University Blog |
|
|
Team Renewal Intellectual Conservative PoliticsIowa.com Weekly Weblog No Runny Eggs
This is the weblog of Aakash Raut, established Sept. 2002. It will cover current affairs, university and college events, and provide insight and commentary on contemporary issues and the news from his perspective. Enjoy! --------------- ARCHIVES Sept 2002 - Now ------------- - - - - - Key Updates Hurricane Ike North American Union Stop it now! Recent news... Students against...  Montebello summit
Archives
E-mail - uisconservative-at-yahoo About Aakash 
Help me out by shopping at Amazon.com!  My Wish List My Amazon.com Store SUPPORT OUR TROOPS! Operation Home Front Any Soldier Soldier's Angels Wounded Warrior Project Adopt a Platoon Operation Military Pride Operation Dear Abby Operation Prayer Shield Operation Homefront Operation Uplink Operation AC Operation Gratitude Operation Hero Miles USO Care Packages Virtual 'Thank You' Card Locate VA Facilities - Volunteer! Presidential Prayer Team Pray for President Bush Hometown Hero:  Maj. Harry Schmidt Spc. Michael New Operation Truth Iraq War Veterans Gulf War Vets NGWRC CNSI SFTT Military.com MilitaryWorld.com The Military Coalition CitizenSoldier.org Veterans Help Network Disabled American Veterans VNIS Take a Soldier to the Movies Best of the Blog On War 
DR. SAM FRANCIS (1947 - 2005) Save the Chief! Ron Paul 2008 Tom Tancredo 2008 John Cox 2008 UIS College Republicans Christian Student Fellowship Featured Weblogs Liberty Guys Rogue Statesmen Good List Congressman Coble (R-NC) Bad List Mark Foley Sacco + Vanzetti My Fellow Bloggists  Blogs for Terri Pro-Life Blogs  US out! of the UN Blogroll Save the GOP Don Bendell - new! Sounding the Trumpet* Google Adsense Referral News - new! Campus Nonsense* Campus Conservatives Airstrip One* Stand Down Spartan Spectator Hoosier Review Illini Girl* Izzy Lyman* John Rabe* Jon Swift - new! Scott Tibbs Old Right Pundits Cory Burnell* Rebel Alliance* Arklahomboy* Right Ho! Allison Kasic* Samantha Burns* Paul Cella* In the Agora   Deux Ego Owen Courreges* Patrick Carver* Conservative Observer Spoons Experience* The Boileryard* Blue State Conservatives Coalition Against Illegal Immigration Dan Flynn Students Against Durbin* Peoria Pundit* Downstate Pundit IlliniPundit ILLINOIZE John C. Bambenek Acton Gorton Belligerent Bunny* eTalkingHead* Adrianne Truett* Angela Wittman The American Mind* Argghhh!!! * The Rattler* Res Ipsa Loquitur Daryl Cobranchi* Twenty Something* Adam's Thoughts* Drew Hibbard Matt + Heather* Tom Roeser Tom Gillespie Child of Reagan Glaivester* Stop the ACLU Radical Cowboys* The Red Pill Right Wing Conspirator* Absit Invidia* Southern Loyalist* Black Confederate States' Rights Review League of the South North of Center To Whom it May Concern* Beautiful Feet Belief Seeking Understanding* Religious Left Watch After Abortion Breaking All the Rules EtherZone blog ESR blog Chronicles blog Mises blog Antiwar.com blog* Mike Ewens* STR blog Liberty & Power PaleoBlog* Sounding the Shallows* Thrasymachus Online Steve Sturm Right & Wrong Kevin Michael Grace Read JDM HARD RIGHT Back Home Again The Flagship Log Lonewacko View from the Right Independent Country* A Republic, if you can keep it Right Wing News Midwest Conservative Journal ConservativeHQ.com Conservative Booknotes Libertarian Rant Live Free or Die Samizdata Adam Smith Institute IHS LibertyGuide Rational Review Wendy McElroy Gene Healy Serfdom Times Jeff Trigg* Bruno Behrend* Greg Griffith John Tabin Champaign Media Watch* David Weigel John LeBoutiller Rolling Barrage* GOP Bloggers* Nat'l Review Corner TG's Political Wire Angry Clam Jason Wall John Wentz Josiah Mackenzie Vessel of Honour* Greg Pulver* Eric McErlain* Baseball Crank Liam Moran* Matthew Edgar* Andrew Olmsted Jacob Grier* Dave Munger* John Norris Brown* John Adams Chris Burgwald Washington Republicans Reductio Ad Absurdum* Fuzzy Couch Thinklings Carmon Friedrich* LadyDusk The BadgerMum* Cassandra Page* Dead Yet Living Bloggedy Blog* Darrell Dow Dr. George Grant Birch Blog ParaPundit Michelle Malkin Smallest Minority This Classical Life Chrome Duck Overdrive Mark Byron Mark Horne Radley Balko Steve Sailer Lyn Nofziger Howard Phillips John R. Lott Stephen Bainbridge Richard Poe Bad Eagle Vox Day Gray Falcon Oscar Jr.* Robert Prather Dizzy Girl* Medic Mom The Patriette* Electric Venom Amy Ridenour American Kernel Right on the Right Heretical Ideas Six Meat Buffet Right-Wing & Right Minded* Stephan Kinsella Western Mercury Gutless Pacifist The Art of Peace* Alina Stefanescu Franklin Harris* Jesse Walker Jeremy Lott Honest to Blog* Conservative Rebel* California Conservative Louisiana Conservative Oklahoma Conservative Oregon Commentator Brothers Judd Dissecting Leftism Catallaxy Files Catallarchy.net* Atlantic Blog Tim Swanson* CoolParty.us Michael O'Shea Kevin Holtsberry Right Minded Man Sized Target Interested Participant* Bush Blog Insignificant Thoughts Signifying Nothing* Jaws Blog Republican Voices The O'Hara Factor* Flaming Duck* Outside the Beltway* Parkway Rest Stop Accidental Jedi* Jen's History and Stuff Military Sound-Off Mudville Gazette* Stryker Brigade News Baldilocks* David MSC Chapomatic Arimus Diary of the Blue Ridge Acid Ink Daniel Root Christian Bowman Seamole's Log* Erick Erickson* Eric Langborgh Boots and Sabers Pardon My English Right on Race McGehee Zone ConservaThink* Sobering Thoughts No Watermelons Ben Kaminar* Ben Shapiro* View from 1776 Broken Masterpieces* Reagan's Children Liberty Zone Lead and Gold John Ellis Joyful Christian Junkyard Blog Saddam Hussein Talking Points Memo WeltansBlog The American Scene Nel Mezzo Why Liberals Suck Republican Research Council RightNation.us Huffington Post VodkaPundit LiarPundit Best of the Web (WSJ) Overlawyered Online Learning Update Matthew Muller  
In the Area Illinois ReviewRFFM News Extreme Wisdom* Capitol Fax IL Policy Institute Illinois Forum ICRC IL Church Action Family Taxpayers Network GunsSaveLife.com Immigration Reform IFRL IL GOP Assembly IL RLC IL YRs IL RYP United Republican Fund My Church Living Word Fellowship Ministries LINKS Intellectual Conservative*World Net Daily AntiWar.com LewRockwell.com EtherZone Ever Vigilant TownHall.com NewsMax CNS News American Reformation Project Sierra Times News with Views Conservative Battleline Conservative Voice* Conservative Nest Conservatarian.org Republicans for Humility Free Republic Washington Dispatch Virtue Magazine Conservative Truth For the Cause Charles Goyette Dave Black Online Lady Liberty Strike the Root INTL-NEWS.com Liberty Vault Liberty Coalition Breaking All the Rules Original Dissent VDare Men's News Daily American Daily* Starr Journal Capitol Hill Journal Capitol Hill CoffeeHouse Rightgrrl! Share the Truth Fountain of Truth Price of Liberty Citizens' Lobby DixieInternet.com* Dixie Daily News Aw, Shucks* Silverback Standard  The Conservative Caucus The American Conservative Chronicles Magazine Human Events Insight Magazine The New American The American Enterprise The American Partisan In the National Interest The National Interest The Dissident City Journal Policy Review Empire Journal College Conservative Campus Magazine The Last Ditch TheRant.us RightNation.us RightSided In Liberty & Freedom Rational Review Liberty for All Friends of Liberty NonInterventionist.com Neocons Bad Occupation Watch Downing Street Memo PokerFace Michael Savage Mark Dankof David Salder Rip Rense Devvy Kidd Tom Flocco Jacques Tucker Roy Moore Reed Heustis Ezola Foster Terry Anderson Jewish Dude with a Conservative Attitude Ross Perot Charts Chuck Muth Allan Wall Frosty Wooldrige Bob Barr Linda Tripp! Carolyn Gargaro Ilana Mercer Bill Sardi Jason Vickers Maurice's BBQ Sam Francis Pete Celano Dave Kopel John Lott Tom McClintock Brooke Adams Bill O'Reilly Rabbi Spero J.M. Wallace Taki Vermont Guardian Dixie Outfitters Huntsville Chronicle Conservative Brotherhood Issues & Views Lincoln Review BlackElectorate.com Human Life Review America's Voices Free Conservatives Conservatives Against Bush Republicans Against Bush Bush Revealed Your Christian President the New Pantagruel Boundless Relevant Credenda Chasing Hats Vision Forum American Vision Christian Underground Good News, etc. Trumpet America* Where the Truth Hurts Christian WebSite True.Origin Archive Jews for Morality Islam Review Islam Commentaries RenewAmerica.us Banner of Liberty GrassFire.org Supressed News World Affairs Brief Capitol Hill Blue Spinsanity Campus Activist Citizens for a Constitutional Republic Junto Society Bush Country ToTheSource News TruthNews Talon News Page One Daily Duke's Global Links* Conservative Camp ConservativeNews.us JanicekOnline.us* Underground Notes American Daughter Beltway Blitz Collegiate Patriot Patriot Post Wake Up America! The Compass RightTurns.com You Don't Say TYSK News Freedom Writer Freedom Site Freedom Forever HundredPercenterNews Suppressed News Jefferson Review Republic Broadcasting Network America First Radio American Destiny Premier Speakers Bureaucrash Cultureshock TV The Backlash! Angry Harry  GOA JPFO EnviroTruth Crafted with Pride Amer. Economic Alert How to Buy American Today's American Dream American Patrol The American Resistance Numbers USA  Project USA Balance.org Desert Invasion Stein Report Latino Americans Fair Immigration Asian-American Politics Outsource Congress Not Dead Yet Euthanasia.com Project 33 BlackGenocide.org March Together GOP USA Stop Democrats Nat'l Republican Assemblies GOP Liberty Caucus Republican Issues Campaign Vote Republican Net Republican Research America First Party American Founding Fathers Party Constitution Party of IL Drudge Report Hush Bimbo Capitol Fax Illinois Issues ILSenate.com Politics1.com Real Clear Politics Roll Call Larry Sabato Political Oddsmaker Political Graveyard Congressional BadBoys Yahoo! | Ask.com Yahoo Mail | GMail Facebook | MySpace eBay | craigslist Search Engine Watch 
Watchers Left Watch Court Watch PC Watch Green Watch MarxWatch UN Watch Genocide Watch Warblogger Watch Occupation Watch Patriot Act Watch Marriage Watch Sully Watch Hillary Watch Hillary Watch Bush Watch GOP Betrayal CAGW FactCheck.org Truth in Media Accuracy in Media Presidential Candidates COLUMNISTS Chris AdamoJeff Adams Dr. Mike Adams Diane Alden W. James Antle III Rev. Chuck Baldwin Doug Bandow J. Matt Barber Bill Barnwell Dave Barry Bruce Bartlett Michael Bates Bryanna Bevens Dave Black Burton S. Blumert Alan Bock Boortz Trevor Bothwell James Atticus Bowden Peter Brimelow John Norris Brown Harry Browne Pat Buchanan William F. Buckley Tucker Carlson Phil Carter Alan Caruba Doug Casey Steve Chapman Jane Chastain Alexander Cockburn Ann Coulter Judson Cox Paul Crespo Vox Day Arnaud de Borchgrave John Derbyshire Lou Dobbs John Doggett Jon Dougherty Steve Dunleavy Pete DuPont Bobby Eberle Larry Elder Robert Klein Engler Bonnie Erbe Jerry Falwell Joseph Farah Steve Farrell Don Feder Robert Fisk Thomas Fleming Tom Flocco Sam Francis R. Freedman Dan Frisa Michael Fumento Maggie Gallagher Joe Galloway Bill Gertz Georgie Anne Geyer James Glaser Julia Gorin Paul Gottfried Michael Graham Joe Guzzardi Colonel Hackworth Froma Harrop J.D. Hauser Dustin Hawkins William R. Hawkins Nat Hentoff Donald Hoffmann Ron Holland James Holmes Arianna Huffington David M. Huntworth Paul Ibrahim Terence Jeffrey Robert Jensen Barney Keller Thomas Kilgannon Michael Kinsley Henry Kissinger Dave Kopel Charles Krauthammer Karen Kwiatkowski Henry Lamb William S. Lind Thomas Lindaman T. J. Litafik Heather MacDonald Nebojsa Malic Michelle Malkin Ralph Marston Chris Matthews Nathan McClintock Tom McClintock Wendy McElroy Michael John McCrae Ryan Merryman John David Morris Mary Mostert MUGGER Bill Murchison Steve Myers Peggy Noonan Gary North Oliver North Bob Novak J. R. Nyquist Brendan O'Neill Bill O'Reilly Star Parker US Rep. Ron Paul John L. Perry Gordon Prather Larry Pratt David T. Pyne, Esq. Fred Reed Charley Reese Cokie Roberts Paul Craig Roberts Lew Rockwell Jr. Thomas Roeser Christopher Ruddy Joe Sabia Steve Sailer P. Andrew Sandlin Phyllis Schlafly Bill Schneider Otto Scott Dorothy Anne Seese Cindy Sheehan Martin Sieff Harry Silvergate Charles R. Smith Tony Snow Joe Sobran Paul Sperry Rabbi Spero Jill Stanek Bill Steigerwald Joseph Stromberg Vin Suprinowitz Nathan Tabor Taki's Top Drawer Linda Schrock Taylor Abigail Thernstrom Alan Tonelson Srdja Trifkovic Gore Vidal Norah Vincent Allan Wall Jude Wanniski George Will J. B. Williams Kyle Williams Walter Williams James Leroy Wilson David Yeagley Hans Zeiger OpinioNet Reference Sources The Free DictionaryBartleby.com RefDesk.com Answers.com Education World Free Databases Internet Public Library Electronic Texts Archive Merriam-Webster Dictionary Thesaurus Acronym Finder 1911 Britannica Britannica Concise Information Please Almanac Statistical Resources American FactFinder CountryWatch CIA World Factbook Stratfor History Channel Biography.com The Straight Dope Snopes Truth or Fiction Logical Fallacies Bartlett's Quotations Gray's Anatomy WebElements Periodic Table Harvard Classics Free Books Online Barron's Booknotes Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Internet Movie Database LimeWire Boogie Jack's search engine optimization Wordtracker: Top Keywords Open Directory Project Directory: Free articles Free Articles directory FindArticles.com World Newspapers Newspaper Obituaries White Pages Yellow Pages Zip Code look up Worldwide Phone Directories Worldwide E-mail Directories Pizza Coupons Donate a Car Kelley Blue Book Consumer Info Ctr. Consumer Reports U.S. Code U.S. Tax Code Mortgage Calculator Loan Calculator Loan Comparison Savings Calculator currency converter Stock Quotes Federal Register U.C.M.J. USA Patriot Act Supreme Court decisions Find Law Government Guide Contact your Rep! Politics1.com Useful Resources Bible GatewayBlue Letter Bible Christian Answers Network SermonAudio.com Sermon Cloud WallBuilders Christian America Religious Liberty Archive Chick Publications Spurgeon Archives Magna Carta Federalist Papers Anti-Federalist Papers Dec. of Independence Articles of Confederation U.S. Constitution C.S.A. Constitution State Constitutions Documents of Freedom Early America American Heritage Library Online Museums - new! Euro-Amer. History U.S. Anti-Imperialism First World War The Roosevelt Myth Harry S Truman Korean War Project USS Liberty Memorial NGWRC Venona National Security Archive The Memory Hole Big Eye Trivia Library National Debt Clock The 'Right' Links Military Links Ultimate Pro-Life List Liberty Online Tobacco Institute Docs CSMonitor: Neocons Museum of Communism Murray Rothbard Antiwar Archives Starr Report Cox Report The Clinton Calendar Even More Blogs Hit and Run (Reason Mag)rfburn hertz Antioch Road Earth-Shattering Distinctives* Theognome's Thoughts Naddy Museum of Left Wing Lunacy Chicago Boyz Kevin McCullough Cornfield Commentary* Publicola* Fly Over Country Greatest Jeneration* Backcountry Conservative* Conservative Eyes Wizbang!* Daniel Drezner Jonathan Grubbs Republican Except for Bush Number 2 Pencil Claire Wolfe Anthony R. Karnowski College Basketball Right-Wing Vegetarian Alex Singleton Christian Patriot* Alan K. Henderson Zonitics Spot On Unqualified Offerings Libertarians Against Bush Libertarians for Dean Rossnordeen.com Phil Carter How Appealing Ex Parte Modulator* VRWC Mark from Colorado Marc Cenedella John Moore Jared Keller La Shawn Barber* Adrian Warnock Bushwhacker Blog Jeremy Petersen Ryan's Head The Great Separation Christian Conservative Uncle Sam's Cabin Weapons of Mass Distraction Booker Rising Red State Liberating Iraq Lissa Kay Melanie Phillips Buscando Un Oasis* Blog Day Afternoon Josh Matthews Ray Schroeder Chelsea Rulz! Benjamin Kepple Blame India Watch Steven Chapman Conservative Commentary Right We Are! Amidst the War... Iraq NowFront Line Voices Boots on the Ground Training for Eternity A Soldier's Blog Fight to Survive ...turning tables... Colby Buzzell Mustang23 Iraqi Agora Baghdad Burning Salam Pax Healing Iraq Hammorabi Diary from Baghdad A Family in Baghdad Secrets in Baghdad Raed in the Middle A Glimpse of Iraq A star from Mosul Baghdad Skies Baghdad Girl Iraqi4Ever Iraq and Iraqis Kevin Sites Iraq Photos And from the Left... Mickey KausMarc Cooper Dohiyi Mir* Brian Balta* Right Democrat* Gun Toting Liberal Lucas Wiman Democratic Veteran* Back to Iraq 3.0 Max Speak* People Migrate Angry Bear The Poor Man Hesiod Neocon Leftist The Ben File Who Knew? Veterans for Dean High Desert Skeptic Morons for Bush Charles Murtaugh Atrios Lorazapam & Lipitor Sister Toldjah Guardian Watchblog Pinko Flamingo < ? ameriBLOGs # > Watch television episodes online for free! What I'm Watching 24 Law and Order Monk The People's Court Recommended Reading     
