The World Turned Upside Down

A few centuries ago the British bemoaned their cultural upheaval in song. Unfortunately it seems time to start singing a new version, inspired by this pathetic bit of news: "Archbishop of Canterbury argues for Islamic law in Britain"

Listen to me and you shall hear,
news hath not been this thousand year:
Since Herod, Caesar, and many more,
you never heard the like before.
Holy days are despised.
new fashions are devised.
Old Christmas is kicked out of Town.
Yet let's be content, and the times lament,
You see the world turn'd upside down.

The wise men did rejoice to see
our Savior Christ's Nativity:
The Angels did good tidings bring,
the Shepherds did rejoice and sing.
Let all honest men,
take example by them.
Why should we from good Laws be bound?
Yet let's be content, and the times lament,
You see the world turn'd upside down.

P.C. now reigns, we must obey
and quite forget the Christian way.
Kill three thousand men, or two towers fall?
We must not say a word at all!
The world must all be linked,
while we just feast and drink.
And then strange notions will abound.
Yet let's be content, and the times lament,
You see the world turn'd upside down.

Our Lefts and Rights and Centrists too
dare not offend a soul (but you):
Deploying sappers at our wall,
invaders shan't be hindered at all.
They count it as good
to play Robin Hood
while good men in bad laws are drowned.
Yet let's be content, and the times lament,
You see the world turn'd upside down.

A list of rulers, truly mad -
Ayatollah to Ahmenadijad -
slay all who stand to block their paths.
Dance halls and bus stops? Now bloodbaths.
The deaths of innocents they rejoice
with insane ululating voice.
Jew, Gentile, Hindu - no quarter found.
Yet let's be content, and the times lament,
You see the world turn'd upside down.

The mullahs will rejoice aloud
to make their western mushroom clouds,
and stoning women and children to death
won't cause them even one sad breath.
Now stand, my brothers, to cease
their bloodthirsty cult of "peace"!
And once again we shall hear
true peace throughout the year.
Let's not be content, and weakly lament,
To see the world turn'd upside down.

update: sadly, it's not just "across the pond" any more

ClearPlay

This looks like a good idea: a self-censoring DVD player.

how about "America is great, ignore the whiners."

Lileks has a six-word motto for the NYTimes, and its little poll too, "Hundreds of snippets of derisive snark."

"You can picture the satisfied little grins on the authors’ faces; you can imagine the whole tableau – the computer (which most people in the world will never touch, let alone use, let alone own) the TV in the corner connected to a network that has channels catering to every taste, the iPod stocked with music hoovered up free of charge without consequence, the fridge stocked with food – the light comes on when you open the door, too, unless it’s burned out, and then you go to the store and get another one; they always have another one. The soft bed, the coffee machine, the well-fed pet, the vast panoply of free information and unfettered opinion flowing 24/7 from the internet. You can drink alcohol without being sentenced to death; you can be a girl alone in a room with a man without earning a public stoning; you can stand up in a room and argue for the candidate of your choice without being arrested; you stand in a society that allows for astonishing amounts of freedom, comfort and opportunity. But.

But. Someone somewhere is a practicing Baptist and someone somewhere else is eating a hamburger larger than you’d prefer, and other people are watching cars go around a track at high speed. As your skinny unhappy friend said the other night: people are just too fat and happy. He bites his nails and plays WoW six hours a night, but he has a point. It doesn’t matter that these fascists-in-fetal-form never quite seem to accomplish anything; it’s not like they drove the gay Teletubbies off the air or had Tony Kushner drawn and quartered in the public square. But they’re preventing something. Something wonderful. And they’re driving large cars to Wal-Mart and putting 18-roll packs of Charmin in the back and they have three kids. Earth has withstood a lot in its four billion years, but it cannot withstand them. And even if it does, who wants to live in a world where these people don’t care that they’re being mocked by small, underfunded theaters in honest, gritty neighborhoods?"

my motto for that article is "read the rest, it gets better."

"progress"ing us off a cliff

Bidinotto says "anybody but McCain"

"While the (Jonah) Goldberg article zeroes in on Democrat "progressives" like Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, he surprisingly -- and completely inconsistently -- gives a pass to Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain. McCain embodies not Wilsonian progressivism, like the other two; rather, he embodies Teddy Roosevelt progressivism. Here's a candidate who calls himself "conservative," but who spends much of his time channeling bully-boy Teddy R while bashing corporations, extolling "patriotism" over "profits," assaulting the First Amendment (McCain-Feingold), pushing hardcore environmentalism (no oil drilling in Alaska; imposing cap-and-trade restrictions on carbon dioxide emissions; touting the horrors of "global warming"), voting against major tax cuts, demanding individual self-sacrifice on behalf the great unifying causes of The State -- and calling us "my friends" while he picks our pockets and directs our lives.

If Mike Huckabee embodies the extreme social-conservatism minority within the GOP, McCain represents a resurrection of progressivism, long-interred since the early twentieth century. And his brand of progressive statism, like Hillary's, borrows from an ugly intellectual tradition long denied by progressives, but thoroughly exposed by Goldberg: fascism.

No, Bidinotto is not saying that the election of Hillary, Obama, or McCain will be a harbinger of brownshirts in the streets kicking down doors and beating up writers, bloggers, and editors like...well, like me. No, modern times require more sophisticated methods of social control and coercion. Like compulsory "national service" programs, in which we will all be required to do our Patriotic Duty by participating in various "progressive" social causes. Like controls on political activity and political speech via the IRS and "campaign finance reforms."

For people on the right, opposition to the liberal, Wilsonian progressivism of Hillary and Obama is a no-brainer. But in their visceral reactions against liberal Democrat progressives, many of these same right-wingers seem poised to rush headlong and without reflection into the waiting arms of conservative Republican progressive John McCain.

On the heels of George W. Bush's "compassionate conservatism" -- i.e., big-government altruism on behalf of conservative values -- John McCain's selection as the GOP leader would be a further ideological disaster for the party, and for the nation. His ascendancy would cement in place within American politics two hard-core variants of statism as the only major-party alternatives, and thus effectively banish the individualist/limited-government faction from participation in the political process.

That trend has been underway for decades, with growing numbers of Republican candidates doing their best to repudiate and run from the party's individualist premises. Some of the better conservatives, like George Will and Rush Limbaugh, have been sounding the alarm. So has Objectivist writer Robert Tracinski, the most philosophically astute of the various commentators.

But now, with the best GOP candidates (Rudy Giuliani and Fred Thompson) gone, and two remaining candidates (Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul, in their own ways just as bad ideologically as McCain) not realistically in contention, that leaves the underwhelming Mitt Romney as the last best hope of stopping McCain. But at this point, unless Romney manages to pull the proverbial rabbit out of the proverbial hat (I turn my secular eyes to California tonight, and desperately offer up a secular prayer), then the fall election will be a choice between Tweedledee liberal progressivism and Tweedledum conservative progressivism. And either way the election turns out, the next four years will be a statist nightmare."

(emphases mine)

I'm not ready to say who I'd vote for in a McCain-vs-either-dem race (update: CSM is), but in the "lesser of two evils" sense it might feel like a choice between cthulhu and morgoth...

undersea cable cut

If you pay close attention to online news, you may have heard about undersea communications lines being cut around the Middle East. While Occam's Razor might point to an earthquake in the region, the comments here are much more entertaining. I'll paraphrase the best ones:

First time is an accident. Second time's a coincidence. Third time it's a conspiracy. So what's the fourth time, profit???

It was American Tech Support, getting revenge for all the outsourcing.

USS Jimmah say hai!!1!

Cloverfield?

of course, i had to add

"lolsquid say "i'm on ur seaflor chuwin ur cablz nom nom nom""

stuck in the commune

Get Offa My Lawn Party member Twisted Spinster is upset about what will happen to the TV series 24:

"...it’s a shame that yet another apparently hard-hitting and gritty show is going to be shoved into the Very Special Lesson cesspool...

