I always get this link from Instapundit.com. Both are worth the visit. What's not to like about "Redneck Gourmet"? Pass it on.
pamibe � Carnival of the Recipes #30: "The Redneck Gourmet gives us Cheese Stuffed Shells With Tomato Meat Sauce. I for one appreciate the in-depth instructions, Virgil!"
Sunday, March 13, 2005
Bird help!
This bird landed on my feeder today. It sat with a male house finch so I think it is a female but it is mostly white. Has anyone seen a similar bird? Does anyone know what this bird really is?
Albino House Finch?
update: With a little help from Muskegon County Nature Club Homepage, a member sent me this.
"We're 99% sure the bird is a house finch, and we'd call it "leucistic" rather than "albino" since the bird does have some color (but we're no experts)."
Thanks!
Albino House Finch?
update: With a little help from Muskegon County Nature Club Homepage, a member sent me this.
"We're 99% sure the bird is a house finch, and we'd call it "leucistic" rather than "albino" since the bird does have some color (but we're no experts)."
Thanks!
The New York Times--Under Bush, a New Age of Prepackaged Television News
This long, tedious NYT article is really trying to convince the reader that the Bush administration's efforts are the begining of "a New Age" and you need to be warned about the Rove-a-nation of your home TV. You know, spin, but with beady eyes. Buried way down is this little gem. It sure kinda wrecks the whole story if they put it up front, doesn't it?
The New York Times > Washington > Under Bush, a New Age of Prepackaged Television News: "The practice, which also occurred in the Clinton administration...."
The New York Times > Washington > Under Bush, a New Age of Prepackaged Television News: "The practice, which also occurred in the Clinton administration...."
Saturday, March 12, 2005
Next time you hear the NYT prognosticate....
... remember this gem. And they wonder why we don't believe them any more.
JustOneMinute: Nobody Likes An "I Told You So": "The coming elections - long touted as the beginning of a new, democratic Iraq - are looking more and more like the beginning of that worst-case scenario.
It's time to talk about postponing the elections."
The New York Times Editorial 1/12/2005
JustOneMinute: Nobody Likes An "I Told You So": "The coming elections - long touted as the beginning of a new, democratic Iraq - are looking more and more like the beginning of that worst-case scenario.
It's time to talk about postponing the elections."
The New York Times Editorial 1/12/2005
Are we chasing quality contractors away?
Credit to the Chronicle for at least reporting this but isn't it about time that they engage in a tiny bit of investigative journalism to find out the real reason we, the taxpayers, are paying more for this project than has been bid? And, given that the "word" is out on bidding Muskegon jobs, are fewer contractors going to bid in the future? Isn't this just the same as those practices that have destroyed such cities as Detroit?
Commissioners clash over construction bids: "Low bidder Brian Schultz warned the commission that if it made a practice of rejecting the lowest bid in favor of contractors in the Muskegon area, it would find that fewer contractors would go to the trouble and expense of preparing bids, competition would suffer and costs would go up.
'It really degrades the bidding process,' Schultz said. "
Commissioners clash over construction bids: "Low bidder Brian Schultz warned the commission that if it made a practice of rejecting the lowest bid in favor of contractors in the Muskegon area, it would find that fewer contractors would go to the trouble and expense of preparing bids, competition would suffer and costs would go up.
'It really degrades the bidding process,' Schultz said. "
Harvard Medical-Bankruptcy Study
Interesting how the lie about medical debt as the major cause of bankruptcy is now being repeated by the MSM as if it were Gospel. And they wonder why they're losing viewers/readers?
Gail Heriot on Harvard Medical-Bankruptcy Study on National Review Online: "Some bankruptcies are caused by crushing medical debt. But they aren't half of all bankruptcies, and the only way to create the impression they are is to jimmy the figures. For example, the study classifies 'uncontrolled gambling,' 'drug addiction,' 'alcohol addiction,' and the birth or adoption of a child as 'a medical cause,' regardless of whether medical bills are involved"
Gail Heriot on Harvard Medical-Bankruptcy Study on National Review Online: "Some bankruptcies are caused by crushing medical debt. But they aren't half of all bankruptcies, and the only way to create the impression they are is to jimmy the figures. For example, the study classifies 'uncontrolled gambling,' 'drug addiction,' 'alcohol addiction,' and the birth or adoption of a child as 'a medical cause,' regardless of whether medical bills are involved"
Thursday, March 10, 2005
A little more about that Italian reporter gal...
... who was "kidnapped" in IRAQ. She's a reporter for an Italian, Communist, anti-American newspaper. Oh, and the Italian government just paid $1,000,000 to the terrorists to "free" her. Money that will be spent on killing Americans.
