Full Metal Jacket Reach Around: Rainy Weekend Edition

Looks like we're in for a rainy weekend and that's not a bad thing.  I was going to do yard work today but this gives me an excuse not to.  The down side of that is that I have plenty to do inside, including grading a huge stack of papers.  With three weeks left of school, I have my work cut out for me.  The only other major event on my schedule this weekend is that we're going to see Atlas Shrugged tomorrow at The Robinson Film Center.  I'm looking forward to that!

Now to the links:

Several folks linked my story on the Burr's fight against their Homeowners Association about the sign of support for their son who is fighting in Afghanistan.  I want to thank them for helping spread the word about this outrage:
Pecan Corner, Doug Ross, My Bossier, A Cop's Watch, RightWire, Right Nation, Legal Insurrection who made us Blog of the Day, and The Dead Pelican who kept the post linked for over a day.  If I've overlooked anyone, please let me know so I can add you to the list.  I'm staying in contact with the Burrs and will update the story as it develops.  I think it would be great if all their neighbors put up signs of support for Corey as well and let the HOA be damned! 

Elsewhere around the blogosphere...


The Daley Gator supports Herman Cain in 2012.

Legal Insurrection posts on the King & Spalding story and has a DOMA map of interest.

PoliticalJunkieMom has a roundup of reaction to Obama's decision to move Leon Panetta to DOD.

Pirate's Cove has reaction to the Weekly Address blaming oil companies for high gas prices.

Stacy McCain posted on the Crazy Hats at the Royal Wedding and found what appears to be the inspiration for what I am now calling Beatrice's Dr. Seuss hat.

Doug Ross spreads the word on a wonderful sticky note campaign.  (Note to self:  Buy Post-its.)

The Lonely Conservative blogs about a sting on an Amish farm selling unpasteurized milk. 

Paco reports on Obama's Schizophrenic Energy policy.

If you haven't had enough of the royal wedding yet, Cubachi has video highlights.

The Camp of the Saints has photos of the lovely Pippa Middleton.

Sister Toldjah reports on the Lara Logan assault.

That's going to have to be it for now.  I've got to hit the showers and get the day moving.  I have some errands to run before the rain arrives.  I want to be on the couch with a good book when the rain hits!  Have a safe weekend!

Atlas Shrugged at Robinson Film Center

Just bought my tickets to see Atlas Shrugged!  Sunday!  Robinson Film Center!

Is That a Hat?

Nobody's ever going to accuse me of being a fashion icon unless blue jeans, t-shirts and Nikes become haute couture.  But this is just ridiculous.

She's probably a cute girl without that ... thing on her head.

Homeowners Association Demands Removal of Sign of Support for Marine (UPDATED)

Earlier this week local news station KTBS broadcast the story of Tim and Jodi Burr who have a son currently engaged in Afghanistan in Operation Enduring Freedom.  The Burrs are currently engaged in a battle with their Homeowner's Association at The Gardens of Southgate about a banner of support on display in their front yard.

The covenant with the HOA forbids signage from residents.

The Burrs position is that they are being unfairly discriminated against.  In their neighborhood are signs of all kinds on display:  signs of support for various college athletic teams, birth announcement signs, alarm system signs, welcome flags, decorative flags, and holiday signs.  The Burrs, in fact, have had other signs on display in the past without incident:

For the each 5 years we have lived here we have had (as many others have had) a "sign in view of the public" in our yard. Specifically we have had "Welcome Y'all" , "The Burr's established 1990", and "Home of a Parkway Panther." signs. To our knowledge, none of these have been considered "infractions", as they have never been addressed until now that we have hung our banner for our Marine Corps son.  

So what's the difference?  Mrs. Burr writes:

We received a letter of request of removal from the HOA back in February. At this time, we respectfully sent a letter of response asking for a review of our covenants and to meet with the board to discuss the matter. Our letter was not received. We then mailed a certified copy of the letter to ensure it's delivery and placed a phone call to the HOA board to inform them that it had been sent. We were told by the HOA President that she would have the post office box checked the following day. Our certified letter was returned "unclaimed" two weeks later. In the mean time, the HOA board sent an Active Duty Air Force Officer to our home uninvited to make a personal visit to us to talk about the matter. During our conversation, this gentleman asked us what we would think if someone wanted to hang an anti-war sign in our neighborhood. Prior to his visit, we tried hard not to think the issue was the sign's content. However, after his question, unfortunately, it made it difficult to continue to think that way.

What in the world is this country coming to?  Of course a Homeowner's Association has the right to write their own rules and one agrees to those rules when they move in.  In the Burr's case, they did not receive a copy of those rules until after closing on their home, however, it probably wouldn't have made any difference. Who would ever imagine that anyone could object to a sign of support for one of our soldiers?

Does the Air Force officer who visited them intend to insinuate that someone in the neighborhood was offended by their sign?  In what capacity was this visit, anyway?

Mrs. Burr says she and her husband have received nothing but support from their neighbors and she does not want to cast her neighborhood in a negative light because of this controversy.  Their only conflict seems to be with the HOA.

