U.N. Needs Top Role in Asian Disaster Relief

The Bush Administration has started to do things that are hampering worldwide relief efforts to Asian nations that were devastated last week.

It has been five days since a massive earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter Scale struck off Indonesia's coast and created monster tidal waves that killed hundreds of thousands of people in a dozen Asian and African nations. In response to the disaster the United States formed a coalition of nations that included the U.S., India, Japan and Australia. The U.S. has insisted that those nations will lead the world response to the disaster.

Time out, time out, time out!

These nations need to take a back-seat to the United Nations in this instance. India's west coast lies in ruins and they're saying 'no thank you' to international aid. And why the U.S. insisting on supplanting the United Nations relief efforts? Since so many nations were devastated, only the U.N. has the mandate to act on behalf of its member states.

It should be noted that Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Burma, Bangladesh, Maldives, Seychelles, Tanzania, Kenya and Somalia all have two things in common: they are not U.S. territories; they ARE members of the United Nations. So who should have more say-so? Figure it out. If this tidal wave had hit the United States, then the U.S. would have the ultimate say-so. But it didn't.

For the U.S. government to take hasty action now (and trumpet about it loudly) to deflect criticism that they were slow in responding to the international disaster is in very poor taste.

Now, on a related topic, the French are in a contest with the U.S. over who is giving more aid. Both governments need to grow up and donate because it's going to help people, not to one-up the other. Here's that story. Absolutely childish! I've never heard of such rubbish in the face of such widespread destruction. Get on with it, already!

Wal-Mart Takes Up Target’s Slack With Salvation Army

Wal-Mart has responded to Target’s throwing the Salvation Army bell ringers out of its stores by starting a $1 million matching-funds program.

Target only supports certain types of (gay) groups and not the Salvation Army, nor military veterans’ organizations. Wal-Mart supports whomever it can, and is more inclusive in its donation program.

Wal-Mart made the decision after the Salvation Army announced that donations were down nationwide.

According to a recent news article,”the Salvation Army provides services to the community, including food, companionship to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless, opportunities for underprivileged children, relief for disaster victims and assistance for the disabled, among others.”

9.0 Earthquake Moves Islands and Causes Earth to Wobble on Its Axis

Our planet has demonstrated its awesome power in a way that most had not though possible. The 9.0 earthquake that rocked South Asia and created powerful tidal waves released the same amount of energy that would have been released if a million nuclear bombs had gone off at the same moment.

Geologists and scientists say that when the two plates snapped, it caused some of the islands that were closest to the earthquake to move anywhere from 66 to 120 feet away from their former positions. This earthquake has permanently altered the geography of Southern Asia. Even more amazing, it affected the entire planet’s rotation as it orbits the sun. This is unbelievable.

The brains are waiting to find out if the change in rotation will have an effect on weather patterns around the world or if the shockwaves from this shattering earthquake will cause other fault lines around the world (and the Rim of Fire especially) to weaken and loose Earth’s fury upon our civilizations once again.

At this hour the authorities are reporting 24,000 dead in ten countries..

Seat Belts Being Ignored at Great Cost

The author usually writes in third-person to avoid writing personal stuff that gives away too much personal information, but this post requires that he does so.

For the second time this year, I find myself grieving for young teens who have died in a car accident. This time it was two fourteen year-old kids who were ejected from the car after the young driver they were with accelerated to unsafe speeds, lost control and went into a ditch. The kids sitting in the back were not wearing seat belts and died at the scene. The two people sitting in the front seats were wearing seat belts and survived. To die like this on Christmas Day...I feel terrible for all the families involved and their friends.

It's an old story...young drivers getting behind the wheel without an adult present; showing off what their car can do, and getting into a disaster like this one.

Seat belts are installed in motor vehicles for a very specific purpose; to make sure that people's asses stay in the seats in the event of an impact.

This latest disaster follows another accident three weeks ago which was eerily similar; two dead fourteen year olds without seat belts in the back seat; two banged up teenagers in the front seat after their car accelerated to over 100 mph and went into a ditch. That accident really hit me hard; one of the kids killed was the son of a good friend of mine.

Kids need to be taught to fasten the damned seat belts and to treat a car like a loaded gun. Seat belts and cars are not to be trifled with or taken lightly either.

The cost from these two disasters is astronomical...four dead fourteen-year olds, two sixteen-year old drivers with two deaths each on their conciences for the rest of their lives, four families utterly devastated in the weeks before Christmas and on Christmas Day...

Words fail me. I am tired of bidding farewell to young people who don't wear seat belts and die after being ejected from the car following a crash.

Red vs. Blue: A Little More Depth

I had to alter this post because of technical issues with some of the graphics that I wanted to employ.

It showed a map of the "red and blue" states as they were won by Bush or Kerry.

If you go to http://www.uselectionatlas.org/, it shows a vivid county map. It is under the Election 2004 Results section under the link with the same name. Scroll between the default map and the county map and take a look at the states that Kerry won. You'll see that he carried majorities in most of the counties in a few of the New England States. Bush carried everything else. Note: on that map, the colors are reversed: Bush territory is in blue, Kerry territory is in red.

That map also blows the "Jesus territory" mantra/theory right out of the water. Some upset people on the left are describing the states Bush won as the so-called Bible belt, but that's clearly not the case. It's not "red states vs. blue states" that the press keeps harping on, it's Bush states vs. Kerry counties in every place except New England.

It's facinating to analyze. Sorry my graphics didn't work.

Halliburton in Iraq: Employees Under Enemy Fire

For all the trouble that Halliburton has gotten into over the last few years for violating laws related to trade with America’s adversaries, and all the mud-slinging that went on during the Presidential campaign in this country, and Dick Cheney’s connection to them, many people seem to overlooking something.

Since the Iraq War began, sixty-two Halliburton employees have lost their lives working with the U.S. military in Iraq. That’s a lot of families who are missing their fathers, sons, mothers, sisters, and so forth.

They are over there risking all for the promise of high pay and for other reasons that are beyond comprehension. Who would want to be over there as an unarmed oil tanker driver with explosions happening right next to their fully-loaded rig?

Halliburton deserves to be scrutinized for its conduct. But that should be tempered with the knowledge that sixty-two people who were under contract to Halliburton have given their lives to help Iraq get back on its feet. Halliburton is also providing for those families who are missing people around their dinner tables this holiday season. It’s a sobering realization.

No Medals of Honor for the Troops in Iraq or Afghanistan?

What a shame.

President Bush is handing out Medals of Freedom to people who were central to the U.S. invasion of Iraq as well as the defeat of the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan. These are the highest civilian awards that the President can bestow. Congress is also handing out Congressional Gold Medals of Honor, which is the highest civilian honor that Congress can bestow.

Fine, then. Now what about the troops who are fighting the battles and the wars?

To date, two Air Force Crosses, one Distinguished Service Cross, seven Navy Crosses, and an unknown number of Purple Hearts have been awarded. Lots of Silver and Bronze Stars have been awarded. Those men and women deserve our thanks and our gratitude for their courage and valor in the face of the enemy.

I find it very odd that no Medals of Honor have been conferred by Congress during the war on terror; in fact, the last two awarded were to two Army Ranger snipers who volunteered to attempt to rescue their brothers-in-arms from hordes of al-Qaeda combatants and Somali gunmen who had shot down two Army choppers over Mogadishu (October 1993), and were slaughtering the trapped Rangers.

The two Army snipers went in, rescued a number of wounded Rangers and defended them until they ran out of ammunition and were killed in combat. Their actions delayed the enemy advance until international and U.S. troops arrived to rescue the survivors.

I find it hard to believe that in the time our military has been engaged in Iraq and Afghanistan, that no feats of bravery have risen to the level of consideration for the Medal of Honor.

Hopefully the U.S. military brass is getting referrals from the squad level up, and is taking the necessary steps to research the circumstances for the recommendations. Hopefully it won’t take thirty years or more to award a Medal of Honor if it is found to be warranted. Those brave soldiers deserve nothing less.

Atheist Goes After Christmas Tree

I was a little surprised when an atheist objected to the display of a Christmas tree at the city hall in Bellevue, Washington, even though it was doing a world of good to needy families in the area.

The tree, labeled by City Hall as the Giving Tree, has requests for help from families that desperately need financial assistance or other items in the place of tree ornaments. An average of $25,000 is raised by the Giving Tree.

This year, an atheist asked the city council to remove the tree because the tree represents Christianity.

With all due respect, no it doesn’t.

The Christmas tree represents the pagan side of the holiday, not the Christian side. The courts have already ruled on this after someone successfully argued that while many Christians use the tree to celebrate Jesus’ birth, it is not a symbol of Christianity like the cross is.

The city council refused the request, citing the court decisions.

Here’s the story.

Yushchenko Accuses Ukrainian Government of Trying to Kill Him

Ukrainian presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko is accusing the Ukrainian Secret Service of poisoning him with dioxin during a dinner meeting with the head of the Ukrainian spy service.

The opposition leader made the accusation after it was revealed that the dioxin levels in his blood are not 1,000 times higher than normal as was earlier reported, but 6,000 times higher. Yushchenko went to Austria and got specialized testing done, which revealed how close he came to dying.