Zacht Ei - About Giuliana Sgrena: "About Giuliana Sgrena
Mr. Harald Doornbos is a veteran war reporter. He is no archetypical hawk nor a staunch supporter of the United States. In fact, he used to be a reporter for the communist newspaper 'De Waarheid' (The Truth, or Pravda, if you like) before it went bust. (This doesn't necessarily mean he was ever a communist, by the way. De Waarheid used to be a huge employer.)
However, this doesn't make him overly sympathetic towards Giuliana Sgrena, the Italian journalist who was held hostage by Iraqi insurgents. Some snippets from this article which was published today in a Dutch Christian broadsheet.
'Be careful not to get kidnapped,' I told the female Italian journalist sitting next to me in the small plane that was headed for Baghdad. 'Oh no,' she said. 'That won't happen. We are siding with the oppressed Iraqi people. No Iraqi would kidnap us.'
It doesn't sound very nice to be critical of a fellow reporter. But Sgrena's attitude is a disgrace for journalism. Or didn't she tell me back in the plane that 'common journalists such as yourself' simply do not support the Iraqi people? 'The Americans are the biggest enemies of mankind,' the three women behind me had told me, for Sgrena travelled to Iraq with two Italian colleagues who hated the Americans as well.
(Doornbos goes on to explain how the women demeaned him for travelling as an embedded reporter with the US military, for security reasons. They didn't want to hear about any safety concerns.)
'You don't understand the situation. We are anti-imperialists, anti-capitalists, communists,' they said. The Iraqis only kidnap American sympathizers, the enemies of the Americans have nothing to fear.
(Doornbos tells them they're out of their mind.)
But they knew better. When we arrived at Baghd"
Zacht Ei - About Giuliana Sgrena: "About Giuliana Sgrena
Mr. Harald Doornbos is a veteran war reporter. He is no archetypical hawk nor a staunch supporter of the United States. In fact, he used to be a reporter for the communist newspaper 'De Waarheid' (The Truth, or Pravda, if you like) before it went bust. (This doesn't necessarily mean he was ever a communist, by the way. De Waarheid used to be a huge employer.)
However, this doesn't make him overly sympathetic towards Giuliana Sgrena, the Italian journalist who was held hostage by Iraqi insurgents. Some snippets from this article which was published today in a Dutch Christian broadsheet.
'Be careful not to get kidnapped,' I told the female Italian journalist sitting next to me in the small plane that was headed for Baghdad. 'Oh no,' she said. 'That won't happen. We are siding with the oppressed Iraqi people. No Iraqi would kidnap us.'
It doesn't sound very nice to be critical of a fellow reporter. But Sgrena's attitude is a disgrace for journalism. Or didn't she tell me back in the plane that 'common journalists such as yourself' simply do not support the Iraqi people? 'The Americans are the biggest enemies of mankind,' the three women behind me had told me, for Sgrena travelled to Iraq with two Italian colleagues who hated the Americans as well.
(Doornbos goes on to explain how the women demeaned him for travelling as an embedded reporter with the US military, for security reasons. They didn't want to hear about any safety concerns.)
'You don't understand the situation. We are anti-imperialists, anti-capitalists, communists,' they said. The Iraqis only kidnap American sympathizers, the enemies of the Americans have nothing to fear.
(Doornbos tells them they're out of their mind.)
But they knew better. When we arrived at Baghd"
Report: Welfare payments so low 'kids do without'
Sorry to be a big bad dude, but welfare payments are supposed to be a temporary support. Someone who can't get a job within six months isn't looking. It is supposed to be very uncomfortable to be on welfare. That's why so many Michiganders moved from welfare to JOBS after Engler tightened the rules. Everyone, especially the children, benefited.
Report: Welfare payments so low 'kids do without':
"Report: Welfare payments so low 'kids do without'
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
By Lynn Moore
In six short months, Kristine Ryder has gone from earning her own living to teetering on the brink of losing her home to foreclosure.
For the six months since she lost her job, Ryder, of Laketon Township, has relied on welfare cash assistance. She gets $414 per month, $64 of which is taken out for heating and electric payments, leaving her $350 to pay for her house, car, utilities and all those other expenses of life that add up quickly"
Report: Welfare payments so low 'kids do without':
"Report: Welfare payments so low 'kids do without'
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
By Lynn Moore
In six short months, Kristine Ryder has gone from earning her own living to teetering on the brink of losing her home to foreclosure.
For the six months since she lost her job, Ryder, of Laketon Township, has relied on welfare cash assistance. She gets $414 per month, $64 of which is taken out for heating and electric payments, leaving her $350 to pay for her house, car, utilities and all those other expenses of life that add up quickly"
Good, fast work dealing with syphilis outbreak
Imagine the outcry if the Chronicle editorialistas printed this same editorial but talking about "AIDs" instead of "syphilis".
