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The Weblog at The View from the Core - Tuesday, November 30, 2004
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What's Up With This? II Another article one can't tell whether it's serious or slapstick. I won't comment on it. Because I can't fathom how. See also What's Up With This? Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 08:58:11 PM |
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Ann Coulter Picks Up Every Republican Senator and Slaps Them All Silly Right here, Nov. 24: .... It is as certain that Arlen Specter will double-cross Republicans as it is that Bob Shrum will lose his next presidential campaign. You can add this to a certain infamous list that already includes "death" and "taxes." What will Republicans do then? If Republicans are worried about not appearing "fair" to the editors of the New York Times if they deny Specter a chairmanship now, how will it look if Republicans wait for Specter to double-cross them to strip him of his chairmanship? If they're not willing to do that, then the moment Specter becomes chairman, the only people he will have to please all work at the New York Times, CBS and other sworn enemies of the Republican Party. Finally, individual Republican senators oppose stripping Specter of his chairmanship for fear that they too will be punished every time they fail to toe the party line – and God forbid a Republican hesitate before holding a press conference to denounce his own party. It would be worth making Sen. Lincoln Too-Dumb-to-Know-He's-a-Democrat Chafee chairman of some important Senate committee if that's what it takes to calm Republican "mavericks," as the New York Times calls Republicans who agree with the New York Times. The Judiciary Committee is different. Liberals cannot win when Americans are allowed to vote, so they jam their insane ideas down our throats through the courts. In Bush's second term, there is no more important committee than the one charged with overseeing his judicial nominations. If Republicans blow this once-a-century opportunity to end the tyranny of the judiciary, they deserve to lose. And they can't keep counting on Democrats to hire Bob Shrum. Shrum, FYI, is a Democratic strategist & speechwriter who has worked for eight presidential campaigns — all of them losers. Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 08:35:04 PM |
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Hollywood Still Strangely Silent Pat Sajak writes at HEO, today: .... Maybe they think it would be intolerant of them to criticize the murder, because it would put them on the side of someone who criticized a segment of the Arab world. And, after all, we are often reminded that we need to be more tolerant of others, especially if they’re not Christians or Jews. There’s another possibility; one that seems crazy on the surface, but does provide an explanation for the silence, and is also in keeping with the political climate in Hollywood. Is it just possible that there are those who are reluctant to criticize an act of terror because that might somehow align them with President Bush, who stubbornly clings to the notion that these are evil people who need to be defeated? Could the level of hatred for this President be so great that some people are against anything he is for, and for anything he is against? As nutty as it sounds, how else can you explain such a muted reaction to an act that so directly impacts creative people everywhere? Can you conceive of a filmmaker being assassinated because of any other subject matter without seeing a resulting explosion of reaction from his fellow artists in America and around the world? As I said, it’s a nutty-sounding explanation, but we live in nutty times. See Hollywood Strangely Silent. (Thanks, Bryan.) Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 08:05:58 PM |
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Conservative News Flash Weblog at The Insider Online. Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 07:43:52 PM |
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Catholicae Testudines A young Catholic weblog. (Thanks, Jeff.) Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 07:19:51 PM |
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Catholic Carnival VI At Happy Catholic this week. (Thanks, Jeff.) Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 07:07:13 PM |
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"Talking the Talk" An insightful and forthright article by George Weigel at EPPC, yesterday: .... What Kerry’s secularist supporters can’t seem to understand is that the evangelicals, the John Paul II Catholics, and the observant Jews don’t need explaining; what needs explaining is the Harvard faculty club, Michael Moore, and most of the op-ed regulars at the New York Times – people who’ve persuaded themselves that a profound belief in the God of the Bible, expressed in a commitment to live by the Ten Commandments, is the fast track to fascism. They’re the anomaly, not the believers. If they’d ever take a field trip out of their secularist bunkers to meet the rest of America, they might find we’re not so scary after all. The secularists did have one triumph on November 2: Proposition 71 in California, which embroils the state in scientifically dubious and morally reprehensible stem-cell research. Prop 71's success – in an election cycle that saw proponents of traditional marriage bat eleven-for-eleven and pro-life candidates do very, very well – suggests that the "values people," as we’re now labeled, haven’t yet learned to talk the talk on issues posed by the new biotechnologies. We can make the arguments – scientific, moral, philosophical; the arguments are rationally persuasive. Then Michael J. Fox comes into the hearing room and the debate is over. What’s the language that meets the challenge posed by misconstrued compassion ("Did you want Chris Reeve to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair?") and utilitarianism ("If it works, it must be right.")? We don’t have it, yet. We need it. Soon. Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 06:03:49 PM |
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Help Steve Gardner Re: Gardner Punished for Anti-Kerry Stance. At Power Line, yesterday: Thanks to all of our readers who have written offering to make contributions to Steve Gardner or otherwise expressing interest in helping him. We tracked down Mary Laney, the freelance reporter who wrote the Chicago Sun-Times story that Deacon linked to earlier today. Here's her message: I'm glad you picked up my column on Steve Gardner. He certainly deserves better than he's gotten for speaking up about what happened on that Swiftboat those years ago. I'm not at liberty to give out his address or phone number, but he has allowed me to give you his email address: sgardner5@carolina.rr.com. I hope a great job can be found for this man.Best, We've already forwarded one message with information regarding available jobs. Let's see if we can help a friend in need. At the very least, please say a prayer for Steve Gardner and his family. Thanks. Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 05:44:48 PM |
