Let's frogmarch him in handcuffs out the door!

Remember Joe Wilson? The guy who wanted Karl Rove frogmarched in handcuffs out of the White House?

Yeah, that guy. The poor little picked on Wilson, who's wife was "outed" (and then who had a nice photo spread!)

Turns out he's full of shit.

Wilson last year launched a public firestorm with his accusations that the administration had manipulated intelligence to build a case for war. He has said that his trip to Niger should have laid to rest any notion that Iraq sought uranium there and has said his findings were ignored by the White House.

Wilson's assertions -- both about what he found in Niger and what the Bush administration did with the information -- were undermined yesterday in a bipartisan Senate intelligence committee report.

The guy is a lying snake, willing to sell his country down the river in order to hurt the current administration. Gee, what a nice guy.

The report also said Wilson provided misleading information to The Washington Post last June. He said then that he concluded the Niger intelligence was based on documents that had clearly been forged because "the dates were wrong and the names were wrong."

"Committee staff asked how the former ambassador could have come to the conclusion that the 'dates were wrong and the names were wrong' when he had never seen the CIA reports and had no knowledge of what names and dates were in the reports," the Senate panel said. Wilson told the panel he may have been confused and may have "misspoken" to reporters. The documents -- purported sales agreements between Niger and Iraq -- were not in U.S. hands until eight months after Wilson made his trip to Niger.

Wilson's reports to the CIA added to the evidence that Iraq may have tried to buy uranium in Niger, although officials at the State Department remained highly skeptical, the report said.

Wilson said that a former prime minister of Niger, Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, was unaware of any sales contract with Iraq, but said that in June 1999 a businessman approached him, insisting that he meet with an Iraqi delegation to discuss "expanding commercial relations" between Niger and Iraq -- which Mayaki interpreted to mean they wanted to discuss yellowcake sales. A report CIA officials drafted after debriefing Wilson said that "although the meeting took place, Mayaki let the matter drop due to UN sanctions on Iraq."

According to the former Niger mining minister, Wilson told his CIA contacts, Iraq tried to buy 400 tons of uranium in 1998. (all emphasis mine)

Hang him high, boys. Rope, tree, asshat. Some assembly required.

Hat tip to DANEgerus.

More crap from Seattle

Actually, from Bainbridge Island, but the attitude is the same from Olympia to Seattle.

Think about the Seattle area -- Bainbridge Island to be exact -- and you think scenic views and liberal-minded tolerance.

At least the killer views are still there.

The bucolic island's deep reputation for civility got a gut check this week during the annual Grand Old Fourth of July celebration.

That's when Jason Gilson, a 23-year-old military veteran who served in Iraq, marched in the local event. He wore his medals with pride and carried a sign that said "Veterans for Bush."

Walking the parade route with his mom, younger siblings and politically conservative friends, Jason heard words from the crowd that felt like a thousand daggers to the heart.

"Baby killer!"

"Murderer!"

"Boooo!"

I've had a few people ask my why I haven't blogged on this sooner, since the incident happened in my neck of the woods. My answer?

It's nothing unusual for the Seattle area. This is typical. Bringing this up would just be yet another example of the bullshit that this area regularly produces. I've got a neighbor who's truck and house have both been vandalized because of the visible "Bush/Cheney" stickers and signs. And to top it all off, the guy has a sign in his window that states "I'm a Proud Friend of Israel" sitting in his window. He was flying a 101st Airborn flag in his yard for quite a while. The guy has balls of brass. But the reactions he's getting are not out of the norm. The vandalism, that's normal. Trying putting a Bush/Cheney sticker on your car and then parking it anywhere near Capitol Hill. You won't have any windows left. My neighbor has had paint poured over the signs on his house, which of course means that the paint was also poured on his house.

Yeah, really nice people around here, really "tolerant", really "inclusive". Bullshit. This is the average attitude for the Loony Left here in the Pacific Northwest. King County is by and large a one party system, unless you count the Communist party, Socialist party and the Green party, who do get quite a large chunk of votes. Would you like to see a statue of Lenin? I can show you where a Seattle neighborhood has proudly put one on display. Jim McDermott represents Seattle in the US House of Representatives. Lest we forget, Baghdad Jim is one of those proud congresscritters who A) Went to Baghdad before the war and proclaimed Saddam Hussein more trustworthy than George Bush, B) Is a registered member of the Democratic Socialists of America, and C) Has advanced more loony conspiracy theories than almost any one else in Congress. And oh by the way, the last time he was up for re-election he got 71% of the vote. That was AFTER we went to Baghdad and gave Saddam a blowjob on international TV.

You think I'm surprised at this soldier being slandered and insulted? Nope. I'm surprised he wasn't pelted with rotten fruit as well. But seeing as this was a 4th of July parade, I'm sure the rotten fruit was already thrown at the color guard up front. They ran out long before this soldier came along.

If those folks on Bainbridge had cheered when that soldier walked by, I'd have blogged on it. It would have been newsworthy. But lies, slander, insults, vandalism, hatred, and violence from the Loony Left in Seattle?

That's normal.

Weekend Update

It's been a pretty good weekend so far. The girlfriend and I continued our work on refinishing the chair, until we were interrupted by a thunderstorm that blew in suddenly. Typical Seattle weather; if you don't like it, wait five minutes and it'll change. Still, we managed to get all the varnish off the disassembled pieces. Unfortunately I had to use such a coarse grit to remove the crud, we're having to sand each piece two or three more times in order to smooth it out before we stain it. It's slow going, but it'll be worth it.

Took the new camera out for a spin downtown last night. I bought a cable shutter release, and toyed around with holding the shutter open to see how it works. Hopefully I'll have some cool pictures, but if not I can chalk it up to a learning experience. I'm using a tripod that my father bought in the 1960's, and gave to me a few months ago. I just think that's kinda cool. The girlfriend and I made a date out of it, had a nice dinner, and then we walked around for a few hours.

It's getting harder and harder to find a restaurant that allows cigar smoking in this town. I'd like to be able to sit back, fire up a good stogie and have a glass of scotch after dinner. That seems to be fading away in Seattle. If there's any businessmen reading, here's an idea for you to run with: Start up a restaurant where you can smoke a good cigar, and you don't have to hide in some little room to do so. It'll be a hit, trust me. Market yourself to the smokers, place ads in cigar magazines, put up ads in all the smokeshops. You'll be rich. With all the BS that cigar smokers have gone through in this state, we'd welcome a place that looks at us like decent customers. Seriously, you're talking about people who will spend $10-$15 for a single good cigar, do you think we're gonna skimp on the dinner that we have right before we smoke it? Hell no.

All in all, it's been a relaxing weekend. If I see anything that gets my heartrate up, I'll post it.

Trolls Confirm They Have No Life

The new shit, same as the old shit - it seems our trolls, not content with being banned from this blog, have decided to go shit elsewhere, using my name.

Oh Yay.

So, for anyone who's had some idiot crap in their comments, check the IP's. The trolls are using proxy IP's, especially from overseas. 202.57.70.*, 218.185.66.* and 202.96.161.* (Pacific Rim/Australia), 148.244.150.*, 200.13.168.* (Latin America/Caribbean), 165.247.31.* (Earthlink), 217.127.70.* and 80.32.92.* (The Netherlands), and 198.188.134.* (California University Network) are just a few of the IP's that I've banned from this site. Also, email me and let me know what IP they're using.

The last time this happened, I met some pretty cool people. I'm interested in seeing who shows up this time.

Yawn

There's nothing so boring as being threatened by a troll. I just checked my email and found this from our pal, Michael Ross of Portland Oregon.

David, I never had any interest in you until the past couple of days.
You will get to know me better in the near future.

I promise.

What are you going to do to me, Michael? Bleed on me? What's more, sending threatening emails isn't the smartest thing in the world to do. Thanks for giving me even more evidence against you though.

And let's do some deductive reasoning, shall we? I get spammed by a troll. I take the troll's IPs, and I go to other sites who have been hit by a troll to compare IPs. We compare IP numbers, and they're the same. Hmmmmm.... So we take those IP numbers to other websites and have the owners compare them. Yep, they check out. Gee golly gosh, I wonder why?

So someone does some digging, and finds a name, address, and phone number. (That would be yours, Mike) It's not enough to just post it up, I needed some confirmation. And I got it, trust me. So there are three logical paths that I could take.

1) My troll is Michael Ross.
2) My troll is part of some troll collective who all use the same IP numbers (a definite possiblity, as proven yesterday.)
3) My troll isn't Michael Ross, but uses the exact same IP numbers in an effort to implicate Michael Ross. (Least likely)

Now, let's put aside the fact that all three points would be moot if our pal Michael Ross wasn't a fuckwitted troll who repeatedly spams websites, uses proxy IPs to get around bans, and makes an ass of himself everywhere he goes. Let's put aside the fact that our pal Micheal Ross has made enemies in several different time zones, all of whom would like to see him go away. And let's put aside the fact that all the information on Michael Ross is public information that anyone can find if they want to. We're going to work on assumption Number 3, just to give our troll a break.

