Fearmongering

One reason I've nearly stopped paying attention to the mainstream media news is stories like this from CNN.com. It talks about contract negotiations and corporate restructuring by Delphi (maker of GM car parts), but does so in apocalyptic terms:

Delphi announced plans Friday to throw out its union contracts and shed more than 28,000 workers as it shut down most of its U.S. operations -- moves that could spark strikes at the auto parts maker and a possible bankruptcy filing at its biggest customer, General Motors.

Holy smokes! Sounds like a crippling blow to the American economy is coming. Even the headline is doom'n'gloom: "Delphi actions could bankrupt GM."

But of course, regular readers at Half-Bakered know to always read down into the story for the best parts, and here it is:

Even with the union's statement Friday, some experts continued to say they expect Delphi and the unions to reach a deal without a prolonged strike. Bob Schulz, the chief auto debt analyst for rating service Standard & Poor's, said he didn't see the risk of a strike at Delphi or bankruptcy at GM as necessarily any higher Friday than before the filing.

"Resolving the issue probably required starting the clock and filing with the court. It isn't that surprising that they filed the motion," he said Friday. "There are a number of reasons why we think all three parties will reach a consensual agreement. There's a lot of time before the May hearing."

So, we've had the worst case scenario presented to us, when the likelihood is that things will resolve themselves without horror, although a lot of jobs will be lost.

Doesn't seem to stop the story writer though, who plows right on, in the next paragraph:

But if there are prolonged strikes at Delphi, it would halt production at GM, a move that experts say would force the troubled automaker into bankruptcy court itself.

Sigh. And I should pay attention to this crap why?

Where Was the Protest?

An interesting point is made by Robert in Miami about last weekend's illegal immigrant protests and why there were so few in the South Florida area:

Many (not most, but quite a few) of the protesters in the other cities had anti-American signs, chanted anti-American slogans and in an isolated case even burned an American flag. You will be hard-pressed to find an hardcore anti-American immigrant in South Florida.

Good point. From what mainstream media coverage I saw, the protests were carefully scrubbed of their anti-America and reconquista ("re-conquer") elements. Also missing was any talk of the government of Mexico's complicity in the flood of illegals coming into America.

I'm not opposed to immigration. Obviously not, as my mother is a naturalised French-Canadian. My great-grandfather was Irish. I'm proud of both heritages. That's the point, they are heritages, not seeds. I don't want to recreate Quebec or Eire here in America!

I've blogged before that we need two things. First is border control against a flood of people just coming into this country. It's the basic duty of the Federal government, before providing health care and education to illegals. Sure, you're welcome, c'mon in! But if your first act in getting here is to break a law doing so, then I don't want you here. Millions of folks before you did it legally, like my mom; don't dis them.

Second is to briefly throttle back on immigration to allow time for the dominant American culture to assimilate the new folks. Since the Sixties, we've had immigration in numbers -- and percentages -- that far exceed anything from the great 19th / 20th century influx. Look at your history and you'll see the enormous, wrenching problems this country faced then. Then look around you today, and you'll see similar problems today.

We should give America time to do her magic, to make the Mexicans and Central Americans who stream in to become Mexican-Americans. To flavor American culture with their native spices and ways. That's the win-win here.

But what seems clear to me is that a large number, maybe a majority, of illegals have no interest in being or becoming Americans. They are here to transfer some wealth back to family in other countries. There's a dedicated minority who are set on retaking the Southwest and California, setting "right" what went "wrong" in the 19th century's Mexican-American War. Folks like "La Raza" (The Race, or The People), MeCHA and the reconquista flag-wavers.

As to some of the proposals being floated this week in Congress in the wake of those protests, I'm fine with amnesty for illegals provided it's paired with punishment and / or deportation for those who don't take advantage of it. I'd even allow a fairly long period for the amnesty, say two or even three years. It also has to be paired with efforts to roll back bi-lingualism in schools and goverment affairs.

But guest workers? No. It's slapping a happy-face bandage on a deep wound and pretending all is fine. We should send the Living Wage folks into those areas of the economy that are dependent on cheap labor (agriculture and constructions and food service) and turn them loose.

