kenderstest

I wanted to write a letter telling you all of the things you taught me. To point out the things you have passed onto me, and what an influence you have been to me.

But I didn't know what to write. I never realized until tonight how much we have in common, or what an impact you made on me over the years.

But listening to the family reminisce about you tonight caused me to see so much of myself in you, and gave me pause to wonder how different my life may have been without you in it.

Someone said tonight that "nobody could tell you nothing" and "once you made up your mind about what you were gonna do that there wasn't any changing your mind".

But they never once said you ever made a bad decision.

They said you were stubborn and outspoken, and would argue just to argue.

But they couldn't find one time that you were mistaken.

They said you drove too fast.

But they said you would rather hit a tree than a dog.

They said you didn't care who you pissed off, and that when someone was wrong you just had to prove it to them.

But they said you tended to be polite, as long as someone's stupid wasn't showing.

They remembered that you loved to read the paper from front to back everyday.

And that you loved a good bargain.

They mentioned that you could fix anything, and make things from a mound of old parts that had rusted together.

Someone remarked that you loved to watch TV while lying on the floor, and that if you could've you would've lived on toast because it is easy to make.

They remarked that you would wash dishes in scalding hot water, stating that if it wasn't actually burning you it was just a little tickle, and not really hot.

Did I mention that they said you were stubborn?

I sat back and listened to this chatter, while you lay in your casket in the suit you decided one day that you just had to have and then never wore.

I sat and listened to them laugh about your habits and talk about your life.

Remember the lump on your head from when Brenda yelled "DUCK" as you went under one of the very rare (in those days) overpasses on the west Texas plain?

Her and Gwen sure remember the asswhuppin they got.

By the way, Grampa, they still laugh at that one.

Remember back in the early eighties when you had lung cancer and they took one of your lungs? How everyone said you weren't long for this world....everyone but me that is.

I rode my bicycle forty miles to see you in the hospital, and had to sneak in to see you, but I did, and you told me you would be home soon.

You always held to your word Grampa.

They said that tonight too.

I see you in me more each day. I just never realized it until tonight.

Tomorrow they will play Taps and fold the flag that rests atop your casket.

And we will cry.

But tonight Grampa, we laughed.

That is what you taught me Grampa.

To live a balanced life.

To always tell the truth and be damned certain of what the truth was before you opened your mouth. Otherwise you run the risk of your stupid showing.

You showed me compassion and resourcefulness.

You taught me the difference between real pain and a "tickle", and how to endure both.

You showed me Love, and caring, and tenderness, and strength and discipline and determination.

You taught me that life is the journey, and the less time you spend in travel the more time you have to enjoy it.

It would take me another lifetime to tell you in detail all of the things I learned from you Grampa, but another thing you taught me was when to shut up, even though you yourself said the lesson didn't stick.

All this and more I learned at your side, and for that there are no words to express how thankful I am that you were my Grampa.

I will try to do you proud.

Linked at Stop The ACLU, The Political Teen, Mudville Gazette, Wizbang, and Basil's

This is perhaps the hardest thing I have ever written.

My dear grampa, the man that would come home from work and let me have a sip of his beer, (to which I always made a face at), the man that taught me about engineering and gardening, Love and Honor, and gave me a love of politics and debate, has passed away.

He was 88.

His health had been deteriorating for awhile, and his organs shutting down, but when placed in a hospital two weeks before he died, he threw a fit, threatening to call a cab and damn anyone that stood in his way, for all he wanted was to go home.

He knew he was dying, and he wanted to die at home.

My grandfather faced death the same way he faced life. Head on, chin up and with an honesty that was rare these days. He called a spade a spade, and even with his organs shutting down, his eyesight gone in one eye and very dim in another, paid close attention to what was happening in this world, loving nothing more than a lively "debate" (read; argument) after watching O'Reilly.

He quit drinking years ago, but the day before he died he asked for a beer, drinking half of it, and then falling asleep in the sundrenched yard on his scooter.

He was born in Vickburg Mississippi on Christmas Day in 1916, and grew up in Tennessee.

He was a master carpenter and once built a boat from scrap lumber, which he sold for a very handsome profit.

When I was very young, he took a vacuum motor from a broken vacuum, fixed it, reversed the flow and screwed on a handle and placed a flexible piece of tubing with a drain spout on the damned thing and used it as a leaf blower.

He was the King of Scrounge, (something that caused Gramma no end of fits), and at the hardware store on the corner down the street from where he lived when I was young, they very quickly learned to throw nothing out until Mr. Bools came down to see what was truly junk, and what was something just waiting to be turned into something else.

He built me a table when I was about three. I still have that table, and have always treasured it.

Sunday, that table became priceless.

Growing up with Grampa was an experience, and watching him grow old was an adventure. He was a notorious, yet mostly harmless, dirty old man, and he would flirt shamelessly with the nurses that came to take care of my Gramma before she passed. Once, Gramma complained about his flirting, to which he replied, "Well, I like women, if i didn't I wouldn't have married you now would I?"

My grandfather was a construction worker when I was young, and he was tanned whereever the sun hit him. He had a tan so deep I once asked my Gramma why she married a black man. It was so deep in fact that it carried to his dying day.

