I wouldn't normally post a circulating e-mail but this one really hits the bullseye:
Scenario: Jack pulls into school parking lot with rifle in gun rack.
1956 - Vice Principal comes over, takes a look at Jack's rifle, goes to
his car and gets his to show Jack.
2006 - School goes into lockdown, FBI called, Jack hauled off to jail
and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors called in for
traumatized students and teachers.
++++++++++++++++++++++
Scenario: Johnny and Mark get into a fist fight after school.
1956 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up
best friends Nobody goes to jail, nobody arrested, nobody expelled.
2006 - Police called, SWAT team arrives, arrests Johnny and Mark.
Charge them with assault, both expelled even though Johnny started it.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Scenario: Little Jeffrey won't be still in class, disrupts other
students.
1956 - Jeffrey sent to office and given a good paddling by Principal.
Sits still in class.
2006 - Jeffrey given huge doses of Ritalin. Becomes a zombie. School
gets extra money from state because Jeffrey has a disability.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Scenario: Billy breaks a window in his father's car and his Dad gives
him a whipping.
1956 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to
college, and becomes a successful businessman.
2006 - Billy's Dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy removed to foster
care and joins a gang. Billy's sister is told by state psychologist
that she remembers being abused herself and their Dad goes to prison.
Billy's mom has affair with psychologist.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Scenario: Mark gets a headache and takes some headache medicine to
school.
1956 - Mark shares headache medicine with Principal out on the smoking
dock.
2006 - Police called, Mark expelled from school for drug violations.
Car is searched for drugs and weapons.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Scenario: Mary turns up pregnant.
1956 - 5 High School Boys leave town. Mary does her senior year at a
special school for expectant mothers.
2006 - Middle School Counselor calls Planned Parenthood, who notifies
the ACLU. Mary is driven to the next state over and gets an abortion
without her parent's consent or knowledge. Mary given condoms and told
to be more careful next time.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Scenario: Pedro fails high school English.
1956: Pedro goes to summer school, passes English, goes to college.
2006: Pedro's cause is taken up by ultra-liberals. Newspaper articles
appear nationally explaining that teaching English as a requirement for
graduation is racist. ACLU files class action lawsuit against state
school system and Pedro's English teacher. English banned from core
curriculum. Pedro given diploma anyway but ends up mowing lawns for a
living because he can't speak English.
+++++++++++++++++++++
Scenario: Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from the 4th of
July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle, blows up a red ant
bed.
1956 - Ants die.
2006 - ATF, Homeland Security, FBI called. Johnny charged with domestic
terrorism, FBI investigates parents, siblings removed from home,
computers confiscated, Johnny's Dad goes on a terror watch list and is
never allowed to fly again.
+++++++++++++++++++++
Scenario: Johnny falls while running during recess and scrapes his
knee. He is found crying by his teacher, Mary, who hugs Johnny to
comfort him.
1956 - In a short time Johnny feels better and goes on playing.
2006 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job.
She faces 3 years in State Prison.
+++++++++++++++++++++
#2
In 1954, when I was in first grade, a fellow student brought a U.S. Army Korean War era (defused) handgrenade to school for "show and tell". I remember handling it as it was passed around...seriously cool stuff. No one, including the teacher thought anything of it. Afterwards, the class went back to reading "Dick and Jane".
More shrill tantrums from the queen of global warming, Laurie David. The focus this time is on corporate support of the NSTA, particularly oil companies.
To bolster her claims, she links to an NSTA site that she says proves her point; that NSTA is in the pockets of Big Oil.
From the website:
The perception created by the op-ed that NSTA has a conflict of interest in dealing with corporate America is misleading. This is a very serious issue to NSTA and science education. Like many organizations, NSTA does receive support from corporate America and other organizations (in FY06 total corporate support received by NSTA was 16.4% and total support from energy companies was 3.77%). Before we accept any funds from outside groups (corporate or otherwise), and as a condition of any support, we make it clear that NSTA is solely responsible for developing, directing, and implementing the programs we offer to teachers.
Oopsie, again...
Watching a famous "producer" lose all control of her boldily functions because she is trying to save a few bucks is hilarious, if it weren't so pathetic.
Give it up, Mrs. David. The only person in moneyed interest's pockets is you.
#1
Every day when I awake, I curse the Evil Corporations that have so afflicted my Modern Life. Consumer goods, food, vaccines and cheap wine from Australia and Chile. The bastards. And now they are funding science education? When will it all stop?
