I wasn't upset last week when Time Magazine named Vladimir Putin as it's Man of the Year. After all, as it often reminds readers, the choice is the person who most impacted the world for good or evil.

Thus 1938 saw the award go to Hitler, followed by Stalin in 1939 and again in 1942. Another Soviet dictator, Nikita Krushchev, got the nod in 1957, while China's Chairman Den Xiaoping won in 1978 (and again in 1985) and Ayatollah Khomeni in 1979.

I'd have to argue that a similar argument can therefore be made about the selection made by the Dallas Morning News as Texan of the Year -- the law-breaking, border-jumping immigration criminal (although they called him "The Illegal Immigrant").

He breaks the law by his very presence. He hustles to do hard work many Americans won't, at least not at the low wages he accepts. The American consumer economy depends on him. America as we have known it for generations may not survive him.

We can't seem to live with him and his family, and if we can live without him, nobody's figured out how.

He's the Illegal Immigrant, and he's the 2007 Dallas Morning News Texan of the Year – for better or for worse. Given the public mood, there seems to be little middle ground in debate over illegal immigrants. Spectacular fights over their presence broke out across Texas this year, adding to the national pressure cooker as only Texas can.

And as with any such criminal, he is clearly detrimental to those of us who he victimizes by his presence.

Nationally, a Congressional Budget Office report released this month said illegal immigrants cost more in tax dollars than they provide, especially in the areas of education, law enforcement and health. Indeed, 70 percent of babies born in Dallas' Parkland Hospital in the first three months of 2006 were to illegal immigrant mothers. Taxpayers spend tens of millions of dollars annually subsidizing births in that one hospital.

Yes, boys and girls, that's right -- you and I are the victims of these folks, as they reach their hands right into our wallets to take from us money to provide them with benefits to which they have no legal or moral entitlement. The notion of some soft-heated, soft-minded judges that these folks are entitled to anything other than a bus ticket home and a computer entry denying them the privilege of ever crossing the border into the US again is the main thing preventing crackdowns on such benefits and the presence of such folks in our communities. Well that and the desire of Democrat politicians to get these folks legalized and voting Democrat, and businessmen who would rather hire cheap illegal worker than American citizens at American wages (and yes, that does include you, Bob Perry).

I don't care about most of the cultural issues -- I have no problem with new pieces added to the mosaic of American life. I speak Spanish (with a serious gringo accent, according to some of my students), like Mexican food, and love certain of the customs that these people bring with them. But I do believe that a measure of assimilation is a necessity, and to that end believe that learning English is a necessity rather than setting up the parallel cultural institutions we have seen develop.

Do I believe that we need to fight illegal immigration? You bet I do -- every bit as much as we needed to fight the twin menaces of Nazism and Communism, and as we need to fight Islamism today. Yet at the same time, I welcome legally immigrating foreigners from every country, provided they are willing to embrace America's history and values even as they share elements of their own with us. The choice is not between having immigration and having none. Rather, it is between having an orderly system with enforced immigration control, or the pell-mell invasion of our country by those who take more than they give.

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Yeah, heaven forbid (oops -- is that too "fundamentalist" for these MPs?) that Catholic bishops insist that Catholic institutions operate in a Catholic manner.

Roman Catholic bishops are to appear in front of a powerful committee of MPs amid fears that they are pushing a fundamentalist brand of their religion in schools. Bishops have called on parents, teachers and priests to strengthen the role of religion in education. In one case the Bishop of Lancaster, Patrick O'Donoghue, instructed Catholic schools across much of north-west England to stop 'safe-sex' education and place crucifixes in all classrooms.

Crucifixes in the classrooms! Quick -- pass the smelling salts! And the teaching of traditional Catholic sexual morality -- the horror of it all!

Perhaps this comment from one of the MPs is the most telling.

'It seems to me that faith education works all right as long as people are not that serious about their faith.

Yes, we can't have folks who are serious about a religious faith teaching the doctrines of that faith and controlling that faith's institutions. That won't work at all. It might cause people to believe that religious faith -- or at least CHRISTIAN religious faith -- matters.

And yet, oddly enough, militant Islamist organizations are allowed to freely operate in the UK without much restriction at all. I guess that the reason is that the MPs know that neither the "doctrinaire" and "fundamentalist" bishops won't detonate themselves in the face of criticism.

There is simply no other way to define what they are asking for here.

Lawmakers from the Algerian Islamic political party of al-Nahda have asked the government to intervene to slow down "the activities of Christian missionaries in the country".

Algerian MP Muhammad Hudeibi was quoted as saying this in the local el-Khabar newspaper.

"We want the government to cut down this type of activity because the expansion of evangelisation in Algeria has become an important problem and is not marginal as some think it is," said Hudeibi.

For some years, the local media in Algeria have reported on the activities of a number of missionaries, particularly those from evangelical and Protestant churches, who have succeeded in converting entire Algerian families to Christianity, particularly those who come from the eastern area of Kabilia.

"We condemn the government's silence with regard to this phenomenon," said the Algerian MP.

"We are collecting the signatures of other lawmakers in order to begin a discussion in parliament on this problem," he said.

"All 11 parliamentarians of al-Nahda have been mobilised, but we are convinced that others will also help us."

The Islamic party also asked the Algerian ulema or Islamic scholars and imams to give their opinion on the issue of Christian evangelism.

Actually, the opinion of Muslim scholars or religious leaders on this matter should be irrelevant.

After all, the right to change one's religion is an internationally recognized human right, enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As such, banning proselytism or conversion would fundamentally be a violation of the human rights of every individual living in or visiting Algeria. That such human rights violations are daily committed in other Muslim countries is irrelevant -- and if it is argued that Islam forbids such activities, then it must be conceded by those making such a claim that Islam itself is the enemy of human rights.

H/T Gates of Vienna

After six years as a Houston Texans season ticket holder, this one was sweet.

The guys beat Jacksonville 42-28, and finally had a non-losing season. Not bad for the team with the most guys on injured reserve, and bitten by the injury bug the way they were all season.

But the highlight has to be this pair of kickoff returns by Andre Davis -- which came on top of a clutch fumble recovery he made on a Texans punt..

Receiver André Davis became the seventh player in NFL history to return kickoffs for touchdowns in the same game, and his extraordinary performance ignited the Texans to a 42-28 victory over Jacksonville.

The victory, accomplished over a Jacksonville team that rested seven starters, allowed the Texans to finish with a franchise-best 8-8 record – a six-game improvement from the franchise-worst 2-14 record of 2005.

Davis, who recovered a muffed punt that set up the Texans’ first touchdown, returned the last kickoff of the first half 97 yards for a touchdown that gave them a 21-14 lead they never surrendered.

Then, Davis returned the second-half kickoff 104 yards for a touchdown that boosted the lead to 28-14.

WOW!

I feel great about next year -- and we are all thinking playoff here in Houston.

And to the Texans, may I just say THANK YOU FOR A MEMORABLE SEASON.

Andrew Sullivan links to this piece from a Pakistani blogger on the death of Benazir Bhutto. It reminds us all that, for all the international importance of this event, there is an aspect to such events that is frequently overlooked and yet more tragic still.

At a human level this is a tragedy like no other. Only a few days ago I was mentioning to someone that the single most tragic person in all of Pakistan - maybe all the world - is Nusrat Bhutto. Benazir’s mother. Think about it. Her husband, killed. One son poisoned. Another son assasinated. One daughter dead possibly of drug overdose. Another daughter rises to be Prime Minister twice, but jailed, exiled, and finally gunned down.

Today, in shock, I can think only of Benazir Bhutto the human being. Tomorrow, maybe, I will think of politics.

All too often, we forget that political leaders are human beings first -- mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters and a host of other relationships -- and politicians second. And so while our hearts ache and minds whirl this day as Pakistan continues in its orgy of violent despair following the terrorist murder of its favorite daughter, let us not forget that the Bhutto family has suffered a grievous loss that is more than equal to the loss suffered by the nation of Pakistan itself.

After all, Bhutto, who marked her 20th wedding anniversary only nine days before her murder, leaves behind not only her mother, but also an ill husband and three children. May we each take a moment to spare them a bit of the concern that we have spent on the political and security ramifications of this very human tragedy.

UPDATE: I've never quoted FireDogLake approvingly in the past -- but I'll make an exception for this personal remembrance of a very different Benazir Bhutto.

One of my sisters attended Harvard University as an undergraduate. I helped her move into her freshman dorm in Wigglesworth Hall on Harvard Yard. Wigglesworth was divided into suites with bedrooms and bathrooms off a sitting room with a fireplace. It was an old building and the suites looked like Sherlock Holmes' apartment.

* * *

In the stairwell that first day, the very first new friend my sister made was a cute little freshman in tan corduroy jeans with her dark hair pulled into two pigtails. She looked more like a high school freshman than a college student. She was tacking up fliers for some kind of cause (might have been related to world hunger) on the bulletin boards in the stairwell.

She was pretty and outgoing and introduced herself to us at once, "Hi, I'm Bennie, Bennie Bhutto." She offered to help move the bedding in, and may have carried up the pillows. She had arrived a couple days before my sister and filled us in on the lay of the land: Where the Baskin Robbins was; how to find the bookstore; you name it, she was willing to tour guide.

Over the course of my sister's freshman year, I often drove up to Boston to visit. From Bennie and from stories my sister told me, I learned that Bennie's real name was Benazir, but she had decided to use her nickname in order to fit in better in America.

There is more, much more, about the girl (age 16) who would become the woman. It explains a lot about the family dynamics that resulted in her rise to power, and the problems between her and her brothers. And I'm particularly struck by the closing paragraph.

Other people can analyze what her death means in political terms, in human terms. An intelligent, thoughtful woman is gone from this world, and I am saddened to learn that.

Indeed.

Is this Osama's New Year's greeting to the world?

Terror leader Osama bin Laden will release a new Internet message that focuses on Iraq and an al-Qaida linked insurgent group, a terrorism monitoring group said Thursday.

The SITE intelligence group said the al-Qaida leader will discuss Iraq and the group the Islamic State of Iraq, a longtime foe of the Iraqi government and U.S. forces.

SITE, which provides counter-terrorism information to government and private groups, said the announcement of the impending message was posted to Islamic militant Web sites earlier in the day.

The posting said the message — titled `The way to contain conspiracies" — would last 56 minutes. It did not say when it would be released, but such ads usually precede the actual message by one to three days.

An interesting length, that 56 minutes -- perhaps to allow for commercial breaks on network television, given the ongoing strike by the Writer's Guild of America?

But more seriously, the fact that Osama is releasing a new video in time for the new year, and in the wake of the Bhutto assassination, leaves me wondering if this is not the signal of more terrorist action to come. And coming on the even of the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, I wonder what bombshells it will have intended to influence the US electoral process.

As has been known for months, Ron Paul is facing a primary challenger in CD14.

He is Chris Peden, a city councilman and mayor pro-tem in Friendswood, Texas. he officially filed as a candidate today.

I've met Chris. He's a good guy with great conservative values.

I encourage you to check out his website.

I wouldn't be surprised if this act of arson was precisely that. After all, why else hit this tiny museum exhibit?

A home where President George W. Bush lived as a young boy with his parents in Odessa, Texas, and that is now part of a presidential museum there was damaged on Thursday by a fire that investigators blamed on arson.

"I can tell you it has been determined that it was intentionally set, but I cannot discuss anything about evidence or possible suspects because this is an ongoing criminal investigation," said city of Odessa spokeswoman Andrea Goodson.

Museum administrator Lettie England said no motive for the blaze had been determined and there was no reason at this point to believe it was a political act. She said there were no notes or messages left at the scene.

England said in a telephone interview from the west Texas city that the arsonist spread some kind of flammable liquid on the door and front windows and set the fire.

