Sometimes you miss by a mile, but in the cause of Climate Change you miss

sometimes by 193,000 square miles.

As noted on Jerry Pournelle's Chaos Manor Current View (yes THE Jerry Pournelle):

Arctic Ice Extent Understated

It turns out that the National Snow and Ice Data Center has been hit with something called "sensor drift". This means that all their doom and gloom about the North Pole being ice free due to global warming is wrong. There is approximately 500,000 sq. kilometers (193,00 sq. miles) more ice than they previously thought. I guess the polar bears may not go extinct after all.

http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/

Tim Boettcher

Apparently that whole Arctic ice is disappearing due to Global Warming / Climate Change / Humans breathing may be a little bit overstated, like much of the Global Warning data we've been fed to convince us that were in a crisis. For the next bit of alarmist news to come, it seem you need to expect the prediction is mistaken or overstating the reality of the situation by a similar large margin until proven otherwise.

Detroit needs what?

Featured Letter in the Detroit Free press: City needs a real Detroiter for mayor

And how's having had a "real" Detroiter been working out so far exactly?

Of course the letter is a hit against one of the candidates for Mayor of Detroit, Dave Bing, a successful businessman.

The letter begins:

Detroit is one of the jewels of the Midwest.

Ok, now pick yourself up off the floor, try to stop laughing, come on you can do it, and imagine the author of the article is real earnest about this, 'cause apparently she is.

Its diverse population, music festivals, RiverWalk, cultural opportunities, sports arenas, medical facilities and freeway system make it a city of opportunity.

Ok, we need some padding for that floor, that last laughing fall hurt.

The article's author is annoyed, if not outraged that Bing lives mainly in a nice suburb location as well as a condo on East Jefferson in Detroit.

Big bloody deal.

Look around, Detroit is falling to pieces, is rated as the most miserable city and this author bemoans that this mayoral candidate isn't "Detroit enough" (is that code for successful businessman - must be infected by "whiteness" perhaps?(Bing is Black by the way)).

Detroit needs someone competent, smart and business-like to try and pull it out of the death spiral its been twirling in since the days of Coleman Young. Maybe a mayor who isn't "Detroit enough" is exactly what the city needs.

The local talent has been lacking to say the least.

A modest proposal to save lives

'Suicide By Cop' Phenomenon Occurring In Over A Third Of North American Shootings Involving Police

ScienceDaily (Feb. 19, 2009) — “Suicide by Cop” (SBC) is a suicide method in which a person engages in actual or apparent danger to others in an attempt to get oneself killed or injured by law enforcement. A new study in the Journal of Forensic Sciences examined the prevalence of this phenomenon among a large sample of officer-involved shootings.

Results show that SBC occurs at extremely high rates, with 36 percent of all shootings being categorized as SBC. The findings confirm the growing incidence of this method of suicide, with SBC cases more likely to result in the death or injury of the subjects 50 percent of the time.

. . .

SBC was found to occur at a momentous rate among officer-involved shooting cases. The fact that 36 percent of all shootings in the sample could be categorized as SBC underscores the significance of suicidal impulses among those who become involved in shootings and other uses of force with police officers.

The study also verifies that suicidal individuals can in fact threaten, injure, and kill others in their quest to commit suicide. These individuals are quite lethal to themselves, with a 97 percent likelihood of being injured or killed. There was a one in three chance of others being harmed during the incident.
....

Since 36% of all police shootings according to this study are due to "SBC", there's only one thing to do to save lives.

Ban Police of course, if it saves just one life its worth it. The prevention of all these suicides by cop is a worthy goal, and if there were no cops, there could of course be no suicide by cop.

Discuss.

Points will be given for pointing out the blatant logical fallacy of this proposal.

For even more bonus points, name that item for which people seriously argue, with a straight face, that such a ban on said item would save lives.
.
.
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Note: The author of this blog does not advocating banning police, after all some of his best friends are cops.

Holder on a minute!

Holder: US is nation of cowards on racial matters

By DEVLIN BARRETT Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Attorney General Eric Holder described the United States Wednesday as a nation of cowards on matters of race, saying most Americans avoid discussing unresolved racial issues.

In a speech to Justice Department employees marking Black History Month, Holder said the workplace is largely integrated but Americans still self-segregate on the weekends and in their private lives.

"Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards," said Holder, nation's first black attorney general.

Oh come on seriously? -- a nation of cowards regarding race -- as if. Did Holder miss some reality while he was busy pardoning Mark Rich or something? Anyone checked the news on a recent presidential election, not to mention an Illinois Senator appointment and a recent Attorney general appointment? Not to mention the advance of civil rights in this country? Damn cowards all, must be.

Race issues continue to be a topic of political discussion, Holder said, but "we, as average Americans, simply do not talk enough with each other about race."

He urged people of all races to use Black History Month as a chance for frank talk about racial matters.

Around the fire with a guitarist strumming Kumbaya in the background no doubt. Newsflash, unlike the political class, race is not the all-consuming burning issue of the day. Most of us get on just fine with friends who happen to be of other races, thank you very much, and we typically don't start every conersation with them about race relations in America - we generally start with "Hey howzit going?", move on to how our favorite sport team did or didn't do last night, maybe chat about the hole this economy keeps slipping into, and then move on to productive and enjoyable conversation.

"It is an issue we have never been at ease with and, given our nation's history, this is in some ways understandable," Holder said. "If we are to make progress in this area, we must feel comfortable enough with one another and tolerant enough of each other to have frank conversations about the racial matters that continue to divide us."

Yet another Newsflash, most people don't talk about race because Democrats like Holder have been so busy making the conversation so fraught with taboo and risk of being called a racist if you don't buy the party line, that honest conversation can be hard to come by.

He told Justice Department employees they have a special responsibility to advance racial understanding.

One would think they have a special responsibility in not so much racial understanding but how about (gasp) enforcement of the law (maybe start with going after some notables who have failed to pay their taxes as of late), after all its the Department of Justice, not the Department of Racial Grievances and Hand-Holding.

Not yet at least.

LaSalle's Griffon found? - It may take a court battle to find out

Detroit News: Diver, France fight state over right to salvage historic vessel in Lake Michigan

Steve Libert went looking for buried treasure but may have found something nearly as valuable -- history.

He stumbled upon what he believes is the most important archeological find in Michigan history, the 330-year-old Griffon shipwreck. The long-sought vessel sailed by famed French explorer La Salle was one of the first ships to cross the Great Lakes.

But like Robert La Salle, another star-crossed adventurer who searched for one thing but found another, Libert's quest has encountered turbulent waters.

He's fighting Michigan over the right to salvage the shipwreck's watery grave in northern Lake Michigan. France joined the fray Jan. 30 by staking claim to the site.

The sea skirmish carries heavy repercussions in Michigan, which borders four Great Lakes and has more coastline, 3,165 miles, than any state but Alaska. A federal law that gives Michigan ownership of 1,500 shipwrecks in state waters discourages entrepreneurs from discovering the vessels and their rich history, divers said.

"This is one of the most sought-after ships in the world," Libert said. "The state should be working with us, not against us."

The Griffon shows the folly of the federal rule, said divers.

If it wasn't for Libert, the prized ship would have remained buried under three centuries of sand, silt and history, they said.

Its possible discovery could open a long-shuttered hatch to the earliest days of the European settlers, helping researchers learn what the times and people were like by providing a snapshot of the era.
Federal law defended

But state officials defend the federal law, saying it allows Michigan to protect the shipwrecks from being plundered by profiteers. "They shouldn't be plucked for profit," said Matt Frendewey, a spokesman for the Michigan Attorney General's Office. "They should be protected so future generations can enjoy them."

Never mind that without Libert, no one would even know it was there to be protected.

. . .
Despite its modest attributes, the importance of the Griffon was shown by the discovery of another La Salle ship off the coast of Texas in 1995.

The Belle, which sank seven years after the Griffon, yielded a rich bounty, a million artifacts that allow researchers to reach across 300 years of history.

Among the items: skeletal remains, brass Jesuit rings, wooden lice combs, three-pronged forks, an unbroken wine bottle, three bronze cannons with the crest of King Louis XIV.

"The Griffon is the jewel of the shipwreck search community," said Wayne Lusardi, Michigan's maritime archaeologist. "Many people have been looking for it many years."

Finding the Holy Grail of shipwrecks was hardly on Libert's mind when he began scuba diving 30 years ago.

An intelligence analyst with the Navy, the 55-year-old resident of Herndon, Va., near Washington, once searched for wrecks of ships that carried gold.

Always intrigued by the long-lost Griffon, he began reading the journals of a La Salle associate and believed the ship had foundered somewhere off the coast of Escanaba in the Upper Peninsula.

Diving near Escanaba in 2001, Libert was swimming through water so murky that visibility was 3 inches.

