Ragin’ on Nagin

I blogged about New Orlean’s Mayor, Ray Nagin’s suspicions yesterday.   Apparently I wasn ‘t the only blogger unable to resist the low hanging fruit.  Slate‘s Big Sister, Caren Crockett, has “a flood of ideas..

Please spare a prayer today for our friend Cathy Seipp and her family (especially her beloved daughter). Word from L.A. from family and friends is that she’s taken a dire turn for the worse.

So says KJL at The Corner.

The Democrats are screaming that the  US Attorneys fired by the Bush administation were fired for political motivations on the part of the White House.

So, are we to assume there’s no possibility that the US Attorneys themselves were politically biased, and were for that reason, fired?

Can Mrs. Valerie Plame Wilson, a.k.a. Blondie give two different congressional committees two versions of the same story, and remain unindited for perjury?

The story Blondie told the House Committee on Government Oversight and Reform is at odds with her testimiony to the Senate Intelligence Committee, Byron York.   Funny with me, my memory of speciific events gets worse with time.  Yet Blondie’s is seemingly appearing to improve.

To explain her different testimony to different congressional committees, Blondie invents, suddenly remembers a young man who she claims said, “his words have been twisted and distorted.”   Funny how Blondie’s  young man manages to speak sounding  just like a democrat talking points.   Blondie, when inventing dialog, it is important to make the character speak in their own unique voice and not like a democrat talking point. 

More:  Don Surber.

(H/T Photo:  National Ledger )

Addendum:Bit

Let’s see, here. Scooter Libby was convicted why, again? Oh, yeah… a bad memory, or forgetting where he’d heard something and where he’d TOLD something. Interesting that Plame should fall victim to the same problem. One wonders if the same solution… jail time…. will be the order of the day.

• If all the corn produced in America last year were dedicated to ethanol production (14.3 percent of it was), U.S. gasoline consumption would drop by 12 percent. For corn ethanol to completely displace gasoline consumption in this country, we would need to appropriate all U.S. cropland, turn it completely over to corn-ethanol production, and then find 20 percent more land for cultivation on top of that.
• According to a 2005 report issued by the Agriculture Department, corn ethanol costs an average of $2.53 to produce, or several times what it costs to produce a gallon of gasoline. Without the subsidies, costs would be higher still. A study last fall from the International Institute for Sustainable Development found that ethanol subsidies amount to $1.05-$1.38 per gallon, or 42 percent to 55 percent of ethanol’s wholesale market price.
•  At best, E10 reduces greenhouse gas emissions by from zero to 5 percent; pure ethanol by 12 percent. The International Energy Agency, however, estimates that it costs about $250 to reduce a ton of greenhouse gases this way, or more than 10 times what Yale economist William Nordhaus thinks is economically sensible given the economics of climate change. Ethanol as an anti-warming policy is what academics refer to as “crazy talk.”

Just a couple points from CATO, this morning.

* The Music : George Benson’s “Breezin”

Instead of the CD, or the MP3, Im playing it from the original vinyl, tonight. And when I say original, I mean original.  This disk was handed me, while I was doing on their duties at what was WVOR/100.5 in Rochester, when Benson came to town, touring in support of the album.

The album came out in 76, and won Benson a Grammy.  It also made Benson a star overnight.

Harvey Mason, who these days plays for Fourplay, Ralph MacDonald, who plays for everybody, Phil Upchurch and Ronnie Scott all appeared on the album.

I’ve always treasured that copy of the album, though I have a few more, and a couple digital copies, as well, that have additional tracks on them, that were not originally released in 76.
The hit off the album at the time was Leon Russell’s “This Masquerade”… a song also ably covered by Karen and Richard Carpenter, later that same year, if memory serves.

The album, was my first serious exposure to modern jazz, and to a large degree, I suppose it explains my leanings toward what is today called ‘smooth jazz’, because there isn’t a song on that album that wouldn’t fit on a smooth jazz outlet, today. It’s not exactly fair to say that Benson single-handedly changed jazz to match his style , but it would be unfair not to say that jazz of today doesn’t sound an awful lot like what he was doing them.
I’m not sure how many disks Benson is turned out over the years, since “Breezin” came out, (I have twelve of them) nor frankly, do I know many albums he turned out while still working for Creed Taylor… (though I own two of those, as well) … but I must tell you that I’ve always regretted never seeing him live.
* Steve Verdon over at OTB says they’ve located the cause of that tainted spinach scare, last winter….

