The Pink Flamingo Bar Grill

Burning in hell, Zarqawi confused...

While the rest of the world is busy impugning their ability, honor and even their humanity US Servicemen and women working alongside our allies the Iraqis sent to hell someone who richly deserved it. Zarqawi who embodied the very definition of terrorist lived by the bomb and in the end died by the bomb. There are some reports that he lived for sometime after being hit by the air-strike. Let us

These attacks on Coulter are a bunch of crap!

Yea lets not get too vocal in our defense of principles....lets make sure we state all of our points in a nice modulated tone because heaven forbid that anyone should think we are passionate about our cause. This is why the left has been eating the rights lunch for years....they play to win, we play to look good. Looking good does not, however much conservatives might want wish it to, put points on the board. It merely is the stuff that losers can consul themselves with after the game is over and they are left nursing their injuries.

Whenever the right has been passionate about its principles it has won big in elections. Reagan was not a moderate who minced words. Newt Gingrich is not a moderate who minces words. Both of those politicians won big. Yea Newt was brought down by the MSM but that was mainly because the "moderates" on the right deserted him in a fit of what they call principle. Yea the principle of letting the left win because its more important to look good than to win.

Lets all stand around once we are in chains and declare how pious we all are to our supposed principles. Make no mistake many on the left are dying to shackle us into a permanent minority status. Some are even willing to see us lose the war to enable that end result...and yet some on the right seem to think that we must be moderate in responding to them.

That moderation has seen us lose the colleges, newspapers, Television and any other significant form of communication to the left's corrupt philosophy. No doubt that we have the right answer to most of the significant policy and philosophy questions raised but somehow we keep losing. And like any loser we keep avoiding the sort of self critical analysis that might show us the way out.

Ann Coulter was exactly correct to state in clear terms that the 9/11 Widows of whom she spoke in the book were trading on their husbands deaths to attack our war effort. If that doesnt deserve the strongest condemnation then exactly what does? Standing on their husbands graves to raise themselves up high enough to have their voices heard and then they agitate for the defeat of the US. That deserves a lot worse than what Ann Coulter did.

Captain's Quarters is such a nice guy that its not odd he should be upset but I believe he is wrong.
AJ Strata is having a tough time deciding whether he is a conservative or a moderate...
Right Wing Nuthouse needs to breath into a paper bag.
Anchoress is her usual calm self, wrong on this but calm.
Michelle Malkin hits it out of the park pointing out that long ago the Opinion Journals Dorothy Rabinowitz had the Jersey Girls figured.
Ace of Spades is only happy if he is doing the attacking of the left...he was pretty darn harsh on Sheehan.

Technorati Tags: coulter Ann Coulter Liberals

Being interviewed on the Tammy Bruce show was as exciting as my first Instalaunch...

I have been terribly remiss in not thanking Tammy Bruce and her wonderful producer for being so kind to me. The minutes up to the interview felt like the last few seconds before the start of huge Open Class Desert Race on my Husky 430 back in the day. I needn't have worried as Tammy helped me through the process.

My posting has been light because of another classic Legrand crisis that has me distracted. It is almost unbelievable that we are involved in another crisis but we sure are...

The Pink Flamingo Bar Grill: "UPDATE ON RADIO SHOW INTERVIEW: I will be on the Tammy Bruce Radio Show tomorrow 6/2/2006 at 10:05 Pacific 12:05 Central. Scheduled for one 10 minute segment but if I sound especially brilliant or absolutely, hilariously, idiotic they might hold me over for 2 just to keep people laughing. Bumped this back up to the top..."

By Hook or Crook The Senates Comprehensive Illegal Importation Bill.

Statistics are a wonderful thing...especially when they tell you what you already had figured out by observation. Hey lets import 66 million more poor people from Mexico. Yea that sounds good lets make sure that they:

Don't value being an American Citizen...because we don't want anyone here who actually wants to be here.
And lets make darn sure that they are race concious that way victimhood will come easily to them.

And George Bush tries to wag the dog by backing the Marriage amendment. Yea that is gonna work...yea. Sure. I was diverted from hating his pro illegal immigration amnesty nonsense for all of 3 seconds.

Anyways take a look at this terrific look at exactly what sort of people President Bush is so anxious to import into our country by hook or crook. oops pardon the pun.
ParaPundit: Ron Guhname Compares Ethnic Groups

Other posts on immigration

Kabuki Theatre in DC, Fun Facts I Wished I Didn't Know About Illegal Immigration
Doing the work that Americans won't do...and other Bush Fables
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Technorati tags
Congress Politics GOP conservatives Corruption The Washington Post The Washington Examiner Immigration border Illegal immigration

Holding up low wages, no insurance and unsafe workplaces to blame for our expansion...hmmm.

John Podhoretz can be counted on to defend the Bush Administration, that much is sure. But not sure that I would want him defending me if he actually means what he posted here.

The Corner on National Review Online: "Um, Mark Krikorian... [John Podhoretz]
You write: 'Watching a show with that Honda robot walking up and down stairs and the rest, all I could think of is that the Japanese are developing humanoid robots and we're importing illiterates from south of the border who's going to end up with the better deal?'
Gee, which country's economy grew from $3 trillion to $5 trillion between 1990 and now and which country's economy more than doubled, from $5 trillion to $12 trillion? The country that did vastly better is the county that 'imported illiterates.' Posted at 12:20 PM"

Does he actually want to attribute our terrific economic performance to the fact that we employ people here illegally? Does John really think it is a good idea to attribute our stunning economic growth to the fact that some employers use illegals to avoid the costs of legal employees. You know stuff like the expense of paying them minimum wage, paying workman's comp insurance, unemployment insurance, observing workplace safety laws (Meatpacking industry's safety record has plummeted since they discovered illegals) and other untidy little details. Does he want to trumpet the fact that if you employ illegals you get the added benefit, aside from the lower direct costs of insurance and wages, of having a nearly captive audience not likely to run to the Government to complain about safety since on one hand the illegals may not even realize we have laws against that stuff and on the other hand they certainly don't want to bring legal attention to themselves. Does John consider those sorts of facts pluses?

