8/22/2004
I will be on vacation for a couple of weeks, so posting will be light to non existant. It has been a long year and a half of both illness and recovery, so this is a well earned break!
I hope to have pictures up at some point, but it may not be until I get home. Right now I am in central Oklahoma at a friends farm. This morning I sat on the front porch drinking coffee watching the sun come up over the countryside. Ahhh, what a life. Be sure and check out the rest of the Rocky Mountain Alliance while I’m gone. For the latest on the Colorado Senate race check out Salazar v Coors.
8/19/2004
There have been two articles in the New York Times (here and here) in the last three days about the Demo’s being worried about voter fraud again this year. Add to that an earlier post about Eddie Bernice Johnson’s call for U.N. monitors and you have the new rallying cry of the left. Unfortunately those on the left are the ones with the history of voter fraud.
The history of Democrat voter fraud dates all the way back to 1789. There were instances of voter fraud in 1922, 1932, and 34. Names such as Daley, Pendergast, and Tammany are synonymous with Democratic voter fraud. But, it doesn’t end there. There were questionable practices in 1960, with the election of John F. Kennedy, and more instances in 2000, and 2002.
The 2000 election was notorious for supposed Republican fraud. Although, less widely reported, Democratic voter fraud was more common. For instance the Gore team insisted on disenfranchising overseas voters, due to supposed irregularities in the ballots. Most of these over seas voters were servicemen and women, and would have probably voted for Bush. Ahh, and who can forget the recount. What was strange is that Gore was only worried about recounting the four counties most heavily populated by Democratic voters. We all remember the media calling Florida for Gore before the polls closed in the panhandle, an area heavily populated by Republican voters. There were even stories of polling places staying open late in the St. Louis metro area, a heavily Democratic area.
So after all the hate and vitriol of the 2000 election, they have begun their crying again. Don’t let the Bushies steal the election again we’ll hear. Or, in the words of Paul Krugman:
Everyone knows it, but not many politicians or mainstream journalists are willing to talk about it, for fear of sounding conspiracy-minded: there is a substantial chance that the result of the 2004 presidential election will be suspect.
No Paul, you just sound partisan. The reasonable among us know that you and the rest of the left are trying to conjure images of November 2000. Trying to stir the dying embers of rage in the fevered left, and worse yet, trying to attack the credibility of an election that hasn’t even taken place yet.
8/18/2004
Now for the quote of the day taken from the pages of The Federalist:
“I would do just about anything I could to see George W. Bush back in the White House. But I don’t think the stage is the place to campaign. To get into politics on the stage would be working a little outside of your profession, as far as I’m concerned. I don’t think that would show a whole lot of taste.” –Country singer Darryl Worley, whose 9/11 anthem “Have You Forgotten?” reached No. 1 last year
Thanks for your hard work for the troops Darryl, if only the Dixie Chicks, Springstein, Streisand, and the majority of Hollywood would take your advice.
8/17/2004
The Swift boat veterans for truth were heavily criticized when they released their ad against John Kerry earlier this month. It was said that they were lying about their service with John Kerry. Apparently, according to Kerry, because they weren’t on the same boat with him (they were in the same unit together), he didn’t serve with them. Below, is a depiction of “serving together” according to Kerry.
Photo Courtesy of: Mangled Cat
Of Course, one of the criticism’s of this ad is that it’s not fair to raise Kerry’s Vietnam service as an issue. Let me remind those out there who feel that it’s not fair to examine Kerry’s Vietnam service who made that four month period in his life an issue. It was John Kerry. Here are some of his remarks from his acceptance speech in Boston.
And in this journey, I am accompanied by an extraordinary band of brothers led by that American hero, a patriot named Max Cleland. Our band of brothers doesn’t march together because of who we are as veterans, but because of what we learned as soldiers. We fought for this nation because we loved it and we came back with the deep belief that every day is extra. We may be a little older now, we may be a little grayer, but we still know how to fight for our country…
I know what kids go through when they are carrying an M-16 in a dangerous place and they can’t tell friend from foe. I know what they go through when they’re out on patrol at night and they don’t know what’s coming around the next bend. I know what it’s like to write letters home telling your family that everything’s all right when you’re not sure that’s true…
I defended this country as a young man and I will defend it as President…
I learned a lot about these values on that gunboat patrolling the Mekong Delta with young Americans who came from places as different as Iowa and Oregon, Arkansas, Florida and California. No one cared where we went to school. No one cared about our race or our backgrounds. We were literally all in the same boat. We looked out, one for the other, and we still do…
In fact, in the recounting of his public life in the speech, you would believe he came straight out of his swift boat to the convention hall. There is no commentary on his time as Lt. Governor of Massachusetts, and no recounting of all the work he has done in the Senate.