It was an organic farm in San Benito County.

The contamination occurred in a field transitioning from conventional to organic farming practices, she said.

Seattle-based attorney Bill Marler, who is representing 90 plaintiffs in a suit related to the E. coli outbreak, added Salinas grower Mission Organics to the defendants in his lawsuit on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, Marler told the Free Lance he has known since November that the E. coli contamination occurred on land farmed by Mission Organics and leased from Paicines Ranch, and that the state agency’s investigation only confirmed that.

“It’s the worst-kept secret,” Marler said. “It was already evident, and once you say that it’s a 50-acre ranch, well, it is what it is.”

So the logical question becomes if it’s such a badly kept secret why did it take so darned long to be identified publicly as such?  You see I have long been firmly convinced that this nonsense about organic farming being so advantageous, was actually a crock of, well, you know…

* Surber has this one up, just as I go to publish this…. I see where Brit Hume of Fox news is saying that based on the evidence Valerie Plame committed perjury in that dog and pony show that Waxman threw the other day. Based on the evidence, I think he’s got a serious point.  Given the level of screaming coming from the left, I’d say they think so too. On the other hand, facts mean little to such people.  Well, I’ve got news for you; Welcome to reality, lefties. Plame, just like her no-good husband, lied.

And why do I get the feeling that Henry Waxman is looking for the big red sign over the door that says “exit”?

* Laura W over at Ace’s place gives as good a description as any of the animal ‘rights’ activists I’ve run across. How many of these idiots voted Republican, do you suppose?  No, I don’t think so, either.

* It got up to 30°, around here, today, but the sun was out the majority of the day in the sky, which was the most beautiful blue you’d seen in quite awhile.  Squadrons of geese keeping their V formations were going overhead, sometimes, several flocks at a time.

Sometimes, the flux were small; other times they were so large that it even a small shift in formation meant a spread of several hundred feet

It’s always encouraging to me to see their travel in the spring… and I always find myself somewhat wistful at their departure in the fall.  This year has been no exception of but I did get a slight additional take this year…

As you may know my lovely wife is seriously into herons.  We have a fair amount of swap around here within a very short drive, and it is such places that he’s, and herons, will hang out. one of the biggest charges of wildlife that I’ve ever had, was while on a camping trip seeing a huge blue heron along the shores of Lake Erie.  This was quite frankly the biggest bird I had ever seen in my life.  At least, the biggest one that could fly.  And fly he did… straight out into lake Erie, I never did see him again.
So, you can imagine my surprise while driving home on Friday evening, on happening to notice a heron coming up in the mirror behind me overhead, and moving very fast indeed.  Needless to say I was a bit surprised.  I was very pleased.  This was the first heron of the season, certainly a good omen that summer couldn’t be far away. well, the bird apparently spotted me as well.  As the heron went by, it preceded to leave a deposit on my windshield, roof and hood. Had to wash BitsBox twice to get it clean, again.

I’m sure, that somewhere in the world, there is a subculture that would think that this is a very positive sign of forthcoming luck for me, and mine.  They would be well advised to steer well clear of me until such time as summer is well established. (grr)

Since when does idle speculation equate to news?  I guess when the speculator is a black politician.   Personally, I suspect that Ray Nagin is an idiot and that the Washington Post will not treat my speculation as hard news.   Hamil R. Harris reports speculation as if it were news:

New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin has suggested that the slow recovery and rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina — which has prevented many black former residents from returning — is part of a plan to change the racial makeup and political leadership of his and other cities

“Ladies and gentlemen, what happened in New Orleans could happen anywhere,”

No Mayor Ray, what happened in New Orleans happened because some fool built the city under sea level.   The stupid city is under water.   What happened in New Orleans could not happen just anywhere.  It could only happen in city built below sea level.

The former residents likely have decided that they like living above sea level, like normal folks do.

