A double shot of dishonesty & ignorance from the left
I saw a recent post from someone who is smart enough to know better, that managed to squeeze Godwin’s Law and the intellectually dishonest “Race Card” into a single package.
They were ranting about the recent Arizona law that allows law enforcement officials to check immigration status in course of standard police investigation.
Attempting to claim this is a “show your papers” law is a clear case of either willful ignorace of the law or clear case of spouting leftist propaganda. Neither of those reflect positively on the poster. Let us get some facts straight that the leftists want left in the dark. First, “illegal” is not a race, so claiming ‘racism’ is a false argument from the start. Then keep in mind that this law is massively popular in Arizona, with 70% of the citizens supporting it. If you think that 70% doesn’t include a big chunk of Americans of Mexican decent (and legal immigrants from Mexico), you need to get out of your local Starbucks and visit the American southwest.
The typical leftist argument ignores the economic and violence issues associated with this issue. The cost of illegal immigrants (and I’m just going to include the ones who are trying to make a better life for them and their families here, God bless ’em and damn the corrupt and incompetent government of Mexico that can’t provide basic safety for its citizens) is driving the border states bankrupt. Even one of the far left liberals who recently ran for the California Governor’s seat admitted this. There is an immigration problem, that the federal government, in a rare fit of bipartisanship, refuses to address, leading Arizona to have to deal with the problem at a state level.
Then there is the violence issue. Legal (and many illegal) immigrants from Mexico came to America to get away from the violent narco-Civil War that is killing more Mexican civilians than the Islamo-insurgents in Iraq are! They don’t like the fact that violent criminals have followed them to America! Mexican Drug Cartels have made Phoenix, AZ the U.S. Kidnap Capital! Add to that, the recent case of a Central Arizonan Sheriff was shot in the stomach with an AK-47 round by a drug trafficking Mexican on U.S. soil!
The case here is much more complex than the knee jerk, and poorly thought out, hate filled arguments the leftists are throwing out.
A damn good question
Filed under: Environment, Media Bias, Our Dear Leader, Politics
Far Left Extremist Bill Maher asks:
‘Why Isn’t Barack Obama Getting More S–t For This’ Oil Spill?
Maher used to be a stand up comic, i.e. someone who made their living by observing humanity and asking the questions other people missed. That is exactly what he is doing here. He is pointing out the obscene level of hypocrisy being shown by the MSM.
MAHER: I’ll tell you who I’m really mad at which is Barack Obama. Couple of weeks ago, the President, our President said, “It turns out the oil rigs today generally don’t cause oil spills. They are technologically very advanced.” Now if, if I was quoting George Bush, this crowd would be laughing in hysterics.
LAURA TYSON, ECONOMIST AND FORMER CLINTON ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Yes they would.
MAHER: So, why isn’t Barack Obama getting more shit for this? I think he should.
This oil spill is Obama’s Katrina, and if the MSM was mildly honest, that is how they would be reporting this story.
May 1: Victims of Communism Day
As various leftists gather today to celebrate their anti-Human Rights policies, let us remember the 100 million people killed by their socialist/communist governments in the 20th Century.
RECITATION OF THE BATTLE OF CAMERONE
This battle took place on the 30th of April 1863, during the campaign of Mexico. It is celebrated each year, on the anniversary of this date, by all the regiments of the French Foreign Legion.
History: The French Army was besieging Puebla. The mission of the Legion was to ensure the movement and safety of the convoys, over an 80 mile distance. On the 29th of April 1863, Colonel Jeanningros was informed that an important convoy was on its way to Puebla, with a load of 3 million francs, and material and munitions for the seige. Captain Danjou, his quartermaster, decided to send a company to escort the convoy. The 3rd company of the Foreign Regiment was assigned to this mission, but had no officers available. So Captain Danjou, himself, took the command and 2nd lieutenants Maudet, company guide, and Vilain, the paymaster, joined him voluntarily.
