POST SCRIPTS

by Jack Lee

District Attorney Mike Ramsey is desperately trying to find a liver donor for a friend and one of his former deputy DA's, Sean Stinson. Sean is in dire need of a transplant and Mike Ramsey has been working tirelessly trying to locate a donor for his friend after Sean's liver was damaged by contaminated blood during a transfusion.

We should all be so lucky as to have a friend like Mike Ramsey, because he's done everything in his power to find a donor, even enlisting the volunteer help of some staff members to speak to families of recently deceased persons. It's an incredibly hard thing do, but it's then again it's also absolutely necessary to save a life.

This should be a wake up notice to all of us.

Get a donor card and attach it to your driver's license. You could save a life. It is the greatest gift you could give. So many people think about doing it, but they never get around to actually doing it! But, things happen, accidents happen all the time and it is a shame to waste what might have saved the life of another or added more quality to another person's life through a sight giving transplant, for example.

You can get a donor card at DMV, it's the right thing to do.

Sean is a long time reader at Post Scripts and we are pulling for him in every way we can. Say a prayer for Sean will you?

Posted by Post Scripts at 02:08 PM | Comments (1)

August 29, 2007

Bogus Healthcare Reports

by Tina Grazier

I’ve always thought John Stossel was an excellent reporter. His dispassionate style and his relentless pursuit of facts and context make his reporting both reliable and interesting. I trust him, something that’s quite rare these days.

Today his story, “Another Bogus Report Card for U.S. Medical Care” published at Real Clear Politics, reveals the flaws in a recent

doc_id=482678”>report released by the "Commonwealth Fund" and references an earlier article that notes similar problems in a seven year old study by the "World Health Organization."

The Commonwealth study asserts that the US system consistently underperforms when compared to Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand and Great Britain and claims the reason is inadequate access to government healthcare: "The U.S. is the only country in the study without universal health insurance coverage, partly accounting for its poor performance on access, equity, and health outcomes."

But Stossel wasn’t satisfied with this statement…or, perhaps I should say, he wasn’t taken in:

I see. America "underperforms" because we don't have enough government intervention.
But while the U.S. lost points for not having national health insurance, the authors added, "[I]f insured, patients in the U.S. have rapid access to specialized health care services." *** That's an understatement. Insured Americans have almost immediate access to cutting-edge procedures performed by some of the best-trained doctors. It's why our outcomes for such diseases as prostate and breast cancer are markedly better than in Canada's and Britain's socialized systems. The Commonwealth Fund doesn't mention that.

Stossel finds a number of other flaws in the left leaning Commonwealth report. No, he didn’t call the organization “left leaning”…I did, so whether you are right, left, or center politically, I urge you to read his articles.

Quality, choice and timely availability are important differences in the American healthcare system and we should fight to preserve those things as we work to discover the best ways to bring down costs. Solutions that our legislators come up with will have a profound effect on all Americans; it’s important we get it right. Adopting fixes based on mediocre systems with stories of long waiting lists, less innovation and sadly, some very bad outcomes would be highly undesirable. Try this:

Can we really say all people have adequate coverage in a universal system when that system causes waiting times that end in unnecessary pain, suffering and death? Surely, in this great nation, we can imagine and create something better.

Posted by Post Scripts at 11:42 PM | Comments (1)

Reapers Headed for Iraq

BALAD AIR BASE, Iraq — The airplane is the size of a jet fighter, powered by a turboprop engine, able to fly at 300 mph and reach 50,000 feet. It is outfitted with infrared, laser and radar targeting, and with a ton and a half of guided bombs and missiles.

The Reaper is loaded, but there is no one on board. Its pilot, as it bombs targets in Iraq, will sit at a video console 7,000 miles away in Nevada.

The arrival of these outsized U.S. “hunter-killer” drones, in aviation history’s first robot attack squadron, will be a watershed moment even in an Iraq that has seen too many innovative ways to hunt and kill.

That moment, one the Air Force will likely low-key, is expected “soon,” says the regional U.S. air commander. How soon? “We’re still working that,” Lt. Gen. Gary North said in an interview.

The Reaper’s first combat deployment is expected in Afghanistan, and senior Air Force officers estimate it will land in Iraq sometime between this fall and next spring. They look forward to it.

“With more Reapers, I could send manned airplanes home,” North said.

The Associated Press has learned that the Air Force is building a 400,000-square-foot expansion of the concrete ramp area now used for Predator drones here at Balad, the biggest U.S. air base in Iraq, 50 miles north of Baghdad. That new staging area could be turned over to Reapers.

Posted by Post Scripts at 05:17 PM | Comments (0)

Rebuttal to Jack on SB 924

Posted by Post Scripts at 11:32 AM | Comments (3)

Financial News, Home Sales and Stocks

by Jack Lee

Home owners awoke this morning to more disturbing news about the downturn in the housing market. Nationwide home prices fell 3.24% in July, the largest dip since 1989, hinting the worst is likely yet to come as we head into winter.

According to CNN, existing home sales fell yet again last month, making July the fifth straight month of such declines in the housing market. Total existing home sales slumped 0.2 percent to 5.75 million units, from 5.76 million in June. July's pace of sales was 9.0 percent below the 6.32 million-unit level in July 2006. While last month's pace was the slowest since November 2002, it still beat economists' average forecast of 5.7 million.

Inventory of homes for sale has continued to pile up, rising 5.1 percent at the end of June to 4.59 million available units. The situation in Chico is a reflection of the overall housing inventory and it's expected thast home prices here will soon take a tumble, it's a matter of the law of supply and demand, noted one local realtor.

Reno Gazzette: "The nationwide median price of an existing home has now fallen every month for a year, not seen in Realtor records in nearly 40 years.

