J's Cafe Nette

Archive for July, 2008

We have all, at one time or another, read posts by David talking about his freeloaders.

I finally got some photos from him of his freeloaders, who look quite loved indeed.

There is Elmo, a Welsh Corgi who has been in the show ring, Gracie, an eleven week old (here anyway) Welsh Corgi of a different color and Jax, a dog of unknown origins.

Enjoy the pictures:

Eleven week old Gracie and Buddy Elmo

Little Gracie at 11 weeks chewing a twig

Roughing up Elmo

Chillin' out with Elmo

Elmo finally gets a break

And now, beautiful Jax at seven years

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A trip down memory lane (for those of us old enough to remember).

Enjoy!

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For all you Hot Dog lovers out there, this site point to a few you might have never tasted (or even seen) before.

Here’s a sample of what you will find (all with photos included):

It may look modest compared to the rest of this list, but don’t let the lack of preposterous toppings fool you. The French Fry Hot Dog on a Stick will stick your arteries like Velcro. This South Korean specialty dog is covered in thick-cut french fries and deep fried. Top it with some melted cheese and you’re on your way to bypass boulevard. Read more about this hot dog here.

I think I’ll stick to that good old dog off the grill thanks! HT:Instapundit

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Most legislation submitted for consideration in Congress is difficult and time consuming to work through in its’ entirety.

Not so with H.R. 6615 authored by Representative Louis Gohmert (R-TX):

To provide for the transport of the enemy combatants detained in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to Washington, DC, where the United States Supreme Court will be able to more effectively micromanage the detainees by holding them on the Supreme Court grounds, and for other purposes.

Sure don’t see the possibility of this going much further than committee status but it would be fun to see it debated on the House floor.

Congressman Gohmert at the very least should receive credit for having the nerve to take on those Justices who believe that terrorists/enemy combatants have any protections afforded by the United States Constitution.

Check out the rest of the Bill..if nothing else you might get a good chuckle! HT: Hot Air

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Few can post their “Random Thoughts” and have them all make sense as Dr. Sowell does consistently.

Here is his latest compilation.

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A beautiful rendition of “You Raise Me Up” by Josh Groban.

I hope you enjoy!

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Looking back at the primaries, (seems like a hundred years ago already), I can honestly say that I was rather unimpressed with the fields on both sides of the aisle.

Senator Thompson, had he run a campaign which exhibited some sign of actually aspiring to the presidency would have been my first choice, followed by former Mayor, Rudy Giuliani (who also shot himself in the foot by believing Florida to be the most important state in the early going.) Mike Huckabee, Ron Paul and John McCain were very distant choices for me personally, as a matter of fact I did not find them to be what I feel is presidential material.

On the Left, I admired the tenacity and drive of Senator Obama in taking on the formidable Clinton organization. Personally I agreed with one aspect of “change” which was advocated by the Senator from Illinois campaign. No more Bush’s or Clinton’s. This country needs a chance to move past the divisions which have created due to the past twenty years. Yet, Obama is not a proven or tested leader on many fronts either.

It became apparent quickly that my thinking was not replicated by a majority of the voters, at least on the Right side of the aisle and so here I am. For the first time in all the years I have the right to vote, I find myself in a tug of war over two men, neither of which I see as Commander in Chief material.

In fairness though, I am not certain that I am willing to give either a real chance right now. The theatrics of this campaign season (and its longevity) have left me feeling rather drained.

He said, he said articles are the prevailing stories which after a period of time lose all their luster. Repetitive ads which again spend more time criticizing an opponent than laying out a plan for the future of America fall on deaf ears (and I don’t believe they are just mine.)

Some say it’s early yet, but we are ninety eight days from electing our next President and those who are not yet fully committed to a choice have a huge decision to make. Do they sit home and do nothing or will they vote half-heartedly for a candidate only because of party preference or choosing who they believe the lesser of two evils?

As for me, I am certain I will vote but it will be with far less enthusiasm than in the past. There has been no move on my part to assist in the election of either of the candidates, something which I have always done in the past for those I have believed in.

Please do not think I am passing judgment on those who enthusiastically have backed either Senator’s Obama or McCain as that is not my intent.

It could just be me and my personal feelings towards the entire process which is bogging me down. I read and hear so much constant criticism of both these men from both sides of the aisle that it is depressing in its own way. How can anyone with so many negatives be effective in Washington?

Will Americans just roll over and play dead if we elect someone who attempts to alter our lifestyle or the values which we have stood for ? I tend to think they would be in for one heck of a fight.

