would garner award-level attention. And now, that career is as dead as Elvis. How long will it be before this sick bastard and Pee Wee Herman are traveling the country (ankle monitors and all) doing Waiting For Godot or something in retirement centers and cafeterias.... Sick friggin asshole. I love it when someone puts Photoshop to good use John Little at Blogs of War has had a little fun doctoring a pic from a PETA protest at a fashion show.  How DARE these brazen hussies violate a perfectly good picture that could have been the lovely, lovely Gisele Bundchen. I am personally offended. JOIN PETA ! People for the Eating of Tasty Animals ! UPDATE: Here is a 'tabloid' version of the story. Certainly not as credible an account as John's. Another UPDATE: A site dedicated to the specimen that is the lovely Gisele. One scumbag down, many more to go Convicted scumbag Aimal Khan Kasi was gently put to rest by lethal injection yesterday for the bloody murders of two CIA employees and the wounding three others. The killers brother offered these words of wisdom in regards to possible terrorist retaliations to avenge his brothers death: "Kasis are a peaceful tribe. We want peaceful solutions to every problem," said his older brother, Nasibullah Kasi. "We do not want the Kasi name to be used to harm anybody." Pakistani officials suggested that sparing the terrorists life could "win the hearts of millions" and aid the war on terror. I have a better idea on what could help the war on terror. Bury this guy with a pig and stuff his mouth with bacon.. If any one knows the validity of this rumor I have been hearing, I would appreciate learning more, but the scuttlebut is this: If a Muslim is buried (and there are variations on the rumor I have heard) with a pig, or wrapped in pigskin, then they don't get to see Allah, and they sure as hell don't get their virgins. Russia planned to bury the terrorists who recently held a theater full of patrons hostage in this manner. Let the word get out on that and suddenly the number of "volunteers" for suicide missions would drop pretty quick. Just a little reminder. It blows my mind that this was an issue for two years. Maybe, finally, this idiocy is dead. All detractors, get retractors, work this from your head. Sorry, got a little poetic there. That will happen from time to time. It's almost as bad a habit as the smoking thing. Wanted to remind everyone why it should be no shock that the Republicans handle the levers of the next government.  The Republicans won the 'red' areas. That still drives me nuts, even two years out. If any district should be classified as 'red', it should be the areas that went for Gore. I got a wonderful response in regards to my bloviations about the liberal pansy twit that is Bill Moyers. Righteous rant on Bill Moyers. How can he be allowed to continue on PBS after all he has done when tax dollars are used to fund PBS? It boggles my mind. As this really is- as all blogging is- an exercise in fun thought, ideological exchange, and self gratification that involves neither lotion nor batteries, all comments are welcome about anything and everything. However, please enter names and e-mail addresses- and if you have them web addresses when you comment. We all, Steve and Steve and Steve and Steve and Steve.... sorry, but we do have an unruly stable of Steves.... Steve, Spoc, Ed, Kevin, and I want to hear from you always and often. Use the comment section at the bottom of each post if it is for public consumption, or use the e-mail link if it is a personal deal. But write back, and join us often.. No telling what might happen around here. Hey, I scooped Limbaugh. I am proud of that. He he he he friggin he I gotta tell ya, I didn't expect this to ever happen, but Peggy Noonan has stepped to the plate to defend the most ostracized faction among us. About time someone finally stood up for us outcasts. Thursday, November 14, 2002 I never thought I'd say this but i already miss Gephardt. Pelosi has a voice that makes a squeaky door sound like a symphony. She also can't answer a simple question. I've been having my ears attacked by both her voice, her never ending explanations of simple questions in addition to her far-left agenda. She actually said that the major issues that separate the Dems & the Repubs is, as it has always been, the economy, a woman's right to choose and the environment. Catch a clue, Nancy. Those are symptomatic issues not what separates the parties. What separates them is philosophy - government intervention in our lives. When asked how her husband was taking all this in stride she launched into a diatribe about how her mother had 7 children and was such a wonderful person that if she had gotten into politics, she would be President now. She belongs in the Senate with filabustering techniques like that. I like sometimes, in the wee hours of the morning- or when I'm just bored- to try to think of things that have never been said before. Ya know, little turns of phrase that have never, ever been uttered before in the history of mankind. The best I ever came up with is: Grandma's elephant is making pancakes in the swimming pool. I am a fan of that one. Although, I have to say that this ABC News headline comes in a very close second. Check out this little 'eye catcher': Bill Gates Welcomed with Huge Condom Ummmmm. Alrighty then ! ps- Feel free to provide your hard drive, floppy disk, RAM, etc. jokes. This may be the most frightening thing I have ever seen in my entire life. What was the Robin Williams line, "America is the greatest country on earth. Where else can you be born a poor black boy and grow up to be a rich white woman?" Yeah, ok, that was then. WHAT THE HELL IS THIS THING?  UPDATE:A response that I can concur with: Sickening maybe but it is also incredibly sad, IMO, that someone blessed with so much talent is so desperately unhappy with himself. True, but it's still scary. Ann Coulter has it all figured out. She has pinpointed the necessary steps that the Democrats need to take to be able to re-capture the levers of government. Second, the Democrats definitely need to speak out more forcefully against the Boy Scouts. So far, their hatred of the Boy Scouts has been frankly weak-kneed. Two years ago, Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Calif., introduced a bill to revoke the Boy Scouts' 84-year-old federal charter because they discriminate against gays. Despite the votes of several Democrats, the bill was narrowly rejected in a 362-12 vote. 'Narrowly rejected'. That's funny. Get it ? And guess who one of the 12 was? None other than the newly-elected House Minority Leader, Nancy 'Napalm' Pelosi. My Lord these next two years are gonna be fun. And education policy? Ann has that one figgered as well... there is still plenty of room to curry more favor with the teachers' unions. Democrats should start demanding really, REALLY small class sizes. Right now the critical ratio is supposed to be 20 students to 1 teacher. Hundreds of studies have failed to produce any correlation between class size and student achievement. In fact, the United States has far smaller class sizes than Japan and far worse test scores. Make sure we have at least one sex education teacher, so the little one's can have their 2.2 children. Oh, and we have a new way to defeat any potential missle defense system. Tack it to the rich-folk. it's not enough to oppose a missile-defense system because it "won't work." Everyone knows Democrats haven't the first idea how a squirt gun operates, much less complicated missile technology. It's time to oppose Star Wars on the grounds that – even if it works – it will protect only the top 1 percent of earners. Roger Pilon- guest contributor to NRO has an interesting article on the Democratic quaking currently occuring over the