...(also) two extremely obnoxious "Global Warming Will Kill Cuddly Things" spots, one by the World Wildlife Federation (due to the length, the lies told — it uses those shots of polar bears floating on ice floes as emotional manipulation devices, images which we know to have been edited in such a way as to not show the fact that the bears were floating next to much larger and more solid ice sheets which they could easily reach by their usual method of just swimming over to them — and the gulpy sobbing voice of the actress they used I have resolved never to give them a dime in contribution); and another by some website which uses the anti-appeal of a Cute Widdle Kids montage of them each saying “Tick.” “Tick.” “Tick.” “Tick.” “Tick.” until I hit the mute button... Way to get me on your side, Glopaholics.

But it’s always been like this. Dealing with what our so-called entertainment media sees fit to serve up to us here in the US of A has always been an exercise in torment for anyone who thinks that art should not take a back seat to teaching five-year-olds how to share their toys. Unfortunately to get into power in this country... you have to be the sort of person who really believes that the rest of the nation is comprised of toddlers clutching their dollies stubbornly to their chests. I don’t think I have to give any examples, do I? Just think of the upcoming election, or look at the night’s television schedule. The media, of course, is part of the powers that run this country. Back when I was young the problem was an entertainment industry hamstrung by the need to be “proper” according to the standards of no later than twenty years previous. In the Sixties and Seventies that meant the Forties and Fifties was the touchstone of progress, and Depression-era decorum was the norm, which meant only women on TV wore white gloves and hats when they went outdoors. Today, in the supposedly progressive first decade of the 21st century, our Baby-Boomer-run media empire has stalled in those halcyon days when women considered themselves “emancipated” if they were living with bearded stoners, being called “my old lady,” and serving mushroom tea instead of coffee to all the bearded stoner’s bearded stoner pals. There have been a few attempts to crawl at least into the Reagan era, but for the most part we’re stuck in the commune..."

(slightly edited)

what a wonderful world it would be :P

I was a little young to have paid close attention to Jimmy Carter's administration at the time. Except for hearing about high interest rates and gas prices (plus having a vague sense of malaise), I had no idea then how his presidency was.

But these days, the more I hear about him, the less I think of him. And the following article really sealed that low opinion - Jimmy thinks that Jesus should have given in to the devil's temptation:

"What a wonderful and benevolent government Jesus could have set up. How exemplary justice would have been. Maybe there would have been Habitat projects all over Israel for anyone who needed a home. And the proud, the rich, and the powerful could not have dominated their fellow citizens. As a twentieth-century governor and president I would have had a perfect pattern to follow. I could have pointed to the Bible and told other government leaders, "This is what Jesus did 2000 years ago in government. Why don't we do the same?""

The author adds some choice words,

"Carter places the miracles of government bureaucracy ahead of those of his own church, yet still wonders why the largest single contingent of Baptists in the country is skeptical of his New Covenant. "I treat theological arguments gingerly but am bolder when it comes to connecting my religious beliefs with life and current events in the world, even when the issues are controversial," Carter writes in Living Faith. In other words, the details of scripture are uninteresting until they offer a rationale for Carter's left-wing predilections or somehow justify the four years of tribulation known as his presidency."

and FrankJ adds elsewhere,

"So if you're wondering what means liberals think are okay to achieve their goals, the line is apparently drawn somewhere beyond deals with Satan."

math against tyranny?

why the electoral college is still a good idea

to the uttermost

Herescope excerpted part of a great sermon which should be read in its entirety. Here is part of the conclusion:

Was there ever a poor needy object that came and tell down at the feet of Christ when upon earth, whom that blessed Man of Sorrows sent away unheeded? Not one! And has He not now the same tender feelings, and are not these all united with infinite power, mercy, grace, and love? Thus He is able to save to the uttermost... However desperate the circumstances of the case may be, the Lord's arm is long enough and strong enough to pluck His child out of the depths of the Fall. Why? Because He ever liveth to make intercession for them; because the steam of His incense ever fills the court of heaven above. By sitting at God's right hand in glory, majesty, and power, "he is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by Him."

Shall not this be more or less our experience to the end of our days? Shall we ever get beyond this coming to God by Jesus Christ, and being saved experimentally by His blood and righteousness.'? No, there will be a daily coming to the Lord through Jesus Christ, – coming as poor and needy, having nothing and being nothing, and looking up to Him to supply all our wants out of His fulness, seeing we are destitute and have nothing but rags, and ruin, and misery in ourselves. It is thus we get comfort, and crown Him Lord of all. And what a precious thing it is for a poor sinner who is come to the Lord, though it may be from the ends of the earth, to know that He is a God that cannot lie! He hath said, "All that the Father giveth me shall come unto me, and him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out."

csm: "the religion of peace strikes again"

There can be no more apt title than the one Cheat Seeking Missiles made for this sickening story.

If serving Allah includes hiding behind retarded women while murdering innocent people (and pedophilia), put me down as the Anti-Allah.

time was...

If you're not already reading "The Daily Spurgeon", I would highly recommend it.

Time was... when every shower of rain was seen to come from heaven, when every ray of sunshine was blessed, and God was thanked for having given fair weather to ingather the fruits of the harvest. Then, men talked of God as doing everything. But in our days where is our God? We have the laws of matter... We talk now of phenomena, and of the chain of event, as if all things happened by machinery, as if the world were a huge clock which had been wound up in eternity, and continued to work without a present God. Nay, not only our philosophers, but even our poets rant in the same way. They sing of the works of Nature. But who is that fair goddess, Nature? Is she a heathen deity, or what? Do we not act as if we were ashamed of our God, or as if his name had become obsolete? Go abroad wherever you may, you hear but little said concerning Him who made the heavens, and who formed the earth and the sea; but everything is nature, and the laws of motion and of matter. And do not Christians often use words which would lead you to suppose that they believed in the old goddess, Luck, or rested in that equally false deity, Fortune, or trembled before the demon of Misfortune? Oh for the day when God shall be seen, and little else beside!

sick sad world

oh woe is we!

how can we have "no child left behind"? let no child get ahead!

yet another quagmire!

real men

...are still needed today:

You see a lot of things which are called men, who turn the way the wind blows; a number of preachers that turn north, south, east and west, just according as the times shall dictate and their circumstances and the hope of gain shall drift them. I pray God to send a few men with what the Americans call “grit” in them; men who when they know a thing to be right, will not turn away, or turn aside, or stop, men who will persevere all the more because there are difficulties to meet or foes to encounter; who stand all the more true to their Master because they are opposed; who, the more they are thrust into the fire, the hotter they become, who, just like the bow, the further the string is drawn, the more powerfully will it send forth its arrows, and so, the more they are trodden upon, the more mighty will they become in the cause of truth against error.

conservative leadership

if it's not fred, it may be scott.

update 1: well crud.

update 2: sad but true, however...

if 1) there is "no taxation without representation" and 2) there are no conservatives in government, then it should follow that conservatives no longer have to pay taxes, right?

re: Dana Jacobson

Let's leave the fatwas to the Muslims

Quagmire!

If you thought the "War on Terror" and "War on Drugs" have been bad, the "War on Poverty" has been absolutely devastating! Pull out now!!

;)

the stifling of dissent, part 8375692

yet another example of the left's mantra of "free speech for us"...

the osprey works

some of us already knew it would...

go fly a... balloon

this one made it almost twenty miles up

party time

update & bump: Welcome all visitors from McGehee, HotAir, and beyond!

Since neither of the major US political parties are truly (i.e. small-government) conservative, it might be time to start a new political party - GET OFFA MY LAWN!

The preliminary platform is:

You want to tax me for the bribes you’re offering people to vote for you? GET OFFA MY LAWN!

You want to impose limits on the kinds of food I eat, based on junk science? GET OFFA MY LAWN!

You want to drag the freest and most prosperous society in human history back to the Stone Age because some wacko claims we’re going to burn the planet to a crisp and drown those cuddly polar bears? GET OFFA MY LAWN!

You want to kill me and everyone else who doesn’t share your belief in the holiness of a meteorite in Mecca? GET OFFA MY LAWN!

update: Dustbury wants a logo, so here's my take:

what more reason do you have?

Wry Mouth ridicules belief in the imaginary. :)

don't be (whatever it is that i happen to think is) evil

certain quotes stand out of the (several) pages of this article:

"Evil," says Google CEO Eric Schmidt, "is what Sergey says is evil."

...it's difficult to say on which side of the good-evil line the company's China resolution falls. Brin seems at peace with how it all turned out.

