Archive for September 2006
Acting white
The Nashville City Paper reported yesterday on a Vanderbilt study which finds that an overwhelming majority of gifted and well-performing black students are not reaching their fullest academic potential for fear of being labeled-”acting white.”
Both researchers surveyed about 300 teachers and 928 black students nationally in public schools before concluding that peer pressure and fear of being isolated as traitors to the black race is forcing many bright students to underperform at school.
“Most gifted and high potential students would rather not do well in school or hide it for fear of being labeled as traitors,” said Ford. “If the opposite of black is white and you are [a] black [student], then being accused of acting white means you are being a sell-out, and that is worse than being called a nerd or a geek.”
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Ford said the survey helped isolate the effects of peer pressure on black students, their over-representation in special education and under-representation in gifted education.
All but 10 students responded that “acting white” equated with being intelligent, getting good grades, speaking standard English and having Caucasian friends. In contrast, students said “acting black” was akin to being ghetto-like, thuggish, speaking nonstandard English and dressing in urban fashions.
“It was sad to see that positive attributes were attributed to acting white while negative attributes like acting thuggish, dumb and stupid were identified as acting black,” said Ford.
That is a shame.
Success of Christian films
Ted Baehr, who publishes MovieGuide, has put together a report showing that “Hollywood movies with strong Christian worldviews make two to seven times as much money as those flicks with explicit sex and nudity.”
The assessment looked at nearly 2,700 of the top movies at the box office from 1996 through 2005, and said while pundits and advertisers like to believe that sex and nudity sells, nothing could be further from the truth.
“For example, in 2005, movies with a very strong Christian worldview, such as ‘The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe,’ averaged nearly $65 million at the box office, but movies with extreme, explicit sex and nudity, such as ‘Sin City,’ and ‘Inside Deep Throat,’ only averaged $11.2 million or $11.7 million,” the report said.
Movies with less nudity but still strong sexual content, such as “Wedding Crashers,” and “The Ice Harvest,” fared better, but still averaged less than $22 million in 2005, said MovieGuide, which describes itself as a Christian “ministry dedicated to redeeming the values of the mass media according to biblical principles, by influencing entertainment industry executives and helping families make wise media choices.”
As the number of obscenities and profanities rose, the income dropped, it said.
On that note, Michelle Malkin over at Hot Air has pointed out a glaring example of anti-Christian bias going on at NBC.
Example 1:
The conservative media-watchdog group issued a statement Sept. 20 blasting NBC, which airs “VeggieTales,” for editing out some references to God from the children’s animated show.
“What struck me and continues to strike me is the inanity of ripping the heart and soul out of a successful product and not thinking that there will be consequences to it,” said L. Brent Bozell, president of the Parents Television Council. “The series is successful because of its biblical worldview, not in spite of it. That’s the signature to ‘Veggie-Tales.”‘
Example 2:
With Madonna urging people to see her show before criticizing her for mounting a Crucifix during one song, NBC is still wrangling over whether millions of television viewers will get that chance.
The network plans to air a Madonna concert special culled from her current Confessions tour during the November ratings sweeps period, which is used to set advertising rates.
During her performance of the song Live to Tell, Madonna is shown on a mirrored cross wearing a crown of thorns. That angered some religious leaders, particularly before her concert in Rome, and they labeled it a bad-taste publicity stunt.
I could not have made this up
Al Gore gave a speech at the U.N. yesterday during which he asserted that cigarette smoking is a “significant contributor to global warming.”
Thirty years ago, I quoted Democrat Senator Robert Byrd
On yesterday’s program, Rush Limbaugh pointed out a blatant example of what we conservatives call “liberal media bias” with respect to the Virginia senate race. That race, with Democrat Jim Webb facing Republican George Allen, has devolved from relevant issues into who used the n-word 20 and 30 years ago.
When George Allen made his famous “macaca” comment, on what page did the Washington Post run that story? t was the front page, right? And like for six days in a row or something like that. I mean, it was front page, big-time. In this latest brouhaha, supposedly uttered racial epithets out there, such distinguished eyewitnesses — sorry, such distinguished “hearsay witnesses” as Larry Sabato, went on television and said, “Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. He did that all the time.” Allen has denied it. (Allen’s Democrat opponent) James Webb has admitted it! That story hasn’t been written. So I’m reading the Washington Post today. I go through the A section, and I didn’t find the story I was looking for.
