Tuesday, May 11, 2004WHO SAYS THERE'S NOTHING GOOD COMING OUT OF IRAQ
from drudgereport.com EMINENT DOMAIN AGAIN ... LOOK WHAT THEY'VE DONE IN MICHIGAN Here we go again. A few weeks ago outraged citizens in Florida stopped a plan by politicians and developers to deprive them of their property rights. A bill in the Florida legislature would allow local governments to seize property from private owners and hand it over to developers ... all for a few more property tax dollars that would come from the developers more expensive projects. Florida voters got wind of the legislation .. and it was dead in two days. Now let me tell you want they did in Michigan, and once again the moving force behind this rape of private property rights was a Republican. Republican State Rep. Andrew Richner introduced a bill that allowed local government acting in "the public interest" to condemn private property and hand it over to developers. In Michigan, unlike the Florida bill, the local government would have to declare the property "blighted" before it can be condemned. But the legislation was written in such a way that the property owner has virtually no way to challenge the designation. In one way the Michigan bill, which was made law in 2002, was much worse than the the proposed Florida law. In Michigan the property could be seized from the private owner and just given ... not sold, but given to a developer. The rightful owner of the property then gets "just compensation" for his loss. "Just," as defined by government. This assault on private property rights is happening across our nation. Developers who are tired of paying property owners fair market prices for tracts of land have discovered that they can use that one unique asset of government to cut corners and save big bucks. That asset is the legal authority to use force, deadly force if necessary, to achieve goals. Why would any developer ever negotiate with a property owner for the purchase of a tract of land if that developer can merely go to his friendly local politician and have the land seized? There weren't enough concerned citizens and property owners in Michigan to stop this outrage, probably because there was nobody out there telling them what was about to happen. They didn't get the word, and the bill became law. Get motivated folks. If these hideous eminent domain laws aren't stopped now there will soon come a day when basic property rights will be memory of things past. The right to property necessarily includes the right not to sell that property to a developer if you don't wish to, or to demand a certain price if you do sell. Developers hate this ... and they're attacking you in the state legislatures. Don't just sit there, do something! RANDOM THOUGHTS Yesterday the Seattle Times carried a story about a former Oregon governor, Neil Goldschmidt, who has now admitted to a nine-month affair with a 14 year-old girl. Goldschmidt was 35 years old at the time and the Mayor of Portland, Oregon. Nowhere in the Seattle Times article could you find any mention of the Goldschmidt's political affiliation. Well .. I looked it up. He's a Democrat. Now .. would any of you like to try to convince the rest of us that the Seattle Times would have mentioned political affiliation if Goldschmidt had been a Republican? Polls show that The Poodle is doing better than Bush with the electorate when it comes to health care. No wonder. He's promising more than Bush ... and the 21st Century American Voter absolutely loves any politician who promises to relieve them of responsibilities ... including the responsibility for their own health care.
BUSH TELLS MEDIA TO PERFORM A PHYSICAL IMPROBABILITY It was a priceless moment yesterday. An outraged President Bush goes down to the Pentagon to look at all of the abuse photos, so that he could fully understand the extent of the damage. Surely the media expected the president to be so outraged that he would publicly rebuke the secretary of defense, if not fire him outright. So what does Bush do? After all of that, he emerges from the Pentagon with Donald Rumsfeld for a press conference, only to praise the Pentagon Don profusely. Sales of adult diapers to liberals probably went up 500% after that one.
Bush went on to tell Rumsfeld "you are a courageously leading our nation in the war against terror. You're doing a superb job. You are a strong secretary of defense, and our nation owes you a debt of gratitude." So much for all the calls in the media for Rumsfeld's head. The president told them all to go play in the traffic. The Democrats in Congress, The Poodle and their accomplices in the media probably thought they would be able to get a resignation, as a way to attack Bush. Sorry ... it just didn't work out that way. Guess they're going to have to sharpen their knives for somebody else. And take note: that will come. Since now they know Rumsfeld is safe, look for the media to call for somebody else to resign. Now ... I'm not saying that nobody should lose their job over this, but you don't always fire the CEO when things go wrong at the lower levels of a corporate structure. You find the managers directly responsible, and hand them their helmets.
