Sorry about the lack of input today, so far.
I’ve been chasing Sasser infections all day, for peoplewho didn’t prepare.
I’ve also been looking at replacing my trusty Astro Van with another Astro Van.
Nothing wrong with the current one, really, and letting it go makes for kind of a sad day for me.
But the new one promises to be at least as good.
Anyway, between the two, I’ve been at armpit level all day. More tonight once I sit down at my home office.
Oh, the Weekly bit is written and will be updated tonight, too.
Tags: BitsBlog
Reuters is reporting on something out of this world:
“Flying saucer fever has gripped Iran after dozens of sightings in the last few days. Fanciful cartoons of alien spacecraft have adorned the front pages.
State television on Wednesday showed a sparkling white disc it said was filmed over Tehran on Tuesday night.
More colorful Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) have been spotted beaming out green, red, blue and purple rays over the northern cities of Tabriz and Ardebil and in the Caspian Sea province of Golestan, the official IRNA news agency reported.
Newspapers and agencies reported people rushing out into the streets in eight towns on Tuesday night to watch a bright extraterrestrial light dipping in and out of the clouds. “
Have you ever noticed that the Flying saucers always seem to pick the most backward places on earth to fly over?
Seems reasonable that Iran is getting some intel- gathering activity.
Tags: BitsBlog
Blogging will be a bit light today, as I’ll be on the road until perhaps 20:00 or so.
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The New York Post. calls the 9/11 commission a national disgrace:
“We never thought former Sen. Bob Kerrey was taking seriously his responsibilities to the national 9/11 commission. But his insulting mid-meeting abandonment of President Bush (news – web sites)’s sitdown with the body yesterday was beyond the beyond.
Kerrey and fellow Democrat Lee Hamilton bugged out early from the three-hour sitdown – each pleading ‘a prior engagement’ – while Bush and Vice President Cheney sat calmly and answered the commission’s questions.
Almost as insulting as the walkout was commission Chairman Tom Kean’s decision to let it happen. Obviously, Hamilton, Kerrey and Kean don’t consider the panel’s probe to be all that important.”
Well, the problem here is there were no TV cameras to parade in front of. When there were, and the exposure ocld be used to punce on Mr. Bush and the Republicans, the Democrats on the panel were all a twitter… When they were not, … particulalry when the sitation appeared to favor Mr. Bush…. well… bye, bye Democrats.
Politics, and political advantage in an election year is all these poor excuses for hman beings, were EVER about… and their actions yesterday show this clearly. The Post says:
“In good times, such contempt for the presidency – indeed, for the American political system, and the people it represents – would be despicable. In the context of a mission as important as the 9/11 panel’s – and with a war on, no less – the members’ behavior is downright inexcusable. Resignations are in order.”
Indeed.
Tags: BitsBlog
PRNewswire is reporting:
“NEW YORK, April 29 /PRNewswire/ — In what may be a surprising move to some political circles, Democratic Presidential Candidate Senator John Kerry (D-Massachusetts) has issued an invitation to former Democratic Primary rival Rev. Al Sharpton to address this summer’s Democratic National Convention in Boston. Senator Kerry makes his comments tonight in an exclusive one-on-one interview with BET NIGHTLY NEWS anchor Jacque Reid at 11 p.m. ET/PT as a prelude to a special two-part series with BET airing Monday, May 3 and Tuesday, May 4. The interview was taped earlier today with Senator Kerry during a campaign stop in Philadelphia.”
This can only be good news for Mr. Bush and his people. If there’s one thing that will drive away undecided voters, it’s Sharpton’s race baiting.
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“Sorry, but what this scandal reveals is that the United Nations can’t be trusted, on grounds of either integrity or competence, to discharge its alleged mission of promoting human rights and world peace.”
Nice to see Glenn agrees with my take on the matter; The UN is utterly corrupted, and cannot be trusted.
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2004 Republican National Convention NYC
Nuff said.
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Dizzy Girl has a new page CSS up. Looks nice. She’s going for a ‘Kill Bill’ look, but seems to have gotten “American hotdog stand” mixed in there, color wise. Still, it’s s a sharper look. Go visit.
Tags: BitsBlog
I did…. so did Boortz:
“Tom Lantos is a California Democrat representing (where else?) the San Francisco Bay area. Yesterday Lantos was on a panel questioning some individuals over the United Nations Oil for Food Scandal. Lantos is not happy that people are questioning the honesty and integrity of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. My dropped to my shoes when I heard Lantos say:
‘At a time when we are placing enormous responsibilities following the handover on June 30th upon the United Nations and the Secretary General to imply dishonesty on his part is so contrary to our national interests that is simply boggles the mind.’
