See B.S.

"Broken promises don't upset me.  I just think, why did they believe me?" -- Jack Handey

Dan Rather announced on Tuesday that he'll step down as the managing editor and host of the CBS Evening News this coming March.

What took so long?

CBS stated that Rather's decision was independent of the recent "60 Minutes II" faux pas (commonly referred to as "Rathergate") regarding President Bush's Texas Air National Guard service.

Surrrrrre it is.  *wink wink, thumbs up*

Rather, a "self-professed liberal," is notorious for his arrogance and inflexibility both on- and off-camera.  From his work as CBS White House correspondent during Nixon's presidency to his recent defense of the bogus "60 Minutes II" story, Rather could be remembered most for being stubborn, even in the wake of credibility.

Stubborn as a mule, one might say.

Rather's sharpest criticism is that he's a biased liberal Democrat in an objective news anchor's clothing.  The circumstantial evidence doesn't lie:

*Daughter works for the Democratic Party in Texas

*Once attended a fundraiser for the Democratic Party of Texas (which he claimed was a surprise to him when he arrived)

*Was repeatedly attacked by critics for going soft on negative stories regarding Bill Clinton's presidency

*Refused to cover or report any news regarding Chandra Levy's disappearance in 2002 after her affair with U.S. Representative Gary Condit (D-California) went public

*Infamous, televised (Live) interrogation of then-presidential candidate George H. W. Bush where Rather repeatedly interrupted Bush to ask questions about the Iran-Contra scandal

*The aforementioned "Rathergate"

In his retirement announcement, Rather stated that he's "always been and remain[s] a 'hard news' investigative reporter at heart."  Judging by his history, that must mean when the news gets too "hard" -- just make it up and hope people don't question it.

Dan Rather has won numerous awards for excellence in both journalism and broadcasting during his 40+ year career.  While the accolade list is impressive, it will NOT be Rather's legacy.  Perhaps that legacy is exactly what the anchor hopes to polish in the future as a correspondent for both of CBS's "60 Minutes" programs.

After Rathergate, the criticism against CBS rose while ratings fell hard.  The network likely had no choice but to force Rather's concession.  If that indeed happened, Rather would be lucky CBS gave him an ultimatum at all.  Instead of enduring the embarrassment of public dismissal, Rather probably chose to hang around in a less prominent role.

Two outcomes could stem from Rather's future reporting:
1) He will regress and revert to being an aggressively liberal reporter with a chip on his shoulder against conservative politics; OR
2) He will attempt to fix his legacy, clean up his image, investigate and report news fairly and objectively, and not let his arrogance and self-absorption get the best of him.

My favorite Rather moment was when he appeared on "The Late Show with Dave Letterman" one week after September 11, 2001.  He broke down crying while recounting his thoughts of the tragedy.  Never before or since have I trusted him so much.

My advice for Dan Rather?  Have class, show grace, and take your bow on a positive note.  Even if it takes some... *pause, nod* ...courage.

And that's part of my world.

Way to go, Buckeyes!

Congratulations to the Ohio State Buckeyes for thumping the Michigan Wolverines yesterday, 37-21!!  The scarlet and grey made the Buckeye State proud.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=243250194

Former high school teammates QB Troy Smith and WR/KR Ted Ginn, Jr. were stars for OSU.  The future looks bright in Columbus!

Can you say, "Maurice Clar-who?"  :)

Special congrats to fellow B-W alum and OSU head coach Jim Tressel.  He's now 3-1 against that team up north.  Keep up the good work, Coach!

And congrats to both teams for keeping perhaps the best rivalry in college football clean and classy.  Kudos to both coaches for realizing and teaching the value in sportsmanship. 

(You did your best with Clarrett, Coach T. - not your fault.)

Go Buckeyes!

Can't we all just get along?

"I can picture in my mind a world without war, a world without hate.  And I can picture us attacking that world, because they'd never expect it." -- Jack Handey

If famous Americans brawling at public events were stock, you'd want to buy it in bulk right now.

Less than a week after The Vibe Music Awards brawl/stabbing in Los Angeles, the NBA -- clearly the most hip-hop-influenced professional sports league in America -- damn near topped it.  Only the knives in L.A. were replaced by projectile beverages Friday night in Detroit.

In what is now possibly the worst public relations disaster in league history, a scuffle between the Indiana Pacers and the defending NBA champion Pistons became an all-out brawl between professional athletes and the fans who pay to see them play.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=1927380

Ben Wallace (Detroit), known for his model behavior and cool nerves, overreacted to a foul caused by controversial tough-guy Ron Artest (Indiana).  Wallace shoved Artest in the face with both hands, causing both teams' benches to clear in "you wanna go?" mode.  Just when both teams settled down to resume the final 45 seconds of the game, a plastic cup half full of liquid flew at Artest, from the stands, and smacked him in the face.

Oh.  It was on.

The shocking video footage was simultaneously hilarious and disturbing.  From fans chucking beer, nachos, hot dogs and souvenirs at brash multimillionaires and Olympians -- to little kids crying in their parents' and siblings' arms -- this brawl had it all.  At one point an Indiana player even readied a portable dustbin over his head to strike a fan (before someone pulled it back down from behind).

What happened to class and sportsmanship in America?

