Prophet Ronnie Earle Enforces Gods Laws

Byron York of NRO, got a copy of the film that Travis County DA Ronnie Earle is staring in and it would appear co-writing, and Byron has the reviews up on the "Big Buy":

York on Prophet Earle

Per York:

On several occasions in the film, Earle engages in monologues on what he believes is the sinister effect of money in politics. "The root of the evil of the corporate and large-monied interest domination of politics is money," Earle says as he takes the filmmakers on a nighttime drive around Austin. "This is in the Bible. This isn't rocket science. The root of all evil truly is money, especially in politics. People talk about how money is the mother's milk of politics. Well, it's the devil's brew. And what we've got to do, we've got to turn off the tap."

The Prophet DA goes on to say:

In another scene, Earle describes how he deals with offenders in cases like the campaign-finance investigation. "It's important that we forgive those who come to us in a spirit of contrition and the desire for forgiveness. That's important. But if they don't, then God help them." The film then dissolves to a picture of DeLay.

This is a very terrifying picture, a self appointed Prophet DA ridding the world or at least Travis County of the devil's evil money on the terms that God has personally given him to pursue. Gives one visions of accused witches being drowned in Salem or burnt at the stake. Prophet Ronnie Earle goes on to say the devils money is "every bit as insidious as terrorism." I wonder if the Prophet was reading the Koran when he experienced that revelation.

This guy is a certified "nut job" who is very delusional if not clinically insane. The terrifying thing is that he also is the DA!!!! He decides who gets prosecute in Travis County!!!!!!!

The left is always trying to pin extremist "danger" labels on right of center people of faith. Not people like Ronnie Earle who operate under their own God given laws, rather people who profess a belief in God, faith and religious value who unlike Ronnie Earle follow and believe in the law of the land. I can't wait to see how the left deals with the nuttiest religious political figure in a long time who also happens to reside smack dab in the center of their camp. It should be fun to watch the secular to agnostic to atheist left try and do damage control brought on by the Prophet of Travis County.

Not only is Prophet Earle a religious nut, but he has a flock of equally crazy disciples. Per York's review:

At one point in the picture, Rosemary Lemberg, an assistant district attorney in Earle's office, explains that Earle singlehandedly pushed forward the DeLay investigation over the objections of colleagues. "Ronnie was the only person in maybe a group of six or seven lawyers in a room who thought we ought to go ahead and investigate and look at those things," Lemberg says. "We got sued every time we turned around, we got taken to court over this, and Ronnie was the one who just kept pushing forward with it, and saying 'I'll put more resources on this, just keep hacking at it.'"

Pushing forward because he is on a mission from God and marching to God's personal order given to the Prophet alone and above the laws that govern us mere mortals. Based on what we are learning about Earle, I would not be surprised if he showed up in court with a box full of live poisonous snakes and starting dancing around with them. There are some nuts who do that here and pictures here. Seem to me that The Prophet Earle might be just as unbalanced as the Snake Handlers..................

I have one very important piece of advice for Ms Lemberg and the rest of Prophet Earle's staff and that would be: if the Prophet breaks out a wash tub of Kool Aid and tells you its time to prepare yourself to meet the Lord because the moment is near, run and run very fast and far..........................................

Ford Ends Production of Excursion

This is a very sound idea and a good adjustment to the business plan by Ford:

Excursions

Per the AP:

The last Ford Excursion, a super-sized sport-utility vehicle, rolled off the assembly line Friday as the automaker shifts its focus to producing more fuel-efficient vehicles. The company announced in July that it would halt production of the 19-foot gas-guzzler as sales of its larger SUVs dragged.

At $3 and higher for a gallon of gas, yes I’m sure the old Ford Excursion is not all that hot these days. The “tree huggers” however are upset that economics played a role in the decision:

"I think the fact that the last Excursion is rolling off the line is a sign of how long Ford waited before it started actually addressing these issues," said Paul West, a spokesman for the Rainforest Action Network. The San Francisco-based group has campaigned for Ford to cut emissions and improve fuel economy.
"Ford didn't really address it because it wanted to do the right thing," West said. "Ford's addressing it because gas prices are skyrocketing and people are freaking out."

People freaking out over $150 fill-ups is a pretty safe bet there Rainforest Man. I have to measure and see if a 19 foot vehicle would fit in my garage easily, I don't think it would…………………………

Update:

I measured my garage and it's 25' from back wall to the garage door, so I could put an Excursion in it if I wanted to. I don't, its a Ford for God's sake so I would never buy it for quality issues alone. If I did want to put a vehicle of that size in my garage I would have to rearrange lots of "wall stuff" to get it in however....

Bad Message - Bad Antiwar Model

Charles Krauthammer, gets it exactly right in his Washington Post article titled Bad Choice for an Antiwar Voice

Krauthammer states even though a large percentage of Americans feel uneasy over the war in Iraq, they are not prepared or ready to follow a communist/socialist antiwar movement headed by Cindy Sheehan.

ANSWER and the other socialist/communist organizations leading the antiwar movement have no appeal to a strong majority of Americans for obvious reasons:

You don't build a mass movement on that. Nor on antiwar rallies like the one last weekend in Washington, organized and run by a front group for the Workers World Party. The WWP is descended from Cold War Stalinists who found other communists insufficiently rigorous for refusing to support the Soviet invasion of Hungary. Thus a rally ostensibly against war is run by a group that supported the Soviet invasions of Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Afghanistan, the massacre in Tiananmen Square, and a litany of the very worst mass murderers of our time, including Slobodan Milosevic, Hussein and Kim Jong Il. You don't seize the moral high ground in America with fellow travelers such as these.

Americans want things to stabilize and improve in Iraq and for our soldiers to return home as soon as possible. So does every reasonable person, no one want the military to be there any longer than is required. That said they still don’t want us to cut and run and I’m sure that we will not cut and run. It’s too important that we see a stable Iraq in the region. Americans understand that this is not a Vietnam and they won’t follow the recycled far left organizations and thinking that are leading this antiwar protest. Americans understand that it is too important that we win the war on terror and see the difference in the struggle between Vietnam and Iraq:

For all the Vietnam nostalgia at the Washington march, things are different today. In Vietnam it could never be plausibly argued that Ho Chi Minh was training commandos to bring down skyscrapers in New York. Today, however, Americans know that this is precisely what our jihadist enemies have pledged to do.

Carnival of College Football Predictions

This weeks “Carnival of College Football Predictions” is as follows:

HUGE Upset Weekend………………………….

#15 Alabama beats #5 Florida
Unranked Missouri beats #2 Texas
Unranked Michigan beats #11 Michigan State
#14 Arizona State beats #1 USC
#22 Purdue beats #13 Notre Dame

How is that for a HUGE Upset Weekend?

#1, #2, #5, #11 & #13 all lose. Well if I get two out of five it would still be a big upset weekend and shake things up big time. Of the five which ones do I think have the best chance of happening:

Alabama beating Florida, Michigan beating Michigan State, and Purdue beating Notre Dame.

I do think things could be right for both the #1 and #2 to lose this weekend. They are both playing away against really good quarterbacks, and that could make it happen. All the underdogs have the ability to pull off the upset but they have to play a great game. Either I will be ready for "Game Day" after these picks or looking pretty much like Albert picks them. Let’s start with Trev Albert’s Big Red for the rest of the games:

#23 Iowa State beats Nebraska
#3 Virginia beats West Virginia
#6 Florida State beats Syracuse
#9 Miami beats USF
#10 Tennessee beats Ole Miss
#12 California beats Arizona
#16 Texas Tech beats Kansas
#17 Wisconsin beats Indiana
#18 Minnesota beats Penn State
#19 Virginia beats Maryland
#20 UCLA beats Washington
#4 LSU beats Mississippi St.
Unranked Auburn beats South Carolina

What qualifications do I have to be Trev Albert’s unofficial replacement? None, but I couldn’t be worse than Albert could I? Besides that you don’t see any regional or team bias in my picks and I’m not afraid to pick an insane line-up of upsets.

It’s an astronomical long-shot that my upsets will all come in if any, but I do think the line-up for this week is ripe for upsets so why not go for it when you think it a big upset weekend? That said, even if your team is favored and not one of the upset picks “WATCH OUT”…............

Hurricane Strengthening Giuliani Appeal?

I agree with Lorie Byrd and her assessment that Rudy Giuliani is looking pretty good in 2008:

Byrd

Like Lorie, I have been leaning toward Rudy early on for all the reasons she listed and the current post hurricane climate only strengthens his standing I say:

Thanks to the blame-Bush media, it seems the public now believes that the first and ultimate responder to any kind of disaster, whether natural or man-made, should be the federal government, or more specifically, the President. Giuliani is the only potential 2008 candidate that has shown himself capable of handling a challenge of such historic proportions. Because issues of national security and war and peace in the Middle East will outlive the Bush presidency, the nation will be looking for a leader able to perform in a crisis.

