Scientists Baffled, Just Baffled That The Snow Keeps Falling ... Buuurrr

To quote Al 'Goracle' Gore:

Scientists “don’t have any models that give them a high level of confidence” ... scientists “don’t know. … They just don’t know.”

I know Al ... I know.

Denver Post:

Dry-winter forecasts were flat wrong this year for much of Colorado and the Southwest, and weather experts say they're struggling to understand why the snow just keeps falling.

Some forecasters blame climate change, and others point to the simple vicissitudes of weather. Regardless, almost everyone called for a dry-to-normal winter in Colorado and the Southwest — but today, the state's mountains are piled so thick with snow that state reservoirs could fill and floods could be widespread this spring.

"The polar jet stream has been on steroids. We don't understand this. It's pushing our limits, and it's humbling," said Klaus Wolter, a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Baffling ... just baffling.

CNN Producer Fired For Blogging

Here's the thing, you are not allowed to embarrass your employer with a personal blog.  I walk this fine line with my company every day my blog is public.  If you work for a news outlet that has to maintain the appearance of being unbiased ... you can't have a personal blog on the side telling the public that you hate people of a certain political affiliation as this guy has done. As a blogger he knows that other bloggers will expose him for who he is. Which would be extremely embarrassing to his employer, and damage their credibility as a news source.

He doesn't see it that way.

Chez Pazienza, a senior producer for CNN’s “American Morning,” says the network fired him on Tuesday on the grounds that he violated its standards for journalists through his blog, Deus Ex Malcontent.

Mr. Pazienza announced that he had been fired through — what else — a blog post on Wednesday. “What was the reason for my abrupt and untimely dismissal?” he wrote. “You’re reading it. More to come soon.”

It continues ...

A few months ago, Mr. Pazienza was invited to start blogging on The Huffington Post, the group blog founded by Arianna Huffington.

Mr. Pazienza said he has never identified himself in his writing as a CNN producer or as a representative of CNN and has never written about what goes on at work. “I will write about the media in general and, at times, the very sorry state of it, including the TV news media,” he said. “I think I have the right to.”

I'll stop here to address his statements that he thinks he has a right to talk about the media in general. This may be true depending on his conduct policy given to him by CNN, but the moment you begin to show bias that may undermine your employer's credibility, you're in trouble. Writing for the Huffington Post does just that. If conservative bloggers chose to make a big deal of CNN having a producer of one of their programs writing for the Huffington Post ... CNN's reputation would be severely damaged. Given that CNN already has a bad reputation, and has been scrambling to repair it for several months now doesn't help this guys case.

It's not just his affiliation with the Huffington Post that was the problem. It was his venemous writings on his site that sealed his fate.

Deus Ex Malcontent makes no effort to hide its author’s strong views. “I wake up every morning baffled as to why America hasn’t thrown George Bush and Dick Cheney in prison.

He also criticized some other famous people such as Oprah. While I applaud his attacks on Oprah, there could issues with advertising by going after some of the people he wrote about. Nonetheless, CNN can't have one of their producers running around talking about imprisoning people without them knowing about it. Especially since they are in full fledged damage control mode over at CNN.

Mr. Pazienza acknowledges that he did not ask permission from CNN to blog, either on his own Web site or on The Huffington Post. He contends that the policy had not been made clear to employees and was overly vague. “It’s purposely set up so they can be subjective,” he said. “Does that mean I can’t post on a MySpace blog that my friends read? Does that mean I can’t post something online to my wife?” He added that he believed he had been dismissed because of his views.

Here is where he completely missed the point, or didn't read his employee handbook. It doesn't matter if he thinks it was not made clear to him. As someone who works for one of the big media corporations I knew I had to ask permission to have a blog. At the time it was a Myspace page like this guy is talking about. When you work for these companies they make sure you understand what you need permission for. My boss told me what I can and can not write about. If I violate that ... I get fired.

He tries to take it too far by talking about personal posts to his wife and friends. That will not get him fired because it is personal, and won't embarrass CNN. His calling for Bush and Cheney to be imprisoned will draw negative attention to CNN, and that can't stand. He's right that he was dismissed because of his views, but it had nothing to do with how he believes. It's because he put them in aggressive writings that could harm CNN, and he should have known better.

