It's Bobby Mugabe again!

Be happy, Mugabe tells the starving: Government begins huge TV and radio propaganda campaign

Zimbabwe's government has begun a huge propaganda campaign to cheer up the country with music, football and sex.

Woohoo!

Their production values are good, and some of the tunes so catchy that even opposition supporters have found themselves humming along. But accompanying one on screen with a traditional dance, the kongonya, has prompted protests from TV viewers appalled at the pelvic grinding of young women and children.

"Pornographic, sexually perverted, disgusting," some of them said.

Mr Mugabe has defended the advert and this week the state-owned Herald newspaper devoted two pages to explaining that the dance epitomised the fight against colonial domination.

"The sexually suggestive connotations of the waist wriggling and the fast rhythmic throwing upwards and downwards of buttocks is again a sign of defiance of the detractors of the land reform," the Herald explained.

Who knew?

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 5:50 PM -

 
Today's Hoot

Julian Sanchez at Reason - Undue Influence: Closing the First Amendment "Loophole"

The British philosopher Bertrand Russell once quipped that philosophy was the art of starting from premises too trivial for anyone to contest and arriving at conclusions too outlandish for anyone to accept. Had he lived to see the Supreme Court's recent ruling upholding core provisions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, he might have said something similar about jurisprudence—if not for the fact that so many people seem perfectly eager to accept the outlandish conclusions.
...
Of course, the ultimate loophole is the First Amendment itself. As long as "special interests"—that is to say, anyone with a particular issue they're specially concerned with—can broadcast their views to the public, the public may be inclined to vote in accordance with those views. And the threat of depriving politicians of their God-given right to hold office may well give those special interests "undue influence on an officeholder's judgment."

I therefore propose a solution that would, I hope, make Bertrand Russell proud. We must close the First Amendment loophole once and for all, and recognize that constitutional protection of "free expression" should be reserved for copies of Hustler, as the Founders intended, not extended to such dangerous frivolities as the expression of political views.

And, as usual, the laugh's on us.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 5:44 PM -

 
There's good news - EU summit fails to reach agreement on Constitution

and there's bad news - Don't mention the superstate in Brussels:

There is an elephant in the drawing room. As EU leaders work themselves up about voting weights, numbers of commissioners and other trifles, they are tip-toeing around the enormous fact that the document in front of them will transform the EU, de facto and de jure, into a single state. On the day the constitution enters into force, all previous treaties will be dissolved. The EU will cease to be an association of states bound together by international accords, and instead become a single polity, with its own jurisdiction, legal personality and constitution. It is the most important development in the EU's 47-year history, yet no one wants to discuss it.

It's funny how often that happens when people have made a huge honking mistake.

There are understandable reasons for this. Talking about double majorities and Nice formulae is a way of soothing, if not anaesthetising, the watching electorates. One of the peculiar features of European integration is that it has taken place largely without popular endorsement. National electorates have rarely been asked to approve the successive steps toward closer union; when they have, they have often voted "no". Brussels, accordingly, has tended to agglomerate powers with as little fuss as possible. If the peoples of Europe knew how much had already been conceded - let alone what is proposed in this new constitution - they might shake off the system like a horse shaking off flies.

I have a more graphic illustration involving horse by-products and flies.

Thus, despite more than two years of discussion, there has been almost no public debate about the balance of power between Brussels and the nation states. Few people are aware of the clauses that set out the extent of the EU's power: "The Constitution… shall have primacy over the laws of the Member States" (Article 10); "The Member States shall exercise their competence to the extent that the Union has not exercised, or has decided to cease exercising, its competence" (Article 11); "The Member States shall co-ordinate their economic policies" (Article 14); "Member States shall actively and unreservedly support the Union's common foreign and security policy" (Article 15).

Sounds like a bureaucratic putsch to me.

There was always a danger, of course, that people might tumble to what was being done in their name.

Apparently not much of one. But at least the Sun is on the case.

I can hardly wait for the UN weenies to try the same ploy worldwide with the assistance of the usual suspects. Howard Dean would cream his jeans at the opportunity.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 10:56 AM -

 
The Wisdom of Howard Dean - part 1

MATTHEWS: Is there any way to reduce the hostility between East and West, the hatred that’s growing toward us from the East?

DEAN: Yes, treat people with respect and they will treat you with respect. And that’s in short commodity.

Howard Dean to Chris Matthews

The efficacy of "respect" in dealing with terrorist fanatics is dubious to all but Howie and his little pals. The only respect they deserve is hollow point ammunition.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 8:32 AM -

 
Cleanup on Aisle 7!

Here's how the big illegal alien protest day turned out - Hundreds of Hispanics Protest in Calif.

LOS ANGELES - Hundreds of Hispanics protested the repeal of a law allowing illegal immigrants to get driver's licenses, taking to the streets Friday in a statewide boycott of schools and businesses.

The daylong boycott was intended to highlight the economic contribution of California's Hispanic community, the nation's largest.

About 400 people marched into East Los Angeles, waving signs that read, in Spanish, "Yes, we can" and "We want licenses now."

How selfish - we won't even give 'em a bus trip to the border.

"People come to this country for opportunity. That's what we're fighting for," said Pablo Lopez, 44. Lopez said he was an illegal immigrant for 12 years and drove without a license, but was always afraid of getting stopped and deported.

