BAMBINO: With the "retirement" of Mother Sheehan, the far left's anti America campaign is in a "quagmire". A friend of mine, let's call him Bill, who is a vitriolic anti war person, told me that the Anti War movement never really got off the ground for the Battle of Iraq.
He told me that back in the 60's, the entire movement was for one cause. Stopping the Vietnam War. Now he says, the message is convoluted. "There are too many factions" he tells me. "There's the Grannies Against The War, there's the PETA Nuts, Code Pink, Pro Gay, Anti Christian, Anti Israel, Communists Movements, on and on..." He says that the movement is all over the place and isn't taken seriously because of the mixed agendas.
He relived the days where millions showed up for an anti war protest in DC. Now he sees 20,000 at best and that's with trumped up numbers from the organizers. He sees too much talk and no action. "The Hollywood people aren't helping either." Bill says most Americans are turned off by celebrities spouting anti war stuff then retreating in their private jets to their billion dollar homes.
What to do? He says nothing. Not enough people are tuned in and never will be because of (Bill hates to admit this) American prosperity. Too many people have too many things to do and there's too many distractions to stay focused on one movement. "We didn't have internet, cellphones, cable TV, all we had was the Evening News and print media. We also had the draft. That alone was a rallying cry to the cause."
While Bill is sad that the movement never took hold, he is still proud of the job he did ending the Vietnam War. "Hey, we won one, and lost one. Hopefully next time there is a draft and we will get more numbers that way."
Paging Charles Rangel
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Monday, May 28, 2007
McLaren 1-2 at Monaco
BAMBINO: Qualifying is everything at the tight Monaco street circuit. Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton took the first two spots on the grid and finished that way. Alonso was hardly challenged other than by Hamilton who is still turning heads with his brilliant rookie start. Fernando cruised his McLaren to his consecutive GP win at the famed street circuit.
Ferrari never really had the grip they needed. Felipe Massa qualified third and finished third and Kimi Raikkonen's clipping of the wall near La Piscine in qualifying put him at the back of grid. Although Kimi did nail down the final points paying spot finishing 8th, he clearly is underacheiving at La Scuderia Ferrari.
One big story is American Scott Speed of Torro Rosso-Ferrari. Speed qualified 20th and finished 9th. He battled the factory Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen for 8th position which will further Ferrari's anxiety. Next up is the Canadian GP.
FINAL RESULTS:
1) Fernando Alonso - McLaren-Mercedes
2) Lewis Hamilton - McLaren-Mercedes
3) Felipe Massa - Ferrari
4) Giancarlo Fisichella - Renault
5) Robert Kubica - BMW
6) Nick Heidfeld - BMW
7) Alexander Wurz - Williams-Toyota
8) Kimi Raikkonen - Ferrari
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Yankees 8, Red Sox 3
BAMBINO: While I like Curt Schilling as a Hall of Fame pitcher, as a loyal American, and as a crusader against ALS, I love to see him get tattoed by the Yankees. The Bronx Bombers had their Big Sticks out last night which pummeled Boston for 16 hits. They also got great starting pitching from Andy Pettitte who went 7 innings and gave up only 1 run. Hideki Matsui got them going with a three run blast in the 1st and they never looked back.
Derek Jeter who went 3 for 5, surpassed Joe DiMaggio on the Yankees all time hits list. The Captain is carving out one hell over a Hall of Fame career. The man is brilliant on and off the field. I am grateful as a Yankee fan to have him on my team. Another good sign for the Yanks is Doug Mientkiewicz and Robbie Cano are getting hot. But Bobby Abreu is continuing to struggle at the plate and steadily slipping down the lineup. Is the bench next? Also Kyle Farnsworth is continuing to pitch poorly when called on. He gave up 2 runs in one inning of work. Other than the Ortiz strikeout last year at Fenway where he buckled Big Papi's knees on a nasty slider, I can't recall any greatness from Farnsworth.
The big picture is that the Yanks won a series and have won 3 of 4 and have a bit of momentum. They will get hot soon. There's too much talent for them not to reel off 20 of 24 games even with the pitching woes. On the flipside, the Red Sox are due for a bad stretch and I no doubt believe the two teams will be fighting for the division in late August. Next up for the Yanks is the LA Angels. The Angels are a team that pretty much owned the Yanks over the last 10 years, in fact they are the only team to have a winning record over the Yanks in the Joe Torre era. So the Yanks have their work cut out for them. 2 out of 3 is all they need before heading to Toronto. LET'S GO YANKEES!!!
GAME WRAP:
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Tiny Minority, Big Problem
By Michelle Malkin
May 23, 2007
If we believe the spin of Associated Press headline writers, there's little cause for concern about a new Pew poll of American Muslims. "Most U.S. Muslims reject suicide bombings," the AP headline writer blithely reports.
But the details of the poll show that the always-downplayed tiny minority of jihadi sympathizers in America is cause for big concern.
The poll found that while 80 percent of U.S. Muslims believe suicide bombings of civilians to defend Islam cannot be justified, fully 13 percent said they can be justified, at least rarely. One in four younger American Muslims find suicide bombings in defense of Islam "acceptable at least in some circumstances."
About 29 percent of those surveyed had either favorable views about al Qaeda or did not express an opinion. Yes, they either gave al Qaeda thumbs-up or had no opinion about the terrorist group responsible for slaughtering nearly 3,000 of their fellow Americans on 9/11 and responsible for a global bloodbath from Bali to Britain, the Middle East, and beyond.
A third of those polled believe the invasion of Afghanistan to take out al Qaeda training camps after 9/11 was wrong. In addition, only 40 percent of all American Muslims believe Arab men carried about the 9/11 attacks -- joining Charlie Sheen, Rosie O'Donnell and the inside-job conspiracy-mongers. The poll focused particular concern on jihadi sympathy among young Muslims and black Muslims:
"Muslim Americans reject Islamic extremism by larger margins than do Muslim minorities in Western European countries. However, there is somewhat more acceptance of Islamic extremism in some segments of the U.S. Muslim public than others. Fewer native-born African American Muslims than others completely condemn al Qaeda. In addition, younger Muslims in the U.S. are much more likely than older Muslim Americans to say that suicide bombing in the defense of Islam can be at least sometimes justified."
"It is a hair-raising number," Radwan Masmoudi, president of the Washington-based Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy, told the AP. Indeed. The numbers should be a wake-up call, not another excuse for the mainstream media to downplay the threat of homegrown jihad.
REST OF STORY:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/mmalkin/2007/mm_0523.shtml
May 23, 2007
If we believe the spin of Associated Press headline writers, there's little cause for concern about a new Pew poll of American Muslims. "Most U.S. Muslims reject suicide bombings," the AP headline writer blithely reports.
But the details of the poll show that the always-downplayed tiny minority of jihadi sympathizers in America is cause for big concern.
The poll found that while 80 percent of U.S. Muslims believe suicide bombings of civilians to defend Islam cannot be justified, fully 13 percent said they can be justified, at least rarely. One in four younger American Muslims find suicide bombings in defense of Islam "acceptable at least in some circumstances."
About 29 percent of those surveyed had either favorable views about al Qaeda or did not express an opinion. Yes, they either gave al Qaeda thumbs-up or had no opinion about the terrorist group responsible for slaughtering nearly 3,000 of their fellow Americans on 9/11 and responsible for a global bloodbath from Bali to Britain, the Middle East, and beyond.
A third of those polled believe the invasion of Afghanistan to take out al Qaeda training camps after 9/11 was wrong. In addition, only 40 percent of all American Muslims believe Arab men carried about the 9/11 attacks -- joining Charlie Sheen, Rosie O'Donnell and the inside-job conspiracy-mongers. The poll focused particular concern on jihadi sympathy among young Muslims and black Muslims:
"Muslim Americans reject Islamic extremism by larger margins than do Muslim minorities in Western European countries. However, there is somewhat more acceptance of Islamic extremism in some segments of the U.S. Muslim public than others. Fewer native-born African American Muslims than others completely condemn al Qaeda. In addition, younger Muslims in the U.S. are much more likely than older Muslim Americans to say that suicide bombing in the defense of Islam can be at least sometimes justified."
"It is a hair-raising number," Radwan Masmoudi, president of the Washington-based Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy, told the AP. Indeed. The numbers should be a wake-up call, not another excuse for the mainstream media to downplay the threat of homegrown jihad.
REST OF STORY:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/mmalkin/2007/mm_0523.shtml
Moral Equivalency Between Israel, Palestinian Terrorists
Israel killed four terrorists, while Palestinians killed an Israeli citizen. But it's all the same for Times' headline writers.
Posted by: Clay Waters
5/22/2007 12:39:01 PM
Business as usual in the Middle East yesterday, as Israel killed four terrorists, while Palestinians killed an Israeli citizen. Yet the headline to the Tuesday story by Taghreed El-Kohdary and Steven Erlanger treated the incidents as if they were morally equivalent acts -- "Israel and Palestinian Militants Carry Out Deadly Attacks."
"The Israeli Air Force continued its strikes in Gaza on Monday, killing four members of Islamic Jihad who the Israeli Army said were preparing to launch rockets against Israel, and one member of Hamas at what it said was a bomb-making factory.
"On Monday night, an Israeli woman was killed when a Qassam rocket launched from Gaza hit a car in the Israeli town of Sderot. Two men were wounded, one moderately and one slightly. The woman, who was standing next to the car, died in a hospital. She was the ninth Israeli to die from Palestinian rocket attacks in the past seven years and the first since November; her name was not immediately released."
Red Sox 7, Yankees 3
Moose, Yankees take step back
By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- Mike Mussina's ongoing torment boils down to this: the calendar keeps moving forward, while he doesn't appear to be.
Mussina's underwhelming season continued in a 7-3 Yankees loss to the Red Sox on Tuesday, as the right-hander surrendered all of Boston's runs -- including home runs by Manny Ramirez and Mike Lowell.
The feelings Mussina is going through, he said, is one of depression, frustration and disappointment. Certainly, there is confusion mixed in. No matter its cause, it has to stop, he vowed.
"I'm getting tired of feeling that way," Mussina said. "Sooner or later here, I'm going to have to figure out what's going on, because I can't keep pitching like this and I certainly don't want to pitch like this. It's not what we need. I can't stand it, so I have to get to work and figure this out."
From the beginning, the 2007 season hasn't played up to expectations for Mussina, who rattled off 15 wins and a 3.51 ERA for the Yankees last year.
His Spring Training was riddled with bouts of inconsistency, and once the calendar flipped ahead to April, Mussina made just two starts before his left hamstring gave out in a start at Minnesota, costing him three weeks.
Mussina reported progress in starts three and four of the season after returning from the disabled list, twice defeating the Rangers, but his struggles began anew in a rain-necessitated doubleheader last week in Chicago.
"Coming off of the DL, I threw really well and I felt like I knew what I was doing and where the ball was going," Mussina said. "Now, I don't feel like I know what I'm doing or where the ball is going.
FULL STORY:
BOX SCORE:
SCHILL'S BLOGGY SOCK
By MICHAEL MORRISSEY/NYPost.com
May 23, 2007 -- Last June, Curt Schilling argued that Joe Torre deserved Manager of the Year props for navigating around a bunch of Yankees injuries.