There is the abortion matter that will probably cost Giuliani some support from the right-to-life ranks but even they can’t deny that of everyone in the field thus far, Rudy is head and shoulders above the rest when it comes to proven leadership…………..

Update:

Patrick Ruffini has a new straw poll up and it confirms the above, that Rudy is looking very good across all spectrums. It’s closes in the south with Rudy 4% better than Allen, but he is still leading. If you add the Fantasy candidates, Rice crushes everyone………

Ruffini

Krugman Is Eating Tin Foiled Brownies Again

Someone tell Krugman to take the tin foil off the brownie before he eats it ok?

Paul Krugman is asking the moonbats to find the "brownie" via lib bloger Martini Republic:

Brownies

The moonbats are eating the brownie platter up tonight on Technorati, with Krugman sitting at #1, #3, and #4. No word on what the brownies have in them...................

Krugman's has tasked the bats with sniffing out Michael Brown (Former FEMA) likes (aka brownies) who got their job via "political loyalty and personal connections". He also used the Jack Abramoff example but does not call Abromoff a "muffin" along the cake like theme he had going, go figure..............................

Here is Krugman's brownie game objective:

The goal isn't to find important political players who were chummy with Mr. Abramoff - that's too easy. Instead, you have to find people linked by employment. One degree of Jack Abramoff is someone who actually worked for the lobbyist. Two degrees is a powerful Washington figure who hired someone who formerly worked for Mr. Abramoff, or who had one of his own former employees go to work for Mr. Abramoff.

O.K., enough joking. The point of my games - which are actually research programs for enterprising journalists - is that all the scandals now surfacing are linked. Something is rotten in the state of the U.S. government. And the lesson of Hurricane Katrina is that a culture of cronyism and corruption can have lethal consequences.

O.K. so the Emperor of the Moonbats has sent them forward to find more brownies and muffins and the moonbats are flying the frenzied moonbat flight dance. They are out to find the cronies, who knows they might even come back with a Downing Street Memo "God forbid". His tinfoil moonbat dance has the following bad logic:

One degree of Jack Abramoff is someone who actually worked for the lobbyist. Two degrees is a powerful Washington figure who hired someone who formerly worked for Mr. Abramoff, or who had one of his own former employees go to work for Mr. Abramoff.

Krugman is eating brownies under the shade of a tree that does not belong to Bush, but no matter, the Tin Foil Hat Professor does not care about facts nor do the dancing bats. This is going to be very entertaining and humorous to see what the bats report out to the Moonbat Emperor...............................

Senator Talent Meeting With Carpenters Union

The Post is reporting that Missouri Senator Talent (R) and Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder (R) are meeting with leaders from the local Carpenters Union. Jo Mannies of the Post is reporting on her blog that the talk centers around Talent & Kinder's support for the Union and being against any change in making the state a "right to work" state.

Talent & Carpenters Union

I'm not a big supporter of organized labor for countless reasons, but as Mannies points out the Carpenters Union has a history of being pretty independent and have supported Republican candidates in the past. A majority of the union members are probably left of center only on the issue of organized labor, and tend to be much more right of center on other issues. People building my home I can sort of see being unionized as opposed to say grocery store checkers or the folks selling us those $6 beers at the Rams and Cardinal games.

This could be a coup for Talent getting the most moderate of Union in his corner who also share most of the same views on "value" issues as the Republicans. I don't see how it really could hurt Talent and could only help if he brought the most moderate union into his camp. If he does not get their official endorsement, he will still get plenty of their votes when they go to the polls.

I'll reserve my final opinion until we know exactly what the meeting was about, the outcome, and what that might mean from an endorsement perspective and from a policy perspective. Regardless, this could be the start of a strange and very new political partnership when it comes to some unions.....................................

Trev Albert Fired By ESPN - Unoffical Replacement Picks

The hype teams from this weekend that will fall hard and fast:

- Penn State: played no one to get to 3-0. when they get into the thick of even a down big 10 schedule, look for a pop-a-roo soon and often.

- Michigan State: looking at the schedule I'll take Michigan and Ohio State over Michigan State in the next two.

- Nebraska: gets taken apart by Iowa State in Lincoln by at least 14 points. The big 12 is "VERY" weak this year and especially the northern division sucks. At least five total loses for the Trev Albert "Big Red" this year.

The most likely game that most will bite on for an upset next week: USF @ Miami

Not me, close in the the first half, then Miami pulls away and then USF makes it interesting at the end.........................................But Miami wins

Here is my upset picks for week 5:

- Florida: look for the start of a "big" road problem for Florida to start at Alabama. I think Bama will punch the Gators in the mouth, draw blood at home in a old fashion Bama physical whipping that will work and sends the Gators on a spin for the rest of their away games. Looks like a 7-4 season to me and a Citrus Bowl spelled without UT. But you do need FU to spell Fruit.....................

- Missouri beats Texas @ home: 31-28......Brad Smith-Brad Smith-Brad Smith................And "Very Bad" QB play by Texas

Hedge Upset Pick But No:

- USC @ ASU: close to an upset but no cigar: Arizona State damn close with 5 minutes to go with a lead, but then they......................get Bushed. This one was close to an upset pick, if ASU plays like they did against LSU they could beat USC. This is the best game on the weekly schedule......................

Update

See the "Carnival of College Football Picks" for this week

Dem Anti War Protesters Are Out There Brother.....

Just one look, that's all it took, yes just one look, that's all it took.........................................

Take a look why the ultra-left democrats will keep the dems out of power for a very long time:

Malkin

Medienkritik

Even the Kos kids think it was an colossal failure:

Kos Kids

Well when you have a socialist-communist-anarchist-pro suicide bomber-America sucks message, are you really surprised that your message does not resonate with the majority? Just how do you define these values from these people????? How about "sad" and "sick"................

This is a very bad platform that the dems are being dished to work with for 2006, but hey, they are their people. Can't wait to see how this platform is embraced in Missouri...................................

In Times With No Law Second Amendment Secures All Other Rights

By way of Instapundit, Blogs of War is reporting with pictures that the looters in Houston are trying to start early but thanks to the Second Amendment and our right to bear arms, I don't think things will slip into a New Orleans type of riot:

2nd Amendment @ Work

Sounds like Houston's law enforcement is doing a good job that is more in step with the job Mississippi law enforcements did verses the job done by New Orleans. More looters will probably meet their fate this evening in Houston via citizens defending their property than from hurricane related dangers.

Funny, but when all other rights have broken down and there is no law for a period of time like we are seeing with these hurricanes, the Second Amendment allow every American the ability to recapture every single right that was temporarily lost, and it would not happen with out the Second Amendment. I think our consitutional right to bear arms will be part of the political debate in 2006, and after Katrina & Rita it should be........................................

Minnesota Dem Officials Want Department of Peace

Minnesota’s Democratic Party has endorsed a plan to create a federal Department of Peace and Nonviolence, and to establish a cabinet-level secretary to oversee it. Minnesota Democratic Senator Mark Dayton introduced the bill:

Peace Department

Aside from the support from the Minnesota Democratic Party and Dayton, Betty McCollum, Martin Sabo & Jim Oberstar, all Minnesota D-Reps, also strongly support the bill:

"It sends the right message," said Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minn., who has co-sponsored the bill along with Minnesota Democratic Reps. Martin Sabo and Jim Oberstar. "It's about promoting justice, expanding human rights and preventing conflict."

All the support for the Department of Peace from the Minnesota politicians has Rep Dennis Kucinich D-Ohio singing the praise of the State of Minnesota:

"It underscores Minnesota's forward-looking approach to government," Kucinich said. "That's what Minnesota is about. It's the one state where new ideas are welcomed."

I’m sure the guys at Powerline are going to have a few things to say about the Minnesota elected Washington contingency, and their desire to form a Peace & Nonviolent federal department…………………

The Peace Department………..Cindy Sheehan must have arrived in Washington and I’m wondering if she got a lift from the Minnesota Democratic politicians somewhere along the way……………….

Does Houston Need To Be Evacuated?

As I have been watching the traffic gridlock unfold in Houston, I’ve begun to ask the obvious, why are they evacuating Houston? Do two million people really need to leave Houston? It does not seem to make sense to me based on how far in land Houston is and the history of hurricanes not having significant impact on the Houston area:

NOAA

The coastal areas of Texas should be evacuated of course but evacuating Houston which is 50 miles north of Galveston never made sense to me. All the coastal towns around Houston and on the southern side of the bay make sense to evacuate, but the area that the evacuation calls for is not that big (see Mandatory Evacuation under maps):

Evacuation Map

So why has what looks like an entire city evacuated? This hurricane and what is happening in Houston looks more and more like Hurricane Hype and Hysteria to me. If the citizens had a sound structure, did not live in a flood prone area, and did not live in one of the “mandatory” evacuation areas, would have they been better served to prepare their supplies and stay put? Was staying communicated as a “reasonable” option for those in the safest sections of Houston?