Yes, previous campaigns have also been laden with less than positive comments of an opponent. Yes, Presidents learn when in office. Yes, Congress will play a huge role in the success or failure of this country’s CEO. Yes, the media has the ability to assist in making or breaking any politician and yes this country will survive no matter which of these men is elected.

No, there has never been a perfect candidate for any office. No, absolutely no President, Senator or Congressman is without flaws. No, we don’t always get what we want, we live with what we get, as in everyday life.

Sorry for the rambling post, but this might explain why I have really backed off politics for quite some time. For me, there is no right answer this time around and if I cannot find positives to accentuate on one side, I refuse to condemn the other.

In the end, things will be as they will be and I for one will just be happy when November rolls around and the madness in over.

I’ll vote because then I have the right to criticize or applaud the candidate who is the victor.

I will always respect the Office of the Presidency..it is up to the man sitting in the chair to earn that same respect.

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From the Associated Press:

Columnist Robert Novak was diagnosed with a brain tumor on Sunday and admitted to a Boston hospital.

“On Sunday, July 27, I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. I have been admitted to Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, where doctors will soon begin appropriate treatment. I will be suspending my journalistic work for an indefinite but, God willing, not too lengthy period,” Novak, 77, said in a statement to his publisher, according to HumanEvents.com.

Human Events magazine is published by the same company that publishes the Evans-Novak Political Report, Eagle Publishing.

The diagnosis comes less than a week after Novak was cited in Washington, D.C., for failing to yield to a pedestrian. Novak struck a man while driving his convertible, although the man did not suffer serious injuries.

Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family.

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Obama-mania is in full swing, and between catching up on reading and trying to decipher the real from the fiction, my head is virtually swimming.

Frankly, I don’t give a whit if the Senator visited the wounded troops in Germany as in my mind it is his loss not theirs.

There is nothing new about the DOD regulations in regards to campaigns so I really don’t understand why there was any doubt in the Obama campaign’s mind as to who may attend and how these visits are conducted.

While he may have made a few “important” contacts while touring Europe, the Senator will find relationships may change drastically should he be elected President. Then again, should he be fortunate enough not to be a war time leader, personality and charisma may just carry the day.

In any event, the Senator is not the Commander in Chief at this moment and this whirlwind trip will no doubt be long forgotten by the time November rolls around.

That said, The Anchoress points us to a few pictures (one posted below) which are characteristic of our current President. He has no need for photo-ops this late in his Presidency and yet takes the time to spend a few minutes with these children prior to leaving Illinois:

I already miss the genuineness of this President. It is something we see far too little of these days and while there are those who would strongly disagree with that assessment, I’m one hundred percent with The Anchoress when she writes:

I still like President Bush. And I don’t actually give a crap what anyone thinks about that.

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I’m going to point you to three links on the same blog with charts to show why we haven’t begun to explore our own resources in getting oil so we wouldn’t have the prices at the pump and for heating we have now. Also remember that the price of oil affects the price of food. Think about this when you vote this year.

The first link is here.

The second comes from the same site and is here.

The third link also comes from the same site and is here with a timeline of the price of oil per barrel then and now.

Now, in case you missed the editorial I am going to point you to this Washington Post editorial.

WHY NOT have a vote on offshore drilling? There’s a serious debate to be had over whether Congress should lift the ban on drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf that has been in place since 1981. Unfortunately, you won’t be hearing it in the House of Representatives — certainly, you won’t find lawmakers voting on it — anytime soon.

Instead of dealing with the issue on the merits, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), a staunch opponent of offshore drilling, has simply decreed that she will not allow a drilling vote to take place on the House floor. Why not? “What the president would like to do is to have validation for his failed policy,” she said yesterday when asked that very question. “What we’re saying is, ‘Exhaust other remedies, Mr. President.’ . . . It is the economic life of America’s families, and to suggest that drilling offshore is going to make a difference to them paycheck to paycheck now is a frivolous contention. The president has even admitted that. So what we’re saying is, ‘What can we do that is constructive?’ ”

If there is an explanation buried in there about why that makes offshore drilling off-limits for a vote, we missed it. Ms. Pelosi is correct that drilling is no panacea for the nation’s energy woes. The short-term effect of lifting the moratorium, if there were any, would be minimal. That doesn’t mean the country shouldn’t consider expanded drilling as one of many alternatives. There are legitimate concerns about the environmental impact of such drilling — environmental concerns that, we would note, exist in other regions whose oil Americans are perfectly happy to consume. But have technological improvements made such drilling less risky? Why not have that debate?

Read the rest.

Pelosi, and to a little lesser extent, Reid are both leading their respective houses like dictators. No debate on anything they oppose and fear might be passed. Is this the purpose of Congress, or am I mistaken in believing they are there to represent their constituents, most of whom are suffering the effects of high oil and gas prices?

