Mitch McConnell ROCKS!

Senate Republicans did themselves well when they elected Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Minority Leader in 2007. He has what the past 2 (Trent Lott and Bill Frist) Republican Majority Leaders were missing: a pair of big ones. He also has a backbone that hasn't turned to mush. He is bipartisan, but understands the values of the Republican party and listens to those he represents. For example, he was on the fence with McCain-Kennedy amnesty bill, but after the outcry by the majority of the country and an overwhelming outcry by Republicans he decided to lead the Minority against the bill, which did not pass.

This time he played Harry Reid (D-Nevada) like a harp. Reid wanted to bring up bills requiring immediate troop withdrawal from Iraq. Or didn't he? He figured McConnell would rouse the minority to prevent the 60 votes needed to bring the bills to the floor for debate as he's done in the past. This has been used by both parties to accuse each other of partisanship. Reid never thought the bills would never make it to the floor for debate. This time, however, McConnell did the unexpected and the bills will make it to the floor for debate. His strategy is to have both sides of the aisle on the record, which will hopefully work in Republican's favor in the upcoming election. I love it!

A Moment Never Wasted

I was reading National Review's tribute to William F. Buckley this morning and learned some new things about this great man. First there was his faith as related by Pete Wehner. I didn't know that Buckley interviewed Malcolm Muggeridge on Firing Line. I imagine he managed to interview many Christian spokesmen. I would have loved to have watched each and every one. Buckley's eloquent speech would have been beautiful when talking about Christianity.

Another story by Jonah Goldberg (Liberal Fascism) stressed the joy with which Buckley lived his life. I never thought about it before, but it fits my own experience of Buckley

Buckley was known for his unexpected and witty sayings. One I heard this morning was when he was asked why he always sat when talking. His response was, "It's hard to stand when carrying the weight of what I know." He was probably the Shakespeare of the 20th century.

One theme about Buckley that comes through every tribute and memory being expressed about him is that he never wasted a moment of his life. One said this morning that it was telling that he was found in his study on the day of his death.

Goodbye, Mr. Buckley

William F. Buckley, Jr., the founder of the National Review (that begat National Review Online), has passed away. The conservative, known for his intelligent and humorous arguments against liberalsim, led the way for the right's rise "from the fringes to the White House." He was the father of the conservative intellectual movement which led to the conservative political movement. He was best known for his intellectual political writings.

My first memory of Mr. Buckley was during the 1968 Republican convention when he debated Gore Vidal (One of the first of the far left "hate America first" crowd along with Noam Chomsky.) My Father was greatly influenced by Buckley and was a stalwart conservative, I think, because of him. I can still see him lean back in his chair, raising his eyebrows with word rolling off his tongue and answering a question like he was amused that anyone should ask that particular question since they should have known the answer. Buckley made mincemeat of everyone who dared debate him.

One of the comments I heard is that Buckley begat National Review which begat Barry Goldwater who begat Nixon and Reagan who begat George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. Today's great conservative intellectuals owe their very being to William F. Buckley. MSNBC's website's touching tribute to Buckley can be found here. One of my favorite parts of the article is the following:

"'Editor, columnist, novelist, debater, TV talk show star of “Firing Line,” harpsichordist, trans-oceanic sailor and even a good-natured loser in a New York mayor’s race, Buckley worked at a daunting pace, taking as little as 20 minutes to write a column for his magazine, the National Review.

Yet on the platform he was all handsome, reptilian languor, flexing his imposing vocabulary ever so slowly, accenting each point with an arched brow or rolling tongue and savoring an opponent’s discomfort with wide-eyed glee.

“I am, I fully grant, a phenomenon, but not because of any speed in composition,” he wrote in The New York Times Book Review in 1986. “I asked myself the other day, ‘Who else, on so many issues, has been so right so much of the time?’ I couldn’t think of anyone.”'

Goodbye, Mr. Buckley, and thanks. We are richer because of your life.

Why We Whisper

I heard an interview a couple of weeks ago with Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) who has written a book, "Why We Whisper: Restoring Our Right to Say It's Wrong." We have slowly given up our First Amendment rights to speak up against wrongs. This has happened subtly over time with the appointment of judges with lifetime tenure who are judicial activists more interested in making law rather than interpreting it. The American public, espcially conservatives, should be outraged. It is ironic that while our First Amendment right to speak against that which is contrary to Western values, those who embrace everything except traditional values are given a pass. Senator DeMint's blog is here where he writes about these issues. I recommend a look at it.

History

I heard on the news that President and Mrs Bush are recommending that art be used to teach students about history. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? How about teaching HISTORY?

