Michael Gerson: Team McCain Takes the Lead

The Washington Post's Michael Gerson makes some great points here. I particularly smiled at these parts:

• On Obama's recent speech: No Democratic class-warfare cliche went unexpressed. No cheap attack on John McCain went unmade -- and made without humor, class or grace. (How could it possibly be an effective Democratic attack to accuse McCain of cowardice in confronting al-Qaeda?)
• On Sarah Palin's appointment: [She] is unlikely to appeal to the hardest core of Hillary's feminist supporters, she is likely to appeal broadly to most women, who will be undisturbed that she doesn't fit feminist stereotypes.
• On being part of the McCain team: Palin perfectly fits McCain's reform Republican narrative -- her efforts to oppose the corrupt Republican machine in Alaska have been impressive and popular.

Gustav & Hanna Update

Republicans Fight Back Against the Attacks Toward Palin

Here's a great article about the Republican counter-attack. Here are some choice quotes:

"Maybe it's my own background as a mayor and United States attorney, but this whole idea of executive experience to me would really qualify her," Rudy Giuliani said on CBS' Face the Nation. He added, "I mean I think that she already has more executive experience than Senator Obama and Senator Biden combined."

Senator Fred Thompson added to the refrain when he told CNN's Wolf Blitzer, "Wolf, I hate to break it to you, but you don't get national experience by being on the Sunday talk shows ... She has more experience than Barack Obama."

Speaking on ABC's "This Week with George Stephanapolous," Republican Senator Lindsey Graham (South Carolina) added, "She's done things Obama would never dream of."

Pat Condell: Islam's War on Freedom

Pat Condell is an English comedian who is most famous for lambasting Fundamentalist Christians in the U.S. Here he shares some thoughts on an upcoming Islamic Free Speech conference:
He provides several links that you may want to check out here.

The Sarah Palin Pregnancy Smear

A friend alerted me to this blog story. The insinuation is that the baby Sarah Palin gave birth to in April is not actually her own but instead was that of her daughter, Bristol.

Pretty serious charges and attacking one of Palin's daughters in this way is no small matter. Is it true? I don't know. Was the image photoshopped? I don't know.

If it is true then it's almost certainly the end of John McCain's campaign because it'll bring into question Palin's honesty and character, and therefore McCain's judgment.

But if it's false, I hope that the McCain Campaign comes out next week demanding that Barack Obama unequivocally and loudly denounce such a smear campaign, not only against one of his opponents but against a daughter just like his own. Furthermore, if it is false then I will request that the liberal bloggers I know to do precisely the same, as I would expect them to do of me if the roles were reversed.

Update: I just learned of this photo taken in July 2008:
Who looks more like she recently gave birth, Sarah Palin, or her daughter, Bristol, behind her?

And here's one taken from a speech on February 26, 2008:

My Analysis of the Canadian Political Situation

David Berner just published a stinging indictment of the Canadian electorate. I share his frustration but have a slightly different view of the predicament Canada is now in. I left a fairly lengthy comment for him, which I thought was worth sharing again here:

David, I think I know better than most about your political views. The fact that you would write such a post should be quite significant to those middle-of-the-road voters sitting on the fence.

But if you were to write such things in your Province column, you will get viciously attacked by the same usual suspects who constantly assail your sage advice on better drug addiction policies.

I fully respect that different people have different political views. In fact, it's a good thing for vigorous, factual debates make for a better democracy.

But we have to face the realization that decades of Liberal rule have deeply populated the media, academia, and civil service with left-leaning activists who will do & say anything to demonize the Conservatives and hold up their mighty Liberal Party as the righteous Governing Party of Canada.

Through completely peaceful means, Pierre Trudeau has achieved what Castro, Lenin, & Mao could only do through violence.

Is there a way out of this stalemate? My prediction is this: This next election will shuffle the deck chairs a little but the Conservatives will be left in power with another minority government. The knives will come out for Stephane Dion and his political career will be over. Bob Rae and Michael Ignatieff will fight another battle. Either one or the other will win or if there's another equal split between them then a more populous choice (than Dion) will come up the middle again.

