International acts of terror in 2003 were the fewest in more than 30 years

I think Zell Miller has a point, saying that state legislatures should apoint Senators.

Kerry is even worse than I thought he would be.
Bush should just stop running the ads, and let Kerry visit all the battleground states. The more poeple seehim, the more they dislike him, and the more he puts his foot in his mouth.
He doesnt get it!
He is accusing Bush of exaggerating the Iraq information. Wow!
How stupid. Does he really not understand that his quotes from before the war will be repeated back to him? Wait until the debates.

Kerry: Somebody find a real candidate, before this turns into a blowout
Between his temper tantrum on GMA, and his changing positions on the Patriot Act, does this guy realize he is running for President?
Bush is vulnerable, but the Democrats have nominated one of the worst candidates since Mondale.
Note to Kerry. The polls on the Patriot Act are good because the President went to the people, and made the case. Wait until he focuses on "No Child Left Behind", the public will support that too.
Kerry will end up looking like a pawn of unions, and a man with no foundation, and an arrogant attitude.
Ant VP he picks to counter this, will outshine him.

New Bush Ad: Doublespeak
This new ad is devastating. I think its the most effective ad the Bush campaign has put out.

Tillman killed in Afghanistan
At a time when words like sacrifice, patriotism and hero are mostly overused. This is a situation where all of those words dont say enough

Peggy Noonan does it again. Her latest article is great, here is the money quote:

So far he doesn't seem like a possible president. He seems somewhat shifty, somewhat cold, an operator. He has a good voice but he seems to use it most to slither out of this former statement or that erstwhile position. It's OK that he looks like a sad tree, but you can't look like a sad, hollow tree. And it looks a little hollow in there. As if Iraq is an issue Kerry feels he has to handle deftly, and not a brutal question we have to solve, together. As if homeland security is an issue, or civil defense, or preparedness. They're not issues. They're life and death. Mr. Kerry doesn't seem to know.

Which is why he isn't gaining traction, or gaining purchase on the president. The Democrats and their nominee say on one day that Mr. Bush ignored terrorism, and on the next that he exaggerated the threat. They say his administration didn't give enough time to planning Iraq, then they say he was obsessed with Iraq. They say he's dimwitted and gullible, then they say he's evil and calculating--he cooked Iraq up in Texas, in Ted Kennedy's phrase.

You know why they can't define what's wrong with Mr. Bush? Because they don't even know what's wrong with him beyond that he is not them, not Mr. Kerry, not a Democrat.

Can the Democrats win this way? No.

'No child' law leaves schools' old ways behind
Interesting article about No Child Left behind law. Check out this quote:

But the principal's enthusiasm for the Bush education reforms is tempered by the knowledge that her school, like many others, will probably never be able to meet the performance targets. Several characteristics of the student body have historically correlated with low test scores: Nearly one out of four Raymond Park students is in special education; 35 percent are African American; 54 percent are eligible for subsidized lunches, a common benchmark of poverty. Under No Child Left Behind, every subgroup is required to demonstrate "adequate yearly progress" until it reaches 100 percent proficiency.
First I find it offensive that being an African American is something traditionally associated with low test scores. Like being an African American will result in lower test scores. Second, I would not want that Principal overseeiong my childs education. It is 2004, they have 10 more years to reach the goals. The Principal is already saying they will probably not ever reach their goals!!!!! Is this crazy, or what? Hell no, I dont want a child of mine in this school.


Test scores at Raymond Park have improved somewhat over the past two years, but the school has still fallen well short of the federal targets. The results have been mixed, with a jump in performance in the sixth grade but stagnation in the eighth grade, particularly in reading.

"We will always fail," said Melissa Gogel, a sixth-grade special-ed teacher, whose students include several nonreaders and several reading on a third- or fourth-grade level. "The government is trying to put everybody in one melting pot and say that everybody has to pass the same test." She says she is teaching her students demonstrative pronouns when she should be teaching them life skills.
Amazing. This teacher is the reason why this school is having problems. Between her stating they "will always fail", and the Principal saying they will probably fail, what chance do you think this school has? Would you want your child being taught by her? Then she complains because she is spending her time teaching students "demonstrative pronouns", instead of teaching them "life skills". this is more about that teacher not wanting to be held accountable. She would rather have fun, stress free day talking with the kids about "life skills". What life skills are so importanty, that reading is not a part of them. Isnt reading THE major life skill?
Lets make a deal with this teacher. You teach the kids how to read, let the parents teach them "life skills". There is a basic level of reading every child should have. Sorry you miss teaching "life skills".