"We come here to work hard and we have family that we have to protect. If we don't have a license, we won't be able to do that," he said.

I wonder if they let Pablo drive back in his native land? And I also wonder what happened to end his 12 years of being an illegal alien.

Jesse Castaneda, 38, said Friday's strike is just a start.

"It's kind of awakening a sleeping giant," said Castaneda, who is Mexican-American. "They talk about illegal immigration, and they want to get rid of all the illegal immigrants. What would happen at a state level if that were to happen? They'll realize that we are needed here."

Hmmm, I'm willing to suffer.

But here's the best initiative from the "professional educators":

At least one school system tried to pre-empt a student walkout. The Santa Ana district offered to raffle off a color TV for those who came to school, and sent home a note to parents urging them not to keep their children home.

A raffle for going to school? They didn't have stuff like this when I was a kid!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 2:10 AM -

 
My social calendar is just so full!

This week was the blowout Geneva bash for United Nations Internet Weenies and last week was the big Milan fest for UN climate wankers, as I've mentioned previously. There were 13,000 "delegates" in Geneva, but I didn't realize how big the Milan party was until I read The Kyoto Protocol Creeps Along:

"The Parties conducted a fruitful and rich dialog in a good working atmosphere," declared Miklos Persanyi, the Hungarian Environment Minister who served as president of the ninth Conference of the Parties (COP9) to the UN's Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at the closing press conference here in Milan. Which is to say that the 5000 delegates and 95 ministers who attended the meeting didn't end up yelling and calling one another names. But was anything -- other than civil discussions over canapés and the opportunity for delegates to browse Milan's posh shops -- accomplished at COP9?

In a word, no, but follow the link for the details. But here's good news:

Whether the Kyoto Protocol collapses or not, COP10 will meet in Buenos Aires next December where the Parties will no doubt once again conduct "a fruitful and rich dialog in a good working atmosphere."

Ah, Buenos Aires in December!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 1:34 AM -

 
Merry Christmas!

The day that Christmas carols fell foul of the PC brigade

A church has been told that it cannot publicise its Christmas services on a community notice board to avoid offending other religions.

The Church of England may be the established faith of the United Kingdom. But Buckinghamshire county council regards it as a "religious preference group" and the ban was upheld yesterday.

Officials from All Saints, High Wycombe, Bucks, hoped to promote the service of nine lessons and carols and midnight mass by displaying an A4 size poster on a board in the town's public library.

The poster contained no message or religious exhortation, simply the dates and times of the services.

A4 is Euro letter sized - more like a flyer than a poster. OK, I'll bite - what's the problem?

Peter Mussett, the council's community development librarian, said his member of staff was right not to display the poster.

"We have a multi-faith community and passions can be inflamed by religious issues," he said. "We don't want to cause offence to anyone."

Woohoo - inflamed passions! They should have advertised a whole body massage workshop.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 1:24 AM -

 
The Supremes

George Neumayr provides Soft-Brained Supremes:

The Supreme Court is finally discovering forms of free speech it considers "corrupting." Pornographers and flag-burners don't corrupt our politics and culture; "sham issue ads" do. Mapplethorpe-style exhibits don't corrupt the public square. No, what erodes it are nativity scenes.

Basically the only form of speech the Supreme Court considers dangerous is the very political and religious speech the constitutional framers designed the First Amendment to protect. The more vital the speech is to the preservation of a republic, the more likely the justices are to ban it from public life. The more worthless the speech and destructive to a republic, the more likely the justices will carve out a precious constitutional public space for it.

"Who could have imagined that the same Court which, within the past four years, has sternly disapproved of restrictions upon such inconsequential forms of expression as virtual child pornography, tobacco advertising, dissemination of illegally intercepted communications and sexually explicit cable programming would smile with favor upon a law that cuts to the heart of what the First Amendment is meant to protect: the right to criticize government," writes Antonin Scalia in his dissent from the Court's ruling on "campaign finance reform."

The Court can so casually contradict itself because it has no principles. No ruling at this point bears any relation to the Constitution. The justices simply identify the Constitution with their will. What they consider "troubling to a functioning democracy" -- the phrase used in the ruling -- is unconstitutional, even if it wouldn't have troubled the constitutional framers one whit. Issue ads trouble the O'Connors. So ipso facto they are unconstitutional. No good can come from them apparently. But virtual child pornography? Well, the Court can find some value in that.

And then there's the big money boys completing their takeover of the Democrat party - The games those Dems play:

Now seeing that that is not the case, Republicans have a real dilemma. Do they abide by the rule of law in both letter and spirit, or do the gloves come off and follow the Democrats lead in the art of "new soft money"?

The dilemma is a very real one given the fact that "Independent Political Groups" are now being established by Democratic operatives whose goal is nothing more than to usurp current campaign finance restrictions. For example, according to University of Miami public policy analyst Paul Crespo, George Soros (currency trader), Peter Lewis (insurance tycoon) and Steve Kirsch (Internet mogul) have each either donated or pledged to donate $10,000,000 to one such group. Crespo believes these donations to be the largest single gifts to presidential campaign efforts in the history of America.

What few people do know, however, is that Soros spent close to $15,000,000 dollars to help get McCain-Feingold passed.

His goal?

"To dramatically reduce the role of big special-interest money in American politics."

