Inflatable Doll

So a guy goes into an adult store and asks for an inflatable doll .
The clerk asks him ,
"Male or female ?"
Male he answers .
"Black or white" asks the clerk .
White he answers .
"Christian or Muslim ?" asks the clerk .

"How does religion fit in this ?" asks the guy .


" The Muslim one blows herself up !"

State of the Union

Photo by Katie Falkenberg Washington Times

George Bush on the state of the union January 23 , 2007 :

This is a decent and honorable country-and resiliant , too . We have
been
through a lot together. We've met challenges and faced dangers , and we
know
that more lie ahead . Yet we can go forward with confidence- because
the State
of our union is strong ...our cause in the world is right...and
tonight that
cause goes on .

God Bless

Such was the ending of the President's State of the Union speech last night , in which he outlined a few things he would like Congress to do as we enter this time of Democrat control of Congress . He is hopeful they will work together in a bi-partisan way that simply doesn't exist today .

He has presided over the growth of our economy , the creation of millions of new jobs , low unemployment , low inflation , and rising wages , but his opponents will surely downplay those achievements by telling us they are at the expense of the average workers in the country .

They tell us that rising corporate profits do not benefit us at all , only the money-grubbing corporations and their CEOs .

The President wants to continue to work on balancing the budget without raising taxes , partly by imposing spending discipline in Congress ( by the way , his regime has not done quite that yet ) , and restraining the spending appetite of the Federal government , cutting earmarks ( another thing his folks did not do ) , and reforming the budget process .

None of this will wash with the Democrats , of course . They are "progressive" to a fault and will fight him all the way . Some changes will occur , but if the Liberals have their way , all changes will be to their specifications , not worked out in a bi-partisan fashion .

Most of the rest of the speech was nothing new , even the comments on Medicare , Medicaid , and Social Security .

Bush's comments on the war on terror and the Iraq war were just reiterations of what we have been hearing plenty of lately , nothing new there .

In my view the speech was not great , nor was it revealing . More revealing was the Democrat "response" by Senator Jim Webb of Virginia , which as has been in many years past produced beforehand , and designed to be in opposition to anything offered in the President's speech . Webb even said :

It would not be possible in this short amount of time to actually rebut
the President's message , nor would it be useful .

Silence Global Warming Critics

So , if you can't prove your theory , just silence the critics !
Hard to believe , but the Weather Channel people think TV weathermen should not be certified if they don't agree with Global Warming . No open minded people allowed .
Read this
http://epw.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressRoom.Blogs&ContentRecord_id=32abc0b0-802a-23ad-440a-88824bb8e528 from a blog on the U S Senate Commitee on Environment and Public Works website .

Posted by Marc Morano 202-224-5762 marc_morano@epw.senate.gov (8:50pm ET)

The Weather Channel’s most prominent climatologist is advocating that
broadcast
meteorologists be stripped of their scientific certification if
they express
skepticism about predictions of manmade catastrophic global
warming. This latest
call to silence skeptics follows a year (2006) in which
skeptics were compared
to "Holocaust Deniers" and Nuremberg-style war crimes
trials were advocated by
several climate alarmists.

The
Weather Channel’s (TWC) Heidi
Cullen, who hosts the weekly global warming
program "The Climate Code," is
advocating that the American Meteorological
Society (AMS) revoke their "Seal of
Approval" for any television weatherman
who expresses skepticism that human
activity is creating a climate
catastrophe.

"If a meteorologist
can't speak to the
fundamental science of climate change, then maybe the AMS
shouldn't give
them a Seal of Approval. Clearly, the AMS doesn't agree that
global warming
can be blamed on cyclical weather patterns," Cullen wrote in her
December 21
weblog on the Weather Channel Website.
Cullen’s call for decertification of TV weatherman who do not agree with
her global warming assessment follows a year (2006) in which the media,
Hollywood and environmentalists tried their hardest to demonize scientific
skeptics of manmade global warming. Scott Pelley, CBS News 60 Minutes
correspondent, compared skeptics of global warming to "Holocaust deniers" and
former Vice President turned foreign lobbyist Al Gore has repeatedly referred to
skeptics as "global warming deniers."