Nearly 100 feet below the surface, he bumped into a wooden pole protruding from the lake bottom.

"I had my hands out, like I was walking in the dark, when suddenly I hit this thing," he said. "I couldn't figure out what it was."

He now believes the mussel-covered timber is the bow tip of the Griffon.

He retrieved a thumb-sized sliver of the wood and conducted a carbon-dating test, which showed a 33 percent chance that it came from the 17th century.
Dispute drags on

When Libert tried to win the right to salvage the Griffon, he ignited a turf battle with Michigan that has been as tempestuous as any Lake Superior gale. The state says federal law gives it ownership over shipwrecks in its waters.

Libert said international law awards possession to the owner, which would be France because the ship sailed on behalf of the French crown. He has France's permission to salvage the site.

During a four-year legal battle in federal court, a judge has tried to get Libert and Michigan to work together on identifying the ship.

But working together is the last thing on their minds.

Libert surrendered the wood sliver to Michigan only after the state threatened to obtain a federal warrant against him. He told the state the location of the wreck only after being ordered to do so by the federal judge.

As for Michigan, it threatened to charge Libert with a crime if he extracted any more material from the wreckage.

State has doubts

After examining the site in October, the state said it found only the wooden pole and doubts the Griffon is there.

If they doubt it is really there, then what claim can they make to prevent Libert from exploring the site?

During the fight, Libert has enlisted a growing number of allies, including France, the city of Charlevoix and the Field Museum in Chicago.

"I'm at the point where I'm now on the attack," he said. "I won't sit back anymore."

Good luck to Liebert, it's hard fighting against an organization with unlimited resources but with luck he will have found the historic Griffon. Assuming it is the Griffon, Liebert will have made history with this find.

Obama asks the Islamic World to unclench its fist....

and gets bitch-slapped for his trouble.

Breitbart.com: Iran says Obama's offer to talk shows US failure

US President Barack Obama's offer to talk to Iran shows that America's policy of "domination" has failed, the government spokesman said on Saturday.

"This request means Western ideology has become passive, that capitalist thought and the system of domination have failed," Gholam Hossein Elham was quoted as saying by the Mehr news agency.

"Negotiation is secondary, the main issue is that there is no way but for (the United States) to change," he added.

After nearly three decades of severed ties, Obama said shortly after taking office this month that he is willing to extend a diplomatic hand to Tehran if the Islamic republic is ready to "unclench its fist".

In response, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad launched a fresh tirade against the United States, demanding an apology for its "crimes" against Iran and saying he expected "deep and fundamental" change from Obama.

Iranian politicians frequently refer to the US administration as the "global arrogance", "domineering power" and "Great Satan".

That's gonna leave a mark.

Now they bring up the question.....

The Detroit Free Press: Will Chicago politics taint the White House?

No serious mention of this before the election in our fine Detroit Free Press.

Heck the article even begins:

Now that Barack Obama has been sworn in as our 44th president, one has to ask how much Windy City politics will influence our new chief executive.

Welcome to the party pal, too bad it took you so long to arrive.

And Speaking of Road Infrastructure

Michigan is not keeping up with snow clearance on the roads this winter.

The Detroit News Editorial: Find more money to keep roads safe

Cutting municipal budgets is a necessity when revenue declines. But public safety shouldn't be put at risk as a result. That's what's happening this winter -- the harshest in recent years -- as counties in Michigan trim back plowing and salting roads to save money.

This has been an unusually cold and snowy winter. The National Weather Service says Metro Detroit has already seen 45 inches of snow, almost double the normal 25 inches, and it's not even February.

So it's understandable that commutes are more challenging. But the tougher road conditions have not been matched with an increase in snow plows and salt.

No kidding. Our street, while a tertiary one, has rarely seen a plow come by (we've lucked out that at the botton of the hill, we have a guy who has a truck come plow his driveway and the truck makes a one-way lane all the way down the road as he goes. As a result you'll see clean driveways but a good layer of ice and snow still on the road, so much so that you have to go to the bottom of the hill and make a running start to get off the street unless you have four wheel drive.

But that could be understood, it sucks but we can deal with it.

The problem is the more major roads in Oakland and Wayne and Macomb Counties that I've traveled on are still slick and snowy - including Telegraph and Woodward as well as the parallel mile roads that make getting around quite hazardous.

Snow removal and road safety is a core government function, if they can't do that well, its a major problem. It's not as if they don't know that it snows here in Michigan in the winter with regularity, and that we get slick and icy roads as a result.

Indeed its a transfer of spending, and a false saving by cutting back on this service. Instead of the government having to keep up keeping the roads clean with the costs it entails, drivers have costs to pay in lost time, car damage and even injury.

Omnibus Stimulus Democratus Constituentus

When you look at the Obama stimulus plan, touted to cure the current national economic ills, it seems less an economic stimulus and more a handout for every possible Democrat constituency and power group, not to mention bailing out states, the Democrat run ones getting the most money, for balancing their budgets after they've overspent.

At Read The Stimulus.org, you can see for yourself the sausage from which laws are made. There's enough pork in this particular sausage for every Democrat and a few "tax cuts" thrown in to try and woo Republicans.

For all the cries of urgency, only about 20% of the monies planned to be spent in the bill would actually be outlayed in 2009. In other words, its not about stimulus its about apportioning the spoils of an election won amongst Democrat supporters and readying them for the next round of elections.

The bill is less a stimulus than a wish-list for just about every Democrat program imaginable and while it will certainly put the Democrats in the position of constantly doling out the most largess to keep in power, it won't help the economy, will likely make it worse by inflation and the starving of capital from the private sector as the public sector becomes awash in funds. Heck, only a small amount is even going to repair roads and infrastructure.

On the upside this may finally teach Republicans that they really can't spend like Democrats do, no matter how much they try, and hopefully they'll get back to being the party for smaller, less intrusive but effective government.

A Trial Victory for the Good Guys

It's nice to know you're on the side of right when you walk into a courtroom to settle a dispute at trial.

We represented elderly parents who sold their son their house, keeping a life estate for themselves. Of course they didn't have a lawyer draw it up, the son, a financial planner did, and the contract only vaguely lays out the terms.

You can guess what happened right?

The son after a while gets greedy, wants the property right away and has them sign a deed under interesting circumstances, a deed that doesn't mention the life estate.

The son then kicks his parents out of the house, and claims there never was a life estate.

Thankfully, the son was quite greedy and didn't want to pay more taxes on the property so before he kicked them out, but after he gets the deed, he files a Michigan tax exemption after he gets the deed, claiming his parents are co-owners so the property is exempt and didn't transfer so it shouldn't uncap and have a property tax increase.

He then writes a few letters to the Treasury when they question the exemption and states in it that they do have a life estate. He then claims he was just told to say this to avoid taxes and it doesn't really mean it is true. Anyone out there buy that claim?

The Judge didn't buy that either.

We (the partner and myself on the file) got the house back for the parents for them to have as their life estate, putting them where they should be under the terms of the sale. It was a very happy moment for them and it felt good to win it, I can tell you that.

A cautionary note: whenever serious money or property is involved in a deal, even among family members, its best that you spend a few dollars on having a lawyer review the deal and make sure your intent is fully spelled out in the contract. This saves a lot of grief and serious attorney fees later. Everything may be great when you start the deal, but serious money can bring serious complications and risks.

New Revisions to Michigan's Concealed Pistol Laws

Some new changes have now been implemented to Michigan's statutes regarding the carrying of concealed firearms by the law abiding.

First a change that will affect very few (as reported in the Lansing State Journal: Mich. judges get weapons leeway under new law

Judges in Michigan who have concealed carry permits may now carry their pistols into the zones that are pistol-free zones such as schools, stadiums, hospitals, daycare centers, entertainment facilities that seat more than 2500 people, and bars (at least these are pistol-free from law abiding citizens).

I can understand the rationale, as Judges often deal with criminals who may wish to get back at them, and the criminals are not exactly respectful of judges and might assault them in such areas or the law regarding firearms in such zones.

The same rationale should apply to all law abiding citizens and these zones should be removed and every law abiding citizen should be permitted to similarly enter such places while carrying firearms without penalty. Indeed, if fear of crime is the problem, change the law to make it a felony with a penalty og up to 5 years in jail for any felon to carry a firearm into those places (in addition to the felon in possession law already in place).

Now for a more far reaching change regarding the registration of handguns: Public Act 194 of 2008 just went into effect. This act changes the registration prcess for pistols, does away with the former end product of registration, the "Safety inspection certificate" and is a bit confusing.

Effective now, when you purchase a firearm without a permit, you will go to your local police and get a 4 part (formerly 3 part) purchase permit.

If you have a Concealed pistol license, you can buy a pistol with your licenses.