I've told you this twice before, Micheal, and this is the third and last time. If you're not the troll, as you so claim, PROVE IT. Otherwise, go the fuck away and shut up. Because all I've gotten from you is hot air and bullshit, and I was tired of it days ago. Prove that you're not the troll, and I will apologise and remove your information. I'll even put up a big post that says "MICHAEL ROSS IS NOT THE TROLL". Just prove it. If you're such a big, bad computer boy, it should be simple.

Or, you could just GO THE FUCK AWAY. Because as long as you are hanging around, I'm going to assume that you really really like me, and want to be contacted by all my readers. Got it?

Doubly so

Doubly unreal.

Unbelievable

'Cause it's one, two, three
What're those briefings for?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn.
You know I fought in Vietnam.

Simply, utterly unbelievable.

Another "I wish I'd written that" blog post.

Screw David Letterman. Screw Tina Fey and her cutesy attitude and smart ass glasses on SNL Update. Screw the New York Times and their insular editorial page. Screw Michael Moore and all those who value his "contribution to the debate". Screw Jon Stewart and his smarter than thou hipster attitude.

Screw all the news anchors, and especially Jennings and Rather. Screw CNN for paying dictators to let them stay in country all those years for the right to broadcast propaganda, just to win ratings wars and therefore charge their advertisers more money - congratulations! I'm sure it was well worth it. Did you happen to get any quotes from folks just before they were castrated, or had their arms broken, or were fed feet first into shredders? Now THAT would've been entertaining, eh what!

And that's just one tiny part. The whole thing rocks.

The Council Has Spoken

This week's winners in the Watcher of Weasel's Council are INDC Interviews "Military Families Speak Out" - Part Two by INDC Journal, and Small Party and Great Hopes by Iraq the Model. You can find all the results here.

Iraq: How are we doin?...

I am convinced that with today's Democratic party and today's biased media, we could have never won any of our previous wars. We would have given up on the Civil War before Gettysburg and we would have surrendered to the Japanese immediately after Bataan. This column puts our trials and tribulations in Iraq into perspective. It's a great read.

We are now 16 months into the Iraq war. At a similar stage in earlier American wars, how were our forces faring?

Well, at about this point in the French and Indian Wars, George Washington had been defeated and forced to surrender at Fort Necessity (he was released after being disarmed), and then disastrously beaten in a fight where his unit of 1,400 men took 900 casualties and ended up running away. (Washington himself was not injured but had two horses shot from under him, and took four bullets through his coat.)

Washington's next experience of war, in the American Revolution, began with equal tribulation. Sixteen months into his command, the American army was suffering through a series of traumatic defeats. They'd lost every single battle since the Declaration of Independence, and had depleted 90 percent of their military strength in heavy fighting. Most of the remaining soldiers declared they were going to go home when their enlistments expired, and in many parts of the new nation citizens were pledging fresh oaths of allegiance to the tyrant King George.

Sixteen months into the Civil War, a permanent breakaway of the southern states looked like imminent reality. The Union army that marched on Richmond had been beaten with tens of thousands of casualties. Robert E. Lee had launched an invasion of the north, and Washington, D.C. was on the brink of being overrun.

Sixteen months into U.S. involvement in World War II, the Japanese had taken control of all of the Pacific and Southeast Asia. Our British allies had suffered the most catastrophic defeat in their history when they lost 130,000 fighting men in Singapore. The Japanese had just as thumpingly ejected the U.S. from the Philippines, and were actually in their tenth month of occupying American soil in Alaska. It would take 1,000 American dead (far more than our total losses in Iraq to date) merely to eject the enemy from this Aleutian Island foothold over the course of a few days in the seventeenth month of the war.

At month 16 of the war in Europe, meanwhile, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Greece, Yugoslavia, and other countries had all been lost. German submarines were in the process of wiping out Atlantic shipping. And death camps like Treblinka had been opened and were in the process of killing millions. By the end of that year, 40 percent of the world's Jews, for instance, would be dead.

Light posting day

Today is yet another day where I'm running the moment I get out of bed, so don't expect too much from me. Between meetings, appointments, errands, and dealing with the girlfriend I won't be seeing much of this ol' computer.

Meanwhile, in the ongoing saga of "Mike Ross is a dipshit", he's sent out multiple emails claiming that it wasn't him that was trolling around. Boo freaking hoo, Mike. You've been such an asshole on so many sites that until you give me definitive proof, you're the only asswipe who fits the bill. Deal with it. If you can't handle your past coming up and biting you in the ass, maybe you should look at your past and make a few changes in your currant behavior. Now shut the fuck up and go away.

However, it's always nice when I get people forwarding emails with you admitting that you use proxy IPs and enjoy spamming people. And in that very same email, we have a few links that might be of interest to various people. Let's see, we have the Troll Lounge, where trolls like to brag about where they've been. Attached to the Troll Lounge is this site, Drunken Monkey Blogging, which has a blogroll that the trolls use. Included in all of this is instructions on how to troll, how to use Proxy IP's, and a list of IPs that you can use in order to spam other sites.

Just how fucking worthless are these people? I mean, their big thrill in life comes from annoying people from behind a computer screen. I can't think of anything more chickenshit and cowardly. People like Mike, or "Robert McClellan" are nothing more that slimy little fuckstains on the bedsheets of humanity, and here I see that they actually enjoy it! "Yay, look at me, I'm such a fucking worm that if people ever actually met me in real life, I'd get the living shit pounded out of me! I have enemies in four different time zones! Yay, I'm fucking worthless! Ain't it great!"

I got two words: Mentally deficient. In any case, if they're dumb enough to put this info in an email, I'm going to use it. So I'll be sitting down tonight and firing off a few letters to quite a few people.

As for mikelx and Bobby McFuckstain, just ignore them. The moment I see their comments, I'm either going to alter it, or delete it. Whatever you do don't respond, because I don't want to get the mental picture of these pimply-faced dipwads, sitting in their tighty-whities in their parent's basement with the kleenex and a jar of vasaline, giggling while they type one handed.

Nader got ya down? Call up your Lawyers and Have him Removed!

That's the plan of the power mad Donks of the Kerry/Edwards campaign. Democrats could be participating in a "mini-Watergate" effort to get Ralph Nader out of the presidential picture, the consumer advocate charged Thursday.

"They're hiring lawyers to go up to technicalities in places like Arizona, they infiltrated our political convention," Nader, an independent candidate for president, told FOX News on Thursday. "I spoke to John Kerry and said 'you'd better look into it because it could be a mini-Watergate, possibly."

Nader said he hasn't yet heard back from the Democratic senator from Massachusetts, who is hoping to oust President Bush from the White House in the November elections.

"This is pretty serious, when you try to lock the civil liberties of American just to get on the ballot so people can vote for the candidate of their choice," Nader continued.

Nader was denied a spot on the Arizona ballot and last Friday again accused the Democrats and Kerry of engaging in political "dirty tricks."

Just hours before the developments in Arizona, Nader complained that the Democratic Party has "stepped up its obstruction tendencies" in challenging his ballot access. The consumer advocate said he had called the Kerry campaign three times last Thursday, asking to chat with the candidate.

"We have to get a clarification if they're going to engage in dirty tricks," Nader told reporters at a news conference to criticize multinational corporations.

The Kerry campaign dismissed Nader's complaints, arguing that Democrats were following the rules when they legally challenged Nader's signatures to get on the ballot. "These are rules that have been on the books for years and they ought to be followed," said Chad Clanton, who added that the Massachusetts senator would be happy to talk to Nader.

In Arizona, supporters of Nader abandoned their effort to get the independent candidate on the presidential ballot after Democrats challenged the validity of thousands of signatures.

Nader's campaign had submitted more than 22,000 signatures to Arizona election officials June 9 -- far more than the 14,694 valid signatures required by state law to compete against President Bush and Kerry.

"They really erect all kinds of barriers blocking voices and choices," Nader told FOX News of such alleged Democratic acts.

Although he's no fan of Republicans, the GOP "don't whine and carp like the Democrats," Nader said, adding that 10 times more Democrats "deserted the party" and voted for Bush in 2000 than voted for him.

You Donks just keep telling yourselves what champions of "the little guy" your leaders are. Why let reality get in the way of your self image.

Hideaway guns

Kim du Toit has up an essay about concealable pistols that is of course worth checking out, if you're looking for something small but deadly. As for me, if I can't carry my 1911 (which happens in the summer when you can't wear the clothes to conceal it), then I carry my .38 revolver. It's small enough that a loose t-shirt will cover it, and my girlfriend can carry it in her purse.

