annavenger

Self Defense Video

2008-02-11T20:07:00.000-05:00

Justified Lethal Force Self Defense Training

"Insider look at multi-day live training for agents at Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in New Mexico. "

But catch it soon as there's no guarantee it will be up for long.

Florida: What Were You Thinking?

2008-01-29T21:37:00.000-05:00

MIAMI - Sen. John McCain won a breakthrough triumph in the Florida Republican primary Tuesday night, edging past former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and seizing precious campaign momentum for next week's string of contests across 21 states.

Oh, please no.

What were they thinking?

I've never sat out an election in my life. If McCain gets the nod, would it even be worth it to go to the polls????

Maybe it's just been called too early?

Primary Blues

2008-01-28T19:55:00.000-05:00

While I probably wouldn't have put it as Paul did, I just can't get worked up over these political campaigns either.

On the Left, we have the same message. Diversity, in this case, is merely different faces. Obama just seems the nicest and most sincere.

On the Right, it's clear who the media thinks we should vote for. McCain the Maverick or Huckabee--the two least likely to give the Left any competition on issues and ideas. McCain v. Hillary. What kind of race would that be? I don't see a lot of excitement among conservatives with McCain on the ticket. I heard or read somewhere that "Evangelicals don't like [McCain] because he's not one of them". Isn't that deep? Such insight! Apparently that "journalist" doesn't think the past has any bearing on the present. No mention of the fact that McCain was openly hostile to Christians a couple election cycles ago, or of any of the other betrayals of conservative belief he's committed over the years--McCain-Feingold and Amnesty to name two.

Huckabee can amuse, but can he govern? Probably as well as any liberal, I suppose.

Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney don't enthuse the base much either. And Ron Paul doesn't seem to get much attention. I talked with a Ron Paul supporter the other day who was very upset that Paul is painted as isolationist. Her reaction was the first bit of passion I've seen on the right for quite a while.

It doesn't look good for us.

Bill and Ted Meme

2008-01-17T18:48:00.000-05:00

Anyway, on to the meme portion of this post. In the movie, Bill and Ted bring back eight historical figures for their history report. They are, Billy the Kid, Socrates, Napoleon, Abraham Lincoln, Dr. Sigmund Freud, Genghis Khan, Joan of Arc, and Ludwig von Beethoven.Which eight other historical figures would you bring back? Then tag five people, because it's the typical number for these things.
-Jokers to the Right

I've been tagged! I've been debating whether to begin blogging regularly again and still haven't quite decided, but I'll play along. And if Alan Levin can debate within himself whether to run for governor for an extended period of time, then I can debate about blogging for a while, I figure. Shame about Levin, though.

Anyway, as difficult as choosing is, here goes...

George Washington (truly an incredible man)
John Adams (I love that irascible guy!)
Charles Martel (Europe needs him!)
Winston Churchill (Europe needs him, too)
Ronald Reagan (the world needs him)
Queen Elizabeth
Moses
Apostle Paul

Fire Safety

2007-11-20T20:29:00.000-05:00

Fire In Kitchen - The most popular videos are a click away

Here is the explanation.

h/t: Mt. Pleasant Classical Academy

Inner European

2007-11-17T19:13:00.000-05:00

This is scary. Obviously this quiz is flawed, very flawed.

Your Inner European is Russian!

Mysterious and exotic.

You've got a great balance of danger and allure.

Who's Your Inner European?

Russian? Russian????

I don't think so.

h/t: Duffy

Wah-hoo!

2007-11-09T08:35:00.000-05:00

Well, this is good news....

The federal government should be making immigration policy, and that's what I'm going to do as president again
-Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton

"again." Again? Again!!!!!

Pulling out my trusty copy of the Constitution of the United States, I find that the 22nd Amendment says in part:

No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once.

Granted, Hillary was never actually elected. However, since Hillary admits that she has acted as President--groan--for eight years worth of term(s) to which some other person was elected President, the worst that can happen is that Hillary serves only one term as an actual elected President of the United States. That would severely limit the havoc she could create.

Just think, she would be a lame duck after just two years!

Wah-hoo! The worst case scenario just got a whole lot better.

Where Were They?

2007-11-08T11:41:00.000-05:00

From Breakpoint:

Since late September, the crackdown on pro-democracy forces in Burma has brought unwelcome attention to one of the most oppressive regimes on Earth. For many people, the defining image of the Burmese struggle for human rights has been Buddhist monks in red robes staging demonstrations. Reports about Burma focus on the plight and plans of the estimated 400,000 Buddhist monks in the country.
Given the coverage, people might be surprised to learn that Burma not only has a substantial Christian population, but that these Christians have long been the junta's preferred target.
Late last month, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner called on China to use its influence with the Burmese government to promote democratic reform. Aside from the unintentional irony of China promoting democratic reform anywhere, I could only wonder of the French foreign minister, "Where were you when Burma's Christians needed you?"
For instance, the U.K. Telegraph reported about a Burmese government document describing a plan for eradicating Christianity in that country. The document began with the words "there shall be no home where the Christian religion is practiced."
What followed were "point by point instructions on how to drive Christians out of the state." While the junta denied authorship of this specific document, it "made no public attempt to refute or repudiate its contents."
It could hardly do otherwise—its persecution of Burma's Christian minority is well-documented. Christian churches have been torn down and replaced by Buddhist pagodas; and Christians have been forced to financially support Buddhist projects and festivals.
It gets worse: Christian children have been removed forcibly from their homes never to be seen again. And members of largely Christian ethnic groups—the Chin, Lachin, and Karen— have been tortured by the Burmese army. Christian women are gang-raped by soldiers, killed, and their mutilated bodies placed on display as a warning to others.
Read the rest

I applaud the media's attention to the plight of Buddhist monks. But where were they when Christians were (and are) being ruthlessly persecuted?

2007-11-04T15:20:00.000-05:00

A man ahead of his time....

Woman Found; Red Tape Delayed Search

2007-09-28T12:23:00.000-04:00

This makes me sick.

A woman fails to return home from work; the husband reports her missing. The cops can't do anything because she's not missing long enough, it's not in their jurisdiction, it is long enough but now hubby is a suspect....Ugh. This unfortunate man went crazy for eight days wondering where his wife was and if she was okay while fending off suspicions from police while the poor wife lay in some ditch too injured and dehydrated to move.

Why do the police need so many hours to pass when it is clear that someone is not following her routine? Time delays such as these could have cost her her life. And the attitude of the police could only have made her husband's nightmare even more surreal and unbearable.

Sometimes "standard procedure" sucks.

DSU Shooting

2007-09-21T12:23:00.000-04:00

Poor Delaware State University! After the horrible execution style murders this past summer of three of their promising young students, now this (from delawareonline):

The Delaware State University campus remains closed after two students – one of them reportedly a cheerleader – were shot on campus early today. One suspect is still at large, officials said....

The two students -- one male and one female -- were shot near Memorial Hall about 1 a.m., officials said. Both were taken to hospitals. The male was said to be in stable condition but the female's injuries are considered serious.

So far there don't appear to be any leads as to the identity of the shooter or the motive.

May both these young people make full recoveries.

Carpool Fun

2007-09-19T20:20:00.000-04:00

Transporting a carload of kids home today, I noticed that the busload of girls directly in front of us were looking and waving at us--or to be more exact, at my son, Venger Jr., seated beside me in the front of our vehicle. Once the girls had our attention they started holding up their fingers to communicate numbers---seven fingers, then three fingers, etc.

"Oh, look guys, those girls are giving Jr. their phone numbers!"

Laughter all around, and one rather embarassed boy...

On a hunch that one of the girls would know a little sign language since girls are always fascinated by it, I pointed to my son and signed "cute".

Ah, one of the little cherubs did indeed know a little sign. "Yes," she nodded.

Laughter on the bus and one girl pushed the head-nodder.

More teasing in our car.

But all good things must come to an end. We approached the on-ramp to the interstate, and I switched lanes. The mass movement on the bus to the starboard (right) side would surely have capsized a boat, but being in a bus they were safe. Sensing an additional opportunity to pester my son further, I put down my window, slowed down as we passed, and called out, "He's cute, huh?" and the girls all vociferously agreed while the carpool continued to laugh and to tease my poor boy who was actually a very good sport about the whole thing.

Was I ever that young?

2007-09-17T10:58:00.000-04:00

A Pennsylvania man, searching for a cure for cancer utilizing radio waves, found that radio waves can cause the hydrogen in salt water to be released and to ignite. If salt water really can be used for our energy needs, we should pursue this immediately. Oh, to be energy self-sufficient and to kiss oil good-bye! What an amazing serendipitous discovery!

H/T: Paul

Ebola in the Congo

2007-09-12T17:57:00.000-04:00

Ebola has struck fear in my heart ever since reading The Hot Zone by Richard Preston. (Demon in the Freezer was excellent also.) Now there's been another ebola outbreak in the Congo. Over 100 people have died since August. The disease kills fairly rapidly which does make it harder to jump from person to person, but apparently it has managed to kill quite a few recently which is worrisome. With travel from continent to continent so easy, ebola could be anywhere in the world within a day. "Bleeding out" from absolutely every conceivable orifice of one's body has got to be a most horrible way to go. (If you haven't read the book, you'll have to use your imagination. Shudder.) Hopefully, terrorists won't decide it's a bright idea to weaponize ebola.

h/t: Reformed Chicks Blabbing

9/11 Remembered

2007-09-12T16:00:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was the sixth anniversary of 9/11. My heart goes out to those who lost family and friends and to others whose lives were personally changed forever by the 9/11 murders. In my prayers, I lifted up the victims' families who must still carry so much pain in their hearts. May God bring true healing and also justice in their lives.

On the one hand, we cannot become paralyzed as a nation every 9/11. Yet on the other hand, we cannot ever forget that horrible day when America was attacked as innocent men and women were just going about their day. Three thousand died on 9/11 for being Americans.

Lessons from History

2007-09-10T19:19:00.000-04:00

I love this one! What have we learned from history? Not much...

I laughed months ago when I first saw it. And I laughed again when I viewed it on Miriam's site, so I thought I should share it here.

Books I've Read: Not Without My Daughter

2007-09-07T14:41:00.000-04:00

A friend of mine has been saying for years now that she will not allow her daughter to leave for college without reading Not Without My Daughter. Never having read it or seen the movie myself, I checked it out of the library recently. How I missed this powerful tale of oppression and adventure, I’m not sure, but I think I’ll follow my friend’s lead and have my daughter read it before she leaves home.

For those of you not familiar with the story, in 1977, Betty Mahmoody had married an Iranian doctor practicing medicine in the United States. He was loving and kind during their courtship and even during the early part of their marriage. He was also apparently not a devout Muslim.

Then the revolution overturned the shah’s rule in Iran. Suddenly, Moody, as she called him, became increasingly interested in Iranian-American politics and critical of the United States of which he almost became a citizen. His interest in and practice of Islam increased wildly.

A few years later in 1984, one of Moody’s relations arrived for an extended visit. Shortly after his departure, Moody decided that they needed to go on a two week visit to visit his family in Tehran. Moody swore on the Koran that they would come right back after their trip. The two weeks were miserable for Betty and her little girl, Mahtob. Moody’s family was unfriendly toward Betty and unsanitary. Betty and Mahtob counted down the days; soon it was time to leave. However, at that time, Moody and his family announced that they would not be returning to the United States after all. Thus Betty’s life was reduced to separation from her sons and aging parents in America, beatings, imprisonment, and separation from her daughter for a time as a punishment, all at the hands of her “loving” husband.

Some of Moody’s female relatives eventually felt bad about his treatment of Betty, but there was nothing they could do to intervene. No one would defend her when Moody beat her. No one would help her escape when he imprisoned her for various lengths of time. One relative said she was sorry about what she was going through but not to feel bad because all men were like that.

In addition, Betty met Ellen, another American woman to whom a similar thing had happened, but who had finally accepted her fate. Betty initially felt a kinship with Ellen upon meeting her at a class as they were from the same state in the U.S. Ellen’s husband had been an engineer in the U.S. and was very Americanized when they had met, but he changed drastically when they moved to Iran. He beat her into submission and imprisoned her for a year. Ellen finally converted to Islam and accepted her oppressed role. Betty never did.

Although Moody had beaten Betty at their daughter’s school in front of all the teachers and the principal, they would not go to the police for her. Even if she had gone to the police, there was little they would or could do. The Iranian constitution gave no real rights to her, a woman.

While the extremists argued that hyper-modesty would protect women, it somehow failed to prevent sexual abuses against them. Daily, girls and women were raped in Tehran, sometimes murdered. Not only did women have to completely cover themselves to avoid immodesty and inciting men to lust, but they couldn’t travel alone safely anymore in Tehran even when covered. To be alone was to be at risk. Betty herself was accosted twice but managed to get away both times. Funny but even a chador revealing only a small part of a woman’s face was not enough to quell the lust in some men’s hearts. Could it be that women’s modesty or lack thereof wasn’t the problem?

Betty did manage clandestinely to make contacts with people in the underground, who also wanted out of Iran. She snuck such meetings into her shopping schedule when she was able to move about. The Swiss Embassy and a few other people, both Iranian and American, wanted to assist her out of the country. Her escape could have been accomplished fairly easily if she had been willing to leave without her child, but she refused. Several times Helen of the Swiss Embassy strongly suggested she just forget about her daughter and they could get her out. Those of Iranian background, such as Helen, could not understand her refusal as in their worldview the children belonged to the man.

Under pressure from friends, Moody finally agreed to let Betty go back to visit her dying father but refused to allow their daughter to accompany her. First he told her that she would need to sell off all their assets in the States and send the money to him before she would be allowed to return, then he slipped his master plan to her that she would never see her daughter again. With the situation now more desperate than ever, one of her secret friends pulled all his favors to execute a dangerous cloak and dagger plan to hide Betty and her daughter and shepherd them out of the country.

Most striking to me in reading Not Without My Daughter was the consistent witness of the oppression of women in Islamic societies. Reading Lolita in Tehran and Infidel both corroborate Mahmoody’s tale. Reading Lolita in Tehran obviously focused on oppression in Iran following the revolution thereby confirming Mahmoody’s eyewitness account while Infidel demonstrated the dire circumstances of women’s lives in several countries. In Saudi Arabia in particular, the author related how every night she and her family would hear the cries of women beaten by their husbands in homes close to theirs. Everyone heard, and everyone could recognize the voices, but no one talked about it or did anything. Brutality against women was just a fact of daily life.

Certainly violence against women occurs in the United States as well. I’ve known many women who have shared details of their nightmarish lives before their escapes with me. Yet the law was on their side, and the culture as a whole backed them in their desire to live free from familial harm. Such violence is not brushed off as "just part of life" or "all men are like that". Spousal abuse is deviant behavior.

