New Year's Eve

My "title line" should be "Happy New Year's", shouldn't it? And, as I'm sure you all know....I do wish you all a VERY Happy New Year. But, and I hate to admit this, I tend to be a 'stick in the mud' at New Year's...always have been. Poor Mr Z likes to party hearty but he doesn't push me. I'm so 'blah' on this night that, when still single, a friend of mine called and said she and her husband weren't doing anything special and would I like to come over? I told her I would but wasn't dressed very festively for New Year's; in fact I had on a grey sweatshirt and sweatpants. I walked into their home 10 minutes later with a fresh layer of lipstick and a 30" strand of pearls over my sweatshirt. "I'm ready! Let's party!" We played Trivial Pursuit. My idea of a New Year's Eve!

The photo above tells it best for me, particularly this New Year's Eve. I'll be pensive, I think I'll take a walk by myself in the afternoon, maybe on that jetty in the picture.....maybe watch the sun as it sets on the ocean and on 2008.

I'll be thinking about America and what's happened to her, and if we'll escape islamist terror again this year on our shores, and hoping my family and friends remain healthy, and the economy, and what obama will be like as he leads America. And I'll try to remember the many blessings in spite of these worries.

I'll remember Jesus Christ (Hebrews 13: 8 "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." forever) and how important forgiveness is because that's been greatly on my mind especially the last few days and because I've decided it's the most important thing. Next to Him. I'll think of wonderful friends in 'real life' and you wonderful people I have had the great pleasure to get to 'know' through blogging. Reading the blogs gives me hope; your good values and good character are conservative qualities which remind me that all is not lost. I'll be hoping that everyone who's typing New Year's blogs will be doing this next year, too. And I'll be praying hard that things will have gone better in 2009 than they have in 2008. I'm not depressed, just realistic.

And very hopeful. Because of my faith; not because of much else, I have to admit. Thank you, God. What would we do without you? That's another thing, come to think of it: What would America be without God? I don't want to know.

Happy New Year, everyone. Sorry to be so pensive and to be uncharacteristically open about it. But, that's my heart and mind today. That's my blog today.

God bless you all. And, God, PLEASE BLESS AMERICA.

Mr. Z sends his warmest New Year greetings, too. And, yes, while we will have two good friends over tonight and we'll have some special food and drink, it'll be quiet, and Mr. Z wonders if any of you have a great party you can invite him to!!


z (the photo's by Mr. Z)

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree.....

I've decided there is no way I'm taking down our Christmas tree. It's going to be the Miss. Havisham of trees. (you think anybody'll notice in July!?)
Tell me the truth, isn't your tree so beautiful you can't take it down?
Yes, I'm kidding. I'll take it down January 6, but geeeeeZ! I'll miss it!

World Reaction to Israel....The TRUTH

12/30 UPDATE: Germany's "Frankfurter Allgemeine" newspaper, a centrist paper, asked about this situation. 30,000 responded and, 2 to 3, Germans believe Israel is in the right for protecting herself against Hamas.

UPDATE: ISRAEL SAYS GAZA ASSAULT 'WAR TO THE BITTER END' Please read the article...looks like NOWHERE do they mention what the Palestinian woman I heard on CNN admit, that "the Hamas safe houses are situated in our residential neighborhoods..." Yup. Hamas deems it just fine to have their fellow Palestinians killed as long as it makes Israel look worse.

I am hoping you all tune into CNN today to see the coverage of the Hamas/Israel situation. I heard Octavia Nash, the Arab Affairs editor for CNN in Atlanta, talking about how "the youth in London are protesting the Israeli bombings of Palestine" and the CNN host said this to her: "Well, I THINK that's a very GOOD thing that they're involved, they should be......if this demonstration stays peaceful, maybe that will help the situation." (WHAT?) No mention of Hamas' actions. Arabs get the free ride. Again.

NEVER ONCE were the 400 missiles Hamas has lobbed at Israel in the last few weeks mentioned. Not ONCE.

By the way, Germany's Merkel is solidly with Bush on this. The headline in Die Welt is "Merkel Makes Hamas Responsible for Escalation." She adds that "the military action of Israel is a legitimate right." Find THAT information in the American television media, folks. Let me know. Other politicians in Germany are also saying nothing can be done until Hamas stops its actions.

Our media makes it appear that only America "doesn't understand how Israeli's actions are provoking the Arab world" (that was insinuated on CNN, too, by the way). Apparently, righteousness doesn't matter; but we MUST NOT provoke the "Arabs".

z

This Sunday, a beautiful thought as we anticipate a new year

"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil-that is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him." Ecclesiastes 3:11-14 From the Old Testament....."set eternity in the hearts of men"

I thought the picture was so beautiful I wanted a verse that was beautiful, too......

Mr. and Mrs. Z wish you a wonderful Sunday.....

z

Israel's giving it back.............and, the media spins again

Regarding the Israeli attacks on Hamas in Gaza, the Yahoo headline this morning is "Witness and resident in Gaza describes attacks, human toll"

In all the years this has been going on, back and forth, I have NEVER seen this: "Witness and resident in Israel describes attacks, human toll" NEVER

OH..And, by the way....Obama says nothing..he's 'monitoring' and reminding us 'we have one president at a time'. Why is it we seem to have two presidents when he speaks out on the economy and energy? Hmmmmm Nothing on Mumbai, nothing about Hamas. "One President". Curious, huh? (not)
z

Santa Monica........the afternoon after Christmas Day

The tide has been waaay out.................photo compliments of Ms Z

Love at the beach...........

A bird and its shadow..............

And a SANDMAN at the beach.... "Frosty the SANDman?" Well, somebody did the best they could with what they had to work with!

Photos compliments of Mr Z

The Christmas Message in England.....did you hear this? Sit down first.

I was hoping to stay positive during the beautiful, peaceful Christmas season, but I felt the need to share this information....