Good, fast work dealing with syphilis outbreak: "Kraus used a simple strategy in combating the sudden rise in cases. He alerted seven health-care agencies around the county to be on the lookout for signs of syphilis in incoming patients, and also provided them with special testing equipment and antibiotics with which to begin immediate treatment."
Good, fast work dealing with syphilis outbreak: "Kraus used a simple strategy in combating the sudden rise in cases. He alerted seven health-care agencies around the county to be on the lookout for signs of syphilis in incoming patients, and also provided them with special testing equipment and antibiotics with which to begin immediate treatment."
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
Residents object to plan for housing development
I have no clue if this is a good idea or not but what a lame headline and article. "Some residents" always object to every new idea or hope for progress in Muskegon. That's news? How 'bout some real analysis of the specific situation? Four/5/6 years of college grants a journalism degree for this fluff?
Residents object to plan for housing development: "Residents object to plan for housing development "
Residents object to plan for housing development: "Residents object to plan for housing development "
This is the same tactic that Democrat Senator....
....Bird has used 3 times in the recent past. I always worry when those "smarter" than me tell me half the true story. A lot like the communists in their propaganda.
Dear MoveOn member,Tomorrow, March 10th, the Senate Judiciary Committee will consider the nomination of mining and cattle industry lobbyist William Myers III for a lifetime appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals—the second highest court in the land. Myers is the first of 20 judicial nominees Bush has re-submitted in his second term. All 20 repeat nominees were rejected last term by Senate Democrats (as compared to the 204 judges they accepted) because these nominees consistently sided with corporate special-interests over the rights of ordinary Americans.This time, Bush is ready to fight dirty to force these nominees through. Dick Cheney has even threatened to use a parliamentary trick to eliminate the centuries-old rule requiring judges to have broad support in the Senate. This would effectively silence all 44 Democratic senators and the 173 million Americans they represent—the majority of the country.
With the first crucial vote on the first judge in less than a day, we're launching a national campaign to let our senators know that we out here in America are counting on them to hold the line on all 20 of Bush's rejected, corporate judges, and beat back his dirty parliamentary tricks.
The first phase is this national petition that we will hand deliver to your senators before the confirmation votes for the 20 judges. And tomorrow, MoveOn members will host over 1000 house meetings to create local plans to save the judiciary. The courts we have for the next 30 years may depend on your efforts in the next few weeks.
Please sign today:http://www.moveonpac.org/judges/
To ram his nominees through, Bush is hoping to use a parliamentary trick the Republicans refer to as the "nuclear option." For 200 years, if enough senators strongly objected to a federal judge, they could use a filibuster to force more debate until all their concerns were addressed. That's how Democrats blocked the worst of these 20 nominees last term. Actually changing the rule would require a 2/3 vote of the Senate—and Bush doesn't have near that level of support.
So instead, Vice President Cheney has threatened to abuse his authority as President of the Senate, and just declare that the right to filibuster judges is null and void. If Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist can twist enough arms to get 50 senators to support the ruling, the filibuster is history. For the first time ever, one party would have complete control over judicial nominations, all the way up to the Supreme Court.
Both parties in the Senate were given the power to approve or reject judicial nominations because—above all else—judges must be trusted by Americans on all sides to rule fairly. So why does Bush refuse to send a few replacement nominees both parties can agree on? Why is he so intent on smashing Democratic resistance to these and all future nominees? Because while his presidency will be over in 4 years, the judges he appoints will be on the bench for the rest of their lives. This is Bush's big push to lock in his hard-right, corporate-friendly ideology for decades to come—and that is exactly why we must not back down now.
The whole plot is set into motion tomorrow, with the committee vote on William Myers. We must draw the line here, by stopping Bush's 20 repeat nominees and standing up to the "nuclear option."
Please sign the petition today:http://www.moveonpac.org/judges/
Thanks for all that you do,
--Ben Brandzel, Eli Pariser and the whole MoveOn PAC Team Wednesday, March 9th, 2005
P.S. Here's a brief summary of just the first three of the 20 partisan judges re-nominated by President Bush.
William Myers III has never been a judge and spent most of his career as a lobbyist for the cattle and mining industry. [1] He has written that all habitat conservation laws are unconstitutional because they interfere with potential profit. [2] In 2001, Bush appointed him as the chief lawyer for the Department of the Interior. In that role he continued as a champion of corporate interests, setting his agenda in meetings with former employers he promised not to speak with, and even illegally giving away sacred Native American land to be strip mined. [3]Terrence Boyle was a legal aide to Jesse Helms. As a judge, his signature decisions have attempted to circumvent federal laws barring employment discrimination by race, gender, and disability. [4] His rulings have been overturned a staggering 120 times by the conservative 4th District Court of Appeals, either due to gross errors in judgment or simple incompetence. [5] William Pryor Jr. served as Attorney General of Alabama, where he took money from Phillip Morris, fought against the anti-tobacco lawsuit until it was almost over, and cost the people of Alabama billions in settlement money for their healthcare system as a result. [6] He called Roe v. Wade "the worst abomination of constitutional law in our history," and has consistently argued against the federal protections for the civil rights of minorities, lesbian and gay couples, women, and the disabled. [7]
Notes: [1] "Unfit to Judge," Community Rights Council, 4/2/04.[2] "Myers Troubling Legal Philosophy," People for the American Way.[3] "Environmental Group Calls on Senate to Block Myers Nomination: Ethical Problems and Anti-Environmental Activism Make Him Unfit for Judgeship," Friends of the Earth, 2/5/05.[4] "Federal Judge Terrence Boyle Unfit for Promotion to Appeals Court," People for the American Way, 2/23/05.[5] "Eastern District of North Carolina Terrence Boyle Nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit," Alliance for Justice.[6] Eric Fleischauer, "Pryor Called a Tobacco Sellout," Decatur Daily News, 10/30/02.[7] Ann Woolner, "Bush Judicial Candidate Shows How Things Change," Bloomberg News, 5/16/03.
PAID FOR BY MOVEON PACNot authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.
Dear MoveOn member,Tomorrow, March 10th, the Senate Judiciary Committee will consider the nomination of mining and cattle industry lobbyist William Myers III for a lifetime appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals—the second highest court in the land. Myers is the first of 20 judicial nominees Bush has re-submitted in his second term. All 20 repeat nominees were rejected last term by Senate Democrats (as compared to the 204 judges they accepted) because these nominees consistently sided with corporate special-interests over the rights of ordinary Americans.This time, Bush is ready to fight dirty to force these nominees through. Dick Cheney has even threatened to use a parliamentary trick to eliminate the centuries-old rule requiring judges to have broad support in the Senate. This would effectively silence all 44 Democratic senators and the 173 million Americans they represent—the majority of the country.
With the first crucial vote on the first judge in less than a day, we're launching a national campaign to let our senators know that we out here in America are counting on them to hold the line on all 20 of Bush's rejected, corporate judges, and beat back his dirty parliamentary tricks.
The first phase is this national petition that we will hand deliver to your senators before the confirmation votes for the 20 judges. And tomorrow, MoveOn members will host over 1000 house meetings to create local plans to save the judiciary. The courts we have for the next 30 years may depend on your efforts in the next few weeks.
Please sign today:http://www.moveonpac.org/judges/
To ram his nominees through, Bush is hoping to use a parliamentary trick the Republicans refer to as the "nuclear option." For 200 years, if enough senators strongly objected to a federal judge, they could use a filibuster to force more debate until all their concerns were addressed. That's how Democrats blocked the worst of these 20 nominees last term. Actually changing the rule would require a 2/3 vote of the Senate—and Bush doesn't have near that level of support.
So instead, Vice President Cheney has threatened to abuse his authority as President of the Senate, and just declare that the right to filibuster judges is null and void. If Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist can twist enough arms to get 50 senators to support the ruling, the filibuster is history. For the first time ever, one party would have complete control over judicial nominations, all the way up to the Supreme Court.
Both parties in the Senate were given the power to approve or reject judicial nominations because—above all else—judges must be trusted by Americans on all sides to rule fairly. So why does Bush refuse to send a few replacement nominees both parties can agree on? Why is he so intent on smashing Democratic resistance to these and all future nominees? Because while his presidency will be over in 4 years, the judges he appoints will be on the bench for the rest of their lives. This is Bush's big push to lock in his hard-right, corporate-friendly ideology for decades to come—and that is exactly why we must not back down now.
The whole plot is set into motion tomorrow, with the committee vote on William Myers. We must draw the line here, by stopping Bush's 20 repeat nominees and standing up to the "nuclear option."
Please sign the petition today:http://www.moveonpac.org/judges/
Thanks for all that you do,
--Ben Brandzel, Eli Pariser and the whole MoveOn PAC Team Wednesday, March 9th, 2005
P.S. Here's a brief summary of just the first three of the 20 partisan judges re-nominated by President Bush.
