Saturday, September 18, 2010

Jimmy Carter Slams Ted Kennedy (Updated)

CBS News "Former President Jimmy Carter tells Lesley Stahl Americans would've had comprehensive health care for decades had Ted Kennedy not killed his bill. Sunday, Sept. 19, 7 p.m. ET/PT."
They tease us with only this much.

Why Carter dissed Kennedy  "The interview proved that Carter is desperate to be credited with something – anything, be it health care reform, or as the architect of a never adopted, money-saving energy conservation program. For many reasons, Jimmy Carter’s presidency was, and is still, considered abysmal. Yet at this late date a departed senator could redeem Jimmy’s forlorn legacy.
"President Carter’s truthful “60 Minutes” expose of Kennedy’s willingness to “kill” to advance a political career has shed new light on Mr. Poucha Pond's malicious nature and could turn out to be the most glorious political achievement of Carter’s fifty-year career." Jeannie DeAngelis

Figures. Obama Drops “Creator” From Declaration of Independence

Gateway Pundit  "What a shock. Barack Obama dropped “that are endowed by our Creator” from the Declaration of Independence in a speech he gave this past week."
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness..."

Enough Already with Reverend Jones

Victor Davis Hanson "We are reaching the point where the damage done to America’s image by 50 book-burners is outweighed by the damage done by hypersensitivity on the part of the United States government, which hopes to assuage the hurt feelings of those abroad who equate that tiny number with our culture at large — often in an abjectly hypocritical fashion. We know where this leads — to endless efforts to micromanage all elements of American life to protect the sensitivities of those who, by act and deed, are far more intolerant of different religions and cultures."

The Strange — and Tragic — Case of Nagla Imam

Raymond Ibrahim "...As for her personal situation, approximately two weeks ago, state security arrested and took Nagla to a government building in Cairo. There, a top official twisted the crucifix she was wearing, tightening the chain around her neck, while saying "the cross will be the death of you." The official then proceeded to beat her — giving her a black eye, a bruised body, and broken teeth. Before releasing her, he said, "Stay in your house, till you are carried out to your grave," adding that, if she does not return to Islam, "people" will be dispatched to "take care of her."....
"Postscript: Last we heard, Nagla and her children have completely disappeared, bringing back the government official's threat to mind — that "people" could be sent to "take care of her." "
Raymond Ibrahim is the associate director of the Middle East Forum, the author of The Al Qaeda Reader, and a guest lecturer at the National Defense Intelligence College.

D’Souza to Obama with Malice

Forbes  "Ultimately, D’Souza’s rumination reveals less about how Obama thinks and more about how D’Souza thinks. It shows not that Obama is motivated by malice toward America, but D’Souza is motivated by malice toward Obama. How pathetic."  Shikha Dalmia is a senior analyst at Reason Foundation and a Forbes columnist. 
This is a counterpoint to an article posted here on Sept 9th.

The Myth of Conservative Vulnerability

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann "This week's primary victories of Christine O'Donnell in Delaware and Joe DioGuardi in New York illustrate how the tea party is cleansing the Republican Party and installing true believers over professional politicians. It is a healthy trend that will continue to recreate the Party of Reagan.
"But the conventional media, instead of hailing this trend, warns that conservatives cannot be elected ..."

California Schools: Monuments to Mediocrity

Meredith Turney  "It’s common for teachers unions to throw around huge dollars in political campaigns just to safeguard their interests. But ridding the state constitution of the added taxpayer protections in a two-thirds budget vote would clear the way for unions to get whatever they want—including the kind of wasteful spending found in LAUSD. Keep in mind LAUSD is currently grappling with deficit of $640 million. The $578 million school could have covered almost the entire deficit. Although bond measures financed the school’s construction, such wasteful spending is not uncommon throughout the school system." 
Meanwhile, most dedicated teachers spend their own money for many classroom items and visual aids .
Pictured: Entrance to the new school auditorium; via NowPublic

Friday, September 17, 2010

An artist protests Obama’s abuse of the Constitution.

National Review "A  man, crestfallen, is sitting on a bench in front of the White House, contemplating his country’s future. At his feet lie the causes of his distress: tattered dollars, representing a weak currency, and scraps of paper, symbolizing an abused Constitution. Behind and around him stand the 43 presidents of the United States, most of whom are outraged. One of them, James Madison, reaches pitifully for the ground, trying to collect the shards of American greatness. Unfortunately, he can’t retrieve our founding document from the dust, for it’s beneath the foot of Barack Obama." 
The story of this painting here.

Marriage: America’s Greatest Weapon Against Child Poverty

Insider Online  "Child poverty is an ongoing national concern, but few are aware that its principal cause is the absence of married fathers in the home. Marriage remains America’s strongest anti-poverty weapon, yet it continues to decline. As husbands disappear from the home, poverty and welfare dependence will increase, and children and parents will suffer as a result."

Married Fathers: America’s Greatest Weapon Against Child Poverty "Historically, the Left has been indifferent or hostile to marriage. For decades, feminists actually taught that marriage harmed women psychologically and economically. While few would accept those ideas literally anymore, an instinctive hostility to marriage remains imprinted on the synapses of most liberal academics. In most faculty lounges, enthusiasm for marriage would be quite gauche.
"For most on the Left, marriage is, at best, an antiquated institution, a red-state superstition. From this viewpoint, the real task is to expand government subsidies as a post-marriage society is built.
 H/T to Point of View , Probe Ministries. 
Robert Rector is Senior Research Fellow in the Domestic Policy Studies Department at The Heritage Foundation.

Legalizing Marijuana: Why Citizens Should Just Say No

Heritage  "The scientific literature is clear that marijuana is addictive and that its use significantly impairs bodily and mental functions. Marijuana use is associated with memory loss, cancer, immune system deficiencies, heart disease, and birth defects, among other conditions. Even where decriminalized, marijuana trafficking remains a source of violence, crime, and social disintegration."

Religion of Peace Alert: FBI Advises ‘Draw Muhammad’ Cartoonist to Disappear

Andy McCarthy  "Fox News reports that, at the urging of the FBI, Molly Norris, the “Everybody Draw Muhammad Day” cartoonist from Seattle, has gone into hiding and changed her name after being threatened with death for insulting Islam. Maybe he can hide at Justice Breyer’s house.
"As I mentioned in Tuesday’s column, the Obama administration last year co-sponsored a UN resolution to encourage countries to enact laws that would make it illegal to criticize Islam. The president was on the “Repeal the First Amendment” bandwagon before the justice hopped aboard. But if top levels of government are going to signal that Islam should get special immunity, and states like New Jersey are going to follow suit by firing people from state jobs for criticizing Islam, the FBI better be prepared to reassign a few thousand agents to the new “We Can’t Protect You” division."

Cry Islamophobia!  "Should all Muslims be held responsible for what these individuals have said and done? Of course not. But it has not gone unnoticed that there have been no mass demonstrations in the capitals of what we now routinely call “the Muslim world” to protest jihadism — no crowds shouting: “Not in my name! Not in the name of my religion!” What we’ve seen instead: Protesters carrying signs saying, “Behead those who insult Islam!”
Clifford D. May is president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a policy institute focusing on terrorism and Islamism