'Almost flying': Climber survives 1,000-foot fall

We all have a Guardian Angel.    

There are probably many explanations for this:  strong updrafts; loose clothes that acted to slow down his fall; even a landing area that was angled just perfectly to bleed-off the speed of his fall.  But those are just conjecture and this young man by all rights should be dead.  It is clear that sometimes our Guardian Angel receives instructions to save us from ourselves because God isn't finished with us yet.

Follow the link for more.

Sarah Palin Schools the Washington Post on History

If the Liberal Democrat Left and the Left Stream Media are going to continue to propagate their war on Sarah Palin at any cost they should probably do their homework.  Palin was absolutely right in her comments and the WaPo was about as off-base as you can get and still be in the game.

That's one of the problems with liberals.  It's not that they aren't smart, it's just that so much of what they know isn't true.  (Tip o' the Hat to President Ronald Reagan for that one.)

Follow the link for more.

Academy prof: Admissions easier on minorities

Graduation Day at the Naval Academy.  Has it been made easier for some than others?  

The U.S. Naval Academy was my not-so-secret dream when I was 12-years old.  At the local high school graduation ceremony that year I stood at the end of the line of the graduating Seniors in order to ask the guest speaker, Senator Frank Church, what I needed to do in order to get an appointment to the Naval Academy.  When he saw me he was most gracious and stood talking to me about the appointments process for a good 5 minutes while members of the local Democrat party fidgeted in background.  I’m certain they wanted their precious time with the Senator but he wouldn’t leave me until he had answered all my questions.  I remember my mother smiling at my chutzpah.  I don’t think she really liked the local Democrats all that much.  

With that background you can see why I was exceedingly pleased last year when my grand-nephew got a letter of interest from the U.S. Naval Academy.  He’s a fine young man and a tremendous athlete and almost a 4.0 average well into his Junior year in high school.  While I’m proud of him--and his younger brother and sisters--I’m even more proud of his mother.  She’s been divorced from his father for a long time and has struggled as a working mother, ensuring her children are clothed, fed and taught good, common sense and wholesome family values.  She also goes to college and is inching closer to having her own degree.  She sets a living example for her children to emulate and it is clear that they love and respect her.  (She’s much like her late Grandmother in that regard.)

While I was exceedingly pleased that my grand-nephew got a letter from Annapolis--and was kind of secretly hoping he’d go there even though I was Army--I was thrilled when Boise State showed interest in him along with Oregon State and the University of Oregon.  Imagine, two of the top football schools in the nation looking at my grand-nephew based on what he has accomplished through hard work, sweat, effort and study.  He’s an outstanding young man who is working towards achieving his dreams.  No one is giving him anything.  He is earning it and that’s what makes me proud.

The linked article about the Naval Academy in which Academy English Professor Bruce Fleming alleges that the Navy has set a lower standard for non-white students is both disappointing and insulting.  You see, my grand-nephew’s father, like President Obama’s, is black, and it is extremely insulting to my grand-nephew, to his mother and to his whole family that a government institution like the Naval Academy would show an interest in him because of his bi-racial heritage rather than his own actual accomplishments.  In lowering standards to become more diverse they have de-valued his efforts when they need no devaluing.  I can look anyone in the eye and say that this young man takes a back seat to no one either physically or mentally.  I admit that it saddens me, though, as I always thought that the goal of the Naval Academy was to produce Officers and Gentlemen.  Now I find out that they are a social studies school interested less in educating war time leaders than in appearing to be diverse.   It is clear that the Naval Academy as it stands today is not good enough for my grand-nephew.  It is certainly not the same institution as it was when Joe Bellino and Roger Staubach were Midshipmen.  

My niece has raised a very fine young man.  He has character and natural leadership abilities beyond that which can be taught in any military academy, much less one that is more worried about appearing politically correct than producing polished leaders.  He can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the best in academics and sports and that and his character, not his skin color, are what are important.  My grand-nephew deserves the right to rise as far as he can on his own abilities so that when he is my age he can look back on his life with pride and say, “I did all that on my own” without having the nagging thought in the back of his head that he was given the chance to accomplish it only because of the color of his skin.  I am confident that he will go far on his God-given abilities–farther than any of us now imagine–and it won’t be because anyone, or anything, had to use lower standards to fit him in.  

That being said, I have a feeling that he’s going to become an Oregon Duck and I think that’s a great choice.  I just hope that the Ducks realize what an outstanding young man, both athletically and as a student scholar, they will getting if he goes there.  

Follow the title link for the story about the decline of Annapolis.  

Maybe Hu Got the Last Laugh

Doug Powers writes an excellent guest blog on Michelle Malkin's site.  My only criticism is the use of the word "Maybe."  There is no doubt in my mind that Hu enjoyed the choice of tunes.  I do wonder, however if Lang Lang, an extremely talented pianist, chose that one particular song or if it was suggested by someone from Obama's White House staff.

Follow the link for more.

Federal Employees: A Cash Cow for the Unions

"What a deal!  I shoulda thought about this scam!  What a deal!  They don't bother to buy judges, they buy politicians!"  