Did the same thought cross your mind? Tom Lantos, a Democrat, sees it as fundamentally wrong to imply any dishonesty on the part of Kofi Annan at a time when Annan is facing great responsibilities in Iraq. But …. Tom Lantos, a Democrat, sees no problem whatsoever in questioning the honesty of the president of the United States at a time when he is also facing great responsibilities in Iraq.
Is this the way it is for Democrats? It’s fine to impugn the integrity of our president, but keep your grimy right-wing mitts off the Secretary General of the United Nations.”
Ah yes, Tom Lantos; Making the world safe for socialism.
Tags: BitsBlog
…. for those who have written reviews for the various blog engines, about BitsBlog,a nd those who have written me E-mail with kind words, some of which I’ve posted on the Right Column, upper.
Nice to know you’re well-taken by your fellow bloggers and readers. It means a lot.
And yes, there’s always a naysayer in the group. But, consider the source.
Everyone else does.
In case anyone wonders, at the moment, I’m getting about 90 readers per day. This is a slow and steady climb, which is pretty well what I’ve been working for. As a result of hte increased reaership, and reader comments, I am considering a seperate hosting arrangement for this blog.
I’m currently dealing with a number of issues on my home network, and other projects, but we’ll see how it goes… possibly someitme over the summer, I’ll make a move. Stay tuned.
Tags: BitsBlog
Apparently, he’s going to ry to let this one slide.
Or perhaps he’s too busy defending himself from the leftists in his own party.
Either way, this kind of stonewalling is unacceptable.
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Friends of Saddam is turning into a really great source on UNSCAM information. Highly reccomended.
Among the stroies running there today coes this little gem:
“A BRITISH-IRAQI ‘oil-for-food’ trader claims that he witnessed United Nations border staff take bribes to allow contraband military equipment into Iraq. Hosam al-Chalabi, of Standish, near Wigan, told The Times that he had been present when an Iraqi diplomat paid off UN personnel to get 12 container-loads of what he believes were missile engines into Iraq from Jordan in 1997. UN sub-contractors inspected goods entering Iraq during the 13-year trade embargo to ensure that only approved imports crossed the border under the oil-for-food programme, which permitted Iraq to sell oil to buy humanitarian supplies.”
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Front page is running a plea for help from Iraq.
I’m going to run the whole article; it’s that important.
In fairness, I will urge you all to frequent Front Page Online
It’s a fine site, and one I frequent, myself. But read and heed this message, first.
-=-=-
Hello Everyone, I am taking time to ask you all for your help.
First off, I’d like to say that this is not a political message. I’m not concerned about domestic politics right now. We have much bigger things to deal with, and we need your help.
It seems that despite the tremendous and heroic efforts of the men and women serving here in Iraq to bring much needed peace and stability to this region, we are losing the war of perception with the media and American people. Our enemy has learned that the key to defeating the mighty American military is by swaying public opinion at home and abroad. We are a people that cherish the democratic system of government and therefore hold the will of the people in the highest regard. We love to criticize ourselves almost to an endless degree, because we care what others think. Our enemies see this as a weakness and are trying to exploit it.
When we ask ourselves questions like, “Why do they hate us?” or “What did we do wrong?” we are playing into our enemies’ hands. Our natural tendency to question ourselves is being used against us to undermine our effort to do good in the world. How far would we have gotten if after the surprise attacks on December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor, we would have asked, “Why do the Japanese hate us so much?” or “How can we change ourselves so that they won’t do that again?” Here in Iraq the enemy is trying very hard to portray our efforts as failing and fruitless. They kill innocents and desecrate their bodies in hopes that the people back home will lose the will to fight for liberty. They are betting on our perceived weakness as a thoughtful, considerate people. Unfortunately our media only serves to further their cause.
In an industry that feeds on ratings and bad news, a failure in Iraq would be a goldmine. When our so-called “trusted” American media takes a quote from an Iraqi doctor as the gospel truth over that of the men and women that are daily fighting to protect the right to freedom of press, you know something is wrong. That doctor claimed that out of 600 Iraqis, that were casualties of the fighting, the vast majority of them were women, children and the elderly. This is totally absurd. In the history of man, no one has spent more time and effort, often to the detriment of our own mission, to be more discriminate in our targeting of the enemy than the American military. The Marines and Soldiers serving in Iraq have gone through extensive training in order to limit the amount of innocent casualties and collateral damage.
