John Bolton paying dividends.

The UN Security Council passed a 'statement' condemning Hezbollah for a cross-border attack on Israel.

I love the pull quote from the article.

When asked what changed from Monday to Wednesday, one diplomatic official replied: "John Bolton," a reference to the US ambassador to the UN. Bolton lobbied vigorously for the passage of the statement.

Let's not bake the UN a pie just yet, it is still only a statement. They seem to be very big on those. The UN must have a lot of official looking stationary to issue 'statements' on.

Too bad the paper isn't backed up by anything, but its a start.

Sin City? Not on my watch.

I am going to Las Vegas to personally clean up that den of iniquity, one block at a time.
On second thought, I may not have enough savings for bail after the first week. I believe I have just enough to clean up about 6 pi gow tables at Harras before I am incarcerated beyond my ability to post bond.

Well, while I am there, I guess I will fall back to plan B. The National Finals Rodeo is held in Vegas every year and I have been told it is a hoot. The trip is a gift from the Yolo Cowgirl on the occasion of my fortieth birthday.

If there is a low grade riot on the strip next week, you will know its me.

Pepper spray is for sissies, you better have a tazer coppers!

Tim Russert looking for his Walter Cronkite moment

Walter Cronkite, for those of you not as old as my Jeep, was the trusted voice of American Journalism in the 1960s and 70s. After the TET offensive in 68' looked into the camera said -

I think that it is time for us to face the facts in Vietnam--that we are in a no-win situation and it is time for us to get out ... We came here with the best of intentions--and we failed.

Thanks for your strategic military assessment General Cronkite, don't mind that we took the best sucker punch Ho Chi Min could throw at us and beat him back. If you never heard that TET was a victory, its not a shock, the media was so anti-war by 68, anything less than Ho walking up to the CBS studio in Manhattan and surrendering would have been seen as a US failure.

Now it seems with Bush's poll numbers low, its time to start throwing dirt on the coffin of the Bush Doctrine. Watching Meet the Press today, one could not help but think that we have lost the war in Iraq, and not just lost, but totally failed. Russert assembled the burial party of David Broder, David Gregory, Eugene Robinson & Judy Woodruff, and they brought their shovels. Where is the balance Tim? Differing views, spirited debate, the free exchange of ideas, naw, we got a war to loose.

Listening to the panel discuss the best face the administration should put on the troop withdrawals that will be coming up 2006 is sickening. No mention of winning, no mention of schools open, hospitals open, oil production coming back on line, free Iraqis, Saddam sitting in jail, Syria pulling out of Lebanon, Libya turning over its nuclear weapons program, nope, just talk of the low-grade civil war that will continue until we pull out. Not only do they want you to think we are loosing, they want you to think we have lost. It's a done deal.

Were is Dan Rather when you need him? If he were still in the anchor chair at CBS, he would be heading to Iraq this week to stand outside the Palestine Hotel in a bullet-proof vest, to tell the nation-

I think that it is time for us to face the facts in Iraq--that we are in a no-win situation and it is time for us to get out ... We came here with the best of intentions--and we failed.

Abramoff, the black plague of the GOP, ensnares a local.

Will it be Grand Jury time for Rep. John Doolittle or just an amended FEC disclosure form and a slap on the wrist? It seems as though the story contradicts itself in two paragraphs.

Doolittle's name surfaced in the probe when the Washington Post reported late last year that the eight-term congressman from Roseville- a Mormon and staunch opponent of casino gambling - used Abramoff's luxury sports box in a Washington arena to host a fundraiser and then failed to report its value, as required by law.

he Post pointed to Doolittle's use of Abramoff's skybox as an example of how the lobbyist used such perks to cultivate connections with influential lawmakers as he sought to further the interests of Native American clients who owned casinos. Doolittle subsequently paid back Abramoff's firm for the use of the skybox and reported it on federal disclosure records.

So which is it? Did he report the use of the skybox or not? If he did, was it after the deadline? What gives?
Abramoff, the gift that just keeps on giving,,,,,to the Democrats.

Al Jazeera - a target for US Bombers?

It seems there is a buz in London about a leaked memo reportedly claiming that the US wanted to bomb Al Jazeera.