You know how Queen Elizabeth makes her yearly Christmas speech, right? Yahoo's headline only mentioned the Queen's speech yesterday. "The Queen's yearly Christmas message"...how nice, I love tradition, RIGHT?! The thing they 'forgot' to mention is that Ahmedinejad also made a little Christmas speech for the Brits aired on Britain's Channel 4, billed by the station as "an alternative Christmas message." No, I'm not kidding. "Odd" Yahoo would neglect that bit of information. (not)

Today's papers all over Britain AND all European papers are saying this was "naive and dumb" on the part of Britain's Channel 4, showing a "naivete of the West" (Die Welt from Germany commented that it's silly and dangerous that the West thinks it must "appease the mus lims". I think most musl ims would probably agree, by the way. I'm hoping most musl ims don't feel that Ahmedinejad speaks for them.)

Here is a bit from this LA Times article: "Reporting from Beirut -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wishes the world a merry Christmas, even though he thinks much of it is in crisis because the West's "bullying, ill-tempered and expansionist" leaders have strayed far from Jesus' path. In a recorded message to air Christmas Day on Britain's Channel 4, Ahmadinejad praises Christianity but goes on to say that if Jesus returned to Earth, "he would fight against the tyrannical policies of prevailing global economic and political systems.""

Lovely to have this little fella tell US about how Jesus would react, huh? Lovely also that so many Christians are being persecuted in Iran as I type (There are many articles on Google, I only linked one example). Yes, Ahmedinejad "praises Christianity" (and Channel 4 in England apparently fell for that?) but doesn't want any of it in HIS country!

Click here for a full text of his Christmas speech.

So, Merry Christmas....from two world leaders. I guess some people can't tell the difference between their two characters, huh?

z

Merry, Blessed Christmas..........

From that first night...............and all that night has meant to Christians around the world and in America...

To the faith of Americans in their homes and churches............

To faith in the American town square and all the good things that brings to us.......

Dear Lord,

Please protect the Christian faith of this great country, America, and around the world. Please continue to allow us to celebrate the birth of your Son every year on future Christmas Days. Please help our government to continue to protect Israel and please bless our Jewish friends who mean so much to us. Please protect American shores, the heartland, and our fellow Americans, especially our fighting Americans, around the world at Christmas and always. We ask you to continue to richly bless us and remind us of what's most important every single day of the year and to keep the spirit of Christmas with us every day.
We ask this in your Son's name. Amen.

To all our wonderful friends here at geeeeeZ and in the marvelous corner of the blogosphere we're all lucky enough to occupy, MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

The top of Mr and Mrs. Z's tree .... God and Country!! (photo compliments of Ms Z!)

We also wish you could all be with us tonight for dinner!

It's Christmas in America
There's carols in the air
The snow is falling on the ground
There's holly everywhere
The people they're all different too
Their troubles put aside
They smile a little brighter
It seems at Christmas time

It's Christmas in America
Let the angels sing
It's Christmas in America
Let freedom ring
Let peace resound throughout the world
Especially on this day
It's Christmas in America
God bless the USA

The kids get so excited
Preparing for the day
Their letters to Santa have all been sent
The cookies have been baked
The creche under the Christmas tree
Awaits the baby child
It seems to mean so much more this year
Than it has in a while

Because it's Christmas in America
Let the angels sing
It's Christmas in America
Let freedom ring
Let peace resound throughout the world
Especially on this day
It's Christmas in America
God bless the USA

So keep your babies close tonight
Hug your husband, kiss your wife
Be thankful for this way of life
We're fortunate to share
And not forget the ones we've lost
Their memory lives on in our hearts
They'll be forever in our thoughts
And always in our prayers

Unto this world a child is born
His gift was meant for everyone
The light of peace shines on and on
And never fades away
America, America indivisible we are
One nation under God
And that will never change

Because it's Christmas in America
Let the angels sing
It's Christmas in America
Let freedom ring
Let peace resound throughout the world
Especially on this day
It's Christmas in America
God bless the USA

It's Christmas in America
GOD BLESS THE USA!

~ Author Unknown ~

Merry Christmas, Everyone! We wish you a wonderful day!

z

Have a very Blessed Christmas Eve...

Best Wishes to you all on this holy night.

We hope you find the time to come back and enjoy our Christmas blog tomorrow.

Mr and Mrs Z

z

A Christmas reminder..........

Mr Bush and Mr Cheney have been busy behind the scenes comforting the soldiers and the families of those soldiers who perished fighting for us.
Please stop and say a prayer for those soldiers who fought, are still fighting, and for those who'll never fight again for anything. And for all their families, particularly at Christmas time.

May God bless them all.

z

Since TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD is my NUMBER 1 FAVORITE FILM

I couldn't not blog the passing of Robert Mulligan, the film's director.
We owe him a debt of gratitude for a great film.
The importance of the story, the significance of its release at that time, the acting, the cinematography, the amazing score, the whole film.............Perfect.
Yes, it's my Number One..amid about 238942743 Number Two's....

God rest his soul.

Is Hillary REALLY the best nominee for Secretary of State? Check this out from Germany's Die Welt.

Sometimes I feel like our government's one big house of prostitution. It's all Pay AND Play, huh?


Who do you think would have been a better nominee?

z

Sunday Faith Blog....Fourth Advent.....and a reminder .....

The REAL reason for the Season.

Have a blessed Fourth Advent Sunday....Enjoy the pre-Christmas busy-ness; it's easier when remembering why we do it!

Mr and Mrs Z

Oh, what the hell........heck...........................whatever...

On a lighter note....I was telling our church organist yesterday that "Sometimes I say 'hell' at church, in the kitchen, or an office, in the gym, etc.......it slips out...'oh, what the hell.....!', etc. I try not to, but I slip sometimes." I added that 'hell' is a word in the Bible, so I rationalize that it's okay..

She said "Well, Z, as they say... 'Heck is where people go who don't believe in gosh." Cracked me UP!

z

Thomas Jefferson. Even back THEN..........

'I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies.
If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.'

Thomas Jefferson 1802

Keep your Savings at HOME?

Any of YOU starting to think this is a dandy idea?

Blagojevich.....Will he go free?

Blagojevich may get off from the heinous senate-seat-sale accusation . I knew this could happen. "Wiretaps were illegally obtained" Big surprise.

