Quote Of The Day

“Blacks' unwavering support for Democrats has weakened their overall bargaining power, encouraged marginalization of their interests, and helped ensure that few resources are available for them. Until there are more blacks in the Republican Party, more blacks willing to vote as independents, or more effective coalition politics with other groups, the marginalization of black interests -- on issues from school vouchers to strict immigration policies -- will continue unabated.” — Carol M. Swain, Vanderbilt University law and political science professor and moderate

COMMENTARY: What's Broke Stays Broke

The moderate-conservative Republican blogger, on Hurricane Katrina: "Since we've all been watching the MSM for video images and photos and breaking news, we've all been subject to a deluge of cliches. And in America, what could be more cliche'd than age old racial stereotypes? In case you haven't felt the tug at the primative heartstrings, looters have made the video clips. The looters are black. Survivors have made the video clips. Survi[v]ors are white.....But let's not mince words. New Orleans is a black vs white town. I was there this spring and all over the news was how clubs in the Quarter were getting sued for racial profiling. In addition to that, there is the kind of black poverty in New Orleans that defies c[i]vility. It's very easy to take a wrong turn off the avenue and wind up in the third world, and everybody knows it. I'm talking dirt streets and standing water in the middle of the summer. There is a not-insignificant portion of New Orleans that a lot of people are glad to see washed into oblivion. But the people who lived there are now souls to be saved. Not everybody is willing to be charitable. Considering that disaster tends to bring out the best in people, what we haven't seen is the daily ugliness of racial New Orleans."

Ford Offers Prayers, Support For Victims Of Hurricane Katrina

Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. has released a statement. The moderate-liberal Democrat has also asked Congress (currently on recess) to quickly reconvene to address the tragedy: "Our prayers go out in plenty to the residents of the Gulf Coast and the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The federal support in response to this tragedy should be smart, coordinated and generous. President Bush's decision to tap the nation's emergency oil reserves is laudable, and hopefully it will benefit buyers at the pump."However, our immediate concern is the safety and health of residents in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. I would urge President Bush to dispatch a large team of federal public health officials, led by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), to assist in assessing and responding to the growing public health problems posed by the flooding. Moreover, whatever military equipment is needed to expedite rescue missions should be deployed now. It is disheartening to watch children and seniors sitting atop homes waiting to be air lifted. The President should swiftly act to provide all military equipment needed to facilitate the rescue efforts."In addition, I am going to work with colleagues in the coming days to draft a bill that will accelerate the processing of insurance claims. The bill will also make sure that whether their homes have been damaged by wind or water, the victims of this storm have the resources necessary to rebuild. Congress rightly moved after 9/11 to assist the airline industry; this moment may require similar action."Again, the prayers of Tennesseans are pouring to our friends to the south of us. To the many generous Americans who have already given, thank you. I would encourage all who can give, to give."

Looting: Black Days In New Orleans

Bob Parks is appalled by the looting that he sees in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The conservative Republican commentator writes: "Why is this happening yet again? Of course the answer is clear: racism. At least if you talk to liberals. Being one of the millions of law-abiding blacks in this country, I am tired of being embarrassed by the actions of a minority of thugs, thieves, and opportunists that are using the devastation of New Orleans as an chance to get back at The Man. Then again, they got back at the man in Los Angeles, and after certain teams won championships. Black people aren't the only people who get caught up in mob hysteria, but in the latest episode in The Big Easy, we have a starring role. What's even worse are the media liberals who are falling over themselves to portray the looters as victims.....An act of desperation. Sure it may be desperation because the looters know what they are doing is a crime but they just don't care. When Klansmen refer to blacks as animals, and can show numerous pictures of people of color going from store to store and stealing anything that can be physically removed, how does one counter that? Where's Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton? Where's the condemnation from the NAACP and other so-called black leaders? Why do we only hear justification and understanding from liberals when black people act the fool? I know... I know. I shouldn't be airing our dirty laundry in front of white people. But I can't stop CNN from showing that laundry on worldwide television."

Mr. Parks rants some more about the situation: ""I've said it before and I'll say it again. Liberals and Democrats have created the aura in the black community that they understand the problems and feel the pain. However, they never seem to have any medicine. They consistently deny blacks the chance to abandon the lousy public schools black politicians would never send their own kids to. They push blacks into experimental programs that result in teen pregnancy rates that would never be tolerated in the suburbs. Yet they seem to almost expect blacks to behave like rabid animals in the face of disaster and find ways to make us feel that it should be expected....Black people in New Orleans should be made to understand that the whole world is watching. Any racism people may have is being justified every time they turn on their televisions. If you thought turning around the situation in the black community was tough then, wait until the Democrats you know and love so well, have to explain to their white constituents why they'll need to provide additional tax money to help. And when the plea is balked at, don't blame racism. Don't blame Republicans. Don't blame black conservatives who have moved on. Blame yourselves."

Gregory Kane: "Case Points To Gravity Of Illegal Immigrant Problem"

The conservative Republican columnist, on a hung jury court case in Baltimore re: illegal immigrants accused of killing three kids: "You're not supposed to say such things these days, not unless you want to be accused of racism, bigotry or xenophobia. But I'm funny about the subject of illegal immigration, feeling as I do that it's ... what's the word I'm looking for here? Oh, yeah. Illegal. Quiet as it's kept, there are thousands of folks who legally immigrate to this country. Tolerating illegal immigrants among us tends to make clowns of those who bother to follow the rules and do it the right way. That's only one reason I'm such a Tonton Macoute on the issue of illegal immigration. Another is that I've traveled to five countries within the past two years. I was expected to follow the immigration laws in all of them.....If I and other Americans have to follow and respect the immigration laws of other countries, then folks from those countries are danged sure going to respect ours. Espinoza and Canela, whatever their guilt or innocence in the grisly killings of three children, clearly don't respect those laws. If they're tried again and found guilty, they should be sentenced to solitary confinement in prison for the rest of their lives. (I've given up hope that any murderer will ever receive the death penalty in this town, no matter how heinous the crime.). If they're acquitted, we need to ship them back to Mexico at speeds approaching Warp 10. Ditto for any of their relatives who slipped across the border illegally. That won't happen. Our federal government, which is supposed to be in charge of such things, has completely abandoned its authority on the matter of illegal aliens coming across our borders. Mexican President Vicente Fox seems to think of the United States as his country's northern suburb. President George W. Bush doesn't have the guts to correct him."

Horror Show

New Donkey, a moderate-liberal Democrat, on Hurricane Katrina: "I should be getting some real work done, but I'm finding it hard to stop thinking about what's happening in my favorite city right now, and trying to follow developments through the news media. Unfortunately, media coverage is at best spotty. To some extent that's understandable; after all, there are very few 'on the scene' reporters, and information on key issues like progress towards plugging the gaps in the levee system is hard to come by. Still, Atrios has a very good point about the inability or disinclination of the media to provide basic explanations of the horrific images they keep showing....If you know a little bit about the geography of New Orelans and its many wonderful neighborhoods, these random images are maddening, since a flooded house in Bywater pretty much looks like a flooded house in the Irish Channel. Most viewers probably don't care, and in the end, it doesn't matter what I know when, but some effort to match images with words if not maps would be helpful. Even nightmares need scripts."

White Folks Find, Black Folks Loot?

Angie, one of my blog's readers pointed out this discrepancy - ahem, racism - in Yahoo! News's coverage in a comments section. I wanna bring it to the surface. A photo story about white folks, with backpacks: "Two residents wade through chest-deep water after finding bread and soda from a local grocery store after Hurricane Katrina came through the area in New Orleans, Louisiana."

A photo story about a young black guy, with plastic bag: "A young man walks through chest deep flood water after looting a grocery store in New Orleans on Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005. Flood waters continue to rise in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina did extensive damage when it made landfall on Monday."

Now all the folks involved have bags or backpacks, from their trip to grocery stores. So why the different coverage? I know, I know...

Proposal Four: Require Cleaner Cars

The Yellow Line, a moderate blog, discusses the fourth plank in Mark Satin’s radical middle agenda, which focuses on reducing oil dependence on the Middle East via requiring cleaner cars: "First, it’s important to note that Satin’s motivation for this proposal is not the environment but [instead] is dependence on Middle East oil. I am constantly amazed at how little our government is doing to lessen this dependence despite how much it obviously harms out security and our ability to interact honestly with the Middle East. Despite what some would have you believe, simply drilling more and building more refineries is not a magic-bullet solution. Greater domestic production could be helpful, but reducing demand should also be a major component of any genuine energy plan. But do we need laws requiring fuel efficiency? With rising gas prices, the marketplace is already creating a condition where consumers will be demanding cars that get higher gas mileage. Plus, greater awareness of the need to reduce fuel consumption is also spurring consumers to purchase hybrid vehicles. I myself just bought a hybrid and discovered that demand was so high that there wasn’t a single one on any dealership lot in the city—I had to wait until the next shipment arrived from Japan. And this all happened in Texas—not a state known for demanding fuel-efficient vehicles. Generally speaking, I only support laws that rectify a problem the free market is incapable of handling on its own. And I think the free market is handling the fuel consumption issue fairly well. But I don’t know if it’s handling it fast enough. If this were merely an environmental issue, I’d be much slower in supporting new laws requiring higher gas mileage (although I readily support tax breaks that reward makers and consumers of such vehicles). But this is also a national security issue and it’s one that probably can’t wait for the free market to sort out the problem. We need stronger action."

I agree, and support this proposal. I'd like to get a hybrid car too.

Please Don't Rebuild New Orleans

States Scott Wickham, a black moderate-conservative blogger, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina: "Bury the dead. Give people their federal flood insurance money and tell them to move. Because this will happen again and again until everyone moves. And all we have to do to make it happen is stop having the federal government underwrite flood insurance."

Race, Class, And Hurricane Katrina

As you may know, about two-thirds of New Orleans’ population is black. Some liberal blogs charge that there was a conspiracy by New Orleans officials (and they toss in the Bush administration for good measure) to kill off the city's black population. That is ridiculous. They neglect to point out that the Mayor Ray Nagin is black, as are many of the city's top officials. Many if not most of the city's black residents were able to leave out in time, thanks to the mandatory evacuation call. A mandatory evacuation is not what one does when one is trying to kill off a population (and never mind the liberal tendency to stereotype all black folks as poor when a sizeable percentage if not the majority of New Orleans black residents ain't poor, but I digress). Same goes for the Naval flotilla and National Guardsmen and state troopers that are part of the relief effort.

The Louisiana Superdome and other locations were used in order to provide shelter for 10,000-30,000 poor folks (and tourists) who otherwise had no place to go. Given the short amount of time, I believe New Orleans did a creditable job in evacuating folks. And of course, some obstinant folks of all races were stupid enough to stay in their homes (and then are now complaining when FEMA doesn't arrive to save their asses in lickety split). On the news, city officials were upfront in their concerns about where the Superdome's dome structure could withstand a Category 5 hurricane. Was there a better alternative? Had city officials not used the Louisiana Superdome for shelter, then these same liberals would be whining about how it wasn't used to shelter folks.

And it ain't the federal government's job to maintain the city's levee system. Hello, local government? State and county governments? That is where these liberal critics should place their blame, but they won't because both New Orleans mayor and Louisiana's governor are (moderate) Democrats.

A key question that these liberal critics should ask: Where are their Hollywood and other entertainment friends, while various Christian and other religious groups are already out in force with relief efforts? Why aren't their beloved European allies helping out, as America helps out folks when disaster strikes? Using their own logic, it must be because (at least in New Orleans and parts of Mississippi) it mostly affected black folks. By the way, BlackAmericaWeb.com reported yesterday that the National Urban League and the NAACP are assessing how they can help.

One more thing….I am trippin' (but not surprised) about the reports of looting and such. Ain't helpin' the cause. Come on, my people, we are better.

Aid Links (hat tip: Instapundit): American Red Cross, Mercy Corps, Methodist Relief, Salvation Army, Samaritan’s Purse

Poll Brings Bad News For Democrats On Religion Front

The Moderate Voice blog comments on a new Pew Research Center for the People & the Press poll, which shows that fewer people (29%) see Democrats as friendly to religion now than a year ago (40%). And the change is seen across all demographic groups: "This isn't good news for Democrats, no matter how some may downplay it. It can't be dismissed as the natural consequence of opposing much of the social conservatives' lets-shove-it-through agenda. It boils down to ways of communicating with religious people so they see the Demmies may differ on nuts-and-bolts, but basically share their core values. It's a failure that could cost the party bigtime at the polls....since its an huge opening the GOP will use to its advantage in 2006 and 2008. Not that the Democratic party has tried to ignore religious voters — something that makes these poll numbers all the more troubling for Democrats....So if you strip all this away and stand back and look at it, you get this: the Democrats have an image problem. And one that could well cost it considerable votes. Simply relying on the downward trend in GWB's polling isn't a recipe for success. A sizeable people view the Demcocratic tent as perhaps not as big as Democrats think they view it."

No surprise. A growing number of my relatives - many of whom are evangelical Christians, and all of whom used to be staunch Democrats - believe that the Democratic Party is hostile to religion and old-school black culture. Most are now independents, but a few of them are exploring the Republican Party. They are part of the potential Cosby Republicans that I've discussed in the past that the Republican Party is busing trying to bring into its fold.

McCain: Fickle Friend of Gays

Dennis Sanders says Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has stabbed him in the back. The black moderate Republican writes: "McCain has come out in favor of a change in the Arizona constitution that would ban same sex marriages. To say that I'm shocked, is an understat[e]ment. McCain has been a hero to gay Republicans like myself and he has a place on Log Cabin's Hall of Fame. It might be time to take him off that list. To me, this smacks of pure politics. He's running again in 2008 and is probably fearful that the far right might attack as they did in 2000. If he thinks sacrificing gays is going to sway them, he has another thing coming. They can't stand him, and trying to shore up his far right bona fides ain't going to change things. I have no idea why he is doing this, especially at a time when a growing number of Republicans, like Christie Todd Whitman and John Danforth, are calling for a more tolerant GOP. This is a slap in the face to all gay Republicans who have supported McCain. I was all ready to support him in 2008, but I'm now going to have to rethink that. I would counsel all fair-minded Republicans to do the same and let McCain know that."

Jed Bartlet Is My President, But Not Martin Sheen

The famous actor visited anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan's camp in Crawford, Texas. CenterFeud, a moderate blog, comments on their meeting: "But President Josiah 'Jed' Bartlet is a Bible-quoting liberal Democrat from New Hampshire, not a left-wing activist from Hollywood, and would never be seen sharing a stage with a figure whose extreme rhetoric about America being a terrorist nation that is sending its sons to die for oil and Israel has drawn support from the likes of David Duke and neo-Nazis. The Jed Bartlet I know would have a thing or two to say to a fellow American who considers the people killing our soliders in Iraq 'freedom fighters'. But Martin Sheen is happy to gloss over these issues because he is against the Iraq war. And he is not Jed Bartlet....If the Democrats acted in real life the way they do in The West Wing, they'd be a force to be reckoned with instead of a party on the ropes. If Martin Sheen adopted Jed Bartlet's principles instead of those of Michael Moore, he'd visit Cindy Sheehan and tell her to speak out against the war but cool the inflammatory rhetoric and distance herself from fringe elements. Maybe both need to get West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin to write their lines."

Ayaan: "Abolish The Terms Integration And Diversity"

On Monday, Ayaan Hirsi Ali spoke before the Swedish parliament. The Dutch moderate-conservative parliamentarian and feminist argues that the term (which in the European sense is akin to what we call assimilation of immigration in America) is too ambiguous. She is now changing her platform for being a proponent of integration, to one of freedom and tolerance (speech in Dutch): "I propose that we, in regards to ethnic minorities and their future in Europe, as of now abandon using the terms 'integration' and ' diversity' and that we no longer connect them with two other terms: 'freedom' and ' tolerance'. The term ' integration' is too ambiguous to be useful. The term ' diversity' can become at its best used to indicate what is obvious (for example that not all Moslems terrorists are, because they are not all the same) and at its worst a misleading term, concepts that are not entirely [classically] liberal. The terms 'freedom' and 'tolerance' have their origin in reduction. The words 'integration' and ' diversity' forms the crux of the theory of multi-culturalism. Proponents of the multicultural approach reject reduction, and romanticize and obfuscate the practices of ethnic minorities. Those ethnic and religious minorities which support intolerant ideas, are provided with an intellectual framework with which they receive legitimization and resources from liberal states in promoting culturally differentiated rights. In reality, it comes with self-segregation and the uncontested right of certain minority groups to oppress individual women, children and homosexuals as an oppressed community. Government policy that has been based on a theory of multi-culturalism has contributed to the durable establishment of ethnic enclaves. In these enclaves thrives radical Islam."

The atheist parliamentarian continues her speech: "The debate concerning the presence and the future of immigrants in Europe concerns a lot of matters, but the core of the debate centers around three questions about which a serious disagreement exists. These questions are: (1) The separation of religion and state: is there a place for religion in the public space and, if so, how large can that space be? And on the other side: can the government interfere with closed religious communities and, if so, can that go how far? (2) The dilemma of the welfare state and borders: can a welfare state maintain quality and its degree of care for its taxpayers and at the same time large numbers of immigrants that have not made the necessary contributions, but is for a large part dependent on that care? In other words: how many immigrants can a welfare state take and remain a welfare state? (3) The question of individual rights compared with national security: in an era of terror, citizens require that their elected government guarantee security. The same governments must however also guarantee that that citizen rights related to terrorism are not violated."

MP Hirsi Ali concludes her thesis: "What is good about freedom and tolerance is that they are universal, are related to individual rights and that groups are not overlooked, subject to everyone but loose enough that one can make himself part of a group when he wants.....As a spokeswoman for 'integration and emancipation' of the Dutch liberal party [which promotes classically liberal values like small government, free enterprise, and individual rights], I change the name of my task as spokeswoman for freedom and tolerance."

What's The Matter?

Devone Tucker, a black conservative blogger, writes: "While Media Matters for America deserves criticism for taking quotes from conservative pundits out of context, they deserve credit for pointing out the near-total failure of the religious right to condemn Pat Robertson for his remarks about Hugo Chavez."

That is because the religious right favors the assassination of another country's elected leader, who opposes most of their agenda.

WALTER WILLIAMS COMMENTARY: Gasoline Prices

The libertarian economics professor argues that when asking if gasoline prices are too high, we must ask relative to what costs? "With the recent spike in gas prices, the government has chosen not to pursue stupid policies of the past. As a result, we haven't seen shortages. We haven't seen long lines. We haven't seen gasoline station fights and riots. Why? Because price has been allowed to perform its valuable function -- that of equating demand with supply. Our true supply problem is of our own doing. Large quantities of oil lie below the 20 million acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). The amount of land proposed for oil drilling is less than 2,000 acres, less than one-half of one percent of ANWR. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates there are about 10 billion barrels of recoverable oil in ANWR. But environmentalists' hold on Congress has prevented us from drilling for it. They've also had success in restricting drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and off the shore of California. Another part of our energy problem has to do with refining capacity. Again, because of environmentalists' successful efforts, it's been 30 years since we've built a new oil refinery. Few people realize that the U.S. is also a major oil-producing country. After Saudi Arabia, producing 10.4 million barrels a day, then Russia with 9.4 million barrels, the U.S. with 8.7 million barrels a day is the third-largest producer of oil. But we could produce more. Why aren't we? Producers have a variety of techniques to win monopoly power and higher profits that come with that power. What's a way for OPEC to gain more power? I have a hypothesis, for which I have no evidence, but it ought to be tested. If I were an OPEC big cheese, I'd easily conclude that I could restrict output and charge higher oil prices if somehow U.S. oil drilling were restricted. I'd see U.S. environmental groups as allies, and I would make 'charitable' contributions to assist their efforts to reduce U.S. output. Again, I have no evidence, but it's a hypothesis worth examination."

LA SHAWN BARBER COMMENTARY: A Nation Of Outlaws

The conservative blogger argues that America has been invaded by an army of illegal immigrants, who have more rights than American citizens: "Illegal immigration costs American taxpayers billions of dollars each year. In California alone the cost is $10.5 billion annually. The price tag for the rest of the country, especially border states, is incomprehensible. Illegal immigration is also a public safety risk because aliens do not undergo a medical screening before entering the United States. As a result, diseases once eradicated or virtually eradicated have resurfaced in America. Where is the so-called protection we’re entitled to as American citizens?....What would the American founders say about the state of our country? One of them, President John Adams, made a prediction about the collapse of democracy. 'It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide.' Illegal immigration has burdened America and changed our culture for the worse, and our own government refuses to do anything about it. We are no longer a nation ruled by the people and for the people. We are a nation of outlaws."

Quote Of The Day

"It was evident that the success of Negro businessmen was largely dependent upon, and would tend to instill into the mass of the Negro people, habits of system and fidelity in the small details of life, and that these habits would bring with them feelings of self-reliance and self-respect, which are the basis of all real progress, moral or material." — Booker T. Washington (1856-1915), conservative Republican educator, on why business owners are among the ultimate role models

Ford Addresses Oil Costs, Concerns

Congressman Harold Ford Jr. (D-Tenn.) expects energy and oil to be hot topics for the new legislative session, and the moderate-liberal Democrat is prepared to weigh in when the time comes (hat tip: Harold Ford Jr. For U.S. Senate 2006 unofficial blog). “We will certainly revisit renewable energy sources,” Rep. Ford, Jr. told students at a University of Tennessee event. “The legacy that we will all leave in post- 9/11 America must be to secure more energy sources. With the technology we have today, we could not be dependent in 10 years.”

