Nightly Ramble: December?;Sales; Feetsball;Ideology; More

Welcome one and all to the most intense nightly read anywhere on the ‘sphere… Bit’sBlog’s Nightly Ramble.

• First day of December, today is.  Yeah, I know you know this. I’m saying it out of wonder at the passage of time. If you’re reading this, you managed to survive Black Friday. Of course Today is Cyber Monday. The net will be slow today. Has been, already, and it’s bound to get worse.
• Local pizza places are doing a bang up business. Apparently nobody’s asking for Turkey as a topping, from what I’m told. No idea why not.
• Last I heard, Black Friday sales were up 3% YOY, and Cyber Monday sales look to be up around 10%. So much for the slump. Of course if it gets to the point where the Dinosaur media has to admit the Holiday season wasn’t all that bad from a money standpoint, they’ll manage to find a way to credit Obama for the ‘surpising’ results.
• Billy:
  

  I enjoyed watching the New York Giants smash the Washington Redskins today without Plaxico Burris. He wasn’t going to play today anyway, but it was a special treat to watch them roll while he was nursing the negligent gunshot wound and contemplating a criminal indictment.

  Well, yeah. It’s like I keep saying; Being that stupid oughta be painful. For the team, for signing him, and for Burris himself. I gather it will be for him, at least. The team? Depends on how much you think he was contributing that someone else couldn’t. Then again, the Redskins?  Nah… That’s not so much a worry this year, either.

• Neither are the Bills  (Sigh) I’m telling you, people… I’ve never seen a team so calimly intent on handing games to opposing teams…. except that is, for the Bills… during the four year Super Bowl run they had.  I sat and watched yesterday as the Bills Doinked it off the uprights twice…. once from 20 out… The name ‘Norwood’ mean anything, guys?  And look, I know… Not to make the goat of Ryan Lindell… (And the truth is, Norwood didn’t deserve what he got, either… the game should never have gotten that close…  then or now) but his fouling up yesterday does seem emblematic. This might be Ralph’s last year, guys. You sure this is how he wants to go out? Com’on.
• Buddy of mine mentioned something to me this morning, that perhaps is worthy of mention here; For all the protests and destruction and just downright boorish behavior over California voters putting the nix on “Gay Marriage”… for a second time… the one group that they’ve not tried to releve themselves on is black churches, who overwhelmingly voted against it, and who, in vast majority object to such a thing being cast as a ‘civil right’. Ponder this one for even a few minutes and you’re sure to figure out why.
• Everyone’s going to be watching Georgia, tommrow. Chambliss and Martin. This could go either way and you can bet the Democrats are pouring lawyers into the state. It takes a lotta heat, after all to cook an election, as they’re finding out in the Coleman / Franken case.
• There are not many who have said that the Mumbai attacks were a reaction to Obama’s election.  But, since we know this stuff had been planned and trained for a year anyhow, let’s imagine for the moment that John McCain had won the election.  How long do you suppose it’d be before the Dinosaur media started cranking out stories that the attacks in Mumbai were in reaction to a McCain victory?
• About that; I see Boortz making mention of those atatcks this morning. He notes, correctly, I think;?
  

  I did some Internet searching.  I found a few stories about prayer vigilsfor the Mumbai victims of Islamic terrorists — but none held at Mosques.  Not surprised, frankly.

  Nope. Me, either. It does tell us what we’re up against, though, doesn’t it? Well, them and CNN.  The publicly expressed worries not withstanding, the fact remains that there has been very little in the way of Muslims speaking up against this kind of attack. I made the point last night that armed citizens would solve the problem. Glenn notes:

  MARK STEYN ON MUMBAI:Just go read it, okay? But here’s a bit: “What’s relevant about the Mumbai model is that it would work in just about any second-tier city in any democratic state: Seize multiple soft targets and overwhelm the municipal infrastructure to the point where any emergency plan will simply be swamped by the sheer scale of events.” 

  Just so. No question.  But as Steyn points up elsewhere, we’re missing a key element here; the ideology.

  It’s the ideology that determines whether you can find enough young hotshot guys in the neighborhood willing to strap on a suicide belt or (rather more promising as a long-term career) at least grab an AK-47 and shoot up a hotel lobby. Or, if active terrorists are a bit thin on the ground, whether you can count at least on some degree of broader support on the ground. You’re sitting in some distant foreign capital but you’re of a mind to pull off a Mumbai-style operation in, say, Amsterdam or Manchester or Toronto. Where would you start? Easy. You know the radical mosques, and the other ideological front organizations. You’ve already made landfall.

