Tag: stupid is as stupid does

First, the poem by Robert Frost, then some comments in the extended portion of the post. Hang on, folks, cos this one takes a few twists and turns, ‘K?

Mending Wall

Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,
That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it,
And spills the upper boulders in the sun,
And makes gaps even two can pass abreast.
The work of hunters is another thing:
I have come after them and made repair
Where they have left not one stone on a stone,
But they would have the rabbit out of hiding,
To please the yelping dogs. The gaps I mean,
No one has seen them made or heard them made,
But at spring mending-time we find them there.
I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;
And on a day we meet to walk the line
And set the wall between us once again.
…

He only says, ‘Good fences make good neighbors’.
Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder
If I could put a notion in his head:
‘Why do they make good neighbors? Isn’t it
Where there are cows?
But here there are no cows.
Before I built a wall I’d ask to know
What I was walling in or walling out,
And to whom I was like to give offence.
Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,
That wants it down.’ I could say ‘Elves’ to him,
But it’s not elves exactly, and I’d rather
He said it for himself. I see him there
Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top
In each hand, like an old-stone savage armed.
He moves in darkness as it seems to me~
Not of woods only and the shade of trees.
He will not go behind his father’s saying,
And he likes having thought of it so well
He says again, “Good fences make good neighbors.”

Continue reading “Mending Walls”

This is an Open Trackback Alliance post for Friday, Saturday and Sunday–open all weekend long. Link to this post and track back. See more info below the mini-rant.

---

In a WSJ/OpinionJournal piece, “Educating From the Bench” we find these lil mals mots *heh* The lede:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.–Spending on public schools nationwide has skyrocketed to $536 billion as of the 2004 school year, or more than $10,000 per pupil. That’s more than double per pupil what we spent three decades ago, adjusted for inflation–and more than we currently spend on national defense ($494 billion as of 2005).

Imagine that. “Adjusted for inflation”–more than double the expenditure per pupil than thirty years ago.

Is anyone prepared to argue that the results are students who are twice as well-educated? Anyone, I mean, apart from a complete idiot. And is there anyone who can reasonably argue that, since more than doubling the expenditure per pupil–remember, adjusted for inflation–has resulted in LESS literate, LESS capable students, that we should spend our way out of the education mess we are in by throwing more good money after bad money?

Well, the idiots in the courts are saying exactly that:

In 2001 the [Arkansas] state Supreme Court declared the amount of money spent at that time–more than $7,000 per pupil–in violation of the state constitutional requirement to provide a “general, suitable and efficient” system of public education.

And just who did the court there (as courts elsewhere have done) hire as “outside consultants” to determine what should be spent?

A firm led by two education professors, Lawrence Picus and Allan Odden, was paid $350,000 to put a price tag on what would be considered adequate.

Talk about setting the foxes to guard the henhouse! If “education professors” were competent to “fix” the problems they have largely been responsible for creating, then they’d not be education professors but professors of something useful, like physics or chemistry or math or (non-post-postmodern deconstructionist/non-feminist, etc.) professors of history or English literature (who had actually read, you know, real English literature or real history, such as Shakespeare or Johnson or Macaulay or Herodotus or…you get the drift) instead of pseudo-babble for the lowest common denominator.

A pox on all their houses: judges, education professors, administrators all.

And a special curse for parents who let themselves be scammed out of an education for their children because they are too stupid, lazy or uncaring to demand better: may your children grow up to an awareness of just how horribly you have let them be cheated.

---

As I said, this is an open trackback post. Link to this post and track back. Hit me with your best shot.

Also note the other fine blogs featuring linkfests at Linkfest Haven.

Going an extra mile with Blue Star Chronicles

From Stop the ACLU, a little newsbreak:

A professor and six students at Northern Kentucky University were charged Wednesday with misdemeanors related to the April 12 destruction of an anti-abortion display on campus.

Read the rest at the link. My thoughts immediately sprang to developing tactics to elicit more charges against moonbats…

Purchase a few Mexican flags. Burn them in a demonstration against *reconquistas* (after all, if leftists think _Americans_ burning an American flag on American soil is OK, what’s the problem with burning the flag of a country whose government is actively aiding and abetting in criminal invasion of our soil?)