I remember a day when I was young and JFK was President that we had an extended family dinner...a reunion of sorts.  One of my cousins that was at least 20 years older than me was there and he was very happy about President Kennedy issuing an order that allowed for public sector unions in the Federal government.  My father, a farmer and rancher, did not look favorably on unions and always kept his peace rather than say anything that would cause an argument; but my cousin, who was working as a union organizer at the time, was so excited that he didn’t see the sour look on Dad’s face.  But I saw it and wondered why.  It took me several decades to figure out what my father was thinking back then but I finally did.  Essentially, he could see no good coming from allowing unions to get involved in the government.  Actually, my father could see no good in unions at all as when company wasn’t around he commented that unions weren’t good for anything but driving up prices and taking people’s money.  Of course, Dad wasn’t politically correct and he firmly believed that what you got in life you got because you worked hard and did a good job.  In his mind, unions allowed people who didn’t work hard or do a good job to have job security that they didn’t deserve.  

When you look at the history of unions, however, it’s hard to say that unions were always unnecessary (and I’m not saying that they are totally unnecessary now).  To the contrary, unions were very necessary at the beginning of the industrial revolution when the economic class distinctions within the United States and elsewhere in the now developed world were stark.  Unions can rightly be credited with helping destroy the barriers that prevented the movement between economic classes and allowed for the American dream of upward mobility to come to fruition in the modern world.  The key in the early union movement was that they were formed to provide a balance between the workers of a factory who produced the goods and the owners of the factory who wanted to sell the goods while maximizing profits.  It was recognized in those early years that the workers had a valid position in sharing in the profits while ensuring that the factory continued to operate profitably.  In other words, if the union’s demands made production unprofitable the factory would close and there would be no profit for anyone.  Keep that in mind as I move on to the government.

It is now that my support for JFK during those wonderful days of my youth comes back to haunt me.  I was proud--and still am--of his wartime record and his relationship with the members of the military and that he understood the need for Special Forces; but I’m appalled when I think that it was he that opened the door for public sector unions to operate in the Federal Government.  You might ask why and the answer is simple: The Government does not operate with “profit” as an outcome of its operation.  In reality it is quite the opposite.  A Government manager who does not spend 100% of his budget is considered inept and will likely have his budget decreased in the coming fiscal cycle.  The manager who does spend 100% of his budget, and then cries appropriately about what he could have done if he had more funds, has his budget increased.  Such is the nature of government at all levels but especially at the Federal level.  There’s one other thing to consider in this formula, however, and that is that the cost of labor is never a budgeting factor.  Full Time Employee (FTE) positions are authorized and justified by Congress purely on the mission justification of the Federal Agency involved.  To increase the size of your organization you must show that your agency’s ability to complete the mission given it by Congress is suffering and you can only improve that with an increase in FTE positions.  No discussion of a cost-benefit is needed–something that a business would naturally do–but a justification of mission capability enhancement is required.  It is in this environment that public sector unions exist and, oddly enough, thrive.  

All of my government service was, of course, spent in a union-free environment as either a member of the military or in Federal Law Enforcement.  Neither can be unionized under because as ignorant as Congress can sometimes be, they have never been that stupid.  Of course, some professional organizations have sprung up to “represent” individuals in personnel matters, the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association or FLEOA, is one such but they are limited to providing access to specialized insurance policies in case the law enforcement officer is sued, and access to an attorney familiar with the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) rules and regulations.  OPM, you see, is the agency that governs all aspects of Federal employment for all agencies and their rules and regulations codify everything from entering on duty for the first day of work through, and including, retirement.  That includes disciplinary issues, an area that many unions like to trumpet as one of their most important duties:  protecting the employee from wrongful punishment to include termination.  One look at OPM’s regulations governing discipline and you know intuitively that the Federal Government employee is anything if not protected.  

My last years in government service dealt with exactly that area as I handled policy compliance for the Eastern half of the nation for my agency.  It was my job to ensure that all the evidence in a discipline case was collected and then to evaluate that evidence with the appropriate individuals before taking the case and the recommendation of the deciding official to Employee Relations (ER) and the staff attorney for a final review.  Nothing could be done off-the-cuff and everything had to meet the arcane standards of OPM as well as the agency’s guidelines; and, any action recommended had to be balanced with similar issues across the broad spectrum of the agency.  In simple terms that means that the Special Agent in Charge of an office on the East Coast couldn’t fire an individual for a violation that would merit a Letter of Reprimand in all the other offices.  The process was not quick and was rather cumbersome with some issues taking a year or more to resolve, but that was designed that way on purpose.  The multiple layers of review and consultation protected both the agency and the employee from the human factor that can be involved in any disciplinary issue.  It was designed to take personal feelings and put them aside to ensure fairness and it did that extremely well.  It also provided for an appeals process that went up to the agency head before going over to an Administrative Law judge and finally to the Federal District Court.  You should know that this system is in effect for both non-union and unionized Federal employees.  And OPM doesn’t deduct any kind of membership fee from the bi-weekly checks of Federal employees.

Now with all that protection in place for both non-unionized and unionized employees in the Federal Government you might be wondering what does a union do for Federal employees.  That’s a good question.  I always wondered that myself.  

First, an approved union representing Federal employees does do some negotiations on behalf of those employees.  For example, they ensure that the employee is given adequate breaks at an appropriate time during their work day.  (If you’ve ever been in a passport line at a major airport that was suddenly moved to the rear of other passport lines because the Immigration Inspector closed shop after the person just in front of youl was processed, you’ve seen this in action.)  They ensure that the employee is not required to do any work outside their job description.  (If you’ve ever been in a Federal office waiting for someone to return to their desk to help you while watching other Federal employees sit on their hands, you’ve seen this in action, too.)  They ensure that the employees are not abused with having to work unscheduled overtime and that if they are they are paid accordingly.  (If you’ve ever tried to call a Federal office with an urgent question 1 minute after closing and could only get a recording that recited the office hours, you’ve seen this in action.  Don’t these type of things make you wonder where the term “public servant” originated?)  

