Fred Barnes : Michael Moore And Me

Regular readers to this page will doubtless understand that if there’s something lower than whale poop, it’s Michael Moore. So imagine my amusement this morning as I watched Fred Barnes lay out some facts as regards Rotundo:

Fred Barnes who says:

“A FEW YEARS AGO Michael Moore, who’s now promoting an anti-President Bush movie entitled Fahrenheit 9/11, announced he’d gotten the goods on me, indeed hung me out to dry on my own words. It was in his first bestselling book, Stupid White Men. Moore wrote he’d once been ‘forced’ to listen to my comments on a TV chat show, The McLaughlin Group. I had whined ‘on and on about the sorry state of American education,’ Moore said, and wound up by bellowing: ‘These kids don’t even know what The Iliad and The Odyssey are!’
Moore’s interest was piqued, so the next day he said he called me. ‘Fred,’ he quoted himself as saying, ‘tell me what The Iliad and The Odyssey are.’ I started ‘hemming and hawing,’ Moore wrote. And then I said, according to Moore: ‘Well, they’re . . . uh . . . you know . . . uh . . . okay, fine, you got me–I don’t know what they’re about. Happy now?’ He’d smoked me out as a fraud, or maybe worse.

The only problem is none of this is true. It never happened. Moore is a liar.”

Oh, the shock of it.
Will I ever stand the strain?

USATODAY was forced to report today:

(Emph is mine)

Well, they were hoping, certainly.
When even the liberal Gannet is forced to admit it…

The WSJ reports this morning that John Kerry is considering delaying accepting his nomination to the Democrat run for the Presidency. Why? The WSJ explains:

Ummm… Wait a second, here. Didn’t Kerry back these rules after Gore lost the last election?

Ah. So, nothing new here, except for the degree.
Well, it is more brazen than it was before, but it’s still the same old dishonesty from the Democrats.

There’s a lot of wailing about the FCC and it’s crackdown on such as Howard Stern. Stern loves to complain it’s all the Bush administration’s fault he’s off most of the stations he was on.  But as usual, facts run afoul of the liberal mantra.John Fund points out this morning:

So, will we see Stern back off his rhetoric about Bush?
Likely that’ll be about the time Stern actually shows us any talent.

In a post over at the evangelical outpost, Joe Carter does a pretty fair job of bringing to light some of the UNSCAM abuses, but introduces a new source of scam… Chalabi. Apparently Chalabi himself was covering evidence in the UNSCAM investigation. If so, seems to me the actions of both shutting off his funding, and raiding his office and home were spot on. And note, please that (bold) it wasn’t a US action but a Iraqi governing council action, which makes it a substantially different matter.

“In a blog article posted just a few days ago, Thomas Lifson from the American Thinker asks, ?Why is the United States shutting down Chalabi?s already-established investigation? The NY Post also chimed in and claimed that Bremer was impeding the investigation and should allow Chalabi’s audit continue.

While the idea of a “cover-up” by the Bush Administration was being tossed around, a more interesting reason for freezing out Chalabi came to light. On May 20th, his house was raided by the Iraqi Governing Council as part of a corruption investigation initiated by the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior. Chalabi, a secular Shiite Arab and former banker who left Iraq for exile after a left-wing coup in 1958, was convicted of fraud in absentia in Jordan in 1992 for allegedly embezzling over $1 billion from a bank he ran and sentenced to 22 years in jail. He has repeatedly denied the charges.

A senior Bush administration official has said that there is “rock solid” evidence that Chalabi passed secrets to Iran. He had previously called for closer ties between Iran and Iraq. ”

There’s much in the way of tea-leaf reading going on around Chalabi at the moment, and much in the way of leftists patting themselves on the back for never having trusted him, and chiding the Bush administration for having done so.

But on what evidence do we assume that the Bush administration EVER fully trusted him? Public statements and posturing? Sorry, I don’t see that as proof, given the cat and mouse game being played here more levels than this, in that part of the world. 

Looking back down this timeline, with this new information in hand, it’s starting to sound possible that Chalabi, always a fairly popular person among a few factions in Iraq, was given enough rope to hang himself with, in front of his own countrymen, and is now being dealt with by an enraged Iraqi governing council, not the US. (You may recall, unilateral US action there is supposed to be a no-no in some circles…. And in this case, I’ll more than grant that the IGC dealing with this matter is a decided plus, wouldn’t you?)

