Happy May, everyone.........

Spring in the Black Forest Near Munich, Germany

These are amazing.....'random' only from a genius thinker!

Random Thoughts By Thomas Sowell April, 2008 (thanks, Jim!)

Random thoughts on the passing scene:

Most of the problems of this country are not nearly as bad as the "solutions" -- especially the solutions that politicians come up with during election years.

Some people actually think that televising Congress gives us information. What it really does is give politicians millions of dollars worth of free advertising, while they play charades on camera to fool the rest of us.

Alfred E. Neuman of Mad magazine said: "What, me worry?" During election years, Democrats running for office say: "What, me liberal?"Senator John McCain could never convince me to vote for him.

Only Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama can cause me to vote for McCain.

What is more scary than any particular candidate or policy is the gullibility of the public and their willingness to be satisfied with talking points, rather than serious arguments.

One way to reduce illegal immigration might be to translate some of our far left publications into Spanish and give everyone in Mexico subscriptions. After they read how terrible this country is, many may want to stay away.

Whenever I see one of Barack Obama's smooth performances, it reminds me of a saying from my old neighborhood in Harlem: "An eel is like sandpaper compared to you."

Most people on the right have no problem understanding people on the left because many, if not most, were on the left themselves when they were younger. But many, if not most, people on the left find it inexplicable how any decent and intelligent person could be on the right.

It is amazing to me that there are people who still take seriously claims by some candidates that they are against "special interests." All politicians are against their opponents' special interests and in favor of his own special interests.

Nothing is more fraudulent than calls for a "dialogue on race." Those who issue such calls are usually quick to cry "racism" at any frank criticism. They are almost invariably seeking a monologue on race, to which others are supposed to listen.

The same people who have gone ballistic when some prominent figure is found to belong to some all-male social club are full of excuses for why Barack Obama remained a member of a racist and anti-American church for 20 years.

Among the many wise things said by the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan was that you are entitled to your own opinion, but not to your own facts. Yet an incredible number of people make up whatever "facts" are needed to support whatever they choose to believe.

The way to get people's votes is to say that all their problems are caused by other people, and that you will stop those other people from giving them trouble. But if you really want to help, then you can tell them the truth and risk losing their votes.

The idea behind giving professors lifetime tenure is that this will enable them to speak out freely. But it would be hard to name any other occupation with a more cowardly record than academics, who have been giving in to politically correct campus bullies ever since the 1960s.

There is no question that Barack Obama is a clever and glib fellow. There is also no question that some of the most foolish, dangerous and horrific things done around the world in the past hundred years have been done by clever and glib fellows.

When someone is brutally murdered, the media often defuse our shock by focusing on praise of the victim, instead of focusing on what can be done to keep the murderer from ever doing this again. In the midst of all this emotional venting, it is galling to realize that chances are the murderer will eventually be put back on the street again.

zabelle's personal favorite! Do you have one!!?

Did too many people STAND BY already?

"Teen FLDS mother giving birth while state officials stand by"

I don't know, but this title on the YAHOO article seems strange on many levels. Of course, they're 'standing by'...what are they supposed to be doing, running for boiling water, yelling "I don't know NUTHIN' 'bout birthin' no BABIES!"? Or maybe they're supposed to ask the mother to slow the birth down while they get the legal situation sorted out? "Look, we know you're in childbirth, but could you just wait until we can figure out how to handle all these teen mothers and the media onslaught?"

Anybody want to chime in on the fact that so many children WERE found pregnant or having borne children for the leaders of this community? We frown on unwed mothers in normal society, we frown on 14 yr old mothers in normal society. Some people think we shouldn't in this case. WHY? Did the government trample rights, as many suggest? Should they practice polygamy?

Is it the government's laws we live by or do we tell 14 year old girls they must stay in a situation where they're used for breeding because their religion says they must? In this article, an attorney says she doesn't think the children were in an 'unhealthy environment', do you?

(Yes, FT, you can weigh in!! Have at it. I'm eager for yours and other opinions. And yes, FT, I KNOW I'm opening up a can of worms here, but I'm really curious what others have to say, too)

I TOLD you the MEDIA MEDDLES!! Didn't I??

With his request approved, the photographer used a cell phone to call the local airport to charter a flight. He was told a twin engine plane would be waiting for him at the airport. Arriving at the airfield, he spotted a plane warming up outside a hanger. He jumped in with his bag, slammed the door shut, and shouted, "Let's go".

The pilot taxied out, swung the plane into the wind and took off.

Once in the air, the photographer instructed the pilot, "Fly over the valley and make low passes so I can take pictures of the fires on the hillsides."

"Why?" asked the pilot.

"Because I'm a photographer for Fox Cable News," he responded. "And I need to get some
close-up shots."

The pilot was strangely silent for a moment, finally he stammered,
"So, what you're telling me, is . . You're NOT my flight instructor??!"

CONSUMER CONFIDunce

How many of you think the economy has been driven downward BY the media?

I'm not naive enough or a fan enough of most of this administration's latest actions to think the media made this mess alone, but I have noticed something funny over the last year or so. Before I started hearing quite how bad this economy was going, maybe a year ago, I'd hear good economics news and then the journalists would quickly add something really negative to that report. This has ratcheted up, in my opinion, to where I found myself thinking "Well, keep it UP, accentuate the negative, and we WILL have huge problems", more jokingly than anything... but, 'voila'.

This stimulus check, something I'm against BIG TIME, had to be an idea Bush got from the Left..... but the Left isn't happy enough, so a month ago, I heard "The stimulus checks Bush thought might help this economy probably won't because POLLS SAY that most Americans will be SAVING their checks." This was on ABC radio news.