In WW2 he served in the Navy, and narrowly escaped a courts martial for saying that Roosevelt was an idiot when he heard that Roosevelt was dead. Luckily Truman had been sworn in and Roosevelt was no longer Commander in Chief. Grampa tended to be opinionated and outspoken, (yes, that is where I get some of it), but would run circles around you with his logic. His arguments were bullet proof.

It was Grampa that first told me, many years ago, that going to church no more made one religious than going to the garage made one a car. Of course, he also told me "marry a girl with small hands, boy, it'll make yer pecker look bigger."

He will be buried on Thursday, next to Gramma, with a full Honor guard, piper included.

God Speed Grampa.

Your doodlebug.

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, illegal immigration has come to the forefront yet again as Americans watch hundreds of jobs that could (and should) go to displaced workers being taken instead by illegal immigrants.

Here's the problem: You've got millions of illegal immigrants from south of the border working in jobs that "most Americans won't do." Meanwhile, you've got thousands of people with no jobs and no homes, many of whom have what I call the sponge mentality. This way of thinking can be summed up in one word: Gimme. You know what I'm talking about, right? Gimme welfare. Gimme food stamps.

Now that cleanup is in full swing, hundreds of illegals have jumped on the opportunity to get across the border and get their foot in the door. And sure enough, the next logical step in this process has happened. They think they deserve visas.

"If we are working and helping to raise this city, at least they should give us a work visa," said Manuel Armenta, a 44-year-old Mexican who came to Biloxi five months ago to do cleaning work at a hotel.

Read that again and see if you notice anything. He came here five months ago. That means, he was already here illegally when Hurricane Katrina hit. He's not some philanthropic benefactor, he's an opportunist. He sneaks across the border months ago, and now that the hotel he worked at is gone, he's jumped on the wagon of "helping with the cleanup", and then has the gall to say he deserves permission to be here.

Many migrants living here illegally constantly worry about being detained and expelled.

A visa "would help us to not have fear," said Hugo Martinez, 37, who has been working alongside Armenta.

Doesn't this story just pull at your heartstrings? These poor people, right? Hardly. These illegals are taking jobs that could help people who deserve them. People who lived in New Orleans legally and want to come home and start over, for example.

Both Armenta and Martinez said the main thing is to earn a living, regardless of their immigration status.

"But being legal, one could be here without distrust," Martinez said.

Jose Martinez, a 40-year-old Guatemalan, said the U.S. government should somehow recognize the contribution that undocumented workers are making to rebuild hurricane damaged areas.

"Even if it was just a temporary permit, at least we could get insurance," said the former hotel worker, now laboring to remove debris at a shrimp plant.

See this? They not only want visas, they want insurance. They say "even if it was just a temporary permit", but come on. Does anyone with a brain really think these illegals will leave once their permit is over if they get insurance? Be realistic for crying out loud. They say they worry about being detained or expelled? Then why do they feel so comfortable giving their full names, ages, and what they're doing for work to the media? Doesn't sound like hiding and worrying to me. And let's not even take into account the tone of the article. Written by E. Eduardo Castillo, it's a veritable ode to the merits of amnesty for illegals.

But almost as important as the whining requests demands of the illegals who are so unafraid of getting attention drawn to themselves is the attitude of so many of the New Orleans residents. Let's boil this down.

You have people who are used to laying back and taking what the government gives them instead of getting off their butts to work for it themselves, and then you have illegal immigrants who are aggressive. Think about that. It's no wonder that there's an influx of illegals into New Orleans right now - and it's no wonder that the powers that be are willing to let them stay for a bit to help with the cleanup. G-d forbid that New Orleans residents do it. They're too busy spending their free cash at the strip bar.

Illegals should not be allowed into this country, for any reason. Residents of New Orleans should be given those jobs. One of the reasons our country is so great is because of the "can-do" attitude of our citizens in the past. There was a time when a whole town would gather to help one person rebuild a burned down barn. We have become what we are in part because of an attitude that said, "If it needs to be done, we'll do it until it's done."

Let Americans from New Orleans rebuild their city - if you can get them out of the titty bars and Louis Vuitton shops, that is.

More at the Immigration Blog

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On May 27th, 2005, the Independent Task Force on the future of North America met in New York. This is the line up of speakers that were there. Pay close attention when you read who they are, where they are from and what they once did for work, as there will be a test later.

Speaker: William F. Weld, co-chair, Independent Task Force on the future of North America, former governor of Massachusetts and assistant U.S. attorney general

Speaker: John P. Manley, co-chair, Independent Task Force on the future of North America, former deputy prime minister and minister of finance, Canada

Speaker: Pedro C. Aspe, co-chair, Independent Task Force on the future of North America, former finance minister of Mexico

Speaker: Robert A. Pastor, co-chair, Independent Task Force on the future of North America, director of the Center for North American Studies, American University

Presider: Anthony DePalma, correspondent, the New York Times

Now we will get into the meat of this meeting. I have edited this transcript heavily, as these people are government types so they tend to be wordy, as evidenced by the fact that a reporter would sum up their "short" speech into bullet points at the end of their remarks.

