But It doesn't Work As Good As It Should

My last post disappeared when I clicked on publish post. The title remained, but the body of the post vanished. It worked the second time but I'm sure glad it wasn't a long one.

More Dutch Want Out

You may have to log in to read this article: More Dutch Plan to Emigrate as Muslim Influx Tips Scales

Leave this stable and prosperous corner of Europe? Leave this land with its generous social benefits and ample salaries, a place of fine schools, museums, sports grounds and bicycle paths, all set in a lively democracy?

The answer, increasingly, is yes. This small nation is a magnet for immigrants, but statistics suggest there is a quickening flight of the white middle class. Dutch people pulling up roots said they felt a general pessimism about their small and crowded country and about the social tensions that had grown along with the waves of newcomers, most of them Muslims."The Dutch are living in a kind of pressure cooker atmosphere," Mr. Hiltemann said.

I don't know how long it will take but the pressure cooker atmosphere will eventually blow. And it won't be pretty, never is.

Blogger Works!

I tried in vain to post yesterday but could not get past the dashboard. I hate it when that happens.

And Then What?

Tribals marry off boys, girls to puppies

Two small boys and two girls were married off to four puppies by tribal villagers in the small northern Indian state of Jharkhand to ward off evil, a report said on Wednesday.

I would ask how exactly this is supposed to ward off evil but I don't think I really want to know. What happens next? Do they move out and into their own doghouse and live happily ever after? Do they really live together as puppy and wife? The things people do. Unbelievable.

Stealing Home

High Court to Hear Property Seizure Case

"He said increased tax revenue is enough of a legal basis for the city to exercise the power of eminent domain and compel the residents to sell their homes."

Eminent domain abuse is before the U.S. Supreme court. It should be a no brainer but there's no telling where this court will stand.

If a city wanted to seize property in order to turn a "Motel 6 into a Ritz-Carlton, that would be OK?" Justice Sandra Day O'Connor asked.

"Yes, your honor, it would be," Horton replied.

There's a lot riding on this decision. If they rule in favor of the city, watch out, they could be stealing your home next.

For more information about eminent domain abuse visit Castle Coalition

Bermuda High

Lurking storm blocker bad omen for season

If the high lingers there through the summer and fall, Florida could be nature's punching bag for yet another hurricane season.

There are still a lot of blue roofs all over (tarps) and the insurance companies still haven't settled with so many people. The whole situation is ridiculous and it won't be much better when hurricane season starts again. We will not be ready if we get another strong season.

Processed

The wonderful world of legal murder

Michael Schiavo wants Terri's feeding tube removed. That will kill her. She will die a prolonged, painful death from starvation and dehydration. He says she'd want that, but he has no written proof. He just says it, and has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in the legal system to get his wife dead.

Terri's family is Roman Catholic. Her parents say she wouldn't allow this. They've spent every dime they have in a legal battle with their son-in-law to keep their daughter alive and care for her for the rest of her life.

I can't understand why Michael Schiavo is so dedicated to killing his wife. Her parents would love nothing more than to take care of her for the rest of her life. There's something more to the story than meets the eye. He just needs to walk away, why put her parents through all this pain?

It's not because she said she wouldn't want to be kept alive like this. No. People say things like that all the time, I have. I knew a man who said he wouldn't go into a hospital to die with the tubes and everything that goes with it. He meant it, he believed it. I believed him. When the time came, he died in the hospital, just like he didn't want to go. And, you know, I don't think any less of him for it. The will to live is very strong.

Can of Worms

Here's a good one. You would never imagine a respected scientist to lie or manipulate data, would you? Oh, no! And carbon dating is so accurate, evolutionists worship it's results.

Anthropologist resigns in 'dating disaster'

Reiner Protsch von Zieten, a Frankfurt university panel ruled, lied about the age of human skulls, dating them tens of thousands of years old, even though they were much younger, reports Deutsche Welle.

"The commission finds that Prof. Protsch has forged and manipulated scientific facts over the past 30 years," the university said of the widely recognized expert in carbon data in a prepared statement.