There is even a full page on his campaign website dedicated to his abbreviated service in Vietnam.
As he was about to graduate from Yale, John Kerry volunteered to serve in Vietnam - because, as he later said, “it was the right thing to do.” He believed that because he had had a lot of privileges in life - for example, attending a great university like Yale - he had a responsibility to give something back to his country. His two great heroes - his father and John F. Kennedy - had served during World War II. John Kerry wanted to follow both their example and that of some of his best friends, who also went to Vietnam.
John Kerry enlisted in the Navy in 1966. After completing Naval Officer Candidates School, he began his first tour of duty on the USS Gridley, a guided-missile frigate in the waters adjacent to Vietnam. In 1968, John Kerry began his second tour of duty, and volunteered to serve on a Swift Boat, one of the most dangerous assignments of the war. Swift Boats patrolled the narrow inlets and canals around the Mekong Delta “to draw fire and smoke out the enemy,” according to the The Boston Globe.
To the men who served with him, John Kerry was “one of the most daring skippers in the US Navy, relentlessly and courageously engaging the enemy,” according to The Boston Globe. William Zaladonis, who served under Kerry on a Swift Boat, said that he was more interested than some other commanding officers in his crewmates’ lives, hopes, and dreams. John Kerry put his crewmates at ease, telling them to “call me John - you don’t have to call me sir.” When “we were out on patrol,” Zaladonis recalls, “we were a family.”
Lt. John Kerry’s leadership, courage, and sacrifice earned him a Silver Star, the Navy’s fifth highest medal, a Bronze Star with Combat V, and three Purple Hearts, awarded for wounds received in combat. John Kerry was awarded a Bronze Star for rescuing a Green Beret, who had gone overboard during a mission. According to his Bronze Star citation, “Lt. Kerry directed his gunners to provide suppressing fire, while from an exposed position on the bow, his arm bleeding and in pain, with disregard for his personal safety, he pulled the man aboard. Lt. Kerry’s calmness, professionalism, and great personal courage under fire were in keeping with the highest traditions of the US Naval Service.”
John Kerry left Vietnam in 1969. But to this day, he carries with him the lessons he learned while he was there. On that Swift Boat, there were people who came from places as diverse as South Carolina, Iowa, and Arkansas. They were literally all in the same boat and they came together as one. No one asked the others’ politics. No one asked where the others came from or who their fathers were or where they went to school. They were simply a band of brothers who all fought under the same flag and all prayed to the same God. And that is the America John Kerry wants today - an America where we all come together to build a better country.
I think it is more than fair to examine something that Kerry himself has made the center piece of his bid for the presidency. Don’t you worry though John, we’ll also be looking at your record on defense since you came home.
Lisa at Elegant Webscapes has done a great job setting up the new look for Thinking Right. I recommend her for anyone who is looking for a place to host their blog, or anyone who is just looking for a fresh new template design.
I watched “Saving Private Ryan” again. I think this is the third time I’ve seen it. This movie, in my opinion, is one of the best war movies ever made. One of the scenes in the movie that has always caught me eye is the one where General Marshall [in the movie] reads the letter from President Lincoln to Mrs. Bixby to his staff.
Executive Mansion,
Washington,
November 21, 1864.Mrs. Bixby,
Boston, Massachusetts:DEAR MADAM: I have been shown in the files of the War Department a statement of the Adjutant-General of Massachusetts that you are the mother of five sons who have died gloriously on the field of battle. I feel how weak and fruitless must be any words of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming. But I cannot refrain from tendering to you the consolation that may be found in the thanks of the Republic they died to save. I pray that our Heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.
Yours very sincerely and respectfully,
Abraham Lincoln
This is a message that still rings true, nearly 140 years to the day after it was written. Please remember our troops serving in combat, and those who have laid so costly a price upon the altar of freedom.
8/15/2004
I finally did it!! I switched to my own domain. I’m still working out the bugs but when I finally get things set up, this blog will be at http://thinkingright.us. I’ll post more as the situation developes.
8/14/2004
Charley deposited this Uhaul truck in the middle of a liquor store in Charlotte county Florida on Friday. I thought it would make an interesting caption contest. On the serious side, there are a lot of people hurting in central Florida today after being ravaged by Charley. The Red Cross, as usual, is there to help. I hope the people of Florida will see the same response of overwhelming kindness and generosity that the people of D.C., Pa., and NYC saw in the wake of 9/11. Please do your part and donate what you can.
