What? Me blog?

...and also a liar.

Sen. Arlen Spector: ‘To Eliminate Any Doubt, I Am a Republican’

One RINO down; quite a few more to go. Snowe of ME should be shown the door so she can hit it too.

Labels: politics

Hey, I didn't say it! This guy did! And if you think that statement was bad, wait'll you catch the title of the article.

Funnily enough, an old New York University study from the ’50s says they’re just that, specifically, “overtly dominant, aggressive, narcissistic and bitterly hostile.” Sounds accurate to me. Shit, I get uncomfortable when I see babies with pierced ears, but you’re cutting out 50% of their parenting? Isn’t that child abuse? Talk about starting your child out with a crippling handicap. - Gavin McInnes

I didn't say it, not in this way anyway, but I agree with him.

Labels: social issues

Starving the Beast

I wish I could increase spending with falling revenue, but then I don't have my very own printing press. Counterfeiting is worse when the government does it. The small-timers can't make enough funny money to do any real damage and the bills are spotted and taken out of circulation quickly. We'll be straightening out this mess for generations.

What morons we elect. What morons we must be.*
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*in the collective of course. We both know we're really pretty smart, don't we?**

**At least I am!***

***No - really!

Labels: economy

Jim Babka writing at Positive Liberty -

If you’ve never been to DownsizeDC.org, I encourage you to visit. We provide a free to the user program that we call the Educate the Powerful System. With your basic contact information, you can find out who your Representative and Senators are, and then, send them a personalized message, simultaneously (no need to go to all three sites and input all your information each time). Register once, and you’re done with that too — no need to redo the process when you use the site again. Plus, you’ll get a subscription to the Downsizer-Dispatch. The benefit of using our system is that you’re not alone in sending your messages. 24,900+ people receive the Dispatch each day.

Huzzah!

As a more-or-less orthodox Catholic - that is, a social conservative - I obviously take issue with my more socially liberal brethren at Positive Liberty and other such sites, but this is a great site. The ability to hit all of my congresscritters at the same time is, if not priceless, then wonderfully convenient.

Babka's post on the evil's of HR 875 Really Bad (Without Hysterical Exaggeration) is spot on. It is a farm safety bill that would be a disaster for farmers and the rest of us. You can see information on HR 875, including the whole text of the bill, at govtrack.us. No exaggeration, this bill is a disaster in waiting.

Labels: politics

Not by windbag libertardians talking King George to death, but a 68-year-old fart with a thing against getting speeding tickets in the mail, apparently.

Doug Georgianni, 51, was on the eastbound side of the highway inside a Ford Escape used in the Arizona Department of Public Safety photo-enforcement program when police said (Thomas Patrick) Destories pulled up in a 1980s model Chevrolet Suburban and fired several shots at the van about 8:45 p.m.

Prayers for Georgianni and his family, and for Destories.

The comments to the story are revealing. The photo radar program, put in place by current head of DHS and ex- AZ gov Napolitano seems to be unpopular.

From American Digest:

TO: White House Staff
FROM: David Axelrod
cc: POTUS, FLOTUS, TOTUS, CNN, MSNBC, JOURNOLIST

RE: Standard O-Pology Policy [For immediate release to loyalists]

The continuing strain on our beloved President Obama of His world-girdling apology tour is beginning to show on our Commander-in-Chief. In addition, even with several hundred more aides in the White House than his predecessors, the effort of crafting new craven and groveling statements is beginning to tax even those resources. In the interest of a more efficient government, our beloved President today signed off on the following document which will be used henceforth for all state occasions.

All Purpose O-pology

I, [SAY YOUR NAME AND TITLE], come to [NAME EVENT / COUNTRY / MEDIA OPPORTUNITY / CHANCE ENCOUNTER] today as the very first penitent, conscience-stricken, regretful and contrite American President. Speaking as the one and only unifying voice for My country, I beg your indulgence to say that all Americans now share the pain our very existence causes you and we deeply regret it. We repent of our lives, our freedom, and our prosperity with every shred of our American soul. Hear now our eternal confession of sin and error.

The rest of the post is equally sad and funny. Sadly funny. I swear Obambi is actively trying to supplant Jimmy Carter as "Worst President Ever." I'm already longing for the good ole days of the Bush presidency - urkh.

Labels: politics

It seems strange that 30 years later we are still having a conversation about a disease that is easily preventable. And yet, due largely to a wholly inadequate response to the problem of AIDS, more people have died and many more have contacted AIDS than is necessary. It seems that sin does indeed make one stupid.

Dale O'Leary has written a provocative paper, provided by the blog Feminine Genius here that brings us up to date with the situation in Africa, and the picture isn't pretty.

In the wake of Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Africa and the attendant brouhaha over O'Leary updated a 2005 paper, providing an overview of the various strategies for dealing with AIDS.

The HIV/AIDS pandemic has caused immeasurable suffering, but prevention is possible. The disease does not strike randomly – we have identified the virus that causes AIDS, and we know the pathways the virus can take. The question for the people of Africa is: What is the most effective strategy for preventing transmission?

