As The Year Ends.... God Bless and Look Ahead

I sit back and look at the past year and feel glad I am not George Bush. He often looked lie a victim of the USS Indianapolis. He was treading water and themedia sharks were circling below nipping at him. He would swim up to a friend like Scooter Libby or Dick Chenny and they would flip over, their legs bitten off by a Shark from the NY Times.

I see little changing in 2006. The Times and the other agendized media are going to continue their attacks. What I wanted to do was to look back and ahead from a more positive note:

* Unemployment is statistically at zero.
* The Dow may reach 11K by the end of January.
* Interest rates are still very low.
* Inflation is not an issue (despite how the media have spun the index the
government does not caculate inflation rates, academics and analyists do).
* The war is going well, schools and other infrastructure is being built
* 30 Million folks are free today because of the US and its brave military
* Republicans still control the Congress and the White House
* The Supreme Court Chief Justice is conservative and we have another on the way.

I could go on, but you get the picture. Just because the mainstream media says it is going bad, don't believe it! If this was a democrat in the White House he woul dbe touted as the best President since FDR and Kennedy. As it is, he is being characterized as the anti-Christ.

Take heart, dear conservative (or independent) all is not lost. Pray and believe! God Bless in 2006.

Traditions changing

Here is a note - this is a post about football.

My alma mater won its bowl game this year. It is a big deal to me because Kansas has not been a football "power" since the early 1990's and a consistent threat and conference winner since Gale Sayers and John Riggins went there in the late 60's.

With success comes change. The folks in Lawrence are looking to make the facilities better for the football program, which is necessary for success. They are, however looking to change the way the stadium looks to do it.

Memorial Stadium in Lawrence is one of the oldest facilities west of the Mississippi. It was built with some famous hands, including John Wooden, the famous basketball coach at UCLA. It is the place all KU kids graduate in the spring. It sits at the base of Mount Oread, the big hill on which KU's campus sits. At the top is a bell tower that serves as a war memorial and plays its bells hourly. The stadium, as it sits now, allows students and fans to sit on the hill and folks in the stadium to see the beauty of the hill and the bell tower. The changes planned, could change it.



I am a traditionalist, but I have also watched UT's stadium grow in Knoxville over the past 10 years. Growth is necessary. I feel, however, whatever changes are made they need to focus on the effort they used to improve Allen Fieldhouse and to work on it from the same persepctive to protect the tradition.

The NY Times and Harry Reid Public Enemy #1 and 1A

On the same day as the historic elections in Iraq - elections that validate President Bush's efforts in the Middle East - the NY Times releases a story they admit they have been holding for more than a year. Immediately, Democratic minority leader Harry Reid - the most subversive and anti-American "leader" perhaps in American History - began his attacks.

Soon after the usual un-American all star team followed suit - Kennedy (his brothers must be rolling over in their graves), Kerry (aren't you glad he is not President), and others all took to the podiums angling for more attacks on the President.

The only good that came out the story may be an effort by at least one Senator from Texas who finally called the NY Times for what he saw

"At least two senators that I heard with my own ears cited this as a reason why they decided to vote to not allow a bipartisan majority to reauthorize the Patriot Act," said Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas. "Well, as it turns out the author of this article turned in a book three months ago and the paper, The New York Times, failed to reveal that the urgent story was tied to a book release and its sale by its author."

That effort and the delay to publish because of what the Times called "sensitivity to National Security" borders on subversive and treasonous action. Reid and his cronies are just piling on.

The fact is that Reid is the spokesperson for a failing party. They can not stand the fact the unemployment is nearly at a statistical zero, the DOW will reach 11,000 very soon, the GNP and the CPI are both on a steady climb and now, the US has supported and shepherded a Democratic movement in the Middle East that has all the leaders (theocratic and totalitarian) quaking in their boots. So much so that the Iranian leader (who was one of the 1979-80 hostage takers) invoking anti-Semitic rhetoric only heard at White Power rallies.

With the support the public enemy #1 the NY Times (and CNN and the network news orgs)public enemy #1a Harry Reid and his cronies will continue to get press. Only in America can the media so manipulate the process that in times of economic prosperity all you read are stories about the "other shoe getting ready to drop." It is amazing, but in 2006 and in 2008, the American public will rely on the same sources of information they read, heard and listened to in 2004 and will vote to move the nation forward INSTEAD of following a party with no agenda except that to tear down the nation and its current leadership.

I ask again, if someone can give me one piece of positive legislation a Democrat has introduced in Congress since 2004 that benefits America as a whole I will showcase it and its sponsor here. The fact is, you can not find one - that party is the party of the past and not of the future.