That reflects the geographic magnitude of the housing slump, said Brian Kaiser, analyst at the Center for Regional Studies at the University of Nevada, Reno.

"It gives you a sense of how widespread this whole market correction has been," he said. "We're probably in for another year of declining prices and longer times on the market. This is probably going to stick around for a while."

Home prices in Reno slumped by 12.1% in the 2nd quarter of this year and still inventories remain high, another sign that Chico real estate may be in for a sudden price correction.

In other areas, stocks were down almost 160 points in afternoon trading, but began moving in a fairly tight range as sellers struggle to find a new reason to send stocks lower.

The Energy sector hit afternoon highs but was still down 1.1% and for a moment oil prices perked up by 1%, but had little effect on the overall energy market. The bulls are hoping the upcoming FOMC minutes will provide them with some encouraging news, but so far the news tends toward more consolidation.

AFTER HOURS NEWS: Dow closes down 260 pts. Merrill Lynch said that tighter credit markets will hurt the earnings of Citigroup (C 46.14 -1.65), Bear Stearns (BSC 108.42 -3.78), and Lehman Brothers (LEH 54.28 -3.47).
All three were downgraded to Neutral, leaving many to believe that more negative analyst commentary is forthcoming. Such concerns contributed to a 3.2% sell-off in Financials, which removed a significant source of leadership for the S&P 500 which saw last week's entire 2.3% advance erased in one day.

Posted by Post Scripts at 11:12 AM | Comments (0)

August 27, 2007

Unsung News from Iraq

Americans have a right to know.
by Tina Grazier

I found this bit of news on the political progress in Iraq and wanted to be sure you saw it too. Seems our media…the ones who report every congressman’s lament that the surge may be working but the politics is not…couldn’t find a bit a space to report this encouraging news:

Reuters: "Shiite, Sunni Arab and Kurdish leaders announced yesterday they reached consensus on several key measures seen as vital to fostering national reconciliation."

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced the deal standing with leaders of Iraq's major political groups — President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd; Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, a Sunni; Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi, a Shiite; and Masoud Barzani, president of semiautonomous Kurdistan.

The deal clears the way for some former members of Saddam Hussein's ruling Baath Party to serve again in government and the military. It also outlines a plan to grant provinces greater control over their affairs, and to release Sunni prisoners held without charge.

Read the full story Truth Blackout in Investors Business Daily.

It also warmed my heart to hear that PM Nouri al-Maliki told Hillary to mind her own village! *** Or, as Mrs. Obama suggested...if she can’t manage her own house…

Posted by Post Scripts at 11:35 PM | Comments (0)

Returning Vets Make Us Twice Proud

Posted by Tina Grazier

The following is a preview of a truly wonderful story from MSNBC about returning vets who are attending college:

Students like Nathaniel Donnelly, a former Marine who served in Iraq, insist they don’t flaunt their military service but are happy to talk about it in social settings or classrooms. Many transform their leadership training from the military to campus organizations. Gary Hirsch, a former Marine who graduated last spring with a top academic award, was involved in no fewer than nine different extracurricular groups.

“If I could have 50 percent of our student body be veterans, I would,” said Sandra Cook, executive director of enrollment services at San Diego State, which gives veterans special consideration in admissions. “Maybe they didn’t shine in high school, but they have that experience.”

Increasingly, veterans are looked to as classroom and campus leaders. Their respect for rules can rub off on students. And they can often make firsthand contributions to classroom discussions on topics that even professors can’t provide.

Veterans “offer a real rubber-meets-the-road approach that is unique in higher education,” said Jeffrey McIllwain, who teaches national security courses at San Diego State, and says veterans always stay on top of the voluminous readings he assigns. “Many professors have a lot of theory, and these students bring a wealth of experience to test that theory in really unique ways.”

Classroom discussions about, say, the surge in Iraq or the nature of the insurgency often bounce aimlessly around, McIllwain says. “Then you have a student come in and talk about how he was responsible for trying to co-opt a Sunni tribe to help the coalition,” he said. Donnelly recalls a class on nuclear weapons security where the professor grilled a student who had served in a counterintelligence unit working on that very issue. Hirsch, who served on President Bush’s Marine One helicopter crew, is often asked about the president.

Read the entire story, “Colleges eagerly welcome war veterans”

Posted by Post Scripts at 10:51 PM | Comments (0)

Anarchist & Anti-Authoritarians Unite

Minneapolis Star Tribune, by Randy Furst

A group of activists who describe themselves as "anarchists and anti-authoritarians" will hold a private strategy session over the Labor Day weekend to discuss plans to protest at the Republican National Convention to be held in St. Paul Sept. 1-4, 2008. ***** Bridges said the group favors "ending capitalism, imperialism, patriarchy and all other forms of hierarchy" to be replaced with "direct, participatory democracy."

If they were for real, and totally serious about their intentions, they'd be making plans to be in Denver at the Dems convention too, wouldn't they? This smells of other party antics. Either way we're bound to be treated to the usual from these clowns. It's gonna be a long and crazy year!

Posted by Post Scripts at 10:26 PM | Comments (0)

Fighting Crime, Training and Better Weapons

by Jack Lee

Police Officer Ken Lee was the first in his department to qualify for the newly implemented combat arms training in an urban environment. He will now be carrying a selective fire, modified M-16 combat rifle, in addition to his duty pistol and pepper spray. On board in his police cruiser is a 12 gauge short barrel riot type shotgun, more non-lethal chemical canisters and the latest long range, multi-shot Taser pistol. This arsenal gives police officers a variety of options to critical situations. This is absolutely needed for their protection and to safeguard the public's safety.