"Guest workers" were brought into Europe during the Sixties and Seventies to help rebuild the countries there by doing the work the "native" population didn't want to do. You can see what happened there. It's what's happening here now, and "guesting" them will only exacerbate those ills. You don't create an underclass and then expect them to acculturate.

I've always been very proud that America is a nation where the only requirement is to stick up your hand and say "I want to join." Native birth or lineage not required. Illegal immigrants from the South aren't sticking up their hands. They aren't joining. They are creating a parallel culture, not commingling with ours. Multiculturalists may bleat about America's many cultures, but they don't want assimilation, they want balkanisation, and we all know where that led.

I'm a Redneck!

I spent the day helping the guys who are opening Fanatic Games (in Bartlett, at the end of Altruria) set up their store today. Great bunch of guys, and they treated us to dinner at Huey's as a thank-you! The top of my head, my forehead, and my neck are all bright red right now. I've just swallowed some Alleve and after I check a couple more things I'm off to bed.

Fanatic Games has their Grand Opening on Saturday! Check 'em out. Here's their website.

Posting resumes on Friday!

Quote of the Day

Via Possumblog:

[T]he heady tonic of graft to a politician is much like absinthe to a Bohemian wastrel. Or something. As for pork, I recommend Canfield's Diet Chocolate Fudge Pork Beverage, which is remarkably free of gristle.

Hold Up the Mirror

You know how the Democrats / lefties are forever lecturing conservatives, etc., on feminism and the proper way to treat women?

Yeah, right.

Not Today

Sorry, y'all, but it will be Thursday evening before I get back to blogging. I volunteered to do something Thursday day and won't be home until dinner time or maybe later.

In the meantime, the Tennessee Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling upholding the term limits passed by Shelby County voters. This is a tremendous victory for us. Although I oppose term limits on principle (every election is a potential term limit!), the voters of Shelby County in that election were remarkably clear in what they wanted. Kirk, Bolton and Bailey's suit to overturn was craven and self-serving. It's good to see them so thoroughly smacked down.

Anyway, more tomorrow, I promise.

Wednesday Slough

It's Wednesday, and so I won't be blogging until late tonight, if at all. Might be Thursday, although I have a thing that afternoon. I had hoped to squeeze something in this morning, but that's not happening.

Be good or be careful.

Campaign Season Spreads

I'm not the only one campaigning for a job in local media. Thaddeus Matthews has now thrown hit hat into the ring, offering to host a show on the local Air America affiliate, WWTQ, to rescue them from their ratings disaster.

It might be hard for him to get on the air while he's heading up Operation FedUp, the effort to recall Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton, but once the issue does or doesn't get on the ballot he's just another citizen.

He hasn't been on the air in a while, except calling in to other shows. I've caught him many times on the Andrew Clark Sr show on WREC AM600 (weekends, noon to 3PM).

He's fearless in ways Mike Fleming only dreams of, unafraid to make charges and uncover the secret. He makes friends and allies, but doesn't shill for anyone. That means he has a lot of enemies across the political spectrum. I'd love for him to be back on the air, and I'd certainly listen.

The question is, are there any local radio outlets with enough nerve to let him on the air? That's his problem. He stirs the pot, kicks over the table, states the unspeakable. He's dangerous to the status quo of Memphis politics.

Thaddeus is good news for you and me, trouble for the folks using your government to enrich themselves.

Spring Cleaning Still

[This is a repost. I wanna get rid of this stuff ASAP.]

It's spring cleaning time at Casa Dos Amigos. It's all gotta go:

1. Denon AVR-1403 Stereo Surround Receiver and Home Theater. Top of the line, like new. Work great. Handles 5.1 sound, DTS inputs, component video. With remote, lots of cables and manual. NOTE: requires 8 ohm speakers ONLY. (Specs here.) $200.