"SAVING?" I thought... Wait, if people are suffering from high gas and food prices, how could they save this little bit of money? But, that's what the poll said. So....looks like just 'another Bush fiasco', huh? The economy's terrible, consumer confidence is at a terrible LOW.....ANOTHER thing isn't working "Don't vote for another Republican!"

Help me here. WHO would buy a home or car or invest in stock in this negative atmosphere? I'm not sure, honestly...........HOW MUCH OF THIS HAVE YOU THOUGHT COULD BE A MEDIA ENCOURAGED PROBLEM? And, if you do, can they not realize that they could do more permanent harm than even they had hoped?

I know this sounds a little conspiratorial, gives the media a lot of power, I know that.

Tell me, if the public was HEARING things were better, would things GO better? What do you think? Strictly hypothetical, a post mostly based on 'feelings' here at geeeeZ! today...........just wanted to throw it out to you.

American Australian relations ... it's party time!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, American Interests!

Everyone, check out this Australian, Otto, who knows more about and stands up more for America than most Americans will! It's his ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY and you might want to look through his articles. We ought to work on making him an HONORARY AMERICAN! I'm proud to be on his blogroll!

Get a piece of birthday cake and some good reading like "Cultivating and Advancing Pro-Americanism" here:

http://americasinterests.blogspot.com/

Give up, Christendom, Islam is offended. Run and hide, erase, delete, apologize......

Barcelona Changes Badge to Avoid Offending Muslims
By Andrew Duncan11:54, December 16th 2007

According to the Catalan newspaper La Vanguardia, the Spanish football club Barcelona is altering its famous badge in some Arab countries in order to avoid offending Muslims.The badge is especially altered in Saudi Arabia or Algeria, where the Barcelona shirts are being sold without the red cross of Saint George, the patron saint of the Catalan region which Barca claims to represent, the La Vanguardia newspaper found in a private investigation.The badge, which was created in 1906, features a single vertical red line in Saudi Arabia and Algeria, due to the fact that there, the red cross represents the symbol of the brutal mediaeval Christian crusades against Islam.

La Vanguardia, in its Saturday edition, expressed its indignation as well as shock, asking the officials of the club to respond to the situation.The investigation is expected to cause some debates among Barca fans, as it would be the second time in the club's history when the badge is being altered. The first time was during the Franco period (1939-1975), when Barca had to remove from their badge the red and yellow stripes of the banned Catalan regional flag, due to the fact that the regime did not approve any signs of Catalan autonomy or separatism.Only when Franco was close to his death the club received permission to put the red and yellow stripes back onto their badge.

The emerging scandal comes after the problematic episode encountered by Italian champions Inter Milan in September, when they played in white shirts with a big cross on the front against the Turkish club Fenerbahce.The Turkish media harshly criticized the Italian team, saying that they used those particular shirts in order to offend Muslim sentiments. Turkish lawyer Baris Kaska requested UEFA sanctions for Inter over charges of racist superiority of a religion.

Z: IS THE WEST GOING INSANE? thanks, Randy

Dave Barry usually gets it right!

Dave Barry on the Economic Stimulus Payment

This year, taxpayers will receive an Economic Stimulus Payment. This is a very exciting new program that I will explain using the Q and A format:

Q. What is an Economic Stimulus Payment?

A. It is money that the federal government will send to taxpayers.

Q. Where will the government get this money?

A. From taxpayers.

Q. So the government is giving me back my own money?

A. Only a smidgen.
Q. What is the purpose of this payment?

A. The plan is that you will use the money to purchase a high-definition TV set, thus stimulating the economy.

Q. But isn't that stimulating the economy of China?

A. Shut up.

(Source: Miami Herald)

Levity...we all need it! Happy Sunday!

THE CAT WHO BARKED

She seemed normal, the cat
who moved to our house
She was very polite
and hushed as a mouse

But one day she barked
sure as Fido next door,
and sweet as she was,
all the others were sore!

They were meowers, you see,
like regular cats,
When they heard Maria,
they dropped her like that

“A BARK!” grumped old Lily,
“She’s not one of US,
she’d better start meowing,
or she’s on the next bus!”

But, Maria was special
in all kinds of ways,
she’d hum them to sleep
and sneak food to the strays

who said “We think she’s great!”
to Lily and Art
“Be nice to her, Casey,
she has a good heart.”

Still, she just couldn’t meow
Then she heard “You’re a RAT!”
And that hurt her feelings
like it would any cat.

So she practiced and practiced
way up in our tree
As high in the branches
as one cat can be.

“Meow-BARK” tried Maria
“Beow-MARK” she worked hard
Then she FINALLY did it
and caught them off guard

“MEOW” they all heard
from the top of the tree
Then louder and louder!
“MEOW! LOOK AT ME!”

“That’s Maria!” yelled Art
“And she’s meowing away,
how she finally learned,
well, I just couldn’t say.”

She meowed from then on,
but still barked just a bit,
And then she taught Lily,
who became quite a hit!!

Soon they all barked and meowed
and they all understood…

It isn’t a language
that makes a friend... ‘good’.

A Public Servant Announcement

Here is one of the better ideas. Let's all get behind this one!

There are less than eight months until the election, an election that will decide the next President of the United States. The person elected will be the president of all Americans, not just the Democrats or the Republicans. To show our solidarity as Americans, let's all get together and show each other our support for the candidate of our choice.

It's time that we all came together, Democrats and Republicans alike. If you support the policies and character of John McCain, please drive with your headlights on during the day. If you support Obama or Hillary, please drive with your headlights off at night.