  True ’nuff. Let’s also recognize that the ideology involved does not at all appear to be disposed to peaceful co-existance. Steyn goes on to point to the press and their unwillingness to deal with the Islamic -crazy ideology on that level.  Look, gang… Someone whose idology has pushed them so far out as to want to don brand new form fitting Fruit Of The Boom underwear, particularly if they think they’ve got a reward waiting for them on the far side of the explosion, does not seem to me someone likley to back down on the mortal strength of mere negotiation, or for that matter, of mere mortal law enforcement, both of which our own left would have us totally reliant on.  So, it comes down to, as it always has, us or them.  The first step toward our suvival is recognition of that salient point. The problem, of course is there’s a liberal Democrat set to take up residence in the WH, who has repeatedly failed to make those connections. How many people will die for that failure, remains to be seen.

• A nod of thanks to the UAW, this morning, who over the weekend, gave proof to my thought that the bailout of the Big Three is really a bailout of the UAW, their over-inflated wages and bennies. Good show. About that, you need to read this.
• Obama Nation: Kind of like the orcs in LOTR; they can’t operate without someone controlling their thoughts.
• Rumors of MS and Yahoo. I’ll tell you this, guys… If this comes through, I’ll be moving to Google. or maybe back to Alta-Vista.

From Channel 13 in Birmingham Alabama:

Andrea Lindenberg and Rod Carter
Published: December 1, 2008  Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford was arrested Monday and the 101-count indictment against him has been unsealed.

This morning, U.S. Attorney Alice Martin announced that Langford, along with friend Al LaPierre and businessman Bill Blount, face charges of conspiracy, bribery, fraud, money laundering and filing false tax returns.

Langford was taken into custody at his job at Birmingham Budweiser Distributing. LaPierre turned himself in. Blount was expected to do the same.

Martin said Langford, as president of the Jefferson County Commission, steered $7.1 million in business to Bill Blount’s investment banking firm Blount Parrish. Martin said that in exchange, Blount ensured Langford’s “crushing debt” to the tune of $235,000.

During the news conference Martin said Langford received bribes from Blount—through friend Al LaPierre—to buy clothes and jewelry from expensive New York boutiques and high-end stores in Birmingham as well.

Martin said that between 2003 and 2006, Blount paid for about $235,000 in clothing, jewelry and charge account bills for Langford.

The U.S. Attorney also said that Blount gave Langford a $11,000 Rolex watch

So, here we go again. Ya keep electing Democrats…. ya keep getting the same results… and then ya wonder why?

I remakred the other day  about “Baby P”

As an update for you…

The BBC dryly reports what little consequence has come out of this horror

Three people have been suspended on full pay from Haringey Council after a “damning” inspectors’ report into the case of Baby P.

This includes Sharon Shoesmith, the head of children’s services at the north London council.

Council leader George Meehan and the authority’s cabinet member for children, Liz Santry, have resigned.

The 17-month-old boy died despite being on the child protection register and being seen by professionals 60 times.

The boy’s mother has pleaded guilty and her boyfriend and a lodger have been convicted of charges relating to the baby’s death.

Haringey Council confirmed that as well as Ms Shoesmith, Cecilia Hitchen, deputy director of children and families; and Clive Preece, head of children in need and safeguarding services, have been suspended on full pay.

The positions of three other staff – Gillie Christou, Maria Ward and Sylvia Henry – are subject to review and they are not undertaking child protection duties pending further investigation, the council said.

Here’s the thing; Does anyone doubt there’d be murder charges up on any such death where the government was not osetensibly involved? 

The gears of government work first to cover their own glutes.

So, how is it that government si to protect the eviroemnt, the economy, healthcare and more, when they can’t do something rather simple… like keeping a helpless 3 year old from getting the snot beat out of him as a matter of routine?

From the American Thinker today, comes Larrey Anderson:

Conservatism needs a fresh start. It is losing arguments … and it is losing elections. One person, more than any other (even more than John McCain), has caused this: President George W.  Bush.

Conservatives have not been winning arguments — or elections — by defending President Bush and his record. We have been, repeatedly, thumped rhetorically and electorally in our efforts to support his policies. It is time for conservatives to move on.

