Some Depressing Links

I got home tonight and started my perusal of web sites for what was happening today, and it just seemed to get more depressing the more I read.

One of the first things I ran into was a post by Micheal Yon on a horrific find when he wen into a Iraqi village with an Iraqi army unit. It's not pretty what the al-queda "freedom fighters" left behind. I'll let Micheal explain: Bless the Beasts and Children.

I then got to read about an insider's view of the TSA and the reasons you get to stand in lines forever with your shoes off to get on a plane: Knee-Jerk From The DC Jerks Again.

There was some good news today, even if it was a half-assed attempt of doing the right thing: Bush commutes Libby sentence.

Half-assed in that Libby should have been pardoned for being convicted of a non-crime, but the fine still has to be paid (this will be covered by donations), and he will lose his law license due to the conviction.

Ball-less George is guessing that by commuting the sentence, he gets the right off his back, but by not pardoning Libby, he will still look like he isn't completely caving in.

Didn't work.

And for those of you who think this is a "travesty of justice", just keep in mind Sandy Pantsburglar and...

Clinton's commuted the sentences of

16 members of FALN, a violent Puerto Rican nationalist group that set off 120 bombs in the United States mostly in New York City and Chicago, convicted for conspiracies to commit robbery, bomb-making, and sedition, as well as for firearms and explosives violations, and:

Carlos A. Vignali had his sentence for cocaine trafficking commuted, after serving 6 of 15 years in federal prison.

Susan McDougal, who had already completed her sentence, was pardoned for her role in the Whitewater scandal; McDougal had served 18 months on contempt charges for refusing to testify about Clinton's role.

Dan Rostenkowski, a former Democratic Congressman convicted in the Congressional Post Office Scandal.

Roger Clinton, the president's half-brother, on drug charges after having served the entire sentence more than a decade before. Roger Clinton would be charged with drunk driving and disorderly conduct in an unrelated incident within a year of the pardon.

And by all means lets remember this upstanding citizen: Marc Rich, a fugitive, was pardoned of tax evasion, after clemency pleas from Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, among many other international luminaries. Denise Rich, Marc's former wife, was a close friend of the Clintons and had made substantial donations to both Clinton's library and Hillary's Senate campaign.-- One company from which Rich bought crude during this period was a front for extremist Russian and Ukrainian organizations. All were pro-Saddam; one was a staunch supporter of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il. Another company was tied to a major money launderer for Saddam.

To reach these conclusions, BusinessWeek traced crucial connections from a number of official inquiries and documents. Key among these documents: shipping tables from the Middle East Economic Survey (MEES), the preeminent authority on tanker activity in the Middle East. These detail the ports, tankers, destinations, and buyers of Iraqi crude. Other insights came from a 2004 CIA report on Iraq, data from Switzerland's Federal Commercial Registry Office, and the many inquiries launched into Oil-for-Food. The Justice Dept., six congressional committees, a U.N. commission, Morgenthau's office, and several countries, including Switzerland, are all investigating the program. Extensive interviews with dozens of oil traders, government investigators, and energy experts around the globe helped form a clearer picture of how the network operates.

How Conservative Am I?

Took this test over at Blogthings

Your Political Profile:

Overall: 90% Conservative, 10% Liberal Social Issues: 100% Conservative, 0% Liberal Personal Responsibility: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal Fiscal Issues: 100% Conservative, 0% Liberal Ethics: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal Defense and Crime: 100% Conservative, 0% Liberal

How Liberal Or Conservative Are You?

It came out pretty much as I supected it would.

Another Hiatus

Work, work, work ,work....hello boys. (Mel Brooks, Blazing
Saddles).

Life's been fun since the last time I posted. The intensity the workplace isn't getting better and turmoil on the home front has been occupying most of my time. This is the first I've been able to sit at the computer since my last post.

One side is worked out and the other is leaning in the other direction. Stay tuned.