In short, it’s my take we knew he had problems and allowed him to expose himself to his own people as such, thus allowing them to take the proper actions with him. If this tea-leaf reading of mine is correct, this is a deft bit of international relationship management that should be in the textbooks going forward.

I can hear the disbelieving snorts of derision form the leftists as they read this. But, time will tell. In every instance over the last few years, Mr. Bush has been outperforming leftist expectations. At what point do you start giving the guy the benefit of the doubt, and assume he’s got more info to work with than you, and more brains than you’ve been giving him credit for?

As I predicted, we’re going to see a price drop in the near future on fuel. The way this is timing out, it’ll be mid to late July.

Matt Drudge has the story:

Update:
Lessee, here…. markets up sharply, US light crude down by around 0.80/barrel… All in line.

World Net Daily is running a story about Bill Cosby, who apparently has not lost his ability to tell it like it is.
I’ll see if I can find a better read of his comments, and when I do I’ll post it

Slings And Arrows came back from a blogging break to suggest something I’d not thought of:

I wonder if we’re going to see this point on the nightly News with Dan Rather tonight?
Perhaps not, huh?

KELOLAND.COM is reporting that Thune is within the margin of error, tied with Daschle, in what will amount ot the hottest Senate race this season:

It gets better, though;

I’ll be watching this one, rest assured.

Raw feed:

‘Source’ Notes Syrian Technicians Killed in Yongch’on
Train Explosion Incident

JPP20040507000021 Tokyo Sankei Shimbun (Internet
version-WWW) in Japanese 07 May 04 Morning Edition
[Corrected version — changing “Ryongchon” to
“Yongch’on”; unattributed report: “DPRK Train
Explosion: Syrian Technicians on Board; Debris
Recovered by Team Wearing Protective Suits Immediately
After Explosion; Possibility of Train Transporting
Military Cargo”]

[FBIS Translated Text]
A military source familiar with Korean Peninsula
affairs revealed on 6 May that Syrian technicians were
killed in a train explosion incident that occurred on
22 April in Yongch’on in the northwestern part of the
DPRK and that the damage was especially serious in
that section of the train where the Syrians were
aboard, along with large equipment. The same source
noted that although the contents of the equipment are
unknown, DPRK military-related personnel wearing
protective suits arrived on the scene immediately
after the explosion and removed debris only from that
section of the train where the Syrian group had been
aboard. Consequently, there is a strong likelihood
that the accident occurred when military materials
were being secretly transported between the DPRK and
Syria.

According to the same source, the technicians aboard
the train had been sent from the Syrian technical
research center called Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche
Scientific (CERS). Although CERS was established to
promote science and technology development, it is
suspected of playing a major role in Syria’s weapons
of mass destruction development program.

The technicians and the cargo were reportedly aboard
the same section of the train. The same source said it
was uncertain whether the cargo was the source of the
explosion or whether it exploded after being set off
by an explosion on another section of the train. The
source then said, “The damage to that section of the
train was the most serious,” noting that nearly 10
Syrians and accompanying North Koreans were killed.

The bodies of the Syrians were carried onto and
transported home on 1 May by a Syrian aircraft, which
had come to Pyongyang to deliver aid supplies.

Syrian and DPRK medical and military personnel who
were involved in transporting [the Syrians and other
victims] were also reportedly wearing protective suits
similar to those worn by the DPRK military personnel
who arrived on the scene immediately after the
accident.

The same source said, “The action taken by Syria and
the DPRK indicates that the cargo was top secret
matter, which the two countries did not want to bring
out into the open.” With regard to the DPRK and Syria,
the United States and other countries have indicated
concern that the two countries are continuing to
cooperate in the development of Syria’s “Scud-D”
missiles, as well as chemical and biological weapons.

Concerning the cause of the explosion incident, the
DPRK has explained that a train carrying fertilizer
containing ammonium nitrate and a railroad tank
carrying petroleum were being shunted, and, in the
process, came into contact with electrical wires, due
to carelessness.

[Description of Source: Tokyo Sankei Shimbun (Internet
version-WWW) — Internet version of daily newspaper
published by Fuji Sankei Communications Group]

Ed at Captain’s Quarters is reporting that the stories about the demise if that Iraqi wedding party under the wilting US attack were a little offbase:

“I know that the original reports didn’t mention the 3 AM attack time, which seems to discredit the notion that the target could have been a wedding party in full swing. Instead, the Pentagon insists that they had intelligence pointing to this location being used as a transit point for terrorists going in and out of Iraq, and the material captured at the location indicated they were correct. Wedding parties don’t need satcom radios, for instance, and while the Iraqi dinar is worth pennies now, that amount in Syrian pounds (not dinars) comes to $57,000 and some change. “

Syrian Pounds?
Hmmm.