And .38 Special wadcutters to ungodly things to human flesh.

Can we hit them now?

Seriously, can we finally just drop a MOAB on their ass?

WASHINGTON — American and Iraqi joint patrols, along with U.S. Special Operations teams, captured two men with explosives in Baghdad on Monday who identified themselves as Iranian intelligence officers, FOX News has confirmed.

Senior officials said it was previously believed that Iran had officers inside Iraq stirring up violence, but this is the first time that self-proclaimed Iranian intelligence agents have been captured within the country.

They're dicking around with UN Inspectors about their nuke facilities, they're sending men into Iraq, they're holding British sailors hostage, at what point do we finally hear President Bush say "The bombing begins in five minutes"? The more that Bush dicks around with Iran, the less his support base will support him! This is a direct attack on Iraq and America, and we can't just sit here and let it slide!

Unless we want to be seen as wishy-washy and weak. Which I'm starting to wonder about. Bush needs to get off his ass and show some leadership. He's sat back while Kerry (and now Edwards) have taken shot after shot at him. He's sat back while Donks have petitioned the FRIGGING UN to come observe our elections. Lack of action is not a strength, Mr. President. It's time you got up and moved.

Captian Ed seems to have more faith than I do right now:

Assuming this checks out -- a big assumption -- expect to see missiles flying at known nuclear sites within days in retaliation for preparing attacks on American soldiers, unless the Iranian mullahs offer a complete withdrawal of all forces on the Iran/Iraq border and renounce any further efforts to undermine Iraqi sovereignty.

We'll see what happens.

Reader Mail

A reader sent me this story, which I had seen around, but didn't quite know what to say about it.

WASHINGTON – The United Nations has turned down a controversial request by nine members of the U.S. Congress to assign international observers to the U.S. presidential election in November.

The request came in the form of a letter drafted by Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, and signed by eight other members of the House.

All the signers are Democrats, by the way. Why am I not surprised?

However, the UN (showing a remarkable presence of thought) turned them down. Which is a good thing, because if I had seen any damn blue helmets at my polling place on election day, I'd have gotten my guns. So would a lot of other people I know.

By the way, if any of these congresscritters are from your state, I'd suggest getting rid of them at the first opportunity.

Besides Johnson, the other representatives signing the letter to Annan – all Democrats – were Julia Carson of Indiana; Jerrold Nadler, Edolphus Towns, Joseph Crowley and Carolyn B. Maloney, all of New York; Raul Grijalva of Arizona, Corrine Brown of Florida, Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland, Danny K. Davis of Illinois and Michael M. Honda of California.

I was actually astonished that my local lunatic, Jim McDermott, wasn't on this list. Thanks for the email, AC.

Errrrr....

...ever had sex with a white yet dreadlocked environmentalist ho?

Yes?

Not in front of an audience numbering a few thousand, I'd wager.

Not Safe For Work

Hooooo, Boy!

Mike of Cold Fury is on a roll, and the result is one big ranty goodness. I'm thinking that he sat down to type out a small entry, and ended up with one of the best summations I've seen lately.

RTWT, as they say.

Attention All Parents

Print out this essay from Dok Russia and give it to your kids. Or read it to them while they're in the crib. It can't be repeated too much.

So, to those young girls on the cusp of womanhood, take this advice for what it is worth:
Be virtuous, and find yourselves a dragonslayer. I am not saying be a prude.
Virtue retains it value better than either virginity or popularity.
Virtue is what cannot be savaged by the years, as beauty can.
Virtue is desired by those worth desiring.

More Mass Media Lies

The LA Times has been caught with it's pants down yet again.

Last Thursday we reported on Paul Bremer's inspirational farewell speech to the Iraqi people, as seen through the eyes of an Iraqi blogger. We also noted that the frequently-clueless Washington Post had denied that Bremer gave a farewell speech at all.

Now, Patrick Frey of Patterico has written us to point out that as recently as July 4, the Los Angeles Times went the Post one better, not only mis-reporting Bremer's speech, but turning their own error into a major theme of the paper's "news" report:

I won't go into the whole thing, but the question that has been on my mind for quite a while is this: Given the major screw-ups that the major media outlets have tossed up as of late, (saying that retirees are getting called up is just an example), and given how these screw-ups could be fixed by a two-minute search with Google (saying the Bremer didn't give a speech, when people who were there reported on it and blogged on it), when do we start to say that these aren't just screw-ups, but intentional misleadings?

Moore's "Militia"...

...strikes again.

As does Robert Fisk.

Seen at Sullivan.

Women in Iraq

Jason Kallini talks about women and right here.

One of the more amazing things about this war has been the totality with which the Left has been willing to whitewash the reality of Saddam's Iraq just to make it look clear that President Bush has made things worse. I hear that F9/11's pre-war scenes include no mass graves, nor rape rooms, nor plastic shredders - just a young man getting his hair cut at the barber and a loving couple dining out to candlelight.

Civility in the Blogosphere

This is topical:

I get questions about the vitriolic tone of the comment section here with some regularity, and my answer is usually the same: there's just not much that I can do about it. True, I can ban people, but that works only if they have a fixed IP address, which these days most people don't. What's more, if the ban fails, the recipient is often pissed off enough to try even harder to make a pain in the ass out of himself.

It's also true that the problem is exponential. A year ago I got 10-20 comments on each post and had no trolls. As a result, the conversation was relatively civil. Today I get 100+ comments per post and the site has at least half a dozen trolls whose only love in life (as near as I can tell) is to start flame wars. The result is a melee....

Why don'tcha try a little tact in your comments, Mike?

danieldrezner.com :: Daniel W. Drezner :: Is civility an endangered species in the blogosphere?

I couldn't get ANYTHING on the FM band this evening....

...in my car. Now I think I can see why.

What a bunch of pigs

Very rarely do I feel like I REALLY TRULY HONESTLY want to punch someone in the mouth. Read this.

How can I miss you when you won't leave?

Since Mike Ross of Portland Oregon continues to stick around, I figured that I should continue to let everyone know just who is plaguing this blog and others with his one-man comment spam operations.

Michael J Ross
19437 SE Marcia Ct
Portland, OR 97267
Phone number: (503) 657-8056
mikelx@comcast.net

You may know him as mikelx from Right Thinking, or as "Liberal Revenge" from Drumwaster's Rants. He loves to use proxy IP's, and won't stop until he shows just what a repulsive and worthless little asshat he is. And since I like to keep people informed, here's a list of all the IPs that he's used.

202.57.70.*, 218.185.66.* and 202.96.161.* (Pacific Rim/Australia), 148.244.150.* (Latin America/Caribbean), 165.247.31.* (Earthlink), 217.127.70.* and 80.32.92.* (The Netherlands), and 198.188.134.* (California University Network).

If he's used any other IP's to hit people, please, let me know. I'm making a list, and checking it twice. Right before I send it off to every IP that he's used to make an ass of himself.

I'll say it again, Mike. Go away. Don't come back.

Memo to al-Zarqawi

Yer screwed, bub.

A group of armed men in Iraq is threatening to kill Jordanian-born militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

The masked men appear in a videotape sent to Al-Arabiya TV, calling themselves ``Salvation Movement.'' In the video, the previously unknown group orders al-Zarqawi to leave Iraq immediately, and questions how he could justify killing innocent civilians.

Three men with rocket-propelled grenades and other weapons deliver the threats while flanked by an Iraqi flag.

One man says the group is preparing to capture or kill al-Zarqawi and those who give him shelter.

How this plays out could be interesting. Of course, the last line is telling:

U.S. officials say the Jordanian -- who is said to have links to al-Qaida -- is behind a series of deadly attacks in Iraq.

Amazing, how US Officials say that Zarqawi is behind the attacks, eh? Maybe because HE HIMSELF CLAIMED CREDIT FOR IT! Golly gee gosh, maybe that's too simplistic for the AP.

Then again, maybe the AP is a bunch of cocked-up asshats. I'm voting for the latter.

Gun Nut Tells Savage Joke

Kim du Toit has a rather indelicately-stated joke to tell, but in so doing he states something that drives me nuts: why are there not more ballsy Conservative pundits out there? Do they not get invited to TV talk shows? I don't know, but I often wonder why no one asked, say, Senator Biden, how many Marine lives would have to be saved by the act of torturing a prisoner before he'd advocate it? 1? 100? 10,000?

NEWS FLASH!!!

Democrat Presidential Candidate seeks candidate for Vice President, decides upon Wealthy White Lawyer.

Shocking.

eL wAFFLER mAS gRANDE

Err, that's Spanish. Lee at Right-Thinking sez Kerry was for abortion before he was against it.

Or vice versa.

Protestors...

...versus Protest Warriors.

Kerry-Edwards

Yawn. Let's see, an uber-rich, two faced, hypocritical, flip-flopping, cadaverous like Northeast Liberal matched up with a greedy, money-grubbing rich trial lawyer.