Therefore, it is a mystery to me how a religion of peace can brush off this kind of oppression against women. It is a mystery to me how Westernized men can so quickly return to brutality against women they supposedly loved, once they return home. It is a mystery to me how people anywhere can witness violence and oppression and not intervene and how “law” can side with the guilty. And it is a mystery to me how anyone claiming a faith in God can justify to himself violence against women and children. But no one seems to have any answers, and I remain mystified.

Spare Me the Tears

2007-09-05T09:01:00.000-04:00

In a jail chapel, with two renderings of the Last Supper overhead, the family of a 21-year-old University of South Florida student gathered around him Saturday. His father did most of the talking, as they delivered the bad news.
The accusations that he and a fellow student had a pipe bomb in the trunk of their Toyota Camry as they drove near a Naval weapons station had turned into a federal indictment. Their hopes that state charges, filed by South Carolina authorities, would be dropped after a hearing this month were dashed. Instead, the two now face the likelihood they’ll be held in federal custody without bail, their attorneys said.
Youssef Megahed’s reaction was shock, and then despair, his family said. Sitting in solitary confinement, he’s terrified of the warnings FBI agents have given him and his family – that he’ll be held interminably in a military prison like Guantanamo Bay.
Adding to their anxiety was a quote in the Charleston newspaper Saturday from the local sheriff, predicting Megahed and fellow student Ahmed Mohamed soon will be moved from this jail in Berkeley County to the brig on the nearby Naval complex. The Megaheds know the brig is used to hold prisoners the president has deemed “enemy combatants.”
Worse for Megahed’s father, Samir, was the moment he was leaving and saw Mohamed talking to his own attorney. Mohamed, teary, had also just heard about the indictment.
He hugged and kissed Samir and asked him to deliver a message to his own father in Egypt: “Tell my father I am not going to meet him in this life again.”
Mohamed, 24, fears he will be imprisoned longer than his father will be alive, Samir said.
Source: A Family in Despair
via

Of course their families are upset--whose wouldn't be--but do we all need to cry with them?

Of course, these guys are innocent until proven guilty in a fair trial, but things don't look good. They were driving around with a pipe bomb on a road that led only to a military installation. Sounds innocent enough. I always drive around with pipe bombs and visit military installations for fun. Doesn't everyone?

So spare me the tears--unless you're crying for the victims of terrorism and for those who die trying to protect our nation.

h/t: Bos'un Locker

Breaking News!

2007-09-05T09:00:00.000-04:00

Paul takes advice from Anna V!

:)

Sorry, Paul. I couldn't resist. Surely you of all people can understand that!

Listening to...

2007-09-04T16:47:00.000-04:00

...American Ideals: Founding a "Republic of Virtue" by Professor Daniel N. Robinson.

Dr. Robinson's enthusiasm for the Revolutionary era, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution shines through his lectures. His deep respect for the Founders is apparent, yet he never sounds mawkish.

The lectures begin by tracing the colonists' history as loyal Englishmen through their break with England and include the intellectual underpinnings of the Declaration of Independence. From there Professor Robinson discusses the Articles of Confederation and the drafting and ratifying of the Constitution. He ends his lecture series with a comparison of Thomas Paine and Edmund Burke.

When I researched Dr. Robinson a bit further to purchase history books by him, I learned that he, in fact, had earned his Ph.D. in neuropsychology. I've found some of the best historians are not those who earned their degrees in history but who approach history from another viewpoint altogether and simply love a certain topic. (Rodney Stark, for example)

Check your local library to see if it carries this course. Many libraries do stock the Teaching Company courses, and if not, they might order it for you if you request it. I've found that lectures can help fill those otherwise monotonous moments behind the wheel, walking the dog, or doing mindless housework.

More FGM in Egypt

2007-09-02T12:00:00.000-04:00

From Khaleej Times Online

Egyptian man forces his wife to be circumcised(AP)1 September 2007
CAIRO, Egypt -
An Egyptian man forced his 20-year-old wife to be circumcised after a year of marriage, resulting in her hospitalization for acute bleeding, the state-run news agency reported on Saturday.
According to the police commissioner of the Cairo’s gritty northern suburb of Shubra el-Kheima cited by the Middle East News Agency, a dispute erupted between Shaaban el-Menshawi and his wife because she had never been circumcised, a once common operation in Egypt that has since been banned by the government.
When her husband started beating her, Ashgan Riyadh Abdelati fled to her mother’s house. Once there, however, her mother brought in a doctor to conduct the illegal operation on the spot, said the news report.
Abdelati was later admitted to Nasser General Hospital for acute bleeding. Hospital officials declined to comment on her condition.
Egypt has been reeling from two cases of young girls, one 12- and 13-year old, dying from the operation of the summer, prompting the government to renew its largely ineffective ban on the practice.
Female circumcision, which is also known as female genital mutilation, is a widespread traditional procedure in Egypt, practiced by Muslims and Christians alike.
Despite the fact that top clerics insist the practice has nothing to do with Islam, many Egyptians, especially in lower income rural and urban areas, believe the removal of the clitoris lowers a women’s sexual desires and thus helps maintain their honour.
Female circumcision is still practiced in parts of sub-Saharan Africa and Egypt, as well as in Yemen and Oman.
A 2003 survey by UNICEF said that 97 percent of married women in Egypt have undergone genital mutilation, though a recent study by the country’s Health Ministry found that only 50.3 percent of girls between the age of 10-18 years have been circumcised.

When will this violence stop?

See Amnesty International for more details on this barbaric, woman-hating custom.
via

Swiss Deportation Suggestion

2007-09-01T10:47:00.000-04:00

Hmmm. I'll have to think about this one.

The nationalist Swiss People's Party is proposing a deportation policy that anti-racism campaigners say evokes Nazi-era practices. Under the plan, entire families would be expelled if their children are convicted of a violent crime, drug offenses or benefits fraud.

Generally, I'm not a big fan of making a whole family pay for the crimes of one of its members. A wife, for example, is not responsible for the actions of her husband, nor he for hers. Though parents have incredible influence over their children, children do have free will, and parents can do everything right and their children still turn out bad.

"We believe that parents are responsible for bringing up their children. If they can't do it properly, they will have to bear the consequences," Ueli Maurer, president of the People's Party, told The Associated Press.

He explained that his party has long campaigned to make deportation compulsory for convicted immigrants rather than an optional and rarely applied punishment.

The party claims foreigners — who make up about 20 percent of the population — are four times more likely to commit crimes than Swiss nationals.

The point is that immigrants are guests in a country and not citizens. As guests, if they don't behave properly, they should be asked to leave, and be forcibly expelled, if necessary. We don't tolerate persons who refuse to respect us in our homes. Bars bounce people who are disruptive. Why shouldn't countries do the same?

(Despicable) Quote of the Day

2007-08-31T11:28:00.000-04:00

"A man can marry a girl younger than nine years of age, even if the girl is still a baby being breastfed. A man, however is prohibited from having intercourse with a girl younger than nine, other sexual act such as forplay, rubbing, kissing and sodomy is allowed. A man having intercourse with a girl younger than nine years of age has not comitted a crime, but only an infraction, if the girl is not permanently damaged. If the girl, however, is permanently damaged, the man must provide for her all her life. But this girl will not count as one of the man's four permanent wives. He also is not permitted to marry the girl's sister."
-Ayatollah Khomeini

Sexual activity with a little girl is permissible if they're married? How can a little girl be consentually married?

Not permanently damaged? What does that mean? Physically? Emotionally? How can she not be?

Hello? This is pedophilia, not holy matrimony, that he's advocating.

This shocking quote cannot be chalked up to that of an errant, obscure cleric. No, this is the religious teaching on marriage and women by the leader of a religious and political revolution that overtook an entire country.

We have a place for men in our country that would use little girls this way. It's called prison.

Revolting.

Source

One Child Program Sucks for Girls

2007-08-27T07:00:00.000-04:00

...and everyone else, over the long haul.

China's one-child family planning policy is generating serious long term problems for China and possibly for the world.

Because boys will carry on the family name, are more able to help with physical labor, and are just more valued culturally, people have responded to the one-child rule with abortion or infanticide of baby girls. As a result, the disproportionate ratio of boys to girls has skyrocketed.

From LifeNews:
The eastern city of Lianyungang is one of the worst offenders, according to a BBC
report, with 163.5 boys for every 100 girls four years old or younger.

But it's not alone as the family planning group reports that 99 cities out of 125 surveyed had ratios higher than 125-100.

But don't think fewer women will increase their standing or given them more power. On the contrary, the gender imbalance has "already led to the selling of girl babies, forced marriages, sexual slavery, an increase in crime and a host of other social problems."

Long-term, a nation of mostly men will find themselves without partners and experts predict serious mental health issues and other negative effects. It will also lead to fewer children supporting their older parents and grandparents and a potential financial collapse or poverty as a result.

With a surplus of young men, many may also find the military much more appealing. Just imagine lots of young men with no possibility of settling down seeking adventure elsewhere in the form of conquests.

It's not nice to fool with Mother Nature by messing up the birth ratios of males and females. There could be hell to pay.

Wilmington Land Grab

2007-08-25T09:51:00.000-04:00

...or "we're from the government and we're here to help"....

The Wilmington City Council voted to use eminent domain to snatch properties from business owners in downtown Wilmington to turn them over to a developer. It's Kelo gone wild.

From the Wilmington News Journal:
After two hours of heated debate, the City Council overwhelmingly passed a plan Thursday that allows the city to use eminent domain to condemn as many as 62 properties in South Wilmington.

The council voted 11-1 to approve the South Walnut Street Urban Renewal Plan. The plan is the city's blueprint for South Wilmington's future and includes taking properties of up to 38 working businesses and selling them to developers who would continue high-end residential and commercial redevelopment of the once entirely industrial area.

Charles Potter Jr. was the only council member who voted against the plan....

Potter was unsuccessful in an attempt to get his colleagues to table the plan. He thinks private developers should be talking directly with the property owners in the area. "Let the natural progression of seller and buyer take place," he said. "The city shouldn't be involved in this, not at all."

A wonderful display of conscience by Mr. Potter.

One council member denied this vote had anything to do with eminent domain. Another said he would only vote to condemn a property if "there was clear evidence that serious, serious negotiations had taken place."

Well, that's encouraging.

...business owners who pleaded with the council to table or reject the plan said taking away their livelihood was just as bad as taking their homes would be.
Keith Harvin of Harvin Foods said he came to Wilmington from Chester, Pa., 17 years ago. He was recruited by the city, which was trying to get businesses to locate in the then-barren area. "Now somebody wants to take my business," he said.
Gabe Feini, owner of Rodney Square Engineering, said he worked 14 hours a day, seven days a week, for years to make his skyscraper maintenance business a success. He used to live in his workplace as well, and he has thwarted four burglaries there over the years.
Now, he feels kicked to the curb by others wanting to share in the area's redevelopment, which he feels he helped launch.

Question: did those recruiters inform Mr. Harvin that the city council would take away his business seventeen years later when they no longer wanted him and he'd served their purposes?

Part of the area in question is across the street from the $200 million Christina Landing residential development. Christina Landing resident Catharine Lloyd suggested that both sides agree to do what's best for the city -- which is having the businesses agree to move. "You will get fair market value," she said to a chorus of boos from the property owners and their supporters.

Did Catharine Lloyd happen to notice those businesses across the way when she bought her home in Christina Landing? Why did she buy there if she didn't want to live across from them?

One of the reasons for the continued poverty of third world nations stems from a lack of property rights. (See the works of Hernando de Soto.) People aren't stupid. Why work day and not and take chances on a business if you don't have any right to the land and to your livelihood and everything can be taken at will by government thugs? While no one is accusing the Wilmington City Council of thuggery, having all one's worked for taken away by the government, offering "fair market value", can't feel good.

Why should anyone take a risk on establishing, operating and building up their business and clientele in Wilmington if the government can shut them down at will?

Iran against Racism, (Cough)

2007-08-25T07:04:00.000-04:00

Despite its numerous calls for Israel's destruction, and repeated denials of the Holocaust, Iran has been selected by the United Nations for a leading position in a committee that will plan the 2009 UN World Conference against Racism.
Source
via

They've got to be kidding. With Iran's denial of the Holocaust and repeated calls for "Death to Israel", Iran's inclusion on a committee against racism is a complete mockery of the theme.

And we keep funding the UN because....?

Honor Suicides

2007-08-23T07:56:00.000-04:00

Heartbreaking.

But "when a man's honor is between the legs of a woman" it makes perfect "sense".

"When wrong boyfriends or clothes lead daughters to kill themselves," by Helena Smith for The Guardian:

Nuran Uca never made it to 61 Aydin Arslan Street. If she had gone to the colourful two-storey building, climbed its narrow stairwell, walked down a corridor and sat in the plump brown armchair that so many other women had used, she might be alive today. There, with counsellors from the Kam-er support group, she could have talked about the "crime" of falling in love with a man she could never marry.
Instead, on June 14 the Kurdish woman succumbed to the phenomenon that is claiming lives in this Kurdish area of south-east Anatolia: she hanged herself in the bathroom of her home.
"She was just 25 but it was especially tragic because both were teachers, educated people," said Remziye Tural at Kam-er, the women's organisation that has become a lifeline in Turkey's poor south-east for those who face death because of a perception of dishonour. "She was modern and wore tight clothes - which is why his family rejected her.
She was banned by her parents from seeing or speaking to him, and then they stopped her leaving the house. In the end the pressure was too much."
[...]
Invariably, survivors said it was their kader, or destiny, to meet such an end.
But women's groups and human rights advocates believe the suicides are tantamount to murder. Stories have emerged of girls as young as 12 being locked in rooms for days with rope, poison or a pistol.
"There's a lot of evidence to suggest that these are, in fact, 'honour killings' passed off as suicides - that these girls are being forced to take their own lives," said Aytekin Sir, a psychiatrist who has studied the practice. There is no evidence that Nuran Uca's family forced their daughter to kill herself.
Last year, Yakin Erturk, a special UN envoy, arrived at the same conclusion, saying "honour suicides" had clearly begun to replace "honour killings", with the deaths
increasingly being disguised as accidents.
Death sentences
For a long time the potent forces of fear and shame in the communities stopped young women visiting the Kam-er centre on Aydin Arlsan Street. But recently at least four girls a day have gone there, often in fear of death sentences issued by their fathers and brothers for infractions perceived to have brought shame on their families.
Nearly one-fifth of those who walked through the doors of the organisation since it started up in 1997 complained of threats from their families. Some had received text messages on their mobile phones saying typically: "You have blackened our name. Kill yourself or we will kill you."
According to Vildan Aycicek, at the organisation's headquarters in the city of Diyarbakir, west of Batman: "Women apply to us when they think they cannot survive the violence any longer. Most are illiterate and don't know their legal rights. If they do, they have no idea how to use them."
There had, she said, been cases of Kurdish and Turkish women calling Kam-er's hotline from Britain and other countries saying they also feared for their lives. Worldwide, the numbers of "honour killings" are notoriously difficult to estimate. But in Turkey the vengeful practice is cited by academics as the cause of death for
hundreds of women each year - far above the official annual figure of 70.
Sometimes adultery, or a woman's desire for divorce, prompts an all-male "family
council" to order a killing.
But the list of "offences" is long: rape, incest, pregnancy brought on by both, a girl ringing into a radio chat show, exchanging eye contact with a boy or wearing a skimpy shirt. Sometimes accusations are no more than rumours.
One villager near Diyarbakir explained the attitude of his home area. "Without rules you have chaos," said Seyikan Arslan. "If my sister or my mother made a mistake we [men] would have to make it right. They would have to pay to cleanse our honour."
[...]
The culture clash has played a large part in exacerbating tensions within families and particularly between patriarchal fathers and their female offspring. "Migration is behind the big rise in honour and suicide killings," said Dr Sir, whose research found that support for the deaths far outstripped other popular penalties such as a woman having her nose sliced off or head shaved.
[...]
Ironically, the suicides have also been blamed on Turkey's efforts to stop "honour crimes". With Ankara's reforming Islamic-rooted government determined to enter the EU, it has toughened laws against the killings. Lenient sentences for those who cite provocation as a mitigating factor are no longer possible. So, to save men from a life in prison, experts believe families are instead forcing women to kill themselves.
[...]
Absent from the campaign in Batman has been the mayor, Huseyin Kalkan, who was awarded damages by DC Comics after a lawsuit over the use of his town's name for the superhero Batman. That money, activists point out, could be used to save women like Nuran Uca.