Bush also addressed those who somehow think this means the war is lost. "It has given some an excuse to question our cause and cast doubt on our motives," said the president, while also pointing out "that Iraq is better for being free from one of the most bloodiest tyrants the world has ever known." The left doesn't know what to do here...they keep thinking they have Bush nailed, and nothing is working. Better luck next time, guys.
When the chips are down, a real leader stands firm and does what's right. The Democrats should take note here; they just might learn something from President Bush. Come to think of it ... wouldn't it be nice if the domestic President Bush could learn something from the war President Bush? For instance ... how about a war on big government?
PLAYING POLITICS WITH PRISONER ABUSE
The Democrats love to accuse Republicans and the Bush administration of playing politics, but this one takes the cake. If President Bush had tried this back in 2000, the media would have called for his head. Of course, when a liberal Democrat like The Poodle does it, he gets a huge pass. The media in this country tilts so far to the left, sometimes you wonder if you're TV is going to fall over.
John Kerry's campaign manager used images of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib to raise money over the weekend. I ask you to remember what happened when Bush used images of 9/11 earlier this year in a campaign ad. The left was prepped and ready .. and the outrage in the media was instantaneous. How DARE this man use images of 9/11 in a campaign commercial? Well ... did you see any similar outrage when The Poodle flashed images of prisoner abuse? THE POODLE'S PETITION
So now The Poodle has started a petition drive demanding that Pentagon Don retire. As of this morning about 275,000 people have signed it. Sorry to say it .. but BFD. So sKerry found 275,000 myrmidons who would sign his Internet petition. Is it like we didn't know that there were millions of leftists out there who put defeating Bush in November way, way ahead of winning the peace in Iraq? THE POODLE SAYS HANDS OFF MY OWNER
Last week .. I think it was. Yeah .. just last week Teresa Heinz Kerry was telling the world that the Vice President of the United States, Dick Cheney, was .. in her words ... "unpatriotic." Now this week we have Teresa's pet, John "The Poodle" Kerry barking a warning to his political opponents against "attacking" his wife. Yeah .. we can get it. She can say anything she wants, but if Republicans try to respond they have to go through her guard dog. Actually ... I haven't heard anyone out there attacking Ms. Got-Rocks. Maybe Kerry's protest is something like him complaining about people questioning his patriotism...nobody is doing it, but boy is he sure mad about it.
A few commentators asked if Kerry's wife was going to release her tax returns when he did, seeing how he lives like a king and declared an income of a few hundred thousand dollars. She has come out and said she will release her tax returns, just as soon as her son's records are separated out. Fine. So what is The Poodle talking about?
It's just another lame attempt to manufacture outrage and publicize an issue that doesn't exist. Oh and by the way, listening to Kerry's stump speech is about as exciting as looking at carpet samples.
ABU GHRAIB SCANDAL FIRST IGNORED BY CONGRESS
So now Congress has their thongs in a knot because they weren't notified of the investigation of prison abuses that was taking place months ago. The Pentagon did put out a press release in January saying that a probe was being started. Not enough, say some in Congress. But wait! Now we're learning that at least 17 members of Congress ignored letters from a family member of one of the prison guards. These are some of the same members of Congress are calling for Rumsfeld's resignation, saying he failed to notify them. What?
All it would have taken is one prominent Democrat responding to this letter, instead of ignoring it. Of course, the Democrats are only interested in political posturing and phony, selective outrage, not the truth.
For most Democrats, this is all about defeating Bush, and has nothing to do with getting to the bottom of what happened.
RELEASE IT ALL
As the author of the report on abuses at Abu Ghraib prison heads to the hill today to testify, the White House is debating whether to release the rest of the 250 photos that exist. The idea is to release it all instead of having it slowly leak out into the media. They absolutely should do this right now, with no waiting. The reasons why are many.