Build a “fence” separating “Mexico” and “the U.S.” for a campus demonstration against *reconquistas*. Include life-sized depictions of deportations, etc.

Publish and distribute leaflets showing what happens in late-term abortions. Distribute them at a college pro-life rally. etc.

Keep plenty of “film crews” on hand to show how moonbats react. Use the video to bring charges for assault, etc.

Could be fun. Of course, it wouldn’t fly here in America’s Third World Countyâ„¢. *heh* In America’s Third World Countyâ„¢ we’d be hard-pressed to find any leftists at all (outside the school system or the one state social services agency), and none that are willing to swim upstream in public. Absolutely none who would become violent or attempt theft at a pro-right rally of any sort.

Cos the rest of us are armed.

Love that 2nd amendment.

Manning the barricades at Freedom Watch, Blue Star Chronicles and TMH’s Bacon Bits

(No, not the Swiftian proposal.)

Since it looks more and more as though the President and our wonderful congrescritters have no desire to actually control our borders or enforce the laws of the land where invaders are concerned (only where they can selectively enforce laws against American subjects, since apprently we are no longer citizens), perhaps it’s time as many of us as can hilight the feebs’ distaste for enforcing the laws against piecemeal invasion by a foreign nation (does anyone doubt the Mexican government encourages and aids the invaders from its country?) already on the books.

(Long enough sentence for ya? :-))

Some citizens (well, at least they are acting like citizens, not subjects of a political elite) are attempting to address the problem in a substantive way, apparently. The Border Fence Project is an attempt

To patch and extend U.S.-Mexico border fence along all 1952 miles of southern border using high-tech TV cameras, microphones, lighting, motion and other electronic sensors, with voluntary civilian labor, donations, private border-ranch fencing profits, and maintenance teams, for less than $2.50 per foot or $23 million

More power (and donations) to ’em. But that’s only half the problem. We also need to get the illegals, the invaders, OUT. You can help there, too.

1.) If you know of any business employing “undocumented workers” drop a dime on ’em. Seriously. Report ’em to local authorities, the INS and the U.S. Attorney’s office for your district.
2.) If arrests aren’t made, follow up with letters to your area newspapers and to your local/area AND various national news outlets detailing the issue and the lack of response by authorities.
3.) Follow up with contacts with local, state and national political critters, preferably with signed petitions demanding the arrest and prosecution of law enforcement officers who failed to enforce the laws.

Make a stink. Make noise.

My bet, though, is that no matter how much of a noisy stink you attempt, LEOs, Mass Media Podpeople, Political Poltroons will one and all sweep the thing under the rug and not a ripple will surface to rock the open borders/reconquistas boat. (Like the mixed metaphor? It’s what metas are for, IMO.)

*sigh*

h.t. on the fence project thing to Code Red.

A “reprint” from John Stephenson this week.

---

Many of us find it disturbing to hear the sympathetic apologists defend the ACLU’s work to protect pedophiles over our children. We watch the ACLU fight for sex offenders to live next to Elementary schools, and playgrounds. We watched in horror as the ACLU defended NAMBLA, under the banner of free speech, to plan and talk about how to rape young boys. It doubles the anger to hear the apologists defend the ACLU with some twisted talk perverting the Constitution.

Continue reading “Stop the ACLU”

Update: feel free to call 202-456-1111 (the White house comment line) and quote any or all of this post, or simply make your own statement of concern/disappointment.

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.

I was not certain that Iraq was the right war at the right time when that adventure began. I had even graver doubts about the wisdom of the Administration’s prosecution of that adventure when Bremmer began botching the victory won, nevertheless, I have remained a supporter of President Bush and even of the Iraq adventure, because I could see where things could work out to our advantage. And indeed, things are lately going pretty much for the better there.

But the rest of the Global War on Terrorism (I steadfastly refuse to use the hideous term “War on Terror” to refer to anything at all—black mark on the Administration for using that abortion of the English language. *heh*) is being poorly prosecuted at best. The Saudis’ feet are scarcely being held to the fire they have stoked; the TSA (and indeed much of the “Homeland Security”-related bureaucracy) is a mess at best and horrible infriongment on a free peoples’ rights at worst; the failure to clearly state the message that our true enemy IS Islam—all are among the many failures of the Bush Administration, and President Bush personally.

