Surfing with an Alien

Wednesday

2010-03-31T03:02:00.000-07:00

Brave Saudi housewife set to win Arabic X Factor after blistering attack on hardline Muslim clerics on live TV

A brave Saudi housewife has reached the final of the Arabic version of the X Factor after lashing out at hardline Muslim clerics on live TV.

Wearing a black burkha, mother-of-four Hissa Hilal delivered a blistering poem against Muslim preachers 'who sit in the position of power' but are 'frightening' people with their fatwas, or religious edicts, and 'preying like a wolf' on those seeking peace.

Her poem got loud cheers from the audience last week and won her a place in the competition's final on April 7.

It also brought her death threats, posted on several Islamic militant websites.

Interesting post from Robert Costa at The Corner

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R., Tenn.), the U.S. secretary of education from 1991 to 1993, tells National Review Online that President Obama’s revamping of the federal student-loan program is “truly brazen” and the “most underreported big-Washington takeover in history.”

“As Americans find out what it really does, they’ll be really unhappy,” Alexander predicts. “The first really unhappy people will be the 19 million students who, after July 1, will have no choice but to go to federal call centers to get their student loans. They’ll become even unhappier when they find out that the government is charging 2.8 percent to borrow the money and 6.8 percent to lend it to the students, and spending the difference on the new health-care bill and other programs. In other words, the government will be overcharging 19 million students.” The overcharge is “significant,” Alexander adds, because “on a $25,000 student loan, which is an average loan, the amount the government will overcharge will average between $1,700 and $1,800.” ...

Sunday

2010-03-28T02:10:00.001-07:00

How the MSM helped pass Obamacare:

Hat tip to Holger

Dalmia: How to Oppose ObamaCare

What critics of the president's health care plan can learn from Gandhi's methods of nonviolent resistance

JPOST: Bolton says Washington pressuring Israel not to strike nuke facilities

Former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton expressed concern Sunday that Washington was coming to terms with a nuclear Iran.

“I very much worry the Obama administration is willing to accept a nuclear Iran, that's why there's this extraordinary pressure on Israel not to attack in Iran,” Bolton told Army Radio.

The former envoy claimed that this pressure was the focus of last week's meetings in Washington between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyhau and US officials, including President Barack Obama.

Bolton said that the Obama administration had embraced the view, prevalent in Europe, that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was the key to the resolution of all other conflicts throughout the Middle East, including the Iranian conflict.

David Kuhn: White men shun Democrats

Millions of white men who voted for Barack Obama are walking away from the Democratic Party, and it appears increasingly likely that they'll take the midterms elections in November with them. Their departure could well lead to a GOP landslide on a scale not seen since 1994.

[...]

Obama's brand of liberalism is exactly the sort likely to drive such voters away. More like LBJ's than FDR's, Obama-style liberalism favors benefits over relief, a safety net over direct job programs, health care and environmental reform over financial reform and a stimulus package that has focused more on social service jobs -- health care work, teaching and the like -- than on the areas where a majority of job losses occurred: construction, manufacturing and related sectors.

This recession remains disproportionately a "he-cession." Men account for at least seven of 10 workers who lost jobs, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Nearly half of the casualties are white men, who held 46 percent of all jobs lost.

[...]

Tarnishing their opponents as merely "angry" was poor politics for the Democrats. Liberals know what it's like to have their views -- most recently on the war in Iraq or George W. Bush -- caricatured as merely irrational anger. Most voters vote their interests. And many white men by the 1980s had decided the Democrats were no longer interested in them.

Will: An argument to be made about immigrant babies and citizenship

To end the practice of "birthright citizenship," all that is required is to correct the misinterpretation of that amendment's first sentence: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside." From these words has flowed the practice of conferring citizenship on children born here to illegal immigrants.

[...]

The authors and ratifiers could not have intended birthright citizenship for illegal immigrants because in 1868 there were and never had been any illegal immigrants because no law ever had restricted immigration.

If those who wrote and ratified the 14th Amendment had imagined laws restricting immigration — and had anticipated huge waves of illegal immigration — is it reasonable to presume they would have wanted to provide the reward of citizenship to the children of the violators of those laws? Surely not.

[...]

Sen. Lyman Trumbull of Illinois was, Graglia writes, one of two "principal authors of the citizenship clauses in 1866 act and the 14th Amendment." He said that "subject to the jurisdiction of the United States" meant subject to its "complete" jurisdiction, meaning "not owing allegiance to anybody else." Hence children whose Indian parents had tribal allegiances were excluded from birthright citizenship.

Appropriately, in 1884 the Supreme Court held that children born to Indian parents were not born "subject to" U.S. jurisdiction because, among other reasons, the person so born could not change his status by his "own will without the action or assent of the United States." And "no one can become a citizen of a nation without its consent." Graglia says this decision "seemed to establish" that U.S. citizenship is "a consensual relation, requiring the consent of the United States." So: "This would clearly settle the question of birthright citizenship for children of illegal aliens. There cannot be a more total or forceful denial of consent to a person's citizenship than to make the source of that person's presence in the nation illegal."

Saturday

2010-03-27T03:15:00.000-07:00

VDH: Let the Games Begin?

I don't follow the Democratic thinking. Their president polls below 50 percent. The Democratically-controlled Congress polls less than 20 percent. Healthcare reform polls at about 45 percent support. Looming future bills like cap and trade and amnesty as a part of immigration reform poll even more poorly. Usually in such circumstances, a party is careful to enlist bipartisan support and protect the notion of minority participation. But the Democrats not only did not do that, but went even further and destroyed the process of conciliation, congressional tradition, and transparency.

When they return to minority status (and they will), what will they say when some Republicans seek to radically change vast swaths of current economic and social life, employing everything from the nuclear option, reconciliation, and pondering deem and pass to special kickbacks and buy-offs to fence-sitting congressional representatives?

I think the die is now cast and the message for both parties is: Get a president and a 51 percent congressional vote, and you can remake America in the most radical fashion, damning the polls, the opposition, and the traditional processes of government itself. It's a new arena and apparently the ends will now justify any means necessary. Good luck to that.

Krauthammer: Obamacare's next trick: the VAT

Obama knows that the debt bomb is looming, that Moody's is warning that the Treasury's AAA rating is in jeopardy, that we are headed for a run on the dollar and/or hyperinflation if nothing is done.

Hence his deficit-reduction commission. It will report (surprise!) after the November elections.

What will it recommend? What can it recommend? Sure, Social Security can be trimmed by raising the retirement age, introducing means testing and changing the indexing formula from wage growth to price inflation.