Think about this when you vote. It’s not just the presidency that’s important this year; the Congress is also important and if we allow the Democrats control or even greater control look for a depression instead of a recession.

Instead of humoring Kucinich with his mock impeachment hearing yesterday, why isn’t Congress working on the real problems of the country?

It would be easy to put a bumper sticker on my car stating “Don’t blame me. I voted Republican.” But that gets us nowhere unless we vote for the party not afraid to drill. With Hurricane Katrina not one drop of oil was spilled in the offshore platforms. This shows the knowledge is there and being used to make oil drilling more environmentally clean.

Call your congressman/woman and Senators and ask why we can’t drill for our own oil now so we can reap the benefits in a few years. Benefits we could have been reaping even now if not for stubborn Congresses and presidents.

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Barack Obama wrote a prayer and put it between the stones of the Western Wall in Jerusalem.

It was a personal prayer and one of Jerusalem’s newspapers apparently retrieved it and published the prayer.

This is something personal between Obama and God and should never have been published.

Shame on the paper for publishing it.

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I guess this is what Obama thinks is his best line as he’s used it in the US on the campaign trail and now in Berlin on the campaign trail. I wonder if he’ll use it in France?

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While Presidential candidate Barack Obama is on his whirlwind pre-victory lap in Europe, it seems there is an important stop he didn’t care enough to visit.

++ Visit to US Military Bases Cancelled ++

1:42 p.m.: SPIEGEL ONLINE has learned that Obama has cancelled a planned short visit to the Rammstein and Landstuhl US military bases in the southwest German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The visits were planned for Friday. “Barack Obama will not be coming to us,” a spokesperson for the US military hospital in Landstuhl announced. “I don’t know why.” Shortly before the same spokeswoman had announced a planned visit by Obama.

Landsthul is one of the places our wounded from Afghanistan and Iraq go for treatment. He couldn’t take the time to visit our wounded troops, but he could take time to work out and extend his trip by two hours.

According to ABC’s Political Punch blog Obama had other plans for his “down” time:

Obama noted that in a break from his whirlwind schedule, “we’ve got some down time tonight. What are you guys gonna do in Berlin? Huh? Huh? You guys got any big. plans? …I’ve never been to Berlin, so…I would love to tour around a little bit.”

Read letter at Black Five from an Air Force man in Afghanistan to see what “really” went on while Obama was there.

I’m just shaking my head.

Update According to C-Span Obama was not allowed at the military bases because he wanted to go there as a presidential candidate and not as member of Congress. All he had with him was his campaign staff. HT: Guss <):)

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By not allowing either house of congress to vote on whether or not to drill shale or drill in forbidden parts of the US, including offshore in Florida, the Gulf and California, not to mention ANWR being sacred ground, the Democrats have allowed the Republicans to have an issue to bring before the electorate that is a big pocketbook issue.

Nancy Pelosi refuses to allow a vote in the House, and Harry Reid is playing games and getting rude as he gets frustrated over bringing a real energy bill to the floor and not limiting the amendments to what he wants them to be.

About the only thing the Democrats in the House are willing to do is release some of the nation’s strategic oil reserves, which would amount to only about a three days’ supply.

Thursday’s bill would have released about 70 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, roughly a three-day supply. The reserve is designed to keep oil in stock in the event of an emergency.

The 268-157 vote in favor of releasing the oil was not enough to overcome a rule requiring a two-thirds supermajority to win the measure. With 425 House members voting, Democrats would would have needed 284 votes to pass the package.

But the loss isn’t without benefit to Democrats.

Democrats have been bringing energy-related bills to the floor with the two-thirds requirement in an effort to stave off GOP efforts on drilling offshore in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The two-thirds requirement prevents Republicans from offering amendments or other procedural tactics to get ANWR on the table. Many Democrats concede there’s probably enough support in the House to pass an ANWR drilling measure if it came up under normal, simple majority rules.

Democrats lashed out at Republicans in a news conference later in the afternoon.

“When they (Republicans) had a chance to vote on everything, they voted no. … Over half their caucus voted no” on the petroleum reserve bill, Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., told reporters, adding: “They’re against ‘all of the above.’ ”

Leading up to the vote, House Minority Leader John Boehner called the Democrats’ plan “a joke.”

“This bill’s a joke. Come on. We’re going to take 20 million barrels of light crude and we’re going to exchange it for $20 billion of heavy crude? This is not an energy bill. This is not going to produce any more American-made energy. It’s not going to bring down the prices. It’s just another excuse to avoid having a real vote on the House floor,” the Ohio Republican said.