The poison disfigured his face and skin and may never completely heal. Once dioxin is concentrated and weaponized, it can be administered in any form; in this case, it was poured into a bowl of soup that Yushchenko had as he was dining with the head of the Ukrainian Secret Service (KGB).

This story is getting worse as the days go by. Here's the story.

British High Court Decision Advances the Cause of Human Rights in War on Terror

Judges from the British House of Lords ruled that the British government cannot hold terror suspects indefinitely without trial.

The decision came on behalf of a group of foreign nationals who have been held by the British government for over three years and will force Tony Blair’s government to put the foreigners on trial.

This is a major setback for the British government, who argued that their national security would be put at risk if the men were to go on trial. One of the judges even said that the law that put the men in prison without trial is a bigger threat to the British public than the terrorism that the British government is trying to prevent.

Human rights advocates welcomed the news, but the hawks were unhappy that their house of cards came crashing down.

Hopefully the U.S. Supreme Court will have the same opportunity to order the American government to put terror detainees on trial as well and force the Bush Administration to adhere to the Constitution when it comes to detaining people that they suspect of being terrorists, instead of locking them away without telling them what they are accused of.

Castro Goes Looney: Massive Cuban Military Drill Underway

In a strange attempt to distract the Cuban people from their growing domestic problems, Fidel Castro increased his saber-rattling against the U.S. and sent a large part of his military into the streets of Cuba to practice repelling a mock amphibious and air assault from the U.S.

The Cuban Air Force was scrambled to put an air umbrella over Cuba as 400,000 troops and reservists and “millions” of citizens participated in mock battles that U.S. military officials were probably watching on spy satellite. There’s nothing like giving away your battle plan to the very “enemy” that you’re preparing to fight, is there?

How much money did Castro spend on this meaningless display of military power? What won’t be bought for ordinary Cuban citizens now that the money isn't there? How much fuel did they siphon off from the public sector? And will Cubans put up with it?

If there is a war in Cuba, it will be because of Castro’s reckless disregard for his own people, and it will come in the form of an internal rebellion, not U.S. military action. I think it’s safe to say that the only way Cuba would get U.S. military attention would be to attack the U.S. first. The U.S. military has bigger fish to fry. Castro’s a little man who’s getting in the way of his own people. He should really think about his people first instead of himself.

WWE Heads for Iraq

World Wrestling Entertainment has gone wrong in a lot of ways over the last three years, introducing gay, lesbian and sexual themes into their product, so I’ve stopped watching them.

However, one thing that they did right last year (and again this year) is that they went over to Iraq and put on a show for the troops who were/are engaged in heavy fighting to boost their spirits for the holidays.

WWE is to be commended for their support of the troops by visiting wounded soldiers who are coming out of the combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan while they lay recovering in the hospitals, by putting on shows at military bases across the country, and for showing up and doing a show in Iraq at Christmas time last year while mortars could be heard in the distance. Troops stood on tanks to watch the action going on in the ring. Last year WWE teamed with the United Service Organizations' Operation Care Package program to deliver care packages to the troops. They will do it again this year. They will also air the troops sending messages home to their families and friends.

Armed Forces Entertainment was delighted when McMahon called last year and asked if they could entertain the troops in Baghdad. Arrangements were quickly made and the show was on.

It gave a tremendous boost to the troops last year, as the WWE is very popular with members of the Armed Forces. WWE is scheduled to be in Iraq this week and the show will air on December 23rd’s episode of WWE Smackdown! I wanted to thank Vince McMahon for putting his money where his mouth is in order to help a good cause.

Ukrainian Presidential Candidate WAS Poisoned

As the election crisis in the Ukraine continues to rage, it was announced by Ukrainian authorities that opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko WAS indeed poisoned.

He was poisoned with dioxin, which causes the person’s skin to turn splotchy and can cause death. The picture on the left was from March 28, 2002, and the picture on the right clearly shows the effects that the poison had on Mr. Yushchenko. Apologies if the photos offend anyone.

The level of dioxins found in Mr. Yushchenko’s blood were 1,000 times higher than the dioxin levels found in most humans. The Soviet Union and other nations weaponized dioxins into chemical weapons, and a chemist who knows what he is doing could also weaponize it. The day Yushchenko fell ill was the day he was poisoned. Dioxins are absorbed quickly into the body. Had the exposure been worse, he would have died.

Dioxins were also used by the United States as a component of Agent Orange, which was used to defoliate the forests of Vietnam and has had terrible effects on the Vietnamese people, U.S. Vietnam vets, and their offspring who were born after the soldiers were exposed to it. Once a person has dangerous amounts of dioxins in their blood, it can take years (perhaps decades) to recover fully, if they ever do.

Some are saying that the Ukrainian Secret Service is involved since Yushchenko became seriously ill after meeting with the head of the secret agency. There’s no way to tell if they were involved yet, but this could have been an assassination attempt that failed.

In any case, there is something rotten going on over there, and it will be interesting to see how it plays out.

Giuliani is Best Choice for Homeland Security Director

Bernard Kerik withdrew his name for consideration from the Homeland Security directorship after he disclosed that a nanny he once employed was in the country illegally and that he didn’t pay taxes on her wages.

I still think Rudy Giuliani would do a fine job there as he has experience in organizing a huge bureaucracy in a major metropolitan city. His book on leadership explains the problems that he faced in New York City and his approach to solving them. I think you need an organizer with proven skills to get the Department of Homeland Security reorganized and running efficiently; after he’s done, you can get the law enforcement experts in there to run the organization.

The problem facing the Homeland Security department is twofold: one part deals with restructuring twenty-plus agencies that used to operate independently and to detail 180,000 people in what they’re supposed to be doing in the new department. The other side is the law-enforcement/counterterrorism execution side. The latter cannot operate nearly as efficiently without the structure there to support it.

Here’s a biography from the New York City government web site as to his qualifications for the directorship:

1961—Graduated from Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School
1965—Graduated from Manhattan College (Class of '65) in the Bronx
1968—Graduated from New York University Law School in Manhattan, (magna cum laude).
1968—1970--Clerked for Judge Lloyd MacMahon, United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York.
1970—Joined the office of the U.S. Attorney. At age 29, he was named Chief of the Narcotics Unit and rose to serve as executive US Attorney.
1975—Giuliani was recruited to Washington, D.C., where he was named Associate Deputy Attorney General and chief of staff to the Deputy Attorney General.
1977—1981 Practiced law at Patterson, Belknap, Webb and Tyler.
1981—Named Associate Attorney General, the third highest position in the Department of Justice. As AAG, Giuliani supervised all of the US Attorney Offices' Federal law enforcement agencies, the Bureau of Corrections, the Drug Enforcement Agency, and the US Marshals.
1983—Giuliani was appointed US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, where he spearheaded the effort to jail drug dealers, fight organized crime, break the web of corruption in government, and prosecute white-collar criminals. Few US Attorneys in history can match his record of 4,152 convictions with only 25 reversals.
1989—Giuliani entered the race for mayor of New York City as a candidate of the Republican and Liberal parties, losing by the closest margin in City history.
1993—107th Mayor of the City of New York.
1997—Re-elected by a wide margin, carrying four out of New York City's five boroughs. Credited with turning the city around.
2001—Parts of the city are devastated by the 9/11 terror attacks. Giuliani becomes “America’s Mayor” in the hearts of many Americans who are impressed with his handling of the disaster. Named Time Magazine’s “Man of the Year.”

So, barring major problems with the confirmation process (that eliminated his former police commissioner, Bernard Kerik, from consideration for Homeland Security director), I think Giuliani would be the best choice that Bush could make. I haven’t given up hope. He would face tough questions from Congress on 9/11 and reports that the police and fire departments didn’t have the equipment they needed, and he may be too political, but I think he could get in there and do some good.

Moyers Comment Shows Mainstream Media Hypocrisy

Bill Moyers is retiring from the PBS newsmagazine that he founded two years ago and he had some interesting quips in a recent interview.

He said that the biggest story of our time is that the right-wing media has become an extension of the Republican National Committee, while saying that the mainstream media is more interested in the bottom line.

That is a very interesting assertion.

He’s chosen to ignore the efforts of the mainstream news media in the last two years to get John Kerry into the White House. Let’s face it: Kerry never stood a chance. He had lukewarm support from his own party; he had no solid base; and “anyone but Bush” only carried the campaign so far and then stopped.

The mainstream media has become the news. This was recently illustrated by the actions of a Chattanooga Times Free Press reporter who exercised undue influence and trickery over a question and answer question with the Defense Secretary. Dan Rather introduced false National Guard documents to influence the voters to vote against Bush. The mainstream press tried to discredit the Swift Boat Veterans as soon as they realized how detrimental they were to Kerry’s campaign; Kerry still has not signed a Form 180 authorizing the complete release of all of his records.

It should also be noted that when CBS’s liberal competitors jumped on the fake CBS/National Guard story, they were quick to point out that while the documents were false and CBS should be ashamed and yaadaa yadaa, they said that the sentiment behind the documents was valid. In other words, they didn’t want rocks to be thrown inside their shared glass house but they didn’t mind throwing rotten eggs and rocks at the Republican candidate.