But this won't be nearly enough. As Obama has repeatedly insisted, the real money is in health-care costs — which are locked in place by the new Obamacare mandates.

That's where the value-added tax comes in.

Wednesday

2010-03-24T10:14:00.000-07:00

Prager: It's a Civil War: What We Do Now

A terrible thing happened to America on Sunday, March 21, 2010.

The country took its biggest step ever down a road diametrically opposed to its original intent of keeping the state small so that the individual can be free and great.

Therefore, in this unprecedented crisis of values, this is what needs to be done...

Tuesday

2010-03-23T14:32:00.000-07:00

We are losing so much liberty.

David Hogberg: Twenty ways Obamacare will take away our freedoms

1. You are young and don’t want health insurance? You are starting up a small business and need to minimize expenses, and one way to do that is to forego health insurance? Tough. You have to pay $750 annually for the “privilege.” (Section 1501)

2. You are young and healthy and want to pay for insurance that reflects that status? Tough. You’ll have to pay for premiums that cover not only you, but also the guy who smokes three packs a day, drink a gallon of whiskey and eats chicken fat off the floor. That’s because insurance companies will no longer be able to underwrite on the basis of a person’s health status. (Section 2701).

3. You would like to pay less in premiums by buying insurance with lifetime or annual limits on coverage? Tough. Health insurers will no longer be able to offer such policies, even if that is what customers prefer. (Section 2711).

4. Think you’d like a policy that is cheaper because it doesn’t cover preventive care or requires cost-sharing for such care? Tough. Health insurers will no longer be able to offer policies that do not cover preventive services or offer them with cost-sharing, even if that’s what the customer wants. (Section 2712).

5. You are an employer and you would like to offer coverage that doesn’t allow your employees’ slacker children to stay on the policy until age 26? Tough. (Section 2714).

6. You must buy a policy that covers ambulatory patient services, emergency services, hospitalization, maternity and newborn care, mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment; prescription drugs; rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices; laboratory services; preventive and wellness services; chronic disease management; and pediatric services, including oral and vision care.

You’re a single guy without children? Tough, your policy must cover pediatric services. You’re a woman who can’t have children? Tough, your policy must cover maternity services. You’re a teetotaler? Tough, your policy must cover substance abuse treatment. (Add your own violation of personal freedom here.) (Section 1302).

Read the whole thing or you're a big dope!

And here are some great short videos from Reason:

Monday

2010-03-22T11:20:00.000-07:00

Health care has problems but government is not the solution. We have traded liberty for security.

VDH: We've crossed the Rubicon

President Obama has crossed the Rubicon with the healthcare vote. The bill was not really about medicine; after all, a moderately priced, relatively small federal program could offer the poorer not now insured, presently not on Medicare or state programs like Medicaid or Medical, a basic medical plan.

We have no interest in stopping trial lawyers from milking the system for billions. And we don’t want to address in any meaningful way the individual’s responsibility in some cases (drink, drugs, violence, dangerous sex, bad diet, sloth, etc.) for costly and chronic health procedures.

No, instead, the bill was about assuming a massive portion of the private sector, hiring tens of thousands of loyal, compliant new employees, staffing new departments with new technocrats, and feeling wonderful that we “are leveling the playing field” and have achieved another Civil Rights landmark law. (NB: do the math: add higher state income taxes in most states; the new Clinton-era federal income tax rates to come; the proposed lifting of limits on income exposed to FICA taxes; and now new healthcare charges — and I think you can reach in some cases a bite of 65%to 70% of one’s income.)

So we are in revolutionary times in which the government will grow to assume everything from energy use to student loans, while abroad we are a revolutionary sort of power, eager to mend fences with Syria and Iran, more eager still to distance ourselves from old Western allies like Israel and Britain.

There won’t be any more soaring rhetoric from Obama about purple-state America, “reaching across the aisle,” or healing our wounds. That was so 2008. Instead, we are in the most partisan age since Vietnam, ushered into it by the self-acclaimed “non-partisan.” But how could it be anything else?

Mark Steyn: Happy Dependence Day!

More prosaically, it's also unaffordable. That's why one of the first things that middle-rank powers abandon once they go down this road is a global military capability. If you take the view that the U.S. is an imperialist aggressor, congratulations: You can cease worrying. But, if you think that America has been the ultimate guarantor of the post-war global order, it's less cheery. Five years from now, just as in Canada and Europe two generations ago, we'll be getting used to announcements of defense cuts to prop up the unsustainable costs of big government at home. And, as the superpower retrenches, America's enemies will be quick to scent opportunity.

Longer wait times, fewer doctors, more bureaucracy, massive IRS expansion, explosive debt, the end of the Pax Americana, and global Armageddon. Must try to look on the bright side . . .

Prager: The bigger the government the less you are needed

Among the things left and right, religious and secular, agree on is that one of the few real needs human beings have is to be needed.

When we are not needed, life feels pointless.

[...]

In the ever-expanding state that the left creates, the vast majority of individuals lose significance in that they are simply less needed as the state takes over many of their roles. Fifty years ago, the men of the local Rotary Club had prestige and societal significance. So did fathers. So did clergy. With the ascendance of the left and the expansion of their state, much of their power and societal significance has eroded.

Now, as the state expands further into health care, the same will happen to doctors as power and prestige are transferred from them to the heads of dozens of new government health regulatory agencies. Over time, neither you nor your doctor will fully decide your treatment.

Indeed, over time, if the left has its way and the state keeps expanding, you will also not decide what temperature to keep your house or how to get to work. Nor will you be needed to educate your children (that is already the job of the state, and much of Europe now bans home schooling), or to raise and discipline your children (the state will ensure you are doing it correctly, and spanking is now illegal in 25 countries). Fathers will be needed primarily (and after divorce, only) as providers of child and spousal support.

In short, you will be needed essentially for one thing: to finance the one thing that is truly needed -- the state.

Totten: The Resistance Bloc Will Not Be Appeased

Hezbollah’s reaction to Israel’s plan to build 1,600 apartments in a Jewish neighborhood in East Jerusalem might help President Barack Obama understand something that has so far eluded him: the Syrian-Iranian-Hamas-Hezbollah resistance bloc will not allow him to appease it.

“The scheme is yet another part of a Judaization campaign,” Hezbollah said in a statement quoted by the Tehran Times, “that targets the holy city of al-Quds [Jerusalem] and a provocation of Muslim feeling.” If Obama expected a little appreciation from Israel’s enemies for making the same point with more diplomatic finesse, he was mistaken. “The Zionist plan to construct hundreds of homes in al-Quds,” Hezbollah continued, “truly shows American cover to it.”

So not only is Obama denied credit for standing up to Israel’s government, he is accused of doing precisely the opposite.

For how long have Conservatives argued that appeasement does not work?

Anti-Americanism is ideological oxygen for partisans of the resistance bloc. They will no sooner let it go than they will stop breathing. Their entire worldview and political program would turn to ashes without it, much as Fidel Castro’s would without socialism. When the United States doesn’t follow the script, they just lie.

Which is why the left is wrong about Gitmo. Yes, Gitmo is used by Al-Qaeda as a recruiting tool, and we can't stop that. It doesn't matter how well we treat the detainees. It doesn't matter that they are detained in brand new facilities; that they get to play soccer all day. It doesn't matter that they are fed well, and provided medical care, and that their captors make sure they are not disturbed during prayer five times a day. And it doesn't matter if they are on American soil or Cuban soil. Al-Qaeda will just lie. DON'T BE THE USEFUL IDIOT.

Sunday

2010-03-21T11:33:00.000-07:00

Amity Shlaes: Liberals Getting a Taste of How ‘Balance’ Feels

March 17 (Bloomberg) -- Lack of balance is the charge being levied against the Texas State Board of Education after it inserted changes to new standards in social studies programs in public schools. The Associated Press said in an article that a “far-right faction” of the board had succeeded “in injecting conservative ideals” into the curriculum.

The Texas flap matters because Texas is so big. Publishers will revise textbooks to win the prize Texas contract. But the debate also reminds us that our current definition of balance is distorted. After all, what’s wrong with “injecting conservative ideals” into a curriculum, as long as they aren’t the only ideals?

At its most devilishly aggressive -- and whatever lines it inserts about church, state, hip-hop or the Alamo -- the board will not restore true balance. It will merely manage to make the curriculum a little less skewed to the left.

Saturday

2010-03-20T11:55:00.000-07:00

Krauthammer: Obama Mid-East policy one sided
Why did Pres. Barack Obama choose to turn a gaffe into a crisis in U.S.-Israeli relations?

And a gaffe it was: the announcement by a bureaucrat in the Interior Ministry of a housing expansion in a Jewish neighborhood in north Jerusalem. The timing could not have been worse: Vice President Joe Biden was visiting, Jerusalem is a touchy subject, and you don’t bring up touchy subjects that might embarrass an honored guest.

But it was no more than a gaffe. It was certainly not a policy change, let alone a betrayal. The neighborhood is in Jerusalem, and the 2009 Netanyahu-Obama agreement was for a ten-month freeze on West Bank settlements excluding Jerusalem.

Friday

2010-03-19T10:34:00.000-07:00

Israeli Poll: Obama’s administration’s attack on Israel for building in Jerusalem was disproportionate

The numbers were more stark among voters on the Left side of the political map. The view that Obama had harmed chances for peace was shared by 82% of Labor voters and 70% of people who voted Kadima.

When asked whether they were satisfied with the Obama administration’s efforts to prevent Iran’s nuclearization, 67% of respondents said no, 9% said yes, and 24% said it was so-so. Only 1% of Israelis described themselves as “very satisfied” with Obama’s handling of the Iranian situation.

WT: Obama blocks bunker buster delivery to Israel hat tip to ploome

Officials said the U.S. military was ordered to divert a shipment of smart bunker-buster bombs from Israel to a military base in Diego Garcia. They said the shipment of 387 smart munitions had been slated to join pre-positioned U.S. military equipment in Israel Air Force bases.

"This was a political decision," an official said.

Thursday

2010-03-18T12:06:00.000-07:00

Lee Smith: Obama has hurt American interests in the Middle East

Last week, one of Syria's government news organs riffed on the title of my book The Strong Horse: Power, Politics, and the Clash of Arab Civilizations. "The American president," Al Tharwa wrote, "was betting on the sick horse." Instead of siding with Syria's Hamas allies, Obama was backing the Palestinian Authority and its leader, Fatah's Mahmoud Abbas. From Damascus' perspective, the description also applies to the United States' other Arab allies, like Saudi Arabia and the Gulf sheikhdoms, as well as to Egypt and Jordan. These states are ready to be put out to pasture, while it is Iran's "axis of resistance," including Hezbollah and Hamas, as well as Syria itself, that represents the rising power.

OK, maybe the regime in Damascus hasn't actually read my book. I lifted the title from Osama Bin Laden, anyway. "When people see a strong horse and a weak horse," said Bin Laden, "by nature, they will like the strong horse." But the Syrian appraisal confirms my thesis—in the Middle East, political power is the prerogative of those who take it and maintain it by both the appearance and application of force. In this instance, unfortunately, what's good for my book is very bad for U.S. interests and allies—and for American citizens.

Wednesday

2010-03-17T07:46:00.000-07:00

Daniel Pipes: America’s shiny new Palestinian militia

With Israeli permission, these troops have deployed in areas of Hebron, Jenin and Nablus. So far, this experiment has gone well, prompting widespread praise. Sen. John Kerry calls the program “extremely encouraging,” and Thomas Friedman of The New York Times discerns in the US-trained troops a possible “Palestinian peace partner for Israel” taking shape.

LOOKING AHEAD, however, I predict that those troops will more likely be a war partner than a peace partner for Israel. Consider their likely role in several scenarios...

AP: Syria to make up with Lebanese critic

A Hizbullah statement released late Monday said Nasrallah informed Jumblatt that Syria "will overcome" what happened in the past and open a new page. It added that Syrian President Bashar Assad will receive Jumblatt in the near future.

Jumblatt's harshest verbal attack against Assad came on February 2007 when he told a crowd of tens of thousands of supporters that Assad was a "snake" and a "tyrant" and called for revenge against him....

MJT Interview with Jumblatt (2009)

Monday

2010-03-15T10:48:00.000-07:00

VDH: Is Tom Hanks Unhinged?

Much has been written of the recent Tom Hanks remarks to Douglas Brinkley in a Time magazine interview about his upcoming HBO series on World War II in the Pacific. Here is the explosive excerpt that is making the rounds today.

Back in World War II, we viewed the Japanese as ‘yellow, slant-eyed dogs’ that believed in different gods. They were out to kill us because our way of living was different. We, in turn, wanted to annihilate them because they were different. Does that sound familiar, by any chance, to what’s going on today?