8/12/2004
Cheney Attacks While Kerry Makes Statements
Sometimes in the case of the NY Times editorial page, media bias is overt. But, there are other instances where it’s not so obvious. For example, choosing to use the word attack about one candidate’s statements, and choosing to use a less inflammatory word when referring to another candidate’s statements. Such is the case with an AP story dated 8/11/04 by Laura Meckler.
Vice President Dick Cheney is opening a new attack on John Kerry, saying America will not defeat its enemies by fighting a “more sensitive” war on terror, as Kerry called for last week.
“America has been in too many wars for any of our wishes, but not a one of them was won by being sensitive,” Cheney said in remarks prepared for delivery Thursday. “A sensitive war will not destroy the evil men who killed 3,000 Americans. … The men who beheaded Daniel Pearl and Paul Johnson will not be impressed by our sensitivity.”
He was referring to a statement Kerry made a week ago to a minority journalists’ convention. Perhaps coincidentally, a questioner at a town hall meeting asked about the same statement a day earlier.
A week ago, Kerry said: “I believe I can fight a more effective, more thoughtful, more strategic, more proactive, more sensitive war on terror that reaches out to other nations and brings them to our side and lives up to American values in history.”
Now, I can see why what Kerry said was seen as a statement, a ridiculous one, but a statement none the less. What I can’t understand is why when Cheney responds to Kerry’s statement it’s seen as an attack. For that matter Vice President Cheney is right, Al Qaida doesn’t really care if we’re “sensitive” or not. Ahhh, but the article continues….
Cheney’s remarks were the latest in a string of attacks by the vice president on the Democratic nominee for president. On Wednesday, Cheney delivered a particularly harsh criticism of Kerry, saying he lacks “deeply held convictions about right and wrong.”
Ms. Meckler, it’s not really harsh when it’s true. Look at Kerry’s record… I voted for the $87 Billion before I voted against it. He would vote for the right to go to war but wouldn’t do it the same way as Bush. He criticizes George Bush for going to war in Iraq based on the same Intel that he himself cited numerous times when laying out the case for war in Iraq. He thinks life begins at conception but refuses to do anything about the killing of unborn children going on every day. Do I need to go on? John Kerry’s positions on issues are as ever changing as the wind. Whether or not we can trust him with our Nation’s security is a good question not an attack.
Unfortunately, we can expect to see this kind of bias more and more as November draws closer and media attack dogs like Ms. Meckler get hungrier. Once again folks, hang on it’s gonna be a fun filled 81 days till the election.
8/11/2004
Salazar v Coors and Other Good Stuff
The Rocky Mountain Alliance started two new blogs today. The first and most important is Salazar v Coors. I supported Bob Schaffer in the primary. But yesterday the voters of Colorado spoke, Coors got the nod.
I supported Schaffer because, in my opinion he was the more conservative of the two. As I’ve said all along though, I will support the Republican nominee. This is where a lot of people get hung up though, they have a tendency to say “my candidate lost in the primary so I’m not going to vote”, these folks are, and this will probably get me in trouble, a detriment to the party. Party trumps politics. By not supporting, and voting for Coors they had might as well vote for Salazar and Kerry.
Salazar’s campaign released an issues paper this week which Jonathan and Guy have thoroughly dissected. Long story short, Ken Salazar is your typical 2004 Democrat. They have forgotten all about 9/11 and the fact that we’re still in a war, they’ve forgotten all about the sovereignty of the US, and some of them have forgotten their own poor record on defense. All of this in an effort to make President Bush’s foreign policy, and defense policy look like a failure.
This is why I’m encouraging anyone who supported Bob Schaffer to support Pete Coors. We need to concentrate now on furthering the President’s agenda, and we can’t do that with Ken Salazar in office. This is a two way street though, Mr. Coors is going to need to get his message out, and he needs to emphasize the conservative aspects of it as well.
This is going to be an important election, probably the most important that I can remember. And we all need to work together to make sure the Republicans maintain, and expand their majority.
I said two blogs, the second isn’t so much a blog as it is an easy way for our readers to find all of us. You can find that site here.
8/10/2004
I had the pleasure of going to Greeley with Joshua and Jonathan. While there we appeared on Lea Live, the morning host on KFKA 1310. Lea and her team were gracious hosts. Radio is a completely different experience than blogging, while blogging I have the opportunity to think about what I’m going to say, and check and double check my facts. Radio is much more fast paced.
I want to expand a little on one of the topics covered during our segment, the role that a potential First Lady plays in the campaign, and how the effect their electability. I have blogged on this before, and I mentioned during the segment with Lea. The quote that got the most ink after the Democratic convention was THK’s “Shove it”. First Ladies have a long standing history of being involved in policy, and talking with the press, but is clearly not a good idea for their statements to the press to overshadow their husband’s. I think Jonathan said it best though when he said ‘first of all do no harm’. Unfortunately I think Theresa did with that one statement.
