May 11, 2002
Rally round the Bar Code, mes braves!
In the "good old days," I wouldn't have laughed at the EUro-weenies, even when they acted very silly, but now it's irrestible! Tee-hee-hee!
Look at this poor excuse of a "design" for the new EU flag, from that cradle of Taste, Artistry and Refinement: Europe.
How fitting that it looks like Universal Bar Code for a confederation that loves to condemn Globalization early and often.
If once-proud nations like France, Italy and Austria allow this dimestore beach towel to become their rallying standard, I will indeed be convinced that Fortress Europe has turned into the world's biggest Starbuck's.
(Inside I weep when I recall the outright love the French have had for over 200 years for the Bleu, blanc, rouge.
I mourned the death of the French franc when it was replaced by the Euro on 1/1/02, now this. Affreux!)
At least the royal blue and gold-starred design they have now is tasteful and "plausible" as a pan-European symbol; it looked like the kind of flag one imagines for a Hollywood movie version of the flag of the United States of Futuristic Europe, like that for the global "Corporation" in the film "Rollerball" (and no, I don't mean the new "Rollerball" but the old, classic one with James Caan and John Haussman!).
Which all goes to prove that old adage once again: If it ain't broke, don't fix it!
Beep goes the bar code reader! Long live the EU! Would you like paper or plastic?!
It's the wee hours
It's the wee hours again and I'm so tired: I feel as if I personally were in the Church of the Holy Nativity...on the Ladies' Altar Guild!
It will be mop, mop, mop and a lot of cans of Lysol before it smells of incense again. (Those Muslim pigs. With abject apologies to swine.)
Mentioning incense reminds me of the Episcopal priest who presided over my Confirmation.
He said that some parishioners (those PC anti-smoking types) complained about the smoke in the church from the incensor during the high holy days' services, to which he replied,"There will only be 2 smells in the life hereafter--Incense in one place and fire and brimstone in the other. You decide which you'd like to smell and where you will smell it."
Looks like the Palestinians holding the siege chose #1 and #2 and I do not mean Heaven and Hell.
May 10, 2002
"Stupid White Men who were blinded by the Cash"
Pour yourself a glass of wine or a cup of fresh coffee for maximum enjoyment of these two marvelous take-down pieces on two of our much-deserving-of-scorn-and-ridicule "idealogues" and favorite Liberals: David Brock and Michael Moore.
First, there's Christopher Hitchens and his scathingly funny, yet accurate review of David Brock's book-length confession of heresy as a Republican as recounted in his "Blinded by the Right" in The Nation.com:"The Real David Brock". Here's the last paragraph which will give you a good idea of what to expect:
Still, I wanted to take an extra shower after trudging through this dismally written, pick-nose, spiteful and furtive little book. It glitters with malice and the more cowardly kind of "disclosure"; it's a dank, filthy tissue turned inside out. And it is all written allegedly as a defense of the Clintons' right to privacy! As someone who despised Clinton from the very first, I remember resenting the damage done by hysterical and fabricated right-wing attacks, which bought him time and sympathy. Anyone really interested in this period should grab the paperback version of Michael Isikoff's Uncovering Clinton, a verifiable story told by a serious journalist, who began by disbelieving the rumors and discovered by honest exertion that many of them, and some that had not even been suspected, were true.
Oh, Christopher!
Delicious with a capital D!
Then, there's Spinsanity's Ben Fritz (he also writes for Salon.com) on Michael MOO-re's "Stupid White Men" at his justly famous blog:
Spinsanity.
For weeks, all I've been seeing are rave reviews and just plain raves about both of these bestselling books. Can you believe it? Why do people fall for such tripe?! Thank God these two charlatans, Brock and Moore, are revealed in print by real thinkers to be the frauds I suspected them to be! (Because G-d knows I wasn't going to put my money in those authors' pockets by buying their dam* books! They're already wealthy enough!)
Now, if only someone worthy--perhaps Peggy Noonan?-- can get Alec Baldwin to shut up and sit down!
May 09, 2002
Could the Palestinians ever write a Bill of Rights, much less a Constitution?
Well, what Barry Rubin is too polite or journalistically shy or circumspect to say in his Analysis of the Bush Adminstration's policy regarding a Palestinian state for the Jerusalem Post here: "A remarkable new development", we bloggers have no hesitancy in saying out here in the Blue Nowhere:
Either Ozzy slipped the President and his Cabinet CRACK which they've been smoking heavily , or our leaders are living in a dream world, or Bush is very, very sly and clever and is planning for exactly the opposite of what he says to occur! Any bets on which one?
I, personally--and I think a lot of Israelis and Jews would join me on this one--cannot ever see a Palestinian state.
By this I mean, a "Palestine" that can live side by side with Israel in peace and prosperity. It just *ain't* gonna happen. Because if it was going to happen, it would have taken place long before now, like in 1948.