Nevertheless, I have steadfastly supported both the president and his policies because they have at least, for the most part, been better than the alternatives.

But his complete surrender to the reconquistadores is the straw now breaking this camel’s back. It’s just one thing too much. The Bush Administration’s committment to NOT actively pursue enforcing our borders and the laws on the books renders it illegitimate. He and his administration have broken faith with the American citizenry, he has voided his pledge to uphold the Constitution and the laws of the land and he has abandoned all principle in the face of political correctness.

And he has shown complete incompetence in so doing.

Heck, simply enforcing laws against the hiring of illegal aliens alone would “deport” millions of illegals over the next few years. If at the same time, his administration actively protected and enforced our borders, the tide would soon turn.

And that’s with no new laws, no extraordinary measures.

Instead, he thumbs his nose at the majority of Americans who KNOW our porous borders are a national security risk. He mouths instead foolish, and patently false, proclamations that we cannot deport the millions of illegals who are already here, and he cedes our sovereignty to (largely) Mexican citizens whose own country does rigidly protect its own borders.

Heck, if Mexico can (and it does) rigidly enforce its own borders, President Bush NOT doing so here is an admission of defeat. Might as well cede the U.S. to Mexico.

(image from Rumormillnews)

Entonces podríamos todos aprender español, eh?

Update: feel free to call 202-456-1111 (the White house comment line) and quote any or all of this post, or simply make your own statement of concern/disappointment.

Nailing this thesis to the Conservative Cat’s door and at Diane’s Stuff.

Look, spyware, viruses, worms and trojans are bad enough, but paying money for software to protect against these things and finding out the software is crap can be even worse.

Recently, I found another anti-spyware product that I feel fits the category of crapware. Now, keep in mind, the software I’m about to opine about is “highly rated” by some computer mags. Maybe that ought to tell you something about computer mags, as well…

I subscribe to a lot of computer newsletters, RSS feeds from comp mags, etc. Some are better than others. Brian Livingston, for example, has one of the best Windows-related newsletters out there, one that is about as transparent as you can get when it comes to his process of arriving at recommendations, etc.

Others are not so transparent. Sometimes it takes a while to weasel out the financial incentives a newsletter or mag may have for handing out a recommendation for a product, often a product not worth recommending.

Such a product, IMO, is Spyware Doctor. It advertises (often in a thinly-disguised “review-ad” that does little more than parrot company propaganda) all over the web, including in so-called newsletter “reviews.” as offering a free download and scan for spyware.

I’ve tried this piece of crap out and here’s what happened: it scanned my computer and found 16 spyware problems. Oh, my! Not good. Except… each of the problems it found were false positives. Each and every “problem” was related a legitimate, spyware-free piece of software. Not one legitimate problem was discovered, although one was labeled a “high risk” (yep: it was a legitimate piece of software).

After delivering the alarming news, the software offered to rid me of these legitimate pieces of software if I would only pay to register it.

Now, how many folks do you think fall for this? Naive users who download, scan, discover “problems” (some of which could potentially be legitimate problems on some users’ computers), PAY for the license and then “clean” their computers of legitimate programs?

Enough to keep the software available.

My advice? If you MUST try these things, first do an anti-spyware scan with Spybot Search and Destroy, Adaware (the real one from lavasoftusa.com) and even Microsoft Anti-Spyware. With that as a baseline,

1.) Create a Restore Point
2.) Download the software you want to try and SCAN IT with an up-to-date anti-virus (heck, scan it with another anti-spyware product before and after installation, too)
3.) Perform a scan, and when it returns results, don’t just accept its identification of problems
a.) copy the file names listed
b.) search the web using your fav search engine for
references to that file name
c.) note all the characteristics of the file listed in your
web search and compare to the files as found on
your computer

You may discover, as I did, that the “problems” found are false positives (or simply fake problems to get you to buy the product?).

BTW, even legitimate anti-virus software can register some false positives, although I’ve found the problem to be most prevalent with Microsoft’s Anti-spyware software (it keeps insisting, for example, that VNC is spyware. Go figure. Maybe M$ should take it up with Bell Labs. *heh*).