There are millions of us Baby Boomers who learned history from teachers and textbooks, although I believe our textbooks were actually historically correct if not politically correct to make it into today's schools. History was required from elementary school through high school. And for those of us who attended college in the 'olden days' were required at least 6 hours of college history. No one got out of it. When I went to college I had to take 3 hours of US history and 3 hours of World history.

The history we learned presented facts without political bias. I never knew in 13 years of history where my teachers stood politically. They taught the facts. As Sargeant Joe Friday on Dragnet used to say,"The facts, ma'am, just the facts." I will say that every history textbook had art of the particular era whether paintings, artifacts or photographs. These visualizations were important in learning history, but the art supplemented the text, not the other way around.

I think this more evidence of the dumbing down of America. History should be of the utmost importance in a curriculum. If we don't understand where we've come from, we will never know where we're going.

Word of the Day

The word for today is VISCERAL.

Definition:
(1) Obtained through intuition rather than from reasoning or observation.
(2) Characterized by or proceeding from instinct rather than intellect.

I will try to use it 5 times today.

Indiana Jones

I saw the trailer from the new Indiana Jones movie. "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." By the way, its release is "88 days, 14 hours, 53 minutes, 34,33,32 . . seconds." I have mixed feelings seeing Harrison Ford swing and fight his way through the movied. I mean he's 64 years old! He does have a younger sidekick to appeal to generation X movie-goers. This sidekick is a "motorcycle-riding greaser" who arrogantly banters with Jones. The movie takes place in the 1950's and the Nazi's have been replaced by Soviet spies. I doubt younger viewers will get it since they've never been taught about the Cold War and its importance. I will see it, of course. Indiana Jones is a part of my life experience. I don't see how it could be better than "Raiders of the Lost Ark," but I bet it will be good. Probably the highest grossing movie of 2008. Lots of people my age and older will see it since it is a part of their overall life experiences. I remember what it was like to watch the "... Lost Ark." We saw it several times and then bought the DVD when it was released. From the trailer I think the writers and director play on Indiana's advance age which is a good thing. Don and I will see it and enjoy it for sure!

Experience

Since I am in Texas I have luckily (NOT) seen political ads on TV. One Obama ad has him talking about being raised by a single mother and his grandparents implying that he knows the pain of the lower and middle classes. But compare it to the life experience of John McCain: 6 years in a Vietnamese prison camp. When he was offered the chance to be release he chose instead to stay with his fellow prisoners. Now that's a story!

NIE vs IAEA

Two years ago the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) reported that Iran was working to develop nuclear waepons. Then a few months ago the NIE said that Iran had stopped their nuclear program in 2003. There were protests that this report was politically motivated since it was written by 2 people. Yesterday the UN's IAEA reported Iran was still developing nuclear weapons and had never stopped. It looks like the NIE's latest report was indeed polically motivated.

McCain

I find it interesting that after the NYT's story about John McCain and a lobbyist, donations to his campaign went way up. And the most interesting aspect of it is that he's getting donations from conservatives!

Juno

I watched "Juno" last night. The reviews have been raves, so I was curious to see what the fuss was about. It's the story of a high school student who gets pregnant and decides to have the baby. However, she realizes that she's too young to keep the baby and so she decides to give it up for adoption. She never wavered in her decision to give the baby up which I thought was admirable. The movie sends a positive message about choosing life over death, and choosing to give an infertile couple what they always wanted. I won't give any more away about the plot because it's worth seeing and going through all the ups and downs. Ellen Page is great as Juno, the girl with a heavy decision to make. She was a truly memorable character. I loved that her family was accepting of her pregnancy and her decision to give the baby up. I will admit that I cried at the end, but I cry at a Hallmark commercial. However, this was much better than that. I hope you will take the time to see "Juno." It won't be a waste of time.

This movie does not yet have a release to DVD date.

The Faith

I heard Charles Colson on Bill Bennett's radio talk show this morning. Colson has written a new book entitled The Faith. He makes the point that Christians are biblically illiterate today. The Bible is not read faithfully. Children no longer are steeped in the Word. Rather they are steeped in video games and TV. Children no longer hear about King David and his life an the life of Christ. They do not know about miracles or parables. The no longer know what Christians believe. Colson made a point that a majority of Christians think Sodom and Gomorrah were married. I fear for our culture if we do not know what Christians believe and why they should believe it. I am convicted about my own lack of knowledge but am I convicted enough to change? I hope I do.

Corporate Taxes

McCain and Obama differ greatly on corporate taxation. McCain wants to lower the corporate income tax rate from 35% to 25%. Obama who has demonized corporations thinks they are not paying enough. Anyone who has studied basic economics knows that raising taxes on corporations will drive them overseas along with jobs. We've lost jobs to other countries because the cost of doing business in the US is too expensive to continue to stay in the US. McCain, on the other hand, understands that when corporate tax rates are reduced there is an incentive for companies to stay here and produce more and hire more. With that government revenues will increase just as the Reagan and Bush tax cuts have proved.