Well....ya know...? (thanks, Miss Betty!)

Is it just me, or...................??

Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe 128 m WOULD YOU DO THIS??? thanks, Mal!

April 24 In Remembrance

Though we'd already lived in Paris for 2 years by then and I'd taken 4 hours of French every day, my French floundered in a roomful of Parisians talking a mile a minute.

Our hosts, a French General and his wife, greeted us warmly and made sure we had a glass of champagne from the butler. We were then introduced to some of the twelve people in the tall-ceilinged, elegant apartment living room.

"Ah, oui...elle est Americaine?" I was suddenly the interesting one at the party. Thankfully, the interest in my being American quickly waned and I was introduced to General Menu, a man who spoke quite good English. Relief.....at least until he started gossiping that his wife and daughter don't get along and why. The why was so personal, I felt uncomfortable and sorry for the wife on more than one level. There's a saying that the Americans don't like you to get too physically close, but they'll tell you everything about themselves; the French will stand with you in your clothes on the subway or at a cocktail party as they talk, but will never tell you anything personal. Not this general, he couldn't wait to air his family's dirty laundry with this American. I was grateful to talk English with him, but I was pleased when the champagne and peanuts part of the evening was finished and we were called into dinner. (Why the word for little things you eat with a cocktail before dinner is French, I don't know. One rarely GETS a real "hors doeuvre" in Paris. The hootier party, the less the hors deouvres, too!) I used to joke that, as good as French food is (and it IS), inviting people for 8:30 dinner and plying them with champagne and peanuts for an hour before the main event makes you so hungry for food that any dinner would taste way better than it is!

In Paris, the host and hostess don't sit at positive ends of the table like we do here. The hostess might, but a guest sits opposite her, and General Menu was at the end of the table. I was seated next to him and I was thankful for his English. We chatted about his brother who has a restaurant in Colorado (Menu is a good name for a restaurateur, I figured!), more about his wife and her badly kept secrets, traveling in America, and then we ran out of things to say...

I'm one who mostly wants to talk religion or politics. It's a curse! I know, in America the rule is it's not polite to talk politics or religion at a dinner party. In France (and at our house, here or there), that's pretty much all they talk. SO, as the hostess was clicking on the button I figured out was at her foot and which seemed to announce to the kitchen staff that a new course should be served, I thought I'd take a chance and start a topic.

"What do you think of the French deciding to acknowledge in the Senate that the Turks did commit genocide of the Armenian people?" (this had happened about a week before this dinner) Suddenly, my congenial, English speaking dinner partner turned cold.

"I think that was a VERY big mistake. The Turks here live like Frenchmen, they speak French! We need them politically and this was a terrible thing. The Armenians have much too big a lobby in this country and this was a horrible mistake!" uh oh.

I smiled. I thought. I hesitated. Then I went for it.

"I am of Armenian descent." mhm.

The man didn't speak to me the rest of the evening. Whether it was embarrassment or anger I will never know, but he turned to the person on his left and Z resorted to speaking bad French to the person on her right. Au revoir, General Menu, it was nice talking with you.

Walking home that night, I told my husband that I got a great gift that night. I learned what bigotry feels like, what it feels like to be insulted because you're of a particular race or nationality. I smiled the short walk home. All of us can intellectualize what it feels like to be Jewish or Black and faced with bigotry, not many of us can really feel it firsthand. I looked at it as a gift and I was oddly thankful.

It was Martyr's Day yesterday, April 24, a yearly remembrance of the 1915 genocide of 1.5 million Armenians in Turkey. I am not one who feels America must officially recognize it (Bob Dole fought for it every year he was in the senate), it isn't going to bring back any of those Armenians who died horrifying, untimely, unnecessary deaths, and Turkey's denial is a big reason the EU won't accept them. Good. They'll keep denying, but we know the truth.

In French or English, the Armenian genocide was very ugly, and something nobody should ever forget.

Love him or hate him, THIS is just too funny!

Thanks, Mr. P

I NEVER DO THIS, but............

http://biggirlpants.typepad.com/
There is information on Obama at Heidianne Jackson's blog. It's new for me to do this, but, in all good conscience, I knew more and more people need to read the truth about Obama, something you will not find; she's done good research and an excellent presentation of some amazing things. Please check it out. Great work, Heidianne. Z

"MY BEAUTIFUL MOMMY"

Sounds lovely, doesn't it? "My Beautiful Mommy", a book which is coming out at the end of this month, was written by plastic surgeon Michael Salzhauer, M.D. of Florida.

He says this is an aid for children in dealing with Mommy's plastic surgeries. "Children notice everything..when there's a larger surgical procedure, you can't hide it from them," says the good doctor.

"Why will you look different?" the child asks, he says. "Not only different, but MORE BEAUTIFUL, my dear!", Mommy is trained to respond. This is the point of Dr. Salzhauer's new book. Mommy will be MORE BEAUTIFUL after surgery.

Salzhauer, according to his own statements, performs about 200 operations a year. He reminds us that children learn in school about caterpillars transforming into beautiful butterflies and he tells children, about the removal of Mommy's bandages, that this is the same process that happens to the caterpillar, a "normal process like that which happens in nature!"

Beautiful, huh? The first printing is 4,400 books. Sign up now for your copy.

Information from Germany's Die Welt on line.

HILLARY ready to bomb Iran? Germany's 'scoop'?

"Hillary Clinton threatens Iran with complete eradication should Iran attack Israel during her presidency" Die Welt, Seuddeutsche Zeitung... FOCUS and SPIEGEL....All the biggest German papers ran this today.