He also commented on the volume of conversations centering on tapping into the nation’s emergency oil reserve. “I may be in the minority in my party, but I believe that an emergency reserve is just that, for emergencies,” the five-term congressman said. “Sure, we may be paying a lot of money for gas, but that’s not an emergency. It’s poor planning on our part.” Rep. Ford, Jr. believes emphasis should be placed on finding more energy sources. He supports nuclear options if safety and community health can be ensured. He added that the first step is to ask automakers to increase the mile-per-gallon capabilities of their products and to remain competitive in the global sphere.

Swazi Virgins Dance To Win King's Favor

More than 50,000 bare-breasted virgins vied yesterday to become the King of Swaziland's 13th wife, which critics say ill befits a country with the world's highest HIV/AIDS rate. The last absolute monarch in sub-Saharan Africa, King Mswati III arrived in a leopard-skin loincloth to watch the Reed Dance, which he has used since 1999 to pluck brides from the ranks of teen girls dressed in little more than beaded miniskirts (hat tip: Ramblings' Journal). Wielding machetes and singing tributes to him and his mom, the girls - who view selection as a ticket out of poverty - danced around the royal stadium in the hope of catching the 37-year-old monarch's eye. "I want to live a nice life, have money, be rich, have a BMW and cell phone", said Zodwa Mamba, age 16. Each of his current wives has her own palace and BMW. According to Swazi tradition, the king is always meant to have a bride in waiting and can only marry her when she is pregnant (and he has narrowed his new choice to three people).

Critics say King Mswati - who lives lavishly while two-thirds of Swazis live in abject poverty - sets a bad example by encouraging polygamy and teen sex in a country where 40% of adults live with HIV. Some argue that the Reed Dance - traditionally meant to celebrate womanhood and virginity - has become little more than a showcase for the would-be brides. "The Reed Dance has been abused for one man's personal satisfaction," said Mario Masuku, leader of the banned opposition party. "The king has a passion for young women and opulence."

Yesterday's ceremony yesterday followed the lifting of a royal ban on sexual relations with virgins under age 18, decreed in 2001 to stem the spread of the HIV virus. Media reports indicate that some Swazis believe that the king can do as he pleases, and defend the practice on Swazi tradition and national identity grounds. And oh, a palace official was so shocked by a loud drinking, dancing, and music celebration by the king's eldest daughter, Princess Sikhanyiso (age 17, who has raised eyebrows in society with her fondness for Western-style skirts and jeans) to end the event that he beat her and other girls with a stick.

Where do I begin my feminist critique of this nonsense? Black teen girls catering to one man's pleasure, which goes on too often on the African continent. A poor example for a country with a runaway HIV/AIDS rate. The king's rampant materialism and curtailment of freedoms, while most folks live in poverty.

New Orleans Mayor: 'Significant' Number Of Deaths

Mayor Ray Nagin warned of a sizeable death toll as the exact scope of Hurricane Katrina's wrath remained unknown in the Big Easy. "The city of New Orleans is in a state of devastation," the moderate Democrat said last night. "We probably have 80 percent of our city underwater, with some sections of our city, the water is as deep as 20 feet." Katrina came ashore early yesterday as a Category 4 hurricane, strafing New Orleans with 120 mph winds. A city of nearly 500,000 with a metro population of 1.3 million, New Orleans was under a mandatory evacuation order issued on Sunday. However, many people defied that order and remained in homes. Thousands were shielded from the storm in the city's Louisiana Superdome. Louisiana officials have released no death toll, but Mayor Nagin predicted eastern New Orleans and the city's 9th Ward would be the hardest hit, noting the National Guard would be setting up temporary morgues. He said that bodies have been seen floating in flood waters. Both airports are underwater and there will be no electricity in the city for four to six weeks. Natural gas leaks have been reported throughout town.

Can Hillary Win?

Asks OxBlog, a moderate website: So, can Hillary win in 2008 given that she is so far to the right of her party on national security (at least for the moment)? I actually think the answer is yes. If the situation in Iraq gets worse and worse, it may not matter that she has been relatively hawkish. It's Bush's war, not Clinton's, and its failure would be a Republican albatross.On the other hand, if US and Iraqi forces bring the insurgency under control and Iraq begins to make substantial progress in its struggle for democratization, Hillary's hawkishness may neutralize the GOP's traditional advantage on national security (although against McCain, nothing may be good enough on that front.)But what if things in Iraq stay exactly as they are now? What if we continue to lose two or three soldiers a day while a Shi'ite-Kurdish coaltion, supported by a solid electoral majority, consolidates power without bringing the Sunnis in from the cold? What if the Democratic base continues to clamor ever more loudly for a withdrawal while the GOP, sans Chuck Hagel, rallies 'round the President's soaring pro-democracy rhetoric?In that kind of polarized environment, Hillary may find it impossible to satisfy anyone."

La Shawn Barber: "News Flash For Imbeciles: Terrorists Exploit Immigration Laws"

The conservative blogger writes: "Bush and his cronies have no intention of 'tightening' anything, and if you believe they do, perhaps you’d better have your IQ checked. And I’d like to comment on this statement: 'The department has enacted a slew of programs…to harden immigration laws against terrorists.' They’ve got it all twisted up. We need to 'harden' laws against ALL immigrants, not just terrorists. The Department of Homeland Insecurity, Bush’s big, bloated baby, must put more agents on the border to keep Mexicans and Central Americans out not only for the damage they cause, but to prevent Muslims from jumping the border right along with them. So what’s the solution, you ask? Well, you know I’m considered an extremist about certain things, and this is one. For the next five years at least, close the borders to immigrants from countries harboring or suspected of harboring Islamofascists. CLOSED, with no exceptions. Second, scrutinize young men of Middle Eastern descent no matter which country they’re from. I don’t care if they’re from Iceland. Strictly scrutinize them to the point they get bored by the process and change their minds about immigrating. Third, close and seal the Southern border. Mexicans and Central Americans wanting to enter this great country must get in line and go through the proper channels just like everyone else. Isn’t it a shame that my suggestions are considered extreme? Evidence of cultural rot."

Martin Kimani: "Woe Unto You, Ye Shall Hunger"

The Kenyan-born libertarian blogger, who lives in Britain, comments on a Reuters story on food being made in factories just for starving Africans: "Some of our societies have failed to the point that even food can no longer be taken for granted and charity has become a way of life. Plumpy'nut - made of peanut paste, sugar and a special vitamin - is not being made to feed people in hunger camps, it is being advertised as a charity intervention before starvation really strikes. In other words, preparations must be made for Africans even before they have started starving since it is reliably known that the need will be there sooner or later.....So there you have it and good luck to them. If African entrepreneurs will not step in to create cheap food products then their countrymen shall either starve or shall provide opportunity for others. African misery is the greatest natural resource in that continent. While people argue about gold and oil, no one notices that there is far more money generated by the humanitarian industry on the basis of African misery than by mining or drilling corporates. It makes me wonder whether Niger has businesspeople at all."

Oprah Fails The “Loyalty” Test

Duane Brayboy discusses Roland S. Martin's (of "America's Black Forum" fame and now the executive editor for the Chicago Defender) comments about his chase after media mogul Oprah Winfrey to see if she would (1) attend the recent funeral of black media pioneer John Johnson and (2) make a statement for the newspaper's commemorative edition on the businessman. The conservative blogger slams Mr. Martin's comments: "How many non-black publications would take the time to cover funeral absenteeism anyway? We are the only ones that will tie a fellow black person’s success to the fate of the entire race. Although Johnson did in fact give Oprah some publicity in his magazines, Johnson was not the only contributer to Oprah’s success. Martin does acknowledge in the excerpt above that Oprah did attend Ebony’s 50th anniversary celebration 10 years ago. But for some reason, this was not good enough for him. The funeral was the benchmark. Also according to Martin, Oprah had already made plans to commemorate both Johnson and Luther Vandross on an upcoming show next month. Instead of just moving on to more important issues in the world, he still continues spinning this story for what its worth depicting Oprah as the rich booshie billionaire who has become too uppity to give Johnson his props."

I agree with Mr. Martin on this one, given Ms. Winfrey's public comments about why more black celebrities didn't show up at Ebony's 50th anniversary event last decade. It is not as though she didn't know Mr. Johnson, especially given that they lived here in Chicago. She should've at least gone to the funeral.

Good For The Star...

Asserts Robert A. George, about how the Arizona Daily Star in Tucson dropped conservative commentator Ann Coulter's syndicated column (Tony Snow's column will replace it). The black moderate-conservative Republican journalist and blogger writes: "Ann's a friendly acquaintance, but this is the line that the Arizona Daily Star rightly found just too much: '(T)he savages have declared war, and it's far preferable to fight them in the streets of Baghdad than in the streets of New York -- where the residents would immediately surrender.' I wonder if that includes this guy -- or the 11,000 New Yorkers on active duty? Yeah, Ann, the satire is nice, but after a while it just becomes complete and total bull___. Not 'funny', not 'politically incorrect', not 'droll' -- just complete and totally unnecessary bull___. Enough."

Countering Coulter

The Moderate Voice blog writes about the latest controversy involving the conservative commentator: "There is a bigger issue here than an Ann Coulter (who enrages the left and some in the center) and a Michael Moore (who enrages the right and some in the center). The issue is the deterioration of public discourse in our country — and Coulter is symbolic of it. Somewhere along the line it became fashionable and in the eyes of some intelligent to simply dump on political opponents. Blast them. Insult them. Demonize them. Suggest that they rub the palms of their hands in glee, with a mad look in their eyes, and seek to destroy the country. Perhaps it's due to the general trend in America since the turn of the 20th century where entertainment moved from appealing to broader segments (vaudeville, early movies, radio, early TV) to smaller and smaller segments (cable, the explosion in the number of cable channels, the birth of the Internet and weblogs that seemingly appeal to specific ideological communities). The tone of news and entertainment started to change by the late 80s and 90s — where the Cult of the Outrageous Statement Or Act (best typified by John Belushi's character in 'Animal House') took hold. The thoughtful, more reflective 'on the other hand' commentary or personality became ZZZZZZZZZZZZ in this new age. News was impacted by both competition from tabloids (so news became more tabloid) and the spilling over of the talk radio culture (where confrontation and controversy became the overriding goal) into the way news was presented to consumers."

COMMENTARY: Let Gitmo Be Gitmo

The National Review editor and conservative Republican argues that emptying Gitmo would be dangerous: "The U.S. government is preparing to return 68 percent of enemy fighters from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to their home countries, primarily Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen. Fraught with shortcomings, this risky scheme reeks of capitulation to Bushophobes. Politically, this decision bolsters the 'Gitmo=Dachau' position. Unable to face the brickbats of left-wing journalists and activists here and abroad, the administration seems to be lobbing this hot potato halfway around the planet. Politics aside, this tactic potentially threatens U.S. safety. Thankfully, Guantanamo is incredibly secure. This Navy base overflows with well-armed guards and well-trained GIs. Any al Qaeda assassin who slithered from his cell soon would be neutralized. If he happened to reach the compound's periphery, he would be greeted by barbed wire and watchtowers. If he snuck through, he could swim to freedom. Haiti is about 100 miles southeast across the shark-choked Windward Passage. Good luck. Because they are not surrounded by water, Afghan, Saudi, and Yemeni prisons cannot be as impregnable as Guantanamo. Since they are accessible by land in countries rife with Islamo-fascists, don't be surprised if al Qaeda troops attempt to liberate their jailed colleagues so that they can resume the hard work of mass murder. The victimized government would surely fret with ours about what these un-caged beasts might do next. Even a failed jailbreak likely would find allied and even U.S. soldiers in the crossfire.....Even from a human-rights standpoint, those who bellyached about Gitmo's raw, naked cruelty now balk at exporting its detainees. As nasty as 'Bush's dungeon' supposedly is, these critics now concede that any Afghan, Saudi, or Yemeni hoosegow is unlikely to be as comfortable for bin Laden's boys as our facility on a breeze-swept Caribbean island."

Richmond: New Truancy Initiative

Mayor Doug Wilder (pictured) will announce a major initiative today to reduce school truancy in Virginia's capital city. The moderate Democrat's new initiative will start this school year and will include additional personnel to address truancy and a city-wide hotline number to report truant children.

THOMAS SOWELL OP-ED: Time And Money And Housing

The conservative Republican economist says time is money, but a lot depends on whose time and whose money: "A recent study indicates that one-fifth of new home-buyers in California pay at least half of their income for housing. So do nearly one-fourth of California renters. When it costs half of what you make just to put a roof over your head, that is a big restriction on what else you can afford to do. How did this situation come about and why does it continue? Part of the reason is that it is newcomers who have to pay outrageous prices for houses, while it is existing homeowners who vote for laws and policies that drive up housing costs by obstructing the building of new homes. Those who already own their own homes are not hurt by soaring housing prices. In fact, they benefit when the value of their homes becomes several times what they originally paid for them. Given this situation and these incentives, it is easy to understand why such things as planning commissions, 'open space' laws and 'historical preservation' policies proliferate. These road-blocks to building are essentially idealistic-sounding ways of being completely selfish. Despite much liberal rhetoric about compassion for the poor, it is precisely in such overwhelmingly liberal enclaves as those in California where high housing costs resulting from restrictive laws have imposed the heaviest burden on lower income people.....All sorts of lofty talk about 'open space' or 'saving the green foothills' is used to disguise the plain fact that those who already have theirs want to keep other people out, especially other people not as upscale as themselves. Ugly as such selfishness may be, it is no worse than the zealotry of the nature cultists who join with them to make life miserable for thousands of other people in order to give themselves a cheap sense of importance that some confuse with idealism."

Uganda: Drop Sedition Case

A couple weeks ago, I highlighted how Uganda's decision to shut down a radio station and charge Andrew Mwenda (pictured), a leading libertarian radio and print journalist, with sedition has caused alarm in the country. His attorney yesterday asked the court to stay proceedings until the Constitutional Court rules on the law's constitutionality and interpretation. Mr. Mwenda is being charged with uttering 'seditious' statements against President Yoweri Museveni and the government during his live talk-show earlier this month. There has been intense speculation in the Ugandan media about possible incompetence in the July 30 helicopter crash that killed Sudanese First Vice President John Garang. The helicopter belonged to President Museveni, and it was flying VP Garang back to Sudan from Uganda. "I have been seeing this young boy, Mwenda, writing about Rwanda, writing about Sudan, writing about [the Ugandan army]. He must stop. Completely," President Museveni recently said. Mr. Mwenda faces five years in prison or a US$27 fine (sizeable for most Ugandans).

Transporting Pork – The Federal Transportation Bill & The Pandering Of Ben Nelson

Dell Gines, a black moderate-conservative blogger, discusses the impact of the recent federal transportation bill and Sen. Ben Nelson's actions (D-Nebraska) on his community near Omaha, Nebraska: "One of these pet projects and the one which has me incensed, is a project advanced by our Senator Ben Nelson here in Nebraska. He got a pork project pushed through for Creighton University a local PRIVATE college here in Nebraska to build a $15 Million dollar parking garage.....So on one block, you have an expensive private school, whose population base is primarily middle to upper middle class students. One block north, you step into the city within a city, ‘North O’ the poorest area of the city. When I attended school at Creighton, and even to this day, students are still told not to cross Cummings, or they would ‘be in danger’. Creighton has HUGE endowments totaling in the hundred million plus range and recently received an anonymous donation of $50 Million dollars, and have been expanding rapidly as a good university would. Which begs the question, as to why Senator Nelson would fight for $15 Million dollars for a parking garage when: A) They could afford it B) They are a private institution C) They area immediately adjacent would have benefit much more from these funds."

A parking garage shouldn't be paid with any federal funds, as it isn't an interstate facility. Hello, local (not even state) government? And a private institution - especially an affluent one - shouldn't be on the public dole. Shameful.

MYCHAL MASSIE OP-ED: Fleas Come With The Dog

The conservative Republican commentator writes that the adage is an accurate description for the membership associations of liberal groups opposing Judge John Roberts' appointment to the Supreme Court: "Groups like [People for the American Way] oppose restrictions on simulated child pornography, despite the spiraling number of children raped and murdered this year alone. Yet PFAW supports the redefining of marriage, deleting 'under God' from the Pledge of Allegiance, forcing Boy Scouts to permit openly homosexual scoutmasters, partial-birth abortion, judicially imposed tax hikes and racial quotas in college admissions. If John Roberts supported any of the aforementioned or espoused the hateful language of [liberal reader Lin] Browne, he would welcomed by the very people now claiming he is bad for America."

Quote Of The Day

"In my experience as a former senior counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee, John Roberts's record demonstrates that he is a careful, diligent and thoughtful lawyer who provided his clients with sound legal advice on civil rights issues. In private practice, Roberts has shown that he has an ability to see all sides of various civil rights issues and has the ability to recognize the complexity of current law in this area. John Roberts is a fair and thoughtful attorney, and I hope that his upcoming hearing in September will reflect these same qualities." — conservative Cherylyn LeBon, member of Project 21, on the Supreme Court nominee

Dialogue or Diatribe?

Asks Dennis Sanders about Cindy Sheehan. The black moderate Republican blogger writes: "The more that you hear from the California woman, the more shrill she sounds. She talks about having the President 'listen' to her and then calls the man a murderer and a terrorist. She says the President killed her son forgetting that her son chose to be in the Army and put himself in harm's way.....If this was for oil, I don't think we'd all be paying close to $3 a gallon. Sheehan presented herself as a mainstream Mom, but in reality, she is part of the far left that has as disturbing a world view as the far right. We need a good discussion about how to deal with Iraq, but Ms. Sheehan's remarks do nothing to move this discussion forward. The scene in Crawford with Ms. Sheehan and her supporters on one side and Bush supporters on the other is just more of the same: the extremes yelling at each other and not coming up with any ideas to solve this problem. Ms. Sheehan could have helped us all talk about how we can help Iraq and also set a time table for a withdraw[a]l. We are not having that discussion right now. I want that discussion. Instead, she has joined the voices of the shrill. You lost me, Ms. Sheehan and maybe many others."

Tough Love

Eddie Butler comments on photos that were sent to him. The boy's sign reads: "Hi!! I'm 13 yrs old. I STEAL. I want to GO TO PRISON TO BE WITH DADDY!!" The black conservative blogger writes: "Aside from being funny, the fact that a mother would go to such an extreme to keep her son from following in the same footsteps of his father (in prison, according to the sign) is commendable. In today's world where it's considered child abuse to spank a child, it seems like so few parents are willing to take necessary measures to keep their children from going down the wrong path in life. The proverbial (and sometimes literal) 'swift kick in the pants' does wonders. Sounds so 'old-fashioned' doesn't it?"

Proposal Three: Patient Capital

The Yellow Line, a moderate blog, discusses the third plank in Mark Satin’s radical middle agenda, which supports no taxes on investment income held for five years or more: "At first glance, this proposal seems less important than some of Satin’s other ideas. But think about the implications. By taxing all income on investments that have been held for less than five years, the patient capital program would punish short-term investing—a major form of modern investing. There would be less incentive for investors (individual and corporate) to 'ride the wave' and more incentive to think long-term and add real value to investments. In many ways, I like this proposal. It in no way prevents individuals or companies from selling investments quickly—it just assesses a tax penalty if they choose to do so. But I wonder how it would affect the common investor who owns mutual funds. Even if we try, most of us do not track exactly which stocks and bonds our mutual funds hold. If our fund manager is moving around investments and that movement nets us a profit, would we be penalized? I’d hope not. I’d hope it’d be enough just to own the mutual fund itself for five years and not each individual investment within the fund. But that would create a giant loophole where mutual fund managers could continue to buy and sell investments at a quick clip without suffering the tax penalties for doing so. And when it comes to money, once a loophole is opened, creative accountants will exploit it for all it’s worth. I think, while a solid starting point, Satin’s 'patient capital' proposal needs some greater detail so as to protect the interests of the common investor."

Dell Gines: "Justice & Criminal Justice Are Two Different Things"

Asserts the moderate-conservative blogger comments on a Louisiana man who waited in jail for eight years without a trial: "In a democracy we strive for the ideal but often end up with the best of alternative solutions. This is unavoidable, and must be recognized in any critique of a system and the kinks or flaws in the system. However, as our society evolves, it is incumbent on us to be ever vigilant, and to ever press towards the ideals that we hold under the premise of the Declaration of Independence and framed in the Constitution. That is why when we see a system ‘problem’ it is not enough to say, 'we are better than country x,y or z' and it is not enough to accept 'some slipping through the cracks'. In terms of our criminal justice system there is a problem. Those with the least, get the least justice.....Justice is supposedly blind, and criminal justice should be as well. My question becomes this, when it comes to the poor amongst us, do we turn a blind eye, while allowing the criminal justice system to keep its eyes on the monetary worth of each individual before it? Or do we hold to justice and equality and pursue the ideals that set the foundation for this country?"

On Hurricane Katrina

Over at Dean's World (a popular moderate-conservative blog), I blog about folks building in hurricane areas and on price gouging charges.

