Kung Fu Election

http://www.atom.com/spotlights/kung_fu_election/
This game is hysterical; saw it covered on Fox News and got the link over at MMOfringe.com:

Don't Vote!

Best Voting PSA in the history of EVER!

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

/Hat Tip to Kefkah over at MMOfringe.com!

Obama National Anthem

Seems this was from Glenn Beck. Funny scary, and all too true:

Birth of Freedom Shorts: Christianity and Human Equality

Another great one from the Acton Institute:

Almost There...

October 6, 2008

LucasArts, BioWare Prepare To Announce Joint Project

LucasArts, BioWare Prepare To Announce Joint Project LucasArts' and BioWare's long-awaited, much-discussed joint development project -- widely speculated to be an MMO set in the Star Wars universe circa BioWare's own Knights of the Old Republic -- will be revealed to the press October 21, according to an invitation sent out to media outlets including Gamasutra.

It is likely that the official announcement will come shortly after the October 21 press reveal held at LucasArts' San Francisco offices; events of this nature are frequently subject to a media embargo.

The postcard, which proclaims "The wait is over" and promises "the official unveiling of the game that's been rumored about for years," makes no explicit reference to Star Wars. It is branded with the LucasArts and BioWare logos and depicts floating robots and hooded figures in futuristic interior locations reminiscent of the sci-fi franchise.

The alleged existence of a KOTOR-themed MMO is considered one of the industry's worst-kept secrets, with BioWare parent Electronic Arts' CEO John Riccitiello essentially confirming the title's existence.

Riccitiello called the BioWare/LucasArts effort "quite possibly the most anticipated game, full stop, for the industry," before acknowledging it as a KOTOR MMO.

Development of the joint project is being handled at BioWare's Austin studio, created specifically for MMO development.

Okay, there you have it. The wait is almost over. To quote Chris Matthews, "I got this thrill running up and down my leg..."

John 12:32

"And I, if I be lifted up,will draw all unto me." (KJV)

"And I, when I am lifted up, will draw all people to myself." (TNIV)

There's that world ALL again. Does all mean all? Once again, we have the crisis of literalism. If we choose to interpret certain scriptures literally, namely, the ones that seem to claim that not everyone is saved, then we are forced to once again believe that Jesus didn't really mean ALL when He says ALL. That he only meant some, his special dudes.

I'm sorry to those of you who favor either election (meaning, God has pre-destined a certain number of people to be saved, and the rest were sunk from the start; or those who believe in the free will doctrine, which in the end puts US in charge of the Universe and not God. If I get to CHOOSE to follow Christ, then God in Christ is NOT my savior -- I am. To me that doesn't make any sense at all either.

I choose to believe in MY version of selective literalism -- namely the one that makes God infinitely merciful, infinitely powerful, infinitely loving. But that'sjust me. You are entitled to another interpretation of the data.

Politics Brings Out the Worst in Us

Especially the kids...

A Perfect Attack Ad

High praise to Republicans for making a skillful negative ad that highlights democrat involvement in the recent financial meltdown. Thus far, Democrats have been lying day and night about how it was the past eight years of "Bush deregulation," without pointing to one Bush deregulation that was casual. It's just a blanket lie, and the media isn't calling them on it.

This ad brings out a bit of the truth on this. Now BOTH parties are guilty of what led to the current crisis, but not Republicans from the Bush era. The republicans who made the significant regulatory changes were of the Clinton era primarily, and had nothing to do with Bush.

Now, personally, I don't think deregulation really had much to do with what happened, but if one does, one ought not lie about who did the deregulating just so they can hurt Republicans and get elected. Once again the Democrats place political power over patriotism.

It wasn't Bush. Bush called for MORE regulation in this area not less.

Anyway, here's the ad. Enjoy:

Another Excellent Campaign Ad

A nice spoof of the reasoning behind many political ads these days:

Diddy Blog # 24 Sarah Palin Scares Me

Best debate commentary ever :)

Here we go, I really enjoyed this.

The VP Debate

Well, BOTH did fine, which means a win for Palin, since Democrats have been salivating, in their mean-spirited and nasty way, for Biden to destroy her and watch her screw up. She also got the line of the night, when she said 'Say it ain't so, Joe!"

Basically she redeemed herself, at least in my eyes, after that screw-up with Couric.

What this shows is that McCain made a HUGE mistake, not in picking her, but cloistering her and handing her over to the Bush people to coach her. He gave her to the people responsible for producing the most ineffective communicator who has ever sat in the White House.