In the spirit of cultural equivalency, I suppose we just need to understand and accept, even as hundreds (thousands?) of women die each year for some man's "honor". It's just the culture. Who are we to judge?

h/t: jihad watch

Who's Up for Chinese?

2007-08-23T07:23:00.000-04:00

Let's see if I've got the whole list:

tainted, deadly pet food
seafood with unknown or banned compounds
faulty tires
lead in toys
antifreeze in toothpaste
unsafe medicines

and now.....pre-used, never washed chopsticks.

Did I leave anything out-- other than the things we just don't know about yet?

A Beijing factory recycled used chopsticks and sold up to 100,000 pairs a day without any form of disinfection, a newspaper said on Wednesday, the latest is a string of food and product safety scares.

Counterfeit, shoddy and dangerous products are widespread in China...

China, on track to overtake the United States this year as the world's second-largest exporter, lacks a basic food safety law and the manpower to enforce food and drug safety regulations at home or for export. Imports are generally carefully scrutinized.

A lack of business ethics and a spiritual vacuum after China embraced economic reforms in the late 1970s have been blamed for unscrupulous business practices and corruption.
Source

Okay, so the chopsticks didn't quite make it to the American market before the Chinese government discovered that used chopsticks were being resold on the Chinese market at an alarming rate sans disinfectant, but can anyone ho hum this away? Shouldn't we put the brakes on imports until China can deal with its domestic and export manufacturing? The safeguards just aren't in place. Of course, our economy is so tied in with China's now that they can wreck havoc by dumping bonds, etc.

h/t: Reformed Chicks Blabbing
Related posts: Time for a Ban, Blackmail, Chinese Style

Not Easy Being Green

2007-08-23T07:15:00.000-04:00

You Are Kermit

Hi, ho! Lovable and friendly, you get along well with everyone you know.
You're a big thinker, and sometimes you over think life's problems.
Don't worry - everyone know's it's not easy being green.
Just remember, time's fun when you're having flies!

The Muppet Personality Test

I actually still sing "It's Not That Easy Being Green" sometimes.

h/t: AO

Lizard Attack

2007-08-22T20:03:00.000-04:00

This is priceless. I had to watch it twice though because I didn't catch what had happened and how the first time.

Thanks to Michele from Reformed Chicks Blabbing

Michelle Swipes at Hillary?

2007-08-22T11:41:00.000-04:00

"One of the things, the important aspects of this race is role modeling what good families should look like," Michelle Obama said at a Women for Obama event. "And my view is that if you can't run your own house, you certainly can't run the White House."

Mrs. Obama brings up a good talking point. What should the First Family look like? Should they be role models for the rest of us? How much dysfunction should be tolerated in the First Family?

John F. Kennedy appeared to have the perfect family. The country reportedly enjoyed the notion of this loving couple and their adorable children. Few at that time knew that JFK was a male whore (or is whoremonger a better word?) Would the country have tolerated this behavior and admired him so if they had known?

Then there were the Reagans. While their children were obviously dysfunctional, there was no mistaking the love between Ron and Nancy. Though a second marriage, the two certainly demonstrated lifelong loyalty to each other.

Some have jumped on Michelle Obama's statement as an attack on Hillary Clinton whose marriage has been less than idyllic. The Obama camp denies this charge. Obama's words can certainly be viewed as a positive rather than a negative statement. Rather than an attack on others, she could have intended merely to build up her husband whom she feels is a positive example of manhood-- a good father and husband, one whom she believes handles his personal affairs in an honorable way-- and who will therefore be able to handle the White House in an honorable manner as well.

On the other hand, if it were an attack on Hillary, it was a low blow.

Look, I don't like Hillary Clinton one bit. I never have. I certainly don't understand her marriage. But to blame her for Bill's inability to keep his tongue in his mouth and his hands to himself and off his zipper is ludicrous. If Hillary is such an awful wife that Bill needs to find love and companionship from another woman, he should have been honest about it and left her long ago. Monica wasn't a one-time affair. No siree. Bill has a long history of philandering and womanizing and even had a rape accusation against him from a woman whom I found credible, especially when many other women had made allegations of sexual misconduct against him. Even if Hillary is the worst wife in the world, she didn't cause Bill to behave so dishonorable again and again. That was his choice, his responsibility. Does anyone believe he would be completely faithful to any woman? To in any way blame Hillary for not controlling Bill's behavior is a low blow. No one should be expected to control her spouse. What kind of person would want to?

That said, I do have strong opinions on Hillary's marriage. It has nothing to do with her inability to keep Bill under control. It instead has everything to do with Hillary's toleration of him. This is not the early 1900's. In today's world, a woman doesn't need a man for financial support and protection as she once did. If Hillary, a capable and educated woman, can't make it on her own without her man, how can any of us? If Hillary can't disengage herself from a dysfunctional relationship, from a man who has repeatedly dishonored and humiliated her and endangered her own health through the possible contraction of std's, what hope do any of us have?

Now, I'm all for the sanctity of marriage and for reconciliation. I understand that any person can lose his (or her) own way for a time. There are marriages in which one person was unfaithful for some reason or another that have been reconciled successfully. The injured party has forgiven a truly repentant errant spouse and they've worked to reestablish trust and loyalty and love. Those marriages are often a beautiful example of forgiveness and redemption.

The Clinton marriage is quite different, however. Bill was well-known for his infidelities and has allegedly not ceased from them in true repentance. Hillary did know for years about his affairs and reportedly helped cover them up and then led the attacks on the women involved when any sensible and professionally competent woman would have left his sorry @$$. If she didn't know, then I would question her competence in generally as she would have to be stupid or willfully blind in Bill's case.

This is my beef with Hillary about her marriage, not that she couldn't run her own house to begin with. When she received support from those who were impressed by her "stand by your man" baloney, I was trying not to toss my cookies as my stomach turned. Personally, I would have had far more respect for her if she had said no woman should be so disrespected by her husband again and again and had declared she could make it on her own and went out and did it (even if she had waited until the day after Bill's presidency ended so as not to disrupt the nation). I know women with far fewer opportunities and abilities who bravely left horrible marriages. If they can do it, why couldn't she of all people? How can she live that way? She can't control Bill and shouldn't, but she can control herself. Where is her self respect?

So, if Michelle Obama's comment was in fact a veiled attack on Hillary for not being able to control Bill, shame on her. But Hillary's apparent lack of self-respect and inability or unwillingness to make it on her own are real issues.

Newt's Speech on Phoney War

2007-08-21T13:05:00.000-04:00

"If they [the irreconcilable wing of Islam] were in charge tonight, not a single woman would be in this room."

Why, why, why is it a conservative male who makes such obvious complaints? Where are the feminists on radical Islam? Certainly not complaining in large enough numbers about widespread radical Islam and its effects on women around the world.

Bailey's Academic Winter

2007-08-21T07:49:00.000-04:00

J. Michael Bailey, a psychologist at Northwestern University, has experienced an academic's version of a harsh Siberian winter, having crossed the transgender community with an idea of all things. Ideas from an academic--imagine that. But ideas that don't conform with political correctness must be attacked. Scratch that. People with ideas that don't conform with political correctness must be attacked, vilified, sued, fired, investigated, accused, etc., and those closest to them must suffer vile attacks as well.

Bailey's academic crime? He published a book, "The Man Who Would be Queen" in the spring of 2003.

In his book, he argued that some people born male who want to cross genders are driven primarily by an erotic fascination with themselves as women. This idea runs counter to the belief, held by many men who decide to live as women, that they are the victims of a biological mistake — in essence, women trapped in men’s bodies. Dr. Bailey described the alternate theory, which is based on Canadian studies done in the 1980s and 1990s, in part by telling the stories of several transgender women he met through a mutual acquaintance. In the book, he gave them pseudonyms, like “Alma” and “Juanita.”

Dr. Lynn Conway, a computer scientist at the University of Michigan who had apparently been born male herself, seems integral to the attack. She consulted with the four transgendered women whom Bailey had interviewed for "The Man Who Would Be Queen". They wrote letters of complaint to Northwestern. One accused him of having sex with her. They also wrote to the Illinois state regulators requesting an investigation. Dr. Conway, the NY Times article says, also kept a running list of the accusations against Bailey on her site.

Things got worse.

[Dr. Conway's] site also included a link to the Web page of another critic of Dr. Bailey’s book, Andrea James, a Los Angeles-based transgender advocate and consultant. Ms. James downloaded images from Dr. Bailey’s Web site of his children, taken when they were in middle and elementary school, and posted them on her own site, with sexually explicit captions that she provided. (Dr. Bailey is a divorced father of two.) Ms. James said in an e-mail message that Dr. Bailey’s work exploited vulnerable people, especially children, and that her response echoed his disrespect.

Not only has Dr. Bailey and his children suffered from this abuse but also those academically associated with him. Two researchers, for example, "were advised by a government grant officer that they should distance themselves from Dr. Bailey to improve their chances of receiving financing."

Dr. Alice Dreger, an ethics scholar, had assumed Dr. Bailey was guilty of the charges against him and decided to investigate. She found the opposite. Of the four who complained, two were never mentioned in the book and the other two knew their stories would be used. The sexual misconduct allegations weren't made until five years after the supposed event, and emails between Dr. Bailey and his ex-wife indicate that he was actually at his ex-wife's home at that time, caring for their children. Dr. Dreger also contends that the book doesn't qualify as scientific research but was merely anecdotal.

“What happened to Bailey is important, because the harassment was so extraordinarily bad and because it could happen to any researcher in the field,” said Alice Dreger, an ethics scholar and patients’ rights advocate at Northwestern who, after conducting a lengthy investigation of Dr. Bailey’s actions, has concluded that he is essentially blameless. “If we’re going to have research at all, then we’re going to have people saying unpopular things, and if this is what happens to them, then we’ve got problems not only for science but free expression itself.”

Once again, we see that academic freedom is extended only to those who espouse views currently in vogue among academics and the politically correct. Run afoul of those individuals, and they'll do what they can to make your life miserable. It's not just your ideas they'll attack. They'll instigate investigations and attempt to get you fired. They'll accuse you of sexual or other misconduct. Even your children won't be safe.

All quotes are from the New York Times article: "Criticism of a Gender Theory, and a Scientist Under Siege" by Benedict Carey.

Kid Nation?

2007-08-20T08:34:00.000-04:00

Kid Nation? Who thought this show up? Kids ranging in age from 8 to 15 running their own society with no adult intervention, and parents let their kids go?

h/t: drudge report

Convert or Die

2007-08-20T07:55:00.000-04:00

But I thought there was no compulsion in religion.....

From Compass Direct:

Christians and Hindus in northern Pakistan have received dozens of letters threatening them with death if they refuse to become Muslims, church sources and a police official said yesterday. Police continued to provide security around churches and temples this week, even as Christians received new deadlines for converting to Islam.

Though the original August 10 deadline for conversion has passed, Peshawar’s minorities continue to live in fear, canceling church activities and skipping services, a Catholic priest said. “Embrace Islam and become Muslims … otherwise, after next Friday, August 10, your colony will be ruined,” read more than a dozen identical letters collected by the Church of Pakistan (COP) in Peshawar, 150 kilometers (93 miles) west of Islamabad...

Explaining that they were delivered to neighborhoods heavily populated by minority families living in small houses around a common courtyard, Dean [assistant director of communications for COP’s Peshawar diocese] said that the letters probably reached more than 100 Christians and Hindus.

A separate letter mailed to COP diocesan priest Joseph John threatened suicide attacks against churches...

Christian leaders immediately informed local police about the threats, prompting a meeting with City Police Chief Abdul Majeed Marwat on August 10. “The security in their areas has been beefed up around churches and other places of worship,” Marwat told Compass yesterday....

A Christian politician also brought the letter to the national government’s attention on Friday....“The speaker [of the house] took the matter very lightly and asked [Pervaiz Masih] to remind him about it in the presence of the interior minister,”

While some Christian sources told Compass that Peshawar police had done a good job providing security, others were hesitant to speak openly on the telephone for fear that their criticism would draw police anger.

“It’s just a hoax, I presume,” said Police Chief Marwat, explaining that a similar incident in May had turned out to be a teenage prank....

When asked why Christians did not pursue a court case against the Muslim youths, Dean said that their faith placed emphasis on reconciliation and that a court case could have backfired. “If we had been harsh, things would have escalated and gone against our interests,” said Dean. The cryptic comment reflects years of violent (though often isolated) incidents against Christians in Pakistan.
In November 2005, a mob of several thousand Muslims destroyed four churches, a convent and Christian schools in the Punjabi town of Sangla Hill after a Muslim accused a Christian of committing blasphemy. No one was held responsible for the attacks.

“We have experience of our [Christian neighborhoods] being attacked by extremists, so we took this very seriously,” Dean commented.

While there supposedly is no compulsion in religion and Christians and Jews have special status as people of the Book, these minority Christians and Hindus are being threatened to convert or die. As Christians have been attacked before with impunity, they are understandably wary even though the deadline has passed. Perhaps they're concerned that once police protection is lifted, they'll be harmed?