The “Waste-Of-Time” Textile Talks

Chippla Vandu asks: what does the European Union want from China? The Nigerian-born libertarian blogger, who lives in Holland, writes: "If trade is meant to be free, then let it be. True, every country or bloc or region should have the right to set import quotas as well as specific tariffs on imported goods. But, for how long are we going to keep deceiving ourselves? Import quotas, tariffs and subsidies on common goods only work for a while. Eventually, they fail. With trade becoming truly global, more and more goods and services will be purchased from where they are available at the cheapest rates, provided of course they meet minimum specified standards. It's time the European Union woke up to a new reality – China has become the factory of the world. Import quotas and high tariffs may help keep Chinese goods off European shores for a while (and keep European companies alive and competitive) but Europe will never be able to compete with the Chinese on the global market in the long run, except wages were lowered and working hours increased. This may sound sadistic and cruel, but it is the plain truth. Of course, there's always the alternative of doing away with global free trade, but with the world economy so intermingled among the various countries, this seems like a very remote possibility."

JOSEPH C. PHILLIPS COMMENTARY: Calling Out Cosby

The conservative Republican actor addresses comedian Bill Cosby (with whom he co-starred with on the hit sitcom "The Cosby Show") and critics of the liberal comedian's personal responsibility crusade that targets black communities: "Among the gems from Cosby's speech last year, he was quoted as saying: 'The lower economic people are not holding up their end in this deal. These people are not parenting.' How I wish he had not uttered those words. Whether a poor choice of words or a misguided elitism as some of his critics have charged, the effect has been to sidetrack a necessary conversation about America's moral decline and obscure it with finger pointing and charges of either blaming the victim or claiming victimhood. There is little talk of solutions and more significantly no mention of hope. Where is the recognition of the strength, resiliency and industriousness of the American people and of black folk specifically? The problems of out-of-wedlock birth, academic underachievement and imprudence are not exclusive to the lower class. Increasingly, they cross all economic lines. Further, the growing rhetoric of 'personal responsibility' tends to cloud the truth that few of us get anywhere in life without help from someone."

Mr. Phillips continues his commentary about Cos and his critics: "It is also true, as Cosby's critics point out, that there are those among the lower class who are trapped in institutions that do not teach although they are prepared and willing to learn and who are struggling in communities wracked with violence. However, as Cosby rightfully emphasizes, there are also those who find a way to succeed in spite of such obstacles. They manage the difficult work of putting oneself in the position to walk through those doors others have opened. That is work left to us individually and it is in this sense that we are all charged with taking responsibility of our own lives - making good choices, seeking virtue because it is virtue that leads to happiness. To merely point a finger as Cosby does highlights the issue but does not move us any closer to solving it. To blast Cosby and continue to portray blacks as victims of government neglect as others are wont to do not only leaves us standing still, it leaves us impotent."

The problems of out-of-wedlock birth, academic underachievement, crime, etc. aren't exclusive to the lower class. However, they do (very) disproportionately reside among that social class and drag down all black statistics, and thus Cos was on point. However, Mr. Phillips is correct that everyone should focus more on building upon black strengths in the family, church, and school.

COMMENTARY: It's Racist, And Not In Name Only

Argues the moderate-conservative columnist, about the NCAA's recent decision to ban colleges and universities from postseason sports play if their school nicknames or mascots use American Indian names: "We all know that the American government destroyed whatever got in its way and broke treaties with indigenous Indians that would have hampered expansion and economic development. Warlike Indians, such as the Apaches, were overrun, and so were those who were not warlike - the pastoral Nez Perce, for instance. Distinctions between Chief George of the Nez Perce and men like Geronimo, a butcher as cruel as Pol Pot, were not important. They were Indians and they were in the way. Nothing is going to change history, but we should contemplate whether some people are dehumanized so others can have what they claim is 'innocent fun.'...The NCAA had to reverse restrictions upon Florida State University that were imposed with sanctimoniousness dripping from every word. Florida State's mascot name, the Seminoles, had long been approved and supported by the Seminole Tribe of Florida. A complaint against the school, it turned out, was raised by a group of Seminoles in Oklahoma! Apparently, all Indians sounded the same to the NCAA. Distinctions are always the problem and always the goal."

I took some flack by readers for my position last month, but these mascots are racist minstrelsy. Spoken by an alumna of University of Illinois, home of the Fighting Illini. A tribe that is no longer in existence, by the way.

Promoting Progressive Centrism

Nathan Sosa argues that progressive centrism - as exemplified by Clinton administration policies - should be America's future path in moving away from the extremes of liberalism and conservatism in economics, foreign policy, and the use of government power: "During the 1990s, the Clinton Administration proved that progressive centrism could produce astounding results. America enjoyed enormous economic prosperity, social renewal and worldwide peace on a scale never before imagined. These breathtaking achievements were not the result of chance, good luck or divine intervention. They occurred because of the decisive leadership of progressive centrists who defied powerful interest groups on both sides of the political spectrum in order to implement pragmatic policies that worked. It was this common sense approach that so infuriated extremists because it made their anachronistic ideologies obsolete. It was this agenda that moved our country beyond the stale debate between right and left by proving that neither side had all the answers. Progressive centrism thus offers the best possible political philosophy to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century."

If you ignore Rwanda, the rise of Al Qaeda, and increasing societal moral breakdown, then I otherwise agree regarding the 1990s. Clinton also had a Republican Congress to rein him in, so divided government may not be a bad thing. I believe small-government centrism is better, but that's me.

STAR PARKER COMMENTARY: Are Racial Designations Real, Or Just Political?

The conservative Republican commentator writes about how race is classified in the United States: "It created somewhat of a stir in the black community when the Census Bureau reported several years ago that Hispanics surpassed blacks as the nation's largest 'minority' group. The only reason why anyone would care about this is that the very odious attitudes and ideas that historically provided the rationale for discrimination and persecution have been transformed into platforms for political power, preferences and entitlements. It is ironic to me that, as we encourage Iraqis to create a new, free society in the Middle East -- as Sunni Muslims, Shiite Muslims and Kurds work to create a constitution with just and common rules for governing all -- that we Americans retain the concepts of race and ethnicity in our political formalities. I think it is insulting to all Americans and denigrates the ideal of freedom as we understand it at home and advocate it abroad. My plea here, of course, is not to ignore ethnic differences. They are crucial. My plea is to remove them from politics where, rather than appreciating them as part of individual uniqueness, they are used to transform people into objects for political manipulation....If the idea of race is elusive and abusive, the notion of minority is, of course, absurd. Hence we get ridiculous headlines like the Census Bureau's about 'majority minority.' A truly free society understands and respects the fact that there really is just one minority - each unique individual. Certainly this was the Rev. Martin Luther King's point about 'content of character' being the standard to which we should aspire."

COMMENTARY: "Sorry" Works

The National Review editor and conservative Republican discusses what he believes is a prescription for medical-malpractice lawsuits: "Along these lines, a new organization called 'The Sorry Works! Coalition' hopes to curb lawsuits stemming from medical errors. It encourages doctors and hospitals to 'fess up when they screw up and offer fair compensation to those they have harmed. This simple idea should brighten the climate wherein doctors often fear the sick as potential litigants, while too many patients treat practitioners like unguarded pots of gold....'The majority of people who file medical lawsuits file out of anger, not greed,' says Sorry Works! founder Doug Wojcieszak. 'That anger is driven by lack of communication, being abandoned by doctors, and no one taking responsibility for his mistakes. Apologizing and offering some up-front compensation reduces this anger. Also, if doctors learn from their mistakes, they have a better chance of fixing them and not repeating them.' As Wojcieszak suggests, beyond legal and economic benefits, apology policies have clinical advantages. They preserve doctor-patient relationships, boost physician morale, and help correct errors."

Back Online

I experienced a disruption in Internet service in my area yesterday, so was unable to get online. Thus, no edition yesterday. I am sorry for any inconvenience.

The Love Affair Between The Maasai And The English

Martin Kimani comments on an article that discusses a white British antiques dealer who wants to be a Maasai, and argues that it is only the latest example of an unhealthy British obsession. The Kenyan-born libertarian blogger writes: "Colonialists like their savages savage in a romantic mould. There is a streak of masochism in having your material world dismissed by people who have little but vanity and some sick cows. Colonialists want to believe their subjugated people were worth conquering...they are also good for a shag now and then says AA Gill in the London Times to much hilarity."

More minstrelsy by white folks....

ARMSTRONG WILLIAMS COMMENTARY: I Am An American

The conservative Republican commentator writes about the undercurrent of jealousy - especially in Europe - about the relative strength and position of prominence that the United States of America enjoys in the world. "If this seems like odd behavior, considering we keep US troops stationed in Europe for their own protection, it is also somewhat predictable. Its basic scapegoating, a way to claim intellectual and moral superiority over the lone superpower, to identify yourself as part of a resistance, and to provide some psychological linkage to the glory days of the old European empires. In short, this is how France, which has the GNP of Georgia, is able to maintain a voice on the world stage. More shocking is that Americans are starting to believe the rhetoric. Everywhere I go, people equate American foreign policy to a well regimented form of terrorism. They call us murderers. Here at home, leftist newspapers and academics seem to deconstruct America for not being a utopia. They do not compare the United States to other countries. They simply criticize America, as if they were guilty and ashamed for this country’s success. I suppose it is a measure of how good things are in America that its critics chose to focus on the problems of modernity. It is a safe bet that the citizens of Zimbabwe are more worried about whether their children will eat, than on contemplating their own existential angst."

Mr. Williams continues his commentary about what makes America great: "For starters, this country embodies something utterly unique: History’s first democratic empire. Beginning in the post war era, we have used free trade and democracy to create a series of interlocking relationships that end war. This has been America’s great gift to the world. It was a gift that was hauled along by two factors in particular: the industrial revolution and the fact that the social hierarchies of older societies didn’t restrain America. These two factors created conditions by which every American citizen felt he could succeed. Of course, the opportunities that the industrial revolution provided were not unique to America. The fact that America nonetheless views such opportunity as its defining characteristic, speaks to a certain cultural spirit which fueled this country’s progress. It is this uniquely American spirit which has primed the pump of this country’s success and fueled the triumph of democracy and modernity over feudal disunity. We should feel pride, not guilt, for this success. Yes, our foreign policy has rightly engendered criticism. But we should never feel guilty for standing up for ourselves, or for rooting out groups of people who sit around and plot ways to murder as many Americans as possible."

Sally M. Haile Selassie: "Democracy Schlimocracy - Another Mugabe in Ethiopia"

This editorial was emailed to me by the president of Young Ethiopian Professionals in the Diaspora:

The soap opera that is the Ethiopian elections continues to unfold like a cheap, tawdry novel, and here's a brief update — all we are missing is a long-lost evil twin, but give it time. We've been waiting to see how far the Ethiopian Government would go to snuff out the democratic process in Ethiopia, but even we did not think it would go this far! Alas, we see that Marxists are unable to truly understand what it means to bow to the will of the people. We are shocked.

You may remember that on May 24, 2005, the European Union put out a statement casting doubts about the vote counting process. "The European Union Election Observation Mission regrets the way in which the counting of the votes at the constituency level is being conducted as well as the way in which the release of results is being handled by the electoral authorities, the government and the political parties, especially the EPRDF."

Ana Gomes, the Chief Observer of the European Union, then issued a damning condemnation of the process and of ex-U.S. President Jimmy Carter's premature endorsement of the elections in a report leaked to the AP. Unless there is a "drastic reverse toward good democratic practice" the observer team and EU "will have to publicly denounce the situation. "Otherwise, the EU jointly with ex-president Carter will be held largely responsible for the lack of transparency, and assumed rigging, of the elections."

Well, as situations unraveled and the world became appalled at the government's killing of 42 unarmed people, it became apparent that the ruling party, the EPRDF, (which has Revolutionary Democracy as its guide — a glorified neo-Marxist dogma) had lost the elections. So, what to do?

For months, the state-owned Ethiopian TV has been embarrassingly used as a propaganda machine for the ruling party. This went out of control when on July 29, 2005, the Ethiopian News Agency made up quotes and attributed them to Tim Clarke, Head of the EU delegation in Ethiopia. Ooops. Weichegud, a widely-read Ethiopian blog, has all the gory details.

Mr. Clarke was unhappy and wrote a letter to the Ethiopian Information Minister stating that he has been misquoted. He also made the letter public. Major ooops. A government caught lying red-handed. But it gets juicer. The European Union is due to file its report about the Ethiopian Elections by mid September, and word on the street is that it will be "pulling no punches." Panicked by this, the Ethiopian Government published an article last week ominously entitled, Gomes, Clarke: Neutral observers or hidden dealers? Among the memorable lines in the article: "But to the disappointment of many of the people in Ethiopia, she becomes very rude in her handling of the situation. Some times looking like the British General sitting on the Ashanti Stool during the colonial Africa and ordering the subjects to wash his legs. Some reliable sources leaked to this writer that she is promised to be paid up to 20% of the money collected from the diaspora provided she writes a critical observation on elections." Hmm...

And Tim Clarke? Tim Clarke has been doing his level best to help his friends in the CUD. He was working hand in glove with them. While he condemns EPRDF's party leader, Bereket Simon in an open letter unfairly, he advises each and every EUD leader you guys grow up."

This is the state of democracy in Ethiopia today.

Mr. Bush promised the world that: "All who live in tyranny and hopelessness can know... the United States will not ignore your oppression, or excuse your oppressors. When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you." 71 million people are being help hostage by a government that can't come to terms with losing. Yet, the mainstream media still ignores this story. We are coming to the sad realization that despite what Senator Lugar said of democracy, that maybe all democracies are not created equal.

World News Australia has more details here. The European Union defends Gomes and Clarke here.

Quote Of The Day

"Why are journalists obsessed with personal history? From my background, being an individual is not something you take for granted. Here it is all you, me, I. There it is we, we, we. I come from a world where the word 'trauma' doesn't exist, because we are too poor. I didn't have an easy life compared to the average European. But compared to the average African, it wasn't all that bad [as she comes from a prominent Somali family, who often went into exile abroad]. I know that to some people I am traumatised, that there is something wrong with me. But that just allows them not to hear what I say." — Ayaan Hirsi Ali, controversial moderate-conservative Dutch parliamentarian and feminist

Gregory Kane: "Moviegoers Pay The Price For Those Ads At The Theater"

The conservative Republican columnist writes: "But these days we get a horror show with every feature, in the form of pre-movie commercials. Pay your $9.50 these days, and you're guaranteed to hear four dimwits singing 'Wanta Fanta. Wanta Fanta. Wanta Fanta, Wanta Fanta' before the credits of the feature start rolling. No, I don't want any danged Fanta. I want what I paid my $9.50 for: a movie without commercials. The baby boomers among you might remember how parents explained why television had commercials and movies didn't. Those commercials, we were told, paid for the television shows that were on the air. Movies were different. Moviegoers paid the freight. So now we're still paying the freight - and theater chains are giving us commercials too? Is it just me, or has some unwritten contract been broken here?"

Supporting Troops They Know

Rick Heller, a moderate blogger comments on a new AP-Ipsos poll showing that people with friends or relatives serving in Iraq are likelier than others to have a positive view of a generally unpopular war: "Opponents of the war could argue that the troops are constantly propagandized to believe in the mission, and this filters back to their friends and relatives. However, the concrete risk of losing a loved one is surely something that gives those who know troops pause. One could argue that those for whom the war is abstract may have a more objective view than those 'biased' by personal involvement. It is among those who are absolutely enraged by the war that I wonder about their personal knowledge. Aside from a few grieving families, like the Sheehans, it does seem like the strongest opposition to the war comes from those with the least personal involvement. The notion that war supporters are 'chickenhawks' not risking their own skin or their loved ones would seem to be belied by this data."

I have said that it is no surprise that the strongest anti-war protesters are white liberals - a group that ain't carried their weight in the military in a long time.

Civil Rights Walk Of Fame Inducts 11

Henry Aaron, Ted Turner, and the late former Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson Jr. were among 11 people inducted to the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame in Atlanta. Members of the diverse group stood at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site with a plaque containing their footprints and had their shoes preserved in display cases. Xernona Clayton, who created the Walk of Fame, announced that the gallery will have a more international flavor in the future with the addition of former South African President Nelson Mandela and Bishop Desmond Tutu. This year's other inductees were comedian Dick Gregory, late newspaper editor and columnist Ralph McGill, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), singers Nancy Wilson and Harry Belafonte, activist Addie L. Wyatt of Chicago, late appellate judge Elbert Tuttle Sr., and Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth. With the help of Mr. Turner, the Walk of Fame was founded two years ago to establish a permanent tribute to civil rights activists. The walkway leads visitors on a path to the museum honoring Rev. King, Jr. at the historic site near his boyhood home and across the street from Ebeneezer Baptist Church.

King To Remain In Hospital For At Least Another Month

Coretta Scott King will remain at a hospital in Atlanta to undergo rehabilitation for a stroke and mild heart attack that from almost two weeks ago. The 78-year-old widow of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is being fed by mouth now and can say short sentences at a time, mostly ‘‘I love you’’ when she sees a family member. But her doctor said that Mrs. King isn't able to speak for any duration, although she did say that she didn’t want a feeding tube. Mrs. King is making some recovery to the right side of her body but is still unable to walk. She is said to be in high spirits and eager to participate in physical therapy.

The Coretta Scott King Health & Wellness Fund has been established by her family to assist in paying medical and rehabilitation bills. This fund — along with another fund for a scholarship at Mrs. King's alma mater of Antioch College in Ohio — was created after people started sending in unsolicited money.

Africa: What A Great Place To Live!

La Shawn Barber comments on a BBC report noticing a strange phenomenon in Niger, where famine is commonplace: villages in which women and children are going hungry, while there is still food in their households. Men often leave their families to look for work or money, and lock the grain store while they were away (it is often taboo for women to go into the family grain store). The conservative blogger writes: "Niger men love their multiple wives and children enough to teach them the value of scrounging for food. Africa is filled with such wonderful traditions. Men are allowed to drop their seed all over the place, and they don’t have to fend for anyone but themselves. Women and children are on their own except when it’s time to cater to their men. A rogue’s paradise. Here’s another gem: 'And men may be calculating — correctly — that if they don’t provide for their families, aid agencies will step in to fill the gap.' Hmm…making babies with multiple women, knowing the state will feed them. Why does that sound familiar? Wait just a minute…now that I think about it, it’s probably the white man’s fault! Those blue-eyed devils are forcing these oppressed men to starve their babies. Racists!"

Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing...

Says Devone Tucker, a black conservative blogger: "Look, I know that Deval Patrick and Tom Reilly aren't the most formidable challengers, but isn't Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney engaging in a little irrational exuberance by declaring that he could get re-elected in a landslide? Then again, this is the same guy who seems to believe that the GOP will actually give their Presidential nomination in '08 to someone associated with Massachusetts..."

Quote Of The Day

"Africa and the Caribbean is still politically an old boys network where women are feared if they come anywhere near the citadels of power. You can’t have a successful economy and exclude half of your population. You could argue that Europe and America have been successful through their own boys network. This is not entirely true. If you look at the amount of female millionaires in America, the latest figures show they are increasing faster than men. In Britain we have had a welfare state that has cushioned the impact of poverty. Anyway, black women in both America and Britain now do better in education and jobs compared to their male counterparts. Africa and the Caribbean economies cannot afford to lock up the talent of their population through sexist traditions of simply male power. The other set of people who need to be liberated are children. Africa does need to seriously think about why so many children are on the streets of capitals and the soldiers fighting civil conflicts. It needs to educate them so they can become productive citizens, therefore boys should not be exposed to violence and little girls need to be in school, not serving the needs of village elders.” — Tony Sewell, conservative British educator, on building economic progress in Africa

Snoop And Iacocca

Eddie Butler, a black conservative Republican, writes: "Am I the only one that's sick and tired of seeing the Chrysler car commercial with these two in it? I don't watch much TV, and when I do, it's usually the news. This commercial plays at least two or three times during the evening news. I'm sick of it."

I've only seen the commercial once, so no. Ah, the wonders of Tivo....

LA SHAWN BARBER OP-ED: Collapse Of The Black Family

The conservative blogger writes: "Oh yes, the Moynihan Report. The late Moynihan, a Democrat, presented a thesis for which he was maligned and branded a racist. His crime? He warned that the collapse of the black family, already at a critical point 40 years ago, would have devastating consequences. Anyone with half a brain can see that family structure plays a role in the well-being of children in particular and society in general, but we’re not suppose to discuss the fact that 70 percent of black babies are born out of wedlock. I don’t agree with everything Moynihan wrote, but he was an intellectual giant compared to vacuous liberal politicians running things today, with their hare-brained, more-money-will-solve-the-problem schemes."

Expertise on Lance Vs. France

The black conservative blogger on a French paper's claim that Lance Armstrong tested positive for EPO in urine samples in his first Tour de France victory, in 1999: "There's a lot of reasons to question this sudden 'proof' that Lance is guilty. First off, why would the labs keep Armstrong's sample for over six years? If that's the case, then have they tested other riders from 1999, and have any of them come up positive? Also, these were supposedly the backup ('B') samples. Without the actual samples that were tested in 1999 ('A'), there's really nothing that Armstrong can do to challenge the validity of the samples. Of course, the firestorm is about Lance because he's the most recognizable name in the Tour de France. But it's a little too ironic how they kept Lance's samples, which are supposed to be ano[n]myous. I'm sure a simple DNA check could be done to see whether it's his urine, correct? I'm not sure. Besides, the jealousy of Armstrong's success by the French is well known. Simply put, they don't like him. He's an American and he's stomping them in their own sport. Period. And despite the fact that Armstrong is one of the most drug tested athletes in the world, the French media have been busy spreading rumors that Armstrong has doped before. L'Equipe, the newspaper that 'busted' him, is linked to the Tour and has led the way in criticism of Armstrong in the past."