Who's the "Party of the Rich" again?

Random Thoughts

When trolling websites, try to avoid websites where the people actually know each other. Because when two people get together and start comparing IP's, we find out things like this:

Michael J Ross
19437 SE Marcia Ct
Portland, OR 97267
Phone number: (503) 657-8056
mikelx@comcast.net

Who would this be, you ask? This would be the latest fucking dipshit to cut-and-paste his crap into our comments. Hi there, Mike!

Now, I am not posting this information so that you can do anything with it, I'm simply releasing the information of someone who obviously has quite a few mental problems, and should be avoided at all costs.

By the way Mike, you can keep using proxy servers, and I'll just keep deleting your comments. I'll also put your information up on a post every single day. Hell, I'll broadcast it as far and wide as I possibly can, as well as the list of proxy IP's you use. Let's see, there's 202.57.70.* and 202.96.161.* (Pacific Rim/Australia. Ooooo, fancy!), 148.244.150.*, 165.247.31.*, (Earthlink), 217.127.70.* (The Netherlands! That explains why you act so drugged out.) and 198.188.134.* (California University Network). Now, unless you're a UC student (and I don't think the UC has many campuses in Portland) I'm sure that the UC computer network wouldn't like to find out that you've been using their IP to spam other websites.

So Mike, I'll be nice this time. Go away. Don't come back.

Chainsaw Therapy

The Girlfriend and I headed out to a farm yesterday to get rid of some tension. The farm belonged to a friend of a friend, to put it rather simply. They raise rabbits, chickens, a cow or two, just a small little operation. We've had one of their rabbits for dinner before, so I kinda knew the folks, but hadn't really sat down and talked with them at all. The owners had part of a Broadleaf Maple tree come down in the last windstorm, and due to medical reasons they could cut it up with the chainsaw. They also had a few rabbits to cull.

So the girlfriend, myself, and our pal who actually knows these folks headed out to the farm yesterday. After checking the place out and seeing what needed to be done with the tree, we got to business. We also found out that the owners had bought a sheep to slaughter in addition to the rabbits, since there were going to be extra hands around to help.

So they started with the rabbits. I stuck around to watch, because I'll be doing this at some point in the future. While the girlfriend and our pal were gutting and skinning the rabbits, the owners (I'll call them J and K) got out their chainsaw and I got to work. I'll say this, that Maple was frigging HUGE! And to top it all off, there is more that needs to come down from that tree before it falls over. Can you say "Widowmaker"? I can. Unfortunately, I don't have any of the tools I would need to bring it down. Living in the city doesn't require much in the way of tree-felling equipment, ya know? So I started cutting the wood that was already down. After a while, we took a break, had some water, and then got to the sheep. They hadn't quite figured out how they were going to kill it, (They used a pellet rifle on the rabbits. Works like a charm) but some bright (not so) young man had his .45 pistol on him as any good law abiding citizen should. By the way, my .45 is now named "The Shepherd", because I'm sick and twisted like that. Heh. I also learned a few things from all of this.

1) Unlike the pigs I used to raise, who would just stiffen up and fall over when you killed them, sheep spasm. Hard. And they also kick. Stand well clear.

2) Shooting a sheep in the head and causing instant death is the preferred way to do it. Quick, painless, and humane. However, a .45 APC slug tends to liquefy anything inside the skull, which then leaks out of just about any orifice on the head. When the sheep spasms (see above), it tends to fling large amounts of blood everywhere. If you happen to be in the way of that blood, you come away looking like you have been circumcised with a chainsaw. My pants are ruined.

3) Rabbits just kick a lot when they're killed. No biggie. Hold 'em up by the scruff to avoid ruining any meat.

Once the sheep had stopped spasming, we hung it up so that they could start skinning it. After it was hoisted and hung, I went back to the chainsaw and started cutting again. Let me reiterate that this tree was HUGE! And this was just one section of it! It was easily 50 feet long, laying on the ground, and branched out from two or three points. I probably spent a couple of hours cutting this thing into large pieces. Once I got the main parts cut into 6-10 foot lengths, I noticed that the chain was starting to come loose from the saw blade. So I set it down and went to go help with the skinning. Sad to say, they didn't quite need my help. With four people there, one more set of hands would have gotten in the way. So I stood back, drank about a gallon of water (because I was sweating like mad), and watched the girlfriend, our pal, J, and K cut the sheep up. It was about 60 pounds of meat dressed out. Not bad. The total count for the day was one sheep, four rabbits, and one Raging Dave who's lower back was saying really nasty things about him.

By the way, if there are any woodworkers in the Seattle area who would like some maple wood, let me know. J and K want it gone. And there is literally tons of it.

Anyways, working for hours with a chainsaw is a great way of releasing stress. The girlfriend was happy cutting up little fuzzy things for dinner, and we came back with three rabbits for our freezer. After letting them age in there for a couple of weeks, I'll toss them in my smoker for an hour or so before I cook them up. MMMMMMmmmM!

It was a good weekend. I hope you all have a happy Fourth of July.

Our new troll, same as the old troll

Our new favorite verbal punching bag, "Leaning Left" is none other than Little Robert McClellan, the cut-and-paste fuckwit.

Here's a clue, you dipshit... when you're spewing crap, remember that A) no one is truly anonymous on the Net, and B) LEAVING THE URL TO YOUR WORTHLESS SHITBAG SITE ON YOUR COMMENT IS A GIVEAWAY!

It's a good thing that basic body functions are pretty much automatic, because our fuckwit troll would be too stupid to remember how to take a breath.

At second glance, and third, and fourth....

The longer that Moore's Big Film 'o Lies is out there, the more lies are pointed out.

Via the Terpsboy.

The Declaration of Independence of the Thirteen Colonies In CONGRESS, July 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. --That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. --Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by the Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

Busy Busy Busy

I spent yesterday running errands in the morning, and refinishing a chair in the afternoon. Let me just say right now that I hate varnish. No, I don't just hate it, I want to dig up the body of whoever came up with that unholy crap and burn him. As far as I'm concerned, it has to be one of the worst things you can put on a piece of furniture.

Anyways, my belt sander has been getting a workout. I've got most of the chair down to the bare wood. The girlfriend and I are going to put a nice oil stain on it once it's all clean, and then re-assemble it. We're also redoing the supports for it, since the old supports were pretty much falling apart. From what we can deduce, this chair used to belong to a bunch of vegan hippies who smoked a lot of anything they could get their hands on. I had to fill in quite a few burn marks with wood putty, and it looks like they tried to repaint the chair a few times. Grrrrrr. Once I got all the crap off the chair, I found out the wood was excellent. I can't tell what type of wood it is, but the grain of it is just gorgeous. It'll look pretty damn good once I'm finished with it.

And today I'm going out to a farm to do some log clearing, while my girlfriend dismembers little fuzzy things with the people who own the farm. As payment for my log clearing, we get to take the dismembered fuzzy things home and cook them. Yum!

So there might not be too many posts from me today. I'll see you all tomorrow.

COMPENDIUM OF 'FAHRENHEIT 911' LIES, MISTRUTHS, AND EXAGGERATIONS

The SmarterCop has a compendium of F9/11 bullshit. It's lengthy.

From the Bullshit Files

Aaron over at Free Will notes some, er, inaccuracies in media coverage of Iraq.

Fisking Happens

The Swanky Conservative swings some hellacious brickbat at a Limpminded Leftie.

The Council Has Spoken!

This weeks winners of the Watcher of Weasel council are Compendium of 'Fahrenheit 911' Lies, Mistruths, and Exaggerations by The SmarterCop, and Fahrenheit 411 -- Watching Michael Moore by BuzzMachine. You can find all the results here. I managed to place a respectable second, by 1/3 of a vote.

Not bad, considering who I was up against.

My Mom sent out some quotes from that group of SWIFT boat pilots who....

...opined that John Kerry is unfit to be Commander in Chief. She sent it to a groiup of our extended family.

