1. Global Warming
a. I'm tired of hearing reporters tell me that this is the hottest year ever. Do we really have temperature data from over 2500 years ago?
b. The sun is hotter, therefore the earth is hotter... or does that make too much sense?
c. The ice caps are melting, it must be man's fault (or George Bush's fault, depending on which news you subscribe to). But the ice caps on Mars are melting, is man (or GWB) responsible for that?
d. A long time ago, the government and a group of scientists decided on where to put thermometers that would be used to track temperature data. In the years since, cities have been built around those thermometers, thuse changing the environment in which those thermometers exist, yet the eco-radicals will tell you that the thermometer data should be treated exactly the same. For you math majors, that's like saying 2+2=4, but then I could rewrite the problem to read 2(2+2)=? and still expect your answer to be 4. See my point...?
e. Global warming will actually lead to cooler temperatures. How? With warming, you have accelerated evaporation, thus more water vapor in the air, thus more clouds, meaning a greater regulation of surface temperature in relation to the amount of sunlight filtered through.
2. Iraq and the Middle East
a. I'd like to congratulate the liberals, socialists, and left-leaning Republicans who have so successfully demonized President Bush for Iraq. Bush was following intelligence provided by George Tenet, then head of the CIA. Tenet said Saddam had WMDs. Bush sent in the troops. No active WMDs were found, Bush is the bad guy. But if Tenet had said that Saddam had WMDs, and Bush neglected to send in the troops, and Saddam actually had active WMDs, then Bush is once again the bad guy. So, congratulations for making this a lose-lose situation for the President.
b. I say "active" WMDs because no "active" WMDs have been found. However, the parts for "active" WMDs have been found, and multiple weapons that Saddam claimed to have destroyed have been found. Once again, it's all in the news you subscribe to. (And special recognition of the UN inspectors for a job well done)(please note that the last comment was drenched in sarcasm).
c. To the "we should negotiate" crowd I have two words: Shut up! We tried negotiating. We tried UN resolutions. If 14 years of failed negotiations and resolutions aren't enough, then you are hopelessly lost.
d. Thank God Israel is fighting back.
e. Does anyone else find it funny(not in the ha-ha way) that Hezbollah launches thousands of rockets into northern Israel, and then claims that Israel is committing war crimes?
f. Back to the UN for a second. The UN is a worthless body, I hope you see that. A friend once told me that the reason I dislike the UN is because the US has to be equal with everyone. This is wrong. I dislike the UN because they are inept. The UN was prepared to let Libya chair the Human Rights Council, and it was going to allow Iraq and Iran to co-chair the Weapons Council. There's an organization with the best interest of the world at heart. (again, sarcasm)
3. Domestic Issues
a. Thank God the increase to minimum wage failed. Anyone trying to raise a family on minimum wage is foolish. I know, the truth hurts, but it's still the truth.
b. I hear that the Fair Tax is drawing more attention in Congress. This is good. Three metro Atlanta counties had it on the primary ballots (it was only on the Republican ballot, make of that what you will) but in all three counties it passed 85% to 15%. Go Fair Tax!
c. So the Democrats have turned their backs on Joe Liebermann. It should be recognized that, for the past few years he has been one of the few voices of reason on the left, a Democrat that I would actually consider voting for, and yet Democrats are turning away. This only emphasizes the point that the left has been hi-jacked by Howard Dean, Nancy Pelosi, Michael Moore, and a bunch of celebrities who somehow know more than everyone else.
And that's it, my rant is at an end.
1 comment:
Blake - are you feeling okay friend? You seem a bit more on edge lately.
Couple of points on 1: The Skewed View called, it wants its topic back *wink*. Good points though, highlights how out of whack the 24 hour news cycle is on a slow day...or any other day it seems.
As for 2 - and you're not going to like me for this - but at the end of the day, the decision lies with President Bush. Granted, the CIA gave the President bad information, but it is the President of the United States who decides when military action is needed. Simple as that. You should read a book called Chain of Command - it highlights how the Bush Administration structured its intelligence gathering resources, effectively closing off the CIA and leaning far more towards DOD (and hence Rumsfeld) for information. If it's any coincidence that CIA ends up taking the blame for accidentally leading us to war, I would think the bias against CIA is a good starting point to look at.
And honestly, Iraq posed no credible threat to US security (unless you want to start listing our oil interests as the problem). If you study Middle Eastern history, Al Qaeda and Iraq are on very different ends of the spectrum. Now you're going to want to come back at me with (but they both hate America). But in this case, the enemy of my enemy does not necessarily make my friend. Saddam Hussein had but one interest, himself. There is no connection, there will never be a connection. And after the WTC was left as a hole in the ground, I think it was the right time to stay on task.
As for your comment on neogoiations - I'd hate to say this (as I disliked Blix more than anyone), but I'd say the weapons inspectors did their job. There were no chemical weapons, no biological weapons, and certainly no nukes. We literally obliterated a country in the space of three weeks - what a threat, eh? So unless Saddam was going to pay some terrorists to do something, he posed no credible threat.
One more time - the 9/11 hijackers were Saudis. No love loss between those two countries either.
Before I send you off on a rampage - I will agree that the UN in its current form is not of much use (if any) and needs to be reformed. You must have a global governing body to enforce international laws. If the UN isn't working - it's time to fix it. Not lean on the US to police the planet (ask the Romans or the Brits, it doesn't work out well when your ego writes checks your army can no longer cash).
Lastly, I'm not thrilled with this: "Thank God the increase to minimum wage failed. Anyone trying to raise a family on minimum wage is foolish. I know, the truth hurts, but it's still the truth."
The current minimum wage puts families far under the poverty line in this country. But it's fine for Congress to vote yet againf or a pay raise? If that doesn't make you angry Blake, you don't have a soul. It's simple mate, either we all go up, or we eventually all go down. With CEO's making literally billions of dollars a year, a family of three can no longer feed itself on minimum wage, it's time to raise it, period. If you'd be happier knowing half of this country could one day be below the poverty line and starving that's fine. And that's once again, why I am a Progressive Democrat.
Hope you enjoyed this little banter - I think I hear the NSA paddy wagon pulling up to my house now.
Nuff said - now write some happier stuff.
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