Kevorkian diplomacy

I posted on the radical cleric Abu Bakar Bashir receiving 30 months for his role in provoking the Bali bombings last week. Well I have good news, I didn't save a bunch of money on my car insurance, but Bashir is getting an early release from prison!

The father of a UK Bali bombing victim says the early release of jailed militant cleric Abu Bakar Bashir will allow him to continue to spread poison.

Bashir, the alleged spiritual head of the al-Qaida-linked terrorist group Jemaah Islamiah, is one of some 53,000 inmates receiving sentence reductions to mark Indonesia's independence day on August the 17th.

He was convicted in March of conspiracy in the Bali bombings that killed 202 people, including 88 Australians and 28 Britons, and sentenced to serve 30 months.

The Supreme Court rejected his appeal earlier this year.

The father of 28-year-old Daniel Braden, from Brighton, East Sussex, was one of the victims of the attack.

He says relatives of victims will feel quite bad about the reduction, and that Bashir should remain incarcerated and not be given the oxygen of publicity to spread his poison.

Here is a thought, if you want to celebrate you nations independence day, don't release those who want to kill you.

Will Hillary Clinton meet with Cindy Sheehan?

I hope that Cindy Sheehan will become the face of the Democratic party.

I'm gonna tell them, "You get that evil maniac [the president] out here, cuz a Gold Star Mother, somebody who's blood is on his hands, has some questions for him."

And I'm gonna say, "OK, listen here, George. #1, you quit, and I demand, every time you get out there and say you're going to continue the killing in Iraq to honor the fallen heroes by continuing the mission; you say, except Casey Sheehan.' "

"And you say except for all the members of Goldstar Families for Peace' cuz we think not one drop of blood should be spilled in our families' names. You quit doing that. You don't have my permission."

And I'm gonna say, "And you tell me, what the noble cause is that my son died for." And if he even starts to say freedom and democracy' I'm gonna say, bullshit.

You tell me the truth. You tell me that my son died for oil. You tell me that my son died to make your friends rich. You tell me my son died to spread the cancer of Pax Americana, imperialism in the Middle East. You tell me that, you don't tell me my son died for freedom and democracy.

Cuz, we're not freer. You're taking away our freedoms. The Iraqi people aren't freer, they're much worse off than before you meddled in their country.

You get America out of Iraq, you get Israel out of Palestine

(massive round of applause)

And if you think I won't say bullshit to the President, I say move on, cuz I'll say what's on my mind.

Cindy can sit right next to Michael Moore at the 2008 Democratic convention. That should bring some of those red states into the democratic column. The one person in America who wants Cindy Sheehan to go back to Vacaville more than the President, is Senator Clinton.

While Hillary wants to pull the party to the center, she knows she has the left vote sewn up, she is meeting with groups like The Democratic Leadership Council. She is trying to duplicate her husband's strategy of looking center while giving a wink to the kook left. Her message to the Moveon, Code Pink kooks, don't mention my name in your attacks, but you know I've got your back.

I want to see Cindy Sheehan on Meet the Press without her handlers from Code Pink, Fenton Communications or Joe Trippi. Any fair questioning of Mrs. Sheehan would prove her undoing, she has been filled with the talking points from the kook left. Tim Russert would hand her head to her, if he chose to. I am sure she will be on Larry King this week, with her handlers. Maybe perky Katie will do a softball interview with her.

Will Cindy Sheehan become the anchor around Hillary neck? I don't think the Senator would touch her with an eleven foot pole. Hillary is too smart to for that.

This just in, Bigfoot hair is a hoax, 'chemical weapons' found in Iraq.

How will the legacy media spin this story?

U.S. troops raided a suspected insurgent chemical weapons factory in northern Iraq, finding about 1,500 gallons of dangerous substances, the U.S. military said Saturday.

I wonder if the anti-war folks will send in Sandy Burger to stuff the chemicals down his underware to hide the truth.

Oh, and the "Bigfoot" hair is from a dead bison.

A tuft of hair found near a purported sasquatch sighting in the Yukon actually came from a bison, says the Alberta scientist who tested the sample.

Slow news periods make me nervous.

I remember back to early September, 2001 and recall the stories the legacy media was reporting during a very slow news cycle.
Chandra Leavy and Gary Condit.

On 9/11 America was shaken awake by the real world, where real people want to kill us really bad.

As I look at the attention the NARAL add has caused, the media frenzy over the Code Pink Mom down in Texas, I conclude that Americans as a people have the attention span of a three year old child. The war against the wahabist, who would like nothing better than to saw your mother's head off with a rusty knife, that's old news. We want more back to back, live coverage of Natalie Holloway and the run-away bride doing her community service.

Right now, as you browse the internet in you underwear, soldiers are patrolling the streets of Iraq and Afghanistan. They are living day to day, minute by minute, serving our nation in harm's way.

Let's keep our eye on the ball. If I wake up in the morning and watch as New York or L.A. is under a terrorist attack, Cindy Sheehan will not receive another column inch of newsprint. The reporters covering Natalie Holloway, sucking down rum and Cokes on expense accounts in Aruba will be on the next plane home.

We should think about that when we stop by Starbucks tomorrow morning to get a venti latte' and a maple oat scone.

From the 'Journal of What we told you was true, isn't'

As scientist look deeper into the human genome, the discover how much they don't know. They also have to constantly revise their theories, like let's say evolution.

The classical thought was that because you and I are more complex than a jelly fish, we had evolved more genes," he said.

"That looks like it isn't the case."

He says despite the coral polyp's outwardly simple structure, its genome suggests it is biochemically very complex.

A very funny take on Hollywood celebs.

Greg Gutfeld strikes again.

FACTS YOU ARE UNAWARE OF:
Since the war on terror began, thousands of intensely patriotic celebrities have been desperately trying to join the armed services to defend the US.
BECAUSE THEY ARE TOO IMPORTANT TO BE PUT AT RISK, nearly all of them are sent home.

Mothers milk Inc.

Ok, all you marketing wannabees out there, how about a name and a slogan for the company?

A Los Angeles firm, Prolacta Bioscience, wants to turn mothers' milk into a business, the BBC reports.

The company wants to buy donated breast milk from independent milk banks and hospitals across the US, pasteurise it and sell it back to hospitals to treat low-birth-weight babies.

What about 'StepMams' or 'Real California milk comes from humans"
Just a thought.

Yet another European attack on the 2nd Amendment

This time it a movie!
I can wait for the elite in Manhattan and Hollywood to applaud the 'cutting edge' work of these two 'brilliant' film makers as they show why us hillbillies can't be trusted with guns.
The film will undoubtedly win a prize at Sundance and Cannes.

Now two Danes, director Thomas Vinterberg and screenwriter Lars von Trier, co-founders of the aesthetically puritanical Dogme 95 group, have made their own assault on the Second Amendment to the Constitution, Dear Wendy. It is co-financed by Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Germany, France and Britain, and Charlton Heston and Donald Rumsfeld must feel that old Europe is ganging up on them.

Just what I need, two Danes backed with Euros to tell me why America shouldn't allow it's citizens the right to keep and bear arms. These two geniuses should ask their parents about their experience with Americans carrying firearms, they may have a different opinion of the matter.

Maybe we should have left Holland to the Nazis, I get my chocolate from Hershey Pennsylvania.

Sounds like a bunch of tree-huggin' hippie crap to me.

Take the test. HT Annika

I am 17% Hippie.

What? Am I a Republican? Why did I even bother taken this test?! I guess I’ll back to my George W. Bush fan club and tell them I just wasted 10 minutes of my life. At least I don’t stink, man.

Take the
Hippie Test
@ FualiDotCom

I am 18% Idiot.

I am not annoying at all. In fact most people come to me for advice. Of course they annoy the hell out of me. But what can I do? I am smarter than most people.

Take the
Idiot Test
@ FualiDotCom

I am 6% Promiscuous.

There is a good chance I am still a virgin. I am not certain because I haven't even bothered to figure out what sexual intercourse actually is. But whatever it is I want nothing to do with it. There

Take the
Promiscuous Test
@ FualiDotCom

I am 13% White Trash.

I, my friend, have class. I am so not white trash. . I am more than likely Democrat, and my place is neat, and there is a good chance I may never drink wine from a box.

Take the
White Trash Test
@ FualiDotCom

Radical cleric get 30 months for instigating Bali bombing?

Here are two stories of criminal acts committed in Indonesia, you pick which criminal should spend 20 years in jail and which one should get 30 months.

Criminal #1 received a 20 year sentence.

