Friday, April 29, 2011

There's a special kind of hell for this assclown

I would be sitting in jail this very moment had someone done this to my dog.

An animator who helped bring lovable creatures to life in movies like Kung Fu Panda and Madagascar 2 has been arrested for what Humane Society workers describe as one of the worst cases of animal abuse they’ve ever seen. DreamWorks employee Young Song is accused of shooting his neighbor’s muzzled German Shepherd puppy with a pellet gun and then beating it to death with a hammer, reports the New York Daily News.
Song has pleaded not guilty to a felony count of animal cruelty that carries up to four years in jail, though the incident was captured on surveillance video. “When our officers first viewed the videotape, one of our officers had tears in his eyes. He’d never seen anything like this before,” the head of the Pasadena Humane Society tells the Los Angeles Times. “In my 31 years at this animal shelter I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Mad Mikes America 

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Fringe history with a buffet of Religion on the side

Newt Gingrich is a fan. So's Michele Bachmann. Mike Huckabee's such a booster that he recently said that all Americans should be "forced at gunpoint" to listen to this guy.

The object of this high praise from Huckabee—and recent shout-outs from other potential GOP presidential contenders—is David Barton, a Republican activist and minister who founded WallBuilders, a for-profit evangelical outfit that works to inject religion into politics. Barton holds some pretty unconventional views, and in the past he has spoken alongside fringe figures like Holocaust deniers and white supremacists. Among other things, he claims that Jesus would oppose the capital gains tax and the minimum wage; that global warming is "self-correcting"; and that the nation's homeland security apparatus has been infiltrated by members of the Muslim Brotherhood. He also contends that the separation of church and state is a perversion of the Founding Fathers' intention to create a Christian nation.

Barton promotes the idea of a "stolen legacy": that the Christian history that birthed the United States and nurtured its national consciousness has been deliberately obscured by liberals. America's religious history, according to Barton, has been covered up through a concerted movement to deny the facts. It's a "a very powerful, validating force for people in the religious Right…'We are the real inheritors of this nation,'" Boston says.

For years, Barton's most extreme arguments—like how science always confirms the word of the Bible (explaining why global warming and embryonic stem cell research are hokum) or how the story of the Tower of Babel proves that God hates socialism—were confined to Christian talk shows and his national speaking circuit. In 2009, the Christian Broadcasting Network hosted Barton for a two-week, 10-part special on the program Gospel Truth with Andrew Wommack to explain why Christians should control every aspect of American society. He spent some time laying out God's case against socialism: "Bureaucracy treats everybody like they're a brick. And that's the problem with socialism, is you're a brick, when you need to be a living stone that's unique, like a snowflake, like a DNA cell, like an iris in an eye; every one of them is different. And that's what got God ticked off." This is typical Barton: encoding a conventional conservative talking point in evangispeak, distorting the Bible to justify the Republican Party's agenda.
- Mother Jones 

Leadership

“I came to believe that a leader isn’t good because they’re right. They’re good because they’re willing to learn and to trust. This isn’t easy stuff. … And it isn’t always fair. You can get knocked down. And it hurts. And it leaves scars. But if you’re a leader, the people you’ve counted on will help you up. And if you’re a leader, the people who count on you need you on your feet.”
 - Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal

Ya Think?

BREAKING: Anti-Sharia Bill Sponsors Are Kind of Clueless

Obama's Birth Certificate Through The Eyes Of A Birther

From Huffpo

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Another reason to hate Iran

The Latest Enemies of Iran: Dogs and Their Owners
For much of the past decade, the Iranian government has tolerated what it considers a particularly depraved and un-Islamic vice: the keeping of pet dogs.

During periodic crackdowns, police have confiscated dogs from their owners right off the street; and state media has lectured Iranians on the diseases spread by canines. The cleric Gholamreza Hassani, from the city of Urmia, has been satirized for his sermons railing against "short-legged" and "holdable" dogs. But as with the policing of many other practices (like imbibing alcoholic drinks) that are deemed impure by the mullahs but perfectly fine to many Iranians, the state has eventually relaxed and let dog lovers be. 

