(T)he present attempt to remake America is the effort of the liberal well-to-do — highly educated at mostly private universities, nursed on three decades of postmodern education, either with inherited wealth or earning top salaries, lifestyles of privilege indistinguishable from those they decry as selfish, and immune from the dictates they impose on others. Works and Days, Reflections on the Revolution in America
Month: March 2010
Other People’s Words
It is true that recent immigrants seem to “get it” better than Xth generation “natives.” At a forum I’m a (recent) member of, this was a topic put up by one member:
Are you patriotic? If so why? To me,it makes little sense in feeling pride in something that was due to fortune and involves no personal achievement.
The very first reply says it all, and better than I could:
My grandparents and great-grandparents left a dangerous place to start a new life here.
I am fully aware of how lucky I am to live here rather than in Russia or the other locations.
I can say whatever I want, no matter how stupid or political.
I can drive anywhere I want with out clearance or papers.
I can earn any job I want, it does not depend on who I know or how much I pay in bribes.
I am proud and grateful that the US is able to help Haiti and other folks. I am proud that we in the US do this without a referendum and without moving speeches by our politicians.
I am proud and grateful that we change political control of this country every 4 years without fighting or protesting or bringing in the military to maintain the peace.
I am proud and grateful that the US has fought in many wars to help others when we could have sat it out.
I am proud and grateful that I have several family members currently serving overseas, not just blowing things up, but fixing things, helping the small farmer, helping to bring water and electricity to the poor, helping maintain peace. All can and have risen in the ranks by effort, not connections, not bribes.
I am grateful and proud that when my sister-in-law was part of the effort to put Iraqis to work, she was asked by the Iraqis how much they needed to pay her for giving them the contracts and my sister-in-law, along with everyone in her unit, was stunned that someone expected to bribe them for work. They did not take bribes, it had not even occurred to them that such a question would be asked.
I am grateful and proud that our soldiers are willing to die, willing to die to prevent the collateral damage, shooting deaths of the innocents in Iraq and Afghanistan. Our war dead would be less than 1/2 of what it is if we were not so careful to fight only the bad guys.
Damned straight. And I’m proud to live in the same country as the man who wrote that.
Quote of the Day – Brady Campaign Edition
This one’s from Uncle:
Paul Helmke says gun owners are forcing guns into every nook and cranny of society, which is false. He also goes on to illustrate the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Ownership’s real concern (and one that they lose ground on every day) that guns are being normalized. Well, they are normal, sparky.
I DARE You Not to Laugh
Full disclosure: I OWN a Toyota. Not on the recall list, though.
Secondary disclosure: I’m not (yet) at the average age of the drivers who have experienced “sudden unintended acceleration” either.
Click on the link for the T-shirt. And don’t forget the discount code! (I am not in any way affiliated with Despair.com, though I like the hell out of their products!)
I Always Suspected Charlie Watts was a Woman
Well, the New HVAC Unit is In
And I’m out the price of a decent used car (a bit more than double what I paid for my current Mustang). Hopefully this one will last longer than nine years and a couple of months. Its warranty is a lot better, anyway.
But, OUCH.
I need to work some serious overtime.
Your Moment of Zen
Damn, that’s pretty.
Quote of the Day – Politics Edition
This one’s from Alger:
The Slaughter Rule…
AND THE DISCUSSION of it at the Volokh Conspiracy persuade me ever more thoroughly of my hypothesis that the Dems do not intend to pass “Health Care,” but that they are convinced they must be seen to have tried. As the solutions to the deadlock and the statements made about it become ever more risible, one is forced to conclude that they don’t really want this one. They’re just faking it.
One more thing they can blame on the Republicans for not being “bipartisan” about come election time.
This is Not Science . . .
. . . this is the modern equivalent of divination by entrail-reading. Mark Alger links to a piece at American Thinker on just how “Global Temperature” records are made: The Granularity of Climate Models.
READ IT. And by all means, read the comments. Then consider that these “scientists” are insisting that their data is good enough to predict temperatures to the tenth of a degree into the future.
No wonder none of their models work. AGW is a religion, and their high priests are being defrocked in front of us.
Human Redemption Through Government
During the election campaign Michelle Obama said of her husband,
Barack Obama is the only person in this race who understands that. That before we can work on the problems we have, we have to fix our souls. Our souls are broken in this nation.
I am here right now because I am married to the only person in this race who has a chance of healing this nation.
Just recently, as I noted, Al Gore said of the opponents of his AGW campaign that “From the standpoint of governance, what is at stake is our ability to use the rule of law as an instrument of human redemption.”
It would appear that the New York Times is still enraptured by the idea of human redemption through government Obama:
This particular photo-chop was pointed out by Van Der Leun.
Remember how Jonah Goldberg defined the word “fascism”?
Fascism is a religion of the state. It assumes the organic unity of the body politic and longs for a national leader attuned to the will of the people. It is totalitarian in that it views everything as political and holds that any action by the state is justified to achieve the common good. It takes responsibility for all aspects of life, including our health and well-being, and seeks to impose uniformity of thought and action, whether by force or through regulation and social pressure. Everything, including the economy and religion, must be aligned with its objectives. Any rival identity is part of the “problem” and therefore is defined as the enemy.
Well?
UPDATE: THIS image, via Jeff at Alphecca is a fitting addition:
He may not be painting himself that way, but the media still is.