Talking about his decisions and the values he holds most dear, Brin chooses his language carefully, but one word he repeatedly comes back to is "useful."

If Brin's code of good and evil permits the company to negotiate with sovereign governments and allows for some legal meddling from unpopular religions, there is no wiggle room - no gray area whatsoever - when it comes to those who attempt to subvert the power of Google to their own commercial ends. One thing Brin is sure of: On the side of evil lies trickery.

The fact that Google accepts advertising for adult content sites is an intriguing commentary on Brin's morality: Cigarettes and booze are evil; porn is not. It's a policy that would become progressively harder to defend were Google to go public.

What if an influential group of politically active netizens makes a rousing case for boycotting Google on the grounds that it is anti-free speech and in cahoots with repressive governments? How long can a hugely powerful company that plays its decisions so close to the vest and refuses to justify itself publicly count on the devotion of the average information-hungry Web user?

It's inevitable that a company of Google's size and influence will have to compromise on purity.

and also in context of these articles:

Hiding in Plain Sight, Google Seeks More Power

Google permits ads for spamware, rejects firearms-related ads

the curse

update: viewpoint has more on the topic.

I knew how much she inspired cursing in others, now here's some curses straight from the horse's... mouth (not safe for work, play, or government):

Selwyn Duke's list

Tammy Bruce's list

and let's not forget the clinton body count, which, if even one of them is true, should immediately disqualify hillary.

on the weekdays

another spurgeon excerpt:

Our religion is to be an everyday religion — a religion for the kitchen as well as for the parlor, a religion for the rolling pin, and the jack-towel, quite as much as for the pulpit stairs and the Bible — a religion that we can take with us wherever we go. And there is such a thing as glorifying Christ in all the common actions of life. “Servants be obedient to your masters, not only to those who are good and gentle, but to the froward.” You men of business, you need not think that when you are measuring your ribbons, or weighing out your pounds of sugar, or when you are selling, or buying, or going to market, and such like, that you cannot be serving Christ. Why a builder can serve Christ in putting his bricks together, and you can serve Christ in whatever you are called to do with your hands, if you do it as unto the Lord, and not unto men. I remember Mr. Jay once said, that if a shoeblack were a Christian, he could serve Christ in blacking shoes. He ought to black them, he said, better than anyone else in the parish; and then people would say, “Ah, this Christian shoeblack, he is conscientious; he won’t send the boots away with the heels half done, but will do them thoroughly.” And so ought you. You can say of every article you sell, and of everything you do, “I turned that out of my hands in such a manner that it shall defy competition. The man has got his money’s worth; he cannot say I am a rogue or a cheat. There are tricks in many trades, but I will not have anything to do with them; many get money fast by adulteration in trade, but I will not do it, I would sooner be poor than do it.”

ze sky, she notta fallin

Lileks doesn't look forward to today (edited).

...top-of-the-hour radio news with the newsreaders using their Important Concern inflection because G**-forbid the story should speak for itself. Then tomorrow there will be an editorial cartoon that has someone selling apples. Panic. Stupid, useless snowballing hysteria. I’m not worried about the economy at this point; I’m worried what people will do save it. Rebates! Oh, that’s grand. Nothing restores fundamental consumer confidence like shoving money in their hands and yelling SPEND IT! SPEND IT NOW! ON ANYTHING! THROW PILLOWS! STEEPLY DISCOUNTED HD-DVD PLAYERS! BLOWN-GLASS GEEGAWS! TRAILER HITCHES! BUCKETS OF PICKLES! IT DOESN’T MATTER! Or you could tax everyone more so they feel poorer, so they spend less, then wonder why retail sales are down, commercial property is soft, and business tax receipts have cratered.

Just leave it all alone, please. It’s like a cold. You can put it off and cover it up but you’re going to have three miserable shuddering days of congestion and hacking no matter what you do. Unless you take zinc, of course.

That’s it! Spray the markets with zinc!

I’m not an economist, but I’ve noted something interesting. Since we decided that ethanol would be the cure to our “addiction to oil,” we managed to bump up the cost of corn, encourage a shift to corn production, and raise the price of foodstuffs. Which fueled inflation fears. Now that we have increased inflation, we have a fear of a recession, which drives the price of oil down, since demand is expected to slump. The price of gas has gone down a quarter in the last ten days, and it’s idling in the low $2.8x range. As others have noted, the cure for $100 barrel oil is $100 barrel oil. It all works out. There’s a boom and then there’s a bust. Having lived through a few, it’s annoying to hear the same fargin’ end-of-the-world hairshirt orations, especially from those who have spent their entire lives walking around with a bucket of black paint and a brush looking for good news to deface...

We’re not even in a recession, but you’d think the morning sun was about to be blotted out by the rain of money managers hurling themselves out windows. Of course the news is bad. The news is always bad. Even the good news is bad, eventually. If they cured cancer tomorrow it would take a day before analysts worried about the impact on Medicare, what with people living so d*** long and all.

what reason do you have?

Where Eddie said "I don't wanna speak to yer little gawd", Spurgeon elaborated:

Our God is a spirit, and his hands made the heavens and the earth: well may we worship him, and we need not be disturbed at the sneering question of those who are so insane as to refuse to adore the living God, and yet bow their knees before images of their own carving. We may make an application of all this to the times in which we are now living. The god of modern thought is the creation of the thinker himself, evolved out of his own consciousness, or fashioned according to his own notion of what a god should be.

Now, it is evident that such a being is no God. It is impossible that there should be a God at all except the God of revelation. A god who can be fashioned by our own thoughts is no more a God than the image manufactured or produced by our own hands. The true God must of necessity be his own revealer. It is clearly impossible that a being who can be excogitated and comprehended by the reason of man should be the infinite and incomprehensible God. Their idols are blinded reason and diseased thought, the product of men's muddled brains, and they will come to nought.

update: yet another take on this theme.

peak oil?

maybe later...

back to steyn

it's been too long since i've quoted mark steyn, so here's a few:

"After all, Granite State conservatism is not known for its religious fervor: it prefers small government, low taxes, minimal regulation, the freedom to be left alone by the state. So they're voting for a guy who opposed the Bush tax cuts, and imposed on the nation the most explicit restriction in political speech in years. Better yet, after a freezing first week of January and the snowiest December in a century, New Hampshire conservatives are googoo for a fellow who believes in the scariest of global-warming scenarios and all the big-government solutions necessary to avert them. Well, okay, maybe we can rustle up an alternative to the alternative. Rudy Giuliani's team are betting than after a Huck/McCain seesaw through the early states, by January 29th Florida voters will be ready to unite their party behind a less divisive figure, if by "less divisive figure" you mean a pro-abortion gun-grabbing cross-dresser."

"Don't worry about (Obama's) "Change You Can Believe In" shtick. He doesn't believe in it, and neither should you. He's a fresh face on the same-old-same-old — which is the only change Democrats are looking for."

"the sub-text of both Democrat and Republican messages is essentially that this country is so rich it can afford to be stupid — it can afford to pork up the federal budget; it can afford to put middle-class families on government health care; it can afford to surrender its borders."

"(the Americal electorate is) tired of the artificial and, indeed, creepily coercive secular multiculti pseudo-religion imposed on American grade schools... I think it's actually connected to the jihad, in the sense that radical Islamism is an opportunist enemy which has arisen in the wake of the western world's one-way multiculturalism. In the long run, the relativist mush peddled in our grade schools is a national security threat. But, even in the short term, it's a form of child abuse that cuts off America's next generation from the glories of their inheritance."

true now and ever

i know, i've been there (except for translating latin & greek):

There are many men who are exceedingly well read in heathen mythologies; who can tell you the history of any one of the heathen gods, but who at the same time know very little of the history of Jehovah, and cannot rehearse His mighty acts. In our schools to this day there are books put into the hands of our youth that are by no means fit for them to read — books which contain all kinds of filth, and if not always filth, yet all kinds of fables and vanities, which are simply put into our hands when we are lads, because they happen to be written in Latin and Greek; and, therefore, I suppose it is imagined that we shall all the better recollect the wickedness that is contained in them, by having the trouble of translating them into our own mother tongue.