An odd twist to the story is that the president of the HOA is T. K. Mastny, the president of the Republican Women of Bossier.  The RWB is very active in its support of our military.  My question is why couldn't this somehow have been resolved privately and peaceably?  It sounds like the  Burrs have tried - they requested a meeting with the board and were ignored. 

Sharon McCullar is a Vietnam veteran and has been a speaker at several of our Tea Party gatherings.  She left a post on the KTBS website that sums up the situation perfectly:

Yet again, America gets a glimpse of the incremental erosion of freedom! As a veteran of the Vietnam Era myself, and as a mother of two Marines who have already bled for this country, I am appauled that we have come to this point in our history. There is no greater sacrifice than military service. Any attempt to diminish it or those who serve to keep our country free is simply inexcusable. Both of my sons have faced death, lost friends to sniper bullets, and watched as their fellow brothers lay bleeding and limbless after IED explosions. So many have given all so that we could live, worship freely, and pursue the great American  dream. How dare any one person, neighborhood association, or lawmaker take away our right to honor these amazing heroes. I weep for my country because I hardly recognize her anymore. May God continue to keep his hands on my beloved homeland.

At this point, the Burrs are continuing to fight for their right to display their banner of support for their son Corey.  They are anticipating expensive legal fees in the process.  What they really want is an explanation as to why some signs are allowed and others are not. What, exactly, is it about their sign that singles them out?


If you want to weigh with verbal support, you can email the Homeowners Association through their attorney Geoff Westmoreland or you can leave a comment for the Burrs here.


Update:  Jodi Burr informs me that as a result of the KTBS story they received two offers of pro-bono representation from local attorneys.  As of now, their attorney has filed a TRO to keep things status quo until the case can be heard by the court. 


She continues to insist that they are not out to battle the HOA just for a battle; they attempted to contact the HOA in February when this issue first came up in an attempt to clarify the language of the covenant, however the HOA did not respond to their first letter or their certified follow-up letter.  All they really wanted from the outset was for the rules to be enforced consistently.  As it is now, it only appears that the Burrs are being singled out.


Regardless of the covenant with the HOA, it seems to me that this is a First Amendment issue. Would an agreement with the HOA override the First Amendment?  


Update 2:  Linked at Right Nation; thank you!  
Linked at The Evil Conservative - thanks!
Linked at My Bossier - thanks, Jim! 
Thanks to The Dead Pelican for the link. 
Thanks to Legal Insurrection for Blog of the Day status.

Oil Production Down, Oil Consumption Up

Obama's quest to end dependence on foreign oil is going in the wrong direction.  Via Beltway Confidential:

Here are the facts: According to projections made by the Energy Information Administration in April 2010, the Gulf of Mexico should have produced 1.84 million barrels of oil a day in the fourth quarter of 2010. Instead, according to the most recent EIA estimate, due to the Obama permitorium, the Gulf only produced 1.59 million barrels. That is 250,000 barrels a day in lost production. Overall, since Obama instituted his drilling moratorium, oil production from the Gulf is down more than 10%.

But while Gulf oil production is down from pre-moratorium estimate, total oil consumption is actually higher than EIA predicted last year. Total crude oil input to refineries is up from an estimated 13.85 million barrels a day to an actual 14.25 million barrels. But if domestic production is down and consumption is up, where is the extra oil coming from?

Foreign oil.

This administration needs to quit buying oil from people who hate us and open drilling in the Gulf (and elsewhere).  Now, where have I heard that before?

Would You Be Friends With This Man?

In his column yesterday, Jay Nordlinger noted Obama's habitual "peevishness" which got me wondering, why in the world, then, do Obama's popularity numbers remain so high?  I'm always hearing in the media that, well, Obama is polling low on certain issues, "but his popularity remains high!"  Why is that?  I realize it sounds partisan, but honestly, what's to like about this man?

He is indeed peevish and snippy.  Add partisan to that.  Nordlinger points to Obama's recent interview with Brad Watson in which Obama, now famously, said "Let me finish my answers next time we do an interview, all right?" (The story is here.)

When Paul Ryan put forth his budget proposal, Obama made one of the most partisan and divisive speeches in recent memory in response.   Mark Steyn:

There’s something sad about a man so carelessly revealing himself as entirely inadequate to the moment. Government spending is an existential threat to the United States. Whether or not anyone at the White House knows this, the viziers decided to shove the sultan out on stage with a pitifully unserious speech retreating to all his lamest tropes — the usual whiny, petty, and unpresidential partisan snippiness, and the ponderous demolition of straw men even he barely bothered to pretend he believed in:

So when it comes to "popularity" numbers, what is that, exactly?  Personal popularity as opposed to policy popularity, I guess?  How do we measure one's popularity?  When you think about people you actually know, what makes you like them?  Don't we look at that person's character?  His personality and personal demeanor?

Is Obama someone you would be friends with in the real world?