Journalism has been replaced by partisan reporting, leaving the right-wing media with no other choice but to present the other point of view and leaving them open to charges that they’re an arm of the Republican Party. Neutrality in reporting was once something that the mainstream press took pride in.

The mainstream press is totally responsible for creating the environment that the right-wing press is flourishing in, so they ought to quit complaining about Fox News telling the rest of the story.

Here’s the Moyers interview.

Charges Filed in Pistons-Pacers Brawl

The prosecuting attorney for Oakland County who is handling the case surrounding the Pistons-Pacers game announced that charges are being filed against a dozen people. Attorneys are hollering that their clients are being singled out for punishment.

BS!

They were caught on video participating in the worst brawl in NBA history, with punches, drinks, popcorn and chairs being thrown during the melee.

Would these people do this in their own house? Some might, but the vast majority wouldn’t. Why in the world would they do it in a public venue then?

Most will get slaps on the wrist. Some will get short jail sentences with probation. The idiot who threw the chair is also being sued because the chair injured an elderly fan who was minding his own business during this nonsense. This genius is facing felony assault charges.

Some fans will face trespassing charges; fans are not allowed onto the court during the game. There were some with criminal records who will receive stiffer sentences as well.

For those fans who were banned from the Palace and are crying about it, that’s too bad. Go to another venue and BEHAVE YOURSELF!! Better yet, stay home and watch the game on TV because you obviously can’t behave in public.

I don’t blame people for saying they’re sick and tired of seeing the videos. I am too, but it was an ugly incident that didn’t need to happen. And for those attorneys who are saying that the Pacers players will be in court during playoffs, get over it. They’re merely reaping what they sowed.

Most of the players who will be in court are suspended anyways, so they aren't going to help the Pacers during playoffs, except to save money on payroll!

Rumsfeld Challenged By Soldiers: A Set-Up?

I was pleased to hear that soldiers had questioned Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on the unarmored Humvees that are deployed to Iraq but was angered when it was announced that a reporter may have coached the soldiers on what questions to ask and how to ask them.

The story started yesterday when a couple of soldiers asked why it was necessary for them to scrounge metal to armor the Humvees themselves and to look for hardened glass to make the windows bullet-resistant. Rumsfeld, of course, was gruff when he made his replies and the story received widespread media attention around the world. Here’s that part of the story.

Then it came out today that a reporter from the Chattanooga Times Free Press had coached the soldiers and then approached the Sgt. in charge of the question and answer session with the Defense Secretary to “make sure his guys got out of the crowd.”

This is coming across as a reporter engaged in dishonest reporting. He’s making the news rather than simply reporting on it. If the story of the plant is correct, this guy needs to be reigned in a bit by his bosses.

Activism vs. reporting seems to be a recurring problem these days and some of these people ought to get off it. “It” being their political activism supplanting their duties as journalists.

Spain Attacked by Basque Separatists: They WERE Taking Notes From 3/11

Spain is learning a painful lesson on why nations do not give in to terrorist demands. Ever.

On March 11th, 2004, a few days before the Spanish elections were to take place, al-Qaeda attacked the central Madrid train terminal and killed hundreds of people. Four trains were destroyed by the blasts. The al-Qaeda goal was to force the pro-Iraq War government out of power; the Spanish people knuckled under and voted a Socialist into office.

The turnover was huge; before the bombs started going off, the former government was ahead in pre-election polling. The Spanish electorate surrendered to the terrorists first, and then the government knuckled under too. The Spaniards went SCREAMING out of Iraq as fast as they could because they didn’t want al-Qaeda killing any more Spaniards. Bad move.

I wrote an article saying that the Basque separatists were probably taking notes and that it would be open season on the Spanish government, which had proven that it could be intimidated by terrorists. I’m sorry to say that I was right. At least ten bombs have gone off in the last two days; the first attack involved the near-simultaneous destruction of five gas stations in and around Madrid. The terror group Eta, which supports independence for the Basques, called in warnings before the bombs started going off.

The Spanish government could have prevented this from happening, but they were too weak and stupid to realize that their actions would have consequences in their own country. Instead of honoring their dead and working with the international community at the source, the Spanish government has made a concerted effort to forget that 3/11 ever happened. Many families who lost loved ones continue to be aghast that their own government has ignored their pleas for justice. And their government gave in to the terrorists. This was a HUGE green light for Eta to break the truce and begin attacking inside Spain, in the hopes that the government would knuckle under again.

Two lessons come to mind: indecision and disengagement encourages terrorists to be more aggressive, not less. The other lesson is that just because an idea is popular (like pulling troops out of Iraq) doesn’t make it right. Spain made a series of bad choices after suffering a very bad day, and now they’re paying the price for their lack of vision.

Thompson Blunders in Press Conference

Retiring Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson did something that was simply astounding: he said “For the life of me, I cannot understand why the terrorists have not attacked our food supply because it is so easy to do," at a press conference.

Well, Mr. Thompson, thank you very much for the unneeded insight. Idiot!!

He’s probably created a security problem now that the entire world has been alerted to the fact that the food supply is vulnerable to terrorist attack. He shouldn’t have said that. If something happens to the food supply now, there will be plenty of blame for him to share in.

This is like the Pentagon announcing an offensive against Fallujah to see what the terrorists would do to stop them, and then launching the actual offensive three weeks later after they analyzed the movements of the enemy forces in and around Fallujah. The difference is that the military acted on what it found, formulated a plan, went in and kicked some tail. Thompson's comments came across as spur-of-the-moment. He sounded frustrated that he couldn't get money to protect the food supply so he may have been trying to force the issue.

In any case, it was not a smart play, and waving a banner around that says "TERRORISTS: ATTACK HERE!!" to draw attention to a government shortfall is not the way to effect change. Thompson should have known better.

Target Stores: The Grinch is Running the Place!

Given Target’s reputation, is it any wonder that they’ve thrown Salvation Army bell-ringers out into the cold?

Which reputation do I speak of, you ask?

A friend of mine living in Marquette, MI, who is active in Vietnam War veteran fundraisers approached Target for a solicitation to help local veterans with a project that would benefit the entire community.

He got a letter about a week later saying that his request for help was being denied and that the only group that Target officially supported was a gay-rights group that no one had ever heard of up there. They weren't even locals!

So my friend organized a boycott of the Target store in Marquette. Letters were written to the local newspapers with copies of the letter enclosed, and the veterans raised a major commotion. I don’t think it had a major impact on the Target store, but the point was made.

So when I read that Target has banned the Salvation Army from ringing their little bells, it doesn’t surprise me in the least. It falls right into line with their treatment of the Vietnam veterans. There's a Grinch at Target HQ, so look for more petty antics from your friendly neighborhood Target.

Rumsfeld Accused of War Crimes in German Court: ICC Trouble?

There was a news blurb over the weekend that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and other Administration officials are being charged with war crimes that stem from the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. The case is being brought in a German court and is not getting much attention yet.

This is the result of certain nations who have taken it upon themselves to act as the world’s criminal court system.

It’s kind of funny that those who scoff at American suggestions that the International Criminal Court system will be misused to settle scores against prominent American politicians and troops are the very ones who are taking this course of action.

While I am not opposed to international tribunals building strong cases against former leaders, I am dead-set against any international court attempting to go after sitting Presidents and their cabinets. Once they leave office, that’s another issue, but for an international court to be able to serve warrants on and take custody of the sitting President of the United States or Secretary of State is abhorrent.

As far as I am concerned, if the President is impeached first by the House, tried by the Senate and found guilty, then the international courts can have the person after American justice is carried out. If the cabinet member resigns or is removed from his/her post, then I have no problem with Interpol coming in and taking the accused away.

The ICC treaty (Article 27) does not recognize immunity for sitting leaders. Article 27 also does not provide for removal of leaders according to the laws of the country where the accused leader resides. So the Constitution would be subordinated to the ICC treaty. This is also abhorrent.

To surrender national sovereignty to a system that could be abused is dangerous, and is a very good reason for the U.S. to refrain from endorsing the treaty. This reason is different from the military point of view, but in my view, supercedes the military reasons for opposing the treaty.

While Rumsfeld should answer very serious questions about the prison scandal, it should not be while he is still in a cabinet position.

Alexander Flops at U.S. Box Office

The much-overhyped and overblown epic about Alexander the Great has fallen flat on its face; not because of the acting, but because of sexuality. For those that don't know, Alexander is portrayed in the film as a bisexual.

The studio must have realized that this would be a social test that could go either way, so the smart money would have been to have a smaller budget, and see how it went. But instead they rammed $155 million into the production of the film and $55 million into promoting it and hoped for the best. It appears they got the worst.

Box Office Mojo reports that as of today, November 29th, the film grossed $21 million.

Here are some other films with big budgets that made it because they were more acceptable to a wider audience:

Lord of the Rings: Return of the King....$144 million to make & market, made $377 million (U.S.), $1.1 billion (worldwide). Opening weekend in U.S.: $72 million.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers...$139 million to make & market, made $326 million (U.S.), $926 million (worldwide). Opening weekend in U.S.: $62 million

Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring...$143 million to make & market, made $314 million (U.S.), $871 million (worldwide). Opening weekend in U.S.: $47 million.