Man. I guess it's just crooks who know our laws this well............ATTORNEY Fitzgerald didn't? What's UP with America, folks? A guy can be wiretapped saying what HE said (we've all heard it) and get off because someone didn't quite follow the law? The article I linked's confusing....help me out here.

Unreal. Will he have something to brag about? "See what happened? But, I'm still HERE!" And, since he obviously has no sense of decency, and he obviously doesn't care about his 4% approval rating.......what's HE CARE$$$ WILL HE GO TO JAIL?

z

Tradition for the Holidays

Please share a Christmas or Hannukah Tradition in your family!

I love this time of year, especially Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and would love to hear about Christmas or Hannukah traditions across the country! I think a lot of us would like to hear some!

Thanks!
UPDATE!: Just had to add this! Mr Z and I were sitting in the living room just now and I looked around at the decorations and thought of all the nice things we've done and will be doing for Christmas and I said "You know, I wish this wasn't only just ONCE a year...........GOD SHOULD HAVE HAD MORE KIDS!"

heh. I hope that doesn't offend...I just couldn't resist and we had a good laugh. I hope you do, too!

z

Sen. Norm Coleman......Franken's been busy!

Coleman to use campaign funds for defense

From Politico

"Donors to Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman's re-election campaign may be surprised to learn that the St. Paul Republican is planning to use their contributions to pay blue-chip criminal defense lawyers to defend him against a reported FBI probe into his dealings with a wealthy businessman.

As the Strib and our Josh Kraushaar report, Coleman and his wife Laurie have retained lawyers Earl Gray and Doug Kelley to deal with allegations that his friend and political patron Nasser Kazeminy funneled $80,000 to the senator's wife through a Kazeminy-controlled Texas oil services company. The Colemans have denied the charges -- and accused rival Al Franken of stoking the controversy........(more here)."

Z: Oh, no. Franken wouldn't do that, right? WOW! And, if I believed in a candidate and saw the dirty politics played against him, I wouldn't mind if my contributions paid to help defend him, would you? They're still recounting; more info should be out Friday as they tackle Franken's challenges first. If this isn't decided by recount, it goes to the U.S. Senate. I guess this newest attack is just padding Franken's nest for if anything happens he doesn't like, huh? Just in case they're tied, he's found a solution?....Come up with a SCANDAL, put doubt in senators' minds? Man, the Franken people have been BUSY!

Is this about Franken or more about the balance in the senate? Did Franken's visit to Washington recently mean he went there asking Pelosi and Reid for help? Or did they tell him "find something, we have to have Coleman's seat so we can dominate?" I'd have sympathy for Minnesotans IF I thought normal people should vote for someone with so little experience and who posed for a photo in diapers. That's class, huh?

(Gee, I Googled Franken in diapers, and other key words, then 'images', and nothing's there! That's a pretty well known photo, isn't it? Well...Google's decided it could ruin his image, I guess. Must be nice to have the most popular search engine in the bag for you. Funny, Google will deny liberal slants, but let a Conservative start up a new search engine and the media'd be screaming FOUL "Too biased!!" The fun never ends!!)


z

Should we pay children when they excel?

The new nominee for Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, believes in paying kids for good grades.

What do you think?

Is this title HELPFUL?

Suspected U.S. missile strike kills two in Pakistan

Mon Dec 15, 3:07 pm ET

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) – A suspected U.S. drone aircraft fired a missile into a house in Pakistan's North Waziristan region on the Afghan border on Monday, killing two people, Pakistani security agency officials said.

U.S. forces in Afghanistan, frustrated by a spreading Taliban insurgency that is getting support from militant enclaves in northwest Pakistan, have stepped up strikes by pilotless drones despite Pakistani objections.

There was no immediate information about the identity of the two people killed in the strike in the village of Tabi, 5 km (3 miles) east of the region's main town of Miranshah, the two security agency officials said.

The rest of this article can be seen by clicking here. My point is this: It looks like a questionable hit and the story doesn't support that. The killed might be terrorist leaders, as suggested in the article, but the Yahoo title makes it appear to be a huge mistake, a little house on the border's been hit...an innocent farm family? "Those horrid Americans...looks how many innocent people they're killing" is the message." And it's Americans who WROTE the article! It's dishonest and misleading.....don't you think? WHY is it always, all over the world, made to look like we're the bad guys? And in OUR press? I know our media hates that America has been the world power, we know our kids in colleges are learning that's "unfair", "hubris", we ABUSE our powers.... So, they write things like this when they're out in the world....make America look as bad as possible.

If things don't change in our schools and our media, and soon, what then? And now we have one of the first president-elects who's done nothing but remind us of how terrible things are; no "but, we'll get through this period"...I haven't heard an encouraging word from THE ONE, have you? I've never heard him say a thing about how great this country is, have you?

Well, I'm going off topic from my subject, but I think it's not too far off. Sadly.

CAN we reverse this American hatred and mistrust of America? Do you think so? With a president who's about to give in and bow to the altar of self-hate the American Left has painstakingly created through our kids?

z

For all of you in snow!

I couldn't resist posting this adorable kitty in Germany playing in the snow! Talk about a photo that's full of life! Good luck to all of you with extreme weather today....We have lots of rain here in California... "Oh, the weather outside is frightful...but the fire is so delightful.." So, light a fire, and "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...!"

z

"Hot Air from Obama" The best thing I've read in ages

Bjorn Lomborg | December 15, 2008

Article from: The Australian

IN one of his first public policy statements as America's president-elect, Barack Obama focused on climate change, and clearly stated both his priorities and the facts on which these priorities rest. Unfortunately, both are weak, or even wrong.

Obama's policy outline was presented via video to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's Governors' Global Warming Summit, and has again been shown in Poznan, Poland, to leaders assembled to flesh out a global warming road map. According to Obama, "few challenges facing America and the world are more urgent than combating climate change".

Such a statement is now commonplace for most political leaders across the world, even though it neglects to address the question of how much we can do to help America and the world through climate policies v other policies.

Consider, for example, hurricanes in America. Clearly, a policy of reducing CO2 emissions would have had zero consequence on Katrina's devastating effect on New Orleans, where such a disaster was long expected. Over the next half-century, even large reductions in CO2 emissions would have only a negligible effect.