Is John trumpeting the fact that those illegals are lowering the working conditions for all the workers in those brackets? Is it ok since many of them don't have a high school education? Is being an elitist snob a pre-requisite of being a Bush Bot.

Finally does John actually believe that cheap/slave labor is the secret of economic growth? Wonder why the South didn't do so well...? Does John really believe that our productivity relies on the backs of the day laborer who recently swam the Rio Grande?

Mark Krikorian of Center of Immigration Studies does a better job than I explaining the matter to Bush Bot Jpod.

Don't miss this New York Times article The Worker Next Door

Other posts on immigration

Kabuki Theatre in DC, Fun Facts I Wished I Didn't Know About Illegal Immigration
Doing the work that Americans won't do...and other Bush Fables
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Technorati tags
Congress Politics GOP conservatives Corruption The Washington Post The Washington Examiner Immigration border Illegal immigration

Selling arms to both sides...cynical realist foreign policy back in style?

So we sign a 10 year pact with India, who by the way has been fighting the Islamic facists much longer than we have, to provide them with missile defense among other things, then we sell Pakistan the missiles to shoot at India's new Missile Defense. Hmmm is this some sort of test? Geopolitical nonsense of the highest order.
US plans "significant" Pakistan missile sale - Netscape News

Trust an easy thing to lose. Why did President Bush fritter it away on illegal immigration? Ver 2.0

UPDATE ON RADIO SHOW INTERVIEW: I will be on the Tammy Bruce Radio Show tomorrow 6/2/2006 at 10:05 Pacific 12:05 Central. Scheduled for one 10 minute segment but if I sound especially brilliant or absolutely, hilariously, idiotic they might hold me over for 2 just to keep people laughing. Bumped this back up to the top...

UPDATE: Edits and links ...just got an offer to do an interview on a National Radio Show regarding this piece. Wow! Details to follow...naturally. Thanks PJ Media! Added more links to interesting illegal immigration information below.

When mainstream sites like Powerline and National Review start calling what the President and some Republicans are trying with their "comprehensive reform" a pack of lies it means trouble for the President and the Republican Party. Here is a powerful message to the Republicans from Powerline a site that is watched and read by the White House and Republicans in office. A snippet read the whole thing!

Power Line: What the Base Thinks: "Here's what they're missing, and it is the principal reason, in my opinion, WHY the anti-ILLEGAL forces are so upset -- and so powerful.

It has to do with the bad faith, calculated deceit, Orwellian propaganda, dishonest sophistry, misdirection,arrogance, presumption, indifference to, and, indeed, contempt for the beliefs of huge numbers of ordinary Americans --including LEGAL immigrants and Hispanic natives! --- on the part of political/media elites.

The damage this does to the President is incalculable since his main strength with the base is our trust in his decency. We didn't believe that he would lie to us and with immigration he has done so repeatedly. Honor lost is not so easily regained. It is a tragedy of the highest order that he felt so strongly about immigration that to him the ends justified any means. What remains to be seen is are the Republicans ready to leap off of the cliff behind him.

1. When you match willing worker with willing employer on a job Americans won't do...

Aside from the tremendous insult to Americans the truth is in most cases it is jobs Americans cannot do because it is against the law to work without insurance and for less than minimum wage. Here is the President from that same speech at the border.

2. Amnesty would be a mistake. Granting amnesty to the people who have come to our country illegally would invite others to come to our country illegally.

Q. Mr. President, on the immigration proposal that you're weighing, sir, is there some reason that only Mexican workers should be considered? What about those from other countries?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we'll consider all folks here. Let me make this very clear to people, that there was -- a word was creeping in the vernacular about this issue, called amnesty. I oppose blanket amnesty..

What does ex-attorney general for President Reagan Ed Meese say about that particular lie? From a scathing article in yesterday's New York Times.

Beyond this, most illegal immigrants who could establish that they had resided in America continuously for five years would be granted temporary resident status, which could be upgraded to permanent residency after 18 months and, after another five years, to citizenship.

Note that this path to citizenship was not automatic. Indeed, the legislation stipulated several conditions: immigrants had to pay application fees, learn to speak English, understand American civics, pass a medical exam and register for military selective service. Those with convictions for a felony or three misdemeanors were ineligible. Sound familiar? These are pretty much the same provisions included in the new Senate proposal and cited by its supporters as proof that they have eschewed amnesty in favor of earned citizenship.
The difference is that President Reagan called this what it was: amnesty. Indeed, look up the term "amnesty" in Black's Law Dictionary, and you'll find it says, "the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act provided amnesty for undocumented aliens already in the country."

President Reagan called it what it was, amnesty. That President Bush has continually attempted to call it anything but says a lot about President Bush and none of it good. Trying to sneak something by us is a betrayal of those values we all believed were his strongest points. This is terrible news for the war on terror. Let me explain why I think so.

In our war against Islamic radicals I believe we are engaged in two different sorts of war. One waged by our armies against foes so outmatched that their only chance of victory is to hold on long enough to allow the second war to be won.