The use of non-lethal weapons has been growing in popularity and has had much success. Officer Lee stated he was recently able to "Taser" a knife wielding subject and end the standoff. A few decades ago this situation would have been limited to the use of lethal force, he added.

Ford Porter of the Chico Police Dept., advises their department also uses a variant of the M16 called the AR-15, which is a semi-automatice carbine in .223 cal. All officers carrying the AR-15 are required to qualify with them periodically.

Summary: Officer Lee has also been trained in hostage rescue. The team members are prepared to be first responders to a major criminal event that could be anything from a terrorist act to a deranged shooter. In fact he's already put that training to good use a few months ago when he interrupted a hostage taking event at an elementary school where an enraged person was holding a classroom hostage. That one ended peacefully and the offender was convicted on numerous felony counts, including the resisting arrest, use a weapon and attempted kidnapping. Officer Lee received a commendation. Lee, a veteran patrol officer, is formerly from Chico, now working in Stockton and has served on the CHP "10851" Task Force to recover stolen vehicles and has received several CHP commendations for his work in arresting vehicle thieves and recovering a large number of stolen cars. He is soon headed for more training at the CHP Academy in Sacramento for advanced Criminal Investigation as well as FTO school.

Posted by Post Scripts at 11:16 AM | Comments (0)

Shocking Discovery About VA Tech Killer

by Jack Lee

Investigators have discovered that mass murderer Seung Hui Cho was well known for severe psychiatric problems even while he was attending high school in Chantilly, Va. High School officials had devised an extensive plan to offer him assistance and Cho received the help and then graduated to continue his education at Virginia Tech. Unfortunately, not one person in the old school system warned his new school about their valid concerns. You know the rest of the story, it ended in a blood bath that claimed the lives of 33. Cho's rampage was a preventable crime just like 9/11 and hopefully we have learned from our mistakes so it will never happen again.

Posted by Post Scripts at 07:57 AM | Comments (0)

August 26, 2007

Anti-War Protests Begin

by Tina Grazier

Whether in anticipation of the Surge Report due out next month or just the peaceniks need for ritualistic activism, they’re organized, they’re on the move, and they’re coming to a major city near you. Their purpose is clear; they are determined to tear at American resolve and make the world believe that all Americans want us out of Iraq. Big money is behind the protests but they have been organized and designed to appear spontaneous...right down to the professionally designed signs. Don’t be fooled.

The following organizations, associated with George Soros, are among those behind the planned protests…an effort they have named "Americans Against Escalation in Iraq":

MoveOn.org *** Center for American Progress *** Center for American Progress Action Fund *** Media Matters *** Independent Media Institute *** Center for Investigative Reporting *** Center for Public Integrity *** TruthOut.org *** Independent Media Center

According to an
“American Thinker” article many of the protestors we will see on television and in newspapers have received special training…and they are being paid:

They are being paid $400 cash per week PLUS "free" housing PLUS "free" gasoline. For the past 3 months, they have been in the "professional demonstrator" training program that includes the following: "training in political messaging, earned media, legislative tracking, grassroots organizing, visibilities and other campaign tools."

Find detailed information about the organized protests HERE

A 2006 expose on George Soros can be found over at Accuracy in Media. A bit of information from the article by Cliff Kincaid, “The Hidden Soros Agenda: Drugs, Money, the Media, and Political Power,” reveals Soros duplicity of purpose with respect to war:

Soros claims that the Bush Administration's reaction to 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq caused him to spend millions of dollars through these "527" organizations to defeat Bush. However, Soros favored the Clinton Administration's preemptive attack on Yugoslavia, in the absence of any threat to the U.S. and without U.S. Congressional authorization.

"Americans Against Escalation in Iraq” is in reality a "multi-faceted, multi-million dollar effort," designed specifically to "target" more than 60 members of the American Congress who are blocking end-the-War-NOW legislation. They are essentially paid lobbyists. --
Iraq Anti-War Movement: A Pop Quiz for Americans by Kyle-Anne Shiver

Posted by Post Scripts at 11:21 PM | Comments (0)

#1 Reason For A Successful Marriage

Here it is again, another study confirms..."The key to happiness in marriage can pretty much be summed up like this: A husband says to his wife, "Yes, dear." (A lot.) Reuters reports that men may hold the power and wealth of the workplace, but women rule the home. That's the word from a team of researchers at Iowa State University, who have determined that women take the lead on solving the problems of the marriage and household--and men are basically happy to let them do that. "

Posted by Post Scripts at 09:29 AM | Comments (0)

August 25, 2007

Mainstream America Event at Durham Park

By Jack Lee

Sat. - Another Mainstream America event has come and gone as of 3 p.m. today. If you were not there, you missed a good one.

By 3:15 we said our good-byes to our VIP guest speaker, Lars Larson and his wife Tina. We wished them a safe trip back home to Portland. Then it was time to pack up and go home ourselves.

3:20 - most of the crowd had left as all booths started to come down. A few of us sat around and talked about the event and how it went. We generally agreed it was a resounding success for its intended purpose. The atmosphere was very friendly, even among the competing candidates and we had lots of food and drinks. The two VIP speakers were outstand, Darryl Borquist, a Naval Officer just back from Iraq with a wealth of information about the progress he has personally seen and then of course, our VIP talk show host, Lars Larsen. Lars was a newsman for about 25 years before he turned to talk radio and he's been red hot in the ratings ever since, moving up to be among the top in the nation.

