AMNESTY NOW!

The Pacific northwest has been a breeding ground for liberal lunacy for many years, so what I’m about to tell you now may not come as a surprise. We all remember the plight of the northern spotted owl in Oregon back in the early nineties, right? The poor creature had been pushed to the point of extinction by the overly aggressive development of mankind and was placed on the endangered species list. All commercial logging was halted in an area rich with timber and hundreds of jobs were lost in the local timber industry as well as an economic stagnation due to those jobs disappearing. The radical greenies and the government then set about bringing the poor bird back from the brink.

It was a cause you could really get behind and the bird soon became the symbol for the conservation movement as it railed against the never ceasing demands of human industry.

Well, fast forward to today and that majestic bird is once again under attack from an aggressive species that seeks to force it from it’s protected territory The attack isn’t coming from who you think it is though. It’s coming from another species of owl, the barred owl, that is better suited to the environment, able to nest in a wider area and has a diet that includes much that the northern spotted owl will not touch. Also, the barred owl is not a outside species introduced to the environment, it’s native to the pacific northwest area to begin with. The two species have coexisted alongside each other for hundreds of years but the barred owl proved to be the stronger of the two.

In simple terms, the barred owl is a hardier species more aptly suited to the environment and thus, is pushing the spotted owl down the evolutionary ladder and back to the brink of extinction. This is natural selection at it’s finest. This is not man encroaching on yet another defenseless animal and destroying it’s habitat, this is the way of nature. When nature selects a species for extinction, there is no Supreme Court appeal process. There is no legislation or “feel good” policy that can deny the inevitable. When you are selected for extinction, that’s it. Ask the dinosaurs how they fared in the “natural selection lawsuit”.

I read this story with gusto for two reasons. First and most importantly, it points out the folly of the green movement when it seeks to limit man’s progress for the sake of an animal that will die out anyway, and secondly because it brought to mind another issue that once again rears it’s ugly head in our pre-election season.

Immigration.

Yes, I said immigration. How do the two link you might ask? I’m glad you asked. Let me expound on my point and you will see the wisdom of this connection.

Let’s put this in terms that everyone can understand.

The barred owl just wants to come into the spotted owl’s land and raise it’s little owl family. It just wants a better way of life and besides, it’s just there to do the job the spotted owls won’t do. Why should some imaginary boundary keep the barred owl out? After all, does the spotted owl own the land in which it resides? No, I say. The earth belongs to no one species alone and I say we should immediately pass legislation providing immunity for all the barred owls so that they can stay. They’ve been there so long, they don’t know any other land. The term “anchor egg” has been bandied about by the spotted owls, racists that they are, and this must stop.

Oh yes, what are they going to do about the barred owls to further protect the spotted ones?

They’re going to hunt and KILL them for heavens sake. Thousands upon thousands of birds will be slaughtered mercilessly every year to control their breeding and encroachment. This is simply barbaric, I tell you. Look, we can’t simply deport every barred owl, that would be far too costly so I say instead that we offer amnesty and bring the noble barred owl out of the shadows. Free to pursue the American Owl dream, to live in the freest territory on Earth

Besides, it IS the backbone of the environment of the Pacific Northwest…isn’t it?

An open letter to Sarah Palin...

Mrs. Palin,
May I call you Sarah? After all your exposure in the press the past three years, I feel like I know you. Better than any other politician I've ever followed before in fact. More than Reagan, Bush and Nixon combined. I've seen and read more minutiae about you than at any other time during an election season. I've alternately heard how stupid you are and in the next breath, what a savvy politico you are. One of those stances has to be true. The other, by virtue of reality, must be false. I choose to believe that you are a caring human being, a good mother and wife and a patriot at heart. I believe that your vision for America closely matches my own. I refuse to believe the numerous and horrible rumors that are sometimes spread about you in the press. No one that hasn't killed 6 million Jews can be as bad as the press obviously believes you are. Having said that, I have taken quite a bit of flak for my support and admiration of you. As the old adage says however, "When you start getting flak, you must be over the target." That derision has come from both the left and the right. I am never surprised by the left's hatred of you. Yes, I use the word hatred because mild dislike doesn't prompt one to verbally abuse a special needs child or claim that you are the most incompetent and corrupt individual ever to hold public office. As I said, that doesn't really surprise me. I've grown used to hearing that kind of extremism from the voices on the left.

