Somebody Page Dr. Phil -- The Democratic Party Needs Some Therapy

The next time a liberal mocks me for supporting a party where a number of people don't believe in evolution, I plan to cite this report for the proposition that a good chunk of the Democratic Party are friggin' lunatics...

Democrats in America are evenly divided on the question of whether George W. Bush knew about the 9/11 terrorist attacks in advance. Thirty-five percent (35%) of Democrats believe he did know, 39% say he did not know, and 26% are not sure.

I suppose I should take some solace that the Democratic efforts to launch impeachment inquiries against the President focus on his "lies" regarding Iraq, rather than this dubious proposition (although Mark Steyn noted that at least one Democratic presidential contender may be taking the idea of a conspiracy regarding the collapse of WTC7 seriously). And this does go a long way toward explaining Dr. Demento, Howard Dean. But in the end, I'm slowly coming around to the view that a large number of Democratic voters need the assistance of mental health professionals. No wonder they're freaked out by Karl Rove -- of course he's an evil genius. Compared to these idiots, Towlie from South Park is a genius.

Random Movie Quote of the Day

Like all American males, I love being able to quote ad nauseum from popular movies. I figured I should share whenever a random quote pops into my head.

I'm getting primed for Vegas. Hence, I think of one movie -- Swingers, the 1996 classic that made Vince Vaughn a star and made many of think of moving to L.A. to live in small apartments and pursue showbiz careers while hanging out with beuatiful people. Of course, I resisted said urge and went to law school. Remind me to beat my head against a wall later.

Seriously, Swingers is a movie that hasn't aged all that well -- maybe it was just perfect to be watched at that time, when I was leaving college. In any case, some quotes stand the test of time. Like this discussion on the car ride to Vegas between Double-Down and Mikey...

Trent: They're gonna give daddy the Rainman suite, you dig that?
Mike: Do you think we'll get there by midnight?
Trent: Baby, we're going to be up five hundy by midnight!
Mike: Yeeeeaaaaahhhhhh!
Trent: Vegas baby! Vegas!
Mike: Vegas!

Vegas, baby, Vegas.

This has been your Random Movie Quote of the Day.

The World Bank Coup?

The Paul Wolfowitz scandal at the World Bank has been the subject of seemingly endless one-sided coverage. The Wall Street Journal focuses on the other side today...

Mark Malloch Brown spoke Monday to a crowded auditorium at the World Bank's headquarters, warning that the bank's mission was "hugely at risk" as long as Paul Wolfowitz remained its president. Only hours earlier, news leaked that a special committee investigating Mr. Wolfowitz had accused him of violating conflict-of-interest rules. A coincidence? We doubt it.

Mr. Malloch Brown, remember, was until last year Kofi Annan's deputy at the United Nations. In that position, he distinguished himself by spinning away the $100 billion Oil for Food scandal as little more than a blip in the U.N.'s good work, and one that had little to do with Mr. Annan himself. Last week, Mr. Malloch Brown was named vice president of the Quantum Fund, the hedge fund run by his billionaire friend George Soros. A former World Bank official himself and ally of soon-to-be British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Mr. Malloch Brown would almost surely be a leading candidate to replace Mr. Wolfowitz should he step down. Not surprisingly, Gordon Brown cold-shouldered Mr. Wolfowitz at a recent meeting in Brussels.

The bank presidency would be a neat coup for Sir Mark, and not just because the post has heretofore gone to an American. He also stands for everything Mr. Wolfowitz opposes, beginning with the issue of corruption. Consider Mr. Malloch Brown's defense of the U.N.'s procurement practices.

"Not a penny was lost from the organization," he insisted last year, following an audit of the U.N.'s peacekeeping procurement by its Office of Internal Oversight Services. In fact, the office found that $7 million had been lost from overpayment; $50 million worth of contracts showed indications of bid rigging; $61 million had bypassed U.N. rules; $82 million had been lost to mismanagement; and $110 million had "insufficient" justification. That's $310 million out of a budget of $1.6 billion, and who knows what the auditors missed.

Mr. Malloch Brown also made curious use of English by insisting that Paul Volcker's investigation into Oil for Food had "fully exonerated" Mr. Annan. In fact, Mr. Volcker's report made an "adverse finding" against the then-Secretary-General. Among other details, the final report noted that Mr. Annan was "aware of [Saddam's] kickback scheme at least as early as February 2001," yet never reported it to the U.N. Security Council, much less the public, a clear breach of his fiduciary responsibilities as the U.N.'s chief administrative officer. Mr. Malloch Brown described the idea that Mr. Annan might resign as "inappropriate political assassination"--a standard he apparently doesn't apply to political enemies like Mr. Wolfowitz.

What's even more perturbing to me is that the same corrupt figures float through these multi-national organizations accruing power and answering only to one another. At least we elect the crooks who end up in Congress.

