musing minds

Let's Not Forget About Roy

The Jawa Report has started a multi-part series about Roy Hallums, a civilian contractor taken hostage in Iraq, as well as others who are currently being held. It’s good that we celebrate the accomplishments in Iraq, but we must not forget about those whose only “crime” was to go to Iraq to help rebuild the country.

It seems that the MSM only becomes interested in these stories when the terrorists invite them to be interested for propaganda purposes. Check out the series here.

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South Park Conservatives – On O'Reilly

Brian Anderson, author of South Park Conservatives, was on the O’Reilly Factor last night in the impact segment. Here follows a transcript of that conversation:

Bill O’Reilly: Thanks for staying with us, I’m Bill O’Reilly. In the impact segment tonight: the media war between conservatives and liberals is as intense as ever and today, the liberal Los Angeles Times ran an op-ed piece and said the liberal radio network Air America is failing. Since the print media has been very generous to Air America, that was unusual. The author of the op-ed is Brian Anderson who also has written a new book called South Park Conservatives: The Revolt against Liberal Media Bias. Wow. Mr. Anderson joins us now. See I’m in the middle of this war here you know and it’s vicious.

Brian Anderson: Sure.

O’Reilly: First of all let’s just walk through the whole thing. What’s a South Park Conservative?

Anderson: Right. Well I use that phrase very loosely to refer to a new kind of anti-liberalism that we’re seeing in the culture. We’re seeing it in comedy, on Comedy Central, particularly with the show South Park, which just goes after the left viciously. It goes after the right too, but it’s something very new to see a program that makes fun of liberals. And I see a lot on college campuses. Both of these things I say in the book are growing out of a pretty big shift in our mass communications. Talk radio, cable news, and the blogosphere all of which are allowing views that have long been excluded from public debate to make their way right into that debate. Basically right of center views.
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Habemus Papum

New Pope! Joseph Ratzinger – Benedict XVI

White Smoke, Bells of St. Peters. Lots of cheering people.

More when known.

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In the Mail (Friday)

On Friday we received copies of Brian Anderson’s South Park Conservatives: The Revolt against Liberal Media Bias. Review to follow (when I get a little time away from !!algebra!!, which is my current college course with Algebra 2 to follow – lots of work – not enough time!).

On another (similar) note, Brian Anderson was on Bill O’Reilly tonight and I have TiVo’d it and I will have a transcript sometime tomorrow (I have a little time for a transcript, not enough to read and write a review just yet).

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Top Ten Blog Lists

Lorie Byrd at PoliPundit links to Right Wing News’ favorite blogs list. Lorie provides her list as well, which includes…..ahem…….Musing Minds (update: in the “expanded list” on Poli) thanks Lorie, and thanks to those in the comments section that included us, it’s really flattering. Go check it out, there may be one or two there that you haven’t visited before.

When I have a bit more time I’ll provide a list of my own (took the day off to spend with the family, we all went to see my wife’s/baby’s ultrasound- amazing experience which I’ll post about later…..off to spend the next four hours building the LEGO Star Wars Episode III Final Battle Scene).

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Kerry the Untouchable

I sure am glad that Lorie Byrd and I share many of the same political views. For a “girly girl” she can dish out quite the nasty smack down. As for Kerry proponents taking the “you weren’t there man” approach, OK, I’ll play that game.

I wasn’t there, but there sure are a lot of vets that were there who don’t think too highly of Kerry. Instead of deferring to Kerry’s experience, try putting yourself in their shoes. Imagine losing a leg, or an arm or suffering some other horrible injury. You come home and go about your life without fanfare because serving was your duty, and because you realize that no matter how much you suffered, someone else suffered more, or never came home at all. Then you turn on your T.V. and see some politician touting his own service as if he alone fought the enemy, flouting his relatively minor injuries as if his were somehow more worthy or deserving of attention.

Yeah, I’ll defer to those who served.

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The "Real" Story of Democratization

At what point does biased reporting start to look like cheap propaganda? The Washington Post is delving into the “real” reasons behind the democratic movement in the middle east. Looks can be deceiving you know. Sure the most powerful nation mankind has ever known overthrew a brutal dictatorship and set up a democracy in the region. Sure the leader of this great country has thrown down the gauntlet and demanded freedom for the rest of the region and announced that it will stand with those that want freedom. Sure it looks like these actions may have caused the democratic movement to spread. But the Post has the real story. Here’s just a snippet:

But even in Lebanon, where much of the population generally looks to the West, the U.S. agenda in the region is troubling. Kassir, for example, said he believes “democracy is spreading in the region not because of George Bush but despite him.” He cites the Palestinian uprising as a greater inspiration than the U.S. project in Iraq, saying that “the Palestinians showed us the importance of taking matters into our own hands.”

Ah, the secret agenda. Looks can be deceiving comrade.
(Hat tip Powerline)

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Using Terri Schiavo

Recall the media-generated firestorm about the GOP utilizing Schiavo for crass political gain. It was discussed on every talk show, shown on every newscast, printed in all the major papers. Recall that it arose over a memo written by one aide (who later resigned in disgrace), yet the story line was “GOP Talking Points” impliedly created and discussed at the highest Republican levels.

As Ankle Biting Pundits reports, we now actually have the highest authority in a party, talking precisely about utilizing Schiavo for political gain. There are two big differences to the original story, but they’re related, oh are they related:

1) It is the head of the Democrats, Howard Dean, who has come out and said he’s going to use Terri Schiavo and,

2) There is virtual media silence about it.

The story is the same as the original, except the proof is stronger, and it’s directly attributable to the top of the party. But it’s the wrong party, so the story isn’t covered. You see folks, the story isn’t the exploitation of Terri Schiavo, the story is Republican exploitation of Terri Schiavo. Any other exploitation just isn’t newsworthy.

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Watch for Exploding Heads

Last week I predicted that the GOP has enough votes to end the filibuster. (BTW can we just call it “ending the filibuster” rather than the “Nuclear Option”- how we ever bought into such a politically loaded and misleading term I’ll never know.) Actually, it wasn’t as much a prediction as it was interpreting cues from Senator Schumer (D).

Robert Novak writes today that the GOP has 52 votes in the bag. It may be getting close to go-time. Aside from all of the political ramifications that will result, I’m going to enjoy watching the collective head explosion of the moonbat left as they watch the GOP exercise the full power of their democratically elected majority position. (Hey for a minute there I kinda sounded like the Emperor describing to Luke the power of the “fully operational battle station” in Return of the Jedi. When in Rome…….cue the imperial theme music.)

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Mapes the Victim

Poor Mary Mapes, she’s such a victim. Like a spoiled young child who can’t grasp her first taste of accountability at kindergarten, it just must be that nasty teacher’s fault. All she did was stick Billy in the neck with a pencil and she got sent to the principal’s office – that nasty, nasty teacher.

Sheltered, coddled, oblivious to personal responsibility all she knows is the pain that she feels at the hands of those holding her responsible. The effect her actions may have had on others probably doesn’t even enter her mind.

Related: The Anchoress has updated her original excerpt post. (Referenced at Jawa Report linked to above).

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mm-5