Also, can you imagine anyone in the U.S. fearing reprisals for complaining about the police? Complaining about authorities is practically a way of life for us.

h/t: Jihad Watch

Ready for Martyrdom

2007-08-15T06:41:00.000-04:00

From Hamas TV's child star says she's ready for martyrdom:

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Saraa Barhoum picked at the buttons on her pink bellbottom jeans as she twisted on a chair inside the bustling new Hamas television headquarters. The afternoon light bounced off the sparkly outlines of butterflies on her frilly top, and a colorful hijab framed her 11-year-old face.

Saraa wants to be a doctor. If she can't, the young star of Hamas television's best-known children's show said, she'd be proud to become a martyr. Saraa says little Jewish girls should be forced from their homes in Israel so that Palestinians can return to their land....

Saraa is the sweet face of "Tomorrow's Pioneers," a weekly, hour-long Hamas television children's show best known for bringing the world a militant Mickey Mouse look-alike and then having him killed off by an Israeli interrogator...

The station, which operates with a license from the Palestinian Authority, also features religious lessons, cartoons, advice shows and militant music videos. One video hailed a female suicide bomber whose young daughter vows to follow her mother's example.

"Tomorrow's Pioneers" sparked an international furor in April when it began featuring Farfour, the Mickey Mouse look-alike who sounded more like Iran's firebrand President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad than a Disney character...

After two months, Farfour was beaten to death on the show by an Israeli interrogator. Nahoul, a larger-than-life bee, is now carrying his message...

"A lot of people in Palestine have died as martyrs, and lots of Palestinians hope to be martyrs," Saraa said of Farfour's demise. "This is one of the ends."

Asked if she hoped one day to be a martyr, Saraa instinctively nodded her head.
"Of course," Saraa said. "It's something to be proud of. Every Palestinian citizen hopes to be a martyr."

Saraa helps deliver similar messages to Palestinian children from a Hamas TV set filled with colorful numbers and pictures of kittens. During the show, Saraa fields calls from Palestinian children who warble songs about Islam, liberating Jerusalem and finding answers in the barrel of a machine gun...

Could the ongoing problems between Israel and Palestine be the result of brainwashing the youth to continue fighting rather than trying to live peaceably?

Could the conflict stem from competing philosophies: Palestinians want Israelis dead and Israelis want to live?

Does this kind of propaganda qualify as child abuse?

Hat tip: The Bos'un Locker

Cruelty to Animals on Hamas Children's TV

2007-08-14T07:43:00.000-04:00

YouTube presents this children's video courtesy of Palestinian Media Watch.

Witness the Hamas Bee (Nahool) at the Gaza Zoo, swatting and kicking cats and twirling a kitty by its tail to squeals of delight from children. Next view Bee throwing stones at caged lions. Only at the end, a girl says she shows this bad behavior as an example of what not to do. Somehow I think the message will be lost on its immature viewers. Cruelty to animals rarely succeeds in discouraging cruelty to animals. Go figure.

Duct-Taped Bandit Vanquished by Virile "Victims"

2007-08-14T06:52:00.000-04:00

In case you missed this story....

For the Stupid Files:

While duct tape has countless uses, robbery masks are probably not among them.

This would-be desperado wrapped his face with duct-tape and attempted to rob Shamrock Liquors in Ashland, Kentucky. Kasey Kazee was thwarted in his ill-conceived plan by store manager Bill Steele who brandished his own duct-tape tipped club at Kazee. After fleeing the store, Kazee was then tackled in the parking lot by employee Craig Miller who held him until police arrive. As Miller explained, Kazee was lucky he was sweating profusely, making removal of the duct tape head wrap a snap.

Steele remaining serious during the news video is priceless. He's obviously holding back laughter. Kazee tells interviewer that police have the wrong man.

A picture is worth a thousand words, but if the video link doesn't work, try this news article.

Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite

2007-08-13T07:51:00.000-04:00

Bed feeling a little crowded? Maybe you have company.

The Cimex lectularius, better known and despised as the common bedbug, is snuggling into households across Southern California, giving people the heebie- jeebies. The blood-sucking, heat-seeking, pint-size parasites aren't believed by the experts to transmit disease, but they do have a way of cranking up stress levels...

For much of the second part of the last century the liberal use of the eventually banned pesticide DDT seemed to all but do away with them. Now bedbugs have moved into single-family homes with a vengeance and taken up lodging in schools, hospitals and college dormitories too....

"Bedbugs are just going ballistic everywhere," said Michael Potter, a professor of entomology at the University of Kentucky. "It is going to really rock this country. I'm not trying to sound sensationalist.

"Bedbugs hitchhike on humans or in luggage and burrow into bedding, books, sofas and just about any cozy place, even picture frames. Once they establish squatter's rights, evicting them isn't easy. Or cheap. Casting them out of the average house in Southern California can cost thousands of dollars and require multiple visits...

Western Exterminator Co., which serves California, reported a 240% increase in bedbug work from 2000 to 2006. Isotech Pest Management Inc. in Pomona is conducting about 1,000 inspections a month -- 700% more than last year...

A number of reasons are cited for the infestations, among them the DDT ban and an increase in international travel. "It's not a case of being a lower socioeconomic thing," said William Brogdon, a research entomologist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "These things can happen to anybody."...

"A bedbug is really a wonderful survivor" that can persevere for as long as 18 months without nourishment, said entomologist Frank Meek, a technical director for Orkin. "They can hide and live a long time."...

They arrived in the New World with the first colonists and were plentiful until about the 1940s, when DDT seemed to do away with them. Their comeback means public education is vital, Potter said. For example, it's foolhardy to retrieve a mattress or couch from a curb or a dumpster... He's not optimistic about the future, given current restrictions on powerful chemicals and the bugs' knack for adapting to them. "Our arsenal is depleted of effective products," he said, and there's no "silver bullet in the wings."

from LATimes.com (boldface mine)

Read the whole article to hear the first-hand horror stories of average middle class Americans managing a modern day plague in their homes.

Once again, is it time to rethink the ban on DDT?

China Frees Slaves

2007-08-13T07:09:00.000-04:00

At least they're trying to do something:

China is still freeing people—including children—forced to work as slaves in illegal brick factories, two months after the scandal involving the brick yards was exposed, officials said Monday.
The scandal erupted in early June after children as young as 8 were abducted or recruited from bus and train stations with false promises of well-paying jobs and sold to kilns for about $65.
"Another 359 slave migrant workers have been rescued in Shanxi since late June, including 15 child workers and 121 mentally handicapped ones," said Xue Yanzhong, executive vice governor of Shanxi province.

I'm always amazed when someone looks at me and says, "People are basically good." Who does stuff like this?

British Girls Targeted by Immigrants

2007-08-12T11:44:00.000-04:00

Excerpts from "Grooming of white girls for sex is exposed as two Asian men jailed":

A hidden world in which Asian men “groom” young white girls for sex has been exposed with the jailing yesterday of two men for child-abuse offences.

Zulfqar Hussain, 46, and Qaiser Naveed, 32, from east Lancashire, were each jailed for five years and eight months after exploiting two girls aged under 16 by plying them with alcohol and drugs before having sex with them.

Both men pleaded guilty at Preston Crown Court to abduction, sexual activity with a child and the supply of a controlled drug...

The trial came amid growing concern at the attitudes of some Asian men towards white girls which campaigners for women claim few people wish to address.

Parents have complained that in parts of the country with large Asian communities white girls as young as 12 are being targeted for sex by older Asian men yet the authorities are unwilling to act because of fears of being labelled racist....

Although campaigners claim that hundreds of young girls are already being passed around men within the Asian community for sex, she said that attempts to raise the problem with community leaders had met with little success, with most of them being in a state of denial about it...

"Asians cannot go to Asian girls because it would be a terrible breach of the honour of the community and their family to have sex with an Asian girl before marriage.”

Apparently, the police aren't the only ones afraid of being labeled racist. The Times Online is too since the use the term "Asian" instead of Muslim or Pakistani. Several commenters were incensed about the term, and some Asians and Brits complained that the paper was afraid of insulting Muslims but not afraid to insult Asians in general. What a surprise.

Why do European nations fear insulting immigrants more than they fear harm to their own women and children?

h/t: Jihad Watch

Til Death Do Us Part

2007-08-11T07:26:00.000-04:00

Mr. Venger used to tease about taking a second wife, funny not in a close to the truth sort of way, but because it was preposterous. I would retort that that would be a bad idea because this would be the result:

NORRISTOWN, Pa. — A woman killed her longtime husband hours before he was to leave on a trip to Morocco to try to impregnate his new second wife, prosecutors said in murder charges filed Thursday.
Myra Morton, 47, turned herself in Thursday to face murder and related charges in the death of Jereleigh Morton, 47, who was shot in his bed early Sunday morning in his million-dollar home outside Philadelphia.
Source

In seriousness, in the U.S. women have rights and legal recourse. She should have divorced him. Now she will probably spend the rest of her life in prison. We never have the right to take a life like that. On the other hand, I can't imagine this guy was worth going to prison for. I'm still wondering if there were mitigating circumstances.

While U.S. law forbids more than one spouse (for now), that didn't stop Jereleigh Morton from taking a second wife in another country. It seems likely that he was trying to bring her here:

Shortly after her husband married Toural, Myra Morton sent a letter to the U.S.
State Department in which she said her husband was trying to bring Toural over
on a tourist visa. She urged the government to keep Toural out of the United
States, going so far as to accuse the other woman of having connections to
terrorists.

This should be an interesting court case.

1998 Not Such a Hot Year

2007-08-10T10:33:00.000-04:00

Since the NASA data correction, here are the top ten hottest years:

From Climate Audit via Michele Malkin (see also Hot Air)

1934
1998
1921
2006
1931
1999
1953
1990
1938
1939

1998 has been downgraded to second hottest year since data flaws have been acknowledged.

1934 was the hottest.

Now, let's see....one from the 1920's, four from the 1930's, one from the 1950's, three from the 1990's and then last year. So half were before we humans could possibly have caused much damage.

I just can't get all worked up into a religious frenzy over global warming. Yeah, I believe Earth is currently warmer than in the past but don't see enough evidence to begin self-flagellation for my evil global-warming ways, especially since I'm darn sure I didn't cause global warming on Mars, too.

As a matter of fact, the whole global warming discussion so bores me that I think maybe I'll go for a drive. Better yet, I'll walk.

Recall

2007-08-10T06:12:00.000-04:00

And now a tire recall of, you guessed it, Chinese manufactured tires. The U.S. distributor has been sued after faulty tires caused an accident resulting in two deaths. Anyone, noticing a pattern here?

Blackmail, Chinese Style, Time for a Ban?

Raunchy Reading Rap

2007-08-10T06:02:00.000-04:00

Well, this is different. A profane rap commercial on BET encourages people to read. Remember, I did warn you about the content.

Somehow I don't think an audience encouraged to read by this will read the kind of the stuff I read. Different strokes?

I especially enjoy it when people list their reasons: "1., b., and lastly", but I do have an odd sense of humor.

From a Man Who Knows

2007-08-10T05:50:00.000-04:00

Michele finds the coolest stuff! This man has definitely lived what he sings and understands the frustrations (and joys!) of parenthood and life....

Addicted to Blog

2007-08-09T16:10:00.000-04:00

58%

Minneapolis Singles from Mingle²

Well, kinda.

h/t: Jeff

Better than Body Armor

2007-08-09T08:05:00.000-04:00

Who needs body armor when he's got God's Word? A sniper's bullet failed to kill this soldier, stopped by a Bible over the young man's heart.

Blackmail, Chinese Style

2007-08-09T07:11:00.000-04:00

Blogger buddies at Reformed Chicks Blabbing and The Bos'un Locker both referenced this story of blackmail yesterday from the Telegraph:

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

The Chinese government has begun a concerted campaign of economic threats against the United States, hinting that it may liquidate its vast holding of US treasuries if Washington imposes trade sanctions to force a yuan revaluation.

Two officials at leading Communist Party bodies have given interviews in recent days warning - for the first time - that Beijing may use its $1.33 trillion of foreign reserves as a political weapon to counter pressure from the US Congress...

Described as China's "nuclear option" in the state media, such action could trigger a dollar crash at a time when the US currency is already breaking down through historic support levels.

It would also cause a spike in US bond yields, hammering the US housing market and perhaps tipping the economy into recession. It is estimated that China holds over $900bn in a mix of US bonds...

"Of course, China doesn't want any undesirable phenomenon in the global financial order," he added....

A bill drafted by a group of US senators, and backed by the Senate Finance Committee, calls for trade tariffs against Chinese goods as retaliation for alleged currency manipulation...

While tariffs generally aren't a good idea, this extreme threat from the Chinese to blow up our economy clearly demonstrates their underlying attitude toward the U.S. and our weakness.

Earlier we saw that the Chinese government's response to an FDA testing mandate was to claim it was "illegal under world trade rules." The FDA mandate came after tainted pet foods killed our pets, toothpaste and toys contained unsafe substances and "15 percent of farm-raised shrimp, eel and catfish contained dangerous or unapproved substances"--all courtesy of Chinese businesses. (see Time for a Ban?)

Granted this latest threat to nuke our economy is probably mere political posturing since the Chinese would damage their own economy greatly in the process, but for their threat to have any impact on the U.S. at all exposes our weakness. Although national debt often grows during times of war, the U.S. debt has been increasing for decades just to fund our normal operating expenses. Is it any surprise we are now blackmail victims? The debtor is, after all, the servant of the lender.

Discrimination or Common Sense?

2007-08-08T09:25:00.000-04:00

It makes sense that women would want someone who will stick around for the long haul, but is there any correlation between strongly masculine features and negative male traits of infidelity and excessive dominance? I'd hate for masculine-looking men to be unfairly discriminated against on the basis of looks alone.

And more importantly, should I take tweezers to my son's eyebrows to ensure I get grandchildren one day?

Time for a Ban?

2007-08-08T07:38:00.000-04:00

Nearly two-thirds of Americans would support a ban on Chinese imports, a poll yesterday said.

Asked by pollster Zogby International whether they were concerned about buying Chinese products, 82 percent of respondents said yes and only 30 percent said they believed food imports from China were safe.

Some recent imports of seafood, toys, pet food and toothpaste from China have been mislabeled, contaminated or otherwise proven unsafe. Consumers consequently remain wary.

Meanwhile, in another report:

At least 1 million pounds of suspect Chinese seafood landed on American store shelves and dinner plates despite a Food and Drug Administration order that the shipments first be screened for banned drugs or chemicals...

So, can the FDA competently handle their current workload and identify unsafe products? Carl R. Nielsen doesn't seem to think so. He should know. He oversaw import inspections at the FDA until 2005.