So I said, “Well, it’s obviously here, the Webb and Allen campaign, that’s important to the Washington Post. I’ll look at the front page,” and I didn’t see it on the front page. I said, “Well, maybe I’m missing it.” So I looked again for it. I didn’t see it on the front page. I didn’t see it anywhere in the A section. So the front page of the B section, however, I did find the story: “Webb Denies Ever Using Word as Epithet — Democratic Senate candidate James Webb on Wednesday sought to explain remarks he had made a day earlier, in which he refused to say whether he had used the ‘N-word,’ but he insisted he has never used it as a racial epithet aimed at anyone.”
First, isn’t there some sort of statute of limitations that covers how long a racial epithet can be used against you? Second, Republican candidates for office can easily rebuff such accusations by invoking the name of Senator Robert Byrd, Democrat from West Virginia, the “conscience of the Senate,” who used to be a Kleagle in the Ku Klux Klan, and who used the n-word on Fox News Sunday back in 2001.
An admission of guilt could be worded thus: “Yes, thirty years ago, I quoted Democrat Senator Robert Byrd using the n-word.”
A denial could similarly be worded “No, I’ve never quoted Democrat Senator Robert Byrd using the n-word.”
The ACLU comes to Wilson County
Well, it had to happen sooner or later. The ACLU is suing the Wilson County school system for religious activities at Lakeview Elementary in Mt. Juliet, thereby violating “separation of church and state.”
Alleging that a Mt. Juliet elementary school Christmas play, a group of praying parents, a national prayer day and teacher-led prayer in class are among a range of religious activities that violate the separation of church and state, the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee filed a suit in federal court yesterday.
The suit was filed on behalf of two Old Hickory parents, who said the activities were “highly offensive” and subjected their young son – a kindergartener at the school last year – to “religious proselytizing.”
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“Religious freedom for everyone is jeopardized when public schools promote and endorse religious activities,” ACLU-TN executive director Hedy Weinberg said in a news release. “In addition, the sponsorship of religious activities in Wilson County public schools broadcasts a divisive message to the religiously pluralistic community of Wilson County.
Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, the suit seeks a preliminary injunction, asking that defendants be stopped from engaging in any future, similar religious activities. It also seeks attorneys’ fees and compensatory or nominal damages,” for “emotional distress” and for the cost of homeschooling their son.
The suit says the religious activities led the parents to pull their son out of school to homeschool him.
A few points.
1. There is no separation of church and state. The First Amendment states, in part, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” A simple rendering of the English language refutes the concept of “separation of church and state.” The Wilson County school system is not Congress, no laws have been made, and no religion has been established. Remember, the Bill of Rights was never intended as a restriction on individuals. It is a restriction on government that guarantees the civil liberties of individuals. By filing its lawsuit, the ACLU is attempting to enlist the government (the judiciary) to place restrictions on individuals. And if you want to argue the establishment clause, then I will argue the free exercise clause.
2. The ACLU is demanding that Lakeview Elementary end its Christmas play, its group of praying parents, recognition of the national day of prayer, and teacher-led prayer in class because of the wishes of one child’s parents. Lakeview Elementary has an enrollment of 591 students, yet the school is expected to stop these things because of one student. What about the other 590 students?
School officials would not comment Thursday on the lawsuit, but several parents who were told of the legal action as they picked up their children from school said they stood behind the school in offering the religious activities.
“I think it’s absurd that anybody would sue over that,” said Donna Crowson, as she sat in line to pick up her two grandchildren at Lakeview. “They have a right to do that, I believe. The child doesn’t have to participate. Parents don’t have to participate.”
Other parents said they were drawn to the school because of its Christian activities.
Mike and Cindy Davison, who have a kindergartner at the school, moved to Mt. Juliet from Davidson County eight years ago. The environment at Lakeview was a big factor in the decision, they said.
“As far as the curriculum and the environment and the staff, it’s as close to a private school as you can get. I believe that goes along with the Christian theme they have,” said Cindy Davison, who said her family reads the Bible every day.