The other is a propaganda war meant to demoralize and destroy the American People's will to resist. In that sort of war our leaders job is to stand in front of us and tell us what we need to know to take heart, sacrifice, rearm, say goodbyes to our children as they go off to war, bury our dead and in general to give us backbone when we lose sight of the fight. A leader who squanders his credibility will face an impossible task fulfilling those goals. Without that sort of leader our will to sustain our fight may falter.

This is so because regardless of what strategy we use it is our will alone that will keep us engaged to a successful conclusion. It is perhaps redundant to remind readers that wars are not won by destroying particular armies on battlefields because new armies can always be raised, witness our own history in the American Revolutionary War. Wars are won by destroying the civilian populations will to win. The British were never able to completely destroy our will to win and so they were destined to lose regardless of their reputation as the best army in the world and regardless of their overwhelming numbers compared to us.

The will to win is sustained by leaders who are trusted by the populations asked to make the sacrifices to win. FDR sustained our will to win because with his fireside chats he gave the bad news with the good and explained what we needed to hear to carry on. We trusted him.

The incredible spectacle of President Bush standing in front of us and repeatedly lying is destroying his ability to lead us as we prosecute our war. Our war on terror should be the center of his focus, not fulfilling some promise made to Vicente Fox to legalize 11 million people violating our laws. The fact that even sites as conservative as National Review and Powerline have declared the President to be lying on immigration is destroying his ability to tell us facts which rely upon us trusting him in the war on terror.

It was always going to be hard for him to come to the American people and make the case for denying Iran nuclear weapons. Since most of that case absent some large mushroom cloud expanding over an American city would rest on our trusting his judgment and his word. Do we continue to value a President's judgment, who did so much right in the past, who now squanders his trust by using cheap parlor tricks to pass a bill he realizes needs the distortion to pass? At what point did the President go from realizing that truth had to be spoken to power, regardless of the consequences, to a President who believes that hiding what he is doing is the best way to get what he wants when he is dealing us?

Ask yourself how long will it take the left to seize upon the fact that even bastions of Conservative thought like Powerline and National Review are calling the President a liar. Ask yourself whether they will make much of that when it becomes necessary for the President to step in front of the cameras to declare that the Mad Mullahs need to be taken down and we have to take him at his word.

Would you trust a man who lied to you once? Isn't one of life's lessons that once a person lies to you never trust their word again? But we live in a grown up world and President's at war do have to lie from time to time. Lying about his plans for amnesty was a useless lie since it does not move the war closer to victory. Indeed some might argue that some of the security proposals actually move us farther away from victory. At this point anything that doesn't contribute to victory is best left aside. Especially if it promises to destroy your credibility and fracture much of your strongest political support.

Finally when the President looks around the room and takes stock of those who are in the fight on his side does he feel good? Is he comfortable working with Senator Kennedy? Exactly when has anything that Senator Kennedy touched turned out well? What about Senator McCain, is President Bush so happy about the McCain Feingold campaign finance reform bill that he feels comfortable with any other bill McCain supports? You can tell a lot about a man by the company he keeps in the real world. In the Kabuki Theatre world of Washington DC Politics can you tell a lot about a bill by the sponsors?

At this point I will reissue my warning to the Republicans. If amnesty passes there will be problems for you come this November. I will not be lied to and then be expected to turn around smile and vote for you. No, thank you sir may I have another, from this boy.

Here is a round up of some of the immigration debate going on around the web. The Senate's 'Tough' Immigration Bill by Thomas Sowell, I don't believe Thomas is amused...witness these other articles here, here and here.

When Thomas Sowell starts declaring you are playing fast and loose with the truth well then only AJ Strata can defend you.

What Not to Legislate How not to fix our immigration laws. By Rick Santorum I am proud to say that I recently donated money to Rick because of Polipundits recommendation! Senator John Kyl another one of those dastardly radical Republicans that some folks rail against is not amused either...Securing the border must come first

oops Looks like that Heather Mac Donald piece on the illegal immigrant crime wave might have a point or two in its favor!

Now a timely article pointing out the advantages of having the Democrats winning in 08...sure to set some teeth agrinding.

What a novel idea for the Republicans...listening to the Voters. Who knew that was a strategy? Immigration Deal at Risk as House GOP Looks to Voters

More Heather Mac Donald on the myths of illegal immigration.

Powerline is back beating the drum with this powerful article, damn radical conservatives don't they know they are upsetting some people?

Washington Times weighs in with us "radical far right nuts". Where do we go from here?

The Washington Post decides our fate...hehe. House-Senate Battle On Immigration Likely gee ya think? But the funny part is the bit about some people seeing Bush as key to winning the day for the "amnesty now" folks.

Polipundit who has done some amazing work on the immigration issue is on fire. Something in the Water? Occam’s Razor on Support of Illegal Immigration Derbyshire on CIRA

And to wrap up our little trip around the web lets let Michelle Malkin get your hackles up: DO-IT-YOURSELF BORDER CONTROL "EARNING" CITIZENSHIP MEXICO GETS VETO POWER? "CONSULTATION" REQ'D THE MOST IMPORTANT DEBATE OF THE YEAR Michelle as far as I am concerned is kicking ass taking names especially over at Hot Air...check her out here and here.

John Hawkins over at Right Wing News one of the first major blogs to link to me has been driving home runs over the center field wall...this latest is no exception. 22 Problems With The Senate's Illegal Immigration Bill

Anyone see a war on terror running around here??? We must be kicking that ass if we have all this time to waste on an issue that didn't need us messing with it if we weren't going to commit to upholding the laws we already have on the books. Pain in the ass sentence but I am Bushed...oops pardon the pun...its 1:30am and I am tired.

