Almighty Obama, To You All Wallets Are Open, All Incomes Known, And From You No Health Data Is Hid...

Praying to a false god. The new object of worship is an idol fashioned out of false hope and (other people's) gold, and, like the first golden calf of yore, he will bring our nation to ruin.

Not to worry, though. Tuesday night some guys are coming down the mountain with some tablets. Let's try to live by them.

"Miss Me Yet?"

Aparrently, yes.



I just watched this live with a big smile on my face, repeating "82, 82, 82..." To be fair, it was Texas. And, W doesn't pitch like a community organizer.

Should Anybody Really Care...

...What the UN has to say about "human rights"? Nope.

Election Night Guide.

My friend and soothsayer John with JMC Enterprises has an election night guide well worth reading that should make things a bit more "user friendly". And, buried in all of John's facts, figures, and insignts is this bombshell:

The big question about the House is not whether the GOP will gain control, but how large of a wave there will be. We are currently projecting a 82 GOP seat gain.

Eighty-Two. Wow. Just, wow.

11 Reasons To Vote Democrat.

I've posted it before, but with Tuesday looming it bears watching again:

Wouldn't You Like To Be A Dhimmi, Too?

One Dr. Maher Hathout puts on his smiley face and explains "Islam in a Nutshell" to a group of eagerly pliable Episcopalians.

Here is Dr. Hathout a few years ago explaining 'Judaism in a Nutshell' to a group of eagerly understanding Muslims.

Someone should ask the good doctor if he would support the building of a Jewish community center in Medina to promote, y'know, interfaith understanding and healing. I mean, Medina was a Jewish city once...

UPDATE: Second link fixed. Sorry.

A Timely Reminder.

Happy Halloween!

Swamp Thang Thriller from RightChange on Vimeo.

Bias? What Media Bias? (UPDATED)

And they wonder why we don't trust the Mainstream Media anymore: Anchorage reporters get caught conspiring to smear Alaska Republican Joe Miller.

UPDATE: Powerline has more, including the actual recording and the TV station's lame excuse. The Ruling Class hates it when they get caught being honest.

Trick. No Treat.

Your ObamaCare future. Watch it all.



Hattip: The Hayride.

Carving A Pumpkin.

Because we're Americans, and we can. That's why.



Hattip: Creative Minority Report.

This Is, After All, Why God Created Leaves.

From, where else? The Borderline Sociopathic Blog For Boys, of course

I'm Sorry New Jersey; We All Need Him.

Chris Christie is the new Reagan. 2012 can't come soon enough.

St Crispin's Day.

It was actually last Monday, but putting this up every year around this time is kind of an RSR tradition.



And if any Lefties out there try to draw inspiration from this for next Tuesday, forget it. You're the French.

I'm Famous.

Well, sort of. I’m awful glad Christopher left our “pin-the-tale-on-Ruth-Gledhill” game at Club Indaba out of the transcript. People might talk.

The Company You Keep.

Another question to ask on 2 November: Do you really want this group of Obama's friends helping to call the shots in Congress for another two years? No, me either.

Oh, The Times They Are A Chan-gin'.

When you've lost Bob Dylan...

The Final Sooth, And A Word From The Management.

John, our official political soothsayer extraordinaire, has made his final prediction on the results on 2 November, and they can best be summed up nicely in these one-word descriptors: "Wipeout". "Bloodbath". "Slaughter".

Here's the numbers:

Governorships: Pickup of 8 for the GOP, for 32 governorships.
Senate: Pickup of 7 for the GOP, giving the Republicans 48 seats.
House: Pickup of 76 (Yes, he said 76 -ed.) for the GOP, flipping the House to 255 Republicans.

Now, a word from your humble blogger:

John's numbers are all well and good, but they WILL NOT HAPPEN if you, dear readers, do not GET OUT AND VOTE! And get your friends out to vote. And get your family out to vote, and get casual acquaintances out to vote, and... well, you get the picture.

You have a cell phone with a contacts list - use it! Many of you have Facebook and Twitter accounts - use them as well. Contact everyone you know who wants to restore this country and Washington back to the values found in the Constitution, and repair the damage done by the values of Chicagoland politics. Let them know how important it is for them to vote - even in races where it the conservative candidate is a shoo-in - and that you value them enough to enough to remind them.

In this day and age of cell phones and the Internet, you don't have to fight the power - you can BE the power.

Delta Blues For The Democrats?

How bad are things looking for the Party of Hopenchange? According to my buddy John, bad enough that a black conservative Republican on a shoe-string budget has pulled neck-and-neck with a 17-year black Democrat in a majority-minority district in Mississippi.

I Have A New Favorite Winter Sport.

After women's curling, of course: CQB Biathlon.

From The Borderline Sociopathic Blog For Boys.

Picture, Thousand Words. Yadda, Yadda.

Shamelessly stolen from Theo Spark:

Elitist, Ruling Class Quote Of The Day.

