Is anyone unpatriotic?

If you want to get a rise out of people, left or right, question their patriotism. The Bush Administration walks this tightrope all the time, kinda/sorta challenging the red, white and blue bona fides of opponents while claiming that’s something they would never do.

We’ve seen this with war protesters, and now with conservatives who’ve gone apoplectic over Bush’s contention that opponents of the immigration compromise “don’t want to do what’s right for America.”

A senior official said later, “In no way was he questioning anyone’s patriotism or desire to do what’s right.”

Um, okay. Yet not everyone who claims the mantle is patroitic. There are Americans who don’t love their country, and should be called out on it. (Go ahead, say it — who am I to judge?)

Some examples:

*If you embrace foreign dictators who suppress democracy (i.e. Hugo Chavez) while at the same time damning the U.S., you are not patriotic. Ex.: Danny Glover;

*If you subscribe to moronic conspiracy theories that blame Americans for killing other Americans (i.e. the World Trade Center collapse), you are not patriotic. Ex.: Rosie O’Donnell;

*If you regret the South’s defeat in the Civil War, you are not patriotic. (What could be more unpatriotic than wishing for the demise of your country?) Ex.: A Klansman, any Klansman, or the guy driving ahead of me today with the “Fergit, Hell” bumper sticker;

*If you think it’s un-American to question the unconstitutional, such as illegal wiretapping and torture, you are not patriotic. Ex.: Tom DeLay;

*If you think the Bible, and not the Constitution, should govern America, you are unpatriotic (as you oppose the very foundation on which this country was created. Or to parphrase Hank Hill: “Can’t you see you’re not making America better? You’re just making Christianity worse.”) Ex.: James Dobson.

Gov. H. Dumpty’s budget

In: $19 million for the governor’s fishing tourism program, called “Go Fish Georgia.”

Out: funding for the more-than-decade-old foreign language program in elementary schools. Several university, technical college and library projects also got the ax.

(Source)

The megachurch vs. the neighborhood

Churches used to be part of the community. Now, many are communities unto themselves, and their greed for more land often overwhelms neighborhoods who just want to be left alone.

The pastor made appeals from the pulpit. Paper, pens and envelopes were distributed at Bible study. Helping hands stuffed inserts into service programs. And the copy machine sang like a Sunday choir.

The result was a campaign that sent 6,000 letters to Cobb County public officials as Johnson Ferry Baptist Church flexed its muscles to promote its plan to build a new church.

The 25-year-old church, which has about 7,500 members, has an ambitious goal. The plan, a joint project with WellStar Health Systems, would place a church, a medical facility and retail buildings on U.S. 41 near Awtrey Church Road in northwest Cobb. …

Church members realize they face a smaller, though formidable, band of opponents. About 250 residents in that west Cobb area signed a petition against the project. Many of these foes defeated the Goliath of suburban encroachment — Wal-Mart — when it wanted to build on this very site two years ago.

They assert that the plan for the 65-acre parcel is not in keeping with the character of their rural-residential area, which has been giving way to suburban growth. They’ve created a Web site to fight it, from which, with a few clicks, scores of people have sent form e-mails to the public officials.

Why not just attach a Golden Corral and a Starbucks to the sanctuary and be done with it.

WWJD?

“When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the Temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords and drove all from the Temple, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said: ‘Get out of here.’ (John 2:13-16)

Conservatism defined

Here is the core of a conservative appeal, without dwelling on “social issues” that should be, as much as possible, left to “moral federalism” — debates within the states. On foreign policy, conservatism begins, and very nearly ends, by eschewing abroad the fatal conceit that has been liberalism’s undoing domestically — hubris about controlling what cannot, and should not, be controlled.

Conservatism is realism, about human nature and government’s competence

–George F. Will

Does that sound anything like today’s Republican Party?

Corpulent boy kills fat pig

By now you’ve heard of the Monster Pig, the 1,051 lb. beast shot and killed by an 11-year-old Alabama boy.

