Wannabe Chairman Short Meets Dictator Tall, Assad Kucinich

US Democratic hopeful Kucinich meets Assad, blasts Bush

"I feel the United States is engaging in an illegal occupation ... I
don't want to bless that occupation with my presence," he said in an interview
in Lebanon, after visiting Syria. "I will not do it."

Doing for America what he did for Cleveland.

“Strength through Peace is vastly different from the dead end
neo-conservative ‘Peace through Strength’ doctrine which attempts to
legitimatize unilateralism, first strike and preemption. I want President Assad
to know that our congress and our nation has people who believe in direct
engagement.”

Building peace through betrayal, one dictator at a time. Next stop Tehran?

Peace on brother. Farm out, you weasel.

Mugger Murtha and F'ing Kerry

When is the great American hero going to make public his service records (and medals)? Your choice; Kerry or Murtha.

When is the great American hero going to apologize for their slandering of our troops. Your choice; Kerry or Murtha.

McClatchy McClutches to Defeat in Iraq

Victories in the field denote losses in newsrooms; reasons unclear.

Combat deaths in Iraq decline; reasons aren't clear

One British analyst, using the example of the British drawdown of forces in southern Iraq, suggested that the lower numbers may mean that American troops are irrelevant to the many conflicts racking Iraq: ethnic cleansing of neighborhoods in Baghdad, massive bombings of religious minorities by Sunni Muslim extremists in northern Iraq and Shiite-on-Shiite-Muslim violence in southern Iraq.

Instead, he suggested, Iraq’s armed factions and politicians already are thinking beyond the troop buildup.

"Everyone is preparing for what happens" after U.S. forces leave, said James Denselow, an Iraq specialist at the London-based Chatham House, a foreign affairs research institute.

In my eyes this is an end point of the beginning of success in Iraq. Petreaus has things moving in the right direction, sectarian violence is being directed inward as more Iraqi citizens reject the sectarian violence and AIG.

I see "beyond the surge" as code for after the US leaves Iraq which brings us full circle, in liberal minds, as dealing with a civil war which is bs. Liberals refuse to deal with Syria and Iran in their equations of Iraq, just as they did with Russia and China in Vietnam.

For a bonus read the comments. There are some beauts, especially those that see this as a "cheerleading" piece for the White House. Yep, at McClatchy, that'd be a given.

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22 WAYS TO BE A GOOD DEMOCRAT

In my e-mail today.

1. You have to be against capital punishment, but support abortion on demand.
2. You have to believe that businesses create oppression and governments create prosperity.
3. You have to believe that guns in the hands of law-abiding Americans are more of a threat than U.S. nuclear weapons technology in the hands of Chinese and North Korean communists. 4. You have to believe that there was no art before Federal funding.
5. You have to believe that global temperatures are less affected by documented cyclical changes in the earth's climate and more affected by soccer moms driving SUV's.
6. You have to believe that gender roles are artificial but being homosexual is natural.
7. You have to believe that the AIDS virus is spread by a lack of federal funding.
8. You have to believe that the same teacher who can't teach fourth graders how to read is somehow qualified to teach those same kids about sex.
9. You have to believe that hunters don't care about nature, but loony activists who have never been outside of San Francisco do.
10. You have to believe that self-esteem is more important than actually doing something to earn it.
11. You have to believe that Mel Gibson spent $25 million of his own money to make "The Passion of the Christ" for financial gain only.
12. You have to believe the NRA is bad because it supports certain parts of the Constitution, while the ACLU is good because it supports certain parts of the Constitution.
13. You have to believe that taxes are too low, but ATM fees are too high.
14. You have to believe that Margaret Sanger and Gloria Steinem are more important to American history than Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Edison, and A.G.Bell.
15. You have to believe that standardized tests are racist, but racial quotas and set-asides are not.
16. You have to believe that Hillary Clinton is normal and is a very nice person.
17. You have to believe that the only reason socialism hasn't worked anywhere it's been tried is because the right people haven't been In charge.
18. You have to believe conservatives telling the truth belong in jail, but a liar and a sex offender belonged in the White House.
19. You have to believe that homosexual parades displaying drag, transvestites, and bestiality should be constitutionally protected, and manger scenes at Christmas should be illegal.
20. You have to believe that illegal Democrat Party funding by the Chinese Government is somehow in the best interest to the United States
21. You have to believe that this message is a part of a vast, right wing conspiracy.
22. You have to believe that it's okay to give Federal workers the day off on Christmas Day but it's not okay to say "Merry Christmas."

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Woody and Man At Ohio State

My father used to tell me, "Woody is Ohio State and Ohio State is Woody, but he'll knock your teeth out if you say the first part."