My cousin, a professor of Middle East Studies, replied with this:

I don't find Kerry's opposition to Vietnam in any way troubling, and
> unlike the quoted people, I certainly don't see opposition to that or
> any war as opposition to individuals (and obviously not as "treason").
> But Kerry is a decorated veteran who had the guts, upon his return
> stateside, to protest an unjust war. Most Americans then and now agreed
> with him, and because of the antiwar movement the US had no choice but
> to start withdrawing slowly over time, saving the lives of thousands of
> US soldiers and sailors. He also acknowledged that at times, by some
> people in some places, atrocities were committed by US troops -- which
> isn't even a question. We know this happened, as it has now in Iraq.
>
> Unlike Kerry, who volunteered to fight despite his personal opposition
> to the war, Bush used his family's contacts to get into the air national
> guard, and then went AWOL for much of his "service". There are countless
> Vietnam vets organized in each of the 50 states to back Kerry. Back in
> Vietnam, and today in an even more unecessary war, personally I am sick
> of these people accusing all who disagree or oppose military adventurism
> of "treason". And while I too have problems with Kerry, there is simply
> no comparison between Bush and Kerry in terms of their national service,
> intelligence, knowledge of the world, and expertise on defense and
> security ... Bush comes up short every time. Despite the misinformation
> the White House is spreading in TV commercials, Kerry's specialties for
> decades of service as a legislator are defense, security, and support
> for armed forces personnel.
>
> Whether anyone likes it or not, there is no chance of this country
> having an iota of respect left internationally, if Bush is actually
> returned to office. His administration is the best recruiting tool
> terrorists could ever have asked for. Many people not named Bush have
> already payed a terrible price for that and more will follow. The damage
> the Bush regime has done to American democracy and American security
> will take years to repair. But at least regime change at home would
> provide a start.
>
> Bush can't run on his economic and social policies obviously, since they
> have been so disasterous, but even his supposed "strength" is a joke. He
> is simply not the defense and security candidate. He has made our
> country less secure than at any time since WWII. He also is responsible
> for the completely needless deaths of more than 900 US soldiers and he
> needs to be held accountable for that. Iraq was not in any way a threat
> nor did it have the WMD arsenal the Bush people claimed . Iraq was not
> involved in 911 and did not back al-Qaida. Al-Qaida was unable to
> operate inside Iraq under Saddam (ruthless dictators like him do tend to
> crush freelance militant movements). And until Bush's war, Iraq had no
> problem with internal terrorism. Now terrorism is part of daily life and
> Bush has given the world a new stage for terrorists to flock to and
> operate out of.
>
> He says he supports the military while cutting veteran's benefits,
> military services, and military salaries in order to pay off his tax
> cuts to his real political base, the already rich and powerful (who are
> certainly not serving in Iraq or Afghanistan). His corporate Cronies
> are, meanwhile, doing very well.
>
> It's not accidental that the overwhelming majority of Middle East
> specialists, arms control specialists, and counter-terrorism specialists
> all oppose Bush. It might also explain why most people voted against him
> in 2000 too.
>
> Personally, I want my country and my democracy back and I will do
> everything in power to defeat this global embarrassment who is, to me,
> the worst and most dangerous president in American history.

So then I replied with this:

I think our economy is in pretty good shape given the "perfect storm"
formed:

- when the NASDAQ bubble, inflated by crooked investment houses, went bust,

- with the discovery of corporate fraud that lined the pockets of wealthy
executives while investors and employees got robbed, and

- with the successful attack upon Manhattan by two dozen or so
highly-motivated Saudis who trained, in America, to hijack planes and use
them as weapons.

Those three events destroyed million of jobs in America. They ALL developed
while the previous Administration's Justice Department was busying itself
with Elian Gonzales, Microsoft, and, of course, that bogeyman of all
bogeymen: Big Tobacco. Ken Lay ripped off California, Worldcom ripped off
its investors, and the 9/11 hijackers flew crosscountry flights to hone
their plan for the Big Day. Meanwhile, Joe Camel was being locked in his
closet where he belongs. Seems wacky to me.

I am hard-pressed to think of a specific Bush Administration economic policy
that has been disastrous, unless we consider the debt to be a disaster,
which we could. But blaming the loss of jobs since January 2001 on the
current President just doesn't stand up to scrutiny.

-------------------

Regarding Iraq:

The notion that we are now "less secure" is something invented out of whole
cloth by someone with a predicatble political agenda. There is no empirical
evidence to support it. It should neither be regurgitated nor rejected
uncritically.

While it is true that Iraq may have not been a threat, many of us saw no
threat at all prior to 11 Sept 2001. Turns out that we had warnings about
Al Qaeda, enumerated specifically in the now-famous 6 Aug 2001 PDB, which
the President has been criticized for not heeding. Interestingly, many of
the same folks who have criticized Bush for NOT responding to those warnings
are now critical of him for responding to CIA, FBI, Czech, and Russian intel
regarding Saddam. Interesting, but not perplexing, in an election year.

Next to lastly, hopefully no reader of this email needs to be disabused of
the notion that "until Bush's war, Iraq had no problem with internal
terrorism." Searching on Google for Iraq+mass+graves is enlightening;
there are links ranging from Fox News to Amnesty International to choose
from. NONE of them portray Iraq 1980-2003 as a place that was absent
"internal terror".

Here's a good example:
http://www.shianews.com/hi/articles/politics/0000374.php

Finally, whether the invasion of Iraq was a solid decision or a disastrous
one likely won't be known for a decade or more. Could be that in 2014, Iraq
will be a functioning democracy, a beacon of freedom in a place where
[relatively] little exists today, or maybe more dominos will have toppled by
then, and the entire region will have reformed itself, much like the new
NATO nations who were freed from Soviet rule a little over a decade ago.

Or Iraq might be a fractured arena of endless civil war, a haven for
terrorists, a seething pot of resentment and hatred toward the West fomented
by the kind imperial meddling that has created much of the current
situation.

Maybe it will be something in between. But it's too early to tell, isn't
it?

I know a guy who's dad had prostate surgery last week.

The day before the surgery, he played golf.

The day after, he couldn't get out of bed.

Did the surgeons make things worse?

I don't think so.

My cousins ALL lean Left and I am certain that they are muttering all manner of things about my ignorance. Ah, well. No replies yet.

Cosby Flies Off the Handle

"You've got to stop beating up your women because you can't find a job, because you didn't want to get an education and now you're (earning) minimum wage," Cosby said. "You should have thought more of yourself when you were in high school, when you had an opportunity."

Yikes!

Yahoo! News - Cosby Has Harsh Words for Black Community

Light posting day

I apologise for the lack of posts today. I have a headache that is actually making me ill. I don't normally get headaches at all, so I'm trying to figure out what caused this one while I take some pain reliever.

In the mean time, here's a quote from an email that a reader sent me regarding the moonbats in Seattle.

I don't bother with moonbats anymore. Its best to realize that what you're dealing with there is that person applying their world view in a fundamentalist manner. You're never ever going to change their opinion because you're not dealing with opinion. Your dealing with the equivalent of religion.

Radical, fundamentalist religion.

Which makes sense if you think about it. Seattle is not only un religious, its anti religious.. and well.. nature abhors a vacuum. If ya know what I mean.


The comments are open for discussion. As for me, I do know what you mean, all too well.

Slap slap slappity slap

Our fellow council member The Smarter Cop has compiled the biggest smackdown of Michael Moore that I've seen to date.

Moore has no credibility. Not even tatters.

"Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you.. We're saying that for America to get back on track, we're probably going to cut that short and not give it to you. We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good." - Hillary Clinton - San Francisco 6-28-04

"Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you.."

Translation: You filthy rich swine! How DARE YOU!

"We're saying that for America to get back on track,"

The Hildebeast's socialist nanny-state track, that is. Where they control you, and you can't do a damn thing about it. You wonder why they want to take away your guns? Because it's much harder to enslave an armed citizenry.

"we're probably going to cut that short and not give it to you."

NOT GIVE IT TO YOU? IT'S THEIR DAMN MONEY IN THE FIRST PLACE, YOU COMMUNIST CUNT! But obviously the Hildebeast doesn't think so. You worked for it. You sweat for it. You busted your ass for it, but it's not your money, it's HER money! She just needs to take it from you!

"We're going to take things away from you for the common good."

Da, Comrade! From each according to his ability, to each according to his need! Ve vill make dis country into a perfect paradise, you vill see!

Just absolutely sickening. She's not even trying to hide it anymore. What a foul, corrupt, communist bitch.

What's it like to be "rich"?

Have you ever wondered what it's like to be "rich"? No, I don't mean rich like Bill Gates. I mean "rich", as defined by Democrats.

Here is a good description, from one of the geese that lays the golden eggs:

Confessions of a "Rich" Businessman

John Kerry wants to repeal tax cuts for upper income Americans. Now there's a surprise: a Democratic Presidential candidate attacks the rich. But who are "the rich"? Well, as Democratic politicians define the "fortunate few at the top of society," my wife and I are, or close to it.

We're only recognized as rich quadrennially, of course--when campaigns are in full swing. But even if we make the cut solely during election times, it's fun being rich. Wintering in Aspen, summering in Nantucket, luxury cars, fancy prep schools and Ivy League colleges, hobnobbing with movie starlets and marrying heiresses, I'm living large. Oops! No, that's John Kerry's life. Come to think of it, I drive a Ford Taurus, my kids have all gone to public schools, and my vacations usually involve economy motels and breakfast at McDonald's...