Instead, direct policies to address New Orleans' vulnerabilities could have avoided the huge and unnecessary cost in human misery and economic loss. These should have included stricter building codes, smarter evacuation policies and better preservation of wetlands (which could have reduced the ferociousness of the hurricane). Most importantly, a greater focus on upkeep and restoration of the levees could have spared the city entirely. Perhaps these types of preventative actions should be Obama's priority.

Likewise, consider world hunger. Pleas for action on climate change reflect fears that global warming may undermine agricultural production, especially in the developing world. But global agricultural/economic models indicate that even under the most pessimistic assumptions, global warming would reduce agricultural production by just 1.4p er cent by the end of the century. Because agricultural output will more than double during this period, climate change would at worst cause global food production to double not in 2080 but in 2081.

Moreover, implementing the Kyoto Protocol at a cost of $180 billion annually would keep two million people from going hungry only by the end of the century. Yet by spending just $10 billion annually, the UN estimates that we could help 229 million hungry people today. Every time spending on climate policies saves one person from hunger in 100 years, the same amount could have saved 5000 people now. Arguably, this should be among Obama's top priorities.

Obama went on to say why he wants to prioritise global warming policies: "The science is beyond dispute and the facts are clear. Sea levels are rising. Coastlines are shrinking. We've seen record drought, spreading famine, and storms that are growing stronger with each passing hurricane season."

Yes, global warming is happening, and mankind is partly responsible, but these statements are - however eloquent - seriously wrong or misleading.

Sea levels are rising, but they have been rising at least since the early 1800s. In the era of satellite measurements, the rise has not accelerated (actually we've seen a sea-level fall during the past two years). The UN expects about a 30cm sea-level rise during this century, about what we saw during the past 150 years.

In that period, many coastlines increased, most obviously The Netherlands, because rich countries can easily protect and even expand their territory. But even for oft-cited Bangladesh, scientists just this year showed that the country grows by 20sq km each year, because river sedimentation wins out over rising sea levels.

Obama's claim about record droughts similarly fails even on a cursory level: the US has in all academic estimates been getting wetter through the past the century (with the 1930s dust bowl setting the drought high point). This is even true globally during the past half-century, as one of the most recent scientific studies of actual soil moisture shows: "There is an overall small wetting trend in global soil moisture."

Furthermore, famine has declined rapidly in the past half century. The main deviation has been the past two years of record-high food prices, caused not by climate change but by the policies designed to combat it: the dash for ethanol, which put food into cars and thus upward pressure on food prices. The World Bank estimates that this policy has driven at least 30 million more people into hunger. To cite policy-driven famine as an argument for more of the same policy seems unreasonable, to say the least.

Finally, it is simply wrong to say that storms are growing stronger every hurricane season. Even for the Atlantic hurricane basin, which we tend to hear about most, the total hurricane energy (ACE) as measured by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has declined by two-thirds since the record was set in 2005. For the world, this trend has been more decisive: maximum ACE was reached in 1994 and has plummeted for the past three years, while hurricanes across the world for the past year have been about as inactive as at any time since records began to be kept.

Global warming should be tackled, but smartly through research and development of low-carbon alternatives. If we are to get our policies right, it is crucial that we get our facts right.

Bjorn Lomborg is the author of The Sceptical Environmentalist and Cool It, head of the Copenhagen Consensus Centre, and adjunct professor at Copenhagen Business School.

From a Muslim. I'd like your opinion

This was in DER SPIEGEL, by Dr. Aijaz Zaka Syed, an Indian living in Dubai.

Watching the terror nightmare unfold in Mumbai over the past three days with me on television, my kids have repeatedly asked me: “Who are these terrorists and why are they doing this?” And every time I wished I could offer them a convincing answer.

What could I tell them? For one, I was equally clueless why these guys had taken over India’s financial and cultural capital and were targeting people who had nothing to do with them and had done nothing to harm them.

For two, I was too ashamed to tell them these guys were ostensibly Muslims and came from a country that was created in the name of Islam.

At work, while my colleagues went about covering the madness in Mumbai and laying out special pages with the images of the incredibly beautiful hotel, Taj, with its Islamic arches and domes, go up in smoke, I find it hard to look my colleagues in the eye.

And this happens all the time. Every time innocents are targeted in the name of Islam around the world, one can’t face one’s non-Muslim friends and colleagues. I feel like burying myself in the ground. Growing up in a religious family, one never thought one would see the day when being a Muslim could be a source of shame.

A distraught friend who has devoted her life to speaking and fighting on behalf of Arabs and Muslims wrote in yesterday saying “I’ve had it with the Arabs and Muslims and Islamic militancy. Forgive me but I am throwing in the towel.”

I couldn’t write back to her but understood her pain. She grew up in Mumbai and is understandably upset.

My friend went on to say: “The Muslims and Islam have a problem and only they can solve it. If they do not, the whole world will turn against them.”

If this is how our most loyal friends feel, imagine the sentiments and reactions of the rest of the world. Can you blame the world if it’s turning against Muslims? What do you expect when not a single day passes without the name of our faith being dragged through the mud by fellow believers around the world?

How many innocents have to die in the name of Islam before Muslim leaders and countries take effective action to deal with the nuts, who are out to destroy us all with their nihilistic cult?

I know that the Muslim leaders including those in the highest echelons of power have lately started speaking out against the extremists.

Darul Uloom Deoband in India, one of the oldest and most respected centres of learning in the Muslim world, issued a fatwa against terrorism at a large gathering of Islamic scholars and leaders in June. Last month, nearly 5,000 scholars backed the edict at a huge congregation in Hyderabad.

The OIC, the organisation of Muslim states, and Saudi Arabia, the leader of the Arab-Islamic world, have of late been equally vehement in condemning these repulsive acts of violence targeting innocents.

Eminent Muslim intellectuals and journalists like Tariq Ramadan, a grandson of Muslim Brotherhood founder Hasan Al Banna, and India’s MJ Akbar and numerous others too have repeatedly protested this distortion of Islamic teachings and spirit.