William Myers III has never been a judge and spent most of his career as a lobbyist for the cattle and mining industry. [1] He has written that all habitat conservation laws are unconstitutional because they interfere with potential profit. [2] In 2001, Bush appointed him as the chief lawyer for the Department of the Interior. In that role he continued as a champion of corporate interests, setting his agenda in meetings with former employers he promised not to speak with, and even illegally giving away sacred Native American land to be strip mined. [3]Terrence Boyle was a legal aide to Jesse Helms. As a judge, his signature decisions have attempted to circumvent federal laws barring employment discrimination by race, gender, and disability. [4] His rulings have been overturned a staggering 120 times by the conservative 4th District Court of Appeals, either due to gross errors in judgment or simple incompetence. [5] William Pryor Jr. served as Attorney General of Alabama, where he took money from Phillip Morris, fought against the anti-tobacco lawsuit until it was almost over, and cost the people of Alabama billions in settlement money for their healthcare system as a result. [6] He called Roe v. Wade "the worst abomination of constitutional law in our history," and has consistently argued against the federal protections for the civil rights of minorities, lesbian and gay couples, women, and the disabled. [7]
Notes: [1] "Unfit to Judge," Community Rights Council, 4/2/04.[2] "Myers Troubling Legal Philosophy," People for the American Way.[3] "Environmental Group Calls on Senate to Block Myers Nomination: Ethical Problems and Anti-Environmental Activism Make Him Unfit for Judgeship," Friends of the Earth, 2/5/05.[4] "Federal Judge Terrence Boyle Unfit for Promotion to Appeals Court," People for the American Way, 2/23/05.[5] "Eastern District of North Carolina Terrence Boyle Nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit," Alliance for Justice.[6] Eric Fleischauer, "Pryor Called a Tobacco Sellout," Decatur Daily News, 10/30/02.[7] Ann Woolner, "Bush Judicial Candidate Shows How Things Change," Bloomberg News, 5/16/03.
PAID FOR BY MOVEON PACNot authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.
Farmers Market move debated
This is a novel argument. No surprise that it is supported by zero facts or specific ways that moving the site would keep vendors fees lower. No wonder the MSM is viewed with such skepticism and contempt. Jeeze....
Market move debated: "Some, like Vice Mayor Bill Larson, liked the idea of moving the market to a city-owned site as a way of keeping fees to vendors low. "
Market move debated: "Some, like Vice Mayor Bill Larson, liked the idea of moving the market to a city-owned site as a way of keeping fees to vendors low. "
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
Eat Your History
Go to the site, check out the recipe and send the history to someone, younger, who you want to become a better American in the future.
Eat Your History: "Thursday, March 03, 2005Star Spangled Banner & Crab Cakes
'Then, in that hour of deliverance, my heart spoke. Does not such a country, and such defenders of their country, deserve a song?' Those words were spoken by Francis Scott Key, overcome with emotion, after witnessing American troops defeat the British in the Battle for Baltimore during the War of 1812. The 'Star Spangled Banner' was the result.
Today, in 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed congressional legislation making 'The Star Spangled Banner' our national anthem. What took them so long? Francis Scott Key wrote it in 1814!
Here's the quick history: Major George Armistead knew that, eventually, the British would attack Baltimore. He commissioned the widow Mary Young Pickerell to sew a United States flag to the measurements of 30 x 42. Why? He wanted his position known, not only to the friendlies, but to the enemy. Mrs. Pickerell, with the aid of her 13 year old daughter, Caroline, sewed the flag and Major Armistead ran it up a 90' flag pole.
Anyway, the British landed 3,000 land troops just north of Ft. McHenry, Maryland, on September 12, 1814. They were the 'advance team' for the British ships that would commence bombardment of the Fort the next morning. One problem. 10,000 Americans blocked the advancement of the British troops. (Do you love free people, or what?) The bombardment from British ships on Ft. McHenry started the next day, at dawn, and continued for 25 hours. Ft. McHenry had a mere 1,000 soldiers, but they valiantly returned fire on the superpower of the day.
When Francis Scott Key went to sleep the night of September 13, the sights and sounds of the battle had begun to wane. Awakening at dawn the next day, he didn't know if the Americans had been defeated or had been victorious.
"
Eat Your History: "Thursday, March 03, 2005Star Spangled Banner & Crab Cakes
'Then, in that hour of deliverance, my heart spoke. Does not such a country, and such defenders of their country, deserve a song?' Those words were spoken by Francis Scott Key, overcome with emotion, after witnessing American troops defeat the British in the Battle for Baltimore during the War of 1812. The 'Star Spangled Banner' was the result.
Today, in 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed congressional legislation making 'The Star Spangled Banner' our national anthem. What took them so long? Francis Scott Key wrote it in 1814!
Here's the quick history: Major George Armistead knew that, eventually, the British would attack Baltimore. He commissioned the widow Mary Young Pickerell to sew a United States flag to the measurements of 30 x 42. Why? He wanted his position known, not only to the friendlies, but to the enemy. Mrs. Pickerell, with the aid of her 13 year old daughter, Caroline, sewed the flag and Major Armistead ran it up a 90' flag pole.