This was not a politically charged battle, despite one team's home state being red and the other's blue.  These two teams were rivals, not the two states.  This fight did not involve Detroit fans v. Indiana fans.  And the two players who charged toward the Detroit (in a blue state) fans were from California (blue state) and New York (blue state).

Nor was this a race issue, despite the fact that a white fan first assaulted a black athlete.  Video clearly shows black fans punching black players and whites tackling whites.  The scrum on the court started between two African-American players.  One white Indiana player held his black teammate back for safety.

One interesting correlation is that Ron Artest, who attacked several fans -- NOT in self-defense -- recently recorded his own rap album.  In fact, just last week Artest finished his 2-game suspension for requesting time off to promote his upcoming hip-hop record.  Based on the Vibe Awards ceremony, perhaps Artest was just trying to promote his CD.

ESPN basketball analyst Steven A. Smith defended the involved NBA players because they were provoked.  That is complete nonsense.  Knowing how to keep cool when provoked by fans is part of being a professional entertainer.  Artest should have discovered the fan who threw his beverage and demanded that security detain him.  But apparently that wouldn't have been "thug" enough, especially not in the hip-hop community.

Somewhere Bill Cosby is shaking his head.

But the fans were also at fault.  Detroit has now taken the crown from Philadelphia as the champions of classless fans.  Even Browns fanatics, who once threw plastic beer bottles onto the field to protest bogus officiating, were shown up by the Pistons crowd.  Redwings fans once threw objects at ESPN hockey analyst John Saunders after a game, also.  But after throwing punches, food and even a chair (a la the Vibe awards) Friday night, Detroit fans proved once again why I so proudly refer to the city up north as "Ghetroit."

But it did not stop in Michigan.  Not even 24 hours after the NBA melee, a brawl erupted on the field during the South Carolina/Clemson college football game.  Players scattered fifty yards tackling each other, pushing, shoving, throwing haymakers and ignoring the security and police who tried to keep the peace.  After the game, Clemson head coach Tommy Bowden partly blamed the previous night's NBA fight and heavy media coverage thereof for his own team's scuffle.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=243250228

Just last week in the National Football League, both a Cleveland Browns and a Pittsburgh Steelers player got ejected due to their fist-fight before the game.  And yesterday, in Chile, even the President of the United States helped break up a public broo-ha-ha!

With all the talk about values in America, perhaps there is something seriously missing from the culture of professional sports and entertainment today.  Good deeds never get the attention of notorious behavior in news media.

Presidents and those who could have been

"As the light changed from red to green to yellow and back to red again, I sat there thinking about life.  Was it nothing more than a bunch of honking and yelling?  Sometimes it seemed that way."  -- Jack Handey

Two political stories caught my attention today.  Of course, one garnered more national attention than the other.

Perhaps the more important story involved the DNC's discovery that John Kerry had over $15 million still in his campaign fund when the campaign ended.

http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/11/18/democrats.kerry.ap/index.html

This should shock and disgust not only Kerry supporters, but all loyal Democrats.  In an election where Democrats had a (-5) Congressional turnover ratio, $15 million extra in the final week could have greatly increased efforts in all of those battles, most of which were close races (especially in Florida).

In yet another close presidential election, $15 million extra spent in Florida, Iowa, New Mexico, or especially in Ohio, could have made all the difference.  Instead, Kerry supporters were left to blame everything but their candidate.

Until today.

"Democrats are questioning why he sat on so much money that could have helped him defeat George Bush or helped down-ballot races, many of which could have gone our way with a few more million dollars," said Donna Brazile, campaign manager for Al Gore's 2000 presidential race.  [Emphasis added.]

Apparently, Kerry also saved roughly $2 million for legal fees toward his possible 2008 presidential campaign.  If that's the same reasoning behind Kerry savinh $15 million from this year's fund, he does NOT deserve to run again.  To quote current New York Jets head coach Herman Edwards, "You play to WIN the game."

The other possibility is that Senator Kerry was overconfident in his victory chances.  So sure that he squandered nearly $20 million for some later use during his presidency.  No one knows at this point, but I hope his colleagues and supporters don't back down and not ask him why.

So now instead of complaining about possible computer and ballot glitches that might have possibly canceled hypothetical votes, etceteras, etceteras, etceteras -- disappointed Kerry supporters can now direct their voices in another direction: right at the man himself (AKA, where it belongs).

Not surprisingly, this story received little to no attention from mass media news outlets today.  Instead the focus was -- and perhaps rightly so -- on the dedication of Bill Clinton's presidential library in Little Rock, Arkansas. 

(Which Senator Kerry was expected to attend, as noted in President Clinton's own speech.)

The weather was terrible, which shouldn't have mattered.  The ceaseless downpour, or rather the attention paid to it by all involved, begged the question: Who planned the festive ceremony for this lavish, high-tech structure -- but forgot to provide an awning for the FOUR PRESIDENTS IN ATTENDANCE who were there to speak?

The weather did, however, provide for some unique political moments and images.  For example, Janet Reno sitting in a soaked poncho, as if a dedicated father -- err, mother -- at her son's high school football game.  There were also the camera shots of Clinton's expressions as presidents past and present gave anecdotal speeches about his legacy, as if at a more formal friar's club roast.