idea of a conservative on the various federal benches across the land. There are the standard references to the hypocrisy that is the liberal idea of 'judicial activism'. "Conservatives want to overturn Roe v. Wade, affirmative action..." blah, blah, blah.... And then he points out the truth that is the FDR legacy of trying to pack the court with his own nominees because the SCOTUS kept striking down his New Deal socialism.... And many others have written long about Pickering and Owen- two ABA-designated 'well qualified' nominees who Pat Leahy and the rest of the Dem. controlled Judiciary comittee shot down- and how the President should re-nominate them and get them seated. I'm all for it. Sounds good. But I am in a fighting mood, and since we finally have some control over the government, I say we lead. Throw down the proverbial gauntlet. When one of the SCOTUS justices retires, which surely one will in the next two years (probably two or three will, actually) here is my idea. NOMINATE ROBERT BORK !Bob, it's two decades too late, probably, but you deserved it then, and you deserve it now. Ok, so we were all screwing around, trying to reduce global productivity over at Jock$tocks (see link to the left) and we got into a discussion of taxes, economic systems, etc. And one of our dear compatriots, Mr. Thompson, posted this link, which is a breakdown of the foreign aid package for 2002. This may not be a big deal, and a lot of it I agree with, but some of this stuff makes no sense at all. The conference-cleared measure passed in the Senate December 20 had won approval in the House of Representatives 357-66 the previous day. It now goes to President Bush for signature. Ok, this is my first problem. Why are we paying for family planning? I don't want to get into an abortion/contraception debate, but it seems to me a little silly why we are concentrating on this to this degree. That's almost 2 bucks for global family planning for every person in America. How about we spend a little less on this particular program, and a little more in making these nations a little more free, democratic, and industrialized. Just an idea. The bill, $403 million over last year's total, would also provide: This is one of my favorites. We are giving 720 mil to Israel in economic support, primarily so she can defend herself againt regional enemies and hostilities like Egypt and Jordan, who we are giving 805 mil too, between the two of them. Tell ya what, "you two" are gonna have a race. I'm gonna give you a Ferarri, cause I want you to win, but I'm gonna give him a few grand to make sure he has a chance to beat you. Huh ?!?!?! -- $3,674 million in military assistance, including $2,040 million for Israel, $1,300 million for Egypt and $75 million for Jordan. Do I really need to do this again? 2 bil to Israel to defend herself against the 1.4 bil we give to Egypt and Jordan. SIGH -- $140 million for peacekeeping operations. What is the friggin UN for again? -- $318.5 million for non-proliferation anti-terrorism and de-mining programs. De-mining? This is where I get naughty-mad. Can't we just send some of those Gitmo guests on a stroll through a few countrysides? That is a really easy way to take care of both anti-terrorism and de-mining. -- $75 million to provide military training to civilians. What ever happened to gun control ? We frown on our own civilians having military/firearms training, but we spend 75 mil around the globe to teach other country's civilians how to act militarily? I am sure in some parallel universe this makes sense. -- $235 million for debt restructuring. Ok, whatever -- $275 million for the Peace Corps. Hate to admit it sometimes, but this is a decent spend. -- $727.3 million for the Export-Import Bank for loans, loan guarantees and tied-aid grants through fiscal year 2005. DAMN ACCOUNTANTS ! There are two groups of people that should be kept as far away from tax money as is humanly possible. Accountants and lawyers. Guess who makes up most of the government? -- $1,430 million for child survival and health programs, $371 million more than in fiscal year 2001 and $443 million more than the administration's request. Again, good programs and good ideas. Probably woefully mismanaged, but the intent is there, and that counts for something. -- $735 million for migration and refugee assistance. I hope a lot of this is for one-way tickets to Mexico City and the Riyadh International Airport. -- $6 million to provide technical assistance. This is just the Microsoft technical support fees. -- $30 million for biotechnology research and development. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD !!! What is this all about? Re-integration of Child-soldiers? Biotechnology? First, why in the hell are we paying for other nations to engage in bio-technology? Second, how exactly does 5 million bucks help a 6 year old that was raised holding not Winnie the Pooh, but an AK-47? Someone please explain this to me. -- $10 million for programs aimed at stopping trafficking in persons. That's DoS-speak for bribing scumbags. -- $295 million to protect tropical forests and biodiversity and to promote the sustainable use of natural resources. If a rainforest is torn down to make protest signs, and there isn't a rich white college kid to scream 'murder', does some dreadlocked '60s hippy still get high? -- $35.8 million for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, $103 million for the Asian Development Fund, $20 million for the Inter-American Investment Corporation and $5.1 million for the African Development Bank. Again, institutionalized bribary. And, Europe, do me a favor. SHUT THE HELL UP ! -- $218 million for the United Nations Environment Program and $6 million for the U.N.'s World Food Program. To the tune of the Dire Straits classic "Money for tyrants, kill your peeps, yee hee" as the dictators and warlords gather around"We want your, we want your, we want your tax mon-ey" -- $135 million in economic support for Indonesia, $15 million for projects aimed at the reunification of Cyprus, $35 million for education support for Lebanon and $6.5 million to support democracy and humanitarian activities in Burma and $5 million for Laos. Reunification of Cyprus? Re-friggin-unification of Cyprus ?!?! Name for me, please, 6 people in the USA that give a rat's ass about the reunification of Cyprus, and then tell me why every American is paying a nickel to make sure it happens. -- $52.5 million to support countries in transition to democracy and countries in crisis. This one, I can get behind. However, I think it may be more effectively achieved were it directed from Don Rumsfeld's budget, and not Colin Powell's. I am all for helping the world achieve first-world status, and all for taking care of our fellow man. But some of this crap is just stupid. Wednesday, November 13, 2002 Glenn McCoy, the man fast becoming my favorite cartoonist, has offered up a little sketch that, not so subtly, describes the current state of the Democratic Party.  Hehehehe.... I love it ! I'm flattered... In honor of the near-approaching ledge that will be my (GULP) big 3-Oh, Kim and the Mrs. have declared November 19, 2002 as National Ammo Day. Oh, alright, it has nothing to do with me. Just on the same day. For all you Second Amendment supporters, take this day to go out and buy at least 100 rounds of your favorite "criminal-stoppers". This is not a gun-nut thing, it's a responsible-citizen thing, and I am all for it. But hell, gun-nuts are welcome too. As the site they have set up outlines clearly, be safe and responsible and all that. Consider it a day of celebration and rejoycing for people who's idea of strict gun control is always using both hands. And a day to support the industries that provide hours of recreation and a lifetime of protection. As my bro-in-law (a WMPD narcotics/SWAT sergeant) says, "Guns don't kill people, bullets do."  UPDATE: Found a new quiz over at Mrs. Dutoit's 'crib' that fits nicely with the topic above.