Leaving Kerobokan prison in the morning Schapelle Corby wore the smile of a woman hoping freedom was close. But four hours later she was wrenched from her mother's arms, tears streaming down, after the hearing into her 20-year drug smuggling conviction closed without taking new evidence suggesting she was an innocent pawn.

Criminal #2 received a 30 month sentence.

In March a Jakarta court sentenced Abu Bakar for his involvement in a criminal conspiracy that led to the October 2002 Bali bombings, in which 202 people were killed, but cleared him of more serious charges of planning terrorist attacks.

Justice anyone?

Alcohol U , I think I did my undergrad work there.

All first-time freshmen at Chico State will be required this fall to complete an online alcohol abuse prevention course.

I visited Chico State as a senior in High School during 'Pioneer Days' back in the 80s, back before I knew better. I thought it would be a great place to go to college. Wow, it was like Animal House ran by Caligula. I remember watching drunken students carry couches from the frat houses and pile them in the street for a bon fire. I guess Chico State is trying to clean up it's image as a party school. Good for them, anything to prevent another drinking induced tragedy. Kids will drink and over drink, I don't know if education is the answer, but it can't hurt.

Of the 392 students who took AlcoholEdu for Sanctions last year, 17 percent said they were well educated about alcohol and its effects prior to taking the course. After completing the course, 40 percent said they were

Positive peer pressure would be better, but unrealistic.

Robert Novak's Happy Gilmore moment.

If I had to listen to James Carville for more than 30 minutes, it would take all my effort and will power not to go 'Happy" on Mr. Matlin.

Carville and Novak were both trying to speak while they were handicapping the GOP candidacy of Katherine Harris. Novak said the opposition of the Republican establishment in Florida might not be fatal for her.

"Let me just finish, James, please," Novak continued. "I know you hate to hear me, but you have to."

Carville, addressing the camera, said: "He's got to show these right wingers that he's got a backbone, you know. It's why the Wall Street Journal editorial page is watching you. Show 'em that you're tough."

"Well, I think that's bull---- and I hate that," Novak replied. "Just let it go."

As moderator Henry stepped in to ask Carville a question, Novak walked off the set

While I applaud Novak for his honesty, I think he has been in the beltway so long he is no longer relevant as a conservative voice.

5 Million fake votes, voter suppression and intimidation?

Bush stole the election in 2004, naw, just kiddin.

That should be the headline in the New York Times and CBS News, but you won't hear a peep about this story.

While Democrats routinely accuse Republicans of voter intimidation and suppression, neither party has a clean record on the issue. Instead, the evidence shows that Democrats waged aggressive intimidation and suppression campaigns against Republican voters and volunteers in 2004.

When will Michael Moore release his movie about the underhanded Democrat's tricks? I will set up my lawn chair in front of the theater tomorrow to be first in line. I better bring a snack and sleeping bag, I may be there a while.

Ah, the smell of free air, or at least free exhaust.

I know that many people love movies and actually think that some of the stunts they showcase could be performed by people in the real world.
Errrrrt! Wrong answer, Bob tell him what he has won.

An inmate trying to escape from the downtown Sacramento County Main Jail was fatally injured Wednesday afternoon after falling from the undercarriage and being run over by a bus full of inmates leaving the facility, authorities said.

A free, all expense paid trip to the Sacramento County Morgue! That right, for being stupid enough to try to escape from jail by holding on to the underside of a corrections bus, and getting run over for your troubles, you get a free toe tag.

What a day.

After finishing my day at my real job, my wife called and said that one of our cows had prolapsed her uterus. If you have trouble imagining such a thing, just think of having your internal plumbing hanging outside. Not a pretty site and lethal to the cow if it cannot be fixed. As I drove to the ranch, I stopped at the local Longs Drugs and bought a needle lit that contained a large curved carpet needle and bought a package of dental floss for a suture. When I arrived I hooked up my trailer and loaded a few panels to make an alley to get her in the trailer so I could take her down to the chute for surgery. I will spare you the details, but the process included your truly, turf surfing behind said cow a few yards because I didn't have my saddle and thought I could rope her on foot. After an hour of me playing both cowboy and rope horse, we shut her in the trailer.

When she made into the chute the fun part began, my wife pushed the prolapsed uterus back in and tried to disinfect as much as possible. I took the carpet needle and floss and sowed up 'naughty bits' to keep the uterus in, leaving a large enough opening for her to urinate. She seems fine and we will keep an eye her for a week or two before we remove the suture.

I just came out of the shower and I am proud to report, I smell almost human again.
I will sleep well tonight. Just another fun filled day in the life of a part-time cattle rancher. Sometimes, I think a fish tank is all the livestock I can handle.

Starting my new job.

Oh, by the way we are getting ready to pour 150 yards of concrete and it will be 107 degrees on Friday. From the frying to the fire, they say, and it could be taken literally this week. I started my new job on Monday and I believe I am going to like it.

My first two days working among the livestock and the University facilities, I feel like I have been here for 5 years. The people that I work with are pretty cool, my supervisor takes his lab to work and he is the shop mascot. All in all, pretty cool, except the temperature which is anything but cool.

President Bush can run, but he can't hide from....

The World Tribunal on Iraq.

Better get Dick Cheney in the 'bunker', these folk may be serving warrants on the administration at ant time.

I wonder who's tax money these people use to meet and then slam the US?

Probably ours.

It's a good thing it wasn't 'light beer'

I know, I know I am terrible.

Monique Bazille used a cooler holding four cans of beer to fight the big cat during the attack on Vancouver Island, the Toronto Globe and Mail reported

My hat is off to the brave mother, good job mom.

Air America to the Gloria Wise boys and girls club-

Screw you, we have more important things to do with your money.

I know I am late commenting on this, Craig nailed it on Wednesday, but it just makes me angry.

People like this are going to get us killed.

In a ru-buff to Charles Krauthammer's piece, 'Give Grandma a Pass'. Colbert King from the Washington Post says that racial profiling for terrorist is bad.

What the racial profilers are proposing is insulting, offensive and -- by thought, word and deed, whether intentional or not -- racist. You want estrangement? Start down that road of using ethnicity, national origin and religion as a basis for police action and there's going to be a push-back unlike any seen in this country in many years.

To that line of politically correct thinking, I say, horse feces. Krauthammer has it right.

This is not a stereotype. It is a simple statistical fact. Yes, you have your shoe-bomber, a mixed-race Muslim convert, who would not fit the profile. But the overwhelming odds are that the guy bent on blowing up your train traces his origins to the Islamic belt stretching from Mauritania to Indonesia.

Yet we recoil from concentrating bag checks on men who might fit this description. Well, if that is impossible for us to do, then let's work backward. Eliminate classes of people who are obviously not suspects.

VDH keeps the focus where it should be.

Quite simply, Islam is not in need of a reformation, but of a civil war in the Middle East, since the jihadists cannot be reasoned with, only defeated. Only with their humiliation, will come a climate of tolerance and reform, when berated and beaten-down moderates can come out of the shadows.

Yea, what he said.

Gray Davis update.

Eric Hogue has the full transcript of Governor Davis' interview up on his blog.
Read it.

Tiger Salamanders in Dixon, run for your lives.

The endangered species act strikes again.

Some Yolo County ranchers could see some of their property tied up in a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposal to protect the California tiger salamander.

At stake is $2.4 million in lost development opportunities related to proposed restrictions on about 6,000 acres in the Jepson Prairie area south of Dixon, according to a newly released economic analysis of the proposal.

Eminent Domain, the Endangered Species Act, how long until the government says that your property has been nationalized for the common good of the people?
Comrade?

Governor Gray Davis sighting!

I was driving along this morning, sipping my coffee from the Java Station in beautiful downtown Esparto, when I heard Eric Hogue tease that former Governor Gray Davis would be on the air shortly. I almost drove off the road. I can't think of a analogy other than King George III wanting to tour Lexington and Concord after the revolutionary War to see the sites. KTKZ and Eric Hogue Show is where the recall of Gray Davis was born.

I have never been a fan of Governor Davis, he seems to me like the character Captain Sobel in 'Band of Brothers'. Sobel was great behind the scenes, micro-managing and keeping the upward mobility of those under him subservient to his own ambition. However, when the time came for real combat, when the lives of his men depended on his decisions, he folded under the pressure like a WalMart lawnchair.

So what happened to Governor Davis? His whole political life had been the pursuit of higher office. You can take many paths to get ahead, the best way is through strong leadership. Gray Davis chose a path to higher office by avoiding the landmines of politics, tough decisions. As long as no one can tie a mistake to you, and you alone, you can always deflect the negative press long enough for them to move on to the next scandal. I can imagine his stomach turning when he won the Governorship election night. Oh crap, what have I done?

