G K Chesterton analyzes literature.
THE 'Iliad' is only great because all life is a battle, the 'Odyssey' because all life is a journey, the Book of Job because all life is a riddle.--"The Defendant"
HT: VeniSancte
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Ban the Guns, Eh?
The Reliably Lefty guy posts a comment which is, uh, puzzling, anent the Latin Kings shooter.
In the post, I proposed that the MPD pursue the individual(s) who sold him/gave him the gun. It HAD to be an illegal transaction.
Enter Capper:
But then again, if the gun was not available, regardless of the cause, would he have been able to use it?
He implies that handguns should be banned in the USA. There's no other way to implement his hypothetical question.
Hmmmmmm.
There are about 100 million handguns in the USA.
There are about 20 million illegal aliens in the USA.
The Left maintains that we "cannot possibly" grab-and-export 20 million people.
So how in Hell can we "grab and confiscate" 100 million handguns?
In the post, I proposed that the MPD pursue the individual(s) who sold him/gave him the gun. It HAD to be an illegal transaction.
Enter Capper:
But then again, if the gun was not available, regardless of the cause, would he have been able to use it?
He implies that handguns should be banned in the USA. There's no other way to implement his hypothetical question.
Hmmmmmm.
There are about 100 million handguns in the USA.
There are about 20 million illegal aliens in the USA.
The Left maintains that we "cannot possibly" grab-and-export 20 million people.
So how in Hell can we "grab and confiscate" 100 million handguns?
Ethanol Mandate: Buy New Outdoor Power Engines
Not only will Corn-A-Hole continue making food more expensive, as most typical foods depend on corn (or ARE corn)--it will endanger your lawnmower, snowblower, leafblower, and small-power generator's engine(s). Not to mention your motorcycle, ATV, or boat-engine.
Trust me, folks, the engine is the REALLY expensive part of those doodads.
The bill will adversely impact Wisconsin engine and outdoor equipment manufacturers. After the bill’s 10% ethanol mandate ratchets up to 15%, 20% and 25% their will be problems with spark ignition engines (many of which are manufactured or assembled here in Wisconsin).
Manufacturers have significant engine wear, performance and carburetion concerns with respect to ethanol blends above 10%, which could result in warranty and product reliability issues. The engines are manufactured and calibrated to combust up to 10% ethanol, but not more than that. The Engine Manufacturers Association (EMA) and the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI) are opposed to this legislation because of these concerns.
With all due regard for the P&L(s) of Kohler, Briggs, Generac, and Tecumseh, I don't really give a rat's patoot about THEIR problems.
I don't like that stuff about "engine wear, performance, and carburetion concerns" for equipment that I own, especially when it leads to "product reliability issues."
Maybe a little "product reliability" concerns among Senate bozos who approve the mandate would be a good thing. But I'm not thinking of their snowblowers...
HT: Sykes
Trust me, folks, the engine is the REALLY expensive part of those doodads.
The bill will adversely impact Wisconsin engine and outdoor equipment manufacturers. After the bill’s 10% ethanol mandate ratchets up to 15%, 20% and 25% their will be problems with spark ignition engines (many of which are manufactured or assembled here in Wisconsin).
Manufacturers have significant engine wear, performance and carburetion concerns with respect to ethanol blends above 10%, which could result in warranty and product reliability issues. The engines are manufactured and calibrated to combust up to 10% ethanol, but not more than that. The Engine Manufacturers Association (EMA) and the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI) are opposed to this legislation because of these concerns.
With all due regard for the P&L(s) of Kohler, Briggs, Generac, and Tecumseh, I don't really give a rat's patoot about THEIR problems.
I don't like that stuff about "engine wear, performance, and carburetion concerns" for equipment that I own, especially when it leads to "product reliability issues."
Maybe a little "product reliability" concerns among Senate bozos who approve the mandate would be a good thing. But I'm not thinking of their snowblowers...
HT: Sykes
William Jennings Bryan on Ethanol
In a message delivered posthumously to the Wisconsin Legislature, Bryan said:
"Do Not Crucify Me on a Cross of Corn!!"
Honest! That's what he said!!
"Do Not Crucify Me on a Cross of Corn!!"
Honest! That's what he said!!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Convicted Criminal Got a Gun?
Here's an excerpt from the JS story about the robber/killer of Walker's Point.
So, you anti-gun folks, just where and how did this charmer get a gun? He didn't buy it from a Federally licensed dealer, folks.
Says right there in this news report that he should NOT have one. Obviously, he didn't take that too seriously--nor did the criminal who SOLD him the gun.
One wonders if the MPD is pursuing the seller of the weapon.
The relative said the man is on an electronic monitoring bracelet. Court records show that he was convicted of a felony drug charge in late 2006 and received a stayed prison sentence of three years. Part of his conditions of probation was that he not possess any firearms, according to online records.
Right offhand, I'd say we had a massive failure of the justice system...criminal conviction for drugs, (among other rap-sheet entries,) Latin Kings affiliation, ...adds up to a stayed sentence?
Sure.
So, you anti-gun folks, just where and how did this charmer get a gun? He didn't buy it from a Federally licensed dealer, folks.
Says right there in this news report that he should NOT have one. Obviously, he didn't take that too seriously--nor did the criminal who SOLD him the gun.
One wonders if the MPD is pursuing the seller of the weapon.
The relative said the man is on an electronic monitoring bracelet. Court records show that he was convicted of a felony drug charge in late 2006 and received a stayed prison sentence of three years. Part of his conditions of probation was that he not possess any firearms, according to online records.
Right offhand, I'd say we had a massive failure of the justice system...criminal conviction for drugs, (among other rap-sheet entries,) Latin Kings affiliation, ...adds up to a stayed sentence?
Sure.
Whither 'Extremist Islam'?
Three related items from today's blogosphere. First, from Dreher, who quotes Bill Gertz:
Stephen Coughlin, the Pentagon specialist on Islamic law and Islamist extremism, has been fired from his position on the military's Joint Staff. The action followed a report in this space last week revealing opposition to his work for the military by pro-Muslim officials within the office of Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England.
Mr. Coughlin was notified this week that his contract with the Joint Staff will end in March, effectively halting the career of one of the U.S. government's most important figures in analyzing the nature of extremism and ultimately preparing to wage ideological war against it.
He had run afoul of a key aide to Mr. England, Hasham Islam, who confronted Mr. Coughlin during a meeting several weeks ago when Mr. Islam sought to have Mr. Coughlin soften his views on Islamist extremism
The Bush Administration signals....what? That there are no Islamic bad-guys? That bad-guys are NOT Islamic?
Who the Hell knows?
2) In the SOTU, GWB did not even name the enemy (HT: PowerLine):
We are engaged in the defining ideological struggle of the 21st century. The terrorists oppose every principle of humanity and decency that we hold dear. Yet in this war on terror, there is one thing we and our enemies agree on: In the long run, men and women who are free to determine their own destinies will reject terror and refuse to live in tyranny.
Anent that, another blog noticed that phrases such as "Islamic extremists", "Islamofascists," etc., were not present in this year's SOTU. Not once.
3) From Clay Cramer, who picks up an interesting narrative from Europe. (The author, Bruce Bawer, used to the the film critic for the American Spectator. His reviews were spot-on, every time--Bawer is a treasure.)
One day last month, I gave a talk in Rome about how the supposedly liberal ideology of multiculturalism has made possible the spread in Europe of the highly illiberal ideology of fundamentalist Islam, with all its brutality and – among other things – violent homophobia. When I returned to my hotel, I phoned my partner back home in Oslo only to learn that moments earlier he had been confronted at a bus stop by two Muslim youths, one of whom had asked if he was gay, started to pull out a knife, then kicked him as he got on the bus, which had pulled up at just the right moment. If the bus hadn’t come when it did, the encounter could have been much worse.
...The reason for the rise in gay bashings in Europe is clear – and it’s the same reason for the rise in rape. As the number of Muslims in Europe grows, and as the proportion of those Muslims who were born and bred in Europe also grows, many Muslim men are more inclined to see Europe as a part of the umma (or Muslim world), to believe that they have the right and duty to enforce sharia law in the cities where they live, and to recognize that any aggression on their part will likely go unpunished...
These things cannot be allowed to stand. Obviously, not every Muslim is a violent, shari'a-enforcing extremist.
But to simply place these incidents and their implications into the 'memory hole' is irresponsible, and could be called suicidal.
One cannot fight a war without clearly identifying the enemy--unless, of course, we are looking for an "Eastasia"-type war; unwinnable and permanent.
Stephen Coughlin, the Pentagon specialist on Islamic law and Islamist extremism, has been fired from his position on the military's Joint Staff. The action followed a report in this space last week revealing opposition to his work for the military by pro-Muslim officials within the office of Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England.
Mr. Coughlin was notified this week that his contract with the Joint Staff will end in March, effectively halting the career of one of the U.S. government's most important figures in analyzing the nature of extremism and ultimately preparing to wage ideological war against it.
He had run afoul of a key aide to Mr. England, Hasham Islam, who confronted Mr. Coughlin during a meeting several weeks ago when Mr. Islam sought to have Mr. Coughlin soften his views on Islamist extremism
The Bush Administration signals....what? That there are no Islamic bad-guys? That bad-guys are NOT Islamic?
Who the Hell knows?
2) In the SOTU, GWB did not even name the enemy (HT: PowerLine):
We are engaged in the defining ideological struggle of the 21st century. The terrorists oppose every principle of humanity and decency that we hold dear. Yet in this war on terror, there is one thing we and our enemies agree on: In the long run, men and women who are free to determine their own destinies will reject terror and refuse to live in tyranny.
Anent that, another blog noticed that phrases such as "Islamic extremists", "Islamofascists," etc., were not present in this year's SOTU. Not once.
3) From Clay Cramer, who picks up an interesting narrative from Europe. (The author, Bruce Bawer, used to the the film critic for the American Spectator. His reviews were spot-on, every time--Bawer is a treasure.)
One day last month, I gave a talk in Rome about how the supposedly liberal ideology of multiculturalism has made possible the spread in Europe of the highly illiberal ideology of fundamentalist Islam, with all its brutality and – among other things – violent homophobia. When I returned to my hotel, I phoned my partner back home in Oslo only to learn that moments earlier he had been confronted at a bus stop by two Muslim youths, one of whom had asked if he was gay, started to pull out a knife, then kicked him as he got on the bus, which had pulled up at just the right moment. If the bus hadn’t come when it did, the encounter could have been much worse.
...The reason for the rise in gay bashings in Europe is clear – and it’s the same reason for the rise in rape. As the number of Muslims in Europe grows, and as the proportion of those Muslims who were born and bred in Europe also grows, many Muslim men are more inclined to see Europe as a part of the umma (or Muslim world), to believe that they have the right and duty to enforce sharia law in the cities where they live, and to recognize that any aggression on their part will likely go unpunished...
These things cannot be allowed to stand. Obviously, not every Muslim is a violent, shari'a-enforcing extremist.
But to simply place these incidents and their implications into the 'memory hole' is irresponsible, and could be called suicidal.
One cannot fight a war without clearly identifying the enemy--unless, of course, we are looking for an "Eastasia"-type war; unwinnable and permanent.
Wal-Mart and WFMR
Thought the WFMR issue was dead, eh...?
Well, it is, to the intellectual and spiritual detriment of thousands in the Milwaukee area.
But WallyWorld shows us why.
Wal-Mart recently announced that it is pulling some 1,000 magazines of its shelves. Among the titles getting dropped are The New Yorker, BusinessWeek, Fortune, Forbes, Better Homes and Gardens, and Ladies Home Journal. Of course, a large number of more obscure magazines, such as Log Cabin Living, were dropped as well. The reason, quite clearly, is that Wal-Mart believes it can make more money per shelf inch by selling just the most popular titles. Indeed, the 1,000 magazines in question made up only some 2% of Wal-Mart's magazine sales.
Even more portentious:
As pointed out in an article online at Silicon Alley Insider ("Wal-Mart Gives the New Yorker (And Forbes, Fortune, BizWeek etc) The Boot"), 1/21/98 [sic]), other media industries may feel the pinch soon. "It is also a prelude to what's about to happen to the music business, as Wal-Mart and the other big box retailers start to hack away at the retail space they devote to music. And it may also happen to Hollywood, which depends on the big boxes for DVD sales."
One wonders whether the barfer-Beethoven will survive, as opposed to his namesake.
HT: Oligopoly Watch
Well, it is, to the intellectual and spiritual detriment of thousands in the Milwaukee area.
But WallyWorld shows us why.
Wal-Mart recently announced that it is pulling some 1,000 magazines of its shelves. Among the titles getting dropped are The New Yorker, BusinessWeek, Fortune, Forbes, Better Homes and Gardens, and Ladies Home Journal. Of course, a large number of more obscure magazines, such as Log Cabin Living, were dropped as well. The reason, quite clearly, is that Wal-Mart believes it can make more money per shelf inch by selling just the most popular titles. Indeed, the 1,000 magazines in question made up only some 2% of Wal-Mart's magazine sales.
Even more portentious:
As pointed out in an article online at Silicon Alley Insider ("Wal-Mart Gives the New Yorker (And Forbes, Fortune, BizWeek etc) The Boot"), 1/21/98 [sic]), other media industries may feel the pinch soon. "It is also a prelude to what's about to happen to the music business, as Wal-Mart and the other big box retailers start to hack away at the retail space they devote to music. And it may also happen to Hollywood, which depends on the big boxes for DVD sales."
One wonders whether the barfer-Beethoven will survive, as opposed to his namesake.
HT: Oligopoly Watch
DarthDoyle's Dance
It's like watching musical chairs.
First, our Governor discovers that tax revenues are going south (pun intended).
Then he announces that 'something must be done.'
Now he announces that 'it should be done soon.'
What, prithee, m'Lord Governor, SHOULD we do?
...Doyle's administration has already called for agencies to stop unnecessary travel, hold vacancies open and not renew or enter into new leases.
Finding additional savings will be even tougher, Doyle said.
Certain areas will be protected from cuts, including the University of Wisconsin, education and health care, he said.
You won't find $300 million in travel cuts, or non-renewed leases, or attrition.
Seems that DarthDoyle HAS no plan, other than making certain that educators will remain in the State as voters...
So far, the Pubbies have played it smart. They're not about to help Darth with any ideas, either--nor should they.
He's the CEO. He and his Cabinet have to come up with the plan.
He can't dance around the chairs forever...
First, our Governor discovers that tax revenues are going south (pun intended).
Then he announces that 'something must be done.'
Now he announces that 'it should be done soon.'
What, prithee, m'Lord Governor, SHOULD we do?
...Doyle's administration has already called for agencies to stop unnecessary travel, hold vacancies open and not renew or enter into new leases.
Finding additional savings will be even tougher, Doyle said.
Certain areas will be protected from cuts, including the University of Wisconsin, education and health care, he said.
You won't find $300 million in travel cuts, or non-renewed leases, or attrition.
Seems that DarthDoyle HAS no plan, other than making certain that educators will remain in the State as voters...
So far, the Pubbies have played it smart. They're not about to help Darth with any ideas, either--nor should they.
He's the CEO. He and his Cabinet have to come up with the plan.
He can't dance around the chairs forever...
Compact Consequences
P-Mac shows us the folly:
Suppose the [Great Lakes Compact] passes and, as seems utterly possible, it is interpreted so as to pretty much bar Waukesha from getting any water. Where, then, might Waukesha turn? The least likely thing is that its residents board up the house and move to Milwaukee wholesale. More likely is that Waukesha will find some other source of water, probably groundwater, and will send it, after a trip through the plumbing, down the Fox River and into the Gulf of Mexico.
Consider that: Groundwater, while recharged, is recharged slowly. This is why environmentalists similarly dislike bottled water, saying it expends a finite Wisconsin resource. So, instead of Waukeshans using lake water and returning it to the lake, as the city has discussed, it would extract a more limited resource and send it down the Mississippi.
Only Gummints could manage that trick and still tell us "it's good for you."
Suppose the [Great Lakes Compact] passes and, as seems utterly possible, it is interpreted so as to pretty much bar Waukesha from getting any water. Where, then, might Waukesha turn? The least likely thing is that its residents board up the house and move to Milwaukee wholesale. More likely is that Waukesha will find some other source of water, probably groundwater, and will send it, after a trip through the plumbing, down the Fox River and into the Gulf of Mexico.
Consider that: Groundwater, while recharged, is recharged slowly. This is why environmentalists similarly dislike bottled water, saying it expends a finite Wisconsin resource. So, instead of Waukeshans using lake water and returning it to the lake, as the city has discussed, it would extract a more limited resource and send it down the Mississippi.
Only Gummints could manage that trick and still tell us "it's good for you."
Are You Heartbroken?
This bit of horrible, awful, news will destroy your day, I'm sure.
Gwyneth Paltrow... says she won't return to the USA unless she "absolutely has to" after a scuffle between her husband and a paparazzo.
Try not to cry.
HT: Moonbattery
Gwyneth Paltrow... says she won't return to the USA unless she "absolutely has to" after a scuffle between her husband and a paparazzo.
Try not to cry.
HT: Moonbattery
McCain's Voters
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
The "Knowledge" of the Atheists
Fr. Edward Oakes SJ, on the recent spate of books espousing atheism:
...Sales are solid, book readings are sold out, and their authors grace the highbrow talk shows and op-ed pages in prestigious newspapers and periodicals. But their arguments are shopworn, stale hand-me-downs and threadbare heirlooms inherited from an era that was fading away even before the French Revolution had made the connection between atheism and violence clear to any fair observer. Yet these books read as if they came from authors who had never heard of the Reign of Terror or Robespierre.
It is this blinkered ahistorical myopia that makes reading these books such a surreal experience. For like a “red thread” running through all their other arguments, each book has one central claim: Belief in God causes violence. The obvious corollary to this thesis is almost too absurdly risible to merit formulation, and some authors are just coy (or embarrassed) enough not to say it out loud; but others are bolder and shout it from the rooftops: If only atheism would take hold as the majority view throughout the globe, humans would lose their propensity for violence, lion would nestle beside the lamb, children would regain their long-lost happiness, swords would magically turn into plowshares, churches would empty and the resultant collapse in the market-price for incense would alone reverse global warming. Richard Dawkins, for example, opens his recent book The God Delusion with this hilariously naïve depiction of the Eschaton that awaits us if only we would cast off the security blanket of religion...
On the basis of that "truth claim" alone, one could reject any proposal favoring atheism.
Distinctions, distinctions...I will agree with those who postulate that "....the perversion of religion causes violence...." or something like that.
THAT we can prove.
HT: First Things
...Sales are solid, book readings are sold out, and their authors grace the highbrow talk shows and op-ed pages in prestigious newspapers and periodicals. But their arguments are shopworn, stale hand-me-downs and threadbare heirlooms inherited from an era that was fading away even before the French Revolution had made the connection between atheism and violence clear to any fair observer. Yet these books read as if they came from authors who had never heard of the Reign of Terror or Robespierre.
It is this blinkered ahistorical myopia that makes reading these books such a surreal experience. For like a “red thread” running through all their other arguments, each book has one central claim: Belief in God causes violence. The obvious corollary to this thesis is almost too absurdly risible to merit formulation, and some authors are just coy (or embarrassed) enough not to say it out loud; but others are bolder and shout it from the rooftops: If only atheism would take hold as the majority view throughout the globe, humans would lose their propensity for violence, lion would nestle beside the lamb, children would regain their long-lost happiness, swords would magically turn into plowshares, churches would empty and the resultant collapse in the market-price for incense would alone reverse global warming. Richard Dawkins, for example, opens his recent book The God Delusion with this hilariously naïve depiction of the Eschaton that awaits us if only we would cast off the security blanket of religion...
On the basis of that "truth claim" alone, one could reject any proposal favoring atheism.
Distinctions, distinctions...I will agree with those who postulate that "....the perversion of religion causes violence...." or something like that.
THAT we can prove.
HT: First Things
House of Correction Report: "Yes/No"--Take Your Choice
Just a couple of highlights from the response to the Federal report on the House of Correction in Milwaukee--which may give you an idea of the utter incompetence of the twit who wrote the report.
"P. 65, Para 1: 'There are no emergency policies.'"
"On P. 65, Para. 4, Schwartz acknowledges that we have an emergency plan that is thorough and detailed in many areas."
"P. 63, Para 1: 'There is no fire safety.'"
"On Page 64, para 5, Schwartz acknowledges that there is a fire safety program."
There is also some discussion about the use of K9 units, with Schwartz (the Fed inspector) claiming that use of such units 'calls to mind' Southern racial brutality.
I suppose it's nice that Mr. Schwartz has a job.
The JS 'Proof and Hearsay' site has both reports linked.
"P. 65, Para 1: 'There are no emergency policies.'"
"On P. 65, Para. 4, Schwartz acknowledges that we have an emergency plan that is thorough and detailed in many areas."
"P. 63, Para 1: 'There is no fire safety.'"
"On Page 64, para 5, Schwartz acknowledges that there is a fire safety program."
There is also some discussion about the use of K9 units, with Schwartz (the Fed inspector) claiming that use of such units 'calls to mind' Southern racial brutality.
I suppose it's nice that Mr. Schwartz has a job.
The JS 'Proof and Hearsay' site has both reports linked.
Implications of the Walker's Point Murder
Headless thought a bit about the event, and lays out some logic.
There is a long-standing paradigm for armed robbery business transactions in the United States. If the victim hands over his money, wallet and other valuables without a fight or other resistance; the armed robber will not shoot him. This social contract serves both the victim's and the armed robber's interests. The victim escapes with his life for only the small cost of the valuables he carries. For the robber, this agreement helps speed the transaction and minimizes the risk of the victim resisting with deadly force.
The rules must be different where these perpetrators come from. Their rules go something like: the robber takes the money from the cooperative victim, then shoots him dead. If this becomes the norm in the U.S., suddenly we will have no reason to cooperate with the armed robber. Grab for the gun, stall for time, or run for your life, these are all logically preferable options to placidly handing over your cash and waiting to die.
And if, by chance, you have a loaded handgun on your person, blast the assailant before he knows it is coming.
Like in the Old West, a six-gun holstered on your hip provides for a fast draw
The logic is impeccable. If the rules have changed, then we should react accordingly.
That's why the Milwaukee Police Department is screaming "random...isolated" at the top of its collective lungs. The MPD cannot acknowledge that this modus operandi is common (and so far, it is not) for if it does, you can bet your tax rebate that S&W's will be selling like Packer tix for the championship game. Hot, heavy, and at a premium.
But then there's the Kozzie Park incident. Same MO, no fatality.
Hmmmmm.
There is a long-standing paradigm for armed robbery business transactions in the United States. If the victim hands over his money, wallet and other valuables without a fight or other resistance; the armed robber will not shoot him. This social contract serves both the victim's and the armed robber's interests. The victim escapes with his life for only the small cost of the valuables he carries. For the robber, this agreement helps speed the transaction and minimizes the risk of the victim resisting with deadly force.
The rules must be different where these perpetrators come from. Their rules go something like: the robber takes the money from the cooperative victim, then shoots him dead. If this becomes the norm in the U.S., suddenly we will have no reason to cooperate with the armed robber. Grab for the gun, stall for time, or run for your life, these are all logically preferable options to placidly handing over your cash and waiting to die.
And if, by chance, you have a loaded handgun on your person, blast the assailant before he knows it is coming.
Like in the Old West, a six-gun holstered on your hip provides for a fast draw
The logic is impeccable. If the rules have changed, then we should react accordingly.
That's why the Milwaukee Police Department is screaming "random...isolated" at the top of its collective lungs. The MPD cannot acknowledge that this modus operandi is common (and so far, it is not) for if it does, you can bet your tax rebate that S&W's will be selling like Packer tix for the championship game. Hot, heavy, and at a premium.
But then there's the Kozzie Park incident. Same MO, no fatality.
Hmmmmm.
Monday, January 28, 2008
No Mas---No Vote in Fall
An interesting take from a Chicago guy.
The Republican Party is fast moving towards the nomination of either former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney or Arizona Senator John McCain to represent the party in the presidential election this November.
Neither of these men are fully or reliably pro-life, in the eyes of the many people who place a great deal of importance on issues like abortion, recreational embryo-destructive stem cell research (REDSCR) (I call it "recreational" because there is no scientific reason to do this research, so I can only assume that they do it just for the fun of it), euthanasia, gay "marriage", the defense of the traditional family, and other life and culture-war issues.
And when the GOP nominates a candidate we pro-lifers can't trust, particularly someone like McCain, and most especially if he chooses a running mate with such an actively pro-abortion and pro-gay posture as Joe Lieberman, we won't be showing up to darken in that little circle next to the Republican candidate's name, and those guys who were so enthusiastic about nominating a "war hero" who advocates abortion rights in at least some circumstances...
The response to this development, both before, as they begin to wake up to the danger, as well as after it comes to pass, will be to blame pro-lifers for the election of a Democrat devil as president
....to which my response will be....ahhhhh.....very short and very Anglo-Saxon. The (R) bunch can nominate anyone they wish. But attracting voters? That's another question altogether.
No question that the Radio Boyzzz will be into the "vote (R) no matter what" line shortly. And they will be sorely disappointed.
Tough.
If you thought Bob Dole got blown out, ...
The Republican Party is fast moving towards the nomination of either former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney or Arizona Senator John McCain to represent the party in the presidential election this November.
Neither of these men are fully or reliably pro-life, in the eyes of the many people who place a great deal of importance on issues like abortion, recreational embryo-destructive stem cell research (REDSCR) (I call it "recreational" because there is no scientific reason to do this research, so I can only assume that they do it just for the fun of it), euthanasia, gay "marriage", the defense of the traditional family, and other life and culture-war issues.
And when the GOP nominates a candidate we pro-lifers can't trust, particularly someone like McCain, and most especially if he chooses a running mate with such an actively pro-abortion and pro-gay posture as Joe Lieberman, we won't be showing up to darken in that little circle next to the Republican candidate's name, and those guys who were so enthusiastic about nominating a "war hero" who advocates abortion rights in at least some circumstances...
The response to this development, both before, as they begin to wake up to the danger, as well as after it comes to pass, will be to blame pro-lifers for the election of a Democrat devil as president
....to which my response will be....ahhhhh.....very short and very Anglo-Saxon. The (R) bunch can nominate anyone they wish. But attracting voters? That's another question altogether.
No question that the Radio Boyzzz will be into the "vote (R) no matter what" line shortly. And they will be sorely disappointed.
Tough.
If you thought Bob Dole got blown out, ...
Headlines
Well, with the writers on strike, SOMEBODY has to do this for Leno.
Enfield ( London ) Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide
Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges
Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft
Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant
Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers
And, as a coup de grace,
Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
Stolen from Orthometer.
Enfield ( London ) Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide
Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges
Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft
Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant
Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers
And, as a coup de grace,
Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
Stolen from Orthometer.
The Politics of Illegals: Where's VanHollen?
Looks like Brown County's taxpayers are just going to keep paying.
Brown County Supervisor Patrick Evans said state auditors have backed off investigating the county's fraud investigation program because of the politically sensitive issue of illegal immigrants receiving benefits.
"That's the meat of this whole issue," said Evans, chairman of the county's Human Services Committee. "Everybody is completely afraid to touch this because of the political atmosphere. You mention it and all kinds of negative comments come at you."
Evans tried to have the two fraud investigators transferred from the human services department to the sheriff's department after investigators told him illegal immigrants were receiving benefits and management was "turning a blind eye to it."
But there was little support for Evans' proposal from other supervisors, prompting him to contact Michael McKenzie of the Wisconsin Department of Health & Family Services. According to Evans, McKenzie agreed to investigate the program, then backed off.
This is the consequence of Democrat hegemony in both Brown County and the State. There will not be "investigations" of suspected illegal payments, because the Democrat Party's priorities are 1) get re-elected; 2) get re-elected; 3) get re-elected.
Note that "the common good" doesn't make the list.
I mean, do you SERIOUSLY expect Dave Hansen to give a rip?
We await something---ANYTHING---from the State Attorney General on the matter.
Brown County Supervisor Patrick Evans said state auditors have backed off investigating the county's fraud investigation program because of the politically sensitive issue of illegal immigrants receiving benefits.
"That's the meat of this whole issue," said Evans, chairman of the county's Human Services Committee. "Everybody is completely afraid to touch this because of the political atmosphere. You mention it and all kinds of negative comments come at you."
Evans tried to have the two fraud investigators transferred from the human services department to the sheriff's department after investigators told him illegal immigrants were receiving benefits and management was "turning a blind eye to it."
But there was little support for Evans' proposal from other supervisors, prompting him to contact Michael McKenzie of the Wisconsin Department of Health & Family Services. According to Evans, McKenzie agreed to investigate the program, then backed off.
This is the consequence of Democrat hegemony in both Brown County and the State. There will not be "investigations" of suspected illegal payments, because the Democrat Party's priorities are 1) get re-elected; 2) get re-elected; 3) get re-elected.
Note that "the common good" doesn't make the list.
I mean, do you SERIOUSLY expect Dave Hansen to give a rip?
We await something---ANYTHING---from the State Attorney General on the matter.
Milwaukee's Near South Side Problem
Although a 'random, isolated' murder has captured headlines, the sub-text is more significant: the near South Side (roughly from 1st St west to 6th, and from National Ave. south to Mitchell) has been plagued by a rash of robberies and smash/grab car break-ins over the last 2 weeks.
It's unsettling, to say the least, and the escalation to shooting (one dead in Walker's Point, one wounded in Kozzie Park) with robbery, is serious.
This has included smash/grab car break-ins near a couple of churches, executed on Sunday mornings while the car owners were in church.
It's something that the Milwaukee Police Department should eradicate quickly. The neighborhood's occupants do not deserve this crap; nor do visitors, whether from greater Milwaukee or from South Africa.
It's unsettling, to say the least, and the escalation to shooting (one dead in Walker's Point, one wounded in Kozzie Park) with robbery, is serious.
This has included smash/grab car break-ins near a couple of churches, executed on Sunday mornings while the car owners were in church.
It's something that the Milwaukee Police Department should eradicate quickly. The neighborhood's occupants do not deserve this crap; nor do visitors, whether from greater Milwaukee or from South Africa.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
England: Orwell's Home Country for a Reason
You can't make this stuff up.
...henceforth, any terrorism perpetrated by persons of an Islamic persuasion will be designated "anti-Islamic activity." Britain's Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, unveiled the new brand name in a speech a few days ago. "There is nothing Islamic about the wish to terrorize, nothing Islamic about plotting murder, pain and grief," she told her audience. "Indeed, if anything, these actions are anti-Islamic."
"War is Peace."
HT: Gerald
...henceforth, any terrorism perpetrated by persons of an Islamic persuasion will be designated "anti-Islamic activity." Britain's Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, unveiled the new brand name in a speech a few days ago. "There is nothing Islamic about the wish to terrorize, nothing Islamic about plotting murder, pain and grief," she told her audience. "Indeed, if anything, these actions are anti-Islamic."
"War is Peace."
HT: Gerald
Thanks, Mitt!!
Romney-Care in Massachusetts faces an ugly reality:
According to recent reports, the cost of Massachusetts' health insurance mandate will rise 85 percent, or $400 million, in 2009. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R), meanwhile, has been on the presidential campaign trail praising the program he put into place.
According to The Boston Globe, the cost increase is largely due to an increase in the number of people signing up for state-subsidized health insurance. State and federal taxpayers are likely to shoulder the cost increase.
