Thousands of drug offenders will return to the old neighborhood early

What is Obama smoking? asks WSJ commentator. Would you want your neighborhood terrorized this way? Leftists think they do blacks (50% of the victims) a favor by releases black prisoners. Fewer policemen, more ex-cons--now that's not a good equation for black neighborhoods.

John Edwards charged with using campaign money to hide affair

. . . I was a creep, "but I did not break the law." Oh, come on John. How can anyone believe you about anything? You lied to your wife, your staff, your mistress, your children, your volunteers, to the American people. And to think you thought you could be the President of the United States. Your narcissism and delusion exceeds that of our current President.

John Edwards charged with using campaign money to hide affair | World news | The Guardian

A bad apple

This morning when I sliced the gorgeous, shiny red Braeburn apple for my breakfast, it turned out to be brown on the inside. No indication when I looked it over at the store and put it in the bag. Kind of like Rob Bell, a popular Christian preacher in the "emerging" tradition.

When you open up his teaching/
preaching/ books, the latest being "Love Wins" you'll find the shiny red part, i.e. God is love, in great shape and quite attractive. However, everything else--theology, church history, exegesis, eschatology, Christology, and Jesus is . . . well, brown and tasteless, with a slight whiff of mold--going back to at least 19th century universalism, and maybe to various heresies over 2,000 years.

If you are in an emergent church, head for the nearest exit, regardless of how friendly the congregation or engaging the pastor. They are playground Christians, and it's the historic meaning of words they are playing with.

See Kevin DeYoung's review of this book--it's excellent and thorough written with tough love. Also, be sure to read the nearly thousand comments: an engaging, popular preacher [Bell] also wins--people don't want the truth of Scripture. But as DeYoung notes, "The emerging church is not an evangelistic strategy. It is the last rung for evangelicals falling off the ladder into liberalism or unbelief."

Dumb and dumber jogger

A lady jogger appeared from nowhere crossing McCoy Road in Upper Arlington (35 mph, 4 lanes) in front of me. I braked. Thinking she must be heading for the sidewalk, I watched in the mirror, but she continued to run against traffic in the street--pushing a one-seat jogging stroller with 2 children, a toddler and an infant. With the canopy down, she can't even see the kids. If you jog, concentrate on the jogging; if you're watching children, do that. Don't multitask at the risk of your children's lives, or causing an accident crossing busy streets.

I wonder if it was the same gal, but with more clothes on? Same neighborhood, same coloring, similar build.

What becomes of electronic waste?

Today I control more electronic gadgets in a day in my own house than what I would do in a year in 1977 when I returned to work in a high tech computerized library at a university of 50,000. Three digital cameras (there's a 4th in a drawer), a video camera, 3 scanners, 2 printers, 2 computers (a 3rd not connected), 2 email accounts, a phone/fax, a cable network, a wireless network, a copier (2 if you count the one in the scanner), 12 blogs with the information stored off-site, Facebook account, 3 cd players, DVD player and VCR, 6 or more remotes, microwave, various digital clocks that blink and flip if the power goes off, an i-pod, 2 cell phones one with a camera, and 3 cordless phones one with an answering machine. We have 6 TVs (4 cable connected, 2 with antennas). We also have 6 radios in the house, but the one with batteries which would be useful in a storm I can't find. In 1977 we had one TV and one telephone and maybe 2 radios. If we had batteries, they were in the car or flashlight.

In 1957, the year I graduated from high school, my parents had electric clocks with moving hands, maybe 3 radios, but no TV, or AC or even an electric fan in the house. Only children rode bicycles. The U.S. mail was delivered twice a day by mailmen who walked, we received 2 newspapers at the door, and one local weekly, plus numerous magazine subscriptions. Thirty five or 55 years ago, the American family had a much smaller footprint, even with a car that only got 11 miles/gallon, but I don't know very many greenies who would give up their computers, cell phones, or cameras. Do you?

Our kitchen clock when I was growing up.



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Your home is shelter, not a retirement nest egg or a bank or a tax shelter

"Since the housing market began to turn in 2007, Washington has tried to keep prices from falling with every policy gimmick known to politics: Foreclosure mitigation, more guarantees from the FHA, higher guarantee thresholds from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Fed purchase of mortgage assets, and the $8,000 home buyer's tax credit promoted by the White House and Georgia Republican Senator Johnny Isakson.

Their main result, other than subsidizing some Americans at the expense of others, has been to sustain the housing recession over a longer period of time. The price decline would have been sharper without them, but the recovery would have happened sooner." Review & Outlook, WSJ, June 2, 2011

Investigators Track Osama bin Laden's Couriers

Interesting verbs in this article: channels of inquiry; probe; detained for questioning; pursue connections; under scrutiny. If you had to be interrogated about terrorist connections with the couriers for bin Laden, Abrar and Ibrahim Said Ahmad (killed in the raid), which would be more harsh, the Pakistanis or the Americans?

Investigators Track Osama bin Laden's Couriers - WSJ.com

Chicken Littleism: More Weather Deaths?