Blogsearch | DayPop Yahoo! Mail | GMail America Online Search Engine Optimization Wordtracker: Top Search Terms Most Popular Keywords AOL Hot Searches | AOL Search Blog MapQuest | Google Maps Travelocity | Expedia Southwest Airlines Facebook.com | MySpace.com Walmart.com | Best Buy Home Depot | Circuit City Bank of Springfield Bank of America document scanning answering services Cingular Wireless conference calling Lexapro Mortgage Calculator Loan Repayment Calculator Loan Comparison Calculator Savings Calculator 
|
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Update (5/30/09): www.OurCRNC.org It's Convention time again! ----------------------------------------------- Once again, it is tremendously frustrating, with so many things going on, so many issues that I wish to blog about**, but being preoccupied with other responsibilities, necessities, or distractions and hindrances. The big election (Illinois Consolidated Election Day, for key local races throughout this state), is now only three days away. Though I was planning on getting a certain candidate-support website built and up, a week before the Election (like I did last time, for [now-Alderman] Frank Lesko), interruptions, temptations, as well as very-legitimate duties delayed my progress on that, until late tonight (two pages still need to be completed): www.CapitalTownship.com As I don't seem to be making progress, insofar as blogging, and since the big day is so soon, I have decided to give up. No, I'm not going to close (or even formally suspend) this blog. I'm going to go ahead and get Christian Hartsock set up (as discussed before), something that I was planning on doing, after publishing certain entries, but since there are other pressing matters, I am going to go ahead and ask him if he would like to [finally!] resume blogging here. Another reason I'm going ahead with this is that I saw that he now has his own Wikipedia encyclopedia article!! (Who am I to delay someone that famous from writing here?! ;-) ---------------- ** Christian will hopefully still have the time to guest-blog. Regarding what I mentioned above, about my own blogging; as I've said several times, I have a lengthy backlog, and some of those entries are saved as drafts. But in very-recent times, here is what I wanted to post: - Fisking the deceptive nonsense from the extremist Southern Poverty Law Center, regarding the immigration reduction movement - which was recently picked up by the New York Times blog. - Fisking the deception nonsense from the extremist Southern Poverty Law Center, regarding traditionalist young conservatives (who I know personally), and who have been publicly maligned. - I just found out that the SPLC has even gone so far, as to add to their "Hate Group" labeling/libeling, our friends at the Illinois Family Institute!! - Thankfully, the SPLC may be embroiled in another scandal, regarding the Missouri fusion center documents. This will hopefully serve as a tipping point, for organizations to finally marginalize this phony "civil rights organization"... And I hope that groups like the ACLU will join with us, in this regard; especially considering the surveillance issues. - The article from The Hill lifted my hopes, as did the formation of Progressives for Immigration Reform. We have discussed before how it has been those on the political left who have actually been at the forefront of the immigration reduction movement, even before many conservatives joined on. Just as change in foreign policy, and support for the anti-war position will not be possible without conservative and GOP support, I think that the only way we may be able to make major progress, in the immigration field, is to amplify, support, and work with those who disagree with us on other major issues, but who concur on this matter, due to labor, social justice, minority-rights, and environmental issues (many of those reasons and rationales we also share). We need to form a left-right (and libertarian!!) coalition against illegal immigration, and in favor of a reduction in legal immigration as well, like we had a decade ago, with the esteemed Barbara Jordan (D-TX), and U.S. Senators Diane Feinstein (D-CA) and Harry Reid (D-NV) [and also President Clinton, though he failed on this, after using it to help get re-elected], along with groups like the Wilderness Society and the AFL-CIO, and a diverse array of other conservative, liberal, conservationist, environmentalists, and civil rights organizations.  In the meantime though, welcome back, Christian Hartsock, from the [once-]Golden State of "Cully-Fone-Ya"!!  Sunday, March 15, 2009
I had a rough Sunday today (following a rough week, w/ influenza - see below), but it was preceded by an unusually-good week. This upcoming week will be good as well. I do (I know I've said this before, but...) still plan to do those entries, regarding CPAC 2009. I did not end up making it up north, for the YAF Midwest Conference. (Oh well...) For now however: TODAY is the Ides of March!! BEWARE!!!!!! Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Update (3/11/09): Posting this article here will allow me to close another one of my SeaMonkey browser windows, and it'll also share something, regarding an area I need to get a handle on! The Quest for the Nearly-empty Inbox Update (3/15/09): I have more-recently kept this blogger's entry open, since this is pertinent to my situation of this week (and perhaps in the future)... Wow! - While I was starting to type this update (Community Access Channel 4 is on, as I frequently have it), Prophet Michael read from the book of Peter, and specifically said a verse that I had just been thinking of, which is near and dear to me (pertinent to my conversion testimony, a topic we'll deal with later on this blog). That is a different verse, but from the same Book & chapter, that is cited in aforesaid blogger's entry. In the last entry, I mentioned recent experiences, recent frustrations, and that I had some drafted-out blog entries that I wanted to publish next. (With the month ending so abruptly [Februarys are like that! ;-], those entries wouldn't be on the same archive page, but oh well. However, that has had to be delayed... And Christian Hartsock guest-blogging here has also had to be delayed - as has my progress, in finding a good position; I was doing well last week, though!... At the end of that good week (i.e., on this past Saturday) I came down with something; a visit to the Clinic the following day revealed it to be influenza. Respiratory illnesses finally make way to area | Flu finally arrives in central Illinois I was vaccinated a couple of months ago, but was told that that didn't matter much, since the flu vaccine is only for the anticipated strain(s) of the virus. One symptom of this was that looking at a television was sometimes difficult (because of the light), so using this laptop was not that much of an option, this past weekend. I did register for the Young America's Foundation (YAF) Midwest Conference (like we did, last time - Spring 2007), which is next weekend; and this time, it's only half the distance (in Chicago, rather than Minneapolis); I got one of the current UIS CR & SCS leaders to register as well; I think that this might be Mid-Terms Week for them. There is so much that I would like to get done before the YAF Midwest Conference [that was already the case, as you know but I was actually starting to make good progress this time!!], but I need for this flu to pass (and for some other painful conditions to pass as well!!). That follow-up half-day seminar from StoresOnline (mentioned below, though from web research, it looks like it may not be worth pursuing anyway) can be re-scheduled. I think I now need to prioritize and limit what I am involved with... But at the same time, find ways to optimize my abilities and productivity. I have so many talents and skills; I need to get them organized and put into practice, on a major basis. Help from the Lord is going to be essential; His assistance can cause us to achieve things we ourselves are not capable of. Thanks for your prayers. I will be back here soon!! Saturday, February 28, 2009
This entry was conceived, on Crowne Plaza Springfield stationery, while I was at the dinner-portion of a Dinner Presentation by StoresOnline, which I had decided to see about; while I'm still looking for a job, I'm also looking at residual-income or other non-traditional income opportunities. From the Springfield Crowne Plaza, on Friday (February 27th) evening (though finally being typed on the night of Wed., March 4th, partially because the internet was out that night... Had a I known that, I might've gone to Perkins again [or elsewhere], as their "dinner" was unusually not-good... described by the woman sitting next to me as "bread and water" [no coffee!] ;-) : ----------------- Tonight, instead of being at CPAC 2009 (there are 12 UIS College Republicans in Washington, D.C. right now, for CPAC; I'm not an enrolled student anymore, but could've gone with them), I am at a dinner seminar for StoresOnline. I have been looking for residual or web-based income opportunities... And an old friend recently mentioned the possibility of getting into drop-shipping. So, this seemed like good timing. However, the presentation didn't have much, and there is a follow-up, on Wednesday, March 11th, with 6 hours of training; those of us who attended this one get a sharp discount on that follow-up, and it's a one-time-only charge, so I went ahead and paid by check. I was also kicking myself, because I just realized that I still (unless it's expired, and unrecoverable) have $179.00 worth of credit, from Southwest Airlines, from a UIS CR whose ticket I purchased last year (for CPAC 2008), but who cancelled. I could've used that, towards attending CPAC 2009! (Then again, there would've been a ton of other expenses, and I've already been twice before.) I wish.... ...that I would remember what I was thinking, when I stop blogging in mid-sentence, to edit other parts of the same post! ---------- Since I wasn't able to post this entry (even as a draft) on Friday night, I did it on Saturday night, after I had the opportunity to see (and "live"-blog, from the couch) some CPAC 2009 panel speeches (I knew I could access it online, but realized, from recent Blagojevich Senate experience [thanks, Chris Bennett], that C-SPAN would serve this purpose; considering I've been on there before, that should've jumped to mind anyway!), and maybe Hush Bimbo's CPAC-closing speech as well. I saved a draft below, and one above, where maybe that can go. But the thing is, when I was blog-scribbling on the Crowne Plaza note pamphlet, I did another entry, slated for the following day. Now, the month has changed (why is February so short?), so these posts won't even be on the same archive page. Still, this beats having those "post pages"; I'm glad that this blog still uses anchor permalinks. Aren't you? Thursday, January 29, 2009
Update: Wow! The first vote - on whether to convict Governor (should I still be calling him that? ;-) [!!!!!] :-) Rod Blagojevich, was unanimous! [Save possibly for a 'PRESENT' (?)]. Now, they will vote on whether to bar him from holding public office ever again, in this fine state. (I didn't know that the IL Senate / General Assembly even had the power to do that!) I wonder if this vote will be unanimous as well, or near-unanimous (with some people, like Chicago Democrats, afraid to vote "No," out of fear), or whether it might be close - or even fail! [More blast-the-backlog, Blago blogging] The Illinois Senate has reconvened, and I am now even-more pissed off that I didn't plan ahead so as to (and am still too undercaffeinated to) be there (at the Illinois Capitol) - only about 10 minutes away from where I live. I didn't even get to compose/publish those entries below, before going to bed (though they will be soon). Nor did I post anything about the Blago-Oprah thing, nor about his bizarre appearance on that bizarre show, The View, and his other acts that day. Then again, I don't know why this blog's hit count isn't going back up, as it has before, when I started updating regularly (or even semi-regularly). I am doing something wrong, here. Anyway... State Senator Dale Righter, who has an excellent grip on current technology [see entry below], is speaking right now. They are allowing the senators to make a statement, with officially a five-minute limit. I was hoping that they would delay the end of the trial, and actually call some of the witnesses (the Illinois ones), whom Governor (for the moment! ;-) Rod Blagojevich requested. http://www.wuis.org/waystolisten.html The senator who's speaking now (forgot the name, and I'm listening online, via WUIS; for some reason, the AP video feed (via the SJ-R home page), which is supposedly "live" - is broadcasting something different from what is on the radio), mentioned that Governor Blagojevich is "an unusually good liar." That is the characterization that U.S. Senator Bob Kerry (D-NE) made about President Bill Clinton... And that's not all that Bill Clinton and Rod Blagojevich have in common (aside from the fact that they've both been impeached), another topic that I wish I was able to blog about. (!!) There are 59 members of the Illinois Senate. At least 40 votes are needed to convict, while only 20 votes are needed, for an acquittal. Note: With [new] Senator Duffy's statement, being broadcast right now, I just realized that the WUIS audio feed is a bit behind the live feed from the AP Google link. I am glad that freshman Senator Dan Duffy (R) is pointing out that the General Assembly voted in favor of raising the Governor's salary three times. I like the Senator's idea about internet accountability, for the Illinois government. (That's something I would love to have implemented, at the local levels, in Illinois and elsewhere - that may be something I'll soon be involved with, on a more first-hand level.) Ah.... Senator Chris Lauzen. He is a solid and independent conservative voice [one of the original "fab five" Illinois senators, and is still there... He lost the primary for U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert's seat, in the 14th Congressional District of Illinois, to Jim Oberweis, who went on to lose the election, to the politically inexperienced Bill Foster. However, Senator Chris Lauzen has certain shortcomings as well... But it is a relief that he is serving in the Illinois Senate (three of the other "fab five" no longer are). I am going to lie