Multi Purpose Picture



Here is a pictorial cartoon that can mean so many things--just scroll down till you find a caption you like.

1. "Ha, isn't that just like the Democrats, always falling down?"

2. "Oh those foolish Republicans, they can't stay on their feet."

3. "This ice is as cold as a Liberal's heart."

4. "Only a Conservative would stand there and laugh instead of helping."

5. "As a Libertarian, I salute your right to fall on your tuckus."

6. Can't come up with anything for the Reform party--they'd be lucky if their situation were only as bad as this one.

7. "Hooray for our troops." (This doesn't have anything to do with the picture, it's just a nice sentiment).

8. "All will face the wrath of Bryantor when the time comes for doom."

Islamo-Fascism

A good interview with Paul Berman today at Salon, comparing and contrasting Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Ladin to Hitler and Stalin. These are not new comparisons--read a book a couple of years ago talking about Fascism and comparing it to some Modern Islamic movements. The comparisons hold for Stalinism and some other versions of communism. All three movements actively reject liberalism (in the broader sense of the word). All three have a mythology that explains the future and the world around them.

He says that Bush is right in his diagnosis of the problem, but he's been unable to articulate his point of view. He goes to bat for our efforts in Afghanistan, saying, "In Afghanistan, everybody sneers at the achievements of the United States and its allies because we see the warlords in the provinces, we see the extreme suffering, we see all the things that haven't been done. But what has been done has really been quite magnificent. A hideous tyranny was overthrown, a new government was established in more or less the way that any liberal democrat would advise: Afghans were consulted from around the country, more or less democratic councils led to the forming of a new government with a new leader for Afghanistan who is not a warlord or a corrupt figure or a friendly religious fanatic but who is in fact a man of modern liberal democratic ideals."

Anyway I highly recommend this article to everyone--go read it--Salon's a bit of a hassle, but this is worth it.

Comments by Robert Byrd

But, today I weep for my country. I have watched the events of recent months with a heavy, heavy heart. No more is the image of America one of strong, yet benevolent peacekeeper. The image of America has changed. Around the globe, our friends mistrust us, our word is disputed, our intentions are questioned.

Instead of reasoning with those with whom we disagree, we demand obedience or threaten recrimination. Instead of isolating Saddam Hussein, we seem to have isolated ourselves.

I have a lot of respect for Senator Byrd's conduct over the last couple of months. Unlike others, he has not presented a divided face to the American people, being for war one day and against it the next. Still, I hope he's wrong in his assessment here, and I think there is a chance he is. A quick American victory will get many of the nations who now oppose us back. A concerted effort rebuilding Iraq will show our good faith. While this strategy does have risks (risks which Senator Byrd and others have pointed out), now that it's been settled on, hopefully we can bring about success.

Like Sand Through the Hourglass

I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said--"Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desart . . . . Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal, these words appear:
My name is Ozymandius, King of Kings,
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away."
Ozymandius by Percy Bryce Shelly

He [President Bush] is pursuing a Pax Americana. This peace will not be the false peace that flows from appeasement, but the true peace that flows from victory. The conduct of this war should make America proud. It is fought reluctantly and with every possible care for civilians.

But the peace will be George Bush's best legacy. For despite the bleating of the left that this war was fought "for oil," America will not touch a single oil well except to put out the fires and hand over the oil to the Iraqi people. And in the wake of victory, America will help to create the first democracy in the Arab world. This is the first step in tugging the region into the 21st century, and thereby extinguishing the terrorist wildfire.
Pax Americana, Mona Charen

I hope Ms. Charen is right in her assesment of the future, and I think it is up to us as citizens to support this vision of the future.

Protests in Tallahassee

For those curious, there was a downtown protest today in Tallahassee.



I went and talked among the crowds, (or three or four people, depending on how you look at it). Alex, one of the organizars, was tired from staying up all night making signs and a peace ball. Apparently the ball was 8 feet wide and 7 feet tall, but the police said they had to get rid of it. I asked him what he would say to the soldiers, and he said, "They're in a rough spot, they really are. I really feel for them. They have to carry out orders, that are really questionable." Most of the other protesters I talked to expressed similar sentiments.



The cops were on hand, but apart from two dogs who didn't get on so well, there was no violence or civil disobedience that I saw. Just people who don't agree with this war and are expressing their opinions. That is what America is all about.