2. Pioneer CLD-M301 Laserdisc and 5 CD player. Got from neighbor, but powers up fine. (Specs here.) $25.00

3. Audiovox Soundshaper 90, 10-band graphic equaliser. Lightly used; like new. With manual. $25.00

4. Pioneer S-H235B-K, 6 ohm speakers. 100 Watts each. With manual. Insides perfect, but dusty. $50.00/pair.

5. Huffy Ocala "Classic beach edition" 6-speed cruiser bike. Frame, fenders and paint in excellent condition, but gearshift needs repair. Currently stuck in 6th gear. Derailleur is fine. Comes with new handle grips. $50.00

6. 6 foot plastic ficus; limbs & leaves need reshaping, but still in fine condition. Smells of incense and cigarettes even after cleaning! (Not mine, I promise.) Comes with ceramic "Chinese" koi-bowl planter with gold, black and terra-cotta colored floral Oriental design. $30.00

7. 30 gallon aquarium tank. Dirty inside and out. (It was a terrarium.) No cracks or leaks that I know of. 12 x 24 x 17 inches. $20.00

8. VHS tapes! All $2.00 each in excellent condition.
a. The Navigator (Vince Ward; time travel sci-fi. Really good!)
b. Blackadder season 1 (two tapes)
c. Punk Rock Movie (The original! Sex Pistols, Clash, Billy Idol)
d. Metropolis / Things to Come two-fer
e. Star Quest (low budget sci-fi; 1990; pretty good!)
f. Hannah and her Sisters (I know, I know. Let it go.)
g. Miracle Mile (End of the world, in LA)
h. Max Headroom (The American pilot version, IIRC)
i. Sex, Lies and Videotape (Steven Soderburgh)
j. Arise! (Church of the SubGenius indoctrination video. The Gospel of Slack. Trippy!)


I live in Midtown, near the Pig on Madison, just down from Sekisui. All sales cash. Offers entertained.

I also have boxes of mid-90's music magazines. Ben is Dead; Industrial Nation, Op, Option, Fizz, FactSheet Five, etc. Any interest? And three wooden cassette tape racks that hold 60 tapes each, plus dozens of mid-80's to early 90's punk, indie and alternative cassette tapes. Way too many to list, unless someone is seriously interested. Cheap bulk sale on them. All in excellent shape, very playable.

Possumblog!

Terry is a great guy who lives in Trussville, just outside of my former hometown of Birmingham, Alabama. He blogs about his life and adventures as Possumblog. He is also the founder / social director of the Axis of Weevil or, as it's sometimes called The Cotton State Quilting and Artillery Society, a group of bloggers who are for Alabama what the Rocky Top Brigade is to Tennessee.

You would think that blogging about his job, his family, his church and life in general might not be interesting, but you'd be very wrong. Terry is hilarious and wise. Trying to mow the lawn is high adventure; dealing with his teenaged daughter is Dostoiyevskian drama.

Go check out Possumblog. I'd bet it gets added to your daily feed.

Theogeo unleashes her inner editor on some former journalism colleagues with devastating results. She spares no punches:

So why do you suck so hard? Shouldn't you have mastered the most basic grammatical functions and newspaper conventions by now? If you have an experienced adviser and editor — both of whom have worked for "real" (non-student) outlets in the past — calling the shots, why, oh why, does the paper read like it was written by high schoolers? In special ed?

I'm sorry. I scold because I love. Sidelines meant so much to me and was such a formative experience, both in my career and my personal life. I met the career I like and the people I love at Sidelines. Why is Sidelines 2006 fucking up that positive connection for me?

I guess I thought that when Sidelines' new adviser blitzkrieged the staff with an outside "experienced" editor in chief to do her bidding, we would see less of the annoying mistakes the adviser complained so forcefully and persistently about. You know — typos; useless headlines; grammatical faux pas; cliches; yawnorific ledes; played-out columns that say nothing — those sorts of things. I assumed the adviser was going to be in the newsroom on BOTH production nights (ouch — it hurts me to type of such regression), pecking away at a keyboard, helping weed out the embarrassing crap that inexperienced writers manage to pass through inexperienced editors.

And then she gets down to specifics. Ouch.

In many ways, this is the textbook example of good blogging, combining passion, knowledge, experience and a deep concern for excellence. Well done!

Oops! Almost Forgot

[Welcome readers! You can learn more about my crusade by reading my announcement post, and the follow-up here. Thanks for stopping by. Feel free to use my campaign banner on your site, if you'd like to help!]