down, let my weary eyes get some rest, and listen to the 'show.' (I guess that's one thing that I couldn't have done, if I was at the Capitol. :-) Note: Chris Bennett just kindly called, asking where the party was gonna be at tonight! :-) :-) :-) I mentioned that I was listening to the audio feed, but not as much the online video feed. However, he mentioned that it's being shown on C-SPAN... I had checked the major networks, which had shown Governor Blagojevich's statement this morning (see entry below), but they were showing Senator (oops... President) Barack Obama, with the new (unfortunately!!) Treasury Secretary [Timothy Geithner], after having been focused on another national news item [perhaps the Ford Motor Company situation], while WICS (ABC NewsChannel 20), our local television station, was showing the soap opera. I had checked the Illinois Channel [on television; had already been to their site, for which the streaming didn't seem to work too well, though that could've been due to something on my end] - the Illinois Channel is a great, CSPAN-like, resource, but it isn't broadcasting anything this afternoon, at the moment. I hadn't even thought to check C-SPAN itself... For some reason, I haven't been tuning in much there, since around Election 2002. Aside from the television, you can also watch live via C-SPAN's website, or via The Associated Press / Google, or at a number of other places online. [More blast-the-backlog, Blago blogging] State Senator Dale Righter: Live video WUIS [from our campus] (and NPR) Illinois Channel State Journal-Register Note: You don't necessarily need to watch online, if you have a television - It's being covered by the major national networks, as well as on WICS (ABC NewsChannel 20), here in the state capital. Everyone is using the newfangled technology, and social media, to cover this trial. This is a historic day. It looks like the Governor may not resign (which is great, in a way ;-)... I hope that the trial does not end today; the process has been too fast. Why not let him call those witnesses? (At least the Illinois ones.) We need to know who those "public officials, X, Y, & Z, etc..." are. Rahm Emmanuel, Jesse Jackson, Jr., Valerie Jarret, and the others should be subpoenaed to testify... Perhaps President Barack Obama should be called back as well (he can stop by, when he [potentially] comes back to Springfield next month). Then again, it was hard enough getting answers (or good questions) from, and posed to, Roland Burris [see entries below!]. Thursday, January 22, 2009
I know I've been dealing with the issue of the U.S. Senate vacancy (Barack Obama, now President, which I've also been dealing with this month) in this state, and the Rod Blagojevich situation (which will be resuming soon; at least I have a little time to catch up, on this blog - though maybe not, as life interferes!... ;-). However, as someone who entered this world in the Empire State, I wanted to post something on what I just heard, regarding the U.S. Senate vacancy (Hillary Clinton, who I wish I had a chance to blog about!...), in that state. Some people were surprised yesterday, when Caroline Kennedy withdrew her name from consideration; people are currently speculating as to what the real reason behind that decision might be. I was wondering, as were others, though on the other side of this issue, whether Caroline Kennedy might be anti-abortion. I am not sure whether JFK and Bobby Kennedy were pro-life; Teddy Kennedy is unfortunately not (keep him in your prayers, despite who he is, and what he's done), but Eunice Kennedy Shriver is a pro-life advocate (affiliated with the Susan B. Anthony List, Democrats for Life, and Feminists for Life); her husband was (quite unfortunately!) the last pro-life Democrat nominee for elected federal executive office (Vice-President of the United States). Now, I am pleasantly surprised to have just heard, on Chris Matthews' MSNBC show (I wish he really would run for Congress; I have been a fan of Chris, since the Clinton administration - other true-blue conservatives should be, as well, despite his Democrat Party involvement), that New York Governor David Patterson's choice for this seat might be new U.S. Congresswoman Kirsten Gillebrand (D-NY); the video clip they showed was of her with a baby. Especially with what day it is today (see entry above), I was wondering if the Congresswoman was pro-life, or at least moderate, on that and other issues. So, I went over to Wikipedia (after wanting to defend that online encyclopedia, against conservative [and esp. neocon] attacks, I am starting to have problems with the way certain immature Wikipedia contributors are acting), and was delighted to see that not only does U.S. Representative Kirsten Gillebrand serve in a Congressional District (U.S. House District NY-20) that has longtime Republican tendencies, she is a member of the great Blue Dog Coalition.  (Keep in mind though, that some of those "Blue Dog" Democrats are not really conservative, nor moderate... but at least they are willing to show independence, against the Democrat Party establishment, and the liberal agenda... i.e., they are truly "progressives" - unlike those who label themselves as such ;-) As addressed in that Wikipedia article section, the "Issues" section of Congresswoman Kirsten Gillebrand's official U.S. House page is not afraid to emphasize her strong support for the 2nd Amendment*, and her solid opposition to illegal immigration (I am very glad to see that she was a co-sponsor of the SAVE Act, which I regret I didn't have a chance to lobby for, this past summer).* - - - - - - - though it also mentions her support of certain gun regulation initiatives, such as the NICS [not to be confused with NCIS, or CSI!] Improvement Act of 2007 [H.R. 2640], which she points out was supported by the NRA (though that organization is known for compromising; the more-principled  GOA expectedly strongly opposed it, as did JPFO and the National Association for Gun Rights, along with U.S. Senator Jim DeMint [R-SC], rock star Ted Nugent, and some of our nation's veterans [though not all], and the great Tom Coburn (R-OK), who may've been responsible for stopping it [Hat tip: The Liberty Sphere])The corresponding section of Kirsten Gillibrand's campaign website, dealing with the issues of immigration and Second Amendment rights [Hat tip: Benjamin Sarlin] take even stronger stances on those subjects. Speaking of gun control issues, New York congresswomen, and this Hillary Senate vacancy, there was also earlier speculation that U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) would be appointed to this spot. On the one hand, she was a Republican shortly before she ran for Congress, and she is also from a previously-Republican U.S. House seat - one that was held by the great commentator Dan Frisa (though he managed to win it in a very-Republican year). However, being a Republican in New York (some parts of that state) is different from being a Republican elsewhere (though unfortunately, not as much in Illinois... I really, really, REALLY!!!! wish there was some way we could change that - it's been a losing battle, for many years now, and things may not get better, even with the Blago scandal - though as I pointed out before, things can, and have, shifted very-quickly in this state... At least they have once not that long ago). On the other hand, I don't know what issues Congresswoman McCarthy has taken a "Republican" stand on... and her signature issue - the one that prompted her to run in the first place - is support for gun control. [Note: Here in Illinois, that might be considered a "Republican" position - quite unfortunately!] Now, regarding the abortion issue. That Wikipedia article makes clear that she supported [federal funding for!] [embryonic!!!] stem cell research. Her short voting record in Congress creates no clear legislative stance on this issue. Already, some liberals are expressing strong concern over this appointment, including on the abortion issue. However: Please take a look at the Google search results page, for Gillebrand abortion, before it changes dramatically, as this issue is presumably being discussed by more than just my blog. I just realized that I spelled her name wrong, so here is the Google results page (for Gillibrand abortion). [Yes, I know, we should be using GoodSearch, instead of Google, but I don't know if GoodSearch, or Blingo, another beneficial search engine, permit linking to search query results.] As you can see, from the immediate results (before they get altered, due to her potential promotion), it was the "pro-choice"/pro-abortion organizations that were enthusiastic about Kirsten's candidacy for Congress. New York Lawyer Puts Heat on U.S. House Incumbent, October 17, 2006 "A solidly pro-choice Democrat, Gillibrand has been endorsed by abortion rights advocacy groups Planned Parenthood Advocates of New York, Planned Parenthood Action Fund and NARAL Pro-Choice America." Gillibrand Win Marks a Pro-Choice Pick-Up in Congress, Nov. 8, 2006 Pro-choice victories, November 8, 2006 NARAL Pro-Choice New York PAC: 2008 Voter Guide, Kirsten Gillibrand (Dem.) New York 20th District From Hudson First elected in 2006 PRO-CHOICE Congresswoman Gillibrand is a true champion of women’s rights and reproductive health. After winning an extraordinary grassroots victory in 2006, during her first term in Congress she has demonstrated a passionate commitment to our cause and the kind of impressive leadership our movement needs in Washington. Let’s help send Kirsten Gillibrand back to DC where we need her. The thing is, despite these shortcomings, a United States Senator Karen Gillibrand (D-NY) will likely be MUCH better than U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) - then again, that would be true for just about any individual!! ;-) Speaking along those lines... After the Bill Richardson withdrawal, I mentioned that Hillary might be the next to go; I was remembering how so many of her husband's nominees and appointments ran into trouble, only during the first and second years of his presidency (not to mention all the scandals, resignations, Independent Counsels, charges, convictions [or acquittals] that his Cabinet-level appointees encountered thereafter!!). The new Secretary of State, who was just confirmed [on the same Chris Matthews segment, mentioned above, I liked how he pointedly questioned the Democrat viewpoint-provider, over Hillary's conflict of interest, regarding her hubby... The Democrat guy was forced to respond by saying that her critics should then have voted against her, rather than just speaking out - on that point, I agree; kudos to U.S. Senators Jim DeMint (R-SC) and David Vitter (R-LA) for voting the right way!!] has SO MUCH BAGGAGE, and if she shares, with her husband and our current Governor, the arrogant proclivity to commit crimes and indiscretions, even after knowing their past activities have placed them on the radar, then it might not be long before she is booted from her office as well. That's one good thing about Senator Barack Obama becoming President - all the vacancies it has created. His own position became vacant (though it was just controversially filled, which I dealt with below), and may switch parties in two years (though considering how much our State Party fumbles, don't be surprised if they piss it away - like by nominating the R.I.N.O. Mark Kirk), and the 5th Congressional District of my state has fallen vacant [new White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel, who was an establishment Democrat, not necessarily liberal]; it was briefly Republican-held, but only due to the combination of it being Election 1994 (see Dan Frisa mention, above), and the incumbent being Dan Rostenkowski ("Rosty the Postman!" ;-)].* Who knows, maybe the Blagojevich scandal - and the fact that it's a special election, though also on the same date that Municipal elections will be held - will result in a Republican winning that seat! It would be great if Latina Minuteman (or Minutewoman?) Rosanna Pulido were to win that seat! And what if Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL) goes down, in the Blagojevich corruption scandal? Then again, I've heard that the Congressman is "much better than his father," and who knows who would replace him, in Chicago? I still don't know why Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. has long had a section on his website, listing conservative (and even some pro-Confederate heritage) websites... But I'm glad that he does!! * Note: I had forgotten that, in Michael Patrick Flanagan's (R-IL) bid to keep his seat [in Democrat territory!], the congressional candidate who made it Democrat again was none other than... Rod Blagojevich!! (U.S. House District IL-5) Maybe memories of that - and of Rostenkowski - will allow Republicans to pick up this seat, after all! (Though, that is likely just wishful thinking...) [ Also, I just realized that redistricting has occurred since that time as well; I don't know whether that hurts or helps us; previously, the 5th Congressional District of Illinois included the City of Chicago. Does it have more suburbs now... or a conservative part of the city (if such a thing exists? ;-) ] And in New York, the fact that Senator Hillary Clinton has been "promoted" - to a position she was ineligible for (until the "Saxbe fix") and to which she may lose before long, has created an opportunity to a hopefully-moderate replacement. And here's the thing: As discussed above, Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) represents a longtime Republican district; had it not been for the fact that it was 2006, she may not have won. Now, Republicans have a chance of making another net gain, in the U.S. House of Representatives. (I am still thrilled due to the Joseph Cao victory last month over "cold cash" Congressman William Jefferson (D-LA), in the Big Easy - Vietnamese-Americans generally lean Republican, but Congressman Cao is the first to serve in the United States Congress; after the Bobby Jindal victories, maybe this is a sign of things to come.) Maybe Sandy Treadwell can win this seat... He did poorly last time, but if there's a special election [though is that how it works in New York?], we may pick up yet another seat in Congress! [Note: Although, if Rudy Giuliani gets the Republican nomination, for that seat... (See Benjamin Sarlin in The Daily Beast... Does NY, like IL, allow people to run in Congressional Districts in which they don't live?), it might be a weird situation. Giuliani is a lot more liberal than most people now realize, and if Kirsten Gillibrand does in fact turn out to be pro-life, or at least against partial-birth abortion, and maintains a strong pro-gun record, unlike Rudy, then that would ruin everything. Mark Kirk from this state, and Rudy Giuliani from New York, have very extreme records on abortion - refusing even to support the Partial Birth Abortion Ban legislation. Even the Democrat leaders, in both the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate, voted in favor of those bills, and voted to override President Clinton's vetoes... The bill was signed into law when they were passed again, during the George W. Bush administration (though that could now become undone, if that FOCA atrocity gets signed into law by the new President). We need to be smarter about who we nominate. How many failures have to arise before we realize that the "median voter theory" is bogus? Over to you, Al D'Amato.] Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Thank you, for thanking President Bush - that's something I've got to do (in connection with my change-of-heart, regarding my attitude towards W.). I wasn't able to live blog his speech, at the last Inauguration (from the snow), but I wish I'd done a commentary on it; I disagreed with it [re: President Bush's embrace of liberal internationalism, in foreign policy - a topic that I was harraunging on continually, these past years, and which I've even-recently been criticizing the Bush administration for], and was glad, at the time, to see the conservative backlash, over the Wilsonian neoconservative vision, that it generated. That all seems like a moot point now. I really need to get that article written - it will be my first-ever appreciation piece towards President Bush, albeit too late. ----------------------------- Back to the speech... Those who are anti-war will soon be disappointed, towards the Obama administration - but that is something that myself and others predicted, before he even got the Democrat nomination. (The same thing was true, with regard to if John Kerry had been elected last time - those those at RedState of course disagree - and the same thing was true, "if" the Democrats had taken control of Congress, in the 2006 elections; when they did, what I predicted came true.) cc: College Democrats The Inaugural Address is over. There was a lot of flowerly rhetoric, some of it powerful... But I expected more substance. (Then again, that type of speech is what Obama has long been known for - but I was thinking that, at this point of his political progress, he would be talking in more concrete terms.) However, it could be that he didn't want to get into specifics, for this key [and historical!!] speech, which is understandable. The last one (which I was privileged to see first-hand, though I disagreed with it's theme), did have specifics and objectives addressed, but it was President Bush's second one... His first Inaugural Address may have been more like this one we just had, since he was also assuming a national executive office for the first time, following an unpopular (or at least, highly-controversial - Clinton's "high" exit approval rating would plummet fast, with the final days scandals) President. So, if the conservative/neoconservative Blogosphere, et. al., complain about the lack of substance in Inaugural Address, I am thinking that perhaps it was justified, considering the circumstances. Hopefully, President Obama will not be delivering another Inaugural Address. So, it is going to be Chief Justice John Roberts. [who may, like Sandra Day, end up being a great mistake - or not...] ABC News just reported that the official White House website has changed, since it's past noon. He was just sworn in (middle name and all, though without the "II"). He had trouble saying the oath, which is understandable, considering the circumstances. How will his speech turn out? It's 11:02 AM CST... and now past noon Eastern time, when the new President is supposed to be sworn in. Does this mean that [U.S. House Speaker] Nancy Pelosi is now the President of the United States? [see pertinent section, from both of the two entries, right below] I am relieved that Pastor Rick Warren closed his prayer with the name of JESUS!! I was afraid that he was going to close, with one of those general statements. U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) should be thanked, for pushing for clemency for U.S. Border Patrol agents Complean and Ramos. She has had some good positions on immigration (especially illegal immigration) in the past, despite her recent problematic actions, on this crucial issue. I can't believe I was expecting Chief Justice William Rehnquist to swear in President-elect Obama. I really, really, really can't believe that - This once again shows that I must be getting old. I was wondering why John Paul Stevens was delivering the oath... Then I realized, that it's not the Oath of Office for the President, but rather, for the Vice-President-elect (oops... He just became Vice-President, as it's 11 AM here - unless the other legal theory holds true - see entry below). I wonder if Chief Justice (of the United States!) John Roberts will be the one, to swear-in President-elect (or now President?) Barack H. Obama II. Maybe they will let Stevens do it, due to his age. (Sandra Day O'Connor was chosen, to swear in President Ronald Reagan, to his second term - but that was due to another characteristic. Her appointment ended up perhaps being the Gipper's greatest mistake, though.) Please see here, to see what's going on... They just said on ABC News that the swearing-in ceremony may be delayed, and there is debate among historians, as to what would happen in that case (i.e. - when the President's term truly begins... Whether it's when he takes the Oath of Office, or whether, in accordance with the 20th Amendment, at noon EST). This relates to the issue of David Rice Atchison, which I alluded to below. (Today however, the Speaker of the House is third-in-line, though it made more sense the way they had it back then, since the U.S. Senate President (Pro Tempore) seems to be a higher position... I don't know whether it would be worse, however, for Robert Byrd or Nancy Pelosi to be President - even if it is just for a few minutes/hours... or seconds!) Though I've known the story for years and years, annotating my entry below is the first I recall being at the Wikipedia encyclopedia article on U.S. Senate Pro Tempore/Possible President Atchison. It refreshed my memory of the fact that President (?) Atchison slept through most of his "term" in office. [What would you do, if you were President for 24 hours?] This connects with my current situation, as I did end up pulling the all-nighter (though did spend much of the morning/night on the couch - unfortunately not getting anything productive done, however). I did the same thing, the night before the last Presidential Inauguration (and the following night, and then got a few hours the next night, before getting a tour of the Capitol) - but that was different, as I was there, in Washington, D.C. They just mentioned on ABC that Bill Clinton stayed up all night as well, revising his speech... And that Al Gore stayed up as well, doing his speech, but then fell asleep, when he read it! I will be live-blogging above, rather than below. Bow your heads now, to join Pastor Rick Warren, for the invocation. Monday, January 19, 2009
ENTRY IN PROGRESS... will be published soon Please see here... This entry will mention my regrets (which I hope to do an article about soon), about having been too hard on President George W. Bush, not realizing the integrity and honor that he has restored to the Presidency, after it was destroyed, during the previous 8 years. My re-thinking alas, comes too late. ENTRY IN PROGRESS... will be published soon * This entry will discuss the pardon issue, as there is still time for our current President - George Walker Bush - to issue clemencies... I will mention some people (or at least one person) who I believe is deserving of a clemency [now that the two Border Patrol agents - see below - have been granted it, I'm having trouble thinking of more than one - Wait, there is another one who comes to mind, and another one who does, but doesn't...]. And I will discuss how President Bush's retraction of a recent pardon is one additional factor that is leading me to think that I've been too hard on our President, over these years. ENTRY IN PROGRESS... will be published soon * This entry will be about how, in the final period of his presidency, George W. Bush has finally agreed to grant clemency to U.S. Border Patrol agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean. When I went to Google Blogsearch's main page, that was the top topic cluster, with this entry featured, and the caption photo was from here.  . (Google Blogsearch's main page still has that... Thanks to all those who worked hard, through the web and other modern media methods, to coordinate the pressure that resulted in this clemency.)ENTRY IN PROGRESS... will be published soon * Sadly, I never got to blog about my leading a group to the last presidential Inauguration... Nor properly share those photos (or photos/videos/media) from other national, regional, statewide, local, and campus events that I helped coordinate attendance for, or participated in). This post will deal with that, or at least help me deal with that... ;-) ENTRY IN PROGRESS... will be published soon * This entry will be about how: I have addressed the issue of Lincoln before, and even got over 70 hits to this past blog entry one day, after I posted a comment at 'Lt. Smash,' linking to a comment at 'Shape of Days', on how, despite living in the heart of the 'Land of Lincoln,' I now know the truth about him. That entry by It's too bad, therefore, to see how the Senator, now President-elect, is wrapping himself in the legacy of a President who wasn't so great... It's troubling how so many people, all over the world, are deluded by this myths of 'King Lincoln.' ENTRY IN PROGRESS... will be published soon * This will discuss today's altercation during Pastor Rick Warren's appearance at Ebeneezer Baptist Church, and will also discuss the recent-but-forgotten work of this church, and the King family members (except for his wife, who held a different position) against homosexuality, and especially against gay marriage. ENTRY IN PROGRESS... will be published soon * I've addressed this holiday [at least] one time before on this blog, but this entry will be more balanced - kind of like Josh Claybourn's regular posts (I am still upset that that weblog, along with Hoosier Review, and others that we would participate in, in the comments section, etc... have gone the way of the dodo bird!) on MLK - but will also provide additional perspectives on him - which are rarely heard in today's time period. ENTRY IN PROGRESS... will be published soon * The differences between the political perspectives of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X will be discussed here - from a conservative and pro-liberty perspective. Blast the 'Blast the Backlog Blago/Burris blogging' Barack blogging... I want to first off apologize for the OCD-like mentality that I've been displaying, insofar as planning of blog entries... I guess I should perhaps apply 'free-market principles' to this blog as well. It is just so tormenting though, having an organized series of blog posts in mind, but not having free time/stamina. Another thing that is particularly painful today is the fact that there are is a ton of bloggage & commentary that I want to get done (not to mention other related tasks, such as e-mails, Flickr posting, and media sharing), before the 2009 Presidential Inauguration. (Can you believe that, after having led a group there for the last one, I hardly posted anything about it... Not to mention never shared a photo compilation*, nor got the major newspaper article about us posted online**, nor got the ABC (then NBC) NewsChannel 20 WICS television segment on us converted to digital format? And it's been almost four years now... * A fledgling Flickr photostream was set up, but contains only like 1% of all there is to share! ** Here is the Google News link... Why have I never put that article on the web? [The Hartford Courant write-up was also published on the websites of other related newspapers, including the Chicago Tribune and Newsday.] I have been somewhat-active [though not as much as I'd like to be], in the "Web 2.0" realm, to take advantage of the fact that the whole country was focused here, in Springfield, Illinois (also kind of did so, the last time they were, which wasn't that long ago), first for the Governor Rod Blagojevich, and then with regard to the Roland Burris fiasco. (I just saw him being interviewed on Fox News, by the way... It was crazy seeing him say that he "didn't know about the pay-to-play" stuff, regarding Governor Blagojevich; if only more people knew what some of us here in this state do). But there was some more work I wanted to do on that... Roland Burris has [unfortunately, though not from everyone's perspective] been seated in the U.S. Senate, and there is not media that I said I'd share on him [audio and newspaper], which I haven't done, but fortunately, with regard to our Governor, those hearings are on hold, so that the Democrats (and some Republicans as well) leading in this state can go see their guy get sworn in. I really wish that there could be a delay, before that happens (though that would require Nancy Pelosi becoming President - a situation that has happened before, for 24 hours - though some disagree) - just so I would have more time to get this stuff done! ;-) As that is not the case, and as I've still not found a way to make time stand still, it's time to turn to my two friends from the past - Mr. R. Bull, and Mr. Al Knight R. (And now, Miss Jen Teal as well! ;-) I think I will, instead of saving draft blog entries this time, actually publish a little blurb, with the title and topic. Then maybe it'll be more likely that those topical thoughts and polemics will see the light of day. (Maybe that's what they mean by "the audacity of hope"! ;-) Monday, January 12, 2009
As my other family members were watching that global-dance-competition show on NBC, and while I was wasting precious time getting [even-worse] computer eye strain (and now I feel a headache coming on... and a little nausea), I totally forgot (until it was like 30 minutes before 9 PM CST - the opposite situation I found myself in yesterday... see below), that the second part of the premier of this season's 24 on Fox was this evening. I could've spent this afternoon/evening catching up on yesterday evening's two-hour season premier, and/or the 2-hour pre-premier (24: Redemption) [though I've been having trouble watching streaming programs on this laptop - and while there were several variables to consider, in what the cause of that might be, the fact that CBS Innertube streaming worked beautifully at the Motel 6 in Jefferson City, when I worked for the RNC's Victory 2008 (a lodging expense that I still hope to have reimbursed, by another party [no pun intended]), and the fact that my brother (who actually does have a MacBook ;-), also experienced the same problem, from the wi-fi in this house, shows me that it's not a computer problem] ... and then live-blogging the second-part of the premier this evening. Or, I could've spent this afternoon/evening chipping away at the zillions of things that that I am behind on, and need to get done. Instead, that time is now past. And lost time is never found again. :-( Sunday, January 11, 2009