This is a good read. Class warfare usually invokes images of limousines, tuxedos, sports cars, and yachts. This column provides a more realistic view of upper 5%-hood and, in general, the people paying the country's taxes and creating our jobs.

HAAAAA!

Go check out this cartoon from Cox and Forkum.

My dad retired from the Marine Corps in 1984, but he still has quite a few friend who are still somehow involved with the Corps. He's also in the Marine Corps League (they do the Toys for Tots every year at Christmas, as well as several other ceremonial functions).

After September 11th, when I was having a long discussion with my father, he told me about a retired Marine Major who called up Marine HQ (on I St. and 8th) in Washington D.C. and told them that he wanted to re-join. The Marine on the other end of the line was somewhat surprised, but took down the Major's name and info, and then put him on hold while the information was relayed to someone higher up.

After about ten minutes, another Marine picked up the phone and told the Major "I'm sorry sir, but your status is 4-I right now, we're unable to take you back." The Major was rather put out, and demanded to know what 4-I status actually was. He was told "When the Enemy is at the intersection of 4th and I St., you'll be getting a call."

By the way, the Major was a Viet Nam vet around 60 years old. Heh.

It just reminded me that there are a lot of people who want to rejoin, re-enlist, re-up, what have you, but due to age or other physical conditions, they've been told "No". Plus, the story (and the cartoon) gave me a little chuckle.

Clinton's Tripe is #1

As expected, Clintons piece of Fiction auto-biography is number one on the Amazon Bestsellers List. As disgusted as I am that people still worship that cretin, I'm chuckling as I watch Hill and Bill suck the air right out of John Fonda Kerry's sails. "John who? He's running for what? Does he have a book?"

What you might not know is that a certain little book deconstructing the Fat Fuck From Flint is sitting at #8 #5. A few days ago when it first came out, it was at #20.

Did you even know that someone wrote a book about Moore? Now you do.

Why the Military doesn't trust the Media

Maybe it's because the Media doesn't have a f**cking clue about the military? Hmmmmmm?

WASHINGTON Â? As many as 7,500 retired and discharged soldiers who are not members of the National Guard or Reserve will be involuntarily recalled to active duty for possible service in Iraq or Afghanistan, Army sources told FOX News Tuesday.

(.....)

It will be the first time the Army has relied on the Individual Ready Reserve, as this category of reservists is known, in substantial numbers since the 1991 Gulf War.

And this is from Fox News, supposedly the bastion (if you listen to the moonbats) of conservative press.

Let's clear this up right now. Individual Ready Reserve, also known as Inactive Reserve, IS NOT RETIRED OR DISCHARGED TROOPS! Every initial enlistment is for EIGHT YEARS. You can serve anywhere from two years active to eight years active, but you must serve EIGHT YEARS. If you choose to serve less than eight years on active duty, your enlistment continues, either in the National Guard or Active Reserve (which is entirely voluntary) or in the INACTIVE READY RESERVE. Just because you are not on active duty does not mean that your enlistment is finished, you are simply inactive. If PFC Snuffy gets out of active duty in four years, he does not receivee his discharge papers until the entire enlistment is completed. It will come in the mail in four more years. Does everybody understand this now?

You don't drill. You don't train. You don't wear a uniform. All it means is that should the military need troops, you will get called. That's the entire function of the IRR. It does not apply to retirees, or any military service member who has already completed their eight years of service. If you do ten years in the Army, and then get out of the service, you are NOT on the IRR because you've already finished the initial eight years. Any voluntary extentions after those eight years to not tack any more time onto the IRR. That eight years is set in stone, and once you complete it, you're finished with it.

Anyone familiar with the military knows this. Anyone with a compter, internet connection, and fifteen seconds of free time can find this information. So what does it say when the Media gets a simple fact about the military such as this completely and utterly wrong?

It proves that the Media doesn't know jack shit about the military, and doesn't care to learn anything about it. THAT is why the military distrusts the media. And they have a damn good reason for it.

Hat tip to Blackfive.

UPDATE: Via Instapundit comes yet another reason why the Military is begining to loath the Media.

Don't take my word for it that the Post’s reporting is substandard and superficial. Take the word of Philip Bennett, the Post's assistant managing editor for foreign news. In a surprisingly candid June 6 piece, he admits that "the threat of violence has distanced us from Iraqis." Further, "we have relied on Iraqi stringers filing by telephone to our correspondents in Baghdad, and on embedding with the military. The stringers are not professional journalists, and their reports are heavy on the simplest direct observation." Translation: we are reprinting things from people we barely know, from a safe location dozens of miles away from the fighting. (emphasis mine)

(.....)

Since I saw Rajiv Chandrasekaran's integrity up close, I haven't believed a word he writes, or any story coming out of the bureau he runs. You shouldn't, either.

And it begins.....

Someone needs to clue Michael Moore on to the fact that people today like to fact-check.

Fahrenheit Facts.

Fahrenheit Fact is a joint presentation between Curtis Schweitzer, blogger of a_sdf and Grant Libby, blogger of RecoveringCynic. Here we attempt to bring to light those "other" facts about Michael Moore's new film "Fahrenheit 9/11". This is not an opinion blog- it is a fact one. We make sure to source every post, and will either cite or link to the source of the provided fact. It is our desire to see a well-armed populous that is ready to evaluate the film from an informed perspective.

They're at 15 and counting.

Thank you, gentlemen!

To Our Commenter Michael

Cap'n Jim from Smoke On The Water wanted to leave a comment for you in this thread, but Haloscan's 1k character limit prevented him. So he emailed me the entire thing and asked if I could put it up. It's not just a comment to you, it's one of the best rebuttles to Moore's assertions that I've seen. If you would like to respond, you can email him or email me and I'll pass it on to him.

Without further ado, Cap'n Jim:

Michael, it's evident from your comments that you've most likely never held a position of real power.

I've been both a police officer and have worked at the executive level as a Divisional Director, reporting personally to the President of a Fortune 1000 corporation.

In both capacities, I've been faced with various crisis. As a cop, I've had to take very immediate action, but I've also had to effect carefully considered responses, based on my observation of both circumstances present before me and the need to consider how those circumstances develop, in order to decide on the best course of action.

As an executive, I've often had to await the reports of subordinates who themselves were having to gather facts from various departments and individuals. I don't mean just planning for the next budget meeting either. Try having a $5 million department under you, when you're out of town at a meeting, and one of your subordinates reports having been raped on your company property. Then tell me how I was supposed to "leap into
action" again?

As the leader of that Division, it would have been grossly irresponsible for me to have interfered with the specialists who were already hard at work on the problem. My job was to ensure that they did theirs, not to do it for them.

I did exactly what President Bush did. Knowing that various people were doing their job, I monitored the situation simply to ensure that the correct processes had been set into motion.

And when those people asked me for input at certain decision points along the way, I got their suggestions first, unfiltered by my having interjected my opinions into their processes. I didn't always implement their ideas, but I always made sure I knew what they thought the options were.

And on more than one instance, they had the better ideas.

An effective executive most often decides from several options either already known to, or presented to him. Most executives don't personally invent those options, but they're generally pretty damned good at putting the right ones into motion.

Most frequently too, a strong executive wants to first ensure that he's got all of the relevant facts first, before taking hasty action.

And if you don't grasp the difference between "react" and "respond", well then, enjoy your burger flipping career.

At times, patience and well-considered action is the epitome of leadership.

In the end, it's the results that count, far more than any Hollywood show of heroics.

And results damn sure count for more than making a Hollywood showing of throwing someone else's medals over the White House fence.

Insofar as international terrorism and in dealing with the nations which support it, I find that President Bush is getting excellent results.


Jim
Sloop New Dawn
Galveston, TX

PS. And Michael Moore really is less useful than a used MaxiPad.

What did you call me?

With all the calls of "NAZI!" being flung by the Left, I started to wonder if any Leftists really knew what a Nazi was. I wondered if they actually knew what the Nazi's did, or how people under Nazi rule suffered.

Mere words barely describe the horror of Nazi rule, to be honest. But here are the words of someone who lived through it.

"By then I was 14, I witnessed all kinds of murders, hangings, and beatings," said Meyer. "It was bad; three times a week they came in and got dead people and carried them outside of the camp where they dumped them in a big pit. Then they threw lime on them to disintegrate their bodies.

"It was in that process where I thought I had my only chance to escape," said Meyer. "When a guard wasn't looking, I crawled into one of the barrels with dead people and pretended to be dead. They hauled me out and threw me into the pit. That night, before they threw lime in the pit, I crawled out from under dead bodies and escaped into the countryside."