Those days of tacit acceptance may soon be over, however. Lawmakers in Tehran have recently proposed a bill in parliament that would criminalize dog ownership, formally enshrining its punishment within the country's Islamic penal code. The bill warns that that in addition to posing public health hazards, the popularity of dog ownership "also poses a cultural problem, a blind imitation of the vulgar culture of the West." The proposed legislation for the first time outlines specific punishments for "the walking and keeping" of "impure and dangerous animals," a definition that could feasibly include cats but for the time being seems targeted at dogs. The law would see the offending animal confiscated, the leveling of a $100-to-$500 fine on the owner, but leaves the fate of confiscated dogs uncertain. "Considering the several thousand dogs [that are kept] in Tehran alone, the problem arises as to what is going to happen to these animals," Hooman Malekpour, a veterinarian in Tehran, said to the BBC's Persian service. If passed, the law would ultimately energize police and volunteer militias to enforce the ban systematically.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Learn froma Dog......quit yer sniveling and suck it up.

http://www.dogwork.com/kan6/

Sunday, April 17, 2011

This ought to be interesting.......

Obama Calls for Sweeping Review of U.S. Military Strategy

A good article....I recommend reading it if you're interested in defense spending and the direction our military is going in the next 4-8 years.

What has to happen, as Christopher Preble explains in the article, is to undergo a serious discussion of the facts...not just the assumptions. And most certainly, not the politically expedient soundbites, real discussion of real facts. Why are we still in Afghanistan? What are we doing to find, fix and destroy Al Qaeda? What commitment are we going to maintain with Iraq....and how will that change as they move closer into the Iranian sphere?

Did Obama lie about Libya?

What, a sitting US President lie, exaggerate or spin the facts? Say it ain't so!
EVIDENCE IS now in that President Barack Obama grossly exaggerated the humanitarian threat to justify military action in Libya. The president claimed that intervention was necessary to prevent a “bloodbath’’ in Benghazi, Libya’s second-largest city and last rebel stronghold.
But Human Rights Watch has released data on Misurata, the next-biggest city in Libya and scene of protracted fighting, revealing that Moammar Khadafy is not deliberately massacring civilians but rather narrowly targeting the armed rebels who fight against his government.
Misurata’s population is roughly 400,000. In nearly two months of war, only 257 people — including combatants — have died there. Of the 949 wounded, only 22 — less than 3 percent — are women. If Khadafy were indiscriminately targeting civilians, women would comprise about half the casualties.
Obama insisted that prospects were grim without intervention. “If we waited one more day, Benghazi . . . could suffer a massacre that would have reverberated across the region and stained the conscience of the world.’’ Thus, the president concluded, “preventing genocide’’ justified US military action.
But intervention did not prevent genocide, because no such bloodbath was in the offing. To the contrary, by emboldening rebellion, US interference has prolonged Libya’s civil war and the resultant suffering of innocents.
Boston.com

Obama lied about Signing Statements

Or flip-flopped or was nuanced or misspoke....whatever. He's guilty of the same barely Constitutional end run that I hated Bush for committing.
But on Friday, Obama did exactly that which he vowed in that answer he would never do. When signing the budget bill into law, he attached a signing statement objecting to some provisions as an encroachment on executive power but still vowing to obey them (such as restrictions on transferring Guantanamo detainees), but then explicitly stated that he would ignore the provision of this new law that de-funds his so-called "czars" (which are really little more than glorified presidential advisers). Declaring that the Executive has the unfettered "authority to supervise and oversee the executive branch" -- i.e., asserting another critical aspect of the "unitary theory of the Executive" -- Obama declared that "the executive branch will construe [the de-funding provision] not to abrogate these Presidential prerogatives." In other words, we're going to ignore that mandate because we believe it's unconstitutional:  he's going to use funds for exactly the purpose that Congress, in a bill he signed into law, flatly prohibited.
It would be one thing if these full-scale reversals were on ancillary issues. But these are fundamental. They're about the powers of that office and the nature of our government. And Obama made these issues the centerpiece of his campaign.  These campaign statements are nothing less than vows made to voters about how he would exercise the power he was seeking if they voted for him.  To insist during the campaign that Presidents have no power to start wars without Congress or to ignore laws the President believes are unconstitutional -- and then do exactly that once he's been vested with that power -- is a form of fraud. And, ironically, it's exactly this behavior that breeds the cynicism that he has repeatedly identified as the central poison in our political culture.  Whatever one thinks about the policies in question on the merits, it should be impossible to defend or justify the radical inconsistency between what he pretended to believe and what he's doing.
GG

Home Depot.....Good on 'em!