Democrats said the release from the oil reserve could provide relief at the pump within two weeks, though they would not say how much it would help $4-per-gallon gas. Earlier releases, such as a 34 million barrel drawdown in 1991 during the Persian Gulf War, caused prices to fall.

As debate began, the White House threatened a veto. “Rather than drawing down a strategic reserve intended to protect our nation’s energy security from a severe supply disruption, Congress should pass legislation to increase domestic oil supply,” the White House said in a statement.

Emphasis mine.

We’ve heard all the arguments for years. It would take too long to be online to help. Well, if they had allowed us to drill in these areas ten years ago we’d be ten years closer to having it be a reality. We would probably already be enjoying the fruits of drilling on our own land and not depending on other countries for the majority of our oil.

My husband, who used to work in the nuclear power business, says it takes about ten years to get a nuclear plant built and up and running. How many nuclear plants are in the works now due to Congress’ refusal to allow it?

We could be refining our own oil if more refineries were allowed, but we seem to be at a halt there too.

I’m all for protecting the environment, but when it comes to heating a family’s house, is a spotted owl more important than a family of people?

When it comes to feeding your family, is a spotted owl or saving caribou that can live elsewhere worth increasing the price of food because the truckers have to pay more for fuel to get the food to the market?

Are these endangered animals worth the price of not being able to afford to go to work so you can feed your family and pay your bills?

I doubt God intended for man to go without because a few nutcases want to save a salamander or whatever.

All of the new technology makes it possible for us to drill and build in ecology-friendly environments. Why is Congress so stupid?

If John McCain and every Republican running for office doesn’t pound this home to the voters they deserve to lose. This is a winning issue. It is the issue of this campaign. It hits every American squarely in the wallet.

The Democrats have given the issue to the Republicans and it’s time for them to make hay while the sun shines.

And yes, we’ve had past Congresses with Republican leadership that haven’t been able to get over this hurdle either, but now is way past time for bickering and the time for action.

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Just listen to this and tell me the media are fair and balanced and reporting objectively:

Thrills running up the leg, going to cry, throwing away objectivity, love like a ninth grader, I think about you all night, too embarrassed to stand up? These are our professional news reporters? Ha!

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My sitemeter tells me someone is reading, but almost no one makes comments except Sue and me and occasionally Guss and David.

That’s OK, but I have a video I want to show you and would like to hear your opinion on the subject.

When I was still working almost all my co-workers in my work group were African-American. I have heard them use the “N” word describing someone else, and it was not in flattering or affectionate terms.

I’m Indian. I don’t refer to someone who is a friend as an “Injun”. So, why is the argument that African-Americans can use the word indiscriminately valid, but no person of any other race is allowed to use it as an “affectionate” term?

Thankfully, children of parents today (parents who care about how their children are raised) do not use the word. I’m sure my middle school grandchildren have been exposed to the word, but it is not in their vocabularies. (We never used those terms in front of our children. In fact, we never used them at all.)

They don’t mention the color of someone’s skin and have mixed-race parties. If they’re a friend it doesn’t matter the skin color. And I live in the deep South, even though I was raised in the Northeast.

I think the children growing up today are finally going to be the generation that stops the racial divide. I have great hope in them.

Your opinion, please. I promise we don’t bite and we won’t insult you on this blog, but if someone shows racism their comments will be altered or removed.

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The other night my husband put some canned tomatoes in a dish that seemed hot even to him, so he added ketchup! Yes, ketchup. Don’t ask me why. He didn’t mention it and when I had a helping of the dish my mouth burned for two hours. It had chilis in it. I don’t eat hot, spicy food.

I like spices in spaghetti sauce and other dishes, but not the hot kind. I don’t eat red peppers (the hot kind) or any other peppers if they are the least bit hot. I don’t even eat the peppers on a salad from Olive Garden or on pizzas from Papa John’s. I won’t touch the food that comes into contact with them, but eat from the other side of the container.

Now comes news that salmonella has been found on a single jalepeno in Texas.

Government inspectors finally have a big clue in the nationwide salmonella outbreak: They found the same bacteria strain on a single Mexican-grown jalapeno pepper handled in Texas — and issued a stronger warning for consumers to avoid fresh jalapenos.

But Monday’s discovery, the equivalent of a fingerprint, doesn’t solve the mystery: Authorities still don’t know where the pepper became tainted — on the farm, or in the McAllen, Texas, plant, or at some stop in between, such as a packing house.

Nor are they saying the tainted pepper exonerates tomatoes sold earlier in the spring that consumers until last week had been told were the prime suspect.

Still, “this genetic match is a very important break in the case,” said Dr. David Acheson, the Food and Drug Administration’s food safety chief.

