Free In Idaho!

I have already mentioned the Idaho Dems going out of their way to ensure just the right mix of, er, skin tones, ancestry, and persuasions represented in the delegates they chose to send to their convention in Denver later this summer.  But that isn’t bad, because, after all, Barack The Sinless Obama has been known to shuffle the members of his audience now and again, to get the “right mix for the camera”.

So is it any wonder the Democrat National Committee is sparing no expense, or browsweat, to bring before the cameras in August a convention that promises to be the biggest “green” spectacle ever seen?  Yes, even dwarfing the Live Earth concerts, or so they can hope.  Proving to the world that they truly believe they are better than everyone else when it comes to righteous living, and how devoted they are to Mother Earth.  From the Wall Street Journal this morning (warning on content: we’re rating this one S for Spewing, H for Hurling)

DENVER — As the Mile High City gears up to host a Democratic bash for 50,000, organizers are discovering the perils of trying to stage a political spectacle that’s also politically correct.

Consider the fanny packs.

The host committee for the Democratic National Convention wanted 15,000 fanny packs for volunteers. But they had to be made of organic cotton. By unionized labor. In the USA.

Official merchandiser Bob DeMasse scoured the country. His weary conclusion: “That just doesn’t exist.”

Ditto for the baseball caps. “We have a union cap or an organic cap,” Mr. DeMasse says. “But we don’t have a union-organic offering.”

Much of the hand-wringing can be blamed on Denver’s Democratic mayor, John Hickenlooper, who challenged his party and his city to “make this the greenest convention in the history of the planet.”

This whole story is astonishing to me.  This is the party that promised to straighten out Washington two years ago, to bring us a heightened standard of ethics,  to fix the economy, end the war, bring us an energy plan, give us health care, rescue the environment, and make us all love government again, especially really BIG government.  But then, just like the apologists for the failure of communism and socialism keep trying to tell us, they haven’t really failed to deliver these things, they just don’t have the right people in power yet.  But you just watch, once we have Barack The Sinless Obama as our President, things are going to be just ducky.  And you just need to look at our convention to know how serious we are.

There will be special food, special balloons, special hats and fanny packs.  Why, it’s going to have a carbon footprint so low you’ll need a bloodhound to find it.  There will even be garbage can monitors, just like in grade school, to make sure nobody lets a fork get into the wrong trash stream.  Don’t believe me?  It gets better.  Keep reading

To test whether celebratory balloons advertised as biodegradable actually will decompose, Ms. Robinson buried samples in a steaming compost heap. She hired an Official Carbon Adviser, who will measure the greenhouse-gas emissions of every placard, every plane trip, every appetizer prepared and every coffee cup tossed. The Democrats hope to pay penance for those emissions by investing in renewable energy projects.

A Carbon Advisor?  Really?  Oh my, they’re really serious.  They’re so serious they are even going to buy some of AlGore’s carbon credits, “to pay penance for those emissions”.  You know, something about that reminds of Martin Luther, Wittenberg, indulgences… but that might just be me.  But I can’t help but wonder, if He Who Must Not Be Made Fun Of is actually elected, how soon before each of our cities gets a Carbon Advisor?  Maybe that’s what they plan to do with all those extra BATF agents they won’t need after we all turn in our guns?  Carbon Advisors and Waste Stream Monitors…

We’ve already had enough religion mixed into this campaign, especially on the Democrat side of late, but I remember a passage that seems to apply here.  Yes, Barack The Preacher Obama is wrong, some of us are reading our Bibles, not just clinging to them.  So Barry, and you in the hope change choir, ponder on this for a bit, see if anything comes to you.  It’s from The Sermon on the Mount, one of the items you’ve preached at us about.

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. “

Hypocrites.

It’s not about the best person for the job, it’s about quotas.  That is the message from the Democrat Party in 2008.  If the recent primary struggles weren’t enough proof, how about looking at the Idaho State Democrat Convention?  This is the delegation selected to go to Denver later this summer, as reported in the Idaho Statesman this morning.