Then there were the candidate's short 3 minutes speeches just before the main attractions. I think mine was the shortest, about 2:50 seconds. I had this pretty good speech ready to go. We had been working on it, timing it and doing a lot of tweaking with five of us, then I started to walk up the stairs to the stage and speak and I think... I can't do it... so in the 6 or 7 steps it took me to walk to the podium I changed my mind, thought of a new delivery and I just winged it. I had to appologize to my helpers who worked on the prepared speech. I think I probably sounded a little rough and I forgot to mention a couple of my key points, but it was real and it was me for whatever that's worth. But, in the future I'll try to stay more on our "planned" message so I can get all the points out that we need to get out!

This event was definitely fun and like I said, it was a lot of work too, but the pay off was in meeting so many really good people and exchanging ideas. That made the work well worth it, although my 14 year old grandson might disagree. He would rather have been playing on the computer...too bad, so sad.

Even Lars Larson said he had a really good time and I really think he did too! He and his wife said they have a really good impression of the people here in Chico and genuinely liked the community.

So much planning goes into these events that the average person wouldn't believe it. It takes a lot groups to make it work and they do it for nothing, because they genuinely believe in the cause. I like that part, people doing what they believe in and for no other reason. Wish more people were like that! And this year like most years past, it was the Republican ladies of Butte County who did the majority of the hard work and planning. So kudos to them!

Posted by Post Scripts at 05:41 PM | Comments (1)

DNC Disenfranchising Florida Democrats?

Apparently in Florida “friends don’t let friends” vote Democrat either!
by Tina Grazier

Florida is among several states that have moved the dates of their primaries up in order to attract the attention of presidential candidates and exert more influence in the election. This change is now at the center of a curious little scrap that's being played out between Florida’s party leadership and the Democratic National Committee.

According to DNC rules, states other than Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina cannot hold their 2008 primary contests before Feb. 5. Now that Florida’s primary is Scheduled for January 29th, the DNC has decided to punish Florida delegates saying Florida democrats didn’t do enough to stop the primary date change.

The harsh decision to strip Florida of all convention delegates is not being received well. Florida’s delegation is looking into the possibility of a voting rights investigation as well as a protest at the natioanal convention in Denver next summer.

Every (DNC) member voted against Florida except for the state's representative on the panel, Allan Katz. *** Refusing to seat the delegates would set a "terrible situation for Florida and a very bad situation for the Democratic Party," Katz said.

Jon Ausman, a DNC member from Florida, pleaded for a role in what could turn out to be a historic election, with the potential of the first woman, black or Hispanic nominee, even if the state were the "black sheep" of the primary season. *** "We're asking you for mercy, not judgment," he told the rules committee meeting in a hotel conference room.

Terrie Brady, a DNC member who helped present Florida's case, said the party's denial of delegates disenfranchises Florida voters. Rules committee members objected to the term, saying Florida's votes would be counted if they followed the rules. *** "I find your use of the word disenfranchisement to be an overstatement," said committee member David McDonald, who is from Washington state.

They say what comes around goes around. Is this somehow the "goes around" to the whole hanging chad nonsense? This is, after all, the party of fairness and rights...the party that cares and never makes judgments. The party of equal...everything! So common guys, can’t you all just get along?

Read the story Florida Dems Could Lose Say in 2008 Race by Nedra Pickler writing for Forbes in Washington.

Posted by Post Scripts at 03:06 PM | Comments (0)

August 24, 2007

Heritage Launches “Leadership for America” Campaign

by Tina Grazier

The latest issue of “Heritage” features an article that explains the foundation's vision and goals for America over the next ten years. Although described as ambitious the ideas presented are very much in line with what I would like to see happen in America...I hope you will agree.

The Vision:

An America where people, not governments, are empowered *** where hard work is rewarded, not ravaged by taxes *** where the most important institution is the family, and where religious freedom and traditional values are protected *** a strong America that guards against her enemies *** an America with secure borders, and citizens who are united.

This information validates the conservative position that universities tend to be liberal and normally this would make my day, but something else in the article grabbed my attention and really turned my crank. It was an off subject remark by Alan Dershowitz:

"At dinner tables we have tactical arguments. Is America more racist or more sexist?" Dershowitz said, referring to the fact that Obama is black and Clinton is a woman and his friends are fearful that American voters are not ready to elect either a minority or woman as president.

Mr. Dershowitz and his friends are talking about you and me, folks; they see Americans, at least those to the right and center, as racists and bigots. The remark is offensive, and an incredible insult to the American people, but a good indication that many in the field of higher education are themselves elitist bigots. The position does provide convenient cover should a republican win the White House, however, so if the election is close and democrats lose expect loud accusations of racism and bigotry.

A certain number of racists and bigots, like the poor, will always be with us. The implication that Americans are too discriminatory to elect minorities or women simply because of their gender or skin color is absurd. Americans will vote for the best, most qualified person to lead the nation.

Posted by Post Scripts at 09:55 PM | Comments (0)

Legalize Drugs?

"According to the local prosecutor, Rikard was convicted in 2004 of robbing a man who he had encountered in a bar of $10, and beating him to death with a tree branch. Philip Heithecker, Rikard's attorney, said in court Thursday his client was so high on drugs when he broke into the Oroville woman's home years earlier that he didn't even

remember committing the crime. The attorney said Rikard cried upon being told details of the brutal attack ..."

This and much, much more is what awaits us if we legalize drugs. Some people can't wait because they see legalized drugs as the solution to drug smuggling and the big money it brings in and it may be, but at what cost to society in other areas? Don't even tell me how wonderful life is in Amsterdam, I've been there, I've seen it and there are a lot of zombies walking thanks to all the available, cheap drugs.

There's always a price to pay for a vice....always. Drug abuse will never be solved no matter what we do. Nor will rape, child molesting and probably a few dozen other human abberations, because it is part of what makes us, us.

We can reduce criminal conduct and its impact, but wiping it out...nah, it just won't happen, not in our lifetimes anyway.

