I am the God of Hell Fire

and I Bring You FIRE! No, it's not the Crazy World of Arthur Brown. It's this BURN of Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" from Kyle Smith in the New York Post.

GORE'S HOT AIR

FLAKY FLICK SUFFERS FROM 'TRUTH' DECAY

AL GORE'S global-warming documentary, "An Incon venient Truth," is sure to get an Oscar nomination for Best Documentary, but Gore should campaign for Best Actor, too.

Avoiding the usual vein-popping diatribes, he comes across as learned, calm and folksy. But much of what Gore says in this slide show he gives to people whose minds are not yet fully formed (undergraduates, actors) is absurd, and his assertions often contradict each other.

He implies that no reputable scientists dispute anything he says - basically, that the ice caps are melting and people on the 50th floor of the Empire State Building had better learn to swim. But there is wide disagreement about whether humans are causing global warming (climate change preceded the invention of the Escalade) and about whether we should be worried about the trends. Look carefully at Gore's charts and you'll see that the worst horrors take place in the future of his imagination.

His implication that he is our only hope - every ticket bought for this movie amounts to a soft-money contribution to his 2008 campaign - is ridiculous. He and his friends were in charge for eight years. His charts say global warming got worse in that time. The environment doesn't seem to care whether the president is a Texas oilman or the Man from Hope.

Global warming hasn't noticed that we got the lead out of our gasoline or that Stage One smog days in Los Angeles fell from 121 in 1977 to zero in 2004. All regulations and taxes to date have done nothing. Does this hint that pollution isn't the cause?

Gore claims, with pie-chart-in-the-sky dreaminess, that unspecified measures can reduce emissions to 1970 levels. He assesses the tradeoff between the economy and the environment with the kind of buffoonery you'd expect in a Marxist comic book, displaying a cartoon of a scale with Earth on one side and bars of gold on the other. "OK, on one side we have gold bars," he says. "Mmm, mmm, don't they look good!"

Why doesn't he get specific and replace the "gold bar" side of the scale with, say, a $50,000 tax on SUVs? The ensuing destruction of the car business would hurt blue-collar workers, not the rich. What if global warming continued unabated? Gore's faith-based pessimism would lead him to call for even more taxes.

People are skeptical about global warming because it builds up to the same chorus as every other lefty hymn: more taxes, more hypocritical scolding (the film is the brainchild of Larry David's wife, Laurie, part of the community of people who drive a Prius to the private plane) and especially more America-bashing.

Gore says that America, alone, is the problem. Taking us to China, he ignores the filth spewed into the air by its coal-fired cities. He does not meet with bronchitic citizens who wear surgical masks outdoors and pause to hawk up brown gunk every few minutes. Instead, he tells us America is lagging behind. "China," he says, "is on the cutting edge" of environmentalism. Nonsense.

Gore is a dangerous evangelist for whom all roads lead to his sole, holy revelation. Remember how his son was injured in a car accident, the story he told at the 1992 convention? He's still telling it, and what was once touching has become exploitative. This time, the accident's meaning is that he wondered whether the Earth would still be there for his son. (Never mind that earlier in the film, he dates his eco-awakening to his Harvard years).

A sister who smoked and died of lung cancer? The lesson is that those who used to deny that smoking caused disease were wrong, so anyone who doubts catastrophic global warming must also be wrong.

Still not convinced that Gore's mind has only one emission? "We have to think differently about war," he says, referring to environmental effects of weapons. "We can't just mindlessly continue the patterns of the past." It's a chilling statement: Even when bombs are flying, Gore promises to measure CO2 first.

The man's shamelessness is astounding when he compares himself to Churchill, but that's not the worst of it. The final shot of Gore shows him bravely silhouetted against the cosmos, a lone figure tenderly surveying the firmament. The job he really wants, no recount can give him.

kyle.smith@nypost.com

As Jim Zabel would say, "I Love It....I Love It.....I LOVE IT!!

Meet & Greet

I ventured down to the capitol city of Warren County, Indianola, for a visit from Republican Lt. Governor candidate Kim Reynolds.

Right away I noticed the Big Lug Nut's "spy" was seated at a table.

The beret was the giveaway, who does he think he is -- John Deeth?

I went over and struck up a conversation, letting him know I'd seen the Jason Clayworth blog post that outed him.

Noting an over abundance of chairs stacked in the back of the room, I told him I doubted he'd have to worry about giving his up his seat this time.

I found out he was originally from Cedar Rapids and I then mentioned my radio stop at The HAWK (KHAK) in 1980.

He let me know that was before he was born -- OUCH!

All in all, he was a very nice, polite young man with a good sense of humor.

I let his boss, Ali Glisson, know (via e-mail) he represents the campaign well.

The event was to begin at 11 a.m. and the small gathering didn't have to wait long as Mrs. Reynolds walked in at 11:01 -- not bad.

She walked around the room and introduced herself to each attendee and then began her talk which was comprised mainly of her personal and professional background.

She opened it up to Questions, so I asked how the Branstad-Reynolds administration would handle department heads who didn't comply with state law (like at DNR), misspent taxpayer money (such as at IABD) or the IDED film office fiasco?

She said she had talked with Governor Branstad and the key was getting good people to run the departments because that reflects back on you.

I asked what would be the first thing the Branstad-Reynolds administration looked to accomplish the day they take office, but before I could finish my question she knew exactly were I was going and mentioned Vilsack's (The Pickle) executive order that restored voting rights to felons.

I told her it was like she read my mind.

After the Q&A was complete, she again greeted people individually and I thanked her for coming.

I found Kim Reynolds to be energetic, enthusiastic, with a passion for Iowa.