I haven't mentioned this lately, so here goes. I'm still interested in becoming the Commercial Appeal/s new Metro columnist, to replace the now-gone Wendi Thomas.

I'll work for less. I'm not pat or predictable. I have a large range of interests and an unending curiousity about things. I'm not too interested in status quos nor quid pro quos. I'm a conservative Libertarian and an atheist, so I'm guaranteed to provoke! Writing is what I like to do. I like to educate, inform and entertain folks.

It's a win-win situation for everyone. Even my Mom will be happy that I'm finally being paid for writing.

So c'mon Chris. Give it a go.

Gun Sense

AlphaPatriot looks at the Kansas concealed carry victory, a truly stupid comment by a deputy police chief, and the cold, reassuring facts of concealed carry. Here's an excerpt:

And why do people think that putting a gun in a cop's hand is fine because they have half a college degree (54 hours, unless waived in lieu of military service) and went to an academy for 20 weeks, but putting a gun into the hand of an otherwise normal person will endanger everyone around them because they might "get mad" and suddenly start shooting?

And so I ask them, when was the last time that they were so angry at someone that, had they had a gun in their belt, they would have drawn and fired, killing that person. And when they say that they couldn't imagine being that angry, I ask them what it is about me that makes them think that I am so different from them.

I'm not, nor are the other millions of permit holders across this nation. Which is why, of the 1.1 million licenses issued in the last 19 years in Florida, only 2,976 of them have been revoked because of a crime. Basic math tells us that only 0.27 percent of carry permit holders end up committing a crime. Hmmm, I wonder how that compares to the crime rate of those who wear blue?

There are hyperlinks in that quote, but you'll have to read the post to get them.

I find myself in a strange position on this issue. I've never owned a gun, and only fired a couple in my lifetime. Given my neighborhood, I've considered buying one in recent years, but I always decide not to.

In small part because I suffer from depression. The deepest and scariest kind is years behind me now, but I still get to places where I can't remember what it's all for. It's probably better not to have such a dangerous tool like a gun at hand for me.

Although I have a kitchen full of very sharp knives.... Hmmm. Should I get rid of those too? What's the difference? I know where and how to cut so that I'll bleed out before an ambulance arrives. What's the difference here?

[Later insertion: Do not fear. I am not suicidal, OK? Nor morbid. Just talking about something I haven't really talked about here before. Again, fear not.]

I also worry about what kind of gun is a good trade off between stopping power and not firing missed shots through my floor into the first floor apartment below or through the thin walls into the neighbors next door. They have a young son.

I have no moral qualms about shooting an intruder, especially an armed one. None. But I do worry about the legal problems to follow. If I injure but do not kill the intruder will he sue me back?

Anyway, I don't exercise my 2nd Amendment rights, but I fully back them. It's true: an armed society is a polite society. We the people did not cede to the police our right to self-protection. They can't do it, certainly not in today's litigious and rights-sensitive world. I don't accept that I'm supposed to surrender my self-protection to them for my own good. It is what it has always been -- my job to take care of myself.

And I don't appreciate control-freak cops who want an unarmed society in order to make their jobs easier. There are other ways to do that. Like neighborhood policing, not approaching every civilian like they are a problem to be dealt with. Like de-criminalising a lot of stuff that should be handled by other parts of society -- like drugs and drug abuse. Like seeing citizens as allies instead of herds.

Anyway, read Alpha's post. It's very good.

Combat Barbie

She's 20, blonde hair and blue eyes, five foot ten inches, cute and just earned her Combat Action Badge in Iraq for laying down suppresive fire with her turret-mounted .50 caliber machine gun.

Way to go, Corporal Krista Bullard!

Quote For the Day

A nicely mangled bit of automobile instruction manual Engrish via Jay Leno:

Give big space to the festive dog that makes sport in roadway. Avoid entanglement of dog with wheel spokes.

What a Novel Idea

Via Blogging For Bryant comes this link to a Friday editorial on out-of-state campaign money, which say in part:

In our Wednesday edition, our cover story focused on the out-of-state money flowing freely to Congressman Harold Ford Jr.’s campaign for Tennessee’s open U.S. Senate seat.

