California Conservative

What can I say, besides “finally”?

WASHINGTON - The Justice Department has opened an investigation into the leak of classified information about President Bush’s secret domestic spying program, Justice officials said Friday. The officials, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the probe, said the inquiry will focus on disclosures to The New York Times about warrantless surveillance conducted by the National Security Agency since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The Times revealed the existence of the program two weeks ago in a front-page story that acknowledged the news had been withheld from publication for a year, partly at the request of the administration and partly because the newspaper wanted more time to confirm various aspects of the program.

Catherine Mathis, a spokeswoman for The Times, said the paper will not comment on the investigation.

Cross-posted from Stop The ACLU

Last week, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg was sharply criticized for using the word “thuggishly,” which he apparently said at some point in reference to the illegal and strong-arm tactics being waged by the city transit workers’ union.

As we recall, they went on strike, shutting down all public transit systems, forcing New Yorkers to walk in the freezing winter cold, many missing work, and costing the city a reported $400 million a day. Even the homeless suffered.

Yet, in today’s world ruled by political correctness, there’s no greater cost than the perception of wrongdoing as it relates to offending someone.

As the AP reports:

Four days after the city’s transit strike ended, Mayor Michael Bloomberg was still coming under fire for his use of the word “thuggishly” to describe the actions of the leaders of a union that is mostly minority.

“Michael Bloomberg, don’t be nasty and mean,” attorney Norman Siegel said Monday, standing on the steps of City Hall. “Be positive. Together, we can improve race relations in New York.”

The civil rights attorney noted that more than 70 percent of the Transport Workers Union’s 33,000 members are “of color.” And while he didn’t believe Bloomberg’s use of the word was in itself racist, Siegel said, “The perception out there is that it is racist. And the reaction has enormous racial overtones.”

First, the perception is only “out there” (if it is at all) because Siegel spun it there through his grandstanding and media amplification. Seizing an opportunity of semantics to move the bullseye away from the unions and onto the mayor.

Secondly, there’s an irony to Siegel’s complaint. A subtext, actually. Namely, if the mere use of the word “thuggish” creates a negative implication according to some race, than Bloomberg was only saying what people are thinking any way.

He didn’t define the word. And if a greater meaning (a “perception”) exists, it’s for reasons beyond his simple — and appropriate — use of a term.

What’s next? Will calling bus drivers “lazy and never running on time” constitute racism, too?

In San Francisco, the answer is yes. Ten years ago, there was still debate. Today, everyone just ignores the problem — or drives.

Nothing more thuggish than political correctness.

RELATED:
Babel On: Speaking of Speaking

The gift of a common tongue is a priceless inheritance and it may well someday become the foundation of a common citizenship — Winston Churchill

Much has been made of words in recent years, and we can lay every outcry at the feet of Political Castration. Every single one.

The first has to do with language itself. We live in a nation where approximately 215 million people speak English. That’s right; out of the approximately 300 million in America, the vast, vast, vast majority speaks English, and in case you’re retarded or liberal—a bit redundant, I know—the majority is the rule in this nation, and has been since its inception.

Now the hippy press would have you believe that this is because we are an arrogant, racist society that crushes the individual spirit by demanding that everyone conform to us. They see this as a “How dare Americans make us speak their language in their land!” scenario rather than what it really is: an absolute necessity for the creation and maintenance of a healthy nation and a cohesive citizenry. They utterly ignore the most glaring fact of all that is logical and reasonable. No nation, group, race, or religion can expect to come together for a cause if they can’t even do the first act necessary to find like-minded compatriots: communicate. This is why all successful nations have met that initial requirement of affiliation by endorsing one national language; without it, no one would ever get past the original idea, because there would be no way to come together and begin the process of building a country.

Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. Genesis 11: 7

There is a reason that at the time of the Tower of Babel people automatically divided themselves into groups not by race, gender, politics, religion or even family, but by language. As they mingled amongst themselves after our Father in Heaven confounded them, they automatically sought out those who spoke the same language, others with whom they could communicate and fabricate a new world. They would have stagnated into a pile of frustration had they attempted to remain as one big, garbled populace, never gaining, never progressing, slowly growing wary and suspicious of one another and what someone of evil intent might be saying. It must have been mighty confusing as they weaved in and out of the crowd, discouraged and near panic trying to find another human being with whom they could commune. It is innate, it is accepted, and history has proven that it is successful. It is the first deciding factor in the inherent mortal drive to come together not only as friends, but as a compatible assemblage. (more…)

Jack Kelly has written another must-read column for Jewish World Review. Here’s a sampling:

“Mainstream media giants like the Washington Post repeatedly claim to have layers and layers of editors and fact checkers to make sure only verified facts get into the daily newspaper. This process is allegedly why (journalists) are superior to bloggers in getting it first and getting it right,” said Mark Tapscott, a former journalist who now works for the Heritage Foundation, a think tank in Washington, D.C. “Finer and Struck are experienced journos, but their reporting in this instance contained so many errors of basic fact that one wonders how on earth this example of their work made it into print,” Tapscott said. The answer, as Mr. Tapscott well knows, is that editors are less vigilant in fact-checking stories which advance their agenda.

