Transient Scribe

Crichton - On Fear and The Planet

Author Michael Crichton jabs at environmentalism and governement fear mongering in this recent presentation.    Critchon was recently aligned with the modern environmental movement - until he started researching for a book on Chernobyl, only to discover his thinking seriously flawed.

From the speech:

It’s no surprise that predictions frequently don’t come true.  But such big ones!  And so many! All my life I worried about the decay of the environment, the tragic loss of species, the collapse of ecosystems.  I feared poisoning by pesticides, alar on apples, falling sperm counts from endocrine disrupters, cancer from power lines, cancer from saccharine, cancer from cell phones, cancer from computer screens, cancer from food coloring, hair spray, electric razors, electric blankets, coffee, chlorinated water…it never seemed to end. 

Only once, when on the same day I read that beer was a preservative of heart muscle and also a carcinogen did I begin to sense the bind I was in.  But for the most part, I just went along with what I was being told.

Lieberman - A rare Bird

Senator Joe Lieberman is in the wrong party.   He is the only adult in the Democrat Party- at least when it concerns national security.  Below is a partial statement from Lieberman speaking on the floor of the Senate Tuesday.   He does not suffer from political amnesia about the past - like the majority of his Party.

"As I look back on it and as I follow the debates about prewar intelligence, I have no regrets about having sponsored and supported that resolution because of all the other reasons we had in our national security interest to remove Saddam Hussein from power, a brutal, murdering dictator, an aggressive invader of his neighbors, a supporter of terrorism, a hater of the United States of America. He was for us a ticking time bomb that if we did not remove him I am convinced would have blown up, metaphorically speaking, in America's face. I am grateful to the American military for the extraordinary bravery and brilliance of their campaign to remove Saddam Hussein.

"I know we are safer as a nation, and to say the obvious that the Iraqi people are freer as a people, and the Middle East has a chance for a new day and stability with Saddam Hussein gone. We will come to another day to debate the past of prewar intelligence. But let me say briefly the questions raised in our time are important. The international intelligence community believed Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. Probably most significant, and I guess historically puzzling, is that Saddam Hussein acted in a way to send a message that he had a program of weapons of mass destruction.

Dems Hypocrisy II

Christopher Hitchens is ticked off.   

"And the American left mounts a gargoyle picket line outside and asks silly and insulting questions inside, about a question that has already been decided. What a travesty this is. Not only do the liberal Democrats apparently want their own congressional votes from 1998 and 2002 back. It sometimes seems that they are actually nostalgic for the same period, when Saddam Hussein was running Iraq, and there were no coalition soldiers to challenge his rule, and when therefore by definition there was peace, and thus things were more or less OK. Their current claim to have been fooled or deceived makes them out, on their own account, to be highly dumb and gullible. But as dumb and gullible as that? "

Enough

The piling on continues. 

There is no end in sight for the salvos on President Bush.   On "Meet the Press" - Tim Russert continued to assault the administration's character, competence and truth-fullness. 

Mr. Russert should wear his DNC button and Donkey hat during his next interview with GOP Chairman Ken Melhman.   Russert's objectivity is non-existent and his old Democrat hack colors are shining now.  He along with Chris Matthews are shamefully floating mis-truths spread by the Democrats and allies within the media.   

Criticism is certainly warranted of this administration on many fronts and serious policy differences are to be respected in a free society, but recent charges of Bush and Com. "lying" the US into War are beyond reason and utterly political pandering at its lowest.

The recent behavior of the MSM only crystalizes further its over arching loathing of this President.

Glance thru Washington Post, every section day after day carries articles and columns knocking the Bush Administrations policies and or personnel. The New York Times is no better in this department.   The public deserves both sides of all issues.  Sadly, objectivity and fairness are out...snipping, sarcasm, innuendo and crass are in. 

Naive thinking?  No, this is Journalism 101 and is lost on most in the MSM.   

 

Lies Lies Lies....yeah!

NRO's Jonah Goldberg recalls Democrat politicians singing a diferent tune.   

His summary of double talk and hypocrisy from the Left reminds us why the Democrat Party is still out of power regardless of the GOP's most recent woes.

Condi Rice Hit Piece in Wash Post

Eugene Robinson's column today piles on Condi Rice for not being "black" enough for his taste.   Mr. Robinson is new to the column writing business, formerly a reporter with the Post, and it shows.  I can't beleive the Post sends this guy a check every two weeks.

Here is a blurb...

Inside the bubble, Rice was sitting at the piano in pretty dresses to play Bach fugues. It sounds like a wonderful childhood, but one that left her able to see the impact that race has in America -- able to examine it and analyze it -- but not to feel it.

Secretary of State Rice is a success story front to back and all he can write about is her not helping other blacks.  Or her not emoting enough about growing up in the South.  Or not apologizing for working for that evil, stupid President Bush. 

Wouldn't one objectively assume that her just attaing high government position inspire others like her.   Her return home last week to Alabama was a victory on so many levels and Robinson still can not find anything positive to say.   Robinson did not highlight approval numbers for Rice are through the roof - instead focusing on black approval ratings of Bush and the GOP.   

