There's uh, no Friday Five today. Something to do with the archives being unavailable due to bandwidth issues. Uh, OK. I wonder how one fakes Friday Five withdrawal syndrome.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 11:22 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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It's an article of faith that the best way to prevent yourself from being robbed is to make yourself a difficult target, yes? Likewise, the nation of riflemen must be armed and then nobody will mess with you, correct? Of course.

But then, someone goes and comes up with a better way to prevent being robbed. This just in, from Gaza:

Rather than give up his explosives, the [suicide] bomber detonated them, killing himself and the two robbers near the border fence between Gaza and Israel. Palestinian security officials said the gunmen were criminals who were involved in a car theft ring that brought stolen vehicles from Israel to Gaza.

The robbers were immediately denounced as "agents of Israel" by a Hamas official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Ostensibly, he's hoping to avoid the Hellfire how-do-you-do from a hovering Apache. The source also pointed out that, "Anyone who tries to stop a fighter from doing his work is a collaborator." On the other hand, Palestinian security forces declared the robbers to be ordinary thieves.

The full story is available from Ireland On-Line.

Tip of the Wisconsin hat to Interested-Participant

Posted by: Country Pundit at 08:44 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Grim's Hall is like a box of chocolates. No, I don't mean a cheap, thoughtless, perfunctory gift that nobody ever asks for, unlike what my favorite character from The X-Files used to think, but more that you never know what you're going to get.

Today, Grim gives us a new word, one that I've got to use more often: Mufsidoon. Here's why:

This is the Arabic for "evildoer," and can be prefixed by "Saddam's" or "Osama's" as appropriate.

The idea is that Mujahedeen and Mahdi Army (Army of the Messiah) cast the enemy as soldiers of God. That makes Coalition forces the opponents of God, soldiers of the devil. Mufsidoon more correctly identifies them, and therefore, our forces likewise.

This may wind up being a new take on that whole "one man's mufsidoon is another man's mujahedeen" thing, but hey, who cares? It's an insult to these guys in their language, using their culture, and I'll be happy to use it. So what if it digs a little deep? As Khan Noonien Singh growled nigh on 22 years ago, "So much the better..."

Thanks a lot, Grim!

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It appears from the referrer logs that someone was looking for information on the FX-1400 guided bomb developed by the Germans in World War II. A quick trip to Google shows that I'm #2 in the search engine for "FX-1400 guided bomb". Interesting. The first result sent me to a picture of the aftermath (just barely!) of an FX-1400 in use.

11 September 1943: CL 42 USS Savannah is struck off Salerno, Italy, by an FX-1400. A picture shot during the bomb's detonation is available here. Wow.

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Daniel Pipes has an article drawing from the latest work of Samuel P. Huntington, Who Are We : The Challenges to America's National Identity. In his article, Pipes says that there are three basic lenses through which an American will see their home and the world:

Cosmopolitan: America ?welcomes the world, its ideas, its goods, and, most importantly, its people.? In this vision, the country strives to become multiethnic, multiracial, and multicultural. The United Nations and other international organizations increasingly influence American life. Diversity is an end in itself; national identity declines in importance. In brief, the world reshapes America.

Imperial: America reshapes the world. This impulse is fueled by a belief in ?the supremacy of American power and the universality of American values.? America?s unique military, economic, and cultural might bestows on it the responsibility to confront evil and to order the world. Other peoples are assumed basically to share the same values as Americans; Americans should help them attain those values. America is less a nation than ?the dominant component of a supranational empire.?

National: ?America is different? and its people recognize and accept what distinguishes them from others. That difference results in large part from the country?s religious commitment and its Anglo-Protestant culture. The nationalist outlook preserves and enhances those qualities that have defined America from its inception. As for people who are not white Anglo-Saxon Protestants, they ?become Americans by adopting its Anglo-Protestant culture and political values.?

Mr. Pipes notes also that, "The left tends to the cosmopolitan vision; the right divides among imperialists and nationalists." He states that he wavers between the "imperialist" and "nationalist" modes, because he sometimes "want[s] the United States to export its humane political message and at other times [is] fearful that such efforts, however desirable, will overextend the American reach and end in disaster." (At the same time, Pipes notes that Huntington is strongly nationalist.) For what it's worth, the esteemable Rev. Donald Sensing considers himself to be one of the bilateralists, like Pipes.