When Democratic control of the State legislature became a juggernaut, he was scrambling to keep his power and authority in the political process. When the energy crisis hit, the dot com bubble burst and revenues declined, he was faced with real problems. These were challenges that he was simply not up to. When the bullets started flying he froze, and we suffered.

The interview he gave to Eric Hogue was honest, direct and thoughtful. I hope the Eric, Murray and the boys can get the full transcript up on the blog soon.

Thanks to Eric and to Governor Davis.

Conaway Ranch - a few different views.

As the battle over 17,000 acres in Yolo County heats up, here are a few views from both sides, and a little commentary.
In this corner, the big government types, and their backers.

"The Yolo Board of Supervisors has a long-standing tradition of agricultural and open space preservation. Simply stated, our goal is to protect more than 17,000 acres of prime farmland, water, gas, flood control and wildlife habitat resources for the public benefit.
One final point: We do not answer to investors, but to the people."

You don't answer to investors? The County does not have the money to seize the Conaway Ranch so it is seeking outside financing. Who you ask would loan the County the millions to make the deal happen? The Rumsey band of Wintun Indians. The same tribe, who just two months ago, received a special exemption to build an 18 hole golf course on farmland protected by the Williamson Act.

Does anyone else see a conflict of interest in lending money to the same agency you negotiate with to expand your casino operations.

On the other side, people who don't thing much of imminent domain used in this way. Most likely, conservatives. But I can't be sure.

From my vantage point the county supervisors are executing a plain old "land grab," not for the protection of the assets, but to try to squeeze some type of financial leverage in the hope of fattening the county treasury down the line. Unfortunately, they have no money, and an ultimate cost to the county in legal fees, court fees, appraisal fees, a jury awarded price which might exceed $100 million plus interest for the three to five years of litigation could be very expensive.

Then there are those who just like to get down to the facts.

The Supervisors already have the power to approve or disapprove all development and have the authority to allow changes to general plans and zoning laws; and the owners may not develop the Ranch unless given permission to do so by the county. That can all be done without acquiring the property at a cost of $60 million, which the county doesn't have, and won't interfere with private property rights of the current owners; and won't curtail the public use of some of the land which the owners already sponsor and promote.

You may notice that all of these letters were written to my local paper, the Daily Democrat, or as we call it "the Daily Disappointment"
I thought you may want some local flavor on this topic.

It's fun to stay at the S - F - P - D

From the where are they now file, the original policeman from the Village People was arrested for drug and weapons charges.

What is the world coming to?

Livin' La Vida Hamas.

Useful idiots.

Ricky Martin wants to become the spokesperson for all Arab youth.

"I promise I will become a spokesperson, if you allow me to, a spokesperson on your behalf. I will defend you and try to get rid of any stereotypes," the 33-year-old singer told youngsters from 16 mainly Arab countries at a youth conference on Monday.

Psst, Ricky, you might not want to pose for a picture with your 'new friends' while wearing a Palestinian kaffiyeh with the slogan "Jerusalem is ours"

Ht -LGF

Wasting time with God.

In a sermon series at my church, appropriately named "wasting time with God" I have discovered a very interesting phenomenon. The more quiet I am, the more I am open to God. I know that some of you out there will scoff at this, thinking that this guy actually believes he talks to God, what a loon.

One of our pastors gave us a challenge, find the smallest, darkest room in the house, the one without windows or any other distracting items in it, and stay there alone for 30 minutes. Don't bring a Bible or book, and don't have a radio or TV within earshot, you may even want to bring a fan or something that can generate some white noise. When you know you will not be disturbed for 30 minutes, close the door and start listening. Don't think about what's for dinner, or if you need to pay the light bill tomorrow, just be still and listen. Set a timer outside the room and don't check to see how long you have every minute or two.

Time will creep by. You may want to try 15 minutes first.

Jesus did this many times throughout the new testament. He went out alone to pray, or went inside a room alone. You will find it somewhat uncomfortable at first, most people don't spend much time being quiet and still. You may start thinking about God's purpose for you or a problem you have been wrestling with may start to unravel, but the main goal is just to be in the presence of God.

My days have been exceptionally hectic the past two weeks, I am starting a new job Monday, my son's birthday was this past weekend, and I am trying to wrap up all my projects at my current job. I have not made much time for God the past two weeks. I have been to Church, but that is not the same as spending time or 'wasting time' with the Lord. I would be embarrassed to tell you how much television I have watched, or how much time I spent doing things that are not very important. I have not chosen to spend time with God. With all the things happening in my life right now, I can't think of a better way to spend my time than 'wasting it' with God.

Eminent domain an eminent threat.

Where are the liberals on this? I listen to Babs Boxer and Chuckie Schumer talk about the Democratic party standing up for the little guy against corporate America, why then, did the liberal members of the Supreme Court not stop the City of New London Connecticut from seizing the home of Susette Kelo and give it to a private company for 'Economic Development'?
Who stood up for the little guy? The conservatives.

I hope you don't own a home, farm or attend a church near a freeway off-ramp, transit center, or downtown, because your property could be more valuable to your City, County or State if they tear it down and build condos, stripmalls or a Casino. They get your property, they get more tax revenue, the community gets more jobs, no one is hurt. Except you, the person who used to own a nice little house, or farm that you wanted to give to your children, you get a check based on whatever the government says your property was worth.

Sound great, where do I sign up?

Lets tear down the Capital Christian Center and give it to Costco. The location is great, Highway 50 frontage and just think of the tax revenue the county would get. It's just those ignorant Bible thumping Bush voters that go there, why should they keep the County from getting our hands on such a fine piece of real estate? File the paperwork and make them build a church out in the stick where they belong. You think that is not going through the minds of City and County planners around the country?

There is hope. My local Congressman, Doug La Malfa with his partner in the California Senator Tom McClintock have proposed new legislation to limit the circumstances where the government can seize private property.

As a farmer, I hold the value of property ownership and enjoyment as a paramount right and with the recent Supreme Court decision occurring in such close proximity to the celebration of our independence 229 years ago, I wonder if those farmers, colonists and settlers that rose up then would not expect the same of us now, especially those of us elected and sworn to protect these and our other constitutional rights.

The notion that government can place a higher value on one person's activity and use of their own assets over someone else's is an elitist and dangerous enterprise that connotes the totalitarian thinking of a few making value judgments over the masses. I believe this is contrary to our most fundamental constitutional rights.

Doug La Malfa

You should get behind this legislation, the home you save may be your own.

John G. Roberts Jr. - Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

You sunk my Battleship!

Don't you hate it when that happens. The President sunk the hopes of the Democratic left with his nomination of Justice Roberts. All the millions of dollars they have in their coffers just waiting to smear this nomination will go for not. Roberts will be confirmed, and by a large margin.

Among Democrats, Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (Conn.) may well be the most crucial voice in the Gang of 14. Republicans were pointing last night to a statement he made last week that appeared to say that he saw no justification for a filibuster of Roberts, but an aide said last night that he was misinterpreted and would wait for a fuller examination of Roberts's record before making any judgment about his suitability

The big question now is will the left keep their money for a fight down the road or will they spend it in a loosing effort to Bork Justice Roberts? They have to try, this nominee will swing the court to the right by enough to have those 5-4 rulings go the other way. The left can't take that chance. They must try to defeat Roberts. There will be the Alberto Gonzales should have been refrains from the left, and they will be on every morning show explaining how the President missed his chance to nominate a centrist.

Senator John Kerry,(reporting for duty) says that -

“The American people expect the Senate to fulfill its duty to conduct a thorough, independent review of any nominee, and I intend to do exactly that. I hope Judge Roberts and the White House are forthcoming about his qualifications, background and constitutional philosophy so the Senate can act with all the facts. There‚’s too much at stake to do anything less.‚”

Qualifications, background, constitutional philosophy, John? Were you asleep when he was confirmed unanimously by voice vote two years ago? He has been through the FBI full background investigation more than once. He was supported bya bipartisan group of legal experts in his confirmation hearing to the DC Circuit, what more do you want Senator?

This will be interesting and fun to watch the left spin this into something it is not.

A cowboy in San Francisco

First of all, it's hot. The forecast is for 106 today, so the family and I are heading to the City for the day. I love San Francisco. It is truly one of America's most beautiful cities. The people tend to run from one extreme to the other, and some which defy classification. But I don't let the nut-jobs ruin my time there. We are heading to the Baker Beach, Golden Gate Park and then to Union Square for some shopping. We may hit Pier 39 to watch the Sea Lions, it's my daughter's favorite.

