Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy the Turkey Fires!

Well, Happy Thanksgiving folks. Here are some deep friar mishaps brought to you by the folks at underwriter laboratories. Enjoy!

A Defeat That Stings...

Reported oil shortages, high gas prices because of skyrocketing demand, and untapped oil reserves in our own country. Seems to me the equation works itself out quite nicely. While the ANWR oil won't solve any problems, it will alleviate some immediate fears and allow for greater saving of oil, our own oil, the cost of which will undoubtedly be cheaper than shipping it in from overseas.

I simply don't understand how the aesthetic value of an environmental preserve, which serves no other purpose than "being pretty" trumps the social and economic needs of the greatest country in the history of civilization? To top it off, the Grand Ol Party congressmen couldn't even get the moratorium lifted on offshore drilling on the east and west coasts.

The worst part is how large the Republican defection was on this issue:

Twenty-five Republicans, led by Rep. Charles Bass of New Hampshire, signed a letter asking GOP leaders to strike the Alaskan drilling provision from the broader $54 billion budget cut bill.

“Rather then reversing decades of protection for this publicly held land, focusing greater attention on renewable energy sources, alternate fuels, and more efficient systems and appliances would yield more net energy savings than could come from ANWR and would have a higher benefit on the nation’s long-term economic leadership and security,” they said.

The moderates knew they had leverage, given the narrow margin of GOP control of the House. It only takes 14 Republican defections to scuttle a bill, assuming every Democrat opposes it.

Hopefully the Republicans in the Senate can throw a little clout around and get this thing done, finally, for the good of the country instead of cowtowing to the interests of nutty leftists who have twisted the issue into some all-important cause.

Red State Rumor Mill Gets Churning...Justice Sammy Alito?

I don't think they have gotten it right yet, but the folks over at Redstate.org are saying the next nominee will be Samuel Alito, known as Scalito to leftists.

Or, it could possibly be Luttig. Either would be a fantastic choice for the Roberts Court (still love saying it).

Multiple sources are telling RedState that Samuel A. Alito, Jr. of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals will be named by the President at the next associate justice of the United States Supreme Court as early as Monday.

"The situation is still in flux," says one source, "but not very much." Says another, "The White House Counsel's Office is not doing too good at keeping this a secret."

Still another source says, "Luttig and Alito were the fall backs to Miers. They have both been vetted. Alito seems more palatable. There is no need to drag this out, he's been vetted a million times."

Obviously it is still wait and see...

Liberal Pundits: "Abortion Is Murder"

I was reading Jonah Goldberg's piece over at TownHall (newly redesigned I might add) and saw a couple quotes I had not seen before.

And then Bennett offered the infamous hypothetical, saying: "I do know that it's true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could - if that were your sole purpose - you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down. That would be an impossible, ridiculous, and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down."

Now, many of you probably know all of this so far. But some probably do not because you've heard about this second hand. And Democrats and many liberals have been trying to distort what Bennett said. Former DNC chair Terry McAuliffe: "The point he was trying to make, I guess, he said, you know, if you were to go out there and kill the black babies, the crime would go down." Ted Kennedy and a predictably long list of others have called him a racist. Radio host Ed Schultz said: Bennett is "out there advocating the murder of all black babies."

Umm, when did these folks start thinking of fetuses as babies? I am one of the rare people in America who has no solid stance on abortion, I have never felt in a position to say one way or the other and I can see compelling arguments on either side. My problem here is with the unabashed hipocrisy coming from these leftists.

Bennet obviously and explicitly said "abort." He was talking about abortion. And McAuliffe and Ed Schultz (radio host in Dakota or something, syndicated in a few place, I don't blame you if you never heard of him I hadn't until I got XM) immediatley say Bennett was advocating "killing black babies."

So has the left, some of the left, or just these two nutters changed their position on abortion (I have a feeling Schultz may be somewhat pro-life, based on DU rants). Is abortion now "murdering babies?" If it is, doesn't the act of murder trump a woman's right to privacy?

Goldberg touches on this later in the column.

