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Poetry to Contemplate As We Pray For Our Country

Posted by Chris on Friday, September 26, 2008 1:22:24 PM
Now would be a good time to pray for our country and for our leaders.  After we do that, we might do well to contemplate this poem by Rudyard Kipling about the types of wisdom offered alternately by the copybook headings that (in his day) were used as worthy sayings to be copied down by school children as handwriting practice, and that of the marketplace. (Thanks to National Review Online for pointing out this poem.)
 
As I pass through my incarnations in every age and race,
I make my proper prostrations to the Gods of the Market Place.
Peering through reverent fingers I watch them flourish and fall,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings, I notice, outlast them all.

We were living in trees when they met us. They showed us each in turn
That Water would certainly wet us, as Fire would certainly burn:
But we found them lacking in Uplift, Vision and Breadth of Mind,
So we left them to teach the Gorillas while we followed the March of Mankind.

We moved as the Spirit listed. They never altered their pace,
Being neither cloud nor wind-borne like the Gods of the Market Place;
But they always caught up with our progress, and presently word would come
That a tribe had been wiped off its icefield, or the lights had gone out in Rome.

With the Hopes that our World is built on they were utterly out of touch,
They denied that the Moon was Stilton; they denied she was even Dutch;
They denied that Wishes were Horses; they denied that a Pig had Wings;
So we worshipped the Gods of the Market Who promised these beautiful things.

When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "Stick to the Devil you know."

On the first Feminian Sandstones we were promised the Fuller Life
(Which started by loving our neighbour and ended by loving his wife)
Till our women had no more children and the men lost reason and faith,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "The Wages of Sin is Death."

In the Carboniferous Epoch we were promised abundance for all,
By robbing selected Peter to pay for collective Paul;
But, though we had plenty of money, there was nothing our money could buy,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "If you don't work you die."

Then the Gods of the Market tumbled, and their smooth-tongued wizards withdrew
And the hearts of the meanest were humbled and began to believe it was true
That All is not Gold that Glitters, and Two and Two make Four —
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings limped up to explain it once more.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As it will be in the future, it was at the birth of Man —
There are only four things certain since Social Progress began: —
That the Dog returns to his Vomit and the Sow returns to her Mire,
And the burnt Fool's bandaged finger goes wabbling back to the Fire;

And that after this is accomplished, and the brave new world begins
When all men are paid for existing and no man must pay for his sins,
As surely as Water will wet us, as surely as Fire will burn,
The Gods of the Copybook Headings with terror and slaughter return!
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The Jawa Report, Astroturfing, and The Chicago Way?

Posted by Chris on Tuesday, September 23, 2008 4:52:07 PM
 
The Jawa Report, which apparently usually specializes in bringing Jihadist websites to light, has done investigative work that suggests connections between David Axelrod, Obama's media strategist, and an "Astroturf" campaign on Youtube (to make a long story short, Astroturfing is the creation of a fake grassroots movement produced by professionals and/or propaganda specialists) making false allegations against Sarah Palin that she was a member of the Alaskan Independence Party. Unless they did this on their own time and not in Obama's pay - the plausibility of which is in doubt - they may have violated campaign laws.  In any case, it seems they have knowingly distributed false information to the public to get Obama elected.  Here's the link to the website. You have to scroll down a ways to get to the evidence.
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Good Wishes to You

Posted by Chris on Wednesday, September 17, 2008 10:29:39 PM
I take a short break on this post for some non-partisan good wishes. It does us all good to come up for air once in a while.
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They've Got It Wrong

Posted by Chris on Monday, September 15, 2008 12:50:55 PM
Salon's Gary Kamiya writes,"The culture war is driven by resentment, on the one hand, and crude identification, on the other. Resentment of "elites," "Washington insiders" and overeducated coastal snobs goes hand in hand with an unreflective, emotional identification with candidates who "are just like me." ... It’s terrifying that so many Americans are so driven by resentment that they will vote against more qualified candidates simply because they seem “different” from them."  Like so many on the left, Mr. Kamiya has made a silly mistake. He cannot or will not come to grips with the fact that conservatives have seen the left's cultural ideas, and think they are wrong.
WRONG. 
 