This would be "Quote of the Month", but we're hedging our bets - the month isn't over and Joe Biden's mouth is still out there somewhere. Anyway, over to you, Katie Couric:

That’s why Couric has spent recent weeks in Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston and New Brunswick, New Jersey. She is touring what she calls “this great unwashed middle of the country” in an effort to divine the mood of the midterms. (Emphasis mine)

While my knowledge of such things is very limited (my degree is from a lowly public university in fly-over country), since when are Philadelphia, Boston and New Brunswick, New Jersey, the "middle of the country”??

Oh, wait. Here's the map Ms. Couric appears to be using:


(Steinberg, The New Yorker Magazine)

P.S. Katie, if you want to "divine the mood of the midterms", ask this lady. While she may not know all about the intricacies of Supreme Court decisions, she knows what us unwashed are thinking because, unlike you, she's one of us. And, she sure as hell knows how to read a map.

For Anne.

Hee, hee, hee.

The Freedom Of Withholding Information Act.

Transparency, Team Hopenchange style:

Phacil has also posted a job listing on its own website for a specialist in FOIA citing an “immediate need a FOIA Analyst [sic] to support a very high-profile government customer in Washington D.C.” Included in the scope of the work is “Redacting or withholding agency records citing appropriate exemptions and generating response letters; and Responding to requestors concerning the agency’s disclosure determination by generating response letters.”

Even more unbelievably, among the qualifications requested is: “Use of FOIA/PA exemptions to withhold information from release to the public.”

Note also in the article that Phacil and it's founders are not exactly disinterested players here.

Information, is power. Barry and his comrades know that well, which is why they want to control the information you get about them to the greatest extent possible.

Shoes Of The Oceanographer?

When it comes to the ever increasing power of The Presiding Bishop, Kate Schori hasn't said (yet) that equality with God a thing to be grasped. But, she appears to be hinting that equality with the Pope may be a thing to be grasped, and possible "structural changes" in TEC's ever-sacred polity toward that end could come in pretty darn handy. It certainly seems, um, curia-ous...

"l'Église, C'est Moi", Kate?

The Ultimate Inclusion.

Quick! Make this lady an Episcopal bishop: A Taipei woman says she is going to marry... herself. And her reason is nothing if not boiler-plate theology from today's Episcopal Church (tm):

"I'm not anti-marriage. I just hope that I can express a different idea within the bounds of a tradition."

You know what this means, dear readers? The Episcopal Church (tm) is gonna have to add another letter ("U" for "unitary"? -ed.) to the 'LGBTQ' alphabet soup of preferred Episcopalians.

Montgomery, 2010.

How desperate is post-racial, transformational uniter Barack Obama about 2 November? This desperate:

We don't mind the Republicans joining us. They can come for the ride, but they gotta sit in back."

It's OK, though. To continue the metaphor, we got our own lady who refuses to sit quietly in the back of the bus.

What's next? Barry and his fellow travelers blocking doorways? Oh, wait...

The Obama Legacy. (UPDATED)

Brilliant.



This is - no exaggeration - what's at stake on 2 November.

Hattip: Scott at The Hayride.

UPDATE: The Pelosi/Reid Legacy:

I'm Baaaack.

No, I really didn't go see a wizard. What I did do was spend three days here:


(image by Red Stick Rant / iPhone)

My annual silent retreat at Manresa House of Retreats in Convent, Louisiana. But, I hear you ask: That's a Jesuit place and... you're not Roman Catholic. Quite true. I go for two reasons: First, I am a Christian, and the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola work just fine for any Christian man (the Jesuits will let most Christians in - and yes, it's men only) seeking a serious deepening and understanding of their Faith. Second, The Episcopal Church (tm) doesn't have anything that even comes close to the Manresa experience. And given their current obsession and drive for elitist, boutique status - utterly devoid of any of that yeechy, superstitious religion stuff - they never will. Plus, we all know what our Presiding Bishop thinks of Roman Catholics:

...Episcopalians tend to be better-educated and tend to reproduce at lower rates than some other denominations. Roman Catholics and Mormons both have theological reasons for producing lots of children.

Here's another image from Manresa, taken early Friday morning:


(image by Red Stick Rant / iPhone)

Many of my New Orleans readers will understand why my first thought when I composed this shot was "Drysdale painting".

More after I unpack.

I'm Off To See The Wizard...

Blogging will be pretty much non-existent here at RSR for a few days while your humble blogger takes care of a few work issues, and a yearly personal one as well. I'll be back Sunday night or Monday, but until then I present for your blog reading pleasure:

Instapundit
Maggie's Farm
Theo Spark
The Hayride
Midwest Conservative Journal (for all you 'Piskies out there)

and, of course,

Borderline Sociopathic Blog For Boys

This Week's Sooth.