I like George W. Bush and I like Jim Tressel, but neither are quote kings. Heck, I don't even know what Coach Tressel's answers mean most of the time.

To that end, and now that the season is about 10 days from getting serious and Big Ten TV will be out of the way, we need to get in the right frame of mind.

Woody Hayes:

The man who became simply known as "The Old Man" was born February 14, 1913 in Clifton, Ohio. He grew up in a small town called Newcomerstown, graduated from Denison and coached at Denison and Miami of Ohio before coming to Ohio State. Over his career, he amassed a 238-72-10 record and 205-61-10 in the Big Ten. He won four national championships (five if you count the title given to OSU by the National Football Foundation in 1970), won 13 Big Ten titles, played in 8 Rose Bowls (including four straight from 72-75), produced 56 All-Americans, and had three Heisman Trophy winners, three Outland Trophy winners, two Lombardi Trophy winners, and some of the coaches that were assistants under him were Lou Holtz, Bo Schembechler, Rudy Hubbard, Bill Mallory, Earle Bruce, and Dave McClain.

Woody Hayes' quotes:

"Nobody despises to lose more than I do. That's got me into trouble over the years, but it also made a man of mediocre ability into a pretty good coach."

"So many times I've found people smarter than I was ... But you know what they couldn't do? They couldn't outwork me. They couldn't outwork me!"

"Anything easy ain't worth a damn!"

"Without winners, there wouldn't even be any god damned civilization."

"No, goddammit! We do NOT pull in and fill up. And I'll tell you exactly why we don't. It's because I don't buy one goddam drop of gas in the state of Michigan! We'll coast and PUSH this goddam car to the Ohio line before I give this state a nickel of my money!"

"I'm not trying to win a popularity poll. I'm trying to win football games. I don't like nice people. I like tough, honest people."

"I feel sometimes that the man upstairs sort of likes us. Maybe He was testing us, saying, 'Let's see what kind of people are at Ohio State. Do they take defeat lightly? Can they come back from adversity?'"

"Perfect preparation prevents piss-poor performance."

"Football is about the only unifying force left in America today. It is certainly one of the few places in our society where teamwork, mental discipline, and the value of hard work still mean anything. We stick to the old-fashioned virtues, and if the rest of the country had stuck to them, it would have been a different story in Vietnam."

"There's one thing that worries me about our lifestyle and civilization today. We're too often talking bad about ourselves. This, as far as I'm concerned, hurts us more than everything else put together."

"The problem comes from people believing they have too many rights, and the word 'rights' to them means acting like an idiot."

"Now I want to tell you that people need friends. I visited an old friend today, Dick Nixon. Right now, he has no friends. Nobody wants to be friends with him, but I am still Dick's friend. Dick can count on Woody. Woody will be there for Dick Nixon."

"We don't give a damn for the whole state of Michigan."

About Woody Hayes:

"Woody was the original Rush Limbaugh. There were no ifs, ands, or buts; he was right-wing for God and country. He was proud to be an American, and he instilled that in his players."--Tim Fox

"If I had to go into a battle and I needed someone loyal and courageous to cover my blindside, I know damn well Woody would be my man. I know, too, that God hasn't created a more generous, compassionate, or more understanding man than Woody Hayes."--Jack Tatum

"Woody studied the whole race issue. He came to camp in '68 and sat us down and told us we were not going to have any problems. We're going to play like a team. We looked at each other a lot differently then. From that point on, the race issue was devoid on our team. He put it to rest."--Dave Whitfield

"We had more personal contact with Woody Hayes than with any other faculty member outside of the classroom. I know of no other faculty member than Coach Hayes who made personal visits to students in their residences in order to inspire their pursuits of academic excellence."--Fred C. Sweeney, OSU student

"He was a legend in his own time. He taught me football, but more importantly, he taught me more about life than anybody else."--Lou Holtz

"Divorce, no. Murder, yes."—Anne Hayes

"Though his tenure at Ohio State spanned the turbulent years of the Civil Rights Movement, the only colors that ever mattered to Hayes were OSU's scarlet and gray; black and white were irrelevant."--Paul Hornung

"Coach Hayes truly epitomized what a head coach should be. He worked hard. He was a perfectionist. He was a true patriot. He was a true Ohioan."--Paul Warfield

"Woody is one of the greatest leaders our country has ever produced."--General Lewis Walt, Marine Corps commandant

Nixon recalled, "I wanted to talk about football and Woody wanted to talk about foreign policy. And you know Woody. We talked about foreign policy."

