December 14, 2004

Dealing with armor's weight

(Courtesy Day By Day)

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December 13, 2004

"Regis Philbin's New Year's Rockin' Eve '05?"

 
Looks like Regis Philbin will be hosting the New Year's Eve festivities on ABC in place of the recouperating Dick Clark.

75 year-old Clark suffered a mild stroke last week, which will keep him sidelined from the Times Square duties that he has held court over for the past 32 New Year's Eve ball drops.

In a statement released by his publicist Monday, Clark said, "I'm so glad that Regis hadn't yet made any New Year's plans. It'll feel strange watching it on TV but my doctors felt it was too soon. I'm sure Regis will do a great job and I'm thankful that he was able to step in on such short notice."

Philbin said, "It's the greatest 'temp job' in the world. I just hope I can uphold the standards Dick Clark has set for this annual event, and I look forward to his return next year."

Regis has got to be one of the hardest working hosts in television with his daily talk show, the quarterly "Millionaire" specials, plus filling in hither and yon where needed. You might remember that he filled in for David Letterman as host of CBS' The Late Show during Dave's extended hiatus in the wake of the 9/11 disaster.

In any event, I can't think of a better choice to fill in for Dick Clark.

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Wanna watch people freak out on the freeway?

Step one: Tie these balloons to the back of your car.

Step two: Step on it (of course while having a frantic look on your face)!

Step three: Try not to lose control while lauging...

(Courtesy Charlite)

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December 12, 2004

Iran's new missile could hit US Eastern Seaboard

Former Israeli UN Ambassador Dore Gold pointed out to Fox News Channel's Cal Thomas this weekend that the notion of Iranian missiles hitting Israel should be the least of our worries.

"This is not just an Israeli problem. The missiles being developed in Iran have a range that goes well beyond Israel.

"Certainly they have the Shihab-3 missile, with a range of 1,300 kilometers, that can strike Israel," he said. "But they're developing the Shihab-4 for hitting Europe and a Shihab-5, with Russian missile technology, that can strike the Eastern Seaboard of the United States."

Tack on a nuclear warhead -- that contrary to the hand-wringers' carping, Iran IS developing -- and the pucker factor goes up quite a bit.

Ah, but we're supposed to sit back and let the Iranians do what they want -- even though their government has stated publicly that they would like to go after the United States.

Say what you will, but World War IV continues unabated.

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Is it Willy Wonka or Michael Jackson?

Many of Tim Burton's movies give the impression to have been made during a drug-induced high.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Burton's remake of the classic Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (due for a 7/15 release) falls squarely in the same camp, as evidenced by the movie's trailer (.mov), which was just released.

And, is it my imagination or does Johnny Depp look for all the world like Michael Jackson in this trailer?

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December 10, 2004

The Cosby education tour continues in San Francisco

Bill Cosby visited an award-winning inner San Francisco school yesterday, and gave his now-usual speech chastizing parents who fail their children.

San Francisco school chief Arlene Ackerman wrote a letter to Cosby, inviting him to see one of San Francisco's "dream schools," which are low-performing schools that have overhauled their approach to teaching, to greater results.

Cosby visited Charles Drew Elementary School in San Francisco's "poverty-stricken" Bayview-Hunters Point area yesterday.

After his visit, Cosby praised the school, but he stressed that it was parents -- not just the schools themselves -- who needed to step up to ensure their children beat the statistics. "Parents are 99 percent," he said. "School districts don't parent. They teach."
Ackerman said she was happy to have Cosby air his views, even though they are politically incorrect.

Cosby has been hopeful that people would get over their shock following his initial comments last spring, and that they would be more ready to be about the business of change for the better.

"I think we're past the furor part now," he said. "It's a movement now that needs to happen. ... It's time for people to just stop seeing themselves so much as victims, so much in poverty, and realize what education does and fight for it like you're fighting for your life -- and you are because that's what our children are."
It's well past time to be about the business. Well past time.

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December 09, 2004

MoveOn.org to Dems: "We own it. We're taking it back."

MoveOn.org, the radical moonbat fringe of the Democratic Party who desperately wants to be in charge, is insisting on taking charge -- all while blaming the present Democratic establishment for the reelection of George W. Bush.