Titanic...$240 million to make & market, made $600 million (U.S.), $1.8 billion (worldwide). Opening weekend in U.S.: $28 million. This one was a gamble too, but Leo's star power and James Cameron's attention to detail made it work.

Braveheart...$72 million to make, made $75 milion (U.S.), $210 million (worldwide). Opening weekend in U.S.: $9 million.

Though I am loathe to admit it, the studio should have followed Michael Moore's example with Fahrenheit 9/11 ($9 million to produce, $15 million to market, $100 million plus in ticket sales in the U.S. , $100 million plus worldwide for a total of $220 million in ticket sales.) Bush-bashing was/is very popular worldwide, but Moore was smart enough to keep his budget down. As much as I disliked his distortions and hatred, it was targeted at a specific (unhealthy) emotion that was present in the American and global public before the election.

But with Alexander, the studio took a huge gamble and missed the mark. The only thing that can save the studio from a loss will be if the movie is a hit in other Western nations, which it could well be.

Re-imagining the Alamo didn't work either. They spent $75 million on making it, and made $25 million worldwide. I liked this film as I thought it was more realistic than what American history has made it out to be over the years. The "Was Davey Crockett captured and executed?" debate continues to rage on.

The lesson here is for movie studios to go conservative on the budget with their movies that have controversial issues. Better yet, don't even produce movies that contain raging social issues as they will be perceived as having a political agenda as "Alexander" is being described in some circles.

(All the figures above come from www.boxofficemojo.com)

Princess Diana: Seven Years Later and the Controversy Continues

Am I the only one who thinks people should get over Princess Diana’s death and stop reopening the wounds of her sons and family?

“Sensational” books are still being released, secret videos, stories of secret lovers and whispered conversations are being leaked on a regular basis. For crying out loud, let her rest in peace and give the princes a chance to move on. How many people think that Prince William and Prince Harry want to read about their mother and the scandals that she may or may not have been involved with? WHO CARES!

I think these opportunistic money-grabbers look for perfection in an imperfect being. That's a very hard standard to follow, so of course they're going to find faults with someone. She was a human being and made human mistakes. Get over it!

Anyone in favor of letting the past stay in the past? I see no sense in drawing this idiocy out any more. Seven years on, and she's still being analyzed.

Nasty Ukrainian Vote Fraud Story

If the story below is true, how can any government on Earth say that the Ukrainian elections were fair and impartial?

Vladimir Putin should be ashamed of himself!

Here's the Telegraph story.

Ukraine in Turmoil

A political nightmare is playing itself out in the Ukraine.

It’s become painfully obvious that democracy hasn’t completely taken hold yet. Reports of widespread cheating have thrown the recent presidential elections there into chaos and have led hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians to take to the streets to protest the announced results.

The Russians have inserted themselves into the Ukrainian elections, which is a major part of the problem. While many Ukrainians feel that they share bonds with Russia, they do not want Moscow interfering with their internal affairs. The two countries are not joined at the hip in a Soviet-dominated political system and sometimes Moscow seems to forget that.

Vladimir Putin has a very bad habit of taking sides in other elections, which is very unfortunate. So he ought to quit complaining when the U.S. doesn’t go along with his choice for Ukrainian president.

Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1789---The Real Thanksgiving Holiday--Not "Pilgrims and Indians"

Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted' for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have show kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d dy of October, A.D. 1789.

(signed) G. Washington

School Bans the Declaration of Independence

The attempted whitewash of U.S. history continued in California with a school banning U.S. historical documents like the Declaration of Independence from being taught to schools.

This is going way beyond anything that they have tried in the past.

The reason? The Declaration and other similar documents that were instrumental in the formation of our country and are a part of its foundation have references to God that atheists in California object to.

So the school punished a Christian teacher who ignored the school’s ban. The teacher turned around and sued the school district for discrimination.

Banning the Declaration of Independence because it mentions God?? This is an attack on the very heart and soul of our nation. If it wasn’t for the Declaration, many parts of our current Constitution wouldn’t be there either, including the very Bill of Rights that some idiots are busy raping.

When will this nonsense end? Here's the story. Fools. They ought to ban stupidity like this!

Hunting Massacre in Wisconsin: A Hunting Dispute?

There's more to the story of the five hunters who were killed in Wisconsin than first meets the eye.

From what the mainstream media is saying, it was a dispute over a hunting spot. But from what details have come out, I do not think that the accused killer was hunting deer.

He was hunting humans.

He chased after the fleeing hunters, and gunned them down in cold blood. That was no argument over a hunting spot. The only reason he stopped was that he ran out of ammunition.

This guy is a predator. Gun control advocates will say that it's another reason to ban guns and hunting, but gun control laws wouldn't have stopped this guy. If he can kill five human beings without batting an eye, he'd have found a way to kill without the use of a firearm. Serial killers do that.

NBA Suspends Players Involved in Detroit/Indiana Brawl

The NBA came down hard on the juvenile behavior displayed at the Detroit Pistons/Indiana Pacers game, suspending nine players without pay.

The combined pay that will be forfeit will be over $10 million. I hope the teams donate this money to charity.

The “children” who were most directly responsible for this behavior will sit out a combined 143 games.

It’s not enough.

Now there should be civil and criminal prosecutions of both players and fans. The Auburn Hills police department has copies of the brawl that the networks filmed and are working on building cases. The sooner the better!

That had better be the last melee like this in the NBA.

NBA Means: No Brains Anywhere--Pistons vs. Pacers

Once again, professional athletes are being condemned for their behavior against fans. By now everyone has heard about the Pistons-Pacers game at the Palace of Auburn Hills and how players went after fans who were throwing stuff at them.

To the players and fans in attendance that participated in this brawl, shame on you for demeaning elementary, middle and high school basketball in this way. Oh, sorry, did I say that? I forgot, it was an NBA pro basketball game. Anyways, shame on you for providing a very bad example for aspiring (underage) athletes to look up to.

Hefty fines, suspensions, and arrests should follow. The example needs to be set: behave like total asses, and suffer the consequences. With any luck, the fines will run into the millions.

Kerry Says bin-Laden Message Cost Him Election

John Kerry is saying that the Osama bin-Laden tape that surfaced just before the election scared the electorate and cost him the election.

With all due respect, no it didn't.

He lost the election because he was too far to the left, was a flip-flopper and couldn't solidify his Democratic base.

"Anyone but Bush?" Not hardly.

Separation of Church and State Means Establishment of State Religion

The first sentence of the First Amendment reads:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” Over the years, this has been construed by the courts as meaning “separation” of church and state. This is not correct.

This was to stop the establishment of an official state religion.

Now consider this:

By banning crosses, stars of David, crescents and other religious symbols (like the Ten Commandments or Nativity scenes) in public places and so forth, the court system is forcing secular humanism on the American people.

The court system has to recognize that secular humanism is a faith in itself. It professes faith in the works of man over the works of a divine creator, which religious people find offensive. Quite frankly, I find the concept of one group of people forcing their viewpoint on all others through the court an affront.

It is wrong for the court system to impose secular humanism on people who are faithful to God, or to the precepts of their own religious faith.

When will the courts stop hijacking the First Amendment?

Constitutional Protections: For All, Not For Some

I am of the opinion that proposed Constitutional Amendments which restrict the rights of the American people are very bad news and should be rejected by those in power out-of-hand.

The original Bill of Rights was designed to limit the government's ability to infringe on the rights of the American people. Among other things, the Bill was to restrict government control over the lives of the people and all of the Amendments since then have followed this general approach with the exception of one.

The 18th Amendment (1919) banned the import, manufacture and distribution of alcohol anywhere in the United States. It proved to be impossible to enforce and the 21st Amendment repealed the 18th Amendment fourteen years later.

The 18th remains the only Amendment that has been overturned in spite of recent efforts to overturn parts of the First (freedom of association, parts of free speech clause via the political correctness movement) and Second Amendments.

We must never surrender our Constitutional rights to security considerations. With the war on terror continuing to rage, the possibility of a shattering terrorist attack on our nation continues to exist, and with it the possibility of Constitutional alterations in the name of preventing a terrorist attack that may never happen.

Don't think Constitutional violations will happen? Constitutional protections are already being ignored by the Justice Department. Americans who were rounded up after 9/11 on suspicion of being terrorists have been held for three years without access to attorneys or the court system. There is no need to try these people in secret...bring the proceedings out into the open! If they have done no wrong, let the government beg for their forgiveness and offer compensation, but if they are criminals, then let the criminal system work.

The Sixth Amendment reads: "In ALL criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence."

Well, get on with it!

PETA Starts “Fish Have Feelings Too” Campaign

The animal-rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has launched a new ad campaign that is focused on the feelings of fish and that they (fish) don’t deserve to be eaten by evil meat-eating people.

This, after actor/activist Edward Furlong and some of his friends were arrested for drunk & disorderly conduct in a supermarket following a drunken attempt to liberate a lobster from a water tank.

Sounds like PETA leadership needs a drink too!

Common sense seems to be in dangerously short supply with some of these groups.