3. The offended parents want retribution for the cost of homeschooling their child. That’s odd, because there is a large and growing number of Christian parents who homeschool in order to avoid the secularism that pervades public school systems in the United States. I have yet to hear of one Christian parent suing a school district to recover the cost of homeschooling.
4. “But Mark,” you ask, “what if it were a Muslim prayer instead of a Christian prayer?” That’s not even a relevant question. We are not a Muslim community. We are a Christian community. That’s not to say that every single resident of Mt. Juliet professes Christianity, but Christianity is the overwhelming religion of choice here, and Lakeview Elementary is simply reflecting the values of the community. Furthermore, if it were a Muslim prayer, I’m not convinced the ACLU would come after the school. After all, the ACLU isn’t against religion. It’s just against Christianity.
By the way, the Tennessean has excellent coverage of the story in today’s paper:
Wilson County faces questions over religion in classroom
Proposed course in Wilson County uses Bible as only text, draws scrutiny
Pay it forward
Remember Greg McDougal? He’s a fellow church member of mine who cut a CD, entitled “The Work of a Carpenter,” in order to raise money to build an allergy-free home for his family. The McDougal family now has a video that explains their circumstances and their project. The video runs nearly ten minutes. Stick with the Kenny Chesney part at the beginning. There’s a point to it all.
What the NIE really says
Various media outlets have reprinted the declassified portions of the National Intelligence Estimate. You can read it for yourself. Democrats (and the mainstream press) seized on selected leaks of the document in an attempt to gain political leverage on Bush’s supposedly-failed Iraq strategery, especially the finding that “The Iraq conflict has become the ’cause celebre’ for jihadists, breeding a deep resentment of U.S. involvement in the Muslim world and cultivating supporters for the global jihadist movement.”
But if anything, the full declassified portion of the NIE actually supports the United States’ involvement in Iraq and the Middle East. You see, the report also says “The jihadists’ greatest vulnerability is that their ultimate political solution — an ultraconservative interpretation of Shariah-based governance spanning the Muslim world — is unpopular with the vast majority of Muslims. Exposing the religious and political straitjacket that is implied by the jihadists’ propaganda would help to divide them from the audiences they seek to persuade.”
(Translation: If more democratic governments can be forged in the Middle East, Islamic militants will be forced to slink deeper into the shrinking crevices of their dark world.)
“The loss of key leaders, particularly Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahri, and al-Zarqawi, in rapid succession, probably would cause the group to fracture into smaller groups. Although like-minded individuals would endeavor to carry on the mission, the loss of these key leaders would exacerbate strains and disagreements. We assess that the resulting splinter groups would, at least for a time, pose a less serious threat to U.S. interests than does Al Qaeda.”
The report, which was released in April, also notes that “Should al-Zarqawi continue to evade capture and scale back attacks against Muslims, we assess he could broaden his popular appeal and present a global threat.” Of course, al-Zarqawi was eliminated on June 8, marking a key victory in the War on Terrorism.
As I said, the report was released back in April. We’re now in September. Why is the NIE just now becoming news? Because, as John Hinderaker at Power Line notes, Democrats wanted to get headlines such as “White House refuses to release full NIE.” And they got them. But in the end, the Democrats have once again stepped on a rake, and the handle has hit them squarely between the eyes.
This guy is serious
In the spirit of Nathan Moore’s assertion that “42% of the American population have completely divested their stake in reality,” Tom Bohs over at The Jackson Sun warns us “Don’t be fooled by low gas prices.”
The editorial begins “I’ve done it. I’ve figured out how to bring gas prices down: Hold a national election where the political party in control might get its butt kicked.”
I honestly thought the man was laying the groundwork for a satirical piece until I read further. He is absolutely serious.
The Arab countries are pumping the same amount of oil. The U.S. doesn’t have any new refineries and the old ones are running at the same levels of production. Winter is still coming with its heating needs. The lid is still fixing to blow off the Middle East at any moment. Major U.S. oil supplier, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, still dislikes America, and especially President George Bush, and even more than he did before. We, and everyone else around the world, are using as much oil as ever. There was a huge oil discovery in the Gulf of Mexico, but that black gold won’t come online for at least a decade.
So, why are gas prices here at home dropping faster than the sales of Ford SUVs?
I’ll tell you why. Dick “Halliburton” Cheney.