For now, the government is strengthening its earlier precaution against hot peppers to a full-blown warning that no one should eat fresh jalapenos — or products such as fresh salsa made from them — until it can better pinpoint where tainted ones may have sold.

Tomatoes currently on the market, in contrast, now are considered safe to eat.

The Texas plant, Agricola Zaragoza, has suspended sales of fresh jalapenos and recalled those shipped since June 30 — shipments it said were made to Georgia and Texas.

If you like jalepenos be sure to eat them from a jar and not fresh until the all-clear has been given.

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Who is at fault for us not drilling for oil in our own land? Mostly it’s the Democrats in Congress and not just Obama.

In fact, I think McCain is against drilling in ANWR, but maybe he’ll see the light on that one too.

Here’s McCain’s latest ad on the prices of gas:

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The New York Times has refused to publish an op-ed piece by Sen. John McCain which rebuts an op-ed piece written by Barack Obama and published in the Times the previous week.

ABC’s Rick Klein and Sara Just report: This is not the easiest week for John McCain to get equal time in the media – not with so many journalists in the Middle East to report on Barack Obama’s trip there. And the New York Times op-ed page isn’t making it any easier.

As first reported by The Drudge Report, Sen. John McCain, R-AZ, submitted an opinion piece to the New York Times last week and the paper has rejected it.

A week earlier, the paper published an op-ed by Obama, about the Democrat’s plans for troop draw-down in Iraq. A few days later, the McCain campaign submitted a column rebutting the Obama piece.

According to McCain campaign staffers, the Times rejected the McCain piece and asked for a rewrite to respond directly to some of the claims in the Obama piece, and include an outline of the Republican’s timetable for withdrawal of U.S. troops in Iraq and conditions for withdrawal.

According to McCain campaign staffers, the rejection came Friday night from New York Times oped editorial page editor David Shipley via email:

“I’d be very eager to publish the Senator on the oped page. However I’m not going to be able to accept this piece as currently written,” Shipley writes, according to a copy of the message provided to ABC News.

“It would be terrific to have an article from Sen. McCain that mirrors Sen. Obama’s piece. To that end, the article would have to articulate, in concrete terms how Sen. McCain defines victory in Iraq. It would also have to lay out a clear plan for achieving victory — with troop levels, timetables and measures for compelling the Iraqis to cooperate.”

The McCain campaign has refused to rewrite the piece, saying that the Times’ suggestions are tantamount to insisting that he change his position in order to get his opinions published.

“John McCain believes that victory in Iraq must be based on conditions on the ground, not arbitrary timetables. Unlike Barack Obama, that position will not change based on politics or the demands of the New York Times.” said McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds.

The New York Times has not yet responded to requests for comment.

Drudge has published McCain’s piece and I am posting it here:

In January 2007, when General David Petraeus took command in Iraq, he called the situation “hard” but not “hopeless.” Today, 18 months later, violence has fallen by up to 80% to the lowest levels in four years, and Sunni and Shiite terrorists are reeling from a string of defeats. The situation now is full of hope, but considerable hard work remains to consolidate our fragile gains.

Progress has been due primarily to an increase in the number of troops and a change in their strategy. I was an early advocate of the surge at a time when it had few supporters in Washington. Senator Barack Obama was an equally vocal opponent. “I am not persuaded that 20,000 additional troops in Iraq is going to solve the sectarian violence there,” he said on January 10, 2007. “In fact, I think it will do the reverse.”

Now Senator Obama has been forced to acknowledge that “our troops have performed brilliantly in lowering the level of violence.” But he still denies that any political progress has resulted.

Perhaps he is unaware that the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad has recently certified that, as one news article put it, “Iraq has met all but three of 18 original benchmarks set by Congress last year to measure security, political and economic progress.” Even more heartening has been progress that’s not measured by the benchmarks. More than 90,000 Iraqis, many of them Sunnis who once fought against the government, have signed up as Sons of Iraq to fight against the terrorists. Nor do they measure Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki’s new-found willingness to crack down on Shiite extremists in Basra and Sadr City—actions that have done much to dispel suspicions of sectarianism.

The success of the surge has not changed Senator Obama’s determination to pull out all of our combat troops. All that has changed is his rationale. In a New York Times op-ed and a speech this week, he offered his “plan for Iraq” in advance of his first “fact finding” trip to that country in more than three years. It consisted of the same old proposal to pull all of our troops out within 16 months. In 2007 he wanted to withdraw because he thought the war was lost. If we had taken his advice, it would have been. Now he wants to withdraw because he thinks Iraqis no longer need our assistance.