I have nothing against Lowes, as they and Home Depot give military a 10% discount, and I usually shop at Lowes because it's far closer to the homestead. But Home Depot deserves to be commended, and deserves your patronage.
Today, The Home Depot® Foundation announced a pledge of $30 million over three years to address veterans’ housing issues.  The Foundation’s financial commitment will be amplified by associates from The Home Depot, who will volunteer their time and home improvement know-how skills to projects across the country.

“Our nation’s veterans have made great sacrifices for our country, yet the statistics show that many of them face severe housing needs due to disability, lack of affordable housing and unemployment,” said Frank Blake, chairman and CEO, The Home Depot.  “Their plight is very personal to all Home Depot associates because we have more than 35,000 veterans who work for us and an estimated 1,500 associates serving on active duty at any given time.”

The Foundation’s initiative will kick off immediately by providing a total of $3.1 million to Fisher House Foundation, The Mission Continues and Volunteers of America to repair and rehabilitate facilities and homes serving veterans of all ages.  In addition to funding, each of these partnerships will be supported by Team Depot, the Company’s associate-led volunteer force.
Link

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

On the anniversary of the start of the Civil War........

A colleague at Lightfighter.net puts the states rights argument into current context....and does an admirable job of it.
Gay marriage and Abortion are hot button issues right now in the Federal Government. In my readings of the Constitution there is no provision that says the Federal Government has the power to legislate on any of that.

Now since they don't have the authority to do this it falls to the state or to the people. So, if state A says abortion or Gay Marriage is outlawed and is said so in their constitution, then it is. If state B is silent, then it is up to the people.

So why do we have a marriage license? This came about 1923 with the Uniform Marriage and Marriage License Act. Why was this created? Well, Historically interracial marriages were prohibited. After the passage of the 15th Amendment and the Civil War you really couldn't out right make a law that said a black man couldn't marry a white woman. So they created this law, and it placed an unsaid "authority" to the issuing authority to not issue a license to a interracial couple. So, in a sense, it was a raciest law and still is.

This links to gay rights the same way. I think the gay community is going about the "gay rights" issue the wrong way. First, gay people have no more or less than anyone else. What they should be advocating for, as well as everyone else, is the abolishment of the Marriage License. It is unconstitutional. A marriage is between 2 people (or more) and if they have a god(s) then them as well.

This goes directly to the State rights issue. The Federal Government makes plenty of laws that are unconstitutional, and some are made to correct a problem or prevent something. If it were left to a state and state rights, the issue will correct itself.

Take child porn for example, it's illegal in all 50 states. So why the need for a Federal law? If one state allowed it the people there would change it, and if not they would move to a state that outlawed it. Eventually that state would change when enough people "vote with their feet". Replace Child porn with any other topic and the outcome would be the same.

But the Federal Government meddles with State affairs. Take the banning of gay marriage in California. The people voted for outlawing it, A Federal judge shot it down. That's a whole other discussion on Federal Judges and them being to powerful and overstepping their bounds. But the judge struck down the will of the people there, and it was an issue that the Federal Government can not legislate on anyway.

Recently we are seeing the States rights issue come to the front again. Arizona is an example. The immigration issue is one that is heated now. The Federal Government is charged with that issue, but AZ is looking at it as the USG is not dealing with it, so they are in a sense succeeding that power away from the USG and back to themselves.

Immigration, Drugs, Gay rights, Obamacare, etc...all states issues but the state has no voice in it. They have no voice because with the 17th Amendment allows for the direct election senators. They have no voice in the Federal system anymore. The way it was originally set up gave a voice to the people (the house, and the purse holder..thus ensuring the will of the people are always the most powerful) and the voice of the State, the Senate.
- Gruntpain1775

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Help a grieving Gold Star Father

Matt and the Team from Blackfive have accepted a tall order, and you can help a father visit the hallowed ground where his son gave his life.
"I can not die in peace one day if I do not go. I will be 58 in January and... I think I can't wait any longer. But more importantly I have a gut feeling it is time.