Some of my rural friends give me strange looks when I tell them about going to the city. I think they are intimidated by the liberal people and the very prominent gay scene. I know what areas to stay out of, and that helps. I have explained the gay lifestyle to my son, so he understands what going on when he sees two men walking down the street hand in hand. I just don't want to explain what is going on at the S&M parade. So we steer clear of the Mission district.

I hope we don't get caught in traffic as folks from the valley head to anywhere cool to escape the 6th day over 100 degrees.

Who is winning the battle for hearts and minds?

Well if not hearts and minds, at least viewing habits.
A snapshot of Fox News kicking everyone else's behinds.

An update to my dilemma

When I walked into my managers office this morning and asked if I could close the door, her reaction was visible. I told her that I was resigning and told her of my other job offer. We talked about the opportunity at the University, she has many friends that work there and understood why I made my decision. I told her that I would stay on through August first and we talked about the list of candidates that she interviewed and would contact this week to schedule a second interview.

She wished me well and I did the same, I told her honestly that I have had many public sector clients in the past and her department stands out by the way everyone works together and actually works hard. I have seen many government departments where half the people are just counting the years until they can retire at 80% pay. They eager ones get burned out and eventually assimilate to their environment or move on. The problem employees don't go anywhere, they just sit at their desks and do as little as possible, and sometimes less.

So I will continue to work hard for the County until my last day. Then I start work on Monday for the University.

Meanwhile, back at my moral dilemma.

I have an unpleasant conversation coming with my manager tomorrow. I have been at my present job for two weeks now. I like the people, I like my manager, and the job is going well, but tomorrow I will give notice that I am resigning effective August first.

When I decided that I would look for a new job, I put in two applications for different jobs in the public sector. One with the County and one with the University. I interviewed for both positions and both interviews went well I thought. My current employer, the County, offered me a position and since I had not yet heard from the University, I accepted my current job. I was very surprised when I received the job offer from the University this week.

My reasons for choosing to work for the University is not really about money, it is more about the environment and the ability to move forward. Working at the University on the farm is where I am most comfortable and is what I love to do. My opportunities for upward mobility are greater at the University by a factor of 10.

This decision has not been an easy one. I know that I will be putting my manager in a tight spot until they fill my position, I also know that they interviewed other candidates for my job and I hope they will find a replacement soon. I feel terrible about leaving, but if I must leave, I am relieved that the County did not invest a lot of time and money into my training.

I cannot help feeling like I am running out on a marriage because I found a prettier girlfriend. At least I can call this an annulment.

PMD update from the UK.

How many of these new terrorist headhunters are in America assembling resumes for a new attack?

A government memo published in the Sunday Times last weekend warned that a loose group of "extremist recruiters" sympathetic to the al Qaeda network was targeting susceptible young Muslims, especially those with technical and professional qualifications in engineering and computers. Most did not have police records, it said.

Do you really want to rescind the Patriot Act now?

At least one Englishman has it right

If you are not a reader of Mark Steyn, you should be, he is a refreshing breath of air across the pond. This week's post it exceptional.

Terrorism ends when the broader culture refuses to tolerate it. There would be few if any suicide bombers in the Middle East if "martyrdom" were not glorified by imams and politicians, if pictures of local "martyrs" were not proudly displayed in West Bank grocery stores, if Muslim banks did not offer special "martyrdom" accounts to the relicts thereof, if schools did not run essay competitions on "Why I want to grow up to be a martyr".

Ah, the sting of the whip, the smell of the leather.

Get you mind out of the gutter, I am talking about a new saddle.
My wife has purchased a new saddle. A Gaits of Gold four beat saddle, what ever that is.
It is a center-fire rigged saddle with a semi flexible tree and a unique design for the gaited horse.

It seems to fit her Tennessee Walker better than her old Simco or Tex-Tan. I remember when a store bought saddle cost $300 and was built with a quality rawhide covered tree and covered in Herman Oak leather. That was a when a new truck cost under 10,000 dollars, so I was a bit surprised by the price tag on her new saddle. Most of the 'off the rack' saddles you find today are junk, no kidding, junk. I would not put one of those 400 dollar, India leather over a Fiberglas tree, horse cripplers on any horses I own. Most are built in Mexico and are air-stapled and screwed together. You would be better off to ride bareback than to ruin you horses back with a cheap saddle. It's a shame, I see many unsuspecting people buy a saddle that looks just like the 1,000 saddle for half the price. Big mistake.

My last custom built Wade saddle cost about $1,500, and I would not part with it for three times what I paid for it. It is built on a Wade 17 inch slick fork bullhide tree, 7/8 rigged with a Montana flat plate. It has a 4 inch straight up cantle and a 3 1/2 inch semi-post horn. Round skirt and roughout bucking rolls. Full basket stamp, and I had to put a few German silver conchos on it. It is, for me, the perfect saddle. It was build by a friend of mine ten years ago, and looks better today then it did when he delivered it.

A good saddle that fits your horse is an investment that will pay dividends for many years.
Now she has to break it in, but that is another post.

Pi anyone?

What did you do this weekend? Did you catch the game on Sunday?

No, I was memorizing pi.

Why?

It don't cost nothin'.

Persons of Mass Destruction - PMDs

As much as I believe that we must destroy the radical Islamic terrorists where the live and train, I am convinced more than ever that we are not guarding the back door. No matter how hard we try to defeat the Islamic radicals overseas, a few terrorist will get into the US and attack us, that is just the way it is. With the liberal immigration laws in Europe, anyone can claim political asylum and become a citizen, then travel to the US on a French, German or English passport without extensive scrutiny from customs. Terrorists will come here, they are most likely here already. That is a terrible situation to contemplate, but there is also another, much larger threat.

The radical Imams and clerics that come to America to teach their hatred to anyone who will listen. They don't need to bring in 19 hijackers to America when they can recruit their own terrorist from within our borders. The are PMDs.

Young people of any race who are taught by the radical left to hate America are perfect candidates for these Imams. While Al Franken and Michael Moore are preaching what is wrong with the world today is America, especially Republican America, they are unwittingly preparing the ground that could be used by Islamic radicals or environmental radicals for that matter to turn them into terrorists. Not to mention what Ward Churchill and our universities are teaching them.

Lord help us if Al Qaeda ever figures out how to harness the radical environmentalists into a co-jihad against the American way of life. It makes perfect sense, the wahabist want everyone to revert back to sharia law and the 14th century way of life, mud huts and donkeys will use considerably less energy that our way of life.

Islamic Earth First, I get shivers just thinking about it.

To get back to my point, I believe that we face a real crisis from these PMDs. The only way to curb this threat is with help from the American Muslin community. If they hear a Imam preaching that they should send their young people to Pakistan to train with those who have the true faith, call the FBI. If they teach that all Muslims should support Hezbollah or Hamas, call the FBI.

The First Amendment to the Constitution does not protect one against sedition. That is exactly what these PMDs preach.

Put some more lipstick on that pig boys, we got a budget deal.

As the Governor and the Democratic leadership applaud themselves for the compromise deal on the budget, Tom McClintock talks about the elephant in the room.

I am sorry to interrupt the chorus of self-congratulations, but I feel compelled to state an obvious fact -that this budget is $6 billion out of balance; that the state's chronic deficit spending is getting worse, not better; and that the growth of general fund spending is growing and not shrinking.

Nor can I join applauding the 'painstaking negotiations' that have produced this document. The fact is, in May the Governor proposed spending $88 billion (General Fund), the Democrats countered at $89 billion, and they have now compromised at $90 billion. I suppose it is a blessing that the negotiations didn't go on any longer.

Get the full text here.

England mourns as we complain about Gitmo abuse.

The bombings in London serve notice, once again, of who we are facing in this war. I am not using the term war on terror any longer, I am calling it what it is, a war against radical Islam. The murderous human beings whom we are fighting, will continue their slaughter until they are wiped from the face of the planet. That is not an opinion, that is a fact.

The majority of Americans would rather watch Oprah and Desperate Housewives that actually research who wants them dead in the worst way. I will say again. If we pull out of Iraq tomorrow, if we change our currency to proclaim 'In Alah we trust", if President Bush calls for a joint session of Congress where he offers our unconditional surrender to Bin Laden, if we kill all the hogs in North America and re-write the Constitution to reflect sharia law, they will still want us dead. That means you, and your children and your parents.

