Scary Mary and Ichabod Crane

This is pretty clever:



I admit, not only do I like the film Marry Poppins, but I also got into watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer, by the third year. This is a featurette on perhaps my favorite self-contained episode that can be enjoyed without being a Buffy fan:




It's an incredible tv episode, where the plot is moved along with the absence of spoken dialogue.

I'm not too keen on slasher films with gratuitous gore and sadistic violence; I think it's not too healthy for one's soul. But I do like a good ghost story. The kind that puts a chill up your spine.

Growing up, some of my favorite ghost tales came out of the Japanese tradition. One of the well known ones is the story of Okiku. Folk version:

Okiku was the beautiful servant of the samurai, Aoyama Tessan. She refused his amorous advances so he tricked her into believing that she had carelessly lost one of the family's ten precious delft plates. She recounted the nine plates many times but when she could not find the tenth, Aoyama offered to overlook the matter if she became his lover. Again she refused and he threw her down a well to her death.

She became a vengeful spirit who tormented her murderer by counting to nine and then making a terrible shriek to represent the missing tenth plate. In some versions of the story, this torment continued until an exorcist or neighbor shouted "ten" in a loud voice at the end of her count. Her ghost, apparently easily satisfied, haunted the samurai no more.

I tried finding other tales, but didn't have much Google luck. Other stories I vaguely remember, is a samurai who had been sleeping with the skeletal remains of a ghost, without knowing it. Another one has a strange woman who always bought milk at a strange hour; finally, a couple of the townsfolk followed her and saw her disappear into a grave, from which they heard a baby's cry. They dug it up, to find a newborn. The mother had been killed while pregnant; her spirit continued to bring nourishment, until the baby was given birth.

See also:
Yotsuya Kaidan

I also like Edgar Allen Poes, some E.T.A. Hoffman, and folk tales like the story of Bluebeard, and non-sugar-coated Grimms Fairy & Folk Tales.

Happy Halloween!

Celebrating the 30th anniversary of the "Star Wars" film saga, fans gather for Star Wars Celebration IV at the L.A. Convention Center downtown. Jasper Manning, 2, assumes the character of Yoda in the company of his father, Chad Manning.(Mel Melcon / LAT)

Caption This (Halloween Edition)

We have co-winners of this week's contest:

Jennifer of Now for Something Different: I came to this Halloween party as myself aren't I scary?

And a "last minute" entry by mormonbradybunchdad: I am having that "time of the month" and like everything else that goes wrong in the world -- it is your fault along with President Bush.


Mike's America gets an honorable mention: "NO WIRE HANGERS!"

Thanks to all the particants. Even from the crazy moonbats!

What the Anti-War Movement is Really Fighting Against

Eli Lake writing for the NYSun regarding the anti-war extremist movement:

They are asking Americans to believe not that the war was a blunder, so much that the war was a sin; that the decapitators and car bombers of innocents are a resistance; that the army seeking to prevent ethnic cleansing today is in fact responsible for it.

What exactly is it that the anti-war movement fights for today? Before the war began, I can understand the protests. Maybe even during the "civil war", when things went south after the bombing of the al-Askari Mosque in February of 2006. But now? What are they still protesting for?

For morality's sake? For compassion and the end to suffering? Then they should support America's efforts in Iraq. Yet they do not take into consideration the consequences of ending "the war" prematurely, on their terms of immediate withdrawal (as if such an exit were logistically, let alone morally, possible):

Most Americans do want to end a war they believe America is losing, but they don't suffer from the delusion that Iraqis would be better off if the Shiite and Sunni death cults took power after our soldiers left.

It is a prospect the activists for now would rather not broach. Kevin Martin of Peace Action in Mother Jones said it wasn't even for the "peace community" to come up with a contingency plan to prevent competitive genocide after a withdrawal. "In my organization and the umpteen antiwar coalitions that I am in, this is in no way a priority that we think about or talk about," he said.

Later on he added, "We are not responsible for dreaming up a perfect world. We are responsible for trying to end the damn war and putting the political pressure on our government, which is extremely difficult when you have a feeble Congress and a dictator president."

The problem with the anti-war movement is that it deals in yesterday's arguments as the basis for solving today's problems; the peace fascists do not take into account where events of the past 4 years have now brought us. Their reasoning extends not much farther nor deeper than:

"No w(s)md"...."Bush lied"....."no blood for oil"....."bombs not books"....."Support the troops: Bring them home"...."peace is patriotic"....