That’s why I consider most of the ‘reporters’ for the Washington Post, NY Times and the AP to be the core of the Agenda Media. The reality is that these “layers of editors” are either asleep at the switch (unlikely) or they’re hell-bent on advancing their agenda, whether it costs their paper readership (and thereby advertising revenue) or whether it costs the reporters their reputations. The agenda is the only thing that’s important to them.

It’s also apparent for everyone to see that bloggers police their own ranks with extraordinary efficiency. They simply get things right the vast majority of times and most bloggers link to their source documents or reports. When I link to a politician’s speech, my readers can examine the transcript to see whether I took a key phrase out of context or if I’m merely highlighting a major point. (more…)

Neal Boortz is gonna go nuts when he reads that headline. So will Bill O’Reilly. The AP’s Errin Haines writes:

At the end of a losing battle during the past legislative session, Georgia state Rep. Alisha Thomas-Morgan burst into the civil rights anthem “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around” to protest the passage of a law requiring voters to show a photo ID at the polls. In the next session starting Jan. 9, the 27-year-old black Democrat says she will not be moved in her fight to get the law repealed. “It’s whatever it takes,” Morgan said. “I’m putting on the armor. Nothing they can do will fix the bill. It’s a bad law and it needs to be repealed. We’re not going backwards.”

Perhaps someone should explain to Ms. Morgan that they aren’t going backwards and that this law is merely to prevent voter fraud.

Republican Sen. Cecil Staton, the legislation’s chief Senate sponsor, is proposing to amend the law during the upcoming session. He said he is willing, among other things, to make the state-issued IDs free for the asking. “I don’t want there to be a hardship any more than necessary for voters, but I don’t think it’s too much to ask that when you come in to vote, you help us see that you are who you say you are,” Staton said. He added: “Most Georgians think this is common sense, including African-Americans.”

This makes perfect sense, which is likely why Democrats don’t like it. As Mr. Staton notes, African-Americans think this is common sense. It won’t be long before that voting block comes to realize that the old ‘Civil Rights’ Democrats haven’t done a thing for them since the early 70’s.

However, black legislators are promising to fight any plan that does not repeal the law, and they are getting support from the AARP, the League of Women Voters, the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. “This is a fight that has to be fought. A whole lot of folks have expended a lot of blood, sweat and tears to protect voting rights. It’s a fundamental issue,” said Sen. Vincent Fort, an Atlanta Democrat.

Then you’ll lose, Mr. Fort. The usual suspects don’t have the clout to create monolithic voting habits like they used to. As a result of improving technology and an emerging black middle class, most African-Americans can think for themselves and don’t see themselves as victims. They’d rather win than complain.

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRing

As not seen in the New York Times…

(Click to enlarge. Graphic by: Clark Baker, Senior Contributor)

RELATED:
ACLU and NY Times Propaganda

Against the steady drumbeat of anti-Iraq war sentiment, leftists have suddenly turned hawkish when it comes to Iran. The fact that Iran is on the verge of becoming a nuclear power has them all atwitter and as always, the Bush administration is the target of their criticism. But perhaps it’s time to call their bluff.

For one thing, leftists don’t really care about national security. They seem to suffer under the delusion that their way of life is inviolate, except perhaps for the encroachments of the “Christian right.” This would explain why they eschew every military effort on the part of the U.S. The only time they reference matters of national security is when it provides fodder for yet another anti-Bush talking point.

Secondly, since when did the left take any raving dictator seriously? Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a potential Hitler with nukes, but as in WWII, the anti-war isolationists don’t want to hear about it. The fact that the elimination of Jews from the planet is the shared cornerstone of their expansive ambitions rarely factors into the equation. Whereas Hitler wanted to rid Europe of Jews, Ahmadinejad wants to rid Israel of Jews. But that’s just a minor point.

Were the U.S. to actually propose taking military action against Iran, the left would be up in arms, and not in its defense. Similarly, were Israel to prove its mettle by once again saving the world from Muslim dictators with nuclear ambitions (as they did in 1981 with Iraq), leftists would only step up their calls for that country’s destruction. Come to think of it, they have a lot in common with Ahmadinejad in that regard.