Empty Wallet Economics

A couple of weeks ago we presented our first ever economic theory, which we call 'Empty Wallet Electronics." I've made reference to it off and on since then. Well we are now happy to present this theory as a JPG for you to download and print and peruse at your leisure. It will appear to the left underneath the links as well, so that's good news.

Here It Is

And as a special bonus, here is a pictorial representation (which is a complicated and snooty way to say picture) of the original napkin this theory was formulated upon.



Although crude, you can clearly see the words "Empty Wallet Economics" down in the bottom right, and also a crude drawing of at "Gries Straight Line." You can also see evidence that I am a messy eater. Enjoy.

Symbolic Gestures

Hey all you people avoiding wine, or perhaps pouring it into the sewer, perhaps you'd like to consider these words of Alan Reynolds.

"I don't see why anyone would single-out French winemakers for financial punishment, but the boycott may not be able to accomplish even that dubious objective. The reason should be obvious: Any French wine you see in U.S. stores has already been bought and paid for by U.S. distributors and retailers. The French have our money, and we have their wine. Who is actually being threatened with a boycott, at least for the foreseeable future, are U.S. wine merchants.

Still you may not want to pay too much attention to Mr. Reynolds, given his insufficient hatred of the French, as evidenced by the following paragraph.

. . . I don't see how people manage to get angry at an entire nation, and particularly at only one of many nations opposing the Iraq war (if the Germans had a U.N. veto don't you think they'd have used it?). Many Americans who are enormously fond of President Bush have, like the French, worried that he may be jumping into a big, nasty tar pit. If the war goes well, U.S. skeptics and the French government will end up looking too timid and a bit foolish."

One wonders if he has heard of the plan to give the Statue of Liberty back to the French.

Nice

One thing about Bush, he's punctual. Shows up right on time with the bombs.

What I Really Think

I don't think this war was necessary but I do think it was inevitable. The moment Osama bin Ladin's proxies attacked the United States, Iraq was a target, and probably before. That said, I'm glad we tried to go through the United Nations, and I'm glad for all the talk about liberating Iraq and improving the lives of the Iraqi people. Perhaps that talk will all end up being nonsense, but I hope not.

Now the War is here. So it's no longer time to discuss whether or not this is a good war or a smart war, but to focus on the after effects of this war. I have every confidence in our armed forces. They will do the job and do it well, and there's no reason for me to second guess battle plans or strategies. But the after war is something else entirely. We have to live up to our promises if we are going to forge the future we want. Thomas L. Friedman, commenting on this subject, stated;

"Defeating Saddam is necessary but not sufficient to achieve those ends, which are a more progressive Iraq and a world with fewer terrorists and terrorist suppliers dedicated to destroying the U.S., so Americans will feel safer at home and abroad. We cannot achieve the latter without the former. Which means we must bear any burden and pay any price to make Iraq into the sort of state that fair-minded people across the world will see and say: "You did good. You lived up to America's promise."

To maximize our chances of doing that, we need to patch things up with the world. Because having more allied support in rebuilding Iraq will increase the odds that we do it right, and because if the breach that has been opened between us and our traditional friends hardens into hostility, we will find it much tougher to manage both Iraq and all the other threats down the road."

Something to think about it, for those who are eager for us to go it alone in the future.

Some Thoughts

The war will likely either start today or tomorrow--I guess it is supposed to start at 8:00 pm, eastern standard time, making the end of the 48 hours, but I would be surprised if they held exactly to that. Here are some thoughts, the first suggested by Brandy from President Bush.

"In this century, when evil men plot chemical, biological and nuclear terror, a policy of appeasement could bring destruction of a kind never before seen on this earth. Terrorists and terrorist states do not reveal these threats with fair notice in formal declarations. And responding to such enemies only after they have struck first is not self defense. It is suicide. The security of the world requires disarming Saddam Hussein now."
President George W. Bush

And here from Pat Buchanan, in an article today;

". . . .once Saddam is dead or gone and Iraq is disarmed, the Bush Doctrine -- "We will not let the world's worst leaders threaten us with the world's worst weapons" -- seems to require new ultimatums to Iran and North Korea.

Who will be with us in these wars? Will Tony Blair, after his near-death experience, be up for fighting another war? Where does the last superpower go after Baghdad? Those questions are ahead of this nation and this president.