Obama's Substance

I read an article by David Limbaugh about Obama's flowery speech. He is not empty headed and given to lofty oratory inspiring hope by platitudes. According to Limbaugh, "His generalities-laden, silver-tongued optimism conceals a hard-core leftist blueprint for this country that would make Dennis Kucinich look like Milton Friedman." Obama's speech reveals a lack of realism. His is the false hope that his plans are going to be easy. That change will automatically happen once he is sworn in. In this he is either believing his own rhetoric or deceptive. He will have to deal with the public who don't want retreat from Iraq just as we on the cusp of winning because of the long-term effects a surrender will have on terrorist groups who desire our destruction. What will he do if the US attacked again? Will he resort to negotiations or action? Will the public support socialized health care once our taxes are raised to the point of not having any discretionary income? And what will the people do with more entitlement programs? And what about dealing with the Republicans in Congress? Obama is the most liberal member of the Senate. I've found that liberals tend to be about feeling good while conservatives tend to consider the long-term consequences of such feel-good programs. An Obama presidency will give the people less freedom as Big Brother tells us what to buy and how to live.

Mrs. Obama

I was doing my daily reading of articles at Townhall.com. I found one entitled "Habla Usted English, Mrs. Obama?" This dealt with the statement she made about being proud of America for the first time in her life. Afterwords Barack's spinmeisters stated what Mrs. Obama really meant. “What she meant is that she’s really proud at this moment because for the first time in a long time, thousands of Americans who’ve never participated in politics before are coming out in record numbers to build a grass-roots movement for change.” If that is what she meant, why didn't she say exactly that? She's a priveliged Princeton graduate who, I would assume, was able to go to an Ivy league school because she was able to communicate exactly what she meant before graduation. Princeton doesn't exactly graduate slackers. I doubt she had to have someone else translate what she meant during her college years. So why now? Frankly I believe she caculated exactly what she said in order to show that she is one of the people. Of course I have to ask if the Obama's who together make over $1 million a year, live in a $1.6 million dollar home and whose children attend private prep schools are really one of the people.

NYT Attacks McCain

It didn't take long for the New York Times to turn its slander machine on John McCain. If you will remember the NYT endorsed McCain. This story involves a lobbyist who McCain is accused of giving special favors. The interesting thing about this story is the NYT had this story in December and sat on it until today. They evidently didn't think it important enough to mention when they endorsed McCain. It didn't hold them back from endorsing him. The story mentioned "un-named" sources. There's always a problem when the writer does not reveal his sources. I hope McCain realizes that this is only the beginning of attacks by the MSM. He's had a pass with the MSM for years for being a "maverick" in the Republican party. They have not, however, given a pass to Democrat mavericks. I believe McCain is a man of integrity. He has always had the highest ethics. I may differ with him on many issues, but I have never questioned his honesty. Republicans should take note that MSM attacks on John McCain signify that he really is one of us.

I also think this is the perfect time for McCain to reach out to conservative talk radio. He would have the forum to explain this matter to millions of listeners as well as make the case for his conservatism.

No Place Like Texas

I've been in Texas for the past few days. My father-in-law is in the hospital in Temple, Texas so I've been here with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law. Being here reminds me of what I've always loved about Texas: The people. I met very friendly people wherever I've traveled, but there's something special about Texans. I think part of it is the soft Texas drawl, but the people are the friendliest people I've ever met. And they are HUGE football fans. There are only 2 seasons in Texas: football and spring football! There's also the food. I had dinner at the Chatterbox Cafe the other night. It was in a small, SMALL town and I had fried catfish. Salad was served in bowls and the dressing in a squeeze bottle. There were all sorts of plaques and banners on the walls. It was your typicall small town cafe. Yesterday I ate at the Cotton Patch Cafe and ate chicken fried steak with cream gravy. It was so good. You can find this kind of food all through the south. I love the people, but I love the food, too! The one thing I haven't indulged in is dessert. No cobbler or pie. I know I wouldn't be able to stop if I ate one dessert! But if you're ever in Texas, please have the warm cobbler with ice cream on top. Even though I'm here under sad circumstances, I'm glad it's Texas. If I stay any longer I'll be as big as a house!