Not me.  He's decietful, peevish, boorish (his speeches on an iPod for the Queen?  C'mon!), and arrogant.

I don't like for my friends to lie.  Obama lies.  He purposely misrepresents issues for personal profit and my mama always taught me that was lying.  Example?  One (of many) that comes to mind is when he said over and over and over and over, "If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor!"  A lie.  And he knew it.  You might still have your doctor right now, but don't count on it for long.

Another example?  When he said he never heard Reverend Wright spew his hate filled rhetoric in the twenty years he attended Trinity United Church of Christ, either in church or in personal conversations.  I'm sorry, but I just don't believe that.

I don't like my friends to fail to assume responsibility for their actions.  Obama has blamed George W. Bush for everything from the economy to the fact that the world hates us because of GITMO.  Even the BP oil spill was Bush's fault.  At this point, Obama totally owns the economy and the economic mess we're in.  His unrestrained spending and massive government and entitlement spending have done little to ease what he says is Bush's fault.  Own it.

Another trait I find unattractive in my friends is, as Nordlinger suggests, peevishness, or snippy, childish, thin-skinned responses.  Who can forget the drove it into a ditch metaphor:

“After they drove the car into the ditch, made it as difficult as possible for us to pull it back, now they want to keys back. No!  You can’t drive. We don’t want to have to go back into the ditch. We just got the car out.”

Or the "get a mop" one:

“I don’t mind cleaning up the mess that some other folks made, that’s what I signed up to do," Obama said. “But while I’m there mopping the floor I don’t want someone saying ‘You’re not mopping fast enough or you’re not holding the mop the right way.’ Grab a mop! Why don’t you help clean up?”

Or even when he told critics to quit talking and get out of the way:

"We've got some work to do. I don't mind, by the way, being responsible. I expect to be held responsible for these issues because I'm the president," Obama said. "But I don't want the folks that created the mess -- I don't want the folks who created the mess to do a lot of talking. I want them just to get out of the way so we can clean up the mess."

Should I go on?   I think not.

So why has this deceiving, petty, thin-skinned guy still got high popularity ratings as we hear from the media?  Or does he?

If you look at this poll from Gallup, Obama's personal popularity is in a freefall.  He's plummeted from an all time favorability high of 79 (in January '09) to a low equivalent of his standing in the fall of '07 at 52%. His unfavorability rating is at an all time high of 41%.

Polls on his job approval rating (rather than personal popularity) are equally low and falling.

So why does the media keep insisting he's so popular?  That's a rhetorical question.  You don't have to answer that one.

Of course, things can change on a dime in this 24/7 connected news cycle.  All it takes is one thing to turn it all around and the 2012 election is a long time away.  But, if Obama continues to campaign with his petty peevishness, I have to agree with Mr. Nordlinger that this quality makes him infinitely more beatable than the galvanizing uniter who campaigned for 2008.

Your "Silver Bullet " is a Fountain Pen

Mark Tapscott shares a chart which shows how a "silver bullet" can work against oil prices.  What is it?  A fountain pen:

Notice what happened on July 14, 2008? Oil prices suddenly plummeted from their historic high of $145 a barrel. Why?Because that was the day President George W. Bush signed an executive order lifting the moratorium on off-shore drilling in the eastern half of the Gulf of Mexico and off the U.S. Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Overnight, the price per barrel of oil plunged, and that plunge was reflected at the pump soon thereafter. 

In other words, Obama could with the stroke of a pen sign an executive order telling his appointees at EPA, the Department of Interior and the Department of Energy to stop throwing up obstacles to increased U.S. oil and natural gas production and instead work with the energy industry on a crash program to "drill here, drill now."

Read the rest and see the chart here.

Conserving Lizards or Oil?

Via Red State:

Specifically, the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard. That’s the latest more-important-than-people critter being used to lock-up resources in the name of planet Earth. The drilling moratorium didn’t cause enough pain, so onto the Endangered Species Act - known at the Sierra Club as “Ol’ Reliable” - to make certain Texas has lizard-filled poverty.

Lizard or livelihood? That’s what’s at stake. And the pro-poverty Earth Firsters stratifying government can’t have both. If it determines that the lizard is indeed endangered, the Fish and Wildlife Service will shut down the most productive oil counties in Texas, ban roads, and slow farm activity, as it “studies the ecosystem” for up to five years.

Because the moratorium wasn't bad enough. 


The Reptile Channel explains:

According to USFWS, the dunes sagebrush lizard s in danger of extinction across its entire range due to ongoing significant threats of habitat loss and fragmentation. These threats include oil and gas activities, as well as herbicide treatments. The removal of shinnery oak and creation of roads and pads, pipelines, and power lines for oil and gas development is a measurable factor impacting the dunes sagebrush lizard, according to USFWS.

And you just thought gas prices were high.

"People are Cranky!"