This not to say I wouldn't be willing to give legalizing drugs an opportunity.

I think we ought to take Senator Ted Kennedy's home state, Massachusetts, and let it be wide open for free drugs and lets monitor how it goes. Maybe we will learn something from this noble social experiment. This will take the profit out of drugs and that should reduce drug trafficking...I'm sure of that. However, there might be some drug exporting going and some drug induced crimes...but lets not worry about the small stuff, lets just see how the free drug state fairs and give them a chance. Then we will finally know if it works or not.

Posted by Post Scripts at 09:38 AM | Comments (0)

August 23, 2007

Hey Americans…Ya Savvy?

by Tina Grazier

The president of the United States of America clearly told us following September 11, 2001 that this war would take place on many fronts, some seen and some unseen. He also said it could take twenty years and would require patience and resolve. He said it would be difficult and he said we would pursue the terrorists relentlessly. He has kept his word…and political enemies and the media have acted as if he never said any of those things for the past six years. I expect that of them but what about you Mr. and Mrs. (or Ms) America…what exactly is your problem? How is it that you let yourself be duped and cajoled into distrust and enmity about your own president, especially in the face of such inhumane and horrific intent by our enemies? Are you really that stupid, dull or naive? It would appear so. Even more rediculous some of the more inept among us want to be the next POTUS!

One illustration:

msnbc is reporting on an AP story that reveals something shocking about the military “rules of engagement:”

Troops allowed to enter Pakistan without notice
New documents show U.S. permits pursuing terror suspects across border

Newly uncovered “rules of engagement” show the U.S. military gave elite units broad authority more than three years ago to pursue suspected terrorists into Pakistan, with no mention of telling the Pakistanis in advance.
Pakistan, a key U.S. partner in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks, has long viewed such incursions as a threat to its sovereignty. Islamabad protested loudly this month when Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama pledged to grant U.S. forces the authority to unilaterally penetrate Pakistan in the hunt for terrorist leaders.

Washington repeated assurances it would consult before any such incursions.

See, the way it works is this: the Commander-in-Chief has private talks with the leaders of other countries who are our allies. These are behind the scenes talks…talks in which they may make agreements that are better kept under wraps so as to not offend certain hostile factions; talks that are designed to further their agreed upon goals without making the natives restless or causing unnecessary upheaval. Talks that include things that are kept TOP SECRET so as not to alert the enemy…these are some of the unseen parts of the war.

Ya savvy?

Posted by Post Scripts at 11:52 PM | Comments (0)

"Bonjour, you cheese-eating surrender monkeys"

Matt Groening’s famous line will join the musings of other famous writers and humorists in the latest edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations. The phrase, as most no doubt know, was uttered by the Scottish caretaker Willie from the popular cartoon series, The Simpsons. Also included in the weighty tome are the following Groening gems:

“Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is never try.”...and...

“Kids are the best, Apu. You can teach them to hate the things you hate. And they practically raise themselves, what with the internet and all.”

Reported in the Telegraph.co.uk

Posted by Post Scripts at 08:00 PM | Comments (0)

August 22, 2007

Clinton & Levin’s Arrogant Suggestion

by Tina Grazier

In light of remarks made recently by two prominent democrat senators I urge you to consider this definition:

ARROGANT: having a feeling of superiority that shows or is inclined to show itself in an overbearing attitude or in claiming more consideration than is due to one's position, dignity, or power : exaggerating or disposed to exaggerate one's own worth or importance : overbearingly haughty.

One of the things I greatly admire in President Bush is his graciousness in dealing with leaders and representatives from other countries. His remarks may at times be pointed, still, his demeanor remains polite and courteous. The same cannot be said for many senators, or past presidents for that matter. This is discouraging since they are largely responsible for putting the face on America. It seems most are too self-absorbed to notice their own prideful arrogance. Consider these statements from Senator Clinton which echo those of Senator Levin.

Senator Clinton:

"During his trip to Iraq last week, Senator Levin ... confirmed that the Iraqi government is nonfunctional and cannot produce a political settlement because it is too beholden to religious and sectarian leaders," Clinton said. "I share Senator Levin's hope that the Iraqi Parliament will replace Prime Minister Maliki with a less divisive and more unifying figure when it returns in a few weeks."

1. I’m not sure members of that US body that has an 18% approval rating should be criticizing others as “nonfunctional.”

2. The democrat controlled US Congress hasn't successfully produced a “political settlement” lately either, so what's the beef? They can't even decide which side of the argument they're on much of the time.

3. Beholden is as beholden does…do the words “special interest groups’ or “campaign supporters’ ring any bells?

(4. Do they think they are invisible?)

President Bush:

"It's not up to the politicians in Washington, D.C., to say whether he (Maliki) will remain in his position. It is up to the Iraqi people who now live in a democracy and not a dictatorship."

by Jack Lee

Few crimes have been as well researched by modern means and by professional investigators from both the government and from private industry than the airplane crashes on 9/11. Yet some conspiracy believers are determined to believe lies or at least trust in marginal information or wobbly facts that could be construed more than one way. One theory that defies logic is, on one hand government is supposed to be incompentent and on the other hand it is so skillful that it could contain a secret plot orchastrated and covered up by thousands of participants.

Eye witness accounts:

http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/911_pentagon_eyewitnesses.html

"A few moments later, as I was looking down at my desk, the plane caught my eye.

It didn't register at first. I thought to myself that I couldn't believe the pilot was flying so low. Then it dawned on me what was about to happen. I watched in horror as the plane flew at treetop level, banked slightly to the left, drug it's wing along the ground and slammed into the west wall of the Pentagon exploding into a giant orange fireball. Then black smoke. Then white smoke." Steve Anderson, Director of Communications, USA TODAY

Anlauf was watching TV coverage of the Trade Center burning shortly before 9:30 a.m. when she decided to return to her 14th-floor room from another part of the hotel. Once in her room, she heard a "loud roar" and looked out the window to see what was going on.