All that the anti-war movement has left are cookie-cutter slogans, bumpersticker rhetoric, and a romanticized, narcissistic notion of themselves and their place in history. They are riding on fumes:

• Iraq sees dramatically low death toll
• Anbar Rising
• The Anbar awakening spreads
• Kharmah Awakens
• Tribal leaders in Diyala announce alliance against al-Qaeda
• Two Shiite Leaders in Iraq Reach a Peace Agreement
• In Baghdad, Iraqis turning against Sadr’s Iranian backed militia
• Al-Qaeda In Iraq Reported Crippled
• Iraqis ready to join police in Baghdad hotspots

There's also:
The Shia Awakening
Commerce in Baghad Thrives
Michael Yon on Basra:

Basra is not in chaos. In fact, crime and violence are way down and there has not been a British combat death in over a month. The report below is false.

"The darkness [in Iraq] has become pitch black". So says Osama bin Laden earlier this week in a message to the mujahidin in Iraq. The real question for them should be: "Who wants to be the last mujahidin to die for a mistake?"

According to Bill Roggio,

In Anbar province, al Qaeda in Iraq has failed to kill a single US serviceman by IED since September 10.

Anbar Province has become so secure, U.S. Marines are bored:

In Fallujah, enlisted marines have complained to an officer of my acquaintance: "There's nobody to shoot here, sir. If it's just going to be building schools and hospitals, that's what the Army is for, isn't it?"

Cemetery workers in Iraq are also finding that their jobs are at risk as violence declines (reported in typical MSM "glass half-empty" fashion):

A drop in violence around Iraq has cut burials in the huge Wadi al Salam cemetery here by at least one-third in the past six months, and that's cut the pay of thousands of workers who make their living digging graves, washing corpses or selling burial shrouds.

Troop reductions have already been planned out; and none of the 3 Democratic frontrunners are advocating for "immediate withdrawal". In fact, the Democrats have not been serious on the war and in ending it, for quite some time. So carrying on the anti-war antics is pointless and meaningless at this stage. It serves only as a distraction. I doubt even bin Laden and Zawahiri draw aid and comfort from the movement these days.

Since those who yearn for a President Bush defeat more than they ache for an American victory cannot claim military defeat in Iraq, the war critics grasp at straws in arguing that there is no political progress happening. That it is a pipe dream for Sunni and Shia to achieve reconciliation.

Scott Malensek makes the following points in casual comment:

1) the Iraqi Parliament has passed more laws than the Democrats' Congress and thus has made more political progress than the American govt, that's noteworthy, and it shows huge hypocrisy on the part of Congressional Democrats to demand results when they themselves can't manage to cut a $500000 virtual herbarium from a bill (see also pork spending worse than Republican Congress)

2) The political reconciliation in Iraq has in fact been taking place since January, but the reason that it doesn't get press isn't because it's unimportant. It's because the Democrats' Congress put together a list of benchmarks that were near impossible for the Iraqis to accomplish,

The anti-war movement has lost the war. So why persist in their delusion? Given how the good news is so undeniably palpable, what exactly is it that groups like Code Pink are protesting against?

Since pictures speak a thousand words, I'll let the following photos from the Multi-National Force- Iraq website speak to the blindness of the anti-war movement.

Message to Code Pink and company: This is what you are fighting against:

The Best Medicine

A U.S. Army Soldier from Charlie Company, 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, from Ft. Lewis, Wash., shares a laughs with an Iraqi army soldier at a U.S. and Iraqi Army security checkpoint in Tarmiyah, Iraq, Sept. 25, 2007. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication 2nd Class Summer M. Anderson.

Pride
U.S. Army Sgt. Quenton Sallows hands out Iraqi Flags to Iraqi children beginning their first day of school in Lutafiyah, Iraq, Oct. 1, 2007. Sallows is assigned to Civil Affairs, 2nd Battalion, 15th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry). U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Quinton Russ.

Nice to Meet You

U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Julia Venegas, from 2nd Marine Logistics Group, shakes hands with a little girl in the village of Kabani, Iraq, while on a security patrol Sept. 28, 2007. U.S. Marine Corps photo taken by Lance Cpl. Robert S. Morgan.