After purchase, in both cases, the new revised RI 60 Form (available in .pdf at the link) must be filled out. The seller keeps one copy, the buyer must either personally deliver or mail by regular or certified mail two of the forms back to their local police and keep the third form with the pistol (if carried the form must be with the pistol or still with the pistol if not carried) for 30 days. The law now adds that in order to posses a pistol, it must be registered to you by the above steps, which is a new and burdensome requirement.

This seems like the legislature started to get rid of the burdensome and rather useless registration scheme that has been in effect in Michigan for quite some time, during which it has had no provable deterrent effect on firearms crime. But then, for some reason, the legislature punted and went to a half-way measure rather than eliminating the flawed system in toto.

So we now have a hybrid monster of registration, with a problem of proof that the buyer did return the forms to the local police agency within 10 days of purchase. If the buyer fails to do so, it is a civil infraction with a $250 fine.

Under the old system, the proof you had sent the purchase info back to your local police was the inspection certificate (green card) you got back after bringing the pistol and purchase permit or RI60 to your local police. Now since you can mail by regular mail, or drop the 2 copies of the form in person, proof that you did so may be harder to find, and thus expose law abiding firearms owners to a $250 fine. By adding the requirement that the purchase form must be carried with the pistol for 30 days, it similarly creates a new potential for a pistol buyer to find themselves in violation if they forget to do so.

In addition, the law now adds "motor carrier officers [officers who enforce laws relating to commercial truckers and other motor carriers] and "security personnel employed by the state" in Lansing or Windsor Township, Eaton County, to the definition of peace officers who must be immediately informed the CPL holder is carrying a firearm if stopped by these officers and security personnel.

This new act is hopefully a half-way measure that will be further revised and fixed. As it currently stands, it is not a great improvement in firearms law and neither fixes any real presenting problem nor really corrects some of the existing flaws in Michigan's firearms laws. However, its now the law, so it needs to be carefully followed by the law abiding firearms owners of Michigan.

The Muslim way of War

After Hamas launched Mortars from a school, Israel responded, leading to the school exploding from charges that had been placed there by Hamas, and of course dead children. Little Green Footballs: UN School Used by Terrorists As a Weapons Dump

The use of schools, hospitals and Mosques by Muslims as as weapons stores, firing points and locations for ambushes is nothing new, and not unique to the Arab-Israeli conflict, and indeed goes back centuries.

One of the first recorded uses of a mosque as a weapons dump was in 1687. The Turkish armies, in control of Athens at the time, used the Parthenon, which had been converted into a mosque, as a gunpowder magazine. The Turks were fighting the Venetians, and when a Venetian shell hit the Parthenon, blowing up a good portion of it.

In 1948, Arab snipers shot at Jewish civilians from the minaret of theHassan Bek mosque during the 1948 Israeli War of Independence.

In Iraq, US forces have faced Muslims firing from Mosques, and have seen Mosques used as command posts and weapons storage. of course, whenever US forces fire back or even enter the Mosques, they are condemned for invading sacred Islamic space. See this interesting paper on the subject: At the Horns of the Altar: Just War and Sacred Space in Iraq

As before, Arabs in Gaza have been using Mosques as weapons dumps and firing points, not to mention using hospitals and mosques as command post and of course, schools.

The West, with a military code of honor that eschews using religious, hospital, ambulances, and schools as military fortifications is subject to Muslim cries of outrages destruction of these sites, even as the Muslims fiendishly use them for military purposes, which is in itself a war crime.

Until the western media accurately report the facts, namely that the these buildings were used for military purposes and destroyed in response, and properly attribute the blame upon the Muslims for using them for military purposes, Muslims will continue to fight in this manner, gaining both the utility of the sites, the protection of western hesitation to respond to attacks from such sites, and the beenfit of the western media's blind acceptance and rebroadcasting of the Muslims "outrage" over destruction of these militarily used sites. Indeed, for the media to continue to do so constitutes journalistic malpractice.

Senatorial Race in Minnesota not just within the Margin of error

It's now well within the Margin of Fraud.

As the Minnesota State Canvassing Board hands the election to Democrat Al Franken, the questions over the recounts selective techniques mount up.

In Shameless. Dems Steal Minnesota Senate Seat From Coleman Gateway Pundit points out that as reported in the Wall Street Journal that

more than 25 precincts now have more ballots than voters who signed in to vote...

And its not just a few votes, for example one county precinct alone had 177 more votes than voters.

At that point, with all these irregularities in the recount, replete with found and reinterpreted ballots its fraud. To even consider counting ballots when there are more ballots than voters is ludicrous, and a gift of ACORN of the election to Franken.

Lagniappe's lair also has a good article on this: Dems appear likely to seat "Senator Vote Fraud"

Indeed, regardless of the fraud, the Democrats will brazenly declare Franken the victor and urge everyone to "move on" now the damage has been done.

At this point a new election should be held, with non-Minnesotans acting as monitors and counters. Cheat and win should never be an American election slogan.

Neat find of Gold Coins in Israel

Israeli archaeologists find rare gold coins

This was reported back on December 23, but I'm just seeing it now.

Talk about a find of a lifetime by the volunteer:

Nadine Ross, a British archaeological volunteer, happened onto the coins during the dig just below the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem.

And quite a find it is:

The Israel Antiquities Authority reported a thrilling find Sunday -- the discovery of 264 ancient gold coins in Jerusalem National Park.

The coins were minted during the early 7th century.

"This is one of the largest and most impressive coin hoards ever discovered in Jerusalem -- certainly the largest and most important of its period," said Doron Ben-Ami and Yana Tchekhanovets, who are directing the excavation on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority.

Researchers discovered the coins at the beginning of the eight-day Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, which started at sunset on Sunday.

One of the customs of the holiday is to give "gelt," or coins, to children, and the archaeologists are referring to the find as "Hanukkah money."

The coins are of the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius

From the description, the coins are gold solidi (singular solidus) and probably look like this:
A great historical discovery, a find of a hidden hoard of wealth secreted away over a thousand years ago.

Interesting Archaeological find in Germany

A Roman-Germanic Battlefield has been found.

CNN: German battlefield yields Roman surprises

Its not the site of the battle where the Germans in the time of Augustus when in 9 C.E. they defeated P. Quinctilius Varus and destroyed three Roman legions, but a later battle, in the third century C.E.

Archaeologists have found more than 600 relics from a huge battle between a Roman army and Barbarians in the third century, long after historians believed Rome had given up control of northern Germany.
"We have to write our history books new, because what we thought was that the activities of the Romans ended at nine or 10 (years) after Christ," said Lutz Stratmann, science minister for the German state of Lower Saxony. "Now we know that it must be 200 or 250 after that."

For weeks, archeologist Petra Loenne and her team have been searching this area with metal detectors, pulling hundreds of ancient Roman weapons out of the ground. They paint a picture of a highly organized, technologically superior Roman army beset by Germanic tribes in a forest about 80 km (50 miles) south of the modern city of Hanover.

The hillside battlefield was discovered by relic-hunters illegally searching for souvenirs of more recent wars near the town of Kalefeld-Oldenrode. One of them brought some of the items he found to Loenne, who works for the local government.

The artifacts are so well preserved that the scientists can already retrace some of the battle lines. Video Watch how the battlefield discovery could re-write history »

"We believe the Germans ambushed the Romans here, but the legions quickly fired back with catapults and archers -- and then it came to a massive man-on-man onslaught," Loenne said.

The items unearthed so far include an axe, still sharp after nearly 1,800 years; horseshoes; shovels; spearheads; and dozens of arrowheads for a Scorpio, a cross between a catapult and a crossbow -- the ancient equivalent of artillery.

Coins were also found, from the reign of the Roman Emperor Commodus (161-192 C.E.), which aids in identifying the time period of the battle. The coins, coupled with the Roman armor and weaponry they are recovering should help give a good estimate as to when the battle was fought.

A very interesting find, and as the archaerlogist quoted in the CNN article notes, one that will revise our knowledge of the extent and influence of the Roman Empire in the third century.

Israeli Defense Forces soldiers enter Gaza 2

IDF is entering the Gaza strip with at least three brigades, cutting it in half and isolating Gaza city.

Detroit News:

Israeli ground troops and tanks cut swaths through the Gaza Strip early Sunday, bisecting the coastal territory and surrounding its biggest city as the new phase of a devastating offensive against Hamas gained momentum.

Thousands of soldiers in three brigade-size formations pushed into Gaza after nightfall Saturday, beginning a long-awaited ground offensive after a week of intense aerial bombardment. Black smoke billowed over Gaza City at first light and bursts of machine gun fire rang out. ... An armored force south of Gaza City penetrated as deep as the abandoned settlement of Netzarim, which Israel left along with other Israeli communities when it pulled out of Gaza in 2005, both military officials and Palestinian witnesses said.

That move effectively cut off Gaza City, the territory's largest population center with about 400,000 people, from the rest of the territory to the south.