Now I'll be honest -- I don't necessarily see this old house as particularly significant in any historical sense. Indeed, I'm at a loss as to why anyone would find this to be a building worth preserving, given that the seven months of the toddlerhood of the current President is probably not particularly significant, nor is that particular time frame really important to the lives of his parents. But regardless, torching the place cannot be defended.

Now the police have not assigned a motive for the blaze, which is classified as arson. But I really can't think of a more likely reason for the attack, because there would surely be easier targets for someone to hit.

When I was 14 or 15, I had the opportunity to see the King Tut exhibit at the Field Museum in Chicago. I remember standing about three feet from the case, just staring, with a sense of awe and wonder as I gazed at an artifact that was more than 200 time my age. To this day, I shudder as I think back upon that experience and my nearness to such a significant piece of human history.

And tonight, I find myself reveling in a similar experience -- yet one that is in some ways even more profound. You see, only a sheet of polycarbonate glass stood between my hand and this wonder today.

Yes, that is one of the most significant fossil finds in human history Lucy (known also as Dinkenesh in Ethiopia). She is currently on exhibit here in Houston until late April. I remember reading about the discovery of this fossil in the newspaper back when I was in sixth grade or so, and being amazed by the discover. I could not have imagined the opportunity to actually see this early hominid fossil up close. Call me a history geek if you want, but I found myself near to tears as I gazed down on this collection of fossilized bones and considered their significance.

Let me offer two videos of note related to this topic.

The first is about the exhibit here in Houston.

The second is about the discovery of Lucy and her significance to the stucddy of human evolution.

I encourage you to see this exhibit if you are near to Houston in the next few months -- and if it comes to a city near you while it is in this country, make a point of seeing it. It also is quite informative about the history of Ethiopia up to the modern day, and has many interesting cultural artifacts.

I was about to start typing about the attempted assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto when my wife shouted to me that the attack had been successful, and that the near-certain head of the next Pakistani government was dead.

Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated Thursday, shot in the neck and chest before a homicide bomber blew himself up at a campaign rally. Twenty others also died.

The assassin struck just minutes after Bhutto addressed a rally of thousands of supporters in the garrison city of Rawalpindi. She was shot as she was entering her car. Her attacker then set off his bomb.

Bhutto was rushed to the hospital and taken into emergency surgery.

Outraged supporters of the martyred politician have placed the blame upon President Pervez Musharraf, though there is currently no evidence to support that presumption.

Her main ally, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has been banned from the upcoming election by the Musharraf government, was reportedly at the hospital.

Nawaz Sharif, another former premier and opposition leader, arrived at the hospital and sat silently next to Bhutto's body.

"Certainly, we condemn the attack on this rally. It demonstrates that there are still those in Pakistan who want to subvert reconciliation and efforts to advance democracy," said deputy State Department spokesman Tom Casey.

Pakistan's elections are scheduled for January 8. This event obviously raises the issue of whether the election can proceed on schedule, and of the legitimacy of the results if they do. Developments in the next several hours, and the next few days, will be critical to determining whether or not Pakistan emerges from its era of dictatorship, and whether it slides into political chaos.

If a prominent right-wing blogger allowed one of his/her co-bloggers to post a piece like this on a blog and left it there. And this anti-Semitic piece of crap, worthy of those other socialists who ran Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, has been there since Christmas Eve.

Several months ago, at the suggestion of MSOC, I returned to this site, resolved that I would never again descend to the moral cesspit occupied by the haters. I would willingly engage in civil and rational discourse with anyone of good will, but if they refused, I would ignore them.

Unfortunately, the same persons whose emnity and hostility were so pervasive before immediately resumed their campaign to discredit me, not only rejecting my overtures of peace, but mocking them.

These hateful persons are Jews. At one point, I would have disregarded this fact, but I no longer can. This site has been nothing but the battleground of the Jew Wars, and it is not possible to escape the toxic fallout.

Some persons here have posted remarks offensive to Jews, remarks that no one would have regarded seriously if not for the Jews, as they stridently identify themselves, calling for banning and lynch mobs and denunciation of the posters whose words have offended them. They have made it very clear that they are willing to destroy this site, to make it a barren no-man's-land where no civil discourse can survive, unless the persons they charge with antisemitism are silenced and driven out.

I know that these Jews will continue to conduct their hate campaigns with impunity as well as self-righteousness, because the people in charge of this site regard them as friends, but they are false, treacherous friends, willing to destroy the site that has befriended them.

And these same persons, these Jews, have not only continued their malicious attacks on me, but others, also Jews, have joined their Hate Squad, solely on the grounds that they are Jews and have been offended by someone, and thus arrogate to themselves the right to hate and insult a person who has done them no harm and no offense.

And the consequence is this: I now find myself, for the first time in my life, hating Jews. I find myself hating the Jews on this site, both the Jews who have conducted their malicious campaign against me for so long and the Jews who have stood by in silent solidarity with them, never saying a word against their vile attacks, their cruelty and ugliness.

I find myself thinking that Proximity perhaps has the right idea, that Jews regard other human beings as objects, to be sacrificed to the interests of Jews. That Jews will always stand with other Jews no matter their guilt, and against non-Jews, no matter their innocence. The face of Jews has become unspeakably ugly in my sight, because of the ugliness of the Jewish haters here.

There you have it -- Jew-hatred is a rational response to Jewish condemnation of Jew-hatred. Courtesy of the Left-wing. And remaining un-deleted from that Left-Wing blog, and uncondemned by its owner.

But then again, what do you expect -- the owner proudly proclaimed how she revels in hatred in a WaPo profile last year.

And to think that a local lefty condemned my piece on the absurdity of taking Christ out of Christmas as an example of "hate that doesn't take a break".

H/T Captain's Quarters, Jawa Report, Moderate Voice, Gina Cobb, Neptunus Lex

John R. Keeney of Taylor Lake Village has filed to challenge John Davis for Representative in the 129th District.

As I've indicated elsewhere, I believe that we can do significantly better than the ethically troubled Davis, and Keeney seems to be just the man.

For more details, you can check out his website.

If ever there has been a case of reaching a conclusion first and then searching for evidence and a theory to back that conclusion, this is it.

A research paper that won a Hebrew University teachers' committee prize finds that the lack of IDF rapes of Palestinian women is designed to serve a political purpose.

The abstract of the paper, authored by doctoral candidate Tal Nitzan, notes that the paper shows that "the lack of organized military rape is an alternate way of realizing [particular] political goals."

The next sentence delineates the particular goals that are realized in this manner: "In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, it can be seen that the lack of military rape merely strengthens the ethnic boundaries and clarifies the inter-ethnic differences - just as organized military rape would have done."

The paper further theorizes that Arab women in Judea and Samaria are not raped by IDF soldiers because the women are de-humanized in the soldiers' eyes.

So let's make this clear -- the act of rape occurs in time of war because the enemy has been "de-humanized" and the sexual assault of their women is therefore not seen as morally culpable. On the other hand, the failure to rape the women of the enemy is a sign that the enemy has been "de-humanized" and that sexual assault of their women does not happen as a result. In other words, every course of action that might be taken is a sign of the enemy having been "de-humanized", and a presumed racist attitude towards the enemy.

Am I the only one who sees the fundamentally absurd nature of this academic paper?

H/T LGF

Lone Star Times has an enhanced photo here.

Many of you will recognize Ron Paul.

You may not recognize his two friends -- Stormfront's Don Black and his son Derek. You know, big-time white supremacists and neo-Nazis. And, of course, Ron Paul campaign donors -- whose money Ron Paul insists upon keeping rather than doing the honorable thing like divesting himself of it by giving it to a charity that promotes racial tolerance or combats the putrid ideology of Don Black.

So let's see here. Ron Paul hangs out with racists. He takes their money. He and his supporters claim that the Constitution requires him to do so, because to do otherwise would be to violate the First Amendment -- despite the fact that Ron Paul has a First Amendment right not to associate with scum like the Black family and their followers.

On the other hand, Ron Paul claims that much of federal spending is unconstitutional -- yet he freely admits that he sponsors gobs of pork for his district. Of course, in doing so he actively sponsors what he believes to be unconstitutional spending -- you know, because his supporters and constituents demand it, of course. He claims that he is virtuous and pure because he votes against the bill that contains the spending, even though he knows that the spending line items he supports will be enacted anyway. So much for his principles and claims to be a strict constitutionalist -- if he were, he would refuse to put the spending into the bill in the first place on the grounds that it is unconstitutional.

I'm curious -- since Ron Paul by his own admission is willing to lay aside his principles and alleged devotion to the Constitution for his supporters and constituents, why should we believe that he will not do the same for these hate-mongering campaign contributors?

Not long ago, I was expressing hopes that Fidel Castro would fade from the world scene. It appears that the Cuban dictator will not go gently into that good night (or, more likely, the gaping maw of Hell which awaits him).

Fidel Castro remains on the mend, gaining weight, exercising twice a day and continuing to help make the Cuban government's top decisions, his brother Raul Castro says.

The island's acting president gave the first clues about his brother's health in weeks, saying during a Monday speech that he has a "healthier mentality, full use of his mental faculties with some small physical limitations."

At 76, Raul is five years younger than his ailing brother, who has not been seen in public since announcing he had undergone emergency intestinal surgery and was stepping down in favor of a provisional government in July 2006.

But the younger Castro said his brother remains a key voice in government and that Communist Party leaders support his re-election to Cuba's parliament, the National Assembly — a move that could allow Fidel Castro to keep his post as president of the Council of State.

"We consult him on principal matters, that is why we the leaders of the party defend his right to run again as deputy of the National Assembly as a first step," Raul Castro said.

And so the dictatorship will continue. It is a pity, for the Cuban people deserve better than the decades of oppression they have suffered -- oppression which has caused their best and brightest to flee. And yet we can still hope for a brighter day for Cuba, one in which his corpse is treated with the abuse and contempt received by the body of the dictator Mussolini.

California has a very odd view of property rights -- it seems that if you operate a business open to the public, you are subject to all the impediments placed upon government by the First Amendment. This means, of course, that if there are any "public areas" to the establishment, the public can come in and engage in speech that is detrimental to one's business or that or one's clients.

That leads to decisions like this one.

The California Supreme Court ruled Monday that privately owned shopping malls cannot stop protesters from demonstrating there to urge a boycott of one of the tenants.

In a 4-to-3 decision, the court said a San Diego mall violated California law protecting free speech when its owners barred protesters from distributing leaflets in front of one of the mall’s stores, asking shoppers not to give the store their business.

“A shopping mall is a public forum in which persons may reasonably exercise their right to free speech,” Justice Carlos R. Moreno wrote in the majority opinion.

Justice Moreno said shopping malls were entitled to enact and enforce “reasonable regulations of the time, place and manner of such free expression,” to avoid a disruption of business.

“But they may not prohibit certain types of speech based upon its content,” he wrote, like speech urging a boycott of stores.

Thre are, of course, two points in this article that leap rapidly to mind.

1) Why the heck can't private property owners prohibit any or all speech -- including based upon content -- as a proper and legitimate exercise of their property rights?

2) Why has this case taken nearly a decade to percolate through the courts? After all, this is based upon a protest that took place in 1998!

But the bigger issue in my book is that a shopping mall is not a public forum -- it is a place of business to which the public is invited for the limited purpose of shopping. To the degree that groups are invited in for other purposes -- such as carolers in the central plaza or antique car shows or other such events -- that is done to facilitate the primary purpose of the shopping mall, which is the sale of tenant merchandise. And to require that the mall permit speech explicitly intended to disrupt that the primary purpose of the mall seems to be an outrageous infringement upon the property rights of the owners and the rights of their tenants.

Christmas is a time of hope, of expectation. We mark the birth of a child whose tragic fate we know, and yet we exult because of the glorious triumph that grows out of that seeming ignominious death and the possibility that opens for each of us.

And yet, some years it seems that there is much in this world to despair over.

