We Used To Like Ya

I was driving hither and yon this morning, and was about 3/4 listening a local radio station known for outside-the-rut programming.  Sometimes the stuff they spin at WSGE is better than other times (it's sometimes been pretty great), and this morning was on the leave-side of the take-it-or-leave-it scale.  At the top of the hour, in the mornings, they cut to a news package, and I'm pretty sure (at 9AM) it was "AP Radio News."

The headline story was over (brace yourself) Bristol Palin's Dancing with the Stars competition.  As with most so-called news programs, legitimate or not, I'm generally about 3/4 tuned out, and certainly couldn't care less about anything to do with DWTS, but in the last sentence or two the newsreader credited Miss Palin's success, in part, to the tea-baggers.

I've actually written checks in support of Public Radio stations in the past.  But, when I got home, I fired off this short email to the folks at WSGE:

To whom it may concern,

On a network news feed this morning from your station, the newsreader used a vulgar term of derision ("tea-bagger") as a backhanded slur against a group of common Americans whose collective sins amount to having the audacity to peacefully assemble in opposition to what they perceive as governmental malfeasance.  Although I don't actually belong to the Tea Party, I do have great admiration and affinity for their efforts, and I take umbrage at having the national media so-casually deride them.

Whereas I believe the news service is AP Radio News, and not your own production, I listened to the "DJ" return to the programming long enough to offer an apology for airing the offensive term.  None was provided.

I've enjoyed your station in the past.  I've even been a financial contributor to Public Radio in the past.  But, no more.  Plus, I will lobby my elected representatives harder than ever to work toward de-funding National Public Radio and the Corporation For Public Broadcasting.

Regards,

Ex-listener

The WSGE website is here.

I'm not the only non-liberal who sometimes listens to stations that provide the AP feed, I'm sure. Did anyone else catch this?

Call Me Capricious, Then

I just never really find myself in disagreement with The Hammer.  Except, well, this time.

Charles Krauthammer said yesterday that Sarah Palin's endorsement of Christine O'Donnell versus Mike Castle in Delaware, is "destructive and capricious", because in his assessment she has no chance of beating the Democrat in November but Castle would be a "shoo-in."

While I do see the value of having the raw numbers of "R's" in the Senate and all the inherent reconstructive power of a conservative majority, the time for half-measures is long gone.  Chris Christie didn't seem particularly electable, and neither did Scott Brown.  I don't want any shoo-ins, unless they've proven dependable in flawlessly adhering to the Constitution, and Castle can't remotely make that claim.

Out with establishment RINO's.  I'd rather lose with the good guys than win with the losers.

And a vote for Castle is a vote to just lose a little, instead of maybe winning a lot.

UPDATE:  Michelle Malkin reminds us that "9 terms (of phony republicanism) are enough."

UPDATE 2: Check out Mark Levin and Jim DeMint ("I've been here when we had the numbers, and we didn't have the principles") at the National Review.  Reference the Mark Levin podcast pane.

SaraCuda. You Betcha.

Now, here's an idea I can wrap my arms around...

Draft Sarah Palin for RNC Chair, sign the petition.

Why do I like Sarah?

I like the fact that her political strength comes largely from her apolitical demeanor.  I like the fact that her party is a reflection of her values and not the source of those values.  I like the fact that she has values based in her faith, and values based on the Constitution, relies on both and doesn't confuse the two.  I like the fact that she has real public decision-making experience.  I like the fact that she has greater fondness for action than rhetoric, and that her rhetoric is always based on her own historical experience, as opposed to intangible platitudes.  I like the fact that she has a deep regard for Liberty.  I like the feeling that she disdains the special interest groups, in favor of limited government.

Do I think she'd be a good President?  Yes.

But, I also think she'd wield enormously positive influence over a Republican party that has for far too long sought its own perpetuation over the Founders' vision of Liberty.  And making a real impact, a positive impact, on our society is something she says she aspires to.

Even before reading about this idea (I heard it from Jim Hoft at BigGovernmentdotcom) I wondered who'd be good to replace Steele if it came to that.  And her name was the first that came to mind.

I don't necessarily subscribe to the notion that Steele must be ousted, just for his remarks over Afghanistan being Obama's war (See Ann Coulter's essay at TownHall on why, yes, it largely is now Obama's war), but his leadership has been mostly uninspiring, if not outright ineffective.  I believe her presence in that position immediately legitimizes it, and de-fangs the entire establishment-politics syndrome that keeps rewarding career incumbents whose focus has strayed from serving the Constitution and their constituents to serving themselves.