A scathing e-mail from the head of MoveOn's political action committee to the group's supporters on Thursday targets outgoing Democratic National Committee (news - web sites) chairman Terry McAuliffe as a tool of corporate donors who alienated both traditional and progressive Democrats.

"For years, the party has been led by elite Washington insiders who are closer to corporate lobbyists than they are to the Democratic base," said the e-mail from MoveOn PAC's Eli Pariser. "But we can't afford four more years of leadership by a consulting class of professional election losers."

"In the last year, grass-roots contributors like us gave more than $300 million to the Kerry campaign and the DNC, and proved that the party doesn't need corporate cash to be competitive," the message continued. "Now it's our party: we bought it, we own it, and we're going to take it back."

They need to take their own advice: get over it and move on. Bush won. Period. They can come back and play in four years.

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Willingham blames himself for ND firing

Former Notre Dame football coach Ty Willingham has been described as a coach's coach, and one class act by many who have met him, player, coach and fan alike.

Buried amid last week's stories of his firing from Notre Dame after three "middle of the road" years for the storied football program is this little tidbit.

Tyrone Willingham blamed himself Wednesday for his firing as Notre Dame coach, saying he failed to meet the school's expectations of producing an elite team.

``I don't get into what's fair and what's not fair. I am an optimist by nature, but I am also a realist, and that makes you deal with the events as they occur,'' he said. ``So I will deal with the events.''

``I understand that I did not meet the expectations and standards I set for myself and this program,'' he said. ``When you don't meet your own expectations you make yourself vulnerable to the will of others. So today I am no longer the head football coach at Notre Dame.''

So while charges of racism get tossed by everyone from Washington Post columnist and ESPN commentator Michael Wilbon to Jesse "I gotta find me a visable cause to represent" Jackson, and everyone in between, the most insightful and honorable comment comes from the man at the center of the maelstrom.

And for those comments and the willingness own up to his own shortcomings, my high level of respect for Willingham rose a notch higher yet today.

Mark my words -- though Willingham has departed from under the watchful gaze of "Touchdown Jesus," his journey will take him to greater football heights, and countless legions of football fans will be the better for it.

(Other coverage from Casey Lartigue)

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Coulter: Libs think all conservative blacks are incompetent

Ann Coulter's new column points out that since liberals have been pummelled over their mistreatment of Condoleezza Rice, the moonbats have turned their attention toward Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, often the punching bag of liberals in general and black liberals in particular.Thomas has been called Oreo, Sellout, and names far more unmentionable in mixed company, due to his very conservative ideology along with his conservative opinions on the Supreme Court.

Now that his name is being brought up as a serious candidate to replace Chief Justice William Rehnquist, the spitting venom by liberals is coming back out, directed toward Thomas.

US Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), soon to be Senate Minority Leader, was quoted on this past Sunday's edition of NBC's Meet The Press as calling Thomas an "embarrasment" to the Court.

Harry Reid, the Democratic leader in the Senate, had this to say about Justice Clarence Thomas: "I think that he has been an embarrassment to the Supreme Court. I think that his opinions are poorly written."

In the same interview, Reid called Justice Antonin Scalia "one smart guy." He said that although he disagreed with Scalia, his reasoning is "very hard to dispute." Scalia is "one smart guy"; Thomas is the janitor.

Coulter points to comments regarding Thomas and Rice from other prominent liberals.
Joseph Cirincione, with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (so you know they don't have an agenda or anything), said Rice "doesn't bring much experience or knowledge of the world to this position." This was reassuring, inasmuch as that was also liberals' assessment of the current president before he took office and he, to put it mildly, has been doing rather well.

The Kansas City Star editorialized that Rice "has not demonstrated great competence in the last four years," which is to say, Dr. Rice failed to be sufficiently clairvoyant to predict the events of Sept. 11, 2001.

Columnist Bob Herbert sneered of Rice's nomination in the New York Times: "Competence has never been highly regarded by the fantasists of the George W. Bush administration."

Democratic consultant Bob Beckel – who demonstrated his own competence running Walter Mondale's campaign – said of Rice, "I don't think she's up to the job."

As I said in a Project 21 press release last month -- quite accurately, as these accounts point out -- black conservatives are the new "trash class" of society in the minds of liberals. To them, we are to be maligned, ignored and personally attacked. The existing societal double-standard ensures that they won't be called on the carpet for it. But woe be unto any conservative, black or white, who dares to malign a black liberal. We'll be hounded to the ends of the earth by the self-appointed "soul patrol" in order to be made an "appropriate" scapegoat.