While I do believe that Lance Armstrong (and most other elite pro athletes) ain't clean, the evidence is quite flimsy here without the A samples.

Consider Programs For First-Time Home Buyers

Black Enterprise says that people with low-to-moderate incomes should tap resources offered by many state, county and municipal governments. "Generally, the programs define a first-time home buyer as an individual or family who has not had an ownership interest in a residential property within the last three years. Income restrictions usually apply as well. For example, many programs are only eligible to families with household incomes that are less than 80% of the median household income for a designated region. Regardless of income, applicants must meet bank qualification standards for a mortgage in order to qualify for most first-time homebuyer programs.If you can't qualify for a home loan, you won't be eligible for these programs, so you must still protect and improve your credit, pay down your debt, and take other steps in preparation for the responsibilities of homeownership. Trust me, it's worth the effort-these programs can provide thousands of dollars in loans and grants toward your home purchase."

Cut And Run For Senate

Running for an open U.S. Senate seat in Maryland, Kweisi Mfume (the liberal former Congressman and head of the NAACP is focusing his campaign on a rapid withdrawal from Iraq. Rick Heller, a moderate blogger, comments: "This seems like a smart strategy for Mfume, to attract white suburban support in the primary. It might also work in the general election in a state as Democratic as Maryland. However, I think it would backfire on the Democratic Party as a whole if the party were to become identified with quitting Iraq prematurely. Right now, there is increasing support in the polls for withdrawing from Iraq. I believe some of this support represents 'magical thinking' under the supposition that a withdrawal would stem our losses and have no negative consequences. But if it did take place, and the highly negative outcome that most experts anticipate would result from an immediate withdrawal occurred, those who championed the policy would suffer scorn in the long term."

Civil Rights Groups Support Roberts

With the approach of confirmation hearings for Judge John Roberts to the U.S. Supreme Court, representatives from a handful of advocacy organizations yesterday announced support for him and criticized groups on the left who claim to speak for minority groups. At a news conference at the National Press Club, speakers from the Congress of Racial Equality, the National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise, Project 21, the Center for New Black Leadership, and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights said liberal advocacy groups who came out against Judge Roberts' nomination this week did not speak for all blacks and Hispanics. "We are not a monolith. We come from many different religious backgrounds and different socioeconomic backgrounds," said Jennifer Braceras, a member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Niger Innis, a spokesman for the Congress of Racial Equality who led the coalition of organizations and individuals, said he was speaking on behalf of black voices not often heard on issues such as school vouchers, education, making government money available to faith-based organizations and making sure there is no discrimination against faith-based organizations. Ms. Braceras dismissed recent comments by Ralph Neas of People for the American Way that Judge Roberts would try to turn back the clock on civil rights as a boilerplate radical agenda attack that special interest groups would make on any of President Bush's nominees.

Is This An Equal Access Issue?

Nelson Taylor asks whether the media ignores black and other non-white folks that go missing in America. The black libertarian Republican blogger writes: "We already know the media is mostly insulated white folk, leftist, democrat and biased against [R]epublicans, conservatives and others who reject collectivism. If we know this to be the case then way is it so far fetched to assert that the media is ignoring missing persons who are not white? I'd also like to add that the media pretty much ignores missing white boys as well; so, you know that if a little black boy goes missing he's a non-issue in the media.....I wholeheartedly reject the idea that everyone should be treated equally! I do however, firmly believe that everyone deserves equal access and thats something non-white folks and little boys just don't have in the media right now."

Britain: Lightening Strike

The battle against criminals importing illegal skin-lightening products is being lost despite a huge seizure of the products at Gatwick Airport last week. Officers from the Trading Standards Service seized highly dangerous batches of creams - designed to lighten black and Asian skin - that were destined for markets in London. Thousands are sold each year ‘under the counter’ in hair and make-up salons across the capital. The latest seizure was hidden in freight marked ‘food stuff’ on flights from West Africa. Tests on the products have revealed high levels of hydroquinone – a highly toxic chemical that cause damage to the skin and eyes. They also often contain ingredients such as mercury soap and steroid-based creams. Retailers who sell the toxic creams can be punished with fines of up to £5,000 (US$9,000), but they often get away with just the cost of losing the products. Despite the health dangers, skin-lightening products are as popular as ever in the black community. Sherry Dixon, editor of black women’s monthly Pride agrees that black and ethnic minority communities have to challenge the belief that lighter skin is necessarily better. “I’m surprised that these products are coming into the UK. I thought we had moved on and started celebrating being black. It’s sad that there are still people that are using these products.”

Amen, sista. These products are still around? No surprise though.

Quote Of The Day

“Despite all the programs and policies we've had, only blacks can prevent our self destruction. Where we are is about our choices and our ability to take responsibility for our problems, regardless of who originally caused them.” — Angela Winters, moderate blogger

N.Y. Times Draws Blacks' Scorn Over New Florida Paper

There has been a public outcry, and the managing editor was fired only 24 hours before the presses began an inaugural run. Nevertheless, the New York Times has a new presence in Florida with the Gainesville Guardian, a weekly paper targeted to 15,000 local black residents (hat tip: BlackElectorate.com). The paper irks critics who are convinced the Times is simply looking for revenue from blacks. Clint C. Wilson, a journalism professor at Hward University, called it a "white newspaper in blackface," noting in an op-ed for the black-owned Chicago Defender that the Times had "turned to people of color for their economic salvation." The Bay State Banner, a black paper in Boston, called the Times management "journalistic carpetbaggers," adding, "only the black press can be entrusted" to address subjects of importance to black readers.

My people, my people. So what stopped any of the critics from pooling their money and starting up a local paper in this underserved community? Or expanding their existing newspaper empire to this locale? That is where the energy should be placed here. Capitalism, not socialistesque rants.

COMMENTARY: Faith Lost In W's Designs On Science

The moderate-conservative columnist discusses the President George W. Bush's belief that intelligent design theory should be given equal time as evolutionary theory in public schools: "Overweening religious confidence has allowed people to brutalize others throughout human history. On the other hand, the confidence that there is nothing beyond what we currently live has shown in the totalitarian barbarism of Marxist-derived regimes. The problems of both extremes makes it important to stick with our fundamental separation of church and state. The world of religion is safe as long as religious freedom is considered a fundamental right, but the world of politics is always endangered when there are those who are sure that a democracy is not enough; what we need is a theocracy that bends its knee before a particular god and a specific area of belief. We know what that can lead to; we have seen the footage and heard the explosions all over the world because religious hysteria can easily give way to immense brutality. Those given to an 'intelligent design' need to assume that their churches can handle the job. Preachers and holy men are better at their trades than politicians who rarely ever express the poetic power at the center of great religions. Those politicians willing to sell out to the religious right need to take cold showers and calm down."

The U.S. Constitution actually says that Congress shall make no law abridging religion and its free expression. It says nothing about state or local governments. The 10th Amendment (federalism) states that any powers or responsibilities not specifically outlined to the federal government flows to the states and to the people. If we had school vouchers - where parents and not the government controlled school choice - then this controversy would virtually be a moot point, as parents could choose schools for their children that reflected their values. Polls show most black parents - who would not be considered as part of the religious right - agree with President Bush and not with Mr. Crouch here. I personally don't see evolutionary and intelligence design theories as contradictory and I am not religious, but I do support the right of parents to choose schools without white liberals (since that is who is overwhelmingly trying to push religion out of the public arena) undermining black cultural values either.

The Pain Of Unborn Babies

La Shawn Barber, a conservative blogger, slams the new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association that concluded that fetuses are highly unlikely to feel pain during the first six months: "You know you’re living in a horribly degraded culture when people spend years doing research to find out whether unborn babies feel pain so they can feel justified in their pro-child killing stance. The lead author of a report which concluded that fetuses don’t feel pain until the seventh month used to work for a pro-child killing group. Another author works for a child killing clinic.....If the mere possibility that innocent babies are tortured in the womb doesn’t make these women want to hang their heads in shame for advocating murder…but they’ll realize one day soon how depraved they are. It’s too tragic for words."

PETER KIRSANOW OP-ED: Treating Preferential Treatment

Critics of Judge John Roberts’s nomination to the Supreme Court repeatedly contend that he is hostile to civil rights. Numerous media reports warn that Roberts’s opponents are prepared to attack him on this issue, citing his alleged position as one of the principal architects of the Reagan administration’s civil-rights policies. The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights member and conservative Republican disagrees, and argues that Judge Roberts merely opposes identity politics and racial and gender bean counting: "It’s odd that Roberts’s opponents would attack his confirmation on an issue where public sentiment clearly supports the positions in Roberts’s memo. Polls regularly show that a significant majority of Americans, including a plurality of minorities, oppose the use of preferences (the numbers tighten when the more benign term 'affirmative action' is polled). The good news for his opponents is that whatever effect polls may have on Roberts’s chances for confirmation, his judicial approach to preferences won’t be governed by poll. The bad news for Roberts’s opponents is that his approach will be governed by law."

Jefferson Probe Focus Is Nigerian Telecom Deal

You may recall that a few weeks ago, the feds raided the home and offices of Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.). Well, the federal criminal probe focuses in part on a telecommunications deal that the moderate-liberal Democrat tried to engineer in Nigeria over the past year. It was an on-again, off-again proposal to deliver high-speed broadband service to some 200,000 people in the West African nation (hat tip: BlackElectorate.com). An eight-term congressman with a long-standing interest in African trade and development, Rep. Jefferson allegedly played a central role in bringing investors to the table - pocketing hundreds of thousands of dollars from a northern Virginia high-tech startup company, with some of the funds allegedly found in his freezer during the raid - and keeping the deal together when it appeared ready to unravel. He has declined to comment on the investigation, except to say that he is cooperating.

Getting Ridden By A Donkey Or An Elephant

Dell Gines wonders if we are riding the symbolic beasts of burden of the two major political parties to stay on the path of democracy and freedom, or are the beasts - especially the Republican Party's elephant - burdening us? The black moderate-conservative blogger writes: "So this begs the ultimate question as was posed by a commenter on Viricide.net when he asked, 'Do Republicans Believe in Smaller Government, or Different Government?' I argue the latter as opposed to the former. To further evidence my point, we only have to review and article written by Brien Riedl of the Heritage Foundation titled $20,000 per Household: The Highest Level of Federal Spending Since World War II: 'The 2003 fiscal year mercifully concluded on September 30. Reckless spending by Congress and the President made it a year in which: • Government spending exceeded $20,000 per household for the first time since World War II, • The federal budget expanded by $353 billion over its 1998 level, • Defense and the attacks on September 11, 2001, accounted for less than half of all new spending since 2001, • Mandatory spending reached its highest level in history, and • Spending increased despite net interest costs plummeting by $110 billion.' Everyone recognizes that as the population and complexities of America and global politics increase that spending at the federal level by necessity will increase to meet the demands. However the question still remains, is this trend of upward spending (which by necessity means increase in taxation, and the limitation of state government in favor of federal) being resisted by either party? Or have the elephant and the donkey, the beasts of burden, become beastly burdens on the backs of the American tax payers, and those who believe in true conservatism?"

Bush Poll Numbers Now Lowest Of His Presidency

The Moderate Voice blog comments on the latest Harris Interactive poll, which shows that only 40% of U.S. adults have a favorable opinion of his job performance while 58% have a negative opinion: "So should the Demmies dance a jig of joy? No. They and the GOPers got lousy polling results as well. There seem to be enough political black eyes to go around. But one thing is now certain: Bush's poll ratings are trending downwards. He is not picking up new support. There seems to be a steady erosion — and if other polls are correct many of the defections are coming from independent voters who gave him the benefit of the doubt. And the biggest issue, according to the poll? The war. So what can the White House do about this? Launch a new PR campaign? Say those who don't agree on the war don't care about winning the war on terrorism? OOPS! They've already done that. So what might help is the kind of head-of-state talk from the oval office that successful and struggling Presidents have done for years: one that doesn't seek to polarize but lays out a bunch of facts (as perceived by the administration) in an overkill of information. But done in a way so the White House can't be accused of just asking for air time to make a political speech and not containing any passages that seek to divide the country."

France Facing "Period Of Social Unrest"

Notes Ripclawe, based on various media reports about its bad economic state, low public confidence in its government, and a string of unpopular reforms and worker protests up ahead. The black conservative Republican blogger writes: "France has a social system that cannot survive in today's world. There is nothing built to make it adaptable to changing economic/social factors. The population refuses to change and the government does not have the ability or confidence in itself to make the necessary changes. The only way this is going to end is the system collapses and out of that wreckage something better is built."

And a laziness ethic just doesn't cut it in today's globalized era either.

LARRY ELDER COMMENTARY: Michael & Me -- The Movie

Michael Moore challenged America's gun culture in "Bowling For Columbine", and argued that America has too many guns. The libertarian Republican commentator has a self-financed film, "Michael & Me", where he tried-for a year-and-a-half to interview him. Mr. Elder wanted to ask him a question: "You tell us how many gun deaths there are in America, but how many Americans are alive because they were able to use a gun for self-defense?" He writes: "Michael Moore argues that America possesses 'too many guns.' If so, why in the last 20 years -- with gun ownership up -- has violent crime declined in America? Liberals believe gun control reduces crime. Does it? What about the effect on urban crime when cities outlaw so-called 'cheap Saturday night specials'?.....'Michael & Me' asks why, if America possesses 'too many guns,' is the murder rate among Japanese Americans actually lower than in Japan? And why, in England, with severe gun restriction, is the English murder rate growing, and the violent crime rate -- assaults, car thefts, hot burglaries -- now exceeding ours?"

"Bowling for Columbine" oh-so- conveniently ignored the massive gun violence in black American communities - which is where gun ownership among law-abiding citizens also happens to be the lowest. Thus, the law-abiding majority is too often victimized by thugs in too many black communities. I guess black crime victims weren't important enough in Michael Moore's white liberal vision.

Dissecting Desperation

The Def Conservative slams a BlackAmericaWeb.com column, which commented on a Boston Globe article showing a growing number of younger blacks are joining the Republican Party and highlighted how Adam Hunter grew the College Republicans chapter at Howard University. The black Republican blogger writes: "None of these people were screaming about the much needed 'independent' thinking when 90% of blacks were voting for Democrats. Now, one lone college student breaks ties with the Dems and we have to hear a lecture from Tonya[a] Weathersbee on the dangers of partisan politics. FYI, Weathersbee (who looks exactly how her name sounds) has columns that can be found on Black America Web. Here are a few titles to chew on: 'Bush’s Handpicked Blacks Shouldn’t Have Bit at His Social Security Bait', 'Bush’s Slashing of HUD Budget Spells Trouble for Our Cities', and 'It’s Suicidal to be Black and GOP in Bush Era' are just some of her pieces. Wow, a black liberal who doesn’t like Bush. She's practically oozing with independent thought! Weathersbee and her conventional columns validate my position that black Dems hate diverse thought almost as much as they hate having to get a valid I.D."

Ouch! Although commenting on her looks unnecessarily went over the line.

Lemme Ask This Question....

Asks Expertise, about Pat Robertson's comments (for which he has now apologized) calling for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The black conservative blogger writes: "Instead of being the founder of the Christian Coalition, let's say Pat Robertson was a cleric at an Islamic mosque in London. Would his statements have garnered as much press? The answer is no. Why? 1. Robertson wouldn't be considered a Republican supporter, which is what this is really all about. 2. This wouldn't be news. Islamic clerics and terrorists issue fatwas as if they are going out of style. Now was Robertson wrong for making those statements? Yes. But it isn't like he is the first religious figure to ever call for the death of someone. Anyone remember Salman Rushdie? Yes, the right has its nuts as well as the left. The difference is, we don't make ours the RNC Chairman."

Quote Of The Day

“Another important thing we must focus on is branding and packaging. How come that even for people who cannot tell where Africa is, the continent instantly provokes images of conflict, disease, corruption and all such things. The answer is simple. We have left the story of Africa to be told by other people. It is therefore important that we must learn to tell our own story. We must celebrate our own achievements, no matter how modest. Foreign investors have very little information about markets in Africa and they tend to act together and respond to market sentiments rather than macro-economic analysis. Therefore, we have to package market opportunities in Africa and sell it to the world.” — Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, Governor of Kwara State (Nigeria)

Watts Won't Run For Oklahoma Governor

Former Congressman J.C. Watts said that he will not run for governor in Oklahoma next year. ''I have determined that the timing for such an adventure is not right at this point in our lives,'' the conservative Republican said in a statement. He said he spent more than two months talking to voters across the state before reaching his decision. Mr. Watts is the second Republican to decide against making the race; Lt. Gov. Mary Fallin has announced she will run for re-election instead of running for governor. Their moves leave the GOP without a proven vote-getter with wide name recognition to challenge Gov. Brad Henry, the popular Democratic incumbent. Mr. Watts recently bought a home in the Washington, D.C., area, where he started a lobbying and consulting business after leaving Congress. A former star football player at the University of Oklahoma, Mr. Watts was elected to the U.S. House in 1994. He was the fourth-ranking Republican and the only black Republican in the House before announcing in 2002 he would not see re-election.

DR. ADA M. FISHER COMMENTARY: Clash Of Brown Vs. Black

Emailed to us by the conservative Republican physician, of North Carolina:

Approximately 43 million Hispanics or Latinos or 14% of the US population have overtaken African-Americans as the largest minority in the USA. Any attempt to rationally discuss this change results in folks being labeled racist when most simply want to preserve what they perceive as America's democratic government and a way of life with English as the national language.

Of the population growth, the largest percentage of babies being born are to the Hispanic population with projections of 46% of the US population growth over the next 20 years within this group. 58% of the Hispanic population now hails from Mexico. A July 2005 Pew Center survey in Mexico revealed that 40% of Mexicans regardless of income wanted to migrate to America and would be willing to do so illegally if necessary. That could mean upwards of 70 million people waiting for a chance to get in.

Legal immigration should always be respected and honored. It is the illegal immigration which must be stopped and dealt with. The more than 8 million illegal residents in this country are a reason for concern as it relates to National Security including public health concerns, Economic Security and Social Stability. The Clinton Administrations Presidential Executive Order 13166 provided a language accommodation for those not speaking English which has extended beyond education to driver's licenses, North Carolina state hiring preferences, and don't look and don't report companies employing large numbers of illegal residents. Bush Administration's guest worker proposals are a hidden form of amnesty which if allowed to pass Congressional muster with the help of businesses profiting from illegal labor at below minimum wage costs, will result in Spanish being the national language whether inadvertent or overt.

It is not correct to say undocumented workers do jobs, which Americans won't do. If these jobs were required to pay minimum wages there are thousands of out of work people who would be glad to fill them. It should not be lost on the American public that the number of unskilled Americans out of work approximates the number of illegal residents in this country. Exploiting illegal residents ultimately depresses wages for everyone. We must look for reasonable business alternatives to meet their needs without compromising legal residents' opportunities e.g. non-violent criminals.

The birthrate dynamics now shows the Hispanic population as the fastest growing identifiable population segment. Those here illegally who have a baby on this soil will produce citizens who cannot be deported. Rather than change the constitution to stop this let's enforce the laws and make legal immigration the only acceptable port of entry.

No citizen should have to learn Spanish to get a job and no preference should be given for such. At Ellis Island not only were the tired, the hungry and huddled masses yearning to be free welcomed, but they had to have a sponsor, a job and speak English. Those criteria should not be changed. In Mexico, Spain, France or Italy the government does not force accommodations to English or any other language in helping you survive. We must quit giving our country away.

As a black woman, I will never support any provision to relax borders with Mexico when we keep turning Haitians away and sending them back to situations we know are equally bad if not worst. I support the resettlement of the Bantus who have been given legal citizenship for up to 175,000 but note they are having difficulty finding a place to call home. I'm not racist but do have my biases, for as a granddaughter of a free African boy who was made a slave on reaching these shores and granddaughter of his Seminole Indian wife, I am mad that my peoples were stripped of our cultures and languages to improve this nation and now see others advance with minimum standards set for their citizenship as they become our new underclass.

A prescription for immigration reform must be discussed. Considerations must resist any attempt to grant amnesty or citizenship to those who are here illegally; require random inspections in industries known for hiring illegal workers with severe penalties and fines as well as deportation of illegal immigrant workers; issuance of tamper-proof photo visas for all non-citizen immigrants entering for education, business or visits; monies now sent to Mexico from the Totalization Agreement (compensation in social security payments from illegal immigrant workers) considered for disbursement to those states whose social services cost increase due to illegal immigration; stimulate the economy of Mexico with oil drilling subsidized by U.S. oil interests to increase jobs there, stimulate revenue for their country, and generate a new resource for the world; and support a national standard for driver's licenses with criteria being only a valid social security card and birth certificate, as well as voter identification card to ensure that only citizens and residents of a state could vote.

Do Fetuses Feel Pain?

According to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, fetuses are highly unlikely to feel pain during the first six months of gestation. It is a finding that contradicts several pieces of proposed legislation. AmbivaBlog, a moderate website, comments: "I find incredible the statement, 'The Congress of the United States has determined' that a fetus feels pain. If ever there were a body less qualified to 'determine' such a thing! With this proclamation solemnly read to her, even a woman contemplating the anguish of a late-term abortion might burst out laughing. On the other hand, scientists, with their preference for the material, observable, and measurable, have long been skeptical of the 'subjective' dimension in any creature -- infant or animal -- that cannot report on its own experience.....So can you confidently believe either side of this debate? Or are you just going to believe whichever side you'd rather? I think we have to face the fact that we really don't know and can scarcely imagine what a fetus feels, even though each of us was one. When they smile in the womb -- and we now know they do -- is that just a reflex, or do they already experience, at some level, the humming cellular pleasure of being alive? I am willing to say I don't know. I think the debate over abortion has to be based on other grounds. Maybe it's an example of 'the wisdom of crowds' that the majority of Americans instinctively find abortion more abhorrent the later it is performed, unless it is necessary to save the mother's life."

WALTER WILLIAMS COMMENTARY: Security Or Hysteria?

The libertarian commentator asks: what has happened to the character of the American people? "During the 1940s, my cousin and I, carrying our shoeshine boxes, simply walked in and stood before the room where the Declaration of Independence was adopted and the U.S. Constitution was signed. The only barrier was a velvet-covered rope. Much of today's security measures are little more than a panicked response to terrorism and not likely to ever go away because Americans are coming to accept it as normal.....During last week's commemoration of V-J day, I thought about American responses to loss of life in Iraq compared to yesteryear's American response to loss of life in the Pacific. Taking Iwo Jima cost 7,000 American lives and thousands wounded. Okinawa cost the lives of 5,000 sailors, 7,600 soldiers and thousands more wounded. There were no calls to cut and run and no political attacks on Presidents Roosevelt and Truman. Instead, those losses stiffened the backbone and resolve of the American people. But of course, back then, common sense prevailed. We hadn't become feminized and turned into a nation of wimps and nervous Nellies. I'd like to see our political leaders adopt the character of their predecessors and say that we're not going to sacrifice liberties and cower in the face of our new enemy; we're going to kill him."

“We Have No Starving People In Niger”

That is what President Mamadou Tandja (pictured), a retired army colonel, has said about famine in his country. He recently attacked local aid agencies, accusing them of exaggerating the famine threat. The president said that the United Nations aid agencies were exaggerating the scale of the problems in order to get donor funds. He also accused opposition parties of trying to gain political mileage out of the problems. He said: “We have no people starving to death, no villages deserted by their inhabitants, no trucks carrying displaced people, no refugee camps...” Aid agencies disagree, and say that they are still trying to feed Niger’s 150,000 malnourished children in areas such as Maradi,Tahoua and Zinder. The president has since tried to clarify his comments, saying he was merely pointing out that there was no famine, which would mean thousands of people starving to death. Local commentators believe that the president’s comments may be due to his memories of 1974, the year in which he first came to prominence. e played a large part in the coup ousting President Hamani Diori that took place at the time. One of the main reasons for the coup was the government’s failure to deal with the severe food shortages of 1973-74. Since his re-election last year, Mamadou's government has been hit by a wave of protests organised by civil society and the opposition parties.

Dennis Sanders on Federalism In Action

The black moderate Republican blogger writes: "The New York Times reports that nine Northeastern States have come to an agreement to cap powerplant emissions and then reduce them 10 percent by 2020. This action come in the wake of the White House refusing to regulate greenhouse gases that lead to global warming. Leading this charge is the Republican governor and 2008 GOP hopeful, George Pataki of New York. As I said in a previous post, it seems that we will have to rely on the states to come up with substa[n]tial change on issues like oil dependency. With the White House still dou[b]ting that global warming even exists, it is up to local Republicans to come up with solutions to deal with this potential threat. Kudos to Pataki for taking leadership in an area where Republicans in Washington fear to tread."

Yes...You Are Fat!

Dell Gines comments on how a New Hampshire doctor is under review by the state board for telling a patient that she was too fat and needed to lose weight. The black moderate-conservative blogger writes:"I agree with the Doc. We need to stop coddling individuals who do things that are destructive to their behavior. This doesn’t mean we go out of our way to offend them, make them feel bad or disrespect them. But direct confrontation by as the [B]ible says, 'Speaking the Truth in Love' is necessary so many times.....As opposed to simply saying, 'I don’t want you for a Doctor anymore', this lady who was offended by a Doctor telling her the truth, what would occur if she didn’t change her lifestyle, and giving her suggestions on how to make that change, thought it would be better to salve her personal discomfort by lodging a complaint. Of course, that is the best solution, 'I am fat, you told me I am fat and I want revenge'. How about losing some weight, improving you[r] quality of life and health by actually listening to what the Doctor said? The [B]ible says our body is a temple."

THOMAS SOWELL COMMENTARY: An Oil 'Crisis'? Part II

The conservative Republican economist argues that soaring oil prices have revived what he calls the old bogeyman that the world is running out of oil: "No matter how many centuries' supply of oil there is on the planet, the high cost of oil exploration ensures that only the most minute fraction of that oil will be known at any given time. Thus there have long been recurring false predictions that we were running out of petroleum, as well as other natural resources. The high cost of extracting and processing oil ensures that not even half of the oil in a known pool of oil will be brought to the surface and sent off to the refineries. A generation ago, only about a quarter of the oil in a pool was likely to be brought to the surface. That is because the cost of extracting and processing oil from a given pool tends to increase as you drain from deeper into that pool. Even at $60 a barrel, most of the oil that is known to exist is too costly to extract. How much will be extracted depends on how much higher the price of oil goes -- and how much new technology can recover more oil at lower costs. What if the government did nothing about oil prices? Rising prices would lead people to reduce their use of oil and lead producers to drain some of the more costly oil out of the ground. Many people in politics and in the media seem to be alarmed about the rising cost of gasoline and of the petroleum from which it is made. But they only seem to be. What they are really alarmed about are the prices -- and prices and costs are very different things. Prices are what pay for costs. The government can impose price controls on gasoline or petroleum tomorrow but that will not have the slightest effect on the cost of oil exploration or the cost of extracting and processing the oil that is found. When the costs are no longer being fully covered by prices, production is likely to be cut back, whether it is the production of oil or anything else. This is not speculation. This is what has been happening for literally thousands of years, going back to price controls in ancient Rome and Babylon. Yet price controls have always been popular politically, despite being counterproductive economically. After all, how many votes do economists have and how many voters know economics?"

OP-ED: Al Qaeda Coming Through!

The National Review editor and conservative Republican argues that America has a special interest in who is illegally entering our country.

700 Chump

Asserts Robert George, about conservative evangelist Pat Robertson's call to assassinate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The black moderate-conservative Republican blogger writes: "They are damaging because, they play perfectly into Chavez's hand. Now, I am most decidedly not a fan of the man. He's a thug and Castro wannabe. However, when you speak to members of the nascent, struggling, opposition, they will tell you that Chavez's favorite trick to prop up his support is by playing on the paranoid fear that America is planning an invasion. To the extent that Robertson is still perceived as a 'player' in U.S. politics, these headlines are a gift to Chavez's PR plans. Not surprisingly, on Tuesday, Venezuela used the opportunity to place Chavez in the role of potential victim: 'We are concerned about the safety of the president,' said Venezuela's ambassador to the U.S. Ironically, while Robertson succeeded in bringing some domestic news attention to Venezuela, considering the weak nature of Chavez's political opposition, ultimately in providing 'aid and comfort' to the regime he identifies as a 'terrific danger' to America."

Quote Of The Day

“I am not a proponent of monetary reparations for slavery for many reasons. African-Americans make up 13 percent of the total U.S. population. At least 5 percent of African-Americans and significant percentages of affirmative action beneficiaries are the offspring of more recent immigrants and are not direct descendants of American slaves. Financial reparations for slavery would create an administrative nightmare for the government, it would be extremely divisive and counterproductive to promoting racial reconciliation, and most importantly it would not solve the most pressing problems affecting black communities. It is critical, therefore, that we distinguish the appeal for a national apology from the vociferous demands for slave reparations heard in recent years.” - Carol M. Swain, Vanderbilt University law professor and moderate, who supports a national apology for slavery

The 36-Year-Old Virgin

Ambra Nykol, a black conservative blogger, writes: "I probably heard Lakita [Garth, pictured] speak in person around four times throughout my teenage years. Every time she opened her mouth, her message was consistent. I know there were many factors included in my making a decision to remain a virgin prior to marriage, but without a doubt, I can truly say that Lakita's presence in my life gave me the confidence and the vision to make wise decisions for the future. As an adult, I watched the former Miss Black California travel around the country speaking, testifying before congress, and regularly appearing on 'Politically Incorrect' with Bill what-his-face. She always held her own amid a guest-line up vicious enough to make even a Bible-believing Christian cuss. And they do. I know some. This all probably seems so insignificant to many, but the question I always ask people is, 'What does a virgin look like?' If forced to concoct an image of purity, chances are you see 'A young, white, girl.' Rarely do we envision a guy, and even more rarely do we envision a person of color. Strange the way that works isn't it? Talk about rage against the machine.....So why all the nostalgia? Well, eleven days ago, at age 36, Ms. Garth's abstinence card was revoked in a major way. She was united in holy matrimony to Mr. Jeff Wright and I'm sure it was well worth the wait. I'm not a big fan of patting people on the back for virginity or abstinence. It doesn't warrant applause or special recognition. But I am a big fan of celebrating the right way to do things so Lakita, get your freak on. And I mean that in the purest of ways."

Is There A Middle Ground On Abortion?

Asks In Search Of Purple, a moderate-conservative blog, about the highly controversial issue: "Thinking about abortion in a different light may provide a paradigm for the center. If we liken abortion to war, and the death of the unborn to the death of innocent civilians we are able to reach a middle ground. Sometimes it is necessary to end innocent lives for the greater good. (If you disagree with this premise, I would expect you to be adamantly against WWII where civilian deaths outnumbered military ones by nearly 4 to 1). Therefore if abortion is seen as tragic but necessary both sides can work together to eliminate it necessity rather than each side working for/against its legality. This is the key to the middle ground. In today's Washington Post oped entitled Seeing Past the Abortion Rhetoric Paul Chesser explains why he believes the pro-life lobby should spend more of its money on eliminating the need for abortions rather than the law and the balance of the courts.....I find oneself once again agreeing with the new Hillary (not the old one) when she as recently as January called abortion a 'sad, even tragic choice.' Instead of squabbling over NARAL ads and memos on Roberts from more than a decade ago, our politicians should work to eliminate the need rather than the law."

LA SHAWN BARBER COMMENTARY: Iraq's Draft Constitution

The conservative blogger asks: American men and women died for freedom in Iraq so the country could be ruled under Islamic law? She wonders what is free about it: "Iraq, according to items 1a and 1b of the draft constitution, will be a democracy, which means government 'by the people,' but at the same time, subject to Islamic law. What kind of democracy is that? And one type of law can’t contradict the other. Aren’t Islam and democracy inherently contradictory? What kind of shell game are these people playing? The constitution, according to the text, guarantees 'Islamic identity' of the people and all religious rights. What the heck does that mean? You are free to be a Muslim, and nothing else? What if you don’t want to be a Muslim? Then I guess you’d better hightail it out of 'free' Iraq. And then it reads 'all persons are free within their ideology…' So the Buddhist will have 'religious freedom' in Iraq as long as he understands that he is living under Sharia? Good grief."

Christians Behaving Badly Watch

Dennis Sanders ain't feelin' conservative evangelist Pat Robertson's recent comments, calling for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The black moderate Republican blogger writes: "Now, I'm not a fan of Hugo Chavez. I think he is a demogogue that dresses up in democratic clothing. But the Venezuelan people did vote for him and that has to stand. Chavez already thinks we are looking to bump him off, we don't need some nutjob like Robertson trying to play to Chavez's assas[s]ination fantasies."

update: check out my post over at Dean's World, a moderate-conservative blog, about how Pat Robertson has no moral standing here given his highly problematic links to the former Charles Taylor regime in Liberia.

ERIK RUSH COMMENTARY: The Case For Annexing Mexico

The conservative Republican commentator writes: "The new government could be structured similarly to that of Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. A few more prisons would have to be built – likely most of the new convicts would be police and politicians, since we could not afford to tolerate the kind of corruption currently endemic in Mexico to continue.....The government of Mexico is doing it wrong – their policies are oppressing their people, stultifying their social and economic growth and negatively impacting the United States. Just last week, the governors of New Mexico and Arizona declared states of emergency, releasing more than $2 million to help their states cope with the flood of illegals, and the financial burden on the state of California inches it closer to insolvency every month. As far as sovereignty or national identity goes, these have already been proven to be a joke, given the number of Mexicans coming here and those who wish to. Instead of letting their system drag us down, why not use ours to pull them up? A business acquaintance of mine is already working on a Habitat for Humanity-style endeavor to implement in Mexico – I am sure that there are thousands of brilliant men and women in business who, properly motivated and judiciously monitored, could turn the Mexican economy and educational system around in fairly short order. Imagine what 20 years of social and economic development – unconstrained by Third World corruption and institutional criminality – could accomplish! Then, we could move on to Haiti, which is essentially an African nation in the Caribbean, plagued by a level of corruption, poverty and squalor that is shameful given its proximity to our shores. I think we owe even more to Haiti than Mexico, given our government's abysmal historical conduct there."

How does this reconcile with a self-help philosophy?

Ayaan Hirsi Ali: "Let's Talk About How To Close The Identity Gap"

The Dutch moderate-conservative parliamentarian asserts that the relationship between Islam and European Union's socially liberal culture have not been adequately addressed by elites - who fear both Islamic and nativist backlashes. She argues that ignoring the issue leaves a dangerous identity vacuum that encourages fundamentalist intolerance of all stripes: "First, Islamic education is a source of worry to some. At least some Islamic schools, especially those that operate in close cooperation with nearby mosques, are potential breeding grounds for a large cohort of orthodox anti-Western students. The ghettoization and Islamification of certain urban areas is also perceived as a disturbing problem. In cities, villages or provinces where Islam is dominant, it may mean that bits and pieces of the Shariah are introduced in practice even though no formal legislation in this direction is taking place. Large sectors of society are deeply uncomfortable with the gradual emergence of these types of states within the state, where rules and values other than those of tolerant and democratic liberalism dictate social conduct. Throughout Western Europe, xenophobia forms another basis for the fear of Islam. Although members of traditionally xenophobic groups have often had little contact with Islam, Muslims or immigrants of any kind, they have strongly negative attitudes toward any group with diverging cultural backgrounds or ethnic origins. The abject ideas of these groups have a paralyzing effect on the discussion of immigration and Islam because established politicians and opinion-makers fear that even slightly touching on the negative elements of immigration and Islam means playing into the hands of the extreme right. But it is clear that not addressing these issues is not only shortsighted but also counterproductive.....Democracy requires candid debate, even about sensitive issues. Failure to address European identity and Islam can undermine confidence in the responsiveness of government and perpetuate dangerous democratic and identity deficits that, if unchecked, will weaken the EU at an essential moment in its history."

Innocent In Iran?

Asks OxBlog, a moderate website, about how traces of bomb-grade uranium found two years ago in Iran came from contaminated Pakistani equipment: "The question, then, would seem to be the same one as we now ask about Iraq: Why would a government with nothing to hide constantly lie to international inspectors?In the case of Iran, why would its government buy black market nuclear equipment from Pakistan if its intentions are peaceful? Is it simply nationalist pride that prevents cooperation with UN inspectors? Or did the Iranians, like the Iraqis, want to preserve the option to develop illlegal weapons should doing so become desirable?"

THOMAS SOWELL COMMENTARY: An Oil 'Crisis'?

The conservative Republican writes: "Why, then, are oil prices so high? There is no esoteric reason. It is plain old supply and demand. With the economies of huge nations like China and India developing more rapidly, now that they have freed their markets from many stifling government controls, more oil is being demanded in the world market and there are few new sources of supply. What should our government do? We will be lucky if they do nothing. But, with Congressional elections coming up next year, that is very unlikely. Candidates for Congress next year, and politicians hoping to run for President in 2008, are virtually guaranteed to come up with all sorts of 'solutions.' These 'solutions' will be packaged as brilliant new ideas, courageous and far-seeing. But most will be retreads of old ideas that remain untested or which have been tested in the past and found wanting. Price controls, arbitrary new higher gas mileage standards for cars, 'alternative energy sources,' and other nostrums are sure to surface once again. The last time we had price controls on gasoline, we had long lines of cars at filling stations, these lines sometimes stretching around the block, with motorists sitting in those lines for hours.....Today production is being held back, not by price controls, but by political hysteria whenever anyone suggests actually producing more oil ourselves. Organized nature cults go ballistic at the thought that we might drill for oil in some remote part of Alaska that 99 percent of Americans will never see, including 99 percent of the nature cultists."

While I agree with his call for more refineries and hydroelectric dams, Mr. Sowell is mostly wrong here. Drilling in the Alaska Wildlife Refuge is no guarantee that the small amount of oil there will even stay in America. While I oppose price controls, increasing gas mileage for vehicles, exploring alternative energy, and conservation efforts will help wean us off foreign reliance on oil.

MYCHAL MASSIE OP-ED: Complaining Isn't Enough

The fourth anniversary of September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks are upon us. The conservative Republican commentator argues that for all of the memorializing, concerts, candlelight vigils, special services and, loss of life, America has learned nothing from this horror: "The American people owe it to those murdered to demand the networks show the actual footage of the planes being flown into the towers, the towers falling, the people jumping from windows, people fleeing, and the brave men and women rushing to save lives – fully cognizant that, in the process, they would probably lose theirs. We have a right to see this time and again. It is unconscionable that the people would allow networks to so blatantly whitewash history. The American people and the survivors of those lost have a right to be angry. How dare the manipulators of fact and embellishers of lies be given carte blanche to undermine history? The duplicitous double standard they practice is transpicuous. They seek to have America remember 9-11 within the framework they define, insisting we not be angry while finding it legitimate for crazed zealots to carry on centuries-old blood feuds. Not to mention their blaming America for the lives lost. America has a right to declare an end to the usurpation of our judicial system by those who believe in global jurisprudence and who would give aid and comfort to those responsible for the deaths of thousands. America has a right to demand dismissal of those teachers who value condoms more than the factual memory of our loved ones. Most importantly, America has one person, one vote – it is up to us to put an end to taxpayer-funded terrorist sympathizers. The elected are elected and paid at our pleasure. It is up to us to make our will known by withholding money, support and votes from those who show more concern for the food and bathrooms at Guantanamo Bay than they do for the unborn. Save the people of America rise up to reclaim her, those who perished on 9-11 will have suffered death at the hands of pagans in vain."

COMMENTARY: They CAIR, Or Else

The conservative Republican commentator slams the Council on American-Islamic Relations for getting Michael Graham, a radio host, fired for stating that Islam has become a terrorist organization: "Whatever happened to boycotts if what Mr. Graham said was so bad? Whatever happened to 'Let the market decide?' But now, certain groups who spend a lot of time criticizing us and our perceptions based on deeds are having to succumb to demands of those who only until recently would condemn those who commit and preach terror."

Bob Parks continues his commentary: "CAIR has embarked on what some of us might deem a kind of P.R. campaign to soften the rhetoric that emanates today from some Islamic fanatics. After all, those who committed the bombings just recently in London weren't those peace-loving and moderate Muslims CAIR insists are out there. We just don't hear much from them."

PETER KIRSANOW COMMENTARY: Extreme?

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights member and conservative Republican argues that if Judge John Roberts is anti-civil rights, very many judges are: "Roberts’s opponents should be stunned, then, to learn that the Court agreed with Roberts’s 'extremist' civil rights positions 70 percent of the time [when he argued cases before it]. The immediate reaction of some Roberts opponents might be to contend that this high percentage is inflated by the presence and influence of conservatives (read 'fellow extremists') on the Court such as Scalia and Thomas. But of the 13 justices before whom Roberts has argued 11 have agreed with his advocacy interest more than 50 percent of the time. To be sure, of the current Supreme Court justices, those that agreed most often with Roberts’s advocacy interests were Rehnquist (74 percent of the time) Scalia (70 percent) Kennedy (70 percent) and Thomas (69 percent). Yet even liberals such as Ginsburg (60 percent) Stevens (57 percent) and Souter (57 percent) agreed with Roberts more than 50 percent of the time. (Note that not all of Roberts’s arguments in a given case were precisely adopted within the rationales of respective justice’s opinions. Nonetheless, the justices at the very least concurred with his general advocacy interest in the foregoing percentages.)"

He continues: "Organizations such as the NAACP, which last week declared that recently revealed documents indicate Roberts has 'a longstanding hostility towards core NAACP civil rights priorities,' clearly must not be aware of the foregoing. Nor must they be aware of one additional fact: Thurgood Marshall, former chief counsel for the NAACP, lion of civil rights litigation and hero of Brown v. Board of Education, Sweatt v. Painter and Murray v. Pearson agreed with Roberts’s advocacy position 67 percent of the time — nearly the same as Scalia and Thomas and more than O’Connor, the justice who upon her retirement was praised as “moderate” by many of those now opposing Roberts. Unless Roberts’s opponents are prepared to call Thurgood Marshall a civil-rights extremist they need to acknowledge that Roberts’s advocacy positions, as well as his judicial decisions are squarely within the mainstream."

Quote Of The Day

“I love my president. I love him personally. But he’s just wrong – wrong for not being willing to admit that we’ve made some mistakes....It was right to take him [Saddam Hussein] down but wrong to think that we can’t right this course.” - Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. (D-Tenn.), moderate-liberal Democrat, on the war in Iraq

MLK Memorial Fundraising Picks Up Steam

Backers of a permanent National Mall memorial to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. said they are more than a third of the way toward their $100 million fundraising goal. "He is the foundation and the moral compass for our youth," Sheila Johnson, owner of the WNBA's Washington Mystics, said in announcing plans to give $1 million on behalf of her children. Ms. Johnson was among several Martin Luther King Memorial Foundation leaders gathered at the Tidal Basin to launch the Kids for King campaign, an essay contest. Twelve winners will attend the September 2006 groundbreaking ceremony on a four-acre site not far from the Lincoln Memorial, where Rev. King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech on Aug. 28, 1963. With $39.5 million committed, officials hope to raise another $27 million by the groundbreaking. They hope to have $100 million when the memorial opens in 2008. Since Congress authorized the project in 1996, most fundraising has focused on corporations. Emphasis is now being placed on individual donations. Click here for more information.

Hearts And Minds

Scott Wickham discusses the Pew Global Attitudes Project's recent survey of opinion in six Muslim countries, which show that progress is being made in achieving that goal of democratization and lesser support for terrorism. The black moderate-conservative blogger writes: "This is not to say that everybody in these countries has good things to say about the United States. But we are not engaged in a popularity contest. We're trying to construct a safer world. We are in the long run better off if Muslims around the world turn away from terrorism and move toward democracy, even if we don't like some of the internal policies they choose and even if they don't have much affection for the United States.Two generations ago, Americans, at the cost of hundreds of thousands of deaths, changed minds in Germany and Japan. The Pew Global Project Attitude's metrics give us reason to believe that today's Americans, at far lower cost, are changing minds in the Muslim world."

Blacks Make Large Gains In Business Ownership

New Census Bureau data show that black Americans started about 375,000 businesses from 1997 to 2002. That was surprising growth, given that blacks trailed Asians and Latinos five years before, the last time the Census tracked the numbers. The 45% jump in black-owned firms, to 1.2 million, was the highest growth rate among the largest minority groups. Virtually all that growth among black-owned companies was in mom-and-pop firms, often started at home. Annual revenue averaged $21,000. Few had paid employees. Reasons cited for the jump include: job losses, which forced some laid-off workers to start companies; lower start-up costs; and lenders targeted more niche markets.

Gregory Kane: "Rapper's New Book Is A Fond Embrace Of Crime, Ignorance"

The conservative Republican columnist is mad about the autobiography of Curtis James Jackson III, better known as 50 Cent or Fiddy: "Fiddy was a drug dealer before he got lucky and hit it big in the rap game. Here's his assessment of street-level drug dealers, which we must assume included him when he was slinging. 'He's trying to get rich,' Fiddy says of the drug dealer. 'Just like that guy punching a clock, that old man driving a cab, the kid going to college to get his degree, the girl waiting tables at the restaurant.' Excuse me? Drug dealers are the same as law-abiding, hardworking citizens or college students studying eight to 10 hours a day to get a degree? According to Fiddy, there's no difference."

The money quote: "This, then, is the consequence of what Fiddy said at one time was his 'business' - dead bodies of children caught in the crossfire of drug gangs. Add to that senior citizens who feel like prisoners in their own homes because of drug dealers and a reign of terror against poor urban blacks surpassed only by the Ku Klux Klan and you get some sense of the scope of those consequences. Does Fiddy, on any page of his autobiography, admit to culpability in those deaths or that reign of terror? Do dead dogs play fetch? Fiddy instead talks about the cars he bought with his drug money, about how they gave him a certain status in the 'hood. He talks about the sneakers he bought, and about how he would only attend school to show off his new clothes. But confess to the misery he and other street-level drug dealing 'businessmen' brought to poor communities across the nation? Heaven forfend."

Proposal One: A Balanced Budget Amendment

The Yellow Line, a moderate blog, strongly supports such a measure: "A balanced budget amendment was actually part of The Contract With America but never got through the Senate. Of course, nowadays, even Republicans have little use for fiscal responsibility. And that’s why this can be such an important issue for Centrists. If Centrists aren’t going to stand up and oppose the excesses and fiscal irresponsibility of the federal government, who will? You don’t have to be an economist to understand the severely negative consequences that will come from running up our national debt and yearly deficits. There’s only so long that we can carry such a heavy debt load before our economy suffers. I’ve always felt that Centrists can generally be defined by their support of responsible action (on a personal and governmental level). And surely fiscal responsibility should be the cornerstone of any Centrist economic plan."

Agreed, and Booker Rising supports a balanced budget amendment.

More Young Blacks Ready To Embrace GOP

Adam Hunter, 22 (pictured) is a first-year law student at Howard University, a historically black campus with a long record of liberal activism. He has political ambitions of his own — but not with the Democrats. As an undergraduate, he resurrected and headed the university's chapter of College Republicans. Mr. Hunter is one of a growing number of young black Americans leaving the party of their parents and grandparents in favor of the GOP — or choosing not to have a political affiliation at all. A July Gallup Poll of minorities' political opinions indicated that black voters overwhelmingly favor the Democratic Party, and the percentage of black Americans who consider themselves Republicans lingers at about 9 percent. However, the poll shows that among those blacks who vote for the Republican Party, most are under age 50 — a generational shift that could be an opportunity for Republicans and a headache for Democrats. Jeffrey M. Jones, who conducted the Gallup Poll, said it is too early to tell whether a slight increase among younger blacks represents a long-term trend. But if those numbers rise another 5 or 10 percent next year, he said, people should take note.

Billing themselves as ''the party of Lincoln," Republicans have launched a high-profile campaign to chip away at a reliable voting block for Democrats. While older black voters still have strong attachments to Democrats, political specialists say younger blacks are less likely to be bound by tradition: They grew up in an integrated society, they don't have personal memories of the civil rights movement. They are more focused on entrepreneurship and opportunity, two of the Republican Party's selling points. ''I think there's an extreme danger" of losing black votes to the GOP, said Lamell McMorris, a 32-year-old black political consultant who heads Perennial Strategies. He said that Democrats are still relying on their civil rights record and are not pitching new ideas to young, professional blacks seeking to build businesses and personal wealth.

LA SHAWN BARBER OP-ED: WMAL Fires Michael Graham

For arguing that Islam was akin to a terrorist organization, and refusing the Council on American-Islamic Relations' demand to ABC Radio that he retract the statements in a management-mandated, on-air apology. The conservative blogger writes: "I support Michael Graham but disagree with the implication that his First Amendment rights were violated. The amendment protects citizens from government suppression of speech. It’s a 'debate' I’ve had with people who actually thought they had a right to comment on this blog. Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? Most got it, but some were too dimwitted to grasp the concept. ABC Radio is a private entity and within its rights to fire Graham for 'cause,' however it’s stipulated in the employment contract. I do think ABC’s actions are un-American and cowardly. To capitulate to this group, especially an Islamic organization in the middle of a war with Islamofascists, is detestable. Imagine it’s 1941 or thereabouts, and a CAIR-like group of Americans of German descent dared to control 'anti-German' speech like this."

JOSEPH C. PHILLIPS OP-ED: The Healing Power Of Theatre

The conservative Republican actor discusses how residents in one town are using theatre to remember its lynching past: "It is good for Americans to recall that we have not always lived up to the promise of this great land. There is darkness in our past that many are tempted to forget. 'Why dredge up that old stuff?' they are wont to ask. The answer is that shedding light on it reminds us not only of how far we have come but also of how badly we do not want to return to the dark, ugliness of the past. In front of about 200 onlookers, a group of residents of Monroe, Georgia recently provided a bit of that light by re-enacting the 1946 Moore's Ford Lynching.....Encouraged by the recent prosecutions of racists responsible for the murders of Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner and the bombing of the 14th Street Baptist Church, the citizens of Monroe are hoping justice will at long last find its way to Walton County. The odds are long. Many of the suspects are dead and for those still alive, silence remains the command. All we have left is theatre to give voice to the victims and remind us of the past. This re-enactment is perhaps a ritualized display of healing -- a community crying out for justice, for a redeeming of the humanity that was lost on that fateful night so many years ago."

Self-Help Website: Be Someone

Be Someone Inc.'s mission is to build character, hope, and inspiration among disadvantaged youth. A motivational speaker, two-time chess champion, Air Force veteran and former Alabama state trooper, founder Orrin Hudson uses chess as a stimulus for children to learn personal responsibility, discipline, and self-reliance. The youth group also teaches children to believe in their own ideas and to learn from their decisions.

PETER KIRSANOW COMMENTARY: Roberts's Restraint

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights member and conservative Republican argues that critics don't get Judge John Roberts' rules of judicial order, where policy preferences don't dictate judicial outcomes. Mr Kirsanow points to the manner in which the judge has handled a similar set of affirmative-action issues — first as an advocate and then as a judge — as examples. "Roberts's judicial restraint may be an astonishing concept to some of his opponents. But it's one of the defining characteristics of Roberts as a judge. Roberts's restraint runs counter to the assertion that 'his legal philosophy and judicial temperament appear to be detrimental to civil rights, civil liberties, etc.' If anything, his legal philosophy and judicial temperament are the best defenses against erosions to civil rights and liberties. A faithful and disciplined interpretation of the law, not judicial legislation, is a more reliable safeguard of our civil rights and liberties."

GOP Senator Likens Iraq War To Vietnam

The Moderate Voice blog examines recent comments by Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), who is a decorated military veteran: "A couple of things are notable about Hagel's remarks: Hagel has been a critic of the adminisration for some time now. But the fact he is increasingly articulating this view indicates (a) he has made an educated guess that the situation won't get better but will get worse, (b) the clout of the administration is starting to wane since he feels he can speak out as forcefully as he is, (c) he's likely reflecting the views of not just some of his constituents but perhaps some other GOPers who for a variety of reasons may not feel they can publicly say what he's saying. The Vietnam comparison is always a bit iffy since support weakened at home for the war due to various factors. LBJ's biggest loss was due to strong opposition within his OWN party. And the fact that there was a draft made the war as an issue personally compelling for many college students and their families. Hagel's increasing criticism of the adminstration and dire predictions help create a new 'conventional wisdom' among the media. It'll influence media coverage in the sense that'll it'll shift some of the 'givens' the media believes exist on the war to a newer perpsective — to the war being a parallel to Vietnam and the turbulent 60s. If its previous response is any indication, look for there to be direct White House or indirect (via surrogates) refutations of Hagel in coming days — and even perhaps an attempt via talk radio and other infosources to discredit him. A GOP anti-war voice (even someone who is known to have blasted the administration in the past) won't go unnoticed by anti-war activists."

STAR PARKER COMMENTARY: Mexico, U.S. Must Solve Immigration Problem

The conservative Republican commentator argues that California is a seething cauldron on the issue, with co-dependent relations with Mexico: "Our leaders in Washington and in Sacramento need to start talking turkey with the Mexicans. They have got to fix their country. The other side of the co-dependent equation, we Americans in general, and we Californians in particular, have to fix ourselves also. We need to consider that our welfare state subsidizes and encourages illegal immigration and distorts social behavior in the fact that any illegal woman giving birth here produces a welfare-qualifying U.S. citizen.....Guestworker programs? Maybe. But only if the welfare loopholes are closed."

COMMENTARY: Simply, The Best

The moderate-conservative columnist argues that the life and death of Joyce Wein 0 the wife of jazz impresario George Wein - are a model for all of us to follow: "This was so different that it seemed a high point in the culture of our time because the ceremony and the speakers gave vent to their affection for a black woman who was so far outside the stereotypes that burden the educated, the middle class and the sophisticated black people who rise to positions of authority or prominence. They are too often considered inauthentic unless they cannot speak the English language or seem no more sophisticated than a badly cooked pot of chitlins or some low-grade corn bread. Born in 1928, Joyce Alexander Wein was from the black middle class of Boston. When she married her Jewish husband in 1959, he was the one who rose socially and developed layers of taste and understanding from her, which is so often reversed in the conventional tale of the Jewish guy who marries the black woman and educates her in the finer things of life. Joyce Alexander had graduated from high school at 15 and from college as a chemistry major four years later. She loved literature, knew much about painting and was not a woman who suffered either the limited expectations or the racism of her time in silence..... Joyce Alexander Wein represented the best of jazz and the best of American womanhood because she never took a backseat to anyone. She sat in the front and brought as many people to the first row as she could whenever she could. That was her greatness, and that was what she stood for, because she believed much more in fairness than in favors. She was a model for our nation."

ARMSTRONG WILLIAMS COMMENTARY: Um, Officer...

The conservative Republican commentator writes: "We decided to investigate. We scoured local fire departments, pizza delivery joints and bars frequented by wild packs of traveling pharmaceutical sales reps, to see if they shared similar experiences. Everywhere we went the story was the same: Bored housewives suffering the pangs of withdrawal from a marriage that’s lost its luster start calling random men to their home in order to make life more interesting, i.e., more sexual. Our sources on the police force say it’s a fairly recent phenomenon, occurring pretty much over the past ten years. A recent study commissioned by The Independent Women’s Forum and conducted by the Institute for American Values helps explain the trend. According to the study, the modern woman predominantly engages in two types of relationships: 'sexual intimacy with no hope for commitment' or an intense almost immediate commitment 'without first getting emotionally acquainted.' Either way, bodies are colliding without the hard emotional work of actually getting to know someone.....The major implication: The modern woman is not an object to be subdued and prodded; she is in command, and quite capable of initiating sex with predatorial ease. And so one day the bored housewife decides to let life imitate art. She slithers down the steps wearing a silk negligee to pay the pizza delivery boy. But is this fulfilling? One of the great ironies of the sexual liberation movement is that in seeking to free women from repressive social customs, it also encouraged them to go about things as a young, male would. It seems that real sexual liberation won’t happen until society develops new social customs that allow young women to place enough value on their own emotional needs, so that they feel comfortable waiting for Mr. Right, instead of Mr. Right now."

Quote of the Day

"I have not thoroughly occupied myself with the integration of immigrants in the Netherlands. My portfolio is crime and security. Hoswever, I can say that I see many successful Turkish and Moroccan people, for whose command of the Dutch language is completely powerful, in my surroundings. I think that it is important that people try incorporate some form of personal responsibility. I find group talk to be cumbersome, as it is perhaps easy for a government to address a group but what works for one group may not yet work for another one. I believe in the strength of the individual and think that also applies to integration. - Laetitia Griffith, alderwoman for financial affairs for the city of Amsterdam and libertarian, in response to a question about what factors does she believe are the most important obstacles to integration

ROBERT WOODSON SR. COMMENTARY: Ganging Up For Good

The founder of the National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise and conservative discusses successful grassroots efforts to improve communities (hat tip: Vision Circle): "If these programs have been successful, why haven't they been embraced more widely by school systems and communities? The fundamental resistance is from people on both the left and the right who argue that these remedies come from 'untutored' people -- individuals who do not hold advanced degrees. More responsive, however, are police officers, judges and parents who have seen violence firsthand and know how young people can be influenced by real neighborhood experts. Add to that the financial incentive that supports the status quo. Some 80 percent of the money spent on poor people and at-risk youth goes to those who provide services. As the problem increases, the funding increases. In my experience, too many people ask not which problems are solvable, but which ones are fundable. Until we put the goal of saving lives over these institutional interests, we can only expect more shopping center stabbings and more school violence."

The Rise Of The Info-Church: Is This What Church Is Supposed To Be?

Dell Gines tackles the concept of mega-churches. The black moderate-conservative blogger writes: "This philosophy of no limit growth through marketing the crap out of your organization, pack the house, get on TV with your huge church mentality, in my opinion underscores the failure of the modern American church to stem the tide of moral relativity in modern culture. Bear with me. For those who are bible scholars (and for those who are not ) recall the nature of the first churches. They were close and intimate settings, like family. Relationships were close and expectations of each member in relation to the church and spirituality were high. In fact, communion was really a meal, not chips and juice, where brothers and sisters of the faith would come together in trust and love under the banner of Christ and fellowship. When the apostle Paul said ‘do not forsake the assembling of the brethren’ it was in direct relationship to this close organizational ‘family’ of believers at these respective churches. Your ‘brethren’ were individuals who knew each other, trusted each other and loved each other. There was relationship. There was discipline. There was mutual reliance. There was accountability to the brothers and sisters for your behavior not just in church, but in life. So when I look at the modern info church, I ask myself these few question: can a church that has 30,000 people really claim that they are a family? Can a church of 30,000 people really have discipline? Can a church of 30,000 people really have trust, and mutual reliance, if the person on row 1A never ever met and probably has never seen person on 46S? My answer is no. Where there is no ‘relationship’ there can be no trust, mutual reliance, accountability and discipline. If those functions are not there, then I must ask, are these really even churches? Or are they self-help motivational Sunday seminars where the masses come to hear a regurgitated Christanese message that ‘gets them by’ until their next Sunday fix?"

The Pro Bono PR Campaign For Terrorists?

Asks Nelson Taylor about Sen. Chuck Hagel's (R-Neb.) comments in wanting to pull out of Iraq and arguing that America's involvement there has destabilized the Middle East. The black libertarian Republican blogger argues that the politician has only given ammunition to terrorists: "What should we do, just pull out and run? Oh yeah, that'll put us on the map Senator Hagel, tuck tail and run home to mama is an incredibly effective policy that worked very well for Vietnam didn't it? I mean we saved tens of thousands of lives by pulling out of Vietnam - never-you-mind that the Khmer Rouge murdered two million Cambodians as we turned our backs on Southeast Asia and gave them up to Communists! The fact that the only time political rhetoric about turning tail and backing out of a war was discussed and eventually approved in the last sixty years is when the freedom of brown or black people was at stake isn't lost on me."

Holland: Ayaan Hirsi Ali To Open Academic Year

The Dutch moderate-conservative parliamentarian (pictured) and feminist and professor Bram the Swaan will open the academic year at the University of Amsterdam on September 5. MP Hirsi Ali will discuss the aspects of a culture of curiosity, which she believes binds people more than religion. Professor Swaan will focus on social science, highlighting the university as status factory. There is large interest in the meeting, such that there is no more available space.

Blacks Seek Renewal of 'Sacred' Law

It is not uncommon to hear black Americans refer to the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965 in biblical terms. Such reverence is why lawmakers are pushing for a 25-year reauthorization of the act, a full two years before three of its provisions are set to expire. Many black politicians and civil rights lawyers agree that renewal of the law should not be a partisan tool. "I am in absolute, full and uninhibited support of Chairman Sensenbrenner in having extensive hearings, on-site hearings and accepting those from other organizations that will conduct their own," said Rep. Melvin Watt (D-N.C.), head of the Congressional Black Caucus. House Judiciary Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wisc.) said hearings likely will begin this autumn and continue into the second session of the current Congress. In July, he told the NAACP convention that politics and partisanship would have nothing to do with his support for reauthorization.

But the partisan rhetoric was thick at a recent forum in Atlanta, where Rev. Jesse Jackson said "reauthorizing the Voting Rights Act will prevent Florida 2000" from happening again. He has cast doubt on Republican promises to reauthorize the Act. Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, called the Atlanta forrum race-baiting for partisan gain. "The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was made necessary by the practices of some racist Southern Democrats who opposed equality for blacks -- the same Democratic Party that Jesse Jackson now wants blacks to support," said the black conservative Republican.

Town Started By Ex-Slave Being Reborn

When Frank McWorter started the town of New Philadelphia, Ill., in 1836, the former slave might have envisioned a multiracial city of brotherly love. Five generations later, his family hopes the town's designation as a National Historic Site this month will remind Americans what it means to embrace freedom and each other. "This is the story of an abolitionist town in which African-Americans sought home," said Gerald McWorter, a descendant of Frank McWorter and director of Africa Studies at the University of Toledo in Ohio. "We don't know of any direct connection to Philadelphia, but he was conscious enough to name it that. It doesn't seem to be an accident." Frank McWorter was the first black man in the United States to found a town. His gravesite was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. McWorter bought freedom for himself and his wife and two sons, then traveled to Illinois to begin his town in Pike County. In New Philadelphia, 58 blacks and whites lived side by side in 11 homes by 1850. Reclaimed by prairie grasses by the 1940s, the town is being reborn through the efforts of people from varied backgrounds, including family members, a historical society, scholars and archaeologists. Ideas include period replicas of buildings, a layout of the town created by indigenous plants and a museum. The University of Illinois, the Illinois State Museum and the New Philadelphia Association are working on the project.

Kids' Savings Accounts Seen As A Key To Future

Legislation has been introduced in Congress that calls for the federal government to open a KIDS Account of at least $500 for every baby born in America. And President Bush's first Treasury secretary, Paul O'Neill, has been promoting a plan for children's accounts that he says would guarantee every American at least $1 million by age 65, eventually eliminating the need for Social Security. Children's accounts are gaining proponents across the ideological spectrum. Conservative Republicans construe them as a form of the market-oriented ownership society that Bush touts. Liberal Democrats view them as an extension of the Great Society of the 1960s that created government programs to lift people from poverty. "It's a simple kind of merging of the stereotypes of the parties," said Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D-Tenn., pictured), a sponsor of the KIDS Accounts bill. "You give to people; you put some responsibility on people to save, as well," added the moderate-liberal Democrat.

Despite bipartisan support, the KIDS Accounts have skeptics on the right who are disdainful of a new government handout. Some on the left fear the expense would drain money from other social needs. So far, White House officials are unenthusiastic. Proponents say that investing in children is a breakthrough in thinking about how to reverse a worrisome deterioration of savings habits. Since the early 1990s, the typical American's savings rate has plunged from $7.70 per $100 earned to $1.80, according to federal figures. Between 9 and 20 percent of American. households have no bank account, studies show, and the proportion is higher among black Americans, Hispanics and the poor.

Iraq Constitution Update

Dean Esmay, a moderate-conservative blogger (whose website is where I sometimes co-blog), writes: "Austin Bay notes the perspective of an Iraqi friend on the proposed new Constitution. Not bad, but his friend gets at least one detail wrong: the Japanese Constitution was written almost completely by Americans, mostly Douglas MacArthur and his staff, and was forced down Japanese throats whether they wanted it or not. It was put into force in 1947, only two years after the war.....Now here we are two and a half years later, and the press is, without the least bit of irony, saying the Americans will be to blame if Islam has too big a role in the new government. In other words, instead of acting like unilateralist cowboys ramming our values down the Iraqi people's throats, we let them elect people who would construct their Constitution, and now if we don't like everything in that Constitution, it's our fault. For some people the US can never win. Me? Three years ago I said, repeatedly, that if the best we could ever hope for from the new Iraqi government was a state that looked like modern Pakistan, it would be a huge improvement. I wanted much better, but I'd settle for that. Today I see no reason to change that assessment."

Guinea Ends 47-Year State Monopoly On Radio, TV

The West African country has agreed to open up the airwaves to private radio and television,which meets a key demand by opposition parties and international donors. "Any Guinean citizen or company can create, own and manage private radio and television," said a presidential decree read out yesterday on state television. It added that this did not apply to political parties or religious groups. Since independence from France in 1958, Guinea has known little political freedom and only two rulers: socialist hardliner Sekou Toure and the current president, Lansana Conte, who seized power in a 1984 coup. Guinea holds a third of the world's known reserves of bauxite and has long been regarded as a bulwark of relative stability against interlinked civil wars in neighbouring Liberia, Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast. But it is also one of the most isolated and impoverished nations in the region, and President Conte's deteriorating health has raised fears of political turmoil if he dies. International donors, including the European Union, have withheld aid packages demanding more democracy, while opposition parties have boycotted elections and refused dialogue with the government. "There is no denying that the liberalisation of the airwaves marks a step forward for the democratic process in Guinea," said Boubacar Yacine Diallo, the newly government-appointed head of the National Council for Communications. Opposition leader Alpha Conde welcomed the opening up of the airwaves but added: "My objective is still change (of government), regardless of private radio and television." Other opposition officials said this was only one of the measures they wanted to se, and have also demanded an independent electoral commission, more freedom to organize political meetings and media access for their leaders. Since the beginning of the year, opposition leaders have been allowed to hold rallies, but protests remain banned. Private newspapers were allowed in 1992 but - mainly due to lack of financial means - the country's only daily newspaper is controlled by the government.

Quote Of The Day

“The Republican Party is not inclusive. The Republican Party does not reach out. We're fighting for them to do that. I'll admit that President Bush [of whom Mr. Evers is not a fan] did appoint Condoleezza Rice. He appointed Powell, but that wasn't enough. What about the local Republicans? Did he go around the country and campaign for blacks who were running for office? No. They're not inclusive. The Democrats aren't either. Don't get me wrong. I'm a Republican and I'm gonna stay a Republican because they need somebody like me to stay in the Party and keep hammering away." - Charles Evers, moderate-conservative and brother of slain civil rights activist Medgar Evers

Democrats Need A New Direction

Argues Right Democrat, a blog for moderate and conservative Democrats: "I agree that the Democrats cannot continue to go on without a change in course. The Democratic Party must appeal to the center. Democrats need to be strong on national defense and security. As a Democrat, I am tired of seeing my party lose elections because it is dominated by single issue activists with a hard-line environmentalist, civil libertarian, abortion rights or gay rights agenda. At some point, you have to connect with rank and file working class Democrats and mainstream America. Democrats are otherwise doomed to a permanent minority status."

Kerry Blasts GOP And Says Democratic Party Doesn't Need Much Change

The Moderate Voice blog argues that Sen. John Kerry's latest salvo - delivered to state legislators in Washington state - contains an underlying dilemma: "Something about the Dem[o]cratic party's pitch or appeal is not working. It isn't true that the Democrats can just do what they've been doing and fight for issues. There has to be a realization that something about the party's appeal somewhere has not quite worked. And it needs to be corrected. People will differ on the direction — right or left — but unless the Democrats want to keep losing the elections some kind of changes need to be made. And if it wasn't the party's course, Mr. Kerry, than perhaps the kind of change the Democrats need is not to nominate candidates who use political consultants who have lousy track records in winning national elections. That in itself is a damning statement on the kinds of choices said candidate if he got into office might make. But just keep fighting for issues the same exact way? Karl Rove would love your idea."

The Woman Who Just Says No

A Globe And Mail (Canada) columnist discusses Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the controversial moderate-conservative Dutch parliamentarian who recently spoke at an anti-sharia conference in Toronto: "'I am here because I think the rights of Muslim women in the West are threatened,' she says. The threat comes from two directions. One is a fundamentalist interpretation of Islam, which declares that women must submit to both God and men. The other is the Western multiculturalist trap, which declares that group rights are more important than individual rights, and that all cultures are equal. It is this trap that Europe's secular democracies find themselves in today. And it is this trap that has led Ontario to open the door to private sharia (Islamic law) courts, which can now be used to settle family disputes for any Muslims who want to use them. Ms. Hirsi Ali, 35, is a Dutch politician who has become famous for her fight against Islam's oppression of women. She says Ontario's decision to allow sharia courts is a terrible precedent and a disaster for Muslim women. 'Canadian law,' she says, 'is now offering some Canadian men the opportunity to oppress us.' She believes in the strict separation of religion and state. She believes that the religious law of any faith -- Muslim, Christian, Jewish -- invariably oppresses women. And she believes that the promised safeguards, such as the right to appeal any decision to a secular court, are a load of hooey for women who live, as many Muslim women do, in a closed society. 'What is freedom of choice when you depend on your family and clan for everything?'"

The piece continues: "Why has Ms. Hirsi Ali chosen such a risky life? 'I can't look away,' she says, 'because I know what goes on in Islamic families.' It's not surprising that this woman is hated by so many Muslims. But she has also stirred up a disturbing backlash among certain Dutch intellectuals, who accuse her of inciting Islamophobia and racism. One Dutch popular historian even compared Submission to an infamous Nazi propaganda film designed to whip up hatred against Jews. Ms. Hirsi Ali, who entered politics as a socialist, now finds herself increasingly at odds with the people who worship at the altar of multicultural theory. 'It would be perverse to argue in a liberal democracy that you would not protect the rights of individuals in a minority group,' she reasons. 'But multicultural theory taken to its logical conclusion is racist -- because you discriminate against minority women, but not secular women.'

Coretta King's Stroke Limits Speech

Coretta Scott King is frustrated, but her doctor said she is making significant progress and is slowly regaining her speech after suffering a major stroke on Tuesday. But her physician cautioned that the 78-year-old widow of slain civil rights leader Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., still faces a long recovery. Mrs. King faces at least another week at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta, doing inpatient speech, physical and occupational therapy, before an out-patient program is determined. Her entire right side is pretty weak but there is movement, her doctor said. Mrs. King has suffered from two transient ischemic attacks, commonly known as TIAs or ministrokes, this year. The strokes resulted from her bout with atrial fibrillation — an ailment that causes the heart to quiver and can create blood clots — which she developed in January.

I wish Mrs. King a speedy and wonderful recovery.

Latoyia Figueroa Found Dead

Unfornately there is no happy ending to this missing person case, which gained national visibility thanks to various bloggers and for which last month I wrote that I was surprised to see a sista get some coverage for a change. The pregnant Philadelphia mom's body has been found, apparently while her ex-boyfriend, Stephen Pouches, was trying to dump her remains. Police had been following Stephen Pouches when just after midnight, he was found disposing of her remains in a wooded lot with homes nearby in an area of Chester, just outside of Philadelphia. When Pouches was found and arrested, he was wearing a bullet proof vest and carrying a pistol. He has been arrested and will be charged in the death of both Latoyia Figueroa and their unborn child. Ms. Figueroa had been missing since July 18, and there had been no clues reported in the news of her whereabouts. She leaves behind a 7-year-old daughter.

The Tyranny Of The Minority

Dell Gines argues that a small percentage of the small percentage of Americans who are atheist - & what he calls their warlord, the ACLU - seek to exorcise God & religious tradition from public places. The black moderate-conservative blogger: "The areas of the Constitution alluding to Separation of Church & State was never intended to be a sharpened axe designed to hack away religious symbolism and heritage from public life. Yet in this post-modern world of relativity, lack of common sense, even on the part of the highest courts of the land, has allowed individuals who compose less than 1% of the population (the individual whom actually challenge[s] public religious displays) to thwart the will, heritage and traditions of the majority. Public displays of religious American history and tradition do not exist to encourage the atheist to convert. These symbols exist because they are a powerful part of this nation’s history, tradition and make up. To eliminate these symbols does not disrespect religion, but it does disrespect the history and heritage of this nation that was framed through the construct of a higher power and expressed in its laws, tradition and heritage. Each time the minority tyrant and his warlord the ACLU wins, America loses. Our heritage, good, bad and ugly shouldn’t be erased because one in a million believes it is offensive or that it should be so. Our heritage, good, bad and ugly, should be displayed and preserved, because this tells us who we were, helps us understand who we are, and shows us where we should go. Stand against the minority tyrant and keep our religous tradition alive."

New Ideas In Election Reform: Approval Voting

Citizens for Approval Voting and Americans for Approval Voting are advocating a method of voting that would allow voters to cast a vote of approval for any and every candidate on the ballot whom they feel would be an acceptable choice. The Yellow Line, a moderate blog, writes: "This sounds a lot like instant runoff elections (a method actually used in Australia) where voters rank candidates from favorite to least favorite. If no candidate gets a majority of first level votes, then the second level votes are tallied for the two top contenders. Approval voting seems similar, except that instead of creating automatic runoffs, it allows for voters to actually vote for more than one candidate at a time. I’m all for election reforms, even if implementing them will be difficult. But I’m not sure approval voting is a system I can support. My biggest problem with it is that it allows for multiple voting by individuals. It’s not any different than casting two (or three or more) ballots—which is illegal and illegal for a good reason. Instant runoffs, however, could be just as effective of a reform but are less radical in that voters are still casting only one vote. And they could still afford the moderating influence that LeGrand thinks can come form approval voting. In both systems, candidates would have to try to appeal to the broad electorate instead of simply motivating their bases."

Nigeria: Obasanjo Asked Not To Stay For A Third Term

The Nigerian president has been warned against staying in power for another term, with the Nigerian Economic Society stating that it would deter foreign investors, ruin the economy, and cause even higher levels of poverty. NES, Professor Sam Olofin, who heads up the economic group, said that President Obasanjo should step down in 2007 as scheduled. He warned against Nigeria slipping into the habit of other countries, where former dictators return to power as elected leaders. “We must begin to free ourselves from the recycled former military dictators in civilian garb. Continuing to recycle our former leaders is certainly not the best way to inspire confidence either in ourselves or in the would-be domestic and foreign investors, the country deserves better.”

Quote Of The Day

"I think that religion and politics should be kept apart and the constitution is a political instrument, it's public life, and I consider religion a private affair. Because there are so many gods and so many holy books and so much belief and superstition, it's hard to elevate one of them into the constitution while leaving the others behind...[It] would be excluding all the Muslims and all the Buddhists and all the Sikhs and all the atheists like me. I think it is not wise to have religion in the constitution." - Ayaan Hirsi Ali, black moderate-conservative Dutch parliamentarian, on no religious reference in the European Constitution

A.G. Gaston: Rough Road To Riches

Black Enterprise examines how sheer determination carried this grandson of former slaves (who died in 1996) to the top of a financial empire worth millions: "For Gaston, business success enabled him to advance the same philosophy of racial equality as his hero, Booker T. Washington, whose name Gaston use[d] for several of his businesses. Gaston launched Booker T. Washington Insurance Co. in 1932, a time when white insurance companies neglected the needs of black consumers. BTW Insurance eventually served as the cornerstone of a fortune worth more than $130 million and a business empire that included communications, real estate, and insurance. With $56.2 million in assets, BTW Insurance secured a position among the top five companies on the 2005 BE INSURANCE COMPANIES list. But a true testament to Gaston's philosophy of wealth building was passing it on to future generations, even if it wasn't his progeny. In 1987, Gaston created an employee stock ownership program and sold all of BTW Insurance's stock, worth $34 million, to his employees for only $3.5 million.....As a young adult, Gaston was drawn to Booker T. Washington, whose notions of economic self-determination appealed to his entrepreneurial aspirations. But Gaston's legacy extends beyond his numerous financial achievements. As an activist, he helped finance Alabama's civil rights movement, demonstrating extraordinary courage by risking his relationships with white businessmen whose respect he had gained. When blacks in Tuskegee staged an economic boycott in 1957 to obtain voting rights, white banks hassled anyone who possessed unpaid mortgages or business loans. Gaston supported the boycott by vowing to advance mortgage money to protesters."

Tony Sewell: "The Choice Of A New Generation"

The British black conservative educator discusses his Generating Genius project, which training Jamaican and black British boys of average intelligence, starting at age 12, to push them to excel in science careers: "The first thing is that we need to give our children the opportunity to live safely away from what is familiar to them. The black boys on this project are all having a wonderful time, even though they get up at 6am and work from 9am to 9pm. The key to this experience is that they have learnt to take responsibility for their own destiny. In our community, and in Jamaica, parents have basically spoilt our boys rotten. It is no surprise that a few will turn to gangs and the gun to indulge themselves. My biggest challenge on this project has not been with the boys, but with their mothers back home. We have a few boys who are seriously overweight, yet parents have been caught on our weekly visiting times sneaking in gallons of fried chicken. This is the comfort food, which these boys have been raised on. I like to call it ‘guilt food’ to replace the missing fathers in their lives."

Mr. Sewell continues his commentary: "As I said, our boys need to have a profound experience in their lives that does not come from going to jail or being excluded from school. When they return to the UK, they will have to face two big pressures in their lives. The first is peer group pressure, where so-called friends may well look down on them because they spent the summer training to be a doctor. How do I know this? Well, it happened on this programme. A boy applied and didn’t get through the interview process. His mother later rang me to say that she was secretly happy that he didn’t get through because on her estate he would have been bullied, because according to her, ‘doctors lack black street cred’. The second pressure comes from overindulgent mothers. The role of the parent is to give their son love and discipline. This can be difficult if you become your mother’s best pal instead of her son. Which brings me to the only sad part of the programme. I told parents before the boys left, that I had an extra return ticket to London, it would be used for an emergency, but more likely if a boy couldn’t cope. Last week we used our emergency option and sent one of our boys home. It was a surprise to me, but his needs were so deep, that the programme couldn’t meet them. His situation was one where he was torn between his home situation and our high expectations of discipline and hard work. It is time the UK's private sector supported programmes by Generating Genius, which has now proven itself to be a model which works. As Bob Geldof would say, passionately: 'Give us your money.'"

Over the Line?

Dennis Sanders wonders if Cindy Sheehan's protest outside President Bush's ranch will win the hearts and minds of moderates. The black moderate Republican blogger states no, given her recent comments: "Now it's one thing to say that the President has botched this war, or that he was wrong to go to war in the first place. I say that all the time. But it is a whole different thing to say that the President is a terrorist, that kills innocent people....And the people behind the New York, Madrid and London bombings sought to kill innocents and kill as many as they can. These are terrorists, not the President. As for genocide, again, I see no evidence. I haven't heard of deliberate killings such as what is going on in Darfur or what happened in Rwanda or Bosnia. These comments sound like comments made by some on the far left which are so ridiculous that they aren't worth debating. I want to believe that Ms. Sheehan is being manipulated by the far left. I don't want to believe she true believes this. Either way, this will not connect with Middle America, who might be fed up with the war, but don't think that Bush is the greatest evil the world has ever known. I don't think this was a necessary war. With that, I can agree with Ms. Sheehan. But I can't agree that this President, as much as I disagree with him, is a terrorist that is perpetrating genocide. To do so, would be morally suspect in my view."

The People's "General"?

Chippla Vandu on the capital of a Nigerian province, as former dictator General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida seeks the presidency in a democratic election. The Nigerian-born libertarian writes: "A visitor to Minna cannot but help marvel at the extent to which IBB supporters have taken over the city. There are billboards everywhere with catch phrases such as 'The People’s choice', 'Vision 2007', 'IBB for President'. On a large number of public transportation buses and private cars, one would find stickers and banners attached that laud and fully support the retired general's 'ambition' to return back to the Nigerian presidential villa, which he was more or less pressurized to vacate in 1993. Speaking with a few people in Minna, this blogger was informed that the general is so much loved for the good things he has done. He built roads, schools, and provided hosts of other infrastructure. They couldn't be further from the truth. While roads in Nigerian cities like Kaduna and Jos look run down and shabby, few cities in Nigeria can boast of good quality roads as one would find in Minna, with the possible exception of the capital city of Abuja. Minna has also got a pretty impressive drainage system. And a visitor may also notice the brightly colored rooftops in the city. Brightly colored rooftops in Nigeria are synonymous with wealth and no other city displays this with as much grandeur as the capital city of Abuja. The degree of IBBmania evident in the Niger state capital seems absent in much of Nigeria, especially in the Southern states. IBB may be a demigod in his home province, but in the wider Nigeria, he is seen as just another military ruler, one who however fails to fade away from the limelight."

SOB On Teachers' Unions

Eduwonk.com, a moderate-liberal Democratic blog, writes: "Over at School of Blog Julie points out that teachers' unions are not always opposed to what's good for kids and many things on their agenda are good for both students and teachers. This is, of course, true and outside the ranks of the cranks it's hard to find anyone who argues that everything that teachers' unions support is adverse to the interests of students or society or even that there are not many policies which are not good for both teachers and students. However, she then implicitly takes an equally extreme position dismissing the criticism altogether. This argument doesn't hold up either. Just because teachers' unions are not always at odds with the public interest doesn't mean they're not sometimes pursuing policies that are. For instance, it's pretty hard to square the seniority and bumping provisions in most contracts and the refusal to allow challenging schools to pay their teachers more with what's best for poor kids."

LA SHAWN BARBER COMMENTARY: Entryway For Terrorists

The conservative blogger writes: "The more I read stories about just how bad the illegal immigration problem is in this country, the more my support for the war in Iraq weakens. Practically every day we hear of another roadside bomb killing Americans. A ragtag bunch of ignorant losers who want to have sex with 72 virgins against a military increasingly de-balled by an effete media and seemingly intimidated president. No contest. Why, in 2005 and with all that military hardware at our disposal, Bush sends our men into hand-to-hand combat situations with 8th century psychos who’d strap a bomb to a baby, is a mystery. Even more mysterious is Bush’s 'fair' immigration policy that allows terrorists, the very people we’re fighting in Iraq, to walk right across the southern border. Every time an American is killed for 'freedom' in that stinking desert, I wonder how better served our country would be if he’d been here at home guarding his borders. I’m still enough of a Bush supporter to give him the benefit of the doubt about the war, but my support is weakening..."

National Boxing Match Over Iraq Grows

Asserts The Moderate Voice blog: "Officials didn't argue in the World War I, World War II, Korea or even Vietnam that the wars needed to be fought to victory to honor sacrifices soldiers already made in those wars. Leaders relentlessly hammered away at the larger missions. Sometimes these arguments failed (as in the case of Vietnam). But arguing that because young Americans have died in Iraq already the U.S. needs to stay there and face increased casualties will not — to be blunt — sell. It could actually backfire. (There are much stronger and more convincing arguments proponents of completing the Iraq mission can make)....Sheehan has already made herself a big, fat political target for the right by writing on Michael Moore's website and being linked so closely now with Moveon.Org. Bush has made himself a big, fat political target by his and his staff's bungling of handling Sheehan from the beginning (a more adept staff would have found a way to defuse it early so it didn't turn into a big national movement). And Cheney is doing what he usually does — talking as a blunt surrogate for his boss (which is what Vice Presidents usually do). Who wins? Both sides can't in this. But depending on how it pans out — and which side sticks its foot deepest into its own mouth, or allows its most extreme supporters to do or say something truly outrageous — the White House or the anti-war movement could emerge weaker then when Cindy Sheehan first camped out in Crawford, in those seemingly long ago days when she was there alone. But one thing is clear: if you look at the war and polls, news reports, and which side is suffering erosion in terms of leaders in Congress, the trend is now going against the White House."

National Security: My Relatives' Views

My relatives recently had an interesting email discussion about the proliferation of security camera in Manhattan. One of my uncles set up the discussion, along with a link to an ABC News article about the issue. He wrote: "The general public is not aware of this, but this I know for a FACT, that a growing number Of these cameras called 'Pin-Heads' (unseen to the naked eye) are in grocery stores, restaurants, shopping malls, department stories, movies theaters, parks, airports, office buildings, museums and many other locations. Although, the book '1984' comes to mind, let me say that 'Big Brother' (various U.S. Government Agents, some state and local governments) is unmistakably in our lives. What are your thoughts on this subject. Do you feel that they are using the threat of 'Terrorism' to control some aspects of your/our lives???"

