Empty Suits and Magic

This won't surprise everyone, but I'm not nearly as clever as I thought.

I had been planning to write a piece about Obama as the Magic Negro, but somebody else thought about it months ago.

As the writer explains, The Magic Negro is a media-cultural staple. The MN shows up to help out the poor white folks. Sometimes he helps the WM get his groove back, like in "The Legend of Bagger Vance." Other times, he rescues the WM from the forces of darkness: Stephen King uses this a lot, like in The Shining (psychic magic negro saves white boy and mom from evil white dad) or in The Green Mile, where the large magic negro saves the guard from his infections and gives him back his sex life. And God has lately been depicted as the most Magic Negro of all, by Morgan Freeman in two movies, and in both of which is helping poor, mis-guided white guys.

Yep, the Magic Negro is pretty all purpose.

I think it goes beyond the Magic Negro...that particular expression is just common to our culture, and especially to the Liberal persuasion. I think it is more about the Magic Other. For instance, the Aztecs believed White People from somewhere else would come and save them.

That Magic Other reflects our fear, "Oh, my God, we (that is, people like us, whoever us happens to be) can't help ourselves. Obviously, only someone not like us can save us."

So, if you're liberal and you think that America is fallen and corrupt and racist, then, of course, you will be looking for the Magic Other to save us. Since the fallen and corrupt and racist are by liberal definition white, then the Magic Other will have to be a Magic Negro. And since he is Magic, one need not consider or question his qualifications. That fact that he is the Other, the Magic One, is enough.

If you believe in Magic, that is.

End of the Year

The end of the year is, really, an illusion, I know. The days and the days just keep coming, one after another. Without watches, without calendars, our only reference points would be the weather, or the stars, or the migration of the birds.

Yet, the illusion of orderly changes created by the watches and calendars is very compelling. So, at the “end” of this “year,” I find that I’m exhausted.

As in so many confessions of my weakness or fatigue, I feel stupid admitting. My fatigue is nothing compared to that experienced by others with really tough lives...refugees, immigrants, the homeless. Hell, one of my staff, a temp, works two jobs just to support herself and her daughter.

Regardless, I’ve had to admit I’m worn out. The commute to work is wearing enough in good weather. During the winter, add snow shoveling, ice scraping, and chain installation, along with the increased attention and stress of driving icy roads, and there goes more energy.

That’s just one example, and it’s enough. I had to acknowledge that I was tired all the time, for whatever reason. So I’ve decided I’m not going to do anything for the rest of the year. Okay, that’s only another four or five days. But I hope my enforced idleness will let me recharge a bit, and then I can face the New Year with renewed energy and enthusiasm.

I’ll be back then, with my promised piece on “Magic and Empty Suits,” as well as continuing Doubly Standard Procedure watch.

Be well.

Winter

Winter has landed on us with both feet.

I live in the mountains, and was snowed in for a couple of days. I'm staying with my mother-in-law (down the hill, as we say) for the next few days, waiting for the storm to pass. Can't spare the time off from work.

Down in the flatlands, it's raining hard. Traffic will be a challenge for folks today.

But, with winter, comes the snow. Adventureboy loves the snow. And well he should...he doesn't have to scrape ice off the windshield, dig the car out of a drift, or hack a path down the driveway to the street, nor drive in it.

On the other hand, what the hell. He plays in the snow until he's numb, drags himself in to warm up with some hot chocolate and then he's out sledding again. I drag myself out there to sled with him, too. I've discovered that getting air on the sleds is tougher on my old bones than on his. It is time for us together though, and I do my best to spend some time with him like that. One of my few stated goals as a parent was to ensure my son had good memories, and a lot of them.

Coming soon: Doubly Standard Procedure Watch resumes, and a few words on Magic and Empty Suits.

Be safe.

Love

Adventureboy was a little better last night. He wasn't weeping openly, but his eyes were very moist.

I picked him up after school. He didn't want to go get a hot chocolate, so we drove back to his mom's house.

We sat in his room. He laid on the bed, cradling Silver, the poor dead cockatiel, against his chest. Bronco, the stray cockatiel they'd rescued, was on the Jigglet's shoulder.

As I mentioned, Bronco is very defensive...opens his beak ready to bite if anyone approaches him. Yet, yesterday, he left my son pick him up without any fuss. He was quite happy to sit on the kid's shoulder.

And, even stranger, he was deeply affectionate to my son. Bronco kept rubbing his feathery head against my son's cheek. He bowed his head to let Adventureboy scratch under the crest of feathers, which was very unusual.

It seems to me that everyone has the need to love someone or something. Even bad people need to express some aspect of love. Hitler, for instance, loved his dog. Twisted and stunted though it was, the need to love came out. Maybe that was as much love as Hitler was capable of allowing to escape from his damaged heart.

My son loved his bird, however imperfectly. I pray he'll heal, and not let this loss make him afraid of loving.

There is no perfect love that humans can express. All we can do is live, learn, and keep loving to the best of our ability.

Time and Punishment

Gloomy day in the land of Jiggy.

AdventureBoy, who wants to be an ornithologist, has two cockatiels. One, Silver, he’s had for several years. Hand-raised, it was a very sweet little creature. I didn’t like birds before encountering Silver; they seemed alien and unfriendly. Silver was approachable and liked being around people.

The other bird, Bronco, was a stray they rescued. He’s more fearful, and thus more defensive when approached.

AdventureBoy developed a bad habit. After he was supposedly in bed, he’d sneak up and put Silver in bed with him, say, on the pillow or headboard.

His mother told him not to do it.

AdventureBoy persisted, because he liked being with his bird.

And today, he’s paying the price. Sometime last night, Silver was crushed while AdventureBoy slept.

The ex-Lady Jiggy called me in tears this morning, saying how angry she was at the Jigglet. It took a little while for me to get the sad story. She said she didn’t know what she was going to do with him, how could he be so careless, and how sweet the little bird was.

My job was to listen, and maybe, speak calmly to her. And then to the Jigglet. He was in tears, saying “I’ll never forgive myself.”

Ah, kid. Welcome to adulthood. Where there are consequences to everything you do or avoid doing.

He wasn’t being cruel or malicious. He might have been indulging in the fantasy of bonding and being with his bird at all times. But that fantasy, following that fantasy, killed this sweet little cockatiel.

I’ll be going by the house tonight, after work, to try and comfort the kid. I won’t suggest any “punishment” to his mom. I’m sure he’ll feel bad about this for a long time, and he'll punish himself far more than we ever could. I’ll work to make sure he learns from the experience. It will only become a mistake if he repeats it.

In the larger scheme of people losing their homes and livelihoods, not a major story. But a sad day, none the less.

Adulthood

Christmas party this past weekend. Company party. It was fun...music was loud.

I must be getting old.

Anymore, the big question about any party is: do I try to dance?

I am not, shall we say, a gifted dancer. My style varies between spider on a hot skillet and full blown epileptic fit. Since I have the genetic curse of my people, rhythm dsylexia, the art has escaped me.

But during those moments when I can achieve un-self-conciousness, I can have fun. When I can "dance like no one's looking," as the song goes.

Pondering the dance/no dance question, I noticed that there was unacknowledged part of the equation when trying to weigh the possible outcomes. I was wondering, "What's the reward?"

Or, to put it another way: "What will result if I dance at the party?" See, when I was single, I danced with young ladies because I might get lucky. That's not an issue these days, so a prime reason for dancing was removed.

I realized that the idea of simply dancing because it was fun wasn't even part of my consideration.

Once I was aware of that, it struck me that I rarely do anything for the hell of it anymore.

Everything has to have a purpose.

I run for heart-rate and time. Same with biking.

I swim for time and distance.

I go play with Adventure Boy because I should.

Is that what being an Adult means? That everything has a purpose? That spontaneity is a thing of the past?

When's the last time you did something just for the hell of it?

They Lied...and they will continue to do so.

Never forget: The Media (large newspapers and the Big 3 networks) lied to get Obama elected. We can talk later about why they decided to sacrifice a fair election for the perceived sins of our democracy, but the point remains. They Lied.

Remember, there are three ways to tell a lie:

1) Complete untruth.
2) Tell half the truth.
3) For really advanced practioneers, “Tell the truth, but tell it so badly no one believes you.”