I like Sarah, and I like the idea of her being drafted to Chair the RNC.

WHEREAS the current Chairman of the Republican National Committee, Michael Steele, has woefully and repeatedly misstepped in his capacity as party Chair, failing to provide the leadership and vision necessary to battle the Progressive Socialist Left’s agenda, and

WHEREAS he has also failed to cultivate and facilitate emerging Conservative candidates who are able to convincingly argue that Liberty is superior to dependence upon the State Apparatus, and

WHEREAS Sarah Palin, by way of radical contrast, consistently and enthusiastically argues on behalf of Liberty, Free Enterprise, Individualism, and a small and Constitutionally limited Federal Government, and

WHEREAS she has also demonstrated an innate affinity with the great majority of Liberty-Loving Americans, a capacity to inspire them to action, and a willingness to act as a National Leader on important Conservative Issues,

THEREFORE, We, the undersigned, submit that Sarah Palin, as soon as is practicably possible, ought to replace Michael Steele

I was the 200-'something'th signer, and hope you'll join me.  Let's make it a million signers by the weekend.

And speaking of RINOs: Allahpundit

Not "Johnny come lately" actually, but Johnny won't STFU.

I've been following the Scozzafava/Hoffman/RNC wrangling and mostly just trying to maintain a sense of objectivity. It rankles me that folks out there could even elect the Snowes and Specters of the world, even simply knowing that they pose as one thing and behave as the opposite of that thing (and once we've witnessed any one person doing this, to any extent in our own lives, don't we stop trusting them?). But it troubles me far more that the Republican party continues to rhetorically and financially support these RINOs, based only upon the value of an "R" after their names.

I dropped in over at Hot Air this morning, to see if I could figure out what measure of justification Allahpundit had found for his support of the giant Mosque that desecrates the memory of the Flight 93 heroes. I didn't get that far, but I did read his report that Newt has decided to back Hoffman.

Newt.

It might have been a real story, Allahpundit, if Newt had said, "I've finally come to the realization that Dem-Lite, in the hearts and minds of honest Constitution-loving Americans, doesn't really mean Republican." Instead, bandwagon-Newt only wants to be on the winning side, pretending that anyone would even consider letting him drive the wagon. I won't call him a Johnny come lately, I call him irrelevant. And by your excuses for him, you appear to A) fail to recognize that fleeting relevance, and B) prove your own diminishing significance (or worse, your complicity).

Contrary to what Newt thinks (and what you think he thinks, Allahpundit), the strategic value of electing, or backing for election, a rabidly liberty-eating RINO like Scozzafava does nothing to help retake America from the Socialists and apologists and appeasers.

I didn't find anything that told me why you smeared Alec Rawls in support of the terrorists' memorial, but I found enough to show me which side you're not on. When Newt laid down with Gore and Sharpton and Scozzafava, I knew wherein his sympathies aligned. And with your defense of him, your inclinations are now abundantly clear, too. What troubles me, now, is what rationalization does MM have for for a continued association with you?

In a world where liberty and freedom are threatened on every side, a policy of going along to get along is akin to arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

You called Newt her "most prominent Republican supporter." You should print a retraction/correction that clarifies thusly: Newt and Allahpundit are Scozzofava's biggest co-losers, and no repositioning at this point can't change that. To be sure, there was a prominent Republican who weighed in from Alaska, but the force of her stalwart support wasn't as laudable as Newt-come-lately's? Scozzofava quickly climbed into bed with her opponent(!) Owens, and you snuggle up with Newt. Birds of a feather.

News flash: Newt wasn't, and isn't, either prominent or Republican.

Rogue Element

Damn right, rogue.

If for no other reason, knowing that bad apples like Bin Laden preferred John Kerry to George Dubya gave me plenty of reason to dislike Kerry without further discussion. Similarly, I'm with Rush on this equation: It is reason enough that the Ostrich Media foams at the mouth with hatred every time Sarah Palin's name is mentioned, that immediately makes me gravitate towards her.



They fear her. And if you hate America, then you should fear her, too. Because she most-certainly does not stand for weakness.

I have an old friend...actually, I've been more of a friend to him, because I've paid to attend his bands' shows and given him shelter in my home and driven him around when I lived in Austin when he came to visit and I shared his music with others and so on...who fawned over Obama on his blog after the election last November that he'd years earlier grown to love and adore the man. He did not say, however, that his adoration prompted him (anytime prior to the election) to more-closely scrutinize Obama's history. And, I criticized him for that. I go back to his blog periodically to see if he's found the courage to take a hard look at his folly, but as yet, no such luck.