This man's father lived through it. This is what you equate me to when you call me a Nazi. And this is why I will stomp your ass into a bloody pulp if you ever call me a Nazi to my face. If you are so ignorant, stupid, willfully blind, moronic, fuckwitted, and asshatted enough to think that people on the Right are Nazis, then you're too fucking stupid to bother with. The only thing I will do to you is put you into a serious world of hurt if given the chance. I will not debate you. I will not try to make you "see the light". By your reference to Nazis and Hitler you have shown yourself to be incapable of either rational argument or coherent thought. The only thing you are good for is a punching bag, either verbal or physical, depending on how close to me you are when you spew your crap.

Al Gore can go fuck himself. He's off his Thorozine again, and it shows. Do you want to know why the Democrats are fucked? Because when Al Gore calls people like me "Digital Brown Shirts", a good amount of Democrats take him seriously. When MoveOn.org creates ad ad that morphs President Bush into Hitler, a good number of Democrats take them seriously. When the brain-dead, drug-addled, worthless fucking parasitic moonbats carry posters and signs that call Bush and his administration a bunch of Nazis, they are equating this administration to a fascist regime that caused the brutal death of millions and the suffering of millions more.

In the Left's desperate attempts to find any mud, no matter how vile, to fling at Bush, they have dredged up comparisons that should have never seen the light of day. In their efforts to hurl insults, no matter how foul, they have smeared a huge segment of Americans. In their smug, shit-throwing idiocy the Left have proven once again that they have no grasp of historical events and even less understanding of how they relate to current events.

And I have had enough. More than enough. I have met my limit of bullshit. I have been inundated with "Bush=Hitler" crap in Seattle for too damn long, and I will no longer sit idly by, gritting my teeth, and trying to remain civil. It is long past time to simply say "No more". Comments calling me or President Bush a Nazi will be deleted. If people want to debate, fine. Let's debate. Let's argue. You can call me just about anything you want, but the first time I see the word "Nazi" that sucker is gone.

In Seattle, I'm going to be more aggressive in confronting the brain-dead who equate America to Nazi Germany. I'm going to debate them, loudly and in public. I will demand to see the gas chambers, and the concentration camps. I will demand to see the nine million dead, the mass graves, and the ovens used to burn the victims. And when the brain-dead will stutter and try to change the subject, I will tell them exactly where to go and how to get there.

And I'm asking you to join me.

Stop allowing the brain dead to spread their crap. Argue with them, as publicly as possible. Don't just sit and allow these insults to fly around unimpeded. Because I've had enough. And I hope you have as well.

Michael Moore caught lying yet again.

It never stops, does it? That fat sack of crap couldn't tell the truth if his life depended on it.

The Smoking Gun reveals that Michael Moore is registered to vote in two states: New York and Michigan.

Although he has claimed to be an "independent” and not a Democrat, records from the New York City Board of Elections show that in reality he registered as a Democrat, the Web site reported.

"Now here's the good part: Moore is simultaneously registered to vote in Michigan, where registrants aren't even given the option of party affiliation (so he's not an Independent there either)."

And there's more: "as a New York City voter, TSG can tell you it's hard not to realize you are registered, since a voter's mailbox is regularly bombarded with candidate mail, official voter guides, and Board of Election notices about upcoming elections and reminders about the location of your polling place."

If the man (and I use that term loosely) can't even tell the truth about HIMSELF, how in blue blazes can you expect him to tell the truth about anything else?

Via Sondra K.

Heh

I half expected to see Mike Moore's picture here.

Lileks

A must read lies at the end of this.

Weekly Roundup

Alphecca's weekly gun control round-up is posted for your reading pleasure.

Anyone In A Betting Mood?

Because I got ten bucks that says this story never sees the front page of any major media outlet.

Intelligence officers learned between 1999 and 2001 that uranium smugglers planned to sell illicitly mined Nigerien uranium ore, or refined ore called yellow cake, to Iran, Libya, China, North Korea and Iraq.

These claims support the assertion made in the British government dossier on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programme in September 2002 that Iraq had sought to buy uranium from an African country, confirmed later as Niger. George W. Bush, US president, referred to the issue in his State of the Union address in January 2003.

Every brain-dead fucktard out there who was screaming "BUSH LIED" never stopped to think about why the British, who first shared this intel with us, were sticking by their story through it all. They should have.

But then if they actually used their brains, they might not be Leftists would they?

Found via Instapundit.

I can't help myself!

It's just too much fun to link to bitchslaps of the Fat Fuck From Flint.

Cap'n Jim has photos of the extended Moore family. Heh.

And the Twisted Spinster (I love that name!) has one of the ultimate bitchslaps of that oxygen thief.

MICHAEL MOORE CAN EAT MY USED MAXIPADS. How – the – fuck – can he even have the audacity to claim that the president’s “reaction time” was any fucking thing at all – how the fucking fuck does he know what was going on in Bush’s mind? How the fuck – okay, you sack of rotting horsemeat, what would you have done that day? No doubt you would have jumped up and started babbling – to a roomful of kindergarten children, because that is the kind of grandstanding, it’s-all-about-me-and-how-I-look kind of useless creep you are – about how we were under attack and in horrible danger and we might all die and you had to leave right now and then you would have had all your beefy secret service agents lock down the school of hysterical, sobbing children and frightened, confused teachers for the entire day while you were carried off to your hideaway, because that is the sort of me-me-me, who-gives-a-shit-about-others-around-me sort of GODAWFUL WASTE OF HUMAN FLESH, ENOUGH TO FEED ALL OF ZIMBABWE WITH LEFTOVERS FOR ETHIOPIA that you are.

I'm feeling it.

No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy

The United States Marine Corps has earned themselves honor and reputations the world over. In World War Two, the Germans looked for the Marines so that they could avoid them. In the Korean War, the Chinese called them "Yellowlegs" due to their yellow-colored leg coverings and avoided them like the plague. The Marines eventually had to remove their distinctive leg covers in order to trick the Chinese into fighting.

It is well known that if you need something completely destroyed within 24 hours, you send in the Marines. The Air Force can spread their power over a huge area, the Navy's carrier groups are feared world wide with good reason, and the Army can be rolling all over your ass in two-three days, but for sheer ass-kicking, bad-guy killing, rip-your-throat-out-with-their-teeth destruction on less than a day's notice, you send in the Marines.

So I'm begging my government to please, please, PLEASE TAKE THE FUCKING GLOVES OFF ALREADY, YOU SPINELESS SACKS OF SHIT!

Insurgents threatened to behead a U.S. Marine and a Pakistani driver they had kidnapped unless the Americans release all Iraqis in "occupation jails," according to a videotape on Arab television. Turkey rejected demands by militants holding three Turkish hostages in a separate standoff.

I don't give a good god-damn if this guy was the second coming of christ, he's a damn MARINE! And if he's a Corporal, that means he's at least fairly good at his job! The fact that these camel-humping J.E.R.M.s might cut his head off is going to send the entire Corps into a bloodlust. And if yellow bellied useless fucks in the State Department could pull their mouths off of the Left's shriveled cock and think for themselves JUST ONCE, they'll let the Marines go in and do what they need to do.

Enough of this bullshit. The gloves need to come off. Right. Fucking. Now.

Fat That Doesn't Float

Regarding those who think the Big Greasy Crap Monster is the second coming and that F911 is scripture:

It’s funny that they seem to believe that people will see Moore-on’s shiny happy version of Saddam Hussein’s Iraq and simply go. “Wow! I was soo wrong about Hussein. Look at the kids flying kites. Man! I’m voting for Kerry.” He also takes a huge shit on the war in Afghanistan by implying it was done so we could build an oil pipeline. They must assume that people will see this and say, “Man! And I just thought we did it because Usama Bin Laden and al Qaeda were being supported by the Taliban and they told us where to stick it when we asked them to give him (and the other terrorists) up. Now I know it was just for a pipeline that has yet to materialize. Damn! I’m voting for Kerry.”

In other words. These idiots forget that their shit flies on the evening news because the assholes there-in constantly defend their meme driven stories in successive news segments...in essence tempering their message when it falls outside the main stream. Moore-on’s shit sandwich is by nature a stand alone entity. Better yet, it is a finite record of the a plethora of stupid crap that these ever braying jackasses believe. It is also (at present time thanks to the hype) serving as a billboard of no return for the same. If the donks embrace it, they share it’s fate. If they don’t, they risk pissing off their base. A tasty double edge sword that we couldn’t dream of cooking up ourselves. Hatred only gets you so far. Moore let it dominate his message. He quantified leftist hatred and let it shade his representation of recent history and current events that people witnessed/are witnessing for themselves. As this film is discussed, it’s flaws will become more and more appearant and those that clung to this stinking butt loaf will ride it down the hole at the bottom of the shitter.

Hell, I could have told you that!

I remember commenting on The Rott about the Korean who was beheaded by the J.E.R.M.s. I believe my comment at the time was "Korea is known as the 'Land of the Morning Calm' because if you piss off a Korean, you're dead before sunrise."