If you think that statement is in error, I would only point out that most of the deaths in Iraq are Muslim on Muslim. The wahabist terrorist don't care if the people they slaughter are Muslim, Christian, or Jew, they have been told by an Imam that they need to blow themselves up and take as many infidels with them as possible. Muslim infidels?

We will not have peace with this enemy. We cannot negociate with this enemy. We must crush them and the radical Islamic infrastructure that breeds, feeds and instructs them. Peace marches and visits by Sean Penn to Iran will not keep one wahabist terrorist from blowing up a pizza parlor in Santa Monica. Closing down Gauntanimo Bay will not stem the tide of hatred for anyone their Imams have taught them are responsible for their current condition.

Our grandchildren will ask us why we acted in half measures when confronted with such a deadly enemy? Why did it take an atomic weapon going off in Boston harbor for you to realize what you had to do? What will we say?


On the Plains of Hesitation bleach the bones of countless millions who, at the Dawn of Victory, sat down to wait, and waiting—died! - George W Cecil

They are waiting as fast as they can.

A letter to the editor of any paper is written and waiting to be sent. It just needs a name.

To the Editor of the ***&&%%%,
I am shocked that the President would nominate _________ to the Supreme Court of the United States. __________'s views on personal freedoms and personal rights are extreme and far out of the main stream of America today. This President uses terms like uniter not a divider, yet he has the gaul to nominate an extreme ideologue such as ________. The President had the chance to bring this country together, to move past the partisan bickering and nominate a person that would be acceptable to everyone, not just the extreme religious right. ________'s nomination is a slap in the face to every person who believes in personal rights and freedoms, especially a woman's right to choose. I would urge the Senate to vigorously oppose the nomination of ________ and send a message to the President. He should send a nominee to the Supreme Court that would protect everyone's rights, not try to push their religious views on our country.


My point is that the left and it's millions of dollars are coiled like spring, under tremendous strain just waiting to be set in motion. Unless the President nominates Alberto Gonzales, his nominee will be put through the electron microscope of the main stream media and it's friends with the checkbook to investigate every aspect of the nominees life from high school until today. I am sure they will find something real or fabricated to beat this nominee to a pulp.

I would like to have had a chance to shine a little light on Ruth Ginsberg for her radical views before her confirmation hearings. The republicans who investigated her knew what she stood for, the difference is the leadership said that Clinton won and he gets to pick his judges.

What a novel concept.

A very busy week

This past week has been a busy one for me. I started a new job and have been consumed with paperwork and other necessities that go along with such things. I hope this week I will be able to settle into a routine and keep my blog current.

Bring the troops home now?

Most Americans who bothered to watch the President's speech last night had long since made up their minds about the purpose and progress on the war in Iraq. If you supported the war against terror before, you feel justified in your support after the speech. On the other hand, if you are a Moveon/Howard Dean Democrat, you probably didn't make it through the first ten minutes of the broadcast before you threw a Birkenstock at the television, screaming liar.

The Moveonpac.org folks already had its talking points and letters to the editor links up before the speech had aired. What is their Plan? They want to bring the troops home now. Have the UN train the Iraqis. Cut our losses, our presence there is exacerbating the problem, Bush lied! Quagmire!

Nice plan.

I believe the President has an exceptional exit strategy. It is called victory.

Victory is when the Iraqi government has a sufficient force to protect itself from these foreign terrorists. If the United States pulls its forces out of Iraq right before the Iraqi government can defend itself, it will set in motion the largest genocide since Pol Pot in Cambodia. Lebanon will see the Syrian tanks run through the streets as the secret police execute the leaders of the democratic reform movement. The West Bank and Gaza will erupt into a full scale war where thousands of innocents on both sides will perish. Sounds like a great plan.

It just sounds better all the time.

I man, a message and a moment of decision.

Seeing the coverage of what will be Billy Graham's last crusade in the US, I cannot help but recall my experience. I was fourteen when I accepted Christ as my savior. I was taken by my friend to church that summer in Palo Cedro California. The church was called Little Country Church, at the time services were held at the local school gym and were very casual. Shorts and t-shirts were the dress code and all were welcome. I raised my hand and started down the path, it has been a steep and rocky path at times. The first few steps were easy, the next few years, as I became more independent, became very difficult. The path would have been much easier to follow with a guide and encouragement. It tried to do it on my own and that was a mistake.

I say this not to speak of myself, but to illustrate the way that Billy Graham's crusade works. When you raise your hand and walk down to the alter call, you are met by someone who gives you a few words of encouragement and takes down your information. In the next few days there will be a follow up calls from a local church to help the new Christian find a spiritual home.

I read the Times piece on Graham's crusade, the author tries his best to find slick marketing and a alternate motive. When journalists look at some one like Graham and try to find the 'real man' not just the public persona, they are in for a surprise. Graham is the real deal. In a world where the secular opinion of Christians is based on the Jim Bakers and Jimmy Swaggarts, a man like Graham is hard to believe. No scandals, no out of wedlock children, he seems to be just what he says he is, a man sent to spread the word of God to the world.

Billy Graham says he is a sinner, just the same as any Christian. I would like to think a man with the faith Graham's would somehow be removed from temptation and a sinful nature. The reason why Graham's message resonates so well with people is his honesty about our sinful nature. Very refreshing, a honest man with a honest message.

The only credible opponent to victory.

As I look at the recent discussion about the war in Iraq, I find myself trying to determine if there is any entity on earth that could defeat the American Military. I have found two, the extreme left of the Democratic party and the Main Stream Media. These two forces must act as allies for their goals to be met, the goals being the political defeat of George W Bush at any price and a vastly reduced American Military power. I will call them 'The Axis of Self Loathing".

As you hear the left and the MSM punditry declare an official "Quagmire" in Iraq, they are planting the seeds of an anti-war, anti-Bush crop that hope will flourish and be ready to harvest by November 2006 or at least by 2008. By constantly comparing the war on terror with the war in Vietnam, the far left is hoping that the American public will grow tired of the conflict and want to bring our service men and women home. As we get farther removed from the anger and determination that followed September 11th, the 'ASL' are betting on the public getting bored with war on terror, especially in Iraq. I am betting they won't.

America wants to see progress in Iraq, something that gets very limited coverage from the MSM, and is totally ignored by the left. I read my favorite Iraqi blogs and wonder how many in this nation know what is happening on the ground in Iraq. I am certain the number is very low. Not quite 40, I wonder if there were Americans during the battle of the bulge in 44 who thought that we should bring our troops home, the war is being terrible mismanaged and too many of our boys were being killed in a country that had never attacked us? I think there must have been. Pacifists have been around where ever there is conflict.

As I say and will keep saying, war is a terrible thing, but there is something much worse, loosing a war. Pulling our troops out and coming home will lead to wholesale slaughter in Iraq, a three way civil war and a much stronger Iran and Syria. The Iranian Shai will be fighting the Syrian Baathiss and both will be fighting the Kurds for control of Iraq's oil. Who ever wins, we loose.

There is no other course of action for the US. We must stay, fight and win. Even when Iraq has a suitable military and police force, we will have active bases there, just like we have in Germany and Japan.

Moyers wants ultra-liberal Democracy NOW on PBS.

If you never had the opportunity to watch Democracy NOW on Dish Network, you aren't missing much. The programming on Dem NOW is far left of Howard Dean. I just enjoy watching the distortion and lunacy of their socialist views.

Today I was watching Bill Moyers rail against the right wing republican control of the media, and all branches of government. The partisan rhetoric he spouts is laughable. Just one of the problems with the right wing republicans is the stifling of any and all 'alternate truth'. He said that he is being singled out because he is being a 'good muck-raking journalist'. Here is take on how the extreme right wing is in control.

What has happened now is that moderate Republicans have thrown in the towel. They have no influence in their own party, so the right wingers are driving this.

You are kidding, right Bill? I wonder if you watched the Senate moderates drive the nuclear option debate? Go tell Bill Frist that he doesn't have to worry about McCain, Chafee, Snow, Collins, Dewine and Warner anymore, he is in complete control of the Republicans.

Moyers is a mud-slinging political hack, I don't think the term journalist has applied to Bill for while. Why can't Mr. Moyers just be honest enough to say, I am a socialist. I believe his views fall much closer to socialism than democrat, let alone an independent journalist.

I would like for your audience of listeners, viewers, readers to besiege the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, PBS, and our stations, to get Democracy Now! as a regular broadcast in the programming of public television. I'm serious about this

If you want proof of Mr. Moyers partisan views, just watch Democracy now for an hour. If you think they are fair and balanced journalists, then you will agree with Mr. Moyers that they should be on PBS stations, funded by your tax dollars.