(The best moment, of course, was when the military person holding the umbrella over speakers accidentally whacked Hillary Clinton with it while she gave her speech.)

All kidding aside, I was impressed with the speeches given by the other presidents and Senator Clinton.  They seemed heartfelt and all of them were well-written.  They were all delivered soulfully, with good comic timing and appropriate pauses meant for reflection and applause. 

Pundits did their best to stir controversy by guessing what each president really meant or how he truly felt while saying kind words about Bill Clinton.  For example, they tried to spin George Herbert Walker Bush's self-deprivating remarks into a tacit revelation of his hatred toward Clinton.  I just didn't see it the same way.

Of course, the best speaker was President Clinton himself.  Love him or hate him, one cannot be a student of communications, or politics, or of practically any social science -- and not enjoy hearing the 42nd president of the United States speak to a crowd.

For me, two moments from Clinton's speech stood out most.  First, when he mentioned the best attributes of both progressivism and conservatism.  Second, when he said he liked BOTH John Kerry and George W. Bush.  Kudos to President Clinton for encouraging Americans to put the recent election behind them and to move forward toward unity.

(Granted, this was a savvy political move, as well!  Nevertheless, it was a classy move, and that's sometimes most important.)

All of the speakers at the event today were classy.  Their speeches were tasteful and optimistic.  I felt a positive vibe while I watched, and now while reflecting on, the event.  Maybe the rain provided a positive metaphor that even through crummy weather, Americans can come together for something good.

Let's hope.

Throwing punches and chairs instead of Rice

"Maybe in order to understand mankind, we have to look at the word itself.  Mankind.  Basically, it's made up of two separate words -- 'mank' and 'ind.'  What do these two words mean?  It's a mystery, and that's why so is mankind."  -- Jack Handey

President Bush continues to shuffle his cabinet for the next four years.  Condoleezza Rice was nominated for Secretary of State today and she'll likely get Senate approval. 

She was one of Bush's more moderate advisors back in 2000, but critics claim she has since moved far right to better fit the administration.  She's the first black female in US history to hold this position.  She'll need to hit the ground running, that's for sure.

Good luck, Condee.  Don't suck.

Speaking of black people, how about The Vibe Music Awards last night in (where else) Los Angeles?  Apparently, fans were not disappointed and music had nothing to do with it.

Remember the riot that erupted during The Source Hip-Hop Music Awards in 2002?  Music lovers had to wait more than a year to enjoy another brawl at an awards show.  But last night the hip-hop community made sure that fans suffered no Red Sox-esque drought before again getting what we really wanted: thrown chairs, punches, and this time even a stabbing!

And people say lyrics mean nothing.  ;-)

Rapper/producer Dr. Dre got involved in the fray itself, which started while he was introduced to receive a Lifetime Achievement award by Snoop Dogg and Quincy Jones. 

(Add this to his list of achievements!)

Due to industry professionalism, the fight and consequent STABBING was merely a "distraction" that delayed, but did not stop, the ceremony.  Only a rap music awards show could shrug off a STABBING DURING THE EVENT so effortlessly.

Los Angeles is practically an awards show breeding stable.  Everything seems to have its own awards show these days, and most of them seem to take place in sunny LA.  Because of this fact, several facilities designed specifically to host such events exist there, including the Kodak Theater and the Shrine Auditorium.  Hotels often host such events, as well, including the Beverly Hills Hotel and the Beverly Hilton.

So where then, you ask, were The 2004 Vibe Music Awards held?  Where could security be so terrible that professional musicians and their guests could carry knives into an awards ceremony?

Where else?  At an airport.

Yes, the prestigious awards were distributed in a hangar at the Santa Monica Municipal Airport.  The irony is that Santa Monica Muni Airport was traditionally considered the safer alternative to LAX.  After last night's Vibe awards, however, it has now officially been christened by L.A. loonies.  Santa Monica, be proud: now you blend in!

“It’s really important that we don’t take a negative incident like this and do away with the awards,” Suge Knight, founder and former CEO of Death Row Records, told reporters.[ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6499922/ ]

First, you know it's a party when Suge Knight is the diplomat.  

[ http://www.mtv.com/news/bands/knight_marion_suge_.jhtml ]

Second, was Suge joking?  After the 2002 Source Awards and now this week's Vibe Awards, fans will attend and watch these shows just to see the "negative incident[s]!"  There'd be even more riots if these rap music awards stopped the stabbings now!

But how come AOL News doesn't have a photo and headline story about the brawl on its welcome menu?  If something similar had taken place at, for example, the Country Music Awards -- you KNOW it'd be flashing in everyone's face on the AOL News menu.

So what can we, the fans of great hip hop music, learn from this incident?  That the next time you're convinced your favorite rappers, gangstas and posses won't start a big fight at their own awards show -- just be patient, have faith, and remember it it's only a matter of time before your thirst is quenched.

Congratulations to the Hip-Hop community, to Santa Monica Municipal Airport personnel, and to L.A. County.  You all made complete fools of yourselves to a national audience... together.