To some, Jamison Stone is a hero:

Dear little big man, I must say what courage you have ,and a job well done. What an inspiration to young hunters, and seasoned hunters alike in keeping an American tradition alive! …
This will be the shot that was heard around the world ! … Not only did you inspire the lives of many, your courage will provide jobs, add stability in businesses, and help fuel the economy in many ways around the world. … God Bless America Home of the free because of the brave !
Thank You Kevin C. in California

May God bless rednecks and God-fearing people, for they are the backbone of a free America.
Robert
Houston

I read a report once that said something like 90% of the men in prison never went hunting, so if you want to keep your sons out of prison, take them hunting. Congratulations on your successful hunt. The Bible tells us that it is okay to be a hunter as long as you eat what you take in hunting (Proverbs 12:27). And the Bible tells us its okay to eat meat as long as we thank Him for it before we eat (I Timothy 4:3-5). Jesus is the only means of salvation. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord (Jesus) shall be saved. Don Alexander

Others disagree:

I have to congratulate you because I didn’t think it was possible for an 11 yr old as large as yourself to chase a pig for three hours in hilly terrain. Well done, fat boy! For real though. Killing an animal about half your size does not make you a hero, or a model american, or anything else anybody might say you are. It certainly does not make you worthy of being in a movie.
You are a worthless piece of crap and i hope one day another noble american hunter such as yourself mistakes you for a large hog and shoots you about 12 times before your fat ass drops dead. They’ll definately need another backhoe in the woods to pick your body up with. I hope you’re enjoying your fame. Satan is going to have fun with you when you rot in hell.
God Bless.

what the hell, you fat ass, innocent animal killing, red neck hillbilly you must think your so cool for killing a defenseless pig, then you make it a trophy!? that’s disgusting. i don’t know which is worse the fact that you shot the innocent creature for three hours strait or that you where smirking in that picture. I wish i could beat that smirk right of your face you dick head. i cant understand why anybody would kill a poor animal. You people disgust me, I hope you rot in hell.

You’ve got a great career as a killer ahead of you! I hope that one day soon, you’ll decide to kill your father & then youself.
Nigel Clements San Francisco, CA

Your tax dollars at work

Let’s give it up for the party of reform. You know, the one that promised to end the “culture of corruption.”

Now, we have a new Congress and a new cause — earmark reform. To me and, I think, most Americans earmark reform would mean cutting earmarks entirely or at least limiting this pork-barrel spending. But that’s apparently not what the Democratic leaders had in mind.

The reform is this: In the past, these spending requests remained secret until they were voted on, and no one ever had to attach his or her name to the request. Now, the House appropriations staff tell us, the spending requests will still remain secret, but only until the full House takes a final vote on the spending bill. Then, all the requesting Congressmen’s names will be made public.

But the decisions will still be made in private. Pork won’t be reduced — we’ll simply know the names of the swine who introduced the legislation after it has been approved. And with the public’s short attention span, they’re likely to get away with it.

Some of the more recent earmarks include:

$500,000 helping to remodel the top of a ski lift in Alaska. We found $96,000 of your federal taxes helping to remodel the historic Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, Florida. And up in little Rice Lake, Wisconsin, we found a tiny airport that got $2 million to lengthen a runway so a few corporate jets could land. (There are no commercial flights at Rice Lake)

The earmark system has never been more transparent, brags Wisconsin Democrat David Obey, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. Obey was the one who pushed for the runway lengthening so corporate executives and their jets would have more room to land.

There’s only one conclusion: our government is corrupt, regardless of which party’s in charge.

Many blogs are lousy, and many bloggers are whiners

Yesterday I linked to my friend Andy’s CL cover story on local bloggers. It’s a well-written, informative piece. But that doesn’t matter to an assortment of sore losers whose biggest complaint seems to be they weren’t included.

From Grayson:

Making lists is not journalism Andy. It’s just pretty bullshit, and it has nothing to do with the state of social media community in Atlanta. You’re a snotty little dipshit reporter who can’t tell a story without layers of baby snot blown all over his silly copy, to disguise the fact that there was simply nothing newsworthy in that cover story.

From Rusty:

I cannot comprehend what compels "journalists" to "compile" "lists." To each their own, I suppose, but the point you’re missing is that you and others in the MSM are no longer the arbiters of what is and isn’t important to people. And you never will be again. Get used to it.

From thebrotherlove.com:

The problem with these types of lists is that feelings always get hurt because it’s impossible to be inclusive. To Andy’s credit, each blogger he lists is worthy of attention (although listing a former CL editor and columnist is specious). However damning the overall Atlanta blogging community (labeling it "dim") and treating the city as if it has some sort of lock on navel-gazing blogs is lazy and pathetic.

(You’re right — journalists should never hurt anyone’s feelings.)

Others are angry that Andy dare criticize fellow bloggers.

From Amber:

That’s the both good and bad thing about blogging. You might think reading about someone’s lunch is crap and a waste of time – someone else might think the exact opposite. Neither opinion is more or less valid than the other. We each decide what has value for us, and why.

