Archive for March, 2007

Not Just Another Actor

Saturday, March 31st, 2007
   One of the greatest Presidents this nation has been blessed with was an actor. His name was Ronald Reagan. Those who loved him still do. The same can be said for those who hated him, but look for the latter crowd to use his name in an attempt to further their cause, and rather soon. In their minds they will be grateful for the memory of Reagan and his career prior to politics because it will be the only tool at their disposal if things work out as I expect. But there is much the left will omit.
  
   Reagan was born in Tampico, Illinois in 1911. He studied economics and sociology at Eureka College, played on the football team and acted in school plays. After graduation, he became a radio sports announcer and in 1937 won a Hollywood contract after a screen test, spending the next two decades appearing in 53 movies. His first political experience was as president of the Screen Actors Guild, and he quickly switched from liberal to conservative as the issue of Communism in the film industry changed his mind.
  
   He was elected Governor of California in 1966 and re-elected in 1970. Then, in 1980 he smashed Jimmy Carter in the electoral college, 489-49. The rest is history.
  
   In 2008 there is a very real possibility that another actor could be President and this one has all Reagan had, and more. His name is Fred Dalton Thompson and he is arguably the only unbeatable “candidate”, quotation marks for the fact that he has yet to announce. Let’s keep our fingers crossed as we look at Thompson’s career:
  
   Thompson did not come to politics from the fame of Hollywood. To the contrary, he made his way from politics to Hollywood. An Alabama native born in 1942 and, like Reagan, a product of the public school system, Thompson moved to Tennessee where he graduated from Memphis State University in 1964, received a J.D. degree from Vanderbilt University in 1967 and was admitted to the Tennessee Bar Association in that same year. He was an assistant U.S. attorney (you know, the ones who suddenly should not be fired) from ‘67-’72, served as minority counsel on the Senate Select “Watergate Committee”, ‘73-’74 and as special counsel through most of Reagan’s term, for Tennessee Governeor Lamar Alexander in 1980 and on several Senate committees.
  
   On November of 1994, Thompson won the special election for the Senate seat vacated by Al Gore as a result of his selection as Vice President. Thompson’s acting appears to be more of a “side job” than his actual vocation. Not that that will stop his opponents from using it as a tool against him. The leftist base will quiver with glee at the prospect of facing “another actor”, which will be their ultimate undoing.
   
   I mentioned that Thompson has everything that Reagan had and more. While Reagan had a soothing quality to his oration, Thompson adds extra authority to the mix, along with credibilty. When he speaks, people just can’t help but to shut up and listen. He has that commanding aura coupled with a genuine likeabilty that, should he decide to toss his hat in the ring, I’d bet the ranch on him.
    
   Oh yes, and should he enter the race, keep a keen eye on the reaction from the Middle East, particularly Iran. There may be more than few familiar reactions from that region.
-Woody.

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Keepers Of The Flame (And The Churchill Equation)

Thursday, March 29th, 2007
     Oddly enough, as I have been a major critic of television series portending to dispense lessons in history or sermons on morality in relation to current events, this article was actually inspired by one such reference, from a television show. Yes, I did my homework as to the veracity of the reference, but it needs to be said that I would not have even thought of this had it not been for that otherwise silly show. Hey, if the younger ones would follow my example and verify before accepting what they hear, they’d all be better for the experience.
   
    But I wanted to write this in praise and salutation to our soldiers, and the men and women who work to support the effort of the American fighting machine. No one deserves more accolades than they.
    
    I was a long-haired hippy-looking dude back in the mid seventies, but even then I had a conservative bent. I hated the anti-war movement despite the fact that I looked like any other protester. I was sitting in a tavern one late afternoon after work, and I wound up seated at the bar next to an “old guy”. (He must have been in his late sixties). The Cold War was still simmering pretty good at that time, and Carter was in his second year. The old guy and I struck up a beer-soaked conversation and it quickly turned political, and I swear at the end I thought he was going to file papers for adoption.
   
    He made a most hasty assumption that I was “one o’ them hippies”, but when it came down to what might happen if the Commies ever did invade, I told him that my faith in the American spirit was such that even the most timid amongst us would fight like wolverines to preserve our way of life, and that the Commies would learn the true mettle of an American. He damned near cried and had he been a bit younger and stronger, may well have crushed my spine in the bear-hug that followed. And then I damned near cried, too. I’ve never forgotten that day, and I hope that if by some miracle he is still alive, he will see or hear these words and remember.
   
    What led me to write this, however was that dumb TV show. A character was making a veiled threat to another regarding a legal challenge, and referenced Winston Churchill saying of America as we entered WWII:
   
    “I knew the United States now was in the war up to the neck. So we have won after all. Some said the Americans were soft, others that they would never be united. They would fool around at a distance. They would never come to grips. They couldn’t stand the bloodletting. Their democracy and system of recurrent elections would paralyze the American war effort. They would be just a vague blur on the horizon to friend or foe. Now, we would see the weakness of this numerous, remote, wealthy, and talkative people.”  
  