Now you can fight over the glory.

http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/Music/11/16/vibeawards.fight.ap/index.html

Controversial Video (w/out Paris Hilton)

The breaking story of the Marine who shot an Iraqi insurgent's body in its head during a reconnaissance mission in Fallujah is disheartening in several competing aspects.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6502452/

The incident took place inside a Mosque, and the video footage is being shown practically every other five minutes on US news networks today.  (First footage I saw of it was actually on Fox News Channel.)  Lord only knows how often (and just how) it's being presented by European and Arab news syndicates, let alone how it's being received by their respective viewers.

Of course the scene looks terrible.  Violence, even when necessary, is never pretty.  One issue yet to be resolved is whether or not the body was dead or if the person was faking death.  One Marine in the video suggests the insurgent was faking death, but no clear movement or other verification of the body is detectable from the video before the shooting.  The general public's initial reaction will naturally be that this is detestable and unjustified.

But the fact remains that insurgents have already used dead bodies to hide bombs and other explosives in hopes of killing or injuring coalition military units when they get closer.  That fact somewhat asterisks the routine (or Geneva Convention) protocol for identifying the dead from those wounded or surrendered.  It was also reported that the Marine who shot the body was himself shot in the face the day before this incident.  Perhaps that event occurred in a similar situation as the one depicted in the video, which may or may not somewhat justify the Marine's actions.

If the insurgent was indeed alive and faking his own death before the videotaped shooting, two main motives spring to mind: 1) He wanted to deceive US troops into disregarding him as a threat long enough for him to escape capture; 2) He wanted to deceive the US troops into disregarding him as a threat, so that he could then surprise-attack them with a concealed weapon.

I'm bothered by the excessive airing of the video on news networks last night and today because so much is yet unknown.  We don't even know if the body was dead or alive, harmless or armed.  We don't know if the group already faced a similar situation that became insurgent sabotage.  This event will surely light a fire under knee-jerk war critics and politicians across the world before any substantial facts of the matter are even released.

This is one isolated incident caught on tape, yet so many will manipulate it to appear as if it shows routine operations of coalition (namely US) forces in Iraq.  In fact, don't be surprised to hear some blame George Bush directly.

"This is why the world hates us," reactionaries might say, or "This is why Iraqis want us to leave!"  Granted, there likely exists other scattered incidents, in the midst of warfare, similar to this one -- from all sides involved.  Nevertheless, that this story is the one we're force-fed this week by the media is unfortunate.

Don't be surprised if UBL now references this footage, perhaps in his next propaganda video, as further just cause for his hatred toward and violence against the Western Hemisphere.  On that note, I can also hear Mike Moore scrambling to find some way to use this footage in his next propaganda movie.  Time will tell.

The military is investigating the situation and the individuals involved.  It is not some three-ring circus or an underground secret society hell-bent on keeping any controversies from going public.  If that were the case, no legal action committees would even exist, let alone investigate and/or punish war crimes and unethical conduct.

I just hope that people don't overreact and jump to conclusions without knowing the facts of the matter.  Have faith in justice and don't forget the overwhelming majority of troops who never get the publicity they deserve for the GOOD they do.

Cold shoulder to global warming

I read some information and opinions about global warming in a friend's online journal (see "Other Journals" section, "America's Regression") today.  It reminded me of two funny (and true) stories from earlier this year.  Enjoy!

http://daily.scoopy.net/funhouse/craparchives/2004_01_15_craparchives.htm
Al Gore is schedulaed to give a speech on 'global warming' at the Beacon Theater today. Unfortunately, the speech may be called off because of the record cold temperatures, snow, and high winds.

===========================

http://www.eureporter.co.uk/articles/article.cfm?id=1451

Gore Boosts “Honest Fiction” 
Written by Iain Murray 
Friday June 4, 2004

Former Vice President Al Gore and the George Soros-funded Move On campaign have joined forces once again to claim that the fantasy disaster movie “The Day After Tomorrow” makes a significant contribution to the public debate on global warming.

In a speech at a Move On-organized event in New York City on May 25, Gore contrasted the “honest fiction” of the movie to the “Bush White House story about global warming.” Apparently, for Gore fictions are honest when they scare people into doing what he considers to be the right thing.

The movie opened worldwide on May 28. It might have been better for Mr. Gore if had waited to read the reviews, which ranged from poor to abysmal.

Richard Roeper, of Ebert and Roeper, had the most pointed words for the movement: “Memo to all the environmental activists who are relying on ‘The Day After Tomorrow’ to serve as a wake-up call about global warming: You might want to see the movie first. It's really quite silly. Citing ‘The Day After Tomorrow’ as a cautionary tale about global warming makes about as much sense as pointing to ‘Independence Day’ as proof we need to build an interplanetary defense system, because you never know when slimy, super-smart aliens will attack.

“Scientists and climatologists should relax as well. This film isn't going to send the public into a panic attack any more than ‘Finding Nemo’ convincedus that talking clown fish swim the seas.”

A. O. Scott in the New York Times (May 27) called it “a two-hour $125 million disaster” and went on to write that, “…if the film is meant to prod anxieties about ecological catastrophe and to encourage political action in response, it seems unlikely to succeed. Not because the events it depicts seem implausible, but because they seem like no big deal.”

The Boston Globe’s Wesley Morris (May 28) also panned the movie: “There's hail in Japan, snow in New Delhi, and, hey, a twister just ate the Hollywood sign! Now that's entertainment—for about 20 minutes. The other hour and 40 feel like the most expensive PowerPoint presentation ever made.”