Now these issues were all a matter of negotiations between the union and the representative of the agency in question.  So what is the driving force behind the negotiations?  Well, for the union it is taking something...anything...back to the employees that justifies their belonging to the union.  For the government negotiator, it is getting it over with as soon as possible with an equitable win-win solution so he can get back to his regular work which is piling-up in his absence.  There is no profit to protect, there is only a desire to keep the workforce happy and, anyway, it’s up to Congress to come up with the tax dollars necessary.  The bottom line is that all the issues are already covered in the OPM personnel manual.  Employees can’t be abused regardless of the union and they do have recourse.  They do get breaks on a regular basis regardless of the union.  And why can’t they answer that phone 1 minute after closing for a 3 minute call if they are truly “public servants.”  With the employee already protected beyond anything in the private sector, why do public employee unions exist?

I’ll let you in on a nasty little secret:  They exist to put public employee money, i.e., tax dollars, in the union bank account on a direct deposit basis every two weeks, month after month, year after year.  They exist to provide the union with a ready and constant source of income for which they do very, very little.  They print up a nice membership card.  They answer the phones and they have their attorneys (the one’s already on staff) pick-up any legal questions that might come up and handle the negotiations which, in reality, aren’t negotiations but bargaining sessions in which one party (the union) has everything to gain and the other party (the government) has nothing to lose.  

It’s the greatest legalized protection racket ever devised.  Every employee is charged dues (depending on the pay grade in some instances but as much as $16.00 per pay period) that are deducted by the government from the paycheck before the employee ever sees it.  The union gets the dues monthly direct from the Federal Government and smiles all the way to the bank.  And come election time, the union bosses spend the money to suit their own interests regardless of the desires of the membership.  If Al Capone were alive today, I guarantee you he’d be the head of a public sector union instead of a bootlegger.  

Now I see that TSA may be organized by March and two different unions are competing for those 40,000 employees.  (See http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/01/24/tsa-screeners-set-choose-union-following-public-sector-trend/)  The why of it is a no-brainer.  The union that successfully organizes TSA will reap a windfall of around $15,000,000 per year in dues for doing very little.  They will tout of course, in their recruiting literature, cases involving multiple AWOLs that they managed to get reduced from removal to a mere 15-day suspension but that happens way too often anyway given the multitude of existing rules and regulations codified by OPM.  (Terminating a Federal employee for anything less than murder really does become the proverbial “Federal Case.”)  The reality of the situation is that the unionization of government agencies is a cash cow for unions.  Nothing more.  Nothing less.  And remember, isn’t being done to correct actions by the employer that starves the Federal employee.  It’s allowed to be done by politicians as payback for union support during their successful political campaigns.  That’s why President Barack H. Obama has promoted increased unionization of the Federal workforce at a time when the numbers of workers participating in unions in the private sector is shrinking.  It’s all about payback and using tax dollars to ensure continued union support.  

Like I said before, if Al Capone were alive today, he’d be running a union.  And voting Democrat, no doubt.

WikiLeaks lawyer vows to prosecute Palin if she goes to Australia

Julian Assange:  International Man of Mystery who was evidently attempting to live out a 'James Bond' fantasy and ended up being charged with sex crimes.  

It's not at all about whether Sarah Palin violated Australian law for even though Australia has some very weird ideas about crime (they still send people to debtor's prison there and you can't defend yourself in your own home).  It's about jumping on the liberal band-wagon to get publicity for a client whose story has begun to disappear from the headlines.  (In case you missed it, the weasel has signed a book deal that's been optioned for a movie already.  Things like this help make money.)  But lawyers being lawyers he managed to get a couple of paragraphs in an Alaskan newspaper.  (I'm not sure what would upset me more:  My daughter bringing home a Democrat or a lawyer to meet her parents?  I'll have to think about that.)

But the WikiLeaks lawyer can say what he wants.  That's the beauty of the 1st Amendment in the U.S. Constitution (obviously something our Australian cousins don't follow much less understand).  Allowing people to speak up makes it ever so much easier to spot the idiots.  I'll leave it to you to make your mind up as to who is the idiot in this instance.

Follow the link for more.

Obama recalls Roe v. Wade, backs abortion rights

An unborn baby just 20-weeks after conception.  Look at the hands, the mouth, the nose, the eye the leg then tell me that this is just cellular material.  

Roe v. Wade:  A construct of the Constitution created by liberal minds on the Supreme Court that holds the Constitution provides a woman with the right to kill her baby because it has committed the unfortunate "crime" of being inconvenient.  The same liberal minds that created that fantasy also created the construct that the death penalty for one convicted of murder is unconstitutional because it is cruel and unusual punishment.  The dichotomy between the two positions is ever so stark. Even worse, in this case, is that Obama is on record as being in favor of partial birth abortions.  You know, the kind allegedly practiced by the now infamous Dr. Kermit Gosnell in Philadelphia.  (See:  http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/01/19/philadelphia-abortion-doctor-charged-counts-murder/ )  The reality of the situation is that in the world of liberals you can be killed for being inconvenient, but not for being a multiple murderer or a treasonous traitor.