The 23-member delegation includes five African-Americans, three Native Americans, a Hispanic, an Asian, a gay man and a lesbian woman - all categories in party affirmative-action goals. Hispanics are Idaho’s largest minority group, with 9.8 percent of the population; Native Americans represent 1.4 percent, Asians 1.2 percent and African-Americans 0.8 percent.

Former Democratic National Committee member John Greenfield lost his chance to be a national delegate because a coin toss determined the slot he had campaigned for must go to a woman. Party rules require an equal split between genders.

But Greenfield, a 64-year-old Boise lawyer, said it’s time for older, white men to defer power. “It’s the healthiest thing that ever happened to this party.”

Eight of the delegates are under 35, exceeding the party goal of six in that category. A new group, Idaho Young Democrats, had about 50 of the 332 delegates at the convention.

Affirmative action goals, eh?  Not proportional representation, not the most qualified, not luck of the draw, or who spent the most money, or even who did the best job working for the goal… these folks were hand picked to fit the special interest group/”victim” list mentality the Democrat Party has worked so hard establishing in America today.  Quotas.  There is no difference between picking a person because of their skincolor/gender/sexual orientation or whatever, than there is in denying another person for the same reason.  Would that they would work so hard to pick the best, rather than the most diverse. 

By the way, give the Statesman credit for quietly pointing out

Hispanics are Idaho’s largest minority group, with 9.8 percent of the population; Native Americans represent 1.4 percent, Asians 1.2 percent and African-Americans 0.8 percent.

So we’re not even doing actual proportions here, but politically correct proportions.  Other demographics include women 49.6 percent, which they’ve got covered, and whites 95.2, which they’re doing all they can to ignore, since getting rid of old white guys in the Idaho Democrat Party has been one of the stated goals as well.  No word in the Statesman concerning the number of Sierra Club members, teachers, or lawyers in the delegation.  You go, Dems.

Because if we weren’t having glowball warming, it might be snowing down here in the valley, instead of just up in the mountains.  Here are a couple of highway cam shots from this afternoon, one from Washington state, and one from Oregon.   It’s also snowing at Brundage, a ski area about 2 hours north of us, but the system that is bringing this stuff hasn’t really gotten us here in SW Idaho.  But today, instead of temps in the 80’s here, we’re struggling to hit 60 and there is a 30 mph “breeze” blowing.

Too bad B…S… isn’t an energy source, we’d have been independent a long time ago.

Speaking of the war Islam is raging against the West, have you been paying attention to the uproar over pigs and pork, and what some communities are doing about it?  If this doesn’t get your blood up, you’re dead, or worse…

The practice of political correctness may soon be tallying another casualty: the pig. Increasingly, as America and the rest of the Western world continue accommodating Muslim religious demands, pork food products are being singled out for removal from dining tables and pig-related trinkets banished from the desks of office workers.
If this continues, good ol’ American food, such as barbeque replete with hot dogs and ribs and the typical American breakfast of eggs, bacon and sausage, might be seen as the equivalent of political poison. Could outright censorship of pig depictions in drawings, pig references in literary works and pig portrayals in movies be far behind? Could the well-known, cartoon figure Porky Pig become a cultural embarrassment of our unenlightened past as we fear to utter the “P” word?

Political correctness taken to absurd lengths. The abolishment of free practice of religion. Surrendering the public square to the invaders. Do you think I’m exaggerating? Consider this

In October of 2005, the United Kingdom, clearly further along on the road to dhimmitude due to its proportionally large and more radical Muslim population, banned piggybanks as promotional gifts from its banks. At about the same time, government social welfare offices called for the removal of all pig paraphernalia, including pig calendars, toys and accessories from employee desks.