This has bearing on peoples' opinions towards the Iraqi situation as well. more...

Posted by: Country Pundit at 12:43 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I was reading Jeffrey A. Dvorkin's installment of his column as the NPR ombudsman. It's billed as a 'web exclusive' and focuses solely upon the soon-to-be-history Bob Edwards. Edwards, who's hosted Morning Edition since 1979, was recently given the boot by NPR management. Reasons vary on this, but the truth of it seems to be that a) Joan Kroc's $200 million gift makes men bold and b) the "new" management wants to appeal to different audiences. I'm amused at the ability of professional liberals to get a good thing from hard work and then blow it away.

Back to Dvorkin's piece. In it, he quotes a man named Peter Bye who says that, "I certainly understand a need for diversity and excellence. After all, my business is in the field of diversity and inclusion."

I'm curious: What is a business in the field of diversity and inclusion? Is it a fancy way to say that you're a temp agency?

Posted by: Country Pundit at 06:48 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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In my earlier remarks, I said that I wasn't holding my breath for the endorsement of Arlen Specter for the general election by the Club for Growth.

This is no longer the operative statement.

As tipped off by a comment in the preceding entry (although it certainly wasn't me), it appears that the CfG, and by extension Stephen Moore since I spent time firing words at him, has/have the maturity I would expect from Republicans. They have announced their endorsement for Specter, and consider him the better choice than the Democrat alternative.

Bully for you, Mr. Moore. You and your organization have been raised in my estimation.

The press release is in the extended entry, and thanks to my anonymous commenter. more...

Posted by: Country Pundit at 03:56 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Greyhawk has a pair of nifty pictures that illustrate our Fallujah urban renewal project. There won't be any Charles Whitmans operating from this place anytime soon.

TMG also brings us warning of the Arab street's eventual rise. However, it may yet to our advantage, for it seems that the Mahdi army is having a little bit of trouble maintaining discipline with the wearing of the uniform.

I like hearing reports of al-Sadr's fish getting eaten in the peasant sea. Take that, Chairman Mao.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 12:45 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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If you're at all interested in the Pennsylvania dustup between Arlen Specter and Pat Toomey, I suggest going to the Club for Growth's blog. This particular entry covers a few reactions.

Fairness requires me to state that the man posting under the name "Stephen Moore" is not the real Stephen Moore. Interesting how one man---yes, just a single voice---wants to punt Rick Santorum from office now.

I'm waiting for the CfG to endorse Arlen Specter, especially after they made a fuss about how Specter should agree beforehand to endorse whoever won the primary. On the other hand, I'm not holding my breath on this one.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 12:02 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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This is the first time I've ever actually seen the whole thing. Frankly, I'm glad my college years weren't like that. Better to er, not have something to explain, you know. In the words of a former President, "In order to preserve future political viability..."

Anyways, while watching the uber-polished and super-slick face of Omega House president Greg Marmalard, it struck me that I'd seen his face somewhere before. I thought about it throughout the movie, and then I realized it: He looks like Jennifer Garner. Wowsers.

Has anyone ever seen these two together at the same time? Could be...

Posted by: Country Pundit at 02:48 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Stephen Moore's pet project goes down in defeat, apparently. Lopez at NRO says Specter wins with a 15,000 vote margin. Good thing, bad thing? I'll decide later. (Translation: You'd better not lose in November, Arlen.)

Posted by: Country Pundit at 12:31 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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A half-century ago, it was common to fund war debt by the Government's hideously everpresent campaign to "BUY WAR BONDS NOW OR ELSE OUR BOYS DIE HORRIBLY". We seem to have gotten past that---maybe the bond market isn't quite what it used to be---but the President at one point encouraged people to go spend money.