She will make an excellent Lt. Governor and the scientific community is united in that fact.

House candidate (District 73) Julian Garret was in attendance and he stopped to talk, mentioning he reads the Liter. Thank you for that and your check is in the mail.

I will say I was disappointed in the attendance size, but the schedule wasn't released until Friday and Warren County went for Vander Putz.

Condi

Not only does she take on Bubba, but she shows up Miss Perky too!

The Secretary of State told a meeting of the New York Post editors & reporters that "The notion somehow for eight months the Bush administration sat there and didn't do that is just flatly false - and I think the 9/11 commission understood that. What we did in the eight months was at least as aggressive as what the Clinton administration did in the preceding years."

She also sharply disputed Clinton's claim that he "left a comprehensive anti-terror strategy" for the incoming Bush team during the presidential transition in 2001.

"We were not left a comprehensive strategy to fight al Qaeda."

She also said Clinton's claims that Richard Clarke - the White House anti-terror guru hyped by Clinton as the country's "best guy" - had been demoted by Bush were bogus.

"Richard Clarke was the counterterrorism czar when 9/11 happened. And he left when he did not become deputy director of homeland security, some several months later," she said.

Rice cited the final 9/11 commission report to substantiate her claims, while Clinton relied on Clarke's book as the basis for many of his rehashing the events leading up to the Sept. 11 attacks.

In an interview for '60 Minutes' Rice tells Couric....

"I'm a true believer in the process of democratization as a way to overcome old wounds. And I believe that if we don't do that, then people who have had their differences, people who have resolved their differences by violence or by repression, are never going to find a way to live peacefully together."

"Is it really priority number one in terms of philosophically and pragmatically for the United States to be spreading democracy around the world?" Couric asks.

"Well, first of all, the United States is not spreading democracy. The United States is standing with those who want a democratic future," Rice explains.

She rejects the notion that the U.S. is a bully, imposing its values on the world.

"What's wrong with assistance so that people can have their full and complete right to the very liberties and freedoms that we enjoy?" Rice asks.

"To quote my daughter, 'Who made us the boss of them?'" Couric remarks.

"Well, it's not the matter of being the boss of them. It's speaking for people who are voiceless," Rice says.

"You have said that your goal was, quote, 'To leave the world not just safer but better.' Right now Iraq doesn't seem safer," Couric remarks. "Iran and North Korea have not fallen into line. Do you honestly believe that the world is safer now?"

"The world is safer because we're finally confronting these terrorists. We're finally confronting this challenge," Rice says. "And so I think we are safer. We're not yet safe. And I know that I'm not going to see the final outcome of the Middle East that we described as democratic and prosperous and, in that way, truly stable. But all that I can do on my watch is to try to lay a foundation so that that will become the Middle East of the future. And I think we've done a great deal to begin to lay that foundation."

Couric quotes her daughter!?!

Who does she think she is Jimmah Carter talking nuclear proliferation with AMY?!?!

'08 Republicans

For a few months I've been searching for who I think should be the nominee in 2008.

I remember in April watching Senator George Allen stumble in a speech to a group of Republicans in South Carolina and thinking I couldn't get on that bandwagon.

Recently I had been discussing '08 with my friend Cal and told him I was giving Mitt Romney consideration.

Thanks to my lovely wife, I was fortunate to attend Governor Mitt Romney's speech at The Principal yesterday.

He spent the first few minutes talking about his background as a venture capitalist, head of the Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Games and Governor of Massachusetts.

He then addressed his outline for America's future and I agree with Governor Romney on the 5 issues facing our country:

Defeating the Jihadists

Raising the Bar on Education-stressing our need to compete with Asia.

Stopping Runaway Spending

Achieving Energy Independence-He's for drilling at ANWAR and off the Gulf Coast.

Affirming America’s Culture and Values.

He also did a nice job handling questions, at one point correcting a woman who said the Department of Defense takes over 50% of the budget and pointing out that he would not cut the Pentagon's budget, but spend wisely.

We sat in the front row and Governor Romney came down and shook our hands afterwards.

I have to admit I'm feeling ambivalent towards him personally. He just came across as too polished and slick. I guess I'm looking for someone I can connect with, like I did with George W. Bush.

I know I can connect with Mayor Rudy Giuliani, maybe it's a DAGO thing, he is passionate.

He also comes across Presidential when he does things like this...

Former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani characterized Bill and Hillary Clinton's recent criticism of President Bush's efforts to stop Osama bin Laden before 9/11 as a "mistake" and said it's time to "stop this blame thing" over who is responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks.

The real fault for 9/11, Giuliani says, lies squarely with the Islamic terrorists.

"Americans didn't do Sept. 11, the Islamic terrorists did."

"...Islamic fanatics who came here and killed us and want to come here and do it again".

It's a good thing time is on my side.

Commander

I thought John McCain was strong from the first question on.

I wish McCain would have challenged Obama bringing up the AIG retreat, or junket as Obama called it.

You may recall that Obama chastised McCain for originally opposing the bailout of AIG and chastised him as not having "clarity or a grasp on the situation".

Obama's running mate, Joe Biden, originally sided with McCain on AIG.

A plague on both their houses for throwing Warren Buffett's name out for Secretary of Treasury.

Mr. "I Should Pay More Tax" should be patriotic enough to just write the U.S. Treasury a few extra of his $52 billion and the scientific community is united in that fact.

Obama still believes "Senator McCain is right" on a few issues.

McCain scored effectively lumping Obama and the Democrats into the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac debacle and pointing out Obama as the second highest recipient of their campaign contributions in history, all the while killing legislation McCain supported to fix the problem.