Captain Ed:

After the release of the transcript from the Guantanamo tribunal of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, many people expressed skepticism about his claims of involvement in so many terrorist plots. Some even postulated that Mohammed had fallen prey to American torture, even though he denied acting under duress during the hearing, or that he had gone insane during his American detention. However, the one Western journalist to have interviewed the al-Qaeda mastermind believes that Mohammed understands he has come to the end of his run as a terrorist, and now wants to establish a record of his legacy as a reaction to his current impotence….

…In the end, KSM’s lack of faith has led him to give up, now that he has no way of breaking free from US control. Binalshibh, as Yosri Fouda notes, would see this as just another phase of the jihad, but KSM has no such illusions to bolster him. He knows his days are numbered, and that seventy-virgins will not await him at the end of his journey.

There is something to be said for the idea that he is exaggerating his claims and his involvement for the purpose of bolstering his own legacy.  Rather like what we saw in terms of legacy bolstering at the end of the Clinton administration. But the article insists it’s not so…

Mohammed wants to exit the stage as brashly as he strutted upon it. He wants to ensure that his reputation lives far beyond his actual presence on Earth, even if that means being remembered as the most bloodthirsty butcher outside of a dictatorship in long memory. What’s more, Fouda insists that he is not exaggerating much, if at all. Fouda even notes that one attack with his fingerprints managed to get missed by KSM in his tribunal statement, the tanker attack on a Tunisian synagogue in 2002 that killed 21 people. If anything, Fouda postulates, he may just have blurred lines between what he did and what he planned to do.

And therein lies the defeat of the argument that KSM was not central to the movement that eventually became al-Qaida.

But here is the point that stands out like a sore thumb to me:

The master terrorist without the faith of his brethren has been exposed as nothing but a psychopath who likes to kill people for whatever reason he finds handy. He has nothing left but his mouth and his history, and he will use them both to establish his legacy — which is the reason he’s talking to the Americans now.

Possibly.

But what does this say about these plans, these attacks he had such a hand in, being religiously motivated? If we take as given that this KSM creature is not particularly religious, as is being cast, here , what in the world would cause him to do the things he did? Even a madman operates from a certain level of reasoning and has some primary motivation at the root of their actions.

I mean, clearly, he’s not fighting on a religious scale, but on a cultural one; he’s fighting to support his culture, or at least, he was. That’s right, I mean to say that this is a culture-centric conflict.

I submit , that the majority of those who claim to be fighting this war from the Islamist side on religious ground, are liars.  Even to themselves. How many cultures in history, even those recall cheers of our own the present day culture, have fought there wars in the name of whatever god they worshiped?  I dare say that if you look closely, you’ll find that god had very little to do with any of them.  So it is with the situation with Islam, today.
What they’re fighting this over, is culture.  The rest of the world has mostly gone over to western culture; even China, For all that governmental controls over their cultural life have been a part of things since the days of Mao, is also influenced heavily by the west.  Men such as KSM, correctly see their culture, such as it is, with it’s 14th century values, dying.

By the same token then, it can easily be said that the war against terror is not a war against Islam.  Rather, it is against those denizens of the fourteenth century, who happen to be Muslim, who seek our overthrow… and who see that goal as the salvation not of their souls, so much as the salvation of their culture.
Where this starts getting murky, however, is that even Islamists of the west who have adopted, mostly, the modern day western culture, still find themselves culturally rooted in the fourteenth century, much the same as any other cultural transplant would find themselves tied to their ancient cultural ties. And here, I’m referring to, as examples, German, Irish, Italian, African, and so on.  Thus do we see anti American, and anti western activities from some Muslims here in the west; The loyalties of such people can be at best muddled.

So it is, that the discussions regarding Islam versus the war on terror become problematic; the lines are not clearly drawn.  And thus do we see clearly confused responses from people like Dean Essmay, for example.

(No, I’m not singling out Dean, here, he merely happens to be the most recent, loudest example of rather muddled thinking on the subject, which led to the flatly stupid response of limiting discussion on the matter.  )

I have no immediate solution for these misperceptions. They are understandable, certainly, but they are damaging our efforts to remove the violence from the situation.

I suppose, however, that the first step toward solving the problem is correctly identifying it.

Discuss.

CARTHAGE, Tenn. – Tennessean.com– Al Gore has profited from zinc mining that has released millions of pounds of potentially toxic substances near his farmstead, but there is no evidence the mine has caused serious damage to the environment in the area or threatened the health of his neighbors.

