J's Cafe Nette

Archive for June, 2008

A very touching video.

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We recently had Senator Jim Jeffords of VT change from Republican to Independent, caucusing with the Democrats.

Joe Lieberman was forced to change to Independent from Democrat, caucusing with the Democrats, because he lost the Democratic primary and knew the people of CT would re-elect him.

Bob Barr has changed his registration from Republican, heading up the Clinton impeachment proceedings, to Libertarian, even though he voted for the Patriot Act and for the Iraq War.

It seems when someone changes parties they are suddenly set free to say what they really believe instead of repeating the party line.

Take a listen to Joe Lieberman as he appeared on Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer on Sunday:

Would he have said those same things eight years ago? Or even three years ago? No, because he had to be loyal to his party.

Would Bob Barr be criticizing the actions he supported while in Congress five years ago? No, because he had to be loyal to his party.

Jeffords is different. He never said much of substance as a Republican or an Independent, but he used Republican money to get elected and then switched the balance of the Senate for a chairmanship and still didn’t get what he was after.

President George Washington, the Father of Our Country, warned against partisan politics and political parties. I think he was right. If we were all independents we would more freely say what we really feel rather than what the party wants us to say, and that would indeed be better for our country.

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July 4th is just around the corner.

A day known for picnics, vacations, fireworks, patriotic music and this:

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

Just imagine Thomas Jefferson sitting on a hill in Massachusetts and listening to the Boston Pops on Independence Day.

Think for a moment what Adams, Washington or Franklin might feel at the sight of the Presentation of Colors or the many residences and businesses adorned in red, white and blue.

Would it not be fun to sit beside the framers and signers of this revered document and view the elaborate colors and designs bursting in the sky each Fourth of July and simply say “thank you.”

All information above was gleaned from the National Archives where there is also offered an excellent opportunity for children (or adults) to add their name along side the original signers and print out a copy of the Declaration of Independence.

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Will the real mood in the room please stand up?

On CBS’ “Early Show” former Clinton chair Terry McAuliffe said there was “a great feeling in the room” at the Mayflower Hotel, added: “I love Barack Obama.”

ABC’s “Good Morning America” said there was “serious tension in the room” during Thursday’s meeting, but Stephanopoulos said Obama did “a good job” courting donors though he was non-committal about Clinton getting a roll call at Denver’s convention.[emphasis-mine]

Stopped laughing yet?

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Charles Schultz’s Philosophy

1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.

2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.

3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America pageant.

4. Name any ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.

5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.

6. Name the last decade’s worth of World Series winners.

How did you do?

The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are not second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields! . But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners.

Here’s another quiz. See how you do on this one:

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.

2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.

3. Name five people who! have taught you something worthwhile.

4 Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.

5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

Easier?

The lesson: The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care.

The first group of questions, not so easy at least not off the top of my head. Group two..piece of cake.

It’s wonderful to see that someone as successful as Mr, Schultz who brought joy to so many with the “Peanuts” gang had his feet planted firmly on the ground.

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That’s how much was raised for Care packages in one day on a web-a-thon, with a lousy background and lousy sound!

The original goal was $500,000, but the American people came out for the troops, as we always do.

God bless our troops and thank you for your contribution.

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*Update* In the event you are experiencing difficulty accessing the Move America Forward webpage to donate, you may also do so here.
Sue

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In the first ever ruling by the Supreme Court gun rights, the SCOTUS has voted 5-4 that the Constitution allows the right of hunters and homeowners to bear arms.

The court’s 5-4 ruling struck down the District of Columbia’s 32-year-old ban on handguns as incompatible with gun rights under the Second Amendment. The decision went further than even the Bush administration wanted, but probably leaves most firearms laws intact.

The court had not conclusively interpreted the Second Amendment since its ratification in 1791. The amendment reads: “A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.”

The basic issue for the justices was whether the amendment protects an individual’s right to own guns no matter what, or whether that right is somehow tied to service in a state militia.

Writing for the majority, Justice Antonin Scalia said that an individual right to bear arms is supported by “the historical narrative” both before and after the Second Amendment was adopted.

The Constitution does not permit “the absolute prohibition of handguns held and used for self-defense in the home,” Scalia said. The court also struck down Washington’s requirement that firearms be equipped with trigger locks or kept disassembled, but left intact the licensing of guns.

This passed by only one vote and that one vote could have gone either way. Think about the Supreme Court when you vote in November. They are there for life while the president who puts them there is there only 8 years at the most.

