Overheard At a Gas Station….

“So, aren’t the people raising such a stink about Mitt Romney running for the Whitehouse because he’s a Mormon, the very same people who support Harry Reid?”

“What do you mean?”

“Didn’t you know Reid is a Mormon, too?”

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Nope.”

“Hmmmm”

I hadda look that one up. Turns out to be true.

Make what you will of the point, but MY point is why the press and the Democrats were making such an issue of Romney while ignoring Reid’s Mormonism, to the point where a comparative few knew about Reid.

You KNOW why, don’t you?

You know I like about gender feminists?   They sure know which is the superior sex and how to show the proper respect to their betters,  Nina Burleigh:

 “I would be happy to give him a blowjob just to thank him for keeping abortion legal. I think American women should be lining up with their presidential kneepads on to show their gratitude for keeping the theocracy off our backs.”

Nancy Pelosi:

I sure likes a woman who knows her proper place and properly submits.   As opposed to those arrogrant brats who refuse to submit.

And a classic of the late great Cathy Seipp, Cathy’s World, staring down Lawerence O’Donnel:

Funny, Nina I don’t see any kneepads on Cathy.  Do you?

Rudolf Giuliani shows what it takes and what Mrs. Clinton does not have, balls.  From Ian, Hot Air, with video:

The former New York City mayor is fending off increased media scrutiny of his third wife — the former Judith Nathan. Rudy is now asking the media to back off.

“Attack me all you want,” Giuliani said. “There’s plenty to attack me about. Please do it. But maybe, you know, show a little decency.”

Funny Giuliani has to ask the media not to attack his wife, while inviting attacks on himself.   In utter contrast Mrs. Clinton can issue a fatwa declaring both her and spouse’s character, of lack thereof same, off-limits. 

So tell me why Judy Guiliani is somehow in bounds but the peccadillos of B.J. Clinton remain off-limits.

The modern Democratic leadership

Charles Johnson, Little Green Footballs.

It was 65 around here today. Pitssburgh, to our south, caught an 80 degree day, I hear. Between now and the weekend, we’re supposed to get snow. Go figure.

*The Music: WAR; Platinum Jazz

Actually, it could be ANY of their LP’s tonight. The World is a Ghetto, Deliver the Word, All Day Music, Why can’t we be Friends… and a few more, besides.

None of the players was really superior, I don’t think. I mean to say you could name better players at each instrument… and certainly, their singing was no great shakes, individually. But put them all together, back in the day, and they had a sound nobody could come close to. They managed to figure out how to get a bunch of people and instruments that had no right in the world to sound good together, to sound GREAT together. One of the classic situations where the entity is greater than the sum of it’s parts.

And they have been around, too. They recorded with Eric Burdon, (Spill the Wine) ex of the Animals. And they managed to overcome it(!).(Look let’s face it, during the late sixties and early seventies Burdon couldn’t carry a tune in a basket , and wasn’t so much soulful as too high to know what his voice was doing) Listen to any song off Spill the wine, other then the Title Track,a dn you’ll see what I mean… these guys were carrying Burdon. It’s really that simple.
They were performing with Jimi Hendrix the night he turned in his last public performance. (Tobacco Road)

They were the combination of soulful harmony, a production sense that few can match today, and attention to audio showmanship. That last part is important. So many of today are more interested in the visual flash then what actually makes it to the recording. Well, no wonder so much of what comes out of the entertainment industry today is such utter poop. These guys came along before that whole nonsense started…

Their music was genuinely heartfelt, they had a great time playing together, and they sounded it.

* So! They’re predicting another very active hurricane season, just like they did last year. WhYou remember… where we had something like eight named storms, none of which came near land. Forgive me but I fail to be impressed. (Ed… and these idiots are supposed to be able to tell us about a one degree varience in world temp, much less the efefcts it will cause?)

* Suddenly, Wal-Mart is no longer on the hit list of the Democratic party. Given the amount of buttock to lip interaction going on, as well as the number of dollars now being tossed to the Democrats from Wal-mart, one gets the impression that the Democrats can be bought. The Washington Post has some serious details on this stuff.

* An update on the CNN Center shooting I mentioned earlier today; Apparently a domestic thing.. an ex-boyfriend… that ended up at work… a hotel attached to the center. The woman dead, the ex boyfriend just about there… The reason CNN wasn’t all over it on their website? Because that area of CNN was the first to be evacuated.

