Snow Blankets London for Global Warming debate

Article from The Register.

Snow fell as the House of Commons debated Global Warming yesterday - the first October fall in the metropolis since 1922. The Mother of Parliaments was discussing the Mother of All Bills for the last time, in a marathon six hour session.

In order to combat a projected two degree centigrade rise in global temperature, the Climate Change Bill pledges the UK to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 80 per cent by 2050. The bill was receiving a third reading, which means both the last chance for both democratic scrutiny and consent.

Here's a very interesting bit.

Recently the American media has begun to notice the odd incongruity of saturation media coverage here which insists that global warming is both man-made and urgent, and a British public which increasingly doubts either to be true. 60 per cent of the British population now doubt the influence of humans on climate change, and more people than not think Global Warming won't be as bad "as people say".

Both figures are higher than a year ago - and the poll was taken before the non-summer of 2008, and the (latest) credit crisis.

Where did those numbers come from? I've certainly never heard them reported.

It was 90 minutes before anyone broke the liturgy of virtue. When Peter Lilley, in amazement, asked why there hadn't been a cost/benefit analysis made of such a major change in policy, he was told to shut up by the Deputy Speaker.

They can't argue with facts, so they just try to shut you up.

Read the whole thing.

Luke, I jam your father

Yes, it's the Darth Vader breakfast toaster!

Preorder now!

Thanks to The Register for the heads up.

Prayer for our Government

Michelle Malkin reminds us of a prayer from the Book of Common Prayer especially poignant today.

ALMIGHTY God, who hast given us this good land for our heritage; We humbly beseech thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of thy favour and glad to do thy will.

Bless our land with honourable industry, sound learning, and pure manners.

Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogancy, and from every evil way.

Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues.

Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in thy Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that, through obedience to thy law, we may show forth thy praise among the nations of the earth.

In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in thee to fail; all which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Amen, indeed.

'Gay' Pledge Cards Given to Kindergartners

'Gay' Pledge Cards Given to Kindergartners from FoxNews.com

During a celebration of National Ally Week, Tara Miller, a teacher at the Faith Ringgold School of Arts and Science in Hayward, Calif., passed out cards produced by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network to her class of kindergartners.

The cards asked signers to be "an ally" and to pledge to "not use anti-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) language or slurs; intervene, when I feel I can, in situations where others are using anti-LGBT language or harassing other students and actively support safer schools efforts."

And people wondered why we home schooled for so long.

Well at least...

The school has acknowledged that the exercise was not appropriate for kindergartners.
...
The district said the pledge cards were intended for middle school and high school students.

So much for good intentions. Does the typical Kindergartner even understand what the work "intervene" means, much less the sexual classifications on this card?

Read the whole thing.

Free outgoing fax

A friend just told me about a free service to send a fax. faxZERO.com

It limits you to sending 2 faxes a day of 3 pages each. And it does send a cover page in front with the faxZERO information on it.

You can type in text, or upload a Word document or PDF file.

But for the occasional need to send the occasional fax, this could be just the ticket.

Just another fake scam e-mail, right?

Dear American:

I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship with a transfer of funds of great magnitude.

I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of 800 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it would be most profitable to you.

I am working with Mr. Phil Gram, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my replacement as Ministry of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation movement in the 1990s. This transaction is 100% safe.

This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the funds can be transferred.

Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov so that we may transfer your commission for this transaction. After I receive that information, I will respond with detailed information about safeguards that will be used to protect the funds.

Yours Faithfully Minister of Treasury
Henry Paulson

Thanks to L.A. Land blog.

An Obama Endorsement I can endorse

Scrappleface has endorsed Obama

Rarely has one man so captivated a nation with his readiness to prepare to serve.

That’s why the editorial board at ScrappleFace, on behalf of the vast editorial staff, today endorses Barack Obama for the office of junior senator from Illinois.

Satire folks. Satire.

Read the whole thing.

The Dems on Freddie and Fannie - 5 years ago

The Wall Street Journal has put together a collection of quotes from Democrats from 2003 when they were blocking all attempts to try increase regulation of Freddie and Fannie. McCain and Bush were both trying to get more oversight in place.

Here's a precious example.

Rep. Frank: I do think I do not want the same kind of focus on safety and soundness that we have in OCC [Office of the Comptroller of the Currency] and OTS [Office of Thrift Supervision]. I want to roll the dice a little bit more in this situation towards subsidized housing. . . .

Read the whole thing.

Thanks to Betsy's Page for the pointer.

SNL Bailout Skit

NOTE: SNL posts all it's skits on hulu. But for some reason, it has pulled this one that made fun of Pelosi, Frank and Bush, as well as some "beneficiaries" of the so called bail out. All the anti-Palin bits are still posted, however.

Kinda makes you go hmmmmmmmmmmm....

You can read the full transcripts and see screenshots at MichelleMalkin.com

Update: SNL rewriting bailout skit, “didn’t meet their standards“

Original Post ------------------------------------

This is actually pretty good.

Make sure and read the titles of the people on the bottle of the screen.

Sarah Palin as David (vs. Goliath)

I'm sure many have thought of the Vice Presidential debate as a David vs. Goliath event. Particularly the 60% don't think that Gov. Palin has "the experience it takes to serve effectively as president."

Mark Joseph takes that analogy even further in a FoxNews opinion piece.

He starts by talking about King Saul's reaction to David's offer to fight the giant.

Saul is bemused by the teenager who has no chance against the giant, but he consents and immediately gives him the appropriate gear, a heavy protective outfit worn to battle, known as a "coat of mail," along with the king's sword.

David, Scriptures imply, was physically overwhelmed by the get-up and barely able to move. Telling the king thanks but no thanks, the young shepherd boy threw off the gear and proceeded to gather stones found by a brook in his slingshot, which he used to fell the giant.

Not unlike the young shepherd boy, the best thing Sarah Palin can do in the remaining hours before she faces her own Goliath in the form of a tough, smart senator with three decades of experience, and the best thing the McCain campaign can do for her, is to let her rid herself of her coat of mail — the overzealous handlers — and let Palin run wild and be the natural, untamed politician she is.

David spent his youth battling bears and lions, but he knew nothing about battle. His victory came when he was freed of the then-modern tools of battle and allowed to bring his native skills, cultivated in the wild, to a battle for which he was by all accounts not trained for.

Palin's political skills are the equivalent of David's battle skills, honed in the Alaskan wilderness where she operated as her nickname "Barracuda" suggests, ruthlessly defeating opponents who crossed her (including her own mother-in-law, who ran for mayor after Palin) and political mentors who she thought had become corrupt (Gov. Frank Murkowski).

If that Palin shows up at Thursday night's debate, it will because she dismisses the advisers, trusts her instincts, regains her confidence and remembers where her success came from.

Read the whole thing.

Bailout Fails, Mandatory Sunrise Bill Falters

Gotta love Scrappleface!

“The sun will come out tomorrow,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-CA, “but only if Congress takes action now to eliminate uncertainty.”

Conservatives in Congress immediately expressed reluctance to support the Mandatory Sunrise Act, noting that government intervention is unlikely to have the intended effect, and could produce many unintended, and unpredictable consequences.

Why $700 Billion?

According for Forbes.com:

In fact, some of the most basic details, including the $700 billion figure Treasury would use to buy up bad debt, are fuzzy.

"It's not based on any particular data point," a Treasury spokeswoman told Forbes.com Tuesday. "We just wanted to choose a really large number."

Read the entire article.

Thanks to Michelle Malkin, who linked to the LA Times Blog who dug this little nugget out.

Fox News analyzes:

But why $700 billion? Why not $500 billion? Or $1 trillion? And why hasn’t anyone explained that price tag?

No one seems to know.

The number is even more confusing given that one of the reasons the U.S. financial system needs bailing out is because no one knows the value of the securities that $700 billion is earmarked for purchasing.

One thing everyone (economists and market participants) agrees on, though: $1 trillion would have been too scary, frightening taxpayers and Congressman alike with the prospect of a bailout of that size. (It turns out $700 billion was too scary, as well. Congress rejected a first draft of the proposal on Monday, sending stock markets plunging.)

And $500 billion might not have been enough purchasing power at a given moment. (The language in the bill says $700 billion "outstanding at any one time.") Congress didn’t want to have to go back to the taxpayers and ask for more if $500 billion had turned out not to be enough.

So $700 billion was just right.

A Vote for Sarah Palin

Here's a really good read about why a Democrat (at least, a former Democrat) will be voting for Sarah Palin and the guy that picked her for vice president.

A Vote for Sarah Palin by Suann Therese Maier

Here are some key paragraphs that I particularly like:

I will vote for Sarah Palin because she has guts. We’ve never met, but I suspect I know something about her life, and so do a great many other women. I know what it means to have a son with Down syndrome. I know what it means to talk a good line about religious faith and then be asked to prove it. I know what it means to have a daughter pregnant and unmarried.

...

I will vote for Sarah Palin because she is intelligent, tenacious and talented. Nobody made her rise easy, and no one is making it easy now. And—is it only moms who notice this?—unlike Senator Biden, she does seem to act consistently on her beliefs about the sanctity of life, at considerable personal cost.

I will vote for Sarah Palin because she doesn’t come from Washington or New York or Chicago or anywhere else the political and media aristoi like to hang out. In fact, I especially like the idea that the state she governs actually produces something—like some of the oil that powers the hair dryers and klieg lights at MSNBC.

Sounds like she might need to get over to the "I am Sarah Palin" store.

Thanks to Michelle Malkin for the link.

Pandora Internet Radio

I've recently started using and enjoying the Pandora internet radio service.

It allows you to pick an artist or group and it will create a radio station of similiar artists/groups. Then it allows you to give thumbs up or down for the additional groups to further sculpt the station to your tastes.

However, increased internet licensing fees are putting the station's fiscal viability into jeopardy. The widget below claims it can help us to help them.'

I honestly don't know what email is sent to where. But I used the other button to create this blog post. 8-{)>

Raed Tihs

Aoccdrnig to rsceearch at an Elingsh uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteers are in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. This is bcuseae we do not raed ervey lteter by itslef but the wrod as a wlohe.

Thanks to Pihl Cokoe for the reminder.

My Five Factor Personality Profile

I'm not sure why I am sharing this. I took the time to take the quiz, I guess I'd just as well post the results.