The Media chose Option 2, repeatedly. To pick but one of a thousand examples: we read extensively in the New York Times about Cindy McCain’s drug problem. Yet…the Times couldn’t find the time to look for Barack Obama’s drug dealer from his student days.

We heard about Sarah Palin’s tanning bed, and clothes…but did you hear about Obama and the Annaberg commission? The $150 million (that’s MILLION) that was spent on education with no perceptible achievement from students at the end of it. Obama was on the board that disbursed funds...you'd think such a staggering failure would be worthy of comment.

Half the truth = half a lie.

Never Forget They Lied.

Automatically doubt what they say from here on out.

Perfect Movies

I'm just brainstorming here.

I've long believed that movies are a kind of shared dream. A well made film...well, it can move you to tears, laughter, gasps of shock...and we can sit in a room with a hundred other people and have essentially the same emotional experience.

Perfect movies are rare, I think. Partly because they have to be fortuituously created, and they are also subject to a special alchemy based on the actors and other elements of the fictive world that's being created.

Two perfect films I watched this weekend:

Galaxy Quest and Stardust.

Both were funny and touching (the other rule about movies: The Best Movies Are About Love). And everyone involved was completely invested in what they were doing. There was something authentic about the aliens and witches and ghosts and hack actors who were portrayed in the respective film.

And they were about love.

Check them out. They're well worth your time.

Thanksgiving

Another Thanksgiving has passed.

Spent part of it under the sink, replacing a garbage disposal that someone had killed by letting a rock get into it (decorative rock, the kind used in vases of flowers) , and not mentioning it until the thing had wrecked the seals, and water was dripping freely though the bottom of the disposal.

It was supposed to be an easy switch, one hour, tops, and I was going to school the Jigglet on some home maintenance tasks. It turned into about a six hour job, and the only thing I managed to teach him was my command of Coast Guard invective.

The holiday itself was just okay. The StepDaughter is feeling the passing of time. Her brother is a freshman in college, and she is a senior in High School. It might be the last "family" Thanksgiving we have for a while. Plus, her father, let's call him Jack, is disabled (bad back...sometimes), and she wanted all of us together.

Jack fancies himself a gourmet cook. It's one of the few things he can do. So he was going to cook a large portion of the meal.

Yep, my wife's ex-husband was making a large portion of our Thanksgiving dinner. I avoided most of the drama: when the man cooks, it becomes "The Jack Show," and I was not interested in being part of the Jack Show or his general pain-in-the-assness with everyone in the kitchen.

After I'd finished the garbage disposal, the Jigglet and I killed some Zombies on the Wii. Ate dinner, which was tasty, and then I went to bed...had to get up early the next day to run

The holiday didn't mean a great deal to me this year, which is strange. When I was single, I'd write thank you cards to the important people in my life, expressing my gratitude for their friendship. Yet, because of the family production it became, this year it was nothing special at all.

I realized on Friday morning, as I was running (training for the next Ironman) that I'd not expressed much gratitude the day before. Which is unusual, since most of my prayers are "thanks for this in my life (e.g., being able to fix the garbage disposal for the cost of parts and time and not having to hire a plumber)" or "Help this person."

Gosh, I hate when I let life and my own pettiness keep me from living right, from being a person making conscious, deliberate choices about how to live. Shucks.

On the other hand, every day we get to choose the apple. We get to choose between good and evil with the birth of every new day.

That could be Grace.

Class

I sent President Bush a copy of my novel (now available on Amazon's Kindle), The Big Bang.

He is the hero, after all.

I received a short note in the mail. It was pre-printed, small (4 x 6, maybe) on thick, cream-colored stock, with a White House seal embossed on it.

It read:

"Thank you for thinking of me. I appreciate your kind gesture, and I am grateful for your support.

"It has been an honor and a joyous experience to be President of the greatest country on earth.

"May God bless you, and may God bless America."

It was signed (probably by machine) with what might have been "George."

What I thought was classy was the line "an honor and a joyous experience." Any cynic worth his bile would say that was a polled, focus-group tested creation, but it rang honestly with me. If you look at the man (as The Anchoress has done at length), you see it is of a piece with who the man is.

People are going to miss President Bush. History will judge him far more kindly than our Masters in the Media. Doubt me? Read "Team of Rivals" by Doris Kearns Goodwin. The press was vicious to President Lincoln (you know, that guy who supposedly influences Obama. Tho Obama has yet to show a trace of Lincoln's honesty).

Take a moment to pray today. Just say thanks.

Words to live by.

A now, a word from a Dead White European Male (DWEM, in the noxious PC speak)

Until there is commitment, there is hesitancy,

the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness.

Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation)

there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which

kills countless ideas and splendid plans;

that the moment one definitely commits onself,

then Providence moves too.

All sorts of things occur to help one that would never

otherwise have occurred.

A whole stream of events issues forth from the decision,

raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents

and meetings and material assistance which no man

could have dream would have come his way.

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.

Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.

BEGIN IT NOW

Goethe

Strange

I've been feeling more emotional, lately.

I get a lump in my throat over the oddest things. My son giving me an unexpected hug.

Or, listening to Sissy Spacek read "To Kill a Mockingbird." Some turn of the phrase, some small anecdote will make me tear up.

Ah, well.

Upgrading my Ironman stuff. My Heart Rate Monitor failed, so when I replaced it I went with a different brand. Decided to go with Timex and their IronMan. The IM watches have been very strong and dependable, so why not try the Heart Rate Monitor, too.

Time to go back to work.

Random Stuff

Another nice thing: A television series called "Life." Stars the very capable English actor Damien Lewis. Just started watching it on DVD. First episode was excellent.

Random thought: my son is getting older, nearly 15. There's a sense of loss as he moves into his own orbit, pulling away from me. It's natural, it's right (and thank the good Lord he's a good kid), but as he grows into himself, and begins to shine as his way to becoming a brilliant star, I'm left wistful and little colder as he recedes from me.

A few nice things:

A film on DVD: "Things We Lost in the Fire." Slow, meditative. Good performances, moving look at loss, grief, and redemption. It takes its time to build, but it's worth it.

Book: "Black Wave" Still reading it. A family's sailing adventure and the diaster that saved them.

Lazer Tag guns. At Costco for about $62. AdventureBoy and his friend liked this this long weekend.

Media Admits Bias: Rain is Also Wet

Well, the ombudsman of the Washington Post got around to admitting, there was, you know, a kind of bias in their coverage of the race for President. And it wasn't for Senator McCain:

The Post provided a lot of good campaign coverage, but readers have been consistently critical of the lack of probing issues coverage and what they saw as a tilt toward Democrat Barack Obama. My surveys, which ended on Election Day, show that they are right on both counts.

This mea culpa comes a little late in the day, wouldn't you say? There's so much more a principled person would have to say about that bias. For instance, take a look at how many front page photos of the criminally unqualified Mr. Obama featured backlighting, which created a halo effect (he’s Obama the angelic), as compared to the many photos of Mr. McCain which emphasized his age.

So, in this completely useless spasm of honesty, the Ombudsman is merely joining the rest of us who knew the emperor had no clothes, and who also knew that much of the press were his obedient couriers, following the time-honored Joseph Goebbels Big Lie principle, repeating only what they wanted us to know.

(Quick historical note: Joseph Goebbels was the Propoganda Minister of the Nazi Party. A concept that has been attributed to him goes like this: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.” Simply substitue the word "Press" for the word "State" above, and you have a perfect example of what happening during this past election.)

My goodness, how much time did that paper (and others) spend on Ms. Palin’s time in Alaska, her college efforts, her family…yet no one had the time to ask about Mr. Obama’s many gaps in his resume, including his undergraduate experience and his failed work on education with the Annaberg Foundation in Chicago.

Shame on them all for the damage they have done to our nation and our democracy.

Qualifications

As much as I may think President-elect Barack Obama is an unfortunate example of affirmative action at its worst (marginally qualified individual is elevated to a position based not so much on his abilities, skills, and experience as on identifiable characteristics -- color of his skin -- by our "betters" to make up for perceived past wrongs to others with those identifiable characteristics), I can not wish him ill.

I have to want him to do a great job.

For to wish him ill would be to wish ill to our country and our citizens.

I will pray for President Obama. I want him to do well so that our country will thrive and our nation will be safe.

One good thing

When something major happens that I think is bad, I try to ask, "What good can come of this that God wants to happen?"