Monday, November 11, 2002 Some things are just strange I know, I know, this is not intentional at all, but it is a very eerie coincidence. We won't launch into any hyperbolic 'second coming' nonsense, but I do find things like this rather amusing sometimes. Kudos to Dr. Glenn Reynolds and Corsair the Pirate for the Monday afternoon chuckle. The Reynold's comment, "MAN, THAT KARL ROVE doesn't miss a trick." Priceless. I'm just repeating the good work of others, really, but Heather/Rabbit has connected some really good dots. Who would've thought, back in November of 2000, that these would be the headlines two years later? How absolutely, 100% sweet is this? George W. Bush is the leader of the free world, and Al Gore is doing voice-over work for the red-headed stepchild of The Simpsons. Sometimes life is just too, too satisfying. All I need now is a decent Dominican cigar, a room-temp glass of single malt scotch, and maybe two or three choice selections from the Ole Miss cheerleading squad. Life doesn't get much better than this. Found a new one Right Thinking from the Left Coast. Good stuff. I haven't spent a long, long time perusing around over there, but this line alone makes me a fan. It looks like our old friend Barbara "Like Michael Moore, but with Smaller Tits" Streisand has posted one of her lunatic left-wing rants on her website. Let's take a peek, shall we? This 'Fisking' sponsored in part by Archer-Daniels-Midland Aside from those crazy British sitcoms, what the hell is the purpose of public television? As far as I can tell, all they do is peddle tote-bags and propagandistic pap. Hence, this lovely little offering from Bill Moyers, the most over-rated and government-teat-suckling person in history. Way back in the 1950's when I first tasted politics and journalism, Republicans briefly controlled the White House and Congress. With the exception of Joseph McCarthy and his vicious ilk, they were a reasonable lot, presided over by that giant war hero, Dwight Eisenhower, who was conservative by temperament and moderate in the use of power. I have no idea what the hell he is talking about. Eisenhower was elected in 1952, the same year the Democrats took over the House- and they held it for 42 years, when finally, in what was surely God's will, Newt and the gang stormed in to straighten things out in '94. That brand of Republican is gone. And for the first time in the memory of anyone alive, the entire federal government — the Congress, the Executive, the Judiciary — is united behind a right-wing agenda for which George W. Bush believes he now has a mandate. And THANK GOD FOR THAT ! That mandate includes the power of the state to force pregnant women to give up control over their own lives. Oh please. Roe is in no danger, isn't now, and won't be anytime soon. Some people just disagree on this, but I know of no one that really get's all that twisted about it these days. And those that do let this issue rn their lives probably need to get out more. It includes using the taxing power to transfer wealth from working people to the rich. I'm sorry, did I seriously read that right? How loopy is this nut-case? Billy, the top 4% of taxpayers pay 60% of the taxes. The bottom 50% carry 5% of the load. Must be nice to get all your millions from taxpayers thru the PBS and then beat those taxpayers up because they are tired of supporting your dumb, liberal ass. It includes giving corporations a free hand to eviscerate the environment and control the regulatory agencies meant to hold them accountable. Oh dear Lord, here we go. That's right, we Republicans have built a secret water system, and have little bubbles built all over the place... that way, we can poison the water and air and still breath and survive. Once we have all the 'bad people' poisoned off, we can steal their kid's lunch money and their parent's walkers and social security checks, and then the party starts, man. Please.... And it includes secrecy on a scale you cannot imagine. Above all, it means judges with a political agenda appointed for life. If you liked the Supreme Court that put George W. Bush in the White House, you will swoon over what's coming. I started swooning on inauguration day, William, and it got even better on Nov. 6 '02. Power to the People, Bill. And if you like God in government, get ready for the Rapture. These folks don't even mind you referring to the GOP as the party of God. Why else would the new House Majority Leader say that the Almighty is using him to promote 'a Biblical worldview' in American politics? Bill, most people in the world actually believe that God works through them to do good. Or at least try to. Just because you are proud of the fact that you crawled out of some primordial sludge or whatever doesn't make it so. Most of us like to think there may be a little more order, a bit more of a plan than that. So it is a heady time in Washington — a heady time for piety, profits, and military power, all joined at the hip by ideology and money. Hell YES ! Billy, my boy, while you see that in a bad way, it is what I have been waiting all my life for. It's the 4-B's of life, my friend. All that any man ever wants outta life. Booze, bucks, babes, and bombs. Football and The Simpsons are just gravy. Don't forget the money. It came pouring into this election, to both parties, from corporate America and others who expect the payback. Republicans outraised democrats by $184 million dollars. And came up with the big prize — monopoly control of the American government, and the power of the state to turn their ideology into the law of the land. Quite a bargain at any price. I like to think my little Grant-note to the RNC was money well spent, I sure do.Once the tax-cuts are made permanent, and the capital gains tax is reduced, maybe I'll consider giving a little to the DNC as well. Oh shit, who am I kidding? That's it for this week. God, I wish that was all for the rest of eternity... For NOW, I'm Bill Moyers. Don't you really mean, for THEN? This is classic 1960's liberal tax-and-spend, income redistribution bullhockey, mixed with new-fangled '90s scare tactics and outright lies. The good part of it is this is Bill Moyers, who is watched by about three dozen people every time that tripe airs, so the reach is not far. But thank goodness those viewers are mostly kooks anyway, so the influence is small. As opposed to, say, President Bush's influence. How many candidates did Moyers get elected, again? That's what I thought. Now repeat after me.... "Hey hey, ho ho, dat PBS has got to go ! Hey hey....." UPDATE: Limbaugh just picked up on this. I beat him to it. Where's my golden microphone? Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy.... If you have the mode and opportunity, listen to Mark Davis over the internet (9 AM-Noon Central), from WBAP in Dallas-Fort Worth, sometime. Always fun to listen to, and every once in a while, he finds a pearl that needs addressing. And man did he dig up a good one today. More to come.... Oh heaven's ta Betsy, I'm a published songwriter.... Well, sorta. Our good buddy Rachel posted a picture- not doctored at all, I'm sure, of our President showing off his new Iraq-strategy. We got into a little jam session in the comments section. Kevin McGehee took a few of the ideas, and ran with them. I reprint here the song in it's entirity, with no permission at all from Kevin, but he stole from me- least I can do is borrow back. Hehe..... My contribution in emphasis below.... To the tune of "A Day in the Life", by the Beatles I heard the news today oh boy Ya know, I really can't believe that is the best Sun Tzu site I could find on the net. What is this technology coming to? Saturday, November 09, 2002 Sorry it's been so long since I last posted. Been real busy laughing at the pollsters who were telling us how the races were going to be so close and that there was a real chance that the Dems might take back the House. Saw this report on the AP the other day and couldn't help but comment on it. Outgoing Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, a South Dakota Democrat, agreed the election was a referendum on Bush, but added that it was also a vote on the war on terror, Iraq and other national security concerns. "I think it means that the president has an opportunity here to enact and proceed with the plan (on Iraq) as he has articulated it," Daschle said on "Today." "I think the American people appear now to give him the benefit of the doubt." House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri said voters were apparently still in a mood to back the president in the long aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. "It's a very rare occasion when you have an attack like 9-11," Gephardt said on Fox television. "It left people in a mood of wanting to support the president and I think that's natural and normal." This shows how poorly the Dems ran their campaigns. They admit the people wanted to support the President but they ran against Bush, not the candidate, in almost every race. They were basically oblivious to the desires of the people and ran out their typical, tired , old mantras and can't even admit that they blew it. They still believe the Repubs won because of 9-11. Gephardt...said "Republican special interest money" overwhelmed many Democratic campaigns Talk about calling the kettle black! Greyout Davis barely won in California (a stronly Dem state) and he had a warchest of $60 million that he spent on that campaign. Friday, November 08, 2002 Rants and Raves from a new blogger... Jeremy just informed me that I have the proud distinction of being the fifth participant in this POS conversation board, while I haven't put much though into being the fifth... I have worked on a couple of fifths trying to figure out just what the hell I would write about. My job sucks! OK, now that that's out of the way some thoughts on general issues... btw... did I mention my job sucked? A point Jer made re: Harold Ford, Jr (or JUNIOR as we tend to refer to him in these here parts) throwing his chapeau in the ring for the House Dem Leadership... I too find the lesser Mr. Ford quite intelligent, interesting and quite good at conveying his misguided message to the populace. I think Harry may be more suited for the current/future occupation/vocation of the former-lawyer-turned actor-turned-politician-turned-actor (the retiring senior senator from TN). Although, it might be interesting to see what develops in the Dem Camp over the next few days... my thoughts are he will end up as minority whip... or should that be whipping boy? ok.. enough for now... by the way, did I mention my job sucks? The fun never stops Another contributor has joined the ranks. He may not be as frequent as the rest of us, but rest assured the posts will be as poignant. Please assist me in welcoming Mr. Ed Bell to the blogosphere. Why Republicans Won Please excuse this since the issue has been done to death. As a matter of fact, I think it has been overdone, and quite overanalyzed. But I honestly think all us "smart" folks are missing the point, and it boils down to one, not-so-small thing: September 11, 2001. Forget Karl Rove, the economy, voter fraud, taxes, Enron, energized bases, The Anna Nicole Show, or any other idea you may have. American's don't like to see innocent people suffer or die. Especially when they are American. And most especially when they can project themselves in to the same situation. Americans do like revenge in times like that. If you try to stop (b) from occurring to those who caused (a), then Americans don't like you. Let us examine this on the surface from the "Everyday American" point of view, henceforth known as Everyman (no offense ladies, but I can't get that PC). If you are reading this, then you are not Everyman. You may have some views in line with Everyman, but you are not him. I will explain in a minute. Islamofascists murdered 3,000 people, most of whom were American, on American soil. Everyman saw it. Live, on TV. He watched their wives cry and their children be born after Daddy was blown up. Everyman has every reason to believe that this can and will happen again, and Everyman does not like the thought of that. If you ask Everyman, the current President has a pretty good plan to help prevent these future attacks from occurring. Everyman vividly remembers the President saying to him "...either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists." Every night, Everyman goes home, eats his dinner with Everyfamily, flips on the TV and hears Daschle et al. saying they will not authorize force against Saddam. Or that George Bush "has not made his case". And Everyman thinks "Well, He's not with us, therefore..." Everyman does not give a crap if it is Iraq and not Al-Queda being discussed. Everyman does not give a flying fuck about civil rights or racial profiling. Everyman did not go to Berkeley and learn how to sing Kumbaya. And Everyman sure as hell does not go to Starbucks, nor does he surf the net for political insight. Everyman just knows that he loves his family and his country. And no matter what issues you present to Everyman in the next ten years, he is going to vote for the candidate who will keep those two things safe. And folks, I'm here to tell 'ya, it is Everyman who decides 90% of the elections in this country. So to the Democrats who think that railing against the President will work in 2004, go right ahead. I honestly believe that if Daschle had gone along with the Iraq resolution from the get-go then Tuesday would have turned out differently. We "political folks" can hit on all the talking points in an election, but it just does not matter to Everyman. The war on terror will decide the elections for at least the next six years, and I don't think the pollsters will ever see it. You see, people talk about their small fears. Fear of heights, spiders, the economy. They may even say things like "I'm afraid the economy is in bad shape". But those are not the real fears of Everyman. They aren't the scare the shit out of you fears. The "Dear God, I need to stop thinking about this right now or I'll never fall asleep fears". It's a short list with many permutations, but they boil down to: death, sick family member, abducted child, and the newest addition to the list: Another September 11. But this time, it effects you or someone you love. No one is going to tell the pollster that. So even Everyman will say it's about smart sounding things like abortion, or guns, or God, or whatever. But deep down, Everyman knows why he's voting for his candidate, but he ain't telling. That's what I'm for. Oh gee.... Sometimes life is just so damn sweet, it's hard to stop the constant smiling. So Howdie Doodie (that's Dick Gephardt) is stepping down as Minority Leader, and the top two contenders are Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Martin Frost (D-TX). This may be the best gift I can think of, aside from the one the country delivered on Tuesday. Pelosi is a fire-brand, whacked-out commie-lib type from the liberal bastion of San Francisco. Frost, while not as liberal or as abrasive, is still a dyed-in-the-wool lib. These are not concensus builders, and will almost certainly divide the Democratic caucus- potentially even causing a defection or two. (Come on over, boys, we'll be glad to have ya.) I look forward to seeing Denny Hastert, the gruff, loveable former wrestling coach from Illinois, match