I could be wrong but I think the large scale evacuation of Houston and whether it should have happened is going to be a question the people of Houston are going to want answers to. Did they receive the right information about staying in Houston so that they could make the right decision or did they get caught up in a herd mentality that wasn’t really the right course of action for them? We shall see………………………….

St. Louis Paper Launches Blog Based Feedback Section

I'm a harsh critic of the St. Louis Post Dispatch when it comes to their politically liberal agenda, and rightfully so. No one should want a political hack home town newspaper. However I have to say that the Post has made a significant upgrade to their online edition with a decent "blog" format. Take a look at the first step that every paper should be taking if they want to be in-touch with the New Media movement:

Post Adds Blog Section

The St. Louis Post Dispatch has done a really good job in their first "interactive" step focused on getting a pulse of what their online readers are thinking and writing about. They have taken a first step to become interactive and allow their readers and customers to provide feedback without filters and that is a "huge" step I think. I'd give the Post an "A" on their first step roll-out. To maintain an "A", they need to open up the blog comment lines to "all" articles and "editorials". Then they need to allow Bloggers to write articles and posts them as fresh offerings at some point as well. As of now on the first tier roll-out they have selected a pretty safe and moderate group of reporters, stories, and columnists for the test. That is a good strategy and I would have done the exact same thing. However, every article and offering should have a blog comment section before we are done with this overhaul.

Lee Publishing has done a much better job than I could have imagined when they purchased the Post. I thought it would be years before we saw the ultra-left leaning paper start making even slight moves to the middle and a moderate - relevant voice. Enhancements like this are a very pleasant surprise. Don't get me wrong, the Editorial section and political coverage is still very favorable towards a liberal agenda, but things are beginning to change slightly. Adding an interactive "blog" section and then enhancing it to all the online offerings would be a huge development.

You should send your paper a link to the St. Louis Post Dispatch "blog" section and tell them that you want the same type of product in your online paper, if you don't already have it. Again, good job Lee Publishing and St. Louis Post Dispatch, it is a very encouraging enhancement..............................................

Schumer's DSCC Commits Felony - Get Soros Money

Charles Schumer (D) N.Y. Senator and chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, has a couple of staff members on the DSCC who just committed a felony by pulling an unauthorized credit report on Lt. Governor of Maryland Michael Steele. Steele is considering running for the Senate in Maryland, so Schumer and his felons were doing a little "research" to get ready for DNC politics:

Schumer Staff Felonies

I'm not surprised by Schumer's team doing something like this. The Democratic party fell way below the mud-line last year in the 2004 election with a major "fraud" and illegal campaign strategy after the party was purchased by MoveOn and George Soros. Speaking of Soros, if there is smoke and fire like this story proves it's not strange to learn that Soros just packed the DSCC coffers in a recent fund raiser:

Soros Funds To DSCC

Per The Hill, Soros gathered a group of 60 friends last week in his home and they gave Schumer and the DSCC $250,000. No word whether committing additional felonies are a required political strategy for the DSCC to continue the liberal cash flow.............................................

MoveOn said they bought the DNC and the Democratic Party, and that the were calling the shots from now on because it was their party. Their party just committed a felony under DNC campaign strategies they were carrying out. Get ready for some serious fraud and campaign crime in 2006 if the opening act by the Democrats is a true forbearer of their strategies.............................

Update

The Washington Times has a report up on the Schumer – DSCC matter:

Wash Times

The Republican Senatorial Committee attorneys have sent a letter to the DSCC demanding to know if other Republican candidates have had their credit reports illegally accessed by the DSCC. Per the DSCC attorney, no:

Marc E. Elias, an attorney for the Democratic committee, responded yesterday with a letter stating the staffers accessed only Mr. Steele's report.

The DSCC is attempting to spin the crime as a lack of judgement by two junior staffers but the two who commited the felony could hardly be considered junior staffers:

staffers have been identified as Katie Barge, the committee's research director, and her deputy, Lauren Weiner. Employees in such jobs would be considered senior staffers and managers, said state Republicans and National Republican Senatorial Committee staffers.

Ms. Barge has an interesting background:

Miss Barge previously worked as a researcher for presidential candidate Sen. John Edwards, North Carolina Democrat, and as a research director for Media Matters for America, a Web-based enterprise founded to combat the influence of conservative news commentators.

I won’t be supprised if other unlawful actions have been taken by these two staffers and others at Schumer’s DSCC………………………

New York Times Fires 500 To Remain A Liberal Biased Source

Is anyone really surprised the New York Times is fading way? Not me, when you publish a vile political agenda in an environment that demands "truth without agenda", you will lose as a news organization:

No Agenda Liberal Press - Thank You

If you are not capable of reporting "fair & balanced" and giving all sides of the story without political bias, then you fire lots of people and will do so again shortly because your product is not selling and no one values it. Watch out remaining NYT staff, there are more cuts to come, so that the management can remain a liberal biased newspaper. How do you feel about that?

Bye, Old Grey Lady......................................................................................................

New York Times Fires 500 - Anti Union - Editorial Coming?

Is anyone really surprised the New York Times is fading way? Not me, when you publish a vile political agenda in an environment that demands "truth without agenda", you will lose as a news organization and fade away:

New York Times Fires 500

If you are not capable of reporting "fair & balanced" and giving all sides of the story without political bias, then you fire lots of people ( who have no political bias who just do their job ) and will do so again shortly because your product is not selling and no one values it.

Bye, Old Grey Lady..........................

Trev Albert Replacement Predicts Ohio State vs. Iowa

As Trev Alberts unofficial replacement here is my first game to offer up: Iowa @ Ohio State

Yes it is a big ten game which so far looks like the second weakest major conference behind the Big 12, but it is a nasty old fashion big 10 game. Iowa beat Ohio State 33-7 last year @ Iowa. The "Buck-Nuts" will be at a breaking point for Hawkeye blood. Revenge as a motivator and factor in the outcomes of anything is only as good as those who are being motivated, and their abilities to come through and measure that motivation.

This is a game of two teams who "CRAVE BALANCE". It's a psychological extension of both coaches and they count the run vs. pass count and do not deviate from the plan, almost never. That drives a fan who sees a play action pass on a scheduled run play as a winner or a option pass on a run play as obvious. That's not how these coaches work so get use to it. They are both "very" good coaches but they have a plan and they follow it. There is no gambler blood in either. They measure the grass on the field to make sure it fits the plan. Control, control, control.....................

This will be a "traditional" hard fought Big Ten game that will be defined by who has the best execution and the least mistakes and who is in control with the right emotional spark. I think both of these teams are pretty evenly matched. Top to bottom the starters from Iowa would start for Ohio State and vise versa. That I think is how you decide who has the edge. On talent I think both of these teams are pretty much even-steven.

The key I think will be measured emotion. Tressel is the current "professor coach" and is as unemotional as they come and is completely business like. He wears a sleeveless sweater and a tie for god sakes. So how does the Professor's demeanor and the loss last year congeal? That's the key............If Tressel gets the Buck-Nuts fired up like he is not, but in control like he is, then I think they win. If he does not maximize the slim emotional margin that could sway this game, then I think the Buck-Nuts lose. He has the talent to leverage emotion and make it work for him, the question is will he?

I say the Buck-Nuts will come out a "bit" over emotional on kicking Hawkeye ass, and that will not serve them well in the first quarter but they will "Tressel It Up" and get down to business. Unless the emotional mistakes takes over I say the Buck-Nuts win @ home over the Hawkeye's by 3 points. Could be a late field goal for the win or a late field goal miss for the loss. It should be a great game in the "why we all love college football" book. Time for the Big Ten to show what they got................

Final prediction: Ohio State Buck-Nuts 31 & Hawkeye's 28

Trev Albert Unofficial Replacement Named - Me

To see the picks and results of why I know College Football best go to 10/01/05 Picks & Results The results are very good. Not Trev like at all because I got them right..............


I've decided that I'm going to become the unofficial Trev Albert replacement for College Football this year. My first goal is to provide some insight and opinion that is not biased and completely useless analysis like old Trev offered up. I love College Football and I think this years race will be one of the best we have ever had. It's a good thing that we don't have to listen to a hack like Albert while enjoying this wonderful season.

If your interested come back often and see if I'm a good unofficial Trev Albert replacement or not...............................

Here was my original post on the Trev Albert firing by ESPN:

Trev Albert Fired

New York Times Pay For View Narcissistic Columists

The New York Times has launched their pay for view online service for their vastly overrated columnists. It's called "times select" and it cost $7.95 per week:

times select

As Greg Mitchell's piece in E&P shows, its more of the same lefty agenda only now you have to pay for it, not that it was advertised to be anything other than that:

Then I found that Krugman compared black and white reactions to the New Orleans disaster, wondered how long it would have taken for help to reach Palm Beach, and concluded at the end: "I'd like to believe that Katrina will change everything - that we'll all now realize how important it is to have a government committed to helping those in need, whatever the color of their skin. But I wouldn't bet on it."