According to a recent study by the Center for Basic Education, a Washington-based think tank, many U.S. schools are reporting a narrowing of the curriculum as a result of the new emphasis on reading and math. The impact of No Child Left Behind has been particularly great in schools with large minority populations which tend to have lower test scores and are under the most pressure to improve.
So the schools with large minority populations are under the most pressure to actually teach the basics. To have the students perform better. Before now, there was no pressure?


What distinguishes No Child Left Behind from the reforms of the Clinton period, say many educators, is the enforcement mechanism. Schools that fail to make the grade are obliged to implement costly remedial measures including special tutoring for at-risk students and busing kids to better-performing schools. If a school repeatedly fails to meet federal benchmarks, it can be dissolved or taken over by the state.
How horrible!! LOL. How dare they actually force the schools to implement remedial measures, and offer children tutoring. Just because these schools dont know how to educate the children, is no reason to get picky.


"I am a much smarter teacher nowadays," said Kelly Patterson, who teaches eighth-grade math at Raymond Park. The Brazos8port method, she says, has forced teachers to work together more collaboratively. "We are told what we need to do in a three-week period, and I plan my days accordingly."
Now this teacher could teach my child.

Every article I have read about No Child Left Behind, gives me more reasons to support the law. I dont like federal government interference in local schools. But our children are failing, it is a crises now. They dont have time to wait on unions and school boards to come to their senses.

Kerry Says His 'Family' Owns SUV, Not He
Kerry stated that he does not own an SUV, but "The family has it. I don't have it,'' Reffering to a Chevrolet Suburban.
This is John Kerry, at his core. He can't change, this is who he is. He doesnt see it, and will not change it. Ther is a reason why Dean became the frontrunner.

Presidential History
GOP Typically Wins White House With Majority Vote, Dems Usually Win with Minority of Popular Vote
Democrats usually win if a strong third party candidate takes away votes from Republicans.

John Kerry:
he will not release his military records, his medical records, and his wife will not release her financial information.
Why?
I have no problems with a wife claiming her finances are private and seperate. But Kerry has used those joint assets to help finance his campaign, assets that he would not have outside of her. Therefore her finances are an issue.

Finally, something I agree with Kerry on! Kerry opposes slavery reparations

Take heart Dems. He will change his position to a more nuanced one. Just give him time.

from Instapundit:
THE RACIST ROOTS OF GUN CONTROL: Here is an article by Robert Cottrol and Ray Diamond. Here's the opening quote, on a Florida gun control statute, from a Florida Supreme Court justice in 1941:

I know something of the history of this legislation. The original Act of 1893 was passed when there was a great influx of negro laborers in this State drawn here for the purpose of working in turpentine and lumber camps.... [T]he Act was passed for the purpose of disarming the negro laborers and to thereby reduce the unlawful homicides that were prevalent in turpentine and saw-mill camps and to give the white citizens in sparsely settled areas a better feeling of security. The statute was never intended to be applied to the white population.... [I]t is a safe guess to assume that more than 80% of the white men living in the rural sections of Florida have violated this statute.... [T]here has never been, within my knowledge, any effort to enforce the provisions of this statute as to white people, because it has been generally conceded to be in contravention of the Constitution and non-enforceable if contested.

Also more here: The Second Amendment: Toward an Afro-Americanist Reconsideration

Which party do "racist" feel most comfortable in??
David Duke's supporters helped Democrat in Louisiana retain Governor seat. I read this with scepticism, because it seemd like an oversimplifying of the process, to make a political point. Fred Barnes does offer non-biased information to make his case. Here are a few parts, read it for yourself:

"BOBBY JINDAL led polls in the Louisiana governor's race last fall right up to Election Day. And for good reason: He was one of the most impressive candidates either party had fielded in any election in any state in recent years. Then he lost. A 32-year-old Republican from Baton Rouge, Jindal is the son of emigrants from India. Because he is dark-skinned, there was a worry he would lose the so-called Bubba vote--code for the racist vote. Now it's clear that that's exactly what cost him the governorship."

