Heavy-Handed Politics: March 6, 2005

Good Riddance to Rather

By Thomas Sowell

Ordinarily, the retirement of a TV newsman would be something to be more or less passed over in silence by friend and foe alike. But the retirement of Dan Rather as anchorman of CBS news has caused so much spin in the media that some of this spin may become "well-known facts" by sheer repetition unless challenged by real facts.

One popular spin is that it is a shame that a long and distinguished career should be judged by one unfortunate error like the forged documents that Rather relied on to question President Bush's National Guard service.

Full story.

From Michelle Malkin :

Creative art meets ballot counting in Los Angeles:

Without informing mayoral challengers, Los Angeles City Clerk Frank Martinez ordered election workers Tuesday night to use blue highlighter pens to re-ink thousands of voters' ballots that had "bubbles" partially or faintly filled in, the Daily News learned Friday....

"I've never heard of anything like this before," said Bob Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies. "It's unprecedented. You don't tamper with the ballots.

"You want to have the ballots in the same condition when they were deposited into the ballot box and you never want to touch ballots in terms of putting a mark on them. It's shocking."

Unbelievable, eh?

Florida Dem Wants Toilet Paper Tax

Florida's Legislature is flush with good ideas.

IT'S UNFORTUNATE.................

In discussing the positive results in Iraq and in the Middle East in general former former Clinton National Security Council member Nancy Soderberg recently lamented to Jon Stewart, “It’s scary for Democrats, I have to say.” Adding, “Well, there’s still Iran and North Korea, don’t forget. There’s still hope for the rest of us....There’s always hope that this might not work.”

It is unfortunate that the Democrats have put themselves in the position (as it was so clearly obvious in this last presidential campaign) that they have to hope for bad things to happen to us in order to put them on the "right side."

What's happened to our Democratic party?

FAITH UNDER FIRE

FROM WND
Easter bunny hunted by PC police
Shopping malls neutralizing secular symbol of Christian holiday

In the name of 'multiculturalism,' malls are phasing out the secular symbol of the Christian holiday. Mall officials at Town Center in Boca Raton, Fla., admitted to caving in to concern over what could be perceived as religious promotion. 'Because we're such a multicultural community, it's good just to remain neutral,' mall general manager Sam Hosen said, according to the Palm Beach Post."

Ginsburg Touches on Roe v. Wade

During her visit at the University of Kansas and the ensuing question and answer session with law students, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who will be turning 72, touched on the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion.

Even though a strong abortion rights supporter, Ginsburg said that historic ruling "seemed to me not the way courts generally work." "Women were lobbying around that issue," she said. "The Supreme Court stopped all that by deeming every law – even the most liberal – as unconstitutional. That seemed to me not the way courts generally work."

FROM WND

Ward Churchill Update

From Betsy's Page:

The Denver Post reports that the University of Colorado is close to a buyout deal for Ward Churchill. I don't understand why they need to pay this cretin any money. Today there emerges even more evidence that the guy has committed academic fraud by plagiarizing an article and then threatening the woman he plagiarized if she complained. This is not the first allegation of academic fraud against Churchill. If he has falsified data and plagiarized an article then that should be enough to fire him. You don't even need to worry about his inflammatory remarks about 9/11 or his selling copies of copyrighted paintings. No university has to keep paying a professor who has committed academic fraud."

Social Security

Neal Boortz on discussing the Democrats opposition to Social Security reform:

Why can't people see through the Democrats on this one? How in the world do you garner so much public support for the idea that in a free country it is better for you to turn over your hard-earned bucks to the government on a vague and breakable promise that some of that money will be returned to you at some time in the future .. as agreed to by politicians? How in the world can people accept this premise over the idea that your money should remain in an account owned and, to an extent, controlled by you where there is a guarantee that either you or your heirs will eventually get it all back .. with interest? Why can't people see through this? Because they're ignorant, that's why. Economically brain-dead."