The offensive focused on northern Gaza, where most of the rockets are fired into Israel, but at least one incursion was reported in the southern part of the strip. Hamas uses smuggling tunnels along the southern border with Egypt to bring in weapons.

And of course our local useful idiots and islamists are busy protesting:
Mideast conflict troubles Metro Detroiters

Palestinians in Metro Detroit have held a series of protests this week, including one at Maple and Orchard Lake in West Bloomfield that drew more than 200 people by mid-afternoon Saturday.

"Everybody deserves to live, whoever they are," said David Salha of Dearborn as he watched his 9-year-old daughter Hannan hold up a protest sign Saturday. "What (Israel) is doing is not justified."

Don Greenspon, a 58-year-old Huntington Woods man who said he is Jewish and a supporter of Jewish Voice for Peace in Detroit (The leading band of Jewish useful idiots in the area), said he does not support Israel's advance into Gaza. He attended Saturday's rally.

"I think what Israel is doing is completely wrong," he said.

"I am not for the rocket attacks into Israel (by Hamas). But I think the response is disproportionate."

Anyone ever ask these fools what a proportionate response would look like? Perhaps an MLRS full pod rocket dump for every Hamas missile fired? Methinks it would cause far more Gazan casualties, but at least it would be proportionate right?

Israeli Defense Forces soldiers enter Gaza

From Yahoo News: Israeli ground forces enter Gaza in escalation

Israel's military says ground forces are crossing the Gaza border in an escalation of Israel's week-old offensive against the territory's militant Hamas rulers.

Israeli TV channels are broadcasting images of troops marching into Gaza after nightfall. The military confirmed a ground operation was under way.

Defense officials say around 10,000 soldiers have massed along the border in recent days.

Given that Israel will not be able to stop the rocket attacks by air power alone, it was inevitable that a ground incursion would occur if any real peace was to occur. Otherwise, Hamas would claim victory by simply existing and maintaining its ability to fire rockets at Israeli civilians and the cynical "cycle of violence" so beloved of the the west's moral equivalent crowds would continue.

Israel also needs to quit phoning in warnings to targets that the buildings they are in are about to get hit. Bombing an empty building, while sending a message, isn't nearly as effective as killing the terrorists as they reside there.

The phone calls and the uncredible providing of humanitarian aid by UIsrael to gaza while the fighting continues (has any other side in a conflict done this -- supplied food and medical and other supplies to their enemies while in the midst of battle -ever?)have failed to win Israel the European Union / Leftist stamp of approval, but that was unlikely to occur in any case.

Israel has a limited opportunity to strike hard and decisively before a cease-fire is forced upon it to save Hamas. Here's to hoping the IDF makes good use of the limited time they have to strike hard enough so that Hamas knows its beaten and to restore the IDF's deterrent effect that has been badly weakened these past few years.

Iraqi Spies Caught in US now how about Iran's?

The Detroit News reports on a group of Michigan Iraqi's that are being tried for passing on intelligence and spying for Iraq.

Among the accused spies is one who worked for the US Military as an Arabic translator:

Issam George Hamama, 58, a former Sterling Heights resident who lives in California, worked as an Iraqi translator for the U.S. military until the indictment against him was unsealed in November.

Hamama allegedly wrote a letter about 1991 to an Iraqi cabinet minister, offering to work to counteract Iraqi traitors in the U.S. From that date, Hamama met periodically with representatives of the Iraqi Intelligence Service and received periodic payments for providing information about anti-Saddam individuals and groups inside the United States, the indictment alleges.

Hamama's Washington, D.C., attorney, Haytham Faraj, said Hamama has received "multiple accolades" from military commanders for his work as a civilian translator. "We are confident that the evidence will vindicate Mr. Hamama as the honorable, patriotic, loyal American that he is," Faraj said.

Sure, did he get the acolades after it was revealed he was a spy or before? I'm sure people thought Walker and Aldrick Ames were great Americans too until the truth came out.

It's good the FBI caught these iraqi spies, but they found them only from documents found after the downfall of Saddam, and thus after their active use by the Iraqis.

One hopes they are being more diligent with Hizballah, Hamas and Iranian spies and agents of influence that are active here and now.

Another fun tidbit from the article:

Muthanna Al-Hanooti, 49, a former official of the Southfield-based Muslim charity Life for Relief and Development, was indicted on conspiracy and other charges in March. He is accused of working with Iraqi intelligence officials to get the U.S. to lift economic sanctions and organizing a trip to Iraq by former U.S. Rep. David Bonior and other congressmen that was secretly funded by the Iraqi Intelligence Service. He is from Dearborn Heights.

A little digging shows this was the trip the three Democrat Congressmen: McDermott (D-Seattle-Useful idiot), David Bonior (D-used to be Michigan, Useful Idiot) and Mike Thompson (D-California-Useful idiot took to Iraq, paid for by a "concerned Iraqi" - and the Iraqi intelligence service.

Ware on the way out?

As I blogged before on Jewel Ware, the Wayne County Councilwoman (Democrat - of course)who is under investigation for having felons on the payroll, and for paying them for work performed for her husband, not the County.

Apparently she's packing up her office as Chair of the commission. No if she'll actually resign from the Commission itself or follow the standard Wayne county fashion of denial, obfuscation, race-card playing and delays until the end is an assured conclusion.

From the Detroit News

The chair, who is elected by the commission to serve a two-year term, is one of the most visible elected officials in the county, overseeing a $2.2 billion budget and setting policy on everything from parks to mental health initiatives. Commissioners make about $68,676, but receive an extra $12,000 as chair and an office about the size of Executive Robert Ficano's.

Ware cleaned out that office over the holidays, staffers confirmed.

Tuesday's vote on the commission's chair follows last month's release of a 79-page report by Auditor General Willie Mayo, who faulted Ware for to keep tabs on the commission's $9.4 million payroll and 72 employees.

The report found that Ware's bookkeeping was so sloppy that Mayo couldn't conclusively prove accusations involving no-show employees. But he wrote that he could find no paperwork that showed ex-convicts who worked for free at Morton's Motel in Idlewild did any work for the county. One of them, although listed as a central staffer, was rarely in the office, the report found.

In a letter to colleagues, Ware denied most of the accusations and blamed the controversy on "Anonymous Robin Hood," whose unsigned letter detailing the accusations sparked the investigation from the auditor, FBI, State Police and agents for the state attorney general.

Ware disputed other claims in the report, including her use of a county car for 27 days and its characterization of the work by onetime county employee Kwasi Akwamu, whom Ware said deserved his $83,000 salary. Akwamu, an ex-convict, did time with Ware's husband, Jesse Long-Bey, who owns Morton's Motel and went to prison for manslaughter. He no longer works for the county.

My prediction: She gives up the Chair, keeps a low profile for a bit but keeps right on going on the Wayne County Commission or moves to another public office.

Brady Campaign "Grading" fails to match reality

As if we didn't know that already.

But the stark comparison of reality to the Brady Campaign's deranged grading system (where less gun control, rather than less crime is the negative grading criteria) is beautifully reported at Of Arms and the Law:

The Brady Campaign ranks North Dakota 44th out of 50 States, with only 4 of 100 possible points.

Just in time for the North Dakota Attorney General to announce that in 2008 the State had ZERO gun homicides. And only two homicides at all, both stabbings.

Apparently impressively low gun homicide rates get you a failing grade from the Brady Campaign.

Impressive example of gun banner phobias failing to reflect reality. If you read their state law criteria the deceptive description of each of their standards is quite an impressive example of propaganda and the misuse of language.

New Year's Eve - Happy New Year to You

So its 7pm, Dec 31, 2008, 5 hours until the New Year.

The kids are freshly bathed, in their New Year's dresses and excited to receive their New Year presents. New Year is a big holiday for us and its a very good time.

The feast has been well prepared by Natasha and her Mom, visiting here for the holidays.

So we'll have our traditional New Year's Feast, declare New Year to take place at 10 pm for the kids, watch 2009 come into town at midnight with the kids tucked in their beds. A quite family friendly night, that's for us.

2008 has brought quite a number of changes and challenges - political, economic and familial. All in all it was a good year, could have been better but no use complaining, and it could have been worse so no worries.

So happy New Year to you and yours and may it be a peaceful and successful one for you. May 2009 be better than 2008.

IDF Gaza Operations footage on YouTube

You can see footage of Gaza operations on the Israeli Defense Forces YouTube channel.

Good stuff.

Go get 'em IDF, good luck, and may God bless you all and may you send the terrorists to their just desserts.

Also, its not too late to make a donation to the Friends of the IDF and do some good and get a charitable deduction on your taxes for 2008!

The eye almost has it

I visited the doctor this morning before work and there's some decent improvement - the eye is seeing normally again. On the downside there's a bit a scaring he wants to treat but it looks like the infection is gone and the corneal tear is healing pretty well.