 

George W. Bush is undoubtedly a sincere man. He is, in all probability, a good man. His dramatic conversion to Christianity indicates that he, at least at this point in his life, is a man of high moral principles. He is compassionate. And therein lies the problem: President Bush was too compassionate to be a good president.

 

A few conservatives saw this coming. I remember cringing at Bush’s promise for “compassionate conservatism” and at these lines from his first Inaugural Address:

 

Today, we affirm a new commitment to live out our nation’s promise through civility, courage, compassion and character.

America, at its best, matches a commitment to principle with a concern for civility. A civil society demands from each of us good will and respect, fair dealing and forgiveness.

 

President Bush really believed this — and probably still does. His opposition on the left, however, never has believed it and never will. President Bush “misunderestimated” the ruthlessness of his political opposition. And the Democrats spent eight years running circles around him. As a result, conservatism will probably spend the next eight years paying for Bush’s naïveté.

This next election is not going to be won by a ‘moderate’. There is no ‘center’ anymore… and claiming it is no refuge. The American people, whatever else might be said about them, are not inclined to go with a centrist from either party.

The winner of this next election will be someone who consistently and loudly stands up for the principles of the party they claim.

Well, guess what, Gang? McCain didn’t do that. Obama dedicated far leftist he is, did.

Here’s something else; That statement of mine from over a year ago holds true for 2012, too.

Now’s the time to start working to that end.

The London Daily Mail’s Ian Gallagher:

The only terrorist captured alive after the Mumbai massacre has given police the first full account of the extraordinary events that led to it – revealing he was ordered to ‘kill until the last breath’.

Azam Amir Kasab, 21, from Pakistan, said the attacks were meticulously planned six months ago and were intended to kill 5,000 people.

He revealed that the ten terrorists, who were highly trained in marine assault and crept into the city by boat, had planned to blow up the Taj Mahal Palace hotel after first executing British and American tourists and then taking hostages.

So… 300 feared dead. All of this by ten people. How can so small a number cause so much death? Simple; Nobody could defend themselves.

Imagine, dear reader, what would have happened, had these terrorists run into an armed populace, as opposed to an entire city of sheep. The guy who took this photo… one Sebastian D’Souza, asked the police on scene to shoot this guy. Nobody did. The police, it seems were the only ones armed, and the only ones capable of responding.  They did nothing, for reasons we can only guess at.

D’Souza told The Scottsman, later:

“There were armed policemen hiding all around the station, but none of them did anything,” he said. “At one point, I ran up to them and told them to use their weapons. I said: ‘Shoot them, they’re sitting ducks!’, but they just didn’t shoot back. When the gunmen moved towards the rear of the station the police refused to follow them. What is the point of having policemen with guns if they refuse to use them? I only wish I had a gun rather than a camera.”

There does seem some question if the police weren’t in on this attack.  However that may be, I’m willing to bet there’s a lot of other families that wish someone had a gun to respond to the threat.  The lesson here, in all it’s bloody detail is that we cannot depend on government to defend us.

BUt after all the attacks we’ve seen over the last 10 years, around the world all of them to the same effect… Islamo-fascists aside, we still have Virginia Tech, Columbine HS, and a few others.  In each case, the victims were chosen because they are unarmed… by government fiat. Sitting ducks.

But since nobody listened back then, I don’t suppose they’re going to listen now.

No matter how many people die. After all, having guns would encourage violence, right?

To a conservative, anyone who advocates building an ideal society by the use of reason-based theories is a ‘Utopian liberal’ because following Burke and Russel Kirk they do not believe in the unlimited power of reason.
….
Some of Clark’s terms are just begging for trouble. “The unlimited power of reason” — look out.

Well, look, Billy; Without getting directly into all the aspects of Kevin’s comments, let me take a stab at the general concept by saying part of the problem here is that man is not a reliably reasonable being, each having his own passions… some of which he doesn’t know about until the opportunities actually present themselves. For one thing, that’s why the Constitution was created; to protect us against those passions once people got themselves into positions of governmental power.

Temptation can and too often does overcome principle and reason. I’m not encouraging this by it’s recognition, that’s just the way it is. If that were not the case, we’d not be fighting a constant battle against people who have found the power of government to be a groovy thing to have for their own sordid ends. The left, mostly, though the right has it’s problem children in that game, too. And as you point out, what they consider reasonable is driven by their premises. It’s a conceptual thing… and I would suggest further that in turn is driven by cultural concept.