wits with Nancy Pelosi (the probable front-runner) the shrill, shreiking tax-and-spend-and-spend-and-spender from the Left coast. This may be an amazingly beneficial turn of events. PS: As much as I am excited about those possibilities, I wouldn't write this off completely. Harold Ford, Jr. (D-TN- Memphis, to be exact) is a good politician. His father was congressman for about 30 years before handing the seat over to Jr. He is a liberal, to be sure, but shows sometime brilliant flashes of sanity and moderation. My guess is he will be at least a VP candidate in wither '08 or '12. (He can't be in '04. He's only 32 years old, and the VP must be at least 35; that whole line-of-succession thing.) I have met Mr. Ford a few times, and he is a genuinely nice guy. I do not particularly agree with him, but he is an engaging figure, who is making a name for himself early. I don't think he's gonna win this battle, but he will probably make it interesting. Thursday, November 07, 2002 A friend just sent me this. I'm not sure if it has made the rounds, and I don't know who wrote it so proper credit can be given, but it sure drives home the point, doesn't it? Profiling: To insure we Americans never offend anyone, particularly fanatics intent on killing us, airport screeners will not be allowed to profile people. They will continue random searches of 80-year-old women, little kids, airline pilots with proper identification, Secret Service agents who are members of the President's security detail, 85-year old Congressmen with metal hips and Medal of Honor winning former Governors. Let's pause a moment and take the following test. In 1972 at the Munich Olympics, athletes were kidnapped and massacred by: a. Olga Corbett b. Sitting Bull c. Arnold Schwartzeneger d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 In 1979, the U.S. embassy in Iran was taken over by: a. Lost Norwegians b. Elvis c. A tour bus full of 80-year-old women d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 During the 1980's a number of Americans were kidnapped in Lebanon by: a. John Dillinger b. The King of Sweden c. The Boy Scouts d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 In 1983, the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut was blown up by: a. A pizza delivery boy b. Pee Wee Herman c. Geraldo Rivera making up for a slow news day d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40. In 1985 the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked and a 70 year old American passenger was murdered in his wheelchair and thrown overboard by: a. The Smurfs b. Davy Jones c. The Little Mermaid d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40. In 1985 TWA flight 847 was hijacked at Athens, and a U.S. Navy diver was murdered by: a. Captain Kidd b. Charles Lindberg c. Mother Teresa d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 In 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed by: a. Scooby Doo b. The Tooth Fairy c. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid who had a few sticks of dynamite left over from the train job. d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 In 1993 the World Trade Center was bombed the first time by: a. Richard Simmons b. Grandma Moses c. Michael Jordan d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 In 1998, the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed by: a. Mr. Rogers b. Hillary, to distract attention from Wild Bill's women problems c. The World Wrestling Federation to promote its next villain: "Mustapha the Merciless" d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 On 9/11/01, four airliners were hijacked and destroyed and thousands of people were murdered by : a. Bugs Bunny, Wiley E. Coyote, Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd b. The Supreme Court of Florida c. Mr. Bean d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 In 2002 the United States fought a war in Afghanistan against: a. Enron b. The Lutheran Church c. The NFL d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 In 2002 reporter Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and murdered by: a. Bonny and Clyde b. Captain Kangaroo c. Billy Graham d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40 Wednesday, November 06, 2002 If I may, and since I am the Grand Poobah of this particular blog Dats da rules. I may... Let me say a word or a few hundred about the miracle that is modern medical science. My dad has recently had some medical issues. He passes out sometimes for no reason. I have long thought it was a circulatory thing. My late grandfather, in his early-70's started having a thing called GTA. Global transient amnesia. It was really strange, and I was just getting into my teen years at the time. He would sit there and have a conversation with you, and then completely- and I mean COMPLETELY- forget who he was, where he was, what he was doing. It was really scary for me, but even moreso for Pop (as we called him) I'm sure. And I am sure it scared my Grandmother, but she was and still is a strong woman. She never let on. Pop lasted for about another 16 years, and started lapsing into mild Alzheimers, and then his body just gave out. He passed away on October 9, 1999. He was 87. Dad has had these spells since about February, and no one seemed to know what the deal was. Name a test, he's had it. And no definitive diagnosis. Now, normally, I wouldn't preach as much about a situation as morose as this, but consider for a second that I am the third in line, and the only off-spring that my dad has. I have two wonderful sisters, but they are- legally- 1/2 sisters. When my parents got married, my sister Susanna was barely 3, and my sister Rebecca was less than a year old. My Dad adopted them, and then almost 30 years ago to the day from now- I showed up. (I'm gaining on ya, Rach. ;) ) So anyway, this is a little important to me. Dad would get dizzy, and then pass out. He would forget 15 minutes of time without even realizing it. Now, here's where it gets good. The doctors gave Dad a little monitor to wear on his finger, that recorded 2 minute heart patterns at a time, and then re-wrote themselves, and there was a little alarm button that could be pressed to record a before-after kinda deal. He wore that, and his heart started POUNDING- but at about 30 beats a minute. So he called some number, and just transmitted the info to a nurse, who relayed it to a doctor, and the doc called the next day and set up a pacemaker surgery for the following day. That surgery is done. Dad is great, and the friggin operation took 20 minutes. TWENTY MINUTES. To potentially save a man's life, some doctor took twenty minutes. That, my friends, is what American ingenuity, American drive, and American know-how can accomplish. Try a pacemaker op in Canada with a 48 hour turn around. The advances that have been made in medical science just absolutely astound me sometimes. And as an aside, the knock-out doc (that's the anestheologist) said, "I'm not gonna completely knock you out. You'll just feel really drunk." Dad was aware the whole time, and told the doctor later, "If that's your idea of really drunk, you should have gone out with me back in the day." Or something like that. Anyway- My most heartfelt thanks to the doctors, nurses, EMT's, paramedics, firefighters, police personnel, search and rescue members, etc., that make things like this possibly each and every day. You people are true and solid heros. But more than that, my thanks really go to the doctors and staff that helped my Dad. You all were then when he needed you, and you all did well. I could never repay you all enough. If you want free computer related consulting, let me know. James Taranto makes a rather amusing point today; one that I hadn't really thought about, but it is true none the