You hearing this today, or was our media afraid to release it before the PA elections? Drudge doesn't even have it. Danke, Mr. Z

EARTH DAY and HOW TO HANDLE IT...Priscilla's way!

The checker at the market asked me if I brought my bags. I told her no, and that I wanted paper bags. She told me today is earth day. I said every day is earth day, I'd like paper bags please. She started to give me a spiel about climate change and I started to simmer. I ended up telling her I don't buy into that whole thing.
Do you know she had the nerve to tell me that I'm not worried because I'll die before the climate gets real bad?
So I just said she's going to wake up some day and wonder what happened to America!
Next week I'm going to talk to the manager and ask if the checkers were instructed to give their customers lectures on climate change, and that I go there to buy groceries and not the politically correct cause of the day.
I won't tell him which checker it was though. As angry as I am I don't want her to get into trouble on her job.

UNCHAIN my heart, I can't take it anymore!!! But, I can't NOT take it, either!

I was doing the dishes tonight after a delicious dinner of halibut in white wine and leeks... the kitchen's not big, you can pretty much stand in one spot and get the job done: I was scraping off and rinsing plates and glasses and loading the dishwasher and wondering if that soy chocolate milk I spilled in dots and rivulets all over my favorite orange blouse and tan gaucho pants had come out in the wash. I love chocolate milk but don't drink too much cholesterol these days, so when I saw SOY CHOCOLATE MILK at the store today, I bought a carton, opened it and started drinking it in the check out line, drank more on the way to Santa Monica Seafood, still more on the way home, and you know that last few drops, when you tip your head waaay back? Ya, all over the blouse and pants. (it was worth it)

The weather's about the same as it's been, slightly cool and refreshing, but getting cool enough to where I had to pull the sliding glass doors onto the patio shut hoping Mr. Z, who likes it cooler than I, wouldn't mind too much. Just another night at the Z household, what's different tonight, I asked myself?

I'm moving, that's what. I'm doing the dishes and doing a modified rendition of The Big Chill's dishwashing scene...."I Heard it Through the Grapevine not much longer will she be mine..baby........" No plates are tambourining my thigh (I gave up the tambourining after I left the rock band I played keyboard and sang and did percussion for in college....it was hot pants days and I'd have bruises up and down my 5'9" thighs after some rousing Credence Clearwater number), but I'm groovin'. I'd write 'grooving', but it would be like Florence Henderson singing In A Gada Da Vida. So, what's funny tonight about moving, I asked myself? I like to dance, I like music.......

That was it. It was MUSIC on the radio. No talk radio. No Hugh Hewitt, no Dennis Miller, no Al Rantel. NO talk. No politics, no gnashing my teeth upon hearing yet another way the Left is harming our country, no Obama stories, no Code Pink nut being interviewed singing "Get out of Iraq" to the tune of "Unchain My Heart"... MUSIC. It felt good. I felt light, I felt free.

How much is this talk radio and politics hurting us? It's better to feel light and free, isn't it? Shouldn't we stop watching so much TV news, so much talk radio? Yes~! We must! MUSIC IS GOOD!!

Except I can't stop. Can you?

and the chocolate did come out. And no, I am not a Florence Henderson fan, but I do love the Big Chill soundtrack, it's the soundtrack of great times in my life. And I DO love Mr Marvin Gaye. and no, that is not me.

This should start your week off with a smile! I love it!

Prepare yourself for this one - maybe with a Stoli martini or two. Back in the days of the Soviet Union, the Soviet Red Army had an official choir composed of male soldiers and musicians. It still exists. The Red Army Choir performs throughout Russia to this day.Now consider the Finnish rock band called The Leningrad Cowboys. A little while ago, they held a concert in Russia, in which - to the screaming applause of Russkie teen-agers - they got the Red Army Choir to join them on stage for a performance of "Sweet Home Alabama." In English. You couldn't make this up.We're talking seriously off the wall here. Better have that Stoli ready when you watch it (from "Dr. Jack Wheeler's TO THE POINT") thanks, Priscilla...this just cracks me UP!

HAPPY PASSOVER

Chag Samayach to my Jewish friends celebrating Passover..Blessings to you all! Z

APRIL 19 In memory of an American who died fighting for his Iranian friends and their freedom

On a windswept plateau near the foothills of the Sahand Mountains in northern Iran stands the grave of a martyr. That it is the grave of an American makes the place remarkable. This it is the grave of a martyr for liberty, still honored in the heat of a nation whose government is hostile to the US and many of its values, makes it more remarkable still.

Howard Conklin Baskerville (April 10, 1885 – April 19, 1909), was an American teacher who planned to become a Presbyterian minister, found his way to what was then called Persia as a teacher, and ended up dying for a cause that he, as an American, felt morally bound to support. He arrived at the American Memorial School in Tabriz in the fall of 1907 to teach English and Science. Today, in Iran, he is often referred to as the “American Lafayette.”

The Persian constitutional revolution had begun in 1906 when protesters forced the reigning shah, Muzaffar al-Din Shah, heir to a dynasty that had ruled Persia since 1779 to appoint an elected assembly called the Majlis, or Parliament. The Maglis wrote a constitution, the first in Central Asia or the Middle East, which Muzaffar al-Din Shah signed in December. The new constitution promised equality before the law and personal rights and freedoms, required the Shah to obtain legislative approval before seeking foreign loans or making treaties, and promised universal public education and freedom of the press. Unfortunately, this Shah died on New Year’s Day, 1907, just weeks after signing the constitution, and was succeeded by his autocratic son, Muhammed Ali Shah, who immediately began pushing back against the country’s new freedoms. In June, 1908, Muhammad Ali Shah launched a successful coup, closed the assembly, and executed many supporters of the constitution.

