Looking foward to a UNited world?

President Barack Obama (I always feel like washing my hands after writing that!) traveled to India on a 10-day 'working vacation', taking in their national 'Festival of Lights' celebration, seeing the sights, and selling out a little more of the US before heading to Mayalsia, where he spent his formative years (6-10) studying the Koran. While there, he reminded the Malaysians that his efforts to improve relations with the Muslim world remain an "incomplete project."  May I humbly offer this suggestion, Mr. President? Get Muslims to quit trying to kill us and force their beliefs on the US and the entire world, and maybe our relations might improve dramatically.

What would we do without the United Nation? OK, stop laughing. No, seriously. I mean it. The ultimate Big Brother organizational wannabe has decided that it needs even more of our money (because most other nations know better than to give more than tokens from their own economies) to improve peoples' health around the world. I mean, the world is sick, and the big heads at the UN really need more of your money to throw at their problems. So you should just ignore that little UN report about how much healthier the world is now than it has ever been.

But what about the environment? The UN is looking for $100 billion annually and dreams of reams of regulations to "combat climate change" (Has anyone else noticed they no longer use "global warming" as an exuse since that term has been so thoroughly debunked?  Language is perhaps the slipperiest weapon ever). So now, we want to declare war on Nature itself?  And who knew that George Soros - the Puppet Master himself - was on that UN panel? Wow, George, you really get around!

The United Nations has long been popularly portrayed as a medium for peace (I cannot recall them ever touting the organization as being in favor of national prosperity, although several of their top dogs have gotten very rich there). Unfortunately, it's record has been a dismal failure in almost everything it puts its hands on. Since its inception, what have been its military successes?  Korea? That war has never been declared over; there is merely an uneasy 'cease-fire' which is often violated by the North. Vietnam? The UN did more to obstruct than to cooperate with the US as we tried to forestall a North Vietnamese invasion of the South and work to block the spread of communism throughout Southeast Asia. The 1991 Gulf War?  It failed to put any real pressure on Saddam Hussein; and it was only after that failure of diplomacy that the US and Britain (and a smattering of others) went in to save Kuwait from a horrific invasion and occupation (whether it was worth the effort is another debate). And because that conflict left Saddam in place (because of the limit of the UN mandate), we had to fight that war all over again - this time to the finish.

There were a couple of places where we did see the blue helmets, though. There was the Bosnian War in which we interrupted a civil war between a nominally-Christian/secular population that was fighting against encroaching Islamic nationalism. The result was a fractured country, and we still have troops there maintaining the 'peace'. Then there was Somalia. Yeah; that went well. Not.

The fact is that while the United Nations may have been portrayed as a means to bring about the nebulous concept of world peace, it has always been little more than an extension of the global communist elite for the furtherance of their goals, with a little humanitarian window-dressing thrown in for the sake of bilking billions of taxpayer dollars from the working segment of nations stupid enough to fall for them (like the US).  Despite the dreamy rhetoric of "the death of communism" when the Berlin Wall fell, it never really went away; it just went underground. It did what it always has done - it hides in the background until an opportune time.

The truth is, communism never went away, it only went underground; and now, with Obama in office and despite (or because of) the recent socialist losses in Congress, it is reemerging with a vengeance. We no longer seriously prosecute sedition or treason, in part because the Left (occassionally with the Right's assistance) have gradually redefined and reduced what it means to be an American.

Gimme Shelter?  Speaking of communism, why are the Russians constructing nearly 5,000 new fallout shelters in Moscow? Do they know something we don't? In actuality, the world has been made less safe precisely because of the consistent weakening of US strategic deterrence over the past decade.  The fact that we now have a president perceived by many foreign governments to be intellectually weak in the area of international politics, shall we say, less than assertive in his defense of the United States, and having a narcissistic ego that is subject to manipulation. These and other factors add up to a period of increased vulnerability of the US, if not to direct attack, then certainly to blackmail or other form of coercion.

The good guys.  We just celebrated another Veteran's Day.  It's the annual opportunity to remember all the millions of Americans (and a few foreigners who appreciate this nation more than a few of our own people) who have, and continue to, stand squarely between our homes and families, and those who seek to conquer or destroy us. Even those fellow Americans who insult the military, ignore or dishonor the flag, impugn our heritage and insult our values can do so largely because of our military. It has protected us since the Revolution, and it is because of the young men and women who put on the uniform that we still have the liberty to be free, to be productive, to follow our dreams, or to be ignorant, self-impressed fools.

Since our inception as an independent nation, we have always had serious enemies and small-minded enviers whom, if they can't beg, borrow or steal all we have to offer, would just as soon ruin us altogether so that no one else could benefit.  Hmmm...again, that sounds like a lot of our own people).  Our military services have always stepped up to the tasks at hand, whether providing aid for disaster relief here and abroad, or putting their own lives and limbs at risk to fight intractable foes.  Isolated embarrassments are the bane of every nation's forces, and we've had our share, but on the whole, our military has conducted itself above and beyond what most other forces can legitimately boast of.  for example, contrary to rabble-rousers and outright liars, America typically doesn't go in for conquest, it fights for principle and for our national survival.  And while we are often ( and I believe, accurately) accused of being somewhat top-heavy in military brass, there is no doubt that we have produced some of the most notable and exceptional military minds in modern history. One of our biggest concerns now is to avoid an irresponsible government from abusing our assets - especially our troops - any more than they already have.

It is my humble opinion that many of the most patriotic Americans are that way at least partly because of their (or their family members') military service. While time in service is often a combination of long periods of boredom punctuated by brief periods of anticipation or sheer terror, it is also a crucible that aids many on the road to maturity and personal responsibility.

Sure, there are a lot of less-than-fun moments when you're in the military. But there are also many less-than obvious (mostly to those without military experience) benefits to US military life that only serves to enhance one's perceptions, love of country, respect for others, and readiness to step up to right a wrong. For one thing (and I say this only half-jokingly) it teaches you how to live for extended periods in close proximity to other people whom you might not ordinarily have gotten along with. It teaches you to settle the little disagreements and learn to get along for your mutual benefit. It teaches you to watch your buddy's back, and feel confident that he's watching yours. It pushes you past your self-imposed limits and shows you that you can accomplish more than you thought, be more self-sufficient and responsible than you thought you could be. It teaches you to respect others, even those less able than you, and to extend a helping hand. It teaches you how to subordinate your own selfish desires to the greater effort. It also teaches you that you are part of one of the greatest military traditions and forces of all time. It helps you to define, appreciate, and strive to live with honor. And of course, you get to occasionally shoot guns, throw grenades, blow stuff up, handle expensive, high-tech gear and go places you never expected (or wanted) to go.

If I couldn't laugh, I'd cry

FLASH > breaking news: If you've been one of those folks who have belittled the "birthers" who claim Obama isn't a natural-born citizen of the United States, and therefore ineligible for the office of President, a clip has been discovered that has him telling a group of students (apparently in a Muslim country) -with his own lips - that he was born in Kenya.  Does it really matter? Probably not, because no one in the government is going to bring the charge against him, and the current rubber-stamp Congress isn't going to pursue impeachment, because they're all complicit with him. Hopefully, actual Americans who believe in our country will someday write the true history of this time, as a warning to the future.

