…because you just won’t have to walk tours, you may have to lose your head.
“White slips.” Discrepancy reports..gets demerits for you at one of the fine institutions of the South East. Exceed your monthly demerit quota and start with confinement, or maybe do not pass go and head straight for the Quad of Third Battalion to walk tours with your assigned M-14 over your shoulder.
One favorite discrepancy was “failure to get the word.” In this case, it will be “failure to pass the word,” if you don’t comply. the punishment? Not a fifty minute stint doing close order drill in the muggy Charleston afternoon heat, but the loss of liberty and justice, and far too many citizens.
The Islamist Head fake editorial in Investors Business Daily, tells a summarized story of what’s been coming out in almost not covered in the MSM’s pages: The Holy Land Foundation trial: The real conspiracy that has been occurring for decades in this country.
The lunatics can scream about how GWB planned the 9/11, purposely blew the WTC Towers, including #7, that the war on terror is all a construct for the much feared “military industrial complex” or a great string pulling by the puppet masters in Israel, but they will never find evidence (other than what they can manufacturer (if they are smart enough to get an IBM Selectric II on ebay)), because none of those theories are valid..
The one to subvert American politics, and use our own money to attempt to finance our own demise, has all to solid a “paper trail,” and it’s being exposed using clear rules of evidence in a formal court of law, not by some college kids with some chicken wire, a brick, some kerosene and a cheap digital video camera.
I’m passing the word, by linking the IBD editorial. You need to read it carefully and consider the implications of what has been set in place by the PC/multi-cultural environment. One commenter at Little Green Footballs remarked:
#6 Bearster 9/29/07 10:25:07 pm reply quote report 14
The worst thing about political correctness is not that it attacks white males. The worst is that it blocks the very attempt to think (or speak) clearly.
It’s not possible to accept the multicultural-diversity view and, at the same time, grasp that Islam’s goal is to kill or subjugate every non-muslim. As long as PC rules the country, we will continue to grant moral sanction, political power, foreign policy concessions, and aid and comfort to the enemy.
It’s really a race to see if we can shake off mind-numbing philosophy of PC, or if islam will destroy us first.
It is a race, one between reason and compassionate tolerance of those around us, or being led to the slaughter for holding dear the right to have our own religion, or not, and to let those around us practice theirs simultaneously.
Pass the word around…and invite others to understand the depth of the deception in our midst, and to discuss it appropriately with our elected representatives.
Said xformed @ 6:52 am Comments (0) | Permalink
Bill Clinton can’t get it. He really despised the military, as documented in several accounts, one being “Dereliction of Duty” by “Buzz” Patterson.
I say Bill is being Bill because he is saying the reaction to the non-repudiation by the Democrats and the call for censure by the Republicans is unfair. He raises the 4 year old campaign for Congress when Max Cleland ran. Well, that was politics and each candidate had the opportunity to fire virtual political broadsides at each other.
In the case of General Petraeus, for those who haven’t grasped it, he cannot defend himself in a political battle. The Uniform Code of Military Justice prevents the General from being disrespectful of those in leadership, and Bill Clinton certainly is one of them.
The attack by MoveOn.org was not a campaign type issue. It was, very directly, the libel of a senior serviceman, who by the UCMJ and the Hatch Act, cannot respond while in uniform. And, in this day and age, such as when General Peter Pace commented that he thought homosexuality was immoral, it doesn’t matter if you are physically wearing your uniform or not anymore, particularly for the officer corps of the services. The constant microscope of attention is 24/7 scrutiny…
So, Bill is doing what he has done: Justify squashing those who do not have the power to fight back, or in this case, those who are legally constrained from responding, and he thinks that’s just fine.
Besides, Bill is way off the mark when he says the Swift Boat people attacking jfk was wrong. Funny how Bill can discount the shipmates of jfk as lairs. He should know…because Bill is just being Bill.
Yep, and Hillary is cut from the same cloth.
Said xformed @ 12:01 am Comments (0) | Permalink
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Said Cao @ 9:18 pm Comments (3) | Permalink
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Said Cao @ 9:18 pm Comments (0) | Permalink
In what has to be one of the most disgusting,degraded, stomach turning and perverse acts of moral equivalence and complete insensitivity to the feelings and intelligence of just about every Australian, Amnesty International has sent a press release , asking Australians to plead for the lives of the Bali bombers
As can be expected, the immediate and absolute response to this act of, to put it bluntly, stupidity on a level that beggars belief , has been a torrent of livid replies, including at least fifty who would like nothing better than to pull the trigger and send these little monsters to the Hell they so richly deserve.
To add to the insult and outrage, Amnesty have added that this is in line with the “human rights” of the condemned.
