Young man still very much out west

I'm not quite sure where I am now, only that I'm either in Utah, Wyoming, Montana or South Dakota.  I'm on the last leg of my trek out west, with plans on visiting the Browning Firearms Museum in Morgan, Utah (and squeezing in a Mormon sightseeing safari as well), the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming, the Little Bighorn battlefield site (hopefully, the Indians won't go on the warpath anytime soon) and Mount Rushmore (maybe I'll see Alfred Hitchcock there).

I should be back home by May 31st, just in time for my birthday, and I'll have pictures of my travels.  See you when I get back.

Young man still out west

In case you're wondering (again), I'm still not at home.  Right now, I'm in California, visiting relatives and enjoying myself, and no, I haven't been near a computer since I left Indiana ten days ago.

It's been four years since I last saw my native state, and even though everything has changed so much since my parents, my sister and I used to live in California, that nostalgic feeling is still there.

My trek out west isn't over just yet, and now if you'll excuse me, I'll be asleep soon.  Until the next automated update.

Young man out west

In case anyone is wondering where I am, I'm not at home.  I'm in Phoenix, attending the NRA's Annual Meetings & Exhibits, and at this very moment, at the Annual Members Meeting.  The exhibits are always fascinating, especially the handguns.  If you're an NRA member and you've never been to one of these events, you have to plan for a visit (next year's Annual Meetings & Exhibits will be held in Charlotte, NC).

Don't worry, I'll have more updates of my trek out west automatically published on this blog.

Welcome, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin's Accomplishments

Ron DeVito and his blog Alaska Governor Sarah Palin's Accomplishments has just joined the Bloggers for Sarah Palin blogroll.  Welcome, Mr. DeVito, and keep fighting the good fight.

Here's a role model

Miss California USA Carrie Prejean sure garnered a lot of attention after answering a question on gay marriage during the Miss USA competition, to say the very least.  She stated her belief about marriage, received a scathing insult from the judge who asked the aforementioned question and almost lost her crown over pictures that aren't any more revealing than what can be found on the cover of a fashion magazine.

But after having viewed this video of Miss Prejean's appearance on Fox News' Hannity:

I have a newfound respect for her.  Her beliefs are important to her, and she doesn't change them to suit everybody else, especially not Miss USA pageant judges.  Now this is a role model for girls to follow, especially Christian girls.  I wish Miss Prejean all the best in her future endeavors.

My latest review

I just posted my two cents on the romantic melodrama Last Chance Harvey at The Normal Critic.  Go ahead and take a look.  And no, I'm not ashamed of promoting my other blog on my own blog.

Nothing but outrage

These two stories, which I found at Atlas Shrugs and at LGF 2.0, are the type of stories that just boil my blood; they're that egregious.

The first involves an anniversary memorial service to remember the victims of the Holocaust who were killed at the concentration camp Mauthausen in Austria that was interrupted (to say the least) by masked neo-Nazis.  These (thugs) actually attacked the survivors of Mauthausen verbally and even with air guns.  Fortunately, those who were there to remember the victims of Mauthausen fought back, but the neo-Nazi (thugs) escaped and fled, cowards that they are.

The other story concerns a recent action committed in Sweden which legalizes what is known as gender-based abortion.  It's horrific enough that abortion takes place at all, but now somewhere else in the world, the green light has been given for this selective horror to happen.  It's worse than just abortion, it's euthanasia, it's eugenics at work.  It's evil at work.

If stories like real Nazis (paying attention, Icarus?) attacking Holocaust survivors and an European country allowing selective acts of evil to happen doesn't boil your blood, I don't know what will.

Welcome, Caffeinated Thoughts

In case you haven't noticed, on my sidebar is another blogroll of which I'm a member, Bloggers for Sarah Palin. Started by fellow Blogspotter Josh Painter, the blogroll currently lists nine blogs, with the latest member now being Shane Vander Hart of Caffeinated Thoughts.

Welcome, Mr. Vander Hart, to the blogroll, and let's keep fighting the good fight for Governor Palin.

This year's Mother's Day gift

When it comes to getting a card for my mom on any special occasion, be it Christmas, her birthday or in this case, Mother's Day, I try to get a funny card, as it fits my usual behavior and inclination to jokes.  This year, I found a funny Mother's Day card for only 50¢, and I decided to add a humorous comment of my own on the card.