IIRC, I'm a "Federal taxpayer."
If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free..P.J. O'Rourke
According to recent reports, the cost of Massachusetts' health insurance mandate will rise 85 percent, or $400 million, in 2009. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R), meanwhile, has been on the presidential campaign trail praising the program he put into place.
According to The Boston Globe, the cost increase is largely due to an increase in the number of people signing up for state-subsidized health insurance. State and federal taxpayers are likely to shoulder the cost increase.
IIRC, I'm a "Federal taxpayer."
If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free..P.J. O'Rourke
How D'Ya Like That Schoenberg?
This is a great line:
“Twentieth-century [classical] music,” [Kingsley] Amis wrote in 1982, “is like pedophilia. No matter how persuasively and persistently its champions urge their cause, it will never be accepted by the public at large, who will continue to regard it with incomprehension, outrage and repugnance.”
There are a few exceptions...
Just a few.
HT: Taki's Top Drawer
“Twentieth-century [classical] music,” [Kingsley] Amis wrote in 1982, “is like pedophilia. No matter how persuasively and persistently its champions urge their cause, it will never be accepted by the public at large, who will continue to regard it with incomprehension, outrage and repugnance.”
There are a few exceptions...
Just a few.
HT: Taki's Top Drawer
Trouble in City of Madison Courts
Seems like "the right to a trial" will be used a lot more in Madistan.
...the gist is that if individuals knowing they are illegal residents fear being deported, the incentive is to stall for as much time as possible, and that means avoiding all plea deals and maxing out the court process.
Which, of course, will spread to Milwaukee (and other) jurisdictions.
There's some irony to the use of a Constitutional right by non-citizens, of course...
HT: Random10
...the gist is that if individuals knowing they are illegal residents fear being deported, the incentive is to stall for as much time as possible, and that means avoiding all plea deals and maxing out the court process.
Which, of course, will spread to Milwaukee (and other) jurisdictions.
There's some irony to the use of a Constitutional right by non-citizens, of course...
HT: Random10
ATF Loses Bid for Summary Judgment vs Red's
BATF/E has lost its motion for summary judgment against Red's Trading post.
At question in our case is the ATF's definition of the word WILLFUL; they claim that we WILLFULLY committed .4% clerical errors. Another Federal Judge in North Carolina recently questioned the ATF's definition of willful and moved another dealers case to trial as well.
The BAT-bunch has way overstepped rational behavior with their application of "willful" to every single missing jot and tittle (and there were not a lot--four tenths of 1%).
Red's Trading Post attorneys have done good work.
By the way, the Red's case has a lot to do with this:
Supporters of President Bush's pick to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are renewing efforts to persuade Idaho's Republican senators to drop their opposition.
The nomination of Michael J. Sullivan, the U.S. attorney for Massachusetts, has been in limbo since mid-December when Sens. Larry Craig and Mike Crapo issued separate "holds," a procedural move that blocks the Senate from considering a nominee. They cited concerns that the ATF has become overly aggressive in enforcing gun laws.
So what's the problem with Sullivan? Check the name of one of his supporters:
Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., reiterated his call for Craig and Crapo to back down, saying Sullivan deserved swift Senate confirmation
We're all aware that GWB has lost his grip on a number of issues. This is another example.
HT: Of Arms
At question in our case is the ATF's definition of the word WILLFUL; they claim that we WILLFULLY committed .4% clerical errors. Another Federal Judge in North Carolina recently questioned the ATF's definition of willful and moved another dealers case to trial as well.
The BAT-bunch has way overstepped rational behavior with their application of "willful" to every single missing jot and tittle (and there were not a lot--four tenths of 1%).
Red's Trading Post attorneys have done good work.
By the way, the Red's case has a lot to do with this:
Supporters of President Bush's pick to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are renewing efforts to persuade Idaho's Republican senators to drop their opposition.
The nomination of Michael J. Sullivan, the U.S. attorney for Massachusetts, has been in limbo since mid-December when Sens. Larry Craig and Mike Crapo issued separate "holds," a procedural move that blocks the Senate from considering a nominee. They cited concerns that the ATF has become overly aggressive in enforcing gun laws.
So what's the problem with Sullivan? Check the name of one of his supporters:
Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., reiterated his call for Craig and Crapo to back down, saying Sullivan deserved swift Senate confirmation
We're all aware that GWB has lost his grip on a number of issues. This is another example.
HT: Of Arms
Hildebeeste's Conversion
Heh.
Now she wants to change the rules in the middle of the game.
Statement by Senator Hillary Clinton on the Seating of Delegates at the Democratic National Convention
“I hear all the time from people in Florida and Michigan that they want their voices heard in selecting the Democratic nominee.
“I believe our nominee will need the enthusiastic support of Democrats in these states to win the general election, and so I will ask my Democratic convention delegates to support seating the delegations from Florida and Michigan. I know not all of my delegates will do so and I fully respect that decision. But I hope to be President of all 50 states and U.S. territories, and that we have all 50 states represented and counted at the Democratic convention.
“I hope my fellow potential nominees will join me in this.
After FL and MI changed their primary date(s) the DNC ruled that their convention delegates would not be seated. HRC remained on the ballot in MI, winning by default.
Now she wants the delegates.
Now she wants to change the rules in the middle of the game.
Statement by Senator Hillary Clinton on the Seating of Delegates at the Democratic National Convention
“I hear all the time from people in Florida and Michigan that they want their voices heard in selecting the Democratic nominee.
“I believe our nominee will need the enthusiastic support of Democrats in these states to win the general election, and so I will ask my Democratic convention delegates to support seating the delegations from Florida and Michigan. I know not all of my delegates will do so and I fully respect that decision. But I hope to be President of all 50 states and U.S. territories, and that we have all 50 states represented and counted at the Democratic convention.
“I hope my fellow potential nominees will join me in this.
After FL and MI changed their primary date(s) the DNC ruled that their convention delegates would not be seated. HRC remained on the ballot in MI, winning by default.
Now she wants the delegates.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Belling: How to Manage the News
One of Belling's favorite themes concerns 'news management,' and one of the well-known techniques of 'news management' is to artfully trim stories (or not report them at all.)
So what do I hear from Belling last week, but a quote from Peggy Noonan's article on the disintegration of the Republican Party.
It was familiar, largely because I had quoted it here.
The Belling pull:
Rush Limbaugh declared on the radio this week, "I'm here to tell you, if either of these two guys [Mr. McCain or Mike Huckabee] get the nomination, it's going to destroy the Republican Party.
What Belling chose NOT to read:
This is absurd. George W. Bush destroyed the Republican Party, by which I mean he sundered it, broke its constituent pieces apart and set them against each other. He did this on spending, the size of government, war, the ability to prosecute war, immigration and other issues.
And for my money, he ignored the best part of Noonan's thought.
So what do I hear from Belling last week, but a quote from Peggy Noonan's article on the disintegration of the Republican Party.
It was familiar, largely because I had quoted it here.
The Belling pull:
Rush Limbaugh declared on the radio this week, "I'm here to tell you, if either of these two guys [Mr. McCain or Mike Huckabee] get the nomination, it's going to destroy the Republican Party.
What Belling chose NOT to read:
This is absurd. George W. Bush destroyed the Republican Party, by which I mean he sundered it, broke its constituent pieces apart and set them against each other. He did this on spending, the size of government, war, the ability to prosecute war, immigration and other issues.
And for my money, he ignored the best part of Noonan's thought.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Fed Funding for The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (!)
Yah. That's the latest from Davos, where the water does not have radium, but (evidently) has hallucinogenic chemical additives.
Yesterday, Columbia University (yes, that Columbia University, home of the Columbia School of Journalism) President Lee Bollinger announced his support for government subsidies for “Old Media” (H/T - Jon Ham).
If you were wondering about the position of the Columbia School of Journalism’s dean, Nick Lemann, Forbes’ Carl Lavin has that disappointment. The upshot: “Right now the mismatch between the social mission of journalism and the market support for that mission seems to be growing, so I think we should explore other means of support for serious journalism. Per the above, these can be, and generally have been in the US, policy interventions that amount to indirect rather than direct government subsidies. But I’m not against subsidies per se, if we can establish BBC-like safeguards of editorial independence.”
The BEEB and "Editorial Independence" in the SAME SENTENCE??
HT: No Runny Eggs.
Yesterday, Columbia University (yes, that Columbia University, home of the Columbia School of Journalism) President Lee Bollinger announced his support for government subsidies for “Old Media” (H/T - Jon Ham).
If you were wondering about the position of the Columbia School of Journalism’s dean, Nick Lemann, Forbes’ Carl Lavin has that disappointment. The upshot: “Right now the mismatch between the social mission of journalism and the market support for that mission seems to be growing, so I think we should explore other means of support for serious journalism. Per the above, these can be, and generally have been in the US, policy interventions that amount to indirect rather than direct government subsidies. But I’m not against subsidies per se, if we can establish BBC-like safeguards of editorial independence.”
The BEEB and "Editorial Independence" in the SAME SENTENCE??
HT: No Runny Eggs.
Noonan on the Pundits and the Real Problem
Peggy Noonan's right.
On the pundit civil wars, Rush Limbaugh declared on the radio this week, "I'm here to tell you, if either of these two guys [Mr. McCain or Mike Huckabee] get the nomination, it's going to destroy the Republican Party. It's going to change it forever, be the end of it!"
This is absurd. George W. Bush destroyed the Republican Party, by which I mean he sundered it, broke its constituent pieces apart and set them against each other. He did this on spending, the size of government, war, the ability to prosecute war, immigration and other issues.
Certainly a better President than Kerry.
But a stinker as a "Republican."
HT: Dreher
On the pundit civil wars, Rush Limbaugh declared on the radio this week, "I'm here to tell you, if either of these two guys [Mr. McCain or Mike Huckabee] get the nomination, it's going to destroy the Republican Party. It's going to change it forever, be the end of it!"
This is absurd. George W. Bush destroyed the Republican Party, by which I mean he sundered it, broke its constituent pieces apart and set them against each other. He did this on spending, the size of government, war, the ability to prosecute war, immigration and other issues.
Certainly a better President than Kerry.
But a stinker as a "Republican."
HT: Dreher
Thursday, January 24, 2008
On Ordaining Homosexuals to the Priesthood
Some observations from a well-known writer on the topic:
“Van den Aardweg asks the question: ”why are so many protestant and catholic homosexuals, male and female alike, interested in theology, and why do they not infrequently want to be ministers or priests?” he says that part of the answer lies in their infantile need for sympathy and contact. and i quote: ”they view church professions as soft and sentimentally ‘caring’ and imagine themselves in them as being honored and revered, elevated above common human beings. they see the Church as a noncompetitive, friendly world where they may enjoy high status and be protected at the same time. for male homosexuals, there is the additional incentive of a rather closed men’s community where they need not prove themselves as men;
…. and in the catholic and russian orthodox churches, there is the attraction of the garments and the aesthetic rituals, which male homosexuals may, in their childish perception, experience as feminine and which enable a narcissistic showing off, comparable to the exhibitionist joys of homosexual ballet dancers …. These interests stem for the most part, then, from an infantile, self-centered imagination and have precious little to do with the objective contents of Christian belief. What some homosexuals thus see as their ‘calling’ to the priesthood is an attraction to an emotionally rewarding, but self-centered, way of life. these are self-imagined and ‘false’ vocations.”
(Typos in original...)
“Van den Aardweg asks the question: ”why are so many protestant and catholic homosexuals, male and female alike, interested in theology, and why do they not infrequently want to be ministers or priests?” he says that part of the answer lies in their infantile need for sympathy and contact. and i quote: ”they view church professions as soft and sentimentally ‘caring’ and imagine themselves in them as being honored and revered, elevated above common human beings. they see the Church as a noncompetitive, friendly world where they may enjoy high status and be protected at the same time. for male homosexuals, there is the additional incentive of a rather closed men’s community where they need not prove themselves as men;
…. and in the catholic and russian orthodox churches, there is the attraction of the garments and the aesthetic rituals, which male homosexuals may, in their childish perception, experience as feminine and which enable a narcissistic showing off, comparable to the exhibitionist joys of homosexual ballet dancers …. These interests stem for the most part, then, from an infantile, self-centered imagination and have precious little to do with the objective contents of Christian belief. What some homosexuals thus see as their ‘calling’ to the priesthood is an attraction to an emotionally rewarding, but self-centered, way of life. these are self-imagined and ‘false’ vocations.”
(Typos in original...)
Rick Majerus: Stupider and Stupider, UPDATED
If he weren't such a nice guy, he could be written off as ....irrelevant. Here are excerpts from an interview, with 'editorial' inserts from ProEcclesia:
"I'm very respectful to the archbishop," Majerus said. "But I rely on my value judgments [ED.: The Church of I and Me], thanks to my education at Marquette, which is a Jesuit institution, just like St. Louis. [ED.: Another ringing endorsement of Jesuit education.] And that Jesuit education led me to believe that I can make a value judgment. And my value judgment happens to differ from the archbishop's.
"I do not speak for the university or the Catholic Church. These are my personal views. And I'm not letting him change my mind. I think religion should be inclusive. I would hope that all people would feel welcome inside a church, and that the church would serve to bring people together, even if they happen to disagree on certain things." [ED.: Oh, what a lovely sentiment. Too bad that mean old Archbishop is set on being so divisive over such a trivial matter as the death of innocents. Can't we all just get along?]
The conclusion is obvious:
..if Burke is expecting an apology or silence from Majerus, it won't happen. If Burke hopes Majerus will fall in line with the Roman Catholic church's official positions on these two issues, it won't happen.
Barring a last-minute conversion, there are OTHER things that 'won't happen' for Rick. Let's continue those prayers...
UPDATE: Ed Peters, (SLU '79) has a warning for Ricky.
Majerus' claim that the "First Amendment right to free speech supersedes anything that the archbishop would order me to do" rated (sorry, I couldn't help it) an 8.5 on the laugh-out-loud scale. SLU's basketball coach should walk across the quad to SLU's law school and ask any second year student to explain the notion of "state action" before he asserts any more grandiloquently wrong theories about the law of Church and state
...Moreover, Majerus had better not provoke Abp. Burke into ordering him by penal precept (1983 CIC 1319) to retract his public support for experimenting on and killing pre-born human beings. Should Majerus receive and refuse such a precept, sanctions up to and including formal excommunication are possible against the St. Louis University official.
For that matter, Abp. Burke doesn't even need to resort to a penal precept if he doesn't want to, because Majerus' public advocacy of gravely immoral behavior and his use of the press to reiterate his horrible views have already placed him at risk for sanctions under 1983 CIC 1369.
The clock's running, Rick....
"I'm very respectful to the archbishop," Majerus said. "But I rely on my value judgments [ED.: The Church of I and Me], thanks to my education at Marquette, which is a Jesuit institution, just like St. Louis. [ED.: Another ringing endorsement of Jesuit education.] And that Jesuit education led me to believe that I can make a value judgment. And my value judgment happens to differ from the archbishop's.
"I do not speak for the university or the Catholic Church. These are my personal views. And I'm not letting him change my mind. I think religion should be inclusive. I would hope that all people would feel welcome inside a church, and that the church would serve to bring people together, even if they happen to disagree on certain things." [ED.: Oh, what a lovely sentiment. Too bad that mean old Archbishop is set on being so divisive over such a trivial matter as the death of innocents. Can't we all just get along?]
The conclusion is obvious:
..if Burke is expecting an apology or silence from Majerus, it won't happen. If Burke hopes Majerus will fall in line with the Roman Catholic church's official positions on these two issues, it won't happen.
Barring a last-minute conversion, there are OTHER things that 'won't happen' for Rick. Let's continue those prayers...
UPDATE: Ed Peters, (SLU '79) has a warning for Ricky.
Majerus' claim that the "First Amendment right to free speech supersedes anything that the archbishop would order me to do" rated (sorry, I couldn't help it) an 8.5 on the laugh-out-loud scale. SLU's basketball coach should walk across the quad to SLU's law school and ask any second year student to explain the notion of "state action" before he asserts any more grandiloquently wrong theories about the law of Church and state
...Moreover, Majerus had better not provoke Abp. Burke into ordering him by penal precept (1983 CIC 1319) to retract his public support for experimenting on and killing pre-born human beings. Should Majerus receive and refuse such a precept, sanctions up to and including formal excommunication are possible against the St. Louis University official.
For that matter, Abp. Burke doesn't even need to resort to a penal precept if he doesn't want to, because Majerus' public advocacy of gravely immoral behavior and his use of the press to reiterate his horrible views have already placed him at risk for sanctions under 1983 CIC 1369.
The clock's running, Rick....
Tell Us Again About "Free Trade"
Stephen Roach, chief economist for Morgan Stanley:
In theory, Roach said, wages increase with productivity growth and all economies have a comparative advantage in the production of something. But real wage stagnation in some of the richest economies and increasing fears that China and India combined will eventually be able to make just about everything the West can, only cheaper, were turning that theory on its head, he said.
Weekly earnings for full-time American workers in the second quarter last year were unchanged from their 2000 levels - even though productivity grew by 18 percent in the same period
Yah, THAT worked out well....
HT: Dreher
In theory, Roach said, wages increase with productivity growth and all economies have a comparative advantage in the production of something. But real wage stagnation in some of the richest economies and increasing fears that China and India combined will eventually be able to make just about everything the West can, only cheaper, were turning that theory on its head, he said.
Weekly earnings for full-time American workers in the second quarter last year were unchanged from their 2000 levels - even though productivity grew by 18 percent in the same period
Yah, THAT worked out well....
HT: Dreher
Crawling Back to "Income Averaging"?
The "tax rebate" package is shaping up. Business stuff:
The business tax portion would give businesses incentives to invest in plants and equipment, give small businesses more generous expensing rules, and allow businesses suffering losses now to reclaim taxes previously paid.
At one time, the IRS Code allowed "income averaging," which was VERY useful to businesses which had "high year"/"low year" cycles. The method facilitated paying taxes (because in a "high year" the cash was there) and recognized that in a "low year" that cash was very hard to get.
Looks like the Congress may be sliding back towards that eminently sensible tax policy.
The business tax portion would give businesses incentives to invest in plants and equipment, give small businesses more generous expensing rules, and allow businesses suffering losses now to reclaim taxes previously paid.
At one time, the IRS Code allowed "income averaging," which was VERY useful to businesses which had "high year"/"low year" cycles. The method facilitated paying taxes (because in a "high year" the cash was there) and recognized that in a "low year" that cash was very hard to get.
Looks like the Congress may be sliding back towards that eminently sensible tax policy.
Lies, and More Lies: Pro-Abort Berceau
Rick Esenberg points out that Rep. Berceau, a rabid pro-abortion (babykilling) Dem., is lying about State laws.
A Berceau quote then talks about people wanting to throw women in jail for having an abortion. The clear message is that we have to repeal 940.04 because, if we don't and Roe is overturned, women who have abortions will be prosecuted and sent to jail.
But, as I have pointed out, state statutes now bar criminal penalties for women seeking abortion. If Roe is overturned, sec. 940.04 could not be used to prosecute them.
Her lie was picked up by OneWisconsinNow, a Lefty bunch--and is mentioned on a local blogpost.
There's an old saying that 'lies and murder are bedfellows.' Some old sayings are 100% accurate.
A Berceau quote then talks about people wanting to throw women in jail for having an abortion. The clear message is that we have to repeal 940.04 because, if we don't and Roe is overturned, women who have abortions will be prosecuted and sent to jail.
But, as I have pointed out, state statutes now bar criminal penalties for women seeking abortion. If Roe is overturned, sec. 940.04 could not be used to prosecute them.
Her lie was picked up by OneWisconsinNow, a Lefty bunch--and is mentioned on a local blogpost.
There's an old saying that 'lies and murder are bedfellows.' Some old sayings are 100% accurate.
Religious Objections? Right to Life? Drop Dead
That's the message from the following "Republicans" who voted for AB377, which would require ALL hospitals in Wisconsin (and, indirectly, their nursing/medical staff) to administer "emergency contraception"--read: abortifacients-- to rape victims.
DAVIS, HINES, JESKEWITZ, KAUFERT, MOULTON, MURTHA, MUSSER, NERISON,
OTT, A., RHOADES, STONE, TAUCHEN, VOS, WIECKERT, WILLIAMS, M., WOOD
I'm sure these jerks think that they have the right to life and religious objections which they've just denied to others.
DAVIS, HINES, JESKEWITZ, KAUFERT, MOULTON, MURTHA, MUSSER, NERISON,
OTT, A., RHOADES, STONE, TAUCHEN, VOS, WIECKERT, WILLIAMS, M., WOOD
I'm sure these jerks think that they have the right to life and religious objections which they've just denied to others.
The Party In Gummint Rolls On...
The Party In Gummint (PIG Party) will continue its self-preservation (at your expense, of course.)
Novak's glum report:
When House Republicans convene behind closed doors today at the Greenbrier resort in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., they have a chance to make two bold moves to restore their reputation for fiscal responsibility. First, they could declare a one-year moratorium on Republican congressional earmarks. Second, they could name earmark reformer Rep. Jeff Flake to a vacancy on the House Appropriations Committee. In fact, they almost surely will do neither.
Instead, during the retreat Republicans are likely to adopt some limitation on earmarks that will have no public impact and will exert no pressure on the earmark-happy Democratic majority. Consideration of Flake's candidacy for Appropriations was postponed until after this week's earmark debate at the Greenbrier. But, content with a half-measure on earmarks, the House Republicans are unlikely to place Flake, an insistent reformer, in the midst of the pork-dispensing appropriators.
Looks like the PIG bunch needs to become smaller, again.
And they will.
HT: The Captain.
Novak's glum report:
When House Republicans convene behind closed doors today at the Greenbrier resort in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., they have a chance to make two bold moves to restore their reputation for fiscal responsibility. First, they could declare a one-year moratorium on Republican congressional earmarks. Second, they could name earmark reformer Rep. Jeff Flake to a vacancy on the House Appropriations Committee. In fact, they almost surely will do neither.
Instead, during the retreat Republicans are likely to adopt some limitation on earmarks that will have no public impact and will exert no pressure on the earmark-happy Democratic majority. Consideration of Flake's candidacy for Appropriations was postponed until after this week's earmark debate at the Greenbrier. But, content with a half-measure on earmarks, the House Republicans are unlikely to place Flake, an insistent reformer, in the midst of the pork-dispensing appropriators.
Looks like the PIG bunch needs to become smaller, again.
And they will.
HT: The Captain.
Levin on Brooks
Yah--the David Brooks who would re-write 'conservatism' to Brooks' own specifications.
Brooks wants to redefine conservatism, but he's not going to. He has written about a McCain-Lieberman Third Party ticket for a few years now, asserting that the war in Iraq would be the overriding issue for years to come (I understand the economy and illegal immigration have become the overriding issues for many voters, but this changes). His position doesn't stray much from the neo-conservative position, in which foreign policy rules supreme, and limited government is of little concern.
The most succinct definition of "Neo-Con" I've seen in a long time--and accurate.
Brooks wants to redefine conservatism, but he's not going to. He has written about a McCain-Lieberman Third Party ticket for a few years now, asserting that the war in Iraq would be the overriding issue for years to come (I understand the economy and illegal immigration have become the overriding issues for many voters, but this changes). His position doesn't stray much from the neo-conservative position, in which foreign policy rules supreme, and limited government is of little concern.
The most succinct definition of "Neo-Con" I've seen in a long time--and accurate.
Neil Palmer: Drinking Funny Water?
The Village of Elm Grove should check its water-source east of 132nd street. Their President, Neil Palmer, may be ingesting odd stuff.
Palmer said he agreed with Murphy's comments about transit and would support light rail to his community "in a heartbeat," adding, "the way this region operates in terms of regional transit is absolute lunacy."
OK.
Let's build a light-rail line right down the middle of Juneau Blvd., and run another one north and south down Highland Blvd. We could use the Elm Grove Village Hall as one train-station, and the Western Raquet Club as another.
THAT works!
Palmer said he agreed with Murphy's comments about transit and would support light rail to his community "in a heartbeat," adding, "the way this region operates in terms of regional transit is absolute lunacy."
OK.
Let's build a light-rail line right down the middle of Juneau Blvd., and run another one north and south down Highland Blvd. We could use the Elm Grove Village Hall as one train-station, and the Western Raquet Club as another.
THAT works!
"Save Money" on Health Insurance?
So DarthDoyle tells us that health-insurance costs are a problem. Check.
And that large-group purchasing power is a solution. Check.
And that he'll put together a large group-purchasing alliance to help out. Check.
THEN he says that it will only cost $100 MILLION in taxes to "reduce costs."
WTF?
...Doyle also proposed a "one-stop shop" of health insurance options where small businesses - those with 50 or fewer employees - and people not covered under group plans could pool their purchasing power and lower the cost of buying coverage.
That plan could include a subsidy of up to $100 million a year in the next budget cycle, which starts in 2009.
That's a lot of "free" tamales, Darth.
And that large-group purchasing power is a solution. Check.
And that he'll put together a large group-purchasing alliance to help out. Check.
THEN he says that it will only cost $100 MILLION in taxes to "reduce costs."
WTF?
...Doyle also proposed a "one-stop shop" of health insurance options where small businesses - those with 50 or fewer employees - and people not covered under group plans could pool their purchasing power and lower the cost of buying coverage.
That plan could include a subsidy of up to $100 million a year in the next budget cycle, which starts in 2009.
That's a lot of "free" tamales, Darth.
200,000++ March Pro-Life
LifeSiteNews.com spoke with John Alger, the Convention Director of the March for Life about the attendance at this year's march. "The largest estimate to date was 225,000," said Alger. "But we think this was at least as big as the largest if not larger, it was just an overwhelming turnout.
The '60's are over, folks.
Doyle Goes All Hillary
Dressed like a Governor of Wisconsin, DarthDoyle speaks like a Bush Derangement Syndrome carrier:
Today, we are reaping the consequences of Washington’s failures. States across the country -- from Florida to California, Minnesota to Arizona -- all are facing budget deficits.
Sure.
Here's another good one:
In Wisconsin we used conservative estimates from the Fiscal Bureau to develop our budget,...
So now it's "conservative" to increase spending at twice the rate of anticipated tax revenues (6% v. 3%)??
And here, Darth lists his ideal States:
I’m telling ya, if Ireland [who cares?] and California [fruits and nuts] and New York [yah, we wanna be like New York!] and Illinois [and like them, too!!] and Minnesota [Oley's my hero] can do it, Wisconsin can do it, and it is time to do what’s right and make all workplaces completely smoke free
Actually, if THOSE are DarthDoyle's guiding lights, then it's worse than anyone imagined.
Today, we are reaping the consequences of Washington’s failures. States across the country -- from Florida to California, Minnesota to Arizona -- all are facing budget deficits.
Sure.
Here's another good one:
In Wisconsin we used conservative estimates from the Fiscal Bureau to develop our budget,...
So now it's "conservative" to increase spending at twice the rate of anticipated tax revenues (6% v. 3%)??
And here, Darth lists his ideal States:
I’m telling ya, if Ireland [who cares?] and California [fruits and nuts] and New York [yah, we wanna be like New York!] and Illinois [and like them, too!!] and Minnesota [Oley's my hero] can do it, Wisconsin can do it, and it is time to do what’s right and make all workplaces completely smoke free
Actually, if THOSE are DarthDoyle's guiding lights, then it's worse than anyone imagined.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Recession? Not If You're an H1-B User
Not only is "Compete America" looking for 300,000 extra H1-B's in the next few months--they're willing to lie like Hell about how they came up with that number.
First question: if the country is going into recession, what's the "need" for 300,000 extra workers?
Next question: will Congress swallow this pack of lies?
The H-1B 'backlog' of 300,000 is calculated by taking the difference between the yearly cap on H-1Bs and the number of non-exempt visas that are issued. The numbers are erroneous and here is why -- visas issued is not the same as H-1B petitions approved. Compete America and other H-1B advocates purposefully mislead the public by omitting the number of exempt visas issued, which is a significant error.
According to the table on the Heritage website, in 2003 the numbers were as follows:
new visas issued 78,000
yearly cap 195,000
difference -117,000
Those numbers imply that 117,000 less H-1Bs were issued than allowed by the cap, so Compete America argues that those visas should be reissued. Total all of these up since 1992 and you get a 310,100 visa difference. It all sounds compelling,...
(The author now cites uscis.gov files)
The stats on the Heritage page are deceptive because they don't include the total number of H-1B petitions approved. In order to take some of the lies out of the statistics, let's correct them to accurately reflect the number of H-1B petitions approved:
H-1B petitions 217,340
cap 195,000
difference +22,340
(Source: JobDestruction website/newsletter.)
Look, folks. The CEO of Capital One is cutting back on auto loans and tightening up on credit-card issuances, based on increasingly rotten experience in each of these areas. The Philly Fed shows a new graphic that demonstrates a rapidly-softening economy. Bush and the Dems are working on "giveaway" plans, and the Fed went into panic mode on Tuesday.
So we need 300,000 new H1-B's...for what...again?
First question: if the country is going into recession, what's the "need" for 300,000 extra workers?
Next question: will Congress swallow this pack of lies?
The H-1B 'backlog' of 300,000 is calculated by taking the difference between the yearly cap on H-1Bs and the number of non-exempt visas that are issued. The numbers are erroneous and here is why -- visas issued is not the same as H-1B petitions approved. Compete America and other H-1B advocates purposefully mislead the public by omitting the number of exempt visas issued, which is a significant error.
According to the table on the Heritage website, in 2003 the numbers were as follows:
new visas issued 78,000
yearly cap 195,000
difference -117,000
Those numbers imply that 117,000 less H-1Bs were issued than allowed by the cap, so Compete America argues that those visas should be reissued. Total all of these up since 1992 and you get a 310,100 visa difference. It all sounds compelling,...
(The author now cites uscis.gov files)
The stats on the Heritage page are deceptive because they don't include the total number of H-1B petitions approved. In order to take some of the lies out of the statistics, let's correct them to accurately reflect the number of H-1B petitions approved:
H-1B petitions 217,340
cap 195,000
difference +22,340
(Source: JobDestruction website/newsletter.)
Look, folks. The CEO of Capital One is cutting back on auto loans and tightening up on credit-card issuances, based on increasingly rotten experience in each of these areas. The Philly Fed shows a new graphic that demonstrates a rapidly-softening economy. Bush and the Dems are working on "giveaway" plans, and the Fed went into panic mode on Tuesday.
So we need 300,000 new H1-B's...for what...again?
Another Little Lie from the Liturgical Revolutionaries
We were all told, without hesitation or doubt, that "the early Christians" did this, did that, did the other thing--and most certainly, the Mass was celebrated "versus populum," that is, the priest was facing the people. That's the way by which the spoonful of ....cod liver oil....was shoved down the throats of the laity.
Wrong.
These twits, the Bugnini-ites, just made it up, (as was the case with "ordained" female deacons in the early Church. It was made up from whole cloth...)