"Woody is a God-fearing man. It's good to know that he's afraid of somebody." --Archie Griffin

My father also told me about one practice where a great big 300+ pound guy wasn't giving it his all. Woody walked up to him and had a quiet and private conversation with this player who had to bend way over to hear. The player straightened up and practiced like a mad man the rest of the day. Everyone was impressed.

After practice when asked about it Woody said, "I explained that I kept a WWII bayonet in my office and that if he was going to play like a cheerleader, I'd fix him up so he could be a cheerleader. He must've believed me."

Much of this came from Bucknuts and Buckeyes and Sabermetrics, two great sites.

Surprise! Bush In Iraq

Bush is in Iraq.

Pelosi and Reid aren't.

Nough said.

Clinton Shocked - Huh?

Bill Clinton 'shocked' Hillary donor was a fugitive

"You could have knocked me over with a straw..."

UPDATE: BJ Clinton is also shocked that cheese starts to stink when left in the sunshine.

The Victory Caucus needs your help

If you support continuing the mission in Iraq, go here to sign the Victory Caucus' online petition. And, for Labor Day weekend fun, come back to the comments here and explain why you do or do not agree with the petition.

(psst! I flagrantly stole this as a whole from TigerHawk, but go support this effort. You are needed)

From A Cuban in Ohio

I can't add anything at this point.

Taxes

At first I thought this was funny...then I realized the awful truth of it.

Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table
At which he's fed.

Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.

Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.

Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.

Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he
Tries to think.

Tax his cigars,
Tax his beers,
If he cries,
thenTax his tears.

Tax his car,
Tax his gas,
Find other ways
To tax his ass

Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won't be done
Till he has no dough.

When he screams and hollers,
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He's good and sore.

Then tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he's laid.

Put these words
upon his tomb,
"Taxes drove me to my doom...

"When he's gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.
Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel permit tax
Gasoline Tax (42 cents per gallon)
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Interest expense Inventory tax
IRS Interest Charges
IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security Tax
Road usage taxes
Sales Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone federal excise tax
Telephone federal universal service fee tax
Telephone federal, state and local surcharge taxes
Telephone minimum usage surcharge tax
Telephone recurring and non-recurring charges tax
Telephone state and local tax
Telephone usage charge tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax

COMMENTS: Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world.We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What happened?

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The Black Book of Communism

The Black Book of Communism became possible with the opening of the archives of the USSR. The book, first published in France 1997, chronicles the brutality, murder and oppression of communism throughout its history. With wild ho-hums and yawns by our fabulous intellectual class the book is now available here in the land of freedom. Freedom allows for ho-hums and yawns, even in church. That is not so in the lands of communism. Yawn in the church of Stalin and you'll get a bullet through the brain pan and your family will be billed for the cost of the bullet.

I grew up with parents that believed communism was a brutal and horrid form of government when actually put in place. Through lots of research they put a price to living in a worker's paradise. Boy, oh boy, were they wrong. Their numbers were way low. It appears the price of workers living in paradise was a bit pricier than even my parents thought, at least in terms of pain, misery, death and mass murder. All state planned by the bureaucrats of paradise.

In the early 1980s while working in DC and doing a lot of research I was moved to produce a bumper sticker that simply said "Communism kills". I still see some of those now and then and The Black Book of Communism proves that simple statement.

Communism is the big brother encompassing all the little evil "isms" including its bastard little brothers, socialism and liberalism.

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Slimed - Liberals Hate it When Troops Know The Facts.

I love this. Political opportunists screw the troops in Washington DC for political gain, but get incensed when they visit the troops in Iraq and their words are known to troops.

Lawmakers Describe 'Being Slimed in the Green Zone'

The sheets of paper seemed to be everywhere the lawmakers went in the Green Zone, distributed to Iraqi officials, U.S. officials and uniformed military of no particular rank. So when Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.) asked a soldier last
weekend just what he was holding, the congressman was taken aback to find
out.

In the soldier's hand was a thumbnail biography, distributed before
each of the congressmen's meetings in Baghdad, which let meeting participants such as that soldier know where each of the lawmakers stands on the war. "Moran on Iraq policy," read one section, going on to cite some
the congressman's most incendiary statements, such as, "This has been the worst
foreign policy fiasco in American history."

The bio of Rep. Ellen O. Tauscher (D-Calif.) -- "TAU (rhymes
with 'now')-sher," the bio helpfully relates -- was no less pointed, even if she
once supported the war and has taken heat from liberal Bay Area constituents who remain wary of her position. "Our forces are caught in the middle of an escalating sectarian conflict in Iraq, with no end in sight," the bio quotes.

"This is beyond parsing. This is being slimed in the Green Zone,"
Tauscher said of her bio.