When the Red Sox starting pitcher looks at this year's Yankees across the field, he sees an even more battered, but still unbowed, squad.
"They're definitely a lot more beat up," Schilling said yesterday afternoon. "I wouldn't use the word 'vulnerable.' "
Schilling brings a 4-1 record and 3.57 ERA into tonight's series finale against Andy Pettitte (2-3, 2.83) at the Stadium. In Schilling's past four starts against the Yanks, he's 2-0 with a 3.60 ERA.
To him, the Yankees' injuries, and their slow start, don't mean anything.
"It means what you make it mean," he said. "They're like us, they've been through the drill. They know.
"They won't panic. The only people that panic in either one of these markets is the media."
Speaking of the media, Schilling has had his run-ins with media members (think "bloody sock"). But he said he doesn't loathe everyone in the industry.
Since early March, though, the 40-year-old frequently has used an alternative outlet. He started his blog, "38 Pitches," and has updated it regularly with both pitching analysis and other thoughts.
"I've had to deal with the media one-tenth as much as in the past," he said in regards to blogging. "And that's not to say that . . . I think people think that I think there are a lot more bad people than good people in the media.
"And I don't believe that's the case. It just makes it easier to come to the park and do things and not have obligations."
Still, with blog headlines like "Why the media (stinks)" and "Ignorance has its privileges," a guy or gal in the Fourth Estate could develop a complex. Schilling also has been controversial on the radio, making disparaging comments about Barry Bonds for which he later apologized.
On the mound, Schilling has produced six quality starts in nine outings. He said as long as the blog doesn't serve as a distraction or interfere with "what I get paid to do," he'll continue it.
"Obviously we've had some bumps along the way," he said. "But (it's) nobody's fault but mine, which you deal with."
BAMBINO: Now I don't really like Schilling's team, but I really like Schilling as a pitcher, as a charitable American, and for his politics. After the Red Sox won the 2004 World Series I wasn't depressed. I was so into the 2004 Election that sports didn't matter at the moment.
CURT SCHILLING'S BLOG:
http://38pitches.com/
May 23, 2007 -- Last June, Curt Schilling argued that Joe Torre deserved Manager of the Year props for navigating around a bunch of Yankees injuries.
When the Red Sox starting pitcher looks at this year's Yankees across the field, he sees an even more battered, but still unbowed, squad.
"They're definitely a lot more beat up," Schilling said yesterday afternoon. "I wouldn't use the word 'vulnerable.' "
Schilling brings a 4-1 record and 3.57 ERA into tonight's series finale against Andy Pettitte (2-3, 2.83) at the Stadium. In Schilling's past four starts against the Yanks, he's 2-0 with a 3.60 ERA.
To him, the Yankees' injuries, and their slow start, don't mean anything.
"It means what you make it mean," he said. "They're like us, they've been through the drill. They know.
"They won't panic. The only people that panic in either one of these markets is the media."
Speaking of the media, Schilling has had his run-ins with media members (think "bloody sock"). But he said he doesn't loathe everyone in the industry.
Since early March, though, the 40-year-old frequently has used an alternative outlet. He started his blog, "38 Pitches," and has updated it regularly with both pitching analysis and other thoughts.
"I've had to deal with the media one-tenth as much as in the past," he said in regards to blogging. "And that's not to say that . . . I think people think that I think there are a lot more bad people than good people in the media.
"And I don't believe that's the case. It just makes it easier to come to the park and do things and not have obligations."
Still, with blog headlines like "Why the media (stinks)" and "Ignorance has its privileges," a guy or gal in the Fourth Estate could develop a complex. Schilling also has been controversial on the radio, making disparaging comments about Barry Bonds for which he later apologized.
On the mound, Schilling has produced six quality starts in nine outings. He said as long as the blog doesn't serve as a distraction or interfere with "what I get paid to do," he'll continue it.
"Obviously we've had some bumps along the way," he said. "But (it's) nobody's fault but mine, which you deal with."
BAMBINO: Now I don't really like Schilling's team, but I really like Schilling as a pitcher, as a charitable American, and for his politics. After the Red Sox won the 2004 World Series I wasn't depressed. I was so into the 2004 Election that sports didn't matter at the moment.
CURT SCHILLING'S BLOG:
http://38pitches.com/
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Muslim paramilitary compounds springing up around America
Chad Groening
OneNewsNow.com
May 21, 2007
A U.S. defense analyst and author says Americans should be very concerned about some radical Muslim paramilitary compounds that have sprung up around the country and that are surrounded with "No Trespassing" signs.
Greg Copley, president of the International Strategic Studies Association (ISSA), says the compounds are often populated with former U.S. convicts who were converted to Islam in prison. These convicts, he contends, are connected to a Pakistani organization.
"Islamberg in New York, Ahmedabad in Virginia, and Holy Islamville in South Carolina, and so on are places which have been formed largely by Jamaat ul-Fuqra," Copley notes, "which is a fundamentalist jihadist movement, which has been involved in terrorist activity and supporting terrorist activity."
The U.S. government has been monitoring the organization's activities, the ISSA official says. "The U.S. government, for example, claimed that ul-Fuqra members were involved in more than a dozen bombings and arson attacks during the 1980s and 1990s," he points out, and that members were "possibly responsible for a couple dozen homicides, and possibly linked to the murder of Daniel Pearl, the Wall Street Journal reporter who was killed in Pakistan."
Jamaat ul-Fuqra, which means "community of the impoverished," recruits converts from the U.S. prison system, the defense analyst says. "They're a very big international group," he asserts. "They do have connections to fundamentalist groups in Pakistan."
There is also evidence that ul-Fuqra may have been linked to shoe-bomber Richard Reid, Copley adds. He says he believes U.S. authorities should thoroughly investigate and keep a watch on the activities of these Muslim compounds that are located in America but connected to a Pakistani jihadist movement.
http://www.onenewsnow.com/2007/05/muslim_paramilitary_compounds.php
OneNewsNow.com
May 21, 2007
A U.S. defense analyst and author says Americans should be very concerned about some radical Muslim paramilitary compounds that have sprung up around the country and that are surrounded with "No Trespassing" signs.
Greg Copley, president of the International Strategic Studies Association (ISSA), says the compounds are often populated with former U.S. convicts who were converted to Islam in prison. These convicts, he contends, are connected to a Pakistani organization.
"Islamberg in New York, Ahmedabad in Virginia, and Holy Islamville in South Carolina, and so on are places which have been formed largely by Jamaat ul-Fuqra," Copley notes, "which is a fundamentalist jihadist movement, which has been involved in terrorist activity and supporting terrorist activity."
The U.S. government has been monitoring the organization's activities, the ISSA official says. "The U.S. government, for example, claimed that ul-Fuqra members were involved in more than a dozen bombings and arson attacks during the 1980s and 1990s," he points out, and that members were "possibly responsible for a couple dozen homicides, and possibly linked to the murder of Daniel Pearl, the Wall Street Journal reporter who was killed in Pakistan."
Jamaat ul-Fuqra, which means "community of the impoverished," recruits converts from the U.S. prison system, the defense analyst says. "They're a very big international group," he asserts. "They do have connections to fundamentalist groups in Pakistan."
There is also evidence that ul-Fuqra may have been linked to shoe-bomber Richard Reid, Copley adds. He says he believes U.S. authorities should thoroughly investigate and keep a watch on the activities of these Muslim compounds that are located in America but connected to a Pakistani jihadist movement.
http://www.onenewsnow.com/2007/05/muslim_paramilitary_compounds.php
The Amnesty Fraud
By Thomas Sowell
May 22, 2007
Nothing is more common than political "solutions" to immediate problems which create much bigger problems down the road. The current immigration bill in the Senate is a classic example.
The big talking point of those who want to legalize the illegal immigrants currently in the United States is to say that it is "unrealistic" to round up and deport 12 million people.
Back in 1986 it was "unrealistic" to round up and deport the 3 million illegal immigrants in the United States then. So they were given amnesty -- honestly labeled, back then -- which is precisely why there are now 12 million illegal immigrants.
As a result of the current amnesty bill -- not honestly labeled, this time -- will it be "unrealistic" to round up and deport 40 million or 50 million illegal immigrants in the future? If the current immigration bill is as "realistic" as its advocates claim, why is it being rushed through the Senate faster than a local zoning ordinance could be passed?
We are, after all, talking about a major and irreversible change in the American population, the American culture, and the American political balance. Why is there no time to talk about it?
Are its advocates afraid that the voting public might discover what a fraud it is? The biggest fraud is denying that this is an amnesty bill.
Its advocates' argument is that illegal immigrants will have to meet certain requirements to become citizens. But amnesty is not about how you become a citizen. The word is from the same root as "amnesia." It means you forget or overlook some crime, as if it never happened. All this elaborate talk about the steps illegal immigrants must go through to become citizens is a distraction from the crime they committed when they crossed the border illegally.
Instead, all attention is focused on what to do to accommodate those who committed this crime. It is a question that would be recognized as an insult to our intelligence on any other issue.
For example, there are undoubtedly thousands, perhaps millions, of unsolved crimes and uncaught criminals in this country and we cannot realistically expect to find and prosecute all these fugitives from justice.
But does anyone suggest that our focus should be on trying to normalize the lives of domestic fugitives from justice -- "bring them out of the shadows" in Ted Kennedy's phrase -- and develop some path by which they can be given an acceptable legal status?
Does anyone suggest that, if domestic criminals come forward, pay some fine, and apply to have their crimes overlooked, they can be put on a path to be restored to good standing in our society?
Just as we don't need to solve every crime and catch every criminal, in order to have deterrents to crime, neither do we have to ferret out and deport every one of the 12 million illegal aliens in this country in order to deter a flood of new illegal aliens.
REST OF STORY:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/tsowell/2007/ts_05222.shtml
The Amnesty Fraud: Part II
By Thomas Sowell
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Every aspect of the current immigration bill, and of the arguments made for it, has Fraud written all over it.
The first, and perhaps biggest, fraud is the argument that illegal aliens are "doing jobs Americans won't do." There are no such jobs.
Even in the sector of the economy in which illegal immigrants have the highest representation -- agriculture -- they are just 24 percent of the workers. Where did the other 76 percent come from, if these are jobs that Americans won't do?
The argument that illegal agricultural workers are "making a contribution to the economy" is likewise misleading.
For well over half a century, this country has had chronic agricultural surpluses which have cost the taxpayers billions of dollars a year to buy, store, and try to get rid of on the world market at money-losing prices.
If there were fewer agricultural workers and smaller agricultural surpluses, the taxpayers would save money.
What about illegal immigrants working outside of agriculture? They are a great bargain for their employers, because they are usually hard-working people who accept low pay and don't cause any trouble on the job
REST OF STORY:
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2007/05/23/the_amnesty_fraud_part_ii
May 22, 2007
Nothing is more common than political "solutions" to immediate problems which create much bigger problems down the road. The current immigration bill in the Senate is a classic example.
The big talking point of those who want to legalize the illegal immigrants currently in the United States is to say that it is "unrealistic" to round up and deport 12 million people.
