Ignorant People Week

Hereforth are a few of the idiots we've come across in the news:

Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid called President Bush "dangerously incompetent" on Wednesday. Reid criticized Bush's statement Tuesday that his successor in the White House would likely be responsible for deciding when U.S. troops leave Iraq. "To me it shows how dangerously incompetent he is," Reid said. Reid, known for idiotic statements in the past & showing a woeful lack of knowledge of issues, is dangerously stupid. He also has not the aplomb nor civility to treat a sitting President with respect, no matter what his disagreement with the President. Reid is a fine example of a Democrat leader reduced to absurdity.

Hillary Clinton, official hag of the Senate, spoke on the Senate debate regarding an illegal immigration bill. Quoth the smartest woman in the world, "It is certainly not in keeping with my understanding of the Scriptures. This bill would literally criminalize the Good Samaritan and probably even Jesus himself." We find it appalling that the tainted Hillary of Whitewater days brings up Jesus for political points. She is obviously courting the Christian Right, or at least Chrisitans left, right, middle, sideways, up, down...well you get the picture. She'll have to wait for the Second Coming of you know who, to get their vote, no matter what she says. If she had any understanding of the Scriptures, as she claims, she would know that hers' is a ridiculous statement about Jesus to begin with. She may also have been less likely to be the corrupt, lying person that she is. By the way, in 2003 Hillary stated during a radio interview that she was "adamantly opposed to illegal immigrants." Jesus may have turned the other cheek, but Hillary turns on her other side - where ever the votes are. Guess she learned that from the Scriptures.

Finally, St. Paul, Minnesota, has banned the Easter Bunny. You heard it here, folks. A City Council secretary had put up a toy bunny, plastic eggs & the words "Happy Easter" in the lobby. St. Paul's human rights director, Tyrone Terrill, asked that the decorations be removed, saying they could be offensive to non-Christians. Uh-huh, yup, another politically correct idiot in government, another assault on the mainstay of our religious heritage. If it was a Muslim bunny or a gay bunny or a pagan bunny, odds are it would stay. Maybe removing Tyrone from not only the lobby, but from his job would be more appropriate.

Iraq War - 3nd Anniversary

It's been 3 years since the war in Iraq started. What have we accomplished, if anything?

1. We put the world on notice that the USA will strike, if need be.
2. We rid the Iraqis of a brutal dictator.
3. We freed 25 million Iraqis from the prison of Iraq.
4. They now worship freely, as they could not before.
5. They now have freedom of speech as they never had before.
6. They now have a vibrant press of varying opinion as they never had before.
7. They have had 3 free, democratic elections as they never had before.
8. They now have an infrastructure, long neglected by Saddam, which is being rebuilt, increasing power & bringing water to areas that never had it before.
9. Schools are being built & more children are being educated as never before.
10.Health facilities & vaccinations for children are increasing as never before.
11. The economy is growing as never before & Western products are finally reaching Iraqis.

Sure, there are negatives. What conflict is without one?
1. There are deaths & injuries, not only to our forces, but to innocent Iraqis.
2. There are the seemingly endless car bombings & killings.
3. There is still a lack of total or even partial security in some parts of Iraq.
4. There are the billions of dollars spent fighting the war & rebuilding the country.
5. There were the strategic mistakes & wrong decisions during & after the active conflict.

But overall, the situation is getting better, little by little. The number of US deaths is slowly dropping as are the number of terrorist bombings. More terrorists are being killed or captured. Large parts of Iraq are very peaceful - a point the media fails to take notice of.

Remember - the US is fighting not only the terrorists, but the foreign foot soldiers sent in or allowed in by Syria & Iran. They are fighting former Saddam loyalists & ex-Baathist Party members. They are fighting thousands of common criminals who Saddam released from prison when the war started.

The US military, as well as the Bush Administration, is also fighting the mainstream media, who have become in effect 5th columnists. The media from the 3rd day of the war was bemoaning the military's failings - the "stalled" offensive, when in fact the offensive was a quick & brilliant victory. The media, out of liberal bias or pure dislike of Bush, twisted & contorted events & played up events that went beyond the pale of what actually transpired. They failed to report the goods news or minimized it over the death & destruction that the media salivates for. They manipulated & managed the news to their advantage, rather then report it straight forward. The media in general has done a great disservice to the military & to the country. Scoundrels is the word that comes to mind.

Let's not forget the naysayers of Congress - especially those who voted for the war, who thought themselves that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction, but who saw fit to play politics with American soldier's lives by thrashing the war, the military, making extreme statements & outright falsehoods about the events in Iraq. Reprehensible is the word that comes to mind.

The American public, easily swayed by what they perceive as straight shooting & reporting by the media, is becoming more & more discontent with the post-war events in Iraq. They need to take heart, to remember that we must be in this for the long haul. If we pull out of Iraq prematurely, the Saddamites & terrorists will grab power - then the real slaughter of Iraqis will begin. A signal will be sent to the terrorists of the world that America does not have the stomach for long conflict, nor the staying power required to get the job done.

There is no alternative - we must complete the job in Iraq until that country's government can get on it's feet & secure the country themselves. A free & unfettered citizenry in Iraq in the midst of Arab countries with dictatorships will be the legacy America leaves to the world.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

We don't know why St. Patrick's Day is so big. We don't know the history of it either. We assume it started in Boston or New York City in the 19th century, owing to the large Irish populations in those cities back then.

We only found out late in our 30's that we have Irish in us. About a fifth. Which coincidentally fits in nicely with the Irish reputation for drinking. The family came over during the potato famine of the 1840's & 50's. It's a good thing the Irish were not vodka drinkers, I suppose.