One Size Fits Most

A U.S. Army Soldier of 1st Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division plays with a young Iraqi boy in Mufriq, Iraq, Oct. 8, 2007. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Shawn Weismiller.

School Days

Iraqi girls walk to a primary school in the Andaloos district of Fallujah, Iraq, Oct. 17, 2007, to receive school supplies from U.S. Marines and Iraqi police. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Robert B. Brown Jr.

Junior Heroes

The students at an elementary school in Jerf Al-Mila hold up their 'Junior Hero' stickers after taking an oath to become honorary Junior Heroes during a visit to the school by Iraqi Army Soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 9th Iraqi Army Division (mechanized), Oct. 17. The Junior Hero program was designed by the Iraqi security forces to teach children about the roles of the Iraqi Army and Iraqi police who work in their communities and ways in which they can volunteer to keep their villages free of crime. Photo by Staff Sgt. Jon Cupp, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs

A Sucker for Children

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Patrick K. Mason, a squad leader for 1st Platoon, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, hands a lollipop to an Iraqi boy during a security patrol in Dulab, Iraq, Sept. 25, 2007. The Marines are working with Iraqi police in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in the Al Anbar province of Iraq. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Shane S. Keller.

To oppose our presence and efforts in Iraq, is to be standing in the way of history's momentum; and on the wrong side of it.

Cross-posted at Flopping Aces

Islamic Terrorist Crybabies

Al-Jazeera in English, Monday, reporting Osama bin Laden's message to fighters in Iraq:

"Some of you have been lax in one duty, which is to unite your ranks," bin Laden said. "Beware of division... The Muslim world is waiting for you to gather under one banner."

Bin Laden said fighters in Iraq should admit "mistakes" and try to correct them in the interest of unity.

The recording was aired as Iraq's government reported violence had dropped by 70 per cent since the end of June, following a series of US-led offensives.

Iraq's wing of al-Qaeda is one of the groups fighting US-led forces and the Baghdad government, but bin Laden's followers have angered other Sunni groups and tribes through their interpretations of Islam and indiscriminate killing of civilians.

"The mujahidin are the children of this nation ... they do right things and wrong things," bin Laden said. "Those who are accused of violations of God's commandments should face trial," bin Laden said.

And how do the Islamists respond? AP writer:

Al-Qaida sympathizers have unleashed a torrent of anger against Al-Jazeera television, accusing it of misrepresenting Osama bin Laden's latest audiotape by airing excerpts in which he criticizes mistakes by insurgents in Iraq.

Users of a leading Islamic militant Web forum posted thousands of insults against the pan-Arab station for focusing on excerpts in which bin Laden criticizes insurgents, including his followers.

Analysts said the reaction highlighted militants' surprise at bin Laden's words, and their dismay at the deep divisions among al-Qaida and other Iraqi militants that he appeared to be trying to heal.

"It's not about Al-Jazeera, it's about their shock from bin Laden," said Diaa Rashwan, an Egyptian expert on Islamic militant groups. "For the first time, bin Laden, who used to be the spiritual leader who gives guidance, became a critic of al-Qaida and is confessing mistakes. This is unusual."

It should be obvious by now, that Al-Qaeda's hold on Iraq has slipped. And its leader giving an indirect admission to the fact that they have been losing the battle for "the central front of the war".

Al Fajr Center- the official online distribution network for Al-Qaeda's messages from bin Laden issued the following statement [by way of Counterterrorism Blog]:

"Aljazeera editors in chief have counterfeited the facts by making the speech appear as exclusively targeting the brothers and sons inside Al-Qaeda organization. It looked as if it was an acknowledgment of their mistakes, a renunciation of their jihad and their loyalty to it." The letter went on to condemn the directors of Al-Jazeera for "shamefully choosing to back the crusaders’ side, and the defenders of hypocrites and the thugs and traitors of Iraq.”

So apparently the mujahidin fighters in Iraq are wounded by the words of Osama, and blame Al-Jazeera tv news for reporting what was clearly in the message. What is it that make Islamists so thin-skinned that they cannot handle criticism and rebuke? They don't like the message, so they want to rage against the messenger?

Oh well....at least they can still count on the NYTimes.

Hat tip: The Oxford Medievalist

More with Bill Roggio at The Long War Journal

The Ass Hat and the Class Act

Desiree Fairooz of Texas, 50, jumps up in front of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice before Rice testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington October 24, 2007. Fairooz, an anti-war protester waved blood-colored hands in Rice's face at a congressional hearing on Wednesday and shouted "war criminal!", but was pushed away and detained by police. At right is the committee Chairman Rep. Tom Lantos (D-CA).