Since then, war and its impact on the civilian populace have changed. Instead of lining up for ration cards that cover sugar, gasoline, and other things, we're sitting around complaining because gas is increasing in price or grousing because the stock market's not back to 12,000 as it was during the years of Hope and Glory.¹

Anyways. Since the economy's supposedly a defining factor of our progress in the war against Islamist terror---like USA, Inc. is going to be taken over by al-Qaeda, LLC in a tender offer---the President has indeed urged us to go out and spend money. By the way, that helps his re-election effort too.²

Since I'm going to be a spectator to the war effort---if it's ever necessary for me to be on the field of battle, then manpower's the least of our worries---I've often wondered just what the heck I'm supposed to do. Well, mindful of the President's advice, I went out in recent periods and loaded up on DVDs:

The Final Countdown
Kill Bill, Volume 1
The Matrix: Revolutions (Yeah, I've got the other two; might as well...)
National Lampoon's Animal House
K-19
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Go figure. I've done my part, yet again, for the war economy and for the re-election of President George W. Bush. I expect my post in the Department of Defense or Department of Transportation to be passed out immediately. Paging Donald Rumsfeld and/or Norman Mineta... more...

Posted by: Country Pundit at 11:59 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Blogging has been light due to the fact that I had two papers to finish and a trial to prepare for. This will continue until after the trial is concluded; don't head for the hills if I'm not publishing on a regular basis.

Gah, I hate the end of the semester.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 02:40 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Hrrm. Today's the six-month anniversary of the opening of this blog. Three hundred and eleven entries later, I'm still cracking at it, and learning all the while. I've met a lot of people who I would not have otherwise met, and I have had a lot of fun.

I reckon since I've kept this up to this point, the numbers suggest that I'll keep at it for a while. Hooray, eh.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 02:56 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Richard Gere gave a speech recently, and here's what he had to say, according to a friendly blog:

"Trust is so important," Gere said, and I paraphrase a little here. "I've learned not to trust anyone who thinks he has God exclusively on his side." Pause. "Not even the president."

Yes, yes, Mr. Gere. Bush lied, people died, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, paging Yul Brynner. Now for some ad hominem:

We're supposed to trust the opinion of the guy who left Cindy Crawford? Cindy Crawford. This fine woman's the only reason most men in the 1990s watched the otherwise unwatchable House of Style on MTV.¹

Heck, I bet Pepsi's early 1990s resurgence can be pinned solely upon her. Pepsi knows this; they brought her back for a recent ad which I thought a lot of. She's been arguably one of the most beautiful women in the world since the early 1990s, and you left her behind to chase the Dalai Lama.

Allow me to borrow from your own theme: "I've learned not to trust any man who'd walk away from Cindy Crawford." Son, not only do I not trust you, but I think you need your bloody head examined. What were you thinking?

In fullness of disclosure, Richard Gere is a bit off in the head; he chose to make some speech about the need for peace and understanding while the ruins of the World Trade Center still smoldered. Needless to say, that didn't go over well with the audience, and I have some recollection of him being nearly booed off the stage.

UPDATE: I've reworked this one a bit, adding in some personal and historical flavor. Richard Gere's hideously boring, so a bit of an ode to Cindy Crawford was in order. Heh heh heh. Been surfing the 'net for ten years, and I'm still punching "Cindy Crawford" into search engines. Some things never change.

Tip of the Wisconsin hat to Right Voices. more...

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The militant Palestinian group Hamas has apparently replaced Mr. Rantisi, who ran afoul of an Israeli weapons exercise most recently.¹ This is now several days old and the link in their original post doesn't display the right story. Nevertheless:

GAZA CITY – Hamas has quietly appointed Mahmoud A-Zahar to head the movement in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas sources said Mahmoud A-Zahar, 53, was selected as the organization's new head in the Gaza Strip. A-Zahar succeeds Abdul Aziz Rantisi, who was assassinated in an Israeli missile strike on Saturday.

I suppose that if I were a lawyer in Gaza, I'd start trying to take over the "assassinated Hamas leader" estate management business, or something. One of the posters at the DGCI site has opined that this current bum could be something of a missile magnet, or perhaps the loser in a power struggle. After all, he's probably now got a missile or a guided munition with his name painted on it. Poor fellow.

That being said, I support the policy of anti-Hamas operations. When these goons start seeing that there is a price for standing up and hollering how you're gonna slaughter Jews and make the streets run red with Jewish blood, then perhaps they might start rethinking their policies. Good.