And so I offer you one of my favorite Christmas songs, which reminds us that the victory has already been won for us by our Savior, Jesus Christ.

I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day

I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.”

And in this day when the prophets of faithlessness seek to disparage and deny the truth of the Gospel, I repeat with Henry Wadsworth Longfellow the most stirring words of this composition -- God is not dead, nor doth He sleep!

May each of you find your hearts filled with joy this Christmas, and may you find your spirit renewed with the Easter Promise contained within the Christmas Miracle.

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A Republic not a Monarchy.

There is a Christmas story at the birth of this country that very few Americans know. It involves a single act by George Washington -- his refusal to take absolute power -- that affirms our own deepest beliefs about self-government, and still has profound meaning in today's world. To appreciate its significance, however, we must revisit a dark period at the end of America's eight-year struggle for independence.

The story begins with Gen. Washington's arrival in Annapolis, Md., on Dec. 19, 1783. The country was finally at peace -- just a few weeks earlier the last British army on American soil had sailed out of New York harbor. But the previous eight months had been a time of terrible turmoil and anguish for Gen. Washington, outwardly always so composed. His army had been discharged and sent home, unpaid, by a bankrupt Congress -- without a victory parade or even a statement of thanks for their years of sacrifices and sufferings.

George Washington could have seized power.

His officers and men would have supported him.

The powers of Europe would have certainly reacted favorably.

And we might well live today with some royal family or other ruling over us, with not the notion of "a republican form of government" nothing but a pipe=dream of a few political scientists and philosophers.

Instead, Washington committed an act of moral and political heroism that ultimately lead to the creation of the nation we know today. Read about it here.

So I'm hoping the New England Patriots lose this weekend, and end the season 15-1.

With the New England Patriots now one win away from finishing the regular season undefeated, Sen. John Kerry is stepping up his campaign to get the final game broadcast on national television.

The contest Saturday with the New York Giants is to air locally in Boston and New York. But outside those markets it is scheduled to appear only on the NFL Network, a cable channel that reaches just 35 million households nationwide while the league and cable operators dicker over pricing and distribution.

Kerry asked football Commissioner Roger Goodell today to move the game to NBC – and threatened Senate hearings if he does not.

“Under the unfortunate circumstance that this matter remains unresolved, leaving 60 percent of households across the country – including thousands in Massachusetts – without access to Saturday’s game, I will ask the Senate Commerce Committee to hold hearings on how the emergence of premium sports channels are impacting the consumer,” he wrote to Goodell today in a letter released by his office.

The Massachusetts Democrat added that he would “consider what legislative measures may be necessary to ensure that consumers are more than bystanders in this process.”

Actually, the appropriateremedy is for the cable companies to be required to follow the terms of their agreement with the NFL and make the NFL Network a part of their basic cable package. Unfortunately, a single state court set a nation-wide precedent on the matter some months back, allowing the cable companies to violate their agreement.

And if we can't make the cable companies abide by the agreement, maybe the time has come for Congress to mandate an end to monopolistic cable franchises -- so that consumers can have a choice in cable providers, just as they do with their long distance service..

Bravo to Dinesh D'Souza for making clear the absurdity of those who would expunge Christ from the public square and American culture.

But apply this logic to another holiday and its absurdity becomes manifest. Imagine if the ACLU filed lawsuits nationwide to remove all references to Martin Luther King on Martin Luther King day. The reason is that not everyone agrees that King's legacy was a positive one, and that the main beneficiaries of King's activism have been African Americans and other minorities. Southern segregationists, in particular, feel excluded from King's "beloved community." So in the name of diversity and tolerance all monuments and symbols and references to King should be erased. Instead Martin Luther King day becomes another "happy holiday."

This would be crazy. The answer to the ACLU would go something like this: "We are honoring King because we believe he has changed our civilization and our world vastly for the better. If you don't agree, by all means write a letter to the editor. But it is intolerance bordering on bigotry for institutions to get rid of all references to King simply because some people don't like him or feel excluded by his vision."

Like it or not, the Western Culture of which our nation is a part is in large part rooted in Christianity. Many of our cultural celebrations and practices are influenced by and connected to the Christian faith. Those who seek to wipe them out are not just attacking the faith of the overwhelming majority of Americans, but also the bedrock upon which our society rests.

Such individuals are welcome here. Our nation, our society, are built upon toleration of differing beliefs, even those which are so wrong-headed and intolerant as those of the Christ-erasers. But as in the hypothetical above, their sense of exclusion is not a legitimate basis for the suppression of the heart-felt beliefs of the majority.

Yesterday evening, I sent the following letter to Rep. John Davis of House District 129, in my official capacity as GOP Precinct Chair for Harris County Precinct 333. After much consideration, I have decided to post the letter here, in the hope of encouraging other Republicans to contact Davis and encourage him to withdraw from the race. It is my belief that the people of District 129 and the State of Texas deserve better in the Texas Legislature.

Dear Rep. Davis:

This is a hard email to write, especially at this time of the year. Unfortunately, the filing deadline make this the appropriate time for me to say these things to you, despite the proximity to the holidays.

I have talked with a number of my fellow Republicans, both in my precinct and outside of it. Some are grassroots leaders, some are long-time activists, and others are simply voters with no other involvement in the political process. As I have spoken with them, I have heard several common themes run through their comments on your candidacy for reelection. These can be summarized as follows:

1. "I like John, but I'm not impressed with how he represents the district."
2. "John really doesn't present himself well in public settings -- I'm worried that will hurt him this year."
3. "I can't think of a significant accomplishment of his that has benefited our area."
4. "Constituent services are really slow."

As you can see, the image problem is big. Still, I think you could overcome these problems were it not for the point that was touched upon by every single person with whom I spoke.

"John has shown some really poor judgment in how he handles his campaign money and by casting votes for other legislators. He appears corrupt and sleazy, even if there is a reasonable explanation for everything."

Frankly, I do not believe you can overcome that perception among our own primary voters. Furthermore, I believe that this is a problem that will be exploited by the Democrats in the fall if you do survive the primary, and that you are likely to be defeated in November as a result. As such, I find myself unable to support or endorse your candidacy for reelection.

This morning I had a long talk with one my fellow worshipers following the service. This wonderful lady, a long-time Republican who has served as a precinct chair, RWC officer, and campaign volunteer for your campaign, looked me in the eye and said something that touched my heart quite deeply.

"I've known John and his wife for years, and am very fond of them both. As things stand, I just can't support him this time around. Unfortunately, this is going to be a very ugly campaign, and I would hate to see him put Jayne and the boys through it. Please tell him that he needs to drop out of this race for their sake, and for the sake of the people of the district. We just don't need things to be like this."

I have to say that she is right. I believe the best course of action for you, your family, and your constituents is for you to step aside and allow a someone else to be the GOP standard-bearer this November. I urge you to immediately withdraw as a candidate for reelection in House District 129.

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I've commented on the long legacy of hatred and bigotry spewed by the Democrats since their foundation.

Columnist Bruce Bartlett has been kind enough to share some of that legacy with us -- from the founders of the Democrat Party to the present day.

We know what they were.

We know what they are.

We know what they always will be.

To cast a vote for a Democrat is to cast a vote against equality, liberty, and human dignity.

Here are the quotes assembled by Mr. Bartlett for your consideration.

And someone in the Clear Lake area is getting one.

My wife and I were driving home from lunch and trivia at BW3 in Webster when we saw one of these in the bed of a pickup truck.

I would never have believed such a thing -- a recliner done in a Mossy Oak Camouflage! And what's more, I just discovered that you can even get a matching sofa and love seat.

You've gotta love any wife who would let that thing through the front door, that's for sure!

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In light of this editorial in the New York Times, I feel a need to repost what I wrote a couple of weeks ago on the topic.

Let's begin with this caveat: No system for casting and counting votes is fool-proof or fraud-proof. For that reason, I take the comments by Ohio's secretary of state with a grain of salt. That said, she raises an important point.

All five voting systems used in Ohio, a state whose electoral votes narrowly swung two elections toward President Bush, have critical flaws that could undermine the integrity of the 2008 general election, a report commissioned by the state’s top elections official has found.

“It was worse than I anticipated,” the official, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, said of the report. “I had hoped that perhaps one system would test superior to the others.”

At polling stations, teams working on the study were able to pick locks to access memory cards and use hand-held devices to plug false vote counts into machines. At boards of election, they were able to introduce malignant software into servers.

Ms. Brunner proposed replacing all of the state’s voting machines, including the touch-screen ones used in more than 50 of Ohio’s 88 counties. She wants all counties to use optical scan machines that read and electronically record paper ballots that are filled in manually by voters.

When the eSlate system was adopted here in Harris County, I strongly urged against it. I wanted to see an optical scanner system adopted because of the paper trail it would provide. That said, I figure that if I can trust an ATM with my money, I can also trust a system like the one we have and like those they have in Ohio.

"But," some will object, "doesn't this show that the machines can be tampered with?"

Yeah, it does.

But if the conditions are what I suspect they were, the test itself was essentially meaningless. The testers would have been given unlimited access to and time with the equipment, access to schematics and source code, and would not have faced any of the other security methods imposed by elections officials. These are not conditions that anyone tampering with election results is likely to face.

And let's not forget that there are ways to game an optical scanner system. You can still program the software to miscount votes. You can still add fake voters to the rolls or vote folks who were not at the polls. Ballots can still be tampered with after they are cast. In other words, optical scanners have many of the same flaws as both the paperless systems and the punch card system used in much of the country prior to the 2000 fiasco in Florida. No system is perfect.

Indeed, the only real safeguard of an election is the integrity of those who are involved in the process of running the election, from state officials to county and city elections officials to those of us who actually operate the polling places on Election Day. And so while I explicitly endorse a change to optical scanners, I am under no illusion that erroneous vote counts or outright election fraud can ever be completely eliminated until we can figure out a way to eliminate human fallibility and mankind's sinful nature from the equation.

Oh, and let me correct a point from the NY Times editorial -- the 2000 presidential election was not "irreparably harmed" -- every subsequent study of the 2000 vote has shown that the winner in Florida was George W. Bush. And if there was irreparable harm done, it was by Al Gore and his minions in their attempt to overturn the results of the election so as to award Florida's electoral votes to the candidate who lost the state. Fortunately, the repeated erroneous rulings by SCOFLA (Supreme Court of Florida) were overturned by the United States Supreme Court, which saved the nation from the irreparable harm of an election stolen through partisan chicanery and judicial malfeasance.

But then again, what else is new? They really don't seem to understand the dynamics at work in CD22.

People from across the globe live in the growing Houston suburbs that make up the 22nd Congressional District, which has been represented most recently by politicians born elsewhere in Texas: Tom DeLay, Shelley Sekula Gibbs, briefly, and now Nick Lampson.

But in the congested race for the Republican nomination to face Democrat Lampson in the November 2008 election, the candidates' roots, in and out of the district, have become an issue in the campaign.

* * *

The term "carpetbagger" was created for Northerners who moved to the South seeking riches after the Civil War. Republican contenders in the local race apply it to Lampson because he once represented a nearby congressional district that included his birthplace of Beaumont — although Lampson is quick to point out his family has deep roots in Fort Bend County.

Without naming names, some of the eight Republican candidates also use the term to favorably compare their home-turf credentials to those of their opponents in the March GOP primary — especially since at first glance there appears to be little room for the contenders to one-up each other on being conservative.

Speaking as a GOP precinct chair here in CD22, I don't care where someone was born -- but then again, I say that as a man who was born in an Army hospital in San Francisco and who moved into CD22 only 10 1/2 years ago. However, I think most of my friends and neighbors share that perspective.

The problem, of course, is not who was born where. The issue is really one of who knows the district and has roots here to represent it well.