"Suddenly I saw this plane right outside my window," Anlauf said during a telephone interview from her hotel room this morning. "You felt like you could touch it; it was that close. It was just incredible. "Then it shot straight across from where we are and flew right into the Pentagon. It was just this huge fireball that crashed into the wall (of the Pentagon). When it hit, the whole hotel shook." Deb Anlauf

Mark Bright, actually saw the plane hit the building. He had been manning the guard booth at the Mall Entrance to the building.

"I saw the plane at the Navy Annex area," he said. "I knew it was going to strike the building because it was very, very low -- at the height of the street lights. It knocked a couple down." The plane would have been seconds from impact -- the annex is only a few hundred yards from the Pentagon.

He said he heard the plane "power-up" just before it struck the Pentagon. "As soon as it struck the building I just called in an attack, because I knew it couldn't be accidental," Bright said. He jumped into his police cruiser and headed to the area.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/military_law/1227842.html?page=6

Claim: Two holes were visible in the Pentagon immediately after the attack: a 75-ft.-wide entry hole in the building's exterior wall, and a 16-ft.-wide hole in Ring C, the Pentagon's middle ring. Conspiracy theorists claim both holes are far too small to have been made by a Boeing 757. "How does a plane 125 ft. wide and 155 ft. long fit into a hole which is only 16 ft. across?" asks reopen911.org, a Web site "dedicated to discovering the bottom line truth to what really occurred on September 11, 2001."

The truth is of even less importance to French author Thierry Meyssan, whose baseless assertions are fodder for even mainstream European and Middle Eastern media. In his book The Big Lie, Meyssan concludes that the Pentagon was struck by a satellite-guided missile — part of an elaborate U.S. military coup. "This attack," he writes, "could only be committed by United States military personnel against other U.S. military personnel."

FACT: When American Airlines Flight 77 hit the Pentagon's exterior wall, Ring E, it created a hole approximately 75 ft. wide, according to the ASCE Pentagon Building Performance Report. The exterior facade collapsed about 20 minutes after impact, but ASCE based its measurements of the original hole on the number of first-floor support columns that were destroyed or damaged. Computer simulations confirmed the findings.

Why wasn't the hole as wide as a 757's 124-ft.-10-in. wingspan? A crashing jet doesn't punch a cartoon-like outline of itself into a reinforced concrete building, says ASCE team member Mete Sozen, a professor of structural engineering at Purdue University. In this case, one wing hit the ground; the other was sheared off by the force of the impact with the Pentagon's load-bearing columns, explains Sozen, who specializes in the behavior of concrete buildings. What was left of the plane flowed into the structure in a state closer to a liquid than a solid mass. "If you expected the entire wing to cut into the building," Sozen tells PM, "it didn't happen."

The tidy hole in Ring C was 12 ft. wide — not 16 ft. ASCE concludes it was made by the jet's landing gear, not by the fuselage.

Intact Windows

Claim: Many Pentagon windows remained in one piece — even those just above the point of impact from the Boeing 757 passenger plane. Pentagonstrike.co.uk, an online animation widely circulated in the United States and Europe, claims that photographs showing "intact windows" directly above the crash site prove "a missile" or "a craft much smaller than a 757" struck the Pentagon.

FACT: Some windows near the impact area did indeed survive the crash. But that's what the windows were supposed to do — they're blast-resistant.

"A blast-resistant window must be designed to resist a force significantly higher than a hurricane that's hitting instantaneously," says Ken Hays, executive vice president of Masonry Arts, the Bessemer, Ala., company that designed, manufactured and installed the Pentagon windows. Some were knocked out of the walls by the crash and the outer ring's later collapse. "They were not designed to receive wracking seismic force," Hays notes. "They were designed to take in inward pressure from a blast event, which apparently they did: [Before the collapse] the blinds were still stacked neatly behind the window glass."

Flight 77 Debris

Claim: Conspiracy theorists insist there was no plane wreckage at the Pentagon. "In reality, a Boeing 757 was never found," claims pentagonstrike.co.uk, which asks the question, "What hit the Pentagon on 9/11?"

Few people have direct experience with the results of high-speed collisions of aircraft into strong barriers. Most aircraft accidents occur shortly after takeoff or during attempted landings, and do not completely destroy the aircraft. In contrast, uncontrolled crashes into terrain usually reduce aircraft into fine debris, leaving little if any parts identifiable by casual visual inspection. The debris fields of several jetliner crashes pictured here show the surprising paucity of apparent debris many crashes produce. Crashes of aircraft into buildings also typically leave little in the way of large debris, as the December 5, 2005 crash of a C-130 into an apartment building in Iran illustrates.

It is noteworthy that many crashes that left very little to no large recognizable pieces involved much lower impact speeds than the Pentagon attack. Since the Iranian C-130 was attempting to land, its airspeed was probably less than 150 mph.

Debris from the Attack Plane is Widely Distributed

The Pentagon attack produced damage covering an area inside and outside the building totaling tens of thousands of square feet. Available photographs document only small portions of this area, but nonetheless show significant quantities of debris.