What Annoying Song is Stuck in My Head Today?

If I need to suffer with a song stuck in my head, why shouldn't you have to do the same? Sometimes they're good, most times they're bad... but no matter what, they make you suffer. So I like to share the suffering whenever it happens.

Blame this on Steve Czaban's radio show, which has a segment where they replay a popular 80's song to see if the host can guess the name and artist. I'd forgotten about this song, and now I want to go home and watch The Karate Kid again.

Here's Joe Esposito, with "You're The Best"...

Gun Rights

Andrew Sullivan asked why gun-owners don't want their names published in the newspaper, essentially asking why anyone would be ashamed of exercising their civil rights. I was stunned enough by the question to wonder if he was making some elaborate joke. Apparently, he was not -- he was legitimately curious.

In case you weren't following the story, this began when the Tennessean constructed a searchable database of registered concealed-carry permit holders. Odd to say the least -- I wasn't aware that the public in Tennessee was clamoring for such information. In any case, Instapundit had a solid response to Andrew's question, by pointing out the positive externalities in not knowing who has a gun (if you're a burglar, the Tennesseean's list was like a roadmap of houses to avoid) and in the fact that there is a legitimate privacy interest of the owners of such permits. If they want to make the public aware of their right to carry, that's their business, but it probably should not be open knowledge. or as he noted:

If abortion is a civil right, why would anyone object to having a newspaper publish a searchable database of people who've had one?

Eugene Volokh and Dave Kopel at Volokh made the same points and added some more, including the societal interest in keeping secret the location on domestic abuse victims with permits out of a reasonable fear for their safety (Kopel also notes that retired police officers may be subject to threats as well).

Give Sullivan credit for responding when questioned, and acknowledging the accurate points made by the aforementioned people. But then there's his end point, which rankled me to no end...

Glenn Reynolds argues that the important thing is keeping people guessing about who has a gun or not. Fair enough. But I'm not that impressed by wusses who don't want to be ostracized by liberal elites at their neighborhood barbecues. Isn't that part of the point of owning a gun - pissing off liberals?

Sullivan openly acknowledges that he's gay, so I find his statement somewhat disconcerting. This isn't quite like asking Sullivan if he's out of the closet to piss off bigoted neighbors, but it's somewhat close.In both instances, we're talking about private information -- if Andrew wants to tell someone he's gay, that's his business. I don't necessarily think that people should be in the closet about their sexuality, but that's their business, and I certainly understand why they might want to keep it a secret.

Owning a gun doesn't lead to the same level of ostracism (since I don't own one, I can't testify to whether it occurs or not), but no one enjoys being ostracized in their own community, either. Contrary to popular belief, most conservatives get tired of having to defend themselves against the other side's beliefs, whether well-intentioned or ignorant. I suspect the same is true of gun-owners. While it's always fun to annoy the self-righteous liberals whom I live amongst, they are my neighbors, and it's easier to live your life with neighbors who consider you an oddball conservative Republican rather than that crazy gun-toting rube. Heck, at times I'd rather not be known as the oddball conservative Republican.

Random Movie Quote of the Day

Like all American males, I love being able to quote ad nauseum from popular movies. I figured I should share whenever a random quote pops into my head.

Hey, it's a new feature. And considering the scarcity of my posts, it may be a one-time feature. But it's fun all the same.

This one's from The Rock, the 1996 action flick from Bruckheimer and Simpson that starred Nick Cage and Sean Connery as unlikely partners forced to join a commando raid on Alcatraz to stop a checmical weapons attack on the Bay Area by disaffected soldiers also holding tourists as hostages. The plot of the movie, like the plot of any Bruckheimer movie, is ludicrous in the extreme, but that's part of the fun. In fact, part of the reason to have this feature is to enjoy the brilliantly absurd quotes from Bruckheimer's productions. Part of me dreams of the day that David Caruso stars in a Bruckheimer flick, if only to see over-acting and absurd dialogue brought together at their highest levels.

Anyway, let's set the scene. As Cage's FBI chemical expert Stanley Goodspeed joins Connery's SAS mercenary John Mason on a raid on the morgue where the chemical weapons are stored, Mason tries to make sure Goodspeed is ready...

John Mason: Are you sure you're ready for this?
Stanley Goodspeed: I'll do my best.
John Mason: Your "best"! Losers always whine about their best. Winners go home and fuck the prom queen.
Stanley Goodspeed: Carla was the prom queen.
John Mason: Really?
Stanley Goodspeed: [cocks his gun] Yeah.

Mason's advice might well be considered words to live by.

This has been your Random Movie Quote of the Day.

Obama's Fuzzy Math and Sebelius' Dirty Politics

Maybe the strain of campaigning is getting to Senator Obama...