Pay close attention folks, this gets a little long. And pay close attention to the highlighted words.

On May 27th, 2005, John P. Manley, co-chair, Independent Task Force on the future of North America, former deputy prime minister and minister of finance, Canada said:

Our border procedures find their origins in the 19th century when they were created in order to generate revenue for government. And over the years, as the collection of revenue has become less important, a myriad of other responsibilities have been heaped on the border.

In effect, we once guarded the borders solely for economic reasons, but now we must protect the borders from criminals and people that would just stroll in for whatever purpose they have in mind.

And I think what we came to realize was that, if our two borders between Canada and the U.S. and Mexico and the U.S. became a frontline for security, that the impact that that would have on normal relations and economic relations would be very profound.

In other words, we can't make the American Borders a frontline for security. What the hell are these people THINKING???? Making our borders the fromt line for our security is EXACTLY what needs to be done!!! But in the interest of "NORMAL and ECONOMIC RELATIONS" we apparently are not entitled to have secure borders. To sum that last bit up, it is more important for our country to have easy border access for good that flow into and out of America (including tourists and illegals) than it is to make certain that we don't have muslim ectremists sneaking into the country with a suitcase nuke.

Now it goes on to some other insane conclusions:

We made a number of important recommendations, I think. The key one is to think in terms of a security perimeter surrounding a zone of security. We make the point that it is important for all three governments to commit themselves to security within that zone, thereby alleviating some of the need to try to build barriers at our mutual borders.

Pardon me?

A "security perimeter" SURROUNDING a "zone of security"?? Exactly how does one "commit themselves to security within that zone? without building barriers?

It sounds like a fence within a fence to me.

Here is a recommendation for you guys, chip in and build a FENCE along borders and you man your side and we will man our side. Anyone sneaking over, under or through the fence will either be caught or killed, depending on how intent they are about getting into the country.

Now this next bit worries me:

n the case of Canada and the U.S., the extent to which we inspect vessels and particularly container traffic coming into the continent has been sporadic and weak. In fact, as I told my one-time counterpart [former Homeland Security Secretary and] Governor [Tom] Ridge [R-Pa] at one point, you know, you inspect more thoroughly grain cars entering the United States from Saskatchewan than you do container traffic entering the United States from the Middle East, and I think that’s still the case.

If this is still true then someone needs to be fired and procedures put in place to inspect EVERYTHING that comes into this country. You wanna help those lazy buggers in New Orleans? Train them and put them to work inspecting anything that comes into this country. There is plenty of work, and I would rather my hard stolen money be spent on employing people rather than on handouts.

NOW IT FALLS TO US TO BUILD MEXICO???

This is from the remarks made by Pedro C. Aspe;

Why the north took advantage so much of NAFTA? The reason is because two very good frameworks. It has fairly good, fairly decent physical infrastructure— that’s roads, telecommunications— but they were not as good as in the U.S., but they were OK, and they’re improving very, very fast. They’re converging to the south of the U.S.....On the south we have terrible growth.

Surprised? You shouldn't be. This is simply economics at work. The fact is, the closer you get to the U.S. the more development there is going to be. I call it the Bleed Through Effect. Prosperity bleeds through the border. Especially when companies move to Mexico for cheaper labor. Of course they will be closer to the U.S., as it costs them less to move their product up here.

Pedro continues;

We don’t have bridges. Telephone communications are pretty bad....so we have really lack of infrastructure..."

So there is a lack of infrastructure in central and southern Mexico. Guess who is going to foot the bill for building that up?

And to address this thing we have to do three things. First, we have to change our own economic policy. We have innovative fiscal and budgetary policies.

Here is a change for you Mexico, stop sending your people to America to work so they can send money home. Money sent home to Mexico is the second largest part of their economy. (and no I don't have that link at the moment. Stop being lazy and google it) I would have to say that their "innovative fiscal and budgetary policy" is to illegally export people and have them send as much money home to Mexico as they possibly can coupled with paying their police forces poorly which causes corruption to spread like mad.

And we have very low productivity growth....so we do have a problem.

Would that "low productivity growth" have anything to do with the fact that out of 106 million people you have about 40% of your people under the poverty line? It seems to me with a workforce of almost 35 million and an official unemployment of just 3.2% (with UNDEREMPLOYMENT of about 25%) your problem lies with the fact that you have not developed your resources and your government is corrupt in the extreme.
source

First, we in Mexico have to put our house in order in this in reform. But second, the Task Force has been putting forward these three ideas, which I think they are very good. First, the extension of NAFTA to the sector that was not included at the time— which, by the way, at least from the Mexican point of view, the sectors that were not included are the ones whose relative productivity have fallen the most.

So what is he saying here? That NAFTA didn't cover the south of Mexico? BTW, CAFTA came about as a result of this kind of thinking.

Second, we have to increase infrastructure linked to trade. Since the expansion of trade has been so successful, our infrastructure linked to trade has fallen short in part in highways.

There he goes talking about a lack of infrastructure again. He reminds me of a relative that is down on his luck and needs some cash to tide him over. Can you just see this same speech being made while the speaker has his hands in his pockets and is staring at his boot idly drawing circles on the carpet?