Not just "not like me." Wrong. In many cases, self-evidently wrong. But many on the left cannot believe that truly thinking, reflective people would be conservative except by "resentment, on the one hand, and crude identification on the other". 
 
I won't even bother to address the irony of someone on the left accusing conservatives of playing identity politics.
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A Clash of Civilizations in This Election - Good Article

Posted by Chris on Friday, September 12, 2008 1:32:02 PM
Found this article by Roger Kimball from a link in a Mark Steyn article:
 
"She [Sarah Palin] represents the promise of civilizational renewal, not by the extension of socialism and the embrace of the effete values of multiculturalism–what we might call the Europeanization of America–but by fostering more robust, more elemental values. Of course, the same things about Sarah Palin that have sparked admiration and enthusiasm in one part of the American public have sparked contempt, dread, and outrage in the segment epitomized by The New York Times and what Bill Buckley summed up in the name “Harvard.” They want America to become more like Europe, they endorse the values of multiculturalism and political correctness.
 
There is, said Adam Smith, a “deal of ruin in a nation.” Many people, I suspect, believe that the legacy of multiculturalism and political correctness–the legacy, in a word, of 1960s radicalism–has inflicted grievous ruin upon this country. One party embraces that ruin as our destiny. John McCain and Sarah Palin reject it as tantamount to moral betrayal. This election really is shaping up as a clash of civilizations. No wonder its skirmishes have been so bitter. They are likely to become even more heated as more and more people awaken to the nature of the choice that confronts us.There is, said Adam Smith, a “deal of ruin in a nation.” Many people, I suspect, believe that the legacy of multiculturalism and political correctness–the legacy, in a word, of 1960s radicalism–has inflicted grievous ruin upon this country. One party embraces that ruin as our destiny. John McCain and Sarah Palin reject it as tantamount to moral betrayal. This election really is shaping up as a clash of civilizations. No wonder its skirmishes have been so bitter. They are likely to become even more heated as more and more people awaken to the nature of the choice that confronts us."
 
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"Lipstick on a Pig": Sarah, Please Don't Ask for an Apology

Posted by Chris on Thursday, September 11, 2008 2:21:36 AM

With great respect to Townhall authors and my fellow conservatives:

An article on the main blog page a few hours ago said that Obama was "...defending his slam at Sarah Palin as a pig by denying that's what he meant, though everyone in his audience and across the country instantly knew that is exactly what he meant." 

Actually, there are some notable exceptions, including Dennis Prager, Bill O'Reilly, John Kasich, and Dennis Miller, who have all gone on record saying they don't believe that's what he meant. Further, Ramesh Ponnuru and Kathryn Jean Lopez over at National Review are blogging on The Corner about how the McCain camp is messing up the response. Here's Ponnuru:

"... there may have been good ways to take shots at Obama over the "lipstick on a pig" comment. But the Republicans are coming across as whiny grievance-mongers. Don't they realize that this harping on ambiguous slights is what people hate about political correctness? It was bad enough when liberals were trying to destroy Palin. Now Republicans are trashing her brand. They're undermining the basis of her appeal as a different, tougher kind of female politician. Today has been worse than wasted."

And here's Lopez:

"I said earlier to a colleague or two that I had this awkward feeling earlier today, the kind of feeling I had when George Allen's campaign started attacking Jim Webb for writings against women in combat. We, of course, agreed with most of what he had written on the issue. For a conservative to start crying sexism was ridiculous. Please don't follow that lead, McCain-Palin 2008. I'm heartened, as I noted in my piece today, that Palin hasn't taken up the sexism whine herself. Based on her past comments, I don't imagine she will. And I'd like to believe she cringed, too, when she watched the "lipstick" ad. "

Dick Morris also thinks Palin ought to just dismiss it with a clever comment and a smile.