To make this point, he mangles the evidence. He makes it sound as if Prime Minister Maliki has endorsed the Obama timetable, when all he has said is that he would like a plan for the eventual withdrawal of U.S. troops at some unspecified point in the future.

Senator Obama is also misleading on the Iraqi military’s readiness. The Iraqi Army will be equipped and trained by the middle of next year, but this does not, as Senator Obama suggests, mean that they will then be ready to secure their country without a good deal of help. The Iraqi Air Force, for one, still lags behind, and no modern army can operate without air cover. The Iraqis are also still learning how to conduct planning, logistics, command and control, communications, and other complicated functions needed to support frontline troops.

No one favors a permanent U.S. presence, as Senator Obama charges. A partial withdrawal has already occurred with the departure of five “surge” brigades, and more withdrawals can take place as the security situation improves. As we draw down in Iraq, we can beef up our presence on other battlefields, such as Afghanistan, without fear of leaving a failed state behind. I have said that I expect to welcome home most of our troops from Iraq by the end of my first term in office, in 2013.

But I have also said that any draw-downs must be based on a realistic assessment of conditions on the ground, not on an artificial timetable crafted for domestic political reasons. This is the crux of my disagreement with Senator Obama.

Senator Obama has said that he would consult our commanders on the ground and Iraqi leaders, but he did no such thing before releasing his “plan for Iraq.” Perhaps that’s because he doesn’t want to hear what they have to say. During the course of eight visits to Iraq, I have heard many times from our troops what Major General Jeffrey Hammond, commander of coalition forces in Baghdad, recently said: that leaving based on a timetable would be “very dangerous.”

The danger is that extremists supported by Al Qaeda and Iran could stage a comeback, as they have in the past when we’ve had too few troops in Iraq. Senator Obama seems to have learned nothing from recent history. I find it ironic that he is emulating the worst mistake of the Bush administration by waving the “Mission Accomplished” banner prematurely.

I am also dismayed that he never talks about winning the war—only of ending it. But if we don’t win the war, our enemies will. A triumph for the terrorists would be a disaster for us. That is something I will not allow to happen as president. Instead I will continue implementing a proven counterinsurgency strategy not only in Iraq but also in Afghanistan with the goal of creating stable, secure, self-sustaining democratic allies.

Fairness in the media? When all three major network anchors follow Obama on his foreign campaign trip and treat it as though he were already president? Then McCain can’t even publish his thoughts on the Iraq war? Fairness? What is fairness? Only the media know for sure.

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Headed to the Scranton, Pa. area for a few days with my daughter and grandkids.

I sure hope we don’t come across a situation such as described by Harry Chapin in this song: (LOL)

Having seen Chapin perform this live many years ago, (1971 to be exact), “Bananas” instantly came to mind when the journey to Scranton was suggested.

Below though, is one of my all time favorites by this performer who left this earth far too soon:

Have a great week all..I’ll post as soon as I am able.

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Check out these cars which were once owned by Saddam:

These are various cars found by the Coalition in downtown Baghdad. An accounting office from DoD was sent in to ‘inventory’ these and I was invited along as a resident gear head. They were reported to us by an ‘informant’ who detailed where they were. Several levels under ground, they had been there for some time and not used at all in years. Several of the newer ones were wrecked. We could never figure out why several were even notable enough to keep around. See how many you recognize!

That’s quite an inventory, wouldn’t you say?

Rick Moran never shies away from telling it like it is, no matter the political party. He did not break with his tradition in this post

It was two summers ago that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki visited Washington and addressed a joint session of Congress.

Except there were quite a few empty seats in the Chamber when the Prime Minister rose to speak. That’s because Democrats were boycotting Maliki’s historic appearance according to some, because he was an American “puppet” and not the head of an independent country.

That was then, this is now.

My choice for artist of the week? This baby elephant:

Add this to the very long list of reasons the United Nations is considered a useless organization by so many.

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A very appropriate song

for those who make a lot of noise, but take little action: HT:RCP

Gas is still at $4 a gallon, but the good news is there’s an emerging consensus on a measure that would help: Drill for more oil here at home. President Bush dropped the executive ban on offshore oil and natural gas exploration last week, and House GOP leader John Boehner plans to lead a congressional delegation to Colorado and Alaska to highlight America’s abundant energy resources this week. Polls show more than two-thirds of the public support increased domestic energy exploration and production. Guess who stands in the way.

Congress has its own ban on offshore energy exploration, and the Democrats who run Congress have shown no sign that they are willing to follow Bush’s example. They have preferred to make excuses–about why the price of oil is rising, who is to blame for its rise, and why increasing domestic supply won’t do anything to ameliorate the problem.