Tony Blair yesterday branded as a "conspiracy theory" claims that a leaked memo has revealed plans by President George W Bush last year to bomb the Arabic television station al-Jazeera.

People who have seen the document say the real reason that it is being suppressed by the Government is because it contains a potentially damaging private discussion between the two leaders about the controversial United States attack on the Iraqi city of Fallujah last year.

The Downing Street memo part2, we will see.

What controversy about Fallujah? I would have turned that town into a parking lot, paved it over and converted it to an Air Force base.

Can't we all just get along?

TP to Lucianne

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

As you look around the table today, ready to enjoy the meal, take a second to remember those families with empty chairs around their table. Those families who have loved ones deployed in the middle east will look toward that chair in hope and longing for the day when it will be filled again. For those who look toward that chair and know it will never be filled again, the grief can only be assuaged by the love of those around them.

I think of CHP Officer Stevens widow today. I can only imagine the love and support her extended family must be giving her. It will be a difficult day in many homes across our land. Loss takes many forms, illness, accident and tragedy are all part of our life.

Today, take a second to look into the faces of those around you, enjoy them, even if they are a pain in the butt.

Today I give thanks to God for all the blessings in my life.
Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends in the Western Alliance, and all our readers.

Murthac the Magnificent!

Wazzadem strikes again.

Scroll down to the Mary Mapes interview with Comic Book guy, and the stick figure interviews are great too.

Funny, funny stuff.

Thanksgiving has come along way.

Thanksgiving, what does it mean to you? What images come to mind?

Is it large inflatable cartoon balloons being guided down 5th Avenue as the turkey gets put into the oven. Dallas and Detroit playing football on a welcome day off? Rubbing your belly after eating entirely too much? Or is it checking out the sales adds and making an itinerary to follow for Friday's shopping?

Like most holidays in America we emphasize the 'what' at the expense of the 'why'.
Why do we celebrate Thanksgiving? Something to do with Indians and Pilgrims, right?

Not really. Here is the original proclamation, written by one of those dead white guys you don't hear much about, George Washington. Do they still teach about George in public schools? More than likely, it goes something like this - George Washington was the first President of the United States, and he owned slaves. The end.

City of New York, October 3, 1789

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and Whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanks-giving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th. day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all the People, by constantly being a government of wise, just and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

Michael Newdow would have kittens if the President gave that exact speech today.

The Racial Slur Database.

I am not at all sure of the reason one might ever need a racial slur database, but rest assured, it exists. Browsing through the list I did find one that made me laugh. The word Democrat is a racial slur used against blacks?
Who makes up the list? Is it official? Can I get offended when someone calls me a portagee- bog trotting -surrender monkey?

I probably wouldn't, it's not a very effective taunt.

Hat Tip ABP.

I think I'll have another.

Just exactly just how drunk do you have to be to do this.

A drunken French tourist with a fear of flying tried to open an Australia-bound jet passenger door in mid-flight to have a cigarette, a Brisbane court has heard. Sadrine Helene Sellies, 34, was placed on a good behaviour bond after pleading guilty in the Brisbane Magistrates Court yesterday to endangering the safety of an aircraft.

I may just carry a few large zip-ties the next time I fly.

Sit down frog before I tie you to your seat!

Dead Cat Alley goes artsy fartsy.

For anyone who can not find a parking space on Main Street in Woodland, you can always backtrack up Dead Cat Alley to try again. People who see the street signs for the first time chuckle and say ' you've got to be kidding me '

Nope. Dead Cat Alley is as tacky as Woodland is, but some people can't leave well enough alone.
Woodland is trying to throw off it's rather unrefined image for one a little more cultural and artistically aware. Good luck with that yall'

Gay also would like to incorporate public art in both Dead Cat Alley and Dog Gone Alley. Four historic markers, four ceramic cats and one trademark metal cat are now in place in different locations on Dead Cat Alley with nine more ceramic cats to be put in place between now and May.

The cats now in position are perched on rooftops and rafters, the creation of artist Gary Dinnen. Dinnen has been commissioned to complete the set as part of the Woodland Art Center's Dead Cat Alley Nine Lives Project and its Art in Public Places program. The life-size ceramic cats are also partially funded by the Community Development Block Grant program.