WITH SOCIALIST POLICIES TO BOOT

Third, we have to bring equity— capital— private capital to the south— to the center and to the south of the country.

AND NOW FOR THE PITCH!!!

And there we propose that the three countries get together and create an investment fund for bringing infrastructure— physical infrastructure....to the southern parts of Mexico,

Uh huh.....and where is this money going to come from? Why, our pockets dear taxpayers.

...this would only be done if we in Mexico do our homework and get together with all political parties for this big, big road to the south— the big road to equalize the opportunities across the country.

No, what you should have said, Pedro, is this will only be done once Mexico is not rife with corruption and full of drug lords amking war in one of YOUR cities on our border. But you didn't say that did you Pedro? Is it because you realize that Mexico is culturally predicated to corruption?

AND SO GOES THE HOUSE OF CARDS

Former Governor William Weld also spoke at this event, but to see what he said you must go read it your self.

To sum this up, they are attempting to create an economic parity in North America.

This is exactly WHY Bush, nor any other President, will secure the border. There are groups working against us, and our safety, in the furtherance of ECONOMIC PARITY.

Socialists have infiltrated our government apparently, and are hard at work to create a socialist paradise at the expense of not only America's hardwon security, but they want to take down Canada too.....

source 1
source 2

XPOSTED at Cao's and wideawakes

By now you have heard that a judge in California has ruled that saying the Pledge of Allegiance in Government Schools is Unconstitutional.

If you haven't, well, welcome back to civilization.

What, exactly, constitutes "religion"?

Is it going to church?

Well, my grandpa has always said that going to church no more makes you religious than going into the garage makes you a car.

Is it believing in what is in some book?

I don't think so, because I know people that believe in those UFO books and nobody is claiming they worship aliens.

No, religion is the WAY one lives their life and the creed to which one stridently adheres. The most rabid people I know are religious extremists and atheists, but, as Mark Twain once said, I repeat myself.

You see, atheism, not to mention secular humanism, is a religion. People that adhere to the belief that there is no creator are, in effect, adhering to a religious code.

Religion doesn't mean that one fervently believes there is a creator, religion IS the belief system through which one lives their life. It affects the decisions they make day to day and moment to moment.

Recently another judge ruled with this very argument.

"Atheism is [the inmate's] religion, and the group that he wanted to start was religious in nature even though it expressly rejects a belief in a supreme being," the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals said.

Even the Supreme Court of The United States of America has said the same thing:

The Supreme Court has said a religion need not be based on a belief in the existence of a supreme being. In the 1961 case of Torcaso v. Watkins, the court described "secular humanism" as a religion.

So, with that little tidbit out of the way I ask you this;

Is this not proof that the ACLU is promoting one religion over another?

Cross posted at Cao's

Just yesterday a lefty judge ruled the pledge of allegiance unconstitutional. It's pretty simple, either we are a nation under God, or a nation without God. I'm not sure the far left know how dangerous it is that they are trying to take God out of our history, and how fragile our moral fabric has become. It wasn't that long ago the out of control judicial branch ruled in favor of the federal government to take away our private property. There is no doubt the judicial branch has too much power that goes unchecked. It's time Congress step up and put a stop to the judicial tyranny and legislation from the bench. Rehnquist said it should be an impeachable offense. I completely agree.

Part of the process of exposing the radical agenda of the ACLU is to expose some of the deceptive tactics that it uses. One of those methods is often referred to as "spinning". One example of this is to take a quote from someone, take it out of context, and claim that it means something completely different than it's original intent. That is the case in one lie that the ACLU uses in many cases....

Not that many people could quote you the first amendment, but many would tell you that it refers to separation of church and state. That is a common misconception, and is absolutely not true. The words "separation of Church and State" are not in the first amendment. What the first amendment does say is,"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."This falsehood comes up almost every time religion and politics touch, and usually by the ACLU. Most recently it has come up with the issue of the ten commandments case.

So where did this myth come from?

It all started with a letter that Thomas Jefferson wrote to Danburry Baptist Association in 1802. The focus is on a portion of the letter where Jefferson states, "...I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, thus building a wall of separation between church and state..." Jefferson wrote this letter to the Danburry Baptist Association to assure them in their concerns that the government would not establish a national denomination.

One of the most significant in a series of cases heard by the Supreme Court on the establishment of religion clause of the First Amendment was Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962). It was in this case that the phrase "Wall of separation of Church and State" became the cry of the far-left, and anti-Christian movement.

Intent of The Founding Fathers

So, was the original intent of our founding fathers to keep religion completely out of the government? Well, I will let them speak for themselves.