Other posts on immigration

Kabuki Theatre in DC, Fun Facts I Wished I Didn't Know About Illegal Immigration
Doing the work that Americans won't do...and other Bush Fables
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Technorati tags
Congress Politics GOP conservatives Corruption The Washington Post The Washington Examiner Immigration border Illegal immigration

Welcome to the Party Captain! President, McCain and Kennedy in cahoots...truth suffers.

This President and the Republican "Front Runner" Senator "Grandstand" McCain are rapidly approaching a stage where allowing Democrats into power might actually be a better choice. At least then we can spend our time forcing them to act like adults. At least then all Republicans will be rightly suspicious of the motives of a Democratic President or Senate or some combination thereof. At least if a Democrat would suggest something as wrongheaded as the Senate Comprehensive "Illegal Importation act" Republicans might ask a few tough questions if only out of partisan concerns.

As it stands right now we have a Republican President in cahoots with the erstwhile Republican Front runner for President actually indulging in some of the most underhanded evil sorts of tactics to ram a bill down our throats and Republican Senators are going along with them. As if the last time those two collaborated anything good came of it...or have we all forgotten McCain-Feingold? Remind me again why I worked so damn hard for the Republicans in 2000 and 2004!

These "representatives" of the people are trying to see if they can wait us out. They are putting out so much damn smoke that they hope we won't see the fire that threatens to get us to the same spot Europe is in with their "cheap labor".

Well Captain Ed is starting to come around to the view that the Senate bill sponsored by of all people Senator Grandstand McCain and Senator Submarine Kennedy is not in the countries best interests.

Other posts on immigration
Trust an easy thing to lose. Why did President Bush fritter it away on illegal immigration? Ver 2.0
Kabuki Theatre in DC, Fun Facts I Wished I Didn't Know About Illegal Immigration
Doing the work that Americans won't do...and other Bush Fables
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Technorati tags
Congress Politics GOP conservatives Corruption The Washington Post The Washington Examiner Immigration border Illegal immigration

Captain's Quarters

Remembering those who died of our way of life

Start at Blackfive's excellent round up of Memorial Day posts then make your way over to Greyhawks Mudville Gazette.

Remember that your rights come from their sacrifices. Never forget that while we remember every year their families remember each day. Thank god for our service men and women.
BLACKFIVE: Memorial Day - Round Ups

Interesting story at Strata Sphere regarding how late into the 90's the CIA was collaborating with Al Queda

Sort of puts an interesting spin on the lefts fascination with the Put options that the 9/11 omission commission decided didn't happen. Had forgotten the reports of a substantial amount of money being made by mysterious investors who just happened to know that both United and American Airlines might be in for a rough ride after 9/11 until I was perusing Left Wing Moonbat sites amused by their beliefs that the Bush administration orchestrated 9/11. One of those sites not quite as crazy at the rest made some mention of some plausible reasons why the 9/11 commission might have ignored or dismissed the strange stock trading that went on prior to 9/11. This moonbat makes the claim that it was those at the highest reaches of the CIA who were driving the investments. Absolutely the craziest thing I have heard in a while...until I came upon Strata Sphere's article.

Sort of makes you go hmmm...doesnt it? Would not be the first time our government had some bad apples inside of it causing problems. Its always been a mystery to me why we have seemingly ignored the possibility that there are those inside of our government who might not see their self interest and the countries interest as being related. Traitors of the worst sort have been part of our nations history since the beginning. Disgruntled Generals anyone, or have we forgotten the traitorous behavior of Benedict Arnold who right up until he betrayed us was one of our Greatest Fighting Generals.

The Strata-Sphere Blog Archive Did CIA Ally With Al Qaeda During Clinton Years?: "Sort of puts an interesting spin on the lefts fascination with the Put options that the 9/11 omission commission decided didn't happen. Didn't remember the reports a substantial amount of money was made by mysterious investors who just happened to know that both United and American Airlines might be in for a rough ride after 9/11 until I was perusing Left Wing Moonbat sites amused by their beliefs that the Bush administration orchestrated 9/11."

The nature of our enemy stated clearly

Pithy comment in the comments of Robert Spencer's disassembling of Dean Esmay the US's resident 5th columnist for Islam.
Jihad Watch: On assertions without evidence: "A moderate muslim is one who has read too little of their Koran. A Jihadist is one who has read too much."

Vicente Fox telling us how to run our country some more.

So then if our pack of liars in the Government are so intent on interior enforcement here is a candidate for investigation, G&G Orchards. But we all know its all Kabuki Theatre in Washington DC and that there is no stomach for the sort of enforcement that would make a difference.

BREITBART.COM - Fox Says Immigration Challenges Friendship: "'Right now, so far, we're looking for a bigger crop this year, and I'm getting nervous,' said Rene Garcia, who owns G&G Orchards, believed to be the only Hispanic-owned apple warehouse in Washington state. 'We're not seeing the people circulating around looking for jobs.' "

Other posts on immigration

Kabuki Theatre in DC, Fun Facts I Wished I Didn't Know About Illegal Immigration
Doing the work that Americans won't do...and other Bush Fables
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Technorati tags
Congress Politics GOP conservatives Corruption The Washington Post The Washington Examiner Immigration border Illegal immigration

Iranians have a lot of experience in marking those who are unclean

Amir Taheri made quite the splash when he pointed out some new laws about to take effect in Iran which would have religious minorities wearing a color so that they could be identified. A practice that was not originated by the Nazis as some believe but by those darling multiculturists in Islam. Some consider the matter closed because the Iranians have dismissed Amir's accusations as fantasy. Hmmmm....this sounds like just about the same thing, businesses being forced to declare they are being run by a religious minority. This was done back in the 1990's according to Sheema Kalbasi of Can't Keep Quiet.

zaneirani: "Most of these people left Iran because of discrimination. I remember in 1990's food stores run by religious minorities had to put a paper on their door: This store is run by a religious minority....why is that? Because for many Islamists religious minorities are 'Najes' or dirty!!! Christians & Jews lost their own private schools and Islamic government controls all."