Remember him? He’s our vice president who mostly can be found at undisclosed locations. Remember his secret meetings with oil company brass to set national energy policy for the future? That was when gas was $1.25 a gallon. Some energy policy, unless, of course, you happen to be a petroleum industry bigwig.
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This is a crooked administration the likes of which we haven’t seen since Richard Nixon was president. It is predatory in its abuse of the American public’s freedom. It is vicious in its treatment of its opponents and enemies. And it is disingenuous in its war efforts in Iraq. It’s moral standing, and America’s, is in the toilet. The American people, our freedom and our way of life are suffering under this tainted and corrupt regime.
We are closer to tyranny than we can imagine. We are blinded and misled by fear-mongering. The political process has devolved into abuse, cheating, pettiness and lying to achieve ill-conceived, misdirected and selfish ends.
But there is hope. There are the likes of Sen. John McCain and former Secretary of State Colin Powell who are not afraid of the truth. There are a few members of Congress and a few candidates in the coming national elections who can make a difference, if they can get elected.
That brings me back to gas prices. I hope the American voter will not be bought off by a few gallons of cheap gas.
Folks, it is amazing that people actually believe this stuff. What an oxymoron the left has concocted. (And don’t believe Bohs’ claim that “I am neither Republican nor Democrat.” This guy is as liberal as they come.)
Indeed, when gas prices were rising, Democrats were all over the Bush administration, blaming the President and Richard Cheney for colluding with Big Oil. Now that gas prices are coming down, there is outrage once again on the left, with the Bush-haters blaming the President and Richard Cheney for colluding with Big Oil!
These people simply cannot allow themselves to be happy about anything as long as George W. Bush is in office.
Uncovering the ignorance of the mainstream press
Afghani President Hamid Karzai ate AP reporter Jennifer Loven’s lunch yesterday in response to the ridiculous question “Even after hearing that one of the major conclusions of the National Intelligence Estimate in April was that the Iraq war has fueled terror growth around the world, why have you continued to say that the Iraq war has made this country safer?”
Here’s Karzai’s slam-dunk answer:
Terrorism was hurting us way before Iraq or September 11th. The president mentioned some examples of it. These extremist forces were killing people in Afghanistan and around the world for years, closing schools, burning mosques, killing children, uprooting vineyards, vine trees, grapes hanging on them, forcing populations to poverty and misery. They came to America on September 11th, but they were attacking you before September 11th in other parts of the world. We are a witness in Afghanistan to what they are and how they can hurt. You are a witness in New York. Do you forget people jumping off the 80th floor or 70th floor when the planes hit them? Can you imagine what it will be for a man or a woman to jump off that high? Who did that? And where are they now? And how do we fight them, how do we get rid of them? Other than going after them. Should we wait for them to come and kill us again? That’s why we need more action around the world, in Afghanistan and elsewhere, to get them defeated. Extremism, their allies, terrorists, and the like.
Swish.
I wish some of these ignorant reporters would actually go to one of the oppressed Middle Eastern nations and live for a year — heck, a month — under such a regime. I don’t mean as an innocent bystander reporting on the conditions, I mean as one of the oppressed subjects, and then come back and report.
By the way, the question posed by Loven doesn’t seem to be any more inflammatory than Chris Wallace’s question to President Clinton on Sunday:
Why didn’t you do more to put Bin Laden and al Qaeda out of business when you were President. There’s a new book out which I suspect you’ve read called the Looming Tower. And it talks about how the fact that when you pulled troops out of Somalia in 1993, Bin Laden said I have seen the frailty and the weakness and the cowardice of US troops. Then there was the bombing of the embassies in Africa and the attack on the USS Cole. (interrupted) And after the attack, the book says, Bin Laden separated his leaders because he expected an attack and there was no response. I understand that hindsight is 20/20… (interrupted) but the question is why didn’t you do more, connect the dots and put them out of business?
Of course, this is when Clinton flew off the handle. But is such a question any more inflammatory than “Even after hearing that one of the major conclusions of the National Intelligence Estimate in April was that the Iraq war has fueled terror growth around the world, why have you continued to say that the Iraq war has made this country safer?”
Absolutely not. Yet President Karzai gave a calm, eloquent, reasoned answer, far different than that served up by President Clinton.