Aftermath: Wreckage from Flight 77 on the Pentagon's lawn — proof that a passenger plane, not a missile, hit the building. (Photograph by AP/Wide World Photos)

FACT: Blast expert Allyn E. Kilsheimer was the first structural engineer to arrive at the Pentagon after the crash and helped coordinate the emergency response. "It was absolutely a plane, and I'll tell you why," says Kilsheimer, CEO of KCE Structural Engineers PC, Washington, D.C. "I saw the marks of the plane wing on the face of the building. I picked up parts of the plane with the airline markings on them. I held in my hand the tail section of the plane, and I found the black box." Kilsheimer's eyewitness account is backed up by photos of plane wreckage inside and outside the building. Kilsheimer adds: "I held parts of uniforms from crew members in my hands, including body parts. Okay?"

Source: http://www.debunking911.com/moltensteel.htm

World Trade Tower Lies Debunked:

Lie: Thermite explosives used to create molten steel! They suggest the above glow is steel which is being cut by a thermite cutter charge reaction. They show photos of a thermite reaction burning a hole downward through a metal plate. Let's forget for a moment that thermite doesn't explode so the claims of hearing explosions become meaningless. The argument that there was thermite and explosives seems to be rationalization of this dilemma. Why would they use thermite which cuts steel without announcing it, then switch to explosives? To tip people off? No theory exist to explain this but the faithful simply say "We're still working on it". I'm sure they are. Let's also give ourselves selective amnesia and pretend thermite can burn sideways to melt vertical columns. Maybe with some device but no working device has been proven to me to work. While there are relatively large canisters which can burn small holes sideways, I have yet to see this elusive steel cutting technique used to cut a vertical column. Then there is a patent of a device which has been brought up but as of yet there is no evidence the idea went any further. Does it even work? Anyone can make a patent but it doesn't mean it exists or even works. Even if it did, they are "Ganged" together to make the cut according to the patent. You would still need these boxes all over the columns. It would be pretty absurd to suggest they moved the walls away from the columns just to fit these things around the columns.

Oxidation of iron by air is not the only EXOTHERMIC reaction of iron (= structural steel which is about 98 % Fe, 1 % Mn, 0.2 % C, 0.2 % Si.....). There is at least one additional reaction of iron with the capability of keeping the rubble pile hot and cooking!

The reaction between IRON AND STEAM is also very EXOTHERMIC and fast at temperatures above 400 deg C. This reaction produces Fe3O4 AND HYDROGEN. It is the classic example of a REVERSIBLE REACTION studied in Chemistry labs at high school. But believe it or not, back at the turn of the century, the reaction of iron and steam was used as an industrial process for the manufacture of hydrogen.

I think iron and steam could have reacted in this way (at least for a while) and generated a lot of heat. What is more, the hydrogen released would have been converted back to water by reaction with oxygen, thereby generating even more heat. In this case spraying water on the rubble pile was like adding fuel to a fire!

Now add in gypsum reactions with H2 and CO and we have a great source of SO2 and/or H2S to sulfide the steel!
Perhaps the endless spraying of water on the rubble pile was not such a good idea!

In the usual lab experiment on the reversible reaction of iron and "steam", nitrogen (or some inert gas) is bubbled through water to create a gas stream saturated with water vapor at room temperature. This gas is then allowed to flow into a glass tube about 1 meter long containing iron in an inert boat at its center. This assembly is heated in a tube furnace to some desired temperature, say 500 deg C. The hydrogen/ nitrogen gas mixture is collected at the outlet of the tube furnace.

In the industrial process the feed gas might also be "water gas" which is a mixture of CO and water vapor. The outlet gas contains mostly H2 and CO2.

I am sure there was plenty of water vapor AND oxygen in the void spaces in the rubble pile. This is the "steam" I am referring to.

Please remember that the recovered pieces of structural steel were heavily OXIDIZED as well as sulfided. The most important oxidizing agents available in the rubble pile were obviously O2 and H2O.

The rubble pile was not only inhomogeneous with regard to its composition, it was inhomogeneous with regard to its temperature. This was due to localized chemical reactions. Such reactions were capable of generating high temperatures in these localized hot spots.

The demolitionists much beloved thermite is a good example, BUT NOT THE ONLY EXAMPLE. AND THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO PROOF WHATSOEVER THAT THERMITE, THERMATE, SOL-GEL NANO-THERMITE WAS EVER PRESENT AT THE WTC SITE!!!!!!

It is irrelevant whether or not the steam was wet or dry, that is a chemical engineering notion only of interest in a closed and controlled system, usually under high-pressure, such as a steam generator in a power station.

Water vapor was present in the rubble pile and water vapor reacts with iron releasing HYDROGEN.

ITS CALLED A CORROSION REACTION:

METAL + WATER = METAL OXIDE + HYDROGEN

WHEN IT HAPPENED AT THREE MILE ISLAND IT CREATED A HYDROGEN BUBBLE
- NEU-FONZE

http://www.debunking911.com/freefall.htm

For those who may think that no one has written a peer reviewed paper on the collapse of the towers here it is...
"Walter P. Murphy Professor of Civil Engineering and Materials Science

Northwestern University

The towers of the World Trade Center were designed to withstand as a whole the horizontal impact of a large commercial aircraft. So why did a total collapse occur? The reason is the dynamic consequence of the prolonged heating of the steel columns to very high temperature. The heating caused creep buckling of the columns of the framed tube along the perimeter of the structure, which transmits the vertical load to the ground. The likely scenario of failure may be explained as follows...

http://www-math.mit.edu/~bazant/WTC/WTC-asce.pdf

Steven E. Jones is a professor at Brigham Young University. He has created the paper which has created the ground swell around the 911 conspiracy theories. His paper was peer reviewed but not by a civil engineering journal. One would think a serious professor would get his paper peer reviewed by a scientific journal which specializes in the field they are writing the paper on.