The protection of public health in the face of deadly epidemics has always required a balance between respecting freedom and saving lives. Governments are given three options from which to build a strategic response: risk elimination, risk avoidance, and risk reduction. Even the most devastating epidemics can be stopped if the government is willing to abridge its citizens' freedom by employing draconian risk elimination strategies such as mandatory testing and quarantine. Such strategies are normally only employed for deadly, fast-moving epidemics. Risk avoidance strategies prevent infection by motivating the public to avoid all possible sources of infection and enforcing public health regulations. Risk reduction strategies allow people to continue to engage in behaviors that could expose them to infection while encouraging a reduction – but not elimination – of the risk of infection.

Early in the epidemic, various nations made different choices with differing results. When Cuban soldiers returned from fighting in Angola, the government realized that some were infected with HIV. The regime responded with mandatory testing and quarantine. The epidemic was blunted.

The U.S. opted for risk reduction. Mandatory testing and quarantine were suggested but ruled unacceptable. Standard public health measures that were used to control sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as syphilis and gonorrhea were also rejected. Instead, prevention focused on educating people on the ways in which they could protect themselves by using condoms. The result: twenty-five years after the threat was identified, over a half million citizens have died of AIDS and three times that many are living with HIV. In 2006 in the U.S. 56,300 people were newly infected – the majority of them being men who have sex with men. The U.S. strategy with some modifications has been exported to other countries as the preferred method for controlling the epidemic.

Africa’s leaders and those who fund AIDS prevention programs in Africa need to consider the full range of options available. The following is a review of what is known about how HIV is transmitted, standard public health strategies, the prevention strategy presented to Africa as the "scientific consensus," the agendas of those who created this consensus, the challenges to that consensus, alternative strategies, and the effect of the choice of prevention strategy on the culture.

Be sure to read the full report.

Labels: AIDS, politics

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Obama's 100th day celebration: All a$$lickers invited. - submitted by Eviction Notice

breitbart.com — "It's going to have the energy and excitement of an election night so bring your barf bags!"

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I just can't help myself. It's funny, although I might have said "bootlickers." This is a perfect illustration of why CNN is increasingly becoming irrelevant, third now to FOX and (P)MSNBC.

Labels: politics

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Not that it should come as any surprise to learn that Repugnicon Olympia Snowe of ME is on board with Demonrat Jay Rockefeller of WV, but the provisions of S. 773:

To ensure the continued free flow of commerce within the United States and with its global trading partners through secure cyber communications, to provide for the continued development and exploitation of the Internet and intranet communications for such purposes, to provide for the development of a cadre of information technology specialists to improve and maintain effective cyber security defenses against disruption, and for other purposes.

should be of concern to freedom-minded Americans. It looks to be yet another in an ever growing parade of bi-factional ruling coalition bills aimed at ever more centralization of control. As usual, the powers are loosely defined, delegated to the president, aimed at coordinating the security efforts of the various military and security agencies and placed under the administration of an unelected "czar."

Sound familiar?

The bill as introduced by Snowe, Rockefeller and Sen. Bill Nelson (D) FL can be seen at GovTrack.us. Under

SEC. 17. AUTHENTICATION AND CIVIL LIBERTIES REPORT.

SEC. 18. CYBERSECURITY RESPONSIBILITIES AND AUTHORITY.

The President--
(1) within 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, shall develop and implement a comprehensive national cybersecurity strategy, which shall include--
(A) a long-term vision of the Nation’s cybersecurity future; and
(B) a plan that encompasses all aspects of national security, including the participation of the private sector, including critical infrastructure operators and managers;
(2) may declare a cybersecurity emergency and order the limitation or shutdown of Internet traffic to and from any compromised Federal Government or United States critical infrastructure information system or network;
(3) shall designate an agency to be responsible for coordinating the response and restoration of any Federal Government or United States critical infrastructure information system or network affected by a cybersecurity emergency declaration under paragraph (2);
(4) shall, through the appropriate department or agency, review equipment that would be needed after a cybersecurity attack and develop a strategy for the acquisition, storage, and periodic replacement of such equipment;
(5) shall direct the periodic mapping of Federal Government and United States critical infrastructure information systems or networks, and shall develop metrics to measure the effectiveness of the mapping process;
(6) may order the disconnection of any Federal Government or United States critical infrastructure information systems or networks in the interest of national security;
(7) shall, through the Office of Science and Technology Policy, direct an annual review of all Federal cyber technology research and development investments;
(8) may delegate original classification authority to the appropriate Federal official for the purposes of improving the Nation’s cybersecurity posture;
(9) shall, through the appropriate department or agency, promulgate rules for Federal professional responsibilities regarding cybersecurity, and shall provide to the Congress an annual report on Federal agency compliance with those rules;
(10) shall withhold additional compensation, direct corrective action for Federal personnel, or terminate a Federal contract in violation of Federal rules, and shall report any such action to the Congress in an unclassified format within 48 hours after taking any such action; and
(11) shall notify the Congress within 48 hours after providing a cyber-related certification of legality to a United States person.