Even though he apparently has few issues with now breaking the law he helped pass, Soros now sees himself as someone who must bypass the system for the "good of defeating Bush in 2004." In other words, the "free speech" of this one ultra-wealthy extremist is now allowed, compared to the average donor to the pro-life cause who sends $30 a month to the Pro-Life Action League. This isn't "free speech," this is "favored speech," and the Democrats have little gumption to do anything about it.

And now – counting on Republicans to follow the rule of law that they fought hard against but have followed since its passage – Democrats intend to raise cash hand over fist in methods they agreed they would not. Proving once again that Democratic leadership will play games with truth – as long as they are the ones who benefit in the end.

It's all SPECTRE's doing!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 6:37 AM -

 
A modest suggestion

Boycott by immigrants urged. I'll add in a few illegal's so the following makes sense:

The message to illegal Latino immigrants in the Bay Area and around California is sweeping: Keep your kids home from school Friday, don't go to work and stay away from stores.

The unprecedented request, made by illegal immigrant advocates to protest the repeal of a law that would have allowed illegal immigrants to apply for driver's licenses, is intended to show state leaders the collective economic and social clout of California's growing immigrant population.

While it's impossible to measure the success or failure of the daylong economic strike, organizers said they are encouraged that dozens of advocacy groups are rallying thousands of people to participate.

Translation: as long as they can get some of the usual wingnuts on camera, they can call it a success.

The advocates hope most of California's 11 million Latinos support the strike, though the effort is heavily focused toward illegal immigrants.

Analysts who pay close attention to the saga of the license law say the strike is an expression of frustration for undocumented (i.e. illegal) immigrants who feel their needs are being ignored by policy-makers.

The needs of illegal aliens? How about a bus back to the border?

Nativo Lopez, the leader of a group promoting the strike, the statewide Mexican American Political Association, suggests that parents keep their children out of school because education ``represents big bucks, financed by our taxes.''

Schools are unofficially protesting the boycott because they stand to lose state funding for unexcused absences.

Not the illegal aliens' taxes, of course.

Here's an idea, Nativo. Why don't the illegal aliens really teach 'em a lesson and just head back across the border?

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 6:25 AM -

 
And while I'm on the subject of the United Nations

There's not much news from the big UN Internet conclave in Geneva, which must mean the shopping is good. But here's one of the highlights - Mugabe attacks 'Western media' at Geneva summit:

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe launched a virulent attack on Western media Wednesday at a world summit on making better use of information technology such as the Internet to help poorer nations.

In his first foreign excursion since quitting the 54-nation Commonwealth, Mugabe railed against new technologies, saying they were used for espionage and to weaken the Third World in the face of "a dangerous imperial world order led by warrior states and kingdoms."

No mention of CIA mind rays.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 2:00 PM -

 
Can you say "chutzpah," kids?

UN, EU slam Canberra on failure to sign Kyoto I know, "Yadda, yadda." But catch this (emphasis mine):

The United Nations and European Union yesterday condemned Australia's refusal to ratify the Kyoto climate change treaty, and Germany's environment minister suggested Australia needed a new government.

I wonder what part of STFU he doesn't understand?

But wait, there's more:

The UN Environment Program's executive director Klaus Toepfer accused the US and Australia - the only two industrialised nations that have declared their refusal to ratify the treaty - of being selfish.

I'm deeply saddened.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan called on countries to "expedite the ratification process", in a reference to treaty-blockers Australia, the US and Russia.

Don't hold your breath, Sophie.

Why are we paying for these ankle biters?

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 1:55 PM -

 
Rumsfeld: Some Items Not Covered by Iraq Bid Ban

"In the interest of strengthening our friendships, France, Germany and Russia will be permitted to bid on some things," said Mr. Rumsfeld. "For example, we have a pressing need for more of those terrific human shields. There were a lot of them around before the war, but we can't find them now. While we're figuring out where Saddam hid them, we would welcome some French, German or Russian human shields."

It's ScrappleFace.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 1:19 PM -

 
Ruh Oh!

The other day I mentioned the contest to find Kuku a "First Lady". Well, the bad news is that Howard Dean's cousin, Lucy, didn't win. But there was a "winner" - Kucinich Wins Endorsement, Kiss From Date

A much-watched first date for presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich ended with kisses on the cheek and an endorsement.

"Gina, we'll talk," Kucinich told Gina Marie Santore after the two had breakfast Thursday with a gaggle of reporters and photographers nearby.

Hmmm!

Kucinich, 57, told reporters Santore's endorsement was more significant than Al Gore's backing of front-runner Howard Dean "and based on actual discussion."

The two met Thursday morning in the lobby of a downtown hotel and later discussed health care, medical malpractice and prescription drugs over oatmeal at a restaurant.

Now that's a hot steaming good time!

Santore, 34, of Maple Shade, N.J., called herself a lifelong Democrat. She said she works as a confidential aide to the Camden County sheriff in southern New Jersey and lives with her boyfriend. Kucinich attracted her attention, she said, because she found his views "intoxicating."

I wonder how the live-in boyfriend finds 'em? Click through for a snap of Gina Marie and Kuku.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 1:05 PM -

 
It's that Blofeld guy again!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 9:52 AM -

 
No extra credit for this one!

