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June 7, 2010
I don’t know what is happening in other parts of the world, but in Britain there is a dispute between the news aggregators, such as NewsNow, and the so-called Fleet Street newspapers (the nationals) because the national dailies wish to prevent the news aggregators linking to their free content without paying for the privilege.
The least one can say of this initiative is that it is peevish and curmudgeonly and, up until now, you might even have described it as stupid.
But not any more.
It is suicidal.
Not only can Digg and StumbleUpon waltz around these restrictions, as can Facebook and Twitter, but a new form of open citizens’ journalism is emerging. Continue reading Newspapers die, journalism rises
May 14, 2010
Posted by seamus in: Accountability, Advice, Attitude, Business, Cap and Trade, Commentary, Communications, Congress, Creative Writing, Current Events, Democrat, Economics, Entertainment, Finance, Freedom, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Homeland Security, Humor, Journalism, Life Experiences, Lifestyle, Literature, Minorities, Morality, Motivation, Opinion, Personal Experiences, Politics, Recovery, Republican, Satire, Self-Help, Social Aspects, Social Issues, Sociology, Terrorism, The Economy, The Media, The Pundit's Corner, Women's Rights, Working Women, World Issues
 Pick Your Reason 10. I voted Democrat because I believe oil companies’ profits of 4% on a gallon of gas are obscene but the government taxing the same gallon of gas at 15% isn’t.
9. I voted Democrat because I believe the government will do a better job of spending the [...]
May 6, 2010
Posted by Antonio de la Vega in: Democracy, Economic Crisis, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Freedom, Geopolitical Events, Governance, History, Latino & Hispanic, Mexico, Morality, Native American, Opinion, Politics, Social Aspects, Social Issues, Sociology, Uncategorized, World Issues
La ley SB1070 además de polémica debe encerrar otras razones de fondo, para llevar a la reflexión sobre los temas relacionados con el movimiento de personas en el mundo. [...]
April 29, 2010
Posted by Tim Roux in: Business, Economics, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Geopolitical Events, Governance, History, Homeland Security, Military, Morality, Politics, Terrorism, The Economy, World Issues
War and money have always been inter-related.
After all, you need money to fight a war – it has been argued that all world empires have collapsed ultimately economically because they had to protect too much territory with too little money – and conquest often brings in money. In the past, wars have often been fought to seize resources and enrich the conqueror – ask any passing European colonialist – and a short war generally proves a great stimulus to the economy too.
In feudal times, the king mostly fought wars to keep his otherwise revolting and over-mighty robber barons exhausted but happy. According to feudal law, the barons had to raise the army, but they then got to go on a glorified fox hunt in foreign lands and to return with goodies and rights to land far more valuable than both ears and the tail.
When the feudal system collapsed in the face of the rise of mercantilism in the sixteenth century, the king had to go to Parliament to raise taxes to fund his army, but he still managed to keep his greatest adventurers adventuring on someone else’s doorstep and bringing back the loot.
Not that the formula was infallible. Charles I of England seemingly got it wrong when he declared an unpopular war on Scotland and then tried to raise Ship Money to pay for it. He made the even bigger mistake of stockpiling all these expensively purchased armaments in Hull which subsequently declared for the rebel parliamentarians. However, as the Marxist historian Christopher Hill pointed out, the truth may have been a little different from the way it has been traditionally painted. Continue reading Haliburton – a touch of the medievals?
February 24, 2010
Despite shrinking ice sheets, melting glaciers and Island nations disappearing under water, many sensible people still find climate change totally unbelievable. We’re not talking about some incomprehensible 3000 page theory here, we’re talking the disappearance of the North polar ice pack. You know, where Santa lives? Continue reading Climate change – Nah!
January 6, 2010
China and US have taken the lead in saving earth away from the UN and fellow travelers that were bungling the job. [...]
October 24, 2009
Mr. Obama inherited a domestic and global mess the likes of which have not been seen by any of his predecessors. As he tries to sort it all out, he must remember that he was elected as the voters chanted ‘Change’ at every polling booth. ‘Business as usual’ will not be acceptable to them, regardless of how much a spineless Congress wants to maintain the status quo and please their wealthy campaign contributors. [...]
October 16, 2009
Posted by Lloyd Lofthouse in: Commentary, Comments & Discussion, Current Events, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Freedom, Geopolitical Events, Heroes, History, Homeland Security, Islam, Military, Morality, Opinion, Religion, Terrorism, The Pundit's Corner
War
During America’s brutal and bloody Civil War, General William T. Sherman said, “War is cruel and you cannot refine it” and “war at best is barbarism.” Sherman is also credited with saying “War is hell.”
Alexander the Great was known to be both a wise philosopher and a fearless conqueror. In the fall of 335 BC, Alexander marched to the gates of Thebes (a Greek city that broke free from his Macedonian empire when Alexander was twenty). He let the people of Thebes know that it was not too late for them to change their minds. The next day, the Macedonians stormed the city killing almost everyone in sight, women and children included. They plundered, sacked, burned and razed Thebes, as an example to the rest of Greece. Alexander did not fight a “refined” war where women and children were spared.
After Alexander conquered the Persian Empire, he ran into trouble in Afghanistan and used the same tactics to quell the rebellious Afghans.
Genghis Khan (1165-1227 AD) was one of history’s more charismatic and dynamic leaders. During his lifetime, he conquered more territory than any other conqueror, and his successors established the largest empire in history. As an organizational and strategic genius, Genghis Khan created one of the most highly disciplined and effective armies known, and this same genius gave birth to the administration that ruled that empire. After he died in 1227, the Mongol armies dominated the battlefield until the empire stretched from the Pacific Ocean to the Adriatic Sea. Genghis Khan, like Alexander, spared no one when he met resistance. When people surrendered, he was benevolent. When they resisted, his armies slaughtered everyone like Alexander’s armies did. Continue reading War
October 9, 2009
 Well, well, well. I can certainly imagine why so many media pundits and regular Americans are surprised that their president won the Nobel peace prize. They don’t watch the world news much, and our own American media doesn’t give much thought to events that happen to the rest of the Earth’s 6 billions.
Many of us hardly noticed the chain of events that led up to this well deserved honor. People in Europe are not surprised, people in the middle east aren’t either, I don’t suppose even China’s billion are surprised. That’s because he deserved it. It’s as simple as that. Barrack Obama made a campaign promise “to change the face of America” the one the rest of the world sees, and he has.
Instead of the big bully and policeman of the planet, we have suddenly gained the pleasant light of being a kinder friendlier country. How much better is that for some european who wakes up every morning to news of yet another American demand or exercise of power? Many people in the world of almost 7 billion wonder why a single country of 300 million feel they rule the planet. Continue reading Bravo! Mr. President!
October 1, 2009
Ken Burns newest film is amazing. The parks are amazing. We watch and watch and I have been at it eight .jpg) hours now after four episodes. At times it is like a marathon with the people and parks running by you in a mind stream of sequences of people and events that you struggle to keep straight as the Juggernaut of Burnsian vignettes hits you. Still…you want more.
It is that these people are no longer with us and they are just like us. The couple who tried to go to every park in five different Buick’s and took pictures and kept them in albums is heartbreaking to know that the husband died and she kept going and found herself at the end alone in the vast wilderness she knows she will never see again. Or the couple who went down the Colorado on their honeymoon and disappeared forever. Or the man who went to the Smokies after losing his family and found himself and then began to campaign to turn the area into a national park. Continue reading America’s Best Idea is Us–Ken Burns Film
September 23, 2009
Posted by Muhammad Cohen in: Current Events, Environment, Environmental Issues, Faith, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Geopolitical Events, Global Warming, Islam, Opinion, The Economy, The Pundit's Corner
The spirit of this holy season for Muslims and Jews, rather than the angry rhetoric of religious zealots on both sides, could help bring peace to the Middle East. [...]
September 16, 2009
In 2003, when President Bush took the U.S. into a war with Iraq, he claimed it was “to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, to end Saddam Hussein’s support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people.” Well, obviously there were no WMDs. It’s questionable how “free” the Iraqi people are today, let alone whether or not we Americans have the right to determine what “freedom” should mean to citizens of another nation. However, it’s clear that terrorism is alive and well, regardless of who may be supporting it.
According to the United States Law Code, the term terrorism means “premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents”. By that definition, what the U.S., Britain, et al., did in Iraq was war. Now, of course, the American public knows that war really WAS about oil, not to mention some family vendetta against Saddam Hussein. Now that the Iraq hoax has been exposed, President Obama is shifting our focus from Iraq to Afghanistan, where the “real” jihad-minded, terrorism-inflicting, Muslim fanatics live (and hopefully will soon die).
How many lives, how many trillions of dollars must our country sacrifice for wars against entire countries, when we fully realize that the billions of average Muslims are no more teeth-gnashing fanatics than the garden variety Christian? There are some pretty fanatical Christian groups right here at home, you know. Continue reading Using terrorism against terrorists
September 15, 2009
Posted by psuedowriter in: Accountability, Current Events, Democracy, Economic Crisis, Economics, Education, Environmental Issues, Family, Finance, Geopolitical Events, Latino & Hispanic, Opinion, Recovery, Social Aspects, The Economy
In the greater scheme of global brotherhood and advancement, all of the aims of these “special schools” are wonderful things. In the meanwhile, the taxpayers of today are suffering, and I don’t think most of us like it. [...]
September 11, 2009
During the 19th century and (in some cases) for a few centuries before, the Great Powers (as they were known then) raped Africa – seized the land, seized the mineral wealth, seized the people, and had a fair go with any women left standing as well.
Can we agree on that?
No? It was all subject to the Law of Contract?
Well, my history book tells me that the Law of Contract came with gunboats, administrators and hangings attached. What does yours say? I think we can call that ‘force majeure’.
Let bygones by bygones?
Yeah, well I tried that with Amex last week. “Mr. Hewtson le Roux, you have borrowed £6,000 from us and we want it back with 23% APR interest now!”