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I received the following information in my morning email. Please do what you can to help.

Right under the calendar is a widget that will show how much is being raised when the telethon begins. Please come back to check on it after you have made your donation.

With any success I’ll be able to put up streaming video of the event once it starts.

Folks:
Move America Forward is conducting a live, online telethon tomorrow (Thurdsay, June 26th) from 4pm – midnight Eastern in an effort to raise funds for the largest shipment of care packages to US troops in history. The show will be hosted by Melanie Morgan and Michelle Malkin, and feature all-star guests including Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity, and many more.

Bloggers and others with websites can support the effort by embedding a widget that will track the status of the telethon’s progress on donations, and/or by embedding the uStream TV viewer that will broadcast the event . Code for embedding the widgets can be found at this site .

For more info, visit this site. Please support this great effort!

Your friends at The Victory Caucus

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Many people are certain El Presidenté Jorgé Arbusto George McChimpy Shrub Bush/Hitler, aka President George W. Bush has great mystical powers.

Just ask them and they’ll tell you with straight faces he’s the world’s biggest criminal, worse than Hitler, Stalin or Saddam Hussein.

Not only is this seemingly friendly, family man with a beautiful and gracious wife and two beautiful daughters the worst man to ever live, but he’s also stupid, as proven by his degrees at Yale and Harvard.

Many will tell you of his great powers to bring about hurricanes that destroy only the poor parts of a city that is below sea level, or his powers to cause tornadoes in the Mid-West, and all the time twisting his moustache and rubbing his hands together in terrible glee.

He even forced people to buy houses they couldn’t afford and thinks the government shouldn’t bail them out for being stupid.

Well, last night while speaking on the telephone to Guss about a family matter, Guss all of a sudden said, “Holy cow!” I asked him what he was talking about and he told me all about this ABC News report, titled Globalization; In Reverse.

He gave me a brief description and I immediately went to the nearest computer to look up the story on the ABC News site.

This wizard has done it again! He has deliberately raised the prices of oil as we all know and now the chickens have come home to roost.

Let me explain:

As the cost of shipping continues to soar along with fuel prices, homegrown manufacturing jobs are making a comeback after decades of decline.

While it once cost $3,000 to ship a container from a city like Shanghai to New York, it now costs $8,000, prompting some businesses to look closer to home for manufacturing needs. [...]

[...]Furniture designer Carol Gregg used to have her signature Chinese chests assembled in China, but such a luxury no longer seems viable, considering that some of her pieces now cost five times more to ship.

So now Gregg is having the chests made in North Carolina, simply because its cheaper.

Some large companies like Crown Battery are cutting expenses by moving jobs from Mexico to Ohio. And hair care company Farouk Systems plans to shift all of its production from China to Houston this summer — bringing with it 1,000 jobs.

The rise in transportation costs are fueling what some economists are calling “reverse globalization.” For instance, DESA, a company that makes heaters to keep football players warm, is moving all its production back to Kentucky after years of having them made in China.

“Cheap labor in China doesn’t help you when you gotta pay so much to bring the goods over,” says economist Jeff Rubin. [...]

[...]“In December, we had three employees here. We were just getting set up. Now it’s 14,” says Casey Hearn, who owns a furniture manufacturing business in North Carolina.

Other sectors of U.S. manufacturing may see a boost in jobs as well. Rubin says the U.S. steel industry is poised to reap benefits.

“It’s not just about labor costs anymore,” says Rubin. “Distance costs money, and when you have to shift iron ore from Brazil to China and then ship it back to Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh is looking pretty good at 40 bucks an hour.”

Just when everyone had been convinced by his bumbling style he makes it look like wizardry. Don’t you see his grand, evil plan?

He deliberately personally ran up the cost of energy so offshore manufacturing jobs would be cheaper to produce here than in other countries.

This news being reported on one of the alphabet networks must have the Democrats pulling their hair out. ~X(

And his timing is just right. Remember in 2004 Madeline Albright speculated in the Green Room of a Sunday show that Bush probably had bin Laden captured and would show him before the election?

Nah, he didn’t need that to get re-selected er elected. He was saving that for the October surprise in this year’s election.

This just proves the theory by some people that he is the anti-Christ himself. Yessir. He causes natural disasters all the way back to the bubonic plague, kills people with impunity and deserves to be impeached this very moment because the energy prices are so high. This according to Lou Dobbs in one of his fits last week.

