Friday, December 29, 2006

Scrappleface gets serious

Scott Ott of Scrappleface is a humorist who writes with a twisted but painfully true look at the days news.

But this exchange with an editor from the San Francisco Bay area is different, Scott gets serious.

selected bits:

In the immediate aftermath of Katrina, journalists sought someone to blame. They, predictably, found President George Bush was the best scapegoat. But in lashing out, yet again, at their favorite source of all discontent, they missed a bigger target. If anyone “out there” is to be blamed, it is the large, remote, centralized federal government which has become a surrogate father to so many millions of Americans.

....

No, the threat of this system is that it strips a man of what makes him a man, and turns him away from his inner resources, or the inclination to partner with neighbors to solve problems. It humiliates him, blinds him and ultimately cripples him.

....

Success stories are buried. Tragedy is blared from the housetops. It’s a self-reinforcing cycle that further deepens dependence upon the government, and further strips the dignity of the person.

....

The devastating impact of this mindset is the apparent withering of the individual spirit and of community cooperation which have been the hallmarks of this great nation.



Go read the whole thing

Sorry, Gaddafi

Saddam has not been a prisoner of war for over 2 years. He was returned 'home' to the freely elected Iraqi government. And that elected government has tried and convicted him of mass murder.



Libya's Gaddafi says US, Britain must try Saddam


RIPOLI, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Saddam Hussein is a prisoner of war and must
be tried by Iraq's invaders, the United States and Britain, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi said on Friday. "Saddam Hussein is a prisoner of war ... He's been overthrown by foreign invading forces, not by the Iraqi army or the Iraqi people," Gaddafi said. Iraqi officials said on Friday that Saddam may be hanged within hours, and the prime minister met U.S. officials to determine whether the execution could go ahead
before a week-long religious holiday.
"The countries that captured him should try him -- America or Britain -- because all Iraq is under occupation, including the judges and the lawyers," he told reporters in Tripoli.




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Saddam's Last Desparate Chance

Via the AP



Hussein's lawyers filed documents Friday afternoon
asking for a stay of execution. The 21-page request was filed in U.S.
District Court in Washington before Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly.



Attorneys argued that because Hussein also faces a civil lawsuit in Washington, he has rights as a civil defendant that would be violated if he is executed. He has not received notice of those rights and the consequences that the lawsuit would have on his estate, his attorneys said.



"To protect those rights, defendant Saddam Hussein requests an order
of this court providing a stay of his execution until further notice of
this court," attorney Nicholas Gilman wrote.






One hopes the judge quotes Michelle Malkin and answers with "Boo Freak'n Who".



I will say it again: It will be a good thing for Iraq when Saddam swings.

UPDATE:

"Petitioner Hussein's application for immediate, temporary stay of execution is denied," U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said after a hearing over the telephone with attorneys.










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Things that Didn't Happen

Saddam to Swing before Year's End

According to many sources:
Saddam will die before 2006 ends.
Iraqi Prime Minister has signed the death warrant, and under Iraqi law there are no more appeals.

This may cause a brief surge of attacks. But in the long run, Saddam's death will be good for Iraq. It will allow all Iraqis to focus on the future.

UPDATE: Saddam has now died more times in a single day that Castro has in the past year.

Thursday, December 28, 2006

the 4th verse

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation,
Blest with victory and peace, may the Heaven - rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, for our cause is just,
And this be our motto --"In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Tuesday, December 26, 2006

New Look for a New Year

2006 and my first year of blogging are coming to a close. Time for a different look.

Monday, December 25, 2006

A Reminder of What We Fight


We fight the evil in Islam.
We fight their inhuman treatment of women.
We fight to allow people to live their lives without fear.
We fight to allow people to choose their own beliefs.
We fight for freedom.