Somewhere, Somebody is Having Fun

The picture depicted below is about a mile from my front door. It is a wonderful spot, with a restaurant below and open air deck above. I have spent many hours with friends, whiling away a Sunday afternoon out there on the bay. But for our local Puritans, it is simply too much that somebody has a little fun.

Ronnie Boone Jr. must tear down the second-story bar and restaurant he built at the Ocean View Fishing Pier, a judge has ruled.

The ruling, issued late last week in response to a civil suit filed by a neighbor, Sarah Harrison, orders Boone to "dismantle and completely remove the structure."

The offending Hideous Structure.

A Quote, A News Item, and an Excellent Question

"We - with God's help - call on every Muslim who believes in God and wishes to be rewarded to comply with God's order to kill the Americans and plunder their money wherever and whenever they find it. We also call on Muslim ulema, leaders, youths, and soldiers to launch the raid on Satan's U.S. troops and the devil's supporters allying with them, and to displace those who are behind them so that they may learn a lesson."
Osama Bin Laden


"If global warming activist Al Gore has his way, Americans will over the next several years face tougher vehicle emission standards, a freeze on carbon emissions, a moratorium on coal, a ban on incandescent light bulbs, a government requirement that corporations disclose carbon emissions to shareholders, ratification of an international treaty to reverse global warming - and a carbon tax.
[...]

He enjoyed highly respectful treatment from panel members, and at one point Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) told him that he had been right so often, 'you really do look like a prophet.'"
CNS News


"Will those who are dismantling this society from within or those who seek to destroy us from without be the first to achieve their goal? It is too close to call."
Thomas Sowell

Global Warming Nonsense

Oh, the irony is too rich. Frostbite ends Bancroft-Arnesen trek:

A North Pole expedition meant to bring attention to global warming was called off after one of the explorers got frostbite. [...]

Then there was the cold — quite a bit colder, Atwood said, then Bancroft and Arnesen had expected. One night they measured the temperature inside their tent at 58 degrees below zero, and outside temperatures were exceeding 100 below zero at times, Atwood said.

Now we can all sit around and chuckle at these chuckleheads. But if you really want your head to explode, check out this quote:

"They were experiencing temperatures that weren't expected with global warming," Atwood said. "But one of the things we see with global warming is unpredictability."

There you have it folks. Apparently warm temperatures "expected with global warming" are indicative of global warming. But cold temperatures are "unpredictable," which is likewise ... indicative of global warming.

Apparently, there is NO WEATHER EVENT WHATSOEVER that can be used to refute the global warming crowd, which is why they have wisely changed their mantra to "Climate Change." And this rot is being sold to us as "settled science."

Update: Czech President Vaclav Klaus gets it:

Proponents of the environmental ideology were attempting to sell the public on "catastrophic scenarios" that could be used to justify the restoration of statist practices, he said.

"The hypothesis of global warming, and the role of man, is the most powerful embodiment of environmental ideology," Klaus observed. Although the environmental movement invokes science as a way of advancing policy goals, the arguments in favor of catastrophe rest on "ill-founded assumptions," he said.

"Environmentalism is a religion. It does not belong in the natural sciences and is more connected with social science."

Klaus said very few politicians and journalists understand that environmentalism is a political ideology masquerading as a natural science.

At The Doctor's Office

A gorgeous young redhead goes into the doctor's office and said that her body hurt wherever she touched it.

"Impossible!" says the doctor. "Show me."

The redhead took her finger, pushed on her left shoulder, and screamed; then she pushed her elbow, and screamed even more. She pushed her knee and screamed; likewise she pushed her ankle and screamed. Everywhere she touched made her scream.

The doctor said, "You're not really a redhead, are you?"

"Well, no" she admitted, "I'm actually a blonde."

"I thought so," the doctor said. "Your finger is broken."