Our regular political soothsayer, John, has consulted the vestal virgins (There are still virgins in politics? Who knew? -ed.) and proclaims this week's sooth on 2 November. If there is a 'Democrat Surge' - as Biden and comrades claim - John sure ain't seeing it. He also has some interesting data at his site on Louisiana's early voting, so head on over.

An Interesting Endorsement In MA-4.

According to a campaign email I got this morning, Senator John McCain has endorsed Sean Bielat, Barney Frank's challenger in Massachusetts' 4th District:

On this Election Day voters in Massachusetts will decide who will best represent them in Congress and for the first time in a long time, Congressman Barney Frank has a strong and serious Republican challenger who is within striking distance of winning.

I strongly support Sean Bielat for Congress and with your support, he will win the election on November 2nd.

Were this a normal Massachusetts one-party election, McCain's endorsement wouldn't matter a tinker's damn. But this is not a normal election. While most of the rest of us look at McCain as a quirky Republican at best, in New England he is seen as an 'acceptable conservative', and his maverick image and military sacrifice carry a measure of respect. That could well give Newton/Brookline moderates (Clinton Democrats to the rest of us) the cushion of comfort they need to vote for Bielat. If there is one thing suburban Boston voters hate worse than a Republican, it's a pol who has overstayed his welcome - and I think Frank may have finally done that.

I've Waited 13 Years For This.

At the the roll-out of the latest AutoCAD software at the American Institute of Architects convention in 1997, I stood up in an auditorium full of my fellow professionals and asked the AutoDesk presenter when they would be releasing the Mac version.

I was laughed at.

The presenter said AutoDesk had no intention of ever again supporting AutoCAD on the Mac platform. It was a small and shrinking market, and besides, "Apple won't exist in eighteen months."

Look who's laughing now, Market-share Boy.

UPDATE: There's an iPhone App as well.

Oh, Sweet Moe...

A story banging around the blogosphere for some months claims that former Velvet Underground drummer Maureen "Moe" Tucker was interviewed at an Atlanta Tea Party rally. Turns out, it's true.

For those of you too young to have heard of Velvet Underground - or your parents were too young - here's a taste of Moe's handiwork:

Don't Know Much About History.

The Left / Mainstream Media elite make fun of Sarah Palin for telling Tea Partiers to "party like it's 1773". Readers of this blog know why she picked that date.

And they call us ignorant and stupid?!?

Ich Bin Ein Berliner.

I had the great good fortune to spend some time in West Berlin in 1983, back when the Berlin Wall was a very real thing and Communists were a threat to freedom - not White House advisers. We spent days wandering the city, including time in East Berlin (complete with an unsubtle Stasi trying to pass himself off as a 'friendly student'), and spent some amazing nights on the 'Ku-Damm'. Needless to say, I've had a soft soft spot for Berlin ever since.

So to see the transformation and urban reunification of the city since the fall of the wall in 1989 is, well, nothing short of amazing.

Nothing For Something.

A little piece of news to keep you awake at night, and think about in the days leading up to the 2 November election: National Debt Up $3 Trillion on Obama's Watch.

That's on the order of a 22% increase in less than two years. For... what? You see any improvement from where we were in 2008? Unemployment has increased (and hasn't decreased as we were promised). Mortgage foreclosures have increased. Health care costs have increased (faster than before). Regulations have increased. And our taxes are about to increase from a whole host of things. Spending our way out of this hasn't worked, so maybe it's time we tried stopping spending instead. We have only one chance to do that in November - and even then it's a slim one, but that's the only one we got.

UPDATE: Oh, wait. My bad. The President says reason the economy is still in the shitter has nothing to do with him or his policies. Oh, no - its because you and me are too stupid, scared, and frustrated to appreciate and be amazed by the brilliance of His actions.

For Jack.

Your dream is safe - you can still go Hog wild. Until 2028, that is.

Let's Do The Remake Again.

Nooooooo! Is nothing sacred anymore?!?

Can anyone ever really top top this? I don't think so. Besides, what was original and shocking in 1975 is no big deal now. These days, this guy could easily be mistaken for an Episcopal Bishop.

He. Ain't. Cedric. Richmond.

Scott over at The Hayride makes a very convincing case for conservatives backing Joseph Cao in the LA-2 Congressional race. LA-2 readers, please read it all.

When you're choice is between slim and none, go with slim.

Inter-nacht?

I was afraid this would happen. Jay Dardenne, the Republican candidate for Louisiana's Lt. Governor (who this writer supports -ed.), is Jewish. Some folks in these parts don't seem to like that fact, and one JOHNNYANGEL has left this snarky, anti-Semitic comment over at the PoliticsLA website:

"Jew boy Dardenne is no better than Clinton."

Who JOHNNYANGEL is, I don't know. Several on the website are blaming the comment on Democrats, but I don't think so. The LDP has some pretty immature players (cough! Kevin cough!), but I don't think they are that immature or that stupid. Whoever it is, I'm glad they are now letting their true, hateful character out for all to see. And, for us to judge accordingly.