Normally, the FDA tests 1% of imports, but when food products fall under an import alert, they are supposed to be held "until private tests that cost importers thousands of dollars show the seafood is clean. Sometimes, the FDA double-checks those tests in its own labs. Products can be detained for months, irking importers."

China's response fails to generate confidence. On the one hand, they agree to inspect fish farms for use of dangerous drugs and chemicals while on the other they call "the FDA's testing mandate illegal under world trade rules."

Last summer, FDA labs began accumulating evidence that 15 percent of farm-raised shrimp, eel and catfish contained dangerous or unapproved substances. The agency started throwing individual companies on its watch list, and ultimately issued a sweeping mandate that all shrimp, eel and catfish raised on Chinese farms be stopped and tested.

Federal food safety officials said that while the seafood poses no immediate danger, long-term exposure could increase the risk of cancer or undermine the effectiveness of drugs used to fight outbreaks of disease...

The Chinese government and U.S. importers say the FDA overreacted. It would be impossible, importers say, for a person to eat enough seafood to be affected by the trace levels that FDA found of substances such as the antifungal chemical malachite green and the antibiotic Cipro.

It still smells fishy to me. With fifteen percent of imported seafood tainted, I don't think the FDA overreacted. Consumers expect food on American shelves to be safe. Would an American company be allowed to get away with this? I doubt it. Lawsuits would force them out of business if the government didn't clamp down on them first.

Also, after our pets have been killed, our toothpaste made unsafe for use, lead found in our children's toys, and our own food supply tainted, the burden should fall on the Chinese to pay for testing to prove their purity of their products. For us to pay through our taxes for all this testing would cause the true price of imports to be masked with Americans paying a hidden price for each product while believing it truly cheaper than American or other imported products. American companies would surely be run out of business for this kind of behavior. Why should foreign companies get a pass?

Atheists Beware

2007-08-07T08:49:00.000-04:00

Funny skit!

Hattip: rightwingnews

Fudge Frenzy

2007-08-07T00:05:00.000-04:00

We've all heard of chocolate cravings and of the munchies, but breaking and entering in a midnight raid on a fudge store is a bit over the top. (See link for video.)

I wonder what her defense will be. A severe case of PMS? Think she'll get off?

Botulism Warning

2007-08-06T22:37:00.000-04:00

Please note a botulism warning for canned green beans manufactured by Lakeside Foods and marketed under various labels. Please see list at link.

Huckabee's Dead On

2007-08-06T15:19:00.000-04:00

Does this guy make sense on the issue of foreign oil, or what? I've been saying for well over a decade that we need to end our dependence on foreign oil. Someone, however, told me that there was some sense in using foreign oil---use it up first, then use our own. This has been to our detriment as we have funded the very terrorists who wish to destroy us. For that reason, I would love to open up ANWR for oil drilling in conjunction with efforts to find fuel alternatives since that supply can't last forever and isn't renewable.

Notice Huckabee also mentions the need to feed ourselves. This is another concern I have about ethanol. There is a temptation to grow more and more corn and fewer of other crops with increased use and subsidizing of ethanol. I think we're barking up the wrong stalk with this one.

Forget the Corn

hattip: Reformed Chicks Blabbing, again

The Catty Post

2007-08-06T10:19:00.000-04:00

The Washington Post published a very uncomplimentary piece on Jeri Thompson. I don't recall it being customary to display such negativity toward spouses' of candidates, especially so early on, and I'm not going to repeat the spin here. I'm not all that concerned about a candidate's spouse anyway, unless she (or he) makes clear that she will be leading the country as a co-President. The article came across as high school girl catty, so I scrolled back to see the authors' names. I was shocked to find that the writers were male. Then again, it was the Washington Post. Perhaps finding catty guys on their staff shouldn't surprise me.

hattip: Reformed Chicks Blabbing

Eight Random Facts

2007-08-06T07:38:00.000-04:00

Yikes! Greg tagged me.

Here's how it works:

In the 8 facts about [name], you share 8 things that your readers don’t know about you. Then at the end you tag 8 other bloggers to keep the fun going.

Each blogger must post these rules first.

Each blogger starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.

Bloggers that are tagged need to write on their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.

At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Always a challenge while remaining anonymous, I've listed eight more things about me, carefully avoiding mentioning key things that would make me completely identifiable.

I caught an awful case of mumps from my "boyfriend" in first grade.
When I was in fifth grade I had an argument with my teacher over the lack of information on women in our history text as I couldn't (and still don't) believe women had no place in history.
I wanted to be an FBI agent when I was a little girl but was told during a tour of the FBI building that I couldn't be because I was female. My mother was ticked. (That rule was changed shortly thereafter.)
In high school I was in all-state chorus.
I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.
My kids think I'm a health food nut, but I don't because I still eat junk food sometimes and it still finds its way into our home. Junk food tends to be treated as party food however. Ice cream is somewhat of an exception though as I have long believed it is a food group in its own right.
My parents were divorced when I was a small child.
I attended the University of Delaware.

Tagging: Thomas, Mt. Pleasant Classical Academy, Duffy, Michele, Robin, AO, Paul, and Jeff

Oh, my.....

2007-08-02T19:22:00.000-04:00

I suspect there will be an awful lot of people rather upset with the new musical, Jihad--the Musical, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland.

h/t: Rhymes with Right

Never Too Late to Learn

2007-08-02T11:32:00.000-04:00

A 94-year-old Australian great-great-grandmother who quit school at 12 is
said to have become the world's oldest person to earn a university masters
degree.

Medical Science Masters Degree graduate Phyllis Turner, from Australia's
Adelaide University, began studying for her postgraduate degree at age 90 and
received her award this week.

Truly inspirational. Next time I feel I'm too old to try something new, I'll remember Phyllis Turner.

Mall Brawl

2007-08-01T20:26:00.000-04:00

Surely most Delawareans know about the Christiana Mall brawl last Friday night. I certainly wouldn't have wanted my kids involved in a food fight involving a thousand teenagers, and I wouldn't have wanted to be a patron of the mall at that time, either. Police closed the mall 45 minutes early, judging the situation to be a threat to public safety.

Personally, I would have preferred keeping all the kids involved there until they cleaned up every last morsel of food and drop of drink, but that probably would have been too difficult to enforce. A second choice would be to have them all perform community service.

On the bright side, there are no reports of injuries, though I suppose some kids might have had some bruises if they were fist fighting. There were no reports of brass knuckles, knives, or guns, either. Things could have been a lot worse.

Many propose curfews on teenagers at the mall as an appropriate response. Some suggest that teenagers be accompanied by parents, which will undoubtedly make the mall less attractive to many of them who just want to hang out with their friends. The mall will have to weigh economic and public safety issues carefully. But I think it's a shame that once again good kids will be penalized for the antics of the unruly.

Links: Action News, Delaware online

The U.N. a Problem?

2007-08-01T19:29:00.000-04:00

According to Dr. Nile Gardiner, it is. View "Why We Should Be Suspicious of the U.N." here.

Another Murdered Christian South Korean Hostage

2007-07-31T16:05:00.000-04:00

Michelle Malkin continues to blog on the heart-rending story of the South Korean hostages in Afghanistan as the second murdered body is found. What kind of people are the Taliban to kidnap and murder South Korean volunteers to the downtrodden of Afghanistan? (Rhetorical question.) Another question, not so rhetorical: did the Taliban target them for abuse because they are Christian workers or did they just hit the jackpot with their abduction? And another: do they think this will endear their faith or their cause to our hearts?

DDT....Where are You?

2007-07-31T10:06:00.000-04:00

According to Dr. Mitra, Massachusetts is in a cyclical outbreak of the EEE virus. Although extremely rare, it was responsible for five deaths in Massachusetts last year, three of them in SouthCoast towns.

Source: SouthCoastToday

We know how to deal with mosquitoes: DDT!

Kill them. Kill them all.

It's us or them.

Faith-Based Fighter

2007-07-31T08:39:00.000-04:00

I don't think there are any surprises here....

My Conservative Identity:

You are a Faith-Based Fighter, also known as a religious conservative. You believe in Judeo-Christian values, restoring God’s rightful place in the public square, and in showing all the unwashed and unsaved liberal sinners the path to salvation, or at least to the GOP.

Take the quiz at http://www.fightliberals.com/Inside-the-Book/What-Breed-of-Conservative-Are-You.html

I suppose I could have registered as something else, though, as I thought the questions were darn hard to answer--so many good choices. The last question, however, was disgusting, both morally and aesthetically. I wouldn't choose anyone for that.

h/t: Jeff and Paul

Childhood Outcomes

2007-07-24T14:44:00.000-04:00

Summary of July's Top Ten Findings of Early Childhood Outcomes from familyfacts.org

1. Infants in married families are more likely to exhibit positive behavior than those whose mothers are single or cohabiting.

2. Children in cognitively stimulating home environments are less likely to exhibit hyperactive or antisocial behavior.

3. Three-year-olds who are less securely attached to their mothers are more likely to exhibit behavioral problems.

4. Children who received more sensitive care from their mothers as preschoolers tend to have stronger social skills as first graders.

5. Six-year-old boys who experience conflict in the home are more likely to engage in disruptive behaviors.

6. First graders and kindergartners whose parents attend religious services exhibit higher levels of self-control.

7. First graders and kindergartners whose parents attend religious services are less likely to experience anxiety, loneliness, low self-esteem and sadness

8. Maternal employment in the first year is associated with lower levels of cognitive development at ages three through eight

9. Children who spend more time in daycare in early childhood are more likely to exhibit behavioral problems, even through the sixth grade.

10. Among five-year-olds in child care, those who received more sensitive and stimulating care in the first three years exhibit, on average, higher cognitive ability

Some of these seem like no-brainers. Yet in an age that demeans the role of motherhood, especially the choices of stay-at-home moms, reminders and proofs of mom's significance are necessary. While many families experience crisis to the detriment of their children, there is still no substitute for even an adequate home life.

Staying Young

2007-07-20T18:47:00.000-04:00

Prevention cites twenty-five ways to retard the aging process. They are enumerated below in condensed form, but take a look yourself. The article claims that only 30% of factors influencing life expectancy are genetic so it's worth taking care of yourself.

Stay the weight you were at 18, if that was a healthy weight.
Supplement daily with 800 mg of alpha-lipoic acid and 2,000 mg of acetyl-L-carnitine. These "chemicals boost the energy output of mitochondria, which power our cells."
Reduce caloric intake. (They suggest skipping a meal.)
Get a pet to reduce blood pressure and ward off depression.
If you experience pain, seek a doctor's assistance.
Walk 1/2 an hour a day.
Fight nice.
Have plants.
Weight lift.
Do good deeds. (Be kind to others.)
Eat lots of fruits and veggies.
Eat fatty fish, such as salmon, sardines, and lake trout.
Enjoy music.
Drink tea, especially green tea.
Watch your waistline.
Supplement with Vitamin D.
Eat curry (or more specifically tumeric which has curcumin, an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory substance).
Watch your iron intake, or donate blood.
Take care of your eyes. (Supplement or eat foods with omega-3s, lutein, and zeaxanthin.)
Take extract of the South American fern Polypodium leucotomos for healthy skin.
Practice deep breathing to reduce stress.
Avoid regular exposure to loud noise.
Get enough sleep.
Avoid high glycemic foods like potatoes.
Maintain a positive attitude.

Again, read the whole article with explanations. If we have to get older, at least we can take responsiblity for maintaining our health and well-being as much as possible.

If You Blow It: A 'Bama Tale

2007-07-13T00:35:00.000-04:00

Last week we traveled down to Alabama to visit my brother, my sister-in-law, and my nieces.

It was a seriously long drive but worth it to see my family. They did the "Southern hospitality" cliche proud.

There was lots of talking, threats to push me into the pool but I stared those family members down, really big bugs with which I did not engage in a staring contest (better not to make eye contact), mule rides, blueberry picking, a walk around the lovely campus of Auburn University, and a Fourth of July picnic.

Oh, yeah, the picnic.

There were many interesting people there from varied backgrounds. At one point, I'm told, my sister-in-law looked proudly upon her "diversity pool"--which I was not in because it was still not hot enough for a pool to look even remotely tempting to me.

Night approached and Mr. Venger, Venger Jr, and Vengerette mosied off to the middle of the front yard far away from the house where they had earlier built a staging area for the fireworks display Mr. Venger had carefully planned. Fireworks of all kinds are perfectly legal in 'bama--- as long as it's not too dry. I kept my promise and brought enough rain to diminish any fire hazards to the drought-stricken area, and Mr. Venger paid a little visit to Shelton's and purchased some totally cool stuff, so we were all set.

The first few were unimpressive. But my hubby was just teasing us. Soon there were awesome explosions and colorful flashes of light across the sky that made the grown-ups get off the porch to see. Cars slowed to watch. Then one car stopped. And never turned off his headlights. Spectators were more than welcome, but headlights were not. We Northerners were none too pleased. "Yo, Dude! Turn out your lights!" I shouted as politely as possible, but my voice wouldn't carry that far. My little niece, sitting on my lap, echoed "Yo, Dude! Turn out your lights!" She was so cute! It was an incredibly proud moment for me--corrupting the sweet Southern-belle-in-training with my Northern ways and all.

Referring to the famous line from "Field of Dreams", my sister-in-law in total innocence said of those cruising by, "If you blow it, they will come."

Hey, Reader! Get your mind out of the gutter!

Alright, in all fairness...

The teenagers were the first to giggle. Next, the adults got it and chuckled. Then Freud laughed--at least, I think it was him. It wasn't until afterwards, however, that the full implication of the sentence finally dawned on her. Upon her conscious mind, that is.

Anyway, everyone had so much fun that there was talk of doing it all again next year. Also, there was some discussion of printing t-shirts with "If you blow it, they will come" emblazoned on them. Or maybe we'll just say "Blow II" and leave it at that.

A Conflicted Moment

2007-07-12T23:28:00.000-04:00

I've long disliked the whole beauty pageant thing. But Miss Utah Jill Stevens sounds kinda cool.

h/t: Jeff

Happy Father's Day

2007-06-17T15:23:00.000-04:00

Our culture often dismisses men as irrelevant at best, evil at worst. Fathers are depicted in television shows and commercials as buffoons. But truth be told, there's no replacement for a good father, or even a good-enough father, in the home.

Thanks to all you guys who take your role seriously and refuse to let the culture bring you down.

Some father facts.

Happy Father's Day.

Books I've Read

2007-05-07T07:41:00.000-04:00

Just read:

Interesting and informative, this book is a worthwhile read. Bowden's style is engaging while he educates his readers about some of the healthiest foods for humans and why they're so darn good for us. Surprisingly, ice cream and popcorn didn't make the cut. But blueberries, brocoli, wild salmon, oats and over one hundred forty other foods did.