It still feels like there's a bump on the eye but that will hopefully go away with further treatment.

At least I'm down to only taking 1 drop three times a day rather than three different drops.

On with the end of 2008....

Some Mideast Irony

Sometimes the irony that is the instanity of the islamist Middle East just writes itself: Suicide bomber hits anti-Israel protest in Iraq

Typically its the suicide bombers attacking Israelis. Failing to be sucessful in that, now that Israel has a security fence and is activly preventing these terorrists from reaching civillians and taking military action against Hamas in Gaza, they atttack their fellow arabs in Iraq no less, while they are protesting and condemning Israel.

One civilian was killed and 16 were wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up when he rode his bicycle into the middle of an anti-Israeli demonstration in the city," local police Major Wael Rasheed told AFP.

Talk about your ironic target selection.

Snow does stop the mail

The US Postal Service:

Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds

In Michigan, not so much.

Snow stops 'em from delivering mail quite nicely.

On Friday, as I blogged before, we had a wicked storm with blowing winds and dumping over a foot of snow. No mail delivered to my street that day and I have no complaints, I wasn't about to go out in that either.

Saturday our street wasn't plowed...but the day was clear - no mail.

Monday our street wasn't plowed...but the day was clear - no mail.

We went to the Post Office and picked up some mail and were told that until the Oakland County Road Commission plows the mail does not get through.

Ok our street does have the hill from hell, and as they don't plow it, it gets a nice sheet of ice and you need to take a running start from the end of the street to get to the top and onto the main road unless you have 4 wheel drive, but what about the mail must go through?

Can the mail person get out of the vehicle at the top of the road and deliver it on foot?

Nope, as the post office related its a vehicle route they by rule will not get out to do deliveries and until the RCOC plows its no mail.

Sure enough there was no mail. There was also no plowing.

Finally nature intervened with this lovely snow melt and mild temperatures, melting the road ice sheet and lo, there was mail delivery again, and it was good.

But a cherished myth of Post Office dependability and reliability is sadly dashed however. Snow does stop the mail.

My new CZ 82

The CZ vz 82 Pistol:





I just received this from SOG Inc as a Curio and Relic. In my humble opinion, its the best value in curio and relic firearms at this time.

Designed in Czechoslovakia by the famous Ceska Zbrojovka (CZ) company to be the military sidearm in 9mm Makarov caliber for the Czech army to replace the CZ52, its a very impressive firearm.

It has a 12 round double-stack magazine, double action / single action operation with ambidextrous safety and magazine release and truly excellent three-dot fixed sights for a military firearm. The trigger pull is nice and smooth in both double and single action. It is one of the first pistols fielded with a polygonal rifling barrel - making it seem to almost be smoothbore at first glance as there are no traditional lands and grooves visible. It is a blowback firearm, with a fixed barrel that gives impressive accuracy.

It is easy to field strip and clean, following the Walther PP and Makarov take down procedure - make sure its empty, pull down on the trigger guard, pull the slide all the way back, lift the rear and gently slide the slide off the frame. Remove the spring from the barrel and there you have it. Easy to clean and reassembly takes place in reverse order.

Here's a video of Czech troops demonstrating field stripping the CZ vz 82:


Size wise, it has a 3.8" barrel, is all metal, weighing 28 ounces. It is small enough to disappear in a front jeans pocket, even with the double stack grip. It is very ergonomic and comfortable.

Accuracy was very good indeed hitting coffee cans with aplomb out to 50 yards in low light while holding a surefire light. No failures to function, just a nice smooth trigger and it went bang every time.

With it being in 9x18 Makarov, with a decent hollowpoint like Hornady's XTP, I'd have no problem carrying it as a nice compact Concealed Carry firearm.

Mine has the standard Czech military black paint baked on finish. It has some definite character wear - some scratches, some wear points on the grip but mechanically is perfect making it a very nice addition to my collection. Mine has a stamp indicating it was made in 1985 and has a Czech military acceptance stamp - a nice piece of Cold War Eastern European history.

The pistol came with 2 12 round magazines, a lanyard loop, cleaning rod and a huge ambidextrous holster that holds the pistol, spare magazine, cleaning rod and lanyard in a very clever design - great for military use, useless for CCW as its real big.

In short this is a can't miss purchase for the Curio and Relic FFL holder.

It is also a decent affordable choice for a self defense CCW pistol for those on a budget who can shoot well. 9mm makarov ammo is readily available, relatively inexpensive and effective in capable hands, and the CZ 82, with its negligible recoil, excellent ergonomics, capacity and accuracy make it a perfect platform for the cartridge.

I'd highly recommend the CZ vz. 82.

Update 1/24/09 I had an opportunity to take the vz.82 pistol out to an indoor pistol range and shoot it at some targets in decent lighting conditions.

Feeding was flawless, including firing 25 rounds of the Hornady XTP hollowpoints. Accuracy was ridiculously good, tearing the X out of a target at 7 yards in a very tight group. No real recoil allowed for very quick shot-to-shot times. Over 225 rounds through it and not a single problem. To say that I'm pleased and impressed with this purchase would be an understatement.

Trials, tribulations, and a real boring dark room

There's a reason I haven't been blogging.

Last Thursday, I began a trial couple hours away in Port Huron. It turned into a 16 hour day with 2 hours of travel to and from, and a return to the office at night to get some prep done before returning to trial expected to begin on Friday morning.

A snowstorm was predicted for Friday morning.

So Thursday night I get the car ready, make sure all the fluids are at the right levels, get the car packed with all the trial stuff, and go to bed with a slight eye ache. I suppose its just eye strain from a long day and long drive in darkness to and from the trial.

I get up around 5, shower, down a quick breakfast and get the Jeep out and hit the road.

Its already snowing - heavily. No lane markers remain visible, everything is a nice sheet of white and its still coming down. The eye hurts some more.

I press on, getting to the highway in 4 wheel drive. The snow gets worse, speed is down to about 30, visibility 10 feet and dropping. Its not getting better.

I keep on going but the visibility keeps dropping, cars are skidding wildly, some already in the ditches. In the time so far I've gotten just about a third of the way, less than what it normally takes to get half the way there.

Time to reconsider.

I call the partner on the file and let him know the score, he's on a different highway heading there and wants to press on. Since the conditions and visibility are nearing zero I decide I'm done spinning for the day, let the partner know that I'm not willing to get in a wreck for the client as that will not help anyone, and try to reach the opposing counsel, after a while I reach him and we agree to adjourn because we're all in near zero viz.

I call the court and leave a message and then begin the adventure in returning home. The snow is blowing so badly I can't even see the highway off ramps, I finally make one and get home in an hour, using the caution sharp curve yellow signs to let me know I'm still on the road.

I get home, talk with the court who finally gets in around 9:30 and they're happy to cancel as the Court is closing at 11:30 due to the bad weather so its just as well we didn't try to keep making it there - we would have been stuck there with no trial to be had. We schedule a new date and go from there.

Oh yeah, the eye is now hurting quite a bit. I take out contacts, put some drops in and get on with working from home as I'm done driving for the day and the street is totally snowed in and the snow keeps blowing making any thought of getting out ridiculous.

Still no eye relief, I keep the drops flowing, try a cool compress, ice and even finally advil with no relief.

Finally Saturday morning I'm almost doubled over in pain with the sensation of red-hot needle being shoved in my eye- "Honey, it's time to visit the emergency room - NOW."

So we drive over, with the road not yet plowed in my trusty jeep, get to the ER with almost no waiting, and I'm in a fair bit of pain.

They do some more checks, I'm sure my vision is fine but when they check it the eye isn't seeing much at all - this begins to be worrisome.

They look at the eye with the equipment and some dye and find out I've got a torn cornea. They figure it happened while I was photocopying Thursday night- some toner or staple fragment got under the contact lens and my eye was so strained I didn't feel it as it tore the cornea.

The doc then gives me one drop of tetracaine in the eye - lovely stuff, it numbs the pain and makes it a bearable ache in the eye rather than a constant stabbing pain. But then the doc tells me it will only last a half hour and he won't give me more as it could make it worse - I consider grabbing the eye drop bottle that is just in arm's reach and making a run for it but better sense prevails.

The doc prescribes an antibiotic drop, says to take Advil regularly and keep the eye shut in the dark, no reading, no tv, no computer, no nothing and to get an appointment with an ophthalmologist immediately.

So I stay in a dark room, dealing with the aches by popping Advil and taking the antibiotic drops on schedule for all of Saturday and Sunday, bored beyond belief, but catching up on my sleep and listening to a book on CD when I'm awake.

On Monday I go to the eye doctor and he confirms the situation, gives me another drop to take and wants me back on Tuesday - no reading, tv, computer, driving nothing. Obviously, work is out of the question - a lawyer that can't read, drive or use a computer is not a lot of help around the office. I do some work over the phone.