I'm surprised, though, the post writer didn't try to weave Dardenne into the loopy Rothschild and Illuminati conspiracy theories for extra effect. Seems more his (JOHNNYANGEL's) world-view.

UPDATE: After reading JOHNNYANGEL's other posts at PoliticsLA, he appears to be less interested in Dardenne's faith and more interested in trying to peddle a slimey rumor.

The Episcopal Church (tm) Welcomes You, Or, Is There An ACNA Church Nearby?

Gene Robinson, a (in order of priority) Gay Episcopal Bishop, shows how The Episcopal Church (tm) lives into that "respect the dignity of every human being" thing when it comes to that most unfavored minority in their ranks today - us traditional Christians. He declares all of us who disagree with him to be "hatemongers and crazies are spewing all sorts of venom and condemnation" .

Gee, thanks. We can feel the Episcopal hold-your-positions-a-little-more-lightly (tm) love from here. I could say the same things about you, Bishop Robinson; and about Integrity, the House of Bishops, and Kate Schori. But somehow if I do it it's 'hate-speech', so I won't.

While not reacting to Robinson's 'hate-speech' directly (hey, if its 'hate speech' when I call them names, its 'hate-speech' when they call me names - ed.), Ann Althouse does a good job of kicking the bundled "Christian faith = homophobia" meme of Robinson and the rest of the Secular Left into the corner.

UPDATE: Why yes, yes there is an ACNA church nearby...

A Short, Short Time Ago, In A Galaxy Far, Far Away.

What would The Empire Strike Back look like if Darth Vader tried to rally his forces by claiming the Rebel Alliance was actually the Empire, and the Empire was actually the rebels? It would look something like this.

Obama already finds our lack of faith disturbing.

UPDATE: While our Princess Lea isn't his daughter, but he is her cousin.

Let's Be Frank About History. (UPDATED)

My former Representative, Barney Frank, Then and Now.

UPDATE 17OCT2010: Barney Frank's challenger, Sean Bielat, notes Barney's 20/20 hindsight on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac:



You can help Sean by going here. Remember, dear readers, money is the nutty-buddy parfait of politics. Ain't that right, John?

The Replacement For 'Waterboarding' Has Been Found.

Being forced to watch this all the way through.

What We Believe.

The brilliant Bill Whittle at PJTV explains the values of the Tea Party Movement:





Watch them both.

Hey Baton Rouge Tea Partiers, What Time Is It? (UPDATED)

It's time to change the country, that's what time it is!

If rummage sales and the occasional flag waving isn't quite what you had in mind for political action this election season, there are places where you can turn your energy into action and fight back to elect conservative / Constitutional candidates to office. Our former Tea Party President, Jennifer Madsen, needs volunteers for the Republican Party's 'Project Victory' campaign, which she now heads. (If you are in another part of the state, Jennifer has campaign opportunities for you, too.)

Dear readers, we need to turn this election, not into a change of parties in Congress, but into an electoral rout the likes of which has never been seen; which even The Left / Mainstream Media can't spin away. Even in "safe" conservative districts we need to turn out our vote in such numbers and with such force that our voice can not be denied. A 52-48 victory is a victory. But a 62-38 victory is a mandate.

Right now, the Republican Party is the best avenue to do that. Our opponents aren't content to sit at a rummage sale or wave flags - Organize for America intends to make 15 million phone calls before 2 November for Leftist candidates. We need to double that.

So ask yourself, my fellow Tea Partiers - what do you want to do in the next few weeks? Sell bric-a-brac and tee-shirts, or continue to be a part of the next American Revolution? The choice is yours.

UPDATE 15OCT2010: For those interested, there are several Tea Party activities in south Louisiana tomorrow (Saturday) that don't involve selling attic leftovers and cookies:

Greater New Orleans Tea Party is holding a "mini-rally" at Veterans and Causeway in Metairie, 10-Noon. Bring tasteful signs.

Northshore Tea Party is holding a "Family Fun To Get It Done" rally at the Reagan Memorial in Covington, 1-3. Senator Vitter and Representative Scalise will be speaking, and there will be opportunities to volunteer for a get-out-the-vote drive (which, in the how-to-win-elections category, beats sellling cookies).

This Week's Reading Of The Tea Leaves.

John, our friendly neighborhood savvy political diviner, has looked deeply into the bottom of this week's cup. And the leaves tell him... The Democrats are still toast on 2 November. And, recent claims by The Left / Mainstream Media of a 'Democrat surge' are pretty much smoke and teleprompters.

Mr. President, Please Attack Me.

To: President Obama

From: Clifford at Red Stick Rant

Re: Instant Fame and Fortune

As soon as possible, please attack, insult, demean, or otherwise criticize Red Stick Rant by name in the national media, or attack me personally. I'm begging you.