He's repetitive in places, but that works well if you want to read sections out of sequence. He's managed to cut through the politically correct nutritional nonsense and to condense research into manageable bits for the both newcomers and more knowlegeable souls alike. He rightfully refused to jump on the "eat more grains" bandwagon, and he discussed fairly the *soy controversy raging in nutrition circles. He refuses to cower before fatty foods as though they were satanic; he argues for the use of good fats in the diet, thank goodness. And of course there were many, many nutritional superstars among the fruits and the vegetables. Bowden also discusses dairy, meat, poultry, beans and legumes, herb and spices, sweeteners, and beverages. This is a great book to have on hand when your family says, "Why do I have to eat this?"

*When I put add more soy into my diet on my to-do list, I probably should have mentioned the controversy. Many nutrition experts are horrified by the increased use of soy in our diets. They argue that we should eat soy only as those who've been doing it for hundreds of years do---that is, only when fermented as in the case of tempeh, miso, or natto. That was what I meant when I said I wanted to add soy to my daily diet. I did try but discovered that even miso which I love does not agree with my system, giving me indigestion.

More Equal

2007-05-06T07:57:00.000-04:00

President Bush has promised to veto the “hate crimes” bill (H.R. 1592) that was passed in Congress last week.

For the record, I personally am against crime. All crime. I believe when someone commits an act of violence against another person or destroys another’s property that they are motivated by hate. Vandalism, muggings, beatings, rape, and murder clearly are not acts of love. All around the country these acts are against the law and carry penalties, including the death penalty sometimes for murder.

So why is it more wrong to hurt certain classes of people than others? Isn’t it just wrong to hurt people? Period?

Obviously, some groups of people are more favored than others in the eyes of certain members of Congress. For example, some Republicans had tried to include additional classes of citizens—children, members of the military, the elderly, the homeless—but their attempts were shot down. So sexual identity gets a pass, but children and the elderly don’t. I guess all people are equal, but some are more equal than others. (On the other hand, maybe women's rights groups can push for all rapes to be prosecuted doubly as both rape and hate crime since rape could be argued to demonstrate misogyny. Of course, male on male rape wouldn't fall under that category....)

Of concern is the fact that liberals refused to include any amendment that would protect religious expression. Laws such as this one have been used to stop free discourse which apparently some people believe to be criminal. We can foresee the results as there are similar laws to H.R. 1592 in England, Sweden, and Canada which have led to prosecution of Christians for hate crimes for stating a Biblical view of homosexuality, for example. Yes, it can happen here. So much for free speech and the First Amendment to the Constitution. Whatever happened to “I may disagree with what you say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it”?

In closing, here is the text of the statement from the White House on H.R. 1592:

"The Administration favors strong criminal penalties for violent crime, including crime based on personal characteristics, such as race, color, religion, or national origin. However, the Administration believes that H.R. 1592 is unnecessary and constitutionally questionable. If H.R. 1592 were presented to the President, his senior advisers would recommend that he veto the bill."

"State and local criminal laws already provide criminal penalties for the violence addressed by the new Federal crime defined in section 7 of H.R. 1592, and many of these laws carry stricter penalties (including mandatory minimums and the death penalty) than the proposed language in H.R. 1592. State and local law enforcement agencies and courts have the capability to enforce those penalties and are doing so effectively. There has been no persuasive demonstration of any need to federalize such a potentially large range of violent crime enforcement, and doing so is inconsistent with the proper allocation of criminal enforcement responsibilities between the different levels of government. In addition, almost every State in the country can actively prosecute hate crimes under the State's own hate crimes law."

"H.R. 1592 prohibits willfully causing or attempting to cause bodily injury to any person based upon the victim's race, color, religion, or national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability. The Administration notes that the bill would leave other classes (such as the elderly, members of the military, police officers, and victims of prior crimes) without similar special status. The Administration believes that all violent crimes are unacceptable, regardless of the victims, and should be punished firmly."

"Moreover, the bill's proposed section 249(a)(1) of title 18 of the U.S. Code raises constitutional concerns. Federalization of criminal law concerning the violence prohibited by the bill would be constitutional only if done in the implementation of a power granted to the Federal government, such as the power to protect Federal personnel, to regulate interstate commerce, or to enforce equal protection of the laws. Section 249(a)(1) is not by its terms limited to the exercise of such a power, and it is not at all clear that sufficient factual or legal grounds exist to uphold this provision of H.R. 1592."
-source lifesite

Live Long with Faith

2007-05-04T08:49:00.000-04:00

Life expectancy at age 20 was significantly related to church attendance. Those who attend church more than once a week were expected to live another 62.9 years, while those never attend church were expected to live another 55.3 years. Life expectancy was 61.9 years for those attending church once a week and 59.7 for those attending less than once a week.
-familyfacts.org

While intellectuals continue to belittle religious folks as rubes, time and again demographic studies have indicated that those who hope in God reap unexpected health benefits.

Although running off to church a couple times a week, hating every minute of it, would probably not yield the same results, deep faith may influence many aspects of life and lifestyle, including a more positive outlook on circumstances and a sense of purpose.

Fueling Slavery

2007-05-01T17:48:00.000-04:00

Though practiced throughout history, slavery in the modern era was intricately linked to our love of sugar. The wholesale enslavement and exportation of Africans to grow sugar in the Caribbean fed the newly found European sweet tooth. In 1700, the inhabitants of the British Empire, for example, consumed an average of four pounds of sugar a year, and many Africans paid with their freedom and their lives to feed this Western craving for sweets. (source)

Fast forward to the post-modern age. Today, the average American consumes one hundred pounds of sugar each year, so there is pressure on markets to produce sugar cheaply and in large quantities. However, hunger for energy alternatives such as ethanol is fueling an increase in slavery in Brazil.

Anywhere between 25,000 and 200,000 Brazilians are what are known as “debt
slaves.” Their employers keep them in perpetual bondage by charging them “exorbitant rates for the food, water, clothes and the tools they work with.”
Because their wages are so low, the workers can never pay off the “debt” and, thus, can never leave.

They work “from sunrise to sunset, seven days a week.” They are housed in “straw shacks.” They are given one meal a day, which they are often forced to eat standing up. They receive no medical attention and have no “access to toilets or good hygiene.” Many of them die from malaria.

If they decide they have had enough of the exploitation, the slave masters, known as gatos, threaten them with death. They are not bluffing. The gatos employ militias to intimidate and even kill human-rights workers—imagine what they would do to runaway slaves.

As in the rest of the world, Brazilian slavery is made possible because people live in such poverty. Like the victims of sexual trafficking, desperate people are lured by false promises only to be trapped.
-breakpoint (click the link for addition news stories)

If ethanol is leading to such oppression, I'd rather stick with oil for now. Oh, and it wouldn't hurt America's waistline any to cut back on sugar consumption either.

Which Globe?

2007-05-01T17:09:00.000-04:00

Further news on global warming.....

The globe has warmed by .5 degrees celsius since the 70s. And that globe has a name. We call it Mars.

Scientists from Nasa say that Mars has warmed by about 0.5C since the 1970s. This is similar to the warming experienced on Earth over approximately the same period.
-Times Online

Now, what do Earth and Mars have in common that could account for similar trends in global warming? Perhaps the sun at the center of our solar system?

h/t: QandO via Jeff the Baptist

Delaware's MOE Team Meets President Bush

2007-04-30T20:44:00.000-04:00

Delaware's FIRST team met with President Bush today at the White House!

The Miracle Workerz, or MOE, which stands for Miracles of Engineering, is the Delaware-based team sponsored by DuPont. This year's team includes students from fourteen Delaware schools, two Pennsylvania schools and from homeschools, too.

Dean Kamen of Segway fame founded FIRST, "For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology", as a way to mentor young people in science and technology and to reward them in much the way our young athletes are. With the assistance of their mentors, teenagers learn how to engineer and build a robot to compete against other robots in specially designed games each year. Some students have won scholarships to top universities due to their experiences with FIRST.

Always competing in their flourescent green tee shirts, the MOE team has had many successes since it was established in 2000. This year MOE won the FIRST Robotics Chairman's Award, the highest honor in FIRST Robotics. And they got to meet the President of the United States. Not too shabby.

Go MOE!

VA Tech Massacre

2007-04-20T21:52:00.000-04:00

Some belated thoughts on the Virginia Tech Massacre....

My first thought was to the family I know whose son currently attends Virginia Tech. Virginia Tech is a big school. Statistically, he was most likely safe. On the other hand, there were thirty some families who had lost loved ones. I didn't have their phone number so I called the mother's best friend who would surely have information. He was safe. Still, I shuddered, and I shed some tears for the unknown families who were experiencing the worst nightmare of their lives, knowing they would never wake up to find it was only a dream.

The media did broadcast stories on the victims. They also shared stories of the heroes of the day. A professor sacrificing himself so his young charges could live. Young men barricading the door to protect themselves and the others in the room from the insanity without. None of us know how we would react in such unanticipated situations; it's reassuring that some will shine.

While the media's attention to the victims and the heroes of the day is right and proper, their broadcasting of Cho's videos and their obsessive focus on who he was, what he did, and how he did it, seem counterproductive and downright dangerous. We normal people are horrified and disgusted by his distorted views and his acts of violence against and murder of innocent people. We are repelled by his obviously twisted and insane mind. I fear, however, that there is a small segment of the population who might see him as a hero of sorts and find his notoriety attractive enough to play copy-cat, to go out in a blaze of glory themselves. It's really not that difficult a concept. When my children were very young and had the tendency to hit and hurt each other, as children are wont to do, I made a point of lavishing attention on the injured child. Yes, the offender needed to be dealt with---and was-- but the important truth I wanted to impress upon them was that Mom's attention would not be won by being mean or destructive. That tactic has worked well in our home to extinguish negative attention getting behavior. Perhaps the media could learn from such simple parenting techniques? Are they really giving us news by obsessing over the who and why of this obviously sick individual? Or are they inadvertently feeding the hunger for attention the whack-jobs of the world feel by showing them that if they are evil enough they'll get their fifteen minutes of fame even if it is post-mortem?

Next, the blame game really bugged me. We're understandably uncomfortable with the notion that we really can't control everything, that life is unsafe, and that we really are mortal. We want someone in authority to be able to protect us and to have all the answers. It's just too unsettling when they can't and don't. Virginia Tech faced the unthinkable. Just how were they to respond to such an event that no one there had imagined happening on their campus? Could they possibly keep everyone safe all the time? How many of us would know what to do if something like that happened at our places of employment or a store or restaurant that we frequent?

On the other hand, it is possible that some decisions made long before were counterproductive. In the weeks to come, policies in place should be re-examined to judge their efficacy. Not to condemn those in charge, but to learn. For example, Virginia Tech decided that all would be safer if they forbade guns on campus. But how true was this belief? Those bent on harming the innocent tend to choose easy targets. In this case, the gunman could be reasonably sure that everyone else around him was obeying the gun-free rules that he alone disregarded. He knew that if he were armed and they weren't, he would meet with little resistance. I question Virginia Tech's decision to forbid those with license to carry to bring their firearms on campus. It may not have stopped him from killing, but it might have stopped his rampage sooner. This isn't a plea for everyone to be armed, of course. Not many people actually have to exercise their right to bear arms to deter criminals. But if criminals know that they're the only ones armed because they're the only ones deliberately flouting the laws, they'll take advantage of the situation.

Perhaps our society would be better off if no one had guns. I'm not completely sure that's the case, mind you, because smaller weaker people can gain equal footing with larger stronger ones through the use of firearms, but for argument's sake, maybe we would all be better off if there were no guns, period. I honestly don't think that would stop a Cho. He was criminally insane and bent on self and mass destruction. What would stop him from being a suicide bomber? Or committing arson? Or performing any number of other acts of violence?

Another thing it seems we need to make decisions about is the balance between individual liberty and public safety. At one time, the mentally ill were treated abominably. Now we try to respect their freedom and rights as human beings. At what point do we say "You look like you might become a danger someday, so even though you haven't committed any crimes, we're going to put you away"? This is not such an easy question to answer. Let's not forget that hindsight is 20/20. Even most mentally ill people don't create such carnage.

Maybe Virginia Tech should have expelled him, at least. That, however, might have been difficult as Virginia state law, if I understand it correctly, forbids expelling the mentally ill. Yet even if they had expelled him, what would have stopped him from coming back later to massacre students and faculty? Or what would have stopped him from taking his anger elsewhere and shooting up another segment of society?

In the end, life is uncertain and we can't control all the variables. We try, certainly, and we should always consider ways to lessen the chances of bad things happening and to protect innocent life. But sometimes we just can't. We're not that powerful.

For now, the nation will grieve for the victims, their families and their friends. Life cut short so horribly is heart-rending; the hole left in the hearts of those who knew and loved them may never be filled.

2007-04-15T19:23:00.000-04:00

Take the Magic: The Gathering 'What Color Are You?' Quiz.

I'm like Jeff! (Though I fear for his marriage...)

Bible Teaching in Schools

2007-03-25T13:39:00.000-04:00

Time presents "The Case for Teaching the Bible" this week. While I naturally have concerns that what I consider to be Holy Scripture be taught with respect, I believe the Bible can and should be taught in public schools. On the other hand, those who are not devout Christians are sometimes apprehensive about Bible classes, fearing that their children will be proselytized. Time's article addresses the concerns of these divergent groups.

Western civilization, including great art and literature, rests largely on biblical insights and allusions; students without a knowledge of this Book are at great disadvantage. Students with a knowledge of the Bible immediately understand the implications of titles such as "Number the Stars" or "Jacob Have I Loved". Shakespeare alludes to Scripture often in his works. Basic knowledge of Bible stories provides a framework for a cultural literacy far richer than say, a familiarity with such cultural phenomena like Fear Factor.

Check out the article if you have opportunity, and leave me your thoughts

High Priest(ess?) Anna V.

2007-03-24T13:19:00.000-04:00

You are The Hierophant

Divine Wisdom. Manifestation. Explanation. Teaching.

All things relating to education, patience, help from superiors.The Hierophant is often considered to be a Guardian Angel.

The Hierophant's purpose is to bring the spiritual down to Earth. Where the High Priestess between her two pillars deals with realms beyond this Earth, the Hierophant (or High Priest) deals with worldly problems. He is well suited to do this because he strives to create harmony and peace in the midst of a crisis. The Hierophant's only problem is that he can be stubborn and hidebound. At his best, he is wise and soothing, at his worst, he is an unbending traditionalist.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

You know, I really wasn't going to do this quiz. I have a revulsion to tarot cards and all things occult---long story, don't ask. But when I saw that A.O. was the Devil, curiosity got the better of me. Funny, but I think that any one who knows me very well would agree with much of the conclusion. Who'da thunk it? And I did choose the cat card, too, so that wasn't it, A.O. :)

When the Eggs Justify the Means

2007-03-20T07:00:00.000-04:00

Hands Off Our Ovaries is a group dedicated to achieving "a moratorium on egg extraction for research purposes until such time as global discourse and scientific research yields information sufficient to establish adequate informed consent". This unlikely group of both "pro-life" and "pro-choice" feminists is deeply concerned that egg extraction for stem cell research damages the health and even the lives of some women and can cause further abuses toward women, especially the poor from the U.S. and abroad.

