Culture
Firewall Videos (Bill Whittle)
Feb 20th
Two videos from Bill Whittle’s youtube channel…The first concerning Obama’s massive spending to get reelected to a second term and the second on the whole notion of class warfare.
9th Circuit Court of Appeals’ Circular Reasoning on Prop 8
Feb 7th
Judicial activism is alive and well, and we’d be silly to even try to deny it after today’s decision by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals who ruled today that California’s voter-approved ballot Proposition 8 (banning gay marriage in the state) was unconstitutional.
I’m no attorney, so I’m working on the legal analysis already given. Basically the court ruled that because the “right” of gays to marry existed before prop 8, and they didn’t see any legitimate state interest promoted by banning that “right,” then such a proposition was unconstitutional.
This is some sad circular reasoning. Now, remember Prop 8 only came about because the California State Supreme Court ruled that gay marriage was a “right.” It was certainly, up to that point, illegal for gays to marry, thus the right was, in fact, a new right altogether.
The appeals court, today, ruled that because the right existed, it could not be taken away.
Think about that. An instance of judicial activism on the part of the CA Supreme Court created a new “right.” Voters initiated a procedure to amend the state Constitution to clarify that issue. Then, an appeals court comes along and says that since the right existed, it should stay. Yes, the right existed because the courts suddenly decided a year earlier that the right existed!
What this ruling means is that courts can now make any rulings they so desire in terms of new constitutional “rights,” and the citizens of the state have no redress when it comes to changing that. Why wouldn’t judges across the state just start writing, into the law, new rights everyday? Then the appeals courts can simply declare the right existed, and that’s why we can’t take it away?
Absurd logic on the part of the supreme court of the state and the court of appeals.
The One All About the Glorious Stephen Fry
Jan 31st
I was reading some British news stories, and I saw a 2010 BAFTA speech from Stephen Fry where he went on to attack Dr. Who as not a show for adults.
I then found some commentary written on the issue where someone agreed with Fry.
And while we’re at it, let’s toss in an episode of QI featuring Jeremy Clarkson and the Bible.
Rick Perry to Drop Out of Race, What It Means for the Country
Jan 19th
Rick Perry announced he will exit the presidential race. He entered the primary race late, quickly rocketed to the top, and then plummeted after some not-so-stellar debate performances. What does this mean for the GOP, and more broadly what does it mean for all of us?
I’d argue this is, in fact, bad news for all of us. The fact that he came in early, was sky high for a bit, then plummeted is proof that we are now stuck with a two year presidential campaign every two years, which is just stupid and means next to nothing will ever get done well in the process. Do we honestly want to live in a world where we’re perpetually choosing a president, the candidates never stopping to actual DO something, always obsessed with the next pointless TV “debate” or looking good for the cameras?
It also means that the GOP has all but completely abandoned its ideology of conservatism. Mitt Romney is simply not a conservative on most matters. He changes with the political winds, and it makes him look as if he has no true convictions.
It also means that we’re now living in a country that is obsessed with image. Style over substance. You aren’t the greatest debater, well by heaven, you must be an idiot then who could never be a great president…except we know Perry was a great governor who had a lot of success. Nevermind that substance, we’re more obsessed with who speaks the best and has the best comebacks at these so-called “debates.”
This election and last are a turning point for the GOP. I doubt actually Romney can win. No one likes him. Mainly because there’s nothing to like. He’s Al Gore in mormon drab. He’s boring, he’s stiff, he’s robotic, he has no chemistry and no personality. I’m at a loss as to how on earth so many people are backing the guy, because what on earth is there to be passionate about with him?
He’s facing a “historic” president like none other we have ever seen (at least his die hard supporters think so.) A president of immense and powerful “change.” In 2008, if you listened to his supporters and the mainstream media- Obama was a man who is not only a mini-god, but also very much like the real God Himself. How do you fight that with Robot Romney who can’t seem to find any true convictions?
The people have spoken about who they want as leaders, and what sort of country in which they want to live- we’ve officially become the American Idol nation. Records no longer matter. Actions no longer matter. All that matters is who can sing the prettiest song for a willfully ignorant electorate. And that’s bad news not just for conservatives but for all Americans.
FLN to Become Cooking Channel on May 31
May 28th
On May 31 (Memorial Day), FLN (Fine Living Network) will be rebranded as the Cooking Channel.
Looks interesting…Trying to go for the younger, hipper crowd who love food.
Check out the NY Times article for more.
I saw this while watching FLN earlier, and got all excited.
Lock N Load with R. Lee Ermey (History- July 31!)
Jul 30th
Check out the new series on the weapons of war. Lock N Load with R. Lee Ermey. Starts July 31 on History!