"To the moon"...or not.  It has become apparent to anyone with any degree of discernment and rationality that while the Obama malAdministration has chosen to ben over backwards for all things Muslim, there is seemingly no room in it for committed Christians (although a conscientious Christian would have a difficult time serving such an ungodly master). Another hallmark is Obama's penchant for choosing the most spectacularly unqualified individuals for important posts well outside their area of "expertise". A signet of both of of these quirks is the appointment of NASA malAdministrator Charles Bolden, who recently went on record in Cairo with al Jazeera to speak about improving NASA's image in the Muslim world.

OK, stop laughing; it's true. According to Bolden, the president's desire was to "reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science ... and math and engineering."  Now, I understand that some mathematics were developed in Muslim countries, but I think their last substantive contribution was the numerals we use. And virtually all the science they know and use against us comes courtesy of Western science and technology (albeit with an occasional detour through Russia - they did invent the AK47).

So this president's directive for our future progress is to kill all space program initiatives, including the follow-on to the Space Shuttle (which will make us entirely dependent on the Russians), the return-to-the-moon program and the Mars program. Yes, this malAdministration's role in keeping the US at the forefront of technology will now rest on  the premise that America "not going to travel beyond low-Earth orbit on its own and that no country is going to make it to Mars without international help.

Seriously, if America survives this presidential nightmare, we have to look at ways to prevent our government from being undermined by overt fools and usurped by covert enemies. And we must find a way to restore a corps of journalists that only owes allegiance to integrity rather than political party.

Did you know?  Life has gone on at a fairly lackadaisical pace across the Earth for thousands of years. Progress was slow.  Example; for as long as people have been living on the planet, we've only been able to see more than a few yards at night until about a hundred and thirty years or so ago.  Then came gaslight (and reflectors) and then electric light, and mankind has been on a roller-coaster ride of progress ever since. But in less than a decade, the speed of that ride has increased exponentially. Sometimes you just have to see things in the right perspective to get a whole new vision of reality.

But it isn't only in science that we've been caught up in a relative whirlwind.  Let's take political reality, for example.  For most of history the only folks who really knew the taste of freedom were those at the top of the social order (except for brief exercises in ancient Athens, the early Roman Republic, and ancient Israel.  For most of the past two hundred thirty-odd years we've taken our rights for granted.

Take freedom of the press. Newspapers have been the public record-keepers in America; while there has always been political bias they generally made great effort to document what happens in the society, and if they made a mistake, the more responsible of them (the modern New York Times, Washington Post, et al not withstanding) would publish a correction or a retraction. However, we now live in an age where when it comes to certain news, courts are ordering newspapers to purge their stories.  While judges may make the excuse that they are "protecting the innocent", there is great danger that important events and trends are or will be made to 'disappear'.  And that is how history is changed.

Of course, when it's your own name that gets dragged unfairly and publicly through the mud it's only natural to want to make the stories "disappear". However, wouldn't it be better to settle for (and insist upon) the aforementioned correction of the public record, rather than risk the possibility that American news organizations would go the way of the former (and future?) Soviet Union's newspapers/propaganda organs, which were reknowned by the Western intelligence agencies for changing history by purging stories and even doctoring photos to remove politically-incorrect persons and events from the public's knowledge? Unfortunatetly, this sort of censorship is not a lost art, as exemplified by the downplay and virtual absence of photos and positive press in the media (except for Fox News) of more than a million Tea Party members peacefully marching at the 9/12 rally in Washington DC last year, and the unholy counterpart of also hiding the faults of a corrupt government.

Animal Farm.  My previous rant touched on the resurgence of racism in America, albeit now coming mostly from the Black community. Lo and behold, more evidence has arisen in the personage of one King Samir Shabazz, a 'minister' in the New Black Panther Party, proudly caught on video loudly and publically advocating the killing of white people, including babies. It turns out that Mr. Shabazz is also one of the men caught intimidating voters outside a polling station during the last election.  As could be expected, the head of the Panthers did the usual two-step, defending the DoJs dismissal of the charges.

Speaking of which; it has been revealed (in legalese: "alleged") that the US Department of Justice now has a de facto policy under Eric Holder to not prosecute Blacks involved in hate-crimes against whites. This, naturally, negates the very concept of justice, and was such an affront to the Department that one experienced DoJ Attorney quit in disgust.

Human behavior is as depraved as it ever was, absent the self-restraining influence of Christianity and some other faiths. Time and again, experience proves this fact that - no matter the nobility of our intentions - we always eventually devolve in our treatment of one another. As the line from George Orwell's classic Animal Farm so succinctly puts it, "All animals are equal; but some animals are more equal than others."

"Shrink-wrapped" freedom of speech?

Happy Memorial Day! 
Enjoying your freedom (or what's left of it)?  Thank him. And thank Him for such men of valor.
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Have you ever looked around you and thought to yourself; "Did I just enter a parallel universe? Because nothing seems the same as it did yesterday."  Some of the most ominous of those sorts of feelings come from the glaring similarities of our time to past dark periods of history. It's literally as though we haven't learned a thing from thousands of years and millions of deaths.

Take, for example, the 4th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR). Apparently the learned authors of this weighty tome have suddenly come to the conclusion - based on science, of course - that people with "negativistic, defiant, disobedient and hostile behavior toward authority figures" are somehow deranged. Does this mean that at some future point the government will arrest and detain "rebellious" citizens, perhaps indefinitely? It's not as though similar things haven't happened before. In fact, most of our current malAdministration can trace their own lives back to a conscientious rebellion against authority. Of course, it seems like now the rules must be changed since they honed their bona fides and became the authorities.

In Nazi Germany, psychiatrists were instrumental in setting up a system that sent hundreds of thousands of people to their deaths in concentration camps, or by lethal injection, or gassing, or starvation. In the former Soviet Union even as late as the 1980s, according to the scholarly paper Political Abuse of Psychiatry in the Soviet Union and in China, "it was not uncommon to hospitalize persons who were not mentally ill and whose only transgression had been the expression of political or religious dissent. Most of the patients interviewed by the delegation had been charged with political crimes such as 'anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda' or 'defaming the Soviet state.' Their offenses involved behavior such as writing and distributing anti-Soviet literature, political organizing, defending the rights of disabled groups, and furthering religious ideas."

Now, how does all that stack up against the vitriolic hatred levelled against the Tea Parties and other conservative groups? Time will tell, but when scheming madmen are in charge of every part of government, and especially when they see their power threatened by the people, the potential for monstrous abuse cannot be ignored or underestimated.  It's not much of a stretch to imagine our government threatening to lock "anti-government" types up indefinitely in mental institutions to silence dissent.  Such tactics work well in conjunction with rules to control freedom of the press and the internet, to stifle dissent.

Patience, my ass!  Our Commander-in-Chief -- you know, the one that was given the Nobel Peace Prize (for doing nothing) -- is reportedly sending at least 2 US Navy carrier groups to the region around Iran.  He's also ratcheting up our presence in South Korea in the wake of revelations that a sub from North Korea - that model of a socialist paradise - torpedoed a South Korean Navy vessel.  Not that I disagree with defending South Korea, since they have been a trustworthy ally for many years; but Obama has been working hard to give the world the impression that America (or at least, our leadership) is a 'paper tiger', and that can't bode well for us among friends and enemies alike.