FEMA Will "Relocate" Katrina Victims Instead Of Kicking Them Out On The Street Like They Deserve

I'm getting sick and tired of coddling these "victims." Katrina was a tragedy, and no one is denying that. However, it was a tragedy that happened in August of 2005 ... two and a half years ago! Not only should every one of these people be back in the work force, and at a bare minimum renting apartments of their own, but there is countless cases of fraud being committed by these "victims." It is not them but us, the taxpayer, who are the real victims here.

The reason there is formaldehyde in these trailers is because they are not meant to be lived in for extended periods of time. Everyone involved knows this and has chosen to ignore it in an effort to sacrifice themselves, and their children's health so they don't have to work. Then they can sue the government for more money. This is a classic case of sacrificing longevity for wealth and comfort.

FEMA is not off the hook here either. They are so worried about the public's negative perception of them that they are refusing to do what is right. Which would be to revoke all benefits Katrina victims are currently receiving, and forcing them to return to society by kicking them out of the trailers. This is a two-fold benefit. Not only will they be forced to become productive members of society again, but their health will improve because they are out of those temporary stay trailers. I've written about the trailer issue before.

Here's the latest assault on your emotions by the MSM.

Authorities say they will step up efforts to move hurricane victims out of more than 35,000 trailers now that tests indicate possibly high levels of formaldehyde contamination.

Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator David Paulison made the announcement Thursday.

The Centers for Disease Control has said fumes from 519 tested trailer and mobile homes in Louisiana and Mississippi were on average about five times what people are exposed to in most modern homes.

In some trailers, the levels were more than 50 times the customary exposure levels, raising fears that residents could contract respiratory problems.

FEMA -- which supplied the trailers -- should move people out quickly, with priority given to families with children, elderly people or anyone with asthma or other chronic conditions, said Mike McGeehin, director of a CDC division that focuses on environmental hazards.

"We do not want people exposed to this for very much longer," McGeehin said.

I agree that they should be moved. I just think they should be moved out onto the street. Two and a half years is more than enough time to pull your life together, and the proof is in the majority who actually have. The few that remain behind are nothing but leeches upon society who think they deserve welfare for the rest of their lives because Katrina got their feet wet. Perhaps the toxins in the trailers were sent by mother nature to make sure the weak are weeded out.

Here's One Explanation As To Why Public Education Is So Bad

Apparently they'll give a teacher's license to anyone these days.

Hillary Pimp Slaps MSNBC For Saying She's A Pimp

If it looks like a duck, and sounds like a duck ...

Yahoo:

A distasteful comment about Chelsea Clinton by an MSNBC anchor could imperil Hillary Rodham Clinton's participation in future presidential debates on the network, a Clinton spokesman said.

In a conference call with reporters, Clinton communications director Howard Wolfson on Friday excoriated MSNBC's David Shuster for suggesting the Clinton campaign had "pimped out" 27-year old Chelsea by having her place phone calls to celebrities and Democratic Party "superdelegates" on her mother's behalf.

Wolfson called Shuster's comment "beneath contempt" and disgusting.

Now Shuster did apologize, but has still been suspended. What about freedom of speech, and freedom of the press? Frankly I don't know why MSNBC is so upset at Shuster's comments. They've been in the tank for Obama for some time now.

While the comments about Chelsea may not be entirely fair (one must question why she is involved in mommy's campaign all of a sudden) ... clearly Hillary is the pimp of the Democrat party. I've never seen so many people get pimp slapped for falling out of line.

Paulbots Want Fredheads To Join Them

NEVER!!!!!!

Music Industry Goes Too Far In Saying Music You Buy Is Not Yours

Figuratively of course.

The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) is saying it is illegal to copy music you've paid for. Problem is ... there is no such law. The record industry is trying to win a precedent case in order to go after millions of people who have transfered their CD's to their MP3 players by saying we've violated copyright law. I disagree.