On the 30th of April, at 1 a.m., the 3rd company was on its way, with its 3 officers and 62 men. At 7 a.m., after a 15 mile march, it stopped at Palo Verde in order to get some rest. At this very moment, the enemy showed up and the battle began. Captain Danjou made the company take up a square formation and, even though retreating, he victoriously drove back several cavalry charges, inflicting the first heavy losses on the enemy . By the inn of Camerone, a large building with a courtyard protected by a wall 3 meters high, Danjou decided to stay, in order to keep the enemy and so delay for as long as possible, any attacks on the convoy.
While the legionnaires were rapidly setting up the defense of the inn, a Mexican officer demanded that Captain Danjou surrender, pointing out the fact that the Mexican Army was greatly superior in number. Danjou’s answer was: “We have munitions. We will not surrender.” Then, he swore to fight to the death and made his men swear the same. It was 10 a.m. Until 6 p.m., these 60 men who had had nothing to eat or drink since the day before, in spite of the extreme heat, of the thirst and hunger, resisted against 2,000 Mexicans: 800 cavalry and 1,200 infantry.
At noon, Captain Danjou was shot in the chest and died. At 2 p.m., 2nd lieutenant Vilain was shot in the head. About this time, the Mexican colonel succeeded in setting the inn on fire. In spite of the heat and the smoke, the legionnaires resisted, but many of them were killed or injured. By 5 p.m., only 12 men could still fight with 2nd lieutenant Maudet. At this time, the Mexican colonel gathered his soldiers and told them what disgrace it would be if they were unable to defeat such a small number of men. The Mexicans were about to give the general assault through holes opened in the walls of the courtyard, but Colonel Milan, who had previously asked 2nd lieutenant Maudet to surrender, once again gave him the opportunity to. Maudet scornfully refused.
The final charge was given. Soon, only 5 men were left around Maudet; Corporal Maine, legionnaires Catteau, Wensel, Constantin and Leonard. Each had only one bullet left. In a corner of the courtyard, their back against the wall, still facing the enemy, they fixed bayonets. When the signal was given, they opened fire and fought with their bayonets. 2nd lieutenant Maudet and 2 legionnaires fell, mortally wounded. Maine and his 2 remaining companions were about to be slaughtered when a Mexican officer saved them. He shouted: “Surrender!” “We will, only if you promise to allow us to carry and care for our injured men and if you leave us our guns.” “Nothing can be refused to men like you!”, answered the officer.
Captain Danjou’s men had kept their promise; for 11 hours, they had resisted 2,000 enemy troops. They had killed 300 of them and had injured as many. Their sacrifice had saved the convoy and they had fulfilled their mission. Emperor Napoleon the 3rd decided that the name of Camerone would be written on the flag of the Foreign Regiment and the names of Danjou, Vilain and Maudet would be engraved in golden letters on the walls of the Invalides, in Paris. Moreover, a monument was built in 1892, at the very place of the fight. The following inscription can be read there :
HERE, THEY WERE LESS THAN SIXTY
AGAINST A WHOLE ARMY
ITS MASS CRUSHED THEM
BUT LIFE RATHER THAN COURAGE
ABANDONED THESE FRENCH SOLDIERS
THE 30TH OF APRIL 1863.
TO THEIR MEMORY THE NATION BUILT THIS MONUMENT.
Since then, when Mexican troops pass by the monument, they present arms.
Quote of the Day
“The real reason liberals accuse Tea Partiers of racism is that contemporary American-style liberalism is in rigor mortis. Liberals have nothing else to say or do. Accusations of racism are their last resort.”
HP buys Palm
HP has been on a buying spree. They bought 3Com, and now they have just purchased a former 3Com company, Palm Corp. for $1.2 billion.
The article I linked talks about what HP could do with Palm’s webOS for mobile devices, including using it in netbooks and tablet devices.
What it doesn’t talk about is Palm’s patent portfolio, which could be worth the price of the sale alone.