To paraphrase Ronald Reagan, I find it amazing that the people who are most loudly in favor of abortion are those that have already been born and those who are most in need of protection by the judges and justices, but are denied that protection, are those innocents who can't yet speak in their own behalf.  I can only take heart in the fact that those who approve of and promote this type of infanticide will face judgement in the afterlife.  

I think I'll go find t-shirts for all my children that read:  "I SURVIVED ROE V. WADE!"

Follow the link for the story.

Media Myth Busted: 'Americans View Palin as More Sincere and Believable After Watching Speech'

Will she run?  And if she does, can she appeal to the Great Middle--the Independents--of the political spectrum.  

As I write this I still see the chattering class on TV trying to dissect Sarah Palin's video.  It amazes me that they--both on the right and on the left--still struggle mightily to find ways to discredit Palin and maintain their air of superiority in all things pertaining to man.

It is unbelievable that the chattering class would have such a totally different view from the Americans polled as reported in the linked article but it is clear that they do.  I suppose, as part of the elite, they do know better than everyone else.  I actually kind of like Sarah Palin partially because of the low-lifes who have been attacking her the last few years--just check-out the photo-shopped photos of her on the net to see how imbecilic the ad hominem attacks have been--and partially because what she says in her speeches and in the video does resonate.  I don't know about her for President but, considering the current occupant, she looks good to me.  However, that she looks good to me is not important.  It is how she looks to Independents that matters because the party that can secure the Independent vote will secure the White House.

Follow the link and make up your minds for yourselves.

Call for Bipartisan Seating at the State of the Union

Let's have everybody sit together so it's not so obvious how much support our dear leader has lost.  We wouldn't want him to begin to doubt himself, now would we?  Well, would we?  

Once again Michelle Malkin's blog highlights a move by liberals and RINOs that is designed to weaken opposition to President Obama during and after his upcoming State of the Union Address.  Republicans who sign on to this proposal might as well form their own "Lapdog Caucus" because they are playing right into the Community-Organizer-in-Chief's hands.

Think about it.  This will be the first State of the Union since the Democrat's were so soundly repudiated last November.  Obama is politically weakened by the defeat but in order for him to regain the initiative he must water down the appearance of defeat when he appears before Congress.  Last year with the Democrats in control more than half the chamber was giving him standing ovations when he laid waste to Republican opposition and insulted the Supreme Court.  He is desperate to not look weakened during this year's speech so he and his Regime have come up with the novel let-us-all-sit-together-to-show-unity idea on the heals of Tucson and some overly sensitive RINOs have already signed on.  They might as well join the Democrats in a chorus of Kumbaya as they roll-over to have their tummy's scratched.

The impact of having the Republican-side of the aisle clearly and purposely sit on it's hands during those parts of the State of the Union that are clearly written to promote Obama's agenda is not only necessary, but required by the electorate.  The Republican majority came about not because we wanted everyone in Washington to just be friends and cooperate in what heretofore has been a program of bankrupting our nation to promote an agenda that is abhorrent to an increasing majority of We the People.  We the People want Obama to look out at his shrinking support, see the reality seated before him and realize that his ideas have been wrong and that he needs to reverse course.  The proposed interspersed seating dilutes the impact of November's election and gives the appearance that the victory by the Republican's was not a statement by the electorate that Washington is taking seriously.  It says that Obama is still as politically strong as he was last year when nothing could be further from the truth.  Most importantly for Obama, however, it preserves his ego and allows him to deceive himself as to the correctness of his actions during his first two years in office.

And if those Republicans who have already signed on to this idea don't get it, they should remember that they will again come up for election and this time the electorate will be really upset.

Follow the link for more.

OTL: Veteran's Golf

Sometimes we need to step back a little to realize just how blessed we are. Even if you don't play golf you'll like this short video about golf on one very special golf course played by some very special heroes. Jack Nicklaus is part of the story and shows the class that not only made him a great champion, but a great man as well.

May God bless and keep these men, heroes all.

Palin Targeted in Violence-Tinged Tweets Following Arizona Massacre

I had to post this article about how the supporters of President Barack Hussein Obama and the Democrat Party engage in "civil discourse."

I will wait with bated breath for the Left Stream Media (NBC, MSNBC, CBS, CNN and ABC) to report on this and bemoan the violence of the civil discourse from the left.

Follow the link for more.

Palin and the Blood Libel

Warning:  This women causes liberals to have nightmares!  (Now isn't that sweet?)  

Sarah Palin's use of the term 'blood libel' is still being trumpeted by the left as a major faux pas that is unsurpassed in the political history of the United States.  The left would love people to believe that and naturally, nothing could be further from the truth.

Jonathan Tobin writing for the Jewish World Review has addressed the issue and I'd like to say that it's now been put to rest.  Unfortunately, knowing the foaming-at-the-mouth ardor of the leftists when it comes to Palin, it is unlikely to stop.  Self-certified journalists like Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann will continue to raise the issue in tones that would suggest that a serious sin against God has been committed when in reality the only sin committed by Sarah Palin is that she literally scares the far left to death.  They are so fearful of her actually becoming President--and she's not yet running for the office--that they are wetting their beds at night in fear.  What are they afraid of you ask?  Simple.  She's the antithesis of everything that the left believes in.  She's a wife and mother who doesn't believe in abortion.  She has successfully run a state as the governor (don't bother jumping up and shouting that she resigned as that's a non-issue).  She displays uncommon common sense for a politician.  She can hunt, shoot a rifle or a shotgun and is comfortable helping butcher a deer, elk or caribou for meat.  She believes in God and is unafraid to say so.  She is a Conservative.  She has succeeded without the shrill screeches of the National Organization for Women (which really isn't unless the women are liberals who believe in abortion).  In other words, Sarah Palin does everything but pass the left's litmus test on what a successful woman is and that's why they hate her.