Among their findings was an age of only 3,300 years for the female "Bischof-Speyer" skeleton, found with unusually good teeth in Northern Germany, that Protsch dated to 21,300 years.

Another dating error was identified for a skull found near Paderborn, Germany, that Protsch dated at 27,400 years old. It was believed to be the oldest human remain found in the region until the Oxford investigations indicated it belonged to an elderly man who died in 1750.

Certain sciences have become agenda based and they ignore the facts staring them straight in the face - and they teach lies.

We took the kids fishing today and this is the first fish James ever caught, he was so happy. It was an absolutely beautiful day.

This is the bass James caught. He was afraid to hold it with his hands. It was his first bass.

Irma caught this little fish, I don't know how, the lure is almost as big as the fish. She redeemed herself later, when she caught a bass.

Right and Wrong

I've said it before and I'll say it again: America is losing its ability to distinguish right from wrong.

You can say that again, Joseph Farrah.

When a nation is unable to distinguish right from wrong, it is no longer capable of self-government.

I fear America is very near that point.

I don't know who wrote the following but it fits here.

In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I
think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found recently) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK.

Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school the Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said OK.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell! Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says.

A recent post of mine quoted Ron Dart, who distilled it down to this:

the form of revealed worship of God keeps us mindful of our duties to God. And our duty to God guarantees our duty to our fellow man. This means that when we neglect our duty to God, our social fabric will eventually begin to unravel.

Well, it's been unraveling before our eyes and we've just let it happen. The Ten Commandments are as automatic and constant as the laws of physics. If you jump out of an airplane at 20,000 feet, it doesn't matter if you believe in the law of gravity or not, nothing matters but the truth - you're not going to live through it.

Of Course

Judge drops all charges against Philly Christians

How could they do anything else? The whole thing was pathetic.

"The judge saw this case for what it is," Joe Infranco, senior counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, said in a statement. "This was the right response to an outrageous abuse of power to silence speech that some people didn't like.

"What took place here was a government crackdown on disfavored speech. The OutFest participants staged a national coming-out day on a public street using public funds, and then they tried to say it's a private event. That didn't make any sense, and neither did the actions of the police. …"

Outrageous abuse of power is right, how about taking the people responsible out of the system?

"This ends only the first chapter in the 'Philadelphia 11' saga. The next chapter is federal action against the officers and city of Philadelphia. We are still calling for the Department of Justice to investigate the corruption and profound abuse of power that we have seen in Philadelphia."

Good. I hope it works.

Islam And The Dead Parrot

You have to be familiar with the Monty Python sketch to get this and it's a long way around to make a point but it's true.

The sketch:

A customer enters a pet shop.

Mr. Praline: 'Ello, I wish to register a complaint.

(The owner does not respond.)

Mr. Praline: 'Ello, Miss?

Owner: What do you mean "miss"?

Mr. Praline: I'm sorry, I have a cold. I wish to make a complaint!

Owner: We're closin' for lunch.

Mr. Praline: Never mind that, my lad. I wish to complain about this parrot what I purchased not half an hour ago from this very boutique.

Owner: Oh yes, the, uh, the Norwegian Blue...What's,uh...What's wrong with it?

Mr. Praline: I'll tell you what's wrong with it, my lad. 'E's dead, that's what's wrong with it!

Owner: No, no, 'e's uh,...he's resting.

Mr. Praline: Look, matey, I know a dead parrot when I see one, and I'm looking at one right now.

Owner: No no he's not dead, he's, he's restin'! Remarkable bird, the Norwegian Blue, idn'it, ay? Beautiful plumage!

Mr. Praline: The plumage don't enter into it. It's stone dead.

Owner: Nononono, no, no! 'E's resting!

Mr. Praline: All right then, if he's restin', I'll wake him up! (shouting at the cage) 'Ello, Mister Polly Parrot! I've got a lovely fresh cuttle fish for you if you show...