Obama sounded weak trying to defend his warning of writing to Treasury Secretary Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairmen Bernanke.

Writing a letter vs. enacting legislation. WHEW, that's powerful stuff! (he writes sarcastically).

I think McCain was effective when he pointed out his record on bipartisanship and how Obama has never even taken on the leadership of his own party.

McCain was smart to point out that voters should look at their records and then their proposals.

McCain gave a perfect example of rhetoric vs. record when he pointed this out about Obama...

"When he ran for the United States Senate from Illinois, he said he would have a middle-income tax cut. You know he came to the Senate and never once proposed legislation to do that?"

I couldn't follow Obama on how the computer "was the engine for economic growth over the last couple of decades".

Then he went on with...

"The same way the computer was originally invented by a bunch of government scientists who were trying to figure out, for defense purposes, how to communicate..."

That's not the computer, it's Al Gore's internet that began in the Department of Defense!

I thought it was an interesting slam on Delaware that Obama had "because they've got very -- pretty loose laws when it comes to things like credit cards".

Who does Obama know from Delaware?

Could it be his running mate, the Senator from MBNA?

Obama was confusing about his using force for the Obama doctrine...

"Well, we may not always have national security issues at stake, but we have moral issues at stake.

If we could have intervened effectively in the Holocaust, who among us would say that we had a moral obligation not to go in?"

The Holocaust was ended by our victory over the Nazi's in a little national security issue called World War II.

I believe McCain closed as strong as he opened.

Overall, I felt McCain did well on the economy and dominated on foreign policy.

I thought John McCain looked Presidential and is someone I want representing this country in the world.

I hope he's right

I took this from the New York Post...

THE WILL TO WIN

DOES THE WEST STILL HAVE IT?

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following is adapted from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's speech yesterday at the American Legion National Convention.

THE American Legion has achieved a great deal for our country since its founding in the months following World War I.

That year, 1919 turned out to be one of those pivotal junctures in modern history - the beginning of a period where, over time, a very different set of views would come to dominate discourse and thinking in the West. A sentiment took root that contended that, if only the growing threats that had begun to emerge in Europe and Asia could be appeased, then the carnage and destruction of World War I might be avoided.

It was, as Churchill observed, a bit like feeding a crocodile, hoping it would eat you last.

There was a strange innocence. Someone recently recalled one U.S. senator's reaction in September 1939, upon hearing that Hitler had invaded Poland to start World War II: "Lord, if only I could have talked with Hitler, all this might have been avoided." Think of that.

Once again we face the same kind of challenges in efforts to confront the rising threat of a new type of fascism.

Today, another enemy - a different kind of enemy - has also made clear its intentions - in places like New York, Bali, London and Madrid. But many have still not learned history's lessons.

We need to face the following questions:

* With the growing lethality and availability of weapons, can we truly afford to believe that somehow vicious extremists can be appeased?

* Can we really continue to think that free countries can negotiate a separate peace with terrorists?

* Can we truly afford the luxury of pretending that the threats today are simply "law enforcement" problems, rather than fundamentally different threats, requiring fundamentally different approaches?

* And can we truly afford to return to the destructive view that America - not the enemy - is the real source of the world's trouble?

We hear every day of new plans, new efforts, to murder Americans and other free people. Indeed, the plot recently discovered that would have killed hundreds - possibly thousands - of innocents on planes from Britain to the United States should have demonstrated to all that the enemy is serious, lethal and relentless.

But we find ourselves in a strange time:

* When a database search of America's leading newspapers turns up 10 times as many mentions of one soldier at Abu Ghraib who was punished for misconduct than mentions of Sgt. 1st Class Paul Ray Smith, the first recipient of the Medal of Honor in the War on Terror.

* When a Newsweek senior editor disparagingly refers to the brave volunteers in our Armed Forces as a "mercenary army."

* When the former head of CNN accuses the American military of deliberately targeting journalists and the former CNN Baghdad bureau chief admits he concealed reports of Saddam Hussein's crimes when he was in power so CNN could stay in Iraq.

* And when Amnesty International disgracefully refers to the military facility at Guantanamo Bay - which holds terrorists who have vowed to kill Americans, and is arguably the best run and most scrutinized detention facility in the history of warfare - as "the gulag of our times."

Those who know the truth need to speak out against these kinds of myths and lies and distortions being told about our troops and our country. This watchdog role is even more important today in a war that is to a great extent fought in the global media - to not allow the lies and the myths be repeated without question or challenge, so that at least the second and third draft of history will be more accurate than the quick first allegations.

In this "long war," any kind of moral and intellectual confusion about who and what is right or wrong can severely weaken the ability of free societies to persevere.

Our enemy knows this well. They frequently invoke the names of Beirut and Somalia - places they see as examples of American retreat and weakness. And as we have seen most recently in Lebanon, they design attacks and manipulate the media to try to demoralize public opinion. They doctor photographs of casualties, use civilians as human shields and then provoke an outcry when civilians are accidentally killed in their midst.

The good news is that most of the American people, though understandably influenced by what they read and see in the media, have inner gyroscopes and good centers of gravity.

And I am confident that over time they will evaluate what is happening and come to wise conclusions.

One soldier, who recently volunteered for a second tour in Iraq, likely captured the feelings of many of his peers. In an e-mail to friends, he wrote:

"I ask that you never take advantage of the liberties guaranteed by the shedding of free blood, never take for granted the freedoms granted by our Constitution. For those liberties would be merely ink on paper were it not for the sacrifice of generations of Americans who heard the call of duty and responded heart, mind and soul with 'Yes, I will.' "

I believe the question is not whether we can win. It is whether we have the will to persevere. I believe that Americans do have that steel. And that we have learned the lessons of history, the folly of turning a blind eye to danger, and of ignoring our responsibilities.