With whichever new leader they have, they'll almost certainly force an election sometime in 2010. By that time the Corruption scandal will be ancient history and the Liberals, through their friends I've previously outlined, will be back in power. If the economy is bad in Ontario & Quebec then they'll win a majority. If it's okay or even good then they'll still win but only a minority.

Such is the reality of Canada today. And why we are all worse off for it.

Sarah Palin and Abraham Lincoln

For some time now, several pundits have suggested that Barack Obama is the modern day equivalent of President Abraham Lincoln. I've never seen any similarities other than that they were both lawyers and started their political careers in the state of Illinois.

Sarah Palin's introduction into the political race provides a more interesting comparison with Lincoln. Here are some compelling similarities:

• Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809. Sarah Palin was born on February 11, 1964.
• Both was born & raised in what was/is the hinterland of America at the time.
• Both are adamant mavericks, determined to do what they feel is right, no matter if that ruffles the feathers of even their own party.
• Lincoln was a true frontiersman who grew up in small towns.
  

• Palin is a true frontier woman, who grew up in small towns.
• Lincoln and his wife, Mary, had 4 children.
• Palin and her husband, Todd, have had 5 children.
  

Historians will undoubtedly be able to cite more similarities but if there is such a thing as reincarnation, something tells me that President Lincoln would be most pleased to see Sarah Palin being nominated for VP!

Gustav & Hanna Update

Update: On the 12:00pm news it was reported that Gustav has reached Category 5. My heart goes out to all of the people in its path.

Mark Steyn Weighs In

Mark Steyn has interrupted his hiatus to share his thoughts on the Sarah Palin appointment:

The hostess with the moosest [Mark Steyn]

Over in the Frumistan province of the NR caliphate, our pal David is not happy about the Palin pick. I am - for several reasons.

First, Governor Palin is not merely, as Jay describes her, "all-American", but hyper-American. What other country in the developed world produces beauty queens who hunt caribou and serve up a terrific moose stew? As an immigrant, I'm not saying I came to the United States purely to meet chicks like that, but it was certainly high on my list of priorities. And for the gun-totin' Miss Wasilla then to go on to become Governor while having five kids makes it an even more uniquely American story. Next to her resume, a guy who's done nothing but serve in the phony-baloney job of "community organizer" and write multiple autobiographies looks like just another creepily self-absorbed lifelong member of the full-time political class that infests every advanced democracy.

Second, it can't be in Senator Obama's interest for the punditocracy to spends its time arguing about whether the Republicans' vice-presidential pick is "even more" inexperienced than the Democrats' presidential one.

Third, real people don't define "experience" as appearing on unwatched Sunday-morning talk shows every week for 35 years and having been around long enough to have got both the War on Terror and the Cold War wrong. (On the first point, at the Gun Owners of New Hampshire dinner in the 2000 campaign, I remember Orrin Hatch telling me sadly that he was stunned to discover how few Granite State voters knew who he was.) Sarah Palin and Barack Obama are more or less the same age, but Governor Palin has run a state and a town and a commercial fishing operation, whereas (to reprise a famous line on the Rev Jackson) Senator Obama ain't run nothin' but his mouth. She's done the stuff he's merely a poseur about. Post-partisan? She took on her own party's corrupt political culture directly while Obama was sucking up to Wright and Ayers and being just another get-along Chicago machine pol (see his campaign's thuggish attempt to throttle Stanley Kurtz and Milt Rosenberg on WGN the other night).

Fourth, Governor Palin has what the British Labour Party politician Denis Healy likes to call a "hinterland" - a life beyond politics. Whenever Senator Obama attempts anything non-political (such as bowling), he comes over like a visiting dignitary to a foreign country getting shanghaied into some impenetrable local folk ritual. Sarah Palin isn't just on the right side of the issues intellectually. She won't need the usual stage-managed "hunting" trip to reassure gun owners: she's lived the Second Amendment all her life. Likewise, on abortion, we're often told it's easy to be against it in principle but what if you were a woman facing a difficult birth or a handicapped child? Been there, done that.

Fifth, she complicates all the laziest Democrat pieties. Energy? Unlike Biden and Obama, she's been to ANWR and, like most Alaskans, supports drilling there.

Sixth (see Kathleen's link to Craig Ferguson below), I kinda like the whole naughty librarian vibe.

You can find the original posting here.