The warmist mongerers are at it again. They claim deaths from weather caused by fossil fuels are on the increase. Really?

The annual number of deaths caused by tornadoes, floods and hurricanes, of course, varies. For example, the number of persons killed by these weather events in 1972 was 703 while the number killed in 1988 was 72. But amid this variance is a clear trend: The number of weather-related fatalities, especially since 1980, has dropped dramatically.

For the 30-year span of 1980-2009, the average annual number of Americans killed by tornadoes, floods and hurricanes was 194—fully one-third fewer deaths each year than during the 1940-1979 period. The average annual number of deaths for the years 1980-2009 falls even further, to 160 from 194, if we exclude the deaths attributed to Hurricane Katrina, most of which were caused by a levee that breached on the day after the storm struck land.

This decline in the absolute number of deaths caused by tornadoes, floods and hurricanes is even more impressive considering that the population of the United States more than doubled over these years—to 308 million in 2010 from 132 million in 1940.

And I guess death from heat exhaustion in the summer from lack of electricity for fans and AC or pneumonia and colds in the winter from lack of heat don't count.

Donald Boudreaux: More Weather Deaths? Wanna Bet? - WSJ.com

Duke University Lacrosse players rape case redux

Usually, I don't cite Wikipedia, but this case has so many links and details, it's the only reasonable thing to do. The Duke University Lacrosse players rape charges by a stripper, Crystal Magnum.

If ever there has been a gender/race/class case where educated, informed liberals, both academics and journalists, behaved this badly, I've missed it. Anyway, Crystal Magnum continued to get in trouble with men, and now is behind bars for murder, having stabbed her boyfriend in April, and he died a few weeks later. Before that she had been in jail for arson. And I don't think the Gang of 88, the Duke Faculty who sign and published a letter against the team, ever recanted or apologized. That's racism run amok.

There are probably people who continue to pay the high tuition costs of Duke, but if I were a parent, I wouldn't even consider letting my child step foot on the campus. The behavior of Duke's faculty, those tenured hoodlums, is the flip side of lynching in the days of Jim Crow, and white men just aren't safe in that atmosphere.

45 Seconds: Memoirs of an ER Doctor from May 22, 2011

A doctor on duty when the tornado hit the hospital in Joplin describes his experience of treating patients with no pain meds, no electricity, no equipment and leaking methane.

"“Like a bomb went off” — That’s the only way that I can describe what we saw next. Patients were coming into the ED in droves. It was absolute, utter chaos. They were limping, bleeding, crying, terrified, with debris and glass sticking out of them, just thankful to be alive. The floor was covered with about 3 inches of water. There was no power, not even backup generators, rendering it completely dark and eerie in the ED. The frightening aroma of methane gas leaking from the broken gas lines permeated the air — we knew, but did not dare mention aloud, what that meant. I redoubled my pace."

45 Seconds: Memoirs of an ER Doctor from May 22, 2011 « The Central Line

Preparing for summer

Most of my on-line subscriptions come to my OSU mail box, which doesn't have a very large cache. Since I can't always get to it in the summer through webmail, last night I went in an began "unsubscribing." I must have cleaned out 15-20 things that appear with some regularity. Some I don't remember subscribing to--I think they must have sent out cookies if I visited their sites. Hopefully, this will help with the crush.

What Lake Erie looks like on my morning walk in the summer.

Weiner Fights to Control Lewd Photo Scandal

I don't care for Weiner at all--his attacks on Glenn Beck were just silly. However, I don't think he's stupid enough to send a photo of his arousal (or a stock photo of one) to a college co-ed through his Twitter account, and if making that mistake, would make the keystroke mistake also and send it to all his followers. These hackings are not impossible to track down, and in the meanwhile, I'll just say it couldn't happen to a more deserving creep.

Dem Weiner Fights to Control Lewd Photo Scandal

Will they survive?

When these flowers were planted I think it was about 50 degrees (on Saturday) and we were running the furnace. Then on Sunday we had 2 hours of thunderstorm warnings and strong wind. On Monday the temperatures soared into the 90s. I hope they can survive our no-Spring Spring.

"Scooping up the useful idiots"-- or "free Palestine"

Too bad if you missed Glenn Beck this evening. He had some great video of a Socialist/Communist speaking at a conference explaining why they were joining forces with Muslim radicals. Why slogans about pushing Israel into the sea were useful, but they believe they will in the end come out the winners in the struggle for the globe--not the Muslims (good luck on that one). They will use the Muslims to defeat capitalism, and then when that is achieved, dump on them. But even Glenn admits he missed the Palestinian flag appearing in all the various riots that have been occurring from Greece to Scotland to Egypt this Spring (he then showed the photos, and there they were, hiding in plain sight). That is the one rallying cry, the socialist explained with a smile. This is how we will defeat capitalism.

Yes, this is what sucks in the western liberals. Such tender, foolish hearts. Especially church types. Oh my, how they weep for Palestine. What fools. Useful idiots, opined Glenn, being scooped up by the Marxists.