Back in 1986 it was "unrealistic" to round up and deport the 3 million illegal immigrants in the United States then. So they were given amnesty -- honestly labeled, back then -- which is precisely why there are now 12 million illegal immigrants.
As a result of the current amnesty bill -- not honestly labeled, this time -- will it be "unrealistic" to round up and deport 40 million or 50 million illegal immigrants in the future? If the current immigration bill is as "realistic" as its advocates claim, why is it being rushed through the Senate faster than a local zoning ordinance could be passed?
We are, after all, talking about a major and irreversible change in the American population, the American culture, and the American political balance. Why is there no time to talk about it?
Are its advocates afraid that the voting public might discover what a fraud it is? The biggest fraud is denying that this is an amnesty bill.
Its advocates' argument is that illegal immigrants will have to meet certain requirements to become citizens. But amnesty is not about how you become a citizen. The word is from the same root as "amnesia." It means you forget or overlook some crime, as if it never happened. All this elaborate talk about the steps illegal immigrants must go through to become citizens is a distraction from the crime they committed when they crossed the border illegally.
Instead, all attention is focused on what to do to accommodate those who committed this crime. It is a question that would be recognized as an insult to our intelligence on any other issue.
For example, there are undoubtedly thousands, perhaps millions, of unsolved crimes and uncaught criminals in this country and we cannot realistically expect to find and prosecute all these fugitives from justice.
But does anyone suggest that our focus should be on trying to normalize the lives of domestic fugitives from justice -- "bring them out of the shadows" in Ted Kennedy's phrase -- and develop some path by which they can be given an acceptable legal status?
Does anyone suggest that, if domestic criminals come forward, pay some fine, and apply to have their crimes overlooked, they can be put on a path to be restored to good standing in our society?
Just as we don't need to solve every crime and catch every criminal, in order to have deterrents to crime, neither do we have to ferret out and deport every one of the 12 million illegal aliens in this country in order to deter a flood of new illegal aliens.
REST OF STORY:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/tsowell/2007/ts_05222.shtml
The Amnesty Fraud: Part II
By Thomas Sowell
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Every aspect of the current immigration bill, and of the arguments made for it, has Fraud written all over it.
The first, and perhaps biggest, fraud is the argument that illegal aliens are "doing jobs Americans won't do." There are no such jobs.
Even in the sector of the economy in which illegal immigrants have the highest representation -- agriculture -- they are just 24 percent of the workers. Where did the other 76 percent come from, if these are jobs that Americans won't do?
The argument that illegal agricultural workers are "making a contribution to the economy" is likewise misleading.
For well over half a century, this country has had chronic agricultural surpluses which have cost the taxpayers billions of dollars a year to buy, store, and try to get rid of on the world market at money-losing prices.
If there were fewer agricultural workers and smaller agricultural surpluses, the taxpayers would save money.
What about illegal immigrants working outside of agriculture? They are a great bargain for their employers, because they are usually hard-working people who accept low pay and don't cause any trouble on the job
REST OF STORY:
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2007/05/23/the_amnesty_fraud_part_ii
Yankees 6, Red Sox 2
BAMBINO:
GAME WRAP:
Yankees 6, Mets 2
Clippard neutralizes Mets in debut
By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- Tyler Clippard was the first Yankees player to report to Shea Stadium on Sunday, and as it turned out, he'd be the last one to leave.
In between, Clippard made the most of his hours at the ballpark, pitching the Yankees past the Mets, 6-2, in his Major League debut. He also clubbed a double in the contest, stealing the stage in the Queens Subway Series finale. "He accomplished a lot of firsts today -- first start, first hit, first win," said Yankees center fielder Johnny Damon. "He sure made it look easy."
In between, Clippard made the most of his hours at the ballpark, pitching the Yankees past the Mets, 6-2, in his Major League debut. He also clubbed a double in the contest, stealing the stage in the Queens Subway Series finale. "He accomplished a lot of firsts today -- first start, first hit, first win," said Yankees center fielder Johnny Damon. "He sure made it look easy."
Damon had a two-run double, and Derek Jeter came up with a clutch home run to back Clippard, a 22-year-old right-hander who was summoned from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and added to the Yankees' roster before the game.
Jorge Posada and Alex Rodriguez also homered for the Yankees, who logged nine extra-base hits in a game for the first time this season and evaded a series sweep at the hands of their crosstown rivals.
"I thought the ballclub was very loose tonight," said Yankees manager Joe Torre, before he amended his statement. "Loose, considering where we are and what we've done lately. I think everyone played off the kid tonight."
FULL STORY:
BOX SCORE:
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Mets 3, Yankees 2
BAMBINO:
Honestly, this doesn't bother me. This was the first game I actually watched all 9 innings, and it was a good game despite the Yankees losing. It was done in 2 hours and 18 minutes, it was low scoring, and both pitchers went deep into the game. One pitch made the difference. Willie Randolph has to be the best manager in baseball outside of Joe Torre. Willie was having Endy Chavez bunt with Paul LoDuca on 2nd in the 5th. Then, he took the bunt sign off. Andy Pettitte who was pitching masterfully, laid one in there expecting the bunt and Chavez swung away. It looked like he didn't get all of it, but the ball carried over the right center field wall to give the Mets the lead for good. The Mets bullpen did the rest.Endy Chavez also threw out Johnny Damon in the 1st inning as he tried to stretch a single into a double. It might have stopped a big inning by the Yanks who are really cold at the plate. No one is hitting for the Yankees right now. They wasted a great outing by Pettitte and now are 10 games behind the Red Sox, the largest deficit in the Joe Torre era. They don't have time to feel sorry for themselves as they play this afternoon. Of course, I got my "courtesy" phone calls from my Met fan pals who did nothing but mention the Yankees in their tirades against me. I just laughed and said "That was a great baseball game." I went into my local bagel shop this morning to the "harrassment" of the Met fan that owns it. He's a nice guy, but is definitely obessesed with the Yankees.
Oh well, they play today on FOX this afternoon, which means I don't watch (I can't stomach the idiots that call the game). I listen. I will sit in my backyard, drink some cold beer, and listen to Ma and Pa Sterling on the radio call the action. Darrell Rasner goes to the hill for the Yanks and the crafty veteran Tom Glavine for the Metropolitans. Yanks need to wake up offensively or it might be a long season.
FULL STORY
BOX SCORE:
Friday, May 18, 2007
White Sox 4, Yankees 1
BAMBINO: The Yanks are not having a good road trip at all. They are 2-4 and have not swung the bat and have not pitched well enough. Well, they don't get a break. They head to Shea Stadium to play the Red Hot Mets and then they play the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on Monday. This could be the tonic they need in the Interleague matchup against the junior NY Club from Flushing. The Yanks seem to have the pitching edge on paper, but the Mets are playing good baseball. At least there will be plenty of Yankee fans there at Shea tonight. LET'S GO YANKEES!!!!
GAME WRAP UP:
BOX SCORE:
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Not All Undercover Journalists Are Equal
By Michelle Malkin
May 16, 2007
Here is a tale of two breeds of undercover journalists. One has been celebrated by the national media and journalism organizations. The other has been shunned. One has champions in Congress. The other is facing litigation.
Both engaged in sting operations with secret cameras catching their targets on videotape. Both were deceptive about their true identities and life circumstances. Both exposed their targets' aggressive methods and law-subverting recruitment tactics. But you've probably only heard of the efforts of one of these breeds. You'll know why in a moment.
Over the past several years, local and national news outlets have conducted stings on military recruiters. Last week, a Tennessee station in Nashville set up hidden cameras and reported that it had caught Army recruiters telling an undercover producer posing as a recruit that taking medication for depression would not disqualify a recruit from serving. The Democrat chairman of a House Armed Services subcommittee is now urging an Army probe of recruiting practices and the mentally ill based on the TV station's report.
Last fall, ABC News and New York affiliate WABC enlisted students to help them in a similar gotcha game with recruiters. They armed the kids with hidden video cameras for visits to 10 Army recruitment offices in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. The journalists accused the recruiters of misleading the students to get them to enlist. The ABC News sting came on the heels of a Colorado student's undercover operation in Denver in 2005. David McSwane, a high school honors student, posed as a dropout and druggie. "I wanted to do something cool, go undercover and do something unusual," he told the Rocky Mountain News. McSwane deliberately failed a high school equivalency test, caught recruiters on tape driving him to purchase a detox kit, and reported that they urged him to obtain a phony diploma. A local CBS station picked up the story -- prompting the Army to shut down its recruiting stations nationwide for ethics training.
McSwane earned a "laurel" from the prestigious Columbia Journalism Review "for conduct most becoming" and announced he was headed to journalism school. His reporting garnered attention from the New York Times to Editor and Publisher -- and spawned copycats like those at ABC News.
No such laurels have been awarded to Lila Rose, however. And none will be forthcoming, I predict. Rose is an 18-year-old student journalist at UCLA. Like McSwane and his breed of undercover reporters, she surreptitiously infiltrated a massive organization that enlists young people. Like McSwane and his breed of undercover reporters, Rose exposed deceptive practices. Rose posed as a 15-year-old seeking the services and advice of her target. Like McSwane and his breed of undercover reporters, she caught her targets urging her to lie and evade the law in order to sign her up.
But Rose's target was the Left's beloved Planned Parenthood, not the military. And that has made all the difference in the nonexistent national coverage of her undercover journalism. Rose edits The Advocate, a pro-life campus publication of the student group Live Action. She posed as a minor impregnated by a 23-year-old boyfriend and caught a Planned Parenthood employee advising her to lie about her age to relieve the abortion provider from a legal obligation to report statutory rape to the police.
"If you're 15, we have to report it," the staffer told Rose in a secretly taped video. "If you're not, if you're older than that, then we don't need to." "OK, but if I just say I'm not 15, then it's different?" Rose queried. "You could say 16," the worker helpfully suggested. "Just figure out a birth date that works. And I don't know anything." Other than coverage from a few pro-life groups and conservative websites, Rose's stunning revelations have received virtually no mainstream media attention. And no calls from lawmakers for investigations of Planned Parenthood's predatory tactics and practices -- which have been also caught on tape in other states by undercover citizen investigators.
Instead, Rose faces threats of a lawsuit by Planned Parenthood, which sent her a cease-and-desist letter and had the appalling nerve this week to lecture Rose about the need "to be more respectful of California laws," according to the conservative Cybercast News Service. Where are the muckraking champions when you need them? Intrepid Lila Rose has learned the hard way: Not all undercover journalists are equal.
FULL STORY:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/mmalkin/2007/mm_05161.shtml
May 16, 2007
Here is a tale of two breeds of undercover journalists. One has been celebrated by the national media and journalism organizations. The other has been shunned. One has champions in Congress. The other is facing litigation.
Both engaged in sting operations with secret cameras catching their targets on videotape. Both were deceptive about their true identities and life circumstances. Both exposed their targets' aggressive methods and law-subverting recruitment tactics. But you've probably only heard of the efforts of one of these breeds. You'll know why in a moment.