Finally they let Sarah BE Sarah, and ya know what? She did fine.

Bob Barr on the Bailout

A new message from Barr on the bailout, well worth considering.

Why vote for more of the same with Obamacaine when you can vote for Hope and Change with the Libertarian Party?

Obama Youth?

Behold the Obama youth as they sing a Worshipful Praise Song for Dear Leader:


When we give up belief in a higher power, invariably we end up worshiping men. To me, this is scarier than Jesus Camp, because Jesus isn't running for anything.

Can We Trust the Polar Bear?

I thought this was cute...

Jeff Freeman, RIP

Oh God even typing this up just breaks my heart. First, the statement from his brother posted on the SWGEMU.com site:

Some of you know who Jeff Freeman was; he was the lead designer at Sony when the major changes were made to SWG that left so many upset. Although it was not his fault he took the brunt of the criticisms, attacks, and even death threats.

Some of you may have even known him back in the UO days as Dundee, Guild Master of the Nameless Ones on Lake Superior and later the administrator of the private UO server World of Dreams.

I am not sure why I have chosen this forum to share this news; it may be that I would have loved to see Jeff build the game that he really wanted to, if he was running a private server. You see I am his brother. On September 24th Jeff took his own life. I am not angry at him or anyone else, sad yes, like so many others I feel a bit of guilt but I love my brother and I am thankful that he is no longer suffering.

Below is part of the obituary that will run in the Longview News Journal on Wednesday, October 1, 2008.

LONGVIEW - Memorial services for Jeff Freeman, 39, of Austin, will be at 4 p.m. Thursday, October 2, 2008 at Triumphant Christian Center, 1308 Reel Road, 903-xxx-xxxx.

Born October 8, 1968, he was a computer programmer who worked on many popular programs including Star Wars Galaxies and had served this country as a member of the U.S. Army Reserves.

"Because Christ suffered so much for us, we can receive so much comfort from Him." 2 Cor 1:5

I hope all of you will join me and our family as we celebrate his life.

later his brother posted a follow up:

Yes, I do plan on posting on his blog but I do not have any of his login information. That is something I am working on today. When I do get access to his blog I will post some pics etc... to show what a great person he was.

I am sure it seemed strange that I posted here, but this is the only contact I have the SWG community. I was a fan of pre-cu and have played on the test server. I have even considered running a server when SWGemu is released. I am not the programmer my brother was but I am excited about the project.

Also, I want everyone to know that it was not SWG that lead him to take his life. He has been troubled for sometime. There were alot of personal issues that tore at him. I did not post here because this is a community of pre-cu fans. As I stated before this is just the SWG community I have a connection to.

Regardless of how SWG turned out we must admit that many of the great things we enjoyed about pre-cu was because of his work.

Kylrathin I to wish it was a joke. I miss him so much.... I need him back...

He and I began our correspondence back when the whole NGE thing happened. We started out as semi-adversaries, but I'd like to think he and I became actual internet buddies over the years, and not only did I grow to respect him, but like him as well. He was a good man and a good game designer; and I am going to miss him greatly. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

Here's the link to his blog: http://mythicalblog.com/

""Birth Of Freedom Shorts Series #5: Is Secularism Neutral?

Another cool little short from the folks at the Acton Institute:

L'Shana Tova!

Happy New Year! Welcome to 5769

The Bill Fails DOW Down 777

777 -- that's the number of God in the Kabbalah; Crowley's "Flaming Sword." Pretty weird.

I must say, I am glad the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 went down and failed, even if it leads to a serious market downturn. I feel that it was the wrong approach to a serious problem, and in the wrong run, not only would not fix the problem, but would have made matters worse.

I am proud of those Republicans and Democrats who, in a new kind of bipartisan effort, actually listened to the people and allowed the bill to go down.

Now it is time for them to take a step back, hold hearings, and ignore the idjits on the right and left who CAUSED the crisis. They need to ask, no BEG, Ron Paul to get some sound money economists up there are ask them how the heck did we get here and what must we do to get out?

Why do I feel they will not do this?

Democrat Cover-up?

Sounds like "Insider Trading"

Is this Democracy?

Revelation 5:13

And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, [be] unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.(KJV)

Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, everything in the universe, cry out: "To the one who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor, glory and might, forever and ever." (NAB)

And then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea. They also sang: "Blessing and honor and glory and power belong to the one sitting on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever."(NLT)

In the past few weeks we looked through some of the lines in the letters of Paul that point to an eventual reconciliation of all men to God, seeing that how one man's sin damned us all, and one man's righteousness redeems all (Rom. 5:18), and assuming one means one and all means all, that implies all sinners, even the sinners who do not know Christ and have not accepted him.