Sports Illustrated investigation on Jim Tressel, Ohio State

Not a flattering story. This is apparently what prompted OSU to dump Jim Tressel, and why it appeared on a holiday. The magazine was coming out late on the 30th.

Sports Illustrated investigation on Jim Tressel, Ohio State - SI.com - Magazine

How Lutherans define God--from the Augsburg Confession (1530)

"Our Churches, with common consent, do teach that the decree of the Council of Nicaea concerning the Unity of the Divine Essence and concerning the Three Persons, is true and to be believed without any doubting; that is to say, there is one Divine Essence which is called and which is God: eternal, without body, without parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness, the Maker and Preserver of all things, visible and invisible; and yet there are three Persons, of the same essence and power, who also are coeternal, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. And the term "person" they use as the Fathers have used it, to signify, not a part or quality in another, but that which subsists of itself.

They condemn all heresies which have sprung up against this article, as the Manichaeans, who assumed two principles, one Good and the other Evil: also the Valentinians, Arians, Eunomians (extreme Arians), Mohammedans (Muslims), and all such. They condemn also the Samosatenes, old and new, who, contending that there is but one Person, sophistically and impiously argue that the Word and the Holy Ghost are not distinct Persons, but that "Word" signifies a spoken word, and "Spirit" signifies motion created in things." Book of Concord, (1959, translated from German)

The Roman Catholic Church and all orthodox groups of Christians accept this without qualification, although if you really investigate today's seminaries, the teaching of Jesus as a separate created being lingers in academe and there are priests and pastors alike who are playing word games, speaking with forked tongues and crossed fingers.

The Augsburg Confession's teaching of the Trinity has been held throughout all the generations of the Church. But after this point, Christians start to diverge. And if there is a sect today that gains popularity and is considered heretical by other Christians, this statement is usually the problem.

There's a reason the church needs creeds and confessions; error and heresies just keep repeating themselves in each generation. Arianism, whether lite or extreme, is an attack on the diety of Christ, and that along with Gnosticism (attack on his humanity) seem to be at the root of most of today's false teachings. Either way--whether you're marketing the church's message of good works and personal growth ala Rick Warren type stuff never mentioning the saving work of Christ or you're caught up in DiVinci Code type speculation and titillation, you're just repeating the old problems foretold in the New Testament, particularly Jude. The early church fathers had today's emergent/emerging church trends in their sites.

Although Lutherans and Catholics link arms in many areas of politics, social justice, abortion, euthanasia, prison ministry, health issues, disaster relief and care of the poor and homeless, they are as divided today as they were in the 16th century on doctine--grace, faith, justification, the role of (Peter) tradition in the church, the sacraments, indulgences, purgatory, and the role of the priesthood.

Memorial Day--Poppy Day--Monday Memories

The Junior Auxiliary was selling poppies in Forreston, Illinois--probably 1950. My dad was the 13th District Commander of the American Legion, which had a total membership of 6,500 when he was membership chairman, and he was post Commander of Forreston in 1950.

Occasionally the viral messages get it right

This one came through this morning. I don't pass them on usually, but this one was good, whoever wrote it.

As I've aged, I've become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend. . .

I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging. Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM or sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60 - 70's, and if I, at the same time, to weep over a lost love. . . I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.

They, too, will get old. I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

First person, that's our President, all the time

It's all about me
It's all about me (Oh yeah)
Me, myself and I
It's all about me
It's all about me [you know it's all about me]
It's all about me, me, me me me [you know it's all about me]
Everybody knows i'm fly [you know it's all about me]
It's all about me 
Murray sent the follow comparisons of a Bush achievement and an Obama achievement. Something was very wrong with our president's upbringing. Or maybe he was born with a narcissistic personality, and all the training in the world can't undo it?

George W. Bush speech after capture of Saddam:
The success of yesterday's mission is a tribute to our men and women now serving in Iraq. The operation was based on the superb work of intelligence analysts who found the dictator's footprints in a vast country. The operation was carried out with skill and precision by a brave fighting force. Our servicemen and women and our coalition allies have faced many dangers in the hunt for members of the fallen regime, and in their effort to bring hope and freedom to the Iraqi people. Their work continues, and so do the risks. Today, on behalf of the nation, I thank the members of our Armed Forces and I congratulate 'em.

Barack Obama speech after killing of bin Laden:
And so shortly after taking office, I directed Leon Panetta, the director of the CIA, to make the killing or capture of bin Laden the top priority of our war against al Qaeda, even as we continued our broader efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat his network. Then, last August, after years of painstaking work by our intelligence community, I was briefed on a possible lead to bin Laden. It was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground. I met repeatedly with my national security team as we developed more information about the possibility that we had located bin Laden hiding within a compound deep inside of Pakistan. And finally, last week, I determined that we had enough intelligence to take action, and I authorized an operation to get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice. Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan."

Did You Know--New York (the state)

For every American who comes to New York, roughly two depart for other states. Why? Terrible business climate, cost of living, high property taxes. Link.