Reading the entire Herbert column, I understood the "Good Grief" headline, since the first sentence harkens back to the "Peanuts" comic strip: "The president is Lucy, and he's holding a football. We're Charlie Brown."

No one center to right of center reads the NYT for value or information, they read it to see how ridiculous the ultra left MSM has become. The NYT and their columnists are an island for the ultra left to gather on and proclaim their agenda and copy it out via the MSM in every liberal newspaper and TV network in America. It's an agenda newspaper and a majority I say will not pay to read agenda. I give it 25-1 odds of making it and remaining "pay for view" 6 months from now.

That said I think Peanuts is the right cartoon for Herbert's analogy, but he got the wrong character and story. Here is how I see it: the cartoon character is Linus and he represents Herbert and the rest of the NYT staff. The blanket they carry is a pacifier to comfort their deeply narcissistic ideologies that a majority of Americans see as extremely liberal and extremely out of their own mainstream views and beliefs, quite simply narcissistic ramblings in print.

I would not give them a penny for their thoughts let alone $7.95 monthly. Take care Linus and enjoy that "bent" world you live in and write about.....................

Nagin Says Hurry Back And Be Endangered Again

When your responsible along with your equally incompetent governor for the most serious issues associated with hurricane Katrina by not following your own plan of getting people out of New Orleans when you could have, why would you be in such a hurry to bring them back sooner than they should return, to an equally dangerous situation:

Hurry Back To Danger

Mayor Nagin, have you not mislead and endangered the people of New Orleans enough? Why would you ask them to come back home before it's safe?

Just another example of poor leadership and the reason this became the tragedy and burden that it now is.............................................

Consumers Doing More Store Labor To Purchase Goods

Our waste company "Midwest Waste" gave out new recycling bins the other day. We now have two. The blue one is for "paper" products and the "green" one is for "plastics & aluminum". The city and the waste company seem to be following the trend of most retail stores where they get the customers to do a portion of their labor function like checking yourself out, only here its sorting your recyclables by category instead of lumping them together.

Per the Ballwin City website, here is the reason and benefit for citizens sorting the recyclables instead of the waste company:

Recycling Bins

summary:

Through single stream recycling, your recyclables will be picked up in a regular trash truck. However, this truck will only collect recyclables. Trash and yard waste will NEVER be mixed in with the recyclables. This new process allows us to compact this material, without separation. This means you can continue to package your material all in one bin, without having to separate it. Best of all this expanded service is provided without an increase in current rates.

We use to be able to put both paper, plastics, and cans in one single container so the "without separation" benefit cited above is false. They are asking us to do more of their work. The list of expanded items accepted is minimum from what has always been accepted, so the "expanded service........without an increase in current rates", is a big stretch. The increased items being accepted vs. the free labor they are getting is not an even off-set or a gain for the tax payers.

Don't get me wrong, it's not a huge deal or a large amount of work, and I'm very supportive of recycling. But that does not change the fact that the city & waste company are asking customers to do more and more of their job just like lots of retail stores.

Almost every grocery store has the "self check-out" areas where you scan, pay, and bag your own groceries. It works ok and is quicker than the attendant lanes if you have only a couple items, they all have a good bar code, and you are paying with a debit card. If the check out involves items that need to be weighed, are odd shaped or heavy, have a bad bar code, or you want to pay with cash forget it. The worst is if you are buying a product that requires a certain age requirement, i.e.. "beer", you might grow cobwebs before the checkout assistance comes and clears you to continue.

Same deal at Home Depot or Lowes and their self check-out stations. A couple small items with good bar codes and debit card, usually works fine. Anything outside those parameters and you could be in for an adventure.

Retailers save lots of money on reduced labor cost from self checkout. I don't see the pricing coming down or the service going up, so I have to believe that the savings is going to the companies bottom line. They are pushing the self check-out as well. Last weekend at Home Depot they had two cashier assist lines open and the balance was six self checkout. NCR one of the primary providers of scanners to retailers is pushing the product as a bottom line enhancer as well, and I'm sure it adds a healthy percentage to the bottom line:

NCR

Per NCR:

Improve the Shopping Experience
Customers demand convenience and want to get in and out of the store quickly. NCR FastLane delivers by speeding up the check-out process. Shorter queues, greater privacy, greater control and more choice make for happier customers and, ultimately, loyal customers. Retailers report up to a 40% reduction in average queue time and throughput gains of up to 20%.

Noticeably missing is a customer satisfaction rating showing high marks for the process which I doubt seriously is what polling shows. If it did, it would be on the NCR website summary..........................

Maximize Labor Resources
Gaining operational efficiency, managing front-end labor costs, and optimizing throughput and customer service levels are primary concerns facing retailers today. NCR FastLane enables retailers to better meet customer service needs throughout the store by redeploying labor from the front-end to other areas within the retail environment.

That's the issue, I see zero increased service throughout the rest of the store. It's the same or worse. If they moved five cashiers out and deployed them to help with the selection of merchandise and Q&A then maybe I'd be higher on the self check-out even though I find it full of bugs and potential delays from my own experience.

I'm pretty progressive from a new and quicker way of doing things especially from a retail perspective. I have not been in a bank for years, love paying at the pump instead of going into the gas station, buy lots of stuff over the web and have it shipped, and use the web or phone-VRU for almost all business transactions. That said, the retail self check-out process needs work and I need to see value added benefits before I embrace it..........................................

Senior Gambling Problem Growing

Do seniors have a gambling problem? This report says yes:

Senior Gambling Problem?

What's not debatable is how devastating such a compulsion can be. Retirees on fixed incomes have far fewer options to replace the money they lose gambling.

"They can't recoup," said Don Hulen, executive director of the Arizona Council on Compulsive Gambling and himself a former gambler. While some can return to work, few can replace sums accumulated over a lifetime. "Sometimes they call our hotline after they've taken the pills to commit suicide. One guy called who had a gun to his head."

Not a pretty picture, and it's sad that seniors looking for entertainment to take up empty time get trapped in the gambling game. It's a bad thing and I don't gamble because it's a loosing proposition, the House will win in the end. I work too hard to put my money on the table of chance. For all the tax revenue it brings, I say the gambling fall-out issues are far greater.

"The majority by far go there, have some fun and lose a few bucks," Hulen said. "Then they attack the cheap buffet." But the University of Pennsylvania study found that more than one in 10 seniors were "at risk" gamblers -- defined as those who wagered more than $100 in a single bet or more than they could afford to lose, or both.

I don't worry about those seniors who go to the casinos to get a good deal on the buffet and spend nothing or little on gambling, I've done that myself. That's my way of visiting a casino from my perspective and grounding. I do worry about those who spend money they don't have. That's a problem and something that should not be an additional burden on our seniors.

If you have a senior parent call them and talk about this. If you have an uncle or aunt or family friend that is a senior who has talked about going to the casinos, call them and talk about this. Give them your opinions and make sure they understand that they should set a viable limit to the gambling fun and then that's it. Better yet tell them to go to the buffet and then have a drink and not gamble at all. You owe them that if you care about them............................................

President Bush On Rebuilding After Katrina In Gulf Coast

The Presidents speech tonight I thought was exactly as it should have been. It had the right tone of balance between inspiration, resolve but most importantly that he is in control, he is responsible, and he will see to it that the region gets the help it needs to rebuild.

Bush

I think as bad as the coverage and blame that President got during the disaster, there is huge upside to do the right think in the Gulf region and to get the credit that will be deserved if that is what happens.


Per Fox:

"Tonight I also offer this pledge of the American people: Throughout the area hit by the hurricane, we will do what it takes … we will stay as long as it takes … to help citizens rebuild their communities and their lives," Bush said.

Bush made the commitment to the region that the people who faced the disaster needed to hear, that he will see to it that the region rebuilds and it will be a better place than before. That is a pretty powerful message and commitment, and if I lived in the region I would feel pretty good about that commitment.

In the speech, the president promised that federal funds will cover "the great majority of the costs" associated with rebuilding the Gulf Coast region, including roads, bridges, schools and water systems.

"The work that has begun in the Gulf Coast region will be one of the largest reconstruction efforts the world has ever seen. When that job is done, all Americans will have something to be very proud of — and all Americans are needed in this common effort," he said.

This mean a lot of money and even financially conservative people should agree that this is a time to spend federal money. It has to be guarded to ensure that the pork and fraud gang don't make a pork barrel mud hole out of the effort and the Inspector General is a great idea to watch out for fraud and pork. Just like in New York after 911, this is a time to spend large amounts of money to help cities and a region rebuild.

Polling shows Americans are willing to pay to rebuild New Orleans. According to a CBS-New York Times poll released Wednesday, 73 percent expect their taxes will increase as a result of Katrina, and more than half said they were willing to pay more taxes to help with Katrina recovery, job training and housing for victims.

Americans support this effort and the President locked into that support and assured the 73% that he will see it done. He put his personal stamp on the rebuilding as he should.