Yesterday afternoon I was in the grocery store picking up a few little things on my mom's shopping list.  Some milk, bread, hair spray, nothing much.  I got to the checkout line and was behind a couple of guys buying a loaf of bread and two sodas.  They were paying in pennies, dimes and nickels.  One lane over a customer had the store's weekly ad in her hand and was arguing with the cashier about the cost of an item.  When I finally moved up to check out I visited with the cashier as she scanned my items - she's been there about thirty years and I always go through her line when I can.

"People are tired," she said sadly.  "Cranky.  Prices keep getting higher and higher everywhere they go and they're tired."

She's right about that.  I see it.  People are definitely cranky.  Steve and I were driving somewhere last week, stopped at a red light, and we were about three cars back.  When the light turned green the guy in the lane next to us started screaming, "Go!!!  It's not going to stay green for ... ever! "  Yeah, so lots of us have temper tantrums when confronted with ignorant drivers (and there are plenty of them), but I think it's true that people are testy. 

Jeffrey Lord at American Spectator hits on the issue of rising prices in his column this morning to explain why Obama is a "political goner" in 2012:

You can get away with a lot of things as president and blame them on other people. For Obama its George Bush or now the oil companies or also now those evil corporations or… well… yada yada yada. But when average Americans begin to understand that Obamanomics is directly responsible for a 28 cent rise in the price of milk (with over a year and a half to go to the 2012 elections), there is going to be political hell to pay. And the buck, so to speak, stops, as it always does, with the president of the United States.

It's all related to the cost of gas, of energy.   Gas prices during Obama's tenure has nearly doubled and that's reflected everywhere you go.  He can't blame this one on Bush.  This is when the rubber meets the road; this is when the Average American starts paying attention:

Paying an increase of 28 cents for a gallon of milk inside of less than four months? This is the language understood by average Americans too busy with daily life to pay much in the way of attention to the economists, journalists, and politicians.

And they' re getting cranky about it.  They're going to look for someone to blame and someone to answer for this.  It's going to get worse as summer approaches and the summer driving season kicks in.  Gas prices always rise then.  And then comes hurricane season.  Up, up, up.  


And Obama's answer?  There's no "silver bullet" to bring down gas prices.  Does that satisfy you?  


It doesn't me, either.

Updating

I'm updating my blogroll.  If you haven't posted in the past four months or so, out you go.  If you want me to keep you on, drop me a line or comment!  If you aren't on because I've overlooked you and you visit here, leave a comment.

Update:  I can't bring myself to take snaggletoothie off my blogroll.  His posts will stand.

Electric Car Owners Might Have to Pay Their "Fair Share" to Maintain Roads

Apparently one good thing about my 8-cylinder Crown Vic is that I'm paying my fair share to maintain the roads.  You slackers with your mini-Coopers and your Volts need to step up and pay up:

After years of urging residents to buy fuel-efficient cars and giving them tax breaks to do it, Washington state lawmakers are considering a measure to charge them a $100 annual fee -- what would be the nation's first electric car fee. 

And it's not just Washington:

In Oregon, lawmakers are considering a bill to charge drivers of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles based on the number of miles they drive. In Mississippi, lawmakers briefly considered a similar plan. In Texas, significant opposition scuttled an electric vehicle fee. 

Eventually this will get through the various state legislatures and so go the law of the land, no doubt.  

If you don't like the one time user fee, you could live in California where one group would rely on honest drivers to report their own use:

Plug In America, a California-based electric car advocacy group, has come out against the proposed flat fee and has urged the state to consider one based on odometer readings that owners would self-report each year. 

That'll work.  Sure.  

I think I'll keep my Crown Vic and my unleaded.

Barbour Says No

Via Memeorandum, word from Haley Barbour:

I will not be a candidate for president next year. This has been a difficult, personal decision, and I am very grateful to my family for their total support of my going forward, had that been what I decided.

Read the rest.

I can't say this is good news. I don't think he'd have been elected in the end, but it would have given voters a choice.

As if Louisiana Politics Wasn't Controversial Enough...

As if this session of the Louisiana legislature was not already controversial enough, there will also be Rep. John LaBruzzo's bill to consider which "would ban all abortions in the state and subject the doctor who performs one to prosecution on charges of feticide."

HB 587 would directly challenge Roe v. Wade and take the abortion debate right to the states which is where LaBruzzo thinks it should be:

Asked how his bill squares with the federal court rulings, LaBruzzo said: "I beleive it would be in direct conflict with them ... and immediately go to court. That is the goal of the individuals who asked me to put this bill in."

LaBruzzo said each state should be allowed to decide how it regulates -- or prohibits -- abortion, not the U.S. Supreme Court or various federal court rulings.

Make of it what you will, but remember, LaBruzzo is also the guy who wanted to pay welfare moms $1000 to get their Fallopian tubes tied.

Governor Bobby Jindal, already under fire for vowing to sign the proposed "birther bill" should it pass, has not taken a position on LaBruzzo's abortion bill.  Jindal has described himself as pro-life and has voted against funding for stem-cell research.