I would that instead of this, all our youth were made acquainted with the history of the Lord our God. Would that we could give them for classics some books which record what He has done, the victories of His glorious arm, and how He has put to nought the gods of the heathen and cast them down even into the depths. At any rate, the Christian will always find it to be useful to have at hand some history of what God did in the days of yore.

The more you know of God’s attributes, the more you understand of His acts; the more you treasure up of His promises, and the more you fully dive into the depths of His covenant, the more difficult will it become for Satan to tempt you to despondency and despair.

can he say that?

or can you? or can anyone?

Sen. Harry Reid has a bill in the Senate that will in effect require any blog that reaches more than 500 people and discusses politics must register with the FEC as a lobbyist.

I thought that liberals supported free speech and dissent and all that first amendment stuff. What's going on?...

...as long as I am talking to the people of the United States, whether I seek to influence their vote or not, you have absolutely no right under the Constitution to interfere with or restrict that speech in any way. Let me refresh your memory, sir:

But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

If this is what the progressives call progress (ed: or change), they need a new dictionary.

p.s. our overgrown government needs to be reminded of some of the other complaints in that wonderful declaration as well (edited for modern circumstances):

(the unelected beltway bureaucracy) has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance

(the unelected beltway bureaucracy) imposing Taxes (and innumerable regulations) on us without our Consent

(the left is) abolishing our most valuable Laws (like freedom of speech and gun ownership), and (the distant bureaucracy is) altering fundamentally the Forms of our (state's rights) Governments

(true patriots) have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us

(the leftist-media complex) has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless (islamofascist terrorists), whose known rule of warfare is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes, and conditions

pay attention to our founding fathers? what a revolutionary thought!

six what what?

this list is to the beast what achmed the dead terrorist (nsfw) is to terrorists.

(this post inspired by this bit of odd news)

orange you glad i didn't say banana?

Normally orange is my least favorite color (except among citrus). But please consider wearing something orange today.

Not for the ACLU or DNC (boooooo)...

or the Texas Longhorns (boooooo)...

or the Denver Broncos (whatever)...

or the New York Mets (boooooo)...

Or even Daffy Duck's feet (which is a vastly superior reason than the previous five.)

But for the Local Malcontent's 39th birthday (hiphiphooray!)

"all for the common good, of course"

"There is nothing wrong with your thermostat. Do not attempt to adjust the temperature. We are controlling your power consumption. If we wish to make it hotter, we will turn off your air conditioner. If we wish to make it cooler, we will turn off your heater. For the next millennium, sit quietly and we will control your home temperature. We repeat, there is nothing wrong with your thermostat. You are about to participate in a great adventure. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to... SACRAMENTO!"

be careful what you wish for

one suspects that the word "change" to some politicians means all that's left of your paycheck after they take what they want (follow the link to see the picture):

Every time I hear the word ("change") I'm reminded of a post we did about a year ago that went something like this:

• The stock market, despite its current dip, has been hovering near all-time highs and America's 401K's are back.
• Unemployment is at 25-year lows.
• Taxes are at 20-year lows.
• Federal tax revenues are at all-time highs.
• The Federal deficit is trending down.
• Inflation is in check, hovering at 20-year lows.

Bear in mind that all of the above occurred in the face of the 1999 tech crash, the epidemic of corporate scandals throughout the 90's, and the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks on NYC which collectively sucked 24 trillion dollars and 7.8 million jobs out of the US economy even before G. W. Bush had time to unpack his suitcases in the White House. It has also occured despite the recent spike in oil prices and the sub-prime mortgage crisis.

• Not a single terrorist attack has struck U.S. soil since 9/11/01.
• Osama bin Laden is living in a cave, unable to surface for more than a few hours at a time, while most of al Qaeda's leadership is either dead or in custody and cooperating with U.S. intelligence services.
• Several major terrorist attacks have been thwarted in the last couple of years by US and British intelligence agencies, including a planned attack involving 10 Jumbo Jets being exploded in mid-air over major U.S. cities in order to celebrate the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
• Iraq appears to be on the road to peace and stability. Afghanistan has been liberated from the Taliban. Some of the luster of Islamo-fascism has faded among Muslims around the world.
• Several nations have decided to forego the pursuit of nuclear weapons. Others are cracking down on the movements of terrorists within their borders.
• Illegal border crossings into the U.S. have dropped sharply in the past year and continue to drop.
• The Supreme Court has seen the addition of two outstanding jurists to the bench in the last couple of years.

What on the above list do the "agents of change" currently running for the presidency propose to undo or alter? What, exactly, do they think should be different?

also take a look at this somewhat-related cartoon.

Where I'm From

(preface: To reiterate, despite the blog name, I've never been to Hattiesburg, much less lived there. I'm sure it's a fine city though.)

Since there's (deliberately) no "about me" link on this blog, I decided to try my hand at a "Where I'm From" post. Inspired by a Texas Trifle, who shares quite a bit of the same background as me but is a much better writer.

---

I'm from old Europe, mostly from England via Germany & Scotland. I'm from Texas, starting in Tarrant county and returning twice. I'm from flat land that's white with cotton just before it's white with snow. I'm from oil-filled mesas and pine-filled lowlands. I'm from cities that defend America and from towns that clothe America.

I'm from allergen to allergen and dust to dust. I'm from 1 to 6 feet of rain per year, and from -14 to 108 degrees Fahrenheit, with gusts over 100 mph. I'm from 11-mile-high thunderheads driving 200-foot rust-colored walls ahead of them. I'm from goatheads, tumbleweeds, devils claws and dirt clods. I'm from irrigation ditches, and the motors that fill them six days a week.

I'm from barbershops that have Koken chairs, no music, drowned combs, and a globe full of candy from the Lions Club. I'm from diners where the adults all know each other, the kids get their heads patted, and the paneling has never been replaced. I'm from stores like Perry's & Woolworth's that have affordable non-branded toys and clothes. I'm from highways where passing isn't always possible, but speeding usually is.

I'm from 8-tracks of Floyd Cramer and Danny Davis and The Carpenters. I'm from the Charlies called Daniels, Pride, Rich, and Angels. I'm from Price Is Right, Hazel, and Ultraman. I'm from Hee-Haw vs Star Trek. I'm from Three Dog Night, Ted Nugent, Van Halen (not hagar), Devo, Styx, Boston, and Thin Lizzie. I'm from KLOL, KY99, KTRU, and the old KOMA. I'm from people who remember back when entertainment didn't have to be morally and intellectually offensive.

I'm from JCPenneys, Chess King, Vans, Ocean Pacific, Levis, London Fog, Converses, & Sears. I'm from Victorian to stucco to brick. I'm from tractor pulls, air shows, and art shows (some of which don't even show windmills or canadian geese). I'm from 2, 7, 1-9 and 10-4, 10-2-4, 22's, the I's of 27 30 35 40 and 45, 42*, 44oz, C64, 66*, the 77s, 81, 84*, 91, 242, 287, the V's of 289 351 400 and 460, 464, 806 and 817, 2068 and 2112. (* in multiple senses). I'm from the ghosts of Alzheimers, Camels, pesticides, arteriosclerosis, Aspergers, SIDS, and various carcinomas. I'm from avocado appliances, dark paneling, gold carpet, credenzas and divans.

I'm from panfried porkchops, goatmeat tamales, ranchstyle beans, iceless tea (and the accompanying odd looks), cornbread in castiron, elbow macaroni and government cheese. I'm from Burger King and Dairy Queen, Mr. Burger and Mrs. Bairds, Allsups, Furrs, Toot-n-Totum, the Pandas called Lucky Golden Happy and Szechuan, and the tacos of Bueno, Bell, and Villa. I'm from (some) people who like peppers hotter than habanero.

I'm from church dinners featuring brisket or casseroles, and community suppers featuring kolaches or chili. I'm from six-man football, accompanied by mosquitos, noise, wind, painful seating, cold, wasps, and mud. I'm from hymnals (with occasional shape notes), quiet prayers, and happy doxologys. I'm from offerings in the velvet-lined plate followed by special music every week. I'm from sermons that were about training you right and making sure you didn't get left, rather than hyping you up or casting you down.

...and I'm sure of where I'm going to, but I have no idea what will happen before I get there.