Psychologists Blast Limbaugh For Telling People to GET OVER IT!!

Now the shrinks in Florida are getting into the election blues, too!

A psychologist is blasting Rush Limbaugh for telling people to straighten up and move on. It was just an election, for crying out loud!

Rush was commenting on people getting counseling because Kerry lost the election.

The story began when Rush jokingly offered free counseling to depressed voters (I took it to mean a kick in the pants) but psychologists who are treating these idiots fired back and said that Rush wasn’t qualified to do that. DUH!!

I think the affected psychologists should be ashamed to be taking payment for stuff as ridiculous as this! And what’s more, I cannot believe that the liberal mainstream media who were heavily invested in the Kerry campaign are buying into this crap.

Perhaps Palm Beach County should join Canada, too. What utter nonsense!

Here’s the story.

Bush Cabinet Changes Continue

The exodus of President Bush’s cabinet continued with the resignations of Colin Powell, Spencer Abraham, Rod Paige and others.

It was unfortunate that Powell wasn’t listened to as the build-up to war continued and he warned that if we invaded and conquered Iraq, we would own all of Iraq’s problems. His presentation of wrong CIA facts as Gospel-truth to the U.N. Security Council diminished his international stature, but it wasn’t entirely his fault. He believed the information that the CIA presented to him and was shocked when CIA Director Tenet backtracked on the facts at a press conference that Powell watched on TV.

Abraham’s attempts to secure our country’s nuclear technologies were also noteworthy. On his watch, investigations revealed deep problems at the Los Alamos nuclear facility, where computer hard drives disappeared, materials were misplaced and nuclear warhead designs went missing. The latter half of his tenure was marked by attempts to enhance security at American nuclear facilities, and his failure to get an energy policy through Congress. Abraham received his share of blame for the soaring cost of oil and refusing to use the strategic oil reserves to manipulate the price of oil at the pumps.

Paige called the National Education Association a “terrorist group” and then apologized for it. He also got mixed reviews on his performance. The No Child Left Behind Act piled tons of paperwork on local school districts, leading some schools to withdraw from receiving federal funds. Paige was then hit with accusations that his Texas school district under-reported the number of dropouts and manipulated data to make Paige and the Houston school district look good.

As much as half of Bush’s cabinet is expected to leave. Don’t read into it too much as turnover happens quite often between a first and second Presidential term.

Another Arafat for Palestinians?

The terrorist group Hamas is planning on having one of their members run for President of the Palestinian Authority, the position formerly held by Yasser Arafat.

The opposition is said to be a jailed Palestinian terrorist who is being held for killing four Israelis and a Greek monk.

The jailed Palestinian is said to be in favor of a negotiated settlement with Israel, but Israel won’t release him.

Am I the only one who thinks that having two terrorists run for Palestinian President (formerly held by the father of modern terrorism) is a REAL bad idea? I was talking with someone over the weekend who thought it was not such a bad idea given the fact that the Palestinians are at war with Israel and that Arafat was a PLO terrorist. I told him that this was the kind of appeasement that would cause the Palestinians to be dominated by terror groups whether they wanted it or not.

This will set a very bad precedence and could hurt the democratic process in that region of the Middle East for years to come.

Ashcroft Accused Judges of Interfering in National Security

Retiring Attorney General John Ashcroft says activist judges are threatening Bush Administration decisions on national security.

While I think he is right about activist judges, here’s what he forgot to say:

The Bush Administration decisions in question are unconstitutional and unconscionable. And Ashcroft, as the attorney general, was wrong to support such unconstitutional measures as detaining Americans without access to lawyers and the court system for over three years.

It should have been Ashcroft who was telling Bush that suppressing Constitutional protections was a wrong decision, instead of the idiot judges in question that Ashcroft has no control over. Further, suppressing the Constitution is not national security…it’s bad policy.

I think that the Bush Administration should spend a little bit of time studying the American Civil War, and President Lincoln’s attempt to suspend the writ of habeas corpus in 1861, so that Confederate sympathizers and copperheads could be arrested for the duration of the war. The Supreme Court eventually ruled the suspension without an act of Congress as unconstitutional.

Some of the Americans arrested shortly after 9/11 had nothing to do with terrorism, but because they are of Middle Eastern background, the authorities held onto them. Now I think they’re afraid to let them go without charging them with something, because they’ll have an open-and-closed case of false imprisonment, denying American citizens their civil rights, and other similar accusations. It’s a huge liability question for this Administration or the next one to deal with.

We cannot hold people prisoner until they do something wrong. If they haven’t done anything wrong, they should be released. Period.

Police Use Stun-Gun on Six Year-Old

This one I have to question…

Police were called into Kelsey Pharr Elementary School in Miami to stop a six-year old boy from hurting himself and others with a shard of glass that he had gotten from breaking a picture frame in the principal’s office. He apparently cut himself and was wielding it like a knife to keep everyone at bay. There are several versions of the news story circulating on the web with different facts of the incident so I’ll leave it there.

The police arrived and used a stun-gun on the kid to immobilize him so that he could be disarmed.

Nailing a six-year old with 50,000 volts to take a piece of glass away? Give me a break! Why the hell didn’t two or three people rush the kid and take the glass from him? Was this boy 6’4” and 275 pounds and built like Arnold Schwarzeneggar? No, he’s probably 3’9” tall and weighs 45 pounds. Perhaps he’s obese and weighs 90 pounds. Who cares?

Both the staff at that school and the police need to be retrained on how they deal with aggressive six-year olds. DUH!!

I did a google news search on “boy taser” to research this story and came up with lots of news articles of cops using tasers to stop rampaging kids both successfully and unsuccessfully. There have been a handful of deaths resulting from police using these weapons on children.

Electricity can affect heart rhythm and 50,000 volts can have a devastating effect on a person’s long-term health. If we put this in another light, a medical procedure that used to be used to restart someone’s heart is now being used by police on children of all ages to control them. Is this wise?

Since the cops and the staff (all adults mind you) were overmatched by a six year-old child with a piece of glass, I guess they needed the help. I’M KIDDING!!

Arafat: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

The world now knows that Yasser Arafat passed away quietly during the night. He wasn’t killed by a Hamas sniper, as the so-called Bible Code predicted; he died quietly in a hospital bed.

I do not like to speak ill of the dead, but the tributes coming in from world leaders are an affront to Arafat’s victims.

Exactly how many people did Arafat send to their graves when he was a radical PLO leader?

He ordered airliners blown out of the sky, the terrorist attack on the Olympics in 1972, bombings of pizzerias, bus stations and assassinations of his enemies. Some have said that he introduced modern terrorism to the world. Islamic Jihad and other terror networks benefited from Arafat’s support in their terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians.

Does the name Leon Klinghoffer ring a bell?

I’m not going to offer the Palestinians condolences on the loss of their leader. I hope that there isn’t a Palestinian civil war and that they and the Israelis find peace before they blow one another off the map.

May God show more mercy to Arafat than he showed to his victims.

Gonzales May Be Next Attorney General

White House counsel Alberto Gonzales is said to be an early favorite to replace John Ashcroft as Attorney General.

I’m concerned about this choice as he has been involved in creating some of the problems that I perceive within the Justice Department. He publicly defended policies of holding onto suspects without access to legal representation or to the court systems for prolonged periods of time. The Supreme Court has ruled that legal limbo is illegal under the due process clause as I’ve mentioned before.

We need a new direction, not a continuation of a failed direction.

This is most unwise. They need an independent thinker who is not a buddy of the President.

An Attorney General needs to have enough distance from the President to order up independent investigations in the event that wrongdoing by the President or the Administration is discovered. That is what infuriated me about Janet Reno; she didn’t when she should have; she did when she shouldn’t have. The Justice Department is not the White House defense team. As the nation’s top cop, the Attorney General needs to enforce the law, not disregard any aspect of it.

The President really needs to think this through.

List of Ashcroft Replacements Being Circulated

There are names being circulated around Washington as to who might be John Ashcroft’s replacement. PepsiCo Executive Larry Thompson, New York Governor George Pataki, former Mayor of New York Rudy Giuliani, White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales, and Marc Racicot, chairman of Bush's re-election effort, are on the short list as well as some others that the Administration haven’t revealed yet.

I don’t know much about most of these names, but I think Giuliani would be a better Director of Homeland Security. He would do an excellent job as attorney general, but his statement that he would like to be the one to flip the switch on Osama bin-Laden gives me pause.

I am against the death penalty in all forms. That will set me against about 70% of Americans who favor the death penalty and 84% of Americans who think bin-Laden should get the death penalty if he is ever captured.

I do not know if it was a spur-of-the-moment comment, or if he meant it, but I think his style of leadership would be better put to use at Homeland Security as they are still in the formative stage. His book on leadership was excellent, and his acute powers of observation would get the Homeland Security Department to where it needs to be; protecting America’s security from external terrorist threats.

They may make their choice known later today.

Ashcroft Resigns

I wish John Ashcroft well on his health and his retirement.

I hope President Bush chooses a jurist and not an ideologue for the post of Attorney General. He needs someone who will run the Justice Department, defend the Constitution in all aspects, and enforce the law, not supersede it.

