Break time - open thread city

Well, friends, time for a short break.
The clan (minus the doggies) is headed north for a couple of days of camping. In the meantime, feel free to start World War V against lunacies in the comments section. Be back late Tuesday with more insanity, inanity, etc. for your dining and dancing pleasure. (Suggestions for future posts, etc., welcomed. Moonbats, however, are discouraged.)

Very interesting...

For the past few days, an interesting trade of ideas has been going on at Peter's Rempelia Prime about "post-modern living".
John, the protagonist of post-modern living, has concocted a fascinating intellectual construct of... the endless and eternal questioning of youth.
I think some of his constructs are based on premises that he will find, as time goes by, to be less than valid. And I hope he would choose another phrase rather than post-modern, given the shameless anti-freedom, anti-individual, pro-collective record of the world's first post-modern nation.

Toronto's inferiority complex

Toronto, the self-ordained Centre of the Canadian Universe, has a serious inferiority complex. So says the Canada correspondent for the New York Times, that bastion of political correctness taken to its illogical extreme.
Kate turned me on to this story, headlined "The Ugly anti-American", in The Toronto Red Star.
The story quotes Clifford Knauss, the Canada correspondent for the Times: "I've seen some really appalling behaviour simply because I'm an American... I think that the anti-Americanism is part of a regional character that fills a vacuum. The Canadian identity, which in some parts of Canada is quite strong, is not so strong here. I say with some trepidation, because it might sound very arrogant, but there are other places in Canada where the culture is richer and where people are more confident in their culture."
So, by Mr. Knauss, Toronto's inferiority complex is eminently justified. Its culture is poor, and people aren't confident in it. Hell, Live 8 is playing in Barrie, not Toronto. Barrie, which is on about 2.6 percent of American radar screens.
I guess that excuses the kind of arrogant juvenile behavior discovered by Red Star reporter David Bruser, who posed as an American conservative and got some rudeness from the wonderfully "tolerant" Toronto citizenry. One "gentleman" advised the reporter to "Reconsider your views."
So The Ugly Canadian does exist... and is endorsed by Carolyn Parrish, Paul Martin, the Martin idiot in Manitoba, and the rest of the Librano-NDP axis of conceit.
Several points in response:
* Hey, Alberta, you should have called our Red Cross first; we would have gotten to help you sooner than your own prime minister and deputy prime minister did.
* Hey, Toronto, you want American tourist dollars? Stop the self-righteous crap. I was in T.O. two years ago with my son, who had just turned 13 and was visiting the Hockey Hall of Fame as part of his big present. (And, no, he didn't get a visit to one of Judy Sgro's favorite immigrant industrial centres). I'll tell you this -- the best treatment we received was from what you call your "visible minorities"; the worst was from a group of protesters of white Canadians (this was just before Operation Iraqi Freedom and SARS hit) who detected my easy-to-identify-as-American (coalcracker with a tinge of deep South from having an Alabama native as a college roommate) accent and gave us a Carolyn Parrish moment.
* And if I spot any Canadian vehicles on our annual family sojourn to the beach, I do intend to politely strike up a conversation. If, in the course of conversation, I discern that the Canadians in question are Librano or NDP sympathizers, I will advise them that their rank arrogance is not welcome in a nation that they detest and that they should return to their nirvana of the North forthwith. (Bloc and ADQ supporters will require further examination, while CPC sympathizers and Independents of the centre will be welcomed and encouraged to enjoy their stay, and offered tips on good dining establishments and fishing and crabbing sites.)

Carnival of Comedy

Carnival of Comedy time again. Amazingly enough, I'm on it, as are a whole bunch of people of good humor. Pay a visit.

"It's all about me"