Sarah Palin vs. Barack Obama

I've been doing a lot more reading and listening to comments on Sarah Palin, John McCain's choice for Vice-President. This included a pretty critical discussion of candidates like her & Obama here.

One thing that came to light in this examination of commentary was something I hadn't even considered, but is perhaps the greatest reason of all that Palin will assure McCain a victory on November 4th.

What is this thing thou doth ask? It concerns this article, Don't Forget the Angry White Man, written by Gary Hubbell back in February. There are many angry white men out there. And black men. And yellow ones. And red ones. And brown and blue and green ones too. What are they angry about? They're absolutely fed up with the "Oprahfication" of our society.

For a long time now, Political Correctness (PC) has blanketed our society, penetrating its many tentacles into every aspect of our lives. The de facto PC stance is that everyone is helpless, everyone is a potential victim, no one is ever guilty of anything, everyone's "feelings" must be paramount to all other concerns, and the government must be involved everywhere in order to enforce all of this.

Enough Already! That's the internal yell uttered by every man on this continent with a backbone and clearly more than a few women too.

Sarah Palin represents everything that these men - the vast majority of men in the United States - are looking for in a woman:

1. Ambition
2. Intelligence
3. Toughness
4. Strong values
   
5. Maternal instincts
6. Pride in herself
7. Pride in her country

And even with all that, she's still a very sexy lady. Her sex appeal may be a winning attribute but the 7 items in that list will be even more of an aphrodesiac to voters.

Even though we have heard very little from her as of yet, it's already clear that she speaks her mind in clear, concise language that people can connect with. She doesn't use PC-speak to gender neutralize everything either. For example, she speaks of "commercial fisherman", where Obama & his ilk would say "fisherperson". A little thing you say? Words spoken en masse and repeated over & over again do quickly give off an aura about a person's character, even if it's quite subconscious.

Comparisons are starting to be made between Sarah Palin and Michelle Obama. Both are attractive women. But what's immediately obvious is that while Palin is upbeat and positive, Mrs. Obama is bitter and resentful. I know the many Democrats I know don't want to hear that but it is the overwhelming perception.

What the Democrats should really be worried about though is when direct comparisons start getting made between Sarah Palin and Barack Obama. They're about the same age but Palin has clearly accomplished A LOT more in her life more than he has. She's also done a lot less talking and writing about her accomplishments than he has. Academics and celebrities adore Obama for this; average men and women have quickly grown tired of it.

And who has started the comparisons between Palin and Obama? The Democrats no less. I understand their intention to diminish McCain's argument about experience but it will absolutely backfire on them. They remind me of a young child who tries out the infamous Chinese finger trap for the first time. The more they attack (pull), the tighter the trap becomes.

Attacking her on "zero foreign policy experience" then begs the question, "What about Obama's"? Attacking her on "starting out as the mayor of a small Alaska town" only alienates rural voters. Attacking her as "being a former beauty queen" must absolutely annoy all women, except for those who hated beauty queens. The very fact that Democrats are attacking her surely must deflate Obama's "Hope and Change" campaign balloon.

Maybe it's a new stroke of political genius to alienate all kinds of potential voters but I can't figure out its logic. If anyone can explain this strategy to me, I'd love to be educated!

Barack Obama is an elitist liberal who will never be able to connect with the average American. This was proved back when he was fighting Hillary Clinton. It'll be even more evident against McCain and Palin. Ultimately I have great faith in the collective wisdom of the American people.

Obama's Version of Free Speech

Anyone who knows me is aware that Free Speech, not hate speech, but Free Speech is of critical importance in every free, democratic society.

Michelle Malkin summarizes what Obama's Campaign has been up to on the Free Speech front. More than a little scary and so reminiscent of the horrific "Human Rights" Commissions throughout Canuckistan.

The MSM in the Hip Pocket of Barack Obama

Gotta love this. The NY Times completely ignores any connections between Obama & Rezko and Obama & Ayers but within hours of the historic announcement of the first woman vice-presidential candidate for the Republican Party they're already working on a hit piece against Sarah Palin. Such journalistic integrity!!

If she's guilty, then she's guilty and she be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. But let's not forget the phony hit piece the NY Times launched against McCain earlier this year, falsely alleging that he was having an affair with fundraiser, Vicki Iseman. For more on that, please read this. So excuse me if I don't immediately believe a thing the NY Times reporter, Michael Luo, is saying.

I cannot but help reflect back to what well know vlogger, Tom Guarriello, said recently about the two sides of the American electorate needing to come together. This will never happen if media outlets refuse to stamp out the clear, obvious biases of their news reporting.

Interesting Anagram

Does the following phrase sound like a good political slogan to you: CALM IN PANIC

There's something very fascinating about it. Watch as the letters are rearranged:

• CALM IN PANIC
• MCAL PANIC IN
• MC AL P ANIC IN
• MC ANIC AL P IN
• MC CANI P AL IN
• MC CAIN PALIN
• McCAIN PALIN

The significance of this? Absolutely nothing! But I've always loved patterns and this is an interesting one.

Seattle: Then and Now

The first photo is a screen shot from a TV show filmed in 1970. The second photo, though not taken from the same vantage point, shows how very much the Emerald City has changed in 38 years.

Sarah Palin's First Speech to Her Nation

These 2 videos are an abridged portion of the first national speech given by Vice-Presidential nominee, Sarah Palin:


You can also watch the full version here.

The Hypocrisy Begins

Gotta love Obama Kool-Aid drinking liberals! This press release from the so-called National Organization of Women adds the cherry onto the top of an already brilliant day. You'd think that every organization of women would be ecstatic about this historic day. Nope, apparently not.

Pathetic Hypocrites!

Gustav & Hanna

Gustav

Hanna
God help all of those in the path of these 2 storms. Makes me appreciate the mild weather in my neck of the woods.

McCainPalin.com

Obama's Campaign feels that Obama should Withdraw from the Race

What am I talking about? Today, Adrianne Marsh, a spokeswoman for Barack Obama made this comment about Sarah Palin's appointment as John McCain's running mate:

"Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency."

Let's strip away the mayoralty dig and remember that many federal politicians first started at the municipal level. No shame in that. Thus, in essence, this is what Ms. Marsh said:

"Today, John McCain put a woman with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency."

True.

But wait a minute. What foreign policy experience does Barack Obama have?

Zero as well.

So one can only conclude that Adrianne Marsh does not feel that Barack Obama is qualified to run for president.

McCain's VP Choice: Sarah Palin

Surprising most everyone, John McCain has chosen Alaska governor, Sarah Palin, as his running mate.

Now watch the Mainstream Media twist & turn to find ways to attack her. Before, all we heard was that Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were "historic" but now somehow Sarah Palin is not. Right off the bat she's being attacked for her lack of experience, but yet she has tons more than Obama. The next 2 months will provide textbook proof of extreme hypocrisy and liberal bias.

Blue Angels Redux

My friend just uploaded the remainder of the Blue Angels photos. These were taken on August 2, 2008 by my friend, Danny. You can view the full set here.

Obama Campaign Silencing Free Speech of Americans

Back in June, when the BC "Human Rights" Tribunal was front-page news, prosecuting Maclean's magazine and Mark Steyn, many Americans lent their moral support, but also added how relieved they were that their free speech was guaranteed.

I warned them not to ever take free speech for granted. Unbeknownst to me at the time I didn't realize how prescient my warning was. Fast forward just a few months and we learn that something very frightening is occurring in the United States.

A researcher named Stanley Kurtz is being attacked by Obama and his legions of unquestioning supporters. Why? Because Kurtz simply wanted to look at some documents at the University of Chicago. Please read about it for yourself here and here.

Then on Wednesday night, in the hours leading up to Kurtz's appearance on Milt Rosenberg's show on WGN Radio in Chicago, thousands of Obama thugs started hurling written and verbal venom at the station. You can listen to the radio program here.

If I were an American and a Democrat I'd be asking what on earth my candidate's campaign is doing try to silence what I thought was a guaranteed and fundamental freedom.

Windows Live + Virtual Earth

When it comes to mapping I use both Google Maps and Windows Live. But the latter has the ability to load Virtual Earth. When you do that, you can do some really cool things! Here are some screen shots of "flying" around Seattle:

The BCHRT Hard at Work Helping You!!!