The artist said he wants people to smile when they unexpectedly come across one of his cats - like the devil cat with horns that can be seen on the patio behind Ludy's Main Street BBQ, perched in the rafter at 666 Dead Cat Alley.

PETA should open an office there.
666 Dead Cat Alley, Woodland CA would look great on their stationary.

Just a rumor right now, but...

Al-Zarqawi May Be Among Dead in Iraq Fight.
BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. forces sealed off a house in the northern city of Mosul where eight suspected al-Qaida members died in a gunfight — some by their own hand to avoid capture. A U.S. official said Sunday that efforts were under way to determine if terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was among the dead.

If true, it could take the wind out of the insurgency, at least for a time.

Democrats unveil their Iraq strategy.

I couldn't resist, it's Saturday night.
Stolen from Stuckonstupid blog.

The faces and stories of the Duce Four.

Well done gentlemen. Michael Yon comes home to honor the fallen, and celebrate with those he stood beside in battle.

Here are the faces and families of "the troops" that everyone talks about.
If you look at these proud young American faces and see, civilian murdering, torturing, occupiers in those photos, I truly feel pity for you.

The Weblog Awards 2005 - a shameless plug

I urge all my loyal readers ( that means you Mom ) to nominate the Roughstock Journal as best blog in the 501 - 1000 category, I think I am # 697 at Truth Laid Bear .

The more nominations the better I guess.

PS, Mom, I'll call more often if you do.

Memo to House Democrats - America smells what you are shoveling.

I love the mock indignation that Democratic members of the House are bathing in tonight. How dare the Republicans make them vote on what they keep saying the President should do. If it's such a great idea, vote for the immediate withdrawal of our troops. Cindy Sheehan and all the folks in the fever-swamp left with the "bring them home now" bumper stickers may give you two thumbs up, but the rest of America, or at least an overwhelming majority, will start boiling the tar and plucking the chickens.

Surrender may be acceptable to the French and the anti-war crowd, but the stakes are too high to quit now when real progress is being made in Iraq. You may not hear about it in the press, but think about it. If I told you on September 12, 2001 that by November 2005, the Taliban would be crushed and out of power in Afghanistan, most of the top al qaeda leadership would be dead or in custody, Saddam is sitting in a Baghdad jail awaiting trail, the Iraqi people have voted in huge numbers for an interim government, a constitution, and will be hold election in a month for permanent democratic government, all for the precious price of 2000 dead, most of you would take that deal. Oh and as a bonus, no terrorist attacks in 50 months here on our soil.

A tragedy in Yolo County.

Today around 2:30 PM California Highway Patrol officer Andy Stevens made what he thought would be a routine traffic stop, tragically it would be his last.

I was pouring concrete all afternoon and when I turned on the radio for the drive home, I heard the story. At the same time I passed two Yolo County Sheriff units patrolling road 98 south of Woodland. The response from the law enforcement community was swift and overwhelming. On my 24 mile drive home, all on back roads, I passed at least 12 law enforcement units from every department around the area.

The CHP has an office in Woodland at Road 102 and I-5. Many of the Woodland City Police and Yolo County Sheriff's deputies know Officer Stevens and I am sure there will be a large turn out for his memorial service. All the turf fights, politics and petty conflicts that arise whenever you have three agencies operating out of one small town, will be put to rest as the law enforcement community comes together to honor their fallen brother. The blue line is a tight family.

I have a few friends in law enforcement and it amazes me that they do what they do. Other than being on the front line in Iraq or Afghanistan, I think the police have the hardest job. Dealing with us, the public, who are never in the best mood when getting stopped for a violation, and having to deal with criminals who would just as soon shoot you to keep from going back to prison. Your job is to distinguish between the two while not turning every traffic violation into a felony stop.

I did not know Andy Stevens, but I feel a loss. The spokesman for the CHP Valley division, Chief Stan Perez said Officer Stevens was one of his very best.

My prayers go tonight to Mrs. Stevens and Andy's family.

Am I crazy?