A big thank you to Lea and her staff, and most importantly the rest of the RMA. Without all of their quality blogging we never would have been noticed. Oh yeah, for any of you wondering if this will be a regular thing….. Yeah, Lea sounded really excited about having us back.
8/7/2004
I have been fourtunate enough to have grown up in a Christian Family with loving parents. While attending church as a child, teen, and young adult I heard the old hymn “It Is Well With My Soul” sung many times. I only recently heard the story behind the song. I hope those of you out there who might be going through hard times will take comfort from the story, and the words of this hymn.
Written during a tumultuous time in Horatio Gates Spafford’s life, the hymn continues to provide peace and comfort in the midst of struggle. Spafford was born in 1828 and spent his early years in New York. He later moved to Chicago and became a successful lawyer and businessman. Spafford was also a deeply religious man, active in his Presbyterian church as a Sunday School teacher and lay servant, as well as in the Young Men’s Christian Association. Beginning in the 1870s, Spafford’s faith was tested by a series of tragic events. In 1871, the Great Chicago Fire destroyed real estate located along the shores of Lake Michigan, which comprised a tremendous portion of the Spafford’s investments. In 1873, a physician counseled the Spaffords to take a vacation for Mrs. Spafford’s health and the family’s well-being. Knowing that a dear friend, Dwight L. Moody would be preaching in an evangelistic tour in England, the Spaffords decided to leave for a vacation in England. Subsequently, Spafford’s wife, Anna Lawson Spafford, and their four daughters-Maggie, Tanetta, Annie, and Bessie-boarded an American ship named the S.S. Ville du Havre. Detained due to business, Mr. Spafford stayed behind but intended to follow his family in a few days.
On November 22, 1873, the S.S. Ville du Havre, sailing off the coast of Newfoundland, was struck by an English ship, the Lochearn. The Ville du Havresank in twelve minutes. Two hundred and twenty-six lives were lost, including the Spaffords’ four daughters. After hours of floating in the turbulent waters, Mrs. Spafford was rescued. Arriving in Wales, she cabled her husband with the message, “Saved alone.” Receiving the horrifying news, Spafford left immediately to join his wife. He asked the captain of the ship on which he was sailing to notify him when they approached the approximate area where the Ville du Havre went down. Notified that the area was near, Spafford went down into his cabin, and near the scene of his daughters’ tragic deaths, penned the words of “When Peace Like a River,” better known today as “It is Well with My Soul.” The hymn refers to Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” The Spaffords eventually met up with Dwight Moody. “It is well,” Spafford told him quietly, “the will of God be done.”
The words of Spafford’s beloved hymn follow:
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, “It is well, it is well with my soul.” It is well with my soul It is well, it is well with my soul.
Thou Satan should buffet, tho’ trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, That Christ has regarded my helpless estate, And hath shed His own blood for my soul. It is well with my soul It is well, it is well with my soul.
My sin… O, the bliss of this glorious thought, My sin, not in part but
the whole, Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more, Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul! It is well with my soul It is well, it is well with my soul.And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight, The clouds be rolled back as a scroll, The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend, “Even so” - it is well with my soul. It is well with my soul It is well, it is well with my soul.
To be able to say “It is well with my soul” after a tregedy such as the one that Mr. Spafford faced cannot be done alone. A statement such as this can only be made with the peace provided by a loving God, and the knowledge that his family would one day be reunited in a place far better than this one.
8/6/2004
Mr. Bob over at The Daily Blogster has a great comic up today perfectly portraying France’s war on terror. Feel free to check out the other members of the Alliance as well.
8/5/2004
It is no secret that I have spent the last year and a half recovering from a major illness. This was an illness that has left me unable to work. My church has helped me a lot with paying bills, and I am greatful beyond measure.
Now the time has come to repay this debt. This Sunday my church is having a benevolence fund offering. I was asked yesterday to speak to the congregation on Sunday about how the church has helped me in the last year. This is so that the members of the congregation will know that the money is going to help people in need.
I have spent the better part of the last two days wondering what to say. How do I begin to relate the relief that I felt when I was able to pay my health insurance each month. How do I begin to explain the comfort of knowing that many of the members of my congregation were praying for my recovery. I guess there really is no way to explain what this all meant to me, and there is no way to ever repay the love, kindness, and prayers of the last 18 months. What I can do is speak on Sunday about how they have helped someone in need, and what that has meant to me and my family.