Notice how so many righteously offended liberals keep referring to fetuses as people. In The New York Times, Bob Herbert proclaims that Bennett considers "exterminating blacks would be a most effective crime-fighting tool." Schultz and McAuliffe say Bennett wants to exterminate "babies."

Funny, I thought the bedrock faith of pro-abortion liberals is that fetuses aren't babies. Isn't it interesting how this lynchpin of liberal morality evaporates the moment an opportunity to call Bennett a racist presents itself? Talk about utilitarianism.

I cannot fathom how you can have it both ways? When talking about "aborting black fetuses" liberals call it murder, but when talking about abortion in general, it's a "right to choose." That line is far too fine for me.

Badger Hockey Preview!!

This is my favorite day of the sporting year. I'll be leaving work early to be all looped at a little bar near the Kohl Center with a thousand or so close friends to get ready for the rowdiest most intimate sporting experience you can imagine. Nothing beats a packed arena full of knowledgable fans, knowing exactly what to cheer and when to cheer it, all happening in sync no matter how drunk the fandom might be. With that in mind, here is all you need to know about the upcoming Badger season.





Cap Times Preview

State Journal Preview

USCHO WCHA Preview, Insidecollegehockey.com WCHA preview


My personal analysis? Well, oddly enough the Badgers are ranked 10th in the national preseason poll behind FIVE WCHA teams. However, in the WCHA coaches poll, the Badgers are picked to finish second. Odd things afoot. The Maroon and Mustard Goofers are solid, with a great young class. CC has incredible offensive potential, Denver the same. The Sioux of ND lost some talent but were able to retain a Milwaukee kid named Drew Stafford (who I owned in my day) which will help. The Badgers didn't add a ton but look out for Jack Skille, the guy can play and rumors have it he and Phil Kessel (the filthy traitorous scum bag) despise each other. Should be fun to watch! I think Bucky contends for the title, but finishes second or third in the WCHA.

As promised, here is a must see video. Honestly if you do one thing today, watch this idiot. This is after a game in Minnesota where he muffed two empty netters and basically played a poor game all around. So the teams clear the ice and Hirsch decides he isn't done. Watch and see a mental breakdown happen before your eyes. Screw the Gophers. (By the way, Tyler is fine and was back on the ice a few weeks later).

Are African American Women Inherrantly Racist? Kane seems to think so

I read Eugene Kane's column this morning with a little bit of disbelief. I read through the first three quarters of it and pretty much all he did was bash black men. The column was about how black women don't feel most black men would make suitable husbands or fathers hence they just get knocked up to "fill a void" and distance themselved from the father.

"Before pregnancy, these young women's lives were often spinning out of control, dogged by school failure, struggles with parents and peers, the lure of drugs and alcohol and the omnipresent dangers of their neighborhood streets.

"Into this void comes a baby, bringing a profound sense of meaning and identity."

I wanted to run this theory past someone who has worked extensively with black single mothers.

June Perry, executive director of New Concept Self Development in Milwaukee, a non-profit social service agency that has a variety of programs for low-income families in the African-American community, saw some credibility in the book's views.

"I think most people support marriage if it makes your life better and improves the life of the child," Perry said. "But for many black women, that reality is limited."

Many black women don't have a large pool of candidates for marriage due to social realities, Perry said.

"There's the lack of employment and lack of education among black men, and there's also the incarceration rate," Perry said. "Marriage is great if you have someone who can join your life as a partner, but if he's unemployed or incarcerated, he's probably not going to be there."

Perry said many women want children but resist marriage due to the circumstances of the men in their lives.

According to this specialist black women see black men as unemployable losers or worse, criminals who will not "make thier life better and improve the life of the child."

I was a little struck by the tone of the column, given that if Bill Bennet had made these comments Jesse Jackson would have been calling for his head. But it seems that African American women don't reserve their bigotry for just black men. Nope, according to Kane black women also have some sort of aversion to white men.

Compounding the problem is the fact that black women don't marry outside their race as often as other women do.

Compounding the problem is the fact that black women don't marry outside their race as often as other women do.