The only gift in life I dream of for myself, strictly only for me, is to kneel and touch the ground where [he] died. To smell the air. To see what he saw his final days, final moments. I can see it at a distance of several hundred feet through out of date Google Earth Photos but that simply is not good enough for me. Even if it were to cost me my very life, I have to go there. I need your help to figure out how to make this happen. I would appreciate anything you could do to help me formulate an entry plan in country to make this happen."
You can help by donating to Soldiers' Angels PayPal or Authorize.Net and type in the memo code GOLDSTAR. Or you can send a check with GOLDSTAR in the memo field to:
    Soldiers' Angels 1792 E Washington Blvd Pasadena, CA 91104
Corporate donors and foundations can contact me directly via email.  Sponsors are also welcome.

Visit Blackfive for the entire story.

The two faces of Ann Coulter

Ann almost garnered a modicum of respect from me, something I usually do not reserve for crass pundits of any stripe, but she couldn't remain within the bounds of reality for long.

On the birther conspiracy she actually understands the facts and states "every responsible conservative organization to look at it has shot it [the conspiracy theory] down."

But.....then she goes on to state "that it was normally being talked about exclusively on the liberal cable stations."

She was on Fox News' Hannity Show at the time......




As an addendum, some people view the inclusion of a Media Matters video as political bias, even though the speakers words are they're own. If anyone can point me to an independent compendium of similar video transcription....or better yet, a source that takes a critical look at their own, I'd be much obliged.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Dressed to Kilt!

New Yorkers and celebrities embraced the kilt for a good cause in Manhattan.
The annual "Dressed to Kilt" fundraiser -- which benefits the Wounded Warrior Project, the Paralyzed Veterans Association of America and the Erskine Hospital -- filled the Hammerstein Ballroom on Tuesday night for good fun.
Audience members, such as entrepreneur Donald Trump, were flashed by Broadway's "That Championship Season" cast Kiefer Sutherland, Chris Noth, Brian Cox, Jason Patric and Jim Gaffigan.

Look...this is my shocked face....

The perceived potential for Afghan forces to switch sides (after being trained by international forces) is at a dangerous level. Fifty-six percent of respondents believe Afghan police are helping the Taliban and 29 percent think that Afghan police end up joining the Taliban. Thirty-nine percent think that the Afghan National Army (ANA) are helping the Taliban; 30 percent of respondents think that ANA soldiers end up joining the Taliban.
According to interviews, the Taliban could easily rebuild their power in the country and 81 percent believed the return of the Taliban would mean a return of al Qaeda. Additionally, 72 percent believe that al Qaeda would then use Afghanistan to launch attacks on the West again.

The good, the bad, and the ugly in Afghanistan

The Federal Budget explained in Pie

h/t: : Legal Insurrection

Friday, April 8, 2011

I've always wanted to try my hand at Kayaking......

now I want to more than ever!

h/t Coffeypot

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Words from a Founding Father

Of all the enemies to public liberty war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and taxes; and armies, and debts, and taxes are the known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few. In war, too, the discretionary power of the Executive is extended; its influence in dealing out offices, honors, and emoluments is multiplied; and all the means of seducing the minds, are added to those of subduing the force, of the people. . . .

- James Madison

Intriguing comment from presidential hopeful Herman Cain

“The First Amendment says everybody can practice whatever religion they choose. [Muslims] are free to practice their religion in the United States, just like all other legitimate religions. But they are not free to infuse their religious beliefs into our laws. We don’t do that in the United States, and if I’m president I’m going to work to keep it that way.”
 ....oh really?

Some amazing photo's of The Wall

The public vote has started...be sure and check them out here.

Meeting Grandad

Friday, April 1, 2011

The Army has a sense of humor after all.......


In a fingertip-to-the-brim nod to its American frontier history, the Army is changing hats again - returning to the tumultuous days of the horse Cavalry in the wild west and adopting a dark blue Stetson as the official headgear for the current force of 1.1 million Soldiers.
"We figure the Stetson will be popular with the troops," said Sgt. Maj. Bob S. Stone, Army Uniform Board headgear task force president. "It's been a while since we have changed the headgear, so it's time. Plus a Stetson is functional and down right American."

But reminiscent of the controversial switch from the garrison cap to the black beret, the Army faces opposition from one community deeply opposed to losing its special identity with the Stetson - the Armor branch.

"Why in the heck are they doing to us what they did to the snake-eaters?" asked one officer familiar with the board's deliberations. "If you ain't Cav, you ain't ought to be wearing a Cav hat. That just ain't right."
 The Army's official adoption date of the Stetson will be April Fool's Day, 2012.
army.mil

 April Fools!