Then just yesterday, I came across an item written by none other than Sarah Palin, in which she gave advice on a good Mother's Day gift: write an original poem.  Deciding to follow Gov. Palin's advice, I came up with this wonderful poem:

Happy Mother's Day with love,

  I hope that is enough.

If you expect more from me,

  Well that's just tough.

Hey, I told you, it fits my usual behavior and inclination to jokes.  I think Mom will like it.  And to all you moms out there (including also my sister and Governor Palin), Happy Mother's Day.

Update (4:48 PM EDT): She liked the card.

Grassroots News Minute (May 8th)

The latest Grassroots Minute focuses on federal legislation intended to address the abuses by the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives (BATFE), and on Jimmy Carter and his latest diatribe about so-called assault weapons.

Ohhhhh Brother No. 14: Little Distracting Footballs

The downside to the infighting amongst those bloggers known as Counterjihadists is the amount of time and effort diverted away from the work of the Counterjihad.  However, this episode is so ridiculous that it has to be addressed by me.

Charles Johnson, a.k.a. the thin-skinned blind lizard, of Little Green Footballs recently posted a piece by Bruce Bawer, who is no fan of Vlaams Belang, the Flemish nationalist party in Belgium that has been maligned as being neo-Nazi and far Right by Johnson among others.  In his latest post, he gloats that there has been no response from Robert Spencer, Pamela Geller or the bloggers at Gates of Vienna to Bawer's article.

He thinks the silence is proof of the validity of Bawer's article.  First of all, so what?  Who cares?  Mr. Spencer, Ms. Geller, Baron Bodissey & Dymphna have more important things with their blogs, like covering the latest news of the threat of Islam in Europe and in the U.S., something Mr. Johnson does little of at all (no more than 5 of his last 28 posts at the moment of writing this).

Secondly, if Mr. Johnson wants a response to Mr. Bawer's article, he can always check out Tundra Tabloids, where KGS has featured a response to Mr. Bawer's article by Andrew Bostom, as well as a brief two cents worth from KGS.  Since KGS and Mr. Bostom are in the same boat as Mr. Spencer, Ms. Geller, the Baron & Dymphna as far as Mr. Johnson is concerned, wouldn't that constitute a response?

In the end, Charles Johnson still believes the "fascist enablers" as he calls them are so obsessed with him they can't wait to attack him every time he writes about the "truth" in Europe.  The reality is bloggers like Robert Spencer, Pamela Geller and others have more important things to do, like serve as the metaphorical canaries in the coal mine.  As for Mr. Johnson's overall behavior, I can only say Ohhhhh Brother!

By the way, at my new blog, The Normal Critic, I've posted reviews of two of Ingmar Bergman's best known films, Wild Strawberries & The Seventh Seal.  Go ahead and take a look, that is, after you've finished saying an Ohhhhh Brother! of your own at reading this obvious promotion of mine.

Update (May 10th, 1:12 PM EDT): savage at LGF 2.0 posted about Bruce Bawer's piece, noting some irregularities between the piece and what Charles Johnson has said about it.  I leave it up to you to decide about Mr. Bawer's article.

Now isn't that interesting, chapter 21

With today being May 8th, it got me thinking of an interesting story.

My grandparents (on my dad's side) were Hoosiers born and raised, my grandpa being born when the doughboys were getting ready to head for Europe to combat the Germans in the trenches of Western Europe and my grandma a couple of years later.  As soon as my grandma turned 18, they married.  On their eighth anniversary, the day would become better known as Victory in Europe Day, to commemorate the official ending of WWII in Europe in 1945.

My grandparents (on my mom's side) met on a double date in Wisconsin, where my grandpa was raised.  But before they could marry, WWII came along.  My grandpa enlisted in the Navy, served on two ships (including the battleship Iowa) and saw action in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.  Finally, wedding day came for my grandparents on a September day, while my grandpa was on leave.  Just one year later, their day became Victory in Japan Day, in honor of the ending of WWII in the Pacific.

I don't know about you, but that's pretty darn interesting to me.