Tabriz, a town of both Iranians and Armenians, is where the leading military opposition centered, led by Sattar Khan. Ali Shah brought in Russian Cossacks to help fight. In 1908, during the Constitutional Revolution of Iran, Howard Baskerville decided to join the Constitutionalists and fight against the Qajar despot King Mohammad Ali Shah.

By March of 1909, he organized 150 students to help Sattar Kahn defend Tabriz. He spoke at his class’s last meeting about the duty to serve one’s country and told stories about the American revolution. “I hate war”, he began at a banquet given by some Armenian soldiers, but he went on to say that war could be justified in furtherance of a greater good, in this case the protection of the city and the cause of constitutional liberty. When he finished speaking, the Armenians cheered, “Long live Baskerville!” while Baskerville sang for them a verse of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee.”

He was killed while leading a group of student soldiers to break the Siege of Tabriz.

The affection that many Iranians have for America perhaps may have roots in Tabriz, where this Nebraskan missionary was killed. A single bullet tore through his heart, killing him instantly nine days after his 24th birthday. He has been quoted as saying "The only difference between me and these people is my place of birth, and this is not a big difference."
The same day the Arg of Tabriz was attacked and bombed by 4000 Russian troops. The Persians held out for four days. While the US consulate was in the line of fire, some Americans like Baskerville, took to arms, helping the people of Iran.
Many Iranian nationalists still revere Baskerville as an example of an America that they saw as a welcome ally and a useful “third force” that might break the power of London and Saint Petersburg in Tehran.

Iranians still pay tribute to Baskerville and consider him a martyr. He is buried in the Christian Armenian cemetery in Tabriz, Iran, "a mysterious admirer" is reported to "regularly" place "yellow roses" on his grave. A sculpture of him is today located in the Tabriz constitution House as a martyr.

My friend, SAM, who posts here, is a descendant of those revolutionaries and Baskerville was a comrade of his Great Grandfather. He refers to Baskerville as “Iran's American hero and martyr.” Thank you, SAM, for helping me present this story of an American in Iran and how much he tried to do for the people there. SAM is fighting for Iran today and believes America can be a force in stopping the mullahs and allowing the Iranian people the freedom he says they still want and believe in, the same freedom Baskerville lost his life for.

Ever have a day when you feel like you just don't fit in?

thanks, PLS!

Rep. Myrick has a point about Carter...check this out...

"Hope is the thing with feathers........."

thanks, Rog

Sometimes, a picture says it all

thanks, Mr. O!

Vietnam to Islamists.....our Left and how it gives succor (and WE are the suckers)

"In a recent (Z: actually, I believe it was 1995) interview published in The Wall Street Journal, former Colonel Bui Tin who served on the general staff of the North Vietnamese Army and received the unconditional surrender of South Vietnam on April 30,1975, confirmed the American Tet 1968 military victory: "Our loses were staggering and a complete surprise. Giap later told me that Tet had been a military defeat, though we had gained the planned political advantages when Johnson agreed to negotiate and did not run for reelection. The second and third waves in May and September were, in retrospect, mistakes. Our forces in the South were nearly wiped out by all the fighting in 1968. It took us until 1971 to reestablish our presence, but we had to use North Vietnamese troops as local guerrillas. If the American forces had not begun to withdraw under Nixon in 1969, they could have punished us severely. We suffered badly in 1969 and 1970 as it was." On strategy: "If Johnson had granted Westmoreland's requests to enter Laos and block the Ho Chi Minh trail, Hanoi could not have won the war. It was the only way we could bring sufficient military power to bear on the fighting in the South. Building and maintaining the trail was a huge effort involving tens of thousands of soldiers, drivers, repair teams, medical stations, communication units, etc. Our operations were never compromised by attacks on the trail. At times, accurate B-52 strikes would cause real damage, but we put so much in at the top of the trail that enough men and weapons to prolong the war always came out the bottom. If all the bombing had been concentrated at one time, it would have hurt our efforts. But the bombing was expanded in slow stages under Johnson and it didn't worry us. We had plenty of time to prepare alternative routes and facilities. We always had stockpiles of rice ready to feed the people for months if a harvest was damaged. The Soviets bought rice from Thailand for us. And the left: "Support for the war from our rear was completely secure while the American rear was vulnerable. Every day our leadership would listen to world news over the radio at 9AM to follow the growth of the antiwar movement. Visits to Hanoi by Jane Fonda and former Attorney General Ramsey Clark and ministers gave us confidence that we should hold on in the face of battlefield reverses. We were elated when Jane Fonda, wearing a red Vietnamese dress, said at a press conference that she was ashamed of American actions in the war and would struggle along with us ... those people represented the conscience of America ....part of it's war-making capability, and we were turning that power in our favor."
Bui Tin went on to serve as the editor of the People's Daily, the Official newspaper of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Disillusioned with the reality of Vietnamese communism Bui Tin now lives in Paris. "

Keeping you all abreast of the latest......

Yes, guys...there IS a campaign button in the picture. AND, yes, there is writing on it! And, it says "I HAVE A DREAM" And, yes....apparently, Obama is the new MLK, Jr. (MLK ,Jr. was a Republican, but....) This was from a German newspaper, spotted at some Democrat Committee Meeting in Philadelphia!

"RUN FOR YOUR LIFE, FIRST LADY!"

There's something in Hillary's story about her landing in Bosnia that most people are missing, I think... Seems to me it's a crucial point and worthy of consideration.