Predictably, Ford and Tennessee Democratic Party leaders downplayed his campaign’s prowess at raising out-of-state funds with the aid of famous movie stars and musicians. Republicans found the practice suspect.

It is equally predictable that if the shoe were on the other foot, their positions would be reversed.

Quite true. But then they go on to say:

We urge our readers to pay closer attention to the issue of campaign funding this election year, and we pledge to provide coverage that will help them stay informed on this front.

A newspaper pledging to inform its readers on difficult to research issues that are vital to them! What a great idea. Wouldn't you like to see some of that here, too?

The editorial mentions a story about Ford's campaign finances that, in typical alt-weekly web fashion, isn't online yet. They wait a few days for the paper version to run its course before moving stories to free web viewing (and where the ads they sell aren't). But I'll keep tabs on it and when the story appears I'll link it for ya!

Lileks on Downtowns

From today's Bleat:

Outside the theater: trash. Across the street, where once a restaurant and a “New York Style” pizza restaurant stood: empty store fronts. In many of Block E’s ground-floor windows, pictures of people having fun. Presumably they were having fun elsewhere, since windows with pictures means an empty store front on the other side of the glass. Down the block, the unforgiveable concrete carbuncle of the Skyway Movie Theater, a 70s excrescence that now houses some dance clubs. Next to it, the old Musicland store – vacated four years ago, never filled; on the other side, the slender terra-cotta façade of the Teener’s Theatrical Supply House, recently vacated.

It looks bad. It feels bad.

It’s not permanent. A few new restaurants are coming in; if the disputes are every between over the Skyway’s owners, something new will happen on the spot – the uncertainty is what keeps the other places vacant, I think. (I hope.) But it’s a hard patch for Hennepin. I remember worse – far worse. But it reminds me that pulling for downtown – any downtown in a medium-sized city – sometimes feels like a luxury, a hobbyhorse, a game for nostalgia junkies who believe in some alchemic formula that will bring it all back to life. Sure, it was indispensable once; sure, everyone went downtown. Yes, this was the heart of the town, the big parade, the place where you got your first Sunday suit, got your teeth drilled, had an ice cream with mom in the department store, saw a lawyer, got drunk, met a girl, caught a movie in the balcony on a summer afternoon. This was it, brother.

But it isn’t anymore.

Memphis is a Code Word

I am proud to live in Memphis and call it home. Not ashamed to tell people that, either. But did you know that Harold Ford Jr considers "I'm from Memphis" to be racist code?

According to the Blogging for Bryant blog, Ford said that on Chris Matthew's Hardball program. BfB has a longer excerpt, but here's the money shot:

Ford: "...And my opponents are already trying to raise it. I mean, shame on the state Republican Party and the national party for some of the code words they're already using in this campaign."

Matthews: "Like what?"

Ford: "Just that I'm from Memphis and I'm a liberal from Memphis."

Just so you know.

Herman Morris, Mayor?

Thaddeus Matthews asks if former MLG&W CEO Herman Morris should be the next mayor of Memphis, after Herenton is booted out in the recall. He links to a very short bio.

I think he'd be a fine mayor and I'd support him if he decided to pursue it. What do you think?

A Kick in the Teeth After the Beating

Proving no horse is too dead to beat, the Commercial Appeal once agains goes after West Tennessee Republicans over James Hart (see below).

Is there any point to this editorial? Nope, except to wave red meat before Memphis' black community. They basically tell the Republicans to make sure they "distance" themselves appropriately from Hart but don't give any indicator of how or how far, or what steps are needed nor what constitutes sufficient distancing.

It's just yet another (third time now) whack from the smug partisans at the CA.

INSTANT UPDATE: Browsing a bit more in the CA's recent stories produced two more stories on this in as many days! (here and here.) Each is nothing more than an incremental update larded up with lots of lurid descriptions of the odious Hart and his views. Anything to get yet another story connecting Hart, eugenics, censorship and Republicans into print.

Current count: four stories and one editorial; four of them in one week. Why the urgency and the doggedness? You can guess.