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Chad at CCK has a piece on ANWR oil and the current rise in gas prices. I think a lot of the points he makes are valid, but I can't help commenting on this one:To understand why Republicans are being...

Britain to expel for 'hate' speech

Democratic or not, there is no reason why open sedition has to be accepted, tolerated, or granted acceptance under "free expression". Democracy is NOT a suicide pact. Tony Blair's Britain has figured this out - would it be so that the Administration would finally do the same.

Mr. Clarke itemized a list of "unacceptable behavior" to signal the start of a crackdown that Prime Minister Tony Blair alluded to earlier this month when he said, "Let no one be in any doubt that the rules of the game are changing." The list announced by Mr. Clarke includes any act or speech that: ? Foments, justifies or glorifies terrorist violence. ? Seeks to provoke others to terrorist acts. ? Foments other serious criminal actions or attempts to provoke others to commit serious crimes. ? Fosters hatred that threatens to lead to ethnic violence. Unlike the United States, Britain has no First Amendment and some restrictions on free speech and a free press are enshrined in law. For example, reporters covering public trials are often limited on what they can write or say about court proceedings.

Again, First Amendment or not, there is NO constitutional right to sedition!

Ship 'em out, post-haste!

From NewsMax: Christian Coalition founder Pat Robertson prompted a firestorm of media outrage on Tuesday after he suggested that the Bush administration should assassinate a foreign leader who posed a threat to the U.S. - in this case, Venezuelan President...

Firstly, it should be noted that the Chief is a aficianado of science fiction - particularyly "hard" science fiction, as well as military science fiction. (No warlocks, dwarves or dragons PLEASE! Tolkien is good, but forget the rest.)

I just completed reading THE WATCH ON THE RHINE by John Ringo & Tom Kratman, with the setting of a sort of mass - horde invasion of the planet by some hungry and rapacious aliens who have us on the main menu. There are several books out there in this universe, of which this is the latest.

Without going into all the gory details (and are there EVER gory details that could be gone into) this latest effort is placed in Germany, and the surviving Waffen-SS, after galactic technological rejuvenation are brought back to join the fight. There are lots of interesting developments in this - for example a "Judas Maccabeus" Jewish SS Brigade (phew!) - but this is all just background for the purposes of this post.

The following part of an "Afterword" is the real substance I wanted to pass on (emphasis added):

Right now, Western Civilization, however much many of its members may refuse to admit it, is involved in a world war. No, it has seen no entire cities destroyed; no trenches have drawn their scars across entire continents. It is a world war all the same. Moreover, it is a world war that is putting to the test every notion of individual liberty, freedom of conscience, and rule of law that the West prizes. And should we lose we will see, or our grandchildren will, the erasure of all that is good in Western Civilization.

We cannot afford to lose. Yet winning will have its price, too. Just as the invasion John described is ordained to change humanity into something that one of Hitler's Waffen SS would recognize and call home, so too will this war change us. Because side by side with the virtues of Western Civilization are paired vices that may destroy us: a narrow legalistic mindset, an emphasis on form over substance, and an unwillingness to do the ruthless and violent things we must if we are to survive. This list is not exhaustive. Perhaps worse than these things, however, the West has nurtured at its own breast a set of execrable, vile, treacherous and treasonous villains that seem to seek at every opportunity to do all they can to ensure its destruction.

Yet there is hope. "Survival cancels out programming."

Indeed!

The LGF Kos Kountdown of Dooooooom. Technically, today we're 13 days away from the pending "radioactive" status of the Democratic Leadership Council, but I'm sure that the Kountdown will be making the rounds on many blogs today. After the disaster...

I meant to second Prof. Blanchard's argument for hate crimes legislation. A friend and I penned a chapter on hate crimes for this fine volume on moral policy. While researching and writing this book chapter I found my opinion change....

Cindy Sheehan, posting at Arianna's digs: Another "big deal" today was the lie that I had said that Casey died for Israel. I never said that, I never wrote that. I had supposedly said it in a letter that I...

With the decision this morning by an 8-1 vote, South dakota's Ellsworth Air Force Base was removed from the list of recommended closures by the BRAC Commissioners.

Some coverage on the facts of the decision in the Rapid City Journal...
Ellsworth saved

Like the phoenix from the ashes, the status of Ellsworth Air Force base rose from expendable to essential in a matter of seconds when the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission, or BRAC, voted Friday to save the base.

South Dakota's top lawmakers and the head of the Ellsworth Task Force were at the edge of their seats in the suburban Washington, D.C., hearing room when BRAC commissioner Samuel Skinner made a motion to reject the Pentagon's recommendation to close Ellsworth and move its 29 B-1B Lancer bombers to Dyess Air Force Base.

Looking for at least five commissioners to raise their hands in support of Skinner's motion, the South Dakotans instead saw all but one of the nine-member panel vote to save Ellsworth.

...and in the Sioux Falls Argus Leader:

ELLSWORTH SPARED

Ellsworth Air Force Base was taken off the Pentagon?s recommended list of closures this morning, a decision that sent jubilant Rapid City residents leaping to their feet as they watched the proceedings on live TV.

The nine-member independent commission voted 8 to 1 to reject the Pentagon?s recommendation to close the base as part of the Defense Department?s plan to restructure the military.

Meanwhile, some of the politics of the situation which provide a boost to Sen. Thune's position were not lost on others:

Base Closing Choices Impact Politics

When the Pentagon announced that it wanted to shut down Ellsworth Air Force Base, it was an enormous setback for Sen. John Thune. The Republican got elected in part by repeatedly telling voters he could save the base because of his close ties to President Bush.

Thune responded to the Ellsworth news by going on the offensive: He and fellow South Dakota leaders from both parties launched an intense lobbying effort. He also stopped fund-raising for the Republican Party and opposed the Bush administration on a few important Senate votes.

On Friday, Thune's political future got a big boost when a federal commission decided to save Ellsworth, home to B-1B bombers and a major player in the Cold War. He and other South Dakota politicians hailed the decision as the result of an extraordinary bipartisan campaign that convinced the commission that the military and nation need Ellsworth.

All in all, a very good day for South Dakota!

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