I know that Amir can expect an apology from Dean Esmay after all Dean isn't a tool for Islam, right? And yes when you have guest bloggers you are still responsible for the content.

Dean Esmay
War on Terror satanic verses Military Cartoons Religion Politics Jyllands-Posten jyllands-posten mohammed Denmark muhammad cartoon Islam Terrorism 60 minutes

OUTRAGEOUS! Vicente Fox Says Walls Won't Fix Problem

UPDATE: Thanks to the Ron in comments for letting me know about the typo in the title.

Well ok so now we have the privilege of being lectured to by a Foreign President of a Failed State on how we should run our country so that his country doesn't simply explode from sheer the bloody incompetence and corruption of its politicians. Yea I am good with that crap, thanks for nothing President Vicente Fox and thank you President Bush.

Hey, Vicente how about going back to Mexico and fixing the shit that is broken. Then maybe not all of your citizens would be risking death in our deserts to escape the results of your “enlightened” rule. Yea I know it’s not all your fault but now it is your responsibility and instead of coming here and blaming us, shut the hell up and take care of your own shit. Then maybe one day we might respect you enough to invite you back.

But as it is now…just go away, don’t go away angry, just go.

BREITBART.COM - Fox, in U.S., Says Walls Won't Fix Problem: "Kicking off a four-day, three-state tour, Mexican President Vicente Fox said Tuesday that his nation wants to be part of the solution in the immigration debate, not the problem.
'We don't set up walls, and that's not the way you're going to fix this situation,' Fox said in Spanish to representatives of groups active in Utah's Mexican community. 'It's not with fences that we are going to solve this problem.' "

Other posts on immigration
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Technorati tags
Congress Politics GOP conservatives Corruption The Washington Post The Washington Examiner Immigration border Illegal immigration

Pretty Funny Cartoon....no its not Allah...heh

Accompanying this funny cartoon is a comment left at No Pasaran that reminds me what a terrific defender of Capitalism Ayn Rand could be. So much stronger a defense than most so called conservatives because it springs from the moral right to be free.

Comment on that cartoon
"All of human progress is due to industrial progress, and it is for this reason that the human lifespan has increased, from 28 years on the average during the stone age to over 72 years today.
So if you are over 28 years of age, my advice is to go out and hug the dirtiest, grimiest smokestack you can find, then go home and get down on your knees and pray to whatever gods you believe in, that those smokestacks keep belching out pollution, because they are the signposts of human progress."
-- Ayn Rand

No Pasaran!: Heh!

I panicked and got the Katrina story wrong...lesson learned I hope.

Reading this story on Katrina I am struck by how badly I did in reporting this story. Perhaps being in the middle of the story isn't the very best way to report a story? Nevertheless other more professional sorts are able to be inside of a story like Katrina and report the truth, I failed.

What is obvious is that instead of sitting around listening to the news on the radio I should have said my goodbye's to my wife and went to help. Perhaps by helping I might have seen with my own eyes what was going on or not going on. The wifey and I could have kissed and made up afterwards. Course one of the reasons I stayed home was my wife was desperately trying to find her mom who was stationed in the Superdome. Her mom would call and was sounding increasingly distressed by the ordeal. Which sent the wife into a panic.

Actions instead of words are the stuff that matters. How embarrassing that I messed up so badly. Needless to say you must read this story. We can quibble about the rapes and the extent of the crime but overall this reporter gets it far more right than I did. The heroics of the National Guard and Coast Guard are the stuff of legends...lets not forget the wildlife and fisheries people who themselves saved thousands. I missed all the heroics completely and did a major disservice to those who did so much to avert a greater tragedy.
RealClearPolitics - Articles - Katrina: What the Media Missed

On Immigration, are we better off now than when we had Democrats in office?

UPDATES BELOW:

Let's have some fun. Let's look at Republican Senator Mel Martinez's positions before he was elected compare them with after and then we can all sit around and wonder why we should trust any Republican who is pro-illegal immigration including the President. Here he is before the election. (Hat tip Polipundit)

Mel Martinez for Senate: "We are nation of immigrants. The hard work and contributions of millions of legal immigrants are an important part of our Americas history. "

This is pretty standard stuff, we are all immigrants etc etc, but is it exceptional? Since this is the common refrain from those who advocate nearly unlimited immigration, exactly which nations in the world were NOT a products of immigration? None. All nations are nations of immigrants. Some nations because of unfettered immigration manage to change into something the original inhabitants would never have dreamed of agreeing to had they the chance to choose.

Several examples spring to mind, one that might be dear to liberals, the American Indian. Wonder about the Indians who broke bread with us on Thanksgiving day, would they be so welcoming if they could have seen the future? What about the Britons, did they think that the immigration of the Romans was a good thing? Or later, perhaps the Britons agreed with the changes the Normans brought to the Island. Maybe they did want to wait 300 years before the Royal Court Proceedings were again conducted in English. Unfettered immigration doesn't look so peachy now and illegal immigration is exactly that unfettered. For an unvarnished take down of those who make that pious claim that we are a nation of immigrants please take a look at this article Time to Rethink Immigration? by Peter Brimelowfrom National Review, June 22, 1992 reprinted at VDARE.