If Jefferson believed that the government should keep its hands out of religion completely, then why, while President of the United States, and the first elected president of the Washington, D.C. public school board, did he place the Bible and the Isaac Watt's hymnal into the public school system as required reading?Source

"Religion is the only solid basis of good morals; therefore education should teach the precepts of religion, and the duties of man towards God."Quote(Gouverneur Morris, 1792, Notes on the Form of a Constitution for France.)
Founding father who physically wrote the Constitution, and most active member of Constitutional Convention, spoke 173 times on the floor.Source

"Why...should not the Bible regain the place it once held as a school book? Its morals are pure, its examples captivating and noble. The reverence for the sacred book that is thus early impressed last long; and, probably, if not impressed in infancy, never takes hold of the mind."Quote
(Fisher Ames, The Works of Fisher Ames, 1809.) Founding father who on September 20, 1789 helped provide the wording for the First Amendment. Source

"Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of Patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars.... The mere politician, equally with the pious man, ought to respect and cherish them.... Let it simply be asked, ‘Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert?' ...And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds...reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle."
(George Washington, 1796, Farewell Address.)Quote

These are just a few quotes showing how the founding fathers recognized religion's place in the founding of our government. The First Amendment was meant to ensure the churches protection from government interference. Not vice versa.

"There was a secular study done by the American Political Science Review on the political documents of the founding era, which was 1760-1805.
This study found that 94% of the documents that went into the founding era were based on the Bible, and of that 34% of the contents were direct quotations from the Bible.
88% of students nationwide are educated in the public school system.
The Bible was the foundation and blueprint for our Constitution, Declaration of Independence, educational system, and our entire history until the last 20 to 30 years".Source

As a matter of fact, Congress funded the printing of the first English language Bible printed in America. It came to be known as the "Bible of the American Revolution".

So to downplay the significance of Christian influence in our nation's founding, is to rewrite history in a false light. The founding fathers never intended for the secularization of the government that groups like the ACLU are advancing now. They wanted freedom to express religion. That is why it is the very first ammendment in the constitution.

Who Has Endowed You With Your Rights?

It is a very important question, because whoever gives you the rights also has the power to take them away. Is it the state or God? Here is what the Declaration of Independence has to say about it:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Source

If you believe that your rights come from the state or society and not God, it brings up the question that George Washington asked...

"..Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert?' ...And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds...reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle."
(George Washington, 1796, Farewell Address.)

Or the one that Jefferson himself asked...""Can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God?"
(Thomas Jefferson,Notes on the State of Virginia, 1781.)

And in summary, I will ask the same question. If you completely remove God from having any role in our government, you have handed your rights over to the State. The founders unanimously agreed that our rights were endowed to us by a Creator. They all signed the famous declaration that stated so. So, their intent should be obvious. It will be a scary day for those in the majority who believe in a deity, if the State tries to assume that role. Especially when it comes to our civil rights. And the secular direction that America is being pushed in is leading us far away from the original intent of our founding fathers. When the Courts have assumed the role of stripping us of our first ammendment rights to express religion, they are playing God! And the fact that this is already beginning to happen, is a legitimate thing for us to fear.

It's time we stand up and make our voices known.

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This is going to be a post of extreme thinking. Many of you will not like what I have to say here today, but you know what?

I Don't Care!!!

After reading this, about doctors killing critically ill people rather than be burdened by them as they fled not only Katrina but their Hippocratic Oath and there professional integrity, I am angry. This is part of the Hippocratic Oath;

To keep the good of the patient as the highest priority.

Along with reading about this horror which tells of 45 patients abandoned in a hospital that have been found dead, I have had it. Were they dead when their caregivers left? We don't know yet. I would wager that these two stories are one and the same........

There are, of course, people that are eager to get "home" and start rebuilding.

And they should. New Orleans is a vibrant city with a rich history and one of the best parties in all of the U.S.

But here's the thing.

To all of you that still think it is Bush's "fault" that FEMA didn't get there for three days (a record for FEMA I believe), and refuse to put the blame where it belongs I will set you straight.

This was NOT the fault of Bush.

This was the result of many years of Democratic rule (corrupt rule at that) and a welfare mentality of most of the people that stayed behind. Not the rule of a democracy (little "d"), but the rule of the "Democrats", (big "D"), and the corruption in New Orleans itself.

The first thing they need to do is get rid of that mayor and get a staunch Conservative in there that isn't corrupt and is friendly to business...someone that wouldn't buckle under the strain of doing what needs to be done.

I would wager that, just like the "police officers" shown looting in Wal Mart, the "caregivers" that left those people in that hospital were "po' folk" that "made good" and "moved up in the world" and really didn't care about the job or responsibility they held. Just a side note regarding those "cops" we saw looting. Fire them, charge them, try them and convict them.

New Orleans had almost 500,000 residents, of which a reported 9% did not have a car!!!

That leaves us with about 45,000 people without a car.

Isn't that about how many were in the Superdome during the storm?

Gen. Hunt Downer of the National Guard estimated 25,000 to 35,000 refugees were in the dome, though arena official Doug Thornton said it was closer to 9,000 in the stands, with more on the floor.

(another side note, if the National Guard weren't in New Orleans until well after the hurricane hit, then how did the above quote come about? ESP?)

Uhhuh...that's what I thought.

How many people in the Superdome do you think were there because they didn't have a car?

How many poor people don't have a car?

Now for the part that is going to piss off a lot of people.

New Orleans should be rebuilt and the poor should NOT be allowed back in.

