Go and read the full story over at Burn Pit, and if you are in the Colorado area, come down and watch the opening ceremony with me on Monday.
Author: TSO
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Ditch Bitch alive and well, still as asinine as ever
So a buddy of mine that I play golf with once a year sent me a picture of the newspaper from Cortland, New York the other day, that ostensibly he was sending me because he runs the “Corn Ducky Derby” in Cortland, and his son was on the cover of the newspaper laying in the ducks. Essentially, it is a fund raiser for the Cortland Community Service Club. Cortland is my adopted hometown, although I never lived there, and I have sort of become an honorary citizen because I am friends with a whole slew of guys there. Anyway, Cortland has been hit pretty hard by the economic slump, and the Corn Ducky Derby is a really good event, and seems a good excuse to have a few adult beverages and watch rubber ducks float down a river. With the exception of the Lalla Open Golf Classic (I am a 4 seed Lalla), the Corn Ducky Derby is the best thing in Cortland. Maybe the Jets practicing there, but the Jets suck.
Anyway, what caught my eye was the article to the right of the page, about Cindy Sheehan appearing at SUNY Cortland. I found an advertisement for it:
Cindy Sheehan, who is most known for her anti-war encampment at former-President George W. Bush’s ranch in Crawford, Texas, will be the keynote speaker at Kent State Remembrance Day at SUNY Cortland Tuesday, May 4.
Cortland Students for Peace will mark the 40th anniversary of what has become known as the Kent State Massacre with events throughout the day. Most events, unless otherwise noted, will be held on the steps of Corey Union. In the case of rain, the events will be held inside Corey Union. Kent State Remembrance Day events are free and open to the public.
Kent State Remembrance Day events begin at 11 a.m. with art and presentations. A non-violent rally will be held at 11 a.m. Sheehan will speak at 3:30 p.m. and a non-violent march and vigil will follow at 4 p.m.
Anyhoo- Jonn has already covered the ridiculousness of the Kent State hagiography, so I won’t go into that, but I wanted to see how her speech went. So, I went to get it from the horses
assmouth:For example, this past May 4th was the 40th anniversary of the Kent State Massacre in Ohio. I spoke at SUNY Cortland at the event that the students put together there to commemorate that awful day.
I was pointing out to the crowd that four students being slaughtered by the US military was horrible 40 years ago, but millions of Vietnamese died at the hands of the same military, and since then millions of more people have been killed, displaced, or economically disadvantaged because of this wicked Empire.
Then, I guess I went too far in some of the young people’s eyes, because I pointed out that on September 11, 2001—almost four thousands Americans tragically died—but on that same day, (and every day since and every day after) tens of thousands of people died of starvation around the world. Then to make matters even worse, I compared the lives of the people who died of starvation favorably with the people who died on 9-11. I think I may have even said that they had the same exact existential right as those Americans! I heard from professors and the students that this caused a pretty big controversy on the campus.
Not content to just leave it at that little bit of insanity, she decided to up the ante and see where it would get her:
The one problem I have with 9-11 conspiracy theories is that sometimes the theories and the people who propose them discount one very important fact. Even though I never condone or support violence, Arab-Muslims had legitimate reasons to plan and carry out an attack—if they actually did is another question, though.
So, even though violence=bad, when they do it (if they even do it) it is perfectly understandable.
Looks like she lost that loving feeling thoug….
Will the American people finally rise up against our government and demand an end to the U.S. war of military and economic terror against the world, or will we keep electing Jokers thinking, yes even hoping, that anything will change?
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Can no one shut this dumb bitch up? I mean really. Her son was a hero, no bones about it. I can’t help but think he is looking down and just begging his mother to stop speaking. Her 15 minutes ended a long time ago. She should just slink away and hug it out with Geoff Stolen Valor Millard and stop embarassing herself.