If you look at the overwhelming majority of the GOP candidates, they are rooted in the communities of the district. That is true of Shelley Sekula Gibbs, Talton, Hrbacek, Manlove, and even Rowley. Squier cannot say that. And Pete Olsen, a good man beyond all doubt, hasn't lived here in 15-20 years, and I understand that he didn't even have a Texas DL or voter registration until a few months ago.

More to the point, there is the question of where the money is coming from to finance candidates. Most of these folks are getting the bulk of their cash from within the district (or at least the Houston area), while one is getting most of his cash from DC lobbyists and other Beltway insiders.

Too bad that they Chronicle missed what the real point of the discussion is all about. But then again, why am I surprised at the shamefully poor level of political reporting from what is supposed to be a major metropolitan daily? They've done a lousy job of it for years.

The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are "The Courage to Do Nothing" by Big Lizards, and A Stand-up President by The Ornery American.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote:

Congratulations to all. Interestingly enough, both my nominees came in #4 in the vote. Well, maybe we will do better next time.

I don't do geeky quizzes very often, but Hube over at Colossus of Rhodey scored an 85, so I had to try to beat him.

	I received 92 credits on The Sci Fi Sounds Quiz How much of a Sci-Fi geek are you?
Take the Sci-Fi Movie Quiz canon s5 is

Not only that, but I beat Jonah Goldberg from National Review, too!

OK -- who wants to shoot for a perfect score?

Labor unions are up in arms over this one -- but ignore the fact that this is a restriction that can be easily circumvented.

The National Labor Relations Board has ruled that employers have the right to prohibit workers from using the company’s e-mail system to send out union-related messages, a decision that could hamper communications between labor unions and their membership.

In a 3-to-2 ruling released on Friday, the board held that it was legal for employers to prohibit union-related e-mail so long as employers had a policy barring employees from sending e-mail for “non-job-related solicitations” for outside organizations.

The ruling is a significant setback to the nation’s labor unions, which argued that e-mail systems have become a modern-day gathering place where employees should be able to communicate freely with co-workers to discuss work-related matters of mutual concern.

Imagine that -- the work email system should be used for work. You aren't allowed to use your work email for union activity -- which is akin to using company letterhead for union solicitations.

There is, of course, a way around this. With all the FREE email programs out there -- Gmail and the like -- you can establish an address that you are can use for union activity as much as you want. And you can still send your notices TO employees at their company email address under the decision. And employees could, presumably, use their work address to email back to that free email address.

And we know which party ACORN is a surrogate for.

Eight people have been charged with faking voter registration forms in St. Louis city and county in 2006, federal authorities announced today.

The federal indictments were unsealed this morning. Some of the accused have not been arrested yet, so their names are being withheld.

The eight people were employed as voter registration recruiters by ACORN, the not-for-profit Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. ACORN ran a voter registration drive for the general election in November 2006.

This organization is involved in such cases again and again and again. There have been indictments, and convictions, in a number of states. I therefore find it difficult to accept at face value the claim that they are opposed to vote fraud.

After a Christmas party my wife and I attended last night, I have a few pieces of holiday advice for Ron Paul supporters.

1) Proper Christmas celebration headgear is a Santa hat, not a "Ron Paul for President" ball cap.

2) It is appropriate to share pictures (including those on your cell phone) of your family, pets, and close friends with other guests. It is not appropriate to share photos of Ron Paul with other guests in order to prove how close you got to him at a rally.

3) "He does have some interesting ideas" is properly understood as "He and his supporters are loons," not an opening to invite a Democrat to cross over to vote in the GOP primary (this is especially true when she is married to the GOP precinct chair/election judge).

4) "My cousin was seriously wounded in Iraq" is intended to shut down further discussion of Ron Paul, not encourage discussion of his plan to get us out of Iraq, the problem with the military-industrial complex, and Washington's words about entangling alliances in his Farewell Address.

5) "Would you like some more chips" are words intended to distract you from further discussion of Ron Paul by filling your mouth with food, not an invitation to discussion of the federal budget and Ron Paul's plans to eliminate everything that he considers to be unconstitutional federal spending.

6) No, we don't want to know when Ron Paul is going to next be on C-Span. Don't ask, don't tell.

7) Comments about the amusing video another guest saw on YouTube are small-talk, not a request for you to drag someone back to the host's computer to show her the latest videos from Ron Paul and his supporters.

8) Christmas is the birthday of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Sorry, that means we don't believe that Ron Paul is the Messiah, even if you do.

9) When someone steers the conversation to something other than Ron Paul (the guacamole dip, for example), that doesn't mean they want you to relate the new topic to Ron Paul and his campaign for President.

10) Shut up. We don't want to hear about Ron Paul. Really.

So, all you Truthers, conspiracy theorists, neo-Nazis, white supremacists and other Ron Paul supporters reading my words from your room in your Mom's basement, feel free to print out this post and refer back to it so that your friends(?) and family members can have a Merry Christmas.

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Proving that a certain GOP presidential candidate doesn't know jack about our nation's foreign policy.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stuck a toe in the presidential race Friday, taking strong issue after Republican Mike Huckabee accused the administration of having an "arrogant bunker mentality" on foreign policy.

"The idea that somehow this is a go-it-alone policy is just simply ludicrous," she said, briefly weighing in on politics during a State Department news conference in Washington. "One would only have to be not observing the facts, let me say that, to say that this is now a go-it-alone foreign policy."

In response, Huckabee said he held Rice in high regard but questioned whether she had read the entire Foreign Affairs journal article in which he made the "bunker mentality" remark that has drawn fire from fellow Republican candidates.

"Certainly she has a right to speak out. She's still a citizen. I respect her very much," Huckabee told reporters as he campaigned in Iowa.

But he added: "Did she actually read the article or is she reacting as others have to the headlines and to the synopsis that has been printed?"

No, Governor, she read the whole thing -- and she is reacting to the comments of an amateur who is willing to lie about our foreign policy for his own political advantage. Fine, we expect that from Democrats. We expect that from Ron Paul. And now it seems we should expect such things from you. What do all of these individuals have in common -- THEY ARE NOT CONSERVATIVES.

Thanks to Blogs for Victory for highlighting the sort of folks Mike Huckabee sees as a vital part of his campaign.

The Republican presidential candidate, Mike Huckabee, has been garnering attention in the media with his surge in political polls. However, a campaign stop this Sunday by Huckabee at a mega-church whose pastor sees Hitler as linked to the Catholic Church, could soon steal the spotlight.

According to Mike Huckabee’s campaign website, the controversial stop at Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas will take place this Sunday, December 23. He will speak at the church's two Sunday services at 8:30 and 11:00 a.m.

Hagee is clearly a hate-monger of the worst sort. He not only peddles theological opposition to Catholicism (which is fine), but he actually resorts to historical lies to support his position (witness, for example, his comments on the Church and Hitler -- both Pius XI and Pius XII spoke out against Hitler repeatedly). If Huckabeast wants to court such folks -- who use the same rhetoric about Catholicism that the KKK did for generations -- then he is more than welcome to do so. But it is incumbent upon every decent Republican to condemn him for doing so. There is no place for such bigots and bigotry in the Republican Party.

I grew up a fan of the Washington Redskins, though I never had a chance to attend a game. Indeed, I finally did get to see them play in St. Louis when I was in my mid-30s, after the Rams moved there.

And today I am a big fan of the Houston Texans, with season tickets. But I would drop those tickets in a minute if this sort of stuff ever became the standard at Reliant Stadium.

I went to my last professional football game this month. My son and I braved frigid, remote FedEx Field to see our beloved Chicago Bears, the fallen Super Bowl champions, humiliated 24-16 by the struggling Washington Redskins. It wasn't the depth of our despair that will keep us away from football stadiums for good but the depravity of the fans.

I suppose depravity is a strong word. But what better describes drunken adult men, egged on by other grown beer-swillers, belly-shouting the most spectacular obscenities imaginable as they stand next to a 13-year-old boy? Every play was a competition to produce a more vile insult or a different suggestion about which Bear body part might be stuffed up which orifice. When the Redskins scored their first touchdown, four young women -- I'm guessing they were in high school -- turned around and did a little stripper's dance that made my son blush as I cringed. Even putting aside their ages, it was too cold to bare flesh.

Within 10 minutes of kickoff, I knew I had made a terrible mistake taking my son to the game.

The looming aggression and violence was more troubling than the foul language and drunken boorishness. Some of the men near us were enraged and barely in control of themselves. When Bears quarterback Rex Grossman went down with a knee injury, two obese drunks behind us bellowed that they hoped the [expletive] [expletive] would never walk again. They did this over and over, adding slurs and suggested tortures.

I had already pointed out to these gentlemen that there were kids around. They glared at me, furious. It was obvious to me that if I pursued it, there would be a fight or a screaming match.

And as a season ticket holder, I find this part of the story to be even worse.

My son wore a Bears jersey concealed under his layers of fleece and down. A man two rows in front of us who looked like Cpl. Klinger from "M*A*S*H" took it upon himself to needle my son every time something bad happened to the Bears, which happened a lot. He would turn and stare at him and wave goodbye in a threatening way. I know he was trying to be funny, ribbing us in good spirit. But when I asked him to stop, he just shook his head. The very nice man next to me, a season-ticket holder, told me that if I just waited until the second half, the guy would be too drunk to stand.

That isn't the way things are in our part of Reliant Stadium, or in other parts from my experience (and I've been to 90% of the Texans home games since the team was created). We have an alert staff of ushers and off-duty cops who make sure that everyone has a good time at the game, and that the place is family friendly. They even put up a phone number on the jumbotron for you to call if someone in your area is out-of-hand -- and they do take action.

Indeed, our biggest problem is fans coming from out of town to watch the games. I've been spit on by a Cowboy's fan and throughly cursed by a sluttily dressed Dolphinette for demanding that she quit move so that my wife could get to the bathroom from our handicapped accessible seat ("Move for the wheelchair!" was such an unreasonable expectation). One was thrown out of the stadium, and the other would have been arrested if he hadn't run off into the crowd. But other than the occasional drunk getting a bit out of hand, I've not observed the sort of problems described in this column here in Houston.

That's not to say that there isn't taunting -- there is. The funniest may have been a few weeks back when all the Saints fans started chanting "Reggie! Reggie!" after Reggie Bush made a first down near the goal line -- and when he lost the ball on the 1-yard line the very next play, we all dutifully turned around and reciprocated with the same chant of "Reggie! Reggie!" in honor of the running back we didn't draft a year ago. There was even a bit of laughter from both sides. And therein lies the key -- we are there for fun, for entertainment.

So Dick, I hope you don't give up on the NFL. If you get a chance, bring the boy down here to Houston for a game and see how football can be done right.

I've refrained from commenting on this matter for a couple of days -- I wasn't sure how to approach it -- but the story in today's Houston Chronicle merits some mention.

International space station astronaut Dan Tani offered a passionate tribute to his mother on Friday, two days before her funeral service in the Chicago suburb of Lombard, Ill.

Rose Tani, 90, died Wednesday of injuries suffered when her car was struck by a freight train in the community 20 miles west of Chicago.

"My mother was a complete joy," said Tani in a statement distributed by NASA, his first public comments on her death. "Those who knew her will know that words cannot describe her vitality, generosity and warmth. She was my hero. We will all miss her dearly."

The tragedy marked the first time an American astronaut has experienced the loss of an immediate family member while on a space mission.

* * *

Services for Rose Tani were scheduled for Sunday at 1:30 p.m., CST, at the First Church of Lombard United Church of Christ, where the family has worshipped for years.

Other survivors include sons Richard and Steven and daughter Christine.

Tani planned to record a tribute to his mother from the space station to be played at Sunday's service.

Also, Tani's family plans to record the service so that it can be transmitted to him later by NASA, said Evans.

My heartfelt condolences go out to the Tani family as they face this shocking tragedy. They are in my prayers at this time.

This is a reminder of something that NASA folks take for granted, but we outside of the space program never even think about.