Jon Stewart’s Absurd Comparison of a Public Healthcare Plan with the US Military Healthcare
Jul 27th
Jon Stewart interviews Bill Kristol of the Weekly Standard tonight…he asks Kristol if the American people deserve the same healthcare as the US military. Kristol, since he has common sense, says, “no. No, the general public should not receive the same healthcare the military does.” We give them top notch healthcare because of their service to our country. Stewart, and his zombie audience with him, “ooooohhhhh” over this comment.
Kristol, in the process, says that the military healthcare is run by the government, and that it’s top notch. Stewart then argues that Kristol admitted the federal government could run public healthcare and do a great job at it.
Seriously, Jon?
Let’s take a look at the stats. Wikipedia shows 3 million active members of the US military. Let’s assume that half of them get healthcare and use it. That figure is probably much higher than the actual number who use the government healthcare. So, 1.5 million people use a public healthcare plan that the federal government runs. Thus, that’s proof that ALL Americans deserve the same deal for doing nothing for the country, and on top of that the government could run this program for ALL Americans expertly.
The current US population according to the US Census Bureau is 305 million people. So, Stewart is trying to argue that because there exists a system that covers, at most, 3 million military men and women, and more likely less than half of that, the federal government could easily and efficiently run a system to cover 305 million people. On top of the raw numbers, think about it- military men and women are, generally, in great shape. The public, at large, is fairly out of shape for the most part. The general public would cost, we can assume, twice as much at least and probably much more than that.
What’s worse than this absurd comparison is the socialist-sounding demand that we cover ALL Americans with the same care that military men and women receive. Why would this argument ever make sense? Do Americans, just for being born in this country, deserve free healthcare that is, in no way, truly free? Taxes will go up across the board. The current plan touted by Obama will raise the budget deficits to levels never seen in our nation’s history according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Kristol didn’t defend his comment well, but Stewart made little, if any sense, to begin with. Comparing a system for the military with the general public is laughable, and the demand that we give to all Americans the same service we give to military officers who risk their lives is just plain dumb.
Stewart would fit in well with the Obama administration. I wonder when he’ll leave his place as a “newsman” and join the Obama team? His analogies make about as much sense as Obama’s own plans.
ADDENDUM: The system clearly covers retired members of the armed forces, so the total number would be over the 3 million currently active or reserve, but we’re talking different systems here. The VA would cover those retired members, and there have been some fairly large complaints about the VA system, so I don’t consider that in Kristol’s talk of wonderful care received.
911/Dispatch Calls Released Shows No Race Mention in Prof Gates Arrest
Jul 27th
As suspected by any rational, sane human- the woman who called 911 to report, what looked to be a possible burglary at the home of Professor Henry Louis Gates, never mentioned anything about the two men barging in being “black.” She did mention, when asked about the men, that one MAY have looked hispanic, but that’s all. There’s not a shred of evidence to think race played any role in sending police to investigate.
Listen to the 911 call here:
Also released was the police dispatch conversation. You can clearly hear race is never mentioned in the conversations between police and dispatchers, and that the officer on scene mentioned that the man who owns the house (Gates) was “not cooperative.”
Listen to that audio here:
It was obvious from the start that Gates, a man who has made his career obsessing over race, was never a target of any racial profiling, and there was never a shred of evidence to suggest racism on part of any of the officers involved, dispatch, or anyone else BESIDES Professor Gates himself.
Police investigated a possible crime that was called in through 911, they ran into instant resistance from a man filled with anger at whites, and they told him to calm down. When he refused to calm down (all officers involved, including a black officer himself) back the account that Gates was ballistic and refused to calm himself), they arrested him, took him down, booked him, and let him go. Charges were dropped, and that should have been it. Gates, however, like other race hustlers (Jackson and Sharpton, and even Obama’s own spiritual mentor, Rev Jeremiah Wright), turned it instantly into a racial issue, and the president stupidly followed suit by attacking police.
This story is finished, Gates needs to publicly apologize. If he refuses, he needs to immediately resign his post at Harvard University. President Obama needs to finally make a public apology to Officer Crowley and the entire Cambridge Police Department. He needs to admit he acted stupidly and move on. He also needs to stop pushing his way into issues of race altogether, as his own past sins of being a part of a virulently anti-white church for 20 years renders him ineligible to even speak to the subject.
Blowback Against Obama for His Attack on Cambridge Police
Jul 24th
Beautiful. I have a feeling America is waking up to the radical that is Barack Obama. His offensive statements attacking the Cambridge officers who arrested Henry Louis Gates as acting “stupidly” in this matter needed a swift and loud response.
Racial demagogues like Gates and Obama (who, as you will recall, spent 20 years in a radical, racist, anti-american church) need to get off the national stage now, and they need to stay off for good.
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