So lets look a bit deeper into Candidate Martinez's heart to see what he was promising in regards to illegals. From the same statement on his page prior to the election.

Our immigration policy, however, must first and foremost ensure the security of our great nation and its citizens. Especially during these treacherous times, our focus must be on preventing those who would harm us from entering our country and in providing the resources our border agents need in order to accomplish this. I oppose amnesty for illegal aliens. I support a plan that matches workers with needy employers without providing a path to citizenship. Immigration to this country must always be done through legal means.

Wow...sounds serious eh? Alright of course a guest worker program is not a very good idea but other than that he is making the right sounds eh?

Here is the bill this Senator sponsored once he was elected. Promises forgotten?

S. 2611 effectively would divide the unauthorized alien population (estimated at
12 mil.) into 3 groups:
• “Group 1:” Aliens who resided in the United States for at least 5 years prior to April 5, 2006, were unauthorized on that date, and have worked for 3 of those 5 years.
• This group would receive Permanent Residency (i.e., “green cards”) after 6 more
years of work. (Note: all green card holders can apply for citizenship in 5 years, or in 3 years, if married to an American citizen).
• “Group 2:” Unauthorized aliens who resided here for 2 to 5 years (since January 7,
2004).
• To become legal, these individuals must register and essentially “touch home base” (leave the U.S., most likely for a border town U.S. consulate); and then they
would either (a) receive an almost-guaranteed temporary “H-2C” work visa (and
apply for a green card once back in the U.S.), or (b) apply for a green card from

Oops where did we go wrong? Did Senator Martinez promise one thing and deliver another?

Ok so what else is new politicians always promise stuff they have no intention of delivering or honoring. But aren't these the same gentlemen who are promising to enforce our new laws against illegal immigrants as long as we allow them to pass a law prior to enforcing the old law which states that those who broke the old law won't get...wait hold up I have to duct tape my goddamn head to keep it from exploding...prosecuted for breaking the old law. But all the guys that come after we make the law promising to enforce the old law but before we awww...screw it. We are supposed to take these louts on their honor?

Not amused with the Republicans. Not amused with those partisan hacks on the right who constantly berate me for calling the Republican party on its contradictions regarding illegal immigrants. Democrats are supposed to be irrational...Republicans are supposed to be the adults that fix the mess. Just about now I would say that the Republicans are on track for making a bigger mess. Far more illegals have come across the border since President Bush came to office.

President Bush's casual remarks about amnesty at the very beginning of his administration caused millions to rush our border. Obviously if the person in charge of enforcing the laws starts talking about pardoning those who are breaking the law everyone and their family is going to break it. In this report from the Los Angeles Times verified here we can take a somewhat spooky look at the President's amnesty plans prior to 9/11.

Yea I know he was against amnesty even back then. Of course do you know that instead of amnesty they called it regularlize...we were going to regularize the estimated 3 to 4 million illegals. Just a friendly reminder at this point in time estimates place the illegals around 11 million, though some have estimated upwards of 20 million, thanks perhaps in large part to President Bush's casual remarks. For some fun take a read of Ari Fleischer trying to explain what regularize means.

In hindsight its worth remembering what President Bush at the time was saying in response to a question: Q. Mr. President, on the immigration proposal that you're weighing, sir, is there some reason that only Mexican workers should be considered? What about those from other countries?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we'll consider all folks here. Let me make this very clear to people, that there was -- a word was creeping in the vernacular about this issue, called amnesty. I oppose blanket amnesty. Yes we know Mr. President you oppose amnesty, wink wink, nudge nudge....oops there goes another 2 million of those people who do the Jobs Americans Won't.

At that moment in time 19 illegals were making plans to commit the most terrible terrorist attack in history. I wonder if Atta knew he could have gotten amnesty if he had waited a bit longer. Compassionate Conservatism in action?

President Bush's supporters parade around crowing about the 6 million people his INS/DHS/ICE (whatever the hell its now called...a turd is a turd) have deported. Not mentioning or probably not even knowing that President Clinton managed to deport 7 million in a 5 year period. Not only that but a President, who is absolutely vilified by Republicans as a liar, managed to do it when there wasn't a rush to the border. Even a Democratic President, who by the way was also pro illegal, understood that if you hinted at amnesty millions would rush across the border. President Bush on the other hand feigns ignorance and throws his hands up wondering where all these new illegals came from...well gee I wonder. And we are supposed to consider this man more honest than President Clinton?

We must keep the attack up on the President's plans. Not a single word out of those who advocate this amnesty/regularization/normalization should be believed. The damage that this fight does to the war on terror is incalculable since all those people we have to trust to fight this war have violated that trust by telling some whoppers on a subject they approach with a near religious intensity. It is difficult if not impossible to regain trust once its been lost.

To those who argue that I should support the Republicans, I ask why aren't the Republicans working harder for my vote. Why am I seeing things like the contradictions in Senator Martinez's positions and why is President Bush inviting 5 or 6 million people in our country illegally with his offhand remarks? Why are the Republicans engaging in newspeak on immigration? Why are both the current President and the Republican Frontrunner trying to lie about the amnesty they are proposing?