Hanks may not have been quoted correctly; and his remarks may have been impromptu and poorly expressed; and we should give due consideration to the tremendous support Hanks has given in the past both to veterans and to commemoration of World War II; and his new HBO series could well be a fine bookend to Band of Brothers. All that said, Hanks’ comments were sadly infantile pop philosophizing offered by, well, an ignoramus.

Hanks thinks he is trying to explain the multifaceted Pacific theater in terms of a war brought on by and fought through racial animosity. That is ludicrous. Consider the following.

Thursday

2010-03-11T22:20:00.000-08:00

VDH: No Allies — But Plenty of Enemies

Argentina is now angry over a British company's oil exploration off the windswept islands in what it considers its own South Atlantic backyard.

Although nominally democratic, the unpopular Kirchner government in Buenos Aires has claimed that the sparsely settled islands are a symbolic matter of Spanish-speaking pride throughout Latin America — and is theirs because the islands once belonged to Spain in the 19th century.

In response to all this, the Obama administration announced that it would remain neutral. Aside from the fact that the Falkland Islanders wish to remain British, and our prior support for the Thatcher British government during the 1982 war, there are lots of reasons why our neutrality here is a bad idea.

Prager: Why Democrats Don't Care about $9.7 Trillion Debt

"Deficits of that magnitude would force the Treasury to continue borrowing at prodigious rates, sending the national debt soaring to 90 percent of the economy by 2020, the CBO said."

CNN adds that "By 2020 the (CBO) estimates debt held by the public would reach $20.3 trillion, or 90 percent of GDP. That's up from 53 percent of GDP in 2009."

I suspect that most Americans, if asked whether these numbers trouble the Democratic leadership and President Obama, would answer in the affirmative.

They would be wrong.

Monday

2010-03-08T17:03:00.000-08:00

Michael Totten has put up a great piece about Romania, the communist years, and how it is today.

There are quite a few people who admire the system in Cuba. You know the types I mean. The people who wear Che Guevara t-shirts."

"Ah, yes," she said. "They are ridiculous. But somehow I can understand them. Let’s take the example of France. In France they were all socialists when they were young. Sartre was a close friend of Castro's. Gerard Depardieu was a close friend of Castro's. They believed in this ideal, but after they saw what Stalin did they couldn’t look to the Soviet Union. So they turned their hopes to Cuba. Then they saw what Castro did. The only one who still seemed to live up to the ideal was Che Guevara. So they turned to Che Guevara. I understand them. They were wrong their entire lives, and it is difficult to admit this."

Sunday

2010-03-07T19:19:00.000-08:00

Saudis begin nuclear program

The Saudi newspaper Al-Watan reported on Thursday that the Saudi minister of water and electricity, Abdullah al-Hosain, said the kingdom was working on plans for its first nuclear power plant. The US inked civil nuclear power deals with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates last year. Israel had no official response to the Saudi minister's announcement.

Wednesday

2010-03-03T16:06:00.000-08:00

Another foreign policy blunder from the Obama administration?

And on Syria?

Tuesday

2010-03-02T13:07:00.000-08:00

Poll: 60% of voters think force will be required to stop Iran, 25% think diplomacy will work

ht: Avid

Saturday

2010-02-27T09:16:00.000-08:00

Iran moved nuclear fuel above ground?

When Iran was caught last September building a secret, underground nuclear enrichment plant at a military base near the city of Qum, the country’s leaders insisted they had no other choice. With its nuclear facilities under constant threat of attack, they said, only a fool would leave them out in the open.

So imagine the surprise of international inspectors almost two weeks ago when they watched as Iran moved nearly its entire stockpile of low-enriched nuclear fuel to an above-ground plant. It was as if, one official noted, a bull’s-eye had been painted on it.

Russia not delivering S-300 to Tehran (This is good.)

The S-300 system is capable of hitting aircraft up to 90 miles away and tracking 100 targets at a time, and could be used in case of an Israeli air attack on Iranian nuclear sites.

But last week, Russia announced it would delay the shipment due to "technical problems" just one day after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Moscow.

Iran forces airlines to use "Persian Gulf" term

According to Dr. Vladimir Mesamed, an expert on Iran at the Hebrew University, the Gulf nomenclature issue comes up rather often in the Iranian press: “In 2008, when Google published a map that mentioned the name ‘Arabian gulf,’ Iranians were furious. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs demanded that the term ‘Persian Gulf’ be used instead.”

Speaking to The Jerusalem Post, Mesamed said Teheran’s decision to impose the use of “Persian Gulf” on its Arab neighbors is closely tied to the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions.

“Iran is very unpredictable nowadays. Just a few days ago its spokesmen announced that Iran is already a member of the nuclear club and that it is able to enrich uranium to the 90-percent level. Their current move reflects tension in the region over Iran’s nuclear ambitions and the position of Arabian Peninsula states caught between ties to Washington and fear of Teheran. It might also be a preemptive step meant to stop any Arab attempt to ‘Arabize’ the Gulf while Iran is in a vulnerable position,” Mesamed said.

And.. your Islamic funny for the day. Via MEMRITV.org
Video:Islamic cleric says Iran and U.S. allied against Arab States

We would like to draw the viewers' attention to the attempt to hijack the Arabian Peninsula – Saudi Arabia, the Gulf states, and Yemen – and to incorporate them in the false Persian state, desired by Khomeini's Safavid Persion followers.

It may come as a surprise – if not to you, to your viewers – that the American-Iranian alliance is one of the strongest alliances in the world. It is one of the strongest alliances in the world. Did this sink in, or is it too much of a shock?

This brings up the question: Are the Arabs more afraid of Iran than Israel? I think they are and they definitely should be.

George Will destroys, and other stuff

2010-02-23T03:12:00.000-08:00

Dennis Prager ran audio, on his show, of George Will on ABC's The Roundtable. Will was so good I have to post it on here. Newsbusters had a post on it also, where I found this clip.

Also, Prager and Sowell have some good articles out.

George Will is a treasure to the Conservative movement.

Sunday

2010-02-21T23:23:00.000-08:00

Bill Bennett commented on Glenn Beck's speech at CPAC. I have to agree with Bennett. Beck has not been fair to Republicans.

Update** - Hat tip to AvidEditor for tipping me off to this piece that Mark Levin posted on Facebook, which is along the lines of what Bennett wrote. Read them both. I'll add Levin's at the bottom of the post.

Saturday Night Beck

by Bill Bennett

There’s a lot to say about CPAC. This morning the major papers are highlighting Glenn Beck’s speech. I like Glenn a lot and I think he has something to teach us. But not what he offered last night.