On Tuesday I go back and the eye seems to be responding well, he prescribes another drop that I should start to take in three days as due to the holidays he won't be in, and off I go. Now he tells me I can keep the eye open but no reading, computer, but I can see TV if my eye is up to it in small amounts, and then slowly add reading and computer over time.

So now its Sunday and I've been able to do a little TV watching, a little computer and a little reading, all with breaks and the eye is a lot better vision wise. A lousy thing to happen over the holidays but I'm getting through it and it seems to be healing up decently, i'm off the Advil and just doing the drops.

Its still achy, I've got lots of stuff to do piling up at work and another eye doc appointment tomorrow. Got lots to blog about including a visit from Lagniappe and his keeper, finding out that snow WILL stop the mail, and other goodies, but it will have to wait as I need to take a break after typing all this.

When the shoe's off the other foot

Yes we've all seen the video of an Arab reporter cursing President Bush and throwing his shoes at him (and missing from 15 feet away).

Throwing a shoe at someone is considered a grand insult in the Arab world, apparently even sitting with the soles of your shoes facing another can be taken as insulting.

This of course makes this shoe throwing coward with bad aim a hero in the Arab world.

Very typical. The Iraqis were shamed because when the Americans came and liberated them from Saddam Hussein it happened so quickly and easily, - the Arabs couldn't do it themselves.

They certainly wouldn't have thrown shoes at Saddam - they would have been fed feet-first into a plastic shredder by Saddam's minions. Heck they even beat Saddam's statues with shoes once he had been removed from power.

This "brave" reporter's act was an act of weakness and pathetic, not to mention lousy aim.

Now once the real threat of death is gone for making a political statement and Iraqis are free to vote for their own leaders, now this guy decides to be brave.

Sort of like a bully that only picks a fight when he knows his opponent will not fight back.

His fellow Arabs and the leftists here (see the lovely lefties' comments online to the Detroit Free Press report of the story) think he's all that now.

Everyone else calls him a coward, and with bad aim at that.

Don't try this at home or on the range - a 9 is not the same as a 9.

Shooting for a Darwin award:

He's darn lucky the pistol didn't a) blow apart into pieces ripping his hand into shreds and/or b) send the slide flying off the frame, ripping back toward him at high velocity.

It's a testament to the design strength and quality of the Hungarian FEG PA-63 pistol that he got away with it that time, the next time he may be far less lucky.

Here's why there's a major problem with this clip, and why you should never do this:

The 9x18 and 9x19 are completely different cartridges

The 9x18 Makarov is designed to work in blowback pistols, ie the action is kept shut by the weight of the slide and spring until the pressure drives it open.

The 9x19 (otherwise called the 9mm Luger, 9mm parabellum, or 9mm NATO) is designed to work in recoil operated firearms, where the action is locked together until fired when at a certain point under recoil the parts unlock and separate with the slide moving backwards to eject the case and reload the barrel.

So why is this a problem?
Simple -- it's the pressure difference.

The pressure the 9x18 Makarov generates when fired is about 23,200 psi.
The pressure the 9x19 Luger generates when fired is about 35,000 psi.

The PA-63 is a blowback pistol designed for the 9x18 Makarov, it is not designed to take the pressure from a 9x19 Luger, a cartridge designed to be used in recoil operated firearms.

You'll notice the action when this fellow loads the pistol with the 9x19 does not even fully close, leaving the brass exposed. This is known as firing a gun out of battery and it is a great way to blow the pistol up, likely inflicting serious injury on the hand holding it as well. When the bullet does not properly fit, it's a signal that it's time to quit.

There are lots of 9mm cartridges out there, and while they often sound alike, they are not interchangeable. (Yes the Soviets did design the 9x18 Makarov pistol to fire the 9x17 aka .380 ACP in exigent circumstances, but its not going to be very accurate, and the 9x17 is a lower pressure cartridge than the 9x18, and just because it can doesn't mean you should, the Soviets have a much lower value assigned to their troops than you hopefully assign to yourself). 9x17, 9x18, 9x19, 9x21, 9x23 are all different with very different operating pressures and even bullet sizes. Do not interchange them and do not put a high pressure round in a pistol designed for low pressure blowback operation.

Never force a cartridge into a firearm's chamber. Use only the same caliber the gun is designed for (and marked for on the slide). If it doesn't fit it's time to quit. If brass is still showing when the cartridge is loaded something is wrong - stop, do not squeeze the trigger, unload and figure out why its not working properly, the hand you save will be your own.

This has got to be embarrasing

US anti-kidnapping expert kidnapped in Mexico

"I'm not just the president of the firm, I'm also a client."

Seriously though, kidnapping in Mexico is getting way out of hand, and probably isn't going to help their image for tourism any. Hopefully, Mr. Batista will be released safe and unharmed.

Time for Detroit Township?

As Detroit continues to decline in size, more and more of the city is becoming "de-urbanized".

As reported in the Detroit Free Press: Acres of barren blocks offer chance to reinvent Detroit

Detroit, where the population peaked at 2 million in the early 1950s, is home to about 900,000 today and is still losing people. The depopulation and demolition of abandoned properties has left the city dotted with thousands of vacant parcels, ranging from single home lots to open fields of many acres.

The article then on to give suggestions from "experts" of turning these current wastelands into urban farms (as long as they're not corporate of course), parks etc.

Instead how about some real vision?

These areas, or large contiguous areas, should be removed from the purview of the Detroit City Council and Mayor's office and turned over to a Detroit Township, an entity separate from the City to be created and start over.

This would get rid of the in-built corruption that has brought about this desolation, remove the crippling city income and high property taxes that affect these properties and make a chance to start fresh with new leaders, new residents, new businesses, and new ideas.

Otherwise Detroit will be left with this unused wasteland while the current leadership dithers. The City of Detroit created this problem, and they're not going to fix it, so its time to take the abandoned areas away and start over.

Time for Fair Tax in Michigan?

Right Michigan has a very interesting article on the Michigan Fair Tax proposal.

The proposal is to end the current State income tax of 4% and take the state sale tax of 6% and raise it to 9.75%. It also gets rid of the business income tax, which would make the state more attractive for business and of course, jobs. On the downside, it continues to let cities levy income taxes.

A good feature is it requires a majority vote of the citizenry to increase or add any other tax. I'd prefer requiring a super-majority but its at least a good limit.

A nice summary from the proponents of the Fair Tax Proposal can be read at their website.

From my review of the proposal language so far it seems like a tax proposal that would be a real win for Michigan to adopt. Certainly in this economic situation that Michigan finds itself in, bold tax reform would be a good start to get on the road to recovery.

Obamas' plan to save the economy - improve government energy efficiency

Obama also said he wants to install energy-saving light bulbs and replace old heating systems in federal buildings to cut costs and create jobs.

So I guess know we'll finally be able to answer that age old question -

How many Democrats does it take to screw in a light bulb?

Hackel - A Democrat that I could happily endorse for Governor

Hackel mulls run for Governor
As a demonstration that this blog is not all Republican all the time, I indeed would heartily endorse The Sheriff of Macomb County, Mark Hackel, if he chose to run for Governor of this State in 2010.

He's a different kind of Democrat from the run of the mill sort, Macomb Democrats typically are.

I can say that he would make a great governor - he has true integrity, smarts, excellent presence, leadership and administrative skills and would not be a dogmatic sort but a practical and effective leader. He's done a great job as the head of the Macomb County Sheriff's Office and has proven he can assemble a very capable staff and handle a very demanding executive position.

Given Michigan's recent electoral history of putting Democrats in the governor's seat (not to mention the legislature, presidential and Senatorial races etc), Sheriff Hackel would be the best one for the job.

One Wayne County Commissioner's Hiring Practice - Why Wait

Until someone has been charged with a felony and remove them from office?

Instead hire them with felony records at public expense.

Ware defends felony hires as filling need

Wayne County Commission Chairwoman Jewel Ware is speaking out and standing behind her controversial practice of giving former felons a second chance on the taxpayers' dime.

At least they come ready to work while in office right?

Ware has carte blanche on hiring staffers for the panel. Since becoming commission chairwoman in 2004, Ware has hired seven people who are convicted felons, records provided to The Detroit News show. None still work for the commission or her staff.

Most did not cause problems, but others were a thorn in Ware's side, including one staffer whose contract was not renewed after allegations arose of missing checks from the commissioner,.

An interesting list of those she hired is on the Detroit News' webpage - charges range from larceny - an important qualification to have before taking public office, to multiple appointments for violent offenders including those convicted of 2nd degree murder, assault with intent to murder and other similar charges.

Of course there is likely more to the story since the article reports that

Ware said Terrance Dortch and Kwasi Akwamu -- the central figures in the controversy, who also spent time in jail with her husband -- are being singled out for unfair treatment.

It goes on that these two are the center of an audit investigation -

Ware faces ,an auditor general probe of claims that Dortch and Akwamu were no-show employees who collected county salaries to work for her husband, Jesse Long-Bey, at his resort in Idlewild in northern Michigan. The investigation -- which will scrutinize payroll records of the commission's 72 staffers -- emerged after an anonymous letter was widely circulated that included the claims.

Ware denies wrongdoing, saying some workers pitched in at the resort, Morton's Motel, on their own time.

Apparently you don't need to be a felon to work in Wayne County (The County where Detroit is located), but it helps. Humorously enough, her platform page at the Wayne County website still says

The Commission also pledges to support Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick on the city's new neighborhood re-development program.

It goes on to say:

Wayne County will build on its many stregnths (sic), including its oustanding transportation network, its tremendous diversity and its strong work ethic.

This looks good for Kwame, since he is now a convicted felon (with a strong work ethic), he can probably sign on to get a job with Ware and the County Commission once he's out.

Oh, we can also play name that party, because nowhere in the article does it mention that she is a Democrat, but you probably guessed that by now.

Good on the US Dept of the Interior - CCW to be OK in National Parks

In a parting gift from the Bush Administration, after long foot dragging, the Department of the Interior has passed a regulation that concealed carry is allowed in a national park as long as the surrounding state permits such carry and if you're from out of state, recognizes your carry permit. Its not in effect yet but should be effective shortly.

In a very well written Final Rule, the Department lays out the scope of the rule and rationale for it. While not perfect its certainly much better than the status quo and a major benefit to law abiding firearms owners and indeed to all visitors to such parks who will benefit from the positive externality of law abiding citizens being able to carry concealed firearms to deter criminal attack.

Well done.

Those Bratz were up to no good

Judge bars MGA from making, selling Bratz dolls

The Bratz dolls, the bane of every girl child's parents who seek to prevent them from getting on the road to inappropriate wear and behavior are going down, or at least being put in a time out:

By GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The rowdy Bratz dolls have been evicted. Barbie has regained control of the dollhouse.

Toy giant Mattel Inc., after a four-year legal dispute with MGA Entertainment Inc., touted its win in the case Wednesday after a federal judge banned MGA from making and selling its pouty-lipped and hugely popular Bratz dolls.

"It's a pretty sweeping victory," Mattel attorney Michael Zeller said. "They have no right to use Bratz for any goods or services at all."

U.S. District Judge Stephen Larson rocked the toy industry with his order that MGA must immediately stop manufacturing Bratz. He allowed MGA to wait until the holiday season ends to remove the toys from store shelves.

The decision was a stunning defeat for MGA, which exploded onto the tween scene in 2001 with the edgy dolls and made hundreds of millions in profits, giving Mattel's more classic doll-diva Barbie a run for her money.

The ruling, issued in federal court in Riverside, followed a jury's finding that Bratz designer Carter Bryant developed the concept for the dolls while working for Mattel.

The same jury later awarded Mattel $10 million for copyright infringement and $90 million for breach of contract after a lengthy trial stemming from Mattel's 2004 lawsuit ended in August.
. . .
Mattel has fought to neutralize the Bratz line for years. The dolls - with their huge lips, pug noses, almond-shaped eyes and coquettish figures - were an instant hit with young girls. MGA had taken Bryant's original four dolls and spun out a line of more than 40 characters, complete with accessories and related toys such as Bratz Boyz, Bratz Petz and Baby Bratz.

Coquettish - meaning "A woman who makes teasing sexual or romantic overtures; a flirt."

Yep, that's just what you want preschool and gradeschool girls to be exposed to as a norm for dress and behavior. No thanks, we'll stick to the princess and doctor/professional/smart and appropriately dressed Barbie lines thank you very much.

Mind you, I'm still waiting for CCW Barbie accessorized with a Glock, Sig, or PPK that all the best dressed, self-confident, and safe women are carrying these days.

While not CCW Barbie, Scott of Providentia Blog passes along some law enforcement Barbie pics:

With security like this no wonder the Somali Pirates are having a field day

Once, Britannia ruled the waves, now British security gets rolled into the waves.

Somali pirates hijack ship, British guards escape

Somali pirates hijacked a chemical tanker with dozens of Indian crew members Friday and a helicopter rescued three British security guards who had jumped into the sea,

The British security for this chemical tanker was of course unarmed.

The company said it was aware of the incident on the chemical tanker it identified as M/V BISCAGLIA.

"We have been informed by coalition military authorities that three of our unarmed security staff were rescued from the water by a coalition helicopter and are currently on board a coalition warship in the Gulf of Aden," the company statement said.

Unarmed in pirated infested waters. That unarmed security certainly helped didn't it, must have been quite the deterrent effect eh?

What happened did they say "Stop or I'll say stop again?" and the Pirates responded by saying "Jump?".

Happy Thanksgiving

I had a great Thanksgiving.

We had some friends over and Natasha made a wonderful feast. We're still dealing with a few days worth of leftovers but I was restrained and didn't eat myself into a stupor.

We do have much to be thankful for. Even with the economy in this state continuing to amaze us all by continually finding new lows, I've still got a job, we've got a (massively depreciating) roof over our heads, food on the table, two healthy happy kids and a good bunch of friends. Many people have much less and the majority of the world would be thrilled to have the opportunities we have living here and now.

Dive #103 Into the Cold and Dark we go

Yesterday the few, the brave, the foolhardy showed up at Union Lake at 6:45 for a dive.

Rob G and myself, everyone else didn't show. So it was up to us.

The Dive:
Bottom Time: 46 minutes
Water Temperature: 45 degrees
Visibility was 20 plus feet.

It was dark with only our lights for illumination.

Lots of big fish were hanging around the sunken boats, including some that decided divers were not a problem as they held their ground and would wait until you almost touched them before moving away.

There was also some very large crayfish, including one on the bottom of one of the boats that looked almost as big as a lobster. We declined to catch any lakefood and instead just navigated from boat to boat and swam forth enjoying ourselves.

Rob repaired a few of the lines that are strung underwater marking the diver navigation routes and I practiced my back kick and buoyancy, both of which keep on improving.

By the end of the dive we were both on the decidedly cold side so after we got out we went to the Library Pub for coffee with a fortifying shot of Jameson's Irish Whiskey. A good way to end a good dive.

A Worthy Cause - Michigan Friends of the IDF

On Monday the 17th, after work I volunteered at the Michigan Friends of the Israel Defense Forces fundraiser dinner.

I worked on registration, checking off and making sure the people showing up at the event were actually supposed to be there.

The event was a huge success - over 700 people showed up to participate and money was raised for the cause.

MFIDF raises funds for medical, educational and recreational needs of Israel's soldiers, providing them with essential downtime and care during their fight in the everpresent war that Israel finds itself in with the Arabs.

The honored guest was A Alfred Taubman - a very successful Jewish businessman here in Michigan, who not only was a pilot in the US Air Force in World War 2 but has done a great deal for philanthropy both here in the United States and Israel, and his honors are well deserved.

There were quite a number of very distinguished guests in attendance from Israel including:

-The second Israeli female combat fighter pilot, Lieutenant N. (Israel does not reveal Air Force officer's names and I'm not about to do so here). She is the second operational female fighter pilot and flies an F-16, aged 24 (I now feel old). In case you're wondering she had to do the same qualifiers as males to get her wings, including the famous 120 km solo land navigation escape and evasion exercise. I'm quite sure that any arab fighter jock that goes up against her will get the shock of his life. How embarrassing it will be for them to get shot down by a woman, and a Jewish one at that.

- A captain in Sayeret Matkal, arguably Israel's best spec ops unit, Captain Y. (Israel does not reveal Special Operator' s names and you guessed it I'm not about to do so here). the Captain told us about his traingin, a bit about the Unit and a brief description of the non-classified part of an operation he took place in during the second Lebanon war - ie went in to Hezballah land, accomplished the mission, was ambushed on the way to the extraction point, fought their way out and made it back.

With soldiers like these Israel is in good hands, and its good for us to help them as they're on the frontlines not just for Israel but for the West against the Islamic threat.

So I heartily endorse the organization as they are very good at getting the funds to where its needed not spending on excessive overhead and the money really makes a difference.

You can click this donation link to make a donation to the Friends of the israel Defense Forces, and I am certainly doing so. (I will post about another worthy charity to which I'm donating this year shortly).

I don't condone this but I really, really, understand.