Barack Obama, caught up in the fervor of a campaign speech Tuesday, drastically overstated the Kansas tornadoes death toll, saying 10,000 had died. The death toll was 12.

"In case you missed it, this week, there was a tragedy in Kansas. Ten thousand people died - an entire town destroyed," the Democratic presidential candidate said in a speech to 500 people packed into a sweltering Richmond art studio for a fundraiser.

Obama mentioned the disaster in Greensburg, Kan., in saying he had been told by the office of Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius that the state's National Guard had been depleted by its commitment to the Iraq War.

"Turns out that the National Guard in Kansas only had 40 percent of its equipment and they are having to slow down the recovery process in Kansas," Obama said, his shirt sleeves rolled up and his head glistening with sweat.

As the Illinois senator concluded his remarks a few minutes later, he appeared to realize his gaffe.

"There are going to be times when I get tired," he said. "There are going to be times when I get weary. There are going to be times when I make mistakes."

Obama spokesman Bill Burton said later that the senator meant to say "at least 10," instead of 10,000.

During his speech, Obama stirred the crowd as he often does by skewering President Bush over the unpopular war and noting that he opposed it from the outset.

"How could we have been involved in a war that never should have been authorized, that has already cost us half a trillion dollars," Obama said.

To be perfectly honest, I don't care that Obama misstated the number -- mistakes happen, although I'm convinced that if he had gone with 100 people, no one in the media would have pushed him on it. I'm also not going to get into the specifics of a campaign that parrots the Democrats' decision to push forth the "Iraq War was a mistake, so let's pull out" theme with absolutely no constructive explanation of how that helps the national security of the United States (to be fair, I think Biden and Richardson have tried to be more pro-active on this point).

No, the bigger story is Gov. Sebelius' claims that Kansas lacked equipment because of the Iraq War and the federal response to help in Greenburg was mismanaged. Denis Boyles explodes the idea in this article...

Greensburg was not a huge metropolis. Three thousand yards would have taken you from one end of town to the other, easily. So, using whatever was at hand, in a few hours the streets were open for emergency vehicles — which, in small-town parlance, means not only ambulances and fire trucks from other small towns, but also an armada of pick-ups, tractors, dozers, loaders, and heavy trucks owned by practically everyone within a 50-mile radius. After all, this is a part of the world where most people commute to work on a big machine that beeps when it goes backwards.

The next day, the state’s Republican U.S. Senator, Pat Roberts, along with two local congressmen, were on the scene, surveying the destruction and reporting back on what they were seeing. On Sunday evening, two full days after the disaster, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius made her appearance.

During that two-day period, two things happened that changed the story from one of small-town heroism to one about the Bush administration and the war in Iraq. In Greensburg, outside civilian help was kept out by emergency management teams — perhaps accounting for the “unmistakable emptiness in Greensburg, a lack of heavy machinery and an army of responders” reported this morning by the New York Times.

Kansas legislators started getting complaining phone calls from area residents and from people who wanted to help, but were being kept away, even as Sebelius was telling reporters, “As you travel around Greensburg, you’ll see the city and county trucks have been destroyed.” (Not that the village of Greensburg had a lot of trucks to begin with).

Melvin Neufeld, the Speaker of the Kansas house — and also a farmer from Ingalls, another small town about an hour northwest of Greensburg — explained what he thought accounted for that “unmistakable emptiness” reported by the Times: “We had people there, people who had been doing the work and other people who wanted to be included. That’s how we do things here. We don’t wait for the government. We just get the job done. But all those people were kept out.”

Now, one might argue that, despite the way Midwesterners have always successfully responded to these calamities in the past, there are acceptable, safety-inspired reasons for keeping civilians out of a civil-emergency area. Less certain is the reasoning behind the other thing that happened during that two-day period of “unmistakable emptiness.” While Roberts and the congressmen were on the scene, and while people were waiting to get back in to reclaim whatever they could of their broken lives, the governor’s office in Topeka was busy changing the story.

As the Topeka Capital-Journal’s Ric Anderson writes this morning, “Sebelius works without a carefully crafted game plan about as often as Ashton Kutcher finishes a novel. She’s calculating and cautious, which is a big part of why she’s won two terms as governor in a Republican state.” It took a couple of days, but finally Sebelius released a statement claiming that relief efforts in Greensburg were being hampered by the absence of state National Guard equipment. It had been taken to fight the war in Iraq.

... By Monday morning, the Greensburg story had a new hook, one that played much more comfortably in the national media. It wasn’t about those resilient Kansans, after all. It was about Bush and Iraq. When the A.M. talk shows went on the air, Sebelius was ready. “[Having Guard equipment in Iraq] is a huge issue,” she told Fox’s Steve Doocy. “We’re missing Humvees, frontloaders, and dumptrucks.” And, she added, she couldn’t ask for help from neighboring states, because their stuff was in Iraq, too. Her closer: “We need those assets back in the United States.”

