February 27, 2008

Editorial: William F. Buckley Jr. – 1925-2008

Conservatism has lost an icon within its hallowed halls. I am referring to William F. Buckley Jr., who has gone on to his eternal reward. I will readily admit, I did not know about him. However, his regal kind of conservative politics gave rise to a Republican leader that greatly admire, and that is Ronald Reagan.

Yes, I am aware of his outright rejection of the John Birch Society. I can understand this, as there are some elements, to that group, that I also dismiss. However, I will say that I admire the man. He was a defender of his principles. This is more than I can say for many. I know of people, if pressed would fold like a piece of wet cardboard. Whether it be Christianity, politics, or what have you.

William Buckley’s Contribution to the Conservative movement is beyond measure, with his Magazine, the National Review. I read this magazine, in it’s online format, quite a bit. I do not always agree with that which I read. However, it is an interesting magazine to read. It helps me to understand what Conservatives are thinking. As a writer, I like to know what others are thinking and why.

The stream of Conservatism of which he represented, could well serve those up and coming in those ranks. It is too bad that some are instead, drawing from the likes of Coulter, Limbaugh, and those of that ilk.

The game is changing, the old players are leaving us, and the new players are being left to pick up the pieces and move on. I can only hope that those left with that responsibility, have picked up on the good things and repeat them, and will see the failures and learn from them and do things differently.

My most heartfelt and sincere condolences are to be given to his family. It is my hope Mr. Buckley rests in the eternal peace of God. He has, earned that right.

I too sat and watched as Keith Olbermann broke into a rebroadcast of Chris Matthew’s Hardball on MSNBC, to announce an alleged scandal of so-called sexual proportions. The way Keith Olbermann was vaunting, you would have thought that they had exclusive video of John McCain in bed, in the act of having sexual intercourse with someone other than his wife.

However, this was not the case, what you really had was a anonymous sourced New York Times article, which other than some vaguely anonymously sourced cheap political gossip, was a rehash of some of John McCain’s earlier rehashed controversies.

I also noticed tonight that the only networks covering this so-called scandal were, in fact, MSNBC and Fox News. All the while, CNN never reported a thing. [Update: They did however, add something today on their website. -WF] Which leads me to ask the question, is this really all about a media war between the Liberally owned and operated MSNBC and the Conservative Fox News? A war that threatens to ruin the life of a man, who has done more for his country, that most of those idiots at MSNBC and FOX NEWS put together. Is this why Keith Olbermann felt so compelled to throw out the normal news of his show, for a non-story such as this?

I have to wonder aloud, will Keith Olbermann now, in fact, issue another one of his vaunting, over the top, Special Comments, condemning the New York Times for their shoddy, amateurish, Fox News worthy, crap Journalism?

I will not hold my breath; He is too busy kissing up to the Homosexual, Republican rejects over at Media Matters for America, and their moron stepbrother, Daily KOS.

I think if the New York Times would stick to reporting the facts that they know, instead of what some D.C. Gossip hound tells them, they might be able to garner a little support from within the main stream of America.

This also reminds me of why we need a fairness doctrine again in this country, we also need some reforms to the laws governing our media. This would reign in nonsense like this in the Main Stream Media.

In conclusion, let me say this, if MSNBC is looking for ratings and to make nice with people like me, who take politics and news very seriously, they need to stay away from the childish playground gossip such as this.

Crossposted from my Blog: Wayward Fundamentalist Christian

Now this does not surprise me a bit at all...

The Story: Obama Caught Plagiarizing 2006 Speech? (H/T to BigHead DC)

Quote:

Big Head DC has discovered alarming similarities between a speech made by Sen. Barack Obama on February 16 while campaigning for president in Wisconsin and an October 2006 speech made by Deval Patrick, the current Democratic governor of Massachusetts. The coincidences would seem to indicate that Obama copied several lines and linguistic speech patterns from Patrick’s “Just Words” speech for Obama’s own “Words Matter” speech. Indeed, words do matter. And they matter even more when they are one’s own words.

Interesting. Wasn't another famous black leader accused of this as well?

Seems the "Magic Negro" doesn't have a creative bone in his body.

When are people going to wake up and see this guy for what he really is, and that's a inexperienced, snotty nosed, Negro punk, who's trying to ride on the shoulders of Martin Luther King Jr. into the White House.

If Conservatives vote for him, it will be the death of this country. Period. I'm not for Hillary at all, and McCain is a fake too. But this is just too much.

CrossPosted on my Other Blog, Political Byline and Wayward Fundamentalist Christian

Others: The Moderate Voice, USA Today, The Swamp, Lynn Sweet, Weekly Standard, Ben Smith's Blogs, Wonkette, The Trail, Don Surber, TownHall Blog, Hot Air, A Chequer-Board of Nights …, Balloon Juice, Associated Press, MSNBC, Channel '08, American Spectator, TIME, Flopping Aces, Jules Crittenden, Faithful Progressive and The Ruckus and others via Memeorandum

Ladies and Gentleman,

This is a call to action.

The South needs our Help.

See this:

Whilst we're waiting for George's Promised Prayers to roll in, down here in the Tornado-Stricken Mid-South, I might recommend some DIRECT HUMAN INTERACTION.

This Is My Best First Start To Help My Region.

As Scout Prime is to NOLA, I am, suddenly, to the Mid-South area (I LIVE here, and was Live-Blogging these horrible storms all night), and have started to get the help-ball rolling down here. Some of you know where I work. I started a Food Drive there today for the Mid-South United Way Food Bank.

As the area affected is so broad and detached, and everyone in the Country was distracted by politics last night, as yet, there is no central assistance hub set-up. So, at the link, above, you'll find the two agencies with the broadest radius to help the area right now. Both take DIRECT donations.

