Clinton Holds Whites

I just cannot understand why organizations that go out of their way to accuse and publicize every instance of racism they can dig out, then turn around and write headlines like this one from the AP:

Exit Poll: Clinton Holds Whites in Ohio

Not only does the Associated Press try keep track of who Blacks vote for and who Whites vote for, who men vote for and who women vote for, they continually focus on the the race and sex of the candidates.

Why the West is Best

Why the West is Best, by Ibn Warraq

Mike Smith, of the Dave Clark Five, has died

Mike Smith, 64, lead singer for the British Rock Band the Dave Clark Five, has passed away from pneumonia at age 64. I did not realize that he was paralyzed in a fall in 2003 and has been in the hospital since.

UNI Shooting - Regarding Chandler Harnish

This mail was forwarded on to me by Sevens member Deb Blinn. Chandler Harnish led the Knights to the State Championship game in 2006 and he is now attending Northern Illinois University where there was a shooting yesterday which killed seven people. This email was sent by his Dad, Ron Harnish (who once crushed me like a bug when I called him out on Senior Hit Day) and forwarded on by Tom Neuenschwander, who helps coach Norwell Football:

As of 12:45 a.m. this morning, Chandler walked through our doors at home after an unbelievable experience. We were very pleased that Chandler called his mother about 20 minutes after the shootings at NIU. He was locked down in the football stadium area with some football coaches when he called. He told me later in the afternoon that he was actually about a two minute walk away from the shootings as they occurred.

I think it will hit him today with a magnitude of what really went down at NIU. He puts on a good show of mental toughness, but that can't last too long. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers for Chandler and NIU. Hug your children. Please keep the Chaneys, Shutts, Krinns, Burkes, and Yagers in your prayers.

Ron

In addition, Tom writes

Please keep Haley Chaney and her family in yours prayers. Haley was injured Tuesday night in an automobile accident. As of the Bluffton paper last night she is still in critical condition at Lutheran Hospital with a serious head injury. Haley is the daughter of Tony and Angie Chaney.

Last, Norwell Football lost one of our TOP supporters on Monday. My dad [ Art Neuenschwander ] is now with God and will be watching us not from the middle of bleachers but high above us. I will miss not seeing him in his sit at 5:45 pm on game day to watch us warm up but I know he will be with me on the field in my heart forever.

Art (Doc) Neuenschwander was the local veterinarian for many, many years in Ossian and was very involved in all aspects of the area. He will be greatly missed.

Update: The Bluffton News-Banner also has an article on Chandler and the shooting.

Starbucks goes Dark

Starbucks will be closing all of its 7100 stores at 5:30pm on February 26th for three hours to remind all 135,000 of their employees that it is their business to make a great cup of coffee just as their customers request it.

Good for them, the quality has been hit or miss lately.

The Rocket

Roger Clemens is being hounded by the Congress. So many people are upset and have their own axe to grind with America for a wide variety of reasons... the War, Taxes, Health Care... let this be my axe. When our government can haul baseball players into hearings, hearings that are broadcast to the world, and force the player to give up his medical records so that Congressmen can hold up MRI results and discuss Roger Clemens' buttocks while he _sits_ there grinding his teeth.... let that be my axe. Congress has responsibilities in our Constitution... please point to the text or amendment that gives them the right to badger anyone they feel like. Please point to the part of the constitution that makes Congress medical doctors. Please point to where we all agreed to let these pompous asses sit three feet above the rest of us and ruin whoever they want. Where are the random drug tests on Congressmen? Just who do they think they are and who, in heaven's name, sets their priorities? Don't they have anything better to do than talk about how Roger Clemens' wife felt one evening many years ago? How is that anybody's business.

Give the Rocket a broken bat and put him alone in a room with a few of these jokers.

Deductions

I wonder how many folks who pay for parochial schools and religious ed for their kids realize the IRS only allows one religion to deduct those costs on their federal taxes... which religion is that? Scientology. Scientologists can deduct the religious training of their children (which consists of thousands of dollars spent to hold electrified cans while someone asks you personal questions).

Now we know why Tom Cruise smiles so much.

Free Speech

I don't know if you've followed the story of Berkeley, California drafting a letter to the Marine recruiters they were not only unwanted, but called them intruders... some US Senators decided to push back and remove public funding from Berkeley and send the money to benefit Marine causes.

Berkeley officials have backed off, but I thought this quote was interesting, from a "Code Pink" protester:

"I was under the impression that we have the right of free speech," said Xanne Joi of Code Pink. "To me, I thought free speech meant you get to say what you want without recrimination."

Where did Xanne go to school? The First Amendment doesn't protect you from recrimination, it protects your right to say whatever you want. She might have noticed this each time her cohorts get arrested for screaming confrontations during Congressional Hearings.

5 Dead in Store Shooting

The shooting at a Lane Bryant store Tinley Park, IL is horrible enough... I don't know why it bugs me so when the reporter adds this:

Lane Bryant is part of plus-size women's apparel retailer Charming Shoppes Inc., based in Bensalem, Pa., which also owns the Fashion Bug and Catherines brands.

Is there some reason for reporting that Lane Bryant sells plus-sized clothing? Was there any mention of the sizing charts at the Omaha Von Maur when a gunman killed eight people there in December?

Check out these two models in the same bathing suite and decide whether it's better to shop at Lane Bryant's or Abercrombie's. I don't mean to ignore the murders of five people, but I'm just tired of seeing skeletal girls walking around afraid to have a piece of pie.