Australia replies: What about the human rights of the TWO HUNDRED they murdered in cold blood??
NEVER FORGET
NEVER FORGIVE
Rope.
Tree.
Terrorist.
Assembly required.
Said Sonnabend @ 6:17 am Comments (0) | Permalink
Here is all you need to know about the Law of the Sea Treaty that the Democrat Senate is taking up this week: it will give the United Nations authority over the United States for the first time in world history, because a UN panel in Hamburg will have final arbitration authority about ocean navigation in international waters, with the power to forbid any shipping from entering any area of likely conflict, and to issue enormous fines to any country that disobeys–or worse. Do we really want to leave it to our America-hating detractors to determine or specify where our carrier groups or submarines can go in international waters?
A vibrant, powerful US Navy is all that the United States needs, and ever will need, to navigate the world’s seaways. If the Law of the Sea treaty had been in place in 1962, the anti-American UN might have forbidden the US from blockading Cuba. And if it had done so anyway, the UN would then have “justified” in “requiring”millions of dollars of US fines for running an ‘illegal’ blockade. And the Sovs would have put its nukes into Cuba.
Yeah–give me some of that… just what America needs.
Is it just me, or is there anyone else reading this who is scratching their heads as to why the United States would even consider ceding such power or soverighity to any external government–especially a hostile UN, which seemingly lives primarily to foil pretty much anything the US sets out to do of any consequence, all paid for primarily by the US! So we should let guys like Kim Jong Il, Assad, and Ahmadinejad have any input whatsoever into how we conduct our business? Or some EU bureaucrats in Germany? It is worse than irresponsible; it is utter madness. It is insanity.
Whether or not this happens is up to us. If we don’t do it, it isn’t going to get done. We did it once for the Immigration Bill. We did it again when MoveOn tried to smear Petraeus. And yes, we have to suck it up and go through it all again. It is that important. Contact your Senators now. And the President. Tell them what you think of putting the United Nations in charge of where the US Navy can and cannot go.
Said Discerning Texan @ 10:47 pm Comments (0) | Permalink
X Posted at Cao’s blog, STACLU, and Chaotic Synaptic Activity
Flight 93 has once again been hijacked by the terrorists.
After deliberating on this for a while, I’ve decided to start a blogburst regarding the Flight 93 Memorial in order to keep the calculations that verified its orientation to Mecca from going down the memory hole.
In addition, I think bringing heightened awareness to the mosque features of the memorial and other facts are important because they’re moving to start construction of this monstrosity at the crash site.
If you want to join the blogroll/blogburst for the Crescent of Betrayal blogburst, email me at caoilfhionn1 at gmail dot com, with your blog’s url address. The blogburst will be sent out once a week to the participants, the plan is- we will all be posting simultaneously on this issue on Wednesdays.
Of course, I will fully expect that you will post on this if you join the blogburst. I’ll keep an email list, and if you don’t post on it, your url will come off the blogroll, and your email address will come off the list.
Thanks to Stop the ACLU
Said Cao @ 9:02 pm Comments (1) | Permalink
Crossposted from Stop The ACLU
Recently, the ACLU set their doomsday clock at six minutes before midnight! Once it reaches the ‘dark hour’ of midnight…we will be slaves to the ominous and evil ’surviellance society’. This isn’t science fiction. This is typical scare tactics from the ACLU.
They prey upon the paranoid. This is how they get donations to fund their machine. They cry about “American citizens being spied upon” when in fact there is no evidence that anyone has been hurt by the government’s terrorist surviellance program.
While the ACLU cry that they are the guardian’s of liberty, and that privacy is one of those liberties….they have been exposed as being violators of that very liberty. They have a massive database of their own member’s private financial information they use for soliciting donations.
The group’s new data collection practices were implemented without the board’s approval or knowledge and were in violation of the ACLU’s privacy policy at the time, according to Michael Meyers, vice president of the organization and a frequent internal critic. He said he had learned about the new research by accident Nov. 7 during a meeting of the committee that is organizing the group’s Biennial Conference in July.
He objected to the practices, and the next day, the privacy policy on the group’s Web site was changed. “They took out all the language that would show that they were violating their own policy,” Meyers said. “In doing so, they sanctified their procedure while still keeping it secret.”
Now the ACLU are proudly defending Rep. Larry Craig on grounds of privacy. In another recent case they are defending a “pre-operative transsexual” anatomically male’s “right” to use the female public restroom. Terrence Jeffrey calls out the ‘privacy hypocrisy’ on this one.
“The government does not have a constitutionally sufficient justification for making private sex a crime,” said the ACLU. “It follows that an invitation to have private sex is constitutionally protected and may not be made a crime. This is so even where the proposition occurs in a public place, whether in a bar or a restroom.”