Tip of the Wisconsin hat to Democrats Give Conservatives Indigestion. more...

Posted by: Country Pundit at 07:47 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I've been highly suspicious of Andrew Sullivan since I first ran across him some time around the turn of the century. He was occasionally a good read---I'd never thought of myself as a "theocon" until reading his broad-brush efforts---but his positions taken post-11 September had gotten me to the point of giving him the C. Montgomery Burns sideways-glance-through-narrowed-eyes that CMB issued to Waylon Smithers once after an uncomfortable question.

Recently, because someone's had the nerve to think that maybe homosexuals shouldn't be able to force the state to grant them some benefits, Sullivan's gone off the deep end, ranting and raving about the evil religious right, sneering and heaping scorn whenever he gets the opportunity. Yes, it got old after about one week, and I quit reading him. Whoopy frickin' doo, to paraphrase Private W. Hudson, USCM.

Anyways, I was kicking around The Evangelical Outpost and got directed to fraters libertas, which put a few torpedoes (Sorry. Unacceptable innuendo, say the guys at Standards & Practices. --Ed.) into ol' Andy.

I've been uncomfortable with him being lumped into the "right" at all, because of his rather self-centered views on human sexuality and his religious viewpoints. These guys, instead of grumbling, decided to read the riot act to Sullivan. A key quip:

So Sullivan is gone from the political right, perhaps revealing that despite his September eloquence of three years ago, he never really evolved in his political philosophy at all.

Enh.

Tip of the Wisconsin hat to Evangelical Outpost.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 01:31 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Kids, it's time to harness the power of the blog (as opposed to the Power of Grayskull or the power of the Autobot Matrix) to right a wrong done to Google.

Google-bomber extraordinaire Ken of Esoteric * Diatribe tipped me off to this campaign, which intends to reclaim certain Google search results. Those results have currently been appropriated by a group that seems to be (their website is unaccessible) less than reasonable on the question of Judaism. The way to combat this is very simple, and models itself after the various other Google bombs done primarily for political purposes.

First, visit the Anti-Defamation League page on the issue, for background. Then, read this, from Google.

The next thing to do is simple. Make a link like so, and tell your friends: Jew If you display the Friend of Israel logo, then this would be an action that is consistent with the aims of that earlier campaign.

Hope this works.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 12:41 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the voting booth...

IT!!! staggers back from electoral defeat and media embarrassment. Yes friends, Cynthia McKinney is running for Congress again.

Maxine Waters must be happy, because a McKinney victory might mean that she, Waters, was no longer a frontrunning candidate for the dubious laurels of biggest wacko in the Congress. That's one honor---probably the only one---the lady from California would be happy to decline. Just off the cuff, a McKinney candidacy might be a good thing. If she loses, and hopefully she will, she'll make a mess of it and go down in figurative flames, taking her party's hopes in that district with her for at least 4-6 years.

Keep talking, and keep running, Cynthia. A hopefully-expanded Republican majority thanks you for your sacrifice.

Tip of the Wisconsin hat to Ed Moltzen of Late Final

Posted by: Country Pundit at 02:48 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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This is interesting: Someone out of the domain historyfactory.com was looking for information on Herman Pevler. Of course, they found his name in my post on John Palmer Fishwick.

I wonder what for, eh? History Factory, in their own words, "is a heritage management firm that helps organizations discover, preserve and leverage their history to meet today's business challenges." That's certainly not something you see every day, but I think it sounds like a valuable business concern. After all, the corporate form is designed to outlive any stockholder or director; such a longevity will create a history of great highs (and embarrassing lows) which would prove valuable in a public relations campaign. Just quickly breezing through their site, it looks like they're an interesting place to work for; if that's a proper impression, I might even like to give it a go.

It appears that this blog is number three in Google for the relevant search string. This blog also has the distinction of being the first one on the topic of the N&W's former president. There seem to be other mentions of a Herman Pevler who was around at the time, but I can't confirm any links between the N&W man and the man who collected advertising awards. In all likelihood, the surfer was looking for the latter man, and not the man who fell victim to a Fish(wick).

Interesting.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 02:40 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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