Follow the link for the true Jewish perspective on the term "blood libel" as opposed to the politically-driven, leftist perspective on using anything possible to attack Sarah Palin.

(Amazing, isn't it, that the leftist Democrats are so fixated on destroying one person that they will pedantically repeat lies as if they were truths and expect the public to believe them?)

The Left's History Of Violence

Ernesto "Che" Guevara.  Mass murderer and, as Cpt. H.I. Bell once said to a campus leftist in 1970, "If he was such a good guerilla fighter why is he dead?"  His is the iconic image of the left and clearly they miss him.  

As we listen to liberal pundits, the Left Stream Media and Democrat politicians bemoan what they term as "heated rhetoric" that "must be toned-down" while blaming the Conservative right for "inspiring" the murders in Tucson, it is good to take a moment to remember just who has a history of violence.  It certainly is not the Conservative right.

The linked article takes you on a short trip down memory lane.  The liberals still tout the murderers mentioned, some of them mass murderers far in excess of what happened in Tucson, in posters, t-shirts and slogans.

Follow the link for more.

Alan Dershowitz Defends Sarah Palin’s Use of Term ‘Blood Libel’

Somewhere deep in the brain of the liberals who attacked Sarah Palin lies the key to curing PDS.  Unfortunately, no one has ever found it.  

Had anyone but Sarah Palin used the term there would not be a discussion about this.  The liberal idiots--yes, they are idiots--who criticized her suffer from an offshoot of liberal psychopathology commonly called Palin Derangement Syndrome or PDS.

Unfortunately, there is no cure because the cause lies deep in a twisted intellect and medicine cannot treat it.  There is hope, however, because sometimes as a person ages he is able to grow-up and grow-out of the syndrome because it's seldom seen in the elderly; and when it is there is usually a lot of foaming at the mouth and other stupid statements that give notice that the individual has a terminal case.

Follow the link for more as Alan Dershowitz ably rebuts those sufferers of PDS who just had to spout off about nothing in order to vent their internal rage.  Have pity on them.  They just can't help being stupid, but we can hope they grow out of it.

Massacre, followed by libel by Charles Krauthammer

Keith Olbermann: Poster Child for Liberal Psychopathology?  

Once again Charles Krauthammer appropriately skewers the liberal idiots, this time for trying to politicize the Arizona murders.

Follow the link for an excellent and well-reasoned read.

Sarah Palin: America’s Enduring Strength

This was posted on Facebook today but there are many who don't belong to Facebook.  After listening to it, I decided I would link to it so others could listen to some real words of wisdom.

Follow the link then sit quietly and listen.  You'll be glad you did.

Liberating the Pope

An 18-year old Joseph Ratzinger was liberated by the American Army in 1945.  He was ordained a priest in 1951.  He is now known to the world as Pope Benedict XVI.  

As I blogged below, we lost another of the Greatest Generation, Maj. Richard "Dick" Winters, on January 2, 2011.  While some of us studied the tactics he used in Military Science 101, others only became familiar with Maj. Winters when they watched the Band of Brothers on HBO.  But while doing some reading in support of the blog I ran across the linked article.  Being a Catholic convert, I found this most interesting and paused to think about the men involved and what they went through.  We sometimes don't take time to consider that what we accomplish as we go through life just might have far reaching consequences beyond what we can imagine.  And I can think of nothing more far reaching than being involved in the liberation of an 18 year-old boy in 1945 who was later to become the Vicar of Christ.  This is an extremely remarkable and in its own way, inspiring, story.

Follow the link to see how the 2nd Chemical Mortar Battalion of the 45th Infantry Division participated in an operation that was amazing in ways they could not imagine at the time.

Dem Congressman who called for GOP Gov. to be put against a wall and shot now pleads for civility

The liberal left has honed hypocrisy to a fine art.  And they do it with a straight and serious face before the cameras but come-off like their seal above.

Follow the link for the story.

Blaming the Right for the Giffords Attack Is Pure McCarthyism

George Will is always an excellent read and this one is spot on.

In the wake of the shooting the immediate move of the liberal left was not concern for the victims but positioning for political advantage.  The Democrat leadership and the left-wing blogosphere and the Left Stream Media, aided by the clearly addled Sheriff of Pima County, began an immediate attack on Sarah Palin, the TEA Party, talk radio (obviously conservative talk radio as liberal talk radio has been an abysmal failure) and Fox News.  They attacked Sarah Palin and the TEA Party because they fear her and them.  They attacked talk radio because it airs ideas that oppose their leftist meme.  They attack Fox News because it hasn't fallen in line with the slavish adoration of Barack Obama as best demonstrated by MSNBC.  (There are no more ardent or slavish sycophants of Barack Obama on the airwaves unless, of course, you want to count CNN as a whole.)

The script is now plain for all to see.  They will continue to point fingers at the political right in hopes of at least demonizing them and at best causing them to hesitate or pull punches in their political arguments out of a fantasy-land-fear that their debate has caused an individual to take violent action.  While doing this they will trot out the tried and worn-out arguments for gun control, restrictions on political speech and additional spending for security for the members of Congress.  (That will come in handy at future Town Hall meetings when they want to keep TEA Party members out and have only compliant crowds.)  Their end goal, of course, is domination rather than clear political discourse.