But is Professor Jones qualified to create a paper which says the towers must have fallen due to explosives? He is a physics professor but what experience does Jones have in building collapse forensics? He has none. His other peer reviewed papers consist of cold fusion technology. He conducts research in nuclear fusion and solar energy. Nothing in his background would suggest he is qualified to write a civil engineering paper on the infinitely complex building collapse of the towers.

Brigham Young University doesn't want anything to do with the paper.

A few department chairmen at Jones' university have issued critical statements, though none of these has yet addressed any of the points which Jones made in his paper and at his presentation at BYU. Chairman of the BYU department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Dr. Miller, is on record stating in an e-mail, "I think without exception, the structural engineering professors in our department are not in agreement with the claims made by Jones in his paper, and they don't think there is accuracy and validity to these claims".

The BYU physics department has also issued a statement: "The university is aware that Professor Steven Jones' hypotheses and interpretations of evidence regarding the collapse of World Trade Center buildings are being questioned by a number of scholars and practitioners, including many of BYU's own faculty members. Professor Jones' department and college administrators are not convinced that his analyses and hypotheses have been submitted to relevant scientific venues that would ensure rigorous technical peer review." The College of Engineering and Technology department has also added, "The structural engineering faculty in the Fulton College of Engineering and Technology do not support the hypotheses of Professor Jones."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_E._Jones

Jones says his paper will pass peer review again. But will it pass peer review in a respected civil engineering journal? Nothing less would be taken seriously.

One of Jones BYU colleagues had this to say after reading his paper..
.
Letter to the Editor

Refuting 9/11 Conspiracy Theory

April 09, 2006

Dear Editor,

After reading in the Daily Herald the presentations made by Professor Steven E. Jones (BYU Physics) to students at UVSC and BYU, I feel obligated to reply to his "Conspiracy Theory" relating to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center (9/11/01).

I have studied the summary of the report by FEMA, The American Society of Civil Engineers and several other professional engineering organizations. These experts have given in detail the effects on the Towers by the impact of the commercial aircraft. I have also read Professor Jones' (referred to) 42 page unpublished report. In my understanding of structural design and the properties of structural steel I find Professor Jones' thesis that planted explosives (rather than fire from the planes) caused the collapse of the Towers, very unreliable.

The structural design of the towers was unique in that the supporting steel structure consisted of closely spaced columns in the walls of all four sides. The resulting structure was similar to a tube. When the aircraft impacted the towers at speeds of about 500 plus mph, many steel columns were immediately severed and others rendered weak by the following fires. The fires critically damaged the floors systems. Structural steel will begin to lose strength when heated to temperatures above 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. Steel bridge girders are bent to conform to the curved roadway by spot heating flanges between 800 and 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. It is easy to comprehend the loss of carrying capacity of all the structural steel due to the raging fires fed by the jet's fuel as well as aircraft and building contents.

Before one (especially students) supports such a conspiracy theory, they should investigate all details of the theory. To me a practicing structural engineer of 57 continuous years (1941-1998), Professor Jones' presentations are very disturbing.

D. Allan Firmage
Professor Emeritus, Civil Engineering, BYU

http://www.netxnews.net/vnews/display.v/ART/2006/04/09/443801bdadd6e

While the "lies" verses "facts" is still in the mind of the beholders who are yet to be convinced it wasn't a big conspiracy, the majority of folks seem to be satisfied that it wasn't a conspiracy, even though there are some lingering questions.

Consider, even if our President and a few of his closest friends would dare to risk treason and the death penalty for some marginal gain (he's already the worlds most powerful man) or to further the new world order, there would have to be many hundreds, if not thousands of others involved in the great conspiracy, including people in the airline industry, people within Al Qaeda, people within some secret organization, deeper than the CIA itself, and they would have be so fanatical, so ruthless and so driven as to risk treason, mass murder of innocent people and on a scale never before known in the history of the world. And further do it all, while fooling Congress, investigators, military patriots, all the members of the FBI, CIA, NSI, State Dept., DEA, ATF and still not have one conspirator coming forward to our of patriotism or out of conscience to blow the lid off the big conspiracy. And lets remember these people are generally supposed to be American citizens in this conspiracy against Americans. The conspirators would presumably have family here. They grew up with our values, were schooled here and had many friends in high and low places and then somehow they all defected to the dark side of humanity, turned on their own country, acted with terrorists and risk everything on the orders of? And for what?

It just doesn't stand the test of logic and I've read the conspiracy claims, I've read the replies, I've read the 9/11 Report, I've reviewed reports not contained in the 9/11 report, I've listened to the latest conspiracy claims/facts and people "who know for a fact" and so far the overwhelming preponderance of evidence, facts and eye witness testimony supports 9/11 was an act of terrorism done by one group, Al Qaeda.

They have repeatedly claimed credit for it, they have given insider details that only the conspirators would have known, the participants were all linked by plan and designs, they had the motivation, the opportunity and the ability....as well as passed practice where we can show planning years before the event.

Al Qaeda has celebrated 9/11 and 9/11 remains their greatest achievement. It is often mentioned in their recruiting rhetoric and to demonstrate their military prowess. Yet, we still have good Americans, caught up in their own bias about not trusting government (which is understandable, government has done some pretty low things) and it's drawn them in like a spiders web to believe our government was behind 9/11. I'll always keep an open mind on 9/11 and I will let the facts where they may, but I will not let passion override my ability to weigh facts from either side. Until such facts sway me in another direction, my verdict for a conspiracy at this point would be NOT GUILTY.

Posted by Post Scripts at 06:15 PM | Comments (5)

For those of you who enjoy country music with a great message...we have this from U-Tube. It is PG! Cut and paste in your browser... and if you get in trouble for listening to it, just remember it didn't come from us!

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Posted by Post Scripts at 10:18 AM | Comments (0)

A Story of One Illegal Alien