We have looked at how in his First Letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 15:22-26), he states that, building on the all dying in Adam idea, and all rising in Christ fulfillment, he begins to spell out how this works, that Christ is the "firstfruits" then us, His believers and followers, but THEN He defeats death itself -- the final enemy.

We have looked at 2 Corinthians 5:16-19, where Paul writes about how we are to put off our worldly view because God has reconciled the whole world to Himself in Christ. he didn't say just the part of the world of believers, but the whole thing.

Then we looked at 1 Timothy 4: 9-10; possibly one of the most famous lines proclaiming the salvation of all where he references yet again the special slavation for those who believe but that Christ is the "savior of all men."

Once again, does ALL mean ALL? People who like to take the Bible literally seem incapable to take these words literally. They look at other parts of the Bible which seem to speak of people burning in hell forever, decide that it is THOSE words they need to take literally, and then choose to NOT take these words literally.

Thus, through a selective choice if literal interpretation, they CHOOSE to damn their fellow human beings to Hell. Over time, I'll try and go into these Hell discussions in the scripture; after all, Jesus does talk about a place called Hell and honesty requires that any developed theology deal with this.

Okay now to the verse of the Day. We have here a sign of the culmination of God's Glory; where EVERY creature in heaven, every creature on the earth, every creature under the earth, every creature in the sea -- literally ALL LIFE itself sing unto the Lamb forever and ever. So, not only are YOU going to be saved, but so is your cat, your dog, that goldfish you flushed, that squirrel you ran over with the car, and the cow that provided me with that juicy hamburger I had for lunch today -- ALL of them are reconciled in Him.

ALL means ALL, at least to me. EVERY means EVERY, at least to me. If I'm gonna be a Biblical literalist, and I am forced into finding contradictory literalisms, I'm gonna CHOOSE the one that makes God something better than me. I'm gonna choose the one whose mercy and love is infinite, who is a true Father to all.

I hope after some pondering and study you come to feel the same way. Remember this is only the beginning of this discussion. First, we spend some time putting our best foot forward. Then, I'll try and deal with the best arguments against my theology, then try and reconcile the irreconcilable, knowing all things were reconciled in Christ -- so by following Him, we should be able to deal.

In God we'll Trust.

Global Economic Meltdown -- the Music Video

You knew it would eventually had to happen, here it is:

Go Jet-Man Go!

This was a really cool Dave Stevens comic and a fun little movie -- it captured one of my oldest dreams -- to have my own jetpack.
Say hello to the real Rocketeer:

It's a beautiful thing. Where can I get mine?

Paul Newman 1925 - 2008

Thank you Paul for how you have blessed the lives of so many people. So many have been helped by your actions and your seemingly infinite capacity to love others creatively that they are far too many to name.

It has been said what we do in this life will echo in eternity. Well then, the heavens will ring for a very long time the actions of Paul Newman.

Thank you, and may God welcome you to all His Glory. Be seeing you.



This is one of my favorite moments from one of my favorite movies:


I can eat 50 egg...

A Cute One From the McCain Campaign

They sure are fast over there...

What Caused Our Economic Crisis?

You MUST watch this video.

The First Debate

First off, I must say that I LOVE this format of debate. The moderator asks a question, they each have two minutes to answer it; then they get five minutes for freeform exchange. Excellent format.

The best moment was when McCain said, "so let me get this straight -- we sit down with ahmadinejad and he says, let's wipe Israel off the map, and we say, no you won't." that was pretty funny.

Or words to that effect. That as the "moment" of the debate. Otherwise, it was a pretty even debate. I must say it again: I LOVE this format.

I would say McCain won marginally on both points and style. Obama said, "me too" way too much, and he made too many faces.

That being said, Obama got through it fine, without any damage from McCain. In that he is ahead in the polls, that's bad for McCain.

What Obama failed to do was he did not come off as self assured as he ordinarily does, and I don't think he did anything that will sway the swing voter his way. McCain may have done marginally better with that, by showing his understanding and experience with foreign policy, and calling for a spending freeze on all government other than defense, entitlements, and veterans.

Also McCain ended better. Bottom line, no clear winner, which is good for Obama.