What in the early Church and during the Middle Ages determined the position of the altar was that it faced East. To quote St. Augustine: "When we rise to pray, we turn East, where heaven begins. And we do this not because God is there, as if He had moved away from the other directions on earth..., but rather to help us remember to turn our mind towards a higher order, that is, to God." This quotation shows that the Christians of those early days, after listening to the homily, would rise for the prayer which followed, and turn towards the East
...the liturgy was celebrated from behind the altar in order to face East when offering the Sacrifice. But this did not represent, as might be implied, a celebration versus populum, since the faithful were facing East in prayer as well. Thus, even in the basilicas just described, the celebration of the Eucharist did not entail the priest and the faithful facing one another. During Mass, the faithful, men separated from women, were assembled in the two side naves, with curtains normally hanging between the columns. The center nave was used for the solemn entrance procession of the celebrant and his assistants to the altar, and the choir was situated there as well. Even if we take the hypothetical case that the early Christians in the old Roman basilicas did not face the entrance—that is, the East—during the Offertory prayer—i.e., that they really faced the altar—this still would not have meant that the priest and the faithful faced one another, because during the Eucharistic Prayer the altar was hidden behind curtains. (...)
Here Gamber tells us why a statue of Martin Luther was placed in Rembert Weakland's Milwaukee Seminary:
The idea that the priest is to face the people during Mass has its origins with Martin Luther, in his little book, The German Mass and Order of Worship (1526).
Of course, that seminary has been forcefully divorced from the property-roster of the Milwaukee Archdiocese.
Co-incidence?
HT: Rorate Coeli
Wrong.
These twits, the Bugnini-ites, just made it up, (as was the case with "ordained" female deacons in the early Church. It was made up from whole cloth...)
What in the early Church and during the Middle Ages determined the position of the altar was that it faced East. To quote St. Augustine: "When we rise to pray, we turn East, where heaven begins. And we do this not because God is there, as if He had moved away from the other directions on earth..., but rather to help us remember to turn our mind towards a higher order, that is, to God." This quotation shows that the Christians of those early days, after listening to the homily, would rise for the prayer which followed, and turn towards the East
...the liturgy was celebrated from behind the altar in order to face East when offering the Sacrifice. But this did not represent, as might be implied, a celebration versus populum, since the faithful were facing East in prayer as well. Thus, even in the basilicas just described, the celebration of the Eucharist did not entail the priest and the faithful facing one another. During Mass, the faithful, men separated from women, were assembled in the two side naves, with curtains normally hanging between the columns. The center nave was used for the solemn entrance procession of the celebrant and his assistants to the altar, and the choir was situated there as well. Even if we take the hypothetical case that the early Christians in the old Roman basilicas did not face the entrance—that is, the East—during the Offertory prayer—i.e., that they really faced the altar—this still would not have meant that the priest and the faithful faced one another, because during the Eucharistic Prayer the altar was hidden behind curtains. (...)
Here Gamber tells us why a statue of Martin Luther was placed in Rembert Weakland's Milwaukee Seminary:
The idea that the priest is to face the people during Mass has its origins with Martin Luther, in his little book, The German Mass and Order of Worship (1526).
Of course, that seminary has been forcefully divorced from the property-roster of the Milwaukee Archdiocese.
Co-incidence?
HT: Rorate Coeli
And the Good News?
Here's the bad news:
In reality, the crisis is both a credit crunch and the bursting of the housing bubble. Wall Street is in terrible shape and Main Street is about to be in terrible shape. And there's not a whole lot that can be done about either of these problems -- because they are the results of years of lax credit standards, get-rich-quick schemes, wild speculation on Wall Street and in the housing market, and gross irresponsibility by the Fed, the Treasury and the Comptroller of the Currency
Other than that, things are just dandy.
But in a somewhat nasty analogy, the author derides the "rate-cut" scheme:
The problem is, people have different views about what's going wrong. Wall Street sees it as a credit crisis -- a mess that seems never to reach bottom because nobody on Wall Street has any idea how many bad loans are out there. Therefore, nobody knows how big the losses are likely to be when the bottom is finally reached. And precisely because nobody knows, nobody wants to lend any more money. A rate cut won't change this. It's like offering a 10-pound lobster to someone so constipated he can't take in another mouthful.
The discount and Fed Funds rates are insignificant--totally meaningless--to ARM borrowers, and to most typical-mortgage holders. And they are almost meaningless to ordinary consumer and/or business borrowers.
They ARE meaningful to stock-owners; typically, when rates go down, equities rise. Maybe that will be the result this time.
Maybe not.
And sending $1500/taxpaying couple out in July? What for??
It's eye candy which saddles our children with Federal debt.
What a bunch of losers...
HT: Dreher
In reality, the crisis is both a credit crunch and the bursting of the housing bubble. Wall Street is in terrible shape and Main Street is about to be in terrible shape. And there's not a whole lot that can be done about either of these problems -- because they are the results of years of lax credit standards, get-rich-quick schemes, wild speculation on Wall Street and in the housing market, and gross irresponsibility by the Fed, the Treasury and the Comptroller of the Currency
Other than that, things are just dandy.
But in a somewhat nasty analogy, the author derides the "rate-cut" scheme:
The problem is, people have different views about what's going wrong. Wall Street sees it as a credit crisis -- a mess that seems never to reach bottom because nobody on Wall Street has any idea how many bad loans are out there. Therefore, nobody knows how big the losses are likely to be when the bottom is finally reached. And precisely because nobody knows, nobody wants to lend any more money. A rate cut won't change this. It's like offering a 10-pound lobster to someone so constipated he can't take in another mouthful.
The discount and Fed Funds rates are insignificant--totally meaningless--to ARM borrowers, and to most typical-mortgage holders. And they are almost meaningless to ordinary consumer and/or business borrowers.
They ARE meaningful to stock-owners; typically, when rates go down, equities rise. Maybe that will be the result this time.
Maybe not.
And sending $1500/taxpaying couple out in July? What for??
It's eye candy which saddles our children with Federal debt.
What a bunch of losers...
HT: Dreher
Doyle's Thieving Causes BIG Problems
You recall that DarthDoyle (and a majority of our Leggies) conspired to steal $200 million from the Patient's Compensation Fund in order to paste a smiley face over their bloated, spend-a-holic budget. And if you believed that "it's all OK now," you'd also believe a hooker who tells you she doesn't have VD.
I use that analogy deliberately.
It took all of one business day for the state 's $200 million transfer from a medical malpractice fund to go haywire.
And the situation could become markedly worse.
One business day after Doyle signed the state budget, the state grabbed an initial $71.5 million from the Patients Compensation Fund, plunging it into financial trouble.
The medical malpractice fund didn't have nearly enough cash to offset the raid. Most of its assets were tied up in investments such as stocks and bonds. To get by, the medical malpractice fund had to borrow money from other state accounts at an undisclosed interest rate.
In other words, one state fund was borrowing from other state funds to cover expenses it was never supposed to have in the first place. It's an unsustainable shell game.
"...when one first practices to deceive...."
HT: Random10
I use that analogy deliberately.
It took all of one business day for the state 's $200 million transfer from a medical malpractice fund to go haywire.
And the situation could become markedly worse.
One business day after Doyle signed the state budget, the state grabbed an initial $71.5 million from the Patients Compensation Fund, plunging it into financial trouble.
The medical malpractice fund didn't have nearly enough cash to offset the raid. Most of its assets were tied up in investments such as stocks and bonds. To get by, the medical malpractice fund had to borrow money from other state accounts at an undisclosed interest rate.
In other words, one state fund was borrowing from other state funds to cover expenses it was never supposed to have in the first place. It's an unsustainable shell game.
"...when one first practices to deceive...."
HT: Random10
McPain is NOT the Answer
Fred bailed, after reminding us what principles actually are.
Now McPain?
Not for me.
John McCain has spent this whole day, this whole year, these whole last six years, trying to "fix it," trying to square the circle: that is, trying to make the maverick, freethinking impulses that first made him into a political star somehow compatible with the suck-it-up adherence to the orthodoxies required of a Republican presidential front-runner. McCain opposes a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, but supports a ballot measure that would do just that in his home state of Arizona. (It would fail in the midterm elections.) His short-term reward for the Hardball bunt on gay marriage? Boos from the audience and a headline on the Drudge Report, the right wing's favorite screechy early-warning system, reading, mccain: gay marriage should be allowed? McCain needs to square that circle, and the hell of it is, he just can't.
Just a sample.
HT: Malkin
Now McPain?
Not for me.
John McCain has spent this whole day, this whole year, these whole last six years, trying to "fix it," trying to square the circle: that is, trying to make the maverick, freethinking impulses that first made him into a political star somehow compatible with the suck-it-up adherence to the orthodoxies required of a Republican presidential front-runner. McCain opposes a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, but supports a ballot measure that would do just that in his home state of Arizona. (It would fail in the midterm elections.) His short-term reward for the Hardball bunt on gay marriage? Boos from the audience and a headline on the Drudge Report, the right wing's favorite screechy early-warning system, reading, mccain: gay marriage should be allowed? McCain needs to square that circle, and the hell of it is, he just can't.
Just a sample.
HT: Malkin
The Picture You Didn't See in the MSM
This pic has been on/off/on/off Yahoo News' site, so we'll make sure it's around for a while.
That's the pro-life demonstration in DC which is not worth coverage, of course.
HT: Malkin
There's A Reason I Stopped Reading This ....
The Anchoress. Not worth the time, and a loudmouth, besides.
Jackass Chicago Lawyer to Leave the Country
The scumbag lawyer who keyed a Marine's car in Chicago showed up in court yesterday.
Grodner was late to court for the second time in the case. Grodner called Assistant State's Attorney Patrick Kelly, (Marine Corps/Vietnam 1969-1972), informing Kelly that he would be late to court.
"I don't run my courtroom that way!" responded Judge William O'Malley, ordering Grodner be arrested and held on $20,000 bail when he arrived. Finally, Grodner strolled in. A short man, wide, wearing a black fedora, dark glasses, a divorce lawyer dressed like some tough guy in the movies.
Judge O'Malley...was a police officer on the West Side during the riots before law school. And before that, he performed another public service. Judge O'Malley served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1961-1964.
Heh.
Grodner told me he'd describe himself as a "radical liberal" who's ready to leave Chicago now with all this negative publicity and move to the south of France and do some traveling
Save yourself a few bucks, Grodner. Make it a one-way ticket.
HT: ClayCramer
Grodner was late to court for the second time in the case. Grodner called Assistant State's Attorney Patrick Kelly, (Marine Corps/Vietnam 1969-1972), informing Kelly that he would be late to court.
"I don't run my courtroom that way!" responded Judge William O'Malley, ordering Grodner be arrested and held on $20,000 bail when he arrived. Finally, Grodner strolled in. A short man, wide, wearing a black fedora, dark glasses, a divorce lawyer dressed like some tough guy in the movies.
Judge O'Malley...was a police officer on the West Side during the riots before law school. And before that, he performed another public service. Judge O'Malley served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1961-1964.
Heh.
Grodner told me he'd describe himself as a "radical liberal" who's ready to leave Chicago now with all this negative publicity and move to the south of France and do some traveling
Save yourself a few bucks, Grodner. Make it a one-way ticket.
HT: ClayCramer
We Second K-Lo's Emotion
From Kathryn Lopez' column in NRO:
"...he just gets it. He cares about his country and he cares about common sense. The good conservative sense Thompson articulated certainly resonated — the blogosphere got enthused for a possible presidential run."
You believed him when he said Saturday night, “It’s never been about me. It’s never even been about you. It’s been about our country and about the future of our country ….
Whoever winds up the Republican nominee for president this year, he’d be doing his country a service if he read Fred’s pre-caucus message to Iowa voters that Thompson posted on his website. In it he listed “the fundamental, conservative principles that have unified us for over two centuries.”
-First, the role of the federal government is limited to the powers given to it in the Constitution
-Second, a dollar belongs in the pocket of the person who earns it, unless the government has a compelling reason why it can use it better
-Third, we don't spend money we don't have, or borrow money that our children and grandchildren will have to pay back
-And the best way to avoid war is to be stronger than our enemies. But if we’re caught in a fight, we need to win it because not doing so makes us much more likely to be attacked in the future
-Also the federal judiciary is supposed to decide cases, not set social policy — and bad social policy at that
-And the bigger the government gets, the less competent it is to run our lives.
K-Lo ends this way:
Thank God for Fred Thompson. May he inspire more to serve. And may he encourage us to rethink our may-the-man-with-the-best-soundbites-win electoral process.
She's right, you know.
"...he just gets it. He cares about his country and he cares about common sense. The good conservative sense Thompson articulated certainly resonated — the blogosphere got enthused for a possible presidential run."
You believed him when he said Saturday night, “It’s never been about me. It’s never even been about you. It’s been about our country and about the future of our country ….
Whoever winds up the Republican nominee for president this year, he’d be doing his country a service if he read Fred’s pre-caucus message to Iowa voters that Thompson posted on his website. In it he listed “the fundamental, conservative principles that have unified us for over two centuries.”
-First, the role of the federal government is limited to the powers given to it in the Constitution
-Second, a dollar belongs in the pocket of the person who earns it, unless the government has a compelling reason why it can use it better
-Third, we don't spend money we don't have, or borrow money that our children and grandchildren will have to pay back
-And the best way to avoid war is to be stronger than our enemies. But if we’re caught in a fight, we need to win it because not doing so makes us much more likely to be attacked in the future
-Also the federal judiciary is supposed to decide cases, not set social policy — and bad social policy at that
-And the bigger the government gets, the less competent it is to run our lives.
K-Lo ends this way:
Thank God for Fred Thompson. May he inspire more to serve. And may he encourage us to rethink our may-the-man-with-the-best-soundbites-win electoral process.
She's right, you know.
Elmbrook's Second Down Play
After a review, the Elmbrook School Board decided to try for a pass into the flat instead of a long touchdown.
With 10 weeks before the April 1 election, the Elmbrook School Board voted unanimously Tuesday to seek voter referendum approval for $62.2 million to renovate and expand Brookfield Central and East high schools.
That is a reduction of $46.6 million from the $108.8 million referendum package that failed in April, which also included remodeling and much larger expansion.
The new construction proposed would be athletic facilities at both schools, which would free up existing gym space to be converted for other academic purposes.
Elmbrook taxpayers can (and should) thank this guy:
Jerry Theder
....who led a 7-member task force which determined that the initial plan was simply too much.
With 10 weeks before the April 1 election, the Elmbrook School Board voted unanimously Tuesday to seek voter referendum approval for $62.2 million to renovate and expand Brookfield Central and East high schools.
That is a reduction of $46.6 million from the $108.8 million referendum package that failed in April, which also included remodeling and much larger expansion.
The new construction proposed would be athletic facilities at both schools, which would free up existing gym space to be converted for other academic purposes.
Elmbrook taxpayers can (and should) thank this guy:
Jerry Theder
....who led a 7-member task force which determined that the initial plan was simply too much.
Majerus' Stupid Remarks
Rick Majerus, a graduate of Marquette High and Marquette U., became another CINO over the weekend, to the disappointment of the Bishop of St. Louis, where Majerus' mouth was moving.
The Catholic basketball coach for the Catholic St. Louis University looked into the TV camera at the Clinton rally last weekend and said, "I'm pro-choice, personally."
A CLINTON rally? Yah. Recall that Majerus' father was the local UAW honcho for years.
That's when the Roman Catholic coach ran smack into the Roman Catholic archbishop.
On Tuesday, St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke said St. Louis University should discipline Majerus for comments he made at the rally. Burke also told the Post-Dispatch that he would deny Majerus holy Communion if the coach did not change his positions on abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research.
"I'm very much an advocate for stem cell research," Majerus told KMOV-TV at the Saturday rally at McCluer North High School.
Referring to Majerus' statements, Burke said before the rally Tuesday that it was "not possible to be a Catholic and hold those positions."
Abp Burke explained his objections very clearly, which confused the Intellectualoids on the SLU campus, of course:
"I'm confident (SLU) will deal with the question of a public representative making declarations that are inconsistent with the Catholic faith," Burke said. "When you take a position in a Catholic university, you don't have to embrace everything the Catholic church teaches. But you can't make statements which call into question that identity and mission of the Catholic church."
To which Majerus could respond "Why not? Dan Maguire does it all the time!!!"
So long as you measure life by a 40-minute clock, Rick, no problem. But if you take a longer view (you know, eschatological), you might just change your position.
That's what the Archbishop of St Louis wants you to do. Take a long view and change. "Do metanoia", Rick.
The Catholic basketball coach for the Catholic St. Louis University looked into the TV camera at the Clinton rally last weekend and said, "I'm pro-choice, personally."
A CLINTON rally? Yah. Recall that Majerus' father was the local UAW honcho for years.
That's when the Roman Catholic coach ran smack into the Roman Catholic archbishop.
On Tuesday, St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke said St. Louis University should discipline Majerus for comments he made at the rally. Burke also told the Post-Dispatch that he would deny Majerus holy Communion if the coach did not change his positions on abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research.
"I'm very much an advocate for stem cell research," Majerus told KMOV-TV at the Saturday rally at McCluer North High School.
Referring to Majerus' statements, Burke said before the rally Tuesday that it was "not possible to be a Catholic and hold those positions."
Abp Burke explained his objections very clearly, which confused the Intellectualoids on the SLU campus, of course:
"I'm confident (SLU) will deal with the question of a public representative making declarations that are inconsistent with the Catholic faith," Burke said. "When you take a position in a Catholic university, you don't have to embrace everything the Catholic church teaches. But you can't make statements which call into question that identity and mission of the Catholic church."
To which Majerus could respond "Why not? Dan Maguire does it all the time!!!"
So long as you measure life by a 40-minute clock, Rick, no problem. But if you take a longer view (you know, eschatological), you might just change your position.
That's what the Archbishop of St Louis wants you to do. Take a long view and change. "Do metanoia", Rick.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
"Universal Health?"
Not yet published in the newspapers:
Eighty-one percent of Americans believe that in order to help reach the goal of health insurance for all, employers should either provide health insurance to their workers or contribute to the cost of their coverage, according to survey data released by The Commonwealth Fund.
(CCH News)
Looks to me that if you want insurance, you'd damn well better be working someplace.
Eighty-one percent of Americans believe that in order to help reach the goal of health insurance for all, employers should either provide health insurance to their workers or contribute to the cost of their coverage, according to survey data released by The Commonwealth Fund.
(CCH News)
Looks to me that if you want insurance, you'd damn well better be working someplace.
New TV Show!
The Jester previews a new TV Show.
"Survivor: Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska"
In this show progressive Catholics are isolated in Bishop Bruskewitz's diocese and must go without internet connectivity and their subscription to National Catholic Reporter and other of their favorite magazines and newspapers. Each week tune in to see whether contestants can survive Masses celebrated totally in accordance to the GIRM and with exactly zero creative liturgical changes. In one grueling episode the contestants visit a seminary busting to the seams with seminarians who share the same knee-jerk "obedience" to the church as their Bishop does. A seminary full of young-fogeys is a difficult prospect to face. If you are a progressive Catholic who thinks they have what it takes for "Survivor: Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska" then please attend our tryouts. But it certainly is not for the faint of heart
He has others, too, at the link. Good stuff!
"Survivor: Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska"
In this show progressive Catholics are isolated in Bishop Bruskewitz's diocese and must go without internet connectivity and their subscription to National Catholic Reporter and other of their favorite magazines and newspapers. Each week tune in to see whether contestants can survive Masses celebrated totally in accordance to the GIRM and with exactly zero creative liturgical changes. In one grueling episode the contestants visit a seminary busting to the seams with seminarians who share the same knee-jerk "obedience" to the church as their Bishop does. A seminary full of young-fogeys is a difficult prospect to face. If you are a progressive Catholic who thinks they have what it takes for "Survivor: Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska" then please attend our tryouts. But it certainly is not for the faint of heart
He has others, too, at the link. Good stuff!
The Fallacy of Social Darwinism
"Evolution," as a scientific theory, maybe. As a philosophy, or sociology?
G K Chesterton has the answer.
DARWINISM can be used to back up two mad moralities, but it cannot be used to back up a single sane one. The kinship and competition of all living creatures can be used as a reason for being insanely cruel or insanely sentimental; but not for a healthy love of animals. On the evolutionary basis you may be inhumane, or you may be absurdly humane; but you cannot be human. That you and a tiger are one may be a reason for being tender to a tiger. Or it may be a reason for being as cruel as the tiger. It is one way to train the tiger to imitate you; it is a shorter way to imitate the tiger. But in neither case does evolution tell you how to treat a tiger reasonably -- that is, to admire his stripes while avoiding his claws. If you want to treat a tiger reasonably, you must go back to the garden of Eden. --Orthodoxy
G K Chesterton has the answer.
DARWINISM can be used to back up two mad moralities, but it cannot be used to back up a single sane one. The kinship and competition of all living creatures can be used as a reason for being insanely cruel or insanely sentimental; but not for a healthy love of animals. On the evolutionary basis you may be inhumane, or you may be absurdly humane; but you cannot be human. That you and a tiger are one may be a reason for being tender to a tiger. Or it may be a reason for being as cruel as the tiger. It is one way to train the tiger to imitate you; it is a shorter way to imitate the tiger. But in neither case does evolution tell you how to treat a tiger reasonably -- that is, to admire his stripes while avoiding his claws. If you want to treat a tiger reasonably, you must go back to the garden of Eden. --Orthodoxy
How Cold WAS It?
No, not in Green Bay at The Game.
In West Texas, the LawDog went hunting and the temperature dropped (same cold front, different latitude...)
That four A.M. call of nature? After staggering outside, I unzipped and rooted through an insulated set of coveralls, past the hunting pants, into my jeans and my Fruit-of-the-Looms -- only to find a tiny little note reading: "Sod this. Sod you. Gone home."
That, my friends, is cold.
In West Texas, the LawDog went hunting and the temperature dropped (same cold front, different latitude...)
That four A.M. call of nature? After staggering outside, I unzipped and rooted through an insulated set of coveralls, past the hunting pants, into my jeans and my Fruit-of-the-Looms -- only to find a tiny little note reading: "Sod this. Sod you. Gone home."
That, my friends, is cold.
Fed Cuts: Effects Include...
As asked by The Big Picture:
The free lunch crowd (a/k/a Long & Wrong) has been chanting for Fed cuts. However, these are not with0out consequences, as Inflation remains a pernicious threat.
Here’s a question: What goes to $5 a gallon first – Milk or Gasoline?
As SOME people learned during the reign of Volcker, higher rates make the USD strong. Low rates do the opposite.
So hard commodities like copper, steel, petroleum, and gold are going to take off in price.
By the way, for those of you who don't know: the Fed's cut is in interest rates paid BY BANKS to the Fed to borrow money from the Fed--or to borrow money from other Banks (if they will lend it.)
It ain't for youse louts.
The free lunch crowd (a/k/a Long & Wrong) has been chanting for Fed cuts. However, these are not with0out consequences, as Inflation remains a pernicious threat.
Here’s a question: What goes to $5 a gallon first – Milk or Gasoline?
As SOME people learned during the reign of Volcker, higher rates make the USD strong. Low rates do the opposite.
So hard commodities like copper, steel, petroleum, and gold are going to take off in price.
By the way, for those of you who don't know: the Fed's cut is in interest rates paid BY BANKS to the Fed to borrow money from the Fed--or to borrow money from other Banks (if they will lend it.)
It ain't for youse louts.
Socialized Medicine + A Nut = More Cost
You can't make this up.
A family doctor has been summoned to a formal hearing over his refusal to put a 34-year-old male patient on the list for screening for cervical cancer.
...The man, who has fathered a child, believes he is a hermaphrodite although his doctors have examined him and can find no evidence for this.
...He has since requested full DNA testing and full blood toxicology screening, although he will not give his doctor a reason or describe symptoms to justify the tests.
Why not? After all, it's "free" medicine in England.
HT: Moonbattery
A family doctor has been summoned to a formal hearing over his refusal to put a 34-year-old male patient on the list for screening for cervical cancer.
...The man, who has fathered a child, believes he is a hermaphrodite although his doctors have examined him and can find no evidence for this.
...He has since requested full DNA testing and full blood toxicology screening, although he will not give his doctor a reason or describe symptoms to justify the tests.
Why not? After all, it's "free" medicine in England.
HT: Moonbattery
The Professor's Equipment
I know that being a college prof requires a certain amount of books and equipment.
So this guy who teaches at Columbia U. has a bunch of stuff:
A 9-mm. handgun, two ammunition magazines, a 12-gauge shotgun, silencers, a bulletproof vest, a crossbow and bomb-making equipment, including a drill and threading machine that could be used to make pipe bombs, were also recovered, cops said.
Not to mention the half-dozen completely assembled pipe bombs...
So what does this nutcase teach?
Clatts is a medical anthropologist with a specialty in epidemiology - the spread of disease among large populations.
He is an associate professor in Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health and holds a Ph.D. from the Ivy League school.
Perhaps "disease-tracking" is more dangerous than we thought?
Or perhaps the Perfesser is actually a terrorist.
So this guy who teaches at Columbia U. has a bunch of stuff:
A 9-mm. handgun, two ammunition magazines, a 12-gauge shotgun, silencers, a bulletproof vest, a crossbow and bomb-making equipment, including a drill and threading machine that could be used to make pipe bombs, were also recovered, cops said.
Not to mention the half-dozen completely assembled pipe bombs...
So what does this nutcase teach?
Clatts is a medical anthropologist with a specialty in epidemiology - the spread of disease among large populations.
He is an associate professor in Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health and holds a Ph.D. from the Ivy League school.
Perhaps "disease-tracking" is more dangerous than we thought?
Or perhaps the Perfesser is actually a terrorist.
More Hizbollah, Less Security
From Counterterrorism Blog:
I certainly agree with Doug Farah that "the Iran-Venezuela-Nicaragua nexus, built on a foundation of already-existing Hezbollah and Hamas operatives who have been economically active in the region for decades," could be disastrous for the security of the Western Hemisphere in the near future.
The author does not expect a hit on the Panama Canal. But he leaves us with this:
Counter-terrorism planners quantify the risk to hemispheric targets and prioritize them in the development and deployment of precious and expensive military and non-military assets. Perhaps one reason for the lack of a major Hezbollah attack in the hemisphere since 1994 is because the cost of that attack to the Iran-Hezbollah nexus far exceeded the benefit. We can think about the actual security risks to the hemisphere as least as intelligently as the terrorists.
It would take...what?....10 minutes to run the First MEF through Nicaragua.
I certainly agree with Doug Farah that "the Iran-Venezuela-Nicaragua nexus, built on a foundation of already-existing Hezbollah and Hamas operatives who have been economically active in the region for decades," could be disastrous for the security of the Western Hemisphere in the near future.
The author does not expect a hit on the Panama Canal. But he leaves us with this:
Counter-terrorism planners quantify the risk to hemispheric targets and prioritize them in the development and deployment of precious and expensive military and non-military assets. Perhaps one reason for the lack of a major Hezbollah attack in the hemisphere since 1994 is because the cost of that attack to the Iran-Hezbollah nexus far exceeded the benefit. We can think about the actual security risks to the hemisphere as least as intelligently as the terrorists.
It would take...what?....10 minutes to run the First MEF through Nicaragua.
GWB: Another Kick in the Pants of Conservatives
Actually, his departure won't be terrible.
The Bush administration will probably not issue an executive order canceling the 9,000 earmarks in the omnibus spending bill, the New York Times reports, as the White House does not want to have a war with Congress in 2008.
OK, George. Why don't you just leave now? We'd like an actual President, not a doormat.
HT: Captain's Quarters
The Bush administration will probably not issue an executive order canceling the 9,000 earmarks in the omnibus spending bill, the New York Times reports, as the White House does not want to have a war with Congress in 2008.
OK, George. Why don't you just leave now? We'd like an actual President, not a doormat.
HT: Captain's Quarters
Virtual Education--What the Newspapers Didn't Tell You
Bill Kramer, subbing for Owen, mentions an interesting factoid which was not mentioned in coverage of the WIVA (Virtual Academy) case:
The case was filed by WEAC in 2004 and in March, 2006, the circuit court ruled in favor of the virtual charter schools. As the opinion was pending, the legislature sought to address the statutory issues raised in the case by passing AB 1060. Doyle, siding with the teacher’s union, vetoed the bill. With a legislative remedy safely quashed, ...
And the rest is history.
Kramer happens to agree with the Appeals Court's decision.
As a conservative, I appreciate the careful reading of the law that the court used in delivering its opinion
And he quotes the decision:
However, as the law presently stands, the charter school, open-enrollment, and teacher certification statutes are clear and unambiguous, and the District is not in compliance with any of them.”
As to a legislative remedy, only one proposal actually meets the needs of WIVA (as presently constituted), and you don't have to think hard to figure out which Party introduced THAT remedy.
Assembly Republicans have introduced a bill that addresses the three issues at the heart of the court decision: 1. The bill would clarify the meaning of the location of a charter school, allowing teachers using the internet to teach – even if they are not physically teaching from the school district. 2. The bill also permits students to use the open enrollment program to enroll in a virtual charter school in another school district. 3. And finally, the bill makes it clear that a teacher means a paid faculty member of the charter school.
You can expect DarthDoyle to veto it, should it actually get to his desk.
After all, he has a black-hole deficit to worry about (see below.) Actually educating children ain't part of that problem...
The case was filed by WEAC in 2004 and in March, 2006, the circuit court ruled in favor of the virtual charter schools. As the opinion was pending, the legislature sought to address the statutory issues raised in the case by passing AB 1060. Doyle, siding with the teacher’s union, vetoed the bill. With a legislative remedy safely quashed, ...
And the rest is history.
Kramer happens to agree with the Appeals Court's decision.
As a conservative, I appreciate the careful reading of the law that the court used in delivering its opinion
And he quotes the decision:
However, as the law presently stands, the charter school, open-enrollment, and teacher certification statutes are clear and unambiguous, and the District is not in compliance with any of them.”
As to a legislative remedy, only one proposal actually meets the needs of WIVA (as presently constituted), and you don't have to think hard to figure out which Party introduced THAT remedy.
Assembly Republicans have introduced a bill that addresses the three issues at the heart of the court decision: 1. The bill would clarify the meaning of the location of a charter school, allowing teachers using the internet to teach – even if they are not physically teaching from the school district. 2. The bill also permits students to use the open enrollment program to enroll in a virtual charter school in another school district. 3. And finally, the bill makes it clear that a teacher means a paid faculty member of the charter school.
You can expect DarthDoyle to veto it, should it actually get to his desk.
After all, he has a black-hole deficit to worry about (see below.) Actually educating children ain't part of that problem...
Over-Spending the Income
Heh.
Preliminary state Department of Revenue totals show the personal and corporate income tax and the sales tax brought in $5.13 billion from July through December, an increase of only 0.8% over the same period in 2006--falling far short of the 3% assumed growth needed to cover state expenditures this year.
Every unexpected 1% drop in collections from those taxes means state government will have $120 million less a year to spend.
The two-year budget that Doyle and legislators agreed to in October included a 6% spending increase, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.
A certain blogger/friend of mine will testify that I've been very curious about the State's sales-tax revenue numbers over the last few months. No wonder that 'nobody could find the numbers'...
Now he knows WHY I was curious.
What's DarthDoyle's plan?
"When the economy slows like this, it's going to be a real challenge. We're going to be in a difficult time, and we're going to ask people to make sacrifices, and do without some things and put some things off that we want to get done."
Don't you love that indefinite "people" in that sentence?
WHICH "people" Jimbo? The taxpaying "people," or the tax-receiving "people"?