I'm having my doubts about the intestitinal fortitude of the American public.

Bush's Decency Highlights Democrats Incivility

This is an excellent read from a former fiberal.

By Seth Swirsky

One of the first things George W. Bush did after his inauguration on January, 2001, was invite Senator Edward M. Kennedy - along with his entire family - to the White House for a special screening of "13 Days," the hagiographic dramatization of Kennedy's brothers John and Robert's handling of the Cuban Missile Crises. Bush, famous for his bipartisan outreach during his eight years as governor of Texas (where he garnered 69 percent of the votes in his 1998 reelection), was beginning his presidency by reaching out again.

The symbolism could not have been more obvious. With the newly elected "compassionate conservative" hosting the aging lion of liberalism, Bush was keeping a campaign promise to be a "uniter, not a divider" and taking the first step to, as he promised, "return dignity" to the office.
Soon after, Bush pushed his attempts to unify America beyond symbolism by inviting Kennedy, the quintessential liberal and a longtime advocate of education reform, to the White House again, this time as a full partner in drafting the vital "No Child Left Behind" legislation.
Two years later, Kennedy repaid the president's generosity of spirit and action by taking the floor of the U.S. Senate to accuse him of being a liar by claiming that Bush had "cooked up the war (against Saddam Hussein's regime) in Texas." While Kennedy had every right to voice his passionate dissent of the war, his incivility toward the president stood in stark contrast to Mr. Bush's high-mindedness. When asked to respond to Senator Kennedy's no-holds-barred, no-proof-required attack, President Bush said, "I don't think we're serving our nation well by allowing the discourse to become so uncivil." The styles could not be more obvious: it was class versus crass.

It wouldn't be the only time prominent Democrats behaved rudely toward a president who treated them with respect. On June 14, 2004, President and Mrs. Bush invited Bill and Hillary Clinton to the unveiling of their portraits in the East Room of the White House. A few excerpts of the president's welcoming address once again show Bush to be a man with a warm heart and generous spirit:

"President Clinton and Senator Clinton, welcome home. It's great to see Chelsea. The fact that you survived your teenage years in the White House... speaks to the fact you had a great mom and dad. Thank you all for coming back...We're really glad you're here. As you might know, my father and I have decided to call each other by numbers. He's 41, I'm 43. It's a great pleasure to honor number 42. We're glad you're here, 42...Mr. Rodham did have the joy of seeing his only daughter become America's First Lady. And I know he would not be surprised to see her as she is today, an elected United States Senator, and a woman greatly admired in our country."

Since that evening, Senator Clinton has repaid the president's kindness towards her and her family by saying, among other mean-spirited things: "I sometimes feel that Alfred E. Neuman is in charge in Washington" and "I predict to you that this administration will go down in history as one of the worst that has ever governed our country." (The last said on Martin Luther King's birthday, a day that should symbolize a coming together of parties and people of diverse viewpoints).

The kindness President Bush showed former President Clinton takes on extra meaning when one remembers the cynical words Clinton had for then-governor Bush when Bush was running for President in 2000: "The message of the Bush campaign is just that, I mean: 'How bad could I be? I've been Governor of Texas. My daddy was president. I owned a baseball team.'" Only last year, Clinton went on to abrogate the unwritten rule between ex-presidents of not speaking ill of them, especially when overseas (no less, when we're at war). Clinton told a group of Arab students in Dubai that the United States made a "big mistake" when it invaded Iraq. Did the ex-president not know that his condemnation of the war, spoken in the heart of the Middle East, could damage the morale of the brave Iraqi people and frontline American troops who risk their lives everyday in the name of democracy? Clinton earned $300,000 for speaking against America's interests that day.

Despite both Clintons disrespectful comments, President Bush offered a contrast in style few could miss. During his 2006 State of the Union address, he offered nothing but gracious good humor when he said his father's "two favorite people" - Bill Clinton and himself - were turning 60. As laughter filled the Senate chamber, the camera recorded a stone-faced Hillary Clinton. At the very least, a polite smile would have sufficed, allowing Americans to see that their leaders can put politics aside for but a moment.

But the Democrats aren't able to put politics aside. They're too angry with President Bush for everything from winning the election in 2000 to having the gall to monitor terrorists' phone conversations. Even after the president shared credit with the Democrats on the reduction of crime and the lowering of welfare rolls and teenage pregnancies, the Democrats - in keeping with their "if it's bad for America, it's good for Democrats" theme - applauded enthusiastically only when Bush mentioned the failure of social security reform. Class versus crass.

The contrast becomes even clearer when one expands the field to include the First Lady and she who would be queen, Theresa Heinz Kerry. Can anyone imagine the dignified Laura Bush telling a newsperson to "shove it" or using the term "scumbags" in a taped interview as Heinz Kerry did during the 2004 campaign? Class versus crass.

And even as the body of Coretta Scott King lay in state, the Democrats could not resist using her funeral as a way of being uncivil to President Bush. Who can forget the Reverend Joseph Lowery choosing to eclipse what should have been a heartfelt eulogy in order to remind the audience that "We know now there were no weapons of mass destruction over there"? Or, ex-President Jimmy Carter,choosing the reflective occasion to hurl gratuitous remarks in the president's direction? Once again, President Bush took the high road, embracing Lowery and speaking dignified, respectful and healing words about Mrs. King. Class versus crass.

The president's demeanor, standing as it does in perfect counterpoint to that of his political adversaries, is one of the reasons Republicans control the House, the Senate and the White House, and, I predict, will continue to do so. Americans prefer nice people, because they recognize that a thriving civilization requires civil people.