It's All About Perspective

President Bush wrapped up his fourth speech defending US action in Iraq before a group of foreign policy scholars at the Woodrow Wilson Center. In the speech he remarked the elections in Iraq would be the watershed moment of the Iraqi action and would

inspire democracy across the Middle East.

In the same speech he acknowledged that we now know that much of the intelligence prior to the war was flawed.

"It is true that much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong. As president I am responsible for the decision to go into Iraq. And I'm also responsible for fixing what went wrong by reforming our intelligence capabilities. And we're doing just that."

There is nothing new here, Bush acknowledged this before. What is interesting is the take be headline writers so far:

Yahoo News: Bush Defends Decision to Go to War in Iraq (Fair)

MSNBC: Bush acknowledges faulty Iraq intelligence
In speech, says war was still justified to oust Saddam, create democracy (?)

CNN: Bush: 'I am responsible' (Excuse me? No agenda here, huh)

Fox News: 'Story of Freedom' (Agenda on the other side of the aisle)


It is interesting to note the wide take on what he said. Bush did not take responsibility for the faulty intelligence - it wasn't his fault. He did own up to the decision going into Iraq as his alone. This is not new news, but it is significant that the President is finally showing some backbone. The AP acknowledges that it is apparently working. They dug up some analyst named Karlyn Bowman, a public opinion analyst from the American Enterprise Institute, who said:

"The erosion (of support) has clearly stopped, And I think that's more because the administration has decided to fight back."

Iranian Nukes - is Europe Serious?

The European Union thinks that because they "care of the people of Iran" that the Iranian Theocratic leadership will back down from their collision course with not only nuke power but nuke weapons. Um, Yeah, OK. Y'all have been so successful in controlling the French rioters and other major issues suffered by socialistic nations.

Mohammed elaborated, head of the eunuch UN Atomic Energy Agency said they were "losing patience" with Iran and its nuke program. There is nothing I hate more than when the UN loses its inept patience. I suppose the loss of patience is better than its suggestion the Iranians relocate its Nuke program to Russia. That is exactly what I want to see. A new, state of the art, nuclear power plant built in a former Soviet Republic or in mainland Russia well within the reach of all the Russian Mafioso types who traffic in that kind of material.

Iran countered. They say they are losing patience as well. Something makes me more uneasy that a bunch of terrorism supporting, theocratic kooks who want nukes are getting impatient. It reminds me us the queasy feeling I have every time I think of North Korea's program. Oh, by the way, the Iranians also asked the US to build the plant for them.

Folks, let's look at this logically. The US is the only country in the world the bad guys are afraid of. If the US does not step up and say "stop" the Iranians won't. The Ayatollahs are all worried that the US is brining Democracy to the region and their theocratic hold may be lost. Be assured the media may paint it as "HATE" of the US, but it is "FEAR" plain and simple. Don't bid on the plant - STAND UP and STOP the project.

Media Watching, Your Yellow Undergarments are Showing!

Tom Delay's legal struggles have been a legitimate news story. The coverage of the story has, however, been far from legitimate.

On Monday, December 5th, a judge in Texas tossed out one of the three charges against the former Majority leader. The charge dismissed was the linchpin of DNC Operative and District Attorney Ronnie Earle's case. Yet, the NY Times and the AP painted the picture a bit differently. AP writer April Castro:

"Judge Pat Priest dismissed a conspiracy charge against DeLay in his ruling Monday, but with the more serious charges still intact, the case heads closer to trial...."

In the NY Times, Ralph Blumenthal and Carl Hulse:

"A Texas judge dismissed one charge against Representative Tom Delay on Monday but let stand two more serious charges, complicating Mr. DeLay's hopes of regaining his post as House majority leader when Congress resumes in January."

The charge dismissed is the "trump card" the media touted when DeLay was indicted. Now it is but a footnote. Believe it or not, the Washington Post got it right. They write the indictments that remain were a result of a hasty addition to the initial conspiracy charge against DeLay:

"But [District Judge Pat] Priest also said that a different indictment -- hastily secured by Earle from a different grand jury after he realized the conspiracy charge might be flawed -- was worth hearing at trial."

Another key topic is the economy. A media conference in the Rose Garden on December 2nd allowed the President to take on critics about the economy and to finally point out it is moving forward more strongly and briskly than in the past four decades. It was, however, not reported that way in all circles.

The NY Times POLITICAL reporter Richard Stevenson characterized Bush's "performance" in the Rose Garden:

For an administration that has been beset by trouble, it was a classic effort to change the subject, and one that could be justified, up to a point, by the facts. The Labor Department report on Friday morning showing that employers added 215,000 jobs in November was good news, and it came one day after the government announced that the economy grew at a healthy 4.3 percent annual rate in the third quarter.