To be sure, the political discourse in America is loud and, at times, raucous.  It is supposed to be because when it is completely controlled by either side the result is not for the good of We the People.  I've often said that the 1st Amendment is a beautiful thing because it helps us to more easily identify who the idiots are and that has never been more true than today.  We have an aged Sheriff, clearly in his dotage, who instead of being the Law Enforcement Officer with 50 years of experience calming the community and assuring them that the evidence is being gathered properly and they are safe, launches into an unsupported, and unsupportable, diatribe against the political right thus shifting the blame from the defendant.

We have a New York Times that just over a year ago when a Muslim Army Officer shouted, "Allah akhbar!" as he began shooting and killing fellow soldiers at Ft. Hood, counseled that we shouldn't jump to conclusions about his motivation but should wait for the facts, now immediately jumping to conclusions in the absence of any supporting facts.  (As did all those on the left, including our dear leader.  Pity they never bothered to say, "Oops, you were right.  He is a Muslim terrorist acting in concert with other terrorists.)

We have Democrat politicians who have yet to shake a medieval mind-set that imparts motive and action to inanimate objects again trotting out tried and failed gun-control policies thinking, I suppose, that We the People are so stupid as to not remember that they just didn't work the last time they were tried and won't work this time.  (Of course, they've always opposed the 2nd Amendment and aren't about to change just because of a little ole' Supreme Court decision.  Remember, these are the same Democrat politicians who urge collective guilt for an individual's crimes because it's society's fault that the individual was forced to kill somebody.)

We have Democrat and liberal-left strategists working feverishly and overtime to fulfill the dictum of Rahm Emanuel that one should "never let a crisis go to waste."

Fortunately, I don't believe the American people are as dumb or sheepish as the liberal-left believes.

Follow the link for an excellent read from George Will.

The progressive “climate of hate:” An illustrated primer, 2000-2010

Mug shot of President Obama's friend and political ally, Bill Ayers.  He was arrested by the FBI for bombing and murder.  It was at Ayers' house where Obama launched his political career.  He's now a retired professor who said in a magazine interview printed shortly after 9/11 that he regretted not having done more.  Interesting.

An excellent exposé of the truth about inflammatory rhetoric and actions by those fun-loving liberals on the left from Michelle Malkin.  If you're a liberal the truth will be somewhat uncomfortable if not painful for it is clear that the real hate speech emanates from your friends on the left.

It's what they do best.

Follow the link for the story.

Federal Judge: Liberal Sheriff, Media Exploiting Attack

Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik.  Ideologue or senile?  You decide.  

I do not claim the years of law enforcement experience of Sheriff Clarence Dupnik but I am thankful that I still have my wits about me and haven't degenerated into a complete political hack with statements that do harm to an investigation and a profession.  Dupnik, a Democrat, is a complete disgrace and should be ashamed of himself.  But I am somehow sure that he isn't.

Follow the link for a concurring opinion from a Federal Judge.

Mug shot of Jared Lee Loughner.  Crazy?  Probably.  Fan of Conservative talk radio, Sarah Palin and Fox News?  Puhleez!  Not hardly!!!      

‘Band Of Brothers’ Hero Maj. Richard ‘Dick’ Winters Dies At 92

I blogged earlier today on Major Richard Winters and you can see that below but the linked blog is the best obituary I've read in a long time.  It does a hero justice.

Follow the link for more.

Farewell to WWII hero Maj. Dick Winters, central character in 'Band of Brothers'

I remember the Band of Brothers very well and even studied the classic attack on the artillery position lead by Major (then Lieutenant) Richard Winters that was featured in the HBO series.  The ROTC instructor that lectured on the attack described it as one of the best examples of fire and maneuver ever seen.  I don't think that can be disputed.

I just heard that on January 2, 2011, Maj. Richard Winters returned to Easy Company.  He was a true hero.  He was 92 years old.  May he rest in peace.

Follow the link for the story and more.

Markos Blames Palin for Giffords Shooting — But There’s Just One Problem: Kos Put a Bulls Eye on Giffords

Liberals are decrying speech promoting violence but in reality, as we see in the liberal-left Code Pink demonstration above, that type of speech actually originates with them.  They are the epitome of hypocrisy.  

Highlighting the hypocrisy of the liberal left is so easy.  They count on the dumbing-down of the educational system and a compliant Left Stream Media to allow them to change their story as needed without any repercussions.  Their current mantra is casting the blame on Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity, et al., so they quickly cleaned-up their web sites and pointed fingers while screaming at the top of their lungs like pre-pubescent teen girls at their first horror movie.

Pathetic at best but what can we expect from such shallow intellects?  There will be some who believe them, of course, but most won't despite their whining mantra.  Jared Lee Loughren was one who, per those who knew him in school, subscribed to the ideology of the left.  One classmate described him as a "left-wing pot smoker."  Does that mean that the left is full of such people?  No.  Idiots reside on both sides of the political spectrum and I doubt that any writings by the Sarah Palin or Daily Kos motivated Loughren.  What I don't doubt is the hypocrisy of Daily Kos and the Left Stream Media in trying to spin a tragic event for their shallow political advantage even though it was expected.  After all, wasn't it Rahm Emanuel who famously said, "Never let a crisis go to waste!"?

Follow the link for more.