The most divisive social issues of the past half-century can best be summarized in four words…
It’s all about me.
Let’s take these issues in the cycle of life order.
Start with abortion.
Full disclosure – I believe in very strong limitations on abortion rights. I can find an intellectual defense to abortion when the conception is the direct result of a criminal act (rape or incest). I can also find a defense for an abortion if carrying the pregnancy to full term would be a direct threat to the mother’s health (I would hope, though, that – given the advances technology has made in recent years – efforts would be made to save both lives in the process).
But I cannot defend the procedure called “partial-birth” abortion. I cannot defend allowing minors unfettered access to abortion without parental notification – after all, if the kid skips out without paying the bill, who gets to foot it? The parents.
And I cannot find a general defense for the abortions of convenience which seem to be the majority of abortions performed in North America. It’s an abdication of responsibility for one’s behavior for convenience sake. I will grant that many of these decisions are not easy decisions to make; case studies have shown that there are long-term ramifications in many cases. But I can’t defend a culture that views terminating a pregnancy as little more than after-the-fact birth control.
Proponents of unfettered abortion rights say it’s all about the woman’s “right to choose.”
Translation: It’s all about me.
Next up: Same-sex marriage.
Full disclosure – I don’t support it. I could be convinced that homosexual couples should be receiving some – repeat, some – of the benefits of their partnership that married heterosexual couples receive. If a couple has held itself as a couple, invested in a property as a couple, etc., then I would question the hoops that they must jump through, such as being able to participate in each other’s health decisions, inheritance issues, etc. But marriage – by the definition of every society, monotheist, multitheist, even atheist – is a coupling of the sexes. Not two of one kind; one (and in polygamist societies, which I find abhorrent, more than one) of each kind. In that evolved theory, which has served societies pretty well for centuries now, marriage is an institution devoted to bringing children into the world and preparing them for adulthood. It’s about the kids.
Proponents of same-sex marriage say it’s about the two adults’ love for each other.
Translation: It’s all about me.
Last on this rant: The right to die.
Full disclosure – There is a line that I cannot cross. I can accept a person’s refusal of extraordinary measures that would merely prolong life by technological means. (I do not place feeding and hydrating in the category of extraordinary measures, by the way.) Certainly, at some point, we will die; that is one rule of nature we cannot overturn. But those who would advocate hastening death because of pain, depression, or other less-than-terminal matters are crossing a line that should not be crossed. In fact, I seem to recall reading recently that in the Netherlands, where assisted suicide is permitted, that some doctors were being overzealous in their assistance. If you don’t see this as a problem, you and I will just have to disagree.
Proponents of assisted suicide say it’s about a person’s right to end a life that is no longer “worth living.”
Translation: It’s all about me.
Rebuttal: Society, friends, is not “all about me.”

Return for Regrooving, Part III

Well, it's a Friday night. Time for another edition of Return for Regrooving.
This one is too easy.
John Paul Stevens, Stephen Breyer, Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and David Souter. The five thieves of that great judicial body, the U.S. Supreme Corpse, who overturned the Fifth Amendment to allow the thieving politicians of New London, Conn., to steal people's homes for a conglomerate to buy. We can only regroove five this week because this quintet needs some extremely serious regrooving.
Till next time.

Bastard alert, bastard alert

We here in the US of A gotta do something about these Canadian politicians going around calling us bastards.
Yeah, we caught another one in the act.
Thanks to Darcey at Dust My Broom and Sean Incognito, we are now aware of the remarks of MP Pat Martin (NDP-Winnipeg Centre).
Martin was discussing the ongoing dispute between Manitoba and North Dakota over the state's plan to shrink Devils Lake. The water that will be diverted from the lake will go into the Red River, which flows north into Manitoba.
"We want the government of Canada to drop the gloves with Washington," he said. "People in Manitoba are saying let the bastards freeze in the dark if they are going to do this to us, if they are going to compromise every established treaty relationship we have. They have ignored us blatantly."
Yeah, like a "Carolyn Parrish moment" (as Sean I. put it) is really going to help your cause.
And, according to Richmond (Va.) Times-Dispatch columnist Ray McAllister, Pat Martin didn't stop there after being rebuked.
"North Dakota is acting like some rogue state. Instead of 'North Dakota', they should be called 'North Korea', complete with a 'department of misinformation'."
Hey, Pat Martin - you want North Korea? We'll give you North Korea.
No, better yet - we'll buy the Blue Bombers, the Moose and the Brandon Wheat Kings and move 'em all to Fargo... then we'll charge all Manitobans $50 (US, of course) to cross the border to see the games.
Bastards? You want bastards?
...Pardon me for having a Cartman moment.