Oh, you say, that’s in Europe, that’s in Britain. They’re hopeless, but it’ll never happen here. I’ll bet you a pork chop sandwich we’ve got the same problem here in America. Don’t believe me? Try these on for size

Meanwhile, in the United States in 2007, several school districts removed pork products from their cafeteria offerings. Dearborn, Mich., schools banned pork completely to avoid the possibility that Muslims students might unknowingly eat it. The district later added special halal foods to its menu to cater to the demands of its Muslim population. An elementary school in San Diego that offers Arabic, single-gender classes and Muslim-only organized prayer, no longer offers pork to any of its students. And in Oak Lawn, Ill., where the administration is debating elimination of Christmas holiday celebrations, pork has already been banished from the school lunchroom.

That’s only the schools, you say? You just bought me another sandwich

Last year, Somali Muslim employees at a St. Louis Park, Minn. Target store refused to handle pork products, citing religious reasons. Target made special allowances for Muslim employees, who now scrutinize customer purchases and can call for assistance when a pork product appears at their check stand. Presumably, the Muslim employees knew they would be encountering bacon and pepperoni pizza when they signed on for their jobs and have no problem collecting a salary paid out of profits from pork sales.

Cabbies refusing patrons with alcohol or service dogs fit into this story too. The West has got to grow a spine here real soon, because this is not about being tolerant of someone else’s beliefs, it’s about handing over liberty and giving up. Pay attention here folks… “first, it was only in Michigan, and we laughed. Then it happened in Minneapolis, but I didn’t know anyone there, and I thought they were kinda wimpy, so hey, that’s their problem. Then it started happening in Seattle. It’s a little late to do anything about it now, isn’t it? But you know, my sister looks kinda good in that berka.”

Another loony symbolism over substance display, this time from the Gaia worshippers trying to raise our consciousness about global warming and reducing our carbon footprints

 (CNSNews.com) - Millions of people around the world are expected to turn off their lights for an hour over this weekend in a concerted global dimming campaign meant to draw attention to climate change. “Earth Hour,” an initiative of the World Wildlife Fund, begins in New Zealand at 8 PM local time Saturday, and then moves westward as cities in other time zones reach that hour. In Sydney, Australia — where the campaign debuted last year — municipal authorities have agreed to turn out lights on the city’s iconic Harbor Bridge and Opera House.

Give me a break.  The whole carbon footprint/carbon offsets deal is a scam of ridiculous proportions, but you can count on the usual folks to get behind this one

This year the initiative has been expanded, and 27 “partner cities” are named on the campaign’s Web site, including Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco and Phoenix.

The usual suspects, indeed.  And of course, the other usual suspects are calling BS on the whole thing, and calling for counter-measures

Bloggers skeptical about theories of human-induced global warming are promoting a counter-campaign, urging people to use as many lights and as much electrical equipment as they wish during the targeted time period.

Me…skeptical?  Full glow here boss.

A bit back I mentioned that an Idaho State Senator who had submitted legislation that could have opened the way to licensed concealed carry on Idaho campuses was strongarmed by the Republican Governor and the university administrators into pulling his bill.

So, what have the universities come up with that they think is better for protecting the boys and girls on the campuses of Idaho?  Here’s a list from this morning’s Boise paper

Boise State University has beefed up security following the Virginia Tech shootings, here is how:

• Outfitted the bell tower atop the administration building with a public address system that can notify people of emergencies.
• Created an instant-messaging system that splashes warning or emergency information on all campus-linked computers.
• Increased the number of blue-light emergency kiosks where people can call campus security.  Additional kiosks are near new parking garages and elsewhere on campus.
• Contracted with the Department of Homeland Security to conduct a threat analysis at BSU.
• Is considering creating an administrative-level job of security chief to heighten the importance of security.

College of Idaho has:

• Installed a siren on campus for use in life-threatening emergencies.
• Will notify students of emergencies by voice mail or text messaging on their cell phone.