You may answer that with a big Youbetcha, but I am wondering if anyone else has a problem with this.

-Mayor wants urban limit on the ballot

By Elisabeth Sherwin/Enterprise staff writer

WOODLAND - About 50 people turned out on a windy Monday night to learn more about Matt Rexroad's urban limit line initiative, which is likely to appear on the June ballot......

Reach Elisabeth Sherwin at gizmo@dcn.org

The story she filed was a piece on the Urban Limit Line proposed by Matt Rexroad in Woodland.

Maybe I am taking this the wrong way, it is refreshing to see the bias the reporter brings to the story spelled out for the reader to see in her email address.
If this were the norm, I would not be surprised by these email addresses-

drather@moveon.org
trussert@dnc.org
cmatthews@drafthillary.com

Do you have any to add?

Lead, follow, or get the hell out of the way.

Bill Frist should resign as Senate Majority Leader. If Frist does not have the courage to stand by his party and his President, we don't need him. More to the point, we cannot afford to have him in a position of power. It well past the time for the good doctor to grow a spine.

Senator Tom Coburn gave a great insight into the thinking that went on behind the scenes on today's shameful vote in the Senate. In a great interview with Hugh Hewitt, Coburn calls Frist to account.

HH: So now, given...if you see John Warner in the hall tonight, Dr. Coburn, what are you going to say to him?
TC: It's really Frist. It's not John Warner. It's really Frist.
HH: Explain.
TC: This is a leadership thing that was put forward to counter the amendment by the Democrats. And it's one of those unfortunate things when you say well, we'll take the lesser of two evils, when you should have stood up and said we're not offering an alternative. We think this is wrong. We should have stood up and spoke on it. But that wasn't the case.
HH: All right. You know what? I've got to correct the record. John Thune voted against this, too. I misread that, and I'm so glad to hear that. Why is it only the freshmen are getting this? Not only, but mostly. It was you and DeMint and Burr... TC: Because we're connected to the American people.
HH: That's interesting. Explain that.
TC: And the longer you're in Washington, the less connected you are.

Old friends and old times.

This Saturday night I attended the Fall Dinner hosted by the Yolo County Cattlemen's and Woolgrowers Association in the thriving metropolis of Zamora Ca. Zamora is little more than a off-ramp on I-5 with a stop-and-rob market, a town hall and the local volunteer fire station. The event is a great time to meet the local ranchers and farmers, have a New York steak dinner and drink as much as you can for $30. I have long since given up on the drinking part, so they make a little more profit on me, this is offset to a great degree by some of my friends.

It is also a chance to catch up with some people I haven't seen in years. Having lived in, out, then back in Yolo County for the past 23 years, I have met many friends over the years, but as things change, I kept close with only a handful. I'm sure you have had similar experiences, when you are single, and out every weekend, you meet a lot of people. As you settle down and stay home, your circle of friends tend to get whittled down. Not that the others have done something wrong, you just loose touch as you move around, change jobs or get married.

I ran into a few of my old friends, and as conversations often do, they turned to the old days. We laughed about the fun times we had and crazy things we did. We exchanged phone numbers and promised to keep in touch. Someone suggested we get together for a poker game some night, and everyone agreed. It sounds like fun.

A word of caution about 'the good ol'days', you can get caught up in a reckless pursuit of those times. Someone once told me that you can waste you life chasing after the good times you had by constantly trying to relive them. I agree.

I think back to fall evening sitting around a fire at a deer camp with two of my best friends after a successful day of hunting. The sunset was a wonderful mixture of oranges and purples and we sat back in our folding chairs sipping bourbon and just letting that day wash over us. That was a perfect day. A day that we couldn't recreate if tried a hundred times. The trick, I have found out, is to recognize those times as they are happening.

Life is what you make of my friends, life is happening right now, let it happen and find those perfect moments.

Good news for the GOP?

Say it aint so.

After a month of unrelenting bad new, could there be a glimmer of hope?
The RNC is kicking the crap out of Howard Dean and the DNC in the fund raising arena. Two to one.