* Wanna buy Kitt? Yeah, I mean the black TA. It’ll prolly go for around $150,000.. it’s one of four known to exist. I wouldn’t mind having the thing myself but not for the economy. And I’m certainly not spending that, me if I end up with David Hasselhoff as part of the deal. (Shudder) You watch; Some yahoo will wrap the thing around a pole trying to get it to drive itself.

* Brit Hume notes that Harry Reid is going back on his word. He said, before the election, that “We’re not going to do anything to limit funding or cut off funds.” So we ahve Democrats going back on a campaign pledge, huh? Who’d have thought it?

* Hume also mentions how ridiculous this global warming thing is getting;

Local officials in Belgium’s French-speaking region of Wallonia have a new tool in the fight against global warming. They have approved a tax on barbequing. Experts say that up to 100 grams of carbon dioxide are produced during barbequing.So Wallonians will have to pay 20 euros — about 27 dollars — each time they fire up the grill. And the authorities aren’t kidding around when it comes to enforcement. Officials say they will use helicopters with thermal sensors to detect illegal grilling.

McQ mentions this today, also, and says:

So we have the UK contemplating a one flight rule per family for aircraft use and the Belgians monitoring BBQs with heat sensing helicopters (yeah, no carbon footprint there, huh?).

The monitoring helicopter would be a worse problem than the grill, I should think…. If lowering ‘greenhouse gasses’ were the real goal, that is. He also points to the recent USSC nonsense, and suggests that such things coming here, isn’t at all out of the question.

Doesn’t this just say it all? It’s from Cox and Forkum, who should be on your daily read list…

MS-NBC is reporting:

ATLANTA – Multiple shots were reported fired inside the CNN building Tuesday. Two people have been transported to a nearby hospital. Their conditions are unknown, according to a CNN broadcast.

Obviously, this is the first wave and nobody has a clue…

Charlie Rangel is old and have never been accused of being an intellect, but you’d think he could at least hold a consistent position for one sound byte.  Not the case:  Rangel, on Tim Russertm  attempting to explain why the democrat emergency war funding bill was so larded up with pork.  Ian, Hot Air, has the story, with video, here.

Because they needed the votes. That bill, we lost so many Democrats, one, because people thought we went too far and others because we didn’t go far enough. And so a lot of things had to go into a bill that certainly those of us who respect great legislation did not want in there. But the real question was, were we doing something to stop this immoral war and what could we do instead of doing nothing except do what the president asks us to do? I think the most important thing and the worst thing that’s ever happened to this country in recent history is getting involved in the Middle East, and I didn’t care what was in that bill if there was anything to slow down, to, to say what the American people said in the last election, “Get out of Iraq!”

Rangel is at once claiming some sort of mandate for surrender in Iraq while at the same time admitting the democrats did not have the votes to pass a clean bill.   If the Pelosi gang had the mandate, which Rangel claims, they’d have the votes.  They do not.

“Announcing a surrender date to al Qaeda is a dangerous military policy, cedes the initiative to the enemy, and directly contradicts the 96 Senators who just last month voted against funding cuts for troops in the field. The chosen date isn’t tied to circumstances on the ground or the needs of the military commanders. It’s completely arbitrary. It was pulled out of thin air. And the terrorists have already marked it on their calendars.”

Senate Minority Leader, Mitch O’Connell.

H/T and more:  Sister Toldjah. 

Marshall Fouche was credited (perhaps incorrectly) with saying “there are no atheists in foxholes” Others credit Ernie Pyle, and still others Bill Casey.

As Bill Cosby once said, “When the ground starts shaking, you’re going to look up. “

So it is we find Radley Balko recanting his former position which was in support of torturing suspected terrorists.  His new position is highly moralizing and high minded.  It’s also full of crap.

I should have opposed torture for the same reason I oppose just about every other surrender of power to the government that naive people (in this case, like me) tend to think looks good on paper: Because the government won’t use it competently, because the government will abuse it, and because the government will find new, inappropriate contexts in which to use it.

