what if?

Free Speech = Death Sentence

Believe that reconciliation and peaceful understanding are beneficial goals?  Think that in Bangladesh, act upon it - and you could be signing your own death sentence.

A Bangladeshi Muslim journalist arrested in the past for advocating ties with Israel now faces charges of sedition, a crime punishable by death in Bangladesh, and will likely be put on trial by the end of the month....

As editor of The Weekly Blitz, an English-language newspaper published in Dhaka, Choudhury aroused the ire of Bangladeshi authorities after he printed articles favorable to Israel and critical of Muslim extremism.

Bangladesh does not recognize Israel's existence and refuses to establish diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.

In November 2003, Choudhury was arrested at Dhaka's international airport just prior to boarding a flight on his way to Israel, where he was scheduled to deliver an address on promoting understanding between Muslims and Jews. His visit to Israel would have been the first by a Bangladeshi journalist.

Choudhury was charged with sedition, held in prison for 17 months and was reportedly tortured before being freed in April 2005. But the authorities in Bangladesh, which is ruled by a coalition government that includes Islamic extremists, decided to continue pursuing charges against him....

After his release from prison last year, Choudhury proceeded to reopen his weekly newspaper, continuing to publish articles calling for greater interfaith understanding and warning of the dangers posed by fundamentalist Islamic terror.

Home, Sweet Home

Excellent news!  Jessie and Oliver have been found and are home!  From my friend Margaret's blog: 

Both of my stolen birds, the African Grey & the Military Macaw, have
been returned. I got the Grey back yesterday from a pet store she’d
been sold to & the police got my Military Macaw back today. The people
who did this to me are behind bars! THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO HELPED! You’ll never know what it meant to
me! God bless you all!

Kim

Now and then, justice does prevail.

We Know What Is Good For You

One of my liberal buddies sent out an email yesterday praising New York's decision to ban trans fats.  This fellow lost a substantial amount of weight years ago, and is a true believer in eating healthy and getting loads of exercise.  (Don't get me wrong; if only all of us were "true believers" in this regard!)

But, no matter how sensible it is to avoid poor food choices and to get regular exercise, it is not the role of our government to mandate this for us.

Almost a year ago, I posted this when our local government passed smoking bans.  Seems like the Captain echoes my own thoughts on the government telling us what is good for us - and what private businesses can and cannot do.

This is what happens when people make the mistake of transforming what should be a personal decision into a government diktat. In the first case, trans fats are not a public health hazard. The risk is incurred personally, not publicly, and it's taken by adults making their own decisions about their food intake. Public health risks should be defined as to be limited to that which affects the public outside their control, such as epidemics, pollution, and the like.

Otherwise, we will start seeing all sorts of new prohibitions in New York City. Alcohol in anything but the most moderate amounts are a private health risk, and the results of inebriation have a lot more public impact than the ingestion of a Krispy Kreme doughnut. Does the health board plan to prohibit the sale of alcohol in restaurants as well?

The Omnipotent President Bush

A great column about conspiracies, common sense - and lack thereof.

Let me see if I understand: We have — living in America, perhaps right in our own neighborhoods — a frightening number of people who believe the Bush administration is capable of lowering gas prices. That can only mean these same people believe Bush, in fact, caused Hurricane Katrina, which knocked out gulf oil supplies, driving up the prices, but now, so close to the election, Bush has decided against hurricanes, of which there currently are none.

Man alive, I thought Bill Clinton was the smart one, and he never got credit for starting and stopping hurricanes or raising and lowering gas prices. Bush manages to control nature itself, while at the same time we are told daily in the editorial pages what a dummy he is.

Furthermore, it must mean all Bush must do is make a strategic phone call once in a while and BIG OIL, which has been thoroughly demonized as impossibly greedy, becomes entirely willing to say, "Yes, we will gladly lower our prices and watch our profits tumble because, contrary to what has been said about us, we do not want to make any money.''

My Guy

This is why Rudy Guiliani is "my guy" for 2008.

"The idea of trying to cast blame on President Clinton is just wrong for many, many reasons, not the least of which is I don't think he deserves it," Giuliani said in response to a question after an appearance with fellow Republican Charlie Crist, who is running for governor. "I don't think President Bush deserves it. The people who deserve blame for Sept. 11, I think we should remind ourselves, are the terrorists _ the Islamic fanatics _ who came here and killed us and want to come here again and do it."

