Library vote will triple current funding!

Library vote will pit tax vs. text: "The library is operating on a $1.1 million budget this year. That's down from $1.7 million in 2004, the last year of full county funding. The loss of county support forced the library to cut hours and staff, stop book and technology purchases and cancel programs. If the millage passes, the annual budget will increase to about $2.9 million"
Does it make sense to increase the library take from the old amount of $1.7 million to $2.9 million?

Coulter cancels visit with local GOP

Coulter cancels visit with local GOP: "Coulter cancels visit with local GOP
Monday, February 27, 2006
By Steven Harmon
The Grand Rapids Press
GRAND RAPIDS -- Ann Coulter, the firebrand conservative commentator, is backing out of her Grand Rapids appearance, Kent County Republican officials said Monday morning. "
Bummer. We're going to miss out on how our local liberals treasure "free speech".

Bolton Blast!

Threads2: "NEW YORK (AP) -- The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said Saturday that the world body is hobbled 'by bad management, by sex and corruption' and a lack of confidence in its ability to carry out missions. John Bolton also criticized the U.N.'s budget, noting that two-thirds of members pay only 20 percent of the cost. "
How dare he criticize those nice, efficient UN dudes.

Canada's health care implosion.

Instapundit.com -: "Proponents of single-payer health care reform in the United States have long pointed toward Canada as a model for the US to emulate.
The New York Times reports that the Canadian system is imploding"
Old news to Canadians. New news to our liberal MSM.

ColumnGate?

The Chronicle Commissars have done it again! Tracy Lorenz can write some excellent columns... but many have been as dull as an MEA press release. Tracy had two columns on his website, one published one not. They were both excellent. They are both now gone because the Thought Police at the Chronicle have stepped out of their normal extreme liberal mode and told an employee to delete the "offending" columns from his own web site. I don't know TL and have no first hand info about this except I do know the columns were posted (heck, one was published by The Chronicle!) and they're both gone now. True colors.

Sexual abuse! Oh my!

Captain's Quarters: "The UN peacekeeping forces continue to sexually abuse their wards, according to an internal review at Turtle Bay, and the problem will exist for years:"
That UN "peacekeepers" are abusing those they would protect is awful enough. That the American press would cover this up is criminal. We all know how outraged our press was over the American military abuse events. And they pale in comparison to this. Despicable!

NIMBY hypocrites of the Left!

Threads2: "After a long, loud and costly public fight, the fate of the proposed Nantucket Sound wind farm could be decided soon at a closed-door meeting on Capitol Hill. **SNIP** Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., opposes the project along with Rep. William Delahunt, D-Quincy, whose district includes Cape Cod"
I thought alternative energy was a mainstay of the democrat religion.....

John Warner: 500 U.S. Warships Docked in Dubai

John Warner: 500 U.S. Warships Docked in Dubai: "John Warner: 500 U.S. Warships Docked in Dubai


Former Navy Secretary, Sen. John Warner said Sunday that the United Arab Emirates, home to ports operating company slated to take over dozens of U.S. shipping terminals, hosted hundreds of U.S. warships in 2005.
'We are using facilities in the UAE today, docking over 500 ships, American warships, last year,' Warner told NBC's 'Meet the Press.'"
Are the MSM and their like-minded croneys in the democrat party gonna next tell us not to park our warships in the UAE ports? Isn't it important to be able to tell the difference between our enemies and our friends in the Muslum world? Or do all Muslums look alike to the left?

Saudi Shipping Company Controls 9 US Ports | Sweetness & Light

Saudi Shipping Company Controls 9 US Ports | Sweetness & Light: "Saudi Shipping Company Controls 9 US Ports
Funny, our one party media hasn't mentioned this Saudi-owned ports operation. Maybe they don't know about it, as the company's only been around since 1979:"
Geeze, the supersluths at the Chronicle and their comrads in the MSM somehow managed to miss this one. I wonder why.....

Sinking of YouTube

VideoSift - The Best of GoogleVideo and YouTube
Good one!

The fascists of free speech - Los Angeles Times

The fascists of free speech - Los Angeles Times: "it did occur to him that perhaps the long-delayed English translation of Oriana Fallaci's new book, 'The Force of Reason,' might finally be available, and that because Fallaci's militant stance against Islamic militants offends so many people, a store committed to selling banned books would be the perfect place to buy it. So he asked a clerk if the new Fallaci book was in yet.

'No,' snapped the clerk. 'We don't carry books by fascists."
Geez, they sound like The Chronicle.

Revised charter, minus tax hike, heads to voters

Revised charter, minus tax hike, heads to voters: "Besides inserting gender-neutral language recognizing women's increased role in politics during the past four decades, the charter calls for the city's elected leaders to maximize intergovernmental cooperation and pay attention to protecting the environment. "
I agree that the Charter should pass but isn't it sad that we can't trust The Chronicle to analyze the issue and print opposing voices? We know they support county wide consolidation so don't expect to get the full story from their "big government" editors. Bummer.

Microsoft Keyboard Shortcuts

Microsoft Products & Resources: Keyboard Assistance: "Find keyboard shortcuts for leading Microsoft products that help save time and effort and provide an essential tool for some people with functional difficulties and impairments�particularly dexterity and visual."
Another site I got via Kim Komando.com

Kim Komando Digital Photo Tips

Komando.com, Website for The Kim Komando Radio Show�--One of the Top 10 Programs in the US: "Most digital cameras come with basic software that helps organize and manipulate photos. However, those programs tend to be limited. Before you spend a fortune rectifying that problem, check out free programs."
I love my Picassa for saving and organizing digital shots.