But, as Balko himself demonstrates over time, it’s a lot easier to maintain one’s high-minded principles, when one isn’t under attack. Not to sound overdramatic, but that one point changes the entire dynamic.  it’s easy to be high minded, when those bullets aren’t flying; Peacetime is not an inducement to clarity of thought.  There is nothing like a few bullets flying around, to focus one’s attention on what really matters. The trouble is, by that time, the supposedly high minded have attempted to place restrictions on reality.
Balko’s dual reaction is as good a proof of this as one may find, I think.
I understand and agree with the concept of limiting government.  However; What Balko’s recanting doesn’t account for, aside from the issue of “principle” while under attack, is that defense is one of the very few legitimate purposes of government.  (And in the case of the United States, is so recognized by the Constitution )
Finally, we are still left with the issue of what constitutes “torture”. As an example; what those fifteen sailors from Britain are undergoing, would, a few months ago, have been considered “torture” by our press. But since at this point, it is the Iranians dishing it out, the word “torture” has not much as darkened a page in our press. (Telling, that)

Joyner pipes up, and says “This is what I’ve been saying all along”… and in fairness, he HAS been. but in all frankness, and with all respect to James and Radley, given the lines of thought expressed above I find it very difficult indeed to get wrapped up in this moralizing.

Survival is the highest priority, my friends.  Everything else is secondary to that ideal.

Everything.

Absolutely everything.

If we give that up, what good is any of the rest of it?  What possibility do any of those “high ideals” have to survive in the world? if we are unwilling to defend ourselves, by whatever means, then what it comes down to is we don’t deserve to survive.  Which is handy, since in that case, we won’t.

Cliff May points out a few possible reasons:

• A Bloomberg poll last month found that 61% of Americans believe withholding funding for the war is a bad idea, while only 28% believe it is a good idea.

• According to a March USA Today/Gallup poll, 61% of Americans oppose “denying the funding needed to send any additional troops to Iraq.”

• That poll also showed that only 20% of Americans want to withdraw the troops immediately.

• Public Opinion Strategies (POS) recently reported that a majority of voters (54%) oppose the Democrats imposing a reduction in troops below the level military commanders requested.

• A POS poll in February found that 59% of voters believe pulling out of Iraq immediately would do more to harm America’s reputation in the world than staying until order is restored.

• That POS poll also finds 57% of voters support staying in Iraq until the job is finished and “the Iraqi government can maintain control and provide security for its people.”

• According to a Time magazine poll also taken in March, only 32% want to withdraw the troops within the next year no matter what happens.

Obama May not think very logically, (What Democrat does?) but he’s smart enough to understand that the track that Reid and Pelosi have the Democrats on now is the messiest most painful kind of political suicide possible.  By the way, make use of the address at the end of the post of Cliff’s, would you?

OK, wrong blog.

Anyway an honorable ‘moo’ from OTB’s caption contest this week 

The Music: The Turtles 20 Greatest hits

Before there was Flo and Eddie, they were known as Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman.  Their producing talent included the legendary Bones Howe, Chip Douglass and Ray Davies. Add to that a flat out amazing collection of songwriting talent ranging from Bob Dylan to PF Sloan to Warren Zevon, and you have a group that, 40 years later still sounds amazingly fresh.

(Dylan, who attended a concert of the Turtles at The Phone Booth in NYC after their recording of “It ain’t me babe” was a hit, was reported to have remarked to the band, deadpan: “That’s a great last song, it should be a record.”)

I guess the best way that I can describe this group, musically speaking to the uninitiated, is to call them the 60’s version of the Toronto group, the Bare Naked Ladies.  The sense of humor and optimism that came from every one of their LP’s made them outstanding in their day. Today, it’s bright and refreshing, given the dearth of such outlooks in the music world, today, and BNL is as close as it gets anymore.
I have a bootleg somewhere in my collection, of live recordings done by the BBC, and one of them was my only live recording of the Turtles… and it happened to be of “You Baby”. (I think it was from a show called “Saturday club”, but I’m not sure) The live version lacked the polished smoothness of the Bones Howe production (Did Bones Howe ever record anything that wasn’t smooth?) What it did do, was portray a band that was actually having a good time making this sounds it was making.  And that feeling in the recording is worth its weight in gold.

As for the humor aspect, while they won on the tour with Frank Zappa , and I suppose a sense of humor is required there, if anywhere.  Perhaps it was all a reaction to getting screwed over by their management not once, but repeatedly. The whole thing devolved into mush quite quickly about the time the Beatles broke up. It was to be expected I suppose, there were many at the time, and since, who have suggested that the Beatles were role models for the Turtles.