Kane doesn't give any facts supporting this, just claims it is so. I decided to write Mr. Kane to see if I could get some follow up (he is usually pretty good about getting back). Here is my letter:

Mr Kane,

I was struck by your most recent article. It seems that the people most inherently averse to African American men are African American women. You write, as a given, that most black women feel that most black men will not improve their lives. I was literally stunned. Do black women really peg black men as uneducated louts or criminals as the following paragraph suggests?

“"I think most people support marriage if it makes your life better and improves the life of the child," Perry said. "But for many black women, that reality is limited."
Many black women don't have a large pool of candidates for marriage due to social realities, Perry said.
"There's the lack of employment and lack of education among black men, and there's also the incarceration rate," Perry said. "Marriage is great if you have someone who can join your life as a partner, but if he's unemployed or incarcerated, he's probably not going to be there."
You have written back to back columns, one condemning Bill Bennet for inferring black people are more likely to be criminals, and the next saying most black men are unintelligent or criminals? I don’t really get it. They seem to be reflections of the same though.

To compound my confusion is your insinuation, without supporting facts, that black women are racist, or at least overly averse to men of other races. You candor is appreciated, but you don’t seem to find these things the least bit strange.

The conclusion I drew from your column is that African American women have children to fill otherwise empty lives “fill a void” and would rather be a single mom than pursue option A. an unemployable black man B. an African American criminal or C. heavens forbid, a white man. I can’t imagine this is the case, and if it is the situation is more bleak than poverty or wedlock babies. Forget changing the attitudes of racists Southerners or condescending white liberals, the attitudes that need to be changed most, from this article, is that of the African American mothers.

If these mothers are assuming black men are no good, that attitude obviously is picked up at one level or another by her children, thus resulting in an almost self perpetuating cycle of disdain for black men in the black community. The female children will share the mothers views and the male children will think of themselves as destined to be no good.

Thanks for you time and the thought provoking column

I'll let you know if I get anything.

I needed that!

Last night was a fantastic night for hockey fans. The stadums were 98% full, scoring was up over 30% (penalties were up 40%) and removing the red line really was a hit.

Here is a fantastic recap of all last night's action. I listened to the Bruins-Haps game for a little while while I was stuck at work and it was great, lawd lawd how I missed it!

An acquaintance of the family notched the first of many (and notched an assist, congrats Zack!)

Great Wisco alum Dany Heatley Q&A (by the way, our boy scored the put away in the first regular season shootout for the Sens!)

I have a treat for you guys tomorrow. I'm gonna post a link to a video that I have gotten a lot of heat over. It is the famous Tyler Hirsch meltdown video. I'll tell more tomorrow, but when I put it up my site meter almost melted and my comment section was loaded with Goofer fans yelling at me to take it down. I'm sorry but with College Hockey just around the corner (FSN 7pm tomorrow night for you unluky enough to not have tickets yet, and there is still a bit of room on the Bucky Badger Bandwagon!) I have to post the video of a kid I know literally losing his mind at the end of a game, especially since he plays for the Maroon and Mustard).

cross posted over at The Wisconsin Sports Bar

Tom DeLay

I have no been following the DeLay scandal and I have no real desire to at this point. Based on the tidbits I've read the thing seemed to start out as a partisan witch hunt, but if it resulted in finding illegal activity then I have no problem throwing the guy in jail.

I do, however, think it is too early to find him guilty, since as far as I know, there is still a little thing called a trial.

Politically speaking, I'm glad it happened now so that it does as little damage as possible. The earlier the better, as it lessens the effects it could potentially have on 06 elections, and basically makes it a dead issue in 08.

I am too young to really remember the leftist equivalent in 94 (i believe) Dan Rostenkowski (?) which ended up killing the dems in that election, but if this had happened a few months later I could definitely see the same results.

I await the fallout with baited breath.

Barak Obama's Black Problem

Last December, barely a month after his election as US Senator, the east coast press devoted reams of paper to the potential First Black President. He was hailed throughout the minority community as a sure thing, a rising star, a can't miss African American. Liberals dream about a candidate like Mr. Obama, eloquent, from average roots, minority, and liberal as Teddy Kennedy. To top it all off, he is from the midwest, young and handsome. There is only one problem;

Barak Obama is colored.