These calls of conscience on behalf of mainstream Islam have however proved voices in the wilderness. Clearly, we need to do more to be heard by the world and to stop this shameful victimisation of innocent people in the name of religion.

The great irony of the Mumbai attacks is the killing of Anti-Terrorism Squad chief Hemant Karkare and his colleagues. Karkare, a brave and decorated officer investigating the Malegaon blasts and other recent terror attacks that he established to be the handiwork of Hindu extremists, not Muslim groups like SIMI, was killed by the terrorists outside Cama hospital Wednesday night. Obviously, Muslims do not know who their real friends and enemies are. And, pray, why is India increasingly being singled out for this savagery? What do they think this country is? A Hindu country or an anti-Muslim nation?

Do the ignorant dummies repeatedly being sent out on the so-called jihad know that this great country is home to the world’s largest Muslim population? Almost twice the size of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan! India’s greatest superstar is a Muslim, not to mention the countless achievers in other fields.

Why are our friends across the border bent on destroying the whole world with themselves? Is this what Islam and the noble Prophet teach and stand for?

It’s all very well for us to say Islam has nothing to do with extremism and terrorism. We can go on deluding ourselves these psychopaths do not represent us.

However, the world finds it hard to accept this line of argument because it sees the extremists increasingly assert themselves and take the centre-stage while the mainstream Islam remains silent.

The great religion that preaches and celebrates universal brotherhood, equality of men and peace and justice for all has been hijacked by a demented, miniscule minority. And, as my friend says, only Muslims can solve this problem. Only Muslims can confront these anarchists in their midst.

Only they can get their faith freed from the clutches of extremism. This is no time to hide. It’s time to stand up and speak out. For the terrorists will continue to speak on our behalf, until we do not speak up. This is no time for silence. Enough is enough!

For comments and suggestions, please write to aijaz@khaleejtimes.com

z

Christmas in Munich by popular demand!

The Munich Marienplatz Christmas tree, at the request of Mystic Minstrel! The market surrounds it, but it looks like this was the lighting of the tree ceremony. It is GORGEOUS! That's the newer Town Hall behind it. (if you haven't yet seen the colorful and lovely Christmas market scenes from Germany, please scroll down....I promise, you'll be delighted!)

z

Happy Third Advent Sunday

The Christmas markets in Germany are in FULL swing and I hoped you might find them very lovely, too! Very Old Word Christmas ... So beautiful, so charming, such happy marketplaces selling nothing but Christmas ornaments, dolls, candies, cookies, candles and mostly homemade gifts! A favorite moment of mine was walking home from German class at noon in Munich and stopping and gazing at the beautiful Christmas things at the outside stalls while snow gently fell and I ate a hot bratwurst on a delicious bun at a corner shop counter. One of those memories one never forgets. I hope you can all go sometime.

Have a wonderful Sunday, everyone! We wish you the great peace and beauty of the season even amongst the busy-ness of it~!

Mr and Mrs Z

"Cooing about WINTER" ??? Just a bit of fun......

From YAHOO...."10 Workers to Tip This Season"

The one of the ten which caught my eye:

9. Musician/Singer
Base Pay per Hour: $49.10
Tips per Hour: $4.10
Percent of Total Hourly Income in Tips: 8%

No holiday party is complete without a jazzy guitar riff playing in the background or a bright-lipped brunette cooing about winter. But, what are these pleasant sounds worth? Typical tip: $35-75 per person.

A couple things here: "Holiday Party"? WHICH holiday? 85% of America's Christian.....is it so offensive to call it a CHRISTMAS Party, since it probably IS?

And, another thing; I got out of the singing business too early, I guess! They're expecting $49.10 an hour (actually, a little low, depending on if it's a combo or not. If it's a solo act, that's low...but what's with that TIP..PER PERSON? WHOA! Not BAD, eh? also, it RARELY happens, not per person!!)

But, my favorite was "Cooing about winter.." (yes, I used to be that 'bright- lipped brunette' singer, so I know..trust me: That will be ONE SHORT GIG: Let's see, 'winter'..what would I "coo"? .. "Frosty the Snowman" "Baby, it's Cold Outside" "Winter Wonderland" "Let it Snow" . I think that's it. And I did a bit of research to make sure.

If you're avoiding that pesky term CHRISTMAS, that's one short gig of WINTER SONGS, eh?

For THAT kind of tip? NIIIIIICE!!

heh heh!!

z

Isn't Sarah Palin even MORE terrific now that you hear this?

The rest of the world cannot understand how after bitter election campaigns, American politicians can return to reality.
For instance Sarah Palin has invited to her great state of Alaska the men who defeated her, Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
She has provided a moose hunting trip for their enjoyment and has hired two other prominent men to assist them.
Dick Cheney will instruct them in safe gun handling and Ted Kennedy will drive them back to their cabins in the evening.
What a gal, that Sarah is such a sport and thinks of everything.
No...Z didn't write this...but I wish I HAD!
z

FOOTBALL FOOD.....it can't ALL be pizza!

I am not a football fan. I am a basketball fan. BUT, I'm seeing an awful lot of football blogging and figured the thing I DO know about is food....so, here's some great football watching food! (Thanks, Morgan, for your WINGS recipe!)

Anybody got a quick/easy recipe for football watching?..let's have them!

EASY CHILI RELLENO CASSEROLE....so easy and SO good!

1 lb. Jack cheese,
1 lb. cheddar cheddar grated
2 small cans diced green chilies (mild, unless you can up it)
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup flour
salt, pepper. paprika

Mix eggs, milk, flour , salt and pepper
layer both cheeses, chiles, and pour some milk over layer
Repeat this , finish with cheese on top (no chile's on top layer)
Sprinkle with paprika on top.

Cook 40 minutes @ 350 degrees..... May be made ahead, cook for
25 minutes, refrigerate and finish cooking for 15-20 minutes to serve.
(stick knife in and wait until it comes out clean)

Serve with salsa and sour cream if desired. Enjoy !!!

Morgan's Miraculous Hot Wings! (political statements are his, too, but they are shared by the blog owner!!)

Prepare the Sauce in a medium size glass bowl:

6 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. Pace medium salsa or any good salsa, medium heat is best
1/2 cup ketchup (Hunt's, not the commie stuff!!)