Matthew 25:40 40“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’
8/3/2004
Dems Most Recognized Slogan: “Shove It”
Great job Theresa, you succeeded in having the most recognized slogan the entire week of the convention.
Teresa Heinz Kerry’s “shove it” phrase to a Pittsburgh editor was the most cited
Kerry campaign message in the press last week — mentioned 381 times in American publications, according to Factiva, a Dow Jones/Reuters company that tracks daily press mentions.
Now, Mr Mcnickle asked Mrs. Kerry what should have been an expected follow up question. Her response, and indeed the response of a great number of what you can only assume are fellow Democrats is hate. Hate, death threats, insults, and accusations.
But the two words also brought death threats, insults and accusations upon
Colin McNickle, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review editorial-page editor who vexed
Mrs. Kerry by asking her to explain her claim that “un-American traits” were
emerging in politics.Sen. John Kerry’s presidential campaign mottos did not resonate with the
press, according to Factiva. “One America” got 57 mentions, “Hope is on the
way,” 50 mentions and “America can do better” just 21 by week’s end.
Not good news for the Kerry camp when after a week of red meat speechs the only phrase getting ink is an underserved rebuke.
8/1/2004
For the first time I can remeber, the electorate faces clear and distinct choices this fall. This choice will determine the fate of our country. Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise either. Yes, domestic agenda’s will be important this year, as a matter of fact, there is a portion of the domestic agenda that is very impotant. That is; how will the candidates handle the influx of foreign naitonals pouring into this country illegally. Even more imortant than our domestic agenda though, is our foreign policy, and our war strategy.
President Bush has a proven track record of making the tough choices and going after the terrorists. Take for example the war in Iraq. President Bush had to know that because of the appeasement/containment/multilateralist movement on the left, this campaign in the war on terror would be an unpopular one. He went to war anyway because, as the 9-11 commission and the Senate Intelligence Committee report showed, he had itelligence showing that Iraq and their relentless quest for WMD’s were an imenant threat. And he made the decision to protect this country despite obstruction not only from the American anti-war left, but countries such as France, Germany, and Russia who were neck deep in the oil for food scandle.
President Bush also has a proven track record in leadership as well. Remember the days right after 9/11. Do you remember the resolve in his eyes? Do you remember the look of anger and resolve on his face during his address to the nation. His track record isn’t just a look, it’s also performing the quickest turn around of an economy gone bad in as long as I can remember. The Democrats talk about “tax cuts for the rich”. I don’t consider myself rich, and I got a tax cut, I suspect you did as well because President Bush’ s promise was to cut taxes for everyone who pays taxes. President Bush has also led the way in ending inhumane practices such as partial birth abortion. He’s proposed a medicare prescription drug program, and enacted the No Child Left Behind program despite the obstruction from the left’s “pet”, the teacher’s unions.
Our other choice this fall means a desent back into the multilateralist culture of the Clinton years. It also means going back to the “terror attacks are crimes” days of the Clinton administration. Both Sean Hannity and Hugh Hewitt in their books, explain in much more detail why these are dangerous roads to travel. Don’t believe me? Kerry even admitted in his acceptance speech that this is how he would handle terrorism.
The United States of America never goes to war because we want to, we only go to war because we have to.
I know what we have to do in Iraq. We need a President who has the
credibility to bring our allies to our side and share the burden, reduce the
cost to American taxpayers, and reduce the risk to American soldiers. That’s the
right way to get the job done and bring our troops home. Here is the reality: that won’t happen until we have a president who restores America’s respect and leadership — so we don’t have to go it alone in the world. And we need to rebuild our alliances, so we can get the terrorists before they get us. I defended this country as a young man and I will defend it as President. Let there be no mistake: I will never hesitate to use force when it is required. Any attack will be met with a swift and certain response.
And from an interview with the AP the day after his acceptance speach:
Kerry has long been an opponent of the death penalty, but in recent years has made an exception for terrorism. The former prosecutor said crimes like rape and child murder do not warrant the highest punishment.
“It’s certainly terrorizing to the person who’s undergoing it. I understand that,” Kerry said. “But terrorism is a political act to terrorize a nation, to try to challenge a way of life and a standard. It’s just a different act.”
He said bin Laden deserves to die.
“I would go the fastest, surest route of conviction, and in my belief that would be a trial for murder in the United States,” the Democrat said when asked if he would seek to try bin Laden at The Hague.
Kerry also proposed billions of dollars in domestic spending. Which if they’re carried out would make balancing the budget (another one of his campaign promises) impossible.
These are the choices we face this year, they are the clearest ones we’ve had in a long time. In my opinion, a vote for George W. Bush is the only way to go.