Kerry Liberals Need Group Therapy??!

On the heels of a Kerry volunteer committing suicide at Ground Zero over Kerry’s loss to Bush, it was revealed today that some people in Palm Beach County, Florida, are seeing counselors because of their depression over the election.

People ought to quit crying and get on with their lives. Most mature people shrug their shoulders and vow to win the next time around and go back to their jobs.

I’ve been pointing out the dangers of rampant emotionalism the last few posts. There was so much liberal rage at Bush that you had to wonder what was going to happen to these idiots next. Well…here’s the story.

I wasn’t happy about Clinton winning in 1992 or 1996 or his surviving impeachment on the only charge that mattered, lying under oath, but I sure as hell didn’t need group therapy to talk about my feelings. Idiots! Grow up!! Get over it!

Federal Judge Stops Illegal Military Commission Prosecution

Finally, a little common sense in the U.S. legal system!

A federal judge stopped a military commission from prosecuting Osama bin-Laden’s former driver until his status is ruled upon by a “competent tribunal.”

I’m not objecting to the trial of this man, but it should be in a civilian court, not a military one as the legality of military commissions is still in dispute.

This is a good decision based on Constitutional law, something that the Ashcroft Justice Department has been turning a blind eye to for far too long.

One of the consequences of re-electing Bush is that we have to be ever vigilant in protecting our Constitution and Bill of Rights from ill-conceived and reactionary acts of the Administration and the Justice Department.

That means never willingly surrendering our freedoms in the name of security.

Here’s the story.

Street Fighting in Fallujah: What Did He Say??!

SecDef Rumsfeld said today that there was little possibility of large numbers of Iraqi civilians getting killed as coalition and Iraqi ground forces engage militants in street combat for control of Falljuah.

Why does he make statements like that? Of course there will be large numbers of civilians killed or wounded. When you’re talking about 200,000 non-combatants being in between the coalition and the insurgents, and bullets and bombs flying in every direction, of course there will be large numbers of Iraqi civilians killed or wounded. Plus the enemy looks like the civilian population AND the enemy has no problem with gunning down unarmed civilians to throw blame on the coaltion.

With untold thousands of Iraqi civilians dead from this war, and tens of thousands more wounded, “one would think” (Rumsfeld lingo) that the Secretary of Defense would learn not to make broad statements like that.

It’s statements like this that make me think that Rumsfeld needs to retire.

Some Americans Looking at Leaving U.S. Over Bush Win

It’s being reported that the number of Americans visiting a Canadian immigration web site is way up following George W. Bush’s victory. If Americans want to go live in Canada, they will receive a warm welcome; Canada wants 200,000 people to immigrate there next year.

But a mere election being the primary cause for some Americans wanting to quit their jobs, uproot their families, renounce their U.S. citizenship and move across the border into another country seems radical to me. That’s their choice, but I have difficulty believing that there aren’t other reasons for such a drastic move. In days past, people have fled across the border to avoid the draft or to outrun the IRS.

Some job-seekers will be happy if lots of people move to Canada; that means there will be job openings left behind here in the U.S.

People ought to stay at their jobs and express themselves in a more meaningful way, like starting a web site or running for office instead of tucking tail and running across the border or putting a gun to their heads.

More rampant emotionalism overriding common sense.

Man Kills Himself Over Bush Victory at Ground Zero

Yesterday there was a report of a man who was so despondent over Kerry’s loss to Bush that he killed himself at Ground Zero in New York.

I don’t understand this at all. What kind of conditions existed in this man’s life that he felt life had no meaning anymore with Bush’s victory on Election Day? This is almost beyond belief. Did he not realize that eventually Bush will have to leave office due to the 22nd Amendment term-limiting the President?

Democracy will survive any President that comes along.

What is at stake, libs, is not democracy, but our interpretation of what democracy is. The modern liberal interpretation took a beating on Election Day, because it doesn't represent mainstream America anymore. It lost because the man who represented it was more concerned about getting Bush out than for representing the people who he claimed to represent.

So when someone puts a 12 gauge shotgun to his head and pulls the trigger over a lost election, that's rampant emotionalism overriding common sense. That's not a disaster for democracy. That's a disaster for that man's family and friends.

This was a man who was preparing to get married. It just doesn't make any sense.

Constitutional Amendment: Change Term Limit of the U.S. President?

Someone raised a question of what would it take to term-limit the President to (1) six year term.

The 22nd Amendment limits the President to (two) four-year terms. It would have to be repealed and a new Amendment written with the new six-year term limit.

I’m not sure if they could repeal the 22nd and write the new term limit in one Amendment, or if it would take an Amendment to repeal the 22nd and then another Amendment to set the limit at one six-year term.

If it was decided that it would take two Amendments, there is a danger.

Current Constitutional law calls for the Amendments to be ratified by two-thirds of the House and Senate respectively. The Amendments then have to be ratified by three quarters of the states in order to go into effect.

With two Amendments, what happens if the repealing of the 22nd Amendment is approved and goes into effect, but the “six-year term” Amendment fails? The end result…no term limits for the President whatsoever. He/she could serve as many terms as they wanted, depending on the voters. With someone as popular as Bill Clinton was (bleah!) he could still be in power today.

That’s my take on the procedural side of it.

Some would argue that a single term would allow a President to get more work done instead of having to campaign in his/her fourth year of their first term.

Others would argue that the President should follow the example of George Washington and only run for two terms. Which is better?

Ashcroft & Rummie Have to Go

The time for cabinet changes in the Bush Administration is now.

Two definite changes: Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld and Attorney General Ashcroft need to go.

I have been dissatisfied with the last two people to hold the directorship of the Justice Department: John Ashcroft and Janet Reno. Reno liked circumventing the Constitution in dealing with legal issues, and Ashcroft is turning a blind eye to parts of it (due process).

All parts of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights need to be observed by the government and John Ashcroft's Justice Department has not done their part. He’s still holding American citizens on U.S. soil without legal counsel and without their day in court as he thinks they may have had something to do with 9/11.

If so, then why haven’t they begun criminal proceedings? Legal limbo is illegal under the due process clause. It’s being said that Ashcroft may leave on his own terms before President Bush is sworn in for his second term. This would be an excellent start.

Bush needs a competent Secretary of Defense and Rumsfeld is clearly not up to the task. The entire battle plan for Iraq needs to be redone and goals clearly spelled out. Treating Iraq like a liberated Soviet satellite nation was a huge mistake. I think Poland, Lithuania, and other nations under Soviet domination would have welcomed U.S. troops and taken full advantage of their freedom, but Iraq is a Muslim nation that has been invaded by largely non-Muslim armies of the West.

Now that we’re there, it is important to get the Iraqi army, paramilitary and police set up with all the tools that they need to retake their country in all respects, and to secure their own country.

2004 Election Ends

The 2004 election ended this morning when John Kerry threw in the towel after doing the math and correctly deducing that he wouldn’t have enough punch left from the provisional ballots in Ohio to capture the Buckeye state and turn the election.

Kerry was very gracious in his concession on TV today, promising to help reunite the country and thanking his supporters for their dedication to his campaign.

I did not agree with many of his stands, and was appalled by some of his personal choices in choosing liberal politics over his faith. His stock went through the ceiling with me when he stuck a fork in the election and pronounced it done without resorting to the legal system to get his way, as Gore did in 2000.

He even said that the election is best left in the hands of the American people, and not in the legal system. In spite of all the pre-election lawsuits that happened, and some of the antics of party challengers in many states at the polling stations, the election went very smoothly, and I wanted to express my appreciation to Kerry for keeping his word and not allowing a repeat of the 2000 election fiasco in Florida.

I’m very glad this campaign and election is over.

Oh, and if you are reading this and still have campaign signs up in your yard, or stuck them onto roadsides at various places around where you live, please pick them up. They will become major eyesores now that the election has come and gone. Thank you for helping to keep the litter problem to a minimum.

Moveon.org and Other Idiots Cause Voting Problems in Michigan

The radical liberal group moveon.org has caused problems at several polling stations in the Michigan cities of Grand Rapids, Lansing, Milford, Dearborn and Troy. They are supposed to be watching the election, not actively interfering.

In Detroit, the police were summoned to shoo away white Republican Party members from Grand Rapids who were pestering the residents of mainly African American areas of Detroit. Then the Democrats showed up with attorneys wearing hunters orange vests. Oh yay. Attorneys. And insulting hunters, too!

Polling monitors should keep their mouths shut or go home. This is why this kind of behavior should be strictly enforced by the courts. Under Michigan law there is no campaigning within 100 feet of a polling place, but that is not enough.

Party challengers need to be banned. I’m glad that the election workers were uncooperative with the self-appointed party challengers. Instead of intimidating people, the self-appointed party challengers ought to be contributing to society instead of being two-bit bullies.

Space Shuttle Enterprise On Permanent Display

The space shuttle Enterprise has finally returned to the public eye, taking its rightful place as the centerpiece of a new display at the National Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington, DC.

The original space shuttle never left Earth’s atmosphere, but was a testing platform for the active shuttle fleet, including the Atlantis, Discovery and Endeavor, and the two doomed space shuttles Challenger and Columbia.