Naturally, Duane was offended:

I didn’t realize that there was a specific rule of thumb regarding blogs, and I especially didn’t realize that those of us that dare use our own personal websites to discuss things about ourselves made us neurotic or self-obsessed; in fact, I kind of thought that was the fucking point of having the personal blog in the first place. I guess that little jab was at all of us that dare use our blogs as personal weblogs, to ponder our own things. Perhaps we should be doing that which the "upper crust" does; sit around and poke fun at everyone else.

Addressing the second point first — taste is not always subjective. If you like PT Cruisers, or think Lindsay Lohan rocks, that’s certainly your prerogative. Just as it’s mine to say you have crappy taste. That’s a big problem in our PC society: no judgments, no criticism. I encountered this at film school; our professors were way too positive. No matter how listless the script, we were showered with adulation. Better to tell me "your script is shit" than have me waste nine months on yet another pointless inside Hollywoood parable.

And where’s the love for the bloggers mentioned in the story? All were deserving. Instead of sour grapes, why not be happy that some neighbors in the blogosphere received some pub?

It’s instructive that many of these whiners found it necessary to rag on Andy, insulting his work and deriding him as a member of the dreaded MSM, which in blogspeak is like calling someone a faggot. It’s now clear he made the right choice in excluding them.

Is anyone unpatriotic?

If you want to get a rise out of people, left or right, question their patriotism. The Bush Administration walks this tightrope all the time, kinda/sorta challenging the red, white and blue bona fides of opponents while claiming that’s something they would never do.

We’ve seen this with war protesters, and now with conservatives who’ve gone apoplectic over Bush’s contention that opponents of the immigration compromise "don’t want to do what’s right for America."

A senior official said later, “In no way was he questioning anyone’s patriotism or desire to do what’s right.”

Um, okay. Yet not everyone who claims the mantle is patroitic. There are Americans who don’t love their country, and should be called out on it. (Go ahead, say it — who am I to judge?)

Some examples:

*If you embrace foreign dictators who suppress democracy (i.e. Hugo Chavez) while at the same time damning the U.S., you are not patriotic. Ex.: Danny Glover;

*If you subscribe to moronic conspiracy theories that blame Americans for killing other Americans (i.e. the World Trade Center collapse), you are not patriotic. Ex.: Rosie O’Donnell;

*If you regret the South’s defeat in the Civil War, you are not patriotic. (What could be more unpatriotic than wishing for the demise of your country?) Ex.: A Klansman, any Klansman, or the guy driving ahead of me today with the "Fergit, Hell" bumper sticker; \

*If you think it’s un-American to question the unconstitutional, such as illegal wiretapping and torture, you are not patriotic. Ex.: Tom DeLay;

*If you think the Bible, and not the Constitution, should govern America, you are unpatriotic (as you oppose the very foundation on which this country was created. Or to parphrase Hank Hill: "Can’t you see you’re not making America better? You’re just making Christianity worse.") Ex.: James Dobson.

Gov. H. Dumpty’s budget

In: $19 million for the governor’s fishing tourism program, called “Go Fish Georgia.”

Out: funding for the more-than-decade-old foreign language program in elementary schools. Several university, technical college and library projects also got the ax.

(Source)

The megachurch vs. the neighborhood

Churches used to be part of the community. Now, many are communities unto themselves, and their greed for more land often overwhelms neighborhoods who just want to be left alone.

The pastor made appeals from the pulpit. Paper, pens and envelopes were distributed at Bible study. Helping hands stuffed inserts into service programs. And the copy machine sang like a Sunday choir.

The result was a campaign that sent 6,000 letters to Cobb County public officials as Johnson Ferry Baptist Church flexed its muscles to promote its plan to build a new church.

The 25-year-old church, which has about 7,500 members, has an ambitious goal. The plan, a joint project with WellStar Health Systems, would place a church, a medical facility and retail buildings on U.S. 41 near Awtrey Church Road in northwest Cobb. …

Church members realize they face a smaller, though formidable, band of opponents. About 250 residents in that west Cobb area signed a petition against the project. Many of these foes defeated the Goliath of suburban encroachment — Wal-Mart — when it wanted to build on this very site two years ago.

They assert that the plan for the 65-acre parcel is not in keeping with the character of their rural-residential area, which has been giving way to suburban growth. They’ve created a Web site to fight it, from which, with a few clicks, scores of people have sent form e-mails to the public officials.

Why not just attach a Golden Corral and a Starbucks to the sanctuary and be done with it.

WWJD?

“When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the Temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords and drove all from the Temple, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said: ‘Get out of here.’ (John 2:13-16)

Conservatism defined

Here is the core of a conservative appeal, without dwelling on “social issues” that should be, as much as possible, left to “moral federalism” — debates within the states. On foreign policy, conservatism begins, and very nearly ends, by eschewing abroad the fatal conceit that has been liberalism’s undoing domestically — hubris about controlling what cannot, and should not, be controlled.