I would rant more, but there are 6 inches (15 cm for you metric weenies) of new-fallen global warming on the driveway that needs to be dealt with.
Former speechwriter Peggy Noonan writes about George H.W.Bush breaking down in tears while speaking at a tribute to son Jeb Bush. Ms. Noonan, who used to like his other son, the sitting president, has some (to me, unnecessarily) pointed things to say about Bush 43's competence. Read the whole thing if you're so inclined -- the Wall Street Journal's OpinionJournal.com is free, but you have to register. The bit that actually interested me came near the end:
And the younger President Bush, what of his inner world? He has been shorn of much--his place in the winner's circle, old advisers. A man who worked for Richard Nixon reminded me the other night that when Nixon fired Haldeman and Ehrlichman, "he lost his asbestos suit." He lost his primary protectors and loyalists. President Bush is now without a similar layer. Old staffers gone, Rumsfeld gone, Cheney marginalized He is? I hadn't noticed., Condi and Karen off representing. And the ISG. And the loss of Congress.That last remains to be seen -- Lieberman controls the outcome in the Senate; it seems they're to have a re-vote down in New Orleans for the money-in-the-freezer gentleman. And Representative Pelosi just announced they won't be trying to impeach Bush, et al.
And yet the president presents himself each day in his chesty way, with what seems a jarring peppiness. A person who saw him in the White House a few days ago described him as "perky, seemed happy." At the modest dinner for outgoing U.N. head Kofi Annan--one participant called it "stinting"--the president joshingly approached a guest. "I don't see many friendly faces here!" he said, leaving the guest deadpanning later, "He mistook me for a friendly face."
Unlike anguished wartime presidents of old, he seems resolutely un-anguished. Think of the shattered Lincoln of the last Mathew Brady photographs, taken just weeks before he was assassinated. He'd gone from a bounding man of young middle age who awed his secretaries by his ability to hold a heavy ax from his fully outstretched arm, to, four years later, "the old tycoon." Or anguished Lyndon B. Johnson sitting in the cabinet room by himself, literally with his head in his hands. History takes a toll.
But George W. Bush seems, in the day to day, the same as he was. It is part of the Bush conundrum--a supernal serenity or a confidence born of cluelessness? You decide. Where you stand on the war will likely determine your answer. But I'll tell you, I wonder about it and do not understand it, either what it is or what it means. I'd ask someone in the White House, but they're still stuck in Rote Talking Point Land: The president of course has moments of weariness but is sustained by his knowledge of the ultimate rightness of his course . . .
#1
"the Bush conundrum--a supernal serenity or a confidence born of cluelessness?"
'God grant me the courage to change what I cannot accept, the serenity to accept what I cannot change, and the wisdom to know the difference.' Words to live by.
National Priorities: When a secretary of defense gets confirmed 95-2 apparently because he says we are not winning a war, you know Uncle Sam must have a sign on his back that says "kick me."
We've come a long way from that day in April 1986 when President Ronald Reagan ordered Operation El Dorado Canyon, an air strike on Libya by two dozen F-111F fighter bombers in retaliation for a terrorist blast at a West Berlin disco that injured 200 people, including 63 U.S. soldiers, killing two.
#3
Gromgoro, that was my thought as well but someone on another board said that the Congress was behind the pullout of Lebanon. I don't know the facts but the retreat didn't help and Iran/Contra certainly didn't send a very good message either.
Advised by Jim Baker, Saudi Princes Seek Immunity Against 9/11 Lawsuits
18-Oct-03
September 11 Lawsuits
CNN reports, "Lawyers representing two Saudi princes argued Friday that their clients have immunity from lawsuits relating to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, because they are diplomatic officials... Bill Jeffress [of Jim Baker's firm Baker Botts], representing Prince Sultan, said that the contributions made to Islamic charities that may have funneled money to bin Laden amount to 'an exercise by a foreign official of discretion to decide which international Islamic charity and what relief operations by Islamic organizations the country's going to support.' Ron Motley, lead attorney in the case against the Saudis, said the Saudi government and the two princes were told at least three times by U.S. and French officials that their contributions were funding terrorism. 'They were told that the very charities they were giving millions of dollars to every year were converting that money to terrorist activities including al Qaeda.'" 9/11 victims seek $1 TRILLION in damages.
Abu Kais is guest-hosting Michael Totten's blog. Read the whole thing.