Built in 1976, the Enterprise has been mothballed for many years and is now finally available for the public to view up close. The shuttle had been available for a year to view, but from the other end of a hangar.

The shuttle has proven useful over the years; most recently, parts of it were used to conduct experiments which led scientists to conclude that a damaged wing led to the destruction of the shuttle Columbia on February 1st, 2003, as it re-entered Earth’s atmosphere.

In a scenario recreation of the foam coming off the shuttle as Columbia lifted off, foam was fired at the leading edge of the Enterprise’s wing to see what effect the foam would have. An audible gasp was heard from the stunned scientists as the foam penetrated the wing, leaving a large hole where the heat shield would have been.

This led investigators to declare that the smoking gun had been found, and that super hot gasses entered the Columbia’s wing, catching everything on fire and causing the Columbia to break up 203,000 feet above Texas, while traveling across the sky at Mach 18.

For the moment, the parts of the wing that were borrowed from the Enterprise have been replaced with plastic substitutes. It should be noted that parts of the shuttle are flight-ready as NASA still uses the Enterprise for testing purposes. The missing pieces have been ordered and will be installed in 2005, according to NASA.

I wrote a letter to NASA two days after the Columbia was destroyed, asking about whether the Enterprise would be on permanent display and NASA sent a beautiful letter back, with a link to the new display that was being constructed. I was happy to hear back from NASA that the Enterprise was on the front burner and that America’s first space shuttle was going to be honored with a display of its own.

The Enterprise display opened up yesterday. Along with the Enterprise, there are over a hundred other displays in the hangar, all from America’s space program. Outstanding!

See-Saw Legal Battle in Ohio Elections

In an 11th hour decision, a superior court in Ohio has allowed party challengers to go to the polls this morning to challenge the identity of voters in that state.

The lawyer who represents the African American voters that filed the lawsuit have fired an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. It is uncertain if the high court will intervene.

As many as 23,000 voters will be challenged and stopped today as that is the number of voters that the Republicans suspect of being frauds.

The political parties should keep their noses out of the balloting areas.

Major questions:

How do the challengers know which people to challenge? Are they working off of a list of suspected names? Are they picking people at random to challenge? Are they challenging everyone? What questions are they asking? What makes them more qualified to determine who is eligible to vote? Do the poll judges have the power to override the challengers? Will there be batteries of attorneys who will be standing outside the polls to offer legal representation to those voters who are turned away?

I can see violence happening in the Ohio polling places due to this. This is an unfortunate turn of events.

Federal Judges Outlaw Ohio Party Challengers

In a positive development today, two federal judges in Ohio barred “party challengers” from being deployed across the state to check on voter eligibility. In addition, they decided that poll workers are the sole judges of who is/is not eligible to vote. The “challengers” in the Ohio court case are not the poll workers themselves, but Democratic or Republican Party representatives who float around and stop whomever they want from entering the polling place. This court decision will eliminate another Democratic reason to claim voter intimidation in the battleground state.

Party challengers should be banned across the country!! Having a stranger stopping you outside the voting station and demanding identification could be intimidating all by itself, especially for first-time voters. Then there is the possibility that certain party members could be challenging for reasons other than simple identification and eligibility validation, which is troubling.

Where I come from, you fill out a card, sign it, and a poll worker checks your name and valid ID against a master list to determine if you are eligible to vote. If you are, they hand you the ballots and you move on to a voting booth. If not, you are asked to leave or given directions on what to do next. This system is fair and efficient.

The Ohio Republican Party, strangely enough, was in favor of the party challenge system and is vowing to appeal the decisions. While I support the conservative movement, I do not agree with the Ohio Republican stance. We don’t need another “2000 Florida-style” Presidential election.

I think they need to have a little more faith in the poll workers, who can compare a valid picture ID against a master list of eligible voters. If there are legitimate cases of voter fraud going on in Ohio, then I don’t know what the solution is. Thumb prints? I have no idea. Criminal punishment? Definitely!

There is no guarantee that everyone who registers to vote will vote, either. Let the polling judges do their work.

Here’s the story.

Pre-Election Lawsuits Underway

Lawsuits are underway in a dozen states. The ballots haven't even been cast yet, and they're already suing.

So much for a clean one-shot election.

If this keeps up, it will be taken out of the hands of voters and put into the hands of the lawyers. Again.

If some of these lawsuits are carried through, elections will be delayed for weeks in some of the most vote-heavy states until replacement voting machines can be manufactured and delivered. Ridiculous!

Osama bin-Laden & News Coverage: ENOUGH!!

With twenty-four hours left before Election Day, the news networks are giving Osama bin-Laden lots of press attention, and so are the campaigns. Osama doesn’t deserve it. The only news coverage he should be getting when he is either captured or confirmed dead. Osama's message was designed to distract American voters and/or pass on messages to his al-Qaeda terror network. Nothing more, nothing else.

The news networks should focus on non-bin Laden issues, not videos from a terrorist who has stepped away from his radical Islamic speech and addressed the American people in a political speech. I do not hear the words of killers; I see their actions and the need to stop them first, then punish them. Everything Osama says is to fit his own agenda. Coming from a bastard who has vowed to kill four million Americans, his rhetoric is meaningless, and I hope the candidates and the news media put bin-Laden on the back burner. Let Homeland Security, the FBI and CIA worry about him for now.

All Americans need to worry about is getting to the polls.

Bush & Kerry: Why Are They Giving Free Press to bin-Laden?

Osama bin-Laden entered the U.S. political fray with a videotaped message to the world, announcing that he’s still alive and that U.S. foreign policy could trigger another terrorist attack.

It’s unfortunate that the two candidates are trying to use the bin-Laden video to their advantage. This election has progressed to the point that they have to rely on. . . OSAMA BIN-LADEN to help them win?

Disgusting!

I don’t know which side started this, but it looks really bad. The two campaigns should have contacted one another and agreed to ignore the video in the campaign, and not give it any press whatsoever; leaving it to Homeland Security, the FBI and the CIA to deal with. Instead it’s the centerpiece of the campaign with less than forty-eight hours to go before the election.

I do not like politicians using the bin-Laden video to score brownie points on one another. By calling more attention to the bin-Laden video, they are giving bin-Laden more press than he deserves.

New Video Sheds Some Light on Disappearance of Iraqi High Explosives

Newly surfaced video of the al-Qaqaa ammunition facility shows U.S. soldiers standing around what some are describing as drums of high-explosives, lending credence to the story that the explosives disappeared after the facility fell to the U.S. military, and casting doubt that the Russians were involved in the disappearance of three hundred tons of high explosives (at this facility).

I’m told that in conventional warfare, it’s customary to either use, burn or destroy ammo dumps like this so that enemy soldiers who are caught behind the advancing lines cannot access ammo/weapons to wreak havoc on other advancing units and supply lines that are following the leading regiments. The supply lines came under attack as the U.S. military stormed northward. Experts are unsure if the weapons stolen have been used or who has them.

Key questions: did this happen at other facilities too? What were the rules of engagement during the drive to Baghdad? What other orders were our soldiers following? Was it in the plan to capture and then abandon enemy weapons depots?

This story is changing by the hour, so I'm putting a disclaimer on this post as details are changing rapidly.

Washington Times Report: Russian Involvement in Disappearance of Iraqi Weapons

The Washington Times is running a story that says Russian spetsnatz (special forces) moved special weapons of Russian manufacture out of Iraq and into Syria and Lebanon before the war began, including the missing high explosives that have seen so much political play in the U.S. Presidential campaign this week.

According to the report, the Russians were unable to convince Saddam to give up the arms programs, so they struck a deal with Iraqi intelligence services to remove the weapons and disperse them, with Saddam’s knowledge. Iraqi reports written by Saddam’s government and captured by the coalition provide a revealing insight into what the Russians did.

Whether the missing Iraqi weapons of mass destruction program were part of the deal is not yet known.

This would explain a great many things, such as the failure to find weapons that the Iraqis had before the war began, and how Saddam could obsess over Iran gaining nuclear technology, while being determined to keep apace with Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.

If this story is proven to be correct, then we have to ask ourselves: has a new Cold War begun between the U.S. and Russia? What was taken out of Iraq by the Russians? Where are those weapons now? And what is yet to come?

Finally, is this the long-awaited “October Surprise” that will vindicate Bush’s decision to invade Iraq?

It’s going to be very interesting to see how this plays out.

Here’s the story.

Man Claims First Amendment Protection After Vehicular Assault On Harris

In the latest example of irrational left-wing rage, someone tried to run over Representative Katherine Harris, the former Florida Secretary of State who oversaw the 2000 Florida election disaster, and several Harris supporters.

The man turned himself in a short while later to Sarasota police, saying that he was trying to “exercise his political expression” in attempting to mow the group down as they were walking on a sidewalk.

This is almost beyond belief! Some people need serious psychological help as they are devolving right before our eyes. Behavior like this should be seriously punished; at the very least, idiots like this should be institutionalized so that they can start to get straightened out.

And there will be idiots on TV supporting the actions of this pyscho, too!