Your Five Factor Personality Profile

Extroversion: You have low extroversion. You are quiet and reserved in most social situations. A low key, laid back lifestyle is important to you. You tend to bond slowly, over time, with one or two people. Conscientiousness: You have medium conscientiousness. You're generally good at balancing work and play. When you need to buckle down, you can usually get tasks done. But you've been known to goof off when you know you can get away with it. Agreeableness: You have medium agreeableness. You're generally a friendly and trusting person. But you also have a healthy dose of cynicism. You get along well with others, as long as they play fair. Neuroticism: You have low neuroticism. You are very emotionally stable and mentally together. Only the greatest setbacks upset you, and you bounce back quickly. Overall, you are typically calm and relaxed - making others feel secure. Openness to experience: Your openness to new experiences is low. You're a pretty conservative person, and you favor what's socially acceptable. You think that change for novelty's sake is a very bad idea. While some may see this as boring, many see you as dependable and wise.

The Five Factor Personality Test

US judge says University can ignore Christian course credits

I don't even know what to say.

US judge says University can ignore Christian course credits

According to the Reg:

A federal judge has told the University of California that when considering applicants, it has the constitutional right to ignore high school course work grounded in the notion that the Bible is infallible.

...

In a 20-page ruling (pdf) Judge Otero, of the Central District of California, says that UC could reject credits as long as it wasn't acting out of "animus" and it had "a rational basis" for those rejections. And he's quite sure the University met both criteria.

That's nice. He's "quite sure". How many rulings are based on this level of jurisprudence?

One high school course was rejected because its primary text, the Bob Jones University-published United States History for Christian Schools, "failed to adequately teach critical thinking and modern historical analytic methods."

That's also nice. Do they examine all classes from all high school transcripts that closely?

Also, I may have had a very mediocre history teacher in college, but High School U.S. History did not teach me anything about "critical thinking and modern historical analytic methods."

The plaintiffs have already appealed. "It appears the UC is attempting to secularize private religious schools," said their attorney, Jennifer Monk of Advocates for Faith and Freedom. ®

Let's hope they find some sanity up the court food chain. Of course, this is federal court in California. Next stop 9th Circuit Court of Appeals?

No sanity there. Just as well whistle by that stop and go to the final stop with the Supremes.

Read the entire article.

Obama World Tour T-shirts

Michelle Malkin is having a contest to design t-shirts for the Obama World Tour 2008

Several pretty good choices.
Check them all out.

Great idea for energy prices

The New Hampshire Union Leader has the best idea yet on getting a handle on energy prices.

MAYBE THE quickest way to lower oil and gas prices would be this: Immediately enroll every Democratic member of Congress in an entry-level economics class.

The lack of even a basic grasp of economic concepts has led Democrats to oppose sensible policies that would begin to lower oil and gas prices. Instead, they push hair-brained ideas that make no sense.

I'd include most of the Republican members of congress, too. But it's still the best use of our money in controlling energy prices that the government could participate in.

Read the whole thing.
Thanks to Betsy's Page for the link.

Obama: Iran Needs to Know We Mean Talk

Scrappleface strikes again.

“Iran needs to know that our words mean something,” he [Obama] said. “During the Obama administration, our words will mean that we are saying things by combining those words into sentences to express ideas about how we feel, using dramatic phrases and dynamic cadences. Iran must never question our resolve to deliver…speeches.”

While the Bush administration has tried to get allies to unite in applying pressure on Iran to halt its nuclear program, Sen. Obama said he would bring change to American foreign policy by trying to get U.S. allies to unite in applying pressure on Iran to halt its nuclear program.

“It’s a lot different than the Bush approach,” he said, “because in my strategy, there is no Bush.”

Read the whole thing.

Are the ice caps melting?

Probably.

The better question is...

"So what?"

The Register has a good article countering the scare going 'round about the North Pole melting.

Firstly, the story is neither alarming nor unique.

In the August 29, 2000 edition of the New York Times, the same NSIDC [National Snow and Ice Data Center] expert, Mark Serreze, said:

"There's nothing to be necessarily alarmed about. There's been open water at the pole before. We have no clear evidence at this point that this is related to global climate change."

During the summer of 2000 there was "a large body of ice-free water about 10 miles long and 3 miles wide near the pole". Also in 2000, Dr Claire Parkinson at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center was quoted as saying: "The fact of having no ice at the pole is not so stunning."

Secondly, the likelihood of the North Pole being ice free this summer is actually quite slim. There are only a few weeks left where the sun is high enough to melt ice at the North Pole. The sun is less than 23 degrees above the horizon, and by mid-August will be less than 15 degrees above it. Temperatures in Greenland have been cold this summer, and winds are not favorable for a repeat. Currently, there is about one million km² more ice than there was on this date last summer.

Read the whole article

French gear up for biofuels retreat

It appears that even the EU is seeing the folly of mandating burning our food for fuel. From The Register:

The French are leading a retreat from the EU’s increasingly out of whack biofuel policy yesterday....

Brussels' target was for the EU to satisfy 10 per cent of its transport fuel needs with renewables such as biofuels by 2020.
...
The policy has been blamed for deforestation and a scaling back of food production in favour of fuel crops, pushing commodity prices through the roof and contributing to shortages worldwide that are already resulting in food riots in many developing countries.

And it's not just France.

Italy has already criticized the rush to biofuels, while the UK will produce a review of the UK’s biofuels policy is due this week.