WaPo:

In legal documents in its federal case against Jeffrey Howell, a Scottsdale, Ariz., man who kept a collection of about 2,000 music recordings on his personal computer, the industry maintains that it is illegal for someone who has legally purchased a CD to transfer that music into his computer.

The industry's lawyer in the case, Ira Schwartz, argues in a brief filed earlier this month that the MP3 files Howell made on his computer from legally bought CDs are "unauthorized copies" of copyrighted recordings.

Well slap my ass and call me Suzy! Since when has it been illegal to make a backup of your personal possessions? As long as you aren't distributing the material to others there should be no controversy.

"I couldn't believe it when I read that," says Ray Beckerman, a New York lawyer who represents six clients who have been sued by the RIAA. "The basic principle in the law is that you have to distribute actual physical copies to be guilty of violating copyright. But recently, the industry has been going around saying that even a personal copy on your computer is a violation."

RIAA's hard-line position seems clear. Its Web site says: "If you make unauthorized copies of copyrighted music recordings, you're stealing. You're breaking the law and you could be held legally liable for thousands of dollars in damages."

Any statements on the RIAA's website are irrelevant, and they should face charges for making false statements.

The bottom line is that MY music is MY property. Once I pay for it, it is mine to do with as I wish so long as I don't distribute it. Using the RIAA's logic ... one day it will be illegal for my wife to listen to my MP3's.

Whole Foods: Shoplifters Are Customers Too. Leave Them Alone.

Notice I didn't use quotes in that title. Whole Foods didn't literally say that, but they essentially said that when they fired an employee who stopped a shoplifter in Ann Arbor.

MLive.com:

John Schultz says he lost his job at Whole Foods Market in Ann Arbor after he tried to stop a shoplifter from making a getaway. But the company says he went too far and violated a policy that prohibits employees from physically touching a customer - even if that person is carrying a bag of stolen goods.

There are several factors that need to be considered for this man's future lawsuit against Whole Foods. Let's examine the first one here in this paragraph. He was fired for "physically touching a customer." Since when are shoplifters customers? A customer is someone who pays for a good or service. You don't pay ... you aren't a customer.

Schultz says he had just punched out for a break at 7 p.m. on Sunday when he heard a commotion at the front door of the store.

Point two is that he had clocked out. In other words ... he was not on company time. If he doesn't get paid for that time ... he isn't on the job. Things get sketchy when you fire someone who wasn't on the job.

He said he came to the aid of the manager who yelled for help in stopping a shoplifter. Schultz, the manager and another employee cornered the shoplifter between two cars in the parking lot.

The third point is that he was assisting the manager (his boss) after being requested to do so. What's the point in chasing someone down, and asking others to help you chase them down if you won't do anything when you catch up to the crook? Now his manager becomes liable for his actions because he requested assistance.

The final point is that this did not happen on Whole Foods property. How can you fire an employee for stopping a shoplifter, while not on the clock, and not on company property?

With this logic, an employee could be fired for stopping a bank robber after work because the bank robber was in Whole Foods earlier that day. I smell a windfall in this man's future.

Schultz said he told the shoplifter he was making a citizens arrest and to wait for the police to arrive, but the shoplifter broke away from the group and ran across Washtenaw Avenue and toward a gas station at the corner of Huron Parkway.

Before the man could cross Huron Parkway, Schultz caught up and grabbed the man's jacket and put his leg behind the man's legs. When the manager arrived at the intersection, Schultz said, the manager told him to release the shoplifter, and he complied, and the shoplifter got away.

Schultz said he was called to the store's office the next day, on Christmas Eve, and was fired because he violated a company policy prohibiting employees from having any physical contact with a customer.

Again, he didn't touch a customer at all.

So what was Whole Foods' response to the firing?

Kate Klotz, a company spokesperson, said the policy is clear and listed in a booklet that all employees have to acknowledge that they received before they can start work.

"The fact that he touched him, period, is means for termination," said Klotz.

Schultz said he acted as a private citizen on property that isn't owned by Whole Foods, but Klotz said where the incident happened doesn't change the policy.

"He is still considered an employee of Whole Foods Market regardless of where he was and what was happening," she said.