Two massive white mountains of leftover rock waste are evidence of three decades of mining that earned Gore more than $500,000 in royalty payments for the mineral rights to his property.

…

Last week, Gore sent a letter asking the company to work with Earthworks, a national environmental group, to make sure the operation doesn’t damage the environment.

“We would like for you to engage with us in a process to ensure that the mine becomes a global example of environmental best practices,” Gore wrote.

Victor Wyprysky, the company’s president and chief executive officer, did not respond to requests for comment on the letter.

The letter was sent the week after The Tennessean’s Washington bureau posed questions to the former vice president about his involvement with the mine.

So, we may logically assume that had such questions NOT been asked, Gore would have gone on his merry way.

But now that the mine is reopening and Gore’s status as an environmentalist has grown, some of Gore’s neighbors see a conflict between the mining and his moral call for environmental activism.

“Mining is not exactly synonymous with being green, is it?” said John Mullins, who lives in nearby Cookeville. A conservative, Mullins welcomes the resumption of mining for the benefits it will bring the community. But he says Gore’s view that global warming is a certainty is arrogant and that by being connected to mining, Gore is not “walking the walk.”

Quite so.

Even Gore noted in his letter that, according to Scorecard, “pollution releases from the mine in 2002 placed it among the ‘dirtiest/worst facilities’ in the U.S.”

The question here isn’t the legality of the mining operation.  The question here, is that Al Gore is being disingenuous, once again about his ‘environmentalism’. So bad is this double standard, that even the all-too-left-leaning Useless Toady has started to take note.

Bill Hobbs, always a good source for politics down that way, notes this, as well, saying in part:

I’m sure Gore will purchase “toxins offsets.” Or maybe he’ll ask the mining company to buy “pollution credits” through an investment company Gore just happens to be connected with. Because paying others to be “green” so you can continue trashing the environment is how today’s celebrity environmentalists help save the planet.

(edit: Hobbs link repaired)

Noted in passing:

MACDILL AFB, Tampa, March 16, 2007 —CENTCOM-  Admiral William J. Fallon assumed command of U.S. Central Command from Gen. John P. Abizaid in a change of command ceremony held earlier today at MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, Florida.

General Abizaid will retire after serving with distinction and as the longest running commander to date since assuming the duties from Gen. Tommy Franks on July 7, 2003.  He has played an instrumental role spearheading multiple operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa.

The reviewing officer for the ceremony was Secretary of Defense Dr. Robert M. Gates. He thanked Abizaid for all his hard work and dedication to the mission.

Admiral Fallon was the former commander of U.S. Pacific Command at Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii.  He relinquished command on March 12.  He will be the first U.S. Navy Admiral to serve in this position.

U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) is responsible for all U.S. military forces supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), along with humanitarian assistance in the Horn of Africa.  Established January 1, 1983, USCENTCOM area of responsibility includes all the central states in the Middle East and Horn of Africa.  Since Sept. 2001, over 60 countries have become coalition partners and provided support on the global war on terrorism.

The tribes in Anbar are stubborn and they have many ruthless warriors. That’s a proven fact and it looks like Al-Qaeda had just made their gravest mistake—their once best friends are just about to become their worst enemy.

Omar, Iraq the Model.

I blogged about yesterday’s weather, which was fit for neither man nor beast   Yet the foul weather did not stop either car shoppng or John  Sullivan,and company, from marching  in Rochester’s Saint Patrick’s Day parade.

Marie Colvin, Sunday Times(UK) reports this juicy little tidbit:

The survey, published today, also reveals that contrary to the views of many western analysts, most Iraqis do not believe they are embroiled in a civil war.

That means that Iraqi citizens are not getting their news from the like of CNN, or at least not believing it.