No thanks.

The polls that drive the news, or at least the media's views.

As we see wall to wall coverage of the latest poll showing the Governor approval rating sinking fast, we are also being screamed at by the media, the Democrats and all their minions that the people don't want to waste 80 million dollars on a special election.

Is it just me, or didn't we go through this all during the recall?
The people don't want to waste money on this silly recall, when we have such big budget problems. I remember the headlines and the news stories were almost word for word like this week's headlines. The 80 million (closer to 45 if you believe the Governors numbers) is a drop in the bucket compared to the billions that the Democrats want to spend over the Governors budget.

Most people don't know how much money the State spends. If you asked 100 people at Sunrise Mall this weekend, I would predict 9 people could tell you within 5 billion dollars what we spend. This election will have a very low voter turn out. It will be critical to talk to your neighbors and co-workers about voting.

The future of the State and your checkbook are at stake.

Rancher. Poet. Builder of skateboards.

It is not often when you can truly amaze your children. I had the good fortune to have this happen to me today. When my son and I returned home today, his new skateboard that he had worked for was on the front porch, delivered by DHL by way of E-Bay.

It came unassembled and my son wondered how we could put it together. I took him out to the shop and found my metric sockets and started assembly. He questioned my skateboard building credentials, but I assured him that I had a skateboard once, (a long time ago in a galaxy far far away) and it would be fine. I installed the trucks on the board, it's an Element you know, installed the wheel bearings and wheels then put the grip tape on the deck and trimmed it with my utility knife. I handed it to him after 15 minutes of work and he said, " gee Dad, I didn't know you knew so much about skateboards, you did great".

As a kid growing up on a ranch, I never knew skateboards existed until a new kid from LA showed up at school one day with some cool contraption that had little wheels attached to a piece of wood. That was about 1977. I wanted one in a bad way. My mother, wanting to know where I would ride it, balked at the idea. We owned 6,000 acres, but my entire sidewalk surfing would have to be contained on our only sidewalk, about 30 feet of concrete. I begged and groveled until we bought one in town. I could only ride it at school on the basketball court. That is until one of my buddies broke his arm and skateboards were not be ridden at school, and that means you mister. Skateboarding was a crime, well maybe not an official crime but it was not allowed on the grounds of Oak Run Elementary.

I remember the time my friend and I were skateboarding home one day from school. It was about 6 miles or so down hill most of the way. I am not sure if I have even been more terrified in my life than riding down a half mile hill at 35 miles an hour, too scared to get off because of the great speed, and too scared that I was going to be run over by the logging truck that was following me blowing his horn.

I soon gave up my dreams of being a Lord of Dogtown and went back to my life of chasing cattle and throwing rocks at frogs. Oh, but for a time, I was just as cool as any kid in LA. (well, at least I thought so)

You city folks and your automatic sprinklers.

Back, after a long weekend of irrigating. I know that some of you city dwellers may be asking how it could take all weekend to irrigate. 27 acres is why. Let me give you just a little taste of the Hell I call flood irrigation. It starts when the new neighbor who moved in from San Jose wanted to irrigate his pasture. He calls the local flood control/ irrigation district and orders three cubic feet of water per second to start at 5:30 am. The water tender opens the water gate at 5:30 sending the desired H20 down the ditch to points unknown to him, that's his job, he just opens the valve at the canal and goes to his next stop. It is the land owner who makes sure that the water goes through all the ditches that lead to his place so he may irrigate, sounds simple huh?

It is a relatively simple chore of closing the valves that divert the water flow to other ditches so you get the water you paid for. The first neighbor he flooded out was my father-in-law, who had just trenched all the water and electrical line to his barn and trenched out to the tail water ditch for the rain gutters on his barn. When the 3 feet of water came down his field it back flooded all the trenches in his barn and made a huge mess.

The next victim in the flooding was my friend Mark, the regular ditch tender who was moving cows over the weekend. His pasture had cattle on it and they stomped some new mud holes around his place.

Meanwhile back to our new friend from San Jose, he has been waiting for two days now and just has a trickle of water, he orders more water. The ditch tender opens the valve to let out 5 feet of water and whatever had not been flooded soon became a lagoon. That leads me back to my place. I live one field over from my new 'buddy'. When he finds out that he needs to do a little more that just order water and realizes that he is flooding everyone, he asks for help.

The new ditch tender shows him how to open the vavles and close the splash gates to direct the water to his field. Here is the problem, when he opens the valve that leads down my ditch, there is a tremendous amount of water backed up in the main ditch. There must have been 6 cubic feet of water coming through the ditch that is in my front yard. I have culverts in the ditch for my driveway and they can't take that amount of water. My front yard start to flood, that is where my septic system is. I call the water district guy and have him the water off until my 'buddy' can figure this out. The regular ditch tender, Mark, comes by the next morning to restore calm and show the city slicker what to do.

After my 'buddy' is done with his pasture, it is my turn. I ordered three feet of water and started at 5:30 Friday night and ended around 1:am Sunday. Checking the water involves the four wheeler and a shovel. I did get to use my new LED headlamp at night to make sure all the irrigation checks were getting watered and moving splash-gates. I am whooped by Sunday morning. I did make it to the 10:30 service at church and then went home to collapse on my couch.

I have yet to meet my buddy, I have been over there a time or two and have met the renter he has. But I believe I will tell him that they don't make an automatic timer for flood irrigation.

Take a friend to reality day.

Perhaps you have participated in a take your son or daughter to work day. I am of the opinion that these days are helpful to the parent, beneficial to the child and a pain in the butt to the employer who looses close to half of that employees productivity for the day.

Taking a child to your workplace exposes them to the real world. A world where "wouldn't it be great " meets, you better have this on my desk by Friday or else. In other words, reality. Even if the employee shifts down a gear to explain the world they work in, the child still gets a backstage pass to what will be like to be a responsible citizen.

I propose a new day, Take a friend to reality day.
You may have to do this on a weeknight or over a weekend, but the premise is this; take them away from their televisions, away from American Idol, away from CSI and get them to pay attention to the real world around them.

Show them what is happening in Darfur today, right now as they sit on their couch, thousands are being killed. Show them that the radical Islamic terrorists were there long before we invaded Iraq, and they want to kill you and your children. They will not stop wanting to kill you if we shut down Guantanamo Bay and turn it into a Baskin-Robbins. They hate America and Americans. They hated us when Bill Clinton was President, they will hate us when President Bush leaves office. They are not going away. If we bring the troops home, they will still attack us. I guess that would mean we would have more troops at home when we have to implement Martial Law after they start blowing up our schools and shopping malls, but I would rather kill the terrorists over seas than here at home.

Show them that they need to pay attention to what is going on around them. When they say, politicians are all the same, agree with them. Yes they are, they all think their ideas are right and the other guys ideas are wrong, you must do your part and find out who is one the side of truth more often. I would show them Kos and the bunch on the left to find out what the other side thinks. Tell them to look at both sides, follow their logic down a path guided by the reality of the world we live in and see which America they want their kids to live in.

A secular, socialist world where the churches are empty and the Government is seen as the solution to all your problems. Take a look at Europe for where this logic leads you.
Freedom means, free to smoke pot, free to demand someone else pay for whatever you want and freedom from religion anywhere at anytime.

They may choose to live in a world where America is strong, our people have a good idea about right and wrong, and freedom means security, a strong military, a sound economy and freedom of religion.

Or maybe they make another bag of popcorn and turn on Desperate Housewives.

Air conditioned to death.

A copy of the letter I sent to Senator Durbin today. Hat tip to Little Green Footballs

Dear Senator Durbin, your comments on the senate floor today causes me to question your knowledge of history.

You said

"When you read some of the graphic descriptions of what has occurred here-I almost hesitate to put them in the RECORD, and yet they have to be added to this debate. Let me read to you what one FBI agent saw. And I quote from his report:
On one occasion, the air conditioning had been turned down so far and the temperature was so cold in the room, that the barefooted detainee was shaking with cold. ..... On another occasion, the [air conditioner] had been turned off, making the temperature in the unventilated room well over 100 degrees. The detainee was almost unconscious on the floor, with a pile of hair next to him. He had apparently been literally pulling his hair out throughout the night. On another occasion, not only was the temperature unbearably hot, but extremely loud rap music was being played in the room, and had been since the day before, with the detainee chained hand and foot in the fetal position on the tile floor."

"If I read this to you and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime-Pol Pot or others-that had no concern for human beings. Sadly, that is not the case. This was the action of Americans in the treatment of their prisoners."