(owner hits the cage)

Owner: There, he moved!

Mr. Praline: No, he didn't, that was you hitting the cage!

Owner: I never!!

Mr. Praline: Yes, you did!

Owner: I never, never did anything...

Mr. Praline: (yelling and hitting the cage repeatedly) 'ELLO POLLY!!!!! Testing! Testing! Testing! Testing! This is your nine o'clock alarm call!

(Takes parrot out of the cage and thumps its head on the counter. Throws it up in the air and watches it plummet to the floor.)

Mr. Praline: Now that's what I call a dead parrot.

Owner: No, no.....No, 'e's stunned!

Mr. Praline: STUNNED?!?

Owner: Yeah! You stunned him, just as he was wakin' up! Norwegian Blues stun easily, major.

Mr. Praline: Um...now look...now look, mate, I've definitely 'ad enough of this. That parrot is definitely deceased, and when I purchased it not 'alf an hour ago, you assured me that its total lack of movement was due to it bein' tired and shagged out following a prolonged squawk.

Owner: Well, he's...he's, ah...probably pining for the fjords.

Mr. Praline: PININ' for the FJORDS?!?!?!? What kind of talk is that?, look, why did he fall flat on his back the moment I got 'im home?

Owner: The Norwegian Blue prefers keepin' on it's back! Remarkable bird, id'nit, squire? Lovely plumage!

Mr. Praline: Look, I took the liberty of examining that parrot when I got it home, and I discovered the only reason that it had been sitting on its perch in the first place was that it had been NAILED there.

(pause)

Owner: Well, o'course it was nailed there! If I hadn't nailed that bird down, it would have nuzzled up to those bars, bent 'em apart with its beak, and VOOM! Feeweeweewee!

Mr. Praline: "VOOM"?!? Mate, this bird wouldn't "voom" if you put four million volts through it! 'E's bleedin' demised!

Owner: No no! 'E's pining!

Mr. Praline: 'E's not pinin'! 'E's passed on! This parrot is no more! He has ceased to be! 'E's expired and gone to meet 'is maker! 'E's a stiff! Bereft of life, 'e rests in peace! If you hadn't nailed 'im to the perch 'e'd be pushing up the daisies! 'Is metabolic processes are now 'istory! 'E's off the twig! 'E's kicked the bucket, 'e's shuffled off 'is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin' choir invisibile!! THIS IS AN EX-PARROT!!

The parrot for our purposes today is this: Islam is a religion of peace. That is one dead parrot if there ever was one. As Barbara Stock has said in The Sleeping World Is Awakening To The Dangers Of Islam

They maintained that as an American, I just was not intelligent enough to understand Islam. The mistake these ''intellectuals'' made is believing that I have any intention of ''understanding'' Islam.

It has taken me since 9/11 to realize that civilized humans cannot understand Islam. I am just overjoyed and somewhat relieved that the world is finally waking up in time to see the rabid dog coming its way disguised as Islam.

Virtually everything these people hear and see has been twisted in such a fashion that it is no wonder they hate the West and obsess over the Jews. What seems to be impossible to make these completely miss-informed Muslims understand is that they are being used and abused by those whose only desire is absolute power. For many, they are subjected to hours of hate-filled, incoherent preaching every Friday from their Mosque.

Instead of cowering, the world is beginning to look Islam in the eye and say, emphatically and collectively: ''NO! This will not be allowed.'' If it was a final crusade that Islam wanted, they have it.

I'm not so sure it's happening "in time" and it's happening much slower, especially here in the states, than she hopes. However, this I know: much bloodshed to come. All because of a dead parrot.

Incongruent

The Navy will commission its newest nuclear-powered attack submarine Jimmy Carter on Saturday, Feb. 19, during an 11 a.m. EST ceremony at Naval Submarine Base New London, Groton, Conn.

An attack submarine named after President Jimmy Carter. There's something slightly amusing about that.