Canada's Killer-Care system... continued

Another stellar report on Canada's vaunted social service system... it creates homelessness, according to a Toronto Red Star report, via Canadian Press:
Changes to federal and Ontario government support programs for workers forced off the job because of illness or injury in the 1990s were directly to blame for forcing some people into living on the streets, says a study released today by homeless activists.
"It is absolutely true that the (federal) Liberal government caused homelessness by changing UI to EI for these people," said Sarah Shartal, chief legal adviser for Street Health, a nursing clinic that provides direct care to homeless people. "It is absolutely true that the provincial government has caused homelessness to these people by having disability programs that take nine months to make a decision." (Emphasis mine)
Shartal said 1996 changes to Employment Insurance made it much harder for workers to get short-term disability payments, while changes to Ontario's long-term support plan in 1997 resulted in delays of up to nine months in processing applications.
"This is not people falling between the cracks," she said. "This is cavernous gaps in the social programs."
Social Services Minister Sandra Pupatello said she wants to review the changes made by the federal government because "there is absolutely a gap there."
While there's no average time for how long it takes for provincial disability applications to be processed, many take too long because of missing information, Pupatello said.
In light of this, the province has made applications simpler, and also improved how quickly they're processed and how soon appeals are heard, she said.
People who become sick but haven't yet been approved for disability can get welfare in the meantime, Pupatello said.
The 800-plus rules (are you kidding me?) that apply to social assistance are also being reviewed to see which ones can be eliminated while continuing to ensure that only those who truly need help receive it, Pupatello said.
Street Health said its study of homeless people in Toronto found many had a place to live before a sudden illness or disability forced them off the job, and the unexpected loss of income meant they quickly had trouble paying the rent.
"We begin to see the slide to homelessness," Shartal said. "Homelessness for people who are partially disabled, who are sick and who are working, has now moved from something that might happen to something that is very hard to avoid."
Ninety per cent of homeless people surveyed by Street Health had 10 to 20 years of work experience before they became sick and eventually lost everything.
Street Health said the province has made it so difficult to even apply for Ontario's Disability Support Program that half the applications get rejected the first time.
"It is not reasonable that a private insurance company can take three weeks to make a long-term disability decision — and the provincial government takes nine months," Shartal said. "We should not be making poor people who are ill homeless and beggars."

The Supreme Court is a thief

Five idiots have destroyed property rights in the U.S. of A.
Five blithering, doddering, outrageous idiots.
Of course, it's the liberals on the court that pushed this abomination through.
WASHINGTON - Cities may bulldoze people's homes to make way for shopping malls or other private development, a divided Supreme Court ruled Thursday, giving local governments broad power to seize private property to generate tax revenue...
The closely watched case involving New London, Conn., homeowners was one of six decisions issued Thursday as the court neared the end of its term. The justices are scheduled to release their final six rulings, including one on the constitutionality of Ten Commandments displays on public property, on Monday.
Justice John Paul Stevens, writing for the majority, said New London could pursue private development under the Fifth Amendment, which allows governments to take private property if the land is for public use, since the project the city has in mind promises to bring more jobs and revenue.
"Promoting economic development is a traditional and long accepted function of government," Stevens wrote, adding that local officials are better positioned than federal judges to decide what's best for a community.
John Paul Stevens. David H. Souter. Stephen G. Breyer. Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Anthony Kennedy. Enemies all of the people.
For the good guys, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor:
"The specter of condemnation hangs over all property. Nothing is to prevent the state from replacing any Motel 6 with a Ritz-Carlton, any home with a shopping mall, or any farm with a factory."
Also in the dissent... the hated Antonin Scalia, William Rehnquist and Clarence Thomas.
Hey, liberals -- talk to me about this. This is your Court speaking. Do you buy into that decision?
Watch for updates on this post as some of my friends more conversant in the law get their posts up on this.

Same-Sex Divorce Court

WARNING: This post is likely to be racier than the usual fare here. Be forewarned.

With same-sex marriage soon to (sadly) become a reality in Canada, there will be some repercussions.
Welcome to Same-Sex Divorce Court, coming soon to a TV network near you.
The first thing to do is to find a legal mind to play the part of the judge. It would have to be someone with a bizarre sense of humor and knowledge of at least a little bit of the law.
Then, of course, the producers will find the most outrageous caricatures of same-sex coupledom who have had it with each other (not in that sense).
"Mr. Smyth-Jones has filed for divorce from his spouse, Mr. Jones-Smyth."
"Damn right I have," says Mr. Smyth-Jones. "That queer has been putting his mouth on every Dick, Dick and Dick in town."
"The queen speaks," says Mr. Jones-Smyth. "He gives the phrase 'layabout' a whole new meaning."
"I take it," says the judge, "that adultery is the primary grounds for this proceeding."
"Yes, your honor," says Mr. Smyth-Jones, who is wearing a stylish taffeta dress (I said they'd go for the outrageous, didn't I) and oversized pumps.
"And you have counter-sued on the same grounds, Mr. Jones-Smyth?"
"Yes, your honor."
"Well, have you any witnesses, Mr. Smyth-Jones?"
We'll stop the proceedings here. You'll have to watch for yourself to see just how sordid Same-Sex Divorce Court will be.
But we do have some early reviews.
"This makes my program look and sound like a Sunday school picnic." -- Jerry Springer
"These people are just so horribly dressed." -- Mr. Blackwell
"It makes me wonder why I ever supported same-sex marriage in the first place." -- Irwin Cotler
"More fun than my ranch." -- Michael Jackson
There you have it, ladies and gentlemen, Same-Sex Divorce Court, brought to you by the Dominion of Canada.