Mr. Robinson, I guess not everyone fits into your self styled image of what a black public figure should be.   I guess not everyone can live up to the Sharptons, Barrys and Jacksons of yesteryear.  Can't the Post do better then Mr. Robinson?   I think we already know the answer.

WSJ on the Plame - Leak Case - All about Iraq

Great editorial about the Plame-Leak case from the the Journal.  Blurb below...

The temptation for any special counsel, who has only one case to prosecute, is to show an indictment for his money and long effort. But Mr. Fitzgerald's larger obligation is to see that justice is done, and that should include ensuring that he doesn't become the agent for criminalizing policy differences. Defending a policy by attacking the credibility of a political opponent--Mr. Wilson--should not be a felony.

As for Mr. Bush, we hope he realizes that anyone who is indicted was defending his policy and his Presidency. He should consider carefully the nature of the charges and the evidence before he dismisses his most loyal advisers.

As I told my friend the other day, 50,000 people in Washington follow this case with bated breath, but outside the Beltway DMZ - it is a snoozer.   

Barone on Indictments

Micheal Barone weighs in on the Plame-Leak case.  I respect Barone's opinion here, but just like everyone on this issue - we don't really know all the facts yet.   Blurb below...

The problem is that the narrative line being offered up by the press is almost entirely wrong. And it is almost certainly true that neither of the statutes that might cover the situation -- the Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 and the Espionage Act of 1917 -- was violated, at least by anyone in the administration.

Rep. McDermott begging for dollars

The always reliable lefty rag known as the Seattle-PI and columnist Joel Connelly shockingly take "Baghdad Jim" to task today.   

McDermott is arguably the most left wing member of Congress, but that did not stop them from hammering Seattle's East Side Representative about his pathetic efforts to raise cash for a legal defense.

McDermott has still not explained his role in the illegally taped cell phone conversations of Rep. John Boehner.   He is over half a million in debt w/ legal fees and he is asking his supporters to bail him out.

Fear not, the objective and fair minded Bill Moyers will get the money flowing...

A $500 McDermott fund-raiser, slated for Oct. 30 in the Smith Tower penthouse, quotes liberal broadcast icon Bill Moyers: "Even though Congressman Jim McDermott has a safe seat here in Seattle, Jim is in the cross hairs of the Radical Right of the Republican Party.

This guy deserves this and so much more.

PLEASE RUN AGAIN!

Maybe Howard Dean will return the favor and endorse Al Gore for 2008?  Can you imagine a Gore Dean ticket?  Every time I get down on the GOP I realize this guy was almost our President and breath a sigh of relief.   His comments in Sweden the other day continue to demonstrate how far this guy has fallen. 

Indictments

The WSJ summarizes the Plame-Leak case.  Special Prosecutor Fitzgerald has had plenty of time- we will see if he can get indictments by COB next Friday.

Excerpt below:

Lawyers familiar with the investigation believe that at least part of the outcome likely hangs on the inner workings of what has been dubbed the White House Iraq Group. Formed in August 2002, the group, which included Messrs. Rove and Libby, worked on setting strategy for selling the war in Iraq to the public in the months leading up to the March 2003 invasion. The group likely would have played a significant role in responding to Mr. Wilson's claims.

Given that the grand jury is set to expire on Oct. 28, it is possible charges in this case could come as early as next week. Former federal prosecutors say it is traditional not to wait for the last minute and run the risk of not having enough jurors to reach a quorum. There are 23 members of a grand jury, and 16 are needed for a quorum before any indictments could be voted on. This grand jury has traditionally met on Wednesdays and Fridays.

Dems are licking there chops.  Delay and Rove on the ropes.  Would be even better if an actual crime was committed.  As for the Delay case, it is dubious at best.  As for a possible Rove indictment, it is probably a forgone conclusion.  It will bloody up the WH and cause major changes to the staff.   Sadly for the Dems, even if Delay and Rove are removed, Dems still have a major problem.  Democrats have no issues, beleive in nothing and still can not tell the truth about what they stand for...and the electorate is well aware.

Cheney - Rove indictment coming?

Veep Dick Cheney and Karl Rove will be indicted by Special Prosecutor Peter Fitzgerald this month.     That is the whisper running through DC corridors.  What charges you ask?  Perjury, Obstruction of Justice, Conspiracy and the outing of an undercover CIA operative are the rumored charges.   

This is the much talked about "cloud hanging over the administration" in press circles.  This may explain why the WH has been off the ball for the last month.   If you have the volume down and watch "Chris Matthews- Hardball" he always talks as if he knows indictments are coming down.   He can't let go of this story.    We should know if this is all BS or not by the end of the month - when the time is up on the investigation. 

Mr. Hitchens War on Terror Tour - Bali

Please read Chris Hitchens column on al-Qaida's recent murderous rampage in Bali.    Mr. Hitchens refutes and counters every myth and lie purported by the left in regards to al-Qaida. 