Going back to the idea that we're all God's hands and feet, you know.

One thing that occured to me about Barack Obama's election: will it remove the last mental barrier from the black citizens of the United States? Like it or not, there has been an attitude among many blacks that they can't get ahead, the Sytem/the Man has rigged success against them.

Perhaps Mr. Obama reaching the highest office in the land will help free them from those mental chains.

The Zero

America had a choice between a Hero and a Zero.

The majority took the Zero.

The man with zero real accomplishments and apparently, zero principles or beliefs (or, at least none that couldn't be conveniently discarded). He can give a speech, however.

The nice thing about Zero is that you can add anything to it: your own hopes and aspirations and wishes...and they appear to be there! But the truth remains...they've been piled onto a Zero, and Zero stands for nothing.

The End of The World: NOT

Whoever wins today's election, the other side may think it's the end of the world.

The world will go on.

Each of us will still need to be God's hands and feet in the world.

It all comes down to people, to individuals.

To living the principles.

If anything has damaged our political system, it is the lack of principles.

The Democrats, while all too willing to claim moral superiority, have peddled away their principles. Voter Fraud and Acorn? Pshaw. Too much money in politics; bad when Repubs do it, not an issue when it's Obama's campaign.

And on and on and on.

Not that the Republicans have done much better in Congress.

But at the end of the day, you have to have done your individual best. You have to have given reign to what Abraham Lincoln called "the better angels of our natures," rather than succumb to hatred, apathy, and despair.

The Lord may have a million dollars waiting for me, but I have to get up off my lazy tuchis and meet Him halfway.

So...go out, make God real by what you do and say today.

Vote the facts

That's all.

Vote the facts.

Vote for the one who Walks the Walk, not the One who Talks the Talk a Lot.

Obama: half-brother in poverty, dear Auntie in a Boston slum. But he's about change and compassion. Hangs out with the most fringe people you can imagine, including raving racists (Reverend Wright), would-be kid killers (Bill Ayers), and virulent anti-Semites. Has concealed, consistently, his executive experience wasting 150 million dollars on education programs that were to indoctrinate children into leftist/socialist views (because we can't trust that they'll discover truth on their own). Has not released information about his undergraduate life, for some reason. Worked with and gave money to Acorn, an organization that consistently practices fraud and deception in vote registration. Has allowed a corrupt fund-raising set up on the web that takes money from "Nodda Real Person" and other nonsensical titles. Has seen his attack dogs go after critics (Joe the Plumber) for practicing their constitional right to question and after opponents (Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton) in the most sexist terms; and Obama has not called out to the attack dogs to lay off.

But he's about change (as long as we don't point to his VP, a 30+ year member of Congress).


McCain and Palin: McCain consistently pisses people off in his own party, because he seeks change, and doesn't just talk about it. He's made mistakes...but, unlike Obama, he has an actual record to which to point. Sarah Palin took on the entrenched forces of her state's Republican party. She made change happen.



You want a third world style government of corruption and favoritism, with high taxes, lower productivity, more jobs overseas: vote Obama.

You want a decent American government, that believes in your rights: vote McCain.

Vote the Facts, not the Fantasy.

Now, for a lighter moment...

Yep, it's DeadMan and DisMember Boy.

Outsourcing their compassion, part II

Democrats claim much...deliver little.



Barack Obama is his brother's keeper...unless you are his half-brother. Then you get to live in poverty on the streets of Kenya on a dollar a month.



Now, we find his aunt living in a slum in Boston.



Obama is going to create opportunities. Reach out to those who need help...folks like his aunt, for example.





But he's going to use your money. Not his.

Do you know how much money Barack Obama made on his two memiors? Google it.

Do you know how much money Barack Obama gave to charity before his run for President? Google it.

His aunt's condition and his half-brother's condition are pitiable.

Doesn't it say something about the man's character that he's used none of his wealth to help his family, but that he's willing to use the Government's wealth (our tax dollars) to help others in similar condition? A lot of others?

Did you know John McCain's wife is very rich? Sure, you've heard about that.

Do you know she does a great deal of charity work? Bet you didn't hear that.

Did you know that John and Cindy McCain have adopted disabled children of color, brought them up as their own kids? Bet you didn't hear that from the New York Times.

Remember: the Left is compassionate in principle, as long as they can use someone else's money. Usually, yours.

Useful Tools

I admit this is a generalization, but it has been confirmed by my own experience with a Fundamentalist Feminist: “We Think the Left is Wrong; They Think We are Evil.”

That goes back to my earlier suggestion that we’re involved in a Holy War. You only get into Holy Wars with the forces of Evil.

To be sure, there are people who are nominally on the conservative side who are equally whacked out, but the majority of the venom seems to be over among the Liberals. Weird.

Anyway, the point of today’s discussion: Useful Tools.

During the Korean War, back in 1952, the North Koreans claimed they’d been subjected to American Biological Warfare. The Chinese Government, newly communist, created a commission to investigate. They needed someone with scientific credibility to chair the commission. They selected Joseph Needham.

Needham was a world famous biologist before WWII, and had become a diplomat to China during the War. He began a journey of scientific and history discovery about China’s past (“Science and Civilization in China”, now up to about Volume 21) that continues to this day.

He was, however, an ardent socialist and friendly to the stated goals of the Chinese Communist party. He accepted the commission, and after about a year of investigation, interviews, and visits to “attack” sites, published a report that essentially concluded the US had launched biological attacks against the North Koreans.

The United States government rejected the report’s conclusions as false. Needham’s reputation suffered in the West, while the emerging communist countries hailed him for his bravery.

In 1998, secret documents from the Soviet Union were published in Japan, “and academics studying those papers…noticed something quite remarkable: that the sites to which Needham and his colleagues were taken during their investigations had all been created artificially by, or with the help of, intelligence agents from the Soviet Union.”
(The Man Who Loved China, by Simon Winchester, page 212)

Needham had been duped and used by the Communists. Who would have thought?

I find myself wondering…in 50 years or so, will it come out that other well-meaning critics of our government and culture have been similarly duped? Michael Moore and Oliver Stone hanging out with Fidel Castro. Sean Penn in Iraq and Venezuela.

The communists had a term for people like Needham. “Useful Idiots.”

The nicer stuff in life

Blogging may get a little lighter, but not because there's less happening.

I've started work on volume two of The Lonesome George Chronicles. Volume One, The Big Bang, is available at Barnes and Noble.com and Amazon. So, writing and research will take up a little time.

Speaking of research, I ran across a fascinating story of a well-meaning public figure being used by our enemies to make America look very bad. I'll have more on that tomorrow.

Here at Chez Jiggy, we're soft touches for abandoned animals. We have four cats; two of them strays we picked up off the street, one we got from a shelter. The two dogs were more deliberate acquisitions.

AdventureBoy loves animals...possibly got that from his old Dadman. He's nearly 15 now, but still very sweet most of the time. One of the things he likes to do, even now, is play with the cats.

Many times I've been in the bedroom, reading with the door open, and I'll hear pounding feet. Look up, and my giggling boy/tween will be running down the hall, dragging a stuffed animal on a string behind him, with one of the cats running full tilt intent on capturing its "prey."

They're both having fun. And he'll do this for an hour or more.

It is a memory I hope I carry to my grave. Too much of my brain is stuffed with the ugliness I've see (or perpetrated myself)...I pray God is merciful at the end of my life, and allows me remember the kindness, the sweetness, the good and the generous people who surround us if only we let ourselves see.

Go look for the Light today.

More reasons the Left hate McCain/Palin

Because McCain/Palin have, you know, actually done things.

McCain served his country at great personal cost.

Palin had a full and challenging life (Alaska fisherman, anyone?) before entering politics.

They have both experienced real life.

I dare say many Liberals/Left have only read about life.

Bill Ayers: from pampered child of privilege to bomb-maker and wanna-be kid killer. Because of what he'd been told and what he'd read.

I bet if you think about it, you can name many many liberals of your own acquaintance who are just riled up about how awful things are...but they're riled up because of what they've read in books, less so about what they've actually experienced.

Life and Lies

Good weekend with AdventureBoy.

I bought him a new pair of LazerTag guns, and we spent some time blasting each other in the woods on Saturday.

He had a friend stay over Saturday night. His buddy, Max, needed help with a science project, one that involved naming birds.