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Standard hyperbole and hysteria from our friends at the SPLC
SPLC should just out-source their articles to me, I would charge less, and it always follows the exact same format. It’s like a Mad Lib where they just change a few adjectives and scapegoat a different group. Then they make a proclaimation that they fail to address, and then end with some sort of South Parkian nonsense of “This is what I learned today…”
As should shock virtually no one with two brain cells, SPLC is hyperventilating about the new Arizona law. I got the email alert this morning:
Morris and I — and the entire SPLC staff — are outraged over Arizona’s new immigration law. We’ve spent our careers working against discriminatory policies such as blatant racial profiling. SPLC Legal Director Mary Bauer calls the law “a civil rights disaster and an insult to American values.” Please read Mary’s analysis on the dangers of this ill-advised law.
With your help, we’ll continue to expose the racist agenda behind those who promote these kind of laws and do what we can to counter them.
It’s pretty clear from reading the “analysis” that a) they have no idea what “analysis” means, and b) no one over there bothered to read the damn law before writing this. So, let’s look at this in-depth anal-ysis.
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Thank you Supreme Court
Court: Cross doesn’t violate separation of church and state
The Supreme Court has ruled a white cross, erected as a war memorial and placed on national parkland in the California desert, does not violate the constitutional separation of church and state.The 5-4 majority concluded Congress acted properly when it tried to transfer land around the Mojave Memorial Cross to veterans groups, an effort to eliminate any Establishment Clause violation. A federal appeals panel had blocked that property swap.
At issue before the justices was whether the display fundamentally violates the first ten words of the Bill of Rights: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.”
I was working on my other case today, but this is a big win. I played a very meager role on this, but it pleases me to no end.
Jonn Added: Some TAH background on the story from May and August last year. TSO is too modest – his contribution was more than he’ll admit.
TSO Added: Here is the money shot that is easily read by non lawyer types:
The District Court did not attempt to reassess the find-ings in Buono I in light of the policy of accommodation that Congress had embraced. Rather, the District Court concentrated solely on the religious aspects of the cross,divorced from its background and context. But a Latin cross is not merely a reaffirmation of Christian beliefs. It is a symbol often used to honor and respect those whoseheroic acts, noble contributions, and patient striving helpsecure an honored place in history for this Nation and its people. Here, one Latin cross in the desert evokes far more than religion. It evokes thousands of small crosses in foreign fields marking the graves of Americans who fell in battles, battles whose tragedies are compounded if the fallen are forgotten. Respect for a coordinate branch of Government forbidsstriking down an Act of Congress except upon a clear showing of unconstitutionality.
BTW- That is almost exactly what Tim said in the comments, so maybe I will ask Obama to name him to the Supremes.
ALSO: Allahpundit covered it here, and I think he misses a point in there that is important. Regarding Stevens approach, AP says:
I take his point — honoring Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist troops, etc, with a cross is rather insufficiently nuanced — but if the worry is observers feeling influenced by the display, how does Stevens justify the religious symbols on the headstones at Arlington? There’s theoretically no government endorsement problem there since servicemen get to select their own insignias, but (a) it is federal land and (b) seeing so many crosses associated with such valor, even with stars of David and crescents mixed in, is more powerful than some puny cross in the desert.
Actually, there are numerous “unknown” graves in federal cemeteries (mostly overseas) that have crosses over them. I always felt they would be the next target, since (contra what AP says), those buried underneath clearly did not “get to select their own insignias”. Also, the WWI memorial in Arlington is a Latin Cross as well. The ACLU always promised us when we asked than they would not go after gravestones, and everytime I asked if that included the unknown ones overseas, they were silent. I wonder why that was….
Also, you can read The American Legion’s press release here. (Disclaimer: I aided in writing portions of it.)
The whole Supreme Court enchilada below the jump;
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John Adams/Dec. of Ind./Historical question
OK, so the staff meeting I was just in lasted longer than the Cold War, but I was smart enough to grab a copy of the Declaration of Independence which I feigned to take notes on. Anyway, I came across this line listed within the list of grievances:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these states;
Anyway, it refers to “mock Trial” and not “Trials” so presumably it is referncing one trial, and one would assume from the general theme here that it is a reference to the trial following the Boston Massacre. Only, mitigating against that is the fact that one of the signers of the Dec is “John Adams” who, of course, was the defense attorney in that case. In fact, some brief wiki-ing, I found his journal entry:
“Before or after the Tryal, Preston sent me ten Guineas and at the Tryal of the Soldiers afterwards Eight Guineas more, which were. . .all the pecuniary Reward I ever had for fourteen or fifteen days labour, in the most exhausting and fatiguing Causes I ever tried: for hazarding a Popularity very general and very hardly earned: and for incurring a Clamour and popular Suspicions and prejudices, which are not yet worn out and never will be forgotten as long as History of this Period is read…It was immediately bruited abroad that I had engaged for Preston and the Soldiers, and occasioned a great clamour….