(I’m too damned tired to get into the concept of reinforcing cultures, just now, but the cultural aspect certainly plays into the perception of reason, I think and speaks loudly to what I’ve said for years… the idea of reinforcing western culture by way of education, so as to also thereby reinforce the proper read of what is and is not reason, thereby upholding the culture of liberty you speak of.. Education, in short. )

It’s why I’ve been for years saying that rights are a cultural concept. It’s true; one may properly argue they exist with or without the culture, but without the recognition of those rights by the culture they’re not worth much, are they?

Don’t misunderstand, I’m not suggesting that we toss reason on it’s ear. Not by any means..  But it strikes me that given our understanding of human nature,and of varied perceptions, it’s not altogether reasonable to assume that man will be reliably what we consider to be reasonable, and thereby one may assume that there’s other players that also need to be at the party; other forces that also need to be in play.

I wish this guy issued transcripts.

I was wondering, Billy.
The only reason I didn’t call you was because I checked my tick sheet and your name came up a year ago. So, I kinda figured…

Kudos to John Hawkins.
I’ve spent some time the last few days tossing notes together for this sort of post, but Hawkins beat me to it:

…the GOP absolutely cannot build a successful political party around “moderates.”

Why is that the case?

1) What constitutes a “moderate” changes from person to person. That’s how people like Joe Lieberman and Chuck Hagel, neither of whom would agree on just about anything, can both be considered “moderates” in their parties.

Put another way: a socially conservative, anti-abortion voter who believes in big government policies could be fairly called a moderate. On the other hand, a socially liberal, pro-abortion voter who doesn’t want any new government programs could also be fairly called a moderate.

So, since what constitutes being a “moderate” changes from person to person, it’s not possible to build a party around appealing to “moderates.”

Pay particular attention to this:

…if conservatives aren’t enthusiastic about their nominee, moderates are going to take cues from that and cast their votes accordingly. That’s one of the reasons why it’s so counter-productive to antagonize conservatives in an effort to draw in moderates.

5) It’s conservatives, not moderates, who contribute the money, work on GOP campaigns, and are generally going to vote Republican, if they vote at all.

Although it’s fine to reach out to moderates, if you go too far and alienate the conservative base, it will hurt your fundraising, leave you without enough campaign volunteers, and may depress turnout amongst your most loyal supporters.

Amen and amen.

Go and read.

As of this morning, we now are making available to BitsBlog users, the News Factor Network.

This feed will be a technology news feed, and we think you’ll find it of interest. Find it in the BitsBlog NewsRoom, along with literally hundreds of other news sources.

As of noon January 20, two things well happen;.  George W. Bush will depart Washington with his principles intact.   Whereas BO a/ka/a one a/k/a messiah a/k/a Barack Obama will assume the presidency with his principles already shattered, Bush as attributed by David Alexander, Reuters:

“I would like to be a person remembered as a person who, first and foremost, did not sell his soul in order to accommodate the political process,” Bush said in the interview. “I came to Washington with a set of values, and I’m leaving with the same set of values.  And I darn sure wasn’t going to sacrifice those values.”
?
“I’d like to be a president (known) as somebody who liberated 50 million people and helped achieve peace; that focused on individuals rather than process; that rallied people to serve their neighbor,” the president added

Meanwhile in Universe Obama, Samantha Power is back.  Did she ever really leave?   From the Associated Press:

A former adviser to Barack Obama’s presidential campaign who once called Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton a “monster” is now working on the transition team for the agency that Clinton may lead.

[…]

During the Democratic primary campaign, Power called Clinton “a monster” in an interview. She then resigned, calling her remarks inexcusable and contradictory to her admiration for Clinton.

The only principle to which BO adheres to achieve personal power at any cost.    There simply is no remark, or tactic which BO will not excuse to attain politcal office.