EuroCash: What does the Palestinian Authority do with European money?

When the international donors' conference convenes in Rome next week to consider a new contribution of $1 billion to the Palestinian Authority, it is likely to continue to ignore the PA's ongoing funding of terrorist activities.

According to Hannes Swoboda, a member of the European parliament's ad hoc working group on aid to the PA, "No wrongdoing or misuse of funds by the Palestinian Authority, no instances of funds being used for terrorist activities instead of infrastructure development, have been proved."

That Hannes! He's such a comedian.

His denial followed that of the European Union's external-relations commissioner, Christopher Patten, who on July 17 wrote in the Financial Times that "[t]he EU has worked throughout the bloodstained months of the Intifada to keep a Palestinian administration alive and to drive a process of reform within it....At every step, the EU's help was made conditional on reforms that would make a viable Palestinian state a reality one day and in the short term make the Palestinian territories a better, safer neighbor for Israel."

Wink, wink, nudge, nudge, eh Chris?

By the time Patten and the members of the European parliament (MEPs) had made these statements, the Israeli government had already given them volumes of captured Palestinian documents providing evidence that the PA was using EU funds to pay for homicide bombings, the upkeep of terrorists, weapons, and bomb-manufacturing plants; vacations, travel, scholarships and medical treatments for members of the Palestinian leadership and their families; and — not least — Chairman Arafat's personal bank accounts.

I hope the Euros remember to toss some extra in for handling, because Arafish loves to handle it!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 8:21 AM -

 
Pardon me while I take care of a small administrative matter

miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure miserable failure

Hat tip: Jay Solo.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 12:41 AM -

 
Some things you just can't make up

Study: Constitutional amendment should allow non-citizens to vote

LOS ANGELES -- A UCLA study released Wednesday says the state constitution should be amended so California's 4.6 million non-citizen adults can vote in local elections.

Nearly one-fifth of the state's adults are non-citizens and in 12 cities they form the majority, according to the study, which was commissioned by UCLA's Chicano Studies Research Center.

The study also found that non-citizens make up more than one-quarter of the population in 85 California cities and that 28 percent of the state's non-citizens are Hispanic.

"It's really a harbinger of things to come and unless we start to address this issue, we're going to have a political apartheid in California," said Joaquin Avila, the study's author and an instructor at UCLA law school.

Political apartheid? They're illegal aliens!

"The distinction between citizens and non-citizens has been seriously eroded over the past generations and the only difference left is the ability to vote. That's not a trivial thing," said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C.

"A person who isn't a citizen yet is essentially shacking up with America. It's important to the health of the body politic that that difference be preserved."

I would have been more clinical than just "shacking up." And who's to say they aren't voting already?

But here's good news - Social Security checks could go south of border

U.S. and Mexican officials are discussing an agreement that would allow millions of Mexicans to return home and still collect U.S. Social Security benefits.

The controversial proposal that could transfer hundreds of millions of dollars in Social Security payments south of the border has riled some Republican lawmakers. They worry that it could reward scores of undocumented Mexican immigrants with a U.S. pension, draining the country's Social Security trust fund at a time when its future solvency is in doubt.

"Talk about an incentive for illegal immigration," said GOP Rep. Ron Paul of Texas. "How many more would break the law to come to this country if promised U.S. government paychecks for life?"

Er, how did they get Social Security numbers? Or more to the point whose Social Security numbers were they using? But don't worry:

And Mexico is prepared to administer an agreement, Social Security Commissioner Jo Anne Barnhart told lawmakers at a congressional hearing earlier this year.

I'm just brimming with confidence!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 9:34 PM -

 
And speaking of useless crap

In conjunction with the Summit, the Hello World Project allows you to assail passersby in 4 world cities with your "message" entered via the web and projected via laser beam. I've been testing it out with "UN sux!" on the building in Mumbai to keep the message editors busy, but so far nothing from anyone has shown up. Bummer!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:41 AM -

 
Have you got your party hats on?

Today's the big Summit in Geneva where all the United Nations bureaucrats and their pals have the opportunity to flap their gums about the Internet, panhandle some spare change, and do some quality Christmas shopping. Jeff Jarvis is all over it:

So it's not a matter of the big, bad U.S. and the West again trying to keep anybody from anything. It's not a matter of the U.N. being able to improve a damned thing. It's a matter of local governments and institutions joining the future. And if the U.N. really wants to be helpful, why doesn't it shame Iran and China and Cuba and North Korea and Libya (and the list goes on) into opening up the Internet to its citizens.

Jeff, it's because at the top of the UN list is bureaucratic self-aggrandizement and it's much more lucrative to chastise the First World.

Jeff also reveals that there is a Summit blog complete with a virtual Jeff Jarvis!

And while we're on the subject of accoutrements, the UN really knows how to get into the useless frill aspect of things, probably because they are a useless frill. How about the Summit kid's poster contest? Aside from the kids that drank the whole pitcher of Kool-Aid (and have trouble spelling "Technology"):



there are some that didn't read the UN script:



Bwahaha!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:26 AM -

 
Important Message from Ernst Blofeld!



SPECTRE is a cooler name than Democrat Party anyhow.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 2:19 PM -

 
More Dean Family Smooching!