Canadians behaving badly in Pennsylvania... again

Well, friends, we have another case of a Canadian behaving badly in Pennsylvania... this time, the "gentleman" may have contributed to the death of a Philadelphia police officer....
5 charged in biotech scuffle involving officer’s death
By Thomas J. Gibbons Jr.
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
Four men and a woman were charged today in the melee between demonstrators and police yesterday in Center City that left a city police officer dead of a heart attack.
At a press conference late this afternoon at Police Headquarters, District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham said the most serious charges were lodged against Guillaume Beaulieu, 23, of Canada, who was charged with aggravated assault against Officer Paris Williams, 52, the Civil Affairs unit member who died at Hahnemann University Hospital yesterday afternoon of a heart attack.
An autopsy today revealed that he had heart disease. Jeff Moran, a Health Department spokesman, listed the cause of death as hypertensive cardiomyopathy.
Beaulieu also is being charged with aggravated assault on another officer, Edward Braceland, 45, and resisting arrest, conspiracy and disorderly conduct.
Abraham said Beaulieu threw water on Braceland, who then pursued him. A scuffle broke out involving Braceland and other police - including Williams - as they struggled to subdue Beaulieu, she said.
"This is the genesis of this event. The pouring of the water on Officer Braceland and then the ensuing fight, melee, struggle, whatever you want to characterize it between the police officers and the people who were trying to wrest Mr. Beaulieu from the custody of the police, and the resulting punching, shoving and pushing caused Officer Williams to suffer his cardiac event," Abraham said.
Abraham said the four other suspects have been charged with resisting arrest, conspiracy, and disorderly conduct. She identified them as Caroline Colesworthy, 25, of Newport Beach, Calif.; Brenton Hall, 21, of Bangor, Maine; Mark Garcia, 19, of San Antonio, Texas; and Charles M. Sherrouse, 46, of the 1400 block of Elbridge Street in Northeast Philadelphia.
Abraham said investigators believe that Wiliams, a 17-year veteran, was struck "in some manner" during the struggle "by a foot, a fist or both."
She said that at this point in the probe, investigators do not have enough evidence to lodge a murder charge.
Wonder what HIS political affiliations are, eh?

Movie quotes

The American Film Institute's list of Top 100 movie quotes is out.
There were no Monty Python quotes in the list.
There was, however, a Groucho Marx quote:
53. "One morning I shot an elephant in my pajamas. How he got in my pajamas, I don't know," "Animal Crackers," 1930.
One out of 100 ain't too good.

Michael Schiavo = lowlife

I had been willing to cut Michael Schiavo a break.
Not a big one, mind, but somewhat of a break.
No more.
USA Yesterday showed a picture of the headstone Michael put on Terri's grave in today's print version. (You can find it online at Neal's Liberty Canada site. It's not showing on USA Yesterday's web site any more.)
That inscription is absolutely revolting. It leads me to believe that Michael Schiavo is just a petty, vindictive (fill in the blank).
And the last line? "I kept my promise"?
Hey, Michael, you have a kid with another woman, a kid you fathered after Terri became comatose. Are you trying to rationalize the fact that you didn't keep your promise that until death -- the real death, the 2005 final death -- you do not part and you remain faithful to each other?
Scum.

new friends in town

As usual, I'm a little late with this, but I've got two sites to recommend, if you've not paid 'em a visit.
Candace, who has been a regular at Captain Ed's, has introduced her new site, Waking Up On Planet X. And Operation Wirebrush, another Captain Ed's regular, has started Liberty Canada.
Both are worth your time.

Too much too little too late

From the AP:
Article I:
Sen. Dick Durbin apologized Tuesday for comparing American interrogators at the Guantanamo Bay prison camp to Nazis and other historically infamous figures.
"Some may believe that my remarks crossed the line," the Illinois Democrat said. "To them I extend my heartfelt apologies."
Some, Mr. Durbin? Try a lot of us. Apology offered one week later not accepted as sincere, but politically motivated, as was the original comment, which was:
"If I read this to you and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets or some mad regime - Pol Pot or others - that had no concern for human beings."
That was not ad-lib. That was scripted. Shame on you, Dick Turban.