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"Thought Crime Becomes a Reality in Canada" Thanks to Margaret for this interview of Catholic novelist & artist Michael O'Brien: .... We now have Thought Crime in Canada, just as Orwell predicted. Few people believe this could be the beginning phases of an Orwellian 1984 or alternatively a softer form of totalitarian government such as Huxley’s Brave New World. But the elements of State-enforced social reconstruction are now in operation. We should also consider the fact that in just over one generation we have been shifted from a society in which homosexual activity was a crime under the then existing law, to a society in which homosexual activity has become a government-protected and fostered activity, while voicing criticism of it has become the crime. I see this as a prime example of the new totalitarianism. Clearly, we have now arrived at a situation in which "some of us are more equal than others", as Orwell predicted. In its hate propaganda provisions the law states that in order to be found guilty of an indictable offense, a person must communicate statements in a public place which "incite hatred against an identifiable group" in such a way that there will "likely be a breach of the peace." The courts have already proven their startling subjectivity on homosexual issues. A breath of protest from a Christian is a hate crime, while aggressive disruption of Christian gatherings by gay militants are often overlooked and go unprosecuted. A whiff of Germany in the early 1930’s is discernible in the atmosphere. Of course, glancing about our streets we do not see any concentration camps or marching jackboots. But will the prisons some day hold Christian inmates whose only crime is speaking the truth? And as for jackboots, activist homosexual groups have behaved like Nazi hooligans of the late1920’s and early 1930’s, for example their recent outrageous behavior at Archbishop Adam Exner’s residence in Vancouver. Many of the terms in the new law are largely undefined, such as "sexual orientation," "inciting hatred," "a likelihood of breach of the peace" and thus there is an ambiguity so broad that one could drive a battleship through it. It will be left to the courts to do the dirty work of interpreting, condemning, and imprisoning. They have already proved themselves quite willing to do so, and the new law offers them added incentives.... Western Catholic Reporter takes a brief look at O'Brien, Nov. 29. (Thanks, Carl.) Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 05:31:42 PM |
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Sensible Mom At It Again With lots more facts and figures: .... Here is a detailed analysis I did of the red and blue states. I have been looking at this data since Lawrence O'Donnell called the red states welfare states. For the worksheet I analyzed many different variables, including a sampling of agricultural data, act scores (idea from Powerline), net marital rates (percent married less percent divorced), welfare rates, unemployment rates, crime rates, federal funds per population, corporate net income taxes (gross less refunds), net individual income taxes (less corporate income taxes to offset big city benefits). My theory being if the liberals dislike corporate America then they shouldn't be allowed to benefit from it in this comparison. Each state was ranked by category, and then a total rank for each state across all categories was calculated (last column). The worksheet is sorted from best to worst based on the overall ranking.... See also Sensible Mom Smacks Lawrence O'Donnell. Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 07:50:56 AM |
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Abortion Quotes Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 07:32:58 AM |
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"Canada Busy Sending Back Bush-Dodgers" This very enjoyable satire has been making the e-mail rounds. + + + + +
Canada busy sending back Bush-dodgers The flood of American liberals sneaking across the border into Canada has intensified in the past week, sparking calls for increased patrols to stop the illegal immigration. The re-election of President Bush is prompting the exodus among left-leaning citizens who fear they'll soon be required to hunt, pray and agree with Bill O'Reilly. Canadian border farmers say it's not uncommon to see dozens of sociology professors, animal rights activists and Unitarians crossing their fields at night. "I went out to milk the cows the other day, and there was a Hollywood producer huddled in the barn," said Manitoba farmer Red Greenfield, whose acreage borders North Dakota. The producer was cold, exhausted and hungry. "He asked me if I could spare a latte and some free-range chicken. When I said I didn't have any, he left. Didn't even get a chance to show him my screenplay, eh?" In an effort to stop the illegal aliens, Greenfield erected higher fences, but the liberals scaled them. So he tried installing speakers that blare Rush Limbaugh across the fields. "Not real effective," he said. "The liberals still got through, and Rush annoyed the cows so much they wouldn't give milk." Officials are particularly concerned about smugglers who meet liberals near the Canadian border, pack them into Volvo station wagons, drive them across the border and leave them to fend for themselves. "A lot of these people are not prepared for rugged conditions," an Ontario border patrolman said. "I found one carload without a drop of drinking water. They did have a nice little Napa Valley cabernet, though." When liberals are caught, they're sent back across the border, often wailing loudly that they fear retribution from conservatives. Rumors have been circulating about the Bush administration establishing re-education camps in which liberals will be forced to drink domestic beer and watch NASCAR. In the days since the election, liberals have turned to sometimes ingenious ways of crossing the border. Some have taken to posing as senior citizens on bus trips to buy cheap Canadian prescription drugs. After catching a half-dozen young vegans disguised in powdered wigs, Canadian immigration authorities began stopping buses and quizzing the supposed senior-citizen passengers. "If they can't identify the accordion player on The Lawrence Welk Show, we get suspicious about their age," an official said. Canadian citizens have complained that the illegal immigrants are creating an organic-broccoli shortage and renting all the good Susan Sarandon movies. "I feel sorry for American liberals, but the Canadian economy just can't support them," an Ottawa resident said. "How many art-history majors does one country need?" In an effort to ease tensions between the United States and Canada, Vice President Dick Cheney met with the Canadian ambassador and pledged that the administration would take steps to reassure liberals, a source close to Cheney said. "We're going to have some Peter, Paul & Mary concerts. And we might put some endangered species on postage stamps. The president is determined to reach out." + + + + + Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 11/30/04 07:23:11 AM |
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