Anyway, 1/5th of us salutes the rest of you with some old Irish sayings:

* May you be in heaven 1/2 hour before the devil knows you're dead.

* May your troubles be as few and as far apart as my Grandmothers teeth

* Here's to a long life and a merry one.
A quick death and an easy one.
A pretty girl and an honest one.
A cold pint-- and another one!

* May those who love us, love us.
And for those who don't love us,
May God turn their hearts.
And if he can not turn their hearts,
May he turn their ankles,
So we may know them by their limping.

* May you live as long as you want, and never want as long as you live

* May you alway walk in sunshine.
May you never want for more.
May Irish angels rest their wings right beside your door.

* May you never forget what is worth remembering,
Or remember what is best forgotten.

Federal Aid At Record Rate

A USA Today analysis reveals that since 2000 enrollment in 25 Federal aid programs such as health care, college aid & food stamps, has increased 17%. This is a record increase in the number of Americans receiving benefits.

The cost for these programs is $1.3 trillion dollars, up 22% since 2000 & accounts for more than half of Federal spending. Medicaid, the health care program for the poor, added 15 million beneficiaries over five years to become the nation's largest entitlement program.

At the same time, it was announced elsewhere that the National Debt is now $7 trillion - about $30,000 owed for each American.

The Federal government is out of control. Spending & entitlements are out of control. We are quickly becoming a Federal-dependent welfare state. The National Debt will only get worse - your children & grandchildren will bear the consequences of it.

Blame the Congress - they can't seem to stop spending your tax dollars on bloated entitlement programs & on pork barrel projects that have little resemblance to responsible tax-dollar spending. They refuse to even look at reduction of spending. It's Christmas every day of the year with these so-called representatives of the people.

Better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all - St. Augustine

Is it?? We came across this quote & began wondering about the wisdom of that statement. Is it really better to have loved & lost?

With love comes passion & feeling alive. All is right with the world, in most respects at least. With love comes excitement & sharing. With love comes joyousness. With love comes sense of worth & giving. All the postive emotions & explanations of love have filled countless books. But love is for the moment.

The emotions of losing a love, through any circumstance, are the antithesis of having one. A lost love is depression & sorrow. A lost love can be rage & hurt. A lost love is tears & pain. A lost love can be recrimination & hate. A lost love can be forever. Unless it's replaced with a new love.

For some, the pain of a lost love is assuaged by the fond memories of that love. For others, the joy of a love is overshadowed by the pain of losing it.

We guess it all depends on the intensity of the love - for every action, there is an equal & opposite reaction, to steal from a law of physics...& then some. It depends on the emotional make up of the person...the strong, the weak, the independent, the clinging, etc., etc., we guess.

Through personal experiences, we seem to side on never having loved.

Simon & Garfunkel's song, "I Am A Rock" has something to be said for never having loved:

Don’t talk of love,
But I’ve heard the words before;
It’s sleeping in my memory.
I won’t disturb the slumber of feelings that have died.
If I never loved I never would have cried.
I am a rock,
I am an island.


What say you?

South Dakota Bans Abortions

The Governor of South Dakota signed into law a bill banning almost all abortions - the exception being to save a women's life. Rape, incest, etc would not qualify for abortion procedures. The bill passed both houses of the South Dakota Legislature by a wide majority. The law takes effect in July. Doctors could get up to 5 years in prison for performing abortions.

Planned Parenthood & other abortion rights advocacy groups are having apoplexy & it is expected that an initiative will be placed on the ballot for Election Day to have voters rescind the new law. Meanwhile, it is expected that some judge somewhere will put a hold on the law. This will entail taking it to the Supreme Court.

What's surprising about the new law is that it is an in-your-face challenge to the Supreme Court ruling of 33 years ago - Roe vs Wade. Unlike other states which parsed their abortion laws to allow exceptions such as rape & incest, etc., the South Dakota law is not playing cute & trying to get around the Roe vs Wade ruling.

We have mixed feelings about the South Dakota law. We think abortions should be restricted - to a point. Though we agree that abortions for convenience sake should be banned, those women who are subjects of rape or incest are already victims & to further their anguish by compelling them to carry to term is wrong.

After the initial crime of rape or incest, if a woman is further devastated by a forced pregnancy, then where is the justice in that? We are not absolutists when it comes to abortion. And we understand the argument about a fetus being an innocent victim also. When there are two victims whose interests are diametrically opposite, the wisdom of Solomon may not even be sufficient.

Court: Military Recruiters On Campus Ok

The Supreme Court in a unanamous decision has ruled that colleges & universities cannot bar military recruiters from campuses. Some educational institutions had banned recruiters because of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays, claiming it was discriminatory. The court said that any institutions that banned recruiters were in violation of Federal law & were at risk of losing Federal funding. College funding by the government totals over $35 billion a year.

We applaud the court's decision. Colleges & universities are quick to ban the U.S. military from its campuses - witness the brouhaha of years past over ROTC on campuses. Considering that many educational institutions are flowing over the brim with liberal & outright radical professors, it should come as no surprise. They would sooner have a radical subversive as a speaker than a Marine officer. Yale University recently enrolled a former Taliban spokesman as a student, incredible as it may seem - & was glad to have him.

However, when it comes to taking taxpayer-funded dollars, colleges & universities seem to sell out their principles. Maybe they aren't so radical afterall. When it comes to the all-mighty dollar they tend to become Capitalists instead, though their Marxist professors still rant in their classrooms against Capitalism.