A PA system in the tower?  A siren?  Blue light kiosks and another big title, salaried desk job?  And text messages on my cell phone? 

shooter run away

or maybe

kiz az gbye

Ok, fine.  We feel so good now.  We are enlightened, and oh so much more civilized than the bubbas who think we should all be carrying guns.  We can study in complete safety, protected in the “gun free zone”, surrounded by PA systems, sirens, Homeland Security threat evaluations, and knowing deep in my heart that my phone will instantly alert me with a text message to the fact that some suicidal nutcase just walked into my lecture hall and is shooting at me.  Peace Love Dove, man.

I find it interesting that this was the sidebar piece in the printed edition to this article that essentially says the whole text message idea is not being well received by college students.  No!  You mean, the kids aren’t buying the BS?  Well, good for them!  Now if we could only get them to take the next step, which is realizing that THEY are responsible for their own protection and self defense.  Not the Governor, not the University President, or Campus Security, or the Boise City PD… in the best of all worlds, the cops are minutes away, often more.  To think that the Governor and the college administrators can somehow protect the campus from armed wackos with a bunch of lowtech nonsense and text messaging is pompous absurdity at best, and criminally negligent at worst.  I wonder how they’ll do if a couple of bereaved families decide to file a civil lawsuit against one of these colleges after a shooting?  Any guesses?

Unarmed students in “gun free zones” are helpless sitting ducks.  Armed citizens are not.  When will we as a society decide to take the steps that will allow ALL citizens, students and teachers alike, to make the personal decision to no longer be helpless sheep, and to take their own defense into their own hands?  How much different would the outcome be in that Utah mall, or the Colorado church, or in yesterday’s Israeli yeshiva attack, if there had not been an armed and trained sheepdog close by, ready, willing, and able to take down the shooters?  Think about it… what makes more sense during a shooting, reaching into your bag for a weapon to defend yourself, or for your cell phone to take a text message from your bff Butch?  Just asking.

I did not expect to wake up and read anything like this today, although I’m wondering why I am surprised.

BOSTON — Harvard University has banned men from one of its gyms for a few hours a week, a move to accomodate Muslim women who, for religious and cultural reasons, cannot exercise comfortably in their presence.

We’ve seen this in Europe, Canada, and in Michigan.  But Harvard?  There is a line here, but I’m not quite certain where it is yet, and I’m not sure this is it. 

Student Ola Aljawhary, who is Muslim and works out elsewhere on campus but is not one of the women who requested the change, rejected that argument.

“The majority should be willing to compromise,” she said. “I think that’s just basic courtesy. We must show tolerance and respect for all others.”

I agree, as far as that goes.  But I think the question most of us are asking now is, does this go both ways?  The university is trying to spin it as a commonplace arrangement.

The trial policy went into effect Feb. 4, about a month after a group of six Muslim women, with the support of the Harvard College Women’s Center, asked the university for the special hours, spokesman Robert Mitchell said.

“We get special requests from religious groups all the time and we try to honor them whenever possible,” he said, noting that the school has designated spaces for Muslim and Hindu students to pray.

I wonder if it is permissible for women of any faith to work out during those hours?  I wonder if a group of Campus Crusade for Christ men asked Harvard for special gym hours, would they be accomodated as well?  And I’m deeply suspicious when an article like this goes to Ibrahim Hooper of CAIR, which has only a few more members than the women’s workout group at Harvard, in order to obtain a quote, and giving him another opportunity to point out to us all how evil, bigoted, and stupid we all are.

Harvard’s policy is no different from commercial gyms that cater partially or even exclusively to women, said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations.

“The Muslim bashers portray it as the world coming to end, but if women have a couple hours a week to work out in private, I don’t see it as a major issue,” he said.

If one of our local Boise Muslim teachers had said this, I might be inclined to accept that statement on its face, and wish the Muslim coeds a hearty “you go girl”.   But we’ve all watched Ibrahim and CAIR for years, and his determination of what is and is not a “major issue” is itself a major issue.  Just the fact that he has a hand on this leads me to believe this story is more closely similar to the flying imams type of situation than it is to a few Muslim college girls worried about staying in shape.  Ibrahim Hooper’s goals are not about defending poor misunderstood Muslims from being mistreated by ignorant American bigots. The goal of CAIR is to change American society, always pointing it towards Islam. Pay attention America… you will never go far wrong being suspicious of anything Ibrahim Hooper and CAIR get involved in.  Wake up Harvard, and don’t be conned.