Over the past several years, local and national news outlets have conducted stings on military recruiters. Last week, a Tennessee station in Nashville set up hidden cameras and reported that it had caught Army recruiters telling an undercover producer posing as a recruit that taking medication for depression would not disqualify a recruit from serving. The Democrat chairman of a House Armed Services subcommittee is now urging an Army probe of recruiting practices and the mentally ill based on the TV station's report.
Last fall, ABC News and New York affiliate WABC enlisted students to help them in a similar gotcha game with recruiters. They armed the kids with hidden video cameras for visits to 10 Army recruitment offices in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. The journalists accused the recruiters of misleading the students to get them to enlist. The ABC News sting came on the heels of a Colorado student's undercover operation in Denver in 2005. David McSwane, a high school honors student, posed as a dropout and druggie. "I wanted to do something cool, go undercover and do something unusual," he told the Rocky Mountain News. McSwane deliberately failed a high school equivalency test, caught recruiters on tape driving him to purchase a detox kit, and reported that they urged him to obtain a phony diploma. A local CBS station picked up the story -- prompting the Army to shut down its recruiting stations nationwide for ethics training.
McSwane earned a "laurel" from the prestigious Columbia Journalism Review "for conduct most becoming" and announced he was headed to journalism school. His reporting garnered attention from the New York Times to Editor and Publisher -- and spawned copycats like those at ABC News.
No such laurels have been awarded to Lila Rose, however. And none will be forthcoming, I predict. Rose is an 18-year-old student journalist at UCLA. Like McSwane and his breed of undercover reporters, she surreptitiously infiltrated a massive organization that enlists young people. Like McSwane and his breed of undercover reporters, Rose exposed deceptive practices. Rose posed as a 15-year-old seeking the services and advice of her target. Like McSwane and his breed of undercover reporters, she caught her targets urging her to lie and evade the law in order to sign her up.
But Rose's target was the Left's beloved Planned Parenthood, not the military. And that has made all the difference in the nonexistent national coverage of her undercover journalism. Rose edits The Advocate, a pro-life campus publication of the student group Live Action. She posed as a minor impregnated by a 23-year-old boyfriend and caught a Planned Parenthood employee advising her to lie about her age to relieve the abortion provider from a legal obligation to report statutory rape to the police.
"If you're 15, we have to report it," the staffer told Rose in a secretly taped video. "If you're not, if you're older than that, then we don't need to." "OK, but if I just say I'm not 15, then it's different?" Rose queried. "You could say 16," the worker helpfully suggested. "Just figure out a birth date that works. And I don't know anything." Other than coverage from a few pro-life groups and conservative websites, Rose's stunning revelations have received virtually no mainstream media attention. And no calls from lawmakers for investigations of Planned Parenthood's predatory tactics and practices -- which have been also caught on tape in other states by undercover citizen investigators.
Instead, Rose faces threats of a lawsuit by Planned Parenthood, which sent her a cease-and-desist letter and had the appalling nerve this week to lecture Rose about the need "to be more respectful of California laws," according to the conservative Cybercast News Service. Where are the muckraking champions when you need them? Intrepid Lila Rose has learned the hard way: Not all undercover journalists are equal.
FULL STORY:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/mmalkin/2007/mm_05161.shtml
Yankee Derangement Syndrome
BAMBINO: Yankee Derangement Syndrome or YDS, is a condition that affects millions of baseball fans annually, some for life. It is a syndrome that takes calm and civil people and turns them into venom spewing mongrels full of piss and vinegar, like some Mets fans I know. It has been documented that fans of other teams (Boston Red Sox) travel to far away places, like Mount Everest, and have a Yankee hat burning ceremony to somehow rid the earth of the "vile stench" known as the New York Yankees. Between frostbite and brain freezes, these brilliant Yankee haters risk life and limb to perform such rituals and actually sacrificed much needed kerosene to get the job done. And to what end?
Symptoms Include:
- Frothing at the mouth at the mere mention of the word Yankee, or a similar sounding word (skanky, cranky, Frankie, etc).
- Wigging out and flailing like a maniac when finding out the Yankees outbid other teams for a high priced free agent.
- Totally losing your marbles when the Yankees win a game and doing the May Pole Dance when they lose.
- Every other word out of your filthy sewer being Yankee with no mention of your own team.
- Calling Joe Torre mean names and comparing Derek Jeter to one of the Fab 5 from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.
- Dry mouth and/or a rabid thirst.
- Not calling your Uncle Joe on his birthday because he's a Yankee fan and they recently beat your team to a pulp.
Treatment:
Not to worry. YDS is not fatal nor is it permanent. All one has to do is either submit already and become a Yankee fan, or simply go to your favorite team site and purchase a fitted cap and a jersey. Then go to 5 Tuesday night games with the gear on (without washing the jersey), then say 3 Hail Mary's, hold your breath for 26 seconds, and then scream: LET'S GO (INSERT TEAM NAME)!!!!!!!! You should be cured, if not, call 1-800-GETOVERIT.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Massa Wins Spanish GP From Pole!
BAMBINO: Bravo Felipe! It was good to see Massa take the chequered flag after having a great race weekend. After taking Pole, Massa got his F2007 off the line and on the inside racing line by Turn 1. Defending Champion and local Spaniard Fernando Alonso tried to get around Massa on the outside of Turn 1, but Felipe held his inside line in the right/left Turn 1 forcing Alonso into the gravel on the inside of the left hand part of the turn. A dangerous moment ensued when Fernando's MP4-22 veered back onto the track just missing Kimi Raikkonen's Ferrari and just missing taking the nose off Robert Kubica's BMW. Nothing happened after that and the front runners fell into line. Massa quickly built up his lead over Lewis Hamilton who is continuing his record breaking Formula One rookie season for McLaren. Kimi followed in third but retired on Lap 9 with an electronics failure to his F2007. A disappointing end to a sub par weekend for the Finn.
Kimi never really had the pace and having his old nemesis Michael Schumacher in the Ferrari Paddock I'm sure made Kimi a tad uncomfortable. Regardless, Schumi is a principal with La Scuderia Ferrari, so Kimi had better get used to him being around. Felipe Massa on the other hand, who was Michael's team mate last year, was thrilled to have the 7-Time World Champion advising him over the weekend. "Anytime you have a 7-Time World Champion in your ear, it's a good thing. I have learned a lot from Michael" said the fiery Brazilian. Indeed. Felipe was never challenged after his Turn 1 scrum with Alonso and he easily cruised his Ferrari to his second GP win in a row putting him 3 points behind upstart Lewis Hamilton in the Driver's Championship.
Local hero Fernando Alonso however didn't have the result he wanted in front of the home crowd, but he did finish a strong third despite some chassis damage suffered in the Turn 1 game of chicken he played with the race victor. It only proves how good of a driver Fernando is that he was able to still get on the podium. His team mate Lewis Hamilton is having an incredible start to his F1 career. Four consecutive podiums (one 3rd place and three 2nd place) to start a career, WOW!
American hopeful Scott Speed who drives for Torro Rosso-Ferrari retired on Lap 9 due to a left rear tire blowout. Not his fault, just bad luck. He started the race dead last and worked himself up to 14th and had improved over the weekend as a driver, but fate would have the last word. That's racing folks. F1 veteran David Coulthard finished a strong 5th for Red Bull-Renault proving he still belongs and Robert Kubica of BMW finished 4th. Takuma Sato picked up the first ever points for Super Aguri F1 with an 8th place finish. The factory Honda team must be embarrassed by that one. Next up is Monaco.
FINAL RESULTS:
1) Felipe Massa - Ferrari
2) Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - Mercedes
3) Fernando Alonso - McLaren - Mercedes
4) Robert Kubica - BMW
5) David Coulthard - Red Bull - Renault
6) Nico Rosberg - Williams - Toyota
7) Heikki Kovalainen - Renault
8) Takuma Sato - Super Aguri F1 - Honda
Friday, May 11, 2007
Terror-Illegal Immigration Link Highlighted in Thwarted NJ Plot
By Kevin Mooney
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
May 11, 2007
(CNSNews.com) - Illegal aliens and foreign-born U.S. citizens accused of plotting to attack a military base in New Jersey may be part of a larger network, according to a counter-terrorism expert and members of Congress, who are also pushing for an enforcement-first approach to immigration.Although law enforcement officials have described the suspects as "homegrown terrorists" not linked to al Qaeda, Richard Miniter, an adjunct fellow with the Hudson Institute, believes this view is mistaken."The whole idea that these guys are part of a loose network is itself an intelligence failure," Miniter told Cybercast News Service. "When we really drill down deep enough, I will bet a million dollars you will find hard links to the al Qaeda network."Six Muslim men were arrested this week in connection with a plot to launch a terrorist assault on Fort Dix, a U.S. Army base in New Jersey.
Five of the foreign-born suspects have been charged with plotting to kill soldiers at the base. A sixth is charged with aiding and abetting in the illegal possession of firearms. Of the five facing the more serious charges, three are brothers believed to have entered the country illegally 23 years ago.Alluding to an apparent nexus between illegal immigration and terrorism, Miniter said that New Jersey and the greater New York area are attractive to terrorists because they contain large and diverse populations, including significant Arab-Muslim populations in places like Jersey City."They are looking for places where they can blend in," he said. "They want to find the biggest anthill close to population centers where they can carry out attacks."The foiled terrorist plot in New Jersey further highlights the need for tighter border security and stricter immigration polices, in the view of Rep. Tom Tancredo.
The Colorado Republican, who is running for his party's 2008 presidential nomination, expressed support for polices that would preclude "all immigration from countries that are state sponsors of terrorism." Currently, the State Department designates Iran, Syria, Sudan, Cuba and North Korea as sponsors of terrorism.Tancredo told Cybercast News Service that as president, he would also station "active duty troops" along the U.S. border. "We have to train people somewhere, so why not on the border?"Tancredo said policymakers need to be more aware of Islamists' efforts to transform the U.S. into a "caliphate." He called for the arrest of Muslim clerics who advocate the overthrow of the American government. "That's sedition, and they should be arrested," Tancredo said.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=/Politics/archive/200705/POL20070511a.html
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
May 11, 2007
(CNSNews.com) - Illegal aliens and foreign-born U.S. citizens accused of plotting to attack a military base in New Jersey may be part of a larger network, according to a counter-terrorism expert and members of Congress, who are also pushing for an enforcement-first approach to immigration.Although law enforcement officials have described the suspects as "homegrown terrorists" not linked to al Qaeda, Richard Miniter, an adjunct fellow with the Hudson Institute, believes this view is mistaken."The whole idea that these guys are part of a loose network is itself an intelligence failure," Miniter told Cybercast News Service. "When we really drill down deep enough, I will bet a million dollars you will find hard links to the al Qaeda network."Six Muslim men were arrested this week in connection with a plot to launch a terrorist assault on Fort Dix, a U.S. Army base in New Jersey.