First the Goron lays a big lip lock on Howie, now Howie's cousin wants to be Mrs. Kucinich! Scroll on down the list of lovelies to

LUCY
Connecticut
Age: 48
Howard Dean's first cousin
Occupation: Unitarian Universalist clergywoman

Woohoo! It must be the full moon! Hmm, it seems to run in the family.

And while you're there, don't forget to vote on the sidebar for which one should be "Dennis Kucinich's First Lady" (sic). Lucy is only 3rd, but coming on strong!

(Hat Tip: FR)

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 12:49 PM -

 
The United Nations could be funny...

I was over at the United Nations News Centre looking for the latest pufferery about the big Internet "summit" on Wednesday. It's an alternative reality that's so bizarre, it makes you wonder when they beamed down. How about:

BENEFITS OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLES TO BE HIGHLIGHTED AT UPCOMING COMMUNICATIONS SUMMIT

“This event is a chance for indigenous people around the world to become engaged with the World Summit on the Information Society”, said Ole-Henrik Magga, Chairperson of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. “By discussing opportunities and challenges facing people around the world, we are creating solutions that will help indigenous peoples move forward in meaningful ways.”

I wonder if they'll cover casino technology?

And how about:

Local authorities can help bridge the digital divide, Lyon conference told

UN-HABITAT's Deputy Executive Director Daniel Biau called on local authorities not to forget that 1 billion people around the world live in slums and have no access the Internet or even a telephone.

"The Information Society ignores them and this is what we must change, what you must change," Mr Biau said.

It's not clear what Danny proposes, but I'm sure it involves lots of cash.

All of this is amusing in a sick sort of way, but then there's things like:

UN General Assembly votes to ask ICJ for opinion on Israel's separation barrier

The United Nations General Assembly, at the resumption of its long-running tenth emergency special session, adopted a resolution today asking the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to issue an advisory opinion on the legal consequences of Israel's construction of a separation barrier between itself and the West Bank.
...
The tenth emergency session on illegal Israeli actions in Occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory dates back to 1997, when Israel began construction of a new settlement south of East Jerusalem.

The ICJ, based in The Hague, the Netherlands, and established in 1946, is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. It has the dual role of settling legal disputes between member states and issuing advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by international organs and agencies.

And quite a bunch of organs they are, I'm sure.

Ah, the flip side of the comedy. Along with feathering their ample nests, the sleazy UN stuffed shirts are prime enablers of international thuggery.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:12 AM -

 
It's that dang Hanging Chad again!

Over at FR, poster JennysCool has some fun with Prince Al's impending announcement:

Gore: Dean Endorsement "Big Mistake"

"Oh, sweet mother of Gaia!" former Vice President Al Gore exclaimed, upon discovering he had endorsed "maverick" candidate Howard Dean for president.

"That wasn't what I meant to do at all," Gore, flanked by his wife, Tipper, told a hastily-called news conference.

"I guess I was confused by the ballot," Gore contended. "I had a list of the nine dwar -- er, candidates running and I guess I just slipped up and marked the wrong one, darn it!

"This is the kind of thing that could happen to anyone," Gore continued. "Particularly our seniors, now so hard-hit by President Bush's shameless and draconian Medicare bill."

Gore said he had meant instead to endorse his former vice presidential running mate, Joe Lieberman.

"I hope Joe will forgive me this egregious error," Gore said. "I've always said the little shrim -- er, senator -- had my endorsement, unless and until Hillary announces, and then I would reserve the right to endorse her, if I know what's good for me. Isn't that right, Tipper?"

"What?" Mrs. Gore replied.

The former vice president added he would seek immediately to have his endorsement invalidated by the Florida Supreme Court.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 5:59 PM -

 
Deanie Weenies make a big splash in South Carolina

While the address was billed as a major speech on race, only a handful of the audience members were black. The pre-printed signs, "African-Americans for Dean," were held by white supporters.

Yell louder Howie, that'll work!

(Via Best of the Web)

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 5:47 PM -

 
Today's Hoot

Doug Powers at WorldNetDaily.com - 'Hate Bush' rally: Hilarity from the unfunny:

Leftist celebrities wildly overestimate the power of their own opinion.

This is how we end up with pop culture ne'er-do-well movements like the "Rock the Vote" push, which should be an insult to the intelligence of younger-aged voters and potential voters everywhere. To think that – if Moby, Jennifer Aniston and the bald Tinkertoy from REM tell us to vote – we lemmings will gladly leap off whatever political cliff they do, should be an insult of biblical proportions.

These people can really get full of themselves. Years ago, my wife and I saw Don Henley in concert. Some great music, but in order to hear it, those in attendance were forced to put up with a sanctimonious monologue about saving Walden Woods that would have made Thoreau himself take his own life. We came to hear "Boys of Summer" and "Hotel California," and ended up nearly violating federal law by wringing the neck of an Eagle.

Some of these leftist celebrities may actually have in mind their version of what's best for the country. They may actually think they're doing the right thing. Their heart is in the right place. The problem for them is that their brains oftentimes aren't.

It's a good thing these people don't realize how "average Americans" view them. If they did, they'd know that their meeting at the Beverly Hills Hilton was a big feather in the cap of the "Re-elect Bush" campaign.

Speaking of which, the campaign has a new commercial - When Angry Democrats Attack.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 1:20 PM -

 
Today's Shocker!