Combine ingredients in bowl and heat in microwave for 45 seconds. Stir well. It's important not to overheat if using butter, just warm it up.

ADD:

2 tsp. garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 1/2 tblsp. hot sauce (Tobasco)
1 tblsp. white vinegar

Stir everything well and heat again for 30-40 seconds in the microwave. Taste the sauce. If it's too hot, add a little bit of garlic, ketchup, and butter. Just a little. If it's not hot enough, add a little Cayenne and hot sauce.

Let's prepare the wings!

Thaw chicken wings and dry excess water (important if frying in oil)
-don't buy Tyson chicken, they gave millions to the Clintons

deep fry in peanut oil (tastiest)
OR
bake wings in the oven on non-stick pan

*OPTIONAL: thinly coat cooked wings with sauce and cook at 450 degrees for 7 minutes..or up to 15 minutes, till they’re a bit crispy.

*heavily slop the sauce on the wings and enjoy!

Here's another special dish from MORGAN:

HOME FRIES and SPECIAL DIP!

1. Cut potatoes in long strips, fry them, and drain on paper towels.

2. Start with half a bowl of Hellman's mayo, add warm water to make the consistancy just a little thinner. Be careful with that.

3. Liberally add curry powder until you get a strong curry flavor. Mix it up. Add 1/2 tsp. garlic powder and 1/2-1 tsp. of hot sauce! Mix it up and add hot sauce to taste. That's the unique flavor to this sauce and is a PERFECT addition. I hope you enjoy it!

The BEST EASY (ever) ENCHILADA CASSEROLE for at least 12 extremely hungry people

Preheat oven to 350

1 chopped onion
1 cup chopped black olives
2- 28 oz can of La Victoria enchilada sauce -green mild
About 30 corn tortillas
3 bags blend grated cheese-it say Mexican blend-on bag
2 precooked whole chickens (take off skin and bones, shred)
Large lasagna pan (or 2- 9x12 Pyrexes)

(The bigger the pan, the more you need of everything...you can't really do anything wrong with this recipe)

Soften tortillas by frying them lightly in oil...till they're limp, no more. Drain on paper towels

Put a layer of enchilada sauce on the bottom of pan
Cover bottom with tortillas, overlapping a little
Put another layer of enchilada sauce
Light layer of chicken..just scatter it evenly
Sprinkle olives, onions, cheese evenly

More tortillas, slightly overlapping
Layer of enchilada sauce
Chicken, olives, onions and cheese
repeat until you run out space
Finish with cheese on top....Go for it!
Cover with foil
Place in oven for 1 hour....

If you find you went a little too little on the sauce, warm it up and pour on top when you're serving the enchiladas..mmmm!!

HAVE FUN! Go RAMS! ("They're not in LA anymore? Oh, never mind")

BEER goes very well with all of the above!

Go, Lakers!

z

THANKS, MORGAN!!

"I, Barack Hussein Obama, do solemnly swear....."

I had an illustration here of muslims threatening the British, but it was removed. In its place was a huge nasty looking lime green unhappy face. This is really quite something...why would that happen? HOW? WHO?

"OBAMA HOPES TO REBOOT U.S. IMAGE AMONG MUS-LIMS" by using his full name during the inauguration.

WHAT? So, apparently, he's far, far more interested in not offending THEM than not offending US. Personally, if that's his middle name, that's his middle name, and he's entitled to use it since, obviously, not enough Americans thought that might be a red flag on top of just about every other horrid red flag he sent up to thinking Americans before the election.....but.......

Because we were hit on 9/11, and because we went into Iraq and kicked a murdering dictator out of a Mus-lim country so its people could finally live in peace again (and the other hundred reasons it was a good idea), and because we've been trying to protect our own shores, WE need to have OUR reputation REBOOTED?

Have any of you seen Americans carrying anything near the kinds of signs we see mus-lims in Britain carrying, threatening the very fabric of British society if not threatening the very lives of the people who have lived their for thousands of years?

OUR REPUTATION NEEDS REBOOTING? WHAT?

z

Business in Chicago....Mr. Z and first-hand experience

When the news hit today about the corruption in the governor of Illinois's office, I remembered that Mr. Z had had an experience in Chicago and wanted him to share it with us:

The events of the day warrant a look-back at my own experience with Chicago business. Nothing appears to have changed.

It was in the middle 1980's that I went to Chicago to respond to a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a public works project. We had a transportation system to offer, and I went there together with one of the largest engineering companies in the country to inspect the project and hold discussions with the agency in charge of the project.

The RFP requested a portion of 25% of the contract volume to be subcontracted with certified minority-owned companies. We received a list of companies which were certified by the agency. The list was comprised only of Black-owned companies in Chicago. Having just moved from Germany, this principle was strange to me so I consulted with my partners to determine what that meant. The answer was that we had to consider that the work we would be paying these minority-owned companies for would not actually be done by these companies and we would have to contract with other companies to do the actual work and pay them as well.

It was later explained to me by my partners that this funneling of moneys through such enterprises was a "normal" Chicago procedure and that nothing worked there without it. We decided not to participate in this process. Mr. Z

Here is a link; http://chicagoargus.blogspot.com/....it's by a Chicagoan Hispanic writing about what Blagojevich ought to do as of December 2, before he was exposed. "Should they have a Latino? Is it Illinois' responsibility to put another Black in the Senate because (Z: Sadly) there are no non-Illinois Black senators there? (Also, sadly, that guy doesn't get many comments, because he's a very good writer even if we don't agree with his politics) The odd thing is that my linking it will not work no matter what I do. If it wasn't such a 'small potatoes' blog, I'd say his thoughts are being shut up because the articles I wanted to direct you to just will not embed... strange.

This article at Huffington Post is priceless (below the fold). All the FBI needs to do is read through the names and round these people up and start asking questions about how much they offered Blagojevich at these individual meetings! An excerpt: "Sen. Dick Durbin said Friday that he does not believe race should be the sole criteria in selecting President-elect Obama's replacement in the Senate": Neither does Blagojevich.....it's HOW MUCH WILL THE CANDIDATE PAY?$$$ Then there's Bobby Rush and his demands. But, that's another subject. Or is it?