The Assad regime is in a hurry. Nasrallah hasnt been able to deliver quickly enough. The Grand Serail is a fortress, and the Lebanese street is slowly turning against the protestors, who dont even have safe passage back to their homes now. The orders from the Dark Lords council are to pack more people in downtown Beirut, and as soon as possible. The plan to occupy or lay siege to the Rafik Hariri International airport seems to be in full swing, although the Lebanese army will reportedly not allow it.
Whats the hurry for?
This Sunday, the 15-day time limit for Lahoud to sign the Hariri tribunal plan expires. As of Monday, the cabinet can constitutionally send it to parliament for endorsement.
Nabih Berri is in a pickle. He was forced to declare the cabinet session that approved the tribunal unconstitutional after telling journalists days before, that it wasnt. On Wednesday, when it appeared that there was a dim hope of reaching a settlement, the speaker of parliament received a death threat from Maher Assad, Bashars brother. According to al-Seyassah, Assad threatened to kill Berri if he calls parliament into session to approve the plan (Again, al-Seyassah is to be read with a grain of salt, although they've gotten it right in the past with regards to Lebanon. In any case, this isn't the first time we've heard this.) This Sunday, of course, Hez will hold an outdoor rally of "historic" proportions outside the Grand Serail's government offices.
...Many Sunnis feel that a new Shiia crescent is emerging that will span Iran, Iraq and Lebanon, a development which the Saudis wish to counter. Earlier this summer, the Gulf monarchies were noticeably silent during the early weeks of the conflict in the Lebanon because they wanted to give Israel time to knock out Irans proxy, the Shiite terror group Hezbollah. It was only when it became apparent that Israel was incapable of doing so that they joined in the criticism. I have become convinced that Shiite power must be destroyed, and that we have no alternative but to play the Sunni-Card. I am aware of Sunni support for al-Qaeda in Iraq, but I believe that a majority of Sunnis will turn on the terrorists once they have no use for them.
A further sign of changing times came with a meeting between Israeli and Saudi Arabia to discuss the Iranian threat in September. Bizarrely, this went almost unnoticed in the West, despite its huge significance. Some Israeli strategists now speculate that Israel, which is also desperate to prevent the Iranian regime from getting the bomb, and Saudi Arabia, which shares the same goal, could even form an anti-Tehran alliance. That is probably far-fetched but the fact that it is even being discussed is a stark illustration of the extent of Saudi fear at the thought of an Iranian nuclear hegemony.
Any Middle East intra-Islamic war of religion, if it comes, would be a horrific, bloody and protracted affair. In Iraq, the Shiite- Sunni divide is already on display at its most brutal. Sunni terrorists bomb Shiite Islams holiest places; Shiite death squads torture and murder as many Sunnis as they can get their hands on. Shia hardliners believe that the only way to break the historic Sunni stranglehold on Iraq is with genocidal violence. Even in majority Sunni countries, such as Pakistan, communal violence is worsening despite government crackdowns. As Sunni-Shia ethnic cleansing grimly gathers pace in Iraq, Saudis worry about the concentration of its Shiite minority in the oil-rich east of the country (concerns heightened when Shiite turnout in the recent municipal elections was double that of the Sunni)...
#3
If the Saudis would pull their heads out of their asses, then they would realize that they can make a deal with us that suits their needs. Of course, they will have to stop funding al Qaeda and Hamas and pump enough oil to reduce prices, but we can deliver Lebanon to the shia free zone, and weaken the shia grip in Iraq, and make war with Iran. In the process, we can remove some of the anti-Israel forces sleeping in the rubble of Gaza.
#4
I think it is less about the religion than the race. Hack up Iraq/Syria/Iran to create an independent Kurdistan (Kurds in Turkey should be convinced to immigrate if possible). Split the Azerbaijanii out of Iran and let them go solo or join their brothers in Azerbaijan. And divide the Shia Arabs out of Iran, Saudi Arabia and Iraq to create a Shia Arab state as a buffer between the Shia Persians and the Sunni Arabs.
The Sunni rump of Syria and Iraq can go to whatever Sunni nation can keep them in line.
The slain terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi purportedly believed that Iraq's Shiite Muslims were more dangerous than U.S. forces and more evil than dictator Saddam Hussein, according to a posthumous interview published Friday on the Internet.
CAIRO, Egypt Osama bin Laden defended attacks by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi against civilians in Iraq, purportedly saying in a taped Web message Friday that the slain militant was acting under al-Qaeda orders to kill anyone who backs U.S. troops.
#7
Any Middle East intra-Islamic war of religion, if it comes, would be a horrific, bloody and protracted affair.
Like that's a bad thing. No news here, this has been going on for centuries.
Am I feeling just a little cynical some five years after 9-11? Yew betcha'. If we can put the Sunnis and Shiites at each other's throats, then let's do it. I'm tired of these shitheads killing our fine young soldiers.
I'd love to see a more eloquent solution to the MME (Muslim Middle East) problem. Short of a nuclear holocaust, few present themselves. Those most prone to violence will be the first to die in sectarian strife. This fulfills our requirements for national security in so many ways that we would be fools not to encourage it.
Islam itself is so treacherous that any ploy such as this upon our own part comes across as honest dealing. As I have mentioned countless times before, the bottom line we must take away from our involvement in Iraq is that Muslims simply love to kill other Muslims. The time has come for us to step aside and allow them wish fulfillment.
#9
Thing is, Zen, helping them kill as many of each other as possible is exactly what we did during the Iran-Iraq war.
From that standpoint, letting the US military get so invested and form lasting relationships with Iraqi forces was a really dumb thing to do. Now we know their names and faces and families, and don't want to see the place ripped apart again.
Ideally, the best solution would have been to lay waste to Iraq, leaving nothing but a warning that we won't be so nice next time. But we're stuck with what we have now, and we don't want to re-create the Iran-Iraq war, this time with us right in the middle of it.
I'm not saying I know what the solution is, but I guess I am saying that stopping short of annihilating every last scrap of enemy capability back in 2003 made today's situation more or less inevitable.
It will be very sad, in some respects, if we simply bail and let Allah sort em out. At the same time, US security comes first. If they're killing each other, they won't be killing us, and frankly, I care more about us than them -- particularly when they still do not see how Islam breeds crapulence and bloodshed. If 1400 years of experience has not taught them, we sure as hell can't.
#10
It will be very sad, in some respects, if we simply bail and let Allah sort em out. At the same time, US security comes first. If they're killing each other, they won't be killing us, and frankly, I care more about us than them -- particularly when they still do not see how Islam breeds crapulence and bloodshed. If 1400 years of experience has not taught them, we sure as hell can't.
That's the bottom line, exJAG. I, too, would like to see some sort of peaceful democracy installed in Iraq. It appears to be the last thing they (i.e., their leaders) want. Right now, the top priority is no longer Iraq. Neutralizing Iran, heads our Christmas list and we need to get about it.
I'm willing to go a bit more of the distance in Iraq, but I'd just as soon rinse and repeat through their leadership inventory a few times to come up with a crop of individuals who really want a peaceful democracy.
How many Americans do they need to kill before we get the point?
The Iraq Study Groups call for negotiations with Iran and Syria as a way forward has been widely derided. It is, abjectly, a return to September 10th thinking to the days when terror masters like Yasser Arafat were feted as statesmen at White House galas, when terror organizations like al Qaeda operated with impunity from well-known safe havens, and when our governments idea of countering atrocities was the filing of indictments against a handful of savages.
It is wrong, though, to lay that rap on the sages of this bipartisan, blue-ribbon panel. When it comes to dialogue with Iran, the ISG merely recommended a more transparent version of what the Bush administration has already been doing, just as its predecessors had long and naively done.
To be sure, in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, President Bush conveyed the right message: Terrorists and their state facilitators, animated by a murderous, totalitarian ideology, cannot be negotiated with. They must be defeated. If not, they are emboldened. That translates, always, into dead Americans.
The administration followed through on its rhetoric with respect to al Qaeda the public would have accepted nothing less. But as for Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah, the approach has been strictly old school as in, recklessly passive. That is a growing catastrophe. In their relentless anti-American jihad, Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and al Qaeda are one. There is no rational justification for negotiating with Tehrans mullahs or Syrias Bashar al-Assad that would not equally validate a sit-down with Hezbollahs Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, or with bin Laden himself.
Still, negotiating, appeasing, and looking the other way is exactly what we have been doing. And long before the ISG ever got involved.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
National Priorities: When a secretary of defense gets confirmed 95-2 apparently because he says we are not winning a war, you know Uncle Sam must have a sign on his back that says "kick me." .JPG)