President Bush had it right when he said, "America is a great force for freedom and prosperity. Yet our greatness is not measured in power or luxuries, but by who we are and how we treat one another." Now that's class.

Seth Swirsky is a hit songwriter and best selling author. He can be reached through his site, Seth.com

Consistency

As someone who makes fun of others, usually by name calling, it's hard for me to be "faux"raged by others speech.

Ann Coulter, shockingly, upset many when she said this at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC)...

I was going to have a few comments on the other Democratic presidential candidate, John Edwards, but it turns out you have to go into rehab if you use the word faggot - so… Kind of at an impasse. Can’t really talk about Edwards, so I think I’ll just conclude here and take your questions.

There was wide spread "faux"rage on many blogs, conservative and fiberal.

I have yet to see the same "rage" on fiberal blogs for leftists sadness over the failed assassination attempt on Vice President Cheney.

Most were put on the Huffington Post, but Bill Maher aired his on his HBO show "Real Time...

Maher: What about the people who got onto the Huffington Post – and these weren’t even the bloggers, these were just the comments section – who said they, they expressed regret that the attack on Dick Cheney failed.

Joe Scarborough: Right.

Maher: Now…

John Ridley: More than regret.

Maher: Well, what did they say?

Ridley: They said “We wish he would die.” I mean, it was (?) hate language.

Barney Frank: They said the bomb was wasted. (laughter and applause)

Maher: That’s a funny joke. But, seriously, if this isn’t China, shouldn’t you be able to say that?...

Ridley: It’s one thing to say you hate Dick Cheney, which applies to his politics. It’s another thing to say, “I’m sorry he didn’t die in an explosion." And I think, you know…

Maher: But you should be able to say it. And by the way...

Frank: Excuse me, Bill, but can I ask you a question? Do you decide what the topics are for this show?

Maher: Yeah, I decide the topics, they don’t go there.

Frank: But you exercise control over the show the way that she does over her blog.

Maher: But I have zero doubt that if Dick Cheney was not in power, people wouldn’t be dying needlessly tomorrow. (applause)

Scarborough: If someone on this panel said that they wished that Dick Cheney had been blown up, and you didn’t say…

Frank: I think he did.

Scarborough: Okay. Did you say…

Maher: No, no. I quoted that.

Frank: You don’t believe that?

Maher: I’m just saying if he did die, other people, more people would live. That’s a fact.

If you can generate "rage" over a slur that came out of a feeble attempt at humor, you can generate the same "rage" over wishing someone dead!

John Edwards had this to say about Coulter's comments...

"I think its important that we not reward hateful, selfish, childish behavior with attention. I also believe that is important for all of us to speak out against language of this kind; it is the place where hatred gets its foothold, and we can't stand silently by and allow this kind of language to be used."

I couldn't find any quotes from Edwards about those wishing death on Dick Cheney!

Personally, I think you lose the high ground, or any "faux" rage when you sully it with a fund raising attempt...

In a mass email sent to supporters today, Edwards Campaign Manager David Bonoir argued that "this is just a taste of the filth that the right-wing machine is gearing up to throw at us" and set a fundraising goal of $100,000 this week.

Bonoir also called the comments "one of the worst moments in American politics I've seen."

I also found amusing that Bonoir was so "faux" raged "I can't bring myself to even repeat her comments" but tells supporters "you actually have to see for yourself to believe it."

The mantra of the '90s continues, I'm offended by...(insert offense here).

The reality remains that they believe in freedom of speech, as long as you agree with what I'm saying.

Who does he think he is

Joe Biden?

Barry's accused of plagiarizing his speech Saturday night...

“Don’t tell me words don’t matter! ‘I have a dream.’ Just words. ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’ Just words! ‘We have nothing to fear but fear itself.’ Just words — just speeches!”

Here's a speech last fall from one of Barry's bros, Deval Patrick...

“But her dismissive point, and I hear it a lot from her staff, is that all I have to offer is words — just words. ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident,that all men are created equal.’ Just words – just words! ‘We have nothing to fear but fear itself.’ Just words! ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.’ Just words! ‘I have a dream.’ Just words!”

The tapes don't lie and the scientific community is united in that fact.

Stupid is as Stupid Does

Less than 24 hours after her candidate lost an election run on the "culture of corruption" theme, in a district where the sitting Congressman resigned and was jailed for corruption, House Dummycrat Leader Nancy Pelosi is beating that dead horse with an op-ed at The Hill.com.

Tomorrow, Tom DeLay officially resigns from the House of Representatives. His resignation brings to an end what the press has referred to as a “criminal enterprise” run out of the former majority leader’s office.

Yet the widespread Republican culture of corruption goes deeper than one man and extends further than one office. Mr. DeLay’s departure under an ethical and legal cloud fails to extinguish that broader corruption....
Why yes it does SanFranNan, let me introduce you to Congressman William Jefferson....

In court records, the government has placed Jefferson at the center of a brazen international bribery scheme. Investigators say Jefferson and his family demanded and received more than $400,000 in bribes, shares of stock in a struggling telecommunications firm and promises of a cut of future business in Nigeria.