Giuliani said he believed Clinton, like his successor, did everything he could with the information he was provided.

"Every American president I've known would have given his life to prevent an attack like that. That includes President Clinton, President Bush," the former mayor said. "They did the best they could with the information they had at the time."

Judging the past with what we know today is an unfair task.  Had we stopped some of the terrorists at that stage, we never would have known the horrors of what they were capable of executing.  Yes, we can go back and, knowing what we now know, state that doing "x" would have been superior to what we actually did do.

As mere mortals, however, we do not have that luxury.

Most of the time during a political season,  my stomach churns with the slime, the slings, the arrows of desperation.  How refreshing to hear from Rudy some grace and positive attitude.  I know he may not run in '08.  I know he may not be able to secure the Republican nomination.  But - I sure can hope!

Twenty-Five Years Later

"Happy birthday to yooooooooooooo!"  Thanks for the good wishes, Professor!

As for how old I am ... I left forty long ago.  Don't happen to have a current pic available - but, here I am roughly 25 years ago while on a trip to London.  I was about 30 years old then; I shall let you do the math!

Birdnapping!

Unfortunately, this is not a joke.

My parrot parent buddy, Margaret Martin, alerted me to a theft in her neighborhood.

While it may be difficult for non-pet owners to understand, these feathered creatures really are family to us.  I cannot imagine how distraught I would be were my beloved Mr. Mollo to be stolen.  Strangers couldn't know his favorite foods, where he likes to be scratched, and that he needs his nighty-night light on every evening.  (Cockatiels are notorious for night-frights.)

I know that the odds are long.  But, should you have any information that could help in returning these guys to their mom - please either contact the police, or dreamspinner3@gmail.com.

Thank you!

UPDATE: Jessie the African Grey has been found!  Check out Margaret's post for all the details.

Throwing Slime

Some accuse Republicans of tossing slime.  And - some have.

This week, however, Democrats are proving that Republicans have no monopoly when it comes to slinging it.  As the Captain says:

It appears that the Democrats and their political allies in the activist and media communities will do anything to derail Allen's re-election, including making stories up about his racism. Not content to leave well enough alone after the "macaca" incident, which Allen handled poorly, they have sunk to using lies and innuendo in an attempt to damage him. And just like the Anita Hill episode, where the supposed outrages occurred far in the past, the mere allegation of his using the N-word will stick with him like glue.

It's an outrage, and Salon for one owes us a big explanation for the fact-deficient reporting of Scherer. Putting out this kind of clumsy and obvious hit piece so close to the election reveals Salon as nothing more than a shill for the Democratic Party and Scherer as its character assassin.

Citizens for Choice

Funny about choice.  Some of us are for it at times - as most liberals are when it comes to abortion issues.  And some of us are not; Democrats have been reluctant to give citizens more freedom with their retirement dollars.

Local columnist Craig Westover presents an excellent discussion on why at least some privatization with Social Security makes sense - and why some of guru Paul Krugman's arguments against it make little sense.

Put me down as desiring as much freedom as possible for all of us.  No, I do not want to have to talk to all my neighbors to try to determine where to build the next super highway.  But yes; I would like greater ability to determine how to invest the funds that will support me later in life.  Social Security today has a bevy of difficulties; we need to address them, and with honesty.  Craig does his usual fine work on the topic.

"I Never Had Sex with Osama"

Ooops; OK, my error.  But - with the finger wagging by President Clinton, easy for a poor girl to get a bit confused.

Wizbang has an excellent round-up with facts & opinion.

And - let me add my own.

When it comes to talent, Bill Clinton is loaded with it.  His speaking skills are light years above those of George W. Bush.  Clinton is a far superior actor to Bush; and I do not mean this to carry a negative connotation.  Clinton has a superb memory and a wealth of knowledge to compliment it.  I believe that Clinton is excellent at arriving at moderate viewpoints at times, and achieving the same with some solutions to our problems.  I applaud him for the work he did on getting welfare reform through his party (well, at least ultimately) and for getting NAFTA passed.

When it comes to the character test, however, WJC gets a D and GWB is awarded an A-.  Along with all his talents and abilities, Clinton also has a hot temper, a huge ego, and an inability to accept any criticism whatsoever while on the stage.  Bush can be described as plodding, stumbling, a poor communicator and more.  But the man depends not on polls for his beliefs, and has a humility that is woefully lacking in his predecessor.

