Whatever.com

Like a Hole in the Head

2009-11-13T17:44:00.033-05:00

Canada seeks to not repatriate Omar Khadr, "alleged" terrorist.

I don't want him back. Let the Americans try and convict him. They can take his free-loading family, too.

Many speculate- and I believe correctly- that the recent Fort Hood shootings have become a shame-based exhibition of political correctness. Terrified that Nidal Malik Hasan was in perfect control of his faculties when he shouted "Allah Akhbar" before killing and wounding innocent people, the left were in a rush to hide his apparent motives and veer the discussion away from what the public (at least by now) already knows (that being the danger of Islamism). The mission is in full tilt.

One bit of stupidity:

[T]o ignore the circumstances of this particular shooting would be like saying Oswald was just some random wacko whose actions occurred in a total vacuum, that the Cold War, his Marxist sympathies, the fact that he lived in the Soviet Union for a time, were all basically irrelevant. They weren't. And while the are are many things we don't yet--and may never--know about Nidal Malik Hasan and what drove him to commit such an evil act, we can't ignore the things we do know. If only because, by ignoring them, we allow others, like Malkin and her ilk, to try to define them for us.

I don't like people telling me what conclusions to arrive at either but when a gunman screams "Allah Akhbar" and has a history of very terrorist-oriented feelings and actions, it's pretty obvious what drove him to do what he did. Plunge one's head in the sand if one must but really it's a waste of time. If "Malkin and her ilk" are the only people who know when to duck then so be it.

It gets better:

We have occupied one or more largely Muslim nations for several years, led by the dunderhead who described himself shortly after 9/11 as "on a crusade." And yet Fort Hood stands out precisely because of the rarity of Muslim American attacks on fellow Americans. This matters.

Yes, the "dunderhead" who visited the Fort Hood wounded when the Chosen One did not. The "dunderhead" whose response to the September 11th attacks would never have been mirrored by the more "progressive" likes of Jimmy Carter, Al Gore or Jimmy Carter 2.0. There has to be a point when people stop blaming Bush for things. It's getting old, not to mention just plain stupid. And no, there is no rarity of attacks on American soil, attempted or otherwise.

And the "cry for help/no one's-really-to-blame" excuse:

Ft. Hood’s commander, Lt. Gen. Robert Cone, said today that there are
unconfirmed reports that Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan shouted “God is great” in Arabic
before opening fire yesterday at the Army base. Again: we will soon be able to
hear Hasan’s motivations in his own words. Even if he shouted such a thing, it
would no more reflect on his co-religionists than does the fanatic who murdered
Kansas abortion provider Dr. George Tiller and who happened to consider himself
a devout Christian does on his co-religionists. It’s worth remembering that
nearly all mass shootings in this country are committed by white men. Do we have
a white-man problem on our hands?

Except that it does reflect Hasan and his "co-religionists" who have serious issues with Western culture. They believe they have a directive from Mohammed to destroy what the West stands for. Throw in the completely disingenuous remark about the gunman who killed Tiller and voila! You have a reasoned argument, except that you don't. Tiller got killed and instantly the pro-life movement was tarred once again as a fringe terrorist movement no matter how mainstream pro-life groups swore they had nothing to do with him. After all, the right to life is not a part of the liberal media fabric. To depict (and properly so) Roeder's actions as radical and removed from the mainstream would give voice and credence to the pro-life movement. "Maybe they are peaceful Everymen" . Indeed. No one would dream of applying the same standard to Scott Roeder now being applied to Hasan, the one of complete disbelief and disconnection from the majority. What if someone had said: "Scott Roeder just snapped under pressure" or "Gamil Gharbi was just a victim of cirumstance" (you might know him better as Marc Lepine). I would imagine the torches and pitchforks would be out quickly. Not so. It's better to feign ignorance of true motives or circumstances than it is to embrace facts, those dreadful nuisance things!

Again:

[T]he above would seem to confirm what many on the wingnut right seemed to
positively hope was the case last night—that Hasan's rampage was an act of
Islamist terrorism, as opposed to the result of a breakdown or mental illness or
the garden-variety insane rage and alienation that has inspired what seems like
a mass killing every other month. We all know what first came to mind when
Hasan's name was released yesterday. But we suppose a handy guide for finding
the line that divides the Glenn Becks of the world from the rest of us is
whether you reacted with dread at the idea that it may have been related,
however murkily, to Islamism, or if you were filled with smug delight.