Here's the fun part of the story:

It seems the only person happy with the rush to biofuels is Prince Charles, who, it has emerged, has switched his fleet of cars over to biofuels at a cost of £5,000.

His “green” stable of top notch autos run on a variety of fuels. The Jags, Range Rovers and an Audi all run on cooking oil. His Aston Martin apparently runs on surplus “English” wine, which is likely to be the one biofuel the French and Italians will come out in support of.

An Aston Marton that runs on surplus "English" wine. Now that's a biofuel I'll bet even the French support!
Read the whole article a The Register.

More on Chuck's fleet including the Vinomobile from FoxNews.com

(Note: Still posting about cars, not politics. :) )

Transformer - First Step?

Is BMW taking the first steps towards making Trans- formers a reality?

According to Fox News:

Instead of a metal or plastic body, BMW's latest concept, the GINA Light Visionary Model, drapes a flexible fabric material over a moveable wire mesh frame, creating a nearly seamless surface that can alter its form at the whim of the driver.

If you're feeling frisky, you can raise the tail like an angry dog, bulge the fenders as if you've injected them with steroids and reshape the sides of the car to transform it from a sleek roadster into an intimidating racer.

Full story.
Video of GINA in action.

(See, I told you I was tired of politics.)

The Difference

Got this in an email and thought it was pretty good.

Campaign burnout

I am so tired of this extended campaign process.

Who's ready to just vote?

Is anyone serious about their politics going to change their vote between now and November?

Pray for the Chapmans

Steven Curtis Chapman's 5 year old daughter, Maria (the one in his lap in this picture) was struck and killed by a vehicle in their driveway.

To compound the tragedy, one of Steven's sons was driving the vehicle and evidently didn't see her.

Please keep this whole family, especially the son, in your prayers.

Thanks to FoxNews for the story.

Groucho on politics

Groucho Marx on politics:

Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies.

T-shirts and mugs available.

Of course, as Prof. Wagstaff in Horsefeathers, he sang this memorable song:

I don't know what they have to say
It makes no difference anyway
Whatever it is, I'm against it.
No matter what it is or who commenced it, I'm against it!

Your proposition may be good
But let's have one thing understood:
Whatever it is, I'm against it.
And even when you've changed it or condensed it, I'm against it!

For months before my son was born
I used to yell from night till morn:
Whatever it is, I'm against it!
And I've kept yelling since I've first commenced it, I'm against it.

Thanks to Michelle Malkin for the link to the first quote.

Sweet Sorghum Ethanol

I'm not sure whose brilliant idea it was to start burning corn in our gas tanks. But I'll bet "Big Corn" was involved. You know the old carnard, "Follow the money."

Other alternatives are popping up which appear much better.

CNSNews.com reports today that sweet sorghum might just be one of those better choices.

Ethanol made from the stalk's juice has four times the energy yield of the corn-based ethanol.... Sweet sorghum produces about eight units of energy for every unit of energy used in its production. That's about the same as sugarcane but four times as much as corn.

One of the big advantages is that the grain is still harvested as grain. Then the stalks are turned into ethanol. I'm not sure how the market would react to a glut of sorghum grain on the market, but it's got to be better than what's happened with all this corn coming out of the food market.

And I'll bet the reaction to a sorghum syrup shortage wouldn't be near what the reaction has been to corn syrup supply dwindling.

Also, the article reports that in southern climates, you can grow two crops of sorghum per season and you don't have to plant the second crop. It comes up volunteer.

Of course, any acres put toward fuel production are acres that won't be used for food production, so it's not necessarily a panacea. But it might be more sane than corn ethanol. (That wouldn't take much.)

Check out the whole story.

Obamatopia

This is too good not to pass on.



Thanks to UCBcomedy for the clip and
Reformed Chicks Blabbing for the link.

Leer Jet Liberals

UK's Daily Mail has an article "You hippy-crites! When it comes to saving the planet do celebrities practise what they preach?"

These leer jet liberals are of the "Do as I say, not as I do" school of saving the planet.

It seems to be concentrating on movie and music stars, so it omits such stellar US politcal examples, such as Al Gore and Barak H. Obama.

Thanks to Michelle Malkin for the link.

Which is worse? Making up Bible verses or pulling them out of context?

I've discussed previously Nancy Pelosi's made up scripture reference. And that's a pretty bad thing.

But now I think we've got something worse in the public square. Rev. Wright, Obama's former pastor, was at the National Press club taking questions.

Here's the bit that I'm referring to:

“Question: Jesus said I am the way, the truth, and the light. Is Islam the way to salvation?”

Wright: Jesus also said “other sheep I have, which are not of this fold.”

After Nancy's episode, I doubted this was in the Bible. But, sure enough, that's what John 10:16a says.

However, the full verse is

I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.

John 10:16 (NIV)

So, does that mean that Jesus said Muslims are also on their way to salvation? Look at the rest of the verse: "They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd."

The Muslims, as least the radical Islamists, are interested in there being only one flock and one shepherd. But they are not listening to Jesus' voice nor are they interested in joining His flock.

So, no, Rev. Wright. That part of a verse pulled out of context does not mean that Islam is the way or even a way to salvation.

And thanks to Michelle Malkin for liveblogging the event.