"Living on the space station means that I experience all aspects of life — be they joyous or tragic — while circling the Earth without a convenient way to return," said Tani. "Of course, I was aware of this situation before my mission, and I fully accept that I will proudly complete my mission and join my family when I return."

Thursday night, the men from church had our annual Christmas party. I was part of the minority there who had no NASA connection, either current or former NASA employees or contractors. I asked about this situation, and was somewhat surprised to find that there actually was already a protocol for handling this sort of situation. And as Dan Tani points out, the reality of space travel is that there is really no option for coming home in such a situation.

It may, according to some analysts, as the law's requirements of less safe, less popular cars with higher fuel efficiency kick in.

For automakers, tougher fuel economy laws signed by President Bush this week represent a big challenge. For Houston's petrochemical industry, they could mean big business.

To hit the targets, automakers not only will need to develop more efficient engine technologies, but reduce the weight of vehicles, a shift that could open the door for greater use of plastics.

Chemical plants in this region produce many of the raw plastics that already are being used to make auto components.

"Materials manufactured at our facilities in Texas and many other areas of the world will be instrumental in meeting customer needs and new industry standards," said Steve Henderson, president of the Americas for Dow Automotive in Auburn Hills, Mich. The company has manufacturing sites in Freeport, Seadrift and LaPorte that produce materials used in automotive components.

But while chemical companies see opportunity ahead, others see limits to how much plastic and other lightweight materials can be added to vehicles without compromising safety or increasing costs.

Of course the new law is going to compromise safety. Of course it is going to raise costs of vehicles even further. But damn it, it is going to get us to 35 MPG like the greenie-weenies insist we must in order to be in compliance with the dogma of the religion of global warming as proclaimed by the Prophet Al Gore.

But on the bright side, it will boost the local economy, even as more Americans die on the roads and highways of America.

George Romney did, in fact, march with Dr. King.

Shirley Basore, 72, says she was sitting in the hairdresser’s chair in wealthy Grosse Pointe, Mich., back in 1963 when a rumpus started and she discovered that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and her governor, George Romney, were marching for civil rights — right past the window.

With the cape still around her neck, Basore went outside and joined the parade.

“They were hand in hand,” recalled Basore, a former high-school English teacher. “They led the march. We all swung our hands, and they held their hands up above everybody else’s.”

And, of course, there is the press coverage that the Romney campaign has suppled.

No, Mitt Romney was not there -- though no doubt he attended other civil rights events with his father, to whom he was very close. But if this is what constitutes a "scandal" in Romney's background, there is truly a level of desperation among those who are seeking to discredit him. Why not focus on significant misdeeds like can be found in the past of Giuliani and Huckabee rather than a somewhat hyperbolic statement on Mitt's part regarding events that happened 40 years ago?

UPDATE: Dear God, I recognized that this was a horrible tragedy. I didn't think the story could get any more gut-wrenching. It has.

Authorities now know the remains found Thursday morning by a commuter on the Gulf Freeway are those of a 12-year-old boy. They know he was a fifth-grader at Schneider Middle School, and that his mom reported him missing later that day.

But they don't know how Traveon Jamel Jordan LeBlanc ended up crossing the busy interstate, where it's theorized he was struck by several vehicles.

And that this boy's classmates spent much of the day on Friday, the last school day before Christmas, speculating that it might be their friend who had been killed and then having their fears confirmed, tears at my heart even more. may God send his healing mercy down upon his friends, his teachers, and his family .

Read this story of what appears to be a horrible accident here in Houston, and tell me what is missing from it.

Investigators are trying to determine the identity of a person they theorize may have been struck several times while trying to walk across the Gulf Freeway.

A motorist called police early Thursday morning to report seeing what appeared to be human remains in the main lanes of the freeway.

Investigators with the Houston Police Department and Harris County Medical Examiner's Office, while combing the freeway, would later find various pieces of a body.

The macabre scene, which police believe was the result of a pedestrian struck by several vehicles, slowed southbound traffic to a crawl for five hours.

Police could not determine the individual's gender or approximate age and investigators are calling on the public to help identify the person. Officials say the person could have been black. Little else is known.

"We're asking for anyone who was driving by that area before 6:40 (a.m. Thursday) to call us if they saw anything suspicious or out of the ordinary," said HPD spokesman John Cannon.

Police do not know when or if the person was killed after being struck by vehicles on the Gulf Freeway.

The article continues on in a similar vein to the end.

The more I read, the more I was struck by the missing detain. Where, exactly, on the Gulf Freeway did this incident occur. Surely we could have been given an exit or two in order to provide a frame of reference for readers. After all, the Gulf Freeway runs from downtown Houston to Galveston Island -- all of which is part of the Houston metropolitan area. And if you were not caught in the traffic jam, would you necessarily know where the incident took place. You know, especially if you were a teacher driving that stretch of road at 6:30 on the way to school and who didn't get out of school until 3:00 (I lived just off Gulf Freeway for four years and took it to work daily), you might never have been aware of the closed highway and the search for body parts.

Come on, Chronicle "professionals" -- why couldn't you offer your readers these salient details?

By the way, thanks to alert commenters on the website for noting that the incident took place between Airport Blvd and Edgebrook.Authorities now know the remains found Thursday morning by a commuter on the Gulf Freeway are those of a 12-year-old boy. They know he was a fifth-grader at Schneider Middle School, and that his mom reported him missing later that day.

But they don't know how Traveon Jamel Jordan LeBlanc ended up crossing the busy interstate, where it's theorized he was struck by several vehicles.

Imagine that -- work done with public funds needs to be accessible to the public. What a novel concept.

It is barely a drop of ink in the gargantuan omnibus spending bill that Congress just passed. But a provision that would give the public free access to the results of federally funded biomedical research represents a sweet victory for a coalition of researchers and activists who lobbied for the language for years.

Under the bill's terms, scientists getting grant money from the National Institutes of Health would now have to submit to the NIH a final copy of their research papers when those papers are accepted for publication in a journal. An NIH database would then post those papers, free to the public, within 12 months after publication.

The idea is that taxpayers, who have already paid for the research, should not have to subscribe to expensive scientific journals to read about the results.

That populist line -- spearheaded by patient advocacy groups seeking easier access to the latest medical findings and supported by libraries whose budgets have had trouble keeping up with rising journal subscription costs -- ultimately overwhelmed objections from journal publishers. Those firms had complained bitterly that proponents bypassed the congressional committees that could have carefully compared the new approach to less disruptive systems for making information available to the public, some of which are already being used by other science-funding agencies.

I love the response from one of the lobbyists for the journal publishers -- "It's not over yet."

Yes, it is. It is called FEDERAL LAW. Comply or die when the lawsuits fly.

This could be the big story of the political season -- and explain the solicitations that keep showing up in my email.

Fred Thompson’s plan is simple: Get on a bus and haul around to some 50 Iowa towns and cities between now and Jan. 3.

It’s the only option he has.

Thompson has little money left in bank and has had to slash his television presence here to a level well below that of Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee. His cash crunch is so severe that he’s even had to freeze his direct mail plan.

So now, for the next two weeks before the caucuses, he'll be largely living off the land.

As I look at things, Fred Thompson OUGHT TO BE one of the top three candidates in the race. He OUGHT TO BE drawing support away from Rudy and McCain. But he never has managed to do so at a significant level, because he never really got the campaign off the ground. He is great in debates. he is great in person. But while everyone else was out on the campaign trail, Thompson has been significantly less active on every front.

This leads me to two conclusions.

1) Fred Thompson's only hope is a strong finish in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. Second in any one of them would be great, but lower than third in more than one of them should drive a stake through the heart of his campaign.

2) Fred;s major asset now is that he is the ideal vice presidential candidate on any ticket except for McCain's (two Senators is a bad idea, though the Dems might do it). After all, Fred Thompson is the second choice of most Republicans, including this one. He effectively balances the ticket ideologically and/or geographically.

Six months ago, I suspected that I was standing inches from the next President of the United States when he flew into Houston. Now I'm pretty sure that he will max-out at Vice President.

I'm a Christian.

I also believe, quite firmly, in evolution.

And I do not see a contradiction in the two.

Indeed, there are a pair of quotes in today's Michael Gerson column in the Washington Post that quite clearly reflect my point of view on the matter, each from author Leon Kass

The first notes that there is a rough parallel betwen evolutionary theory and the Genesis creation account.

Leon Kass, in his masterful work "The Beginning of Wisdom: Reading Genesis," observes, "The biblical account is perfectly compatible with the fact of a slowly evolving cosmos, with life arriving late, beginning in the sea and only later emerging on earth, progressively distinguished into a variety of separated kinds."

Indeed, if one does not read that account with a spirit of wooden literalism, that parallel is quite obvious. That would make the beginning of Genesis an allegory, rather than a history. And to those who object, may point out that if mere human beings are capable of using that literary technique, then so is an omniscient, omnipotent God.

But more important is the Kass quote that closes the column.

"Let us assume that creation is evolution," argues Leon Kass, "and proceeds solely by natural processes. What is responsible for this natural process? . . . Can a dumb process, ruled by strict necessity and chance mutation, having no rhyme or reason, ultimately answer sufficiently for life, for man, for the whole? . . . And when we finally allow ourselves to come face-to-face with the mystery that there is anything at all rather than nothing, can we evolutionists confidently reject the first claim of the Bible -- 'In [the] beginning, God created the heavens and the earth'?"

My argument is that no, that claim cannot be rejected. At the same time, God cannot be scientifically proven. There is no way to place God in a test tube or under a microscope slide, and there is no reagent that can test for his presence or absence. But as has often been pointed out, science and faith can be seen as -- and ought to be seen as -- complementary rather than contradictory. To place them at odds with one another is to present a false dichotomy, for coming to understand the divine miracle of creation AND evolution (which are, dare I say, one and the same) should not necessitate the the rejection of a Creator. Similarly, faith in a Creator God need not result in the rejection of the scientific laws and processes by which creation was carried out and which God gave us the intellect to understand. Indeed, both of those extreme positions fall well outside the boundaries of the Judeo-Christian faith tradition, and must be labeled heretical. Let them be anathema.

Mitt and Rudy are essentially tied, with Huckabee within the margin of error of the two front-runners.

After holding a double-digit advantage over his nearest rivals just six weeks ago, the former New York City mayor now is tied nationally with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney at 20% among Republicans, just slightly ahead of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee at 17% and Arizona Sen. John McCain at 14%. Other polls show Mr. Giuliani's lead shrinking in Florida, one of the states he has built his strategy around.

With the poll's margin of error of plus-or-minus 3.1 percentage points, that puts Mr. Huckabee, who had only single-digit support in the previous poll in early November, within striking distance of the leaders. Mr. Romney's national support also has nearly doubled.

On the other hand, Huckabee leads in Iowa, so that could really shake matters up going into New Hampshire and South Carolina. And in a shift that may bode well for Romney, voters are now more concerned about the economy than about Iraq -- and Mitt's business experience will be a plus for him there.

My guess -- we may see a floor fight at the GOP convention, and a brokered ticket. My question is whether the resulting publicity will be a positive or negative thing for the GOP.

I first wrote about this in October -- but it seems that Ron Paul is still holding on to that racist cash, despite his fund raising success. I guess that there is no contributor odious enough to be rejected -- so expect Ron Paul to solicit cash from Michale Jackson, OJ Simpson, and Drew Peterson.

Republican presidential hopeful Ron Paul has received a $500 campaign donation from a white supremacist, and the Texas congressman doesn't plan to return it, an aide said Wednesday.

Don Black, of West Palm Beach, recently made the donation, according to campaign filings. He runs a Web site called Stormfront with the motto, "White Pride World Wide." The site welcomes postings to the "Stormfront White Nationalist Community."