But today's imperative is that the United States win this war we are in with as little bloodshed as is consistent with swift and certain victory, and make good on our commitment to liberate the Iraqis. The time for debate will come again. It is not now. Now, we should pray for our brave men and women, and commander in chief. God bless and keep America."

We'll get back to being snarky and funny later on, but for a little bit, let's consider our troops and wish them well and pray for them if so inclined.

Another Well Thought Out Scheme

Here's a good idea. Instead of mucking around with Freedom Fries or Liberty Toast, why not just send back the Statue of Liberty? That was a gift from France, but perhaps one that has outlived it's usefulness, and it would show all those French what we think of them. This may seem bizarre and pointless to you, but not to Josh Wander. At his website, he advocates just this course of action, with this bizarre cartoon.



I guess that's supposed to be funny, but if it is, I just don't see it. Maybe I'm a dope.

Of course it's a nice message as well to immigrants coming to America. Stop coming here; go to France.

A Rebuttal

Earlier today, we had a comment from Caleb. It's down the sheet--you can scroll down and see it, if you don't believe me. Although I don't know why you would doubt me; I'm very believable. Anyway we have a rebuttal from the Brandy, most brilliant in all the land.

Commentary to 'Caleb's comments: its apparent that he has NOT studied war. One does not even have to go that far back; study the US soldiers of WWII. These were boys who were all but anti-war, drafted at the last minute, 'soldiers of democracy' that Hitler 'knew' he could defeat on the same thought process as Caleb. . . However fighters fueled by freedom, honour, and a semblance of thought (NOT generals...Normandy and Utah beach are hard evidence of this as MANY of the officers where killed and troops/ young boys really, took command and fought an amazing fight) are the ones that history tells us, win the wars/ NOT generals.

Well, to be fair to Caleb, a war he might have brought up to counter the World War II example was Vietnam, where the situation on the ground was unfocused and chaotic at best. I personally think you need both solid soldiers who know their business and who love this country, and smart generals with solid well thought out objectives.

More to come from Brandy.

A Well Oiled Machine

Another comment by that commentator of commentators, Caleb.

BlogThis!

How many of you play video games? Starcraft anyone? How many of you have played a game or two online? How many of you have been trounced by a cocky little 8 year old who held you under the boot of his massive but inferior zerg forces while he cackled evilly? If you have you should have learned this important lesson. Extremely powerful troops, even well trained troops do not win wars. Generals do. Now we have men weaned on the suffering death of past massive conflicts to guide us. To make sure that every American life is met with maximum yield, and that our sacrifice will not be, militarily, in vain. What happens when You get to be general by pointing lasers at people on training fields during frequent exercises, and dropping virtual bombs from high tech simulators? Do we want the 10 year old video tyrant of today to be running our armed forces tomorrow without the benefit of witnessing the terror of war first hand?

A military is like a car in Alabama. You leave it up on blocks too long and it falls apart. We must have experienced officers. It is our duty as Americans to stomp petty countries beneath our boot in order to preserve our military might, and necessary discipline.

Well, maybe I should tone that down a bit. This is why we police the world. This is why we still have the power to help those in need. In short, we have to fight someone. why not an evil dictator. Would you rather we invaded Canada. I know a few Canadians who would.

I'm not sure that giving our future Generals a taste of warfare is a good reason to invade Iraq, but I do see the logic in it. It goes along with the logic that each generation must experience war in order to hate it.

On the other hand, they do make everybody read "All Quiet on the Western Front" in high school.

A New Era in Repressive Crackdowns is Possible

I am particularly pessimistic this week. The day the war starts--which will be tomorrow night I guess, there are plans to have rallys and non-Violent Civil Disobedience. Some are already talking about taking it to the next level, which would include vandalism, and possibly Sabotage. I don't think anybody who reads this blog would be considering such an act, but if you are, please slap yourself for me.

The threat however is serious enough that David Horowitz (formerly a radical Leftist himself) is encouraging the FBI to go after all potential Sabotaurs. Horowitz also complains that protests on the day the ground war starts (Saturday maybe?) will tie up police forces that could be used to fight terrorists.

He states, "Congress should also look to reactivating sedition laws that would meet the threat posed by the deadly seriousness of the anti-American Fifth Column. These activists are not playing games. They have dedicated their lives to the service of Communist regimes and anti-American causes. They are the fruit of more than thirty years of leftist attacks on this country. Now the international terrorists have provided them with their dream: the war has finally come home."