Analogizing his own struggles with alcohol to the problems of our polity and in our politics, he said, “Hello, my name is the Republican party, and I have a problem!” “I’m addicted to spending and big government.” ”It is still morning in America.” ”It just happens to be kind of a head-pounding, hung-over, vomiting-for-four-hours kind of morning in America. And it’s shaping up to be kind of a nasty day. But it is still morning in America.” And, again, “I believe in redemption, but the first step to getting redemption is you’ve got to admit that you’ve got a problem. I have not heard people in the Republican party yet admit that they have a problem.”

Glenn is among the best talkers in the business of broadcast. I am not sure he’s a very good listener.

First, there is a good and strong tradition in alcohol and drug treatment that personal failings should not be extrapolated into the public sphere; that too often when this is done, conclusions are reached based on the wrong motives and, often, the wrong analysis. Glenn has made that mistake here and taken to our politics a cosmologizing of his own deficiencies. This is not a baseless criticism; they are his own deficiencies that he keeps publicly redounding to and analogizing to. It is wrong and he is wrong.

Read the rest

Mark's New Note: Feb 21, 2010
Today at 1:49am

I was invited to be the opening speaker at Saturday's CPAC session. I had accepted but then, to my amazement, I learned that the John Birch Society would be one of many co-sponsors. This takes the big-tent idea many steps too far for me. So, I withdrew. Apparently, others were not so moved. That's fine. But it wasn't for me. Bill Buckley and Barry Goldwater, among others, chased the Birchers from the movement decades ago. And they're not a part of the movement. So, to give them a booth at CPAC was boneheaded.

I want to commend Bill Bennett for his wise piece this morning on the Corner. http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=YzM5OTJkYWE1ZTA5OTI1NWJiMjYwNDI4ZDg0NmQ3MGQ=
I agree with him. I have no idea what philosophy Glenn Beck is promoting. And neither does he. It's incoherent. One day it's populist, the next it's libertarian bordering on anarchy, next it's conservative but not really, etc. And to what end? I believe he has announced that he is no longer going to endorse candidates because our problems are bigger than politics. Well, of course, our problems are not easily dissected into categories, but to reject politics is to reject the manner in which we try to organize ourselves. This is as old as Plato and Aristotle. Why would conservatives choose to surrender the political battlefield to our adversaries -- who are trashing this society --when we must retake it in order to preserve our society? Philosophy, politics, culture, family, etc., are all of one. Edmund Burke, among others, wrote about it extensively, and far better that I possibly can. But all elements of the civil society require our defense. Besides, why preach such a strategy when conservatism is on the rise and the GOP is acting more responsibly?

Moreover, when he does discuss politics, which, ironically, is often, how can he claim today that there is no difference between the two parties when, but for the Republicans in Congress, government-run health care, cap-and-trade, card check, and a long list of other disastrous policies would already be law? The GOP is becoming more conservative thanks to the grass-roots movement and a political uprising across the country, which has even reached into New Jersey and Massachusetts. Why keep pretending otherwise? My only conclusion is that he is promoting a third party or some third way, which is counter-productive to defeating Obama and the Democrat Congress. These are perilous times and this kind of an approach will keep the statists in power for decades.

And what of his flirtations with Ron Paul's lunacy respecting America's supposed provocations with her enemies, including al-Qaeda? Why should such a fatal defect in thinking be ignored? Do we conservatives agree with this?

Finally, Beck is fond of congratulating himself for being the only or the first host to criticize George Bush's spending. This is demonstrably false. I not only attacked his spending, but the creation of the Homeland Security Department, the prescription drug add-on for Medicare, his "moderate" tax cuts, as well as his nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court, "comprehensive immigration reform," and so forth. And I was not alone -- Rush and Sean did the same, for example. And as someone who fought liberal Republicans in the trenches when campaigning for Reagan in 1976 and 1980, I don't need lectures from Beck, who was nowhere to be found, about big-spending Republicans. But this is not about me, or Beck, or Beck's past drunkenness (which he endlessly wears as some kind of badge of honor). It is about preserving our society for our children and grandchildren. Beck spent precious little time aiming fire at Obama-Pelosi-Reid in his speech, and it is they who are destroying our country.

On as a positive note, I am personally happy to see that Beck has cleaned up his public act -- as best I can tell, no more boiling fake frogs on TV or pretending to pour gasoline on someone -- and the rest of it. But I do think his speech, which contained nuggets of truth heard before and read elsewhere, including on Rush's show and in my book and many other books, may have distracted from some of the more compelling and coherent speeches at the event, including Marco Rubio's superb speech. I fear the media will see to this. I hope not.

Thursday

2010-02-18T21:54:00.000-08:00

The case for an Israeli strike against Iran by Spengler

George Will with a new piece about Sarah Palin. Also, Krauthammer has a good one, here.

Tuesday

2010-02-16T09:56:00.000-08:00

Apologies for my absence but my PC is down.

Hillary made some remarks about Iran. I think the most important one was that the U.S. will not support sanctions that would harm the Iranian people. That means no gasoline sanctions. That means diplomacy is officially worthless in regards to chilling Iran's nuclear ambitions.

I'm starting to believe that the Obama administration is going to allow Iran to build nuclear missiles/bombs and continue the Islamic theocracy. They should be fighting them with words at the very least. But Obama began his relationship with Iran by giving a speech to Iran on the Zoroastrian New Year and referred to Iran as an "Islamic Republic". Then the revolts in Tehran began and he had no moral support for those Iranians fighting for freedom. Still, the regime accused the protesters of being backed by America.

Obama should at least give them moral support. Instead, he will show his love by withholding sanctions! Sanctions that would harm the Iranian people... and thereby increase their rage and disgust of their rulers. Right now, with the U.S. taking this position, a revolution in Iran may be the only thing that can stop the mullahs from assembling a nuclear missile. It seems the U.S. is OK with a nuclear Iran.

Update: I should have added this excellent article from Michael Totten. I have to agree with him, "regime change" is the only thing that will end this game.

In other news...
Taliban #2 Caught
A Scott Brown for California?

And, are we losing the space race or not?

Tuesday

2010-02-09T16:07:00.000-08:00

Gates wants sanctions on Iran within a month.

If you read here, you know that the only sanction that could change Iran's attitude would be on gasoline imports; since Iran imports so much of the gasoline it needs. But Russia and China will not approve of this. Therefore, Gates must make a deal. What will Gates offer them? (I really doubt he will get this done.)