You must be kidding. There is a museum near your offices, it is called the Holocaust Museum. It is located at 100 Raoul Wallenberg Place, SW Washington, DC.

I don't remember seeing the part where the Nazis air conditioned people to death.

I am not Jewish, I did not have any relatives killed in the Nazi concentration camps, the killing fields of Cambodia or the Gulags of the Soviet Union. I am just a citizen who knows partisan rhetoric when I hear it. I cannot imagine the outrage of your constituents you did loose family members in these genocides.

California news media, liberal in a good way?

I was listening to Eric Hogue talking to Daniel Wientraub from the Sac Bee today. The Insider was commenting on the views inside the editorial department at the Bee and why the paper is sometimes critical of the labor unions in California. His view, as I understood it is the liberal views of the editors are intact, they just think that the re-distribution of wealth from the rich to the poor is being hijacked by the labor unions. The money the State seems to take in is not going where the it should go. True liberals, stil love the unions, but want to put the poor first.

I am not sure that I disagree with this concept, if you accept the fact that re-distribution of wealth is inevitable. Living California, I am sure that until new district line are drawn, the democratic controlled state legislature will continue and even expand their efforts to confiscate as much wealth as possible from the top tax-payers in our state.

A very interesting conundrum the left-leaning MSM is in, does it call out one of their own, the bloated unions, or does it stand by their big labor friends at the expense of the needy?

Naw, they will just keep slamming Ahhnold.

Yolo County Registrar to residents; I will let you know if you can vote.

Some time ago I read a story from the Woodland newspaper The Daily Democrat, or as we call it, The Daily disappointment. It featured a story on Freddie Oakley, the County Registrar.

"Oakley said she would not hold a special election unless ordered to do so by a judge. The special election will cost Yolo County about $300,000 at time when cash and resources are especially tight. Statewide, local governments will shell out about $70 million."

She is the poster child for the liberal cause. I won't carry out my constitutional duties unless I get an order from a judge? I would like to see the org chart for the county registrar to see just when it was placed under the judicial branch of government. Why does she think she gets to choose who to obey?

"I'll defy this governor," she added, "but I don't know if I could defy a Superior Court judge."

Mrs. Oakley must have her eyes on a bigger office than County Registrar, that's fine by me, she should run for any office she would like, unless a Republican is the new County Registrar, that person may not put democrats on the ballot unless ordered by George W Bush. Her and her husband's thoughts about the HAVA funds are laughable. She mentions Kevin Shelley concern over the Diebold machines. Maybe the Oakleys should have been looking into the use of HAVA funds for Democratic Party uses. (allegedly)

If the machines are misused, they assert, it can only be because of malign interference. Well, it seems to us that in these perilous times times malign interference is a very real threat. California's secretary of state, Kevin Shelley, apparently shares our concerns

Just a thought Mrs. Oakley, keep your personal politics away from your paid duties.

And now a word from the dog.

I would like to thank my owner for the opportunity to guest blog for him. To protect my identity, I will call myself Jake, the wonder dog. I am a 63 year old black Labrador retriever. That's 9 years old to you humans.

Some of you only know the Yolo Cowboy through his rants and writings on The Roughstock Journal. I would like to shed some light on his personal life from someone who knows him well.

First of all, he is forgetful. I cannot tell you the times I have sat on the porch with my stomach growling because he forgot to feed me that night. Some who look at me could not tell that I have missed meals, but I have. He is also obsessive - compulsive. I put my snout on his arm, he moves it off, I put it back he, he takes it off. I don't understand this behavior, this is how I share my feelings and he doesn't think my drooling snout should be anywhere near him. He is also lazy. Lazy big time, when I want to hunt gophers, he wants to sit inside and blog or watch the news.

Dad, as I call him, does not see the benefit of my gopher hunting, especially in the front yard. I try to remind him that our soil is heavy and has quite a bit of clay in it, a good dose of aeration would do it some good. He may be good with horses, but the boy just don't understand proper lawn care. I have heard him mention that I was supposed to hunt pheasants, ducks and geese. I have tried these activities and have concluded that gunfire, cold weather and getting up at 4:30 am is not something I wish to do. Walking from the porch to the front yard to catch a gopher, now that's hunting.

Dad's other pets that actually live inside the house, the Jack Russell Terrier, who, pardon my language, is a pain the butt, and the Cat. The Cat's name escapes me right now but she is a strange creature to be sure. I don't see her much, she has the idea that I want to chase her and she runs by me on the porch to escape to the great outdoors. I could care less. Cats, for the lack of a better word, suck.

The terrier, Lexi, is like a tick that burrows under your skin just under the collar. She seems to be the Princess of the house. She sleeps on the bed or in the clothes basket while I sleep in my molded plastic doggie-igloo. Lexi gets all the good table scraps, and most of the attention. When she helps me execute a pincer movement against the dreaded gopher hordes, I get yelled at, she gets a bath and goes back in the house. There is no justice in this world. Small dogs, for the lack of a better word, suck also.

I would like to close on this note. The Yolo Cowboy gets a pet satisfaction rating of 7 1/2.
He is ok by me. Ooh, gotta go, I think I smell a gopher in yard.
Thanks for time, Jake

How big is your world?

We had a guest speaker at church this morning from Larry Martin VP of Education at International Justice Mission. Mr. Martin started his comments with a reference to our world and how big it is. He said that when he gets up in the morning he is concerned about himself. He goes on to say, on a good day he concerns himself with his family, and on a very good day he might concern himself with people he knows and people he likes or people who like him. That was said tongue in cheek, but he also reminded us that world view is all too common in our country, our community and our church.

How many days do I wake up and think only of myself? Even when I think about my family, I find myself thinking about how their situation effects me, not what may be best for them. You could sum this type of myopic view of your surroundings as selfish and I don't think that would be too far from the truth. Being selfless is not something we value so highly as a society anymore. Sure we say 'good for you' when we read about someone doing great work for their community or cause, but we don't take the time to reflect on what we can do. More importantly, we seldom think that there is anything we should do.

Today, as I look forward to summer and all the distractions that come with it, I want to find places where I can make a difference. It may be finding a youth group that needs help one night a week, or a senior center where I can volunteer. If I can enlarge my world from the guy in the mirror to my family and then my community, maybe one day I can look out on the world with a new view.

A selfless view.

Cinderella Man, four stars.

I had the chance today to watch Cinderella Man. Even if Russell Crowe threw a phone booth at an hotel employee, it does not detract from the wonderful story of James Braddock. When I hear people talk about twenty percent of children go to bed hungry in America, I have to ask if they really want to say that children are starving in our country. This film depicts the depression in a very real way, through the eyes of one family who seemed to have a good life going for them and had it all evaporate in two years.

Braddock did not turn to a life of crime, he did not protest and smash windows or burn cars, he kept on working. He had to swallow his pride and ask for charity from his friends and former boxing associates and sign up for Relief to keep the lights and heat turned on. What an incredible story, it almost makes me ashamed to complain about any apparent wrong I suffer or bad break I endure.

How lucky we are.

Anti-American Boutique, going out of business, everything must go!

Victor David Hanson's piece on the emergence of China as a world power that will soon make other countries long for the days of American running dog capitalist friendship.

Those who now malign the imperfections of the United States may well in shock whimper back, asking for our friendship. Then the boutique practice of anti-Americanism among the global elite will come to an end.

VDH is by far one of my favorite writers.

Things a guy should know how to do. Part one

From time to time I think about things. I know that is a dangerous proposition for a guy with little higher learning, but in any case, I was reading something today that made me think about what we know how to do. In a functional way, what can we do as average people living in America today?

I am sure that any list put together must be geographically unique, it make sense that a 40 year old man that lives in Waverly, Iowa must have a different skill set that a 40 year old man from Manhattan. I will only speak for men in this post since I am one.

So here is my first list of "Things a man should know how to do to in America".

1. Shoot a rifle with competence.
2. Know basic first-aid and CPR.
3. Start a fire without matches.
4. Read
5. Drive a car with a manual transmission.
6. Defend yourself.
7. Swim.
8. Jump start a car.
9. Sew.
10. Cook.

I know that these skills seem very rural and low-tech for some of you, but keep this in mind, if the lights ever go out for a year, or you get run off a snow covered road, down an embankment and are stuck there for a week. Or find yourself in a desperate situation, these kinds of things can save your life.

I will head you off at the pass with #9.
Sewing up a wound or repairing a sail could be the difference between living and assuming room temperature.

Feel free to add yours to the list.
I will have other list to follow, including top ten thing you should know how to do with - women, (get your mind out of the gutter Moos), in the City, when dealing with dishonest people and others as they come to mind.