I'm not filled with delight at all. Fourteen people (a pregnant woman was shot) were killed. What is to delight in? The writer of the above quote may be inclined to be contemptuous of others who had valid concerns for Islamic extremism if that's the thing. It's not constructive, just childish and boorish.

***

According to Sarah Palin's new book, Going Rogue (which apparently makes a great Christmas gift), she felt sorry for Katie Couric:

Nicolle went on to explain that Katie really needed a career boost.
“She just has such low self-esteem,” Nicolle said. She added that Katie was
going through a tough time. “She just feels she can’t trust anybody.”

I was thinking, And this has to do with John McCain’s campaign
how?
Nicolle said. “She wants you to like her.”

Hearing all that, I almost started to feel sorry for her. Katie had
tried to make a bold move from lively morning gal to serious anchor, but the new
assignment wasn’t going very well.

If I was Katie Couric, I would thank Sarah Palin for her pity, call it ice cream and ask for seconds. As powered up the light of the yellow sun as she is, Mrs. Palin still finds time to be gracious.

You can see more from this amazing site here.

We Shall Remember Them

2009-11-11T14:51:00.016-05:00

I took these photos when in Ottawa this past summer. I apologise if they seem skewed somehow but given that may have been taken in dimly-lit areas, from moving vehicles or in the crooks of tourists' elbows, I tried my best.

The first photo is of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The remaining photos were taken at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa which I strongly recommend you visit if are ever in Ottawa.

From the top:

-a photo of a photo of nurses serving in Korea

-a plaque dedicated to James Doohan (God rest his Enterprise-fixing soul)

-ration cards in an era of "waste not, want not", symbols of a culture geared towards national service

- a war poster

-black servicemen in a foxhole during the First World War

- to Lt. N.H. Pawley

-a memorial stone

-a propaganda poster for the Boer War

-a depiction of a gas attack during the First World War

-marching to war

Mid-week Mellow

2009-11-11T14:44:00.007-05:00

A respectful mellow.

Stuff About the Things

2009-11-10T15:42:00.025-05:00

The House of Representatives, failing to heed the warning of Canada's disastrous "universal" health-care plan (for example, OHIP, the Ontario Health Insurance Plan, only covers seventy percent of what one might pay for hospital care) passed a bill that would purportedly give Americans a public health-care plan. It must, however, go through the Senate.

And there's the rub.

The abortion language in the bill is too strong for some.

From the article (emphasis mine):

President Barack Obama is facing a potential mutiny among liberal Democrats
in Congress over a US$1.1-trillion health care bill that
includes new restrictions on abortion in the United States.

The House bill would prohibit coverage of abortion services under a new
government-run public insurance plan except in case of incest, rape or
life-threatening situations. That language reflects existing U.S. health
care law.

But the legislation also bars individuals from purchasing
private insurance that covers abortion if they receive a government subsidy to make health coverage affordable.

About 85% of private insurance plans in the U.S. currently cover
abortion.

The standing bill really isn't prohibitive of abortion at all and still sticks tax-payers with the bill. Nevertheless, some are quite displeased:

Instead, the anti-abortion amendment "represents an unprecedented and
unacceptable restriction on women's ability to access the full range of
reproductive health services to which they are lawfully entitled," Ms. DeGette
wrote in a letter signed by 40 other Democrats. "We will not vote for a
[final bill] that contains language that restricts women's right to choose any further than current law."

It would be quite laughable if it wasn't so serious. The basic right to life for all humans and the right to autonomy are so far removed from the liberal mind because they are not getting their way. The people who would defeat Obama's incredibly expensive socialist plan are the same people who would support it in the first place. It's like watching sharks eat the carcass of another shark.

Back to Obama's expensive plan...

As was stated before, the plan costs $1.1 trillion USD. There are 307,904,351 people in the United States as of this posting with an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants, 54.4 disabled persons, about 31.5 million retired workers and the number of elementary school age children was 36 million as of 2008. The number of people with health insurance increased slightly in 2008 to 255.1 million in 2008 and those who had governmental health insurance numbered at 87.4 million. The unemployment rate stands at 10.2 % as of this posting.