Will Joseph Cao Return To Congress? (UPDATED)

Maybe. Some Democrats in New Orleans are breaking ranks and backing Cao, the incumbent Republican, instead of getting behind the Obama-endorsed Democrat Cedric "I Don't Work For The State; The State Works For Me" Richmond. Will it be enough to reelect Cao in a few weeks in the heavily Democrat district? Right now that's anybody's guess. But don't be surprised if it happens.

UPDATE 14OCT2010: Besides the endorsements, things may indeed be changing in Cao's favor: The DCCC has pulled funding for Richmond. Public spin is Richmond's is a "safe" Democrat seat, and he therefore doesn't need the cash. But according to this unconfirmed report, the Democrats finally looked in Cedric's closet and, well, even Maxine Waters recoiled. If the Democrats do not retake LA-2, that will be big news indeed.

She's Baaaaack...

Rachel Lucas is blogging again.

For The Grey Man.

I know its not your normal celebratory song for this occasion, but then again, no one ever accused us of being us normal. Hope you had a great day!

Hope Over Experience.

Detroit, the abandoned city, wants to build a train from no place to nowhere - with your tax dollars, of course. To make Detroit "dynamic" or something.



As a design professional, I'll let you in on a little secret about urban design that the current state of Detroit proves well - all of the multi-colored maps, "light rail" lines, zoning, mixed-use developments, targeted investments, long-term master planning, public-private partnerships and community redevelopment block grants in the world will not make a successful community. The success of any community as a viable and desirable place to live can be boiled down to this: Clean, safe streets and a decent school system. That's really all there is to it. If a government can consistently provide those things, the rest of what makes a community - the people, the stores, the offices, the businesses, the factories, the restaurants, the warehouses, the churches, the homes - even the Chinese take-away - will follow; and as long ad government doesn't get too pissy about how they follow, the community will grow and prosper. Taxation isn't really a factor so long as the people who pay the taxes are confident their money is being used wisely and they can see the results.

UPDATE: Many more images of Detroit today at Tour De Hood. Depressing as hell.

An Expensive Lesson.

Barack Obama: “there’s no such thing as shovel-ready projects”. Well, duh. Anybody who's ever worked the private/productive sector could tell you that.

We can't change our President-in-training until 2012, but we can change the Congress on 2 November. We simply can't afford $787 billion OJT exercises.

UPDATE: See the post just above - I'd say Detroit was a bulldozer-ready project...

Freedom's Just Another Word For...

...Nothing Left To Save.

Just in time for the November election, yet one more example of Obama's "transformational change" in action: Welcome to "Guaranteed Retirement Accounts":

The point of the meeting was to figure out ways in which private 401(k) plans could be more "fairly" distributed as taxpayer-funded pensions. Senator Tom Harkin, Chairman of the Committee, hand-picked the witnesses for the meeting. Who did he chose? People advocating "Guaranteed Retirement Accounts." Sound familiar? It should. I've been telling you about this plan for at least two years. It is a plan created by Theresa Guilarducci and it would seize private retirement accounts, set up an additional 5% mandatory payroll tax, and then use the money from the tax and seizure to distribute it "fairly" to Americans.(Emphasis mine)

In other words, from each according to his ability, to each according to his need.

As a reality check, deal readers, try this mental exercise: If something like "Guaranteed Retirement Accounts" actually got traction in Congress, what would be the response by the millions of us with 401(k)s and IRAs? Leave our money there and let the Feds seize all of it, or pay the early withdrawal penalty and take out what we can before the bill became law? And what would happen to our economy when the hundreds of billions of dollars in those accounts suddenly vanished under millions of mattresses? The money in our retirement accounts isn't sitting in some robber-baron's bank vault somewhere, being used to light up his cigars and clean his spats, its lent to businesses (like mine) to fund operations and expansions, and to people (like you and me) to buy homes and cars. Haven't the Democrats ever watched 'It's a Wonderful Life'??

If the money we now put into our private retirement accounts goes to the government to fund Obama's Super Social Security program, will the government invest that money back in the private/productive sector or, as they do today, simply remove it forever from the private/productive sector and use it to pay government operating expenses? You have one guess.

Remember, this all becomes moot - for now, anyway - if we vote the Lefty bastards out of Congress on 2 November.

UPDATE: Here is Teresa Ghilarducci's testimony to the Congressional Committee hearing. Note that she does indeed propose Congress let you "trade" (like you'd have a choice... -ed.) your entire retirement savings for a government Guaranteed Retirement Account. Note also the teensy downsides she doesn't mention: If you built up, say, a $100,000 IRA and died before you were able to access it, your spouse and/or family inherits $100,000 (less taxes). If you "traded" for a GRA and died before the government allowed you to access it, apparently your spouse and/or family gets... nothing. Just like Social Security, the government keeps the surplus. Today you can, under certain circumstances, access your 401(k) or IRA in emergencies. Not with the GRA. The Guaranteed Retirement Account is little more than a scheme whereby a cash-addicted government can ignore their fiscal irresponsibility problem and, by taking over control of our private savings, have access to a vast amount of money to feed their spending disease.