Seriously, I’ve tried to make this post tongue-in-cheek and have had fun at President Bush’s expense. He is a man I personally admire even with his warts and all.

I do want to say that the jobs coming back home are a wonderful thing to happen for the American workers. I also recognize they are not enough jobs to give all those who want to work a job, but maybe it’s a start, and a darned good one at that.

We can’t let this be a big story though because then Obama will have absolutely nothing to campaign on except his experience and his vision for America’s future. There’s no there, there.

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What a terrific form of storytelling country music is today and has always been.

This recent Trace Adkins recording is no exception:

Enjoy!

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I don’t know what denomination this is, but I know some it is not. It may be Baptist as it is full immersion baptism in the strongest sense of the word.

Watch the second boy get baptized.

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The wall has been hit.

This he said, he said, they said, she said election cycle has taken its toll.

Later will be soon enough (for me) to have the desire to read one more word about either of the two men who are the leading contenders for the big chair. Heck, it seems most of what I read is negative and who needs that in their life on a daily basis?

Thought I’d just share a little George Jones..guess it just suits my mood at the moment.

A little something more I’d like to share are these two paragraphs written by Sgt. Nichols in response to this post:

If you happen to believe in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness… and that people deserve a fair shake in life and that those less fortunate sometimes need an extra boost, and that children are special no matter where they come from and that America is still a place that values hard work, self-determination, fair play and rooting for the underdog… well, then you are and I are more alike than different. I don’t care if you call yourself liberal or conservative, democrat or republican or something else. It don’t matter to me what race, religion, gender or any other whatnot that you may use to describe yourself with, if you believe what I described above and call yourself American, then you and me are the same.

And I love you all the more for it! So don’t get hung up on labels and embrace being American, a citizen of the greatest country on the face of God’s green earth!

Amen!

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This parody of Jimmy Dean’s Big John was produced by the “Texans for John Cornyn”. touting the Senator’s campaign for re-election: HT:Hot Air

Rather enjoyable as campaign ads go I suppose, but even better is this video which is a tribute to a true “Big John.”

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We live in an age where scams and identity theft are a serious problem. Many lives are altered forever each year by those who prey on the innocent.

An example of the just how despicable these individuals are is detailedhere.

A scam using the American Red Cross brand is conning military families into believing that a loved one in the service has been injured overseas so that the perpetrators can steal personal data or ask for a donation to the charity.

The nonprofit’s Office of Investigations, Compliance and Ethics says the caller contacts a spouse or another family member of a person in the military and identifies himself as a representative of the Red Cross. The caller then states that the service member has been injured while on duty in Iraq and is being, or will be, airlifted to Germany for treatment and care. The OICE warns that the caller may ask for additional information about the service member, such as date of birth or Social Security number.

It’s not like those with a loved one deployed don’t already have enough on their plate. How heartless are those who would stoop to these levels?

Hopefully a successful investigation of these thieves will ensue and a dear price will be paid for their crimes.

HT: MilBlogs

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There are many, many children who cut their teeth, so to speak, on Sesame Street.

Heck, there are lots of adults I have known over the years who have gotten one of the catchy tunes performed by those crazy Muppets stuck in their head for days on end. Those who know me well would say I have been guilty of attempting to sing a few of them myself.

Today when reading this article it took me aback though. Has it really been that long?

NEW YORK, June 20 (UPI) — The U.S. children’s TV program “Sesame Street” announced it will welcome its first Indian-American cast member when its 39th season begins this summer.[emphasis-mine]

The character Leela is described as someone who embraces her heritage and culture as she begins her new life in the neighborhood, working in the laundromat next to Hooper’s Store. The show said she enjoys singing, dancing and helping her friends on “Sesame Street.”

Thirty-nine years young..that is what this show has maintained throughout the years, and those of us who have had young children in our midst over those years or even for brief periods of these episodes will no doubt remember a few of the following clips:

Back to the adult world tomorrow but for now I’d like to pass along one of my favorite scenes from Sesame Street which was used many times over as a teaching tool for the alphabet.

Jim Henson would be proud that after all these years his creation is still going strong.

Have a great weekend all and hope this brings out a bit of the child in all of you or at the very least stirs up one or two fond memories.

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The following are the most recent national campaign ads the two presumptive presidential nominees have approved for distribution.