Those of you who still swing by, thank you for your patronage, I'm trying (again) to get back in the swing.

Wild Wildlife

This is one of the coolest nature videos I have ever run across. A Water Buffalo calf gets taken by a pride of lions, who get interrupted by a couple of crocodiles that want in on their prize, only to have a whole herd of Water Buffalo descend on them to take the calf back.

glumbert.com

I found this at Signal 94

What's Up With This Whole MIddle East Thing?

I'm just gonna steal this off the Rott, who got it from LC nerbygirl. (HT...HT)

Try this sight and get a condensed history of what is Israel and why it is.

Terrorism Awareness Program

The "New" Immigrant

I got this off of Charming Just Charming

New Immigrants
From: 'David LaBonte'

My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the OC Register which, of course, was not printed. So, I decided to 'print' it myself by sending it out on the Internet.
Pass it along if you feel so inclined.
Dave LaBonte (signed)

Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register:

Dear Editor:

So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry.

Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home.

They had waved good bye to their birthplace to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture.

Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany , Italy , France and Japan . None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan . They were defending the United States of America as one people. When we liberated France , no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.

And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags.

And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty , it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just yet.
(signed) Rosemary LaBonte


P. S. Pass this on to everyone you know!!!
KEEP THIS LETTER MOVING!!

Readin Pa. Needs More Gun Laws

Not if you ask the Sheriff. The mistake they keep making is asking the person who has to deal with the results of restriction of the 2nd Amendment.
By Kori Walter
Reading Eagle

Reading, PA - Berks County Sheriff Barry J. Jozwiak asked a panel of state lawmakers in Reading on Thursday to shoot down any legislation that would limit handgun purchases, claiming it would not curb crime or gun violence.

Jozwiak’s testimony before the state House Judiciary Committee in City Council chambers put him at odds with Reading Mayor Tom McMahon, Philadelphia lawmakers and others calling for tougher handgun laws in response to a rash of shootings and murders in Pennsylvania cities.

Jozwiak, a Republican, said he opposed a bill that would limit people to buying one handgun per month.

The money quote.

Instead of passing new gun laws, Jozwiak said, police and judges should enforce existing laws.

“Gun control does not reduce crime,” Jozwiak said. “In fact, criminals prefer their victims to be unarmed."

Of course it's not like the bozos sitting behind desks, with their added police patrols by their houses and state trooper escorts would ever listen to the guy that has to clean up after their diktat's everyday.

H/T rightwingprof

Is Paris Burning?

Well, at least her ears, cause I gonna talk about her and of course the MSM is going non-stop about it.

Sentenced to 45 days in Los Angeles County Jail (reduced to a "guaranteed minimum" of 24 for assumed good behavior) Paris is released after what is in the real world 3 days.

Oh yeah, she was "reassigned" to "House Arrest", but hell, if I could be forced to stay in a 4,000 sq. ft. house with maids, cooks and my friends able to come by, I'm going to go get myself arrested.

Why should I care about this? As far as Paris as a person I don't. She broke the law and should have to pay the penalty. exactly like some friends of mine.

One guy, busted righteously, got 2 weeks in L.A. County Mens Jail, before the pretty new Twin Towers. He spent (what they called) 4 days in. One FULL day to process in, 2 days of trying not to get noticed, and 36 hours processing out. They released him at 1:30 AM in the middle of downtown L.A. I know, because I picked him up. after he called me at around hour 30 that he needed a ride.

The other person (female) was sentenced to 12 days in Inyo County Jail (Bakersfeild), an exact duplicate of L.A. County, just smaller. She went in on a Friday and was released on Monday at 6:00 A.M. A short serve, but she cried the whole time she was in, and if they weren't overcrowded, she'd have been there longer. Nobody gave a damn what she felt.

Both these people are good, they screwed up, and they got what they deserved, maybe a little less, but no consideration was given to whether things where a little difficult while they were incarcerated factored in. They were there until the system decided to let them out.


