Interesting Posts From Around The Web - 1 June 2008

The most interesting posts of the day from across the blogosphere, all below the fold.

Art: Sappho, Charles A. Mengin
_____________________________________________________

Callimachus has an incredibly poignant Memorial Day Post where he honors a gallery of the military and non-military who have fallen in Iraq, each with a unique and important story. Do read this one. And as always, see Wednesday’s Hero at a Rose By Any Other Name.

How much improved is the Iraq situation? From Political Insecurity, the story of a Marine platoon just returned to the U.S. from a tour in Anbar without firing a shot. And from Jammie Wearing Fool, this four year low in casualties throughout Iraq is simply inexplicable to - and apparently hoped to be a temporary anamoly by - the AP. Perhaps that is why, as JoshuaPundit points out, MSM coverage of the Iraq war has fallen off by 92%.

Soccer Dad adds his thoughts to Krauthammer’s on the proposition that "the global warming hysteria is is just a mask for governments asserting unreasonable control over their respective citizenries." Hillbilly Politics opines on the recent speech on global warming by Czech President Vaclav Klaus. And see Paladin’s Page, where he has a good post on the circumstances surrounding global warming. At Crusader Rabbit, KG posts on the insane greens who seem to want to see economies fall rather than drill another drop of oil.

Bookworm Room writes on why she thinks conservatives who plan to sit out this election are making a foolish error indeed. I concur. McCain is a fiscal conservative, strong on national security, and will choose conservative judges. And the alternative is not merely bad for America, but potentially catastrophic. Power and Control writes a very insightful essay on what a conservative Republican tent must look like if it is to both retain its most important principals and attain a ruling majority. He (or she) does so by citing to Reagan.

From Cheat Seeking Missles, Obama just picked up the much coveted Castro endorsement. Discriminations ponders the similarity between Obama and Carter and arrives at some troubling conclusions. Obama has far less experience and is far more a doctranaire leftie. And yet more evidence from Rhymes With Right that the true nature of Obama’s church is racist to the core. You can also find out more about Trinity United at Faultline.

Obama finally resigned from Trinity United yesterday after a radical sermon by one of his long-time associates, Father Michael Pfelger, made the news. Confederate Yankee looks at the many other associates of Obama and observes: "By comparison, Father Michael Pfleger, while a frothing radical in any other company, actually looks sedate compared to other men who have helped shape and mold Barack Obama."

At Stop the ACLU, they opine about Obama's resignation from Trinity, saying "everyone on planet earth will see such a move for what it is: a cheap, years-late political calculation. I guess Obama means to put this on the list of things we are not permitted to discuss." BizzyBlog points out that, though Obama announced that he is severing ties with Trinity, he is explicitly refusing to "denounce it." I do not think too many people will believe that a principled stand.

Indeed, Deleware Curmudgeon opines that Obama has talking points, not principles. Verum Serum observes that when those talking points become embarrassing, such as Obama’s 2007 pronouncements on the surge being doomed to failure, "he sends out his flunkies to move the goalposts, . . ."

As Dave in Boca notes, at least some of the electorate are paying attention. Others are busy getting tattoos of their favorite candidate – and as Vast Right Wing Conspiracy opine, "God help us – these people probably vote." Regardless, as This Ain’t Hell notes, it appears that the fat lady is singing for Obama, though it may well be a very long aria.

Possibly no subset of socialist thought has been more thoroughly discredited than multiculturalism. Sake White says common sense will tell you why multiculturalism is unworkable. And Fulham Reactionary will point to how the Labour government utterly refuses to apply such common sense, now inviting Imams into the school system in order to promote multiculturalism and lessen radicalism. Hopefully, as Dhivestan Report memorializes, they will not kill the schoolchildren for failing to memorize the Koran.

An Englishman’s Castle observes that it appears the Scottish Raj may be out of touch with the voters south of Hadrian’s Wall. From Blonde Sagacity, one thing socialists on both sides of the pond do not like is a flag waving display of nationalism. This speaks of the poison of socialism spread through our lands that has as part of its dogma that our Western governments are the world oppressors.

In Britain, as in the U.S., the left attempts to address violent crime by further de-arming the public of anything they might use to protect themselves. As quoted at 4 Right Wing Whackos, "A person properly schooled in right and wrong is safe with any weapon. A person with no idea of good and evil is unsafe with a knitting needle, or the cap from a ballpoint pen." That is a profoundly true statement.

As Sheik Yer’mami observes, the radicals of both the socialist and Islamic variety are in max whine mode over the outspoken and much needed comments of Bishop Nazir Ali. Seraphic Secret notes comments similar to the Bishop’s from Italian journalist and Muslim convert to Catholicism, Magdi Allam, Dinah Lord has the story of two evangelical ministers who entered a Muslim enclave in West Midlands only to be ejected by the police and told that they would be charged with a "hate crime" if they returned to the area to proselytize.

From the Colossus of Rhodey, Islamist organizations are in a whinefest claiming that the term "war on terror" means war on Islam. No, though I wish it really did mean war on several specific sects. This is just a strategy by the Muslim Brotherhood and other related organizations to take the "war" out of the "war on terror" and turn it all into a police action.

YouTube gets "thoroughly punked" by Red Alerts "favorite [Independent] Democrat." Lieberman is a class act.

Heh. From Hillbilly White Trash. "Back in November of '06 I said that the Republican congress didn't deserve to be reelected but that the nation didn't deserve what would happen if they lost."
Betsy ponders Al Franken’s situation and the minimum acceptable standards to be a Democratic Senatorial nominee.

Quoted at American Digest on Scott McClellan: "Not since America's most revered feckless crapweasel, former Vermont Sen. James Jeffords, switched parties have Beltway Republicans been more eager to sew a half-starved ferret into someone's body cavity." Gay Patriot diagnoses Scott McClellan as suffering Huffingtonitis, a disease that manifests with an individual defining "his political views and make[ing] public statements in order to win social approval and/or acceptance."

Visit the swami at the Whited Sepulchre for his prognostications and the most important matters of the day. I think he may be batting 100% when all is said and done.

We are in a cyber-war with China, and likely losing according to the Glittering Eye.