Today's Required Viewing.

Powerline links to an excellent video conversation with Victor Davis Hanson discussing the world stage today and tomorrow, and America's place in it. The video is near 40 minutes long, but as far as brain food goes its well worth the time.

Hanson points out that Mexico is something we should be paying a lot more attention to for reasons other than immigration, and if we don't our next crisis will be a lot closer to home. Like, my home.

The Lt. Governor's Sooth.

My buddy John has cast his orb upon the upcoming Lt. Governor's race here in Louisiana, and here is what he sees.

O'Rourke Does It Again.

Legendary satirist and Republican curmudgeon P. J. O'Rourke has a new book out just in time for the fall elections: Don't Vote: It Just Encourages the Bastards. I am currently listening to it on audio books from the iTunes Store, and the verdict so far is that O'Rourke has hit another home run. Definitely worth picking up and reading in this political season.

But please, please, dear readers, ignore one part of O'Rourke's advice, and...

Vote on 2 November!!

This time not voting will leave in place the bastards who gave us the Stimulus, the takeover of the auto industry, and ObamaCare, and encourage them to do even more 'transformative change' - like Cap and Trade, nationalizing our retirement funds, and trying to mandate we buy tofu burgers at least once a week.

Here is a recent interview with O'Rourke discussing the book.

It's That Three AM Phone Is Ringing...

Back in 1996, an obscure group called Al Qaeda - and it's even more obscure leader, Osama Bin Laden - declared War on the United States. Other than lobbing a few cruise missiles as a distraction after the President got caught with his wing-wang where it shouldn't be, the US otherwise dismissively ignored Bin Laden and his declaration.

The result was 9/11.

Now, we have a new declaration from the Muslim Brotherhood - a not-at-all obscure organization with powerful ties to many Arab countries, and even to groups in the US. We ignored this once at our peril. Will we do it again?

Oh, and how's that all that Team Hopenchange grovelling and olive branches working out to repair our relations with the Arab 'street'? Well, like this (from the earlier link):

"...a nation that does not champion moral and human values cannot lead humanity, and its wealth will not avail it once Allah has had His say, as happened with [powerful] nations in the past. The U.S. is now experiencing the beginning of its end, and is heading towards its demise..."

Where's Free Speech? (UPDATED)

After Calvin & Hobbes and Bloom County, Wiley Miller's Non Sequitur is one of my favorite cartoon strips. While I don't always agree with it, it is the best political strip going. (I vaguely remember there was this 'Doonesbury' strip... but it quit being funny around, oh, January 1981. -ed.) (UPDATE: I meant 'the best' in terms of syndicated, dead-tree cartoons. The best damn political cartoon around today is Day-by-Day, which is over there to the right on the sidebar. Apologies for any misunderstanding, Chris. -ed.)

Last week, Non Sequitur tested whether all that standing up for free speech talk over the years by The Washington Post and others in the Fourth Estate, is real. It isn't. Well, not when it could put them (literally) in the crosshairs.

Here is the strip these supposed defenders of the First Amendment apparently pulled last week. One guess why they pulled it.

If Wiley had done a strip with 'Where's Jesus?', or 'Where's Buddha?', or 'Where's Moses?', do you think they would have pulled that one as well? Me either.

Payback.

Disaster relief, the Chicago Way.

Thank You, Barack Obama.

No, really. It's from back in February, but I completely agree with this:

Barack Obama is the best thing that has happened to America in the last 100 years. Truly, he is the savior of America's future. He is the best thing ever.

Read it all, and I think you'll agree with the sentiment as well.

Hattip: Christopher at Midwest Conservative Journal.

History Lesson Of The Day.

As a general rule, free people should always be wary of politicians who are invigorated by big-stadium events:

First lady Michelle Obama recently told Democratic supporters that the big-stadium events of 2008 were "very exciting, and people should know that those rallies invigorate Barack as well."

I'm just sayin'...

Um, Roger...? (UPDATED)

Note: If you arrived here via the "case in point" link in the comments at The Hayride, first read the second UPDATE below.

Sammy Kershaw has endorsed Jay Dardenne for Lt. Governor. Kevin Davis has endorsed Jay Dardenne for Lt. Governor.

But what of the other losing Republican in the race? Roger Villere has been verrrry silent of late, as have his paid mouthpieces, Pat Bergeron and Chris Comeaux. So far, your humble blogger has heard nothing of a Villere endorsement (and yes, we googled... -ed.)

Should Dardenne be worried Villere - the Chairman of the Louisiana Republican Party - has apparently not backed the Republican front runner? Or, since Villere came in sixth ( yes, sixth) should Dardenne even care?