Looks like Des was able to get this close to the Secretary of State by going undercover in ninja-black stealth color.

The typical moonbat Code Pink wardrobe looks more like this:

A member of Code Pink wears a pair of big glasses and a crown as Chairman of the 9/11 Commission, former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean, testifies before a Senate (Select) Intelligence Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. The hearing was to examine the pace of intelligence reform at the FBI.
Alex Wong - Getty Images

Hint to my readers: You can start warming up those caption ideas for next Monday's "Caption This" post!

When will CodePink "grow up"? They would be far more effective if they did not make such a sideshow out of themselves. Like clowns at a carnival. But I guess they cannot help but be what they are. Instead of being embarrassed by their antics, they think the media attention they gather makes them come off well.

This is from the CodePink blogspot:

We then get a call that Lori will be released
in a few hours but no one else. Why? Because they have pending cases,
except for Des. Des [the moonbat who waved her blood-colored hands in front of the Secretary of State] doesn't have a pending case but her charge is more
serious - assaulting a federal officer. Believe it or not, Condi wanted her goons to let her go. When I finally got to see the pictures
and videos of all that had happened in the hearing, I was blown away.
First I see Des approach Condi, her hands palms out - the blood of
Iraqi children is on your hands, she says. A State Dept Security goon
lunges forward (socks Rep Ross-Lethinin in the process) and grabs Des'
hands and forcefully pushes her away from the Sec State. It was the most graceful speaking truth to power I've ever witnessed. And the photos are flying around the world!

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, center, is confronted by a protester with her hands painted red as Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif., right, Chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee, right, looks on before Rice testified regarding US policy in the Middle East where she spoke about Iraq, Iran, and the Israel Palestinian conflict on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2007.
AP photos by Charles Dharapak

It's almost a crime that Capitol Police can't muzzle this mouth:

"Don't get tased, sis!"

Hat tip for the videos: CodePink DC in Action

It's unbelievable that these Peacebats post these videos, thinking it makes them look good.

Read: End of the Anti-War Movement

Also blogging:
American Power
BlackFive
Bottomline Upfront
CodePink DC in Action

California Wildfires? Bush's Fault! (Of course!)

So predictable! And Lt Governor John Garamendi says he will be polite. Someone needs to smack the sense into him. Why have we become such a culture of fingerpointing? We're so ready to push blame and sue somebody, rather than accept that in life, sometimes shit happens. You buckle up, and bunker down.

There is no National Guard shortage here.

Anyone who compares this to Katrina will find that there simply is no comparison! The media can go look for their tragedy circus elsewhere.

Next thing is, they'll be linking this back to global warming (which, of course, is also Bush's fault!).




Thank you Gubernator!!!



Hat tip: Matt Lewis

Also bloggging:
American Power
Dragon Lady's Den
Flopping Aces
Pondering Penguin
Skye Puppy
The Oxford Medievalist

Breaking: The Drudgery of TNR Stonewalling

Confederate Yankee should be congratulated for this story, and deserves credit. Drudge is weeks behind.

The story is still developing, with TNR in strange "hibernation". For more....check out the top tier blogs:

Ace of Spades HQ
Blackfive
Bookworm
Flopping Aces
HotAir
Michelle Malkin
The Jawa Report
Wizbang

*Important Update* by Michael Yon, via Flopping Aces

Human Blue Shield

Stark-Raving Moonbat Hate Spew

Lt. Michael Murphy Honored

President Bush presents the Medal fo Honor to Daniel and Maureen Murphy, parents of the late Lt. Michael Murphy, at a White House ceremony. The nation's highest military honor for valor was awarded posthumously to Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, N.Y.- the first given for combat in Afghanistan. The Navy SEAL gave his life in June 2005 to make a radio call for help for his team. Mark Wilson, Getty Images

Maureen Murphy, mother of Navy Seal Lt. Michael Murphy of Patchogue, N.Y., accepts a posthumously-awarded Medal of Honor for her son from President Bush in the East Room of the White House. Murphy was given the medal for his combat service in Afghanistan.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais - AP

Flopping Aces:
The Bravery of Our Navy Seals
Mark Levin on Lt. Michael P. Murphy
Lt. Michael P. Murphy Awarded the Medal of Honor (plus links to previous posts)