“That’s all history,” I declared. “You cannot delve into the past forever.” Continue reading Reparations – let’s buy shares in Africa
September 8, 2009
Posted by Prentiss Gray in: Accountability, Attitude, Congress, Current Events, Democracy, Democrat, Economics, Geopolitical Events, Politics, Republican, Women's Rights
 That’s it. I’m done. This once staunch Republican, is out of the party. Frankly, I’m just too embarrassed to stay associated with what has swiftly become a party of low life, low brow, say anything to get votes, jerks.
We lost the election. Aren’t we supposed to be at our noblest in loss? Aren’t we supposed to be good losers? I liked John McCain, I really did. In fact, I still do. But even I ended up voting for Barach Obama. Sorry, my fellow Republicans, just too many nuts came to the party.
I just can’t count myself with Jerry Falwell, Russ Limbaugh and Ann Coulter (even her name gives me the creeps). I don’t think marriage is about “a man and a woman”, it’s about love and commitment. I just don’t think a woman’s right to choose has anything to do with church doctrine, further, I can’t think of anything that does. Religeon can be a nice, and a possibly uplifting practice/belief, but when it starts telling other people how to live their lives, count me out. It definitely doesn’t go with politics.
It used to be such a nice party, Republicans won elections because they knew how to work together; be a team. The Democrats were always the “all-other” party, and spent so much time fighting over 10,000 individual agendas, I was always amazed to see them win any office.
We had some great Presidents, great Congressmen and great Governors. It was not an embarrassing thing to be a Republican. Continue reading The Embarrassed Republican.
September 7, 2009
Posted by Muhammad Cohen in: China, Current Events, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Geopolitical Events, Islam, Journalism, Minorities, Opinion, Politics, Television, Terrorism, The Media, The Pundit's Corner
China allows international reporting on Uighur unrest because it suits China’s interests. [...]
August 24, 2009
Blame Scotland and Great Britain for freeing the Lockerbie bomber. [...]
August 17, 2009
Posted by seamus in: Accountability, Attitude, Congress, Current Events, Democracy, Economics, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Homeland Security, Military, Morality, Opinion, Social Aspects, Social Classes, Social Issues, The Writer's Corner
With double navy crosses, a distinguished flying cross, a bronze star and three purple hearts, I was singled out by a long haired professor my first week back in college as a baby killer. Welcome home, right? [...]
July 12, 2009
Posted by Lloyd Lofthouse in: China, Congress, Current Events, Democracy, Economics, Environment, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Freedom, Geopolitical Events, Military, Morality, Motivation, Politics, Republican, Social Issues, Uncategorized
Is China a danger to the world? This is a topic I have wanted to write about for some time. I suspect my motivation for writing this comes from being sent to Vietnam [...]
July 3, 2009
Posted by Antonio de la Vega in: Attitude, Congress, Democracy, Freedom, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Latino & Hispanic, Legal, Mexico, Politics, Social Aspects, Social Issues, Sociology
¿Será el voto nulo como el futuro termidor (cuya etimología alude al hecho de dar calor) de la democracia mexicana? Así definen algunos al fenómeno, en franca y preocupada alusión al undécimo mes del calendario republicano francés, que empezaba el 19 de julio y terminaba el 17 de agosto, y durante el cual (“9 de termidor”) se suscitó el episodio del golpe de Estado con que la Revolución Francesa dio fin al Terror e instauró en su lugar la reacción de la Convención (27 de julio de 1794). [...]
July 3, 2009
Posted by Alan Caruba in: Accountability, Cap and Trade, Current Events, Democrat, Economic Crisis, Energy, Environment, Foreign Affairs, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Opinion, Politics
By Alan Caruba
It’s taken barely half a year to make George W. Bush look good to a lot of Americans who experienced “Bush Derangement Syndrome” or, like myself, were critical of several of his policies while President.
I imagine Bush watching the evening news these days and just laughing as he watches Obama just “step in it” every time he encounters the same or some new problem with which Bush dealt.
On the issue of taxes, Bush was a dedicated tax-cutter. On the issue of spending, Bush never saw a spending bill he couldn’t sign until deep into his second term. He even advocated a prescription add-on to Medicare, raising its costs and hastening its bankruptcy.
And, of course, there’s the Iraq War which followed his payback for 9/11 during which he chased al Qaeda and the Taliban out of Afghanistan. The Iraq War began in 2003 and lasted six years to the point where we are drawing down forces or at least moving them out of the major cities to see if the Iraqis themselves can provide security.
A lot of the problems with the conduct of the Iraq War can be traced to Donald Rumsfeld, the former Secretary of Defense who just flat-out got it wrong too many times. On paper Rumsfeld had terrific credentials, but either he was terribly advised by his generals or he didn’t pay them proper attention or both. Wars cannot be fought “on the cheap” or won with too few troops. Continue reading Making Bush Look Good
May 16, 2009
Posted by Alan Caruba in: Accountability, Current Events, Democrat, Foreign Affairs, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Homeland Security, Latino & Hispanic, Mexico, Opinion, Politics, The Pundit's Corner
 By Alan Caruba
Among the latest news out of Mexico was the discovery of four U.S. citizens found in a van, strangled, beaten and stabbed in the border city of Tijuana. The victims, ages 19 to 21, were two men and two women from San Diego and Chula Vista areas.