Amnesty/Regularization/Normalization amounts to....card please, people who broke the law being forgiven and gaining the benefits that drove them to break the law in the first place. Those who say that by demanding fines and constructing other minor hoops, illegals are paying their debt for breaking the law, need to explain a couple of things for me. For example if we were to fine someone who robbed a bank it is beyond doubt that they would not be able to pay the fine with the funds they stole. Indeed any rational person would have expected the robbers to return the funds prior to being allowed to pay a mere fine to escape jail time. And yet these illegals get to keep that which they stole a spot in the greatest country in the world...hmmm. Sounds like amnesty to me, but hey maybe if the Republicans lie a bit more I will believe them. Nah.

UPDATE #1: The Captain asks Republicans to consider what will happen if we withdraw our support. I ask why aren't the Republican Senators considering what happens if they drive us away from the party with their headlong rush into idiocy on a wide range of issues, not the least of them being Immigration.

UPDATE #2: Right Wing Nuthouse thinks that calling people like me names will win the argument. Perhaps it is indeed better for them to stay away from discussing the issues. To call the illegal immigration of upwards of 8 million people in the years of the Bush administration, petty is remarkable.

The Anchoress is writing a paen to the President.

Other posts on immigration
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
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Geek's' 9/11 analysis sheds light on NSA activities

Very interesting article on amateur efforts in regards to using software to build relationship maps of terrorist organizations. Also has some explanations and cautions regarding the NSA's efforts. Good read. Hat tip Free Republic

Cleveland.com's Printer-Friendly Page: "Geek's' 9/11 analysis sheds light on NSA activities John Mangels Plain Dealer Science Writer

Valdis Krebs is pretty sure he knows why the super-secret National Security Agency is rooting around in the nation's phone-calling records. It's the same sort of electronic sleuthing he did following 9/11 to uncloak some of al-Qaida's secrets.
Krebs isn't a Fort Meade spook; he's a Cleveland-based management consultant and self-confessed 'techno-geek' whose specialty is the esoteric field of network analysis. That's a computer-aided method for tracing where and how information moves within an organization, and who's connected to whom.
Usually Krebs works with Fortune 500 companies. But terrorists operate in networks like businesses do. Both groups have obscure but important communications channels and alliances among their members that network analysis might reveal. Maybe Krebs could learn something about how the 19 hijackers pulled off the attacks.
Shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Krebs started plugging information gleaned from news accounts about the terrorists into his computer and sifting it with InFlow, the network analysis software he developed.
By mid-October 2001, linkages began to appear on his screen like the wispy strands of a spider's web -- a pattern called the 'emergent organization.' "

NSA Bush War on Terror spying

Nagin wins, proves New Orleans filled with the dumbest people in the world

All we need now is for Blanco to win and it will prove beyond a shadow of doubt that inbreeding is a disaster of biblical proportions. Really this is too much. Flabbergasted. Maybe we should make a law that marrying your cousin gets you 25 to life?

At this point New Orleans shouldn't get a single dollar of Federal aid and not a single levee should be fixed. Let that poor excuse of a city sink beneath the waves. The people who built that city have long since died, all that is left are the village idiots. Why continue to insult the marvelous folks who built one of the most beautiful cities in the country by saving it?

City with one of the highest crime rates in the country that keeps going back to the well hoping that this time no one has pissed in it. Goddamn it. Wait no, I am not angry this is hilarious....after all its not every single day that you can watch a city so obviously filled with idiots give such a marvelous demonstration of its idiocy. Only the people of Washington DC have done better by re-electing Marion Barry, repeatedly.
Nagin Is Reelected In New Orleans
Nagin blanco Hurricane Katrina New Orleans

The Bear offers some constructive advice to the officers of the Titanic

The Bear tries to offer some constructive advice to those responsible in the White House in charge of the "message" but it ain't gonna help. See the President knows, with a religious conviction, that what he is doing is right and the rest of us, even his most hardcore supporters of the past, are wrong. With an attitude like that I am surprised that he hasn't simply come right out and stated plainly that it doesn't matter what the base thinks.
The Truth Laid Bear

Other posts on immigration
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
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Ann Coulter, Stick a fork into President Ramirez..oops Bush he is done

When Ann Coulter, Rush and Sean are all attacking your policies on immigration you have trouble. Course not that this matters to President Ramirez/Bush he is on a religious mission from god. He wants to import every single person South of the Border before he leaves office.

Here are some choice bits from an article you simply cannot miss.

RedStatesUSA.com - The Majority, Silent No Longer Bush has also apparently learned that the word "amnesty" does not poll well. On Monday night, he angrily denounced the idea of amnesty just before proposing his own amnesty program. The difference between Bush's amnesty program and "amnesty" is: He'd give amnesty only to people who have been breaking our laws for many years -- not just a few months. (It's the same program that allows Ted Kennedy to stay in the Senate.)

Why not use immigration the way sports teams use the draft -- to upgrade our roster? We could take our pick of the world's engineers, doctors, scientists, uh ... smoking-hot Latin guys who stand around not wearing shirts between workouts. Or, you know, whatever ...

Other posts on immigration
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
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A House Republican shows me the way back to the ballot box

Jack Kingston is the sort of Republican I can support. This short interview with him at Right Wing News caught my eye and proved to me that perhaps all is not lost.
Right Wing News (Conservative News and Views)Other posts on immigration
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
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Is the assumption that because I want the border controlled that I don't like immigrants?

What a ridiculous survey. It presumes that those of us who vote that immigrants are a net gain also agree with idea that we should allow illegal immigration to continue. Additionally it assumes that we don't want our borders to be secure.

My father was an immigrant. My great grandparents were immigrants. None of them illegals.