Fred08

Though I'm not quite ready to officially endorse Fred Thompson for president, there's a lot in this 17-minute message that I agree with, and very little to disagree with.



update: Viewpoint brings up another good point about Fred. "A qualified, conscientious candidate who could otherwise either take the job or leave it, I think, has exactly the kind of attitude toward governance that we should admire in our politicians." (and while you're there, scroll down to read the paragraph that does a good job of "illustrating all at once the arrogance, pomposity, superciliousness, scorn, contempt and sense of superiority many liberals hold for their fellow man.")

how many candidates are there anyway?

i had an idea for a post to compare my viewpoints with those of each of the presidential candidates - as they are presented on each of their own websites. my first step was to find a comprehensive list of the candidates. i knew that there were a few more than the ~3 democrats and ~6 republicans who usually get any news coverage, :

D:
Biden
Clinton
Dodd
Edwards
Gravel
Kucinich
Obama
Richardson

R:
Giuliani
Huckabee
Hunter
McCain
Paul
Romney
Thompson

but i had no idea there were so many others out there:

http://www.truthusa.org/issues.htm
http://www.jaredball.com/?page_id=4
http://www.mesplay.org
http://www.prezkat.info/
http://www.draftnader.org/case-for-nader.php
http://www.imperato2008.com/imperato2008/issues.asp
http://bobjackson.org/issues.aspx
http://www.resetamerica.com/pages/core.html
http://www.kubby2008.com/node/8
http://www.link-for-pres.org/
http://phillies2008.org/issues
http://www.millionairerepublican.com/home/wherestands.php
http://www.christinesmithforpresident.com/Iraq-War.php
http://www.votebrianmoore.com/issues.htm
http://www.presidentadams.com/site/aissues2.asp
http://donaldkallenforpresident.com/
http://www.ashby2008.com/index.php?p=4
http://www.bowlesforpresident.com/id28.html
http://www.doncordellforpresident.com/#bPlatform
http://www.greenspon2008.com/Issues.asp
http://joanne21921.tripod.com/index.html
http://www.aimhigh.com/hlp/h4p/platform.html
http://www.dave08.com/index.php
http://tkozeejr.googlepages.com/home
http://www.georgekunz.org/vote2/issues.html
http://www.michaelslevinson.com/
http://home.earthlink.net/~maxhamforpresident/id11.html
http://www.callonmccall.com/presidentialviews.html
http://www.odom2008.com/issues.html
http://www.voteforjoe.com/stands/stands_domestic.html
http://www.wilson2008.com/planks.html

some of them might even be serious...

2008

my resolution this year is 1080p

washington's culture of corruption

6 democrats, 1 rino, 2 republicans, and 1 of unknown party.

via the right place

2007

the year in review: serious, and... not so much

link revamp

once again, i'm not satisfied with the arrangement of my blogroll, so i'll be rearranging it soon. hopefully the categories will be broadened to imply more equality and less hierarchy. also, some links that had 'fallen through the cracks' should be returning (no offense was intended if you happened to be de-linked), and the overall list will likely expand.

mo'HAM-mad in the Bible

Oddly, the fakir pig is mentioned in both Old and New Testament.

...and a thought-filled new year

though i would try to not use this blog's title in everyday conversation, this article raises some very good points (italics and bolds mine):

Christians are often scoffed at for their "fideistic" approach to origins. We are told we rely on Sunday School faith spoon-fed to us down through the generations. We argue for the existence of God based on our own misappropriation of biology and neuroscience, to name a couple of examples. We supplant "viable evidence" with our own ignorance that "such and such can't be the case without God", so we simply fill those "gaps" of ignorance with our magical formula: "God did it!"... or so that's what we're told.

Apparently we don't measure up to Atheistic Materialism's standard (a standard taken for granted and accepted as "self-evident"). They rely on the scientific method, logic, and sensory experience. "Clearly, all we are able to know is accessed through the physical world, therefore there is no reason to believe in the supernatural, right?

Sunday School's over, time to turn our brains on and evaluate our beliefs... and let's not get bamboozled in the process. Agreed?

"'Reason' is simply an intellectual tool, rather than an ultimate standard of knowledge, and as such will be affected by the regenerate or unregenerate condition of the man using it" -Greg Bahnsen, Van Til's Apologetic, pg 146

How many times have you been told by an unbeliever in the midst of an apologetic debate: "Let's be neutral"? As though taking a step back, breathing deeply, then exhaling will suddenly make things "neutral" and the unbeliever and Christian can get along epistemologically. The truth of the matter is that "neutrality" in the mind of an Atheistic Materialist is an assumed autonomy that is never argued for, merely accepted. Atheistic Materialists berate Christians for being irrational and demand we meet the standard of Rationality... as if Logic was supreme, above us and above God (if there is a God).

Reason is a method, not the standard of truth. A way of identifying valid or invalid arguments or thinking processes. In the sense that it is a way of measuring, you can say it is "neutral" if you simply mean "objective"... but our use of it certainly is not neutral...

So when you run into an Atheistic Materialist who tells you that you're irrational, and that the impetus is on you to meet the standard of rationality, you need to recognize he means "you need to meet my standards of autonomy". He has certain beliefs about logic, about reasoning, and he utilizes his faculties in such a way that is controlled by other assumptions. No belief is held independent of another. Each belief is a principle networked among a web of others. We need to evaluate that "web". It should be a bit clearer now that our Atheistic Materialists are not being neutral. They are, in fact, demanding you follow their bias, so we can't simply argue brute facts (there's no such thing), and we can't discuss evidence as though everyone agrees about what constitutes evidence: We must evaluate the measure. Atheists don't go by evidence and Christian by faith (that is the so-called faith of irrationality we're accused of)... rather, Atheists reject a certain kind of evidence and adopt a different kind... whether or not their evidence is valid is determined by the validity of their measure for what constitutes evidence.

Yes, this is where we are talking at the presuppositional level.

Atheistic Materialists will appeal to science and logic. Do they have the foundation that makes their atheistic structure stable? What we need to ask is this: "Based on your assumptions about the world (origin of the universe by chance, life by chance) how is the scientific method intelligible?" We also need ask "If all there is is matter in motion, and we exist as a result of random chance, what makes logic intelligible?"

It is here that most Atheistic Materialists will start scratching their heads...

The scientific method also relies on the trustworthiness of our senses. I would like an explanation from an Atheistic Materialist on how it is that random collisions of chemicals produce "trustworthy" sense experience. Yet more often than not, something as basic as this is taken as a "given". When you get an Atheistic Materialist against the ropes on these issues (uniformity and the trustworthiness of our senses), he will say we can trust these things because we have always trusted them in the past... which is a major fallacy of begging the question. Perhaps our senses have "always worked in the past" because our faulty senses are telling us so. Atheistic Materialists don't have a foundation for making predictability intelligible, yet they use it... and then they project from past experience into the future and will take particular experiences and generalize that experience as though there is a connectedness with others... a connectedness that is inexplicable when you consider everything in the universe is a product of random collisions and chemical reactions... yet the Atheistic Materialist will trust that there is a connectedness, that there is predictability and all of this by relying on their senses during the whole process. It should be apparent that their underlying presupposition of chance doesn't provide them any reason for trusting their sensory experience. Likewise, the presupposition of chance doesn't afford them the blessing of uniformity and predictability.

How about logic? If we are simply matter in motion, what of logic? What determines rationality?

There are many Atheistic Materialists that will bemoan the Christian's belief in the immaterial, or spiritual. "To say something is immaterial", says the Atheistic Materialist, "is to say that thing is not anything. If it is something", he asks, "by what mechanism does the immaterial interact with our material brains?"

If reason is a byproduct of biological processes, is reason material? Some Atheistic Materialists would say "no" and others "yes". I would say on the one hand the Atheistic Materialist has a problem if logic is an immaterial byproduct because his worldview makes interaction between the material and the immaterial impossible. He might say that "supervenience" is the way in which logic and our brains interact, but that still leaves you with an amorphous non-substance that cannot *show* you how they interact. If it is a byproduct of biology, then logic ought not be generalized (i.e. universalized) by particular laws. Differing biology would produce different reactions, meaning logic isn't uniform, necessary, or universal. To apply a standard solely dependent on the individual's biology to the external world would be arbitrary...