But then the ACLU went a step further, arguing that there is not only a right to solicit sex, but also to engage in it, in a public restroom.
“The Minnesota Supreme Court,” said the ACLU, “has already ruled that two men engaged in sexual activity in a department store restroom with the stall door closed had a reasonable expectation of privacy. They were, the Court held, therefore acting in a private, not a public place.”
The conflated logic of the ACLU’s bathroom briefs seems to be that someone entering a public restroom intending to use it for traditional purposes has no protection either from the gender sign posted at the door or from the otherwise vaunted right to privacy. Someone entering a public restroom intending to solicit and engage in sex, on the other hand, is protected by both the First Amendment and the right to privacy.
What else would you expect from a group that embraces an ideology that holds that partially born babies have no right to keep their skulls intact?
Indeed. As my good friend Glib Fortuna puts it:
This about sums up the ACLU’s worldview. To the ACLU, the only “freedom” the ACLU truly believes in is “sexual freedom” and the concomitant “right” of people who choose aberrant sexual behavior to be free of any criticism and free from anyone else exercising common sense (and more threateningly, religious liberty) if it “infringes” on these “rights” recently invented by the ACLU and its partisans.
This was a production of Stop The ACLU Blogburst. If you would like to join us, please email Jay at Jay@stoptheaclu.com or Gribbit at GribbitR@gmail.com. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 200 blogs already onboard.
Said Jay777 @ 5:57 pm Comments (2) | Permalink
She faced up to 30 years for conspiring with a terrorist and got a slap on the wrist of 28 months in October of last year. So how is it that she is able to teach a class now? The judge said Stewart could remain free while she appeals, a process that could take more than a year. Is this still going on?
And of all things, she will teach a law school about ethics? What ethics?
A disbarred lawyer convicted of aiding terrorists will be teaching at an upcoming law school ethics conference.
Lynne Stewart, who was found guilty of conspiring with terrorist Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman, will be speaking October 16 at Hofstra Law School’s “Legal Ethics: Lawyering on the Edge,” in Hempstead, New York.
The speaking engagement comes only a year after Stewart was sentenced to twenty-eight months in prison on charges of conspiracy and providing material support to terrorists.
Prosecutors alleged that Stewart had passed on messages to Abdel Rahman’s radical Muslim followers, authorizing a resumption of terrorist operations against the Egyptian government.
As a result of the convictions, Stewart was automatically disbarred from practicing law.
Her client, Abdel Rahman, was convicted in 1996 of plots to bomb landmarks around New York City.
Stewart will be speaking at Hofstra Law School’s 2007 Legal Ethics Conference, “Lawyering at the Edge: Unpopular Clients, Difficult Cases, Zealous Advocates.” The conference is scheduled for October 14 to 16, 2007 in the Sidney R. Siben and Walter Siben Moot Courtroom (room 308) of Hofstra Law School.
According to the University’s website, the conference will feature “dynamic speakers who will weigh in on controversial issues such as prosecutorial abuse, the challenges of representing prisoners at Guantanamo, and attacks on lawyers who represent unpopular clients and causes.”
You have got to be kidding me! Last I heard, she was granted medical stay because of her breast cancer. She’s well enough to teach a class…I think she’s well enough to serve her time….as little as it is. This woman is a traitor. She shouldn’t be given the time of day, much less a teaching job….of ETHICS for goodness sakes! These students are most likely future ACLU lawyers!
Crossposted from Stop The ACLU
Said Jay777 @ 9:09 pm Comments (0) | Permalink
Just speculation on my part:
Abortion, it’s the tie that binds. Seems obtuse I know, but think about this: Abortion is about getting rid of unwanted people. Abortion is merely genocide before the full term of life is attained.
Therein lies the kindred mindset…
Update 9/26/2007: I got thinking that sometimes the people aren’t always unwanted, either…the “inconvenient” ones fall in this class for both groups, too.
Said xformed @ 5:38 pm Comments (0) | Permalink
We’ve seen it all before. Only a fool wants a another rerun!
Hillary Clinton took to the Sunday morning news programs in what could only be called a “Sunday surge.”
In this well choreographed display, she proved her mettle at spinning the hard questions and always, always sticking to her prepared talking point script. When asked a tough one, like Chris Wallace did regarding Hillary and Bill’s “hyper-partisan view of politics,” Hillary responded with what Ben Smith of the Politico described as her”signature cackle” (audio here).
No doubt, as Halloween approaches, children across the land will begin emulating that cackle as they prepare for Trick or Treat.
Hillary did face one question on the Hsu fundraising scandal outlined in posts below. She dodged it expertly by repeating her commitment to public campaign financing. But it’s this new scandal which reminds us all how of what we all lived through in the 1990’s and what we would likely face again if the Clintons were returned to the White House.