The FBI says it videotaped Jefferson receiving a briefcase with $100,000 cash that, according to wire-tapped conversations, was meant to pay off Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who was to seal the telecom deal in his country. Most of the money was later retrieved from Jefferson's freezer, the agency says.
Ring any bells? Steny Hoyer, House Dummycrat Minority Whip, is familiar with him.... "He sits on a tax-writing committee, and he had $90,000 found in his freezer," Hoyer told reporters. "I think he's got a tax problem, if nothing else. I personally believe that Mr. Jefferson should step down from the Ways and Means Committee, and if he doesn't step down our caucus should take action."
Mr. Jefferson denies any wrongdoing.... "When all is said and done, you will see that there is an honorable explanation for everything you are reading about." HONORABLE? Oh I get it...he's an American Hero, a true Patriot! The Dummycrats are truly STUCK ON STUPID!

Imus sleeps in In The Morning

I used to watch Imus in the Morning on MSNBC.

As a former radio personality, I liked the fact you could watch them in studio.

I prefer more how C-SPAN does their talk coverage, the camera stays on when they're in news and commercial breaks.

I liked the big names that came on Imus' show and he had some talented people around him.

I quit watching four years ago because Imus himself isn't funny and I got tired of his self importance and his self promotion.

Here's what got Imus in trouble..."That's some rough girls from Rutgers. Man, they got tattoos ... That's some nappy-headed hos there."

Interestingly enough if a man who's an admitted alcoholic and drug user would have checked into rehab again, he'd probably still have his show(s).

I think the ironic part of the whole overblown Imus/Rutgers fiasco, is that these girls are of the age where MTV and modern culture play a huge role in there lives.

Ho's, Bitches and Ink are a predominant part of that culture.

One of the main reasons I don't watch basketball anymore is I'm tired of all the inked up idiots.

To me there is no such thing as a good looking tattoo.

I personally don't care whether you're Black, White, Asian or Hispanic.

If you've tattooed your body, I do think less of you.


Here's what I wrote on June 14, 2006...

Lydia The Tattooed Lady

In a well written editorial (Damn, sarcasm doesn't always come across in writing), the Ragister appears to be supporting those who choose to ink up their bodies.

In my view that ranks #2, right below smoking and just above piercings.

I'm all for it, it's a way to identify the smart people from the not so smart. I know it says "professional" in the business world, I'll leave it to your mind as to what kind of "pro". Have you ever seen a tattoo on an elderly person? All wrinkled and faded, Nasty!

I wonder how many survivors of the Holocaust went out and got other tattoos to "accessorize", in the words of the Ragister, the numbers the Nazi's marked them with?

PS: The Title of this column comes from a song Groucho Marx used to sing

Oh Lydia, oh Lydia, say, have you met Lydia?
Lydia The Tattooed Lady.
She has eyes that folks adore so,
and a torso even more so.
Lydia, oh Lydia, that encyclo-pidia.
Oh Lydia The Queen of Tattoo.
On her back is The Battle of Waterloo.
Beside it, The Wreck of the Hesperus too.
And proudly above waves the red, white, and blue.
You can learn a lot from Lydia!

La-la-la...la-la-la.
La-la-la...la-la-la.

When her robe is unfurled she will show you the world,
if you step up and tell her where.
For a dime you can see Kankakee or Paree,
or Washington crossing The Delaware.

La-la-la...la-la-la.
La-la-la...la-la-la.

Oh Lydia, oh Lydia, say, have you met Lydia?
Lydia The Tattooed Lady.
When her muscles start relaxin',
up the hill comes Andrew Jackson.
Lydia, oh Lydia, that encyclo-pidia.
Oh Lydia The Queen of them all.
For two bits she will do a mazurka in jazz,
with a view of Niagara that nobody has.
And on a clear day you can see Alcatraz.
You can learn a lot from Lydia!

La-la-la...la-la-la.
La-la-la...la-la-la.

Come along and see Buffalo Bill with his lasso.
Just a little classic by Mendel Picasso.
Here is Captain Spaulding exploring the Amazon.
Here's Godiva, but with her pajamas on.

La-la-la...la-la-la.
La-la-la...la-la-la.

Here is Grover Whelan unveilin' The Trilon.
Over on the west coast we have Treasure Isle-on.
Here's Nijinsky a-doin' the rhumba.
Here's her social security numba.

La-la-la...la-la-la.
La-la-la...la-la-la.

Lydia, oh Lydia, that encyclo-pidia.
Oh Lydia The Champ of them all.
She once swept an Admiral clear off his feet.
The ships on her hips made his heart skip a beat.
And now the old boy's in command of the fleet,
for he went and married Lydia!

I said Lydia...
(He said Lydia...)
They said Lydia...
We said Lydia, la, la!

You Were So Warm?

He doesn't want to get into personally criticizing the rich phonies, like himself, who have a bigger carbon footprint in one year than you and I have in a lifetime.

And the scientific community is united in that fact.

However, Al Gore equates you to a racist and homophobe if you don't believe him on Greenhouse Effect, err Global Warming, err Climate Change.

When I mentioned this to my wife, Chris chided Gore as a hypocrite.

I said I thought hypocrite wasn't a strong enough word for someone who has privately jetted around the world.

Someone who leaves a Lincoln Town Car idling, with the air conditioning on, for 20 minutes, so Tipper and his daughter Karenna are cool.

Someone who, in one home, used enough electricity in one year that would have powered 232 homes for a month.

Someone who, sold his Current TV Network to Al Jazeera, which is funded by the Qatari government, for $500 Million.

Chris suggested HYPERcrite and I thought that was closer to the truth.

Gore has previously stated that the science is settled on global warming and that 97 to 98 percent of the worlds’ scientists attest to its veracity

It must be unsettling to find that scientists are 95 per cent sure that humans are to blame for climate change

Gore also stated, The hurricane scale used to be 1-5 and now they’re adding a 6.

BUZZ--WRONG!

According to Chris Vaccaro, director of the National Weather Service’s office of public affairs --

No, we’re not pursuing any such change. But with his penchant for overstatement, Gore will continue to be a divisive and less than credible voice in climate change discourse.