It should be clear that Atheistic Materialism requires an illogical leap of faith for its zealots to conclude from chance, and matter in motion, that science and logic are intelligible consequents.

The Emperor is truly naked and his boisterous antics should make his nakedness all the more amusing. He makes great demands on others and parades himself about but we're too concerned about what nasty things he'll say to point out the obvious. His strong belief and, by God's common grace, ability to reason do not give credibility to his claims. Christians, stop giving Atheistic Materialists a pass on "neutral" items such as logic, evidence, and ethics. There are no gimmes here. If an atheist wants to prove his claims, he must make his claims intelligible.

MCTA-ops

Spatula City BBS tells how the military might celebrate the holiday:

Re: General Claus' Visit

To: All Personnel

1. An official visit by MG Santa (NMI) Claus is expected at this headquarters 25 December 20xx. The following instructions will be in effect and govern the activities of all personnel during the visit:

a. Not a creature will stir without official permission. This will include indigenous mice. Special stirring permits for necessary administrative actions will be obtained through normal command channels. Mice stirring permits will be obtained through the office of OSURG, Veterinary Services.

b. Personnel will settle their brains for a long winter nap prior to 2200 hours, 24 December 20xx. Uniform for the nap will be: Pajamas, cotton, light, drowsing, with kerchief, general purpose, camouflage; and Cap, camouflage w/ear flaps. Equipment will be drawn from CIF prior to 1900 hours, 24 December 20xx.

c. Personnel will utilize standard ration sugar plums for visions to dance through their heads. This item will be drawn from the servicing dining facility.

d. Stockings, wool, cushion sole, will be hung by the chimney with care. Necessary safety precautions will be taken to avoid fire hazards caused by carelessly hung stockings. Unit Safety Officers will submit stocking hanging plans to this headquarters prior to 0800 hours, 24 December 20xx, ATTN: AEAGA-S, for approval.

e. At the first sign of clatter from the lawn, all troops will spring from their beds to evaluate noise and cause. Immediate action will be taken to tear open the shutters and throw open the window sashes. ODCSOPS Plan (Saint Nick), Reference LO No. 3, paragraph 6c, this headquarters, 2 February 20xx, will be in effect to facilitate shutter tearing and sash throwing. Division chiefs will familiarize all personnel with procedures and are responsible for ensuring that no shutters are torn open nor window sashes thrown prior to start of official clatter.

f. Prior to 2400, 24 December 20xx, all personnel will be assigned "Wondering Eye" stations. After shutters are thrown and sashes are torn, these stations will be manned.

g. ODCSLOG will assign one each Sleigh, miniature, M-66, and eight (8) deer, rein, tiny, for use of MG Claus' driver who, in accordance with current directives and other applicable regulations, must have a valid SF-56 properly annotated by Driver Testing; be authorized rooftop parking and be able to shout "On Dasher, on Dancer, on Prancer and Vixen, on Comet, on Cupid, on Donner and Blitzen."

2. MG Claus will enter quarters through standard chimneys. All units without chimneys will draw Chimney Simulator, M-6, for use during ceremonies. Chimney simulator units will be requested on Engineer Job Order Request Form submitted to the Furniture Warehouse prior to 19 December 20xx, and issued on DA Form 3161, Request for Issue or Turn-In.

3. Personnel will be rehearsed on shouting "Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night." This shout will be given on termination of General Claus' visit. Uniformity of shouting is the responsibility of division chiefs.

CHRISTOPHER K. RINGLE
Colonel, US
OIC, Special Services

(slightly edited)

Merry Christmas To All!

...and to all, tidings of a holiday blog slowdown. travelling will probably limit my internet access until new year's eve. so, to (yule)tide you over:


Excerpts from John 1:

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2 He was in the beginning with God.

3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.

5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it...

10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.

11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.

12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name...

14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

15 John testified about Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.'"

16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.

17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.

don't forget *tags* for your presents!

When I started blogging, I didn't like the idea of tagging, but House of Eratosthenes has a nice seasonal one going and I'm feeling much less Scrooge-ish this year. Besides, who am I to resist another Rovian conspiracy?

-----

1. Wrapping or gift bags?
Wrapping if at all possible. See also "it's the thought that counts."

2. Real or artificial tree?
Real in theory, artificial in practice. Grandmother had always put up what I though must have been one of the first artificial trees ever made. It was probably from the late 40's - early 50's, and by the mid 90's it had started to shed "needles" half as bad as a real one.

3. When do you put up the tree?
No particular schedule. Never before Thanksgiving, at least once on Christmas eve.

4. When do you take the tree down?
Again no schedule. I think once it was down by Dec 23 because of travel plans, to as late as mid-January.

5. Do you like eggnog?
Taste is ok. There's no alcohol in the family households though.

6. Favorite gift received as a child?
Though I loved that dirt bike (think this 30 years ago) at the time, in retrospect it's a tie between the TS1000 and the TS2068 the following year.

7. Do you have a nativity scene?
No. We used to have one of those open-one-tiny-window-each-day-of-december-thingys, but we can't find it now.

8. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
I've never ever liked sweaters, but despite being quite vocal on that point as a child, I was still given a couple of them - which were probably never worn.

9. Mail or e-mail Christmas cards?
Oops, that reminds me...

10. Favorite Christmas movie?
The Grinch (the animated 1966 version, NOT that jim carrey abomination).

11. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
As soon as I notice something suitable for someone on the list. I've bought something as early as March intended to be given away the next Christmas. But most of it kicks in about late November. This year I finished on Dec 21st.

12. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
That's hard to narrow down. It's easy to say anything home-cooked, including Grandmama's -> Dad's dressing, turkey, pumpkin pie, Dad's chili or enchiladas,... the list goes on. Also, I'm a huge fan of macaroni & cheese (Skinner & Velveeta, not any of that boxed junk), and everybody who cooks for me for the holiday knows that.

13. Clear lights or colored on the tree?
Seems like red was the preferred color.

14. Favorite Christmas song?
Silent Night

(update: just for fun i started tracking back through the tags, and someone along the line edited down the list. here's the additional questions as found at newscoma, with my answers)

15. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
some part of the family will be travelling. when i lived with my parents we usually traveled to either of the grandparents' homes. now the celebrations tend to center at my sister's house - since it's easier for me to drive solo than for her to pack up with her kids.

16. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer?
umm, hmm... oh, i can now

17. Angel on the tree top or a star?
usually a star, or some non-angelic shape.

18. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning?
"Santa" on Christmas morning, but usually open gifts whenever travel plans permit - usually on the eve evening, but it has been as early as Dec 9 and late as Jan 5.

19. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
Crowded malls, and the traffic around them.

20. Do you decorate your tree in any specific theme or color?
No.

21. What do you leave for Santa?
For once, a traditional answer: milk & cookies

22. Least favorite holiday song?
That blasted chipmunk who wants a hula hoop. (Chipmunks are just rats with a good hairstylist.)

23. Favorite ornament?
a set of frosty glass ornaments with glitter glued on them that I remember from my second Christmas.

-----

Paying it forward, I tag:

Dustbury
Flying Space Monkey
Local Malcontent
Mish Mash
Mountaineer Musings

Rules are:
1. Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog.
2. Share Christmas facts about yourself.
3. Tag random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs.
4. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Best wishes for a joyous holiday season, good health to you & all close to you, and long life to everybody who loves it and respects it in others.

-----

update 2: following up on this thread on new year's eve, i saw that some bloggers had added a couple of questions. if i use this next year, i'll fold them into the main list.




24. Favorite family tradition?

25. Do you go to a midnight mass or church service?

26. Most memorable good deed you witnessed or participated in during the holidays?

Merry Christmas to All

this year with 17% less litigation!

The seasonally litigious rest their fanatical devotion to the deChristification of Christmas on the separation of church and state. America's founders were opposed to the "establishment" of religion, whose meaning is clear enough to any Englishman: the new republic did not want President Washington serving simultaneously as Supreme Governor of the Church of America, or the Bishop of Virginia sitting in the US Senate. Two centuries on, these possibilities are so remote that the "separation" of church and state has dwindled down to threats of legal action over red-and-green party napkins. But every time some sensitive flower pulls off a legal victory over the school board, who really wins?

on physics and miracles

Viewpoint has an interesting... view... of how miracles may not automatically contradict the "laws of nature". Using a computer programming analogy:

...perhaps the implied claim that miracles violate or supercede the laws of nature is not necessarily correct. Miracles like those recorded in the Gospels could actually be an expression of the laws of nature and still be miraculous all the same.