Noted at Bacon Break — those bastards!

“Every new sweeping tax law Congress enacts — always called a ‘reform’ — makes the job even more complicated and, if possible, more confusing. And the tax code longer. But we’re all supposed to swear, on penalty of perjury, that we’ve done our best to find it… Is tax reform the answer? It’s more like the problem, since every reform tends to complicate tax law only more. And the longer and worse the tax code gets, the less chance there is of really reforming the thing. What to do? Don’t mend it, end it. Abolish the tax code and start all over. Think about it: Would anybody starting from scratch come up with a system as indecipherable and counterproductive as the one we’ve got? So why not opt for a clean break with the past? Abolish the Internal Revenue Code and begin anew.” —Paul Greenberg

“[The tax code] is a monstrosity and there’s only one thing to do with it. Scrap it, kill it, drive a stake through its heart, bury it and hope it never rises again to terrorize the American people.” -Steve Forbes

I can think of not one single person who thinks that the income tax is not broken. As Paul Greenberg asks above, “Would anyone starting from scratch come up with a system as indecipherable and counterproductive as the one we’ve got?” Not hardly. The only question is, what do we replace it with? This week we’re going to keep it short and simple, because you have a homework assignment.

We can argue till the cows come home about the relative benefits of the Fair Tax, the Flat Tax, and the Income Tax (are there benefits to the Income Tax?), but “the proof is in the pudding”, as they say.

Please take the time you might spend reading a longer post, and visit The FairTax Calculator. There are eight (8) fields to complete, you’ll probably need your income tax return and a current paycheck for yourself and your spouse (if you’re married). After doing that, click “Submit” to get your results. Don’t forget to read the note at the bottom of the screen regarding your FICA (Social Security) taxes!

Then comment on this blog regarding the results. Would you like to see the FairTax implemented? I’m betting the answer will be a resounding Yes!

This is Wednesday’s Open Trackback Alliance post. Link to this post and track back. See more info at the foot of this post.

---

Seen the article, “Meeting Doctor Doom,” in The Citizen Scientist? It’s no real surprise that radical greens hold the views described there, but that the person described recieved an award as 2006 Distinguished Texas Scientist from the Texas Academy of Science at the meeting where he gave the speech reminded me of the vast chasm that sometimes seems to lie between the current crop of “Academia Nuts” and most other folks…

“…But there was a gravely disturbing side to that otherwise scientifically significant meeting, for I watched in amazement as a few hundred members of the Texas Academy of Science rose to their feet and gave a standing ovation to a speech that enthusiastically advocated the elimination of 90 percent of Earth’s population by airborne Ebola. The speech was given by Dr. Eric R. Pianka, the University of Texas evolutionary ecologist and lizard expert who the Academy named the 2006 Distinguished Texas Scientist….”

You really must read DL’s post about this at TMH’s Bacon Bits, if you have not already.

---

Also note the other fine blogs featuring linkfests at Linkfest Haven.

This is an open trackbacks post. Link to this post and track back. More below.

Well, maybe there’s some hope for 2008 after all…

Here it is 2006 and Hillary Clintoon is already practicing her “Jean Fraud sKerry Weathervane” technique. It worked soooo well for sKerry in 2004 that I hope she hangs on to this technique.

Her latest? a totally disingenuousm high-deniability-factor flip-flop from an assertion that Jesus wouldn’t treat these poor, downtrodden ‘undocumented workers’ so shamefully as to actually, you know, like expect them to enter the country legally to—now—a stance that we should build a “fence” to keep them out.

Hmmm, does she really not want the illegal alien vote?

Here’s the tricky dicky twist where she learned a bit from sKerry’s fence-straddling and wind-twirling: she doesn’t want a real fence, just a virtual one (talk about irony: a Clintoon talking about anything that has even a tenuous connection to the word “virtue”).

So much for the much-vaunted Billary Clintoon political savvy. Fence-straddling and weathervaning worked soooo well for sKerry in 2004, didn’t it? Of course, outright lies (where are the records, Jean Fraud?) are still in the Billary Clintoon political bag of tricks, but s/he can only fool nearly half the people with those.

As I said, this is an open post. Link here and track back. And do check out the other linkfests listed at