But back in the day, what a shine they put up.

* You will remember that this site has committed several times about representative Bill Jefferson (D-LA)… he of the frozen money.  Captain Ed points out that the case against him is continuing… Though I’m willing to bet you haven’t heard of it.  As regards all that, and the behavior of Newt Gingrich, I can only surmise that he is trying to be seen as being bipartisan.  The fact of the matter is Gingrich is wrong, here.

* Michelle Malkin makes a note of the increasing stridentcy of moonbat Rosie O’Donnell on “The View” and wonders how much more embarrassment Disney’s going to take on this.

Personally, I have my doubts that they have a threshold for embarrassment

* I remarked earlier today about this story. Apparently, the left is slightly annoyed about it… as we see from Brit Hume tonight:

Left-wing bloggers, who are a potent force in the Democratic party, are furious with Barack Obama for saying over the weekend that Congress will vote to fund the troops without a timeline for withdrawal if President Bush vetoes the current version of the bill. Obama said that no lawmaker, “wants to play chicken with our troops.”

Markos Moulitsas of the influential Daily Kos Web log writes: “What a ridiculous thing to say. Not only is it bad policy, not only is it bad politics, it’s also a terrible negotiating approach. Instead of threatening Bush with even more restrictions and daring him to veto funding for the troops out of pique, Barack just surrendered to him.”

And Brad Friedman of The Brad Blog says: “If we ever need to negotiate for anything, remind us to not call on Obama to represent us.”

I’d like to think that it wasn’t the far left quoted here that he’s representing; rather I’d like to be naive enough to believe that he’s actually representing the majority of the Democratic party.  But I don’t think so.  Still, I hold of my comments earlier today; they’re not going to have enough votes to override a presidential veto here.  Don’t think for one minute that Obama is alone in his view, gang.the majority may not be with him, but it’s certainly going to be enough to prevent the far left from overwriting the president’s veto of the democrats “Cut, Run, and Pork” bill.

As a matter of fact, they’d better hope so.  Do they really understand what “owning the defeat” means?

The headline shouts “Hillary Clinton shatters fundraising records“, a new record, and a smashing headline.   Yet Ace has the audacity to suggest “Hillary’s In Trouble.”   Is Ace drinking Jonestown Kool-Aid?

Actually no.  While Mrs. Clinton reported raising thirty-six millions dollars, ten million came from Mrs. Clnton’s senate campaign.   Further, Mrs. Clinton’s rivals Barack Obama and John Edwards are reported to have raised twenty-one and fourteen million, in primary only money   In contrast, Mrs. Clinton is collecting both primary and general election money.  It possible that Mrs. Clinton actually trails Obama in primary money raised.

Mrs. Clinton appears to betting the farm on creating the appearance of an invincable front runner.   If Mrs. Clinton can not crush her opponents’ will to campagin, she will be forced to campaign on her considerable wit and charm. 

From the mailbag:

A One Question Test:

  This test only has one question, but it’s a very important one. By   giving an honest answer, you will discover where you stand morally.

  The test features an unlikely, completely fictional situation in which you will have to make a decision. Remember that your answer needs to be honest, yet spontaneous.

  Please scroll down slowly and give due consideration to each line.

  ——————————————————————-

  THE SITUATION:

  You are in Florida, Miami to be specific. There is chaos all around you caused by a hurricane with severe flooding. This is a flood of biblical   proportions. You are photo-Journalist working for a major newspaper, and you’re caught in the middle of this epic disaster. The situation is nearly hopeless.

  You’re trying to shoot career-making photos. There are houses and people swirling around you, some disappearing under the water. Nature is unleashing all of its destructive fury.

  ===============================================

  THE TEST:

  Suddenly you see a woman in the water. She is fighting for her life, tying not to be taken down with the debris. You move closer.  Somehow the woman looks familiar. You suddenly realize who it is. It’s Hillary Clinton! 

  At the same time you notice that the raging waters are about to take her under forever. You have two options: You can save the life of Hillary Clinton or you can shoot a dramatic Pulitzer Prize winning photo, documenting the death of one of the world’s most powerful women (in her mind, at least).

  ==============================================

  THE QUESTION:

  Here’s the question, and please give an honest answer…….

  “Would you select high contrast color film, or would you go with the classic simplicity of black and white?”

Seems to me we’re dealing with a test most of the press would fail utterly.