Thursday, July 07, 2005

The London Attack   Obviously, I condemn the terrorists responsible for the bombs in London, and my thoughts and prayers are with those who have been injured and killed there, and with their families.  Terrorism always fails to achieve its goals; those that champion it always suffer.  To resort to terror is a declaration that your cause is unworthy, and doomed.  Further, if Moslems are responsible, there is nothing in the Koran anywhere that sanctions either attacks on civilians, or suicide.  People who do either are damned.  For all that these suicide attacks are framed as being religiously-based, the suicide attackers have to be religiously illiterate to commit them. 4:59:37 PM    comment []

Quote for the Day, 7/7/2005   "He was a by-the-numbers guy...and I was never very good with numbers."   -Lauren Graham (Lorelai Gilmore), The Gilmore Girls, "Forgiveness and Stuff" 12:12:10 PM    comment []

Reed's Opponent Scores Major Bucks   Georgia State Senator Casey Cagle is running against professional lobbyist (and former professional Christian) Ralph Reed for the Republican nomination for Lieutenant Governor.  For those of you who, like myself, view the possibility of Ralph Reed holding elected office with alarm, some good news.  It seems Georgia Republicans are also reacting with alarm and even loathing to Reed's campaign.  For the first reporting period in the 2006 campaign for Lieutenant Governor, Casey Cagle has raised $625,000.  That's in just the past three months, and 99% of his contributors come from Georgia.  This means he has out-raised all other candidates for the top two offices, including even the popular governor, Sonny Perdue, who only got $507,202 in the same period (not counting a half million Governor Perdue gave his own campaign). 9:35:26 AM    comment []

It's Official:  Rowley is Running   Colleen Rowley, the FBI agent and whistleblower whose investigation led to the arrest of Zaccarias Moussaoui, and might have prevented the 9/11 attacks, if it had been heeded, officially announced her candidacy for Congress yesterday.  Colleen Rowley voted Republican until after the 2000 election; shortly after the President was elected she came to realize there was no longer room for people like her in the Republican party.  She will be one of the most prominent and serious challengers to seek a seat held by an incumbent next year.  In declaring her candidacy, she made the issue of ethics a major issue, second only to her focus on national security.  I include the best bit from her speech below.  For the complete text of her speech, go here.  To give money to her campaign, go here. "I like to think that I embrace what a former president called the best of conservatism--'drawing lines that should not be crossed'--and the best of progressivism--'breaking down barriers that are no longer needed, or should never have been erected in the first place'. If elected, I hope to hold fast to this independent posture even as I seek to honor the legacy of great Democratic leaders of the past, among them the late Senator Paul Wellstone, a man who always put others first and whose example of public service I intend to emulate." "…In January 2003, I was asked to write a column for Newsday's 'Young Readers' Section'. The purpose was to somehow say something of comfort to junior high-aged kids, most of whom lived in the New York City area and many of whom had lost family or acquaintances in the attacks on the World Trade Center. The assignment was made even more difficult because, by the time I wrote, notables like Jimmy Carter, the Dalai Lama and astronaut Sally Ride had already said almost every comforting thing there was to say. I know, however, that helplessness is one of the worst feelings that often lingers with victims of crimes and must be overcome before the victim can get better." "The piece I ended up writing was entitled, 'Step Up to the Plate'. In it, I tried to tell the young people who had been hurt by 9/11 that the best way to combat their feelings of helplessness was to start becoming leaders--not only preparing to become the adult leaders needed for tomorrow's challenges, but by being leaders right now in their schools and communities.  After the piece was published, Newsday's staff told me it resonated with their young readers. That was great news. But even beyond that target audience, the idea of stepping up to the plate describes what we all need to do. And with your help and support, that's exactly what I intend to do." "Today, I am announcing that I am running for Congress in Minnesota's Second Congressional district." 6:47:43 AM    comment []

Going to Prison for "Principle"   I find it genuinely strange hearing reporters celebrate Judith Miller's willingness to go to jail for "principle".  The principle involved, of course, is that of protecting people who are willing to sabotage our nation's intelligence-gathering and national security, and the lives of American intelligence assets abroad, in order to satisfy a cheap political grudge.  Or perhaps the principle is to allow government officials to anonymously destroy the career of a person, or even a relative of a person, who is willing to come forward and tell us when our government is lying to us. Anonymous sources are rarely whistleblowers, safeguarding America from the abuse of power.  Far more often, they are power, retaliating against whistleblowers; as in this case.  It is the principle of protecting the right of the massively powerful to abuse the nearly helpless that Judith Miller has gone to prison to defend.  In other words, she is selflessly defending naked villainy.  You've got to respect such open contempt for honesty and integrity and truth and fair play...she is certainly standing up for what believes in...and it's those beliefs that make her the kind of reporter she is. Have fun in prison, Judith.  And many happy returns. 2:30:39 AM    comment []