Thought Bomb

Ron Dart never ceases to amaze me with his observations that fly by most people and his ability to distill a thought to an easily understood concept. He can shift your perspective ever so slightly so you see things clearer and deeper than you ever thought you could. Here is a quote from "Whose New Covenant?"

So when God sends a prophet, it is not to tell us what good boys we all are. It is usually to tell us to straighten up and fly right. But there is another misconception about this. There is a viewpoint that says the Law of God is merely an arbitrary set of rules. God could just as easily have allowed us to commit adultery as to have forbidden it. Beyond that, He gave us a set of religious observances, and because we haven't maintained those religious observances, we have made God angry. The angry God is going to punish us because we have offended Him. Lest you think I am making this up, consider this. If you believe that Christ abolished the law, then you have to believe that the law was arbitrary and unnecessary in the first place. And therefore, God’s punishment is just as arbitrary.

Let me suggest an alternative for you to consider. Imagine for a moment that there is a fundamental standard of right and wrong conduct that grows out of the nature of man and man’s social interactions. Imagine that standard is expressed in the last six of the Ten Commandments and all the other laws that can be derived from these. Then, imagine that the first four commandments are given to be the guarantors of the last six.

In other words, the form of revealed worship of God keeps us mindful of our duties to God. And our duty to God guarantees our duty to our fellow man. This means that when we neglect our duty to God, our social fabric will eventually begin to unravel. And that is the time when God usually sends a prophet to tell us what we are doing wrong.

I highly recommend requesting the tape he is offering for insights you will not hear anywhere else. You will not be sorry.

The Comedy Store

Terrorists the world over are laughing their asses off at the prospect of a Marine being accused of murdering 2 Iraqi insurgents because they know they are fighting an enemy they can beat.

Al Qaeda knows it, Iran knows it, North Korea knows it and China knows it, too.

I Believe I'll Drive, Thank You

Neal Boortz recounts a recent run in with airport screeners.

I don't want to identify the airport ... but here's my latest TSA adventure. It happened over the weekend. As I approached the screening machine I was wearing a colored t-shirt (t-shirt of color, if you will) with an unbuttoned long sleeve sports shirt. The lady shoving the luggage into the machine told me I had to remove my jacket.

"It isn't a jacket. It's my shirt."

"Well you have something on under it."

"That's my undershirt."

"Well, you're wearing it like a jacket, so you'll have to take it off."

"What if I just button it?"

"That would be OK".

So .. I buttoned it up and went on through .... wondering just where they get some of these people, During that flight I couldn't help but think that my safety was dependent on a woman who couldn't tell a sports shirt from a jacket and who thought that by somehow buttoning it up all threats were removed.

Fifth Third

What does that mean anyway? 5/3 Bank (pronounced fifth third) needs a new name. What are they thinking?

Brutal Enough?

Are we really doing enough in this war on terrorism? Some are criticizing the U.S. for being too tough and are tying the hands of our troops in Iraq.

Ronald Dart takes a tough look at this question in A Brutal War.

And the Chilling thought that came to me as I read Buckley's words was that our enemies do not have rational thought available to them. They may fully expect the United States to respond massively, and they just don't care. And so, if they are able to pull it off, we will have massive, brutal loss of life in this country to such a degree, that for us to use a nuclear weapon would, not only be a just act of war, but a blessed relief.

And I am greatly afraid that it will come to that before we are finished. No, it will not be because we invaded Iraq. Remember that we had not invaded Iraq before 9/11 and we got it anyhow. No, it will be because we are who we are and we will refuse to be anything else. It will be because Jihad has been declared against us and we have no choice but to fight. It will be fight, or become slaves to Islam.

This is a transcript of a radio program he did. It's available on his website if you choose, at least for another week.

Now you may reasonably ask me what the Bible has to do with any of this. How can this shed light on the Bible, or the Bible shed light on this war? The answer is not going to please anyone, but we might as well face up to it. The answer is that you fight a war with whatever brute force is necessary to ensure that you don't have to do worse later. You brutally pacify a city like Fallujah in Iraq, and you do it the first time you threaten it. You don't back down or negotiate with criminals and terrorists. You kill them.