Hands Off Our Ovaries demands the FDA "investigate the 25 deaths and over 6,000 complaints of medical complications associated with the drug, Lupron" which is given to women to stimulate egg production, and that studies "address the long and short term risks of Ovarian Hyper-Stimulation Syndrome."

From their site:

The recent South Korean cloning scandal—an example of global co-operation between American and Korean researchers— illustrates our concerns only too well. At the heart of the scandal are the abuses suffered by women for the sake of risky, highly speculative, fraudulent research. The effort involved more than 2,200 ova obtained by paying and coercing women, some of whom were in subordinate positions within the research lab. Now, thirty-five Korean women’s groups are seeking compensation on behalf of the nearly 20 percent of the Korean women “donors” who were harmed by the egg extraction procedures. Two women (one
in London and one in Dublin) are known to have died recently from complications
associated with egg extraction.

This is simply unacceptable. Already women around the world, especially the poor, are prey to countless abuses. Is it hard to imagine the unscrupulous and the evil tricking or even coercing young women into giving up their eggs at the potential cost of their health or lives so researchers can have the thousands of eggs they would need for their mad science? I'm sure there are those today who will argue that even if some women are harmed in the process of harvesting eggs, it's insignificant because, just think of all those (rich people) who will benefit! Well, I'm sure the Nazi scientists thought their medical research on Jews was worthy work, too. After all, the ends justify the means in a utilitarian worldview!

No. The more I learn about embryonic stem cell research, the more I despise it. Let's stick with adult stem cell research. Adult stem cells are easy to obtain, aren't associated with ethical dilemmas, and have yielded the most success in medical research and medical aid.

Hat tip: Paul

Infidel

2007-03-17T16:52:00.000-04:00

Infidel….that’s what she’s now called so that’s what Ayaan Hirsi Ali entitled her autobiography. Ali, a truly amazing woman with an indomitable spirit, tells of her journeys from Somalia, to Saudi Arabia, to Ethiopia, to Kenya, and to the Netherlands and of her journey from domination under Islam to freedom in the West.

Ayaan notes the bigotry that was omnipresent wherever she roamed. Contrary to multi-culti catechism declaring the West racist and ethnocentric and the cause of all evil in the world and all non-Western traditions noble and good, her experiences demonstrate what honest observers of human nature and interactions have long known---that all cultures have practiced ethnocentrism, racism and bigotry. It’s only natural. (Something to keep in mind the next time someone tries to justify something that you know is wrong by saying, “but it’s only natural!” Not everything natural should be done.) These are ancient defense mechanisms to keep oneself safe from potential enemies.--- It’s also especially counterproductive and wrong in a mixed society in which people from numerous different ethnic groups need to live and work in harmony.--- She witnessed the disdain for differing clans for one another and the way different ethnic groups were looked down upon in Saudi Arabia also although they were of the same faith.

As a young girl, Ayaan was “circumcised”, or more accurately, mutilated. Among many of the African tribes where she grew up, the practice of “female circumcision” or female genital mutilation was common. While the Arab Muslims do not perform this cruel procedure on little girls, in which the clitoris and inner labia are cut off and then what’s left sewn shut leaving a tiny opening for urination and menstruation, Ali notes that neither is the practice condemned. The same imams who constantly sermonize about women and their submission and sexual purity never get around to condemning the barbarity of female genital mutilation because, as she believes, it serves its purpose in their minds.

She recollected hearing the beatings of female neighbors at night in Saudi Arabia and the lack of personhood of her mother there who without a male escort couldn’t buy in the market. She remembered the treatment of women who had been raped in some of the countries in which she lived; they would be outcasts, considered immoral and impure. And she remembered the beatings she and many other children had received growing up and the way her brother was allowed to rule over her and her sister. Yet despite her dysfunctional familial experiences, she remained devoted to and devoid of bitterness toward her parents.

In her early twenties, Ayaan fled to the Netherlands rather than fly on to Canada to live under her new husband’s rule after an arranged marriage that she had neither agreed to nor been present for. She sought asylum. Amazed by the smooth functioning of society there, the prosperity and their freedom, she determined to learn why their political system was so much more successful than the ones under which she had lived. She learned Dutch, studied to pass college entrance exams, and eventually earned a master’s degree in political science, proceeding to work at a Dutch think tank. Sadly, Ayaan became an atheist---sad, but understandable, as it’s easier to believe in no God than to believe in one who condones such cruelty as she had witnessed toward half of the population.

In gratitude for all she had received from the hands of Dutch taxpayers, she decided to become a contributing member of society there herself. Her greatest passion became to end the subjugation and abuse of Muslim women in the West. Eventually, she ran for and was elected to Parliament.

Throughout her life in Holland, Ayaan noticed that many of the other refugees did not assimilate. While living off the generosity of the Dutch people who welcomed them, granted them asylum, and supplied their needs, some of the Muslims denigrated the Dutch as kufr. The women’s shelters at which she interpreted were inhabited by a disproportionate number of Muslim women, and young women whose families did not adopt Dutch values could be beaten to death by male relatives as “honor” killings if they had Dutch boyfriends, for example. In Parliament, Ayaan had the political power to bring these injustices to the attention of the populace and the government so that something could be done about them.

Of course, Ayaan Hirshi Ali is best known for the film, “Submission,” which she made with Theo van Gogh, in which she attempted to draw attention to the suffering of immigrant women there in Holland. The rest is history, as van Gogh was shot on the streets of Amsterdam. His attacker, an angry Muslim male, then slit his throat and stabbed a note to his chest. Ali was kept under guard for several months after.

Naturally, others may walk away from her tale with other impressions and learned lessons. The experiences that resonate with one heart may not with another. Regardless, Infidel is a real page turner which many will find fascinating. Read this book.

Wise and Humble

2007-03-16T14:14:00.000-04:00

from their site:

Galadriel

Possessing a rare combination of wisdom and humility, while serenely dominating your environment you selflessly use your powers to care for others.

Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.

Galadriel is a character in the Middle-Earth universe.

My best friend, however, said that she thought of me immediately when she saw Eowyn in the LOTR movie, but the quiz didn't score for her, for some reason.

hat tip: Jeff the Baptist

Church Story

2007-03-04T08:28:00.000-05:00

A friend sent me this. I thought it was cute so I'm passing it along.

Church Story

There were four country churches and a synagogue in a small Texas town: the Presbyterian Church, the Baptist Church, the Methodist Church and the Catholic Church and the Jewish Synagogue.

Each church was overrun with pesky squirrels.

One day, the Presbyterian Church called a meeting to decide what to do about the squirrels. After much prayer and consideration they determined that the squirrels were predestined to be there, and they shouldn't interfere with God's divine will.

In the Baptist Church the squirrels had taken up habitation in the baptistery. The deacons met and decided to put a cover on the baptistery and drown the squirrels in it. The squirrels escaped somehow and there were twice as many there the next week.

The Methodist Church got together and decided that they were not in a position to harm any of God's creation. So, they humanely trapped the squirrels and set them free a few miles outside of town. Three days later, the squirrels were back.

But -- The Catholic Church came up with the best and most effective solution. They baptized the squirrels and registered them as members of the church. Now they only see them on Christmas and Easter.

Not much was heard about the Jewish Synagogue, but they took one squirrel and had a short service with him called circumcision and they haven't seen a squirrel on the property since.

What's He Hiding?

2007-03-02T08:16:00.000-05:00

This morning I had a few minutes to peruse the Townhall.com lineup of articles and read Mike Adams piece "The Smoking Gun Points to Julio Pino."

Julio Pino, who teaches at Kent State in the History Department, has been linked to a blog promoting global jihad. Mike Adams quotes an article by Kathy Lynn Gray of the Columbus Dispatch:

Kent State University has been dealing for several years with the case of a Muslim professor, Julio Pino, who calls himself "the most dangerous Muslim in America."
Pino, a tenured associate history professor, angered some faculty members in 2002 when he wrote a column in the school newspaper that was an ode to a Palestinian suicide bomber. Pino called the bomber a martyr.....
Pino now has a blog on the Internet where he writes that U.S. servicemen are butchers who massacre Iraqis and urges readers to "join the Islamic resistance."....

Here's what is rather curious. Mike Adams said he was holding a copy of "a profanity-laced email from http://global-war.bloghi.com using the email address (jpino@kent.edu)." Now, who among us can see a link like that and not click on it? It begs to be clicked, doesn't it? But for some strange reason when I press that little button on my mouse, I get merely a quick glimpse of the Global War blog which states, "Are You Prepared for Jihad? Come, O Brothers! 2007: The Year of Islamic Victory" at the top. The first article is entitled, "Brothers from Occupied Jerusalem: Fight for the Palestinian Child".

For the life of me, I can't read the article and it took me several persistent clicks to get that much information from the blog. Why? Because in moments I am rerouted to the Defend America site. Doesn't that seem odd? Why would we immediately be rerouted to a site with an obviously completely different viewpoint unless that Global War blogger has something to hide?

Could Mike Adams be on to something?

I'm as Unique as Can Be

2007-03-01T18:07:00.000-05:00

HowManyOfMe.com

There are:
0
people with my name
in the U.S.A.

How many have your name?

Who knew Anna Venger was so rare? While this database says there are 0 of me, I say there's at least one!

From Paul

Defending the Lambs against Wolves

2007-02-13T07:23:00.000-05:00

Parents are suing the Allentown School District which they say is responsible for the rape of their little six year old boy by a fellow student.

How can a school district be responsible for the actions of a deeply disturbed and violent twelve year old? Because the school authorities knew that boy had sexually assaulted three other little boys in the school bathroom previously. Not only did they fail to take legal action against a violent sexual predator in their midst, but that same boy was seated beside the bathroom unmonitored as a punishment for classroom misbehavior. What the school foolishly believed was punishment that pervert saw as opportunity.

No school can protect every student against every crime. People cannot be punished before they do something wrong. That's the nature of crime and punishment. Yet once a person is known to have done something so horrible, to cover up the crimes and to fail to protect small children in their midst which are now known to be possible targets makes the school complicitous.

Sadly, hush-hush, sweep- it-under-the-rug policies have continued in schools for years. From highly publicized sexual abuse by teachers to undisclosed violence at the hands of fellow students, is it any wonder that so many families turn to homeschooling to ensure that their children learn in a non-violent environment?

Good luck to that anonymous family. May their day in court find them a small measure of justice as they seek to hold the adults in charge responsible for their refusal to deal appropriately with the wolf among the lambs.

***
Sources: MSNBC and The Charlotte Observer.

Forget the Corn

2007-02-08T06:40:00.000-05:00

In "Pass on the Corn"*, Joel Belz argues against ethanol as a petroleum alternative. Ethanol can be made from soybeans, cane, and from some grasses, but it comes primarily from corn because it's so plentiful. At first, ethanol appeared an exciting option--grow our own fuel and kiss the Middle East's oil good-bye. However, as Belz points out, there are major flaws in the argument for ethanol.

First, it takes a lot of oil to produce ethanol for vehicles. In fact, it takes "about a gallon of petroleum-based fuel to manufacture 1.3 gallons of ethanol." Put another way, twenty gallons of ethanol at the gas station took fifteen gallons of petrol to produce.

Has anyone else noticed a decrease in fuel efficiency lately? That's because ethanol is not as fuel efficient, needing "eleven gallons of ethanol to go the same distance that ten gallons of petroleum will take you."

The worst problem, however, is that ethanol is subsidized. "Except for federal subsidies, every gallon of ethanol that's been sold in the United States would have cost about fifty cents more than it actually sold for."

That kind of subsidy will do us no good in the long run. While corn farmers are enjoying this bonanza, unintended consequences are sure to follow. "Ethanol gobbles up so much corn every day that the price of corn has jumped to record highs. Farmers who grow corn like that, but people who raise livestock don't because they have to pay more for the corn they feed their cattle and pigs." Not only will the many foods which are corn-based cost more, but so will beef, dairy, and pork products.

A little closer to home, a friend of mine raises cattle for beef. He's friends with the dairy farmers in his region--make that dairy farmer, since there are no longer any others there. That remaining dairy farm may not make it either. The owner can't afford to pay for corn feed, among other problems.

As a nation blessed with terrific geography, we should be well able to feed ourselves with no problem. The effects of federal subsidies on corn, however, will ripple through the economy, costing the average person more for food. It may drive more dairy farmers from the market as they sell off their cattle as beef and put their land up for sale. The loss of these farms cannot be attributed to the free market system in action since these particular financial woes are government induced.

Yes, we need alternative energy. No one wants to be free from our energy dependence on the Middle East more than I. Ethanol, however, is not the way to achieve this goal.

*quotes are from Belz's article in World

Bible Quiz

2007-02-07T07:34:00.000-05:00

You know the Bible 100%!

Wow! You are awesome! You are a true Biblical scholar, not just a hearer but a personal reader! The books, the characters, the events, the verses - you know it all! You are fantastic!

Ultimate Bible Quiz
Create MySpace Quizzes

Honestly, this quiz was really easy. Many of the questions could be guessed accurately since there were a number of throw-aways among the answer choices. The Red Letter Quiz was much harder.

Tip of the hat to Paul.

Feeling Pretty

2007-02-07T07:30:00.000-05:00

An oldie but goody! I think there may be a loop in here somewhere, but it's still pretty funny.

Thanks to Michele at Reformed Chicks Blabbing for this blast from the past.

What's a Few Extra Pounds

2007-02-06T07:33:00.000-05:00

Oh, no! I guess I should take those four pounds I just put on a bit more seriously. (And no, it's not muscle.) Worse things than jeans being a bit snugger may result.

Hmmmm. Maybe I should look into that diet magazine I saw in the grocery store with the teaser "Lose 30 pounds!" Just kidding!

Seriously, though, never underestimate the mind-body connection.

They Know What to Do

2007-02-04T20:38:00.000-05:00

"Energy independence...The Democrats know that needs to be done...The oil companies reported the highest profits in the history of the world...I want to take those profits..."

Yep. She just revealed her heart. Forget private enterprise and private property. Government gets it all. And then the Democrats who know what needs to be done will take care of us. Not being a good singer is not a campaign issue. Wanting to expand government more and to restrict business, however, is.