THE TWO RESEARCHERS also compared Blanco's vote with that of other statewide Democrats. Both Blanco and Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu, re-elected in 2002, won with 52 percent of the vote. "The geographic pattern of the Landrieu vote was very typical for a Democrat with a correlation of .98 with the average Democratic vote in the1996 and 2000 presidential elections," Skinner and Klinkner found. For Blanco, the correlation was .60, "indicating that Blanco was drawing support from a different set of voters."

Indeed, she was. In the 26 parishes where Duke won a majority, Blanco averaged 10 points better than Landrieu, who defeated a white Republican. The pattern was especially striking in northern Louisiana, Bubba country. In parishes where Duke got more than 55 percent, Blanco averaged 17 percentage points more than Landrieu.

William Raspberry's latest article is a must read. He is not a supporter of Bush, but lays out a very strong argument for why we went to war.

let me see if I have this correct...
Bush should have attacked Afghanistan pre-emptively. Though Afghanistan had no real military, not threatened its neighbors, No UN resolutions calling for their government to comply with disarming.
But.... After 12 years, 17 UN resolutions calling on Iraq to comply, after Iraq has attacked teo of its neighbors, used chemical weapons on its own people, pays suicide bombers in Israel. Iraq was not a threat?

Bush didnt put enough thought into planning the war against Iraq; but he is being attacked as rushing into war with Iraq for asking for a war plan regarding Iraq early in his administration?

Tax cuts for everybody that pays them is favoring the rich, and adds to class warfare; but raising taxes on a small minority of people, to give it to others is seen as fair?

Increasing federal spending on education by more than 30% is not enough money and is getting too involved in the local task of education; but expecting students to be tested on basic skills is being too involved in local education?

Just a few quick thoughts

Chicago!
Just returned from a visit to Chicago this past weekend. It was my first time back, since I moved from Chicago last February.
I didnt realize how much I missed that city. The weather was great too. There is no place like Lakeshore Drive.
I May be moving back.
I just hate the winters there. LOL

Cowards! Appeasers!
Looks like Zapatero cowardice grows. He is demading that Spanish troops withdraw immediately.

Of course, he is being rewarded by the nuts. Sadr has asked his followers to stop attacking Spanish troops.

Bush will Win, and it Wont be Close
The following comments keep reinforcing that Kerry is not capable of giving a consistently positive message. He just doesnt know how to.
Kerry needs to be warmer.Thats what a focus group told the AFL-CIO.
Maybe they need to call him directly and tell him this. because his latest comments seem to show he doesnt get it.
Kerry Says Bush Manipulates Fear of Terror Attack
Thats the way to be warm and fuzzy. note to Kerry. We all get the bulldog, fighter attitude. OK. we get it, you fought bad guys in Vietnam, yada, yada, yada. At this point in his campaign he should be directly reaching out to undecided voters, with a positive proactive message

Question? Dixiecrats
I have heard many times the idea that most Dixiecrats switched to the Republican Party because the Republican Party was in agreement with their racist agenda. I have always had serious questions about the factual nature of that complaint. The problem I have with this idea, is most segregationist remained democrats. The Democratic party kept a hold on the South until the 80's. But even then many southern states still kept state politics firmly in the hand of the Democratic Party.

I looked at the states that the Dixiecrats carried in the 1948 election (AL, MS, GA, NC, SC, LA), when Thurman was their presidential candidate. Alabama did not elect a Republican senator until 1981, and a second one in 1997. Mississippi did not elect a Republican Senator until 1978, and a second one in 1989. In North Carolina, Helms was elected the first republican Senator in 1973, but the other senate seat has only been held by a Republican for 12 years. Louisiana has never had a Republican Senator. Many of the democratic senators in these states were in power before the 1948 election and remained until afterwards.
this makes me wander, who left the democratic Party? It appears they kept control of the South. We know Sen. Byrd was a Dixiecrat that remained. He was elected to lead the party in the senate in 1977, and held that post until he stepped down in 1988. It doesn't appear that Dixiecrats were punished by the Democratic Party, and most remained in their elected seats.