In their own words, they are slimed by their own words. Isn't that special.

Good Lord, I'm thinking that libs are beginning to hate the Internet. That's DARPA's Internet not alGore's. Their words, their videos and their cheap political pandering can all be seen, heard and read by our troops half a world away and that ticks them off. Good.

They're ticked off that the troops are ticked off about being used as pawns as they are betrayed by those that think they're being slimed by being quoted.

Moran is one of the most arrogant bullies in Congress. He loves to use cruel sarcasm against helpless witnesses in committee hearings to belittle them.

I would have loved to seen Moran's face. Hell, I would've paid to see his face.

I hope our troops do this more. I think we should help our troops to get the word out.

Via Don Surber.

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Is Harry A Morman Reid In the Wind?

I will not vote for Mitt Romney in the primaries, but I will vote for him if he gets the nomination. I'm funny that way, in that I support the primary winner in the general election instead of taking my vote and going home to whine when I don't get my way.

Take in all the drawbacks of a Romney candidacy that you will, but the unspoken one I "hear" most is the question of his Mormonism. Right or wrong, it is there.

Harry Reid is a Mormon.

Are these two men from the same planet, let alone the same church? Reid's pugnacious rope-a-dope style of defeatism is quite opposite that of Romney's bright eyed can-doism, but both men have had some success with their own style.

I think the true difference is Reid's personal agenda versus Romney's apparent style of serving the greater good. Which is an agenda of trust? Which is a style that people can trust?

More importantly, which agenda or style is one which will engender in others, say Iraqis, to trust the United States of America? This is kinda important in international relations even beyond Iraq and Afghanistan.

Looking Iraqis in the Eye

It should come as no surprise to anyone in the placid West that
ordinary Iraqis have been slow to rise in defense of their neighborhoods and to
join with the Americans in pursuing that task. They have simply been hedging
their bets. And why not? The antiwar declarations of the U.S. media, the
cultural elites, American academics and high profile Democratic Party
politicians tell them that America will abandon them.

Why would Iraqis join with the Americans, risking their necks, if
they believe the Americans will leave before the terrorists were defeated? Why
should ordinary Iraqis work with American soldiers in hunting down terrorists
when prominent Americans like John Kerry, Richard Durbin, Barack Obama, Edward Kennedy, John Murtha and Michael Moore tell them that those soldiers are as cold and as brutal as the terrorists destroying their families, and America’s most publicized civilian activist, Cindy Sheehan, is telling them that the man
leading those soldiers, George W. Bush, is the world’s biggest terrorist?

Is Mormonism our Sunni against our other Shia versions of the same religion? No, not now. There was a time when Mormons were literally hunted and killed. There was a time when Mormons hunted and killed other humans they disagreed with on religious and cultural issues. Isn't the fact that we, as a people, have evolved beyond to this newer sense of safety, an important fact when judging the differences of the people of Iraq, especially in view of the tragic history they have endured under Hussein and the current events of professional religious murderers in their midst?

I have known and worked with Mormons and I will admit their world view and their view of history seems a bit off to me, but then so do those of some other groups including some groups I would be considered a member of.

I believe Mormonism has made a positive effect on Romney. Reid? Who knows. I do know Reid is not to be trusted.

And so do the Iraqi people.

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The Priest And The Ponies

The Races

Mitch, a hard-shell Southern Baptist, loved to sneak away to the race track. One day he was there betting on the ponies and nearly losing his shirt when he noticed this priest who stepped out onto the track and blessed the forehead of one of the horses lining up for the 4th race.

Lo and behold, this horse - a very long shot - won the race. Mitch was most interested to see what the priest did the next race. Sure enough, he watched the priest step out onto the track as the 5th race horses lined up, and placed this blessing on the forehead of one of the horses. Mitch made a beeline for the window and placed a small bet on the horse. Again, even though another long shot, the horse the priest had blessed won the race. Mitch collected his winning and anxiously waited to see which horse the priest bestowed his blessing on for the 6th race.

The priest showed, blessed a horse, Mitch bet on it, and it won! Mitch was elated! As the day went on, the priest continued blessing one of the horses, and it always came in first. Mitch began to pull in some serious money, and by the last race, he knew his wildest dreams were going to come true. He made a quick stop at the ATM, withdrew big money and awaited the priest's blessing that would tell him which horse to bet on.

True to his pattern, the priest stepped out onto the track before the last race and blessed the forehead, eyes, ears and hooves of one of the horses. Mitchell be every cent, and watched the horse come in dead last. Mitchell was dumbfounded. He made his way to the track and when he found the priest, he demanded, "What happened, Father? All day you blessed horses and they won. The last race, you blessed a horse and he lost. Now I've lost my savings, thanks to you!!"