Letter just submitted to the Vancouver Sun:

I just learned of an interesting fact that all Vancouverites should be aware of. Every resident and visitor is very much aware of the intimidating thugs errrr sorry "poor homeless people" who sit outside retail businesses, asking every passerby for some spare change. Day after day they sit there and glare. Jobs are going begging throughout the province but they don't move from their perch, making Vancouver look like a ghetto in some 3rd World country.

Ever wonder why such people didn't do this up until a few decades ago?

If a retail shopkeeper dares ask one of these folks to leave, the "victim" (that's the spare change collector in case you weren't aware) heads straight down to the Pivot Legal Society. This "wonderful" organization then contacts the offender (that's the hard working store owner in case you weren't aware) and tells them to never, ever do such a horrendous thing again or they'll haul them in front of the BC Human Rights Tribunal.

What a lovely little racket huh?! So beneficial to those who make Vancouver what it is today.

Yes, I realize that I'm an "uncaring jerk lacking any compassion" for daring to say such a thing. I also realize that I'm "absolutely crazy" for wanting my city to be a clean place for children and a safe place for seniors.

Well, this uncompassionate jerk will cast his vote for any provincial or federal party who promises to get rid of the BCHRT. That's the first step in cleaning up the Kafka like community that Vancouver has devolved into.

More "Innocent Progressives"

So often I hear that "progressives" are full of peace & love. Nice slogans but sooooo far from the truth. Fast-forward to 2:40:

Amy "Sherlock" Alkon

One of my favourite writers, Amy Alkon, did a little detective work to track down one of the trolls harassing her on her website. You will be shocked to find out who he is and where he did it from.

Should he be fired? Absolutely, without question. But I bet not a thing will happen to him.

Read the full fascinating tale here.

Update from Georgia

The Wall Street Journal's Melik Kaylan reports from the conflict in Georgia. It's yet further evidence that Russia is far from being on the side of the angels.

Cognitive Dissonance

This fellow, Tom Guarriello, is a liberal from Connecticut. When it comes to the American political scene, he & I rarely agree. But he's also a smart man and one of my favourite vloggers. In this video he openly admits that he has biases and is reticent to hear other points of views that challenge his own. News Flash to everyone: Just like every other human being on the planet!
This is quite a contrast to this arrogant man I wrote about recently. Ditto for this pretty female vlogger who is probably the most close-minded person I've ever encountered on YouTube. The sad thing for her is that she is convinced that she's actually open minded. Perhaps when she's a bit older she'll learn that being "open minded" means that one must actually listen to other points of view with the possibility that they may change one's own views. That's clearly not the case right now.

BC Hydro at Work

This morning, soon after I got started on my work, I heard what sounded like an explosion outside! I looked out and couldn't see anything obvious but did see a man looking up at a power pole. Looking up, I saw a piece of metal swinging back & forth. So putting 2 + 2 together, I surmised that something had occurred with one of the transformers (or capacitors?) near the top of the pole. I immediately called BC Hydro and less an hour later 2 trucks showed up to attend to it. They've been here ever since. I call that pretty good customer service!

Sheena Melwani: A Great New Canadian Talent

America's Extreme Left

Here are some "fun kids" in Denver for the Democrat Convention:

FAA: Communication Breakdown Delaying Flights

Madonna: The Democrat Party's Official Historian

Proving once again how vacuous is the space between her ears, pop-star Madonna just compared John McCain to Adolf Hitler and Robert Mugabe. What an intelligent woman!! :-(

Extreme Arrogance or Ignorance?

I don't usually republish comments made on this blog but there's a portion of one that is too priceless to be kept hidden in just the comments section.

A fellow who goes under the anonymous moniker of "Floating Abstraction" has been challenging me on my general support of the U.S. and condemnation of Russia's actions in Georgia. Fine, great, super, challenge away. That's what an open discussion/debate is all about.

But included in his recent rant was this gem:

"One needs to view macro-geopolitics with complete impartial objectivity that is free of bias in order to see the whole picture accurately. In doing so, it makes it easier to try to view events from multiple points of view so that one can try to understand the motivations behind the actions taking place."

He then goes on to assert that because he, the righteous, all knowing one, is free of bias, his opinions trump all others.