Terrorism began BEFORE Iraq
Michelle Malkin has started to break down the National Intelligence Estimate, which implies that terrorists weren’t really emboldened until after we invaded Iraq. Malkin notes “Not a word about the 1,400-year-plus history of Islamic hostility to the West or Islamic imperialism from time immemorial or the Koran-inspired war on infidels–long, long before there was a United States and ‘pervasive anti-US sentiment.’”
Indeed, the most brazen attack ever launched by Islamic militants occurred on September 11, 2001, which was BEFORE we invaded Iraq. The various terrorist strikes against American interests that occurred during the Clinton years also happened BEFORE we invaded Iraq. Of course, Clinton did virtually nothing to combat terrorism, which seemed to embolden militant Islam far more than President Bush’s aggressive stand against the terrorists.
However, the most penetrating observation on the “instability” that exists within Iraq comes from a post written by Omar at Iraq the Model:
Did the “invasion and its aftermath” destabilize the region from those leaders’ perspective? Absolutely yes! The Syrian Baath regime lost its eastern twin, Iran lost its anti-American, anti-Semitic western neighbor and the family-state in Saudi Arabia suddenly found itself with a northern neighbor where minorities and majorities both have shares in governance. Moreover, the peoples of the region, since then, became more daring in demanding their rights and criticizing the policy of their governments.
If this is not instability, then what is it?
YES!
Today’s Lebanon Democrat column: “9/11 brings out selfish, petulant Democrats”
Americans just celebrated the fifth anniversay of 9/11 — an event which showed just how raw our emotions still are as the events of that day are permanently seared into our memories.
The evening before and the evening of 9/11, ABC aired a two-part, five-hour miniseries “The Path to 9/11.” The film was a somewhat fictionalized telling of the otherwise historical events that led up to 9/11, starting with the World Trade Center bombing in February, 1993.
Three things were evident from “The Path to 9/11,” and are historically irrefutable. One, the Islamic militants who have repeatedly attacked our interests are evil people without a soul. Two, for eight years, the Clinton administration was lackadaisical about fighting the terrorists, and passed up opportunities to take out Osama bin Laden. Three, the newly-minted Bush administration knew the terrorists were planning a massive strike, but lacked the details needed in order to take specific preventative measures.
Bill Clinton was so distraught over “The Path to 9/11″ that days before the airing, his attorney, Bruce Lindsey, penned a letter to Disney chief Bob Iger to protest “The Path to 9/11.”
Lindsey argued, in part, that “The content of this drama is factually and incontrovertibly inaccurate and ABC has a duty to fully correct all errors or pull the drama entirely. It is unconscionable to mislead the American public about one of the most horrendous tragedies our country has ever known.”
It’s not often that you hear about a U.S. President, former or sitting, protesting to an American media outlet, which is why the Lindsey letter made news.
It must be said that President Bush also protested to a media outlet, the New York Times, last December, although for a far different reason.
The New York Post ran a story on September 10 detailing the President’s encounter with Times editor Bill Keller last December. Keller described the 2005 meeting with Bush and the president’s emphatic warning that if the paper revealed the secret wiretapping program, and if there was another terror attack on U.S. soil, the Times would be implicated. “The basic message was, ‘You’ll have blood on your hands….’”
President Bush could have protested Dan Rather’s forged National Guard papers. He could also have protested the sham that was Plamegate. But when George W. Bush protested to the media, he did so not on his own behalf, but instead on behalf of the American people.
Two presidents, two appeals to the media, two very different motives. President Clinton is trying to protect a crumbling legacy. President Bush is trying to protect us.
On the evening of 9/11, President Bush made a wartime address to the American people, which a wartime President must do from time-to-time. The speech could not have been better timed. The President was optimistic, and rose above politics by making a pro-America, pro-freedom appeal.
The money quote from the President’s speech was this: “The war against this enemy is more than a military conflict. It is the decisive ideological struggle of the 21st century, and the calling of our generation.”
The predictable onslaught of criticism by the Democratic Party began about a nanosecond after President Bush closed the speech with “Thank you, and may God bless you.”
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi remarked “Rather than try to defend their own failed record, Republicans have resorted to the desperation politics of fear. It is long past time for Republicans to be honest with American people and stop questioning the patriotism of those who recognize that the president’s Iraq policy has not worked, is making us less safe and must be changed.”