These sentences may be a clue:
One budgeting method, the Generally Accepted Accounting Practices, puts Wisconsin's latest deficit at $2.44 billion - a $300 million increase in a year.
Wisconsin state officials don't use that accounting method because it would consider promises of future state aid to local governments as a draw against current tax collections.
...meaning that those promises are the easiest to break, of course.
Preliminary state Department of Revenue totals show the personal and corporate income tax and the sales tax brought in $5.13 billion from July through December, an increase of only 0.8% over the same period in 2006--falling far short of the 3% assumed growth needed to cover state expenditures this year.
Every unexpected 1% drop in collections from those taxes means state government will have $120 million less a year to spend.
The two-year budget that Doyle and legislators agreed to in October included a 6% spending increase, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.
A certain blogger/friend of mine will testify that I've been very curious about the State's sales-tax revenue numbers over the last few months. No wonder that 'nobody could find the numbers'...
Now he knows WHY I was curious.
What's DarthDoyle's plan?
"When the economy slows like this, it's going to be a real challenge. We're going to be in a difficult time, and we're going to ask people to make sacrifices, and do without some things and put some things off that we want to get done."
Don't you love that indefinite "people" in that sentence?
WHICH "people" Jimbo? The taxpaying "people," or the tax-receiving "people"?
These sentences may be a clue:
One budgeting method, the Generally Accepted Accounting Practices, puts Wisconsin's latest deficit at $2.44 billion - a $300 million increase in a year.
Wisconsin state officials don't use that accounting method because it would consider promises of future state aid to local governments as a draw against current tax collections.
...meaning that those promises are the easiest to break, of course.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Planning the Archdiocese of Milwaukee
Perhaps this post is prelude to the one immediately below; perhaps it's postlude.
Terry has the acute analysis here. A sample:
This is the first of a four-part series by the Vicar of Planning of our Archdiocese of Milwaukee on what he sees for the future
First topic, presumably randomly, is "Importance of the Celebration of Mass." He implies the drop in Mass attendance is due to the decline in the number of priests. That's clearly contrary to fact ...
Yah, well, another great beginning...
Terry has the acute analysis here. A sample:
This is the first of a four-part series by the Vicar of Planning of our Archdiocese of Milwaukee on what he sees for the future
First topic, presumably randomly, is "Importance of the Celebration of Mass." He implies the drop in Mass attendance is due to the decline in the number of priests. That's clearly contrary to fact ...
Yah, well, another great beginning...
Echoes: Milwaukee Priest's Article Reviewed
Fr. Paul Stanosz, a Milwaukee priest, wrote an article which appeared in Commonweal (it's a Lefty rag, folks, with 'Catholic' noises.)
Dr. Jeff Mirus comments about it here.
...“The Other Health Crisis” begins by documenting the problems afflicting the author’s own archdiocese, along with the impact of these problems on priestly morale, emotional stability and physical health.
...The argument runs like this: Catholicism has been adversely affected by the larger social trends characteristic of the vast cultural shift in America beginning in the 1960’s. There has been a general trend toward secularization, a declining interest in religion, reduced rates of Church attendance, and a failure to learn the basis of traditional beliefs and values—all large cultural factors which the Church cannot be said to have caused, but with which her ministers must daily attempt to cope. The author is surely correct to note this larger cultural aspect of our religious problems, and he is also correct to observe that, starting in the 1960’s, Catholics took advantage of their rapidly expanding opportunities to enter the mainstream, often at the cost of their spiritual identity. [Thus the appellation "CINO", Catholic In Name Only. See Ted Kennedy, e.g.]
But by “Catholics” in this context, the article seems to mean only the laity, and entirely on their own. In fact bishops and priests, who should have known better, also often rushed into the mainstream at the cost of their Catholic identity, shepherding many others to do the same. And what is curious about Fr. Stanosz’ analysis is not its identification of these large cultural factors, but its failure to envision any possible alternative response on the part of the Church. For Stanosz both implicitly and explicitly assumes that there is nothing the Church could have done to deal more effectively with the cultural crisis, and that there is nothing the Church can possibly do now to make things any better
...My point is not to damn the author’s outrageous prose with faint praise. [You'll have to read the whole article to see what 'outrageous prose' really means--but trust me, the adjective is well-used.] Rather, I wish to note his deep conviction that there is quite simply nothing to be done. After all, he has already written off the following: an undiluted presentation of the Faith, a proper implementation of the vision of the Second Vatican Council, insistence on strong and competent bishops, and any sort of deep opposition to secularization in general and the culture of death in particular [Search Dad29 for the term "yoo-hoo" to see what that last phrase really means, folks. The first one is fairly expository; the other Parts are addenda.]
...a proper spirituality includes the important understanding that the economy of salvation is more complex than we ourselves can ever imagine. Sometimes one person sows—and sows very well indeed—but it is still another who reaps. On the human level, this is disappointing [yup]
...But even so, they must remain confident that through conformity with Christ their lives will bear great fruit. What ultimately matters is not measurable results but conformity with Christ.
This is wisdom indeed, but Fr. Stanosz is instead writing for a bastion of dissidence called Commonweal, and he in fact concludes that there is nothing to be done. I said at the outset that this article was fascinating precisely because it reveals more than it intends
...What is really going on here is the working out to its inevitable conclusion of a bankrupt but widespread mindset which we might justly call the Milwaukee mindset, because it is so well symbolized by the story of the church in Milwaukee. But this is really just another name for the false spirit of Vatican II. What I mean will become clear as we examine an important thread that runs throughout “The Other Health Crisis”.
The beginning of the thread is the author’s observation, in describing the current failure of priestly morale, that there is a growing polarization between recently-ordained and long-time priests, “what some call JPII priests and Vatican II priests, respectively.” Now every active Catholic who has lived above ground for the past generation knows that these two terms are codes. John Paul II waged a long and uphill battle to reclaim the true meaning of the Second Vatican Council from those who used the so-called “spirit of Vatican II” as an excuse for deliberately fostering within the Church precisely what Fr. Stanosz describes as an insurmountable external cultural and social trend: The dilution of the spirit of Catholicism to accommodate the spirit of the times.
And here Mirus gets to the nut of the matter:
Thus, for a “Vatican II” priest like Fr. Stanosz, the term “JP II priest” is code for a priest who is a throwback to the pre-conciliar age, a cultural misfit who rejects the “spirit” of Vatican II which must necessarily guide our lives, and a deeply flawed man who cannot possibly relate positively to anybody. But the real decoded difference between a “Vatican II” priest and a “John Paul II” priest is actually the difference between those who have never taken the letter of Vatican II to heart and those who have. Instead of mining the Council documents for the serious spiritual challenge they proposed, the so-called Vatican II priest too often served the spirit of the age under the Council’s name. This provided an exhilarating opportunity to profess Christ without being flushed out of the mainstream and to put faith in programs and processes instead of spiritual growth and holiness, or, putting it more simply, to attempt to have one’s cake and eat it too. In contrast, the so-called John Paul II priest has followed the vicar of Christ in seeking to implement what the Council actually said, which was centered not on the transformation of Christ to suit the self and the world, but on the transformation of both the self and the world to suit Christ.
Do you think I am too quick to judge? Consider how consistent the “coded” language is throughout. The author begins with the same psychological canards (also code phrases) which have been used frequently during the post-Conciliar period to force men of traditional Catholic spirituality out of our seminaries. Noting the recent influx of “JP II” priests, he immediately asserts that simply ordaining more priests will not solve the problem. Here’s why:
"Bishops in recent years have been too quick to fill seminaries with fervent men who may or may not have genuine vocations. As a result, our seminaries now house a new breed of unsuitable candidates, men with poor relational and leadership skills. Ordained into a U.S. church that is losing its vitality, these men often seek to turn back the clock by embracing disciplines and devotional practices that flourished in the middle of the last century."
A strong vertical spirituality is a confirmed horizontalist's nightmare, and so it is invariably dismissed in Modernist psycho-babble as indicating “poor relational and leadership skills.”
Here in Milwaukee we know all about psycho-babble. It's cost us about $10 million or so.
Back to the rubber meeting the road:
What are we to make of an article which, in the process of concluding that there is nothing to be done, displays such an animus against precisely those spiritual solutions which have ever been at the heart of a vibrant Catholicism? What does it all mean? That’s the question which makes the article so fascinating, the question to which it is critical to understand the answer. For what it all means is that the Milwaukee mindset is so far gone in its sins that the only way open is despair. The so-called spirit of Vatican II which has wielded such a terrible power for the past forty years was nothing more than a euphoric baptism of secular utopianism. After such a long and continuous demonstration of its bankruptcy, many of its proponents have prudently stopped calling for more of the same. One might now hope for self-understanding, repentance and true renewal. But if our Commonweal article is any guide—and I believe it is—what we are witnessing instead is the only result consistent with a lack of repentance, that is, despair.
There's plenty more at the link, and it's right on.
Oremus pro presbyteres nostros.
Dr. Jeff Mirus comments about it here.
...“The Other Health Crisis” begins by documenting the problems afflicting the author’s own archdiocese, along with the impact of these problems on priestly morale, emotional stability and physical health.
...The argument runs like this: Catholicism has been adversely affected by the larger social trends characteristic of the vast cultural shift in America beginning in the 1960’s. There has been a general trend toward secularization, a declining interest in religion, reduced rates of Church attendance, and a failure to learn the basis of traditional beliefs and values—all large cultural factors which the Church cannot be said to have caused, but with which her ministers must daily attempt to cope. The author is surely correct to note this larger cultural aspect of our religious problems, and he is also correct to observe that, starting in the 1960’s, Catholics took advantage of their rapidly expanding opportunities to enter the mainstream, often at the cost of their spiritual identity. [Thus the appellation "CINO", Catholic In Name Only. See Ted Kennedy, e.g.]
But by “Catholics” in this context, the article seems to mean only the laity, and entirely on their own. In fact bishops and priests, who should have known better, also often rushed into the mainstream at the cost of their Catholic identity, shepherding many others to do the same. And what is curious about Fr. Stanosz’ analysis is not its identification of these large cultural factors, but its failure to envision any possible alternative response on the part of the Church. For Stanosz both implicitly and explicitly assumes that there is nothing the Church could have done to deal more effectively with the cultural crisis, and that there is nothing the Church can possibly do now to make things any better
...My point is not to damn the author’s outrageous prose with faint praise. [You'll have to read the whole article to see what 'outrageous prose' really means--but trust me, the adjective is well-used.] Rather, I wish to note his deep conviction that there is quite simply nothing to be done. After all, he has already written off the following: an undiluted presentation of the Faith, a proper implementation of the vision of the Second Vatican Council, insistence on strong and competent bishops, and any sort of deep opposition to secularization in general and the culture of death in particular [Search Dad29 for the term "yoo-hoo" to see what that last phrase really means, folks. The first one is fairly expository; the other Parts are addenda.]
...a proper spirituality includes the important understanding that the economy of salvation is more complex than we ourselves can ever imagine. Sometimes one person sows—and sows very well indeed—but it is still another who reaps. On the human level, this is disappointing [yup]
...But even so, they must remain confident that through conformity with Christ their lives will bear great fruit. What ultimately matters is not measurable results but conformity with Christ.
This is wisdom indeed, but Fr. Stanosz is instead writing for a bastion of dissidence called Commonweal, and he in fact concludes that there is nothing to be done. I said at the outset that this article was fascinating precisely because it reveals more than it intends
...What is really going on here is the working out to its inevitable conclusion of a bankrupt but widespread mindset which we might justly call the Milwaukee mindset, because it is so well symbolized by the story of the church in Milwaukee. But this is really just another name for the false spirit of Vatican II. What I mean will become clear as we examine an important thread that runs throughout “The Other Health Crisis”.
The beginning of the thread is the author’s observation, in describing the current failure of priestly morale, that there is a growing polarization between recently-ordained and long-time priests, “what some call JPII priests and Vatican II priests, respectively.” Now every active Catholic who has lived above ground for the past generation knows that these two terms are codes. John Paul II waged a long and uphill battle to reclaim the true meaning of the Second Vatican Council from those who used the so-called “spirit of Vatican II” as an excuse for deliberately fostering within the Church precisely what Fr. Stanosz describes as an insurmountable external cultural and social trend: The dilution of the spirit of Catholicism to accommodate the spirit of the times.
And here Mirus gets to the nut of the matter:
Thus, for a “Vatican II” priest like Fr. Stanosz, the term “JP II priest” is code for a priest who is a throwback to the pre-conciliar age, a cultural misfit who rejects the “spirit” of Vatican II which must necessarily guide our lives, and a deeply flawed man who cannot possibly relate positively to anybody. But the real decoded difference between a “Vatican II” priest and a “John Paul II” priest is actually the difference between those who have never taken the letter of Vatican II to heart and those who have. Instead of mining the Council documents for the serious spiritual challenge they proposed, the so-called Vatican II priest too often served the spirit of the age under the Council’s name. This provided an exhilarating opportunity to profess Christ without being flushed out of the mainstream and to put faith in programs and processes instead of spiritual growth and holiness, or, putting it more simply, to attempt to have one’s cake and eat it too. In contrast, the so-called John Paul II priest has followed the vicar of Christ in seeking to implement what the Council actually said, which was centered not on the transformation of Christ to suit the self and the world, but on the transformation of both the self and the world to suit Christ.
Do you think I am too quick to judge? Consider how consistent the “coded” language is throughout. The author begins with the same psychological canards (also code phrases) which have been used frequently during the post-Conciliar period to force men of traditional Catholic spirituality out of our seminaries. Noting the recent influx of “JP II” priests, he immediately asserts that simply ordaining more priests will not solve the problem. Here’s why:
"Bishops in recent years have been too quick to fill seminaries with fervent men who may or may not have genuine vocations. As a result, our seminaries now house a new breed of unsuitable candidates, men with poor relational and leadership skills. Ordained into a U.S. church that is losing its vitality, these men often seek to turn back the clock by embracing disciplines and devotional practices that flourished in the middle of the last century."
A strong vertical spirituality is a confirmed horizontalist's nightmare, and so it is invariably dismissed in Modernist psycho-babble as indicating “poor relational and leadership skills.”
Here in Milwaukee we know all about psycho-babble. It's cost us about $10 million or so.
Back to the rubber meeting the road:
What are we to make of an article which, in the process of concluding that there is nothing to be done, displays such an animus against precisely those spiritual solutions which have ever been at the heart of a vibrant Catholicism? What does it all mean? That’s the question which makes the article so fascinating, the question to which it is critical to understand the answer. For what it all means is that the Milwaukee mindset is so far gone in its sins that the only way open is despair. The so-called spirit of Vatican II which has wielded such a terrible power for the past forty years was nothing more than a euphoric baptism of secular utopianism. After such a long and continuous demonstration of its bankruptcy, many of its proponents have prudently stopped calling for more of the same. One might now hope for self-understanding, repentance and true renewal. But if our Commonweal article is any guide—and I believe it is—what we are witnessing instead is the only result consistent with a lack of repentance, that is, despair.
There's plenty more at the link, and it's right on.
Oremus pro presbyteres nostros.
No Power? Maybe It's the Bad Guys
Hmmmmm:
Criminals have been able to hack into computer systems via the Internet and cut power to several cities, a CIA analyst said this week.
Speaking at a conference of security professionals on Wednesday, CIA analyst Tom Donahue disclosed the recently declassified attacks while offering few specifics on what actually went wrong.
Criminals have launched online attacks that disrupted power equipment in several regions outside of the U.S., he said, without identifying the countries affected. The goal of the attacks was extortion, he said.
Here's the part that's even worse news:
One conference attendee said the disclosure came as news to many of the government and industry security professionals in attendance. "It appeared that there were a lot of people who didn't know this already," said the attendee, who asked not to be identified because he is not authorized to speak with the press.
While SCADA software is known to be very vulnerable, that stuff is only used on pipelines, not for electrical utility controls.
Criminals have been able to hack into computer systems via the Internet and cut power to several cities, a CIA analyst said this week.
Speaking at a conference of security professionals on Wednesday, CIA analyst Tom Donahue disclosed the recently declassified attacks while offering few specifics on what actually went wrong.
Criminals have launched online attacks that disrupted power equipment in several regions outside of the U.S., he said, without identifying the countries affected. The goal of the attacks was extortion, he said.
Here's the part that's even worse news:
One conference attendee said the disclosure came as news to many of the government and industry security professionals in attendance. "It appeared that there were a lot of people who didn't know this already," said the attendee, who asked not to be identified because he is not authorized to speak with the press.
While SCADA software is known to be very vulnerable, that stuff is only used on pipelines, not for electrical utility controls.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
St Paul, Lombardi, and Today
Those of you who know a bit about Vince Lombardi know that he often quoted St. Paul to his players--the section about "fighting the good fight" (etc.)
Heh.
Many Catholics around the world heard that very same Epistle today--if they attended an Extraordinary Form Mass (Old Rite).
Co-incidence? Lombardi's favorite player-motivating passage on the day of the NFC Championship game on St. Vincent's home field?
I don't think so.
Heh.
Many Catholics around the world heard that very same Epistle today--if they attended an Extraordinary Form Mass (Old Rite).
Co-incidence? Lombardi's favorite player-motivating passage on the day of the NFC Championship game on St. Vincent's home field?
I don't think so.
"Best and Brightest"? Nope.
When corporate shills run their yaps about importing H1-B workers because they are "the best and brightest" the tendency is nod one's head. "Yup. We are America, and our industry should have the best."
And, of course, the Radio Yappers parrot the corporate shills' line, because they really don't know any better. But there has been research on that question, folks.
And the corporate shills are lying.
Norm Matloff, a Prof at the University of California-Davis, ran the numbers on H1-B people.
...I extended John Miano's LCA analysis in his 2007 CIS paper. He had shown that among the LCAs, the applications submitted by employers seeking permission to hire an H-1B, the vast majority were for the lower two of the four wage/experience levels defined by DOL
(Which is to say, the cheaper-wage group.)
My analysis was on the PERM data...[in PERM, the data for the labor certification process involved in employer-sponsored green cards, each record is definitely for a particular worker.] In addition, the PERM data show the nationality of the worker, whichturns out to be of significance.
What did Matloff find?
1) The vast majority of workers, 70% or so (somewhat more for some occupations, somewhat less for others) are in either Level I (defined by DOL as "routine tasks... limited if any exercise of judgment") or Level II ("modestly complex tasks requiring limited judgment"). Clearly, MOST ARE NOT HIRED AS INNOVATORS.
2) Contrary to the industry's claim that they import workers from Asia because "Johnny can't do math," the only countries with large percentages of Level IV workers--the real experts--are Canada and the UK.
Not surprisingly, age discrimination plays a part:
...the fact that most of the workers are at the two lowest levels also means that they are cheap. A couple of the people in the audience (one was the immigration lawyer who spoke later, and the other was a researcher who generally takes a pro-industry point of view) didn't understand this. They said, "Well, many of the H-1Bs are hired from U.S. university campuses, so naturally they're young. That's normal." Of course, they had it exactly backwards--it's not that the industry wants students, who happen to be young, but rather that the industry wants the young (thus cheap), who happen to be students.
Well, the H1-B's are young, and college grads, so they must be smart, no? After all, "job classifications" (above) don't necessarily mean much, do they?
...if industry's claims are true--that the H-1Bs are mostly outstanding talents and they are paid market wages--then their wages should be way above prevailing wage, right?
Matloff looked at the ratio of actual wage vs. prevailing wage to get an answer.
1) The median over the entire PERM set was 1.02. In other words, most employers are paying either prevailing wage or only a tiny bit above it. These workers ain't geniuses, folks.
2) Broken down by occupation, the corresponding values for software engineers and programmers were 1.02 and 1.01. Again, this demolishes the industry's "best and brightest" claim. The value for electrical engineers, 1.10, is a bit higher, but still not indicating that most of these people are Einsteins
3) I broke things down by country here too, and again it turned out that Canada and the UK--not India and China--are the ones sending us the people of above-average talent (though not Einsteins there either).
So: Industry generally hires H1-B folks for mundane tasks; they hire college grads because they are young (thus cheap), and the pay-scales certainly don't indicate that these hires are "the best and the brightest."
Bear that in mind the next time you hear all about the critical need for H1-B.
)Much, much more of Matloff's work is archived here:
http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/Archive)
And, of course, the Radio Yappers parrot the corporate shills' line, because they really don't know any better. But there has been research on that question, folks.
And the corporate shills are lying.
Norm Matloff, a Prof at the University of California-Davis, ran the numbers on H1-B people.
...I extended John Miano's LCA analysis in his 2007 CIS paper. He had shown that among the LCAs, the applications submitted by employers seeking permission to hire an H-1B, the vast majority were for the lower two of the four wage/experience levels defined by DOL
(Which is to say, the cheaper-wage group.)
My analysis was on the PERM data...[in PERM, the data for the labor certification process involved in employer-sponsored green cards, each record is definitely for a particular worker.] In addition, the PERM data show the nationality of the worker, whichturns out to be of significance.
What did Matloff find?
1) The vast majority of workers, 70% or so (somewhat more for some occupations, somewhat less for others) are in either Level I (defined by DOL as "routine tasks... limited if any exercise of judgment") or Level II ("modestly complex tasks requiring limited judgment"). Clearly, MOST ARE NOT HIRED AS INNOVATORS.
2) Contrary to the industry's claim that they import workers from Asia because "Johnny can't do math," the only countries with large percentages of Level IV workers--the real experts--are Canada and the UK.
Not surprisingly, age discrimination plays a part:
...the fact that most of the workers are at the two lowest levels also means that they are cheap. A couple of the people in the audience (one was the immigration lawyer who spoke later, and the other was a researcher who generally takes a pro-industry point of view) didn't understand this. They said, "Well, many of the H-1Bs are hired from U.S. university campuses, so naturally they're young. That's normal." Of course, they had it exactly backwards--it's not that the industry wants students, who happen to be young, but rather that the industry wants the young (thus cheap), who happen to be students.
Well, the H1-B's are young, and college grads, so they must be smart, no? After all, "job classifications" (above) don't necessarily mean much, do they?
...if industry's claims are true--that the H-1Bs are mostly outstanding talents and they are paid market wages--then their wages should be way above prevailing wage, right?
Matloff looked at the ratio of actual wage vs. prevailing wage to get an answer.
1) The median over the entire PERM set was 1.02. In other words, most employers are paying either prevailing wage or only a tiny bit above it. These workers ain't geniuses, folks.
2) Broken down by occupation, the corresponding values for software engineers and programmers were 1.02 and 1.01. Again, this demolishes the industry's "best and brightest" claim. The value for electrical engineers, 1.10, is a bit higher, but still not indicating that most of these people are Einsteins
3) I broke things down by country here too, and again it turned out that Canada and the UK--not India and China--are the ones sending us the people of above-average talent (though not Einsteins there either).
So: Industry generally hires H1-B folks for mundane tasks; they hire college grads because they are young (thus cheap), and the pay-scales certainly don't indicate that these hires are "the best and the brightest."
Bear that in mind the next time you hear all about the critical need for H1-B.
)Much, much more of Matloff's work is archived here:
http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/Archive)
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Shark's Discussion Piece
Hooboy...
The Shark kicked off a topic which required thinking, ironically demanding same on a weekend when most braincells are frozen (or nearly so.)
Must be the 'professor' in him...
The Shark kicked off a topic which required thinking, ironically demanding same on a weekend when most braincells are frozen (or nearly so.)
Must be the 'professor' in him...
Friday, January 18, 2008
The Rest of the Story on Galileo
A fairly pleasant Left-o-Blogger thinks that the Church "persecuted" Galileo.
Well, not exactly.
...Galileo was wrong on two accounts: 1) he gave the wrong “proofs” of heliocentrism and the Earth’s motion (with which the Pope, like all his 13 most recent predecessors, agreed, that’s why they had been and kept funding Copernicanism that was at risk of being destroyed by mass executions of scientists in Calvinist and Lutheran countries). One of such proofs was ebb tides, which his Jesuit adversaries of the Specola Vaticana rightly attributed to the Moon’s magnetic influence. 2) he wanted to make theology starting from his observation which is obviously non-sense.
Galileo was “condemned” to say the 7 penitential Psalms (the horror!), for having satirized the Pope in a very vulgar way in one of his books. The place of the “execution” was his villa in Tuscany, called “the Jewel” and paid for by Papal funds. Galileo continued to work on (and teach, like the Jesuits of his time) heliocentrism, mathematics, physics and related technologies with the Pope’s financial aid.
Not a bad "persecution." Live at home, teach, get paid by the Pope....just recite some Psalms and don't try to tell the Church "where theology begins."
Well, not exactly.
...Galileo was wrong on two accounts: 1) he gave the wrong “proofs” of heliocentrism and the Earth’s motion (with which the Pope, like all his 13 most recent predecessors, agreed, that’s why they had been and kept funding Copernicanism that was at risk of being destroyed by mass executions of scientists in Calvinist and Lutheran countries). One of such proofs was ebb tides, which his Jesuit adversaries of the Specola Vaticana rightly attributed to the Moon’s magnetic influence. 2) he wanted to make theology starting from his observation which is obviously non-sense.
Galileo was “condemned” to say the 7 penitential Psalms (the horror!), for having satirized the Pope in a very vulgar way in one of his books. The place of the “execution” was his villa in Tuscany, called “the Jewel” and paid for by Papal funds. Galileo continued to work on (and teach, like the Jesuits of his time) heliocentrism, mathematics, physics and related technologies with the Pope’s financial aid.
Not a bad "persecution." Live at home, teach, get paid by the Pope....just recite some Psalms and don't try to tell the Church "where theology begins."
Ratzinger on the Liturgy
Just a brief few comments (1998) from the pen of (at-that-time Cardinal) Jos. Ratzinger.
I confine myself to coming straight to this conclusion: we ought to get back the dimension of the sacred in the liturgy. The liturgy is not a festivity; it is not a meeting for the purpose of having a good time. It is of no importance that the parish priest has cudgeled his brains to come up with suggestive ideas or imaginative novelties.
The liturgy is what makes the Thrice-holy God present amongst us; it is the burning bush; it is the alliance of God with man in Jesus Christ, who has died and risen again. The grandeur of the liturgy does not rest upon the fact that it offers an interesting entertainment, but in rendering tangible the totally Other, whom we are not capable of summoning. He comes because He wills. In other words, the essential in the liturgy is the mystery, which is realized in the common ritual of the Church; all the rest diminishes it. Men experiment with it in lively fashion, and find themselves deceived, when the mystery is transformed into distraction, when the chief actor in the liturgy is not the living God but the priest or the liturgical director.
...or anyone else, for that matter, we humbly suggest.
I confine myself to coming straight to this conclusion: we ought to get back the dimension of the sacred in the liturgy. The liturgy is not a festivity; it is not a meeting for the purpose of having a good time. It is of no importance that the parish priest has cudgeled his brains to come up with suggestive ideas or imaginative novelties.
The liturgy is what makes the Thrice-holy God present amongst us; it is the burning bush; it is the alliance of God with man in Jesus Christ, who has died and risen again. The grandeur of the liturgy does not rest upon the fact that it offers an interesting entertainment, but in rendering tangible the totally Other, whom we are not capable of summoning. He comes because He wills. In other words, the essential in the liturgy is the mystery, which is realized in the common ritual of the Church; all the rest diminishes it. Men experiment with it in lively fashion, and find themselves deceived, when the mystery is transformed into distraction, when the chief actor in the liturgy is not the living God but the priest or the liturgical director.
...or anyone else, for that matter, we humbly suggest.
"Your Trip Is Cancelled."
Hmmmmm.
Seems that the Bugnini-ite snark-specialist (and liturgical affliction) will not be here too soon, if ever:
Archbishop Piero Marini's scheduled book-tour of the States has been indefinitely postponed.
Marini served two decades as chief liturgist to John Paul II and Benedict XVI before being named in October to the presidency of the Pontifical Commission for Eucharistic Congresses.
Although a rescheduling of the US tour is being discussed for a later date (most likely November), with the official line running that the archbishop had become "concerned" about coming in the run-up to the Pope's mid-April visit, another source informed of the change reported that the cancellation was sought by Benedict's Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone SDB.
Oh, well. Perhaps his book-sales will do well, regardless.
Then again, perhaps not. The book is ....so....'60's.
HT: Holy Smoke
Seems that the Bugnini-ite snark-specialist (and liturgical affliction) will not be here too soon, if ever:
Archbishop Piero Marini's scheduled book-tour of the States has been indefinitely postponed.
Marini served two decades as chief liturgist to John Paul II and Benedict XVI before being named in October to the presidency of the Pontifical Commission for Eucharistic Congresses.
Although a rescheduling of the US tour is being discussed for a later date (most likely November), with the official line running that the archbishop had become "concerned" about coming in the run-up to the Pope's mid-April visit, another source informed of the change reported that the cancellation was sought by Benedict's Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone SDB.
Oh, well. Perhaps his book-sales will do well, regardless.
Then again, perhaps not. The book is ....so....'60's.
HT: Holy Smoke
This Guy Understands "The Party of Government"
Seems that there's more than one way to make extra money, and Bulk Petroleum used it...
But that's not the story.
The story is what Jessica tells us:
But the public investigator team doesn't bother to mention that Dhaliwal's donations aren't only to Republicans.
They didn't mention [these] donations:
$17,000 to Jim Doyle (Doyle's received another $9,500 from other Dhaliwals affiliated with Bulk Petroleum too).
Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee
Brian Burke, Chuck Chvala, Dave Hansen, David Cullen, Gwen Moore, Kathleen Falk, Kathleen Vinehout, Gary George, Louis Butler....
It's not (R) or (D). It's the Party In Gummint (PIGs) to which he donated.
He's not the first, nor will he be the last. The problem is us--the stupid suckers who actually believe that there are TWO parties...
But that's not the story.
The story is what Jessica tells us:
But the public investigator team doesn't bother to mention that Dhaliwal's donations aren't only to Republicans.
They didn't mention [these] donations:
$17,000 to Jim Doyle (Doyle's received another $9,500 from other Dhaliwals affiliated with Bulk Petroleum too).
Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee
Brian Burke, Chuck Chvala, Dave Hansen, David Cullen, Gwen Moore, Kathleen Falk, Kathleen Vinehout, Gary George, Louis Butler....
It's not (R) or (D). It's the Party In Gummint (PIGs) to which he donated.
He's not the first, nor will he be the last. The problem is us--the stupid suckers who actually believe that there are TWO parties...
The Moonbat NYSlimes and How They Lie
You recall the "Killer Vets" story spread around by the NYSlimes. There's one local LeftoBlogger who swallowed it whole and excerpted it on his site; another yips forth in the combox following my quick post on the article.
Here's another actually RATIONAL look at the Slimes' "work."
A total of nine Times reporters were involved in the one-page story, co-authored by Deborah Sontag and Lizette Alvarez, which is the first in a series of articles encapsulated under the title “War Torn: A series of articles and multimedia about veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan who have committed killings, or been charged with them, after coming home.”
The Times found, “121 cases in which veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan committed a killing in this country, or were charged with one, after their return from war.”
The author then cites the VFW stats which make "121" a very low number, indeed, measured against DoJ stats on crimes by a similarly-aged cohort.
But there's more:
Of those 121 summaries, 40 do not show direct ties between the stresses of deploying to combat zones and the homicides for which these veterans were charged, and of those, 14 were of highly dubious nature.
Veterans, especially wartime veterans, face significant stresses that should not be minimized and are only just being widely recognized, much less treated.