It doesn't sound very Christian does it? Well, so what? Isn't the United States supposed to be a secular nation? Why should our military be guided by Christian principles? Our foes are fighting a religious war based on perceived Islamic principles? Shouldn't we be allowed to fight the war by their rules if that is the way they want it? [And don't tell me these fellows don't represent true Islam. If that is true, why don't the billion or so good Moslems rise up against them?]

I will not apologize for sounding harsh. These are harsh times, and these are harsh truths. They should not be sugar coated.

No, it shouldn't.

A Better Ending

It turns out the story of the baby being thrown out of the window of a car was false. I am relieved to hear that. The woman that reported seeing the baby is actually the mother.

Jenne said the woman had kept her pregnancy a secret from her family and others. He said it turns out to be the case of a "disturbed woman" who gave birth and didn't want to keep the child -- so she made up the story about seeing the baby thrown from a car.

Still, there was no need to get someone else in trouble because of it. It's not in the article but on the radio they said the mother was on her way to the fire station and saw a white car with the occupants arguing and made up the story about them. Imagine if the police had found them?

The woman is in the psychiatric ward and the baby is doing fine. A relatively happy ending, all things considered.

Florida state law allows a mother to take a baby to any medical facility or fire station within the first three days after the baby is born without any questions asked. Sheriff's office spokeswoman Veda Coleman-Wright said that gives parents an option.

At A Loss For Words

I really don't know what to say about someone who could throw their newborn baby out the window of a car. It's not human. It would be terrible even if there were not all the choices available to this girl that there are. There is a law in Florida so you can bring your newborn into any hospital or fire department and just turn it over - no questions asked. Just turn it over safely. How many people would just love to adopt a newborn? And even though I don't recommend it, she could have aborted the baby when she first got pregnant and they would not have even told her parents. I don't know but they might have even done it at no charge. There are too many choices to feel sorry for someone who could do that to a baby. No, this is beyond sick, way beyond confused.

This Ain't Mister Ed

I didn't know a mule could do this. They have my respect. You have to see it to believe it.

You Can't Hide Hawaiian Eyes!

Congratulations to my cousin Rob and his wife Alissa on their new baby boy, Lucas Alexander. He was 21" and 7 lbs 4 oz. Rob says,

Both Mom and Baby are doing fine. Alissa and I got to the hospital at about 8:00PM on Saturday with Alissa looking forward to using lot of drugs this time for the birth (our first baby was drug free and Alissa was not up for going through that again!). Much to our dismay, Alissa was too far along in labor to receive any drugs and...well...uhhh...Lucas is here and Alissa is the best!

Lucas was born on Saturday, February 5, 2005 at 9:02PM in Merced, CA. Irma said he looks like Alissa.

Keep Dreaming

about a peace in the Middle East, despite a cease-fire agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. There is no change in the goal of the Palestinians, no matter how it looks on the surface.

PA TV: Goal is Israel's destruction

In the official Friday sermon broadcast last week, senior Muslim figure Ibrahim Mudyris explained that the diplomatic process can only achieve a return to the borders Israel had before the 1967 war. The final stage, he said will be the destruction of Israel "the way Muhammad returned there as a conqueror."

"We tell you Palestine, we shall return to you, by Allah's will, we shall return to every village, every town, and every grain of earth which was quenched by the blood of our grandparents and the sweat of our fathers and mothers," he said. "We shall return, we shall return."

"Our approval to return to the 1967 borders is not a concession for our other rights," he said. "No! ... this generation might not achieve this stage, but generations will come, and the land of Palestine ... will demand that the Palestinians will return the way Muhammad returned there, as a conqueror."

No land for peace here. They're just buying time.