'Tis a lonely road we travel, but it's a road that our collective integrity demands that we walk.

(Other coverage from Booker Rising & others)

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Crazy Al says "What's wrong with me getting paid to campaign?"

Al Sharpton got his pocked lined to the tune of $86,715 in "travel and consulting fees" from the Democratic National Committee after Sharpton withdrew from the 2004 Presidential race.

"They asked me to travel to 20 or 30 cities to campaign, and I did that," Sharpton said. "What am I supposed to do, donate the cost of airfare?"

Democratic National Committee spokesman Jano Cabrera said the party paid Sharpton at the Kerry campaign's request.

"After meeting with Kerry's staff, we did agree to pay for Rev. Sharpton's travel and consulting expenses," Cabrera said. "He traveled very extensively to help the nominee and Democrats across the board, encouraging them to get out and vote on Nov. 2."

Sharpton says that he should be reimbursed for travel expenses, but records show that some $35,000 went straight into Crazy Al's pocket.

None of the other former candidates received any fees from the DNC.

This brings new meaning to the term "walking-around money."

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December 08, 2004

This is not your father's Galactica

"The Cylons were created by man.
They rebelled.
They evolved.
They look
And feel
Human.
Some are programmed to think they ARE human.
There are many copies.
And they have a Plan."

--Prelude to episodes of "Battlestar Galactica"

Have you voted today for your favorite blog (hint-hint!)? You can do so once every 24 hours until 12/12/04!

Flashback to 1977: President Carter was hosting Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat at Camp David. And on ABC, the pilot movie of "Battlestar Galactica" premiered, riding the "Star Wars" wave into television history.

The series starred Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch & Dirk Benedict, and told the story of mankind-turned-nomads of a "rag-tag fleet of ships led by the last battlestar, Galactica," on a quest for the fabled missing human colony: Earth.

That "Galactica" was hokey at best. It included really bad acting, hokey scripts, and oddball concepts that were insanely expensive to produce.

Flash forward to 2003.

After multiple attempts to resurrect the franchise, The Sci-Fi Channel finally put together a new "Battlestar Galactica," in the form of a four-hour miniseries. Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell headed up a cast of mostly unknown actors in a complete rewrite and rebuild of the story.

Twelve human colonies have existed in peace for many years.

Decades ago, a robotic race, called Cylons, were created to serve man. They rebelled and after a conflict, withdrew to another part of space.

The Sci-Fi Channel miniseries shows the story behind the Cylons return and their destruction of humanity. Humanity is reduced to a flotilla of starships, led by the last military vessel, the battlestar Galactica.

The Galactica is a true military vessel, and feels very much like an aircraft carrier, and is certainly far more gritty than the 70s version ever hoped to be.

This new "Galactica" is far darker than anything else out there. The miniseries showed more in terms of scenes of the destruction of the human civilization, and even in the scenes not shown, you are feeling the pain and despair of the remaining humans.

After the miniseries blew the top off of ratings records on Sci-Fi, a television series was inevitable, and with the help of the UK's Sky, the series went into production.

The entire cast of the miniseries returned, with Olmos as Commander William Adama, who is at odds as often as not with the new President of the human alliance, Laura Roslin, played by Mary McDonnell. Roslyn had been the Secretary of Education, 43rd in the line of succession prior to the holocaust, and finds herself reluctantly taking on the presidential mantle over the dwindling remnants of humanity.

The hokey names of the original "Galactica" have been turned into the call signs for the pilots of this version: Apollo is Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama (Jamie Bamber), son of the Galactica's commanding officer; Starbuck is -- yes, a girl, Lieutenant Kara "Starbuck" Thrace (Katee Sakhoff). Thrace is the "top gun" of the fighter pilots on the Galactica, and shares the predilection for cigars that Dirk Benedict portrayed as Starbuck in the original.

Canadian character actor Michael Hogan plays the hard drinking, arrogant second-in-command, Colonel Paul Tigh. The easy-on-the-eyes Grace Park is Lieutenant Sharon "Boomer" Valerii, who is more than she seems.