Welcome dear reader to the most intense nightly read anywhere on the sphere… the Nightly Ramble

• This is the time of year when I spend time reconsidering actually WRITING my cookbook, called “365 Uses for a Used Thanksgiving Turkey”. I’ve never gotten around to writing it. Not that I don’t have a fair amount of recepies at my disposal. And of couse I have lots of leftovers to experiment with.
• I said a while ago Paul Krugman was and is naught but a political hack. When he gets out among people who know this, he doesn’t fare so well. So, Krugman, this morning is turning an admission that the great Paul Krugman, liberal economist extrodinaire, didn’t see the current crisis coming into (Wait for it…) a call for additional regulation.  On it’s face, added regulation is exactly the wrong move, and so should shock nobody that you encourage us to follow that besotted route. Seems to me, Krugman, your advice is already worse than useless. On what basis are we supposed to accept it NOW?  STFU.
• The battle still rages on in India. Looks like the attackers were trained outside India. India thinks Pakistan. Of course there’s the idea that even the Pakastani government wouldn’t be stupid enough to officially attack India. But here again, we’re dealing with the tribal areas that’s been ostensibly outside the control of Islamibad, and the idea that it’s afatal mistake to think loyalties to one nation or another will trump those to a 14th century-seeking band of Islamic crazy. They’ve basically been allowed to operate unchecked for some time now, with the notable exception of the attacks we’ve managed to get in on them when Islamibad wasn’t looking. I’ll gurantee you that once the US transition takes place those attacks will cease… and so they WILL in fact be operatiung unchecked.  The bottom line, gang, is that we’re going to be seeing this around the world, no matter who is in the White House. Take this incident in Mumbai as indication that the American voter has seriously screwed up. I’m telling you right now; Obama won’t deal with it correctly… and it’s going to get worse… far worse, over the next four years.
• Headline this morning in the NY Daily News, reporting a death at a Wal-Mart stampede. The TV has a different angle… they’re saying the guy had a heart attack. Course, I’m hearing there were a couple arrests. As I’ve told you in previous years, I tend to steer clear of the stores on black Friday.  As the last election showed us… when people are encourged to be stupid,  they tend to over-acheive.
• By the way… The sales figures are about on par with last year. What slump? OK, it’s not as big a hike as the last few years. And?
• People have wised up to ‘Global Warming’. They know it’s a fraud.
• Franken lost.
• The Democrats are going to be wishing Dodd had. And Rangel. Pelosi, particularly.
• So, who was stupid enough to think a liberal hack Rosie O’Donnel would make a good TV show, particularly given her spectacular  failures in the past? Even the NY Times marvels that the attempt was even made. Hang it up, Rosie, dear. Your mouth has made you damaged goods. My advice: Crawl away. Quickly.
• By the way… if you were get to visit the area of Erie, PA, check out Mazza Vinyards. I had the chance to pick up a couple bottles on our camping run over Columbus day to Lake Erie State Park. Very worthwhile. Good wine, too. They’ve got a new installation over at Mayville NY, too, along Lake Chautauqua. No, I didn’t get anything for the mention.
• Popular Mechanics has some advice about buying a digital SLR. (Nod to Glenn) I’ve got an A95 Sureshot. Works pretty well.  Works as a point and shoot but also can be added to with adapators. What’s REALLY nice at this stage is there’s a lot of that kind of thing on Ebay, along with all the accessories.
• Boortz, the other day mentioned something I”d intended to reference in a seperate post… may as well mention it here. If you value the constitution, you’d better read this.
• From a friend:
  

  The election of Barack Obama as POTUS removes every excuse any minority has that “the man” is putting them down, holding them back, that the deck is stacked against them… because very shortly “the man” will be black.  And he got to be “the man” under capitalism and what’s left of a free-enterprise system.  That’s something about which everyone can feel good.

  Only one problem, Russ.. it’s easier to simply claim that Obama really isn’t black. You watch; it’ll happen.

• Don’t expect the Rockefeller Republicans to give in to the idea of Steele being RNC chair easily.
• My advice: Sit back, today.

It must be, because…

The lights went up last night

The Lions lost again today.

Ummm… 47 to 10.

That’s a high school Basketball score… which is fitting because it appears to me that the local high school basketball team could beat the Lions at football.

The Thanksgiving tradition in the NFL has been to put Detroit on the tube. Why? It’s not like they’ve got a hope in hell of actually winning. Once in my lifetime… once… the Lions won a playoff game. That’s 50 years worth of losing records, gang.

Ford makes a hell of a car. However their football team is putting putting what fans they have left, through hell. And the rest of the country, through boredom as we watch them get their cheeks handed to them every Thanksgiving day.

It’s time to get a new team on, on Thanksgiving. And it’s time for new ownership in Detroit.

Or a new city behind the Lions.

Here’s to 0 and 16, guys. You deserve it.