    Even then, Churchill knew that America would eventually rouse from her collective slumber and smash the enemy with ruthless aggression and a simultaneous embarrassment for having been forced to bear her teeth.
   
    But perhaps the most telling assessment of our worth came from Edward Grey, the former Prime Minister of England:
   
    “The United States is like a gigantic boiler. Once the fire is lighted under it, there is no limit to the power it can generate.”
   
    Much of this I derived from Paul Wolfowitz’s speech at The Keepers Of The Flame awards dinner in 2003. It is a transcript of the event, but it speaks volumes of the committment of our troops and the confidence they have in this country. Much as the young hippy did in that tavern so many years ago.
   
    And how right he was. There are indeed things to be learned from silly television programs. Or at least there are things which promote thought and stir the curiousity to learn more of what we hear…
-Woody

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What’s In A Name?

Tuesday, March 27th, 2007
   They’re not terrorists, they’re “freedom fighters”. How many times have we heard this ridiculous defense of the indefensible by not only left-wing fringe elements in Hollywood and the like, but from our so-called “mainstream media”? Haven’t noticed? Let’s review then, shall we?
  
   Have you noticed that the mainstream media is utterly incapable of calling a terrorist a terrorist to begin with, preferring to use adjectives such as “insurgents”? The word “insurgent” implies that those committing dastardly acts of aggression against coalition forces are hometown boys, fighting for their country. Freedom fighters, if you will.
   
   While there are probably some Iraqis who have joined this “cause”, they are probably the Iraqi counterparts to our own Left-coast Liberals. But many of them are from across the Syrian and Iranian borders, which would exclude them from the classical nomenclature and make them what? Terrorists? Nope, not to our media and most certainly not to our actors and singers. Still insurgents and freedom fighters.
   
   So let’s go under the assumption that there just might be a sliver of truth to that assertion or at best, an innocent ignorance on the part of these sympathizers. Let’s call them freedom fighters, but let’s analyze why this should be so. What would a freedom fighter want for his trouble? And why?
   
   The normal brain will instantly answer “freedom” and “for his children”. Makes sense, doesn’t it? And yet we have a bunch of terrorists setting off IED’s not only to kill our soldiers but also to inflict as much damage on the Iraqi civilians who are trying desperately to achieve what? FREEDOM! And the insipid tactics that they have also brought into play negates the logical reason why they would be freedom fighters…they are blowing up their children! Do a Google search on this story of the children in the car-bomb and try to stay awake as you see…not much reaction from the presses. Then compare that reaction to Haditha.
  
   For more fun comparisons, let’s try the issue of torture and the Geneva Conventions. Rosie O’Donnell was seething over Abu Ghraib and still is. She just can’t seem to escape the nightmare of the torture we inflicted on those poor men, oh the horrors of it! What was her reaction to the British sailors being captured and paraded, blindfolded, through the streets of Tehran? “It’s a contrived story to drum up support for an attack on Iran”. She doesn’t even know that blindfolding and parading uniformed soldiers is a direct violation of the Geneva Conventions, and yet she is feeding this disinformation to millions of viewers on national television. As hard as it may be to comprehend, there are people out there who believe what Rosie O’D says. Frightening, to say the least.
  
   Last, but not least, we have this bit of “patriotism” from Portland, Oregon.“Photos taken by Rachael Palinkas, a Linfield College student, showed masked protesters burning an effigy of what appears to be a U.S. soldier in the Park Blocks.”  

 

People like this claim that they do it because “they love America”. Last question, I promise: Why do they wear masks?

 

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Quick Rant

Saturday, March 17th, 2007
   We had a snow and ice storm last night here in New York. Yeah it was a pain in the ass, especially since I felt we had skated (no pun intended) through winter. But it’s not like we’ve never experienced this before, not that the evidence bears out that fact.
  
   I was out this morning to take my daughter to work, and the idiocy I witnessed along the way was breath-taking. First, on a narrow two-lane road, this fellow decided to stop in the middle of the southbound lane, on a bend! Why? To clear the inch-thick ice off of his windshield. I was stunned and had to wonder…how did he get that far with the ice in place? Most people, myself included, started their cars and let them run with the defrost on full blast to melt as much as possible, and then scrape the residue off, before hitting the road! Not this particular lad.
  
   Then I have to turn off a main road onto a tiny little back driveway barely wide enough for two cars to pass, to access the parking lot of the store where my daughter works. As I make the turn, there is a little black car, parked in the driveway and I am barely able to squeeze by. Amazing.
  
    This was a pre-spring storm, not a major catastrophe for crying out loud.
  
   We have all been worried at some point about the prospect of nuclear war. My greatest fear is not the fallout from a nuclear war now…I fear more that stupidity will be the end of us all.
-Woody the Dumbfounded

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The Wolf As Victim

Friday, March 9th, 2007
    There once was a flock of sheep who wanted nothing more than to graze peacefully in the meadow. Each day the shepherd and the sheepdog would lead them out to pasture and let them have their fill, but at the end of each day their number returning would be reduced by one or two. The sheep noticed this while the shepherd and sheepdog did not.
   
    One day the sheep had had enough and insisted upon a meeting with the shepherd and sheepdog to make their concerns known. While they were peace-loving creatures, they were angry and demanded justice and protection. They informed the shepherd and the sheepdog that a Wolf was preying on them and wanted to eat every last one of them. Shocked at this, the Watchers summoned the Wolf for a consultation.
    
    As the shepherd and the sheepdog relayed the concerns and accusations of the sheep to the Wolf, the Wolf became increasingly indignant at the charges. By the end of the meeting, the Wolf was crying while simultaneously threatening to sue the Watchers for impugning his character.
   
    “I am a creature of this Earth just as you are,” sobbed the Wolf. “This injustice cannot go unchallenged.”
   
    Unwilling to appear insensitive to the Wolf, the shepherd and the sheepdog assured the Wolf that they would persuade the sheep to cease and decist from this defamatory rhetoric and to convince them that their fears were unfounded. Smiling, the Wolf accepted the settlement.
    
    Before they knew what had happened, the shepherd and the sheepdog were standing watch over an empty pasture.     

 

 

    There are so many situations to which to apply this scenario, I scarcely know where to begin. I guess that as good a place as any would be the Muslim connection. The Muslim community has been slowly but steadily instilling their way of life across Europe and while people try to point out that there is something wrong, they are shouted down as “intolerant” voices or “hateful”. Muslims have been successfully using Western laws to their advantage. Or insisting that their laws be adhered to in any non-Muslim country.
   
    When they beat or rape their women and children, they expect other cultures to respect “their way”. When other cultures balk at said acceptance, they are deemed “intolerant”. Once labelled thus, those other cultures are quick to acquiesce in an attempt to appear “fair and tolerant”. Chalk one up for the opposition.
    
    Another excellent example of this style of subversion and subterfuge is the utilization of the very same tactic as the left in our very own country. The beauty of this movement is the simple fact that our own left can be as overt as they wish in their quest to transform our country into that which they desire: a giant commune. A giant commune with an elite ruling class.
    
    (One quick sidenote: Conservatives wish to preserve our way of life as we know it. Liberals are always seeking “progressive” change.)
   
    Undoubtedly many readers have already succumbed to stage one of the plan, that being a pre-programmed reaction, however subliminal, to my last paragraph. “A giant commune!”, they will scoff. The very idea has been made to seem so ridiculous to us to a point where now is the perfect time to implement such a scheme. “Make them look until they no longer see.”
   
    Take Mr. Wolf. He was smart enough to use the “system” to his advantage. Is he also smart enough to dress up as a “boy who cried Wolf” until he lulled the town into disbelief? I think he is, and I also believe that at least half the “town” is deep into REM slumber. I also fear that half of the half that is still awake will accuse me of being crazy.
   
    That leaves one quarter of us to sound the alarm. I don’t like the odds.
-Woody

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The Beasty Boys Nailed It: She’s Crafty

Friday, March 2nd, 2007

   Many of us already have read and heard things about Hillary Clinton’s temper, ambition, and especially her use of subterfuge in her quest for power. There are numerous tomes written by numerous authors depicting her relentless pursuit thereof, most of which have been either roundly dimissed or viciously attacked by her supporters. To this day I am astounded by the success both she and her husband have had using the simple tactic of denial. She reminds me of Sabrina the Witch who, with a twitch of her nose, will make you believe that as you stand right in front of her in the kitchen that that cookie jar is not stuck on her hand.

    Dick Morris was never a fan of Hillary, but he was a Clinton insider who has since defected from that camp. He has personally witnessed many of the tirades that people such as former White House staffers, security personnel, and Secret Service members have recounted and yet when he relates these accounts, he is brushed off as a partisan hack. He’s lying. Deny, deny, deny.
  
   Her political ideology is another thing that has been defined in different ways at different times depending her goals at any given moment. It seems she can change direction on a whim and like a school of fish, the media turn in formation and continue to follow, never bothering to question the new course.
  
   But now we learn that her senior thesis from Wellesley College, after being hidden from public scrutiny at the behest of her President husband in 1993, is back in the public domain. And investigative reporter Bill Dedman of MSNBC has made us aware. Mr. Dedman must have swam too far from the school and missed the turn. (And the irony of his surname is not lost on me.)
  
   In his column today, Reading Hillary Rodham’s Hidden Thesis, Mr. Dedman writes:

 

“As forbidden fruit, the writings of a 21-year-old college senior, examining the tactics of radical community organizer Saul D. Alinsky, have gained mythic status among her critics — a “Rosetta Stone,” in the words of one, that would allow readers to decode the thinking of the former first lady and 2008 presidential candidate.”

    Rosetta Stone indeed. It will be interesting to see how much exposure this gets in the mainstream media, but one thing is certain; if it becomes an issue at all, Hillary will no doubt whip out the “youthful transgression” card, a tactic that only seems to work for democrats.

    Or she’ll simply deny that the paper is indeed hers. That should work. She’s crafty.

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