The ridiculous lengths that all of these debates have gone to to control the content and message is no more clearly seen than this exchange between the moderator of yesterday’s Republican debate (Michelle calls her The Schoolmarm).  Fred isn’t going to take this woman’s PC BS, and he says so.  Good job Fred!  And BTW Mitt, you sound like an idiot, jumping on Fred’s bumper as he pulls out in front of the rest of you on this one.  Hop on over to Michelle’s after this, and read her take on how many of the GOP candidates have been drinking AlGore’s koolaid.

video by Right Wing News

Shame on you, you pansies at Boise State University!  I thought this candy assed leftist crap happened in other colleges, but not here in Idaho.  I guess I was wrong.  The students here are just as coddled, and just as ignorant as every place else, I guess.

..Boise State University has turned down a request from veterans for a 21-gun salute on campus Monday to mark Veterans Day, saying it might scare bystanders still spooked by school shootings in other states.

Six BSU students and alumni have given their lives for the rest of us in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Monday is Veterans Day, and the Vet services department on campus had asked for a 21 gun salute as part of the flag raising ceremony scheduled for 12:30.  A bugler is also scheduled.  I certainly hope that doesn’t upset the sensitive children.

.. “having a 21-gun salute in today’s environment in the middle of classes didn’t seem to be an appropriate way to celebrate” Veterans Day, BSU spokesman Frank Zang said. He cited a student shooting rampage at Virginia Tech University last April that killed 33, including the gunman, and said students and staff might not realize gunshots are part of a ceremony and are safe.

“Gunfire on campus in the middle of the day would not be prudent or appropriate for safety and security,” Zang said.

This is not a safe world.  “Just say no to guns” doesn’t make it safer.  These are American kids, for crying out loud!  They know what Veterens Day is, and they know what a 21 gun salute is.  And those six who took up arms and laid down their lives for YOU and for me should be honored, as all our vets will be on that day.  And YOU, and I, need to be reminded just what it was they did for us.  Don’t take that away from them.  Don’t take it away from us.

Cowards.  Shame on you.

UPDATE: I just heard on the TV news that after a long day of talking about it, BSU has decided to allow a 21 gun salute at the stadium.  Much better!

Eminent domain..government taking of private property for the public good.  Don’t get me started.  But!  This article was too good to pass up, so I have to pass it along.  And the fact that this story can generate any traction at all says a lot about San Francisco.  So, without further ado, from the Perverts Republic of San Francisco, comes this

[San Francisco, CA] They wouldn’t sell at any price.  Now it doesn’t matter.  After four generations of Davidsons owning Orchards by the Bay, one of the few farms within San Francisco city limits stands to be seized under eminent domain… because San Francisco needs a steady supply of marijuana.

Eminent domain detractors say this is one of the most outrageous examples of the abuse of this long-standing law, which allows government to seize private property for public use or in recent years, if they deem it ‘for the public good’.   The fact that government officials plan to grow 400 acres of pot where walnut trees once stood is simply adding insult to injury.

“Don’t think for a moment that this is for public use,” says Grant Dennis, director of The Private Property Front, a Los Angeles based coalition of attorneys who work pro-bono in fighting eminent domain abuse.  “This is about someone pushing their pro-marijuana agenda, and using the livelihoods of innocent citizens to accomplish it.”

Not true, says San Francisco city councilman Ted Brenner.  Brenner claims that the Davidsons were offered fair market value for Orchards by the Bay, but refused to sell. 

“They were stubborn, so they get what they get, which is half that,” he says.

Read the whole thing. This site is a serious resource, I might have to blogroll it.