I would love to see the company policy that this man signed when he was hired 5 years ago. Does it really say that shoplifters are customers? I doubt it.

If merely touching the shoplifter was grounds for termination then why even chase him out of the store? Keep in mind that the store's manager gave chase, and asked for assistence which this man provided while on his own time.

As for the Whole Foods rep saying that he is considered a Whole Foods employee "regardless of where he was and what was happening" is ludicrous, and the worst kind of stupid. I refer you to my argument above about him preventing a bank robber from getting away because he was in Whole Foods earlier that day.

Schultz is right on by saying he acted as a private citizen on his own time while not on company property. He is given the right to make a citizen's arrest by the Constitution. Whole Foods has no authority to remove Schultz's constitutional protections.

What would you expect from a store run by a bunch of hippies. Physical violence won't be tolerated ... even in self defense of the store's bottom line.

Peace, Love and Masturbation!

Yep, The US Is Still Doing Better Than Kyoto Countries On Emissions

It's been a year since you were last told that the US is doing better at reducing emissions than the Kyoto nations. Now it seems that some nations to have signed Kyoto are increasing their emissions by 80%.

Aftenposten:

Just as Norwegian delegates to the UN's conference on climate change started heading home from Bali, came news that Norway's own carbon emissions rose 80 percent from 1990 to 2004. Statoil's refinery at Mongstad is the biggest contributor.

So how exactly do they plan to fix this problem? Well, they don't. Instead they are invoking the Ultimate Scam, and using carbon credits.

Erik Solheim, the government minister in charge of environmental issues who was in Bali last week, admits that Norway's own high level of emissions is "embarrassing." That's why the government plans to donate NOK 15 billion (nearly USD 3 billion) over the next five years to help preserve the world's rain forests. That's viewed as an efficient way of offsetting carbon emissions.

I hate to be a scrooge so close to the holidays, but only the worst of dimwits view carbon credits as an efficient way of offsetting emissions. Let's not forget that Guyana slammed Kyoto's carbon credit scheme, and Kyoto's carbon credit program has also been causing deforestation.

Basically, Kyoto along with all of the signatory nations are FUBAR. Meanwhile, the US continues to grow its economy, reduce its emissions, and all without sacrificing any freedoms to a foreign body while throwing away billions of dollars. God bless capitalism!

Jews Are Responsible For Global Warming

Happy Hanukkah Jews! Bye the way, you are destroying the planet.

At least that is the latest global warming insanity being spewed by those who ignore the "inconvenient truth" that the sun is warming up all the planets in our solar system.

JPost:

In a campaign that has spread like wildfire across the Internet, a group of Israeli environmentalists is encouraging Jews around the world to light at least one less candle this Hanukka to help the environment.

The founders of the Green Hanukkia campaign found that every candle that burns completely produces 15 grams of carbon dioxide. If an estimated one million Israeli households light for eight days, they said, it would do significant damage to the atmosphere.

"The campaign calls for Jews around the world to save the last candle and save the planet, so we won't need another miracle," said Liad Ortar.

Uh, yeah. So now fire is destroying the planet? Let's recap the things that are destroying the planet ... well a couple of them anyway ... the biggest producer of carbon is the ocean, the biggest producer of methane is termites, now there's fire, and let's not forget the sun. All perfectly natural entities crucial to Earth's survival. Interesting how these things that are so vital to Earth's survival happen to be more responsible for global warming than anything else.

Today, Jews are not allowed to light the last candle. Tomorrow, no more birthdays.

Ron Paul Says Surge Failed, & We Lost In Southern Iraq

Scroll Down For Updates ... I Have The Video Of Paul Endorsing Sadr, Saying The Surge Failed, & We Lost ...

This guy is becoming even more of an idiot than I thought. It's ok to want out of Iraq, but it's another thing to lie about it in order to get votes.

He was properly smacked by McCain for his comments. To which Ron Paul supporters tried to boo McCain, but were drowned out with cheers for McCain as McCain schooled Paul on the facts of Vietnam.

I will post video as soon as I have it, and the latest numbers of a decline in violence in Iraq. Which Paul says is because the Brits are pulling out of Basra. Problem is that the violence in Basra declined 80% WHILE the Brits were there. They are pulling out because there is no more need for them there.

Update:

Here is a graph that shows the decline in violence in Iraq since the surge.

H/T: Gateway Pundit ...

• Violence in Iraq is down by 50%.
• Civilian casualties in Iraq are down by 60%.
• Baghdad casualties are down by 75%.
• Basra violence is down by 90%.
• Terrorist attacks in Iraq are down by 80%.
• IED attacks down by 55%.
• Average daily attacks down by 42%.

The numbers were taken from Aljazeera, DefenseLink, and Investor's Business Daily.

Here is a link to confirm those numbers further, and below is a video from the Pentagon Channel (courtesy of Amy Proctor).


Let's not forget that Iraq has just asked us to stay indefinitely while kicking the UN to the curb. This happened just days after AQI's last stronghold in Iraq was taken by the coalition.

As AQI is running for their lives ... 6000 Sunnis just signed up with the coalition to cut off their escape routes.

I've been telling you for a while now about the progress in Iraq before, and since, the surge.

It's bad enough that Ron Paul believes in conspiracies, opposed Amber Alert, thinks it's ok for minor children to be taken out of state to get abortions without the parents knowing, is a huge porker, and don't even get me started on his views of the CIA and FBI. He's got to tone down the lies about Iraq, and focus on potential conflicts in the future.

As soon as I can find video of Ron Paul saying we lost ... I'll post it.

Update 2:

Here is the transcript for the debate when Ron Paul said the surge failed.

"Already, part of their country has been taken back. In the south, they claim the surge has worked, but the surge really hasn’t worked. There’s less violence, but al-Sadr has essentially won in the south.

The British are leaving. The brigade of Al Sadr now is in charge, so they are getting their country back. They’re in charge up north — the Shia — the people in the north are in charge, as well, and there’s no violence up there or nearly as much."

I've seen a few people post my story in full around the net (please provide a link back to me), and I've been reading comments from RP supporters saying how violence went down because the Brits left. Not so, and here's the proof.

As you can see, when the Brits initially pulled back violence went up. What Paul and his supporters keep neglecting to tell you is that we only maintain control of Iraqi territory until the Iraqis can take over security there. This is hardly an empirical strategy Rep. Paul.

I outlined how much of Iraq is being turned over to Iraqi forces here.

The Brits pulled back because Basra was always a relatively safe place in Iraq due to the low diversity level, and the Iraqis were ready to take control there. So they did, and they kicked the crap out of the Shiite militia to restore order. That's the template for Iraq. Once the Iraqis are ready ... let them do the work, but they have to be ready. If we pull back when they aren't ready ... the results will be disastrous.

Paul also said that Sadr won in souther Iraq. This shows a complete lack of knowledge on Paul's part. Not only has Sadr not won ... his forces are in shambles.

After Sadr went into hiding shortly before the surge, his forces split into rival factions. He would later reemerge to attempt to reunite his militia, but a particularly nasty battle for Sadre's forces in Karbala forced him to call for a 6 month cessation of hostilities so he could repair the damage done to his organization.

Hardly the actions of someone who was victorious.

Finally, I found the video from the debate where Ron Paul says the surge failed, we lost, and seemed to endorse a Sadr victory in Basra as a good thing.


Oh, and Rep. Paul, those people in the north are called the Kurds. They want us to stay, and it isn't a good sign to have a presidential candidate that can't identify who the Kurds are. Especially with the issues between Kurds and Turkey.

Here's another video where Ron Paul talks about his $4.3 million raised on Guy Fawkes day. The question and answer start at 1:38 into the vid.


Paul forgot to mention that a decent chunk of that money came from Stormfront, a white supremacist group, and whether or not he's returned any of the racist's money. Since he cited the full $4.3 million ... I doubt he's refunded anything.

Here's a link about the Paul/Stormfront connection.

Another.

Here's a vid with Stormfront radio.


You get the idea.

I am in no way saying that Paul is a racist, but racists have latched onto his campaign, and he is not preventing their support from reaching his campaign funds. Nor is he denouncing them.

It is also important to note that while the honcho at Stormfront only donated $500 ... he and other racist groups lobbied for Paul in mass for the 5th of November fundraiser.

So You Want To Use Dope, But Not Get Arrested ... Go To San Fransisco!

That's right everybody. San Fransisco has finally decided to move forward with a very controversial plan that will allow intravenous drug users to shoot up without fear of arrest.

Why would they do such a thing you ask. Well, to prevent overdoses of course.

SF Gate:

On Thursday, an all-day symposium - co-hosted by the city Department of Public Health - will examine the idea of creating safe injection centers where users could bring their drugs, shoot up and leave, without fear of arrest.

The idea is to decrease overdoses, keep dirty needles off the street, and cut the risk of spreading HIV and hepatitis C. Those are all good things. It is the idea of providing addicts with their own injection clinic that riles people up.

Naturally, people are riled up over something like this (which has been in the works for years now). The article even quotes one reader as saying:

"What's next? Giving them the drugs, too?"

The answer to that is yes. Now some of you might think I'm going a little too far by saying that, but I want you to use some logic here.

If we are willing to allow dopers to shoot up in an effort to prevent overdoses, remove needles from the street, stop hepatitis and HIV ... surely we will be willing to provide said dope to prevent all of the other crimes involved in buying the dope on the street. Hell, it may even become a proposed strategy for the drug war (yes I know some people have already endorsed this tactic).

Seriously, think about it. The negative impact, and outright danger, to the individual as well as society is far worse if the drugs are purchased on the street instead of being supplied.

ABC News Helped Osama Escape Capture

No, it is not a joke or a lie. Once again, a news outlet here in the US has exposed a classified operation to the enemy that has prevented us from capturing or killing key enemy figures ... including Osama bin Laden.

From now on when someone raises the question of why we haven't been able to get bin Laden after all of these years ... you respond by saying that the NY Times and ABC News are the ones responsible.

NY Sun:

Al Qaeda's Internet communications system has suddenly gone dark to American intelligence after the leak of Osama bin Laden's September 11 speech inadvertently disclosed the fact that we had penetrated the enemy's system.

The intelligence blunder started with what appeared at the time as an American intelligence victory, namely that the federal government had intercepted, a full four days before it was to be aired, a video of Osama bin Laden's first appearance in three years in a video address marking the sixth anniversary of the attacks of September 11, 2001. On the morning of September 7, the Web site of ABC News posted excerpts from the speech.

But the disclosure from ABC and later other news organizations tipped off Qaeda's internal security division that the organization's Internet communications system, known among American intelligence analysts as Obelisk, was compromised. This network of Web sites serves not only as the distribution system for the videos produced by Al Qaeda's production company, As-Sahab, but also as the equivalent of a corporate intranet, dealing with such mundane matters as expense reporting and clerical memos to mid- and lower-level Qaeda operatives throughout the world.

The article then explains how AQ hacks legitimate websites, without the knowledge of site's owners, in order to communicate with each other.

One intelligence officer who requested anonymity said in an interview last week that the intelligence community watched in real time the shutdown of the Obelisk system. America's Obelisk watchers even saw the order to shut down the system delivered from Qaeda's internal security to a team of technical workers in Malaysia. That was the last internal message America's intelligence community saw. "We saw the whole thing shut down because of this leak," the official said. "We lost an important keyhole into the enemy."

Government agencies are now denying that they were responsible for the leak, but it is impossible to speak on behalf of all of their employees.

Bottom line is that the evidence shows the leak came from a government employee after they were told it was classified ... we don't know who yet. After they leaked the video and transcript to ABC News ... ABC should have withheld the information until after it was aired.

These news organizations must be required to make a choice between the welfare of this nation and their "scoop." So far, the nation comes second. The US government had better start reimplementing some of the internal security measures we had in place during the Cold War, or senseless leaks will continue so long as their is money and/or a political objective to be reached.

Make sure you go to the Sun's website for the full story.

Why Is This T-Shirt Causing Manufactured Outrage

Go here and find out ... it's good.

Harry Reid Demands Rush Apologize To Fake Soldiers

Keep in mind that Reid is NOT asking Rush to apologize to real soldiers who oppose the war, but to the fake soldiers that Rush was talking about on his program the other day while he was talking with a real soldier.

Here's the deal ... I'm going to pass you onto Hotair for the story because they've done it well. I would like to add a couple of things onto their list pointing out Reid's hypocrisy.

• Reid LIED about the "Measuring Stability and Security in Iraq" report.
• This father of a deceased soldier is super pissed at Reid.
• This Marine has responded to Reid's comments degrading the military.
• Reid said the war was "lost." Were Reid's comments treasonous?
• These veterans rip Reid apart ... to his face.
• And let's not forget that MoveOn.Org has just attacked a real soldier, and Reid refused to demand an apology from them. He also refused to pledge his support for the troops, and condemn anyone who attacked the honor and integrity of any member of the United States Armed Forces.

It's ok for Reid and his money-machine to attack real soldiers for political gain, but it isn't ok for Rush to attack fake soldiers who've never served?

I called Reid's Las Vegas office just before writing this. I was put on hold, and it sounded like they were busy. It's pretty common for Nevadans to inundate Reid's office after he says stupid things.

They came back on the line and asked how they could help me. I identified myself immediately so they knew who I was, and said I was calling about Reid asking for Rush to apologize. Immediately, the tone of the other guys voice changed to a "not again" defeated, disconnected demeanor.

He said:

"Yes?"

To which I replied by saying:

"This is a joke isn't it?"

To my surprise he said:

"Yeah."

Clearly he didn't mean to, but it shows how he became a non-thinking robot once he knew I wasn't on his side. He then tried to speak over me, and was trying to say that he would pass it along. I interrupted him though, and was able to get out what I wanted to say.

"You do realize that Rush was talking about Jesse MacBeth ... who was a fake soldier who never served?"

He then responded by saying that he would:

"Relay my concerns to the senator."

Then we hung up.

Yet Another School Bans Hugging

The trend continues as the list of schools that have banned hugging continues to grow.

CBS 2:

Schools just say no to bullying and fighting, but hugging? CBS 2 West Suburban Bureau Chief Mike Puccinelli reports that a local middle school wants the embracing to stop.

"Last year we would see maybe as many as 10 students on one side (of the hallway), 10 on the other and then, going in opposite directions, would sort of have a hug line going on and you could see where that would be a problem," said Victoria Sharts, principal of Oak Park's Percy Julian Middle School.

Uh ... yeah?

It's been a while since I've been in school, and suppose things could have changed, but a "hug line." You've got to be kidding. No doubt large groups of friends get together and hug each other, but I find it nearly impossible to believe that the hallway would split in two like two sports teams after a game and hug each other. That's entirely too choreographed for me to buy into.

Sixth grader Isabella Miller disagrees with the crackdown. "I don't think that that's right"

Her father agrees with her.

"It seems like a crazy idea to me," Mark Miller said.

The principal says the rampant hugging is creating bottle necks in the hallway and making kids late for class. Furthermore she says although hugs are supposed to be handshakes from the heart some times they don't seem so innocent.

"Too long, too close, and usually between boys and girls," Sharts said.

Ok, so crack down on inappropriate touching. There is a huge difference between the two, and grown adults should easily be able to tell the difference between an innocent hug and groping.

It gets better though (it always does). This hug ban is part of a "comprehensive discipline and anti-bullying plan." Because we all know that hugging erodes discipline among children, and leads to bullying. I did, however, save the best for last. You see, just when you might be thinking to yourself that maybe this school is just trying to prevent themselves from any legal trouble, or that perhaps it is sensible to not have your child receive a hug from another kid ... we learn the truth of just how insane this policy really is.

High-fiving in the hallways is also frowned upon.

That evil, anti-discipline inducing, and bullying causing high-five. The bane of our children's existence.

The John Kerry Taser Video

Funniest video ever!

You can see another angle here.

It turns out the student who got stunned is a bit of a prankster.