With Paris, it's come down to the jail system doesn't want to look like it is actually punishing someone for ignoring the law and they just can't handle the deprivation, if I ever get busted for DUI, I'm gonna cry in my cell and get "reassigned to Paris' house with an ankle bracelet for the FULL term of my sentence.

Human Shield

I stole this directly from The Dread Pundit Bluto. When I saw it, I just had to pass it on.

An Iraqi child seeks safety behind an American soldier following a terrorist suicide attack.

Thanks to Gateway Pundit.

Congradulations Texas....It's Twins...Again

While inhaling lunch today (busy work day) I was watching Headline News on CNN and got this story, I can't find a link at CNN so this will have to do.

DALLAS (WFAA) -- When it comes to children, one Dallas mother knows about having them in pairs.
The odds are one in 500,000 but she gave birth to her third set of twins at Baylor University Medical Center.

[all emphasis mine]
Pretty long odds, not to mention:

She took no fertility drugs.

Of course I see no reason to do that if you've already had two set of twins, but here's where the story gets real good.

cares for four-year-old Natalie, three-year-old twins Adam and Sebastian and two-year-old twins Rachel and Raquel.

I'll do the math for you...that's a set every year.
Followed by:

The father of the latest set of twins hopes he's ready.

O.K., to me that reads this guy isn't the father of the previous four kids.
Now...the kicker

But with neither the 21-year-old father nor the 20-year-old mother employed -- all the children are supported by welfare -- the young family faces financial and emotional obstacles.

Six kids, 20 years old and unemployed and they face financial and emotional obstacles? Who'd a thunk it. (Obviously not them.)

Oh, and something you'll just have to take my word for, because it isn't in this article, She want to have at least TWELVE kids.

Not mentioned either in the cited article or mentioned on CNN was the immigration status of "young mom Amanda Gonzales", so I'm sure it wouldn't factor into the whole thing.

So once again, Congratulations Texas.

Another Broken Promise

I keep promising to post regularly, and what happens? Every time I think I got life under control, reality jumps up and smacks me a good one.

After 14 months of non-production at work (I work for an oil company, so non-production refers to barrels of oil produced, not necessarily what we're doing), we are finally starting to get things moving again. Of course we're two men short for even a minimum staff, and gee, the equipment that didn't work to well before...still doesn't work to well.

Lots of O.T., but I'm just so fricken tired, I can't even enjoy the extra income before my family spends it.

Of the five employed here, there is myself (who truly knows all and makes no mistakes), the foreman, and two new guys. One who thinks he knows how everything in the universe works (with no experience in the oil field) and will argue every procedure, and one guy who has experience, but seems to have major A.D.D., and the last guy, who broke his foot a month ago falling off a ladder and won't be back for another three weeks (thanks Workman's Comp..."how many pain killers do you want and come back next week").

I'm stressed and I'm strained and for the time being, no more promises of regular posts. I'm going to try, because I really do enjoy this cathartic exercise, but at this moment, it's just one to many things.

I see a light at the end of the tunnel....Ohh crap, it's a train.

I Normally Don't Do Endorsements

Long ago, when I first started reading blogs, I was going down the "Imperial Council" list at The Rott to see who the Emperor relied on for hearing the truth. Some of the links had been idle for some time, but then I ran into "Imperial Minister of Truth: Bill Whittle."

It is a series of essays on the American condition that were so dead on and written so well I was shamed to be even attempting to write my opinions on the same internet.

Shortly after I found "Eject! Eject! Eject!", Bill went on hiatus and deprived me of his concise view of what is right and wrong with our country.

Well he's back and writing as good as ever. He has a Two parter called "Sanctuary" (this is Part I of II), and another called "Tribes". Go and read them, they are worth your time.

The Endorsement:
If you like these I would suggest you buy his book "Silent America: The Second Edition" which has his past essays plus these latest essays.