Gate the damned thing. Keep 'em out. Don't let 'em live there. Don't build low-income housing. Make it smaller and build the levees higher. Cap how much can be built there to try to slow the sinking.

Yes, New Orleans is sinking. About three feet a century. I suppose that is Bush's fault too, huh?

Poor people live in other area's that are prone to disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes and tornado's, and you don't see them "lootin' 'n' shootin'".

It is NOT as if these people HAD to steal vanloads of electronic equipment and new shoes or shoot at the very people trying to help them....they WANTED to steal them and they wanted to shoot at the very people coming to give them aid.

I can't think of one good reason to shoot at someone that is coming in to help you after a natural disaster, but someone in New Orleans sure thought of one.....several someone's in fact.

This is not the third world.

This is The United States of America.

To see the actions of these people in (presumably) their darkest hour act like uneducated masses of starving people in some third world country instead of doing what AMERICANS do in time of trouble such as this is beyond belief and inexcusable.

Instead of the standard response of your typical American citizen, which is to band together and help each other out, these people acted as if they were in the streets of Mogadishu.

This is the result one can expect from the "cradle to the grave" programs that have spewed from the Democratic Party for the last 35+ years.

As far as I am concerned if you can't pay the fare, you shouldn't get to ride, and people that live in "the system" should not get a free pass to act like they did in NO after Katrina.

If you can't afford the price to live in the new and improved New Orleans keep out.

These people have lost the Right to live in New Orleans, and I say, rebuild it and keep the 'em out.


linked over at Kit's

Thanks to Jay and Ogre for the help. I can once again edit the comments of moonbats, which will keep them away from my blog....and before anyone screams about free speech, you have none here....this is my site not yours, and if the DU can ban right thinking people instantly so they can continue with their warped little lovefest, then I can too......chances are though that I wont....more likely I will simply point out what an idiot you are and leave your stupid comments up....thanks to everyone who has commented in the old system....

Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.

Today is September 11th.

I don't have to tell you what that means.

I, like everyone else, have my story.

Where we were...what we were doing....what we were feeling.

For the record I was at home, glued to my TV and taking care of my son.

I made two predictions that day. I was correct on one and, thankfully, severely mistaken on the second.

The first- I called a friend after the second tower fell and told her the name of the man who would be behind the attack. Her father had just called her to say the same.

The second- I said, (knowing that the towers had 50,000 people who worked there), "This may eclipse Viet Nam in deaths".

That is, briefly, where I was and what I was doing.

What was I feeling?

Anger.

Pure Rage.

I didn't shed one tear that day. I still haven't. I refuse to do that. This is still not the time for tears. This is still the time for rage.

I pushed the lump in my throat down constantly that day, as I do now.

Bin laden had declared war on us before 9-11, and I knew that fact BEFORE that day. He said he would bring it to us. Many people want to blame Bush, claiming this failure of National Security is his fault. But it is not.

Blame lays securely on the shoulders of Bill Clinton. Clinton is a coward and had no business running this country. He did not care, for he had little knowledge of what was happening outside our borders. On those rare occassions he did figure something out he was too chickenshit to do more than lob a few missiles here and there.

Clintons cowardice is one of many things we should remember this day.

Because of Clinton's reactions Bin Laden decided Americans were weak and decadent, soft and cowardly. If he thought of Americans as only consisting of the left, the DNC, and other leftist groups, then he would be correct.

CodePink...The New Press....National Council of Arab Americans....the ACLU....and the list goes on.....these are the groups in America that make us weak.....these are the groups who would see this experiment in self government fail.

CAIR, the American Muslim Association, and many other "moderate muslim" groups, are working within our country to destroy us....and Hillary, along with the american left, are aiding our enemies......

This is no time for tears people.

This is a time for anger.

We lost a lot of good people that day.

We continue to lose some good people in Iraq and other places our brave soldiers serve. The difference between the victims of 9-11 and our soldiers is this- our soldiers know who their enemy is, and they go willingly into the fight....(to use a phrase from a great article called Tribes), these people, these Solid Grey Guardians of Freedom, willingly place themselves on the lines.

There is a quote about men sleeping peacefully at night because of rough men standing ready...I am sure you already know it.

We are at war, a state which peaceful people do not want to be in, but a war brought to us by a cowardly leader and a religious zealot who wishes to impose his backwards, born-of-war-and-conquest religion on the world.

If we lose this war, we perish.

Sinply put, it is us or them.....there is no peace treaty....no truce...it is victory or annihilation. No two ways about it.

As Bush put it, you stand with us or against us.....there is no middle ground.

Here at home the war is between those that love Freedom, vs. those on the left pushing soft-headed socialist policies and the ideals of appeasement.

We are in a fight for our very existence, and our enemies are here, in hidden terrorists cells and the halls of Congress...living free amongst us waiting to strike and fighting Boy Scout troops and defending pedophiles.....praying in mosques and running on the democrat ticket.

On this day, remember not only our heroes and the victims of 9-11, but remember that our enemies think us soft and ignorant.

Never forget that our enemies are not only those that claim islam and kill children in the name of allah, but they also claim Jesus and kill children in the name of expediency.

So remember those who died four years ago today.

Cry for them if you must.