A Nerd's take on the Bailout Debate

Jim PInkerton is a dude I have always enjoyed. He's a smart, nerdy wordsmith who can always be counted on to bring us a cool take on things. His take on the bailout debate is no different:

In Washington, it’s a showdown between the representatives of Wall Street and the representatives of Main Street. But have you noticed that the old partisan alliances are reversed? It’s the Democrats who are now the Wall Street Party. And Republicans—with the conspicuous exception of President Bush—are now the Main Street Party.

Consider: President Bush proposed the $700 billion plan; after days of hiding behind the Secretary of Goldman Sachs, Henry Paulson, Bush finally emerged from the sidelines Wednesday night to tout the plan in prime time. Just this morning, he spoke again in favor of his plan, while again taking no questions from pesky reporters.

But the Congressional Democrats, who mostly despise Bush, are also mostly for the Bush plan. Sure, they made some cosmetic changes in the bailout proposal, but they have never wavered in their basic endorsement.

So who’s against the plan? It’s Congressional Republicans who are getting in the way. They are the heroes of the hour. Although outnumbered, these brave Capitol Hill GOPers have stopped official Washington in its tracks.

He goes on to show the irony:

For their part, the Democrats are emerging as the new party of the rich, the party of Wall Street, the party that champions financiers at the expense of producers. For years now, the most affluent precincts in the country—mostly on the two coasts—have been solidly Democratic. And in 2008, the polls show that upper-income voters mostly support Barack Obama. And Obama, of course, guided by the likes of Robert Rubin, has been quietly supportive of the deal. Indeed, Obama personally epitomizes the Democrats’ new political arrangement: He was raised mostly poor, then worked mostly with the poor, but now he is rich and works mostly with the rich—his campaign is a well-financed corporation. Yet he has maintained his popularity with the poor. For their part, the Republicans now represent the majority of middle-income voters—Main Street. But the Democrats, with their political pincer movement, from the rich above and the poor below, have the clear electoral advantage in 2008.

Seems the whole world is turning upside down, he wraps it up in truly epic nerd style:

So only Congressional Republicans—the single most implacable figure being Sen. Richard Shelby, the Rock of Alabama—are taking a firm stance against this monstrosity. They even seem to have brought along John McCain, who has taken various positions on the bailout over the last few weeks. But bravo for the Congressional Republicans. After years of embarrassments and scandals, the Capitol Hill GOP has rediscovered principle and honor. And so rediscovered the glory of genuinely representing the people, against the powerful.

I am reminded of Aragorn’s Battle Speech at the Black Gate in the third of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. The King tells his outnumbered troops:

I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day.

An hour of wolves and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down, but it is not this day!

This day we fight!!

By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West!!!

And so, in the Tolkien story, the Men of the West are triumphant. But today, in the real world, could the Republican Men and Women of Capitol Hill yet prevail? The Washington, D.C. conventional wisdom, as of Friday, is that the Bush Administration/Democratic/Wall Street juggernaut will eventually bring the Congressional GOP to heel. If so, that would be the final victory of Wall Street over Main Street.

But maybe not. Maybe the people will win this epic struggle.

Too funny. I wonder...perhaps this, that is, Democrats being the new party of corporate welfare, and Republicans the new defenders of the little guy, is what Obama means when he speaks of "change."

Ding Dong, the D*ck is D...Disbarred

This should show people that no matter how bad the news gets, there's always a sign that there is a God in this wide wonderful world. Self-proclaimed protector of children and enemy of gamers everywhere, Jack Thompson, has been disbarred for life. Now, normally I would not celebrate from anyone's misfortune, but this was one nasty man, and a threat to all our liberty -- especially the freedom of gamers exercising their first amendment right to kill, maim and slaughter whatever they feel like in a virtual setting.

This monster of a human being, who tried to make links between video games and murder, in his dark side attempt to destroy the good times of others, claiming to be a Christian, he forgot about Jesus' message of love and reconciliation, and sought out to destroy those who did not fit into his tiny little mind.

He went after Howard Stern, he went after other radio humorists. He went after rap music, but mostly, he went after violent video games -- and for that, to use his own style of reasoning, the Lord saw fit to bring him low.

Atheists around the word take note -- if you didn't believe before, this is evidence that demands a verdict.

It's detailed here, at destructoid.com:

It's been a long time coming, but silver-haired game hater Jack Thompson has been permanently disbarred. That's right folks, in thirty days time, the man who once so proudly flaunted his lawyer credentials in peoples' faces will soon have to go from being "Jack Thompson, Attorney" to just plain ol' John Bruce Thompson, Nobody.