This one’s going to take a while for some of you to understand. Be prepared, you might need to tote lunch for this one.

First, we’re not dealing with record prices… Not by a longshot. The most expensive gas we’ve ever had to contend with was under the Carter administration. In FY 2004 dollars, we paid $2.91/gal. So, what we’re paying now doesn’t qualify as a record. Sorry.

Now as to what’s causing the prices there are several factors, and I’ll try to list out the bigger ones.

1: ‘Seasonal Blends’ It’s ‘Enviro friendly’ to create gasoline that burns at it’s best under certain driving conditions. Supposedly.  Yet, it does cause supply restrictions, given point 2, which is a limited refining capacity. Re-tooling this limited capacity to create these blends every few months, costs the refineries millions every year. And they actually have to stop making gas while the production line is shifted to the new blending, thus making supply/demand even worse. Where do you think that cost difference goes? Thank you, un-American left for forcing this enviro-wacko nonsense on us. If the Democrats were really serious about lowering the costs of fuel, don’t you think we’d see them eliminate this enviro-wacko madness?

2: Limited refining capacity: We have not built one new refinery since 1976.Our current systems are running at around 95%, despite the gyrations of the different blends we’re forcing though every few months… see point 1. Worse, we’re losing some of the refineries we now have online because they can’t deal with the regulatory load placed on them in the name of the ‘environment’, and the outrageous taxation on the investors in those companies and the companies themselves, al of whom make such systems possible. Thank you, un-American left for forcing this enviro-wacko nonsense on us. If the Democrats were really serious about the cost of gas and heating oil, don’t you think they’d get serious about eliminating the mountain of red tape and impediments we’re up against in the task of increasing our refining capacity?

3: World demand: The third world, along with places like China, for example, are seeing their energy demands increase. It’s interesting to note that as such they’re not working under the same environmental regulations nightmare we are here in the states and thus their gas prices are far cheaper. Wonder why manufacturing jobs are moving to China, and what is responsible for such shifts? The cost of energy being lower there is a large chunk of the deal. Thank you, un-American left for forcing this enviro-wacko nonsense on us. If the Democrats were serious about the cost of fuel, don’t you think they’d call for our *adding* to the world supply? Which is a nice tie-in to;

4: Lack of domestic drilling: We have oil here in the US; lots of it, but the usual suspects won’t let us drill for it; ANWR, for example would be turning out about a million barrels a day. Think that’d help? Remember, Bill Clinton vetoed drilling there, and the Democrats in Congress blocked the idea when Mr. Bush re-proposed it more recently as a part of his energy bill. Thank you, un-American left for forcing this enviro-wacko nonsense on us. If the Democrats were serious on this topic, don’t you think they’d be willing to allow us to drill for our own oil?

5: Taxes: Not only are we dealing with tax levels amounting to as much as 70 cents per gallon in many states, particularly in the left-leaning north eastern states, but we’re also paying a very heavy tax burden when is placed on the oil companies, and everyone in the delivery process… all of which adds to the cost you and I pay at the pump…. Because they pass it along as a cost of doing business. If the Democrats were really serious about lowering the costs, don’t you think they’d lower the taxes both on the oil companies and direct taxation on the buyers at the pump.. Both of which come out of your wallet?

6: The growing world economy; More or less a good tie-in to point 3… As the World economy recovers from Clinton, we’re seeing increasing demands and somewhat shorter supply. This is normal in an economic growth pattern. But this wouldn’t be a problem, but rather a blessing, had the rest of the factors not been in place. And all the rest of the factors are directly attributable to the left.

Remember that when you go to the pump, gang. You’re paying for the snail darter. Doesn’t it feel good?

Oh, sure… Kerry claims he has a solution… He now wants to open up the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Funny; he didn’t agree with President Clinton’s doing that, back in 2000, when the situation was more serious than it is now. He said at the time, the SPR was for emergencies, not countering market flux. Wonder why the change of mind? Could his running for office now, combined with Bill Clinton being a Democrat have anything to do with it, I wonder?

Trying to blame Mr. Bush for the factors I’ve listed is utter nonsense of a quality you can only find among Democrats, or among second graders trying to talk their way out of a homework assignment. As for you, you need to remember how Kerry pandered on the issue come November.