William Safire says Hillary, Congenital Hawk

Senator Hillary Clinton, sweeping through the Sunday morning talk shows after her somewhat upstaged Thanksgiving visit to the war zones, startled her conservative detractors by emerging as a congenital hawk. (I used that adjective "congenital," in the sense of "habitual," in derogation of her credibility back when the world was young.)

She does not go along with the notion that the Iraqi dictator posed no danger to the U.S.: "I think that Saddam Hussein was certainly a potential threat" who "was seeking weapons of mass destruction, whether or not he actually had them."

When Tim Russert on "Meet the Press" gave her the opening to say she had been misled when she voted for the Senate resolution authorizing war, Senator Clinton countered with a hard line: "There was certainly adequate intelligence without it being gilded and exaggerated by the administration to raise questions about chemical and biological programs and a continuing effort to obtain nuclear power."

On forgotten Afghanistan, like many hawks, she was critical of the failure of European nations "to fulfill the commitment that NATO made to Afghanistan. I don't think we have enough American troops and we certainly don't have the promised NATO troops."

Would she support an increase of U.S. troops in Iraq? Senator Clinton associated herself with the views of Republican Senator John McCain, who disagrees with Bush and the generals who say they have adequate strength there. She cited McCain's conviction that "we need more troops, and we need a different mix of troops." And she directed a puissant message to what some of us consider the told-you-so doves who refuse to deal with today's geopolitical reality: "Whether you agreed or not that we should be in Iraq, failure is not an option."
...
Consider the political meaning of all this. Here is a Democrat who has no regrets for voting for the resolution empowering the president to invade Iraq; who insists repeatedly and resolutely that "failure is not an option"; who is ready to send in a substantially greater U.S. force to avert any such policy failure — and yet whose latest poll ratings show her to be the favorite of 43 percent of Democrats, three times the nomination support given front-runner Howard Dean.

The only problem is that Hillary's committment to protecting the USA is rather like that of some organized crime boss protecting his turf.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 8:27 AM -

 
News of the Arts!

Transvestite's shocking pots claim victory in Turner Prize

Grayson Perry, a transvestite potter with a strong line in pornographic and paedophile imagery, won the Turner Prize yesterday.

Perry, 43, accepted the £20,000 prize at a dinner at Tate Britain last night dressed in a little-girl frock with his blond hair brushed up as his female alter ego, Claire.

Charming! And an equally charming family snap by following the link.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 8:18 AM -

 
Now it's 12,000 shoppers!

U.N. control of Web rejected

GENEVA — The United States, backed by the European Union, Japan and Canada, has turned back a bid by developing nations to place the Internet under the control of the United Nations or its member governments.

Bummer! But the bureaucrats never give up.

But governments, the private sector and others will be asked to establish a mechanism under U.N. auspices to study the governance of the Internet and make recommendations by 2005.

Which means they're ready in case we ever get a President like the usual Donk suspects.

Then in the "walking around money" department:

Major differences remain between developed countries and African countries led by Senegal over the creation of a "global digital solidarity fund." Talks on the issue will continue today and tomorrow.

It must be hard to sit through this stuff with a straight face.

But the shopping trip's still on!

More than 60 heads of state and government and about 12,000 delegates are expected to participate in the conference, aimed at advancing the management and worldwide use of the Internet, especially in meeting needs such as health and education in developing nations.

Why don't we save money all around and just give these grifters a gift certificate?

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:53 AM -

 
How to tell when you are really, really unpopular

Not even Castro defends Chávez

It appears that this time Venezuelans are going to put Hugo Chávez out on the street. The work of the Democratic Coordinating Committee has been magnificent. The opposition democrats needed 2.4 million signatures to request a referendum to revoke the president's mandate; they collected 3.6 million.

After the sovereign people are consulted, Chávez presumably will leave power along with 27 legislators out of 33 who remained faithful to him. This is a smashing blow that delegitimizes the Chávez administration and his chaotic "Bolivarian revolution.''

"Presumably" is a big stretch when it comes to ole Hugo.

The proof of this tremendous impact on the ranks of power was the reaction essayed by Chávez, Vice President José Vicente Rangel and Infrastructure Minister Diosdado Cabello. Right after the gathering of signatures ended, the top leaders proclaimed that the exercise had been a failure because barely two million signatures had been collected.

A few hours later, aware that they couldn't keep up that charade under the watchful eye of international observers, they pulled out of their sleeves a purported ''mega- fraud,'' a statement that not even Granma, the official newspaper of the Communist Party of Cuba, has dared to defend.

It's hard to imagine a lie so bald-faced that Granma wouldn't sign up.

Why the lack of enthusiasm by the Cuban government toward Chávez after the recall signatures were gathered? According to some not-so-secret analyses by Castro's intelligence services -- including the opinion of the Cuban ambassador in Caracas, and if we are to believe the latest defectors (one of them, journalist Uberto Mario Hernández, who refers to the Chávez echelon as an assemblage of drug addicts and cretins) -- Chávez is a loquacious and bizarre madman surrounded by people who are exceptionally incompetent.

That's always what it looked like.

These are people with whom you can set up a gambling den, a bawdy house or a dominoes tournament, but not a drastic and rigorous revolution in the Leninist fashion, with firing squads, dungeons and obligatory silence. The Cubans would have preferred Rangel, an unscrupulous Stalinist, a survivor of the Cold War. But history saddled them with ''Crazy Hugo,'' as they call Chávez in private.