I don't know how this will eventually pan out, but after bowing and scraping before tyrants around the world, putting us officially into the poorhouse, demoralizing our troops, emboldening our enemies, setting the stage for a dictatorical takeover and threatening to destroy the cultural fabric and economic engine of America, President Obama may now be preparing to mimic the ultimate Progressive model: he's becoming FDR and is now preparing for war (never mind the one we're slowly losing already), to fight our way out of a depression and to transfer the people's discontent to a foe other than our own government. A despicable, but time-proven tactic.  This may be the summer of discontent. Better plant your 'victory garden' now.

Pulling a fast one.  In a move to pre-empt a Republican plan to push several amendments for strengthening border security, President Obama suddenly decided to send 1,200 troops to our southern border. The number of troops falls far short of the 6,000 the Republicans are demanding, and they would only be used in support roles, not direct enforcement of the law.  It's more show than substance, and Republicans plan to go forward with their amendments. 

While we're on the topic of our military; Obama plans to skip the traditional wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery, instead opting for a long weekend in Chicago.  VP Joe Biden will deal with that boring cermony in his stead. Hey, really; what's one more dismissal by the Commander-in-Chief of those who put it all (and many who have given all) on the line to keep the rest of us safe?  Seriously, it just proves once again that rank or political position is no indicator of honor or integrity.

Say it ain't so, Joe!  Speaking of the VP, Joe "the Gaffer" Biden was recently in Brussels, Belgium, where he once again showed his (lack of ) fitness for the office by telling the audience that Brussels is the "home of freedom".  See; this is what happens when you forget to tell people who take an oath to "protect and defend" that it doesn't mean "defect and pretend."  What's more egregious about this is that it wasn't an off-the-cuff remark; it was part of a prepared speech. But we certainly can't go around questioning liberal/Progressive/Democrat/socialists' patriotism, can we? I mean, they keep telling us we can't.

Our hidden history.  Whether or not you are a fan of Glenn Beck, any reasonable observation of his work will show clearly that he is: (a) passionate about what he believes, (b) in search of honor and truth, (c) crazy enough to believe that others may feel the same way he does.  Despite being put in the "death-knell" timeslot of 5-6 pm on Fox News Channel, Beck's program has become among the two or three top-rated cable news shows on any network,and he absolutely obliterates the other so-called news networks in any time slot. Even so, his own highest ratings are coming from an unexpected source.

Recently he began a series called "Founder's Fridays."  They have turned out to be consistently getting two to three times his normal high ratings. If nothing else, it proves that Americans are starved for the truth about our nation and our history.

On each episode he highlights the history that has been deliberately taken out of our schools, leaving generations with no clue of the amazing and exceptional form of government the Founding Fathers and others sacrificed so much to give us.  This week was perhaps the most powerful episode yet; it showed the incredible contributions of American blacks - many but not all of them former slaves - and the some of the white Americans who worked so hard to insure that everyone would have equal opportunity and not be made to feel inferior or victimized.  You'll also learn how our history was deliberately erased and rewritten with a totally foreign (to the truth) narrative. Fox News is also providing an extra after-the-show segment that adds a Q & A segment from the live audience that blows many of them away.  Do yourself a favor and watch these programs. And if you're too wrapped up in hatred one way or the other, you may want to rethink where that comes from.

An offer he could refuse.  Kudos to Democrat Rep. Joe Stesak, who has publicly said "No!" to an Obama offer of a cabinet-level job if he would gracefully bow out of the PA election which eventually cost Republican-turned-Demoncrat Arlen Specter his seat. The offer was presented by none other than Bill Clinton, at the end of a tangled highway that ran through Obama's chief of staff Rahm Emanuel. Stesak's disclosure has caused a great rush of emergency PR bandaging in an effort to stave off serious political and legal repercussions.  Robert Gibbs, frontman for "the most transparent administration in history" fended off 13 consecutive questions from ABC's Jake Tapper during a news conference - which is more appropriately termed a news briefing.

Decade of decadence, dead?

Happy New Year!  I hope.

As we leave A.D. 2009 behind, we can only pray and work toward making the new one better than the last. We can begin by asking the "Lamestream Media" to stop stonewalling on important stories.  We can wish that this will be the year people come to their senses: that they stop with the insanely ugly (and permanent) tattoos, that they pull up their pants and stop dressing like clowns, that they quit preying upon children and killing or cheating on their wives (although, I guess if they can't figure it out morally, it would be preferable to cheat rather than kill), and that we would end our utterly misplaced trust in political parties.

I'd also like the new decade to be the one where children would once again actually be educated in schools, and that they would be taught that this is the worst country in the world -- except for all the rest; that our schools and media would stop their all-out assault on all the things that made America a nation people from around the world flocked to (legally); that we would be retaught that freedom is a gift and responsibility from God, and privileges are nothing more than a loan from government, and they get repaid by legalized extortion. It would also be immensely beneficial to return to teaching that God is our heavenly Father and best friend, not the enemy.

While we're at it, let's also hope that our president's actual IQ finally catches up to the popular (but diminishing) perception of him as some sort of political genius. I also live in the forlorn hope that we can finally rid ourselves of the political correctness that has crippled us for way too many years now, and that our government would stop lying to us. 

Even in Obama's belated response to the attempted suicide crotch-bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on Christmas day, the president cloaked himself in the timid PC phraseology we have become so encumbered with, such as "alleged bomber," "suspect," and an "isolated extremist."   Is someone still "alleged" or merely "suspected" when another passenger on a crowded airliner has to use his bare hands to put out a fire in Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab's pants and yank explosive-laden underwear off the Muslim passenger with the one-way ticket?  (Does anyone else realize how awkward that statement is to write?) Is he still an "isloated extremist" even though he was trained in Yemen and was claimed by al Qaeda as one of their own?  And by the way, will the blame-Bush game ever end, and will this president finally accept some responsibility (although he's never hesitant to accept personal responsibility for those things he perceives as politically advantageous)?

Really, it is my sincere wish that the American people would wake from their intellectual slumber and see the world as it really is, rather than as they'd prefer to see it.  Some folks see the world as something they have no control over, while others see it as a sweet plum, ready and waiting for them to pick it. I see it as a series of opportunities and responsibilities, laced intermittently with dangers and rewards; all watched over and guided by a supreme Creator who takes a more-than-casual interest in how we handle those events.

Another problem is America's propensity for being perceived as the world's "nice guy."  Of course, the United States truly is the world's "nice guy." Can you count how many other countries step up when disaster strikes another country or region, even if it's one that is innately hostile to us? Or how many other navies retask nuclear aircraft carriers (and their attendant support ships) to offer assistance when disaster strikes a foreign country?  Just another aspect of that troublesome Christian ethic; I guess we'll just have to grow out of it, eh?