Germany denied a seat on the UN security council, but there is this.....

Looks like Germany will not get it's seat at the UN's security council, but I have good news. No I didn't save a bunch of money on my car insurance, Germany will set up drive-in wooden sex garages for the world cup soccer matches next year. A estimated 40,000 prostitutes will flock to Germany for the world cup.

That is one way to combat double digit un-employment.

Go away, before we taunt you again!

Where did this lady come from? In the era of peace love and understanding in the EU, Miche'le Alliot-Marie wants to spend the money it takes to build up the EU military to the levels of the US. While I do believe that it is absolutely necessary to have an effective military force to defend your national interests at home and abroad, the socialist welfare state that exists in most of the EU cannot survive if military spending triples. One must be strong and the other weakened, or both will be weak and ineffective. The socialist welfare in the EU is failing in it's current structure, while it's military force is rather anemic.

She did make one statement that made me laugh.

We are currently at the same technological level as the United States - if we want to stay there, we have to do a lot more," Alliot-Marie said. "That is the price for being not just an economic power, but a political power.

I hope she is not referring to the state of military technology. I want to see the French stealth fighter-bomber.

I say go for it. Build up your military force to a level where the US can re-deploy its forces to other places, say the Middle East or the Pacific rim.

Dean is crazy, but remember, hardmoney fund raising is only part of the picture.

As I giggle at Howard Dean's spiral into another dimension of lunacy, I am wondering out loud if he maybe crazy like a fox? Could this Republican bashing that seems to be hurting the DNC's fundraising among center left democrats, be aimed at another group? George Sorros and the other billionaires that eat up this hate-speech up could be the real target. In fact a few large 527 donors could easily surpass what the DNC raises in hard money. Could he be whipping the far left's deep pockets into action? Could be.

I don't think this strategy would pay off for the DNC. The problem is money doesn't vote, people vote. While your fundraising chests may be full, if your party's message is way outside the political mainstream, you will not get the swing vote in America. With roughly 10% of Americans that are truly swing voters, I don't think that calling Republican evil will win may converts.

al-Qaida in my backyard?

Lodi, a hotbed for Islamic terrorist? Sounds like it.

One of the men arrested, 22-year-old Hamid Hayat, is accused in a federal criminal complaint of training in an al-Qaida camp in Pakistan to learn "how to kill Americans" and then lying to FBI agents about it.

His purported training included explosives and weapons instruction and using photographs of President Bush as targets, court documents indicate.

As most of the attention focuses on the 22 year old suspect, Hamid Hayat, I want to look closer at the other two men arrested, or at least one of them. It seems like one of the men arrested is an imam at the Lodi mosque. Muhammed Adil Khan may have been under the FBI's nose for quite some time.

The meeting started off with a recitation from the Koran by Imam Adil from Lodi and an English translation by Imam Luqman of Sacramento. CAIR-Sacramento Valley Executive Director Basim ElKarra conducted the proceedings

I have two predictions to make. We will be attacked by these sleeper cells here in the U.S. soon. When that happens, the left will go into super-spin mode to ban all semi auto guns in the US. If one of the terrorists starts shooting up a pizza parlor with a legal, semi-automatic firearm, the next day, the MSM will run stories on how easy it is to acquire these terrible weapons. It will be an all out assault on our second amendment rights for the illusion of safety.

I hope I am wrong on both predictions.

Schroeder to Chirac, don't let the people vote stupid.

As the EU constitution goes back to Brussels for a re-write, the French and German press are slamming Tony Blair. Makes you want to go hmmmm.

Newspapers in Paris and Berlin said Prime Minister Tony Blair had undermined the French and German leaders by ignoring their appeals to move ahead with the referendum despite its rejection by French and Dutch voters in the last week.

I thought that all parties had to ratify the constitution for it to become the law of the land? How does Blair's reschedule of the referendum on the EUC undermine the French and German leaders?

I love how Germany handled the EUC vote, parliament voted on it's ratification, not the people. You just have to love socialism.

Everything is ok. That's a good little peasant, now shut up and eat your gruel!

An American in Paris

Priscilla Laliss is an American living in Paris or was in November 2004. Here is her story.

Ah, I can still feel it now. It was 1999 and I'd just arrived in Paris. Bill Clinton was President of the United States and France and the U.S. were still best friends. When I spoke with my American accent people asked me if I were British. I'd get annoyed and say No, I'm American! I meant no offence toward the British. I was just proud of my American heritage.

For almost two years I've been walking around Paris hoping no one would ask me if I'm American - half praying that they'd think I'm British again. I'm no longer wearing my Old Navy tee-shirt on American holidays. I've delicately put my flags in a safe place, and I tell my husband to speak to me only in French when we're out in public. I've taken these drastic measures not because I'm ashamed of being an American, but rather because I can't explain to French people why Americans went to Iraq, why President Bush might even get re-elected, or why the price of oil is more important than the price of a baguette.

I am shocked that Mrs.Laliss did tell the Parisians that you would still be living under the Third Riche, or eventually Soviet communism if it wasn't for the United States. I don't know where her lack of history comes from, but she must be a product of our public schools. As for her assertion that it was all about the price of oil, that's laughable, have you seen the price of crude oil? For more on that check out a post from last year.

As for why we went Iraq, the WMD intelligence was wrong. Not only the US, but 30 other countries though Saddam had a working WMD program. Two of those countries were his Arab neighbors. We were wrong, but we are there now, and no amount of hand wringing and protests will change that. We must win, if the President looses this war, we die, yes that includes you in the blue states. Now how about quit your complaining and help us win.

Another brilliant solution to a non-existent problem.

My father learned to read. He rode a horse to school and once took his pet bobcat to class and it slept by his feet as he did his school work. That was in the 1920s and early 30s. It seems that children did just fine leaning to read by phonetically sounding out words until they became proficient. But then came the 60s and 70s. Everything that was old and boring was out and could be replaced by something 'new and improved'. A story from the UK.

A seven-year study showed that pupils at schools that taught intensive phonics instead of the official method were an average three and a half years ahead for their age in reading and one year and eight months ahead in spelling by the age of 11.

Children from disadvantaged homes did as well as those from richer backgrounds and, far from falling behind girls, the boys were 11 months ahead in reading at the age of 11 and 8.6 months ahead of them in spelling.

Not only do they have a generation of children who are far behind in reading and all the problems that comes with their struggles in other subjects, the liberal spent hundreds of millions of dollars to screw these kids up.

If it aint broke, break it, then get the rich to pay for it. Then when it doesn't work right, get the rich to pay for it to be returned to it's original condition.

The beacon of the liberal left is getting dimmer every year.

How many times have you debated a friend on the left who points to Europe as the model of what the US should strive to become?

What part of double digit un-employment, sky high taxes, and low productivity that leads to protectionism and to a future where their children cannot compete, is so appealing? Even the Times has taken off the blinders at least for today.

Their population is decreasing. That is bad. Why? When you have 1/3 of the population soon to be over 65 years of age, in a welfare state where the number of productive tax paying workers is actually shrinking, that is a recipe for disaster or revolution. I actually think that in ten or twenty years the young people of Europe may actually look towards communism as a viable alternative to the failed socialism they have grown up with.

Besides, Che Guevera t-shirts are great for picking up chicks.

My dream job, (snif) gone before my eyes.

I wonder if this will make it into Hugh's revised version of 'BLOG'?

100k a year for Bo, Luke and Daisy Duke.

Class of 2005, a word or two if I may.

This morning I was driving back from a meeting listening to Eric Hogue on KTKZ. At one point in his show he was making a reference to the Roseville High graduating class speakers and who they would be quoting in their remarks. I believe some of the 'historical figures' that will be quoted include Cinderella, Pocahontas, Jimminy Cricket and another that slip my mind.

He asked for any words of wisdom for these high school students ready to be set loose on the world. I called in with a quote from my father, who in his own rural wisdom said.

"When someone says you have great potential, its another way of saying you haven't done squat"

So graduates, take heed from this piece of useful advice. Right now on a couch somewhere in their parents basement sits a 31 year guy eating a bag of doritos and blogging about how he could have done a better job directing 'Revenge of the Sith'. He has been to about four junior colleges, trying to 'find himself', attended three weeks of ITT Tech but just couldn't get with all that programming stuff. Now he sits in front of his computer trying to find someone to dazzle with his keen intellect. Do you get the picture?

That kid, when he graduated from high school, had a lot of potential.

Go out and do something, even if you fail.
Like Nike says, just do it.