In 2008, 6,292 Mexicans were killed in the drug wars between the drug cartels. In the first eight weeks of 2009, there were already a thousand casualties, some of them beheaded. By way of comparison, in six years of war in Iraq, this exceeds U.S. losses by more than three thousand.
In mid-March, however, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, third in the line of succession to lead the nation, told a crowd of legal and illegal Hispanics that enforcement of federal or even local laws regarding immigration is “un-American.” She called the illegal aliens in the audience, “very, very patriotic.”
No, Madame Speaker, the patriotic, indeed the constitutionally responsible thing to do is to enforce the laws of the nation. You even took an oath of office to do so.
It is an open secret in Washington, D.C., that Obama and his fellow Democrat travelers in Congress want to push through an amnesty in order to increase the number of voters likely to support Democrats in coming elections. Congress has a short memory and no doubt has conveniently forgotten the firestorm of protest that erupted when the Bush administration attempted the same thing. Continue reading The War on Our Southern Border
May 15, 2009
 By Alan Caruba
The systemic rot within the Democrat Party is obvious to anyone other than the 13 million people on Obama’s campaign email list. They are presumably still entranced by the aura of “change and hope” put forth in billowing pink cotton candy clouds by the White House.
The rotting of the political system did not begin with Obama’s election and, so far as the Democrats are concerned, it goes back to the days of the Great Depression and the damage inflicted on the economy by the FDR administration.
We got a more recent look at it during the Lewinski scandal of the Clinton years, but now it has burst upon the political scene again as it is obvious to everyone that the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, has been lying about her knowledge and acceptance of “enhanced interrogations.” Calls from any House Democrat that she should step down or be removed are muted or non-existent.
Her other political shenanigans to increase her husband’s wealth by exempting one of his major investments from regulations imposed on others is yet another example. The demands, too, for a virtual fleet of airplanes to ferry her and others back and forth is obscene. Continue reading Systemic Democrat Rot
May 14, 2009
 By Alan Caruba At first I thought it was just my imagination, but three prime time press conferences in three months, several overseas events, and the seemingly daily announcement that new billions would be spent on stimulus packages, bailouts and new programs has become a dizzying onslaught.
The Obama administration is, in so many ways, the culmination of efforts dating back to the middle of the last century to render Americans so docile, so illiterate, so prepared to blame themselves, that a really big push is on to ram through programs that would be the fulfillment of liberal dreams for decades.
The emergence of “Tea Parties” and other expressions of widespread protest must have taken Obama and the intellectual dunces around him by surprise. The opposition to gay marriage, the continued resistance to abortion-on-demand, and other social issues suggest that Americans are not as dumbed-down as liberals had hoped. They especially pay attention when told their taxes will rise and more taxes will be imposed on everything they purchase.
As the cost of a First Class postage stamp becomes forty-two cents and the cost of a pack of cigarettes apparently will be the equivalent of a porterhouse steak, life in Obama’s America is going to become prohibitively expensive. Consumers are already beginning to hold back on purchases of all kinds. If Obama’s secret agenda is to crash the economy, he’s succeeding.
Continue reading What’s the Rush, Obama?
May 11, 2009
by David Leonhardt
What is the most important feature of a political speech?
- Ideas?
- Vision?
- Alliteration?
- Emotion?
- Leadership?
- Credibility?
No. No. No. No. No. No. Authenticity is the key on which all of the above rest. Our speechwriters capture the essence of who you are. This is the one key ingredient that makes a political campaign successful – an ingredient most candidates overlook. Consider these two examples:  George Bush became President of the USA despite sounding hokey, despite malapropisms, despite the mockery of the media elite. Why did so many people vote for a man that, even to this day, faces scorn and derrision in the media? Why did they vote for him twice? Because his hokey style was authentic. People felt they could trust him, that he was revealing himself to them. He was not pretending to be someone he was not.  Barak Obama was not supposed to succeed George Bush as President Continue reading Political Speechwriters Must Leverage Authenticity
May 10, 2009
 By Alan Caruba
There are few nations on Earth other than Israel with a greater claim to exist as a homeland for a specific people. Along with China and India, Israel reaches back thousands of years, predating both Christianity and Islam.
For some 3,500 years, Jews have lived in Israel. In good times and bad, Jews have always identified themselves with Israel even when, as a Diaspora, they spread for their survival to many other nations. The re-establishment of Israel on May 14, 1948 led to two immediate events. Within eleven minutes after the announcement, President Harry S. Truman recognized the new nation. Within hours, the Arab League declared war.
With only six hundred thousand Jewish residents at the time, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq joined together to destroy Israel. They failed. They tried again in 1967. They failed. They tried in 1973, attacking on one of the holiest days in the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur. They failed. Continue reading Israel in the Crosshairs
May 8, 2009
Want Another Bigot on the Court? You Got It.
by John Armor
Sometimes even when you attend an event, and take part in it, it still takes time to understand it. I had the honor to speak at the Knoxville Tea Party, as Ben Franklin, a printer from Philadelphia. The visible, massive driving force for that and all 750+ Tea Parties with 1+ million people in attendance was taxes. But the real issue was larger and deeper than taxes.