Tiger In My Tank

I found some larger Tiger Barbs at a pet shop in Kissimmee and bought ten. The Jack Dempsey completely ignored them, and that's a good thing. I was hoping for that but you can never tell for sure. The next morning I could only find eight. The Jack would swim around as if the Barbs weren't there and the Barbs would clear a path if the Jack came near them and there was no sign of aggression. I couldn't figure out where the 2 Barbs went. It's possible they were eaten sometime during the night. I was nervous the next night and when I came home there were still eight. I felt better, but where did the fish go. One more night and there were still eight. Everyone was eating and happy. Suddenly I noticed there were nine Barbs, one of them showed up! Where was he?

The Barbs do the trick for me. They are colorful, active and large enough to stay out of the Jack's mouth. My plan is to get ten more, that should make a nice school. Now if I could only find that last Barb.

This could have gone the other way and I might have fed the Jack Dempsey a very expensive meal (relatively). You have to choose tankmates very carefully, especially when you are dealing with the larger Cichlids. They are extremely territorial and sometimes kill any new fish that pop up in their territory - usually the whole tank.

You Can't Defend The Indefensible

The left has that problem and their anger and hatred of all things conservative bear that out. People just can't admit when they are wrong. The more wrong and indefensible their position the more desperate they become, they lash out at the innocent.

Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. Genesis 4:8

Why? What did Abel do?

And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord.

Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering,

but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell.

So the Lord said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?

If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it." Genesis 4:3-7

Abel did nothing wrong. It was Cain who did not get the offering right. Cain was angry because HE was in the wrong and he killed Abel because Abel did it right. Cain did what was right in his own eyes and Abel followed the rules. Human nature hasn't changed.

Jesus ran into this problem quite a few times and He was finally killed by those in the same mindset. The very first time He spoke publically, they tried to throw him over a cliff.

Then He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country.

But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land;

but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.

And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."

So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,

and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. Luke 4:24-29

Why? Because He told them the truth. He basically told them they were not nearly as close to God as they had presumed. After all, they were the chosen people, surely if God were working anywhere, it was with them. Jesus was the very God they claimed to worship, standing among them and teaching them (read John chapter 1, esp. verse 10). Not only did they not recognize Him, they tried to kill Him.

The worst offenders of this in our time are the Islamists. If you dare insinuate that they may be wrong you are suddenly on the death list. Talk about insecurity. The Western world is a witness that their world, their system and their religion doesn't work. Change their ways? No way, destroy the Western world. That's the path they choose to take. And if they can't destroy it they will terrorize what they can.

Human nature has not changed one bit.

Is Nothing Sacred?

First it was Milli Vanilli, then Ashlee Simpson, now the Pope may have used a prerecorded message at a recent show public appearance.

Journalists suspicions were raised when the pontiff's inaudible words at the beginning of the blessing were quickly followed by silence, clicks, and then a much clearer sounding - though still very hoarse - John Paul completing the blessing.

Earlier, as technicians made the usual sound tests ahead of the ceremony, Vatican correspondents were clearly able to hear a tape of the pontiff performing the blessing on loudspeakers in the Vatican press room.

It was this tape which appears to have been substituted for John Paul's extremely frail voice as soon as he faltered.

A Fool And His Movie

Bin Laden's film maker sues Michael Moore

A former close associate of Osama Bin Laden is to sue the film-maker Michael Moore for using his footage of the Al-Qaeda chief in the documentary Fahrenheit 9/11.

Deraz has started legal action in Egypt and America to seek compensation for use of his footage in Fahrenheit 9/11, the biggest-grossing documentary in cinema history.

Deraz claims he had not signed a distribution agreement with Moore or anyone else. “I was the only cameraman with the Arabs. All of those shots of Bin Laden talking in the cave, talking into his walkie-talkie, they were all my work

Moore says it's not his fault, the devil George Bush made him do it.

Rain on the Parade

Brazil cracks down on child prostitution

Fun seekers descending on Rio for perhaps the most carefree, gloves- off celebration in the world are being greeted with a sobering message this year: Illegal sex can get you 10 years in prison.