Similarly, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid lamented “Sadly, it was a missed opportunity for President Bush, who obviously was more consumed by staying the course in Iraq and playing election year partisan politics than changing direction for this wonderful country.”
What is not as widely known is that Congressman Jim Moran, a Democrat, spoke during a 9/11 rally in Arlington, Virginia. During his remarks, Congressman Moran made the statement “There are more people around the world who hate America and what they think it stands for than even life itself.”
So while Democrats lambasted the President for playing politics by making a pro-America, pro-freedom speech on the fifth anniversary of 9/11, one of their own used the opportunity to trash our great nation.
Indeed, the difference between Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, illustrated by their respective protests to the media, could hardly be wider. One went to bat for his legacy, the other went to bat for the American people.
Likewise, the fifth anniversary of 9/11 brought out similar differences between the President and the Democratic Party. The President was optimistic and shared his love of America and the pillar of freedom we represent to the world. Democrats showed themselves to be selfish and petulant, because they want 9/11 to be about them. But you’d better not question their patriotism.
Condi fixes Clinton
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice fixed several of Bill Clinton’s “flatly false” claims the day after his contentious interview with Chris Wallace on Fox News.
Rice hammered Clinton, who leveled his charges in a contentious weekend interview with Chris Wallace of Fox News Channel, for his claims that the Bush administration “did not try” to kill Osama bin Laden in the eight months they controlled the White House before the Sept. 11 attacks.
“The notion somehow for eight months the Bush administration sat there and didn’t do that is just flatly false – and I think the 9/11 commission understood that,” Rice said during a wide-ranging meeting with Post editors and reporters.
“What we did in the eight months was at least as aggressive as what the Clinton administration did in the preceding years,” Rice added.
The secretary of state also sharply disputed Clinton’s claim that he “left a comprehensive anti-terror strategy” for the incoming Bush team during the presidential transition in 2001.
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In her pointed rebuttal of Clinton’s inflammatory claims about the war on terror, Rice maintained the Bush White House did the best it could to defend against an attack – and expanded on the tools and intelligence it inherited.
“I would just suggest that you go back and read the 9/11 commission report on the efforts of the Bush administration in the eight months – things like working to get an armed Predator [drone] that actually turned out to be extraordinarily important,” Rice added.
She also said Clinton’s claims that Richard Clarke – the White House anti-terror guru hyped by Clinton as the country’s “best guy” – had been demoted by Bush were bogus.
“Richard Clarke was the counterterrorism czar when 9/11 happened. And he left when he did not become deputy director of homeland security, some several months later,” she said.
Meanwhile, Byron York, in his column over at National Review Online, does some fact-checking of his own. More fact-checking here and here, as well. You have to love alternative media, that Clinton’s whoppers can be uncovered so quickly and be disseminated to so many people.
Barn blogging
Highway 136 in Overton County, Tennessee, south of Standing Stone State Park
Leave me out of it
In Friday’s Tennessean editorial, “HIV testing for all,” the paper advocates for a CDC recommendation that all Americans ages 13-64 receive voluntary HIV tests as part of their routine checkups.
Until now, about half of new infections were discovered when patients who were already sick came in for care. That’s often too late to extend their lives, or to protect their partners.
Routine testing will detect the virus in more people sooner, reducing spread of the virus and helping infected people live longer.
The new guidelines also step up HIV testing for pregnant women, to further stem mother-to-child infection.
Some physician groups say doctors will find the recommendations costly to implement, but given the endorsement of the plan by the American Medical Assocation, doctors will be expected to comply.
Of course, those who practice abstinence or heterosexual monogamy need not worry with it.
Don’t enjoy the falling gas prices
The Tennessean finds that rain cloud to stand under in an otherwise sunny sky.
The downward trend is seasonal but can be affected by several factors, including the weather, the global political climate and consumption.
For example, a very cold winter might raise home heating demand and that could cause fluctuations in oil prices, Bly said.
The recent discovery of a large oil field in the Gulf of Mexico won’t have an effect on gas prices now but will in the future, he said.
“We should not be lulled into a false sense of security — there are things that could change overnight,” Bly said, adding that the peace accord between Hezbollah in Lebanon and Israel has helped stabilize the gas market.