So it didn't suprise me when I found this link over at Florida Cracker. In the double-speak found so often in the news, the first few paragraphs are about how Koreans want their people out, ect. If you just read the first few blurbs, you would think that the entire country of Korea was sniveling in fear:

As intended by the kidnappers, the killing of Kim Sun-il, 33, an interpreter, pumped new life into a movement to stop the plan to send more troops, a deployment that would make South Korea the third-largest source of foreign troops, after the United States and Britain.

Not what I expected at first. That paragraph is almost insulting in it's tone. Reading through the article, we get to the actual meat of the story, the reaction I predicted.

An unexpected reaction (unexpected only by the idiot left - RD) was Wednesday's wave of anti-Muslim and anti-Iraqi sentiment.

"An innocent son of our nation was murdered," said one of the many messages that flooded the Web site of the Defense Ministry. "If you allow me to volunteer for Iraq, I will fight terrorists to avenge his death."

Other messages urged military strikes against terrorists. The portion of respondents to polls run by the Yahoo and Daum Web sites who said the beheading had prompted them to now back sending more troops increased by 23 percent on Yahoo and 24 percent on the Daum site on Wednesday.

At a rally in Seoul, conservative protesters said the government should send combat troops to Iraq, instead of military doctors and engineers.

"We want revenge for Kim's killing," the conservative protesters shouted, burning portraits of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the Jordanian-born leader of the Islamic terrorists who beheaded Kim and dumped his body and head on a road.

For those of you out there who plan on living to a ripe old age, I'll give you the same advice. Don't. Piss. Off. Korea. You think I hold a grudge? These people carry grudges around with them their entire LIFE, and then pass them on to their kids!

And speaking of people you do NOT want to piss off, just what in the blue blazes did the J.E.R.M.s think they were doing when they kidnapped three Turks?

Followers of the most wanted Islamic militant in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, announced Saturday they had kidnapped three Turkish workers and threatened to behead them after 72 hours unless Turkish companies stop doing business with American forces in Iraq and called for protests in Turkey against Bush's visit.

Oh yeah, real smart! Let's kidnap a few citizens from a country known for the fact that it used to control half the civilized world, and still remembers how to kick ass and take names! Can't you just hear that little conversation going on?

Zarqawi: Allahu Ackbar, brothers! How many infidels did you capture?
J.E.R.M. #1: God is great, oh leader! We have captured three Turkish infidels!
Zarqawi: HOLY S**T! Are you high?! Have you been putting the wrong plant in the hookah? We have to put them back before the rest of the country finds out!
J.E.R.M. #2: Um.. we already sent out a message saying they'll be beheaded...
Zarqawi: (wets himself quietly)

Here's another little hint from Captain Obvious: When kidnapping people and chopping off their heads, try to avoid citizens from countries who have little reason nor desire to not force-feed you your own testicles. Turkey isn't the USA. Turkey doesn't have a group of idiots shrieking "Be nice! Be nice! They're just misunderstood!"

At this point, I think that sitting back and watching the fireworks might be a good way to spend the next few days!

The Hidden Cost of Cats

OK, so I told you all about how my cats ruined my camera. Actually, they ruined my camera, three lenses (50mm, 135mm, and a 70-210mm), three flashes, two slave units for said flashes, and a doubler. Believe it or not, they're still alive. I'm just biding my time, though.

Anyways, I set out to replace the camera this weekend. I just wanted a SLR 35mm camera, nothing fancy. I knew I wouldn't be able to replace my entire set-up, but having a camera would be the first step. There were a lot of stores having sales, so I decided to go check out what was available. If I could afford a new camera, why not get one?

I'll tell you why not.

Most people who know me know that I'm a technophobe. I distrust anything with a high number of moving parts that requires an ungodly amount of training and time to use or repair. Auto transmission? No thanks, give me a manual. Hell, if it weren't for the fact that Tim controls this blog, I wouldn't be blogging right now! Template? What's that? Code? Is that like your PIN number? Bolt-action rifles and revolvers win out over semi-autos with me damn near every time. To date, I have ONE semi-auto pistol, ONE semi-auto rifle, and then a revolver, bolt action rifles, and a pump shotgun. As Kim du Toit puts it, "A revolver is like a fork. You pick it up and it works."

I want my camera to be the same way. I do NOT need to fight with the camera about who's going to do the focusing. I do NOT feel the need to argue with the camera about who controls the light aperture. And I certainly do NOT want to be forced to push this button, flip this switch, turn this knob, and then MAYBE I'll be able to take the picture on my own without some damned computer chip telling me what to do. If it has more than one or two "helping" technical doo-dads on it, I don't want it.

So the girlfriend and I head to the camera store with Hodge in tow. Once we get to the mall, I send off Hodge and the girlfriend to go check out a movie store, since I'm thinking that I'll be a while and I don't want to bore them. And I get down to business. The first store I'm at, I look at about ten different cameras. Nikon, Minolta, Cannon, Pentax, you name it and I'm looking at it. And you know what I found?

Every last one of them is automatic. Every. Damn. One.

I'm flabbergasted. When the hell did it cost LESS to put all that crap on a camera? I hand back the last camera (Nikon N75) and leave to check out another store.

Same story. Every camera that's on display is this automated hunk of crap that won't even let me control the aperture! I have to flip this and push that and twist this, and the damn things STILL won't let me control the damn camera! Hell, there's no numbers on the aperture ring itself! You have to look at the little LCD window on the camera to figure out what your aperture is set at! WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH THAT?!?! What happens if your batteries die? "Oh, well, you'll have to get new batteries then." WHAT??? At this point I have a little bit of steam coming out of my ears, but it's not the fault of this salesman. He honestly is trying his best to help me out, but he's got NOTHING to work with. So I set down the camera I was looking at (a Cannon, I think) and look the guy straight in the eye. I tell him "Look, I want a camera that doesn't fight with me over who actually takes the picture, OK? If I can't set the aperture manually, I don't want it. Can we start from there?"

So the camera guy thinks about it... rubs his chin.... and then searches through his stock. Pulls out a Nikon box and sets it in front of me. I open it up, and voila, there it is. Fully manual. The only thing technical about the camera is the fact that it has a built in light meter, but that only shows you how much light is coming into the camera, it doesn't do anything for you. Sweet jeebus, I think I've found it. I smile, and ask the guy how much it is.

Seven. Hundred. Dollars.

I stared at the guy. Seven hundred dollars! Seven large! And trying to maintain as much control as I possibly can, I ask the guy why some computerized block of crap can retail for $250 to $350, but a camera that actually lets you run it is double the price. The guy gets a sheepish look on his face and says "Well, most people don't know how to run a camera, so they buy one that runs itself. That's the bulk of our camera sales. The professionals who want to control a camera on their own demand higher quality in their equipment, so that's where the real high-end stuff goes, thus the higher price."

Un-frigging-real. I never thought I would see the day where some automatic shitpile retails for less than the manual version. And of course, every camera shop I went to did not have my one and only option left in stock. The Nikon FM-10 was the only camera that did what I wanted it to (or didn't do what I didn't want it to, to be precise) and was within my budget.

Crap. Plan B, the used camera stores. The girlfriend finds a list of used camera stores in the Seattle area and we start to check them off. The first shop we go into (Jim's Camera, 43rd St. in the U District) has quite a few. I'm looking through the cases when I spot my camera. Actually, it's the same model as the camera that the cats just finished ruining. A Minolta X-700, slightly worn, with NOTHING that could interfere with ME taking the picture. Halle-frigging-lujia!

So we haggle on the price for a bit, and the guy gives me a damn good deal. I take the camera for a spin, and notice that the aperture ring is sticking. Could be a worn spring, could be some crap in there, I'm not sure so I take it back. Try another one. (There were about 5 X-700's in the case). The second camera has a faulty light meter, and the pictures come out severely over-exposed. Not good. So I take THAT camera back, and we do a bit more haggling. Finally after paying about $15.00 over my limit, (it stung, but it'll be worth it) I have a partial set-up again. A camera, two lenses, and a doubler. Not the set up I used to have, but a damn good start. I'll be taking a roll of film with this camera to make sure it's in good working order, but it looks like I'll finally have a camera again. And Jim's Camera treated me pretty damn well, I must say. I'd go back there in a heartbeat, and I will be going back as soon as I have the money for a flash set-up.

And if the cats find a way to screw with THIS one, I'm going to roast their little hell-spawned hides over an open flame.

(And no, I'm not telling you what I paid for everything. However, I can tell you that it was more than I could afford, but worth more than I paid.)

Weekend Update

Hodge left on Friday morning, to continue his vacation. He's got some family in California that he's going to go see, and from there he'll spend a few days in Vegas before heading to San Antonio. It was damn good to see him, although some of his stories could curl your hair. And some of the pictures he brought back weren't the nicest either.

The ongoing saga of the camera is pretty much completed. I'll write about that in a seperate post.