Bush Re-Election Offices Attacked Across Country

For all the statements coming in from voters that they are intimidated at the polls, it seems that the Republicans have incurred more damage and injury from angry anti-Bush nutters than any other group this election year.

The following Bush/Cheney re-election offices have been attacked or damaged by person or persons unknown in the last four weeks:

Canton, Ohio
Orlando, Florida (office was shot at)
Fairbanks, Alaska
Galatin County, Montana (twice)
Huntington, West Virginia (office was shot at)
Knoxville, Tennessee (office was shot at)
Spokane, Washington
Edwardsville, Illinois
Flagstaff, Arizona
Bellevue, Washington
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania (twice)
Cincinnati, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio

In addition, there are widespread reports of cars sporting Bush/Cheney bumper stickers being vandalized, B/C 2004 yard signs being stolen or vandalized, homes with Bush/Cheney signs in the front yard being damaged or broken into, and Bush supporters being assaulted. The news has daily occurrences of hate-related crimes related to the election.

You would expect these types of political crimes in Nazi Germany or in Third World countries with two-bit dictators who are trying to keep the opposition from booting them out of office, not in the United States. I’ve never seen such widespread hate before, and the ones who are perpetrating these crimes are not mainstream Kerry supporters. This is the radical left at work.

In elections past, party headquarters on both sides have been ransacked or vandalized, but nothing approaching the damage that has been done to Bush/Cheney offices and staff this election year.

In all fairness, Kerry yard signs are being ripped off too, and some vandalism against Kerry offices and supporters have taken place. But Bush supporters are taking the brunt of the violence and property damage. People who are doing these crimes, no matter what their persuasion, and no matter who they support, ought to be ashamed of themselves. What’s happening goes far beyond the First Amendment. This is not free speech. This is a bunch of malcontents taking advantage of a political situation for whatever pleasure they derive from violence and hatred.

CBS News Is At It Again

Many people were angered by news that over three hundred tons of high explosives have gone missing from a former Iraqi Army base in Iraq and were quick to point the fingers at Bush and the military for allowing it to happen.

It’s bad enough that these weapons and explosives are missing. I’m not too concerned about the timeline as to when they disappeared; before the war, during, or after. And some in our country were unconcerned that the same thing couldn’t have happened to any nuclear/biological/chemical stockpiles that Iraq could have had?

This has had a major effect domestically. CBS was going to hold the report until twenty-four hours before the U.S. Presidential election began, instead of releasing the news immediately. They were scooped by a couple of newspapers who released the stories within hours of confirming the information.

This latest episode proves that CBS News is willing to make itself the news once again; their claims of being neutral in their reporting are proven false, and all their gains in apologizing for airing false documents that attacked Bush’s record have been erased.

I have nothing but contempt for news organizations that play the news to influence American voters.

Kerry & Congress & the $87 Billion Backtrack

Do you know why Kerry voted for war against Iraq but voted against the funds to support it?

The answer is simpler than you think.

Some in Congress are more likely to vote for a use of force if they are assured that only certain types of weapons will be used (not ground troops), or no military action will be taken. Remember when the U.S. launched major air strikes in Iraq in 1998 (Operation Desert Fox) to force Saddam to allow arms inspectors back into Iraq? The not-hawks in Congress were pushing for military action then, fully realizing that then-President Clinton wouldn’t use all the military force he had available to force the issue. In fact, Clinton was dragging his feet, which made the not-hawks even more bombastic about authorizing the use of force, because they knew that Clinton was going to limit his military options or go for a diplomatic solution and forget about using force. In fact, military action had been delayed the month before (Operation Desert Viper) due to Saddam agreeing to let the inspectors back in; the B-52s were airborne and twenty minutes away from launching their missiles, and Saddam knew it.

Well, the same thing happened when many in Congress (including Kerry) voted for the use of force against Iraq in 2003. When they realized that they had a President who was going to use the military firepower at his disposal, some of them backtracked (including Kerry), voting against the $87 billion in additional military spending for military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.

This backtracking is right in line with their past history, so we shouldn’t be too surprised that this has been a major campaign issue, and that Kerry has gotten massacred in this area.

The simple fact is that the not-hawks gambled, lost and then backtracked, which has lead to Bush having a huge stick to beat Kerry with repeatedly and often.

This is an example of what happens when politics interferes with good common sense.

They voted to send our military off to war, then didn’t back up their vote under the pretense that money was being spent in this congressional district, but not that one. No, no, no. They got cold feet, pure and simple.

For those that are interested, “not-hawk” = war hawk…not!

Guardian Newspaper Ends Anti-Bush Campaign

It was announced the United Kingdom left-leaning Guardian newspaper has abandoned its campaign to influence American voters in Ohio to vote against Bush.

Previously, the Guardian was exhorting its readers to send letters to undecided voters in Clark County, Ohio, to encourage them to vote against Bush. When the British paper realized that the opposite effect was happening, they put an end to their campaign. It turned out that the furious locals began volunteering to help Bush in the battleground state.

Good riddance, Guardian lefties. Don’t let the door hit you in the a$$. I hope the rest of the world observes strict neutrality in American domestic affairs and politics, even as we respect their politics and elections.

Design Flaws Ruled Out in WTC Structural Failures

Design flaws have been ruled out in the collapse of the World Trade Center towers.

Some have suggested that lack of fireproofing and lack of strength in the lightweight floors played critical roles in the eventual collapse of both towers after they were rammed by hijacked airliners.

A detailed report that was released yesterday points out that “the twin towers failed because the structural columns at the buildings' core, damaged by the impact of the airliners, buckled and shortened as the fires burned, gradually shifting more load to the tower's trademark exterior pinstripe columns.” Those external columns took most of the weight load of the floors above the impact areas and failed, which caused the structures to fall in on themselves.

In other words, the internal structures holding the buildings up were severed, severely damaged, or melted by the 1,000 to 2,000 degree fires that were raging in the damaged areas of the building. Eventually both buildings began to sag in the damaged areas and the weight was caught by the outside columns. You could almost see it happening when you look at video of the burning buildings.

Some of these columns were damaged by the impact as well, or were damaged also by the unbelievable heat, so failure was only a matter of time. When enough of the columns were weakened, the weight overcame the strength of the columns and the skyscrapers collapsed in a matter of seconds, killing thousands of people who were still inside the burning towers as well as people standing near the buildings who couldn’t escape the huge sections of building that came crashing down on top of them.

Here’s the New York Times story.

I don't know if any lessons can be learned from this or what can be done to strengthen existing skyscrapers against the same kind of thing happening. I don't think armoring new towers will help either. Steel and concrete have been shown to be susceptable to this new kind of terrorism. I can't see making the walls one hundred feet thick either. The weight load would be unbelievable. Could such a structure even be built and not collapse under its own weight? More questions than answers.

UK Guardian Newspaper Sends Anti-Bush Letters to Ohio Voters

The Guardian newspaper out of the United Kingdom sent anti-Bush letters across the Atlantic to Ohio after acquiring lists of unregistered voters in the battleground state.

Kerry campaign officials were quick to express horror at what has happened.

The news media in this country have begun to tear into the left-leaning Guardian for attempting to influence American voters. Fox News in particular has been very harsh in its coverage of the incident.

In the meantime, the Guardian has stood its ground in its blatant cross-Atlantic attempts to influence American voters to pick the British left’s choice for U.S. President.

Isn’t this kind of thing illegal in the U.S.?

This is what I was afraid of when other nations began to weigh in on our elections. Now we’ve got liberals from other countries sticking their noses in where they’re not wanted.

We don’t need input from overseas, thank you very much. I would suggest that the Guardian get its own house into order before it goes making suggestions on how to run ours.

International Leaders Begin to Weigh in on American Elections

The leaders of Russia and Malaysia have urged American voters to vote for Bush on terrorism issues.

While I do not totally disagree with their sentiment, I do disagree with them taking a side in an American election.

Nations need maintain their neutrality in the American political process, even as America maintains neutrality in their political campaigns. This is how it has always been.

This is a continuation of my condemning international polls that show that the rest of the world favors one candidate over another. We don’t care what the rest of the world thinks of our candidates since they are not electing the American President. The American people are.

This could open the floodgates for world leaders to publicly weigh in, which I would take as an attack on our right to choose our own leaders without being influenced by foreign interests.

So I would hope that other nations would remain silent, or if asked by the media, use appropriate diplomatic language that says that they are neutral in American politics.

Flu Vaccine Shortage: Solution Needed

The flu vaccine problem in this country needs to be handled differently.

I’m no expert on vaccinations, but there really should be a different way of getting the vaccine into the hands of people that need it the most. There is no reason for a 76-year old grandma or grandpa (lugging around an oxygen tank or standing there on a walker) to stand in line for six friggin’ hours to get a shot and then to get turned away because they run out of doses.

The report that an elderly lady died waiting for a shot really struck a nerve with me.

She apparently fainted from exhaustion, hit her head and died from her injuries.

Can’t the flu vaccine be administered orally and be sold at the local pharmacy, or supermarket, or wherever, and let people buy the damned things on their own time along with their groceries or other pills?

There has to be an easier way to do this.

Kerry and Bush are blaming one another for the shortage. They ought to shut up and fix the problem!