Saturday night, I heard them making joking comments about the election. "They're saying about Obama, 'Kill him, Kill him.' "

I stepped in from the next room, and told them flatly that was a lie, that the shout had been about Bill Ayers (a sentiment I agree with, by the way. This bomb-builder should have been hung for his crimes). I gave them a few examples of the Left's hate speech ("Sarah Palin is a C***," "Abort Sarah Palin"), and pointed out that they'd not heard about it because the major media was covering for Obama.

They're good kids, simply reflecting what is all around them, honest or not.

We had a good time on Sunday, spent most of the day riding bikes or at the Bird Preserve, where the Jigglet was a walking reference book for Max as they recorded 24 different types of birds.

Last night, I did send the Jigglet my 35 pages of text about Obama and his integrity issues. Whether he reads it will be up to him.

So...what is the moral?

1) Ignore the polls. They are heavily slanted towards Democrats.
2) Spread the truth. Short form: ask people what Obama has actually accomplished. You may have to be a broken record, because they'll talk all about his speeches and his promise. Keep asking them to provide details of what he has actually done. Point out a life of service, on McCain's part, and battles against the machine, on Palin's part.
3) Be prepared to not change anyone's mind. Most people voting for Obama, I'm convinced, don't care about the facts.
4) VOTE. Do whatever it takes to get your vote in, and DO NOT SUCCUMB TO DESPAIR.
5) VOTE.

Lies, continued

The popular media sees Republicans as the problem, and hence, the target:


The Center for Media and Public Affairs, a media analysis group, kept a tally of jokes told about the presidential contenders on the "Late Show" and "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" in the five weeks after McCain chose Sarah Palin to be his running mate and vaulted the little-known Alaska governor into the national spotlight.
The total: Republicans, 286. Democrats, 42.
"Generally the Republicans get targeted much more often than Democrats, but this election is driving it off the charts," said CMPA Executive Director Donald Rieck.

By relentlessly pounding home the message about the Republicans (McCain is old, Sarah Palin is stupid), they create a cultural environment that becomes a self-perpetuating loop: "Sarah Palin isn't qualified to be VP, even Saturday Night Live says so." "Did you see Saturday Night Live, they really hammered Palin." "Well, everyone knows she's dumb..."

Keep telling the truth. Look at Sarah Palin's remarkable accomplishments. Put them up beside Barack Obama's remarkable political expediency. Then ask who is a real leader.

Obama: Distilled, detailed. Devastating.

Over 35 pages on Obama's background, carefully linked, referenced, and sourced. Look for the section “October 14, 2008.”

This is detail, folks. Not just three or four lines about his ties to Ayers or Wright or Rezko, but over 22,000 words (not including the links) about the long and unsavory history of a man completely unworthy to be President.

As the author sums up,

You will often hear Obama's defenders argue that his ties to this or that extremist or corrupt figure is an isolated aberration, an example of "guilt by association"; that the various favors he dispensed with public money and private charitable foundation funds are nothing unusual in politics. But when you look at Obama's record and biography taken together, what you see is that the favors, the extremists and the machine ties are all inextricably intertwined, and that far from being isolated incidents, Obama's modus operandi of mutual back-scratching with radicals and crooks extends to nearly every aspect of his life and career - his family, his faith, his home, his jobs and education, his significant election victories and legislative "accomplishments," his closest advisors and most important mentors, the money and organization that made up his campaigns.

This is a must read, my friends. Take the time Saturday to really pore over this…and spread the word.

Fight the fantasy of "Obama the Leader of Change" with the facts about "Obama, friend to criminals and anti-Americans."

Things NBC, ABC, CBS, New York Times, LA Times, etc. Aren't Telling You:

Well, my goodness, my break from politics was short, indeed.

You've surely heard about McCain-Palin's racist supporters screaming vile invective.

For two days now, there have been stories about boisterous McCain-Palin supporters screaming inflammatory words at the very mention of Obama's name. Words like "terrorist" and "Kill him!" and "treason." And at no point has McCain or Palin called on those folks and others who would imitate them to stop.

It's the story in many major newspapers and leftist websites. Of course, a closer look by some (not part of the media types who have already decided America will get Obama as President whether she wants or needs him) shows that it's not a mob, it's one or two individuals.

Milbank’s lone racist at the rally soon became a group (or a mob) of people shouting racial epithets. A New York Times editorial Tuesday (“The Politics of Attack”) misquoted Milbank’s Post column, claiming that one person shouted “Kill him” and “others shouted epithets at an African-American member of a TV crew.”

But, strangely, you've not heard about the torrent of left-wing hate. Things like trendy “ABORT Sarah Palin” stickers.

Nor will you hear about these protestors at a Sarah Palin event:

The media has been busy reporting the "anger" of the conservatives at the McCain/Palin rallies, how supporters want McCain to get tougher on Obama and force Obama's terrorist associations into the eyes of the public and how McCain has been forced to "defend" poor little Barack Obama.....but where are the media reports about Obama supporters wearing t-shirts calling Sarah Palin a Cunt?

And the silence is deafening.

It's all part of Doubly Standard Proceduretm. Simply put, "Bad Behavior by Our Enemies the E-vile Republicans Must Be Condemned. Similar Behavior by Our Friends Is Always Excused Because We Are Not Just Right, But Righteous."

Doubly Standard Proceduretm has been used by the Left for years. Accidentally killing civilians in a war zone is bad. Killing police officers in our own country is okay, because the killers were fighting a war of liberation.

I can think of an easy dozen examples. I'm sure you can think of hundreds more.

Update, information from Glenn Reynolds, the Instapundit:

LEFTY ASSASSINATION FANTASIES: Various people, oddly, deny that such existed. Try Death of a President by Gabriel Range, or Nicholson Baker's novel, Checkpoint, just to start.
Similar Obama assassination fantasies, should they appear, won't get this kid-glove treatment from Big Media, I suspect. "It is not the first time a novelist has chosen fiction to express their point of view about American society or politics. Upton Sinclair did it. So did John Steinbeck. Nick Baker does it with more nerve and fewer pages."
UPDATE: Here's Salon, in 2003, on a play entitled I'm Going to Kill the President, "one of the most amusing plays currently running in New York . . . a madcap farce about terrorism and apathy in John Ashcroft's America whose performance may or may not be a federal offense."
ANOTHER UPDATE: "Snipers Wanted."

(I've posted below an essay AdventureBoy wrote about getting his scuba certification. Ask me later why I think he's proof God exists...)