The Court approves the corrected referee's report and John Bruce Thompson is permanently disbarred, effective thirty days from the date of this order so that respondent can close out his practice and protect the interests of existing clients. If respondent notifies the Court in writing that he is no longer practicing and does not need the thirty days to protect existing clients, this Court will enter an order making the permanent disbarment effective immediately. Respondent shall accept no new business from the date this order is filed.

Judgment is entered for The Florida Bar, 651 East Jefferson Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2300, for recovery of costs from John Bruce Thompson in the amount of $43,675.35, for which sum let execution issue.

Not final until time expires to file motion for rehearing, and if filed, determined. The filing of a motion for rehearing shall not alter the effective date of this permanent disbarment. Consistent with this Court's sanction order, no motion for rehearing will be considered unless signed by a member in good standing of The Florida Bar other than respondent.

Jack Thompson will no longer be able to practice law thanks to a string of misconduct allegations that included lying, making a nuisance of himself to professionals, and generally being both ignorant and disrespectful of his peers. Jack Thompson behaved with nothing but contempt and immaturity in his own disbarment trial, so it's hardly surprising that this has happened. He had only himself to blame.

I doubt Thompson's crusade against videogames ends here. But until FOX hands him another paycheck to pretend to be an expert, hit the jump for an exclusive official response to the disbarment from Jack himself.

[Thanks, Radio Guy]

We contacted Jack Thompson asking if we might have an official statement on his disbarment. He answered our request swiftly, but concisely. His statement simply reads:

"Sure. Go to Hell."

I really can't understand why he's not still a lawyer.

Let this be a lesson to those fellow believers in the Almighty -- he wants us to be proclaiming liberty, not destroying it; spreading His Good News, not bad news; He wants us slaying real dragons, not virtual ones; and he wants us to sow the good sweet fruits of love and reconciliation, not the bitter ones of hatred and division.

Mr. Thompson, I hope and pray you repent, face the Lord in all His glory, and realize you have done his Word wrong when you set out to tyrannize the mind of man. Turn and repent, so that you may live a long and happy life on a new, better, more free path.

For it is written: It is for freedom that Christ set us free! Stand fast, and let not yourself be strangled again under a yoke of bondage!

And don't screw with others either, dude. Rly.

Ditching Letterman for Couric?

I mean she's cute and all that, but really. I'd hang with Letterman any day. Either way it was a dumb move on McCain's part to cancel Letterman because you had to go down to Washington to help get the bill passed -- but then decide you have time enough to do an interview with Katie.

Major dumb move, Senator.

Just like FDR...

and when the stock market crashed. The President got on TV and reassured the people. At some point I'll find the video and post it here. Just had to make the wisecrack.

The Debate is Shifting...MY Way

day after day, more and more people are realizing, or coming out and saying, that it was NOT deregulation and lack of oversight that led to our current financial crisis, but rather the usual liberal social engineering.

Stan Liebowitz chimes in:

HOW did America wind up in its worst financial crisis in decades? Sen. Barack Obama explained it this way last week: "When sub-prime-mortgage lending took a reckless and unsustainable turn, a patchwork of regulators systematically and deliberately eliminated the regulations protecting the American people."

That's exactly backward. Mortgage lending took that "reckless and unsustainable turn" because of regulation - regulation driven by liberals and progressives, not free-market "deregulators."

Pushed hard by politicians and community activists, the regulators systematically and deliberately altered financially sound lending practices.

Someone else gets it. It's big government once again; it's allowing government to pick and choose the way the economy should go, based upon some program of the way things ought to be. Once again, instead of leaving people free to make choices, the control freaks need to take control. This leads to a worse situation than the one they try to correct.

It wasn't GREED, it was POWER. McCain and Obama have both been wrong on this -- both are busy attacking Wall Street for something Washington promoted and made happen. Will they learn? Only time will tell. At least we can see more and more economists out there are explaining what really happened, and why.

hat tip to Rachel Lucas for finding this :)

Wow, You Mean They Might Do the RIGHT Thing?

At least that's what Breitbart.com is saying:

WASHINGTON (AP) - Democrats have decided to allow a quarter-century ban on drilling for oil off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts to expire next week, conceding defeat in a months-long battle with the White House and Republicans set off by $4 a gallon gasoline prices this summer.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, D-Wis., told reporters Tuesday that a provision continuing the moratorium will be dropped this year from a stopgap spending bill to keep the government running after Congress recesses for the election.

Republicans have made lifting the ban a key campaign issue after gasoline prices spiked this summer and public opinion turned in favor of more drilling. President Bush lifted an executive ban on offshore drilling in July.