After calling it “so very bad,” David Edelstein in Slate considered the potential political impact: “Is it possible that ‘The Day After Tomorrow’ is a plot to make environmental activists look as wacko as anti-environmentalists always claim they are? Al Gore stepped right into this one, didn't he?”

====================================

(MORE ON THE FIRST STORY...)

http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/1058120/posts

GORE TO DECRY 'GLOBAL WARMING' ON NEW YORK CITY'S COLDEST DAY IN DECADE
Drudge Report ^ | 1/14/2003 | Matt Drudge
Posted on 01/14/2004 5:11:05 PM PST by Dan Evans

In what political watchers are calling possibly the biggest gaffe in years, former Vice President Al Gore is set to give a speech tomorrow on the perils of global warming -- on what is expected to be the coldest day in New England in nearly half a century!

Against the advice of senior advisers, Gore is planning to appear at the historic Beacon Theatre in Manhattan on Thursday to issue an indictment of the Bush administration's "inaction on global warming."

Gore will make the warming case on a day forecasters are predicting the coldest temps in Boston since 1957, with wind chills in parts of New England plunging to 100 degrees below zero!

Even though forecasters predict Thursday night will bring the coldest temperature reading in New York City in more than 10 years [1 degree above zero], sources tell the DRUDGE REPORT that Gore is determined to deliver the speech -- hoping to make the case how "Global warming" is actually the cause of the record cold snap!

"The extreme conditions are actually the end result of the planet warming," Gore has told advisers, sources say, in explaining his motivations. "The Bush policies are leading to weather extremes."

Sources would not say whether the speech is to be given outdoors.

==============================

http://www.canadafreepress.com/2004/media012604.htm

Media / Media Bias
It's much too cold for global warming
by Arthur Weinreb, Associate Editor, Canada Free Press
January 26, 2004

Apparently not for Al Gore. The former U.S. vice-president and radical environmentalist gave a speech to an environmental crowd in New York City on January 16. In his speech, Gore called George W. Bush "a moral coward" and criticized the president for his failure to address "overwhelming and undeniable evidence" that global warming poses "a serious threat to our common future".

The fact that the 2000 Democratic nominee for president gave this speech during a time when severe cold was gripping the eastern seaboard of the United States, including New York City, was not lost on much of the media. In the outrage of the week portion of CNN’s Capitol Gang, Kate O’Beirne made fun of the Gore speech that was delivered, according to O’Beirne, on the coldest day in memory when the temperature was -1*F or -18*C.

Even the media’s most Democrat-friendly newspaper, the New York Times, couldn’t resist taking little pokes at their boy Al. According to the report in the Times, the audience had to stand in line shivering in sub-zero temperatures while waiting through security before being allowed in to see Gore give his presentation which included pictures of glaciers melting.

Needless to say there were some left wing papers such as the Philadelphia Enquirer and the Los Angeles Times that left out any reference to the freezing temperatures outside of the hall where Gore preached his doom and gloom scenario of impending global disaster.

Closer to home, there have been a few instances this month where forecasts for moderate or heavy snowfall were broadcast, only to be followed by a light dusting of the white stuff. During the first weekend in January, the media was saturated with severe winter storm warnings for Toronto that was followed by very little accumulation of snow. On a subsequent weekend, there was another light dusting when forecasters had predicted 10 to 20 centimeters of snow.

Perhaps the media could put the current forecasts and the global warming scenario together. It would be interesting to have the left lib media explain to its readers, viewers and listeners why they unconditionally accept global warming that is based upon computer models of what the average temperature will be in the year 2100, when the science of weather forecasting can’t accurately predict how much snow is going to fall two days later.

Don’t hold your breath waiting.

===================================

http://www.californiarepublic.org/archives/Columns/Hayward/20040130HaywardTuningOut.html

Dr. Steven Hayward- Contributor
[Courtesty of Pacific Research Institute] 

Dr. Steven Hayward is Senior Fellow in Environmental Studies for the Pacific Research Institute. He is also nationally recognized for his recently released book, The Age of Reagan: The Fall of the Old Liberal Order 1964-1980 (Prima Publishing, 2001), and Churchill on Leadership: Executive Success in the Face of Adversity (Prima Publishing, 1997). [go to Hayward index]

Tuning Out Environmental Gore
Cold days for global warming...
[Steven Hayward] 1/30/04

Washington is besieged with snow and ice again this week, which means it is time for another meditation on -- wait for it -- global warming! Of course, I have a tough act to follow, given the perfect comic timing of former Vice President Al Gore, who recently chose the coldest day in the northeast in the last 15 years to make a speech about global warming.

Big Al was funnier still: he made the speech to MoveOn.org. If ever there was one subject about which the left won't ever "move on," it is global warming.

Earth to Gore: No one is listening.

To the amazement of environmentalists and the media, President Bush's approval ratings on his handling of the environment have stayed near or even above 50 percent throughout his presidency, despite the mountain of adverse headlines in the media, the nonstop fury of the political environmental groups, and the huge generic party advantage Democrats have over Republicans as the party best able to protect the environment. At no point in Bush's presidency have his "disapprove" ratings on his handling of the environment trailed his approval ratings.