Chad Rogers suggests that this bill is purely symbolic and points out that there is already a statewide abortion ban in place, even though abortions in Louisiana continue to take place.  Governor Blanco signed a similar bill in 2006.  Rogers points out that we have very serious debt and budget issues to resolve without taking legislative time to debate bills that mimic laws already in place.  A valid point.


Louisiana politics is never dull and this session promises to me more controversial than most. 

H/T:  The Dead Pelican

Herman Cain: "Drill Here, Drill Now!"

Herman Cain responds to Obama's DOJ witch hunt on vicious oil speculators (emphasis mine):

With all due respect, Mr. President, there is something you could do to ease the pain at the pump. Namely, declare and implement a “drill here drill now” strategy. And remove the ridiculous restrictions on shale oil deposits available out west.

The very speculators you are blaming for the run-up in gas prices would quickly retreat if they thought you were serious about an energy independence plan to maximize all of our existing natural resources. The problem is supply and demand, and expectations about the changes in those dynamics. That’s what drives gasoline prices at the pump.

That's just the problem, however:  Obama isn't serious about energy independence as long as it pertains to oil.  He's only interested in energy independence when it concerns windmills and solar panels.

Until that so-called "green energy" solution materializes, we are a nation dependent on oil, on petroleum products, on gas...coal! 

As to the moratorium in the Gulf, Cain says:

The Obama Administration has used the Gulf oil disaster of a year ago to limit oil exploration in the Gulf and elsewhere. As a result, the oil production in the Gulf is down 13 percent versus a year ago. That also means that there are a corresponding number of people out of work, who are denied productive and well-paying jobs.

These people don't want BP handouts - they want to work.  We're not just talking about rig workers but all of the peripheral industry and small business that supports that.  

Drill here, drill now!

Take Your Time...

No rush, says the Supreme Court:

The Supreme Court rejected a call Monday from Virginia's attorney general to depart from its usual practice and put review of the health care law on a fast track. Instead, judicial review of President Barack Obama's signature legislation will continue in federal appeals courts.

The justices turned down a request by Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a leading opponent of the law, to resolve questions about its constitutionality quickly. The Obama administration opposed Cuccinelli's plea.
Only rarely, in wartime or a constitutional crisis, does the court step into a legal fight before the issues are aired in appellate courts. Hearings already are scheduled in May and June in three appeals courts.

The process grinds on.   See Professor Jacobson for the proper perspective.

It's Another WikiLeaks Drop Day

It's another WikiLeaks day and this time it concerns GITMO.  How much concern should this generate?  It depends on your perspective.  From Hot Air:

Mainly, these revelations don’t reveal much at all about AQ plots in the past, nor their operations today.  The most recent data in either report is years old.  They are both interesting for purposes of background information, but neither tells much of a story on its own or together that we didn’t already know.

And over at The New Yorker where bleeding heart Amy Davidson laments the use of "torture":

One sees how Guantánamo became a whisper factory: after years of interrogation, the subject many prisoners had left to talk about was other prisoners. Some were doing so after being tortured. The Times notes that Mohammed al-Qahtani was “was leashed like a dog, sexually humiliated and forced to urinate on himself” before implicating himself and sixteen other prisoners, and that those claims appear in the others’ files “without any caveat.”

If this is "torture" then I'd suggest Davidson expand her reading list to include Surviving Hell by Leo Thorsness, or Devil at My Heels by Louis Zamperini. 

Michael Tomasky at the UK Guardian:

An honest inquiry into these errors that tried to assess what actually happened without pinning blame would be instructive. But what we're actually likely to get in the US, if we get anything at all, is a set of hearings in the House of Representatives under Republicans that's going to ignore Bush-era problems and focus completely on Obama-era ones. 

The "errors" he refers to are repatriation and recidivism, specifically the Saudi and Yemini programs.

Michelle Malkin is not impressed with the release and points to the coordinated suicide attempts as discussed in the New York Times piece:

Gitmo sympathizers continue to characterize the suicides/suicide attempts as acts of desperation by poor, innocent potato farmers and bystanders. But these were clear acts of asymmetric warfare by cunning, cold-blooded jihadists versed in exploitation of Western sensibilities.

Lawyers, Guns and Money thinks this leak might not be all bad:

My only other reaction for now is that while the past four major WL releases were carefully framed to make US foreign policy decisions in the war on terror look bad, this new release may well have – or have been calculated to have – the opposite effect. While some news sources are stressing that “children and senile old men are among the detainees” other are almost making Obama look too soft on Guantanamo detainees (breaking news from the leak includes detainees’ threats against interrogators and claims of a nuclear holocaust if bin Laden is captured). 

The Memeorandum aggregation is growing and is worth surfing through.  The value of the dump depends on your perspective.  

Meanwhile, Private Bradley Manning has been moved to a more "humane" prison than his former digs at the Quantico brig.

(Cross posted at Potluck)

By Signing the Birther Bill, Jindal Would be Disrespecting Obama, or Something...

Two Louisiana lawmakers are generating some controversy and gaining some national attention with their "birther bill" filed for the upcoming legislative session and the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate sees the whole thing as a matter of disrespect to Obama.