So now, here I am with a similar heroic figure. Haven't seen any warts yet, but I'll keep looking. Currently, her writings include her facebook page, which I read periodically. I think it's okay that a huge portion of the voting public will emotionalize their support (and I'm tempted to, also, I admit)...So what if her cult of personality sways the easily swayable, right? I'll be looking for, and at, the facts, thankeeverymuch. If she's the leader I believe her to be, I won't care any more why you like her than I care why they (the lunatic fringe left) don't.

And if you're thinking about my Christmas gift, mark your calendar for November 17: the day her book, Going Rogue, hits the shelves. I hope I get a thousand copies.

I Still Hate You Sarah..."liberal" essay

This morning, I found a nice companion piece for yesterday's video-post regarding Ms. Palin. Sometimes you read something (or maybe not YOU, but certainly I do) that makes you say, "Man, I wish I'd have written that". The essay, referenced and quoted by my friend The Conservative Pup's blog, is pure journalistic mastery. Consider these excerpts:

I don’t know why I’m telling you this, but maybe now you’re beginning to understand the high-stakes game we’re playing here. This ain’t John McCain’s logrolling senatorial club any more. This is a deadly serious attempt to realize the vision of the 1960s and to fundamentally transform the United States of America. This is the fusion of Communist dogma, high ideals, gangster tactics, and a stunning amount of self-loathing. For the first time in history, the patrician class is deliberately selling its own country down the river just to prove a point: that, yes, we can! This country stinks and we won’t be happy until we’ve forced you to admit it.

In other words, stop thinking of the Democratic Party as merely a political party, because it’s much more than that. We’re not just the party of slavery, segregation, secularism, and sedition. Not just the party of Aaron Burr, Boss Tweed, Richard J. Croker, Bull Connor, Chris Dodd, Richard Daley, Bill Ayers, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, and Emperor Barack Hussein Obama II. Not just the party of Kendall “Agent 202” Myers, the State Department official recruited as a Cuban spy along with his wife during the Carter administration. Rather, think of the Democratic Party as what it really is: a criminal organization masquerading as a political party.

The article is entitled, I Still Hate You Sarah Palin by David Kahane in the National Review. Please consider following the link above to read the whole thing. It's worth it.

Thanks, Pup!

I'll say again, if you folks weren't listening...It should be considered good advice that any of you come to my blog with your morning coffee, crank the playlist player's "play" button, and proceed through the updates in my blogroll as a vital part of your daily routine.

You're welcome.

Go get 'em, Sarah!

Why do I have such high regard for Ms. Palin? Mostly because I think she shares the sentiment that there is little or no need to be a great politician in order to be a great leader. I listen to what she says, and I have the sense that what she says is an extension of who she is, not a fabrication of what she thinks someone wants to hear.

If she wants to be a hockey coach, the first female President (never thought I'd say that or see it happen in my lifetime), start a late-night television show on Fox to trounce the Lettermans and would-be-Lettermans of the world, or write a book and have a public-speaking tour in support of it (hey Sarah, do you want a co-writer?), I'm behind her 100%.



Thanks to Kate and Beth for the video.

Also, check out Lemuel's report featuring Thomas Lifson's take.

I keep reading the same phrase from good folks, "Go get 'em, Sarah."

Amen.

Countdown to whupass...

Update: For a truly magical combination, click play on the playlist player above (Rebel Son's One Way Or Another) while you read this post.

Hey there, you crazy kids! I just put the O!Bummer countdown widget on my blog. How cool is that?! Just over thirteenhundred days to go. Still seems awfully long. Unbearably so. I still hope he chokes to death on a chicken-bone. Yeah, that's mean, but he hates America...and I hate anyone who hates America. Frankly, I think he should simply say, "You know what? I realize now what an indefensible scam I've perpetrated on the USA, and fully confess my ineptitude...I shall resign my post immediately to perhaps save my Negro brethren from further embarrassment."

On a distantly related note, by a show of hands, how many among you would subscribe to a pay-per-view event that pitted Sarah Palin against John Kerry in a no-rules, steel-cage, bareknuckles, death-match?

Me too!

We all know that Sarah-Cuda's intellect runs wide circles around Kerry's and O!Bummer's and Biden's and well, all those socialists. But don't you think she could righteously whip any of them, anytime, anywhere, and for any amount of money? Wouldn't it be just cooler than all git-out to see Kerry laying in a pool of his own tears & piss & blood, with Governor Palin standing over him saying, "Ah shucks, John, there you go again...bleedin' all over my pretty shoes."