less. Yesterday Mondale lost Minnesota, almost certainly making him the only man in American history to have lost statewide elections in every single state. Icing on the cake... Believe it or not, this just occured to me.... I wonder how ole' Jumpin Jim Jeffords is feeling this morning? If the Republican leadership even entertains the idea of letting that traitor back into the fold, a la Bob Smith two years ago, I'm gonna puke. Time for Jimmy to sleep in the bed he made 18 months ago. And item #1 on the agenda: Repeal that ridiculous New England Dairy Compact, or whatever the hell that thing is. More serious political thought... I was traveling between Phoenix and Chicago the other day and south of Kansas City when a tire blew out. Checking my spare, I found that it too was flat. My only option was to flag down a passing motorist and get a ride to the next town. The first vehicle to stop was an old man in a van. He yelled out the window, Need a lift?" "Yes, I sure do," I replied. "You a Democrat or Republican,?" asked the old man. "Republican," I replied. "Well, you can just go to Hell," yelled the old man as he sped off. Another guy stopped, rolled down the window, and asked me the same question. Again, I gave the same answer, "Republican." The driver gave me the finger and drove off. I thought it over and decided that maybe I should change my strategy, since this area seemed to be overly political and there appeared to be few Republicans. The next car to stop was a red convertible driven by a beautiful blonde. She smiled seductively and asked if I was a Democrat or Republican. "Democrat!" I shouted. "Hop in!" replied the blonde. Driving down the road, I couldn't help but stare at this gorgeous woman in the seat next to me, the wind blowing through her hair, perfect breasts, and a short skirt that continued to ride higher and higher up her thighs. Finally, I yelled, "Please stop the car." She immediately slammed on the brakes and as soon as the car stopped, I jumped out. "What's the matter?" she asked. "I can't take it anymore," I replied. "I've only been a Democrat for five minutes and, already, I want to screw somebody." Spoc can't post this himself, because of the facist, productivity-requiring outfit that he works for, so I'm posting it for him. I’m so tired of hearing about how bad the economy currently is. The Dems pounded that point through all their campaigns. They weren’t campaigning against any candidate – they were campaigning against Bush. The problem is this – THE ECONOMY IS NOT IN BAD SHAPE. "But isn’t the stock market plunging of late?" Yes, so what. Observers of the market have been saying the market was due for a major correction for quite some time. The real signs of how the economy is doing is wrapped up in the “common folk” not the big money guys in the market scene. I’ve also heard lately that the Market doesn’t like it when one party controls both sides of Congress. These nay sayers point to historical data to show this has been the case. What they don’t point out is that in each case it was the Dems who were in control. The Market is responding very favorably to the election today. There is little evidence that the economy is in the dumper. Take this simple test. Call a local remodeling business and ask them how soon they could quote you AND complete a room addition. Call the local business that does concrete driveways and ask them how soon they could pour you a new driveway. Call a local machine shop and ask if they have the capacity to add several new products you are thinking of manufacturing. Drive through your town and see if the number of businesses going out of business is higher or lower than usual. The gloom and doom of the economic scene has basically been caused by the stock market situation. According to a recent article (I think it was AP) businesses are going to be giving out higher bonuses (to the common worker as well as the executives) than at any time in the last 26 years. Now just in case you can’t do the math, also included in this time frame are the Reagan years when many people were nearing the 8% raises every year. The real reason the Dems took it in the shorts during this election is that their tired, old mantras just weren’t measuring up to what people were experiencing AND the Dems chose to run against Bush and his 65% approval rating. I fully expect Terry McAuliffe to be replaced as head of the DNC. I also expect a changing of the guard in party “leadership” (if that’s what you can call what Daschle and Gephardt do) otherwise the only scenario where the Dems regain control is a melt down on the part of the Repubs. Oh, and by the way.... Let's help Terry McAuliffe a little. Here are some names to think about, Ter..... Robert Half International Manpower Kelly Temps Addeco Personnel OfficeTemps Maxim Group That's all the temp/placement agencies I can think of, but I am sure DC has many, many more. But don't worry, buddy. You'll land on your feet. Try buying a little Global Crossing stock. Worked for ya last time. By the way, have I said yet that today is an especially wonderful day? I can't do all the work ! Go read The Weekly Standard election coverage for yourself. They are crankin 'em out today. Columns by D. Brooks, J. Bottum, Stephen Hayes, Lee Brockhorn, and Fred Barnes are all there for ya to digest. God it's a beautiful day ! Seriously. This is like the first day in 3 weeks where the sun has actually shone. I am locked in my little office, but I am sure the birds are singing. All is right with the world. And the most important election news... At approximately 10:30 PM CST last evening, Mr. William Johnson (my sister's father-in-law) was certified into his second term as Mayor of the city of West Memphis, Arkansas. Just thought I'd impart that, so you could all get off the edge of your seats. UPDATE: On a serious note, this is as good a reason as any to be a Republican. But ya know.... I am feeling pretty good today. The NYT say's that Harvey Pitt has resigned. That is the headline. Yeah, I guess that was the most important story of yesterday. This is almost painful I am torturing myself, and watching the CNN coverage. When it is a Rep that wins, it is 'what did they do wrong?' When it is a Dem that wins, it's a friggin party. Bring out the Pinata time. This is just silly. Grey Davis' acceptance Taking credit for a lot that he had nothing to do with. And all the networks cut out. Has anyone told him his Senators, Feinstein and Boxer, are in the minority now? It might have been a good thing had that happened before. If Republicans had a little more oversight, he may not have sunk that state into the pitiful place it is in now. It's called 'management and responsibility', people. It ain't that hard There are a few races in limbo, and Louisiana is going into overtime. That being the case, let's talk positive. The Republicans now hold 50 seats, even before the LA results, and may have 52 by morning ("Sen Daschle, the moving company is on the line") The election may be over, kiddies, but the enthusiam cannot end. The Republican Senators are notoriously wimpy. We have to stay on them. For all the things we believe in, we must bring the pressure to bear. It looks as if the margin may be 'Chafee-proof', but that must not reduce the resolve. It should, more than anything, strengthen it. Get out there, and make your voices heard. Talent acceptance.... A play by play.... He is a very gracious guy. Hugging everyone on the stage. Taking digs at his wife... I like this guy. Giving kudos to Jean and Mel Carnahan. Class act. And Fox News cuts away. DAMN ! And C-SPAN picks up the slack..... (This guy is good. And thank God he won. And I hate cell phones) Damn, I forgot about that. Sen-Elect Talent's father passed away two weeks ago. He is handling that well. I will