Seeking to crack down on an epidemic of child prostitution, the Brazilian government is targeting Carnival, the annual pre-Lenten festival during which the illicit trade reaches its zenith. The celebration begins today.

Or not. Depending on what you're there for.

Your Tax Dollars At Work

A research study was done to determine students, teacher and administrators knowledge and opinion of the First Amendment.

The goal of this $1 million research study was to discover the familiarity and belief of students, teachers and administrators regarding the First Amendment. The study primarily attempted to determine if there are any links between the beliefs of students and the presence of student media programs and the viewpoints of teachers and administrators. During the course of its research, the Knight Foundation surveyed 100,000 students, 8,000 teachers and 500 administrators at 544 public and private schools across the nation.

The results were, in a sense, shocking, but not surprising - Ignorance reigns supreme.

If students are not educated regarding their rights, we cannot expect them to have a serious commitment to the freedoms our country is supposed to profess. America's educational system has failed to provide our youth with adequate knowledge about the core values of our country embodied in the First Amendment.

Despite the fact that First Amendment rights can be taught, it is clear from the survey that there is a clear failure on the part of public educators to do so.

Not a surprise at all, I believe the only people who think the educational system is working are members of the NEA. Great public schools for every child? Sweet dreams.

I Can't Believe This Is Happening In The U.S.

Judge rules against Christians who preached to homosexuals

What happened to the First Amendment?

The group's attorneys had presented as evidence their clients' First Amendment rights were violated the fact that Assistant District Attorney Charles Ehrlich told an earlier court proceeding the Christians' religious speech was "hateful, disgusting, despicable words," and "fighting words."

So, if it's hateful, disgusting and despicable in the eyes of the left, there are no First Amendment rights? Did I get that right? But, if it's hateful, disgusting or despicable in the eyes of someone not on the left, too bad, you have to put up with it, it's protected free speech.

Ward Churchill is protected by free speech, there's no hate in this, is there? Oh, no. But the Bible is hate speech.

Homosexuality is sin = hate speech. Bush is Hitler = free speech.

All the hatred that was spewed by the left, especially at demonstrations throughout the country, against George Bush, the United States, conservatives, and Christians is all free speech, even when it borders on treasonous - or just plain crosses that line. OK, I got it now.

I think it's time to purge our justice system of judges who don't understand how our country works.

Decisions, Decisions

Muslim Dilemma: Kill Jews or Convert Them?

Some decisions are more important than others.

While the Palestinian Authority may come down clearly on the side of killing Jews for divine Islamic reward, other Muslims think converting Jews is even better. Although, they'll agree, killing Jews is still good.

I guess it's all good. Try to convert them, if not, go ahead and kill them. You can't go wrong with that, as long as they get those virgins.

I wonder what Muslim women get? Screwed?

Hot Tamale

I said last week we should overthrow Mexico and Joseph Farah must have read it because his newest commentary is Conquer Mexico.

So, I suggest maybe it's time to conquer Mexico. We're so intent on freeing 26 million Iraqis from a corrupt, barbaric tyranny. What about 100 million Mexicans? Don't they deserve a government of the people, by the people and for the people? How about truly free elections south of the border?

Maybe it's time to free Mexico. And worse, Mexico is proving to be a more serious national security threat to the United States than Saddam Hussein's Iraq was.

Mexico is authorizing an invasion of our country. It's an invasion designed to change the very character of our country.

Really, we need to just close the borders and deport illegals but for some reason the politicians just don't see it that way. That needs to change

Imagine you're a U.S. citizen entering Mexico illegally. Once there, you demand free medical care and English-speaking nurses and doctors. You also want free education for your child – in English. You also say you expect classes on American culture in the Mexican school system. You demand the right to vote in Mexican elections and you insist on bilingual ballots. Since, as an English speaker, you find it difficult to find regular work, you sign up for welfare. Next, of course, you demand a Mexican driver's license.

What do you think would become of you as a U.S. citizen if you tried this in Mexico?

That's right. You would wind up in jail, deported or dead.

We need to stop this stupidity.