Clinton Campaign Finance Scandal: History Repeats Itself!
For those of us who know history didn’t start on the day George Bush was elected President (ooops! for Democrats that would be the day Bush STOLE the election). We remember the Clinton years that preceded the Bush presidency.
It was a time of willful ignorance as terrorist threats to our country mounted. It was also a time of seemingly never-ending scandal in the Clinton White House.
And yet, those scandals had their roots years before anyone every dreamed of Special Prosecutor Ken Starr, Newt Gingrich or Linda Tripp. The roots of those scandals grow deep in the soil of Arkansas.
And in the present day, when the Hsu Chinese funny money scandal reared it’s ugly head, yours truly hopped on a plane and jetted off to Little Rock and Hot Springs Arkansas to kick over a few rocks and shine light once again on the naked truth behind the real Bill and Hillary Clinton.
What follows is a photo-report of that trip. A walk down memory lane. It starts appropriately enough at the Chinese Restaurant which sparked the Chinese funny money scandals which rocked the Clinton White House:
Fu Lin’s Restaruant: With Eggroll you get Illegal Chinese Contributions
Fu Lin’s is the Little Rock Chinese Restaurant once owned by Charlie Trie. One translation of “Fu Lin” is “”enrich your neighbor.” Certainly that was the intention of those who frequented the restaurant which became a hangout for the Clinton’s and Little Rock big shots.
Charlie promised his Chinese communist friends that Bill Clinton as President would be a good thing. And even before Clinton took office “hordes” of Chinese communists beat a path to Little Rock to cash in.
Charlie, along with the other Chinese bag man Johnny Chung (pictured with Bill and Hillary at a White House Christmas party escorting Chinese cronies), ended up dumping bags of money orders for various Clinton schemes at the DNC and escorting the same “hordes” who descended on Little Rock to the infamous White House Coffees (guest lists here). Campaign contributions were also arranged using Chinese Communist funds to reimburse contributors.
Charlie skipped the country rather than testify to congressional committees investigating these events. But he did return to face criminal charges in a very lenient plea deal that required no jail time, probation and a small fine.
So next time you hear Hillary express her support for public financing of campaigns. Ask which public she’s referring to. Americans or Chinese?
For fun, test your memory and play the campaign finance scandal match game!
Seeing the World Through Rose Law Firm Glasses
Next stop on our Clinton Scandal Tour is the Rose Law Firm.
Not every Yale Law grad rates a partnership in a prestigious law firm. Not even in Arkansas. But in Hillary Clinton, the partners of the Rose Law Firm recognized a certain quality they wanted. She was the wife of then Attorney General and later Governor Bill Clinton. That’s a pretty solid recommendation if you want to make things happen in Arkansas.
And things happened all right. Mrs. Clinton must have spent a lot of time at Fu Lin’s Chinese Restaurant as she seemed to develop an instant knack for “enriching” her neighbors and herself while at Rose. CNN has the Whitewater timeline which describes endless shady financial dealings, including the infamous cattle futures scandal.
The Rose Law Firm also introduced a host of Arkansas characters to the nation’s attention:
- Partner Vince Foster, the White House Counsel who later committed suicide in circumstances which continue to raise questions.
- Partner Webster Hubbell, who later became Associate Attorney General and went to jail for tax evasion and mail fraud in connection with billing records at Rose. Hubbell later received hundreds of thousands of dollars in “consulting” contracts to keep him quiet.
- Partner William H. Kennedy III became Associate White House Counsel and played a role in the White House Travel Office firings and the 900 Republican FBI files scandal. He left Washington when it was learned he didn’t pay taxes for his family’s nanny. Before leaving office, President Clinton rewarded him by appointing him to the Board of the Student Loan Marketing Association.
- Carolyn Huber, former Office Manager at Rose went on to work as an Assistant to First Lady Hillary Clinton. Carolyn’s job was to look after the personal and private correspondence of the Clintons. It was Ms. Huber who found the infamous missing Rose Law firm billing records which were found with Hillary Clinton’s fingerprints. Huber is also reported as removing sensitive Clinton papers from Vince Foster’s death following his suicide.
The significance of the Rose Law Firm records cannot be overstated. They directly contradict Hillary Clinton’s statements on Whitewater where Hillary claimed she played only a minor role. (two resources for more information: PBS Frontline and the Washington Post – No right wing conspiracy here)
Court House for Some Friends of Bill…. Justice Still to be Done for Others
Above is the Federal Court House in Little Rock. It was to become famous as the spot where a Grand Jury indicted Susan McDougal for Obstruction of Justice for failing to answer questions regarding the White Water land and bank scandal.