Sheriff Dupnik's Irresponsible Comments

Gary Fouse at Fousesquawk kindly granted me permission to repost this.  He sums it up very nicely.  

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Sheriff Dupnik's Irresponsible Comments

If Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik did not cross of line of professionalism yesterday with his public comments about "vitriol" and "prejudice in Arizona", he definitely did today. Of course, this piles sand on what I just posted about the liberal media's premature attempt to tie this hideous act in Tucson to conservative talk radio, tea parties and everything else the left hates. That is irresponsible journalism which we have come to expect. However, we should not expect political commentary and personal opinions from a law enforcement officer, especially when there are no facts to bear out what he is suggesting.

From Saturday:

"When you look at unbalanced people, how they respond to the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government," said Dupnik at a press conference Saturday. "The anger, the hatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is getting to be outrageous. And unfortunately, Arizona I think has become sort of the capital. We have become the mecca for prejudice and bigotry."

“And today I want to tell you that I hope that all Americans are saddened and as shocked as we are. And I hope that some of them or most of them are as angry as I am and as a lot of us are. And I think it’s time as a country that we need to do a little soul searching. Because it’s the vitriolic rhetoric that we hear day in and day out from people in the radio business and some people in the tv business, and what we see on tv and how our youngsters are being raised. That this has not become the nice United States of America that most of us grew up in. And I think it’s time that we do the soul searching.”

I am going to draw on my own law enforcement experience here. On occasion, I have had microphones thrust into my face. On those occasions, one has to carefully measure one's words and stick to facts, not opinions. Today, while being interviewed by Fox News' Megyn Kelly, Dupnik again crossed the line into partisan politics. He talked about how "one party is doing everything they can to block the other party from making America a better place".



What does that have to do with this tragedy? If there is indeed a connection, that has not yet been shown. The sheriff is expressing opinions, not facts. Note that Kelly pinned him down and got him to admit that he did not have any facts to support his statement but was just stating his opinion.

If partisans like Keith Olbermann want to make a case for which there is no basis in fact, well, that's Keith. This is a guy who turns natural disasters into political issues. However, we expect more from our professional law enforcement officers who are making public statements about a case that the whole country is following closely. I hate to point this out, lest I engage in politics myself, but it is a documented fact that Dupnik is an active Democrat, who publicly condemned the Arizona immigration law. The man has an agenda. Forget the question of whether or not we agree with his agenda. It has no place in this issue. Did Sheriff Dupnik find a Republican party card in the suspect's wallet? Are there any facts to support what he is-at the very least-implying?

I can tell you from my own law enforcement experience that Sheriff Dupnik is acting unprofessionally by inserting his political opinions into the discussion and implying facts that are not proven. The one fact that we can assume from what we know is that the suspect has some sort of mental illness. At this point, there is nothing to tie him to conservative commentators, tea parties, blogs or anybody else.

Naturally, as we speak, Dupnik is being embraced by the liberal media and the left. That doesn't change the fact that he is acting unprofessionally and beyond the scope of his duties in the midst of this incident. My advice to Sheriff Dupnik is to keep to the facts as they come out. Leave the political arguments to the politicians, pundits, activists and commentators. The fact that they are jumping on this with both feet is bad enough. That the man the whole community and indeed country is looking to for leadership and results engages in this kind of speculation without presenting any evidence is just plain unprofessional and irresponsible. He is only adding to the emotion and division that he himself condemns.

BREAKING: DEMOCRATS PLOTTED TO BLAME TEA PARTY FOR SLAUGHTER!

"Never let a crisis go to waste." - Rahm Emanuel

According to the Gateway Pundit, it looks like the Democrats are following Emanuel's playbook to the letter and are working up a "Blame-the-TEA-Party" script with which they will try to marginalize or end a movement that scares them more than anything else.

Does anyone else think this is crass and depraved?

Follow the link for the story.

The Arizona shootings were like Kwanzaa come early for America's liberal fascists

"I am reminded that not all common sense is bound to the United States.  Some is still resident in England.  May it grow strong again on that far shore that our cousins may once again be free."*  

More on the aftermath of the Tucson shooting, this from across the pond.

(Tip o' the Hat to my friend Geno for this one.)

Follow the link for more.

*P.S.  The quote is not from Mark Twain but what I believe he would be saying were he here.

Journalists urged caution after Ft. Hood, now race to blame Palin after Arizona shootings

The utter hypocrisy of the liberal Left Stream Media.  Is it any wonder that the market share of outlets like CNN and MSNBC are staggeringly low?  They do not adhere to any journalistic standard but instead follow ideological boundaries.  The shooting in Arizona was terrible but the alleged shooter, Jared Lee Loughner, was described by friends as a "liberal, left wing activist."  Yet CNN and MSNBC are going out of their way to blame Sarah Palin and the rhetoric of conservative talk radio.  I don't believe it is possible for them to be more asinine in their spin on the news.  It would be more logical for them to blame The Daily Kos who published a now-removed (so they could attack Palin with clean hands, I suppose) comment that Gifford should die because she wasn't liberal enough.  But that would still be a ridiculous assertion.