comment no further I like this man, and am very glad he won. Steve, I am right there with ya, but mine are pop-tabs, and only one or two. I do have to work in the morning. But this has been a fun night. And welcome to the team, buddy. Talent has been projected as the winner in Missouri according to Fox News and Carnahan has just conceded. Save for the lawsuits that are sure to come, that gives the Senate back to the Republicans regardless of the outcome of the Louisianna runoff. Moreover, with Thune looking good in SD and Coleman having at least an even chance in Minnesota, it is concievable that the repubs will have a 53-46 majority when the new Senate convenes in January. After the giddiness of the night's events where off the new majority better be wary of the potential pitfalls before them. The next two years have to be productive. They have to be somewhat bi-partisan. They have to produce a strong economy. Otherwise 2004 could be brutal across the board and a complete sweep for the dems. Back to the media coverage. Carvill and Begala have spent the last hour saying that the Dems just weren't dedicated to the left enough. While I agree they proved to be pretty spineless of late, I think this election should be sending them a different message. Ironically, the message that their views are to extreme for most of the country (boy that felt good saying that!). Time to go pop some corks!!! Ms. Carnahan is conceding. And doing it graciously. She was thrust into a situation she was, in no way, prepared for. Best wishes to her. I hope she runs again at a lower post, and is successful. I am Technical Director for a production of Oklahoma, which my sister is directing. It hits the stage next Friday night. That being said.... Oh what a beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day.....Republicans take the Senate and keep the House. Life is- at times- so, so sweet. Hey, Rachel, you think Al's got a chance anymore? What are you gonna do when you don't have him to hate?!?!?! As i was leaving work tonight i saw a computer that was on the Drudge Report. Saw the siren with the 'Republicans Smell Senate' banner headline and have been smiling ever since. As far as the media coverage tonight (as far as I've seen) its amazing at the contrast between FSN and CNN. FSN is reporting and commenting and when interviewing winners simply asking how did you do that. Saw Judy Woodruff interviewing Sununu and she actually asked him what went wrong for the Shehean campaign. Not to mention Aaron Brown who seems like he might pull a knife out of his waste band at any moment and commit hari kari. If Simon pulls out California I think he might actually do it. It is looking good, SF. That being said, and interrupting your normal programming, please join me in welcoming Mr Steve Fowler to the team. He is a friend of us all, and will certainly offer some good insight and some strong opinions. Put your hands together (but come back to comment) for Mr. Steve Fowler, ladies and gentlemen. Morton Kondrake, on the Fox News coverage just said words that are music to my ears. "This is a Republican night". God Bless America ! Hey all, looks like a huge night for Republicans. Skewing in Thune's favor once the western votes start getting counted. Tuesday, November 05, 2002 The Max/Sax race is over Saxby Chambliss beats Max Cleland. I appreciate the R pickup, but cannot say anything bad about Cleland. He is a brave man, and a hero, he was just too out of touch with the Georgia voters. Let's keep this up ! KKT GOES DOWN !!!! Can we finally call the end of Camelot? If the night goes as I plan, I will 'sing' the entire score by morning. Fox News calls it Pryor beats Hutchinson. I had that info on a temp over an hour ago. Seems official now. Time to go into Nixon mode, Tim, and rebuild your rep. You are still a young guy. But you are no Asa. And Chambliss wins GA. The Republicans are off to a great start. Held three key states. Romney wins in Mass. I think I'll be up quite late tonight. Arkansans don't rule all that much Looks like Mark Pryor is gonna pull this one out. Tim is a good guy, but for the most part, he dug his own grave. Another mouth-piece for Daschle, possibly. God, I hope not. It's all up to you, Missouri. Tarheels RULE !! Liddy Dole wins over Erskine Bowels. (no, that is not a typo) He must have conceded. It's looking good so far. This is not a huge deal, but a lot of the pundits had this one going to Bowles earlier. Here we go And I may join in this counter-suit. I took extra time off work to come and vote at lunch-time. Now, thanks to idiots in the Arkansas judiciary, and the idiocy that is the Democratic party, I should have had an extra 2-1/2 hours to vote tonight. God bless Matt Drudge again. At the request of the AR Dems, a judge in Pulaski county has extended voting hours until 10, without even consulting the Republican party officials. And FOR THE LOVE OF GOD !!!! We have early voting in Arkansas. I like the idea of voting on Election Day, so I choose to stand in line. This is a push by a bunch of election stealing, dip shit Democrats on the part of a bunch of uninterested, lazy-ass 'citizens'. This is a travesty, and I am pissed. If this means anything to you, Matt Drudge is keeping decent tabs on exit poll results, if these are accurate, this is not a terrible night, but I sure would like to see a little up-tick movement in Colorado and North Carolina. [Based on early exit polls, GOP is set to win Georgia, Missouri, Minnesota and S Dakota ; DEMS set to win Arkansas, Colorado, North Carolina and New Jersey. ] Those are the Senate races, of course. UPDATE: He is also showing the Arkansas Senate race between Sen. Tim Hutchinson and state AG Mark Pryor as a 51-49 balance to Pryor. This is a lot closer than some had anticipated, and the polls are still open here for another 2 hrs and 24 minutes. This is gonna hang on working Republicans getting to the polls and absentee ballots. This is going down to the wire, my friends. I got tired of hunting down election exit polls.... they're probably all wrong anyway. This is actually a little interesting. And I can handle the result, based on my responses. Give 'er a whirl and see who you are. Cheers ! Can someone answer me this question... The talking heads on TV have been constantly saying that if Louisiana ends with a necessary run-off on 12/7, that all this money will suddely be flowing into the state to either defeat or prop-up Sen. Mary Landreiu. Here is where I am scratching my work-related-aching-head.... Doesn't the McCain-Feingold campaign 'reform' bill go into effect after these elections? The text of the legislation can be found here. There are a lot of references to "November 6, 2002", which tells me that there is a possibility that all that money won't be flowing in after all. This will be, possibly, the first test of that ridiculous piece of crap that is the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002. A plea to the non-election nuts... If you are not a return-junkie (like me) but are still interested in politics, I was wondering if you could do me a favor... Alexandra Pelosi, daughter of Democratic congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, directed a documentary called Journey's With George which debuts on HBO tonight. As I don't even HAVE HBO- I mean how many friggin times can you see Cobra?