I am trying to find information on which Dixiecrats actually switched parties. If anybody has any information they can add, let me know.

Bush Press Conference
I have a mixed opinion on his performance. I have to say, some of the questions seemed to have thrown him off. I have to ask why? How does he prepare for these press conferences? His answer to the apology and what have you done wrong questions were not reassuring. I think the questions were extrely partisan and irrelevant. but Bush's response was not strong and direct.
I would have simply stated "Everybody who has held this office has made many mistakes. Of , course I have made mistakes. But I am not going to sit here and catalogue every mistake I make. I have a country to run, I have daily decisions to make that require me to learn from my mistakes and keep going. The very nature of what happened on 9-11 meant mistakes were made. We can live in the past, or we can continue to push forward, making sure fewer and fewer mistakes are made each day"

"apologize? That question really only seeks to play a game of rhetoric. This is not confessional, this is about a tradgedy. Not a game of 'gotcha". There is enough blame to go around, we were not on a war footing as I have said. But I am not going to sit here and apoligize. I am too busy fixing those problems, making sure we are safer and stronger each day

Bush:
I have come to two conclusions that many other critics of the war have made.
1) Bush is not demanding sacrifice. I agree. He says we are at war, but tells the American people to act like we are not at war. Then they wander why the public is not making the connection. I do not support the idea of a war tax, not yet. I do think allowing for people to donate their tax refunds, or a part of their tax refunds to the war effort would be a good start. Just like the $3 for campaign funding. Allow those who want to participate, to give. I also think Republicans should hold fundraiser, and other voluntary events to promote paying for the war. Demand holding the budget in line, a freeze, in the name of national security and fiscal soundness.

2) Not enough troops. I have moved to this position very slowly. I am beginning to believe it is more about Rumsfeld's ideology than real needs. If the troops were used to just secure the borders, until things could be stabilized, that would be a great benefit. It would also send a strong message to Syria, Iraq and those people in Afghanistan trying to cause problems. They need to be honest and tell the public, that we cut too fast and too deep into the military budget. We have 1.4 million troops in active duty. Explain to me why we over 40,000 for S. Korea, and 70,000 in Germany but don't have 50,000-100,000 more people for Iraq. Is it really that important? If more troops will allow our allies to feel better, and allow the UN to get involved without taking over, then it is worth it.
We need to deliver a strong decisive blow, and that needs to be done with the overwhelming force that the Powell Doctrine prescribes. If not, then it will look like we are swatting flies in Iraq.

These two things would address some of the concerns many swing voters, and independent voters have about the war. It is not acceptable to just fight, Americans demand using all our force to win.

Taxes:
The Tax Foundation reports that Tax Freedom Day Comes on April 11 in 2004, the earliest Since 1967.

I also looked up information on my state, Ohio. Unfortunately I am not surprised to see that Ohio is ranked third on combined local and state taxes. Only Maine and New York have higher local and state taxes.

Only three state are worse than Ohio at having a business friendly tax system.

Ohio is controlled by Republicans on every level of state government. They have had control for at least 10 years, and most control for 16 years.

"It is not the critic who counts, nor the man who points out where the strong man stumbled, or where a doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man in the arena whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs, and who comes up short again and again, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause. The man who at best knows the triumph of high achievement and who at worst, if he fails, fails while daring greatly, so that his place will never be with those cold timid souls who never knew victory or defeat."
- Teddy Roosevelt


"If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom and yet deprecate agitation are men who want crops without plowing up the ground. They want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters. This struggle may be a moral one; or it may be a physical one; and it may be both moral and physical; but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will."
Frederick A. Douglass
August 4, 1857

Bush and African-Americans
I believe Bush has made a huge strategic mistake by not doing more to win black voters. Pushing vouchers as hard as he pushed tax cuts, would have won him a lot of allies. Many parents would have something tangible and evident, that they could tie directly to his policies. Kerry would have been put in the position of telling these parents, that he wants to take their voucher from them. That would be a powerful contrast. Imagine the commercial with the parents talking about how good their child is doing now, and Kerry wants to take it away. That would be undeniably factually correct.