Republicans showing some stones? Democrats capitulating on their desire to wreck the economy, blame it on Bush, connect Bush to McCain, and elect Obama? Hallelujah!

Well, not exactly. The fact is, this is the least popular congress in its history, and they know how the people feel. They knew that by going against the will of the people here, it is THEY who would lose out. Polls are already showing that Obama might not be the Messiah they were hoping for -- he'll still probably win, but may not have the coat-tails that a realignment often has with it.

Regardless, this is some good news, finally in a news cycle that has been nothing but bad news. Oil Companies: let's get this party started!

The perfect storm: factors leading to the downfall of an MMO

Another fine thread about the sinking of the ship that was Star Wars Galaxies:
http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/203234

Diddy Blog #21: Sh*t Happens!

aka the poo Diddy edition. As always the usual language warning applies...

Biden, the Gift that Keeps On Giving.

Joe. Hoover was president. TV wasn't even invented yet. Love you, man!

Bloodsucking Fiends

No, this isn't another post about government, although you might think so by the title, this is actually about the book, Bloodsucking fiends: A Love Story, by Christopher Moore. For years, people have told me, dude, you'll really love this guy, he has your kinda sense of humor, and he loves the same sh*t we do.

I have read dozens of snippets from Lamb and while I had never sat down and actually read the whole book (I do plan to now), I loved the goofy religious satire, and in world with far too little religious humor, that book seems to be one of the best -- charmingly blasphemous, well written, and just plain cute.

Anyway, Bloodsucking Fiends. Loved it! Funny, a cool little story, believable characters, nice use of fan service to the vampire genre, and did I mention it was funny?

Without really going into too much detail, the story of Jody the vampire is my kinda vamp tale: she becomes a vampire and just deals with it. No big oh my God I can't believe it; much more like wow, vampires ARE real now how do I deal with it?

Just like a real person who has seen a few movies and experienced popular culture would be. I always hate it when in contemporary urban fantasy we have to suffer through pages and paragraphs of the characters NOT BELIEVING in what has happened and acting like they've never heard of a vampire before. Refreshing.

Add to that a collection of highly memorable characters, retail humor reminiscent of Kevin Smith, and you have a highly enjoyable, low maintenance novel. If you have some time, give this one a read. You'll be glad you did.

More Evidence That It's the Democrats, Stupid

The evidence is mounting that while both parties had a hand in it, the current money meltdown has far more Democratic fingerprints on it, as we told by Kevin Hassett of the American Enterpise Institute at Bloomberg.com:

Enough cards on this table have been turned over that the story is now clear. The economic history books will describe this episode in simple and understandable terms: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac exploded, and many bystanders were injured in the blast, some fatally.

Hassett goes on to explain how this happened, and then goes on to discuss how some people tried to stop it, or at least head it off:

The clear gravity of the situation pushed the legislation forward. Some might say the current mess couldn't be foreseen, yet in 2005 Alan Greenspan told Congress how urgent it was for it to act in the clearest possible terms: If Fannie and Freddie ``continue to grow, continue to have the low capital that they have, continue to engage in the dynamic hedging of their portfolios, which they need to do for interest rate risk aversion, they potentially create ever-growing potential systemic risk down the road,'' he said. ``We are placing the total financial system of the future at a substantial risk.''

What happened next was extraordinary. For the first time in history, a serious Fannie and Freddie reform bill was passed by the Senate Banking Committee. The bill gave a regulator power to crack down, and would have required the companies to eliminate their investments in risky assets.

If that bill had become law, then the world today would be different. In 2005, 2006 and 2007, a blizzard of terrible mortgage paper fluttered out of the Fannie and Freddie clouds, burying many of our oldest and most venerable institutions. Without their checkbooks keeping the market liquid and buying up excess supply, the market would likely have not existed.

But the bill didn't become law, for a simple reason: Democrats opposed it on a party-line vote in the committee, signaling that this would be a partisan issue. Republicans, tied in knots by the tight Democratic opposition, couldn't even get the Senate to vote on the matter.

Again, BOTH sides are to blame for this, but each day, more and more evidence shows the Democrats deserve the lion's share of it. Will the mainstream media allow this story to get out? Not if it might hurt their Messiah, Barack Obama.

Funny Biden Video

One of the things I LIKE about Joe Biden is he is just a regular guy. I don't like his politics, but I do like him:

Now, people are saying he is drunk here; but so what if he is? he's not driving, he's hanging out.

Either way, I love seeing politicians when they get caught as human beings :)

...and if this turns out to be a fake, it's still a funny video.