First, John McCain’s ad which began airing this past week:

Now Senator Obama’s ad which will begin airing on Friday:

Now, if you knew absolutely nothing about these two individuals would either of these ads sell you on their capacity to hold the Office of the Presidency?

While the current President may not be popular according to the polls, he does have those who have remained loyal to him. Is it in John McCain’s favor to continue to remind those in that category that he bucked President Bush so often in his 8 years in office?

It is fine that the Senator stood on principle and held to his beliefs, however, his attempt to convince voters that he was far brighter than a sitting president is presumptuous to say the least.

This particular ad offers no solutions and does not introduce the candidate in a way which, at least in my opinion, would convince those on the fence that he is the best man for the job.

On the other hand, the ad produced by the Obama campaign puts him right in your living room. Putting all the politics aside, it leaves you with a knowledge of the mans life.

Many could probably relate to the short story he tells. Working class parents, financing their own way through college and strong family values.

Again, if you knew nothing of what has transpired in the lives or politics of either man, which would you choose just based on these ads?

Just one opinion and a little advice (while I appreciate it makes absolutely no difference what I think) for John McCain.

We all know of your military service and sacrifice and it is admired.

You have made it clear more than once that you think you have had many ideas which you felt were superior to that of President Bush and your GOP colleagues in the Senate.

But, and this is a big but, you still have not found a way to “connect” with a vast majority of voters. You have not yet managed to get into our living rooms. Don’t address us as your “friend” but rather as citizens who deeply cares about this election.

As for Senator Obama, he has had the fortune of the press giving his candidacy a great tailwind but I believe there is something larger than that afoot.

People seem to have grown very weary of the old school politicians, those who have been in power and in so many eyes have in one way or another failed the general public.

Many in the electorate seem delighted with the new voice, new face, new rhetoric. Few are reading between the lines yet many understand that in campaigns much is said which will never again come to the surface when a nominee sits in the big chair.

We still have a way to go and maybe the debates will offer a better understanding of each of these men.

At least I hope so.

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This may be the first pledge Obama has broken but he’s not president yet. Usually they wait until elected to show their true colors.

In a web video to supporters — “the people who built this movement from the bottom up” — Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, announced this morning that he will not enter into the public financing system, despite a previous pledge to do so.

“We’ve made the decision not to participate in the public financing system for the general election,” Obama says in the video, blaming it on the need to combat Republicans, saying “we face opponents who’ve become masters at gaming this broken system. John McCain’s campaign and the Republican National Committee are fueled by contributions from Washington lobbyists and special interest PACs. And we’ve already seen that he’s not going to stop the smears and attacks from his allies running so-called 527 groups, who will spend millions and millions of dollars in unlimited donations.”

In November 2007, Obama answered “Yes” to Common Cause when asked “If you are nominated for President in 2008 and your major opponents agree to forgo private funding in the general election campaign, will you participate in the presidential public financing system?”

Obama wrote: “In February 2007, I proposed a novel way to preserve the strength of the public financing system in the 2008 election. My plan requires both major party candidates to agree on a fundraising truce, return excess money from donors, and stay within the public financing system for the general election. My proposal followed announcements by some presidential candidates that they would forgo public financing so they could raise unlimited funds in the general election. The Federal Election Commission ruled the proposal legal, and Senator John McCain (R-AZ) has already pledged to accept this fundraising pledge. If I am the Democratic nominee, I will aggressively pursue an agreement with the Republican nominee to preserve a publicly financed general election.”

How many more promises will he break before the election? How much money does one man need to become president? Apparently Obama thinks it’s more than $84 million. Don’t you think a man who cares so much about the plight of the poor would redirect those donations to the poor he claims to care about? Nah. This is politics and they all lie. It’s just that usually they expose their lies after the election.

Let’s see if the presidency can be bought once again. Senator Obama, you are a disgrace.

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In a speech in Springfield, MO, yesterday John McCain called for the nation to get back into the nuclear power business and find a way to make coal cleaner.

Sen. John McCain called Wednesday for the construction of 45 new nuclear reactors by 2030 and pledged $2 billion a year in federal funds “to make clean coal a reality,” measures designed to reduce dependence on foreign oil.

In a second straight day of campaigning devoted to the energy issue, the Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting also said the only time Democratic rival Barack Obama voted for a tax cut was for a “break for the oil companies.”

McCain said the 104 nuclear reactors currently operating around the country produce about 20 percent of the nation’s annual electricity needs.