Stevenson would not admit the economy is moving along stronger, he simply said it was the President's "characterization." He continued his attacks on the President by trying to tie Iraq with the economy:

"...The administration appeared to be approaching the politics of the economy in much the same way it was approaching the politics of the war: convinced that the problem is not primarily with the substance of its policy, but with skewed public perceptions of reality."

Um, Ok Mr. Stevenson. The Dow has been flirting with 11,000 for a month,the economy grew at a brisk 4.3 percent in the third quarter, the White House bumped up its projection for 2005 gross domestic product growth to 3.5 percent from a mid-year forecast of 3.4 percent. On December 6th the Labor Department said nonfarm business productivity advanced at a 4.7 percent annual rate in the third quarter, the swiftest increase in two years.

To Stevenson and other left leaning reporters like him, the glass is half empty. We have a $200B trade deficit with China - well we import lots of cheaper goods from China and export more expensive American goods elsewhere. We are running a deficit in spending. So what? The Government prints the money and values bonds. It is their math and not any real currency that is being bandied about. These are bills that will never come due. The only real financial crisis there is is Social security, but the DNC and the reporters no longer think it is an issue - why? - because if President Bush and this Congress solve that problem they score a huge political win. Expect Social Security to be a big issue in 2008 when it will again become a priority of Hillary or other Democrats with Bush being painted as one who did not handle the problem.

Keep your eyes open and read multiple sources because headlines and half truths by some do not tell the whole story.

Howard Dean Should We Let Him Continue to Talk?

Howard Dean never ceases to amaze me. The screaming former Governor and now DNC head was a divisive bulldog during the election and now has ratchet up the rhetoric as DNC Chair.

I hate hearing what he says - it is always insensitive and inflammatory - but I am always left with two questions: 1) Why does he get away with what he says. If a Republican said anything close to what Dean alleged the mainstream media would crucify him. 2) Should he be silenced or is he doing more good for the Republicans by being allowed to talk?

Monday's comments at a San Antonio radio station perhaps took the cake. If this were 1945, or even 1952, Dean would be in irons being ready to be prosecuted for treason and giving aid and comfort to the enemy. The United States doesn't work that way anymore. It is a self loathing collective of politically correct weaklings apologizing constantly and changing policies that should be universally accepted because one person objects. I was taught everyone in America has a right to an opinion, but in a Democracy (or representative republic) the majority rules. Not any more.

Dean told radio station WOAI that "the idea that we're going to win the war in Iraq is an idea which is just plain wrong." How is that not demotivating for the military? How quickly do you think those statements hit the Arab media fueled by the Liberal jet engines of AP and Reuters?

To President Bush's credit, he didn't take long to slam back. He called Dean a pessimist trying to score political points and said, "I know we're going to win, and our troops need to hear not only that they are supported but that we have got a strategy that will win." Bush said the scheduled Iraqi elections December 15 and the trial of Saddam Hussein are proof of progress in Iraq.



To Dean, Cindy Sheehan and other way Left Liberal Dem's chagrin, Iraq is not Vietnam. As posted a few months ago, it is more dangerous for an American to be living in DC or Atlanta than in Baghdad. You'd never know it by watching the mainstream media. This will never escalate the way that Kennedy and Johnson allowed Vietnam to. There are currently 1/60th the casualties in Iraq as Vietnam as a whole and 1/10th the number over similar time periods. No, this is not Vietnam, but the 60's started this politically correct, minority rule allowance and it is the only wireframe these folks have to go by.

Dean is a pessimist, but so is the entire Democratic leadership. I was challenged by a colleague to name one piece of legislation or solution a Democrat had introduced since the 2004 election. I came up empty. I found not ONE piece of beneficial legislation was created solely by a Democrat. There has been some bi-partisan legislation but nothing on the left side of the aisle. It is telling. There is a great deal of rhetoric and hate speech from the Left espousing their hatred for Bush and the war, but no solutions. They criticize the military, Bush and Cheney, Rice, Rumsfeld, the whole administration but offer no solutions or input - just criticism.

The longer Dean and his cronies are allowed to speak in progressively larger and larger platforms the more clear it will become how little they have to offer. They are a vocal minority being served by the politically correct and the politically motivated main stream media. As the mid-term elections heat up the rhetoric will increase, but it will matter little.

The people of Iraq will vote in their election on December 15th. The US will announce it's force reductions as a result of the elections. Saddam Hussein will be tried, will appeal and lose and then will be sentenced. The world will turn the page, and if we are lucky, the scholars of this age will write the history accurately that the US and this administration are liberators and fighters for freedom and not imperialist fascists as many on the left characterize them.

Until then, let Howard and his cronies continue to talk and watch the GOP win.

Sorry for the long hiatus

I have been busy with the holidays and work but I am back in saddle and there is much to talk about! Get your posts ready.