The President talked about attacking poverty and creating an environment that lifted the poor up and giving them a better way. I'm all for that, its good for those affected and for the tax base, aside from just making the country a better place to live. It can't be a disaster recovery welfare program without a plan to permanently move people out of poverty with skills and a means to stay out of poverty. It should require personal accountability as well as a sound path out to make a lasting impact on poor peoples lives and prospects.

The President took responsibility for the things that went wrong on a Federal level and tactfully circled the failures on the state and local levels. One of the most interesting things he said was that the military should have a stronger role and say in such disasters. I agree completely since the only thing that worked after Katrina is when the military took over and that's when we saw things improve dramatically. Without the military oversight and action things would not have improved one bit I'd say. Increased Military control in disaster recovery will probably be a bitter fight however. The silos that caused most of the problems in this disaster will rear their heads again on this idea just like they did after 911.

Governors of both parties were adamantly against any federal control of the National Guard or the Recovery after 911 when the whole Home Land Security department was being drafted up. The Feds wanted the military to take over and be in control during emergencies like Katrina, Governors said "Hell No" thats my turf. We saw what that brought the Gulf Coast, and it was not a good thing. I see military control as the only way to make things work in a disaster like Katrina. A federal disaster must prompt military control in disasters to make the recovery as effective as it can be. Local & State governments simply can't respond or command a relief effort like Katrina requires, we saw that in vivid detail. It's time for them to admit that and let the Military be in control minute one going forward. It will saves lives is say....................................

Iran Wants To Share Nuclear Technology

For anyone who thought that the Iranian nuclear issue is not serious and could be resolved via diplomatic channels, this news make such optimistic opinions look pretty unlikely:

Iran

Everyone hopes that Iran will see the writing on the wall and dismantle their nuclear weapons program because of diplomacy and international pressure. The Iranian hard line cleric controlled government however is showing no signs of complying.

Rhetoric like this latest statement that they are will to “share their nuclear technology with other Islamic countries”, makes the reality of a military response look more probable…………………………….

Katrina Is Not The Most Deadly Disaster

I've heard a lot of people in the past days state incorrectly that hurricane Katrina is the "Worst Disaster" of all times. It is a terrible disaster without a doubt and we will not know for weeks just how deadly but to state that it is the worst disaster of all times is simply wrong at this point:

Facts

At this point we are way below the hysterical estimate that Mayor Ray Nagin gave of 10,000 and the MSM made their driver in the story. Here are the facts:

707 Total Dead

-- Louisiana: 474

-- Mississippi: 218

-- Florida: 11

-- Alabama: 2

-- Georgia: 2

If your interested in the facts, here are in fact the worst disasters in American history:



1. Galveston (Texas) Hurricane, 1900, estimated 8,000 deaths

2. Great Okeechobee Hurricane in Florida, 1928, estimated 2,500-plus

3. Johnstown, Pa., Flood, 1889, estimated 2,200-plus

4. Louisiana Hurricane, 1893, 2,000-plus

5. South Carolina-Georgia Hurricane, 1893, 1,000-2,000

6. Great New England Hurricane, 1938, 720

7. San Francisco Earthquake, 1906, 700

8. Georgia-South Carolina Hurricane, 1881, 700

9. Tri-State Tornado in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana, 1925, 695

10. Labor Day Hurricane that hit the Florida Keys, 1935, 405

Katrina will probably come in at number 5 or 6 when all facts are know.................................

Biloxi & Gulfport Not Getting Help They Need After Hurricane

Watching Scarborough this evening, he is focused on the lack of FEMA relief for Mississippi compared to Louisiana. He is reporting that the region that was most affected by the hurricane (not the flooding) and who have huge issues facing them, are not getting the support they need.

Joe is angry with every level of government from what he is seeing on the ground:

We have a serious problem in the United States of America right now by federal bureaucrats and state bureaucrats and local bureaucrats and relief agency bureaucrats — yes, like the Red Cross. There is a level of arrogance. All of these groups are like rival gangs. I have seen it first-hand. Every politician on the ground has seen it first-hand. These people would rather have people in their areas suffer than not get the credit for helping them out.

The first few days of the hurricane I blogged on the Biloxi & Gulfport region related to help and information Biloxi Gulfport Coverage. I plan to go back to covering that region due to my connection to the area. Things got really bad in New Orleans but things are also bad in Biloxi & Gulfport and we need to get support to the people of Mississippi.

Joe is reporting that the best way to get aid into the region for fast and effective delivery to those who need it is to give to "faith based" organizations. The Blog For Katrina Relief bloggers who chose faith based organizations got it right, and I'd tell anyone still wanting to donate to give to one of the faith based organizations listed here:

donate

Mississippi did not have a social breakdown like New Orleans had and has not had the MSM focus because of that. However, they need help so please don't forget them and donate as you can.


Two excellent sources of information in the regions are the Sun Herald and WLOX 13

New York Times & WaPo Collusion Promotes Wide Agenda

Glenn Reynolds has a post up at Instapundit linking Mark Tapscott on the New York Times & WaPo collusion of driving certain stories:

Collusion

I thought the same think when I read it earlier today:

In any other industry, this would be called "collusion" and the Times and Post editorial pages would be in high dungeon, demanding anti-trust investigations by the Department of Justice. Go here for the full E & P report. Can you imagine what the outrage would be if it were Microsoft and Apple exchanging their product plans every day? Or GM and Ford? Hertz and Avis?

Tapscott sums it up spot on:

So the public should know if these two media giants have secretly divided up national advertising accounts? Agreed on who would cover which government agencies most aggressively? Coordinated recruiting operations? Exchanged lists of favored politicos and of those targeted for tough treatment?

After all, what's the difference between a "gentleman's agreement" to fix gasoline prices and two gentlemen in the media agreeing to tell each other their biggest trade secret, every day?

The only thing I'd add and an important thing to add is that every hack liberal newspaper in the country runs the same "target" articles that this collusion promotes. That makes it an even larger act of liberal news collusion......................................

Bush Tightens Borders With Wall of Shame

The liberal MSM has been raising concerns about the Mexican border ever since Hillary Clinton expressed her concerns and added it to her platform for her expected run in 2008. Today the President announced tightening a very porous section of the border in Southern California. So how did the AP react to this news they have been advocating, well with this:

AP

Here was the lead:

The Bush administration said Wednesday it will fortify the westernmost stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border, despite concerns the project will harm a refuge for endangered birds.

Now its a wall of shame:

The coastal commission feared that filling a half-mile long canyon known as "Smuggler's Gulch" with 2.1 million cubic yards of dirt would erode soil near a federally protected estuary that is a refuge for threatened and endangered birds. But Congress had thwarted court challenges by eliminating judicial review of the project on anything but constitutional grounds, Douglas said.

"It's a sad day and we'll have to live with this wall of shame for the rest of our lives," he said.

So do you want the smuggler's gulch shut down or don't you..............................................................................

Liberal 9th Circuit Rule Pledge Unconstitutional

Today in San Francisco, US District Judge Lawrence Karlton, ruled that the "Pledge of Allegiance" is unconstitutional, via Fox:

Ruling

Lots of people think this is a very good development for President Bush's selection of a Justice to replace Sandra Day O'Connor like Hugh Hewitt

I tend to agree with the assessment. Back in March of 2003 when the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals first ruled that the Pledge was unconstitutional, CNN had a post on the reaction by the President and the Senate here:

Reaction

President Bush called the decision "ridiculous," while the U.S. Senate voted 99-0 for a resolution expressing support for the pledge.

The public overwhelmingly supports the Pledge in the range of 75-25%. The ruling by the 9th Circuit based in San Francisco, I think will become the poster child for current times of an "Activist Judiciary" and will bode well for the President's next appointment. The 9th Circuit is an extension and creation of the ultra left, and a majority of voting Americans see that connection. They are going to be much more supportive of a right of center Justice verses demanding a left of center Justice after this ruling.

I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands: one Nation under God, indivisible, With Liberty and Justice for all.

When Is a Wall A Concrete Barrier?

Will there be the same outrage from the world community over “the wall” now that Egypt has a wall separating them from the Palestinians?

The Wall

What is the difference between the wall that Israel is building and the wall that Egypt as in place between Gaza and Egypt? And why do MSM organizations call the Egyptian walls “concrete barriers” and call the Israeli barrier a “wall”? Are they not the same thing?

True the Egyptian wall was up until a few days ago a wall between Egypt and Israeli controlled Gaza, but no longer. Now it’s a wall that separates Palestinians and Egyptians.

Hamas has taken the future of the “wall” into their own hands per the BBC:

Hamas militants have destroyed a section of a concrete barrier erected along the Gaza-Egypt border.

Militants from Hamas cleared an area before setting off explosives that blew away a section of the wall. Palestinian security officers present did nothing to prevent them.

I wonder if the wall will be rebuilt by the Egyptians or whether they will tear down the balance of the wall? If they rebuild the wall, how will those who denounce the Israeli wall react to the Egyptian wall?