Even a brokendown "Real Time Cuckoo....Bill Maher" can be right once in a lifetime

I didn't realize Bill Maher could be so funny....until he inadvertently finds himself "defending" my President against the lunacy of 9/11 Truthers in the audience:

A Few Good Links on Progress on the War

Jeff Emmanuel at American Thinker

Michael Yon

From Bill Roggio:

Raid in Baghdad's Sadr City kills 49 Special Groups operatives

Osama bin Laden on the state of Iraq

Also on bin Laden, from Counterterrorism Blog:
A Caliph's Frustration with his emirs
Bin Laden Sounds the Call of Defeat in Iraq
Osama bin Laden Message Urges Jihadists to Unite in Iraq

The Strata-Sphere with relevant links

Bottomline Upfront:

Commerce in Baghdad Thrives

Life Improves for Iraqis

Caption These

Oct. 17: The Dalai Lama holds up his Congressional Gold Medal after being presented the award by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) and President Bush in the Capitol Rotunda.
Chip Somodevilla - Getty Images

This one was hard to choose. But through rigging the contest, caption #1 goes to....Wordsmith!

"Eat your heart out, Al Gore!
I've got you, one up. Score now: 2-1!"

The 14th Dalai Lama won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.

U.S. President George W. Bush and the Dalai Lama examine the dome of the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol building. President Bush participated in the ceremony despite Beijing's strong disapproval of the honor bestowed to the 72-year-old leader in exile.
Richard A. Lipski - The Washington Post

Winning caption for this one submitted by Gayle:

"It's a bird... it's a plane... No! It's Hillary on her broom!"

Valerie Plame on 60 Minutes

Anyone catch it? CrooksandLiars has the video. Flopping Aces has about all you will ever need to know.

Flopping Aces Birthday Bash

Go over and wish Curt a happy birthday!

Here's a preview of what to expect:



Also blogged over at Mike's America

John Denver "Darcy Farrow"

When No News is THE News.

Charles Gibson on ABC World News Tonight, a week ago:



It's the kind of news that some journalists in the mainstream think isn't worth reporting, because it's not part of their narrative.

And now, good news for a day: There's nothing to report.

Charles Gibson on World News Tonight, October 18, 2007:

One item from Baghdad today. The news is… that there is no news. The police told us that, to their knowledge, there were no major acts of violence. Attacks are down in Baghdad and today no bombings or roadside explosions were reported.

Hat tip: Marie's Two Cents

More good news from Iraq at Bottomline Upfront

Understanding Counter-insurgency

“You reconcile with your former enemies, you don’t have to reconcile with friends."
-General Petraeus

An old man feeds the pigeons near the Shrine of Hazrat Ali on the first day of the Eid al-Fitr Festival in Mazar-e Sharif, northern Afghanistan, Thursday Nov. 3, 2005. The three-day Eid al-Fitr festival marks the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. (AP Photo/Tomas Munita)

Amy Proctor wrote an excellent and informative comment at Marie's Two Cents:

One of the things that makes it so difficult is that we, particularly Christians, lump all Muslims together. We think reconciliation means 1)appeasement or 2) condonment of their theology. It means neither. What it really means is that our children may have a chance of not being involved in the same war we're engaging in today.

My husband met many good Muslims in Iraq who were very devout and peaceful. It is mostly the uneducated and unemployed young Muslims who are wooed by the thrill of a supposed purpose proposed by al-Qaeda types. They are not the embodiement of their religion, however.

If you read the entire open letter you'll see this is a sincere effort to bridge the gap between the faiths. It doesn't mean we have to validate each other's theology, but that we can accept that we are both religions who want to live in the world together without bloodshed. St. Paul urged Christians to live peaceably among ALL men, not just those who theologically align with us.

On another note, here's something I learned from my husband: MUSLIMS RESPECT YOU MORE IF YOU STAND UP FOR YOUR RELIGION THAN IF YOU HAVE A PC VERSION OF YOUR RELIGION. In Iraq last year, a chaplain went to meet with an Imam, and rather than risking offending the Imam, the chaplain took off his cross before entering his home. In essense, he hid his religion. When the Imam questioned the chaplain about the missing cross, it was clear that this was a huge mistake and that the chaplain had blown a major opportunity to meet with an equal: a religious scholar. The Imam asked point blank: "Where is your cross? Are you trying to trick me?"