When the mainstream media attempt to deal seriously with this phenomenon, they phrase it as “conservative” as opposed to “liberal.” Sometimes it’s no such thing. The Tea Parties are related to the present issue of the “rebranding” of the Republican Party.
Long ago, when ice covered the Earth and the last dinosaurs were staggering to their deaths, I was in advertising. “Rebranding” meant putting a new name and a new slogan on an old product that the people demonstrably did not want. That change was intended to market the goods despite endemic defects. Continue reading Want Another Bigot on the Court? You Got It
May 8, 2009
Posted by Alan Caruba in: Accountability, Current Events, Economic Crisis, Environmental Issues, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Homeland Security, Opinion, Politics, The Pundit's Corner
 By Alan Caruba Whenever I am feeling a bit despondent and need to shake off the mood, I remind myself that I did not vote for Barack Hussein Obama.
The other day, feeling buyer’s remorse, I returned an item I had purchased and requested credit. It looked so good in the catalog, but turned out to be a bad idea. While those who voted for Obama are said to still regard him quite fondly, one suspects large numbers of them are experiencing the same feeling. I, however, did not vote for Barack Hussein Obama.
I did not vote for the feckless lad who sent Air Force One to buzz New York City, accompanied by a fighter jet, neglectful of the panic that would ensue among people who had a sudden frightening flashback to 9/11.
I did not vote for the man whose choices for his cabinet and advisors included tax cheats and others who have been an on-going succession of embarrassments. His science advisor went on record suggesting we shoot stuff into the atmosphere to stop global warming. His Environmental Advisor and EPA Director want to regulate carbon dioxide as “a pollutant” and threat to health. (We each exhale about six pounds of CO2 every day.)
Continue reading I Did Not Vote for Barack Obama
May 3, 2009
Pakistan Implodes
By Alan Caruba
 The wars going on in the Middle East will soon be the entire world’s next war as the fanatic Islamists throughout the region threaten to take over Pakistan and Afghanistan while continuing to wage war in Iraq. If they’re successful, India will be dragged into the full scale battle against the Taliban and al Qaeda. Where it spreads from there is anyone’s guess.
It is a battle between the seventh century of Islam and the twenty-first century of the rest of the world. It is a battle between men who believe that Allah demands it and they are prepared to spend as much time as necessary to achieve victory.
It is a battle in which the United States has been an unwilling participant for a very long time. The jihadists drew blood in Beirut, Lebanon during the Reagan years in the 80s and again when they blew up two U.S. embassies in Africa during the Clinton years. Tellingly, it included an abortive effort to destroy the Twin Towers in 1993. Continue reading Pakistan Implodes
April 30, 2009
Events Will Decide Obama Presidency
by Alan Caruba
 A former British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, was once asked what he feared most and his answer was, “Events.”
Leadership is tested by things that happen over which neither a Prime Minister, President, nor any other national leader has any control. Bush43, as are all Presidents, was warned daily of potential threats, but until 9/11 Bush was into a relatively standard first term feeling his way with Congress on a few legislative initiatives.
History will record that Bush43 was up to the moment. People forget that, not only had he attended and received degrees from both Yale and Harvard, but had served in the Texas Air National Guard and qualified as a fighter pilot. This is no small feat. Moreover, he had experience in the business sector before becoming Governor of Texas. So, when 9/11 occurred, he had a lot of experience, knowledge, and resources to draw upon, including a father who had been President! Continue reading Events Will Decide Obama Presidency
April 30, 2009
The “L” Word
by Alan Caruba
 It’s a very curious phenomenon, but I have been aware of it for quite a while. It is when a liberal insists that they are actually a conservative.
I have any number of friends and relatives who are pro-choice, pro-gay marriage, favor amnesty for illegal aliens and opening the borders to more immigration. They tend to think President Obama walks on water and they often vehemently insist that they are conservatives.
I can remember when the very word “liberal” was turned into a label that people wanted to shun. It became the “L” word and, soon enough, we had no liberals among us, but lots of “progressives.”
The Republican Party is said to be in shambles, unable to elect a candidate even to a safe seat in New York State, but contrast that with folks in Minnesota who have elected a former comedian and failed liberal radio host, Al Franken, to be a United States Senator. Barring a court reversal, we shall all be saying “Senator Franken” as if this worst of all jokes makes any sense. Continue reading The “L” Word
April 28, 2009
I am sure people who went through Pearl Harbor were never the same. Those searing images of fighters diving on battleship row were never forgotten. Years after the war vets still cower when  they hear firecrackers. Civilians look to the sky when 747′s arc over their cities and fight an impulse to run. The images of people in the street in New York, some running, some screaming, tell us that our jittery 9/11 nerves are still with us.