"Bottom line ... Democrats wouldn't be able to defend the current Social Security system as they are if the American people had even the most basic level of economic knowledge. When you drop your child off off at your local government school next Monday .. think about it."

OUCH!

Socialism Stifles 'Exceptionalism'

Larry Kudlow wrote recently: (All emphasis mine - HH)

A quick word on Russia. The issue here is certainly not that they are returning to Soviet-style dictatorship. Elections will continue. Though there will also be things I don't like regarding lack of media freedom and perhaps state encroachment on business. But there's no turning back for Russian democracy. It will be Russian style. However, the tough points will be foreign policy. Russia will remain mischievous with Syria and Iran and probably North Korea as well.

This is something we'll have to live with. They are not the potent force they once were on the world scene. But they may cause us trouble from time to time. Be ready for it. There's nothing we can do about it. That is, except remain strong militarily and economically and defend our national interests around the world in order to make us safer at home. That's really all we can do. But in the end, that will make us strong no matter what Russia does.

I concur. We have a large advantage over other countries in that we have a capitalistic economy and a strong work ethic. These two factors along with a firm moral foundation breeds exceptionalism and exceptionalism allows a country to play a major role on the world stage with or without the approval of "world opinion".

Socialism stifles exceptionalism. Socialism promotes mediocrity through "equality". Look at Europe. They are weak militarily, have high unemployment, have short work weeks, have early retirement, expect government to take care of everything for them, cannot sell military arms to the U.S. because they are outdated and inferior and therefore must rely on selling them to third rate countries.

Like Larry Kudlow so succinctly stated, about all we can do is to:

remain strong militarily and economically and defend our national interests around the world in order to make us safer at home. That's really all we can do. But in the end, that will make us strong no matter what Russia does.

Or anyone else for that matter.

Imported Food

The USA Today reports that the food we import is vulnerable to agroterrorism; even more so now than before. The article states that since the Dept. of Homeland Security took over in 2003, inspections of food (imported) coming into our entry ports has declined.

In 2002 when the Dept. of Agriculture was still responsible for these inspections, 40.9 million inspections were made. In 2004 under the Dept. of H.S., there were 37.5 million inspections made, despite the fact that food imports rose.

Thus, one could logically conclude that our chances of discovering a foreign disease or an act of terrorism on our food supply has diminished. This needs to be addressed quickly along with our border security problem.

Private Accounts

From Larry Kudlow:

Scott Hodge, of the non-partisan Tax Foundation, has a must-read piece on the hypocrisy of unions in publicly criticizing private accounts for a broader public while using those same accounts and reaping their benefits.

Read it here.

He also says:

For an excellent discussion of private accounts, and why they will solve our current social security system’s insolvency while giving a higher rate of return, see Peter Ferrara’s piece in today’s Washington Times.

Terrorism Questions

Heh, heh. This from The Daily Demarche:

This will come as no surprise to anyone, I am sure, but the left and the Euro-pacifists still don't get it. The International Summit on Democracy, Terrorism and Security which opened in Madrid today is all set to focus on the causes of terrorism this week, to coincide with the anniversary of the train bombings that scared the Spanish into electing a kinder, gentler government. The meeting is being organized by "the Club de Madrid - an independent body made up of more than 40 former heads of state and government from around the world." Here is what they propose to do:

The Club's secretary general, former Canadian Prime Minister Kim Campbell, says one key aspect will be to "look very seriously at the roots of terrorism and locate the factors over which we might have some control".

"What, for example, might reinforce a sense of alienation, or a person's susceptibility to a belief system that justifies something which seems so horrible, such as the targeting of civilians and innocent people to make a political point?" he told openDemocracy.net.

The roots of terrorism are TERRORISTS, and I can tell them one thing that reinforces the idea that terrorism is a good idea: CAVING IN TO TERRORISTS. The article referenced above is so ripe for the picking of quotes that I almost don't know which way to turn. But let's try this:

"We have to face the fact that all of us are flying blind as far as this new form of terrorism is concerned," he [Middle East and international relations expert Fred Halliday] said. "There are a lot of questions to which we don't know the answers - such as how long this will go on."