One of my aunts, who is a moderate-conservative independent: “Although it seems a bit disconcerting, when I consider the threat to our security I'm willing to give up some of my privacy in public places. Let's face it: these are public places, and as such I don't really expect any privacy anyway. There is no easy solution to this war on terror; there is a delicate balance between our right to privacy and law enforcement's ability to investigate a possible terrorist. Better someone's picture taken by a 'pin-head' than another plane flown into a building that any one of us or our loved ones might be in, or a subway, or the supermarket, etc... I don't always agree with our government, but when it comes to our national security, I DO!”

An older female cousin, who is a liberal Democrat: "With particular regard to minority and other marginalized groups (i.e. poor people of all backgrounds), I have NO confidence that our government will act consistently and/or responsibly. History and human behavior substantiate my skepticism. In this informational/technological, post-9/11 age, the lines between that which is public and that which is private, have been obscured – to our long-term detriment. We should jealously guard our privacy and vigorously fight additional encroachment in any form."

A younger male cousin, who is in the military and somewhere in the middle: "Let me just add a couple of words to this discussion, since I am technically part of Big Brother and work with them everyday. Most of Big Brother at [the] present time is not concerned about the average citizens' daily lives or activities. They really are trying to spot those individuals [who] are trying to harm our people and make no mistake, these people do really want to kill ALL AMERICANS! I sit across from these people on a daily basis here in Afghanistan and I understand and they understand that there is no middle ground and that in their mind there can only be two results in this confrontation, our or their destruction. Thus these people might be quiet for now or [are] being distracted by Iraq or Afghanistan but they are still there and they are learning and getting smarter about how to conduct their business. The only thing law enforcement can do is try to simulate the operating procedures of intelligence agencies, which allow monitoring before someone commits the act in order to stop them, in order to stop another 9/11 incident. The realistic truth ladies and gentlemen is that you will never hear about all the cases of terrorist activities that have been stopped but will graphically hear and see all the incidents of failure on the part of our law enforecment agencies."

Does Illegal Immigration Pose A Threat To Black Americans?

The Census Bureau recently reported that Texas is the latest state to join a growing trend in America, where the minority population exceeds that of the white population. BlackBritain.co.uk talks to liberal columnist Dr Earl Ofari Hutchinson and a few sociologists to analyze how illegal immigration - which fuels much of the trend - impacts blacks in America. Despite the liberal bias, the article does a decent job outlining the three main issues of conflict: (1) competition for jobs at the lower end of the scale, with blacks being pushed out of traditional entry points; (2) diminishing political power for blacks; and (3) overcrowding for public services and affordable housing.

Mr. Hutchinson discusses why he believes some Republicans support illegal immigration (cheap labor), but provides no commentary on why some Democrats support it (to undermine American culture)? And while he acknowledges conflicts and the growing black middle class, Mr. Hutchinson is smokin' crack if he believes that the average black person doesn't believe illegal immigration will reduce our economic and political clout. The only reason why Hispanics now outnumber blacks in America is because half of 'em are illegal. Why should other folks get special rights to break the law, while black folks must follow the law? Ain't right, and black folks better start yelping here.

What was most interesting in the article were comments from Juan Battle, a sociology professor at City University of New York. He argues that as the population in America shifts to a larger proportion of non-whites, society will become both multi-cultural and segregated. He points to Atlanta as an example, as class stratification within black populations take effect. Another intrigue is BlackBritain's discussion of demographic changes within Britain.

Society Website: BlackVegetarians.org

I am a meat-eater and am gonna stay that way. However, BlackVegetarians.org (hat tip: The Black Informant) explores the environmental, ethical, and health impact of food choices. It also profiles people, organizations, and events. It also provides various great recipes, including soul food recipes. Soul food with no meat?! I have tried it before here in Chicago, and it actually was alright.

Quote Of The Day

“Johnson was, then, a Race Man to his core, well aware of the lows but not afraid to sing of the highs. And while for most of the people in his pages, success has meant leaving some black identity at the door, Johnson made himself one of the richest men in the country with an enterprise that was run by, and all about, black people - and he did all this without being a comedian, a professional rabblerouser or playing the thug. This is even the kind of thing that helps me forgive the staff of Ebony Jr. for not giving me a prize for the short story I sent in to their writing contest in 1974. In the end, like most blacks of his generation, Johnson knew that while racism was unpardonable, black America could achieve despite it. Having grown up poor, he was living proof of that message and under no illusion that putting it into the pages of his magazines was racial treason. Legions of black people know, as Johnson did, that it is not progress for a race to treat victories as family secrets. Ebony and Jet, thriving at the newsstand and now on line as well, are an ongoing certification that black success does not require rebellion and resentment; and because of that, they will live on in black America as oldies but goodies.” — John McWhorter, moderate commentator, on the late John Johnson

FOX News, CNN And MSNBC: Pornographers

Asserts Michael Reynolds, a moderate-liberal Democrat blogger: "The news network coverage of the BTK killer, his trial and now his sentencing, is pornography. This story has close to zero news value. There is simply no explanation for the amount of air time it has been given except that shock, horror, titillation and voyeurism are enough to bump up the minuscule ratings of these three utterly irresponsible, thoroughly dishonorable companies. The one value these networks represent, their core belief, their only moral system, is the pursuit of profit. For profit they will wallow in depravity. For profit they will turn their air over to a monster...These three so-called news networks are beneath contempt. What will they not do to rack up another half point in the ratings? Where is the bottom of the barrrel for these people? Do they stand for anything? Do they have any ethical standards? Are they not ashamed, mortified, humiliated, to call themselves newsmen? They are mere inches from providing commentary and flashy graphics packages for snuff films."

COMMENTARY: To Push Sudan Forward,U.S. Biz Must Pull Back

The moderate-conservative columnist writes about a growing divestment movement regarding the genocidal actions of Arabs toward black Africans in Sudan, which he calls a new and important development: "This is important because the various tragedies that fall or are imposed on Africans by black leadership or Arabs usually go by unnoticed unless they get to the size of Rwanda and the rotting bodies of men, women and children fill the streets or lay as carrion in the killing fields of the bush. This is not because of a lack of concern over injustice. It is because too many black Americans feel it is their job to see, speak and hear no evil when black Africans or Arabs are involved in unremittingly barbaric and savage acts toward black Africans. Beyond that, there is a sentimental attitude toward Africa that distorts clear and unblinking evaluation. Consequently, unless a white culprit can be found, mum's the word."

He adds: "We should not expect the Sudanese dictatorship of Gen. Omar al-Bashir to cease and desist out of a sudden rash of morality. But we can be sure that a shortening of purse strings will bring the bloody regime to attention. Everyone knows how to count, or to find someone who can do the counting. That is why it is not surprising to find the American abolition movement in the middle of this. The organization, iAbolish.com, is one we all should know about. The divestment movement is having very strong results. Stanford University seems about to pull the plug on investments, the State of Illinois has passed a law banning investments, and the State of New Jersey has backed out of more than a billion dollars in investments. The situation in Sudan and the organized movement advocating divestiture is one of the most important things happening in our time. This is true because it sets aside sentimentality in favor of morality, disdains ethnic exclusion and speaks purely in the interest of humanity."

Living In Don Young's World

Logan Ferree wants to see small federal government, which is missing from the recently passed federal highway bill. The libertarian Democrat blogger writes: "Federal transportation policy is a pet-issue of mine. It offers up a simple policy proposal that I think any Democrat could accept. Get rid of the Department of Transportation and turn over its functions to the states. If the current bill allows for states to keep 92% of the federal gasoline tax for their own projects, why not just give them the full 100%? There are also some interesting perspective on how federal regulations are killing off alternatives to automobiles. It would be a step in the right direction for the Democrats to think outside the box and propose reform of our federal transportation policies."

Macho Men: Gays, Rights, Marriage, Blackness

Dell Gines hates two things about the gay rights movement: (1) its attempt to leverage the Civil Rights Movement for its own purpose; and (2) when activists compare their struggle to black history. The black moderate-conservative writes: "I for one believe homosexuality is a sexual choice and not a biologically determined trait. Although I am against homosexual ‘marriage’ I believe in states rights, and the collective LEGISLATIVE (not judicial activism) right of the individual states to determine if they will allow gays to marry. I think as a sexual choice, that they have NOTHING in common with blacks and should [be] castigated everytime [sic] they make that comparison. As Americans, I believe they do have the right to lobby for support of their positions."

I concur, and I support gay marriage. Government should stay out the lives of consenting adults. However, I also howl at (the overwhelmingly white) gay activists who make these ridiculous comparisons to black history. Gay activists win no new black friends with this strategy. Quit leechin' off black history.

BOOKER RISING OP-ED: No U.S. Aid For Israeli Settlers

Yesterday on the news, I heard that the United States has sent an assessment team to Israel to discuss possible foreign aid. Israel has asked for $2.2 billion in aid to relocate the 8,500 Gaza settlers to new homes (this is on top of the $3 billion+ in aid, loan guarantees, and grants that the country already receives). The Council on American-Islamic Relations has sent a letter to President George W. Bush stating that U.S. taxpayers should not foot the bill for settlements that were illegal in the first place. "American taxpayers should not be forced to pay for the relocation of settlers who, supported and defended by successive Israeli governments, chose to live illegally on land that was not their own," wrote CAIR. "Such funds could be better used to improve conditions for ordinary Palestinians whose lives have been devastated by decades of brutal occupation."

While I don't support government foreign aid to the Palestinians either (the U.S. government says that it may consider some aid here, and some time ago pledged $350 million to the Palestinian National Authority in 2006), CAIR makes a fair point regardling the settlers. I don't care if the settlements are legal or illegal, but I do oppose government foreign aid as it promotes dependency and inefficiency. It's also not a federal power or responsibility, as outlined in Article I, Section VIII of the U.S. constitution either. And prosperous countries like Israel (per capita GDP: $20,800) especially shouldn't be getting our hard-earned tax dollars. Why isn't the very prosperous Jewish diaspora being called upon to privately foot any costs, if Israel's claim for economic help is genuine?

U.S. taxpayers certainly shouldn't reward extremists in Gaza (most of whom don't even live in the area) who are purposefully making the resettlement as difficult as possible for the Israeli government. I'd have used tear gas or tranquilizers by now, because folks had plenty of advance warning to clear out and are getting very generous compensation packages ($150,000-$440,000 on average, but up to $3 million for large farmers). And don't get me started on the racist slurs being spouted off to Ethiopian-born soldiers ("go back to your country", "n___r", etc.) by white Jewish extremists.

LARRY ELDER COMMENTARY: After Roe V. Wade, Then What?

The libertarian Republican commentator argues that Roe didn't legalize abortion, but rather the Supreme Court discovered a right to privacy not mentioned in the country's constitution out of thin air: "USA Today conducted a state-by-state analysis. Their analysis expects 11 'conservative states' to immediately pass laws prohibiting abortion. But those 'conservative states' only had 122 abortion providers in 2000, less than 7 percent of the nation's 1,819 abortion providers.....Despite NOW's intense support of Roe v. Wade, regular Americans appear wary of Roe and its scope. Yes, according to a recent CBS poll, 59 percent of Americans call Roe a 'good thing.' But when pressed more specifically, people give answers that change the picture dramatically. Only 25 percent want abortion on demand -- effectively the Roe position. Fourteen percent want abortion permitted with more restrictions; 38 percent want abortions permitted in rape, incest and to save women's lives; 15 percent want abortion permitted only to save women's lives; and 3 percent want abortion not permitted at all. When added together, 70 percent want greater, not fewer, restrictions on abortion. What about the alleged extremist, right-wing, Christian-driven, out-of-the-mainstream demand for parental notification of abortion for females under 18? The number of Americans supporting parental notification -- 80 percent. With a reversal of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court says this: Where the Constitution fails to provide a specific empowerment for the federal government -- butt out. Now that may surprise some people."

Canada: Race Row: Councillor Backtracks

Toronto's only black city councilman is withdrawing his "suggestion" earlier this week that police should target and question black youth in high-crime neighborhoods to fight gun violence, saying it never struck him as racial profiling. The remarks were roundly denounced by the mayor, police chief, the Association of Black Law Enforcers, and other officials. "I said, given what's going on in the city of Toronto, I think that we should be looking at or supporting targeting young black men, because the people being killed are black, the shooters are black, and so we need to get the guns off the street," said the moderate councillor. "It wasn't me thinking, geez, you know, let me do this in terms of racial profiling. That wasn't the case at all." He said his statement this week was just an "idea," one made out of frustration with gun violence responsible for 31 homicides in Toronto to date this year. Parts of his ward have some of the toughest areas in the city. Councillor Thompson said he had been advised by a lawyer that randomly targeting and questioning black youth was illegal and so he would not support it. "[People] have said, 'Look Michael, it's actually racial profiling.' I'm learning that now. If it's racial profiling, it's a bad thing," he said. "That's not what I'm trying to support. I'm trying to react to a very problematic situation taking place in the city of Toronto."

Councillor Thompson's suggestion stung many black police officers from the United States and Britain in Toronto this week for the annual National Black Police Association education and training conference. One white liberal columnist suggests that he suffers from either a psychological disorder (which of course, white liberals paternalistically throw out whenever blacks challenge their orthodoxy) or is setting himself up for a mayoral run.

Radio Station Closure Alarms Ugandans

Uganda's decision to shut down a radio station and charge Andrew Mwenda, a leading libertarian journalist, with sedition has caused alarm in the country once lauded as an African success story. Both moves are tied to intense speculation in the Ugandan press about possible incompetence in the July 30 helicopter crash that killed Sudanese First Vice President John Garang. The helicopter belonged to Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, and it was flying VP Garang back to Sudan from Uganda. "I have been seeing this young boy, Mwenda, writing about Rwanda, writing about Sudan, writing about [the Ugandan army]. He must stop. Completely," said President Museveni. Mr. Mwenda faces five years in prison or a US$27 fine (sizeable for most Ugandans).

The president himself had fueled speculation earlier when he told the southern Sudanese that there could have been an "external factor" to the helicopter crash. Although it arrested Mr. Mwenda and later freed him on bail, the government says it is committed to press freedoms granted under President Museveni's two-decade rule and points to the proliferation of radio stations and newspapers. But few journalists trust its intentions. "It is becoming increasingly antagonistic," said Peter Mwesige, executive editor of Daily Monitor (where Mr. Mwenda is the political editor). "The biggest worry is that this is coming at a time when the country is in political transition to multiparty elections." The elections scheduled for March 2006 will be the first ones based on party lines since 1980. Analysts forecast a fierce battle because President Museveni has amended the country's 10-year-old constitution to lift presidential term limits.

Quote Of The Day

“I think [black conservative activist and radio host Rev. Jesse Lee] Peterson needs to smooth his edges a bit. He has some worthy opinions, especially on the black family, but the way he expresses himself makes it seem like he hates black people. I know he doesn't, but when I hear him speak all he can do is criticize, ridicule, degrade and name call. That doesn't inspire me to do anything positive for myself or others.” — Angela Winters, moderate blogger

WALTER WILLIAMS COMMENTARY: Civil Rights Today

The libertarian commentator calls for a paradigm shift in many black American communities, as the March of Dimes did in moving to other health issues after eradicating polio in the United States of America: "Like the March of Dimes' victory against polio in the U.S., civil rights organizations can claim victory as well. At one time, black Americans did not enjoy the same constitutional guarantees as other Americans. Now we do. Because the civil rights struggle is over and won doesn't mean that all problems have vanished within the black community. A 70 percent illegitimacy rate, 65 percent of black children raised in female-headed households, high crime rates and fraudulent education are devastating problems, but they're not civil rights problems. Furthermore, their solutions do not lie in civil rights strategies. Civil rights organizations' expenditure of resources and continued focus on racial discrimination is just as intelligent as it would be for the March of Dimes to continue to expend resources fighting polio in the U.S. Like the March of Dimes, civil rights organizations should revise their agenda and take on the big, non-civil rights problems that make socioeconomic progress impossible for a large segment of the black community."

It should be noted that most of the black challenges that he cites skyrocketed after the civil rights movement too. While organizations should continue to remain vigilant to ensure no backsliding in America, our primary focus should now be to exercise our rights in creating healthier black communities.

Stuck In The Middle

Staunch Moderate blog writes: "Wow, I'm having to rethink my idea that we can trust the police with a little racial profiling. As more information leaks out about the Brazilian man who was killed in Britain as a suspected terrorist, it's becoming apparent that the police really f___ed up on this one. Despite earlier accounts, the victim didn't vault over any turnstiles. He was only wearing a denim jacket, not a heavy coat. And he only ran to catch a train, as anybody who has ever ridden the subway has done before, not to evade the police. Still, when the police caught him, they held him down and shot him seven times. They didn't try to yank him out of the train for questioning. They just opened fire. Again, I only argued that police should spend more time questioning tan young men than pasty old ladies. There's nothing wrong with searching a few bags before someone gets on a subway or plane. But we have to trust the police that they won't become overzealous -- otherwise I may be the next one you see running from the police.

Apparently the cops believed he was Osman Hussain (the Ethiopian-born jihadist who fled to Italy and was arrested). They look nothing alike. Shady.

Tupac Shakur: Has This Become What We Should Become?

Asks Dell Gines, after reading that a statue and arts center in the late rap star's honor will be unveiled in Atlanta. The moderate-conservative blogger writes: "He was gifted. He had a conscience. He was eloquent and at times sensitive which you could tell from his poetry and some of his amazing songs like ‘Brenda Had a Baby’. But the overall message that he left us with was 'Thug Life’ and ultimately ‘Thug Death’.....When you create a monument, or you name something after someone you are saying, 'This is an example of someone whom we should follow, this is a representation of someone who represented the best of us'. So how have we allowed a monument and an arts center to be named for an individual who made the worst of us and [made it into an] acceptable representation of us? How do we as real black men accept the perversion of what and who we are? How do we as real black men continue to work in silence while those who present a false image of us take over the hearts and minds of our kids? Can we love the young ‘Tupacs’ while simultaneously showing them what a real black man is and work to guide them there? Can we show them the spirit of Malcolm X and why that is something to truly be emulated as opposed to the negative examples they are bombarded with everyday? Or will we continue to allow the Tupac Shakurs of the world to be the most powerful symbols of black manhood to our young men. Consider yourselves."

Wilder's Race

Style Weekly (Virginia) interviews Richmond Mayor Doug Wilder on the state's the three candidates for governor, with the nationally-watched election in under three months. The moderate Democrat and former governor is leveraging his highly-sought-after endorsement to gain more attention to the capital city's challenges. Tim Kaine (Democrat), Jerry Kilgore (Republican), and Russ Potts (an independent once tied to the moderate wing of the Republican Party) are running in the election.

CASEY LARTIGUE COMMENTARY: Is They Learning?

Having once taught in East Asia, the educational policy analyst and libertarian blogger has no patience for American educators and communities who focus on funds but not on building an achievement ethic: "Too many people are soft and squishy. I'm probably a little insensitive about this after my experience teaching in Taiwan and South Korea. After being told by parents to beat their kids if they don't study; hear from parents who stay up drinking coffee so they can sit with their kids while they do their homework; talk to kids who are seniors in high school and will tell you that their only job in life is to get good grades; hear from folks (meaning, parents, friends, relatives) who tell their kids: sleep four hours, you pass, sleep five hours you fail; talk to parents who allocate a large percentage of the income on making sure the kid gets a good education, then, yeah, it is tough to be sensitive to educators and researchers who think there is a short-cut to kids getting a quality education. And I would like to note 2 things about the preceding paragraph. One, there are, to be sure, some Americans who treat education as urgently as the parents I met in Taiwan and South Korea. But that urgency is not something that is a part of the culture in both word and deed. I often come across reports saying that black and Hispanic children care as much about education as white and Asian children do. Then, other reports will show that black and Hispanic children spend less time on their homework, more time watching TV, and are less likely to complete (or even understand) their assignments. For all of the talk about it being important, words have not always matched deeds. And I would also like to note that I mean that they spend more hours at school and home STUDYING."

African Countries Create Their Own Security Council

After trying different ways to bring cohesion to the continent, the African Union has created its own security institution, named the Peace and Security Council (hat tip: BlackElectorate.com). The AU recently received the signatures of 53 of its member states in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where the last eight presidents from Central Africa and another three from West Africa also signed in favor of the new council being included in the organization's constitution. The PSC's creation followed meetings about peace and African responsibility in July 2003, the establishment of the African Court for Human Rights in January 2004, and the creation of the Pan African Parliament in March 2004. The institution will deal with matters such as peace, conflict prevention, military invasions, investigation of war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. Differences between PSC and the United Nations Security Council membership are that PSC members are elected, their positions are not permanent, and there is no veto right.

Lakoff's Small Victory In Education

Eduwonk.com, a moderate-liberal Democratic website on educational policy issues, writes about state reports of state tests and whether schools made adequate yearly progress: "First, the media often does a lousy job of unpacking these figures so they make sense for the average person. Assuming that a sufficient number of students took the assessments, then whether or not a school made AYP depends on several things notably the test used, what the cut score to be 'proficient' is, and what percent of students in a particular school must score proficient in order for the school to make AYP (for instance, in some states its as few as about one in three while in others it's as much as seven in ten).....This story from today's Wash. Post is instructive. According to the Post, offering parents public school choice or tutoring constitutes 'penalties.' They don't arrive at that verbiage by accident, Virginia and many other states, too, refer to 'sanctions' and 'penalties' for schools and it's the common way the issue is framed. The media is merely, albeit uncritically, passing along a cue. But, it's a cue rooted in the dubious assumption that the schools exist as an institution of their own right rather than one intended to serve students and parents."