Anyway, the British landed 3,000 land troops just north of Ft. McHenry, Maryland, on September 12, 1814. They were the 'advance team' for the British ships that would commence bombardment of the Fort the next morning. One problem. 10,000 Americans blocked the advancement of the British troops. (Do you love free people, or what?) The bombardment from British ships on Ft. McHenry started the next day, at dawn, and continued for 25 hours. Ft. McHenry had a mere 1,000 soldiers, but they valiantly returned fire on the superpower of the day.
When Francis Scott Key went to sleep the night of September 13, the sights and sounds of the battle had begun to wane. Awakening at dawn the next day, he didn't know if the Americans had been defeated or had been victorious.
"
Bird nerd!
I'm a bird nerd, lower level. Nerdy about birds but not too knowledgeable about the feathered dudes and dudettes. This excellent link came from kimkomando.com. Go there and expand your feathered web-life.
Birding Focus
Birding Focus
The White House Greetings Office
The BEST cheap gift to someone you love who loves freedom, family and the American Way. Or a great pimp to the Bush-haters who still bay at the moon and gnash their teeth at the mention of elections in IRAQ. I sent one to my Dad for his 80th this May. I'll update when it happens.
Don't forget! This is a real easy site but they want a 6 week lead. Another cool site of the day from kimkomando.com
The White House Greetings Office: "ANNIVERSARY GREETINGS. Anniversary greetings are extended only to those couples who are celebrating their 50th (and subsequent) wedding anniversary.
BIRTHDAY GREETINGS. Birthday greetings will be sent only to individuals 80 years of age and above.
OTHER GREETINGS. A limited number of special occasions other than birthdays and anniversaries exist for which the Greetings Office will send appropriate recognition to United States citizens. These occasions include important events such as:
Wedding (send your request after the event)
Baby's Birth (must be born during the George W. Bush Administration; send request only after baby's birth)
Eagle Scout Award
Girl Scout Gold Award
Bar/Bat Mitzvah or equivalent occasion "
Don't forget! This is a real easy site but they want a 6 week lead. Another cool site of the day from kimkomando.com
The White House Greetings Office: "ANNIVERSARY GREETINGS. Anniversary greetings are extended only to those couples who are celebrating their 50th (and subsequent) wedding anniversary.
BIRTHDAY GREETINGS. Birthday greetings will be sent only to individuals 80 years of age and above.
OTHER GREETINGS. A limited number of special occasions other than birthdays and anniversaries exist for which the Greetings Office will send appropriate recognition to United States citizens. These occasions include important events such as:
Wedding (send your request after the event)
Baby's Birth (must be born during the George W. Bush Administration; send request only after baby's birth)
Eagle Scout Award
Girl Scout Gold Award
Bar/Bat Mitzvah or equivalent occasion "
Oakridge delegation helps re-enact famed civil rights events
This is an excellent experience and a great story for the Chronicle to publish. When will Oakridge or the Chronicle support a visit to the former communist countries and report the genocide and economic failure that communism/socialism breeds? Maybe a trip to Benton Harbor would reveal some of the same failed policies?
Oakridge delegation helps re-enact famed civil rights events:
"Oakridge delegation helps re-enact famed civil rights events
Monday, March 07, 2005
By Randy Rogoski
CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
It's one thing to read about the civil rights movement's 'Bloody Sunday' in books.
It's quite another to visit the places where history happened and talk to the people who made it. "
Oakridge delegation helps re-enact famed civil rights events:
"Oakridge delegation helps re-enact famed civil rights events
Monday, March 07, 2005
By Randy Rogoski
CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
It's one thing to read about the civil rights movement's 'Bloody Sunday' in books.
It's quite another to visit the places where history happened and talk to the people who made it. "
Nice story about Michigan State Women's Hoops!
The MSU gals not only won the regular season, they won the tournament and this coach has done wonders on a campus that reveres the men's coach, Izzo. Kudos to Coach McCallie and her team.
It wasn't too long ago that the MSU women's coach left E Lansing for UM. That gave Joanne her chance. Pretty cool.
The State News - www.statenews.com: "McCallie named Coach of the Year
Haynie, Bowen and Shimek also garner honors
By CHRIS BARSOTTI
MSU head coach Joanne P. McCallie shared the honor of Big Ten Coach of the Year after she led her team to a record of 25-3, an MSU record for wins."
It wasn't too long ago that the MSU women's coach left E Lansing for UM. That gave Joanne her chance. Pretty cool.
The State News - www.statenews.com: "McCallie named Coach of the Year
Haynie, Bowen and Shimek also garner honors
By CHRIS BARSOTTI
MSU head coach Joanne P. McCallie shared the honor of Big Ten Coach of the Year after she led her team to a record of 25-3, an MSU record for wins."
