I kid you not! Courtesy of Google.

And when he does, it’s not good at all. “Money Corrupts,” says Senator John McCain (RINO-AZ). He certainly forgets his Bible; money in and of itself is not evil; it’s what one does with it which makes it good or evil:

“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
– I Timothy 6:10 (NIV)

This guy wants to be President? ABSOLUTELY NOT! And wait till you hear the rest of his diatribe with Don Imus on PMSNBC. You too will get even more riled up than what I already am. I wrote this guy last year regarding Judge Alito’s confirmation hearing delay and he never wrote back! Somehow, what I just wrote seems like deja vu.

HAT TIP: Stop The ACLU

DEDICATED TO MY FELLOW BROTHER
OF ALPHA KAPPA PSI
WHO WAS ON FLIGHT 93:
THOMAS E. BURNETT, JR.

United 93 is a solemn reminder of what happened on September 11, 2001. It was a day like any other, until four planes were hijacked by the al Qaeda terrorists. Three of the planes hit their targets. The fourth did not, and this is the focus of the story. Directed by Paul Greengrass, the movie is not outlandish, but rather very simple and powerful. No embellishments, no grand statements of intent. It merely shows the actions and the consequences of the hijackers, the FAA, the military controllers, and the passengers on Flight 93 who fought to take back the plane from the savage murderers. Some of the FAA and military operations centers’ personnel actually played themselves.
Much to the chagrin of its detractors, this motion picture was not done to make money, as told by David Alan Basche, who played Todd Beamer:

“I and other cast members, too, had some misgivings. We were concerned about melodrama and exploitation. But our director, Paul Greengrass, is fiercely intelligent and brilliant and an expert on violence and terrorism. He was more interested in authenticity and truth. He went to all the families and they all gave their approval.”

The audience reaction throughout the movie was silence intermixed with tears, because we all saw that those passengers who boarded the plane didn’t know they were going to die, and as the film progressed, that realization set in; this was indeed the most difficult part for me to take. They found out from their families about the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. They made their peace with God. And the Four who rushed the cockpit did so for their country, their loved ones, and their fellow passengers. For that, they are all American Heroes.
And the audience left…in silence.
United 93 is rated R for language, and some intense sequences of terror and violence. Definitely not suitable for young children to watch until they become of age. My rating: 9

And here’s another disappointment. I really thought Neil Young finally got it when he recorded “Let’s Roll,” about the Heroes of United Flight 93 (more on that film later). Instead, he records an entire album dedicated solely to attacking President Bush, the War on Terror, and the United States of America. Just like his days in CSN&Y.
There’s no doubt that Young is a great musician, and I’ve got a few of his albums, mostly from the late 80s and early 90s. But his politics suck. Now we have “Living With War.” The album can be heard here via live streaming. It will be available for digital download on May 2nd, with the CD release shortly thereafter. Yes, I’m providing this service to you liberal readers.

I’m genuinely disappointed in Sam over at Day By Day. YUCK! There’s a reason why I don’t like to hang around with smokers; it has to do with my eyes, which I chronicled here.
Now I wonder what the reason of other Day By Day Fans will be.

I’ve lost track of the number of e-mails I’ve received from liberal friends who advocate a (whoop de freakin’ do!) one-day boycott of ExxonMobil for their so-called “insane” profits. Actually, I do hope those who sent me these e-mails are reading this; I simply file them in the Trash.
This is because Econ 101 is in effect (and always has been)...one company doth not a boycott make. One week the e-mail advocates boycotting ExxonMobil, the next week it’s BPAmoco, followed by ConocoPhillips, and don’t forget everyone’s favorite target from the 1970s, Shell. In other words, you have to boycott them all at the same time in order to send any sort of economic message.
Vilmar, the Right Wing Howler, has a spot-on summary of the bulls**t campaign from those who don’t know better.

With the ANSWER-sponsored May Day Boycott coming up, and the backlash against Illegals growing as a result of the En su cara (“In Your Face”) marches…now those who support the Illegals have the arrogance to take OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM, translate it into Spanish, and call it “Nuestro Himno” (“Our Anthem”)!
Excuse me, Illegals, but it’s not YOUR anthem. It’s OURS. You have NO RIGHT to turn it into your diatribe against the laws of OUR COUNTRY with lyrics such as “These kids have no parents, cause all of these mean laws…let’s not start a war with all these hard workers, they can’t help where they were born.” Even worse, you put it on an album with the intent to MAKE MONEY off it.
Don’t bother calling it a parody either. It’s not. It doesn’t make fun of this situation. And to the twit Brit who came up with the idea: if you ever have the guts to re-enter the United States, you will be receiving a very, very bad reception.

Here are the choices:

Star Trek XI movie: deals with Kirk’s early days at Starfleet Academy.
- OR -
Caprica: a Battlestar Galactica prequel series which deals with the creation of the Cylons…and its aftermath.