Another wrinkle here is Villere wrapped himself in the Gadsden Flag and was the official "Tea Party" candidate. He was endorsed by the Tea Party of Louisiana - who taped a number of annoying robocalls for him - and even by Tea Party heroine Minnesota Rep. Michelle Bachmann. Yet Villere got just 44,000 votes statewide (7% of the vote). That's fringe candidate (think Ron Paul) territory.

Either the Tea Parties in Louisiana are unable to energize and turn out their members, or they're a lot more bark than bite. Whichever it is, we now have the measure of a state-wide Tea Party endorsement in here Louisiana, and unlike in other states it doesn't seem to count for much when it comes to delivering votes.

UPDATE: I'm told that Villere did issue a statement calling for Republicans to come together and support Republican candidates. If he did (I do not doubt he did, and this supports it) - it is currently not apparent on the LAGOP website or the Villere campaign website (yes, we checked - ed.). Such a generic statement is fine and dandy for the Chairman of the LAGOP, but is that all he is going to say as a losing candidate??

UPDATE 10OCT2010: Geez Louise. This post is now being cited over at The Hayride as a "case in point" in a schoolgirl-level tiff between feuding Tea Parties. I've got a teenage daughter at home, and there is less drama with her than with these Tea Party leaders. So, boys and girls, listen to me good: "GROW THE FUCK UP!" 2 November is less than a month away, and y'all are fighting about names and who did what to whom! (While others are busy waving flags and holding rummage sales.) No wonder the Tea Party seal of approval is worth single digits at the polls in Louisiana. And for what it's worth Rob, my point is not that one Tea Party group claims to speak for all, but that a Tea Party endorsement in a state-wide race doesn't necessarily translate into votes - and the endorsing Tea Parties must admit that and own that failure. That is not due to deception or whatever you call it, it is due to you people utterly missing the goal of why the Tea Party movement started in the first place. To quote the good Mr. Byrne: This ain't no party; this ain't no disco; this ain't no fooling around.

UPDATE 11OCT2010: It's true - real life will always end up imitating Monty Python.

Thirty Second Interval.

Now is the time at RSR where we pause for a little distraction.

While we don't normally frequent our local Jack-in-the Box - the food is greasy and the service sucks - we think their commercials are funny as hell. But this one, well, hits it right out of the park. I mean, sailed over Lansdowne Street and landed on the Mass Pike out of the park:



It replaces the current RSR favorite:

Sign Of The Times.

Via Instapundit, the best GOP campaign sign of the year.

Radical Environmentalism Is Harmful To Children And Other Living Things.

First 10:10. Now, this. What is it these days with Envirofascists trying to make their point by killing kids?

The Hunt Is Over, But...

I just received a "thank you" email from Hunt Downer, who lost the LA-3 Republican congressional primary to Jeff Landry in a nasty, nasty campaign (on all sides). Such post-election thank-you's are pretty SOP these days (though I only participated in the campaign at the send-in-a-few-$$ level). But what was not in the email was, to me, the most important message. See if you can catch it:

For now, the "hunt" may be over, but our fight still continues. I challenge you to listen to the candidates, get to know them, and then to make a well-informed decision before casting your vote.

Did you see it , too? That's right, there is no endorsement of Landry.

No matter what Downer (or I) may have thought of Landry before 2 October, that was then; this is now. Today we have a maybe yes/maybe no Democrat and (much like Downer) a fiscally conservative / small government Republican. There is only one "well-informed" choice now. I hope Downer, and Kristian Magar, can get past the past and get behind that choice. Republicans are nototrious for cutting off our nose to spite our faces, and I pray that doesn't happen here. The stakes on 2 November are just too high.

Blegtoberfest!

My buddies over at The Hayride, the bast damn politics site in Louisiana, are having a "Blegtoberfest" to raise money for a site upgrade. While The Hayride's graphics are already a darn site better and more original than, say, this place, (Or, this one... -ed.) one should never rest on one's nutria, as it were. So stop by and pass a few greenbacks their way. Tell 'em Clifford sent you.

UPDATE: They are also taking suggestions about what graphic improvements they should make. Here's a good money maker, Oscar: A picture of Senator Landrieu on the sidebar where, if a visitor doesn't hit the tip-jar within 60 seconds, all her clothes fly off and the freeloading visitor must suffer, um... the Full Mary. It's just a suggestion.

The Delaware Strangler.

Last week the enviros said that it's OK kill anybody who disagrees with their global warming agenda. Now, Joe Biden wants to "strangle" any Republican who disagrees one more time with the Team Hopenchange budget agenda.

Do you see a pattern emerging here, dear readers? Yeah, me, too.

Well, Joe, I'm a Republican. Democrats in Congress - including you, Joe - have had control of the Federal budget for four years, and haven't balanced it yet. So let me say one more time - listen to me closely here, Joe - we MUST balance the budget NOW, and Democrats have shown themselves utterly incapable of doing that.

Joe... I'm laughing at the superior intellect...

Freedom's Just Another Word For...