 Back from the "break"... 24 season premier live-blogging It is 8:38 PM (or was it AM, Jack-Bauer time... Interesting, if it is PM, then they're starting this show out not only in real-time, but in real real-time... at least for those one time zone to the right of us here). I just remembered that last time I live-blogged the 24 premier (I mean the last time, not the entry that I decided to just-publish, below... rather that doing this all in one post - I wonder how the other 24-live bloggers are doing it), I was also late to the game... But fortunately (unless it was unfortunately - I don't quite recall what caused the delay), the premier was also late. Is Tony Alameda now a bad guy? (Is he still alive?) I really need to get caught up... Fortunately, Wikipedia is great for that, and for many other things. 7:50 PM CST (real time, not 24 time - though we're only about 2 minutes behind Jack Bauer & them... Why was she wrong to dress him down? I am suspecting (without knowing if this has already been revealed, in the part I missed) that that guy's "it's okay" attitude is a ploy. This is the first time that the 24 world/universe has had a female president - and with a woman in charge, many men have trouble serving under them. (Just ask the Hon. Rachel Paulouse - Well at least in this season, there is not a racial factor, like in Rachel's case... Maybe they'll have a minority female President in the next one, or perhaps and Indian-American. I just saw this related post (on Bobby Jindal). ------------- Ah... Now maybe I will get a chance to real... Never mind. 7:24 PM - Crap... I thought the Superbowl was tonight, and was think I should post something, regarding that. I found out that the Golden Globes is on (which my father and brother are watching)... But from going over to Steve Eggerson's blog (After doing a web search, I was glad to discover that he has also linked to my "Roland Burris file" - see below), I realized that this evening is (very IS***) the start of a new season of 24!! This is something that I should be [blast-the-backlog]-blogging about, especially considering that I have done it for a 24 premier before - but this time, don't feel that funny about it, as I just saw that Steve is doing so, and others must be as well. (I am still, as far as I know, part of "Blogs 4 Bauer" - but I might need to update my blogroll listing.) ***Because I'm now about one-fourth of the premier's time late (i.e. - "12 hours" into the premier) - not to mention that I never got around to watching that 2-hour pre-premier (or whatever it was) in its entirety - this is going to be a bit rocky. (At least the commercials - unless there are none, for this! - will give me a time to catch up. If not, the "Previously on 24," at the top of the hour, and the intermission between these two "hours" (if there is one!) will give me at least a moment to catch my breath. I wish I had a chance to do a recap, of prior seasons, as I did, when I last live-blogged a premier. Ahh... I see that they are having commercials, after all. Considering my late start though, I don't think I even have a chance to go to the bathroom... Thursday, January 08, 2009
I finally got published, and e-mailed out (though I had meant to do it before going to bed... Now, I'm stuck at home, instead of downtown, to watch this hearing live). The whole country is currently focused here in Springfield, Illinois, for Roland Burris' testimony to the Illinois House of Representatives Impeachment Committee (re: Governor Rod Blagojevich). Fortunately, I can still listen live (and audio record), from here. The Roland Burris media dossier is below, at this blog: http://uis.blogspot.com/2008_12_01_archive.html#5317581402463541873 A 'bare-bones' version is at the UIS College Republicans blog: http://uisgop.blogspot.com/2008/12/who-is-roland-burris-media-dossier-on.html Shortly after I started writing the e-mails about this, last night/this morning, I found this item, from the Huffington Post: Burris Impeachment Panel Testimony Key To Senate Seating The top news wire item, on my Yahoo! Mail, was: Illinois panel to grill Burris on Senate appointment... That link now goes to another article, but that AP piece is everywhere else. [Update: Rich Miller at Capitol Fax and at Clout Street at the Chicago Tribune have been live-blogging this Impeachment Committee Hearing. Live-blogging Burris' testimony at impeachment panel] Though I'm not expecting it, perhaps something big will happen this afternoon, which shakes things up. (Pass the popcorn, please...)  Update (1/9/09): I am still kicking myself for not being there, when it seems the whole world (or at least, CNN and Fox News ;-) was just 10 minutes away from my house. I had to stay up late, to try to finish (though more'll be added - and has already been [see below**]) the Roland Burris media file, and publish a stripped-down version at the blog of the College Republicans. I then wanted to e-mail the major (and minor, and Illinois) bloggers, since this is a very-unique compilation - one that has been alluded to, by Rich Miller, the Daily Herald bloggers, and Steve Rhoads, but those two links (see above) are still, as far as I know, the only places where the full media pieces are available. Due to eye strain/other issues (becoming increasingly obstructive!), I lied down on the couch here, at about 5:00 yesterday morning, intending to get back on the laptop, publish everything, and fire off the e-mail. That didn't work out well. After waking back up, I published (over there as well - the draft post had been saved for New Year's Eve, like here), and then only barely had time to get an e-mail out, before the Impeachment Committee hearing began. Fortunately, Nathanael Arthur took my advice from the night before last, and did go over to the Capitol yesterday afternoon, and also, I found that the hearing was being broadcast online. My RCA digital recorder had trouble getting started, but I got it working, and recorded (except for the first couple of minutes), the entire hearing. I only know of one blogger who has linked to my Burris backgrounder (thanks, Mr. Epstein!) yesterday, but I just found that our good friend Mike Tosh (who wasn't able to attend, due to his Master's Thesis work) has kindly linked as well. I will try to have that audio uploaded soon, and make it downloadable. I've found several places where one can watch, even after-the-fact, the Impeachment Committee hearing, but as a Flash video stream (tried to download it, using that RealPlayer function, but it didn't work). **Here is the article I added today, for the Roland Burris file:  02/02/1992: Burris borrowed $28,000 from campaign fund, Chuck Neubauer & Mark Brown, Chicago Sun-Times, February 2, 1992As mentioned there, that award-winning series of exposes from our city's excellent daily, on Roland Burris and others involved in "pay-to-play" politics, will soon [hopefully] be online as well - at least, selections from it. I'd also recommend purchasing the book based on that newspaper series: Illinois for Sale: Do Campaign Contributions Buy Influence?  (It only costs a penny! :-) Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Happy New Year!! Update (11:12 PM CST): Like in 2003 (and probably last year... Though not as much in 2004 and 2005 and 2006, since I wasn't at home in Springfield*), I am in panic mode right now. This caught my eye from our new friend Jack Hunter (the Southern Avenger*), but I know I must immediately post it now, after reading that blog entry's opening:  Watch “New Year’s Revolution” at Takimag.com I have never liked New Year’s Eve. Americans might have voted for “change” recently, but I’ve rarely desired it, always finding the same-old, same-old to be as bright or brighter than any new horizons... [Full entry] How does the Southern Avenger know me so well?! ;-) * In 2004 and 2006, not only was I not at home** on New Year's Eve, I was in Jack Hunter's region of the country! On December 31, 2004, my cousin got married, in West Palm Beach, Florida. And on December 31, 2006, I was visiting family in Georgia... And I called State Rep. Katie Dempsey (R) some time after 11:00 PM eastern (I think); she did call back! On the night of December 31, 2005, I was at home, but thought I shouldn't be, so I went to campus (to the previously-mentioned Marigold 22), from where I think a bunch of people had left, to go to the State Capitol, to watch the fireworks display (part of the annual "First Night" celebration here in Springfield). I had started watching a marathon of a past season of 24 on A & E... I hadn't been a watcher previously, but had started watching an earlier season (Season 3) on Christmas Day that year, and had then started watching this other Season (I think it was Season 1) on New Year's Eve, before going to campus. I used Mark Yakey's television, which was in their main townhouse living room, to continue watching, that night/morning; Mark did come in, during that time, and I could tell he was also a 24 viewer, as he asked about what Season that was. ** Despite having a bunch of things I had wanted to get done, before the year changed (like format and share more of those Roland Burris articles... See my entry below, which I did go ahead and publish this afternoon, but with only one article; I really want to follow through this time, unlike in the past! ;-), I am going to go ahead and go over to John Minick's house, to attend the West Side Christian Church Young Adult group's New Year Eve's party; the last time I went to this New Year Eve's party was on December 31, 2002 (and didn't end up leaving the Lashes house in Chatham till like 3 AM - because Patrick and I started a chess game! ;-) - that was when I was more active in the Young Adult group at West Side. Those were much happier times! Tuesday, December 30, 2008
More Blast-the-Backlog, Blago [now Burris!] Blogging First off: I posted in my Facebook Status update, and latest "Tweet," that I was wondering if this blog was loading properly, as the hit total for the past 2 days had been unusually-low (even for this blog ;-), despite having a large amount of fresh content. After trying to IM people who weren't there/responsive, our old friend Ken Talton was kind enough to check this evening, and reported that this weblog was loading fine, in both AOL and Mozilla Firefox... which is a good thing, but also kind of negative, considering that now there is no excuse. So, if you will, please link to University Blog... I'm not going to try any of the other 102 approaches, as of now (though maybe I'll have to resort to that later, if y'all don't add this back to the blogrolls! ;-). Now, for the main purpose of this post: I wanted to, before any more time passed, provide some [quite-rare] newspaper articles, which I've retrieved tonight, and formatted for the web. These are full articles (provided under "fair use" principles), from my state's newspapers and wire services (including the excellent State Journal-Register daily, from right here in Springfield!). From the archives: Roland Burris 03/21/2002: Roland Burris says he won't run again, Bernard Schoenburg, The Hotline (National Journal) & Chicago TribuneFrom The Hotline: Roland Burris "may have finished dead last" in the Dem primary, but "at least he's used to it." Burris has lost "six times in 10 attempts" since '76, and he said this was his last race. Burris: "I'm done, and it's very easy to say that." Burris said he was "relishing the thought of leaving the rigorous campaign trail." Burris: "It's unbelievable what you go through, what you put your family through ... I'm just going to go on with my life and enjoy what little life I have left" (Mihalopoulos/Becker, Chicago Tribune, 3/21). Update (1/4/08): Though it was one of those that I first came across (via Lexis-Nexis), I waited until this evening to put it up. Later tonight however, I just noticed this pertinent item (via 'Stop the ACLU')... It seems that Roland Burris was thinking of, and planning for, more than just retiring from elections. I also forgot to note that I remember, after she was [thankfully!] defeated by us 1998, outgoing U.S. Senator Carol Moseley-Braun said that she was also finished with public office, for good. Before long though, she was in the spotlight again, being nominated for an Ambassadorship (I remember watching those hearings in my dorm... they were indeed ridiculous - I'm glad that at least one principled liberal exists; I guess Salon is better than The Octopus [at least in 1999]! ;-). And five years later, she decided to toss her hat in the ring, for the highest office in the land. (And tossed herself onto the Howard Dean bandwagon not long after... I guess there's more than one principled liberal; but we already knew that CounterPunch was strong, in that respect.) I guess when Chicago Democrats decide to retire from public servanthood, something just keeps drawing them back in! -------------------------------------------------- 01/18/2007: Vegas probe casts doubt on county deal, Steve Patterson, Chicago Sun-Times, January 18, 2007 06/16/2004: Roland Burris' consulting firm awarded $150,000 contract by IDOT, Doug Finke, State Journal-Register, June 16, 2004 06/05/2003: Ex-attorney general Roland Burris to lobby for Indian casino, Eric Peterson, Chicago Daily Herald, June 5, 2003Article list via: "Burris' pay-to-play political history" ---------------------------------------------- 03/03/1998: Burns: Burris part of problem, not solution, Bernard Schoenburg, State Journal-RegisterNote: The Hon. Jim Burns was appointed U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois in October 1993, by President Bill Clinton, at the recommendation of both of our state's U.S. Senators, Paul Simon (D) and Carol Moseley-Braun (D). [Slick Willie and his Attorney General had promptly fired all 93 U.S. Attorneys, upon assuming office (all at the same time, which was unprecedented) - something that should have been more of an issue, when President George W. Bush was criticized last year for the supposed "scandal."] Burns is a former star for Northwestern University's basketball team. [Chicago Sun-Times news article on his appointment]. Burns resigned from his position 4 years later, to run for Governor. Still in progress was the "Operation Silver Shovel" investigation of Chicago [Democrat] political corruption [yes, another one of those ;-] that Burns was leading. As might be expected however, certain people (like Jesse Jackson ;-) complained that the bribery investigation was racially-motivated, despite Burns have received praise from blacks and Latinos for his solid efforts against both gang violence and police corruption. In 1990, he was the Democrat nominee for Lt. Governor (with Neil Hartigan). He might have done better, for the 1998 Democrat gubernatorial nomination, if he had left his U.S. Attorney post sooner, rather than delaying, and letting the other candidates get support, in both downstate and the Chicago area. Contrary to earlier pronouncements by the Clinton administration, he was offered a second term (re-appointment) as U.S. Attorney, something that is exceptionally rare, for that District. (At least it was then; now, the great Patrick Fitzgerald - who I plan to deal with in another entry ("Fitzmas!") has been in that office since 2001.) In 2000, Secretary of State Jesse White [who is African-American], chose Burns to be his Inspector General (IG), so he could continue "to root out corruption." [Developing...] 03/08/1998: Front-runner Burris no longer above the primary fray, Bernard Schoenburg, State Journal-Register 03/08/1998: Burris failed his only major test in office as Attorney General, Eric Zorn, Chicago Tribune (re: the Rolando Cruz case)