"Dr. Paul stands for freedom, peace, prosperity and inalienable rights. If someone with small ideologies happens to contribute money to Ron, thinking he can influence Ron in any way, he's wasted his money," Paul spokesman Jesse Benton said. "Ron is going to take the money and try to spread the message of freedom."

"And that's $500 less that this guy has to do whatever it is that he does," Benton added.

Why is this a big deal? Aside from the fact that it tells us a great deal about Ron Paul's (lack of) ethics and morality, he has recently accused patriotic Christians of being fascists. How much credibility can he have on that score when he takes money from an actual fascist and refuses to divest himself of it? Seems to me that fascism in America already wears a Ron Paul for President button.

No one suggests that Ron Paul screen his donors -- but when he knows that he is getting cash from such a source, he has no business keeping it. And as I've suggested, Ron Paul does not need to return the money to Black -- give it to a charitable organization that Paul supports that is absolutely antithetical to Black's views, such as the US Holocaust Museum or the Congress on Racial Equality.

Lone Star Times, which first broke this story, has another possible revelation about Ron Paul's ties to Nazis, racists, and other scummy types.

MORE AT Captain's Quarters, Hot Air, Stop The ACLU, FullosseousFlap’s Dental Blog, Liberal Values, The Liberty Papers, Kevin McCulloch

OPEN TRACKBACKING AT Outside the Beltway, The Virtuous Republic, Rosemary's Thoughts, Faultline USA, Adam's Blog, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, The Pink Flamingo, Celebrity Smack, Leaning Straight Up, Cao's Blog, The Amboy Times, Big Dog's Weblog, Wolf Pangloss, and Conservative Cat, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

Because if there were an actual demand for them, there would be no need for this legislation.

After a year of partisan combat and legislative stalemate, President Bush and Democratic congressional leaders came together yesterday for a holiday season consensus as they enacted legislation to promote energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) joined Bush for their first bill-signing ceremony with him since Democrats took over Congress in January, using the occasion to look past the disputes that marked a year of divided government.

* * *

The new law increases the fuel-efficiency standards for passenger vehicles for the first time since 1975, requiring new cars to average 35 miles per gallon by 2020 instead of the 25 mpg now required. It also requires fuel producers to use at least 36 billion gallons of ethanol and other biofuels by 2022, a fivefold increase over the current standard, to reduce the dependence on oil. And it includes new rules and incentives to encourage greater efficiency in light bulbs and buildings.

Americans have shown time and again with their checkbooks that they want bigger, more heavily powered vehicles. Increasing the fleet standards will likely require that the automobile manufacturers produce more small vehicles with less powerful engines. And we know that such vehicles are, by and large, less safe for drivers and passengers than the larger, heavier vehicles.

And for the record, I don't drive an SUV -- I drive a smaller vehicle that meets the 35 MPG standard (or at least comes close). I do so by choice.

When will the crew in Washington read Adam Smith?

I can understand that a politician may vote "present" on some legislation -- usually of little consequence -- when he is undecided. But Obama used it to avoid "NO" votes on politically sensitive yet popular legislation. Where is the leadership on that?

In 1999, Barack Obama was faced with a difficult vote in the Illinois legislature — to support a bill that would let some juveniles be tried as adults, a position that risked drawing fire from African-Americans, or to oppose it, possibly undermining his image as a tough-on-crime moderate.

In the end, Mr. Obama chose neither to vote for nor against the bill. He voted “present,” effectively sidestepping the issue, an option he invoked nearly 130 times as a state senator.

Sometimes the “present’ votes were in line with instructions from Democratic leaders or because he objected to provisions in bills that he might otherwise support. At other times, Mr. Obama voted present on questions that had overwhelming bipartisan support. In at least a few cases, the issue was politically sensitive.

The picture that emerges is of a legislator who was a follower much of the time rather than a leader -- and who lacked the courage of his convictions when confronted with tough votes. That isn't leadership for change -- it is political cowardice.

Remember, you don't get to vote "PRESENT" as president.

I like Tom Tancredo, and am in general agreement with him on immigration issues. That said, I never saw him as a serious candidate for the presidency.

Neither did anyone else. Tancredo is withdrawing from the race today.

Republican Rep. Tom Tancredo, whose forceful opposition to illegal immigration vaulted him to national prominence, plans to announce he is abandoning his long-shot bid for the presidency, a person close to Tancredo said Wednesday.

The five-term Colorado congressman planned to make the announcement at a news conference in Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak for Tancredo or his campaign.

Tancredo's campaign would only say he planned a "major announcement" Thursday.

The interesting question will be where he throws his miniscule support. Having seen one of the founders of the Minutemen endorse Huckabee, will he go that direction? Or will he instead go for one of the other candidates? And given the fact that the Tancredo campaign never really took off, does it matter as more than a symbolic gesture?

Expect to see Tancredo compete for the Senate seat being vacated by Wayne Allard.

Some headlines just seem too obvious for words. Take this one from today’s Houston Chronicle.

Gunfire leads to the discovery of body

Shots fired. Dead body. Not a surprise. After all, when you are inside the city limits, it is unlikely that you are going to hear shots fired by someone hunting for game.

Americans have made it pretty clear that they are against redefining marriage to be anything but one man and one woman. But it seems that John Edwards isn’t too concerned with what the American people thing – he wants to appeal to the left side of the Democrat base.

John Edwards said yesterday that if elected president, he would try to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, signed in 1996 by President Clinton, and do away with the ban on homosexuals serving openly in the U.S. military.

After a star-studded campaign event in this small town's opera house, the former North Carolina senator said the law known as DOMA is "discriminatory."

"I think we should get rid of DOMA; I think DOMA was a mistake from the beginning, and discriminatory, and so I will do everything in my power as president to do that," the Democratic candidate said in a three-minute meeting with reporters.

Asked by The Washington Times why the act is discriminatory, he bristled, then said: "I think it's discriminatory against gay and lesbian couples, that's what's discriminatory about it."

An Edwards staffer ended the press conference one minute later.

Interesting, isn’t it, that the staff made sure that Edwards didn’t do himself any additional damage there. After all, he pretty clearly revealed his contempt for the majority of Americans, including the majority of his own party. And while I think he is correct with his assessment of “don’t ask, don’t tell” as a nonsensical policy (see the great piece by my friends at GayPatriot on the topic), the gay marriage issue is different. When the American people have spoken at the polls, they have made it clear that the overwhelming majority of us oppose the redefinition of marriage away from its traditional definition as one man and one woman. We need a Federal Marriage Amendment now to stop a radical ideologue from overturning the will of the people on this matter.

Could an undetectable mini-asteroid be the end of the world as we know it?

AN ASTEROID too small to be picked up by telescopes could wipe out a city, killing up to a million people, a leading scientist has warned. Objects less than 460ft across are not currently detected, but research suggests they pack a far mightier punch than previously feared.

A computer simulation carried out in the United States shows asteroids as small as 100ft wide could cause "airbursts" similar to one that flattened 1,250 square miles of Siberian forest almost a century ago.

Dr Mark Boslough, in a report published in New Scientist, said: "It is becoming clear previous models are not right. If one of these events hit an area of high population density, it could kill a million people."

I’ve always wondered about the possibility of another “Tunguska event” occurring – and the effect of such an event over a city. Imagine the possibility of something like this happening over, for example, San Francisco or Paris or Tokyo. There would be mass devastation. Similarly, a modern blast of this sort in Russia or China might trigger a nuclear response before there was even time to investigate what happened.

The cell phone has become ubiquitous in America. Most of us have (at least) one. And they cost a pretty penny, too -- more than our land lines do. So why is anyone surprised by this report.

With Americans cutting the cord to their land lines, 2007 is likely to be the first calendar year in which U.S. households spend more on cell phone services, industry and government officials say.

The most recent government data show that households spent $524, on average, on cell phone bills in 2006, compared with $542 for residential and pay-phone services. By now, though, consumers almost certainly spend more on their cell phone bills, several telecom industry analysts and officials said.

"What we're finding is there's a huge move of people giving up their land line service altogether and using cell phones exclusively," said Allyn Hall, consumer research director for market research firm In-Stat.

As recently as 2001, U.S. households spent three times as much on residential phone services as they did on cell phones. But the expansion of wireless networks has made cell phones more convenient, and a wider menu of services, including text messaging, video and music, has made it easier for consumers to spend money via their cell phone.

"Frankly, I'd be shocked if (households) don't spend more on cell phones at this point," said Andrew Arthur, vice president of market solutions at Mediamark Research & Intelligence.

When taxes, fees, and everything else is taken into account, I spend something like $15 more a month for two cell phone lines on a family plan than I do on our home phone (until you throw in my internet service which comes on the same bill -- but that would be cheating). And when you look at families of four and five with everyone carrying a cellular phone, it must cost significantly more.

And, of course, there are the folks with no land line, just a cell phone.

My question is when prices will drop as demand increases.

Well, that is what one poll tells us.

A new InsiderAdvantage/Majority Opinion poll out of Iowa shows John Edwards leaping from third to first place in Iowa, and the GOP field ever-tightening, as the Jan. 3 caucuses approach.

The Democratic poll, taken from Dec. 16-17 of 977 Democrats who said they intend to participate in the caucuses, showed Edwards with 30 percent, followed by New York Sen. Hillary Clinton with 26 percent and Illinois Sen. Barack Obama with 24 percent.

The poll, which is an automated survey taken overnight, suggests the former North Carolina senator - who has been steadily trumpeting his anti-special interest, populist message - is resonating in Iowa. Other recent polls showed Obama overtaking Clinton, and Edwards stuck in third.

But maybe not, folks, when you look at who is most likely to turn out for the caucus.

However, when the InsiderAdvantage poll’s sample group was narrowed to 633 Democrats most likely to caucus, Obama retained a 1-point lead. That poll gave Obama 27 percent, Edwards 26 percent and Clinton 24 percent. The tighter sample group had a margin of error of 3 percent, while the broader group had a margin of error of 2 percent.

In other words, Iowa is a toss-up for the Dems.

And for the GOP, too, with the same sort of mixed results depending on what your sample looks like.

On the Republican side, the broader poll of 835 voters who intend to caucus showed former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee with 28 percent, followed by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with 25 percent. When the screen was tightened to 418 likely caucus-goers, the race flipped: Romney took 28 percent and Huckabee took 25 percent. The poll is a reversal from recent surveys showing Huckabee leading Romney by double digits.

The tighter sample group had a margin of error of 5 percent, while the broader group had a margin of error of 3 percent.

The short answer is that, two weeks out, we have a statistical tie in both parties. That means that Iowa belongs to anyone -- and with it, the (temporary) title of front-runner for the nomination.

UPDATE: Bill Clinton lied!

In a statement sent to CNN Tuesday afternoon, former President Bush’s chief of staff Jean Becker said that he “wholeheartedly supports the President of the United States, including his foreign policy. He has never discussed an ‘around-the-world-mission’ with either former President Bill Clinton or Sen. Clinton, nor does he think such a mission is warranted since he is proud of the role America continues to play around the world as the beacon of hope for freedom and democracy.

“President Bush is excited about several of the excellent Republican candidates running for president, and looks forward to discussing their candidacy once the Republican nominee is determined.”

I’m curious – did Billzebubba and Hildebeast get the approval of former President George H. W. Bush to associate his name and prestige with their insult directed at his son, the current occupant of the Oval Office.

Former President Bill Clinton said Monday that the first thing his wife Hillary will do when she reaches the White House is dispatch him and his predecessor, President George H.W. Bush, on an around-the-world mission to repair the damage done to America's reputation by the current president — Bush's son, George W. Bush.

"Well, the first thing she intends to do, because you can do this without passing a bill, the first thing she intends to do is to send me and former President Bush and a number of other people around the world to tell them that America is open for business and cooperation again," Clinton said in response to a question from a supporter about what his wife's "number one priority" would be as president.