Here is a blurb below from his piece.

Consider this, look again at the awful carnage in Bali, and shudder if you ever said, or thought, that the bombs in London in July, or the bombs in Baghdad every day, or the bombs in Bali last Friday, are caused by any "policy" but that of the bombers themselves. Note the following:

1) East Timor was for many years, and quite rightly, a signature cause of the Noam Chomsky "left." The near-genocide of its people is an eternal stain on Indonesia and on the Western states that were complicit or silent. Yet Bin Ladenism wants not less of this killing and repression but more. Its demand to re-establish the caliphate is a pro-imperialist demand, not an anti-imperialist one.

2) Random bombings are not a protest against poverty and unemployment. They are a cause of poverty and unemployment and of wider economic dislocation.

3) Hinduism is considered by Bin Ladenists to be a worse heresy even than Christianity or Judaism or Shiism, and its adherents, whether in Bali or Kashmir, are fit only for the edge of the sword. So, it is absurd to think of jihadism—which murders the poor and the brown without compunction—as a movement against the rich and the "white."

So, what did Indonesia do to deserve this, or bring it on itself? How will the slaughter in Bali improve the lot of the Palestinians? Those who look for the connection will be doomed to ask increasingly stupid questions and to be content with increasingly wicked answers.

Back from the abyss...

To all nine of my loyal readers...I apologize for not posting for the last six weeks.

I am back and ready to rock. 

So much has happened since I left, I might as well dig in.

First things...  My wife and I welcomed another addition to our growing family...so to say we have been busy does not really do justice.  My wife is a trooper...carrying a baby for nearly 9+ months is mentally and physically a tremendous achievement...I know women have babies every day but once you live with a pregnant woman - you can appreciate it all the more.   We are thrilled with our new baby.  That noted... obviously, blogging came in about thirteenth on the list of things needed to do.

Second, my Dad had some chest pains a few weeks back - went to the ER - and within 12 hours was having 4-bypass heart surgery.   He is resting well and on the road to recovery thanks to the doctors at Loma Linda Medical Center, my Mom and lots of prayers from family and friends. 

OK...back to the back stabbing, lying and character assassination capital of the world known as Washington DC or the "Parliament of Whores" - so aptly named writer by P.J. O'Rourke.

I swear to God above I can not watch local (Washington DC) TV News any more. 

Forget National News- which is dreadful..I could stomach Tom Brokaw, but the troika of Dan Rather, A. Brown, Peter Jennings (RIP) crew was enough to make you watch skeet shooting on ESPN 17.   Why? That answer in a later post.

Back to local news in the Washington DC metro area...the 11:00 news program in DC involves the following stories: homicide, attempted homicide, rape, grand theft auto, and then commercial.  Return from commercial, Drunk Driving deaths, Child Porn ring involving school faculty, local political corruption and a "Peace Rally" attended by 22 people a dozen of which are media.  Then Weather and Sports...Have a good night.  It is enough to make you swallow every pill in your house.   

- Hurray for John Roberts confirmation to SCOTUS and Chief Justice.  His resume was 2nd to none and his hearing presentation was flawless.   Senators Kennedy, Schumer and Durbin were muted against Judge Roberts.  They came across as petty blowhards attempting to smear the most qualified nominee ever to stand before them. 

Then, came Hurricane Katrina and the start of President Bush's poll number plunge.  Katrina knocked the Gulf Coast on its ass...and the response was not nearly enough.  Blame across the board was warranted here.   Federal, State and local government all were to fault- some more then others.  That noted, we have never dealt with anything remotely similar to this and it showed.   

The Media's role was simply reactionary, simple minded and mostly served as a rumor reporting machine.   Remember we were going to have at least 10,000 dead?    Remember the rapes and murders at the Super Dome?  No murders occurred and no rapes were reported.   

SCOTUS nominee... John Roberts

President Bush faked out most last night with his selection of Judge John Roberts.   Speculation focused on various candidates leading up to last nights announcement.   Many believed Judge Edith Clements was to be the pick, only to learn one hour prior to the Presidents press conference that Roberts was the one.

Roberts appears to be more in line with Judge Rehnquist concerning judicial temperament and philosophy according to those in the DC legal community.    Roberts resume and background is surpassed by no one, according to watchers on the left and right. 

It is assumed at this point, this nomination will move along quickly and Roberts will be on the bench in October. 

Please don't think for a minute - Senators Schumer, Kennedy, Durbin etc.,., will not attempt to derail or dirty up this process to make political hay.   That will happen... but to what ends?   

A good number of Democrats will vote for Roberts because he has a stellar background, record and resume.   He already achieved "unanimous consent" for his present position to the bench via the Senate and passed 5 previous FBI background checks.   He deserves a fair hearing and an up or down vote pronto.

Here are a few links worth reading about Roberts and the buzz surrounding his nomination.

Hugh Hewitt with Glenn Reynolds

NRO

Weekly Standard