Obama Calls Elitist Charge 'Gauche' and 'Droll'

Gotta love satire.

Scrappleface is "reporting" that Obama Calls Elitist Charge 'Gauche' and 'Droll'

“First of all, it’s très gauche and a bit bourgeois to banter about elitism at all,” said Sen. Obama, “It simply isn’t done in polite society — not among my chums from Harvard Law School or Columbia University, and certainly not in the Senate cloak room or the finer salons.”

Read the whole thing.

Nancy Pelosi - Old Testament scholar (NOT!)

According to CNSNews, Nancy Pelosi quoted the Old Testament in her Earth Day Declaration.

"The Bible tells us in the Old Testament, 'To minister to the needs of God's creation is an act of worship. To ignore those needs is to dishonor the God who made us.' On this Earth Day, and every day, let us honor the earth and our future generations with a commitment to fight climate change."
(Read the whole article)

This interested me for several reasons. What happened to the separation of church and state? How does Nancy Pelosi know so much about the Old Testament?

The last question took me to BibleGateway.com to see where that passage was located. After several searches with various combinations of words and in different versions, I came up empty.

So I searched Google for the direct quotation. It turns out that this is not the first time she has used this "quote". The Pelosi Op-ed on Dr. Martin Luther King Day contains the same words. I also found it in an October 2007 interview with Tavis Smiley. (No, I am not making that name up!) She even used the same quote in her Earth Day 2007 statement, the budget bill in 2005 debate and, evidently, her Christmas 2005 statement.

Same exact quote. And that was just on the first page of Google hits.

I also found the blog of Dr. Claude Mariottini - Professor of Old Testament, who confirmed my suspicions.

These are touching words. This biblical admonition is very important and highly relevant to the pressing issue of global warming.

Too bad this biblical admonition is not in the Old Testament.
(entire blog entry)

Thank you Dr. Mariottini (and others found in the Google search).

And I guess my questions about mixing church and state aren't a concern here. Unless you count the made up religion of environmentalism.

Cheney admits global warming!

Last night at the Radio & Television Correspondents Dinner, Vice-President Cheney has the following starling revelation:

Speaking of Vice President Gore, I'm sorry to relate that he's a little bit sore at me. He's convinced that, on global warming, I just don't get it. But lately with every passing day, the evidence has been catching my attention. I have no doubt, none at all, that we are in the midst of a global warming, or as I prefer to call it, spring. And I don't want to sound like an alarmist, but it's going to get a lot warmer before it gets cooler.

He also got a in good one on Hillary

And you in the press need to go easy on Senator Clinton on the whole business about running and ducking from gunfire in Bosnia. She made an honest mistake. She confused the Bosnia trip with the time I took her hunting.

Read the whole thing at RealClearPolitics.

Yemeni girl, 8, gets divorce after forced marriage

I am not a huge fan of divorce. In fact, I feel pretty much as God does:

Malachi 2:16a
"I hate divorce," says the LORD God of Israel...

However, I understand that sometimes it's necessary.

This looks like one of those times.

Yemeni girl, 8, gets divorce after forced marriage

A Yemeni court on Tuesday granted a divorce to an eight-year-old girl whose unemployed father forced her into an arranged marriage this year, saying he feared she might be kidnapped.

"I am happy that I am divorced now. I will be able to go back to school," Nojud Mohammed Ali said, after a public hearing in Sanaa's court of first instance.

Her former husband, 28-year-old Faez Ali Thameur, said he married the child "with her consent and that of her parents" but that he did not object to her divorce petition.

In response to a question from Judge Mohammed al-Qadhi, he acknowledged that the "marriage was consummated, but I did not beat her."

(Full Story)

...sigh...

Thanks to Foxnews.com for the link.

Study: Prayer No Guarantee Against Adultery

Foxnews.com is reporting, "Study: Prayer No Guarantee Against Adultery"

Evidently just belief and prayer aren't enough.

Attendance at religious services is the only faith-related activity that predicts improved chances of fidelity in marriage, according to the research.

Other factors, including prayer, were found to have no unique bearing, statistically, on whether couples fooled around on each other.

In fact, those who said religion was very important to them but who didn't get to church often were more likely than others in the study to have had an affair.

Survey participants who rarely if ever attend services were about four times more likely to have had an affair compared to those who attend services with great frequency.

So, sure, you can worship God on the golf course as much as you can at church. But you are missing out on teaching, fellowship and accountability that comes with regular church attendance.

Looks like Paul had this one right:

Hebrews 10:25
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

"Religion of Peace" declares war on Rome

OK. Not quite. But pretty much.

But according to Foxnews.com, "Hamas Cleric Predicts 'Rome Will Be Conquered by Islam'"

The fiery sermon, delivered by Yunis al-Astal and aired on Hamas' Al-Aqsa TV, predicted that Rome would become "an advanced post for the Islamic conquests, which will spread though Europe in its entirety, and then will turn to the two Americas, even Eastern Europe."

"Allah has chosen you for Himself and for His religion," al-Astal preached, "so that you will serve as the engine pulling this nation to the phase of succession, security and consolidation of power, and even to conquests through da'wa and military conquests of the capitals of the entire world.

"Very soon, Allah willing, Rome will be conquered, just like Constantinople was, as was prophesized by our prophet Muhammad," he added.

Later...