The message to the Imam was that the chaplain was sneaky and plotting something cinister because clearly he wasn't being who he proported to be in the Army. Why esle would he HIDE his religious symbols? Our version of separation of Church and state is killing us on the battle field.

A Muslim would rather you be 100% committed to and proud of our faith than to worry about our dedication to it offending a Muslim. They see it as cowardice and weakness. They are correct.

Essentially, there is no doubt in my mind that these Muslim scholars are sincerely reaching out to the Christian community. Pope Benedict is notorious for meeting with Muslim leaders, praying in Mosques and synoguges, and doing so jointly with those respective religions. Muslim leaders respect this.

So why make peace with Muslims? Because we want to win the war. At least I do. My husband does. We have been given a gift in that Muslims are extending a hand of friendship.... this is truly a great opportunity for us to stop talking about world peace and to work towards world peace.

Finally, I posted an entry last night that I hope all your readers will check out. 3 videos with the Army and GEN Petraeus saying the same thing Wordsmith and I have been saying here. Please do yourself a favor and view the videos. It will really help everyone to clarify their own understanding of what is transpiring in the war on terror.

Amy has left many impassioned comments throughout the blogosphere (I linked to some of them in this post). I encourage everyone to check out her most recent post on Counterinsurgency for dummies (that would be us).

The Most Deranged Liberal in America

That would be Jon Elliot. Why? We'll get to that in a moment.

Talking Radio:

Randi Rhodes was mugged on Sunday night on 39th Street and Park Ave, nearby her Manhattan apartment, while she was walking her dog Simon.

According to Air America Radio late night host Jon Elliott, Rhodes was beaten up pretty badly, losing several teeth and will probably be off the air for at least the rest of the week. At of late Monday night we have not able to locate any press accounts of the attack and nothing has been posted on the AAR website.

Several liberal blogs, including the Randi Rhodes Message Board and Democratic Underground have logged numerous posts on the Rhodes mugging with most of the posters expressing concern about the condition of the popular lib talker.

"Concern", and also "hate-spew". As one Rhodes supporter writes, "I noticed that many people went all sorts of nuts when this first came out".

Freedom Eden links to American Spectator which has some examples of some of the rabid response from the moonbat brigade. Very entertaining reads if you want to just kill off time and a few of your brain cells in the process. Having listened to her radio program on occasion, I'm not surprised by the deranged reaction from her supporters.

Now, as it turns out, Jon Elliot, who fancies himself "the most dangerous liberal in America", and all those others who jumped on the "blame-conservatives-first" bandwagon must eat crow:

Elliott's account of the incident, however, was contested Tuesday by Rhodes attorney, Robert Gaulin.

Gaulin confirmed that Rhodes was injured after she was floored by someone _ or something _ as she strolled the streets of Manhattan's Murray Hill district around 8 p.m., but wasn't sure herself what sent her tumbling to the pavement.

"She hit her head on the street and was disoriented," Gaulin said. "She's not sure what happened. She didn't see anything." He added that she never reported the incident to police.

Air America released a statement saying that "the reports of a presumed hate crime are unfounded." Elliott followed that up with a retraction.

"I shouldn't have speculated based on hearsay that Randi Rhodes had been mugged and that it may have been an attack from a right wing hate machine. I apologize for jumping to conclusions based on an emotional reaction," he said in a written statement.

I'm sorry Randi Rhodes suffered any kind of physical injury at all. Based on this account by Rhodes' attorney, though, I'd say Rhodes probably had one too many whiskey shots at the local pub and is responsible for her own condition. But I'd hate to be one who speculates and shouts "flame" in a crowded blogosphere....



Further Reads:
What a Difference a Day Makes, Talking Radio's follow up post
CrooksandLiars
Bloviating Zeppelin
Pondering Penguin

On the Randi Rhodes Message board:
Randi mugged, bashed in the teath (their spelling...not mine)
Air America Host apologized for bad reporting
The Rightwing attacks Randi when she's down

2007/10/20 23:02 *UPDATE* at Confederate Yankee

A Man of Honor and Character

Marine Gen. Peter Pace, outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, shakes hands with President Bush at a farewell ceremony in Pace's honor at Fort Myer in Arlington, Va. Defense Secretary Robert Gates looks on. By Pablo Martinez Monsivais, AP October 1, 2007

Old Sarge writes:

I wanted to share with you what we saw in Washington DC last week. We toured the Mall and made the usual stops at the WWII Memorial, the Wall, Lincoln Memorial, etc.


At the Vietnam Wall we saw something unbelievable. We noticed three small index cards at the base of the Wall.


I knelt down for a closer look and noticed that a 4-star general's rank was pinned to each card.


The cards were personally addressed and said something like:

These are Yours - not mine!
With Love and Respect,
Your Platoon Leader,
Pete Pace
1 Oct 2007


The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs had laid down his rank for his boys who died in Nam.
Oct 1 was the day he stepped down as Chairman.

Hat tip: The Liberal Lie, the Conservative Truth

Softball with Crosby, Chris, and Nash

In our second story: Is the anti-war movement following in the footsteps of Vietnam, with protests in churches and in song? We‘ll talk to two veteran peace activists-musicians, David Crosby and Graham Nash.- Chris Matthews introduction on Hardball, Oct. 15

It amazes me how the peace movement learned nothing of the right lessons from Vietnam. They are proud of their service to the enemy back then; and desire to subject Iraq to the same treatment of abandonment in the name of peace: resulting in mass suffering and slaughter.



Why is it that liberals say they want "diversity of thought and opinion", yet are crybabies when criticized? I am sick of the Dixie Chicks, Springsteen, Norah Jones, Mellencamp, Neil Young, and all those other Hollywood elites whining about how their "freedom of speech" is under attack, because they dare to speak "the truth" that no one else will say. Good grief!

"Freedom of speech" does not mean you aren't free from criticism. Or is freedom of speech just a one-way street, exercised only by liberals? (If you're on a college campus, don't answer that).

Where and when did President Bush ever attack anyone's "patriotism"? It's another one of those paranoid, self-guilt-induced liberal strawmans.

It is also utterly laughable how these learjet liberals act the role of martyrs, as if they are somehow "courageous" for "speaking out" against the "Bush Regime" and risk defamation at the hands of the vast rightwing conspiracy.

This is what real suppression of freedom of speech is:

You never know how precious freedom of speech is until you meet somehow who has had it taken from them—literally taken from them. During a patrol we came upon two hungry Iraqi men scavenging for food. When our translator began speaking with the men I noticed that one of them had a stub for a tongue. Through the translator we learned that the tongue-less man had spoken against the regime and that Saddam’s henchmen had severed his tongue. Saddam had quite literally removed the man’s freedom of speech.

Here in America, those who denounce the war and criticize the Bush Administration are getting rich. Not persecuted by the government. So spare me the indignation and fear-mongering. It takes more courage to speak out in Hollywood for the war and on behalf of conservative ideology.

Isn't it funny how Ann Coulter can be smeared and slandered, having what she said misrepresented in the LATimes and by the cackle-fest on The View, yet not resort to the "my freedom of speech is under attack" whining?

Back to Chris Matthews and the two aging hippy rockers:

Nash: Who is asking the questions now? Only people like you and Keith Olbermann... and Jon Stewart and Steve Colbert, you know?

Stewart is a comedian. Colbert is playing a character. Olbermann is a comedic character. And these are the types who Nash is listening to for serious politics?

One of the most ignorant and disgusting comments made by David Crosby is when he talks about how the job of American soldiers in Iraq is to kill "mothers and sisters."

This is the only accurate part of the dialogue I can more or less agree with:

NASH: There‘s no draft.

CROSBY: No draft.

NASH: They‘re not dying by the thousands.

CROSBY: They‘re not directly threatened. There‘s no draft. If there were a draft, the campuses would catch fire overnight. And you know, it seems like a peculiar thing for us to say because we really don‘t want a draft ever, but if they go ahead and do it, it‘ll certainly crystallize the problem because then the campuses will go off.

This is the dirty little secret of the Vietnam era "peace movement". It wasn't a "peace" movement. It was an anti-draft movement. By the end of 1971, under Nixon, the draft ended. Major peace protests happened throughout 1968 through '71. The largest, most intense bombing of the war occurred in Christmas of '72 [Operation Linebacker II]. Any protests? Any peace movement marches? Not a peep. Because those protesting the war knew that they would no longer be called up to serve. Yet we're to believe that the "peace" movement were anti-war out of altruistic good conscience on behalf of the Vietnam people.