Emergency aid aside, though, our generosity and our "gentle side" is also a potentially suicidal way to run foreign policy, and it becomes especially dangerous when it becomes the overriding concern in the conduct of a war.  Because of the artificial, ineffective and just plain foolish constraints placed on our security forces by a misguided idea that we are the only (ir)responsible party in the "global community," a young Nigerian man was pursuaded to become a walking bomb, and was able to board a crowded plane for the United States with an explosive in his underwear. If not for the valiant effort of a another passenger in extinguishing and restraining the man, many people could have been injured or killed. It was another case whereby common sense and the common man surpassed the government in protecting the people.

Perhaps President Obama should stop being so ineffective and sympathetic to Muslim "isolated extremists" and learn a thing or two about dealing with terrorists from Vladimir Putin.  After all, Obama seems to feel quite comfortable sitting at the table - or at the feet - of tyrants around the world.

Drunk with power?  Here's something I don't recall making the evening news.  Montana's Democrat Senator Max Baucus, obviously drunk, gave a meandering floor speech in which he raled against the Republicans on healthcare reform on December 23.  I'm used to the Dems avoiding answering serious questions with serious answers (usually choosing to change the subject), deflecting blame to the Republicrats ("I inherited this problem") or to major sectors of the American people ("those right-wing, conservative hate-mongers").  But this is the first time I've seen a Demoncrat so brazenly out-of-control and inebriated in the formerly-hallowed halls of Congress.  But the worst part was that, even when another senator vainly tried to cut in and give Baucus a more or less graceful exit (which he steadfastly refused to do), I didn't hear Senator Al Franken cut him off. Go figure.

Enough for now. A new year lies ahead. May we use it more wisely than we have been doing; and may our troops come home soon, safely and with honor.  God bless you all, and may God forgive our sins and save our nation.

Strategy for failure

On Tuesday, speaking from West Point, the "Silver-tongued Devil" himself, Barack Obama, once again showed his talent for talking out of both sides of his mouth. He opened his speech by reiterating that our reason for the war was "19 men [who] hijacked four airplanes and used them to murder nearly 3,000 people." He never referred to them as terrorists; merely as "extremists who have distorted and defiled Islam, one of the worlds great religions." He equivocates for a few 'misguided Muslims' for mass murder, yet for nearly a year in his travels around the world he has been bowing and scraping before foreign world leaders, apologizing to everyone except the American people, and implicitly blaming the US for all the world's problems.

But the bloom is coming off the rose. All things considered, the world is not greatly impressed with him as either a president or a commander-in-chief. If anything, Obama has become a behind-the-scenes laughing-stock, at least to other world leaders.

As I watched the speech, I was more intent on the faces of the cadets. These are the young men and women who will be subject to the orders of the president. They and the soldiers in their charge will be the ones who suffer and die when grand strategies fail. I saw real concern as Obama told a worldwide audience what amounted to our plans for not fighting to win over the terrorist elements.

In the larger picture, the president pleased no one but the non-thinkers. Even megalomaniacial leftists like Chris Matthews, who called West Point "the enemy camp," criticized Obama. "The president said tonight that we're fighting in Afghanistan because al Qaeda is in Pakistan," he said. "Is that what this is all about? Is that why we're fighting and some are dying in Afghanistan?"

General McChrystal asked for 80,000 troops, but said he would make due with 40,00. What he got from the president was a commitment for only 30,000 troops; not enough to win against a guerilla force in a rugged country the size of Afghanistan; but just about enough to fight a war of attrition with an implacable foe that is willing to sacrifice innocent lives - or their own (except their leaders) - for nothing. On the other hand, our overly-sensitive rules of engagement put our troops at increased risk, giving the enemy an advantage over us.

As if to add injury to insult, Obama also told our enemies how long they need to stay low before we pull out - which is coincidentally around the same time as the next primary election (and is also when most of the remaining stimulus funds is expected to be handed out - yet another incredible coincidence, eh?). He even gave them our proposed operating budget for the war, which indicates the measure of our resolve and the limits of our will to (not) win.

Does anyone remember a little place called Vietnam? We have met the enemy, and he is our leader.

Global hype. Notwithstanding Al Gore's legacy of lies and his totally undeserved Oscar for Best Propaganda Piece and Nobel Prize for Global BS, and after years of embarrassments such as global warming conferences being held during blizzards and a population explosion among polar bears, the truth about this worldwide scam is finally leaking like an open porthole in the Titanic. The discovery that raw climate data was intentionally thrown away, and a number of e-mails in which global warming advocates write about concealing unfavorable evidence are exposing the bogus pseudo-science that is being pedalled as political necessity. Addtionally Gore himself has faced a rising tide of discontent during his most recent book tour, as critics brave his bodyguards to get answers to simple questions.

The scale of the swindle is mind-boggling when you consider it is being used as the framework to restructure the entire Western world and to transfer the bulk of what wealth we have left to those with an even greater propensity to squander it than our own congress. The swindlers will reap in huge profits, and America will continue its descent to third-world status.

Actually, the Earth has been in a cooling trend for nearly a decade. Nevertheless, an estimated 16,500 UN delegates, activists and reporters is set to descend upon Copenhagen this month for the UN Climate Conference 2009, leaving a cloud of CO2 emissions in their hypocritical wake. The primary intent of the summit is to formulate what amounts to a global tax on American productivity and life in general (because it would hike the cost of everything). God help us if Obama signs anything other than another expensive restaurant bill.

Fed up. You can tell it's bad when avowed socialist Bernie Sanders (I-VT) agrees with a number of Republicans in trying to hold up Ben Bernanke's reappointment as head of the Federal Reserve Board.

The Fed has the legal (cringe when you hear that word; not every law is moral or good) authority to literally create fiat (false) money out of thin air merely by adding numbers to a favored account.

Case in point: During the stimulus package giveaway, the Fed padded AIG's books, simply by adding zeros to their ledger. Keep in mind that although it is intimately entwined with the government, the Fed is not a government agency but a privately-owned financial conglomerate that has controlled the US economy since its inception in 1913. Now AIG is paying back the Fed with the profits from selling off two of its subsidiaries - to the Fed! Thus a huge fortune is made by investing in thin air, but the economy suffers because the dollar is devalued in the exchange, meaning that everything costs more. The top execs at the Fed are mostly mega-million and -billionaires. Meanwhile, businesses close down and millions of American citizens are out of work, with no real good news forthcoming.

If the truth be told, the Fed is, at its core, perhaps the greatest con game ever foisted upon a people. In 1913 the government granted it the authority to print money and set interest rates for selling that money to banks. Those interest rates affect our credit and debt. The ultra-rich get richer, and the rest of us go deeper in debt. But this isn't about class envy, it's about institutionalized dishonesty. The Fed - which has never been audited - should be abolished.

'Net threat. While our attention is focussed on healthcare, the war, and Tiger Woods' unexplainably stupid indiscretions, a bill has been silently wending its way through the US Senate. The Cybersecurity Act of 2009 (S. 773) threatens to give the government unprecedented power over internet communications; including the authority to shut it down upon a declared "emergency". It may come as no surprise that the bill was authored by that globalist extraordinaire, Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV).

Each new propsal to limit our freedom for the sake of "security" moves us closer to slavery. And yet, the majority of Americans are content to sit silently on the sidelines, as though nothing will interrupt their "lives of quiet desperation". Alas, Babylon.