“The Part I took in Defence of Cptn. Preston and the Soldiers, procured me Anxiety, and Obloquy enough. It was, however, one of the most gallant, generous, manly and disinterested Actions of my whole Life, and one of the best Pieces of Service I ever rendered my Country. Judgment of Death against those Soldiers would have been as foul a Stain upon this Country as the Executions of the Quakers or Witches, anciently. As the Evidence was, the Verdict of the Jury was exactly right.
“This however is no Reason why the Town should not call the Action of that Night a Massacre, nor is it any Argument in favour of the Governor or Minister, who caused them to be sent here. But it is the strongest Proofs of the Danger of Standing Armies.”
Anyway, is that what this reference is to? It seems a little odd that the defence attorney would sign a declaration proclaiming his own trial (that he essentially won) to be a farce. Anyone have any historical background, or something further I can read? Did he have any moral qualms about that section?
Also, I noted one of the signatories listed his name as:
Charles Carroll of Carrollton
From now on I would like to be referenced as TSO of TSOville.
(If not, my mouth will hang open a minute or two, as TSO down in TSOville will cry, “Boo Hoo.”)
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My “holy shit the sawks won a game” post
They stink on ice. By the end of the season I half expect a midget in a pompadour to start on the mound for them on the theory that even he won’t give up 6 runs an inning.
Anyway, I have been sitting on this video I wanted to share for quite a while, and since I am not at all certain we will win another game all year long, I will use it today.
[For those who don’t know, I have to exercise “negative chi” in order to get the contrary result. For instance when UMASS is up 3 with 2 minutes to go, I send out emails to everyone prognosticating a 20 point loss. When I get a par, I immediately assume the next whole will be a quintuple bogey. Etc. This here represents my effort to drag the Sox out of the shit hole basement where they are fornicating grotesquely with the likes of B-More.]
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Your ironic term of the day
I swear I was trying to find out what a fear of being photographed is called, when I came upon this little gem. Please tell me that in this one instance “pg” is not pronounced as a “f”.
Phagophobia is a psychogenic dysphagia, a fear of swallowing.[1] It is expressed in various swallowing complaints without any apparent physical reason detectable by physical inspection and laboratory analyses. An obsolete term for this phobia is choking phobia,[2] but it was suggested that the latter term is confusing and it is necessary to distinguish the fear of swallowing (i.e., of the propulsion of bolus) from fear of choking.[1]
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Dicksmith: Obama spends time in house of Anti-Muslim bigot, praying with him…
First, there was this post, wherein the great dicksmith, purveyor of thoughts so deep a beetle wouldn’t drown in them, blasts Franklin Graham and praised the DoD:
The Pentagon has come to its senses and dis-invited Franklin Graham from speaking at their National Day of Prayer observance. If you aren’t familiar, here is some info on some of Graham’s past comments…
Muslim Soldiers serve in our armed forces everyday. They are fighting and dying honorably for their and our country. To have someone who calls their religion “evil” and wicked” and refers to them as slaves is a spit in their face. Personally, I don’t want someone who spits in the faces of honorable troops speaking to at an official DoD function.
Well, I am sure dicksmith will be appropriately outraged today when he sees that the President spent time with a guy who spits in the faces of honorable troops:
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – President Barack Obama met with the Rev. Billy Graham Sunday, continuing a 60-year tradition for presidents from Harry S. Truman to George W. Bush. Joining the pair at the 91-year-old evangelist’s North Carolina home was Graham’s son, the Rev. Franklin Graham.
Dick? Dick? You out there bud? Dick? This is where you act outrageously outraged by the President. Come on Dick. Dick, come out of the closet, I know you are in there. Dick?
Hypocrits, all of them fucking hypocrits if they don’t call him out on this one.