Lay flowers and wreaths for our fallen firemen and police.

Light a candle for those who endured hell on earth, trapped hundreds of feet above ground, some deciding to leap rather than perish in the flames.

Pray for our soldiers overseas and hope this country has the will to stay the course and not fall prey to cowardice and false hopes.

As for me, I will once again push down the lump in my throat and force back tears, remembering that the road ahead is still long and more blood will be shed.

I will steel my resolve.

But I shall not cry.

Ogre has some insights that he found wandering the web....pay special attention to what they say, and lest you miss the point, it means, in a nutshell, that welfare and other socialist programs are WRONG!!!!


Go over to Cao's and read the details of cindy's treasonous nature. Pay close attention to the groups supporting her, and realize what bastards they truly are. If you read this and agree with the groups that have hijacked a grieving mothers aching heart in furtherance of thier anti-American ideals then you should be shot for supporting traitorous activity and smacked for being stupid.


TheMaryHunter has a great piece up at Stop the ACLU, (and at his site there is a great many other things to read, always), explaining exactly how ignorant the average American really is.


The Mad Tech has his always awesome WTF Friday Rant. Expect to be clicking and reading plenty over there.

TJ at NIF is a much better link farmer than some other, more well known link farmers, and TJ actually is a good fellow with opinions that AREN'T whiny, wishy-washy leftist crap.....unlike other link farmers who I won't even mention anymore, although if I did you would INSTAntly know who I was talking about. (BTW, Thanks for the link TJ)


Crystal Got Her JOB!!!!


Van Helsing over at moonbattery has the oft repeated tale of that dumbass Kanye "The Whining Liar" West getting his no talent ass booed before the Patriots game. Only, Van Helsing has a very wise word of advice for kerry et.al.

And FINALLY, the bit I have been aching to write ALL DAY (I am technically on vacation). Our Wide Awakes Colleague and Right Thinking Writer Extrodinaire....The Master of Sardonic Wit Formerly Known As SuperHawk, RICK MORAN has an article read by Rush Limbaugh on Rush's show today on the EIB Network at the Limbaugh Institute for Advanced Conservative Studies. Go Check out his site RightWingNutHouse

Congrats Rick.



Make your way through the Wide Awakes Blogroll for more great reading.

And while you are at StoptheACLU consider donating to help get the word out about those treasonous skunks.

One of the most common comments and hate mails I get besides the "you are a nazi that hates freedom" ones, is the infamous "You just inspired me to give $100 to the ACLU", or the "I just re-upped my ACLU membership" ones. This post was inspired by you people.

Dear Mr. or Ms.ACLU member, please work with the ACLU to reform some of their policies. Please get them to disclose their Policy guide so everyone can see what they truly stand for. If they are truly about freedom, they should have nothing to hide.

Please work with them to reform their position on the second amendment. If they are truly to be the defenders of the Constitution, it should be the entire Constitution and not just what is in line with their agenda.

Tell them that the First Amendment applies to everyone, not just those that agree with their interpretation. Let them know that Pro-life demonstrators should have their free speech defende as well, and not ignored. Civil liberties should not be a selective process if you are to claim protecting it for all. If the ACLU cared as much for pro-life free speech as it does for NAMBLA their integrity on their claim to be might not be so questionable.

Ask them to work with the government instead of against it in homeland security issues. I'm sure they will come to some dead ends and disagreements, but a positive outreach to show they actually care about American security more than the imaginary rights of some terrorist could do wonders for their tarnished image. Refusing money from loyal contributors because they don't want their money to go towards the advancement of terrorism makes many Americans leary on giving their money too. It also might help if they didn't work with organizations known to have terrorist ties.

Please talk to them about completely dropping their position on child porn distribution legalization. It's just plain sick.

Let them know that comparing Christians to terrorists is not a good way to get new membership. And tell them I said to have a merry Chistmas this year, and to take it easy on the baby Jesus stuff. Nobody's trying to create a theocracy. Tell them to relax, and enjoy the "winter break." And give everyone else a break about too. Best of luck with that membership, stop the ACLU Blogburst team.

This was a production of Stop The ACLU blogburst. Over 100 blogs are on board. If you would like to join go to our portal

and register. We will add you to our mailing list and send you the simple instructions to be a part of our movement.

Help us get an ad in the Washington Times.




Or Buy a bumper sticker from our store!

This post is going to be a bit on the rough side with regards to language.

Many people have been saying exactly what I am going to say here today, except I am going to put it into words that the people that need to hear it can understand...and I am not talking about you idiots on the left....this time....no, this time I am talking to the idiots that caused all of the havoc in New Orleans after Katrina hit.

I will get to you damned leftist apologists towards the end of this rant, so if you think it is Bush's fault and that all of those scum-sucking lazy welfare leeches and those vile criminals were just doing what it took to survive just hang around....you have plenty of blame too.

What really set me off was this idiot writing an article in the globe and mail, one of those rags out of "canadia" (I love writing the word "canadia"...it really gets those canuks in a tizzy).