Obama Takes A Bow

Our president once again showed that he respects everyone except the American people and our Constitution. While in Japan,President Obama bowed deeply before Emporer Akihito.

In Japanese culture, the deeper the bow, the more humility is being shown; it is typically used to render an apology. So, after being the first President of the United States to bow before an Arab king, Mr. Obama repeated his act of monarchal obeisance and is continuing his world apology-and-humilation tour, this time in Asia. Oh, but wait; I don't believe he bowed before the Queen of England, our closest ally.

If only he would simply choose to "bow out" of the Oval Office, perhaps we'd have a meager chance of salvaging some national self-esteem and international respect. All during the G.W. Bush years, liberals were fond of saying that America was losing respect among other nations. Exactly how, I wonder, is their "wonder boy" changing that impression?

Pray for President Obama: Psalm 109:8 I've got to get one of those bumper stickers.

The greatest theft in history. There is a distinct possibility that if we don't get involved to stop the Demoncrats and their Republicrat shadow puppets this weekend, it may be the beginning of the end (although many would say we passed that point long ago) of America as the greatest bastion of freedom, ingenuity, potential wealth and opportunity the world has ever known. Senator "Dirty" Harry Reid is poised to try and get passage of the Senate version of the damnable Healthcare Act (aka "Obamacare") Saturday night. The 2,074 pages are laden with boobytraps that will finish off our economy as well as our freedoms. It is replete with hidden new taxes, an attempt to sneak in a pro-abortion provision, and many other odious features.

We're already getting a preview of healthcare rationing (you know; that thing Obama said wouldn't happen). The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has published new guidelines recommending that women under 30 should have cervical cancer every two years rather than annually. Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is backing away from a government report recommending that women shouldn't get mammograms until they hit 50, and then only bi-annually. This contradicts the American Cancer Society, which has pushed for women to begin getting the exams annually at age 40. Several cancer survivors have also taken issue with the panel's recommendations. Some would say it's all about the bottom line, but the bottom line is that liberals aren't interested in your health, any more than they are seriously interested in saving the planet. For them, it's all about control. Their control...of you.

The demoncrats of today aren't like those of times past. They aren't merely exercising their majority; they're using it to trample the law, the Constitution, the economy, and soon, the lives of every American. Their party has been thoroughly infiltrated with people consumed with the acquisition of personal power, and their supreme arrogance is beyond belief.

Rusted "Blades". The publisher of several American homosexual newspapers has abruptly closed their doors. Window Media LLC unexpectedly shut down on Monday, taking with it into ignomy its subsidiaries The Washington Blade, The Houston Voice and South Florida Blade. Unknown at this time whether the cause was a flaccid business environment, stiff competition, or perhaps a dying customer base.

Renegade Republicrats strike again. At least 10 so-called Republicans voted with Democrats to quash a fillibuster over the appointment of Judge David Hamilton to the Chicago-based 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. Hamilton, who formerly worked tirelessly with the ACLU and ACORN, gained notoriety for his judgments against Christian and Jewish prayer and parental rights in the abortion fight. As a federal appeals judge, Hamilton will be able to wreak even more havoc on the Republic. With several other district courts in danger of falling to liberal majorities, can we really expect the Republican Party to control the Quislings within its ranks?

Take that, you conservatives! Andrew Klavan shows us how libs could really attack conservative pundits. Yeah; that'll show them...uh...not so much. Good humor and biting insight in a four minute package.

Blowing bubbles. In terms of the economy, much of our current crisis can be related to what economists are calling "bubbles". Glenn Beck and Prof. David Buckner do a good job explaining how the current so-called "asset bubble" is poised to become the final blow that kills the American economy.

A picture can also tell a thousand lies. Al Gore has a new book out, and in it he once again demonstrates that truth - while ultimately desirable - is not necessary in the race to gain power and wealth. In his latest faux-science tome - Our Choice; A Plan To Solve The Climate Crisis - are several Photoshopped pictures which give a dramatically false impression of a global climate gone amok. At a time when hurricane activity is a record low, there is a picture of the Earth from space that shows several at the same time, including a couple in areas where they are most unlikely, as well as showing the polar ice cap nearly gone. This sort of sensational scare tactic is exactly the kind of hyperbole that has millions of schoolchildren afraid the planet is going to fall apart at any moment if we all don't recycle, stop using fire, eat grass and live in caves (but perish the thought that they might have to do without their tech-toys).

Doin' a job on US!

Even as the Obama malAdministration tries to silence conservatives who have been warning us and citizens who are fed up with the wholesale treasonous takeover of our government, many in the middle of the political spectrum, and a handful on the Left are finally waking up and speaking up. One of the more prominent tactics being used now is the push for so-called "net neutrality". The only thing they want to neutralize is an opposing viewpoint.

Everything this quasi-communist (and I'm giving them the benefit of doubt) cadre touches - whether in government, the economy, or the culture - begins to show growing stress fractures as the facts become known. For instance, the stimulus bill was supposed to give the economy a shot in the arm, but the shot was more arsenic than antidote as we learn the White House overstated the number of jobs created. Even stalwart Obama defenders such as CBS News are finding their claims hard to swallow.

(Certain) Visitors welcome. The White House has announced a new 'transparency' policy of disclosing visitors to the Oval Office. Along with a smattering of 'normal' people, the published list (so far) is a veritable "Who's Who" of leftist radicals and ideologues. Of course, as might be expected, the list includes a high percentage of like-minded industrialists and Hollywood names who have given their money and lent their reputations to advancing the leftist agenda.

I really can't understand why some of the richest people in America, who made their fortune by way of capitalism, would be so ready to destroy that institution. I can only think of a couple of reasons: they're stupid (which doesn't make sense unless they're savants only in raking in piles of money and total idiots in every other area of life -- although that is a possibility), or they think somehow they'll ingratiate themselves into the new regime (ask the Hitler-era German industrialists how that scheme worked out). Whatever their reasoning, they obviously expect to be in the upper tier of the socialist regime, while relegating everyone else to economic poverty, moral hopelessness and political slavery. No communist tyrant (or their sycophants) has ever chosen to live in the same squalor they wanted to force upon their subjects. And I don't believe any communist regime can sustain itself very long without capitalism, which makes it's attempts to ruin capitalism a suicidal form of governing.

Communism - the great leveler (supposedly) and eventual goal of socialism - kills creativity and destroys incentive, and the infrastructure always degrades because no one gives a damn. It has always depended heavily on what it can beg, borrow (without paying back) or steal from the actual productive western nations. Ever since World War 2, Russia has received massive foreign money and other aid, primarily from the US. We sent them food (SPAM was always a big seller in the USSR) when Stalin was murdering his own farmers, and sent over entire factories to help the Soviets with their war production. China would not be the powerhouse it is today if not for Nixon opening the doors to trade and western markets for buying their cheap, low-quality merchandise. This same parasitic relationship still occurs in every totalitarian nation. When the Left finally succeeds in taking us down, they will only put the final nails in their own coffin as well. Unfortunately, I will find no satisfaction in telling them, "We told you so!"

The danger within. Former NJ Superior Court Judge (and current Fox News legal analyst) Andrew Napolitano gave a stirring speech and warning about the rapidly growing danger of our government's abuse of power. Learn from one who understands the Constitution and the dangers we face.