Hat tip: Natural Blonde Nancy

Cousin Don posted recently about the poor level of discourse displayed by Bill Maher on the left and Ann Coulter on the right. Here is Peggy Noonan's take on it:

What followed was the predictable kabuki in which politically active groups and individuals feigned dismay as opposed to what many of them really felt, which was grim delight. Conservatives said they were chilled by Mr. Maher's comments, but I don't think they were. They were delighted he revealed what they believe is at the heart of modern liberalism, which is hate.

Liberals amused themselves making believe they were chilled by Ms. Coulter's remarks, but they were not. They were delighted she has revealed what they believe is at the heart of modern conservatism, which is hate.

The truth is many liberals were dismayed by Mr. Maher because he made them look bad, and many conservatives were mad at Ms. Coulter for the same reason.

NASCAR Stay Home

So, NASCAR wants to build a new speedway to bring their product to the good citizens of Washington. Check out this letter of opposition:

The "stock" NASCAR racing cars still use the dirty old technology of the 1950s: huge V8 engines with 350 cubic inches of displacement, and suction-operated carburetors. No overhead cams and no turbines are allowed. They apparently prefer to be max-polluters. They blast out something like 750 HP when running around 200 mph, and get about four miles per gallon! Worse yet, the high-octane gasoline they burn is leaded.

I wonder if anyone has checked the air quality around those racetracks on a hot, windless day. No wonder some of their drivers die early of lung cancer and lead poisoning.

The fearless (if not suicidal) drivers tailgate each other horribly and continuously at 150 mph and offer a disgusting role model for the rest of us drivers out on the freeway. No wonder tailgating is such a common offense; the ugly tailgating scenes on the freeways are nothing compared with the NASCAR races. That so many of their cars are wrecked is the only redeeming social value of the event. It might suggest what happens to tailgaters.

And to think: NASCAR is second only to football in popularity! What price Americana?

This is so ridiculous it's almost a parody of what passes for left-wing "thought." Is the author actually suggesting that auto racing should consist of people driving Prius's that burn corn oil, with a two-second following rule? And this is followed by a gratuitous swipe at football for good measure. One wonders what athletic competition would meet with a seal of approval from this clown.

Golf? No, needs too much fertilizer to keep the grass green.
Swimming? Wasting of precious natural resources like water is not tolerable.
Baseball? Leather gloves, horsehide ball. 'Nuff said.
Tennis? Aren't those racquets strung with COW GUTS?

Ann Coulter: The Conservative Madonna?

Is Ann Coulter truly interested in supporting conservatives or is she more interested in lining her own brassiere with Benjamin Franklin's?

Not that the infamously randy Mr. Franklin would mind filling out her bustline, but Ann managed to obscure even her fellow Cornellian Bill Maher's idiotic comments about Vice President Dick Cheney's recent close call with a bomber.

Ann Coulter managed this feat by using the word "faggot" as part of a punchline about Democrat Presidential Primary Candidate John Edwards. Since then, I've seen non-stop coverage of Ms. Coulter's remark and only heard a brief bit about Bill Maher's gaffe on Bill Bennet's radio show. It seems the Mainstream Media believes a homosexual slur tops distasteful remarks about assassination attempts against our Vice-President. Personally, I think both comments are unworthy of the intelligent conversation Mr. Maher and Ms. Coulter could provide.

Both Bill Maher and Ann Coulter managed to create controversy in a very intentional, calculated way where they didn't actually say what the headlines claimed they said. Unlike John Kerry's recent so-called "botched joke" about our soldiers, I don't for a second believe that either of Mr. Maher or Ms. Coulter misspoke or didn't mean to say exactly what they said or even regret what they said.

Both of them wanted to create controversy because the controversy sells.

Ann Coulter may have unbelievable solid and impressive conservative credentials (founder of the Cornell Review, Senate Judiciary Committee employee after the Republicans 1994 takeover of Congress, to name but a few), nowadays she acts more like another blonde with a taste for controversy-- Madonna.

Now if she would only wear that pointed bra outfit next time she's on Bill Maher's HBO show.

No Mas

Between 24, Survivor, Desperate Housewives, and Law & Order, I am at my limit of TV programs I can follow. Beyond my limit, actually. Oh, crap. Then there's Grey's Anatomy. I need a life.