Without McDougal’s cooperation, there was no possibility of indicting Hillary Clinton for her role in White Water. In Clinton’s Presidential Library McDougal is praised for her role in protecting Hillary.
Charlie Trie entered his lenient plea deal here also.
Refresher on White Water in this extensive Washington Post report.
Hillary Was Busy…. So Was Bill
While Hillary was busy making a fast buck and signing up partners in crime, Bill was busy…busy being Bill:
Saying it with Flowers…. Gennifer Flowers!
Quapaw Tower overlooks a Catholic school and MacArthur Park in downtown Little Rock. According to the sworn statement of Gennifer Flowers taken in the Paula Jones sexual harassment case, then Governor Bill Clinton recommended Gennifer lease an apartment there as he had aides who lived in the building and it wouldn’t be so suspicious for him to visit there.
Bill Clinton’s affair with Gennifer Flowers went on for 12 years and Gennifer even saved audio tape phone messages. Clinton even arranged for Flowers to be hired to work as a state employee for the Arkansas Board of Review Appeals Tribunal. But that didn’t buy her silence
When the news of their affair leaked during Bill’s 1992 campaign for President he denied it categorically. And of course Hillary was trotted out in a 60 Minutes interview with Bill on Super Bowl Sunday (partial transcript) as they attempted to save Bill’s struggling campaign in New Hampshire. It was during that interview where she made her famous statement: “I’m not sitting here – some little woman standing by my man like Tammy Wynette.”
Oddly enough, she would have to replay that Tammy Wynette role again in the White House and deny the Monica Lewinsky allegations. But like nearly all of Bill and Hillary’s denials, they would eat their words. And their supporters would lap up that meal of crow right along with them!
For a Gennifer Flowers refresher, here is a transcript of Ms. Flowers 2001 interview with Larry King.
“I did not have Sex with that woman…Ms. Lewinsky”….. Ms. Flowers…. Ms. Jones…. Ms. Broadderick…Ms. Kyle-Browning… (more) “I never told anyone to lie, not a single time - never!”
Gennifer Flowers statement and President Clinton’s admission in his March 1998 testimony that he had lied about their relationship was necessitated by the lawsuit Paula Jones filed claiming that then Governor Bill Clinton exposed himself to Ms. Jones here in what was then the Excelsior, now the Peabody, Hotel.
In her declaration to the court, Ms. Jones described how she was lured to the hotel room and Bill Clinton’s unwanted advances eventually leading to Clinton dropping his pants, exposing his penis and telling Ms. Jones to “kiss it.” If only Senator Larry Craig had done something similar instead of tapping his foot in men’s room he might still be in the Senate!
Jones lost her sexual harrasment suit, but President Clinton agreed to an out of court settlement of $850,000 while the dismissal was on appeal.
“You Better Put Some Ice on That:” The Rape of Juanita Broadderick
Juanita Broaddrick, then Mrs. Hickey owned a nursing home in Van Buren, Arkansas and it was there that candidate for Attorney General Bill Clinton stopped in 1978 for a campaign event. Bill invited her to visit him at the campaign office in Little Rock if she was ever down that way.
While attending a nursing home convention in the capital, she phoned and Bill arranged for the two to meet for coffee at the Camelot (now the Doubletree) coffee shop. Bill rang later and suggested they meet in her room instead.
Once inside Bill forced his attentions on Juanita, biting her lip in the process. When he was finished, he turned and told her to “put some ice on that.”
(full transcript of NBC Dateline report here)Two weeks later, Hillary insisted on meeting Juanita at a campaign event. Juanita describes the strangeness of that meeting in this video interview with Sean Hannity.Two weeks later, Hillary insisted on meeting Juanita at a campaign event. Juanita describes the strangeness of that meeting in this with Sean Hannity.In October 2000 as Hillary was running for Senate, Ms. Broaddrick sent Hillary a letter titled “Do you remember me?” In it, she recalls that meeting with Hillary:
Two weeks later, Hillary insisted on meeting Juanita at a campaign event. Juanita describes the strangeness of that meeting in this with Sean Hannity.In October 2000 as Hillary was running for Senate, Ms. Broaddrick sent Hillary a letter titled In it, she recalls that meeting with Hillary:
Do You Remember Me?
An Open Letter to Hillary Clinton
by Juanita Broaddrick
October 15,2000…Do you remember how you thanked me, saying “we want to thank you for everything that you do for Bill”. At that point, I was pretty shaken and started to walk off. Remember how you kept a tight grip on my hand and drew closer to me? You repeated your statement, but this time with a coldness and look that I have seen many times on television in the last eight years. You said, “Everything you do for Bill”.