Today, Rome is the capital of the Catholics, or the Crusader capital, which has declared its hostility to Islam, and has planted the brothers of apes and pigs in Palestine in order to prevent the reawakening of Islam.

Yeah. These guys are ready for peace. Glad Jimmy's going over there to give the process a hand.

ChurchMedia.net Convention 2008

This year, I will once again be attending the ChurchMedia.net conference.

For me, it's a lot about fellowship with the folks I hang around with electronically over at ChurchMedia.net.

But there are many classes and general sessions to help you improve your skills and get fired up.

If you are involved in any aspect of sound, graphics or video at your church, consider joining us in Dallas, June 24-27. Or sign up for the virtual convention and watch online!

Some of the best training you can get for the money.

Jimmy Carter to Meet With Hamas

Jimmy Carter to Meet With Hamas

Former President Jimmy Carter is reportedly preparing an unprecedented meeting with the leader of Hamas, an organization that the U.S. government considers one of the leading terrorist threats in the world.

Questions.

1. Why is he doing this?
2. Why is he allowed doing this?
3. Why is it news that he's doing this?

As Reformed Chicks Blabbing opined:

I can't really see meeting with these guys because they have been honest about never recognizing Israel, so what would be the point? He really does live up to his reputation of being the worst president in the history of this nation.

Creation Day

There is a movement afoot on the internet, to have Earth Day become the day we celebrate the creation of the Earth and call it Creation Day.

A day to celebrate our Creative God and His incredible work of this creation sound like a worthwhile cause to me.

So on your calendars, go to April 22, strike off Earth Day and write in Creation Day.

'Millennials' show respect for values

Some good news that you probably won't see reported in the main stream media.

The Washington Times is reporting on some findings of J. Walter Thompson, the nation's largest advertising agency (according to that article).

Thompson surveyed 1250 adults and found some interesting results for the "millennials" -- those between 21 and 29 (inclusively, I'm guessing) .

Among the findings

• 94% respect monogamy
• 94% respect parenthood
• 84% revere marriage
• 88% respect the US Constitution
• > 75% believe in the proverial "American dream"
• < 25% have any respect for Hollywood
  

This must have been a very interesting sample.

Additionally

• 15% live with their parents
• 25% live with their spouse and child(ren)
• 18% with their spouse
• 19% with a partner
• 15% alone
• 8% with a roommate

Only 19% with a partner compared to 40% married and living with their spouse. Hardly the "shacking up" generation we all keep hearing about.

Read the whole article.

And thanks to Betsy's Page for the link.

Babies - Miracles or Punishment?

Barack can't seem to make up his mind if babies are a miracle or a punishment.

According to Ben Smith at Policito, a lady stood up at towards the end of a town hall meeting and offered a hurried, passionate plea for Obama to "stop these abortions."

First, Obama responds with

This is a very difficult issue, and I understand sort of the passions on both sides of the issue," he said. "I have two precious daughters — they are miracles."

Then he wraps up with

"I am going to teach them first about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don't want them punished with a baby. I don't want them punished with an STD at age 16, so it doesn't make sense to not give them information."

So, are babies a miracle? Or a punishment equivalent with getting an STD?

Read the rest

Thanks to Michelle Malkin for the link.

Man fatally shoots wife while installing satellite TV system

Sorry I haven't posted for a while.

This article really caught my eye however:

Man fatally shoots wife while installing satellite TV system

Patsy D. Long, 34, of Deepwater, was pronounced dead early Saturday evening after being shot in the chest with a .22-caliber handgun. Her husband, Ronald Long, fired the shot from the inside of their home after several unsuccessful efforts to punch a hole through the exterior wall using other means.

The woman, who was outside the house, was hit by the second of two shots fired by Ronald Long, the Henry County Sheriff’s Department said.

No. I am not making this up.

Read the rest.

Thanks to Reformed Chicks Blabbing for the link.

R.I.P. Larry Norman

From LarryNorman.com

Our friend and my wonderful brother Larry passed away at 2:45 Sunday morning [February 24, 2008]. Kristin and I were with him, holding his hands and sitting in bed with him when his heart finally slowed to a stop. We spent this past week laughing, singing, and praying with him, and all the while he had us taking notes on new song ideas and instructions on how to continue his ministry and art.

Larry was a real ground breaker. It's tragic what happened to him later in life (and I'm not even sure what happened to him).

But he really opened a lot of doors for Jesus Rock and a lot of minds to what church should be about.

And dared to ask the question, Why should the Devil have all the good music?

Rest in piece Larry, in the arms of your Loving Father. I hope you found the peace that eluded you in the later years of your life.

You are no longer "Only Visiting This Planet", you are now "In Another Land".

Update:
Interview on NPR with Larry's brother, Charles.
Entertainment Weekly article

Thanks to Dan Roth of ChurchMedia.net for the links.

Patients left in ambulances for up to FIVE hours

Oh yeah. I'm just thrilled by the prospect of universal health care.

From the U.K by way of the DailyMail

Seriously ill patients are being kept in ambulances outside hospitals for hours so NHS trusts do not miss Government targets.

Thousands of people a year are having to wait outside accident and emergency departments because trusts will not let them in until they can treat them within four hours, in line with a Labour pledge.

The hold-ups mean ambulances are not available to answer fresh 999 calls.