02/02/1992: Burris borrowed $28,000 from campaign fund, Chuck Neubauer & Mark Brown, Chicago Sun-Times, February 2, 1992- - - - - [More archived press items will be added soon... Like the award-winning 1993 series from the State Journal-Register, discussed here at the Illinois Issues blog, and raised by rival Democrat, U.S. Attorney Jim Burns, which inspired the book Illinois for Sale - on the relationship between $tate contract$ and campaign contribution$ ] 05/02/1985: Blacks concerned Democratic Party will leave them behind (Roland Burris selection a frustration factor), Luix Overbea, Christian Science Monitor 03/19/1985: Burris selection creates controversy: Black Leaders Seek Candidate Control, Juan Williams, Washington Post 02/11/1985: Jesse Jackson Rips Democratic Chiefs: Blacks Urged to Reassess Loyalty to the Party, Juan Williams, Washington Post[More Blast-the-Backlog, Blago Blogging] Note: Christian Hartsock has been home for the holidays, and may not be back yet... In any case, being a Springfield, Illinois blogger, and a [somewhat-] veteran politico in this state, this is something that I need to blog on. Breaking news [not-so-"breaking" anymore, since I was too tired (or eye-strained) to go to my keyboard; hopefully, the bigger bloggers are at the office still! ;-] - Blagojevich to appoint (now, has announced his appointment of), Roland Burris to the U.S. Senate seat vacancy of Barack Obama After catching the WICS ABC NewsChannel 20 news at noon, I learned that our Governor, Rod Blagojevich [sorry, unable to think of a pejorative right now], will be holding a press conference this afternoon; it wasn't known whether he would announce his resignation. When I logged into my Yahoo! Mail, to send an e-mail to the current Executive Board of the UIS College Republicans, regarding this, and other Blagojevich matters, I saw the Yahoo! News featured item, reporting that Governor Bolshevik was going to use that press conference to name former Illinois public official Roland Burris to Senator Obama's vacant seat. After flipping through some channels, and not knowing the time of the press conference, I tuned in to WICS NewsChannel 20, in time to catch the end of the press conference; I was relieved to have seen before that, on Fox News perhaps, that the Senate Dems were going to refuse to seat Governor Blagojevich's appointment. At the end-portion of the press conference that I saw, there was an African-American Democrat speaking (perhaps Emil Jones... I should know him from sight, at this point - it's quite a relief that he's retired as Illinois Senate President)**, with Governor Blagojevich on one side, and Roland Burris on the other, talking about how there are no African-Americans in the U.S. Senate, and how Roland Burris needed to be appointed, and how utterly horrible it would be if the U.S. Senate refused to seat an African-American. He said that he would be contacting the Congressional Black Caucus about this, and would also be in touch with his good friend, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) [who by the way, lives right here in Springfield, Illinois - unlike the Governor (whose house is here)!!*** ;-)]. Update: It was former Black Panther, U.S. Congressman Bobby Rush (D-IL) who made those race-bating remarks. [Hat tip: Michelle Malkin] *** I saw on the news last night that Blago's lawyer mentioned that (ha ha!) he isn't going to stay at the Governor's Mansion, here in Springfield, after all (like he said he would... but what's new?! ;-). He's going to commute, or something like that. They ought to make him serve his prison sentence here in the capital city! :-)  I remember that Roland Burris had to drop out of the 1998 Illinois Democrat gubernatorial primary (actually, I don't think he dropped out, he was just defeated), after he referred to his three Democrat primary competitors as "immature* white boys." * Update/Correction (10:26 PM): While I think I remember, from when it actually happened, hearing on the Illinois television news that he said it as I've quoted above, looking through the print news archives from that time (February 1998), quotes him as having said "non-qualified (or some say it was "unqualified...") white boys." I don't know if that makes it much better, though. Also, I have been using Lexis-Nexis to look up some of the newspaper articles and news wire stories, from the 2002 and 1998 elections, with respect to then-gubernatorial candidate Roland Burris. I will have a new entry started, which will be published right above, compiling some of that material; it will be published some time tonight/tomorrow morning... I need to go to the kitchen for some Red Bull (or at least Pepsi) at the moment, though. I remember the Illinois gubernatorial primaries of 2002, in which there were 3 candidates, on each side. I backed Patrick O'Malley [along with Erika Harold, who would later that year become Miss America - which would help me launch my blog!], but on the other side, Paul Vallas would have been the best option. If only he had prevailed, in that primary!! (Or if only the Democrat primary winner in the prior election, the pro-life, somewhat-pro-gun Glenn Poshard of southern Illinois, had beat our candidate, the currently-imprisoned ex-Governor George Ryan.) [Update (1/3/09): I still say that, despite the recent plagiarism controversy!] Roland Burris was the other Democrat candidate; he, Vallas, and Blago all finished close together. Earlier last decade, Burris served as the Illinois Comptroller, and Attorney General.  I remember that, when the Rolando Cruz controversial conviction case arose as an issue, to be used against Jim Ryan in the Republican gubernatorial primary, against Attorney General candidate Joe Birkett - perhaps in the primary, by rival Republican Bob Coleman, but definitely in the general election, by party-boss daughter Lisa Madigan [Update (01/03/09): ...as well as in the following (2006) elections, by rival Republicans in the primary, for Governor and Lt. Governor, and up through the present time, by others], it was also mentioned that Roland Burris was involved in that problematic prosecution.In the decade before the decade before last, Burris served as the Director of [Illinois] Central Management Services (CMS), based right here in Springfield. The Governor who appointed him, Democrat Dan Walker, also served time in prison [Update (1/3/09): See this, by our old friend Cal Skinner, and this topic was also featured (with a "graphic warning"!) on Chicago Public Radio]; he is one of 4 Illinois governors, in relatively-recent times, who's been sent to the slammer. Hopefully before long, our current Governor will be the 5th!! Thursday, December 25, 2008
- Isaiah 9:6  Update: Please check out the poem, 'Twas the Night Before Jesus Came (via Joel Comm)-------------------------------------------------------- I hereby declare that, in the Blogosphere at least (and perhaps the entire WWW, and beyond!), Christmas shall be continued through tomorrow (December 26th), and potentially for a little time after that as well. Whereas this year (as has been the case, in prior Christmastimes***), so many of those in the United States, and elsewhere, have been juggling various life (and life-altering/threatening/shaking/etc...) situations, while trying to remain sane and secure, and Whereas political and economic situations, domestically and worldwide, have created problems that exceed the normal amount of stress, anxiety, depression, and nostalgia that typically accompany this time of the year, and Whereas these unfortunate situations have affected those from Main Street to Wall Street, and Whereas only limited supplies of Lipitor, Lorazepam, Lithium, Valium, Anacin, antacid, aspirin, Tylenol, Tums, and Red Bull exist, and Whereas no method of turning back time currently exists... Be it resolved that, December 26, 2008 A.D. shall remain Christmas Day, And that: Christmas shall continue thereafter, for several [an indeterminate number, as of now] days to come. ***For more information see: December 31, 2003: Christmas continued... December 25, 2003: Merry Christmas!! January 6, 2005: Merry Christmas!! **** Explanation by Bill Federer, of "American Minute"January 2006: MERRY CHRISTMAS (2005-2006) Please help out this blogger by doing your shopping at Amazon.com! [Or now, you can help out the College Republicans by doing your shopping at the most popular online stores.] [Or if you don't feel like buying anything right now, you can help out that organization, each time you simply search the internet!] Blast the Backlog Welcome back, Christian Hartsock It really sucks that, even with the Rod Blagojevich shenanigans - and the whole country focused on this state [and with the national news being right here, in the capital city] - that I have still been too busy/tired/indolent/undercaffeinated/etc..., to exploit this situation, through blogging here, and commenting/trackback pinging elsewhere in the Blogosphere, as I've been known to do. I do have one entry on Governor Blagojevich saved as a draft below - not to mention all the other bloggage that I've wanted to publish... Fortunately, I added the current leaders of the UIS College Republicans to that organization's blog, which is at www.uisgop.com, and as you can see, they have taken that up; I need to "open trackback"-ping Ryan's (one of the Ryans, at least) entries, from there. I was just thinking of Christian Hartsock's guest-blogging here, and his first entry here being published on Christmas Day, three years ago. I was on IM with him last night (actually, it was this morning here, but still Christmas Eve in Cully-Fone-Ya... wait, no - It was slightly past midnight there [slightly past 2 AM here], but still Christmas Eve, where Governor Sarah Palin or our President-elect are from); I have resumed IMing some, and re-added some people, who had been accidentally-deleted from my AIM Buddy List (that happened around this time of the year, two years ago, when I was out-of-state). Christian read my mind, as I was thinking of how it would be nice for him to resume posting here. I am thinking that perhaps this will give me an opportunity to go back, and publish some of those drafts - not only here, but at the UIS College Republicans blog as well. [Based on my track record though, don't count on it... ;-( ]. Note: In doing a web search [using GoodSearch, of course, see below!], to obtain some Christian-Hartsock links, I was surprised to discover that Chris, like our friends Kyle Williams and Ben Shapiro (and Hans Zeiger, I think as well), has now written a book! [This is great, but it makes me feel even more behind... Then again, maybe when I was younger, I could've pulled this off! ;-) ] IN THE NAME OF "PROGRESS" THE LIBERALIZATION OF CHRISTIANITY About the Author Christian Hartsock is a young filmmaker and political commentator. An affiliate of MoveOff.us, he has written for several websites including Alan Keyes' RenewAmerica.us, TownHall.com, NewMediaJournal.us and IntellectualConservative.com among several others. Christian is the writer and director of a feature, The Ministry of Absence, a short, The Life & Love of Monte Callaghan as well as a political documentary entitled Separation, among others and is the cousin of Tom Nunan, executive producer of Oscar-winner Crash. He was born in 1986 in Oakland, California, where he grew up and currently resides in Los Angeles.  I knew that Christian was attending film school, and must have created a few films by now... But I did not know about the book. I'm glad that Christian is back here. In addition to possibly-completing prior blog entry drafts, I will use this time to possibly-find some good ways of making money online, through the computer, or through work-at-home opportunities. (In addition to Christian's book, I need to purchase Twitter Power, which I just found is a new book by the amazing Adsense and internet expert Joel Comm.) I am still looking for a good full or part-time job position, something that may be achieved, once the new year begins. || Google Adsense Referral News || 'Inside AdSense' Blog: Warm wishes || How to Get Motivated, to make money online || ----------------- To my (remaining ;-) readers: MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOURS!! Also: From Gospel.com: Presents. Decorations. Cards. Family gatherings. Shopping. These are the modern signs of the Christmas season--and for all the happiness they might bring, they can also weigh us down with holiday stress and exhaustion. But there's a deeper meaning to Christmas, one that brings true joy and peace. On Christmas we ponder the most important event in all of history: the birth of Jesus Christ. Join us this Christmas season as we explore the glad tidings of Christmas. We need a little Christmas!! (Right this very minute... And later on, as well!!) Continuing my Facebook feed, from last night/this morning [i.e. - Christmas Eve/Christmas Day]: POSTED ITEM: Mame- we need a little christmas 12:04am Source: www.youtube.com Lucille Ball is playing the role of "Mame" in this clip. She sings "we need a little christmas" This is something that I'll "need" - even after December 25th!! Re: http://atruett.blogspot.com/2004/01/merry-christmas-someone-should-have.html The last time Jeff Black's Christmas EXPLOOOOOSSSION!!! (sp? ? ?) was held at M22 (they should have an M22 on every college campus - and every year!), and they put on a "Muppets Christmas Carol" (I think it was)**, and this song came on, I mentioned to Jeff that I liked this song - because it mentioned growing "a little older" and growing "a little colder"... things that I could definitely relate to (and still very much can!!). Add Comment - 0 Comments - Share ** Update: Apparently, it was A Muppet Family Christmas (1987 - TV movie). My Christmas Eve Facebook feed (see the entry before the last one, for more), continued... I wanted to have this Facebook "Note" published, before midnight (though it was published before midnight, California time... see that entry, below the last one, for more on Pacific Standard Time ;-) - Actually, it would have been good to have had this published, like a month ago. WICS NewsChannel 20 did a story on this program, but most people are still unfortunately not aware of this... A lot of money that could have been easily given, to charities and political organizations, has not been contributed. This Facebook Note was started before midnight, but apparently wasn't published until 1:10 AM (that doesn't seem right... Maybe they're on Eastern time): Who did you GoodSearch/GoodShop for?? ;-) Share Today at 1:10am | Edit Note | Delete  I should've posted a Note about this earlier... By now, it's too late to do your Christmas shopping (then again, for some people, that might not be the case - especially those of my gender, according to observations verified in this evening's Christmas Eve-ning TV 20 news - and I saw that our friend, Alderman Debbie Cimarossa, was one of the other gender's members who they interviewed). In any case, when you shop at Amazon.com, or Walmart.com (you can order online, and pick it up at the store, for FREE), or BestBuy.com (same deal - free shipping), Circuit City, iTunes, or a TON of other stores, please DO NOT go to the website directly. Instead, please go through the GOODSHOP referral link for the charity or organization of your choice. I "GoodShop" for the organization I used to lead - the UIS College Republicans: http://uisconservative.googlepages.com/support.html#goodshop Who do you GoodShop (or GoodSearch) for? ------------------------------------- Aside from the issue of buying something - every time you simply search the web, you can contribute a little, to an organization of your choice.... ----> Note continued on Facebook: www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=41546937210 December 24th: Spurgeon's Evening Devotional As mentioned in my last entry, here is Pieter Friedrich's Christmas Eve 2003 entry from the now-retired 'Deux Ego' weblog: 12/24/2003: "December 24th: Spurgeon's Evening Devotional" "'The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.'