A Scuba Adventure

Not many people have experienced the almost magical sensation of floating through an indigo sea and watching the fantastic creatures dwelling within it. My father and I are one of the few fortunate to be able to do so, to be licensed scuba divers. The first true SCUBA (Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) was invented by legendary French oceanographer Jacques Cousteau in 1943. It was smaller, more efficient, and more easy to use than many of its predecessors, and thus revolutionized the world of underwater exploration. Prior to the SCUBA, or Aqualung, divers had had to wear bulky suits with helmets and be fed air from a hose. The Aqualung severed that connection, allowing caves and other difficult places to be explored. The sea had always been a place of mystery to me, but I never thought that a few forays into island shallows would change my perspective of that blue realm forever.One day last summer, I was in a deep and peaceful sleep when I suddenly felt myself being gently shaken. I opened my eyes and saw my dad leaning over me. For the most part, the room in which I lay was dark except for a soft, dim light coming from down the hall. I sat up, rubbed my eyes and whispered, “Hey, Dad.” A quick glance at my watch told me it was 4:00 a.m.My father smiled. “Hey, son. I’ve already eaten, so you grab something for the road, and the gear, and I’ll meet you in the car.”I nodded, and he turned and walked out of the room. Giving a great yawn, I rolled out of the bed and stretched. I yawned again, and then took hold of 2 large duffel bags and began dragging them down the hall. As I headed towards the kitchen, I reflected on the events of the previous day. In a rush, my dad and I had zoomed down from his house in the mountains to the coast. We had holed up at a relative’s house and went to bed early in anticipation of our wake-up time. Today was a day of huge importance, and we would have to be well-rested for the trials ahead of us.I shuffled into the kitchen, and after considering for a moment, I popped a bagel into the toaster and softened some butter in the microwave. While the bagel was cooking, I absentmindedly patted the relatives’ dog, wondering what lay before us this day.I was jolted out of my thoughts by the pop of the bagel as the toaster finished crisping it. Swift as lightning I grabbed the two halves of the bagel, spread some butter on them, and hurried out the door with the bagel in one hand and the two duffel bags in the other. I closed the door with my foot, tossed the bags in the back of Dad’s car, and buckled my seat belt as I slid into the front seat. The car headed off towards the pier, where our boat was waiting.In ten minutes, Dad pulled into a parking space. We pulled the stack of duffel bags out of the car and staggered towards the pier with our heavy load. We showed the guard our tickets, and climbed onboard the ship. We met up with the rest of the class and wished each other luck today.Soon after we got on, the boat pulled away from the pier and sped towards the island that was visible on the horizon. I impatiently scuffed my shoes as I watched the white-capped waves zip by.In about forty-five minutes, the ship docked at the island wharf and we bustled out, carrying most of the heavy duffle bags on a hand-truck. My dad and I walked around the other side of the cove and arrived at a stretch of rocky beach. Before we unloaded the bags, I leaped across the rocks like a mountain goat and tested the water with my foot. I shivered; it was cold. I bounded back over to help my dad with the gear.We unzipped the duffle bags, and out came a wild assortment of equipment. I sifted through the pile, found my full-body wetsuit, hood, gloves, boots, and flippers and began the laborious task of getting them on. The wetsuit was the hardest because my hands could barely fit through the openings at the ends of the sleeves. Once that was over, however, it wasn’t hard to pull the hood over my head, strap on the gloves, slip my feet into the boots, and then the boots into the flippers.I walked--somewhat stiffly from the tough fabric--over to the pile of gear, fished out a large vest, and pulled that on. I checked that my dive computer was clipped onto the vest (it was), and cast about for the final piece of equipment. It was easy to find: A round, cylindrical, bright red tank approximately 2 ½ feet in length with a valve on top, and four cords connected to two rebreathers and a pressure gauge. I called my dad over, and he helped affix the tank to my back. He connected the fourth cord to the buoyancy system built into my dive vest, and then gave me a clap on the back. In turn, I helped him get his tank on. I groaned as the weight of the full set of equipment pressed down on me. It felt like I could hardly take a step without collapsing. I sat down with the heavy tank propped against a rock and waited.Fortunately, about five minutes later the class and the teachers arrived. They quickly suited up, and in ones and twos headed down the metal stairway leading towards the water. I leaned forward to adjust the weight of the tank on my back as I carefully placed my awkward flippers in front of each other, trying not to trip on them and fall. My mask was bouncing against my forehead; I had not pulled it over my face because I had not yet entered the water. I made it down to the water’s edge unscathed. Taking a deep breath to calm my taut nerves, I pulled my mask over my eyes and nose, put the rebreather in my mouth, and let myself fall forward into the surging waves.As I hit the water, I tensed, waiting for the expected surge of cold to stab into my body, but there was none. Instead, I felt only a warm dampness against my skin. Surprised and happy that this wonderful occasion wasn’t going to be tainted by freezing ocean temperatures, I grinned behind my rebreather and headed out to the class’s rendezvous point. Once there, I floated until everyone else had gathered around the buoy that marked the location. After catching her breath, the teacher took off her rebreather and said to the class, “Well, everybody, today’s the day. All the lessons, all the times spent sitting on the bottom of a pool, have led up to this day. I have full confidence in each and every one of you, and I think that every person in this class will be leaving the island as a certified Scuba diver. Now, without any further delay, let’s go.” And the class plunged into beneath the surface of the water.The rest of the day was a whirl and a blur of several dives throughout the course of around three hours. I did not remember much about the first four dives, but the fifth and final one is forever emblazoned into my brain.Before this closing dive, my dad and I relaxed and cooled off on the rocks while our tanks were being refilled (I had a reputation for being the fastest in the class to use up my tank’s supply of air), and talked of what we had seen from the dives. After a time, we were called over as the truck carrying the refilled tanks returned. We suited up again, lurched down to the waterline, and repeated the procedure until we were once again swimming, almost flying, through a blue world. We first explored the kelp forest that was like a city wall of the island. I felt as though I had come across a great, medieval underwater land, and these were the green woods were the heroic prince did his adventuring. I expected the fronds to part, to have a shark come barreling through them, pursued by the said prince.I watched the schools of fish as we passed them, amazed at how they each seemed to be a single, shimmering mass. Some were grey, some were iridescent blue, and some were green-yellow. A few, called garibaldi, swam alone but had incredible vibrant orange skin. I affectionately called them “tangerine fish.” The bubbles from my rebreather made a beautiful, bell-like sound as they floated to the surface. I soon became entranced with the noise, and lost myself listening to it.After a while, we cleared the lush kelp forest, passing under an ancient arch formed by a coral reef that seemed to me like the gate out of that green kingdom. Before us was a large series of coral flats that reminded me of continental plains. A few large, herbivorous fish and sharks drifted lazily over the flats, but nothing else. The teacher led us outward, over the flats, towards deeper water. I passed the time by listening to the strange but beautiful music of my rebreather’s bubbles.Fifteen minutes had passed when the group of us, around ten or so people, came to a halt. I nearly ran into the person in front of me, and looked around. The teacher pointed, and I gasped, sending a larger spurt of bubbles toward the surface. The coral flats had ended into a cliff. In front of my amazed eyes was a sheer drop into an opaque sheet of blue. I could see only a fish or two close to the cliff wall, but nothing else.For some time we floated there, hovering over that vast expanse of ocean, when the teacher gestured, sending us on a return journey to the shore. I lingered at the edge of the cliff for a little while longer, fascinated by the hugeness of the open ocean, and then Dad tugged on my shoulder. I followed the class back across the coral flats and into the kelp forest.In the kelp forest, the teacher called another halt, and reached into a pocket on her vest. I was amazed when she pulled out a handful of Scuba License cards, laminated in plastic to protect them from the water. One by one she handed them out to the class, supplemented by a handshake for each student, and then the assistant teacher brought out a bag of frozen peas. The fish instantly swarmed our group, devouring the frozen peas at a fearsome rate. Another assistant had brought an underwater camera with them. Dad and I posed for a picture, holding our certifications, but right when the shutter clicked, a cod swam right in front of the camera. It made for a cool picture, but unfortunately the fish blocked out the certifications.On shore, there was much back-slapping and hearty congratulations exchanged. Dad and I shook hands with and were praised by the teacher and her assistants, and prepared to start the long journey home. As I packed the gear back into the bags, I cast a long look towards the ocean. There was so much in that blue world that man hadn’t discovered yet, and would not discover for a long time. The fascinating and mysterious qualities of the patch of open ocean I had seen proved that. I had had little to no idea what kind of creatures resided in those depths. As many scientists put it, “We’ve explored more of space than we have of the Earth’s oceans.” That day changed my view of the ocean forever. While my career path takes me not to the ocean but to skies, I eagerly scan the Internet frequently, looking for new discoveries.

Movie Break!!

Maybe it’s time for a break from reporting on the constant lies. I’ll illuminate the actions of the Obama campaign and their tools the major media later, but for now:

MOVIE REVIEWS!

“Ghost Town” - in word, charming. You’ll have to hunt for it at a megaplex, but it’s worth the effort. A ghost story that’s a romantic comedy. You’ll laugh and you’ll cry. Worth full price, which is my highest praise.

“Appaloosa” – well intentioned, great pedigree Western. But…wait for the DVD. It’s slow, and feels strangely incomplete. Strives, unsuccessfully, to add modern psychological twists to the classic Western.

“Fireproof” – the little Christian movie that could. Made for a mere $500,000, it’s a better movie-experience than the much more expensive and slick Appaloosa. It has been dismissed by the usual critics, but for this regular guy, it was very moving and sweet. Strong pro-marriage message, and very upfront about its Christian values. Also well worth full-price…and how many films can you say that about these days?

Forgiveness

Democrats can forgive anything…if the reasons are good.

They can forgive voter fraud. It’s only bad if the e-vile Republicans are doing it.

They can forgive perjury and predatory sexual behavior, as long as it’s their guy.

They can forgive racism as long as it’s committed by persons of color, since only persons of non-color can be racist.

They can forgive anything except not being a liberal Democrat.

Buried under the Lies

Boy, as the election gets closer, the lies are piling up. Certainly the lies about Sarah Palin.