Yet I don't think they do know what needs to be done. There have been no new refineries built here in decades. They don't want to drill in ANWR. Using what we have while we find viable alternative energy sources would at least halt the enriching of peoples who hate us and who use those profits to build weapons against us and to fund organizations dedicated to our destruction. But that might improve our national security. Can't have that. Nor are those who extol the virtues of everything else French ready to consider utilizing the one thing that they have actually done rather well, besides cheese and ~~whine~~ wine: nuclear energy.

The one thing we agree on is the need for energy independence. I just don't happen to agree that stealing from oil companies is the way to do it.

What's in a Name

2007-02-03T09:06:00.000-05:00

To him who overcomes, to him I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he who receives it.

-Revelation 2:17, NASB

Have you ever wondered about that new name and why it is known only to the one who receives it?

I for one am looking forward to my new name. I really do like my existing name(s). For years, friends agreed that there really was no other name for me but my given name. Yet when I rechristened myself Anna Venger they had to smile and admit I had chosen well. Nevertheless, I trust God to choose better.

Names in our culture do not carry the same significance as they have historically so the purpose of a new name escapes us in a way that it is doubtful it would have escaped those who have gone before. Names were meaningful, sometimes prophetic, and in some cultures thought to give the knower power over the known.

The Bible, for example, demonstrates the attitude of ancient peoples towards their names. God Himself changed the names of some of His followers because names have significance: Abram (exalted father) to Abraham (father of many), Sarai to Sarah (princess), Jacob (he grasps the heel, or he deceives) to Israel (he struggles with God), Saul (asked for, prayed for) to Paul (small, humble), and Simon to Peter (rock), for example. Names were derivatives of root words which were often descriptive of the bearer. Esau was so named because he was hairy. Naomi (pleasant) changed her own name to Mara (bitter) because of the hurtful experiences she had had in losing her sons and husband. In addition, names were sometimes prophetic of the bearer. Ruth sounds like friend and she was certainly the best friend that Naomi had ever had. Peleg (division) was so named because in his days the earth was divided. Also, the angel told Joseph to name Mary's son Jesus (Lord saves) because He would save His people from their sins.

Some peoples have believed that knowing a person's name would give one power over that person. Bruchko(Bruce Olson) was a young man who had been captured by the Motilone Indians in South America, lived out the gospel among them, and led them to faith in Christ. This tribe believed names were very special and gave power over a person. Each new baby would be given two names upon birth. One would be the child's public name by which all the rest of the tribe would address him and know him. But he would also have a secret, private name that only his immediate family and those elite few with whom he chose to share would ever know. They believed only those who knew that private name would ever be able to exert any real power over him. Bruchko had become close friends with the tribal leader's son. The deeply touching moment came one day when they were walking together and he solemnly told Bruchko his true name. Bruchko understood that this revelation demonstrated the depth of friendship and trust he felt toward him. He was willingly giving Bruchko his name and the power of a true friend over him.

Today we choose names more for auditory appeal. Yet there is still an element of power associated with knowing a person's name. Consider the effectiveness of "Hey, you!" when trying to get someone's attention versus calling him by name. By way of example, once my mother and I were at a large flea market. We had become separated, but I saw her a short distance from me. "Mom! Mom!" I called repeatedly to no avail. Then finally I called out her name and she instantly snapped to attention and turned toward me.

Another time, a youth had aggravated me. He hadn't done anything criminal, mind you, but he had disrespected me and, in a Clint Eastwood mood, I was not about to let him get away with it. Yet I didn't know his name to hold him accountable for his ill behavior and he was not about to give it to me. Fearing I would not be able to locate him again, I decided to follow him until I found out his name. He noticed I was following him and turned to me. I announced to him in no uncertain terms, "I have no where else that I have to go and nothing better to do but to find out
your name." At that point he broke into a run and I sprinted after him, weaving in and out of the crowd, until he rounded a corner with me in hot pursuit and I saw what I needed--someone I knew would identify him. "His name! I want his name!" I shouted and gesticulated. Now I had the power I needed. And I made sure he appropriately suffered for his insolence.*

Another time, I was moved on a gurney to a holding area not far from the nurses' station following an emergency procedure. Still heavily sedated, I lay there awaiting a room for the night. Beside me on another gurney was an elderly man. He must have felt miserable because he kept crying "Nurse! Nurse!" while the nurses would walk on by, indifferent to his suffering. I felt bad for him, imagining his level of discomfort that would cause him to cry so insistently and pleadingly. After a time-- out of a mixture of mercy and self-preservation, as he was starting to annoy-- I decided to take matters into my own hands. Though horribly groggy, I concentrated all my energies on the nurses' station until I had the information I sought--the name of one of the bustling nurses. I awaited my opportunity. When she finally came close enough, I called out her name as strongly as I could. She snapped to attention --unable to ignore someone calling her specifically by name. With my newfound power, I beckoned her to come to me. Motioning to the man beside me, I informed her, "That. man. needs you." She turned to him and for the first time listened to him and attended to him, and we both could finally be at peace.

Sometime later, quite irritated that I was still stuck in that open area on a gurney, I used my power once again to summon her to me to inform her that if she could not find me a room quickly then she was to contact my family to come and get me and take me home---I would be checking out. If I had not known her name, I would no doubt have remained the rest of the night, such as it was, in that holding area, until my people, who believed I was receiving better care there at the hospital than at home, would return for me.

These are the things I think of when I contemplate receiving a new name from my Lord one day---one known only to Him and to me. What name He will give me, I have no clue. Surely it will have some meaning to Him and to me, but what I cannot begin to imagine since I'm not sure what He sees in me, one who has failed Him so often. Yet I take it on faith that He chose me out of His good pleasure and no longer argue with Him over His lack of wisdom in so doing as I now understand that His wisdom is beyond my comprehension. Of course, there are those who have told me that I'm special, but I'm not at all sure they meant it as a compliment. But He apparently thinks that I am and that new name represents to me a time when all the distractions and temptations that beckon to me will no longer exert influence over me because I won't respond to "Psst....Hey, you!"and they won't know who I am. Only God will know my name and turn my head and have power over me. Temptation, sin, death, and fear will be only distant memories.

*Anonymity makes some stories so difficult! I have had to withhold information that would make my actions and the importance of follow through on my part more comprehendible--which is an accepted spelling of the word although Firefox doesn't like it.

Come see the 28th Carnival of Blogging Chicks for more stories.

Five Random Things about Me

2007-02-02T10:50:00.000-05:00

1. I've teared up at commercials.

2. I've eaten an entire can of tomato paste---from the can.

3. I often stop to admire and to talk to animals.

4. While I think running is an excellent way to get from point A to point B on foot, I too will never run for the mere pleasure or health of it.

5. Mint chocolate chip was my (and my cat's) favorite ice cream...until Breyers invented cookie dough, though banana will always remain a top contender for my gluttonous affections.

Nutty British Sexperts

2007-02-01T20:50:00.000-05:00

WARNING: NOT FOR CHILDREN

AOL Online United Kingdom posted a provocative little piece:

Many pupils form impressions of sexual activity from pornography on the internet and need better lessons at school, said Rebecca Findlay, from the Family Planning Association.
She told the Times Educational Supplement that sex is still seen as too "embarrassing'' to be discussed.

On the contrary, sex seems to be discussed and performed everywhere, even by young teens and pre-teens. Maybe we would all be better off with a little "embarrassment" or at least a little decorum?

Ms Findlay said: "We need to be able to look at someone masturbating and see it not as pornography but as instructional.'' Using such images in schools might help lift the taboos around sex, she told the TES.
What is masturbation? How do you do it? What does it feel like?

"These are conversations people should be having in sex education classes.
But in British culture, sex is something embarrassing.''
Dr David Limond, a lecturer from Trinity College Dublin, said there is no reason why appropriately-produced footage of masturbation should not be used in schools.

Oh, come on. "Taboos"? She's kidding, right? Do children really need to witness this behavior? Are we really better off destroying the mystery of the opposite sex in explicit classroom discussions and video observation? And, at the risk of pointing out the obvious, haven't people been masturbating for thousands of years without special classes? It's been my experience and that of parenting experts that little boys especially are quite conscious of their anatomy. Have the Brits and other Westerners devolved to such a level of stupidity that their young citizens can't figure out how to engage in self-love (or procreation for that matter) without classroom instruction? And while we're on the subject, how did the human race manage to procreate for thousands of years without sex education classes?

To the sexperts: stop shoving your worldview on our children. We'll have healthy, well-adjusted children-- and grandchildren-- without your help.

Biden Does It Again

2007-01-31T21:54:00.000-05:00

Sometimes it's just plain embarrassing being a Delawarean:

“I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”

Senator Biden on Senator Obama

Oh, if only Biden were "articulate" and "bright" or would at least think before he spoke.

source

Presidential Hopefuls

2007-01-29T07:30:00.000-05:00

So far the Republican candidates for 2008 have left much to be desired. McCain has, in the past, gone out of his way to insult and alienate conservative Christians. A darling of the media, he causes suspicion in those of us who wonder why they are fawning over a "conservative". Furthermore, I'm not sure I could forgive him for McCain-Feingold. I've never stayed away from the voting booth before, but McCain isn't infusing me with any enthusiasm.

Giuliani is another popular politician that many want to run for President, and he did a remarkable job in New York. Yet while he is conservative on some issues, he's quite liberal on other issues social conservatives and gun lovers value most. Problems he has had in his personal life may also dissuade citizens from voting for him--and how will we ever purge that image of him in women's clothes from our minds? Somehow that just doesn't seem very presidential.

Now Sam Brownback has decided to join the fray. No doubt, we'll see liberal media personalities wiping foam from their mouths as he is proclaimed a conservative Christian. Taking his faith seriously, he visited a prison to promote religious-based alternatives to prison violence and a more positive lifestyle for prisoners should they be returned to society. FoxNews did take note of his visit, which certainly was not to garner votes. Brownback himself remarked: "There aren't probably a lot of votes for me here. There can be a lot of prayers, though." Since many people could care less about prisoners that visit probably won't register with much of the population.

Brownback is passionately pro-life which should excite the social conservatives. He shared with LifeSiteNews a bit of this passion:

"I met a little girl about seven and a half years ago," he said. "Her name was Chenyi Dan. I met her in China. She was from Shantou City, China. And at the time she was about 20 months of age. Beautiful girl - she had been dropped at an orphanage by her mother who had carved a little area, an oval on her stomach with a pen knife - very, very scant. As a mark, I guess at some point and time maybe they would be able to find each other - again, at some point and time."

"That girl now," he continued, "her name is now Jenna Joy Brownback - I had her at my announcement yesterday for President. She's been living in my home for the last seven and a half years as my daughter. Because somebody fought for her, I get to kiss a little girl goodnight. Somebody fought for her - who I will probably never meet or ever see or ever know. But they fought for her and because of that, she is alive."

On the other hand, Brownback has announced that he is against sending more troops into Iraq. Brownback apparently doesn't think more troops are necessary to win. This will have mixed appeal among conservatives and may or may not improve his appeal among moderates who may be turned off by his strong pro-life stance.

So far, I'm not supporting anyone and am trying to keep an open mind. I'm also worried about a Clinton for President on the Democratic ticket. Heaven help us if that happens.

Red Letters Quiz

2007-01-28T21:46:00.000-05:00

Jeff the Baptist shared this Bible quiz which he came across. Oddly, he and I both had the same scores: 10/10 in the beginner category, 8/10 in the intermediate category, and 5/10 in the advanced.

Homeschool Hero

2007-01-27T16:26:00.000-05:00

For my homeschool buddies...

Florida quarterback Tim Tebow was born in a jungle, attended school in his living room and plays in a Swamp. Other than that, his life has been perfectly normal.

Read the rest. Great article about a great young man. And heaven knows we need more great young men.

Child's Play

2007-01-26T06:14:00.000-05:00

Venger Jr. and Vengerette both had friends over New Year's Eve into New Year's Day. They're all great kids; I enjoy when my offspring have their friends over almost as much as they do.

Apparently, they were amusing themselves with educational games this holiday. I love when they do that. When I went downstairs after everyone had gone home, I discovered that they had been playing that perennial favorite of word games "Hangman" on the white board. Actually, I'm pretty sure it was the boys--what with the dark humor and all. Here's the picture I managed to snap before it was erased.

Legal Battles

2007-01-25T07:16:00.000-05:00

Prison for adultery? Word has spread that in Michigan adultery could technically earn one a life term in prison.

In Michigan, adultery is a felony. Judge William Murphy of Michigan Court of Appeals in a possible attempt to embarrass those seeking a stricter interpretation of laws had footnoted that it could technically result in life imprisonment.

From the San Francisco Chronicle:

The ruling came in the case of Lloyd Waltonen, 43, of Charlevoix, who supplied a cocktail waitress with the prescription painkiller OxyContin in exchange for sex. Last year, Charlevoix Circuit Judge Richard Pajtas sentenced Waltonen to four to 20 years in prison, but dismissed four counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, punishable by a life term, on the basis that the sex was consensual.
The state attorney general successfully appealed Pajtas' ruling, citing an obscure provision of Michigan's criminal law that says a sexual act committed at the same time as a felony constitutes criminal sexual conduct.
An appellate panel found Waltonen guilty of criminal sexual conduct. He has asked the state Supreme Court to consider an appeal of the ruling.
In the opinion, Murphy wrote that although legislators may have drafted the law conceiving of scenarios in which there was a violent felony involving forced sex, he was "curtailed by the language of the statute from reaching any other conclusion."
Murphy wrote that a person is technically guilty of first-degree criminal sexual conduct any time he or she "engages in sexual penetration in an adulterous relationship."
He noted that state law defines first-degree criminal sexual conduct as sexual penetration involving another felony. Because adultery is a felony, he wrote, adulterous sex could result in life imprisonment.

Truth be told, there are so many laws regulating our behaviors that most of us are lawbreakers on a regular basis without even realizing it. Sometimes these restrictions are part of convoluted bills passed by representatives who may not even read the legislation before voting on it. Many times they are laws that time has passed by and are no longer enforced or enforceable. Some people therefore argue for greater leeway in interpretation by judges. But shouldn't the argument be made instead for revisiting laws periodically and repealing them if they no longer make sense? Doesn't it make a mockery of law to leave outdated restrictions in place, making good people criminals, and merely winking at or ignoring illegal deeds? Do we really need so many laws that the average person can't even keep track of what's permissible and impermissible behavior?

If laws no longer serve their purpose, repeal them. We shouldn't all have to be lawyers--heaven knows we have enough of them-- and we shouldn't all have to pour over musty law tomes to ensure that we are law-abiding citizens.

Note: a few years ago, my children and I read a real howler of existing laws that really ought to be repealed. While this may or may not be the same book we had read, "Chickens May Not Cross the Road: and Other Crazy But True Laws" by Kathi Linz deals with this topic.