... The press has run with this story, of course. The Katrina effect — exploiting a natural disaster for political gain — is irresistible, and for Harry Reid and anyone else who needs a good attack bite, Greensburg will do. By Tuesday, according to the AP, Barack Obama was blaming Bush and Iraq for the death of 10,000 people in Greensburg. Today, it’s on the front page of the New York Times, right where Sebelius apparently wanted it to be: “The emergency response was too slow,” the Times reports her saying, “and there was only one reason.”

But, say Kansans like Neufeld, there are troubling questions that should be asked. First, if the governor thought there was going to be a delay, or if she felt she needed more equipment, why didn’t she ask for it Saturday?

“All she had to do was ask,” the Defense Department’s Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke told me. “We can’t make that decision on our own and start imposing people and equipment on our own. The state has to ask.”

In addition to thousands of available Guard personnel, Krenke said, there’s enough heavy equipment available to Sebelius to turn tiny Greensburg into a heavy-equipment parking lot — including more than 350 Humvees, hundreds of trucks, tractors, trailers, and other pieces of heavy machinery — along with thousands more sitting parked in neighboring states.

“It’s all there,” Krenke said. “The equipment and people are available and a process is in place for getting it. But they haven’t chosen to use it.” The adjutant-general of the Kansas National Guard is working with Washington, Krenke said. “He should be advising her of all this.” The adjutant-general’s press officer didn’t respond to a request for a comment.

But the governor’s office did. Last night I asked, if equipment is the problem, and the equipment is there for the asking, how does the war in Iraq “slow down and hamper the recovery” effort in Greensburg? And why hadn’t the governor taken those two days to ask for help, if she thought she needed it? Her spokesman first disputed that she had meant Greensburg, specifically, but when pressed, he said simply, “We’ll get back to you.” An hour or so later, the governor’s office released a statement backing down a little. It wasn’t about getting help quickly to little Greensburg, after all.

... In Greensburg itself, a “slow” relief effort certainly isn’t quite what people are seeing. “I’m very impressed,” Deborah Factor, one of the few homeowners in Greensburg to still have a home, told me by phone yesterday. “There are Guardsmen everywhere — picking up, cleaning up, shoveling stuff. And there’s food everywhere. I have not found one single person from Greensburg with a complaint. We’re grieving our losses, but most of us are grateful for friends and family and glad to be alive.”

... I talked to several other area residents who were unsure why Sebelius had used Greensburg as an excuse to attack the White House. Two state employees spoke to me on condition of anonymity. “Our governor is using this incident to take cheap shots at the war in Iraq,” said one.

The other was more puzzled. “I don’t know why she didn’t ask for help if she needed it,” he said. “That’s her job, isn’t it?”

The whole article's worth the read. Someone should pass it to Senator Obama as well, if he's not too tired to read it.

I'm Sooooooo Disillusioned, Part II

Where do I find friends with private planes? Apparently, if you join Congress, they seem to sprout up and always offer you rides. And who wants to turn down a ride with a friend?

Led by House Ethics Committee chair Stephanie Tubbs Jones, the House of Representatives on Wednesday unanmiously agreed to loosen strict rules on members' acceptance of free airplane rides that were adopted when Democrats took over Congress in January.

The measure, adopted on a May 2 voice vote minutes before the House of Representatives adjourned at 11:59 p.m., was labeled as an effort to "clarify certain matters relating to official conduct" of the House of Representatives.

The change stipulated that members of Congress can fly their own airplanes on official business as well as accept "personal use of an aircraft ... that is supplied by an individual on the basis of personal friendship."

Although House Ethics Committee guidelines list circumstances under which the "personal friendship" designation would apply, Melanie Sloan of the watchdog group Citizens for Responsiblity and Ethics in Washington says the change creates a "huge loophole."

"As long as you call a lobbyist your personal friend, it is apparently OK," says Sloan, who believes the ethics enforcement process is crippled because only members of Congress can file complaints against their colleagues. "I don't see a member filing a complaint against another member for flying on someone's plane, saying they are not really friends."

(hat tip: Instapundit) Good things the Dems are cleaning up Congress. Otherwise, this vote might have been held after midnight instead of just before, and no one would have noticed.

What Annoying Song is Stuck in My Head Today?

If I need to suffer with a song stuck in my head, why shouldn't you have to do the same? Sometimes they're good, most times they're bad... but no matter what, they make you suffer. So I like to share the suffering whenever it happens.

Blame this on the Lord of Truth. I bring up corruption in politics, particularly politicians and the use of jets, and then he has to reference this song. By the way, on the list of questions that I will ask but never seek the answer to, "What happened to the Jets?" will be near the top.

Here are the Jets, with "Crush on You"...