…
What did you mean, Hillary? Were you referring to my keeping quiet about the assault I had suffered at the hands of your husband only two weeks before? Were you warning me to continue to keep quiet? We both know the answer to that question.Yes, I can answer Brit Hume’s question. You are the same Hillary that you were twenty years ago. You are cold, calculating and self-serving. You cannot tolerate the thought that you will soon be without the power you have wielded for the last eight years. Your effort to stay in power will be at the expense of the state of New York.
I only hope the voters of New York will wake up in time and realize that Hillary Clinton is not an honorable or an honest person.
You Deserve A Break Today….
After all that heavy lifting with Gennifer Flowers, Paula Jones, Juanita Broaddrick and so many, MANY more Bill always seemed to need a bit of comfort food. The McDonalds on Broadway was one of his favorites.
And it’s a good place for us to reset the visual pallette as we head off into fantasy land:
The Clinton Liebrary: A Fantasy Paradise for Nostalgia Starved Liberals!
It sits jutting out over the Arkansas River like a mobile home that someone backed up a bit too far over the bank. It almost connects to a rusted out and disused railroad bridge that extends over the river. Is it that elusive “Bridge to the 21st Century” that Bill talked about?
Inside, you won’t find Monica’s blue dress, and barely a mention of impeachment. What you will see is one long, highly partisan display of historical revisionism run rampant.
The interior is well designed and appealing, and the Cabinet Room and Oval Office recreation to scale are interesting.
But what I found most interesting was one of the alcoves titled “Fight for Power.” It begins with a photograph of Newt Gingrich and a description of how “” (highlighted in the exhibit) sought to bring down Bill Clinton. The display went on to glorify the government shutdown, (Clinton’s 1995 address here) which gave federal workers a week’s paid holiday, then remarked on how the Republicans had forced Clinton to sign the renewal of the law authorizing Special Prosecutors. Next, cue photo of Ken Starr and again those wascally wepublicans were at it again, this time impeaching good ole Bill. (highlighted in the exhibit) sought to bring down Bill Clinton. The display went on to glorify the government shutdown, (Clinton’s 1995 address ) which gave federal workers a week’s paid holiday, then remarked on how the Republicans had forced Clinton to sign the renewal of the law authorizing Special Prosecutors. Next, cue photo of Ken Starr and again those wascally wepublicans were at it again, this time impeaching good ole Bill.
Said Mike's America @ 4:05 pm Comments (0) | Permalink
The idea of free will has always intrigued me. It is significant in so many aspects of human life and interaction. Society, philosophy, religion, and governance to name a few of the most encompassing.
The argument against its existence does not interest me. Nor does, in this essay, from whence it comes. It is simply a priori to the human condition and is what to a large extent makes us human in the first place.
Here I will opine as to its affect on society and what would seem to be free will’s natural bias towards a certain type of human governance.
But in order to do this, first we must agree that humans over all other creatures on this planet are endowed with the largest dose of free will. And that access to free will is in direct correlation to intelligence among species. This seems so simple a proposition that it needn’t be mentioned, but I fear there are those who would argue the case. If you fit into this category, you may choose to use your free will and read no further for my thoughts and arguments will likely fall on deaf ears.
We remaining are now, I presume, in agreement that we as a species among all others on this planet are endowed with the highest degree of free will. So, then, what can this teach us about society and governance? Let us first look at the lack of free will in lower creatures that live within social groups.
Bees and ants have highly formed social structures. All individuals work together for the good of the collective. Some gather, some tend the queen, still others protect the whole. Yet, we can all agree there is no free will here. These creatures act and interact per their genetic programming. They are simply parts of the whole, not really individuals at all. Their lives are predetermined, there is no choice involved.
Now let us look at more advanced animals that live within social communities. Wolves and lions inhabit such social constructs. As compared to the social insects, it should be obvious to all that these creatures have a higher degree of free will.
So how does this affect their social interactions? They do not, as bees and ants, have predisposed roles to fill. So here a caste system develops. The strongest and most intimidating become the leaders. The weaker are designated to wait their turn for food and breeding. These weaker still have some amount of free will, but the strong use their power to impel the weak to submit. Still, the weak of the pack will often test the strong. They will either be rebuked or become the strong themselves.
So what does all this have to do with the idea of human free will? Well, first one should be able to see that the more free will a creature possesses the less the idea of a collective makes any sense at all. Creatures, such as the bees and ants mentioned above, with no free will are perfect candidates for the collective society. They do not question or want, they act. Yet in the higher animals, our wolves and lions with some level of free will, other strategies must be implemented in order to keep a stable society. Why? Well, partially because the impulse towards a rebellion against authority is inherent in the notion of free will. And as mentioned above the lower class, the weak, often test the strong. They wish to exert their free will. As we possess more free will than any other creature, this is even more so the case in humans.