Canada's population now stands at 33,739,900 (Alberta experienced the fastest demographic growth) with Ontario being the most populous.

Despite common beliefs, Canada's health-care is neither free nor is it universal. We are taxed for it. The government accounts for seventy percent of health-care coverage while private insurance for dental care and drugs covers the remaining thirty percent. As one can see, the latter does not count as universal. Many provinces charge premiums or user fees (though user fees are supposed to be prohibited under the Canada Health Act). As of 2008, the provincial spending rate per person in Ontario was $3,270.

An overview of the Canada Health Act.

Despite increased awareness of wait times, waiting for essential services has decreased only slightly. One in five Canadians have no regular doctor. Let's not forget the dire situation of emergency rooms around the country and the care one is expected to receive. One court ruling found that an ER doctor was not expected to have any more or less knowledge than the average family physician in an emergency setting and it was for this reason the doctor in question was not responsible for a death. It sounds like civil servants looking after civil servants. Even Europe, Obama's grand template, leads over Canada's health-care system.

I personally know how abysmal emergency room treatment can be (apparently it's acceptable to make people waiting on gurneys for three days with pneumonia or broken ribs, for nurses to shout at patients and their families, for elderly cancer patients to wait and never be referred to specialists) and how universal standards are not applied across the country making it difficult for a trained Canadian (or Commonwealth) medical practitioner to practice in another part of the country. How dispensing over-the-counter cold medicines or delivering babies differs in time zones I am unsure but this raises a particular predicament: will each state prohibit a medical practitioner from practicing in another part of the country?

We are buckling under the system right now. How can the US, with its massive debt, high unemployment, unemployable populaces and high cost of living, adopt and make work a system that it's own neighbour has trouble maintaining?

Speaking of doctors:

A doctor who said cancer rates were higher in a small aboriginal community downstream of Alberta's oil sands made misleading and inaccurate statements and obstructed Health Canada and the Alberta Cancer Board in their efforts to investigate his claims, the College of Physicians and Surgeons has concluded.

You mean to tell me that a Canadian doctor lied about cancer rates in order to make a point (I'm sure now to be invalid) about the Alberta tar sands? Isn't there a Hippocratic Oath or just plain decency to prevent that kind of political treachery?

Life, as we suspected, was horrible behind the Berlin Wall. Good thing it came down.

And Obama makes some blithering statement about an obviously motivated individual who deliberately killed thirteen people.

And now, the Matrix as it might have been.

November 9th

2009-11-09T16:17:00.007-05:00

On this day in 1989, Germans, separated by a gigantic wall built by the communists, started to crumble the Berlin Wall into pieces. Nearly a year later, there was a formal reunification of Germany.

It was a bizarre yet hopeful time. I imagine living in East Germany (how droll that sounds these days!) was horrifying, as it was living anywhere in the Eastern Bloc. Not being able to go anywhere or do anything without being watched by some malevolent government just freezes my nerves. That changed with a few hammers and millions of people thirsty for a chance at a normal life.

Forget Gorbachev and the other communist octopi. They were never the real characters who mattered in this drama. It was the Reagans, the Pope John Pauls, the Lech Walesas and- in this case- the Germans who stand out.

You can't keep walls up forever.

Check these photos out.

While No One Was Looking...

2009-11-07T13:42:00.005-05:00

Mr. and Mrs. Bush (of the White House fame) quietly visited the patients at Darnall Army Medical Center after having been shot by a crazed individual.

I'll let others assign blame instead of facing an enormous societal problem and doing something constructive about it.

Must-See

2009-11-06T21:14:00.010-05:00

I am very intrigued to see how this turns out. Martin Scorsese is making a movie about the Japanese martyrs. The movie will be called "Silence". I'm stoked to see what he does with the subject matter.

Some info on the martyrs.

Some info on Shusako Endo and the novel upon which the movie is based.

Mid-week Mellow

2009-11-04T14:32:00.003-05:00

It's a two-fer.

Pumpkin-cat and sloth, the cutest of the deadly sins.

China's Filthy Present

2009-11-02T16:50:00.012-05:00

Just look for yourselves.

The same government that oppresses its own people, builds up a massive army and backs Stalinist North Korea leaves its own landmass a filthy, unlivable wasteland.