Article II:
Army deserter Charles Jenkins said Monday he regrets leaving his post for North Korea, where he spent nearly 40 years, and called the communist country's dictator, Kim Jong Il, "an evil man."... "He only believes in one thing - his own personal luxury life."
Sound familiar, friends?
At least Mr. Jenkins didn't have to be pressured to make his statement.

The Khadr family

Did you know that Canada has its own al-Qaeda family?
Yessiree, Canada has its own al-Qaeda family... the Khadrs. Thoroughly protected by the Libranos, too. And they even get Canada's health care (although, given what I've read lately, that might not be too great of a deal).
But what they don't have yet is their own TV show.
At least not yet.
The crack research team here has uncovered Al-Jazeera's plans to feature the Khadrs in their very own series, "The Khadr Family."

They've already got the theme song down...
They're creepy and they're kooky,
Mysterious and spooky,
They're all together ooky,
The Khadr Family.
They worship old al-Qaeda
Believe in funeral pyres
For infidels and liars
The Khadr Family.
(Neat)
(Sweet)
(Petite)
So get your new burqa on
A scimitar to fall on
We're gonna pay a call on
The Khadr Family.
(Based on "The Addams Family" by Vic Mizzy)

They're also just about set with the casting:
Alec Baldwin will play Maha Elsamnah Khadr, the family's matriarch.
Rosie O'Donnell will play Maha's daughter Zaynab, who just smuggled an al-Qaida computer into Canada and wants her daughter to be a martyr.
Michael Moore will play Maha's son Abdullah, who lives on the run in Afghanistan.
Dick Durbin will play Maha's son Omar, who is detained at Club Gitmo.
Howard Dean will play Mahan's son Abdul Karim, who is now receiving health care in Canada after being wounded in a shootout in Pakistan.
Jane Fonda will play the late Ahmad Said al-Khadr, the patriarch of the family, who was killed in the shootout that left his son Abdul Karim injured.
Ryan Stiles will play Maha's son Abdurahman, who is the family's "white sheep."

How long a run the show will have remains to be seen. Our research crew, though, has seen some script ideas that are now being developed:
The Khadrs watch the news. Abdul Karim throws a shoe through the TV screen when he sees images of same-sex married couples.
The Khadrs study foreign affairs. Maha teaches the joys of Islamofascism.
The Khadrs party hearty. After a successful suicide bombing, the Khadrs discuss the merits of martyrdom.
The Khadrs meet their match. An unnamed blogger wipes out the family with a single, small, pointedly well-directed thermonuclear device. And the family gets quite a surprise when they reach the pearly gates.

Understanding Kyoto

M.K. Braaten has explained the lunacy of the Kyoto Protocol in a wonderful touch of satire. You *must* see this.

Also, Bill at Strong World (not Maurice, I might add) has put up a pair of posts looking at environmental indoctrination by the First Church of the Holy Environment and its minions in Government. Another must-see.

College Choices 2005: The Bourassa School of Toxic Religion

THE BOURASSA SCHOOL OF TOXIC RELIGION
Many of the world's great religions have turned into toxicity with their hatred of the people who are attracted to the same sex. Here at the Bourassa School, you can learn all about their evil rantings and help to destroy them in the name of our God. You can also learn such skills as learning to cry at will when an opponent of the school's agenda criticizes same-sex marriage; learning to talk to lawyers who are willing participants in our school's noble cause; and learning to testify before sympathetic kangaroo courts which are enrolled in our cause. Our one true gay faith must be upheld; the others must be destroyed. By attending the Bourassa School, you will contribute to this great crusade.
TESTIMONIALS
"Heathens!" - A. Qaeda, Toronto
"I fully support the efforts of the Bourassa School." - M. Strong, Beijing and the United Nations
TUITION
Free to all who support the cause, even if they are currently members of a toxic religion.
CONTACTS
Write the Peephole Booths, X-Flix, Toronto and San Francisco
Call (899) GAYGOOD
E-mail 69@69.vog

LAST IN THE SERIES
PREVIOUS: The Shapiro School of Governmental Ethics, The Durbin-Dean School of Advanced Delusional Thought, The Mergentaler School of Criminal Justice.