The most recent Newsweek poll found 44 percent approving Bush on the environment, with 40 percent disapproving and the rest undecided. This is exactly where his ratings stood when he took office three years ago. In fact, Bush's environmental poll numbers are very close to President Bill Clinton's poll numbers for the comparable point in his first term, which must drive Gore out of his mind.

Gore complains that "The problem is that our world is now confronting a five-alarm fire that calls for bold moral and political leadership from the United States of America. With such leadership, there is no doubt that we could solve the problem of global warming. After all, we brought down communism, won wars in the Pacific and Europe simultaneously, enacted the Marshall Plan, found a cure for polio, and put men on the moon."

The trouble is that the Clinton administration itself estimated that the cost of the Kyoto Protocol to the American economy for just one year would be more than twice the total cost of the moon project and the Marshall plan put together. This is the reason President Clinton did not submit the Kyoto Protocol to the Senate for ratification, or lift a finger to implement it.

This is why in 1998 the National Environmental Trust blasted the Clinton administration for its "intransigence," for "abandoning the core principles of the [Kyoto]global warming treaty" and for "abandoning any pretence of living up to its rhetoric about cutting global warming pollution."

And in a speech in April 2002 Eileen Claussen of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, one of the leading advocacy groups for urgent action on the issue, had harsh words for the Clinton administration: "Finally, I'd like to offer a special posthumous award to the Clinton administration. For talking big about climate change on the international stage but doing next to nothing about it at home, I present the Clinton White House with the award for best costumes."

Gore and MoveOn.org are hoping that everyone will forget this inconvenient fact about the Clinton-Gore record.

copyright 2004 Pacific Research Institute

=======================================

(lol, the irony of the first sentence in this next article...)

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3969910/site/newsweek/

Gore Gets Green, Rough and Righteous: The former vice president accuses the Bush administration of being beholden to corporate interests on environmental policy.
By Brian Braiker, Newsweek
Updated: 5:12 p.m. ET Jan. 15, 2004

Jan. 15 - Some 2,500 New Yorkers slogged through several inches of snow on a below-freezing afternoon to hear a speech on global warming Thursday. The draw: former vice president Al Gore. In a multimedia presentation at the Upper West Side's Beacon Theater, Gore tore into President George W. Bush's environmental policy....

===============================

http://timblair.spleenville.com/archives/005724.php

January 16, 2004
GREENHOUSE AL'S GIFT FOR TIMING

It’s not often that a weather report makes you laugh like Santa Claus on nitrous oxide:

Residents of the U.S. Northeast shivered through an extreme blast of Arctic air and snow on Thursday as temperatures from New York to Maine plunged toward record lows.

A five-inch blanket of snow grounded more than 225 flights at New York City airports and canceled school for children in parts of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. As much as 10 inches of snow fell in Michigan.

======================================

http://www.cnsnews.com//ViewPolitics.asp?Page=\Politics\archive\200401\POL20040115e.html

Gore's Global Warming Speech Gets Icy Rebuke
By Melanie Hunter
CNSNews.com Deputy Managing Editor
January 15, 2004

(1st Add: Includes comments from Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie.)

(CNSNews.com) - Former Vice President Al Gore's speech on global warming to MoveOn.org Thursday is getting booed by a public policy research group, after the Democrat called the president a "moral coward" who abandoned the public's environmental interests to placate his financial supporters.

Gore made his speech to a crowd at New York's Beacon Theater on the coldest day in the city in decades. He said at times it seems "the Bush-Cheney administration is wholly owned by the coal, oil, utility and mining industries."

"While President Bush likes to project an image of strength and courage, the real truth is that in the presence of his large financial contributors, he is a moral coward," the former vice president said.

Gore also took the administration to task for its efforts to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling. He accused the White House of gutting environmental laws and not doing anything to prevent global warming.

But the National Center for Public Policy Research, one of Gore's many critics, said "the speech is full of demagoguery, misleading statements, formulations intended to deceive, unsupported allegations of wrongdoing and hypocrisy."

"From a scientific and environmental perspective, Al Gore's speech today should be ignored. No serious policy person could give the speech Al Gore gave today," said Amy Ridenour, the center's president.

"It is impossible to draw any conclusion other than that Gore is keeping his options open for a future presidential run, and is throwing red meat at the left-wing activist base of the Democratic Party in order to keep his presidential hopes alive," Ridenour added. "Time constraints forbid one from commenting on all the speech's inaccuracies."

Ridenour said "the science on global warming is not settled. Even the models and theories of those who support the theory disagree with one another. Climate science is too complex to be settled."

In challenging Gore's claims, she said the Democrat failed to fight for the Kyoto Protocol during the Clinton administration.

"But if Gore believes the science is settled, why didn't the Clinton-Gore Administration submit the Kyoto global warming treaty to the Senate for ratification? Gore condemns Bush for not supporting a treaty Bush believes is harmful and unnecessary -- yet Gore, holding the opposite view, didn't fight for it where it counted," Ridenour said.

Instead, she believes, Gore is using the speech as "an opportunity to troll for votes, yet he hypocritically tells his audience that those who disagree with him have been bought by industry."

"The 'bought by industry' canard is a nice applause line for politicians to use while addressing a left-wing crowd and convenient way to undermine those who sincerely disagree without actually debating the merits of the case," Ridenour added.