I meet people like this all the time. You start having a discussion with them, often about politics, and when they realize that they're losing and/or realize you're never going to agree with them, they pull out their "credentials card". It's usually their academic credentials but is sometimes a magazine article they've read or a Michael Moore documentary they've watched. One time a British guy I met in Europe pointed out that he had 3 sets of letters after his name. He insisted that whenever I wrote him a letter that I include those letters when I addressed him. Needless to say, I chose otherwise.

In this particular case, Mr. Abstraction had been making some good points. He's clearly well read and well informed on the subject of Georgia. But the moment a person crosses that tipping point and convinces themselves that they, and they alone, know THE TRUTH is the moment the discussion must end because any further debate is pointless.

Traditionally such knowers of THE TRUTH have been religious zealots. In North America, they're often Fundamentalist Christians. In other parts of the world they're Fundamentalist Muslims. But in recent years there are new strains of this same narrow-minded mindset:

• Liberal Extremists
  
• Environmental Extremists

Examples include Al Gore and David Suzuki, who both declared the debate on global warming to be over and then labeled anyone who disagreed with them as "deniers". Not only are both of them wrong about the debate being over (science doesn't work that way) but they both owe 6 Million Jews and other Nazi Concentration Camp victims a HUGE apology.

Another example is something locally here in Vancouver, where I live. There's an ongoing debate about the pros and cons about the Insite supervised drug injection clinic. Most of the powers at be keep telling us it's a great thing. I disagree. Why? Because I've carefully listened to David Berner, a man with an accomplished track record on drug addiction treatment. I've also listened carefully to what recovered drug addicts have told me. They all think that Insite is a horrific initiative that is only propagating the misery these poor drug addicts are experiencing. But rather than actually debate anyone, the supporters of Insite have taken the same arrogant approach as Mr. Abstraction: "We know THE TRUTH and anyone who disagrees with us is therefore ignorant of THE TRUTH." It's an effective trick to silence all debate. But it's a sadly pathetic trick.

One of the few truths that all mature adults realize is that everyone views the world in a different way. A wise old saying that more people should pay attention to is "not to judge another person until you've walked a mile in their moccasins." Feel free to convince others of your views but the moment you espouse that you are free of bias and thus know THE TRUTH is the moment that you need to go into the corner and take a serious time-out.

Question for Canadians

In order to better fund Canadian athletes for future Olympics, all public employees and politicians making over $75,000 per year will receive a permanent 1% cut in pay. The savings from this will be given directly to Canadian athletes.

Would you support or oppose such a move?

Socialist Comradery

This fellow, Ángel Valodia Matos from Cuba was disqualified by Chakir Chelbat, a referee from Sweden. And his response? Well, kick the ref in the face, of course. You can read more here.

What a disgrace! And such a contrast to how "wonderful" I keep hearing so many say Cuban society is.

Quote of the Day

The 3 most important words every woman wants to hear from a man:

"I'll buy that!"

Big George Webley
BBC Radio London Host
August 25, 2008

LCD Keychains

I saw an interesting new product at London Drugs today. It's a little keychain with a 1.5" LCD screen that can hold 16MB worth of photos. Given that the display resolution is only 128 x 128 pixels, that means you could have well over 1,000 photos on it. They were selling it for $18, which I thought was relatively inexpensive but then discovered that online you can buy them for as little as US$12. I expect these will be very popular this Christmas!

Hawaii Five-O Meets Miami Vice

I've been watching a lot of Hawaii Five-O episodes recently. Now that I'm more familiar with Honolulu and environs, it's interesting to spot locales that I know of. While watching, I'm constantly doing research on IMDB et al about the show. I just came across this video, which merges the video of the Hawaii Five-O intro with the Jan Hammer theme song of Miami Vice.

It's quite amazing how it meshes so nicely. Though the original song will always be my favourite!

Joe Biden: Democrat VP Nominee

Barack Obama has picked Senator Joe Biden as his vice-presidential nominee. 36 years in the Senate and a core part of an institution that currently has a 14% Approval rating with Americans.

Now that's Hope and Change if I've ever seen it!!!

Vancouver Courier Murals

I came across these beautiful murals, painted on the outside of the Vancouver Courier building at 6th & Fir.