- it will be difficult for me to catch it any time soon. Do me a favor, and soemone give me a review? A large number of the pundits have been repeating the mantra that this election will turn, largely, on turnout. I may be horribly, terribly wrong, but these weather reports seem to me to be a good thing for the Republican party. Historically, Republicans are more dedicated to voting and are less detered by adverse weather conditions, standing in lines, etc. Or it may just be wishful thinking. There is something about this that is just scary. The Democratic Party of Maryland is paying people to go door to door to convince people to vote. This is only against the law if the stumpers don't politic for a particular candidate or party.... And we all know that won't happen. My admonition to you all.... if you don't follow the issues, don't know the candidates, and don't want to take the time to get yourself to the polls before they close, then..... KEEP YOUR ASS AT HOME !Well, I watched the Mondale/Coleman debate tonight and I was very disappointed. Mondale sounded old, confused and stammered alot. Coleman on the other hand was too compassionate. It was as if he thought he was fist fighting with his grandpa and didn't want to hurt him. Mondale flip flopped all over the stage like a beached fish. First, he wanted tax cuts then he wanted to repeal the tax cuts of last year. Then he said he felt the President should have all the same powers as did Jimmy Carter and said the Homeland Security Bill should have been passed already but then said he wouldn't have voted for the bill. Coleman let Mondale off too easy many times. Mondale kept saying Coleman favored tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefited the wealthy. I don't know why no Republican has the stones to answer that. Of course the wealthiest benefit the most from tax cuts - THEY PAY THE MOST IN TAXES!!!! The Dems would have the tax cuts give thousands of dollars to people who pay tens of dollars in taxes. Next Mondale talked about how Coleman was beholding to big business AND THIS JUST AFTER HAVING ADMITTED HE IS SERVING ON THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF SEVERAL LARGE COMPANIES!!!!!! When you get your paycheck from a big business, how much more beholding can you get? Mondale's "drive it home" point was "I have so much seniority because I've served in the Senate before, that I'll immediately move into a position of leadership." In other words, "No one listens to me any more. Please put me back in power so someone will listen to me!!!" It's no wonder Mondale waited so long to announce he would take the place on the ballot. Any sooner and Coleman would have had him in his sights long enough to show that Mondale has totally lost touch. Monday, November 04, 2002 A Troika of Losses Let me start out by saying that I live in Buffalo. Therefore, there are two teams that are utmost in my life: The Buffalo Bills and the Buffalo Sabres. You all have your hometown teams, so you know exactly what I am talking about. Much like finding a $20 dollar bill in your pocket, your mood can be seriously altered by the success or failure of your teams. In addition, being from Buffalo leaves a world of alternatives when choosing for whom to cheer in other sports. We have no basketball, no baseball, nor any major college programs here. Therefore we have to parasitically attach ourselves to other cities teams. Someday, I will share the identities of the other teams I root for, as we get to know each other a bit better. Suffice it to say that Notre Dame is my college team of choice. The tradition, the outstanding academics, and memories of my Grandfather rooting on the Irish all served to mold me in to a Friend of Notre Dame. And the winning during the 70's as I was growing up did not hurt either. Or, it may be that I am just a nice, Irish Catholic boy. So Saturday was a big day in the Pritchard household. After much debate, my buddy Mick and I decided, despite a possible curse, to get the families together for the Notre Dame v. BC game. We chose...poorly. As BC slowly extracted our hearts from our chest cavities with a spoon, we realized that this was a level 5 "this can't be happening game". For the complete "Thirteen Levels of Losing", click here. Needless to say, Saturday night was not a particularly pleasant one for me. And the hour and a half I spent watching the tremendously un-funny new season of SNL did not help any either. Yet, as I drifted off to sleep that night my heart was filled with hope. "OK, the Irish lost," I thought. "No big deal, really. I mean, who expected them to be there anyway? We're having one hell of a year even with the loss." This is how I justify things in my head at 1:15 AM. And the Bills were up in just 12 hours. Bills vs. Patriots, Drew's Redemption, The Bledsoe Bowl. And that arrogant ass Belichick would get his! Ha! I envisioned the postgame party in the parking lot, drifting off to sleep dreaming of the Bills in first place. Sunday morning dawned overcast and crisp. Temps around 40 degrees, with no wind. A grrrrrrrreat day for football. There was that "I'm eight years old again, let's go play street football" smell in the air. That, and the smell of, how you say?...aaah yes, victory. My brother in law was in the driveway at 8:50, and we were "socializing" in the lot by 9:45...perfect. And from New Englands opening seventy yard march to paydirt you knew it just wasn't going to happen for the Bills. Now I was pissed. Pissed at the Bills for not winning for Drew. Pissed at our incredibly outcoached head coach for punting on fourth-and-two from New Englands 32 yard line, the turning point of the game. Pissed at the two chowds sitting in front of me. Pissed at my fellow Buffalonians for not buying enough tickets to keep about 25,000 patriots fans out of MY stadium. My weekend was shot. It was time to start drinking heavily. But wait, there was a faint glimmer of hope. A small way to lessen the pain. I had forgotten that the Sabres were playing that night. It couldn't make up for things, but it could dull the pain. Kind of like taking two Tylenol after brain surgery. A shot at redemtion to my battered sporting soul. As we pulled out of the parking lot, things looked good. The Sabres were up 2-0 against the Columbus whomevers. I still cannot believe Columbus has a hockey team, but I suppose it's better than putting teams in Florida. Oh, wait. They did that too. I think I see a future column forming here. Anyway, Columbus scores three unanswered goals to win for the second time in franchise history when trailing after two periods. Kudos to the Blue jackets on reaching that milestone, and for dropping a bowling ball on my testicles. All I had left was to try to stay conscious through The Sopranos, which I managed quite nicely, thank you. At least I did not have to watch any sex scenes with Ralphie. That would have caused me to assume the fetal position and not leave my bed for up to three days. And hope springs eternal, I suppose. At least the Irish get Navy next week. They may have an easier week than the Bills, who have a bye. ********************************************************* Todays person added to my list of people to kick squarely in the package: The Patriots fan who sat in front of me Sunday who never quite figured out that yes, you are allowed to sit down occasionally when watching football. And no, I'm not bitter about Sunday. Not at all. ********************************************************** Did I see that right? Sundays left-turn contest was called the Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400?. Is that right? Who is coming up with these names? College football bowl committees? Sunday, November 03, 2002 How soon they forget! Wasn't it just the last presidential election where the Dems were doing everything in their power to avoid being associated with Der Slickmeister. And now, in Florida campaigning for the Dem candidate for governor this: "At Miami Dade Community College, Clinton was introduced by Rep. Carrie P. Meek (D-Fla.) as 'the honorable brother' and addressed the issue of voting rights in the mostly black neighborhood." What a laugh!!! honorable brother - hahahahahahahahaha |
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