Originally posted at Urbin Technology
The light blogging lately
It’s been kinda content light here the past couple of weeks, but things have been a bit busy.
For one of those reasons, I’d like to give a shout out to the really top notch team as the Foster Hospital for Small Animals, which is part of the Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine.
They did some really amazing work with one of my Golden Retrievers.
Speaking of small animals, the cat is actually in the bag…
Monday Book Pick: The Shaolin Grandmasters’ Text
The Shaolin Grandmasters’ Text: History, Philosophy, and Gung Fu of Shaolin Ch’an
A very good book for the serious martial artist. A lot of history as well the basics behind various techniques and philosophy. It explains why there are no real Shaolin in mainland China anymore (the Communists were better at driving them out than the War Lords), and why you are better off going to the Chinatowns of San Francisco, New York City and Boston, to find real Shaolin Gung Fu than going to Communist China (where they have Tai Chi practitioners and WuShu artists in orange robes to bilk tourists of the their cash).
Film Camera spotted in the Wild
An actual Film Camera spotted in the wild! The person with the camera was taking a photography class, and some of her assignments required an actual film camera to be used.
Originally posted at Slices of Life
Happy Lenin’s Birthday!
Yup, “Earth Day” is on Lenin’s Birthday. Not a coincidence, given that the “founder” of Earth Day was much more a “Watermelon” than an actual environmentalist.
Watermelon: Thin layer of green of the outside, red to the core.
So, we are going to look back at some Lenin’s Birthday classics, including this clip from the late George Carlin.
Let us not forget this list of Earth Day Predictions from 1970
“Civilization will end within 15 or 30 years unless immediate action is taken against problems facing mankind.” — George Wald, Harvard Biologist
“Population will inevitably and completely outstrip whatever small increases in food supplies we make. The death rate will increase until at least 100-200 million people per year will be starving to death during the next ten years.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University biologist
“By…[1975] some experts feel that food shortages will have escalated the present level of world hunger and starvation into famines of unbelievable proportions. Other experts, more optimistic, think the ultimate food-population collision will not occur until the decade of the 1980s.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University biologist
“It is already too late to avoid mass starvation,” — Denis Hayes, chief organizer for Earth Day
“Demographers agree almost unanimously on the following grim timetable: by 1975 widespread famines will begin in India; these will spread by 1990 to include all of India, Pakistan, China and the Near East, Africa. By the year 2000, or conceivably sooner, South and Central America will exist under famine conditions….By the year 2000, thirty years from now, the entire world, with the exception of Western Europe, North America, and Australia, will be in famine.” — Peter Gunter, professor, North Texas State University
“Scientists have solid experimental and theoretical evidence to support…the following predictions: In a decade, urban dwellers will have to wear gas masks to survive air pollution…by 1985 air pollution will have reduced the amount of sunlight reaching earth by one half….” — Life Magazine, January 1970
“At the present rate of nitrogen buildup, it’s only a matter of time before light will be filtered out of the atmosphere and none of our land will be usable.” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
“Air pollution…is certainly going to take hundreds of thousands of lives in the next few years alone.” — Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University biologist
Ok, Ehrlich was sorta right on this, if you restrict his predictions to modern Communist China, where they are showing the typical communist/socialist contempt for the environment.
“By the year 2000, if present trends continue, we will be using up crude oil at such a rate…that there won’t be any more crude oil. You’ll drive up to the pump and say, `Fill ‘er up, buddy,’ and he’ll say, `I am very sorry, there isn’t any.’” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
Now we get to my personal favorite, although probably not Al Gore’s…
“The world has been chilling sharply for about twenty years,” he declared. “If present trends continue, the world will be about four degrees colder for the global mean temperature in 1990, but eleven degrees colder in the year 2000. This is about twice what it would take to put us into an ice age.” — Kenneth Watt, Ecologist
Remember kids, there is way to get Clean Energy and plenty of it