I’m willing to bet that the appropriation of the name and reputation of the father to damage the son was done without the knowledge, much less the permission, of the father. It is a thoroughly disgusting, classless act. But it is also typical the unscrupulous manner in which the Clinton’s operate. After all, they are both very skilled liars.

Gotta love this video brought to you by the Religion of Blow the Infidels to Pieces!

A children's sing-along DVD for would-be suicide bombers is being investigated by police after being found on sale in one of Britain's terrorist hotbeds.

The disturbing disc of music videos - part of an Egyptian-made series - shows a young girl singing about following in the footsteps of her suicide bomber mother.
A group of self-proclaimed orphans also turn against the West over the plight of the Palestinian people.

The shocking DVD was purchased in Bradford, West Yorks, and full details of the Leeds-based UK distributors are contained on the back of the cover.

The West Yorkshire Police specialist counter terrorism unit are investigating the contents - which contain three tracks sung by children in Arabic with English subtitles.

There is just something fundamentally sick within a faith that so regularly produces crap like this. It has even ceased being shocking – especially after it has been determined that the bomb that marred Benazir Bhutto’s homecoming was actually strapped to an infant. Therefore, I can’t even profess to be surprised by the evil contained in the tape.

H/T Malkin

Great news on the cinematic front. Peter Jackson will be making the film version of The Hobbit.

Peter Jackson has won the battle for Middle-earth and is to make The Hobbit.

The Oscar-winning Wellington film-maker and Hollywood studios New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios announced today that they had resolved their legal dispute. Jackson and partner Fran Walsh will serve as executive producers on two Hobbit movies.

Pre-production will begin as soon as possible and both will be shot simultaneously, tentatively in 2009. The Hobbit is likely to be released in 2010 and the sequel in 2011.

I’m pleased to hear that Jackson’s masterful interpretation of Middle Earth will continue – but I do have one question. A sequel? What sequel? What sequel is the sequel to The Hobbit?

My God – is the woman really this stupid?

The hotel heiress was so enamoured with the two dwarf actors - who were dressed as the blue cartoon characters to promote Haribo's new Smurf sweets at a Christmas market in, Berlin, Germany - she asked if she could take them home with her.

A source said: "When Paris saw the guys on the sweet stall she squealed. We heard her saying, 'Oh my, real life Smurfs. I always wanted one when I was a kid', before turning to her pal and asking, 'Can I take them home?'

"Then she added 'I didn't realise this is where they came from'."

“I didn’t realize this is where they came from?” You must be freakin’ kidding. Nobody is this far out of contact with reality. Surely this has to be a put on. At least I hope it is.

After all, what else do you call a candidate who implies that patriotic Christians to be fascists (other than a contender for the Democrat nomination)?

Screw you, Congressman. You are no Christian. You are no patriot. You are, however, a disgrace to the state of Texas and to the nation as a whole.

These words will be remembered by every Christian in your district, and will be used to guarantee that not only will you fail to win the presidency, but you will lose your congressional seat as well.

And by the way – I won’t vote for Huckabee any more than I would vote for Ron Paul.

Yeah, I understand that he is quoting Sinclair Lewis – but since Ron Paul has adopted it as his own, I’m glad to treat it as such. By the way – nice use of the words of a socialist to impugn the faith and patriotism of your political opponents, you pathetic demagogue.

More At Stop The ACLU, Right on the Right

Fidel may be permanently surrendering power -- but I doubt it.

Fidel Castro indicated Monday in a statement read on state television that he was willing to hand over the reins of Cuba’s government to a younger generation of leaders. But his statement remained silent on whether he was speaking hypothetically or had a transition plan in mind.

“My basic duty is not to cling to office, nor even more so, to obstruct the rise of people much younger, but to pass on experiences and ideas whose modest value arises from the exceptional era in which I lived,” said the statement attributed to Mr. Castro, who is 81.

The ailing Mr. Castro, acting in a sort of emeritus role, has produced numerous commentaries in the 16 months since he had abdominal surgery and temporarily handed over power to his younger brother, Raúl, who is 76. But none of the statements until now have addressed the important question of Mr. Castro’s future as Cuba’s president, a position he has held for nearly five decades.

The most recent speculation in Havana had been that Mr. Castro might be trying to make a comeback. His health was said to be improving, and on Dec. 2 he was officially nominated as a candidate for the next National Assembly. The assembly meets in March to choose a 31-member Council of State, which will select the next president.

Because only assembly members qualify for the top job, Mr. Castro’s nomination as a candidate seemed to rule out the notion that he was retiring from politics and ceding power to Raúl, the defense minister and constitutionally designated successor.

I suspect, though, that this is just sort of a polite demurral. Castro will not let go of power -- informally, if not formally -- while he still has breath in him. He is just respecting the constitutional niceties, sort of like Saddam Hussein and many other dictators have done.

I still long to see Fidel and Raul hanging by their heels like Mussolini. Then there will be a great dawning of freedom for all Cubans.

Over the issue of retroactive immunity for telecom companies that cooperated with anti-terrorism efforts -- despite strong bipartisan support for that element of the bill.

By 76 to 10, with Democrats divided, the Senate voted to advance the bill for consideration. A measure to block it, which was led by Senator Christopher J. Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut fell short, as those who wanted the bill to reach the floor got 16 votes more than the 60 needed to achieve that goal.

The margin was 76-10. How then, could it fail?

Only if the extremist-beholden Democrat "leadership" pulls the bill from consideration.

Amid deep and growing divisions among Senate Democrats, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) last night abruptly withdrew legislation that would have changed surveillance law and granted the nation's telecommunications companies retroactive immunity from lawsuits charging they had violated privacy rights.

Democratic leaders had hoped to complete an overhaul of the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act before recessing for the year, since the current law governing the Bush administration's warrantless surveillance program is set to expire in early February. But in the face of more than a dozen amendments to the bill and guerrilla tactics from its opponents, Reid surprised his colleagues when he announced there would not be enough time to finish the job.

"Everyone feels it would be in the best interest of the Senate if we take a look at this when we come back," Reid said, acknowledging the time crunch he faces in the "last hours" of this congressional session and the hefty number of agenda items remaining.

"Everyone"? Would that include all 78 members of the Senate who voted in favor of telecom immunity, or only "everyone" among the 10 who opposed it?

After the January return, there will be only two weeks to adopt a new FISA bill. Are Dems willing to (again) endanger American national security for partisan purposes?

No, not the message -- with which I am in essential agreement.

No, I'm talking about the rather bizarre lighting and framing of the shot. Shouldn't it be the Christmas tree, not the window frame, that is illuminated?

Unless, of course, one is seeking to send a not-so-subliminal sumliminal message.

Who'd have thought, though, that we would ever reach a day in America that a commercial wishing people a Merry Christmas -- and explicitly reminding us that it is CHRISTmas -- would be somehow controversial. The message is dead-on correct. But the cheap lighting gimmick really goes a bit too far.

More Commentary at Captain's Quarters, Blogs for Victory, Andrew Sullivan (twice), Stumper

The former Pakistani Prime Minister is disqualified by the country's top election authority. But it appears his party will stay in the race.

Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif lost his appeal against the rejection of his nomination for next month's parliamentary elections, an official said Tuesday, eliminating a key opposition leader from the crucial vote.

The Election Commission rejected Sharif's appeal Monday, commission spokesman Kanwar Dilshad said. Dilshad declined to give details, confirming only a report in the Urdu-language Jang daily Tuesday that Sharif was out of the elections.

Sharif, who has been campaigning for his Pakistan Muslim League-N party, has been demanding that President Pervez Musharraf restore Supreme Court judges he sacked during a 42-day state of emergency that he lifted over the weekend.

Sharif's party initially called for a boycott of the vote but decided against it after failing to muster support from other opposition groups for a united action.

Sharif and his supporters can't afford to sit this one out. If they do, they will be effectively excluded from the political dialogue after the election. Also, a significant showing by his party might get the former prime minister's political rights restored, as was done for Benazir Bhutto,

The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Pearl Harbor... And 9/11 by Joshuapundit, and Men of Valor: Part IV by Michael Yon.  Here are (the full results of the vote:

I got hit with a penalty this week because my votes got lost in cyberspace, so I might have otherwise finished higher in the standings. And had my vote gotten through, the only difference would have been that the Watcher would not have had to cast that tie-breaker vote -- but the results would have been the same.

UPDATE: It appears that Francisco Nava is behind the threats and inflicted his own injuries. In keeping with my previous policy of condemning false hate crimes, I wholeheartedly condemn his actions.

And before anyone asks, I specifically do not offer an apology to columnist Jason Sheltzer. I believe my assessment of his column, which was shared by numerous letter-writers published by the Daily Princetonian, is accurate. His column was motivated by the very sort of bias and bigotry that he condemned in the Anscombe Society -- and fell well-short of any standard of intellectual rigor.

An interesting situation has come into being at Princeton this week, one which is antithetical to the purpose of a university -- and which shows just how far down the path of fascism one side of the political/social/moral divide has descended.

Some quick background. A group of students organized a group called the Anscombe Society at Princeton University and obtained recognition two years ago. They have held a national conference, helped organize chapters on other campuses, and have recently seen one of their members named a Rhodes Scholar. They are an organization that promotes traditional moral values with regard to sexuality and gender -- positions that were definitely mainstream within my lifetime, and which are still overwhelmingly held by a majority of Americans. they seek to promote their views through debate, discussion and intellectual persuasion. And that is something that is threatening to the Left, and which cannot be allowed to remain unchallenged.

And so Princeton students awoke on Wednesday, December 12, to find the group attacked in in the Daily Princetonian a column by columnist Jason Sheltzer.

The Anscombe Society deserves a closer look, and what one uncovers isn't pretty.

I spent a few hours browsing through the Anscombe Society's website and reading the "Articles of the Week" distributed to their listserv. I found much more than benevolent admonitions to wait until marriage. Instead, the Anscombe Society has taken a strong stance against equal rights for gays and lesbians and is in favor of a return to "traditional gender roles."

In other words, Sheltzer declared the Anscombe Society to be a hate group. Interestingly enough, Sheltzer does not actually take the time to refute any of the positions the group takes or any of the arguments made in articles he quotes (I suspect he lacks the intellectual capacity to do so). Instead, he simply implies that the members of the Anscombe society are not "morally conscious" and that they promote "religious propaganda", and that they preach "wrongheaded notions."

Now perhaps it is purely coincidental, but within hours of the publication of Sheltzer's screed, someone acted upon it, seeking to ensure that such
wrongheaded notions" ceased being preached by those who are not "morally conscious".

Four officers of the Anscombe Society and a prominent conservative politics professor received threatening emails Wednesday evening from off-campus email addresses.

The five individuals received identical messages telling them they would "suffer," ordering them to "shut the fuck up" and declaring that "you are not welcome here." "We will destroy you," the message said.

Though the message did not explicitly mention the Anscombe Society, the four students who received emails were Anscombe vice president Jonathan Hwang '09, president Kevin Staley-Joyce '09, former president Sherif Girgis '08 and administrative committee chair Francisco Nava '09. Politics professor Robert George — who has publicly supported conservative causes, including the Anscombe Society's goal of promoting chastity — also received the message.

"It would be safe to say that the Anscombe Society is a common factor linking all of us," Hwang said. "It is the most intense reaction to the Anscombe Society that I've ever received."

University spokeswoman Cass Cliatt '96 said the University is investigating the threat but declined to elaborate because of security concerns. "The normal protocol for these types of threats is for public safety to determine the credibility and proceed to investigate," she said in an email.

Now I won't claim that Sheltzer is in any way morally, legally, or personally responsible for these threats -- though I would be willing to bet that Sheltzer would make precisely such an assertion if a conservative student had written such a piece against a liberal group and it had been followed immediately by death threats against that group's officers and adviser. After all, it would be the clearly foreseeable consequence of such speech, he and his fellow liberals would no doubt argue, claiming that such speech had created a hostile environment for and diminished the safety of the members of whichever protected class the group represented. Such threats would have become the university's top priority -- and "normal protocol" would have been suspended by the University, with the threats being immediately treated as serious and solidarity shown with the threatened group.