Yes , if deniers of Global Warming are so wrong , they MUST be silenced !

Revisiting "Fairness Doctrine"

From http://www.fmqb.com/Article.asp?id=333927 FMQB.com :

Over the weekend, the National Conference for Media Reform was held in Memphis,
TN, with a number of notable speakers on hand for the event. Rep. Dennis
Kucinich (D-OH) made an(sic) surprise appearance at the convention
to announce that he would be heading up a new House subcommittee which will
focus on issues surrounding the Federal Communications Commission.

Here we go - Liberals simply can't imagine why Conservative based talk radio is successful and Liberal based radio is not . Advertisers would flock to "progressive" hosts and programs if the public was really in favor of them . The lack of advertising is probably why Air America has struggled , even reached the point of possibly filing for bankruptcy protection , while Limbaugh , Hannity , et al , grow and prosper .

In addition to media ownership, the committee is expected to focus its attention
on issues such as net neutrality and major telecommunications mergers. Also in
consideration is the "Fairness Doctrine," which required broadcasters to present
controversial topics in a fair and honest manner. It was enforced until it was
eliminated in 1987.
Kucinich said in his speech that "We know the media has
become the servant of a very narrow corporate agenda" and added "we are now in a
position to move a progressive agenda to where it is visible."

Thus is the plan of the new power bloc in Washington ; if they can't compete , the other side MUST be acting unfairly !
I listen to radio talk shows that appeal to me and my interests , and turn off ones that do not . Is that not what the dial is for ? When the Liberals can appeal to the masses , then they will be competitive . If a business has no customers , it goes out of business , or changes its product or service . Same should be true of political entities and parties . The Republicans need to do some refocussing also , since they have lost many followers recently .

After the housewarming

The Democrats have come out of the gate with some feel-good bills , but soon will find the going tougher .
Big promises made during the election resonated with the voters , but getting things done will be tougher than they thought , especially now that Pelosi has said they will not include Republicans in the process . This is a big mistake since their majority is so slim .
The reality of politics will loom large in the next few weeks as they try to meet the expectations of their supporters . The big problem will be the war . As they try to find ways to get out , Bush has begun to finalize a strategy plan which includes more troops initially and more effort from Iraq in making themselves more self-sufficient . These are ideas the Democrats ( at least some of them ) have said they wanted . They are going to be hard-pressed to get a definite timeline for withdrawal . This issue will be the main item that stymies compromise , as Bush will probably not budge from his positions much , and the Democrats , though claiming they want co-operation , have set the stage for none . The only compromise they want is for everyone to agree with them . They don’t seem to have a will to work together with anyone that disagrees with them .
Democrats also believe that if they say or do something , it must be the correct and only way , but Bush still has a veto pen handy . The majority is only one vote in the Senate , so they have to have 100% from their members plus a few Republicans in order to avoid ties , which Cheney could break with his vote .

Now , today on Bloomberg.com , I read that some freshmen Democrats are advising Pelosi to stick to the middle , because they will lose in '08 if the Democrats veer left as is their custom .
For example , Joe Donnelly (D , Indiana) signed up with the "Blue Dog'' Democrats, a group of 44 self-described conservative lawmakers who support balanced budgets and less business regulation and are open to accommodation with moderate Republicans.

"I want to represent Democrats and Republicans,'' he says. "I am going to
hit the ball down the middle.''

The article is here - http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a7WU1_xanUrI&refer=home

Mixed emotions

I have very mixed emotions about this situation , on one hand seeing the reasons for keeping Ashley small , and on the other , trying to understand whether the parents are more concerned for the girl or themselves .

This story is heart rendering and will cause commentary for a long time .
Read it here-on dailymail.co.uk

Hero in New York

Here is a guy that did the right thing , and says it was due to his Southern upbringing .
Wesley Autrey saw a young man collapse on the tracks of a New York subway , and after ensuring the safety of his daughters with bystanders , he jumped down and covered the young man between the tracks as the train passed overhead . He said only his cap was disturbed by the train . His experience in construction working in tight places helped him determine that there was room to avoid the train .

He has received rewards befitting his heroic act .
The story can be read here from Globeandmail.com