UK Government Decries Extreme Desire for Life and Liberty

It is interesting occasionally keeping track of the activism of Netherlander Gert Wilders.  He has announced that he will travel to the UK, at the request of a member of Parliament, despite the UK government’s label on him as persona-non-grata.  Wilders, of course, is the producer of the film Fitna.  It is this film that has caused him to be looked upon with infamy.  A film that merely puts Islam on display using the words of Islam, and the contemporary deeds that have been attributed to Islam by the various perpetrators.

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What The Internet Does

This post at SDA provides an excellent view into what the internet can do for us - It builds connections among communities such that truly eclectic thinking and discussion can take place. This will allow real people to make real decisions that can have a real and positive effect on the community at large. The internet gives us an opportunity to escape the darkness of the control of elitist entities - like the know-it-all “press” that thinks its role is to tell us how to think exactly like they think. No more.

The internet didn’t just connect politically like-minded people whose views are under-served. It connected the highly trained and knowledgeable across geographic regions and fields of expertise, enabling them to compare notes and realize “it’s not just us”. That by and large, journalism is perhaps the only profession where the utterly unqualified are given the privilege of writing to a mass audience on topics that they really not ought to.

At one time, the error in basic chemistry or math might only be spotted by a few trained individuals in the field. A messed up report on the Canadian Wheat Board would raise the ire of ag producers but not much more. Misidentifying a weapons system would pass unnoticed by all but the military.

Today the chemists, ag producers and military talk to each other, and the conclusion they’re coming to is that an uncomfortably large percentage of journalists are not merely tainted by political assumptions - they’re lazy, stupid, or both.

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Who We Are

I came upon this Alan Dershowitz article at another publication but now see that it has been picked up at Frontpagemag. It is a very good article, but I shall particularly critique the title, at least on this version.

The article is titled “The Right to Defend” spoken in the context of Israel’s military action in Gaza. Certainly this is a “right,” and coming from a high-profile lawyer, perhaps this is the term we should expect. However, I will take this one step further.

Israel has something much more compelling than a “right.” Israel has an OBLIGATION to protect its citizens from attack by an agressive and violent entity. This obligation exists on a much higher moral plane than does the issue of what “rights” a sovereign nation has within the construct of some words that might exist within a text of international law.

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Sunday Afternoon Art

A Venice Street

A place in the Western world I would like to visit again. Venice is truly picturesque in a way that only an Old World location can be. A new coat of paint on anything there would ruin it!

Better to be Wise Than to be Dead

Repeat after me:

“Physical resistance by the individual is the last line of defense against any attacker”

and:

“Police do not exist in order to provide round-the-clock armed protection against bad people that might do us harm”

Here is the retard article of the day:

Massachusetts public schools are considering a program to teach children how to fight back in the instance of a “school shooting” in the making, but some think it unwise:

“To put that expectation on young, emotional, scared, frightened children is really a slippery slope,” says Kenneth Trump, the president of National School Safety and Security Services. “It has a high risk and higher probability of escalating a situation than it would to neutralize the situation.”

Disgraceful. Yes, better to stay quiet and be slaughtered like cattle. Right?

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Honoring The Honorable

Today I will attend the renewal of wedding vows between a colleague and his wife. These two will renew their vows today as one of the items on my colleague’s Bucket List as he approaches nearly certain death of his body in the not-too-distant future.
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Don’t Mess With Mama!

This ended nearly as it should have:

The 34-year-old mother of two grabbed a shotgun that had been pointed at her face early Wednesday, starting a struggle that ended with one intruder killed with his own weapon and another in the hospital.

Here is the story at fox

UPDATE 9/6/08:

Now the story is changing. As they frequently do, FoxNews is just editing the story online, to include the headline, instead of writing a new one.

Her husband fired the shotgun and the man fell to the ground. Then the shot man lunged a second time.

“Well, I shot him again, and I guess that was it,” Keith Hoehn said.

A Ship is Safe in Port but…

Here we go!

MY NAME IS ZAC SUNDERLAND AND I AM 16 YEARS OLD. I AM CURRENTLY SAILING ACROSS THE PACIFIC OCEAN ATTEMPTING TO BECOME THE YOUNGEST PERSON TO CIRCUMNAVIGATE THE WORLD ALONE BY YACHT.

(Here is the blog)

Reportedly, some have criticized, “How could the parents expose him to such danger?” Well, at least they kept him out of public schools. He was homeschooled, and he will probably do just fine.

Then, there was this guy, but certainly Zac will make his own discoveries.

Appreciation

Like other tools of the state, or tools of a polity, an army can be used for good or for ill. Throughout history there are certainly many examples of the latter for the “anti-war” crowd to trot out to illustrate their argument. However, the moral measure must be made in the intended use of the tool, not in the potential for misuse. The tool itself is morally neutral.

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