The bill, sponsored by Louisiana Representative Alan Seabaugh and state Senator A. G. Crowe, would require that all candidates in primary and general elections for President, Vice President, the House, and Senate submit an affidavit that includes:

"An original or certified copy of the candidate's birth certificate that includes the date and place of birth, the names of the hospital and attending physician, and signatures of the witnesses in attendance."

A commenter at the Bayou Buzz blog said:

This is a horribly conceived bill. It was designed to flush out Obama for only providing an "abstract" birth certificate form, but would not only seem to flush out people born in places that don't issue "photostatic" long form birth certificates, but anyone born in Louisiana. If this bill passes and isn't struck down, Jindal (born in Louisiana) might not be able to get his name on the ballot in Louisiana if he runs for Congress or President/Vice President. How's that for irony?

Jindal, for his part, has said he would sign the bill if it reaches his desk.

The Baton Rouge Morning Advocate has posted a scathing editorial against HB 561:

Requiring a presidential candidate to present his birth certificate in Louisiana is “just following the Constitution.”  This is the dishonest statement of legislators pushing a “birther” bill in the Legislature, and Gov. Bobby Jindal, who says he would sign such a bill if it passes.

Regardless of how one feels on the "birther" issue, I'm not sure why showing proof of citizenship is such a bad thing.  The editorial goes on...

The assertion that President Barack Obama was not born in the United States is false. But calling for “enforcement” of the Constitution in this context is a cover for shady and slippery politics by Jindal and others.

In what "context"? In the context of a legislative session?  In the context of citizenship?

Our Constitution is the law of the land; why is "enforcement" of it now a bad thing?  The Advocate's position is that Jindal and Louisiana republicans are just supporting this bill out of pure politics rather than any concern over constitutional intent which is quite an assumption to make without more evidence.  The Advocate says Jindal's intent to sign the bill, should it pass, is "motivated by politics rather than constitutional law," which is simply ridiculous. Support of the citizenship standard is about nothing if not constitutional law.

From the Advocate's point of view, Jindal's failure to disavow the entire process shows something like a lack of respect for Obama, or something:

Our system does not depend merely on laws, even the Constitution. It depends on an atmosphere of mutual respect, for the office if not the person or the views. By lending his signature to a birther bill, Jindal would put his politics above his personal obligation to make America’s political system work. Above the respect he ought to show to the president’s person, even if he disagrees with the president’s actions.

So, by signing this "birther bill," Jindal is disrespecting Obama.  Which is so much more egregious than violating the Constitution.  Jindal should vow to veto the bill because he respects Obama so much.  Riiiight.

The comments following the editorial are amusing in their own right.  The first one cites racism, naturally.


Regardless of one's position on the birther issue, it seems the Advocate misses the mark and does, in fact, reduce the whole issue down to just politics rather than constitutional intent.  The Louisiana legislature convenes tomorrow and this will absolutely be one issue to watch.

Full Metal Jacket Reach Around: The Easter 2011 Edition

Amazingly, my internet spontaneously started working yesterday with no Comcast repair person in sight.  It's amazing the things you can get done when you aren't on the computer all day!  I did some massive cleaning and rearranging of things yesterday that I've been putting off for months.  Of course, I'm afraid to look at my SiteMeter, so I just won't.  Instead, I'm going to file a late FMJRA and get caught up on what I've been missing.

Everyone around here is sleeping off Easter dinner, including the dogs, and I've told myself I can't have any of my famous Pineapple Upside Down Cake until I get my post done, so I better get to it!

Donald Douglas muses on The End of Family Practice.  Under Obamacare it will only get worse.

Legal Insurrection points out that Sarah Palin isn't quite as daft as some believe her to be.

Ed Driscoll pays homage to Peeps!

The Other McCain has some thoughts on monetizing the debt and the return to the days of Jimmy Carter.

Phineas at Sister Toldjah has a great post on gas prices and the failure of Democrats to understand the problem.

Left Coast Rebel offers more proof that California needs to be sawed off and set adrift.

TrogloPundit defends the free market and questions buying warplanes from Brazil.

Don't miss the always brilliant Doug Ross and his post on Obama's attack on oil companies.

The Pirate's Cove on Obama's broken promise to close Gitmo.

Ever the optimist, Fishersville Mike has figured out how high gas prices might be good for bloggers.

Another Black Conservative is not in total agreement with Charles Krauthammer and his picks for 2012.

Fuzzy Logic has the left figured out:  Blame, Demonize and throw money.

No Sheeples Here sounds like she's had the SIGIS crud.  I can oh-so-sympathize!  Get better!  And if you hurry and click over, you can see her gorgeous Easter header before she changes it.

Paco:  "Obama's now copping an OJ Simpson attitude on gas prices."  Socialist progress.

From WyBlog, yet another reason for me to continue hoarding incandescent light bulbs.

Pecan Corner has a post on the Texas wildfires.

Jim Brown defends Barry Bonds and suggests he is a "scapegoat" for MLB.