So evidently I (along with Hollywood and Stephen) am not alone in thinking this is a not an issue on which we should keep pounding away. The response from the right is sounding too much like the left. Just my two cents.

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For the Record, re "Lipstick on a pig"

Posted by Chris on Wednesday, September 10, 2008 3:19:31 PM
I'm concerned by this rush to judgement that many of my fellow conservatives are making concerning Obama's "lipstick on a pig" comment. I don't buy this stuff about how he was calling Palin a pig. An unfortunate choice of words? Sure. But this enormous focus of attention on the debatable intentions of Obama in making this remark make us look petty, and may backfire on us. It bears at least some resemblance to the silly fixations and weak arguments that are found on the Daily Kos. In this case, I agree with Barack Obama: enough already. Let's move on to the real issues.
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Mercy, Wisdom, and/or Sic Semper Tyrannis

Posted by Chris on Tuesday, September 09, 2008 7:39:23 PM

Kim Jong Il is reportedly not to be seen at public events in North Korea, and may have suffered a stroke, according to the Wall Street Journal. Normally, I pray for those who are ill when I hear about it.  But is it right to do so, when his continued existence on this mortal coil presumably perpetuates his nuclearized, Mao-inspired, Camp Whack-A-Boy* regime that tyrannizes and terrorizes its own people without even a competent pretense of benevolent intent (to say nothing of its troublesome fiddling with nuclear weapons)?  It’s an exercise in charity and good judgment to figure out if/how to pray for him, but considerably easier than it would have been had I suffered directly at the hands of his goose-stepping lackeys (and yes, they really do goose-step, though over sadly cracked and dilapidated pavement thanks to his ruinous economic policies). If he does expire, I expect the world will not miss him much.

 

*This reference may be a little obscure for most people. Camp Whack-A-Boy was the summer camp attended by the comic book character Renfrew, Jerry Lewis’ nephew in the Jerry Lewis comic series published by DC in the late 1960’s or early 1970’s.  It was run by a sadistic German military officer with an eye patch and a dueling scar, along with his former soldiers. The camp featured alligator-infested moats, barbed wire fences, guards with machine guns, and the like.  Jerry was somehow oblivious to the camp’s less attractive features. Unlike North Korea, the comic was pretty funny at times. By the way, "Sic Semper Tyrannis", the motto of the State of Virginia, is Latin for "Thus ever to tyrants".

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CNN Turns a Blind Eye

Posted by Chris on Monday, September 08, 2008 2:56:46 PM
I watched "Obama Revealed", CNN's hour-long profile of Obama's life and political career.  Care to guess how much time was spent on William Ayers, Obama's bomb-maker terrorist associate who still refuses to sing the "I'm Very Sorry" song?
 
Zero.
 
There was not one mention of this connection.  "Obama Revealed" or "Obama Suppressed"?
 
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An Appeal to My Friends on the Fence

Posted by Chris on Friday, September 05, 2008 4:12:25 PM
Joe Klein has an article on the Newsweek website taking umbrage at Giuliani's and Palin's "community organizer" shots at Obama, and tries to portray Obama's work as a mission of Christian mercy to the poor of Chicago.  Well, maybe in Obama's mind, it was. We can't judge his heart. But several red flags came to mind as I read Klein's article. ACORN. The Gamaliel project. The radical-sounding, "liberation theology"-preaching Catholic priest, Fleger (not sure of the spelling) who starred in the follow-up scandal at the same pulpit where Jeremiah Wright had featured so prominently in the weeks before. I don't have time to write more just yet, but I'm going to look more closely into this. (These men of the cloth, thank God, may well be my brothers in Christ (I certainly hope so). And concern for the downtrodden is certainly scriptural. But their thinking has gone ker-plooey, concentrating on one aspect of truth to the detriment of the whole, lacking in context. They may well be more charitable than I. But they're also nutty. May God bless them, and keep them far from anywhere that they can do damage.)
 