She has NEVER been under sniper fire in her life. This isn't "she didn't remember correctly because she said this at a speech she gave late at night" like her husband Bill said. (Russert also showed her saying it at 9 AM, 3 PM and 5 PM, by the way..NOT only late at night) No, this isn't like our government or military personnel allow First Ladies to land in places at which they could be killed! It's not like "well, Hillary DID have that happen to her in Poland, so maybe she just got confused."

Somebody tell me when she EVER ran from sniper fire anywhere. This isn't a case of bad memory... Wouldn't you think somebody'd mention this aspect of this whole story? And all anyone's talking about is she "misspoke." I just don't get it! This aspect of it seems pretty darned big to ME!

Does this irk you??

Just a few things that irked me today. Do they irk you? :

1. To me, this is a perfect example of Yahoo's bias and the leftist mind. How can they be SO surprised that someone who 'hates war' can support the war in Iraq? "Despite support for Iraq, McCain tells voters 'I detest war'" is the Yahoo homepage headline.
Please, Conservatives who do support this war, if you comment, let us know if you enjoy war, okay? Thanks. And, of course, now there's more....... (Got to expose that mean ol' Conservative!)

2. This, from Mr. Z, who reads the German media on the internet every morning: The German party "Die Linke" (comprised mostly of remnants from the Communist party in E Germany and those from the further Left of the SPD, Germany's 'Democrats', who are traditionally more liberal than ours ever were) isn't hiding the truth like our media does: The party chief, Oskar Lafontaine, wants to include passages from the Communist Manifest of the late 19th century into the party program. This will consist mainly of the following sentiment and all it suggests: "The "bourgeoisie" exploits the working class, and, therefore, power and wealth needs to be redistributed".
Isn't that more or less exactly what Obama (Z: and Hillary and Pelosi), and why is nobody calling him on that what he really is - a communist? Why, indeed, Mr. Z?
To Germany's credit, the SPD, their "Democrats" are very upset, saying Die Linke has betrayed the voters because the coalition is so far Left, nobody wants COMMUNISM, and it's nothing the people had voted for. You think OUR Left would wake up and see what the Dems are pushing these days is Communism, too? Or that our media would have the guts to call what Obama and Clinton and Pelosi are calling for exactly what it IS?

3. I was practicing what Mr. Z refers to as "self mutilation" by watching MSNBC's coverage of McCain at the AP conference this morning. (I like to see what all the news is saying, so I subject myself to most but draw the line at more than 3 seconds of Olbermann).....The AP question to McCain was "Did you find Obama 'elitist' during your 2 years in the senate together?" McCain hesitated, thought, and said "I found him to have different opinions on most everything.." MSNBC then cut back to their news reader who said " and when asked about Obama's elitism in the Senate, McCain said Obama did lean a little towards elitism.." A blatant lie on MSNBC's part. TOTAL lie. THAT irks me BIG time.

4. To say NOTHING about JIMMY CARTER. Shouldn't he be ARRESTED?

Obama, in his own words............

Please give yourself a few minutes to listen to this all the way through. How can anyone win the presidency after having said these things about Americans? Does he have the heart or desire to take all Americans into consideration, or....? it's curiously halting, but he'll continue talking...just wait a minute. Thanks for the video, Norwegian Wood

Hug a Child....suffer the consequences

Free Thinker sent me this Mark Steyn article today. I read it, thought about it, felt disgusted, and considered not posting it. Then, I realized I had to because we all need to wake up.

Not to be too terribly indelicate, but, as a volunteer preschool music teacher every Wednesday morning, I've had all kinds of fondling from 3 and 4 yr olds. They absentmindedly run their fingers down my forearm, or pat my hair, or throw themselves around my knees in happiness!

Promise not to tell anyone, but I've even had more than one 4 yr old boy bury his face in my chest. According to the way things are going these days, I should be screaming "Sexual Harassment!" and having the cops haul these little sex-starved maniacs to the paddy wagon, huh? Except Knut, the little boy who fell into my arms only this last week, loves Miss Z and her music and hugged me extra tightly after class because his mom's in jail and his dad's too busy to give him much attention. Some sexual activity, huh? We have to hug and love the kids. One bad apple pervert teacher can't stop ALL CHILDREN from being affectionate with their teachers, CAN she? And how did a little kid smacking another little kid's backside ever constitute anything sexual?

America, please wake up. We're so far overboard we can't even see the ship. Hug a kid today.

thanks, Free Thinker

Pain too difficult to endure................?

I find it painful to endure the thought that our government can't "inflict pain that is difficult to endure" on people whom they have reason to believe could destroy this country.

It's a fact that the waterboarding of Zubaydah got us Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. Thank God. Who knows how many more Americans would have DIED in tall burning buildings, having left agonizing goodbye messages on their loved ones' phones, because we thought it inhumane to shove water down Zubaydah's throat?

Here's another thing I find painful. Can our country never hurt anyone in an attempt to keep us safe? Can we not torture someone we have good reason to believe would behead his CIA torturer in a heartbeat if he could? Think Daniel Pearl, or Nick Berg.

You see, the enemy doesn't give a good damn about the Geneva Convention! They put people through torture we can't even imagine, physical and psychological. For a long time, OUR kids couldn't shoot back at a mosque from which bullets were fired that killed their buddy! (I can only pray we're not being lied to and that's changed now). Isn't that more demoralizing to our soldiers than waterboarding?