The author rightly notes that BILLIONS in aid, both from the U.S. , the E.U. and the U.N., have already been given to Mr. Arafat to fund the kind of strong infrastructure for the Palestinian areas that Bush envisions still in the future and yet Arafat hasn't even been able to maintain his "police" force, much less the other institutional trappings of an ordered nation-state. Obviously, Mr. Arafar has either spent all this money on munitions and suicide bombers' surviving families or on himself and his wife for her Paris shopping trips. After all, Chanel isn't cheap!
I respect and support President Bush as much as the next Bushie, but he's got to wake up and smell the coffee--or maybe the sardines and dynamite! He speaks of the Palestinians having a constitution and I think he imagines it being similar to our own. Yeah, right! This would this be a first for the Middle Eastern (Islamic) countries, where NONE of their leaders have been duly elected and where justice and civil law are derived not from democratically elected judges and legislators who rule by the consent of the governed, but from the shari'a, the Muslim concept of "law" as decided by their mullahs. I guess they divine Allah's intentions for Modern Man from their communion with the Koran and daily prayer(Who knows?
As Geoffrey Rush's character says in "Shakespeare in Love," "It's a mystery.")All I know is that some of the worst things in human history have been done by people who could convincingly say to others,"Do it, because God told me you must do it."
Scarier still is President Bush's appeal to those noble Palestinian leaders (other than Arafat) who supposedly are waiting in the wings, like our Minute Men in 1776, ready to set up a nation of impartial laws, inalienable rights, and basic human freedoms. (Wasn't Bush the one who proclaimed that the War on Terrorism was a War FOR Freedom itself?!? How can he forget so soon?)
Bush speaks of and to fair, noble Palestian leadership: I cannot think of another face or name of a Palestinian anything, fair or foul of temper, other than Yasser Arafat.
And I don't know if President Bush has noticed, but the PLA has been shooting, hanging and stubbing out cigarettes on the corpses of any Palestinian moderates they found in Ramallah and Jenin, whom the Palestinians called "Israeli collaborators."
I know President Bush likes to accentuate the positive in people and that is one of his finest qualities, but this is beyond ridiculous. Either he still doesn't "get it" about the whole Israeli-Palestinian problem or he's playing a slyer, more subtle battle of wits and diplomacy with world leaders like Crown Prince Abdullah, Tony Blair, etc.
I really need for President Bush to stop with his current rhetoric, because not only is it making ME feel crazy, but I'll bet that Ariel Sharon, Bebe Netanyahu and most of Israel are tearing their hair out every time they hear this drivel also!
Make up your mind, President Bush! "You are either with Us or you're with the terrorists." And Arafat and his pals in the Palestinian areas are terrorists, now and forever.
As far as I'm concerned, the Palestinians blew up a little piece of their dream of a Palestinian state with every suicide bomb they used--along with too many innocent Israelis--until the dream was as dead as their victims.
But as for the Holy Land,
Am Yisrael Chai!
Anch-whores away?!
Why is THIS story so great?! (but it is) Read for yourself about guys from our U.S. Navy completely exhausting their paid female companions in Perth, Australia while on shore leave in this item from the Australian news service :War stress wears out prostitutes
All things being equal, I normally wouldn't condone such high spirits (Ahem!), but all things are not equal. We've been at war now for 7 months so it's kind of nice to see OUR BOYS exhibiting such friendly and healthy behavior.
And from the great successes our armed forces have been having with Operation Enduring Freedom, I'd say these swabbies have earned their "R&R."
Of such things are great American Wars made---Shades of South Pacific!
(And to those very professional Aussie ladies, "Good on ya!" We appreciate you giving our sailors such a warm welcome.)
May 08, 2002
Better Smoke get in your eyes than mine!
My publishing panic is over and all is well with my world thanks to some fellow bloggers here on Blogger.
Thank you Aaron B. wherever you are and thanks also to my fellow Bloggers who posted in the Discuss/Troubleshooting/User-to-user sections.
I'm dead tired tonight--it's the pause before Ariel Sharon lets loose his dogs of war again, but this time, I think we know what to expect and the end is looking near for Arafat and his Pal pals. "Time for them to go."
I've never shared my smoking problems until now, but they are legion. Last time I looked, cigarettes and tobacco and their use were still LEGAL, but you'd never know it!
I think most people *now* treat child molesters and rapists better than they do smokers!
I'm currently being bothered about my habit by my oral surgeon and my building manager...wonderful.
The periodontist claims that smoking retards the healing of gum tissue. OK, I might believe that partly.
It prolly doesn't help one's teeth and gum condition, but if all the smokers quit, wouldn't that guy see a lot of his patients disappear? Do you think he secretly wants to send every one of his smokers a fruit basket?