--Isaiah 40:5 "We anticipate the happy day when the whole world shall be converted to Christ; when the gods of the heathen shall be cast to the moles and the bats; when Romanism shall be exploded, and the crescent of Mohammed shall wane, never again to cast its baleful rays upon the nations; when kings shall bow down before the Prince of Peace, and all nations shall call their Redeemer blessed. Some despair of this. They look upon the world as a vessel breaking up and going to pieces, never to float again. We know that the world and all that is therein is one day to be burnt up, and afterwards we look for new heavens and for a new earth; but we cannot read our Bibles without the conviction that- "'Jesus shall reign where'er the sun Does his successive journeys run.' "We are not discouraged by the length of his delays; we are not disheartened by the long period which he allots to the church in which to struggle with little success and much defeat. We believe that God will never suffer this world, which has once seen Christ's blood shed upon it, to be always the devil's stronghold. Christ came hither to deliver this world from the detested sway of the powers of darkness. What a shout shall that be when men and angels shall unite to cry 'Hallelujah, hallelujah, for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth!' What a satisfaction will it be in that day to have had a share in the fight, to have helped to break the arrows of the bow, and to have aided in winning the victory for our Lord! Happy are they who trust themselves with this conquering Lord, and who fight side by side with him, doing their little in his name and by his strength! How unhappy are those on the side of evil! It is a losing side, and it is a matter wherein to lose is to lose and to be lost for ever. On whose side are you?"--Charles Spurgeon My Facebook Status, after arriving home Christmas Eve night: Aakash attended the Christmas Eve service at West Side, and then went to Denny's. Needs to update blog(s) quickly... 10:33 PM Twitter post: Attended Christmas Eve service at WestSide; then went to Denny's. Need to update blog(s) quickly... http://uis.blogspot.com www.uisgop.com ------> Follow me on Twitter! Facebook posts from Christmas Eve: December 24, 2008, 10:57 PM CST (8:57 PM in Cully-Fone-Ya ;-), on Pieter Friedrich's "Wall": Pieter... I remember realizing, in the second-to-last post I ever did at 'Deux Ego,' that since you were two hours behind us (here in Illinois), I could do something, that I couldn't otherwise do (a.k.a. "The Little Frummer Boy" ;-) :-) ;-) . Calling you, when it's 10:45 PM here, is another of those things. I tried your home number as well, and no one answered. Oh well... I hope that you, your mom, and yours have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!! Posted item: web.archive.org Source: web.archive.org [Previous entry: "December 24th: Spurgeon's Evening Devotional"][Main Index][Next entry: "Wishing You An Austrian Christmas"] Weblog Entry - December 24, 2003 (Pacific time!! :-) "The Little Frummer Boy" In the following entry, I will post a pertinent Christmas Eve item, that preceded that guest-post of mine, at 'Deux Ego' in 2003. This one was done by Pieter himself, and features Charles Spurgeon. Tuesday, December 09, 2008
There is, once again, an ever-growing list of entries that need to be published here; I saved drafts for Thanksgiving, which weren't published (as of yet!), and nor was I able to publish anything, for Pearl Harbor. I have been exploring employment options, during the past few days as well... That is still ongoing. I just have to interrupt this life situation however, to post something on this; it would be wrong for someone like myself not to! ;-) Our GOVERNOR (Rod Blagojevich) has been arrested!! When I heard that Governor Blago was supporting clemency for his predecessor, George Ryan, I thought to myself - why alienate someone who could be your cellmate!* This is something that has been a long time coming; it was surprising though, how it just suddenly happened, triggered by a new issue (the filling of the vacancy of outgoing U.S. Senator Barack Obama). Blago is currently in federal custody, along with his Chief of Staff. The U.S. Attorney will be holding the press conference, regarding this, at the top of the hour (in about 10 minutes). This will be an interesting situation to watch (as Illinois politics oftentimes is! ;-)... *That line of thought was taken from Jay Leno, in reference to then-Congressman Gary Condit's (D-CA) vote against expelling Congressman James Traficant (D-OH). I am skeptical of those charges however; he was one of my favorite Democrats in Congress [the latter, that is]. No skepticism, of course, is warranted, in regard to this latest news. Thursday, October 23, 2008
28 Minutes Late When pencilling (or penning) in the appointment I just scheduled tomorrow, to get my car's exhaust and muffler system looked at (and replaced, if necessary... cc: Lexi, Kelsey, Ryan R. ;-), I saw that today is 10/23. I realized I needed to do my annual "Mole Day" entry, and I thought to myself that it might be good to do it at 10:23... I know the regular observance begins at 10:23 AM - that's when people would be in school - but when Mr. Szabo did it, there was no time contraint, on this day. I had wanted to post this year's "Mole Day" tribute at 10:23 PM [my IRS entry was at 10:40 PM ;-)], but The Sims 2 (one of those "game challenges" - the Orphans one [rules link]) kept me behind the laptop too long [this one has 4GB of RAM, so it can run this game... At least for now, you never know these Windows machines - Once again, I wish I'd been able to afford a MacBook. Those ads are true, by the way... They hit the nail on the head]. I need to get a recommendation letter completed, for one of our former UIS College Republicans officers, who is about to get admitted to West Point. (Sorry, Josh, for not having done so yet!!) A 'family emergency'-type situation unexpectedly (very unexpectedly!) arose today, and we are dealing with that, as I type this; tomorrow will be a full day (not to mention the election-related activities and events... with the big day looming). I honestly don't know if I will get that bloggage I wanted to have published, actually published. Oh well. (Though this sucks, since much of it is election-related, and won't be as relevant, after November 4th.) I need to get back on the Red Bull. In the meantime, here is the MOLE DAY tribute, for 2008. Wow... I was just wishing that there would be an SHS/Szabo-created video, for this purpose; last time, I included a video from... I don't know whom (nor have I even watched it, I think!). I decided to go to home page of my alma mater high school's website [SHS Online we helped create that ground-breaking intranet/internet website and web system, by the way... that was during Junior and Senior year], and voila - It is indeed featured, on the front page! International Mole Day Join Mr. Szabo's chemistry students as they celebrate International Mole Day in these videos. That saves me the trouble of having to compose anything more for this, but I will post the song... Well, maybe I won't. Gotta go... Saturday, October 11, 2008
Note: I apologize for the 'stream of consciousness'-like nature of these entries, not to mention the typos, and/or incoherencies that have resulted. I tried to be more professional, when I just posted at the weblog of the UIS College Republicans:  www.UISGOP.com As I mentioned there, it is quite a challenge, trying to live-blog all that is happening, as things are happening so quickly!! I've said before that I don't know how some of these people do it (succeed in regularly, coherently, and professionally publishing new content, multiple times a day, on a daily basis, often about events that have just happened - like almost in real-time!). Seeing the way people are seamlessly working away here could be inspiring (as has been witnessing other prolific individuals in the past), but as of now, I find it discouraging. Then again, maybe I'd be able to be up to par, had I had time for the Gourmet Roast at the hotel, or at least something more powerful today than half a wine glass of Coca-Cola. I did not, as mentioned over here, have a chance to go to lunch... But John Fund of the Wall Street Journal, who seems to be experiencing some of these same issues (as likely are many of us), kindly gave me an apple. (I looked to see, which commentator it was, who had infamously stolen a Bloggers' Row's member's laptop, at CPAC 2005... I remember the Blogosphere being on top of that, when it happened. I thought it would be funny, if that was John Fund. Indeed it was. Well, at least he asked, this time!! :-) I am off to attend one of the sessions... I was planning on going to the: SESSION H - RightOnline Old Media vs. New Media: How Ordinary Citizens Can Make Their Voices Heard Dan Gainor, Director, Business and Media Institute Maggie Thurber, Blogger & Radio Host John Fund, The Wall Street Journal Don Irvine, President, Accuracy in Media The blogger who is now next to me, in this corner of Bloggers' Row, said that this session, when she saw it in New Jersey, provides beginning technical information, and may not be best, for those who are more advanced. (That was the issue with the Leadership Institute class on blogging, at CPAC 2006... I had said that I hoped they would create a "Part II" of that class.) There was a "for advanced bloggers" session, sponsored by [ ], but it unfortunately took place yesterday morning. [Update: It's at least a bit refreshing to have found out that we weren't the only ones absent, at that point of the Summit!] Off to Salon K, for Session H... "Defending the American Dream" Summit, Day 2 We were running late somewhat, but were up and ready this morning, with time to get the free breakfast from the Holiday Inn Express, though I did not get a chance to drink even a sip of that Gourmet Roast coffee. Due to the fact that I haven't had my 'daily dose', and didn't have a chance to see if my official beverage is available, my live-blogging abilities are going to be hampered. (Also keep in mind that we had no sleep, the night before last, and we had to use planes, trains, and automobiles... and shuttles, ferries, etc... ;-) The Illinois presentation (Joe Calomino speaking) has just started... I clapped, from here on Bloggers' Row; Mark Johnson joined the applause a little. I also saw Alex Brunk, right before coming in here... I was glad yesterday to see that 'Save the GOP' is here; it was frustrating last evening, as it seemed that with that exception, all of the bloggers and blogs here were those which I had never even heard of.** Langley Perry - or perhaps it was [Dial 7 for...] mentioned to us that they had posted photos, from the AFP rally at the Capitol ("angry capitalists storm Capital Hill!!" - as we saw it was referred to, on the television news, which they showed clips of, at the great "Tribute to Ronald Reagan" Dinner last night). I see the wonderful Fran Eaton here as well... Will be checking Illinois Review shortly (still haven't had a chance to check the Washington Times, to see if I was mentioned, by that Business Section reporter. I am glad to have met Joey Dauben in person... I had IMed and e-mailed with him before; he was running for the U.S. Congress, as a traditionalist and constitutionalist conservative, in the mold of U.S. Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX). Publishing now... Will continue this entry. ** In addition to Save the GOP, I did of course know about TownHall.com... But as I mentioned to "Dial 7 for Celtic," I don't consider that a blog, as I have been using it since the 1990s, and it's a web publication I mentioned, at their table at CPAC 2008, that their links, to past columnists' articles, have changed more than once, and no redirect service has been set up, which can drive some of us crazy (linkrot really sucks!). World Net Daily, when they recently changed their url format, still supports the old links (then again, they didn't do redirect forwarding when they changed from those long "bluesky" urls, some years earlier). When I tried talking to them at CPAC 2008, they seemed clueless... That TownHall.com staffer, behind their table, didn't even know what "Soapbox" was. (These guys didn't seem to know that much either; then again, the main TownHall guy I spoke to was in charge of their magazine, rather than the website. I doubt that TownHall.com will correct the old column links, which have changed at least twice... But I mentioned that the Washington Times website has now done so... The old links now re-direct, to the same articles at their new site, which I'm thinking is WordPress-supported.) And Rachel Another of those whose blogs I recently came across, and is still in my Mozilla Firefox web browser's memory (though this one, it seems that I must have visited, in prior years - as it has been around since 2003), is Conservative Pulse. Austin Cassidy kindly set up at this same table, and we are here again... It's right in front of the big screen, with the live feed. Joey Dauben is to the right of me, and I have found that he is now the editor of the Ellis County Observer. [Saturday morning’s General Session at the Defending the American Dream Summit] [TomCox: Defending Free Markets, one rally at a time] [Update: Just found out about Jason Pye, who seems to be a libertarian conservative (or perhaps Old Right? - That would be great...) via our friends at PeachPundit - that NRA entry explains the statement Joey made about a possible proposed resolution in the Libertarian Party; I was just at the GOA site earlier today. And then I found that he has a current weblog, and seems to have done a good job, of live-blogging from the Summit. | Day 2 | Day 1 | I don't think I had so far come across any bloggers for Bob Barr. I was wondering the other day however, what impact he would have, on McCain's chances in the Peach State. Maybe Erick would know about that; there were also a lot of Georgia CRs and YRs, at the Republican National Convention.] I also see someone who has inserted himself onto the side table, which was where Save the GOP, along with another weblog that I hadn't heard of, which is authored by that " [Update (10/16/08): Along these lines, I noticed, when reviewing the commentary from other bloggers who were at this D.C. Summit (something that I still need to look more into), this entry, from the weblog of Doug Welch, from nearby St. Louis. As mentioned in my other commentary about these experiences, Mr. Welch was also at our UIS College Republicans experience the prior week, as was Gateway Pundit - especially since that Vice-Presidential Debate, Debate Watch Party, and Post-Debate Sarah Palin Rally (rock concert?) were in the great city of St. Louis. Doug points to Lisa Schiffren's (she must bet new - then again, for my situation, "new" is relative...) entry at NRO's Corner blog: Teenagers Acting Better Than Their Elders, and Doug's Stix 1972 blog entry also reprinted the entire, uplifting and reassuring, article. The kids do seem to be alright, after all!] John Fund is speaking now, after the great Grover Norquist (who all of the UIS CRs here got to meet yesterday, as I may have mentioned last evening). I am glad that he is addressing the "motor-voter" issue... I remember when that proposal came up, in the mid-1990s. Illinois was one of those states which challenged the constitutionality of that bill, as did California (back when our states had Republican leaders... Then again, Cully-fone-ya now again has a "Republican" governor - the CA AFP chapter criticized him, during their state report; I was glad to see that). My state of Illinois was therefore sued by Attorney General Janet Reno, for challenging this National Voter Registration Act (NVRA). Mr. Fund just mentioned the 2000 election. One of my fears, in the aftermath of that election, is that Republicans and conservatives would turn against recognizing the reality of voter fraud (since it was the Democrats who were so emphatically alleging it). One reassuring article I printed out was this one, by Michelle Malkin: Who cares about election fraud now?, November 10, 2000 [Note (10/13/08): In addition to the fact that they changed the past-column urls at least twice, another bad thing that happened, when they changed TownHall.com, is that those past columns were posted, without proper [without any, in fact] paragraph spacing. I see that that is still the case, even at this point. I really like the Jewish World Review (NewsandOpinion.com) conservative columnist archives, as they go back to the 1990s, and the urls still haven't changed, after all this time! (I like things that don't change...)] Check out: Michelle Malkin column archives There was likely vote fraud, which resulted in the great U.S. Congressman Bob Dornan (R-CA) losing his seat to the supposedly "conservative" Democrat Loretta Sanchez... The U.S. Congress held hearings, for quite awhile, on this controversy. The same is true for the Louisiana U.S. Senate race in 1996... Woody Jenkins would have made a great United States Senator (or a great U.S. Representative... too bad he lost again, earlier this year). I remember that the superb magazine Readers' Digest had an article expose on that Landrieu-Jenkins race... I think that I linked to it, in an entry here, about Mary Landrieu's 2002 election run-off, against Suzy Terrell. I was just remembering another Reader's Digest article, from years before [or perhaps this was a section of that same piece], which mentioned vote-fraud issues, with the "motor voter" law [National Voter Registration Act of 1993]. [Update (10/16/08): As mentioned above, the Landrieu-Jenkins race was brought up, in one of my entries on Pearl Harbor Day 2002. It doesn't include a link to the RD piece, but I remember it was on "brasscheck.com" (I think it was) - A search of that, in this blog's archives, also yields nothing. I was afraid that Brasscheck.com would no longer be up; I didn't know much about the site at that time, either. It seems that parts of the site do not appear to be reputable, but since the article in question was from Reader's Digest - a very reputable (and very excellent!! :-) magazine - here it is: They're Stealing the Election!, Trevor Armbrister, Readers' Digest, August 1997, p. 91 I will try to put it online myself, with annotations. (The journalist who authored that excellent expose passed away in 2006.) Here is the Wall Street Journal's perspective, also from 1997, shared by FreeRepublic (which has also become a problematic website... but that's for a future discussion). [Update update (12/24/08): I have now put that Readers' Digest article online, retaining some of the annotations from the brasscheck.com page, but also modifying it. At the bottom of that article, I included a couple of other articles, on the Landrieu-Jenkins 1996 U.S. Senate controversy in Louisiana. They're Stealing the Election! - Trevor Armbrister - Readers Digest, August 1997]Just found this: POLITICO MAFIOSO: How Democrats Steal Elections - Top 10 Methods of Liberal Vote Fraud, Tony GOPrano Also, I would strongly recommend the work of Jim Condit, Jr. and Vicki Collier (daughter of the late James Collier, who with his brother Kenneth Collier authored VoteScam), who are with Network America and Citizens for a Fair Vote Count. As I've mentioned before, they helped uncover computerized vote fraud against Pat Buchanan in the 1996 Arizona GOP primary - and possibly in the 1996 Iowa Caucus as well - which stopped him from beating Bob Dole for the Republican presidential nomination. Even Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and Governor Fyfe Symington, Jr. (R-AZ) believed that Pat had won the Arizona primary, and that Dole was done for.] "I'll be out there signing my book!" - John Fund (after the post-speech applause had begun :-) ... Erick Erickson has now begun speaking. I was walking fast, through the Metro stations today, as I mentioned to Brandon, I missed seeing his speech when we were at CPAC; I did not want to again. While I do not like some of what takes place at RedState.com (it has unfortunately started taking on some bad qualities... as happens to some sites), Erick-Woods Erickson and Mike Krempasky are great people. At the same table, at last night's Reagan Dinner banquet, which myself and the new CR Chairman went over to, so that I could get a photo with Dinesh D'Souza, and so Brandon could meet John Tsarpalas, I was surprised to see Erick Erikson also there... I would not have recognized him, if it wasn't for the name plate that some of the people here are wearing. (That's what can happen, for people who you know primarily through the Blogosphere.) Dr. Samuel Prescott... He was one of the three people who attended that "midnight ride" of Paul Revere. I remember that in 5th grade, it just referred to a "doctor" that accompanied them; I did name him however, in an AOL Trivia Forum (or perhaps it was Triviana) message board though. [Publishing now, but will need to do revisions and hyperlink annotation, above] John Stossel has begun speaking now; he is the closing speaker. I cited him the other day, in regards to Erin Brockovich. He is making some great hyperbolic comments about mass hysteria and junk science. "Crisis is the friend of the state?" I guess, but War is the health of the state. I remember earlier trying to figure out whether John Stossel opposed the Iraq war. I remember an excellent 20/20 piece, in which he attacked big government, as well as liberal interventionism abroad... Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX) was featured in that segment, in which they mentioned that people refer to him as "Dr. No." I remember thinking that it would be great to get a transcript of that, and that it might not be too difficult with Lexis-Nexis, as I remembered that Professor Tibor Machan was also one of those interviewed, so a search query sort may not be too difficult. It is very rare that a pro-liberty, anti-state advocate would be given a regular spot, on such a major show as 20/20 on ABC. As things are, once again, moving rapidly... This is where my recap from yesterday afternoon will go. Friday, October 10, 2008
 (And connected to the internet... finally!!) I mentioned, at the bottom of my last entry, that I would be attending the 2nd-annual "Defending the American Dream" Summit, in [suburban] Washington, D.C. defendingthedream.org We unfortunately were not able to send anyone last year (though I did go to D.C. shortly afterwards, for a Robert Taft Club event, and other purposes). While the speaker line-up this time around is not like last year's, this should turn out to be a great event. (I hope and pray!... Past D.C. experiences have been mixed!) I was wanting to quick-blog a note, before I was leaving from Springfield, but that wasn't done. The Illinois chapter of Americans for Prosperity thankfully funded the flight costs for 4 of us (via Southwest Airlines), and the new Chairman of the College Republicans at the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS CRs), Brandon Guiliano, was able to find a very-affordable hotel (the Holiday Inn Express), with a shuttle to the Metro line.  Unfortunately, the flights left from the St. Louis airport (STL) at 6 AM [then again, that could also be considered "fortunately," as Lambert International is MUCH closer than the Chicago-area airports... And while the 6 AM thing was problematic, I did let myself sleep in quite a bit, yesterday afternoon. And we actually all carpooled to the airport, and despite arriving kind of late, were able to park, get the bus to the East Terminal (for Southwest Airlines), wait in line, check in our bags, get our boarding passes, go through security, and get to our Gate, with time to spare! :-)Once getting to our hotel [in Springfield, Virginia], we had time to freshen up and rest a bit, and in this case, they do provide FREE wi-fi (I'm talking about at the Holiday Inn Express... see below, for more on wireless connectivity issues). I posted Facebook Status and Twitter updates, saying that I wanted to know what other bloggers were going to be covering this Summit. I tried calling Erick Erickson [who I saw is in the line-up of speakers... like he was at the last CPAC - but whose speech I unfortunately missed! :-( ], but his phone is continuously busy. The same was true at the Republican National Convention [see below]... When I finally found [what may have been] Bloggers' Row, there in St. Paul, I was told that I could not go any further, unless someone invited me; I just wanted to visit, and say hello to those there. The same thing happened the second evening I tried... I had seen several other bloggers earlier that day [Stephen Green of VodkaPundit, Mary Katherine Ham, who I was on Bloggers Row with, at CPAC 2006 [when they did let me on!], Roger L. Simon, and "Gay Patriot West"... But they were actually in the Pajamas Media section [actually, "Pajamas TV" (PJTV - which I just found out about)], and not on Bloggers' Row, so would not have been able to assist. [I should note however, that on the last day of the Convention, GayPatriotWest was kind enough to give me a "COA Operations" badge pass, but the closing of the Convention was going on, so I had to hang around the arena... Unfortunately, the Convention Floor was the one place the "COA Operations" credentials badge did not grant one access to.] I did get ahold of Marcus Epstein this morning, while we were taking the Metro from our hotel to the Crystal City Marriot, where the "Defending the American Dream" Summit is being held. When I asked about Leadership Institute CLP people, like Craig Burgers and Kevin DeAnna, he told me that both of them would be there, and that Craig would be speaking... I called Craig, and he did pick up, and I think that he will be speaking tomorrow, in the breakout session on campus activism, as part of a panel. I started to tell him that I think that the new leaders of the UIS College Republicans would attend that one, but I might attend the one on the new media, as at this point (of my life/career/whatever), that would be more relevant to me. However, we went under a tunnel, when I started to say that [something that also happened, when on the phone with Marcus, but the signal came back]. I saw Craig speak at the first-ever CLP Activism Conference however, something that I was just talking to Ben Wetmore about the other day, in connection to the Flickr/recapping needs mentioned below. We quickly grabbed a bit to eat at the Crystal City Food Court, and then went to meet the AFP-IL people... a bus was going to arrive soon, to take us to the U.S. Capitol, for a rally and media event. We spoke to Jim Raftis and Joe Calomino, and another one of the staffers (I think) mentioned the issue of live-blogging this event... I was glad that that was brought up, because I was hoping to do the same - If there was a "Bloggers' Row," I wanted to be a part of it this time. Mr. Calomino knew what was on my mind, and took me upstairs, to where the main registration was... I saw Grover Norquist there (again - see below). I quickly signed up to be on Bloggers' Row, and was given a "BLOGGER" credential pass... I was told that they have a room for us, next to the main room where the program will be held, on which we will have a live feed, and will also be able to interview prominent individuals, involved with this year's Summit. Though I had to wait a bit (I was afraid of missing the bus), I spoke to Mr. Grover Norquist... He remembered seeing me, but did not remember where. [It has now been several occasions, and he is one of the most influential leaders in the United States.] In the process, someone came by, with a cap that I was surprised (!!) to see... It was Palin/McCain - Hey, that was my idea!! ;-) Mr. Norquist put it on, and I mentioned that I was needing to catch that bus to the Capitol... he nodded in recognition, and I asked if he was going there as well; he said he was going to a separate rally - But this worked out well, because the other three in our UIS CR crew, were right by the escalator. I told him who our new UIS College Republicans Chairman was, and everyone got to meet. I also mentioned that I was just added to Bloggers' Row (after not being able to live-blog from the Republican National Convention, due to wireless issues), and after not being allowed onto Bloggers' Row at CPAC 2008 [due to more-stringent notification restrictions]. (I am mentioning this, because he asked about it. I am in the Bloggers' Row room right now.) Speaking of Bloggers' Row at the 2nd-Annual "Defending the American Dream" Summit, and the wi-fi problems from the Republican National Convention last month, I was glad that we were being given free wireless access, in this room. However, when trying to connect, I ran into problems... I was able to obtain the Conference code, for connecting. However, the iBahn screen then said: The maximum number of concurrent conference users are already connected. You may try again at a later time. If you continue to experience this error, please contact your conference planner for additional connections. This was getting frustrating. After getting this opportunity to finally be at the center of Bloggers' Row, in the key period of a presidential election year, it seemed that a wireless-less problem may derail us, once again. Thanks to Erik Telford of Americans for Prosperity (and its project, RightOnline), for having the Marriott boost the allowed bandwidth, to accommodate more of us. Now, if only I could find where the Red Bull is!! (Even if I had gotten a wink of sleep last night, or on the plane/shuttle/hotel room, etc.., it has been quite grueling today, considering that we went from: Chatham/Springfield to St. Louis Airport (STL) Intermediate Parking [by car] STL Intermediate Parking to STL East Terminal [by airport shuttle - we're fortunate it came on time, as walking there would have been about one mile] St. Louis to Baltimore Washington Airport (BMW) [by plane] BWI Airport to the Holiday Inn Express (in Springfield, VA) [by cab... a long and very-expensive taxi ride!] Holiday Inn Express to the Metro Station (Franconia-Springfield, Blue Line) [by hotel shuttle] Metro Station to Crystal City Metro stop Crystal City Metro stop to the Crystal City Marriott [by foot] Crystal City Marriot to U.S. Capitol [by bus] U.S. Capitol to Crystal City Marriot [by bus] [[for me]] OR U.S. Capitol to Metro Station to Franconia-Springfield Metro stop to Holiday Inn Express [after calling the hotel shuttle to come pick them up], to get ready for the Reagan Dinner, back to... [[for Brandon, Braxton, and Sam]]. That's a lot of traveling, in a very little time, with very little (or in my case, none) sleep. But I would actually say that things have gone rather well today. You will find out why, in my follow-up entry ;-) (And this is one that I really think I'll have to follow-up on, unlike before...) As for now, though, it seems like the Reception is well underway, and I'm going to go over, to sample some of the food, and perhaps conversation. But the conversations earlier today [with some great people, who I had communicated with online before, but only now met in person!! :-) ] have already made this trip worthwhile [well, that, and what will transpire tomorrow]. Going over to the ballrooms (or banquet halls, right now...) - Actually, was just talking to another person who has come in here; this Bloggers' Row room is becoming increasingly populated. He is the Editor-in-Chief of a conservative student publication in Oregon. |