Imagine an engineer who designs and builds a computer (the universe). Along the way he programs that computer to produce certain images (living things) on the screen. Suppose that upon some of these images the engineer bestows the gift of consciousness. The software program is information (laws of nature) that governs how everything in the computer functions. When the computer is booted up the software causes the computer to produce screen images which behave in accord with the constraints imposed by the information contained in the software program.

Now suppose that integrated into that program are certain if/then commands which only express themselves under certain highly specific conditions. They might have the form: If P then Q unless R. If R never occurs, P > Q would seem to all observers in the screen to be the algorithm that governs the functioning of the computer. If R never occurs then whenever P happens Q happens.

If, however, R does on one occasion occur then in that instance Q would not follow upon P and everyone who witnessed the "breakdown" would be astonished. It would appear to the conscious screen images that the program had spontaneously been altered or violated even though it was not. It would appear to them that a miracle had occurred...

It could well be that the laws of nature are like information or software that the Cosmic Engineer has designed to run the universe in the fashion described above. If so, it could also be that at least some miracles would not be exceptions to physical laws, but rather expressions of the way the laws manifest themselves in certain very extraordinary circumstances.

I would add one... point... though: A programmer could also easily allow "user input" to the program.

even more inconvenient truth

"Global warming has long since passed from scientific hypothesis to the realm of pseudo-scientific mumbo-jumbo."

Tocqueville the Seer

Roger Kimball has a point and a quote from Tocqueville:

The state's near monopoly on instruments of violence is merely one token of a much broader and deeper calculus of control. Tocqueville got to the nub of the issue in his famous paragraphs, in Democoracy in America, on "Democratic Despotism" Where old-fashioned despotism tyrannizes over men, democratic despotism infantilizes them. Such despotism would, Tocqueville writes

resemble paternal power if, like that, it had for its object to prepare men for manhood; but on the contrary, it seeks only to keep them fixed irrevocably in childhood; it likes citizens to enjoy themselves provided that they think only of enjoying themselves... It willingly works for their happiness; but it wants to be the unique agent and sole arbiter of that; it provides for their security, foresees and secures their needs, facilitates their pleasures, conducts their principal affairs, directs their industry, regulates their estates, divides their inheritances; can it not take away from them entirely the trouble of thinking and the pain of living? … [This power] extends its arms over society as a whole; it covers its surface with a network of small, complicated, painstaking, uniform rules through which the most original minds and the most vigorous souls cannot clear a way to surpass the crowd; … it does not tyrannize, it hinders, compromises, enervates, extinguishes, dazes, and finally reduces each nation to being nothing more than a herd of timid and industrious animals of which the government is the shepherd.

Food for thought, no?

Yes! Welcome to Brave New World! You can grind people under the heel of a jack boot, but eventually they tire of that and will shrug it off. But the possibilities of distraction are endless. Environmentalism = Social Justice = Fordism. Religion may be the opiate of the masses, put the members of some congregations do not even know they are in church.

The Leftist says, "I am good, you are not coming up to the standard of good, but I am exempt from that standard."

The Christian says, "I am bad, I am forgiven for being bad because of the sacrifice of Jesus, with His help I am trying to come up to the standard of good, and this is what the standard is."

via Wilson Fu

no news is good news

and the converse is true

---

update: true lies, continued.

more inconvenient truth

Once again, don't believe Algore:

The scare over global warming, and our politicians’ response to it, is becoming ever more bizarre. On the one hand we have the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change coming up with yet another of its notoriously politicised reports, hyping up the scare by claiming that world surface temperatures have been higher in 11 of the past 12 years (1995-2006) than ever previously recorded.

This carefully ignores the latest US satellite figures showing temperatures having fallen since 1998, declining in 2007 to a 1983 level - not to mention the newly revised figures for US surface temperatures showing that the 1930s had four of the 10 warmest years of the past century, with the hottest year of all being not 1998, as was previously claimed, but 1934.

via CrosSwords

immigration plan

spacemonkey has an idea so crazy, it just might work!

Step 1: The path starts where the illegal immigrant currently is. It will vary from individual to individual. This is an obvious step because if it started somewhere else there would be no way for these hard working, well intentioned people to begin.

Step 2: Next the path to citizenship leads to a country where they hold legal citizenship. This part of the path should be simple for the illegal immigrant to identify and follow as it can involve the same means of transportation that brought them to the Step 1 location. Answers to questions such as "where was I born" and "where do I send my checks?" will be clues to locating a suitable country. This is an important step as it removes their illegal status as well as their immigrant status. What if they are very far from a land where they have citizenship? Good news! The path also does not discriminate on the basis of distance to the illegal immigrant's home country. The path to citizenship did not drag them here, the path will however drag them out of here.

Step 3: The path proceeds to a US consulate or embassy in the nation they end up at (see step 2). On arrival there, the intended emigrees should be escorted directly to the back of the line. This is the traditional and time honored place in line that they have earned. There is no skipping down the path or in the line! The work begins here and it's paperwork. A process has been designed to enable them to petition for legal entry into the U.S. The document created by this process is called a VISA. Until a VISA is obtained the path ends, as it is the ticket for the rest of the path.

Step 4: Now that a VISA has been obtained, the path leads back to the U.S. through a legal border crossing or port of entry. There are several kinds of VISA but they will all allow foreign nationals to enter the U.S. 100% sneak-free! It is the document that an undocumented person doesn't have. Some VISAs also permit non citizens to reside in the US legally for a set period of time limited by certain conditions such as law abidance, student status, employment and a few others.

Step 5: The path now doesn't have a particular direction other than from a place of residence to a place of employment. But as long as they reside in the US for the period of time required by law, learn the native language, take and pass the citizenship test and swear the oath of citizenship, then they will have followed this novel path to citizenship.

It isn't a perfect path but for over 231 years not uncounted and not untold thousands upon thousands of their former and our current countrymen and countrywomen have been using it successfully. We truly are a nation of immigrants. But if it were a nation of illegal immigrants we would not be one nation.

The Good, the Bad and the Beowulf

VDH is getting tired of reruns.

Debate Able

Varifrank: "It's not a bug, it's a feature"

eco-fascists

update & bump: No Oil For Pacifists has more related facts & commentary.

--

via Mark Steyn, more comments about the eco-fascists:

Everyone's favourite comment on the eco-fascists is, or should be, that of President Vaclav Klaus of the Czech Republic: "What is at risk is not the climate but freedom…I see the biggest threat to freedom, democracy, the market economy and prosperity now in ambitious environmentalism, not in communism. This ideology wants to replace the free and spontaneous evolution of mankind by a sort of central (now global) planning"…

But I wondered if you were also familiar with this wonderful passage from C.S. Lewis:

"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.”

Apart from amending this to "the SUPPOSED good of its victims", I'd say that pretty much covers it, wouldn't you?

----

I personally get confused by eco-logic in this global warming debate. They claim to want to save the world, and by extension millions of people, from the ravages of man-made climate change. Yet, as recent history shows, the policies they espouse will result in the certain culling of millions of us, possibly billions. So they are willing to kill billions in order to possibly save millions. I'll take my chances with the climate, thank-you.

can we? can we? can we now?

can we question their patriotism now?

giving thanks

Psalm 107, NASB

1 O give thanks to the LORD, for He is good,
      For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
      Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary
3 And gathered from the lands,
      From the east and from the west,
      From the north and from the south.

4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desert region;
      They did not find a way to an inhabited city.
5 They were hungry and thirsty;
      Their soul fainted within them.
6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble;
      He delivered them out of their distresses.
7 He led them also by a straight way,
      To go to an inhabited city.
8 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His lovingkindness,
      And for His wonders to the sons of men!
9 For He has satisfied the thirsty soul,
      And the hungry soul He has filled with what is good.