BBC NEWS | Africa | Niger cancels 'free-slave' event
If there was ever a better proof that the US main stream media (MSM) and the UN are corrupt and worthless, it is that you read this on a blog and not on Dan Rather or the Chronicle front page.
BBC NEWS Africa Niger cancels 'free-slave' event: "Niger cancels 'free-slave' event
The government of Niger has cancelled at the last minute a special ceremony during which at least 7,000 slaves were to be granted their freedom.
A spokesman for the government's human rights commission, which had helped to organise the event, said this was because slavery did not exist. "
BBC NEWS Africa Niger cancels 'free-slave' event: "Niger cancels 'free-slave' event
The government of Niger has cancelled at the last minute a special ceremony during which at least 7,000 slaves were to be granted their freedom.
A spokesman for the government's human rights commission, which had helped to organise the event, said this was because slavery did not exist. "
Don't forget, he was the only GOPer convicted in the .....
..... billion dollar Keating/Saving & Loan scandal in the 80s. He took dirty money in the past. He's back to his old tricks.
boortz.com: Nealz Nuze Today's Nuze: "JOHN MCCAIN UNDER FIRE
If you listen closely, you just might hear the sound of John McCain's 2008 presidential hopes slipping into the ether. Maybe not entirely...after all, many other Senators have done worse, including The Poodle. At any rate, this bit of scandal seems to involve an area where the saintly John McCain was thought to be untouchable: dirty campaign contributions. Here's the deal:
Cablevision is a large cable company that wants the federal government to require cable operators to offer channels on an a la carte basis. For those of you educated in government schools, that means being able to buy individual channels, as opposed to an entire package. So, for instance, if you have no interest in sports or cooking or whatever, you wouldn't have to buy those channels. Most cable operators are opposed to the idea, except Cablevision. Enter John McCain.
Cablevision made a $200,000 donation to a tax-exempt group that McCain co-founded. A bit odd, isn't it, that at that very same time McCain was pushing Cablevision's cause with federal regulators. McCain says he was in favor of a la carte channel pricing before Cablevision donated the money, and he says he wasn't directly involved in the group that took the money. Draw your own conclusions.
Is it influence peddling? Maybe. Time will tell. There will no doubt be an investigation. By the way...that's not a bad idea...being able to buy individual channels. After all, why should you be forced to pay for Animal Planet if you don't watch it? And while we're at it .. they ought to pay US to watch all of those government access channels."
boortz.com: Nealz Nuze Today's Nuze: "JOHN MCCAIN UNDER FIRE
If you listen closely, you just might hear the sound of John McCain's 2008 presidential hopes slipping into the ether. Maybe not entirely...after all, many other Senators have done worse, including The Poodle. At any rate, this bit of scandal seems to involve an area where the saintly John McCain was thought to be untouchable: dirty campaign contributions. Here's the deal:
Cablevision is a large cable company that wants the federal government to require cable operators to offer channels on an a la carte basis. For those of you educated in government schools, that means being able to buy individual channels, as opposed to an entire package. So, for instance, if you have no interest in sports or cooking or whatever, you wouldn't have to buy those channels. Most cable operators are opposed to the idea, except Cablevision. Enter John McCain.
Cablevision made a $200,000 donation to a tax-exempt group that McCain co-founded. A bit odd, isn't it, that at that very same time McCain was pushing Cablevision's cause with federal regulators. McCain says he was in favor of a la carte channel pricing before Cablevision donated the money, and he says he wasn't directly involved in the group that took the money. Draw your own conclusions.
Is it influence peddling? Maybe. Time will tell. There will no doubt be an investigation. By the way...that's not a bad idea...being able to buy individual channels. After all, why should you be forced to pay for Animal Planet if you don't watch it? And while we're at it .. they ought to pay US to watch all of those government access channels."
Yes Virginia....
... there is a Santa Claus. Here is a great example between the GOPers and the Donkeys. If you want the UN to continue its past "success" vote demo. Georgie wants change.
boortz.com: Nealz Nuze Today's Nuze: "So what makes Bolton such a hard-liner?
He led the charge against the International Criminal Court, referring to the day he withdrew the U.S. signature on the treaty as 'the happiest moment of my government service.' So far, so good. Next, he is being criticized for traveling to South Korea and calling the communist gargoyle of the north, Kim Jong-Il a 'tyrannical dictator' who made North Korea a 'hellish nightmare.' That sounds about right to me! I wonder why it upsets the Euro-wimps so much.
Then there's this quote, another zinger about the UN: 'If the U.N. Secretariat Building in New York lost 10 stories, it wouldn't make a bit of difference.' Truer words have never been spoken. Sounds like just the man the United States needs representing us at the United Nations."
boortz.com: Nealz Nuze Today's Nuze: "So what makes Bolton such a hard-liner?