More dishonor murders committed

Frankly, I believe those who commit so-called honor killings should be put on the electric chair and fried until blood is coming out of every hole in their stinking corpses.  After what happened in Britain recently to two young women (sisters, in fact) by one's boyfriend, maybe you can see why I'm advocating such punishment.

As always, Pamela Geller at Atlas Shrugs has the story on this crime, made even more heinous than usual by the sheer brutality of it.  Sadly, there are a couple of things wrong here: 1) in Britain, the death penalty doesn't exist and 2) the media is sweeping it under the rug once again.  Worse of all, the odds are nobody will do anything about this; the truth about these dishonor murders (which is what these crimes are) won't be told.

Justice has become such an evasive thing, hasn't it?

The persecution continues

The Voice of the Martyrs had a T-shirt available for purchase.  It's a black T-shirt with an image of a lion in grey on the front.  On top are the words Christians Still Die, and on the back another line: It did not end in Rome.

In many parts of the world, that is the reality, and nowhere is it more prevalent than in Islamic nations.  David Horowitz's group, the Terrorism Awareness Project, has recently posted a video on YouTube featuring the Islamic persecution of Christians in places like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nigeria, Somalia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt and many other nations:

As the video states, these very same pigs who wage Jihad against Christians do so because they regard Christians as the enemy.  Unfortunately, the media is turning a blind eye to this latest trend of persecution.  Watch the video, spread the word, and remember what is going on in these nations.

Close to full exoneration

The Marine Corps, it seems, will not seek an appeal in the dismissal of charges against Lt.Col. Chessani in regards to what happened in Haditha, Iraq six years ago.  A final decision has to be reached, but a recommendation for full exoneration will be forwarded.

It's definitely good news; I'm just impatient right now for the exoneration to be fully reached.  Michelle Malkin has the story on the update plus additional links to other articles on the subject.

Getting Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Enjoy The Movie

Here's a question for you:  What is the most unusual way you know of getting a DVD?  How about getting a DVD in exchange for agreeing with your mother she doesn't have to watch it on television?  Here's the story.

I had seen enough of Stanley Kubrick's film Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb over the years that I became a fan of it.  I find it to be such a funny film, despite the morbidness of the story.  Peter Sellers, as both the title character and the President, is hilarious, and George C. Scott, in a rare turn, is hysterical as General Buck Turgidson.

And it was because of George C. Scott's performance that I tried to convince my mom to check it out, at least the parts with Scott as Turgidson.  My mom, however, was difficult to either persuade or convince.  She's no fan of Stanley Kubrick (she has nothing against Spartacus, but isn't nuts about it like I am), or of silly comedies, for that matter (good luck trying to get my mom to watch anything directed by Mel Brooks!).  No matter how hard I tried, it was like trying to move a firmly entrenched rock.

Finally, one night, I finally persuaded my mom to watch Dr. Strangelove on TCM, or....so I thought.  When the time came, she was so opposed to it, and I was so insistent, she offered a compromise.  If I agreed to relent, she would buy me a DVD copy of the film.  Surprised at first, I accepted.  It came in the mail a couple of weeks later, and my mom finally saw the part of the film I wanted to show her.  She liked it, but again, she's still not a fan of it.

As for me, I can now watch it (and enjoy it) whenever I want to.  Does make me wonder, though, I wonder how long it'll be before I get that copy of Young Frankenstein?

Less than seven hours

That's how long it lasted for a commenter at Little Green Footballs.  After commenting on what Charles Johnson said about Joe the Plumber and those "stalker" blogs (of which Mr. Johnson apparently drives crazy, or so he says), it didn't take long before other Lizards began showing their disapproval.

The commenter knew he wouldn't last, as he already had a variety of disagreements with the chief Lizard himself, but he wanted to see how long he would last after he began commenting.  Once this post at LGF appeared, the commenter was ready to see what would happen.  Within no time, the commenter was called a jerk and received negative ratings.  When he defended his own actions, he was told to the effect that being snide with their host was not a good thing to do.  Check your karma, one of them warned.

Of course, to the commenter, karma is just a bunch of crap.  As you know, the commenter's stint as a lizard was brief, as his first comment was deleted and his account was blocked.  Now, some of you might think that the commenter was rude toward Mr. Johnson, that he made snide remarks, was being perhaps a troll.  Or it could have been, in my opinion, that Mr. Johnson is just a thin-skinned, egotistical lizard with a chip on his shoulder, who has a few minions like Walter L. Newton, Sharmuta, Gus 802 and others to protect his delicateness.