If you read that paragraph in the Washington Monthly you would be rightly stunned. I daresay Jesse Jackson would be shaking the place down with his Rainbow Coalition and Farrakahn would be threatening a black uprising if the Monthly didn't apologize.

Why then is the following paragraph, from Amy Sullivan, acceptible?

Last December, barely a month after Bush's reelection, George Will devoted a column to Romney's potential, and a quick succession of profiles in the Weekly Standard, National Review, and The Atlantic Monthly appeared in the spring. Who could blame them? Romney has had a successful business career (he is known to most Americans as the man who saved the Salt Lake City Olympics). He comes from noble moderate Republican lineage (his father was governor of Michigan). He is attractive (the National Review sighed over his "chiseled handsomeness"). And he grabbed national headlines—and the attention of social conservatives—by standing up to the Massachusetts Supreme Court's legalization of gay marriage. Just as Democrats are always looking for a liberal nominee from a red state, Republicans dream about a candidate like Romney: a social conservative from the most cerulean of blue states who can please the base while not scaring off moderates.

There's only one problem. Romney is a Mormon, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS).

Sucks to suck...

I was talking to my buddy last night about the 2008 Presidential race. I am what I am and he is a slowly moving to the center lefty. I told him, I have no clue who the heck I will vote for, and if McCain is nominated it just may have to be the Democrat (or Pat Buchanan).

Anyway, I told him I assumed a emocrat would win, it just seems to go that way, and he told me he wasn't so sure but that if a lefty doesn't win, "what with all that's been going on" the democrat party is dead. I couldn't agree more. If the Republicans can somehow win in 2008 imagine the shockwave that would send through staunch socialists like Kennedy and Kucinich! It would literally be the stake through the heart of their idiotic ideology.

Jonah Goldberg has a nice column today about how terrible it is to be a democrat, amidst the low approval ratings of a Republican president, and still have absolutely ZERO power:

Of the myriad civic, legal and political lessons to be drawn from Thursday's assured vote to confirm Judge John Roberts as chief justice of the Supreme Court, the most glaring is how much it just plain stinks to be a Democrat these days.

George W. Bush is at his lowest approval level of his presidency, Iraq will not likely be a political winner for the foreseeable future, congressional Republicans are balking at his agenda and, in response, Bush is throwing money out the window as if he's afraid it might catch fire. Yet his thoroughly rich, white male nominee has passed with barely a scratch.

We'll see how weak they really are in a week or so, when the next conservative white male is nominated to associate justice...

Congratulation La Crosse

La Crosse has been named the sixth best Oktoberfest destination in the United States. Pretty impressive for a place that lately has only been in the news because some lunatic parents blamed guys drowning in the river at bar time on a serial killer, and not on the most likely cause, guys falling into a river while taking a leak on their way home from the bars. I've been to La Crosse, I've gotten drunk in La Crosse and I can guaranty one of those scenarios is the correct one.

But I digress, here is what Askmen.com has to say about La Crosse's Oktoberfest Party:

The town of La Crosse began organizing Oktoberfest events in 1961, and over 40 years later, the festivities are better than ever. Famous for its numerous parades, La Crosse's version of Oktoberfest is a light-hearted, relaxing event where friendly people get together to eat the notoriously great bratwurst and down beer as if it were water. Yes, the people of Wisconsin know how to make Oktoberfest their own and 175,000 people gather to experience it with them.

To top it all off, a three-hour Maple Leaf Parade and a Miss La Crosse/Oktoberfest beauty pageant round out the festivities, proving that a visit to La Crosse is worth the trip.

Must-do: See the world's largest six-pack at the City Brewery.

Again, congratulations to all the good folks in the nort'west.

WI Librarians Naked for the Kids?

Seriously, I know sex sells, but northern Wisconsin librarians getting mostly naked for a calendar? That is definitely a new one on me.

The idea for the "Desperate Librarians" 2006 wall calendar came about because Craig Lahm is retiring after 32 years of running Kaukauna's library, and his colleagues in the Outagamie Waupaca Library System wanted to come up with a different kind of gift.