He writes:

In U.S. cities like New Orleans, in the analysis of the American-British organizational psychologist Cary Cooper, social cohesion depends on a shared belief that individual hard work, good luck and God's grace will bring a person out of poverty and into prosperity. But those very qualities can destroy the safety net of mutual support that might otherwise help people in an emergency.

No, what you are seeing in New Orleans goes back 40 years, to the creation of the "welfare mentality". These people don't have that rugged American Spirit that defines the best qualities in America. These people have a "Gimme Mine First" mentality coupled with a "Someone Owes Me" syndrome exhibited by the "Wher' Da' Gub'mint?" addiction.

Sad to say this is what you get when you have a welfare mentality and NOT the mentality of a True American.

Two essays have come to my attention that you really need to read to see what is behind this breakdown in society...what caused the utter explosion of lawlessness in New Orleans after the hurricane....in fact, the descriptions of the scenes in New Orleans brought to mind another scene of a port town being looted by lawless criminals bent on looting the town of every last bit of plunder before the authorities arrived to stop their rampage.....unfortunately this scene is a romanticized version of a time that scenes like the last few days in NO were much more common place. I am talking about the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland.

(one of those essays is Here, called "tribes" and the other is here. Go read them both.)

But this isn't a ride. This isn't a romantic version of history. This is real...and the dogs that have been looting are the same kind of people that would have been pirates in an earlier time....then again, maybe not....pirating was hard work.

The people out looting are the product of the left's attempt to "take care of those less fortunate"....only they have created a nanny state, one that causes people over generations, (YES, GENERATIONS) to come to expect that the government will be there to take care of everything no matter what.

The people that have been looting are, for the most part, (and by "most" I mean the vast majority of them), common criminals. Even these cops!!!

I bet a lot of you are wondering if I am going to bring up the fact that it seems to be only the blacks out doing this right?

I don't have to....This guy already did that.

The New Orleans PD is apparently rife with cowards and lazy bastards that don't deserve to wear the badge. You can read about that here.

Do you remember all of the stories about cops turning in their badges in New York as the clean-up at ground zero began?

Neither do I!!!

Here is a great bit from this story:

One man was packing his van so full of computers, televisions and DVD players that he had trouble closing the rear doors.

Another bit from that same story really gives you the mindset of the people that stayed in NO during the storm:

When a teenage girl passed out face down between the baby clothes and a womenÂ’s sock display, people pushed past or stepped on her.

Joseph LoCascio, of Picayune, Miss., stopped to try to help the girl. He rolled her over, and she vomited pink liquid all over her face and hair. He then rolled her back.

"This is" messed "up," he said. "People just walking around like they donÂ’t care. All theyÂ’re worried about is getting free bulls-- instead of a human life."

Let me put this in a nutshell people.

The majority of the people in the welfare system are there for life. They were born into it...they will die in it...and during that intervening time they will raise another generation in it.

Clinton's legacy of dismantling the welfare state didn't go far enough.

Poverty is a learned condition, not an economic condition, and until these useless lazy bastards learn to do for themselves this will happen again. Let the terrorists set off a nuclear device in the ghetto or barrio, the slums or the projects, anywhere that poor people congregate, and you will see this again.

The policies enacted by the left over the last 40 years have been a huge mistake, and a costly one at that. The ingrained racism in the policies of welfare and affirmative action are shameful, and only by having an ignorant population too distracted by poverty could the left have kept it going for this long.

Welfare doesn't work....and New Orleans needs to be rebuilt....guess who should be doing the grunt labor in that endeavor?

Yep...all those people that are out there looting and pillaging......give 'em stiff sentences and make 'em work on clean-up crews....tell them that if they want a check dammit, they are gonna have to WORK for it.....as long as they can at least lean on a broom and push it along put 'em to work.

As for you softheaded lefties out there worried about all of the victims of Katrina, worry about the true victims....the people that lost their homes and possessions, their loved ones and their jobs.

Don't worry about those folks out there "getting the necessities" like make-up and electronics.....those folks are gonna do just fine...either on your welfare system or robbing you on a dark street at night...they'll be fine!!!

Bob Denver has died.

He was 70.

Now I will have the Gilligans Island Theme in my head all day.

Let it be known that more PROOF of the pessimistic and derogatory mindset of THE LEFT
has been documented by a poll. From a poll released by ABC News, of all organizations.

55% of those polled do not blame President Bush for the storm's devastation, and although 67% think the federal government wasn't "adequately prepared," 75% say the same thing about state and local government.

People in this country that are spending their time running down the President are wasting everybodies time and simply driving a wedge between themselves and anyone that may be paying attention and have thoughts about voting Democrat next year.

Democrats were far more likely than Republicans to describe themselves as "shocked" (68% to 42%), "angry" (63% to 27%) and "ashamed" (63% to 28%) at the response to Katrina, while Republicans were far more "hopeful" (80% to 50%) and "proud" (43% to 17%).

Go read the article for yourselves, and if you are a liberal, or a democrat, or just don't like Bush, the Right or believe the garbage spilling out about how horrid and evil Bush&Co are then go cry in your Granola and Soy Milk you whiny bitches.

If you are on, in and of the Right, go dance!!!

Crossposted at Cao's and Canservative Angst.