VDH is more optimistic

Print version - � COPYRIGHT 2006 The Honolulu Advertiser - Hawaii's Newspaper , a division of Gannett Co. Inc.: "Iraq, like all wars, is not static. What was supposedly true on the ground in Iraq in 2003 is not necessarily so in 2006 � in the way that the situation in Europe in 1943 hardly resembled that of May 1945.
Yet while things have changed radically in Iraq, the pessimistic tone of our reporting remains calcified. Little is written about the new Iraqi government, the emergence of the Iraqi security forces or the radically changing role of the American military."

It Didn't Work by William F. Buckley

RealClearPolitics - Commentary - It Didn't Work by William F. Buckley: "One can't doubt that the American objective in Iraq has failed. "
When Buckley speaks we all should listen. Not necessarily agree, but listen at least.

Washington's Birthday

Power Line: "One other point I might make about Washington's presence at the Constitutional Convention was that during debates about how much and what kind of powers the executive branch should have, the delegates were guided by the fact that it was universally recognized that Washington would be the first President. Flexner makes the point that this factor in the delegate's deliberations probably did more to encourage expansive powers for that office more than anything else since the delegates knew how lightly power rested on Washington's shoulders. "

Troubling...big time.

PoliPundit.com: "Of these, Peninsular & Oriental navigation (P&O Ports) has part or whole ownership of the operating leases in eleven of the top U.S. ports. P&O Ports is a British company based in London, which has part or whole ownership in 85 seaports worldwide. And P&O Ports has decided to divest itself of about half of its U.S. seaport investment. Why?"

Relinquishing operations of U.S. ports is nuts

Relinquishing operations of U.S. ports is nuts: "For a Bush Administration that eats, breathes and regurgitates 9/11 24/7, we are hard-pressed to label its plan to allow an operational takeover at six major U.S. ports anything but what it appears at its face:
Nuts"
Wow! TheChron usually takes a week or more to post their Eds. Musta got their pants in a bunch to agree with so many GOPers, eh? The bummer is that they really love it when our President missteps. Real Americans don't.

Latte Art

tonx's latte art slideshow on Flickr
Sure beats bitchin' about the "Arab Port Imbroglio".

Shake down?

My Way - Sports News: "Olympic gold medal speedskater Shani Davis is one of three plaintiffs suing the city of Chicago and former police superintendent Terry Hillard, alleging they were stopped because of their skin color.
........ The other component is to get monetary damages for each of the individuals."
Davis became the first black athlete to capture an individual gold medal in Winter Olympics history when he won the 1,000 meters. But he has been embroiled in a war of words with fellow American skater Chad Hedrick over Davis's decision not to skate in the team pursuit event. "

Compelling

LILEKS (James) Screedblog: "As for the trust issue, well, wanting port control to remain in American hands is not a matter of Arabiaphobia, any more than selling Boeing to China means you harbor deep hatred of Asians. Some things ought to be left in local hands. It seems absurd to have to make that argument in the first place."

Why do Democrats support this?

FOXNews.com - Politics News - Pa. Gov. Rendell Plans to Veto Voter ID Bill: "Gov. Ed Rendell says he will veto a bill that would require voters to show identification at the polls because he believes it would disenfranchise some of the state's most vulnerable residents. "
You've got to show ID to buy beer but not to vote? This is idiocy!

Calling in sick.

WZZM13.com - Governor's visit with Delphi Workers Cancelled: "The governor's office says Granholm isn't feeling well"

How can anyone have a problem with this?

WOODTV.com & WOOD TV8 - Grand Rapids news and weather - Battle brews over bill that would make English the official language of Michigan: "'The city of Grand Rapids got up on its bully pulpit and said stop this nonsense,' says Grand Rapids City Commissioner Rick Tormala.
The so called 'nonsense' to which Tormala referred to is a bill currently in committee in the state house that would make English the official language of the State of Michigan."
Isn't knowing the language of their new country one of the greatest gifts a new immigrant can earn?

Arab ports issue

FT.com / Comment & analysis / Editorial comment - Paranoia about Dubai ports deal is needless: "First, the deal has been vetted by an inter-agency committee. And ports, in any case, are in one of the most highly regulated sectors in the US. What matters is how they are managed, not who owns them."
The best article about the "PORTS" I've read yet.

Vewy scawy....

MiamiHerald.com | 02/21/2006 | Carter backs Bush's stand on seaport-operations deal: "Carter backs Bush's stand on seaport-operations dealFormer President Jimmy Carter downplayed criticism of White House "

Doh!

My Way - Sports News: "Illini Back on Track, Try to Extend Dominance Over Michigan

Now that Illinois has recovered from a brief slump, it can focus on extending a streak which spans six years and three head coaches.
The eighth-ranked Fighting Illini (22-4, 8-4 Big Ten) try to defeat Michigan for the 12th consecutive time when the conference rivals meet at Ann Arbor. "
Not so fast my friend...

This whole deal is about an "interest" prohibition?

Michelle Malkin: "I work as a corporate lawyer at a large law firm that has a speciality in Islamic finance. The real reason Dubai Ports World is undergoing the transaction is because of an Islamic finance vehicle called the sukuk. The sukuk is essentially a commerical paper type of Islamic financle vehicle--it is essentially a 'fake' bond to work around the Muslim prohibition on interest"

Walking on the beach is OK!

WOODTV.com & WOOD TV8 - Grand Rapids news and weather - Supreme Court decides not to take up Michigan beach walking case: "AP-Traverse City, February 21, 2006, 11:07 a.m.) The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to consider whether people have a right to stroll along private property aligning Great Lakes beaches in Michigan.
Justices left undisturbed a state Supreme Court ruling last year that found beach walking is a right"