And I thought that was just what I called him!

But wait, there's a silver lining!

Castro, who is a realist and used to failures on the international scene, is gearing up for the worst of all possible news: Chávez's departure from power four months from now. To this end, Castro's orders are clear: Milk the Bolivarian cow down to the last drop of oil.

Instead of receiving 53,000 barrels of crude per day, Castro seems to be receiving 70,000 -- a bit more than one third the amount that the island consumes. He will try to raise the number to 100,000. He will take all he can, even the ashtrays.

Simultaneously, Castro's agents are reviving old contacts with Venezuela's Marxist left, which, paradoxically, opposes Chávez. Castro's message sotto voce is: ''Chávez has been a disappointing failure, but that doesn't invalidate our revolutionary project.''

If all you have is lemons, make lemonade, eh Fidel?

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:41 AM -

 
Bill Maher has a death wish, I guess

Tasteless gags Maher a Hillary tribute. (That's supposed to be a pun.)

Bill Maher has made another stab at career suicide.

The Bush-bashing comic stunned some of Hollywood's most powerful liberals by joking about Bill Clinton's sexual indiscretions at a benefit honoring Sen. Hillary Clinton.

New York's junior Senator was accepting an Oceana Partners award in Los Angeles last Wednesday for her work on environmental issues. Maher emceed the event, which also honored marine explorer Jean-Michel Cousteau, as well as Ron Howard and his Imagine partner, Brian Glazer.
...
"Maher began bringing up 'Bill Clinton's [bleep] jobs' - with Hillary sitting right there in front of him eating her chicken," says a witness.
...
The former President, although not there, was listed as a co-chairman of the event, which raised $600,000.

Maher also took a shot at Cousteau - sniping: "That must feel great, getting a one-quarter standing ovation." Cousteau walked out of the building shortly afterward.

No long walks in Ft. Marcy Park, Bill!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:22 AM -

 
Just another solid citizen

Reginald Denny Beating Defendant Sentenced In Murder Case

LOS ANGELES -- A man convicted of felony mayhem for a televised attack on trucker Reginald Denny during the 1992 Los Angeles riots was sentenced Friday to 30 years to life in prison for a drug dealer's murder.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Curtis B. Rappe also ordered Damian Williams, 30, to serve an additional 21 years in prison for a firearm theft charge and other violations.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:06 AM -

 
Breaking News Alert!

Zimbabwe Quits Commonwealth Over Suspension:

Zimbabwe said on Sunday it was quitting the Commonwealth after the organization said it was extending its suspension of the southern African country.

The Zimbabwe government said in a statement that President Robert Mugabe had told the leaders of Jamaica, Nigeria and South Africa when they phoned him one after another on Sunday that Harare did not accept the Commonwealth's position and was leaving the group.

"Accordingly, Zimbabwe has withdrawn its membership from the Commonwealth with immediate effect," it said.

Pardon me while I catch up on some Z's.

But there is a new 'stache photo.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:01 PM -

 
It's holiday shopping time!

And that means the United Nations bureaucrats need shopping trips! I've mentioned the 6,000 person wankfest in Geneva next week where the usual suspects will be trying to figure out how to grab control over the Internet and any spare cash they may find. But it turns out that last week there was a big party in Milan too:

The United Nations’ global warming bureaucracy is meeting (vacationing?) in Milan this week pondering how to revive the beleaguered international global warming treaty known as the Kyoto Protocol.

So that's the explanation for why we were treated last week to Global warming threatens ski resorts, Global warming to chill Europe, and Melting ice 'will swamp capitals'!

Darn! I always miss out on the scary stories around the camp fire.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 6:51 PM -

 
It's those fun loving Pander Bears!

Dean's tax claims bring skepticism

In his just-published autobiography, "Winning Back America," Howard Dean underscores what has become a longstanding central theme of his campaign. He writes: "We cut taxes by 30 percent over the lifetime of my administration." In Iowa and New Hampshire, his campaign is airing a commercial promoting Dean as a "fiscal conservative who cut state income taxes -- twice."

On the campaign's website, Dean is even more specific, saying that his two cuts reduced the state's top income tax rate from 13.5 percent to 9.5 percent.

But an examination of Dean's record as Vermont's governor has found that the bigger tax cut was in fact signed into law by his Republican predecessor, Richard Snelling. In 1991, Snelling signed legislation authorizing higher tax rates that would "sunset" two years later. Dean, then lieutenant governor, took over after Snelling died, and the rates dropped automatically at the end of 1993.

While the section of Dean's website on his fiscal record highlights his role in eliminating the sales tax on clothing items, it omits the fact that the overall sales tax was raised from 4 percent to 5 percent during Dean's tenure.

Howie's been naughty again!

Clark Seeks to Improve Standing on Domestic Issues:

Democrat Wesley Clark, focusing his presidential campaign on domestic issues, said Sunday he has plans to raise family income by $3,000 a year and provide health coverage to 30 million more people.

The retired Army general did not give details about how he would achieve the ambitious goals...

But he's getting out his checkbook?