This is just what America needs, a wake up call. America needs to realize that the government should be allowed to do whatever it wants without the interference of the people. Clamping down on the free speech rights of those who would protest this war is necessary. And we can trust President Bush and his cronys to use the power to silence their political enemies correctly.

Martin Sheen

On the eve of the war we get an article in the L.A. Times by Martin Sheen, in which he talks about the responsibilities of Citizenship.

I am not the president; instead, I hold an even higher office, that of citizen of the United States. For most of us in this country, citizenship is a birthright. However, this does not cloak the citizen with a life free of responsibility.

On the contrary, America comes with a price, often a heavy one, that we should each gladly pay. Though duties pedestrian and noble, from paying taxes to voting, are obvious tasks incumbent upon citizens, often something more is at stake -- as evidenced by the rows of white gravestones near such places as Normandy. It is the obligation of all citizens to participate in the affairs of state. Whether we support or criticize actions taken in our name, we need to lend voice to our findings. When done respectfully, sincerely and soberly, this can be a profound act of patriotism.

This is stirring. And nice to read on the eve of this up-coming war.

New Website

New Website there on the left. I should have added this a long time ago but didn't because I'm a dope. Today's cartoon was kind of hilarious. Check it out.

War Not Here, But On It's Way

Apparently they are going to gave Saddam and his advisors 72 hours or something to flee the country.

I don't know about you, but I'm definately going to be holding my breath. Or perhaps I'll hold someone else's breath. Less strain that way.

War Coming Soon, not yet Here

Sorry, turns out Saddam gets one last chance to flee the country, along with his counselors. I don't know about you, but I'm holding my breath.

War is Here

In case you haven't heard and you almost certainly have, the war is on it's way. From MSNBC, we read, "The United States declared Monday that the diplomatic window “has closed” for a peaceful resolution to the Iraq showdown and that President Bush will address the nation later on Monday. At the United Nations, the United States and its allies withdrew a resolution that would have paved the way for U.N. authorization for war, having failed to persuade key members to support the measure."

Bombs will start raining on Baghdad soon I would imagine--they might be falling already. We are at war now.

I feel sick to my stomach--but I suspect I would even if nothing had happened--feeling kind of lousy today.

Let's all pray everything goes as Bush and his advisors have predicted. A quick and easy victory, followed by a solid effort rebuilding the nation into a free society.

On a side note the Market is up over 200 points. So that's good news.

New Week

Well it's a new week here for Make me a Commentator!!! I suppose it's probably a new week for most people. But I held a staff meeting this morning--my first in a while. And I told myself; "This week has got to be different. No more puff pieces. No more pretending to have a staff. This week I want to see solid hard-hitting analysis." So I think I really motivated myself. Keep tuned to see what I come up with.

Also tell your friends about this great website.

All Gone to look for America

Kind of feeling conflicted thougths tonight. Watched the protests yesterday (if you want to watch them, check out C-SPAN). They didn't make a lot of sense, I'm afraid. Heard one protester stating that America should abandon war forever. There's a good policy. Heard another guy denying that Jews have no right to return to the Land of Isreal--apparently the Jews should leave and give the land back to the Palestinian. Another sound and easily implemented policy.

Lots of attacks on George W. Bush and Tony Blair. Some on Ariel Sharon as well. Not very many on Saddam Hussein.

Then I read David Limbaugh's article today.

Limbaugh states, "Defending one's right to protest is celebrating America's freedoms. But the act of dissing America while exercising those freedoms is not pro-American." Dissing America? What is America, Mr. Limbaugh?

Is it President George W. Bush? Is it his policies? If one opposes George W. Bush, is one opposing America?

So I find myself defending the patriotism of people I find foolish. I do believe that there is a solid case against the war. I just wish people would make it.

A Well Thought Out Plan

Came across this article, arguing that California should succeed from the Union. On the face of it it's a good idea. The state is clearly on a different ideological page than the rest of the nation. They have tough environmental laws, they've legalized marijuana, and they've declared Abortion legal forever. Heck, they are so liberal out there, even as the rest of the nation voted Republican, California elected the straight democratic ticket.

And the numbers add up. California is the worlds 7th largest economy. They got food production and a lot of industry.

But it does smack of giving up. It is saying that the differences between us are so great that we can't get along, and trying to get along will be futile. I believe that the things that draw us together are still greater than the things that separate us. We all want to see this nation strong and great and just.