Yes, some things never change. Let's hope they do after this scandal, huh? (And Mr. Z reminds me to mention that there are probably some excellent Black-owned businesses in Illinois which would never agree to this kind of graft.)

UPDATE: This article in the New York Times NEVER mentions that Blagojevich is a DEMOCRAT! SURPRISE!! Picture the article if he were Republican? From Mullings.com:

If Govenor Blutarsky had been a Republican that fact would have appeared in the headline

"GOP Governor Accused of Selling Senate Seat and Crimes Against Humanity"

And the lead paragraph would have been something on the order of:

"Republican Governor Rod Blagojevich, close friend of President George W. Bush and a featured speaker at the Republican National Convention was this morning frog-marched out of the Governor's mansion …"

Bail would have been set at $39 billion payable to GM, Ford and Chrysler.

heh heh

z

It's called Christmas .... what more can we say? This is a really fun song..take a second!

Thanks, Priscilla!

Really good!

z

A FIRST HAND ACCOUNT of MUMBAI'S TERROR.......RIVETING

This is an actual email from Jonathan Ehrlich, who barely survived the massacre:


From: Jonathan
Sent: Thu Nov 27 02:26:51 2008

Subject: Hey! From a Mumbai massacre survivor.

Hey guys.

Got all your notes. Thank you. I'm ok. A little shaky to be honest,
but really just happy to be here. I can't thank you enough for your
notes. You have no idea what they mean to me. Hope to see and speak
to you all soon.


I wrote the following on the plane:

It's 3.33 am Thursday Nov 27th. And I am writing this from Jet
Airways flight 0227, First leg of the Mumbai - Brussels - Toronto -
Vancouver journey. It is a stream of "adrenaline" piece. I
apologize in advance for the grammatical errors. But I wanted it
raw and unedited.


First, some context.
I have always been truly blessed. Lucky to be born to the most love
a child could ever wish for. Lucky to be born into a family that
prided itself on teaching me how to be a man. Lucky to have been
protected and sheltered by three strong, decent brothers. Lucky to
have found and married the kindest heart on the face of the earth.
Lucky to be blessed beyond blessed with four healthy, beautiful
children. Lucky to have wonderful friends who tolerate my
idiosyncrasies.


Tonight, these blessings, these gifts of love and life bestowed
upon me, this incredible good fortune, saved my life. And I
honestly don't know why.

The details.

I am in Mumbai on business. I'm staying at the Trident hotel. It's
sister hotel, the Oberoi, is right next-door and attached by a
small walkway.

I had dinner by myself in the Oberoi lobby after some late meetings.

I retired upstairs to my room. About 10 mins later my colleague,
Alex Chamerlin, text-ed asking me to join him and his friend in the
Oberoi lounge for a drink. I started to make my way out the door
but decided
that I was really too tired. I had a 7am flight, and needed to be
up at 5. Rest beckoned. I closed the light, got into bed and
quickly fell asleep. Lucky life-saving decision number 1.

About 1hr later there was knock at my door. A few seconds later,
the doorbell rang (they have doorbells for hotel rooms here -
who'da thunk?). I thought - who the hell is knocking at my door?
Turn down service? This late? Forget it. So I just lay there and
hoped they would go away. Lucky life-saving decision number 2.

Five minutes later I heard and felt a huge bang. I got up and went
to look out the window. A huge cloud of grey smoke billowed up from
the road below. I thought. Fireworks? I didn't see anyone milling
about so knew something wasn't right. I started to walk to the
light switch when - BANG - another huge explosion shook the entire
hotel.

Oh ****, I thought. Is that what I think this is? I opened the door
to the hallway. A few people were already outside.

I heard the word "bomb".

Oh shit. Oh shit I thought.

I'd like to tell you that I calmly collected my myself and my
things and proceeded to the exits.

I didn't. An adrenaline explosion erupted inside me and almost
lifted me off the floor. And I began to move. Really move.

I went back inside, quickly packed my stuff and went back into the
hall.

I ran to the emergency exit and started making my way down the
stairs (I was on the 18th floor).

There were a few people in the stairwell. I was flying by them. I
swear I could have run a marathon in 2hrs. I felt like pure energy.

About halfway down, I called my friend Mark, told him what had
happened and asked him to get me a flight - any flight - the hell
out of Mumbai.

I got to the lobby level. There was a crowd of people in the
corridor. No one moving. No one doing anything. No hotel staff. No
security people.

Shit. I thought. We are sitting ducks.

I decided to get out of there. First, into the lobby.

I stepped through the door into the silent lobby. My first sight
was a blood-soaked plastic bag and bloody footsteps leading into
the reception area. I proceeded forward. The windows were shattered
and glass was everywhere. There wasn't a soul around.

Bad decision, I thought. I quickly retreated to the corridor. The
crowd of people had grown.

We've got to get out of here I yelled. Let's go.

I looked around for the emergency exit and started running towards it.

I made my way through the bowels of the hotel and out into a dark
alley. It was empty and silent. I looked to my left and about 100m
away saw a few security guards milling about.

Run they screamed. I began to move toward them.

I reached the main street and was immediately swept up into the
Indian throngs (for those who have been to Mumbai you know what I
mean). People everywhere. But they were all eerily quiet. No one
was talking. No car horns. Nothing.

I started yelling "airport airport".

Some one (a hotel cook I believe) grabbed me and my bag and threw
me in a rusty mini-cab.

As I sped away, I didn't see a single police car nor hear a single
siren. Just the sound of this shit-box car speeding down the
deserted road.

Traffic was stop and go. I made it to the airport in about 1hr,
cleared customs and buried myself in a corner of a packed departure
lounge, called my wife, called my parents and brothers and started
emailing those friends who knew I was in Mumbai.

Sadly, Alex - my colleague who texted me for a drink, and his
friend, were not so lucky. The terrorists stormed into the lobby
bar and killed several people. They took Alex and his friend
hostage and started to march them up to the roof of the hotel.

About half way up, Alex managed to escape (he ducked through an
open door and hid) but his friend was caught. And as I write this,
that poor man is still on the roof of the Oberai.