"For the record, there is more money available to those on Gore's politically-correct side of the global warming issue. The money and power whores tend to be with Gore. And a serious man wouldn't be afraid to seriously examine the scientific merits of the global warming case," she added.

Ridenour also pointed out that Gore "intentionally deceived his listeners by leaving the most important facts out."

"Listen to Gore and you'd suppose the Clinton-Gore administration regulated mercury emissions from power plants, while Bush eliminated or loosened the regulation," she said.

"In fact, the Clinton-Gore Administration DID NOT regulate mercury emissions from power plants, despite eight years in office. It just talked about doing so. Bush is actually doing it. Gore's actual complaint is that he would have written the rule differently. Why did he waste eight years?" Ridenour asked.

The Republican National Committee accused Gore of engaging "political hate speech."

"Al Gore today engaged in political hate speech in an address to MoveOn.org, the same group which recently posted ads comparing President Bush to Adolph Hitler on their web page," said RNC Chairman Ed Gillespie.

"Instead of repudiating these tactics, Al Gore chose to embrace the vile tactics that are becoming the hallmark of the Democrat Party at its highest levels. Like the Democrat presidential candidates, Al Gore has once again chosen to use his time at the podium to attack the President rather than put forward apositive agenda of his own," said Gillespie.

Correspondence w/ Cali

Here is a forwarded note I received today from a liberal friend:

Dear President Bush:

Congratulations on your victory over all us non-evangelicals. Actually,we're a bit ticked off here in California, so we're leaving you. California will now be its own country. And we're taking all the Blue States with us. In case you are not aware, that includes Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, all of the North East States, and the urban half of Ohio.

We spoke to God, and she agrees that this split will be beneficial to almost everybody, and especially to us in the new country of California. In fact, God is so excited about it, she's going to shift the whole country at 4:30 pm EST this Friday. Therefore, please let everyone know they need to be back in their states by then. God is going to give us the Pacific Ocean and Hollywood. In addition, we’re getting San Diego. (Sorry, that's just how it goes.) But God is letting you have the KKK and country music (except the Dixie Chicks).

Just so we're clear, the country of California will be pro-choice, pro-gay marriage, and anti-war. Speaking of war, we're going to need all Blue States citizens back from Iraq. If you need people to fight in Falujah, just ask your evangelical voters. They have tons of kids they're willing to send to their deaths for absolutely no purpose. Andthey don’t care if you don’t show pictures of their kids’ caskets coming home.

So, you get Texas and all the former slave states, and we get the Governator and stem cell research. (We would love you to take BritneySpears off our hands, though. She IS from the south, right?)

Since we get New York, you'll have to come up with your own late night TV shows because we get MTV, Letterman, the Daily Show, and Conan O'Brien. You get... well, why don't you ask your people at Fox News to come up with something entertaining? (Maybe you should just watch Crossfire. That's a really funny show.)

We wish you all the best in the next four years and we hope, really hope, you find those missing weapons of mass destruction. Seriously. Soon.

Sincerely,
California

 

Now here is my response:

Dear California,

Congratulations on your ignorance.  You didn't let us down.  =)

Congratulations on implying only evangelicals voted for Bush.  Actually, I've heard of many gays who supported definition-of-marriage amendments in the nine states that swept this reform opportunity.  Log Cabin republicans, for example.

Congratulations on assuming everyone in California -- the majority of whom kicked out a democrat governor and replaced him with a republican Bush-promoter -- wants to secede from the union.  Ask Fresno, Orange County, California farmers, San Jose, Santa Barbara, and others - they might be pretty ticked off with the rest of YOU.  Like Kerry with Mary Cheney, don't selfishly and ignorantly speak on behalf of those you neither know nor represent.

And most of all, Cali, congratulations on being ignorant enough to think the other blue states want to join you in this crusade.

This State also spoke to God, and (S)He laughed with face in hand and said, "Well, those are California liberals for you!"  We understood God's humble embarrassment.  Perhaps (S)He was laughing at your saying you'd get to keep Hollywood and San Diego "in addition" to California.  (All kidding aside, you might wanna first ask SD voters about that first.)

However, the rest of us don't mind if you take Haight Ashbury or the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals with you!  And after your secession, you'll have to kiss our ass before you beg us to take you back.  (Sorry, but that's just the way it goes.)

As for pulling the blue states' soldiers from war, you should first ask them if they even want abandon their duty to return, let alone for your cause.  After all, if you're pro-choice, certainly you're pro-letting-them-choose-for-themselves, right?  Otherwise you'd be a country full of hypocrites. 

Also, name one US citizen who "sends [his or her] kids... to their deaths for absolutely no purpose."  This is the most ignorant line of your declaration, California.

Kids don't fight in wars.  Kids aren't enlisted into the military or "sent" anywhere by their parents.  Soldiers are not sent to die, they're sent to fight and to do their jobs.  One's own death or serious injury is sadly a possible consequence of enlistment, but it is never his or her destination.  And soldiers DO fight with a purpose, whether or not YOU agree with it. 

And how dare you, California, refer to consenting adults who volunteer to do something most selfless -- as "kids."  What an insult to those you pretend to support.