That didn't happen.

Indeed, it hadn't happened the last time Anscombe Society members had received such threats.

It is tempting to believe that this is only an isolated incident. It is not. These tactics are part of a pattern designed to silence members of our community who speak out against the hookup culture and sexual liberationist ideology.

Francisco Nava '09 returned to Princeton after the summer break feeling a new sense of intellectual liberation. He had resolved to a kind of political coming-out, deciding that he would, as he told me, "no longer mask my views on contemporary moral issues."

And so he joined the Anscombe Society as an active member. He spoke up in class and precept in order to defend the beliefs that do not just belong to him — they define him and his faith. It was then that he was first faced with personal intimidation here at Princeton University. Anonymously scrawled on a piece of paper and laid hauntingly in his mailbox, Nava found the aggressive message: "YOU HAVE FOUND THE WRONG CAUSE."

Though rendered a little "afraid and paranoid" by the malice behind such a threat, Francisco tried to let it slip from his mind. Mustering the courage to continue to speak out, he published a well-argued opinion piece in these pages entitled "Princeton's Latex Lies." Heralded by some and denounced by others, the article prompted campus-wide discussion of pertinent issues of health and morality.

Two days passed. Returning from Sunday morning church services, Nava discovered a new note written with the same ominous green and black ink as the first. It read, chillingly: "ONE MORE ARTICLE AND YOU WON'T LIVE TO SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY."

He wrote to me: "For several days I lived in fear of saying, writing or even thinking anything controversial in class or informally among my friends." Nava's foray into intellectual openness came to an abrupt, horrible stop. And only a week later, a third threat with the same message was placed in his mailbox.

On the afternoon of the second threat, Public Safety dutifully arrived on the scene and collected the letter as evidence. Presumably a report was filed and, as Nava, an alternate RCA, informed me, all reports involving students are forwarded to the administration. Herein lies the most disturbing detail: The administration of Princeton University knows that a member of its student body has had his life threatened. And nothing happened.

After nearly a month of waiting, he received a two-line email from Public Safety. But from Butler College, from Nassau Hall, from West College, there was nothing.

As Princetonian columnist Brandon McGinley points out, this stands in stark contrast to how Princeton had responded to another such incident around the same time.

It is instructive here to compare the treatment of Nava, the morally conservative Mormon student, with the administration's swift and forceful reaction to another incident on Princeton's campus.

Returning from Fall Break, some homosexual students found obscenities — apparently phalluses and other images — sketched on the blackboards outside their rooms. Within a few hours, Whitman College had RCAs, counselors and two deans to the scene. The LGBT Center sent out a notice about the event and encouraged students to mount pink triangles in their windows and doors to show solidarity.

On the afternoon of Sunday, Nov. 11, Nava sat alone in his room. There were no counselors. There were no deans. There was no University-sponsored center to raise awareness, offer support and encourage solidarity. There was just Francisco.

It seems pretty clear who is valued and protected by the university, isn't it -- and that if you are a conservative student with traditional religious values, you are not valued and will not be protected by the university when your life is threatened. You certainly will not receive the sort of outspoken, public support that gay students will receive when confronted with disgusting images. After all, what is one potentially dead conservative religious student when there are offended homosexuals to be comforted and lifted up? Such a conservative is not the victim of a hate crime (and, unlike the offended gay students, Nava was the victim of a crime) -- and besides, with his positions he deserves to be hated, reviled and harassed, right?

Now this would be a scandalous enough situation if the story ended there. It didn't.

Francisco Nava '09 was physically attacked by two men in Princeton Township Friday evening, sustaining a concussion but no other serious injuries. The assault comes on the heels of several threatening messages recently sent to Nava, apparently in connection with his involvement with the socially conservative Anscombe Society.

Details of the incident have not been confirmed by Princeton Township Police or the University Medical Center at Princeton, but Nava said in an interview Friday evening that he was walking from a borrowed car to the house of a boy he is mentoring when he was stopped by a man dressed in black and wearing a ski cap. According to Nava, the man said that someone was hurt and asked for his help. A second assailant, who was waiting around the corner, grabbed Nava from behind. Together, the two men checked him against a wall and repeatedly hit his head against the bricks.

"Eventually I just blacked out," Nava said in an interview last night. "I don't remember what happened; I just saw a bunch of white." When he came to, he said, the two men were still hitting him.

The two men told Nava to "shut the fuck up" as they left him lying on the ground. Though he was carrying a wallet, credit cards and a cell phone, the assailants did not take any of Nava's belongings.

Indeed, Nava draws the obvious connection between this act of physical violence designed to silence him and the threats that have been coming for months with no significant action by the university.

There have been two very interesting and eloquent posts on The Prox, the blog of the Daily Princetonian. Also interesting is the lack of comment there from columnist Jason Sheltzer. I guess his moral consciousness is out at the dry cleaners or some such thing.

And, for that matter, so was the moral consciousness of the Princeton University community as a whole. The scheduled event expressing solidarity with the conservative victims of these hate crimes did not happen after all. I guess they don't have enough PC points to qualify for support. But it appears that conservative students at Princeton plan on standing firm for their principles.

And somehow, neither the local paper nor the national media can be troubled to report the story. maybe its because Princeton itself refuses to issue an alert to students about the incident or take any serious action in response to the threats or the attack.

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We've got public colleges and universities installing special Muslim footbaths and other accommodations that would never be given to Christians, Jews, or other religious groups. Now we've got one school that has effectively created a mosque in what is supposedly a non-sectarian "meditation room".

Last week, I visited a Muslim place of worship. A schedule for Islam's five daily prayers was posted at the entrance, near a sign requesting that shoes be removed. Inside, a barrier divided men's and women's prayer space, an arrow informed worshippers of the direction of Mecca, and literature urged women to cover their faces.

Sound like a mosque?

The place I'm describing is the "meditation room" at Normandale Community College, a 9,200-student public institution in Bloomington.

Architectural features have been added to "accommodate" Muslims. Students are directed to follow Muslim practices when they enter the room. The only literature available there is Muslim. There is nothing there that accommodates members of any other faith group. And what's more, attempts by members of other religious traditions to use the facility have been met with acts of bigotry and intolerance from Muslim students.

Confrontations also erupted in the sex-segregated meditation room, according to Lunaas. "Muslim students just took it over. They made people who were not of the Muslim religion feel very uncomfortable, especially if they were female."

One female student tried to use the room when Muslim students were in it, said Lunaas. "She believed she should be treated equally. They were telling her to leave, to take off her shoes, to go to the other side of the divider."

The response of college officials?

[Dean of Student Affairs Ralph] Anderson said that in the incident involving the young woman, "both sides were probably out of line."

Both sides were probably out of line? How, exactly, was the young woman out of line? By trying to make use of a university provided facility? By refusing to follow a religious tradition not her own? While I am sure that there is significantly more to the story than we are told in this commentary piece, it seems pretty clear that refusing to abide by demands that she not use the space as an equal and in a manner that is in accord with her religious tradition is not "out of line". And if Anderson believes the young woman was "out of line" for making a forthright, and perhaps even heated, defense of her right to not be treated as a second-class citizen in a public space on a public college campus where she is a student, I think it is fair to say that the college is out of line in employing him in any capacity.

But then again, perhaps the reality is that we have reached an Orwellian situation where certain animals are more equal than others. And rather than the communist pigs of Animal Farm being more equal than the rest, perhaps at Normandale Community College we are dealing with Muslim pigs seeking to dhimmify the other animals on campus.

H/T Captain's Quarters, Powerline

What do you do when you know your unborn child WILL die shortly after birth?

When Rob and Gina Harris found out they were expecting their first child they say were overwhelmed with gratitude and filled with thoughts and plans for their future family.

"We had all these visions and dreams for what our baby would grow up to be," said Gina.

Rob Harris said, "At our 20 week ultrasound we found out that he was a boy so I went out to the Nike store and had to buy a little sports outfit."

An ultrasound also revealed a problem about their unborn son, David.

"I didn't have amniotic fluid because David most likely did not have kidneys," said Gina.

Doctors explained that amniotic fluid is critical for lungs to develop. The condition that the Harris' son had is called Potter's Syndrome. It is extremely rare and extremely serious.

"The doctor told us that the babies usually die of respiratory failure after they are born," said Gina.

The doctor explained that as long as the baby was inside Gina's womb he'd be able to grow and thrive. Gina could provide everything her son needed. The question was: Could their son live on his own?

Gina Harris said her mind filled with thoughts and fears.

"I thought about how it would be to give birth to a baby that might not survive," she said. "I thought about being pregnant and people excitedly asking me about the baby and the future and me always knowing the future was so uncertain. I was scared."

"The doctor said that the majority of women with the diagnosis like this would terminate the pregnancy," said Rob. "And as he started to say that Gina said, 'No.' She just stopped him."

Gina says that in her heart she was certain of one thing. She was already a mom. She says God had given her a child and she already felt a deep connection with her son.

And so the couple affirmatively chose in favor of life for their son – knowing, as we all do, that this birth would lead to a death decades earlier than most of their child's peers.

And so they loved David, holding him and adoring him, for the six hours of life that their child was granted.

Some folks will criticize this decision – but like the Harrises, I see this as the only choice. Every new life is precious, and to snuff it out is simply wrong, even knowing that the child is doomed.

And with my wife and I having lost several babies to miscarriages, I know that I would give just about anything to have been granted even those few hours – and while I have not discussed the matter with her, I suspect that my wife would agree.

Bill Jempty of WizBang agrees, and shares the sad and painful experience of his wife with a similar choice. I offer my sincerest thanks to him for doing so. I encourage you to read his beautiful and touching story of the loss he and his wife experienced.

H/T Michelle Malkin, CatHouse Chat

Proving that international pressure can move even Muslim extremists.

Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has pardoned a female rape victim who had been sentenced to 200 lashes for being alone with a man at the time of the attack who was not related to her, a Saudi newspaper reported Monday.

The case had sparked international outcry. In a rare criticism of its Mideast ally, the White House had expressed its ''astonishment'' over the woman's sentence. Canada called it barbaric.

Saudi Justice Minister Abdullah bin Muhammed al-Sheik told al-Jazirah newspaper that the pardon does not mean the king doubted the country's judges, but instead acted in the ''interests of the people.''

''The king always looks into alleviating the suffering of the citizens when he becomes sure that these verdicts will leave psychological effects on the convicted people, though he is convinced and sure that the verdicts were fair,'' al-Jazirah quoted al-Sheik as saying.

Notice, though, that last little proviso.

The king is sure that the verdict against the rape victim was a fair one -- including, presumably, the additional sentence for daring to speak out against the notion of punishing a victim of a crime.

These folks and their sharia code are simply barbarians.

Like this is a surprise?

Pope Benedict XVI warned Sunday against seeking happiness in drugs or other "artificial paradises" and the self-centered quest for "pleasure at all costs."

Instead, the pope held up Mother Teresa — the Roman Catholic nun who devoted her life to serving the poor in India and elsewhere — as an example.

"Every day, she lived next to misery, human degradation and death," the pope told thousands of faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square. "Yet, she offered the smile of God to everybody."

The pope, speaking during the traditional Sunday noon Angelus prayer, said real happiness cannot be found in cultures "that put individual happiness in the place of God, a mentality that has its emblematic effect in the quest for pleasure at all costs, in the spread of the use of drugs as an escape, a shelter in artificial paradises, which turn out to be completely illusory."

Imagine that -- a Christian leader urging people to avoid self-destructive pleasure and to serve others. Suggesting that people look to the example of the greatest Christian rel