What does surprise me is listening to my compadres on the right say many of the same things about you. Hearing them spew the same lines that I read and hear from the mainstream press is disconcerting for me. Mind you, these are the same people who like me, were crushed when John McCain won the Republican nomination but were suddenly and thankfully buoyed by his naming you as his running mate. I voted for YOU Sarah, not for McCain. Most of the votes he won in 2008 were for you as I'm sure you already know. Fast forward to three years, countless investigations, (fruitless ones I might add) and dozens of scurrilous rumors later and many of the people who lauded your Vice Presidential selection now equate you to a walking joke in a dress and sensible shoes. I applaud your strength against the mob-like chorus that assails your every move. Lord knows I wouldn't be equal to the challenge. I honestly don't know how you do it. Maybe it's your faith, maybe it's your belief that no one can tell you who you are or maybe...just maybe it's the old "sticks and stones" thing. Regardless, you have managed dignity and composure in the face of the most hateful rhetoric I have ever seen any political personality, male or female, go through. I often wonder if Chris Matthews or Ed Schultz could stand the glare of the spotlight you have endured and still possess something resembling a "normal" family life. I suspect they wouldn't be able to take the pressure that you have taken.

Enough of me telling you what you already know though. I should get to the point of this letter before I lose you completely. The point of my letter is this:

Run Sarah. Run as fast and as hard as you can and you should reach 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue by January of 2013. You know how much your country needs you, don't you? I've read your posts in Facebook and heard you speak at events all over the country so I'm certain you understand the dire situation we are all in right now. Our past is being rewritten by Harvard bookworms who have no love for those of us who still believe the dream. Our present is marred by slick talking used car salesmen who seek only to enrich themselves and our future, for the first time in 224 years...is in doubt.

There is a wonderful quote from the movie "Gladiator" that comes to my mind every time I see another of my rights infringed by our current President and it is this,

"There was once a dream that was Rome. You could only whisper it. Anything more than a whisper and it would vanish... it was so fragile. And I fear that it will not survive the winter."

Autumn approaches quickly Sarah. Do you not see the leaves turning color? Do you not feel the chill in the air? The days are getting shorter and the nights are getting colder with every passing day. There once was a dream that was America. It stood for freedom, liberty and self reliance. A dream that drove men to defeat arguably the strongest military power on the planet all in the name of self determination. A belief that men could rule themselves if given the chance and shown the way by honorable and trustworthy leaders. I believe that leader is you. As do many of those in my circle of friends and across the nation as well.

Run Sarah. Run and we will follow you. Lead the way for a weary nation, lost and discouraged by scandalous and unscrupulous "leaders". Disillusioned that so many of our countrymen have forgotten about the dream that was America. The dream that sought to make men free, brother against brother. The dream that drove us to the moon and beyond. The dream that filled my heart the day I stood in the National Archives and read the Declaration of Independence and the Bill Of Rights. The dream I refuse to see slip away for my children. For your children. For all children, everywhere in this most compassionate nation on Earth.

I will take my lumps for my belief that you are the right person at the right time. I will endure the ridicule of my conservative friends and the scorn and derision of my liberal friends. It is, after all, the least I can do, is it not? For it is minuscule when compared to the derision, scorn and ridicule that you and your family have faced, lo these many months.

For the dream that was America...

Run Sarah...run.

Circling the wagons 'round the Weiner.

Yes, it has been a while since I've vented my spleen about some outrage or another. It's not that there haven't been any, I just find myself too busy to spare what precious time I have to point out the obvious. As any of you who have read any of my rants in the past will agree, the common underlying theme throughout most of them has been the media's penchant for liberal bias and extreme hypocrisy. Never has that been more prevalent than with the recent revelations of Democrat Rep. Anthony Weiner's twitter scandal. I'll not rehash the salacious details but suffice to say there's been more than enough salaciousness to go around. I'd always hoped having a Congressman named Weiner would pay off in comedy gold and he certainly hasn't disappointed me. Lord knows I've had my fair share of punchlines at his expense but when a public figure tweets pictures of his junk AND his name just happens to be Weiner, the jokes just write themselves. I'll try my best not to take any more cheap shots at the Congressman. Not for lack of material mind you, but it's just a little too easy to be frank. Did I just say frank? Sorry. Let me once again stiffen my resolve. Oops, did it again.