Osam Bin Laden Sick Seeking Medial Treatment

The good thing about the remote and desolate area on the Afghanistan – Pakistan border region is that it’s an excellent place for a very wanted terrorist to hide, probably the best place in the world. The bad thing is that if you have serious health issues, there is not a great deal of health treatment options in the area to choose from:

Bin Laden Sick

Word today per the US Military that Osama bin Laden is in poor health and is seeking medical treatment:

"Osama bin Laden is trying to obtain medical attention," Colonel Don McGraw, director of operations at the Combined Forces Command in Kabul, told a group of British reporters, including one from al-Hayat, it said.

Here is to Osama dieing a slow and painful death in a dirty cold cave in the region that has given him shelter the past two four years. I could think of a couple more appropriate means for him to meet his end, but this one will do………………………..

Use of New Orleans Buses Could Have Prevented Disaster

The debate on whether New Orleans could have used their own bus resources in place and ready to go per their own plan to evacuate the Superdome is over, point-game-match. Per Bill Hobbs:

Bill Hobbs - Buses

Per Hobbs:

He counted 255 buses, the Times Picayune said that city had 254 working buses - the coincidence suggests the buses shown in the flooded parking lot in the AP aerial photo and the satellite photo are the city's working school buses.

254 buses, carrying 60 people per bus, could have evacuated 15,240 people per trip. How many trips to Baton Rouge - 75 miles away - might they have made if mobilized two days before Katrina hit? Two? That's 30,480 poor residents evacuated. Three? That's 45,720 people evacuated. The Superdome didn't need to be a shelter of "last resort" for tens of thousands of poor people to ride out Hurricane Katrina. It needed to be a central boarding station for a mass evacuation by bus before Katrina struck.

But the 254 working city school buses made zero trips.

Then in an Update even more buses were available when the city buses were included:

Preston has done most of the hard digging on the bus story and calculates that New Orleans had a total of 569 usable transit and school buses before Katrina hit. If they'd used 500 of them to transport people out before the storm hit, at a conservative 50 passengers per bus, they could have evacuated 25,000 people per trip.

That was the official plan. But the officials didn't implement the plan.

No the buses of New Orleans were not used and people died because of it. Lots went wrong on every level but I can't think of one single thing that went worse than not using the buses of New Orleans to move people out as their plan called for. If the people were moved out, all the horrible and bad things that happened, would not have happened.................................................................

Feds & State Can Work Together In New Orleans After All

Here is a beauty of a nasty - dirty story, centered around a self serving Louisiana congressman who served himself first and took resources away from the rescue of the people he serves in grave harms way:

ABC

William Jefferson D. LA, had the Louisiana national guard haul him to his house so he could get some of his things, got the truck stuck while at his house for over an hour which diverted a evacuation helicopter to his house to try and pick him up, he refused wasting lots of time, and then a second national guard truck had to be deployed to get them out.

Jefferson took two heavy duty rescue trucks and for awhile a rescue helicopter away from rescuing people in danger of drowning or who did drown, to get the following personal belongings: Laptop computer, three suitcases, and a box the size of a refrigerator....................................

Here is what the Louisiana National Guard is saying:

Schneider said he could not comment on whether the excursion was appropriate. "We're in no position to comment on an order given to a soldier. You're not going to get a statement from the Louisiana National Guard saying whether it was right or wrong. That was the mission we were assigned."

Jefferson had major issues prior to commandeering the Louisiana National Guard for his personal purposes, and that laptop is looking very suspicious:

In an unrelated matter, authorities have recently searched Jefferson's property as part of a federal investigation into the finances of a high-tech firm. Last month FBI officials raided Jefferson's house as well as his home in Washington, D.C., his car and his accountant's house.

Last week, Jefferson set up a special trust fund for contributions to his legal defense in light of the FBI investigation. A senior federal law enforcement source tells ABC News that investigators are interested in learning if Jefferson moved any materials relevant to the investigation. Jefferson says he did not.

Here is a case where the Federal & State Government of Louisiana had no problem working together related to hurricane Katrina, but is without a doubt a very poor example of how such cooperation should be used and a very inappropriate purpose for such cooperation................................

Less Red Tape But Need To Safeguard Against Fraud

Eliminating red tape and delays in the relief effort to help those affected by hurricane Katrina is a good thing and what absolutely should be done. Unnecessary red tape further impacts the misery of the victims and can literally kill at its worst. However, there has to be safeguards in place to prevent a complete free for all and dirty deals that only take money away from those who need it:

Aid Safeguards

Per the AP:

"It is entirely appropriate that the money go out just as quickly as possible to people whom we think need it, and to worthy contractors on a competitive basis," said former Homeland Security inspector general Clark Kent Ervin. "But in the rush to do it, there is real potential for waste and certainly for fraud as well."

Indeed there is huge potential for waste and fraud see Miami and those getting money when the hurricane did not even affect the Dade Country area back in 2004 after Frances: Frances Fraud

Having an audit process that does not harm those who need the help while guarding against fraud is critical:

The Homeland Security investigators are part of a $15 million effort by the department's inspector general that Congress approved last week to keep an eye on Katrina relief spending.

I agree completely with FEMA spokesman James McIntyre on his statement here:

"You had 200,000 people who were displaced, possibly more," he said Monday. "We needed to get families into housing, as soon as possible, and off the floor of the stadium. "We needed the contracts to hit the ground running to get that process up and running."

That said there also needs to be a competent watch dog ensuring that money is spent as it should be…….

Who Will Recover The Dead In New Orleans?

In another breakdown between the local, state and federal agencies working on the recovery from Katrina, who is suppose to recover the dead and remove them?

Recovering The Dead

Blanco is angry and outraged again (must have been coached by CNN prior to the press conference), and FEMA is saying collecting bodies was never part of their task after the state asked to take that over last week:

"No one, even those at the highest level, seems to be able to break through the bureaucracy to get this important mission done," Blanco said. "The failure to execute a contract for the recovery of our citizens has hurt the speed of recovery efforts. I am angry and outraged."


However, Federal Emergency Management Agency spokesman David Passey said the state asked to take over body recovery last week. Passey said he did not understand the governor's remarks. "The collection of bodies is not normally a FEMA responsibility," he said.

So why is Blanco angry at the Feds if the state is suppose to be doing this task per their own request? Sign the contract and do the job Governor, good night…………….

The dead need to be collected as quickly as possible and with dignity, but this sounds like another blame game directed at the Feds from a state government that has not been capable of doing much of anything right. Even like here where they have asked for the task……………

Gas Crisis In Britain

I’ll admit that paying $2.80 per gallon at the pump for a gallon of gas is not a pleasant thing, but it could be much worse:

Petrol Crisis

There is a run on gas in Britain, with stations running out, gas protests planned, and sky high prices……..

Petrol stations across Britain ran out of fuel today as motorists ignored pleas for calm and filled their cars ahead of protests planned fuel protests tomorrow

The Chancellor responded to the growing unease by calling on the world's oil-producing nations to release more crude oil to soften petrol prices that have risen 20 per cent in recent months and threaten to rise again in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
The British government does not sound like it is entertaining lowering one of the worlds highest gas taxes, rather they are asking for increased supply from oil producing countries. The price of gas in Britain is made up of about 75% taxes while in the US the price is about 22% taxes.

Tax %

Today gas if you can get it in Britain is 1 pound per litter or $2 US per litter. There are basically four litters in a galloon so the cost of one galloon of gas stands at $8!!!!!!!! And they are lining up in mass to pump all they can at $8 a click per galloon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That less than rosy picture makes the $2.80 per galloon bearable. Things could have been much worse if Katrina would have done more damage to the oil and gas rigs in the Gulf of Mexico……………………………..

The Great Fence of Pakistan

The latest proposal to stop terrorists from moving back and forth across the Pakistani – Afghanistan border is a “fence”:

Fence

Per Musharraf & his Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri not just any fence but a Barbed-Wire Fence!!!:

On Friday, Musharraf told The Associated Press that his government has proposed building a barbed-wire fence along the border to help keep Islamic insurgents from crossing the area freely. The border itself is vast, running for more than 1,500 miles.

Kasuri did not specify the form a fence would take, such as barbed wire or solid material. The route the barrier would take has not been decided, he said. Kasuri said the aim would be to screen out warlords and narcotics trade as well as terrorists.

A barbed-wire fence maybe all well and good to keep cows and horses enclosed in a pasture or field, but forgive me if I’m a bit skeptical that it would do much about warlords, narcotic smugglers, and terrorists.

With just a pair of fence cutters the 1,500 mile barbed-wired fence would need daily patching in many, many spots I’d say. A complete waste of money that I’m sure America would be asked to pay. How's this for a novel idea, how about several thousand Pakistani troops on the border 24-7-365……………………………..