“Every year, these reactors alone spare the atmosphere from the equivalent of nearly all auto emissions in America. Yet for all these benefits, we have not broken ground on a single nuclear plant in over thirty years,” he said. “And our manufacturing base to even construct these plants is almost gone.”

Even so, he said he would set the country on a course to build 45 new ones by 2030, with a longer-term goal of adding another 55 in the future.

“We will need to recover all the knowledge and skills that have been lost over three stagnant decades in a highly technical field,” he conceded.

My husband worked for a nuclear power plant for over 20 years, and we know how safe it is. We have at least three nuclear power plants almost in our backyard and I live in no fear of them.

If we can get the politicians to agree to allow more nuclear energy we can take care of our electricity needs. The same thing for coal if we can find a way to make it cleaner, but you know what? When I was a girl everyone burned coal and somehow we all lived through it.

If we can get the federal politicians and the state officials involved we can drill for oil 50 miles off our own coasts and in ANWR. In fact, those in the ANWR region would love to have us drill there. It may be “pristine”, but who gets to see it? The caribou will survive as the area being talked about is about the size of South Carolina and ANWR is much larger than that.

We have taken going green to the extreme, while those who espouse its values are using more and more energy than before. I read just yesterday that, despite trying to “green up” his house, Al Gore is using 10% more energy than he used last year. And he’s the world face of conservation. If memory serves me he is using as much energy in one month at his house as 20 houses would use in a month.

For just him and Tipper? They must have one heck of a Christmas display in December!

It may seem like it, but I’m not picking on Al Gore. As far as I’m concerned he’s yesterday’s news, but for a man to accept a Nobel Peace prize, grammy and Academy Award by espousing energy savings it just seems a bit hypocritical to me.

Let’s listen to what McCain says and try to implement it instead of talking it to death. This applies even if Obama is elected. We have an energy crisis in our country and it is not caused by our President. It has been caused by past congresses, governors and presidents. The game is up and people are having to choose whether to stay warm, drive to the grocery store, or even get groceries because some nut has convinced the farmers to grow corn for ethanol, which is even more expensive than gasoline.

It’s time for us to be Americans and stand up to the challenge. We can do it!

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Whenever I hear of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas I’m always skeptical. Here’s the main reason:

A long-sought truce between Israel and Gaza militants went into effect early Thursday, with the aim of halting militant attacks and a bruising Israeli blockade that have made life unbearable for people living on both sides of the border.

A day of intense Palestinian rocket and mortar fire and Israeli air reprisals on Wednesday underscored just how fragile the Egyptian-brokered agreement would be. Hamas security reported that the Israeli navy fired four shells into the waters off Gaza City after the truce began; the military had no immediate comment. Hamas has run the territory since seizing control a year ago.

It seems to me if someone is going to have a truce and announce it days ahead of such truce, the parties involved would stop killing each other when they’ve announced they are going to have a truce. It’s a goodwill gesture.

But Hamas isn’t as interested in a truce as it is in having the time to get stronger so they can attack with impunity once they have restocked their supplies and opened their supply lines again.

Israel is an island unto itself in that region; surrounded by enemies on all sides with the exceptions of Jordan and Egypt, and in my opinion, if push came to shove Jordan and Egypt would go against Israel once again.

The other day I received an “urgent” mailing requesting money of course. $144 to be exact. I don’t know the person who sent the letter, although I have heard of some of the people on the board of prayer warriors.

What made me throw it into the trash was a sentence that went something like “We must not let these people stop God’s prophecy regarding Jerusalem.” Pretty strong statement, but if it’s God’s prophecy that Jerusalem will not be divided again (and it is) how is any man or any amount of money going to stop it?

We have prophecies in Ezekiel telling of a big war in Israel; so bad that God does intervene so Israel isn’t destroyed.

I pray for peace in Jerusalem every day, as instructed by the Lord, but I also know certain things will come to pass over which no single human being has any control. I don’t consider the anti-Christ to be human, nor his false prophet.

I’m considering a trip to Israel in March, but I’m carefully considering it since my husband has bad legs and doesn’t want to take a chance of blood clots on such a long journey.

If I don’t make it this time I will probably never get to see it in this lifetime, but I know I will dwell in the New Jerusalem after that.

Always be a friend to Israel and you will always be blessed for it, but don’t do it just for the blessing; do it because it’s the right thing to do. Shalom!

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~J~ told us the other day of family situations which will she says will limit her posts for a while.