I saw Bush's speech in California about a month ago regarding his faith based initiative. He should have been going into black churches, and giving similar speeches over the past four years. His passionate and sincere faith, would be very hard for Kerry's distant and cold views to counter.
His outreach to minorities is also vital in maintaining his image as a compassionate conservative. This became more important after 9-11. He would have been able to portray himself as strong and hard with our enemies, but kind and caring towards our hurting Americans. This would definitely have an effect on the female vote, and made any Democrats chances that much harder.

THE MEMO, has been released and it doesn't appear to have much substance in it. This just makes Ben Venista and Kerry look even more partisan. I think Bob Kerry will turn out to be the big loser. I am sure he will write a book, and try to place himself on the national poltical stage, but any attempts at trying to present himself as bipartisan was destroyed by his questioning of Dr. Rice.

More evidence that Germany and France's worldview, and interests are not the same as America's
France, Germany seek to resume China arms sales


The 14-year-old European Union embargo prohibiting arms sales to China may be about to fall, but that doesn't mean sales will resume or that China will get French Mirage jet fighters to match those sold to Taiwan.

The embargo was imposed by the EU and the United States after the June 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre of peaceful, pro-democracy demonstrators. Now France and Germany are leading the charge to lift the ban, calling the sanctions outdated and saying their ailing economies need the business.

Moammar Gadhafi wants to reinvent Libya as the center of a new unified African super-state.

"Although there are other African countries with significant resources, hardly any of them see international cooperation as a policy priority, especially when it comes to paying for it. So Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's decision to reinvent himself as an African leader, and Libya as a leading African power, has met little direct resistance or competition inside Africa. However, his attempts to redefine Africa itself as a unified super-state, presumably Libyan-led, have not prospered.

Politically secure at home, and with money still being pumped abundantly out of the ground from the world's third largest oil reserves, he has been able to buy political support at the A.U. from poor African countries without much apparent effort, but even so, the A.U. summit in Addis Ababa in February 2003 threw out the more extreme Libyan proposals, and what has just been agreed to at Sirte is also much less radical than what Gadhafi has been proposing.

He has suggested putting Libya at the center of the whole new structure, with the proposed African parliament, for instance, to be located there, and he has been pressing for all African armies to be merged and placed under centralized A.U. command -- ready for an eventual President of Africa to lead. But the other A.U. member states, guessing that Gadhafi sees himself in this role, seem to be intent on a policy of passive resistance."

Sales Suggest Hip-Hop Clothing Lines May Stick Around


The NPD Group, a New York-based market information company, reports sales of hip-hop clothing for 2002 at $2 billion. This estimate includes not only apparel, but footwear and accessories.

Jennifer Lopez's line, J.Lo, racked up $130 million in sales last year, according to news reports. Rocawear, founded by Jay-Z and entrepreneur and music producer Damon Dash, and Baby Phat, founded by Russell Simmons, each earned $300 million. P. Diddy's Sean John line brought in $450 million last year.

A Call to Nonlethal Arms in Iraq

This article brings up the idea of non-lethal weapons, and how they would be useful in Iraq.
"The Pentagon is developing alternatives to bombing mosques. Fallujah shows why such technologies should move forward
The U.S. military has been developing a raft of nonlethal anti-personnel weapons that seem tailor-made for precisely the type of urban warfare now unfolding across Iraq. One fires a canister containing a slimey goo that coats the surrounding areas and makes it nearly impossible to remain standing. Other devices include pulsed energy weapons that can be aimed at crowds. These arms target the human nervous system and induce severe burning sensations without inflicting any permanent harm

Similarly, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has a host of projects in the works that use sophisticated technology to accomplish military objectives without killing innocents. What's the Pentagon waiting for? Now is the time to give serious consideration to these weapons. "

A Superpower Defeated

Articles like this remind me of why I am not totally aligned with libertarians:
their ideals can become altars that they worship at with an arrogance that makes them no different than others.

First its just plain wrong.
"In the thick of all this blood, gore, destruction, killing, and hate, not even the ridiculous posturing of the Bush administration, forever promising to stick out this test of will, can reasonably dispute what is beginning to be obvious to everyone: the Superpower has been defeated."