Here's what's most painful to me: Is this anti-torture thing on our part (Cheney's been found to have participated in these decisions now, so the story will have legs, just get ready) a metaphor for how Americans really don't CARE what happens to us as long as "we're better than they are"? And WHO's better? THEY wouldn't torture US given half a chance?

We can't wiretap, we can't torture, we can't ... ... well, it's really painful and "too difficult to endure" for me to imagine we're not worth doing all we can to protect AMERICA, our very selves. PLEASE tell me if I'm a monster. I simply can't understand the other side's thinking on this subject.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., lambasted what he described as "yet another astonishing disclosure about the Bush administration and its use of torture."

"Who would have thought that in the United States of America in the 21st century, the top officials of the executive branch would routinely gather in the White House to approve torture?" Kennedy said in a statement.

Mr. Kennedy, who COULD have thought they shouldn't?

Muslim Teachings in a PUBLIC SCHOOL??

"Charter schools are public schools and by law must not endorse or promote religion."......unless it's Islam, that is.

But, it's okay, because I'm SURE they had a Christmas program that went uncontested this last December, RIGHT? But, maybe Muslim schools are better, huh?
And, are we headed HERE? This is old news, but it might open our eyes, too.

And check this out.

IS THIS AMERICA ANYMORE, FOLKS? And, do we care? thanks, Mike, for the first link.

Cunning is as cunning does...............

UPDATE on al-Sadr: http://farmersletters.blogspot.com/
April 9 thanks, Farmer John.

AHA! Is this BEAUTIFUL!?? Sure...play the Iraqi government against us...force them to protect Iraqis from US! "Hey, Iraqi government...you either protect the Iraqi public against America or we'll stop the 7 month ceasefire!"

NOBODY can call al-Sadr a fool, that's for SURE. The NYTimes will adore this one....Chris Matthews may never come down from the clouds, and Code Pink will call for a holiday for al-Sadr's birthday..............How do you fight this cunning?

They're GOOD over there, sure a lot better than Bush's PR ever, EVER was. Hey, Dana? You're pretty, but we need you to get cunning, too. (except the NYTimes will expose anything you come up with, make you and Bush look stupid, and keep whining about how we're losing the war, of course)

Another way to fight global warming!

Who said Global Warming was FAIR, right? Get a load of this wonderful and very true exchange Priscilla wrote me about yesterday, shortly after it happened:

“I had some fun this morning. We got a mailer from the Edison Co. informing us that we could apply for a consumer discount of up to $200.00 for the summer for agreeing to allow them to cut air conditioner use for up to 6 hours during peak hours, which would contribute to preventing global warming.

So, I called the Edison Co. and said I was applying for our $200.00 discount for the summer. He said "Yes ma'am…".

I told him we don't have air conditioning, and that I figured that qualified us for the discount. "------- (silence)".

Then, "Uh ma'am, you have to have air conditioning to qualify". Me, "Why?" Him, "Well ma'am let me apologize".

Me, "If we're contributing to the global warming prevention program by not having air conditioning, it's not fair if we don't get the same break that people with air conditioning get".

Him, "I understand what you’re saying, Mrs. Jones, I don't have air conditioning, either".

Me, "Well, you should get the same discount too".

Him, "I'm sorry ma'am, we can't give you a discount if you don't have an air conditioner'.

Me, "Maybe we should get a used air conditioner, just to get the discount". Him, "---------(silence").

Finally I said, "OK, I know you can't do anything about this, but, you see how unfair it is, don't you?" Him, "Yes I do, I'm in the same boat you are".

Me, "Please put this in your suggestion box. You do know how bogus all this is, don't you?" No answer. Me, "Thank you for being so nice, and I hope the Edison Co. will take my situation under consideration". Him, "Yes ma'am, Thank you, Mrs. Jones, have a good day".

Priscilla’s right, isn’t she? Of course, I’d have said “put this in your suggestion box and SMOKE IT!” but, that’s just me! She doesn’t have air conditioning, so she’s contributing to preventing global warming, right? Why shouldn’t she get a check? And leave it to Priscilla to make this call! I wish I had it on tape!

By the way…$200 for a summer of not having cooling for 6 peak, hot as hades, hours a day? WHAT? SOME deal, huh?

Erotic Jesus sparks debate..........seriously

Have we come to the point where we must say "If we don't like it that Muslims get so excited about the West's insulting Mohammed, we have to be BETTER THAN THAT and not get excited" about what this article says?

We're 'better than that' when it comes to waterboarding, right?, we're 'better than that' when it comes to wire tapping, right? At least these are things our Leftists love to say. I usually retort with "We're so 'better than that' we might be 'deader than that' if we don't stop being better than that and allow our CIA to do it's work, but....." So, read this whole article, the descriptions only start about halfway through.....and tell me, should we really be 'better than that' and turn the other cheek?

Love McCain or hate McCain? Base the affection on his heroism for this country, or base the hate on how he was no hero but 'uses it for this election'?

I don't believe we can choose a President based solely on service or heroism, but I sure do think that, when we read any article about any presidential candidate, it's important to see an underlying agenda in its writing before we champion its cause and make a decision. This one (same link as 'no hero' above) has agenda all throughout the thing, don't you think?

You have to ask yourself what agenda the British could possibly have in The Telegraph for touting McCain's heroism.

I think all of these are important to read and digest. Which side do you tend to come down on here? and thanks to Free Thinker who sent me the article from the Telegraph!

You might have to be Armenian to find this as funny as I do!! Enjoy!

"ANOTHER RANT from Z? So soon?"

UPDATE: PLEASE WATCH THIS. Oprah will amaze you; "God is a feeling, not a believing experience, and if you're still believing, that's not GOD" Please watch the link.