And finally, classic Bride of Rove:  "We have a balless president leading a brainless majority."

Sorry we're so short here, but my cake is calling me.  Have a wonderful Easter!

Passing The Blame on Gas Prices

Since I don't have Internet today, I've been web surfing on my iPhone.  I was reading this article on NPR about the cause of rising gas prices; I can't link it because iPhone won't do that but it said:

It's tempting to blame speculators for the price run-up. In March, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder established a task force to investigate potential fraud in energy markets.

So far, it's "clear that there are lawful reasons for increases in gas prices, given supply and demand," Holder says in a statement.

It's also tempting to blame the falling value of the dollar for rising oil prices. After all, oil trades in dollars and since January the U.S. currency is down about 10 percent against the euro.

But Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst with the Oil Price Information Service, says it's more complicated than just that. Trouble in the Middle East is still spooking markets, and investors want to buy oil.

Not a single word about the drilling moratorium or lack of domestic drilling.  Not a single mention that any hopes of domestic production are just ridiculous.

But, it is NPR.

Comcast

Still no Internet here and blogging by iPhone leaves much to be desired. I called Comcast today who assured me they can't get out until Monday. Meanwhile, a Comcast service van pulled up across the street an hour ago. I had a nice conversation with the guy but he was over here on a service call for the lady across the street who, as it happens, didn't need service as her problem had resolved itself. The fella could not, however, come fix my problem.

Not his fault but DUMB Comcast!

Trimming

The power company has been trimming trees in my neighborhood which means my Internet connection is sporadic.

They cut down my huge eucalyptus tree to the ground yesterday. As a result my once shady backyard is now full sun on the back half and those shade plants I have in the beds back there are burning up as we speak. This also means I will no longer be bringing fresh eucalyptus boughs inside.

Blogging will resume when my Internet is back and these guys come down off the utility poles.

Scum Sucking

Ed Morrissey calls it "offensive," but he's just being kind.  I call it "scum sucking, bottom dweller, low-life lying demagoguery."  But at least you know what to expect for the duration of the campaign season.

In case you missed it, Obama is using the Minnesota bridge collapse to shill for votes.  Not only that, he's lying about the cause of the collapses in order to get your vote. 

But what else is new.

Is Atlas Shrugging Where You Are?

Be sure to catch Donald Douglas's post, Atlas is Shrugging in California.  He's got pictures to prove it.  Atlas is shrugging in Louisiana too.  I'll have to get out and make pictures.  Maybe Donald has started something here!  How's Atlas doing where you are?

2012 Looks Grim

I'm so disgusted with the current GOP field of potential challengers for 2012.  This, in turn, makes me totally disgusted with the GOP in general.  More so than usual, I mean.

Where in the hell are the challengers to Obama that can actually get elected!?!  Our front runner right now is Donald Trump?  Seriously?  In what ridiculous world is THAT ever going to happen? 

Newt Gingrich?  Puh-lease.  No fricking way.

Mitt Romney?  A reject from last go-around?  Nope. 

Haley Barbour?  Nobody north of the Mason-Dixon line would vote for him.

Mike Huckabee?  Can you say B-A-G-G-A-G-E?  Can you Google "Maurice Clemmons"?

Even if Sarah Palin throws her hat in there, she can't get elected.  Sorry, folks, but it's true.  She can't.  She has a fired up base, she has a role to play in the party, but candidate isn't it.  It's just not. 

I'm furious at Mike Pence for NOT running because he's one I think could actually get elected.  What's he doing, anyway?  Waiting for the safer bet in 2016?  What's the field going to look like then?  Rubio?  Ryan?  Pence?  We're saving all our good candidates for a year when only one can get elected? 

I know, it's too soon now for Rubio.  It just is.  He has to prove himself.  I'd vote for Ryan right now, though.  And Pence. 

But instead, I've got Donald Trump.

The GOP needs to get their act together and fast.  Obama is already in full campaign mode and somewhere ACORN is organizing something nefarious. 

We can't stand another four years of Obama.  He's ready to "finish the job" and that doesn't bode well for freedom, free enterprise, capitalism, or democracy. 

Full Metal Jacket Reach Around: The Pre-Easter Edition

It's been a quiet weekend around SIGIS after our trip to Minden yesterday.  I spent the morning catching up on paperwork, doing the yard and grocery shopping for my mother.  Steve and I are taking advantage of this lovely weather and are planning to grill burgers this evening before heading on into the work week tomorrow.  I've got about five more weeks of school left and am looking forward to long summer days when I can write and blog at will and get my poor blog off life support. 

It's been a busy news week so lets see what the friends of SIGIS have been up to:

Ann Althouse offers a photo essay on Madison's protest fashion.  She contends that the anti-Tea Party protesters were not, in fact, booing the National Anthem, despite rumors to the contrary.

Doug Ross has a scathing timeline of John Boehner's ineptitude.

Via the Lonely Conservative, Eric Holder fits right into Obama's "tax cheat" cabinet.