Listening to Crosby and Nash talk politics is like listening to children. Yes, we have yet to learn to teach our "children" well...

Transcript of Nash and Crosby on Hardball in 2005 (the more things change, the more they stay the same)

All the News that's Not Fit to Print in the MSM

Tyler Hicks/The New York Times
Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, then the top American commander in Iraq, in Baghdad in 2004.

My assessment is that your profession, to some extent, has strayed from these ethical standards and allowed external agendas to manipulate what the American public sees on TV, what they read in our newspapers and what they see on the web. For some of you, just like some of our politicians, the truth is of little to no value if it does not fit your own preconceived notions, biases and agendas.

- Retired Lt. General Ricardo Sanchez

What's ironic, is how the media distorts and cherrypicks from the general's statements, framing it as an anti-Bush, anti-Iraq War indictment:

Washington Post:
Ex-Commander In Iraq Faults War Strategy
'No End in Sight,' Says Retired General Sanchez

New York Times: Ex-Commander Says Iraq Effort Is ‘a Nightmare’

Chicago Tribune (via AP writer): Ex-General: 'No End in Sight' in Iraq

BBC News: US general damns Iraq 'nightmare

Al Jazeera: Ex-general calls Iraq a 'nightmare'

No mention about his comments on agenda-driven news coverage. Which was pretty thorough and damning. I'd say that is the real story, here. Kind of drives home his point regarding the media, doesn't it?

More from the former top commander:

“tactically insignificant events have become strategic defeats for America because of the tremendous power and impact of the media” and scathingly asserted that reporters “are perpetuating the corrosive partisan politics that is destroying our country and killing our service members who are at war.”

Meanwhile, Mudville Gazette continues blogging about the Global Islamic Media Front and al Qaeda's "Working Paper for a Media Invasion of America"

Now, for the news that really does need to gain far greater traction:

Victor Davis Hanson gives observations about Iraq in an e-mail, returning from his 2nd trip there. Subsequent article, Hope Yet for Iraq.

Dramatic decline in civilian death toll in Iraq
More from the Washington Post, via Mike's America
More from Bill Roggio
12 former Army Captains do a NYTimes Seven, criticizing the war (don't worry about it)
More on the dozen by Jules Crittenden and Curt (Check out his updates!)

Michael Yon on Stability in Basra (via Bottomline Upfront)
From the NYTimes: Relations sour between Shiites and Iraqi Militia
There is a profound difference between the terrorists and our soldiers. Marco Martinez, Navy Cross recipient, will tell you more: Marine Hero: The Five Things I Saw that Make Me Support the War

Also blogging:
My Sandmen

FISA Quagmired Rescue Attempt of Kidnapped U.S. Soldiers

From the NY Post:

October 15, 2007 -- WASHINGTON - U.S. intelligence officials got mired for nearly 10 hours seeking approval to use wiretaps against al Qaeda terrorists suspected of kidnapping Queens soldier Alex Jimenez in Iraq earlier this year, The Post has learned.

This week, Congress plans to vote on a bill that leaves in place the legal hurdles in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act - problems that were highlighted during the May search for a group of kidnapped U.S. soldiers.

Previous posts:
Pfc. Joseph Anzack Jr.
Funeral Procession for Joseph Anzack Jr.

Hat tip for the story: Bottomline Upfront

Caption This

Al Gore testifies before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on global warming on Capitol Hill on March 21, 2007. Gore told the lawmakers that global warming posed the most dangerous crisis in American history.
Jim Young - Reuters

2007/10/16 01:00 Winning caption goes to Stew Magoo: After that last Get Stewed post, all I can think of is Tipper in her undies.

One has to visit Stew's blog to understand his humor, and why the caption works.

Saturday Morning Cartoon: The Dog Whisperer

I thought this was funny the first time I saw it:



Since then, it re-aired recently, and put into newer context when I learned that the Dog Whisperer in the South Park epidode is a real person: Cesar Millan of National Geographic's "The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan".

Dennis Prager had on Cesar Millan. I thought it was hilarious that Prager would draw a connection between Cesar Millan's doctrine of working with Mother Nature, in relation to the natural needs of dogs:

• Exercise
• Discipline
• Affection

And applying it to humans, in how we nurture our kids. Rather than "affection, affection, affection", what children need is "exercise, discipline, and affection".

So South Park wasn't just being funny after all....who woulda thunk it.