Kristol v. Rich

If, and this is a big if, you want to see the real difference between conservatives and liberals in this coming election I submit two articles.  The first by Fox political commentator and NY Times editorialist Bill Kristol, cleverly titled Be Afraid. Please, is generally about how we should not put blind faith in Mr. Obama cause he can give a good speech.  Its touching that he comes to this realization after 8 years of blind faith in a President that can't be inspired to make a speech, let alone one that has the power of inspiration.

The second is by Frank Rich, and contextually talks of the same event, the speech Obama made in Berlin, but casts it in a much different light.  Its title, How Obama became acting President, instead of chastising those who hope and believe that change is critical in federal goverment, talks instead of how this candidate has already helped change the Ne0-Con foreign policy just by running for Commander-in-chief.   Its Makes note of how Bush and McCain, who have attacked Obama as a treasonous terrorist loving coward, have both had to adjust their policies on the very subjects (Namely that of Iran and Iraq) they claim to have so much hard fought wisdom about.  It also goes on to site numerous examples of McCain gaffes that quite frankly I don't want to see our Commander-in-Chief make.  For instance it could be a real problem if McCain cant figure out the diffrence between sunni and shia or where Iraq and Iran are in relation to pakistan.

But I digress, check these columns out and try and figure out what you really want out of your next leader.

WJ

Parasitic Culture

I've been mulling over what to say in response to the retread of recent comments and articles around what the Drudgetards and several radio hosts call "The parasitic culture."  Neal Boortz (a dickensian name if i ever herard one, it sounds like a wet post-indian food fart that comes out of your mouth) and his ilk have gone around praising the midwesterners for their ability to rise above the flooding crisis, pick themselves up by their bootstraps and bail themselves out, not with the help of the federal goverment but with their own special brand of moxie.  Down here in New Orleans we, like parasites according Mr. Boortz, wait for aid and in the meantime just shoot at helicopters and rape women in the street.  How does one respond to that?  I mean clearly this is a radio personality, not a journalist, so objective reporting of the facts is lost in trying to report reality.  Make no mind about who or what caused the federal flood, that is not part of his argument.  Just that it is our own responsibility to clean up our own mess.

Medicine.Net defines a parasite as an organism that grows, feeds, and is sheltered on or in a different organism while contributing nothing to the survival of its host.  Consider this; we eat, we consume, we use, we throw away, we trash, we incerate, we pollute...against we plant, we read, we teach, we learn, we love.  Far and away we do more of the latter than the former and we expect everything to just keep going status qou.  

I read an article about how students in some rural counties and parishes were cutting down the school days to four/week in an effort to conserve money and gas.  I applaud the school for making efforts to conserve energy, but at the expense of a kids education?  It is a fact that our kids are falling behind, they are dumber, they are more lazy, and the last thing they need is less school.  School districts and model schools that have experimented with this find that more school is the answer, effectively eliminating the dead time between 2 and 6 when more and more parents are both working to make ends meet and pay for gas.  What if the boy or girl who was going to solve the alternative energy dilemna ended up only going to class four days a week.  They just lost over 2000 hours of science and math training (over the course of thier 18 years) because of our unwillingness to shoulder the burden for our children's transportation.  The notion that to conserve energy we need to sacrifice the growth and education of our children is what is truly parasitic.   

Instead of cleaning up the mess we are in or making sacrifices that truly have to be on a national level to be impactful; instead make the next generation suffer, and on and on and on. It's easy for Mr. Boortz to pass judgement, everyone loves to pass judgement, excepts when it comes to their own deeds.  Please Mr. Boortz explain to the class why their is no class.

WJ

Wisdom of Fools.

Say what you will about W.

"Even a blind squirrel will find a nut sometimes."
"Out of the mouths of babes...."

On this particular topic he shows a deep understanding of macroeconomics and human nature.

James Carter for Congress

James Carter is the New Orleans city councilman from district C. If you don't pay attention the what the city council is doing, you might not know him. You owe it to yourself to tune into Chanel 10 on Cox cable once in a while to see this guy represent. Mr. Carter is always even tempered, thoughtful and persuasive. He is a staunch advocate of the needs of his poorest constituents, but is able to work effectively with corporate needs for development. In short, he is exactly what this community needs in a leader.

I knew all this about him before, and I was impressed, but last night I heard Inspector General Robert Cerecoli speak. He made it clear that he would not endorse any candidate, but as he told tales of his first year as New Orleans IG he came to speaking of James Carter. Mr. Cerecoli's comments about James Carter were succinct. "The most honest man I have met in the City of New Orleans."

That about does it for me:

James Carter for Congress!

McPoints: you too can be a GOP Veep

So presidential hopeful John McCain is making an award system for conservatives who post the republican talking points on liberal bloggers websites.  This is sweet, what a novel idea I hadn't thought anything like this would work with anybody over the age of 6.  I have a star system for my kids, red star for successfully brushing your teeth with out hysterics, a blue star if you drop a deuce in the potty not in your pants, and gold stars for playing nice with others.  As of publishing date neither me nor my tots actually know what the stars will translate into but it will probably be the backyard pool if I have a say about it, and not the preternatural trip to Disney World, but i digress.

What do you suppose these McPoints will be worth.  One million posts gets you a round of golf at the detention center of your choosing, another ten million gets you that hybrid car that will be useful when he pumps all the remaining oil out of the earth, maybe if you win the contest you can be the veep?  That being said it does not seem very presidential to manipulate your disciples with any type of reward system, especially one for bad behavior.  I use the system to instill value based behavior; if you are nice and work and play well with others you can have that lollipop.  NOT; if you can engulf the humidhaney website with right wing rhetoric then you can win a trip to watch the terrorist of your choice get waterboarded.  Of course the byproduct is they will actually have to read and understand the leftist discussion before they can actually comment on it...I mean don't they.