Five of the foreign-born suspects have been charged with plotting to kill soldiers at the base. A sixth is charged with aiding and abetting in the illegal possession of firearms. Of the five facing the more serious charges, three are brothers believed to have entered the country illegally 23 years ago.Alluding to an apparent nexus between illegal immigration and terrorism, Miniter said that New Jersey and the greater New York area are attractive to terrorists because they contain large and diverse populations, including significant Arab-Muslim populations in places like Jersey City."They are looking for places where they can blend in," he said. "They want to find the biggest anthill close to population centers where they can carry out attacks."The foiled terrorist plot in New Jersey further highlights the need for tighter border security and stricter immigration polices, in the view of Rep. Tom Tancredo.
The Colorado Republican, who is running for his party's 2008 presidential nomination, expressed support for polices that would preclude "all immigration from countries that are state sponsors of terrorism." Currently, the State Department designates Iran, Syria, Sudan, Cuba and North Korea as sponsors of terrorism.Tancredo told Cybercast News Service that as president, he would also station "active duty troops" along the U.S. border. "We have to train people somewhere, so why not on the border?"Tancredo said policymakers need to be more aware of Islamists' efforts to transform the U.S. into a "caliphate." He called for the arrest of Muslim clerics who advocate the overthrow of the American government. "That's sedition, and they should be arrested," Tancredo said.
REST OF STORY:
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=/Politics/archive/200705/POL20070511a.html
C'est Si Bon
by Ann Coulter (More by this author)
Posted: 05/09/2007
I'm off to Paris! I hereby revoke every churlish remark I've ever made about those lovely Gallic people. (But in light of former New Jersey governor and current "gay American" Jim McGreevey's latest career move, I redouble everything I've ever said about the Episcopalians.)
With Nicolas Sarkozy's decisive victory as the new president of France, the French have produced their first pro-American ruler since Louis XVI.
In celebration of France's spectacular return to Western civilization, I bought a Herve Leger dress on Monday, and we're having croissants for breakfast every day this week. This delicate French pastry, by the way, is in the shape of a crescent to commemorate the Crusaders' victory over Islam. Aren't the French just peachy?
"Sarkozy the American," as he is known in France, called Muslim rioters "scum." Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. He explained his position on Muslim immigrants in France, saying: "Nobody has to, I repeat, live in France. But when you live in France, you respect its rules. That is to say that you are not a polygamist. ... One doesn't practice female genital mutilation on one's daughters, one doesn't slit the throat of the sheep, and one respects the republican rules."
Sarko never issued an apology or entered rehab. To the contrary, he said: "I called some individuals that I refuse to call 'youth' by the name they deserve. ... I never felt that by saying 'scum' I was being vulgar, hypocritical or insincere."Is there a single American politician who would speak so clearly without then apologizing to Howard Dean?
It looks like the Democrats are going to have to drop their talking point about Bush irritating the rest of the world. Evidently not as much as Muslim terrorists irritate the rest of the world. The politicians who hate Bush keep being dumped by their own voters. At the Democratic presidential debate a few weeks ago, B. Hussein Obama carped that Bush had "alienate(d) the world community" and vowed that he would build "the sort of alliances and trust around the world that has been so lacking over the last six years."
Democrats are terrific at building alliances. Remember how Jimmy Carter won the love of the world by ditching our ally the Shah of Iran, allowing him be replaced by a string of crazy ayatollahs? Since then, we haven't heard a peep from that area of the world. The smartest woman in the world sniped that she would "create alliances instead of alienation." Yes, it was spellbinding how her husband charmed North Korean dictator Kim Il Sung and his sociopathic son Kim Jong Il by showering them with visits from Jimmy Carter and gifts from love-machine Madeleine Albright. And that was that: No more trouble from North Korea!
As I understand it, the center of the supposedly America-hating world is France. But now it turns out even the French don't hate America as much as liberals do. Au contraire! (We can say that again!) Our Georgie is the most popular American with the French since Jerry Lewis.
All over the civilized world, voters are turning terrorist-coddling liberals out of office and voting for politicians friendly toward Bush, the world's sworn enemy of Islamic fascism.
Those foreign leaders so admired by Democrats for hating George Bush and loving Saddam Hussein are being replaced by rulers who pledge their friendship to the United States.
Retrospectively, B. Hussein Obama's answer about our most important ally being "the European Union" may eventually become true, thanks to Bush's ceaseless ally-making. In Germany, pro-American Angela Merkel crushed the mincing anti-American chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in 2005.
Last year, conservatives swept Canada, making Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper the prime minister. I haven't loved Canadians this much since the New York Rangers won the Stanley Cup. Australian Prime Minister John Howard is both the longest-serving Australian prime minister and -- by his own account -- the most conservative. As The New York Times rooted for his defeat in 2004, claiming Australians were furious with him for his support of the Iraq war, he won a historic third term. Along with Howard, Bush's staunchest ally in the war on terrorism has been Britain's Labor Party leader Tony Blair. He's about to leave office -- only to be replaced by a leader from the even more pro-American Conservative Party.
American celebrities who threaten to move out of the country every election rather than live under a conservative leader are running out of countries to move to.
Only Spain remains a nation of women. As long as Spain exists, it will not outlive the shame of its gutless capitulation to terrorist bombings in 2004. It is worse than Sweden's neutrality toward Hitler. But France! Until this week, France seemed a less likely place to find someone who supports America than a meeting of Democrats.
Apparently, even the French prefer Western civilization to clitorectomy-performing, car-burning savages. The Democratic Party is now officially the only organization on Earth that does not take the threat of Islamic fascism seriously. Between the Democrats and the media, America has gone from its usual position as the world's last hope to radical Islam's last hope.
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=20645
Posted: 05/09/2007
I'm off to Paris! I hereby revoke every churlish remark I've ever made about those lovely Gallic people. (But in light of former New Jersey governor and current "gay American" Jim McGreevey's latest career move, I redouble everything I've ever said about the Episcopalians.)
With Nicolas Sarkozy's decisive victory as the new president of France, the French have produced their first pro-American ruler since Louis XVI.
In celebration of France's spectacular return to Western civilization, I bought a Herve Leger dress on Monday, and we're having croissants for breakfast every day this week. This delicate French pastry, by the way, is in the shape of a crescent to commemorate the Crusaders' victory over Islam. Aren't the French just peachy?
"Sarkozy the American," as he is known in France, called Muslim rioters "scum." Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. He explained his position on Muslim immigrants in France, saying: "Nobody has to, I repeat, live in France. But when you live in France, you respect its rules. That is to say that you are not a polygamist. ... One doesn't practice female genital mutilation on one's daughters, one doesn't slit the throat of the sheep, and one respects the republican rules."
Sarko never issued an apology or entered rehab. To the contrary, he said: "I called some individuals that I refuse to call 'youth' by the name they deserve. ... I never felt that by saying 'scum' I was being vulgar, hypocritical or insincere."Is there a single American politician who would speak so clearly without then apologizing to Howard Dean?
It looks like the Democrats are going to have to drop their talking point about Bush irritating the rest of the world. Evidently not as much as Muslim terrorists irritate the rest of the world. The politicians who hate Bush keep being dumped by their own voters. At the Democratic presidential debate a few weeks ago, B. Hussein Obama carped that Bush had "alienate(d) the world community" and vowed that he would build "the sort of alliances and trust around the world that has been so lacking over the last six years."
Democrats are terrific at building alliances. Remember how Jimmy Carter won the love of the world by ditching our ally the Shah of Iran, allowing him be replaced by a string of crazy ayatollahs? Since then, we haven't heard a peep from that area of the world. The smartest woman in the world sniped that she would "create alliances instead of alienation." Yes, it was spellbinding how her husband charmed North Korean dictator Kim Il Sung and his sociopathic son Kim Jong Il by showering them with visits from Jimmy Carter and gifts from love-machine Madeleine Albright. And that was that: No more trouble from North Korea!
As I understand it, the center of the supposedly America-hating world is France. But now it turns out even the French don't hate America as much as liberals do. Au contraire! (We can say that again!) Our Georgie is the most popular American with the French since Jerry Lewis.
All over the civilized world, voters are turning terrorist-coddling liberals out of office and voting for politicians friendly toward Bush, the world's sworn enemy of Islamic fascism.
Those foreign leaders so admired by Democrats for hating George Bush and loving Saddam Hussein are being replaced by rulers who pledge their friendship to the United States.
Retrospectively, B. Hussein Obama's answer about our most important ally being "the European Union" may eventually become true, thanks to Bush's ceaseless ally-making. In Germany, pro-American Angela Merkel crushed the mincing anti-American chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in 2005.
Last year, conservatives swept Canada, making Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper the prime minister. I haven't loved Canadians this much since the New York Rangers won the Stanley Cup. Australian Prime Minister John Howard is both the longest-serving Australian prime minister and -- by his own account -- the most conservative. As The New York Times rooted for his defeat in 2004, claiming Australians were furious with him for his support of the Iraq war, he won a historic third term. Along with Howard, Bush's staunchest ally in the war on terrorism has been Britain's Labor Party leader Tony Blair. He's about to leave office -- only to be replaced by a leader from the even more pro-American Conservative Party.
American celebrities who threaten to move out of the country every election rather than live under a conservative leader are running out of countries to move to.
Only Spain remains a nation of women. As long as Spain exists, it will not outlive the shame of its gutless capitulation to terrorist bombings in 2004. It is worse than Sweden's neutrality toward Hitler. But France! Until this week, France seemed a less likely place to find someone who supports America than a meeting of Democrats.
Apparently, even the French prefer Western civilization to clitorectomy-performing, car-burning savages. The Democratic Party is now officially the only organization on Earth that does not take the threat of Islamic fascism seriously. Between the Democrats and the media, America has gone from its usual position as the world's last hope to radical Islam's last hope.
FULL STORY:
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=20645
FBI thwarts plot by Islamic terrorists to kill soldiers at Fort Dix, NJ
Chad Groening
OneNewsNow.com
May 9, 2007
One of America's leading experts on Islam says the arrest of six suspected Islamic terrorists accused of plotting to kill U.S. soldiers at Fort Dix, New Jersey, should erase any doubts about "the evil intent of those who practice that religion." The six men were secretly videotaped boasting that they wanted to kill as many U.S. soldiers as possible in the name of Allah.
Tapes made by an FBI informant also allegedly recorded the men talking about attacking U.S. warships that might dock in Philadelphia. Four of the six Muslim men arrested were originally from Yugoslavia and two from the Middle East, though all had lived in the United States for years.
According to an Associated Press report, three of the men were in the U.S. illegally, while two held green cards authorizing them to remain in the U.S. permanently, and the other is a U.S. citizen. The six were arrested Monday night attempting to buy AK-47s, M-16s, and other weapons from an FBI informant.
Robert Spencer is director of Jihad Watch, a project of the David Horowitz Freedom Center. He says there is no doubt that these six men, who now face charges of conspiracy to kill U.S. servicemen, were "inspired by their commitment to Islam. It was their piety that led them to pursue this plot because they believed that this was what they had to do in order to be serving Allah most effectively."
This is not the first time law enforcement has thwarted a major terrorist plot since September 11, 2001, Spencer notes. There has been an attempted attack "against the Sears Tower," he points out, "one against the Brooklyn Bridge, one to take down ten airplanes at once -- all at the same time over various places -- one in Canada to blow up the Parliament building and other major structures in Canada."
These foiled terrorist plots are "just a few of many, many law enforcement success that we've seen since 9/11," Spencer says, and he hopes this will continue. However, he adds, it would be foolish to think that U.S. law enforcement is always going to have a 100 percent success rate in foiling terrorist plots.
http://www.onenewsnow.com/2007/05/fbi_thwarts_plot_by_islamic_te.php
OneNewsNow.com
May 9, 2007
One of America's leading experts on Islam says the arrest of six suspected Islamic terrorists accused of plotting to kill U.S. soldiers at Fort Dix, New Jersey, should erase any doubts about "the evil intent of those who practice that religion." The six men were secretly videotaped boasting that they wanted to kill as many U.S. soldiers as possible in the name of Allah.
Tapes made by an FBI informant also allegedly recorded the men talking about attacking U.S. warships that might dock in Philadelphia. Four of the six Muslim men arrested were originally from Yugoslavia and two from the Middle East, though all had lived in the United States for years.
According to an Associated Press report, three of the men were in the U.S. illegally, while two held green cards authorizing them to remain in the U.S. permanently, and the other is a U.S. citizen. The six were arrested Monday night attempting to buy AK-47s, M-16s, and other weapons from an FBI informant.
Robert Spencer is director of Jihad Watch, a project of the David Horowitz Freedom Center. He says there is no doubt that these six men, who now face charges of conspiracy to kill U.S. servicemen, were "inspired by their commitment to Islam. It was their piety that led them to pursue this plot because they believed that this was what they had to do in order to be serving Allah most effectively."
This is not the first time law enforcement has thwarted a major terrorist plot since September 11, 2001, Spencer notes. There has been an attempted attack "against the Sears Tower," he points out, "one against the Brooklyn Bridge, one to take down ten airplanes at once -- all at the same time over various places -- one in Canada to blow up the Parliament building and other major structures in Canada."
These foiled terrorist plots are "just a few of many, many law enforcement success that we've seen since 9/11," Spencer says, and he hopes this will continue. However, he adds, it would be foolish to think that U.S. law enforcement is always going to have a 100 percent success rate in foiling terrorist plots.
FULL STORY:
http://www.onenewsnow.com/2007/05/fbi_thwarts_plot_by_islamic_te.php
Anti-War Groups Blame Iraq War for Kansas Tornado Response
By Nathan Burchfiel
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
May 09, 2007
(CNSNews.com) - Cleanup of the damage caused Friday when an F-5 tornado tore through the Kansas town of Greensburg has been slowed because National Guard resources are in Iraq, according to a group of anti-war activists and the Kansas governor.The White House fired back, pointing to what it said was the failure by Kansas Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius to ask for cleanup equipment that is available from other states and the federal government.
But after absorbing so much criticism for the way it handled Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the Bush administration is once again under attack following a natural disaster."Here we are looking at Tuesday, and they're still doing search and rescue because they've had to bring in support" from other states, Jane Bullock, chief of staff to former Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Director James Lee Witt, said in a conference call with reporters Tuesday.
"What is most disheartening is the fact that we now lack the equipment needed to clean up and go in and help the citizens ... because they were shipped over to Iraq," Kansas Democratic State Sen. Donald Betts said during the call sponsored by the National Security Network and Americans Against Escalation in Iraq.The groups argue that National Guard troops and resources that could be used in rescue and cleanup efforts for natural disasters have been used and depleted in Iraq. They called on the Bush administration to bring troops home and re-equip the National Guard and Reserves.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=/Nation/archive/200705/NAT20070509a.html
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
May 09, 2007
(CNSNews.com) - Cleanup of the damage caused Friday when an F-5 tornado tore through the Kansas town of Greensburg has been slowed because National Guard resources are in Iraq, according to a group of anti-war activists and the Kansas governor.The White House fired back, pointing to what it said was the failure by Kansas Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius to ask for cleanup equipment that is available from other states and the federal government.
But after absorbing so much criticism for the way it handled Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the Bush administration is once again under attack following a natural disaster."Here we are looking at Tuesday, and they're still doing search and rescue because they've had to bring in support" from other states, Jane Bullock, chief of staff to former Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Director James Lee Witt, said in a conference call with reporters Tuesday.
"What is most disheartening is the fact that we now lack the equipment needed to clean up and go in and help the citizens ... because they were shipped over to Iraq," Kansas Democratic State Sen. Donald Betts said during the call sponsored by the National Security Network and Americans Against Escalation in Iraq.The groups argue that National Guard troops and resources that could be used in rescue and cleanup efforts for natural disasters have been used and depleted in Iraq. They called on the Bush administration to bring troops home and re-equip the National Guard and Reserves.
REST OF STORY:
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=/Nation/archive/200705/NAT20070509a.html
RI Students Must Watch 'Inconvenient Truth' to Graduate
By Randy Hall
CNSNews.com Staff Writer/Editor
May 09, 2007
(CNSNews.com) - To receive a degree from Roger Williams University in Rhode Island, students are being forced to watch "An Inconvenient Truth," the documentary on global warming produced by former Vice President Al Gore.The science class requirement has prompted one conservative student to declare that "we should stop calling these schools 'bastions of knowledge' since they're really bastions of leftist thought."The controversy at Roger Williams University (RWU) in Bristol, R.I., began the week before Earth Day, when the professors teaching the laboratory portion of "Core 101: Science, Technology and Society" required their students to watch Gore's Oscar-winning film in class.
The course is one of 12 that students at the university must take in order to graduate.However, Dana Peloso, an RWU junior and president of the school's chapter of the College Republicans, sent a letter questioning the course requirement to Jeffrey Hughes, assistant dean of marine and natural sciences."With the issue of global warming being such a highly politicized topic, with the scientific community unsure if global warming is man-induced or part of the natural cycle of the earth, do you think that it is intellectually honest to only show the alarmist viewpoint?"
Peloso asked."If the movie is still shown, what plans are there to incorporate the ideas of leading global warming skeptics into class discussion?" he added.In his email response, Hughes stated that "I only recently saw 'An Inconvenient Truth' and have to think that it's an ideal subject for a Core lab," because "the point of Core is to inform students of scientific principles and help them make decisions on issues with a scientific basis in their everyday lives.""After an initial and heated debate, scientists no longer question whether the atmosphere is being warmed due to human activities and instead are increasingly impressed with the speed and impact of the process," Hughes wrote. "I repeat: there is no doubt that we're warming the earth and that a continuation of our activities will lead to profound changes."Penguins, polar bears and your unborn children have no vote in this. They must live with decisions we make today," the assistant dean said."As educators, we're charged to encourage your intellectual growth," Hughes added. "That can (actually, will) be uncomfortable at times, and we're also here to help you deal with that discomfort. It's truly what makes being a human such a joy, privilege and challenge."
Peloso told Cybercast News Service on Tuesday that his fellow students have reacted to the situation in one of two ways."Those who understand that there are multifaceted points of view" are "really troubled by this," he said. But others "are so naive" that they take Gore's position "as gospel, the final word on global warming. They see Al Gore is a former vice president, so it's got to be true."The RWU junior approached other members of the faculty and staff regarding the matter, but "I can count on one hand the number of conservative professors I actually know of" at the university, he stated.Peloso also sought assistance from the conservative Young America's Foundation, and Jason Mattera, a spokesman for the group who graduated from RWU in 2005, responded that Hughes' behavior amounted to "gross intolerance" at a university that promotes itself as a place that values "collaboration of students and faculty in research" and "appreciation of global perspectives.""That aside, it's a bold-faced lie for him to argue that all scientists agree with Al Gore," Mattera added.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=/Culture/archive/200705/CUL20070509a.html
CNSNews.com Staff Writer/Editor
May 09, 2007
(CNSNews.com) - To receive a degree from Roger Williams University in Rhode Island, students are being forced to watch "An Inconvenient Truth," the documentary on global warming produced by former Vice President Al Gore.The science class requirement has prompted one conservative student to declare that "we should stop calling these schools 'bastions of knowledge' since they're really bastions of leftist thought."The controversy at Roger Williams University (RWU) in Bristol, R.I., began the week before Earth Day, when the professors teaching the laboratory portion of "Core 101: Science, Technology and Society" required their students to watch Gore's Oscar-winning film in class.
The course is one of 12 that students at the university must take in order to graduate.However, Dana Peloso, an RWU junior and president of the school's chapter of the College Republicans, sent a letter questioning the course requirement to Jeffrey Hughes, assistant dean of marine and natural sciences."With the issue of global warming being such a highly politicized topic, with the scientific community unsure if global warming is man-induced or part of the natural cycle of the earth, do you think that it is intellectually honest to only show the alarmist viewpoint?"
Peloso asked."If the movie is still shown, what plans are there to incorporate the ideas of leading global warming skeptics into class discussion?" he added.In his email response, Hughes stated that "I only recently saw 'An Inconvenient Truth' and have to think that it's an ideal subject for a Core lab," because "the point of Core is to inform students of scientific principles and help them make decisions on issues with a scientific basis in their everyday lives.""After an initial and heated debate, scientists no longer question whether the atmosphere is being warmed due to human activities and instead are increasingly impressed with the speed and impact of the process," Hughes wrote. "I repeat: there is no doubt that we're warming the earth and that a continuation of our activities will lead to profound changes."Penguins, polar bears and your unborn children have no vote in this. They must live with decisions we make today," the assistant dean said."As educators, we're charged to encourage your intellectual growth," Hughes added. "That can (actually, will) be uncomfortable at times, and we're also here to help you deal with that discomfort. It's truly what makes being a human such a joy, privilege and challenge."
Peloso told Cybercast News Service on Tuesday that his fellow students have reacted to the situation in one of two ways."Those who understand that there are multifaceted points of view" are "really troubled by this," he said. But others "are so naive" that they take Gore's position "as gospel, the final word on global warming. They see Al Gore is a former vice president, so it's got to be true."The RWU junior approached other members of the faculty and staff regarding the matter, but "I can count on one hand the number of conservative professors I actually know of" at the university, he stated.Peloso also sought assistance from the conservative Young America's Foundation, and Jason Mattera, a spokesman for the group who graduated from RWU in 2005, responded that Hughes' behavior amounted to "gross intolerance" at a university that promotes itself as a place that values "collaboration of students and faculty in research" and "appreciation of global perspectives.""That aside, it's a bold-faced lie for him to argue that all scientists agree with Al Gore," Mattera added.
REST OF STORY:
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=/Culture/archive/200705/CUL20070509a.html
Jihadists Exploit Our Hospitality And Open Borders . . . Again
By Michelle Malkin
May 9, 2007
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/mmalkin/2007/mm_05091.shtml
May 9, 2007
Well, here is the thanks we get. Eight years ago, America opened its arms to tens of thousands of ethnic Albanian refugees from Kosovo. The first planeload landed at Fort Dix, New Jersey. Military leaders worked day and night to turn the base into a child-friendly village. They coordinated medical and security checkups, mental health and trauma counseling and ethnic food preparations.