The summer is a difficult time for most and with all the additional yard work and outdoor activities added to my usual schedule I felt as though I must also say that posts will be very limited for me.

I hope those who do now stop by daily will continue to do.

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Last evening CBS ran a special offered by the AFI which listed their selection of the top ten movies in ten categories.

As they covered “Courtroom Movies” I could think of many which might qualify, but this scene from the original version of Twelve Angry Men, one of the winners, stands out in my opinion as one of the best ever:

What powerful life lessons are portrayed by these fine actors.

There were many classic and more recent films honored on the program and by following the links available at CBS you are afforded all the choices of the American Film Institute.

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My bet is Congressman Murtha will go into hiding over the next few days.

After all, he won’t want to be questioned again about why yet another Marine’s charges have been dropped in relation to Haditha.

Charges against the Battalion Commander of the Haditha Marines have been dropped.

While it remains to be seen if the charges will be filed again in the case of Lt. Col. Chessani, the fact remains that not one Marine has been found guilty of the charges levied against them primarily stemming from a Time Magazine reporters account.

Head on over to Blackfive with the link above for all the details. The only thing I might add to this final sentence penned by Uncle Jimbo:

Shame on you Mr. Murtha you disgraced yourself, the Congress and earned the disgust of 99% of the US military.

is that there were also many civilians angry at the press in general for their handling of this case but the contempt felt for Congressman Murtha far outweighed even that.

More here.

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Here’s a duckling snoring. Sooo cute!

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Yesterday there were many pieces written by bloggers addressing the situation the AP has created over copyright infringement.

While I appreciate the time and effort in each of the above links and many others, this has to be my favorite of the day.

Thanks to Mr. Simon we have discovered once again the reason the AP may dislike the blogosphere.

Are you happy? Arthur Brooks outlines why we are.

For all the bluster we have heard over the past two years it seems to always come down to this:

Democrats in the Congress, who came to power last year on a call to end the combat in Iraq, will soon give President George W. Bush the last war-funding bill of his presidency without any of the conditions they sought for withdrawing U.S. troops, congressional aides said on Monday.

The real news would be that they backed up their rhetoric with action and eliminated all the war funding.

Sweet! Sorry, couldn’t resist.

It’s funny how what goes around comes around.

It’s just everything else about these two men which is polar opposite.

Have a great Tuesday!

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Loved this movie and Aretha stole the show in this scene.

Just a little something to [hopefully] bring a smidgen of enjoyment to your day.

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Perhaps not so interesting in the sense that Barack Obama has added former Clinton aide Patti Solis Doyle to his staff but more intriguing as to the position she will assume:

FLINT, Mich.– The Obama campaign announced on Monday that it has chosen Patti Solis Doyle to a key general election post, making her the first prominent Clinton official to make the leap to the other side.

But it is not exactly being seen by Clinton loyalists as an olive branch.

Obama is installing Solis Doyle as chief of staff to the future vice presidential nominee, who has not yet been picked. Given that Solis Doyle was fired from the Clinton campaign, is now at odds with several senior officials who remained and has a strained relationship with Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton herself these days, the appointment may well signal that Clinton’s chances of being picked for the vice presidential slot are close to nil.

Although Solis Doyle devoted her adult life to working for Clinton and once counted her among her closest friends, her departure from the campaign was a rough one. Loyalists openly blamed her for the internal warring and strategic failures; after she left, Clinton expressed hard feelings toward Solis Doyle for the way money had been spent. Fairly or not, Solis Doyle is not the person the Obama campaign would pick to send a signal that it is about to welcome Clinton on board. If anything, some Clinton loyalists privately said, it is an insult.

I don’t know how Mrs. Clinton would come back to work so closely with Ms. Doyle if she were the Vice Presidential nominee, however, there are many things about politics which I don’t understand as of late.

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Enjoy!

Much of the same could be said for a woman!

Video courtesy of Paul Aldrich

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Relax, kick back and enjoy your special day!

A heartwarming tribute to his Dad from Colin McNickle:

He taught me that the only acceptable handshake was a firm handshake. “And look into their eyes,” he said.

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When I read or hear a statement such as this:

“If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun,” Obama said. “Because from what I understand folks in Philly like a good brawl. I’ve seen Eagles fans.”

it just adds to the list of things which leave me less than inspired about our choices in the upcoming election. Knives and guns interjected into a presidential race. Nice.

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