It isn’t working. Democrats are losing the fight over gas prices, and they know it, too.

Related and a must see at Instapundit.

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Andrea Mitchell interviews General Petraeus.

The General wastes no time in making his positions crystal clear..now only if the media would listen.

While the Democrats attempt to jockey for position to take credit for us “winning” in Iraq, (we all know it had to be that pressure they put on the President), their steady drumbeat of words fall on deaf ears with me.

This is the party whose leader told us the war was lost. Remember Mrs. Clinton’s “willing suspension of disbelief” of General Petraeus’s report to the Armed Services Committee?

How about the disgraceful actions and words of Congressman John Murtha?

We should not forget the continuous threats on the Left to cut funding for the war, knowing full well the American people would not tolerate our troops being left in further jeopardy.

As for the media, well they have done their level best to turn public opinion against the war and the President perhaps not realizing there are those of us who resent their constant negativity and lack of support and recognition for the successes achieved.

President Bush has remained steadfast in his claim that when Iraq was stable and their government was certain they could maintain the peace, we would leave. His recent conversations with Prime Minister Maliki are the beginning of that process, not some artificial time line the Democrats would prefer our troops and Iraq follow.

Wars are not won or lost by presidential nominees (especially those whose positions change like the wind) or those in Congress, many of whom have never set foot in today’s hostile environments.

No indeed, they are won by men and women like these:

Something a bit different this week, in keeping with our the war was won theme. This is a video produced by the Third Infantry Division (aka Task Force Marne and MND-C) the surge division in Iraq.

and, those who have stepped up to defend their own country as it struggles (as our nation did) to form a democracy:

Then there are times when the change hits you across the forehead like a 2×4. Yesterday I found inspiration in the tears of joy on hundreds of faces at the graduation for the Iraqi Military Academy at Rustimiyah as 252 young men graduated from the one year course of instruction and were commissioned as 2nd Lieutenants in the Iraqi Army and Air Force.

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I happened to run across an article about a product called “Lifesaver”, a water bottle much like a sports bottle, but it has a filter in it that can make the dirtiest and most contaminated water pure and safe for drinking. It does not filter out salt, so if you’re stuck in the ocean it won’t help you, but if you are ever in a situation when clean water is not available this is the product to have.

It’s a bit expensive, costing about $253 to be shipped from Great Britain, but there is a US distributor in Virginia, so maybe it won’t be so costly since shipping charges should be lower.

This is definitely something the disaster agencies and military should have on hand so the expense of shipping water only to have the containers thrown away, is greatly reduced. Also, you don’t have to pack as much water because any fresh water source will work.

For more information go here. For the US distributor go here. The cost is $229 plus shipping, so it’s not cheap…yet.

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Barack has bounced around like a rubber ball on the Iraq war. He plans to meet with General Petraeus after refusing to meet with him one on one in Washington on his campaign trip to the Middle East and Europe, but he has stated he won’t change his position no matter what he hears from Petraeus. So why bother to go?

Here’s Obama on his many positions on Iraq as compiled by the McCain campaign:

We try to be respectful of all candidates mentioned on this blog, but I can’t help but thinking his name should be Yo-YoBama, as he seems to be doing a lot of yo-yo moves.

In case you haven’t noticed, Sen. Obama is saying whatever his audience at the particular time he is talking wants to hear. What does he really stand for? We already had a president like this in Jimmy Carter and look where that got us. We already had a president who poll-tested everthing and that was Bill Clinton. We elect a leader to lead and not take the most popular stand if it stands in the way of the security of the United States and her people.

Change for the sake of change is nothing, and can be dangerous. Think before you vote. Do your own research to see how conveniently Mr. Obama switches positions to suit his base at any given time. Do you want a leader who will lead no matter the polls, or one who is constantly looking out for re-election and following the crowd who are not as informed as he? You get only one vote. Use it wisely.

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In life we all come across arrogant, self-righteous individuals who have difficulty admitting their own shortcomings or errors, but are remarkably quick at passing judgment on others.

People such as those described above can, in many instances, maneuver topics of conversation to their satisfaction and even sway opinions of others.

We expect to come across these people in everyday life but we should not expect this type of behavior from the Speaker of the House.

Maybe she’s right. The President may be a failure. A complete flop in exposing many of the Congressional members for what they are. Perhaps he should have thrown the words liar, Hitler
incompetent and buffoon around lightly.

Being a gentleman and respecting the office to which he was elected certainly didn’t buy him any points. Not pointing out (continuously) the arrogance of the leaders of both Houses hasn’t won him the respect of the press.