10 There were those who dwelt in darkness and in the shadow of death,
      Prisoners in misery and chains,
11 Because they had rebelled against the words of God
      And spurned the counsel of the Most High.
12 Therefore He humbled their heart with labor;
      They stumbled and there was none to help.
13 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble;
      He saved them out of their distresses.
14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death
      And broke their bands apart.
15 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His lovingkindness,
      And for His wonders to the sons of men!
16 For He has shattered gates of bronze
      And cut bars of iron asunder.

17 Fools, because of their rebellious way,
      And because of their iniquities, were afflicted.
18 Their soul abhorred all kinds of food,
      And they drew near to the gates of death.
19 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble;
      He saved them out of their distresses.
20 He sent His word and healed them,
      And delivered them from their destructions.
21 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His lovingkindness,
      And for His wonders to the sons of men!
22 Let them also offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
      And tell of His works with joyful singing.

23 Those who go down to the sea in ships,
      Who do business on great waters;
24 They have seen the works of the LORD,
      And His wonders in the deep.
25 For He spoke and raised up a stormy wind,
      Which lifted up the waves of the sea.
26 They rose up to the heavens, they went down to the depths;
      Their soul melted away in their misery.
27 They reeled and staggered like a drunken man,
      And were at their wits' end.
28 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
      And He brought them out of their distresses.
29 He caused the storm to be still,
      So that the waves of the sea were hushed.
30 Then they were glad because they were quiet,
      So He guided them to their desired haven.
31 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His lovingkindness,
      And for His wonders to the sons of men!
32 Let them extol Him also in the congregation of the people,
      And praise Him at the seat of the elders.


33 He changes rivers into a wilderness
      And springs of water into a thirsty ground;
34 A fruitful land into a salt waste,
      Because of the wickedness of those who dwell in it.
35 He changes a wilderness into a pool of water
      And a dry land into springs of water;
36 And there He makes the hungry to dwell,
      So that they may establish an inhabited city,
37 And sow fields and plant vineyards,
      And gather a fruitful harvest.
38 Also He blesses them and they multiply greatly,
      And He does not let their cattle decrease.

39 When they are diminished and bowed down
      Through oppression, misery and sorrow,
40 He pours contempt upon princes
      And makes them wander in a pathless waste.
41 But He sets the needy securely on high away from affliction,
      And makes his families like a flock.
42 The upright see it and are glad;
      But all unrighteousness shuts its mouth.

43 Who is wise? Let him give heed to these things,
      And consider the lovingkindnesses of the LORD.


via Bible Gateway

early thanksgiving

Mark Steyn reminds us of some things to be thankful for.

"The New World" is one of the oldest settled constitutional democracies on earth, to a degree "the Old World" can barely comprehend. Where it counts, Americans are traditionalists. We know Eastern Europe was a totalitarian prison until the Nineties, but we forget that Mediterranean Europe (Greece, Spain, Portugal) has democratic roots going all the way back until, oh, the mid-Seventies; France and Germany's constitutions date back barely half a century, Italy's only to the 1940s, and Belgium's goes back about 20 minutes, and currently it's not clear whether even that latest rewrite remains operative. The U.S. Constitution is not only older than France's, Germany's, Italy's or Spain's constitution, it's older than all of them put together (emphasis mine). Americans think of Europe as Goethe and Mozart and 12th century castles and 6th century churches, but the Continent's governing mechanisms are no more ancient than the Partridge Family. Aside from the Anglophone democracies, most of "the west"'s nation states have been conspicuous failures at sustaining peaceful political evolution from one generation to the next, which is why they're so susceptible to the siren song of Big Ideas — Communism, Fascism, European Union...

I find it sweetly touching that in America even political radicalism has to be framed as an appeal to constitutional tradition from the powdered-wig era. In Europe, by contrast, one reason why there's no politically significant pro-life movement is because, in a world where constitutions have the life expectancy of an Oldsmobile, great questions are just seen as part of the general tide, the way things are going, no sense trying to fight it. And, by the time you realize you have to, the tide's usually up to your neck.

So Americans should be thankful they have one of the last functioning nation states. Because they've been so inept at exercising it, Europeans no longer believe in national sovereignty, whereas it would never occur to Americans not to. This profoundly different attitude to the nation state underpins in turn Euro-American attitudes to transnational institutions such as the U.N. But on this Thanksgiving the rest of the world ought to give thanks to American national sovereignty, too. When something terrible and destructive happens — a tsunami hits Indonesia, an earthquake devastates Pakistan — the U.S. can project itself anywhere on the planet within hours and start saving lives, setting up hospitals and restoring the water supply. Aside from Britain and France, the Europeans cannot project power in any meaningful way anywhere. When they sign on to an enterprise they claim to believe in — shoring up Afghanistan's fledgling post-Taliban democracy — most of them send token forces under constrained rules of engagement that prevent them doing anything more than manning the photocopier back at the base. If America were to follow the Europeans and maintain only shriveled attenuated residual military capacity, the world would very quickly be nastier and bloodier, and far more unstable. It's not just Americans and Iraqis and Afghans who owe a debt of thanks to the U.S. soldier but all the Europeans grown plump and prosperous in a globalized economy guaranteed by the most benign hegemon in history.

That said, Thanksgiving isn't about the big geopolitical picture, but about the blessings closer to home. Last week, the state of Oklahoma celebrated its centennial, accompanied by rousing performances of Rodgers and Hammerstein's eponymous anthem:

"We know we belong to the land And the land we belong to is grand!"

Which isn't a bad theme song for the first Thanksgiving, either. Three hundred and eighty-six years ago, the pilgrims thanked God because there was a place for them in this land, and it was indeed grand. The land is grander today, and that too is remarkable: France has lurched from Second Empires to Fifth Republics struggling to devise a lasting constitutional settlement for the same smallish chunk of real estate, but the principles that united a baker's dozen of East Coast colonies were resilient enough to expand across a continent and halfway around the globe to Hawaii. Americans should, as always, be thankful this Thanksgiving, but they should also understand just how rare in human history their blessings are.

racism continues

or, how the L word is worse than the N word.

further confirmation

...that global warming is a hoax.

By John Coleman, founder of The Weather Channel

It is the greatest scam in history. I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Global Warming; It is a SCAM. Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long term scientific data to create an illusion of rapid global warming. Other scientists of the same environmental whacko type jumped into the circle to support and broaden the “research” to further enhance the totally slanted, bogus global warming claims. Their friends in government steered huge research grants their way to keep the movement going. Soon they claimed to be a consensus.

Environmental extremists, notable politicians among them, then teamed up with movie, media and other liberal, environmentalist journalists to create this wild “scientific” scenario of the civilization threatening environmental consequences from Global Warming unless we adhere to their radical agenda. Now their ridiculous manipulated science has been accepted as fact and become a cornerstone issue for CNN, CBS, NBC, the Democratic Political Party, the Governor of California, school teachers and, in many cases, well informed but very gullible environmentally conscientious citizens. Only one reporter at ABC has been allowed to counter the Global Warming frenzy with one 15 minute documentary segment.

I do not oppose environmentalism. I do not oppose the political positions of either party. However, Global Warming, i.e. Climate Change, is not about environmentalism or politics. It is not a religion. It is not something you “believe in.” It is science; the science of meteorology. This is my field of life-long expertise. And I am telling you Global Warming is a non-event, a manufactured crisis and a total scam. I say this knowing you probably won’t believe a me, a mere TV weatherman, challenging a Nobel Prize, Academy Award and Emmy Award winning former Vice President of United States. So be it.

I have read dozens of scientific papers. I have talked with numerous scientists. I have studied. I have thought about it. I know I am correct. There is no run away climate change. The impact of humans on climate is not catastrophic. Our planet is not in peril. I am incensed by the incredible media glamour, the politically correct silliness and rude dismissal of counter arguments by the high priest of Global Warming.

In time, a decade or two, the outrageous scam will be obvious. As the temperature rises, polar ice cap melting, coastal flooding and super storm pattern all fail to occur as predicted everyone will come to realize we have been duped. The sky is not falling. And, natural cycles and drifts in climate are as much if not more responsible for any climate changes underway. I strongly believe that the next twenty years are equally as likely to see a cooling trend as they are to see a warming trend.

See John’s full blog story here. See John’s forecast blog on the KUSI site here.

via igst

a lost art?

mish mash revives the art of the sonnet. hie thee hence!