Lastly and most importantly, there’s no acknowledgement by the left that the very methods they espouse for solving such problems are currently being employed. And they’re failing miserably.

The UN, mankind’s savior according to the internationalists, is taking a time-honored approach to Iran – dithering diplomacy, meaningless treaties, and pretending that dictators and terrorist states can be trusted. Despite the left’s caterwauling, the Bush administration is actually on board for the charade. Far from employing the dreaded “unilateralism” of Iraq (if only 30 allies counts), the president has been tirelessly multilateral in his approach to Iran. The results or lack thereof are painfully obvious. (more…)

NEW YORK – In a full-page advertisement in today’s New York Times, the American Civil Liberties Union intensified its call for a special counsel to be appointed to determine whether President George W. Bush violated federal wiretapping laws by authorizing illegal surveillance.

The ACLU said President Bush’s actions were a clear violation of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which was passed by Congress in response to revelations that former President Nixon was using “national security” claims to spy on American citizens he considered his “enemies.”

“President Nixon was not above the law and neither is President Bush,” said ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero. “President Bush cannot use a claim of seeking to preserve our nation to undermine the rules that serve as our foundation. The Attorney General, who may have been involved with the formulation of this policy, must appoint a special counsel to let justice be served.”

The advertisement, as well as a similar ACLU ad that ran last Thursday, was spurred by revelations earlier this month that Bush authorized the National Security Agency (NSA) to conduct electronic surveillance of people within the United States, including U.S. citizens, without a warrant.

The text of today’s advertisement compares the words of President Nixon and President Bush, both of whom denied allegations of illegal spying. Next to the image of Nixon, the advertisement says: “He lied to the American people and broke the law.” Below that is an image of President Bush, with the words, “So did he.” (more…)

My husband served in Iraq during the expeditionary phase of the war — Feb. ‘03-Feb. ‘04, awaiting the start of the combat offensive in Kuwait and fighting up through southern Iraq into Baghdad. He fought as a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division, 325th Infantry Regiment out of Fort Bragg, NC.

Last night while watching a Fox News program, a debate raged about the legitimacy of the war in Iraq because of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). He led me to some of his photographs taken in Iraq, in particular Saddam’s main palace in Baghdad, and this is what my soldier had to say, as the debate continued on TV about Saddam’s intent to not pursue a WMD program:

**********************************************

“I understand how both sides of the WMD argument have postured in support of their respective positions.

“Still, there is one thing I would like people to know about Saddam and WMD.

“Now, I’m no national security advisor, I’m not a WMD inspector, I’m no diplomat, and I didn’t even sleep in a Holiday Inn Express last night. I’m just a garden variety Sergeant in the US Army who had the good fortune to be in Baghdad with 3,300 of my closest buddies in the 82nd Airborne during the year 2003.

‘Since I was a Brigade staffer, I had reason every so often to visit the Green Zone where the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) was headquartered in Saddam’s central Baghdad palace. My first visit there was in May of 2003. Tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, Hum Vs and ground troops from many nations formed a perimeter around this massive, sprawling estate, roughly 20-30 acres square. (more…)

When I first read this headline, I thought that this must’ve been instigated by the delusional Agenda Media trying to create a rift in the Republican Party. It still might be but it appears that Sen. Lott still would like to regain a position of power in the Senate Republican caucus. Here’s proof:

But he recently told the Sun Herald in Mississippi that if re-elected he might run for a Senate leadership post “just to make everybody nervous.” Back in July, NewsMax reported that Lott had set his sights on the job of party whip, the No. 2 GOP post.

If he thinks he’d be a viable candidate, then he’s obviously delusional. Jon Kyl will move into the Majority Whip position when Mitch McConnell gets elected Senate Majority Leader after the 06 midterm elections.

His decision could determine whether Republicans retain control of the Senate next year, according to nationally syndicated columnist Robert Novak. GOP officials in Mississippi believe Lott will probably retire, and they fear that would leave the door open for former State Attorney General Mike Moore, a Democrat, to win his Senate seat, Novak reports.

I don’t doubt that “GOP officials in Mississippi” told Novak this but I don’t find it credible that Mike Moore would defeat Skip Pickering if Lott retired. I don’t have any public opinion polls to support that but I’ve heard that Mr. Pickering ran an impressive campaign last time and is a rising star in the Mississippi GOP.

It’s also worth noting that Haley Barbour’s influence with party activists would be a huge advantage in fundraising. That’s something that shouldn’t be discounted in an open seat. Campaigning with Barbour, who is a popular governor, would also benefit Pickering.

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRing