Remember when seal clubbing used to be about this?

Not any more!

The new blood sport in the politically correct environment of the Obama adminstration is to club SEALs who wear this:

The New York Post has the story.

Personally, I think punching the guy who organized the brutal murder of Americans in Fallujah, Iraq, whose lifeless bodies were then mutilated and hung from a bridge like this:

Should be reprimanded for not severing every one of this terrorist’s extremities.

More here.

If you are a Facebook member you can join this support page.

My brother made a visit to my mother’s house this Thanksgiving. And he and I had some conversations regarding mutual interests and other such material. I doubt anyone else was all that interested in what we were discussing: running, cycling, students, and suchlike. For some reason, people are not interested in that sort of stuff.

But my brother (born 76 months after me) and I share a lot of personal experiences and stuff.

He and I were both distance runners in High School.
– I honestly don’t know his times but he was one of the top Cross Country runners on the team before his shin splints.
– I ran the 5k Cross Country courses in 17 flat. In track, I ran 2:03 800, 4:40 1600, 10:20 3200, and was part of the 4X800 relay (all in the same meet).
He and I both spent big money on bicycles. (“You paid over $1k and it didn’t even have a motor?”)
– He got a half-scholarship to college for mountain-biking and was involved in mountain-bike races aired on ESPN2.
– I told him years ago about my 3-hour, 52-mile circuit and he asked if I had a picnic lunch in the middle of my circuit.
He and I both have experience as educators.
– He is a tenured professor of English, teaching first-year composition to “English as Second Language (ESL)” students.
– I was a math education major in college. I spent time teaching 5th grade students and 7th grade students during my college course work. I spent 20+ hours a week tutoring high school and college students in their math courses while a student in college. I spent 3 years home-schooling my daughter 4 grades.

There are other similarities, but those are pertinent here.

He said he went out running after he had his knee surgery. “You know that pain you feel that you have to fight through and that pain you feel that says ‘this was a bad idea’? Well, this was a bad idea. So I did it again and decided this is a bad idea after the second time.” That’s him. Don’t take the body’s first screaming NO for an answer but listen to the second screaming NO.

But he is more a cyclist than a runner. (Running stoves up your knees something fierce, especially if you have his and my trait of a super-long gait.) And he went on to talk about his recent experience cycling.

He mentioned he and I both have another commonality: to overdo things (or take them to extremes). He talked about how he hadn’t been out cycling for a couple months so, naturally, he decided to take a 40-mile trip. Now, when you’re training, you have various different plans for the day. One of those that all top athletes use is what I call “count the leaves on the trees” day, where you just go out and take it very easy, so you have time to take in every aspect of the scenery as you go by. Absolutely nothing hard at all about it. Well, he described his 40-mile circuit as one of those days.

He didn’t work hard at all during his 40-mile circuit, but he said at 75 minutes into his circuit he hit a brick wall. His body decided it was quitting time, it didn’t matter that he wasn’t home yet. And he was still a few miles short of home. Once he got home, he was toast. And the frustrating part was that he didn’t push himself on the circuit, instead taking it easy, and he still was toast.

I recounted my running experience. 5 years ago, I went out for a run for the first (and last) time in many years. Understand, I never in my life went out for a jog, always for a run (and there is a huge difference there). I reminded him of my 17-flat 5k in HS and then reported that I had to take a “walking break” during my 1-mile run, which took a total time of 15 minutes. It was grotesque and embarrassing.

He had some very interesting insight. Since I had previously been a quality distance runner, I could more readily approach that sort of quality again. My body would “remember” my past. “Oh, this is where I need to conserve energy, I remember this. Oh, this is something I can do. Nothing new here.” I just need to get back into it and it’ll come back to me. And much, much faster than for someone who has never had my experience.

He also recounted, in a general way, his experience teaching first-year composition in college. He said there were so many things wrong with papers that he had to ignore a lot of it and focus in on the 5 most important issues in the papers. “How can I make them write better without crushing them (or something to that effect).” I said something about how people need to use a dictionary and he had a retort I didn’t expect. He said he thought part of his students’ (He teaches first-year ESL students, remember.) problem was an over-reliance on the dictionary.

I was definitely surprised by this statement. But he explained his statement. Last year, he had a Japanese student who was very proficient in spoken English. That student’s paper had multiple nested sentences within multiple nested sentences of sentences. And those sentences used very large words. And my brother was thinking “I should know what this person is trying to say but I can’t make heads or tails of this.” (He said, as an aside, that his students this year are Chinese and isn’t it interesting first year students from Communist China are buying top-of-the-line Mercedes-Benz cars for their 4-year US University time?) That wasn’t quite what I expected, but it’s understandable. As he said, people try to sound more intelligent when they write than they do when they just talk. And, as he sees it, that is a pronounced problem with ESL students. That strong desire to show a higher ability (in this case, in a foreign language) than possessed.

Overall, it was a very enjoyable discussion.

But, thinking back on it, I definitely brought a few things home. And one thing I definitely want to point out (which was not his intent at all) is that there is a place where you are judged by your ability and not your “degree of tanness”. And that is in the athletic arena.

I don’t care what your background is. Once you get into your sphere of athletics, you will be dependent on your ability and not a hand-up for your success or failure. It’s all on you. There is no head-start for people of the “wrong race” and there is no lowered standard for people of the “wrong race” in athletics. There’s only your ability and training vs their ability and training. And that’s how it should be in every aspect of everyone’s life.

There was a time where cigerette packages were not full of horribel warnings but beautiful cards for collectors with the passion for cartophily – the hobby of collecting cigarette cards! Sport and cigarettes might not be the perfect combination, however these cards from the 1930s are gorgeous – I would buy the cigarettes just to get the cards… but I guess it would not work in these politiacally correct times?

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Found on designobserver

From Shattered Kingdoms®, a game I played for several years, comes this definition of Principled:

If your character is of principled alignment, they will most likely value
life, and freedom above all else. They will strive to protect all people,
especially those who are not able to protect themselves. They even try to
protect those who commit evil acts from themselves, attempting to convince
the evil person to denounce their evil ways. Principled characters try
with all their might to follow and uphold the laws of the land. Those laws
were created for a purpose, to protect those who need protection. Those
laws were most likely placed there by others of the same alignment.
Principled characters try to avoid killing whenever possible, using it as
a last resort, when all other courses of action have been exhausted.

Notice “try” and “strive” in that game definition. And, yes, I know it is a definition for a game. But it is a definition for how to play your character in that game if you decide your character is Principled. And that’s why I brought up that game’s defiition. It mirrors real life. People with principles strive to meet those principles and try to “first, do no harm” in what they do. It doesn’t mean those people are not tempted like everyone else. It doesn’t mean those people do not consider less-than-optimal choices.

Heck, principled people make mistakes like everyone else. And I honestly believe principled people are the people most likely to not live up to their own standards. After all, a standard of perfection is an impossible standard to reach. But principled people work to reach that standard, nonetheless.

And when they fail? Out of the woodwork, just like cockroaches, come the unscrupulous, anarchistic, miscreant, aberrant and diabolical types (you can find definitions of those at that link as well) to mock them. The fact those of us who have principles fail those principles from time to time makes those on the left (those without principles) absolutely giddy. Of course, when those on the left fail those same principles, crickets.

And if a principled person admits to having a foul thought cross her mind (re: Sarah Palin and abortion) and then rejecting it? Those idiot leftists who have no principles jump all over that! “She thought about it!” Bleh. She thought about it and rejected it because she had principles. Let me repeat that. She rejected the so-called “easy way out” because she had principles. She had a firm foundation which allowed her to fight off the evil thought in her mind and actually do the right thing. Not something a leftist can do.

Originally published on AmericanThinker.com, Nov. 21, 2009

A time bomb began ticking in the mid-1970s, when the psychiatric and mental health professions went politically correct and identified the mentally ill as “victims” who required advocates. While patients in general do need assistance, the activists turned caring into political action that changed the American cityscape and endangered our well-being.

While most of us in this neck of the blogosphere have been focused on the aftermath of the Virginia GOP sweep, the rest of the world is becoming engulfed by ClimateGate, i.e., the exposure of leading scientific proponents of “global warming” and “climate change” as data-fudging and dissent-supressing charlatans.

Yours truly mentioned it on the RWL blog, but it doesn’t hold a candle to what my Canadian friend Kate McMillan has put together at Small Dead Animals.

American MSM has, as one would expect, been almost completely silent (the New York Times, deliberately and shamefully so), but in Britain, one of the leading alarmists – George Monbiot of The Guardian – has posted a mea culpa(via Watts Up With That, emphasis in WUWT):

It’s no use pretending that this isn’t a major blow. The emails extracted by a hacker from the climatic research unit at the University of East Anglia could scarcely be more damaging. I am now convinced that they are genuine, and I’m dismayed and deeply shaken by them.

Yes, the messages were obtained illegally. Yes, all of us say things in emails that would be excruciating if made public. Yes, some of the comments have been taken out of context. But there are some messages that require no spin to make them look bad. There appears to be evidence here of attempts to prevent scientific data from being released, and even to destroy material that was subject to a freedom of information request.

Worse still, some of the emails suggest efforts to prevent the publication of work by climate sceptics, or to keep it out of a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. I believe that the head of the unit, Phil Jones, should now resign. Some of the data discussed in the emails should be re-analysed.

. . .

I apologise. I was too trusting of some of those who provided the evidence I championed. I would have been a better journalist if I had investigated their claims more closely.

I should note that the original Guardian link is down as of 11:45 AM (I’ll put the link up if it starts working properly.

Of course, British newspapers have neither the illusion of “objectivity” or the pompous arrogance of their American counterparts.  Thus, no one in the British press would believe they could supress a story just by refusing to report on it.  Sadly, most American MSM outlets are clinging to this myth . . . all the more reason for the blogosphere.

I’m getting so tired of… wait.. not getting, i am tired of all these politically correct donkeys that are determined to steal the joy from everything we have. Who the hell are you to start crying foul that saying Merry Christmas could offend someone.
Offended, seriously? No one is forcing you to say it, just like no one forces me to say Happy Kwanzaa, or to celebrate Ramadan. I have the choice, and that’s the most important part of this… i have the choice to acknowledge, or partake in this. Why would I be offended if someone else chooses to display their celebration of these times? If a store has a display that I don’t like, I have the choice not to go there.. What kind of an asshole would I be to tell them they can’t sell it?
Soon enough there will be no more holidays… the risk of offending someone is too great.
I’m just flat out irritated as I sit here and listen to these news stories…

This one kills me…

a ban on Santa, candy canes, stockings, and all Christmas, Hanukkah and other “religious items.”

Red and green tissue paper to wrap presents was also crossed off the list because it looked too “Christmasy,” McMillan said.

“One of the parents said, ‘If we allow Santa, what do we say if a child brings in a swastika? Do we allow that too?’”

When did Santa become offensive? Who in their right mind compares Santa to a swastika? You should be ashamed… oh, and let’s not pick colors that are “too christmasy”?

Why can’t we just allow the kids to continue enjoying the holidays for what they are, how we remember them, and focus on having time together with our families instead of wasting so much time with these ridiculous battles to prove your own ignorance. Remember, there’s alot of people who cannot be home with their families these holidays, because they’re out fighting to protect your freedoms to run your fat mouth. Stop stealing the smiles from the kids and get your ass home & spend some time with them.

This goes right in line with all these kids sports where “everyone wins”… Oh man, that’s a whole other topic.. but these kids grow up with a false sense of reality.. no sense of accomplishment, or understanding of competition.. You want to win, work for it…

Ok, i got work to do, have a good day.. and in case I don’t post before then, Happy Thanksgiving. Keep our soldiers in your thoughts.

The world is going down the tube. Sin has become politically correct. People flock to religions which offer imaginary false gods, who will tolerate their sin, and deaden their conscience. No-one is immune, even me. There was a time when I would welcome all of this as a good thing, but I now have a problem. My spirit was brought to life by the living and true God, and the world now gives me a feeling of nausea, overlaid by a feeling of concern about inevitable doom of those not spiritually alive. Last rounds, ladies and gentlemen. it’s closing time.

All this time God screams at the world that it is fallen, and offers salvation in the death and resurrection of Jesus the Christ. The world is  not listening. Now many “acts of God” are needed to wake people up. How many floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, epidemics, famines, and wars must happen to make people see? Or maybe these things are just warnings to be recognized only by the elect of God?

What should I do? I share the Gospel but no-one believes it. Some say they believe it but it is obvious that they do not. Is it possible to be born again and have no desire to read the Bible, worship God, fellowship with the brothers and sisters in Christ?

There are two options to take. Stop caring about the result and just minister to the lost in obedience but without really knowing what will happen. The other is better but harder to find. I need to know what God is doing, and join in His work. I need to join Him in His work, and not improve on mine. I need to listen to the silent voice of God.

I am going on a retreat sometime in December, in Tagaytay, a tranquil place near Metro-Manila, Philippines, next to Taal volcano. I need to discern God’s will. That means being disconnected from the internet, TV, radio, books, entertainment, and even Study Bibles. Just God, the Bible, and me, for 5 days, alone. I really do not know what will happen. I am scared that nothing will happen. I am also scared that something might happen. Since this scary feeling can only come from Satan I am resolved to proceed with this plan. I leave it all to God. I really do not know what to do. I really am unable to commit the stupid mistake of recommending a solution to God. Please pray for me that I hear the silent voice of God, and obey what He says.

I took a walk in the woods with my son and his friend. I talk about my plans for a retreat and other random stuff. Here it is. Enjoy! Be strong in the Lord, who is coming soon! After all, it is written…

Was that the silent voice of God just then? I wish I knew for sure…

God bless,

George

“With respect to the two words ‘general welfare,’ I have always regarded them as qualified by the detail of powers connected with them. To take them in a literal and unlimited sense would be a metamorphosis of the Constitution into a character which there is a host of proofs was not contemplated by its creators.”

– James Madison, the “father of the Constitution”

Where did I get this quote? I got it from a well-researched, well-spoken, respectful (much more respectful than I) teen-aged girl. And she has a lot more to say about a lot more (and the research to back it up).

Okay I know I can’t be the only person asked to create a “PC” playlist for a corporate function and wondered just how I was supposed to provide “fun, upbeat, holiday music” that was appealing to the masses but didn’t step on toes in the arena of spiritual practices.

 So the search is on for Christmas music that in no way implies the holiday is actually about Christmas. So no music with words that talks about Christmas, Christmas trees, Santa Claus, Jesus, the nativity, etc. Just looking at common songs of the season it is disheartening to keep crossing them off the list because they don’t meet politically correct standards.

 At least once during every holiday season we are asked to come up with an all gender, all races, and all spiritual practices music playlist. We have struggled through this numerous times and have a great tip to start the process. *Never underestimate the value of instrumental music. Even some of the classics can still be played if it is only an instrumental arrangement.

Here are our current playlist favorites for the holiday season; hope it helps anyone else looking for the perfect “PC” music for their event:

• God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen – Manheim Steamrollers
• Jingle Bell Rock – Bobby Helms
• Baby its Cold Outside – Leon Redbone/Zooey Deschanel
• Let it snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow– Dean Martin
• A Marshmallow World – Los Straitjackets
• Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer– Los Straitjackets
• Frosty the Snowman – Los Straitjackets
• Sleigh Ride – Los Straitjackets
• Christmas Canon– Trans Siberian Orchestra
• Siberian Sleigh Ride– Trans Siberian Orchestra
• Wish Liszt– Trans Siberian Orchestra
• Carol of the Bells– Trans Siberian Orchestra
• Silver Bells– Carpenters
• I Did It All for You– Rascal Flatts
• Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies – Molly Pauken & Rob Brumfiel
• March of the Toy Soldiers – The Mystery Renderer
• Midnight Noel – Mel White
• The Holly & The Ivy – Richard Souther
• Bluegrass Jingle Bells – Carl Vasta

Politically correct Scotland Yard chiefs have stopped using the term ‘gang rape’ because it is too ‘emotive’, the Mail can reveal.

Instead officers have been advised to use the long-winded phrase ‘multi-perpetrator rape’ when describing sex attacks involving three or more culprits.

Critics branded the move by the Metropolitan Police an ‘affront’ to the victims of appalling sex crimes and are preparing to launch a campaign on the issue.

Six years ago the Met was at the centre of a similar row over its choice of language to describe ‘gang rapes’ after a senior officer referred to them as ‘group rapes’ during an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

Some community activists had previously suggested the phrase ‘gang rape’ had racist connotations.

Details of the latest police terminology are contained in an official Scotland Yard report which reveals a sharp increase in the number of gang rapes in the capital.

New figures revealed there were 93 gang sex attacks in the financial year 2008-9, compared with 71 in 2003-2004.
Meanwhile the age of victims has fallen with 64% aged 19 or younger in the last financial year compared with 48% in 1998-9.

Europe is no longer Europe, it is Eurabia, a colony of Islam, where the Islamic invasion does not proceed only in a physical sense, but also in a mental and cultural sense.  Servility to the invaders has poisoned democracy, with obvious consequences for the freedom of thought, and for the concept…of liberty.” — Oriana Fallaci Italian journalist/author/activist (1929-2006)

“…as horrific as this tragedy was, if our diversity becomes a casualty, I think that’s worse.” —General George W. Casey,  U.S. Army Chief of Staff, speaking of the murders committed by an Islamic terrorist at Ft. Hood

“Politically correct.”  Leave it to the Left to come up with an Orwellian concept that muzzles free speech, stifles free thought, suppresses free choice, and then claim that it frees you.

“Politically correct”—as if any other way of thinking, speaking, or behaving, is incorrect.

If you are politically incorrect, then you are not following the party line—your politics are somehow out of sync, and you must be brought back into alignment with the correct, approved way of thinking, speaking, and behaving—for the good of the collective.

As the Star Trek Borg would say, “Resistance is futile.  You will be assimilated.”

Sadly, an increasing number of people seem all too willing to hand over the reins of their free will to the collective, and get assimilated.  They are content, even eager, to exchange the struggle and rewards of personal endeavor, for numb acquiescence to the “thought police.”

It is Marxist in its roots, stifling in its influence, and destructive in its effects

Political Correctness (PC) seeks to impose a uniformity of thought, word, and behavior on all Americans.  It is Marxist in its roots, stifling in its influence, and destructive in its effects.  It is diametrically opposed to the traditional American values of free speech, free thought, and freedom itself.

As G.K. Chesterton noted years ago, “Fallacies do not cease to be fallacies because they become fashions.”

Or as I note today, “Bulls—t, is bullsh—t, no matter what cologne you spray on it.”  No doubt my statement lacks some of Chesterton’s savoir-faire, but nonetheless, it is perhaps the more striking meme.

PC is a social virus—of an especially virulent variety.  Step out of line, and the PC watch dogs will attack with vociferous verbal tirades, and threaten with fines, or even jail-time.  Political correctness is essentially a political extortion racket—shut up, or else.

Agustin Blazquez and Jaums Sutton summed it up well in anarticle they wrote seven years ago, “Political Correctness remains just what it was intended to be: a sophisticated and dangerous form of censorship and oppression, imposed upon the citizenry with the ultimate goal of manipulating, brainwashing, and destroying our society.”

Antonio Gramsci: Marxism can best be spread in the West by subverting Western culture

One can trace PC’s roots back to Antonio Gramsci, who helped found and lead the Italian Communist Party during the early part of the last century.  Gramsci’s ideas and writings were, and are, very influential in spreading the idea that Marxism can best be spread in the West by subverting Western culture—i.e. infiltrating and dismantling the culture from within.  He coupled this, with a process he called “cultural hegemony.”

According to Wikipedia, “Cultural hegemony is…the dominance of one social group over another, i.e. the ruling class over all other classes. The ideas of the ruling class come to be seen as the norm; they are seen as universal ideologies, perceived to benefit everyone, whilst only really benefiting the ruling class.”

Gramsci’s concepts of cultural infiltration and cultural hegemony were influential at the German University of Frankfurt adjunct, the Institute for Social Research (ISR), founded in the early 1920s.

The ISR attracted a coterie of Marxists who combined Gramsci’s teachings with Freudian psychology, and other ingredients, in a potent witch’s brew.  Many of the teachers at the so called “Frankfurt School” left for the United States, when Hitler’s Fascism (the “wrong type” of collectivism) rose to power in Germany during the 1930s.

Nazi Left Wing’s Anti-Semitism

The “Frankfurt School” teachings infested American academia, where it slowly spread, until going viral in the 1960s.  One of the more insidious manifestations of Gramsci’s doctrines, is “political correctness” which, with a little help from Mao, first gained momentum on college and university campuses.

Chairman Mao’s “Little Red Book” was all the rage on college campuses in the late 1960s.  One of Mao’s quotes from that book is, “…go to the masses and propagate and explain these ideas until the masses embrace them as their own…  And so on, over and over again in an endless spiral, with the ideas becoming more correct….  Such is the Marxist theory of knowledge.”

Read “more correct,” as “more Marxist.”

To a large extent, America’s teachers these days, are not teachers in the traditional sense at all—i.e. Instructing their students in the fundamentals, and how to think for themselves.  They are political ideologues who indoctrinate their students in what to think—not how to think.  Note the NEA’s recent glowing endorsement of Saul Alinsky’s “Rules for Radicals.”  (You may want to read my article on the topic).

Incompatibility Between Democracy And Islam

Global Collectivists, by whatever name—Marxist, Statist, Socialist, Fascist, Communist, Progressive, Communitarian, Fabian

The majority of America’s teachers are wolves in sheep’s clothing—as are many lawyers, politicians, judges, scientists, etc.  Behind the masks of the various labels they hide behind, and trades they ply, they are committed collectivist ideologues.

Some of them even hide behind the mask of “a conservative Republican.”

They are Global Collectivists, by whatever name—Marxist, Statist, Socialist, Fascist, Communist, Progressive, Communitarian, Fabian, etc.  They want to destroy America’s middle class, and force us all to be subservient to an all powerful planetary regime—a “workers utopia” controlled by a global “cultural hegemony” of big banks, large corporations, and a Ruling Elite.

“We the people,” as a free and democratic republic, are perilously close to being swept into the dustbin of history.  It is only through God’s grace, and the brave and tireless efforts of (largely unheralded) patriotic Americans, that it hasn’t happened already.

It is important that we realize that these Global Collectivists have no interest in the truth—none whatsoever.  “The end justifies the means” to these people; the fact that their “end” is vague, ephemeral, and bogus, notwithstanding.

That means that they lie.  Couple their “the end justifies the means” philosophy, with doctrines rooted in atheism, and you have a moral/philosophical foundation firmly grounded in shifting quicksand.  You cannot trust a thing these weasels tell you.  Ever.

What they tell you may be the truth, but just as likely it is not.  It doesn’t matter to them.  They have no reason to be anything but self-serving narcissists, and lying is simply seen as one more tool in their bag of tricks.  After all, their glorious “end”—a workers utopia—justifies any “means.”  Right?

They not only dismiss the truth as being relative, malleable, and ultimately unknowable, but they refuse to acknowledge the truth when it stares them in the face, or bites them in the butt, as the case may be.

Witness the “scientists” who decry the findings of Intelligent Design as being “theological nonsense,” or the climate “scientists” who close their minds to any data that doesn’t conform to their politically motivated findings.  These “scientists,” aren’t scientists—they are ideological hacks.  Many “teachers,” aren’t teachers—they are ideological propagandists.  Many government “representatives,” aren’t representatives—they are ideological con-artists.  And on, and on, ad nauseum.

(Yes, there are numerous exceptions to the above, but such exceptions are often afraid of speaking out for fear of ridicule, censure, fines, and/or dismissal).

These brainwashed ideological drones (many of whom are quite bright) are largely incapable of seeing the truth.  It is a rara avis indeed, who leaves the flock once they are indoctrinated.

The fact that during the 20th century, collectivism was responsible for over 100 million deaths, does not register with them.  The fact that the only reason that socialist countries work at all, is because of the remnants of capitalism they retain—doesn’t compute.

These Global Collectivists suffer from Invincible Ignorance (ignorantia invinciblis).  That is, they are willfully blind to anything that runs counter to their political mind-set.  Nothing—certainly not the mere truth—will change their minds.

They are not interested in the truth; they are only interested in their agenda.

Soviets were totalitarian, power-hungry and expansionist brutes that started and prolonged the Cold War

Reporter Jamie Glazov ran into this wall of Invincible Ignorance, when he was working on his doctorate (in Cold War history).  He writes, “When the Soviet archives were opened after the fall of the Soviet tyranny in 1991, I hungrily devoured all the information…in declassified documents, disclosures from former Soviet officials, etc.

Glazov found that the newly available documents “confirmed and substantiated what conservatives had been arguing for decades…that the Soviets were totalitarian, power-hungry and expansionist brutes that started and prolonged the Cold War.”

With this new found proof, Glazov confronted his liberal associates, but he reports that, “When I approached my colleagues with this new evidence…instead of hearing a mea culpa, a stated regret, or admission of some kind of lesson learned, all that I witnessed, (in a manner that remains extremely eerie for me to remember), was a callous indifference and smug contempt for the issues at hand.”

Invincible Ignorance.  They don’t care about the truth.

But they care very much about forcing other people to think, talk, and act in a certain way—a politically correct way.

In the world of the politically correct, if you disagree with Obama you’re a racist, if you disagree with Education Czar Kevin Jennings you’re a homophobe, if you disagree with NOW you’re a sexist, and if you disagree with Islam or Sharia Law you’re a Islamaphobe.

In the world of the politically correct, anyone who questions Islam, for any reason, is politically incorrect.  Such a stance is suicidally infantile.  It will lead to the destruction of America.

Which, of course, is just fine with the Global Collectivists—which is why the radical left is in bed with Islamic extremists.  Strange bedfellows indeed, but in line with the old saw, “My enemies enemy is my friend.”  They see no reason not to join forces—for the duration—until America is destroyed.

Let me hasten to add that I am not opposed to Islam per se.  There are many decent, wonderful followers of Allah.  Islam has contributed much of value to the world.  I enjoy the works of the 13th century Muslim poet, Jelaluddin Rumi.  I am not anti-Islam.

I am, however, strongly opposed to Islamic extremists, or accepting Sharia Law in the U.S.  I do not welcome the “Islamification” of America.

If that makes me some sort of “redneck Islamaphobe,” then so be it—I’ll proudly be one.

According to the asinine protocols of political correctness, any preemptive actions taken against suspected Islamic extremists, in order to safeguard America’s safety, sovereignty, and freedom, are taboo.  That insane nonsense must stop.

Supporting diversity is one thing, enabling suicidal ineptitude is another.

(Permit me a short aside:  To my mind, political correctness has made America much too passive.  Passive behavior is fueled by a lack of self-respect, while the equally undesirable, aggressive behavior, stems from a lack of respect for others.  The healthy alternative—assertive behavior—comes from respecting others, AND yourself.  Patriotic Americans need to be much more assertive (not aggressive, and certainly not passive), both collectively, and individually).

The media outlets recently reported on how government agencies foiled several terrorist plots against various targets around America.  These news stories were a slight indication of an ongoing “behind the scenes” battle that is being fought everyday across America.

There is, however, another more subtle form of dangerous Islamic infiltration, and Americans need to be aware that a great deal of time, effort, and money has been, and is being, spent on the Islamafication of America.

The most pernicious sign of this, is the slow, incremental acceptance of Sharia Law in America.  Any efforts to legitimize Sharia Law in the U.S. must be quashed without exception.  America follows the U.S. Constitution—period.

Both Yale and Harvard have been churning out lawyers and other professionals with a Global Collectivist bent, for some time.  Now both of these institutions are accepting huge sums of money from Saudi Arabia.

(It would appear that Yale and Harvard are in some sort of contest to see who can be the most politically correct, unpatriotic, anti-American indoctrination center.  I don’t know if UC Berkeley is even in the running anymore.  Let’s see: Bush Sr.—Yale, Clinton—Yale, Bush Jr.—Yale AND Harvard, Obama—Harvard.  Even giving Harvard extra credit for Supreme Court Justice Ginsberg, I’d say that Yale is slightly ahead).

Yale University Press recently made the courageous decision to publish a book about purportedly anti-Islamic caricatures, or cartoons, published by a Danish newspaper in 2005.  The cartoons caused a world-wide uproar.

Unfortunately, Yale University Press neglected to include any of the cartoons in their book (lest they offend any sensitive Muslims).  Which makes about as much sense as publishing a pictorial history of slavery in America, without any pictures (lest any Afro-Americans be offended).

Talk about some dry reading.  As the saying goes, “one picture is worth a thousand words.”

ISLAM KILLING ISLAMS ITS HONORABLE

Looking at the Yale Daily News, I believe that the woman who made the first entry in the comments section, hit the nail on the head, “The money trail is pretty clear. Yale is a partner to the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia.  I am sure they do not want to lose their $50 million gift from the Saudis by offending them with this book.”  Give the lady a cigar.

In an article titled “Harvard’s Segregated Gym,” Annie Jacobsen discusses Harvard’s new rules that allow only Muslim women access to the university’s gym during specified periods.  Jacobsen says that such segregation harkens back to the “Jim Crow” laws of the Old South.

Jacobsen asks, “Could it possibly have anything to do with the $20 million gift Harvard recently accepted from Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Addulaziz Alsaud?”  Hmmmm…what do you think?

And aside from college and university campuses across America, do you think that it’s possible that individuals on Capitol Hill might be accepting “donations” from Saudi Arabia, and other Islamic countries?  What about folks in the Obama Administration?

Just asking.

(Perhaps it’s time we told the “greenie weenies” to go take a hike, and started some serious oil drilling in the U.S.—God knows we could use the jobs.  Let’s make America energy independent, and stop bank-rolling OPEC.  Whatta ya say?)

To get an idea of what the USA might look like in a few years, you should check out this video by the EDL (English Defense League).  I can’t vouch for the EDL, as I know nothing about them—they may be nothing more than a bunch of soccer hooligans for all I know, but the headlines in the British papers shown in the video, are ignored at our peril.

Sharia Law has already raised its barbaric head in America.  Perhaps you’ve heard about the Muslim fellow in Buffalo, New York, who beheaded his wife after she attempted to divorce him.

Or how about twenty-year-old Noor Almaleki in Phoenix, Arizona, whose Muslim fatherran her over with a car and killed her, because he felt that she was engaged in conduct shameful to Islam.

The list goes on, and will continue to grow and expand exponentially, unless Sharia Law is stopped in its tracks.  It does not belong in America, and mustn’t be allowed to grow roots here.

What is NOW’s stance on such “honor killings?”  Who knows.  Their silence on the subject lets you hear the crickets chirp.  Their blanket shrug of indifference on the whole subject of Islamic misogyny, is simply more proof of the Far Left’s collusion with radical Muslims.  NOW’s just being politically correct, and following the party line.  Mums the word.

Before closing this article, I want to mention a couple of organizations that you should be wary of, and a few that will be helpful to know.

You should keep an eye on CAIR (Council on American and Islamic Relations).  As Doug Hagmann noted in a Northeast Intelligence Network article, CAIR’s “rabid pro-Islamist operatives have managed to gain positions or exert influence inside a variety of law enforcement agencies on all levels. Perhaps the most insidious infiltration of all, however, is within the U.S. Department of Justice.”

That’s the same Department of Justice that is hell-bent on presenting Islamic terrorists with a world stage in New York City.

To know more about CAIR, you should buy and read the book “Muslim Mafia: Inside the Secret Underworld that’s Conspiring to Islamize America” by Dave Gaubatz and Paul Sperry.  At least read the short forward by Sue Myrick (R-NC), it’s posted online.

Also actively working to expose CAIR, is Brigitte Gabriel, founder of Act! For America, and one of the world’s foremost experts on terrorism.  You might want to go to herweb-site and sign her petition.

CAIR is not the only organization worth keeping an eye on.  There is a veritable alphabet soup of Islamic NGOs (Non Governmental Organizations) that have dubious connections.  Perhaps foremost among them, is ISNA (Islamic Society of North America).  For an eye opening look at ISNA, you should check out Dave Gaubatz’s article “

The ISNA Conference” on American Thinker.

In 2006, as 77-year-old Italian journalist/author Oriana Fallanci was dying of cancer, she gave an interview to The Wall Street Journal.  She was wanted in Italy on criminal charges at the time, for having dared to speak out against, what she saw, as the decline of Western culture, and the ongoing spread of Islam throughout Europe.

During the interview she asked rhetorically where the conservative revolutionaries were.  Where were the conservative leaders with intelligence, audacity, and valor?

Where indeed.

I would add, where are America’s Christian leaders?  At what point do they stop playing “meek and mild,” and show some backbone for Christ’s sake!  If they can’t respect themselves, they can at least respect Jesus.

Laus Deo. “IN GOD WE TRUST”

Philip Atkinson writes:

By using the excuse of not upsetting anyone, the politically correct are demanding that people behave like the fool who would please everyone; that everyone must become such a fool! All must accept the notions of the Politically Correct as truth, or else! This is the same mentality that inspired the Inquisition and forced Galileo to recant; the same mentality that inspired the Nazis and obtained the Holocaust. Once expression gets placed in a straitjacket of official truth, then the madness that occurs in all totalitarian states is obtained. Life, in private and public, becomes a meaningless charade where delusion thrives and terror rules.

[...]

Unless plain speaking is allowed, clear thinking is denied. There can be no good reason for denying freedom of expression, there is no case to rebut, only the empty slogans of people inspired by selfishness and unrestrained by morality. The proponents of this nonsense neither understand the implications of what they say, nor why they are saying it: they are insane.

The CEO where I work is one of these insane, clueless, immoral, unethical, deceitful, delusional, dishonest drones. The scary part is that this is apparent to only a handful. The PC mindset has truly contaminated all levels of our zombie society.

This isn’t how a democratic (Democrat, apparently yes; democratic, no) government treats its local governments and private citizens. Threatening criminal fines and jail time over mandatory, uncompensated 53-hour surveys is criminal itself.

–Nancy Brown

The federal EPA plans on requesting all sorts of entities fill out a 32-page, 72-question, 53-hour questionnaire. And those who don’t will be mandated fines and possibly even jail time. That sounds to me like some dude on the street pulling out a gun and saying “If you don’t mind, please give me your wallet, otherwise my friend here might pop off.”

And exactly who could be forced to fill out this questionnaire?

The mandatory questionnaires will be sent to all owners, operators, developers, and contractors of newly and redeveloped sites; owners and operators of municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s); and the states and territories.

So it’s not just states and big cities but also businesses and home-owners.

EPA intends to propose a rule to control storm water from, at minimum, newly developed and redeveloped sites, and to take final action no later than November 2012.

As Ms Brown pointed out, that “minimum” is very dangerous language. It could become much more invasive of many more people, sucking out even more money out of pockets that are already empty.

Aside from the unconstitutionality of EPA writing laws (the legislative branch is to do that to prevent unelected people from ruling the nation), I have to wonder if this whole deal could have very serious Fifth Amendment issues. People will be forced to self-report, after all, something the Fifth Amendment protects against.

Read the full article at the link. It’s very worth the read.

Ever since I saw the film “The World According to Garp” at age eleven I have wondered to myself what exactly did John Irving survive in his past?  I have waited patiently for nearly thirty years to find out.  I haven’t ever read a single thing about John Irving’s personal life; because figuring out exactly what happened to him to make him the type of writer he is has been a huge puzzle for me that I must figure out on my own.  Being a survivor of a horrific childhood myself, I knew Mr. Irving must have suffered even more than I had, as his stories are so twisted and dark.

With “Last Night in Twisted River: A Novel” I think I have finally figured out the puzzle of Mr. Irving.  While “A Prayer for Owen Meany” will always remain my favorite book of his, Twisted River is a close second. For whatever reason, I’ve convinced myself that this book is the true story of his life, or the true life story of someone very close to him, perhaps his own grandfather.  If it isn’t, then call me a fool, but please realize that whether this novel is a memoir or not, “Last Night in Twisted River” remains a brilliant story of father and son and grandson, and the fifty year long friendship they have with a mysterious logger.  Danny Angel, the protagonist of Twisted River is a writer in this novel and his own writing career mirrors the career of John Irving, and we read about Danny attending the Iowa Writers Workshop during the same time frame as Mr. Irving actually did.  Danny was even taught by John’s own most famous teacher Kurt Vonnegut.  I have always wondered why Mr. Irving writes about the subjects he has always written about, such as widows, Canada, wrestling, motherless and fatherless children, left hands, bears, and even abortion and all of these subjects get a curious mention in his latest book. 

Twisted River is the kind of Charles Dickensesque type of story Mr. Irving has written before, and this time around he manages to capture the small New Hampshire logging town of Twisted River beautifully, beginning with the drowning of a young boy named Angel and the failure of the mysterious Mr. Ketcham to catch him before he was lost under the logs forever.  Dominic and his son Daniel (Danny Angel) are friends with the logger Mr. Ketcham, and certain terrible events cause them to go on the run together over and over again throughout their lives leaving loved ones and good Italian restaurants behind.  What I find most fascinating about this book is that Daniel grows up to be a famous writer and has a long successful career before he settles down to write Twisted River, the very novel we as readers have been reading the entire time.     

Last Night in Twisted River: A Novel is defiantly the best book I’ve read in 2009.  I stayed up until 5:15 am to finish it.  I’ve spent more than evening staying up all night reading this book, as well as many other of Mr. Irving’s books.  I once worked an eight hour shift, drove a twelve hour road trip, visited and drank with a friend all night long, then sat down and finished The Hotel New Hampshire in one sitting after all of this and finished in time for my friend to catch me still awake after having one of the longest thirty days in my life.  John Irving is just that good of a writer.  All I can tell you is that Twisted River is fabulous and you need to go buy this book immediately to find out for yourself just how good it truly is. I promise you will be lost in a world like none other.  If you have already purchased it for yourself, then go buy it for a friend, because books make the best Christmas gifts.  A story like this stays with someone forever, while that sweater may only last two or three seasons.

John Irving’s Work

• Setting Free the Bears – 1968
• The Water-Method Man – 1972
• The 158-Pound Marriage – 1974
• The World According to Garp – 1978
• The Hotel New Hampshire – 1981
• The Cider House Rules – 1985
• A Prayer for Owen Meany – 1989
• Trying to Save Piggy Sneed - 1993
• A Son of the Circus – 1994
• The Imaginary Girlfriend - 1996  
• A Widow for One Year – 1998
• My Movie Business - 1999
• The Cider House Rules: A Screenplay – 1999 (Academy-Award winning screenplay)
• The Fourth Hand – 2001
• A Sound Like Someone Trying Not to Make a Sound – 2004
• Until I Find You – 2005
• Last Night in Twisted River – 2009

John Irving’s website can be found here.   

You can purchase Twisted River here. 

And see John talk about his latest book below.