See what I mean?

Sure, it's puerile and smacks of third grade humor but if you can't find humor in this you either have no sense of humor or...you're a Democrat. Which brings me neatly to my impending point. Not in recent memory have I seen the media rush to cleanse or at least, diminish, the news surrounding Rep. Weiner. In the past two weeks, the media has spent more time attempting to downplay the severity of the scandal. Make no mistake, it is indeed a scandal due in large part to the way in which he handled it at the outset. His immediate reaction was to lie about it then perpetuate it day after day, using the media as a willing accomplice until it was no longer manageable. When the truth eventually did rear it's incredibly ugly head, he finally decided to make a heartfelt plea for forgiveness from his constituents, his wife and the media he had used to his advantage. One may never know if his wife or his constituents accepted his apology. Losing his congressional seat or his marriage remains to be seen. The media, however, appears to have taken his apology to heart and have since rushed to defend the man in ways both comical and horrific. Chris Matthews laid partial blame at his wife's feet and later said "people in the rural areas of this country who are Christian conservative culturally - you can say backward if you want...don't like this kind of stuff."

Howard Kurtz laid the blame on his position of authority stating that men with powerful personalities could not be expected to remain faithful. Ultimately, these men who are conquerers, should be allowed to philander at will...as long as they're Democrats. Daily Beast contributor Lee Siegel postsed a piece recently entitled, "C'Mon, America, Nobody's Perfect". Really? NPR's Nina Totenberg asked the musical question, "If his name weren’t Weiner, would we still be talking about this?"

Surely you jest. You mean the scandal and it's resulting ferocity of attention are based solely on his name? Lawrence O'Donnell, host of "The Last Word," ridicules the idea that lying should be grounds for resignation, Rachel Maddow, host of "The Rachel Maddow Show," describes the situation as "more gossip than news," and Cenk Uygur, MSNBC political commentator, says that "he lied, so what."

A scant five years ago the networks piled on 152 stories about Rep. Mark Foley in the story's first 12 days in the fall of 2006, but they weren’t the only ones with a vast left-wing disparity. Time and Newsweek each devoted cover stories and multiple pages to the Foley scandal. Time put an elephant’s rear end on the cover with the words “What a Mess...Why a tawdry Washington sex scandal may spell the end of the Republican revolution”. Newsweek had a huge picture of Foley (with a small President Bush in front of his face) with the huge headline “Off Message” and the subhead “Foley’s Secret Life: How a Predator’s E-mail Sex Scandal Could Cost Bush Congress.”

A Republican sex scandal brought down the entire party in the 2008 midterm election but we're just supposed to let the Weiner story fade to irrelevance according to the aforementioned lions of truth in the media.

In simple terms, Weiner sullied the reputation of the country in the wider world, he defiled his marriage to the woman he promised to love, honor and cherish til death they do part...or a hot coed comes along. He lied to his constituents, the media and the entire country multiple times and we're expected to just ignore it and forgive him. He can't help it, after all. He's just a man with flaws and imperfections that we all possess. Trouble is, he's not like us. He's a lawmaker and he's supposed to be a role model for the rest of us. He's one of the many stewards that this country elects and we hold them to a higher standard for a reason. If Mark Foley, Arnold Scwarzenegger, Mark Sanford and Chris Lee are to be held to a higher standard, then Weiner should be as well. Lee, in fact, resigned even before the shirtless pic he sent through Craig'sList even went public. Not Weiner. He's a bulldog who refuses to give up the power he has and his apologists in the media will do everything in their power to see to it that he remains in Congress.

Never mind that he's a walking cautionary tale about the abuses of power of what happens when you're thought process starts and ends below the waist. They'll defend him at all costs regardless of how it looks. And truth be told, it looks pretty bad from where I'm sitting. The media has no soul or objectivity and it's impending demise can no longer be ignored. I say good riddance. I won't shed a tear for them just as I feel no sense of remorse for Rep. Weiner. You did this to yourself. You've no one to blame but yourself.