The former Vermont governor and presidential candidate took the chairmanship of the national party eight months ago, riding the enthusiasm of grass-roots activists who relished his firebrand rhetorical style. But he faced widespread misgivings from establishment Democrats, including elected officials and Washington operatives, who questioned whether Dean was the right fit in a job that traditionally has centered on fundraising and the courting of major donors.

Now, the latest financial numbers are prompting new doubts. From January through September, the Republican National Committee raised $81.5 million, with $34 million remaining in the bank. The Democratic National Committee, by contrast, showed $42 million raised and $6.8 million in the bank.

The big questions is whether Dean will be in his seat as the mid term races get started in 06'. The democrats smell blood in Bush's low poll numbers and they want to strike while the iron is hot. They cannot afford to let what they see is the chance to cripple the Republicans next year and set up Hillary in the White House and democratic control of the Congress in 2008. For that to happen, they need money, lots of it. If Dean is an obstacle to that end, he will be sent packing by the Clintons and the old gaurd, who still hold the power on the left. The DNC may have been sold a bill of goods by the kook-left, who told them Howard Dean was an innovator and with his grass roots internet driven campaign savvy, the money would roll in.

Woops.

We just learned a hard lesson in what big money lies can do in a campaign here in California. If the DNC cannot flood the air with lies, they do have a fall back position, the Unions and Moveon billionaires can take up some slack.

Thanks Senator McCain.

Remember to thank a veteran today.

My friend Rich is a veteran of the Gulf War, he served on the Mighty USS Missouri. We were co-workers one time at a company that did not observe Veteran's Day. It used to drive him nuts that he was working while State and local government employees were taking a paid day off. I agreed with him, that the least an employer could do was give veterans the day off as a paid holiday. I am sure that more than a few of our co-workers would think of this an unfair to them, but then again, those kind of people go through life in a quest to find unfair treatment both real an imagined.

I have a call into Rich this morning wishing him a Happy Veteran's Day. He owns his own business and I am sure he is working hard as usual. Maybe he will get his work done early and play 18 this afternoon. I hope so. He deserves it.

If you are a veteran, I want to personally thank you for your service. If you carried a rifle and stood a post or if you drove trucks or loaded planes, you have served your nation in a way that I did not, and looking back I regret that I never did.

Remember those who served today.

A cowboy looks at 40.

I can't help but recall the line from Jimmy Buffets' song, a pirate looks at 40.

Yes I am a pirate, two hundred years too late
The cannons don't thunder, there's nothin' to plunder
I'm an over-forty victim of fate
Arriving too late, arriving too late

This weekend will mark that milestone for me. 40 years old. Forty freakin years old.

I cannot help but think of my thirtieth birthday, it seems like it was just few years ago. I was a bit wilder, had a bit more hair and whole lot less money. Looking back at what I hope is the first half of my life, it has has unfolded by decades.

It seems that your twenties is spent chasing the opposite sex, and spending most of your money on the pursuit of happiness. I spent a few greenbacks on Camaros and Coronas.

I met my wife in college, we were married in our early twenties, and neither of us went on that 'bicycle across Europe trip' that we all wish we had taken before we had responsibilities. For some, your twenties are the feeling out process for the rest of your life. Give this a try, give that a try, see what you like to do, find out what you are good at, and so on. The bare minimum for that 10 years is try not to leave your twenties with any ex-spouses and without a criminal record.

I seemed to find myself in my thirties. I had a son and started to think a little further down the road than I used to. I was very fortunate to get into network cabling and had a few very good years, and made a few bucks. My daughter was born in my mid-thirties and she seemed to finally extinguish my wild streak.

In your thirties you hope to find the one who was made for you, if you haven't all ready, and to start practicing living like a real life, honest to goodness adult. If you can get through your thirties without a bankruptcy and with the one you love, you are doing pretty good.

Then you hit your forties, I don't have clue what happens then.

Help me out on this.
Comments are more than welcomed, the are requested.

Where do we go from here?

Straight to hell on a greased pole would be the logical conclusion, but I just want to touch on a few points.

The Governor will put the cap back on his veto pen, permanently. I can't see any issue that he would veto with his election coming up in a year. He will head straight for the center. He knows one thing for a certainty, he cannot trust conservatives in California, so why fight for them?