Do yourselves, your kids and the Chinese a favour and don't buy any products made in China. I don't like harping on things but this is an exception (at least one of them!)

Hippie-crites

2009-11-02T16:43:00.006-05:00

Ha! See what I did there? I made the word "hypocrites" look like "hippies" and....

It doesn't matter.

Just feast your eyes on the hypocrisy of the earth-lovers.

This rubbish was left behind in Tasmania by activists hoping to put a stop to the timber industry there. Please see here.

Isn't leaving garbage in a delicate ecosystem "ungreen"?

Low Expectations

2009-11-02T16:04:00.007-05:00

Remember when Obama was elected and everyone (and by everyone I mean only the people naive enough to believe he had the qualifications to lead the free world) thought things were going to be okay?

Then- slowly- people began to realise that character and experience do count when electing a leader.

And now: Obama love-in has little impact on how Canadians view Americans, poll finds

Join with me now: aaaaawwwww......

First of all, let me point that I never thought he would even be appropriate as one of those page-boys that adjusted Ted Kennedy's foot-stool the second he promised to meet Iran- the same Iran that threatened to wipe Israel off the map- without pre-conditions. Anyone who thinks they can just talk to dictators who starve and threaten their own people is either naive or just evil. Yes- evil. There is sufficient moral reason not to trade, bargain or coddle with totalitarian regimes no matter how sunny their vacation spots or cheap their goods.

Secondly, how many Canadians actually like Obama? I don't. Many other Canadians don't. What's to like? Obama's protectionist policies (Buy American and the carbon tax) could dry up Canada's economy. Why would our neighbour and trading partner put enormous financial strain on us? No doubt, he- like other American celebrities- like the idea of Canada but won't tolerate its standing up for itself.

The disconnect from the previous administration and the relentless campaigning of the current one hasn't even mollified the most virulent anti-Americanists. I don't mean Canadians whose experiences with Americans has been poor but those who haven't even set foot in the US or met any Americans. Envy, nationalism, righteous indignation- whatever the reason for some Canadians to hate America and define our national identity on it cannot be assuaged by the election of an empty suit. People should be judged by what they hate and not by what they love. If someone loved peace more than war, we would see peace. Instead, we see discord and irrational hatred of a more powerful nation, one that has the guts to be a republic.

I argue it wouldn't matter who was elected. Those who are determined to hate the US will hate it no matter how socialist or naive (or how conservative and cautious) the candidate is.

Just note that this is yet another fallacy in the Obama myth.

Halloween Week: Coda

2009-11-01T14:03:00.010-05:00

Yesterday, upon the stair,

I met a man who wasn’t there

He wasn’t there again today

I wish, I wish he’d go away...

When I came home last night at three

The man was waiting there for me

But when I looked around the hall

I couldn’t see him there at all!

Go away, go away, don’t you come back any more!

Go away, go away, and please don’t slam the door...

Last night I saw upon the stair

A little man who wasn’t there

He wasn’t there again today

Oh, how I wish he’d go away

"Antigonish" by William Hughes Mearns

Halloween Week: Rearview Mirror

2009-10-30T21:31:00.003-04:00

It was a normal morning for Janet.

Until she got into her car!

Halloween Week: JAWS- the Prequel

2009-10-30T13:54:00.004-04:00

As a troubled youth, JAWS took his frustrations out on smaller fish.

Just when they thought it was safe to stay in the water....

Halloween Week: Time to Feed...

2009-10-29T14:02:00.007-04:00

...on soul cakes.

Begging for soul cakes is considered the precursor of modern day trick-or-treating. Soul cakes are small, round spiced cakes representing a soul of a person. During the Middle Ages on All Souls' Day, children and the poor would go house-to-house begging for soul cakes. They would receive one upon promising to pray for the soul of a certain person.

Why not make your own?

(for something really scary, visit cakewrecks.blogspot.com. Yes, people can make fondant into awful shapes.)

Halloween Week: Mid-week Mellow

2009-10-28T15:24:00.005-04:00

There's a fairy tale in here somewhere.

Maybe fiction is stranger than life!

Sidebar: I had a dog similar to this. If your grandmother had treats in her cabin in the woods, there wouldn't be any left if you let him in the house!

Halloween Week: By the Power of Fossilized Skulls!