WJ

PS coming soon 'the parasitic culture'

NIMBY - Cali Style

Nancy Pelosi wants to prevent offshore oil drilling whatever the cost. Notice that oil has dropped almost 10% just on the suggestion of expanding US production of oil and natural gas?

She is deathly afraid of leaks that might spoil the coastline. All based upon a rupture and spill in 1969. I'm not really up on it, but what is the safety record of offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico? If I'm not mistaken we suffer from several severe hurricanes a year hitting our oil fields and I don't believe we have had any major spills as a result.

I worked for several years as a designer for offshore oil platforms. Rules were very strict and every rig was carefully designed to be "zero discharge". Any drop of rainwater that fell on that rig would be captured and treated as if it was contaminated with crude oil before it was discharged into the ocean.

Nancy Pelosi is carrying around some baggage from 1969 that is holding the whole country back. Give it up Nancy.

NOPD-There's the rank and then there's the Filet

Holy trinity of the Chin's is that Riley or Big Al Carson in that uniform?

Is it me or has Chief Riley gained at least 50 lbs., since he was named the head of the SS. I mean Compass was stocky but I never saw him sport three chins in a photo op.

Which leads me to my next statement. In the many opportunities I've been embedded with NOPD officers as a photojournalist I can say this with great surety: No access is given, no permission granted, no favor extended with out a trip to a steakhouse. You want to ride along with the 8th district, it will cost you the rib eye with souffle potatoes and the Amarone. You want to interview the detective, lets go to Ruth's and talk about it. And you can bet your blogs that when Werner Herzog comes to town to shoot the remake of "Bad Lieutenant," and wants to keep it REAL, we should probably have some cardiologists on standby. For if there is one thing I understand to be true about Germans and film making is that if they are going to make a movie about sinking submarines they are going to shoot it on a real sinking submarine. I shudder to think of the implications Mr. Herzog's handpicking of New Orleans to shoot the remake could have on the city and the NOPD.

"Bad Lieutenant" not to be confused with "Reckless Driving Officer" or "Sgt. Wrong Shirt", it is the story of a malignant lieutenant so mortally flawed as a human that as you watch the movie it makes you feel so awkward and uncomfortable, nausea inducing in my case, that such a character could exist even in someones imagination, let alone as a Police Officer somewhere... unless of course that somewhere is here.

It is said that Herzog wanted the movie shot in New Orleans regardless of tax credits. Having covered NOPD officers involved in murder, rape, prostitution, theft, and malfeasance, it suddenly makes this movie look a little more like a Documentary, than the fictional thought provoking discussion about the relationship between power and evil it was perhaps intended to be. That being said I wonder the size and cut of the artery clogging steak that will be ordered when Chef, I mean Chief Riley sits down with Executives to discuss the use of NOPD uniforms in the movie. I imagine:

Exec: "Mr. Herzog insists on keeping this story as organic as the western grain fed beef you are eating and insists upon negotiating a deal to use the Black shirts and Black Pants of your Gestapo, er I mean Police force."

Chief Riley: "I'm afraid that might put the Department in a dilemma... a little to much art imitating life if you catch my drift, can you pass the Bearnaise."

Exec: "We would be more than willing to quadruple the amount of police details needed to assist in production around the city, as well as arrange more "consultation dinners."

Chief Riley: "Now were getting to the meat and potatoes of the matter, besides everyone thinks the black on black thing is a problem, its just too damn hot in this city in the summer. I just keep telling them it will cool off in the fall, and they keep saying there not talking about the uniforms. Besides I was gonna switch back to the traditional Blues, until that Sgt. Booby Guidry collar-blocked me."

(camera pulls back thru the dimly lit dining room of the new Ruth Chris Steakhouse, and scene.)

It is important to realize that while none of the names have been changed to protect the guilty this is a fictionalized conversation that may have already happened. In the original "Bad Lieutenant," the officer, played by Harvey Keitel, is redeemed despite all his sins through his Catholicism. If the NOPD high command wants sizzling rib eye for its involvement, I can only wonder what Bishops Hughes is looking for. Perhaps if the Bishop knew that Mr. Herzog once hypnotized his crew during a film, he would enlist the German New Wave director to hypnotize the parishioners of St. Henry's into believing that he is closing the church there for a good reason. Then again if it ain't Friday maybe he will just take a filet.

WJ

Does this shirt fit me?

I'm really missing Richard Pennington right now.

We got Cerasoli, we got Blakley, could we please get somebody competent into the role of Police Chief?

What a boob.
http://www.nola.com/hp/photos/RileyGuidry332.jpg

"Don't hope for a better life, vote for one."

Smart move for McCain to trademark that little quote. Would have been a great one for Obama.

Adrastos is feeling the Love for Johnny Mac.

"John McCain doesn't always tell us what we hope to hear." Hee hee hee.

Oh Fannie!

Haney thinks this is the american economy in crash and burn. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7502184.stm

If Fannine and Freddie do not go bankrupt and stay in their current form, I think friday may have been a great time to buy some Freddie. $5.1bln market value? $50bln profit LAST YEAR?? I sez buy!

This is what Graham is talking about re: the "psychosematic recession". It's the same story with oil. Short it now for December.