Too bad we don't get to do "mix & match" with our presidents, eh?

Mazel Tov

Much can be said to laud the blogosphere.  One particular bright spot for me, however, is the friends I have made from blogging and commenting.

Ally at Who Moved My Truth is one of those friends - and she is now a married lady!  Congratulations, my dear.  And for those who wish to see a stunning bride and her handsome groom on their picture perfect wedding day .... Well, check this out!

I wish you every happiness; you deserve it all!

Almond Joy, French Fries & Pizza

Just as I thought, the aforementioned foods are those to eat to protect one's health!

In all seriousness; what a terrible story.  One more example, however, of how life deals us few guarantees.  All these families thought that they were providing good, nutritional food.  Now children and adults are on the edge of death.  Frightening.

And This Is A Milestone Because ....?

As I pumped away on the stationary bike at the health club this morning, I saw it begin:  "Grim milestone as Iraq deaths surpass those of 9/11."  The TV anchors tut-tutted and the statistics chittered across the bottom of the screen.

Why, I wondered?

George W. Bush has - repeatedly - told us that Saddam and Iraq were not connected directly to 9/11.  Nothing our government has ever found has established this.

The MSM - over and over and over - has also told us there is no connection.  (Of course, many in the MSM claim that GWB has asserted a direct connection between Saddam and the 9/11 catastrophe.  But that is, as they say, another story.  And a false statement.)

So. Given that the War On Terror and the war in Iraq is only indirectly connected to the events of 9/11 - why are we seeing these headlines?  Why is the comparison being made?  If the mainstream media wishes to talk about the deaths caused by Islamic terrorists versus the deaths caused by the Iraqi war, then why are we not seeing statistics of embassies attacked, earlier World Trade Center bombings, civilians from other nations being murdered, and so forth? 

Answer?  The conclusion we are to draw from this is that the Iraq war is wrong.  Now more people are dead from the war than those who were killed in the "original" attack.  Now more bad is being caused than good.

Nice try, MSM. 

Criticize the war, if you wish.  Surely there are all sorts of legitimate criticisms and arguments to be made.  Yet we should not be seeing this headline, for there is not enough direct linkage for it to be made.

But trust me.  We will see it, irrespective of the sense to it.  Over.  And over.  And over.

Happy New Year

May it be filled with good health, good friends and joy.

And fun.

And sweetness.

"Where She Belongs At Last"

My friend Shay at Booker Rising is a major fan of Ayaan Hirsi Ali.  She is with good reason; what an amazing woman.

George Will has some of the details.

She calls herself "a dissident of Islam'' because, given what Allah supposedly enjoins and what she knows is right, "the cognitive dissonance is, for me, too much.'' She says she is not "a militant atheist,'' but the emphasis is on the adjective.

Slender, elegant, stylish and articulate (in English, Dutch and Swahili), she has found an intellectual home here at the American Enterprise Institute, where she is writing a book that imagines Muhammad meeting, in the New York Public Library, three thinkers -- John Stuart Mill, Friedrich Hayek and Karl Popper, each a hero of the unending struggle between (to take the title of Popper's 1945 masterpiece) "The Open Society and Its Enemies.'' Islamic extremists -- the sort who were unhinged by some Danish cartoons -- will be enraged. She is unperturbed.

Neither is she pessimistic about the West. It has, she says, "the drive to innovate.'' But Europe, she thinks, is invertebrate. After two generations without war, Europeans "have no idea what an enemy is.'' And they think, she says, that leadership is an antiquated notion because they believe that caring governments can socialize everyone to behave well, thereby erasing personal accountability and responsibility. "I can't even tell it without laughing,'' she says, laughing softly. Clearly she is where she belongs, at last.

Don't Ask; Don't Care

Shouldn't everyone that wants to serve in our military that is capable of doing so be able to do so?

Are we really in a position to avoid the talents of these people?

Don't ask.  Don't hide.  Do serve!

I fcare only about people's ability to aid their nation.  Straight or gay?  Don't care.

A Blind Eye

Did you know that 35,000 people rallied outside the United Nations  in support of Israel?  If you are a reader of blogs, you surely do.  But, if the MSM is your source of information, you may well have no idea.  Check out this Google search to see all the "major" news outlets covering this event.  Sigh.