Soldiers from Fort Bragg traveled up from North Carolina to assist in refugee operations at Fort Dix. Then-U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Mitchell M. Zais also assembled a team of about 80 soldiers from the U.S. Army Reserve Command in Atlanta. The New Jersey National Guard and American Red Cross teamed up to coordinate charity relief. The military also supported the relief effort's interagency task force, headed by the Department of Health and Human Services.
In addition to food and shelter, we provided translators, welfare consultants and Muslim chaplains. The base constructed prayer rooms and handed out Muslim "sensitivity" cards to the troops. Said Gen. Zais: "We want to welcome these people to America the way we might wish our grandparents and great-grandparents had been welcomed to Ellis Island."
Fast-forward from 1999 to yesterday's headline news: "Fort Dix Plot Aimed At Soldiers; Authorities Say 6 Islamic Militants Arrested, Were Plotting Attack At N.J. Base." Three of the alleged plotters were illegal alien brothers from the former Yugoslavia. Another was a legal permanent resident from the former Yugoslavia. Another hailed from Jordan, and the sixth was a naturalized American citizen originally from Turkey.
According to the criminal complaint against Dritan Duka, one of the illegal alien brothers accused of knowingly and willfully conspiring with the jihadi gang to kill U.S. soldiers, the plotters have schemed for more than a year to murder our troops. They scoped out Dover Air Force Base and Fort Monmouth, as well as the port of Philadelphia, before settling on Fort Dix. One of the participants used to deliver pizza to the base -- used to supply food to our men and women in uniform giving him business -- and knew the military facility "like the palm of his hand."
You think all our hospitality and charity bred good will in these young men -- all in their 20s and enjoying the fruits of the American Dream? Forget about it. The criminal complaint describes the plotters, along with a confidential informant, gathering at a rental house to train with Mujahadin video games:
"Members of the group pointed out that United States military vehicles were shown being destroyed in various attacks. [Illegal alien] Shain Duka pointed out that a United States Marine's arm had been blown off, at which point laughter erupted from the group."
Just hard-working, "undocumented citizens" plotting the plots and laughing at the anti-American atrocities ordinary Americans wouldn't laugh at, yeah? If they had only laid low a few extra months, they might have gotten that illegal alien amnesty President Bush and Congress are so eager to hand out.
REST OF STORY:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/mmalkin/2007/mm_05091.shtml
Videotape trips up alleged terror plot
By UPI StaffUnited Press InternationalMay 9, 2007
http://www.gopusa.com/news/2007/may/0509_terror_tapes.shtml
FORT DIX, NJ (UPI) -- An FBI sting has resulted in the arrest of six Muslim men who were allegedly plotting to kill soldiers at the Fort Dix U.S. Army base in New Jersey.
The investigation began after the men allegedly took a videotape to a store to have it converted to a DVD in January 2006, U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie said. The store owner got in touch with the FBI because the tape showed them practicing with assault-type weapons and calling for jihad and yelling "God is great" in Arabic.
The defendants include four ethnic Albanians from the former Yugoslavia, three of them brothers living in the United States illegally and operating roofing businesses out of their home in Cherry Hill, a New Jersey suburb of Philadelphia. The other three defendants, two originally from Turkey and one from Jordan, are legal residents or U.S. citizens.
During the investigation, a confidential informant pretended to be an arms dealer. The arrests were made Monday night as two of the defendants met with the informant.
Christie said that the men were involved in surveillance at Fort Dix and wanted to kill as many soldiers as possible. They also allegedly had plans of a Coast Guard station in Philadelphia.
FULL STORY:
http://www.gopusa.com/news/2007/may/0509_terror_tapes.shtml
The Two Debates: MSNBC’s Liberal Agenda
By Rich Noyes - mediaresearch.org
Most questions posed from e-mails were ideologically neutral, such as "What is the most significant political or professional mistake you have made in the past four years?" While Mrs. Clinton was hit with a question from the right — "Would you defy the majority of American citizens and offer a form of amnesty for illegal aliens?" — John Edwards enjoyed this liberal-oriented question: "Concerning the astronomical windfall of major oil companies again in the first quarter, why is gas still on the rise?"
http://www.mediaresearch.org/realitycheck/2007/fax20070507.asp
On Friday’s Today show, MSNBC’s Chris Matthews defended his ludicrous decision to ask the GOP candidates if it would "be good for America to have Bill Clinton back living in the White House?" Matthews explained the sociological insight: "They all sort of guffawed. Well, that's a particularly Republican response. If I offered that same question up to Democrats...they would be cheering like mad."
So Matthews proved that the ten Republican debaters are not Democrats — was there any doubt? The weird Clinton question was symptomatic of how MSNBC and debate co-sponsor ThePolitico.com spent valuable time asking the GOP candidates questions that reflected the agenda of far-left bloggers, not the concerns of GOP primary voters. A week earlier, while moderator Brian Williams did pose a few right-leaning questions to the Democratic field, most of that debate reflected issues that rate high with Democratic voters. In other words, both debates were dominated by liberal agenda questions.
The Democratic Debate: Brian Williams started off with a conservative-oriented question to Hillary Clinton about Harry Reid’s statement that the Iraq war is lost: "A letter to today’s USA Today calls his comments ‘treasonous,’ and says if General Patton were alive today, Patton would ‘wipe his boots’ with Senator Reid. Do you agree with the position of your leader in the Senate?" But by the time Williams reached Dennis Kucinich, his Iraq questions were skewing left: "Do you think one can be against the war and still fund it?"
On universal health care, Williams asked the candidates to explain how they would pay for it, not challenging them on the need for such a huge new government expansion. On gun control, Williams tried to embarrass New Mexico’s Bill Richardson as too far right: "You are currently, if our research is correct, the NRA’s favorite presidential candidate of either party....Did anything about the massacre at Virginia Tech make you re-think any part of your position on guns?"
Most questions posed from e-mails were ideologically neutral, such as "What is the most significant political or professional mistake you have made in the past four years?" While Mrs. Clinton was hit with a question from the right — "Would you defy the majority of American citizens and offer a form of amnesty for illegal aliens?" — John Edwards enjoyed this liberal-oriented question: "Concerning the astronomical windfall of major oil companies again in the first quarter, why is gas still on the rise?"
The GOP Debate: Matthews posed some important questions from the right, asking each candidate "to mention a tax you’d like to cut," and whether "the day that Roe v. Wade is repealed [would] be a good day for America?" But much of the debate was spent posing hostile questions from the left. Matthews at one point asked Jim Gilmore about the Left’s favorite whipping boy: "Is Karl Rove your friend? Do you want to keep him in the White House if you get elected President?" He challenged Romney about "Roman Catholic bishops who would deny communion to elected officials who support abortion rights....Do you see that as interference in public life?"
Many of the e-mailed questions used liberal catch-phrases: "Will you work to protect women’s rights, as in fair wages and reproductive choice?" And several e-mailers hoped to catch candidates in moments of ignorance, asking Rudy Giuliani to explain the difference between a Sunni and a Shiite, and asking Tommy Thompson to say how many Americans have been killed or wounded in Iraq.
At their debate, none of the Democrats faced questions aimed at showing their lack of knowledge. That such an approach was taken with the GOP candidates shows the liberal agenda MSNBC brought to both forums — with the priorities of GOP voters left by the wayside.
FULL STORY:
http://www.mediaresearch.org/realitycheck/2007/fax20070507.asp
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Spanish Grand Prix Preview
BAMBINO:
It's been too long since the scream of V8's at high revs have hit a circuit in anger. The buzz this weekend however is not on the current field of drivers. 7-time World Champion (and the Greatest F1 Driver that ever lived) Michael Schumacher will be in the Ferrari paddock this weekend. Not all drivers are pleased to see the 7-time Champ. McLaren's Alonso told the Spanish newspaper El Pais: "He was in F1 for fifteen years but personally I do not miss him. Okay, fighting against him was not unpleasant, but now we have a big battle with Massa, Raikkonen and Hamilton.""It seemed like, with Michael, we had come to a point where it was all a bit monotonous. " WOW! Such big words from a little runt Spaniard. It it wasn't for Schumacher's success, Alonso would not be World Champion today. During Schumi's run of 5 straight drvier's titles with La Scuderia Ferrari, the FIA did all they can to change the rules to ensure Schumacher's defeat. It took the tire change rule to do it. In 2005, the FIA ridiculously made the rule that you cannot change tires during the race unless you go flat. Renault's Michelins out performed Ferrari's Bridgestones and that was the difference. Last year, Michael did his best to take another title, but it wasn't enough.This weekend's race should see a classic Ferrari McLaren battle. Kimi Raikkonen I am sure wants to do well with his former nemesis in the pit area. Alonso will do his best to please the cowardly Spaniards in attendance (Sorry I had to). Felipe Massa also has something to prove, as well as Lewis Hamilton who has been the biggest F1 surprise this year. It should be a good race.
Kimi, Fernando not keen on Schu return:
http://www.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/070510102128.shtml
Valencia to host Spanish GP in 2008:
http://www.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/070510130634.shtml
British Prime Minister Tony Blair Announces His Resignation
Thursday, May 10, 2007
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,271192,00.html
AP - TRIMDON, England — Prime Minister Tony Blair said Thursday that he will step down as prime minister on June 27, after a decade in office in which he brokered peace in Northern Ireland and followed the United States to war in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Blair, 54, will leave office as soon as a new leader is elected for the Labour Party.
"'I've been prime minister of this country for just over 10 years," he told supporters in his in his Parliamentary constituency.
"In this job, in the world of today, I think that's long enough for me but more especially for the country. Sometimes the only way you conquer the pull of power is to set it down."
Treasury chief Gordon Brown, Blair's partner in reforming the Labour Party and a sometimes impatient rival in government, was expected to easily win election a the party's new leader and become the next prime minister.
Blair's announcement is one that his Labour Party, and the nation, have been expecting for nearly three years, ever since the prime minister said in 2004 that his third term would be his last.
FULL STORY:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,271192,00.html
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Gilles Villeneuve Tribute
From F1-Live.com
On this date 25 years ago, Gilles Villeneuve passed away on that fatal day in Zolder, Belgium. The impetuous Canadian, carrying the hopes of a whole nation on his shoulders, was not born with a steering wheel between his hands however. He had first thought of becoming a career trumpetist! His attendance at a racing track would spark a great passion within him and mark his destiny. Selling goods and even his house in order to support his young driving career, Gilles would reach a turning point with his performance in Trois-Rivières, in his native province of Québec. Driving in the Atlantic Championship, he would brillantly win the race in front of invited and participating F1 drivers. James Hunt was amongst them, and he quickly suggested to the McLaren Team that Villeneuve should be met. Following a short passage within the British team, Villeneuve would head for the Italian squad of Enzo Ferrari, who would take him under his wing and offer Gilles his best years. After a slow start, Gilles Villeneuve's inner talent won the hearts of Italians, but especially that of Canadians who discovered Formula One with him and encouraged him with all their hope. He would end his first complete F1 season by winning the 1978 edition of the Canadian Grand Prix on the Notre-Dame Island circuit that would bear his name. The overexcited crowd cheered its new hero! In 1979, he followed team orders and did not contest team-mate Jody Scheckter's victory, which guaranteed him the title. Villeneuve became Vice-Champion, with Enzo Ferrari promising that his turn would come. That year also saw the incredible and unforgettable duel between Villeneuve and René Arnoux during the French Grand Prix. Over the following years, Villeneuve would take six victories and give us great moments… Impossible passes, controlled slides, perfectly calculated and improvised techniques.