Music - Live

A blog I drop by regularly listed all the concerts he had gone to and that got me trying to remember who I've seen back in the days when I could tolerate the hassle of going.

First Concert: Hollywood Bowl - 1967
John Mayall, Lee Michaels, Iron Butterfly
All 3 for $5.50...first time I smelled marijuana (wanted to know who was burning watermelons?) An aside: I just saw Iron Butterfly at a local "Street Fair" a couple of years ago....Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida, baby.

The Rest:
Led Zepplin twice

Lee Michaels again

Emerson, Lake and Palmer twice, once with god-awful Quad sound that was useless unless you were dead center in the arena. My girlfriend at the time was 5 feet tall and unless she was on my shoulders, couldn't see...a long concert.

David Bowie four times

Deep Purple (with Ian Gillian lead singer)


The ASU/Phoenix years:

Pink Floyd - "Animals/Wish You Were Here"

Blue Oyster Cult outside of 5 screaming lead guitars at the end, for some reason I don't remember much. (Mheh)

Dave Mason - small theater in the round with a rotating stage.

Pat Benatar - I just love her voice.

Al Stewart - "Year of the Cat", again at that small theater in the round.

Kiss - one of my frat bothers wanted to go, it was within walking distance on campus and why not. Turned out to be fun.

Frank Zappa - twice. Once in L.A.(with the Mothers of Invention) and once at ASU.

Queen - just one hell of a show. Freddie Mercury was a showman.

Since I've become a cranky old fart that hates crowds:

David Bowie - this concert is counted above, but he said it was the last time he was going to focus on all his old classics. It was at Dodger Stadium and I got tickets on the field about 20 rows back- center stage. The pisser was that a friend of mine, who could take or leave Bowie, got tickets for free 12 rows closer.

Bruce Springsteen - 3 times. My wife is a BIG Springsteen fan. Once at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum - Free tickets from a guy I think was trying to hit on my wife (sucker), we were so far from the stage we needed binoculars to see the "big screens", and twice in one month, once at the Pond in Anaheim, then 2 weeks later at Staples Center (my first and only time in a limo, paid for as a bonus by my wifes boss. If you've got a couple hundred extra to blow, that's the way to go).

I'm sure I've forgotten a couple either because I went with someone who wanted to go at the last minute and I was free, or something else could have fogged my memory. The ones I wish I had gone to and missed the chance:

The Who
Stones - No I won't go now
Beatles - There never really was the opportunity, I just missed.
Jimi Hendrix - no...really?

Biggest Regret:
The Doors: In 1968, I was in Jr. High and they played at my (soon-to-be) High School. I heard a really great band was going to play there, but fear of "the big kids" made me skip it.

May Day - An Actual Follow Up

I've often promised to do a follow up on a post and got sidetracked to where it wasn't pertinent anymore and dropped it. Not this time.

Picking up my paperwork for the drug test at the other site worked well, they said there were people everywhere in the morning. The staging area was bout two blocks north of my work site. I'm sure I passed the test as I made sure the have used only my finest drug, so they should be impressed with the high quality of my sample.

After depositing my sample with the clinic and starting into work, I heard on the radio that the parade was just starting, so by the time I got to work, most of the marchers had moved north. (I wonder why that direction was picked? Maybe it's a genetic thing and that's just the direction they have to move.)

What I did see was lots of street vendors selling American flags and those God-awful 3 foot plastic horns that they sell to the guy behind you at at sports arenas. All-in-all I wasn't affected by it to much, but one of the guys I work with went into the Jewelry District which was right in the middle of the whole thing to buy something for his new girlfriend, and all the stores had decided to close for the day. He says he may take that as a sign that maybe he should slow down with her a bit.

The bad side of this demonstration seems to have come at the after party get together. A couple thousand gathered at MacArthur Park and after a couple cervesas, decided to toss the empties at the cops. The news this morning said they hit a motorcycle officer in the head while he was riding by. This got the cops a tad PO'd and they decided the party had gone long enough. The order to disperse was given and they started herding the crowd towards the exits. The crowd didn't move and the police used rubber bullets and pushing to get them to comply. The reason for the crowd not complying, is being put forth, that the order was not given in a language they could understand. Number one, I would be willing to bet that the cops did give the order in both English and Spanish
, and what difference would it make if they didn't?

Today I read that the trouble makers weren't part of the community, that they were anarchists. Well hell, if you're going to associate yourself with these asshats, you are going to be rolled up with them when they do their thing. Look at who sponsored your little parade.

May Day

Or as I refer to it "National Socialism Day".

I just got a phone call from work a few hours ago to tell me I needed to come in early (Yeah OT) so I can can drive to the edge of the world to take a drug test. In itself no biggy, if they can't get readings from over 15 years ago, I'm OK, but shortly after I got off the phone with my Foreman, I caught the news and they were talking about the illegal immigrant protest for tomorrow in downtown L.A.

For the last two weeks there has been one of those fold-up road barricades sitting in the center divider of the street I work on warning about the street being closed. I was going to work at night and couldn't read all of it until a few days ago when there was nobody behind me and I could go slow and point my headlights at it. Yep, they were closing the street so the illegals could take a day off of work and protest that they had jobs.

Now, with this drug test, I would get the pleasure of driving through this crap, not once, but twice. I immediately called work to get directions and said I'd just go straight from home...nope gotta pick up the form signed by the Foreman.

We finally worked it out that I can pick up the form at our other site which is hopefully far enough away to be out of the clutter zone.

A couple of months ago there was a mini illegal rally and I watched a guy across the street selling American flags right and left and I'll admit, except for one asshole driving up and down the street in his '64 Cheby lowrider laying on his horn (obnoxious bastard) and waving a Mexi flag, I didn't see many, but that one was small and planned at the last minute. I'm waiting to see what tomorrow's looks like.

My hopes aren't high. Between the flashes of red realizing my commute was going to be a real bitch, some jerk off activist was explaining that the reason all these people were here was due to a conspiracy between "Big Corporations" the U.S., and the gov'ts of their home countries. The answer to this was for the U.S. gov't (not their home gov't) to create more jobs so the "Big Corporations" couldn't exploit the people.

May Day from Wikipedia:

The date consequently became established as an anarchist and socialist holiday during the 20th century, and in these circles it is often known as International Workers' Day or Labour Day. In this form, May Day has become an international celebration of the social and economic achievements of the working class and labor movement. [emp. - mine]

Building Trust

I was just listening to "Geraldo At Large" on Fox where they were discussing "sniching". The message was that the cops have to do more to create trust with the community, but how are the cops going to do anything when the people they need to talk to about a crime are just going to lie to them, or not give any pertinent information.

If you want the gangbangers out of your neighborhood, you have to tell the cops who the bad guys are.

This is just like having Iraq in our backyard. Somebody has to stand up and point at the guy that is dragging the rest of the area down, and someone has to stand up behind them and on and on.

The police want to do their job, but if they don't trust the info fed to them or they think you're lying to protect your cousin, nothing gets done.

Stand up and make your kids life better than yours.

If It Wasn't So Sad....

A couple of days ago the Emperor posted a bit "Burqa, Burqa Cucumber Jihad" from an article on Al-Queda's in Iraq's take on islamic law.

...al-Qaida has warned street vendors not to place tomatoes beside cucumbers because the vegetables are different genders, Col. David Sutherland said.

We had a good chuckle over the idiocy of this, and rightly so. These bozos seem to fear anything that could have a sexual connotation that I think it can be classified as psychotic. Then last night I ran into this news out of Iran:
Anger at Iran dress restrictions
By Frances Harrison
BBC News, Tehran

....Police say they stopped more than 1,300 women for dressing immodestly on the first day of the campaign in Tehran.

More than 100 women were arrested on Saturday; half of them had to sign statements promising to improve their clothing, the other half are being referred to court.

That really isn't unusual, for these goat molesters, they do this every year when it starts to get warm out. The part that points out the derangement involved with this whole thing was:

One foreign journalist was stopped and the police complained the photograph in her press card was indecent, even though it was taken by the Ministry of Islamic Guidance.

I'm just waiting for sharia law to go into effect in Fwance, Britain, Canada or Minnesota, whichever comes first, to watch the reactions of the women when they start having to run the gauntlets of morals police swinging at them with canes and writing tickets because their overcoat is to tight and you can kind of see where their waist might be.

Here you go ladies, the new spring fashion.

What's Right With Country

Country Music isn't my favorite, but there are quit a few songs that I enjoy. While I was cruising around last night, I came across this little speech that Jeff Foxworthy gave at the opening of the County Music Awards. It's a good summation of what I do like about the music. You'll have to go to Hot Air to see the video.



His speech reminded me of song I hadn't listened to in a while, so I headed over to YouTube and found it. It still brings tears to my eyes when I hear it.

Another Long Hiatus

Damn life just seems to keep getting in the way of important things like posting what's happening in my extremely exciting life and pontificating on the events in the world.

Work's been very busy and the projection of running the site at something close to it's capacity is a reality. However, it has required a bit of work to get the final pieces set up and we've been operating with minimum crew -1. One of my co-workers had the gall to fall and break his ankle, so we've had to work a lot of 12 hour days to cover his shift.

I had today off and go on graveyard shift tomorrow, so things should slow down and let me catch my breath. Check back and we'll see.

And thanks to those that wrote your condolences for my Dad. My brother wrote me a letter on his feelings, and if I get his permission, I will post it.

Dad

I've known it was going to happen sooner rather than later, but I still haven't been able to take in the news yet.

Just before 8:00 AM this morning my Father passed on. He was 89 years old. Two days ago he had a massive heart attack that put him back in the hospital, so I knew it was likely his time was real short. He had had like 5 minor attacks over the last few years, but they were so mild that they were only diagnosed through treating some other problem.

Dad's parents came over from England just before the turn of the century (1900) and settled in Northern California. His Dad was a carpenter who built a large part of the town of Fortuna California and had the misfortune to step on a nail and get tetanus when my Dad was five. The vaccine was newly discovered, but had to be brought up from San Francisco and it just took to long.

He grew up as the baby of the family through the Depression with a single mother, two brothers and three sisters.

He and one of his brothers ran a radio repair shop for a while, then he went to college. He never finished due to WWII, enlisting in the Army Air Corp as a radioman and served in the Pacific.

After the war, he sent to work in the aero-space industry, working for McDonnell Douglas, JPL, Space General/Aerojet General, and Hughes. His work was always "classified", so I never knew what he specifically did. I knew he had worked on a early seeker torpedo, so I just assumed he was involved with radar and guidance.

Every year he would "disappear" for two weeks to do testing up at Vandenburg. We didn't "know" he where he was and had to call his office to leave a message to have him call us back if we needed him. Course when he brought back pictures of the fields of wild flowers blooming we could guess where he a gone.

My Dad's finger prints are on the moon. Some component that went into the lander was worked on by his team, and just before it absolutely had to be shipped they found out something hadn't been plugged in properly, so they told him to go into the clean room and open it up and re-hook it, no gloves, no bunny suit, just get it done. I guess it worked OK.

He was always there for us, providing what we needed, and giving us more than we probably deserved. The only time you couldn't find him was Sundays. My Mom, brother and I are night people and never got up before 10-11 AM, Dad was long gone. He would take MY dog, Tori, get in his '59 VW bug and hit the road. It was just his time for himself.

I'll miss him so much. I just thank God I was able to see him two months ago and tell him I loved him.