Also, Sowell has a new article out and, Prager dismantles Frank Rich

Monday

2010-02-08T11:27:00.000-08:00

Found @: The Corner - National Review Online

Chinese man convicted of spying for China - Associated Press

Foreign PH.D.s stay in U.S. by David Wessel

Sunday

2010-02-07T17:24:00.000-08:00

How to get the country to solvency on entitlements By George Will

After U.S. cuts to NASA who will lead in space? By John Brandon (hat tip: Sharku)

Saturday

2010-02-06T16:30:00.000-08:00

I'm back! It's only been about 7 months. I'm still in the process of redecorating this page.

Here are some articles I found interesting today.

How to Make a Weak Economy Worse by Amity Shlaes

A historical comparison. How Presidents can prolong recessions.

Think Again: Asia's Rise by Minxin Pei

Old but still relevant. Will China and the East pass the U.S. and the West?

A Defensive Buildup in the Gulf by George Friedman

Happenings in the middle east.

A Crime Theory Demolished by Heather Mac Donald

Debunking another stupid liberal theory.

Giants Have Baseball's Most Valuable Fans

2009-06-03T12:20:00.000-07:00

Baseball's Most Valuable Fans

by Christina Settimi,

Some cheer louder, some are more passionate. And some are worth a lot more than others.

It’s settled: Fans of the San Francisco Giants are better than the fans of their bitter rival, the Los Angeles Dodgers. In fact, Giants’ fans are the best in all of Major League Baseball, at least in terms of providing value for their team.

In our first ranking of the most valuable fans of MLB, we flipped tradition on its head and took a look at what audiences around America are worth to the business of baseball. We divided local revenue of each team (including such sources as local television and radio revenue, gate receipts and sponsorships) for the 2008 season by the population of its metropolitan area, according to the 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimate. The resulting revenue-per-fan figure is a rough yardstick of a team’s ability to capitalize on its fan base, regardless of market size.

Revenue figures are before revenue sharing and exclude national media and licensing revenue, which is divvied up equally to all 30 MLB team. For cities with two teams, we divided the population in half for each team, figuring the city’s fan base was split more or less evenly between the two.

A look at the top-ranked Giants’ $78 revenue per fan reflects just how juiced Bay Area fans are to see their team, regardless of its last few lackluster seasons. In comparison, the Dodgers, who made it to the National League Championship Series last season, only generated $38 in revenue per fan.

Good Book Learnin'

2009-05-31T10:00:00.000-07:00

54% of my high school class didn't graduate so, I know our public schools are failing. I'm all for school vouchers and school choice but I've also thought that there must be simpler things we can do.

The eighth best public school in California vows that it will develop students to be "productive members in a free market capitalist society". They discipline the students, they don't allow liberal indoctrination, and they aren't fond of unions. Definitely a different kind of school, and a very good one. Our public schools have a lot to learn from them.

Spitting in the eye of mainstream education

**Also, I'd like to add these:

Pelican Eats a Pigeon

2009-05-12T18:06:00.000-07:00

Tactics of the Gay Activist

2009-05-12T10:16:00.000-07:00

Here are two excellent pieces by Kathy Shaidle that detail just how ugly gay activists have been. Go read 'em.

Part 1: racism and bigotry

Part 2: bullying

Hat tip goes out to moderncommentaries83, a commenter over at Newsbusters.

Thank You Mr. Trump

2009-05-12T09:22:00.000-07:00

Donald Trump regained some respect from me today, by tuning out all the dolts screaming for Carrie Prejean to lose her crown, and doing the right thing.

Donald Trump: 'Carrie will remain Miss California'

By Ann Oldenburg with staff contributions

Happening now: Donald Trump says Carrie Prejean's photos are "fine" and her crown will stay put. "Carrie will remain Miss California."

The Donald also said at this morning's press conference: "We had a little bit of a dilemma with Carrie, who is here, lovely, and gave a very, very honest answer when asked a very tough question (about gay marriage) at the recent pageant. It's the same answer the president of the U.S. gave, the same answer many people gave. It was probably a fair question because its asked of many people. If her beauty wasn't so great, nobody really would have cared. But that's not the way it worked out."

As for the semi-nude photos, he said, "We reviewed the pictures very carefully. We are in the 21st century. ... Carrie's a model, she's very successful. ... Some were beautiful, some were risqué. ... We've determined the pictures taken were acceptable, fine, and in many cases they were very lovely pictures."

Trump also hastened to add that NBC "will soon announce" it is extending its deal to air with the Miss USA pageant for another three years. And he said he "love" to have Perez Hilton, the judge who asked the gay marriage question, back next year. Perez immediately Tweeted, "Thanks, Donald, I'd love to be back next year!"

As for Carrie? Teary-eyed, she took the podium and defended the most recent batch of topless photos saying they were "taken in between posed shots on a windy day of which I was unaware." They were shots taken for her modeling career, "for application, not publication." She also said she spoke her mind at the Miss USA pageant when she said she believes marriage is between a man and a woman. "I was punished for doing so! This should not happen in this country."

now, if only liberals would acknowledge and agree...

Scare Tactics?

2009-05-08T23:49:00.000-07:00

California could be broke by July, state official warns

Attacks on Carrie Prejean Continue

2009-05-06T13:34:00.000-07:00

Now they want to take away her crown because she differs with them. Although, they say it's because of an old photo she took, that photo is no more revealing than the bikini she wore to win her crown...

Click to see photo and article.

Then there are these jackasses:

What a bunch of scumbags.

Liberalism's Laboratory

2009-05-04T12:46:00.000-07:00

A good piece from George Will today...

California has become liberalism's laboratory, in which the case for fiscal conservatism is being confirmed. The state is a slow learner and hence will remain a drag on the nation's economy. But it will be a net benefit to the nation if the federal government and other state governments profit from California's negative example, which Californians can make more vividly instructive by voting down the propositions on May 19.

Read the rest at Townhall.

Miss California Attacked Again But, Not For Her Opinion

2009-05-01T13:19:00.000-07:00

It has become a tendency of the left to attack, not an opposing viewpoint but, the individual expressing an opposing viewpoint. Today, Newsbusters provides us with a good example. An excerpt:

CBS’s Rodriguez Goes After Miss California Over Breast Implants

At the top of Friday’s CBS Early Show, co-host Maggie Rodriguez attacked Miss California, Carrie Prejean, over reports that the beauty pageant contestant had breast implants: "Miss California in another scandal. Did pageant organizers pay for her to get breast implants?" Rodriguez later teased the upcoming segment: "And another controversy for Miss California. This time over just how natural a beauty she really is."