Then Cursing Kerry Unleashes Foulmouthed Attack on Bush:

Struggling 2004 Democratic wannabe John Kerry fires an X-rated attack at President Bush over Iraq and uses the f-word - highly unusual language for a presidential contender - in a stunning new interview with Rolling Stone magazine.
...
Brookings Institution presidential scholar Stephen Hess said he can't recall another candidate attacking a president with X-rated language in a public interview.

"It's so unnecessary," Hess said. "In a way it's a kind of pandering [by Kerry] to a group he sees as hip . . . I think John Kerry is going to regret saying this."

If the French guy is after niche voters, I'm afraid the next reports are going to have him inserting various kitchen utensils and small animals in his nether region.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 6:19 PM -

 
They don't even notice the clue phone ringing

Last week, the Raleigh News and Observer ran a smarmy puff piece about a North Carolina state bureaucrat - Bridge-builder is honored: Millie Ravenel lauded for work on U.S.-Mexico relations:

As director of the N.C. Center for International Understanding, Millie Ravenel had helped organize dozens of excursions to other countries -- but never to Mexico.

So she was flustered in 1998 when a group of private foundations asked her to arrange a trip across the border for their directors.
...
The trip turned out to be the first of many to Mexico. Over the next several years, Ravenel and her staff helped send more than 300 politicians, government officials, community leaders and private citizens from North Carolina to Mexico to help them understand a country that is changing the face of the state.

Which, of course, is the Nobs' way of describing the effect of illegal aliens. You have to recall that the Nobs likes to enjoin us to welcome the "new neighbors" as their preferred response to illegal aliens.

To honor her work, the Mexican Consulate on Wednesday presented Ravenel, 61, with an Ohtli Award. The award -- whose name means "way" or "road" in Nahuatl, the language of the Aztec Empire that flourished in Mexico -- is given to people who have helped make life easier for Mexican immigrants in the United States.

A "Friend of Illegal Aliens" Award! Now that is cool!

But I'm confused. What exactly is Millie's job for the State of North Carolina?

Since its inception, the center has sent 7,000 people from North Carolina to visit 47 countries. It has also brought 4,000 people from abroad to visit North Carolina.

The study programs are fully funded by grants and by the participants. The money from the state pays for operational expenses at the center, where the staff has grown from one in 1979 to nine today.

So the North Carolina taxpayers are funding a travel agency for junketeers? It's good to know they are so flush with cash.

A public service of the University of North Carolina, the center was started in 1979 by then-Gov. Jim Hunt. State legislators last year nearly eliminated its $500,000 annual allocation.

Since there's no whining, this must mean the legislature tried but failed to eliminate this boondoggle as opposed to reducing the funding to $1.28, say.

I know, it's just one of many boondoggles financed by the long suffering taxpayers. But it gets better - check out this heartwarming story:

The study trips organized by the center have helped soften many people's views on immigration from Mexico at a time when North Carolina's Mexican population has surged.

The state's foreign-born population jumped 274 percent in the 1990s, according to the 2000 Census. More recent census estimates indicate that the flow of immigration has continued, with Latinos, including many from Mexico, making up the majority of the state's 480,000 foreign-born residents.

Since this is the Nobs, they can't say a horde of illegal aliens.

In 2000, the center sent Rick Givens, then-chairman of the Chatham County commissioners, and 24 others to Mexico for a week. Only months before the trip, Givens had sent a letter to federal immigration officials asking them to deport undocumented workers in the county.

During the trip, Givens, who is no longer a county commissioner, visited impoverished families whose sons and daughters were working illegally in the United States. When he came back, he expressed regret for the letter and spent his final two years as a county commissioner trying to help immigrants in Chatham County.

"Anyone with a heart couldn't have sat there with those families and then criticized them for trying to get across the border," said Givens, 54, a retired airline pilot who lives in Bear Creek. "If I were in their situation, I'd be in my Bronco crossing the border with my family in a heartbeat."

Terminal "street smarts" shortage alert! Did Ricky actually think the illegal aliens in North Carolina were all sitting around the country club pool in Cancun and then suddenly decided to hop in their "Broncos" and check out the hors d'oeuvres up North? Of course they were dirt poor, pal. But the problem is that poverty in Third World countries can't be solved by inviting their residents to move into the spare bedroom in the USA. Or by winking at the ones who arrive illegally.

After returning, Givens said he helped create a program to show Mexican immigrants how to get driver's licenses and car insurance and worked with nonprofits and church groups to improve outreach programs for immigrants.

Thanks a lot. And as always, it's not "immigrants", it's illegal aliens.

And thanks to the Nobs staff for their continuing campaign to sugar coat illegal immigration. I guess they are spiffing up their resumes for when they attempt the big jump to one of the primo liberal mouthpieces.

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 5:46 PM -

 
We're so dadgum diverse

Muslim Football Team Names Spark Protest:

IRVINE, Calif. - It was planned as a way to bring young athletes together for a weekend of fun, but when participants in the Muslim Football tournament started naming their teams Intifada, Soldiers of Allah and Mujahideen, Jewish leaders took offense.

No one else?

"A lot of the kids on our team are from Palestinian origin," said Tarek Shawky, Intifada's 29-year-old captain and quarterback. "We are in solidarity with people in the uprising. It's about human rights and basic freedoms."

It'll be something to watch when they throw the "long bomb"!

posted by Cracker Barrel Philosopher at 7:24 AM -