The Captain has a fine post about the lack of coverage for the rally.  I particularly appreciated these points:

Just the combination of speakers involved in the demonstration should have attracted a few headlines. How often will people see Alan Dershowitz and John Bolton on the same stage -- or for that matter, George Pataki and Dershowitz? That combination alone should have rated a mention at the Paper of Record, but a scan of their headlines this morning shows no interest at all.

And this is a killer (sorry for the play on words):

Dershowitz announced the launch of an effort to indict Ahmadinejad for attempted genocide, which he said would challenge the legitimacy of international bodies to enforce international law. He said he wants to see whether they can act before a genocide occurs, rather than just form committees to build memorials afterwards.

Actually, I find this news coverage - or lack thereof - rather frightening.  Newspaper editors tell us that opinion is on their opinion pages; not in the news articles.  What, however, are we to do when something that surely seems worthy of news coverage doesn't make it to any of the pages?  Isn't that an opinion of sorts; a most crucial one?

Every day, I am thankful for the voices of excellent blog authors around the world.  The monopoly of the MSM is being challenged - and rightly so. 

Barrett O'Leary for President

Barrett O'Who???

See below.

Imagine him white.

Barack Obama, that is. Amidst all the glowing talk about the possibility of his becoming America's first black president in 2008, it's an interesting thought experiment to imagine whether Mr. Obama would elicit this swooning buzz if he were white.

That is, let's imagine a white guy with all of Mr. Obama's pluses: crinkly smile, sincere concern for the little man, fine speech a couple of years ago about bringing the nation together, a certain charisma, wrote a touching autobiography. Let's call him Barrett O'Leary.

I do not think Mr. O'Leary would be touted a year-and-change into his Senate appointment as a presidential possibility. No knock on Mr. Obama intended, mind you. For all we know, he could have the genius for national statesmanship of a Disraeli. The point is that we don't know yet. Like any new senator, Mr. Obama has been quietly learning his way around the byzantine procedures of Senate lawmaking.

The key factor that galvanizes people around the idea of Obama for president is, quite simply, that he is black. Other things about him don't hurt, but that's all — they are not the deciding factor. Take away Mr. Obama's race and he's some relatively anonymous rookie. Barrett O'Leary, even if as cute and articulate as Mr. Obama, would have to wait at least another four years, and possibly six or seven, before being considered as a possible commander in chief.

What gives people a jolt in their gut about the idea of President Obama is the idea that it would be a ringing symbol that racism no longer rules our land. President Obama might be, for instance, a substitute for that national apology for slavery that some consider so urgent. Surely a nation with a black president would be one no longer hung up on race.

One Day At A Time

In a world filled with constant competition, stress, grievous errors, venom and pain - this is most refreshing and comforting.

In the precarious course of his recovery, Mr. Kennedy, the 39-year-old son of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, has come to rely heavily on Mr. Ramstad, 60. He has served as Patrick Kennedy’s sponsor, his primary source of advice and support in what he calls “the daily fight for my life” against addiction.

The day after the accident, Mr. Kennedy received a phone call from Mr. Ramstad, a recovering alcoholic who has been an evangelist in Congress for addiction treatment and 12-step recovery programs. The men did not know each other well.

But in battling their addictions, the two built a fast kinship that flouts the partisan divisions of Congress, their own divergent politics and the conditional nature of so many friendships in Washington. They speak daily, often several times. Mr. Ramstad visited Mr. Kennedy during his 28-day rehabilitation, driving two hours each Saturday from his Minnetonka home.

The political world could learn much from these gatherings, Mr. Ramstad says. “If we could turn Congress into one big A.A. meeting,” he said, referring to Alcoholics Anonymous, “where people would be required to say what they mean and mean what they say, it would be a lot better Congress.”

With all that separates us, we too often forget what binds us together.  A big thanks to my Congressman, Mr. Ramstad, for helping us to remember.

Really?

Took laptop to this political test from buddy Bill at Bill's Comments - and here's what the result shows!

You Are a Liberal Republican

When you tell people that you're Republican, they rarely believe you. That's because you're socially liberal - likely pro-choice and pro-gay rights. You're also not so afraid of big goverment, as long as it benefits people and not politicians. You are the most likely of any Republican type to swing over to the Democrat side

Actually - not that surprising at all.