And by the way, I’ll predict a serious price drop come about July. You’ll see why tomorrow morning, as news of the OPEC meeting hits. OPEC… A group we’d not be nearly as dependent upon, were the left to stop opposing domestic drilling, refining and stop demanding specialty blends…

UPDATE:
Jeff Jacoby today adds his voice to the list of people commenting on this subject. His points are in line with my own. Does it bother anyone other than me that the suppsoed mainstream press STILL isn’t touching these facts?

CYBERGRASS? The Internet Bluegrass Music Magazine – Selwyn Blakely Dies From Heart Attack

Some of you from usenet and the blogging world will understand my lukewarm comments, here. For the rest, trust me, I’m being as kind as I know how to be about this.

I wondered what had happened, why the sudden drop-out in posting. Now, I know.
Selwyn Blakely, otherwise known as Banjocat in Usenet circles, apparently has died as a result of a sudden heart attack.

He and I have had something of a history, over the last few years. I spanked him with some regularity in Usenet, and he never could get over it. He decided I was going to be a target as a result. He never did wake up, sadly. 

As a measure of the kind of hate he spewed as a habit, check out the review he listed against this Blog Or, you can read some of the garbage he used to post in Usenet.

I have two regrets about this;
Too bad he didn’t live until the re-election of Mr. Bush.
Not that I think he’d have woken up, mind you.

Too bad he died before becoming fully human.

Oh, and one more regret; I’m sure he had many fine qualities. I regret never having been witness to them.

Update:
Yes, Chris Bakley, I’ve seen your lament on Al Fraken’s site. Sorry for your loss… as I said above; I’m sure he had many fine qualities.

But do us both a favor, and go into the links above, and just read his comments in his own words. His attacks were hardly focused against me alone, but against anything to the right of Fidel Castro. Not too much a shock then, that you’d seek reinforcements from a blithering, drooling socialist idiot like Al Franken. “Do not speak ill of the dead’ is not, in fact, a command to lie about them so as not to offend. You may not think so, but I was rather kind ot the gent, particularly in light of what he did to the rest of us. I’m neither inclined, nor required to lie about such a person.

But as I say, go into the usenet links I’ve provided, above, and read through them. Keep in mind; This isn’t stuff I’ve posted… these are HIS posts, his words, his vicious attacks all on Google’s permanent record. I’m not responsible for any of it; I simply point to it. They are words and actions from him, and not I… actions and words I’m willing to bet you had no idea of at all before you started in on me on the farthest left site you, could find, trying to stir up whatever you could.

But since I’m a nice guy, here’s a clue for you:
Far from being hard on the guy, I let slide many things that should have been commented on… things you’ll find others call him out on, in the searches I’ve linked to above.

As it was, I simply linked to his own words and actions, and let them speak for him. They speak better to my point than I ever could, and in any event, I think simply linking to his posts can hardly be considered an offense against anything. My post here needs no defense.

Your problem was with, and remains with his actions, and those alone.

And finally, I find it interesting you should be posting from the same IP address I banned at this site last April, a mere two weeks after this post first went up…. one of only two addresses to have ever been banned in the year and half-long history of this site. The other ban being for Banjocat hismelf… and both for the same reason. Tell me; do you and your nephew share the same first and last names, and live at the same address, or am I dealing with yet another eleborate ruse?

Not that I care, either way, mind you, because here’s the bottom line: Again, I’m very sorry for your loss, but my comments stand, Chris. I will NOT remove them. 

End of discussion.

The WSJ:

This story actually broke yesterday afternoon.WorldNetDaily says:

All except the guy who did it.

And by the way, Nick Berg’s father, Michael Berg, keeps showing up in various articles, stating he’s anti-war, and casting blame for his son’s death on the President.

But back up just a moment, here.
One of the comments about Berg the younger, was that he tended to think the best of everyone, that everyone had good in them. He acted, many have reported, without regard to his safety, almost as if he thought himself immune to the dangers and evils around him. 

Perhaps, though, it would be more correct to suggest he didn’t think such evils existed. Consider the usual liberal mantra foisted off on the young of such as Michael Berg. In a phrase, unrealistically rosy pictures of human nature are what gets transmitted to such children. I suspect Nick Berg was one of these. It would explain much of what we know about his movements and attitudes whilein Iraq.

What kind of picture of the world around him did Nick Berg get as he was growing up, one wonders?

And as a logical extension, then, does not Michael Berg have some of his own son’s blood on his hands? Which may explain the amount of blame he’s trying to project onto the President.

What doesn’t help is the press helping him to maintain his fantasy of it being everyone else’s fault.