Because Gore is okay with fudging the facts --

"Nobody is interested in solutions if they don't think there's a problem. Given that starting point, I believe it is appropriate to have an overrepresentation of factual presentations on how dangerous it is..."  

Some of those 90+ percent of scientists must be confused by facts as to whether the planet is warming or cooling.

On one hand we're told, the Earth steadily continued to heat up, but in the same article we're advised that cloud-dwelling pollutants block the sun's heat, keeping the surface temperature of the Earth from rising.

What difference does it make anyway, NBC tells us that even if we stop producing carbon emissions now, climate change will persist for hundreds of years.

If that's the case, it's past time to start worrying about stopping climate change and change the focus to Improvise, Adapt and Overcome.

Leader of The Pack?

Does the Big Lug Nut believe he's a leader merely because he was finally forced to make choices?

He avoided doing anything about this situation for months saying in June, "I think we’ve done enough so far” and we should be able to avoid future budget cuts.

OOPS!

The BLN instigated borrowing $830 Million for spending and actually believes "Iowa has not spent too much".

DUMBASS!

It's a good thing the state has received federal stimulus money, otherwise the situation would be drastically worse.

We're supposed to be impressed because he cut his pay 10%?

Sign me up for a pay cut to $117,000!

He's still getting free housing and transportation.

Culver shouldn't get four more minutes in office, let alone four more years and the scientific community is united in that fact.

I'm starting to agree with my friend Cal, Freedom's pal, who thinks we should limit all politicians to two terms.

One in Office.

One in Prison.

Iowa Values, Iowa Common Sense?

It was with his latest commercial that I finally figured out who Chester Culver reminds me of.

He's our Al Gore!

They were both born in Washington D.C. to a United States Senator, both went to school in that area and their daddies lost their seats to Republicans.

Both give awkward kisses to their wives to help their campaign, it doesn't work.

Gore practically swallowed Tipper befor his convention speech and Chester gets a peck from the mother of his children in their commercial.

Oh yeah, both are quite LARGE!

"Big lug" is what Mariclare says.

In an interesting development today. The Pickle, Governor Vilsack, appointed key Culver campaign advisor Brent Appel to the Iowa Supreme Court.

Appel ran Chester's daddies 1980 campaign, he lost to Senator Grassley. Appel ran, and lost, in 1982 to Congressman Tom Tauke. Attorney General Tom Miller hired the fellow Dubuquian to work for him. Appel's wife is running for the State Senate (I've had the pleasure of already voting against her, my fear is that she'll win).

The interesting part is there's a little over three weeks until election day. Does the Pickle think Chester's not going to win and that's why he's appointed this Dummycrat shill?

Brent Appel has contributed nearly $40,000 in the last 6 years to Dummycrats. Staci, a homemaker, has given $7,300 in the same time period. $3,000 of that went to Hillary Rodham Clinton!

wHATCHa Gonna Do?

It took State Senator Jack ASS...err, Hatch less than 12 hours to go from really likely running for Governor to officially announcing an intention to explore a campaign for governor.

That's not the kind of decisiveness one wants in a leader and the scientific community is united in that fact.

Hatch is hedging because he doesn't want to lose another primary race, like his failed 1992 effort to unseat Senator Elaine Szymoniak, and that's what would happen if The Pickle or The Big Lug Nut decide to run.

I’m not interested in taking on quality candidates that I think that have really proven to be a successful governor. That does for Governor Culver, too.

But then Hatch, later in Cedar Rapids, said -- No other Democrat who chooses to run for governor will have the depth of experience in challenging Branstad than I do.

It was two weeks ago that Jack ASS, according to John Deeth, took a swipe at the BLN saying --  For the first time in 8 years, we'll have a governor who won't make decisions based on polls

Hatch will have a lot to answer for, as he said he supported an increase in the fuel tax.

In addition, Hatch has personally benefited from tax credits ala Rozanne, err Taxanne Conlin and will continue to do so thanks to a new law that expands the amount of Historic Rehab Credits

Dogleg Left?

The White House is in a snit over complaints of President Obama's leisure time activities while the Gulf Coast remains under siege.

Obama's spokesmonkey doesn't “think that there’s a person in this country that doesn’t think that their president ought to have a little time to clear his mind” and having time to himself "probably does us all good."

Normally I wouldn't care, but I'm not the one who stated at the start of this fiasco...

"I'm not going to rest...until the leak is stopped at the source, the oil on the Gulf is contained and cleaned up and the people of this region are able to go back to their lives and their livelihoods."

Obama is the one who set the bar that high and now not to measure up is a grave disservice to those in the Gulf and the Country as a whole.

And the scientific community is united in that fact.

He better be praying that the relief wells work, because the worst case scenario pegs it at two to nearly four years for all the oil to leak from the field if it can't be stopped.

Guaranteeing him a lot more time to play golf, while the next President handles the situation.

Plug The Damn Hole

Ragister Fear Mongering

The Ragister devoted a two page spread to Iowa's Changing Climate yesterday.

They presented it as a historical look at the weather in Iowa and the latest projections for the state.

They had a time line that showed a period from the 1880s to 1930s with an increase of temperature of 2.8 degrees.

This was attributed to increased solar radiation and a lack of volcano activity.

As someone who enjoys history, could the Industrial Revolution had any impact in that?

The cities were also covered by layer of dirty black smoke (from burning coal that was used to heat water so as to create steam to run the machines). The factories chimneys would continually belch out dark, dirty and poisonous smoke into the atmosphere, polluting it.
This blocked out most of the sun's light giving the city a bleak and gloomy look.

