Alex is safe but as expected, extremely worried about his friend.

I'm telling you right now. If I decided to meet Alex for that drink
tonight I'd either be dead, a hostage on the roof of a building 30
hours away from everyone I love or - if I had the balls of Alex - a
stupid-but-lucky-to-be-alive jerk.

And remember that knock/ring at my door? Well, I subsequently
learned that the first thing the terrorists did was get the names
and room numbers of western guests. They then went to the rooms to
find them. Ehrlich, with an E, room 1820. I'll bet my entire life
savings that they were the knock at my door.

Thank god for jet lag.
Thank god for "cranky tired Jonny" (as many of my friends and
family know so well) that compelled to get into and stay in bed.

Thank god for being on the 18th floor.
Thank god for the kind kind people of Mumbai of helped me tonight.
The wonderfully kind hotel staff. That cook. My cab driver who
constantly said "relaxation" "relaxation" "I help" and who kept me
in the cab when we hit a particularly gnarly traffic jam and i
wanted to get out and walk. And for other people in traffic who,
upon hearing from my own cab driver that I was at the Oberai,
literally risked life and limb to stop traffic to let us get by (as
again, only those who have been to Mumbai can truly appreciate).

Mumbai is a tragically beautiful place. Incredibly sad. But I am
convinced that its inhabitants are definitely children of some
troubled but immensely soulfully god.

I'm sitting on plane (upgraded to first class..see, told you I'm
lucky). Just had the best tasting bowl of corn flakes

I've ever had in my life. Hennessey
coursing through my veins. Concentration starting to loosen and
sleep beginning to creep onto my horizon.

I still feel a bit numb. But mostly I feel like I've just watched a
really really bad movie staring me. Because right now, it all
doesn't feel real.
Maybe a few hours of CNN will knock me into reality. But the truth
is numb is fine with me for a while. If I do end up thinking about
the what if's, I don't really want to do that until I'm much much
closer to home. And I have 30 more hours of travel time to go.

But before I sign off, let me say this.

The people who did this have no souls. They have no hearts. They
are simply the living manifestation of evil and they only know
killing and murder.
We - all of us - need to understand that. Their target tonight was
first and foremost Americans. Why? Because they fear everything
that America stands for. They fear hope and change and freedom and
peace.

Let's make no mistake; they would have shot me and my children
point blank tonight without a moment's hesitation. Most of us sorta
know that, but sometimes we equivocate. We can't equivocate. Not ever.

I know that I want to go back. Lay some flowers. Wrap my arms
around these people. Say thank you. Spend some money on overpriced
hotel gifts and tip well. And generally give the bastards who did
this the big **** you and show them that I am not - I repeat not -
afraid of them.

But first I need to go squeeze my wife. Dry her tears. Then have
her dry mine as I hold my beautiful beautiful babies who will be
(thankfully) oblivious to all of this. Because isn't that what life
is really about?

I appreciate you taking the time to listen.

With much much love.

Jonathan

Jonathan Ehrlich
LIVE CURRENT MEDIA INC.

Thanks, Helene xxxZ

Blackwater.... Are WE guilty, TOO?

Are they SERIOUS? Well, it looks like the case of the Blackwater group is heating up. I wrote about it the other day. I said that, if there's enough evidence that the consultants are guilty, they need to be called on it and that due process must follow. I added that it's a shame they're already condemned in the leftist media through innuendo.

But, so are WE, folks. Here's the sentence in the article full of information which caught my eye:

"Though the case has already been assigned to U.S. District Judge Ricardo M. Urbina in Washington, the guards surrendered in Utah. They want the case moved there, where they would presumably find a more conservative jury pool and one more likely to support the Iraq war."

Hold on a minute here.....Does that imply people who supported the war are more likely to excuse a bunch of guys supposedly shooting indiscriminately at innocent Iraqi citizens? Just wondering..... THIS is the insidious CRAP we have to STOP, folks.

But, maybe I'm far too sensitive. Tell me. (not you, Ducky. I know, I know)

z

Obama smokes. So what, really? But.........

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President-elect Barack Obama failed to give a straight answer when asked on a U.S. talkshow on Sunday whether he had managed to quit smoking.

In a country where cigarettes are responsible for one in five deaths and smoking costs tens of billions of dollars in health care, Obama has been under pressure to set an example by giving up his reported two-decade-old habit.

Appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press" program, interviewer Tom Brokaw told Obama he had ducked answering the question during an interview last month with ABC's Barbara Walters.

Noting that the White House was a no-smoking zone, Brokaw asked Obama, "Have you stopped smoking?"

"I have," Obama replied, smiling broadly. "What I said was that there are times where I have fallen off the wagon."

"Wait a minute," Brokaw interjected, "that means you haven't stopped."

"Fair enough," Obama said. "What I would say is that I have done a terrific job under the circumstances of making myself much healthier. You will not see any violations of these rules in the White House." (Z: The "rules" were set by Hillary, if a president's a smoker, can't he break them? And, of course, he won't answer the question but has "done a terrific job under the circumstances.." WHAT circumstances? Does he mean "For a smoker, I'm healthy"?)

Obama was often observed on the presidential campaign trail chewing Nicorette gum, which helps ease the craving for nicotine. He has tried several times to quit.

The 47-year-old president-elect, who takes office on January 20, works out daily at the gym and sometimes plays basketball. His doctor said in May he was in excellent health, often jogged 3 miles a day and was fit to serve as U.S. president.

Z: See where he says "FAIR ENOUGH?" .."FAIR ENOUGH?" Do you see what he does here? "I have stopped smoking......I haven't REALLY stopped smoking..." So, if he says he has but does smoke once in a while, any time a photographer catches him or someone sees him and reports that he's smoking it will be explained away by "....another one of those times when I've fallen off the wagon." He's SAFE! Get it? He covered all his bases. And, WHO CARES IF HE SMOKES? I don't! TELL THE TRUTH, Obama.....you're sure good at NOT telling the truth! FAIR ENOUGH, OBAMA?

About the picture above? Ya, he just HOPES he doesn't get caught.

z