Well, I'll tell you what, here's Mr. Johnson's comment:

The stalker blogs will now start shrieking that I'm "throwing Joe the Plumber under the bus."

When you live inside their heads as I do, you can't help overhearing what they're thinking.

And here's the commenter's response:

Yeah, sure, that's just what they do. They wake up in the morning wondering how little Charles is doing and are uniformly horrified by his statements.

By the way, if you say you're not on the right (even when you put parenthesis on it) and you say Joe the Plumber doesn't speak for you, you're being redundant.

Is it rude?  Is it snide?  Is it the comment of a troll?  Or is it the problem of the lizards and their thin-skinned chief?  I'll leave it to you to decide.  This "stalker" is retiring for the night.

Robert Spencer defends Geert Wilders

In a previous post of mine, I wrote of the Anti-Defamation League and their unwarranted criticism of Geert Wilders.  Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch fame has this article at FrontPage in which he does a better job defending Mr. Wilders than I have.

As with Mr. Spencer, I also hold to the opinion that Islam is a religion, but it's a religion with totalitarian tendencies, which makes it a dangerous religion.  What Geert Wilders says is mostly right on.  As for the ADL, as well as Charles Johnson, with their criticism of Mr. Wilders, they wind up being just tools of the Jihadists.

Where the GOP should go

Josh Painter at Mainstream Conservative has this very interesting post which poses an important question: How has the Republican Party gone to the Right?

As much as I would love to see the GOP go to the right, as I don't believe the likes of Arlen Specter, Christie Todd Whitman and others when they say the Party has gone too far Right, the reality is different.  The Republican Party isn't far enough to the Right.

Why is it there is still some animosity toward the Republican Party by conservatives?  It isn't because the GOP has gone too far to the Right, but rather, I think, the GOP has been spending too much time pandering to the moderates and Democrats.  The Democrats are firmly to the Left as a political party, and the Republicans need to be firmly to the Right.

There are other strategies and methods the GOP can employ in order to strengthen itself, but the one thing it must do is become a party for conservatives once again.  In other words, go more to the Right.

Playing politics with women's health

Sadly, SB 89, the bill requiring abortionists in Indiana to obtain admitting privileges in nearby hospitals, didn't make it to Governor Daniels' desk.  The differences between the House and Senate versions of the passed bill were not worked out, and there is little, if any, hope that the bill will be brought up again during a special session in Indianapolis which has been called in regards to budget issues.

Unfortunately, this is a matter of politics being played with the health of women, and the blame should be placed squarely at the foot of the Indiana House Speaker, Pat Bauer.  Postponing selecting conferees to iron out the differences, then selecting not the author of the bill as promised, but somebody else who had his ear, Bauer succeeded in helping to just about kill SB 89.

So now, Planned Parenthood and the rest of the pro-abortion ilk is pleased, abortionists like Dr. George Klopfer can continue to endanger women's lives by not having to get admitting hospital privileges, and Pat Bauer probably doesn't have to worry now about losing his seat next year.  And the women?  Well, should they (God forbid) decide to have an abortion, they'll be risking their lives in the process.

This is unacceptable.  This is why we have to fight the good fight for life.

Grassroots News Minute (May 1st)

The video features news on efforts to allow people to carry concealed firearms in national parks and wildlife refuges, as well as legislation introduced that would allow people to carry such firearms in these locations for self-defense purposes.  The video also features the continuing efforts by gun banners (notedly The Brady Campaign) to close the so-called gun show loopholes, including a bill introduced by New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg that would "close" these "loopholes".  Information on what to do about these bills is featured in the video.

SPECTRE lives!

cbullitt has done it again with another great post at Soylent Green, in which he "exposes" the major players of the Global Warming "crusade" as agents of SPECTRE (yes, the organization that James Bond fought), and when you see the pictures, the resemblances will surprise you.  Talk about striking!  Now I know where Dr. No got his doctorate: environmental science!  It's so obvious!

But now that we know who the agents of SPECTRE are, it makes me wonder, where's Agent 007?  And for that matter, where's M?  Q?  Miss Moneypenny?  Hopefully, cbullitt will let us know.