That understood, it is irresponsible of the New York Times to write an extensive post in effect indicting all veterans, while refusing to even attempt to provide context for their story, and while unfairly including every possible connection of veterans to homicides in such a cavalier manner — even those deaths that were justified, unrelated, unsupported, or had more proximate causes than being a war veteran.
HT: Confederate Yankee
Here's another actually RATIONAL look at the Slimes' "work."
A total of nine Times reporters were involved in the one-page story, co-authored by Deborah Sontag and Lizette Alvarez, which is the first in a series of articles encapsulated under the title “War Torn: A series of articles and multimedia about veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan who have committed killings, or been charged with them, after coming home.”
The Times found, “121 cases in which veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan committed a killing in this country, or were charged with one, after their return from war.”
The author then cites the VFW stats which make "121" a very low number, indeed, measured against DoJ stats on crimes by a similarly-aged cohort.
But there's more:
Of those 121 summaries, 40 do not show direct ties between the stresses of deploying to combat zones and the homicides for which these veterans were charged, and of those, 14 were of highly dubious nature.
Veterans, especially wartime veterans, face significant stresses that should not be minimized and are only just being widely recognized, much less treated.
That understood, it is irresponsible of the New York Times to write an extensive post in effect indicting all veterans, while refusing to even attempt to provide context for their story, and while unfairly including every possible connection of veterans to homicides in such a cavalier manner — even those deaths that were justified, unrelated, unsupported, or had more proximate causes than being a war veteran.
HT: Confederate Yankee
In-Laws Have Tickets....but....
The in-laws have season Packer tix (Green Bay season...) and plan on being there.
Good for them!
Their kid even came in from sunny California to see the game with them.
Good for him!!
(Note that 'sunny California' carefully...)
Suddenly the kid realizes that he disposed of all that silly Wisconsin claptrap, like mittens, lined boots, parkas, wooly undies, (etc., etc.).
Oooops!
So, yah, they need supplies.
Heh.
Good for them!
Their kid even came in from sunny California to see the game with them.
Good for him!!
(Note that 'sunny California' carefully...)
Suddenly the kid realizes that he disposed of all that silly Wisconsin claptrap, like mittens, lined boots, parkas, wooly undies, (etc., etc.).
Oooops!
So, yah, they need supplies.
Heh.
Subprimes: Just the Beginning
Examine the pretty picture below:
Now think. What happens IF the swap-seller (left, above) runs out of cash?
Well, it's happened already. So the buyer (right, above) is not only holding rotting "Widgets 'R' Us paper, he's spent a bunch of money to buy MORE rotting paper--from the guy on the left.
Think that won't have an impact? Read the blogpost linked. I'll give you a taste:
I've said it before, and I'll repeat it again: To err is human, but it requires an MBA to create total clusterf*&^ . . .
HT: The Big Picture
IowaHawk Finds Another Violence-Breeding Ground
Inimitable.
A Denver newspaper columnist is arrested for stalking a story subject. In Cincinnati, a television reporter is arrested on charges of child molestation. A North Carolina newspaper reporter is arrested for harassing a local woman. A drunken Chicago Sun-Times columnist and editorial board member is arrested for wife beating. A Baltimore newspaper editor is arrested for threatening neighbors with a shotgun. In Florida, one TV reporter is arrested for DUI, while another is charged with carrying a gun into a high school. A Philadelphia news anchorwoman goes on a violent drunken rampage, assaulting a police officer. In England, a newspaper columnist is arrested for killing her elderly aunt.
Unrelated incidents, or mounting evidence of that America's newsrooms have become a breeding ground for murderous, drunk, gun-wielding child molesters?
It's "Post-Typing-Stress-Disorder" and it's lethal.
HT: Grim
A Denver newspaper columnist is arrested for stalking a story subject. In Cincinnati, a television reporter is arrested on charges of child molestation. A North Carolina newspaper reporter is arrested for harassing a local woman. A drunken Chicago Sun-Times columnist and editorial board member is arrested for wife beating. A Baltimore newspaper editor is arrested for threatening neighbors with a shotgun. In Florida, one TV reporter is arrested for DUI, while another is charged with carrying a gun into a high school. A Philadelphia news anchorwoman goes on a violent drunken rampage, assaulting a police officer. In England, a newspaper columnist is arrested for killing her elderly aunt.
Unrelated incidents, or mounting evidence of that America's newsrooms have become a breeding ground for murderous, drunk, gun-wielding child molesters?
It's "Post-Typing-Stress-Disorder" and it's lethal.
HT: Grim
Paul Purcell Should Clarify
From a recent 'gripe session' featuring several local CEO's, we take this line:
[Paul] Purcell, [CEO of Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc.] drew applause from the crowd of more than 200 business and civic leaders when he said southeastern Wisconsin needs high-speed rail to be more competitive.
What, exactly, does that mean?
If Purcell wants more 'high-speed rail' on existing tracks, (running, e.g. from the Illinois border through Milwaukee, or those running from the west into Milwaukee), that shouldn't be hard to do, and it may be worthwhile.
But if Purcell is suggesting that a new HSR system be created from whole cloth, he's in for a fight. Automobile commute time to downtown Milwaukee runs around 30 minutes from western Brookfield, or northern Mequon, or Oak Creek. That commute time is about HALF of Chicago's from any comparable suburban location.
What, precisely, is the "need" of which he speaks?
Maybe Paul Purcell could examine the spending of the State, Counties, and cities, find several hundred million of waste, and cut that out to make room for the spending he says is "needed" for a train. Maybe Purcell thinks that a 9-figure investment in 'high speed rail' will create a 9-figure tax-income return for those entities over 20 years.
But he hasn't shown us that. Instead, he simply declares that Milwaukee 'needs' high-speed rail, without stating precisely what he means by that remark.
That's not the way he runs Baird, I hope...
[Paul] Purcell, [CEO of Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc.] drew applause from the crowd of more than 200 business and civic leaders when he said southeastern Wisconsin needs high-speed rail to be more competitive.
What, exactly, does that mean?
If Purcell wants more 'high-speed rail' on existing tracks, (running, e.g. from the Illinois border through Milwaukee, or those running from the west into Milwaukee), that shouldn't be hard to do, and it may be worthwhile.
But if Purcell is suggesting that a new HSR system be created from whole cloth, he's in for a fight. Automobile commute time to downtown Milwaukee runs around 30 minutes from western Brookfield, or northern Mequon, or Oak Creek. That commute time is about HALF of Chicago's from any comparable suburban location.
What, precisely, is the "need" of which he speaks?
Maybe Paul Purcell could examine the spending of the State, Counties, and cities, find several hundred million of waste, and cut that out to make room for the spending he says is "needed" for a train. Maybe Purcell thinks that a 9-figure investment in 'high speed rail' will create a 9-figure tax-income return for those entities over 20 years.
But he hasn't shown us that. Instead, he simply declares that Milwaukee 'needs' high-speed rail, without stating precisely what he means by that remark.
That's not the way he runs Baird, I hope...
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Yoo Hoo!! Abp. Dolan!! (Part 4)
Kevin Fischer notes that SOME Wisconsin Bishops (2 of 9) have deciphered the foofoodust surrounding the "rape protection" bill and object, strenuously, to its Stalinesque provisions.
Sadly, Bp. Morlino and Bp. Listecki are not (yet) joined by Abp. Timothy Dolan, nor his Auxiliaries, Bp. Callahan and Bp. Sklba.
The Auxiliaries of Green Bay and Madison are also MIA, as is Bp. Fliss.
YOO-HOO!! Abp. Dolan!!!!
Kevin also advises that two fanatic pro-abort Leggies (Senator Mark Miller and Representative Terese Berceau) are trying, desperately, to revise WI. Statute 940 to allow abortion-on-demand in Wisconsin (they expect SCOTUS to reverse Roe).
Wisconsin Right To Life opposes their action, of course.
Nothing (yet) from the Wisconsin Catholic Conference.
YOO-HOO!!! Abp. Dolan!!!
Sadly, Bp. Morlino and Bp. Listecki are not (yet) joined by Abp. Timothy Dolan, nor his Auxiliaries, Bp. Callahan and Bp. Sklba.
The Auxiliaries of Green Bay and Madison are also MIA, as is Bp. Fliss.
YOO-HOO!! Abp. Dolan!!!!
Kevin also advises that two fanatic pro-abort Leggies (Senator Mark Miller and Representative Terese Berceau) are trying, desperately, to revise WI. Statute 940 to allow abortion-on-demand in Wisconsin (they expect SCOTUS to reverse Roe).
Wisconsin Right To Life opposes their action, of course.
Nothing (yet) from the Wisconsin Catholic Conference.
YOO-HOO!!! Abp. Dolan!!!
Fred on Guns and Groveling
Fred Thompson, whose plain-spoken common sense positions get better every day, on the Bush Administration's silly filing on District of Columbia v. Heller, the big Second Amendent case:
As reported on RedState, Thompson accused the administration of "overlawyering" the case. After all, if an individual rights view of the Second Amendment does not proscribe an outright ban on handgun possession, there is not much left of the rights it purportedly protects.
That from a lawyer!!
As to kissing the flea-infested rear end of the King of Saudi Arabia, while asking 'pretty please' pump more oil:
Appealing to Saudi Arabia to encourage higher oil production to help lower prices is not in the long-term interest of the United States, Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson said on Wednesday.
“It’s not in the United States’ long-term interest to go hat in hand begging people to do things that in the end we know they’re not going to do,” Thompson said
May the farts of 10,000 camels fill your tent, Fahd!
HTs: Arms and the Law, Malkin
As reported on RedState, Thompson accused the administration of "overlawyering" the case. After all, if an individual rights view of the Second Amendment does not proscribe an outright ban on handgun possession, there is not much left of the rights it purportedly protects.
That from a lawyer!!
As to kissing the flea-infested rear end of the King of Saudi Arabia, while asking 'pretty please' pump more oil:
Appealing to Saudi Arabia to encourage higher oil production to help lower prices is not in the long-term interest of the United States, Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson said on Wednesday.
“It’s not in the United States’ long-term interest to go hat in hand begging people to do things that in the end we know they’re not going to do,” Thompson said
May the farts of 10,000 camels fill your tent, Fahd!
HTs: Arms and the Law, Malkin
Leggies to Corn-a-Hole Taxpayers in Wisconsin
It's becoming clear that
Senators KREITLOW, OLSEN, JAUCH, SCHULTZ,
HARSDORF and VINEHOUT, [and] Representatives SUDER, JORGENSEN,
ALBERS, HRAYCHUCK, MUSSER, SHERIDAN, SMITH, HILGENBERG, GRONEMUS,
ZEPNICK, GARTHWAITE, DAVIS and SINICKI
have an interest in food-price escalation, which they will merrily impose on residents of Wisconsin by forcing them to use food as fuel.
The above-named whores will force corn into gas tanks with their latest proposal, and force most of the current auto fleet into junkyards by 2015 with their latest/greatest idea (linked above, HT: Belling via Eggster.
Sometimes one wonders what it might take to "help" these jackasses understand economic realities.
Pitchforks? Tar and feathers? Or more, ah, interesting confrontations...such as that faced by King George and his boyzzz.
It is particularly galling that Olsen is a co-sponsor of this piece of crap--which will serve to enhance the wallet of his brother.
It's no wonder that Olsen voted against concealed-carry...
Senators KREITLOW, OLSEN, JAUCH, SCHULTZ,
HARSDORF and VINEHOUT, [and] Representatives SUDER, JORGENSEN,
ALBERS, HRAYCHUCK, MUSSER, SHERIDAN, SMITH, HILGENBERG, GRONEMUS,
ZEPNICK, GARTHWAITE, DAVIS and SINICKI
have an interest in food-price escalation, which they will merrily impose on residents of Wisconsin by forcing them to use food as fuel.
The above-named whores will force corn into gas tanks with their latest proposal, and force most of the current auto fleet into junkyards by 2015 with their latest/greatest idea (linked above, HT: Belling via Eggster.
Sometimes one wonders what it might take to "help" these jackasses understand economic realities.
Pitchforks? Tar and feathers? Or more, ah, interesting confrontations...such as that faced by King George and his boyzzz.
It is particularly galling that Olsen is a co-sponsor of this piece of crap--which will serve to enhance the wallet of his brother.
It's no wonder that Olsen voted against concealed-carry...
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Obama's Pastor
Over the top? You be the judge.
...And there is the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, a sprawling, profane bear of a preacher, a kind of black ministerial institution, with his own radio shows and guest preaching gigs across the country. Wright takes the pulpit here one Sunday and solemnly, sonorously declares that he will recite ten essential facts about the United States. "Fact number one: We've got more black men in prison than there are in college," he intones. "Fact number two: Racism is how this country was founded and how this country is still run!" There is thumping applause; Wright has a cadence and power that make Obama sound like John Kerry. Now the reverend begins to preach. "We are deeply involved in the importing of drugs, the exporting of guns and the training of professional KILLERS. . . . We believe in white supremacy and black inferiority and believe it more than we believe in God. . . . We conducted radiation experiments on our own people. . . . We care nothing about human life if the ends justify the means!" The crowd whoops and amens as Wright builds to his climax: "And. And. And! GAWD! Has GOT! To be SICK! OF THIS SHIT!"
Of course, "Fact number one" is wrong. And while there's some traction to "fact number 2," based on the existence of slavery and the 'vote calculation' stuff for slaves, I don't think that "racism" was "how the country was founded." IIRC, it had more to do with King George's Big Gummint schemes and taxes.
(Hear that, DarthDoyle??)
HT: Dreher
...And there is the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, a sprawling, profane bear of a preacher, a kind of black ministerial institution, with his own radio shows and guest preaching gigs across the country. Wright takes the pulpit here one Sunday and solemnly, sonorously declares that he will recite ten essential facts about the United States. "Fact number one: We've got more black men in prison than there are in college," he intones. "Fact number two: Racism is how this country was founded and how this country is still run!" There is thumping applause; Wright has a cadence and power that make Obama sound like John Kerry. Now the reverend begins to preach. "We are deeply involved in the importing of drugs, the exporting of guns and the training of professional KILLERS. . . . We believe in white supremacy and black inferiority and believe it more than we believe in God. . . . We conducted radiation experiments on our own people. . . . We care nothing about human life if the ends justify the means!" The crowd whoops and amens as Wright builds to his climax: "And. And. And! GAWD! Has GOT! To be SICK! OF THIS SHIT!"
Of course, "Fact number one" is wrong. And while there's some traction to "fact number 2," based on the existence of slavery and the 'vote calculation' stuff for slaves, I don't think that "racism" was "how the country was founded." IIRC, it had more to do with King George's Big Gummint schemes and taxes.
(Hear that, DarthDoyle??)
HT: Dreher
Rush: Fix Your Template
After a few hundred hours (or so it seems) of hearing the "tax cuts are good" mantra from El Rushbo, I am impelled to ask him to PLEASE adjust the template.
Tax cuts are nice.
Here in Wisconsin we know about drunken sailor-spenders. We elect them.
Our children will hate us for it.
Tax cuts are nice.
But it's the SPENDING that needs control.
Here in Wisconsin we know about drunken sailor-spenders. We elect them.
Our children will hate us for it.
HRC vs. "Uncommitted"
There's a lot of talk about "unity" midst the Dem candidates.
Was "uncommitted" the unifier?
With none of the other major Democratic candidates on the ballot, Hillary Clinton was only able to garner 58 percent of the Michigan vote as of this writing, while "uncommitted" won 37 percent. More troubling for Clinton heading into South Carolina are exit polls showing that a staggering 70 percent of black voters took the time to go to the polls to vote for "uncommitted" over Hillary. "Uncommitted" also won among voters in the 18-29 and 30-44 age ranges, and among independents.
HT: Am Spec blog
Was "uncommitted" the unifier?
With none of the other major Democratic candidates on the ballot, Hillary Clinton was only able to garner 58 percent of the Michigan vote as of this writing, while "uncommitted" won 37 percent. More troubling for Clinton heading into South Carolina are exit polls showing that a staggering 70 percent of black voters took the time to go to the polls to vote for "uncommitted" over Hillary. "Uncommitted" also won among voters in the 18-29 and 30-44 age ranges, and among independents.
HT: Am Spec blog
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Inflation Still Here
News release:
Producer prices for finished goods fell by a slight 0.1% in December, as prices for finished energy products gave up some of their November gains. As a result, topline PPI rose by 6.3% over 2007 as a whole. Excluding food and energy products, core PPI rose by 0.2% in December, and 2.0% for the year. Inflation remains much stronger at earlier stages of processing where prices for core intermediate goods rose by 4.6% on the year while prices for core crude goods rose by 3.6%.
Doesn't look too pretty for '08, unless you buy products made in the USA exclusively--except, of course, food.
Don't eat, and buy only US petroleum products (from well-to-pump.) You'll be fine!
(Source: The Dismal Scientist)
Producer prices for finished goods fell by a slight 0.1% in December, as prices for finished energy products gave up some of their November gains. As a result, topline PPI rose by 6.3% over 2007 as a whole. Excluding food and energy products, core PPI rose by 0.2% in December, and 2.0% for the year. Inflation remains much stronger at earlier stages of processing where prices for core intermediate goods rose by 4.6% on the year while prices for core crude goods rose by 3.6%.
Doesn't look too pretty for '08, unless you buy products made in the USA exclusively--except, of course, food.
Don't eat, and buy only US petroleum products (from well-to-pump.) You'll be fine!
(Source: The Dismal Scientist)
Bud Selig Does the Crawfish
In Congressional testimony about steroid abuse, Bud reveals something.
"My Dad used to say, 'Nothing's good or bad until you compare it to something else.'"
Obviously. Taking money at the point of a gun to build a Stadium is "good" compared to simply taking the money at the point of a gun.
Right?
HT: Rich Leonardi
"My Dad used to say, 'Nothing's good or bad until you compare it to something else.'"
Obviously. Taking money at the point of a gun to build a Stadium is "good" compared to simply taking the money at the point of a gun.
Right?
HT: Rich Leonardi
For You Brave New World Types
G K Chesterton ruminates about those who would effect the perfect future:
THE truth is that all feeble spirits naturally live in the future, because it is featureless; it is a soft job; you can make it what you like. The next age is blank, and I can paint it freshly with my favourite colour.
It requires real courage to face the past, because the past is full of facts which cannot be got over; of men certainly wiser than we, and of things done which we could not do. I know I cannot write a poem as good as 'Lycidas.' But it is always easy to say that the particular sort of poetry I can write will be the poetry of the future. --George Bernard Shaw
There's a particular Milwaukee-area blogger who would read that quote with great profit.
But he won't.
HT: VeniSancte
THE truth is that all feeble spirits naturally live in the future, because it is featureless; it is a soft job; you can make it what you like. The next age is blank, and I can paint it freshly with my favourite colour.
It requires real courage to face the past, because the past is full of facts which cannot be got over; of men certainly wiser than we, and of things done which we could not do. I know I cannot write a poem as good as 'Lycidas.' But it is always easy to say that the particular sort of poetry I can write will be the poetry of the future. --George Bernard Shaw
There's a particular Milwaukee-area blogger who would read that quote with great profit.
But he won't.
HT: VeniSancte
Sub-Prime: Not Just a Zit Anymore
These guys are not the first, nor will they be the last:
Citigroup Inc. posted a huge fourth-quarter net loss on $17.4 billion in subprime-related writedowns, announced plans to sell another $14.5 billion in preferred stock and will cut its dividend 41%. The company also said it would sell noncore assets
(Source: ABA Newsletter)
It is rumored that the Chinese refused to purchase Citigroup stock--thus, the $14Bn preferred offering will go forward.
Citigroup Inc. posted a huge fourth-quarter net loss on $17.4 billion in subprime-related writedowns, announced plans to sell another $14.5 billion in preferred stock and will cut its dividend 41%. The company also said it would sell noncore assets
(Source: ABA Newsletter)
It is rumored that the Chinese refused to purchase Citigroup stock--thus, the $14Bn preferred offering will go forward.
Career Advance for Newspaper Editor
Makes sense to me!
Terri Burke, former editor of the Abilene Reporter-News, has been named executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas.
Burke, 56, will begin work at the ACLU of Texas on Tuesday. Her duties will include lobbying, fundraising, administering the organization and communicating with the public.
Burke said her new job seems like a continuation of her work in the newspaper business.
"I wanted to be a journalist because I thought journalism was a way to further the democratic process," Burke said
I assume that Ms. Burke knew exactly what she said. After all, journalists are supposed to understand text.
Ricardo! Hey!! New Possiblities for YOU!
HT: Newsbusters
Terri Burke, former editor of the Abilene Reporter-News, has been named executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas.
Burke, 56, will begin work at the ACLU of Texas on Tuesday. Her duties will include lobbying, fundraising, administering the organization and communicating with the public.
Burke said her new job seems like a continuation of her work in the newspaper business.
"I wanted to be a journalist because I thought journalism was a way to further the democratic process," Burke said
I assume that Ms. Burke knew exactly what she said. After all, journalists are supposed to understand text.
Ricardo! Hey!! New Possiblities for YOU!
HT: Newsbusters
Murderous Iraq Vets--the NYT's Latest Lie
This pile of crap sucked in at least one local LeftoBlogger, so let's get a few figures on the table.
The Times “found 121 cases in which veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan committed a killing in this country, or were charged with one, after their return from war.” All but one case involved male veterans. They speculated that their research “most likely uncovered only the minimum number of such cases...
Yah? So?
Assuming 121 homicide cases in relation to 749,932 total discharges through 2007, 99.98 percent of all discharged Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have not committed or been charged with homicide.
And assuming 121 cases and 749,932 total discharges, the homicide offending rate for the discharged veterans would be 16.1 per 100,000. The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) has demographic data aplenty on homicide offending rates. For instance, in 2005, for white males aged 18-24, the rate was about 20 per 100,000. The Times opined that 121 was the “minimum” number, even as it counted veterans charged but not convicted with veterans tried and found guilty. Doubling the number to 242 would double the rate to 32.2 per 100,000.
Wonder why rational people refer to that paper as the NYSlimes?
HT: Malkin
The Times “found 121 cases in which veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan committed a killing in this country, or were charged with one, after their return from war.” All but one case involved male veterans. They speculated that their research “most likely uncovered only the minimum number of such cases...
Yah? So?
Assuming 121 homicide cases in relation to 749,932 total discharges through 2007, 99.98 percent of all discharged Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have not committed or been charged with homicide.
And assuming 121 cases and 749,932 total discharges, the homicide offending rate for the discharged veterans would be 16.1 per 100,000. The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) has demographic data aplenty on homicide offending rates. For instance, in 2005, for white males aged 18-24, the rate was about 20 per 100,000. The Times opined that 121 was the “minimum” number, even as it counted veterans charged but not convicted with veterans tried and found guilty. Doubling the number to 242 would double the rate to 32.2 per 100,000.
Wonder why rational people refer to that paper as the NYSlimes?
HT: Malkin
"New Media"--a Bellwether?
With all the yappaflappa about "new media," THIS may prove to be the most interesting chart of the primary season so far.
HT: GOP3
Liars Figure, Figures....Are "Special Needs"
You know the story.
Folkbum went all ballistic (doh) when he read P-Mac's comments on "Red Fred's" New Idea, and dredged up an interesting post from his blog's archives--all going to show that MPS educational costs are not all that much more than Choice re-imbursement dollars.
Given Jay's BFF status with P-Mac, I'll be very civil with Jay's analysis--and give him, personally, the benefit of the doubt. Here's what he says:
My high school was audited a couple of years back (Audit 2005-003, if you care to dig into it), and as a part of that process, the auditors came up with a figure for what my school spent to educate "regular" students, that is, students not receiving special services. That figure was $6,663 per pupil for the 2003-2004 school year. By contrast, those "do more with less" voucher schools could have received, in that same school year, $5,882, a difference of less than $800 per student.
So far, so good. He has a fairly strong case. But how does MPS manage to achieve an average cost/pupil of over $10,000 in the end?
...our special education students that year cost us almost exactly double, at $13,242 per student, and it is that spending that put my school's overall per-pupil cost at a much higher $8,195
(These are figures from about 2004, near as I can determine. Adjust for inflation if you must; it's not relevant.)
The point, Jay, is that MPS seems to have a VERY high "special needs" student count--over 40% of the student population at your school.
This points to a much more important question: how IS it that so many MPS students have "special needs"? It seems statistically difficult to achieve that, given normal distribution curves.
Now I'm not a statistician, and I don't think Jay's making up numbers. I'll even grant that Jay is not specifically interested in preserving his job at MPS--because if he's a good teacher, he'll get a job someplace, no sweat.
But it seems to me that MPS classifies a LOT of little darlings as "special needs."
Could it be?.....Possibly?....that MPS does that just to get extra State and Federal dollars?
......Hmmmmmmmm?????.....
Folkbum went all ballistic (doh) when he read P-Mac's comments on "Red Fred's" New Idea, and dredged up an interesting post from his blog's archives--all going to show that MPS educational costs are not all that much more than Choice re-imbursement dollars.
Given Jay's BFF status with P-Mac, I'll be very civil with Jay's analysis--and give him, personally, the benefit of the doubt. Here's what he says:
My high school was audited a couple of years back (Audit 2005-003, if you care to dig into it), and as a part of that process, the auditors came up with a figure for what my school spent to educate "regular" students, that is, students not receiving special services. That figure was $6,663 per pupil for the 2003-2004 school year. By contrast, those "do more with less" voucher schools could have received, in that same school year, $5,882, a difference of less than $800 per student.
So far, so good. He has a fairly strong case. But how does MPS manage to achieve an average cost/pupil of over $10,000 in the end?
...our special education students that year cost us almost exactly double, at $13,242 per student, and it is that spending that put my school's overall per-pupil cost at a much higher $8,195
(These are figures from about 2004, near as I can determine. Adjust for inflation if you must; it's not relevant.)
The point, Jay, is that MPS seems to have a VERY high "special needs" student count--over 40% of the student population at your school.
This points to a much more important question: how IS it that so many MPS students have "special needs"? It seems statistically difficult to achieve that, given normal distribution curves.
Now I'm not a statistician, and I don't think Jay's making up numbers. I'll even grant that Jay is not specifically interested in preserving his job at MPS--because if he's a good teacher, he'll get a job someplace, no sweat.
But it seems to me that MPS classifies a LOT of little darlings as "special needs."
Could it be?.....Possibly?....that MPS does that just to get extra State and Federal dollars?
......Hmmmmmmmm?????.....
Monday, January 14, 2008
Baby-Killing Contest
Somehow, this is just grotesque.
Two Democratic presidential candidates with 100% pro-choice voting records should have little to argue about on the issue of abortion rights, but in the increasingly combative nature between the campaigns of Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, no charge is going unanswered.
The debate, now more than a week old, was sparked by a New Hampshire mailer sent by the Clinton campaign in the days before the state’s Jan. 8 primary that attacked Obama’s abortion rights record for voting “present” when he was in the Illinois legislature on seven abortion bills. Clinton defeated Obama in the primary 39%-37%.
Obama’s campaign responded by blanketing New Hampshire voters with robo-calls defending his record on abortion rights. Today the Obama campaign held a conference call with reporters to further defend his record, even though there have been no further ads on the issue.
Ya got economic problems, terrorism, NorthKorea, fossil-fuel challenges,...
And these actual Presidential candidates are comparing babykilling bona fides...
Two Democratic presidential candidates with 100% pro-choice voting records should have little to argue about on the issue of abortion rights, but in the increasingly combative nature between the campaigns of Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, no charge is going unanswered.
The debate, now more than a week old, was sparked by a New Hampshire mailer sent by the Clinton campaign in the days before the state’s Jan. 8 primary that attacked Obama’s abortion rights record for voting “present” when he was in the Illinois legislature on seven abortion bills. Clinton defeated Obama in the primary 39%-37%.
Obama’s campaign responded by blanketing New Hampshire voters with robo-calls defending his record on abortion rights. Today the Obama campaign held a conference call with reporters to further defend his record, even though there have been no further ads on the issue.
Ya got economic problems, terrorism, NorthKorea, fossil-fuel challenges,...
And these actual Presidential candidates are comparing babykilling bona fides...
"Red Fred" Roars Back, Goes All Wallace
"Red Fred" Kessler (yah, that's a reference to the Commies--well-earned by Freddie) will try to nuke the Choice movement in Milwaukee.
He won't stand in the schoolhouse door. He'll just drop a MX missile on the program.
Some details from P-Mac:
Kessler, a Democrat who represents part of the northwest side, is proposing new rules for choice schools. Some examples:
That the choice grants from the state can't exceed what schools charge other children for tuition
That if 20% of the children who attend a school on their own dime receive financial assistance, the choice children's grants will be reduced by the same amount as the highest grant to non-choice students
Choice schools "must admit the special needs student of any sibling of a student enrolled at the 'choice' school."
But Red Fred is, perhaps, looking to emulate George Wallace in one other way:
He dis-invited two black legislators while he (white boy) and Gov Doyle (white boy) met in the Governor's office to discuss marching 7,000 black and Hispanic children out of their schools.
Wonder if DarthDoyle will send the National Guard...?? Hmmmmm?
UPDATE: DarthDoyle nixes white-boys meet.
He won't stand in the schoolhouse door. He'll just drop a MX missile on the program.
Some details from P-Mac:
Kessler, a Democrat who represents part of the northwest side, is proposing new rules for choice schools. Some examples:
That the choice grants from the state can't exceed what schools charge other children for tuition
That if 20% of the children who attend a school on their own dime receive financial assistance, the choice children's grants will be reduced by the same amount as the highest grant to non-choice students
Choice schools "must admit the special needs student of any sibling of a student enrolled at the 'choice' school."
But Red Fred is, perhaps, looking to emulate George Wallace in one other way:
He dis-invited two black legislators while he (white boy) and Gov Doyle (white boy) met in the Governor's office to discuss marching 7,000 black and Hispanic children out of their schools.
Wonder if DarthDoyle will send the National Guard...?? Hmmmmm?
UPDATE: DarthDoyle nixes white-boys meet.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
What Was the Name...? (Part Two)
....of that wide-out who plays for Dallas?
Did he catch anything for a TD today?
Who WAS that woman seen in Mexico?
And who cares?
Did he catch anything for a TD today?
Who WAS that woman seen in Mexico?
And who cares?
What Was the Name .....?
....of that defensive end from the Seattle Seahawks?
Anybody remember his name?
Was he in Green Bay on Saturday?
Anybody remember his name?
Was he in Green Bay on Saturday?
What a Difference 40 Years Makes
Malkin reminds us of the Talk Radio/Blogger impact, highlighting a piece by Selwyn Duke.
Last year’s scamnesty bill had widespread support among the powers-that-be, with the president, the Democrat majority and mainstream media all singing its praises. Yet it went down to defeat, slain by a new-media coalition of talk radio and blogosphere warriors. Working tirelessly to expose the truth and rally the grassroots, they became a David who slew a Goliath.
Forty-three years ago it was a different world. Ted Kennedy had co-authored the “Immigration Reform Act of 1965,” which created a situation wherein 85 percent of our immigrants hail from the Third World and Asia. He took to the Senate floor, claimed his brainchild wouldn’t change the demographic composition of the nation and passed the culture-rending bill under the cover of darkness.