But the story is larger than merely our leaders' abrogation of political power away from the people. It's also about organizations on the outside of government which are increasingly operating like semi-covert government organs themselves. And it's about an entire segment of the population that has been fed a diet of lies and anger against conservative values they cannot comprehend.

Case in point: Hannah Giles, the courageous young woman who helped expose the depth of corruption and depravity within ACORN, openly wonders why no one else is looking into it. For all the baseless diatribes hurled against it by the Left, Fox News is the only major news organization that has dedicated airtime and research into how this organization of "community organizers" helped engineer the 2008 presidential election.

The vast majority of no-longer-mainstream media has either paid mere lip-service to the stories of government corruption and the infiltration of Marxist ideologues, or have ignored them altogether. It's no wonder that a quickly growing segment of the American population is turning off the old media and relying on Fox News (not to be confused with Fox Entertainment), talk radio and internet news sources to learn how and who's working to dismantle our freedoms, steal the fruits of our labors and erase our heritage.

Incidentally; if you're confused about the terminology of liberal, conservative, socialist and libertarian, here's a great 4-minute breakdown.

Rising tide? Last time, I told you about the special election for the congressional seat of New York's upstate 23rd district that was vacated when Republican John McHugh took Obama's bait and accepted a post as Secretary of the Army. Independent conservative newcomer Doug Hoffman threw his hat into the ring because he could see no difference between Democrat Bill Owens and liberal Republican Dede Scozzafava. Now, Scozzafava has seen the handwriting on the wall (or at least, in a new Sienna poll), and has dropped out of the race.

Not surprisingly - to many conservatives, at least - Scozzafava threw her endorsement to the Democrat, Owens. It's another indication of how far left the Republicrats have moved. politicians. Most of the rank-and-file voters, busy with their own lives, haven't noticed the gradual shift. As a former lifelong Republican myself, I finally realized that the party has long been infiltrated by increasingly left-leaning liberal-cum-socialists. The rest of the nation is watching this race intently, if for no other reason than to see if conservative principles really are what voters are seeking in their leaders.

Anatomically correct? As if his ego wasn't big enough, former president Bill Clinton was on hand Sunday for the unveiling of an 11-foot-tall statue of himself, not coincidentally located on a street named after him in Pristina, Kosovo. It was the Kosovars' way of saying thanks for sending US forces in to save the ethnic Albanian population from the purge by the Serbs.

Yeah, Right!

Have you ever noticed that when people become power-hungry and infatuated with their own presence, no amount of control over others ever seems to be enough.

Take, for example, "the Governator"- aka Arnold Schwarzenegger. Even though he's fired hundreds of thousands of rounds from every weapon imaginable in his movies, he recently signed a new law which will severely limit ammunition sales in California. Among its odious provisions, it will require ammo buyers to be thumbprinted, as well as filling out a form for every purchase of handgun ammo, even though there are many carbines that also use pistol ammo. Even after all that, it would limit individual sales to 50 rounds per month. That's not even enough for an average day on the range.

OK; just as a reminder: If you have to get permission, it isn't a right. Rights are granted by God, and are supposed to be protected by the government. By logic and nature, individual rights are essentially paired with responsibilities, and some people - or all people at some times - will choose to ignore those responsibilities, at which point it is the duty of government to reign in the irresponsible ones; but one's rights should only be revoked when their actions impinge on the rights of others. Some of our choices will displease some people who make different choices (choice being the operative word). Privileges, on the other hand, are granted by government, which can and does revoke them at will.

Our God-given rights should be obvious, but society has robbed us of that clear recognition. Every human being, created by God, has a right to /a responsibility to:

1. Life / Don't murder, or condone the murder of innocents

2. Liberty / Don't take the liberty of another

3. Pursuit of Happiness (originally spoken of as the right to own private property or engage in commerce) / Don't steal

4. To worship as you please / or not (the one thing God doesn't grant is a right to worship other 'gods'. We still get to make that choice, but He holds us accountable for the choice we make. Choose wisely.)

5. Speak our mind freely, but truthfully / Prevent others from speaking the truth or lying about others

6. Make voluntary contracts (with spouse, business, etc.) / Violate our contracts

7. Defend ourselves, our families, our social order (nation) from foreign or domestic attack /not attack others without due cause.

Before going on, please note what isn't listed as a right - free medical care, free education, free money, free home; you get the idea. Government is incrementally neutering and removing our rights, and has been doing so for a long time. In their place, government has been substituting a wish list of things we should be able to work for, not expect.

The Left began in earnest by removing God from the public schools - thereby attacking the first part of the First Amendment and abrading the social/moral conscience; and then by legalizing a killing spree on the most defenseless of humans. Their top two targets are the First and Second Amendments, because those are the lynchpins for all the rest of our enumerated constitutional rights, and upon those rest the tenets of a civil society.

If a tyrant can prevent you from speaking out against injustice or arming yourself for protection or rebellion against tyranny, none of the other rights really matter, and will easily fall when it becomes convenient to cancel them. We've seen the attacks on the freedom of speech as the Obama malAdministration seeks to demonize, isolate and silence Fox News. As to the case in point: if this new California ammo ban stands, it will surely spread to other states. A toothless tiger is not so fearful, and an unarmed populace is a nation of sheep for the shearing.

What next; sponge bath? Bombastic Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez is renowned for his grasp (as in, taking it away) of what makes life worth living. His latest revelation is that his countrymen are using far too much water bathing and showering. He is now calling for them to stop singing in the shower to save water and electricity. Calling baths and jacuzzis "anti-communist", he noted that "Some people sing in the shower half an hour. No kids, three minutes is more than enough. I've counted, three minutes, and I don't stink." Yes, well; that's his opinion.

Frankly, I can't understand how a nation so rich in petroleum as Venezuela is so hampered by electrical shortages. Many nations are powered by huge diesel or steam generating plants. Could it be because Chavez is - like so many dictators - squandering his nation's wealth on his military buildup and his support for uprisings in neighboring countries?

Shock and surprise! Remember how President Obama was kissing Putin's (and every other world dictator's) butt earlier this year on his 'Blame America Tour', crowing about a "new era of peace" and other B.S.? It turns out that while Obama has been sucking up, the Russians have been developing and testing a new multiple-warhead ICBM, which the Russians call the RS-24 and the Pentagon has designated as the SS-27. This is a direct violation of the STrategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START). Conservatives have been telling us for decades that the Russians have violated every treaty they've ever signed, and it's been proven over and over again how true that is.

What's the popular definition of insanity? Oh, yeah; repeating something over and over, expecting a different result. As I've noted before, the Russians are resurging as a global military threat, while we are purposely being weakened by our own government. Who is looking out for your safety? Look in the mirror.

No contest. New York State politics has always been a sideshow in the scheme of things, and it's seldom boring. In the state's northern 23rd Congressional District, a race is heating up in a special election between the Democrat and the Republican candidate, Dede Scozzafava. The problem is that the Republican Party's choice of pro-abortion, pro-cap-and-trade Scozzafava puts her pretty much on the same platform as the Democrat. And the party chose her over newcomer Doug Hoffman, a true conservative who has received a glowing endorsement from Sarah Palin. The former Alaskan governor lauded Hoffman, saying, "...Doug Hoffman has not been anointed by any political machine...[he] stands for the principles that all Republicans should share: smaller government, lower taxes, strong national defense, and a commitment to individual liberty."