Update: From what I understand, Biden doesn't drink. Nothing wrong with a sober man making himself look silly either :)

1 Timothy 4: 9-10

Here is a saying you can trust. You can accept it completely. 10 We work hard for it. Here is the saying. We have put our hope in the living God. He is the Savior of all people. Most of all he is the Savior of those who believe. (NIV)

This [is] a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe. (KJV)

9The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. 10For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. (ESV)

Okay, we have three translations, even the one the hellraisers are so fond of: the King James Version. I don't think the Apostle can be any more clear here: "The saying is true and deserving of full acceptance." In other words: listen the heck up, dudes, this is VERY IMPORTANT I am about to tell you something that is certified.

He then says "for to this end we toil and strive" -- in other words -- THIS is what it's all about.

Now he doesn't say, watch out, yer hellbound unless you get yourself born again, pray the sinners prayer, and let Jesus into your soul. Nope. Not at all. The Apostle then goes on to say that "we have our hope in the living God, who is Savior of ALL people, especially those who believe.

There we see it AGAIN, a "special" salvation for believers, but make no mistake, ALL seems to once again mean ALL, and here we see God is the savior of ALL.

Once again, either Paul is a liar, or all are saved.

Clinton Praises Palin

America's greatest living politician more or less agrees with my assessment of Palin, as reported by ABC News Jennifer Parker:

September 18, 2008 6:33 PM
Asked if he was surprised by the bounce McCain received in the polls after choosing Palin as his vice presidential candidate, Clinton said he wasn't, and lavished praise on the Alaska governor.

"No, she's a-- she's an instinctively effective candidate," he said, "And with a compelling story. I think it was exciting to some, that, that she was a woman. It was exciting that she was from Alaska. It was exciting that she's sort of like the person she is. And she grew up in a, came up in a political culture and a religious culture that is probably well to the right of the American center. But, she didn't basically define herself in those terms," Clinton said.

"She handled herself very well," he said, "I get why she's done so well. She, she's, it's a mistake to underestimate her. She's got good intuitive skills. They're significant."

Love him or hate him, Bill Clinton knows his stuff. Democrats would do well to pay heed to the opinions of a master. It is interesting that Clinton's opposition hated him beyond reason and tried to dig up as much personal garbage on him as possible, attacked his daughter, and otherwise resorted to extremely low tactics to hurt him politically.

Huhuhuh...he said "Persecuted"

It's worth listening to the whole thing, but shoot up to about 4:50 for the funny part:

Gotta love a good Bush gaffe. Nothing better to instill (or should I say install) confidence in our financial system...

Another Good Attack Ad

Seems the McCain campaign has gotten better with their attack ads:

This is the kinda thing I enjoy seeing in a bloody campaign. I hope to see Obama following suit with some better ads.

Sandra on Sarah

The hatred on the left is almost unbearable sometimes; so is their theology. I wince as I hear this venom. Explicit language ahead.

Is this what the left has turned into?

The Right Attitude

Wall Street's old hands not rattled by financial crisis
By David Caruso, The Associated Press

NEW YORK - Images of Wall Street's stunning stumble were everywhere this week, from photographs of weary traders to video of Lehman Brothers employees carrying boxes to the curb.

But if fear was in the air, you couldn't quite see it on the sidewalks of the financial district, or even the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Even before the market began a two-day rally Thursday, the atmosphere seemed to be one of uncertainty, not despair.

"I don't feel terrified. I don't feel panicked," said Doreen Mogavero, a floor trader for nearly three decades.

Without a doubt, she said, New York's investment community was experiencing "a rather difficult crisis of confidence," but one where people haven't given up hope that opportunities to make money are still out there, somewhere.

"You don't have quite the craziness that we used to have, say in the crash of '29 or the crash of '87, where there was frantic running around, screaming and yelling," she said Thursday on the exchange floor, surrounded by fellow traders who looked intent but calm.

Wall Street, after all, has seen bad times before.

Just seven Septembers ago, New York's financial center lay in literal ruins, with thousands dead from a terrorist attack, thousands more thrown out of work, and many hundreds of small Manhattan businesses destroyed.

How does this crisis compare? It doesn't, said Liz Berger, director of the Alliance for Downtown New York.

"We've been on the brink of catastrophe before, and not just financial market catastrophe," she said from her office, just a few blocks from new skyscrapers rising at ground zero. "Of course we're anxious. How can we not be? I think people are just shocked by the swiftness of the paradigm change. But if you look at the reality of the situation, this community has gone through so much, and it has always survived."