This darkness was not absence of light but that of truth; it was a media blackout. With no Internet and little talk radio, mainstream journalists had a monopoly over the hearts and minds of America. And they knew best. The little people didn’t have to worry their pretty little heads about actions that would forever alter the face of the nation.
This is why the old media fears the new one. The latter watches the watchers, polices the police. It has cut into the Rathersphere’s market, causing a diminution of circulation, viewership and - this is what really gets their collars up — power. They can no longer propagandize with Tass-like impunity, for the e-hills have eyes.
Yet this is no time for a victory dance. The new media is under attack, as the left aims to silence dissent before it grows strong enough to block the thought police’s coup de grace. This is the race for the American mind.
While the New Media is not solely responsible for the difference (I'd nominate a more cynical public, e.g., as a big part of the phenomenon), there's no question that the talkers, Free Republic, and the blogs have taken a large chunk of audience from the MSM.
Of course, if the MSM would delve a little deeper into events, they could recover.
Last year’s scamnesty bill had widespread support among the powers-that-be, with the president, the Democrat majority and mainstream media all singing its praises. Yet it went down to defeat, slain by a new-media coalition of talk radio and blogosphere warriors. Working tirelessly to expose the truth and rally the grassroots, they became a David who slew a Goliath.
Forty-three years ago it was a different world. Ted Kennedy had co-authored the “Immigration Reform Act of 1965,” which created a situation wherein 85 percent of our immigrants hail from the Third World and Asia. He took to the Senate floor, claimed his brainchild wouldn’t change the demographic composition of the nation and passed the culture-rending bill under the cover of darkness.
This darkness was not absence of light but that of truth; it was a media blackout. With no Internet and little talk radio, mainstream journalists had a monopoly over the hearts and minds of America. And they knew best. The little people didn’t have to worry their pretty little heads about actions that would forever alter the face of the nation.
This is why the old media fears the new one. The latter watches the watchers, polices the police. It has cut into the Rathersphere’s market, causing a diminution of circulation, viewership and - this is what really gets their collars up — power. They can no longer propagandize with Tass-like impunity, for the e-hills have eyes.
Yet this is no time for a victory dance. The new media is under attack, as the left aims to silence dissent before it grows strong enough to block the thought police’s coup de grace. This is the race for the American mind.
While the New Media is not solely responsible for the difference (I'd nominate a more cynical public, e.g., as a big part of the phenomenon), there's no question that the talkers, Free Republic, and the blogs have taken a large chunk of audience from the MSM.
Of course, if the MSM would delve a little deeper into events, they could recover.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Real or Politics? Nuclear Waste CDO's...
The NY State AG is a political animal, but there just may be some substance here:
Authorities in New York and Connecticut are investigating whether Wall Street banks hid crucial information about high-risk loans bundled into securities that were sold to investors, Connecticut's Attorney General said Saturday
The investigations, first reported Saturday by The New York Times, center around "no-doc" or "exception" loans, that did not even meet subprime standards, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said.
"The loans were made to people who did not have any documents to verify their income or other verification for key requirements normally applied to mortgage borrowers," he said
Here's the loopy-language part:
The loans were sold by subprime lenders to Wall Street firms that bundled them with other, less risky, loans into securities.
Investigators want to find out whether the banks properly disclosed the high risk of default on those loans when selling those securities to investors in Connecticut and elsewhere, Blumenthal said.
"The investment banks may have used very broad, boilerplate disclaimer language that effectively failed to disclose fully and fairly all the information," he said.
Popcorn time.
Authorities in New York and Connecticut are investigating whether Wall Street banks hid crucial information about high-risk loans bundled into securities that were sold to investors, Connecticut's Attorney General said Saturday
The investigations, first reported Saturday by The New York Times, center around "no-doc" or "exception" loans, that did not even meet subprime standards, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said.
"The loans were made to people who did not have any documents to verify their income or other verification for key requirements normally applied to mortgage borrowers," he said
Here's the loopy-language part:
The loans were sold by subprime lenders to Wall Street firms that bundled them with other, less risky, loans into securities.
Investigators want to find out whether the banks properly disclosed the high risk of default on those loans when selling those securities to investors in Connecticut and elsewhere, Blumenthal said.
"The investment banks may have used very broad, boilerplate disclaimer language that effectively failed to disclose fully and fairly all the information," he said.
Popcorn time.
Attention, Ladies! PSA Here!
I know that there are two or three ladies which read this blog.
Here's some serious advice from LawDog on how to handle mutts who think the "frontal choke-hold" is recreational (for them.) CAUTION: Do NOT practice this at full speed with a sparring partner...
...Visualize your own personal critter with both hands around your throat, squeezing. If you are a woman, and a man is squeezing your throat -- it is deadly force. Even if he "didn't mean to do it", it is far too easy to damage the airway, damage the blood vessels in the neck, crush the larynx or fracture the delicate bones in your neck. Getting you by the throat just elevated this jackass from 'Critter' to 'Personal Chew-Toy'.
Notice, do, that it is impossible for your attacker to bring his elbows together -- his shoulders prevent it. In addition, 99% of your assailants are going to bend their elbows out at a forty to ninety degree angle to get better leverage to kill you.It is this space between his elbows that we are going to play with.First, I want you to spot your chew-toy's chin. Eying his chin, I want you to drive your right elbow straight up between his arms and upwards through his chin to his forehead.
Let me repeat that -- drive through his chin and past his forehead. If you are left-handed, do this with your left elbow.
If his chin is too far away -- doubtful, but possible -- drive the palm of the proper hand through his chin and past his forehead.
Our purpose here is two-fold. One, we want our upper arm/shoulder between chew-toy's hands. Two, we want to slam the Brain Housing Group back on the pivot of the spine.
Several things may happen at this point. Your personal chew-toy may bite his tongue, lose teeth, break his jaw, and/or damage the delicate joint between the Atlas vertebrae (the first cervical vertebrae) and the skull. What we're really going for, though, is the wet squelch when the inside of his forehead slams into his grey matter.
So, you now have your elbow up around your forehead. At this point, I want you to whip your elbow out and down so that your elbow ends up somewhere behind the proper side kidney. If you have the presence of mind, feel free to step back with the right foot as you do this, to provide extra power.
Again, if you are doing this with your left hand, switch the above instructions as required.
Observe that this forces the lever of your upper arm and shoulder against the fingers, and brings the power of your shoulder and upper back muscles to bear against the chew-toy's forearm muscles. You will rip that particular hand away from your neck -- there is nothing he can do with that hand to prevent this.
As your elbow comes back, spot your chew-toy's jaw. On the side towards your elbow, I want you to fix your attention to the spot midway between the point of his chin and the hinge of the jaw. Keeping your gaze on that spot, I want you to pivot your hips counter-clockwise (clockwise, if you're a southpaw). If you stepped back with your foot earlier -- now step forward. As you pivot your hips, crank your waist hard counter-clockwise (or clockwise) and throw your left shoulder back and your right one forward.
Using this whiplash motion, slam your right elbow into that spot on his jaw you are focused upon. Force your elbow through his mouth, continuing pivoting counter-clockwise -- and you are facing to your left (or right).
Again, several things may happen at this point. Any teeth that escaped breakage earlier are probably now gone. The jaw may be broken (again), and you may have damaged the delicate joint between the Atlas and Axis (C1 and C2) vertebrae at the top of his spine. Again, though, what we're going for is a thorough beat-down of his cerebral tissue using the inside of his skull.
Hey, look. You ended the exercise facing left (or right). Time to run like hell for safety and call 911.
Always, always, always call 911, because the first person to talk to the cops has an incredible advantage -- and you don't want your chew toy to get his story in first.
Three simple, albeit brutal, moves:
1)Up;
2)Down/out; and
3)Across.
Practice it slowly ten times a day, and let adrenaline add the speed and force should you ever (Goddess forfend) need to use it for real.
Class dismissed.
I nominate LawDog for Citizen of the Year...
Here's some serious advice from LawDog on how to handle mutts who think the "frontal choke-hold" is recreational (for them.) CAUTION: Do NOT practice this at full speed with a sparring partner...
...Visualize your own personal critter with both hands around your throat, squeezing. If you are a woman, and a man is squeezing your throat -- it is deadly force. Even if he "didn't mean to do it", it is far too easy to damage the airway, damage the blood vessels in the neck, crush the larynx or fracture the delicate bones in your neck. Getting you by the throat just elevated this jackass from 'Critter' to 'Personal Chew-Toy'.
Notice, do, that it is impossible for your attacker to bring his elbows together -- his shoulders prevent it. In addition, 99% of your assailants are going to bend their elbows out at a forty to ninety degree angle to get better leverage to kill you.It is this space between his elbows that we are going to play with.First, I want you to spot your chew-toy's chin. Eying his chin, I want you to drive your right elbow straight up between his arms and upwards through his chin to his forehead.
Let me repeat that -- drive through his chin and past his forehead. If you are left-handed, do this with your left elbow.
If his chin is too far away -- doubtful, but possible -- drive the palm of the proper hand through his chin and past his forehead.
Our purpose here is two-fold. One, we want our upper arm/shoulder between chew-toy's hands. Two, we want to slam the Brain Housing Group back on the pivot of the spine.
Several things may happen at this point. Your personal chew-toy may bite his tongue, lose teeth, break his jaw, and/or damage the delicate joint between the Atlas vertebrae (the first cervical vertebrae) and the skull. What we're really going for, though, is the wet squelch when the inside of his forehead slams into his grey matter.
So, you now have your elbow up around your forehead. At this point, I want you to whip your elbow out and down so that your elbow ends up somewhere behind the proper side kidney. If you have the presence of mind, feel free to step back with the right foot as you do this, to provide extra power.
Again, if you are doing this with your left hand, switch the above instructions as required.
Observe that this forces the lever of your upper arm and shoulder against the fingers, and brings the power of your shoulder and upper back muscles to bear against the chew-toy's forearm muscles. You will rip that particular hand away from your neck -- there is nothing he can do with that hand to prevent this.
As your elbow comes back, spot your chew-toy's jaw. On the side towards your elbow, I want you to fix your attention to the spot midway between the point of his chin and the hinge of the jaw. Keeping your gaze on that spot, I want you to pivot your hips counter-clockwise (clockwise, if you're a southpaw). If you stepped back with your foot earlier -- now step forward. As you pivot your hips, crank your waist hard counter-clockwise (or clockwise) and throw your left shoulder back and your right one forward.
Using this whiplash motion, slam your right elbow into that spot on his jaw you are focused upon. Force your elbow through his mouth, continuing pivoting counter-clockwise -- and you are facing to your left (or right).
Again, several things may happen at this point. Any teeth that escaped breakage earlier are probably now gone. The jaw may be broken (again), and you may have damaged the delicate joint between the Atlas and Axis (C1 and C2) vertebrae at the top of his spine. Again, though, what we're going for is a thorough beat-down of his cerebral tissue using the inside of his skull.
Hey, look. You ended the exercise facing left (or right). Time to run like hell for safety and call 911.
Always, always, always call 911, because the first person to talk to the cops has an incredible advantage -- and you don't want your chew toy to get his story in first.
Three simple, albeit brutal, moves:
1)Up;
2)Down/out; and
3)Across.
Practice it slowly ten times a day, and let adrenaline add the speed and force should you ever (Goddess forfend) need to use it for real.
Class dismissed.
I nominate LawDog for Citizen of the Year...
GWB Losing Control of Solicitor General?
This could only be ascribed to 'swamp fever' which is akin to Madistanism. (Both diseases should be fatal, by the way.)
Government files amicus -- on DC's side!
Quick read: Gov't says, yes, it's an individual right. BUT we join with DC in asking Court to reverse the DC Circuit, because it applied strict scrutiny to the DC law. It should only have applied an intermediate standard. That is, the legal position of the US is that DC Circuit was wrong, a complete ban on handguns is NOT per se unconstitutional, it all depends on how good a reason DC can prove for it.
And this is filed in the name of the Solicitor General.
(From the brief):
"CONCLUSION
The Court should affirm that the Second Amendment, no less than other provisions of the Bill of Rights, secures an individual right, and should clarify that the right is subject to the more flexible standard of review described above. If the Court takes those foundational steps, the better course would be to remand. "
Of Arms comments:
As I read this, the (Bush) Dept of Justice is asking that the Court hold it to be an individual right, but not strike the DC gun law, instead sending it back down to the trial court to take evidence on everything from how much the District needs the law to whether people can defend themselves without pistols and just what the DC trigger lock law means. THEN maybe it can begin another four year trek to the Supremes. That is, the DoJ REJECTS the DC Circuit position that an absolute, flat, ban on handguns violates the Second Amendment, and contends that it might just be justified, it all depends on the evidence.
There was a saying during my years in DC that the GOP operated on two principles: screw your friends and appease your enemies. Yup.
This may be JBVanHollen's modus operandi, as well.
HT: John Lott, who points to some silly crap in the Solicitor General's filing.
Government files amicus -- on DC's side!
Quick read: Gov't says, yes, it's an individual right. BUT we join with DC in asking Court to reverse the DC Circuit, because it applied strict scrutiny to the DC law. It should only have applied an intermediate standard. That is, the legal position of the US is that DC Circuit was wrong, a complete ban on handguns is NOT per se unconstitutional, it all depends on how good a reason DC can prove for it.
And this is filed in the name of the Solicitor General.
(From the brief):
"CONCLUSION
The Court should affirm that the Second Amendment, no less than other provisions of the Bill of Rights, secures an individual right, and should clarify that the right is subject to the more flexible standard of review described above. If the Court takes those foundational steps, the better course would be to remand. "
Of Arms comments:
As I read this, the (Bush) Dept of Justice is asking that the Court hold it to be an individual right, but not strike the DC gun law, instead sending it back down to the trial court to take evidence on everything from how much the District needs the law to whether people can defend themselves without pistols and just what the DC trigger lock law means. THEN maybe it can begin another four year trek to the Supremes. That is, the DoJ REJECTS the DC Circuit position that an absolute, flat, ban on handguns violates the Second Amendment, and contends that it might just be justified, it all depends on the evidence.
There was a saying during my years in DC that the GOP operated on two principles: screw your friends and appease your enemies. Yup.
This may be JBVanHollen's modus operandi, as well.
HT: John Lott, who points to some silly crap in the Solicitor General's filing.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Look at it This Way, Men
G K Chesterton on women:
VARIABILITY is one of the virtues of a woman. It obviates the crude requirements of polygamy. If you have one good wife you are sure to have a spiritual harem.
--'Daily News.'
HT: VeniSancte
VARIABILITY is one of the virtues of a woman. It obviates the crude requirements of polygamy. If you have one good wife you are sure to have a spiritual harem.
--'Daily News.'
HT: VeniSancte
Both the Headline AND the Story
Here's an English language sentence which IS grammatically correct AND conveys meaning:
Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo.
It does include a few meanings of the word "buffalo" as well as the American city...
The 'translation'?
Bison from the city of Buffalo who are bullied by other bison from the city of Buffalo in turn bully yet other bison from the city of Buffalo.
Nothing like an academic exercise to remind you to GET BACK TO WORK!
HT: What's Wrong With the World
Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo.
It does include a few meanings of the word "buffalo" as well as the American city...
The 'translation'?
Bison from the city of Buffalo who are bullied by other bison from the city of Buffalo in turn bully yet other bison from the city of Buffalo.
Nothing like an academic exercise to remind you to GET BACK TO WORK!
HT: What's Wrong With the World
McPain? Never!!
Sorry I don't have an audio link for this.
Last night's Levin show included an interview with ex-Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa) who made it clear that he absolutely DESPISES John McCain.
Most of his comments focused on 'in camera' moves that McCain made--all of which were made in attempts to derail/delay/ruin the Conservative position(s) held by Santorum and other actual Conservative (R) Senators--in areas including immigration, tax policy, spending, and gun-control.
It is very unusual for a former Senator to rip the hide off a Senator, particularly one from the same Party.
Word to the wise.
UPDATE: More of Santorum on McPain from the Hewitt show via Dreher:
"Well, I mean, because John McCain was the leader on the other side of the aisle. John McCain was the guy who was working with Ted Kennedy to drive it down our throats, and lectured us repeatedly about how xenophobic we were, lectured us, us being the Republican conference, about how wrong we were on this, how we were on the wrong side of history, and that you know, this is important for his…because having come from Arizona, knowing the strength of the Hispanic community, that we were going to be seen as racists, and he wasn’t going be part of that, that he was not a racist, and that if we were for tougher borders, it was a racist thing. Look, John McCain looks at things through the eyes, on these kind of domestic policy issues, looks at it through the eyes of the New York Times editorial board, and accepts that predisposition that if you are not, if you stand for conservative principles, there’s some genetic defect.
"...And then on the issue of, on social conservative issues, you point to me one time John McCain every took the floor of the United States Senate to talk about a social conservative issue. It never happened. I mean, this is a guy who says he believes in these things, but I can tell you, inside the room, when we were in these meetings, there was nobody who fought harder not to have these votes before the United States Senate on some of the most important social conservative issues, whether it’s marriage or abortion or the like. He always fought against us to even bring them up, because he was uncomfortable voting for them. So I mean, this is just not a guy I think in the end that washes with the mainstream of the Republican Party.
I'll be more direct: to Hell with McCain.
Last night's Levin show included an interview with ex-Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa) who made it clear that he absolutely DESPISES John McCain.
Most of his comments focused on 'in camera' moves that McCain made--all of which were made in attempts to derail/delay/ruin the Conservative position(s) held by Santorum and other actual Conservative (R) Senators--in areas including immigration, tax policy, spending, and gun-control.
It is very unusual for a former Senator to rip the hide off a Senator, particularly one from the same Party.
Word to the wise.
UPDATE: More of Santorum on McPain from the Hewitt show via Dreher:
"Well, I mean, because John McCain was the leader on the other side of the aisle. John McCain was the guy who was working with Ted Kennedy to drive it down our throats, and lectured us repeatedly about how xenophobic we were, lectured us, us being the Republican conference, about how wrong we were on this, how we were on the wrong side of history, and that you know, this is important for his…because having come from Arizona, knowing the strength of the Hispanic community, that we were going to be seen as racists, and he wasn’t going be part of that, that he was not a racist, and that if we were for tougher borders, it was a racist thing. Look, John McCain looks at things through the eyes, on these kind of domestic policy issues, looks at it through the eyes of the New York Times editorial board, and accepts that predisposition that if you are not, if you stand for conservative principles, there’s some genetic defect.
"...And then on the issue of, on social conservative issues, you point to me one time John McCain every took the floor of the United States Senate to talk about a social conservative issue. It never happened. I mean, this is a guy who says he believes in these things, but I can tell you, inside the room, when we were in these meetings, there was nobody who fought harder not to have these votes before the United States Senate on some of the most important social conservative issues, whether it’s marriage or abortion or the like. He always fought against us to even bring them up, because he was uncomfortable voting for them. So I mean, this is just not a guy I think in the end that washes with the mainstream of the Republican Party.
I'll be more direct: to Hell with McCain.
Milwaukee's New TopCop--Interesting Stuff!
Gousha got him to show up at the Marquette Law School, and the Warrior live-blogged.
Interesting snips:
Question: poverty is high in Milwaukee.
Chief: It’s more likely for crime to cause poverty than for poverty to cause crime. [!!!]
I will second the [!!!] from our Warrior-correspondent. Facile, maybe. Very perceptive in any case...
Kids are afraid to go to school (dangerous), afraid to appear “smart” in class. People do not take jobs after dark because it’s unsafe to get to work. We can have an impact on that.
Can we have an effect on the “macro situation” – people having babies, guys abandoning their families, etc. ?
Chief: “We are going to be pushing authority down to the district.”
For that, you can thank his Catholic school education. It's called "subsidiarity."
Warrior opines:
[Flynn] has no illusions about who the good guys and the bad guys are. The cops are the good guys. Law abiding citizens are the good guys.
He passed up several opportunities to agree with simplistic platitudes
...He insisted that people who want cops on the beat and highly visible in public spaces may have to accept a lower level of personal service...
He seemed to understand the role of family structure in producing crime, and even the role of what political scientists call “social capital” -- a network of robust community institutions.
Overarching all of this was a concern for police professionalism
I don't really care how Milk-Carton Tommy found this guy--whether he was TOLD to hire him, or not is irrelevant.
This is promising.
Interesting snips:
Question: poverty is high in Milwaukee.
Chief: It’s more likely for crime to cause poverty than for poverty to cause crime. [!!!]
I will second the [!!!] from our Warrior-correspondent. Facile, maybe. Very perceptive in any case...
Kids are afraid to go to school (dangerous), afraid to appear “smart” in class. People do not take jobs after dark because it’s unsafe to get to work. We can have an impact on that.
Can we have an effect on the “macro situation” – people having babies, guys abandoning their families, etc. ?
Chief: “We are going to be pushing authority down to the district.”
For that, you can thank his Catholic school education. It's called "subsidiarity."
Warrior opines:
[Flynn] has no illusions about who the good guys and the bad guys are. The cops are the good guys. Law abiding citizens are the good guys.
He passed up several opportunities to agree with simplistic platitudes
...He insisted that people who want cops on the beat and highly visible in public spaces may have to accept a lower level of personal service...
He seemed to understand the role of family structure in producing crime, and even the role of what political scientists call “social capital” -- a network of robust community institutions.
Overarching all of this was a concern for police professionalism
I don't really care how Milk-Carton Tommy found this guy--whether he was TOLD to hire him, or not is irrelevant.
This is promising.
Fred: I Have Only Just BEGUN to Fight!
Yah, he looked good, and he's turned up the heat...
(I'll mention "mo" again.)
But others, who have a practiced eye, also noticed:
...I am not sure how conservative he is, but I think that Romney has backed himself into a corner. By concentrating all his effort on Michigan, he has raised the stakes dramatically. The problem that he faces is that Michigan allows non-Republicans to vote in their primary and that is compounded by the fact that there is no Democratic race...
...I think that this will be a tough race for Romney to win, and I think that he may drop out of the race if he loses in Michigan. Given that I don't think that even their current positions would classify McCain and Huckabee as conservatives on economic issues, that would leave Thompson and Giuliani
I'm not all that sure that Romney will drop out--he has far too much money and organization to walk away. On the other hand, were he to bail, it becomes "New York" vs. "Flyover Country."
Hell, THAT won't be hard to win...
(I'll mention "mo" again.)
But others, who have a practiced eye, also noticed:
...I am not sure how conservative he is, but I think that Romney has backed himself into a corner. By concentrating all his effort on Michigan, he has raised the stakes dramatically. The problem that he faces is that Michigan allows non-Republicans to vote in their primary and that is compounded by the fact that there is no Democratic race...
...I think that this will be a tough race for Romney to win, and I think that he may drop out of the race if he loses in Michigan. Given that I don't think that even their current positions would classify McCain and Huckabee as conservatives on economic issues, that would leave Thompson and Giuliani
I'm not all that sure that Romney will drop out--he has far too much money and organization to walk away. On the other hand, were he to bail, it becomes "New York" vs. "Flyover Country."
Hell, THAT won't be hard to win...
More Hildebeeste Crap
Typical--playing to the totally un-informed--HRC speech-ifies:
“Dr. King’s dream began to be realized when President Lyndon Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964,” Mrs. Clinton said in trying to make the case that her experience should mean more to voters than the uplifting words of Mr. Obama. “It took a president to get it done.”
Umnnnhhh....Hillary....the CONGRESS "passed" the CRA/64. And we remind you that the REPUBLICANS voted overwhelmingly for the Bill in the Senate.
The Democrats did not. See Wikipedia:
The bill was reported out of the Judiciary Committee in November 1963, but was then referred to the Rules Committee, whose chairman, Howard W. Smith, a Democrat from Virginia, indicated his intention to keep the bill bottled up indefinitely.
...Normally, the bill would have been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, chaired by Senator James O. Eastland [D], from Mississippi. Under Eastland's care, it seemed impossible that the bill would reach the Senate floor.
Final passage (House):
Democratic Party: 153-91 (63%-37%)
Republican Party: 186-35 (80%-20%)
Final passage (Senate):
Democratic Party: 46-22 (68%-32%)
Republican Party: 27-6 (82%-18%)
The Republican Party has been despised ever since as "anti-Black."
The Republicans started and won the Civil War, ending slavery along the way. The Republicans assured passage of CRA/64.
And the Democrats, opportunistic scumsuckers that they are, take all the credit, with the Hildebeeste re-writing history and civics to make the case that SHE should be elected.
Huh.
HT: Captain's Quarters
“Dr. King’s dream began to be realized when President Lyndon Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964,” Mrs. Clinton said in trying to make the case that her experience should mean more to voters than the uplifting words of Mr. Obama. “It took a president to get it done.”
Umnnnhhh....Hillary....the CONGRESS "passed" the CRA/64. And we remind you that the REPUBLICANS voted overwhelmingly for the Bill in the Senate.
The Democrats did not. See Wikipedia:
The bill was reported out of the Judiciary Committee in November 1963, but was then referred to the Rules Committee, whose chairman, Howard W. Smith, a Democrat from Virginia, indicated his intention to keep the bill bottled up indefinitely.
...Normally, the bill would have been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, chaired by Senator James O. Eastland [D], from Mississippi. Under Eastland's care, it seemed impossible that the bill would reach the Senate floor.
Final passage (House):
Democratic Party: 153-91 (63%-37%)
Republican Party: 186-35 (80%-20%)
Final passage (Senate):
Democratic Party: 46-22 (68%-32%)
Republican Party: 27-6 (82%-18%)
The Republican Party has been despised ever since as "anti-Black."
The Republicans started and won the Civil War, ending slavery along the way. The Republicans assured passage of CRA/64.
And the Democrats, opportunistic scumsuckers that they are, take all the credit, with the Hildebeeste re-writing history and civics to make the case that SHE should be elected.
Huh.
HT: Captain's Quarters
Bank of America/Countrywide: Taxpayer Hooked?
It's not news that Bank of America will purchase Countrywide.
But there's an interesting line in the story:
It's expected to be neutral to Bank of America earnings per share in 2008 and lift EPS in 2009, excluding merger and restructuring costs.
That line should catch your attention. The clear implication is that there's no noticeable "red ink" possibility foreseen by BoA downtrack.
How can that be?
Next article, (rumor-fed):
1. The Fed is behind the deal.
2. The Fed is behind the deal because the rumors yesterday of a near bankruptcy were probably true.
3. As part of the deal, the Fed likely agrees to guarantee BofA against Countrywide-related losses.
NOW the first article makes sense. Except, of course, for those who will pay for the Fed's "guarantee."
Wanna guess who that might be?
HT: Calculated Risk
But there's an interesting line in the story:
It's expected to be neutral to Bank of America earnings per share in 2008 and lift EPS in 2009, excluding merger and restructuring costs.
That line should catch your attention. The clear implication is that there's no noticeable "red ink" possibility foreseen by BoA downtrack.
How can that be?
Next article, (rumor-fed):
1. The Fed is behind the deal.
2. The Fed is behind the deal because the rumors yesterday of a near bankruptcy were probably true.
3. As part of the deal, the Fed likely agrees to guarantee BofA against Countrywide-related losses.
NOW the first article makes sense. Except, of course, for those who will pay for the Fed's "guarantee."
Wanna guess who that might be?
HT: Calculated Risk
NFL Greed, Part 348
The NFL's lawyers are an active bunch. Earlier this month, they sent letters to a number of large theaters claiming that the NFL "copyright" would be violated if the theaters showed playoff games on their large screens.
That move is closely related to the NFL's "NFL Channel" gambit. If the NFL Channel is to succeed at extracting huge dollars from cable networks, then it is imperative that the NFL restrict broadcasts. They can call it "copyright" violations if they like.
In reality, it's a matter of squeezing more money out of people who watch football games on TV.
That calls for prohibiting large crowds from seeing the games, because (after all) if you don't wish to pay Warner Cable an sizeable premium to see the Packers on TV, you could go to a local theater instead, and pay for popcorn and libations.
Hooboy. That would cut back the NFL's dreams of revenue increases.
You can place large moneys on this: the "Big Ten Network" is watching this very carefully.
Some theater operators (and their lawyers) don't find the NFL's argument persuasive. Best wishes to them--let's hope they have large crowds on Saturday afternoon!
That move is closely related to the NFL's "NFL Channel" gambit. If the NFL Channel is to succeed at extracting huge dollars from cable networks, then it is imperative that the NFL restrict broadcasts. They can call it "copyright" violations if they like.
In reality, it's a matter of squeezing more money out of people who watch football games on TV.
That calls for prohibiting large crowds from seeing the games, because (after all) if you don't wish to pay Warner Cable an sizeable premium to see the Packers on TV, you could go to a local theater instead, and pay for popcorn and libations.
Hooboy. That would cut back the NFL's dreams of revenue increases.
You can place large moneys on this: the "Big Ten Network" is watching this very carefully.
Some theater operators (and their lawyers) don't find the NFL's argument persuasive. Best wishes to them--let's hope they have large crowds on Saturday afternoon!
MPS' "Free" Broadband: WHAT Benefit?
Interesting deal, here.
UWM, MPS and MATC plan to lease a dozen channels of educational broadband to Kirkland, Wash.-based Clearwire Corp. Under the deal, each institution will get $4.2 million up-front and monthly payments of $55,000 that increase annually, for a total estimated payout of about $36 million each over three decades.
MPS, in turn, plans to use its lease royalties to buy Clearwire's broadband service and broadband cards for MPS families, giving all students Internet access at home, said MPS Director of Technology James Davis. The district would still need to find more computers for students who don't have them, but it's a step forward, Davis said.
That's very nice, no?
Well, yah--except for the property tax payers. It doesn't seem as though MPS has any interest in actually, you know, reducing proptax. Nor, for that matter, will they seek a reduction of State taxpayer subsidies, which are very large.
Here's the real fairy tale:
Ware said the district has long aimed to address the digital divide among its students, and the educational broadband has always been seen as a resource that would help achieve that goal.
Just exactly what "educational benefit" is derived from having a laptop and a wireless connection? Does a computer improve one's spelling? Math? Are there no libraries with encyclopedias? Is ALL research material now available on the Internet?
"We are meeting MPS' long-term goal at no taxpayer expense," Ware said. "Were it not for this asset, we would still have to sink taxpayer dollars into meeting this goal."
In other words, MPS WILL spend money for this "benefit"--whether it adds to your tax bill or not.
As to MATC:
Milwaukee Area Technical College spokesman Jim Gribble said the school has yet to determine how to spend the lease royalties, but the one-time payment [$4.2 million] will go into the school's reserves for now.
"There's really been no decision at this point as to how the money will be used," Gribble said. "Always, our intent is to keep the tax increase to a minimum."
Notice the phrasing. There's no HINT that the money will directly offset expenses--just that MATC's profligate Board will "intend" to keep tax "increase[s] to a minimum."
Damn generous of them!
Never a mention of tax reduction, nor of spending reduction.
Typical.
UWM, MPS and MATC plan to lease a dozen channels of educational broadband to Kirkland, Wash.-based Clearwire Corp. Under the deal, each institution will get $4.2 million up-front and monthly payments of $55,000 that increase annually, for a total estimated payout of about $36 million each over three decades.
MPS, in turn, plans to use its lease royalties to buy Clearwire's broadband service and broadband cards for MPS families, giving all students Internet access at home, said MPS Director of Technology James Davis. The district would still need to find more computers for students who don't have them, but it's a step forward, Davis said.
That's very nice, no?