Conservatism is realism, about human nature and government’s competence

–George F. Will

Does that sound anything like today’s Republican Party?

Corpulent boy kills fat pig

By now you’ve heard of the Monster Pig, the 1,051 lb. beast shot and killed by an 11-year-old Alabama boy.

To some, Jamison Stone is a hero:

Dear little big man, I must say what courage you have ,and a job well done. What an inspiration to young hunters, and seasoned hunters alike in keeping an American tradition alive! …
This will be the shot that was heard around the world ! … Not only did you inspire the lives of many, your courage will provide jobs, add stability in businesses, and help fuel the economy in many ways around the world. … God Bless America Home of the free because of the brave !
Thank You Kevin C. in California

May God bless rednecks and God-fearing people, for they are the backbone of a free America.
Robert
Houston

I read a report once that said something like 90% of the men in prison never went hunting, so if you want to keep your sons out of prison, take them hunting. Congratulations on your successful hunt. The Bible tells us that it is okay to be a hunter as long as you eat what you take in hunting (Proverbs 12:27). And the Bible tells us its okay to eat meat as long as we thank Him for it before we eat (I Timothy 4:3-5). Jesus is the only means of salvation. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord (Jesus) shall be saved. Don Alexander

Others disagree:

I have to congratulate you because I didn’t think it was possible for an 11 yr old as large as yourself to chase a pig for three hours in hilly terrain. Well done, fat boy! For real though. Killing an animal about half your size does not make you a hero, or a model american, or anything else anybody might say you are. It certainly does not make you worthy of being in a movie.
You are a worthless piece of crap and i hope one day another noble american hunter such as yourself mistakes you for a large hog and shoots you about 12 times before your fat ass drops dead. They’ll definately need another backhoe in the woods to pick your body up with. I hope you’re enjoying your fame. Satan is going to have fun with you when you rot in hell.
God Bless.

what the hell, you fat ass, innocent animal killing, red neck hillbilly you must think your so cool for killing a defenseless pig, then you make it a trophy!? that’s disgusting. i don’t know which is worse the fact that you shot the innocent creature for three hours strait or that you where smirking in that picture. I wish i could beat that smirk right of your face you dick head. i cant understand why anybody would kill a poor animal. You people disgust me, I hope you rot in hell.

You’ve got a great career as a killer ahead of you! I hope that one day soon, you’ll decide to kill your father & then youself.
Nigel Clements San Francisco, CA

Your tax dollars at work

Let’s give it up for the party of reform. You know, the one that promised to end the “culture of corruption.”

Now, we have a new Congress and a new cause — earmark reform. To me and, I think, most Americans earmark reform would mean cutting earmarks entirely or at least limiting this pork-barrel spending. But that’s apparently not what the Democratic leaders had in mind.

The reform is this: In the past, these spending requests remained secret until they were voted on, and no one ever had to attach his or her name to the request. Now, the House appropriations staff tell us, the spending requests will still remain secret, but only until the full House takes a final vote on the spending bill. Then, all the requesting Congressmen’s names will be made public.

But the decisions will still be made in private. Pork won’t be reduced — we’ll simply know the names of the swine who introduced the legislation after it has been approved. And with the public’s short attention span, they’re likely to get away with it.

Some of the more recent earmarks include:

$500,000 helping to remodel the top of a ski lift in Alaska. We found $96,000 of your federal taxes helping to remodel the historic Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, Florida. And up in little Rice Lake, Wisconsin, we found a tiny airport that got $2 million to lengthen a runway so a few corporate jets could land. (There are no commercial flights at Rice Lake)

The earmark system has never been more transparent, brags Wisconsin Democrat David Obey, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. Obey was the one who pushed for the runway lengthening so corporate executives and their jets would have more room to land.

There’s only one conclusion: our government is corrupt, regardless of which party’s in charge.

Have you seen this man?

Atlanta Police today released a sketch and description of a suspect in the shooting death of Little Five resident Terry Williams:

This individual is a black male in his early 30’s, with shoulder length twists or dread locks in his hair. He is about 6’0 to 6 in height and between 160 to 170 lbs. (slim build). He also has a medium complexion with a slight mustache.

If you have any information on this case, please contact the Atlanta Police Homicide Unit. 404-853-4235.

She’s gorgeous!

Inspired by a recent e-mail exchange, enjoy the intro to “Hart to Hart.”