(read the rest)

Looks like the law of unintended consequences coming home to roost.

Hat tip to Reformed Chicks Blabbing for the link.

Are you looking for change?

Are you looking for change?

Look no further than the First Citiwide Change bank

[ SUPER: "When you do only one thing, you do it better" ]

Customer #1: I needed to take the bus, but all I had was a five-dollar bill. I stopped by First Citiwide, and they were able to give me four singles and four quarters.

[ SUPER: "At First Citiwide Change Bank, We just make change" ]

Bank Representative: We will work with the customer to give that customer the change that he or she needs. If you come to us with a twenty-dollar bill, we can give you two tens, we can give you four fives - we can give you a ten and two fives. We will work with you.

Customer #2: I went to my First Citiwide branch to change a fifty. I guess I was in kind of a hurry, and I asked for a twenty, a ten, and two fives. Their computers picked up my mistake right away, and I got the correct change.

[ SUPER: "Correct Change" ]

Bank Representative: We have been in this business a long time. With our experience, we're gonna have ideas for change combinations that probably haven't occurred to you. If you have a fifty-dollar bill, we can give you fifty singles. [ SUPER: "We can give you fifty singles" ] We can give you forty-nine singles and ten dimes. We can give you twenty-five twos. Come talk to us. [ SUPER: "We can give you twenty-five twos" ] We are not going to give you change that you don't want. If you come to us with a hundred-dollar bill, we're not going to give you two-thousand nickels.. [ SUPER: "We're not going to give you two thousand nickels" ] - unless that meets your particular change needs. We will give you.. the change.. equal to.. the amount of money.. that you want change for!

[ SUPER: "At First Citiwide Change Bank, Our business is making change" ]

Bank Representative: That's what we do.

SNLScripts First Citiwide Change Bank I
SNLScripts First Citiwide Change Bank II

And hat tip to Michelle Malkin for the link.

Bill Clinton in Madison, WI

Bill Clinton will be speaking at the UW Stock Pavilions today.

At least they should have the equipment to clean up after he's done speaking. :rolleyes:

Presidential Election: What's important

When you line up McCain next to either of the Democrat choices, there may not be as many differences as many of us would like. But there is one big one and Oliver North puts it quite well:

The election in November will determine how we proceed on the most profoundly important matter facing our nation: the crucial outcome of an unprovoked war waged against us by radical Islam. All other issues, as important as they are, pale in comparison to achieving victory over those who seek to destroy our very way of life.

Mr. McCain has pledged to win this war. We must do so, for the consequences of failure would be staggering. But, as he has acknowledged, he cannot do that without the support of conservatives who man the phone banks, raise the funds, walk the precincts and turn out the vote on Election Day. I hope my fellow conservatives will decide as I have, that we need John McCain as commander in chief.

Read the entire editorial.

And thanks to the John Gibson radio show for having Oliver North on to discuss this.

McCain Nose Plugs

Many are saying that it's time to unite and support McCain as the presumptive Republican nominee. I'm pretty sure I have to agree.

Harry Reid said the possibility of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) becoming president "sends a cold chill down my spine." (credit CNSNews.) That's a pretty strong endorsement in my book.

For those of us, ...uhh, less than enthusiastic about a McCain presidency, The People's Cube has come up with McCain Noseplugs to wear to the voting booths in November.

Thanks to Michelle Malkin for the pointer.

McCain and Judicial Nominees

One of the most important considerations when considering a presidential candidate is what type of Supreme Court nominees they will appoint. A Wall Street Journal editorial agrees.

On Jan. 20, 2009, six of the nine Supreme Court justices will be over 70. Most of them could be replaced by the next president, particularly if he or she is re-elected. Given the prospect of accelerating gains in modern medical technology, some of the new justices may serve for half a century. Even if a more perfect candidate were somehow elected in 2012, he would not be able to undo the damage, especially to the Supreme Court.

We'll lay aside the irony of them endorsing a man because of the number of Supreme Court justices who will be over 70, when their endorsee will be 72 when he takes the oath of office.
Let's consider what factors might play into a McCain choice for a Supreme Court Justice.

The Gang of 14. McCain was a main instigator of creating the gang of 14 senators who agreed to vote for or against judges en masse. This basically took the "advice and consent" role of the Senate in nominating judges and justices and gave to power to decide which nominees would get an up or down vote in the senate to 14 Senators. This doesn't necessarily reflect on how what kind of nominees he will nominate. But it does show how he feels about constitutional processes.

McCain-Feingold Campaign Refinance act. McCain points to this as one of his big successes in the senate, to try to minimize the influence of money in politics. Any reasonable assessment of campaigns since the law was enacted show at least as much money in the mix, if not more. However, this has come up for scrutiny to the Supreme Court. Some (including me) consider the bill an assault on the first amendments. McCain will likely support justices that will not overturn McCain-Feingold.

Federal Election Commision v. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc. This is one such case challenging McCain-Feingold that came before the Supreme Court. McCain filed an "amicus curiae" brief in support of the FEC and, therefore, against Wisconsin Right to Life. That means he agrees with Breyer, Souter, Ginsberg and Stevens, who sided with the FEC on this case. It is reasonable to assume, then, that these are the types of justices he would look for.