It has been almost ten years, but that is a pittance for those who went through those searing hours. New Yorkers will truly never be the same. It is not the same in Chicago. I look up to the sky and see a jet and I don’t run. The level of fear is just not there. But if I had seen the Sears Tower fall after multiple strikes by airliners then I would certainly run for my life. It is our survival mechanism. If we see danger once then we are forever sensitive to those forces again. Continue reading Our Jittery 9/11 Nerves
April 27, 2009
Posted by Bill Hazelgrove in: Current Events, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Health & Fitness, Healthcare, Lifestyle, Social Classes, Social Issues, Sociology, The Pundit's Corner, Uncategorized
1918. That is the real fear. The Spanish Flu that killed fifty million people. It got to the point that the Surgeon  General of the United States saw a scenario where government would cease to function because people would not leave their homes and literally the bodies would overwhelm the cities. What happened was that the flu died out on it’s own through a Darwinian course of natural selection. In short, it killed everyone it could and the remaining people had immunity and so it died out from lack of human transmission.
Now let’s take the Swine Flu that is a combination Swine, human, and Avian Bird flu. The flu has jumped from swine to people and adapted itself to jump from one person to another. The difference between this flu and the Spanish Flu of 1918 is this one seems to have a wide range of infection. Some people get it and it is very mild. Others get it and become very ill. But it does seem to have the pandemic quality of moving very fast through the population. The drug companies can create a vaccine, although they say it is probably months off. Continue reading The Swine Stops Here–How About We Fast Track That Vaccine Now?
April 24, 2009
Posted by James BlueWolf in: Accountability, Attitude, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Homeland Security, Native American, Politics, Religion, Social Issues, Sociology, Uncategorized
A recent local newspaper reader’s opinion that the contemplation of prosecuting torturers and their superiors for utilizing the fanciful scribbling of a few morally bankrupt lawyers to justify their outrages is a fools errand demonstrates how far down the path toward psychopathic one segment of the American population has traveled. In an examination of the historical record we find this point of view re-occurring time and time again throughout the American experiment always with a record book asterisk that it represents an unacceptable premise and that the American Dream is above that type of behavior—even in wartime. To be fair, the American government has prosecuted—on occasion—its soldiers for war crimes and has certainly encouraged or participated in the prosecution of foreign nationals for war crimes against American military or civilian personnel. Continue reading Prosecuting Our Own Inquisition
April 22, 2009
“Welcome to The Factor. You are now in the No Torture Zone. I’m Bill O’Reilly. We have a decorated Captain from the Army today on the show who is going to discuss the issue of supposed torture by the United States”
“Captain….what is your view of torture. I mean what we have is some guys who got water thrown in their face and these left wing namby pambys are calling it torture.”
“You are referring to water boarding, Bill. That is torture.”
“C’mon Captain….a little water in the face. So the guy gets a little wet. It’s like he got dunked at the pool. Isn’t that worth some guy being a little uncomfortable to get some actionable intelligence that saves lives?” Continue reading The Factor–You are in the No Torture Zone
April 2, 2009
Author’s Note: Much of the information here was researched and organized by other authors, particularly Bruce Johansen. I am presenting it as an educational tool and not as an entirely original essay. J BlueWolf
Benjamin Franklin And Native Values
Colonial interest in Six Nation treaty accounts was high enough by 1736 for a Philadelphia printer, Benjamin Franklin, to begin publication and distribution of them. The tone of the treaty councils was that of a peer relationship. During the next twenty-six years, Franklin’s press produced thirteen treaty accounts. By the early 1750s, Franklin was not only printing treaties, but representing Pennsylvania as an Indian commissioner as well. It was his first diplomatic assignment. Franklin’s attention to Indian affairs grew in tandem with his advocacy of a federal union of the colonies, an idea that was advanced by Canassatego and other Iroquois chiefs in treaty accounts published by Franklin’s press as early as 1744. Franklin’s writings indicate that as he became more deeply involved with the Iroquois and other Indian peoples, he picked up ideas from them concerning not only federalism, but concepts of natural rights, the nature of society and man’s place in it, the role of property in society, and other intellectual constructs that would be called into service by Franklin as he and other American revolutionaries shaped an official ideology for the new United States.
In 1775, Franklin wrote: “Having few artificial Wants, they [Indians] have abundance of Leisure for Improvement by Conversation. Our laborious Manner of Life, compared with theirs, they esteem slavish and base; and the Learning, on which we value ourselves, they regard as frivolous and useless. Having frequent Occasion to hold public Councils, they have acquired great Order and Decency in conducting them… The women …are the Records of the Council…who take exact notice of what passes and imprint it in their
Memories, to communicate it to their Children.” “They preserve traditions of Stipulations in Treaties 100 Years back; which, when we compare with our writings, we always find exact.” Continue reading The Conception Of American Democracy Pt One
April 2, 2009
So we were sitting there at dinner when on comes a revolution. The young Englishmen were in the streets in London getting bashed by the Bobbies. Blood streaming down foreheads and shouting young men being pulled back into the crowd put me back to when I was kid watching the college demonstrations for that Indochina war that never quite worked out. The footage stopped dinner and everyone stared in silence while the British Police in riot gear tried to get the young Englishmen to behave like well young Englishmen. But they wanted to behave like the Young Americans from forty years before. Continue reading Mad Dogs and Englishmen–The Demonstrations at G20
March 31, 2009
The use of force has been the main tool of domestic and foreign policy since the arrival of the Caucasian race upon these shores. It is rooted in Roman tradition and is, in fact, the primary building block of the concept of law in western society.