British actor James Callis plays Doctor Gaius Baltar, who's actions may have doomed humanity, and whose mind is plagued by the enigmatic Number Six, a Cylon who seduces Baltar's mind, and who has an as yet unknown agenda of her own.

The opening credits start with views of the fighter battles and massive destruction that punctuated the miniseries underneath a haunting vocal meloday, sounding not unlike Enya. The music emphasizes the dire situation facing the remnants of humanity. The opening concludes with a tribal-sounding rapid fire drum beat over scenes from the present episode.

The series opens up a week after the events of the miniseries, but no one has been able to sleep.

Thirty-three minutes after the fleet arrives at a new location after a faster-than-light jump, the Cylons appear, attempting to destroy the fleet's ships. This leads to another FTL jump, followed by another agonizing thirty-three minutes, hence the name of the episode, "33 Minutes."

The episode is tightly-knit with action which leaves you on the edge of your seat, and starts to play off of the events of the miniseries, providing multiple catalysts for episodes to follow. "Shakey, handheld-type" camera work, not unlike that seen in other dramas like "The Shield" or "Homicide" punctuate the series, and actually add to the dramatic feel of the show.

Most of the other episodes aired to date certainly sit in that superior categoy, while one or two others fall short.

Eight episodes have aired on Sky One in the UK over the past couple of months, under a part of their agreement with Sci-Fi. The Sci-Fi Channel's four-hour miniseries is being edited into a three-hour movie, set to run on NBC Saturday, January 8. Regular episodes begin on Sci-Fi Friday, January 14.

The full four-hour miniseries goes on sale on DVD on December 28 at Amazon, Borders, Barnes & Noble, and elsewhere.

Take a look. This is not your father's Galactica.

(Also posted at Blogcritics)

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December 07, 2004

Lancaster, PA councilman demands Bush photo be removed from public market stall

Have you voted today for your favorite blog (hint-hint!)? You can do so once every 24 hours until 12/12/04!

David Stoltzfus runs a baked good stand in the Lancaster, PA Central Market. Above his stall is a photograph of President George W. Bush, which he placed there two years ago.

Democratic Lancaster City Councilman Nelson Polite approached Stoltzfus recently and asked him to remove the photograph, insisting that it's presence offended he and other Democrats. Stoltzfus refused the request, indicating that the photo was there to honor the office, not necessarily the man.

“If it were Kerry that won, he’d be up there,’’ says Stoltzfus, who operates the Upper Crust stand.

Doesn’t matter, says City Councilman Nelson Polite. “It should come down. This is a public market.”

Besides, says the Democrat, “Bush didn’t win here (in Lancaster City). It is like rubbing salt on a wound.”

Polite approached Stoltzfus on Nov. 12 and ask him to remove the pictures. The standholder has refused to do so, prompting Polite to say he will ask City Council to change the law so that all political items would be banned in public places.

Today, Stoltzfus pointed proudly to a photo of a smiling Bush, framed in green, that hangs above his stand.

The photo, attached to the stand portico with four brass screws, has hung there for nearly two years, since Stoltzfus and his wife, Nina, opened the market stand in March 2003.

Polite claims that he had received complaints from some of his constituents, who thought the photo's presence was inappropriate.

The photo's been there two years and Polite only began to complain AFTER Kerry lost the election?

Sounds like sour grapes to me.

I hope the locals tell Mr. "Not So" Polite to get stuffed.

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December 06, 2004

Mfume didn't quit, he was kicked out

Vote early and vote often for your favorite blog; once every 24 hours until 12/12/04!

According to Armstrong Williams' new article this morning, Kweisi Mfume didn't leave the NAACP presidency of his own accord, he was shown the door -- the culmination of a feud with NAACP Chairman (and chief moonbat) Julian Bond.

Bond has had it in for Mfume since Mfume nominated Secretary of State-designee Condoleezza Rice for the 2003 NAACP Image Award. Furious that Mfume was reaching out to the Bush Administration, Bond nominated antagonistic cartoonist Aaron McGruder (creator and artist of "The Boondocks"). McGruder had previously called Rice a "murderer" for her role in the War on Terror.