First of all, the photos are going to come out anyway. Why wait for the Bush-hating media to do it on their own timetable? They would choose the most damaging photos to try and use them to damage the president. Releasing it all now robs them of that ability. Also, getting it out of the way ensures that by the time the election rolls around, all of this will be a memory. Time is on the Bush campaign's side. If they take the high road and release all of this, they show that they have nothing to hide. What would The Poodle say then? He can't condemn the entire military like he did when he came back from Vietnam -- that's political suicide -- so he's stuck. America supports the troops, no matter what.
The United States has nothing to hide...we should release all the photos and videos at once for the world to see. Let's get it over with. It's the right thing to do, as well as the most politically expedient.
READING ASSIGNMENTS
And now, courtesy of the Drudge Report, some good news from Iraq. Did you even know there was any?
A lot of Iraqis don't even care about the prisoner abuse story. They see the bigger picture. Why can't the media and the Democrats here do the same?
Indonesia's energy minister is warning of high oil prices through the summer. Just remember, adjusted for inflation, a gallon of gasoline cost $2.40 in 1980. Or, you could move to Europe, where gas runs over $5 a gallon.
The International Red Cross is outraged about the treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, but where was their outrage over the infinitely worse treatment by Saddam Hussein at the same facility?
Few in the GOP are rushing to the defense of Donald Rumsfeld. Robert Novak explains that the Pentagon Don is not well-liked by the bureaucrats at the Department of Defense.
Those in the Arab world that are outraged about America's treatment of Iraqi prisoners should take a look at themselves. Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, as Frida Ghitis notes.
Despite his big-spending ways and setbacks in Iraq, Irwin Stelzer still says Bush is the right choice in November.
An Israeli commercial airliner was buzzed by French jets looking to see if the plane was armed. The French don't believe people should defend themselves, you know.
And now, the smallest violin in the world is being played for Saddam Hussein's lawyer, who is upset that the Coalition won't let him see his client. Anybody care? I didn't think so.
Much is being made of President Bush's approval rating hitting its lowest point ever. The election is six months away...this is beyond meaningless. Bush's father trailed another Massachusetts liberal, Michael Dukakis, by 17 points in the summer of 1988.
Jesse Jackson is at it again....this time bashing the United States while on foreign soil. Such a patriot, isn't he? Maybe The Poodle will invite him to speak at the Democratic National Convention.
An FBI agent was prevented from relaying a warning to the CIA about two of the 9/11 hijackers, more than a year before the attacks. Keep in mind what was preventing this.....it was Jamie Gorelick at the Clinton justice department. The same Jamie Gorelick that is sitting on the 9/11 Commission. What a farce.
The Poodle and the Democrats are absolutely fixated with Vietnam, a war that ended 30 years ago. The Washington Times tries to figure out why. I know why. That's all Kerry has. Can any of you point out one single accomplishment of Kerry's, besides, that is, what he did or did not do in Vietnam?
During the very same time the media is outraged over the treatment of Iraqi prisoners at a prison, ethnic cleansing, rape and mass murder continue in countries not far from Iraq. You don't hear about that, though. Dennis Prager tells us why.
The left has fired every shot they've got at President Bush, and none of it has worked. Will the Iraqi abuse photos be the final nail in the coffin? David Limbaugh says the liberals are out for blood.
A constituent in California faxed a letter to his Congressman, Pete Stark, complaining about his "no" vote on the resolution condemning Iraqi prisoner abuse. Stark called the man's voice mail ranting and raving. Joel Mowbray has the story. You don't want to miss this one.
So the non-partisan Zogby polling organization is declaring that John Kerry will win the election. Matt Towery analyzes the declaration.
The left is already laying the excuse groundwork for the 2004 presidential election result. Phyllis Schlafly says to beware of activist judges trying to influence U.S. elections. Remember the Florida Supreme Court in 2000?
The abuses at Abu Ghraib by American soldiers were the actions of a few. Do any of these people actually reflect American society? Rich Lowry takes a look.
Only a strong American military and homefront determination will win the war on terror. An excellent column from Congressman Mac Collins.
The 50th anniversary of the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court decision is upon us. Jack Kemp takes a look back.
Looks like some liberals were actually in favor of torture right after 9/11. My how times have changed. | 
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