Running an administration with both hands tied behind his back under the perception that he stole an election and never correcting that notion by coming down hard on those who perpetrated those lies
has left that as a matter of truth to this day, in the minds of many.

Watching Republican after Republican members of Congress step down due to their own indiscretions and not coming to their defense was an enormous failure. After all, why should they be forced to take responsibility for their own actions?

The President should have been at the microphone every time one of these Senators or Congressmen were forced to vacate their seats due to impropriety. He should have pled their case to the American people or found that somehow it was the fault of the Democrats that they committed whatever offense it was with which they were accused. It all was a Vast Left Wing Conspiracy anyhow, right?

Yes, President Bush has been a terrible, miserable failure. He understood his primary duty as President of the United States and he fulfilled that charge well. Most were doing well monetarily also until the recent downturn in the economy and there were few complaints about their standard of living under this administration.

What a failure. World leaders did not respect this man. Funny, few of them hesitated to ask for or accept our assistance when needed.

This is a man, who has kept mine and yours from harm for the past 7 years (with a great deal of assistance from our men and women in uniform) and done it with humility, patience, perseverance, pride in this country, faith and fortitude.

He has accepted the slurs and constant condemnation of others with little more than a shake of the head.

An economy already in recession when he took office was righted quickly and remained stable for almost 7 years.

No Madame Speaker, President Bush not been perfect but if he is your definition of a failure, then I suppose what we require as a nation is a rock star president who accomplishes little, but boy, that star power will keep us all mesmerized.

Not to worry Ms. Pelosi. Your broom can be stored away in just a few months. No need to sweep up any more messes. Unless of course you wish to finally begin working on those which Congress has created and neglected to right for so long.

But, I won’t call you a failure. I understand. It just isn’t easy when you’re the top dog.

Keep at it. Maybe you can single-handedly save Congress from itself what with your exceptional approval ratings and all. Good luck.

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Not being much of a condiment person myself and definitely not one for spicy foods, I was a bit surprised when I took this simple quiz and the following was the result:

You Are Hot Sauce

You are the life of any party, because you’re so good at bringing people out of their shell. You have a knack for helping people happily embrace their true selves. You are ambitious, driven, and fearless. You love taking risks. Your taste in food is 100% adventurous. You’re up for sampling any exotic cuisine or someone’s kitchen experiments. You live for trying new things, and you get sick of eating the same food (even if it’s very delicious).

What Condiment Are You?

Wonder what you are?

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Where can you find deeply discounted home heating oil?

On the internet of course:

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. homeowners scared of paying through the roof for heating oil this winter are cruising online classified sites for deals on unwanted fuel — and finding them.

“I have an old pickup truck and I stock it with 50-gallon drums, and I have an oil transfer pump,” said Bob Difiore, a mechanic who lives on Long Island, outside New York City.

“I pull into people’s driveways and lower a hose through a window or other access points and I start pumping it into the drums.”

The deals are possible because many homeowners in the Northeast are switching from heating oil to cheaper natural gas or other alternative fuels, leaving them with tanks full of unused oil. And those still using heating oil are eager to snap it up at a discount as the oil market skyrockets.

“I just went on Craigslist one day and I saw someone selling heating oil. So I put an ad in there saying I was buying,” said Howard Urvine, a real estate agent in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Living in the Northeast in the winter can be a challenge when it comes to monthly utility bills. Those who must have oil delivered to heat their homes took quite a hit already last year.

If this oil is safe an usable then more power to those who do the research and are able to save some of their hard earned money.

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About the only show I watch on any news channel besides Fox and Friends in the mornings is Brit Hume’s show, “Special Report with Brit Hume”, at 6:00 pm. I love the panel discussion as well as the news delivered in a style that does not tell me what to think, but lets me decide for myself.

I was saddened to read he is going to step down at the end of the year.

Brit Hume, a top anchor and executive with Fox News since the channel was launched 12 years ago, plans to step down at year’s end. But he won’t disappear entirely.

Sources familiar with the situation say that Hume, 65, will give up his job as Washington managing editor and anchor of “Special Report,” the 6 p.m. show that has beaten the cable news competition for seven years. They say he is near a deal to continue with Fox in a senior-statesman role, not unlike that of NBC’s Tom Brokaw, for roughly 100 days a year.

Hume would be a senior political analyst, anchor for special events, panelist on “Fox News Sunday” and occasional substitute for the host, Chris Wallace.

I’m glad he’ll be spending more time with his family, while sad he’ll not be on every night. At least he’ll be around part-time, and I’ll enjoy watching the programs he’s on.

Hat tip: Betsy’s Page. <):)

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Aren’t these just the cutest things you’ve ever seen?

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