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Just in case you've become glassy eyed at the fairly innocuous language of the bill so far, here are the definitions of terms used in the draft:

In this Act:

(2) CYBER- The term ‘cyber’ means--
(A) any process, program, or protocol relating to the use of the Internet or an intranet, automatic data processing or transmission, or telecommunication via the Internet or an intranet; and
(B) any matter relating to, or involving the use of, computers or computer networks.

Broad enough brush for you?

The term ‘Federal Government and United States critical infrastructure information systems and networks’ includes Federal Government information systems and networks; and State, local, and nongovernmental information systems and networks in the United States designated by the President as critical infrastructure information systems and networks. The term ‘Internet’ has the meaning given that term by section 4(4) of the High-Performance Computing Act of 1991 (15 U.S.C. 5503(4)) and the term ‘network’ has the meaning given that term by section 4(5) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 5503(5)).

15 U.S.C. is a wonderful read. Take plenty of No-Doz. You'll find that network is further defined in section 5512.

Labels: politics

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. 2 So she ran, and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." 3 Peter then came out with the other disciple, and they went toward the tomb. 4 They both ran, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first; 5 and stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; he saw the linen cloths lying, 7 and the napkin, which had been on his head, not lying with the linen cloths but rolled up in a place by itself. 8 Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not know the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10 Then the disciples went back to their homes.

11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb; 12 and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." 14 Saying this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom do you seek?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." 16 Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rab-boni!" (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, "Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." 18 Mary Magdalene went and said to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you." 20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you." 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

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When discussing "liberty" and "freedom," it seems some clarification of terms is in order. The founders' vision for America was not about unfettered freedom, but, rather, a particular type of ordered liberty. "Freedom" without a strong moral basis is an empty promise. The founders - admittedly an ambiguous term, but for the purpose of this post can be described as the founding generation of the United States, steeped in the Judeo-Christian tradition (if they weren't themselves orthodox, ie: trinitarian, Christians) and natural law - understood the problem of liberty quite clearly. The problem, stated simply, was how to keep liberty from degenerating into mere license. The solution, as many of the founders saw it, was to encourage the practice of religion among the American people under the assumption that the Christian religion helped make citizens fit for republican government. Meaningful freedom required the exercise of virtue on behalf of citizens and the connection between the Christian religion and virtue was obvious.

The problem inherent in a free society is that immoral actors take advantage of moral ones. If everyone quite rationally suspects everyone else of immoral behavior, then in order to protect themselves in any given transaction the value of exchange is necessarily undercut by the cost of self-protection. As actors become more immoral in their transactions, it becomes necessary to ease the expense of self-protection by enlisting the aid of government in the form of regulation, thereby undermining the entire libertarian idea. The key to breaking the cycle of immoral action and regulation is to change the nature of the actors. This not a new concept, as would-be social engineers and progressives of every stripe have been attempting this with various degrees of failure to show for their efforts for more than a hundred years. The more virtuous actors in an exchange are, the less opportunistic their behavior, then the more trust all actors can have at the outset of exchange. With trust, the costs of transaction rapidly decline and the need for government regulation and enforcement eases also. Absent trust or government intervention, exchanges are only regulated by the relative strength of the actors, a situation that can be readily observed in criminal activity.

"Because the founders had the wisdom and imaginative power to predict what evil a man might conjure up with unrestrained liberty, they grounded liberty in the context of order. Prudence is generally scorned today, but in the days of the Constitutional Convention it was a highly regarded way of life. Mores and honorable social tradition constituted what it meant to be a liberated man. They held as self evident that when confronted with liberty ungrounded in order, men create a world of chaos with respect to themselves and a world of tyranny with respect to others. In contrast, some think today that unrestrained liberty constitutes what it means to be a liberated man. A deep reverence for the Founders' ideal of a liberated man, exercised through right reason, defines the proper relationship between order and liberty and altogether defines what it means to be a conservative." - Christa J. Byker

Religious social conservatives press for public policies that tend to increase social capital by improving citizens. The difference between what social conservatives and humanistic socialists are after in the transformation of the individual into a good citizen lies in the nature of their different approaches. The Christian sees the development of virtuous behavior as a "bottom up" enterprise, meaning that society is perfected as its individual members are, whereas humanists tend to work from the top down, defining the ideal and coercing the individual to its vision. True liberty lies in the freedom to do as one ought, that "ought" as realized by a properly formed actor.

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For more on natural law - http://www.acton.org/research/reading/research_reading_natural_law.php

On Virtue - http://www.idehist.uu.se/distans/ilmh/Ren/civic-virtue.htm

On ordered liberty - http://www.isi.org/spotlight/essay_contest/order_liberty_05/2.pdf

See also: Samuel Gregg's excellent book "On Ordered Liberty: A Treatise on the Free Society (Religion, Politics, and Society in the New Millennium)" http://www.amazon.com/Ordered-Liberty-Treatise-Religion-Millennium/dp/0739106686/ref=sr_11_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1239073034&sr=11-1

Labels: law and order, liberty, politics