Brian Williams Replaces Dan Rather As New Hurricane Man

From the AP, the new Dan Rather of the MSM has arrived in the form of Brian Williams:

AP

Here is how the AP sees Sir Williams:

NBC's Brian Williams says the lasting legacy of Hurricane Katrina for journalists may be the end of an unusual four-year period of deference to people in power. The mute button seemingly in place since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks has been turned off. "By dint of the fact that our country was hit we've offered a preponderance of the benefit of the doubt over the past couple of years," the "Nightly News" anchorman said. "Perhaps we've taken something off our fastball and perhaps this is the story that brings a healthy amount of cynicism back to a news media known for it."

Well if he is serious and means that the one sided watch dog agenda will be gone from his and other MSM coverage and they will begin covering the stories fair & balanced, then I say good for you Brian I'll be your biggest fan. There has only been watch dog journalism applied to one party since President Bush's election, so a change would be welcomed.

I doubt however that this is anything less than Williams and NBC sharpening their focus on the Bush Administration while all the other key components of the story are given a free ride. Seems to me that Williams is following the path of a recently disgraced anchor man who left in shame:

Williams has had a hellish travelogue the past year, including Banda Aceh after the tsunami and a battleground in Mosul, Iraq, filled with the dead and dying. He never thought he'd see such suffering in his own country.

"I measure my words very carefully," he said. "I guard my opinions very carefully. To me, this was life and death

Not that Williams needs to produce a false report on the 2008 Democratic Presidential candidate's military record in the eleventh hour of the election and refuse to admit it was bogus. No we would settle for fair & balanced coverage instead of politically weighted agenda reporting.

Courage Brian Williams, Courage.................................................

Power Out In LA

Drudge has the lights up and is reporting that a large portion of LA lost power:

LA Looses Power

It’s probably an explainable utility breakdown, but with the recent Al Qaeda threat specifically naming LA, it does cause pause:

Al Qaeda's LA Threat

Let's hope it's simply a brown-out............................

Update:

Counterterrorism blog has a post up with an update per AP, MSNBC, and Fox:

Counterterrorism blog

LAPD is in full tactical alert; some areas are regaining power, LA International Airport had no power disruptions...................

Update II

Drudge is reporting that it's a self inflicted outage by the department of Water & Power, who snapped a line. That’s good news actually…………………but how does one line break put the entire city in the dark?

Update III

Now we know how it happened:

Red On Black

One line was not cut but rather workers hooked up the wrong lines to one another and sent a rush of power through a line that was not prepared to handle that much power and everything shorted out. Sort of like giveng someone a jump and putting red on black and black on red...............................

CNN Political Bias In Plain View

Michelle Malkin has a post up showing the MSM rush to blame Bush and it exposes the pathetic agenda of the MSM:

MSM Bias

In their rush to try and show a Bush-Cheney connect to hurricane relief contracts, they could not have gotten it more wrong:

But in their zeal to embarrass the Bush administration, CNN overlooks one very fat and inconvenient fact--and embarrasses only itself. The Shaw Group, a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate, is headed by Jim Bernhard, the current chairman of the Louisiana Democratic Party. Bernhard worked tirelessly for Democrat Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco's runoff campaign and served as co-chair of her transition team. Another Shaw executive was Blanco's campaign manager. Bernhard is back-scratching chums with Blanco, whom he has lent/offered the Shaw Group's corporate jets to on numerous occasions.

CNN, UPI, London Observer, Reuters, MSNBC, CBC, NYT, are all correct to focus on and look for political corruption regarding the contracts, but in a state like Louisiana they need to focus on the democratic party.

Oh that's right, they don't do those types of news stories do they? Zero credibility..............

Florida Officials Say States & Local Government Had No Plan

The tried and true government experts that know best about hurricanes, how to prepare, and what to do after them to protect people have spoken:

Florida Disaster Officials Speak On Katrina

They are saying the local and state agencies in Louisiana and Mississippi had no real plan and the ones they did have were worthless:

"They were completely unprepared -- as bad off as we were before Andrew," one Florida official said.

Mississippi was in the middle of rewriting its disaster plan when Katrina struck.

Search teams from Florida were rescuing Mississippi victims before law enforcement officers there were even aware of the magnitude of the disaster.

Louisiana also lacked an adequate plan to evacuate New Orleans, despite years of research that predicted a disaster equal to or worse than Katrina. Even after a disaster test run last year exposed weaknesses in evacuation and recovery, officials failed to come up with solutions. "They're where we were in 1992

I think Governor Jeb Bush sums it up best:

"If we weren't prepared, and we didn't do our part, no amount of work by FEMA could overcome the lack of preparation," he said. Natural Hazards Center director Kathleen Tierney agreed...................................

Of all those who have spoken about the hurricane and why things went so wrong, I'll give those who have lived hurricane disaster relief and know what it takes to respond to them the most credibility to speak on this matter....................

Loser Trev Albert Fired By ESPN

The "Carnival of College Football Predictions" for 10/8 is up

Here 10/8

I'm the unoffical ESPN replacement for that loser Trev Albert who got fired by ESPN and will be picking the biggest college games here each week......I can promise no Big Red - Big 12 Bias here but I will give them a fair shake...................

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Original Post On Trev Albert's Firing:

Trev Albert got fired from ESPN because he thought he had talent and we all know he has "ZERO" talent:

Zero Talent Trev

Trev Albert making demands is like some old hack washed-up third tier movie star making demands about the script. How ridiculous...........................

Trev Albert is a "No Talent" idiot and ESPN is much better without Albert. Trev who never got over getting his ASS KICKED by FSU in the National Championship game in 1993 and since then he has always been a "want to be champion" but losers are losers. Albert thought he was "ESPN Game Day Worthy", but he was not within a country mile. Good riddance, ESPN made the right call to get rid of the dead wood and a sorry ass loser like Trev Albert......

Update 9/16

I have no idea if this is really Trev Albert's site, or whether someone registered it as a joke, but there is a Trev Albert website now:

Trev's Site

I'm pretty sure its a joke because it has links and one takes you to ESPN. Can't imagine old Trev linking the company that fired him. The other links are to SI and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

But who knows, maybe it is his site. Hey, he was tired of playing second fiddle, so perhaps he is launching his own web based college football network to be a really ugly first fiddle. Based on the site, the quality will be as bad as his analysis on ESPN was.

The top banner line on the site is pretty funny. It states: I am not that dumb!!!!!!!!!

I don't know Trev, I think you probably are........................................................

It will be an improvement to watch ESPN game analysis tomorrow without hearing Albert's pontificating and his biased jabs at the teams he lost to years ago while a player at Nebraska. Per Albert's world, every game Nebraska lost while he was there was to a inferior opponent that got help from the officials to win a game that Nebraska clearly outplayed the other team and should have won. Should of could of........... Can you say self absorbed and overrating oneself?

If the lame website is his and does not pan out, perhaps Trev can join another Nebraska "Quitter" double quitter Crouch and cover Nebraska football for the local Omaha TV channel back at school

Covering Nebraska football is probably about the right speed for Trev Albert's ability. Crouch quit twice in one year, so if Albert follows the Nebraska tradition we have another one due before next year, this time........................................................................

Update 9/18

Is it a coincidence that we have had such a "Great" College Football start and no Trev Albert? Sure it is a coincidence but the "Great" games have been made even "Greater" without Trev pontificating all over the obvious and cooking up a bunch of false BS to feed his short sighted agenda.

God, ESPN Game Day is like 5000% better without Trev Albert. Now the post game is about the "Great Games" as it should be, not some ridiculous self focus on Trev's world on "day's gone by" and "should have been". Albert's failures deserves no such stage..................................................

Update:

See this weeks "Carnival of College Football Picks" here from Trev Albert's unoffical replacement............

Ohio State Looses & LSU Wins And We All Win

Hugh Hewitt lost some money on the Ohio vs. Texas game, but what a game! It was a beauty. I had no dog in that fight but I was rooting for LSU for all the obvious reasons and they won the second best game of the day.

Good for them and good for ASU, because ASU played to win as the should have and almost did, but LSU pulled it out! All in all a great day for the greatest sport of all "College Football"............

Go Tigers.................................You deserve some good times and you got it from a this really good win............................

College Football won today and brought this country a bit more together.......

Cell Phones Affect Drivers Just Like Alcohol

Have you ever noticed that drivers that weave, stop suddenly, or drive outside the normal flow of traffic almost always have a driver who is on a cell phone? Well aside from those who have been drinking and driving it's caused by a cell phone. A cell phone is actually a lot like alcohol when it come to driving I think. I observe the cell phone folks every day on my commute and its become kind of a game for me to validate my theory I know to be true, that being cell phone drivers are a big problem on all our roads and endanger all of us.

Join the investigation game, the next time you see someone veering out of the lane and veering inappropriately into another lane, or someone who is going slower than the natural flow of the traffic and backing things up and causing lane jumps, or stopping abruptly and causing near rear ending, see if the driver is on a cell phone. I say 8 out of 10 times they will be on their cell phone. However, don't get to focused on looking at them over looking at the road in front of you because that is as bad or worse then their lack of focus. Only look if its safe and clear ahead.