Well, yah--except for the property tax payers. It doesn't seem as though MPS has any interest in actually, you know, reducing proptax. Nor, for that matter, will they seek a reduction of State taxpayer subsidies, which are very large.
Here's the real fairy tale:
Ware said the district has long aimed to address the digital divide among its students, and the educational broadband has always been seen as a resource that would help achieve that goal.
Just exactly what "educational benefit" is derived from having a laptop and a wireless connection? Does a computer improve one's spelling? Math? Are there no libraries with encyclopedias? Is ALL research material now available on the Internet?
"We are meeting MPS' long-term goal at no taxpayer expense," Ware said. "Were it not for this asset, we would still have to sink taxpayer dollars into meeting this goal."
In other words, MPS WILL spend money for this "benefit"--whether it adds to your tax bill or not.
As to MATC:
Milwaukee Area Technical College spokesman Jim Gribble said the school has yet to determine how to spend the lease royalties, but the one-time payment [$4.2 million] will go into the school's reserves for now.
"There's really been no decision at this point as to how the money will be used," Gribble said. "Always, our intent is to keep the tax increase to a minimum."
Notice the phrasing. There's no HINT that the money will directly offset expenses--just that MATC's profligate Board will "intend" to keep tax "increase[s] to a minimum."
Damn generous of them!
Never a mention of tax reduction, nor of spending reduction.
Typical.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
St Louis May Be Warm in January
Abp. Burke of St. Louis does not waste time, nor does he think the "soft touch" is useful in cases of "grave scandal" and "rejection of a truth."
St. Louis Catholic has learned that Sr. Louise Lears, a member of the "Pastoral Team" at St. Cronan Parish has been issued a summons and canonical admonition by His Grace, Archbishop Raymond L. Burke. Sr. Lears has been summoned to appear to answer the charges of rejection of a truth of faith under canon 750, and of causing grave scandal, thus implicating the penalties for a scandalous external violation of canon law under canon 1399.
An excerpt from a chatgroup site provides some information--but not much.
On the Saturday between Christmas and New Year's, Louise was served (at home) with a "summons to appear and canonical admonition" at the Catholic Center of the Archdiocese. The letter was signed by Archbishop Burke. The hearing is set for January 15 at 10 am. She is to appear to "take cognizance of the accusation and proofs concerning your apparent commission of the delicts of 1) the rejection of a truth /de Fide/tenenda/ (canon 750) and 2) grave scandal (canon 1399)."
She does not know what the the issue is that has prompted this, but she imagines it is her support of women's ordination
Well, 'support of women's [faux] ordination' would be a start, I suppose.
HT: Wolftracker
St. Louis Catholic has learned that Sr. Louise Lears, a member of the "Pastoral Team" at St. Cronan Parish has been issued a summons and canonical admonition by His Grace, Archbishop Raymond L. Burke. Sr. Lears has been summoned to appear to answer the charges of rejection of a truth of faith under canon 750, and of causing grave scandal, thus implicating the penalties for a scandalous external violation of canon law under canon 1399.
An excerpt from a chatgroup site provides some information--but not much.
On the Saturday between Christmas and New Year's, Louise was served (at home) with a "summons to appear and canonical admonition" at the Catholic Center of the Archdiocese. The letter was signed by Archbishop Burke. The hearing is set for January 15 at 10 am. She is to appear to "take cognizance of the accusation and proofs concerning your apparent commission of the delicts of 1) the rejection of a truth /de Fide/tenenda/ (canon 750) and 2) grave scandal (canon 1399)."
She does not know what the the issue is that has prompted this, but she imagines it is her support of women's ordination
Well, 'support of women's [faux] ordination' would be a start, I suppose.
HT: Wolftracker
Like Conspiracy Theories? Try THIS One!
As are most of them, this one's hard to swallow, but not totally off the wall.
Or is it?
You have to read the WHOLE post to get to the "hmmmmmmmm........" stage of 'coulda happened?' And even then, you say...naaahh. But then you say, "Coulda?"
There. That should feed Capper and the Pundit Nation for a week.
HT: Dreher
Or is it?
You have to read the WHOLE post to get to the "hmmmmmmmm........" stage of 'coulda happened?' And even then, you say...naaahh. But then you say, "Coulda?"
There. That should feed Capper and the Pundit Nation for a week.
HT: Dreher
"Hello, FBI? Your Phone Is Disconnected!"
What a bunch of boobs.
Telephone companies cut off FBI wiretaps used to eavesdrop on suspected criminals because of the bureau's repeated failures to pay phone bills on time, according to a Justice Department audit released Thursday.
The faulty bookkeeping is part of what the audit, by the Justice Department's inspector general, described as the FBI's lax oversight of money used in undercover investigations. Poor supervision of the program also allowed one agent to steal $25,000, the audit said.
More than half of 990 bills to pay for telecommunication surveillance in five unidentified FBI field offices were not paid on time, the report shows. In one office alone, unpaid costs for wiretaps from one phone company totaled $66,000.
The World's Greatest LEO's?
And THESE guys carry weapons!
Telephone companies cut off FBI wiretaps used to eavesdrop on suspected criminals because of the bureau's repeated failures to pay phone bills on time, according to a Justice Department audit released Thursday.
The faulty bookkeeping is part of what the audit, by the Justice Department's inspector general, described as the FBI's lax oversight of money used in undercover investigations. Poor supervision of the program also allowed one agent to steal $25,000, the audit said.
More than half of 990 bills to pay for telecommunication surveillance in five unidentified FBI field offices were not paid on time, the report shows. In one office alone, unpaid costs for wiretaps from one phone company totaled $66,000.
The World's Greatest LEO's?
And THESE guys carry weapons!
Kanavas Showing Signs of Madistan-ism
Calling the response to the EDS/State Social Security mailing brouhaha "Dumb," Sen. Kanavas attempts "Dumber."
State Sen. Ted Kanavas, R-Brookfield, called the state's handling of the situation "dumb" and said he would propose a law change to set up emergency credit counseling and call centers for future security breaches
...Kanavas derided the long waits and busy signals that greeted callers to the hot line.
"That is not a very warm and fuzzy and caring department is it?" he said.
Kanavas said he was drafting a bill that would require emergency call centers able to do credit counseling to be established in the event of another security breach.
That's the Ticket!! Have LAWS requiring Emergency Call Centers!!! (Oh, yah--don't forget the requirement for phones, staffers, heat/light, computers, buildings--you know, the usual spending "requirements.")
Ted--get out of Madison and take a deep breath. Or take a deep breath and get out of Madison. You can go back when your head is clear.
State Sen. Ted Kanavas, R-Brookfield, called the state's handling of the situation "dumb" and said he would propose a law change to set up emergency credit counseling and call centers for future security breaches
...Kanavas derided the long waits and busy signals that greeted callers to the hot line.
"That is not a very warm and fuzzy and caring department is it?" he said.
Kanavas said he was drafting a bill that would require emergency call centers able to do credit counseling to be established in the event of another security breach.
That's the Ticket!! Have LAWS requiring Emergency Call Centers!!! (Oh, yah--don't forget the requirement for phones, staffers, heat/light, computers, buildings--you know, the usual spending "requirements.")
Ted--get out of Madison and take a deep breath. Or take a deep breath and get out of Madison. You can go back when your head is clear.
Vote Fraud? Tax Fraud? All the Same to Me!!
Heh.
On the eve of a hearing before the U.S. Supreme Court, the Indiana Voter ID law has become a story with a twist: One of the individuals used by opponents to the law as an example of how the law hurts older Hoosiers is registered to vote in two states.
Faye Buis-Ewing, 72, who has been telling the media she is a 50-year resident of Indiana, at one point in the past few years alsoclaimed two states as her primary residence and received a homestead exemption on her property taxes in both states.
Monday night from her Florida home, Ewing said she and her husband Kenneth “winter in Florida and summer in Indiana.” She admitted to registering to vote in both states, but stressed that she¹s never voted in Florida. She also has a Florida driver’s license, but when she tried to use it as her photo ID in the Indiana elections in November 2006, poll workers wouldn’t accept it.
Now we move to taxes:
A check with Charlotte County, Fla.’s online property tax records shows that Ewing owns property there. One requirement in Florida to claim homestead is to show a valid voter ID or sign an affidavit of residency – which she did when she applied for her voter card there. She claimed a homestead exemption on the Florida property in 2003 – the same time she was claiming a homestead exemption on property she owned in Indiana, according to Tippecanoe deputy auditor Heather Satler. Satler said that Ewing’s Indiana exemption began in 1994 and ended in 2004, when the exemption was removed because the state discovered she wasn¹t living there.
By the way--it does NOT appear that she had any "difficulty" in obtaining valid ID's--no matter what the MJS Democratorial Board may opine...
HTs: RedState, No Runny Eggs
On the eve of a hearing before the U.S. Supreme Court, the Indiana Voter ID law has become a story with a twist: One of the individuals used by opponents to the law as an example of how the law hurts older Hoosiers is registered to vote in two states.
Faye Buis-Ewing, 72, who has been telling the media she is a 50-year resident of Indiana, at one point in the past few years alsoclaimed two states as her primary residence and received a homestead exemption on her property taxes in both states.
Monday night from her Florida home, Ewing said she and her husband Kenneth “winter in Florida and summer in Indiana.” She admitted to registering to vote in both states, but stressed that she¹s never voted in Florida. She also has a Florida driver’s license, but when she tried to use it as her photo ID in the Indiana elections in November 2006, poll workers wouldn’t accept it.
Now we move to taxes:
A check with Charlotte County, Fla.’s online property tax records shows that Ewing owns property there. One requirement in Florida to claim homestead is to show a valid voter ID or sign an affidavit of residency – which she did when she applied for her voter card there. She claimed a homestead exemption on the Florida property in 2003 – the same time she was claiming a homestead exemption on property she owned in Indiana, according to Tippecanoe deputy auditor Heather Satler. Satler said that Ewing’s Indiana exemption began in 1994 and ended in 2004, when the exemption was removed because the state discovered she wasn¹t living there.
By the way--it does NOT appear that she had any "difficulty" in obtaining valid ID's--no matter what the MJS Democratorial Board may opine...
HTs: RedState, No Runny Eggs
McCain: Against Roe v Wade--THIS Year
Other than his problems with immigration, free speech, and tax policy (on which he may be better than reported), McCain seems to have ....ah....malleable.... views on Roe v. Wade. Worse, he is dead wrong on fetal stem cells. ("Dead" is very significant...)
However, while McCain has voted consistently against abortion as an Arizona senator, he has come under fire for switching his position on Roe.
As LifeNews.com previously reported, McCain has claimed he did not flip-flop when he told an audience that he favored reversing Roe v. Wade. Yet, eight years ago he told a newspaper he didn’t think the landmark abortion case should be overturned. “I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned,” McCain said last February. “It is a false claim to say that I have changed my position,” McCain said in a press conference following the event.
However, McCain appeared then to be changing his position from a 1999 statement he gave to the San Francisco Chronicle in which he said he didn’t support repealing Roe. “I’d love to see a point where it is irrelevant, and could be repealed because abortion is no longer necessary,” McCain told the newspaper at the time. “But certainly in the short term, or even the long term, I would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade, which would then force X number of women in America to [undergo] illegal and dangerous operations.”
McCain has also drawn jeers from the pro-life community for repeatedly voting to force taxpayers to fund embryonic stem cell research.
Shades of Tommy Thompson...
HT: Malkin
However, while McCain has voted consistently against abortion as an Arizona senator, he has come under fire for switching his position on Roe.
As LifeNews.com previously reported, McCain has claimed he did not flip-flop when he told an audience that he favored reversing Roe v. Wade. Yet, eight years ago he told a newspaper he didn’t think the landmark abortion case should be overturned. “I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned,” McCain said last February. “It is a false claim to say that I have changed my position,” McCain said in a press conference following the event.
However, McCain appeared then to be changing his position from a 1999 statement he gave to the San Francisco Chronicle in which he said he didn’t support repealing Roe. “I’d love to see a point where it is irrelevant, and could be repealed because abortion is no longer necessary,” McCain told the newspaper at the time. “But certainly in the short term, or even the long term, I would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade, which would then force X number of women in America to [undergo] illegal and dangerous operations.”
McCain has also drawn jeers from the pro-life community for repeatedly voting to force taxpayers to fund embryonic stem cell research.
Shades of Tommy Thompson...
HT: Malkin
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Here's a Question
OK, all 3 of you readers should take a crack at the answer!
Discuss among yourselves.
HT: Moonbattery
She Used a .22LR??
Granny Deadeye.
She may be 80 years old, but Martha Smith of rural Fairburn is still a good shot.
She has lived her entire life on the family ranch in the Black Hills and last week encountered her first mountain lion.
Smith says she heard her dog bark, looked outside and saw the big cat in the garden. She was afraid for the dog's safety so she grabbed her .22-caliber rifle, went outside, took a shot but missed so she called 911.
Smith says she grabbed the gun again, went back out and found the cat, "a spittin' and a growlin’”, so she waited to spot the light-colored hair where his heart was, took another shot and dropped it.
Game officers picked up the 90-pound carcass. Smith would like to get it mounted but doubts that she'll get it back.
Personally, I'd prefer a .223 or .270 (but I'd use what I have--a .30-06) for that size game.
On the other hand, it proves the "shot placement" mantra.
HT: John Lott
She may be 80 years old, but Martha Smith of rural Fairburn is still a good shot.
She has lived her entire life on the family ranch in the Black Hills and last week encountered her first mountain lion.
Smith says she heard her dog bark, looked outside and saw the big cat in the garden. She was afraid for the dog's safety so she grabbed her .22-caliber rifle, went outside, took a shot but missed so she called 911.
Smith says she grabbed the gun again, went back out and found the cat, "a spittin' and a growlin’”, so she waited to spot the light-colored hair where his heart was, took another shot and dropped it.
Game officers picked up the 90-pound carcass. Smith would like to get it mounted but doubts that she'll get it back.
Personally, I'd prefer a .223 or .270 (but I'd use what I have--a .30-06) for that size game.
On the other hand, it proves the "shot placement" mantra.
HT: John Lott
Owen Likes the First Amendment
In a good discussion of the "public financed elections" concept, Owen makes clear the one immutable truth:
The truth is that there is no moral or constitutional way to prohibit people and groups from advocating in an election. If WEAC wants to spend $2 million on television ads in support of a candidate, there is no way to stop them - nor should there be. One of the quintessential American principles is that citizens have a right to speak freely about their government. This includes advocating for or against candidates for political office.
Ummmnnnnhhh...that would be called the First Amendment, no?
If a candidate’s campaign is publically funded and he is permitted to spend $300,000 and a group of citizens spends another $2 million on his behalf, how is that different from today? Is the candidate any less "beholden to special interests" than if the group did the same thing under the current rules? No, not at all. The mechanics of political campaigns will remain the same.
Corrupt politicians will remain corrupt and honorable politicians will remain honorable.
There are other well-made points in the column--it's worth the read.
The truth is that there is no moral or constitutional way to prohibit people and groups from advocating in an election. If WEAC wants to spend $2 million on television ads in support of a candidate, there is no way to stop them - nor should there be. One of the quintessential American principles is that citizens have a right to speak freely about their government. This includes advocating for or against candidates for political office.
Ummmnnnnhhh...that would be called the First Amendment, no?
If a candidate’s campaign is publically funded and he is permitted to spend $300,000 and a group of citizens spends another $2 million on his behalf, how is that different from today? Is the candidate any less "beholden to special interests" than if the group did the same thing under the current rules? No, not at all. The mechanics of political campaigns will remain the same.
Corrupt politicians will remain corrupt and honorable politicians will remain honorable.
There are other well-made points in the column--it's worth the read.
The Huckabee Divide
Not being a Huckabee/ster fan, I found this column by George Neumayr to be fascinating--mostly because it's true.
Against an immutable standard of conservatism, Mike Huckabee is hardly impeccable. I find some of what he says silly and unpersuasive (for example, his support for Global Warming theory). But the explosion of snide remarks directed at him from many in the conservative movement strikes me as churlish and baldly hypocritical. How is it that the bar of conservative entry for a presidential nominee lowers for the Romneys and McCains, then rises for the Huckabees?
...I suspect that the essential problem for some in the conservative movement (as it was for establishment conservatives pitted against Pat Buchanan in his race with Bob Dole in 1996) isn't that Huckabee takes this or that heterodox position on issues of economics/trade/foreign policy; it is that he's a transparent Christian conservative. That they just can't abide, even as some of these pundits tell conservatives to ignore religion with respect to Mormonism.
Romney attended Planned Parenthood events, used to support state financing of abortion and elements of the homosexual agenda; McCain has derided in the past the Religious Right and taken any number of fashionable liberal stances. But all of this can be quickly excused. Woe to the Christian Republican, however, who talks about the culture war, or -- brace yourself -- rejects Darwinism.
Hmmmmmnnnn???
Whatever one thinks of that highly technical debate, that the Wall Street Journal and GOP consultants like Mike Murphy set up adherence to Darwinism as a litmus test for an "acceptable" Republican nominee exposes the degree to which political correctness has crept into the conservative movement. I don't blame rank-and-file conservatives for increasingly ignoring the snobbish sniffings of the George Wills
The alliteration only makes it more delicious.
...it is not at all clear why rank-and-file conservatives are supposed to nod vigorously whenever a McCain or Romney supporter calls Huckabee an "economic liberal." At least he talks about eliminating income taxes and capital gains taxes. Do they? Romney's support for semi-socialized health care in Massachusetts (which is almost indistinguishable from Obama's scheme for the entire nation) is scarier to me than anything Huckabee uncorked in Arkansas. And then there is John McCain's opposition to Bush's tax cuts. Does that make him an unacceptable economic liberal?
But now Neumayr discloses the REAL issue with Huckabee:
But Huckabee doesn't talk about Wall Street enough, some warn. Good; Wall Street already sups at the government trough. If he cuts off corporate welfare, I would be happy. It is about time somebody talks about getting the ravenous, regulatory Leviathan state off the backs of small businessmen, gun owners, and homeschooling families, rather than waste time on Wall Street talking to fat cats who vote for the Dems anyways
It's been clear from early on that many of the Learned Commentators of the Rightist persuasion have been thinly disguised worshippers of Capital. Odd, that--because while Capital has its place, Capital is brother to no one on this planet--and is not a deity except for those who have no real Deity in practice. It is, in fact, the Randians who have infiltrated the Republican Party (or, perhaps, have crawled out from beneath the rockpile that Bill Buckley and Ron Reagan put over them.)
But won't Huckabee shatter the conservative coalition? That would be a little more persuasive if those saying this hadn't shattered it themselves. The relative success of Ron Paul and Huckabee is not a cause of the coalition's collapse but a reflection of it. An excessively Wilsonian foreign policy has divided defense conservatives; years of big spending has divided economic conservatives; and a tepid, stalling social conservatism has alienated moral ones.
Neumayr rightly implies that the only establishments left unscathed in the last 8 years have been those of Wall Street and the gobs (mobs?) of lawyers, bureaucrats, CPA's, and other fungus which feed on ordinary folks.
No, I'm not voting for Huckabee. But Randians, beware: Conservatives worthy of the name are not buying the snake-oil of Wall Street or its pipsqueak baseball-junky apologist.
HT: AmSpec Blog
Against an immutable standard of conservatism, Mike Huckabee is hardly impeccable. I find some of what he says silly and unpersuasive (for example, his support for Global Warming theory). But the explosion of snide remarks directed at him from many in the conservative movement strikes me as churlish and baldly hypocritical. How is it that the bar of conservative entry for a presidential nominee lowers for the Romneys and McCains, then rises for the Huckabees?
...I suspect that the essential problem for some in the conservative movement (as it was for establishment conservatives pitted against Pat Buchanan in his race with Bob Dole in 1996) isn't that Huckabee takes this or that heterodox position on issues of economics/trade/foreign policy; it is that he's a transparent Christian conservative. That they just can't abide, even as some of these pundits tell conservatives to ignore religion with respect to Mormonism.
Romney attended Planned Parenthood events, used to support state financing of abortion and elements of the homosexual agenda; McCain has derided in the past the Religious Right and taken any number of fashionable liberal stances. But all of this can be quickly excused. Woe to the Christian Republican, however, who talks about the culture war, or -- brace yourself -- rejects Darwinism.
Hmmmmmnnnn???
Whatever one thinks of that highly technical debate, that the Wall Street Journal and GOP consultants like Mike Murphy set up adherence to Darwinism as a litmus test for an "acceptable" Republican nominee exposes the degree to which political correctness has crept into the conservative movement. I don't blame rank-and-file conservatives for increasingly ignoring the snobbish sniffings of the George Wills
The alliteration only makes it more delicious.
...it is not at all clear why rank-and-file conservatives are supposed to nod vigorously whenever a McCain or Romney supporter calls Huckabee an "economic liberal." At least he talks about eliminating income taxes and capital gains taxes. Do they? Romney's support for semi-socialized health care in Massachusetts (which is almost indistinguishable from Obama's scheme for the entire nation) is scarier to me than anything Huckabee uncorked in Arkansas. And then there is John McCain's opposition to Bush's tax cuts. Does that make him an unacceptable economic liberal?
But now Neumayr discloses the REAL issue with Huckabee:
But Huckabee doesn't talk about Wall Street enough, some warn. Good; Wall Street already sups at the government trough. If he cuts off corporate welfare, I would be happy. It is about time somebody talks about getting the ravenous, regulatory Leviathan state off the backs of small businessmen, gun owners, and homeschooling families, rather than waste time on Wall Street talking to fat cats who vote for the Dems anyways
It's been clear from early on that many of the Learned Commentators of the Rightist persuasion have been thinly disguised worshippers of Capital. Odd, that--because while Capital has its place, Capital is brother to no one on this planet--and is not a deity except for those who have no real Deity in practice. It is, in fact, the Randians who have infiltrated the Republican Party (or, perhaps, have crawled out from beneath the rockpile that Bill Buckley and Ron Reagan put over them.)
But won't Huckabee shatter the conservative coalition? That would be a little more persuasive if those saying this hadn't shattered it themselves. The relative success of Ron Paul and Huckabee is not a cause of the coalition's collapse but a reflection of it. An excessively Wilsonian foreign policy has divided defense conservatives; years of big spending has divided economic conservatives; and a tepid, stalling social conservatism has alienated moral ones.
Neumayr rightly implies that the only establishments left unscathed in the last 8 years have been those of Wall Street and the gobs (mobs?) of lawyers, bureaucrats, CPA's, and other fungus which feed on ordinary folks.
No, I'm not voting for Huckabee. But Randians, beware: Conservatives worthy of the name are not buying the snake-oil of Wall Street or its pipsqueak baseball-junky apologist.
HT: AmSpec Blog
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Earmark Reform in Wisconsin?
This should be a bi-partisan shoo-in.
State Representatives Rich Zipperer (R-Pewaukee), Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), and Roger Roth Jr. (R-Grand Chute) today unveiled landmark legislation to force public scrutiny into future state budgets.
Dubbed the 'Earmark Transparency Act,' the bill will prohibit state agencies, the Governor, and individual legislators from hiding earmarks in an omnibus budget bill. Earmarks are specific expenditures that would not receive funding under standard formulas used to appropriate taxpayer dollars.
The bill also prohibits last-second additions by a budget conference committee that were never included in previous version of the budget. "It is time to end the costly game of hide-and-go-seek that has been played with taxpayer money," said Zipperer. "While earmark frustration is normally reserved for special-interest giveaways or pork projects in federal budgets, such as the infamous bridge to nowhere or the latest federal budget that included over 9,000 earmarks, Wisconsin's budgets are nearly as bad and we cannot afford to waste taxpayer dollars," said Zipperer....
"When Governor Jim Doyle signed the 2007 state budget into law, the 1,633 page document contained many earmarks that were never vetted through thepublic hearing process. While many of the items were worthwhile, many others would fail to pass public scrutiny if introduced as stand alone legislative items.
Select earmarks inserted during the 2007 budget process include:
* $2.8 million for a Green Bay riverside boardwalk
* $125,000 to the Painters and Allied Trades Council 7
* $1.2 million for street improvements in Pleasant Prairie
* $142,000 to the International Crane Foundation
* $4 million for a soybean crusher in Evansville
* numerous highway earmarks throughout the state
* $800,000 for a bike trail in West Allis
* $1 million for youth summer jobs program in Milwaukee
* $950,000 for Kenosha streets
* $100,000 for two ice arenas in Ashwaubenon & Eau Claire
* $25,000 for a youth center in Mondovi
* $500,000 for a civil war exhibit in Kenosha
* $100,000 for a pedestrian path in Milwaukee
"Every two years, sadly, Wisconsin citizens are treated to stories about the bloated federal budget; pork and earmarks for a bridge to nowhere. Unfortunately, the Wisconsin Biennial Budget is not immune from pork & earmarks, except ours are not for bridges but rather, for example, raiding $4 million dollars from the State Recycling Fund for a soybean crushing facility or a $1 million dollar earmark for a conservation fund run by the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewage District, each at the behest of an individual legislator," said Vukmir.
OF course, the Second Amendment protects a valuable cure for these thefts: armed rebellion.
State Representatives Rich Zipperer (R-Pewaukee), Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), and Roger Roth Jr. (R-Grand Chute) today unveiled landmark legislation to force public scrutiny into future state budgets.
Dubbed the 'Earmark Transparency Act,' the bill will prohibit state agencies, the Governor, and individual legislators from hiding earmarks in an omnibus budget bill. Earmarks are specific expenditures that would not receive funding under standard formulas used to appropriate taxpayer dollars.
The bill also prohibits last-second additions by a budget conference committee that were never included in previous version of the budget. "It is time to end the costly game of hide-and-go-seek that has been played with taxpayer money," said Zipperer. "While earmark frustration is normally reserved for special-interest giveaways or pork projects in federal budgets, such as the infamous bridge to nowhere or the latest federal budget that included over 9,000 earmarks, Wisconsin's budgets are nearly as bad and we cannot afford to waste taxpayer dollars," said Zipperer....
"When Governor Jim Doyle signed the 2007 state budget into law, the 1,633 page document contained many earmarks that were never vetted through thepublic hearing process. While many of the items were worthwhile, many others would fail to pass public scrutiny if introduced as stand alone legislative items.
Select earmarks inserted during the 2007 budget process include:
* $2.8 million for a Green Bay riverside boardwalk
* $125,000 to the Painters and Allied Trades Council 7
* $1.2 million for street improvements in Pleasant Prairie
* $142,000 to the International Crane Foundation
* $4 million for a soybean crusher in Evansville
* numerous highway earmarks throughout the state
* $800,000 for a bike trail in West Allis
* $1 million for youth summer jobs program in Milwaukee
* $950,000 for Kenosha streets
* $100,000 for two ice arenas in Ashwaubenon & Eau Claire
* $25,000 for a youth center in Mondovi
* $500,000 for a civil war exhibit in Kenosha
* $100,000 for a pedestrian path in Milwaukee
"Every two years, sadly, Wisconsin citizens are treated to stories about the bloated federal budget; pork and earmarks for a bridge to nowhere. Unfortunately, the Wisconsin Biennial Budget is not immune from pork & earmarks, except ours are not for bridges but rather, for example, raiding $4 million dollars from the State Recycling Fund for a soybean crushing facility or a $1 million dollar earmark for a conservation fund run by the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewage District, each at the behest of an individual legislator," said Vukmir.
OF course, the Second Amendment protects a valuable cure for these thefts: armed rebellion.
More Abortions in Wisconsin
This is not exactly a surprise.
The most crucial abortion battle in decades will occur in January or February as
pro-abortion state legislators attempt to repeal Wisconsin’s historic abortion
ban. Pro-abortion legislators have drafted legislation to repeal s. 940.04 of the
Wisconsin statutes. S. 940.04 prohibits abortions in Wisconsin except when the
mother’s life is in danger. This 150-year old protective law cannot be enforced
now because of Roe v. Wade.
For whatever reason, it's not easy to find the proposed legislation and its sponsors on the Wis Gummint site.
HT: Terry Berres
The most crucial abortion battle in decades will occur in January or February as
pro-abortion state legislators attempt to repeal Wisconsin’s historic abortion
ban. Pro-abortion legislators have drafted legislation to repeal s. 940.04 of the
Wisconsin statutes. S. 940.04 prohibits abortions in Wisconsin except when the
mother’s life is in danger. This 150-year old protective law cannot be enforced
now because of Roe v. Wade.
For whatever reason, it's not easy to find the proposed legislation and its sponsors on the Wis Gummint site.
HT: Terry Berres
The Cardinal Delivers The Hint to the Jebbies
The Jesuit order of priests will soon select a new General (man-in-charge) and are meeting in Rome to accomplish this.
They were greeted with a few words from Cardinal Rode, Prefect of the Congregation for Religious, and it is presumed that "higher-ups" (Benedict XVI) read and approved the message.
Consecration to service to Christ cannot be separated from consecration to service to the Church. Ignatius and his first companions considered it thus when they wrote the Formula of your Institute in which the essence of your charism is spelled out: “To serve the Lord and his Spouse the Church under the Roman Pontiff” (Julio III, Formula I).
It is with sorrow and anxiety that I see that the sentire cum ecclesia of which your founder frequently spoke is diminishing even in some members of religious families. The Church is waiting for a light from you to restore the sensus Ecclesiae....
Love for the Church in every sense of the word, – be it Church people of God be it hierarchical Church – is not a human sentiment which comes and goes according to the people who make it up or according to our conformity with the dispositions emanating from those whom the Lord has placed to direct the Church. Love for the Church is a love based on faith, a gift of the Lord which, precisely because he loves us, he gives us faith in him and in his Spouse, which is the Church. Without the gift of faith in the Church there can be no love for the Church.
I join in your prayer asking the Lord to grant you the grace to grow in your belief in and love for this holy, catholic and apostolic Church which we profess.
With sadness and anxiety I also see a growing distancing from the Hierarchy. The Ignatian spirituality of apostolic service “under the Roman Pontiff” does not allow for this separation. In the Constitutions which he left you, Ignatius wanted to truly shape your mind and in the book of the Exercises (n 353) he wrote” we must always keep our mind prepared and quick to obey the true Spouse of Christ and our Holy Mother, the Hierarchical Church”. Religious obedience can be understood only as obedience in love. The fundamental nucleus of Ignatian spirituality consists in uniting the love for God with love for the hierarchical Church....
Ignatius placed himself under the orders of the Roman Pontiff “in order to not err in via Domini” (Const 605) in the distribution of his religious throughout the world and to be present wherever the needs of the Church were greater.
Times have changed and the Church must today confront new and urgent necessities, I will mention one, which in my judgment is urgent today and is at the same time complex and I propose it for your consideration. It is the need to present to the faithful and to the world the authentic truth revealed in Scripture and Tradition. The doctrinal diversity of those who at all levels, by vocation and mission are called to announce the Kingdom of truth and love, disorients the faithful and leads to a relativism without limits. There is one truth, even though it can always be more deeply known.
It is the “living teaching office of the Church, whose authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ” (DV 10) which is the voucher for revealed truth. ... May those who, according to your legislation, have to oversee the doctrine of your magazines and publications do so in the light of and according to the “rules for sentire cum ecclesia”, with love and respect.
Clearly, Rome is unhappy with the Jebbies; this sort of 'no-punches-pulled' language is not at all the usual fare.
Oremus!