Remember, too, there are three ways to lie:

1) Outright deception, falsehood. Bill Clinton: “I didn’t have sexual relations with that woman, with Miss Lewinski.”

2) Tell only part of the truth. Barack Obama: “Bill Ayers was just a guy in my neighborhood.”

And, the last, which is apparently the toughest to do well:

3) Tell the truth, but tell it so badly that no one believes you.

What’s really scary, however, is that a lot of people I hear participating in LieStyle #1 about Ms. Palin don’t care about the facts.

Yesterday, some co-workers were commenting about the Governor, and they were repeating schtick from Saturday night live. When I sent them the post from Baseball Crank, filled with untidy facts and detailed references, they continued to scoff. They didn’t care about the truth. They’d made up their minds that Sarah Palin was a joke, and that was the end of it.

I was thinking…when is it all right to lie and misrepresent? The only situation I could think of is in war. There’s a certain amount of required deception when waging a war, a lot of LieStyle #1 and LieStyle #2. We can’t tell our citizens everything we’re doing, lest the enemy learn our strategy. But the presumption is that overall, it’s for the greater good.

So, what the Left is doing makes perfect sense. They are lying, because we’re in a war.

It’s a Holy War.

Think about it. The Left and their disciples (especially the major newspapers and networks) have declared war on the rest of us, on the heretics who don’t share their beliefs, and on the apostates who have fallen from the true faith.

I bet you didn’t know we were in a war.

Now you do. And it’s time to fight back

outsourcing their compassion

As I previously noted, the Bailout/Rescue is another fine example of how Liberals/Democrats outsource their compassion. Poor people should have houses, and the banks (those darn rich people, i.e., shareholders and investors) should pay for it.

And when that grand scheme fails...guess who gets to pay for it. Yep, you and me. I don't know about you, but even when things were really grim in the Kingdom of Jiggy, the mortgage payment got made.

Of course, Chez Jiggy is a house we can afford. Our application was on the level, and, I have been blessed by the Lord to continue to advance at my job.

But, stop and think a moment: what 0ther fine, charitable, decent sounding projects have the Dems/Libs/Screaming Lefties foisted off on America that have ultimately been charged to you and me...whether we wanted it or not.

How about...No Nukes! France uses them to get the majority of their electrical power, but not us (U.S.). Cuz, you know, Joan Baez and Jackson Brown said they were bad.

Experienced any brownouts lately?

How about...Don't Drill in Anwar? Don't drill Offshore. Save the Environment! But, we're paying too much to our "friends" the Saudis. Inflate your tires! Drive less, you have too big a carbon footprint, anyway.

Yes, our friends the Democrats, are glad to look out for almost anyone except those of us who actually pay the bills.

I'm sure you can think of others.

Lies and more lies

If Barack Obama wins this election, who will write the history of his victory. Will it be come, you know, like the Orwell vision of the proles shredding inconvenient documents to rewrite the books to reflect the newest "reality?"

Will they give full credit to the unprincipled cretins of the press, who do things like this:



Today John McCain finally began to tell the country about his own efforts to regulate Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the Democrats’ incredible inaction. Yes, as many of us had urged, McCain finally talked about the economy, and the conservative blogs went nuts. Republican bloggers know that McCain has to talk about this, because the economy is the top issue concerning Americans, and McCain has a good story to tell — even if it’s one that the media has been ignoring.
Speaking of which:
How did the L.A. Times cover McCain’s stunning speech taking on this core economic concern?
By pretending McCain never said it, and by quoting Barack Obama talking about how McCain is scared to talk about the economy.

Experience and Judgement

Building on yesterday's post about experience, here's an interesting one about judgement.

http://www.city-journal.org/2008/eon0430jm.html

It's about the night some current friends of Obama tried to kill a nine-year old boy.


In February 1970, my father, a New York State Supreme Court justice, was presiding over the trial of the so-called “Panther 21,” members of the Black Panther Party indicted in a plot to bomb New York landmarks and department stores. Early on the morning of February 21, as my family slept, three gasoline-filled firebombs exploded at our home on the northern tip of Manhattan, two at the front door and the third tucked neatly under the gas tank of the family car. (Today, of course, we’d call that a car bomb.) A neighbor heard the first two blasts and, with the remains of a snowman I had built a few days earlier, managed to douse the flames beneath the car. That was an act whose courage I fully appreciated only as an adult, an act that doubtless saved multiple lives that night.



This was back in the 70's, so I guess it doesn't matter now. Even though the main perp, Bill Ayers, said this about his activities then:

But listen to Ayers interviewed in the New York Times on September 11, 2001, of all days: “I don’t regret setting bombs. I feel we didn’t do enough.” Translation: “We meant to kill that judge and his family, not just damage the porch.” When asked by the Times if he would do it all again, Ayers responded: “I don’t want to discount the possibility.”


Barack Obama has consistently downplayed the influence such people have had on his life. As the writer (the nine-year old boy who managed not be be killed by Ayers and his fellow terrorists) points out, what does it say about Obama's judgement, and his world view, that he sought out such people as friends, supporters, and mentors?

That may be Change He Can Believe In, but is it Change That We Need?

Well, they did ask...

A friend asked me why Sarah Palin was qualified to be Vice-President.



This long, detailed post tells you almost everything you might want to know. Follow the links embedded, lots of details and specifics about Ms. Palin's life and her actions as govenor.



It's only the first part of series, by the way, that will go on to compare McCain/Palin's integrity vs. Obama/Biden.



Finally, when my friend asked, Why is Sarah Palin qualified to be Vice-President, I had to bite my tongue to keep from responding, "Why is Barack Obama qualified to be President?"

Ways of Looking

There are two ways to look at a problem.

One is to say, "Who's fault is it?" That seems to be more about blame.

Another way is to ask, "What happened." That is more about fixing an issue and assigning responsibility.

So, if we want to know what happened to create the current financial crisis, we have to resist the urge to shriek, in our best Democrat fashion, "It's George Bush's fault!"

We have to ask, instead, like adults, "What happened."

Read here for a view of what happened. Simply put...compassion started it (as Liberals often do), and immoral capitalism took it and ran it into the ground.

There's plenty of responsibility to go around.

Focus

Received an email from an old acquaintance. She'd sent me a long screed about McCain/Palin as the Marlboro Man ticket.

I took the time to send her some of Stanley Kurtz' writing about Obama, Ayers, etc., which I quoted in an earlier post.

Her response: "I'd like to see this guy say something about why Palin is qualified to be Vice President."

Very interesting. Ms. Palin, with more actual governing experience than Barack Obama, is the issue. If she's not qualified to be Vice President, in what way is Mr. Obama qualified to be President?

That question can't be answered by the Barackobots. Because the answer is "None."

My friend and I have agreed to politely disagree.

VP Debate Moderator Wrote Pro-Obama book

They have got to be kidding.

The “Moderator” of the sole Vice-Presidential debate this Thursday has written a Pro-Obama book that is scheduled for release next January.

There are so many questions that need to the asked, one doesn’t know where to start.

How about the Moderator? It would seem if she had a shred of principle, she would decline to participate.

How about the rabid left? Would they be happy if the author of “Obama-Nation” were to run the next Presidential debate? Think they would see that as fair to their candidate?

Nobama 08

Blog Burst: Nobama08- The Ayers Connection

I'm stealing part of this post from an actress who writes a blog called "Confessions of a Closet Republican."