Twelve of them decided they would use photographs of themselves to make a simple calendar that they would print at a Walgreens. But after the librarians took their idea to Countryside Photographers in Seymour, they decided to professionally produce a calendar and sell it as a fund-raiser.

That's when six of the 12 librarians bailed out. But five middle-aged library directors and a 32-year-old assistant each put up $200 and posed provocatively, using oversize books to cover what their clothes usually do.

Proceeds benefit the public libraries in Weyauwega, Clintonville, Marion, Seymour and Manawa as well as Waupaca.

If you ask me, this should NOT have been done...

Porkbusters

I am terribly busy and so I am probably the last to post about this, but it is incredibly important. We all know what Mr. Delay had to say last week about there being "no fat" in the budget. Turns out the blogosphere has mobilized yet again, behind Instapundit and TTLB, to gather a comprehensive and ever expanding list of pork projects listed in searchable fashion here.

This is really fascinating to check out the various projects and how much they actually cost. It seems that so far, all Wisconsin really cares about are bike trails, odd?

Currently, Wisconsin is listed for $37 million in wasteful federal spending.

The site has helpful hints as to how to find pork, how to contact your senators and congressmen, and a list of every representative and their pork busting status; if they have commited to cutting spending or not.

This is the type of thing that bloggers can very successfully accomplish. By firing up enough people, and calling out representatives on individual projects with a loud enough voice, we can more than likely end, if not postpone to brighter days, this frivilous spending.

National Talk Like A Pirate Day

Just an FYI, today is national talk like a pirate day, so avast ye matey's and mind your wenches, many a swashbuckler will be roaming about using the Top Ten Pirate Pickup Lines...

0 . Avast, me proud beauty! Wanna know why my Roger is so Jolly?

9. Have ya ever met a man with a real yardarm?

8. Come on up and see me urchins.

7. Yes, that is a hornpipe in my pocket and I am happy to see you.

6. I'd love to drop anchor in your lagoon.

5. Pardon me, but would ya mind if fired me cannon through your porthole?

4. How'd you like to scrape the barnacles off of me rudder?

3. Ya know, darlin’, I’m 97 percent chum free.

2. Well blow me down?

And the number one pickup line for use on International Talk Like a Pirate Day is …

1. Prepare to be boarded.

Guess the Film

That the following quote came from:

"Marching and heiling, heiling and marching. In him is planted no seed of laughter, hope, tolerance or mercy. For him - only heiling and marching, marching and heiling. The grim years of regimentation have done their work. Now he's a good Nazi. He sees no more than the party wants him to. He says nothing but what the party wants him to say. And he does nothing than what the party wants him to do. And so he marches, with millions of comrades, trampling on the rights of others. For now, his education is complete. His education... for death."

Read the whole fascinatging piece here (thanks to Tom McMahon, who has hands down the best blog tagline I have seen).


By the way, if you said it is from Education For Death: The Story of One of Hitler's Children, a freaking Walt Disney cartoon, you are right, and possibly need to get outside for a bit.

Louis Farrakhan: Giant Jackass and Race Baitor

I'm super busy and deathly tired from a weekend where I got less than five hours but this needs to be read, maybe finally African Americans will realize people like this HURT their cause, not help.

"I heard from a very reliable source who saw a 25 foot deep crater under the levee breach. It may have been blown up to destroy the black part of town and keep the white part dry," Farrakhan said.

Also online

Watch this story

Build your own newscast

Gilton Balanos lived in the very neighborhood Farrakhan was talking about.

"I think that's ludicrous," Balanos said. "When this happened we were caught by surprise. Individuals, the government and everybody were caught by surprise."

Farrakhan also said that the Red Cross’ response to the disaster was inadequate. Red Cross Spokesperson Pam Dagle said "there was no basis for the criticism."

How could you listen to this and not want to punch him in the teeth?

Hunger Strikers Pledge to Die in Gitmo

Good, may they be successful in their efforts.

More than 200 detainees in Guantánamo Bay are in their fifth week of a hunger strike, the Guardian has been told.