The Daley Gator has video of Herman Cain's speech at Orlando's Tax Day Tea Party.

The Other McCain links to and applauds this brilliant post from No Sheeples Here.  Priceless graphic.

William Teach at Pirate's Cove has a report on the NC tornadoes and today offers his massive roundup.

Via Ed Driscoll, the shocking news that Obama might not be as nice as he looks.  Really?!

Sister Toldjah weighs in on the new civility in political discourse, as does Legal Insurrection.

Reaganite Republican offers a defense of Donald Trump.

Adrienne's Corner offers a reminder that today is Palm Sunday as does Bread Upon the Waters with a Johnny Cash video.

The conservative blogosphere was electrified by Palin's speech at the Madison Tea Party, including PoliticalJunkieMom.

Saberpoint had a post on the Burka Ban in France.

Pundette's Saturday various and sundry post is pretty much all you need to know.

Bride of Rove offers an explanation as to why Obama doesn't have a "cool phone" in the Oval office.

I don't think Fuzzy Logic will be voting for Trump.  Bob Belvedere is supporting Andrew McCarthy in 2012!

Wyblog notes that not only will we be buying oil from Brazil, we're sending them other jobs as well.  Blood boil.

Pecan Corner has one more request of veterans.

Critical Narrative was not impressed with Obama's speech this week.

And that'll do it for me this week.  We're fixing to open a beer and fire up the grill so I can contribute to the destruction of the planet by releasing more carbon dioxide with my burning charcoal.

(All "Spring Spheres" pictured in this post can be purchased from Second Hand Rose Antiques in Minden!  318.371.9830)

Take an Easter Trip to Second Hand Rose Antiques

Spring is in bloom at Second Hand Rose Antiques in Minden!  Steve and I drove over today to spend the afternoon poking around Milly's shop and there is no question she is ready for Easter; bunnies and eggs are all over the shop.  In fact, she even brought me a load of fresh eggs from her chickens this morning!  There is nothing better than a farm fresh egg.

As soon as we walked up this vanity was one of the first things I noticed.  It was sitting outside the shop waiting for someone to help Milly haul it inside.  It's a gorgeous piece; the veneer needs a little touch up on the top left drawer, but that's a simple task.  The mirror is full length and the drawers are deep and generous.  Steve hauled it inside for Milly and in no time at all she had it worked into the shop and had brush sets and perfume bottles sitting on top!

Another new acquisition sitting outside was this precious old fashioned school desk.  Love the hole for the inkwell!

As many times as I visit the shop, I'm always surprised at all the new items I find when I go.  Yeah, there are still some of the same things I've seen before, but there is so much to see, and she's constantly bringing in new things.  I took a special interest in the eggs today.  I don't particularly collect eggs, but I do decorate some for Easter.  I liked this colorful one:

These Lenox eggs are gorgeous:

Here they are in their display case:

And this cloisonne egg is wonderful:

Had enough eggs?  We can move on.  There will be more on Milly's Facebook page through the week!  One more:

Steve took a fancy to these crazy armadillo bookends; they are drinking Lone Star beer, by the way.

Milly has several pieces of this Fostoria coin glass; I love it:

There are lots of NASCAR collectibles there...

Pez collectibles...

And shelves and shelves and shelves of Coca-Cola memorabilia:

Here's a colorful painting:

And I'm kind of digging this low-to-the-ground chair; it needs recovering but I love the design:

These old marionettes are cool; there are six of them but I couldn't get them all in frame:

I don't think I've ever seen a brass punch bowl before, but I have now.  Milly has lots of crystal ones, too:

This fellow looks like spring:

I love these old compacts and cigarette cases; I like the one on the lower left side with the green inlay:

I've posted a shot of this Hoosier cabinet before, I think, but I'd love to own this.  If I had space for it, I'd grab it in a second.  That bottom right drawer is lined with tin and the upper left cabinet is a flour sifter.  This is a great piece!

These Sevres plates are lovely:

This is new:  it's a drink caddy with a place for your bottle, four little shot glasses, and that wheel on the back winds up to play "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head."  Too funny!

By the way, it's sitting on that vanity that had been outside earlier.  Nothing sits around inside Milly's for long without getting something set on top of it!

These plates are cute for the kitchen:

The dogs, Heidi and Rosalea, were worn out by all the traffic today!

I took a picture of these Christmas ornaments because the box said, "American Made" on it.  You don't see that much anymore:

So what did I come home with today?  Well you know how I am about shiny things...I had to have this:

And this cracked me up and I had to have it, too:

I liked this, but left it behind:

I also liked this tray but will get it next time, if it's still there:

And finally, this made me laugh, too, but I left it there.

At the end of the day we helped Milly close up, put the dogs in the car, got our fresh eggs and our purchases and headed home.  I already can't wait to go back.

If you're looking for something and want to know if Milly has one, or if you see something you like in this post or any of the others, give Milly Rose a call at 318.371.9830.  She'll cut you a good deal!  And be sure to "Like" Second Hand Rose on Facebook!