A small-blog swarm on that post (or this comment) would be greatly appreciated by more people than just me. I can't describe how wide-spread the damage is down here. It's enormous. The Media, per usual, is only just now waking up to the situation, after their Super-Duper-Let's-All-Wet-Our-Pants-Together- Tuesday Political Hangover. Like NOLA, these are REALLY poor folks down here, and have nothing, and nowhere to go.

A short post about this at YOUR Blog, linking either to my post, above, or directly to the two Orgs mentioned in the post above, would sure be a big help, and would be greatly appreciated by many people who are relying on help. They are all that we have right now.

I just donated a deer's worth of ground venison, along with the 100 pounds of rice and quart-sized ziplock bags that they said that they needed at the United Way Mid-South Food Bank, when I phoned them this morning. Their pantry is BARE, and I'll be loading them up with all the potatoes, rice, veggies, bags, and other staples that I can fit in my truck tomorrow.

This is serious Red State country, and a flood of help from the DFH Left would REALLY make a big difference in a number of good ways.

I thank you all in advance.

Click Here for more about what's going on down here. It's all that I am writing about right now. Help is needed.

Your humble peer,

Monkeyfister

I would kindly ask, that everyone that reads this Blog, call or write to the following people:

American Red Cross
Mid-South Chapter
1400 Central Avenue
Memphis, TN 38104
901-726-1690
And:
United Way of the Mid-South phone in a donation at (901) 433-4300.

Let's open our pocketbook and show these people that we as Americans care.

This isn't about Politics, this is about Americans, who have lost it all. Let's show 'em that we really care.

Related Links: American Red Cross, The Newshoggers, New York Times and pygalgia

I feel an uneasy strangeness writing this article. I can almost hear the shovels of pigeonholes, burying me in the sands of typecasting and prejudgment.  It is not a very unfamiliar feeling. I have been prejudged and pigeonholed before, once I was labeled a crypto Nazi for making an offhand comment about a well-known Liberal Senator, who is running for President. Can I help it if that person is of the Negro race?

Another time, I was labeled a bunch of things, that I cannot repeat here, after I made an “over the top” comment about a dead man’s wife. First of all, I didn’t know who she was, second of all, I made this comment after some idiot co-blogger at said place, took a swipe at me. Way I see it; if you cannot take the heat, stay out of the kitchen. If you do not want your dead wife’s name being dragged into a flame war, do not have her name on your Blog and take some responsibility for your Blog’s content.

Needless to say, that scrap did not end well, these same morons hacked my Blog, so much for conservatism eh? This is to say nothing of Conservatives feelings about free speech. However, to be clear, I did apologize to the person repeatedly, I guess it was not good enough for the bloodthirsty phantoms, who wrote me anonymous e-mails threatening to kill my family and me. Yes, I have those saved as well.

I would reprint some of the comments that were left about me on the Blogs, But I would not want to subject the readers of this Blog to the filth and tripe that was written on the Blogs that covered that little uproar in the Blogging community.

Now about this Townhall magazine, I was shocked and slightly amused when I discovered that I had gotten a Townhall magazine, I mean, me of all people! I have written, repeatedly, that I am a “sensible right of center” type of a person. I am a person that feels that neither of these political parties have all the answers. Not to mention the “official” “talking heads” of the party; Hannity, O’Reilly, Limbaugh, Malkin, Coulter and so on, Their contribution has the tastiness of taking a big drink of spoiled milk from a carton.

Now unlike Joseph Farah, who believes that Conservatism has jumped the shark and should be given a proper burial, I believe there is still hope for the Republican Party. What happened to the Republican Party, in my humble opinion, is that the Neo-Conservative mindset hijacked the party. Conservatives desperate for a Reagan type of a leader, pushed the village idiot into the forefront, and ran him on a platform of putting integrity back in the White House. I do not believe that I would be embellishing the truth one bit, if I said that the Conservatives were sold a bag of goods on that little promise. Not to mention our Presidents wild spending on a war that was based upon faulty intelligence. To make up for it, he wants to rob those, of the healthcare that they need, and that is our Nations Elderly. Well, So much for common sense and compassionate conservatism, Mr. President.

Overall the magazine is very well done, glossy photos, nice paper, and good content. Some of the content, I do not agree with. One cannot accuse me of being dishonest. One of the notable things, that I do not like about the magazine, is that the fact that they waste space, by taking potshots at liberals. I mean, just what exactly is the purpose of wasting an entire page, by printing Al Gore’s picture and putting a blatantly insulting byline of “The Wizard of Oslo”? I can understand wanting to refute his doctrine of Global Warming, But why waste a perfectly good page with an picture and an insulting headline, why not just go for an refutation of substance?

I think if the Conservative publications and websites would go more for substance, instead of taking the low road of low brow insults, the rest of main stream America would be inclined to read more. Of course, the Liberal community believes that the Conservative community has no arguments of substance and as a result, is forced to stoop to low brow insults. Personally, I do not agree with this accusation at all. I believe that both sides of the Political aisle have substantive arguments, the problem is, from what I have observed online and in print, the Conservative community seems to not be able to effectively communicate their arguments.  Now before anyone accuses me of being biased, I realize that Liberals do the very same thing, and yes, I think that it is overly stupid as well. Further, I just do not quite understand why Conservatives want to mimic what the Liberals do. Why not be different and take the higher plane?

In conclusion, I think if Townhall Magazine took a step away from the “slash and burn” style of writing, of say, Michelle Malkin and Hotair.com and took more of a professional style of like “The Hill” and possibly CQPolitics.com. They would have a higher mainstream audience.

That, my friends, is how I see it.