07 May 2006
Why no one has much chance of toppling Congress's incumbents

If you've ever wondered why democracy seems like such a sham when it comes to Congressional elections here, read this. Between gerrymandering, pork barrel spending and campaign finance laws incumbents do everything they can to lock down their seats for eternity. Changes are required if the people are to retain confidence in their elected representatives, but no one seems to know what those changes are or how to implement them. And meanwhile, incumbents keep doling out free pork sandwiches...

MONROEVILLE, PA.--With the war in Iraq, $3-a-gallon gas, and Jack Abramoff dogging Washington Republicans, it might seem a good bet for an ambitious Democrat like Chad Kluko to give up a six-figure salary and campaign for a seat in the House of Representatives. After all, he was a top executive at Verizon Wireless, started his own technology company, and makes a convincing case for bringing the lessons he's learned from business to bear on government. But Kluko was hardly the Democratic Party's first choice to run in Pennsylvania's 18th District, which fans out east and west from southern Pittsburgh. He has close to zero name recognition, entered the race late--in January--and has no political experience. "Don't you usually start in city council?" a reporter with Monroeville's Times Express recently asked. Despite his business credentials, political analysts say, Kluko has little chance of winning.

(link) [U.S. News & World Report]

23:00 /Politics | 0 comments | permanent link

Iran women sports ruling vetoed

I mentioned this when the proposal to actually allow girls to see sports first came down, and must say I'm not terribly surprised that ti was overturned.

After all, to these clowns, a woman's place is in the kitchen and the bedroom, not necessarily in that order. And you should never let your property out of your sight...

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei vetoes a ruling that would let women attend top sporting events.

(link) [BBC News | News Front Page | World Edition]

23:00 /Politics | 0 comments | permanent link

Red's New Calf

Red's New Calf
Hiding in the Grass

Red's Bull Calf
It's a boy!

23:00 /Home | 2 comments | permanent link

Seen at a Protest

Will Somebody Give Bush a Blow Job so We Can Impeach Him?

via within the crainium

23:00 /Humor | 1 comment | permanent link

Cardinal urges legal action against Da Vinci Code

Well, I suppose I should be grateful that they're strapping on lawyers instead of bomb vests, but somehow I think they're missing the whole point:

"This is one of the fundamental human rights: that we should be respected, our religious beliefs respected, and our founder Jesus Christ respected," he [Cardinal Francis Arinze, a Nigerian who was considered a candidate for pope last year] said.

Really? Well, Cardinal, where's the Church's "respect" for other religions? You seem to have made quite a business out of moving into a country, telling folks how benighted they are, how guilty they are, how wrong their religious beliefs are and how their gods are really demons. Doesn't everybody have this basic human right you speak of? Or do human rights only apply to "civilized" (read: monotheist) folks?

Where was your respect for the founder of my religion, when you changed name of the fourth day of the week from Wodensdag to Mittwoch in Germany so his name would not be uttered? Where was your respect for Freyja, Goddess of Love and Beauty, when you called her a slut and her followers witches? You nearly eradicated all references to her, and burned those "witches" at the stake by the thousands.

Of course, this sort of thing is inherent in any evangelical religion. The Great Commission commands Christians to disrespect other religions. When you are convinced that there is an absolute Truth, you are morally compelled to spread that truth. In the first century it was "One Truth, One Way, One God", by the sixth it became "There is no God but God and Muhammad is His Prophet". In the twentieth it became "Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Fuhrer", with truly disastrous consequences.

To paraphrase a particularly nasty follower of that last quip, "When I hear the Church speak of human rights, I reach for my gun!"...

Reuters - In the latest Vatican broadside against "The Da Vinci Code," a leading cardinal says Christians should respond to the book and film with legal action because both offend Christ and the Church he founded.

(link) [Yahoo! News: Top Stories]

23:00 /Asatru | 3 comments | permanent link