Rather than depending on a cohesive social relationship to guide behavior, Nations that engage in empire building must rely on the threat of force to coerce their peoples to abide by even the most basic moral and social principles. Peoples of different cultures and value systems are hard pressed to be cooperative and share common beliefs and goals without the threat of force to guide their actions. Historically, as evidenced by the writings of the Founding Fathers, depending on our citizens to make thoughtful and reasonable decisions has always been viewed as naive and dangerous. Continue reading The Use Of Force
March 31, 2009
LONDON ORBITAL is more than just a book. It examines a world concept. Circumferential roads expedite traffic flow around cities while cutting inner clog, a worldwide effort beyond London’s M25—other cities, other orbitals: Paris’ Péripherique, Washington’s Beltway. Many others exist.
London’s M25 is a 125-mile monster, reputedly the world’s busiest highway, traveled yearly by millions. Iain Sinclair circumambulated it over months, with friends, in seven distinct bites. It transforms not just the immense geography and culture of Greater London, as complex and diverse as Los Angeles or Calcutta of equivalent populations, but the inner and outer landscapes and attitudes of residents and visitors, wherever they live and however they travel. It’s virtually inescapable. Continue reading A week of book reviews, #2: LONDON ORBITAL, by Iain Sinclair
March 24, 2009
Enough populist rage. Let’s cut to the chase here. Middle class people are practical and sensible so lets look at it that way. If you have a bleeding dog and take him to the vet and he says well I can help him but it will cost you a ten thousand bucks and I don’t know if he will live or not anyway, but you don’t have a choice, you must save him. You then look over at the dog pound and think, but if I get a new dog then that will only cost me five hundred. You look back at your bleeding dog. He has had a long life and it is his time. You must do this, the vet says, or the dog will die! You look at the dogs in the pound. They are eager, frisky and just want a place to run. So you have a choice. Shovel money after your old dog or let a new dog have his day. But you do what the vet tells you and pay the ten thousand. Continue reading The Bleeding Dogs and the Masters of the Universe
March 22, 2009
Posted by Antonio de la Vega in: African-American, Geopolitical Events, Humor, Journalism, Latino & Hispanic, Native American, Politics, Social Aspects, Social Classes, Sports, Uncategorized, Women's Rights
Prudencia, timidez, lentitud pueden ser los motores que impulsen a “Hablar sin interrupción”. Durante la próxima visita del presidente Obama a México, espero que estas tres “virtudes” sostengan al diálogo y proyecten no ya nada más dos países o dos gobiernos, sino dos grupos humanos… [...]
March 18, 2009
This essay adds to my previous discussion of leadership and government while addressing an issue that could be described as dated but still alive & kicking in Indin Country. We begin just after the Native “occupation” of Alcatraz ended and the Red Power Movement continued in full swing, circa 1970-72.
After Alcatraz, the buzz of the “Movement” polarized communities. The labels Traditional and Progressive were coined. To understand what these two terms represent we need to understand, in a general way, the processes of original tribal leadership and government.
Traditional leadership was often based on service and the inherent qualities, talents, and character of those who most effectively provided that service. So the best hunters were often followed or depended on to lead the hunt. The most daring and resourceful warriors were given the opportunity, by the power of their ability, to lead during battle. The most visionary and spiritually oriented people were expected to oversee the spiritual welfare and ceremonial life of the Peoples. The most proven and effective healers were expected to provide their Power and skills to care for the sick and injured. Native abilities, talents, and superior character rewarded and encouraged.
Continue reading Traditional Vs Progressive
March 11, 2009
Posted by James BlueWolf in: Business, Business Management, Current Events, Economic Crisis, Economics, Education, Family, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Politics, Social Issues, The Economy, Uncategorized
Much of this article was written prior to the current fiscal crisis–today there are extended unemployment benefits that did not exist before for some people, however the bulk of the article–partially completed- still applies to our current needs in workforce development.
Many California citizens are currently struggling, or working, without a safety net of support after having lost, or being in danger of losing, their employment. A significant number are in danger of falling, or have already fallen, into an abyss where lack of support entities and services, re-training or vocational education programs, and lackadaisical business development planning are causing them to lose their homes and livelihood without the resources to relocate to areas that offer a greater opportunity for financial stability and basic life support.
Here are a series of anecdotal cases to frame the discussion. Continue reading Employment Issues
March 3, 2009
Posted by John Joss in: Biography & Memoir, Communications, Creative Writing, Current Events, Freelance Author, Geopolitical Events, Journalism, Literature, Non-Fiction, Social Issues, The Writer's Corner, Writing Essentials
Airplane as metaphor: torture chamber. Flights beyond five-six hours numb the mind, heart and backside. The trip from San Francisco to Delhi, pausing in Frankfurt briefly to change planes at local midday, one night into the mission, seems endless. Over Eastern Europe and Asia in daylight, barren territory slips by seven miles below. Over [...]