(H/T:  Don Surber )

* The Music:

The Moody Blues: “To our Children’s Children’s Children”

I’ve always been a Moodies fan, and this album since it came out in 69, has always been one of my ‘Desert Island collection’.  Inspired by the Moonlanding which happened that year, and centered around the idea that life is not forever, and so we’re passing this one on to the next generations, centuries and light years away, this is the Moodies at their most creative, and in a strange way, their most introspective. The idea being transmitted here, is clearly: what we’re getting our descendants, mostly, is ourselves.
It’s also some of the best work they ever did with their early electronic/orchestral sound. (Mostly, Mike Pinder’s Melotron… an outrageously unreliable instrument, even by the standard of THAT day, much less this)

A favorite tune, is “Out and In”

Gazing past the planets
Looking for total view
I’ve been laying here for hours
You’ve gotta make the journey out and in

Wonders of a lifetime
Right there before your eyes
Searching with this life of ours
You gotta make the journey out and in
Out and in, out and in

When we’re in the city, we don’t see much of the night sky. But going out into the country, or perhaps on a camping trip, on a nice, clear night, and the gazing into the stars, is when this song comes to mind.

* My wife got herself a new car today.  I actually approve of her choice of a Ford Fusion, but I won’t bother telling her that until later. I’ve pretty much learned to stay out of it when she’s wheeling and dealing.

The truck this Fusion replaces, a Ford Escape, has been a flat-out superior vehicle for getting around, here. 4WD/AWD convertible, and fair enough ground clearance, meant it’d go where you wanted; You only had to point it. I note the new Escapes look like somewhat shrunken Explorers. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or bad.

Anyway, she wanted a change, and she got it in this, certainly.  Handling, go power, fuel mileage, all seem to be there.  Price wasn’t bad, either. Of course, as David indicated, it was snowing like crazy around here, today.  Not exactly the best whether to keep buying a car in, but on the other hand that’s more less the condition we bought the last one in, too; a snowstorm.

(Aside to David; No, that picture is just fine.  It’s one I look at every day, at my office.  Without getting into too much detail, the server it is on, is part of my job. )

.
* In reading the transcripts of their little show business stunt that Henry Waxman put on, yesterday, what is left with the impression that they working definition of “covert” is so secretive, that even the “covert” operative doesn’t know if they’re covert or not. Mr. Waxman meanwhile, seems interested in redefining other words, such as “leak”so I suppose this seems par for the course.

* With all of what’s going on here today, I had almost forgotten this, until Michelle reminded me:

It was a breath-taking, historic, and emotional day in Washington, D.C. You won’t know it if you tune in to the usual MSM channels. But new media–bloggers, conservative documentarians, Internet activists, FReepers, citizen journalists, photojournalists, and talk radio hosts–turned out in full force to participate and cover the Gathering of Eagles counter-protest. Thousands upon thousands turned out despite freezing temperatures and hairy travel conditions. We met bikers who drove up all night from Huntsville, Alabama; a retired NYC firefighter who arrived here at 2am; college students who traveled from Massachusetts; a Vietnam veteran’s wife who bought plane tickets at the last minute from San Francisco; and countless participants who arrived as part of Move America Forward’s cross-country caravan.

A pure, grass-roots effort, the Gathering of Eagles’ volunteers matched the massive Soros-funded anti-war machine sign for sign, chant for chant, and marcher for marcher. The contrast was most stark right before the entrance to the Memorial Bridge, where Eagles gathered with a field of American flags–while anti-Bush, 9/11 conspiracy nuts wrapped themselves in a figurative blanket of yellow “Out of Iraq” placards. Several of the vets shouted, “Yellow! How appropriate!” in between spirited chants of “U.S.A! U.S.A!” While the classless Cindy Sheehan ranted profanely, the Eagles raised their voices in polite, but roaring disapproval and raised their American flags in answer to the ANSWER socialists’ Che banners and peace pennants.

Why did the Eagles come? One common refrain: Vietnam veterans, some fighting back tears, told us they came to show the kind of support for the troops that they did not receive when the surrender lobby marched on the Pentagon 40 years ago today.

Mission accomplished.

Meantime, the battle for victory against global jihad continues. God bless our troops on the front lines.

Well done. Well done, indeed. I go to this extent of quoting, to make sure the message gets out.  Every little bit helps.  You know… I mean to say you know the mainstream media isn’t going to say word one about it.
She’s got pics, by the way.

I’m not going to bother adding to that, because I don’t think I can and with a better message than the one Michelle puts up tonight.

If you’re interested in the full list of pet food that has been recalled, here you go.

This is some major brands affected here (the place making the pet foods brands it for a LOT of people)  and there’s a serious danger involved to your pet.