I performed self-mutilation today! I watched OPRAH! Yes, for ten minutes, during which she talked with the PREGNANT MAN and the expectant mother. It would have probably been real sexy to embed the video here (you can see it in the link, but I don't like sensationalism on TV, so I'm sure not going to do it here!), where you can see this guy running his hands over his distended pregnancy belly. SUCH largesse from Oprah, "did some people ridicule you? Oh, your father...your brothers, yes...isn't that awful. They just don't understand.." UNDERSTAND??

Then she went to a commercial, after which "...we'll answer how he got pregnant when HE'S the one with the penis!" (charming, Oprah...I'm dying to know!) He says "I see pregnancy as a process and it doesn't define who I am. Ironically, being pregnant doesn't make me feel any more female or feminine."

Here's the irony: Before they went to commercial (from which I admit I didn't wait and see HOW he got pregnant), here's what was said:

"And tomorrow, we'll have A SICKENING REPORT on puppy mills". THE OUTRAGE! Sure, I think mills are probably best reserved only for grains and black pepper, but this is "SICKENING" and THE PREGNANT MAN isn't? Here's what was the most sickening part; The photo of the 'wife' standing behind her pregnant husband, torso exposed, and the wife's hands rubbing his expectant belly.

Another rant. Maybe I just need a nap? Am I nuts or is the world, well..............almost done?

Does this irk YOU?

1.) We've got a story today about having found human "petrified poop" (their word, not mine) from 1,000 years before we thought humans existed in N. America. Here's the quote I love:

"Jenkins said that discoveries like those in the Oregon caves "help us to reconstruct the American past. Our heritage is really important and it is important to the majority of the American public. If you don't know where you come from, it's hard to have a feeling of community, of participation."

Really? Does finding out we're 14,000 years here instead of 13,000 help you have a better feeling of community, of participation? "WOW, 1000 years more? HOME SWEET HOME! I was lost and now I'm FOUND!" Crack out the beer and ribs and let's have a multicultural shindig reveling in our heritage and our community, okay?

2.) Have you been driving along and had a guy on a bike cross in front of you without even looking at you? Or a woman walking her pet with earplugs on who starts into the crosswalk without even a sideways glance? Now, I don't mind Jaywalkers (tho it's illegal here) if they look, see that I'm not having to come to a screeching stop to accomodate their instinct to cross the street between crosswalks, but I can't believe how many people just CROSS IN FRONT OF ME without even LOOKING! Stop sign or not, they just stride into the street as if you don't exist. I swear I'm so politically twisted I want to jump out of the car and say "YOU'RE A DEMOCRAT, AREN'T YOU!" Sure, it reeks of that attitude that "we're entitled, you're in the way, you've got that nice car, I'm on this bike....if I can't have what YOU have, I'll make you wait, demand my space, inconvenience you AND, if anything happens, YOU WILL PAY."

3.) I was listening to radio news today and I swear if I didn't know it was al Sadr speaking, I'd think what I'm hearing comes from a Pelosi, Murtha, Hagel, Paul speech: GET OUT OF IRAQ, AMERICA! I think he's taking his ideas from the NYTimes:

The latest: al-Sadr is calling for a peaceful demonstration in Iraq with a million people ("see? it's not WE who are the problem and so violent! WE can behave! It's America causing the problems!") Wait for the NYTimes spin. Then he's planning a huge offensive (as if he does anything in any other way?) so they can show their might, and that the surge isn't working. Wait for the NYTimes spin. This guy al-Sadr is a Democrat, I swear.

AND BY THE WAY! What's THIS about?? We don't have ENOUGH IRAQI IMMIGRANTS? Bush needs MORE?? And, what do they mean when they say this? Let US "manage the huge oil revenues in Iraq.." Here's how: SEND IT HERE!

Anybody else getting a headache?

Angel, move over with that flu.............!!

A Public Service Announcement

"ONE MINUTE EACH NIGHT During WWII, there was an advisor to Churchill who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every night at a prescribed hour for one minute to collectively pray for the safety of England, its people and peace. This had an amazing effect as bombing stopped. There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America .

If you would like to participate: each evening at 9:00 PM
Eastern Time (8:00 PM Central, 7:00 PM Mountain, 6:00 PM Pacific), stop whatever you are doing and spend one minute praying for the up-coming election, and for the revival of Christianity in this great country. If you know anyone who would like to participate, please pass this along."
Z's Note: I received this from a wonderful friend, Cindi, this morning. Please add a prayer for Israel.

Abe, what do you think? be honest...

I was watching a panel discussion with Chris Matthews this weekend. Matthews,Tom Brokaw, Andrea Mitchell and Eugene Robinson (W. Post) were discussing the Obama ascendancy. What struck me were some of the comments:

"Obama's election would show America we're better.." "I know people who'd leave great careers to come back and work in public life with THIS guy!" "A Black presidency would show all that's good in America"

"All that's good in America?" Isn't there a lot else that's good in America? Have we lost focus? Is it wise to talk about a guy's skin color more than his platforms, his opinions, his plans? Or do we resort to this when we can't get much of a picture, or don't think we can sell, the guy's platform, his opinions and his plans?

Are we picking a guy because of his skin color or are we picking the best guy for the job? Will we be allowed to discuss this question if he is the nominee? Or will it sound racist? Will we be called racist? will the matthews show ever be canceled? !!

Must could this be a MAMMOTH error in somebody's judgment?

Say it ain't SO! Global Warming 12,000 years ago?

Does this mean global warming just MIGHT by CYCLICAL? Oh, Al............???

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity" Martin Luther King, Jr.