This is an important point and one that should teach us something about the preferred form of human governance. Free will has as a basic tenet an urge to resist authority, to exert itself. This is its very essence. And we are imbued as no other animal with this essence. So then what type of government makes the most sense for humanity?
Surely, not collectivism. We are individuals with particular wants, needs, and cares. We are not robots destined by our genetic structure to fit only preordained roles. Our complexity relocates the idea of a human collective society to a quaint but naive concept. Our free will further invalidates collectivism as we naturally want more and better for ourselves and ours, and willfully work towards that end. Free will offers us choices, in our lives and in our actions. This aspect does not easily fit into a collectivist society.
The caste system does not seem a proper fit for humans as it is for the wolf or the lion. It grates against all that we feel is just. It lends toward one class to despise and envy the other. Free will demands the human question why he is stuck in one immutable class. He wishes to act upon his want by moving up and out. After all free will at its most basic is about choice. And the human longs for personal choice.
A large intrusive nanny state is also not the answer. It seems to me that small government Conservatives have the right idea. They, many unconsciously I will admit, better understand the inherent resistance towards authority that free will impels. Big government advocates, you know who you are, appreciate the urge to “question authority” or “speak truth to power”, but they miss what this impulse means on the societal whole. They seem not to understand that the more government there is, the more force from above, the more free will induces the human to want to force back. This in turn causes more government imposition and the cycle often repeats itself until tyranny is the result. More, these big government advocates love to harp on the idea of personal choice, but seem not to realize that the larger and more intrusive the government the less true free choice there can actually be.
One can look at free will as a blessing or a curse, but one cannot deny it is a part of the human condition. And as a part, we need to respect it. We need to learn what it can teach us about ourselves. What kind of society, governance, and community makes the most sense for free willed beings. And then use that free will, itself, to establish just such a society.
Said Glen @ 9:00 am Comments (0) | Permalink
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See the rest at Cao’s blog here
Said Cao @ 8:58 pm Comments (1) | Permalink
The CatHouse and the Wide Awakes bow in prayer and thanksgiving for a fallen hero, and the honorable example he lived.
But even thousands of miles away, in Ramadi, Iraq, the cries and screams and complaints of the ungrateful reach me. In a year, I will be thrust back into society from a life and mentality that doesn’t fit your average man. And then, I will be alone. And then, I will walk down the streets of America, and see the yellow ribbon stickers on the cars of the same people who compare our President to Hitler.
I will watch the television and watch the Cindy Sheehans, and the Al Frankens, and the rest of the ignorant sheep of America spout off their mouths about a subject they know nothing about. It is their right, however, and it is a right that is defended by hundreds of thousands of boys and girls scattered across the world, far from home. I use the word boys and girls, because that’s what they are. In the Army, the average age of the infantryman is nineteen years old. The average rank of soldiers killed in action is Private First Class.
People like Cindy Sheehan are ignorant. Not just to this war, but to the results of their idiotic ramblings, or at least I hope they are. They don’t realize its effects on this war. In this war, there are no Geneva Conventions, no cease fires. Medics and Chaplains are not spared from the enemy’s brutality because it’s against the rules. I can only imagine the horrors a military Chaplain would experience at the hands of the enemy. The enemy slinks in the shadows and fights a coward’s war against us. It is effective though, as many men and women have died since the start of this war. And the memory of their service to America is tainted by the inconsiderate remarks on our nation’s news outlets. And every day, the enemy changes…only now, the enemy is becoming something new. The enemy is transitioning from the Muslim extremists to Americans. The enemy is becoming the very people whom we defend with our lives. And they do not realize it. But in denouncing our actions, denouncing our leaders, denouncing the war we live and fight, they are isolating the military from society…and they are becoming our enemy.
Democrats and peace activists like to toss the word “quagmire” around and compare this war to Vietnam. In a way they are right, this war is becoming like Vietnam. Not the actual war, but in the isolation of country and military. America is not a nation at war; they are a nation with its military at war. Like it or not, we are here, some of us for our second, or third times; some even for their fourth and so on. Americans are so concerned now with politics, that it is interfering with our war.
Terrorists cut the heads off of American citizens on the internet…and there is no outrage, but an American soldier kills an Iraqi in the midst of battle, and there are investigations, and sometimes soldiers are even jailed…for doing their job. [all emphasis mine]
This is an excerpt from an essay written on February 1st of this year by SGT Eddie Jeffers, and I would urge you to read it, as well as two others, “Freedom Feels Good,” and “Real Deal in Ramadi.”