The building manager is a bit "concerned" because the odor of our smoking (the couple that smokes together, stays together) from the apartment can be detected "in the hall."
Oh, dear.
What if Hillary Clinton came here? She would pitch a fit.
Her hubby Beezlebubba was more concerned that Hitlery found out he'd been smoking a cigar in the Oval Office than that he was getting a hummer from a girl young enough to be his daughter, not to mention engaging in conduct unbecoming the gravitas of the Presidency!
Now I know the residual smells of smoking in buildings isn't the best, but what about my fellow tenants who were cooking garlic?
(That, you could smell all over the building!)
And then there's the air freshener the landlord has sprayed in all the common areas---Citrus/Floral/Spice Surprise. Heavy, dank, cloying--to some, *this* is air pollution.
How I wish I were a heroin addict or an old-fashioned alcoholic some days; then my vice wouldn't announce itself in an olfactory way to one and all. But then, most addicts and drunks usually smoke,too, so I'd still be busted.
I wonder if I were smoking pot instead of tobacco if the complaint would be the same....
Be that as it may, I've invested heavily in Glade plug-ins, Carpet Fresh, Clorox everything and even a $400 "ionic" air filtering machine in hopes that it will mask or destroy the *stench* eminating from my indulgence of my right to smoke a legal product!
G-d knows, the Founding Fathers not only made the future of this country on tobacco from growing it and selling it, but the Constitution was written on paper made from hemp!
Americans have the inalienable rights to smoke, eat or drink whatever they choose, even if it's bad for them (and that includes illegal drugs, BTW, but the inanity of the War on Drugs is a topic for another day)!
But "it takes a village" of PC Police like Hitlery to make us stop exercising those rights.
Dammit, if I have to move to France to smoke, I'm not going to be happy.
Error502 Blues
Now, I'm REALLY worried--I'm getting all sorts of computer speak messages that won't let me publish....Help!
Just when we all
Just when we all thought it was safe to go back in the pool, the Palestinians-- Hamas this time (Does anyone really care which group it was?) set off another deadly bomb in Israel.
Gee, the last month has been so peaceful and quiet over there-- not a bombing since Easter Sunday!-- while the IDF had Arafat all isolated in Ramallah.
Now we all know and can see that the juxtaposition of the two events ain't a coincidence.
How tragic that 15 (at least) more innocent Israeli citizens had to die for Arab militants to make their point--whatever point it may be that one makes with a suicide bombing other than random MURDER.
This time I hope Sharon won't be so restrained when he has the troops move back in to the West Bank to kick their *ss and take more names.
If you ask me, I think Sharon has been remarkably even-handed in his actions and is doing every play *by the book*.
He came to Washington to meet with President Bush armed with lots of evidence of Arafat's direct involvement with the bombings and as of this writing (2:30 a.m. CDT), Israeli troops have yet to make a retaliatory strike.
With each successive defensive answer for murder of civilian Israelis, Sharon will ratchet up the response, but in a measured, methodical way.
Also of note is that the Italian government has backed out of the deal to take the Palestinian detainees from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. So the siege or sitdown strike or whatever that is goes on, I suppose.
Who didn't see that coming?!
Trading a by now stinky and pitted out church with no food, medicine or cigarettes for an exile in sunny Rome with Italian monks who know how to cook pasta? We should all have "punishment" for our crimes like that!
Again, I repeat, the Church--even that special church--is not a building and we can rebuild the physical structure.
The Christian believers know that Christ was born in our hearts.
May 06, 2002
Reversal of Fortuyn
Late-night buzz centers around the murder (dare we say political assassination already?) of Dutch Conservative Pim Fortuyn.
R.I.P., sir. You sounded like a good man.
Just when Europe thought it was time to exhale after Le Pen lost the election in France, this happens.
Judging from the riot in The Hague over Fortuyn's death, the Right/Conservatism in Europe hasn't run out of outrage yet.
The suspect would appear to be another white Dutch male--one wonders if he was bothered by Fortuyn's stand on immigration or his homosexuality. I more than suspect the latter, although he may claim the former.
Across the Channel, there was a pro-Israel rally of 50,000 in London's Trafalgar Square.
And on MSNBC, Ashley Minefield actually showed footage of the London synagogue that was trashed in Finsbury Park. Fancy! I thought she didn't like the Jews much.
It strikes me as more than ironic that while America tried to stay out of WWII and pretended that it would "go away" while Hitler staged Kristallnacht, took over Western Europe and most of Eastern Europe,too and the Battle of Britain was raging, Europe has been trying to stay out of the War on Terrorism, particularly since 9/11 with an "it can't happen here" mentality.
Too bad the fundamental and Wahhabi Muslims who live amongst them had other ideas.