The rift grew as Mfume continued to reach out to the Republican Party. Mfume realized that by reflexively voting Democrat in every election, the black voting populace has given away most of their political bartering power. After all, what incentive is there for either party to go out on a limb for blacks, if it is taken for granted that blacks will automatically vote Democrat? In effect, the black voting populace has created conditions that make it very easy for both parties to take them for granted. Mfume rightly reasoned that by reaching out to the Republican Party on issues that they already agree with -- like empowering faith based charities, supporting school vouchers, etc. -- the black voting populace can send the message that theyÂ’re no longer willing to blindly support the Democrats. Faced with the prospect of fleeing voters, the Democrats would be forced to make new overtures. This competition, in turn, would instill both parties with a sense of urgency for addressing those issues that black Americans routinely rate as their chief concerns. This competitive pressure would provide the black voting populace with increased political options -- and increased bartering power. Somehow this point was lost on Bond, who dug in his heels with mind numbing intransigence. Over the next year and a half, the rift became unmendable.
Bond has become increasingly irrational when it comes to his criticism of conservatives in general and the Bush Administration in particular, referring to Republicans as the "Taliban wing" of American politics, and constantly ranting and raving about how "evil" conservatives are.

This past summer at the NAACP's national convention, Bond went further, following up on 2003 statements that referred to the GOP as the "White People's Party," and soundly denounced any blacks who would dare to support the Bush Administration.

The last straw between Bond and Mfume came when Mfume suggested a letter be sent to the President after last month's Presidential election, suggesting ways the organization and the Bush Administration might be able to work together to help black America in years to come. Bond didn't want Mfume to send this letter; Mfume sent it anyway.

Shortly after that point, Bond had Mfume voted out.

The NAACP is continuing to fall into the quagmire of racial divisiveness and mediocrity. And Julian Bond is the head mediocre moonbat in charge.

It's just sad to see an organization that could easily help black America overcome problems with family, school and community nationwide fall into to such unreachable straits. It's almost better to put it out of it's misery at this point. Bond has rendered any real repair nearly impossible.

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December 05, 2004

2005 Weblog Awards: Caution, Cheaters At Work

Honesty, obviously, isn't a liberal virtue, even among bloggers.

The Daily Kos was nominated for Best Overall Blog in the 2004 Weblog Awards (hosted by Wizbang), and posters there (along with posters from Wampum), in their "infinite wisdom," posted the automated code they are using to generate votes-in-quantity, in violation of the rules.

It appears that one of the Wampum authors provided the psuedo code or logic for the script hacks at Daily Kos and did so publicly and proudly at Wampum. I really don't know if the script kiddie at Kos ever saw the Wampum post, but it's just galling that a site that I have gone out of my way to promote both this year and last year would unapologetically participate (however peripherally) in what amount to a denial of service attack on the Weblog Awards site Saturday night.
Wampum is hosting the Koufax Awards, which is the moonbat equivilant of the Weblog Awards. You'd think they'd be more logical and ethical in their approach to this.

But then again, these are moonbats who have, once again, proven their lack of ethical character.

My advice to Kevin Aylward over at Wizbang?

Screw 'em.

Yank the Best Liberal Blog award entirely, and pull any and all liberal blogs off of the award ballot. Period.

We are under no logical compulsion to provide entertainment or forum for their form of mental (and probably physical for that matter) masturbatory stimulation.

Oh. By the way. I'm still inviting your votes for me for Best Conservative Blog.

(More coverage from Captain's Quarters, LaShawn Barber, Free Republic, LGF & others)

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December 04, 2004

Giant robot suits for everyone -- only in Japan!

After the Transformers-based Citroën commercial earlier in the week, you knew that there had to be geek-laden things to out do it floating around.

Toyota unveiled the performance show for their pavilion at Expo 2005, opening in late March in Aichi, Japan.

The one on the left is called the i-foot and is designed to help the disabled get around and up stairs. In the center and on the right are two different configurations of the i-unit, the lower one being geared toward more high speed moves.

There is a video of the units in action available on the offical Toyota Expo 2005 site. Just select "Performance Show" followed by "PR Movie."

(Courtesy Gizmodo & Synthstuff)

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"No we aren't marketing cigarattes for kids..." Yeah. Right.

RJR Tobacco is marketing flavored Camel Cigarettes.

The flavors are sweet and the packaging is rather fanciful. Yet RJR insists that they aren't being marketed toward kids.

Many teens seem to like them, and the manufacturers said the brand is in demand.

The cigarettes come in flavors like lime, berry, pineapple and coconut.