Preston Pease of Antioch doesn’t plan to get hooked on low gas prices.
His sport-utility vehicle has a 20-gallon tank, which costs more than $60 to fill when prices are high, he said.
“It will eventually go back up,” Pease said. “I will live it up while I can, but I’m not expecting it to stay low forever.”
Historical marker blogging
Highway 53 south of Celina, Tennessee in Clay County
Historical marker blogging
Hartsville, Tennessee (Trousdale County)
Attacking the words
The Tennessean editorialized today on the recent flare-up in militant Islam over the Pope’s remarks. Although the local paper’s editorial wasn’t quite as absurd as that run by the New York Times, the editorial board over on Broadway Avenue in Nashville still believes that mere words will quell the violence of militant Islam.
Extremist groups such as al-Qaida in Iraq thrive on the lack of understanding. Before such groups can use this incident to violent advantage, it would behoove religious leaders to focus less on defending ill-timed remarks and more on constructive dialogue.
No, militant Islam does not thrive on any lack of understanding. Militant Islam thrives on primitive violence, which is the only thing it does understand.
The former Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Carey of Clifton, has issued his own challenge to Islam, correctly acknowledging that it isn’t the responsibility of non-Muslims to initiate any “constructive dialogue” with militant Islam. That responsibility lies with Islam’s co-religionists.
Lord Carey said that Muslims must address “with great urgency” their religion’s association with violence. He made it clear that he believed the “clash of civilisations” endangering the world was not between Islamist extremists and the West, but with Islam as a whole.
“We are living in dangerous and potentially cataclysmic times,” he said. “There will be no significant material and economic progress [in Muslim communities] until the Muslim mind is allowed to challenge the status quo of Muslim conventions and even their most cherished shibboleths.”
The President’s speech to the United Nations
President Bush graciously gave the U.N. the time of day yesterday by making a speech to the international body, most of which was directed at various nations, oppressed and newly-democratized, in the Middle East. The most compelling part of the President’s speech was this gem:
Imagine what it’s like to be a young person living in a country that is not moving toward reform. You’re 21 years old, and while your peers in other parts of the world are casting their ballots for the first time, you are powerless to change the course of your government. While your peers in other parts of the world have received educations that prepare them for the opportunities of a global economy, you have been fed propaganda and conspiracy theories that blame others for your country’s shortcomings. And everywhere you turn, you hear extremists who tell you that you can escape your misery and regain your dignity through violence and terror and martyrdom. For many across the broader Middle East, this is the dismal choice presented every day.
The President did not, however, give the time of day to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who was also at the U.N. yesterday, and had some choice words for the host nation.
Ahmadinejad also accused the United States and Britain of using their veto power on the Security Council to further their own interests and he said it had become an “instrument of threat and coercion.”
“If they have differences with a nation or state, they drag it to the Security Council,” and assign themselves the roles of “prosecutor, judge and executioner,” Ahmadinejad said. “Is this a just order?”
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The Iranian leader had harsh words about U.S. efforts in Iraq, saying “the occupiers are incapable of establishing security in Iraq” and every day hundreds of people get killed “in cold blood.”
Hope you enjoyed your stay in the U.S.A., Mahmoud.
An act of faith
Bill Gray isn’t buying the global warming hype.
Global warming is happening, but humans are not the cause, one of the nation’s top experts on hurricanes said Monday morning.
Bill Gray, who has studied tropical meteorology for more than 40 years, spoke at the Larimer County Republican Club Breakfast about global warming and whether humans are to blame. About 50 people were at the talk.
Gray, who is a professor at Colorado State University, said human-induced global warming is a fear perpetuated by the media and scientists who are trying to get federal grants.
“I think we’re coming out of the little ice age, and warming is due to changes to ocean circulation patterns due to salinity variations,” Gray said. “I’m sure that’s it.”
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At the breakfast, Gray said Earth was warmer in some medieval periods than it is today. Current weather models are good at predicting weather as far as 10 days in advance, but predicting up to 100 years into the future is “a great act of faith, and I don’t believe any of it,” he said.
That’s one of my top beefs with global warming forecasts. Bill Gray was being generous when he gave atmospheric models reliability out to 10 days. I would give them 7 days. At any rate, no one but God can predict the weather out to a decade, much less a century.