31 Days of Oscar

TCM's is running its annual "31 Days of Oscar" before the Academy Awards are handed out. It's still showing classic movies, but common theme of the movies running this month is they all have some connection with the Oscars. The movies either have won Oscars or have been nominated in different categories. For me it's a great opportunity to see movies I've never seen; mostly from the 30's, 40's and 50's. I also have the pleasure of seeing the movies I love, like "Notorious." Right now I'm watching Doris Day and Rock Hudson in "Lover Come Back." Tonight is "Hello, Dolly" and "Funny Girl." It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Applause, Applause!

It appears as if the writers' strike may be coming to an end. You can read about it here. The bad news is that some networks may not bring back some shows and either cancel them for low viewership or just to start them again in the fall. ABC has talked about filming 7 or 8 new episodes of "Desperate Housewives" and "Gray's Anatomy," but have not mentioned any other shows. That may be because no one watches any of their other shows! According to reports, producers are to start back on Monday to prepare for writer to return on Wednesday. Whatever happens we will not see an extension of this season. I, for one, can't wait for the return of "The Office!"

The Canterbury Tales

I spent an evening reading different blogs which had on opinion on the Archbishop's statements. There was a general consensus that Rowan Williams had, indeed, gone round the bend. A number of the general synod (I guess that's the leadership within the Church of England) and the bishops of the Anglican Church (those of Africa) have called for Williams' resignation. Here are 2 articles from The Times of London; here and here. In googling information, I found that before Christmas he announced the nativity as myth. See the details here.

The Faith

Charles Colson has written a thoughtful article about the protection of all life. He has quotes from Anne Rice who wrote Christ the Lord and Mother Teresa, “We cannot fight credibly against other social and moral evils, including poverty and violence, while we tolerate mass killings by abortion.” He has written a new book The Faith that I can't wait to read. In it he says, “Christians who are pro-choice are denying the Gospel and have to question whether they have not separated themselves from the company of Christian discipleship.” Please take time to read it.

Why I Will Vote for McCain

I realize there are many conservatives who will refuse to vote for McCain and end up not voting at all. This is a huge mistake. Not voting is essentially voting for Hillary or Obama, which would be a disaster. Additionally voting for a third party candidate would lead to a Democrat in the White House. A third party candidate has never and will never win. A third party candidate simply takes votes from one of the two major party candidates. In 1992, Ross Perot ran as an independent and cost George H.W. Bush the election. In 2000, Ralph Nadar syphoned votes from Gore and Bush won by the barest of margins.

McCain's speech today encouraged me. He is conservative on the 2 most important issues for me: The war on Islamic fundamentalism and the Supreme Court. There are 3 Justices who will retire in the next couple of years. Would you rather President McCain appoint new Justices or President Clinton/Obama? He has promised to appoint strict-constructionist Justices like Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito. A Democratic President would appoint left-leaning activist judges like Ginsburg, Stephens and Souter. (Perish the thought!)

I encourage everyone to read the speech he made today at CPAC '08 as well as an excellent editorial at Opinion Journal about voting for McCain or suffering the consequences. I hope this will encourage you to at least be open about voting for McCain.

The Queen

If you haven't seen The Queen I highly recommend that you see it. Helen Mirren gives an Oscar-winning performance as Queen Elizabeth II. The movie takes place during the week between Diana's death and her funeral. Rather than focusing on Diana's life, the emphasis is on the Queen's reaction to Diana's death; her defiance to Tony Blair's pleas to come back to London from Scotland and her own pain and lack of understanding about the public's outrage towards her, the Royal Family and the Monarchy. Be sure to see it!

Any Republican in '08

Mitt Romney has pulled out of the race for the White House. I watched his speech to the Conservative PAC this morning and it confirmed why I voted for this man. He was eloquent and gracious. If you want to read a great review of the speech and the man go to Hugh Hewitt's blog here. Romney made clear that now is the time to unite and support John McCain. I agree. Our country simply afford a Democratic administration. (If you want to know why, listen to what Hillary and Obama are saying; higher taxes, more federal intrusions into our personal lives, more entitlements.)

Whatever feelings you have about McCain, whatever the disagreements, we must support him. We must have a united party so we can defeat the Democrats in November. McCain needs our support now.

Ignore the negative posts below. I take it all back!

Rally to Romney!

My last post said that I would support McCain if he is the nominee, but I will not go quietly into the night. The battle cry is "Rally to Romney" and conservative talk radio and blogs are coming out and talking Romney up. It is not a lost cause yet. On Thursday I began questioning myself about voting for McCain if he is the nominee after watching the debate the night before. Seeing McCain sit back and arrogantly smirk while Romney was speaking made me angry. It was not presidential behavior. Not only was he arrogant he was condescending to Romney. His arrogance and his age will be his downfall against Obama should he be the Democrat nominee. Perhaps it won't be so bad if the nominee is Hillary, but there's no saying that McCain won't implode. Rally to Romney before it's too late!