The time line continued with the period of 1930s to 1980s that saw a decrease in temperature of 2.2 degrees.

This is attributed to increased volcanic activity. Volcanoes eject particles and gas into the air that block solar radiation and cool the atmosphere.

The historical time line from 1980s-2000s shows an increase in temperature of 1.4 degrees.

This is attributed to increased levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Experts say solar radiation and volcano activity levels have not changed significantly.

The World Map of Volcanoes shows, by my count, 40 major eruptions between 1880-1930. 51 major eruptions from 1930-1980 and 45 major eruptions since 1980.

I think the problem may be the Ragister's experts.

As in May, they utilize the Union of Concerned Scientists(UCS) .

Here's John Stossel on UCS...

The key word in "Union of Concerned Scientists" isn't "Scientists" — you don't need any particular degree or experience to join — but "Concerned," and the concerns in question are decidedly left wing. Its own website reveals that it developed out of a campaign to make students think that strengthening the American military was an illegitimate use of technology.

Indeed membership in UCS can be obtained for $25,$35 if you want the mousepad (is that eco friendly?).

ActivistCash.com has more on UCS, as does DISCOVERTHENETWORKS.ORG,
the Competetive Enterpriste Institute and Dennis Byrne.

Another Ragister expert is Iowa State University Professor Gene Tackle, who served on the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

This is a picture from Gene's web page



















I'm sure it's for showin' and not for goin' and the scientific community is united in that fact!

Takle was also part of a group that predicted Gore-BULL warming wouldn't be as severe in the central U.S. because of a "hole".

As for the IPCC, they don't even do their own research, instead taking papers and results from other bodies.

Meteorologist Christopher Landsea resigned because he saw it "as both being motivated by pre-conceived agendas and being scientifically unsound".

Tune in next month.

Tenacious D

I loved this Ragister headline...

Clinton stumps for wife, pays tribute to her tenacity

I think he would know and the scientific community is united in that fact.

However, knowing you can't take Bubba at his word here's Hellary's take...

"I could hardly breathe. Gulping for air, I started crying and yelling at him, 'What do you mean? What are you saying? Why did you lie to me? I was furious and getting more so by the second."

"I was dumbfounded, heartbroken and outraged that I'd believed him at all."

"as a wife, I wanted to wring Bill's neck."

"Buddy, the dog, came along to keep Bill company. He was the only member of our family who was still willing to."

"nothing but profound sadness, disappointment and unresolved anger. I could barely speak to Bill, and when I did, it was a tirade. I read. I walked on the beach. He slept downstairs. I slept upstairs."

Here's a video that seems apropos...Caution it does use inappropriate language.

Which Is It?

Does it take no brains or bigger balls to be Senator Chris Dodd (D-CON)?

Dodd wants to tax AIG bonus recipients in an effort for the government get back some of the $450 million paid out.

Sounds great until you realize that Dodd...

added an executive-compensation restriction to the bill. That amendment provides an “exception for contractually obligated bonuses agreed on before Feb. 11, 2009,” which exempts the very AIG bonuses Dodd and others are seeking to tax.

And...

Dodd was AIG’s largest single recipient of campaign donations during the 2008 election cycle with $103,100, according to opensecrets.org.

Plus...

One of AIG Financial Products’ largest offices is based in Connecticut.

It's what you've come to expect from the man who helped bring us Countrywide Financial, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Here's a little tidbit for St. Patty's Day...

This guy should go the way of the Dodo bird and the scientific community is united in that fact.

Talk about someone who should be committing Harakiri.

For the record I think he has more balls than brains.

Slight of Hand

The Big Lug Nut wants to change the state's budgeting process, but doesn't think figuring out "how we got" into our budget fiasco or "what caused" it is "very productive."

Why is it politicians never want to discuss what got us into a mess to begin with?

It seems to me that you would want to find the root cause to possibly avoid making the same mistake again and the scientific community is united in that fact.

The BLN wants his office and the Legislature to both budget using the Revenue Estimating Conference projections from this month...

"Who can tell me that it makes any sense at all for a governor to use a December number and the Legislature to use a March number? Let's all use the same December number. If we have additional funds, we'll roll those into the reserves in March."

In March of this year the Revenue Estimating Conference stated the net General Fund revenues would be $129.7 million less in FY2009 and $269.9 million less in FY2010 than the Governor’s budgets.

What was the BLN's reaction?

First, Iowa is quickly putting President Obama’s economic recovery plan to work, already investing more than $100 million in transportation projects. Second, we are stimulating the economy with hundreds of millions of dollars being spent to rebuild communities hit hard by last summer’s natural disasters. And third, the legislature and I are working to create I-JOBS in order to make use of Iowa’s financial strengths by investing in infrastructure and supporting jobs throughout the state.

HE SPENT MORE!

Borrowed money, $830 Million, to do it too!

At the time State Senator Paul McKinley said...

"...the revised numbers indicate that revenues are still coming in at near record levels and thus once again underscoring that Iowa does not have a revenue problem – we have a spending problem."

The only thing getting rolled in March were taxpayers.

McKinley continued...

"...we would be much better situated had Governor Culver and legislative Democrats not grown state government by an unsustainable 21 percent or by nearly a billion dollars during the last two years.”

Does this really matter when you also ignore the warning signs along the way Mr. Acted Decisively?

In August, State Auditor David Vaudt urged the Governor and leaders of the Democratic-controlled Legislature to consider taking corrective budget action to avert deeper spending cuts later after tax collections had fallen below projections four straight months.

This is why the BLN doesn't want to discuss what got us into this mess to begin with!