I’m gonna choose Caprica and here’s why:
Let’s face it. Star Trek has been around, in one form (first-run) or another (reruns) for FORTY YEARS. The stories got lamer and lamer as time passed from one series to another. Hell, I never even bothered to watch the tenth movie. All I needed to know from that one was: DATA DIES. It got so bad, I could tell ten minutes into the episode how it would turn out. May I remind you that I consider myself a reasonably knowledgeable Trek fan, having seen my very first episode when I was six years old: “Arena,” so I can say with good authority that TREK. NEEDS. A. LONG. REST.
Compare that to the freshness of Doctor Who, which has finally returned after a 16-year absence. They may be reintroducing old enemies such as the Daleks and the Cybermen, but it is now to an entirely new audience. But the Beeb better be careful; after all, the Doctor has only 2 lives left (he’s on Life #10 now).
And then there’s Battlestar Galactica. Ronald D. Moore, who used to work on Star Trek during the 1990s, has breathed new life into a show which, in all fairness and respect to Glen Larson and the original cast, couldn’t have gone anywhere in its original airing from 1978 to 1979…no, the 1980 show is a nightmare!. With Caprica, we’ll soon see once again, as with Babylon 5, that all choices we make in our lives have consequences, be they good or bad.
Unfortunately for the Colonials, it’s going to be real bad. But we know that already; I just want to see HOW it got to that point where the Cylons nuked the Colonies, precipitating the search for Earth.
And so that is my choice. Patience will be a virtue in either case.

And before I forget…
HAT TIPS to tgs333 (for ST XI) and Semaj Ovured (for Caprica)

The man who has become synonymous with College Football on television, Keith Jackson, has announced his retirement from the microphone, this time for good:

“Keith Jackson is a man of great character and a legendary broadcaster. For decades, his unmistakable style defined college football for millions of fans,” George Bodenheimer, the president of ESPN and ABC Sports, said in a statement Thursday. “While we hate to say goodbye, we understand his decision and wish him the very best.”
Jackson also announced he would retire after the 1998 season, but ended up continuing with ABC Sports. He said this time is different.
“This is the perfect time,” Jackson told the newspaper. “I don’t want to get back into the pressure cooker of play-by-play and worry about travel. I don’t want to die in a stadium parking lot.”

A man who has his priorities straight. Now, can anyone step up to the mike and provide the excitement Jackson did for forty years? Whoever does will have big shoes to fill. Good Luck Keith, and take it easy!

Well, here’s my result:

ALIVE

You are 47% likely to survive the end of the world.
Well, you made it. You’re in rough shape though. Whether it be radiation sickness, bullet wounds, or complete economic devastation, you’ve been scarred for life. But at least you have the rest of your life to be scarred.
The Apocalypse Survival Test

HAT TIP: Right Wing Howler

OK, how many of you played with a Spirograph when you were a kid? I know I did, now here is the high-tech version!

For once I have something to root for in the Народная Республика Ильиной*. The Cops in Arlington Heights (a suburb in northwest Cook County) arrest a demonstrator during a pro-Illegals gathering SIX MONTHS AGO, for hitting an officer and resisting arrest. Her (gasp!) scarf is removed! She is forced to undergo humiliation during her booking! Oh, the horrors!
Have you figured out who the arrestee is? If you haven’t, allow me to give you a hint. Someone CAIRs for her. Yet another example of their refusal to assimilate, just as they have succeeded in doing over in Europe.

* - People’s Republic of Illinois
HAT TIP: Little Green Footballs

The following verses from the Book of Revelations appears as the introduction to Frederik Pohl’s fictionalization of this event:

And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; and the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.
— Revelation 8:10-11

Although it is said that the translation of the word “Wormwood” to “Chernobyl” is controversial, it nevertheless made me pause and reflect about the true magnitude of this disaster. It hastened the downfall of the Soviet Union because the initial reaction of the Soviet government was that of secrecy, in stark contrast to Mikhail Gorbachev’s public statements calling for openness and restructuring. The legacy is staggering; the lives affected: hundreds of thousands. And the firefighters who gave their lives to stop the contamination from getting worse were true Heroes and are honored as such.
Twenty years later, we are beginning to see how the area surrounding the plant has adapted; how everything which was abandoned still lies there as a silent testament. Kidd of Speed has ridden her motorcycle through the exclusion zone on multiple occasions, and her photos are part of the legacy. And there are some, who were forced to leave back in 1986, who are returning to rebuild what little is left of their lives, with nowhere else to go. We will not see the end of this story, but it is only now beginning to be written.

I stand with the People of Israel, when I say to you NEVER AGAIN.
SO SAY WE ALL.

President Bush has tapped FOX News’ Tony Snow to be the next White House Press Secretary. Can you hear Helen Thomas quaking in her boots? I sure can…and someone else too:

“...I think he can handle (NBC’s) David Gregory with that same great humor, but also be somebody who would really communicate to the American people in a good common sense way,” said Barbara Comstock, a former director of research and planning at the Republican National Committee.

One thing’s for sure…the el cubos are gonna be burning the midnight oil to figure out how to handle this guy. Good Luck Tony!