Gay marriage? sure. Drivers licenses for illegals? Done. Just change a few words so I can claim it is not the same proposal I vetoed last year. I am the new bi-partisan Govenator!

Republicans need to get their poop in pile. (ie, get your $*!@ together)

Perfect is the enemy of good. In a perfect world, we would only have very conservative representatives, this my friends is not that world. For the base of the Republican party, Schwarzenegger was not 'our guy'. Most of us wanted McClintock, but knew he was not going to get 51% of the vote in California. So we got Arnold. From a pure policy standpoint, he has done well. Vetoed gay marriage and illegal's driver licenses and stood up to the powerful public employee unions. Not a bad record at all. We let him down.

Conservatives remind me of a professional sport team that quit playing for their coach. He isn't a players coach, I don't like his offence, I am not getting my minutes, he's not one of 'us'. Meanwhile, the coach is out there in front of the cameras, answering all the tough questions and defending his team. The players don't respect the coach, so when the team fails, they want the coach fired.

One last item before my soapbox collapses. The one item can lay at the Governors feet is the lack of a defined message from the beginning. When he ran, he said he would fix our State. We elected him, and he did some good things. Then he asked the citizens to vote for his bond to cure the patient. We did. Now he asked us to vote again for his propositions to 'really fix' the State. He went to the well one too many times.

I hope you are ready for Governor Angelides.
Think back to November 2005 when he is getting sworn in.

Election Update! I'm sleepy and going to bed soon.

Unlike the past two presidential election where I stayed up till the wee hours of the morning waiting for the official, official, double secret results, I am going to bed at my normal time tonight. I will listen to Eric Hogue in the morning to hear what passed and what did not.
I quick look at early results show -- nothing really. 78, 79 and 80 look like they are going down.

11% of precints reporting

Propositions Yes . No

73 Y Minor's Pregnancy 52.9 - 47.1

74 Y Teacher Tenure 52.1 - 47.9

75 Y Public Union Dues 56.3 - 43.7

76 N Spending/Funding 44.5 - 55.5

77 N Redistricting 47.5 - 52.5

78 N Rx Drug Discounts 43.4 - 56.6

79 N Rx Drug Rebates 37.2 - 62.8

80 N Electric Regulation 34.5 - 65.5

A fork in the road

As we learn more about the counter-terrorism raids in Australia many people hope that American efforts can be as successful in preventing another 9/11 style attack here at home. At the same time John McCain is on every television show decrying the Presidents handling of terrorists suspects. He just doesn't get it.

We are at war with radical Islam, not a signatory state of the Geneva Accords. These people are not in uniform, do not follow any military code of behavior, these are murderers who are sawing innocent human beings heads off for crying out loud. If McCain has his way, I guess that the detainees can just give their name, rank and serial number, oh that's right they don't have any rank or serial numbers or country for that matter.

For all the elites speeches and editorials written about 'we have to show the world how decent and well meaning we are' crap, we need to look at the threats that face our nation and defeat it by any means, even ones that make our liberals go squishy.

We are at fork in the road, one path is fighting terrorism without anyone dying or making the Arab street and the Europeans mad, this path is gentle slope down hill. It looks easy and inviting. The other path is a rocky path that winds up a mountain, it is a very hard path, it is filled with obstacles, pitfalls, sacrifice and will take patience to see to its end.

These paths lead to two very different places. The easy path winds up at the edge of cliff where you hope you can see the edge before you plunge to your death. The harder path ends in victory.

We have had these choices before in our history, the hard paths have their memorials, the easy path has its memorial too.

Which one will we choose?

How many calls did you receive this weekend?

Three and counting for me.

"Hello , this is the Governor, blah blah blah"
"Teachers police and firefighters are counting on you, blah blah blah"
"This is Judge Wapner, blah blah blah"

Just a few of the many 'canned' calls I have received this weekend. Do these calls work? They must, or some one is spending a few million dollars and getting little in return.

Do these 'canned' calls influence you?
Do calls from a real person influence you?