In some ways, the anti-Semitism that is tolerated, if not encouraged abroad, and the pro-Palestinian sympathies harbored there are far worse than the outright murders at the WTC, the Pentagon and Flight 93.
Those who abet terrorism in Europe, however inadvertently, are "locals," fellow countrymen, friends and neighbors. It's almost personal...or worse still, even familial.
At least there's an "Other-ness" to maniacal-looking freaks like Mohammed Atta who, after all, was an Egyptian. Sure, they "lived among us" in America but only to plan their barbarous crimes. And they were aliens in a country founded by immigrants.
Europe is somewhat different, being inundated with millions of Muslims who have come to stay, live on their welfare, and perpetuate their dream of an 8th Century Musselman theocracy, with its impractical society of shari'a law and legislation by its mullahs' fatwas, its doctrine of female oppression and religious intolerance, even prohibition against tobacco, music, TV and the Internet.
Not to sound paranoid, but it seems the Islamists' goal is world domination and nothing less. They are more to be feared than Communists! Fundamental Islam is totalitarianism with a holy book.
More ominously, this holy book doesn't consider murder (at least of the infidel) to be a crime. In fact, it's an absolute noble goal and potential route to Paradise.
Folks, we are at war with these people, make no mistake. It's them or us.
But when Le Pen stands up for France for the French, he's reviled and called a "Hitler." (yes, I know he said the Holocaust was a "detail" of history, but have you seen Chirac really stand up for Jewry, he who called Israel a "sh*tty little country?")
Now, Pim Fortuyn, who wanted a "Holland for the Dutch," and was outspoken against Muslim immigrants who refused to assimilate in Holland, is shot and killed in cold blood on the eve of his political triumph. The storm brews over Europe.
It may have to get worse for it to get better. There is so much to love about European history and culture and most of the people are really lovely over there. This is painful to watch, but like everything that's happened since 9/11, it's painful but necessary.
President Bush did not exaggerate when he stated that we are in a war for Civilization itself. If only Western Europe would believe....How much more blood has to flow on European soil for them to be convinced? I pray not any more.
"Great and Powerful Ozz" Indeed
If your heart needs lightening today, go to WaPo story "Great and Powerful Ozz: At the White House Correspondents' Dinner, a Heavy-Metal Taste of True Celebrity".
Looks like Ozzy rocked the Hill without playing a note or even eating a bat!
As far as I can tell, from the accounts of the revelry, excitement and just plain teenage-type silliness that was seen at this event, it sounds like the first time anyone in Washington has had PURE FUN since 9/11.
Thank God for that! They needed it and they deserved it!
Cheers, Ozzy!
So much for all those media talking heads who allege that President Bush is "out of touch" with popular culture, as well. Take that!
Sadly, I have yet to become a devotée of the show "The Osbournes," but I see heavy committment to it in my future. It certainly is the rage in the rest of America!
(G-d, I miss Beavis and Butthead on MTV....)
Invitees seemingly had a hard time deciding whether to faun over Ozzy or the President, Greta van Sistern(!--although we have Greta to thank for bringing the Osbournes!) or Raquel Welch, General Tommy Franks or Lorraine Bracco (I'm there! Tony Soprano's analyst!)
If President Bush and this Administration have "changed the tone" in Washington such that luminaries like Ozzy can be invited, will put on a suit, and even feel comfortable enough to approach the Pres and say,"You should wear your hair like mine!" when it's part magenta--this is progress from the Stalinist purge like atmosphere that prevailed under Clintoon.
The fact that our nation's leaders and media pundits could again get together for some plain old Fellowship and good fun, especially after 9/11 and all the tense days filled with dread and sorrow we've known since show's me that Western Civilization may indeed be saved and that the terrorists will surely not have "won."
Rock on! (I always liked Black Sabbath!)
May 05, 2002
Black Sabbath Bushie--the President is "Iron Man!"
I love it that Ozzy Osbourne was invited to Washington and the Correspondents' Dinner where he predictably drank too much,swore, and generally acted badly but what does GWB see in him?! Ha-ha! (I thought the President didn't like Rock 'n' Roll, much less heavy metal.)
Maybe we can forgive Ozzy being the world's oldest brat as long as he's English and not American.
We indeed live in interesting times.
Mitzvah with Italian Matzos
Looking for a way to do a mitzvah or good deed, especially for our Israeli friends fighting the War on Terrorism?
Then think about sending Israeli soldiers on the front lines pizza and Pepsi!
It's affordable, easy (just point and click), and obviously means a lot to the soldiers to know we care.
Go to IDF Pizza gifts.
I received a wonderful email thanking me for my part:
"Thank you so much for your pizza order for the soldiers who are protecting the Jewish people day and night.It is so nice for them to know that there are people like you who are standing behind them.
Am Yisrael Chai!
Once again thanks for your support.
Regards,
Shimon