We have not even lost a battle, let alone the war. He is ignoring the fact that the county has not spiraled into a civil war, is a positive. The shia majority are still behind the US. Al Sustani is being attacked. The US should have never let that Sadr nut into the country, and if they did, they definitely should have kept an eye on him. Another CIA failure, but not a military failure.
Last time I checked 12 is a whole lot less than 400. So 12 dead American soldiers and over 400 dead Iraqi rebels, is somehow a defeat??

Not only is it false, but he passes rumor as fact like this "The interior minister has stepped down on the orders of the US on grounds that he is a Shiite, as is the defense minister. US administrators want a Sunni in order to balance out the appointed government"
At least wait and get the whole story, considering its not even 24 hours old.

This is not even an attempt intelligent dissent. It is a blatantly ignorant, false, propaganda piece.

"Japanese aid workers and a photographer are captured by Iraqis who tell Tokyo to pull out or see these people burned alive. Tokyo puts on a good face and says it won't pull out, but it is obviously a farce; after all, the government is simultaneously begging the UN to intervene. Besides, no Japanese citizen believes that their nation should be part of this sorry excuse for a coalition. Everyone knows the Japanese government just went along because of its "special relationship" with the US, which means that the US has military bases in Japan. Huge segments of the population want the US out of Japan, and Japan out of Iraq. This event will only further galvanize the peace and independence movement."
I would be here all day, pointing out how many ways this is false. Japan is only the second wealthiest nation in the world. It is only a living example of what the end result of American occupation can create. They didn't participate in the first Gulf War, but now its a "sorry coalition". Because of their "special relationship" with the US. DUH!! Why does he feel anybody supported any war we have fought? Because they love America, and want to liberate people? No. The same reason we allied with a dictatorship in Russia to defeat communism.
LOL
Look at this part "Just as the US is becoming aware of deep religious and tribal divisions in Iraq, Sunni and Shiite are cooperating together in the common goal of getting rid of the US."
Isnt that exactly what the opponents of this war said could never happen. That Al Queada would never join forces with Saddam, because of their strict fundamentalist viewpoint. Doesn't this show that the extremist will ally with anyone, including a sworn enemy, to destroy America.
For Iraq to be so unimportant to the War on Terrorism, the terrorists sure seem to be trying very hard to prove how unimportant Iraq is.

A few more quotes from the article:
"Hans Blix finally said what everyone has been thinking: Iraq was better off under Saddam."
Ok, I have to say something. Wasn't Germany and Japan "better off" before US occupation, then during the beginning of US occupation? Using his standards, you would have to say yes.

What is going on Iraq now, is because we did not continue to use force, in a demonstrable way. Not because we have, and the "people" are rebelling.

janets jackson
Her new CD, "damita jo" has had a dissapointing opening week. It will enter the charts at #2. Many will claim ti is fallout from the Super Bowl incident. I disagree.
It is just not a good CD. the music is "ok". A few decent songs, no good fast songs. Mediocre. It is the worst CD she has put out.

Kerrynomics
Well it is good headline for the media. the fact that he is already backing out of promises he made just a week ago, didnt seem to register. I think the Bush campaign should put him on the spot. Call him a flip-flopper, ask him what has changed in the week since he promised college students a free tuition program.

It doesn't add up. I have huge problems with Bush's spending. I think he has spent way too much, and that the deficit should be at least half what it is. The problem is everything Kerry proposes is worse. The taxes on the top 2% is not enough to fund everything he is proposing and eliminate the deficit. he will have to raise taxes, or just do what Clinton did, not actually give the middle class a tax cut.

Kerry promises to only increase education, homeland defense spending. Whats left??

Condi
Watched the hearing. Overall thought she did well. I do feel she should have used more common words and phrases. I really feel Sen. Kerry actions were unethical, to unilaterally publicy release a classified document, and to do it to score political points. I think he is being let off the hook. First he went on a tireade about Iraq, then he basically made accusations, he didnt ask questions.

I am convinced that the issues we are dealing with cannot be discussed in any intelligent manner.
What I see is many on the left, basically trying to avenge the right for how Clinton was treated. In the process they do not see that they are being hypocrits.

300,000 jobs in one month!!!


How long will the news continue to say over 2 million jobs lost? Considering over 500,000 have been created this year.