The priest nodded wisely and said, "That's the problem with you Protestants... you can't tell the difference between a simple blessing and the last Rites."

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Taliban Love

From the Advice Goddess.

John Edwards Loves His SUVs - Hypocrite

Earlier I said this.

Then I saw this at Hedgehog Report. The SUVs in Johnny's runway driveway.

(click to enlarge)

Bias, Bad Reporting and Lies About Iraq

Karl at Protein Wisdom takes on the pundits and the MSM about the reporting of War on Terror and nails it big.

The Big Picture(s)

It is worth the read.

UPDATE: Dafydd at Big Lizards does equally well in a report on the 63,000 tree paper.

NYT: Analogies Are Meaningless (Unless They Favor the Left)

UPDATE: Sniper say the article is brilliant. I agree.

Interesting Fact

It takes about 63,000 trees to make the newsprint for the average Sunday edition of The New York Times.

What a waste. Except for the Sunday crossword puzzle.

Give Up My SUV?

I drive an old Jeep Cherokee. I've hauled kids, dogs, sand, gravel, lumber, drywall, have moved most of my friends and volunteered to deliver medicine during snow storms..

Edwards: Americans should sacrifice their SUVs

Shove it, Johnny boy.

I'll give mine up when you give up your jets and McMansions.

Oh, and your gas guzzling ego.

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HARBIN - 哈尔滨 - Харбин

Manchuria

This exquisite Russian Orthodox church, St. Nikolai, in the middle of Central Square, was built of wood without nails. It was destroyed by Red Guards in August 1966 during the Cultural Revolution.

HARBIN has surely one of the most extraordinary and varied histories of any city. It owes its existence principally to the Russian workers of the China Eastern Railway (see below), who built up the town at the turn of the 20th century. The second wave of Russians came in the 1920s when the city was flooded with some 100,000 White Russian refugees fleeing the Revolution, making it the largest Russian enclave outside Russia.

Harry Franck in his book Wandering in Northern China writes: "At Harbin, though still well inside China, the traveler finds himself back in Europe. He might easily believe he had crossed the line into Russia and brought up into one of its most typical cities. Streets, architecture, customs, inhabitants, are all on the Russian model."

In 1931 Japan seized Manchuria and set up a puppet government. In the mid-1930s many Russians fled Harbin for the Soviet Union (where most were arrested, of course, for espionage or counterrevolutionary activity; some 30,000 were shot) or for China, to cities including Shanghai, Tientsin, Peking and Tsingtao.

G.H. Thomas, writing in November 1936 says of the foreign community in Tsingtao:
"There are quite a few Germans and Norwegians, and altogether about three hundred foreigners, not counting the Russians. These are White Russians, refugees from the Revolution, and have a strange standing in China. They are people without a country, and their lot is a sad one. "

IN 1945, when the Soviets occupied Manchuria, many of the remaining Russians were sent to labor camps. Manchuria was not completely in Chinese hands until 1952. By the mid-1960s, there were virtually no Harbin Russians left.

Read more Here.

More from The St Petersburg Times

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Gay Conservatives Seeking Acceptance Through Sen. Larry Craig

Matt Drudge, who is called conservative, can't get enough of this or any other "gay" story.

BROKEBACK BATHROOM: SENATOR BUSTED IN AIRPORT SEX STING...

CRAIG'S LIST: TERROR IN THE TOILETS...

His Own Private Idaho...

Statement: I did nothing wrong and I regret the decision to plead guilty'...

Senate GOP Calls for Ethics Probe...

Romney Calls Craig's Actions 'Disgusting'...

*Cop Docs...

'How Did News Outlets Miss Arrest for Nearly Three Months?'

VIDEO: News Crew Reenacts Senator's Restroom Scenario...

'I AM NOT GAY'...

This behavior is unacceptable. It is unacceptable for all people including politicians. Democrats are all over this story with glee. Just look at FDL, Huffpo, etc., and you can read the glee filled hate overflowing.

Conservatives, and to a lesser degree Republicans, have noted it and moved on, except for homosexual conservatives and Republicans. To them this is an important subject to be given the gravity it deserves. They question why conservatives are the subject of these headlines when democrats are not. They question (insert point here). They insist (insert brilliant political statement here). Why?

In many instances they do so because they want to mainstream their own homosexual behavior. Make it normal by making it appear to be happening everywhere by everybody. Even by conservatives.

Sounds like self serving behavior by homosexuals using conservatism as their vehicle.

That is also unacceptable.

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