Lest we forget that occasion where his pit crew had to convince him to stop when a shredded tyre was breaking off pieces of his car, and that famous occasion where he reached the podium despite a bent-over front wing… on a wet track! His last Grand Prix would be Italy 1982. Nearing the end of the race, Ferrari team orders were to slow the pace and to maintain positions. Gilles obeyed orders and slowed five seconds per lap. His team-mate Didier Pironi would not see things the same way and stormed by him in the penultimate lap, taking victory. Broken, frustrated, betrayed, Villeneuve promised that he would never again speak to Pironi, going as far as refusing to cheer him on the podium, where he did not even open the champagne bottle. He who had followed team orders for Scheckter in 1979, Villeneuve swore to take revenge on Pironi in Belgium. Those emotions would be the beginning of the end.
FULL STORY
Monday, May 7, 2007
CLEMENS BACK IN THE BRONX!
DRAMATICALLY, CLEMENS IS BACK IN THE BRONX
By MIKE PUMA - NY Post
The drama is over. The wait is on.
Roger Clemens, as many expected, decided to sign with the Yankees and made a grand re-entrance during their 5-0 victory over the Mariners yesterday at the Stadium.
Standing in George Steinbrenner's box, Clemens appeared on the Stadium's scoreboard screen at the seventh-inning stretch. From there, Yankees public address announcer Bob Sheppard told fans to turn their attention to the box, where Clemens spoke.
"Well, they came and got me out of Texas and I can tell you it's a privilege to be back," Clemens said. "I'll be talking to y'all soon."
How soon remains to be seen. But this much is known: Not long after the postgame press conference, the 44-year-old future Hall of Famer walked to left field at the Stadium and began playing catch. Minutes later, he was in the bullpen throwing pitches. So, the countdown is officially underway to Clemens' first game back with the Yankees. All indications are he could make his return within three weeks, after yesterday signing a one-year contract for $28 million that will be prorated depending on when he joins the major league roster.
"Make no mistake about it, I've come back to do what they only know how to do here, and that's win a championship," Clemens said. "Anything else is a failure, and I know that."
The Yankees wasted little time making it happen after GM Brian Cashman got a sense Thursday Clemens and his representatives were ready. After a conference call Friday with team officials, including Steinbrenner, the parameters of the deal were in place. Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, indicated the Yankees were the only team to which he made an offer. The Red Sox and Astros were the other teams considered.
FULL STORY:
Yankees 5, Mariners 0
Shutout victory features clearing of benches, return of Clemens
By Caleb Breakey / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- This one won't be remembered for Darrell Rasner and how he pitched 5 2/3 innings of three-hit ball. It won't be remembered for how fast Brian Bruney rushed in from the bullpen when both benches cleared. It won't even be remembered for Hideki Matsui's 2,000th career hit.
No, this one wasn't about a 5-0 baseball game that the Yankees won over the Mariners. Everything was about a 44-year-old guy sitting in George Steinbrenner's box suite at Yankee Stadium. This man could be recognized from Boston to Houston, but he wouldn't want to be in any other city than New York.
Most of the Yankees players knew something was up when they heard Elton John's "Rocket Man" playing in the clubhouse before the game. And in the seventh inning, public-address announcer Bob Sheppard asked the fans to turn their attention to the suite behind home plate. All eyes turned and saw the renowned person.
"It's a privilege to be back," Roger Clemens said over a microphone.
Clemens will suit up with the Yankees for the rest of the 2007 season after signing a prorated one-year, $28 million contract on Sunday. He is expected to start his Yankees homecoming with four starts in the Minor Leagues.
"It's exciting when you get a notice like that," Yankees right fielder Bobby Abreu said. "Like I said before, [he's] one of the best pitchers in the game, and you have him on your team. You get excited. It makes you feel happy."
FULL STORY:
http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/gameday_recap.jsp?ymd=20070506&content_id=1949006&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy
BOX SCORE:
http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2007_05_06_seamlb_nyamlb_1&c_id=mlb
Sabres 5, Rangers 4 (Sabres win series 4-2)
BAMBINO: Let's just say I am eating some crow over this. I really thought the Rangers were the better team and probably should have won in 5. But they let it get away. Buffalo to their credit played focused and aggressive and turned the lights out on Broadway. Now the Sabres and Senators have to suffer poor ratings because no one really cares who wins this series. I mean both are Canadian cities right? LOL. At least New Jersey is out. I can't stomach them winning anything. Next season there's hope for the Rangers, but some of their veterans are getting up there. They need to draft better and work the youth into the mix more. Well, hockey season is over in NY. Time for Yankees baseball.
BOX SCORE:
RECAP:
>Sunday, May 6, 2007
To Protect and Serve
By Bill O'Reilly for BillOReilly.com
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Well, Virginia Beach folded. In the face of growing anger from its citizenry, the city announced it will stop its "sanctuary" policy of failing to inform federal authorities about criminal illegal aliens.The back story here is brutal. On March 30, 17-year-old Alison Kunhardt and 16-year-old Tessa Tranchant were killed when illegal alien Alfredo Ramos slammed into their car. Ramos was drunk and had four previous beefs with the law, including a DUI conviction.Yet, Virginia Beach Chief of Police Jake Jacocks told the press he had ordered his officers not to call Homeland Security Agents (ICE) about any "low-level" offenders because he, Jacocks, didn't believe it was his job to help the feds.What?It seems to me that every law enforcement officer should want as few criminals in town as possible. Since Ramos was here in the USA illegally, and was a consistent lawbreaker in Virginia Beach, the feds could have easily removed him from the area and sent him back to Mexico. Apparently, Jacocks had a problem with that.But not any longer, at least in public. After my reporting battered the government of Virginia Beach, it has changed its dangerous and irresponsible policy. But Jacocks got in a last shot calling me, your humble correspondent, "pathetic."
But that was an improvement over what Denver Post columnist Joanne Ostrow called me after she saw my coverage of the Virginia Beach story. Ms. Ostrow called me "racist."So why all the anger? Doesn't it make sense that any person who is in the country illegally in the first place be deported when convicted of committing a crime on American soil? I can't read minds, but there is something very strange going on inside the "pro-immigration" movement.
When President Ronald Reagan delivered citizenship to almost three million illegal aliens in 1986 through his "amnesty" program, the entire problem of people coming to America without proper credentials was supposed to have been solved. At the time, the Atlanta Journal editorialized that "it will help stem the tide of future illegal entrants."The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post all rhapsodized that Reagan's vision would be great for America.So now we have four times as many illegal aliens waiting for another amnesty, with more coming every hour of the day.
With emotions running high, the federal government, never a tower of courage, does not seem able to fix the chaos. Most Americans understand that the vast majority of illegal immigrants simply want a better life and will work hard to get it. So I ask you, who wants to deny anyone a better life?But by failing to institute standards of behavior in the immigration arena, the U.S. government puts us all at risk.
There's no way on this earth that a four-time loser, in this country illegally, should have been driving around drunk. Didn't Allison and Tessa deserve to live? We have millions of Americans who drive around smashed--do we need to add to that number with insane "sanctuary" policies that protect criminal illegal aliens?The power brokers in Virginia Beach were forced to do the right thing, but still don't believe they were ever wrong. How did things get so out of whack in America?
Yankees 8, Mariners 1
BAMBINO
: Chien-Ming Wang was pitching a perfect game until Ben Broussard's HR in the eighth. But Wang did pitch perfectly in my eyes. As I huddled around the radio listening to the game on my front patio like a school kid from the 1940's (I refuse to watch a national FOX Broadcast due to their horrible announcers), I hung on every pitch with anticipation. When the perfecto was broken, I still knew Wang was pitching a heck of a game. After that pitching embarrassment the night before, it gave me great joy to see a Yankee pitcher pitch 8 innings deep into a game and get a win. The Yankee bats are still hot even though they got to Jeff Weaver late in the game and not earlier as I predicted. Mike Hargrove definitely had a brain cramp when he left Weaver in there in the 6th as the Yanks were setting up the merry-go-round. 5 Runs later, Wang and the Yanks were on their way. The Yankee offense was led by the Captain (3 for 4, 3 RBI) and Melky (2 for 4, 2 RBI) who did their part in the win. Jeter is just amazing. The day after his 20 game hit streak ends, he goes 3 for 4. We as Yankee fans are truly blessed to have him on our team. Melky Cabrera on the other hand has been inconsistent so far this season. He had a pretty good series in Texas and so far on the home stand, he's hitting well. I hope that trend continues. On the last note, amazingly, A-Rod only had one hit yesterday. He is still one of the great ballplayers out there today.BOX SCORE/WRAP:
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Mariners 15, Yankees 11
BAMBINO:
I really only caught the 1st inning where the Bombers scored 5 times ( I was watching the Ranger game posted below). You would figure that would be enough. But the Yankee pitching last night, was horrendous. Anytime the Yanks score 11 runs they should win right? WRONG! Kei Igawa at this point is too inconsistent. I think he should eventually become the new Tanyon Sturtze. Long relief and a spot start here and there. However, the DL conga line of starting pitchers is forcing Torre to keep Igawa in the rotation. At least Wang is pitching today. Although he dropped his first 2 starts since coming off the DL, his stuff has been good. It would behoove him to go at least 7 to give the embattled middle relief some rest. I'd say only Proctor, Farnsworth, and Mo should available in the pen today. The good news about today's matchup is that our old buddy Jeff Weaver will be hurling for Seattle. Weaver is 0-4 with an 18.26 ERA. Surely he is hittable, especially with this Yankee lineup. All Wang has to do is keep the Mariners to 3 runs. The Yankee bats should do the rest.BOX SCORE/WRAP:
Sabres 2, Rangers 1 OT (Sabres lead series 3-2)
BAMBINO:
Not much to say. But it's not over. The Blueshirts pretty much gave it away. When Fedor Tyutin iced the puck with 16.7 left, I felt uneasy. I have watched too many playoff hockey games to know that anything can happen if the trailing team fights on with desperation. Buffalo knew what was at stake. They did not want to head back to NY down 3-2. The Rangers I am afraid panicked and made crucial mistakes. The Sabres won the face off and in the ensuing scramble managed to get the puck in front of the net. Bodies were clogged everywhere, but somehow Chris Drury found the puck and knocked it in to tie the score with 7.7 left. I still felt the Rangers would still pull it out, but Maxim Afinogenov ended that 4:31 into overtime sending the Buffalo fans into delirium. Somehow the Blueshirts must accept it, and move on. Come into Game 6 with urgency get the MSG crowd lit up. I can be done. LET'S GO RANGERS!!!!BOX SCORE:
http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=Boxscore&gameNumber=215&season=20062007&gameType=3
RECAP:
http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app?service=page&page=Recap&gameNumber=215&season=20062007&gameType=3
JAY GREENBERG - NY POST:
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