Statements from prisoners in the camp which were declassified by the US government on Wednesday reveal that the men are starving themselves in protest at the conditions in the camp and at their alleged maltreatment - including desecration of the Qur'an - by American guards.

The statements, written on August 11, have just been given to the British human rights lawyer Clive Stafford Smith. They show that prisoners are determined to starve them selves to death. In one, Binyam Mohammed, a former London schoolboy, said: "I do not plan to stop until I either die or we are respected.

It could be worse Mr. Mohammed, you could have your head sawed off and the decapitation broadcast throughout the world...just to give you some perspective.

Like the kling klang king of the rim ram room...

In less than 24 hours I will be landing in Vegas and partaking in a whirlwind tour of debauchery. Days will be spent alternating between the sportsbook and the pool watching games and watching ladies. I can't go wrong.




The purpose of this post is not to gloat, but to allow you to follow along with me on my odyssey of football betting in real time. The games I will post in a few moments are the games I am leaning to right now, they may change they may not, but here is a taste of the action I am looking at (lines are as of a few hours ago):

PRO

Cincy -3.5
Minnesota by 6
Denver by 5
Arizona getting 3
St. Louis giving 6 (if this game stays below a TD it is a lock that I will be taking it).
Colts giving 3 is a lead pipe lock

COLLEGE

Texas getting 1 at Ohio State
Boston College giving 27.5 to Army
Notre Dame getting 7.5 at Michigan (knee-shaker)

Over/Under

Buffalo/Texas under 38
Chiefs/Jets under 37.5 (depends on the T. Green news pregame).

Well, kids, wish me luck!

More State of LA Failure

Radio Blogger:

"MG: Well, the Red Cross, Hugh, had pre-positioned a literal vanguard of trucks with water, food, blankets and hygiene items. They're not really big into medical response items, but those are the three biggies that we saw people at the New Orleans Superdome, and the convention center, needing most accutely. And all of us in America, I think, reasonably asked ourselves, geez. You know, I watch hurricanes all the time. And I see correspondents standing among rubble and refugees and evacuaees. But I always either see that Red Cross or Salvation Army truck nearby. Why don't I see that?

HH: And the answer is?

MG: The answer is the Louisiana Department of Homeland Security, that is the state agency responsible for that state's homeland security, told the Red Cross explicitly, you cannot come.

HH: Now Major Garrett, on what day did they block the delivery? Do you know specifically?

MG: I am told by the Red Cross, immediately after the storm passed.

HH: Okay, so that would be on Monday afternoon.

MG: That would have been Monday or Tuesday. The exact time, the hour, I don't have. But clearly, they had an evacuee situation at the Superdome, and of course, people gravitated to the convention center on an ad hoc basis. They sort of invented that as another place to go, because they couldn't stand the conditions at the Superdome.

HH: Any doubt in the Red Cross' mind that they were ready to go, but they were blocked?

MG: No. Absolutely none. They are absolutely unequivocal on that point."

I haven't really heard much about this, but if the state FEMA people were keeping out the "calvary" why the hell was the state FEMA guy on TV crying about "the calvalry isn't here yet!?"

Where Bodies Are Being Counted, Michael Moore Sees Loot to be Made

I wonder if he sits around, eating buckets of chicken, just hoping for the next American death. Any death will do. School shootings? Lets make Bowling for Columbine. Michigan suicides? Lets make Roger and Me. Terrorist attack? Fahrenheit 9/11! Well, it looks like the Master of Deathploitation, the King of Cinema Chaotica, the biggest individual profiteer of American sorrow and pain is gearing up to fatten his wallet off yet another coupld thousand American lives.

Will Michael Moore turn his cameras on Katrina?

The controversial filmmaker is “seriously considering” turning the devastating storm and its aftermath into a documentary, says a source. “It has all the elements that made ‘Fahrenheit 911’ such a powerful film,” says a source. “The political outrage, the human suffering, and the incredible footage.”

As long as there is politics to play, suffering to profit from, and damn compelling footage, Michael Moore will be there to try and make millions.