Please read the whole link above. Here's the money shot:

Stanley Kurtz is a journalist and senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. Mr. Kurtz’ article in the Wall Street Journal explains why Barack Obama is untrustworthy for the office of the President of the United States . He lacks integrity … and if it is one thing we do not need in the White House, it is yet another dishonest politician.Mr. Kurtz writes:


Despite having authored two autobiographies, Barack Obama has never written about his most important executive experience. From 1995 to 1999, he led an education foundation called the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC), and remained on the board until 2001. The group poured more than $100 million into the hands of community organizers and radical education activists.The CAC was the brainchild of Bill Ayers, a founder of the Weather Underground in the 1960s. Among other feats, Mr. Ayers and his cohorts bombed the Pentagon, and he has never expressed regret for his actions. Barack Obama's first run for the Illinois State Senate was launched at a 1995 gathering at Mr. Ayers's home.The Obama campaign has struggled to downplay that association. LastApril, Sen. Obama dismissed Mr. Ayers as just "a guy who lives in myneighborhood," and "not somebody who I exchange ideas with on a regular basis." Yet documents in the CAC archives make clear that Mr. Ayers and Mr. Obama were partners in the CAC. Those archives are housed in the Richard J. Daley Library at the University of Illinois at Chicago and I've recently spent days looking through them.The Chicago Annenberg Challenge was created ostensibly to improve Chicago 's public schools. The funding came from a national education initiative by Ambassador Walter Annenberg. In early 1995, Mr. Obama was appointed the first chairman of the board, which handled fiscal matters. Mr. Ayers co-chaired the foundation's other key body, the "Collaborative," which shaped education policy.The CAC's basic functioning has long been known, because its annual reports, evaluations and some board minutes were public. But the Daley archive contains additional board minutes, the Collaborative minutes, and documentation on the groups that CAC funded and rejected. The Daley archives show that Mr. Obama and Mr. Ayers worked as a team to advance the CAC agenda.One unsettled question is how Mr. Obama, a former community organizer fresh out of law school, could vault to the top of a new foundation? In response to my questions, the Obama campaign issued astatement saying that Mr. Ayers had nothing to do with Obama's "recruitment" to the board. The statement says Deborah Leff and Patricia Albjerg Graham (presidents of other foundations) recruited him. Yet the archives show that, along with Ms. Leff and Ms. Graham, Mr. Ayers was one of a working group of five who assembled the initial board in 1994. Mr. Ayers founded CAC and was its guiding spirit. No one would have been appointed the CAC chairman without his approval.The CAC's agenda flowed from Mr. Ayers's educational philosophy, which called for infusing students and their parents with a radical political commitment, and which downplayed achievement tests in favor of activism. In the mid-1960s, Mr. Ayers taught at a radical alternative school, and served as a community organizer in Cleveland 's ghetto.In works like "City Kids, City Teachers" and "Teaching the Personal and the Political," Mr. Ayers wrote that teachers should be community organizers dedicated to provoking resistance to American racism and oppression. His preferred alternative? "I'm a radical, Leftist, small 'c' communist," Mr. Ayers said in an interview in Ron Chepesiuk's, "Sixties Radicals," at about the same time Mr. Ayers was forming CAC.CAC translated Mr. Ayers's radicalism into practice. Instead of funding schools directly, it required schools to affiliate with "external partners," which actually got the money. Proposals from groups focused on math/science achievement were turned down. Instead, CAC disbursedmoney through various far-left community organizers, such as the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (or Acorn).Mr. Obama once conducted "leadership training" seminars with Acorn, and Acorn members also served as volunteers in Mr. Obama's early campaigns. External partners like the South Shore African Village Collaborative and the Dual Language Exchange focused more on political consciousness, Afrocentricity, and bilingualism thantraditional education. CAC's in-house evaluators comprehensively studied the effects of its grants on the test scores of Chicago public-school students. They found no evidence of educational improvement.CAC also funded programs designed to promote "leadership" among parents. Ostensibly this was to enable parents to advocate on behalf of their children's education. In practice, it meant funding Mr. Obama's alma mater, the Developing Communities Project, to recruit parents to its overall political agenda. CAC records show that board member Arnold Weber was concerned that parents "organized" by community groups might be viewed by school principals "as a political threat." Mr. Obama arranged meetings with the Collaborative to smooth out Mr. Weber's objections.The Daley documents show that Mr. Ayers sat as an ex-officio member of the board Mr. Obama chaired through CAC's first year. He also served on the board's governance committee with Mr. Obama, and worked with him to craft CAC bylaws. Mr. Ayers made presentations to board meetings chaired by Mr. Obama. Mr. Ayers spoke for the Collaborative before the board. Likewise, Mr. Obama periodically spoke for the board at meetings of the Collaborative.The Obama campaign notes that Mr. Ayers attended only six board meetings, and stresses that the Collaborative lost its "operational role" at CAC after the first year. Yet the Collaborative was demoted to a strictly advisory role largely because of ethical concerns, since the projects of Collaborative members were receiving grants. CAC's own evaluators noted that project accountability was hampered by the board's reluctance to break away from grant decisions made in 1995. So even after Mr. Ayers's formal sway declined, the board largely adhered to the grant program he had put in place.Mr. Ayers's defenders claim that he has redeemed himself with public-spirited education work. That claim is hard to swallow if you understand that he views his education work as an effort to stoke resistance to an oppressive American system. He likes to stress that he learned of his first teaching job while in jail for a draft-board sit-in. For Mr. Ayers, teaching and his 1960s radicalism are two sides of the same coin.Mr. Ayers is the founder of the "small schools" movement (heavily funded by CAC), in which individual schools built around specific political themes push students to "confront issues of inequity, war, and violence." He believes teacher education programs should serve as "sites of resistance" to an oppressive system. (His teacher-training programs were also CAC funded.) The point, says Mr. Ayers in his "Teaching Toward Freedom," is to "teach against oppression," against America 's history of evil and racism, thereby forcing social transformation.The Obama campaign has cried foul when Bill Ayers comes up, claiming "guilt by association." Yet the issue here isn't guilt by association; it's guilt by participation. As CAC chairman, Mr. Obama was lending moral and financial support to Mr. Ayers and his radical circle. That is a story even if Mr. Ayers had never planted a single bomb 40 years ago.To say Mr. Obama is not ready for the presidency is a gross understatement. It is not simply that he lacks experience … it is also that he repudiates traditional American values and culture by embracing Marxist ideology, has been an acolyte of black racist theology, cuddled up with the anarchist activism of Saul Alinski, and even worse … the man is simply and irrevocably dishonest. There is nothing about Barack Obama that may cause us to think he honors American tradition, or shares with us our time-honored values. Significantly, a man who works to undermine our education system through socialist engineering is a man who seeks to destroy America .


Lord Jiggy here: How much of this have your heard about in the Mainstream Media?

Problems, Bailouts, and etc.

Been busy lately...work, AdventureBoy, and we rescued a puppy from doom. Just weeks ago we took in a stray cat. Both nice animals, but the puppy needs to be housebroken. The miscreants known as my step-kids aren't, shall we say, motivated to do what needs to be done to train the puppy, so a lot of my time not at work and being Dadman or training for the Ironman is spent trying to give the puppy the idea. Of course, the idiots also known as my step-kids don't pay attention to what the puppy does, so he's not learning the lesson that Outside is the place to poop, and inside is the place to be nice.

Not learning the lesson. That kind of seques into my thoughts for today.

The Bailout.

Don't forget, the Democrats started us on this road. They had the best intentions...but that is where Liberals often screw the pooch. They look at "the way life ought to be," instead of accepting the way it really is, and going from there.

The Way Life Ought to Be is that everyone should have a house.

The Way Life Is, is that when you give people something they have not earned, they don't appreciate it. This was palably demonstrated with Welfare Housing, over and over. People didn't own it, and they didn't care, and public housing quickly sprawled into unlivable chaos.

We also see The Way Life Is in the no-interest loans that in many ways are at the root of the current problem. Again, the Democrats pushed these bills which forced banks to give loans to people who may not have been qualified. Now that people are defaulting on loans they never should have been given, financial dominos are falling.

And, strangely, the Democrats are looking to us to pay for their good intentions.

That's a very persistent trait of Liberals. They want to out-source their compassion. Conservatives give more to charity, putting their money where their own mouth is.

Liberals want everyone to contribute. They have their own ideas about what should be done, compassionately, and they want everyone to pay for those ideas.

Again, see the Bailout. They wanted everyone to have a house...and now you and I are paying for their compassion.

Seeing/Hearing Only What We Want to See/Hear

I don't know about you all, but I only had time for part of the debates. I tended to like John McCain's presentation/answers, and to not trust Barack Obama's.

But I'm already a McCain supporter. I'll take guts over glitz. John McCain has made choices and stood up for principles that cost him both personally (see how he can't raise his hands above his shoulders...beatings from his Viet Cong captors) and politically (he's voted against the party often enough that a lot of Republicans don't trust him). I don't know the details of the sacrifices Obama has made personally and politically, but I'm willing to bet a paycheck they don't come anywhere near McCain's.

I'll effectiveness over eloquence. McCain has been against spending my money for his political gain, as in the invideous practice of earmarks. Senator Obama has no such compunctions about spending my money if it will garner him some votes down the line.