Every day is the end of the world as we know it; it always has been since the dawn of time. The trick to success is dealing with it, changing when you have to, moving on, and not to panic. We'll get through this one too.

Good Ole Ron

Right on target once again. Thanks to the Libertarian Think Tank for this one.

The Good News and the Bad News

AP
Stocks soar as officials confirm gov't rescue plan
Friday September 19, 11:47 am ET
By Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer
Wall Street extends big rally on bank rescue hopes, temporary ban on short sales of financials

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street extended a huge rally Friday as investors stormed back into the market, relieved that the government plans to rescue banks from billions of dollars in bad debt. The Dow Jones industrials rose more than 375 points, giving them a massive gain of more than 785 points over two days, and Treasurys fell as money flowed into equities.

The good news is, for now, I'm making some money back I lost in the recent past. The bad news is, it's just kicking the can down the road and will lead to bigger, more intrusive government, larger national debt, and the piper will STILL need to be paid down the road.

Next time it'll be even MORE expensive. Will the economy grow enough in the interim so we can afford it? No one knows. It's still being financed on the backs of the working people of America, all to bail out investors like me.

The Illuminatrix's Piece in the WSJ

Here's the piece that appeared in the WSJ on September 11th:

Democrats Need to Shake
The 'Elitist' Tag
By LYNN FORESTER DE ROTHSCHILD
If Barack Obama loses the presidential election, it may well be the result of a public perception that he is detached and elitist -- a politician whose expressions of empathy for hard-working Americans stem more from abstract solidarity than a real connection to the lives of millions of citizens.

Suggestions that Sen. Obama has failed to relate to working- and middle-class voters in swing states have dogged his campaign for months. His choice of Sen. Joseph Biden as his running mate only marginally corrects the problem.

While Obama supporters attempt to dismiss the charges about their candidate's perceived hauteur, they confuse privilege and elitism. Elitism is a state of mind, a view of the world that cannot be measured simply by one's net worth, position or number of houses. Throughout American history, there have been extremely wealthy figures who have devoted themselves to genuinely nonelitist principles. (Franklin Delano Roosevelt is probably the best-known example.) At the same time, many from modest backgrounds, like Harry Truman's foil, Thomas Dewey, personified elitism.

I'm a longtime Democrat. I worked for Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan and supported Sen. Hillary Clinton in her presidential campaign. But I must face the uncomfortable truth that liberal elitism has been a weakness of the Democratic Party for more than half a century. In 1952 and 1956, for example, Adlai Stevenson emerged as the presidential candidate of the party's "new politics" wing. But while Stevenson's stylish, articulate, high-brow manner thrilled the nation's intellectuals, he could never connect with large numbers of working-class Democrats who found him aloof and aristocratic.

The "new politics" Democrats have found their new, improved Stevenson in Mr. Obama. In spite of his lofty liberal rhetoric, Mr. Obama is not connecting to millions of middle- and working-class voters, as well as women voters of all classes. Not only is his legislative record scant on issues that make a difference in their lives, but his current campaign is based mainly on an assumption of his transcendence.

Despite Mr. Obama's assertions that his campaign is about "you," much of his campaign is, in fact, all about him. In the months since the primaries ended, his creation and display of a mock presidential seal with his name on it, his speech at a mass rally at the Prussian Victory Column in Berlin, and his insistence on delivering his acceptance speech in front of fabricated Greek columns in a stadium holding 80,000 chanting supporters have crossed the thin line that separates galvanizing voters and plain old demagoguery.

In this context, it should come as no surprise that Sarah Palin, mother of five, hockey mom turned governor and maverick reformer, would instantly zero in on the inherent weakness in Mr. Obama's candidacy, and contrast it with her own compelling life story.

It is ironic that the candidate who comes from a more privileged background -- John McCain -- can genuinely point to at least one crucial moment in his life when elitism went by the boards. Because John McCain's father was a high-ranking Navy Admiral, he was offered freedom from a Vietnamese prisoner of war camp. He refused, saying that he would leave only when every prisoner who had been captured before him was also released.

Mr. McCain can truthfully tell the story of when he refused to be treated as special, and stood unflinchingly beside less-privileged Americans. It is a story that suggests the way he would govern as president of the United States.

Mr. Obama cannot point to any analogue to Mr. McCain's service. As he talks of himself, and his supporters talk about the amazing Obamaness of Obama, it is no wonder that millions of Americans, including loyal Democrats, still question whether his presidency would reinforce the splendor of Barack Obama rather than protect them and enhance their lives.