Having names of fallen soldiers, maybe with their pictures, printed in newspapers and magazines and read on Live national news broadcasts is respectful and in good taste.  One's funeral is private, as should remain the return of coffins to this country.  Have some respect for the fallen!  Especially when you want it just to promote your anti-war politics.  How dare you try to exploit these deaths to push your own personal agenda. 

If these Americans wanted to be in front of cameras for your enjoyment, they'd go to Hollywood - not to Camp Pendleton.  This policy existed before Bush took office, but I never heard you shout for this when caskets returned from Bosnia, from Herzegovina, or from Kosovo. 

Thank you, California, for letting the rest of us keep Texas and "all the other slave states."  I'm sure that includes Mississippi, which integrated all state public schools more than ten years before Massachusetts followed MS's progressive example.

As for your Governator, I remind you that he's not likely to let you secede, either.  And for the last time, stem cell research is promoted by Bush and those who voted for him.  As for EMBRYONIC stem cell research, don't forget Bush is the only president who's ever allowed any federal funding to pay for it.  (And yes, it was a relevant issue during Clinton's presidency, as well.)

You can take MTV with you, but we'll keep Letterman (who lives in Montana and is from Indiana, two red states).  You can take Jon Stewart, but we'll keep Conan (who's adamant about staying publicly politically impartial - like the smartest, funniest comedians should).  As for Crossfire, that takes place in D.C., which was also a blue region, so I guess you can keep that after all!

(And thanks for letting us keep FOX.  They air "Family Guy" and that's the funniest show on TV!)

Good luck to you, too, California.  Whether or not you secede, thanks for the best wishes.  And good luck finding your missing brains of mass distortion.  Seriously.  Soon.


Hugs and Kisses,
Ohio

p.s.  Urban, rural, metro, suburban - we're gonna stick together as Ohioans, as Americans, b/c we're proud to be who and where we are - even if we disagree.  We'll always be stronger for it, too. 

So, with all due respect, piss off.  =)

One Week Later

Tuesday, 11/9/04

Hello.  This is my first entry.  I'll try to be concise.

POLITICS

Lots of talk about Ohio this past week.  It was exciting to have been the talk of several different news networks, including Fox News Channel and NBC News, last week on election night.  Not just my state, but my county (Cuyahoga)!

The smoke settled and George W. Bush won both the state and re-election.  As I predicted weeks before the election, the candidate initially declared the loser (Kerry) cried foul.  But to Kerry's and Edwards' credit, they conceded the next day after accepting the reality of OH voting for Bush (which I also predicted). 

Unlike their candidates, however, many K/E supporters are still crying fraud.

I watched local and national news reports for months leading up to last Tuesday.  They never seemed to match, in my opinion, but Kerry supporters in other states who watched only national coverage kept telling me - a citizen and native of Ohio - that my state would vote blue.  I just didn't see it happening.  I also watched local news coverage ALL day Tuesday and heard but one instance of voter altercations/fraud accusations.  Both sides had observers and neither made any major complaints.

(Until AFTER the election, of course.  How convenient.)

I voted for Al Gore in 2000, but after I realized he lost not only his own state but also Bill Clinton's state, I didn't cry about the loss.  He lost.  And frankly, he deserved to lose if he couldn't win his own state.  Those were the breaks.  When life hands you lemons, make lemonade -- don't whine for 4 years about how you deserved more lemons or that your lemons were somehow wronged. 

For the good of the country, be a team player.  No wonder this country is so divided.

Nothing shocking will arise from these latest efforts to find a way to give Kerry this election.  And when nothing happens, those with common sense and reason will accept it while those living in disillusionment will cry conspiracy until they're satisfied.  (AKA, until their candidate wins - then everything will surely be OK.)

I'm all for amending the system so that it's as fair as possible.  But damn, after 2000, both sides had every opportunity in the world to make sure this election was fair and safe.  Had Bush lost and his supporters been crying, I'd be saying the same thing: IF YOU AGREE TO PLAY BY THESE RULES, DON'T WHINE ABOUT THEIR RESULTS.

SPORTS

I'm a Miami Dolphins fan and Dave W. retired today as head coach.  All I'm gonna say is that once we find UBL, we need to send a task force after Ricky Williams.  He ruined this team and deserves to play no more downs in the NFL - at least, not without paying back the $8M he owes Miami.

Maurice Clarett is now alleging that he covered up a money scandal while at Ohio State University to protect the 2002 championship team.  My free advice to Maurice: You made your bed, now sleep in it. 

(Translation: You took the risk of dropping out of school after only your freshman year to enter the NFL draft when you knew it was against NFL and NCAA regulations.  Right now you're doing this to earn more money opportunities b/c you realize you're not gonna be a high draft pick/money-earner in next year's draft.  Deal with it and leave OSU out of it.)

ENTERTAINMENT:

Where are all the celebrities who supported Kerry and bashed Bush?  Come on, I wanna actually hear from them now!  I'm actually interested in what they have to say now!  I guess now that the election's over, they wanna go back to their Beverly Hills mansions and stop pretending to relate to middle-class America.  Oh well.

Ok, I'm gonna wrap this up.  Thanks for reading and take good care.

p.s. God bless and good luck to our troops and their families - especially those fighting in Fallujah right now.