So far, Obama is connected to the following: Wright, Fleger, Ayers, Dohrn, ACORN, Gamaliel (these last two are far-left organizations; ACORN is quite pushy and has been nailed several times for illegal and/or corrupt activities, and Gamaliel was described in the latest issue of National Review as a "stealth" lefty network that avoids the hippie clothing and PC buzzwords in order to quietly push a leftist agenda.)  Given the company he chooses - people he describes as mentors (Wright) and respected community leaders (Ayers, the bomb-maker terrorist) - can you imagine the types of justices Obama would appoint to the Supreme Court?
 
Run, my friends. Escape. I've been in the company of "community organizers" of the type Obama seems to be.  Great compassion, but with rational faculties clouded by preconcieved ideologies and an inability to see the long-term self-sabotage their agenda would produce on their desired ends. Let them teach us compassion, if that's their gift, but not political philosophy. Am I wrong? Tell me why. I'd like to know.
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The Press

Posted by Chris on Thursday, September 04, 2008 1:41:47 PM
Some of the press are complaining that the country is in a sad state if they have to watch everything they say about Palin and are afraid to do any investigative reporting. This sounds reasonable on the face of it...until we reflect on the continuing refusal of the MSM to focus significant attention on Obama's ties to radicals and terrorists. So when are we going to see some real questioning of Obama?  I'm not a diehard Bill O'Reilly fan, but I hope he'll press this point in his interview with Obama tonight.
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Outta the Park

Posted by Chris on Thursday, September 04, 2008 12:26:45 PM
You saw the speech. You don't need me to tell you about it. I had more fun watching Sarah Palin's two national speeches so far than any televised speech since Reagan called the Soviet Union the Evil Empire.
 
It's one thing when Chris Wallace on Fox News says the Democrats are in trouble (which seemed to make Brit Hume squirm. Maybe he thought it didn't look fair and balanced.) But Tom Brokaw on MSNBC said it, too. Something like, "If the Democrats don't have a plan for how to respond to this, they're in trouble."
 
Hugh Hewitt made a humorous observation: "Until yesterday the collective MSM sneer was that Palin was "Hello Kitty," reeling backwards under the pressure. Now she's Gorgo, smashing up the MSM's cars.  The dismayed punditry is pondering the "meanness" of her attacks and her lack of details on health care refom.  A complete triumph over the Beltway-Manhatan media elites, but they will of course regather in Mordor and try again next week."
 
In case you aren't familiar with the character, this is Gorgo:
 
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A Breath of Fresh Air

Posted by Chris on Wednesday, September 03, 2008 3:18:02 PM
Time for a breath of fresh air outside of the campaign. It's a beautiful warm day, the lark is on the wing, the snail is on the thorn, God's in His Heaven, and the future is not really dependent on who wins this election. Be thankful for your blessings and have a great day!
 
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Media Bias...

Posted by Chris on Wednesday, September 03, 2008 12:31:08 PM
...you think? The contrast between the puff piece on the top cover and the hit piece on the bottom couldn't be much clearer.
 


 
Got an opinion on this? Wondering whether this paragon of investigative journalism is going to balance its reporting with a cover story on the connections between Obama and William Ayers, the bomb-maker terrorist? Or Rezko, the convicted felon who helped Obama structure the deal he got on his house?
US Magazine
(212) 484-1616
Ask for the Editorial Department.
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Fred Thompson Scores!

Posted by Chris on Wednesday, September 03, 2008 12:25:09 AM
This continues to be the most interesting presidential election I can remember.  Fred Thompson's speech tonight was fabulous.  My favorite part was where he said that McCain and Palin would be able to stand up to "the angry left", particularly because I had just been remarking to my wife how some people on the far left seems to have let their rage untether them from their rational faculties. (Or did they become untethered first? That's an interesting question of cause and effect.) By the way, please don't think I'm engaging in ad hominem attacks. If you've never been shouted down by an angry leftist mob, as I have, for asking a genuine question aimed at finding common ground, you may not know just how unhinged and livid these people can be. The Angry Left - I'm going to remember that line.
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