February 23, 2009
Posted by seamus in: Accountability, Biography & Memoir, Creative Writing, Current Events, Entertainment, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Humor, Mental Health, Philosophical Genres, Social Aspects, Social Classes, Social Issues, The Writer's Corner, Uncategorized
It’s amazing that eventhough you llive in Paradise you have to leave every now and then because the rest of the world intrudes.
Having beaten the rat race, I now live in Central Florida. I would’ve moved further down but I don’t speak Spanish nor do I enjoy large amounts of crime. Weather is [...]
February 19, 2009
Posted by James BlueWolf in: Business, Economics, Education, Environmental Issues, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Inspiration & Motivation, Native American, Philosophical Genres, Politics, Social Aspects, Social Classes, Social Issues, Sociology, The Economy, Uncategorized
I do a lot of criticizing modern western civilization and its time that I began to write a little bit beyond the doom and gloom. Yes, I believe the civilization is headed for crisis beyond our present comprehension, and yes, I also believe that the suicidal adherents to nationalism will eventually cause the [...]
February 11, 2009
Posted by Bill Hazelgrove in: Economics, Entertainment, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Philosophical Genres, Politics, Social Classes, Social Issues, The Pundit's Corner, Uncategorized
Hates comes in many forms. It comes in men wearing suits on colorful shows with beautiful women. It comes in disembodied voices over the radio. Most of the time hate hides behind political philosophies, polemics on economics, and the character flaws of opponents. You can find hate very easily now on the upper cable [...]
February 10, 2009
Pundits urge that we know our present enemies while retaining our lifestyle as a basic right. They overlook the truth that we must also understand the differences between those ‘enemies’ and ourselves. Consider these cultural chasms, rooted in lives worldwide, particularly between the industrialized West (especially the U.S.) and its adherents, vs. the [...]
February 4, 2009
Posted by James BlueWolf in: Current Events, Economics, Education, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Native American, Philosophical Genres, Politics, Religion, Social Classes, Social Issues, Sociology, Spirituality, Uncategorized
Appearances And Assimilation
The majority of Europeans who came to our shores were folk predisposed to judging things at face value. Obsessed with image and appearance, and convinced absolutely of their moral, social, cultural, and spiritual superiority, they could not see beyond their perceptions of primitivism and savagery they [...]
February 4, 2009
New guy huh? Listen. I know what it is like to be the new man. I am constantly the new man at my jobs and I have had many. Now that you have your cubicle (Oval Office in your case) you can take a little time and get organized. Now you are going to [...]
February 3, 2009
Posted by John Joss in: Accountability, Business, Business Management, Communications, Current Events, Economics, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Journalism, Social Issues, The Writer's Corner, Writing Essentials
Watch the current posturing, in the U.S. by financial executives—bankers, brokers, hedge-fund operatives—who enriched themselves by (yes) trillions of dollars as the stock markets, hedge funds, M&A businesses and derivates markets soared beyond logic or reason, as they received multi-billion-dollar bonuses after (yes, after) they received government bailouts at taxpayer expense. It’s beyond sickening [...]
February 3, 2009
Posted by James BlueWolf in: Current Events, Economics, Education, Environmental Issues, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Governance, Native American, Philosophical Genres, Politics, Social Issues, Sociology, Spirituality, Uncategorized
In the summer of O8, after numerous years of discussion over Mascot issues and general problems between Native and non-Native communities locally, I wrote this article. Reading it now, it seems a little disjointed, but it is a way I can familiarize readers with my general philosophies so I don’t have to rely on [...]
January 28, 2009
An effort to compel Americans to take refresher courses in American history and government has never come to fruition but the more newspaper comments I read, the more I think it’s a good idea. Especially when I read comments about the outcry that might occur should the California State Supreme Court rule against [...]
January 27, 2009
Posted by James BlueWolf in: Communications, Education, General Topics, Geopolitical Events, Journalism, Native American, Philosophical Genres, Politics, Social Issues, Sociology, Spirituality, The Writer's Corner
I’d like to start my blogging with a few pieces to let you know who I am and why I think what I think. I have lived an unusual usual life. I have lived through periods when I literally did not know what year it was, what was popular on the radio [...]
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Hi, we're North Korean, conquer us!
We're here for the "guns for cheeseburgers" exchange!
North Korea – a call for help?
After finishing a piece the other day on the apparent torpedoing of the south Korean cruiser, I began to try to find an answer for my own question. Why would North Korea do that?
After just a little reading I discovered that South Korea is the North’s biggest trading partner, to the tune of almost one and a half billion dollars a year. I discovered that both Korea’s want to get back to being one country, although each on it’s own terms. I also did some research into this very secretive country’s current state.
It’s not great. After a decade of floods, droughts, failed farming practices and serious economic problems, they are doing better, but it’s still no garden spot. For the last 20 years the US, South Korea and China have been pouring in aid. Although the North Koreans stopped taking US aid in 2006, no doubt to teach us a good lesson, their other neighbors are still pouring it on.
Why is everyone doing that? Because even before they had the Bomb, they were refining nuclear material. North Korea has a strong industrial capacity and great mineral wealth. No one want either bombs or nuclear material up for sale, from a country that’s falling apart. You can’t talk or deal effectively with an unstable state. Continue reading Hi, we’re North Korean, conquer us!