On Thursday, September 20, 2007, SGT Jeffers laid down his life for the ideals and convictions he cherished. Thank God for his Christian convictions: because of them, SGT Jeffers was ushered into the presence of his Lord and Savior by a host of angels. And I know that as he knelt at the foot of the Throne, he was blessed when God his Savior reached down, lifted him up and said,
“Well done, thou good and faithful servant! You have been faithful in a few things, and I will give you charge over many. Enter into the joy of your Lord!”
SGT Jeffers’ father wrote,
It is with great personal sadness but joy in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that I announce the death of my son Eddie Jeffers. Eddie was killed around 7 am Iraqi time from an accidental vehicle roll-over. Although our personal loss is traumatic, we know he is in a better place. All of you have been so wonderful to my son and my family and he was so blessed and humbled by your love for him. He told me this past summer after the wonderful gift you gave his wife and him that he didn’t understand why people were so generous and kind to him. You see to Eddie, he was just doing his job and what he believed was his life mission from God.
I’ve said this often; Eddie was my hero. My dear brother in Christ Rod Martin told me that Eddie died a hero for not just the soldier he was but the person. Eddie, through his writing, touched so many people’s lives, yours and you so lovingly touched ours back.
We thank you in advance for your condolences and prayers. Please pray especially for Eddie’s wife Stephanie; as you can imagine she is devastated. Our prayer is that Eddie’s death will exalt Christ as did his life.In lieu of any flowers we are asking all donations be given to the Fisher House in memory of Eddie; he loved that charity.
Will you join me in honoring an American hero, who followed his Savior in laying down his life for his friends? Please donate as much as you can to Fisher House, which “…donates ‘comfort homes,’ built on the grounds of major military and VA medical centers. These homes enable family members to be close to a loved one at the most stressful times - during the hospitalization for an unexpected illness, disease, or injury.”
And will you also read his essays, and commit to cherishing and nurturing this great country that he loved so much?
Let’s honor him - and his fallen brethren - by bringing our troops home… VICTORIOUSLY!
(Crossposted from CatHouse Chat)
Said Romeocat @ 11:32 am Comments (1) | Permalink
I wanted to embed the video here, too, but Motionbox is not cooperating today [pout].
But go on over to his site and watch the video. Jason Mattera appears on Hannity&Colmes along with Murtha apologist Jane Fleming Kleeb - and, frankly, Mattera wins the round. In one exchange, he asks Alan Colmes quite pointedly why Colmes is “carrying water” for Murtha!
Let’s take a look at some of the facts of the matter. Last year, several Marines were accused of murder. Before it went to trial, before the military investigation had even started, Rep. John Murtha (Backbiter - PA), called them cold-blooded murderers on national television. Although he pleads that he had an “inside tip” from a military source, he nevertheless condemned them without a trial and without them facing all the evidence against them in front of a jury of their peers.
Congressman Murtha, it is my understanding that “innocent until proven guilty” is STILL a founding principle of our justice system. I understand that at the core of our system, we would still prefer to let a guilty person free, rather than wrongfully convict an innocent. It is also my understanding that, when the accused person is brought to trial, it is the JURY - and not bystanders, no matter their supposed “position” in our government - that decides the innocence or guilt of the accused. And finally, particularly in the case of murder, the jury must be convinced beyond reasonable doubt of the accused’s guilt.
Three of those Marines have now been cleared, and it is my understanding that at least three more will have the charges against them dropped by the end of the year. That may or may not happen, I agree, but you see, I am conforming to the American precedent of assuming they’re innocent until they’re proven guilty - something that Congressman Murtha apparently feels does not apply to him.
Alan Colmes cannot face this, and so he attempted to attack Gen. Mattis’ character, referring to the General’s statement from quite a while ago that he enjoyed killing the terrorists. May I ask Mr. Colmes what that has to do with the facts outlined above? Aside from setting up a strawman, Mr. Colmes, what were you trying to prove? Were you suggesting that our brave and honorable military should feel guilty about ridding the world of such amoral and murderous barbarians in a wartime situation? For my part, I celebrate with them each time they take down those intolerant, cowardly, and brutal sub-human bastards. I agree with the General that it cleans up the gene-pool!
And Ms Kleeb, when Sean Hannity asked you whether the Marines deserved an apology when-and-if they were cleared, you avoided the question. The Congressman will “move on”? In other words, he’ll try to sweep his slander under the rug, and run away from the consequences of his ill-considered, anti-American, and libelous words, right?
Frankly, I think that Murtha ought to be horsewhipped, stripped of his seat in Congress, and sued for malignant defamation of character.
And that would still be too good for him!
(Crossposted from CatHouse Chat)
Said Romeocat @ 10:14 am Comments (3) | Permalink