Either we are a nation of laws or we are not.
EconLog, Immigration: Seeing is Understanding, Bryan Caplan: Library of Economics and Liberty
Other posts on immigration
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Congress
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The Washington Examiner Immigration border Illegal immigration

Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...

Mickey, the question is, are we suffering a labor shortage or are we suffering a shortage of people who will accept below minimum wage. Are we suffering a labor shortage or are we suffering a shortage of people who will work without Workman's comp and other workplace niceties that legal workers must by law be provided? Are businesses like Tyson foods and Mohawk Carpet employing illegals simply because no one will work for them or because no one can work for them on their terms aside from illegals? What will businesses like Tyson Foods and Mohawk Industries do after the current crop of illegals are brought forward into the system and those businesses are forced to treat them as legal employees with all the attendant costs?

Is it possible that these companies having developed this addiction for employees who cannot run to the E.O.C. and who cost so much less to employ through direct costs of wages and insurance and indirect costs in the form of workplace safety, will suddenly see the light and hire legal employees?

Additionally if those illegal employees see their advantage in the workplace over American workers vanishing should they become legal will they desire to price themselves out of the market just for the privilege of paying taxes?

Enforcement in the workplace and a border fence must come first. Real enforcement carried out over the course of years against multiple companies where executives find themselves in jail for violating all sorts of labor laws. That might go a long way to assuring the American public that this latest amnesty program isn't merely some smoke and mirrors dog and pony show by politicians looking out for the most important person in the world, themselves.

Tony's got a deal for you! By Mickey Kaus: "I agree that this is the deal that can be cut--in part because there seems to be nothing all that terrible about a legal guest worker program, as long as it draws its workers from those waiting in line outside the country (and not those who've jumped the queue and already snuck in). Guest workers aren't illegal immigrants, after all--and one way to discourage illegals is to give opportunities to legals. A flexible guest worker program could offer some insurance against a labor shortage, just in case border security measures actually work. "

Other posts on immigration
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Congress
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The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"

Captain Ed and others miss the point entirely by saying that were it not for our war on terror we would not need comprehensive immigration reform. Whether we are at war or not controlling our borders and punishing employers who go looking in the underground for illegal workers makes sense. What doesn't make sense is normalizing/amnesty of the current illegals in country.
Quoting Captain Ed:

If we were not at war, if terrorists did not target us for attack, this would not be necessary. However, we need to proceed realistically and figure out a method in which we can deliver some punishment for illegally entering the country while incentivizing the illegals to declare themselves -- and that is predicated on border security and much more robust enforcement.

Corrupt and disingenuous politicians allow companies to break our laws and employ people without giving them Workman comp insurance or minimum wage. Why else would those illegals be attractive if it weren't for the fact that they cost considerably less per hour to employ than a comparable US worker. In addition those companies employing illegals can be sure that workplace violations will go unreported by those illegals since obviously they are scared and do not want to bring attention to themselves.

Because of those fears the working conditions of those sorts of businesses plummet. If you can imagine that the cleanliness of an institution rises in those sorts of conditions then I have a bridge for sale in Brooklyn. If you think that cleanliness isn't important in the food industry then you simply haven't read enough.

And it bears repeating that an American worker cannot compete, not because he won't but because by law he cannot work for less than minimum wage. By law he must be paid Workman's comp.

Now if we get this amnesty/normalization/or whatever other euphemism the political class is using this week to hoodwink us, what will happen? Well all those illegals who used to be employed because they cost so much less will now cost a good bit more to employ. Does anyone actually believe that companies like Tyson Foods and Mohawk Industries will merely accept that their labor pool has just gotten more expensive? After all the millions of dollars those companies have spent in political donations to get cheap labor that is quiet and compliant in the face of terrible working conditions will those companies simply fold up tent and hire legals? No of course not. This entire fiasco will repeat itself in a few years.

That this might be exactly what President Bush wants to happen is contained in a document all of us would do well to read and understand. This isn't being talked about by those agitating for support of the Presidents sell out of the United States sovereignty.

Building a North American Community Report of an
Independent Task Force

President Bush described the significance of the SPP as putting forward a common
commitment ‘‘to markets and democracy, freedom and trade, and mutual prosperity and security.’’ The policy framework articulated by the three leaders is a significant commitment that will benefit from broad discussion and advice. The Task Force is pleased to provide specific advice on how the partnership can be pursued and realized.

To that end, the Task Force proposes the creation by 2010 of a North American community to enhance security, prosperity, and opportunity. We propose a community based on the principle affirmed in the March 2005 Joint Statement of the three leaders that ‘‘our security and prosperity are mutually dependent and complementary.’’ Its boundaries will be defined by a common external tariff and an outer security perimeter within which the movement of people, products, and capital will be legal, orderly, and safe. Its goal will be to guarantee a free, secure, just, and prosperous North America.

Further on we get a better idea of what that means to us in that quaint idea the United States of America.

Our economic focus should be on the creation of a common economic space that expands economic opportunities for all people in the region, a space in which trade, capital, and people flow freely.

Thats not all.

Expand temporary migrant worker programs. Canada and the United States should expand programs for temporary labor migration from Mexico.

Implement the Social Security Totalization Agreement negotiated between the United States andMexico. This agreement would recognize payroll contributions to each other’s systems, thus preventing double taxation.

Captain's Quarters
Other posts on immigration
Mickey Kaus makes some good points on immigration but...
The Reason Amnesty won't work even if President Bush hoodwinks us into passing the "comprehensive bill"
Call your senators, ask them why they are condemning the Republican party to minority status!
Congress
Politics
GOP
conservatives
Corruption
The Washington Post
The Washington Examiner Immigration border Illegal immigration