It would be the irony of ironies if this New York regional election were to become the watershed moment for a national move toward conservatism once again. Already, some Republicans in other states are trying to ride Hoffman's coattails, even in a California contest. However, there is no mention of the Republican candidate being a conservative, so it may just be the wind (or just more political hot air) talking.

Leave the kids alone! Yet another video has surfaced of young school children being Obama-nated. This trend reminds me more and more of the Hitler Jungend, who were indoctrinated at the earliest ages to be totally loyal to the man instead of the nation. Is this the preparation for Obama's civilian national security force?

And the Grand Prize Goes To...

Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, has once again shown how much his own ego matters more than the job he was hired for. With no real accomplishments to his name, Obama magnanimously accepted the Nobel Peace Prize, thereby making the prize totally irrelevant. For all the foolishness and pandering of the Nobel committee - which was divided on the decision - Obama could have singlehandedly rescued the prize award from ignominity by graciously deferring the prize to one of the many people who actually have earned such an accolade. Alas, it was not to be.

But Obama has been active on other fronts. In doing his part to reward his supporters in the homosexual activist community, the president attempted to placate increasingly impatient homosexual noisemakers by nominating a lesbian to head the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and hiring the founder of GLSEN (the founder of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) to be the "safe schools czar". Incidentally, one of Kevin Jennings' stated goals is the promotion of homosexual behavior to schoolchildren as young as 12. Its curious that while liberals can take pot-shots at suspected homosexuals, conservatives are labeled as 'hatemongers' if they even raise the subject of the dangers that deathstyle presents to the culture.

Regarding the economy, there is every indication that the Obama malAdministration is purposely tanking the dollar. Pushing what appears to be the implementation of the Cloward-Pivin Strategy, the Obama malAdministration has - among other things - given a 50 million dollar "stimulus package" to Detroit. This caused (not unexpectedly) long lines of folks waiting for 'free money'. The scene was reminiscent of Obama supporters during the campaign who waited with bated breath for him to pay their mortgages and give them a new G(overmnent)M(otors) Cadillac. I suppose standing in line for a couple of hours is easier than getting a job.

Can't cut it. This past week has had at least two publicized (on Fox News, anyway) stories of school authorities run amok with their holier-than-thou attitude and 'zero tolerance' rules. In my own hometown Matthew Whalen, a 17-year-old high school honor student with no record of trouble, was suspended for 20 days because he had a two-inch pocketknife locked in his car trunk as part of a survival kit, even though it is not considered a weapon under NY State law. This kid is an Eagle Scout workaholic who dreams of West Point and was commended for saving a woman's life when he was only 13. He was initially saddled with a 5-day suspension, but for undisclosed reasons an additional 15 days was tacked on. The school authorities are so far intractable in their decision against the young man. Fortunately, due to diligent citizens, West Point has notified Matthew it will not hold this travesty against him if and when he formally applies.

Meanwhile, a 6-year-old first-grader in Delaware was suspended, and was initially threatened with 45 days in reform school for bringing his favorite camping tool to school; a combination penknife, fork and spoon. Both these kids seem to be a well-adjusted, adventurous youths who now may be saddled forever with a criminal record and the psychological stigma of being singled out and persecuted with the hammer of ill-contrived law by anal-retentive school authorities.

One of the dangers of this New Amerika regime is the ever-tightening grip of the State on individual liberty. Any rule can be abused and misused to deprive or persecute anyone who doesn't fit in. It has always been the peculiar beauty of the American system that society would generally suffer coexistence with those who might have different ideas, even if those ideas were diametrically opposed to sanity and reason - as long as they didn't threaten others.

But that has all changed now. This malAdministration and their ideological sycophants throughout the culture cannot tolerate any deviance from their deviant way of thinking. In their frame of reference, it's OK for schools to indoctrinate kids into a political system that we have been at war with for nearly a century or to teach them to go against the biological imperatives that maintain our species, but woe to those who try to maintain independence from a domineering social and government (one and the same) system. Schools no longer teach American history, they preach global citizenry in a largely successful bid to remove nationalism, patriotism, and a sense of independent individualism.

Another recent example; a patriotic freshman at the University of New Hampshire was forced to remove his American flag from his dorm window because of one semi-anonymous complaint. Perhaps it is time for the Granite State to rethink it's "Live Free or Die" motto.

My take? The letter of the law should never be allowed to supercede the spirit of the law, because it is the letter of the law that makes it such a powerful weapon against individuality and freedom, and it leaves out the variables of circumstance. That is why we have juries of our peers; to make the ultimate decision of which way to go, based upon the circumstances and the evidence. The courts have weakened that constitutional check on justice unchained, but that story's for another day. Schools have been put in the unique position of reducing the authority and influence of the family by training our children not to think, but to obey; not to discern, but to cower; not to be independent, but to be slaves to the new (old) orthodoxy of socialism.

And while I'm on the topic, we shouldn't even speak of it as socialism, because that is only the relatively benign precursor for where this usually wind up: facism/communism. Human nature being what it is, unrestrained political power will always eventually seek to increase its power over others, and that quest for power will always become more forceful and degraded as it succumbs to the addiction of power, and when it meets the inevitable resistance of those who refuse to bow before the self-appointed emperor.

No arguing with success. Glenn Beck's terrific new book Arguing With Idiots is selling like hotcakes. It is currently the No. 2 nonfiction hardcover on the New York Times best seller list (which I'm sure they hate), and is even surprising some critics. Its detailed defense of conservative thought on social issues is causing more and more conservatives to get off the couch and do the unimaginable - i.e., take a stand against an out-of-control (as in "unrestrained"; they are certainly attempting to grab more and more control of) government.

By the way, Beck's previous book, Common Sense: The Case Against an Out-of-Control Government, is still No. 1 on the NYT paperback nonfiction list and No.52 on amazon.com, even after more than 15 weeks.

Not the Top Dog?

An insightful article from the very good American Thinker website puts forth the hypothesis that Barack Obama may not be the 'Alpha Male' so many American voters thought he was. Greg Lewis posits that the world's perception of our president's nuanced passivity in regard to international relations is a sign of weakness at the highest level, which could in turn jeopardize our national security in profound ways by emboldening our enemies and alienating our allies.

From his reluctance to acknowledge our war on international, primarily-Islamic terror organizations, to his 'world apology tour', to his less-than-patriotic UN speech, to his seeming non-interest in fighting to win in Afghanistan, it appears that President Obama is displaying classic signs of being a 'beta male'.

Note of explanation: the 'alpha male' in a pack of dogs is the undisputed leader of the pack. The 'beta males' are the dogs that roll over, purposely exposing their weakest parts to the alpha in a gesture of submission to the alpha's authority. While 'betas' may growl at each other or at 'outsiders', they cower before the alpha.

In a world overwhelmingly run by dominant personalities (at least within their own spheres), I think that despite his posturing of superiority, the message Obama sends outside our own country through his reluctance to seriously challenge other leaders puts us at greater risk in the short and long run, especially in a world that is governed by the threat or use of intimidation and force.

No major in free speech. Another college - this time the Catholic-run St. Louis University - has chosen to withdraw from the battle for freedom of speech and its responsibility to actually educate by cancelling a speech by David Horowitz. Horowitz, a radical '60s leftist turned arch-conservative, was hired by the school's College Republicans to present a talk on "Islamo-Fascism Awareness and Civil Rights". Apparently, the school isn't interested in either the threat or our rights. School officials stated their concern that the talk might be interpreted as "attacking another faith." Duh!

OK; allow me to say what so many others are unwilling to say. Every religion (faith system) believes it has the right answers, and every true believer - whether they are Christian (of whatever denomination), Roman Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Communist, everyday Atheist or any other - is convinced his belief is the only true one. Anyone who believes there can be more than one Absolute truth is fooling himself.

While there are superficial similarities in some belief systems, the profound differences in all cause logic to present us with only two choices; either one is true, or none of them is true (and therefore the actual Truth remains unknown). This necessarily means that advocating the superiority of one's own faith system automatically puts it at odds with all others. We each must make the choice of which one to believe, or to believe none (which, in the case of religion, is itself a belief system based on an unsustainable paradox: since one cannot possibly know all things, to presume there is no God is to presume oneself to be an all-knowing god).

Various faiths can choose to interact peaceably, and even without rancor; but each must - at least within himself - be certain that all the other guys are wrong. Of course, human nature being what it is, in most cases individuals have a tendency to cherry-pick which parts of that faith they are willing to adhere to, and to conveniently disregard those parts that interfere with their personal desires. God must be so proud of us.

Pardon the digression: St. Louis University is either being hypocritical to cancel Horowitz' speech on the grounds of offending other faiths, or they are being supremely disingenuous about the validity of their own faith.

How dare they?! CNN recently did a piece criticizing Saturday Night Live's parody of President Obama's ineffectiveness, from a liberal point of view. Yea, I know, hard to believe. ( Of course, they were never that hard on the George Bushes.) But what was harder to swallow was that the CNN report actually went to a fact-checking website to defend Obama, in order to push what they think he's accomplished. That effort fell flat, however; for example, they tried to portray Obama as strong in Afghanistan, even though (as noted above) he's wasted weeks without giving his own pick for theater commander - General McChrystal - the manpower and other resources he's requested, forcing the general to do the militarily unthinkable - going public. It isn't bad enough that Obama seems intent on losing the war, as it is that for every day he procrastinates or outright refuses to beef up our forces, Americans are dying and being terribly wounded for nothing. Mr. President, get off the pot (take that however you wish); bring the troops home or fight all-out to defeat the enemy.

To an unsuspecting audience that swallows the Kool-Aid unflinchingly, it probably appeared as though SNL was trashing Obama - with an uncharacteristically lame portrayal by Fred Armison - for the same reasons conservatives might. But actually, many liberals such as the SNL crew are PO'd because they think Obama hasn't pushed the liberal agenda far enough, especially given the Democrat Party's current on congress and another potential voice on the Supreme Court. Either way, it looks like the honeymoon may finally be over for The Man Who Would Be King. We can only hope - for change.

Train Up a Child...

If you've been watching Fox News Channel or listening to Glenn Beck (because you probably won't hear it anywhere else), there have been more several instances of disturbing and overt indoctrination uncovered. Last time I told you about the Story of Stuff. But there's worse stuff than that going on. For example, there is the class of small children in New Jersey chanting "All are equal in his sight." They are specifically referring to President Obama. Shortly after that, the children are praising him for "all your great accomplishments" to the tune of the Battle Hymn of the Republic. Funny, I thought that song was about God's providence to us in times of trial.

The new process in some public schools - as well as his ubiquitous appearances in the media - appears to be the near-deification of Barack Obama. The most egregious effect of this is what could be perceived as an attempt to build into our children a Hitler Youth-style sense of adoration and loyalty. And many kids are falling for it. As the Holy Bible reminds us, "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6).
This principle works for evil as well as for good. All you end-times theologists and conspiracists can now start your engines.

Symbolism can be described as something we hear or see that invokes a mental image, emotion, or reaction, and is generally designed to draw one's attention and invoke reverence, obedience, desire, or fear. We don't generally think much about the power of audio symbolism -- including such sound cues as chants, mantras, or signals (i.e., fire alarms, church bells, etc.) and visual symbols, but that is precisely what makes them so powerful. Perhaps the best brief examination of how symbolism can be used that I've seen was in a recent YouTube video. Whether we realize it or not, symbolism has a profound impact on all our lives. The media knows full well the power of symbolism; there is virtually no film, TV show or commercial that doesn't make full use of it. It's a good idea to be aware how vulnerable we -and your children - can be.

Jihiding? Throughout Europe, throngs of Muslims crowd the streets in noisy and often destructive demonstrations, amid chants of "Death to the West." As the Muslim population increases, the level of their arrogance and braggadocio rises, often accompanied by violence against non-Muslims, moderate Muslims and anyone else who dares to criticize their antisocial pathology.

Contrast this to the recent assemblage of American Muslims in Washington D.C. Instead of the 50,000+ the organizers hoped for, official estimates place the gathering at no more than 5,000. I don't gloat over this just because it pales compared to the estimated 1.7 million Americans (of all flavors) who gathered there on September 12th, with no news coverage other than Fox News. I point out in hopefulness the possibility that the majority of American Muslims may not want to be associated with the radical elements of their religion, nor with some of the organizers, including Hassen Abdellah, who helped represent one of the men in the original 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

You'd better listen to Mom! As everyday Americans continue to be outraged by our government's abuse of power, it is becoming clear that perhaps the major segment of the discontented are women, especially mothers. Fearing for the future of their children, more and more mothers are networking, organizing and insisting to be heard. From healthcare to child care to questionable appointees (such as pro-pedophile Kevin Jennings' tenure as Assistant Deputy Secretary of the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools at the U.S. Department of Education), moms are done keeping silent and are turning into the human equivalent of lionesses protecting their cubs.

Fire-fighting nuts. After a slow start, formerly-mainstream news outlets are finally breaking their silence of the fundamental dishonesty that permeates ACORN. The negative publicity from numerous criminal indictments and the amateur film journalists who exposed the rampant lack of ethics caused the US Census to kill the organization's cooperation in the 2010 national survey, and other Congress openly stopped public funding to it.

However, it appears at least one agency didn't get the word. FEMA - the Federal Emergency Management Agency - has decided to grant ACORN nearly a million dollars to prevent fires, even though the organization has no record of expertise in fire safety.

Send in the clones. The FBI is warning that a Somali off-shoot of al-Qaeda known as al-Shabaab may be aiming its guns - or bombs, since that seems to be their specialty - at the US. What makes them even more dangerous is the sizeable Somali population already in this country. A few Americans have already been found to be involved with the terrorist organization. They seem to prefer bombing crowds, but that could change as the target-rich environment here offers so many opportunities for mayhem. Aside from bombing sporting events, rallies, malls and such, consider the implications of attacks on the power grid in winter, communications hubs, chemical plants, and product terrorism. Are you ready?