AP:

The student in the middle of it all, 21-year-old Andrew Meyer, had no comment after he was released on his recognizance on various charges following a night in jail.

But details from his online writings and videos raised the question of whether his harangue during the forum was genuine or some kind of stunt.

Meyer, a senior telecommunications major from the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Weston, has a Web site featuring several homemade videos. In one, he stands in a street with a sign that says "Harry Dies" after the latest Harry Potter book was released. In another, he acts like a drunk in a bar while trying to pick up a man dressed in drag.

The site also has what is called a "disorganized diatribe" attributed to Meyer that criticizes the Iraq war, the news media for not covering the conflict enough and the American public for paying too much attention to celebrity news.

Another site had pictures of Meyer licking a woman's face and making a suggestive pose as he stood behind a fake cow. The site listed his activities as "getting wasted" and "being ridiculous."

Whether he disrupted John 'Baby Killer' Kerry or not ... he deserved to get tased.

Kucinich In Syria: The Effort In Iraq Was A Lie, Dishonest, & Crooked

Photo Ripped From Hotair

Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), and 2008 presidential candidate went on Syrian television the other day, and assaulted our nation. Here's some highlights of what he said ...

• Americans have an increased understanding today of how wrong the war was and is.
• The United States must end the occupation.
• I've repeatedly challenged the thinking behind the surge.
• Increasing the occupation with a surge is counter-productive.
• We also must pay reparations to the people of Iraq.
• The US must take steps to repair the damage that has been done to the lives of the people of Iraq.
• We need to see that there is honest reconstruction in Iraq, no Halliburton dishonest cheating of the people of Iraq.
• I want my country to be loved by the world.
• It hurts my heart to know how America is seen in places around the world right now.
• The truth is the war was wrong.
• This war was based on lies.
• The effort against Iraq was dishonest, or crooked, from the beginning, and nothing good can come of it.
• We have to understand that the policy was based on a lie.

Trust me, there is more in the nearly 9 minute video.

No doubt, Kucinich would fail the Iraq War Test. I doubt he'd even get one question right.

The money shot came after he got finished calling Bush, the military, Poland's military, Denmark's military, Duelfer, the UN, and every media outlet in the world liars. Kucinich actually quoted the Bible ... IN SYRIA ... ON SYRIAN TELEVISION!

Regardless of what you think of Bush, or the war, it is categorically indefensible to go to an enemy foreign nation, go on their television, and say we are the liars and bad guys. He did this to the face of the enemy during a time of war.

Syria is a sponsor of terrorism that has threatened the US, and is threatening our allies as we speak. The majority of suicide bombers in Iraq come through Syria. We have repeatedly asked Syria to stop its support of terrorism, and to help stop the flow of fighters into Iraq. All to no avail.

Instead, we get terrorist leaders meeting each other in Syria, threats of violence, and more threats of violence. We then continue to ask Syria to stop supporting terrorism with no results.

Even with all of that, and more, Kucinich is perfectly happy to insult this country on the soil of a nation that is a state sponsor of terrorism, and has been directly linked to insurgent activity that gets our troops hurt.

Washington would have executed him, Lincoln and FDR would have imprisoned him for this action. There is a very real argument for treason here under Article III, Section III of the US Constitution.

Kucinich may not have a chance in hell of winning the nomination (especially when he is campaigning in Syria), but he does have a decent shot at a cabinet appointment.

There is absolutely no excuse for any elected leader to go to an enemy nation, and verbally attack the character, and integrity of this nation. No matter how bad Kucinich's heart hurts that not everyone in the world loves us.

Bonus:

I would have thought Kucinich would have tried to hide from his statements in Syria, but he is embracing them. I haven't received a call back from his people yet, but he has put the video on his campaign site. He put it right below the 9/11 remembrance ... nice.

Plasma TV's To Be Banned

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Actual Headline: Housing Market Slump Forces Couple To Open Brothel

FORCES?

Yeah ... ok.

I love how these headlines get written up sometimes. It isn't the poor decision of this couple that is responsible for their opening a brothel illegally. It's the housing market slump!

Whatever.