I support hands free cell phone laws while driving if not all out outlawing the use of cell phones while driving all together...........................

Mayor Nagin's Performance Per Cobb

Cobb has an interesting post up on Mayor Ray Nagin:

Cobb On Nagin

I agree with some of it, disagree with some of it, and don't know yet about other points raised. Cobb thinks Nagin did a better job than I think he has, but he does shed some light on things that I did not know and gives a fresh perspective on Nagin.

It's worth a read................................

You Can't Lead Disaster Recovery If You Have Not Led Disaster Recovery

Bobby Jindal Republican Congressman from Louisiana had a good article in the Journal on hurricane Katrina:

Jindal on Katrina

His opening statement is what I think the message and mission needs to be from the Administration, as well as all others who are truly interested in fixing the problem rather than rolling in the political mud:

Over the past few days, America has been both moved and disturbed by television footage of Hurricane Katrina's aftermath. But for those of us in Louisiana still struggling to cope, the troubling images are of opportunistic politicians playing the blame game while there is so much real work to do.

The theme of the article is to find a way to get rid of the "red tape" that hand-cuffed the disaster recovery efforts at all levels:

Rather than point fingers, we should be fixing the situation on the ground. And that will include taking steps to ensure that red tape doesn't stifle the continued security and rebuilding efforts. There have already been a number of instances in which an overly inhibitive bureaucracy prevented an appropriate response to the disaster.

Bigger was not better, we saw that last week. FEMA has to have a relationship with Homeland Defense, but Homeland needs to focus on prevention and FEMA needs to be independent and responsible for reacting to the disaster itself. The likely hood as it stands now is that we will have more hurricanes, floods, earthquakes and other natural disaster at a higher level than terrorist attacks. FEMA should be able to respond to both and has to be able to respond to both, but if they tilt one way or the other, I think they should tilt towards natural disasters.

What we need is a smaller independent organization, that has a highly experienced leadership dealing with natural disasters. The leaders have to be the best of the best disaster recovery personnel from the local & state ranks and the military ranks. Such a resume should be required from lower level management to the very top. In Washington, both Republican and Democrats like to have political insiders in control of these types of organization, but that's the wrong model. From the leaders on the ground right now in the Gulf Region, those who prove themselves the best, the performances that rise above all others, should be the new leaders of FEMA.

I hope that the debate will move from political got-ya to solutions. The democrats will continue to play the political angle we all know that because that is what politicians do. There will be no 911 unity on this one from the democrats or the MSM. However, when the political mileage has run low or out, for the sake of the next disaster victims, lets hope that everyone gets together and really fixes the problems that both democrats and republicans thought they fixed after 911. They did not fix it and its pretty much now or never to get it right. We have to fix the local, state and federal issues that broke down. The emotion will be strong from the American people that they we fix it and get it right, so the political highway for the blame game might have a much shorter life than some think.

If I was Bush I'd appoint Mr. Jindal to oversee the committee ( god doesn't everyone hate what that means regardless of political stripe ) and have him make FEMA independent, leaner and responsive, and full of qualified leaders and doers from top to bottom.

When you have a leak in your house you call a plumber. When you need legal representation you call someone who has litigated. When you need someone to respond and help in a natural disaster you get someone who has the best track record of responding to disasters and is qualified from being on the ground to being in the top executive chair.

Bush did the right thing removing Brown from the sight, next he should find the person on the ground to replace Brown in Washington and lots of other people in FEMA. New Orleans & Louisiana should begin the same process................

Racist Kanye West Booded Off Stage

Racist booed on NFL stage:

Booed Racist Kanye West

Good, and rightfully so..........................................

Death In Mississippi Same or Greater Than Louisiana Per Capita

Will ultimately about the same number of people have died in Mississippi per capita compared to New Orleans? Could be................

Affected population on the Mississippi Gulf Coast is about 185,000 people and 200 have been reported to have died. It's expected to double to around 400 when all deaths have been recorded. That's: 400/185,000 = .2%

The deaths in New Orleans is now being projected to be in the 1,000 to 2,000 range. If it comes in at the 1,000 death range that is: 1,000/500,000 = .2%.

If New Orleans is in the 2,000 range then it would be: 2,000/500,000 = .4%

Mississippi needs some attention and help with the tragedy they are dealing with. Remember these are the people that did not boil over into anarchy. They stayed calm and upheld the law of humanity in the face of the same tragedy. The human animals did not take over in Mississippi like they did in New Orleans. Regardless of what happened on the human covenant level the people in New Orleans need and should get your help, but also think about those in Mississippi and donate to their local charities. Real and credible local charities are much better than the big national charities.

From a per capita scale it is as devastating in Mississippi as New Orleans if not worse......

Bush Eats Babies Creates Hurricanes And Only The Left & MSM Believe It

How insane has the left scream and attack become against Bush? Well MoveOn says Bush is a baby eater, via Patrick Ruffini:

Eating Babies

Here is part of the Ruffini post on Byron York's article

Just then, a man walked up to Taylor and said, "If George Bush ate a baby, would you defend him?" "That's absurd," Taylor answered.
"Do you think the protesters would be complaining about Bush's reaction if we weren't in Iraq?" the man asked. "Yes," said Taylor. "Why?" "Because you hate him." "So?" the man said with a shrug and little laugh of acknowledgment. "Everything he does, for crying out loud," Taylor said.

"OK, I agree with that," the man said, laughing some more. The honesty disarmed Taylor. "Well, thank you," he said, "that's the first honest thing I've heard out here today." "Well, don't you think there's a reason we all hate him?" the man continued. "Yes," Taylor answered. "Because you are all pathological in your hatred of him."

"Of course," the man said, as a few more people began laughing. "And why is that?" "Because you're a bunch of loony liberals!" Taylor answered, as everyone cracked up.

It's not about the issues or truth with the loony left, it's about "hate" and "agenda"! They hate George Bush's values and those I have and those of everyone right of center as well as those moderately left of center. You know those dinosaur and prehistoric values like love of country, love of the traditional family, religious faith and conviction, personal accountability, capitalism - work hard to get ahead, and democracy vs. socialism. Their goal is to remove those values that have made us the greatest country in the world that everyone in the world including the Left want to live in, can't be that bad of a values base wouldn't you say? Those values do not fit into the plan of the socialist left and they hate them and will assail them and attack them, even when the platform they launch their attacks from is a deep and terrible tragedy like hurricane Kristina.


The left thinks they are making hay out of the hurricane disaster but I agree with Tony Snow when he says no, that's not the message that the American majority will ever follow again:

America Won't Follow That Message

I say ultimately they will loose lots more ground with their latest political attack. Sure, they got Michael Brown's head, even though the gross tragedy with Katrina lies at the local and state feet, Brown's head will prove to be a very hollow win when all is said and done. He did not do a good job I will agree, but the primary failure is at the local and state level and each day exposes that truth more clearly just like the draining of New Orleans reveals the truth and facts of the disaster more clearly.


The extremist left lives in a vile cesspool of hate and agenda and the MSM follows them like the rats followed the Piper. The Left beat their drum producing the rhythms of a radical and seducing sound that the MSM can not help but follow, but thankfully that's not the case for a strong majority of Americans. Per Gallup only 13% of American blame Bush, and the blame goes up from there:

Gallup

After Bush at 13%, the Federal Government is blamed at an 18% level, and then the Local & State Officials come in at 25%, then "No One" at the highest 38% (there is some astute wisdom in that 38% number). I say the American people get it spot on all said. Isn't it funny how even in an environment of possessed and crazed rants from the MSM and left, the American majority core disregards the false reporting and agenda driven vile and come to the right conclusion?

I trust the American people, always have and always will. Its an amazing country made up of amazing people. Those in the new media that think those who are not readers of the new media can't somehow make up their minds on the true facts are overplaying their importance. Americans know "BS" when they see it and they know they are seeing it hard and fast right now from the MSM and the Left. They are rejecting it hard, fast, and rightfully so.

Bush does not eat babies and he does not create hurricanes. Neither does Karl Rove or the right of center politicians or right of citizens as the left and MSM would have you believe. As the left chants that Bush eats babies and creates hurricanes and the MSM broadcasts that agenda, watch this "band of fools" walk further and further from credibility and viability in the American Mainstream..........................................................

Far Fewer Dead In New Orleans Than Projected?

Looks like the projected number of deaths in New Orleans may have been based on hysterical emotions and not sound logic:

New Orleans Deaths

"There's some encouragement in the initial sweeps. Some of the catastrophic deaths some people have predicted may not have occurred," Col. Terry Ebbert, director of Homeland Security for the city of New Orleans said at a news conference.

If the actual number of deaths is far lower than the 10,000 projected by Mayor Ray Nagin, then that is simply wonderful news. Let’s hope it is much lower than the projection.

Regardless of where you stand related to the coverage of this disaster and the blame game, an actual number of deaths that is hugely lower than Nagin’s estimate of 10,000 will be a blessing and a great thing in a story with lots of bad things………..