It was interesting, however, to read responses to the debate on either side. The conservatives thought that McCain took it. Liberals felt Obama carried the day.

Both sides saw what they wanted to see.

The closer we get to the election, the harder it will be to see clearly.

But, speaking of seeing clearly, check out this unflattering video from Youtube (courtesy of The Anchoress). It shows, very clearly, that Democrats were lovin' their Fannie and Freddie a few years ago, when the e-vile Republicans were trying to get some oversight.

Many of those same Dems will try, hard, to pin this on President Bush, and, as Obama called it, "...eight years of failed policies."

Remember...Congress makes the laws. Those buffoons passed the laws...all the laws. The President can sign or veto them...but the buffoons have ways of putting poison pills into the laws (riders, earmarks, other squirrely crap) that put a President in the position of vetoing a good or useful act to keep sneaky junk from getting into the system.

The President can propose...but Congress (the Senate and the House of Representatives) legislate.

It's on them.

Remember that when Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama (a Senator, oddly enough) try to blame the President for the failure and the required Bailout.

Where is the Democrat's William Bennett?

Remember back in the 90's, when Bill Clinton was President?

There were a group of rightwing nutjobs who were putting out the story that "Bill Clinton Killed People in Arkansas!" The details are vague, since I never paid much attention to it. A quick Google search turns up the usual websites with insinuation and outright accusation.

When these nutty charges became more widely distributed, William Bennett, no friend of the Clintons or their administration, stepped up, and said, very publicly, "These accusations are beyond the pale."

Like somebody out of a Samuel Beckett play, I'm waiting (without much hope) for some brave and well-known Democrat to stand up and say "What's being done to Sarah Palin is beyond the pale. The attacks, the slurs, the slanders, the invasion of her privacy, the hacking of her personal emails...this is unacceptable and demeaning to our Party and our Country."

I'll let you know when that Donkey-riding Godot shows up.

Hollywood and W, and O

You might not have heard, but Oliver Stone is getting ready to release his film about President Bush, called “W.” I haven’t seen the film, but I have my suspicions.

This seems like the time to pitch my Obama opus called “The Hope of Audacity: America gets the Big O she deserves!”

It’s an American success story, with brave Barry overcoming the racists at every step of the way!

Starring:
Chris Tucker as “Barack Obama”
Tyler Perry as “Michelle Obama”
Gilbert Gottfried as “Joe Biden”
Tyler Perry as “Hillary Clinton”

Featuring:
Dennis Farina as “Anthony (Buckets o’ Cash) Rezko”
Nick Nolte as “Bill (The Bomber) Ayers”
Jim Varney and Polly Holliday as “Bitter Gun Clinger and Bitter Bible Clinger”

With special appearances by:
Barbara Streisand, Lindsey Lohan, Margaret Cho, and Sarah Bernhardt as “The Muses – Faith, Hope, Charity, and Tiffani.”


Since my script is based on those fine, balanced, and unpartisan books “Obama Nation” and “The Case Against Barack Obama,” you can be guaranteed my film will walk the fine balance between satire and slander with the grace of a ballerina on crystal meth.

I tell ya, it’ll kill.

New Days

Here's a thought:

When did you stop waking up in the morning, looking forward to whatever new thing life was going to bring you?

I was reading a memoir ("Sky of Stone," by Homer Hickam, writer of "October Sky" -- great book and movie, by the way), and he talked about being a boy and how every day was new.

I haven't felt that way in a while.

Is that true for you?

Assumptions

One thing we have to do, if we are to be conscious human beings, is to question our assumptions.

When Barack Obama said, "My grandmother was a typical white person...", a lot of heads were nodding in agreement. They knew what he meant. She was a typical white person, casually racist without realizing it.

Now if I were to say, "Barack Obama is a typical black man...", would the heads be nodding, or the fingers waving? The assumption then would be that I am a vile racist, that I'm impuning the character of that fine man by suggesting there is such a thing as a typical black man, and, further the assumption is that I'd have nothing good to say about a typical black man.

Assumptions. They're the filters that we use to view the world.

I mean, in my heart of hearts, I want to rip the n--- off Barack Obama. And I worry when I see a group of black teenagers walking toward me at night.

Some of my liberal friends would let their assumptions lead them to the conclusion I was a bit racist, eh?

But, wait. I didn't say either of those things. Jesse Jackson did.

And for Liberals, Jesse Jackson comes with an entirely different set of assumptions.

I guess it's okay, then.

Racism in the Race?

One poll, which was getting a lot of coverage, suggests that racism could cost Obama the race. They even went as far as saying he could be up by 6 points if it weren't for those lurking racists in the woodpile.

Deep-seated racial misgivings could cost Barack Obama the White House if the election is close, according to an AP-Yahoo News poll that found one-third of white Democrats harbor negative views toward blacks — many calling them "lazy," "violent," responsible for their own troubles.

...On the other side of the racial question, the Illinois Democrat is drawing almost unanimous support from blacks, the poll shows, though that probably wouldn't be enough to counter the negative effect of some whites' views.

And the expected huge turn out of black voters. Those who are voting FOR Obama because he's (when convenient) black are what...members of his college fraternity?

This is half your country on White Liberal Guilt: Two white scumbag thugs attack a disabled black man, drag him to his death. Liberals say "This proves America is still racist." Conservatives say "What a heinous crime, string the two bastards up."

Four black thugs abduct, torture, rape, and kill two white kids. Liberals say: "SOUND OF SILENCE, nothing to see here, keep moving until we find more evidence of white racism somewhere else." Conservatives say, "What a heinous crime, string the bastards up." At which point Liberals say, "Oh, no, more evidence of white racism."

That's the kind of Doubly Standard Procedure that makes a Libertarian/Republican like myself scream in frustration.

If a white person does something vile, it's a sign of the deep-rooted racism in America.

If a person of color does something equally vile...well, we don't discuss that, it can't possibly be racist or a hate crime. Because, by definition, hate crimes are only performed by White People.

Racism comes, if you'll pardon the expression, in many colors. When that is honestly addressed by the Left, then perhaps we can have an honest dialogue in this country about race and its ultimate meaninglessness.

Tempted to Hatred

So, why the incendiary hatred (and there is no other word for it) for Sarah Palin?

You skim any story about Ms. Palin, and the comments tend to devolve into the most vile statements and outright twisted fantasy.

Somebody once said the other side of anger is fear.

They fear Sarah Palin, because of what her life says about the validity of their own beliefs, and about how they truly live their own beliefs.

I mean, look at the feminist assaults on her. It’s illogical, if you take feminists at their word: a woman is the equal of a man.

Sarah Palin decided to take on an entrenched male power structure, and on her own merits, SHE DEFEATED THE EVIL PATRIARCHY. She did it on guts, hard work, moxie, and her own native intelligence. She was not eased into the Governor’s chair through affirmative action; she wasn’t a token or window dressing. She did it on her own merits as a human being.

Logically, one might expect feminists to embrace her. She was not carpet-bagging junior Senator who had a very famous and Left-popular last name (well…sometimes the junior Senator had the popular last name, it depended…). She was a Feminist Philosophic Ideal Made Real.

But, she’s not the Right Kind of Real Feminist. With her evangelical religion, and her strong pro-life stance, her very real Feminist Achievements count for naught.

I think that’s where the anger comes in. Sarah Palin was a success without them. She, in fact, chose not to be a victim and blame The System/The Man/Whitey/Capitalists for her lack of success and her lack of internal happiness.

And that makes the KosKlownsKrowd (today’s new KKK) very frightened. Because they might have to take a closer look at their cherished notions about The System/The Man/Whitey/Capitalists/Republicans/Conservatives in the light of new information. They might have to own up to the sexism in their ranks. They might have to, you know, change their ideas.

That’s very threatening to their self-image. Remember, people will live up to their self-image. A gang-banger thinks he’s gotta be the baddest dude around, of course he’s going to shoot someone for disrespecting him. A social worker thinks he is on the earth to help people, of course he’s going try to help a stranger.

The KosKlownsKrowd’s self image is based on a lot of self-righteousness, and the whole, “Aren’t I a rebel, speaking truth to power.”

And Sarah Palin is standing there telling them, “I don’t need you to speak to power for me. I have already taken a lot of action on my own behalf.”

She did it without them. Hence the hate.