The internet ramblings of Loughner point more to a disturbed individual than to a true political/religious ideologue like Major Nidal Hasan of Ft. Hood Massacre fame.  Remember how the same ones who are now pointing fingers urged calm and said we shouldn't rush to judgment about his Islamic jihadist motives?  They were wrong then, too.  Loughner is not a military veteran as some said immediately after the shooting.  (Why do idiots always like to blame the military first?  We've seen violence, true, and it is something we never want to see again.)  There is no evidence that he is a member of any TEA Party group as the left-wing "Let's-take-advantage-of-this" groups have been asserting.  He is most certainly not a Republican or a Conservative with two of his favorite books being listed as Mein Kampf and the Communist Manifesto both of which promote left-wing ideology.  He may belong to some fringe group but it is one that is not aligned with either of the two main political parties here in the United States in any manner or fashion.

The investigation of Loughner and the shooting is ongoing.  He is in custody.  Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, et al., clearly had nothing to do with it nor did the political rhetoric of the day promote this sick act.  Think about that when you hear a news commentator try to insinuate that opposition to Obama promoted an attempt on the life of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.  Who are really the promoters of violence?

Obama Eyeing Internet ID for Americans

"I know who you are now and what you wrote.  Now I'm gonna show you how we take care of the enemy in Chicago."  

American's have long objected to a Federal Government-controlled centralized data base for firearms because of concerns that an overreaching politician in the not-necessarily-so-far-distant future would use it to confiscate the arms of private citizens in violation of the 2nd Amendment.  Now we have an overreaching politician who is moving to seize control of the internet through innocuous sounding programs like "Net Neutrality" and now "Internet ID."  It's all being proposed by his "Czars" of course and we can count on him to blandly assure us that he won't allow anyone to interfere with our right to communicate our political ideas via the internet.  He may even issue a nice sounding Executive Order forbidding the use of the information to identify his political opposition which he refers to as "the enemy."

We have to ask ourselves:  Are we willing to trust a man who has lied constantly since elected with our 1st Amendment rights?  Well, are we?

I think not.  We're not ready for a Statist Regime that controls every aspect of our lives and tells us what to think and eat.  It's not 1984...and never will be.

Follow the link for the story.

START and the Spirit of Frank Marshall Davis

Why do I have the feeling that isn't a tobacco cigarette?  

I'm reasonably certain that I'll get a disclaimer from the usual source in Hawaii--my guess is that it's probably an avowed liberal Democrat...someone like the Governor even--claiming that Frank Marshall Davis was neither a Communist or an influence on young Barry Soetoro.  Unfortunately the facts just don't support the denial.

Follow the link for more on what was probably Obama's most significant mentor.

Washington Times Editorial: Liberal distaste for the Constitution

I've been planning on writing this one all week but just didn't have time to post this but now I shall with only one disclaimer:  Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) should not be included as one of those who has a distaste for the Constitution.  She was, in fact, one of the early volunteers to read part of the Constitution and was assigned read the 1st Amendment.  She was exercising her 1st Amendment rights--and allowing her constituents to exercise theirs--when she was gunned down.  She is also known to be a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment.  Rep. Giffords is a patriot in the truest sense of the word and my prayers go out for her and her family.

As for a large majority of the Liberals in Congress (and the Senate) and the Left Stream Media, I can say only the following:  Liberals react to a reading of the Constitution in much the same manner as atheists react to a reading of the Holy Bible.  Both are completely unnerved by, and uncomfortable with, the truth. 


Follow the link for an excellent editorial from the Washington Times.  

Jane Fonda Blames Giffords Shooting on Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck and the Tea Party

Hanoi Jane sitting on the gunner's seat of an anti-aircraft gun in Hanoi giving aid and comfort to the enemy.  

Well, it didn't take long!  Commie Jane Fonda is off and running trying to push the blame on the right.

I've held her in disgust for about 40 years so this doesn't surprise me but it does reveal a pathetic side of her personality.  And her father was such a great actor.  There are a lot of people my age who think she should be in prison for treason but she escaped prosecution because of what we now call "political correctness."  At that time it was just seen as politically cool to be extremely stupid.

Follow the link for more.

Alleged Shooter Jared Loughner May Have Met Rep. Giffords Previously Read

Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) and her husband Navy Capt. Mark Kelly.  

What you won't see in the Main Stream Media or the left-wing blogosphere in the coming days:  Jared Loughner was clearly not right-wing or a Tea Party activist.  He also wasn't a member of the Democrat Party.  He was, from a cursory look at his internet postings on MySpace and YouTube, someone who is best described as being several cards shy of a full deck.  His favorite books are reported to be listed as The Communist Manifesto and Mein Kampf.  (No, they are not mutually exclusive but are actually close cousins politically.)  But watch and see how liberals work to spin this to achieve a political advantage and cast this as something from the right.  They do this because they know no shame.

See also:  http://www.businessinsider.com/jared-lee-loughner-2011-1

Follow the link for more.

Mayor Bloomberg’s Office Spearheaded Drive for Ground Zero Mosque, New Docs Show

He'll allow pot and the Ground Zero Mosque but don't try to have a cigar in the park.  That offends him.  

So Mayor Nanny thinks that the public wanting to know who was behind the Ground Zero Mosque is "un-American."

My answer to that is, "Just who is un-American, Bloomy?"  What Bloomberg obviously wants to cover up is his direct involvement in an extremely unpopular action by an even more extremely questionable group of people.  And I wonder why?  Is it really just because he's embarrassed to have the truth come out or is there another, more venal reason?

Let's face it.  He may be a billionaire and the elected mayor of New York City but he's still very high on my personal list of troglodytes ranking right in there just below Nancy "The Nanny" Pelosi.  He's also someone who has lost all credibility on the subject of the Ground Zero Mosque.

Follow the link for the story.