Hey Fred, I can field that last one. It is going to go on until we kill all of them or they kill (or convert) all of us. It might end if we kill enough of them to convince the others that they won't win, but really, how do you convince someone that is ready to blow himself to bits for a heavenly reward that he will lose? If he wins he meets Allah and his virgins by taking a bunch of us with him. If he loses, and we kill him before he kills us, he still gets Allah and the ladies. Good luck Fred, let us know how this turns out for you.

(All bold emphasis mine-HH)

Yep. Sometimes things can be that simple.

Why Liberals Abhor True Social Security Reform

By Chris G. Adamo
MichNews.com

"If Americans of all ages ever recognize the degree to which they’ve been conned by the proponents of failed government programs such as Social Security, they will likely respond in a manner reminiscent of the Boston Tea Party. And it is not hard to imagine a few career politicians floating in the harbor alongside of King George’s cargo.

Consider the caterwauling from Democrats in response to President Bush’s efforts to reform Social Security. Originally promoted as merely a retirement supplement, Franklin Roosevelt’s scheme initially involved a miniscule payroll tax. Once implemented however, the road was clear to incrementally grow the program in scope and cost, eventually burdening American workers with a thirteen percent confiscation from every dollar they earn."

Full story

How to Stop the Flood of Illegal Aliens

How to Stop the Flood of Illegal Aliens
By Tom DeWeese
MichNews.com

The issue that will define our era and determine the nation’s future is illegal immigration. Political debate is full of schemes like “guest worker” programs and temporary worker cards to allow illegals to “fill jobs that Americans just don’t want to do.” Such programs are really just political doublespeak from politicians who lack the intestinal fortitude to protect the borders of the United States.

The truth is President Bush is pushing the guest worker plan because he is trying to appease Mexican President Vicente Fox who wants the borders between Mexico and the U.S. and Canada open, just like the European Union. Prior to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, President Bush and Fox agreed to consider granting permanent residency, “green cards”, to as many as three million Mexicans living illegally in the United States. The plan was temporarily sidetracked in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, but now the White House has put it back on the agenda.

Full story.

Chinese Military Presence in Latin America

U.S. military warns of growing China presence in Latin America

WASHINGTON — The commander of U.S. forces in Latin America told Congress on Wednesday the United States must carefully watch China's increasing economic and military presence in the region.

"An increasing presence of the People's Republic of China in the region is an emerging dynamic that must not be ignored," U.S. Southern Command Commander Gen Bantz Craddock told a House of Representatives Armed Services Committee hearing. Craddock said China's "growing economic interests, presence and influence in the region are not a threat, but they are clearly components of a condition we should recognize and consider carefully as we form our own objectives, policies and engagement in the region." (Kyodo News)

From JapanToday

Utah Bill Signed, Illegals Lose Licenses

By TRAVIS REED, Associated Press Writer
AP via Yahoo News

SALT LAKE CITY - Gov. Jon Huntsman on Tuesday signed a bill replacing regular Utah driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants with driving privilege cards that can't be used as official identification to board airplanes or register to vote.

The move comes a day after hundreds of demonstrators gathered to protest the bill, arguing that the cards amount to second-class status for minorities.

Full story.

Arrested Illegal Alien Aircraft Workers

Arrested illegal alien aircraft workers had valid NC licenses!
20 suspects carried N.C. licenses
By Taft Wireback Staff Writer
Greensboro News & Record

GREENSBORO — Most of the aircraft workers arrested Tuesday on immigration charges at Piedmont Triad International Airport were carrying North Carolina driver’s licenses they shouldn’t have been issued.