HT: RorateCoeli
They were greeted with a few words from Cardinal Rode, Prefect of the Congregation for Religious, and it is presumed that "higher-ups" (Benedict XVI) read and approved the message.
Consecration to service to Christ cannot be separated from consecration to service to the Church. Ignatius and his first companions considered it thus when they wrote the Formula of your Institute in which the essence of your charism is spelled out: “To serve the Lord and his Spouse the Church under the Roman Pontiff” (Julio III, Formula I).
It is with sorrow and anxiety that I see that the sentire cum ecclesia of which your founder frequently spoke is diminishing even in some members of religious families. The Church is waiting for a light from you to restore the sensus Ecclesiae....
Love for the Church in every sense of the word, – be it Church people of God be it hierarchical Church – is not a human sentiment which comes and goes according to the people who make it up or according to our conformity with the dispositions emanating from those whom the Lord has placed to direct the Church. Love for the Church is a love based on faith, a gift of the Lord which, precisely because he loves us, he gives us faith in him and in his Spouse, which is the Church. Without the gift of faith in the Church there can be no love for the Church.
I join in your prayer asking the Lord to grant you the grace to grow in your belief in and love for this holy, catholic and apostolic Church which we profess.
With sadness and anxiety I also see a growing distancing from the Hierarchy. The Ignatian spirituality of apostolic service “under the Roman Pontiff” does not allow for this separation. In the Constitutions which he left you, Ignatius wanted to truly shape your mind and in the book of the Exercises (n 353) he wrote” we must always keep our mind prepared and quick to obey the true Spouse of Christ and our Holy Mother, the Hierarchical Church”. Religious obedience can be understood only as obedience in love. The fundamental nucleus of Ignatian spirituality consists in uniting the love for God with love for the hierarchical Church....
Ignatius placed himself under the orders of the Roman Pontiff “in order to not err in via Domini” (Const 605) in the distribution of his religious throughout the world and to be present wherever the needs of the Church were greater.
Times have changed and the Church must today confront new and urgent necessities, I will mention one, which in my judgment is urgent today and is at the same time complex and I propose it for your consideration. It is the need to present to the faithful and to the world the authentic truth revealed in Scripture and Tradition. The doctrinal diversity of those who at all levels, by vocation and mission are called to announce the Kingdom of truth and love, disorients the faithful and leads to a relativism without limits. There is one truth, even though it can always be more deeply known.
It is the “living teaching office of the Church, whose authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ” (DV 10) which is the voucher for revealed truth. ... May those who, according to your legislation, have to oversee the doctrine of your magazines and publications do so in the light of and according to the “rules for sentire cum ecclesia”, with love and respect.
Clearly, Rome is unhappy with the Jebbies; this sort of 'no-punches-pulled' language is not at all the usual fare.
Oremus!
HT: RorateCoeli
The Abuse of "Pastoral"
Nailed by these bloggers:
Pastoral literally means to move sheep to the area needed for food and water depending on the season of the year. Drawing from the secular definition, the Church definition means to lead the people of God to God. Rather than a common understanding of the meaning of the word pastoral, which some might define as making doctrines, liturgy, etc. more "accessible" to the people, the true way to be pastoral is to lead the people of God to the truth. Rather than changing truth, being pastoral means to lead to the truth. Bringing the faithful to the truth and teaching them to raise their hearts and mind to God is pastoral.
You can bet that sheep don't like being herded up a hill for food, either...
HT: ChristusVincit
Pastoral literally means to move sheep to the area needed for food and water depending on the season of the year. Drawing from the secular definition, the Church definition means to lead the people of God to God. Rather than a common understanding of the meaning of the word pastoral, which some might define as making doctrines, liturgy, etc. more "accessible" to the people, the true way to be pastoral is to lead the people of God to the truth. Rather than changing truth, being pastoral means to lead to the truth. Bringing the faithful to the truth and teaching them to raise their hearts and mind to God is pastoral.
You can bet that sheep don't like being herded up a hill for food, either...
HT: ChristusVincit
G K Chesterton on Wine
Herein, GKC identifies a modern problem (which your children's schoolteachers repeat, erroneously)
THE dipsomaniac and the abstainer are not only both mistaken, but they both make the same mistake. They both regard wine as a drug and not as a drink.
Same goes for beer and booze.
Speaking of which, tonight is Drinking Right!!
THE dipsomaniac and the abstainer are not only both mistaken, but they both make the same mistake. They both regard wine as a drug and not as a drink.
Same goes for beer and booze.
Speaking of which, tonight is Drinking Right!!
Sunday, January 06, 2008
The Reich of California
One hesitates to put this where Wisconsin legislators can read it. In a discussion of California's new building code (Title 24), Joe Somsel finds the advent of Winston Smith's home country:
What should be controversial in the proposed revisions to Title 24 is the requirement for what is called a "programmable communicating thermostat" or PCT. Every new home and every change to existing homes' central heating and air conditioning systems will required to be fitted with a PCT beginning next year following the issuance of the revision. Each PCT will be fitted with a "non-removable " FM receiver that will allow the power authorities to increase your air conditioning temperature setpoint or decrease your heater temperature setpoint to any value they chose. During "price events" those changes are limited to +/- four degrees F and you would be able to manually override the changes. During "emergency events" the new setpoints can be whatever the power authority desires and you would not be able to alter them.
In other words, the temperature of your home will no longer be yours to control. Your desires and needs can and will be overridden by the state of California through its public and private utility organizations. All this is for the common good, of course
It's no wonder that Californicate officials are gun-grabbers...
HT: Moonbattery
What should be controversial in the proposed revisions to Title 24 is the requirement for what is called a "programmable communicating thermostat" or PCT. Every new home and every change to existing homes' central heating and air conditioning systems will required to be fitted with a PCT beginning next year following the issuance of the revision. Each PCT will be fitted with a "non-removable " FM receiver that will allow the power authorities to increase your air conditioning temperature setpoint or decrease your heater temperature setpoint to any value they chose. During "price events" those changes are limited to +/- four degrees F and you would be able to manually override the changes. During "emergency events" the new setpoints can be whatever the power authority desires and you would not be able to alter them.
In other words, the temperature of your home will no longer be yours to control. Your desires and needs can and will be overridden by the state of California through its public and private utility organizations. All this is for the common good, of course
It's no wonder that Californicate officials are gun-grabbers...
HT: Moonbattery
Michigan: Concealed Carry, Less Crime
I think Capper the Lefty was struggling with these factual stories. Here's another one for him to pore over. At some point in time, he may actually understand.
Six years after new rules made it much easier to get a license to carry concealed weapons, the number of Michiganders legally packing heat has increased more than six-fold.
But dire predictions about increased violence and bloodshed have largely gone unfulfilled, according to law enforcement officials and, to the extent they can be measured, crime statistics.
The incidence of violent crime in Michigan in the six years since the law went into effect has been, on average, below the rate of the previous six years. The overall incidence of death from firearms, including suicide and accidents, also has declined
More than 155,000 Michiganders -- about one in every 65 -- are now authorized to carry loaded guns as they go about their everyday affairs, according to Michigan State Police records.
About 25,000 people had CCW permits in Michigan before the law changed in 2001.
So that would be about SIX TIMES as many CCW. Hmmmmm?
As to Wild West Shootouts, mayhem, and general riotous behavior of CCW holders:
Nationally, the rate of CCW permits being revoked is very low, he [John Lott] said. State Police reports in Michigan indicate that 2,178 permits have been revoked or suspended since 2001, slightly more than 1% of those issued.
Another State Police report found that 175 Michigan permit holders were convicted of a crime, most of them nonviolent, requiring revocation or suspension of their permits between July 1, 2005, and June 30, 2006.
Nonetheless, there are those who simply deny reality.
Shikha Hamilton of Grosse Pointe, president of the Michigan chapter of the anti-gun group Million Moms March, said she believes overall gun violence (including suicide and accidental shootings) is up in Michigan since 2001. Many incidents involving CCW permit holders have not been widely reported, she said.
Yah. The State Police are hiding all the crimes and protecting the criminals. She probably thinks that there are hanging chads yet to be counted in Floriduh, too--and that the Sun rises (occasionally) in the West.
HT: John Lott
Six years after new rules made it much easier to get a license to carry concealed weapons, the number of Michiganders legally packing heat has increased more than six-fold.
But dire predictions about increased violence and bloodshed have largely gone unfulfilled, according to law enforcement officials and, to the extent they can be measured, crime statistics.
The incidence of violent crime in Michigan in the six years since the law went into effect has been, on average, below the rate of the previous six years. The overall incidence of death from firearms, including suicide and accidents, also has declined
More than 155,000 Michiganders -- about one in every 65 -- are now authorized to carry loaded guns as they go about their everyday affairs, according to Michigan State Police records.
About 25,000 people had CCW permits in Michigan before the law changed in 2001.
So that would be about SIX TIMES as many CCW. Hmmmmm?
As to Wild West Shootouts, mayhem, and general riotous behavior of CCW holders:
Nationally, the rate of CCW permits being revoked is very low, he [John Lott] said. State Police reports in Michigan indicate that 2,178 permits have been revoked or suspended since 2001, slightly more than 1% of those issued.
Another State Police report found that 175 Michigan permit holders were convicted of a crime, most of them nonviolent, requiring revocation or suspension of their permits between July 1, 2005, and June 30, 2006.
Nonetheless, there are those who simply deny reality.
Shikha Hamilton of Grosse Pointe, president of the Michigan chapter of the anti-gun group Million Moms March, said she believes overall gun violence (including suicide and accidental shootings) is up in Michigan since 2001. Many incidents involving CCW permit holders have not been widely reported, she said.
Yah. The State Police are hiding all the crimes and protecting the criminals. She probably thinks that there are hanging chads yet to be counted in Floriduh, too--and that the Sun rises (occasionally) in the West.
HT: John Lott
Saturday, January 05, 2008
"It's Not About Me..."--Fred
HT to Pete.
About midway through, Fred says:
"It's not about me, and not about you [the volunteers], really.
"It's about our Country."
Damn good line.
About midway through, Fred says:
"It's not about me, and not about you [the volunteers], really.
"It's about our Country."
Damn good line.
Cost Over-run: Wisconsin's Collection Lawyers
So some tribe doesn't like its agreement to pay the State. They tell the State to stuff it.
Then the State hires Matt Flynn to go after the money.
Estimate of cost? $100 thou.
Actual cost?
$1,200,000.00 or so.
Makes Accenture look like sandbox games.
Then the State hires Matt Flynn to go after the money.
Estimate of cost? $100 thou.
Actual cost?
$1,200,000.00 or so.
Makes Accenture look like sandbox games.
"Do the Right Thing"--the New HRC Mantra?
A press report from the HRC campaign plane while flying to New Hampshire:
There are still straws to grasp. Hillary loyalists maintain faith in her iron support in New York and also California--whose vast numbers of Latino voters are thought to be skeptical of an African-American candidate. (One Democratic operative recently described this to me as the Do the Right Thing factor.) There is also the final Democratic debate Saturday evening, an opportunity to take Obama down a peg--but also the most pressurized moment Hillary has faced yet.
Hmnnnnhhh. It would seem that the Hildebeeste is playing the race-card.
HT: Red State
There are still straws to grasp. Hillary loyalists maintain faith in her iron support in New York and also California--whose vast numbers of Latino voters are thought to be skeptical of an African-American candidate. (One Democratic operative recently described this to me as the Do the Right Thing factor.) There is also the final Democratic debate Saturday evening, an opportunity to take Obama down a peg--but also the most pressurized moment Hillary has faced yet.
Hmnnnnhhh. It would seem that the Hildebeeste is playing the race-card.
HT: Red State
Thompson Was Sandbagged, Emerges Well
Quin Hillyer is a conservative, but not a Fred Thompson lackey. His observations?
I am firmly convinced that Fred Thompson still has a real shot at the nomination...I watched him with Wolf Blitzer just an hour or so ago and he came across very very well indeed. He really is hitting on ALMOST all cylinders now, more so every day since beginning to really engage about December 1.
...it is also worth noting that the utterly scurrilous Politico story yesterday almost certainly depressed Thompson's vote in Iowa. As I said on Fox News yesterday, for a news outlet to publish a story with UNNAMED sources that is clearly damaging to a particular campaign, on the very day of (or eve of) an election, is just unethical journalism. This is the same organization that many many months ago reported that John Edwards was dropping out of the race. Yeah, right.
Hillyer also opines that the Thompson campaign has little imagination (true.)
I am firmly convinced that Fred Thompson still has a real shot at the nomination...I watched him with Wolf Blitzer just an hour or so ago and he came across very very well indeed. He really is hitting on ALMOST all cylinders now, more so every day since beginning to really engage about December 1.
...it is also worth noting that the utterly scurrilous Politico story yesterday almost certainly depressed Thompson's vote in Iowa. As I said on Fox News yesterday, for a news outlet to publish a story with UNNAMED sources that is clearly damaging to a particular campaign, on the very day of (or eve of) an election, is just unethical journalism. This is the same organization that many many months ago reported that John Edwards was dropping out of the race. Yeah, right.
Hillyer also opines that the Thompson campaign has little imagination (true.)
Friday, January 04, 2008
Belling Exposes (Fr.) Ken Mich--Out From Under the Rock
Good ol' "Fr." Mich scribbles a missive to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:
I am happy to see that University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh professor Bill McConkey's court case might open a door for us in Wisconsin to get to a position consonant with our stated national and state principles
...It was indicative that some of the rhetoric promoting the marriage amendment in Wisconsin stated the exact opposite - let the people of Wisconsin decide - in other words, let the people of Wisconsin decide on the rights of a minority by submitting those rights to a majority vote in the amendment process.
We can stray from our principles; we can also recover as we, I hope, will be able to if we are given the opportunity through this litigation.
Although "Fr." Mich's syntax is somewhat obscure, we infer (as did Belling) that this poor fellow thinks "gays" should have the right to "marry."
What's galling is not "Fr." Mich's "thought"--if you call it that. It's that he's taking perfectly good money from a Church which is diametrically opposed to his point of view.
Of course, it's not exactly the first time. We mentioned him here, when he spent his parish's money to sponsor an event featuring a woman named Maureen Fiedler--a heretic.
He's also a member of the "Priests' Alliance," a wannabe-Union bunch in this Archdiocese.
All contrary to JPII's maxim: "No one has the right to do wrong."
Sad days continue in Milwaukee.
UPDATE: Wiggy comments on the same item.
I am happy to see that University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh professor Bill McConkey's court case might open a door for us in Wisconsin to get to a position consonant with our stated national and state principles
...It was indicative that some of the rhetoric promoting the marriage amendment in Wisconsin stated the exact opposite - let the people of Wisconsin decide - in other words, let the people of Wisconsin decide on the rights of a minority by submitting those rights to a majority vote in the amendment process.
We can stray from our principles; we can also recover as we, I hope, will be able to if we are given the opportunity through this litigation.
Although "Fr." Mich's syntax is somewhat obscure, we infer (as did Belling) that this poor fellow thinks "gays" should have the right to "marry."
What's galling is not "Fr." Mich's "thought"--if you call it that. It's that he's taking perfectly good money from a Church which is diametrically opposed to his point of view.
Of course, it's not exactly the first time. We mentioned him here, when he spent his parish's money to sponsor an event featuring a woman named Maureen Fiedler--a heretic.
He's also a member of the "Priests' Alliance," a wannabe-Union bunch in this Archdiocese.
All contrary to JPII's maxim: "No one has the right to do wrong."
Sad days continue in Milwaukee.
UPDATE: Wiggy comments on the same item.
The Huckster Phenom: Just a Flash in the Pan?
IMHO, the Huckabee thing will be all over with in a few weeks. The country will not long suffer a "one-liner" Presidential candidate; the maelstrom of the Rest of the World is too serious for that approach.
But that doesn't mean that the Pubbie Party (AKA "the Stupid Party") shouldn't learn something from the Huckabee/ster.
Anyone who actually listens to what Huckabee SAYS (rather than reading and swallowing, whole, the MSM's "fundamentalist-Christian" meme), understands that Huckabee is very successfully selling economic populism rather than the libertarian economics favored by the Pubbie Establishment. Doing that in a State which has seen its manufacturing base chopped to smithereens by "global trade" people has an appeal which is visceral, not intellectual.
Having said that, here's Patrick Deneen, quoted in Dreher today:
It's clear that [Jonah] Goldberg and the mainstream of the Republican party were content all along to encourage the support of social conservatives so long as their votes, and not their views, were all that mattered. Now that social conservatism and economic libertarianism have begun to uncouple (an inevitable development in the aftermath of the fall of communism, which is all that kept this ungainly couple in the same political bed; the worst loser last night was not Hillary!, but the Republicans who hoped she would win and would replace communism as the glue that kept them together), the mainstream Republicans are desperate to ditch that part of the coalition and pick up whatever they can, including their desperate hope that a pro-choice candidate become the eventual nominee of the party. It turns out that Thomas Frank was at least half right: the social conservatives were being used throughout the Reagan and Bush eras (bought off by the promise of conservative judges, as if that is all it would take to change the culture), and now that their support is no longer so tractable, they're desperate to cut them loose. Change is in the air - let's hope it continues to smoke out the faux conservatives
Clicking through to the link, we find some very provocative words from Peg Noonan, too, writing about the Huckabee voters:
“They have been bruised and offended by the rigid, almost militant secularism and multiculturalism of the public schools; they reject those schools' squalor, in all senses of the word. They believe in God and family and America. They are populist: They don't admire billionaire CEOs, they admire husbands with two jobs who hold the family together for the sake of the kids; they don't need to see the triumph of supply-side thinking, they want to see that suffering woman down the street get the help she needs.
For those of you who are too young to recall, that also went under the name "Main Street" Republicanism, back in the late 1800's--before all the Main Street Bankers became bulletproofed by FDR's FDIC.
When that happened, the bankers got arrogant. They went to the country-clubs and found (voila!!) the Rockefellers, the Forbes-es, and the Fords.
Now Dreher has a point of view, and we understand that. But Eastern banker Pubbies and their allies are not the future of the Republican Party.
From another Dreher column:
...using the levers of government to rein in the power of private interests to do harm to the common good is a perfectly legitimate exercise of state power to a traditionalist conservative. This is why the Club for Growth and the Wall Street Journal editorial page's interest in keeping immigrants flowing northward for the good of big business is so offensive to traditionalist conservatives, who would like to see the state step up enforcement of immigration laws, even at the expense of business interests. I believe it was Christopher Lasch who said one cannot be both a conservative and a free-marketeer. What he meant by that was that the natural working of the market undermines all kinds of institutions and customs treasured by conservatives. He ought to have said traditionalist conservative, or social conservative, or cultural conservative. Because obviously in America, libertarians have generally found more of a natural home within the conservative tradition, owing to the fusionist settlement.
But that doesn't mean that the Pubbie Party (AKA "the Stupid Party") shouldn't learn something from the Huckabee/ster.
Anyone who actually listens to what Huckabee SAYS (rather than reading and swallowing, whole, the MSM's "fundamentalist-Christian" meme), understands that Huckabee is very successfully selling economic populism rather than the libertarian economics favored by the Pubbie Establishment. Doing that in a State which has seen its manufacturing base chopped to smithereens by "global trade" people has an appeal which is visceral, not intellectual.
Having said that, here's Patrick Deneen, quoted in Dreher today:
It's clear that [Jonah] Goldberg and the mainstream of the Republican party were content all along to encourage the support of social conservatives so long as their votes, and not their views, were all that mattered. Now that social conservatism and economic libertarianism have begun to uncouple (an inevitable development in the aftermath of the fall of communism, which is all that kept this ungainly couple in the same political bed; the worst loser last night was not Hillary!, but the Republicans who hoped she would win and would replace communism as the glue that kept them together), the mainstream Republicans are desperate to ditch that part of the coalition and pick up whatever they can, including their desperate hope that a pro-choice candidate become the eventual nominee of the party. It turns out that Thomas Frank was at least half right: the social conservatives were being used throughout the Reagan and Bush eras (bought off by the promise of conservative judges, as if that is all it would take to change the culture), and now that their support is no longer so tractable, they're desperate to cut them loose. Change is in the air - let's hope it continues to smoke out the faux conservatives
Clicking through to the link, we find some very provocative words from Peg Noonan, too, writing about the Huckabee voters:
“They have been bruised and offended by the rigid, almost militant secularism and multiculturalism of the public schools; they reject those schools' squalor, in all senses of the word. They believe in God and family and America. They are populist: They don't admire billionaire CEOs, they admire husbands with two jobs who hold the family together for the sake of the kids; they don't need to see the triumph of supply-side thinking, they want to see that suffering woman down the street get the help she needs.
For those of you who are too young to recall, that also went under the name "Main Street" Republicanism, back in the late 1800's--before all the Main Street Bankers became bulletproofed by FDR's FDIC.
When that happened, the bankers got arrogant. They went to the country-clubs and found (voila!!) the Rockefellers, the Forbes-es, and the Fords.
Now Dreher has a point of view, and we understand that. But Eastern banker Pubbies and their allies are not the future of the Republican Party.
From another Dreher column:
...using the levers of government to rein in the power of private interests to do harm to the common good is a perfectly legitimate exercise of state power to a traditionalist conservative. This is why the Club for Growth and the Wall Street Journal editorial page's interest in keeping immigrants flowing northward for the good of big business is so offensive to traditionalist conservatives, who would like to see the state step up enforcement of immigration laws, even at the expense of business interests. I believe it was Christopher Lasch who said one cannot be both a conservative and a free-marketeer. What he meant by that was that the natural working of the market undermines all kinds of institutions and customs treasured by conservatives. He ought to have said traditionalist conservative, or social conservative, or cultural conservative. Because obviously in America, libertarians have generally found more of a natural home within the conservative tradition, owing to the fusionist settlement.
If you assume that the 40-hour week, or overtime pay, were "granted" by capitalists, you are wrong. They were legislated by the Feds. Health insurance was only offered (by GM) because it was a labor-recruitment tool--not because it was necessarily "good for GM." And now that health insurance is "Bad for GM," you note that GM (et al) are perfectly willing to shove it into the Government's lap.
To traditionalists, though, conservatism most definitely does not equal "what's good for the GDP." Indeed, what's good for the GDP might be inimical to traditional conservatism.
Rush Limbaugh "defines" populism as a nanny-State philosophy. Of course, he who writes the definitions controls the debate--and Rush is perfectly comfortable with a definition which is inaccurate and prejudicial. Maybe Rush never read Burke, nor Kirk. But he should.
One hopes that Fred Thompson gets this, too...because he remains the best Republican candidate despite his "free-trade" and "corn--it's what's for fuel" crap.
Yoo Hoo!! Abp. Dolan!! (Part 3)
Oh, yah, there's another minor matter.
The Archbishop of Milwaukee has been silent on the issues presented by AB377. While I had opined that Archbishop Dolan could simply call for a "conscience clause" insertion into the bill, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has issued a statement which contradicts mine.
(Scroll down to #16.)
Finally, where a matter of the common good is concerned, it is inappropriate for church authorities to endorse or remain neutral toward adverse legislation even if it grants exceptions to church organizations and institutions. The church has the responsibility to promote family life and the public morality of the entire civil society on the basis of fundamental moral values, not simply to protect herself from the application of harmful laws
Well, I'm perfectly happy to admit that I was wrong.
Now we await the response of Archbishop Timothy Dolan, Archbishop Rembert Weakland, Bishop Callahan, Bishop Sklba, Bishop Banks, Bishop Morneau, Bishop Wirz, Bishop Bullock, and Bishop Fliss in this matter.
It is, after all, a life and death matter (which falls under "common good.")
Eh?
The Archbishop of Milwaukee has been silent on the issues presented by AB377. While I had opined that Archbishop Dolan could simply call for a "conscience clause" insertion into the bill, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has issued a statement which contradicts mine.
(Scroll down to #16.)
Finally, where a matter of the common good is concerned, it is inappropriate for church authorities to endorse or remain neutral toward adverse legislation even if it grants exceptions to church organizations and institutions. The church has the responsibility to promote family life and the public morality of the entire civil society on the basis of fundamental moral values, not simply to protect herself from the application of harmful laws
Well, I'm perfectly happy to admit that I was wrong.
Now we await the response of Archbishop Timothy Dolan, Archbishop Rembert Weakland, Bishop Callahan, Bishop Sklba, Bishop Banks, Bishop Morneau, Bishop Wirz, Bishop Bullock, and Bishop Fliss in this matter.
It is, after all, a life and death matter (which falls under "common good.")
Eh?
More Bureaucrats, Dumber Decisions: Wisconsin!
There's a Hall of Fame for stupid bureaucrats--and Wisconsin's Labor and Industry Review Commission will be front-and-center in the showcase.
The Wisconsin Soccer Association has filed a lawsuit fighting a state decision that would require youth soccer clubs to have unemployment compensation insurance for referees, coaches and trainers, some of whom work only a few games a year.
...the ruling also could require clubs to deduct the whole range of taxes from an official's pay - state, local and Social Security taxes
...the ruling would affect 140 soccer clubs with more than the 56,000 players in the state; it also would affect other sports clubs such as hockey, Little League baseball and basketball leagues
How many children are involved in soccer alone in Wisconsin?
56,000.
Mariahazy [president of the Wisconsin Youth Soccer Association] declined to speculate on how a decision upholding the commission's decision would affect league sports but said it would be "onerous."
The Commission must be kidding.
Making all coaches, trainers, and refs for all these largely-volunteer groups into employees, and then deducting SS, Fed, State, and UC taxes from their $25.00/game (or less) paychecks is simply asinine.
Nice way to ruin a kid's day.
The Wisconsin Soccer Association has filed a lawsuit fighting a state decision that would require youth soccer clubs to have unemployment compensation insurance for referees, coaches and trainers, some of whom work only a few games a year.
...the ruling also could require clubs to deduct the whole range of taxes from an official's pay - state, local and Social Security taxes
...the ruling would affect 140 soccer clubs with more than the 56,000 players in the state; it also would affect other sports clubs such as hockey, Little League baseball and basketball leagues
How many children are involved in soccer alone in Wisconsin?
56,000.
Mariahazy [president of the Wisconsin Youth Soccer Association] declined to speculate on how a decision upholding the commission's decision would affect league sports but said it would be "onerous."
The Commission must be kidding.
Making all coaches, trainers, and refs for all these largely-volunteer groups into employees, and then deducting SS, Fed, State, and UC taxes from their $25.00/game (or less) paychecks is simply asinine.
Nice way to ruin a kid's day.
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Popinjays With Self-Importance
Club for Growth names the names on the laughably named "Wisconsin Judicial Campaign Integrity Committee."
Doesn't take too long to smell the rancid Left-wich here:
Tim Cullen, Tony Earl, Carol Toussaint, Dave Dreisang.
Wasn't it Cullen who wrote the textbook on using legislative aides on the State payroll to run campaigns?
HT: P-Mac
Doesn't take too long to smell the rancid Left-wich here:
Tim Cullen, Tony Earl, Carol Toussaint, Dave Dreisang.
Wasn't it Cullen who wrote the textbook on using legislative aides on the State payroll to run campaigns?
HT: P-Mac
MSO Scores a Big One!
The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra landed a big fish in Edo de Waart.
This is comparable to the Art Museum's landmark (in its own way); De Waart is highly respected and recognized worldwide.
De Waart will conduct 12 of the orchestra's 18 classical subscription concerts in the 2009-'10 season.
De Waart is music director of the Hong Kong Philharmonic, which recently extended his contract through 2012. Next season, he will become principal conductor of the Santa Fe Opera, an important post recently vacated by Alan Gilbert, new conductor of the New York Philharmonic.
This part is absolutely priceless:
The Milwaukee appointment works for de Waart partly because of geography. Mezzo-soprano Rebecca Dopp, his wife of almost 10 years, grew up in Middleton. Because they regard Middleton as a good place to raise their two young children and because they treasure the family support there, the couple made the Wisconsin town their principal home a year and a half ago.
Others may have suggested Oconomowoc, but Middleton will do.
Good work, Mark Hansen!!
This is comparable to the Art Museum's landmark (in its own way); De Waart is highly respected and recognized worldwide.
De Waart will conduct 12 of the orchestra's 18 classical subscription concerts in the 2009-'10 season.
De Waart is music director of the Hong Kong Philharmonic, which recently extended his contract through 2012. Next season, he will become principal conductor of the Santa Fe Opera, an important post recently vacated by Alan Gilbert, new conductor of the New York Philharmonic.
This part is absolutely priceless:
The Milwaukee appointment works for de Waart partly because of geography. Mezzo-soprano Rebecca Dopp, his wife of almost 10 years, grew up in Middleton. Because they regard Middleton as a good place to raise their two young children and because they treasure the family support there, the couple made the Wisconsin town their principal home a year and a half ago.
Others may have suggested Oconomowoc, but Middleton will do.
Good work, Mark Hansen!!
Interviews You WISH You Read
Scrappleface helps Thompson with a press conference.
Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson today questioned whether political reporters covering the race for the White House have enough ambition for the job.
“Most of these journalists seem to lack what you might call fire in the belly,” said the former Tennessee senator. “When’s the last time you read an in-depth story about what the presidential hopefuls actually believe, or have accomplished? How often have you seen a reporter place a candidate’s views in the context of the Constitution, the sweep of American history, the intricacies of global geopolitics, economic theory or even basic political philosophy?”
Mr. Thompson said most reporting on the race fits one of three categories:
1) Results of the latest opinion poll.
2) Embarrassing gaffes and nasty remarks.
3) Reaction to one of the above.
“I’m not sure if it’s laziness, lack of ambition, or just apathy,” said Mr. Thompson, “But the American people need to know that the reporters whom they entrust with this solemn responsibility have a burning desire to fulfill the obligations of the Fourth Estate. That means you need to hustle, do your homework, ask tough questions about significant issues, put quotations in context, filter out your own natural bias, and place more value on accuracy than on speed, more on integrity than on your own petty celebrity.”
After making the remarks at a news conference, the candidate, who’s running third or fourth among Republicans in most polls, refused to answer reporters’ questions about his reaction to Mike Huckabee’s attacks on Mitt Romney.
HT: Regular Guy
Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson today questioned whether political reporters covering the race for the White House have enough ambition for the job.
“Most of these journalists seem to lack what you might call fire in the belly,” said the former Tennessee senator. “When’s the last time you read an in-depth story about what the presidential hopefuls actually believe, or have accomplished? How often have you seen a reporter place a candidate’s views in the context of the Constitution, the sweep of American history, the intricacies of global geopolitics, economic theory or even basic political philosophy?”
Mr. Thompson said most reporting on the race fits one of three categories:
1) Results of the latest opinion poll.
2) Embarrassing gaffes and nasty remarks.
3) Reaction to one of the above.
“I’m not sure if it’s laziness, lack of ambition, or just apathy,” said Mr. Thompson, “But the American people need to know that the reporters whom they entrust with this solemn responsibility have a burning desire to fulfill the obligations of the Fourth Estate. That means you need to hustle, do your homework, ask tough questions about significant issues, put quotations in context, filter out your own natural bias, and place more value on accuracy than on speed, more on integrity than on your own petty celebrity.”
After making the remarks at a news conference, the candidate, who’s running third or fourth among Republicans in most polls, refused to answer reporters’ questions about his reaction to Mike Huckabee’s attacks on Mitt Romney.
HT: Regular Guy