Yet, despite all of this, our media consistently sides with those who openly lie and directly challenge the honor of our brave heroes fighting for liberty and peace. What we have to remember is that peace is not defined as an absence of war. It is the presence of liberty, stability, and prosperity. In the face of the horrendous tyranny of the former Iraqi regime, the only way true peace was able to come to this region was through force. That is what the American Revolution was all about. Have we forgotten? Freedom is not free and “peace” without principle is not peace. The peace that so-called “peace advocates” support can only be brought to Iraq through the military. And we are doing it, if only the world will let us! If the American people believe we are failing, even if we are not, then we will ultimately fail.
That is why I am asking for your support. Become a voice of truth in your community. Wherever you are fight the lies of the enemy. Don’t buy into the pessimism and apathy that says, “It’s hopeless,” “They hate us too much,” “That part of the world is just too messed up,” “It’s our fault anyway,” “We’re to blame,” and so forth. Whether you’re in middle school, working at a 9-5 job, retired, or a stay-at-home mom you can make a huge difference! There is nothing more powerful than the truth. So, when you watch the news and see doomsday predictions and spiteful opinions on our efforts over here, you can refute them by knowing that we are doing a tremendous amount of good. Spread the word. No one is poised to make such an amazing contribution to the everyday lives of Iraqis and the rest of the Arab world than the American Armed Forces. By making this a place where liberty can finally grow, we are making the whole world safer. Your efforts at home are directly tied to our success. You are the soldiers at home fighting the war of perception. So I’m asking you as a fellow fighting man: Do your duty. Stop the attempts of the enemy wherever you are. You are a mighty force for good, because truth is on your side. Together we will win this fight and ensure a better world for the future.
God Bless and Semper Fidelis, 1st Lt. Robert L. Nofsinger USMC Ramadi, Iraq
Tags: BitsBlog
The Village Voice’s James Ridgeway echoes the note of desperation among Democrats that I made note of yesterday.
“John Kerry Must Go
Note to Democrats: it’s not too late to draft someone… Anyone else..
…
With growing issues over his wealth (which makes fellow plutocrat Bush seem a charity case by comparison), the miasma over his medals and ribbons (or ribbons and medals), his uninspiring record in the Senate (yes war, no war), and wishy-washy efforts to mimic Bill Clinton’s triangulation gimmickry (the protractor factor), Kerry sinks day by day. The pros all know that the candidate who starts each morning by having to explain himself is a goner.
What to do? Look for the Dem biggies, whoever they are these days, to sit down with the rich and arrogant presumptive nominee and try to persuade him to take a hike. Then they can return to business as usual resurrecting John Edwards, who is still hanging around, or staging an open convention in Boston, or both. “
When even the leftists in the Democrat party, such as the Voice, are screaming their own guy can’t make it, hang it up; it’s over.
Oh, and here’s a note of reality to the gang at the Voice: Edwards ain’t gonna happen, and you know that, or at least, you should.
Let’s remember the Clinton mistique will once again invade about mid-summer, as Bubba releases his book, which the Kerry people are already howling about.
All of this leads us to exactly what I predicted… a brokered Democrat convention with Hillary Clinton walking away with the nomination. With the reality of this prediction being true getting more and more clear, the naysayers of this scenario have become more and more silent.
Kerry’s got nobody to blame but himself. How long before someone besides me utters the possibility that the ABC tape finding was not a right-wing attack, but a CLINTON attack?
This is the best of all possible outcomes for America and the world…. neither the current Democrat frontrunner, nor Hillary Clinton, his presumed replacement, can win the general election. Their chances for elections stillborn, (Or in true Democrat fashion, aborted) The Democrat party is a party that isn’t long for the world.
After this election season, I’m willing to bet most people right OR left, will not mourn it’s passing.
Update:
The snow slide has started, apparently.
Billy Beck points up a New York Observer editorial saying the same thing. Billy Reminds us Hitch said a while ago:
“How dismal it is to realize that the standard for the Vietnam generation is now at the level of ‘What did you do in the Great War, Daddy?’ ” I think it’s a riot that the essence of the answer is palatable on the left, today: “I preserved my political viability.”
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Jon over at QandO makes note of James Taranto who catches this in today’s Best of the Web….
“If George Bush wants to make national security an issue in this campaign, I have three words for him that I know he’ll understand. Bring it on!”
—John Kerry, quoted in the New York Times, Feb. 1
“Call off the Republican attack dogs.”
–Democratic National Committee chairman Terry McAuliffe, responding to Dick Cheney’s speech on John Kerry’s defense record, quoted by the Associated Press, April 26
Mommy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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