Man Shoots Girlfriend’s Computer After Installing Windows Vista

Friday night in Columbia South Carolina, ex-law enforcement officer Ray Jackson lost his temper while trying to repair his girlfriend’s computer.
...
After installing Windows Vista on the girlfriend’s 2 year old computer Jackson was trying to get some of her older programs to work with the new operating system. “He couldn’t get anything to work like it was supposed to”, said girlfriend Wanda White. “He just kept screaming at it and smacking the side of the computer”.
...
White had heard enough cursing from her boyfriend and went next door to her friend’s apartment. After about 20 minutes White and her friend heard gun shots from the apartment where Jackson was working. ..... When she opened the door there sat Jackson with his pistol in his hand. He had just shot the computer 5 times and missed once. The miss had gone into the neighbors apartment and the bullet was lodged into their refrigerator.

He's not the only one:
Man Shoots Computer in Somerset County, NJ
Man Shoots Computer in Issaquah, Washington
Man Shoots Laptop in Lafayette, Colorado

I'm certainly considering it, but even as it would be extremely cathartic, it would void the warranty pretty seriously.

But for all of you considering the same (and I know there's a lot of you out there) remember this:

1. Have a safe backstop (i.e. one that bullets cannot travel through like a concrete or brick wall). You are 100% responsible for where those bullets may end up, and they can pass through a computer and on to who knows where. Remember your enemy is the computer not some innocent bystander on the other side of a thin interior wall somewhere. Don't miss and be careful, Mr. Ricochet is not your friend.

2. It is much, much, better and safer for all concerned to do this at a shooting range, and there's less chance of you being arrested for firing a gun in city limits, reckless endangerment, or whatever other charge police can come up with to lock you up until you calm down.

3. Make sure it is your computer you are shooting, respect other's malfunctioning frustrating and worthless computer property.

4. The Lafayette shooter, in hanging the shot-up computer over the bar as a trophy had a stroke of pure genius, for that artistry alone the judge should let him off.

5. Save yourself the headache and don't get Vista (hard to do as they preload it on everything but its worth avoiding the trouble).

As you can guess, this gorram HP Vista 64 computer is still not working. Even after 4 destructive rebuilds it still will without warning fail to boot as it finds some kind of conflict, then it does a system restore and removes whatever programs I've installed and remains unstable.

I now know about half the technical support people in India, and I've finally made it to level two technical support after rebuilding this piece of crap 4 times.

Make no mistake, the Indian techs are very nice and they do try to be helpful, and for the average problem I'm sure they're fine, but they start out on script and it takes about 20 minutes each for them to read the service ticket case notes and for me to explain what is in the note and that I've been through this already. I've done 4 destructive rebuilds including rebuilding off completely new discs they shipped to me, and the problem still keeps recurring. I'm now an expert at rebuilding a Vista computer and getting it to the point that it will crash with elan. Funnily enough when i ask if they have an XP image that is compatible with this computer they say installing X on it would void the warranty -- Ha!.

I've now spent untold hours messing with this thing. I'm now trying to decide whether to return it to Costco completely or just ship the desktop box to HP and let them try redoing it. The problem of course is Costco no longer offers this same package with the nice big monitor and good hardware configuration it came with at this price (its been about 60 days of me messing around with tech support trying to get this to work) I have 30 days left to return it to Costco. And of course both Dell and HP and all other Costco computer vendors ship all their machines with Vista, and their better machines with Vista 64, so if its not some hardware conflict I'll probably see this again. Spit.

Given the amount of troubleshooting and rebuilding, I'm seriously considering wasting more time and money and just building a computer from scratch. At least I'll be troubleshooting my own mistakes rather than Vista and HPs. When I spend extra and buy a computer from a manufacturer I do expect it to work and be stable, not to be a beta tester and constantly rebuilding the operating system.

I thought under Obama the waters were supposed to stop rising

With Obama, hopes for Great Lakes rise

Yeah, cheap shot at a badly written headline, but appropos.

Mind you all the expectations people have for Obama are getting to be quite something: heal the planet, stop the rise of the oceans, clean the great lakes, save the economy, make straw without bricks, make energy and gasoline without coal or oil, pay his workers for their campaign work, for every child a new pony.

The letdown amongst the Obamaniacs when he can't deliver nirvana is going to be quite the spectacle.

With Obama having Economic Advisors like these no wonder the stock market is dropping like a rock

Obama to meet with economic advisers today in Chicago

the composition of the Transition Economic Advisory Board also was announced, including not only Granholm and Bonior, long an ally of organized labor, but investment whiz Warren Buffett, a former Fed chairman and two former treasury secretaries.

The group is set to meet today in Chicago with a news conference to follow.

Among those attending: former Treasury Secretaries Lawrence Summers and Robert Rubin, former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, former Commerce Secretary Bill Daley and, from the business world, Buffett, Google chairman Eric Schmidt and the heads of Xerox, Hyatt and Time Warner.

Granholm? Granholm? A Governor of a state that is leading the way in a recession, that had a one-state recession long before the rest of the country decided to join the party is who you want on your economic advisory board? A Governor who raises taxes in the midst of a state in recession, that leads the nation in unemployment and foreclosure -- that's who you want in your brain trust.

Given her dealing with the recession in our state was by raising taxes and otherwise governing ineffectively and going on jaunts overseas, the mind boggles as to the advice she will be giving to Obama.

Hold on America as it looks like your about to experience Pure Michigan. Granholm was right in five years you really will be "blown away".

You will not be thanking us for sharing, really.

Oh joy, Old Europe loves us again

Suddenly, it may be cool to be an American again
Wow we're back to having the adoration of old Europe.

....But my best friend and training partner — who is French — just gave me his stamp of approval.

"Will you wear your Stars and Stripes shirt now? You're allowed!" he told me.

Don't expect this love fest to last. As soon as America acts in any way in its own interest, or contrary to old European interests (old meaning Poland and the rest of eastern Europe is probably not very happy right now), the deal is off.

So the One Won, now what?

Do we take the high road and congratulate the Democrats on their historic victory?

Do we respond with vitriol in the same manner they did when Bush won in 2000 and again in 2004?

Let's stick to the high road. Yes the Democrats won, regardless of if it was fair and square or if a goodly portion of it was bought and frauded for its done, now we have to deal with it.

Interestingly, the victory itself is a damning indictment of the left's belief that America is a thoroughly racist country - after all the majority voted for a black man to the highest post in the land. That is no small thing and a good sign that in America anyone can truly make it to the top and we're still the land of opportunity.

Let's stick to the high road, but with vigilance, no need to follow the Democrats down the derangement syndrome road. I'm quite sure that Fox News, unlike CBS will not run footage of the president speaking with the caption "Snipers Wanted'. Nor should it, we're not as crazy as the Democrats and a good thing to -- there were riots predicted if Obama lost - McCain lost and we all went to sleep, not into the streets. This is as it should be.

Certainly Republicans should take time to regroup and rethink but should not roll over. Expect President Obama to come out of the gate swinging towards the bleachers in left field and be ready to stop or at least hold the Hope and Change Steam roller to a base hit rather than a home run. Be a loyal opposition, but loyal opposition does not mean be a bunch of cowed spineless jellyfish.

The Democrats showed the way and turn about is fair play - filibuster in the Senate early and often, use the ideological test for judicial appointments, dissent is still the highest form of patriotism right? Holler loudly what effect each poisonous proposal is going to have on the economy and the government and get the message out any way it can. Fight to contain the damage as much as possible, and put the blame where it belongs.

Don't give up, and strengthen the Republican bench and message for the 2010 and 2012. Quit putting up Bob Dole clones or media selected favorites (The media loved McCain in the primary but had no trouble turning on him in an instant once he won -- too old, temper etc right? funny how none of that was raised by the media in the primaries) and acting like Democrat party lite -- it doesn't work.

Have a clear and positive message how the Republicans can be and are better for America, show how free market economics are the right prescription for the problems we face not this overegulation and misregulation and corporatism that caused this mess and quit campaigning with one hand tied behind your back out of some mistaken belief in the marquess of queensbury rules when you opponent disregards all rules in a quest to win. Give voters a cohesive program to vote for and be proactive not reactive.

It is not over, it is just the beginning of new challenges and new chances. The country will survive 4 or even 8 years of Obama and hoepfully become the wiser for it. The left now has to govern rather than complain and they have no excuse if they make a hash of it anymore. The right has a chance to rebuild, move forward and regain its principles.

May these challenges we are about to face lead to a stronger and better America.

Reported Vote Fraud in Pontiac

Details are sketchy but Right Michigan is reporting on voter fraud occurring in Pontiac, Michigan -- an Obama stronghold. Hijinks include excluding Republican poll watches from the polls and mixing provisional ballots in with regular ballots - making any audit or fraud investigation impossible.

Combine this with intimidation by Black Panthers against non-Obama voters in Philadelphia and other frauds elsewhwere and this could be the high-tide (or the standard to be set for the future) of Democrat election fraud, where they put it all on the line to win. After all if you can't win fairly then cheat your way to victory as the ends justifies the means right?