John Fund, also of the Wall Street Journal, wrote:

Mr. McCain has told conservatives he would be happy to appoint the likes of Chief Justice John Roberts to the Supreme Court. But he indicated he might draw the line on a Samuel Alito, because "he wore his conservatism on his sleeve."

McCain says he doesn't remember saying that phrase and are happy with both. He did not stand against either nomination in the Senate.

And I'm not sure where that leaves us. Do we take him at his word and what he promises he will do? Or do we judge him by his actions so far?

Another Grief Observed

The range of emotions and comments that arise when a saint passes from this world to the next has always intrigued me. C. S. Lewis wrote an entire book on his grieving process.

It's an interesting conundrum. Even when taken "before their time", a Christian is in a better place and much better off.

However, we need to mourn for our loss. In most cases, they will be sorely missed. And we need to acknowledge and deal with the hole that is left.

I remember the strange mix of feelings that came when my parents passed on. When Dad went on, I was grateful and relieved that he was no longer trapped in that decaying body. But I felt sharp pangs for my mother, as she would no longer have him at her side after more than 45 years together.

When Mom went on, I felt the same relief that she was shed of that cancer-ridden body AND that she would not be missing Dad anymore. But I was disappointed that my kids would grow up without their Grandma Muriel. And kids deserve a great grandma (like she was) to soften up some of the hard edges of life.

What brought all this to mind is a recent blog by Del Tackett of The Truth Project. Del's dad recently passed on and it is amazing to see the balance between the loss felt by a son and the faith of a Christian that relies on truth rather than emotion for the foundation of their faith.

Del went to pick up his father's ashes and was struck with a wave of emotion and asked for some privacy in the chapel.

I felt so alone. And for a moment, I was a little boy needing the comforting presence of his dad. But all I had was a box of ashes. No hand on my shoulder. No silent nod that said "Don’t worry, son...I’m right here." Could this really be happening to a guy who is already a grandfather himself?

For a brief moment, the emptiness and the emotion gave birth to the question...is this it? Is this all there really is? Is this the end of my dad? A box of ashes?

That’s when I began to smile. Because truth trumps emotion...truth shatters despair and exposes the lie of hopelessness. My smile became a soft chuckle.

No...this is not the end of my dad.

...

I will deeply miss my dad, and I do not doubt that there are days ahead when I will feel that loss. But something happened yesterday that I am thankful for. Counselors call it "closure". I call it a dose of reality. But not a cold reality...it was a warming reality...a smile in the midst of the tears...a confidence that knows "Where, O death, is your victory?"

Read the whole thing.

And thanks, Del, for sharing this incredibly personal moment.

John McCain wins Florida.

I wanted to pass on a few quotes about John McCain and his win in Florida and his possible nomination.

Ann Coulter (Human Events) says of John McCain

John McCain is Bob Dole minus the charm, conservatism and youth.

John Hood (NRO) says of a McCain victory:

I’d say we are seeing the return of the Republican party of Teddy Roosevelt, Richard Nixon, and Gerald Ford. The Republican party of Ronald Reagan and Newt Gingrich will sit on the sidelines for a bit, perhaps to rest up for the next game.

I'd really hate to see the Ronald Reagan wing of the Republican party have to sit out for a while. And I shutter to think what kind of legislation will be passed with McCain in the White House and the Democrats still controlling the house and senate. Anyone remember McCain-Feingold? McCain-Kennedy? Gang of 14 controlling judicial votes?

We were all looking for the next Ronald Reagan and perhaps, to paraphrase Hawkeye from M*A*S*H, we were too choosy, "looking for a custom fit in an off-the-rack world."

Dont' misunderstand. I will still vote for McCain over either Hillary or Obama. But with even less enthusiasm that I voted for Bush in '92 or Dole in '96.

Rush Limbaugh had this to say:

Senator McCain's been able to cobble together enough votes to win in a few states. Fine. He deserves credit for that. But to pretend that Senator McCain is the choice of conservatives when exit poll data from every primary state show just the opposite... He is not the choice of conservatives, as opposed to the choice of the Republican establishment -- and that distinction is key. The Republican establishment, which has long sought to rid the party of conservative influence since Reagan, is feeling a victory today as well as our friends in the media.

But he went on to say:

But both are just farfetched and wrong.

Let's hope that he's right that they are wrong.

"Stimulus Package" quote

On my way into work this morning, I heard a great quote on the economic stimulus package from Steve Czaban, a sports commentator that I listen to in the morning.

Steve said (as best as I can remember it):

If the government can just turn a dial and stimulate the economy, why doesn't it do it all the time?

Why doesn't it just keep cranking quarters into the vibrating bed that is our economy and just keep it going?

Of course we (and he) knows why. They have to get those quarters from us. And by the time we get them back, they seem to be a little lighter than they were when we sent them to DC.

Bush Speech Calls for Pull-Out from U.S. Economy

If only...

Bush Speech Calls for Pull-Out from U.S. Economy

Warning. Satire. (gotta love satire)

The nation’s chief executive will reportedly tell the American people that the government got involved in the U.S. economy under false pretenses, has mismanaged the effort from the beginning, and the president believes now that “the only way forward is backward.”

Wow. Some sense out of Washington.

The president will propose immediate reductions in taxes, regulation, government spending and federal bureaucracies.

If only...

Full fake article here.

Thanks to Scott Ott of Scrappleface.