Twenty of 24 suspected, illegal immigrants had N.C. licenses, highlighting a continuing problem that state government has been unable to vanquish, said Thomas O’Connell of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

“That’s not uncommon. Practically everybody we arrest has a North Carolina driver’s license on them,” said O’Connell, resident agent in charge of ICE’s Piedmont Triad office.

Full story.

An About Face

A few of the the most severe critics of President Bush's policy in Iraq who have been hesitant to admit that it has helped fuel a desire for democracy in the Middle East, have grudgingly done so recently. Full story here: Bush foes admit benefits of Iraq policy.

FBI WARNS OF SPECIAL INTEREST ALIENS

It was my opinion that the United States, after 9/11, should have immediately taken measures to protect and secure our borders, while we wrestled with what I knew would be protracted legal and political debates on immigration (both legal and illegal); and at the same time, make a concerted effort to do some serious house cleaning by trying to get some kind of a handle on people already in this country with expired student visas and the like. And during this time frame, we also needed to co-ordinate data bases between various agencies, and share information to ensure everyone was on the same page. To do otherwise was assinine.

But of course, this is exactly the route we took. Now 3 1/2 years after 9/11, we have implemented the Patriot Act after much wrangling and to the dismay of many. However, some of the key parts to the Patriot Act will expire, we still have stories of non-cooperation between agencies, and we still have alarming numbers of illegals in this country with no knowledge of where they are.

And our borders are still like sieves.

And now this from Yahoo News:
FBI Warns of 'Special Interest' Aliens

White House - AP Cabinet & State
By MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - FBI (news - web sites)
"Director Robert Mueller told Congress on Tuesday that people from countries with ties to al-Qaida have crossed into the United States from Mexico, using false identities."

FBI Director Robert Mueller testified: "We are concerned, Homeland Security is concerned about special interest aliens entering the United States," Mueller said, using a term for people from countries where al-Qaida is known to be active.

Under persistent questioning from Rep. John Culberson, R-Texas, Mueller said he was aware of one route that takes people to Brazil, where they assume false identities, and then to Mexico before crossing the U.S. border.

He also said that in some instances people with Middle Eastern names have adopted Hispanic last names before trying to get into the United States. "

Captain Ed at Captains' Quarters blogs:

"Our inability to secure our Southern border amounts to the single most embarassing and preventable security lapse since 9/11. This has little to do with the FBI but with an administration and Congress that believes it needs a comprehensive solution to illegal immigration before it can act to secure the border. This thinking flies in the face of our other post-9/11 strategies, where we have avoided attacking everyone at once in favor of tactically playing out our strategy in one hot theater at a time.

We need to come up with a grand strategy for dealing with the immigrants already here, but we must act immediately to secure the border. The rest can wait until later. The analysis paralysis we have accepted for the past decade or more will eventually kill us. In fact, it may already have, and we have yet to discover it."

I couldn't agree more Captain.

Protect Illegals

From The Washington Times
Mexico seeks protection for illegals / Jerry Seper
The Mexican government has asked U.S. officials to ensure illegal-immigration protesters patrolling the Arizona border next month do not abuse Mexican nationals caught illegally entering the United States.
Full details.

From RightNation:
Joe Lieberman Angers Democrats

Paul pleads guilty/demands Hillary do same

Is the ACLU Al Qaeda's Best Friend in the U.S.?

Victims Sue U.S.Over Tsunami

The Supreme Compass

By a 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court has decreed that executions of juveniles are unconstitutional — a practice that strikes many as grotesque. So why did four justices dissent? Because they were right to oppose judicial fiat. Read it here Opening Argument.

From the National Journal.

Learning From History

Franklin Delano Roosevelt fathered the concept of personal retirement accounts 70 years ago, but his plan died because few lawmakers backed it, the insurance industry opposed it and his White House didn't fight for it. Read it here Congressional Chronicle.

From the National Journal

Reducing Dependency on Middle East Oil

How to tap Mexico's potential
There is a way that would reduce US energy dependency on the Middle East while boosting development in Mexico, thus also tackling the issue of massive cross-border immigration, write Jorge Castaneda and Nathan Gardels. Details.