More Police Layoffs

2009-05-01T13:04:00.000-07:00

55 cops to get layoff notices

By David Siders
Record Staff Writer
May 01, 2009 6:00 AM

STOCKTON - City Hall will issue layoff notices today to about 55 police officers and 35 civilian employees to shed costs, officials said Thursday, after Stockton and its police union ended labor talks without a deal.

Dangerous city gets more dangerous...

The American Trinity

2009-04-29T11:46:00.000-07:00

Here a short lecture from Dennis Prager, a man I respect greatly. He has a nationally syndicated radio talk show. This video is a part of his new endeavor, Prager University.

Flash Report

2009-04-28T14:15:00.000-07:00

Flashreport.org is a great website if you want to stay current on California politics. Today, they have a nice piece by an assemblyman who shows us how policies in California are stimulating Nevada's economy.

More Miss California

2009-04-28T06:17:00.000-07:00

Oh, and, um... the AP has an article following up on the incident at the Miss America pageant. Our girl from California reflects on that incident and talks about what has happened since.

Miss California and Judge Perez Hilton

2009-04-26T07:50:00.000-07:00

Miss California got a tough question from a judge that decided to be a jerk. Go over to Little Green Footballs 2 and check out all the videos here .

Buckethead

2009-04-23T02:24:00.000-07:00

We here enjoy the sounds of the electric guitar. Here is one in action.

Whos this guitar-playing sonsa bitch? , is a question common asked.
On his head a bucket of chicken bones, on his face a plaster mask.
Hes the bastard son of a preacher man, on the town he left a stain.
They made him live in a chicken house to try to and hide the shame.

He was born in a coop, raised in a cage. children fear him, critics rage.
Hes half alive, hes half dead. folks just call him buckethead.

Farmers would torment him as he snuggled with the hens.
Theyd hose him down with water, and steal his little friends.
Now late at night hed sneak off to the graveyard all alone,
And play a soapbox guitar to the faces made of stone.

Buckethead found his freedom at the age of 17,
When he burned the chicked house down with a quart of gasoline.
He did puppet shows on corners and bought a real guitar,
And with the help of colonel sanders, hes bound to be a star.

He was born in a coop, raised in a cage. children fear him, critics rage.
Hes half alive, hes half dead. folks just call him buckethead.

The Ballad of Buckethead by Primus

Racial Discrimination in New Haven Fire Department

2009-04-23T01:51:00.000-07:00

Some brave Firefighters are fighting the city of New Haven. The case has reached the Supreme Court of the United States.

Lou Dobbs is doing a great job on this story. Here is the direct link to Lou Dobbs at CNN.com, with lots of videos.

Here is another good piece from CNN if you don't want to watch video.

What I want to say about this is first, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS REVERSE DISCRIMINATION. Racial discrimination is the same thing no matter who suffers it. The use of this term, "reverse discrimination", really needs to end because it implies that only minorities can be discriminated against. It's irrational, it defies logic, and it's just plain dumb. I have no idea how this got into the vocabulary of any serious journalist but it is all over the place. It's a shame.

Finally, I am of the opinion that these twenty firefighters were discriminated against and they need to win this case. In the past, minorities have expressed that "the man" was keeping them down. Well, now it's an injustice of people of a different race but it's still racial isn't it? So I think any respectful American should agree with me when I say that this kind of racial quota system needs to be outlawed. The United States should not stand for hiring or promotion based on race, no matter the race. If we say goodbye to racial quotas and affirmative action we will be taking a big leap forward in mending racial tensions in the country.

Following up on the Obama-Chavez meeting

2009-04-22T23:29:00.000-07:00

From The Washington Times:

"The whole notion was that if we showed courtesy or opened up dialogue with governments that had previously been hostile to us, that that somehow would be a sign of weakness," he said.

This is kind of a classic straw-man argument. Nobody said you cannot talk to hostile regimes, just that you do not use the office of the President of the United States to do it with. This is however, what you did.

It is a sign of weakness Mr. President, a weakness of principle. You need to stand for liberty and justice, not the tyranny that you, and everybody else, knows Chavez embodies. These principles must never waver.

When you shook Chavez's hand you showed all the political prisoners in Venezuela, and in Cuba, that you don't so much care about the injustices they have endured. You also demoralized the people fighting for human rights and liberty in Venezuela.

You said your chat with Chavez was a good step forward but who took the step? It was not Chavez, Mr. President, it was you. And what did you get out of it? A book written by a Marxist, that bashes our country. You even shot it up to number two on Amazon.com for a brief moment. Nice going. (Mark Levin's book is still number one. This alien highly recommends it.)
So, you took a step forward but Chavez stayed right where he was. It's important to note this because it has been your belief that meeting with these dictators would change their minds. Evidently it has not.

Cool

2009-04-18T19:16:00.000-07:00

President Shakes Hands with Dictator, Terrorist Supporter

2009-04-18T14:02:00.001-07:00

(AP Photo/Alfonso Ocando, Miraflores Press Office)

By BEN FELLER, Associated Press Writer Ben Feller, Associated Press Writer – Fri Apr 17, 10:56 pm ET

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad – Presidents Barack Obama and Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's socialist leader, met Friday and shook hands on the sidelines of a summit of their hemisphere's democracies.

Obama walked across a hotel meeting room to meet Chavez for the first time, said a senior U.S. administration official who witnessed it and spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the details of the event. The official said Obama initiated the encounter.

Chavez has been a fierce critic of the United States during President George W. Bush's tenure.

"It was very, very short," the official said of Friday's meeting. "The president shook his hand, smiled and then went back to his position in the line."

The encounter comes as Obama softens U.S. policy against Cuba, a Chavez ally.

Asked later about the meeting, Obama elicited laughter from reporters with a brief response: "I said, 'Como estas?'"

That's the familiar form of Spanish for "How are you?"

Chavez was more forthcoming with reporters.

"We shook each other's hands like gentlemen, and it was predictable this would happen," Chavez said.

"We don't have any complexes that would prevent us from extending our hands to each other. I'm grateful for his gesture."

Photos released by the Venezuelan government show the two smiling and Obama touching Chavez on the shoulder. Other photos show them with clenched hands in the room next to the main summit ballroom while the heads of state and government were waiting in line to enter the opening ceremony.

The Venezuelan presidency also said Obama initiated the handshake and quoted Chavez as telling Obama he hopes for better relations between their nations.

Chavez told reporters he had a simple message in English for Obama: "I want to be your friend."