The Parisian Intafada

Ah Paris, city of lights. The very cutting edge of culture, political correctness and societal integration can't hide it's warts any longer. The city in particular, and the nation in general , is becoming a battleground between the secular French and Muslims who do not want to integrate into French society. That and 22% unemployment rate in this socialist utopia doesn't make for productive citizens. The rate grows to almost 40% in second and third generation immigrant communities. Sounds like the west bank doesn't it?

Here is the problem summed up by Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy

After a crisis cabinet meeting on Saturday, he said: "We are trying to be firm and avoid any provocation.

After 10 days of riots and over 1000 cars torched and schools burned the French Government have issued 'strong warning" to the Muslim youth.

What exactly did John Kerry hope the French would do to help us in Iraq?
They could head up the "Department of strong warnings"

I wonder when France will ask for UN peacekeepers to save the city from ruin?

Take your children outdoors this fall.

My son was exited earlier this week when his friend told him about a youth sporting clays shoot held today just up the road near Dunnigan. The event was held at Raahauge's club in the beautiful rolling hills of hungry hollow. Most of this land has been farmed for grain crops or grazing land since the turn of the century, but recently the vineyards have been gobbling up these rolling hills for wine production.

The morning was brisk and clear, just like November should be. At 7:00 we broke up into groups and headed for the shooting stations. Raahauge has a great little clays course and the kids, mostly 10 to 14 years old, started slinging lead at the little orange discs that proved to be quite elusive. 10 stations, 10 rounds per station equals a lot of sore shoulders, but most of them showed off their red marks like a merit badge.


The adults offered help and tips but did not shoot, all the clays and ammunition were provided free of charge. Some of the kids, are fantastic shooters, I would have trouble posting a better score than a few these crack shots. After a full morning of shooting lunch was ready, again no charge, and we turned back towards headquarters.

A great time was had by all. Fun and safety were stressed throughout and my son and I will be back to Raahauge's for a few pheasants and chuckers this fall.

Local politics

I have been a very busy camper as of late. My son's basketball season started on Tuesday and we have been shooting hoops and going to games most of the week. I must confess I have been posting more humorous items this week because the rest of the crew at Western Alliance have been following the special election very closely. If I find something they have missed, an unlikely event, I will post it.

My thoughts turned to the election of my local school board members. Although my children do not attend the public school here in Esparto, I am very interested in the schools, after all, I am paying for it. I dropped into a public Q and A session held last week with two of the candidates running. Janine Gnoss and Diane King sat in front of a twenty or so folks, and two current board members, to field question about topics ranging from teacher tenure to high school football. Both candidates are novices in politics and their answers showed it. They speak in generalities rather than getting into policy and procedure. While I don't know either of the two personally, I have to say Janine Gnoss will get my vote, as will her two running mates Diane King and Allison Lucero. Listening to Helen Voss, the incumbent talk about it how its impossible to do this and impossible to do that, I conclude that maybe it is not impossible, just hard and may take a fresh look and better communication with the teachers, parents, and State.

If they do a good job, I may actually send my children to the school that I am forced to pay for.

Maybe a little less bio-chemistry and more physics.

Or at least a net the size of a regulation soccer field.

Darwin nominee #2 for the year. There is a fine line between clever and stupid, this line was mile wide.

An Oxford University student was killed in a bizarre stunt after he was hurled 30 metres through the air by a human catapult, an inquest has heard. Kostydin Yankov, 19, suffered multiple injuries when he missed a safety net after being flung from a medieval-style trebuchet catapult.

First it was Dave Matthews and Sean Penn, now Greenpeace.

More proof that liberals and boats are not a good combination.

Marine park rangers in the Philippines say Greenpeace is to be fined after its flagship Rainbow Warrior II damaged a coral reef during a climate change awareness campaign.

The ship and its crew were handed a $A15,543 fine after the 55-metre motor-assisted schooner ran aground at the Tubbataha Reef Marine in the central Philippines.

Park manager Angelique Songco says the ship's bow sliced through a reef formation measuring 160 square metres.

A Greenpeace official in the Philippines describes the incident as accidental, and says it will comply with the marine park authorities' ruling.

Lest we forget. Matthews' diver and Penn's daring aquatic rescue.