He led the charge against the International Criminal Court, referring to the day he withdrew the U.S. signature on the treaty as 'the happiest moment of my government service.' So far, so good. Next, he is being criticized for traveling to South Korea and calling the communist gargoyle of the north, Kim Jong-Il a 'tyrannical dictator' who made North Korea a 'hellish nightmare.' That sounds about right to me! I wonder why it upsets the Euro-wimps so much.
Then there's this quote, another zinger about the UN: 'If the U.N. Secretariat Building in New York lost 10 stories, it wouldn't make a bit of difference.' Truer words have never been spoken. Sounds like just the man the United States needs representing us at the United Nations."
Monday, March 07, 2005
Sunday, March 06, 2005
NPR blogging
Here in Muskegon MI (flyover country) I'm watching the PBS presentation of "Broadway's Lost Treasures". It IS excellent. Wonderful TV. Too bad PBS pays no taxes and gets its bandwidth (or whatever they call free access to our television) for free. It still seems to me that if there can be tax-paying, job creating, good old capitalist TV stations that show "Girls gone wild", "Howard Stern", "The Golf Channel" etc. ad nausium, there can be enough support for PBSish programming without my forced tax dollar. But, golly , Patti Lupone is amazing!!!!!
This is what socialism and strong unions get a country.
Somehow, the Chronicle missed this. I hope our governor didn't.
BBC NEWS Business German jobless rate at new record: "The figure of 5.216 million people, or 12.6% of the working-age population, is the highest jobless rate in Europe's biggest economy since the 1930s"
BBC NEWS Business German jobless rate at new record: "The figure of 5.216 million people, or 12.6% of the working-age population, is the highest jobless rate in Europe's biggest economy since the 1930s"
Thursday, March 03, 2005
Wall Street Journal advice on party conversation!
Slow news day for Muskegon. How 'bout some verbal intercourse advice?
DigitalRoom.net has an essay called "How to Win an Argument," and its first bit of advice is "Drink liquor":
Suppose you're at a party and some hotshot intellectual is expounding on the economy of Peru, a subject you know nothing about. If you're drinking some health-fanatic drink like grapefruit juice, you'll hang back, afraid to display your ignorance, while the hotshot entralls [sic] your date. But if you drink several large shots of Jack Daniels, you'll discover you have STRONG VIEWS about the Peruvian economy. You'll be a WEALTH of information. You'll argue forcefully, offering searing insights and possibly upsetting furniture. People will be impressed. Some may leave the room.
The essay concludes with "Compare your opponent to Adolf Hitler":
This is your heavy artillery, for when your opponent is obviously right and you are spectacularly wrong. Bring Hitler up subtly. Say: "That sounds suspiciously like something Adolf Hitler might say" or "You certainly do remind me of Adolf Hitler."
OpinionJournal - Best of the Web Today: "
DigitalRoom.net has an essay called "How to Win an Argument," and its first bit of advice is "Drink liquor":
Suppose you're at a party and some hotshot intellectual is expounding on the economy of Peru, a subject you know nothing about. If you're drinking some health-fanatic drink like grapefruit juice, you'll hang back, afraid to display your ignorance, while the hotshot entralls [sic] your date. But if you drink several large shots of Jack Daniels, you'll discover you have STRONG VIEWS about the Peruvian economy. You'll be a WEALTH of information. You'll argue forcefully, offering searing insights and possibly upsetting furniture. People will be impressed. Some may leave the room.
The essay concludes with "Compare your opponent to Adolf Hitler":
This is your heavy artillery, for when your opponent is obviously right and you are spectacularly wrong. Bring Hitler up subtly. Say: "That sounds suspiciously like something Adolf Hitler might say" or "You certainly do remind me of Adolf Hitler."
OpinionJournal - Best of the Web Today: "
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
Iraq/Iwo Perspective
Vodkapundit reminds us of some specifics about our history and how it repeats itself. Well done!
Vodkapundit - Perspective: "Iwo gave us the uplifting vision of the Marines hoisting the flag on enemy soil. Iraq gave us the uplifting vision of eight million first-time voters planting the flag of freedom on their own soil."
Inducements offered for downtown home-buyers
If "homes in downtown (Muskegon) are a great investment right now" why do we need to spend tax dollars to induce folks to buy them? The problem for Michigan in general and Muskegon in particular is our high tax rates and wasted tax dollars on programs like this. People and businesses will stop leaving Muskegon when Muskegon provides an incentive to stay that does not involve "freebees" that aren't free. Like good schools, low crime rates, low taxes, low cost of doing business and a business friendly local government.
Inducements offered for downtown home-buyers:
"Homes in downtown Muskegon are a great investment right now,' program manager Jessica Elsey said. 'The neighborhood is full of beautiful historic and modern homes that are undervalued in the current real estate market.'"
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