Obama's comments were limited to saying that he wanted to introduce himself to Chavez, the U.S. official said. The Obama official would not comment on what Chavez told the U.S. president.

But when a reporter asked if the Venezuelan account of what happened was accurate, the Obama official said: "I wouldn't dispute that."

As recently as last week, Chavez expressed a desire to "reset" relations with Washington.

___

Associated Press writers Frank Bajak, Mark S. Smith and Alan Clendenning contributed to this report.

from Yahoo News

The article fails to mention that this thug has also had some words for President Obama, like calling him an "ignoramus". That came after the President himself accused Chavez of supporting terrorists. In fact, many experts do say that Chavez is working with Hezbollah. So why shake hands with this jerk? What a disgrace.

Intense Rock

2009-04-14T00:34:00.000-07:00

Paul Gilbert being INTENSE

Looking for a few good men

2009-04-11T12:46:00.000-07:00

Today, from The Stockton Record:

Alan Pettet is forming an armed militia to patrol Stockton

By David Siders
Record Staff Writer
April 11, 2009 6:00 AM

STOCKTON - Alan Pettet, who announced Monday he is forming an armed militia to patrol Stockton, said Friday that 270 people have called to sign up and that he has had attention from such media outlets as National Public Radio and "The Rush Limbaugh Show."

Both the city administration and the Police Department said to roam Stockton in cars with loaded rifles - as Pettet, a midtown neighborhood advocate, has proposed - would be illegal and unwise.

Pettet said the militia would only "activate" if the city lays off police officers, causing some residents and officials to speculate he is only posturing to dissuade City Hall from laying off officers. The city is trying to balance a $31 million budget deficit and plans to lay off at least 43 officers by summer.

Pettet, 66, said he is serious.

"This thing's gone national," he said.

Pettet, who at first planned to run one car at a time with four men inside, said he now intends to staff as many cars as he can.

Vice Mayor Kathy Miller said the attention Pettet is receiving is unfortunate.

"It feeds a really negative image," Miller said. "It's really unwarranted, and it hurts us."

She said she believed no militia will materialize.

"I don't think there's any way it's going to happen," she said.

Again, sounds like they'll be on their own

2009-04-09T21:22:00.001-07:00

That is, if the Israelis choose to bomb Iran's nuclear sites. Click to read the whole thing:

With his brief comment Tuesday, Biden became the highest-ranking administration official to caution the Jewish state against a military strike. In the interview, Biden was asked whether he was concerned that Netanyahu might strike Iranian nuclear facilities.

"I don't believe Prime Minister Netanyahu would do that. I think he would be ill advised to do that," Biden said.

"And so my level of concern is no different than it was a year ago."

OH HELL NO

2009-04-09T20:30:00.000-07:00

They banned our perfectly good light bulbs. They banned trans fat. They even banned chimneys. Now, they're trying to take our HDTVs. Thems fighting words!

"The California Energy Commission is proceeding with a proposal this summer to ban the sale of TV sets that do not meet new efficiency standards when they are turned on and displaying a picture — a measure of power consumption that is not currently regulated at all."

I have a 50" Panasonic Plasma. It's friggin' brilliant and the less energy sucking LCDs cannot compare to it yet, but let's not impose any stinkin' regulations.

"The Commission, says the law's main goal is to reduce the strain on the energy grid, which will help avoid building expensive new power plants. It cites the fact that TVs are among the fastest growing electronics in the business and are slated to grow further.

But that's a deceptive citation because recent TV growth has focused on LCDs and other 'greener' TVs.

Energy-hogging TVs are on their way out, without the help of the government or an overriding desire by consumers to own energy-efficient TVs. Most buy LCDs because they're simply cheaper and are finally approximating the quality of larger plasma televisions."

The free-market works. Unfortunately, that is something my state of California forgot a long time ago.

They didn't get this one

2009-04-08T14:51:00.000-07:00

Here is a video that didn't get deleted from my Youtube account. If you're a 49er fan, or a football fan, you'll enjoy it.

It's bound to happen

2009-04-08T14:01:00.000-07:00

Iran is still trying to build a nuke.

"The Manhattan district attorney's office has smashed a sinister plot to smuggle nuclear weapons materials to Iran through unwitting New York banks, the Daily News has learned.

Officials plan to unseal a 118-count indictment Tuesday accusing a Chinese national of setting up a handful of fake companies to hide that he was selling millions of dollars in potential nuclear materials to Tehran."

Whole article here

and General Patraeus had this to say a few days before:

"The Israeli government may ultimately see itself so threatened by the prospect of an Iranian nuclear weapon that it would take preemptive military action to derail or delay it,"

Could he be hinting that Israel will have to bomb Iran's nuclear sites without our help? With or without our help, an Israeli strike is bound to happen. It could be really difficult. The Iranians probably have their most vital nuclear sites spread out in different locations and surely surrounded with nice shiny new Russian anti-aircraft guns and missiles. We should sell the Israelis some of these little toys:

Since it looks like we won't be ordering any more :/

Gates proposes halting F-22 production

I'm a Giants fan

2009-04-08T13:05:00.000-07:00

and this is funny.

Super Duper Not-So-Top-Secret Weapons

2009-04-06T16:34:00.000-07:00

Chances are you've heard about the unmanned Predator drones that the U.S. military uses. They're flown by remote control into the tribal areas of Pakistan where the Taliban are held up. Well, now they've got something even better. Apparently the U.S. military has a new technology that allows them to see through walls!

"Predators were originally designed as video surveillance aircraft that could hover over a target from high altitudes. But new models are outfitted with additional intelligence gear that has enabled the CIA to confirm the identities of targets even when they are inside buildings and can't be seen through the Predator's lens."

Read the whole article here at the LA Times.

I first heard about this thing when Bob Woodward was going around touting his new book. Here is what he said:

I didn't know what to believe. Then, I read this great piece at Michael Totten's blog, here. Make sure you visit. Here is what he said:

"A suspect matching the terrorist leader's description had just been spotted fleeing the area a few blocks away.

I have to protect the Army's operational security, so I cannot tell you how the suspect was spotted. But I can tell you that if I were a terrorist or insurgent in Iraq, and if I knew what kind of sophisticated high-tech surveillance equipment the Americans used as a matter of course, it would scare the living daylights out of me. No one can hide in Iraq forever from the American military."

Woodward referred to it as "techniques and operations". Totten says it's "sophisticated high-tech surveillance equipment". I think the military has something. What do you think? What could it be? Is it just an exaggeration thrown out there to scare terrorists or does the military really have something truly revolutionary?