Diane Alden has much more to say about it:

Borderline Insanity - Part I

Borderline Insanity - Part II

Some Things Never Change

That which has been is that which shall be; and that which has been done is that which shall be done; ...

... and there is nothing new under the sun. Ecclesiastes 1:9

Show Them the Truth

Church Groups Turn to Sonogram to Turn Women From Abortions

"Sixteen months ago, Andrea Brown, 24 years old and unmarried, was desperate for an abortion, fearing the disappointment of her parents and the humiliation she might face.

While frantically searching the telephone book one day, she came across the Bowie Crofton Pregnancy Center and Medical Clinic, a church-financed organization that provides counseling and education about sexual abstinence. The receptionist told Ms. Brown that the clinic did not perform abortions or make referrals but that she could come in for an ultrasound to make sure her six-and-a-half-week pregnancy was viable. When she did, everything changed.

"When I had the sonogram and heard the heartbeat - and for me a heartbeat symbolizes life - after that there was no way I could do it," Ms. Brown said recently as she revisited the clinic and watched her daughter, Elora, now 9 months old, play at her feet."

Ankle Biting Pundits posted some quotes from Planned Parenthhood, read them - I have a question.

My question to them is this: What is so horrible about a woman continuing her pregnancy? How could that possibly be a bad thing? There is something seriously wrong with promoting as many abortions as possible. It's sick. It's worse than sick, it's evil. Sorry, I know that's a concept you can't grasp. Nevertheless, it's true.

But we are all as the unclean thing , and all our righteousnesses are as a menstruation cloth. And we all fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

And there is no one who calls on Your name, who stirs up himself to take hold of You. For You have hidden Your face from us, and have melted us away because of our iniquities.

But now, O Jehovah, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are our Former; and we all are the work of Your hand.

Do not be grievously angry, O LORD, nor remember iniquity forever. Behold! Look, please; all of us are Your people. Isaiah 64:6-9

Dumb, Dumber, Dumbest

I just had a guy come to my window, hand me a dollar bill, 3 dimes and a nickel, and ask me for $1.35 in quarters. This is the smart guy in this post.

And I just saw Ward Churchill giving an interview on Fox news. The guy is a lunatic and the very fact that he is considered a professor and works at a public university in the United States, teaching the youth of our country is a travesty and he should be fired immediately, along with the dean and anyone else who teaches anything like him. (And why was Bill O'Reilly making excuses not to fire him?) What he was saying didn't even make any sense - and that doesn't mean he's smart and should be a professor. There may be a fine line between genius and insanity but this guy has definitely crossed over that line.

It's not always good to think outside the box, it may be sitting in a cesspool.

Next, Islamists have taken G.I. Joe hostage and are threatening to kill him with his own toy gun. They probably got the doll from Ward Churchill.

There's a picture (of the doll) in this article. LGF and Wizbang have pictures of the doll in original packaging. PoliPundit has a little fun with it.

Religion of Murder

This is some sick stuff here. Christians stalked on Islamic website

It's chilling to see photographs of people who probably have no idea that they're on the website," he said. "Hamas's website would post self-congratulatory accounts of their attacks on civilians, but barsomyat.com's users are telegraphing their intended victims in advance."

The website seems to be down now. Hopefully arrests follow quickly.

The Blind

"Someone who does not know the difference between good and evil is worth nothing." - Miecyslaw Kasprzyk, Polish rescuer of Jews during the Holocaust, New York Times, Jan. 30, 2005

I haven't pointed out a Dennis Prager commentary in a while. This one is worth a read.

Since the 1960s, with few exceptions, one the greatest questions of good and evil, the Left has either been neutral toward or actively supported evil. The Left could not identify communism as evil; has been neutral toward or actually supported the anti-democratic pro-terrorist Palestinians against the liberal democracy called Israel; and has found it impossible to support the war for democracy and against an Arab-Muslim enemy in Iraq as evil as any fascist the Left ever claimed to hate.

Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Isaiah 5:20