...Nothing left to eat. Better get some of these now before Obama's new "Esstapo" - Essen Staatspolizei - find out, and replace it all with tofu and bean sprouts. For the children, of course.

Jimi Solo.

So that's what happened to him:


From here.

No Pressure. (UPDATED AND BUMPED)

Oh. My. God. If you think the "green" movement is just a bunch of harmless, misguided do-gooders, think again. The video below is from a British environmentalist group called 10:10, who thought it was "extremely funny". You decide. (Warning: Very bloody and graphic)



Not too hard to see why the 10:10 group took down this video. The environmentalist movement has become little more than a new strain of fascism, and this unwittingly proves it beyond a doubt. Like the older forms in Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Russia, Mao's China, etc., they now view failure to conform to their vlaues and beliefs as worthy of death. In other words, you and me are the new Lebensunwertes Leben - "life unworthy of life".

UPDATE 04OCT2010: My brother, The Grey Man, responds:



UPDATE 05OCT2010: It seems that the 10:10 'No Pressure' web page has gone from calling the 'No Pressure' video "extremely funny" to apologizing profusely to 10:10's corporate sponsors, and many of it's members, who were also very offended by 'No Pressure'. (Even a bunch of busy-body socialists understands the basic economic fact that socialist money grows on capitalist trees. -ed.) Just like us ignorant, right-wing rubes, these corporate check writers and contributing members must not be smart and nuanced enough to understand rib-tickling sophisticated sarcasm when they see it.

Wither The Tea Party? - Part I.

I went to the Baton Rouge Tea Party (BRTP) regular meeting last Thursday night after being away for a few months. And after much soul-searching, I think a painful reality needs to be acknowledged: The viability and power of the Tea Party movement long-term here in Baton Rouge, seems to be passing away.

The crowd at Thursday’s gathering was less than 50, where it once pushed 100 or more. Part of that has to do with the meetings now being held in a rather obscure location (a country club buried deep in a local subdivision with very little parking). But the other part is, well, there is nothing going on to energize the members.

With one of the most important elections of our lifetimes less than month away - the first time we as a nation can express ourselves at the ballot box over the very issues that created the Tea Party movement – the only BRTP events currently scheduled between now and 2 November are… flag-waving once a week on a street corner. A good idea but, that’s it? (Well, there is selling all those T-shirts, buttons and other BRTP paraphernalia...)

Is this the same organization that stopped a billion-dollar bond initiative? The same group who put thousands on the steps of the State Capitol? The same group whose members appeared regularly on Neil Cavuto and Sean Hannity? Sadly, no. The fire that drove the BRTP engine seems to have left it. (As have most all the people who built that fire. Not a single person from the original leadership core that got together to rally on steps of the State Capitol in April 2009 - 18 short months ago - remains.) And if another fire isn’t built, and soon, BRTP will end - not with a bang but a whimper, buried in a pile of T-shirts and buttons.

A telling point is the recent primary election had on Saturday here in Louisiana. BRTP held several debates and candidate forums prior to it, but going forward to November’s pivotal vote, they do not seem to be involved at all. If BRTP doesn’t want to endorse candidates, fine. But at least stay in the political game somehow. There were several non-candidate State Constitutional Amendments on the ballot Saturday, as well as a parish-wide transit tax. Other than arguments about what they meant there was nothing offered. No organizing. No get out the vote. Nothing. In the School Board races, which were ripe for Tea Party members to run (one did, and won her 4-person primary outright), all that seems was done was a questionnaire sent out to the candidates. Only a few returned it – which should have been news itself, but I saw no BRTP press release. If BRTP is going to become little more than a conservative League of Women Voters, then how about a candidates debate or town hall before 2 November?

I think Josh, the new President of BRTP, and Cliff, the new Legislative Director (with whom I appear to be mistaken for online sometimes) can still save the organization. They are bright, articulate, capable, and have vision. But they are a minority within a leadership core who seems to think selling signature tote bags and waving flags is all there is to achieving political change. (Blogger’s note: I initially tossed my hat in the ring for the open VP’s slot on Thursday, but quickly withdrew it – my wife said she would kill me (once was enough), and, well, what’s the point of being in a political organization that eschews politics?)

In politics, the perception of power IS power. If you do not wield it, you loose it. The harsh reality is that an organization’s political power comes from two things - money and votes. If you are perceived as being able to influence the electorate by delivering either, politicians will listen to you. If you cannot, you have no power to influence outcomes, amnd politicians will act toward you accordingly – no matter how many people you get show up to a Metro Council meeting in red T-shirts.

I pray Josh, Cliff, and Rebecca - the apparent incoming VP - learn this lesson quickly and get BRTP back involved and back on track. Many people have turned to BRTP in the last year as a way to make their opinion known to the current political establishment, and to ignore engaging the current political establishment is to ignore making those opinions heard. You can’t change the outcome of the game if you refuse play. Or, just wave flags from the sidelines.