2009-10-27T13:43:00.005-04:00

This is kind of Halloween-ish but more related to paleontology.

The fossilized skull of a pliosaur was discovered in Dorset, England. The pliosaur was a predator that lived in the oceans over 150 million years ago.

Speaking of England, it's John Cleese's birthday today.

And now for something completely different.

Halloween Week: the Attack of the Cute Costumes!

2009-10-26T15:59:00.004-04:00

Are you wondering what to dress your Neo-NATO representative this year? Look no more! This site has some very cute ideas.

I picked this one out for my niece at one stage.

Halloween Week: the Beginning

2009-10-26T14:36:00.007-04:00

The bewitching season is upon us so write all of this down!

There is Halloween baking to do, ghost ships to spot, the Klingon military to join (very North Korean-esque) and science journals to pore over (is there a basis for zombies in science? Find out).

So much to do!

Mid-Week Mellow

2009-10-21T13:05:00.001-04:00

He sure does.

Friends No More

2009-10-20T14:19:00.004-04:00

Former cheat- I mean- prime minister Jean Chretien bemoans Canada's loss of friendship with China.

Why did we offend the cash-cow China with its human rights abuses and totalitarian one-party system? Trudeau didn't do it. Jean Chretien and his coal mogul, Maurice Strong, didn't do it.

Where did we go wrong?

The Other Side of China

2009-10-15T18:29:00.012-04:00

These pictures were passed along to me.

Below are three photographs of women being executed. Because of the draconian one-child policy in China, women can have only one baby (two under certain circumstances). These women had three children. They are now being executed because of that.

WARNING: these pictures are graphic and disturbing.

Mid-Week Mellow

2009-10-14T18:02:00.004-04:00

(sigh)

Some Stuff

2009-10-14T17:18:00.015-04:00

Directly from the Nobel Peace Prize horse's mouth:

Obama on the killer Iranian regime murdering their own people in the street:

"The Iranians are having a robust debate."

Obama on defending genocide (2007):

"The United States cannot use its military to solve humanitarian problems and that preventing a potential genocide in Iraq isn't a good enough reason to keep U.S. forces there.'

Obama justifying killing babies who survive an abortion:

"Essentially adding an additional doctor who then has to be called in an emergency situation to come in and make these assessments is really designed simply to burden the original decision."

Dude, the Asian hate, not cool (warning: language within):

Joel joel.tarp@comcast.net

to writemalkin@gmail.com

date Wed, Oct 14, 2009 at 12:04 AM

subject Hi Michelle

mailed-by comcast.net

How did you become the blow job girl at Fox News? I didn’t think you would ever be considered a Blow Job Queen, since you usually so full of shit that it runs out your mouth. Your a pig with no morals or any redeeming values. NONE you “big mashed up bag of meat with lipstick. ONLY A COW would put a GLAMOUR shot of herself

***

James Wilks semajlwilks@verizon.net

to writemalkin@gmail.com

date Tue, Oct 13, 2009 at 8:28 PM

subject ASSHOLE

mailed-by verizon.net

You’re a sick BITCH. Are you aware that you almost causes the death of an elementary school teacher the other day with your bullshit. You are a disgrace to Black people. I’m sorry .That’s right . You’re not black. Is your husband a white man that works for the Insurance Cartel ?

I apologise for the language within but if someone insists on being a self-righteous racist jerk, then they deserve to be exposed as such.

Mrs. Malkin apparently uses MAC Lustreglass. I prefer Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer (pomegranate) myself. This kind of shallow talk is far more stimulating than the preceding racist diatribe, non?

Geishas used to use lip tint made from crushed safflower petals- if that matters, and it probably does.

I saw this last night on The Michael Coren Show. Lord Monkton, former policy advisor to Margaret Thatcher, gave delightfully sour talk about the global warming debate. Very interesting and rousing. Watch it for yourself.

Question

2009-10-14T17:11:00.003-04:00

How are North Koreans supposed to clog their arteries with fattening American food under a dictatorial system that keeps them oppressed and hungry?

You want more fries with that, Mr. Kim? How about a hot dog, Miss
Park?

Once condemned as evil "U. S. imperialist" fare, Western-style fast
food is now available in North Korea thanks to a Singaporean entrepreneur who is
already drawing up expansion plans just months after opening his first
outlet.