"They're kind of tasty. It sounds like a gimmick for kids, you know. I walk in there, I see the bright colors and I'm, like, 'I need that cigarette,'" said Kenny Silver, 18, a high school senior.

"It's all colorful and really cool and groovy and they look nice and, of course, people automatically think, 'Oh, nice, I want to smoke these now,'" said Hedi Lowe, 18, also a high school senior.

But R.J. Reynolds, the manufacturer of Camel, said:

"We don't, under any circumstance, market our product to youth. Our adult consumers asked us and told us they like differentiated products. That is why we offer flavored cigarettes."

Camel's flavors include Kauai Kolada & Twista Lime. Other brands are getting into the game, including versions of Brown & Williamson's Kool with names like Caribbean Chill, Midnight Berry, Mocha Taboo and Mintrigue.

So you judge for yourself. Are they geared toward kids or not?

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And now for something completely different...

Monty Python's Spamalot, the musical based on Monty Python and the Holy Grail opens for a five-week preview engagement in Chicago on 12/23.

Spamalot stars David Hyde Pierce, Tim Curry & Hank Azaria.

Hmmmm. Let's see. Going home for Christmas; tickets starting at $25; I wonder...

Spamalot opens on Broadway on February 14.

If you get a chance, take a look at the home page for Spamalot, it's laden (African or European?) with tons of Pythonesque noises and animations.

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Impressive. Simply impressive.

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How do you get the bad guys to stop? By upping the ante

A new piece by David C. Atkins on WorldNetDaily takes the Untouchables tactic to get the Islamic terrorists to back off.

The name of the tactic is taken from a memorable line in the 1980s movie version of The Untouchables with Kevin Costner and Sean Connery: "You wanna know how you do it? Here's how, they pull a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send on of his to the morgue! That's the Chicago way, and that's how you get Capone!"

Atkins' take uses that notion along with the Cold War concept of "Mutually Assured Destruction."

I propose that the U.S. immediately adopt and publish the following nuclear doctrine:

In the event of a WMD attack by terrorists on the U.S. homeland or U.S. military facilities overseas, the U.S will immediately and without discussion use its immense nuclear weapons capabilities to destroy the 100 largest Islamic cities on earth, regardless of state, and destroy all of the military facilities of Islamic-dominated states. This will include all of the capitals and at least the 10 largest cities of all Islamic-dominated states and the "holy" cities of Mecca and Medina. In addition, North Korean cities and military installations will be destroyed.
Now suddenly everybody from Casablanca, Cairo, Damascus, Riyadh, Tehran, Islamabad, Pyongyang and Jakarta have skin in the game. The last thing they want would be a WMD attack on the U.S. It would mean certain destruction of their societies. They might even be motivated to actually and feverishly work against Islamic terrorism instead of the tepid lip service they currently give. Those "freedom fighters" currently being cheered in the streets would be transformed to deadly threats in the very societies that spawned them.
This harkens to the notion of training a mule: First thing you do is smack it upside the head with a two-by-four to get it's attention.

Meet our two-by-four: a promise, not a threat, but a promise.

Guess what. We all of a sudden would have their undivided attention, whine-fest from the United Nations notwithstanding.

Notice how we are predicated to "follow the rules" while the bad guys don't. This follows the rules, but take 'em up a notch.

And if they don't think we're serious, they can always try us. And while I'm using movie metaphors, let me quote the esteemed Inspector Callahan:

"'Did he fire six shots or only five?' Well, to tell you the truth, I've forgotten myself in all this excitement. But being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself a question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya?"

My question to the Islamists and the Islamic world is simple. "Do you feel lucky?"

Well do ya? Do ya?

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December 03, 2004

Shameless promotion dept: Vote for me in the 2004 Weblog Awards!

OK, I'm falling into the shameless promotion department here.

I'm up for the category of Best Conservative Blog in this year's 2004 Weblog Awards (which is primarily sponsored by Wizbang).

So I'm blushingly asking for your support and your vote. And I'm up against some solid competition (and some of the blogs on my blogroll, as well as some of my personal favorites!) so I'll let everyone know that it's an uphill battle for me.

You can vote once per day each day from now until December 12, so the notion of "Vote Early & Vote Often" works here.

"And we thank you for your support."

(Weblog Award logo courtesy Suzy Rice)

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