Jose Padilla

National Security Comes First
By Andrew C. McCarthy
USA Today
March 4, 2005

Jose PadillaJose Padilla happens to be a U.S. citizen. He is also, however, alleged by the executive branch to be an unlawful enemy combatant who came here from the headquarters of an enemy against which we are actively at war, al-Qaeda, precisely to conduct terrorist operations on behalf of that enemy.
U.S. District Judge Henry Floyd's ruling that the government must charge Padilla as a common criminal or release him outright endangers this country. The U.S. must appeal.
Undeniably, the issue the judge was asked to deal with is a difficult one, involving a citizen apprehended on U.S. soil before he had the opportunity to execute an atrocity.

From Foundation for Defense of Democracies

Propaganda 101

From Backspin:
"KesherTalk and Solomonia note that the school system of Scottsdale, Ariz., will soon be using controversial textbooks that misrepresent Israel and the Mideast conflict."

Eurospeak

Victor David Hanson has a humorous, but pointed, article on Europe called, "Eurospeak". He starts out:

President Bush supposedly charmed the Europeans, and now they purportedly don't hate us any more. But from the recent trip, it is clear that Americans can still expect two things from the European public and its leadership: deep-seated anti-Americanism and embarrassing contradictions. In that context, let us examine all the recent Eurobabble.
Don't dare divide us into old and new! We speak with one voice from Warsaw to Lisbon. We aim to be as united as your states are in America — BUT help us to ensure that Europe has separate U.N. Security Council seats for Britain, France, and, we hope, Germany as well.

Stop using force to solve problems! Listen to our diplomats. Promote international courts. The world no longer works according to your silly laws of military power and deterrence — BUT don't dare take any more American troops out of Germany.

Hanson's one of the best around. Go read the rest here.

Another (Good) Voice

From Hedgehog:

"Irshad Manji is a Canadian Muslim woman with something to say. It also appears that other Muslims are starting to listen." Go read it.

Arizona Border Problem

What I Heard On My Latest Trip To The Border
By Jon Kyl

"It's a rare conversation in Arizona politics that goes on long without the subject turning to immigration in general and the problems at the border specifically.

Late last month I spent some time in and around Nogales, meeting with various public officials and constituents. Much of what I heard was familiar, as we in Arizona continue to struggle to get the federal government to live up to its obligation to confront what is undeniably a federal issue. But I also heard stories of new developments, both positive and negative."

Full details.

Encouraging Poll Results

Iraqis were polled and it gives us perhaps a little insight as to what Iraqis think about terrorism.

An analysis from Powerline:

Haider Ajina has translated for us a poll that appeared today in the Iraqi newspaper Al-Sabah Al-Jadeed. The poll surveyed 2,878 Iraqis in and around Baghdad:

Do you support the severe measures the Iraqi Government is taking against terrorist acts in Iraq?
93.56% = Yes
6.44% = No

How do you think Arabic satellite news companies are covering Iraqi news?

Neutral = 16.75%
Not Neutral = 7.25%
Negatively Biased = 76%

What is your opinion of U.N. Resolution 1546?

It achieves the ambitions of Iraqis for sovereignty = 73.12%
It satisfies ambition of certain Iraqi groups = 12.90%
It helps legitimise the American occupation = 13.98%

This is why I keep saying: the "insurgency" is over. The terrorists lost. What is going on now is just crime. Criminals can kill, but they can't affect history. As Haider says:

Iraqis are solidly behind their government's security forces pursuing the terrorists and with their vote on Jan. 30th they defeated the terrorists and now it is time to round them up.
Iraqis are also wise to Al-Jazeerah and her ilk of TV stations being anything but supportive or just neutral in their coverage of Iraq. Quite the contrary they want to injure Iraq's democracy. As more and more Arabs recognize these dubious links [to terrorist groups], they will pull their support of these stations (by not watching them).